#and and and i hate how they compared god to chloe's father as if their parents were anything alike

[thegroundhogdidit]

the most annoying part of lucifer on netflix is that he was literally right the whole time. i don't give a shit if the literal actual god was "just trying his best." lucifer was 100% right to be angry at god and in fact, i think everyone should've been downright pissed when they met him. ESPECIALLY linda. fuck her for real for telling him that his conflict with god was partially his fault. lucifer described an abusive father to her countless times and the second she met him she started fawning over him? fuck that. chloe should've punched god in the face

#lucifer tv #lucifer netflix #lucifer morningstar #linda martin #chloe decker #and and and i hate how they compared god to chloe's father as if their parents were anything alike #chloe's dad was a good man* (*but a cop) who just had some misguided notions on what would keep his daughter safe #lucifer's dad threw him into hell #they aren't comparable like. at all

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Wish come true - Adrien AUGreste Day 9+10

It took a while for this one to get written and I was a bit back and forth on letting Ameile get the ring just based on the reason for why Gabreil wanted to keep it. I never actually watched s4 and 5, just know from friends hatewatching, and I had assumed the rings had a bigger part in the story but so far, they just seem to be family heirlooms. But again, because it’s not cannon past s3, Felix actually has a relationship with his dad. Anyway, enjoy!

Friends

“Remind me never to do Student UN again.” Adrien said, dropping onto the deck of the Liberty.

It was the Saturday after their schools Model UN and while Adrien lucked out with Lila not participating, she was back in school and made it her mission to make his life difficult by being a nascence. it took the whole class playing shield to keep him from actually hurting her. Chloe surprisingly had been a huge help, giving her a dress down that honestly, was too good to describe. Obviously, the Mayor’s daughter hadn’t done a whole 180 but with most people remembering how her mother treated her and starting to give her the benefit of the doubt, she was coming out from her spoiled shell. She was still spoiled and self-centred, that was Chloe, but Adrien compared her to Cleo from Monster High. She cared and wanted people to know that, it just took a while for her to find the ways of showing it.

“No need to applaud, I’ve arrived!” Chloe announced, stepping onto the ship, stumbling when Sabrina tripped off the gangplank and crashed into her. Her best friend stuttered apologizes when she turned to glare but the blonde took a breath and asked if she was ok.

Baby steps, that’s what it was about.

“Look on the bright side, two days and a full party where we don’t have to deal with her.” Nino said. He was leaning against Alya’s legs as she sat on the stage with Marinette and Alix, still going over the story about the Miraculous and their secret society. She’d been even more into it when the news riel about the sudden return of the Temple, with a very familiar looking mark, ran.

“And even better,” Luka said, kneeling down next to Adrien, “You now have more free time and I’ve gotten ahead in assignments.”

Adrien smiled to himself. “I guess that is something worth celebrating. Other than actually pulling off the school’s first Student UN.”

“Oh my god. Chloe!” Alya called.

“I didn’t do anything!”

“No.” Alya got up, practically shoving her phone into Chloe’s face. “Did you know about this? that this was today?”

Chloe’s eyes widened. “Crap. I can’t believe I forgot. I didn’t think I’d forget.”

“What?”

“Lila’s mom disappeared a year ago.”

“Died.” Chloe corrected. “She died, I’m sure of it. she was really sick, dizzy spells, fainting, confined to her bed for days. I never liked Lila, but I liked her mom. I can’t believe I forgot.”

“It’s been a busy year, what with Hawkmoth and everything.” Sabrina said.

“Not to mention Lila suddenly showing up at school.” Marinette reminded. “I’m sure her mother knows you care.”

“She showed up at school?” Adrien asked.

“Lila was homeschooled. With her dad’s popularity, Emile didn’t want her being stared at. Not like she cared; she was always doing something to make a mess of things. She would be a clothing model for her dad for clothes for her age group and clearly, she loved the attention.” Chloe said. “it started small then, but she started lying to get her way. Emile would catch her a few times but she started to get better and then Emile got sick, so she hid better. All of a sudden, she walks into the classroom with this lie that her father hated that she was being locked away and wanted her to be normal and interact with the people who bought his clothes.”

“Which also brought in the lies she told us basically about how she was involved in all our favourite things.” Alya reminded.

“Which Alya here actually helped expose a little. Did you know she said Jagged Stone wrote a love song about her?” Alix said, putting a hand on the reporter’s shoulder.

“Jagged Stone, is in his 30s.”

“Her lies went crashing down pretty soon after he made a statement about it not being true. Didn’t stop her, but we knew to fact check and before you know it, newest big model on the scene is the biggest scandal no one wants to deal with.”

“But she lost her mom.”

Adrien thought about how she reacted the first day he met her. She had no standing, clearly grasping at anything to be seen. He understood it, keeping up a façade because it was easier, but she seemed to take singular focus on attacking him, insulting his mother and her love. He could blame it on Lila’s own mother and her disappearance, but he didn’t know. The popular kids he me at his schools, a lot were mad at their parents, but unless they were involved in some way with yours, your own parents never made conversation. Any cheap shot about them was about their looks or their jobs, not their ability to love you. he felt bad for her, but it didn’t justify her behaviour. He did feel bad for Chloe though. He wondered if Emile Agreste had been more of a mom than her actual mother.

“Chloe, did you want to go give your condolences?” Adrien asked. “To Gabriel and maybe Lila? I mean, I don’t like her, but if my mama disappeared?”

“We should at least let her know we’re thinking of her.” Mylene said. “But if we all went.”

“She’d lose her head. Or lap it up. Or, I don’t know, maybe be normal.” Ivan pointed out, all valid points.

“her dad wouldn’t want his daughter’s whole class coming by. He doesn’t even leave his house.” Chloe reminded.

“So only a few of us. Chloe, you and Sabrina. Maybe Juleka, since you model for him? And Marinette, since you’re working his internship.” Rose suggested.

“I will be working his internship. And honestly, if Lila hates Adrien the most, she hates me second. She constantly goes after me trying to get me in trouble.” Marinette reminded.

“I’ll go.” Adrien said, shrugging when everyone looked at him. “I don’t like her, but I mentioned to her dad that I liked Solitude. Feels like I should at least let him know how sorry I am.”

“So, Chloe, Sabrina, Adrien and Juleka?”

“Except, Juleka is practically becoming the new face of the brand,” Luka reminded. “I don’t know her well, but I know her enough. If we’re worried what all of us being there will do, do we really think sending her replacement is a good idea?”

“Chloe, Sabrina, Adrien and Luka? if only to stop Adrien when Lila undoubtly pisses him off.” Rose said, Adrien looking insulted.

“Hey!”

“Oh, you know she’ll do it. get filming, I’ll call the limo.” Chloe said.

                                      ________________

“Yes?”

Chloe tossed her hair, standing at full hight. Adrien would admit, it was impressive how easily she fell into being her snooty self when she wanted something. There was Chloe who held onto her self-importance and could still be ok to be around and then there was this side, who after a few minutes, you’d be tempted to throw her off the Eiffel Tower.

That was probably why any akuma she caused would take her there.

“We’ve come to pay our respects to M. Agreste.” Sabrina nudged her, leaving her to sigh and roll her eyes. “And Lila I guess.”

“We have guests Chloe.”

“Oh, let her in. I haven’t seen her in years!” that was a different voice, but one that perked Chloe up. She turned to Adrien, who was messing with the plastic covering the bouquet. She smirked in a way that worried Sabrina, who started tugging on her jacket to get her to spill.

The gate swung open and Chloe led them to the door. It was pulled open and Adrien had to remind himself that Emile Agreste had been missing for a year. The woman who stood in front of them was near identical though.

“Chloe!”

“Amelie! It’s so nice to see you again. How is it in London? Great, I’d like you to meet someone. This is Adrien.” Chloe dragged Adrien over, ignoring his questions of what she was doing.

“Um, hi?”

“Oh, my goodness. Felix, Felix! Come over here. Look at this.” grabbing Adrien, the woman dragged him in the house, Chloe still ignoring the questions over what was going on, smiling at the scene before them.

Amelie brought Adrien to stand in front of someone. Someone with the same shade of hair and eyes, near the same height and had the same expression Adrien tended to have when truly annoyed or angry.

“It’s this amazing? Felix, you two look exactly alike. Lila, you must have been so surprised when he came to your class. I hear you’re new?”

“Um, yeah. I’m Adrien Rossi…and this is a little strange.”

Amelie giggled, clapping her hands. “Oh, this is amazing! Emile and I always hoped our kids would look like this, near twins. I always wanted to play a trick on you Gabriel, and switch the kids for a day. Oh, the things the two of you could have gotten away with.”

Feeling a little awkward, Adrien gave the teen in front of him a smile. “Hi, and you are?”

“I’m Felix.” His accented French made Adrien tempted to switch to English, but he didn’t want to assume.

“Oh, and I’m Amelie. Emilie was my big sister. Chloe, why don’t you introduce me to your other friends?”

Adrien glanced over Felix’s shoulder to see Lila glaring at him. She seemed madder than usual, like she actually wanted to hurt him. Eager to get out, Adrien handed the flowers to him.

“Sorry for your loss.”

Felix looked at the flowers before looking back at him. It was strange, seeing such a proper picture staring back at him. Mylene, while waiting for others to finish their video, had braided his bangs into his hair and the fishnet poking out from under his oversized shirt was a definite contrast to his slacks and waistcoat.

“I know you don’t mean my father but thank you regardless.” Felix said.

“Oh, I didn’t know. I won’t say ‘I’m sorry’ because I know every kid who lost a parent never wants to hear that. So instead, I’ll say…I hope the important memories never fade and if they do, you never lose the feelings you had during them.”

Felix looked surprised and Adrien realised he was hoping for a reaction. Just not the one he gave. He took the flowers and handed them to Nathalie, who looked pained as Chloe held court with Lila’s aunt.

“If you don’t mind, Mlle. Bourgeois, this is a family occasion.” Gabriel finally interrupted.

“That’s fine, we just wanted you to know we were thinking of you. oh, and Sabrina.” The red-haired girl took out the SD card that they downloaded their video onto and handed it to Lila. “Just so you know we care.”

Lila dropped the SD card and stomped on it a few times. Whether or not it broke it, Adrien wasn’t sure, but they all got the message. She stormed up the stairs, ignoring her aunt’s yelling to come back and apologize, which turned into a near fight between her and Gabriel about Lila’s behaviour. Adrien took one look at Felix, who’s face still held the same expression, but with a bit of sadness and spoke without thinking much.

“Hey, Felix. Is it your first time in Paris? We’re having a party at Luka’s houseboat; you should come with us.”

A small bit of relief appeared in the green eyes as he turned to his mother. “Can I?”

“I suppose. How about you meet me back here at 4 so we can say goodbye and go to the station together?”

And with that, they had a new addition.

                                                  _________________

“Whoa. It’s like a funhouse mirror.” Kim said, looking Felix up and down, who looked annoyed at being gawked at.

“Except I’m sure his temper is the same. Sure, you remember that part, huh Kim?” Adrien said, smiling when the athlete got red and turned back to the party. “Sorry about him.”

“You didn’t have to do this because you feel sorry for me.”

“I only feel sorry you would have had to spend the afternoon with Lila.” Adrien said, taking in the same surprised look Felix had before. “If I felt sorry for you because of your father, then I’d feel the same about a lot of my friends. Lot of single household kids here. Fair amount due to a parent passing away but they have their ways of remembering them and it’s a reminder to us to always remember the important feelings. now, you hungry? Kagami is getting off training soon and she’s bringing freshly made mochi. It’s really good.”

Felix stared at him, like he was trying to figure him out before he turned away. “Not particularly hungry, though I am thirsty.”

It took some time, but Felix started to open up. He was sarcastic and a bit rude but they were all used to it with Chloe. When Kim’s teasing went to far, Felix shut him down with a rather well-timed insult that had the whole group laughing as Kim went red and pouted. His social skills lacked some, which made him bond with Kagami when she finally arrived.

“If they say something pop culture related you don’t get, just nod. They usually figure out we have no clue what they mean and explain to not look stupid.” She advised.

“Thanks Kagami.” Adrien said sarcastically.

Somehow the topic turned to the thing majority of their class shared in common, single parent households. It was a healthy debate of what they felt they missed compared to their friends and classmates with two parents.

“Twice as much worrying? That baby akuma accidently smashed through my room and my dad freaked out. I was in the bathroom, which is the furthest from the skylight so I was fine. but Papa lost it, trying to break in and check on me. Which is fine, I get it. but after Scarlet Bug fixed everything, he came by to check if I was ok while Catseye went to go drop the baby off and my dad’s first reaction is that I’m dating Scarlet Bug! Do you have any idea how mortifying that is? The poor guy didn’t get a chance to explain before my dad tried inviting him to dinner with us.” Marinette went.

“Please, you think that’s bad? Reminder that my dad became akumatized to keep me from leaving.” Chloe threw in. “Your dad got akumatized because he thought you were dumped.”

“Seeing how my dad won’t even talk to me since I came out,” Marc said, “I wouldn’t be too mad about him getting akumatized because he didn’t want to see me hurt.”

“At least your mother wasn’t akumatized because she wants to control you.” Kagami said, taking a sip of tea.

“Or akumatized because she doesn’t enjoy being control.” Luka said.

Felix looked confused. “Is this what we do? Talk about being akumatized? Wait, have all of you been akumatized?”

“Pretty much. I think Marinette is the only person who hasn’t been akumatized. Just all her friends and family.” Nino said.

“Besides, we’ve realised that talking about what happened and remembering the emotions we felt is a reminder that it’s ok to feel that way. If Hawkmoth didn’t exist, we could feel that without consequences. Our reactions would be different. We have to remind ourselves that while we try to keep a check on our emotions to keep Hawkmoth from taking us over again, feeling what we felt is normal. And one day we can feel those emotions without worrying about the really bad consequences again.” Rose explained.

“I think there are some consequences you should still feel worried about.” Felix pointed out.

“So, what would be your trigger?” Markov asked, hovering over the mochi to keep Kim and Ivan from having too many.

“My trigger?”

“A lot of ours was Chloe. Chloe’s was Scarlet Bug believe it or not.” Alya said.

“Mine was a grown man who thought it was ok to threaten kids and act like a child. But got us a contract out of it.” Adrien said. “It doesn’t have to be anything big.”

Felix’s gaze went to his cup, clanging his ring against the ceramic. “My dad. But not his passing. It could have been, he died in an accident but that would have been my mom’s. she lost her sister and the love of her life within a month of each other. My trigger would have been my uncle not showing his face at the funeral, but expecting us to come to his house to mourn his wife. I loved my aunt, but why should my father’s passing be brushed off? I can’t talk about it with my mother and I don’t make friends easy. Most just want something because our family is rich, but I wanted to mourn and because of my uncle I can’t. he doesn’t even seem to understand why my mother wants the rings back.”

“Rings?” Adrien asked.

Felix messed with the ring on his finger. “because my aunt was older, she got the family rings. Used to be told stories about how they had special powers and for a kid who grew up with his father telling him about fae and calling his wife Titania the fairy queen, I liked those stories. After my aunt disappeared, my mom wanted a piece of her back and that piece was the ring. They used them as their wedding rings and he doesn’t seem to get why my mom wants them back. He’s mourned her by hiding away. My mother’s hid her mourning to take care of the company and me. She deserves that much.”

Adrien looked at the ring, as Felix continued to mess with it. it was slightly big, a bit faded but Felix handled it like it was the most important thing in the world. Probably because it belonged it to his father. The ring could have gone to Amelie but instead Felix had it, to remember his father because she had him. and all she wanted was a way to remember her sister. He got why Gabriel wanted to keep the ring if it was his only link to his wife, but he wasn’t the only one who lost her.

“I think you should steal it.” Kagami said. “he lives inside his home, rarely coming out. I’m sure he has other ways of remembering her. The rings don’t belong to him, they did to her and now to your mother. But if you want to avoid getting in trouble, maybe convince your mom to have him sit down and explain her side. Guilt could probably work too if she adds how she can’t grieve her family with nothing to hold onto.” The whole group stared at her. “What?”

“You, are a terrifying person. Look, the point is, you have every right to feel the way you do. Tell that to your mom so she can take care of it. and if that doesn’t work, maybe steal the ring, but only if you feel like he’s saying no to be an ass.” Adrien explained.

“So, steal as last resort?”

“The guy is friends with the mayor of Paris. Try not to get banned before we can hang out again?”

“Again?”

“Well yeah. We’re friends now, you’re stuck with us.”

Felix took in the mix of faces, all – including Chloe – giving him looks that all said they were telling the truth. His usual personality turned people away, but these people were fine with it. he looked at Adrien, a wilder copy of himself and realised his original plan to be an ass wasn’t going to work. They were too stubborn and honestly, it was just easier to give in.

Later on, the train, he watched his mother smile softly down at the ring in hand.

“I have to say, I’m surprised Gabriel was moved enough to give me the ring. I’m sorry I had to use your father as an in.”

“It’s fine. I’m just glad you have it now. Besides, it wasn’t mainly my idea. Got it from a friend.”

“A friend?” she asked with a smile on her face.

Looking at his reflection, he spun his father’s ring on his finger. “Yeah. My first actually.”

#adrien august #adrien augreste 2023

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

Am I the only one who found Astruc calling Audrey actions as not abuse??? And the class seeing it as something petty instead?

I find it very disturbing that the class recognized Gabriel Agreste as a borderline evil, cold father, and they wanted Adrien to be out of this situation somehow. But when Chloe is being belittled by her mother they don't acknowledge it??? They even said that she's worst than Hawkmoth which she may be a bitch but comparing her to a supervillian who akumatizes kids and babies and his own son? That's messed up too!

Apparently since Zoe and Adrien is 'good' we should sympathize on them since their being mistreated but to Chloe since she's 'bad' she deserves being abused??? What on earth is going on Asstruck???

Not a single child, no matter how mean they are and how much trouble they cause, doesn't deserve to be abused.

I don't hate Zoe I love her even she's one of my favorite characters! But I hate how they used her and basically say that 'Zoe's in the same situation but look how she turned out! Chloe didn't do the same so she's bad!' which is a d*ck move.

No, you’re right. I’m not an abuse victim, but I have so many problems with this. Just because the victim of a troubled childhood isn’t nice, it doesn’t mean her experiences aren’t valid or deserve to be ignored.

Like I’ve said so many times, you can’t say the stuff Adrien goes through with his father is deserving of the audience’s sympathy while the stuff Chloe goes through with her mother doesn’t mean we should actually feel bad for her. It comes across as incredibly hypocritical on the writers’ parts, especially Astruc.

I don’t get why Astruc can’t comprehend the idea of lashing out in frustration as a result of a troubled childhood. Take it from someone who grew up with anger issues when I say that sometimes, the first response to conflict isn’t always just to sulk in your room.

Again, they make it seem like Zoe’s the victim of having a mother who doesn’t care about her, but because Chloe acts like her mother as a way to get closer to her, we shouldn’t assume her behavior isn’t problematic as well? The one episode where the writers actually acknowledge how much Audrey doesn’t care about her daughter to the point of insulting her on live television, Marinette ends up “fixing” their relationship by having them bond over how terrible they are, which is just... WHY? Is this supposed to be a joke? Why treat Audrey’s terrible parenting as a joke while Gabriel’s emotional neglecting of Adrien is still taken seriously? You can’t just say something is bad, play it off as a joke, and expect everyone to just ignore the serious issues here. But then again, this is the same show that loves to tell the audience stuff that didn’t actually happen and expect us to believe it.

The show doesn’t even touch upon what Zoe’s life was like living with Audrey in New York, much less why she lived with her prior to Season 4. Hell, “Sole Crusher” focused on how tense her relationship with Chloe, someone she barely even knows, is instead of the woman she actually lived with for most of her life and possibly influenced her worldview like what happened with Andre’s endless coddling.

For God’s sake, RWBY did this exact same plotline far better with Weiss and Whitley where they sort of made up after acknowledging how both Whitley and Weiss were victims of their father’s abuse, and that show had a scene where Weiss pointing her weapon at Whitley was framed as a good thing (I’m still working on my RWBY post for the future, so don’t worry).

If you want to show how Zoe is a better character than Chloe, don’t compare their responses to trauma to do so, because we all process grief differently.

#immaturity of thomas astruc #iota #thomas astruc #thomas astruc salt #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug salt #ml salt #chloe bourgeois #queen bee #queen b #zoe lee #vesperia #audrey bourgeois

[marauderundercover]

This Side of Normal Ch. 10

AO3

Prev

Marinette glances around the silent table, willing Jason to say something. Or do something. Or even Dick. She needed one of them to start a conversation, because Adrien hated awkward silences. And if this silence went on much longer, he was definitely going to say something and then she would regret it. Horribly. 

