#i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me

[moony-2001]

Lore Olympus ep. 256 critique

A note from last episode

One thing I forgot to mention in my last episode critique is why would Apollo even be allowed to take the throne? Hera still exists. Zeus has brothers who could step up. Other legitimate children. Obviously, Apollo is the “de facto” ruler for the sole reason that the plot needs to be driven forward somehow, but realistically Apollo would be, like, the last person who’s allowed to step up. Speaking of which, where is Artemis? She knows what Apollo is like. Why doesn’t she step up if they’re letting literally anyone rule?

Ah, yes, of course. Our fearless protector of women, everyone. I have so many things I could say about Artemis and her portrayal in this comic but for the sake of keeping this post relatively short, let's move on.

The fucking nightie

Oh. My. God. The nightgown.

I literally had to put down my phone when I first saw her in this. The rage I felt and still feel when I look at her.

Persephone is a queen and she just found out her brother-in-law/supreme ruler is in critical condition after being poisoned with a "mystery substance". Jfc have a little decency. And I don't want to hear "Oh WeLl ShE oBvIoUsLy DiDn'T hAvE tImE tO cHaNgE" or "sHe DoEsN't HaVe AcCeSs To ClOtHiNg" because she so obviously did. Hades is wearing a full-ass suit. She had time to cut her hair and "accessorize" with a stupidly oversized hat and cape. She is a QUEEN. She has access to all the clothing she could possibly want. Persephone has no excuse for showing up in a skimpy little nightgown.

I just-

Persephone is not a good queen

Let’s be real here. Persephone is a terrible queen. What have we, as readers, actually seen her do for the betterment of the underworld.

She doesn't even follow through on her "promise" to help with the influx of the dead. Instead, she focuses on her own personal problem of her powers taking a massive shit because of a deal she made with an unknown being (which was her own choice). I mean, who could've foreseen the consequences of making a shoddy deal with being you've literally had no previous interactions with. Not me, that’s for damn sure /s

Let's see what Persephone has done thus far leading up to and during her reign as queen:

terrorized lower-class citizens

caused the return of Kronos

caused a child deity to be held hostage/abused by Kronos

Tartarus being controlled by Kronos (caused by Persephone)

the mortal realm dying

still hasn't established Elysium

verbally abused recently deceased mortals because they're confused and haven't provided a resounding yes to help with... whatever it was she was trying to do.

lots of sex

letting 2 beings who have no business listening to a leadership meeting listen in anyways because it's "background noise"

Yep, all the actions of a great queen.

Also, side note, when have we ever seen Hecate be nosey? Please correct me if I'm wrong, but Hecate has pretty much always looked out for her best interests and tried not to get involved in others' drama. Am I surprised that Rachel is changing a character's personality? No. Am I disappointed? At this point, also no. Let's continue on.

The meeting

The meeting was certainly… something. I will say I loved Apollo getting his shit rocked by Ares. But after that, Apollo says this:

I mean... he's kinda right? Yes, it was all a big ploy to get specifically Persephone there, but Apollo isn't wrong. Persephone does have a habit of hiding in the underworld and letting Hades deal with her shit instead of facing her problems head-on. Yet another fantastic trait to tack onto her resume as queen.

And on that note, we circle back to the beginning of this post. After Hades has his big-boy temper tantrum, Athena and Amphitrite rightfully point out a few things:

Athena is right, Apollo has no claim to the throne, not when Hera is still around and especially not as a bastard child of Zeus. In terms of a line of succession (especially since all of his children excluding Hebe are grown), Athena would be the best candidate for this temporary position. She's the goddess of wisdom. Who else could fit this role? Poseidon and Amphitrite are busy ruling the oceans, Hades and Persephone are off doing whatever, Ares is all brawn and no brain, and Hephestus wants nothing to do with his family. I mean, we haven't actually had any kind of serious interaction involving him since like halfway through s2 I'm not counting those 2 little portions in s3 with Aphrodite.

And once again, we have a character that is so close to figuring it out but I guess we can't be affording too many brain cells to Amphitrite since she was to share with all the rest of the characters. Also, rip Aphitrite and all her pretty loops and swirls. I miss the individuality the characters had back in s1.

Before the meeting can continue any further, Demeter bursts in deeply distressed and crying out:

B-bbb-but how can we tell if the mortal realm is actually dying if we don't have a handy little message at the end of the chapter that clarifies whether or not this is a metaphor???? Rachel, you know your audience only has the reading comprehension skills of a kindergartener, how do you expect us to cope??

Sorry lol.

Final thoughts

Surprisingly I found this chapter to be a little short, but I don’t know if that’s just me. Again I wouldn’t say that this chapter is any worse than 255 but it’s not great either, y’all know the drill by this point.

Until my next post! I’m hoping to be all caught up by early next week? And then I can start posting more fun things that aren’t chapter critiques 👀

#anti lore olympus #anti lo persephone #lo critical #unpopular lo #lore olympus #unpopular lore olympus #anti lo #lo critic #lore olympus criticism #lo critique #lo criticism #lore olympus critical #lo hate

[captain-hen]

re your complaints/critiques on 911 said in an anon response:

I 100% agree!! On the finale, I love everything about the first 30 minutes! the bridge collapse is everything, i could go on about that for hours, even the birth on the couch, i thought that was a funny twist in the couch theory. I love everyone else's storylines (bathena honeymoon, henren's newest foster daughter, madney wedding planning) I could like eddie with marisol if it ends with him growing and them not together, but buck's ending was so infuriating! like you said it felt like he was going in circles which can be true to real life, doesn't always make for good television. The biggest thing im worried about it it being nearly exactly like bucktaylor, especially if they last a season. I don't care if its a slowburn but like you said, theres slowburn and setting up something with no payoff over and over

anyways, Im surprised they didn't circle back to jo and mallory (molly maybe?). they usually circle back to the injuries of the week to get the like conclusion so (and i didn't realize until after) to not circle back to them felt weird. Do you think we'll get them in the next season?

OH also i thought it was so interesting that we almost / could've gotten the lees for this ep! tbh i thought it would be a scene where chim is in the hospital with maddie (if this wouldn't be a scene were maddie and chim jump the gun andd marry) and they reaffirm that chim is a psuedo son to them this leads to my other question: did you think we would've gotten a madney wedding like in the S2 finale for Bathena and would you have wanted that?

anyways, I thought this ep did the platonic relationships really well (buck and hen, buck and chim, hen and chim, and buck and bobby) and did literally every other storyline well except for buck's ending

i realize like as i finished that this was kinda neg so if you don't want to respond to any of this dw I understand adsf

i enjoyed everything related to the emergency! i thought it was done very well, while i wanted it to be more high-stakes i get why they couldn't end what they thought might be their last episode on a cliffhanger or something. the 'pay it forward' thing really worked so well, not just with the civilians and jeff but i also clocked it with ravi and buck (someone also pointed out that the 118's degree of injuries was based on how much experience they've had on the job, which is why ravi didn't face any danger at all, and i thought that was an interesting theme!). i enjoyed how they wrapped up the other characters and i love that bathena got their cruise.

my major problem is the way buck's storyline was resolved, while the sperm donor thing was wrapped up very well; i'm unhappy and tired of him going in circles with natalia yet again. i also dislike the implication that him ending the season being single would mean it's an 'unhappy' ending for him—aside from all the obvious issues with that statement, buck literally started out this season by trying to be comfortable in being single and figuring out life by himself. it would have been the PERFECT conclusion to his arc. i love buck, i really do, but i'm not interested in sitting through who knows how many more episodes of him trying to learn this lesson again, i'm just not.

the thing with eddie and marisol was actually cute and it went more or less how i expected tbh. the way she was re-introduced left very little doubt that eddie would date her again. (given the lack of set-up, tho, i wouldn't be surprised if they opened up s7 with the relationship having fizzled out during the time-gap).

when i saw the synopsis mentioning the lees, i thought they might appear in a montage of sorts with chim recovering and i'm disappointed we didn't get to see that, especially with the stuff with chim's dad. (side note: 911 really needs to do better on the chimney front. i'm gonna need a season 7 that treats him like his own person for the entirety of it, not just maddie's partner. 6B has given us some of that, but i need more).

i'm actually glad they didn't rush the madney wedding. the bathena wedding being the way it was kinda made sense given the circumstances of how they got together in the first place, and how their relationship progressed from there. madney on the other hand—they've always taken things slow, they've been cautious and thoughtful while taking each step, largely because of their own past and baggage. what worked for bathena wouldn't really work for them, especially considering maddie's trauma surrounding marriage, i'm really glad they didn't rush this.

#neethu answers #poc-movie-supremacy #911 spoilers

[drill-teeth-art]

I had a few gripes about some episodes/things that I felt could've been done better. Can I ask for your critiques?

Welcome to Otto's Critique corner. Here are my guidelines for discussing critique with me for everyone's reference.

Repeat after me.

It's okay if we disagree on the flaws of Earthspark. Other people will have different opinions and preferences. Just because someone disagrees with me doesn't make them a bad person. (This is something I spent some time learning and understanding when I was younger, so I always like to add it as one of my rules.)

We will not use this critique space as a platform to be rude to others. We may point out flaws in others' arguments and note where we disagree, but this is a space of discussion and not harassment.

If we feel too worked up by the topics, we will step back. We are responsible for our mental health and emotions. We are capable of stopping ourselves from lashing out at others, so we will be mindful of our emotions.

Onto the main critiques under the cut. Feel free to ask me to expand on certain things as you like.

More of a technical writing issue, but I think the action scenes are written ineffectively. They all feel very slow paced. It comes across as when characters are not in frame, they aren't doing anything. It takes way too long to accomplish things for this reason that would resolve the conflict faster. The characters also actively choose to not do the obvious solution for plot reasons. So for people who write action scenes and such, this is stuff to watch out for. Your characters can do things when they're not in frame, you just have to imply it well enough. Writing conflict is more believable when you write in reasons why they can't do an easier solution. Like the terrans and Bumblebee literally could have gone to get Optimus and Megatron before going back to get Grimlock. If I remember right, one of the characters even suggested it. But they just didn't do it. The obvious plot patch is to have their radios be broken or Optimus and Megatron don't answer and they don't want to leave Grimlock alone too long. But that isn't addressed, and that can read very frustrating to the viewer that the characters ignore the obvious solutions.

