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#i will wait however episode 12 to say anything
ignitification · 1 year
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Also, did someone else find very weird the way the authors have been handling the Hae E - Geon Ho situation? I am sorry, but what was that?
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a breakdown of tommy kinard’s past appearances
so. like many of you, i’ve been getting a little bit tired of seeing the same “wait wasn’t tommy a racist/homophobe? why do we like him now?” posts for the last few weeks. so i wanted to do a small breakdown of every time he has previously appeared on screen, along with his action and inaction regarding the casual bigotry of the 118 under captain gerrard.
this is gunna be a long one boys so, strap in lol
season 3 episode 12: chim begins
i’m going to go in chronological order here rather than episodic order just for character development’s sake
tommy’s first appearance in this episode is about 11 minutes in, after the first commercial break. the current 118 are sitting down to dinner when chim arrives. tommy spots him and asks, “hey eli, you forget to tip the delivery guy?” i would say this could be a genuine question based on the fact that chim’s in his civvies, but he’s got his go bag that says “FIREFIGHTER” on his shoulder so. seems like he’s just being a smartass.
(*edit: it’s been pointed out to me that considering they had ordered chinese food, this could have been an instance of casual racism, and i am inclined to agree)
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he’s not seen much during chim’s montage of just doin’ shit around the firehouse, until the point where the 118 come back covered in mud. tommy spots chim and asks him, “you still here?” again, just kind of general dickishness. not really anything to write home about.
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a small kind of background tommy moment we get after chim’s montage is right as the team is returning from a call, and chim tries to tell them about the older couple who he helped earlier in the day.
tommy: what about that burger place?
gerrard: tommy, you know i hate that place
chim: hey guys, weirdest thing happened today… *he is ignored*
gerrard: hey, wasn’t your girlfriend supposed to come and cook us dinner?
tommy: uh, next tuesday.
gerrard: promise?
tommy: uh— uh, yes. yeah, i will promise…
now. i’m going to leave that up to interpretation, however i have opinions regarding that bit going forward. but! that’s ultimately not what this post is about, so perhaps another time.
the next scene is a pretty major one. chim is getting ready in the locker room, and tries to strike up a conversation with tommy when he walks in to gather some things (deodorant, toothbrush, soap it seems like, none of these details matter i just think they’re fun).
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chim repeatedly tried to get tommy to open up to him about the things he likes, saying “tell me what your thing is and i’ll make it mine.” though, tommy just ignores him. we see a close up of him closing his eyes and sighing in exasperation.
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chim asks, “…you just really don’t like me much, do you?” and tommy, for the first time, responds to chim’s questions with, “if i thought about you at all, honestly, i probably wouldn’t.” and he leaves.
later, after eli recruits chim to be a paramedic, they have a conversation regarding what he witnessed in the locker room between chim and tommy. eli tells him that it’s not personal, and that “in this job, friends die. funerals are held. they’re not going to just give you their friendship until you earn their respect. they’re not just protecting you, they’re protecting themselves.” and this ultimately makes sense with what we saw in tommy in that earlier scene. he didn’t really seem annoyed or upset at chim’s insistence to get to know him, just apprehensive mostly. he wasn’t cruel to him, and he hasn’t been. just… kind of a dick.
in the fire truck, on the way to the barn burner, tommy is sitting next to him and looks over at chim, as chim seems to be exhibiting signs of nervousness (this is his first real call as a firefighter after all)
(however, this is a moment where chim’s reality and his past start to bleed into each other so i am not sure how accurate this is to the moment.)
we don’t get much in the next scene aside from tommy’s presence at kevin’s funeral. when chim is ringing the bell, tommy is behind him and briefly looks toward chim, likely noticing how chim is attempting to hold himself together.
the next major scene is the call at the shopping mall, where there was some sort of structural collapse. based on the symptoms of the people that were in the mall, chim assumes there is a gas leak, which gerrard waves off. he calls for tommy over the radio, and receives no response.
chim has a realization that they’re dealing with a methane leak, and runs inside the mall to retrieve tommy.
just as the building explodes, chim runs out with tommy over his shoulder. though in this scene “tommy” is clearly a dummy prop and it is so fucking funny once you notice how floppy it is.
then we get probably the greatest scene in all of 911 where chim is in the waiting room waiting for news on tommy and reality starts to bleed into the flashback while “exit music (for a film)” by radiohead plays . it has pretty much nothing to do with this post i just wanted to say how much i LOVE this scene. anyway.
the penultimate scene of the episode starts off with chim in the locker room tucking in his shirt. tommy walks in and, with no preamble, says, “love actually, monster trucks, craft beer.”
chim realizes that this is a response to their last locker room interaction. he asks tommy how his head is feeling, tommy replies, “still fat, but clearer. you saved my life. thank you.” and shakes chimney’s hand, before pulling him into a hug. this is where their friendship begins.
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in this episode, i didn’t notice anything that could really be construed as bigotry (see edit*), he was just kind of a dick at first and most of that can boil down to him being closed off and not wanting to open up before there’s a level of respect there.
(though, keep in mind i am white so there is a definite possibility that i could have missed something more racially motivated, however i didn't see anything glaring)
season 3 episode 9: hen begins
tommy’s first appearance (ever) is about 13 and a half minutes into the episode when captain gerrard introduces the team to their new “diversity hire” (after greeting her himself with a few blatantly misogynistic comments)
when tommy first sees hen, he smiles and asks “who’s this?”
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when gerrard calls her a “diversity hire,” the smile leaves tommy’s face and he looks back at gerrard with somewhat of a blank expression, contrasted with sal deluca’s disbelieving smirk and comment of “for real?”
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chimney then defends hen, gerrard walks away after saying they’re screwed. tommy once again looks between hen and gerrard before ultimately following him away from the railing.
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it is not clear what exactly his reaction to hen joining the team actually is at that moment, whether he wanted to speak up like chim or express disdain like sal, as he remained silent.
at dinner, tommy asks sal what he and his girlfriend did the night previous, where the movie “twilight” comes up. sal makes a comment about kristen stewart being hot, and hen joins in thinking she found something in common with these guys to talk about, but sal ignores her and she walks away. (i think the writers may have genuinely forgotten kstew was only 17 in that movie but that’s neither here nor there)
tommy chimes in saying he “doesn’t get that” and that she’s “too brooding” for him, to which sal responds, “maybe you’re more of a team jacob kind of guy.”
tommy says he has no idea what that means, and chim clarifies that sal is insinuating that he’s gay.
sal laughs at this and at tommy’s reaction, and tommy jokingly blows him a kiss, smiles, and goes back to his food.
(here is a gifset of the scene)
chim then invites hen into the conversation by asking where she’s from. when he tells her he assumed she was an east coaster and that it was a compliment, tommy replies with “new york bitchiness is a compliment?” (score 1 for the misogyny bucket)
chim calls him out, and he just kind of huffs and looks at gerrard, but ultimately moves on.
tommy doesn’t really say or do much else in this scene besides sit silently while gerrard is sexist towards hen and hen stands her ground. in the end, sal looks toward tommy and nods his head in the direction of the kitchen. they both get up and leave the table.
nothing of note happens in the mudslide scene with tommy, most of the conflict is between hen and gerrard. the scene where gerrard makes her man behind as well. tommy is in the background and sees this happen, but says nothing. though, i also need to add that in these moments, chim does not say anything either.
the next scene tommy is in is when hen makes her announcement to the team about how she is not going anywhere.
i once again want to point out the difference in tommy vs sal in this scene. sal has his hands on his hips and his lips tight in a somewhat annoyed looking fashion, and he looks to the side where tommy is to gauge his reaction.
whereas tommy, has his arms folded and is looking down at the floor at first, before looking up towards hen. and while gerrard and chim have their arms crossed as well, i want to point out that tommy is holding one arm while the other sits around his waist. he looks a bit sheepish if i’m being honest, like he knows they’re about to be scolded.
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when hen says for them to “see me as i see you, as a proud member of this department,” tommy turns to look behind him and makes eye contact with chim.
now, there’s not a whole lot i can glean from this interaction as is, but as we know from “chim begins,” tommy trusts chim so it’s possible he wants to get chim’s opinion. he seems to do this a lot i’ve noticed, looking between the people around him to gauge their reactions to what is going on.
nothing much of note for the car accident scene, HOWEVER. in the scene immediately after, sal and tommy address hen directly for the first time to give her some praise for her call on that scene. sal tells her “nice work yesterday,” and tommy tells her that they would have found the other car eventually, but eventually would have been too late.
hen states she “just got lucky,” to which sal responds, “screw that. you’re good,” and both he and tommy shake hen’s hand. tommy even gives her a light smack on the shoulder as he walks away and hen absolutely BEAMS.
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then of course, hen is told that gerrard was removed from his position because his conduct was reported and “more than a few of your fellow firefighters have your back.” we know chim is absolutely one of them, and i can infer that based on tommy and sal’s reactions to hen’s speech and their interaction with her just before this scene, it is very likely they are as well.
in this episode, there were definitely some more moments of blatant bigotry in this episode, but other than the “new york bitchiness” line, tommy doesn’t really directly contribute to any of it. he seems to be more of a follower, constantly gauging how others feel and just playing along. complicity is still an issue of it’s own, do not get me wrong, but considering i keep seeing people say he made racist/homophobic comments, i feel like its a reasonable thing to point out.
season 3 episode 16: bobby begins again
tommy’s final on screen appearance begins with hen taking bets on how long the new captain will last. tommy asks hen to put him down for 4 weeks on credit, and they (hen, tommy, sal, and chim) banter a little. they all seem to have a pretty good relationship with each other at this point.
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bobby pops out of the firetruck and places his own bet on himself, and tommy just kind of looks sheepish since they got called out.
to be real, tommy doesn’t do a whole lot in this episode either. most of the conflict is between bobby and sal. most of what we see is him in the background silently judging bobby’s lack of LA knowledge along with hen and chim. he does have some silly little moments during the chicken chase though.
(here's a great gifset of that scene)
bobby calls out to sal to talk to him after the restaurant fire, and sal keeps walking but tommy stops and waits, looking between bobby and sal.
sal says, “you’re a piece of work. you come in here with your nose in the air and your eyes looking down–” tommy interrupts sal and tells him to stop.
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sal keeps digging into bobby, and tommy in the background, looks to chim and hen and shakes his head, seemingly telling them not to get in the middle of it.
sal says he has the skill to lead the 118, bobby retorts with, “but not the temperament.” sal then drops his bag and stomps toward bobby so he can get in his face. tommy moves to go after him, but chim gets between sal and bobby before anything can happen.
bobby fires sal, and tommy is just standing there with the rest of his team wondering what the hell happened.
we then have the bar scene! chim, hen, and tommy hanging out at the bar before bobby ends up joining them.
they have a good time and show off their scars to each other. tommy quotes fight club, chim laughs, bobby leaves to solve the arson.
(again, here's another gifset)
at the end we see a bit more of the team together, bobby starting to cook for them, and finally the scene of chim and hen popping out of the ambulance with balloons and a cake for tommy as he transfers to the 217. they all seem to be fairly close at this point.
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(another gifset for good measure)
and other than chim calling on him for a water drop in 2x14, that’s about it until he returns in season 7.
in conclusion
to me, it seems like tommy is a bit of a follower and tends to just go along with what the people around him are doing, ESPECIALLY under gerrard. captain gerrard fostered a really toxic work environment and its no wonder others like sal were never really called out on their shit. and tommy mostly seemed to follow sal’s lead or stay quiet.
“chimney begins” takes place around 2006-ish, “hen begins” around 2008, and “bobby begins again” takes place around 2017 i believe. and between 2006 and 2024, based on what we see, its easy to see that tommy has indeed grown and changed many of his attitudes, especially when in a healthier work environment. now can we please stop acting like he’s this irredeemable piece of shit and see him for what he really is: a flawed person who grows and learns from others, like every other character on this show.
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thebestofoneshots · 4 months
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Gilded Constellations | (wolfstar x reader)
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Series Masterlist | Previous episode
Pairing: Wolfstar x Reader Word Count: 12 K Warnings: Graphic descriptions of violence. (Reader discretion is advised). Prompt: It's game time. This IS a wolfstar x reader fic, but it's incredibly slow burn. They won't start all dating each other until we're very deep into the story, but I promise the long wait will be worth it. Proofread by sweethearts: @aremuslupinsimp & @profoundpidgeon
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Chapter 30: Bridge Over Troubled Water
You stayed with the boys until Peter and James arrived, and since it was already past curfew, but mostly because he wanted to, he offered to take you to your room using James’ cloak. You were both already outside your door when he stopped you and pulled you in for a short kiss. 
“Starshine, I might not see you tomorrow…” 
“However will I survive?” you chimed in.
He rolled his eyes, a very small smile playing on his lips before he focused again “That’s not– tomorrow’s the game–” 
“Yeah, I’m very aware.” 
“And I won’t be there.” You nodded, holding your tongue instead of interrupting him again, “You will be the seeker.” 
“Sirius, What’s your–” 
“Just promise you won’t do anything stupid.” 
You gave him a look, and then smiled, reciting a line from a comic you’d read with him a couple of weeks ago “How could I? You’re taking all the stupid with you.” 
He deadpanned, “I’m serious.” Again, you had to hold your tongue before saying something that would probably frazzle him a bit more, “Take care of yourself, you’re more important to me than winning the game.” 
You smiled at that. It was a game against Slytherin. You’d be seeking against Regulus. Those words meant a lot more than they let on. You looked at him, and nodded “I won’t do anything stupid.” 
“No using yourself as a shield for a bludger?” 
“Nope,” you confirmed with a nod.
“Stay the hell away from Crouch.” 
“You don’t even have to tell me for me to do that.” 
“And don’t trust Minho, I know you’re friends but he’s as quidditch crazy as James, he won’t go easy on you just because you’re friends.” 
“It’d be a boring game if he did,” you said with a pout. Sirius shook his head in disbelief before pulling you into a hug. 
“Not gonna lie, I’m kind of glad you’re playing seeker instead of guardian, with your shoulder and everything…” 
“Shoulder’s fine,” you said with a shrug, leaning onto him. He was squeezing you tightly, and you rather enjoyed it. “But I’ll get hurt more often if you keep coddling me so much.” 
“How about you don’t get hurt ever again and I promise to continue coddling you regardless?” He hummed into your hair, his tone laced with humour. 
“I suppose we could reach to an agreement,” you replied with a smile, as you took in the scent of his soft shirt, and then pulled back to look at him, “Don’t pick up fights with Evan while you’re in detention with Slughorn,” you added in a warning tone. 
He gave you a look as if to say that it was impossible but you reached up and placed your hand near the bottom of his lip, where a small cut was healing, he winced as you brushed your hand over it “I thought as much,” you told him earnestly as you let your hand fall to the side of his cheek, Godric, he’s so unfairly pretty, you thought. 
He stared back at you, and you must have stayed like that for a while, if anyone saw you, they’d assume you were two idiots in love, which was pretty accurate in and of itself, thankfully the cloak was still covering the two of you, letting you bask in each other’s gazes without anyone bursting your bubble, until Sirius did, remembering it was late. “All right, off you go, you have to wake up early tomorrow, eat a full meal and get ready for the game.” 
“Sure thing Prongs,” you teased, you would have said mom, but being honest, James was a lot more concerned about the games and your eating habits than either of your moms ever were, especially Walburga, at least your mom tried, even if you didn’t agree with the choices she had made in order to please your father. 
He huffed a laugh, “I’ll tell Rem to watch over you.” 
“I don’t need a nanny.” 
“He’ll watch over you anyway,” he added, which was true in two ways, one: he’d tell Remus regardless of your objections, and two: he was pretty sure Remus would watch over you even if he didn’t directly ask him to do it. 
You hummed in response and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before sliding into your room. Lily was awake for some reason, she had a book in her hands and was using the light of her wand to read. You narrowed your eyes at her and decided to go straight into her bed, sitting beside her. 
“Where were you all day today?” She asked in a whisper, you took your wand out of the pyjama pants the boys had given you and cast a silencing spell over the two of you. “The school was chaos, Nox and Comet came over looking for you at lunch, we had to tell them we hadn’t seen you since breakfast. And then it was my date with James, I wanted to ask you if I looked nice but nobody knew where you were, it was like you vanished.” 
“You always look nice,” you said, addressing one of their first statements. “James is head over heels for you–” 
She frowned, looking over your body. “Hold up! What are you wearing?” she asked, placing her hand on the flannel pants you had on, pants she was sure she had seen either on Sirius or Remus (perhaps both), and then turned to the shirt, a little too big for you. A shirt she definitely had seen on Sirius. You didn’t change back into your uniform since you weren’t expecting anyone to be awake. “Isn’t this Sirius’… Oh my God! You were with Sirius,” she said with a gasp, covering her own mouth since she had been much louder this time around, “How was it?” 
“Ah that… It’s not what you think!” You managed to mumble, “I was working on my project with Rem and then I accidentally spilt coffee all over myself, he borrowed this,” you explained, making it all up on the spot, feeling rather satisfied at how convincing you’d sounded. “Sirius came over later and we all just chilled together for a bit, Remus was reading to us and I just kinda lost track of time.” 