“These rolls are purr-fect.” Adrien says, out of nowhere. Marinette lets out a groan, of course he’d skip straight ahead to the cat puns. Of course that’s where his freaking mind was tonight. 

“Aren’t they? I’d say Alfred’s cooking is pretty claw-some, myself.” Dick speaks up, grinning at Adrien. Marinette looks at him, wide eyed. 

“That’s it. I’ll find a new trapeze partner and a new best friend. Both of you are out of my life.” She deadpans, ignoring Adrien’s offended gasp. 

“But Bugaboo, who else would give you a hand with your crazy schemes?” Adrien asks, and Marinette turns to him, narrowing her eyes. 

“I swear to god if you take your arm off right now you will never find it again.” She threatens, pointing her fork at him from across the table. 

“But Mari, that joke needs the arm. It doesn’t work without it.” He pouts, she rolls her eyes and turns to Damian. 

“I apologize for him. He thinks he’s funny.” She says, turning her glance back at Adrien. “He’s wrong.” 

“Tt. I’m unbothered by his sense of humor. I have lived with Grayson for eight years. His humor is nothing compared to those horrors.” Damian quips, and Marinette swears his lips almost quirk into a smile. She snorts. 

“Guess I made the right choice in throwing Dick to the curb, huh?” She teases, ignoring Dick’s gasp and Adrien’s reassurance to the man. Honestly, who was the adult here? 

“It was for the best, Dupain-Cheng.” Damian says and Marinette winces slightly. The only person who called her by her last name (in regular conversation, anyway) was Chloe. And while the girl had long since given up full on bullying her, she still wasn’t Marinette’s best friend in the world. 

“You can call me Marinette, my last name is kind of a mouthful.” She says, trying to be nonchalant about it. She’d heard him refer to everyone else as their last name the entire evening. She didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, but him calling her Dupain-Cheng was going to make her uncomfortable in the long run. 

“Very well.” He says, and though he doesn’t say her name, she still counts it as a win. A throat clearing catches her attention and she glances at Jason who was glaring at Damian. 

“What’s up, Jay?” She asks, quirking an eyebrow. 

“Nothing Pixie Pop. Just thinking about the time you kicked the ass of that would be mugger.” He says, and Marinette frowns. Mugger? “You know, the one that was obsessed with you?” He clarifies, and she understands. Copycat had been reakumatized during Jason’s stay in Paris. And he had wanted nothing more than a date with Ladybug. Though, she couldn’t understand why he was bringing it up now. 

“I am so lost.” She admits, shaking her head at her pseudo-brother. He grins. 

“That’s fine, just sharing that you can kick ass with the table. In case someone wants to try something.” He says pointedly. Oh. He definitely caught the heart eyes she sent Damian back in the gym. Can he blame her, though? Her weakness was green eyes. And Damian’s were the greenest. 

“I did walk in on you hogtied, Todd. I assumed she was a reputable fighter after that.” Damian says, and Marinette blushes furiously. 

“I’m sorry, what happened?” Mr. Wayne asks, his vapid (and fake) smile replaced with a faux look of bewilderment. She briefly wondered if it was exhausting, putting on a constant act, until she remembered how tired she was throughout collège, before she started lycée and decided she didn’t really care. Yeah, acting constantly was tiring. But why did he do it? Jason nudges her lightly and she blinks, focusing back on the conversation. 

“Oh, Jason and I sparred. He apparently had forgotten that I use my surroundings to my advantage and that Adrien is always on my side.” She explains, shooting Jason a smug smile. Jason huffs. 

“Not always.” He says, and Marinette raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms and giving him a challenging look. 

“Oh really? Name one time that Adrien took your side instead of mine.” She challenges. She grins as Jason starts to think, obviously wracking his brain. 

“Earlier today!” Adrien pipes up, and she immediately turns to him, glaring. 

“What?” She asks, confused. What had- oh. Of fucking course. “That doesn’t count!” She protests, narrowing her eyes. 

“Why not?” Adrien asks, raising an eyebrow in a challenge. She scoffs. 

“Because it wasn’t a fight or argument or anything. It was a joke.” She says. 

“Are you talking about the adoption shit, cause that was definitely not a joke. All the kids B adopts definitely have trauma and certain features.” Jason cuts in, and Marinette sighs. Of course he would clue in. 

“But- no. No. That was a fluke. A glitch in the matrix, obviously. You literally cannot name a singular other time. And technically, ya big jerk, you didn’t even name this time. Adrien did.” Marinette points out, glaring at Jason. 

“I’m sorry, how long have you three known each other?” Mr. Wayne cuts in again, and this time- this time- she sees that some of the confusion on his face is real. But it looks odd, like he wasn’t used to expressing a real emotion. She really needed to remind herself to talk to Jason about this later. She didn’t necessarily want to make it a habit to stick billionaire fathers with asshole tendencies in jail, but she would. She’d do it for her boys. Any day of the week. She hums in thought, adding up the time. The anniversary of Gabriel’s defeat had been a few weeks ago, which meant-

“We’ve known Jason for just over a year.” She says, before glancing at Adrien and grinning. “But I’ve been stuck with this goof for four years.”

“You know you love me.” Adrien says with a wide grin. She rolls her eyes. 

“How exactly did you meet Jason?” Mr. Wayne asks, and she kind of wants to throw her fork at him. What was it, interrogate the random kids at dinner night? Though, to be fair, they were random kids in his house. But she refused to like the man until she’d talked to Jason about the potential assholeish tendencies. 

“He helped me learn some self defence after I got caught up in an akuma attack.” Marinette lies smoothly. Well, it was technically a half truth. But the Waynes didn’t need to know that she was always caught up in akuma attacks. 

“Akuma?” Mr. Wayne asks, and Marinette glances at Jason with a frown. Had he not told his father about anything? Not even the basics? 

“Wait, is that what the thing that flooded Paris is called?” Dick asks suddenly and Marinette nearly flinches from the memory. That was one of the akumas that still gave her nightmares. One of the ones that was burned in the back of her eyelids when all she wanted was to sleep. And not think about bloated corpses and dead classmates for one goddamn minute. She lets out a steadying breath, glancing at Jason whose face had changed from annoyance to concern. She resists the urge to roll her eyes. She could talk about akumas. It was the past. Sure, she had refused all of the therapy options her parents gave her and Adrien, but she didn’t need it. She was fine. 

“Yeah. Technically, her akumatized name was Siren. But, the general term for those attacks was ‘akuma’.” She says, gripping her fork a little tighter than necessary, grounding herself with Tikki’s reassuring nudges from inside her purse. 

“There were more?” Dick asks, his eyes wide. Marinette glances at Jason and raises an eyebrow. Why had he not said anything? He’d been there for an entire month of Hawkmoth’s reign. He’d seen dozens of akuma attacks. Jason shrugs. Thank Jay. Super helpful. 

“When you get down to it, there were probably hundreds if not thousands more. Some people, like Siren, were turned into the same akuma several times. Some people became a different akuma when they were akumatized again. I think it just depended on the person or their issue.” Marinette explains, hating how dry her mouth felt all of a sudden. She could talk about this. She could. So why was everything a little too bright? Why was the sound of forks against plates a little too loud? 

“Did the Justice League stop it?” Damian asks, though by his tone, he seems to already know the answer. Odd. 

“No, the local heroes did. Ladybug and Chat Noir.” Marinette says, ignoring the constricting feeling in her chest. 

“Why-” Mr. Wayne starts, but Jason clears his throat. Everyone glances at him, and Marinette is unsurprised to see the flicker of anger in his eyes. Especially after she glances at Adrien and sees how pale he’s gotten. She kicks him lightly under the table to get his attention, frowning at him in a silent question. He nods, slightly. She purses her lips, not believing for a second that he was actually okay. But they could talk later. Away from eager ears. 

“I’m sure you remember what Dick said about my phone call from when I first arrived in Paris. Marinette and Adrien dealt with attacks like that interrupting their day to day lives from thirteen to sixteen. I get that you’re not the best at knowing when to drop the damn topic, but I really think you should drop the damn topic.” Jason says, and though he’s smiling, Marinette can see the danger behind it. The warning. ‘Drop it, or I’ll make you’. 

“My apologies, it was just so interesting.” Mr. Wayne says and this time Marinette winces at the falseness in his voice. And the smile on his face. God, this man could not have lasted a day in Hawkmoth’s Paris. 

---

Finally, finally, dinner was over. After the akuma talk ceased, it was extremely awkward. Mr. Wayne looked like he would rather be anywhere else. And Marinette couldn’t blame him, wanting nothing more than to get back to her hotel room and away from the constant lack of real emotion on the eldest Wayne’s face. It was tiresome, just watching him. 

“Thanks again, for having us.” Marinette says, mostly directing her comment to Dick and Alfred. Alfred just nods. 

“Of course! Come back any time. Really soon, actually, so we can work more on the trapeze. I can’t lose my new trapeze buddy.” Dick says with a wide smile. Marinette holds back a sigh, nodding instead. She liked Dick, she did. But she’d definitely have to make sure that Mr. Wayne wouldn’t be around. She still wasn’t sure what to think of him. 

“You should also spar with me, some time.” Damian speaks up and Marinette blinks in surprise. 

“Spar. With...you?” She says, tilting her head in confusion. That came out of nowhere. 

“Yes. You took down Todd easily, and I am far superior. You would actually have a challenge if we sparred.” He says. She smirks, and suddenly, with a burst of confidence she didn’t know she had, says:

“Sure thing, Pretty boy.” Before turning and walking straight out the door. The second she’s outside, she drops her head into her hands. “I can’t believe I just said that.” She mumbles under her breath. 

“Pretty boy?” Adrien says with a smirk, she glares at him and moves down the front steps. 

“Fuck you.” She says, no real venom in her voice. The boy knew how she got around crushes. He’d seen it firsthand. With him. With Luka. With Kagami. With the girl with bright green eyes who worked at the coffee shop across the street from the bakery. She was an absolute disaster. He was worse, but still. He wasn’t the one with the quickly developing crush on the youngest Wayne. 

“Pretty boy?” Jason asks, a scowl on his face as he catches up to the two. 

“Not another word, Jason.” She scowls at him, crossing her arms defiantly. He holds his hands up in surrender. 

“Sure.” He says. Her mind rushes suddenly to her previous thought. Youngest Wayne. Damian Wayne. Hadn’t Lila- she snorts, before erupting into uncontrollable laughter, ignoring the worried looks from Adrien. 

“I- oh my god, Jay.” She manages to say, straightening up and following Jason to the car he was borrowing to drive them back to the hotel.

“I’m completely lost.” He says.

“Join the club.” Adrien adds, and Marinette just laughs again. 

“Your little brother is Damian Wayne.” She says, as if it should be obvious. Jason doesn’t get it, and neither does Adrien. But after a moment-

“Oh my god, that’s hilarious!” Adrien cries, letting out a chuckle. Jason huffs as the trio get into the car. 

“Care to share with the class?” He asks, and Marinette snorts. 

“Absolutely not, I dislike the majority of those people.” She says, referring to the group who was hopefully already in their rooms and not in the lobby of the hotel. “Now it’s funny that your brother is Damian Wayne because Lila made us come to Gotham instead of New York and London, because she’s dating him.” She explains and Jason scoffs. 

“Yeah right.” 

“Obviously she’s not actually dating him, Jay. But it’s freaking hilarious that she thinks she’s gonna get away with it. He definitely goes to Gotham Academy, and people are definitely going to call her out.” She says, not even trying to hide the absolute glee she’s feeling. If there was ever a time for all of Lila’s lies to come crashing down around her, now would be good. When she can’t just run away and claim Marinette set it up. If people Marinette didn’t even know called Lila out, well, that would be irrefutable evidence, right? 

“Her regime is gonna topple and I’m gonna take you guys out for ice cream to celebrate.” Jason declares and Marinette laughs again. She was so against the idea of Gotham originally, but now, with Jason at their sides again, she’d decided that it wasn’t so bad. Suddenly remembering what had been on her mind most of the night, she turns to Jason. 

“Jay, I have a serious question. And I know it’s a little hard to talk about but just know that we’re here for you to support you, and that we’ll figure out a way to make sure you and your brothers are safe and-” 

“Whoa, Pix, calm down kiddo. You’re rambling again.” He says gently, furrowing his eyebrows. He pulls the car over to the side of the road and turns to put his full attention on the two. “What’s bothering you?” He asks. 

“Is Mr. Wayne abusive?” She asks and Jason blinks. “I saw how hesitant you were to call him your father, and you were tense around him a lot of the night. And I don’t think the man had one legitimate expression all night. He was acting the whole time.” Marinette says, looking at him worriedly. “Look, Jay, I don’t necessarily want to make a habit of putting billionaires in jail, but I’d do it for you.” 

“Is he- you would-” Jason stops and lets out a breath, obviously trying to compose himself. “No, kiddo, he’s not.” He finally says. Marinette frowns. 

“Really?” She asks, and he sighs. 

“Yeah, look. Our relationship has been...rough, for a couple years. We had a sort of falling out when I was a teenager and I stopped talking to him for several years. We reconnected a while ago, but it’s still rocky at times. I don’t usually call him dad or father or anything. He’s just Bruce, or B, to me.” Jason explains and Marinette nods, letting out a small sigh of relief. 

“I was worried, Jay.” She admits, and Jason grins at her before pulling away from the curb again. 

“I didn’t even catch on.” Adrien says with a frown. Marinette rolls her eyes, smiling at him with fondness. 

“Course you didn’t Kitty. Reading people isn’t really your strong suit.” She says with a small smile. He huffs, but nods in agreement. 

“True.” He says and Marinette laughs. She could officially take Bruce Wayne off her ‘threat to be dealt with immediately’ list and move him to ‘possible future annoyance’ list. A big improvement for the man, and it would mean she wouldn’t be as tense around him the next time she saw him.

Next

Tag list: @toodaloo-kangaroo @laurcad123 @kittenmywaythrulife @lost-in-the-world-of-maribat @queenz-z @daminette-56

#daminette #maribat #maribat fanfiction #ao3fic #platonic jasonette #maribat platonic adrienette #platonic maribat adrienette #damian x marinette #maribat damian wayne #maribat marinette dupain cheng #maribat adrien agreste #maribat jason todd #maribat dick grayson #This Side of Normal

[depressed-teacup-inc]

Ok risk

I’m in pain and I’m not dealing with this for long, let’s review the episode

Everything from Adrien’s part is good and dope, lots of drama, Adrien finally wanting to stand up for himself but clearly unable to because WOWWWW SHOCKER HES SENITMONSTER WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT, Gabriel getting a braincell and developing an actually good plan, Felix being Felix (tho he was still demonized and oversimplified by the show) so for the most part this episode was good in that regard!

(Felix carrying the braincell)

And surprise, I’m not a big fan of the Marinette/Ladybug part of this episodeeeee

So first of all, this is a Lila episode. So as a rule of thumb in Lila episodes everyone but Marinette are dumbed down while Lila says stupid lies and is super evil, and Marinette is either a martyr, or a noble hero meant to save Adrien because he’s poor and helpless and can’t do anything right.

So not only that happened, but Chloe was demonized and simplified, the entire classroom was again completely changed (which btw? The only reason people are gonna hate the students and the class is because Lila/Gabriel is a bad guy, and that it’s secretly terrible and bad, in any other context, they have every right to call Marinette out on her bullshit)

And I swear to god. Marinette screaming and crying about how Adrien hates being a model and being like “I totally understand your struggle” when he says how he hates his life and how he feels forced to never tell him father shit, BECAUSE SHE COMPARED IT TO HER CRUSH????

Like, no offense girl, you’re kinda the problem? You may claim you understand Adrien on a deep emotional level, but you actually don’t? You’re like, the primary problem? You glorify him to an insane level, have all your crazy plans and thinks of him as a helpless princess, rather then go “let me help you gain a sense of self”, you have a literal shrine you still haven’t taken down, no one don’t know even half of his struggles, and if anything, you seem to be the one most enjoying the ads and modeling despite the fact Adrien looked unhappy and miserable about it for a while.

But this is a Lila episode, so no one understands and is so stupid, so Marinette looks extremely smart and profound and tragically not listened to in comparison.

I’m emotionally preparing for all the class salt fics to come pouring in again…

But hey at least the akuma was dope! A clever plan too!

(Yes this is still toxic, Ladybug is kissing chat Noir to justify trying him like shit is not good)

(Yes Rena Furtive’s design still makes me crave death)

#miraculous ladybug #mlb fandom #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #chat noir #ml rants #ml season 4 #I’m just tired

[hannibalismos-jaaneman]

reasons why i think eternals was the worst marvel movie yet (y'all have been waiting for this ik) + my opinion on the rotten tomatoes rating

disclaimer: if you wanna throw hate then do not read this any further because this is just a long rant about how eternals is just plain fucking BAD. i do not intend to cause any drama but i just wanna give us true believers the multidimensional perspective back which we seem to have completely lost after endgame, very contrary to what should have really happened. i am not here to demotivate anyone, i am just really mad so bear with me, or else you are free to leave. thank you and if you have read this far then i am guessing you wanna read further so please, be my guest.

intro: so, firstly, ik eternals are pretty important in the comics and they have some real interesting roles to play in the infinity saga and shit but... BUT, they are basically gods. and all we really got to see was that they are a bunch of 7k year-olds going around and saving humanity, swearing to not interfere but they did. frankly, i think introducing all-powerful beings in something like the mcu seems like a cheap dc move. it's too comical and kinda plays with the fairly humane characters we already have in the movies, don't get me wrong, they are amazing in the movies but they are just- a tad too spandex for me iykwim. like even moon knight is a regular person. if i were to talk about the rotten tomatoes rating, i'm- not as shocked. ik it was gonna get a bad critics' rating but the audience would love it. idk, i think as compared to iron man, the movie was- atrocious- to say the least. chloe zhao, whose major genre of directing was supposed to be indie kinda ended up directing and writing a superhero movie. listen, i am not saying that i don't like indie movies, fo god's sake i was crying at the endings of god's own country and cmbyn! it's just that- you know- like- dune and the king would mix well, but if you mix dune and ladybird- like- ykwim?? it's just that. i didn't watch nomadland but ik it won an oscar so it must be something i might like but eternals was- how should i put this in a way that people don't @ me?-like, marvel is KNOWN for its graphics. damn, my cousin (he's been into marvel since iron man) said that he watched shang-chi, didn't understand what the fuck was going on but liked it because the water dragon was pretty. like- you understand what i'm saying right? like, even my father had the same reaction, so did my mom (although she understood what was going on but the graphics were fucking mindblowing). i think throughout the movie, i was searching for those two marvel signatures- the graphics and the dialogues. i guess the whole thing lacked that, adding fuel to the already burning pyre that was my anger at the plot holes. we'll get to that.

plot- the most basic and ill-written plot marvel has ever given? eternals. a celestial is about to emerge from within the core of the earth and it happens after the blip? like uh- excuse me? humanity is currently low and it's okay to kick it out of existence at that time? and no one decided to mention that arishem was the bad guy? so were the celestials? they didn't promote any life or shit, they were power-hungry assholes who destroyed life to have the universe o themselves. also the eternals are useless robots? like ikaris step aside we had vision before these mfs decided it was okay to kill him and torture wanda. and thena was having visions, okay but why didn't she react like a normal mc? why was she ready to kill everyone? ik she's the war goddess but we all know thena isn't dumb or erratic in any form or way. killing gilgamesh was fricking unnecessary, like why? also, where were these guys when thanos was around? like he finished off half of all living creatures and sersi was crying because ikaris left her three millennia ago?? like ma'am?? is he all that you have?? you just let gilgamesh and thena go because you weren't able to get over a rando laser eye? they weren't supposed to be a thing in the first place, but a female character just cannot live without a male supporting her. wait- let's shift this to the next topic.

relationships- so, like they made peggy male dependant, they did the same with sersi. like she kept hopping from dane to ikaris and then ikaris to dane like ma'am?? if you're going to make this gritty and realistic like dc rather than wholesome and fantastical like marvel, at least make the leader a little reliable because that's what a leader is supposed to be. also, why the FUCK was everyone looking for ikaris' approval when ajak had left sersi in charge like- huh? listen. like, ik y'all are new to the platonic besties routine marvel but gilgamesh and thena was pretty dumb, also, sprite, who looks like a literal frigging kid, is in love with ikaris? excuse mE, let a kid breathe? i DO NOT appreciate adult-minor relationships, no matter how leftist i am (ik sprite is a full-grown adult mentally and as old as everyone else but then why is she a kid??? like in atla, aang was a kid but he was 100+ years old, but he was still in love with katara, who was his age- ykw? ik i'm not making any sense- this is just too weird). even leftists who are super open-minded peopl don't appreciate that (i'm a leftist fyi), and it wasn't even like a little girl fangirling at her crush it was like full-on in love, that wasn't okay. sersi and ikaris was just plain bland. don't be blinded by that love for marvel, this was bad. they totally screwed up their chance on making druig and makkari the ultimate ship in the movie.

music score- oh boy don't even get my classical music ass started on this- the absence of the triangles, weak as fuck woodwinds, couldn't even hear those drums, like don't rumble, roar, like the string section just didn't sit right with me, it was basically just brass and effects like i could see the his dark materials meets game of thrones but THAT ISN'T MARVEL THAT'S THE POINT ISN'T IT. the percussion was okay, not as strong as this movie should have had, depending on the fact that it's practically based on 7k year-olds and THEY'RE FROM OLYMPIA GIMME THE GODDAMN ORCHESTRA!!! it wasn't eve as catchy as shang-chi, like, not even fucking CLOSE. like what would have actually worked was something like assassin's creed, damn that's the perfect mix of culture and majesty that the eternals (not the movie eternals but like eternals in general) truly deserved. idk, i see marvel heading towards a more innovative side of music and i appreciate that, like shang-chi and black panther, endgame and ragnarok are perfect examples and eternals should have matched the epicness of these movies if not even more. like the og theme's gonna remain OG okay? it's not antediluvian like everyone thinks it to be. like with tws everyone started throwing shade at it but LISTEN. these are SUPERHEROES, they deserve MAJESTY not TECHNICALITY and PERPLEXITY and MYSTERY. and eternals are GODS, so they deserve EVEN MORE. like i get effects are taking over music but the real epicness comes from the perfect mixture of brass and strings and that just did NOT happen in the score, like, at ALL, for me.

i don't like the rotten tomatoes rating MAJORLY because the audience liked it. like, i was expecting a similar reaction as my mom gave (which just deemed the movie a fucking abomination so yeah) but i did not get that rage from people, in fact, people are liking this movie or i guess i have just seen only people who are liking it, actively talk on social media due to the fear of sparking a discourse. i can understand because our fandom is big on collectivization and stuff but kudos to the critics for rating this one as the worst one yet, because, critically and from the view of a comics fan speaking, it did NOT live up to the expectations in any way and i have listed the main reasons above. it's just not the perfect marvel movie package and comparing it to shang-chi and black panther, even just with music scores, just feels like insulting the masterpieces these movies are. my overall opinion on this movie gets even worse but i love the way chloe went all out with the direction and the way they got us the representation in the movie. it was a brilliant effort but just not on the right path, for me, personally.