Onto the thematic critiques. Now to be fair, this story is incomplete as of now. I try to avoid fully critiquing something that lacks it's full context, but here are my thoughts on what I see so far. To begin, I am a fan of nuanced writing. I love villain redemptions done well and hero corruptions written well. It's important to show that people can change for the better and that good intentions don't justify certain actions. These are pretty easy to mess up writing though, and since I think it's such an important thing to write well, I tend to be harsher critiquing it. Again, it is okay if you disagree with my analysis or agree but want to add a point or agree with most but want to point out a detail I missed or even my own bias. Discussion is good.

Thematically, I think Earthspark shies away from confronting it's own major themes too much. Earthspark has heavy themes around oppression, alienation, trauma of the past haunting the present, and discovering that many people treat others they don't understand cruelly and choose not to understand them. These are very heavy themes, and (assuming the best intentions) I think the writers aren't bold enough about them. As a smaller in world example, Robby encounters his old friend who has biases against Transformers and repeats harmful talking points. Robby doesn't really say all that much about it, choosing to just take his terran siblings and leave. Now, this writing choice I don't have a huge issue with. It's not one person's responsibility to do the educating to someone about their bias. I would have personally liked to see the writers let Robby get angrier, but I don't mind the "I don't have the energy to explain this to you and it's not my job" approach in this instance. Later Robby's friend fixes the graffiti on the bridge to not be a hateful message. Now, it is nice of that character to do that, but I'm frustrated that we saw no substantial confrontation and education. We as the viewers were not shown that this character was more directly confronted with their own biases, and that's somewhat of a pattern that is frustrating. Megatron at the memorial park after the terrans reenact his war memories in front of him doesn't get mad at them or explain to them that war and trauma isn't a laughing matter. At least he doesn't explain it explicitly which I would like to see. But this happens a lot. Megatron expresses to Optimus he doesn't like the devices GHOST is building that control Transformers' mode they're allowed to be in. Optimus sort of vaguely says they have to do this for the greater good, and the topic is dropped. Robby walks away from his friend without explaining why it's cruel to buy into anti Transformers rhetoric. The topic is dropped and suddenly the other kid has a change of heart. Nightshade and a nonbinary person have a discussion about gender that I personally really hoped would go deeper. The topic is dropped as the scene changes after a few sentences.

I feel like the way the writers aren't diving into their themes more is frustrating. It comes off kind of insulting to me. And I am sure that isn't the writers' intentions. And again, I don't think Earthspark is an all bad series or that others shouldn't enjoy it. I know good representation is a huge struggle, and I'm actually really happy to see Nightshade as nonbinary rep even though I also wish they explored more with them. It's just frustrating to see the writing shy away from getting into the representation they're boasting so much that I can't even tell what they're trying to say about their own themes.

(Please no huge spelling and grammar errors fingers crossed.)

#ask #otto thoughts #transformers #transformers earthspark #tf earthspark #earthspark #earthspark spoilers

[bloodpen-to-paper]

Review Blurbs: Barbie (2023)

~General Thoughts~

-I thought this movie would be like... PG. And then it got really emotional when Barbie was looking through Gloria's memories of the days when her and her daughter were at their happiest before Sasha grew up. And then Barbie got called a fascist. So

-Margot Robbie is an insanely talented actor. I'm gonna be honest, I'm not sure how well the movie would've done for me if I wasn't invested in the main character but Margot completely ate the role and made the story of Stereotypical Barbie very endearing to watch

-The pacing was surprisingly good for me, I'm usually really picky about pacing but they were able to balance out transitioning from the silly stuff to serious and back again pretty well, Greta Gerwig you have my applause

-Its an interesting detail that the Real World is still intentionally somewhat unrealistic and caricature-ish similar to the Barbie world is; not sure if that's just Greta's style or if there was a reason for it, made the movie a little jarring imo but I'd love to know why she did it and what effect she was going for

-The fact that Barbie wasn't interested in Ken and rejected him and it was treated as a good thing is just *chef's kiss*

-The Kens fight scene being a colorful musical number with eccentric choreography was so fun to watch I want more

-I don't care what you've been through, nothing could've prepared anyone for that gynecology line. Its such a genius way to remind you that Barbie now has to deal with the biological changes of becoming human. 10/10

-Allan beating up the construction worker Kens was the best moment 10/10

-Speaking of Allan, I loved how Allan was a metaphor for someone who doesn't fit into the gender binary. He was the only non Barbie/Ken, had his own unique name and was always uncomfortable/disappointed with the world around him no matter who was in charge, which was a great way to subtly insert this kind of character. He happily sided with the Barbies to help take down the Kens, embracing all the pink and cheering alongside them when they won, while also looking very sad during the part where the Kens were realizing they failed. Just all of it screamed gender-non conforming to me. I've seen some interpretations saying Allan is a representation of a gay man (being more of a "Ken" presentation wise but finding more of a space among women and being deeply uncomfortable with patriarchy perpetuated by straight men) and some saying he's nonbinary (wanting to leave Barbieland behind and never being satisfied no matter who was in charge); either way, what they did with Allan was very cool and I'm glad some queerness, even if subtle and less prominent, was included in the movie)

-Similarly, Weird Barbie isn't getting nearly enough love. She was one of the most fun characters for me (Kate McKinnon magic, duh) and she like Allan could definitely represent someone out of the cishetero-normative/gender binary (I've seen people saying she's very queer-coded and it honestly makes sense, she tends to dress and act in more un-feminine ways which I think says butch lesbian but its up to interpretation) I am also very gay for her give her more attention cause she deserves it, seriously

-John Cena mermaid

-Simu Liu Ken constantly antagonizing Ryan Gosling Ken over Barbie's attention and being the better Ken within Barbieland is a metaphor for how patriarchy will put women against each other for the attention of men and make women fight each other too much to realize who the real enemy is

-Margot Robbie being acknowledged as "not the best to make this point about ugliness" was fantastic lmao, love the meta-narration

-The way Ken's story arc and the commentary around patriarchy with the incel-pipeline was very strong, and I respect Greta for critiquing it the way she did (I made a full post here )

-Ken and Ken should've kissed. Any of them. All of them.

-Barbie deciding to be human in the end despite her whole journey being about wanting to be a perfect Barbie doll again and her being terrified of flat feet and cellulite but then telling that old woman how beautiful she was and watching humans be normal and mimicking their expressions because even though its scary she wants to feel the way humans do because she sees the beauty in it and its a love letter to women and to people and the complexity of our messy species omfg I'm gonna cry other people said it better than me so go look at their stuff

-Barbie helping out Ken despite everything he'd done because she didn't want things to go back to how they were when Barbies ruled the world, she wanted something different, better, and she helped the person she had every right to want to hurt because we're supposed to be better than those who hurt us

~Criticisms~

-As an add-on to the caricature blurb, I felt a bit weird watching cause Greta's style recreated facets of misogyny as a caricature, so things like patriarchal brainwashing, sexual assault and other very harmful misogynist rhetoric were told in a slapstick way. I was uncomfortable throughout a lot of it, and I'm still deciding if I consider it a genuine criticism to have such matters told in this way or if its just personal preference; would like to know other thoughts if you're willing to share. Regardless, just be aware of it if that stuff's triggering to you so you're prepared for it

-Loved the emphasis on uplifting femininity in Barbie, and I understand the metaphor behind the change, but I can't help feel they pulled a Breakfast Club with Sasha going from her all black attire to suddenly very feminine and with makeup. Being gender non-conforming isn't just for queer people, lots of women are like this and it feels like media makes it seem like this kind of woman is impossible. Not all women wear makeup, not all women are feminine, and I would love for a more masculine/GNC woman character to be able to actually be that. I'll forgive it a bit since Barbies' styles kinda revolve around makeup, and Weird Barbie was consistently butch, just wish characters that are brought up with the prospect of gender-nonconformity could actually stay that way

~Final Thoughts~

Surprisingly good! Don't get me wrong, movies with this style can be good for sure but with the recent surge of mediocre movies I didn't have too much faith. However, I was very happy with how enjoyable and passionate it was. Highly recommend if you like caricature-type works, and/or want to get into some basic feminist ideology in a more fun way that's still very meaningful and heartfelt. Barbie is not just a feminist critique, but a love letter to women, girl hood, and the complexities of humans and how beautiful that can be <3

#phew this one took a while #kept deciding if I wanted to include big blurbs in this post or make them their own post #anyway go watch Barbie its fun #review blurbs #barbie #barbie movie #barbie 2023 #greta gerwig

[mattpoitrass6thgoal]

Recently I've been thinking about the juxtaposition between 2 cases on the Bruins team, so this is my opinion piece on it, move on if are not willing to read it as it is very long.

Okay, so the difference between how DeBrusk and Wagner were treated by fans. Though their cases share many similarities they aren't the same. Jake was struggling with mental health issues during those unfortunate seasons where he was underperforming and the main subject of critiques by fans. During those same seasons, Wags was also having mental health issues as well as physical health issues and was sent down to Providence this season. That is a simple explanation of this situation. I'm not saying that either one is worse because when you look in-depth at both stories they both contain a lot of multitudes. Okay so let's start with Jake.