She quirked an eyebrow as if analysing what you’d said, Lily was clever, that’s why you had added a truth after the lie, perhaps that way she wouldn’t suspect too much "Does that mean you haven’t…?"
You shook your head. "We’ve… kissed a lot, but no." You then turned to her, narrowing your eyes. "Lily Evans, what makes you so curious?"
She turned red, pulling a strand of shiny red hair behind her ear. "I kissed James today."
You looked at her shocked, James had told you and the boys that the date had gone well, he hadn’t elaborated further. It should have probably made you wonder why he rushed into his bathroom, but you were way too comfortable laying in between Sirius and Remus as he read an action-packed scene that you didn’t pay too much attention to it. In fact, you weren’t sure you’d be able to pay attention to much anything other than Remus’ calming voice, let alone with Sirius, who had at some point taken a hold of your hand and fidgeted with your fingers as the other boy narrated. 
"You know you have to tell me everything about it, don’t you?"
She nodded. "That’s why I stayed awake."
And she told you everything, from how James had picked a few wildflowers, which you recognised as Remus’ idea, to how he’d taken her on a walk near the lakes. How he’d somehow gotten his hands on the muggle coffee candies she adores so much -which you knew had been thanks to Sirius’ cousin Andromeda- and he’d placed them on a small picnic basket filled with her favourite food from the great hall (those had been courtesy of Pebblier and Nimbletwist, you had been the one to ask them for it), how he’d taken some paints and parchment and proposed to paint each other. That had been his own idea, at least the making portraits of each other part. 
She took out her journal and pulled out the parchment, she had neatly added it to one of the pages with tape. James might be good at a lot of things, but he wasn’t a Michelangelo, perhaps a Picasso? You could certainly say Lily’s portrait was an abstract piece. But she seemed absolutely delighted by it. And her happiness was contagious. 
At some point, you had both laid on their bed as he continued telling you all the things they’d done. How he’d behaved like a total gentleman, but kept his very distinctive James Potter charm. She wondered how she had been so blind and not seen that side of him before. You’d been tempted to tell her she was a goner, but held your tongue. You told her a bit about the book you’d been reading with the boys, and she told you that she heard about it. That there was a movie, or maybe they were still making it, she wasn’t too sure. Hogwarts was incredible at many things, but it wasn’t very good at helping students keep up with muggle news. In between laughter, secrets and teasing, the two of you fell asleep beside each other.
 Sunday, November 28th, 1976
"Darling, you need to wake up," you heard as you felt a hand on your shoulder. The pain woke you up, rather than her voice, and you groaned, thankfully Marlene thought it was because you were still sleeping. "Teddy wants us in the pitch earlier since he wants to revise the strategy."
You gave her a look, still rather sleepy but nodded, getting up from Lily’s bed, she was still sleeping soundly on the side, and stirred only a little as you stood up, if Marlene noticed anything related to the pyjama you had on, she said nothing. You went straight to change, freshening up a bit by throwing some water straight at your face. 
You checked your wound, it looked a lot better, the pain was still there, but it seemed like it was already closing. You threw in some healing spray Remus had given you the night of the prank and wrapped it again. You brushed your teeth, and after you were done, you threw some more water at your face. You felt a lot more awake now, but you were sure breakfast would finish waking you up completely. While it might have not been the best idea to stay awake talking to Lily, you still thought it had been worth it. 
You gave a look at your reflection in the small bathroom mirror. "Let’s do this," you told yourself with a smile and stepped out, Marlene was waiting for you outside, she was lacing up her boots."Breakfast?" 
She nodded in response, and the two of you walked over to the door. "Should we wake her?" she asked. 
You shook your head "She stayed up quite late-"
"Talking to you," she interrupted. 
You shrugged. "Yeah, but she didn’t have a game tomorrow," you told her, nodding to the fact that you had been irresponsible, but were okay with it either way. "She’ll wake up before the game, she set an alarm. We should let her rest."
Marlene hummed. "Her date must have been pretty exhausting," she told you with a cheeky smile, you laughed. "Though I still wonder how he managed to convince McGonagall to let him off punishment to go on the date."
You raised your eyebrows "Well… I suppose James can be very convincing."
"He probably cried to McGonagall," she said with a laugh. "Wouldn’t blame him, I’m not sure if Lily would have given him another chance."
"We would have convinced her."
"If only to get James off our backs," Marlene said with a laugh, by then you were already close to the entrance of the great hall. 
James and Sirius –as expected– weren’t there when you crossed the huge doors. Teddy was amiably speaking with Tim and Lucas, who would be covering for your friends, while Gale and Anne sat a little bit further to the side. When Gale saw the two of you, he raised his hand and made a gesture for you to walk their way. 
Both you and Marlene followed and sat in front of the two of them. You served yourself some apple juice as you all greeted each other. They were both already wearing their uniforms, just like you and Marlene were. The Slytherins also had their uniforms on, and they were all sitting close to each other. You realized the boy that would be covering for Evan was the same you had seen in Barty’s room, the Gaunt kid.  
“How’re we feeling?” Gale asked, diverting your attention towards your table again. 
You sucked in some air and smiled. “It’s always the excitement before a game, isn’t it?” 
“Excitement?!? I’m shitting my pants from how nervous I am,” Gale said as he took a sip of some lavender tea Anne had given him to relax. “There’s no way in hell I’m as good as you as a keeper.” 
You almost gasped at his words, you were absolutely shocked the overconfident Gale Thomas, the same boy who had taken your handkerchief away on the tryouts, who was so fast you hadn’t even noticed, would be reduced to a bundle of nerves by something like this, you tilted your head. “Gale you’re brilliant, you’ve always been brilliant!” you said. “Even on the tryouts, you were amazing as a keeper, I’m sure we stopped just as many–” 
“You stopped around 5% more than I did, you had a block ratio of 95%,” he said, leg bouncing up and down as he took a bite from a toast. 
You leaned down on the table to get his attention. “Gale?” you called, he threw you a look, worry still evident on his face. “They wanted you to be a keeper too,” you told him, pointing at Teddy with a nod. “And if they attempt to throw the ball 20 times, and you stop 19, we would still be many, many points ahead. Alison and Mina are great chasers, but I’m sure you’ll be on par, after all, you defended against Teddy, James, Anne and me on the tryouts.” 
Anne nodded. “Say it louder so it gets through his thick head,” she said, a little louder and sounding just a little annoyed. He’s been going over since we came downstairs. 
“You really think I’ll be on par?” he asked, looking absolutely hopeful. You smiled, sometimes you forgot how much younger than the rest of the team Gale was.  
“I’m sure you’ll outperform them,” you added with a smile and a pat on the shoulder. 
“What about you, how long has it been since you played seeker?” 
You took a deep breath, pondering on the question, it had definitely been a while, but you had played mini-matches with James several times, just trying to catch the snitch in morning flights. You still had the touch, or at least the two of you were much better than Sirius, who had only managed to catch the snitch like 7 times of the hundreds you had played. And one of them had been because he’d distracted you by blowing you a kiss.
“Officially? Probably in March or something, but I’ve been practising with James on our morning flights.” 
“You’re not nervous?” Anne asked as he threw a chip in her mouth. 
You bit your lip. “I’m excited,” you responded honestly. “Although, the fact that I’m seeking against Pads’ brother and he won the race does make me feel rather queasy,” you added, deciding to avoid the rest of the drama that he’d caused a few years back.  
“I still don’t get why you keep calling him weird names,” Anne said with a shrug. 
“Regulus?” 
“No, your boyfriend, first it was Puppy, then Pads, as the boys call him. What’s wrong with just… Sirius?”
“Oh, have you heard what they call her?” Marlene intervened. “There’s Starshine, Little Witch, Trouble, Kit–” 
“Vix!” Remus said, cutting Marlene off and giving the perfect example. 
“Hey Moons,” you said with a smile as you leaned closer to Marlene so he could sit. 
“Vix?” Anne asked Marlene in a rather hushed tone.
“Stands for Vixen.”
“And she just lets them call her that?” 
 “It’s because she’s as sly as a fox,” Remus intervened. 
“And it’s still better than Wormtail,” you said, just to get a reaction from Peter who was taking a seat  across from you and Rem. 
“Oi! Stop it, Wormtail is a perfectly fine nickname thank you very much.” 
“If she’s Vixen because she’s a sly fox and Peter is Wormtail because he’s as quiet as a mouse–” Anne started. 
You snorted. “When has Peter ever been quiet as a mouse?!” 
Yes, it was true Peter wasn’t nearly as loud as James or Sirius, and it made it especially evident since he was always hanging around the two boys but Peter was far from “quiet as a mouse”, if anything, Remus was quieter, and that was only half true, because once you got him talking about a book, he could go on and on with it, just like James could talk about Quidditch for hours. 
“And why is he Wormtail then?” Anne asked. 
“He looks like a rat,” Remus responded simply, which would have sounded mean if he didn’t have a complicit smile as he stared at Peter. 
“Quit it with your word games you two!” Peter warned in a rather stern tone, and yet, there was a certain shimmer behind his eyes, as if he knew more than he let on. It was all in the secrecy, really, on being part of the brotherhood that actually knew what was happening behind the nicknames. The shared secret allowed you to do and say things that people didn’t quite understand, even if you sometimes had to play offended. You enjoyed being able to be part of it, part of them.
“And Remus is Moony, isn’t it?” Anne asked, “Why’s that?” 
“Because he’s insane,” you and Peter responded at about the same time, before bursting out into a laugh, Remus pulled your hair lightly in response and you turned to him with your tongue out. 
“If you keep it up, little witch, I’m not gonna give you this,” he said as he pulled his hand up for you to see, his sleeve fell back a little and you could see what he meant, Sirius’ lucky hair tie. 
“You wouldn’t go against Pads’ wishes,” you told him as you grabbed his hands and started to tug at the hair tie, but he dragged his hand away, leaving you with a pout. 
“You sure about that luv?” He asked, eyebrows quirked. 
“Confident,” you said, attempting to drag his hands down, but it was pretty useless, his muscles wouldn’t even budge, freaking werewolf strength, you thought with a huff “Reeem!” you whined. You wondered for a moment what that strength would do as a beater in quidditch and almost shivered.  
He just smiled and tilted his head “How about you ask for it nicely?” 
You rolled your eyes. “Darling Moony,” you said, exaggerating. “Can I please have Puppy’s hair tie?” 
He knew you were playing a part, he could also hear the sarcasm dripping from your voice, and yet… he rather enjoyed that all of your attention was on him. And Merlin the look that you were giving him, it felt almost as good as when Sirius climbed onto the side of his bed, grabbed his hand, and manhandled it until he managed to slide the hair tie in. It still smelled of Sirius’ hair long after he had left for detention. Remus tried not to smell it, he didn’t want to be weird about it. But he couldn’t help himself. 
Now he had you all over him, legs pressed against his and hands all over his arm as you attempted to pull it down, and he adored it. Even if he knew he shouldn’t, even if he knew you were Sirius’, he loved having your undivided attention. Your eyes on him, and no one else. 
“Pretty please?” you added, and now you had that sneaky little puppy dog face you gave him when you wanted something. The same face he could barely say no to when you weren’t pressed against him. 
He sighed and lowered his arm, allowing you to take the tie from him, relishing on the way your hands brushed over his own. Your hands were much smaller than Sirius’, even if a little rougher from so much quidditch and not that much piano, but he liked them just as much as he liked the ones of the boy.
When you managed to slide it off, you pulled back a little to add it to your hair “Have you eaten?” Peter asked from the front. Suddenly you remembered it wasn’t only you and Remus in the room and felt awkward for half a second, but everyone seemed to find the interaction the most normal, especially Peter and Marlene who hung around you and Remus often. 
You looked down at your clean plate, you had been so focused on comforting Gale and then on Remus’ talk, or perhaps just on Remus, that you had forgotten to even serve yourself anything. You shook your head and filled your cup. “How much time do we have?” you asked Marlene. 
“About 15 minutes,” she informed. 
“That should be enough,” you said before taking a drink and grabbing onto a toast before spreading butter on it. Then some cream cheese and you were about to grab the marmalade when Remus spoke. 
“Here,” he said as he passed over a plate with fruit to you. 
“Thanks, Rem,” you said as you grabbed a few of the berries and placed them on top of your bread. You then started munching on some of the other fruits on the plate. You didn’t realise, with the rush, that the plate actually had only your favourite fruit. Remus had picked them up from the centre of the table as you prepared your toast. 
You pretty much gobbled your food, like you had been doing all week, even if the absolute craving for meat had significantly diminished -especially when you were around Remus you noticed- the hunger seemed to prevail. All the types of hunger. Every time you saw Sirius you had the urge to kiss him over and over again like that time in the passageways. That type of hunger didn’t seem to subside when you were around Remus. 
You stood up, Teddy, Tim and Lucas had already left, and Marlene was just finishing her eggs while Anne and Gale stood up. Remus was still eating, a lot more calmer as the four of you motioned to move. 
“Little Witch!” he said, just before you started walking towards the door, he used his wand to levitate a blueberry muffin towards your face. “Take this for the way.” 
“What about me,” Marlene asked. 
“It was the last one, sorry.” 
Marlene gasped playfully. “I swear, this is what you call preferences,” she said with a humph and turned her heel. 
“I’ll save one for you next time,” Remus said with a simple shrug, and Marlene just gave him an incredulous stare before marching off behind Anne and Gale. You gave Remus a look and he shrugged again. “It was for you, she’s playing what she always does, you aren’t,” he added, did that make sense? he sure hoped it did. 
“Thanks, Rem,” you told him with a smile. “I’ll see you in the game, yeah?”
“Wouldn’t miss it.” 
“See you there too Pete,” you said with a wave, the boy nodded and hummed in response, too busy picking the onion bits out of the eggs. Peter didn’t like onion, and he always took his sweet time taking it out of his eggs, Sirius had given him a spell, but he said it wasn’t as good as using his hands and eyes. 
You moved to follow behind Marlene and had almost gotten all the way out of the room when two Slytherins cornered you near the doors. You smiled. 
“You did it, didn’t you?” Comet asked, a complicit smile on her face. 
“Had to be you, Crouch has been on your back for months,” Nox added. 
“And then there was the incident with Evan, Severus has always been an ass to you and Mulciber follows them along wherever they go,” Comet intervened. 
You gulped, a small smirk on your lips. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 
“And you were in my room, jeez, how the hell didn’t I notice.” 
“You must sleep pretty heavy,” you said with a shrug. 
“Ha! She’s admitting it!”
“I can’t confirm nor deny anything…” 
Nox looked dumbfounded while Comet laughed. “Thanks for the heads up,” she told you. 
“What warning?” you asked with a complicit smile. 
Nox breathed out, a smile playing on his lips again. “Should have heard his screams, he woke up drenched in sweat and crying like a baby,” he added, smile turning to smirk. You had never seen so much Slytherin-ness on him before. “Serves him well.” 
You bit your cheek to avoid making your smile bigger. “Well guys, there’s a game I need to attend.” 
“Good luck!” Comet said with a smile as you waved them goodbye and started walking away. 
“We hope you lose,” added Nox casually, he actually liked Regulus, he’d always been a good roommate. Comet dug her elbow on his stomach, she didn’t care much for the Quidditch team, except for Minho, but she liked you better. 
“I don’t, I hope you win!” she said with a smile “but invite me to the celebration party, I’d hate to miss it.” 
You turned with a smile and a wink. “Of course, you’re always invited to the Gryffindor parties.” 
You continued walking towards the pitch, you bumped into Nina, who hugged you and wished you a great game. She told you she’d be watching on the Gryffindor side with Sibyl, which made you smile. 
After a few more minutes you were already on the pitch, everyone was there already, and Teddy was talking with Gale now, he turned to you and called your name, using his hand to prompt you to come.“James said you’ll be seeking.” You nodded, you knew. “But… and I know this might be a lot to ask, but could you keep an eye on Gale?” 
“But he’s brilliant!” you argued, and then turned to him, standing on the side. “You’re brilliant Gale, I told you already.” 
“He knows,” Teddy said, getting your attention again. “But he asked me to ask you to do it, just in case.” 
You looked between the two boys and realised that more than anything, what Gale wanted was reassurance, so you smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Of course, I’ve got you covered,” you bolstered him. “Just do your thing, be as fast as you always are but stay in the goals, all right?”  
“Will you teach me how to do the backflip?” he asked. 
You nodded, “How about I teach you during our next practice, in case you ever have to play keeper again?” 
He nodded excitedly. “I want to be as good as you one day.” 
“You’ll be even better,” you told him with a smile. And you truly believed he would, it was almost like a hunch. 
“All right guys,” Teddy said, “10 laps, we need some warm-up.” You nodded and did as told, speeding through the pitch as fast as your broom allowed, then up and down, practising the break before reaching the ground. 
Eventually, Teddy called everyone down, and you all started to gear up. You helped Gale with the many layers of protective gear he’d be wearing and then sat down near the bleachers to fasten your own gear. Most of the gear was similar to the stuff you wore normally. Although James had given you a pair of old gloves, that he said he’d used to win his first match. You tried not to think about the fact that your hands were so small that James’ had been the same size when he was 13, but then you remembered being James, and it actually made sense. 
