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losangelesvalorant · 4 years

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interesting things from tactical crouch’s interview w toronto assistant coach/analyst barroi on 1/19

barroi talks about why the team failed last year, the atmosphere/coaching of the new team, beast and nevix and why he believes in them, and the meta. [link to the full podcast]

on why the team failed last year

team atmosphere was biggest problem which lead to stellar retiring, tried to "better" atmosphere by trading envy to shanghai. going mixed roster didnt improve atmosphere and it just spiraled

Said toronto was beating everyone in scrims in stage 1, barroi thought they were a 4th place team and just got unlucky w getting shock in playoffs. Emphasized this several times during the podcast

team wasnt built for atmosphere, "long-term sustainability," was built to perform well but exploded "sooner than expected" and they HAD to make changes which was where they made bad decisions and it spiraled.

biggest thing he learned was coaching was all abt psychology, keeping morale up, small things to do to keep everything working, learned its HUGELY important

last season toronto's structure wasnt as great as it is this year

barroi was part of the roster building, thinks building a roster the way they did will always fail

implied toronto scrimmed way way too much last year and burned everybody out

noted specifically that ivy was nervous onstage even in later games

on the new team’s atmosphere/chemistry:

new team made for morale and high team atmosphere, all personalities will mesh well. that was the most important thing and its been working insanely well. everyones not best friends but its working well.

happy with the players and environment they have, thinks adding an extra element might disturb that not in current plans to add anyone else. they are thinking abt contingency plans tho, have plans in case of emergencies

some competitiveness in the roster, but not a high level. Doesnt like the idea of an a and b roster bc every day is a high pressure environment where the better squad will start

Toronto scrims 2 blocks a day 6 days a week. do 3 blocks sometimes but not every day. def lower than highest hours of scrims in the league since some teams do 3 blocks a day.

when asked if fefe drives the coaches/players differently responded with "YES."

fefe is rly good at motivating people, rly knows how to "get to people." may not be the biggest brain but knows his stuff and knows how to create a good environment. "hell of a difference" compared to last season (sounds like drama w bishop to me!)

everyone in coaching staff has their own role, like a venn diagram, bc of how specific their structure is. everything is really efficient

there's never been any discipline things on toronto yet, theres rules for scrims but no ones broken any of them yet

doesnt think toronto is gonna be a top 5 team. thinks maintaining a top roster + taking team psychology into account is very difficult

its possible that toronto could hit a really high high, but its a low possibility

last season barroi was worried abt pressure on stage bc everyone was silent, atmosphere was different, is not at all worried now. thinks the team drives itself very well, points to kariv and beast as motivators and nevix and logix as people who will never perform bad under pressure

on beast and nevix

beast is a huge motivator and a really fun guy for the team, keeping the team atmosphere up. has a huge competitive drive, learns REALLY fast and takes any and all feedback. theyre putting more and more emphasis on beast's role and more responsiblities bc theyre really satisfied w how he performs and learns. thinks beast is a very good pick for them

people on roster were chosen for specific reasons, beast was chosen bc he's super competitive.

beast is kind of person where having a backup mt would motivate him even more, he wouldnt shut down if he was benched he would fight for the starting spot

nevix is "not the best player in the world" (in response to reddit saying he is the best player in the world). has been a good asset to the team, goes to the coaches/teammates most w questions. rly wants to prove himself

on the meta

in scrims sometimes offtank plays orisa now since mt is playing something else

"2 big archetypes" everyone is running in scrims. poke and rush comps. rush is reaper/mei/orisa/rein/lucio moira/bap. poke is mei hanzo, dif flex sups, orisa, no lucio. variation within those comps but its only those 2. the comps play very differently despite having similar heroes bc of dif win conditions and styles. poke is map dependant, wins over rush when speedboost cant close gap fast enough. theres not a core meta comp thats as ridiculous as goats, tho rush is similar to goats.

teams playing junk, widow, probably double sniper, more diverse than past but again 2 archetypes of comps. running one or the other is very team/style dependant, for instance shock is probably sticking to rush and nyxl is probably sticking to poke based on their histories. wont talk abt what toronto runs

dive is map dependant, not smth you want to do all the time bc the other two comps are very good, rush is a natural counter to dive. doesnt sound like hes scrimmed dive comps often. sees dive having a place and being good at times but thinks its very team and map dependant. map and team both have to be good for it for it to work. dive is not the third archetype. if you have a good sombra vs poke, dive could work but was kinda like /shrug

havent scrimmed any teams in asia, which makes sense

thinks this season is exciting bc of scrim bubbles, nobody knows whats happening on other regions. each bubble conforms to one thing, may be different may not be, one may be superior but nobodys gonna know til they play each other.

yiska thinks theres gonna be some wild meta diversity since some teams have long breaks and can afford to grind out new comps, also bc there will be patches

misc things i thought were worth including

theres a german player coming to owl who hasnt been announced

apparently not a lot of other teams have that kind of good structure. Also mentioned that toronto’s scrimming outlaws

yiska brought up the csgo(?) team moscow 5 as an example of how the best teams can crumble completely and become bad under the stress of travel

roky is the person who grinds ranked most on the team, nevix is 2nd

barroi thinks defiant will place better than 13 (in response to tactical crouch thinking theyll place 13th), things would have to go “seriously wrong” for them to place lower. Thinks theyll have a strong first half and is sure if they do that the 2nd half will be even better. Convinced theyll at least make playins

barroi thinks chengdu will do fairly well especially w the scrim bubbles. Thinks they’ll be one place below defiant maybe.

difference between coaching completely mixed roster and a 1 language roster, dont have to put as much emphasis on making sure everyone understands each other. depends mainly on the philosophy of the head coach, which changed so its different. probably the same without the head coach factor tho

#ill start tagging these as #notes #i think

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ettadunham · 4 years

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A Buffy rewatch 7x16 Storyteller

aka the lies we tell ourselves

We did it, guys! We made it to the last season! Also, hello if you’re new, and stumbled upon this without context. As usual, these impromptu text posts are the product of my fevered mind as I rant about the episode I just watched for an hour (okay, sometimes perhaps two). Anything goes!

And in today’s episode, it’s Andrew time. So I guess we’ll need to talk about him, huh?

I’ll just get this out of the way right away: I’m not big on Andrew. I know that he’s well-loved by a lot of folks, and also, that I’m not alone in having a bit more resistance towards him… (So, he’s basically like each and every Buffyverse character ever? Except Warren – we all hate Warren.) And I get it. Both of those sides, I guess.

It’s not that I hate Andrew though. It’s just that there’s a reason why he was part of the Trio, and while I think there’s a lot of interesting narrative fuel there, I have a hard time forming a deeper connection to those characters. Including Jonathan.

