#i don't think the score goes directly to my score at the end of the year but it does count if i submit it or not so it's important

[lemonadeinfuser]

Into You - Aaron Hotchner x Female Reader

Season 4, Episode 9 “Pickup” - Reader is in place of Emily in the first scene, then she goes in alongside Emily later on (part 2) as bait, instead of Jordan (mostly because I hate Jordan lol)

Thank you so so much to @cerisereids for the prompt, and to @ilikw for bringing it to my attention!! I hope i did it justice!

“I’m so into you, I can barely breathe”

As you stepped into the sleazy bar, you suddenly became very hyper aware that you were the only female in a few-mile radius who wasn’t wearing a low cut something-or-another. You trailed close behind Morgan and Hotch, as you all made your way to the monologuing misogynist hidden away in the back corner of the bar. Viper’s voice carried through the air- saying something that, you’re sure would’ve made your blood boil, had you been paying any attention- his poisonous eyes landing on you and smirking. A shiver went down your spine as you subtly shifted your gaze over to Hotch, who was watching Viper intently- but his eyes softened when he glanced back at you. “Agent, you alright?” You nod, avoiding his gaze as Viper finishes talking- in fear of your cheeks flushing if you look directly into Hotch’s eyes again. You feel his gaze on you, until it shifts and you instead look up as Viper walks towards the three of you.

“So, what, you think this guy, this unsub took one of my classes?” “He copied your ‘the camera adds 10 pounds' routine verbatim.” Hotch replies. Viper smirks. “Yeah, that’s a good gag.” You bring your eyes up to meet him, speaking for the first time, “If you could just give us your attendance lists, it might help us find him.”

Viper toys with it for a minute, before a defiantly sassy “No.” “No?” You repeat. “My clients expect a certain amount of confidentiality. I won’t compromise that.” Hotch then continues to banter with him about warrants, then something about outwitting “alpha males like you” to Morgan before you speak up, “What club were you at last night?” Hotch’s jaw has been clenched slightly this whole time- he shouldn’t have had you come along on this particular questioning. With every passing second, he became less and less in control of his actions, as jealousy clouded his judgment. The way that that man was looking at you, all that he wanted to do was grab your waist and show that stupid snake man who you really belong to. But, no, you weren’t even his, regardless of how inappropriate that would be if you were. He grins, very obviously checking you out as his eyes travel up and down your body. “It’s a legitimate question.” Derek counters, watching his body language.” “Firstly, How many times do you have to rely on your badge to score, baldy? Secondly-” He turns to Hotch, standing opposite you while Morgan follows him intently with his eyes. “Here, in this harsh light, you may have the advantage..” Viper suddenly takes a step towards you, inching his face so close you can smell the tobacco on his breath, “But meet me on my turf, and ohoho, the things I could make you do..”

A flame erupts inside you, wanting more than anything to cuss him out- but a tall figure is in front of you before you get the chance to respond. Hotch’s voice rang out, cold as he passed the man a business card. “Call us with any questions. And, if you do, I can be certain that if you talk to my agent like that again, it won’t end this peacefully.” You could hear the anger in Aaron’s voice, and you scoffed. As if you couldn’t fucking protect yourself. You feel Derek’s hand on your shoulder, indicating towards the exit. “You okay, blondie?” You shake your head, muttering under your breathe, “All he sees me as is a fucking child, I can protect myself.” Derek furrows his brows slightly, letting you walk to the SUV ahead as he lays back and walks in pace with Hotch. “How much longer are you going to pretend that you don't want to kiss her, boss man?” He winks at Hotch, before hopping in the passengers seat. Hotch’s hands clench the wheel as he drives. That stupid guy. The things that I could do to him, I’d make him regret ever letting his filthy face near her’s. She needs my protection, she hasn’t learned how to calmly react yet, that’s it, she’s new, that’s why I want to protect her. His eyes flick up and find yours in the backseat, as you sit there with your arms crossed, quickly shaking your head and looking out the window when you feel his eyes on you. Every fucking time. He never lets you stand up for yourself, never lets you fight back, half the time he finds an excuse to make you stay out of the unsub crime scenes. Who the fuck was he to defend you? His stupid, handsome face.. Morgan observes you both with a slight smirk, shooting a text to his baby girl that says something along the lines of “I think Blondie and Hotch may finally realize something’s up between them.”

“Been waiting, and waiting for you, to make a move”

As soon as the SUV pulls into the Georgia Field Office, Hotch gets out, with a curt “Agent. My office, now.” before slamming the car door behind him. You grumble and shoot an angry look in his direction, before following him into the Field office, and into his makeshift headquarters. As soon as the door shuts behind you, you start, “Do you not think I’m strong enough for this team, sir?” He sits down, folding his hands and watching you intently as you pace. “I do.” “Is there something weak about me? Do I not make it clear that I know how to deal with suspects and criminals?” “I do not see you as weak, and I certainly know your ability to argue-” You interrupt him, “Then what, sir, what is it? Every damn time, you just cut in front of me as if I’m your daughter or something, I mean, come on, I know I’m younger than you but I-” “That isn’t why I do it, you haven’t worked here long enough to get your footing yet, I’ve done it with Prentiss, Reid, when they first started-” “Then why do they look so surprised every time? It’s like I’m some special pearl, I can only ask questions but never actually interrogate or go catch unsubs-” You’re both yelling by now, and Hotch has stood up and made his way towards you, “Agent, I do not appreciate your tone with me right now.” “Well I don’t appreciate your- your- your weird, jealous, overprotective-” Your stop, chest heaving as he towers over you. You thought he would be angry, on the verge of dismissing you, but instead, his eyes have gone soft as he gazes down at you. Suddenly, you feel his lips on yours. You’re kissing your boss, and it feels so beautiful, so good, so right, as he wraps his arms around your waist and you bring yours around his neck. He pulls away, immediately trying to step back, sputtering apologies, but you grab his hands and kiss him again, with more passion than before. He gives in, for a moment, but pulls away firmly after a few more seconds, and as quickly as it had happened it was over. “Tha, uhm, that will be all, Agent. Thank you” Hotch says breathlessly, motioning towards the door as he resumes his seat at the paint-chipped desk.

Well, fuck.

“A little bit scandalous, but baby, don’t let them see it..”

Keep your eyes peeled for part 2…only if it’s wanted, that is ;) Also on AO3 under the same name!! i’m @/pumpkinspicedtheatre on there :)

#criminal minds #aaron hotchner #bau team #spencer reid #criminal minds hotch #criminal minds fanfiction #cm fanfiction #criminal minds incorrect #derek morgan #criminal minds fic #fanfiction #em writes #writing

[silentreigns]

Dutch GP 2023 Reflection

I don't know who Mercedes's strategists were for this race but they need to reevaluate EVERYTHING. I knew they were on some bs when the race started Lewis was on mediums and 19 other drivers were on softs? Like don't piss off!

The only reason why Mercedes were able to finish with some points is because of Lewis's skill. Going from 13th to 6th is something is commendable. But we know Lewis rarely complains and I doubt that he's going to say anything about the team that could be seen as negative

I don't think anybody predicted that Pierre would get a podium since he started 12th. But Alpine got the strategy right. Considering everything Alpine has gone through, they definitely needed this podium. Pierre celebrations are always great.

I feel bad for Zhou because he was 2nd at the beginning of the race. Was in the points for a long time. Then he DNF'ed because they didn't bring out the red flag sooner so he aqua-planed. If he for real loses his seat after this season imma be salty. Someone should lose their seat in that team and it ain't him 🤥

Ferrari just keeps making Charles look dumb. Charles called for Inters at the best time. The pit wall wanted him to stay out (idiots). Charles goes into the pits anyway, and the Inters weren't ready. If Ferrari pit him at the right time, he definitely would have been in the top 5 for a while. Then they kept rubbing salt on our wounds having him stay out when he was being overtaken by everyone. When I saw George on hards overtake him I knew it was a wrap

Speaking of George, what the FUCK was Mercedes doing putting him on hards? Hards aren't suited for this track, and he was like the only driver on the grid who went on them. He also had a snap with his car and was driving on the grass for like 2 seconds. Don't know how he survived that at all. And that moment also made me nervous because Lewis was directly behind him on that turn. Then he DNF'ed on like the last couple of laps in a points scoring position. What a disaster 😭

Yuki started p17 due to impeding Lewis in quali. So i wasn't expecting much. But then he ran P5-P8 for a significant part of the race. He managed to keep Lando behind all those laps. But then AlphaTauri didn't pit him sooner, and he was on old softs for a long time. But when he was aggressively defending I was very proud. But then he got a 5 second penalty for (???) and finished last. Yuki and Charles are the most unluckiest drivers on the grid

Lando went from P2 to P7. It really doesn't matter what happens in a race, he finds a way to finish P7. I don't know whether to laugh or cry for him.

I'm so happy Alex finished in the points. That makes Williams P7 in the constructors which is HUGE. I feel like Williams can cook at Monza too so I am excited to see how the next race goes

Sad for Logan, he got lapped after 8 laps then crashed into a wall. You made us Americans proud though like compared to where he started in the beginning he has grown a lot. Even though on paper it doesn't look that way🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅

Lance had 7 pitstops and somehow ended exactly where he started in P11. I am not a conspiracy theorist but why is Lance always on a drastically different strategy than Fernando? I don't get it all, and I don't think the team is deliberately sabotaging him either.