“Feeling ready?” you heard a soft voice from behind and saw Remus’ hands out of the corner of your eye, as he sat down on the grass beside you. 
You hummed. “Yeah, I just need to finish with this,” you said as you pointed at the laces that you were passing through and around your shins. 
Remus leaned on his palms as he looked up. “It might rain soon,” he informed. 
“It’s a wonderful day!” You told him with a smirk, he gave you a side eye but smiled. 
“Here,” he said, giving you a small, marble-sized transparent ball. 
“A swamp bomb?” you asked curiously as you looked through the transparent-ish ball and looked at all the little murky water details inside.
“Throw it on the ground and you get an instant swamp,” he said with a smile. “Sirius and I trapped it on the marble a few years ago, we made one for each, they always carry them on rainy games.” 
“For… luck?” you asked with a bit of a frown. 
Remus quirked an eyebrow. “In case you slip off your broom,” he responded matter of factly, “use it and you’ll fall on water rather than on the grass, it’ll break your fall”
You gasped in shock, a surprised expression that turned into a smile the more you thought about it. “That’s insanely clever! It should be used as a failsafe for every quidditch player. I mean change the swamp for cleaner water and you have the perfect little artefact.” 
Remus nodded in agreement, “Keep it in you, all right?” 
You nodded. “You really did take the whole “taking care of me” thing seriously,” you said as you pocketed the marble. 
“Take care of you?” he asked with a frown. 
“Didn’t Sirius ask?” you asked a little confused. 
He had.
Although, Remus had been too busy trying not to blush when he grabbed his hand to put the hair tie in. Did he? he wondered, perhaps he did, I wasn’t exactly listening. Remus cleared his throat, you noticed he did that quite often when he was around you, you wondered if maybe he was getting sick or something. “Yeah, I… yeah, but you’re my best friend so, still…” 
You nudged him with your shoulder. “Don’t get all soft with me,” you joked. “You know I’ll be alright, don’t you?” 
He propped his elbows on his knees and leaned his head on them, giving you an expression you could only describe as cute, even for Remus. “I know,” he reassured. “How’s the shoulder?” he asked, brushing his fingers on it lightly. Perhaps he was giving himself too many liberties around you these days, you didn’t seem to mind it. 
“Better, it still hurts, but much better. Think James would have allowed me to play if he hadn’t gotten detention?” 
He humphed. “You would have convinced him, you always do. Maybe it’s the fairy bIood?” 
You shrugged, “Nah, mom was the last one in line with the ability to glamour.” 
He smiled, “How about going against Reg?” 
You swallowed thickly, you had told Remus about not using the hexbag on him. “It’s… It’s whatever.” 
“You still resent him?” 
“Am I petty?” you asked with a frown. “It’s… It’s not even about me and Sirius anymore, you know? It’s about the betrayal. I trusted him, Rem. I did, and Sirius warned me, he told me he was always doing what Walburga and Orion asked but I chose to trust Regulus. I thought I saw something in him, maybe a friend but… I guess I got my gut feeling wrong then.”
Remus nodded as he listened. “Did you ever talk to him about it?” 
Yes, Remus, the voice of reason, of course, that’s what he would ask. You averted your gaze and shook your head, “He sent a letter once.” 
“And?” 
“I burned it down without even opening it.” 
“You really have a knack for burning things that could be useful to you.” 
You hit his shoulder lightly, knowing exactly what he was talking about, the werewolf book pages. “Either way, I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to talk to him, things got really awkward when I blew him off during the race.” 
Remus sighed, he really had to go and fall in love with two of the most headstrong and stubborn people in his life. He was about to say something when Teddy called for you. You turned to him, a smile plastered on your face as if the sad subject hadn’t been touched at all. “Enjoy the show then,” you said in the most enticing tone before standing up and pulling your broom up to your hands without even saying a word. Impressive, Remus thought, but then again, she’s always been impressive. 
“The game is about to start,” Teddy informed, “Mckinnon, Lucas; Crouch will be all over Gale because he’s new, I want you to keep your eyes on him.” 
“I… I think perhaps he might be all over (Y/N),” Marlene said. “He’s got beef with her.”
Yeah, Beef is certainly a way to call it, you thought. “Nah, Minho is friends with her, she won’t be in the danger zone too often.” 
“I’m here,” you said, intervening with a raised hand, they were talking as if you weren’t. “And while I do think he’ll be trying to shoot the bludgers straight to my face, because that’s just who Barty is, I’ll stay close to Gale, no need to choose between the two, how does that sound?” you asked. 
“Fine, but don’t stay in place if you see the snitch, go right behind it.” 
“I was planning to.” You liked Teddy, you really did, but he wasn’t a great captain, James was.
“Davis, Tim, we’ll play offensive.” Teddy was still coordinating with the chasers when you heard a loud whistle sound from the referee. 
You all walked towards the centre of the pitch, Teddy at the forefront, you and Gale to each side of him. The Slytherin team was right in front of you, Regulus was looking at you with a bit of a frown, his lips pursed, as if he wanted to say something but was holding his tongue. 
You stared at him, and then at Barty who was glaring at you. You stood a little straighter, pulling your head back just a little and giving him the most unbothered and cocksure expression you could have mustered. It worked, his eyes narrowed and his glare thickened. Regulus, who had been watching the entire exchange, almost smiled proudly at your stance.  You really were the same girl he had met years ago at the resort, perhaps even a little bolder now that you were older. 
“Captains, greet each other,” the referee said –a Ravenclaw player who had been commissioned for the job. Dimitry and Teddy stepped ahead and shook hands. 
You shot Minho a look as they stretched their hands and he winked at you. You knew he wasn’t going to make it easy for you just because you were friends, and you were thrilled to finally be able to play against him. You had heard stories, and you had seen him in practice games, he was good, professional player material even. 
“Seekers,” the referee called, you turned to look at them, “your turn.” 
You took a step forward and awkwardly shook Regulus’ hand. It was as soft as Sirius’, you still found it impressive how much they looked like each other and how different they were from the other, “I’m looking forward to playing against you.” 
“I’m looking forward to beating you,” you said, a lot more bitterly than you originally intended for it to sound.
Regulus scoffed but smiled, that’s definitely something you would have said to him before the incident, although your tone would have for sure been different. The referee let the snitch out, and it circled Reg before circling around you and flying up into the air. You stared at the shiny orb until it disappeared in the air. Gale and Dimitry were already on the goals. There was another loud sound whistle, along with sparks and the game started.
You did as you promised, flew straight towards the goals and kept a decent distance between you and Gale, flying a little higher as you looked through every bit of the field to try and find the little golden ball. It hadn’t even been 10 minutes and the sky started to rumble. You looked up, and felt the first trickle of rain over your cheek. You smiled, things were about to get good. You had promised you’d stay near the goals, and you really did intend to do it. But then you saw something moving in the distance, barely a glimmer, a flicker of gold through the thick drops of rain. You turned to Regulus, he was looking towards the same spot you were. So you dived that way about at the same time he did. 
You saw Anne Davis get a grip on the ball and dive straight towards Volkov’s goals, she missed the shot and he threw the ball back to one of their chasers but Tim intercepted and shot it back, managing to score some points for your team. The crowd erupted in cheers and even you joined in their cheers. Tim beamed from his spot, it was the first time he played an official game, and managing to score was a huge moment for him, although you never doubted his ability.
You and Regulus were almost side by side, flying towards the east side of the pitch, but the snitch seemed to have vanished again, he did a swift break a few metres from the ground but you continued down hoping to see the sneaky little ball somewhere, breaking just before you reached the grass, and rolling around the bottom on circles to diffuse the momentum of the fall. You looked up, Gale was being surrounded by the beaters of both teams, while Marlene and Lucas were trying to push the ball to the other side Minho and Barty were viciously dragging it back to Gale. You took a deep breath and flew as fast as possible towards them, not quite looking at Gale but pretending you had seen something. That would get them off him and to follow you instead. 
“Don’t do anything stupid” you heard Sirius’ voice echo in your head. Well, it’s not stupid, you attempted to reason. It’s not like trying to stop a bludger with my own hands or stepping in front of one to defend Gale, definitely not like throwing your wand on the ground when facing a werewolf. This is teamwork. 
You followed through with your plan and continued taking sharp turns, emulating the kind of turns the snitch would make you take and surely enough, in a matter of seconds, you had both Minho and Barty all over you, throwing the bludgers at your face as you skid and dodged them over and over. Thank Merlin you had decent reflexes. 
Gale seemed to be a lot calmer now, and even if the reserve player, Solacis Gaunt, had scored 10 points earlier, he was visibly struggling to get past Gale’s defences. You smiled proudly at yourself as you continued to soar through the air, and dodged a few more throws from Crouch. Perhaps it was a bad idea to taunt him, but you couldn’t help yourself; when you steered clear of yet another shot from him, you turned around with a cocky smile and waved. 
Crouch did not look happy. Minho was laughing in the background and Marlene, who was still close to Gale, watched the whole interaction with a bit of a frown. That was it, the stupid thing Sirius had told you not to do. 
Even Remus, who didn’t have such a good view of the situation from the bleachers, noticed how you were haughtily making fun of Barty’s shot and stiffened in his seat. You could be so insolent sometimes, often failing to realise the consequences of what your actions could do to you. Like getting you thrown on the shrieking shack or almost eaten alive. Regardless, he had never seen anyone be so damn stunning while boasting. Actually, that was a lie, Sirius was equally beautiful when he did.
The game was tight, Regulus and you were darting almost side by side, he seemed a little confused at first because he couldn’t see the snitch you were so animatedly looking for, but then he noticed: your worrying looks at Gale, the little proud smile when he managed to stop a quaffle after Minho and Barty were off his back. She’s protecting him. 
Regulus knew Gale, they were in the same year, and he knew he was a good guy, he was always studying and even if he was a little too loud and conceited for his own taste, he respected him. In fact, he was a little surprised he was so self-conscious about the game since his very confident persona would rarely waver into diffidence. 
And then he saw the way you threw the boy a thumbs up and he realised: that could have been the kind of friendship that developed between the two of you. If he had done things differently, if he had perhaps… gone to the waterpark with you and Sirius. Maybe then you wouldn’t be so angry about the lies he’d told to keep you from harm. But he was also certain that what you wanted, for him to admit that it had been your idea, wouldn’t be something he would ever change, he wouldn’t have done anything to put you in danger. 
From the very beginning, you had been kind and friendly to him, like you were to everyone you met, and even if you were clearly drawn to Sirius like a moth to a flame, you had never left him out. You’d even tried to convince him to come along, but he was too scared, he’d seen the way his parents punished Sirius. He didn’t want his mom to pull that kind of face, let alone those kinds of spells…  Yeah, he might have been a bit of a coward, but everyone was safe in the end, and you were happy now, which in a way made him happy too. 
He hadn’t seen the snitch either way, so he followed your game, darting behind as close to you as he could. He knew Minho would control his shots if he thought he could hit him, so in a way, he was protecting you and himself, since your team’s beater would be doing the same. Although –and he was indeed curious about this– they seemed to be sticking to Gale rather than following behind you and protecting you, or trying to tumble down the other players, like they should.
But then it happened, another glimmer like the one you had seen earlier, passed just over Dimitry Volkov. He swallowed, eyeing you, but you hadn’t seen it, no you were too busy trying to avoid Barty’s aggressive blows. Regulus darted straight towards Volkov, and you instantly knew he was probably following the snitch. So you went right behind him, managing to get shoulder-to-shoulder against each other. 
BIoody hell, she’s fast. 
He knew that too, but it had never been as evident as having you flying against him, and you didn’t even have your Dark Nimbus anymore. Eventually, you saw the snitch too, and picked up your speed. Both you and Regulus were on the verge of getting it, the sly little ball darting just away from your grasp as if it had a mind of its own. 
It didn’t matter, both you and Regulus were as skilled as the other, which was something to say about the boy, since you had been doing this for a lot longer than he had. And even then, you found it a little hard to keep up with him in the sight department. Yes, you were faster, but the snitch often got lost in between the rain in your perspective, but Regulus seemed to always know where to go, never losing sight of it, which was getting on your nerves. 
You lost sight of it again and whispered “fuck,” the bludger darted your way and you speed forward, it brushed over the sweeping side of your broom and made you lose balance but the grip you had on the handle was strong and you managed to straighten up before the other bludger sped your way. 
You managed to move away from it this time, but not before sending Minho an incredulous look, he just shrugged with a small smile in response “I told you I wouldn’t make it easy for you darling!” You rolled your eyes but nodded, moving out of the way as Marlene shot the bludger back, straight towards Minho, who barely had enough time to react. 
You chuckled at his incredulous reaction, as if he was genuinely shocked. Which made sense, last time he’d seen Marlene, she was still guarding Gale like a loyal dog. She threw you a look, a small nod as she let you know “I’m with you” without having to say a word. You looked at her with worry and turned to give Gale a look, once you made sure he was fine, you turned to her again with a smile.
Yes, Teddy had told her to stay by Gale’s side, but you truly needed to have 0 common sense to stay guarding someone who didn’t need protection and leave someone that was struggling with so many bludgers thrown their way by themselves. Besides, you were roommates, friends, she wasn’t gonna let you fall off that broom. 
With Marlene on your side, you managed to let go of some of the extra apprehension you had been withholding to try and stay on your broom, she was countering the bludgers and you finally managed to focus on the snitch.
You tore through the air, faster than you had in the previous game, and faster than you had in the race, even without your broom, you’d somehow managed to pick up more speed, the wind whipping past with a biting force. You weren’t sure why it was happening, but you were benefiting from it so you didn’t think much about it. 
You were shoulder to shoulder with Regulus again when your eyes landed on the snitch, it wasn’t far, you just needed to push through a little further. You could feel the sharp droplets of rain hitting against your face like icy needles from how fast you were moving, and the clouding in your glasses made it a little hard to see much of anything, but you were focused. Gaze fixed solely on the elusive glint of the snitch, tantalisingly close. You weren’t going to lose sight of it this time, not now that you were ahead of Reg. 
As you neared the prize, almost forgetting your surroundings, you felt it, the yanking of your broom, the same yanking that had jolted you off it a few weeks past. Clenching your teeth, you tightened your grip and tried to push through, ignoring the feeling, you were so close. The snitch was within reach; your outstretched hands were on the verge of capturing it, ignoring the strain on your shoulder from how fiercely you were using your arm to grapple the broom, you fought to maintain control over it.
Regulus noticed “Barty!” He spat angrily. You didn’t hear any of it, the broom was pulling backwards, prompting a split-second decision. So you did the only logical thing you could and harnessed the momentum to leap towards the snitch just as the broom slipped from beneath you. Then, the fall began. 
The whole crowd seemed to be holding their breath. Regulus, Marlene and Minho, who had been the closest all tried to fly towards you, to catch you before you hit the ground, not that you noticed. 
You were rather high when you started to fall, and it almost felt like it was in slow motion, but you had already dragged your hand to the marble Remus had given you earlier when you felt the broom slipping from under your legs. You threw the marble to the ground and braced yourself for the rest of the fall. Trying to keep your eyes open as you wrapped your arms around your body and hoped to fall into the murky water. 
In less than two seconds, you felt the freezing hit of the water all around you, lowering your temperature even more. Fortunately, the pocket swamp was deep enough, you didn’t even reach the bottom as you fell a few metres down the water. It took a minute to adjust, opening your eyes as you looked down, managing to see only darkness and some vines of seaweed. However, just as relief washed over you, and you started swimming upwards, you felt something grip onto your ankle. You looked down, panic cursing through your veins when you noticed the bony hand attempting to drag you down. What the fuck?
Above the water, the game seemed to be frozen, the players didn’t know if they should continue playing when two members of the Slytherin team and two of the Gryffindor were completely distracted by the accident. 
“Minho, Regulus!” Dimitri shouted, “to your fucking positions.”
Teddy seemed to be about to do the same thing when Marlene threw him a warning look and he shot up, indicating the rest of the team to be on guard with his hands instead of speaking. 
Minho turned to Dimitry, second-guessing himself, before turning back to the rippling water in front of him, you weren’t out yet. He shook his head and chose to stay, taking his wand and pointing it to the water “Hidroclearus!” The murky water responded to the spell, gradually clearing to reveal the unfolding scene beneath the surface.
Regulus didn’t even turn to look at Dimitri, he was fully focused on the water, worried. 
Remus, who had seen you fall, had already crossed half the pitch with a panicked look on his face, followed by a terrified Lily, and a very concerned Mary. Your Slytherin and Ravenclaw friends were on the edge of their seats. Everyone except for Sibyl, that was trying to get Nina –who was crying hysterically–to calm down.  
Someone was trying to stop Remus from going deeper into the field, so they wouldn’t interrupt the game further, but he pushed them off his way easily, Lily and Mary weren’t as lucky, and they were stopped by the game staff as Remus strode towards the swamp. 
Under the thick water, your initial shock faded quickly, and you realised that whenever the boys had trapped the swamp in the marble, they had also trapped some kind of water creature. A water creature that was clearly pissed and very hungry after being carried around the boys’ pockets for so long. You pulled your wand out and cast a wordless reducto, getting it to snap his hand away, and started swimming upwards as fast as you could. By then, the water was clearer and Minho saw you, struggling to outswim the creature. 