But much like Superstar was an interesting, highly enjoyable Jonathan-focused episode despite any future misgiving I might’ve had of the character, Storyteller does the same for Andrew. There’s a lot to like here, and we build on Andrew’s character massively.

Andrew, in this episode in particular, is presented as an audience surrogate - one of his character’s biggest appeal imo. He understands and appreciates that he’s in a story, surrounded by all these larger than life characters. Buffy is the hero. Xander is the unappreciated sidekick that Andrew stans, and has a crush on. Dawn is a cutie with a weird backstory. Willow and Anya have these rich, ambiguous, dark patches in their past. Spike has… abs, I guess?

The way Andrew integrates himself into these stories is where things get interesting though.

He mostly sees himself as an outsider, a storyteller, and therefore detached from the actual canon world of the show. And when he does integrate himself, it’s just another story, another character. And as Andrew tells the tale of this person, who looks like him, and sounds like him, the story changes with the narrative.

You see, Andrew didn’t want to kill Jonathan. That’s not what happened. It was an accident! He was possessed! It was what the story wanted him to do! He had no agency whatsoever.

Which… is pretty meta. But in the world of the show, it’s Andrew lying to himself about what he’s done and why. About who he is.

So, maybe it’s part of the gay subtext, too? Except... is it subtext? Is it, really?

Is Andrew relentlessly gay-coded, or is he just gay on the show? How is that a taboo, when we already have main queer characters in the cast? Are they not textually acknowledging it because it’s so clearly the case, or are they playing coy for shits and giggles? Is it supposed to be funny?

It’s all a bit murky with the intent. But I do think that there’s a more favorable perspective here somewhere. The scene where Andrew is re-playing Xander and Anya’s exchange is a bit weird and obtrusive, but there’s no actual joke here about how Andrew’s clearly using it to fantasize about Xander. It is weird and obtrusive because he recorded them having this intimate conversation, yes (which, again, is more meta than anything else…), but not because he has a crush on Xander.

So, that’s something.

Staying on topic here, did we seriously break up Willow and Kennedy for 1 whole minute of overall runtime? Are the writers intentionally making Kennedy’s character to be as thin as tissue paper? After the end of the previous episode, were they immediately like ‘oh, shit, now we have to build her character to explore this and get them back together, quick, let’s have them make up offscreen at the beginning of the next one’.

And I guess I kinda appreciate the background storytelling element of it all. To just have them reunite as one of those side stories we don’t see, because we’re so locked to Andrew’s perspective. Kinda? Maybe?

Mostly though, it’s just cheap and lazy.

Seriously, I don’t even care about Kennedy, truth be told. Or this relationship. I’m okay with it because I like Willow and I want her to have nice things, and not be miserable. And I guess the writers are aware of this, but still. They’re not even trying at this point.

This is also the episode where Xander and Anya don’t get back together. But they do have sex. Now, this is a relationship where I am actually invested in both characters – just not necessarily in them, as an item. It’s all… *shrug emoji* The whole having sex to get over each other is a nice callback to how their relationship started out in the first place though.

Speaking of callbacks, the high school going all Hellmouth-y had some nice moments of that too. Like Buffy stopping a shy girl from going invisible. The scene with the nervous guy apparently actually exploding into bits and pieces was a bit extreme for the comedic tone of it all, but that only made it even more of a S1 homage.

And then there’s the scene with Andrew and Buffy over the Hellmouth seal.

There are things about Storyteller we could dissect, and I could sit here talking about my own ambiguous feelings on Andrew all day, but this scene? This scene is one of the best of the season and no, I’m not taking any constructive criticism.

It’s a great character building moment for Andrew, but we’re also adding to Buffy’s character too.

The episode earlier already lampshaded the Season 7 Buffy Speeches counter that I talked about earlier, but here, Buffy also acknowledges it.

ANDREW: “You said we could all get through this.” BUFFY: “I made it up. I’m making it all up. What kind of hero does that make me?” ANDREW: “No, you’re doing great. Really. Kudos.” BUFFY: “Yeah? Well, I don’t like having to give a bunch of speeches about how we’re all gonna live, because we won’t. This isn’t some story where good triumphs because good triumphs. Good people are going to die! Girls. Maybe me. Probably you. Probably right now.”

And I said at the beginning of this post, that I’m not big on Andrew, but the truth is? This episode gets to me. This scene gets to me. And every time I watch it, I like Andrew a whole lot better.

…That is until I rewatch season 6 again, and he plummets back into his starting point. It’s a vicious cycle.

But maybe I’m looking at it in the wrong way. This isn’t a cycle after all. This is part of the show’s themes about change and hope, and giving people the chance to grow.

It is, after all, Andrew’s tears that close the Hellmouth. His tears of regret. He admits to and acknowledges what he’s done, and it breaks the cycle of evil for the time being. It doesn’t change what happened, but it does change him. By taking responsibility, he takes charge of his own life instead of playing a character in a story.

Andrew may have stopped following the First’s instruction a while ago, but by not taking action, by being a spectator, he was still an agent of the First. No wonder then, that him breaking out of that state weakens the First as well.

Huh. Maybe I’m just underestimating my own attachment to Andrew after all.

We can all do better if we’re allowed to change. But we also need to be honest with ourselves and acknowledge our missteps in order to do that. Otherwise, we really are just in a vicious cycle, doomed to repeat our worst mistakes.

So... be more like Andrew, and break that cycle, I guess?

#buffy rewatch 2k19 #btvs talk #btvs

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sanguinesprout · 5 years

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Spots of sunshine breaking through (group therapy, job updates and blah)

Hoho, quite a bit happened this past month and most of it was kinda good stuff too! My mood lately has been, pretty average, though a little bit better I guess. Physically I’ve been really not great, so please excuse the shoddiness of this post, ugh.

First off, I started going to the group therapy. I have gone for 3 sessions already and have about 5 left. My initial feelings were reluctance and avoidance and kind of still are but I think I’ve kind of settled in a bit better now and am set on completing the full course!

The first session was well, kinda uncomfortable and I didn’t really know what to expect but the content was pretty good (though I felt like the session was dragging sometimes). There were very very few other people there, just a small handful but they were friendly and so were the staff, the mood is very chipper and pleasant and there is no pressure to have to answer or reveal things you don’t want to.

I probably won’t be able to explain all the stuff from the sessions just maybe bring more of a general account of the experience kind of thing. The content of the sessions helps you rethink about things, CBT style stuff. It’s definitely something that would be the most beneficial to experience in person of course because there are practical elements to it that really help solidify and explain some of the teachings. So, if you have the opportunity to attend group therapy, I would definitely recommend you give it a try, it’s not as scary or weird as you may think it sounds and is definitely not like how it is presented on tv, it’s way more loose and casual. I think I prefer it much more than the 1-on-1 type of counselling, it just feels so much more relaxed and educational.