Alonso is back to looking like how he was at the beginning of the season. But I need Aston Martin to make bigger gains because he looks like the only person who has a chance at stopping RedBull this season

Overall, this is like my second favorite race this season. Silverstone is still my favorite, and I don't see that race getting dethroned this season

#f1 #formula 1 #dutch gp 2023 #lewis hamilton #formula one #charles leclerc #pierre gasly #fernando alonso #lando norris #george russell #yuki tsunoda #zhou guanyu #alex albon #logan sargeant #lance stroll

[suckishima]

man i love this sequence so much—and tbh their dynamic in general which i feel like we don't talk about enough

on paper they seem like such opposites—and they kind of are—with tanaka being a mood maker and morale stabilizer for the team, he's loud and boisterous and never holds back what he's feeling ("dial down my feelings?? what does that even mean??"), while tsukki barely speaks on the court, openly admits to disliking loud and excitable people, and seems to calculatedly hide his emotions away. you would think they wouldn't like each other and wouldn't work well together, but i think every interaction we see between them is a positive one

we see them kinda partner up to roast other teams or their own teammates, but also tanaka is one of the few senpai that tsukki seems comfortable openly making fun of directly. but then tanaka doesn't even ever seem mad by tsukki's taunts—occasionally he'll even pass judgement on how successful tsukki was with his comebacks. and tanaka will just throw a jab back easily, which tsukki doesn't really seem bothered by either—tanaka never gets under tsukki's skin the way kageyama does, for example

and then we get a great little sequence like this one that's deliberately pointing out their differences and then using them to emphasize something more, and it's just so effective??

what tanaka goes through in the first set of the inarizaki match of feeling like he's not doing enough and having it shoved in his face that he'll never be the best, is like a speedrun version of what tsukki has been going through since he was in middle school when he found out his brother was lying about being the ace. there are these little subtle callbacks too—with the dichotomy of being lame vs cool (yamaguchi calling tsukki lame for not trying and tsukki thinking yamaguchi is cool for saying so), and furudate even uses the same visual metaphor of a never-ending staircase

it took tsukki years to realize he might be looking at things in a destructive way, and then months more after that until he actually saw the merit of trying—and then even here we can see that he doesn't find any of this easy. and tanaka basically does all of that in thirty minutes or so.

and while tsukki seems perturbed by this, he isn't mad at all. you can feel the respect tsukki is veiling behind his words in the first panel of the page when he calls him "ridiculously mentally tough." it's "frightening" to him because it's something that doesn't come naturally to him personally, when it obviously does for tanaka

of course it's important to note that the situations are completely different in terms of the catalyst for those feelings, tanaka didn't have some world-shattering event he's been struggling with since he was a pre-teen (that we know of). he just had an off day. but what i like is that the emphasis here isn't really about the circumstances, it's about their attitudes, how they each react to feeling down about themselves

and i just love the way furudate put this page in here. we just had this awesome sequence of tanaka scoring a well earned set point by doing a move he's been practicing for months after he spent all match feeling inadequate—sounds a lot like tsukishima winning set 2 vs shiratorizawa with a stuff block that was preceded by months of extra practices from him, but the reader (rightfully) isn't thinking about tsukki at all. until furudate gives us this conversation and we're reminded (not specifically or directly of tsukki's moment but) that this feeling is something other players, other people go through too. like, furudate didn't have to put this page in here, the chapter and tanaka's moment would have been just as epic without it, but i feel like it just adds this extra little emotional grounding to it

it just, it feels so human. getting down, being hard on yourself, feeling or even knowing you'll never be the best, everyone can relate—it's a storyline we've seen in haikyuu before but furudate always manages to make it feel not only fresh but satisfying because of how they present it to us with a new lens every time. tanaka and tsukki are so opposing in their character and actions that it makes their moments feel different and new, so it's just as cathartic for the reader every time, even though the underlying message is the same

whether it's hard or not, it's always cooler to try

#..i wrote an essay again... i always think i have one (1) thought and it turns out a thought is worth 1k words #fun fact ive been collecting screenshots of tsukki and tanakas interactions this whole reread to eventually do *shrug* something with lol #tanaka #tsukki #hq #hq meta #what more do you need #2021 reread #x #long post #if only i could write my fic at these speeds lmao #ugh and this post touches on a ton of themes im trying to integrate into current fic too and its just been. not working lol

[lovebillyhargrove]

Billy's Camaro fic. Chapter 16

***

Ever since he started having all these vague feelings about Hargrove, Steve has never thought that it would lead anywhere. That they would actually end up kissing each other like two drunk teenagers in love, absolutely indecent and steamy, lost in lust, uncaring of the world spinning around them. He has also never imagined that their lips would fit so perfectly well, interlocked in the most natural way, just like they've found home on each other. Lock and key, turn, click, it's their place now.

Billy is kissing him, and the fast and savage has turned into slow and savouring, and it gets registered in his mush brain that they are both moaning, mmm fucking loving it, Hargrove's hand on Steve's crotch is burning his dick through the jeans, and Billy's applying just the right among of pressure, palming Steve, confidently, that smooth motherfucker, like he .. like he knows exactly what he is doing, and maybe .. okay maybe it's the dry spell, maybe it's the fact that Steve has been tiptoeing around dreaming of this moment for so long, or the fact that Steve was caught off guard with Billy showing up without a warning earlier today. Also, quite probably it's the undeniable truth that Hargrove is doing a damn good job kissing him and rolling that big hot palm, rubbing his dick in the way that makes Steve, well .. it's uh ..

It takes him only one minute to literally cream his pants.

His whole body jerks, pleasure waves knocking him over. He's slumping against the door, and Hargrove is still kissing him, no tongue, just kinda holding his lips on Steve's and smiling into the kiss.

Oh god, it is so embarrassing

He did not expect that

To be honest, he didn't expect anything just one hour ago

"Hey I'm .. " his voice is weak and unusually thin

"I think it was the fastest I've ever scored."

Steve's huffing out a nervous awkward laugh and Billy snorts. Steve's eyes are still closed and although the after feels great, he can't look Billy directly in those ice-blue eyes

"I uh .. I usually last longer than that."

"It's fine. We'll have time to explore how long you can hold out for."

No, it's fucking pathetic, and Steve just wants to sink through the floor right now, but Billy .. Billy's hand is now curled around his waist, and he's tickling Steve's ear with his hot breath, and .. he sounds like he means it, it's fine. There's nothing to be ashamed of, it happens. Even the snort wasn't mean.

Steve brings his hand to Hargrove's own visible bulge and tries to unzip the jeans, but Billy stops him mid-movement

"As much as I want it, pretty boy .. and I so want it .. but this stupid wound kinda hurts, and I'm just .. dead tired, I'll fall asleep on the rug here if I don't find a bed right this second."

"Oh of course .. of course!! I'm .. I'm so .. I'm sorry! Are you hungry? Do you want to take a shower? There's still your toothbrush and everything .."

"I'll just go straight to bed. It's tricky to take a shower with a bandage, I'm too tired for it now. And I am hungry, but I'm much more just .." - Billy's whole body is kinda laying on top of Steve, - "It was a long fucking drive. Where can I sleep?"

"Guest room? Or .. my bed? You can sleep in my bed?"

"Your bed."

"Okay."

Steve unglues himself from the door together with Hargrove on him. It feels wet and sticky in his underwear but it also feels amazing.

They go upstairs to Steve's room where Billy just takes off the jacket and jeans

and slides under the blanket in his t-shirt and underwear

"Fuuck, it's so good to finally be able to stretch like that."

He sighs contentedly and mumbles

"Night, Steve."

"Yeah .. good night."

It's six in the evening.

Billy's been on the road for thirty-three hours, did he actually stop? He couldn't have driven from California to Indiana without stopping, could he? It's physically impossible.

Steve's gonna ask all the questions tomorrow.

He goes to the shower and washes away his cum, still high on the ohmygodohmygod it's fucking real. Still bummed about the whole creaming his pants too fast incident. Dammit. Ugh.

***

Close to the morning Steve hears in his sleep like the mattress is shifting near him .. the bed becomes emptier .. he hears the distant sound of running water and then somewhere close to the time when his alarm usually goes off

There's heavy weight on the bed again, and someone's getting under the blanket and sliding his big hand all over Steve's side .. tenderly, slowly .. it is so gentle, but at the same time the hand is heavy, manly, it is so new .. there's the fresh smell of toothpaste and .. yeah it's coffee aroma in the air, and the hand is becoming more insistent, lifting Steve's t-shirt up, kneading his shoulder and back, dragging his underwear down and grabbing his ass cheek, stroking his thigh, down and up and .. oh god going for Steve's already hard dick - what was it, just a couple of seconds - and he's this hard ..? Again.

"I've started the coffee, pretty boy."

Billy's low voice

"Do you have to go to work today?"

"Mhmm .."

Steve's humming, eyes still closed, half asleep.

"It's so fucking hot that you're so easy for me. Look how hard you are already."

Billy is touching him, everywhere, tracing his fingers over Steve's balls and up his cock

"It's the hottest thing, you being so hard for me."

"So soft down there .."

Billy's palm is gently fondling his balls again

"And so hard up here .."

Slowly, torturously dragging the fingers up his dick

There's a wild thought flashing through Steve's still sleepy head that maybe it's all a dream. In this case, Steve doesn't want it to end

Billy's hand is again so sure - how can he be so unafraid ?? ..