You threw a few other curses at the thing but it was relentless, it wasn’t thinking anymore, the creature had starved inside the marble for so long, the pain your spells caused was completely overshadowed by the rumbling of its stomach the moment it noticed: you were food.
Regardless, there was something you had that the monster didn’t, and that was raw stubbornness, you kept shooting jinxes and swimming however you could, and then you saw a hand, you had no idea who the owner was, but a stranger’s hand was still better than being eaten alive, you reached for it, the hand gripped around your wrist and hauled you up. 
Seconds later you were finally above water, gasping for air and panting, you turned to the side, Minho, you realised. You looked back warily, pulling him by his robe as you stared at the water, and only relaxed when you were sure the thing was not about to follow. 
Regardless you pulled your wand and whispered “glacius.” A thick layer of frost started to coat the lake and you finally exhaled.  You pulled your head back, looking at the sky, the game was still going, but everyone was on edge. Regulus was looking at you in shock, but he seemed more angry than anything and Marlene rushed towards you before the lake froze completely. 
She placed her hands around your face, “Are you… are you okay?” 
You nodded, head a little squiffy as you tried to gain back focus, the surge of adrenaline finally draining and letting you feel the discomfort of the fall, and the one from your wound. Then you looked up again. “Why… why are they still playing?” 
“Regulus stopped searching for the snitch the moment you fell,” she told you, Minho was still standing beside you, worry evident on his furrowed brows, he’d never seen you so fazed. Remus had, but that did not make his long strides slow down. He was also rather angry about the game continuing even after the entire thing had happened. Everyone should have stopped, everyone should be helping you. 
He exchanged a look with Minho, the boy stared at Remus’s eyes for a second, seeing the worry and his concern, it reached deeper than his own, and he instantly knew. Yun Minho, the boy who had once kissed Remus, and knew the meaning behind his eyes from the amount of stolen glances they had shared at some point, was the first one to realise how irrevocably in love he was with you.
“That… that doesn’t matter.” 
“I bIoody well agree but those are not the rules!” Marlene said, a little riled up but trying to control her anger.  
“No,” you said slowly. “I mean, the game is over.” 
Marlene frowned, and then Regulus noticed, in one of your hands, the one you had kept glued to your body the entire time, knuckles white from your hard grip, there was something, a small, unfolding wing, and he looked at you, absolutely stunned. 
Still looking at Marlene you gave her a lazy smile, tilted your head and pulled your hand up, slowly unwrapping it until you were holding the snitch in between your index finger and thumb. Marlene’s jaw dropped while Minho looked at you impressed and patted you on the back.  
You didn’t wince, but turned to him with a smile. “That was quite a game,” he said. 
You nodded, letting a soft laugh out, raising your hand higher, so people would notice. The commentator, who had been struggling on whether to keep up with what was happening in the air or what was happening with you, gasped. “She has the snitch!” he said pointing at you, more surprised than anything before clearing his throat and announcing it properly, “That’s 150 points for Gryffindor! The final score is 200 against 60.” 
You raised your eyebrows, Gryffindor had been losing by one shot. You could see your teammates start to fly down but were distracted by a bone-crushing hug, you hadn’t seen him coming, but you knew it was Remus instantly, his smell was unmistakable.
You smiled at his hug, you knew you were soaking him with murky, smelly water, but he didn’t seem to care, he was just glad you were all right, you almost snuggled your head on his chest, basking on his warmth, warmth that he had somehow kept despite the cold rain still falling over everyone. 
“Rem?” you managed to mumble, he hummed in response, his head was on your shoulder, his eyes shut tightly as a tear of relief soaked your robe, you were fat too wet to notice. “You’re… you’re crushing me a little.” 
His head snapped from its place and he looked at you with worry as he pulled back, his hands still on your arms. Now looking all over you, trying to make sure you weren’t hurt, that he hadn’t hurt you either. 
You noticed instantly, the panic in his beautiful brown eyes. “It was just a little,” you reassured. “I’m fine,” you added. “Thanks to you, actually.” 
Professor Pendragon had rushed towards you and stared at the lake, Nightshade was trailing behind, Remus stepped aside, but kept his hand on your back as the dark-haired teacher leaned closer to inspect you. “There’s a water spirit under the swamp,” you informed, “It’s hungry.” 
She raised her eyebrows at you, impressed at your quick thinking. “That’s why you frosted it.”  
“Didn’t want it to come up after me.” 
“You had to fight it, presumably.” 
You nodded, “It wasn’t that hard.” 
Remus narrowed his eyes, it was as if you and Seraphina were saying a lot more words to each other than the ones he was actually listening to, it was in the intense gaze you shared, you seemed uncomfortable, almost on edge, but she seemed… pleased. 
Professor Pendragon intervened a little later, he called you by your last name “You must be taken to the infirmary.” You threw a worried look at Remus, he had also wanted to take you there, but he bIoody well knew he couldn’t. 
“I’m fine, it won’t be necessary,” you said with a smile. Nightshade tilted her head backwards, she knew why you had declined, you were clever, you knew people couldn’t see the probably still rather fresh would your werewolf friend had caused you. “I’ll just… go dry up and I’ll be good as new, the water broke most of the fall,” you added, reassuringly. 
Cunning, Nightshade realised, she would have also been fooled, if she hadn’t known better. But she did, and she knew how much that fall must have stung. 
Lily and Mary had somehow managed to get across now that the game was over and they were fast approaching but Gale beat them to it, and he also pulled you into a hug “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” he repeated like a mantra. You frowned at him and allowed him to pull back of his own accord. “If it hadn’t been for me and my-” 
You shook your head. “Nothing was your fault, Gale. I’m fine, we won! You did incredible today too.” 
He still seemed a little uneasy but nodded. “Yeah Thomas, it wasn’t your fault, if anything, it was Teddy who told me and Lucas to stay by your side,” Marlene said, throwing the chaser an angry side eye. He recoiled, he’d been staying a little further from the reunion. Lily and Marlene came over next, squeezing you in between the two of them before Peter did the same.
The rest of your friends also came down to tell you how happy they were that you were fine, Nina had pulled you into a hug almost as tight as Remus’ and didn’t let go of you for a few minutes while Sybil attempted to pull her off a few times. After a few more hugs, everyone seemed to be ready to start the Gryffindor celebration party.  You had whispered Comet the passwords when she came to make sure you were all right, and she smiled, telling you she’d bring Nox along, even if he wanted you to lose initially. 
After you and most of your friends started to walk towards the Common Room you felt a rather sharp pain in your arm. You winced but swallowed a whimper, you didn’t want to worry any of your friends, especially Lily and Remus, who looked somewhat at ease now. 
“I’m gonna go to the bathroom,” you announced. 
Lily frowned, “I’ll come along…” 
You shook your head. “No need. It’ll be quick, I’ll see you in the common room. Could you help me find something cosy to change into?” 
She gave you a scrutinising look but nodded. Stepping ahead, but as you diverted, you felt an arm stopping you. “Where do you think you’re going, young lady?” he joked. 
You turned to Remus with a diverted smile. “To the Toilets. Care to accompany me?” you said the last bit with sarcasm. 
Remus chuckled. “What if I do?” he said then, in a rather teasing tone. “With the magnet you have for trouble I wouldn’t be surprised if you bumped into a troll or something.” 
“A troll? In the girl’s lavatories?! Don’t be ridiculous, Rem! Go on and spare some fire whiskey from me, why don’t you?” 
He wasn’t too sure about letting you go on your own, but he also knew how you were feeling, you had been literally surrounded by people from the moment you’d stepped out of the murky lake, and while it was nice to get hugged and all after getting hurt, sometimes all you needed was time to process what was had happened, he would know, he certainly did sometimes. 
Perhaps, like he had many times, you just wanted a few minutes for peace and quiet. And although it took him a few seconds, he reluctantly let go of his grip on your arm and allowed you to go. “How much?” he asked with a smile. 
“At least a flask,” you responded, he arched an eyebrow at you. “Come on, I’ve had quite a week, I deserve it, don’t I?” 
He chuckled and nodded. “I’ll save two then.” 
You smiled widely “That’s why I love you, Moony!” You had used a rather playful tone when you said it but that didn’t stop the knot that formed on the boy’s stomach, “See you in a bit, yeah?” 
The boy nodded and you turned towards the toilets, speeding through to check on the wound. You removed your robe and sweater and used a spell to wipe them off the murky water as you checked the wound. Quickly washing it over the sink as you saw the splotches of cherry red slide down, contrasting against the porcelain white sink. 
You rolled your eyes, the fucking wound was getting more annoying and inconvenient than painful at this point. Regardless, you dried it out, threw some of the painful ointment you had kept in your pocket with a spell for it to remain fresh in case of an emergency and wrapped it again, wiping the tears that fell from your eyes from the sharp sting of the dreadful but effective medicine you had somehow crafted. 
You took a deep breath and moved towards the outside, you were just rounding the corner when you heard two voices, two very recognizable voices. 
“You fucking asshole,” Regulus said, anger dripping from his tone.
“Off me, Black!” Barty countered. You leaned your head over, Regulus had him pushed against the wall as Barty fumed and tried to squirm his way out. Regulus was taller, but Barty had always been more vicious, and you knew how strong he was, after all, he had been the one to haul you to the shack on Monday. 
“You do that again and you’re dеad meat,” Regulus seethed in between gritted teeth. “You got what you wanted, now back the fuck off!” 
“Why are you even trying to… You didn’t have the nightmares I had! You SAW Evan, in the fucking infirmary!” Barty seemed to feel actual grief over that last bit.
“You both had that one coming, you think I’m blind? You’ve had it against them since the quaffle incident.” 
“Well, she had it coming too!” The boy against the wall complained. It’s about me, you realised. And it almost pissed you off that Regulus would even try to defend you, who the hell does he think he is?!
You turned around to leave when you heard Regulus mutter a jinx and heard a howl from Crouch, you leaned over the wall again, to try and see what had happened, but Barty spotted you. 
“Bitch’s here,” he said as he nodded your way, his jaw slightly slack.
“Yeah and this is none of my business,” you said, skipping past the two boys, not sparing a second glance at Barty, who was on the floor clutching his stomach. 
“Hey!” you heard Regulus’ distressed voice “Wait up.” 
Barty huffed at his reaction, rolling his eyes as Regulus trailed behind you like a lost puppy. Fucking Blacks’ obsession with that fucking girl, he thought as he stood up and limped to the other side. 
“I said wait up!” Regulus said, grabbing your forearm. You yanked it away from him, with a vicious frown. 
“Regulus, don’t fucking touch me,” you said in a warning tone, he seemed to recoil but stood his ground. 
“Let me explain,” he said, running past you and blocking your path, the anguished look on his face reminded you so much of Sirius you almost folded  “I–” 
“No need to explain,” you dismissed while shaking your head. “Whatever you do with your life is your fucking business. And no need to worry about it, I don’t like talking behind people's backs like others. I’m no snitch, and I’m not gonna go running my mouth either.” 
He seemed taken aback by that, blinking a few times as he processed the information. “You…” he stammered, “you never read my letter.” 
You scoffed. “Of course I didn’t fucking read your letter Regulus, there was nothing you could have said to take back what you’d done. Sirius and I didn’t talk to each other for fucking years after that, I thought he hated me!” You were angry, bottled-up emotions spilling out of you like boiling water in a small pot. He was quiet, staring at you like he didn’t know what to say “Fucking thought so,” you whispered and skipped past him.
He had thought of so many things to say to you over the years. He was sure you hated him because he hadn’t let out the fact that it had been your idea, not for telling his parents about the escapade, and of all the times he had run this conversation in his head, none of them had included that fact. He felt like short-circuiting, and you were about to turn the corner when he managed to say something. “It wasn’t me!” You continued your way. “I didn’t tell them, I wasn’t the snitch!” 
You froze in place, what? that… it doesn’t make sense. 
Regulus took a deep breath, grateful you were listening, finally listening. “Someone sent an owl to my dad, they said they’d seen you in town.” 
You turned to look at him, your eyes analysing him, his words, his red-rimmed eyes and the absolute raw emotion visible on his face, nothing like the stoic Regulus you were accustomed to. 
“He asked me where you were,” he continued narrating. “I told him you had gone flying but he already knew. Then he slipped something in my drink and I couldn’t– it was veritaserum.” 
You looked at him shocked, he was about to cry from the memory. Veritaserum? His parents used veritaserum on him?!? You wouldn’t put it past Orion and Walburga but still, it was absolutely heinous. “Reggie….” 
He let out something in between a breath and a sob when he heard the nickname, the same nickname he had hated but longed to hear after the incident. He looked so much like Sirius you wanted nothing more than to comfort him, you hastily realised how awful you had been. 
“You never…” you swallowed. “You didn’t snitch on us.” He shook his head.  You sighed, you face falling. “BIoody hell, I’m an asshole,” you said thinking back to all the times you had ignored and blown off the boy, your boyfriend’s little brother for fucks sake.
“You didn’t know,” he tried to reassure. 
“Ignorance is no excuse,” you managed to say, disgusted with the way you had treated the poor boy. A boy who –and you had noticed from the beginning– craved a decent friendship, some kind of human connection. All the attachment you had felt for him before the escapade at the hotel came crashing back, and you groaned and how much of an asshole you had been “Sorry.” 
He shrugged, “Does that… does that mean you don’t hate me anymore?” 
You sighed again, cringing at yourself for causing such an impression on him. “Of course, I don’t fucking hate you Reggie. I was pissed, I AM pissed, I…” you struggled to form a coherent sentence .“I trusted you, besides Sirius warning, I trusted you because it was what my gut told me to do and then… then I thought you had betrayed us and I was pissed, I was pissed at you, at my parents at your parents, at Sirius who didn’t admit it was my idea and…” you sucked in a breath, “I was pissed with myself, for being foolish enough to trust you.” 
“I’m sorry…”
You shook your head, taking a step closer, the urge to comfort him almost taking over, “No Reg… It’s me, I AM sorry, for not giving you a chance to–” You remembered the train, the race, the other times Regulus had tried to approach you and you had either ignored him or scowled at him to scare him away “–And you tried so many times.” 
He laughed at himself, “I’ve been told I’m rather stubborn.” 
You let out a breathy laugh. “Reminds me of someone.” 
“Will you…” He hesitated, “Will you tell Sirius?” he asked, a mix of frightened and hopeful. 
You nodded, “He needs to know, he’s… resentful.” 
Regulus swallowed, another one of those expressions you had seen your boyfriend do, his eyes were still red, his breath was heavy and he looked like he was about to burst into a panic attack, you took another step towards him, reaching your hand to grab onto his arm before you stopped yourself. “Do you mind it if I–” you started, “can I hug you?” 
He turned to you, a little shocked at your request, Regulus looked like he desperately needed a hug, you weren’t sure if your hug was the one he needed, but you hoped you could comfort him, if only to take back a little bit of the evil you had done to him, even if it was under the wrong belief. 
Eventually, he nodded and you leaned closer, wrapping your arms around him, he was taller than you, unlike when you’d met, shorter than Sirius, but taller than you regardless. “I’m sorry,” you whispered, “for being a piece of shit.” 
“You didn’t know.” 
“I should have known. I just needed someone to blame and then Sirius–”  
“It’s fine now,” he said with a smile. You don’t hate me anymore. Regulus seemed to relax as you rubbed your hand on his back, trying to comfort him as best as you could, and then he pulled back. “You have a party to attend to,” he told you, motioning to the side. “You were brilliant today.” 
You smiled, “Bullshit, I pretended to know where the snitch was just to get Barty off Gale’s back.” 
“And you fooled him,” he added with a bit of a smile. “That’s no easy feat.” 
You shrugged, “You certainly helped.” 
“That’s what friends are for.” 
You swallowed. “Did you… did you let me win?” you asked with a frown. 
He looked at you, eyebrows raised, “I would never let you win!” he said disdainfully, a whisper of the disagreeable Reggie you had met at the park. “It wouldn’t be fair to you.” 
You nodded, a small smile playing on your lips. “So that means I won fair and square.” 
“You jumped off your fucking broom to get the snitch, of course, you won fair and square.” 
You shrugged, “I knew I had the swamp marble, and I was gonna fall off the broom anyway.” 
He clenched his jaw, “Fucking Barty.” 
“I can deal with him, don’t keep messing around or you’ll end up with a shaved head or something one day.” He placed a hand on his hair, looking slightly panicked and you laughed. “You’re so much like Sirius is ridiculous.” 
He frowned at that. “Just go to your party.” 
You smiled again, holding a laugh as you turned around, deciding not to tease him further, but you turned back to him “Hey Reg… Will you be alright?” 
He looked at you and nodded. “I’ve got you as an ally now, of course, I’ll be alright.” 
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A/N: You guys, I had some people asking me about Reggie for a while and I did mention that eventually things would be fixed up between him and the reader, didn't I? I know it took a while but it was sooo satisfying to write this one, and I've been wanting to see your reactions since I wrote it a few weeks ago, I really hope you enjoyed it <;3 Reggie deserves all the love!
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picturejasper20 · 14 days
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Looking back the ending of Gravity Falls while thinking about endings of other series like Amphibia and The Ghost and Molly Mcgee, Weirdmageddon has a message that is underwhelming when it comes to Dipper and Mabel's relationship and Mabel's potrayal in the show.
