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#and then OH NO DISAGREEMENT AND CONFLICT ENSUES!!!!!!
nostalgia-tblr · 2 months
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one problem with getting into Fiction Franchises like, oh let's say the MCU, long after they started is that 1) there are things that refer back to things I don't know about and 2) i don't know what i don't know about, and in a way that latter is more of a problem at least for me.
i managed an episode of wandavision and was left thinking "this seems like it's good, but i have no clue what's going on here so it's not going to work for me is it?" and i am reliably told it's supposed to be Mysterious Mindfuckery but i, a noob, was unable to work out without external clarification what i wasn't supposed to know. if you see what i mean.
i notice the mcu movies (at least as it progresses?) don't have numbers on them, and we know when they're direct sequels because there's a subtitle. and if you come at these later you need to get a chart to work out whether you should watch thor: ragnarok before or after thor: the dark world. which is easily done if i am determined to get things in the right order, but any effort is too much for someone.
so while i am willing to consider the idea that the later mcu films/shows are just Less Good than the early ones (personally Doubt so far but I'm not opposed to the idea) it's very easy inside a fandom to lose sight of what your thing looks like to the casuals who make up most of an audience, and frankly the mcu is currently Very Large and confusing.
who are all these Mrs/Captain/Miss/etc Marvel ladies and which of them have already been in films I might or might not have seen? how many ant men are there prior to this one? am i supposed to know who the baddy in this or that film is? which of these side-characters are from something else?
doesn't-seem-related-but-it-is: i was surprised to discover that the general mcu fandom view of the loki series was not that it was some sort of AU situation that could be thought of an entirely separate from the main series of films. because that was pretty much why it was the one to hook me, i think - it explained the relevant backstory with clips and yet also this is a different loki so if i don't want to go and watch however many films he was in i don't have to. i would expect him to be to some extent "out of character" because it carefully explained to me that this is not really the same character as that identical guy with the same name who was in some number of films. there's a woman one and an alligator one but don't worry they're all from AUs anyway.
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anonymousdandelion · 2 years
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I wanna know about "But There Were Two Beds"!
Thanks for the ask! From this post, if anyone is curious about any of my other WIPs.
...Funny you should ask about this one in particular, Fenris, because if I recall correctly it was actually originally inspired by this Twitter prompt which you yourself shared on Discord last year. :-) I wrote about 600 words of setup and sadly have not made any further progress on this story since August, but I'd still like to get back to it at some point. It's a very fun and fluffy idea.
Snippet of the intro below the cut.
Aziraphale had been prepared for the possibility that going to the country with Crowley, moving into a cottage, living together 24/7 — wonderful, amazing, multi-millennia dream come true though it indubitably was — might, in practice, prove somewhat less perfect than it sounded in theory.
He had, after all, been around long enough, and witnessed enough human relationships, to know that unanticipated problems often arose when a couple embarked upon this sort of thing. Therefore, Aziraphale had done his research, and had made sure to anticipate every potential problem that might ensue as a result of his moving in with Crowley.
He was prepared for conflicts over chores, interior design, or scheduling. He was prepared for disagreements about budgeting.* He was even prepared, albeit with some polite but extreme skepticism, for the constant companionship to — incomprehensible though it seemed — lead to them getting on each other’s nerves.
Whatever happened, Aziraphale was confident that he and Crowley would be able to work through it together, just as they had worked through so many other things over the years. But he was, nevertheless, prepared.
It seemed, however, that all of his preparations were turning out to have been unnecessary. Thus far, none of the problems Aziraphale had researched and anticipated showed any sign of happening. The two of them had yet to have a single argument that went beyond their usual mutually enjoyable bickering, and Aziraphale was fairly certain he was not the only one who was positively reveling in absolutely everything — the miraculously mundane, the mundanely miraculous, and everything in between — that came with sharing a home.
Well. That was to say, almost everything.
There was one problem, unfortunately, that had not occurred to Aziraphale to anticipate or prepare for.
And oh, what a problem it was.
To put it simply: In the bedroom of the cottage in the South Downs, stubbornly situated against opposite walls, there were two beds.
* Or, well, miracle budgeting, the other sort being rather irrelevant for their purposes.
** They got on each other’s nerves all the time even under ordinary circumstances, of course. But that was the fun, fond, consensual kind of getting-on-nerves.
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ddarker-dreams · 3 years
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Hi! It’s the anon asking about your major lol. I noticed you went into a lot of detail about SR Reader and I was wondering if you chose ballet because you’re also a dancer? I’ve also never heard of Teatro di San Carlo until you mentioned it in her bio so I feel like reading your stuff is educational lol, I love how you really looked around to make a whole background story for her!
i’m not really a full-fledged dancer, though i’ve dabbled in it before. i am into fitness-related stuff (specifically aerobic) though! i do a hodgepodge of techniques, most of which are related to ballet, since that tones the parts of the bodies i’m most interested in toning.