It's all about these flesh-scorching sensations in Steve's feverish mind. Feather-like touches, finger taking precome from the slit and spreading it all over the head of his dick, same finger toying with the hem .. a little bit of squeezing, a little bit of loving, circling, circling with maddening consistency

Steve wants to sob in his pillow

"Stop teasing me, Hargrove."

"Do you have any lube?"

"I don't .. nngh .. I don't have any."

Billy spits in his palm and wraps it around him

"This will have to do then."

It feels so filthy, Steve loves it

He loves Hargrove's large hand around his dick

Billy's whispers and moans pour like molten iron in Steve's ear

"You're so hard for me, Harrington .. so fucking easy .."

Hargrove jerks Steve off, his own dick pressing on Steve's ass cheeks, he's humping his ass, breath heavy and sultry

It builds and it builds, and it grows, the pleasure in Steve's lower abdomen, in his balls, ready to explode and flood all his body with bliss

He's fucking into Billy's fist, messily

Until it rips through him, and he cums with a groan all over the bed and his belly and Billy's fist.

Just a couple of minutes later Billy follows

shooting his hot cum on Steve's back, panting sweatily into his neck, and oh my god, if it's not the hottest sensation he's ever felt

This time he did last more than one minute, at least.

Billy's body is relaxed against Steve's and Steve just wants to sleep more, just like that, together, covered in cum - why isn't it gross? Because it isn't, it feels so good

But at this moment his alarm clock goes off

"Damn it!"

He smashes it in frustration and whines

"Don't wanna get up."

When suddenly

Someone's pounding at the door downstairs. Steve's eyelids fly open

The fucker Hargrove chuckles

"Perfect timing hehee .. Who is it? Parents?"

Steve's lifting himself on his right elbow

"No, they uh .. they have a key, they don't need to .."

The pounding resumes

Billy's wiping himself and Steve with a sheet

"You're gonna open the door?"

"Steve ?? STEVE!!!"

That's .. Max's voice? Oh shit. Steve's looking at Billy who's not smiling anymore

"I don't think we have a choice."

Steve jumps out of bed and puts sweatpants on

He turns to face Billy who's still laying on the bed and only now sees that his torso is bandaged, all around

Fucking hell ..

"Hey, Steve !!"

The pounding intensifies

Steve runs downstairs

"Coming!! I'm coming, Jesus!"

He opens the door, and there's Max, eyes fiery, fists clenched

"Hey is Billy here? El told me .."

"Uh .. yeah. Uhm .."

Max pushes past Steve.

"Billy .. ??"

Turns to him.

"Where is he?"

'Well, he is sleeping, I guess. But uh .. you probably woke him up. Just a second, I'll go look."

There's no need, cause Billy is coming down the stairs, wearing Steve's other sweatpants and throwing on a t-shirt

Max sees the bandage though

"Oh my god, Billy? .. Billy, are you okay? Are you .. "

She's staring at him, eyes wide open

"You're alive? .."

She flings herself at Billy but he's wincing at the embrace, patting her shoulder with his right hand

"Easy, Max."

Is he not happy to see her ? - Steve thinks

"You're alive, asshole !! Why didn't you tell me?"

Billy's just standing there, like a stone statue.

Max steps back a little.

"Were you going to tell me ?? .."

"How did you know I'm here?"

"El called me yesterday and said that .. you were alive and coming to Hawkins. She was so happy, she said Hopper was back and she said .. family's important."

Max is clutching her backpack straps

"It was very late yesterday for me to go outside, mom .. mom doesn't let .. and doesn't like when I stay out late, so I had to wait till the morning but .. I couldn't sleep and .."

"Oh, how's Susan?"

"She's .." - Max's shoulders slouch a little

"She's okay but .."

She stops mid-sentence and suddenly glances at Steve as if looking for some information

"Does he ..? Do you know about your ..?"

"I know, Max. I know about Neil."

They both fall silent.

Somehow Steve decides that it is not the worst moment to cut in

"Hey guys? Does anyone want coffee? Let's go to the kitchen? Did you have breakfast, Max?"

"I couldn't eat much, but yeah .. yeah, I did, thanks Steve."

They're in the kitchen and Steve starts pouring himself a mug of coffee when Max looks at the clock

"I need to get to school. Can somebody .. can you drive me, Billy?"

She's nervous because

Because she knows Billy can be an asshole

Which is exactly what happens

"Listen, Max, I sort of .. just came back from the dead, and you're already piling up a brother's .. step-brother's responsibilities on me? Can't drive anybody anywhere. I'm injured. How did you get here?"

"I walked. Can't skate in winter."

"Well .. school's not that far."

Steve's giving them both a coffee each

"Don't be a jerk, Billy." He says

"Oh so now I'm the jerk?"

Max is on the verge of tears

"You're the biggest jerk there is! Why am I the last one to find out you're alive?"

"Well, why was I the last one to find out about the upside down shit, huh, sister?"

Billy's stubborn like a donkey, Steve kinda knows that about him already. Steve himself has never been good at this sibling shit, he grew up alone, so he's kinda lost here. He's trying his best though.

There are two trails of tears running down Max's face

"I'm sorry, Billy."

Billy's not showing any reaction

Yep, siblings' drama

"Guys! I'll drive you to school, Max, and you .." - glancing at Hargrove - "You wanted to go somewhere?"

"I actually wanted to have a quiet day today, Harrington! Just uh .. just need to go to hospital probably to have it looked at."

Billy's gesturing at his left side

He avoids looking at Max.

Most likely, Steve's got to be the adult here.

"Okay! Okay, don't fight!"

"No-one's fighting, Harrington." - Billy's rolling his eyes and Max is trying not to let a single sniffle out.

"Let's just .. let's just take it step by step. Max, you need to be at school, right ?"

Max's nodding

"When?"

The two of them are looking at the clock

"Like .. in twenty minutes?"

"Right, school starts at 8.30 .." - Steve's addressing Hargrove now. - "I need to be at work at 9.00, can you drive yourself to the hospital?"

"Where would I get the car? Your beamer is near Family Video. Also, what about breakfast?"

"Uhm .. okay, I'm taking Max to school now, and then I'm picking you up from here and driving to Family Video where you can take one of the cars and go to the hospital? And we can stop and get bagels on the way. How's that for a plan?"

Billy's shrugging his broad shoulders like he doesn't care

"Yeah whatever."

"I'll just go change."

When Steve comes downstairs, he sees that Max is still waiting in the kitchen, but Billy's sitting on the couch in the living room

Having brothers or sisters is not the easiest thing, huh

"Let's go, Max?" Steve's grabbing the camaro keys.

"Bye, Billy." It comes out quiet and sad.

"See you around, Maxine." This comes out indifferent.

"I know you don't believe me but I'm glad you're back."

Hargrove isn't answering anything to that, and Steve and Max leave the house.

On the way Steve promises Max to tell her all about Billy's rescue later. He also says he'll talk to Billy about .. about what just happened between them.

"Just give him time, he's been through so much, and he actually has the right to be pissed about some things. You know like .. we kept him in the dark about this whole situation, and .. it almost cost him his life."

"Yeah, I know." Max is looking out of the window. "We should've told him about everything from .. from the beginning. We were stupid."

"Yeah .." - Steve pauses. - "How are things with your mom, by the way?"

"It's okay. It's difficult for her after Neil's death, but .. I hope she's going to be okay. We're moving soon. I don't know where yet, but this house is too big for us now."

Steve drops Max off at school

"If you need any help, call me, Max."

When he gets back, Billy's already dressed and waiting.

They get in the car. Steve can literally feel that the camaro is thrilled to see Billy, it makes all these excited sounds, the engine is singing.

First, they drive in silence but then

"Billy? I kinda felt sorry for Max, I mean .. weren't you happy to see her?"

"On cloud fucking nine, Harrington."

"That's uh .. listen, that's not my place to say anything but uh .. weren't you too harsh on her?"

"First of all, Harrington, stop with that "Oh it's not my place to say .." bullshit, okay? We're fucking, I'm staying at your house, you .. you saved me from that hellhole. And second, Max is .. yeah, she's a kid, bit it's not like she's a little fucking baby who didn't .. who doesn't understand anything!"

Steve's got a feeling Billy's talking about something else entirely, not just their earlier encounter

Also

Steve again feels that tingling sensation at the back of his head.

We're fucking, I'm staying at your house ..

Billy's rubbing his eyes with both palms

"The thing is .. I know. I know, Steve, you're right. It's just that .. there's so much family shit involved like .. I never even wanted a sister, and my dad .. even if it was her fault, I'd get slapped around anyways so .. but I know. Give me a couple of days. I'll pick her up from school or something. We'll go get burgers. We'll talk. Or something. Can we just go get our bagels now, Steve, I'm starving, like .. really ?"

The bagels are freshly baked and delicious, or maybe Steve's just after-sex hungry and happy. The boys devour them like two young wolves.

They say their good-byes for the day in front of the video store.

"I'll take my car. We'll go for a drive. Where's that hospital?"

"It's close to Main Street. There's gonna be a huge sign, you won't miss it."

"Alright. See you after your work. Want me to make some dinner?"

"I uh .. I don't know." Steve wasn't ready for this question.

"Okay, I'll figure it out."

Hargrove gets in the camaro and the car honestly looks like the most delighted pup.

Steve doesn't know how they'll do it, make peace, Billy and the camaro. And whether they'll make peace at all. He's curious, but fuck his life, he's gotta be at work.