#cole shitposting #this is one long fucking rant so sorry for typos because i was fucking furious while typing this #eternals #marvel #mcu #tw marvel hate #tw angry cole #tw angry true believer #tw angry marvel fan

[scorbleeo]

Lucifer | TV Show Review

Season 06

Image Source: Google Images

Lucifer Morningstar has decided he's had enough of being the dutiful servant in Hell and decides to spend some time on Earth to better understand humanity. He settles in Los Angeles - the City of Angels.

Source: IMDb

After millennia of being forced to rule Hell and then blamed for centuries for humanity's sins, Lucifer Morningstar decided to move to Los Angeles on Earth in 2011 for a better life. There his life made a turn for the better, finding justice for the innocent and falling in love with Chloe Decker. At the end of the previous season, Lucifer seemed poised to succeed his father as the next God. Now in this final season, we will see where this new development leads Lucifer, his friends, and family as the series comes to a close.

Source: Wiki Fandom

A Good End to a Good TV Show

As much as I wished Lucifer could go on longer, I am also happy that it ended before giving the writers a chance to screw the show up. This series finale, it really was a good one. However, if one were to compare Lucifer Season 6 with its predecessors, obviously this was not the best season. However, as a series finale, this last season did good. I still have my own complains about it but I rarely come across a good series finale and Lucifer Season 6 happened to be one of the very little good ones out there.

I absolutely loved when we hear or see lines or scenes that were from previous seasons. There were many I didn't quite catch myself but since I was watching it with my sister who's a huge Lucifer fan, she caught them for me. For example, when Dan mentioned "bracelet brothers" to Lucifer or when Chloe reenacted her very first conversation with Lucifer by the same piano. Nostalgia can be a bitch sometimes but in Lucifer Season 6, it brought a wave of warm fuzzy feelings to me. Other than playing the nostalgia card, that last montage was also perfect. It's weird because it brought out so much longing emotions from me yet it helped me get closure with the TV show too. I can only say, that montage – what was being shown in it – and the music playing in the background, it was a great call for an ending.

Unfortunately, I have several complains about this season too. That entire shebang with Ella was obviously rushed and happened out of nowhere. It was so random, I actually suspected if this subplot was added in the very last minute. The execution was just...no good! Also, maybe I like my action scenes in supernatural shows but I've noticed Lucifer rarely has good "fight/battle" scenes. I am fine with that except...that was the final "battle", couldn't the writers have included...more to it? It was extremely underwhelming that I much rather preferred that botched battle between Lucifer and Michael back in Lucifer Season 5B. I am not saying I hated that scene between Lucifer and Michael, I'm just saying if you've seen that scene, you would know it's not actually a real battle scene. Which sadly means that, I preferred the comedy over the emotional final "battle" scene.

Although upsetting, I know there's nothing this review can do about my "grievances" so I shan't brood over them anymore. Instead, I will just remember what a great series finale this season was. That little scene between Dan and Charlotte was very, VERY much appreciated, thank you. And believe it or not, everything that happened in Lucifer Season 6 as an ultimate ending, it really made sense. To all TV show writers, this is how you rock a series finale.

P.S.: Just extremely curious and hella confused, why couldn't Lucifer take a break from Hell therapy during that period of time?

Rating: ★★★★☆

#tv show review #lucifer #lucifer season 6 #lucifer morningstar #chloe decker #dan espinoza #amenadiel #mazikeen #linda martin #ella lopez #charlotte richards #eve #tom ellis #lauren german #kevin alejandro #d b woodside #lesley ann brandt #rachael harris #aimee garcia #tricia helfer #inbar lavi #arrowverse

[anxresi]

I could line my wall with all the posts Thomas has made about Chloe tonight. (around 50, by my count)

If you wanna read them, don’t bother.

I certainly won’t be sharing any of them

What would be the point?

Because basically, they amount to one thing...

Chloe is bad, and we’re bad people for liking her.

That’s it.

And for anyone thinking that he kids around a lot with his comments...

I’m pretty sure this is something he feels VERY strongly about.

Or he wouldn’t expand so much energy in constantly talking her down.

So no, I don’t think we’re going to get a Chloe redemption.

No, I don’t think she’ll be Queen Bee again. 

No, I can’t see any real change in her behavior.

She’ll just remain the same ol’ hatable Chloe, the ‘evil’ girl that young kids apparently ‘get’ that adults don’t understand...

Yep, apparently we’re ‘dumb’ for wanting her to improve and develop!

To provide a good example for bullies out there that they can be more than just abusers all their lives!

Children couldn’t possibly grasp the delicate subtleties of self-improvement as you grow up!

It’s all so clear now!

Stupid us!

Also, her merchandise doesn’t sell very well.

Another good case for her staying as a villain, I guess.

And she’s compared to a monster and a domestic abuser.

This damaged teenage girl.

Yeah, sounds about right.

And all those tender moments where she showed empathy and love were just ‘fake outs’ all along.

Makes total sense!

And anyone who wanted more from her is just ‘delusional’ and is ‘writing the show in their head’.

Exactly!

Except...

That’s not the way it seemed on screen at all.

When she hugged Miss Bustier

Or had a heart-to-heart with Ladybug

When she risked her life as Queen Bee

Showed genuine concern for Adrien

When she finally appreciated Jean-something

And shared moments of friendship with Sabrina

These did NOT come across as part of an elaborate plot twist

From a show which isn’t exactly known for its complex writing.

They seemed to form part of a ladder...

Which would inevitably climb to a true character shift.

Where this flawed teenage girl could take a long, hard look at her life.

And realize she didn’t HAVE to be like her awful mother.

Or as power-hungry as her father.

She could learn lessons from her favorite superhero Ladybug...

Become a better person...

And an even greater superhero.

She could still keep her sassy attitude.

Just be a bit kinder and selfless, that’s all.

But, nope.

EVERY bit of niceness we witnessed on screen...

None of it was real.

It was all influenced by ‘class’.

Even her childhood friendship with Adrien was nothing.

If he was as poor as the rest of his classmates, she would’ve bullied him too.

Straight from Thomas’s own mouth.

One of the best relationships in the show, gone just. Like. THAT.

He also said to ‘redeem’ her at this stage would be too ‘unconvincing’?

ORLY?

I hate to return to critical mode...

But the show ain’t exactly known for its consistent writing.

One minute Marinette is confident around Adrien...

Next she’s a nervous jumble of words.

It sets up two new ships for Mari and Adrien with great fanfare...

Only to ditch them both two eps later.

(Also, what the **** did they plan to do with Lila?!)

In other words, this isn’t a show that plays the long game

Whether this is to satisfy the networks’ demand to air the eps out of order idk.

The point is that trying to tell us that Chloe’s ‘arc’ was some grand scheme...

Where she’d have a few sympathetic moments only to emerge worst than ever afterwards....

I simply don’t believe it.

Either this is terrible, amateurish writing of the worst kind...

Or Thomas flexed his influence behind the scenes...

And put an abrupt end to Chloe’s development before it really got started.

It doesn’t really matter which reason I guess.

What DOES matter is this petty and spiteful man sees fit to bash her in around 70% of his online interactions right now.

He could just ignore the posts but nope, he goes right in there, full throttle. 

You can just tell how smart he is with his intimate psychological breakdowns of why Chloe is the way she is...

When we all know the actual reason... he just couldn’t be bothered.

Far better to create a whole new character, give her none of the depths that could make a developed Chloe such a pain to write...

And then 'reward’ her with the position of Queen Bee, for being super-sweet and as shallow as a puddle.

And oops, make her Chloe’s half-sister or whatever to further rub salt in Chloe stans’ wounds. 

Is the show even gonna tackle the angst that would arise from Mayor Andre discovering his beloved wife had an affair?

Or Chloe discovering her much-loved mother is in fact a cheat?

What about coping with the SHOCK revelation that she... GASP... has a long-lost sister?

Forget it. All that rich potential for human emotions sounds B O R I N G.

Don’t forget that if there’s a major event in this show that doesn’t include the words ‘Love Square’, the makers just don’t care.

Let’s cut straight to a giant golden Zoe (who now looks like a giant golden Chloe) trying to smoosh her now much smaller sister...

While Chloe pushes Marinette and her parents towards the beast to save herself. 

Because of course she does.

Never misses a trick to make Chloe look bad, does Thomas.

It’s a skill you can tell he’s very proud of.

Anyway, back to Zoe...

Despite my harsh words above, I harbor no ill-will towards you.

Your design is decent and you seem like a stand-up gal.

But I hate to say this...

You shouldn’t exist.

It was completely unnecessary from a storytelling POV to create a sibling for Chloe, and your mere presence will diminish the show.

I can say this with utmost confidence after looking at the situation from every conceivable angle...

Without even needing to watch your eps or know why you were created.

(Although, I have a pretty good idea)

Some people might say WELL GIVE HER A CHANCE!!!!

Hmm... no.

Everything the show needs to be successful with Chloe’s character...

It’s already right there.

She does not need a secret sibling

She does not require a sweeter counterpart

And she definitely DOESN’T need Thomas constantly bashing her to impressionable fans online like she’s the Antichrist personified!

Seriously dude, if you hate her so much why bother creating her?

And if you hate her so much... why spend so long talking about her?

Despite his repeated denials, I think something another user here said is very true...

She DOES live ‘rent free’ in his head.

It sickens him that, despite his best efforts, she still has so many fans.

Not to worry, Thomas.

From what I see, there are still plenty of sycophants who agree with everything you say (even if they actually don’t)

After all, it’s enough for some to get a reply from the ‘great man’ himself

Why jeopardize that by trying to engage with him in a meaningful debate?

Especially when we know how handsy he is with the ‘block’ button.

Anyway, this went on for about a thousand more words than I meant it to.

I guess me and Thomas have just ONE thing in common (Thank God)

This is a topic which we both feel VERY strongly about.

The differently is of course, I have far less power in the process, and preach to a much smaller audience.

Still, I won’t let that stop me ranting away like a loon.

Hey, if it’s good enough for him... ;)

#miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #adrien agreste #ml salt #ml rants #lila rossi

[langernameohnebedeutung]

(tbh I think one thing that frustrates me about season 3 of Lucifer is...how easily it would have been to get Cain right? He already brings everything to the table myth-wise?)

All the antagonists we had thus far were a) pretty nuanced and b) integrated into the story.

Sure, Malcolm was the most obviously "evil" of the bunch, but season 1 shows us again and again how much his experiences in hell shaped him into the person we meet. We know he was a dirt bag before, but after he is brought back, he's willing to do anything to avoid going back and he completely lost all connection to humanity because of that terror. We learn what hell does to a person - which is something that is relevant to understanding our main-character - and we learn something about the world we're in.

Then we have Amenadiel. Him bringing Malcolm back and doing all that stuff in season 1 like pretending to be a therapist, using Linda, orchestrating the theft of Lucifer's wings - tells us more about his major flaw: That he thinks doing his father's work justifies everything. And thinking that his father is always right, even if he doesn't understand his (supposed) orders. And that's the exactly the thing he's unlearning over the next seasons, the basis for his growth and development. We realise he's not a badTM person and he even ends up siding with Lucifer.

For the Goddess, they built up this expectation of some evil monstrous being - but then she's a mother who loves her children except she has too few moral boundaries and doesn't care about humans because - yes, compared to her they're pretty much insects and she was in hell for most of their history. We get her. We understand her motivations and even when she does horrible things like torturing Linda or freeing Perry Smith or stealing Azrael's blade, she never does them because she's a cackling evil villain - but for reasons that make sense in the terms of her character.

Then you have Cain.

Cain could have very easily fit into that pattern: He's in the bible. Even before the Eve-arc of season 4 (which casually drops Cain like a hot potato with even his own Mum saying that 'yeah, that guy sucked, can't blame you for killing him, Luce') he has every good reason to hate Lucifer:

His parents were created in Eden. Fucking paradise. Living the best life, fruit in their mouth, no pain, no age, no injury. Except Lucifer had a teenage temper tantrum and wanted to mess with his Dad and because of that, Cain's parents lost all that, got kicked out into a life of stone age harshness without any necessary survival skills and Cain grew up suffering pain and disease and hard work to survive, being attacked by predators and finally, killing his brother and being cursed to live that life for all eternity. (Another interesting aspect: This guy couldn't just drop in and out of the mortal realm like Lucifer. This is a guy who probably spent thousands of years working in the fields or doing some really menial labour, so he would be an interesting juxtaposition to Lucifer, who experienced the pleasures of Earth as a relief, a vacation from fucking hell. Then you have Cain who wants to die because - he thinks Earth is hell, but oh, boy, you have a big one coming down there).

He had every sensible motive to hate Lucifer. This would have made perfect sense, there was no reason to make him a police cop man with a secret crime syndicate under his thumb.

Plus, the entire show is about how first impressions aren't everything.

The main-character is the literal devil and the show is about how he's not evil incarnate. And as I said, all our main-antagonists follow that trend: Amenadiel is first introduced as this scary foe to Lucifer, but actually they are squabbling siblings from a dysfunctional family trying to make things work. Malcolm was a corrupt cop but it was the fall-out of the celestial family drama that brought out the worst in him. The Goddess is introduced as this scary being that brought plagues and pests to Earth - but hey, she's actually pretty complex and vulnerable at times.

All this harping on Cain being "the first murderer!!" is...actually pretty pointless, because most of our main-characters are to some degree down with murder, with the exception of maybe Chloe but even she isn't exactly a pacifist. It really goes against the grain of the show that Cain killing Abel thousands of years ago means he has to be bad and unjustified now.

Him committing a horrible act in the fucking stone age shouldn't be the defining characteristic that makes him good or bad- And the writers knew that. Hence, they came up with all this "sinnerman" stuff. But...hear me out: Why not let Cain be right? Why not give him the motive of actually wanting revenge on Lucifer for the fall-out his dumb apple-stunt had for his family, for himself? For all of fucking humanity, actually? - bc this is something that is very rarely addressed in the show, compared to the whole rebellion thing and it would be interesting to see them settle that:

Is it Lucifer's fault for messing with Adam and Eve? Or is it God's fault because he once again decided to punish and condemn with giant consequences and without explaining his "mysterious ways"?

Like, this discussion would be right up the alley of the shows major themes but instead we get this whole "yeah actually this immortal mortal guy who has hundreds of thousands of years of very vague backstory is in a love triangle with our main characters now but actually it will never work out because he's a fucking mob boss. Also he's Cain and collects rock." WHAT WAS THAT?

#lucifer #fandom #negativity #kind of

[ridiculously-over-obsessed]

Mistletoe and Pining

@hrmdream Ho Ho Ho, it is I your Secret Santa! The Barden elves and I have been hard at work in the workshop to bring you your Christmas gift and we’re very excited for you to read it! Have the best holiday period, and I hope you enjoy your present!

Mistletoe and Pining

Rating: G

Words: 6.6k

Pairings: Bechloe

Summary: When Chloe panics and tells her mother that she's dating Beca so that she doesn't set her up on yet another disastrous Christmas date, both women have to try and navigate the holiday whilst harbouring their own feelings.

Read on AO3!

Chloe paced the floor of the studio apartment, running her hand through her hair, biting her lip. Why had she done this? This was perhaps the single most stupid thing she had ever done. There was no way Beca would agree to this. Oh god. What the hell was she going to do?

“Yo, dude, I got the groceries we needed on the way home!” Beca called as she let herself into the apartment, “Although they were out of that yoghurt you like-” She stopped as she saw the look on Chloe’s face, brow furrowing in concern, “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.” Chloe forced a smile, trying to adopt her normally breezy demeanor as she looked at Beca.

“Nice try Beale.” Beca raised an eyebrow, “How long have we know each other now? I know when there’s something wrong.” Beca went and set the bags of groceries on the table before turning back to Chloe, “C’mon. What is it?”

“I- I told mom we were dating so she wouldn’t invite someone over for Christmas dinner to set me up and now she’s insisting I bring you for Christmas…” Chloe knew there was no point dancing around the issue. Better to rip the band aid off now.

Beca’s jaw dropped, but she quickly recovered, shaking her head a little as she tried to keep the idea of dating Chloe out of it. Now wasn’t the time for that, “You… told her we were dating?” The brunette asked slowly, an amused smirk on her face.

“It’s not funny!” Chloe exclaimed as she saw the look on her friend’s face, “I panicked okay? She always picks the most boring people to set me up with, and I just didn’t want another Christmas of awkward flirting and trying to let them down easily…”

Beca could see that Chloe was starting to spiral a little, and she reached out and put her hands on her shoulders, “Hey, it’s okay. I get it. Of course you’d pretend to be dating me, I’m delightful!” She grinned as Chloe giggled a little, shaking her head.

“You don’t have to come, I know you were gonna go and see your dad, and Atlanta is way warmer than Portland at this time of year.” Chloe smiled reassuringly, “I can make an excuse for you.”

“Are you kidding? A chance to see where Chloe Beale grew up? I’m there!” Beca was still grinning, her mind racing with possibilities, but the one that stuck out most was that this was probably her only chance to date Chloe. Even if it was all pretend.

“Beca, you don’t have to change your Christmas plans just for me.” Chloe shook her head. It’s not that she didn’t want Beca to come for Christmas, it’s just that something felt… wrong about lying that Beca was her girlfriend, especially when she wanted it to be the truth.

“I know. But otherwise it’s dad and the step-monster trying to turn us into some perfect sitcom family, and that feels more painful than this.” Beca let her hands drop from Chloe’s shoulders as she started to unpack the groceries she’d brought home.

“Are you sure?” Chloe asked, heart beating a little faster as she thought about the prospect of having Beca there on Christmas morning.

“Certain.” Beca flashed her a grin, “So when do we leave for Portland?”

“Day after tomorrow.” Chloe smiled. Maybe Christmas wouldn’t be so bad after all.

-----

AUBREY: YOU’RE DOING WHAT????

CHLOE: It’s fine Bree, it’ll be fun!