oh boy... i’ve been Waiting to talk about how i developed sr reader’s backstory hehehe >:) 
so, when i was working on it, ballet just happened to almost perfectly fit what i had envisioned. there were a few things in the back of my mind when creating her backstory. first, i wanted a solid, plausible reason as to why sr reader went to study abroad. especially in a country that wouldn’t have her native tongue as the language, or her not choosing a popular city like milan or rome, and going with naples. second, i wanted sr reader to have some sort of athletic background, so she wouldn’t have trouble fitting into the physically demanding job. i learned ballet originated from italy, that naples had a prestigious ballet program, and was like oh. excellent. this will do. >:) 
so i was just researching for hours basically. i had already kind of included ribbon ballet motifs into her stand’s design (sr wears ballet shoes and her pose is also based off a ballet photograph i found), so it seemed perfect. i really wanted sr reader to bring her own unique presence to the team. due to her background, she’s the most flexible of team bucciarati, and likely has the best overall stamina from years of training. sr reader can be very light on her feet and nimble! bucciarati took all of this into account when inviting her to join passione, seeing these strengths and the potential she had. 
anon 2: I'm in an angsty mood what has been sr reader's biggest arguments with the bucci gang? I can see giorno, after he becomes don, overstepping his boundaries getting involved with reader's affairs too much and her not liking it at all.
i had imagined there being some sort of conflict or argument in each of the routes, so here’s a brief run down of what i pictured! in the order of what routes i pictured being taken first to last. 
mista: as i said before, it’s somewhat more lighthearted, as mista is actually a god tier boyfriend. his carefree nature could be a source of contention though, as i imagine sr reader wishes he’d act more serious at times. 
narancia: as this would be narancia’s first relationship, he can be a bit insecure and petty at times. sr reader would have a zero tolerance for any controlling behavior. until she learns about narancia’s background of people leaving him and is able to empathize more with his insecurity that stems from that, it’d result in some disagreements. 
trish: hmm... there are a few possibilities here. one, where sr reader feels like trish isn’t making enough time for her and the fallout that ensues, trish frustrated by sr reader’s sudden of lack of support. or two, where trish makes a few insensitive comments about sr reader not yet returning to the dance scene. something where trish had only meant to convict sr reader but it just didn’t turn out well.
fugo: oh lord. this and abba’s route would have a few arguments. fugo might feel overwhelmed by pursuing a relationship, no matter how much he wants it, resulting in himself getting snappy with sr reader. they both didn’t communicate their feelings well and resulted in a big verbal showdown. but don’t worry, they’d reconcile eventually! just... lots of hurt feelings for some time. 
abbacchio: to anyone who has played otome games... abba is like that one love interest that is super distant and :/ the entire time. you know what i mean. i think for the most part sr reader would be understanding and patient, but every human has limits. abbacchio would call her overbearing and annoying, not really meaning it, with sr reader taking it to heart this time. ensue hurt and comfort time . 
bruno: i can imagine bruno and giorno having similar discourse. bruno would be slightly more overbearing though, likely trying to get sr reader to leave passione and the mafia scene entirely once they got together. bruno would have lots of doubts about getting sr reader involved in it, wondering why his younger self had dragged her into it, meanwhile sr reader is having none of that shit lmao. it’d be a mess. sr reader might even just peace out on a flight home to get space from him 💀
giorno: similar to bruno, would probably lessen sr reader’s passione related work, but wouldn’t try to remove her entirely like bruno. giorno is also very clueless when it comes to relationships, i see him as the type to try and compensate for that by giving gifts for the lack of time he has with sr reader. so that’d also be a point of contention at certain points.
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ivyandink · 4 years
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How The Ivy’s End - Season 1
it’s long af, so below the cut. at the end is a brief tldr; too for u instant gratification fans
Levi & Penelope
Levi and Penelope, after raising 4 kids together (Luna, Dorian [Penny + Zach’s baby, passed off as Levi’s], Morgan and Charlotte [Penny+Levi’s twins]), have a struggling relationship.
Levi is constantly trying to make things work, to make Penny happy, and to find the ‘spark’ they once had, in an attempt to revive their dead bedroom (yup!!! rip). Penny gets put on a project at work that has her teaming up with a legal consultant... none other than ex-boyfriend Justin Brees!
While Levi is struggling to work on his relationship with Penelope, raise his children, and manage his relationship with Luna’s mom Megan, Penelope is starting to feel things she hasn’t felt in a while-- but for Justin. 
When Levi and Penny’s neighbor hits on Levi one afternoon, after he rejects her she tells him she knows his relationship is falling apart-- she sees it, because so is hers. Turns out... she maybe have been right!! Penelope starts toying with the idea of breaking things off with Levi, to pursue Justin; the way she feels around him is just incomparable.
She’s ready to pull the trigger, and put an end to their ~4 years together when... Zach shows up. The father of her first child (who everyone thinks is Levi’s!), the man who spun a wild tale about a mysterious man he worked for, and some sort of danger which meant he had to disappear for a while. It took time, but eventually Penelope realized she’d been played. Zach, an avid reader nonetheless, made up a wild story all to avoid responsibility. 
Or did he.....?
Feeling the pressure and a surge of emotions from Zach’s return, Penelope finds comfort in the familiar, and reels herself back in from breaking things off with Levi. Together, they try to determine what to do about Zach being back in the picture, and wanting to meet his son. Penelope is adamant that she doesn’t want to give him a chance, but Levi, despite how much he wants to agree with her, can’t, after having experienced what it was like to not be able to see your own child. He urges her to hear Zach out, at the very least.
