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lysteriaposts · 2 years

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COBRA KAI S5 REVIEW (unhinged vers.)

SPOILER WARNING AS IF IT ISN'T CLEAR.

I actually wrote a list of my thoughts post episode 8, and oh it was not positive. Luckily enough a few of the things I was annoyed about were addressed the last two episodes where a lot happened. I've now slept on it and am ready to give a less rantsy review lol.... if you like to hype everything CK and only wanna hear positive things then I suggest you don't read further.

+ indicates positives (duh) and - negatives.

Let's rip the band aid off first.

- Mike Barnes being a wasted character and only there to subvert expectations (SAD!!!) - As a consequence, too many new characters brought in making the plot messier, crowded, contrived - Chozen being forced to like the girl he almost killed bc everyone needs to have a significant other / love interest of the opposite sex on this show - Kreese prison break is the dumbest shit I've ever seen - Kreese dying tragically in prison as he's trying to better himself would've been such a good writing choice, but they wanted to subvert that too - Kreese's plan he had with Tory never being explained - Johnny/Carmen baby drama making me want to barf all over my computer - Carmen being a baby carrier instead of an actual person - New gen kids serving no purpose in the overall story (except Kenny a little) - Rehashed plot of Sam/Miguel breakup taking up too much screentime and serving no purpose for the characters - Cheesy octopus < 🙄 - Half assed attempt at giving Sam introspection which gets dropped an episode after it was introduced - Sam being self absorbed (what's new) and deflecting blame - Demetri & Hawk could've been absent and there would not be any difference - Forced attempts at giving Hawk any relevance - Hawk being hypocritical and full of himself - Miguel's Mexico journey not changing anything for the character or his relationship with Johnny (or anyone for that matter) - Too little focus on Robby/Tory as a unit and their conflict - Too little focus on Robby/Kenny as a unit and their conflict - Robby redeeming and propping Johnny is not the same as developing and repairing their relationship, writers - Johnny kidnapping Robby to Mexico for absolutely no reason when he was gone tops 2 days - Carmen kind of forcing (and wanting!?!?) Johnny to have a baby with her - Johnny using new baby as an excuse for Miguel/Robby to have to get along - Robby breaking up with Tory after one disagreement - Robby going to see them at the Cobra Kai dojo way too late - Tory not confiding in Robby at all - Robby's character suffering from having to unnecessarily bond with every other character except the ones he truly cared about - Robby being forcefully sidelined in the story because he has to be attached at the hip with his new "family" - Tory ending up the show's punching bag, blamed and excluded for the 50th time - Devon Lee being... there, kind of annoying and one dimensional - Too much Kreese with no pay off - Too many flashbacks - No explanation to why Sam/Robby are cordial (I shouldn't be surprised they didn't explain Sam/Hawk either) - Stingray crying crocodile tears... actually just Stingray. - Sam being the one to wave her finger at Stingray wanting to keep his benefits (couldn't ANYONE ELSE have said that) - Silver not being the mastermind everybody expected him to be and mainly waving around his money - Amanda siding with Silver over her husband... dumb but ok - Jessica Andrews, just way too convenient - Kyler still being "one of the best" in Cobra Kai is laughable - Them trying to kill off Chozen, the only POC sensei - Them not having any balls to kill off any characters, but like to dangle it in front of us - Practically no Mike Barnes/Silver interactions

+ Very good fighting choreography + Cool shots and scenes i.e. Sam's dream, Miguel/Robby balcony fight 2.0 + Miguel/Robby relationship + Robby/Tory relationship (what we got) + Robby/Kenny relationship (what we got) + Kreese's therapy sessions (before it got subverted) + Miguel's scenes with his real dad + Johnny Lawrence comedy + Chozen... just, Chozen... seriously he might've carried the whole season for me + Chozen/Daniel relationship + Chozen/Johnny comparing notes lol + Daniel's arc and seeing him at his lowest + Anthony/Sam sibling bond + Little we got of Anthony/Chozen + Inverting Daniel and Johnny's "roles" + Daniel/Silver fights + Tory working as "undercover" instead of continuing to be "brainwashed" + Sam helping Tory although them coming together felt rushed + "I broke up with him for the dojo, you BITCH!" + Peyton List's acting + The new gen kids' acting + The Quicksilver method ! + Kenny/Silver scenes + Tory/Kreese scenes + More about Silver's background and ambitions + I don't blame Amanda for being done with Daniel's skeletons in his closet even though I called her dumb + Miguel speaking Spanish hehe + Chozen infiltrating CK was cool but should've been a full season thing- + Mike Barnes being the only og character not holding onto an old karate tournament, lol

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glassesandswords · 3 years

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Of Wings And Wheelchairs

Pairing: Levi Ackerman & Onyankopon, Levi Ackerman/Hange Zoe (mentioned)

Summary: Levi and Onyankopon sit in a coffee shop, waiting for Gabi and Falco to return from their small detour during their vacation together. Levi reminisces about the old Survey Corps veterans and their times together as Onyankopon listens. Soon, the conversation makes its way to a person the two knew very well- Hange.

Ao3 Link

“Let’s wait here.”

Levi and Onyankopon stopped at a coffee shop. With so many people bustling about, it was hard to find a place to relax for a while, especially with all the walking they had done. Well, at least all the walking that Onyankopon, Gabi and Falco had done- as Levi had been pushed around on a wheelchair by Falco the whole time. But the kids had spotted an ice cream vendor and left together to buy something to eat, and the older men decided to get a quick drink before continuing on with their journey.

The coffee shop had outdoor seating shaded by giant blue umbrellas that flared briskly over the round tables. A florist sold bouquets nearby. The scent of roses and lavenders wafted through the air, mingling with that of roast coffee.

“Are you sure letting Gabi and Falco go off on their own in a foreign land a good idea?” Levi asked as Onyankopon looked around for an empty table.

“They are fifteen now. They will be alright. Us, old men, shouldn’t be interfering with a pair of love-birds, so let them enjoy this vacation on their own.”

“You might be right about that.”

Onyankopon decided on an empty table on the opposite end of the florist and parked Levi next to him as he pulled a chair for himself. “Fifteen, huh?” Levi muttered, adjusting his wheelchair close to the table. “If they were in Paradis, they would have graduated from the cadet corps. But these two- they have had their fill of the battlefield way before that, being Marley’s warrior candidates and all.”