When it came to the second session the following week, I was debating whether to quit or not, but I told myself to give it another try at least. My avoidance was beginning to get in the way of my progress, but if I submit to it, I’ll just be going backwards. There really are lots of beneficial things from therapy, it would definitely be a waste to not take them on board. So I went and it was fine, I learned more things, I talked a little more, I settled in more.

The third time I considered quitting again, but I told myself to stop being silly. Any small discomforts I have and any small comfort I get from not going is nothing compared to missing all the awesome things I could be learning. What also really drove me not to was the fact that the session for the week was focused on avoidance, to avoid it would be like the ultimate meta/ironic thing. The things shared in this session was really helpful, showed me the bad cycle I put myself through and its repercussions.

The sessions are really quite casual, you get to chat to each other, relate to lots of things and discuss. I tried my best to converse and contribute as much as possible. At first I felt I really didn’t fit in because the other attendees seemed so much more mature than me and are a different stage of life kind of feeling, but there are still lots of things we think and feel in common with regards to anxiety/depression, I’m glad I was able to get along with them though I’m probably still very awkward lol.

I do get some worksheets to do as homework but they’re only discussed very briefly at the beginning of the next session and like with other stuff there’s no pressure to do or share any of it. It’s kinda bad but I do it last minute, bad bad me. I’m hoping to get through all the other sessions okay and actually start making some real healthy progress for myself.

In other things... omg! I actually had an interview for another retail job super similar to my last fail and actually got the job! I did try my best and I tried to be more prepared for the interview and welp, I did it!! :D The thing is, it’s the most minimal part time job in terms of days and hours, but it’s something! The minimal-ness is definitely a fitting starting point for me too! I start very soon but I’m kinda worried how I’ll perform because of my health, it’s never been good and has been going pretty downhill lately ;; Still I want to succeed really hard!

I know that it will definitely be a good opportunity for me career-wise and social-wise so I’m gonna try my best. I’ll still be looking out for other additional jobs and applying too if I can though. I’m kinda excited and predictably nervous, but I’m quite optimistic about it for the most part. My family was as surprised as I was, I felt kind of proud, it is an achievement I didn’t think I would reach for a long time. Here’s wishing it all goes well!

As mentioned lately my physical health has just continued to pile new bad things up and up. I’m extremely concerned about my health but help is so limited and slow. I just feel so unlucky in health, it really makes every day harder and my quality of life so much awfuller than it already is. Things are still really slow for my mum and I’m still very concerned about my dad too. It’s just a never ending loop of badness and worry in my family.

In everything else it has been pretty meh, there has been some other nice things happen lately, but it’s been hard to enjoy when constantly ill. My main goal for the present is to get healthy both mentally and physically, I really need to put in a lot more effort though, but I think maybe I’ll get somewhere as long as I keep trying!

Maybe next time’s post will be better and have some stuff I missed out, but for now I guess this is all, I really need to lie down.

Keep learning, growing, fighting! We’ll get there!

Have a great week! ^^

#avpd #depression #social anxiety #group therapy #therapy #nothing ventured nothing gained #things aren't always as hard as they seem #be proud of who you are and what you can achieve #be brave #don't overthink #you can do it!#positive thinking #look after yourself and your loved ones

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aethel · 6 years

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last bandom rec post of 2017

Fic and podfic that I haven’t recced here before, for various Bandom pairings, mainly MCR and FOB. Happy ending unless otherwise specified. In chronological order of original posting date:

Wednesday-verse by arsenicjade. First story is PATD, second is MCR. Apparently this series was all the rage in early bandslash fandom; I'm slightly late to the party, but no less enthusiastic! The first story is hookerfic, but mostly about the relationships between the hookers, not about relationships between hookers and johns. And MCR run a free clinic because they want to save everybody, obviously. Podfic of the MCR story by knight_tracer. (2007; podfic 2012)

Podfic by inkjunket of Sing Ourselves to Sleep by Dira Sudis. Gerard and Patrick have a special moment during Warped Tour. The podfic was the first MCR podfic posted to the Audiofic Archive! (fic June 2007; podfic October 2007) How Life Can Be by sevenfists. Pete/Patrick tourfic. (August 2007)

The Way It Works by anew_leaf (bayleaf). Gerard swears off sex with men; Frank convinces him to change his mind. (August 2007)

Podfic by inkjunket of The Sky-High City by sevenfists. Post-band story written pre Danger Days. Frank is depressed and goes to stay with Gerard in California. The story is so jossed at this point that it's barely recognizable, but it's still cute. (fic August 2007; podfic March 2009)

An Inexplicable Occurrence of Angels by stele3. AU in which Frank is a fallen angel who turns up after MCR loses its record contract and Gerard is still living in his parents' basement. (December 2007)

By the Numbers by shoemaster. AU in which Gerard is a fine artist and Frank is his accountant. Very cute, and RsCreighton podficced it for me! (fic December 2007; podfic December 2016) Sweet Caffeine (and Love of Liberace) by bayleaf. Brian makes them do it. Stagegay meta fic. (January 2008)

Nightswimming by Waxjism, the incredibly long and incredibly worth listening to podfic by greedy_dancer, who apparently spent 5 years working on this. I could listen to greedy_dancer's voice all day. The story is a small town AU with Gerard suffering from depression and Frank falling in love with him while dealing with changes at home. Happy ending! (fic February 2008; podfic completed May 2016)

Love: The Package Deal by jjtaylor. amnesia and polyamory and pining and feelings all over the place. Not sure why I delayed reading this so long, since I love everything else by jjtaylor. (BBB 2008) frank/gerard college au not!fic by mxtape (September 2008) Ghost Frank series by jjtaylor. So I checked back to see if I had neglected to read anything else by jjtaylor and Holy Shit I had. I must have passed over this before because Frank starts out as, well, a ghost, and I am not a fan of character death. I did cry, but it has a happy ending. Possibly a little too saccharine, but I needed an antidote. The haunted house and creepy supernatural mystery elements were genuinely frightening to me reading in bed after midnight in my dark apartment.... (December 2008-January 2013)

[a marriage of convenience] by jae_w. Jon Walker/Tom somebody. I don't know who Tom is, and it doesn't matter. AU! (January 2009)

Asimov, the Deleted Scenes, plus sequel, by stele3. Lindsey meets inventor!Gerard and all his little robot friends. (March 2009)

Only Going One Way by ataratah and jjtaylor. A delightful Due South crossover/fusion! Gerard is a mountie, Frank is a Chicago cop, Mikey is missing. (June 2010)

Podfic by klb of The Anatomy of a Fall by novembersmith. 13 hours long high school/ghost AU with lots of plot and a happy ending, but ghost AU means one of the characters is still deadish, so. I cried. (fic June 2010; podfic January 2013)