AUBREY: Fun??? Fun??? You’re taking Beca, a woman I once saw eat spaghetti with her hands, to meet your family, who use more knives and forks than even my parents do, and you’re lying to them that the two of you are dating WHILE hiding the fact that you have a raging toner for Beca. You’re right that does sound fun!

CHLOE: It’ll be fine.

AUBREY: Who are you convincing here Chloe, me or you?

AUBREY: Honestly you’d have been better off saying you were dating me, at least I know how to mingle with that crowd!

CHLOE: Oh, so you’d have left your pregnant girlfriend to come spend Christmas pretending to date me?

AUBREY: I typed yes but Stacie smacked my arm…

AUBREY: Just be careful Chloe… I don’t want you getting hurt

CHLOE: I know. It’s gonna be fine, Beca knows it’s not real, it’s just to get my parents off my back

AUBREY: Is it?

CHLOE: Yes.

So now Chloe was lying to her parents and to Aubrey. Brilliant. Chloe set her phone down as she carried on with her packing. Beca was finishing up her shift at the record label, and Amy had already left to spend Christmas with her mom in Australia. She sighed as her phone pinged again, picking it up to see another message from Aubrey.

AUBREY: Does Beca know who your parents are?

Chloe didn’t reply to that. Aubrey knew the answer. None of the Bellas knew that Chloe’s parents owned the biggest digital processing unit company in Oregon, a family business that, once her brother took over, had four generations of Beale men running it. Her family were basically royalty in Portland, but Chloe had never told anyone, except Aubrey of course, but that was only because she’d come to stay with them over the summer their freshman year at Barden.

Chloe had always been determined to be her own woman, and her family had respected that for the most part. Given that she was the youngest of her three siblings, her father had paid relatively little attention to her compared to the others and had opted instead to just throw money at her. It wasn’t that he didn’t love her, Chloe never doubted that for a moment, it was just that he focused on her older brothers more, the heir apparent and the doctor. She didn’t mind, not really, but as she got older, she found herself never wanting to have to rely on her parents for anything, including money. Although they had insisted on paying her tuition fees for every year she was at Barden, and Chloe was never going to argue against not having a student loan.

She was worried that once Beca found out about her trust fund and the money that her family had, she’d be mad at Chloe for not getting them a nicer place to live in New York, or for not getting her a nicer birthday present. Three people in a studio apartment was difficult at the best of times and knowing that Chloe could have changed that might make Beca mad, especially as it would have meant that she had got her own bed. The redhead sighed again as she sunk onto the end of the bed, head in her hands. Why had she made this all so complicated?

-----

It was Christmas Eve and Chloe was pacing again, this time outside the airport in Portland. Beca watched her with a mildly bemused look on her face, but inside her heart was pounding. She hated Chloe being stressed out, the redhead usually the more optimistic of the two of them but watching her like this you’d think the world was ending.

“Dude, it’s gonna be okay. It’s just three days, and then we’ll be back in New York.” Beca tried to reassure Chloe.

“Yeah…” Chloe mumbled, pausing her pacing as she looked at Beca. Their eyes met, and Chloe felt that connection that she had felt ever since their eyes had first met at the activities fair all those years ago. The connection that convinced her, on occasion, that Beca might feel the same way about her, but she was too much of a coward to do anything about it.

Chloe opened her mouth, intending to tell Beca about her parents whilst they waited, but at that moment a town car pulled up, the brunette’s jaw dropping not for the first time that Christmas period.

“Um…” Beca started, “Is that… is that for us?” She frowned slightly.

Chloe could feel her cheeks blush as an older man got out of the driver’s seat, dressed in a suit, a warm smile on his face.

“Miss Beale, I’m so glad you came for Christmas. May I help you with your bags?” He had a light English accent, every bit the stereotype.

Beca stood with her mouth agape as Chloe returned the warm smile, picking up her bag herself.

“Me too Arthur. I’ve got them, thank you though. Arthur this is Beca Mitchell, Beca this is Arthur Wallace he works for my family.” Chloe introduced them to each other with a grin. As bad as she felt about not telling Beca about her family before now, she was enjoying the lock of shock on her face.

“It’s nice to meet you Miss Mitchell.” Arthur nodded politely in Beca’s direction as the brunette just stood there, gob smacked, “Miss Beale perhaps I am overstepping a little here, but surely you should tell your friends about your family’s business before you bring them here?”

Chloe giggled a little as she loaded her bag and then Beca’s into the trunk of the car. She turned to Beca who was still trying to figure out what was going on.

“Dude…” Beca started, finally finding her words again as she looked to Chloe, “Are you loaded?!”

“My dad is Portland’s leading data processing unit producer. It’s a family business, he does really well from it.” Chloe shrugged, sheepishly rubbing the back of her neck.

“Woah...” Beca managed to squeak as Arthur opened the rear door for Chloe and Beca to get in.

Chloe thanked him, Beca nodding as she clambered in next to the redhead, still trying to figure out just what was going on. She was thankful that the dividing window between them and Arthur was up when they got in the back of the town, swallowing hard as she turned to Chloe.

“Exactly how posh are your folks?” She asked nervously.

Chloe smiled softly, taking Beca’s hand in hers to give it a reassuring squeeze. It was a familiar action that seemed far more intimate than ‘just friends’ but that fact seemed to pass both of them by.

“They’re gonna love you Beca. And they’re not that posh, it’s going to be fine.” Chloe could see the gears in Beca’s brain working overtime as she tried to take in all this information, “I’m sorry, I should’ve told you about my family before we came.”

“Why didn’t you?” Beca asked, a soft frown on her face. She thought Chloe trusted her with everything.

“I didn’t want you to be mad…” Chloe’s voice was barely more than a whisper, “I didn’t want you to think I was hiding money from you or something, because I’m not. My family has money, but I don’t use it unless I have to. Sure there’s my trust fund, but I don’t touch that, I’m saving it for the future.”

Chloe was starting to ramble the way she always did when she was nervous and it caused a smile to form on Beca’s lips in spite of everything, “Chloe.” She interrupted, “It’s okay. I’m not mad, why would I be? It’s your money and your family, whatever you need to do with it, it’s your business.”

Chloe just smiled gratefully, not taking her hand from Beca’s as the car headed for her parent’s house. Deep down, she supposed she knew that Beca would understand, complicated family wasn’t exactly a new concept to the short brunette.

“So how are we doing this?” Beca asked, “Do you just want me to follow your lead with it?”

“Yeah. It shouldn’t involve anything too intimate so don’t worry about that.” Chloe was conscious of Beca’s issues with people in her personal space, so she was trying to accommodate for that, “And my parents are insisting we sleep in different rooms, despite the fact that I’m nearly thirty. But it’ll be fine, it’s been a while since I had a bed that I didn’t share with a starfish!”

Chloe giggled at the look of mock outrage on Beca’s face as the brunette raised an eyebrow, “Well at least I won’t have to wrestle someone for the blankets anymore!”

Chloe just rolled her eyes, already feeling more at ease than she had when the plane had landed. It wasn’t long before they pulled onto her family’s estate, Beca’s eyes widening as she looked out of the window.

“You guys have a whole forest?! That’s so cool!” Beca’s eyes were wide with excitement as she watched the winding road take them up to the Beale’s house.

“It’s not a forest…” Chloe laughed, “It’s just a few trees. In a group. Okay so maybe it is a forest…” She conceded with a thoughtful frown.

“Whoa…” Beca exclaimed as they pulled up in front of the house.

House might be the understatement of the century. It was easily twice the size of any house Beca had ever lived in, more akin to a mansion or a small castle to the short brunette. Waiting on the front steps of the house were two people, red hair like flames against the white walls, older than Chloe or Beca, but as the car pulled to a stop in front of them, Beca could see the family resemblance and knew they had to be Chloe’s parents. She put her hand on the handle of the car door to open it but was stopped as Chloe placed her hand quickly on top of hers.

“It’s dumb, but you have to wait for Arthur to open it.” She smiled softly, “First impressions and all that.”

“Oh.” Beca pulled her hand away from the handle, turning to look at Chloe again, “Sorry. They’re gonna hate me aren’t they?”

“No…” Chloe took her hand in hers and gave it a tight squeeze, “No they’re not. They’re gonna love you.” She smiled warmly, ‘Just like I do.’ Chloe added silently in her head.

Beca bit her lip as she looked down at herself, at the flannel shirt and pants that she had travelled in, and suddenly feeling like she was incredibly under dressed. She wished she could believe her, but her heart was pounding a mile a minute.

“It’s going to be fine Beca.” Chloe reassured her as she saw Arthur’s shadow fall upon the door, “Just take my lead.”

Chloe stepped out of the car first, Beca’s hand in hers as she let Arthur shut the door behind them, warm smile on her face as she led the brunette to meet her parents. Beca was trying hard not to think about the fact that she felt so out of place here, or that her hand in Chloe’s felt like the most normal thing in the world, but honestly what else was there to focus on? None of this was a situation that Beca was used to.

“Hey mom.” Chloe grinned as the older women quickly and easily wrapped her in her arms, Chloe’s hand dropping from Beca’s as she hugged her back, “Merry Christmas!”

“Merry Christmas sweetie, I’m glad you came!” Chloe’s mum hugged her tightly, her daughter the spitting image of her mother and definitely every bit the hugger she was, “We’re so happy you could make it, we really missed you.”

Chloe pulled back from the hug with a wide grin, turning to her dad and giving his hand a firm shake, “Hi dad.”

“Hi Chloe. Merry Christmas.” His smile was wide and warm, and his eyes had the same twinkle that Chloe’s always had, “Are you going to introduce us to your guest?”

“Of course!” Chloe grinned, taking Beca’s hand again, the brunette shuffling her feet awkwardly, “Mom, dad, this is Beca Mitchell, my girlfriend.” The word girlfriend rolled off her tongue with surprising ease, her heart leaping a little even though it was a bald-faced lie.

“Hi.” Beca forced a smile, anxiety making her chest pound as Chloe’s mom pulled her into a hug, “It’s really nice to meet you both.”

“It’s really nice to meet you too! Chloe’s told us so much about you, it wasn’t that much of a surprise when Chloe told us that you two were dating.” Chloe’s mom grinned broadly as her daughter blushed furiously, Beca’s grin genuine when she pulled back and looked at Chloe.

“Really?” Beca asked, mischief written in every line of her face as she looked at Chloe. She turned to Chloe’s dad, shaking his hand as it was offered to her, “It’s nice to meet you sir.”

Beca hadn’t meant to call him ‘sir’ but her brain was in overdrive as she tried desperately to adjust to the unusual situation she found herself in. It seemed to be the right call though as a smile of approval crossed his lips, returning the firm handshake. Beca mentally thanked god for her experience with meeting new clients at the label as the experience seemed to be paying off.

“It’s nice to meet you too Beca. Our daughter speaks very highly of you. Arthur, bring their bags up to their rooms please.” Chloe’s father’s tone was warm but still commanding as the older man nodded.

“Of course, sir.” Arthur smiled as he went to get the bags from the trunk.

“Dad, Beca and I can manage our bags.” Chloe frowned a little at her father as she moved to go and help.

“Chloe, whilst you are here you get the same luxuries as everyone else. And I’m sure your friend would like to experience them as well.” The look from Chloe’s father was a little condescending and Beca bristled slightly but said nothing, not wanting to cause a scene.

Chloe opened her mouth to argue but seeing the look on her father’s face she new it was futile. Instead, she followed him and her mother inside, her hand slipping into Beca’s once more. It took all of Beca’s self-control not to let her mouth hang open again as the short brunette stepped inside, the interior of the house looking like something out of a fairytale. The large staircase in the hallway (if you could call the cavernous room they were in a hallway) had green and gold tinsel twisted around the banisters, and a huge tree stood pride of place next to it. It was the biggest Christmas tree Beca had ever seen, dwarfing her as she gazed up at the gold and silver decorations in wonder, feeling a little like a child again.

“Chloe! You made it!” A cheerful voice echoed through the hallways as a young man, perhaps two or three years older than Chloe came into view.

Beca was still in a trance looking at the Christmas decorations as Chloe let go of her hand, allowing herself to be swept into her brother’s arms, laughing as he spun, hugging him tightly.

“Hey Ben! Of course I did, wasn’t going to pass up a chance to see my favourite niece was I?” Chloe grinned as he put her down, their matching blue eyes both sparkling with excitement.

“She’s so excited to see you, Jenny took her to do a little bit of last-minute Christmas shopping, they should be back soon.” Ben beamed as he looked over his sister’s shoulder at Beca who was still looking at the decorations in wonder, “Do I get to meet your girlfriend then or…”

“Oh, of course!” Chloe beamed, a soft laugh on her lips as she tapped Beca’s shoulder to pull her out of the trance she seemed to have fallen into, “Becs?”

“Hm? What?” Beca shook her head a little as she came back into the moment, a light blush on her cheeks, “Sorry.” She mumbled with a sheepish grin.

“This is my brother Ben; I think you guys met actually a few years ago? After the ICCA finals in your first year?” Chloe grinned.

“Oh yeah, I didn’t recognise you without all the eye makeup and the earrings!” Ben teased, sporting the same infectious grin his sister always did.

“Yeah, the earrings make security at the airport a nightmare.” Beca shrugged, grinning in spite of herself, “It’s nice to see you again.” Beca couldn’t remember him for the life of her, but in all fairness most of that night was a blur thanks to the adrenaline of winning and the less than legal drinking after their performance.

“There she is my baby sis!” Another male voice made both Beca and Chloe turn their heads as the oldest of the Beale children joined them, grinning broadly as he gave Chloe a tight hug.

“Rob, I missed you!” Chloe grinned, hugging him back just as tight. Once they broke apart, Chloe turned to Beca again, “Beca this Rob my oldest brother, Rob this is Beca.”

“Hi.” Beca grinned as she shook his hand, “It’s great to meet you.”

“Where’s Laura?” Chloe asked, looking around for her sister-in-law.

“Right here!” A woman, about five years older than Beca and Chloe walked into the room, a wide grin on her face, blonde hair tied back into a loose ponytail. Chloe gasped in delight as her eyes fell upon the unmistakable bump of a pregnancy.

“Oh my god, you’re pregnant?” Chloe grinned, going to hug Laura as she laughed.

“Yep! We figured it would be a nice Christmas present for you all if we just didn’t say anything.” Laura giggled, hugging Chloe back.

“This is so exciting! I’m gonna be an aunty again!” Chloe was beaming from ear to ear as Beca watched fondly.

Watching the redhead surrounded by her family, all of them so happy to see each other gave Beca a warm comfort that she hadn’t really experienced before. Being an only child of divorced parents meant that she had never really experienced a Christmas like this. She might be there under false pretenses, but Beca was glad that she had decided to come.

“Laura this is Beca.” Chloe introducing her pulled Beca from her thoughts, “Beca this is Rob’s wife Laura.”

“Hi.” Beca grinned, “Congratulations on your pregnancy!”

“Thanks!” Laura beamed as Rob wrapped an arm around his wife’s waist, “We’ve been waiting a long for this.”

“AUNTY CHLOE!” A loud voice rang through the hall as a small bundle of winter wear barreled its way over to Chloe, the young redhead beaming as she bent down to scoop her in her arms.

“Monkey!” Chloe grinned, spinning her niece in her arms as the young girl giggled gleefully, “Ooo I’ve missed you! You’ve gotten so tall!”

“Mummy says if I keep growing like this, someday I’ll be as tall as Uncle Rob!” The little girl grinned.

“Woah, that’s so tall!” Chloe gasped in amazement as the young girl’s mother joined them, dark hair a little windswept as she set a few shopping bags down, “Hey Jenny, merry Christmas!” Chloe beamed at her other sister-in-law; arms currently wrapped around the young girl.

“Hi Chloe, merry Christmas.” Jenny’s smile was easy as she moved her hair back from her face, “Did you guys have an okay flight?”

“Yeah, it was fine.” Chloe set her niece down and turned to Beca, “You guys haven’t met Beca before right?”

“Hi.” Beca gave an awkward wave as she smiled.

“Hi! I’m Ellie!” The young girl beamed, sticking out her hand as Beca squatted down so they were the same height, shaking her hand.

“Hi Ellie, it’s really nice to meet you.” Beca smiled warmly, the young girl reminding her of her aunt a little.

“You’re aunty Chloe’s girlfriend?” Ellie asked, eyes wide, “But you’re nearly as small as I am!”

Chloe laughed as Beca blushed furiously, Jenny shaking her head, a little mortified with her daughter.

“Ellie, grown ups don’t have to be really tall!” Jenny gently chided her daughter, “I’m sorry, it really is nice to meet you.” She smiled apologetically as she turned to Beca who had stood up, still sporting a smile.

“It’s fine.” Beca shook her head, “If I wasn’t used to short jokes by now there’d be something wrong with me.”

“What’s that saying? All the best things come in small packages?” Chloe grinned, arm easily and naturally slipping around Beca’s waist as she chuckled, the brunette feeling her heart pound, ready to leap out of her chest at how natural this felt for two people that weren’t actually dating.

“Alright, how about you two go and unpack and freshen up, we’re having lunch in an hour.” Chloe’s mother beamed at her children, happy to have a house full of them again.

“Okay.” Chloe grinned, “Which room’s Beca’s?” There was a hint of annoyance in her voice at the idea that (even though they weren’t actually dating – Chloe had to keep reminding herself of that -) her mother didn’t trust her with a partner in her room.

“The one opposite yours.” Chloe’s mother smiled warmly, “I know you’re both grownups, but still you know the rules of this house Chloe. No guys OR girls in your room overnight unless you’re married to them.”

“I know, I know.” Chloe mumbled, taking Beca’s hand and leading her up the stairs.

In the back of her mind she was cursing herself for wrapping an arm around Beca’s waist like she had, it had simply been a spontaneous moment, the redhead caught up in the charade and how easily Beca fit into their family dynamic. Once they were upstairs and had reached the room that Beca would be staying in, Chloe quietly shut the door, turning to Beca with a guilty look on her face.

“I’m sorry. About the arm around your waist thing, I got in the moment and-” Chloe started, the beginnings of a nervous ramble starting to talk form before Beca cut her off.

“It’s fine Chloe.” Beca grinned, giving her a reassuring smile, “You told me to follow your lead, so I am doing.”

“I know… I just don’t want you to feel uncomfortable, I know how you feel about people in your personal space.” Chloe gave her a small smile.

“It’s really fine.” Beca reassured, “Besides, when it’s you I don’t really mind…” The words were out of Beca’s mouth before she could stop them and she blushed deeply, red with embarrassment as looked at her feet, at the bed that her bags had carefully been placed on, at anything but Chloe.

“Oh.” Was all the redhead could think to say, “W-well that’s good! Um, the bathroom is the second door on the left as you head back down the hall, if you want to shower or something, and I’m just across the hall. I’m gonna go unpack.” Chloe hurriedly left the room, heart pounding as Beca’s words bounced around her head. She couldn’t have meant them in the way that Chloe had heard them right? That wasn’t what she meant.

‘Cool it Beale. This is all pretend remember?’ She thought as she stepped into her room with a sigh. Maybe asking Beca to do this had been a mistake. Maybe Aubrey was right, this was going to be too painful. But it was too late now.

Beca sank onto the edge of the bed, head in her hands. Why the hell had she said that? How much of a dumbass was she? She had been so swept up in the warmth of Chloe’s family, of the residual feeling that had been caused by the arm around her waist that had placed there without a second thought, that she hadn’t thought before she’d opened her mouth.

“Dammit Mitchell.” She whispered, shaking her head, “Just be cool for once in your life. This is just a temporary thing, a favour you’re doing for a friend.”

‘A friend you’re in love with!’ Her brain unhelpfully responded as Beca groaned softly. Why the hell had she agreed to this? Chloe was her friend, that’s all she was, and here Beca was letting her ridiculous unrequited feelings get the better of her.

-----

Christmas Eve with Chloe’s family was far easier than Beca had thought it would be after what she said in the guest room. The way Beca slotted in the Beale’s family dynamic was effortless, almost as if she were meant to be there all along. It was a weird feeling for Beca, to be waited on rather than helping with the food and serving it, and there had been a couple of awkward exchanges that Chloe had quickly helped her figure her way around, but that aside it had gone off without a hitch.

They had bid the family good night and walked to their rooms, hand in hand as if it were the most normal thing in the world (although that didn’t stop a tingle in Beca’s hand every time she felt Chloe’s hand pressed against it), stopping only as they reached their doors.

“I’m really glad I came Chloe.” Beca said as she turned to her with a smile, “I know that I’m a little awkward with all the posh stuff, but I’m having a great time.” They were stood usually close, even for them, but neither of them seemed to notice.