Jake DeBrusk is a better hockey player than Chris Wagner, I know a groundbreaking statement, but with that, the expectations people had for him are higher. Looking back at his stats in 19-20 season where I thought the play started he actually had alright stats, I can't remember too much from that season about his performance but think it was average to good. 20-21 is where the stats change dramatically, I have no knowledge of where his health issues began but I will put a roundabout date of maybe during the pandemic. Jake has 14pts in 41 games, he struggled during this season and was the face of many critiquing analyzations (I had my fair share of looks at how bad he is playing posts too, I won't deny that yes I'm one of those fans). To be fair he wasn't the only bad player from that season you had players like Coyle and a major portion of the 4th line struggling for points or good performances too. I find a difference in their situations was that the expectations for the 4th line aren't as high as someone on the second line who previously had good seasons (i know players can have dips in performance but to everyone, it was weird for someone that young and experienced at NHL level, prior to 20-21 he was having 40ish point season for the past few years) additionally at this time they were all used on the PK which was 1st in the league or at least the top 5 and Jake was not currently being used on it. This is something I always think about when looking at a player's overall performance, their versatility and usage in the lineup, Jake I believe was only on the PP2 unit for the majority of the season but I do not fully recall. Jake for the majority of the season was dragged through the media because he was the easy option. This wouldn't have helped his situation the constant look at who's better than you and you see it's Nick Ritchie they are talking about would be disheartening (don't attack me look at the stats the guy had better luck at the time and even though he may have been on PP1 just standing there he was still scoring goals and being beneficial sometimes). What I think could've been helpful from Bruce was the timing of when to bench him, it should've been done earlier the longer he left it, the longer and more the critiques became because fans and reporters weren't seeing an improvement where normally a player would've been benched for a game straight away Jake was left in with a struggling game and limited support from media. Not only that but this was the season that Fluto's report came out saying that he was the team's 'punching bag'. Media at this time was always negative surrounding Jake, so I understand why his fans were aggressively supporting him. We all fall into one side of the argument here, yes I fall into the side that critiqued him during the season (I remember apologising later on too). However for the type of fan I am my favourite player is my favourite player but I'm not here to defend them, if they are sucking they are sucking I will announce it to the world. What I saw from multiple Jake fans is they are always looking at the positives of him which is understandable to do when someone is your favourite, that he is a great player when he is on, that he can score goals and that's where a lot of people clashed heads because some were looking at the positive past, partial present and future of his play while others saw the current present play and were just not that impressed by it. I know this is where I clashed with a few Jake fans out there and sorry about that once again, anyway he always had some fans on his side, he always had people out there supporting and cheering him on waiting for that moment to prove everyone wrong and that part came in the next season. This season was his big comeback and he warmed up around January when the trade announcement happened and he was moved to RW on the top line and he performed, that was amazing to see but it will always make people move on the next underperforming player to critique, I think it was Smith, Foligno or Nosek.

That's enough about Jake now onto Chris.

Chris Wagner is a career fourth-liner, I don't have high expectations of him and I know many people don't and that's where these two things are different. Wags would have a slim if not only a few die-hard fans or supporters, unlike Jake DeBrusk who has been an extremely popular younger player for the Bruins. Personally, I like wags, he is a hard hitter and he is great on the PK but I do not expect him to go out there and score 10+ goals a season like I do with Jake. I may not have actively posted pieces like I did about Jake but when I look at him I expect a couple goals a season and some defensive play, my expectations are completely different because Chris has never truly surprised me. If I had to pick one play and it's on my mind which is the SHG against the Rangers when had a takeaway and cut around Panarin, that was beautiful. Wags came out post-season and stated he had mental health issues during the season and he was struggling, he also brought up that he had a cardiac arrhythmia which was atrial fibrillation.

Quick what is a-fib for everyone out there that has no idea (I have some idea only due to my degree in paramedicine, I am no cardiologist.) A-fib is when the SA node aka the main pacemaker of the heart is not functioning properly, it is causing the atria to quiver rather than contract, leaving the AV node aka the backup pacemaker in the heart which is overwhelmed with signals from the atria where it can only allow a few through leading to an irregularly irregular heart rhythm which tends to be tachycardic (over 100bpm) and reducing the amount of blood moving through the heart as it is not forced through. While a-fib can be fine in a human and can go unnoticed in a person day to day, it still is highly dangerous due to the fact that blood becomes stagnant in the atria allowing clots to form if magically their atria contract the clot can leave either getting stuck in the aorta or one of the coronary arteries leading to a STEMI or into the body increasing the chance of PE's and strokes.

While yes Chris did get media support after this news came out it did slowly disappear because he isn't the mainstay of the roster like a DeBrusk, he can be taken in or out and replaced with a younger player or a stronger player at any moment. Chris was always brought up as to why don't people critique him instead of Jake, and I thought about it and for me, it's what I stated my expectations of different players. Throughout that same season, Chris was someone you probably disregarded or forgot about, he also played 41 games for 5pts and I look back at the times I wanted over players or Bruce wanted in the lineup like Blidh or Frederic or Studnicka the person that usually got sat first was Chris. On a technical level, Kuraly and Bjork or any other player (other than Blidh I think they are both technically the same) were always better than him and that meant they usually remained in so when the option to shake things up occurred Chris was the player benched but due to him having no die-hard supporters and that the expectations are low no one cared when he was removed in favour of another player. Like this year when he was taken down to Providence people forgot about him until the final game when the uproar of "YAY ITS WAGS" appeared because he was just a background player that when you remember who he is you remember him being a presence in the locker room, you remember how he cared about his teammates and you remember some big plays other than that he isn't a necessity to the team like a younger skilled player, someone like a Jake Debrusk. For me I never forgot or wondered about what Wags was doing as he was constantly brought up in the group chat every time he scored, every time he supported the younger players, and just his time mentoring these up-and-comers in Providence, we love our grumpy old man.

Though everyone if they make it this far is confused about what the hell is happening it's basically this, I always wondered about the juxtaposition of how fans treated DeBrusk and Wagner when they faced similar arcs during the 19-22 period. like why was Wags never treated like him being defended by his fans from the media by journalists and other fans, it's because no one cared if Wags played bad there is always someone to replace a fourth-liner, and the journalists never talked about him because they knew the clicks were in Jake stories not about the most replaceable line in hockey. Looking back maybe I could have argued for him in the lineup but I really only do it for players I believe should always been in the lineup but wags and his abilities to me are commonly found. I never defended Wag's place in the lineup because I was probably advocating for someone else, though I like him I was always looking at the best option which sometimes was not him. Personally to me, it stems from how each player was handled by the media, if Chris was a mainstay and probably a higher-up player in the depth chart that was continuously discussed and wondered upon then maybe just maybe we would've seen that same level of support from fans but where he sits current day I can see why the treatment between these two players and support they receive is different.

#kim talks to no one #I hope this done that long post thing otherwise rip because I can’t remember how to do it

[oraclememehacker]

I think I said this the last time you did one of these, but your Futaba is PHENOMINAL

Everything you write with her feels straight out of the source material, she's extremely likable, and her constant memes and references are never to the point where they're annoying (Honestly they're more endearing than anything). All your different verses are extremely creative and make for fascinating reads and amazing interactions! Some of my favorite threads I've ever had on this account have been with your Futaba, whether it's something more serious like the one with the miracle drug, or something ridiculous like that stupid Plushie supervillain thread that still makes me laugh

And while I haven't seen much of either of them, your Sojiro and Wakaba seem very on point too! Wakaba is especially impressive since she didn't have a lot to work with, but you made her extremely compelling, and that has to be commended

TL;DR You're doing awesome with all of them! Keep up the good work!

How am I doing with my character?

Send in your constructive criticism, your tips, your unfiltered opinion! Words of love, words of critique, so long as it’s not blind hatred!

I usually reblog these as a means to just take a temperature so to speak: to make sure that I'm not straying too far from what people like about my blog and characterization of Futaba. You know, it can happen that you inadvertently change the characterization of someone over time just because of mind set changes and how you view the character. So I just make sure that I'm still doing well.

With that said, I really, really appreciate it! <33. I mean it, knowing that I make people think that I'm rping her like she is in canon is something that I always strive for. It's a challenge because I'm westerner trying to rp as an eastern character so it's always something I'm working on getting better with. I'm trying to incorporate more actual Japanese stuff as I learn more about the culture and such.

I'm glad you love the rps that we've done. They're some of my favorites as well. It's so funny when I think about the marketable plushie thing because it wasn't meant to be her actually transforming into a plushie, but merely her breaking the 4th wall a bit and showing a plushie of herself. With that said, what actually happened was way funnier than my original idea for it.

And I'm glad you like Sojiro and Wakaba as well. They are fun to rp with, and whilst I wish we got more stuff about Wakaba in canon, I guess that's my cue to come up with more stuff with her, since she's similar to Futaba, but I wanted to add my own twists to her. A workaholic who's not the best at socializing but is still loving and motherly, especially post strikers verse where she isn't addicted to her work as much.

And Sojiro is of course Sojiro. I love him to death, just like I love Dojima in 4. He has to deal with a lot taking care of Futaba, but he does the best he can, and whilst he isn't exactly open at first, he gets better and I think he ends up getting used to the idea of taking care of a bunch of misfits, and takes in more when he can.

Thanks for all the praise! You're great as well. I love all the ideas you come up with Phantom Spider and such. It's clear you have talent and passion towards all of this, and I love when we talk and I get to throw my ideas out. So I really appreciate all of that. Man, this wasn't meant to be such a huge reply, and I could've just replied with a gif but I didn't feel like that would be appropriate. anyways, here's the gif:

#Email Reply (Inbox Ask) #webbedphantom #Looking into the Source Code (OOC) #A Hacker Queen’s Favorite Activity (Memes)

[word-shakers]

Even on the days you feel you haven’t moved an inch

#positivity #wholesome #motivation #self improvement #self help #positive thoughts #mentalheathawareness #where is my mind #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me #loveislove #lgbtq #baby steps #universe #beautiful words #wordshakers #post it

[adventurous-adventures-of-hazza]

Another check on the ✨ol’ bucket list✨

Polar plunge ‘21

#adventure is out there #lifeworthliving #adventure #life is short #paradise #travel #traveling #usa #when we all fall asleep where do we go #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me #polar plunge #winter #bucketlist #freezing for a reason #special olympics #midwest

[a-placeto-breath]

Within myself I am screaming— pleading— someone put me out of this pain that I’m feeling. Someone see that I am hiding, that inside myself I’m losing, I’m dying.

#poem #poetry #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me #mental health #mentalhospital #mentally ill #mentally unstable #suicidal #drown in my mind #mentally drained #tw sh #self harm #please help

[happystiks]

i wish i was happy yk? like i just lay here knowin if i was gone no one would realize. the only thing in hanging onto is my boyfriend. but i can slowly feel him leave. once he leaves i think i’m done.

#depressing quotes #depressing shit #scuicidal #anorexx #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me

[bees-and-garlic-butter]

Tigger Warnings/ Warnings in general/: Fight, Hostility, swearing (especially towards the end), Alcohol, ill edit more if I think there's more, this is also really long lmao

Chapter Two

He Poured another bloody mary in a glass before handing it to Sage, who laughed at him. "Just like that?" "Yeah!" He didn't give me a chance to monologue or anything!" The girl in-front of Ukasai shook her head before downing the entire glass.