Heads Up, Hearts Down by inlovewithnight. Pete/Mikey soulbond high school AU (July 2010)

Podfic by argentumlupine of Can Never Wrong This Right by theopteryx. historical academic Indiana Jones-ish AU with temporary bonding and lots of pining. Frank is Gerard's TA. (fic July 2010, podfic January 2013) Making Other Plans by skoosiepants. Mike Carden/Kevin Jonas AU (December 2010)

Away With The Boys In The Band by inlovewithnight. Very amazing and long history of the band with always-a-girl Mikey. I didn't know what the end game ship was going to be, although I really should have, but I read it for the girl!Mikey and mental health stuff so I didn't care. The Gerard & Mikey sibling relationship is also interesting. (June 2011)

podfic by fire_juggler of Pages In Your Passport by inlovewithnight. AU: Pete is a professional soccer player; Mikey is still in MCR. If anything, it ended too soon. (fic August 2011; podfic July 2012)

podfic by argentumlupine of Half of Something Else by fleurdeliser and tuesdaysgone. Frank/Gerard/Grant. AU where MCR didn't happen, Frank is Grant's assistant, and Gerard is a comic book artist. (fic August 2011; podfic September 2016)

The One Where Bob and Patrick Live Together by Bexless, anonymous Bob/Patrick podfic (fic 2011; podfic December 2017)

Hold Your Heart into This Darkness by tuesdaysgone, podfic trilogy by argentumlupine. Gerard/Korse, Frank/Gerard. Amazing Killjoys verse story with happy ending. I was nervous initially about the power dynamics of the Gerard/Korse pairing in the first part, but it worked so well I kinda shipped it, uh, which should not have been the takeaway from how that relationship played out. (fic 2011/2012; podfic 2014) Other People Were Too Sentimental by skoosiepants. Mike Carden/Kevin Jonas high school AU (February 2012)

Podfic by Rhea314 of Fog, Sheets and Thunder by Theopteryx. Post-apocalyptic postal service AU, with sound effects! Set underground in a nuclear winter, but it ends on a positive note. (fic March 2012; podfic August 2013)

Pete Wentz: Failiest Ally by girlpearl and melusina. Pete/Gabe, but mostly about Pete being in denial to a ridiculous degree. (April 2012)

Podfic by jenepod of We Used To Be Friends by ladyfoxxx. AU where Gerard never started MCR, Frank became a teacher, and Mikey joined The Used. Frank and Mikey were best friends in high school, but then Frank doesn't hear from Mikey for a long time, and it's even longer before he finds out why. I actually found the premise so upsetting (i.e. realistic) it was difficult to listen to, even though the podfic is well done and the story has a happy ending. (fic July 2012; podfic July 2013)

Septicemia by innocent_wolves. A little different from my usual recs, and darker, but it still has a happy ending. No Band AU. Frank is suicidal, and both Frank and Gerard have maladaptive super powers. (finished June 2013)

undeserving of your sympathy by akamine_chan, podfic by argentumlupine. Short superhero AU. (August 2013)

The Heart You Need by flyby. How the Killjoys became the Killjoys....if the Killjoys were telepathic space pirates. Very long, and a bit slow in the beginning, but with a summary like that, obviously I had to read it. (August 2013)

and me here on the ground, podfic by Ande of the fic by ohnoktcsk. Frank/Gerard magic AU. (fic September 2013; podfic September 2016)

Two ways Pete and Gabe get married by lalejandra, podfic by reena_jenkins. notfic. (podfic October 2015)

Love Will Tear Us Apart by melusina. Pete and Patrick don't notice until FOB goes on hiatus that they're soulbonded. (September 2016)

All Shook Up by Jiksa. Pete/Patrick Las Vegas wedding chapel AU. (April 2017) Because Werewolves or Something: A Frank/Dewees Podbook Compilation by dapatty. "Fracta Modi" is my favorite, but they're all good. (October 2017) Epicuros by ??? for me for the Bandom Holidays gift exchange! Lindsey is an android artist on Mars! (December 2017) Twisting Fate anonymous Frank/Gerard soulmate podfic (December 2017)

#mcr recs #fob recs #bandom recs #podfic recs #podfic #bandom #recs #fob #fic recs #mcr #i'm sure there's more good stuff lurking on my ereader #but it's time for dinner

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satireknight · 6 years

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TMNT S02E012 - The Catwoman from Channel 6

No, no jokes about Batman’s love interest. That is low-hanging fruit I choose not to pick. Probably. Maybe.

Splinter is trying to meditate, but is constantly distracted by the sound of the monster movies the Turtles are watching.

Splinter drops in to say that too much TV rots the mind and promotes violence.... so he says to the ninjas on a cartoon TV show. I can’t tell if the show is being ironically meta or not.

Meanwhile, Shredder has Rocksteady and Bebop standing on a transporter.

Yes, they call it a matter transporter, but I’m expecting someone to say “energize.” To demonstrate what it can do, he transports Rocksteady and Bebop straight to the city dump, where they are flushed down a giant pipe into the sewers... which is not how that system works, I think.

But guess where they pop up.

Unsurprisingly a fight breaks out immediately, with Rocksteady and Bebop trashing the place, including the TV set.

Shredder decides it’s time to teleport them back just then, as an orange cat comes in looking for head scritches and crawls all over the control panel.

Rocksteady and Bebop are zapped back to where Shredder is, and the Turtles are left confused but relieved. Fortunately Bebop and Rocksteady have no idea how to backtrack to the Turtles’ lair, because they have six brain cells apiece.

The Turtles seem a little more concerned with the fact that their TV has been smashed, so they call April and tell her that they have an emergency, and that they need her to bring a spare TV set.

Splinter also fills her in on the fight with Bebop and Rocksteady, and she finds a carton of Chinese food from Woo’s Oriental Palace that one of the goons left behind. Apparnelty the idea of letting her go there alone is enough to stir the Turtles from their TV-induced fixation, because “That place is really bad!” “And the food is even worse.”

Woo’s turns out to be a restaurant almost entirely populated by Asian stereotypes of one flavor or another.

They also don’t take to April announcing she’s a TV reporter, so she lies and says she’s a food critic instead. They might hate her even more for that. She asks Woo if he has served two customers who look like a rhino and a warthog, and he unsurprisingly does remember such individuals. Methinks they would stick in your mind. He tells her where the food went to, and she heads off to an empty building at the end of the pier.

April finds the matter transporter immediately, and starts snapping photos.

Just then the orange cat comes in, steps on some buttons, and then scampers onto the transporter pad.

April feels really weird afterwards, and is horrified that her nails are just as pointy and claw-like as they were before.