Billy goes to the hospital, where they put a new bandage on his wound. Drives around in the camaro a bit, all conversations they might be having remain a secret only two of them share. He goes to Harrington's later and sleeps through the day.

Dinner is tricky, cause Harrington doesn't seem to have much food in his cupboards. Maybe they'll just go to the diner. Or pasta it is.

He's there to pick Steve up from work, and Steve's cheeks burn hot when he sees Billy waiting for him outside Family Video. They drive back separately, taking both cars to Harrington's place.

"I'll race you there, pretty boy."

Steve just scoffs and shakes his head cause he knows his beamer doesn't stand a chance.

He's right.

***

Next chapter. I know this one was supposed to be last, but then Max popped out of nowhere. The boys are still in need of a decent conversation. Also, I'm all for Billy and Max bonding and becoming the brother and sister we want them to be. I just think it won' t happen overnight. They'll need so much time. There will be so much assholery and passive-aggressive bitching. They'll get there, but it won't be all sugary sweet

#billy's camaro fic #billy's camaro #harringrove #billy x steve #harringrove fic

[arcplaysgames]

I am a Persona 5 enthusiast above all else and a Persona 3 Portable lover directly after that, but fuck if the MC x Yosuke relationship doesn’t own my entire life

I should prob wait until I'm fully done bc I think I'm at the final dungeon now (or, there's a bonus one later i guess that's optional?) but

jesus fucking christ can i please just talk about Yosuke finally because I feel like i'm gonna explode

I don't think I see Yosuke as bisexual is the thing that I have settled on. I feel like Yosuke is a badly closeted scared shitty teenager who is simmering with so much repressed anger and resignation, he doesn't know how to adequately handle it (and frankly he's slowly getting better over the course of the game). But all of his worst moments in the story feel like he's acting from a script, namely the CompHet Script From Hell.

(Also, I would say that I think of Kanji as The Bisexual One while Yosuke is just attracted to dudes, which isn't what I anticipated from the start.)

But Yosuke mostly makes me sad. I feel like the expectations on him, the ones that he has wrapped around himself like a shield in an attempt to ward off people hurting him. Because he's so isolated and desperate for affection, he's willing to do stupid shit to get the attention he wants. All of his bad antics always feel like.... they come from less of a place of horny lust and more from a place of....... fear?

Like when he does the shit around the camping trip and his other sketchy actions, it always feels like a way to say "please be with me in this thing, this is what guys do, right?" like if he hits his mark well enough, he'll unlock some happiness he hasn't figured out yet.

but it's all so SCRIPTED! like when does Yosuke go off the deep end? when there's a script he thinks he has to hit. oh, the spring camping trip can't just be a school trip, it has to be a chance to score with the ladies. oh, you can't just want to get motorcycles and hang out with your best friend, it has to be for laaaaaadies.

but as soon as you separate him from those scripts and he goes back to being him, he's.... such a fucking decent, empathetic guy. he takes in teddie and outright fights to keep him living with him. he takes the lead in the case alongside naoto. he is the first person to rope in Nanako into the group and consistently keeps her involved. and once he gets over his homophobic panic over kanji, he keeps fukcing trying to wingman for kanji, even if kanji would prefer he didn't. and that feels genuine! kanji reacts to it like a cat in a bath, but more than once, yosuke prodding kanji for his taste in boys (and girls and naoto) feels like real interest, not a set up for a punchline. and I've remarked before that he's REALLY decent to naoto re: gender, esp in comparison to the rest of the game, which was STUNNING.

and then he's like "OH SHIT i need to be more of a Dude's Dude" and he morphs into an asshole for a day. then he snaps right back.

the out of universe explanations are clear, i'm not a dumbass. but I am choosing to kill the fucking author and examine what all this genuinely means for the character.

and the guy who attaches himself the MC's hip, and who's growth thru his bullshit is linked to the MC, and who cries around the MC and who accepts a long lingering hug and lets not forget if you roleplay wanting to date him, he's happy.

Maybe in the future this will change, but for the Yosuke of now, in the moment, it feels like his expectations of what Guys And Girls are supposed to be gets in his way of forming stronger relationships (which, again, is why the Naoto thing intrigues me). It feels like he thinks he's supposed to want to date Chie, but when he seeks out intimacy that veers into the romantic, it's not with girls.

ANYWAY I THINK YOSUKE'S GAY, but his closet is sadly made of knives, and it cuts him as he tries to keep himself contorted into the correct shape to keep hidden.

best case scenario is him hanging around the MC until he trips happily into the relationship he wants, built brick by brick until the plausible deniability is left out in the cold

worst case is he's going to get married at 20 and make some poor woman abjectly fucking miserable until they're divorced.

phew okay, all that felt like an exorcism, i feel better now

#Anonymous #yosuke hanamura #p4 #persona liveblog

[xenon-demon]

also. tell me more about your Kas!Eddie please 🙏

ohhhhh Lui gravity is the AU that has just. grabbed me in its jaws and will not let go. I think about it CONSTANTLY and I don't think that will stop anytime soon. I've got a few asks about this one though so I'll START with talking about What's Going On In Hawkins circa the start of the fic. If you would like to know more about The Boy, Kas!Steve, then may I direct your attention to this post :D

So Eddie and Steve swap places right before the final fight, because Steve is injured at that point and Eddie isn't (and they figure staying at Eddie's trailer will be less dangerous that going to the Creel House). Everything else from that point proceeds as in canon; the bats get in, Steve dies, Max dies temporarily and the four gates connect and drive a massive rift through Hawkins.

From there, Hawkins basically descends into a semi-apocalyptic nightmare. The rift from the end of season 4 has caused major structural damage all over town, many buildings have been destroyed and lots of people have either evacuated or had to move into a local motel that's been converted into emergency housing for the people of Hawkins (that's where the Munsons are now staying). On top of that, the rift has basically destroyed the structural integrity between the Upside Down and our world; while the rift itself is not really a functional gate, there are a bunch of smaller gates randomly opening up around town now. More and more of them show up as time goes on. Some are small (think like the tree Nancy goes through in S1), some are much bigger (think bigger than Eddie's trailer roof gate), and most of them tend to fluctuate a bit in size/fade in and out of existence. This means that some creatures from the Upside Down are starting to bleed through these gates and end up in Hawkins looking for food.

The government, realizing everything went to shit the moment the rift opened up, rolls into Hawkins about 3-4 days after the "earthquake" saying they're here to "help with the relief efforts". (For those keeping score at home, yes this is after Team Russia & Team Cali have arrived back in Hawkins.) The official government cover story is along the lines of "hey, remember when HNL got shut down a few years back after that tragic chemical leak incident? Well, we've just discovered that a Rogue Individual (Brenner) was secretly dumping toxic chemicals and experimental materials into the local wilderness/burying them underground instead of disposing of them properly. This is the cause of the geological weirdness and mutated wildlife that some people are reporting. Everyone should leave Hawkins immediately if they can, and comply with any and all government orders if they can't". Not everyone believes this, of course, but the truth is so much more insane that most of town is at least willing to go along with it - and that's not counting the people who just up and leave because Hawkins is so super duper cursed at this point.

The main things the government is doing are:

regular patrols around the border of town and known gate hotspots, to catch and kill any UD creatures before they're spotted by civilians

nighttime curfew; you shouldn't be out after sundown unless you are going Directly from wherever you were during the day (i.e. your job) back to your home. you're not gonna get ARRESTED but the military will absolutely Escort You back to your house lmao

urging citizens to stay the fuck away from any weird sightings and report them to the armed forces as soon as possible, so the military can handle it

and yeah, they kind of are helping with the relief efforts in that they're making sure food and other important supplies are still getting into hawkins and making sure the recently-homeless have somewhere to stay, but they're doing the bare minimum really asfjknjvkdan

Essentially, as of the start of the fic (approx. a month after the rift opens up/the end of S4) the situation is this: Eleven and the Party know that in order to fix this, they have to defeat Vecna first and THEN close up any existing gates/the rift. (They also have a strong hunch that the Upside Down is Like That due to Vecna's influence.) The government officials in charge of the Hawkins occupation Do Not Believe That Is The Solution, and instead spend a lot of time wasting Eleven's time and energy by forcing her to close up gates as they appear. Between that and the fact the Party can't just storm into the Upside Down to get Vecna without a solid plan and probably armed back up, they're all feeling kind of hopeless about how to actually fix this. Especially since tensions are rising in Hawkins by the day, and the gate/monster sightings are only getting more and more frequent...

Send me an ask about my WIPs!

#charlie writes things #steddie #steddie au #gravity (kas!steve au) #vampire steve harrington #also idk if the government stuff is good/realistic at all #because while i think col sullivan would be forced to admit at this point that the upside down Is a thing and this isn't all just eleven #idk how willing he'd be to just work with her and the party #i'm leaning towards 'sullivan has been forced to play nice with owens under threat of punishment due to his mismanagement of the situation' #'and he is now leading the occupation of hawkins under guidance from owens. but he is NOT happy about it' #'and while owens will work with the party/eleven sullivan is completely disregarding their (correct) thoughts on how to fix this' #sullivan's like 'if eleven isn't responsible for this then she should close these gates/the rift and fix this for us' #and eleven is like 'you're treating the symptoms and not the cause in order to truly fix this we must kill vecna' #and sullivan's like 'vecna schmecna i still think this is your fault but i believe you're playing nice atm and also if i kill you now #i'll be dishonorably discharged for disobeying orders from my higher ups' #idk if anyone has thoughts about this feel free to let me know #i'm very open to ideas/soundboarding for how to make this feel realistic #because i want the 'borderline post-apocalyptic/a lot more people Know now but hawkins as a whole is at least pretending to be normal' vibe #the secret is not Out In The Open but it's definitely much less hidden than it used to be.