“Yes. That’s why they deserve to live like the carefree and free-spirited children they are right now.”

“Not that any child needs a reason to live like that. They all are equally deserving of happiness.”

“Of course,” Onyankopon called the waiter over to them. “A black tea and a black coffee, please.”

Levi noted how Onyankopon kept his favorite drink in mind and ordered it for him by default. Over the past three years, the two men had bonded over their shared losses and he had been a constant companion for Levi after the war. Onyankopon had helped him start a new life and set up his own tea shop after he retired in Marley, taking care of all the paperwork and technical details required.

“I heard you spent your childhood in the underground district within Wall Sina,” Onyankopon said as he watched the waiter leave with their order. “I wasn’t allowed there due to the restrictions on the volunteers, but I heard it was a rough place to live in.”

Levi raised an eyebrow. That piece of information was hardly common knowledge.

“I think I might have an idea of who babbled to you about that,” the face of a certain four-eyed abnormal popped up on Levi’s mind. “Yes. I was raised as a thug in order to survive that hellhole.”

“Did you have anyone close to you at that time? Your parents? Any siblings?”

Usually, Levi would have found it annoying if people dug into his past. But with Onyankopon, he did not really mind. “I was an only child,” he replied, leaning back on his wheelchair, “My mother died when I was young and the closest thing I had to a father was an uncle who abandoned me as soon as he realized that I could take care of myself.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it’s an old story,” he waved his pity off, “I did have two close friends there. Farlan and Isabel. They were as good as a brother and sister to me.” A fond remembrance flitted over his face, as if he could see them in his mind’s eye as he spoke. “The three of us thought life above the ground, in a land touched by the sun would be better. Turns out it is all the same.”

It wasn’t hard for Onyankopon to make out that Farlan and Isabel were probably no more from how Levi’s voice dipped. He changed the topic to something lighter.

“But you finally retired from all your duties and responsibilities. How does it feel to go on vacations to foreign countries?”

“I’m surprised you are dragging me along. Not like I could be of any service anyway, after being permanently bound to this wheelchair,” Levi tapped on the metal armrest.

“You are too humble, Levi,” Onyankopon shook his head, “I’ve seen you offering guidance to Armin and the others whenever they need it.”

“I help them as much as I can, but in the end, it is nothing more than an old man’s advice.” Levi sighed, remembering a certain someone’s soliloquy in a forest. “Times have changed and perspectives are different. After the rumbling ended, Armin offered me retirement and I took it. But even if I were in top shape, I honestly don’t think I would want to do anything with the Alliance anymore.”

Onyankopon watched Levi as he gazed at the busy road. The man looked broken, like he had lost way too much in life. He reminded him of some of the volunteers who had seen their families killed and hometowns destroyed in front of their own eyes. For previously being known as ‘Humanity’s strongest soldier’, Onyankopon had not seen Levi in action a lot. But the way he held himself together during that day- exactly three years ago, after Odiha- was a testament to his immense internal strength. The man in front of him was a fighter, but the fight had taken its toll on him.

The waiter arrived with steaming drinks and served it on the table.

“How do you drink that bitter bean-juice?” Levi asked as Onyankopon took a careful sip, trying not to burn his tongue in the scalding liquid.

“Six years and you still haven’t warmed up to coffee, have you?”

“I prefer tea, usually that of my own shop.” He sipped his tea, holding it by the rim with his left hand. “But I have to admit, the aroma of coffee is quite enticing.” His voice went back to its hazy tone. “Mike would have liked it. That guy had a sharp nose for things like these.”

Though Onyankopon did not know the details, he knew Mike was probably one of Levi’s previous comrades.

Levi had a habit of talking about his fallen comrades now and then. He did not seem to care if the other person knew them personally or not. Onyankopon assumed that it was to remember and acknowledge their existence and stories, being the last living veteran from his original group.

He heard about the battle of Shiganshina that resulted in the complete decimation of the earlier Survey Corps and wondered if Mike was one of the people who died there. Or maybe he had been one of the many unfortunate victims who were killed by the hands of the pure titans long before. Onyankopon felt a small stab of guilt for following Zeke, who had caused nothing but pain for Levi and the rest of the Survey Corps, but he had his own circumstances. Choosing sides had blinded them from appealing to their common humanity, until Yelena had revealed to him the plan to offer assistance to Paradis before their first scouting expedition six years ago. He had almost convinced himself that the Paradis military would crush them with their titan power before they could put forth that proposal, but then, a certain Survey Corps Commander gave them the warmest welcome they could have received in the island of ‘devils’.

“Brings back memories,” he hummed over his coffee, “Remember, the first time we chatted was over a cup of tea in that tent?”

“Ah yes,” Levi nodded grimly, “Another one of that person’s stupidly optimistic ideas. It was a surprise that you volunteers actually agreed to it.”

There was a silence as Onyankopon knew exactly who he was referring to.

Levi sipped his tea. “Honestly, they’d come up with the most reckless ideas, that Four-eyes.”

Onyankopon gave a small, sad smile. It seemed safe to talk about them. “I have to admit,” he said slowly, “I was shocked when they pointed the barrel of that gun over their one good eye, even if it was unloaded.”

“You don’t know half the trouble Hange caused back in the Survey Corps,” Levi shook his head disapprovingly. “Always blabbing about their latest hypotheses. Putting my entire squad in danger for another titan capture mission. They’d have had their head bitten off by a titan long ago if it wasn’t for their trusty assistant, Moblit. Hell, they went days without taking a damned bath just because something more interesting caught their attention. Sometimes, when I couldn’t bear the stink, I had to knock them out and clean them myself.”

Onyankopon chuckled at his ramble. He had observed Levi and Hange’s inseparable relationship from his time at Paradis. Maybe it was because they were the last ones to survive from their generation, or maybe it extended a little deeper than that. Onyankopon was not completely sure. He gazed at the long scar across Levi’s face, crossing through his one blind eye. If Hange were there, the two of them would have made quite the one-eyed pair.

But Hange wasn’t there as they had sacrificed themself so that he and Levi could sit in peace under a blue umbrella, drinking hot beverages on a sunny day without worrying about anything else.