And when she does, it turns out... Zach’s story wasn’t as farfetched of a lie as she thought. He was on the hook for partaking in a money laundering scheme, through his business, Scratch Publishing. He’d fallen into the scheme thanks to a man he met and befriend in his NA group-- Michael Windsor. By the time he’d realized what was happening, he was in too deep to safely get out. That was why he’d pushed Penelope away in the first place, broken up with her over something trivial, and run when she’d told him about the baby. He couldn’t risk bringing her down with him. Thankfully, the statute of limitations on money laundering was five years, and with a solid four under his belt and no red flags or contact from Mr. Windsor, he figured it’d be safe to come back.
In awe of his words, Penelope’s harsh demeanor starts to slowly dismantle. The thing she’d always held against Zach was his abandonment, his betrayal, and how much he’d broken her heart when she was certain they were truly, deeply in love. How did she feel about him now that it turned out all of that was to protect her?
Slowly, but surely, Penelope allows Zach back into her, and Dorian’s life. Zach and his son bond almost instantly, which is both heartwarming and troubling. Dorian had been raised thinking Levi was his dad... what were they to say now? For Levi especially, it was hard seeing a child he’s come to see as his own, be taken away... rightfully so, by his biological father... but nonetheless, it wasn’t easy. Especially not for a second time. Within himself, now Levi has to grapple with the dilemma of how to tell his entire family he’d lied to them for four years...
Eventually, he tells them all, and once the chaos and confusion of it all blows over, things start to settle into a nice (albeit, strange) routine with Levi, Penelope, Zach and Dorian. As Zach grows closer with his son, he grows closer with Penelope too-- the old inside jokes, the literary references, the intimate teasing they’d once had together, all slowly starts to come back. Meanwhile, Justin is still spending late nights working with Penelope, and talking to her far too much to be considered strictly professional. Oh, and she’s still with Levi, and raising four children with him....
Levi, focusing on his family and his career, is presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. An international trip, to photograph at some of the top fashion events in Paris. He knows it’d be a game changer for his career, but declines the offer, in favor of staying home, where he can keep an eye on his kids, and more importantly, his relationship, which seems to be falling apart at the seems, and slipping through his fingers like water. (Somewhere in there, Luna gets into child modeling lol.)
After months of battling her emotions, dealing with the revisiting of old feelings of abandonment with Zach (both romantic and parental... him leaving Dorian mirrors her own father leaving her much to much for comfort) and trying to make the best decision not only for herself, but for her family(s?), Penelope decides to end things with Levi. She realizes that if she is feeling so conflicted (and over three men, at that!), that Levi deserves better. She jumped head first into motherhood at such a young age, and lost herself in the tumult of it all. She needed time to be alone-- no Levi, no Justin, no Zach-- to be herself for once, and find out who that woman was. 
....to be continued...
Violet & Jordan
Vi and Jordan couldn’t have a more perfect life. A beautiful daughter, a brand new home, a fancy lifestyle, and a brand new baby boy on the way to complete it all. There had never been a couple more in love in the history of time than Violet and Jordan-- that’s what they like to think anyways.
Their biggest crises is Jordan’s desire to start his own business. After near a decade of working in restaurants, and five years managing one, and a lifetime interest as a hobbyist chef, Jordan realizes that his biggest dream is to open his own catering company. There’s only one problem-- it’s expensive. And truth be told, with an obstetrician for a wife, Jordan isn’t exactly the primary breadwinner in his family.
With a mountain of medical school debt still to be paid, two brand new cars, a brand new house, and two children that need college funds, Violet is gun shy over Jordan’s new proposal. Jordan takes this to mean that his wife doesn’t believe in him, which ensues a few nights of arguments, cold shoulders, and sleeping on the couch (J, not Vi, of course).
But suddenly, that all becomes trivial when Jordan gets a phone call..... his father has died. This news rocks his world. His father had never been much of a father to him, and in fact, had been his abuser growing up. As soon as he was old enough, he’d cut ties with both his parents and got the hell out of dodge. He is filled with a strange feeling-- not quite sadness, but not relief, but a weird mixture of the two. His grieving mother begs him to come home for the funeral. For the moment, Vi and J set their disagreements aside, and say goodbye as Jordan leaves his very pregnant wife to catch a flight to Willow Creek.
To put it simply, this is an intense experience for Jordan. Being back in a place he associates with his terrible childhood, in a place he hated and couldn’t wait to run from...He hardly knows how to process it all. He is happy to see his mother, and grateful now she can be free from her husband’s abuse, too. Except... she’s not happy he’s gone. She doesn’t see herself as freed-- she would’ve defended her husband until the grave, no matter how many bruises he left, and she did exactly that. Jordan decides to stay for the week, and help his mother get everything in order, despite it all.
As he spends time in Willow Creek, he is reminded of the crew he used to run with as a teen and young adult-- people he hardly recognizes now. Except maybe... Cami. Cami had been his ex girlfriend, on again off again sort of situation. They’d dated throughout high school, and after he’d broken up with Violet to give her a better shot at life (thinking, wrongfully, he’d hold her back), Cami was the woman he turned to in his time of heartbreak. Feeling stranded and alone in Willow Creek, with his mom blaming him for his father’s death, and generally feeling like he’s at a crossroads in his life, Jordan ends up humoring Cami’s insistence on hanging around.