She heads home and encounters Irma, while surrounded by a small herd of cats. She’s already acting weird, vocalizing a bit like a cat and referring to Irma as a human. And after Irma leaves, she decides to lap up some milk.

The Turtles, meanwhile, have also gone to Woo’s, and the mere sight of them is enough to inspire a fight with the patrons.

April is still acting weird, and Irma is starting to clue in that there is something odd going on with her.

April blurts out a heavily truncated version of what happened to her, just as she fully transforms into a cat mutant.

Now she wants to go back to the transporter and somehow reverse what happened. Irma tries to stop her from leaving, but she just jumps out the nearest window.

Fortunately Irma finds her Turtle Com nearly, and is able to contact the Turtles, who unsurprisingly have zero idea who she is, but agree to meet her anyway. Also, that whole visit of theirs to Woo’s was just an excuse for a fight scene.

April gets back into the room with the transporter, but Shredder and his mutants have since returned.

Fortunately for him, Shredder happens to have a cage directly over where she’s standing.

Meanwhile, Irma meets up with the Turtles, who are employing their usual trenchcoat disguises.

April seems to have gotten kinda muddle-brained from the whole mutation thing, but then Rocksteady plops a mind-control collar on her, which makes it all even worse.

Which raises the question: if that works on a cat-person, would it work on a regular person? The possibilities of this device are not being fully explored, my friend.

Anyway, he sends her after Splinter, and she decides to bring a tiger along for good measure. Or rather, she lets it wander off and corner the Turtles in an alley, prompting Donatello to ask, “April, is that you?” He must think she’s incredibly mad at them for the TV thing. The tiger tries to pounce on them, and nearly gets Donatello before he gets hoisted onto the fire escape.

And as if the theme of this episode wasn’t evident, look at the pillows and wall art.

Meanwhile, Splinter is wondering where the Turtles have gotten to when he sees the shadow of a cat on the wall, and freaks out.

He lets slip that he’s apparently afraid of cats, presumably because of the whole rat thing, but not necessarily. He’s trying to meditate away his nerves when the tiger and a mutated April appear... so I’m guessing, not successful. Actually, this is probably the kind of thing he has nightmares about.

The Turtles and Irma, meanwhile, are searching for the cat that was on the pad with April.... so it should take them a few decades to locate one stray cat. Raphael even points out how ridiculously against them the odds are.

Fortunately the cat finds them, and while it snuggles him, Donatello asks again, “Is that you, April?” Donatello, there was already a cat involved in all this. Try to keep up. And on the desperate-for-female-attention kick, Raphael seems oddly pissed when Donatello says that this proves he’s April’s favorite.

Splinter calls them just long enough to say he needs help, and Irma comments that the name “Splinter” sounds “cute.” Sigh. We almost made it through an episode without Irma being sad.

Splinter tries to talk April down, but the collar is affecting her mind.

Leonardo seems to have slightly better luck getting through to her, but the collar reasserts itself and causes her to start attacking Splinter once again. Leonardo dashes forward and cuts the collar right off.

Which, unfortunately, doesn’t deal with the tiger who seems to be in a perpetual state of pissiness. Fortunately, Michelangelo just happens to have a robot mouse on his person (why?) and manages to redirect the tiger into a nearby cage. Great, but how will the zoo authorities get it back without finding their lair?

The whole matter transporter plot thread needs to be tied up, so Rocksteady and Bebop chase a mouse onto it, lightly strike the pad and cause the entire machine to explode. Damn, Dimension X tech is fragile.

Meanwhile, April has just... sort of gone back to normal. Yeah, the Turtles don’t have to do anything to restore her to her human form; she just gets over it. This is the biggest disappointment in the episode, IMHO, because it feels like a cop out. Much is made of how she has to reverse the transformation, but it turns out she just needed to sit in her apartment and eat tuna for a weekend.

Irma then shows up... don’t ask me how she knew where their lair was... because hse’s convinced herself that Splinter is her dream man. Amazingly, Splinter is NOT having a complete nervous breakdown over the events of the last day, and comes in just in time to horrify her.

VERDICT:

This one gets a stamp of “okay.” It might have ranked a little higher if the resolution of April’s whole catness hadn’t been resolved with “She got over it, end of story.” But the fact that the main problem of the plot was handled so limply just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Is this the second episode to make reference to The Fly?

Actually, there are a few elements of the story that feel like they were never really dealt with. For instance, the Turtles’ fixation on their monster movies felt a little artificial, since they didn’t seem to care that their secret home had been invaded so much as that their TV was smashed. And it just sort of petered out, since they stop watching TV and never start again.

Admittedly it was interesting to see Irma interacting with the Turtles, since she’s been talking about them for several episodes (first with disbelief and then with increasing interest). She’s a very different character from April, so it was interesting to see a different dynamic there.

Grade: C

#tmnt #tmnt 1987 #teenage mutant ninja turtles #satireknight

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spaceorphan18 · 7 years

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Finding Kurt Hummel: Diva

Masterpost

4x13: Diva

Hey did you know guys can be divas, too? I’m surprised this episode concept didn’t come up in, like, season 1 -- but I think it fits well here in season 4, and I think there’s a good Santana story here about her figuring out her shit and getting herself to New York (which should have been the from beginning). The Tina story, on the other hand, is one that I’m glad I don’t have to touch.

I would also like to point out - Blaine has a shrine to Kurt in his room. I bring it up because there’s no Klaine in this episode, but there are little touches in the background that shows that the story is far from being over - Blaine mentioning Kurt, the shrine, the edits that cut from Kurt’s story to Blaine’s and vice versa. A the little things we held on to way back then.

Sarah Brightman in Training

Yeah Kurt, we all kind of feel that way about Rachel right about now. To be honest, I think this set of episodes was supposed to bring Rachel down from her high -- which kind of all leads up to her break up with Brody. I think there’s supposed to be some humbling elements, too, but that never really happens.

Anyway -- Kurt says this class is free sing? What does that even mean? These writers didn’t attend a performing arts class, did they. But Kurt’s just beyond annoyed. And you know, I don’t really blame him. She has got to be one of the most difficult people on the show.

Kurt, at home, still not having it. I will say -- roommates are hard. And if you haven’t even had siblings, though I suppose Kurt did have Finn for the previous year, it can be even harder.

Kurt back at school, apparently drinking his way through this Rachel business.

We see the beginning of Rachel’s posse -- the two sycophants (did they ever have names?) who follower her around, are bitchy gossipers, and are generally annoying. How the hell did these two get into NYADA. Man, the issues I have with this school are unending.

She’s even having Kurt take her messages for her. God. Kurt claims he always knew this might happen. Man - Kurt needs an apartment by himself -- one of those little shoebox things that might be a tight fit, but he makes it work. (Personally, the loft seems like an awful place to live.)