Levi was still rambling on, “...all those stupid naming ceremonies for the captured titans. At least three Garrison guards used to throw up after each of their experiments. The tantrums they’d throw in Erwin’s office whenever he denied their requests. That Four-eyes once talked to me about titans and their planned experiments for two days straight after we first found out about Eren’s abilities. Can you believe it? Two days!”

There was a bitter aftertaste in Levi’s mouth and he knew it had nothing to do with the tea. A memory of Hange floated in his mind, of them carefully dabbing medicated cotton over Eren’s face after he had kicked the hell out of him in the courtroom all those years ago. He remembered Hange chiding him for having gone too far and declaring that they’d never kill Eren.

His stomach twisted at the irony of how everything played out in the end.

Onyankopon’s voice stirred him out of his thoughts. “It must have been hard for them to pursue their scientific research after they became the commander.”

“It did take a huge toll on them,” Levi agreed, “Erwin’s shoes would have been hard for anyone to fill. But he himself chose them as his successor and they did their job well, even if all odds were against them.” He gave a short sigh through his nose. “But over the years, they changed too much.”

Levi had noticed all the times when Hange had faked a smile to cover up their exhaustion. They tried to maintain their cheerful façade through all the uncertainty to keep their subordinates from becoming concerned about their mental well-being, but from his time with the past two commanders, Levi knew the bone-crushing pressure they were under.

He had spotted the missing tea from his shelf during all those late nights when Hange had fallen asleep on their desk after pulling multiple all-nighters. Although they weren’t new to burning the midnight oil, the commander’s work was grueling. Adding to that, the knowledge and responsibility of dealing with an entire world full of potential enemies weighed them down incredibly. Only he knew how tired and defeated Erwin had looked during his last moments with him. In a way, the role demanded much more from Hange than it did from Erwin himself.

“You mean they were more excitable before?” Onyankopon asked, “I really did not think they could look more starry-eyed than while they were being introduced to all the new technology from Marley.” He chuckled, “The way they whooped after the success of the new improved 3DMG test session was unforgettable.”

Levi set down his empty cup. “Hange was always a vocal advocate for technological advancement. Their inventions helped to get rid of all the pure titans in the island without much loss of human life. When they were given the hope that the rest of the world was not as cruel as we thought it was- but a place where they could learn and discover- that was when I saw them truly happy for the last time. They hoped to make peace when we left off for our first Marley visit. But we both know how that ended.”

Ah, yes that Marley trip, Onyankopon thought as a tense silence settled between them, The time when everything spiraled out of control. To ease the heavy pauses, he decided to bring up some good memories from back then.

“Remember the time when Hange bought that lollipop from that clown just so that he’d stop stalking you? And the time when they tried to feed carrots to a car?”

Thankfully, it seemed to work as Levi snorted. “Shitty-Glasses was supposed to be the smartest of us all,” he said, “Yet, that was still better than the way they squealed after the camera flash the first time we took a picture in Azumabito's place. Now that was just plain embarrassing.”

Onyankopon smiled. When Levi's squad was out drinking, he had insisted Levi and Hange to take a photograph with himself and the Azumabitos as a keepsake memory of their first official trip outside Paradis. Hopes were ripe that night, with the peace conference scheduled for the next day. To keep their optimism up, they had a small dance session in which Hange had dragged Levi with them and had successfully managed two rounds around the ballroom before Levi remarked that it was ridiculous and sulked in a corner for the rest of the night with a wine glass on hand. After which Hange teased him and invited Onyankopon to give them company instead.

When the camera was ready, they were all suited up- with hats placed on their heads despite the fact that it was evening- just for the sake of the photograph session. Onyankopon knew that the Paradisians had never taken a picture before, so his eyes were on Levi and Hange instead of the camera.

Their reactions did not disappoint.

Hange squealed as the flash lit up the room and Levi flinched, grimacing at its sudden brightness. The photograph was quite comical when it was developed: Hange with their mouth slightly open, Levi with his eyes half closed and Onyankopon’s lips in an amused half-smile as he gazed at them.

“To be honest, you looked quite shaken at the flash yourself,” he pointed out to Levi.

“Yes, but I did not wake up everyone in a fifty mile radius within the building.”

“It didn’t seem to wake the kids up, though.”

“What do you expect? Not even Hange can wake up a bunch of hungover brats who had drank all night and ended up passed out on each other.”

“The three of us had to carry them back, didn’t we?”

“Only for Sasha to puke all over the new suit I wore for the photoshoot.”

Onyankopon laughed at that memory. The waiter came over with the bill and he paid it before Levi could reach for his own wallet.

“I told you before,” he said to Levi as he handed over the money, “This vacation is entirely on me.”

“Thanks,” Levi kept his wallet back inside his pocket, knowing that arguing about it would not change Onyankopon’s mind.

They sat in silence for a while, gazing at the people walking around, exploring the shops. Levi got a few quick stares now and then because of his heavily scarred face, but he did not care. He was used to people staring at him; the annoying looks of envy and awe when he was considered as humanity’s strongest soldier, glares of anger from the military higher-ups after he had brought back Armin instead of Erwin during the battle of Shiganshina, and gazes of pity after he had been severely injured due to the thunder spear, thanks to that shitty monkey.

“I wonder what happened to that photograph,” he murmured, his mind wandering back to that day in Marley.

“It was left in Paradis,” Onyankopon replied, “The militants probably disposed of it along with the rest of our belongings after we were declared traitors. It’s been three years after all.”

Levi’s heart sank. That was the last piece of Hange he had left, apart from the scars they had stitched across his face. If everything was disposed of, that would mean that the badges he had collected from the uniforms of his former comrades, his letters, Hange’s research notes, Moblit’s sketches from the night they visited a bar after work, all of their personal belongings- everything had been burnt or destroyed. Apart from Erwin’s grave, there was nothing left for him back in Paradis- the place the Survey Corps dedicated their lives and hearts for all those years.

He masked his bitterness, “It was just a piece of paper anyway.”

Onyankopon did not say anything. The cost of freedom had been incredibly heavy for both of them.

“It’s been three years, huh?”

“Yeah.”

Levi remembered that moment when the spirits of his comrades appeared in front of him as he sat battered and broken. The old Survey Corps, with whom he had spent so many years fighting, resting, experimenting and pushing through every loss, every death and every failure together. He had finally finished their job. He had taken all of their dedicated hearts with him and won for them.