Cami knew what it was like. She got it. In ways Violet never could. She'd been hurt by her parents too. She’d grown up in a rough part of town, got involved with the wrong people and the wrong things, just like he did. In a way, they were kindred spirits-- it why they always found their way back to each other, despite how toxic it always ended up being. And if there is one word to describe Cami, it is determined. She is determined to get her way.
She calls him JJ-- his old nickname, that he now despises and associates with his tumultuous youth. She tries to remind him of who he was, and still is, deep down. Who they were together. She tries to tell him that this new life he’s got? It’s not him. It’s that boujee bitch wife of yours, JJ. I bet she don’t even understand you-- bet she doesn’t even get how you can miss someone even when they’ve hurt so bad... bet she said ‘good riddance’ when you told her the news. She doesn’t get you JJ, not like how I do... how I always did.
She comes on to him, pushing herself against him. Jordan gets angry, tries to push her off of him. She goads him on. What’re you gonna do, baby? Hit me again? Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree I guess, JJ. That was one time Camille. One time. I am nothing like him. No baby, you’re not... mmm.. not at all. Shhh, it’s okay, don’t cry. I’m here. I’m here. I’m never leavin’ you JJ, not ever again. 
In a moment of incredible vulnerability and weakness, Jordan relents to her seductions. But... only momentarily. It doesn’t take long for him to realize what is happening-- he pushes her off of him and storms away, as she cries out his name. Disgusted with himself, he immediately goes to call his wife. He breaks down, sobs shaking his body, as he tells Violet everything. Except the other end of the line stays silent... Don’t bother coming home, Jordan. There’s nothing for you here anymore. Stay the fuck away from me.
Cheating was the one thing Violet would never, ever stomach. She hangs up the phone, stoic and stiff as a rock, and then collapses into tears, crying on her beautiful, marble kitchen floors. She she looks around her home, she sees Jordan everywhere. She sees the life they’ve built together over the years. And she knows she can’t stay there for the night. Violet packs a bag for herself and her daughter, drops Willow off with her mom, and heads to Wes and Nate’s place to get away for the night.
...to be continued...
Wes & Nate
Wes and Nate, after four years of marriage, are ready to grow their family. With both of them working good jobs, and a townhouse in a nice enough part of the city (that Nate’s parents may or may not have helped out with...), they figured it was time. Of course, the pleading mothers on both sides of the family didn’t help matters!
Turns out, however, it’s not the easiest thing in the world to adopt a child, especially as a gay couple. Agency after agency has turned them down-- either because they don’t work with gay parents, or because they say they’re just ‘not the right fit’ (code for: you’re gay but we’re scared to say that’s our reasoning). The few agencies that have been willing to work with them are still struggling to pair them with a birth mother. Possibly because despite both of them having good jobs, neither has a college education. Or possibly because on more than one occasion, Wes had dropped an f-bomb during the interview process. Or possibly.... Weston’s questionable family history, and his father being a convict-- which came up on several occasions. 
Feeling depressed and defeated, Weston’s connects with Nate’s sister, Thalia, who is also struggling to conceive with her husband Gianni. Neither of them thought they’d ever really want kids one day, and here they are, both in their feelings about not having them. They have their heart to heart, as it feels like the only person who truly gets it is each other. The feeling of letting their partner down, over one of the biggest things.
Despite Wes and Nate’s growing frustrations, they try and stay patient. And finally, it seems to be paying off! A birth mother has agreed to match with them! Finally, it seems they have conquered the beast.
Until..... she changes her mind, and rescinds the offer, after finding out about Weston’s absent dad. Failure, again. They both know there is nothing they can do to change the sort of childhood Wes had, and that it has no bearing on the types of dads they will be-- it’s just a matter of time until they match with someone who won’t hold that against them. But it inspires Nate to bed the question to his husband... should he try and reconnect with his dad again?
It had been years of avoidance since the last time Steven showed up in Weston’s life. He’d avoided him then, and ever sense. But now, with the topic coming up over and over again, he does feel compelled to reach out. It doesn’t take long to get his number from his mom; he finds out he lives just a few hours away, and they schedule to meet somewhere in the middle.
And for the first time ever, Wes willingly confronts his father. His whole life, he’d built him up to be some kind of monster, and he can’t tell if he’s disappointed or just plain sad to see the man his father has actually become-- a tired, old, cracked out looking man with shaky hands. 
As they talk, Steven apologizes for never being a dad to him, but also admits that he never wanted to be a dad-- not then and not now. The times he reached out years ago, he was just hoping to get to know his kid, as a fellow adult, not like some mentor or fatherly figure. That was a role Steven never did well in. Steven tells Wes how despite his actions, he really did care for him, and his mom, Daria, and he’d cleaned up his act ever since he got out of prison. He confesses that he might not be the best grandfather in the world, but says he is willing to try, if Wes is willing to bring his child around him, one day (despite the fact that Steven gets visibly uncomfortable referencing the fact that Wes is, indeed gay and married to a man). With mutual understanding and no more hard feelings, the men shake hands and part their separate ways.
And as if by some kind of strange magic... Wes and Nate get paired with a birth mom just a few weeks later. Although this time, they know better than to hold their breath, there is something different about this woman and this situation that feels... right.
...to be continued...