[clericofshadows]

Do you mind sharing the tea about Regis and Garrus

I don't mind at all, anon :)

tbh a lot of Regis's feelings on Garrus are an extension of my own feelings which are: I don't like him and I find him boring and annoying. and a bit whiny about "justice" and shit.

but to look at it from Regis's perspective in a rambling post under the cut:

In ME1, Regis does not follow up on Garrus's lead first. He finds Wrex and Tali first, which is sufficient enough for him, and gets ready to go on the mission as a new Spectre. Garrus will stop you at the elevator if you didn't recruit him and stays in C-Sec if you change your mind. Regis refuses his offer, saying he works best with a smaller team (which is true, he hates the large group in ME2 even if it is technically necessary). With his newfound powers, back on the Normandy, he pulls up Garrus's C-Sec file, and based on comments his father made in Garrus's comic, Regis refuses to entertain the idea of recruiting him after reading about his disregard for rules all for his idea of justice.

He casts Vakarian out of his mind, and is essentially forgotten by the end of Saren's mission.

In ME2, Regis recruits Archangel fairly early on after getting Zaeed, Kasumi, and Mordin on his crew. He doesn't necessarily like the idea of recruiting a vigilante, but maybe there's more to the story.

And well, we all know how the recruitment mission goes. Regis doesn't immediately recognize Garrus, and instead asks who he is, only getting a vague recollection. Vakarian jogs his memory, and Regis has a moment where he wonders why the hell a C-Sec officer decided going to Omega is a good idea but casts the thought aside for now.

After the mission, he gives Vakarian medical attention and after he heals up, he sizes him up. He confronts him directly about his C-Sec file and some of his cases that Regis read about, recalling what he saw in his file. From there, it is basically a clash of ideas and differing morals/opinions, Vakarian assuming that as the Butcher of Torfan and generally having more 'renegade' tendencies that they would be of the same mind, but in reality, Regis refuses to sacrifice civilian lives and will always look for another way if at all possible. He's not as "murderous" as people think he is. Torfan was a choice he made knowing he'll be sacrificing Alliance lives, but he did it because he knew it would save far more lives in the end. The soldiers knew the score. Civilians don't. (Which makes Zaeed's loyalty mission something very interesting to tackle, especially as Regis and Zaeed are becoming lovers again. I have some ideas for that).

Their relationship comes to a head in the loyalty mission, and Regis refuses to entertain the idea of being part of an execution without having all the details, so he more or less tells Vakarian that if you want his help, you'll listen to him.

So, when Regis tries to signal him to stand down and not shoot Sidonis, Garrus does it anyway, thus making him effectively "un-loyal" and Regis keeps him out of his main squad rotation since he couldn't follow a basic order. I wish more of the loyal missions had fail conditions like this, would've made the game more interesting IMO, especially if you never took them on missions and so they wouldn't necessarily trust you the same way another character who had been on more missions.

Anyway, as my suicide mission is not perfect and well, it's not a golden outcome, Garrus dies as the crew escort, Grunt dies on the hold the line segment, and Legion dies as one of the squadmates part of the final fight. All thanks to Risky Suicide Mission lol. Will it happen exactly like that in Regis's fics? Probably not, but that's how it happened in game.

I effectively ignore Garrus in my playthroughs, so that's basically what Regis does. Not as much drama as the Liara stuff, but still, even on my non-Regis playthroughs he never gets recruited and dies on the suicide mission, since it's the only way to remove the forced best-friend bullshit between them that I don't like.

#ask #anon #regis shepard

[dragon-cultist-catgirl]

been thinking about the golden eagle tattoos again, what's the deal with them anyway

this is very much not the most pressing mystery of the story, but i've been curious about them ( usually when i check the character entries at the end of each episode and remember they exist again ) and felt like work through my thoughts about them, so here

i don't think it's ever commented on in the text, and it's odd that the only ( explicit ) examples of them are these two, who don't have a whole lot directly to do with one another :

i feel like in eva's case it adds a little flair to the core of her struggle as someone whose entire upbringing has forced her into a position where if she wants to achieve anything she needs to prove she's As Good As The Boys ( meanwhile kinzo and krauss quadruple down on the hypersexism at any given opportunity like they're playing for a high score ).

eva goes down this path of like, "statusquo-preserving rebellion", in that she's fundamentally acting out of the idea that "this isn't how you want to do things but i'm gonna make the same concept work for me instead". with the extra determination she needs to put in to be taken seriously, it makes sense that she needs to also at least performatively show a higher degree of commitment to the family and its tradition than her brothers ( who ostensibly just wear it on their clothes like everyone else ).

it seems like it acts as another outwards demonstration of her strongarming her desires against people who wouldn't possibly accept that without that commitment, to the point that the crest is on her clothes ( as is typical ) as well as her outfit being sleeveless to show off the tattoo more easily. "yes i'm keeping the ushiromiya name after marriage, look how dedicated i am to the principles of this family - they're literally right here on my skin".

in sayo's case it feels less like a choice and more like a brand, though. sayo is a servant, servants are furniture, furniture is property; they're all raised and essentially owned by the ushiromiyas until they leave to do their own thing once they're able.

if yoshiya has the same brand then we never see it, but to me it would make sense that he does, given their collective role in the story. the mark of the ushiromiyas being placed upon them has more of an implication of their identity as a cornerstone role in the family's history; as descendant a link to the one who gave the head the ability to rebuild the family in the first place, they are literally emblematic of the family, its status and prosperity, and its image.

it's even much more explicitly hidden in sayo's case, both in-universe and to the reader : we hardly ever see full-body shots of her and even if we did, the only reason the mark is visible on her full-body portrait is because it lines up with the silly belted front-gap in the skirt. it's like a little hint that's there to pick up on a bit if you're paying attention, but doesn't give the game away even if you do, and the characters themselves aren't going to be likely to be taking note of it given how most don't even take exceptional note of her in the first place.

obviously this still leaves a couple of odd questions, like "wait when / how exactly did sayo ( and yoshiya ) get the brand(s) in the first place", " eva's not the only one with a lot of family-and-status-minded strong will, and everyone else is much more heavily clothed; why couldn't there be more of them ?", and "does a very old-fashioned, traditionalist family really even have a particularly lax attitude towards people getting visible tattoos, without stigma for it ( something eva would probably be more likely to try and avoid ) ?", but none of the eagles are commented on even in narration ( to my recollection ), so i'm not too hung up them as anything more than symbology ( also i just don't have the cultural background to comment on the lattermost question, so i'm not inclined to touch that ).

#longpost rambles #i might just be talking out my ass here #but this is just what i'm personally thinking based on only my own having read the thing recently #and not really having looked anything else up about it #i just think it's interesting #witchposting #umineko #umineko spoilers #self.h

[hughungrybear]

Me watching Dangerous Romance Ep. 8:

1. I don't trust Saifah. Sailom, apparently, also does not trust his own brother. At this rate, only Grandma trusts Saifah 😅

2. Sorry, as an Asian, a 65/100 score in an exam is atrocious lol. My mum would have disowned me if she sees that score on my paper. 😂😂😂😂

3. I pretty much doubt you'll get any sleep if you give in, Sailom lol. Kang might get a 100 in that test, but you'll probably end up sleep-deprived 😂😂😂😂

4. Oh. My. Gawd. Puppy dog eyes Kanghan, ACTIVATED. 😅😅😅

5. But, but, but Kang isn't sleeping lol 😂😂😂😂😂 Nobody will sleep tonight, I guess 😂😂😂😂

6. Saifah knows his little bro so well 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

7. Technically, Sailom did not lie - it is the sound of the "wind" hiding his windmill 😂😂😂

8. Yeah, where is my GuyNava ship??? C'mon set sail already 😭😭😭😭 Looks like they will go on a date instead of a fight. Pimfah and the gang were like, "WTH happened?" 😂😂😂

9. Ooof. Looks like Kanghan broke his promise to Sailom to be home by 8PM. 😓 Why though? 🤔🤔🤔

10. Aaah, Sailom. Why did you listened to Saifah??? You should have listened to Kang's explanation first.

11. So, it was Guy's fault 😑😑 Sailom, you really need to work on your listening skills lol

12. Pimfah silently cheering the KangSailom ship 😭😭😭

13. Doctor, why didn't you just give Grandma the medicine directly? 😅😅😅 Also, what's with Kang's dad? It looks like he doesn't like Saifah.

14. Ooooh, Grandma Ging is too nice. I really do hope Saifah is not planning anything nefarious against Kang's family. 😣

15. Sailom, just apologise 😭😭😭 <after 5 seconds> Oh, good. He did. 😊 Also, Sailom telling Kang to stop burdening himself with Sailom's money problems is just 👉👈. Kang has dreams and Sailom will not let himself be an obstacle to it. At this point, my cheeks hurt from grinning too much because of all the sweetness 😅

16. Sailom exhibits the true characteristic of a type-A student - being anal on schedules and appointments. Because by gods, Sailom will ensure that Kang WILL REACH HIS GOALS OF EXCELLING IN ACADEMICS AND SPORTS 😂😂😂

17. Apparently, Kang is more thirtsy for a drink than a kiss 😂😂😂

18. I just remembered the preview from last ep. Damn, Kang's dad just keep on demolishing Kang's motivation to improve himself. The boy trained and studied like there's no tomorrow for a fair tryouts and Dad just goes ahead and bribes the coach. Gods dammit.