His final salute both crushed his soul and set him free.

A part of him wanted to depart with them. His duty was done, Zeke was killed, the rumbling was stopped and the world was finally free of titans. What use would he be to anyone anymore?

But he knew that the others would want him to live the life that they couldn’t. To explore the world and all it had to offer. To make the dream of world-peace come true.

So, he decided that he would go on, and when his time finally comes, he would stand tall among his noble comrades and tell them stories of the world they never got to see.

Levi hesitated for a moment before turning to Onyankopon.

“Do you think they’re still watching over us?”

Onyankopon didn’t miss a beat.

“I’m sure they are.”

Gabi and Falco reappeared from the crowd, with half-eaten ice cream cones in their hands. The brats had grown so much since the first time he had seen them, all beaten up and bruised on that zeppelin three years ago. Now they looked happy and content, their eyes shining with hope, optimism and love.

Hange’s words from all those years ago played in his mind.

I want everyone to feel safe again soon. I want this to be a world where people can live without fighting each other.

There was still a long way to go for that, but with the threat of the titans gone, they only had humans to negotiate with. Though that probably did not make it any easier, peace was still an option. He’d leave that to Armin and Historia.

Erwin and Hange would have loved it here. All the new places and technology, exotic food, new discoveries; it would have blown their minds. Sometimes, he wondered what would have happened if that bastard Floch did not show up to shoot holes in that fuel tank. Hange would have been alive, they would have boarded the plane together, they could have seen the flying titan and the previous titan shifters. It might have probably returned them to their normal, curious self again.

They could have survived together.

What would Hange have done now that the titans, their life’s work, were gone forever? The two of them had never really discussed such situations, for they never imagined such a day would actually come to be. For them, a world without the threat of titans was a distant fantasy. But if Hange were alive, they’d have probably headed the peace talks. They were never the one to stay out of the action anyway.

“Sorry, we were a little late,” Falco said as he approached them, “Shall we go?”

“Sure, no problem.”

Falco popped the rest of the ice cream in his mouth before silently pulling the wheelchair by its handle without being prompted to. He was a sweet kid. Erwin, Hange and the rest of his old squad- Petra, Oulo, Eld, Gunther- would have liked him.

Levi picked up a newspaper from a vendor, to see if there were any mentions of the peace committee who had set sail for Paradis earlier that day. As they made their way through the street, he winced as the wheel stumbled over a small pothole.

“I’m so sorry,” Falco exclaimed.

“No, that’s fine,” he rubbed his back. “Times like these are when I really miss Four-eyes.”

Onyankopon laughed, “They’d have come up with a crazy convenient wheelchair, custom-made for you.”

“Knowing them, they would have probably attached an engine and the 3DMG trigger-anchor system complete with a safety belt into the wheelchair,” he shook his head. “Then again, I think they might have also pushed me down a slope as a test run, so maybe I’m safer this way.”

A distant hum of an engine made all of them look above.

A plane, similar to the one they had taken off from in Odiha, flew past the sky, its shadow falling on them as it streaked by.

For the kids, it was just another ordinary plane they stared fascinated at. But for him, something about it felt reassuring.

It was almost as if…

Levi glanced at Onyankopon, who gave him a knowing look.

So, they were watching us after all.

#levihan #levi ackerman #hange zoë #onyankopon #snk 139 #snk 132 #onyankopon and levi drink coffee and tea together in a vacation #featuring plane-san #retired levi #the sc vets were the best characters tbh #i miss them #fluff #snk fanfiction

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plaidbooks · 3 years

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SFW Alphabet - Rafael Barba

I’ve been meaning to do this for forever--it was bugging me having the rest down and not Raf’s (I still need to do Mike’s at some point, too whoops).

Taglist: @witches-unruly-heart @beccabarba @thatesqcrush @itsjustmyfantasyroom @stardust-fray @permanentlydizzy @infiniteoddball @ben-c-group-therapy @glowingmess @whimsicallymad @lv7867 @storiesofsvu @cycat4077 @shroomiehomie @glimmerglittergirl @alwaysachorusgirl @dianilaws @averyhotchner @mrsrafaelbarba @crowleysqueenofhell @detective-giggles @dreamlover31 @prurientpuddlejumper @madamsnape921 @joanofarkansass

(gif by @minidodds)

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Rafael shows his affection in a different way than most. He’s slow and unsteady while trying to open up to you. He needs your help (and patience) to let more of his affectionate side out. He’s definitely a gift giver, showering you with expensive gifts, or a fancy dinner, or a high-class show. But the more he gets used to you, the more he’ll switch from gift giver to physical touch. Cuddling with you, rubbing your calves or shoulders, playing with your hair.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

It started at work, whether you’re a paralegal, lawyer, or detective. You had a particularly snarky response to Rita, leaving her speechless (for once), and Rafael was quick to find out if that was a fluke or if you were that quick-witted. As much as Rafael seems like an egotistical jerk, he’s actually a very good friend. He’s the one you can vent to, or go get a nightcap with, no matter what time it is. He also has amazing advice for almost all situations.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

At first, you have to initiate it. Rafael does love it, but he’s afraid of looking too soft. Once he realizes you’re not running from him, then he’s incredibly touchy, wanting to hold you or be held by you at all times. He’s a big fan of laying on the couch, with you laying on top of him, your body weight comforting.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

Rafael wants to settle down, but he needs to be absolutely sure that you’re not going to leave him. He’s afraid of his heart being broken again. But, once you’re in, he’s in, too. He’s been used to cooking for himself for a long time, so he begrudgingly likes it. That is, until he sees how you light up at eating his food; then he likes it more. He hates cleaning—his motto is if nothing is dirty, he doesn’t have to clean. He’s very much a “clean up after yourself” person, his loft immaculate. You don’t mind doing dishes, since he cooks, and you normally do the laundry, but only because Rafael barely has dirty laundry. And if he does, it goes to dry cleaning—except for the odd polo shirt or sweats.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

In person. Rafael has a tight-lipped grimace, upset that it didn’t work out. He’ll stay strong, but you can tell that this hurts him as much—if not more—than it hurts you. He’ll also go to your place to do it, so that if you cry, you’re not out in public, nor do you have to travel home.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

It takes Rafael a while to get married. He moves much slower in a relationship, afraid that if he goes too fast, you’ll be close enough to hurt him. But, once you get past his walls, he’s pretty quick to do the other things, such as moving in together and planning a future.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