Wrap It All Up
Jordan has returned home, Violet is still refusing to forgive him, and only seeing him when they exchange their daughter. Inside, both of them are absolutely crushed, but neither of them knows how to begin to fix the wreckage. Jordan has been coping with all the old dirt his father’s death and trip back home stirred up in himself, and throws himself into developing his business idea. He’s added onto it-- not only will it be a catering company, but he will specifically try and work with at-risk youth. Kids from bad homes, and bad situations. Even with no financial backing, he decides to take the risk and go for it.
Penelope, discovering herself as a single woman and trying to cope with the tremendous emotions she’s been having, is finally starting to find her footing. She’s finally figured out a good childcare schedule with Levi, she’s thriving at work, and she’s starting to see herself-- and what she wants-- clearer. She ends things with Justin (or what little had ever been there) once and for all, and finds herself spending more and more time with Zach, out of desire and not just necessity. With all of her reasons to hate him melted away, the feelings of love she thought were gone start to come back. And-- surprise, surprise-- they’re returned.
Violet has been staying with Wes and Nate, and celebrating with them over the news of matching with another birth mom. She’s been helping them coordinate with her, send her the right sort of items, and prepare their future nursery. One night, her and Wes are up late, talking, as they usually do. And finally Wes tries to approach to touchy subject of her marriage. 
Wes looks at Vi, and point blank, asks her if she wants to divorce Jordan. Instantly, she says no. That tells Wes everything. He urges her to forgive Jordan-- he made a terrible, awful mistake, but he immediately tried to do the right thing. He stopped it before it went further, and his first thought was to lay it all on the line to Violet, not hide it. Wes gently reminds her of the time when she cheated on jordan... with himself. It had just been a kiss, but that was besides the point. When the little secret had finally come out, Jordan had laughed, and been more so annoyed that she was never honest, and less about the actual kiss. Violet insists that was soo different, which Weston concedes to. But still, he urges her to find it in her heart to forgive Jordan. He’s a good man, a great father, and they are truly in love-- they shouldn’t throw it away over one lapse in perfection.
Violet considers Wes’ advice... and heeds it. She goes home one day, when she knows Jordan will be off work, and finds him in the once-pristine kitchen, surrounded with food and bowls and tupperware and tomato sauce strewn just about everywhere. It catches her off guard. She laughs. And then she cries. Then she goes to her husband, wraps her arms around him, and tearfully whispers, What the hell are you doing to my kitchen, Jordan?
Jordan tells Violet about how even if he doesn’t know the financial details yet, he’s going to make his catering business happen; he tells her about the change in plans, spurred by his own troubled teenhood. As she listens to him talk about his life, his dreams, and his passion, she cries harder; she realizes that maybe she never did know this part of her husband. Maybe he never shared it, but maybe she never asked. Again, he apologizes for what happened in Willow Creek. She apologizes for her reaction, and for never taking the time to get to know the rough corners of her husband. As they kiss and makeup, Violet decides that they will tackle this catering business-- together.
Levi, more than anything, feels tired. He feels beaten down. The stress of raising four children. His relationship with Penelope falling apart despite how hard he tried to make it work. Watching Violet and Jordan’s strong marriage falter and almost crack, and Wes and Nate struggle to grow their family... It’s all too much for him-- a man notoriously always looking for love (in all the wrong places..). But, it’s even harder watching all those people around him re-find their love, and peace and happiness... while his still lies dormant. As summer draws near in the wake of the hardest year of his life to date, he decides to finally do something just for him... he calls up his boss, and last minute, takes up the offer to travel to Paris for the international project.
Violet goes into labor, and gives birth to her and Jordan’s second child, and first son. They also officially file for the name of his new catering business.
Nate and Wes fly across the country to be present for the birth of their son, grateful that things didn’t fall through this time.
Penelope and Zach finally make things official.
And in Paris, Levi scouts the streets, following the directions scrawled out on a sheet of torn paper, until he finds it. 
He knocks on the door. And Marie opens it.
////////////////////////////
tldr;
Penny has a lil love triangle with Levi/Justin/Zach. She breaks up with Levi to be single, but ends up with Zach.
Jordan cheats on Vi in a moment of weakness with his toxic ex after the death of his abusive father, but they eventually make up, and he starts a catering business and vows to hire at-risk youth.
Wes and Nate struggle to find a birth mom to adopt from, but finally, it all works out and they have a son.
Levi gets fkin WRECKED emotionally (karma fro, everything perhaps??? lool) , and ends up in Paris, knockin’ on Marie’s door. ;)
There was supposed to be a season 2, as well, which details what happens the next year, after all of this.. :) Primarily focusing on Levi + Marie, and what happens with them, and also Luna’s story! May or may not make a post for that one. Season 2 wasn’t as fleshed out. 
Most important detail I guess is that Levi and Marie end up together lol. 
~*~spoiler~*~
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Comics Civil War is so hilariously stupid
Okay, so a Supervillian, who had never displayed this level of power before(turns out he was high on superpills? Anyways...) blows up half a town, kills 600 people, with 60 of them being children
The response?
The heroes literally turn on each other!