"Well- s' a rookie mistake. Yer fine, though, ain't ya? Jus' can't believe no one told you he did that." Ukasai's mouth dropped to the floor. "People knew and didn't tell me?!" The other Abandoned laughed at his disbelief while she felt her stomach churn and squeeze her insides like they were trying to suffocate them. She had consumed too much alcohol for tonight, but she didn't care.

"Course we did! All of us do who's run into em'! Which- s' close to half yer business, more or less." She glanced around the blurred room, but she wasn't sure why she did. It made her giggle, really. "Those of us that're Abandond's, anyway." The last part she said hushed. After all, it wasn't an 'Abandonded only' bar. But it was commonplace for criminals and Abandond's a like to hang out and get flat out wasted. It was something Ukasai had started running recently, since he had moved from Japan down into America again, locating himself in the south. It wasn't the first time he had been in the south, but it was the first time he had come back as an Abandoned. Itwasn't his first encounter with a Destiny either, but it was the first time he had a run-in with this Destiny, specifically. One he already had a really big disliking too, already. He didn't get to finish- or even begin his monologue! 'I don't do monologues' my ass. Who doesn't do monologues?! He was a Destiny for christ sake!-

 

"Here." There was a loud slap on the table, and Ukasai looked with a wary eye at the files, before picking it up carefully. "S' All the information we have on Mr.Speedy. Thought We'd give it to ya' in thanks for buildin' us a bar." Ukasai's lips formed into a smile, and he looked at Sage, who didn't reciprocate the same smile back.

"Will this be a regular payment?"

She let out another laugh, and Ukasai grumbled.

'Of course not.'

"Ukasai- We're not your parents. You get to figure out the rest of this shit on your own." With that, Ukasai let out a scoff.

"Fuck is that supposed to mean?"

His sorry excuse of an acquaintance let out a belch, before reaching for her wallet, pulling out a few fifties and slammed them on the bar.

"Ain't holdin' yer hand jus' cause you built us a place to hang.That's the only help you're gonna get from us. Doubt you'll ever see us again outside of here."

She was quiet for a moment as she stumbled out of her chair, using the bar to support herself before she fell flat on her ass.

Her world was spinning, and even now she didn't regret drinking, she needed it.

Desperately.

"Now, If you'll pardon me, I'm going to go throw up outside yer bar."

Ukasai sighed.

"Do it off my property so it doesn't make me look bad! And—so I don't have to clean it." The last part was mumbled, but she gave him a weak thumbs up whilst doubling over.

-

Now he shoved the key into the entrance to his bar, making sure he heard it lock.

It was un-likely his bar would get robbed seeing as how people who did crime come here to hang out and spill about robbery's they successfully made, but- his place could get robbed, too.

Either way, he dropped the files in his bag and dropped the keys in his sweat-pants.

He usually took this time to jog home, but he had work he needed to do. The last thing he needed was to be tired when he got home.

So instead of going home, he went to the coffee shop. Ukasai figured that it would be the best night refresher since he only planned on getting very few hours of rest. The good thing though, was he lived fairly close to it and was not-so-surprisingly a regular customer.

After a not-so-few minute's of walking Ukasai swung the doors open to the Cafe just waiting for the quick rush of the strong coffee smell to hit him like an eighteen-wheeler. He soaked up the scent, and ultimately wanted to bathe in it. It was really, really nice smell, okay? One that he would most definitely never get tired of. He had errands to make, and things to study so he only basked in the enjoyment for a little while. There was no line, so he waltzed up to the counter. Although- He wasn't noticed by any of the workers, so he watched them busy themselves with shennangegains he was taking no part of.

"Listen, It's funny when Remy gets picked on, but it's Not funny when I'm being picked on. Whoever has my phone, give it." He Sounded very angry, but his facial expressions most certainly didn't portray his voice. In fact, he looked cocky. Like he was certain he would get it back—which he should be able too. It was just a playful game of catch, afterall.

On the other hand, everyone but the pink haired boy (with the name tag Karma) was giggling. Well- all besides a boy with a name tag that read 'Olive', too.

"G-guys, shouldn't we give it back?" His voice faltered, as did his scared expression. A girl snickered, and Ukasai could see why. It was obvious to him at first glance and everyone else besides the one that needed to see it the most. Olive had the phone. The only reason they gave it to him was because of the sheer fact Karma would think of Olive as the last person to have it.

'Smart, but not smart enough.' Is what Ukasai thought. His eyes flickered to the front desk and noticed someone appear in front of him. "Hi, welcome to wood's coffee. The usual?" Remy was the one asking, and he nodded. "I see everyone's up to their shenanigans?" The ginger nodded as he let out a small giggle at Karma's anger they could both hear behind them. Thus, as Remy started making his coffee, Karma approached him with arms crossed. "Where is it shorty?" Remy cleared his throat and avoided all eye contact while he tried not to burst into fits of bubbly giggles.

"Where's what?"

Karma huffed and stood to where he could make eye contact with all of his co-workers, which, there was roughly about four. "Alright you assholes, I need my phone. Give it back. Now" He sounded menacing, but everyone accept Olive burst into giggles, because- it was obvious he was trying to keep his composure as to not blow everyone's cover, too. It was also obvious even he was nervous, for reasons Ukasai did not know of. Just because he was a regular didn't mean he knew why they all acted the way they did. Nor did he care.They needed to hurry up with his fucking coffee.

Karma snagged Remy's phone and quickly forced Remy's thumb to unlock his phone. Remy kept trying to grab it, but Karma moved from here to there faster than someone could blink. Remy's height didn't help them, either.

Everyone was quiet now until Olive's eyes went wide and a ringtone started going off just seconds later. Karma immediately found his way to Olive's side of the small cafe, and it was obvious he was about to have a panic attack at the sudden movement from the mammoth he had been trying to avoid. In a panic, he threw the phone at the girl.

"Take it!"*

She immediately went wide-eyed at the object laying in her hands while she was laughing.

"I don't want it!"

She threw it to Remy, and he most definitely couldn't play keep-away with anything with Karma in the vicinity. None of them could, really. Out of instinct he froze and tossed it to Ukasai, and then everyone froze, including Ukasai and Karma.

"Remy you idiot! Our customer is gonna stop coming if he gets mauled by a worker!"

"I'm Sorry I panicked!!"

Finally, Ukasai smiled. The ball was in his court, and he knew exactly what to do. It was unsettling, actually. "Don't worry guys, I got this." With that he tossed it towards Olive and knew the scrawny boy wouldn't catch it, thus, it would fall to the floor. Olive was obviously scared, and although Ukasai knew he would try to catch it trying was never enough. He wouldn't catch it unless he lunged for it. Other than that, Ukasai assumed it would shatter to pieces once it hit the floor. It was obviously a newer phone, -without a case or screen protector might he add- so it was only a matter of time before it broke without them. Besides, newer phone models always had shitty screens to begin with. Give's the phone companies more profit for when it breaks just a week after it's bought. But, that's not the point of the situation.

With the sound of a screen breaking and watching light glitter off of each small shard after he tried throwing it to Olive, he felt satisfactory run through him. His plan had worked! Well- of course it would, because Ukasai made it. Any idea he had would work, obviously. He was a genius! Why wouldn't it work??

It's what they get for wasting his time. But he let his face fall with horror, as did everyone else's.

"Oh my god- I'm so sorry. I didn't- I thought-" Karma and Ukasai locked eyes with each other, and Karma wanted to burn holes right through him. Quite literally. For reasons, they were both very clearly aware of. Not about the phone that was dropped. In fact, Karma knew he done it on purpose. That doesn't mean he could acknowledge it without dying, though. Instead of choosing the 'you did that on purpose.' Karma just ran his fingers through his hair and gritted his teeth. "It's okay."

'It better be. After all, I'm just a customer who has been patiently waiting for ten minutes for the drinks that should've been made long ago.'  That's what Ukasai wanted to say, but he knew better. "Um- here's your drinks, sir. Sorry for the wait."

Ukasai took all four cups quickly, acting like he didn't want to be in an awkward environment. Even though he did. It was funny, really. The game was always fun until something bad happened, and it left everyone feeling ashamed. Upset. Plus, with Ukasai causing the outcome? It made him want to stay longer, but he couldn't. Watch all of them stand around in shame, their faces gone from the joy that had been there earlier. Ukasai would absolutely adore staying and watching, but he didn't. Instead he found his way home, already having downed one of the four cups he ordered on his way.

When at home he carefully set them down and threw his bag hastily over his shoulder, and greedily dug into it on his kitchen table. Expecting to find files, but instead finding nothing related.

They were gone. 

He felt his heart pick up the pace, and his stomach drop. He immediately dumped his contents filled in his bag out onto his kitchen table, watching small objects go here and there. Some making clattering sounds on the floor beneath him or going somewhere he wasn't too interested in at the moment.

"Fuck!"

Where could have left them?

'The Coffee shop, maybe?'

He cursed to himself, before shoving his coffee in the fridge and running to the coffee shop. That was the only place he had been besides the bar. That being said he made a quick note to go to the Bar first. The longer it laid in an unknown location for a public eye to see the quicker he felt his identity dripping from his fingers. He had to have those files. If anyone found them, he was in deep shit. Especially if it was at the Coffee shop. Karma knew about the files and what they contained because he of all people had a liking to the thought of the file existing. But if they fell into the wrong hands -like Karma of all people- they would take it for themselves, or report it to the police. It had fingerprints, different signatures- *locations!* He couldn't let it get into anyone's hands but his own. Plus, if Karma got ahold of it, he would keep it for himself, and it was Ukasai's! Not his.

He had to get that fucking file.

-

"Assholes."

Karma wasn't -or didn't seem- as upset as he had been, but if he could kill with his eyes then they all would've been dead when he realized his phone was gone. "You better not pull this shit ever again. I'm leaving early, Remy's covering my shift." Remy sputtered. "Wh- but-! It wasn't even my idea!-"

"Nope. Don't wanna hear it. Don't know and Don't care. Bye." Karma glanced at something on the floor of the coffee shop with a knowing glance and a small smile as he passed through the Café doors, and left.