At first, Rafael’s not gentle. He doesn’t go out of his way to hurt you or anything, but his sarcasm and arrogance has been a defense mechanism for so long, it’s hard to abandon it. Plus, his public self is what he thinks people want from him, so he hides behind that façade. But again, once you can get him to lower those walls, then you’ll find a hurt, emotional man. That’s when he’s most gentle; when he’s vulnerable.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

Shockingly, Rafael is a big hugger! Since he’s too afraid to cuddle too quickly, he makes it up with hugs. He wraps his arms around your shoulders, tugging you against his chest, nuzzling into the crook of your neck. His solid body is comforting, especially with that citrusy cologne he wears.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

It takes Rafael a long, long, long time for him to admit he loves you, even to himself. You can say it, and he’ll get choked up, hugging you close and kissing your cheek. He mutters something, and you assure him that he doesn’t have to say it back if he doesn’t want to; you understand. But he shows you that he loves you in every little thing he does. He may also write it down on a sticky note—left on the mirror when he goes in early—before he says it out loud.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

Rafael gets very jealous, but it quickly changes to insecurity. What do they have that he doesn’t? Then he’ll start listing his faults in his mind, and it makes him even more sad. If he gets you back before the insecurity happens—while he’s still jealous—then he’s pushing you against the wall and reminding you who you belong to. If you come back to him when his insecurity is running wild, then you need to remind him that you love him, and only him.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Rafael’s kisses are soft, tender, and somewhat desperate…as if you’re going to pull away from him at any moment. (I wrote a HC about his kisses here). He likes to kiss your forehead; he feels it’s more intimate. But also your spine; he loves the feeling of you moving against his mouth. He loves when you kiss his tum—he’s a little insecure about that section of his body, so when you kiss him there? He melts.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Babies…not great. Rafael has no paternal instincts at all and he doesn’t know how to interact with them. But once they start talking, and understanding what he’s saying, he’s better. He’s the type of guy that talks to children as if they’re people, treating them with respect. And he loves to teach them things (especially things that will shock adults).

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

Usually, you don’t spend mornings together. Rafael is a “sleep as much as possible, shower, work” person. He’ll kiss your shoulder before rolling out of bed, and he’ll have coffee ready for you for when you get up. Though, if it’s a day off, then Rafael stays in bed with you, cuddling, kissing, and whispering sweet words.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

You both take nights to catch up with each other’s days. One (or both) of you will massage the other’s neck, since that’s where all the stress builds up. And then it’s cuddles o’clock, both of you wrapped around each other as you eat dinner and relax.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

Rafael holds his cards close to the chest. But, by doing that, you start to learn about him indirectly. You notice that he only ever talks about his mother, and never mentions his father. You notice that he’ll apologize for something that wasn’t his fault. You notice that he tries a little too hard. You never mention these things to him, but you tuck it away, and are patient with him.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

Rafael is easily annoyed but not easily angered. He’s very much a logic > emotions person, and will try and tackle any argument head on, using logic and facts. The things that get him angry, though, are usually work related. He may snap at you after a particularly rough day, but you know he doesn’t mean it.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Contrary to popular belief, Rafael’s mind is a steel trap (in Twenty-Five Acts, the belt thing was mentioned once in passing, and Rafael quickly moved on to something else without even acknowledging it). His downfall is remembering what day it is. He may know your birthday is June 3rd, but when he looks at the calendar and sees it’s June 2nd, he panics and calls in favors to make sure he has a reservation at a fancy restaurant.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

When he took you to a Broadway show. He had his arm wrapped around you, holding you to his chest as you watched—a show he’d seen a thousand times, but loved. But, when he heard you quietly singing to yourself, his heart melted. He had no idea you knew the songs, and afterwards, you both walked down the street, singing the songs together. Rafael only ever sang to his mami and abuelita…and now you.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

Rafael goes above and beyond for dates and anniversaries. They’re few and far in between, and it’s to make up for ignoring you during the work week (not that you see it as him ignoring you; he’s just busy. But he thinks the worst). Every day tasks aren’t super over-the-top like dates, but he enjoys your company; you calm him after the stress of his work.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

Rafael’s list of importance goes; 1) work, 2) family, 3) you. He’ll always choose work over you (unless you’re in the hospital or something, but then he uses work to get the bastard who put you there). And he’ll always choose his mami over you, as well. This has never been a problem (except for maybe some missed date nights), but the quicker you can accept that, the better.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Rafael is a fashionista at heart. This poor boy growing up in the Bronx, and now shining as a Harvard grad, has an appearance to maintain. He never felt like he “belonged” with the elites he often sees at parties and galas, but the longer he can fool them, the better.

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

At first, he doesn’t need you. He’s too afraid to give you so much of himself, and he’s afraid to let you in. But once you make your way into his heart, he finds himself depending on you more and more, whether as just someone whose arms he can collapse into, or someone who will listen to him rant.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

One of Rafael’s favorite things is at night, when you’re in the kitchen (whether doing dishes or getting a drink), he’ll wrap his arms around your waist. He rests his chin on your shoulder, then sways with you. He kisses your neck and chin, making you giggle and melt further back into him. He’ll keep it up until you stop what you’re doing and turn in his arms, giving him a kiss and dancing with him.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Rafael doesn’t like clingy. He wants someone independent, as he is. He works a lot, and won’t always be there, so he wants someone who has their own life outside of him. He also doesn’t like messy people—he’s a bit of a neat freak, and he’s not going to be cleaning up after you.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

Many nights, Rafael will work until he’s exhausted. He’ll go through his nightly routine before murmuring a “goodnight” and collapsing onto the bed. Though, nights like those, if you lay down close enough to him, he’ll eventually find you in his sleep and wrap around you.

#sfw alphabet #rafael barba x reader #my writing

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liddolwhynot2000 · 3 years

Text

Ruins

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Summary: You got your answer when he was visiting home on his off day, in the form of a love letter for a girl named Nanaba.

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Pairings: Mike/Reader, Levi/Reader

Genre: Angst, One Sided, why must I hurt reader, I'm mean I know

___________________________________

Warnings: mention of child neglect, brothel, violence and prostitution

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You were just a lonely, sad child with parents who couldn't care less about her. Even at the tender age of 9, no one cared to feed you, to buy you anything or even acknowledge that you existed. You were just a burden, a nusiance they had never wanted. Even giving you the bare minimum care a child deserved was too much for them, so you were often left to fend for yourself.