19. My GuyNava ship is sailiiiiiing!!! Saiiiiliiiiiiing!!!! 🥰🥰🥰

20. Looks like Kang overtrained himself. Maybe that's why Dad came to the "rescue". But I still don't think it's in Kang's best interest to achieve things he didn't put a serious effort on.

21. Oh, Dad did not trust Saifah. Appropriately so. However, yeah, I don't think Saifah will steal when he is the only person (aside from Sailom) that would be accused of stealing in that household. The question is, was the watch really stolen though?

22. Grandma is no fool. I think it was already established when she punished Kang when he was still bullying Sailom. I guess this is the start of Saifah also changing for the better.

23. What is happening? 😅😅😅 Nava is obviously counting on Max and Auto trying to stop the "fight" from happening. I mean, why else would he count "two point five, two point six..." instead of "three"? Lol Just kiss! 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Look at Max and Auto, they are bffs already.

24. Sailom just keeps on acting like a blushing bride in this series 😂😂😂😂

25. Oh, that just hurt my heart - Kang asking Sailom if he is no longer a spoiled rich brat in Sailom's eyes. It hurts my heart even more thinking of what is about to be revealed about Kang's dad and the football coach 🤬🤬

26. Oh. At least, Kang's dad figured out that Saifah did not take the watch. However, the bg music is pretty ominous...the fvck. Ahhh, noooo. It feels like an effing trap for Saifah. What is happening???

27. My heart hurts again. Gods damn Kang's dad. 🤬🤬🤬 Kang asking all the right questions and Dad just blurting out the effing truth that he does not believe in his own son's abilities.

In this episode, Sailom's loveliness shines brightly. He keeps reassuring Kang that he will stay beside him regardless of what happens in the future. Next episode, the boyfies will go on a trip and Kang will see if Sailom feelings will change if he no longer has any money (since Dad froze his account). Dad is still a fvcker, imo.

I know Grandma Ging does not condone violence, but would it be asking for too much is she smacks her son (Kong) hard??? 😔😔😔

#dangerous romance #dangerous romance ep 8 #kanghansailom #kangsailom #perthchimon #perth tanapon #chimon wachirawit

[trulyinspiringmovies]

Batman Returns

"Batman Returns" feels overstuffed, unfocused, and disinterested in its title character.

Batman is still fighting crime at night and keeping Gotham safe. Meanwhile, Oswald, a deformed man who was thrown away as a child by his own parents, is hatching a plan to get revenge on Gotham. Max Shreck, an unscrupulous industrialist, wants to team up with Oswald for his own selfish gain. All the while, Selina Kyle embraces a new alter ego, Catwoman, in order to get revenge on Max Shreck.

All the reviews I've read or seen for this movie seem to have the same caveat. They're all people who grew up watching this movie, so they have a soft spot for it in their hearts. However, they make it very clear that the distinction is that this is their favorite Batman movie and not the best Batman movie. That's because this movie isn't a Batman movie in any sense. Batman murders freely, which surprisingly doesn't bother me too much. I know that Batman's moral compass is a big part of his identity and wanton murder goes directly against that, but I don't really mind because I just see this Batman as a different version of Batman, which is true. I can get behind this version of Batman not really caring about murder because this version of Batman isn't setting out to be more complex than just being a superhero of the night. My main reason why this is barely a Batman movie to me is that he's barely in it. This movie is more focused on Oswald and Selina Kyle. Batman doesn't really have a character arc in this movie. He's just there to fight a little and then leave the movie until he's needed again for action. On top of that, this movie gets the origin of Catwoman and the Penguin wrong. Again, I don't mind the changes. These characters are separate versions of the characters I'm familiar with. However, it feels like Tim Burton's vision for these characters was a lazy approach. Penguin is a human that resembles a penguin. Fine, that whole macabre vibe that Tim Burton is known for. It's still lazy, but it fits with Tim Burton's modus operandi. I just don't understand what was going on with Catwoman. She gets pushed out of the top of a building and basically dies, only to be revived by alley cats. Now she has a whole shift in her personality, she can fight extremely well, and she basically has nine lives. It's like Tim Burton saw the villains' names and went with the closest thing to a literal approach, even if it made no sense. There were still some redeeming qualities. I thought the score was even better this time around. I enjoy seeing Gotham during Christmas time. The ending was pretty good. Still, I don't think I'd ever want to watch this movie again.

★★★

Watched on July 2nd, 2023

#Batman Returns #June #1992 #Action #Superhero #Adventure #Fantasy #Thriller #Crime #PG-13 #Tim Burton #July 2023 #3 stars

[robbyrobinson]

NOPE (Review)

So my full thoughts on Nope. Will be entirely honest, but I really liked the film, more so than Us namely because it doesn't suffer the issue of an exposition dump like the previous film did. I completely understand why some dislike the film or view Peele as overrated because, in some way, he is because some movie critics put him on that high a pedestal even when he refuses to identify himself as being close to the likes of John Carpenter. But I do enjoy his films for the most part because I can tell he is passionate about what he is doing.

In terms of the narrative, Nope is a simple story about two siblings trying to keep their ranch afloat by taking authentic pictures of a UFO but they are way out of their league when it comes to what the UFO truly is.

If anything, the story feels by the book and safe. But I don't see how anyone could come out of the film thinking it was boring. The first two acts of the film I felt were great but the third act is the one that is easily hit or miss. I loved the climax of the film, but I won't lie when saying the film felt incomplete/half-baked with the ending being abrupt. But that is more because I was truly invested with the film up to that point and I wanted there to be more to it.

If anything, the film is more a character study than a horror film despite having scary moments. Daniel's character OJ is vanilla at best. I disagree with the idea he is boring or uninteresting because he is monotonous, but I would argue that the film isn't entirely about him, but more that he serves as an outlet for more eccentric characters like Emerald, Angel, and Jupe. Even then, his stoic nature proves to be crucial when it comes to understanding the beast.

Emerald carries the movie with how she is more energetic than her brother and does have a semblance of a character arc where she tries to help snap a picture of the UFO not just because she wants to save the ranch, but also because she wanted to make it big herself. She also has some slight resentment toward her late father as well. In addition, she is funny.

Angel is an okay addition. He also has his humorous moments such as his musing of Ancient Aliens and he is by no means stupid.

Jupe I admit I was somewhat disappointed that he wasn't in the film for about 2/3 of it despite us spending time developing his character and childhood trauma. At first, I did dislike that, but I did feel like it was enough.

It all goes back to the underlying message of how people are willing to do anything to get that perfect spectacle even and how Hollywood treats its performing animals like living props that they chew up and discard. With that kind of disrespect, it leads to bad consequences for the people much like what happened with Gordy the Chimp which is definitely the scariest part of the film.

After surviving his encounter with the crazed chimp, Ricky believed that he was able to have some control over wild animals which I feel comes from the fact he was not looking directly at Gordy but instead looking at a shoe bizarrely standing on its heel. In my interpretation, the shoe is one of the "bad miracles" OJ was talking about. It saves Ricky at that moment but he did not take that as a cautionary tale instead doubling down on that due to his obsession with reclaiming his lost fame.

As for everything else, the soundtrack is excellent, and I did not think the acting was bad as there were several good performances to list. The cinematography is especially fantastic befitting the spectacle notion Peele was wanting.

So...I was satisfied for the most part with the film. Sure, I did want more in the film to make it feel more tightly wound, but I nevertheless did enjoy it.

Final score:

7/10

#jordan peele #peele #nope #nope film #nope jordan peele #haywood #review

[fearofahumanplanet]

Jane's Odyssey: How I Just Found One of the Rarest Copies of Homer's Odyssey

So I have something of an interesting story...

Over the weekend, while I was out, I found a hardcover copy of Homer's Odyssey, the Harvard Classics edition, already pretty rare as far as I could tell! And yet, despite that, it was somewhere around $9? I gave it a cursory flipping through (this would prove my undoing), didn't notice anything at the time, so I was like "yeah, I have to get this if it's so cheap"

Then I decided to give it a read, as I quite enjoy the Butcher translation and I modeled a lot of Serpents off of the Odyssey thematically. And for a while, it was smooth sailing!

For a while.

Right when things were getting good on the island of the Cyclopes, I noticed something strange.

Forgive the blurry image, but take a look at the page numbers.

Yes. Missing pages.

Now, on one hand, that alone wouldn't be so odd. It was when I flipped further through the book that it got weirder.

To summarize the extent of the weirdness:

Page 124, as shown above, skips directly to page 177

It then proceeds as normal until page 208... AFTER WHICH, IT GOES BACK TO THE MISSING PAGE 157??

It then goes from page 157 all the way to the end of the intended text, which, I might add, means pages 177-208 appear twice in my copy

For those keeping score, that does indeed mean that, yes, pages 125 to 156 are nowhere to be found anywhere in this bizarre copy. Hence, you can't actually read the whole story, which I'd be very upset about if it wasn't in the public domain.