Iron Man is leading Pro Registration Heroes, and, while the Registration Act sounds good on paper, the real issue is the enforcement
Shield literally tries to arrest Captain America before the act passes because he tells them bluntly that he won't go around hunting down Supers who don't comply
A literal minute after the law goes into affect, Luke Cage's door gets knocked down and he's told to register or get thrown in a cell
Iron Man goes around recruiting actual Supervillians to his cause while making bank off reparation contracts for the damages ensued in the conflict
Iron Man and Mr. Fantastic build a super prison in an other dimension with conditions so bad they have people committing suicide(funny how this prison was build to hold Superheroes rather than Supervillians, but that's Marvel for you) and they start tossing in people left and right
Including minors (Billy, is what, 16? 17? He's a high school kid)
On the subject of 'minors', Shield indiscriminately starts hunting down Superpowered teens, including a TWELVE YEAR OLD to toss into their Superprison
Those who do sign find that they've agreed to be Government lapdogs, as Wonder Man inadvertently learned
And meanwhile...
WOLVERINE IS THE ONLY ONE ACTING LOGICALLY
Wolverine is like, hmm, maybe I should, oh I don't know, HUNT DOWN THE SUPERVILLIAN THAT BLEW UP THE TOWN
Which he does, and then promptly stays out of the whole thing
Hell, the X Men in general stay out of it, which seemed pretty weird considering they're the poster children for abused by twisted government regulations, but eh
Anyways, the fighting keeps escalating, and bodies start hitting the floor
Spider-Man, at first, is on Tony's side until he realizes, oh dear fuck, Tony's gone off the deep end. They have a disagreement and he and Tony beat the hell out of one another and Peter runs off and blah
Then, Team Cap storms the other dimension, rescues the captured heroes, and what do they do?
THEY TELEPORT EVERONE TO THE MIDDLE OF NEW YORK CITY
Like, they're five seconds away from having a final climactic clash, and they choose somewhere that high populated?
Either way, the fighting ensues and Cap ends up surrending because, even though his side is winning, they're tearing the city apart in the process
And then Aunt May dies and Steve gets assassinated and the bad guys cackle cause the only winners in this situation is them and, in a hilarious twist, Marvel released a 'What if' scenarios that basically boiled down to 'they talked about it like adults and because of that shit didn't hit the goddamn fan'
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isaacathom · 6 years
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anyway, the east, right. came out of the Collision pretty alright. some minor chaos, bunch of shit got a ll fucky, a whole big city got completely fucked, but overall pretty ok. and then it booms, completely booms, especially once connections between the human plane and elven plane are built. regions that could not previously be explored now can be, and that entire region booms. the “new” elven capital on the eastern coast is positively booming with traffic and trade with their human neighbours. everything is pretty alright.
then the Separation happens, and the planes are torn apart.
there were likely only two countries on that part of the continent - the human one, encompassing some 3/4 of the land, and the elven one in the east, encorpating the length of the eastern coast. this was fine for all involved, for the most part. minor squabbles over the extent of the elven holdings were common, but usually resolved peacefully. everyone was fine.
but with the separation, that changed. for starters, most of the prominent leaders of the human country were in the elven plane for a sort of ‘high council’ at the time, and were thus stranded. those who had stayed behind to ‘hold down the fort’ were largely unequipped or unqualified to hold total power in their absence, and the human kingdom quickly collapsed. at least one military government was established in an attempt to wrangle control out of an angry populace. the elves to the east were particularly distressed due to the loss of access to their homeland (ancestral or otherwise), and while their country did not collapse, it was rocked. their distress turned outwards, and soon they took advantage of the scattered human kingdom to conquer additional land. because, well, the elven country simply wasnt equipped to handle as many people as it now found itself having. it had been a country, yes, and had permanent residents, but they were few. it was esentially an extra-planar extension of an existing elven kingdom, and it was more of a lookout or small base than an actual Thing. but now it had to be as such. and so it rapidly expanded in an effort to occupy its restless citizens, and to gain resourcs and land for them.
a lot was happening to the human kingdom. a new one popped up in the north north-west, which protected it for a time from elven advancement. it slowly brought stability to its surrounds, though it notably did not include the military government which had been established not far south, which claimed to be the direct successor to the previous kingdom. a number of centrally located towns folded into either the military or the elves with little struggle, except when their borders collided. the northern kingdom managed to secure peace with the elves, though remained at war with the junta, who spread futher south and clashed with the elves repeatedly. 
to emphasise their legitimacy, the junta re-estbalished the monarchy and based it out of a centrally located city, though far further south than the previous capital. the monarchy was technically in control, but all knew the junta was in power. their first monarch, in fact, was a respected former military commander, to connect both sides together.
more splinters emerged. human towns which had folded into the elven country began to reach out to each other and find solidarity, and many considered exiting and forming their own nation. and they did! it was fairly short lived, being quickly subsumed into the northern kingdom, but it was, for a time, wholly independent of its surrounds.
all land was now practically claimed. control over the north-south border became fierce, with the north boasting superior unity and the south boasting a stronger military (of course!). both claimed to be the legitimate successor to the human kingdom. itsa lot of fun.
what the northern kingdom has an advantage is the peace with the elves. the two join forces to push the southerners further south, before peace is brokered between all three parties. the north and east divide the winnings accordingly, to essentially give the elves the entirety of the eastern ranges and their immediate surrounds, and all parties mostly go on their way.
peace is uneasy. individual towns and groups defect to whichever country they find the most righteous or legitimate or so forth, and their border is chaotic. many humans who find themselves under elven rule spill out of their territory in droves, and its just. a Huuuuuge fucking mess. an absolute mess.