“I’m glad you’re here too.” Chloe grinned, “Like really glad. Even if it were just to pretend I was dating someone, I’m glad the person I picked was you.” Chloe had imbibed three glasses of mulled wine, and Beca was starting to have flashbacks to the hood night party of her freshman year as the redhead pulled her close, “I’d always pick you Beca.”

“Thanks Chlo…” Beca whispered, a little tipsy herself but having drunk less to make sure that she made a good impression on Chloe’s parents (which seemed ridiculous considering they weren’t actually dating, but nonetheless she preserved with making a good impression).

“G’night Beca. I think Santa’s gonna leave you some really cool presents tonight.” Chloe winked, her face mere inches from Beca as the brunette giggled softly. In a daring move that caught Beca completely off guard, Chloe closed the gap between them, pressing her lips to the brunette’s.

Beca forgot how to breath, how to move, how to do anything but stand there as Chloe kissed her. She knew that Chloe was a little drunk, that this probably didn’t mean anything other than to steer her clear of the mulled wine tomorrow, but god this was Chloe Beale kissing her and it was all she had ever wanted since she’d started college.

Chloe pulled away, smiling warmly as she waved her fingers at Beca and disappeared into her room, sighing happily as she flopped down onto her bed. That was the best Christmas Eve ever. Having Beca here only made everything better, Aubrey had been wrong. Stupid Aubrey, how could anything that had happened hurt her friendship with Beca?

It was 5am when Chloe’s eyes snapped open, her chest clenching as she sat bolt upright with the answer to the question that had been on her mind as she fell asleep rang around her head. She kissed Beca. She kissed Beca. She kissed Beca. Oh god. Scrambling out from the sheets and blankets that she’d tangled herself in, she immediately went to Beca’s room. Sure it was 5am and the brunette would almost definitely be asleep, but everyone else would be up at 7am and this conversation couldn’t wait.

Opening the door to the guest room, a small smile crossed Chloe’s lips as she saw the brunette splayed out across her bed, starfishing, her mouth hanging open a little. Tiptoeing, Chloe walked over to the bed and sat on the edge of it, gently shaking Beca’s shoulder.

“Beca? Beca I need to talk to you.” Chloe whispered, her tone soft but urgent.

“Huh, wha… what time is it?” Beca grumbled as she stirred, frowning a little as she rubbed at her eyes.

“Five am. I’m sorry.” Chloe winced a little as Beca groaned, flopping backwards into her pillows dramatically, “It’s just we need to talk about what happened last night.”

Beca’s eyes snapped open, heart pounding in her chest. She didn’t want to have this conversation, didn’t want to hear Chloe call it a mistake. But here they were, and this was a conversation they had to have.

“I uh, I shouldn’t have done that, I’m sorry. It was the mulled wine, I guess I just got caught in the moment.” Chloe blushed as she rambled a bit. She wanted more than anything to tell Beca that, yes she hadn’t meant to kiss her, but god was it the best thing she’d ever done.

“It’s fine.” Beca forced a smile onto her face as she sat up, “Really. You’ve always been a little handsy when you’re drunk.”

Chloe couldn’t help but giggle a little as Beca teased her even as she felt her heart break inside as Beca blew it off so off handedly. Part of her wanted Beca to tell her it wasn’t nothing, that it was something she had wanted all along, but here was the definitive answer: Beca didn’t feel the same.

Beca thought she saw a flash of disappointment in Chloe’s eyes and took a deep breath. She’d been thinking about this all night, she’d been thinking about how Chloe’s lips felt against hers, how it felt like electric coursing through her every nerve, how she hadn’t kissed her back. Seeing the look of resignation on Chloe’s face made her wonder if the redhead felt the same way. All too quickly the moment was gone, as Chloe got off the edge of the bed.

“Right, I’ll leave you to get some more sleep then.” Chloe smiled breezily, trying to hide her heavy heart as she left Beca alone again.

Beca could’ve cried as she laid back in her bed, hands on her forehead. Why was this so complicated? God, the look on Chloe’s face… it was playing in her mind over and over. Right. That’s it. Beca sat up, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, throwing her hair up into a messy ponytail before quietly tiptoeing down the hall. She frowned as she entered the kitchen, trying to figure out where things were so she could do this properly. A big gesture. That’s what she needed.

“Can I help you Miss Mitchell?” Arthur’s voice made Beca leap three foot in the air, spinning around as she spun round to see him stood at the entrance to the kitchen.

“Jeez dude!” She exclaimed, getting control of her breathing again as she shook her head.

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Arthur had a bemused smile on his face.

“It’s fine. I really could use some help though, I- I’m trying to do a big gesture, but I suck at this sort of thing.” Beca smiled sheepishly.

“For Miss Beale I assume?” Arthur entered the kitchen, taking a couple of mugs out of the cupboard, “To show her you don’t want to play pretend anymore?”

“How did you?” Beca gasped, mortified at the idea that they hadn’t be as convincing as she thought they had.

“The barrier between the passengers and I in the car is not soundproof… it’s a very common mistake.” Arthur smiled again as Beca blushed.

“Ah. Yeah that makes sense…” Beca grinned sheepishly, “Alright, so big gesture, how do I do this?”

“Hot chocolate.” Arthur started, “There are mini marshmallows in the pantry and whipped cream in the fridge.”

Beca quickly rushed to get them as Arthur heated the milk, ready to melt the chocolate into at as she returned. There was a quite pause before Beca asked him the question that was on her mind:

“Why are you helping me?” Beca didn’t look up from her hands as she asked the question, “I know you work for Chloe’s family, but you have no reason to help me…”

“I have known Miss Beale since the day she was born.” Arthur was dedicated to his task as he gave Beca the answer, “She is like a daughter to me. And I have never seen her look at anyone like she looks at you, or anyone look at her in the way you do. I want her to be happy, and I believe you would make her happy.”

Beca sniffed slightly as she grinned at him, “I’m really going to try…” She promised.

-----

Chloe lay back on her bed, frustrated and sad at the way that this had panned out. God she should have listened to Aubrey, because this really hurt. She was sad, and her heart felt heavy, and Beca hadn’t kissed her back. And now? Now she was stuck spending Christmas pretending to be in a relationship with someone who wasn’t in love with her, which would’ve been fine if she wasn’t so desperately, pathetically in love with them.

A light knock at the door paused Chloe’s spiral as the redhead got up, a soft frown on her face before she opened the door. Stood in a Santa hat that she had purloined from god only knew where, a mug of hot chocolate in each hand and a soft smile on her lips stood Beca. Chloe stood there for a moment in shock, not understanding what was happening.

“Here. Take these.” Beca grinned broadly, waiting patiently as the redhead took the mugs from her and set them down on a table, “It’s the proper stuff, hot milk, melted chocolate, cream and marshmallows. Y’know the kind you drink when you’re sad because it reminds you of being a kid at Christmas.”

“How did you-” Chloe started, trying to figure out what had happened in the half an hour since she had left Beca’s room that had got them to this point.

“You told me once. You were drunk, you’d failed your Russian Lit midterm in our senior year, and I asked what I could do to cheer you up, and you said proper hot chocolate with all the trimmings, because it reminded you of the happiest times in your life.” Beca grinned broadly as Chloe just opened and closed her mouth like a fish.

“Beca, what’s-” Chloe was struggling to find her words as she looked at the big grin on Beca’s face, her heart pounding as her brain worked overtime.

“Look up.” Beca said softly, biting her bottom lip a little, nerves making her heart pound right out of her chest.

Chloe looked up, gasping softly as she what was fixed (a little haphazardly admittedly) above her head. A tear slipped down her cheek as she lowered her head again, a soft smile of disbelief on her lips, “Mistletoe…” She whispered.

Beca nodded, saying nothing more as she leaned in, closing the gap between them as she pulled her close, pressing her lips to Chloe’s, one hand on her hip the other on the back of her neck. Chloe closed her eyes as their lips connected and lost herself in the feeling on Beca kissing her like this as the short woman’s tongue slid across her bottom lip, the kiss deepening far quicker than either of them could’ve imagined it would. The redhead wrapped her arms around Beca’s waist and lifted her upwards, the brunette’s feet not touching the floor as she just grinned against Chloe’s lips, taking advantage of the new angle to press her tongue against Chloe’s in a way that made her let out a soft groan.

Eventually, the need to breathe broke them apart, a little breathless as Beca stood in Chloe’s arms both of her arms now draped around Chloe’s neck.

“That’s what I should have done last night.” Beca whispered, forehead resting against Chloe’s as she grinned.

“Yeah, you really should’ve.” Chloe teased gently.

“Merry Christmas Chloe.” Beca grinned as she kissed her again, chaste and soft.

“Merry Christmas Becs.” Chloe mumbled, grinning from ear to ear.

This really was the best Christmas ever.

#merry pitchmas 2020 #bechloe #beca mitchell #chloe beale #pitchmas #pitch perfect fanfiction #fake dating au #fanfiction #fanfic #my fic #pp #pitch perfect

[syndianites]

A Queen Serves and Protects

Chapter Four

First Chapter –> Last Chapter –> Current –> Next Chapter Summary:

Post-Style Queen, Pre-Queen Wasp.

Chloe finds the Bee Miraculous, but instead of finding an obliging, subservient Kwami, she finds the Kwami of Order and Subjugation, and Pollen is not about to let herself be used like Nooroo was.

Granted, the only danger in a teenage girl is the damage she poses to herself. Can Pollen shape Chloe into a hero? Or will she stubbornly refuse to change and remain the bitter, harsh person the city has long since known?

[My take on how Chloe’s character could have developed] ——————————————————————————————

Jean-Jacques had been part of Chloe’s life since she was a young girl. Despite her tenacious desire to be more like her mother- who the staff of the hotel whispered less than kind things about- Jean-Jacques found her to be quite endearing. He helped raise her, after all.

And though he had many misgivings about Audrey Bourgeois, it still hurt him to see Chloe distraught about her. Of course, as with all matters attending to Chloe, he was the one meant to break the bad news.

At precisely 9’o’clock in the morning he was given the news that Audrey would be leaving for New York once more. Did this surprise him? No. Would it devastate Chloe? Most likely.

So he could be forgiven for taking his time going to wake Chloe. In some hopeful, foolish part of his mind, he wondered if the extra bit of sleep would give her the clarity to see her mother simply could not care less about her.

But, as he knocked on her suite door- receiving no answer- he knew better than to expect such a thing. Instead he entered the suite, moving to Chloe’s bedroom.

Chloe was sleeping peacefully, light snuffles coming from her as her mouth hung open. If Jean-Jacque had paid just a bit more attention to the room he may have seen a flash of yellow disappear beneath the duvet Chloe had haphazardly tossed around in her sleep. As it stood, he looked at his charge for a minute before heaving a sigh.

This was never an easy task.

With a gentle hand, Jean-Jacque shook Chloe by the shoulder. She mumbled something, throwing an arm out over her face and digging into her pillow. Jean-Jacque couldn’t stop a fond smile from growing. She still acted like the little kid he was put in charge of sometimes.

“Madam, it is time to wake up,” Jean-Jacque spoke softly.

He received a groan in response. Instead of getting up she rolled over, blonde hair turning into a bigger mess of tangles as she moved. He shook his head. Chloe didn’t have much time to wait, so it seemed he would have to pull out the big guns.

Gently, he grabbed the edges of her duvet and pulled it up to her chin. She sighed comfortably. Ah, how peaceful she looked. Then he yanked the duvet down with a flick of his wrists.

“Nooooo,” a tired grumble came from Chloe.

She flailed in the bed, looking for her covers. In her little tussle she kicked a yellow stuffie she had under her duvet. Jean-Jacque looked down at it curiously.

It was mostly yellow, with black markings. From the antennae and stinger, he assumed it must be a bee. How interesting! The little plushie was soft and warm from what he could feel through his gloves. Giving it a pleasant smile, he placed it down on Chloe’s end table.

Giving Chloe’s shoulder a firmer shake, Jean-Jacque tried to call her from sleep. “Madam, your mother is leaving back to New York today. If you don’t get up soon you will miss seeing her before she leaves.”

This worked.

Chloe flung herself into a sitting position. “What!? What do you mean she is leaving!”

Before he could explain, she shoved her way out of bed and dashed to her closet. She took out a silken night-robe to cover her yellow-plaid pajama bottoms and white tank top before striding determinedly out of her room.

Ah, he hadn’t had the chance to tell her where Audrey would be. He cringed as he thought of the poor staff she would interrogate to find out. With a sigh, he turned to make Chloe’s bed for her.

In his worry, he failed to notice that the little “plushie” was gone from where he placed it.

///////////

Chloe was not a morning person. When given the chance she would gladly get her beauty sleep. So why was she running around the hotel on a weekend day this early in the morning?

Her mother was trying to leave without saying goodbye.

She grit her teeth. Her mother was just busy packing, surely. Being such a renowned fashion critic her schedule must be packed. She probably didn’t even have time to say goodbye to her father!

As Chloe strutted through the front lobby, weaving between hotel occupants finding their way to their free breakfast the staff provided, she assured herself she wasn’t too late. Her mother was all about style, after all, and what was more fabulous than being fashionably late?

When she reached the banister, Chloe’s eyes zeroed in on her mother ordering around some of the staff, having them move her bags about. Her father was standing by her side, slightly hunched inward.

‘Ah,’ Chloe grit her teeth. ‘He must have seen her trying to leave.’

Chloe rushed down the steps, deftly moving between patrons in her rush. Her father saw her coming first, brightening up at her arrival.

“Princess! There you are. I was worried Jean-Jacque would be too late in telling you your mother was departing.” He smiled at her, leaning down to kiss her head as she pulled up next to him.

She paid him no mind.

Her mother didn’t bother to spare her a glance. “Ah, Chlorine, how nice of you to show up. I was just telling your father that I was to be returning to New York. I have no other business to attend to here.”

Chloe’s heart sunk. Of course her mother had to go already. It was foolish to hope that she would stick around longer. After all, she was busy!

Yeah, busy.

“I wanted to make sure I could say goodbye, mother,” Chloe said. “Before you left.”

Waving a hand in her direction, her mother shrugged her off. “How kind. I’ll let you two know when I’m coming back again. Please make sure to keep things running smoothly here, Andre. I would hate to return to a mess of a hotel.”

Biting back a frown, Chloe dutifully listened to her mother chatter about her plans. Apparently, Paris was not as quick to the draw in the fashion industry as New York was. This year, in any case. With all the akuma attacks designers and major brands had taken to avoiding the city. Which made sense, of course. 

The only thing that really brought her mother back, according to her, was Gabriel Agreste and a few other top designers that still lived in Paris. Despite the constant threat, there was a good handful of people content with the fact that Chat Noir and Ladybug could handle the dangers akuma posed.

Her mother, however, did not care.

“If those two so-called ‘heroes’ can’t even have a decent wardrobe, how can I expect them to keep this place safe?” Her mother huffed. “After all, they didn’t stop Carina here from turning evil and betraying her mother. Don’t think I’ve forgotten that.” The last sentence was emphasised with a head tilt and glance in her direction.

Chloe’s stomach churned uncomfortably.

“They are simply not good enough to keep me here. Perhaps if they could lay waste to Mothman faster I would stay.” Her mother, of course, hadn’t been around that much regardless. Not that Chloe or her father would say anything about that.

As her father helped herd the staff towards the awaiting limo, Chloe watched her mother walk away from her. Again.

This time, she didn’t stay with her mother until the last minute. Instead she turned back towards the lobby once her parents left the hotel. Despite how much she wanted to see her mother, the words she spoke to her yesterday rang in her head.

She didn’t want a repeat of those words today. Especially when she was still in her night clothes.

So she rode the elevator back up to her suite, all the while trying not to think about her mother. About how she wanted to take Marinette to New York with her. How she probably would.

Chloe furiously scrubbed her face with her hands. Enough was enough! She would not think about Dupain-Cheng until Monday when school came back around. If she was still there then clearly she was too foolish or unworthy to go with her mother to New York. If she wasn’t…

Well, that would be one less loser to worry about.

When she returned to her room Jean-Jacque was nowhere in sight. Her bed, however, was neatly made. She flopped onto her chaise. Now she was painfully awake far too early in the morning on a Saturday of all days.

“Your mother is certainly a character.”

Chloe jumped at the voice. Sitting up straight and turning around, she watched Pollen lazily float over to sit next to her on the backrest. They frowned at each other.

“She just doesn’t have time for those below her,” Chloe replied.

Pollen raised an eyebrow. “Below her? Why would any of the people who work for your family be below her, never mind the guests that stay at the hotel.”

Chloe threw her hands up. “Because they are commoners! At least, the staff is. The hotel guests are people paying to stay at our luxury hotel. And my mother? She is the Queen of Style. Her word can make or break a brand, or trend, or anything to do with fashion. Compared to the rest of the people in this building she is a god.”

Bringing a paw up to hide her laugh, Pollen shook her head. “So she’s above others because she makes her opinions known and others take them to heart? Interesting. I suppose I have been asleep for a while if that’s how things go nowadays.”

“Okay, no, not anyone can do that. But my mother worked from the ground up to get to her position. She crafted her empire through determination and wit! There’s nothing unexceptional about that.”

“So she used to be a commoner, then?”

Pollen’s words stunned Chloe.

“I- uh, no? She was never just some common person-”

“Is that because she had always been exceptional, even before the world saw her as such? Or is it because she was born into money?”

That stumped her. She… honestly didn’t know her mother’s background. She knew as much as the tabloids did- that Paris’ Style Queen had built up her reputation quick and fast despite the newness of her personal brand. As far as anyone knew, her family was fairly wealthy and supported her from day one.

Just like Chloe had hoped to get from her mother one day.

“It doesn’t matter,” Chloe insisted, “Because she is still better than the rest of the rabble downstairs.”

Polled huffed, getting up to sit on Chloe’s knee. “What makes her better? Her money? Her status? Who she is married to?”

“Obviously, it’s-” Chloe began, only to get interrupted.

“It doesn’t matter,” Pollen commented, repeating Chloe’s earlier words. “It’s all artificial. What makes your father better than the rest of them, then?”

“He’s the Mayor of Paris! He has to be better than the rest to be mayor,” Chloe replied.

“How did he become mayor?”

“He was voted in, of course.”

Pollen smiled. “So the commoners decided they liked him more than the others?”

With a groan, Chloe let her head fall back against the chaise. “Duh, that’s why he’s better than them.”

“And your mother was declared the Style Queen because she had the support of other commoners?”

“I guess so.”

“So what I'm hearing,” Pollen continued, “Is that the word of the commoners is the most important part of being above them?”

Chloe took a moment to consider that. Her brain twisted and turned trying to wrap around the idea. The common people… gave them their superiority?

“You’re thinking too hard, Chloe. What I’m trying to say is that power is given by the people. Assuming you are better than others is hypocritical because you could just as easily be one of them. What makes someone famous? What others think of them. If the ‘commoners’, as you love to call them, didn’t think that your mother’s word was worth something, or that you father was best suited to being the Mayor of Paris, would they be who they are now?”

“Oh my god Pollen,” Chloe threw an arm over her face, muffling her next words. “That shouldn’t make sense. What the hell.”

Pollen beamed. Had Chloe been looking, she may have seen hope grow in the kwami’s eyes.

“Of course it does,” Pollen hummed, “because you already knew that. Think about it- how did Marinette become class representative?”

Chloe was silent, before muttering, “The rest of the class voted for her.”

“Why?”

“Because they like her.”

“Exactly! I could tell even from the small amount of time I spent in the room that Marinette was well liked. For a ‘commoner’ she sure is exceptional.”

Chloe froze. Pollen, of course, knew what she said. Knew exactly the word that got to her, too.

Bringing her hands down to her lap, Chloe let out a long breath. “Exceptional enough for my mother to take her to New York.”

“It comes full circle, doesn’t it?” Pollen mused. She was treading on a delicate topic. Despite the horrid way her mother treated her, Chloe obviously valued her mother’s opinion. If she tried to denounce her mother too soon Chloe would lash out at Pollen, killing their relationship. But if she didn’t try to unweave Audrey’s teachings then Chloe would be stuck the way she is.

So she decided to do something risky.

“It’s not your fault she left.”

Chloe’s head snapped up. Eyes wide, she looked down at Pollen wordlessly. Then, her eyebrows drew together along with an angry sneer. “Of course not! Why would you even think that?”

‘Carefully, now,’ Pollen reassured herself. 

“Because,” She began, “You were thinking it.”

Waiting for Chloe to lash out, Pollen kept a neutral face. But something had shifted in Chloe since the day before. Watching her intently, Pollen watched her face fall.