Kurt claims he’s the only one who can take her down - and god were we all ready for that....

Truth Time

So -- Kurt’s pretty cranky if you wake him up before he needs to get up. Geez - if you’re going to live in a place that has no walls you have /got/ to set boundaries. Why Kurt doesn’t seem to learn from this, I don’t know.

Anyway - Rachel comes bounding in demanding that Kurt make her some tea. Rachel’s so used to doing this kind of thing that I doubt she realizes she’s even doing it. And Kurt -- well, he doesn’t do well with confrontation. In the same pattern as we always see, Kurt lets things build, and build, and build (as we see in the above montage) until he finally explodes.

So, we finally get to some Truth Time. Rachel believes he’s jealous of her success. I don’t know if I buy that. Kurt’s had his ups and downs, but in the last month or so, things have been swinging back up. It’s more as he says here (and in the earlier voice over) she’s become an unbearable diva, and that her ego is a bit out of control.

Kurt then says they became close because she became tolerable. When exactly was that Kurt? I’m blanking. Maybe those foursome dates with Finn and Blaine balanced out Rachel’s personality.

To be fair -- I can see Kurt being strict about his regimen and routines, so I doubt he’s really that easy to live with either. Rachel’s just being more outward at the moment. And, as Kurt points out, Brody moved in and Kurt is not happy about that --- and she’s got an annoying group of friends that Kurt really does not want to spend any time with. It’s just a whole bunch of things rolled into one.

Rachel’s really bad at sparring now that I think of it -- because her only rebuttal is that Carmen only let him in because of her. Which is kinda low since he was so insecure about that earlier in the season, but also untrue. And Kurt’s wise enough to see through that little bit of shenanigans.

Kurt, however, knows right where to stick her -- by attacking her performances, the one thing that Rachel prides more than anything else. He not only tells her that his performance at Winter Showcase blew hers away, he claims he can do it again. And he drops the big bombshell -- he threw their original diva-off back in Wheels. That’s right, Kurt tanked the note on purpose to spare his dad.

Rachel can hardly believe this, as she built her confidence around that win. (Eesh, really Rachel?) but Kurt is offering no sympathy here. He’s on a mission and he’s determined to take her down, even if it’s taking a big sledge hammer to her self-esteem.

Idk - now that I think about it -- it is really interesting that Kurt is really good at getting under Rachel’s skin, but she can’t even touch him. Way back in Hairography, she was able to because she knew his weak spot. But here, she’s kind of so in her own little world, he’s a bit unbeatable by default. It’s also interesting, as an aside, that Rachel doesn’t believe he’d tank the note on purpose -- cause why would you ever do that?

And thus, all of this illustrates, despite the fact that yes, they do have a lot of similarities, these two are very different people.

Bitchy Gossip

So, Rachel needs to have Midnight Madness explained to her because unlike Kurt, she doesn’t do her research (plus, you know exposition and I guess Brody needed something to do). But we find out that it’s basically a sing-off, or an underground fight club for vocal performers, and winners get bragging rights. And along come her sycophants talking about how awful Kurt’s gonna be. And that he has a turtle face. I don’t really see that, but whatever. Thankfully, Rachel sticks up for Kurt -- because deep down they really are friends. And personal issues between them are just that -- between them.

Kurt however, is here to hear it. And he takes them down, a first time, by telling them that the bitchy gossip isn’t going to throw him off his game. For a kid who’s dealt with psychological terror and physical assault, these guys aren’t any worse than Santana or Quinn.

However, while he puts on a confident face in front of them, when they walk away, he kind of deflates. It’s not easy constantly having to put that much of an effort in the face of that much judgment. And having to deal with what he thought he had left behind in high school is still hard, no matter how awesome you are at dealing with it.

Midnight Madness

So, Kurt’s looking a little nervous as Brody spits out the rules and tries to make it out to be like some kind of bloodsport. It’s interesting, Adam’s there at his side as his confidant. Kurt looks to him a few times for reassurance, which Adam is welcome to give. Rachel doesn’t really have anyone besides those shallow sycophants. It’s kind of sad actually.

Anyway - the song that was chosen was Bring Him Home from Les Mis -- probably because the movie remake had come out around this time, and Glee does that. But, I want to say how amazing a choice this is for Kurt. Because here’s a song that is traditionally a male song, but meant for a high tenor. (This version might have been raised a little to fit Rachel’s voice, but not much I don’t believe.) Rachel looks a little nervous at the choice. Kurt knows he has the edge. And his nerves seem to go the minute he steps up there. He stares her down and is ready.

So Bring Him Home. I’m afraid I don’t have a whole lot of meta to go along with this song, and I’m looking forward to what people have to say about it. I do think it’s interesting that Kurt has these lines:

In my need You have always been there

Which he throws a look over to Rachel. And I feel like it’s a nod to the fact that despite the fact that they’re in the middle of this argument over Rachel’s personality, they’ve still pretty much got each other’s backs.

I guess I also find the mantra of ‘let him live’ interesting after Kurt’s already sung Being Alive. Kurt’s already spent this year trying to be more alive than he was during the fall -- being on his own and okay at NYADA, asking Adam out, taking down Rachel. He’s putting himself out there the best he can. But it’s not always the easiest thing. And as we’ll see in episodes coming up, he’s still got a bit of work to do.

I suppose -- also, I could tie this loosely with Burt and the fact that he has cancer. This song is sung by a father to his possible son-in-law. It’s interesting that this sentiment might be reversed.

As for the vocal performance -- I think they’re pretty evenly matched. (That is until Rachel screeches her way into the final note. God, I hate when she does that.) Rachel definitely has the technical training on her side, but -- Kurt has come such a long way since they sang Defying Gravity. His chops are there on this one, and he gives the song something that Rachel really doesn’t, emotional delicacy.

I love that everyone is enamored by the performances - as are all of us in the audience. Oh Adam, don’t fall in love. It’s not going to end well.

And the winner is -- Mr. Kurt Hummel.

I love that when they’re choosing sides and that sycophants join Kurt’s side he snickers a little. Of course Kurt’s delighted. He needed a good win on his side. But it never really occurred to me how much this probably does knock Rachel off her pedestal. Kurt’s had to deal with self-doubt for a long time, and this validation every once in a while that he’s great is fantastic. But Rachel is coming from the other direction -- being told that this is the only thing she’s good at. So when she fails at this, though a near tie would hardly be failing, she doubts her self worth completely.

Take Down

Kurt doesn’t revel in his win for long because the next day (I assume) Kurt’s walking around with Adam feeling guilty about the song choice because he’s known the score of Les Mis since he was a kid. Which is funny to me - because I’m sure Rachel does, too, so it’s not like it’s /that/ unfair. Adam seems to agree and reminds him that he’s an awesome singer who should be proud of that. I mean, that is why Adam recruited him into the Apples -- not just because he looked cute doing a plie. Adam is a nice guy, and again I’m sad they didn’t allow this story more development.