Hence, no one even batted an eyelash at the fact that you were out in the dark, wearing a tattered dress and shoes that couldn't even classify as such. You didn't feel bothered, used to their shamelss mistreatment. You were all too familiar with no one giving a damn about you.

What you weren't familiar with was someone actually caring about you.

Mike.

He had felt like an angel to you, a blessing you hadn't thought you would ever recieve. Someone who cared about you, someone who wanted you to be safe.

You had met him when you were 11, as kids who lived in the same village in Wall Rose. Most of the other kids either avoided you or bullied you, because of your poor appearance. But he didn't.

He was nice to you. Giving you food, getting you clothes. Sometimes he took you to his house to have a meal. His mother and her kind smile made you warm. Within a few months of knowing each other, the two of you had gotten closer, to the point you spent more time in his house then your own.

One night, your parents hadn't opened the door to their house for you. You hadn't been surprised, for it wasn't the first time they had done so. You liked to think it was on purpose, a way of saying they wanted you to never come back.

You had ended up sleeping out in the rain and had gotten extremely sick. Mike had found you the next day and taken you back to his house. After that, you had never gone back to your parents.

Your parents didn't care. And frankly, for once in your life, you were glad about that.

Years would go by in this friendship, years of happy memories and softness. You had considered those to be the best years of your life. The two of you had grown up together, spending everyday with each other and having fun.

Until the two of you turned 15. By then you knew very well, that you were in love with Mike.

Too bad you had to learn the hard way that he didn't feel the same.

___________________________________

When you were 15, Mike set off to join the military. He had told you and his family that he would get into the top 10 and join the military police. His parents had been overjoyed, and his mother had privately told you something that had made your heart flutter.

She thought that Mike would marry you and take you to Sina with him.

It made sense really, after all, you had known each other for years. His parents had treated you as their own, to the point their guest room was your room. Your biological parents had left at some point, selling their house. You had been so happy in your life that you hadn't even noticed them leave. There had been a slight pang of hurt, one that would always exist at the thought of them, but you had moved on well.

The thing that made you think Mike actually wanted you was the fact that he had kissed you. Several times.

They had been short, sweet kisses. The two of you had been blushing messes by the end of them. Neither of you ever had enough courage to talk about them. But it only served to reinforce what his mother was saying.

Shortly after Mike left, you had found a job as a barmaid in a bar nearby. You hadn't wanted to inconvenience his family any longer, you already lived under their roof for free. The least you could do was earn your keep. It also helped keep you busy now that Mike was gone.

Mike's mother had begun to encourage you to write to Mike. She had told you that already saw you as her daughter, and could tell Mike felt something for you. Like a fool, you went along with it, thinking she might be right.

Mike had never said anything romantic to you, but it was always a possibility. Those kisses had been anything but platonic. His mother knew him best and you figured it wouldn't hurt for you to take the oppurtunity to try to get your feelings across.

So you began to write to him, hoping he would respond back. And he did. Your long, neatly written letters were often responded to, but with brief, polite letters. It was as though your friendship had changed, that you weren't best friends like before. But you convinced yourself you were wrong to feel that. Maybe he was just too busy to write much?

You often pretended you hadn't seen the three page letters his parents got from him.

You still kept writing to him, the shortness in your letters growing. He had stopped even bothering to respond on time. Often, you were met with radio silence.

It frustrated you, how the two of you weren't even friends even more. Your hopes of being his future wife had been far fetched to begin with, but he had stopped even letting you be his friend. Had you done something wrong? You hadn't even pushed him, only writing him friendly letters.

You got your answer when he was visiting home on his off day, in the form of a love letter for a girl named Nanaba.

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The three years he would spend training in the military would fly by really. He only came home five times a year, and mostly spent it with his parents.

You clearly recalled the first time he came back to visit. You had helped his mother make a feast for him, it had consisted of all of his favorite foods. But he hadn't so much as thanked you, or even made eye contact with you. All your attempts at a conversation with met with pauses and a cordial tone.

It had made you feel unwelcome. As though you were just a guest in his house and not the best friend he had grown up with.

His parents had noticed of course, and once they thought you were asleep, had confronted him about his behaviour. It hadn't gotten anywhere, with Mike just insisting he was tired and not really feeling up to chit chat.

His strange behaviour towards you carried on everytime he visited in that year, to the point you began taking up late nigth shifts to avoid him. You would cook with his mother and make your excuses and leave.

Once his second year started, you had saved enough money to move out. Once his parents found out, however, they wouldn't let you go. They had never taken a cent from you and would continue to not. But they refused to let the girl they considered their daughter live by herself, finding it too dangerous for you to be on your own.

You had argued but accepted that they wouldn't let you go. A part of you wished they had let you go, because the next time Mike came home, he brought Nanaba with him.

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When Mike was in his final year of training, you moved out.

It hadn't been an easy decision, nor a very welcome one for his parents but you had made it nonetheless. He and Nanaba were an actual couple now, much to his parents despair.

Maybe they didn't actually like the girl or they just didn't like how their son had been treating you since he had met her. But you had understood that you needed to leave. They were too stiff with Nanaba, making her feel unwelcome. It had led to several fights after she left, with Mike feeling justly angered at their treatment of his girlfriend.

By then, you had learned to live with the heartbreak he had caused you. So, with promises to keep visiting, you left to live in your own apartment.

You thought that was the end of that really. You would live on your own, visit his family from time to time, slowly grow apart from them and live out the rest of your life on your own. You had made peace with this and thought that it would end the conflicts between him and his parents.

But somehow, despite not being there, you had still continued to be the reason he fought with his parents. The last time you would hear them argue, he would tell them to stop letting you visit. Because it made him uncomfortable. He and Nanaba would get married someday and if they kept letting you be around, they would live somewhere else rather then with them.

You had been standing outside the door, ready to knock when you heard that. And without a second thought, despite your heart wrenching painfully, you had turned back around and walked home.

You were determined to never come back, so you had packed your bags and then gone into work. After informing your boss that you were quitting, you finished your last shift. You were planning on heading out to Wall Maria the next day, hoping to just cut contact with Mike and his family and start over with your life.