Remy noticed Karma's glance and it was obvious something caught his eye. If there wasn't, then he wouldn't have lingered at the door for a few seconds. But what? He slowly bent over the counter and noticed a file holder with his name in bold fine print. 'Sunny Shine.'  What-why was this here? It was not the name he had given himself (he never had an alias, to begin with) but the people Called him Sunny Shine because he brought the "sun to the city". 

He quickly swiped it from the floor after he had to spend a decent five minutes trying to reach it. Remy was not short, by any means! The counter just wasn't meant to be climbed over, okay? 

He moved away from the said counter, mumbling for Ken to take over for a few minutes, and hurried to the bathroom while he made sure to lock it behind him. Sliding on the cold tiles, he hiked his knees up like a rest of sorts so he could read the files better. He didn't want the tiles on the floor, since there was no telling when any one of them had cleaned the bathroom last. 

-

Alias: Sunny Shine

    -Name: Given to by citizens (actual name is unknown, but some people think it may be philip, or john in the bar, because from what we all can tell he looks like that. 

Age (Rough estimate): Somewhere in his twenties 

   -Estimated by the top half of his face, and body shape 

Eye Color: Bright yellow

Hair Color: Red maybe

   -Some people have seen red hair stick out under his beanie before, it's not 100% certified 

Powers: Speed, Invisibility, ?

     -There may be more, but those have been shone multiple times 

Disadvantages: Most unknown, but some are heights, long fist fights (Fist fights in general, actually.) Speed and objects around him carry 80% of his weight in fights

Goal?: Find and destroy at all cost.

-

The file made him shiver. He knew there were people who disliked him and wanted him dead. There were very big indicators of that on the internet (Including fights, and face to face contact, obviously). But to see something that was not seen for his eyes, and un-knowingly stand by someone who wanted him dead -or worse- gave him a feeling that he had not felt in a long time. It was very unsettling, and when he slipped out of the bathroom he tucked it away in his backpack, making sure he used his invisibility as he did so. After that, he found a spot where he could stop using it without being noticed by his co-workers or the security systems and went back to his place at the cash register. 

Ken had un-stationed herself from the counter, and Remy's curiosity was getting the best of him, but he couldn't let his nervousness and anxiety show. 

"Hey, uh- Ken?" 

"What could you possibly want now?"  She let out in an annoying tone, and Remy gave her an annoying eye-roll in response. At least she still acted the same as she did when he went to look at the files. 

"Was anyone here while I was gone?" 

Ken raised an eyebrow at this, but he shot her a look in hopes she wouldn't question it. 

"The dude from earlier came to see if he left uh-" She tapped her finger on her lips, and Olive finished the sentence for her. 

"A work file holder." 

"Yeah! Thanks Olive. Anyways, why are you asking? You were only gone for ten minutes, I do believe." Remy shook his head and waved a dismissive hand. "Just-just wondering. Was it here? The file holder, thing." Ken shrugged, a bored expression on her face as she started playing with her phone. "Hell if I know, I just told him we didn't see it. Olive went back to the security camera's to look at the footage before he left." The words made his stomach drop. "Oh- You, you did?" 

Ken nodded, before crossing her arms and looking at him again. A sly smile tugged at her lips as she started gliding her way to him. "What did you do?" Remy tried to make up an excuse, but everything left his lips was gibberish. 

"Well-uh-I-mmmm-you see-uh-I uh? You know-?" He sighed, before rubbing his hand on the back of his neck. "It's?...It's Complicated." 

She nodded and made a mental note to keep an eye on her co-worker. Remy was her friend -more or less an acquaintance- but that wasn't the point. If he was hiding something in which he most definitely was she needed to know. The only objective she ever had was to make sure that she was on everyone's side. Then if something ever went to shit, she would always have a side to be on. Always have a plan B, plan C, all the way to Z and beyond. But really? She had nothing to worry about. She would just look at the security footage on her way out.

"Ah, whatever. It's not our business, right, Olive?" 

"Well no, but I never sai-" 

"Right! Anyways Olive and I are leaving. Take the rest of our shift, yeah?" Remy sputtered for the millionth time in the last hour. 

"But-! You guy's close?! I can't be here that late!-" 

"Night!" She had already tugged Olive out with her by the time he had been able to say anything. Now he had to close, instead of fighting crime. 

Tonight was not cool.

-

An hour later he heard the door to the Café ring, and at that time Remy was trying to scratch a boring hole into the polyurethane that protected the wood from harsh scratches. He also heard scuffling of feet, so he mumbled a very monotone sentence that sounded like it had the tone of: i-hate-my-life-right-now-but-i'll-make-you-some-bomb-ass-coffee-with-depression-creamer-in-it-because-it-really-be-like-that-sometimes-just-pay-me-fifteen-dollars-for-it.

"Welcome to wood's coffee, would you like to here our special offer or..." He trailed off, and didn't even bother to look up.Why did they have to stay open until one am again? No one but absolute weirdos came to get coffee at one am. But oh look! There was one right in-front of him!! There was silence, but he heard someone else breathing. It was very harsh, actually. If breath could sound angry, this person had it. He didn't look up from the counter, though. Still scratching away at the polyurethane. 

"Hel-" 

 "Are the rest of your freinds here? One of them dropped something earlier, and I wanted to return it." The voice was very cold, and Remy felt like the voice was familiar, yet couldn't place it? The freckled boy didn't move, but his eyes did trail from the counter to the person in front of him, and his eyes went wide. There was a wide smile on his face, and Remy felt like he was going to piss his pants. It was the guy from earlier!Thus, Remy froze. There was just something about this guy that threw him off. He was just so -unsettling, and- and so many other things Remy couldn't quite place at this moment in time. He knew why he was here, but this guy didn't know that. Well- scratch that actually. Of course he fucking knew where it was or he wouldn't be here right now. "Um, no actually. I'm closing tonight but I'll give it to them tomorrow." He held out a shaky hand and before he knew it his hand had been forcefully accepted, but there was no item that had been dropped. Not one that Remy could see.

"Good, now where is it?"

"Where's what?" His throat became dry all so suddenly, and he felt his heart hammering. Hell, maybe the pissed off man infront of him heard it. A pin could drop it was so quiet at this point. Almost in the blink of an eye, the guy slammed his hand on the counter. He didn't even see it move if he was honest. 

He awnsered the question too quickly oh hell fuck fuck he awnsered the question way to fast. "I know you have it, and your idiotic sorry excuse for co-workers aren't here to tell me to look at the sorry fucking security cameras. Or to tell me to fuck off. So, the pending question. Where is it? Remy flinched and tore his hand away before backing up until his back hit the wall. It didn't leave him a lot of distance, but it was better than no distance. He was also trying to control his breathing, but it was very hard to do at this moment in time. 

"I want it, and I know you have it. Give it."

 Finally, Remy was able to say something but he back up as far as he could, trying to remember things he used to take in his fighting classes. He knew what he needed to do, but he was limited to his resources. Remy couldn't use his powers, which, left him with hand-to-hand combat if it was necessary. The bad thing is he just really sucked at hand-to-hand combat. That, and messing up the Café was NOT an option. 

"Sir- I don't know what you're talking about. Please, if you're going to order something order it-" Then, he blinked. The man was there, across-On the other side of the counter that wasn't meant for climbing on-. But the next thing Remy knew that man had a fistful of Remy's shirt collar, and a daring hand around his throat. All he could see now were the man's eyes boring into his, so it was just a little hard trying to avoid him.

"I am a very short-tempered and impatient man. I suggest you hand it here, or I will get it myself. Maybe I'll even take you with me since I have a very big possibility of getting jail time if I leave you here for the entire world to tell, yeah?" Remy's eyes widened, and he realized this guy had to be a criminal of sorts, or maybe an Abandonded of some kind?? People were cruel all the time yes but with the knowledge he had it was un-settling what this man has done, or what he has the capability of doing. But it was obvious he was no Destiny. If it was it was a corrupted one. 'Blatantly obvious.'

"Sir-" 

"It's Ukasai. I've been here and you've been here long enough to know that."

 

Remy's heart dropped. He didn't- If this guy was making sure he knew his name and already mentioned that he might kidnap him, then there was a very big possibility that this might actually happen. How had things escalated so quickly?

Although, Ukasai didn't mind it. He liked it, really. The fear that Overcumulated the Barista gave Ukasai a lot more energy than it should have, but- this is what he fed off of. This is why he started his route of being an Abandoned, after all. His grip around the ginger's throat tightened, and if it was at all possible, his pupils dilated once more. To make it better? He could feel the Barista's pulse through his fingertips. It was actually very concerning to how fast it was. The possibility of a stroke or a cardiac arrest was very possible at this point in time. Ukasai didn't really care, though. It just wouldn't be that much fun if this guy just straight up died on him because Ukasai sure as hell was not making a trip to the E.R. Now, Ukasai loved killing people. (Don't get him wrong) but this guy- he had stolen from him. Flat out robbed him, and was denying it? 

Yeah, no. 

That wasn't flying with him, and Remy was going to learn real quick that that wasn't okay. This entire time, Remy had been silent. But maybe that was because he was panicking because he knew things could only get worse from here. So what did he have to lose? He had no plan, so he really had his sights held high for him on getting out un-scraped and alive. He knew he didn't have enough force to hurt the guy- or, Ukasai, but he still needed to getaway. He could use his powers, but he wasn't giving his identity away. 

He shoved his hand into Ukasai's side, and immediately planted both hands on top of the counter to hoist himself up. Thus, he raised his legs and kicked Ukasai in the stomach. He didn't watch to see what happened, but he didn't have to. Ukasai wasn't letting him getaway, at all. It was unexpected, yes, but this wasn't Ukasai's first fight. Not by a long shot. He was most definitely hit, and it dazed him for a second. That didn't stop him though. He lunged at Remy and knocked him down. 

Remy yelped in surprise while he tried to scramble away, but he couldn't. No matter how much adrenaline he felt in his veins, or how his heart felt like it was about to explode. Ukasai was on top of him in the blink of an eye, one fist- no,Two fists were shoved into his shirt and forced Remy's head and shoulders off the ground with the strength Ukasai was pulling him with. Remy was unsure how, but Ukasai was straddling him now, and his face shone with hot, fiery anger. Ukasai let out a huff as he slammed the back of Remy's head onto the tile floor, before bringing him back up again. He let out an un-expected cry and squeezed his eyes shut at the pain surging through the back of his head, and the rest of his body.