But yeah. Thoroughly strange, I don't know how you could mess up a printing of a book this poorly, but it's hysterical and, from my estimation, given this is already a very rare edition of the Odyssey to begin with (bc Harvard all posh and shite lol), I think I may now own one of the rarest copies of the Odyssey in the world - you know, if you care more about the rarity than the readability :P

Before anyone asks, yes obviously I'm keeping this thing

Tagging @cactusmotif, @painisntn33ded, @elijahrichardwrites, @afoolandathief, @impaledlotus because i know they'd get a kick out of this

#best nine bucks i've ever spent

[willsimpforazula]

fight night part 1(?)

remember that wip of the steambabies being rebellious and shit...? well it seems that plot bunny just won't die even after dropping the tsar bomba on it so here it is....part 2(part 1.1? idk anymore time is a social construct) anyways.....

*someone pls halp glib title inspo many tanks

Locker room

Warehouse 8, West Port

Republic City

"I'm starting to think that you get a kick out of bossing me around." Miska sighed, as he bent the water back into the waterskin, glad to be done fixing up the myriad of cuts, scraps and sideburns that his sister picked up after a night of street bending tournaments. 

"Only took you twelve years."

"I swear by the spirits if half the boys knew what the real you looked like, they wouldn't be simping for you as hard as they are now."

"Don't forget who set you up with her. You owe me for that." 

"At least she doesn't volunteer you for underground bending cage matches."

"So boring." she tutted.

"I'd like to not spend the night in the police holding cell, thank you very much. Besides, even if the cops don't get us, dad would skin us alive, to say nothing of what mom would do." Miska countered, a shudder running down his spine as to the myriad possibilities that awaited them should they be caught.

"If they find out."

"You think they wouldn't know?"

"We'll be fine. Besides, I've got standards to maintain and you've got someone to support."

"You make it sound like she's like my wife or something."

"Wouldn't you want to put a ring on that finger?"

"Well….I mean, yes, but we're like sixteen so no?"

"But there's a plan right? Because if you don't and break her heart…."

"Umm yeah you're not breaking anything, not in the state you're in."

"I hate it when you're right." Risa mumbled, reluctantly conceding the small victory to her brother.

"Once again, the younger sibling provides a voice of reason and rationality as the Spirits intended." 

"Whatever makes you happy." 

"Was that metaphorical or an actual question? Because if it is, I'd be really happy if we got paid about right fucking now."

Before Risa could come up with an equally snarky retort, a knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and she immediately reached under the bleacher, where she stashed a throwing dart in case anyone wanted to even the score post match. 

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Su."

"Come in."

"You look way too tense for someone with a seven straight win streak. You should be proud of yourself." she commented, arms folded across her chest as she surveyed the scene, pleased with how the match results turned out.

"I don't like that tone of yours. Where's the cash?"

"About that….."

"Don't play fuck fuck games with me. I sure as hell ain't putting my neck on the line for seven nights for free. Do you or do you not have it?"

"Did your brother ever tell you you've got a hair-trigger temper?"

"I'll answer your questions as soon as we get paid and we're all out of this joint, I can't shake the feeling some sore loser is going to do something stupid."

Shaking her head, Suyin tossed a small bag of cash to them.

"It's all there, I swear on the badgermoles."

"Pretty sure I saw more cash exchanged hands than this." Miska snorted as he counted out the money.

"Well y'know, I had to pay off my debts and all that jazz as well. Plus, do y'know how much coin I had to front for each of your matches?"

"For a Beifong I thought you were supposed to be good with money." was Risa's reply.

"Ha ha very funny. I held up my end of the bargain, you did yours so I'd say we're done." With that, Suyin exited the room, to which they both breathed a sigh of relief.

"Could you stand up?"

"Please, I'm not that fragile." 

"Then don't come looking for me the next time you get into a scrap. Now let's go home and pray to the spirits mom or dad aren't still up."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Forty-five minutes later….

"No we're not taking the elevator."

"Why not?"

"You do realise the elevator goes directly to our front door right?"

"And?"

"What if mom or dad is awake?"

At this, Risa put on her kicked puppy face and pleaded "My legs hurt."

"Sucks to be you."

"Pweese?"

"Fine….we'll take it up to the second last floor. That's it."

"Are you-"

"Absolutely not."

"I'll pay you extra ten yuan."

"Thirty."

"Fifteen."

"Twenty-five, plus forty percent of my share up front."

"Such an extortionist." she grumbled, reluctantly pulling out her brother's cut. Guess that fancy dress will just have to wait, she sighed internally.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next morning,

Risa's door

Having mentally consoled herself in the shower by settling for a new set of earrings and a pair of heels instead of the outfit that she'd been eyeing for over a month, Risa flopped onto her bed and fell fast asleep, tiredness hitting her like a sledgehammer. Consequently, she didn't hear her alarm clock screeching at her in disapproval, nor the knocking on her door by Azula, who was rather concerned that her normally punctual kids were nowhere to be seen when it was time for them to catch the tram.

Whilst Miska was relatively easy to rouse from sleep, she knew that her daughter was in some respects, an equal to her own temper if her sleep was disturbed. Granted, she had mostly grew out of it but the scorch marks that Sokka somehow managed to disguise as part of the wall painting was a reminder that there was a fire-breathing dragon under her Water Tribe features.

Then again, it takes a dragon to tame a dragon.

"Risa, wake up or you're going to be late."

"Risa!"

"I'm coming in on three. One, two…"

Bursting into her daughter's room, she found a mass of blankets and pillows rising and falling steadily atop a large bed. Striding purposefully, she walked over to shake her awake when out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a large thick envelope sitting on her dressing table that looked suspiciously like money. Filling that away for later, she firmly grasped her daughter's shoulder and shook her, earning a groan and a clumsy attempt at swatting away the rude intrusion on her sleep.

After two minutes of constant nagging and shaking, Azula decided enough was enough and she ripped away the protective layer of blankets, exposing her to the nippy autumn air, which seemed to have done the trick. On the downside, Azula was definitely sure she and her daughter were going to have a long talk about the usage of certain words given her parents' status, namely chieftain and princess respectively in addition to being councillors of Republic City.

With having been so rudely (in Risa's opinion) awakened, her instinct was to hurl a fireball at the offending part while cursing their family lineage, she reluctantly sat up and blinked a few times before the images that her eyes were beaming back registered in her mind. It took a few seconds more to realise that her mother was in fact, not looking very pleased and a few more precious seconds to grasp that she had essentially cussed out her mother, who was currently rolling said fireball back and forth between her fingers like a coin.

"Oh shit." 

"Oh shit indeed, young lady. I ought to wash that mouth of yours with extra strength detergent."

Taking a gulp, Risa did not dare look her mother in the eye and mumbled an apology, half expecting her mother's palm to make contact with her cheek at any moment. Instead, she heard the sound of the door closing and her mother's footsteps heading in the direction of the dressing table.

"So…care to explain to me exactly what this might be?"

"That's….um…money?"

"Indeed, it is." Pulling out the wad, Azula briefly counted before placing it back on the dressing table. "Care to explain how exactly it is that a sixteen year old is suddenly in possession of what, nine thousand yuan if my count is correct?"

"I-well, there was-"

"Based on the eyebags around your eyes, the half healed bruises on your arms and legs and your overall state, I'd wager you were in an underground bending match last night? I can recognize your brother's healing work, so don't lie. Did you or did you not compete in such matches?"

"Y-y-yes mother."

"And what made you decide this was a good idea?"

"It seemed like a good idea at the time." she replied, embarrassed by her own answer. 

"Come again?"

"I said it seemed like a good idea at the time." Risa repeated, her face in her hands, half expecting her mother to go ballistic from her answer.

"Tell me the truth, Risa. Who set you and your brother up? Look, I won't lie that I am very very disappointed with what you've done but I need to know to protect you from any potential blowback."

"Su-Suyin did. She needed my help with-with some money problems and-well, she promised me a cut."

"And it didn't cross your mind that maybe there was a catch or that you could be seriously hurt?"

"That-that's what Miska was for."

"So you thought far enough ahead to rope your brother in as a healer but not that you'd get seriously hurt or Agni forbid, killed in one of these matches?"

"I didn't think about it. I mean, you're like the world's best firebender, s-so so um…yeah I really, really, really screwed up didn't I?" Risa answered, face still hidden in her hands while internally cringing at the very words exiting her mouth. 

Taking a deep breath, Azula weighed her options. Either she could discipline her daughter and son the way she and Zuko were when they were kids or use a different means of getting the point across (the means of which was yet to be determined, but definitely Sokka was getting roped in; they were his kids as well after all). Mulling in silence, she contemplated the pros and cons of each decision, whilst Risa stewed in nervous silence. 

"Y-y-you're not going to disown us or kick us out of the house, are you?" her daughter asked timidly, unable to bear the silence any longer. Hearing her voice, she could almost picture the nervous quiver in her lip and tears that were held back but only just. At this, motherly instinct took over and she embraced her, patting her on her back while she sniffled and sobbed. 

"Not in a million years, your father and I will never do that."

"Really?" 

"Really. That being said, there still will be consequences. For starters, I am confiscating your prize money and donating it all to charity. No if ands or buts. Now go wash your face while I talk with your brother."