This isn't about Mabel getting tricked by Bill. She is a 12-13 years old that in that context she was feeling really bad and not thinking well what she was doing. That isn't relevant to the topic at hand and honestly it isn't a problem she did that, it does makes sense in the episode it happened.
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What i have an issue is how the narrative makes Dipper feel bad about considering staying studying with Stanford. This is something that Dipper was interested in and he was very fascinated by anything that was paranormal related. Stanford himself told Dipper he had a lot of potential and the kid was digging into it.
Mabel lashing out and not liking the idea of Dipper staying with Stanford is understandable in the episode Dipper and Mabel vs. the Future. She doesn't seem to have much friends back in her home and her parents are implied to not be the best. She gets scared of Dipper leaving, that's a reasonable fear for a kid to have.
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However, as i mentioned before, Dipper is made feel bad about considering choosing something he wants to do. It isn't Mabel who has to learn that things change and sometimes this brings things we don't like. She doesn't exactly consider what Dipper wants for himself, she mainly cares about how ¨she is going to be alone¨ and making her brother feel selfish for choosing his own path or do something that could make him happy.
Yes, she learns that things can't stay the same forever and they are growing up, that itself is a pretty good development for her and overall a good message to teach.
Yet her being codependent on Dipper doesn't get brought up nor addressed, in fact the series seems to praise this behavior of hers. In how Dipper has to do what she wants if not he is a bad brother. Mabel's clinginess and controlling behaviour to an extent isn't called out, which that itself is a problem.
Small edit: I want to add an extra point here that Mabel does have a short scene near the end of the episode that she tells Dipper that she won't get in his way if he wants to stay with Stanford and she was ¨acting nuts¨ in the dream bubble. This is good for her but it does still feel in part that her issues weren't fully acknowledged and it doesn't help she didn't say this until after Dipper told her that he was going to stay with her and not be with Stanford, which is rather questionable in my opinion. It would have been more appropiate in the episode to have this brought up and getting adressed better than for her to wait for Dipper to do what she wanted.
In contrast in Amphibia, Marcy Wu has a similar arc about change. The series explores how she can take her escapism too far and how she can be very selfish in plenty of ways, something that is potrayed as an aspect she has to learn from and realize that it isn't healthy.
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Her being too codependent on Anne and Sasha and their overall friendship is potrayed as toxic and the series explores this relationship a lot, having the girls grow over time and think about different aspects they have to work on.
In ¨True Colors¨ it is revealed that Marcy Wu learned about the Calamity Box the same day she got told by her parents that they were moving away. Very afraid of having to leave her friends behind and having to be alone in a new city, she found the Calamity Box and told Sasha and Anne about it. Worth of mentioning she didn't know if it would work but it was a desperate act of her just to not having to move away from her friends yet.
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When Sasha and Anne find out about this they are, not surprisingly, very pissed and push from Marcy away for a moment, making Marcy realize her mistake and eventually apologizes for what she did.
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In ¨All In¨ Marcy finally comes to terms with how she can't force Anne and Sasha to be the way she wants them to be and that her codependency on them isn't a good thing. She realizes that has to move away to her new home at some point, that things change but that doesn't mean the three of them have to stop being friends.
As you can see, there is a clear difference between how Mabel Pines and Marcy Wu’s characters and flaws are potrayed in the narrative. While Gravity Falls makes Mabel’s codependency and controlling behaviour to be something acceptable and that Dipper should conform to, Amphibia does the complete opposite and presents Marcy Wu’s actions as flaws she has and that can hurt other people, including her friends. She is the one that has to make a change and understand she has to work on herself if she wants to have new friends and keep these relationships as times moves on.
Since we are on topic, one thing that really bothered me is how Mabel created a version of Dipper that is ¨cool¨ and says yes and goes along with everything she wants to do. (Weirdmageddon Part 2)
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This has… interesting implications of how Mabel believes that relationships should work, or at least with her brother twin Dipper. A lot has to do with how she and Dipper have very different personalities and she maybe wishes that he was more like her, but expecting someone else to say ¨yes¨ to everything you want is a toxic mentality to have. And the episode itself doesn’t address this enough, it doesn’t bring up to Mabel she can’t expect people to work like this and she should try thinking more about what others wants.
Lets talk about The Ghost and Molly Mcgee. In this series Molly Mcgee often has episodes where she has to learn certain lessons. One of them she learns over time is that often she has to give up control and let what others want to do instead.
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A good example of this is ¨Ready, Set, Snow!¨ in which she is constanly trying to make Libby and Scratch to go and play outside in the snow with her without considering they would rather stay inside and sit near the fire for the moment. She spends most of the episode trying to find ways to make them go outside until she gets angry and goes out on her own. She has… quite of a mental breakdown in a sequence song. Scratch goes to check on her but he tells to her that she can’t do always what she wants and what it is important is for her to be spending time with her friends. Molly realizes she was wrong, goes back to the house and she apologizes for how she acted.
Molly has quite a lot of episodes like this, and all this becomes important in the series finale ¨The End¨ when she sees that Scratch has to go back to be Todd even if that means forgetting the memories he got as a ghost, her included. She tells Scratch that she is going to miss him a lot but she knows that forcing Scratch to stay wouldn’t be right. She encourages Scratch to go and ¨live his life¨ because she cares about Scratch being happy.
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Similar to Marcy Wu, Molly learns that she can’t force people to do what she wants and she has to let them choose for themselves. She knows that encouraging Scratch to do what he always wanted to do as human is the right thing to do, even if it means saying goodbye to him.
I do understand the idea that Gravity Falls was doing at with something among the lines of ¨Dipper and Mabel not repeating the same mistakes that their uncles did¨ but that doesn’t mean Dipper has to give up his dreams at expense of what Mabel wants. As Dipper said in VS The Future episode: he can still visit and they can still talk to each other. They don’t have to fall apart the same way Standford and Stan did. Just like in Amphibia, if Marcy still was able to remain friends with Anne and Sasha over the years, the same can be applied to Dipper and Mabel as siblings.
If not, it could be rewritten in a way that makes Dipper reconsider that he would like to wait a few years before joining Stanford in his adventures. That he is still a kid and wants to spend a while longer figuring himself out and be with Mabel before making a decision. That way it feels more like a decision he wants to do for himself and goes along with his character arc that he doesn’t have to rush to grow up.
As for Mabel, she has a lot of growing up to do. She has to learn overtime that Dipper is his own person and he can take is own path. That if she wants to have friends or have in general healthy relationships with others, she can’t make it always about herself and people have their own needs as well. She would have to work on her codependency and clinginess she has on others, specially her own brother. This would help her with being a more mature capable individual when she grows up.
This post on itself isn’t me hating on Mabel’s character since she has moments she can be good and i feel a lot of her behaviour comes from not being taught properly and being a teenager. The problem is that the series doesn’t address this behaviour enough and, as result, it comes off as the series giving an unintentional underwhelming message of potraying Mabel’s issues as something that should be acceptable and not her having a dynamic with Dipper that comes off as toxic. It is important to understand to learn to support others and not always make things about ourselves. That sometimes relationships change and we can’t force people to be in a specific way.
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distantlaughter · 9 months
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THE SECRET NICO ROSBERG (IN HIS KARTING DAYS) TOLD BY DINO CHIESA
originally written by Luca Barnaba for TKART magazine 5 March 2022 (x)
The 2016 F1 world champion as you've never seen him before. Through the anecdotes (which are about destroyed hotel rooms, prostitutes and much more!) of those who knew him well, before he became a star.
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After winning the Formula 1 world championship in 2016 and retiring from racing at the end of that same season, Nico Rosberg has shed his driver's shoes to take on those of an entrepreneur-influencer. In recent years, the former Mercedes driver has been involved in a variety of areas, such as promoting projects aimed at environmental sustainability, creating teams that participate in international electric racing series (such as the Rosberg X Racing team in Extreme E), and posting vlogs, track analyses, and stories on social media and about his life and memories. In short… About what Nico Rosberg is today, one really knows or can know everything.
But to know who Nico Rosberg was before F1, world triumph and fame, one has to rely on the stories of the people who saw him grow up and take his first steps in karting, people who know him well, like few others. Dino Chiesa is one of them. A prominent figure in the world of karting, founder of Kart Republic, over the years he has been manager and mentor to some of the promising, later to become undisputed stars, in karting and beyond, including: Alex Zanardi, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Lewis Hamilton and… Nico Rosberg himself.
Of Nico's karting period there are several "stories," especially about the emergence of the friendship-rivalry with Lewis Hamilton (another phenomenon of that generation), but very little is said about who (and how) young Nico was.
It is Dino Chiesa himself who reveals: "I remember him as a child, perhaps smaller than others his age. In the sense that he was more innocent than other peers: 'mannered,' polite." Kids, you know, at 10 to 12 years old begin to develop their character, on and off the track. And, basically, they divide into two groups: those who are less…mischievous and those who…are a little more so. If of Nico we can safely say that he fell into the former, his friend and teammate at the time, Lewis Hamilton, just as quietly we can say that he was part of the latter: "I have an episode that explains how Nico was, even compared to Lewis. I picked them up at the airport. When we arrived in Padua, before dropping them off at the hotel, we passed through a street where there are several prostitutes. Nico, naively, asked me 'What are those women doing there'. And I, considering that he was only 13 years old, replied 'They are waiting for the bus.' Nico did not reply. After a few seconds, however, Lewis said 'Can I take the bus tonight?'"
The genuineness of Nico's era, goes hand in hand with his goodness, which, according to the manager, could also be a flaw, especially when it related to races and competitions, although "Like all good people," Dino Chiesa recounts, "he later bursts."
"And he goes further, erring twice. The first time because out of his goodness he suffered. The second time because by blurting out he then overreacts."
If the portrait of little Rosberg you are getting from these stories looks a lot like a blond angel, know that it is not so. Even Nico - as a teenager - had a chance to show himself reckless: "One morning," Chiesa says, "he comes to the track before the race, makes me promise not to say anything to anyone, and shows me a wound on his foot. I ask him, 'How did you do that?' He said, 'Lewis started hitting me with pillows last night. I responded and we ended up throwing mattresses at each other outside the window of our hotel room. To avoid getting caught by my father and you we went to get them back only to climb over a net…I cut my foot!' I couldn't bring myself to scold him!"
A "naughty" little boy, like many others, then. Unlike many, however, Nico had to handle an unusual challenge early on, that of carrying a "heavy" last name on his shoulders: "Certainly having a father like Keke must not always have been easy. Every time, especially as a child, the comparison was automatically triggered, even though Nico was someone who never abused his surname and did not seek advantages just because he was famous.
"Indeed, as I know him, he is someone who would even go and sleep in a 2-star hotel without necessarily needing to have the suite. Also because, to be honest… He is someone who is very careful about spending."
His distinguishing features over the years have not changed: "For me he is still Nico, the kart guy. He hasn't changed. As he was then he is now, so much so that we talk very often by text or phone. And I for him, in my opinion, am still the one in the kart, his boss. So much so that he still calls me 'boss' today." Also because in his interpersonal relationships he has always maintained that good dose of genuineness: "He's not one of those people who has to have his friends who are soccer players or who are stars. If there is a need to go for a bike ride to train, he even goes with his neighbour."
Impossible, however, to talk about Nico Rosberg without putting his innate talent under the magnifying glass: "I put him among the best in the dry lap! In behaviour, however, he is a gentleman. One of those who does no improprieties, never over the top. Fast, but correct. Not a common thing." But his strong point was undoubtedly working on the kart and finding the best set-up: "He was The Best. In the sense that he was the first to do the dirty work, to prepare the material, to do whatever was necessary to develop chassis and engines."
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ultraviolet-cello · 4 months
Text
Gooooood morning Trigun fandom, I'm up bright and early, ready to sink my teeth into today's analysis/detailed watchthrough episode - 11. To A New World.
I can't believe we're almost done with @tristampparty. These 12 days have been a blast and I'm very glad that I got to chat abt them!! I've been in a bout of artblock recently too, so I'm glad that I can just ramble instead!
Spoilers for Trigun Stampede and Trigun Maximum, and CWs for. okay this one is a Lot, but discussion of violation of bodily autonomy, sexual assault and trauma, pregnancy, transphobia, harm coming to children, Millions Knives in general, Vash's passive suicidal tendencies. If I think of any more I'll pop them up here but this episode is a heavy one!
If you wanna skip those first few CWs (Totally understandable <3), you can skip the paragraphs labelled with a [CW] at the front.
[CW] Okay so we're gonna tail off the end of Episode 10 for a second, but uh. Knives in this scene is using extremely Loaded Language to outright tell Vash that there is something wrong with him that needs to be fixed.
Just to be clear I do think Vash is very trans-coded (intentionally or not), and that very strongly influences how I interpret this scene - I myself am a trans man as well.
Cool, moving on! That's all really for the end of ep 10, I just needed to point out that Knives is using language that is commonly used to justify corrective sexual assault; which is pretty much what my reading of this scene is analogous to.
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what in the fresh hell i got jumpscared by dub again. returning to subs hold on a moment. Like i've been checking dub occasionally to match up some dialogue and make sure I'm not being misled by Subtitle Jank but I'm one of those guys who can't listen to anything without subtitles lmao
But i also think i do get the funniest possible translation of this line - actually wait no i hate the double meaning (with Vash's body being used to kickstart the pregnancy imagery). was that intentional. who did this.
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Anyway Meryl kicking Wolfwood is really funny but also like. Yeah. justified. She's having a no good awful time but like. She's so willing to believe in Vash, to chase after him even into Extremely Dangerous conditions (There's those hints of Trimax Meryl again....) and Wolfwood is being an ass here. (An understandable ass. But an ass nonetheless). Which is to say YEAHHH MERYL GET HIS ASS!!!
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Knives' gay little like. bodysuit here. He and Vash have the same build but their respective clothes make them stand out very differently. Also that Knives' stuff seems to have more muscle definition (HYDRATE. You shouldn't have that Knives you need water :pensive:) which could be building towards his more intimidating appearance.
Also I'd be a fool to not show everyone my initial reaction to this
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I've talked a little bit about how Vash uses his gun as a tonfa (thwacky baton) most of the time in melee combat, and I think that's a great way to show him utilizing something Knives gave him to Kill as a nonlethal weapon - in this, however, he doesn't have it and his normally very fluid very good form martial arts is flailing and panicked. Vash is pretty good at keeping his cool in most combat situations, and is a very skilled fighter. Seeing him lose that cool and just start struggling when Knives tries to grab him is :(
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Once again the metal/organic dichotomy is coming into play - the creation of inorganic but the destruction that comes from the organic. Typically plant (as in flora) powers in media lend themselves to being creation powers, life, and healing. But Vash here has that plant (flora) theme but those are very much a force for destruction.
Also Knives with the angelic white, and Vash with the black.
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I hate Conrad So Much (he's such a good character). Like we Know to some extent that dependent plants are self-aware enough to feel pain, to hold onto memories, to hatred, to love. They don't have consciousness the same way humans or Independents do, but they feel, they live, they understand what Vash tells them. Maybe it is a shallow form of themselves. But I think something a lot of people fail to realize is that (some, not all, because they are individuals even throughout a hivemind) plants appear to enjoy their purpose.
Once again the memory that is shared with Knives in Trimax of a woman and her child thanking the plant for her service and she smiles? After being fused, that plant held onto that memory. I've been given no reason to believe that plants in Tristamp are different, so Conrad is just,,, ignoring the subtleties of plants and taking away their agency to choose for themselves. Doubly so for Knives, who can communicate efficiently with them.
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A very quick blink and you'll miss it detail is that Vash says "It was our fault humans crashed here!". The shifting blame and guilt between the two is something that is fighting the narrative allll the time, but Vash attributing to both of them as an appeal to Knives is interesting to relay how he feels.
I also don't think Vash is right, though, when he says the only reason humans abuse plants is because they crashed. Tesla was before, Chronica in Trimax has apparently seen independent fusions before (For what reason?). Like yeah to this extent it's a result of the big fall, but there'd still be problems without it. Nobody is right in this argument lmao
(except me. I'm always correct about everything ever)
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[CW] Once again - violating Vash's consent and autonomy because he does not agree with or differs from Knives. Corrective violation, in this case. It's also important that it's Meryl who calls this out - she has to really really struggle for her autonomy to be important. She's small, carry-able, inexperienced, doesn't have any special powers or genetic modification. She's carrying a tiny gun from a man who can never back her up anymore. In fact, nobody is backing her up! She's out here alone! But she's sticking up for Vash. She cares about him,,,, so much
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SURPRISE ROBERTO ATTACK [sobs]
Meryl pulled the nail out of him and placed his hands gently over the wound, as one might do in a casket. A memorial of cigarettes and his flask. All this will be destroyed soon, but Meryl did give him a funeral to the best of her ability.
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Knives using Roberto's image is cruel as hell. Not to Vash but to ME. He's already dead you can't do this to meeee. "How do you think they'll react when they learn you caused the big fall" He will never learn it!! he never got the chance!!!