It hurt you more then you were willing to let on, his family had been the only parents you had ever had. And now, you were the reason they were losing their son. It wasn't fair, but what could you do? He had made his decisions and now you had made yours.

Just as you set your apron aside, and prepared to leave, there was a sudden pain in the back of your head.

And then, everything went dark.

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The underground.

That's where you were.

You had been kidnapped and sold to a brothel in the underground, as if you were a piece of meat.

You had woken up, chained. Three middle aged men had leered at you with twisted grins, uncaring that you were sobbing in terror.

No matter how much you begged and pleaded, there was no turning around. You had been forced to shut up, after one decided you were too annoying and had slapped you. The other man had been in favour of beating you black and blue to teach you a lesson, but the third one had argued you wouldn't sell enough in that state.

After that, you had gone quiet as a mouse. You felt numb that this would be your end.

Your life had started out in ruins, with your parents shamelessly neglecting you. It had begun to build back up once you had met Mike and his loving parents, only for Mike himself to give you no choice but to walk away.

You thought you could walk away with your head held high a little, after all, at least you were capable of taking care of yourself now. But no, now your life was even worse then before.

When you had met Mike, you had been starving for food. He had offered you an apple and that was how you became friends. Now, as you sat locked in a room, dressed in rags, waiting for your first 'customer', you wished he had left you alone.

If only he had let you die back then, everyone's life would have been easier. Your parents would have gotten rid of their burden earlier, Mike and Nanaba wouldn't be struggling with his parents right now.

You snapped out of your misery as you heard a thump and sounds of someone screaming. You ignored it, having grown used to hearing weird sounds in the three days you had been here. Then you heard someone inserting a key into the door.

You gulped, as the knob turned and someone began to walk in.

It was a short man, with black hair and steel eyes. He looked at you neutrally, showing no emotions.

Once he shut the door, you began to back away on the bed, only to struggle against the handcuffs you were trapped with.

He began to walk forward and you began to cry.

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A/N: Heyooo. So I want to do a part 2 for this, one that explores reader and Levi. But I don't know if that's what y'all want. Do tell! I can see this having two more parts, one for Levi and reader and one with Mike POV. Do tell what y'all would like! Till next time ⭐

#Attack on titan #AOT #Levi x reader #Mike x reader #Warnings #Angst #Snk

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imnotwolverine · 3 years

Text

Wolfie’s Fic Recs | Winter Holiday Fics

WINTER HOLIDAY FICS - I love the winter holidays. Here’s some fics to get you all cozy and mighty chuffed for the most wonderful time of the year.

With Henry

I’m glad I’m not the only one who loves The Magic Of Christmas; give me all the slippery sidewalks, precariously held Christmas gifts and silly little kisses shared with a lover as carolling meets frosty ears. And, who else should that lover be, than ..Henry? By @dancingwendigo

Talking about magic. If you’re looking for love, all you really need is faith, trust and ..A Little Bit Of Magic (dust), by me.

And after being out in the cold, you might want to warm up again, which Henry will happily provide [smutty drabble ahead] - The Christmas Cabin by @writingforhenry

Now. You know what happens when you get baby-fever, right? Just make sure you keep quiet, when you’re visiting family 👀[smutty drabble] Can You Be Quiet by @littlefreya

And to keep the smut going. Have you ever wondered what happens when naughty women sit on Santa Henry’s lap? [smut alert]; Jingle My Bells by @angryschnauzer

Soon-to-be-dad fluff always gets to me. So, trust me, Henry; this will be a December To Remember, by @foodieforthoughts -- ps. I once did this drawing-on-someone’s-back-thing and it ended up in the poorest guesses/drawings I have seen in my young history 😂

And once he IS a dad, I’m sure Henry loves, loves, loves to come home for Christmas, children koala-ing on his legs and all. 🎶It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas, by @penwieldingdreamer

Talking about family visits at Christmas: Chapter 2 Christmas At Cavill’s of @madbaddic7ed‘s Henry x Ria multi-chapter is just that - though of course there’s a catch; Ria has a boyfriend..and it’s not Henry *cue dramatic music*

As a kid I used to dress up our Rhodesian ridgeback (dog) with the prettiest hats, so I can only imagine how Kal would be when he’d get his very own hat. Happy Dog-mas! by @wondersofdreaming

With Mike

Enough sugary sweet fluff; let’s get into some sensual, voyeuristic, Christmas lights bondage love making with Mike. You read that right. Christmas. Lights. Bondage (I didn’t even know I could have such a kink, but here we go). All These Little Lights by @hope-to-hell

With August

And what will our bad boy grinch be doing when he’s invited to an office dinner party? Oh, I’m sure it’ll be a [smutty] Holly Jolly Christmas by @radaofrivia

With Walter

Christmas tree hunting with Walter. That’s the dream, right? This fluffer-the-fluff chapter from “Safe” can be read individually, if you ask me, so go read: Forever? Or, if you prefer to start at the beginning: Secret Meeting. By @maya-the-cute-ass-bee

And once the Christmas tree is installed, there better be ..eh..breakfast in bed? Winter Morning describes a delectable morning of smutty morning sex with Walter, and..*sigh* let me just fantasise about the beard burn for a moment, okay? By @connieisland

“A delicate blanket made of snowflakes had nestled itself over the streets of Minneapolis.” Starts the tale of this sweet Walter fic, including many annoying (but totally hilarious) text spams from Faye, one messy kitchen and one nearly ruined Covid-Hannukah dinner - I said nearly, there okay; The Great Jewish Cook-off by @inlovewithhisblueeyes

With Sy

Loss and love are closely intertwined when the holidays are near. Let’s take a look behind the tinsel and twinkle and see the way Sy looks at the woman who lost a lot, yet loves the most. On Leave by @dancingwendigo

Need some more uplifting Sy Christmas tree decorating? We’ve got that too! Let me give you A Syverson Family Christmas by @its--fandom--darling -- ps. I never heard of hanging actual popcorn in the tree, so here’s to me learning new things! 😸

And eh..*aherm* need some down-time between all the Christmas shopping? Maybe a lil’ smut is just what you need? The Shop-pocalypse by @its--fandom--darling (again; yes, this winter holiday rec list is pretty much owned by this wonderful, darling! 😂😘)

With Clark

Dear Santa, I’ve been a good girl allll year. Now can I, pretty pretty please, bow-on-top, have a Christmas night with hot cocoa and take-out? Wrap Session is the kind of fluff you may crave in these cold dark days, so let @its--fandom--darling indulge you!