"You're not getting away that easy. Not like that you're not." 

Remy opened his eyes again in just enough time to watch Ukasai's fist collide with his face. In instinct, he moved his face to the side and felt like fire exploded directly into his eye. Remy had no idea if moving his head to the side was a good thing or not, but it wasn't something that was on his mind right now. It wasn't something he was worried about, either. The hit left him disoriented, and un-sure of what was happening. Well- he knew- he knew he was getting his ass kicked- for one, but his mind was in a complete fog. There was another shot of pain, but this time it was on his jaw. If he wasn't done before, he was most definitely done now. He wasn't entirely sure what to do now. What was he even here for? Where was he? He was...he was in a place...right? Yeah..yeah...he's... His brain tried to comprehend what he was trying to think about, he just knew he had to get away. But from what?...What was he trying to get away from again?...Why was he so...so scared? But he couldn't remember what he was trying to get away from while he slipped into un-conciousness.

-

My dumb-ass, who only has a rough draft of the third chapter done: ah yiss ima post it just a day after the first one because we love un-scheduled posts

Sorry if its formatted weird and the paragraphs are funky?? Tumblr said only 250 Text Block, so I had to fit it in somehow.

#oh boy lol #here we go again #another post #another day #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me #im posting this on archive of our own if anyone wants to read it there #havent posted it yet but i will #soon #uh #still dont know what im doing #still dont know how to tag #properly #anyways #damn i dont even have a name for this book yet oh lord #book #or #fanfic #maybe #its literally about my oc's #oc #ocappreciation #yep #original content #original writing #writing #its not gay yet but its gonna be gay #long post #really #really long post

[batfamcraze]

My thoughts on Task Force Z #6

Honestly I was pleasantly surprised that this was good! I don’t think it’s perfect because I still have a few critiques, but Task Force Z is looking promising for Jason fans.

Let’s get started:

These two pages are the most interesting and hold the most conflict. The rest of the issue is good but this scene will definitely be the most talked about because of Bruce and Jason’s dialogue.

We’ve seen Bruce and Jason argue before, except in this issue, it’s not about their differences in moral code, but it’s actually about Bruce having difficulty in trusting him even though he gave the case to Jason for him to figure out what’s going on. So Bruce and Jason are semi-working together here.

We’ve seen Bruce and Jason argue before, except in this issue, it’s not about their differences in moral code, but it’s actually about Bruce having difficulty in trusting him even though he gave the case to Jason for him to figure out what’s going on. So Bruce and Jason are semi-working together here.

Jason: “I’m not your responsibility anymore”, 

Bruce: “No, Jason, you’re my fault” 

Jason: “I’m not something you built. [...] You’re a father to me” 

This makes me mad because DC loves to pull the “child soldier” angle, and Jason saying that he doesn’t want to be seen that way is *chefs kiss* because I hate the “child soldier” discussion. It is so annoying because it doesn’t apply here!

Jason: “You brought me into this world of yours and all I got was pain, and death, and the constant reminders that I’ll never measure up to you or Dick. And I know that.”

Jason talking about his death here makes sense, the part I'm a little iffy with though is when he says that he’ll “never measure up to Dick or Bruce”. I’m not sure why their making Jay act the way he used to be when he was Robin, because at that time, yea, he was insecure about being good enough for the mantle which makes sense, that's a lot of pressure for a kid (and he still had a great relationship with Dick too!). But Jason here is 19-22 and he is aware of his skills/competence so I don't understand what they're going for here. Is he having trouble being a hero? That could be an interesting angle to go for but I don’t think that in this situation he would compare himself to Dick or Bruce like this, because he is also aware of their own flaws. I don't think this is a shade to Dick or B btw, but this could've been done a bit better maybe?

Jason: “I made mistakes because I was scared, and I was angry, and I was hurt. You know why? Because the man who raised me wasn’t there when I needed him. But I’m (beep) trying here. So now I’m trying to make right what I’ve done on my own and I just need him to trust me.”

This part is so good! I really like how its emphasized here that he was angry AFTER he died and NOT when he was Robin! It’s a retcon that I’ve always hated because it's so ooc. Jason saying that he was hurt because of Bruce’s betrayal is amazing! THIS IS A HUGE WIN!

Jason: “Can’t you just trust me?”

Bruce: “This is what you’re asking me? Look the other way while you run around with Two-Face and Bane? I can’t. Not for you and not for anyone.” 

Bruce is so weird here, he literally asked Jason to figure out what’s going on and he's getting in his way like? Yea, he’s technically working with those 2 because he was literally kidnapped by them so he doesn’t really have a choice, but B isn't giving him a chance to explain anything? Bruce where’s your common sense lol?

Jason: “If there’s no hope for them to be saved, then there is no hope for me either. So now the choice is yours, you can fight us, and if you win you can lock us away in Arkham or Blackgate. But it’s ALL of us.”

I think Jason is trying to prove a point to Bruce in a dramatic way that if he can get a second-chance then they should have their chance too. Since second-chances are what Bruce believes in, Jason uses that to his advantage for Bruce to let them go. And it works of course because Bruce is dumb. I don't think Jason would actually believe that he’s similar to his zombie teammates since just moments before he was bickering with them lol and saying “I’m not working with Bane, Dent.”

Jason: “Otherwise we have something we need to stop, something bad that will hurt a lot of people. So I'm asking you, as the man who trained me, the man who raised me, a man who cares so much about what is right... Will you please just get the (beep) out of our way?”

Ugh this part is so good, I have nothing else to add at the moment!

Overall this comic is good! It’s not perfect for sure but I think this is a pretty good comic for Jason to be in. I’m not going to comment yet on Jason’s moral code or his new path to vigilantism because it is NOT Rosenberg’s decision, it’s DC’s executive decision (so it wouldn't be fair). Rosenberg is working with what he’s been given and I think that with Jason’s new direction, Task Force Z is a fun read. Thank you!

#my thoughts #my rambles #task force z #task force z 6 #task force z review #task force z spoilers #comic thoughts #jason todd #red hood #dc #dc comics #batman #bruce wayne #mentioned: #dick grayson #bane #two face #harvey dent

[septiembrre]

I'm a little late but I just saw your post from a year ago about latinx rep in good girls and its sad reflecting back on it and how the show could've done better. Rio was just another stereotype, I hate how he was ambitiously latino and there was just no connection to his culture. Was he first, 2nd, or 3rd Gen? If he was 1st Gen it didn't make sense to have the family speak English. One thing that always annoyed me is how OOC he was at times and how the writers purposely made him out to be like some brown aggressive misogynistic man. They didn't bother making him complex. In a way I'm glad the show got canceled. As a Mexican woman the way Rio was written was racist.

Wah, I’ve been sitting on answering your ask. I wanted to tease your ask apart and respond to it sentence by sentence. But... my brain kept rechazandolo, so now I have feelings dump instead.

Since Good Girls ended, I have been parsing through how I feel about S4 and GG overall — sometimes more positively, sometimes more negatively. Then, I flip to reminding myself it’s not that serious (it's just tv! this is supposed to be my leisure activity!). Then, I waffle back to reflecting.

So, no textual analysis just feels and whining under the cut. I know folks are still mourning the end of the show and I don't want to yuck anyone's yum. Tagging with #ggnegativity.

My short answer is that Good Girls is my beloved, sometimes joyful, sometimes hurtful, complicated little show. Even now that we’re no longer getting new episodes I’m wary of sifting through the information we have about Rio because it’s a mess and it seems like a lot of his character was poorly thought out (ahem, all those dumb messages from Bill Krebs confirming multiple instances of lack of intentionality or care!).

I say this because I was tempted to start responding to you by riffing off of your comment with, “y'know, now that you say that, I think he’s third or fourth gen…”, pero who cares? And the point was never specifically about what gen he is, or even more specifically about... lol, I was going to say it doesn't matter what nationality he was, they just needed to pick one. Ugh, but the wording of that is too glib. The lack of intentionality behind these details feels sanitized to me, it feels very white gaze, it feels lazy.

However, I could have forgiven a lot of this weak character construction if his baseline, plot-related characterization on-screen was more consistent. But, Rio was often used as a plot device in a way that often fell flat for me, a weekly recurring bogeyman whether his antagonism made sense or not. On one hand, I feel for the creative team, because I think they were in a hard place, trying to avoid romanticizing Rio, and trying to seemingly backtrack the sexualization of him in Season 2, but... Idk, it's complicated.

Retrospectively, it’s sitting with me how much Good Girls is rooted in whiteness. While it's something I discerned before (lol, most obviously with 2x13 and in S3 with Lucy's disposability), you know how some shows get to their third or fourth season and finally start investing in their marginalized characters? It’s a crappy thing to hold out hope for, they're crumbs! But, I was. And we did get some Rio worldbuilding. But, ultimately, it felt weak to me -- under-conceptualized or under-worked.

For example, I liked Nick as a Bigger Bad who drove Rio and Beth together. I also thought that Nick's non-existent moral code was a lovely foil to Rio's, and that this contrast humanized Rio in a way that he needed. It also cast a new light on Rio's behavior of the earlier seasons, outside of Beth's perception in a way that I thought was healthy and needed. Great, meaty stuff! However, Nick and Rio's relationship came across as shallow to me. There really did not seem to be a lived-in quality to their scenes. The show really struggled with that element overall -- even with the three lead protagonists (their decades-long history with each other and interactions between their families being largely absent). I wonder why they made that choice.

It's strange because on the flip side we got a hefty amount of contextualization for MLM guy Vance and Annie's bf Kevin... Even that cop who Mick killed! All white men, too.

Me da pena.

Or maybe the thing that bothers me is that those scenes between Nick and Rio didn't center Rio's perspective effectively? Despite the one-on-one scenes being outside of Beth's framing (Rio being a secondary character typically tethered to Beth's story arc), there still was a lot of distance between Rio and the viewer? Like I think of Vance in his kitchen with his wife and child, and the way we as viewers were brought into that to empathize with him, and I think of the distance of Nick+Rio boxing scene or the scenes at the bar. Argh! It's hard to pinpoint without the textual analysis I feel too grumpy to do. It was such a narrative choice to keep Rio aloof and I side-eye it.