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So fun fact you can actually eat geraniums. It's just that if Rem had said yes Vash probably would have eaten it right there and then. I've made that mistake before (told one of my class that nasturtiums were edible and he just ate one. right from the plant)
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So; the Tesla scene. Something I do want to point out is that Rem finds them almost immediately, and Knives doesn't immediately pass out - Is he still catatonic enough to miss Rem's speech, or did he hear it? Because the reason that Vash turned out like he did is because he was awake to go through that with Rem - Knives was unconscious the entire time and didn't get to start that trauma recovery.
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It's also important to recognize that these memories could be unreliable, especially as Knives tampers with them later.
I do want to know which version of the Bible Knives was reading. Because depending on translation/version, you can get Very different ideas out of that.
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Anyway Knives is kind of beginning his spiral in that memory - "Humanity never learns" kinda shit, which seems to take place after Tesla. Who knows how long. But baby Vash calls that out and goes "yeah lets have faith"! Baby Knives looks a tad shocked and then Present Knives just. Cuts off the memory. What was the ensuing conversation!!! Hello???
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Like he's clearly Having Thoughts (The Horror), we just don't get to know what those were.
So remember when I said it was interesting that Vash said it was "our" fault that the ships crashed, sharing the blame?
Yeah that gave Knives some ammo that just. Broke him. Shifts it allllll to Vash. Update Vash's description to running on 18 guilt complexes, CPTSD, and bisexuality.
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[CW] There's so many different forms of assault, metaphorical and. Not. That is happening in this scene from mind violation to Knives literally using Vash's (specifically Vash's) body as a vessel to impregnate other plants which. Hey did you know that pregnancy is a massive fear of a lot of trans men. So many transphobes reduce trans men to their capability to have children, as if that's all they're good for (even if it would kill them.), and that often leads to corrective rape in order to "remind them of biological reality". In this case, Vash is a plant, he's meant to create, and yet he doesn't. But he's still being used to create anyway.
Again, Meryl also directly calls out Vash's lack of consent and gets shot down by Conrad. The whole scene is just. Hgnrhgnhrhnrnrn. It's So,,, everything to me, because it's a really good scene and shows you how far gone Knives is in Tristamp.
There are panels in Trimax that are,,, the imagery is there, but it's very overt in Tristamp.
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Also hey yeah. Why is Conrad still alive?? Did he have access to cold sleep? or it's probably the robotics but did he not think of enhancing humans that way? It might just be a temporary solution, I guess, given that he is. Actively coughing up blood.
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Alright! I have finished this part of the analysis that I always Feel Strongly about lmao - I have fun doing it but that's such an emotionally heavy episode.
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epickiya722 · 1 month
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I never really seen ppl say Izuku's a stalker unironicaly (usually it's just for meme-y shitposts), but i pretty much agree, he isn't nosy but rather he's just really aware of details. I would only call him that abt heroes and stuff bc that's a special interest of his.
In Katsuki's case i think it would be a mix of him always being loud, and Izuku just being there to see it instead of going out of his way to know. He remembers bc he'd always admired him after all, and is also eager to share his memories that he has abt Katsuki everytime he's the topic.
Katsuki, however, i would call the nosy one for sure lol.
EXACTLY!!!
There's a difference between noticing and hearing things while passing by and being nosy. Izuku is, most of the time, the former. The only time he's really "nosy" is when he asks about quirks.
Actually, no, scratch that. He barely even does that. He just happens to observe how someone's quirk works and figures it out on his own. Take it when he deducted Stain's quirk for instance.
I think about how anytime he is in family drama, it's because he's dragged into it. Look, I don't care what anybody says, Dabi telling Izuku "this fight isn't your business" (episode 12, season 6) was so funny to me because my guy... you just spilled your family tea to the whole nation. Izuku just trying to help his friend out.
Now, if we're calling anyone nosy it's Katsuki. What reason he had to follow Izuku and spy on his conversation with Shoto? And then that scene where All Might And Izuku are talking and he just comes up to tell them to stop sneaking around (hypocrite) because it will look suspicious... well, yeah... you're drawing attention to them!! People are going to notice, sir. Like, you couldn't wait till later for Izuku to tell you anything? 😭 Like, don't get me wrong, Katsuki doesn't actually have bad intentions but come on! You can't be calling people out when you're doing the same!! Katsuki, you are my boom gremlin, but come on!
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adventure-showdown · 6 months
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What is your favourite Doctor Who story?
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The Stolen Earth/Journey's End and Day of the Doctor tied. These are the 12 stories that were closest to making it through and so have been given a second chance
ROUND 3 MASTERPOST
synopses and propaganda under the cut
The End of the World
Synopsis
The Ninth Doctor takes his new companion, Rose Tyler, to the year 5,000,000,000 to see the sun expand and destroy the Earth. The observation deck space station, Platform One, is holding an event with the richest beings of the time observing the Earth's destruction, but mysterious metal spiders gifted by the Adherents of the Repeated Meme to the other guests are secretly infiltrating and sabotaging the station.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
Father’s Day
Synopsis
Pete Alan Tyler, the father of Rose and husband of Jackie, died on 7 November 1987, the day of Stuart Hoskins and Sarah Clark's wedding. Rose was just a baby at the time, Jackie told the young Rose that nobody was there for Pete when he died and that the hit-and-run driver was never found...
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The Runaway Bride
Synopsis
Killer Santas, exploding baubles, an alien spaceship shaped like a giant star — Christmas with the Tenth Doctor is anything but a silent night...
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
Gridlock
Synopsis
The Tenth Doctor takes Martha Jones to New Earth, in the far future, only to find that the entire city has become a deadly trap.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The Stolen Earth/Journey’s End
Synopsis
When Earth and twenty-six other planets are stolen and taken to the Medusa Cascade and the Doctor is nowhere in sight, it's up to the combined forces of UNIT, Torchwood, Sarah-Jane and Rose to fight off the thieves, who only have one thing to say to the resistance: "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"
Propaganda
I will never get over the woman who thinks she's nothing being the most important person in the universe, and the huge loss she suffered immediately after. So bright and so dark at the same time. So much happiness and so much sadness. Excellently done 10/10 (NikMONSTER)
The Eleventh Hour
Synopsis
After a literally explosive regeneration, the brand new Eleventh Doctor survives a crash-landing to Earth. However, he has little time to recover. With a mysterious crack in a little girl's wall and a missing alien prisoner, the Doctor is in for an adventure. However, with the TARDIS damaged and the sonic screwdriver destroyed, can the Doctor capture the rogue alien before its jailers burn Earth to a crisp?
Propaganda
Omg i love this ep so much.  It was the absolute perfect way to introduce the new doctor to the show; Matt had some big shoes to fill after David but he did so perfectly in this episode.  All of the other doctors I had to get used to, and I especially thought I’d have to following my fav ten, but i immediately fell in love with 11 with this episode. I also feel like this was a great plot overall and I loved both Amy and Rory in it. (@lavenderlace16 )
The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone
Synopsis
The enigmatic River Song hurtles back into the Eleventh Doctor's life, but she's not the only familiar face returning — the Weeping Angels are back! Following River's calling card, the Doctor is recruited to help track down the last of the Angels, which has escaped from the Byzantium starliner and into the terrifying Maze of the Dead.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
Amy’s Choice
Synopsis
It has been five years since Amy Pond last travelled with the Eleventh Doctor. However, when he arrives by accident and they have a reunion, Amy is left questioning what is real. Is she actually living with her husband Rory in Leadworth, 2015, or is she still travelling with Rory and the Doctor in the TARDIS? Which is real and which is fake? Dream or reality? Only one thing is clear: it's Amy's choice.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The Doctor’s Wife
Synopsis
The Eleventh Doctor receives a message from an old Time Lord friend. The message brings him, Rory Williams and Amy Pond to another universe where they meet an alien who eats TARDISes.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The Girl Who Waited
Synopsis
The Eleventh Doctor, Rory Williams and Amy Pond land on Apalapucia in the middle of a plague. Amy is left behind, and the Doctor and Rory must save her...but time for Amy is running at a different speed.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The God Complex
Synopsis
The Eleventh Doctor, Amy, and Rory investigate a hotel of horror where repeat business is low but the body count is high, where a mighty monster stalks the corridors and the rooms hold visions of angels, apes, and creepy clowns. Who — or what — has brought them to this place? Can the Doctor solve the mystery before the residents check out in grisly style?
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
The Day of the Doctor
Synopsis
The Doctors embark on their greatest adventure in this 50th-anniversary special. In the 21st century, something terrible is awakening in London's National Gallery; in 1562, a murderous plot is afoot in Elizabethan England; and somewhere in space, an ancient battle reaches its devastating conclusion. All of reality is at stake as the Doctor's own dangerous past comes back to haunt him.
Propaganda no propaganda submitted
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hopeisgrey · 4 months
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My Demon - 7/10
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The announcement of My Demon literally created chaos among the k-drama fans. The Song Kang-Kim Youjung pairing was making everyone insane. The hype was unreal. But did My Demon live up to it? Well, the answer to that would be… yes or no (kissy if u read that in Na Bora’s voice). My Demon did have a very interesting plot line, good enough characters and it was successful in getting the audiences hooked with the first few episodes. The cinematography was the most talked about among the viewers and rightfully so. The wide shots of Jung Guwon’s (Song Kang) office, the underwater scene, the slow-mo shot of the waves forming a portal around Guwon and Dohee (Kim Youjung), the Dohee-about-to-fall-off-the-balcony scene and so on. Another thing that filled twitter was the fashion. And not only the female lead’s this time, but also the male leads. Guwon has secured his place among the very few male leads with impeccable fashion sense. When most male leads are shown in sophisticated suits, Guwon was rocking cropped jackets and scarfs. But then again, I don’t think most male leads are Song Kang.
Nevertheless, My Demon stands as an example that if you start with a bang, your ending should be a banger. This is where the drama failed. In the second half, it started to feel like the story line was being stretched. The cinematography and direction which was so good in the start had taken a back seat and love making montages were put in for the action that wasn’t happening. And by action, I mean just anything that would contribute to the plot. The plot was moving, but at a very slow pace. Sure, Guwon and Dohee make the best couple, the greenest flag couple, the entire amazon rainforest couple, but where is the drama? I wasn’t necessarily waiting for anything bad to happen, but for a time being literally nothing was happening. And I was mad about that. Until towards to the end, everything happened. The new trend of k-drama rom-coms only having 12 episodes, My Demon should’ve followed that. Because the more they stretched, the more Song Kang’s bad acting showed and also the writer’s inability to stitch it all together. I honestly loved Song Kang in Sweet Home, not that he had any more than 2 expressions 3 dialogues in it, but still. Jung Guwon is far more expressive, and Song Kang couldn’t do justice. He shines when the camera requires for him to be the slayest demon to walk this planet, but when it is time for the playful babygirl Guwon to get on stage, his acting feels like… acting. It’s not terrible, it’s just not the best. Also the entire past life plot is becoming more than obvious. The moment I saw Guwon dreaming of his past, I KNEW Guwon and Dohee probably died in the past life and one of them thinks it’s their fault and they will try to distance themselves from each other. You know which other drama did it? See You in My 19th Life and Destined with You and maybe more but I don’t remember. Like can we please move on? This is equivalent to the 2016 era dramas having the oh we’ve actually met in childhood and not forgotten each other since trope. But then again, they have given us the most iconic dramas, can’t the same about these though.
However, I loved the way they showed Jin Gayoung’s character coming full circle. She is probably the only one who started a certain way, learned her lessons, had character development and got her happy ending. So yeah, My Demon definitely isn’t the best drama for me. I am not going to put in on my re-watch list. But I will recommend it. It’s fun, and sweet, and great for fashion inspo!
Another thing I want to add is that My Demon is compared to Doom at Your Service a lot for having a similar concept, so I’ll just say that DAYS is a much better drama, for all aspects – storyline, acting, romance, comedy, THE FUCKING AWESOME THREESOME OF THE SECOND LEAD THRUPPLE, even the song (If Love Sight by TXT doesn’t play in my head when I look at my future partner, I’ll know they’re not the one). Except My Demon is going to take the trophy for best costume.
Ok that’s it now let me play Hyunsu’s “What should we do?” until Sweet Home S3 comes out hehe!
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absolutebl · 1 year
Text
This Week in BL
April 2023 Wk 2
Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.
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Ongoing Series - Thai
Bed Friend (Sat YT, GaGa & iQIYI uncut) ep 9 of 10 - My biggest concern is that Uea left his sister in that house with a known abuser. Meanwhile, the office teasing was cute. I’m thinking that the final two episodes were mostly added to deal with the backstory resolution of the family drama, and to add a sappy proposal thing. I’m not necessarily mad about it, but I do think there’s probably would’ve been a better tighter story at 8 episodes. 
Future (Thai Sun YouTube & Gaga) ep 4 of 5 - There is nothing to this show but softness. Also we visited my old exclamation to the BL gods: please don’t make them act crying. It’s so difficult to watch. That said I still love this  stupid show.
Pastsenger (Thai Weds Gaga) 6 of 12 eps - Wow. Sides kissing. Brave high school kid! Also mains. Wait. What is happening? 
A Boss and a Babe (Fri YouTube) ep 7 of 12 - Having a rich boyfriend sure is clutch. Boss is smart to ingratiate himself with his boyfriend’s gaming team. Also there is no doubt that they are complete and total boyfriends, the most boyfriendly boyfriends ever. 
Tin Tam Jai (Tues Gaga & iQIYI) ep 8 of 12 - I’m pretty much fast forwarding anything to do with the main couple I just find them so boring. Although my beloved side dishes have disappeared. So I guess I am watching it for the faen fatal? 
Chains of Heart (Sat iQIYI) ep 9 of 10 - Whatever. Good sex scene tho. Bummer about the, ya know, story. 
The Promise (Thai Weds YT) ep 6 of 10 - ON HIATUS UNTIL APRIL 19.
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Ongoing Series - Not Thai
Our Dining Table AKA Bokura no Shokutaku (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 2 of 10 - It’s just the best. It’s so sweet. Yutaka’s little smile because the kid likes him and wants to cook with him is probably the warmest most endearing thing ever to happen in JBL. 
Unintentional Love Story (Korea Thurs iQIYI) 9-10 fin - sorry I won’t have a chance to watch this until early next week but I promise to post about it! 
The Eighth Sense (Korea Weds Viki) eps 5-6 of 10 - Hyung mistakes made by constantly acting EXACTLY like bf in front of their friends is very cute. I don’t have much to say a this time. Narrative and characterization is unfolding as expected, staying tense as we get little nuggets of backstory. Lines will be crossed, one way or another. The trot part was VERY funny. Also we got us a on screen rep of a fairygodBLer. These two kiss well but all I can see when they do is how much pain is incoming. I don’t know what was up with the ending but we do have 4 more to go, so I don’t think we are actually in an H3:MODC situation. 
My Story (Pinoy Sat YouTube) - It’s a bit frenetic, camp, crazy, and outrageous, but I’m not mad about any of that because it’s classic Pinoy BL. So I think I’ll keep watching. This is the same characters as My Day. Which means they did break up the main couple from that series. So if that’s going to traumatize you, be aware. There are a lot of storylines going on. And I’m just not sure BL from the Philippines can handle this much at once, they may have bitten of more BL than they can chew. 
Naked Dinner AKA Zenra Meshi (Japan Fri Gaga) - Japan is so weird. I mean that in a good way (but also sometimes in a bad way). Also sometimes just weird. Also embarrassing and cringe. I’m going to watch it but I don’t like it very much. 
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It’s Airing But ...
Love Syndrome (Thai Sat WeTV) stopped at ep 2 of 12 - I’m just not into any aspect of it (except Lee Long Shi and I can watch him in Tin Tem Jai) - saving to binge if the end is solid.
Venus in the Sky (Sat YouTube) pilot/tester?) 0 of 10 - not entirely sure what’s up with this one distribution-wise, but the pilot was cute, classic university-set pulp. I hope it happens because the leads are cute with good chemsitry and I thought it was fun. However, it totally holds together as it’s own little short story too.
Make a Wish (Thai Weds ?) from WaGa Creative staring Fluke Natouch (OhmFluke UWMA etc...) & Judo (The Miracle Of Teddy Bear) in a medical-fantasy. About a doctor who sees ghosts and a deity who resides in a Bodhi tree that earns merits whenever he fulfills a wish based on a y-novel by Sammon (Manner of Death, Triage). Same as above.
In Case You Missed it
Cafe In Love 10 eps finished its run.
Destiny Seeker 10 eps also finished its run.
A First Love Story is on Gaga now. It’s my favorite BL short ever made, check it out. It’s wonderful.
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Next Week Looks Like This:
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Starting:
04.18 Step By Step (Thai WeTV & Gaga) - 10 eps office age gap, I am all in! 
04.19 The Promise is back!
Finishing: Bed Friend, Chains, Future
I might start watching Destiny Seeker or Cafe in Love, or both.
2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)
THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS
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En of Love franchise leaning into its brand (Future the series)
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I love their friendship and their bromances and this was an adorable moment ... but now I want these two to lead out a BL together. 
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I love an “accidental” outing (both Boss & Babe). 
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Calling out tropes and characterization, as ya do.
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Passing along the familial obligation of care. 