Anyway - now that Kurt’s won, he’s also won a bit more popularity (I hesitate to say respect because these guys are leeches). The two sycophants come bouncing over, completely changing their tune -- and now want to hang out with him until someone else does something noteworthy. Kurt’s on to them in a second, and he has not time for this bullshit, calling them out about how they’re awful people who need to suck up to others because they clearly can’t make it on their own. (Wait - how did these guys get into NYADA in the first place?)

Kurt also mentions that if there’s one more bad thing about Adam’s Apples out of their mouths again, he’ll challenge them to a Midnight Madness sing-off -- and they should know how that turns out. They slink off, licking their wounds. Meanwhile, Adam looks adoringly over at Kurt, as if before he was like - oh, here’s this cute guy who can sing and now it’s like, wow, Kurt is this amazing creature. Oh, Adam - don’t get too attached, Kurt’s heart belongs to someone else.

Also, as an aside, it cracks me up at how Adam looks at the sycophants during this scene - like what hell is wrong with the two of you?

As nice as Kurt finds it to not only take those two down, but receive lots of flattering comments from Adam -- he sees Rachel in the distance and feels that he should probably go deal with that mess.

Rachel’s sulking around feeling sorry for herself (**sigh** fine.) and in an attempt to bright her day, Kurt suggests they go to the Funny Girl audition together. She kind of just walks away -- telling him he should go because he’d make a good Fanny Bryce. (Wait, what? I don’t even begin to understand that comment.) But the point is Rachel’s throwing herself a pity party and wants to wallow in that longer.

Repairing Rachel’s Ego

Kurt’s wearing different clothes in this scene, so I’m guessing he’s let Rachel sulk for a while before coming in to talk with her.

He mentions that he signed them up for the open call auditions for Funny Girl (that’s not really how that works, but ignoring that...) and again prompts her to come with him. She’s whines that if she does get it, she’ll be awful and lose everyone she loves because her ego will be too much. And Kurt, while rolling his eyes, tells her the same boring pep talk he’s been giving her since Born This Way -- she’s great and wonderful and one-of-a-kind, blah blah blah. And that she should bring the diva but hold the nightmare.

Here’s my thing - I know this is the 8000th version of this scene, and yeah, it is getting a little annoying to keep seeing it, but I’ve softened to it over the years. I do think it’s fair to have this kind of scene if they want to keep Hummelberry as a viable friendship. I mean, Rachel apologizes, and Kurt forgives her, and they move on, which is great!

But the really nice thing is that going forward Hummelberry as a friendship becomes more balanced. Sure the narrative is still going to do that thing where it starts with a Kurt plot line and end with a Rachel plot line for a while, but it’s a good long while before we see him being used as a clear prop for her. And she’s going to go back to feeling more Rachel-ish in the second half of the season.

I know people wanted to the Kurt vs Rachel thing to go on longer -- sure, that would have been interesting to play out over a few episodes! But this is Glee, and sometimes less is probably better.

Santana

Before we get to the ending twist, two thoughts.

1. The whole part of the episode that I wasn’t talking about had to do (partly) with Blaine and Tina, and Blaine asks Tina to be his date to Will and Emma’s wedding. Which confused us at the time because Ryan Murphy had already mentioned that Kurt would be Blaine’s date, but I’m digressing. The big thing is that Adam is not Kurt’s date. This wedding is right around the corner, and I’m guessing Kurt thought it was way, way too early to bring this guy he’s sorta seeing back home. I’m interested in the New York stuff stays in New York part of it. But also, I think speaks volumes that Kurt and Adam aren’t really that much of a couple -- that Kurt can kind of leave him behind and not really think too much about it.

2. Brittany mentions to Santana that Kurt found a new guy -- and I know this kind of rubbed people the wrong way at the time. And I say, first of all, she probably gets her gossip from Lord Tubbington and Tina - both of whom are going to spin the truth. But more so, it’s there so that the make out in the car is seen as a surprise. Besides, it’s really more about Brittany telling Santana to go off and conquer the world, not about Kurt and his love life.

Which brings us to -- Santana singing her way to New York and showing up at the loft. It somewhat astounds me that they let Santana stay, I suppose they are both nice enough people, but it’s good for the narrative for Santana to be there -- as the New York side is finally going to get more fleshed out. Except -- we won’t see it for a little bit because next up is a wedding. And everyone hooks up at weddings. ;)

#finding kh #kurt hummel

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ask-a-robin · 7 years

Text

Ice Queen and Cake - Jason Todd Imagine

Woo! Lord its been a while, I apologize for that!

This imagine was requested here.

I hope everyone enjoys!

~Mod Jaybird

Warnings: Slight swearing

Word Count: 1,808 (Boy howdy is this a long one)

“Y/N! Come on babe we’re gunna be late! Bruce’s cake won’t make itself and Alfred’s already texted twice!”

“Gotcha,” you mumble as you extinguish a small flame from your hand, and climb out of the lower cupboard where you keep all of your baking supplies. “I’m coming don’t get your panties in a twist.”

You walk down the hallway from the kitchen and stop by the door to grab your jacket.

“What were you doing in there anyway? Sounded like an avalanche at one point,” Jason said as he held the front door open.

“My offset spatula fell out of my decorating bag and into the black depths of the cupboard,” You say as you walk through the threshold. “I had to go on a lifesaving mission.”

“Well it looks like it was successful.”

“Indeed!”

***

You head through the garage door and into the kitchen of Wayne Manor, stopping to place your decorating bag on the table and shed your coat.

“Miss Y/N, Master Jason. Glad to see you could join us!”

“The Chef does not enjoy the sass coming from her sous, Pennyworth, but I think I can forgive you,” you say as you pull your hair into a ponytail while walking over to give him a playful kiss on the cheek. “Jason, I love you, but get out of my kitchen, I have a masterpiece in the making.”

“Yes, Chef!” He said with a mock salute and a laugh. “I’ll go see what everyone else is up to.”

“All right Al, this double chocolate, Oreo truffle cake isn’t going to make itself. You start with the Oreos and I’ll start on the batter.”

“Oui, Chef,” the butler says with a smile.

You shake your head and sigh in response.

After a while of prepping and chatting with Alfred, Damian walks through the door.

“Hey Dami, whatcha up to?”

“Hello, Y/N. Todd and Drake are being insufferable so I decided to take a break up here, if it’s no bother to you.”

“Go right ahead. You’re no bother to me and Alfred.”

The timer for the oven dings, and without a thought you reach in and take the pans straight from the oven.