while all this occurs, the west remains steadfast. having only sent minor representatives to the “high council”, due to their isolationism/non-interventionist stuff, and also just not giving a fuck, they were not deeply affected by the Separation from a leadership stance. they end us accepting a large amount of refugees from all sides of the conflict, much to their dismay, but they agree to look after them provided they pull their weight, which many do. in fact, theres growing feelings that the west is the strongest power in the region, and could easily claim the other side of the strait for itself. it does not do so. however, it does claim a great many islands dotted off the coast of itself and the northern and southern kingdoms. said islands were largely forgotten or ignored in the greater conflict, and many willingly + peacefully become western. this becomes an issue later, because noone decided to tell the south that this was the case. the southern govt had largely assumed the islands of the coast were still theres.
a minor war likely breaks out over ownership of the islands, to which the west quickly wins. its not really a contest. in proving the point, it clearly establishes its control of the northern islands as well, which the northern kingdom concedes without fuss.
this basically functions. the issue for me now is to tie the northern nobility back into the southern. likely what occurs is that, in ensuing decades, peace is brought between the two monarchies through strategic marriage. the junta dissolves after a while as well, after the wars stop. its not needed. it simply folds back into being the southern military, though it has a huge presence, regardless of its actual size. even though the elven military is likely far larger, it just isnt as pervasive an institution culturally.
this actually ties in well (and unintentionally, haha!) with Warzen’s backstory, and how his noble ‘father’ was going to force him into the military to ‘earn his place’ in the family. the intrinsic tie between southern nobility and the military works even better for this, since i basically imagined that warzen’s family became rich/noble through military connections and were likely involved in like..... profiteering or production or smuggling/sales or some shit, you feel me? war as business stuff. works well for the south as junta into monarchy. i dig that.
AND!! the north being allied with the elves early on (though they did likely clash a few times to start and have some disagreements over borders) also helps to explain “Noverhamptons” notable elven diaspora. theyre friends! it makes sense for elves to perhaps move to the north for some reason. the same is not largely true of the south.
whiiiiich makes the one elven noble (he married in) even BETTER for warzens backstory too, since him being an elf means hes a little bit outcast for the noble circles, leading him to bond easily with the young Warzen. oh fuck me lads its Perfect shit. ohhhhh baby. thats what i like. when the pieces align just so! <3 hell yea man
so tl;dr three countries total - west, central, east/elf. central collapses during the Separation due to lost leadership and general pandemonium. splits into two major powers - a northern kingdom likely centered around a notable aristocrat, and a southern military junta which claims the entirety of Central. the south later establishes a monarchy under an ex-leader to “increase legitimacy”. the elves expand their borders westward out of a combo Huge Distress and need for land and resources to deal with the stranded elven populace. war breaks out between all three. the elves and north make an agreement and broker peace, and they later unite to put the south in its place. uneasy peace is achieved, though the north/south border and south/east borders remain tense and have issues all the time. much of the north/south tension is resolved through a collection of strategic marriages between the two monarchies, making both sort of the same thing. sort of fixes the issue. the two become more friendly. the south remains distrustful generally of the elven east.
the west is just chilling out. takes a bunch of Central refugees and a few Easterners, and it also claims a fuck ton of islands off the coast of both north and south. partly because they can and also because theyve been ignored during the whole crisis and kinda need help. west just swoops in. easy victory. minor war with the south about it where the south just gets fucked.
the southern loss to the west is probably the final nail in the junta as the total control holders in the south, and thus it transitions into the monarchy being in the big. probably.
honestly im mostly cool if the south has an elected govt instead of a kingdom, for some variety, since the nobles can still definitely exist under it. does sort of undermine the idea of the political union via marriage, which i think works well. since the common man p much doesnt give as much of a shit, and its the upper class that cares. could easily marry lesser royalty from the north into southern noble/political families. these all work. happy to look at that in more depth later, you feel me?
but yea! fucking nice!