Chloe took a shuddering breath. “I did. Think about it, I mean. But she’s just busy. She’s always been too busy to stick around.”

Pollen gazed at her sadly. “Too busy to say goodbye?”

Biting her lip, Chloe fought tears. She would not break down for the second time in less than twenty four hours!

Instead, she turned to look out her window. “Why does she always leave, Pollen?” Chloe’s voice was uncharacteristically soft. It struck a chord in the kwami.

“Sometimes the people we love won't stay with us, even when we want them to. And it’s no fault of our own. Everyone has their own path in life,” Pollen explained, placing a placating paw on Chloe’s hands.

Noticing that her hands had clenched into fists, Chloe fought to relax. It wasn’t the first time her mom had left her. Why did it hurt so much now? 

Closing her eyes, Chloe fought to remain neutral. “What about you? I thought you were staying to see if I was a good person. Are you going to stick around?”

Pollen stroked her hands gently. “You aren’t a good person.” When Chloe stiffened, she quickly added, “But there is good in you. I don’t think you are ready to be a hero yet, but that’s okay. I promise that I will be here for you, even if you never become a hero. I want to stay with you.”

And despite everything, despite her mother leaving and not bothering to say goodbye, despite her words to her yesterday, Chloe felt something in her heart ease. Just a little.

“You better not.”

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous tales of ladybug and chat noir #ml #ml fanfiction #ml fanfic #chloe bourgeois #chloe bourgeois redemption #pollen #pollen (ladybug) #pollen the bee kwami #bee miraculous #kwami of the bee miraculous #audrey bourgeois #andre bourgeois

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Wish come true - Adrien AUGreste Day 18+19

I imagined this one going slightly different but it ended the same, Adrien's Italian anger coming out in defense of the people he loves. Another thank you to @etherealxgenie for betaing. Masks

Adrien was still reeling from what happened earlier. He’d immediately gone to the Liberty after they left and they had to video chat Ivan and Rose – who surprisingly was home – to tell them the news. If he thought they were excited, Anarka was even more so. She might not like Jagged Stone but she was more than willing to cause trouble for Bob Roth. Adrien just hoped Juleka and Luka recorded when the two finally met.

He was typing out an email to his dad, bursting with excitement when he heard the front door open. He dropped his laptop to the side and climbed down his bed, running to the front door.

“Mama, Mama, you’re never going to believe what just happened! I got to meet – oh. I didn’t know we had a guest coming over.” behind his mother was an older gentleman. Compared to his father’s own style of suits, this man looked like a stereotypical high-profile lawyer, with his pressed suit and squirmy looking face.

“Adrien, I don’t know if you remember Signor St Claire? You went to school with his daughter Elizabeth in New York?”

Elizabeth? Then Adrien remembered. “Betty St Claire. Class president and president of the cultural society.”

“That’s my girl!”

And also, the most spoiled brat in the whole school. She was like Lila in terms of annoyance and Chloe, pre-change, in terms of behavior. She constantly insulted those she thought was beneath her, acting like her behavior was completely acceptable. Most of the students hated her, but because her father was a diplomat who was well known to be connected with politicians and the current president – who happened to also be a superhero – they would bend to her will. Adrien never had to, except when her mother was invited to parties by Betty’s father. Then, he had to pretend he was a follower of her, like he was this spoiled diplomat kid who had power and abused it whenever he wanted.

He hated that persona diplomate kids took, acting like just because their parents moved and they had a high pay check to pay for things it meant they could treat people who didn’t have that like crap. It took Adrien a long time to accept what his parents did as they’d been doing it since he was a child. It was rare they’d let him stay with his nonna in Italy while they moved. He learned to work with what he lived with, even more so when the fighting was getting worse. He had every right to be like those other kids but he wasn’t going to let them turn him into something he wasn’t. So, he didn’t spend much time with Betty, not playing her mind games, unless he had no choice. Betty had her father wrapped around her finger and she knew it. in a school full of people whose parents needed him for something, if they pissed her off or went against her, all she had to do was go crying to daddy and all that support would be ripped away. With her dad standing right there, it didn’t take much for Adrien to guess why he was here.

“I hear you’ve been pretty close to these new heroes and villains. Must have been quite scary getting akumatized.”

“Something like that. Thankfully people like mama are trying to do things that will help.”

“And we’re hoping Signor St Claire will offer his support as well.” his mother said.

“You’re really gonna have to convince me, Rossi. So, what are you going to make me for dinner?”

Oh god, he was one of those guys.

“Take out. You’ll be staying at the Italian Embassy while we host you, I’m sure you’ll get sick of Italian food very quickly. Adrien, caro, why don’t you suggest something?”

“Ever had bahn mi?”

“N-no. can’t say I have. I’ll have to ask for your suggestion.”

“While Adrien does that, how about a glass of wine?”

That brightened him up. “If you’d be so kind.”

Because the kitchen was open into the living area, Adrin slipped into Italian, but still spoke softly. Betty might not have passed her foreign language classes but he wasn’t sure about her father.

“What’s going on?”

“After Hero Day, all those who came to France to offer help and suggestions finally agreed on things that should be implemented. But after going over the budget, we don’t have as much funds. Most money is put towards counseling for those who’ve been akumatized and we don’t feel right taking money from that for these suggestions. So, we’ve asked our countries to donate and even gone to the UN. We’re getting a grant from them but we’re still missing a substantial amount, an amount that most countries wouldn’t think to have set aside for instances like this. Except, of course…”

“For the US, New York specifically.”

With all the heroes and villains that lived and centered themselves in the city, it wouldn’t be surprising if a lot of funding was directed there. And because Signor St Claire was so close with those who controlled the direction of the money…

“Will he say yes?”

“That’s what this visit is about. I wish your father was here, he’s much better at this interacting with people part.” His mama was more of ‘Let’s solve this problem together’ compared to his father’s ‘Hi, it’s so nice to meet you. Let's be friends so if either of us need something, we can come to each other.’ “We’re even having a ball to celebrate connections between Italy and America that he’ll be representing America at. Betty will also be there.”

“Mama.”

“Adrien, please. You know I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important.”

And it was, god damnit, it was. If Paris wasn’t prepared for events where Miraculous Reset didn’t happen after a fight or if the heroes were unaware of the akuma due to its powers, they’d need help.

“You wanted to tell me something when we came in?”

Tell his mother about the best thing while they both had to deal with this? He was getting better at not hiding things from his parents, minus the thing with Lila, but he was sure Luka couldn’t begrudge him this.

“Not important. I’ll play nice.”

                             _______________________________

Luka looked around the reception area of the Italian Embassy. He’d seen pictures of a lot of museums and well-known buildings and castles in Italy and it seemed to fit. He mostly heard Italian being spoken, able to pick up a few words from what Adrien taught him, a bit of English and very accented French. The receptionist finally came around the corner, a man following her.

“Signor? This is Signor St Claire. He’ll be accepting the delivery.”

“I hear you have the name cards? And the ones for table settings?”

“Yes sir.” Luka handed him the box in question. He flinched a little when he pulled out a pocket knife to cut the tape and judging from the receptionist's face, she didn’t like it either. Opening the box and pulling out one of the cards, M. St Claire looked them over before nodding.

“Perfect. Here you go son.” He pulled out a $100 US bill and handed it to Luka, collapsing his knife and taking the box and leaving.

He looked at the sort of useless bill. His mom had a collection of $1 from every country she visited but he wasn’t planning on visiting America anytime soon. He was still trying to see if his school’s request to College Dupont would be accepted to allow him to join their class trip to London. He turned to the receptionist who’s exasperated face matched his.

“You can 100% say no, but do you mind…?”

“Of course. In fact, the Ambassador is heading to America with Signor St Claire when he leaves, I’m sure he’ll have change. I’ll be right back.”

“Thank you.” Unclipping his helmet, he pulled it off, ruffling his hair, wondering if he should text Adrien. The band’s parents were going to need to speak with Bob Roth and Jagged Stone to work out the details of the contract and their debut. He still couldn’t believe it when Adrien and Marinette told them. Adrien’s piano skills caught the rocker’s attention so much, he was giving them this chance to impress him just as much and Luka was dying to prove him right in giving them this chance.

“It’s so pretty!” Tikki climbed out of his hood, hiding under his hair as she looked around. “Is Adrien here?”

“I don’t know. I guess I could at least say hi to his mom.”

“It’s so small!” A new voice, accented French, worse than M. St Claire’s, echoed loudly in the hall as a girl Juleka’s age, with long curly red hair and a sneer on her lips came down the stairs. Following her, this odd look on his face was Adrien. “The school’s foyer is bigger than this. Daddy expects the party to be here?”

“The ballroom is big enough for the guest list.” Adrien said with a small smile. It didn’t seem real though.

“Please, it’s daddy. If they were at all smart, they’d have the ball at the hotel that idiot Mayor owns. I mean, can he even do that? Own a hotel, a movie company and run Paris? Though I guess the rest of the city knows where the actual power lies, with that brat of a daughter. I met her and she acted like she was so much better, with her little dog following her every word.”

Luka noticed Adrien’s hands clench, though the smile never left his face.

“Betty, this way, all the attention can be on you and your dad. A bigger ballroom would take away from that.”

The sneer morphed into a deformed smirk. “It would be a shame if that weren’t able to happen. My dress is from one of the best designers in New York. I hope you picked up some sense of fashion living here. I swear, you used to just wear whatever during free dress day at school.”

Luka then noticed it, Adrien’s heart song. It was normally a very pleasant piano melody. It’s tune changes depending on his mood. His favourite was the giddy yet soft tone it took when he kissed him. This… this was like you not knowing how to play the piano in terms of its chaos but oddly at the same time, you did know and you were going for a soundtrack that expressed all the anger in the world. But he still had that smile on his face.

“Well, no one can beat your fashion.”

“Obviously.” She scoffed, reaching the bottom of the stairs and heading to the front door when she spotted him. “And who are you? Thieves won’t get very far.”

“I don’t think he’s a thief.” Adrien jumped in. “Helmet and the fact that he’s still standing here probably means delivery guy?”

“Whatever. Still sure he’s stealing. I’m getting security.” The girl walked off before Luka could defend himself.

“I’m so sorry. Are you ok?”

“Are you? I can hear your heart song, it’s in chaos and you’re mad, like really mad. What’s going on?”

Before Adrien could answer, the receptionist returned, change in hand. “Here you are. Signor Rossi, anything I can help you with? Where’s Signoria St Claire?”

St Claire? As in the man who was carrying around a knife?

“Attempting to get security. I’ll go stop her. Sorry.” Adrien apologized, before running off after Betty. As much as he wanted to go after him, something told him it was better to leave. But he needed one more bit of information.

“Sorry, but is Boulangerie Patisserie doing pastries here tomorrow? I work as a delivery person for them and I was curious if I needed to plan to arrive early for this ball.”

“As far as I know, they might? We also have a local Italian bakery doing food as well.”

“Why did you want to know if Marinette’s family were working the event?” Tikki asked as he got to his bike.

“I haven’t heard from Adrien all day, so I want to know if this discord is something only, I've seen or if it’s something everyone knows about.”

Marinette was working at the register, her mother talking to someone on the phone and her father working away if the noise from the kitchen was any indication. She perked up at the sight of him, waving him over.

“Have you talked to Adrien?”

“I just saw him at the Embassy. Do you know what’s going on?”

“I don’t know the whole story, but he was dropped off by an embassy car this morning.” An odd start. Once Adrien knew his way to school, he either took the walk through the park or took the metro. “There was a girl with him. Chloe recognised her and Alya found her online. Elizabeth St Claire. She might have followers who are jealous of her lifestyle but most comments are about her behaviour and even Chloe couldn’t stand her. She met her the day before; her dad is an American diplomat with some pretty rich friends.”

Rich friends? “Wait, did Chloe mention anything about the decision for implementing things to help with akumas?”

“I think she said they agreed on things. She might have also mentioned something about money?”

When the talks started, his mom had mentioned she hoped they could afford it. Having to create a new budget to deal with akumatization was difficult and since Miraculous Reset fixed everything, the budget was kinda small. If Adrien was willingly hanging out with a person who’s manners clearly made him mad but had him biting his tongue, then there was a chance he had to pretend to be ok with this.

“Is your family doing an order for an event at the Italian Embassy?”

“Yeah, that’s why my mom’s on the phone. She’s doing a final check of their order. Did you want to come? The event’s in two days. I could use a hand as a waiter.”

“Please.”

                                    ________________________

“Can you believe that Boudoir girl? She looks like a little girl in that dress.”

“Bourgeois. Like the fashion critic. That’s her mother.” Adrien said, keeping the stupid peace though all he wanted was to shave Betty’s hair off. She was dressed in a backless short dress and had the nerve to say something bad about Chloe’s dress, the asymmetric hem and lace looking dainty on her, especially with her hair down.

“God, she must be so embarrassed that’s her daughter. I think I’d just kill myself.”

And he wanted to take the serving dish Luka and Marinette were carrying around and slam it on her head. Three days, he’d put up with her insults for three days while his mother tried getting the head of the St Claire family to agree to fund the ScarCat Assistance Program, as his mother finally announced it. He’d even heard Alya going insane over being asked to use the name for it. He'd distanced himself from his friends to keep his cool, which made things worse when Betty, who was always in the embassy car when he was dropped off, would loudly insult anyone she saw, giving fake smiles when they turned to her. He wanted to actually be violent with her, but he couldn’t. Not yet, not until his mom was covered. There’d been no approach by Scarlet Bug or Catseye about the note they left and while Scarlet Bug had disappeared the time he and Luka were going to St Vincent for the pictures, there was no telling what would happen if neither of the heroes were there to reset everything. They needed to program.

“Oh my god, look at those wait staff. What is this, such a sad excuse for Molin Rouge adaptation?”

“Moulin Rouge.”

“Don’t you have anything better to do than correct me all day?” she asked, turning to him.

“Sorry.”

She scoffed at him, walking away and he let his mask break a little to glare at her. Clearly Lila had spoiled him, he forgot how annoying she was.

“Deep breaths.” A very welcomed voice said, lifting a tray to him full of macaroons. “Yellow is your favourite.”

“Passion fruit.” He plucked one off and looked at his boyfriend. “I haven’t spoken to you in a while.”

“Marinette filled me in. Your ‘friend’ knows how to make an impression. If I didn’t know you, I would assume you were fine with her abuse.”

“We’re this close to getting the program, I just need to keep her happy.”

“Adrien!” Betty reappeared, looking annoyed. “You left me talking to myself like an idiot.”

Pasting that smile on again, he looked apologetic, “I didn’t know you wanted me to follow you. Macaroon?”

“Does it have eggs?”

“It’s a meringue cookie, so yes.” Luka answered. When he got a confused look he explained further, “Meringues are made with egg whites.”

“Gross. Get lost. Come on.” she dragged Adrien away, who gave Luka an apologetic look over his shoulder.

This continued and the mask of not being bothered was getting harder and harder to keep when his mother stepped on the steps and taped a fork to her glass. Once the room fell quiet, she smiled brightly.

“As many of you know, myself and other diplomates came to Paris to assist the mayor in efforts to help combat Hawkmoth and his attacks. During Hero Day it became very apparent we could not let this slip by us any longer. Measures and suggestions have been agreed upon and the Mayor is ready to implement the ScarCat Assistance Program, named after the famed blog that documents the heroes’ rescues. Our only issue had been money, even with donations made by each country. Tonight however, at this ball to celebrate the bond Italy and America have, their diplomat Signor St Claire has signed a check of 4 million and has already secured from the President of America, a hero in her own right, another 4 billion to put towards the program. With this, we can help Scarlet Bug and Catseye and for those moments where their magic fails, we have a way of helping the city when they can’t. a round of applause for Signor St Claire.”

“What kind of name is ScarBug? It sounds like a disease.” Betty said.

“The only disease is you and the words you constantly spew. It’s like you love hearing the sound of your own voice, even when it’s only capable of saying hate and insults. Take a look in the mirror you porca Eva and actually think for a second if by the time you leave school if anyone is going to want to be around you. I have put up with you insulting my friends these past few days when all I wanted to do was shove you down the stairs. Grow the fuck up and vaffanculo!” Adrien finally spouted. He was loud enough that they certainly got attention, but his mother had the band start playing again if only to distract a little.

“You can’t talk to me that way!”

“Why? You gonna go crying to daddy and tell him to pull the funding? Please, do that, in front of this whole ballroom, including the mayor of Paris and the cameras he has focused on him. I guarantee you that you’ll have gotten your dad fired faster than you can backstab someone.”

Betty let out a frustrated scream and stomped off and a few people who’d dealt with her applauded. He couldn’t help but truly smile as she tried complaining to her father, who was in the middle of guests.

“Caro, a word?” his mother whispered. “What were you thinking? I know you don’t like her but insulting her that loudly? And what about that language? I’m ashamed of you.”

“Mama, normally I’d care, even when it was Lila, but I don’t. It was bad enough playing nice with her at school when I couldn’t ignore her. I had to do it now while she insulted my friends, my boyfriend, staff at the embassy, I’m pretty sure you at one time.”

“Adrien.”

“Mama, I have wanted to do that for ages. Please, punish me later, but let me revel in this, just a little. Oh wait, don’t punish me.”

“And why not? Mio dio Adrien, your behaviour was worse than when you yelled at the Agreste girl in the middle of class.”

“I wanted to tell you before, Jagged Stone.”

“Did you find out I got you tickets? I have half a mind to ban you now.”

“You got me tickets? Wait, I’ll go back to that later. No, Marinette was commissioned to make a jacket for him and I went with her to ask him to save a ticket for me until I could get dad to send me the money, but turns out Marinette gets free tickets for the class. I was messing around on his piano during his fitting and he thought I was so good, he’s gonna get Bob Roth to honour his promise of a contract and he wants us to open for him at his first concert. Mama, Kitty Section is going to open for Jagged Stone.”

“You are? Oh caro, that’s amazing news! I’m so proud of you. It’s not getting you out of punishment, but I’m so happy for you.”

Ok, well he tried. But the good thing was, it sounded like he could do it and bonus, he was finally able to pull Betty down a few pegs.

#adrien augreste #Adrien AUGreste 2023

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

IOTA Reviews: Queen Banana

LINK TO “SOLE CRUSHER” REVIEW

After months of delays and waiting, the episode I've been dreading the most has finally aired. I feel like I was a little too harsh on “Truth”, “Lies”, and “Gang of Secrets”, because you know what? At least they tried. They tried to portray the Lukanette breakup in a serious matter. They tried to portray the Adrigami breakup in a serious manner. They TRIED to show the toll being Guardian was taking on Marinette mentally. Sure, they all failed miserably, but at least I can give them an A+ for effort.

This episode... does not get that. We all know that Astruc didn't even think of trying to portray the debut of Chloe's replacement with respect or dignity. This episode is absolutely, wholeheartedly, 100% Astruc's way to SPITE all of the people in the Miraculous fandom who liked Chloe or saw something good in her. He's already compared her to a controversial political figure, a slave owner, an abuser, and a rapist, so it's not like he's even worried about getting hate for the way he portrayed Chloe in this episode. After all, Chloe has always been an irredeemable monster, and anyone who says otherwise is just another one of Astruc's “haterz”.

So, after putting it off for so long, it's time for me to finally get into the eighth (chronologically the eighth and eighth episode in the season after “Mr Pigeon 72”) episode of Miraculous Ladybug's fourth season: Queen Banana.

We start out with something we rarely see in this show anymore, Marinette actually designing something. Yeah, remember she's a fashion designer? I think this is the first episode since “Cat Blanc” to highlight Marinette's creative side like this. She's designing costumes for a student film while supervised by the art teacher and one of his former students, the “famous director” Thomas Astruc.

Wasn't the whole reason Astruc's self-insert got akumatized in “Animaestro” because nobody actually gave a damn about him? Now he's a big name in the industry? Did the Ladybug and Cat Noir movie do that well with critics and audiences that it suddenly propelled him to stardom in less than a year? It's almost like Astruc threw in that line just to boost his own ego.

Of course, Chloe sees the news report on the movie and doesn't take the news where Zoe is the star well.

Well of course she has the lead role, she's supposed to replace y—oh, right. You meant the movie. Yeah, that's also a reasonable complaint.

Also, for some reason, she's eating some bananas, which Sabrina actually brought with them to the school. Why? Probably the same reason Chloe made a big deal about her family crushing losers underneath their shoes or some crap like that.

Even though she wanted no part in the movie before, now Chloe starts demanding to be the lead, threatening to sic her father on the production team.