“Y/N, did you just take those from the oven without mitts?”

You have a moment of enteral panic. Damn Y/N you really should be more careful with your powers around here. “What? Uh…yeah I did, it’s not really I problem, I’ve burned myself so much over the past few years, it’s kind of like I’m immune,” you say with a chuckle, hopefully passing off the lie.

Damian gives you a look but lets the comment slide.

What you fail to notice is that he’s now watching you subtly from behind his book.

You come back to the cakes and slowly place your hand over the top of each one, using your powers to cool them down at a faster rate. The temperature of the air around you has gotten a bit chilly as a result of using your power so your breath comes out as a puff of fog. You glance quickly over to Damian to see if he noticed anything. He looks to be still engrossed in his book, and you breathe a sigh of relief.

“Hey Alfred do we have anymore sugar? I need just a touch more of the ganache.”

“Try the pantry Miss Y/N”

You head into the small room and begin to look around. While you’re doing this Damian raises from his seat and quickly makes his way to the cakes. His eye goes wide when he feels that they are completely cool even though they came out of the oven moments ago.

You make your way out of the pantry as he begins to sit back down. You notice the look on his face, as if wheels are turning in his mind, you guess he must have read something intriguing in his book.

You head back to the counter to begin the final steps of the cake, being careful to not use any more of your powers during the process.

The cake was finally finished as you placed the last truffle on top. You take a step back and look at the masterpiece.

“Done,” you say wiping your hands on a dish rag.

“It looks fabulous Miss Y/N, I shall gather the troops into the living room and we’ll begin the celebration.”

“Okey dokey Al. I’ll start bringing everything in.”

You grab the plates, stick them under your arm and grab the cake stand. Right after you set everything down on the table, the boys enter the living room from wherever they were.

“Wow, Y/N, that looks amazing!” Dick said with a whistle.

“Thanks Dick! It was an idea I got from a friend with a few tweaks. It’s Bruce’s favorite, my double chocolate cake recipe filled with chocolate cookies and cream buttercream, covered in a chocolate ganache and decorated with cookies and cream buttercream florets and Oreo Truffles.”

“In other words…heart attack and clogged arteries with a side of diabetic coma,” Tim said with a smirk.

“Yupp,” you replied, popping the p at the end.

“It’s a special occasion,” Bruce said. “So a little sugar won’t hurt. Thank you, Y/N” He walked over and gave you a side hug with a thank you kiss to the temple. “I’m sure it’s wonderful as always.”

“Well. I think we should cut into this sucker. I want cake.”

“Hold your horses, Jay,” you said with a huff. You reach down to pass out the plates and realize that something was missing.

“Darn it, I forgot the forks. I’ll be right back.”

You head into the kitchen and grab the stack along with some napkins.

As you head out the door something feels off in the air around you, and then you place it. You feel the batarang make waves through the air as it soars toward your head. Instantly the cutlery in your hands falls to the floor and your instincts take over before you can stop them. A wall of ice erupts from your hands extending out in front of you successfully trapping the batarang a few inches from your face as well as the boy that launched the projectile at you.

After a second you recover from what happened. “Well. Shit,” you sigh and head toward Damian. You stop about a foot away from his body. You take a breath and place your hands on the wall. As you begin to focus you can feel the heat starting to radiate out from your hands. The giant ice wall melts into a puddle that spans the ballroom.

You blow the patio doors open with a small push of your hands, and then begin to heat up the room so the water would turn to steam. As the last bits of fog dissipate through the door, you sigh and bend down to pick up the forks from the floor. When you come back up, you’re met with six stunned faces.

Jason is the first one to snap out of the stupefied gaze. “What in the ever-living hell was that, Y/N?” You could tell that he was getting slightly angry because his voice went a squeaky towards the end of his sentence.

“Um…. if you will hear me out for like five minutes this would be explained a lot better downstairs,” you say a nervous smile plastered on you face.

Bruce is the first one to speak, for some reason you feel like he already knows the story you’re about to tell. “By all means, then, Y/N. Lead the way.”

***

Once you reach the Batcomputer, you turn to face the boys and are met with another glaring silence. Those should really stop happening.

The chair turns and you start pulling up everything about your past life.

“The Elementalist? I remember her,” Dick said as he leaned against the chair. “Pretty sure she’s my age and worked with The Flash for a good chunk of time. She declined the invitation to join the Titans and the League, and then kinda fell off the grid.”

You sigh. “I didn’t fall off the grid, I left. I couldn’t take the life anymore, Barry started to get reckless and I knew nothing good would come of it. I wanted to start over. I left my day job as a geologist at STAR Labs and my night job as The Elementalist. I packed up, moved to Gotham, and went to pastry school. I always loved baking as a kid, so I tried it out.”

You get up out of the chair to look all the boys in the eye.

“Six months after I graduated I met Jason, six months after that I opened the bakery, and six months after than I found out about all this when he came through my window bleeding out at 3 in the morning. You guys are like my family, along with everyone in Central City. Just because I chose not to tell you about this doesn’t mean I lied about anything else.”

No one could meet your eyes after you finished speaking.

“Well…I’ll take that as a not so great sign. I’ll just be going, then. You don’t have to worry about anything. The secret is safe with me. Bye, guys.”

You turn and head to the stairs. Your foot lands on the bottom step when you feel a pressure on your wrist. You turn and almost slam you face into Jason’s. His hands move to grasp your face.

“I’m not going to lie, this is pretty crazy. And I’m only slightly-no-so-angry that you didn’t say anything, but that doesn’t mean I want you to leave. You’re my girlfriend and I love you whether you’re a Meta or not.”

He gave you a quick peck on the lips.

“Yeah, Y/N. You’re awesome and we don’t want you to leave either. You the next best computer person, besides me, of course,” Tim said with a chuckle. “I think its pretty cool that you can control all of the elements, it’s like Avatar, in real life!”

“I knew you were a cougar!” Dick said slapping you on the back as he walks up the stairs. “Let go eat some cake!”

The rest of the crew filed up the stairs, but Damian trailed behind. Jason gave you a look, and you motioned for him to head up the stairs.

After a few seconds the young boy spoke. “I apologize for acting odd to you today, Y/N. I just couldn’t shake a hunch that you were hiding something. I should have just asked instead of throwing projectiles.”

“You really should have, Dami. I would have had no problems telling you outright. But your apology is accepted. Let’s go eat some cake.”

“Very well,” he said as he began up the stairs. “I would like to request, if at all possible, that you not freeze me anymore. It was an uncomfortable experience.”

You chuckle and rough up his hair as you pass by. “Only if you deserve it.”

#Mod Jaybird #red hood imagine #red hood x reader #batman imagines #jason todd x reader #jason todd imagine #batboys #batfam

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