#kiddos done messed up #sokkla #steambabies #azula and sokka's kids #twins #risa and miska are my ocs

[thatsuhboldchoice]

okay as promised more into the woods feelings

first i just want to say the sheer ENERGY of the crowd

like everyone got at least a minute of entrance applause

maybe it's just been a while since i've seen a broadway show or been in a truly full house on weekend evening performances but every show i saw there was just an absolute outpouring of love and with standing ovations at all of them

maybe i just went to popular shows but also i think maybe people are just so happy broadway is back and want to show it

i want to congratulate the producers on this show for realizing they could just STACK this cast

it's an ensemble show where everyone and i mean everyone gets something juicy and goes on a journey

also it's fav show of so many theatre folks and everyone wants a chance to sing sondheim

that said i do think it's origins as an encore performance limited it

because it did feel caught between trying to be a throw back to the obc

(which i think for myself and many cast members and many audience members we all have in our BONES like i have watched that vhs how many times)

and trying to be it's own thing

and as lovely and nostalgic as those moments were

the place where it SHINED were where the cast or director found something new

all of the puppetry and set were the stand outs because those were inventive and creative in the way that into the wood asks you to be!!

and also demonstrates what for me is key to producing into the woods

which is to realize that in addition to a healthy disrespect for the fourth wall, the seams of the production should absolutely show

and the bare bone aspect of the staging totally captured that

but i wished they could have taken the space to push it even further and done a proper revival?

i get that they were riding the high from encores and that time was of the essence in continuing that momentum

but like one of the places that felt quite fresh was anything with the princes

(which as much as i love agony okay i do think it's low hanging fruit)

but STILL they delivered something that felt different truly at its core than the obc

little red felt different

cinderella had her moments (esp at the end with the prince krysta rodriguez yelled!!!)

sjb's aforementioned moments in the woods

heck everyone found something that gave me chills and was unexpected but i couldn't help but feel they were brief moments in larger structure that was already set in a show that very much resembled the obc

WHICH AGAIN makes sense given the origins of this production and the fact that almost everyone was a replacement so even more limited rehearsal

but i want to know what sjb's and seb's baker and baker's wife entire arc could've looked like if they'd had a full rehearsal process to find it, you know?

again again not the intent of this production but it's what i can't help thinking

that said mad shout out to gavin creel who i don't really know but did not realize was that goddamn funny

like he would just stand on stage and already i'd be laughing

also i loved that sjb had moments when you could tell she had this massive belting voice just at her fingertips but since that wasn't the vibe of the show she didn't really use it

but i just still hear it in there

also i know that one day i should mature past having into the woods as one of my favorites musicals but i'm sorry i can't...it's rewatchability score is too high and it engages too directly with the themes i'm most interested in

#finally feeling like posting this #itw

[myjunkisyuzuruhanyu]

Just a little complaint about "rescoring" and "rejudging"

Feel free to disagree...

Everytime I stumble upon new "rescoring" or new "analysis" from a certain department of fans of the Beijing scores...I am at a loss...because I think rescoring or analysis barring any major bias is impossible at this stage. The competitions happened - months ago even - the circumstances of the judging (namely a program just happens before your eyes, you saw everyone not only the couple chosen ones to rescore and not knowing what placement would happen is simply never to be undone) and there are always multiple judges on each panel, so one person doing a rescore is just making no sense as not one person only decides the places in the end. Also at this point there have been so many different opinions and rescores of the matter that you cannot be not influenced by it at all depending on whose fan analysis or rescores you read.

All those "results" that appear just now are just from fans and even if you are a trained judge the things listed above still play a part.

This is not to say that looking at the scoring and possible changes in placements makes no sense or shouldn't be done, because sure it should be done because you can learn and reevaluate the things that happened (btw I am the first to say scores should be open to be revalued at the competition directly (like in artistic/rhythmic gymnastics where inquiries can be done about scores)), but my feeling is that "rescoring" is only then at play when ppl assume the "wrong" skater gets the medals. It's not free of bias, it's not free of favoritism and in the end it doesn't change anything at all.

I am not saying at all judges are always right - there happen lot of questionable things - BUT in the end the situation of the competition cannot be returned. And thus I think analyzing is fine if it's done for the WHOLE competition, but rescoring is so dependent on personal bias of the person "rescoring ", it just cannot be seen as "proof" for different results. So pls take any "rescoring" you see with a big chunk of salt (remember this supposedly certified ISU judge on Twt which tweet got a lot of attention? It turned out to be just a big Yuzu fan account known for hating on other skaters who lied about being a judge)

And lastly everyone is free to be displeased at results or see things differently, we can always discuss about it, but don't disrespect the skaters who earned the medals, because your opinion isn't the only valid one and in skating I have yet to see a day where everyone judges and all viewers, fans etc. have the exact same result for any competition. I also share my opinion on scoring but I don't think that my opinion is of more value than those of others.

....

Why am I writing this? Well...after months and months after Beijing I am tired of the ppl nullifying the results as some unfair scandal as like in 2002 Salt Lake City, because it's not scandalous. Are there different opinions on the results, yes totally, but a big fat scandal? No.

Look I love Yuzu with all my heart, but even as his fan you have to admit that Nathan had the better competition and fairly won the Gold.

Btw same goes for the stupid discussion that somehow started about Sochi 2014 and Yuzu's Gold medal. Same goes there. Devaluing Yuzu's Gold medal in Sochi is the same bs as devaluing Nathan's in Beijing.

___

Btw I am not in for restarting a discussion about it here on Tumblr I just needed my thoughts to be shared somewhere

And I have already posted a lengthy analysis myself about the men competition at Beijing 2022 BUT without rescoring.

___

This was in my drafts for a while but well I just post it now...don't expect me to answer any questions about it I am seldomly checking my blog atm

#figure skating #yuzuru hanyu #nathan chen #beijing 2022 #scoring discourse #I also kinda never agree with Yuzu's scores and ofc i would have loved yuzu to win #But in Beijing I think the results are ok #I don't like them either but it is what it is #personal #personal rant

[anonanimal]

more witch from mercury thoughts post ep 18

what if all the stuff people have projected onto suletta comes true: if she's really an enhanced person, if she's really an orphan, if she's the thing sophie felt in the data storm. all this could become true depending on how the plot goes, e.g. if prospera dies, well, she'll be an orphan then

i concur with what others have said that it makes sense for them to explore having multiple pilots in one mobile suit as a way to dilute the physical load of piloting, pacrim style

this redditor is right...words i hate to say... if the show is leading us toward the conclusion that delling rembran is a good guy somehow i'm going to kill. jk there's no way we're getting "delling actually good guy" reveal because even the best possible version of delling is still a man who was president of a huge quasi-governmental coalition of weapons manufacturers that have been actively, directly engaged with destroying the earth and oppressing its inhabitants. also on the personal level there's the whole dueling game arranged marriage thing. delling redemption arc maybe. he and guel can start a redeemed character support group

ep 18 was more suletta suffering + setup and oooooh my god this trip to earth is going to go so bad. the way prospera said "take aerial?" not even trying to pretend she doesn't want miorine to take aerial. it's gonna be so bad. no miorine you can't show up to this conflict that's older than you and just ask everyone to get along without bringing something material to the table. miorine has been shown to be smarter than expected so maybe she's actually winning at 5d chess against prospera but let's be honest. i doubt it. she's still just a kid. the very position she's in right now, she was manipulated into. prospera scheming with shaddiq who wants to be president of the group + this trip is going to be sabotaged to tank miorine's chances. but that's not the only motivation, polling or early voting or whatever those numbers were showed shaddiq was going to win anyway. he doesn't need to ruin this just to win, he needs to inflame the earth-space conflict as part of his overall plan which is apparently to destroy the benerit group. not sure how this peace talk turning into a bloodbath will help prospera with quiet zero but i'm sure we'll find out

i really thought whatever was left of eri's consciousness loved suletta, this ep raises so many questions. was she also doing a shoo the dog to suletta or...what? WHAT IS GOING ON. the way prospera asked eri for her opinion on what to do with suletta was s c a r y don't tell me eri is calling some or all of the shots. or is prospera manipulating her by letting her think she has a say

secelia being behind the haro confessional pffffffft utena black rose arc anyone?

oh and el5n just telling nika and norea everything lmfaooo i'm so looking forward to whatever the house arrest three do next

i'm gonna revise my idea that eri died soon after the vanadis incident and say based on her appearing a bit older than four in some instances like the opening or ending (can't remember which), and most tellingly the flashback where prospera is slumped over comatose eri while apparently-suletta is in a bassinet, she'd lived for a few years after. and there was a brief time suletta was alive while eri was. which means prospera started the cloning shit before eri had even died. so it wasn't just prospera going crazy with grief trying to bring her back, but maybe anticipating her death and getting started on some kind of replacement body / key to raise the mobile suit's permet score. since it's confirmed all the gund-bits are clones, and there was not enough time for prospera to give birth to 13 children, prospera had access to sufficiently advanced cloning tech to grow them in fishtanks or whatever. it's possible suletta wasn't a clone and prospera artificially inseminated herself with nadim's frozen sperm...somehow...but come on. eri did say "you're all repli-humans" with no buts

prospera got help with the cloning from notrette right...suletta a clone just like those tomatoes...miorine's dead mother continues to haunt the narrative

oh god suletta please don't take "you were a key and we don't need you anymore now that the door is open" to heart and decide to find a way to...close the door

miorine's so good at keeping her business face on i almost forgot delling is still in a coma. mio do not make this ill-advised trip to earth, go sit by delling's side and cry or something. please. anything but what's about to happen

#gundamposting