Anyway --

Overall, the writing room/show creators/decision-makers didn't seem to consider Latine/x/a/o viewers throughout the crafting of Good Girls and that sucks. It really feels like I'm being told to conform to the white gaze in watching the show, and after 2x13 that makes me feel prickly and defensive. A part of me yearns to do a rewatch to map Rio’s character (and inconsistencies) but I still yield joy from Good Girls — it’s been my main comfort story during the pandemic. I also rendered joy from Season 4 specifically — some of those scenes between the leads at the end were phenom!!

I am leaning into what's bringing me joy right now, so I feel hesitant to stew in critique, even while I also feel some sort of need to make sense of the hurtful racializations. I have a compulsion to write them all down on the same post or list -- somewhere where I can see them all at once and understand. But, at the moment, it’s not a use of my time and energy that feels good. Opting into fics and writing is bringing me a lot of joy during hard times.

I have to close with one final whine, that I am SO fatigued with television options right now. I find myself desperately wishing for more TV out there whose priority audience isn't only white folks. Good Girls isn't alone in its treatment of Latinx characters, or alone in mishandling characters of color or gay characters, or prioritization of empathy for white het male characters, but certainly, creating something more thoughtful shouldn't be so hard.

#preguntitas #gg negativity #lol this is basically a long journal post #good girls and latinidad #nbc good girls

[tanukyclaws]

Sorry mate you're not coherent with reading either, or analyzing a scene, or understanding reaction time. Ah but yes the writers are gods we will bend backwards if it meant excusing their shit writing. Cause Yang *screaming* Ruby's name before she gets hit doesnt make everyone turn their attention to her, nope. Not enough time for Weiss to turn around and at least *try* to use a glyph at the edge to catch Yang, or a summon when she starts falling. Not enough time for Ruby to use her *SPEED* semblance. No, you see, it just happened TOO FAST. So fast actually that Blake had time to turn around, start running then throw her weapon at Yang. Last I checked it was never shown that Blake had superhuman reaction times. And god the "shock" excuse gets tiring.

Shocked? Of what? After seeing her uncle poisoned and dying, her sister unconcious without an arm, her teammate stabbed on the ground, her partner impaled, her friend electrocuting herself and possibly dying, DOZENS of people dying, a friend dying right in front of her, Yang jumping in the mouth of a grimm to save her and break her aura. You'd think that after all of this it would take a lot more than seeing your sister get hit once to shock you. And the fact that this is the 2nd time Ruby sees it? Or at least the 2nd time that we have been shown, who knows. How can you see something at least twice and still be shocked the 2nd time?

And the funny thing is that Ruby's character literally revolves around being the optimistic leader who *takes action*. She always has a plan, she's always on the move, she always wants to go and help, no matter what. And now she does nothing.

There were so many ways to make that scene look plausible: have Weiss try to use a glyph but fail, have Ruby try to get up and save her sister but get attacked and stopped by Cinder. It was that easy! Nobody would've complained. But no, everyone has to stay in place, even Neo and Cinder, cause apparently Blake's new semblance is super speed.

There's (mostly) badly written scenes and there's some well written scenes. This wasn't the later. Can we stop pretending and finding SO many excuses for the bad writing? "she was in shock" "she didnt have time" "this and that". We have literally been shown the opposite, we have literally seen that there was enough time. It was like v5 all over again where eveyone stays still and they make one move at a time.

Yes you idiot, we know Yang doesnt have glyphs (she has her gauntles which could've propelled her if she wasnt semi unconcious), and you literally proved that you have no reading comprehension whatsoever.

This is why the RWBY fandom is so goddamn annoying. People point out badly written scenes and explain why and how it was bad, and even what could've been done instead, and youre bending backwards to defend the writers and make it seem as if we are stupid. You can enjoy a show and admit some things could've been done better. There's a thing called toxic positivity, where you act as if everything they do is perfect and all critique is bad. You are SOOO quick to come up with excuses (which dont even make sense most of the time) but don't think for even 1 second on why EVERY character had to freeze for a few seconds just so the scene could play out? Blake had time to run but Neo/Cinder didnt have time to attack, yup.

I'm in this tag to see people enjoy stuff, share theories, not to see how some show the whole fandom that its possible to live without a brain.

#rwde #rwby8 #spoilers #rwby volume 8 #rwby8 spoilers #sorry if it shows up in the main tag I had to tag the spoilers #anti rwby #8x13 #rwby 8x13

[chronicallylatetotheparty]

Scarlet Fever Ch.15 Emily Agreste (Part 1)

Summary: Endings and Beginnings.

Notes: Boy those were a lot of loose ends to tie up.

Ah, Emilie does Not make an appearance. It's more because she represents family.

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

"I didn't realize you felt so overwhelmed until Princess Justice pointed it out."

"Yeah, but I didn't realize how much you were struggling until I found out who you were."

"It's not like I would have let you in even if you asked."

"I'm sorry I didn't ask."

"You were just following the rules."

"Lot of good that did, huh?"

"... I hate how much I failed you with the Snake."

"I'm sorry I put you in that position."

"I didn't say no."

"Adrien, if you showed up and said you trusted me with a Miraculous I would've jumped for joy!"

"Believe me. I was tempted."

"I never should've let you sacrifice yourself for me."

"From what I remember you usually didn't have much say."

"Exactly! You got hit because I couldn't get out of the way in time!"

"That's not how I see it."

"You getting hit was never okay."

"Better than the alternative."

"Not to me."

Adrien stared at the ceiling that still felt too close as the dream, or memories rather, faded. As tempting as it was to stay in bed and go back to sleep the blinds were pulled and sunlight was streaming in. And he was cursed, as his friends put it, with being a morning person.

Making his way to the restroom Adrien splashed water on his face and ran his wet hands through his hair to fix his bedhead. Combing it into his usual style. He paused, staring at his reflection in the mirror... At the model perfect look Gabriel had insisted on for years... Adrien ran his fingers through it, ruining it. Letting his locks fall in a decidedly Chat Noir-ish manner.

A knock on the bathroom door pulled Adrien out of his thoughts. "Bro, breakfast!" Nino called.

"Be right out!" Adrien hurried through the rest of his routine. His hair the only significant difference.

Plagg phased through the wall. "I dunno, Adrien," he started without preamble. "Turtle boy's kid brother is quite a handful."

Adrien smiled, scratching at the kwami's chin. "You're a handful too, Plagg."

"Yeah, but it's different when I do it!"

Chuckling, Adrien offered his pocket and Plagg flew in. Grumbling about tiny humans.

"Sleeping Beauty!" Nino exclaimed as Adrien sat next to him.

Pressing his lips together Adrien gave his best friend a mock glare. "That is not catching on."

"Oh, yes it is dude!" Nino stuffed his grinning mouth with baghrir. Butter and syrup almost dripping onto him.

Lips twitching into a smile despite himself Adrien reached for his own. "Where's Noël?"

"Folks took him to school," Nino replied around a mouthful.

"Yes!" Plagg flew out of Adrien's pocket and made a beeline for the fridge. "Camembert here I come!"

Shaking his head in fond exasperation Adrien ran a finger absentmindedly along the rim of his plate. M. and Mme. Lahiffe were kind enough to offer their home and let Nino take a few days off school. Nino insisted he think of it as an extended sleepover but... "I wanted to thank them for-"

Suddenly, Nino was leaning against him and wrapping an arm around Adrien's neck, pulling him close. "Dude, that's the fifth time you've said that."

"I'm just really grateful!" Adrien insisted, pushing him off.

"Believe me. They know."

Adrien swallowed the lump in his throat. The Lahiffe household was more than he could've hoped for. Especially with everything on the news. Gazing at Nino, the memory of a glowing purple butterfly came to the forefront. "To you too. For what you did."

Eyes widening for a moment Nino adjusted his cap, cheeks darkening. "What're best friends for?"

Adrien smiled softly. Tears prickling at the corners of his eyes. "You are the best. Y'know that, right?"

Nino wrapped his arms around Adrien in a  proper hug. "Back atcha, bro."

Returning the gesture, Adrien held him tight as his heartbeat spiked. "Couldn't have done it without you."

"Flatterer," Nino scoffed.

"Always."

Clearing his throat, Nino removed his glasses to rub at his eyes. "Eat up, dude! Don't want to keep the Gorilla waiting. We got a big day ahead."

"...Yeah," Adrien agreed. "We do."

 ----------

"Don't be bemused! It's just the news! The trial of the century is coming to a close. Disgraced fashion mogul Gabriel Agreste, who's terrorized Paris as the supervillain Papillon for the past two years, will finally face justice. The crown court is expected to reach their verdict later today. His son, fifteen year old Adrien Agreste, could not be reached for comment-"

Marinette pressed mute and turned away from the living room television. She hated that they had to mention Adrien like that. Like being Gabriel's son was the only description that mattered. Still, maybe she should bake Nadja some pastries as a thank you for pushing back against the idiots who wanted to lump Adrien in with Gabriel.

As a parent, as a reporter, Nadja had torn into anyone that even suggested Adrien was anything except a victim of his own father. On live television no less!

Just the memory of the press conference Ladybug called for the specific purpose of vouching for Adrien made her blood boil. If only they knew. Ungrateful jerks.

Tikki looked up from her place on the table, brow furrowing at her holder's tension. "Are you alright, Marinette?"

Sighing, Marinette glanced back at the screen. Slowly unclenching her fists. They were showing footage of his testimony again. "I'm worried about Adrien."

"Of course you are." Sabine set a plate of macarons next to Tikki. Who took the liberty of grabbing one. "That young man is going through something terrible very publicly. No wonder you're worried about him."

"Maman!" Marinette covered her face with her hands. "Saying it out loud doesn't make it better!"

Sabine gave her daughter a bittersweet smile. "Beating around the bush won't help."

Marinette groaned into her palms.

"But," Sabine continued, placing her hands on Marinette's, "you and all his other friends are making sure Adrien doesn't go through it alone."

Lowering her arms, Marinette looked down. "I... haven't been doing much, really."