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 (all Bed Friend) 
(last week)
Current Kpop earworm? Block B’s Very Good, I TOLD you I’ve been dipping into the well a lot recently. I really miss Kpop’s 2nd gen insanity phase. 
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otomehoneyybearr · 6 months
Text
Act 12
Episode 4: Strange Father and Child Part II
Working w/ Maybelle Lace
Note: As you read, you will see that some sentences highlighted in a different color, this is what they indicate.
Pink: Flashback
Blue: Characters are acting
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Aoshi: Excuse me.
Aoshi: Mr. Azumi, could you review my special leave application form?
Azumi: … Looks good. It must be tough being a member of a renowned theater company like the Hyakka Troupe.
Azumi: I’ll come watch a show someday, so keep up the good work with your rehearsals.
Aoshi: (It was accepted so easily… I guess that’s to be expected from the town of theater.)
Aoshi: Then I’ll be heading out now.
Homeroom Teacher: Ah, Shikagawa. It seems your older brother is waiting in front of the school gates.
Aoshi: Huh? My brother—
Homeroom Teacher: Come Look.
Aoshi: (No way...)
….
Kabuto: …
….
Aoshi: Wha— why is that guy…
Homeroom Teacher: He has an unusually captivating aura, so the students are causing a commotion.
Azumi: Come to think of it, Usui’s brother, also came to the school gates and created quite a ruckus too.
Homeroom Teacher: Oh yeah, I remember that ~
.....
Aoshi: Hey, what are you doing?! And seriously, please spare me from the whole “older brother” thing.
Kabuto: What a nice attitude you have there. I’ve got a cab waiting, so get in already.
Aoshi: Huh?
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Kabuto: …
Aoshi: So, what do you want?
Kabuto: …
Aoshi: (You force me to come along with you, yet you don’t want to answer.)
Aoshi: Also, I’m not exactly free either, so where are we going?
Kabuto: To a regular quarterly event.
Aoshi: Is it like a shareholder meeting or something?
Kabuto: It’s a much more depressing event than that, but compared to when it happened every month, its not so bad now.
Aoshi: I’m not sure what that means, but please don’t just drag me along to this kind of stuff.
Kabuto: It’ll be fine. Today will be good opportunity for me.
Aoshi: … Haa.
Aoshi: (I have a bad feeling about this, but it’s pointless to say anything. And it’s not like this is the first time this star actor had taken me to who knows where.)
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Amadate: …
Kabuto: …
Aoshi: (… Why is this happening?)
Amadate: … I see we have an unexpected guest today.
Aoshi: Sorry for the intrusion… what’s today’s meeting for?
Amadate: Once every three months, Kabuto and I have meetings like this to deepen our parent-child relationship and discuss the future of the Hyakka Troupe.
Aoshi: In that case, I don’t wish to intrude on such an important meeting, so I’ll take my lea—
Kabuto: Sit down and shut up, third-rate actor.
Aoshi: …
…..
Kabuto: Its hard to attract more people when all we do is classics. We should expand our repertoire.
Amadate: I don’t think the current system we have in place is sturdy enough to spread out so much.
Kabuto: I want to reform the system to in order to create a stable structure.
Amadate: How so?
Aoshi: (Amadate seems calm, but he’s exuding intense pressure. Its impressive how Kabuto can hold his own against him head-on.)
Kabuto: I want to reduce the employment of the production staff that aren’t worth the cost and establish a core team with people that I trust.
Amadate: …Its true that you, alone, are the core of this theater troupe, as the director and star actor.
Amadate: However, I am still the founder of this troupe and I preside over all personnel decisions.
Kabuto: I’m well aware of that. This is just me begging a request from my dear Papa.
Amadate: … If it’s a request my beloved son, then I suppose I can hear you out.
Amadate: First, make a list of the personnel you want and we’ll make a decision once we go over it.
Kabuto: …Tch... fine.
Aoshi: (This seems more like a probing of each other’s intentions rather than a bonding between parent and child…)
Amadate: Well, I have an early day tomorrow so I’ll excuse myself first.
Amadate: Dessert will be served soon, so you two can eat and then head home.
Aoshi: Ah, alright.
Amadate: However, this is the first time my son has brought someone along. He seems to like you a lot.
Kabuto: He’s just a third-rate actor. Just perfect for a supporting role.
Amadate: Aoshi, please support my son as a semi top actor.
Amadate: Right.
Aoshi: (I was thinking that they were a strange pair, but that last comment seemed fatherly.)
Amadate: Kabuto… Your scheme was clever but keep in moderation.
Kabuto: …Whatever.
            *Amadate leaves*
Aoshi: --What do you think you’re doing?
Kabuto: Hm? It’s a coup d'état.
Aoshi: A coup d'état? That’s…
Kabuto: And… A pure love for theater.
Aoshi: Huh?
Kabuto: Nothin’.
Kabuto: By the way, weren’t you were scouted by the old man?
Aoshi: Yeah. I was approached by Amadate at a local hospital, and since I wanted to leave my parents’ place, I came with him.
Kabuto: So, your indebted to him.
Aoshi: Well…
Kabuto: Whose side are you on, mine or the old man’s?
Aoshi: What?
Kabuto: If we’re ever in a conflict in the future, whose side would you be on?
Aoshi: Its hard to say for sure, until that time comes.
Aoshi: While it’s true that I’m able to do theater in Veludo Way because Amadate scouted me, I don’t have any personal attachments to him.
Aoshi: I’m not working hard for the sake of paying back a favor. When the time comes, I’ll choose the option that’s most beneficial to me.
Kabuto: Heh, alright then. I’ll have you carry out a part of my plan.
Aoshi: I respectfully decline.
Amadate’s Subordinate: Will you be going straight home?
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Amadate: No, head to the office.
Amadate: Also… Keep an eye on kabuto for a bit.
Amadate’s Subordinate: Yes sir. Aside from that, there’s something else you may want to know…
Amadate’s Subordinate: Reni Kamikizaka is colluding with Syu Otomiya and the other members of the first generation’s Mankai Company to look into you, Sir.
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Amadate: … Well, isn’t that too bad, Kamikizaka?
Amadate’s subordinate: What would you like to do?
Amadate: Just let them swim free a little while longer.
Amadate’s subordinate: But they have some pretty troublesome members over there…
Amadate: When the time comes, I’ll do whatever it takes to crush them, even if I have to be a bit forceful.
❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎❄︎
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canonicallysoulmates · 9 months
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J2 Gold Panel Charlotte con 2023
Before we get into this panel quick psa that this con took place while the actors union, SAG-AFTRA, is on strike. This means the boys cannot directly name past, present, or future projects. For the sake of clarity I will be mentioning projects the boys are referring to by name but please be aware that the boys themselves did not do that they complied with strike regulations.
Jensen had a mustache this con. I don't know how I feel about it. I also don't know how I feel about the shirt he was wearing, it makes me think about those lime popsicles they sell.
Anyways...Jared mentions that the shirt he is wearing is going to be auctioned to charity later on in the day. The shirt he's wearing is the one he wore to SDCC for the last ever SPN panel and Jensen says if he's giving it away he wants it and Jared replies he'll send him the link 😂
And then Jensen says it comes with a free spatula and I love Jared's reaction cause he gets so flustered, he even admits he was not expecting that, and tells Jensen they gotta do it together and Jensen at first is like I'm not doing that, and Jared still flustered tells him not the spatula but the other thing meaning Family Feud. That when the world gets back at it they should do some stuff about some things.
For those that might be confused Jared had filmed an episode of Family Feud a while back that aired recently and one of the questions in the game was to name an item from the kitchen a couple might bring into the bedroom, and he was the person in his team who answered and said spatula.
Questions!
The first fan asks Jensen if they could sing a bit of Simple Man. Jensen says no that they're not taking requests, it's not karaoke morning.
So the fan asks another question: Was Jensen ever bullied as a child, and do his children experience bullying? If so, how did he get through it?
He was when he was in middle school. He was around 12 or 13, maybe 14, and he got the shit beat out of him for a good several months, and he never talked to anybody he didn't tell any adults and his friends knew but they were too scared to do anything so what he did, and he says this isn't advice it's just his experience, was that he found an upperclassman one of those scary guys with rumors of him carrying weapons to school, befriended him, and asked him to help him deal with his bully. And the guy did, he went up to Jensen's bully and basically told him touch him again and I'll kill you.
As for his kids, recently JJ was getting picked on by a young boy in her class and at first he thought 'Oh it's because he likes you' (no, Jensen, no) but she waited till it escalated to a point where they got called in by the faculty and they're the ones who brought it to their attention she hadn't mentioned it to them beforehand. And his first reaction was 'how bad could it be? he probably has a crush on her or something' (again, no Jensen no) but that wasn't the case, and his initial reaction as a father was to get angry at the little boy but he found out that the kid was coming from an unfortunate situation and he felt really bad and wanted to get him help.
Jared has also dealt with bullying as well as his kids. He says he got injured a lot as a kid whether by bullies or accidents. Those physical injuries hurt more at the time but they went away mental injuries however have a longer-lasting effect. His sons have been bullied by other kids and he has told them to stand up for themselves cause they can either get bullied hard once or get bullied forever. And a big thing is that it's difficult for a kid to understand but to remember and try to help kids understand that hurt people hurt people. x
Under the current circumstances have they been doing any extra babysitting lately? Of course, it would be a man asking this question, and in such an incredibly outdated way 🙄 This is that person's way of asking if they have been spending more time taking care of their kids.
They both reply so much. Jared says he had a talk with G the other day that he has worked so hard for 23 years professionally to become an actor and he got really good at being valuable on set but he's only had 11 years of opportunity to get good at the parenting side of things and for many of those years he was in Van so he's still a white belt but he's eager, he's earnest, he's a sponge ready to learn.
He tells a story about how the kids are in school now but a month or two ago, possibly even longer around March or April, G had something to do and asked if he could watch the kids till 3pm. So she leaves, he wakes up the kids, gives them breakfast, and basically they end up playing in the pool till 3 o'clock rolls around and G arrives home. And when she gets there she asks them if they had fun and then asks what they had for lunch, and Jared was confused cause he hadn't realized it was already 3 and past lunchtime. He forgot to feed the kids lunch so he's still learning.
Jensen says the other day D was leaving and his daughter asked her if daddy was babysitting them, and she replied that it's not babysitting he's their father and asked what is it when she's around and the kid replied well you're mom and she said exactly he's just dad it's not babysitting he's just taking care of his children. I agree with the statement 1,000%. x
What does Jensen put on his hair to help with the frizz?
Jared jokes that it's an expression of their inner self, he's kinda greasy and gnarly and Jensen is very soft and smooth. He also says he used hotel shampoo and put on a beanie and then Victoria took care of him, and that he hasn't had a haircut in around 5 to 6 months but she makes him seem somewhat human. x
If Jensen had to do it all over again would he spend his time on Days of Our Lives, and is it something he would recommend to other people trying to break into the industry?
100%, He says that was his training ground, he didn't go to a proper school or get properly trained but there he learned things that he doesn't think they would even teach you in certain acting schools like hitting your mark, finding your light, understanding how to navigate personalities. That show had 30 actors and everyone had a different personality and you have to navigate that to survive, so that was such a valuable experience for him. He talks about it all the time, and it's such a great gig for actors, says that when he left that show in 2000 he always thought to himself that if he went out and it didn't happen he would 100% go running back to that cause it was so great.
The fan mentions that in Q&A's colleagues of his have mentioned things like community theater but none have mentioned soap operas. He and Jared say that any kind of expression, of creating creative content whether on a stage, in front of a camera in your room with your friends, or reading a play all of that fuels something in you if that's something you strive to do, and Days for him was essentially his college it was his training ground for what he went on to do and he's forever thankful for it and he'll always praise them.
Jared adds that something he and Jensen learned in different ways and times- he loves theater it's different doing the version they ended up doing cause if you're doing a play you get 3 months to rehearse but doing something like where they started you learn really quickly you don't have all day, you don't have all hour, you might only have 5mins to get it done so that really helped when it was necessary when they were working together.
Jensen mentions he recently did a little part in a film and it was this big end scene with all the major players in the scene, and the sun was going down, and more importantly, there was a helicopter that was supposed to fly overhead and the shot had to time out with the helicopter coming and they only had two shots at it; it was a race to the finish and his coverage was left to the very end and everybody told him they were so sorry but they were only getting one or two goes at this and he was like that's cool, and he had to give a whole speech. He did both his takes, and he remembers the director was like 'I love television actors.' x
If they could be fluent in any instrument they do not play what would it be?
Jared says piano or bagpipe. He has a friend who went to Westpoint and was part of the marching band and he got to play for the royal family, he's amazing and he brought his bagpipe up to LA 20yrs ago and went out to the balcony to play, and after he plays a bit he turns and says thank you so Jared and his friends, who were sitting inside listening to him, go look and there were people gathered around to listen. He says it is so haunting and so visceral. Jensen says piano or accordion. x
I thought Jared could play piano cause he's played it before so I'm a little confused by him mentioning piano, but I figure he means he could play with more expertise 🤷‍♀️
Jared has saved so many people, does he have someone who has gotten him through something like that?
I'm just gonna directly quote the man: "Yeah, I'm standing next to him" 😭💗 That's beautiful.
J2 Gold Panel Charlotte
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bobwess · 3 months
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AMA : Supernatural addition Scrolls back to make sure I'm not re-asking any questions
Has there been any episode that you've changed your mind about in a positive way?
Has there been any episode that you've changed your mind about in a negative way?
If you could add in a monster-of-the-week episode with a monster we've never seen the boys fight, what monster would you bring out and why?
If Cas zapped them anywhere (to avoid planes) for a vacation, where do you think they would go?
Thoughts on Cas's grace/wing situation post fall? Do you subscribe to the headcanon that because his grace was separate he should still have his wings? (Realizing that clearly it's time to reread Only Human since i do not actually remember the answer)
You have any fic ideas bouncing around your head that are still even too early days to be called proper WIPs?
If you had to rank the seasons, how would they fall?
Thoughts on Michael and Adam?
Episode that is garenteed to make you laugh?
Episode that is garenteed to make you cry?
Favorite Destiel moment?
Know you have a lot of facinating thoughts on John, but do you have a similar amount of thoughts about Mary?
What do you think is the best practical effect that the show ever pulled off?
Any opinions related to particular the last 5 seasons (11, 12, 13, 14, 15) of the show?
Did you ever think when you started watching the show that all these years later you would be this invested in it?
Do you have any headcanons about Cas's True Form?
What loose end side plot from the show annoys you the most with the lack of closure?
Uuuuuum...What do you think is everybody's favorite color?
Okay that's all I can think of right now! Have a great day!!!
Has there been any episode that you've changed your mind about in a positive way?
Heaven Can’t Wait sucks less than I gave it credit for. 
Has there been any episode that you've changed your mind about in a negative way?
Wishful Thinking is way more rapey than I remember. 
If you could add in a monster-of-the-week episode with a monster we've never seen the boys fight, what monster would you bring out and why?
We’re retconning the “dragons” and letting the boys fight a real proper dragon. 
If Cas zapped them anywhere (to avoid planes) for a vacation, where do you think they would go?
Dean says “Take us to a beach” and Cas in his infinite wisdom picks an icy beach in Greenland. Dean is displeased, Sam is amused.
Thoughts on Cas's grace/wing situation post fall? Do you subscribe to the headcanon that because his grace was separate he should still have his wings? (Realizing that clearly it's time to reread Only Human since i do not actually remember the answer)
Complicated. From a practical standpoint, I think it was necessary to kneecap Cas’ ability to zap himself anywhere in order to bring him into the show more frequently, because a LOT of their problems would be over before they began if Cas could still fly all the time. It’d be a lot harder to write for. 
ALSO I like the idea that Cas wasn’t completely human so even without his grace he still technically could have ‘fallen’. 
HOWEVER in order for that to make sense someone would have at some point had to actually have SAID anything to that effect. So. 
I ascribe to the headcanon that Cas hadn’t been human enough and while he didn’t go screaming to earth on fire, he was still damaged in the fall and thus is unable to fly but as it stood in the show, they didn’t give enough of an explanation so it WAS stupid that his wings got shredded. 
You have any fic ideas bouncing around your head that are still even too early days to be called proper WIPs?
Yeah, two. One with Dean and Lee and one in purgatory.
If you had to rank the seasons, how would they fall?
5, 12, 4, 11, 7, 8, 9, 10, 2, 13, 1, 6, 3, 15, 14
Thoughts on Michael and Adam?
Love them. One of the few good things in season 15. 
Episode that is guaranteed to make you laugh?
Everybody Hates Hitler
Episode that is guaranteed to make you cry?
Lebanon
Favorite Destiel moment?
Dean opening up to “Emmanuel” in the car after Cas says “You’re not a machine, Dean.” 
Know you have a lot of fascinating thoughts on John, but do you have a similar amount of thoughts about Mary?
Mary was 29 years old when she died, and therefore (casting choices aside) was 29 years old when she came back to life. 
She is a 29 year old with two babies and a husband who suddenly is thrust back into the world decades later and immediately told her husband is dead and her two boys are now complete strangers she doesn’t know from anyone who are also significantly older than her. 
Dean is 37. Dean is 8 years older than her. Sam is 33. 