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recentanimenews · 7 years
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Bookshelf Briefs 6/26/17
Assassination Classroom, Vol. 16 | By Yusei Matsui | Viz Media – Most of this volume is taken up by the flashback showing us how Koro-sensei became what he is today. As you’d expect, it’s pretty tragic, but there’s also a bit of cognitive dissonance, as it’s hard to see the Koro-sensei we know today in that apathetic killer who appears at the start. But it’s the power of love that helps turn him, if not away from the dark side, at least into someone who cares about the right way to teach. Also, in case you didn’t hate Yanigasawa enough already, his portrayal as an arrogant abuser will help speed things along. Back in the present, our class is now divided—can they really kill Koro-sensei, or should they try to save him? Each volume of this series gets more and more gripping. -Sean Gaffney
Complex Age, Vol. 5 | By Yui Sakuma | Kodansha Comics – Phew. After a gut-wrenching fourth volume, I was seriously wary about reading this volume. Thankfully, however, it is far more encouraging than the last. True, Kimiko is still planning to give up on cosplay, and though she tries to sell it as wanting to devote herself to photography, it’s clear that what Rui (boo! hiss!) said to her had a role to play in her decision. But Nagisa meets her fiancé and can’t help but be happy for her best friend. Meanwhile, Hayama continues to cosplay and is having fun in her new job as an event coordinator. The bottom line is—the future needn’t be bleak, and Nagisa is left to wonder where her own limits are. With people at work and home seemingly inclined to respect her choices, could we possibly have a happy ending next time? I hope so! – Michelle Smith
Everyone’s Getting Married, Vol. 5 | By Izumi Miyazono | Viz Media – I’d mentioned Kamiya’s ‘aggressive courting’ in the last volume, and here it walks way over the line into blackmail and emotional abuse. Kamiya has become a creep, and Asuka is rightly trying to do her best to pull away from him without it damaging either her career or Ryu’s. Ryu, meanwhile, is having his own battles with Kamiya, as each says that they don’t care about what Asuka is really thinking about. Frankly, I think Ryu’s doing a better job of it, and he’s also able to break things off with Sakura in a more permanent way. Still, Kamiya isn’t going away, and the volume’s end shows him trying to be the Sun rather than the North Wind. Frustrating at times, especially when Kamiya’s being a creep, but still good. – Sean Gaffney
Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma, Vol. 18 | By Yuto Tsukuda and Shun Saeki | Viz Media – Yes, Soma wins his battle, showing that the power of fantastic food is better than the power of bribery. This also means that the administration’s goons temporarily back off attacking Polaris Dorm, and we get a highly amusing celebration scene (with more horror from newbies at Isshiki stripping). The big impact comes in the middle of the book, as we learn that Erina’s father is attacking Polaris in particular due to a past with Soma’s father. In fact, he was unaware that Saiba was Soma’s father (the danger of taking the wife’s last name, a far more Japanese thing)… and moreover, Erina was unaware of it as well. In any case, more bad things are happening as the book wraps up, and I expect things will get worse soon. – Sean Gaffney
Kiss Him, Not Me!, Vol. 11 | By Junko | Kodansha Comics – Well, new rival turned out to be absolutely terrible, didn’t he? This volume consists of a lot of running around trying to stop Kae from getting forcibly married. Kae spends the entire main storyline in her “overweight” form, which surprised me, but it doesn’t stop her making an awkward but impressive escape attempt. Unfortunately, after that she mostly acts as a passive prize, only snapping and letting Mitsuboshi have it right at the end. And even that seems to be a case where she can only “win” by literally pounding him into unconsciousness with her bulk. There’s also a side story which is terminally ridiculous—which is good, as this manga needs to be over the top silly in order not to drown in problematic shoujo and fat stereotypes. Variable as always. – Sean Gaffney
Kuroko’s Basketball, Vol. 11-12 | By Tadatoshi Fujimaki | Viz Media – It’s rare you see a tie in a sports manga, but given this is only the qualifiers, a tie is what we end up with. Of course, this just means that Kuroko and company have to win their next match, and it ends up being against a bunch of goons who fight dirty. The leader of this team is fantastic in an awful way, showing off a couple of tragic backstories before taking them back with a smirk. Teppei and Junpei also get a lot of focus here, with a flashback that shows how they both joined the team and how Teppei got injured (and also how obvious an OT3 with them and Riko is). But they pass, and the Winter Cup is up next, with all of Kuroko’s old teammates. An extremely compelling basketball manga. – Sean Gaffney
Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Vol. 24 | By Shinobu Ohtaka | Viz Media – Did I say the flashback would take up ‘some’ of this next volume? Sorry, I meant 90% of it, as everything turns horribly tragic and awful in the best backstory way, as Aladdin finishes trying to explain why metal users fighting each other leads only to destruction. There is some truly heartrending imagery here, with children burned to death and lots and lots of dead bodies. Couples we loved and found cute are beaten down by events, and of course Sheba dies, but not before giving birth to Aladdin. That said, I suspect we haven’t seen the last of Arba. It is really nice to see the main cast again, and I loved the “Alibaba is undercut” gag’s exquisite timing. In any case, the flashback is finally done—will we get more Morgiana now, please? – Sean Gaffney
Of the Red, the Light, and the Ayakashi, Vol. 7 | By HaccaWorks* and nanao | Yen Press – A rather interesting thing happens in this volume: quite a few things are revealed and yet the overall story doesn’t get appreciably clearer! Yue and his friend Akitoshi are trying to rescue Tsubaki from the shrine, but before they can manage to do so, he’s whisked away to be tossed into a pond to give strength to Mikoto, who is fighting off Akashi, whose body now belongs to Yue because Shin stole it hundreds of years ago and oh, also, Shin is the progenitor of the Tsubaki family line and by the way, here’s the deal about Mikoto’s missing tail. So many things to try to keep track of and make sense of! Thankfully, Yue’s personal dilemma is a very compelling one. I’m invested in his outcome, even if I don’t fully grasp what happened in the past. – Michelle Smith
Sweetness & Lightning, Vol. 6 | By Gido Amagakure | Kodansha Comics – This is a particularly good volume of Sweetness & Lightning—there’s a bit more conflict than usual and it doesn’t always get solved through yummy food. Tsumugi gets attached to the lost kitty she and her dad have taken in, only for its real owners to come to claim it. Then, the gang goes camping and a couple of her friends get in a disagreement. Something similar ensues on Kotori’s school trip. And Inuzuka’s bossy brother shows up and offers unsolicited advice on various things. The best part, though, is when Tsumugi stays a while with her grandparents while her dad is chaperoning a school trip. Not the part where they eat locusts, but the time she spends with her great-grandmother, looking at pictures of her dad as a kid, and contemplating complex topics like getting old. Delicious food and some bittersweet feels? I am so on board with that! – Michelle Smith
By: Michelle Smith
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