"Marinette!" Tikki scolded. "What you've done for Adrien isn't nothing! You've talked to him, listened to him, been there for him. You're doing everything you can, Marinette!"

Sabine nodded, taking a seat next to her daughter. Holding their hands in her lap. "Even Ladybug has limits."

Marinette's mouth twisted ruefully. "I know."

"You know it here." Sabine tapped Marinette's forehead. "But here," Sabine pointed at Marinette's heart, "still has to catch up."

Her eyes stung as Marinette let herself fall into her maman's embrace. "I wish I could do more."

"Oh, honey." Sabine kissed her forehead. "I am so proud of the compassionate young woman you are. But you can't fix everything. More importantly it isn't your responsibility to fix everything."

Marinette opened her mouth to protest but Sabine laid a finger on her lips.

"She's right, Marinette." Tikki floated up to nuzzle against her holder's cheek. "What you're doing is already enough. More than enough. You're so kind to everyone else. Be kind to yourself."

Marinette didn't know when her tears fell but it didn't matter. For the first time since she donned the mantle of Ladybug, Marinette let herself be a girl crying into her mother's arms.

 ----------

"Marinette!" Alya almost knocked them both over as she squeezed a little too tightly. "It's been forever, girl!" Noticing the red in Marinette's eyes she frowned. "You okay?"

Marinette nodded. "I'm fine," And it didn't feel like a lie. She smiled at Alya's familiar worry. "It's only been a day."

"Like I said, forever."

Tikki poked her head out of Marinette's purse. "Good morning, Alya."

Eyes sparkling, Alya restrained herself from gushing. "Tikki!" she whisper-shouted. Mostly. "Good to see you. Any chance we'll be meeting your friends again?"

All things considered Alya had taken Marinette being Ladybug rather well. She had been more concerned with why Marinette was akumatized and how she could help. It was a relief, really. That Marinette didn't need to lie to her best friend anymore.

"I'm sure Trixx would be happy to." Tikki smiled at Alya's enthusiasm.

"If Fu ever lets go of that box again," Sabine muttered. She waved goodbye to Tom who was left in charge of the bakery.

"Maman!" Despite weeks of her mother being very vocal about Master Fu's flaws Marinette was still scandalized by her critique of the Guardian.

"Don't 'maman' me. You know it's true. The only reason he didn't take back all of his fancy jewelry is because Oblivio helped us out." Sabine smiled at Alya.

Cheeks darkening, Alya smiled back. It felt odd to be praised for something she used to be ashamed of.

Marinette gently squeezed her arm. "Thanks for that."

"Hey, you used the Butterfly. Me and Nino just aimed." Alya wasn't sure how hard it was to tweak Oblivio's power so they could target specific memories instead of erasing everything at once. But she wouldn't have wanted anyone besides Marinette on the other side of the telepathic link.

There were a lot more people that needed their memories adjusted than Alya thought. Sure, Gabriel and Nathalie needed to forget who Ladybug and Chat Noir were. But there was also everyone in the locker room when the akuma swarm came.

Marinette bumped playfully into Alya, lips twitching into a smile. "Never thought I'd be glad to see Oblivio again."

Alya wrinkled her nose. "That makes three of us." Looking from right to left to make sure no one was in hearing range Alya leaned in close. "I can't believe you have a superhero therapist!"

"Eh, not the weirdest thing to happen this month." Marinette was just glad she didn't need to keep Ladybug a secret from someone else.

"Did you, y'know, use Ladybug for that?"

"Actually, it was Adrien that got us an interview with her in the first place."

Before Alya could respond Kagami's car turned the corner. The door opening for them as the driverless vehicle pulled up to the curb.

"Marinette, Alya, Sabine," Kagami greeted as they all piled in. "And Tikki," she added as the kwami floated out of Marinette's purse. "...Where is Anansi?"

"Kicking butt. She's a kickboxer," Alya elaborated at Kagami's confused look. "Can't reschedule this time. Has to fight or she forfeits."

Kagami nodded in understanding. "Your sister is smart enough to know that one does not back down without giving it your all."

Marinette straightened as Kagami's eyes landed on her. She thought that might be referring to something besides fighting but it was hard to tell. Reading Kagami was always difficult.

"I can't believe I'm finally going to meet the Guardian!" Alya exclaimed. Sabine's sentiments barely putting a dent in her enthusiasm. "You think he's up for answering a few thousand questions?"

Kagami smiled despite herself. Her phone chimed and she frowned at the text. "We have to make a stop first."

 ----------

Nino hugged Alya and fist bumped Kagami. His eyes were tense despite the smile he gave them. "Hey, Mari."

Marinette's brow furrowed. "Nino." She placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Is he...?"

Nino nodded, pointing his thumb behind his back. "Up ahead."

Taking a deep breath Marinette stepped into the cemetery proper.

The Gorilla was standing guard as usual. Spotting her, he gave Marinette a nod and let her pass. Walking further away to give them some privacy.

Adrien was standing rigidly in front of Emilie's grave.

What should she say? What could she say? Marinette cleared her throat. "Nino says you didn't want to have a funeral?"

Adrien shook his head, the first sign that he noticed her presence. "We- I already buried her once. Mourned her once. It's... not exactly easy the second time but..." He took a breath. It was shaky. "Um, the lawyer read me her will." His voice shook too. "M-maman didn't want- Sh-she didn't want..." Tears built up in his eyes. "What Gabriel did to her!" They flowed freely down his face. "Maman wanted to rest."

Marinette rushed forward and pulled Adrien close, letting him bury his face in her shoulder.

"Sh-she wanted to rest!" His voice broke as he breathed out the words.

Pushing down the disgust she felt towards Gabriel, Marinette focused on the boy in her arms. Rubbing circles into his shaking back. Soothing him, being there for him. Letting him spill his tears without comment. His breathing slowly evening out.

Sooner than she expected Adrien straightened, wiping at his eyes. "Thanks, I... I needed that."

Marinette swallowed. "A-anytime."

Adrien had cried more in the past few weeks than he had in the past year... That probably wasn't healthy. Something else to tell his therapist. "God. One of these days I'm going to stop crying on you!"

"I hope not," Marinette's mouth said before her brain could overanalyze it. Her eyes widened. "I mean- I don't want you to keep crying! That is- You can cry however much you want! Wait, no, I mean-"

Adrien smiled fondly at the familiar sound. The vise in his chest loosening its hold.

"Don't laugh at me!" Marinette pouted.

That only made his gaze soften further. "I missed you."

Pink dusting her cheeks, Marinette turned to avoid looking at him directly. "I missed you, too."

"I've just been so busy," he began.

"With the trial," she nodded.

"And therapy."

"And figuring out the next step with Master Fu."

"And it felt awkward, y'know?" Adrien gestured vaguely.

"To text or something," Marinette agreed.

Adrien blinked as he realized something. "Has it really been a week since we saw each other?"

"Eleven days," Marinette responded immediately. "But! Uh, who's counting?"

"It's odd not fighting akuma with you." Adrien fiddled with his ring.

Marinette's hand instinctively went to one of her earrings. "Not as odd as you being out of school for so long."

Adrien gazed up at the sky, thoughtful.

"... Are you coming back?"

"... Yes." The decision came to him easily. "All of you guys are there. My therapist thinks it's a good idea to be close to my support network. And Chloe's already offered to pull some strings so I'm not swarmed by paparazzi every day."

"So weird for Chloe to use her evil powers for good," Marinette muttered.

Adrien's lips twitched. "I'll be sure to tell her you said that."

"She probably wants to attach a helicopter pad to the school roof," Marinette joked.

"I talked her out of it."

Marinette choked a bit at that. Glancing at Adrien, she could see the tension he had when she first walked up to him was all but gone. His smile came easier. But... "If you needed to come here you could've said so. You made Nino worry."

"Ah." Adrien rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't know I needed to until this morning."

Ignoring the little voice in her head that panicked at the thought, Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand. His fingers curling around hers. "So you're not just avoiding the meeting we have with the Guardian?"

"Well," he finally grinned. "That too."

"He's not going to take Plagg away, you know. Maman won't let him."

"Ha! No, I don't think she would." Adrien gazed at Emilie's name carved in stone. "... You go ahead. I'll catch up."

Reluctantly, Marinette squeezed his hand before letting go. There was something else she wanted to say. But the words wouldn't come. Not taking her eyes off him until she passed the Gorilla.

Adrien turned back to his mother's grave with a bittersweet smile. "That's her. Ladybug. She's incredible, you'd like her. Stubborn, driven, intelligent. Couldn't ask for a better partner..." He placed a hand on the stone. "I wish you could've met her."

Floating out of Adrien's pocket Plagg laid his paw on top of the boy's hand.

"This is Plagg. He's a smug little troublemaker but that's part of his charm."

Plagg might've commented on Adrien's own troublemaking tendencies if this were any other circumstance. As it was Plagg just nuzzled against Adrien's hand.

A thought took root in Adrien's mind. "...Plagg?"

Ears twitching, Plagg looked up at his kid.

"Can... Can she hear me?"

Oh. Oh.

Plagg hated that question. The answer was never enough. Never as simple as yes or no. Over the centuries he'd lied through his teeth to ease his holders' burdens.

Adrien waited for his answer with trusting, patient eyes.

He swallowed the easy falsehood, burning his throat as it went. "I'll make sure she gets your messages," Plagg promised, ears drooping.

And for the first time in ten thousand years Plagg's holder simply nodded. "Thank you."

"...C'mon, kid," Plagg urged when Adrien didn't say any more. "They're waiting for you."

Sniffling, Adrien rubbed his eyes. "Y-yeah. Right."

Nino hugged Adrien tightly, practically squeezing the air out of his lungs. Kagami was little better. It was impressive how threatening she sounded while prompting Adrien to take care of his mental health. Sabine, by comparison, gave soft hugs and gentle encouragement.

Adrien loved all of it.

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#ml fanfiction #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #ml #miraculous ladybug

[word-shakers]

Everyday is a chance to start anew

#wholesome #motivation #positive thoughts #positivity #self help #self improvement #wordshakers #mentalheathawareness #post it #beautiful words #i will always critique it and point out where it could've done better but i will also thank it for the experiences and memories it gave me #gen z thoughts #millennials