We then get a montage of Chloe demanding the movie make changes, like a new heroine as the star called Queen Banana (TITLE DROP!), giving her a banana themed vehicle, making Adrien play a hostage for the villain, a dynamite throwing gorilla, and the extras to all praise the glory of Satan. Okay, that last one didn't really happen, but given all the stuff he's compared her to, would you really put it past Chloe to compare her to a Satinist?

This montage is yet another example of Astruc attacking the critics of the show, as well as executives who meddle in the show sometimes. There have been a handful of instances of Astruc claiming that because the show was written so far in advance, nothing can be changed.

Ignoring the fact that there are several examples of viewer response influencing production of a show, like how Legends of Tomorrow's fifth season premiere addressed and undid a lot of the things fans hated about the previous season, this is an incredibly ridiculous argument to make. For the love of God, the animators just had to change the design of a character last-minute THIS YEAR because they were accused of whitewashing!

Is that the only way something can be changed last-minute? To avoid getting bad press?

And of course, the episode tries to portray Astruc as the well-meaning creator who has to learn how frustrating the executives, I mean Chloe's meddling is.

In some regards, I get what he's going for, but it's a little hard to take his argument seriously when his planned script is intentionally upsetting people who DARE to have a different view on one of his characters.

After everyone gets fed up with Chloe's demands, they decide to film the whole thing behind her back, naturally pissing her off. She tries to get her father to come down on them, but it turns out Gabriel loved the whole thing, especially the part where Adrien obediently stayed in the cage while filming, causing Chloe to storm out. Adrien tries to confront her and get her to apologize.

SO. MANY. PROBLEMS.

First off, of course ADRIEN is the one to call out Chloe here. Sure, he was her biggest defender for the stuff she did, even scolding Marinette for being happy when it looked like she was going to leave Paris (and unintentionally set the events of “Miracle Queen” in place because he convinced Marinette to give her the Bee Miraculous again, but we're never going to acknowledge that), but he chooses NOW to demand she apologize? Not for attempting to Spider-Man 2 a train and risking a lot of lives, not for all the acts of sabotage she performed the entire show, not teaming up with Hawkmoth and exposing the identities of the other heroes, but it's THIS? Screwing up the production of a movie? It's not even the first time she's done this! Of all the things you could make the breaking point in Chloe and Adrien's relationship, it's this? Again, the events of “Miracle Queen” are never mentioned at all in this episode.

Second, you're having Adrien cite that bit from “Despair Bear”? First of all, that was so minor, it'll be hard for viewers to get the context or else they'll assume it happened off-screen. Second, Adrien went back the second he saw Chloe be mean to Marinette again at the end of that episode, playfully saying that “she'll never change”. Of course now, since it's Adrien, he always has to take the moral high ground, even if it doesn't line up with his previous interactions with Chloe.

Third, this is what makes Chloe give up on her friendship with Adrien? Not all the times he sided with Marinette? Not any of the times he foiled her schemes? It's the damn movie again? I thought he was your rich best friend to pamper? You're just giving up your arm candy like that? The writers are burning so many bridges, I think they're delirious from all the smoke they inhaled.

As Chloe storms off, Gabriel transforms into Shadowmoth and sends out an Akuma and an Amok to Chloe, transforming her into an Akuma called Queen Banana with a gorilla Sentimonster called Banana Boom Boom. Of course they gave it a stupid name like that. It's implied that with her specifically requesting certain powers and abilities as Queen Banana, as well as remembering what happened after she was de-evilized, Chloe intentionally accepted the akumatization. Do you hate Chloe yet? Come on, do you? Every minute you still like Chloe, the writers kill a colony of bees.

Queen Banana is... ugh... what can I even say about this? The animators intentionally gave her a stupid as all hell design that makes me wish she was Miracle Queen again. Again, the banana motif makes no sense, and it doesn't go with the Queen Bee motif. What inspired the animators to think this...

Looked anything remotely like THIS???

The car looks okay. It's been a while since we got an Akuma that had their own vehicle, but it feels redundant with the Sentimonster. Queen Banana's powers are stupid. All she can do on her own is turn people into bananas. That's it.

Her Sentimonster, Banana Boom B—okay, screw it, I'm calling this thing Knockoff Gorizilla. Deal with it. Knockoff Gorizilla has the power to throw exploding bananas that turn people into bananas. That's it.

So Queen Banana attacks the theater the movie was playing at (shooting Sabrina because she’s just that awful), and Marinette gets away with Zoe while Adrien transforms into Cat Noir. Zoe proposes reasoning with her, but Marinette says...

Yeah, screw reasoning with people! It's not like she just did that with Alya a few episodes ago to break her out of her akumatization, right? Chloe's bad to the core, and you should all hate her now.

Ladybug meets up with Cat Noir, and after some fighting with Queen Banana, summons her Lucky Charm. She really hit the jackpot today, as she got a Vespa, helmets, and everything needed to change a tire.

Ladybug isn't sure what to do, but then she sees Zoe come out like the hero she is. She actually plans to sacrifice herself to save Paris because she's just that awesome.

Cat Noir uses his cataclysm to buy some time while Ladybug and Zoe get away, but accidentally hits Knockoff Gorizilla, driving it out of control. Ladybug retreats with Zoe into a subway tunnel, where she hands her the Bee Miraculous. Of course, in an attempt to show she has character flaws, we see Zoe is unsure of herself, but that's only an excuse for Ladybug to praise her even more.

Wow, look at how humble Zoe is. Sure, she's brave, kind, and an amazing actress who is beloved by everyone, but this moment of vulnerability coupled with her vague past make her just as compelling of a character as Chloe. So Zoe takes the Bee Miraculous and transforms into the new Bee hero, Vesperia.

Okay... look. I'm sorry if I'm being overly negative here, and I feel like I was a little too easy on Pigella's design last time (looking back, I see a lot more flaws like the lack of a pig motif), but come on! In what world is this a bee? The Queen Bee design worked because there was a pattern that resembled the mixture of yellow and black stripes on a real life bee. The Vesperia design is just... what the hell is this? Why are there so many little V's on the suit? Why does she have two long bangs in her hair? Why does she have a mask that makes her look like she has a unibrow? With there being more black in the design than yellow, honestly looks more like Queen Wasp, which was meant to be the evil version of Queen Bee.

Actually, you know what? It's more like the suit the Black Canary wore during the final season of Arrow, a black jacket with hints of yellow.

In fact, Arrow did something very similar to what Miraculous Ladybug is doing right now.

During Arrow's fourth season, Laurel Lance, the first (technically second) Black Canary was killed by Damien Darhk, easily one of the most controversial writing decisions in the entire nine-year run of the Arrowverse (A: It was only for shock value. B: It was confirmed to be a last-minute decision by the writers, who set up one of the main characters to die in the season premiere, but didn't know who it would be until a few weeks before Laurel's final episode. C: The writers seriously thought the Black Canary wasn't an important character to the Green Arrow series, and they really should have learned from the backlash they got for killing off Sara Lance last season. D: Laurel's actress, Katie Cassidy, was informed her character was getting killed off two weeks before her death scene was filmed. E: Laurel was only stabbed by an arrow and had access to proper medical care but she still died. F: Laurel had only been the Black Canary for less than a year. G: Laurel's last words to Oliver were propping up the controversial romantic plotline with Felicity. H: This only fed into the theory that executive producer Marc Guggenheim hated Katie Cassidy with all the plotlines he gave her character to deliberately make her unlikable, and then killed her off just when fans were starting to warm up to her. I: Nothing was ever done to bring her back, not even the reality-altering Spear of Destiny or Oliver recreating the multiverse himself. J: We got two separate instances of the writers teasing the audience with the possibility of her return, one where someone stole Laurel's gear, and another with Laurel's evil Earth-2 counterpart, Black Siren).

The next season, we were introduced to the second Black Canary, Dinah Drake. While nobody explicate said she was meant to be better than Laurel, it's clear the writers thought so (A: She's a metahuman with a sonic scream, while Laurel could only recreate the Black Canary's iconic power through a sonic device. B: She's a police officer with a connection to the law, just like how Laurel was the district attorney. C: Her name is the same as the original Golden Age Black Canary, just like how Laurel was named after the second Black Canary). Her debut episode is spent with everyone going on about how awesome she is. Oliver claims that she has better control over her sonic scream than the villainous Black Siren, who once destroyed a skyscraper with her power. One character even described these contrived coincidences as “fate”. She also dashed any fan's hopes that Black Siren would get a redemption arc (she would later get one, but it didn't start until halfway through next season), and replaced Ragman's (while overpowered for this show, was still a more interesting character because of his connection to Felicity) spot on the team. It doesn't help that the editors gave Dinah easily the dumbest-sounding canary cry ever, which sounds more like a turkey being strangled instead of a sonic scream.

Okay, I know what you're thinking: What does this have to do with Zoe? Well, much like how Dinah's debut episode was spent telling the audience how amazing she is as a replacement for Laurel, the last few minutes of this episode are spent hyping up how much better Vesperia is than Queen Bee.

WE GET IT, OKAY? Vesperia is super awesome and incredible and anyone who likes Queen Bee is a brain-dead moron. If you have to tell the audience to like a new character instead of showing any reasons the audience should like them, chances are you need to refresh your writing skills. It was writing like this that made Dinah Drake easily one of the more polarizing characters in Arrow's eight year run, and I have a feeling that Zoe will be viewed the same way in the future given how her hero debut has gone.

So Vesperia taunting Queen Banana (I'm not sure if it's an act or not, but it wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't an act) manages to distract her, while Ladybug uses some glue from her Lucky Charm to jam Queen Banana's banana gun in its holster while Vesperia takes the bullet for Ladybug instead of Cat Noir, only further showing how selfless she is.

So Ladybug de-evilizes Queen Banana, but Chloe still yells at both her and the super amazing Vesperia for being better than Queen Bee in every way. Ladybug tries to give her a charm to prevent her from getting akumatized again, but Chloe refuses because she's just so evil. This is enough for Shadowmoth to send another Akuma after Chloe, even though he literally just sent out one. Does this mean Shadowmoth can recharge quicker, or did he recharge offscreen?

Apparently, in order for the charm to work, Chloe has to want it, even though in the very next episode that airs, Ladybug just sneaks a charm onto Audrey without her knowing. Thankfully, Zoe, as always, has a great idea. She tricks Chloe into thinking that the charm is from their mother, which does make some sense as Chloe didn't even see the charm before knocking it away. But yeah, this episode once again teaches kids that lying is okay as long as the heroes do it. Yes, it's for a good purpose, but the narrative doesn't really frame it that way or point out what makes Zoe different in any way from Lila.

So for once in his life, Andre actually decides to scold his daughter by refusing to send Zoe back to New York, and even though she accepts the charm (alerting Shadowmoth to their effect on potential Akuma victims), Chloe still says she will get her revenge on Zoe before angrily storming out, and the episode ends with this exchange between Marinette and Tikki.

NO. 

Don't even THINK about doing this. Astruc has insulted anyone who likes Chloe or had the slightest problem with her “damnation arc” for a solid YEAR AND A HALF. I know where this is going. They're going to continue building Chloe up as a menace to society bigger than Shadowmoth while Zoe is this completely pure angel. I mean after all, Chloe has already been replaced. She's served her purpose, and now Zoe will take the spot as the far superior Vesperia.

“Every Girl is a Super Hero”. Well, every girl except Chloe Bourgeois, judging from the ending image of the episode, which has even more blatant symbolism.

See, look at this! While Zoe is covered in bright yellow colors while holding the Bee Miraculous with Pollen next to her, Chloe is covered in purple because she's PURE EVIL! Anyone who likes her is a complete psychopath, right?

Some people have asked me why I care so much about Chloe as a character and her failed arc. The answer to that is a little personal. On my main blog, I call myself “One of the Five People Who Actually Liked Ghost”. I say that because of how despite the negative reputation it has among Kamen Rider fans, I like Kamen Rider Ghost. It's by no means a perfect series. There are several plot developments that go nowhere during the second half, and the final villain is very uninteresting while the finale had a shoehorned cameo from the next Kamen Rider. But despite all of that, I never hesitate to call Kamen Rider Ghost my favorite superhero of all time because of the impact he had on the way I view heroism as a whole.

The titular character, Takeru, was killed on his 18th birthday, and had to find fifteen Eyecons (MacGuffins with the souls of historical figures) in order to get a wish he could use on himself before he fades away. Early on, he has a rival in the form of another Kamen Rider, Kamen Rider Specter, who was also after the Eyecons, but it was only to save his sister's life. Even the main villains, the Ganma, weren't complete monsters. Some of them had noble qualities, and some even absolved their evil ways. Takeru in general is my favorite superhero because he reached out to a lot of the villains in the show and helped them change for the better. Even people who don't like Kamen Rider Ghost love the character arc Kamen Rider Necrom went through, learning to appreciate humanity with some help from Takeru.

Before I watched Kamen Rider Ghost, I had a very black and white view of the world. I thought that evil needed to be punished, and if the heroes didn't make the villains suffer in any way, they were cowards who weren't willing to do whatever it took to stop them. After I saw all of the ways Takeru reached out to others, and the complex motivations of the “antagonists”, I really saw being a hero in a new light. Because of Kamen Rider Ghost, I had learned that a true hero isn't measured by their strength, but by their compassion and ability to reach out to others, no matter who they are, and see the good in them.

Astruc is the exact opposite of this mentality. He believes that if you do anything bad in your life, change is impossible. It's best to be antagonistic to others and embrace hostility if you get into a disagreement with someone. After all, you're standing up to bullies, so you're not wrong to escalate the conflict.

This is an incredibly dangerous lesson to teach anyone, especially children. Yes, there are times where diplomacy won't work, but violence should only be a last resort. Outside of de-evilizing Akumas, when has this show ever shown a character using diplomacy to peacefully end a conflict? The few attempts I've seen (Adrien confronting Lila, Ladybug peacefully asking Hawkmoth to hand over his Miraculous) have failed miserably.

We live in an age where it's very easy for a conflict to escalate online, where people can have their lives ruined thanks to the efforts to angry mobs on the internet who disagree with them. I have seen people harassed online all because they shared a differing opinion. What if someone, no matter how old they are, takes away the wrong lesson here and decides to escalate a conflict? Things could end poorly.

Even putting aside the implications of the message, this is still a terrible way to deal with a bully. If you want to teach kids how to deal with bullies, retaliation is not what you should do. That can only make them want to bully you even more, to get on your buttons. Bullies want a reaction. They want to see their victims get all emotional. If you try yelling or attacking your bully, you're not standing up to them, you're only making yourself more vulnerable in an effort to fire back. Nobody should learn this lesson. This lesson is so many shades of wrong.

And now that these episodes are finally over and any hope Chloe might become a better person has been completely decimated, what did I think of them? Well, aside from a few hiccups here and there, they actually weren't that—okay, what do you think?

Yeah, these two episodes have officially dethroned “Felix” as the worst episodes of Miraculous Ladybug in my opinion.

The writing is ridiculous, and the attempts to make the audience like Zoe while giving us no reason to like her other than ramping up Chloe's negative traits to an absurd level, the action was mostly forgettable (though that's been par for the course this season), and of course, the metatextual stuff was frustrating as always. I'm glad Astruc seemingly learned his lesson by having his self-insert take a backseat this episode compared to what he was like in “Animaestro”, but I still don't get why he thought this was a good idea. The first act of this episode was basically insulting fans and executives who liked Chloe and offer suggestions on how to improve this show. Don't like the ideas? Don't think the show can be changed last-minute? Great! You're entitled to your opinion, so don't be surprised when you get a little backlash from fans and critics when they don't like your work, and you especially don't make an entire episode calling them out for it.

And of course, here is the main question I have with the treatment of this character: What exactly was the point of Chloe's “damnation arc”? I don't want to hear anyone like Astruc say what he wanted the audience to feel like they were “betrayed”. What exactly was the purpose of dedicating eleven episodes to setting up a character to be a hero, doing a piss-poor job at giving them character development, having them betray the heroes by working with the villains when you already had another character to do that, replacing them with a brand-new character with the personality of an underbaked sugar cookie instead of making them the hero in the first place, and then claiming that all this was entirely planned from the start and insulting anyone who has a problem with it? Why dedicate so much time to a character arc that went absolutely nowhere and then mock fans for getting invested in it? Why even bother doing ANY OF THIS???

I don't care if you like or hate Chloe, there is just no excuse to waste this much time on what basically amounted to a filler arc. At the end of the day, you could have just made Zoe Vesperia in Season 2 and nothing would have changed. You could have just made Lila Miracle Queen at the end of Season 3 and nothing would have changed. I know I'm not a professional writer, but I just don't get the point of this storyline in any way outside of a personal reason. This is why I believe Chloe was based off a real person. There has to be a story behind Chloe as a character. No creator should hate their own creation this much. You could give me an all-access tour of ZAG Studios and I wouldn't believe Chloe isn't based off someone in real life unless I heard if from Thomas Astruc himself, and even then, I'm not sure if I'd even believe him.

Call it whatever you want; blind optimism, naivete, or just plain stupidity, but I am the kind of person who tries to see the good in others, no matter what they do. There are only a select number of people that I see as complete monsters, and most of them are famous historical dictators. Chloe is nowhere near that level of evil, and I can't believe that a grown man in his mid-fourties believes this. I'm not even sure if I should feel frustration, pity, or a combination of both when it comes to Astruc.

Why he feels this way, we may never know for sure outside of theories, but you should know this: showing compassion is not a weakness. It's important to at least try to see the good in others and reach out to them. Make an effort to help someone out, as hard as it may be. Trying to help others or even trying to change yourself is proof that you aren't as close-minded as Thomas Astruc is.

#immaturity of thomas astruc #iota #thomas astruc #thomas astruc salt #miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug salt #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #adrien agreste #cat noir #chat noir #chloe bourgeois #queen bee #queen b #queen banana #zoe lee #vesperia #gabriel agreste #hawkmoth #hawk moth #shadowmoth #shadow moth #tikki #plagg

[intothewickedwood]

Once Upon A Time Rewatch: 6x14 Page 23

Okay what episode do we have today?

Ah okay, a Regina centric. That’s cool.

Is that the same guard Snow stripped naked in 1x16? Whaaaat?! Just looked it up and it totally is! Awesome call back! I’m going to name him Jim.

Oh my God, she killed Jim!!

Wait, so this has to be after Heart of Darkness.

The terrified look on that woman’s face when Regina strokes her chin, looks at her longingly and tells her she loves her. Omg Regina was in love with this woman all along! It was never about Daniel. It was about Christina! I’m naming her Christina. 

They are my otp now.

How did Tinker Bell get out of neverland? Pan decides when people leave, and I doubt he’d let her leave just to pay a visit with the Evil Queen. But then and again maybe it was all part of his big plan.

Oh. Pixie dust doesn’t dictate who your true love is. It just shows you possibilities. That’s not what you said before, Tinker Bell!

Regina, we all know you spared her because she’s your ex-girlfriend.

Actually, this visit from Tinker Bell is odd because she doesn’t seem angry at all like when she, like, wanted to kill Regina in 3x03. How did she go from, “okay. I lost my wings because of you but it’s all cool. I just want my otp together.” to “I’m gonna f***ing drug you with pixie dust and rip your heart out!”?

Also, this is the Evil Queen I like to see. So cold, terrifying and breaking on the inside. I’m not a fan of the humorous one in 6x02. I wish Split Queen was more like this as well. Ah different writers and director. Interesting.

Split Queen: “…not some burlap-loving peasant who sleeps on dirt.” Wish Robin: “Excuse me, I sleep on hay.” Important distinction!

Snow’s so excited about the wedding, bless her.

Lol Zelena just drags Emma’s hand to look at her ring. My girl loves shiny things! And how could I forget, her otp is getting married! She is in heaven right now!

I love Emma just casually talking to Zelena like they’re gal pals at a sleepover. More of this please! 

I can see what sqers say about this scene. Regina really does look hurt by the notion of Emma getting married. There is no heterosexual reason for her to react like this unless she’s in love with Hook. I think this is the only time they hug. Man, I feel so bad for sqers because upon this rewatch I can really see where they are coming from with that interpretation. It’s definitely there. And then they hug because Emma’s getting married to someone else. I would be so upset if that was my otp. What am I talking about, I watched 10 seasons of Smallville as a hardcore Chloe x Clark shipper. I think this exact scenario played out and it freaking hurts! 

In other news, I am so in love with Snow. Have I mentioned that? I feel like I haven’t mentioned it in a while and it needs to be said. 

I’m also in love with David, in case you forgot. I want to join their marriage. Can I join their marriage? I’m joining their marriage. Emma, I’m your mummy now. Don’t think about the age difference too much. 