Mary died on the ceiling the same age Dean died and was dragged to hell.
Frankly she takes it very well all things considered. She’s vilified by the fandom unjustly. We’re conditioned to look at Sam and Dean and be like “they’re the main characters so only their feelings matter and she hurt their feelings so she is devil lady.” Which is stupid AF. “You are not a child.” “I never was.” Yeah ok but she didn’t raise you to be a hunter, and it wasn’t her choice to be dead instead of raising you. “But she made a deal with a demon and that led to Azazel getting to Sam!” She made a deal with a demon at 19 years old to save the person she loves most in the world. Dean made a deal with a demon to save Sam and he started the fucking apocalypse. (No shade to Dean.) 
They’ve all made dumb mistakes, even BMoL Ramiel sized ones, we’re just choosing to ignore some because we like our boys better. But it’s putting an unfair expectation on Mary to be perfectly what everyone wants her to be and ignoring that she is human. 
An aside: She wouldn’t have even batted an eye with how Jack killed Nick, and it was the most forced thing to make her hassle Jack until he snapped her into ashes. 
What do you think is the best practical effect that the show ever pulled off?
Michael v. Lucifer Season 13 Finale. There is a rack focus between 2014 Dean and 2009 Dean in The End that is so seamless it is delicious. The practical side of the hellhounds tearing up Dean is pretty cool too. 
Any opinions related to particular the last 5 seasons (11, 12, 13, 14, 15) of the show?
I think I like later seasons SPN more than most people (despite my distaste for season 14 because 14 is offensively stupid). I thought 15 was largely uninteresting, not actively bad. I think 13 started strong but fell off very rapidly after Tombstone into being just again uninteresting. 
I think 11 had a lot of good episodes and I really liked season 12 a lot. 
Did you ever think when you started watching the show that all these years later you would be this invested in it?
I honestly didn’t expect the show to last as long, but it wasn’t something that would have surprised me. If a show is really good, I latch onto it hard, and it’s reaffirmed if there are other people also as/more into it as me. So SPN still having a lot of fan attention keeps it going. I think if SPN had ended 5 years earlier, there’d be a lot less of us here now, and the interest might have died off more. I imagine it’ll drop off in the next few years. 
Do you have any headcanons about Cas's True Form?
Hard to make anything out. Lots of wings, eyes, and bright brilliant flashes of color. 
What loose end side plot from the show annoys you the most with the lack of closure?
Ghost Kevin. Someone better look me in the eyes and assure me Jack brought him to heaven. To a lesser degree what was up with Cas "my powers are fading" season 15?
Uuuuuum...What do you think is everybody's favorite color?
Sam likes blue. Dean likes red. Cas has not really given it a lot of thought and picks a random color when asked. (Thoughts based on vibes and oft-worn clothing colors.) 
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kishigunpla · 1 year
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Let's Read: A Requiem for Char: The Red Comet of My Youth - Chapter 2
by Shūichi Ikeda
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This post will be an overview of the second chapter, And Then I Met “Him”
Here’s a link to a summary of Chapter 1, covering Ikeda’s early acting career.
When we last left off, Ikeda had just auditioned for the role of Amuro Ray, though without much enthusiasm. He recalls wondering if Matsuura had asked him to try out for the role because he had the image of him in Jiro Monogatari in his mind. But regardless, Ikeda was much more interested in the drinking party afterward than anything about the audition.
While waiting for Matsuura to get ready to leave, Ikeda spotted some production materials on the reception room table. Though not particularly interested at first, he remembers flipping through the pages and being immediately drawn in by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko’s character art. And one in particular caught his eye -
Ikeda: Among them, my eyes were glued to the drawing of a certain character, a young officer wearing a mask. He had a different kind of elegance and demeanor than the other characters. When I looked at the illustrations of his facial expressions and standing poses, it inspired me to think, "I wonder if this guy would talk like this," or "I wonder if he would say something like this."
His name, Char Aznable.
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Inspired by what he had seen, Ikeda went back to Matsuura and asked if he could record some samples for Char. Though slightly shocked by Ikeda's sudden change of heart, Matsuura agreed.
At the pub later, after a few drinks Matsuura asked him if he'd like to play Char. Ikeda agreed, and Matsuura happily replied "Ok, it's decided!"
Ikeda: Even if I look back on it myself, I think, "It's like a drama," but this is the truth of how I met "him".
The truth, however, was much more complicated. Ikeda didn't know at the time, but another actor had already been lined up for the role. It took some pulling strings behind the scenes by both Matsuura and producer Yasuo Shibue to change things in time for production.
Ikeda: It's all in hindsight, but I always think that some coincidences have fatefully linked me and Char, and that it's the good fortune that I got from the talents and cooperation of various people. It was a truly blessed meeting for both me and Char.
When recording began, Ikeda recounts how immediately he knew Mobile Suit Gundam was something different, even just from the opening narration. His prejudice against robot anime was quickly disappearing.
Ikeda: The scene where Char appears on the TV screen for the first time is a cut where the camera rises from his feet toward Char's face, and the way he appeared was just wonderful and cool. "Who is this guy??" It’s full of charm that draws in the viewer.
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In the studio, each actor's mic was in a specific position. On the left side were those playing characters in the Federation, and the right side, Zeon. Ichirō Nagai, who played Dren, was always sitting next to him.
Ikeda was a fan of Nagai's previous dubbing work and excited to record with him. Just like Char benefited from having a solid military aide like Dren by his side, Ikeda was very grateful to have someone experienced like Nagai with him.
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Three months into dubbing, Ikeda already felt he had a pretty good understanding of Char and the direction he wanted to take the character. Neither Matsuura or Director Tomino seemed to have any objections, and Ikeda adds that since Char is such a beloved character even now, perhaps his direction really was the right one. 
Much of the focus of this chapter is specific instances from the anime that Ikeda feels highlights one of the strengths of the show as a whole - the drama created by contrasts in each character's personality and temperament, and how they interact with each other. 
One of the scenes he notes is Char in the bar listening to Gihren's speech in episode 12.
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A man approaches, but Char can see through him as a Zeon spy just by the "smell" (atmosphere) he gives off. It's a simple conversation, but Char is able to immediately turn the tables and gain the upper hand. In contrast to Gihren's speech, which is gradually gaining momentum, the two's calm bargaining gives a contrast to the drama.
Another is episode 44, when Lalah asks Char to wear his normal suit while in battle.
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Ikeda: To put it in vulgar terms, it's the same feeling as if your lover who lives with you is telling you, "It looks like it's going to rain today, so take an umbrella with you."
Ikeda: A good sense of warmth flows between the two of them. I tried to create an atmosphere that would make all the men in the world envy them, so I was allowed to play the role with a bit of a wet (softer) touch.
He also notes Char and Sayla's interactions towards the end of the show, specifically in the final episode where Char tells Sayla: "You’re an adult already (too)” (お前ももう大人だろ), the key point here being the “も”, or “too”.
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Ikeda: I performed this scene with the intention of expressing that both Artesia and I have grown up, whether we like it or not, and that each of us has our own path to take, and that we can no longer go back to the old days.
Regarding the end of the show itself, interestingly Ikeda expresses some reservations about how Char’s story continued in Zeta and Char's Counterattack. To him, Char’s own war ended the moment he got his final revenge on the Zabi family by shooting Kycilia.
Ikeda: Is Char Aznable the kind of man who would accept a beating from Kamille or start a war in pursuit of Lalah's shadow? He is not the kind of man who would sit back and let his own style be denied to him, but he's more mature and stubborn, isn't he?
Ikeda: In the final scene of the theatrical version of "Mobile Suit Gundam III Encounters in Space", he becomes a crew member of a space battleship and departs from the earth sphere. There could not be a better scene for Char to conclude his story.
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Finally, Ikeda talks about his interactions with Gundam fans at the time. 
As the popularity of the anime increased, larger and larger groups of fans would gather outside the studio. The crowds eventually got so bad that the hotel next door started complaining to them. Yet despite the number of people, Ikeda comments on how mature and well behaved these fans were, especially compared to something like idol fans.
Ikeda explains that he’s very careful about how he acts around fans, as he doesn’t want to ruin the image they have of “Char Aznable” as a character. For that reason, he is very particular about choosing public events to attend.
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Ikeda: My private life and Char's image are separate, but when I stand in front of my fans, I act with an awareness that I am Char. As a voice actor, this is the minimum courtesy for the fans, and I think it's a matter of pride as a voice actor. At the very least, I hope that the long-time fans who support Char, who I play, will also support my attitude.
~
That's all for Chapter 2. As before, I had to leave quite a bit out in this summary, but I hope you found it interesting to read!
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fyeahbachisagi · 2 years
Text
Bachira is always looking at Isagi
This scene seems like a random Bachira insert by the anime team, which we know they love to do so much. But it's actually not just for the fans. Although it's not as pronounced in the manga, Bachira really does look at Isagi a lot.
I've briefly mentioned in this post how the anime is putting emphasis on the characters' relationships and their interactions with each other, and this is most obvious when it comes to Bachira and his relationship with Isagi. I'll make a different post about this that go into more detail, but for now let's talk about Bachira always looking at Isagi and how that scene above adds value to the anime.
Warning: This post will contain some manga spoilers about Bachira's past and other scenes not yet animated
From chapter 7, in their match against Team X:
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After Isagi passes the ball, Bachira is visibly surprised here and even a little sad (disappointed?). It's easy to miss it though since we're drawn to what this random opponent is saying.
Here's the anime version from episode 2:
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Bachira's face is in focus, while that extra is pushed almost out of the screen. Plus points for that, but minus points for Bachira not looking as distressed as in the manga version. In the anime version, it just looks like ordinary surprise.
Also from the same chapter, but this time it's after the match:
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Bachira is once again looking at Isagi. However, he's sharing the moment with Kunigami, so it doesn't seem anything special.
The anime version wins this round, as they were able to deliver it more emotionally:
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We don't even see Bachira's face here, but they were able to make it more impactful by the use of lighting and the slow music playing in the background of this scene.
From chapter 11, in the match against Team Y:
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Bachira's face is in focus for once. And here's the anime version:
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Pretty much the same, but I especially love how Bachira says Isagi's name here.
Here's a little nugget from episode 5. This is from chapter 12 of the manga, and Bachira was not in this scene. He's just a background character in this frame in the anime, but as a diehard Bachira fan, I immediately noticed him.
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Igaguri has the ball here and is talking to Isagi. If you look closely, Bachira's eyes are not looking forward at Igaguri or downward at the ball, but to his right, at Isagi who's off-screen.
One can argue that Bachira is just looking at them interacting since the ball is in their area, but it won't explain why, of all characters, did the animators choose to put Bachira there. At this point, Bachira is still just a satellite character to Isagi. Of course he has to be looking at Isagi!
Also in the match against Team Y is this:
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Isagi was so far away, but even then, Bachira was able to see him. Nobody expected Isagi to be there, which is why Niko and all the others were surprised when the ball came to him. However, Bachira saw him. And only Bachira saw Isagi. This is proof that Bachira really pays extra attention to Isagi.
It is not until chapter 71 that we understand why this is:
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He believes in him so goddamn much, he can't take his eyes off him, waiting for him to do something exciting.
I think the most obvious example of Bachira's trust in Isagi are these pages from chapter 36:
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He even says it explicitly in the second page. And this trust goes both ways too. Isagi trusted Bachira would pass to him. (I know this particular dynamic of theirs changes later on, but for now, let's revel in it.)
Now, let's go back to episode 6 and talk about this extra scene of Bachira just looking at Isagi:
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Was it necessary to add Bachira just standing there and staring at Isagi? No, not at all.
Did this scene add any value to the anime? Yes, it did.
In this episode, we see, for the first time, Bachira giving attention to a player other than Isagi: Kuon.
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It shouldn't be surprising for Bachira to pass to other players, but as a character who's been revolving around Isagi up this point, emphasizing this scene of him passing to Kuon actually tells us a lot about how Bachira plays: He plays with a monster, and at this part of the game, Kuon was that monster.
On the field, Isagi is actually not that special to Bachira.
Now, bear with me my fellow bachisagi shippers and let me explain—
Before Bachira's character development arc, it is a fact that Bachira plays by passing to a monster. It just so happens that Isagi is not always this monster. I'm too lazy to find the specific manga panel for this and this post is also getting longer than intended, but in the second selection arc where Isagi, Bachira, and Nagi team together, Bachira actually passes to Nagi more. Then in the final match between Rin's team and Isagi's team, Bachira is even testing Rin and Isagi. This page from chapter 71 summarizes it best:
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If Bachira never changed, then it wouldn't be farfetched of him to ditch Isagi at some point and go play with some stronger monster.
And this is the beauty of Bachira's arc. Aside from seeing Bachira grow, we also get to see him realize how Isagi was important to him outside of soccer.
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Isagi is not just some monster. Isagi is his friend. His first friend.
Isagi has always been special to him in more ways than one. Bachira just didn't realize it.
Now, wait, Liz, how the heck is this all related to Bachira staring???
I'm gonna get to the fucking point now.
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Episode 6 shows us how Isagi is not that special to Bachira on the field. But this little frame of him staring at Isagi basically tells us "So what? Isagi is still special to Bachira, anyway." You don't see Bachira giving the other players that much attention off the field.
There, I finally said it.
So much ado for a bachisagi crumb. I could die for this ship, I tell you.
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kimdokjas · 1 year
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Hi~ I binge-read orv webtoon today and I have just finished. I came to Tumblr to know more about the fandom and I realised that people ship Dokja with Joonghyuk. I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting that. I thought their "flirty"(? interactions were just some sort of fan service or silly jokes. Is there anything in the novel that implies a relationship between them? Or maybe something that I missed in the webtoon? (I struggle with picking up social cues, especially romantic cues)
I hope this ask doesn't upset you, you were one of the top orv blogs that Tumblr showed me
(also, I apologize for my bad English, it isn't my first language)
Wait I'm one of the top orv blogs??? 💀💀💀 But for sure, I don't mind at all, anon! I love having an excuse to rant about orv <3
To preface this: yes, most of the heavier joongdok content comes until later in the novel, but there ARE some highlights in the webtoon as well so far.
I think most of the appeal of early joongdok interactions in the webtoon comes from the enemies to lovers vibe they have going on. Picture KDJ hyperfixating on his single favorite character for 10+ years, through every up and down of his life. In his narration during their FIRST meeting he explicitly says:
I liked you, hated you, resented you, and cheered for you. I was with you throughout your three-thousand episode journey. (webtoon ch. 12)
AND THEN. He finds out his favorite blorbo comes to life and proceeds to annoy him until he starts choking him over a bridge with a sunset backdrop like something out of a romance drama. It's all about the tension and subversion of expectations 🤌
Their relationship is very much a slowburn. YJH very reasonably distrusts KDJ at first (due to some past trauma) but we do see him gradually start to warm up to KDJ as the story progresses.
One of the main highlights is during ch. ~100 in the Disaster of Floods scenario. When KDJ sacrifices himself for YJH, he proceeds to freak out, tries to save him even when he knows it's futile, and refuses to kill him for coins even when YJH is often largely pragmatic in his interactions with others. We're told that YJH pretty much never uses the word "companion" because it holds too much meaning for him and he's never acknowledged KDJ as such, even though KDJ insists they're "life and death companions" (which is already pretty damn poetic if not romantic imo). But when Shin Yoosung asks who KDJ is to him, YJH says:
"That guy. He is my companion." (ch. 102)
(This got translated as "a companion of mine" in the webtoon but the novel is where it's at.) And keep in mind this is also an actual quote from the novel btw:
The weight of this word, 'companion', was too great for Yoo Joonghyuk. (ch. 12)
However, as I mentioned, their relationship only really starts to develop until later in the novel. To be clear, there's no explicit romance in orv–which I personally really appreciate because it opens up the floor instead to flesh out all the platonic relationships all of the characters have with one another that are JUST as deep and profound.
But even so, joongdok is very much canon to me. I don't want to give too much away because I'd be spoiling the rest of the novel for you, but they really are cosmic soulmates meant for one another in a way that is so narratively profound and completely goes full circle. The lengths they go to for one another are actually insane and there's no doubt in my mind the love and devotion they feel for one another is real and simultaneously indescribable by mere labels.
I really hope you're planning on continuing to read the novel now that you finished the webtoon! I truly cannot recommend it enough. It is literally and unironically the single greatest piece of literature I've ever read and the journey is 100% worth it. Plus, the webtoon will take a long time to complete at the current rate so the only way to find out what happens next is by reading the novel 😉
Anyway, I hope this was somewhat helpful to you! I think it's really admirable that you're trying to search for a different interpretation from your own. There's a saying in orv by one of the characters: "Read it again", and the intention there is that by rereading (or looking at things again in a new light) you will always find new meaning even within the exact same text, as long as you're willing to look for it. So the fact that you're asking this question is very much in the spirit of orv itself <3
And this goes without saying but you're also completely free to interpret them in your own way as well!
(By the way, I highly advise you to blacklist the "orv spoilers" tag and try to tread with caution if you're searching for content! There are spoilers literally EVERYWHERE and while orv is still very much enjoyable even with spoilers, all the reveals won't hit as hard–trust me. There really is so much that can be spoiled.)
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