I’ve eaten a lot of chocolate already today. Can you tell? I feel so alive! I want to share my social security number and be freeee!! I am trying to block out my anxiety about having to move house again next friday. Yep, that’s right, 4th place in two years. I think I will write all of these high on chocolate.

What would happen if you cut your hair with those sheers? Or your garden bush? No, that is not a euphemism, you dirty bastards (affectionate). 

I haven’t had a haircut in 10 years. Holy cow! That’s why my afro is so big, it’s full of secrets. 

Nemo is your dad now, Hook. Even though I’m pretty sure he’s a lot younger than you. 

He called him “My boy.” hehe.

I remember when I thought Hook and Rumple had the same mother. That would have been quite the twist.

I thought that vase of flowers was a giant cauliflower. Did you know broccoli, cauliflower, cabbages, brussels sprouts and turnips are all related? I wonder what thanksgivings are like when they all get together. Probably not fun for them. 

See what I did there xD? 

Emma: “This is my fault. I’m the one who convinced you to bring him here. It’s on me.” Regina: “Emma, you don’t have anything to make up for. You were just trying to help.” Omg, this compared to when she told Emma she’d ruined her life because Emma saved Marian. The development. I really appreciate this change because I nearly lost it with Regina when that was her attitude. 

Screw it, I’m making bean enchiladas. Brb. I’ll save you some!

I’m back! They’re in the oven. Anyone wants the recipe hmu! They’re veggie! 

You just know Split Queen and Wish Robin have a sexy dungeon in their castle. They just do.

Enchanted ropes would have been useful in so many situations.

The enchiladas are ready! Repeat after me, Becky: “I will remember oven gloves this time, I will remember oven gloves this time.”

Robin is so into Split Queen. He wants her to live with him and everything, even though they just met. 

I don’t think that arrow would have taken her to Robin since it takes her to the thing she loves most. She can’t love someone she’s never met. We all know it would shoot Christina right in the ass. That’s true love biatches! Evil Peasant 5ever!

Oh snap! Emma found Hook looking at himself killing her grandfather??! I completely forgot about this!

Why does she say, “That’s David’s father”? Why doesn’t she say, “That’s my grandfather,” or “That’s my dad’s dad”? She hasn’t called her dad ‘David’ in years. It’s like she’s trying to separate herself from the victim as much as possible.

She’s not even a little bit upset he killed her dad’s dad? That that event caused her father so much pain? She’s just infuriated that he tried to burn his memory. I mean, yes, she should be angry about that but where’s the empathy for her dad at least? I didn’t know any of my grandfathers well but if I found out I was engaged to someone who did that I would be angry for my grandparent, angry for my parent and angry for myself. I’m just speechless that that’s all she cares about. It seems so out of character. But then and again Regina had her other grandad killed. 

And now he’s gonna leave because he rightfully got told off. Can’t say I’d offer the same thing but she said, “until you’re ready” not “you’ll never be ready”, dude. 

I think he’s just scared David will punch him in the face at this point. It’s the only explanation for doing the exact opposite thing Emma asked of him.

“Captain Hook is always welcome on the Nautilus.” More like welcome on the naughty list after that stunt.

She doesn’t want a man, Henry Sr. She just confessed her deep, passionate, sexual love for Christina like 20 minutes ago, remember? Sometimes I wonder why I bother. It’s not even subtext, dude. Get it together, man.

Why don’t they fight themselves with magic?

Her dad is so heartbroken the person Regina hates most is herself. 

That is really sad that the person she hates most his herself. I can relate.

Yes! Launch those apples at yourself! 

My conversations with myself be like-

Oh boy. This is too reminiscent of conversations with myself. Yes, I sword fight myself wearing a fancy black, cleavage-revealing dress in my head all the time. Only joking, I wear trilby hats. 

Oh okay. Now they’re tying each other up. I see what this is really about. I still haven’t bleached the “we do like it rough, don’t we Regina?” line from my mind. 

I suppose she did take back some of her own darkness. But I was hoping she would just merge herself back together. That would have been a really predictable outcome, but I just would have preferred it. 

This scene is so weird lol, but it helped me tremendously. I used to hate myself so, so much. You don’t even understand. It was like a violent hatred for myself for not fitting in and for every single little mistake I’d ever made. Then with a lot of self- healing and the help of this episode I began my journey into loving myself. I wrote on a sticky note “Love yourself. If the Evil Queen can do it, so can you.” and stuck it to my wall. Nothing I’ve done is comparable to what the Evil Queen has done and if she can learn to love herself, why can’t everyone else. Anyone who’s struggling with self-hatred, please take this episode to heart. You are worthy of love, most importantly from yourself. Any time you find yourself hating yourself just try to remember this scene and that the flipping Evil Queen of all people recognised the importance of self-love and didn’t give a damn what anyone else thought. She damn well gave herself a chance. I’ve heard a good technique is looking in the mirror and telling yourself what you love about you. Even if you’re not feeling it at first, you could get into the habit of it and your brain will start to accept those words as true. Because they are true.

Aww she sees the Charmings as her family. 

Regina: “it did give me hope when I needed it most, and that is just as important.” Oh my God, preach the word Regina! Regina is preaching with fire today! 

It’s like she’s having a therapy session with herself. I need to do that. I really do. Then I need to get actual therapy lol xD. But baby steps! 

Okay. A loophole as to how he can change Split Queen’s story. You know what, at this point I’ve learnt just to go with it.

Can Snow and Zelena be best friends? Please. It’s literally all I want in life. And to join Snowing’s marriage. I’m not asking for much. I’ll talk about it in self-therapy.

Henry’s got Gideon’s haircut now. He wants to be cool like his uncle.

I want to look at myself with the love and adoration Regina looks at herself with. We should all get to that point where we look like we’re about to intensely make out with ourselves when we look in the mirror. 

I know what they were doing with page 23. I just wish Split Queen had changed her outfit so it could have been exactly like the page illustration. But I don’t think it was meant to predict the future. It was just one of Isaac’s fanfictions, wasn’t it? Hmm. I think it was a mystery to him as well if I can remember correctly.

It’s nice that oq shippers got their ship in the end in one form.

Snow is just constantly high up to her eyeballs on hope, bless her. 

Emma needs a dog. She seems like such a dog person.

Also, that enchilada was yumilicious, if I do say so myself.

#ouat #once upon a time #regina mills #emma swan #the evil queen #ouat 6x14 #6x14 page 23 #ouat rewatch #ouat rewatch 2019

[mulderscully]

you know, one of my greatest annoyances in the deckerstar fandom is this idea that when god shows up chloe is gonna punch him in the face etc. i wrote about that here. and now that i'm deeply into prodigal son/brightwell i see myself comparing the show and the ships a lot. how they're similar and how they're different. something i realized is that, despite martin unquestionably being a terribly and horrifically abusive father to malcolm, i have never sat there and been like "i hope dani punches him for hurting malcolm"

i mean, i definitely cheered when she threatened to blow his head off in 2x04. but you know why i cheered when dani threatened martin? because she was defending herself, not malcolm.

i really love how prodigal son walks this line with brightwell where she is someone who takes care of him when he needs it (like genuinely needs it) and is someone he now considers a safe haven in his mind - without babying malcolm in the process. malcolm has a hard time - but he is very capable of standing up to his father on his own and that is how it should be.

it just isn't a woman's job to carry a man's emotional baggage and this "chloe is gonna fight god for lucifer" idea reads that way to me and i hate it every time i see it.

#hm.

[becamitchellsbeats]

Bechloe - Skype Night

Inspired by the Bellas performance of Love On Top!

Beca is isolating alone and is missing the Bellas more than she cares to admit. One skype call and a spontaneous burst into a song later and everything changes.Might continue it so lemme know your thoughts!]

-

Beca's music career had been put on a temporary hold as she was made to isolate at home, her hand wrestling to the bottom of yet another chips packet as she flicked through the TV channel for the 17th time. "Well this officially sucks" she groaned to herself, tucking her legs in closer as she eyed a photo frame on the TV cabinet,  it was the Bellas graduation photo, looking back at it she wished she smiled more for the photo, she looked so grumpy, especially when compared to Chloe who her eyes focusing on Chloe in particular.

Beca hadn't seen Chloe in around 2 months which felt like agony seeing as she was used to seeing her daily, not that she'd ever admit it. The emptiness of her apartment was also driving her insane, she was in a position of wanting company but not wanting to ask for it, especially considering it had bizarrely became against the law for the time being, something she never could of seen coming.

See, everything went to crap when the Bellas graduated, a virus had taken the globe by storm, and university life had changed drastically, Beca was glad they had graduated before all the changes but it now meant she was isolating alone.

Fat Amy, who said she'd be Beca's 'roomie for life' received a 'dodgy' lump sum from her father so of course she was off living in a massive house somewhere and Chloe, who was her other potential roommate had gone and got herself stranded abroad whilst helping out at a vet overseas to gain more exotic animal experience.

Beca reluctantly removed herself from the sofa, dragging her feet across the wooden flooring as she made her way into the bathroom. She stared at herself in her mirror, her bottom lip tugging as she winced at the sight. Hair tangled, Cheetos dust staining her once white t-shirt and chipped black nail paint.

Tired eyes looked her reflection up and down, her hand lazily hitting the nozzle on the taps splashing herself with some cold water. "Okay Mitchell, you need to sort yourself out jeez" she said whilst waving her finger at herself in the mirror, pointing at herself somewhat sternly, then lightly smirking at herself for her own weird behavior. "I'm officially losing it" she admitted.

Feeling motivated to freshen herself up Beca jumped in the shower, warm water running down her body as she collected her thoughts. Stepping out the shower and feeling immediate regret as the cold air wrapped itself around her body, she shuddered, eagerly grasping for her towel as her wet hair now covered her eyes. She huffed, trying to blow the clingy wet hair off her lips as she blindly reached for her hair brush. Groans filled the bathroom as her hairbrush tore through the knots in her hair, her eyes watering from some particularly painful knots.

Fully clothed and nails now painted Beca had just finished on putting on her signature eyeliner. She sat in her bedroom, that was surprisingly still tidy, but that was because she had barely managed to remove herself from the sofa. She rarely socialized nowadays, other than her occasional skype calls with the group, but she always felt funny about joining calls, she was a bit awkward about having her webcam on and well, all of them insisted they have them on so she'd often opt out.

Beca however was eager to speak to Chloe, which was hard to do as she was a key worker at the vet she was helping out at abroad, with time zones and Chloe's long hours she was often exhausted so she rarely had the time and Beca felt weird reaching out to the others, she refused to come across as clingy but secretly felt sad whenever they left their skype calls. She even felt disappointed when Jessica left her.

Her hand moved to flip open her laptop lid as she adjusted her hair once more "I'll just call her, she'll be home" she mumbled to herself as her mouse hovered over the call button on Chloe's contact.

"Why do I feel so damn nervous" she said fidgeting as she stared at her username "Okay after 3, i'll click the damn call button" she moved her mouse up once more as she counted to three, pressing down on the green button as her own video filled the screen whilst a ringing noise echoed out her laptop speakers.

"Man I hate staring at myself like this" she muttered as the whole screen was filled by her camera.

A red circle, with a hang-up symbol filled the screen. Beca's heart sank. "Bad timing?" she wondered.

_______________________________________________

Chloe's heart raced with excitement when Beca called. She was getting worried about her since she had been so far away, she would often flood her with texts making sure she was eating and drinking enough. She knew Beca was down about not being able to carry out with her record label work and she wanted nothing more than to be there with her, but she knew she'd been neglecting Beca lately, she just didn't have the time and the time gap only worsened things.

"You guys Beca is calling give me a second I'll add her!"

DontBelieveInLadders: [Quick AMBUSH her!]

________________________________________________

Chloe's icon flashed up on Beca's screen it was her wearing sunglasses cuddling a baby fox, a new photo it seemed. Beca now focused her attention on her laptop that was now ringing as it flashed up "Chloe Beale + 8 others" "Group call?" Beca wondered as she clicked the green phone icon.

"BECAAAA!" the group greeted in unison. "Oh sweetie you look so good!" Chloe said with a grin who was also visible on her webcam "And you've got your camera on! I'm so glad" she said excitedly."Someone made an effort" Fat Amy teased, taking notice of Beca's stylish yet casual appearance.

Beca looked away from her camera awkwardly "What? I always get ready pfft"

"You literally have no where to go" Fat Amy responded in a pitchy yet blunt tone "But thats okay Beca, self-care is important and Impress-Chloe-Care even more so"

Beca rolled her eyes "How long you guys been on a call for anyways?" her hands fidgeting with the items on her desk, just out of shot of her camera.

FlippingThroughBorders: {Oh we just started} Flo typed on the message box below

DontBelieveInLadders: {We're still waiting for Stacie and still setting up bits} commented Aubrey as she rustled around in the background for her physical webcam to plug in.

_______________________________________________

Stacie laid in bed, browsing memes on her phone, her attention was diverted when Emily's text popped up {Heeeey hurry up and join the group skype call!} Stacie dangled over her bed and grabbed her laptop from underneath her set of bedside draws. She blew the dust off the top of it and opened it up "I've not used this bad boy in a while" she said as she turned it on, the battery flashing orange from where it was getting low.

As she opened up her search engine it flashed up with her old google tabs, an explicit site was restored and automatically started playing the last video she was watching. Stacie's eyes widened "Well that's quite the greeting," her eyes bulging as she looked the model in the video up and down before shaking her head and closing the tab. "Now is not the time for that" she laughed to herself as she launched skype and joined the chat.

"Hey you guuuuuys" she greeted with a toothy grin. The Bellas greeted their soprano cheerfully., Stacie's eyes focused on Beca "Look who finally learned that isolation doesn't mean isolating from virtual calls!"

Beca rolled her eyes again "I join in!""Occasionally" Emily countered."Or when Chloe is in the chat" Fat Amy coughed

"Aw poor Beca" Flo said into the mic now she had got it set up.

Beca began snapping her fingers rhythmically, gaining even more attention from the group. "I'm not doing this with you guys"

"Ba bah bah ba, ba" Beca hummed trying to drown them out

"What is she doing?" asked Emily"Ba ba bah da..." Beca continued "is that?" Aubrey raised an eyebrow "I recognize that arrangement, is that, Queen B?" Aubrey said enthusiastically as she leaned forward in her seat.

"Oh my god you guys are we going to sing?" Chloe said excitedly clasping her hands together as she bounced in her seat.

"Aw yeah!! lets sing together tonight you guys" Emily beamed"Okay legacy calm down don't ruin it before we've begun" Amy groaned.

The Bellas began snapping their fingers and harmonizing as they began to develop more of a beat for the song Beca was starting off.

"Here we go" said Fat Amy as the beat had been accomplished.  A grin slowly tugged at Stacie's face as Lily began beatboxing. "i'll bring  owowowo beat in"

Beca glanced away shyly as she sang into her microphone.‎"Honey, Honeyyy, I can see the stars, all the waaaay from here, can't you see the glow on the--"

"windowpane" the girls harmonized in unison

"I can feel the sun, whenever you're near, everytime you touch me I just melt away" Beca's eyes glanced at Chloe occasionally as she continued singing.

Fat Amy then jumped in with a solo "Everybody asking why i'm smiling now from ear to eaaaarr!" ("You can say love hurts") "Well I knooooooow-OHHH" ("It's gonna take a little work") Fat Amy said raising her fist passionately.

"Nothings perfect but its worth it, after fighting through my tears!" Stacie sang strongly

"And finally you put me first!"  (dah-dah) the Bellas all sang in unison

The Bellas danced together, doing hand gestures and performing together in perfect harmony. As the song continued Beca felt herself feeling more confident again, her heart feeling full as it felt like everyone was finally with her again.Her eyes closing as she found herself getting lost in the moment.

"Chloe its you, you're the one I love, you're the one I need!"

"You're the only one I see, C'mon Chloe its yoooooou"

Beca blurted out raising the octvave as they were reaching the end of the song "you're the one who gives your all, you're the one I can always call!" the girls continued the beat but stared at her. This was the version Beca would sing on her own, as she often would change song lyrics to fit how she felt.

"When I need to make everything stop, finally you put my love on top"

Chloe paused for a moment, failing to continue singing as her mind tried to grasp the lyrics that had just left Beca's mouth, her face reddening with slight tinges as started singing through her smile and teary eyes.

Being a supportive team the girls continued to hold off on teasing her, after all it was one of the Bellas standards not to let distractions interrupt a performance. Fat Amy couldn't help but smirk as she sang, she was itching to tease Beca.

The DJ was in her own world, snapping and swaying in her seat, singing with her eyes closed she hadn't even realised what she had said untilt he girls changed the lyrics themselves.

"Oh Baby I can feel the wind whipping past my faaaace" Beca sang

"As we dance the night awaaaay" the girls harmonized.

"And girl your look it tastes like a night of champagne"  (oooh) Chloe sang solo

"As I kiss you again and again and again and again" Aubrey chimed in.

As the song continued the girls began grinning, looking over at Chloe and Beca, then back to eachother as they all nodded, clearly on the same wavelength as the song progressed.

"CHLOE ,its yoooou" they sang raising the octave.

"you're the one Bec loves! you're the one Bec neeeeeeeeds"

"WAIT, GUYS" Beca yelled as her face went a shade of red she had never gone before.

"You're the only one she sees! c'mon Chloe its yoooou, you're the one who gives your all, your the one Bec can always call, when she needs you everything you DROP,  finally! you say your love out loud"

"Baby, you're the one that I love, you're the only one that I need!" Chloe sang loudly with a cheeky wink as Jessica and Ashley dominated the top notes.

"C'mon Beca its yoooooou" the Bellas sang in harmony

"When I need you everything stops, finally you put my love on top" the group then faded out to a stop.

The girls all cheered and celebrated as they finished the spontaneous arrangement of love on top. "Crushed it" Amy said with a fist bump.

Beca had already retreated behind her hands, wishing nothing more than to have a wheelie-chair so she could move herself off screen with speed.

"So Beca, remember the last time at the ICCAS when you changed the lyrics, well this was certainly distracting but, it kinda sounded like a confession" Aubrey teased.

"Hmm, thats so ODD Aubrey, I TO was thinking that sounded like a confession to me"

"I mean I got ripped a new one for performing an orginal song at that riff off, but to lyric change Beyonce, you're bold Mitchell" Emily joked.

"Aw don't tease her guys, shes drowning, although Beca, you should know, I've experienced  drowning for real,so this is better" Flo joined in.

"There was no hiding that Becs, surprised you didn't notice!" Stacie grinned

Beca groaned "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you" she said behind the safety of her hands.

"Well duh, it wasn't my name you sang the word 'LOVE' next too, quarantines got you all soft huh" Stacie couldn't help but tease.

Beca slowly dragged her hands down her face, peering out from the tips of her fingertips. "It was that obvious huh... guess thats what happens when I have the place to myself to sing the wrong damn version."

Chloe cleared her throat "Well I for one found that really sweet Becs" she said with a smile that met her eyes as her hand rested on her chest "Honestly my heart is pounding! its a good thing I know how to do CPR well on animals but, y'know" she fanned herself with her hand feeling flustered.

"Yeah um that wouldn't work Chloe, you can't do CPR on yourself" Fat Amy said shaking her head.

"I-I know that its just" Chloe went red "I just--" she threw her hands up in the air "Oof just get over her and kiss me Mitchell, screw this virus, lets just isolate together"

Beca looked up "Man this is so embarrassing this wasn't meant to come out like this and--"

"I'm glad honestly!" Chloe said with a grin "it just makes being a part from you even harder" she whined.

"I just wish you weren't so many miles away" Beca groaned

"Y'all need a ride because I can fly a plane, I just ain't got no licence officially at least" Cynthia Rose commented with a slow nod. "If you know what I mean" she said clicking her tongue.

"Thats so sweet of you but highly illegal, the Bellas have been in enough trouble in the news so we better do things legally this time, ahem, that goes to you too Amy" Chloe said suspiciously looking over at Amy who had moved off camera.

"Whaaaaat" Amy groaned "Its not like I was up to anything suspicious on a dodgey website just now"

"C'mon ladies lets give these two lovebirds some space and go gossip in another chat!" said Emily as the Bellas all began to retreat from the call so only Beca and Chloe remained.

Chloe placed her hand on the screen "Can't believe i'm only saying this now after like what, three years but, I love you Beca"

"I love you too Chlo"

- End of part -

#Bechloe #BecaXChloe #Chloe Beale #Beca Mitchell #Stacie Conrad #Emily Junk #Cynthia Rose #Flo #Pitch Perfect #Love On Top #Bechloe Back To You #Fat Amy #Aubrey Posen #Barden Bellas #Bechloe fic