Prefer something a little more dark, Clark and ..tacos? Holiday Interlude 2 by the mistress of dark fics @sapphirescrolls will be sure to get you going.

With Napoleon

Some sad pre Christmas nostalgia turns utterly sweet as Napoleon surprises his ladylove with a little winter escape in White Christmas by @crimsonrae

With Charles

Charles being a loving husband is my weakness; now imagine Walking In Winter Wonderland with him. Delightful no? @its--fandom--darling gives you all the fluff (and if you so feel like it, there’s also a smutty follow-up 👀)

With Geralt

Let’s pull some heart strings with this fic of a druidess and Geralt, winter impending and loving hearts pondering; what will they do? One can tell, Only After The Heart Heals, by @thetaoofzoe

Need some Geraskier to keep you warm? This Geraskier prompt about Jaskier’s winter stay at Kaer Morrhen, will give you sensual dough kneading (pottery scene from Ghost, anyone?👀), banter and utter-butter fluff. By @kueble.

Or prefer Yule celebrations w/ Yen & Ciri? This Witcher Headcannon got me grinning - and that’s not only because of the joke regarding Yen’s unicorn. By @witcherislovewitcherislife

Bonus: Finishing off, I can’t help but link to the Netflix Christmas Witcher trailer, which is a lot of snow, Geralt cursing and overall sentiment of “SANTA WOULD YOU PLEASE GIVE US A RELEASE DATE” -- I know, it’s no fic, but it’s pretty funny anyways.

Artworks by me and thank you dear @littlefreya for helping out with your suggestions! ❤️

Also, many of these wonderful fics are part of #stephschristmaswritingchallenge. Look for that tag if you want more, more, more!

-–

🔥Also: Please add your own recommendations in the comments!! The more fics, the merrier! 🔥Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Have a lovely Kwanzaa! Have a good Omisoka! Happy Winter Solstice! Blessed Yule! (+ any holidays I missed :D)

#wolfie's fic recs #smut #fluff #angst #christmas #hannukah #winter holiday fics #henry cavill fanfiction #happy holidays!

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gleekto · 3 years

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Fic: Unsolicited Advice (21/24)

Summary: Blaine and Kurt are 22 and living in New York City. Blaine is in a stale relationship. Kurt likes to have his bachelor fun. They haven’t met yet.

Just your standard coffee shop meet cute…but in a drugstore, in the condom aisle.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20

**Update: This fic will be 24 parts. I will publish as a full fic and on AO3 on Christmas day, adding in the final word prompt somewhere in there for you to find, if you so desire.

Unsolicited Advice - Part 21 - Vanish (Blaine POV)

Blaine tamps down his feelings of disappointment at Kurt’s offer - to go to Vibe so Blaine can explore his newly discovered casual self. He did say that to Kurt. And he meant it. Or at least he thought he did. The sex with Kurt was amazing and if that’s how Kurt does it, then he guesses he can do it that way too. He wants casual sex. Only just with Kurt. Which he supposes is an oxymoron and is the problem that he needs to ignore right now because they’re about to go out and have some fun. With other people.

It’s not the same as last week. Or the week before. They dance together, but alone together, deliberately making space, keeping their hands to themselves.

“There he is,” Kurt claps his hands. “Green-shirt guy. I can vanish so he thinks you’re alone?” Kurt offers. Blaine thinks Kurt’s almost eager. Too eager.

Blaine looks up and sees a reasonably good looking dark brown-haired guy and yup, he’s eyeing Blaine. Blaine looks back at Kurt looking at him, wide-eyed and encouraging, and then looks back at the guy, assessing the situation. He feels nothing. Except maybe annoyed. Which is not a good sign. And the guy is dressed terribly.

“He’s wearing a flannel shirt, Kurt,” Blaine shakes his head, scandalized. “So not my type. You can definitely stay.”

Kurt laughs and thuds his head on Blaine’s shoulder, momentarily at ease in their shared judgement. Then he seems to remember and pulls back. “Oh who is your type then, grandpa?” Kurt pulls at his bowtie.

You. “Oh I don’t know.”

“What was Stephen like?”

“He was cute. Good looking, I mean. And nice, a good student,” Blaine is contemplating. “You know, I’m not sure he was really my type either. Too vanilla. I just hadn’t figured it out yet. I’m more interested in your type,” Blaine dodges the question though he really does actually want to know.

“Male?” Kurt laughs and Blaine rolls his eyes at him. “No, not just that. Also hot.” Blaine crosses his arms. “But I don’t know. I never usually get close enough to find out.”

“Why?”

“You know I have very high standards,” Kurt deflects. Blaine just gives him another look. “Oh I don’t know. Something complicated about a history of not being allowed and then really being allowed but being afraid of disappointment,” Blaine is sitting on his bar stool, looking intently at Kurt. “Or of disappointing,” Kurt adds quickly. “But you definitely don’t want to hear about this here.” Kurt stops.

“I do, actually.”

“Well, we may just have to take a rain check because the tall guy in the tank top with the amazing body is definitely looking right at you. And he is definitely hot.”

Blaine looks up in surprise and then is amused. The guy is looking right at him with a wide warm smile. And Blaine agrees he is very good looking. “That’s because I know him.” It’s Mike from dance class. “My friend, Mike. And he is definitely hot. A friend from school - he’s in dance.”

“Blaine hey!” It’s so nice to see a friendly face in this pressured situation but he definitely did not think Mike was gay. Pretty certain he has a girlfriend. “How are you?”

“I’m good. You?”

Blaine must be looking at him questioningly because Mike continues. “I’m here with my brother. Promised him a night out in New York City if he came to visit.” Blaine nods. Makes sense. “Is this your boyfriend?”

Blaine blushes. “Stephen? No no, we broke up, actually. This is my friend, Kurt.”

“Oh. Okay then. Hey Kurt,” A guy who Blaine presumes is Mike’s younger brother, pulls on Mike’s arm beckoning him back to the dance floor. “I’ll see you at school, Blaine. He’s cute,” Mike mouths to him as he’s pulled away. Blaine hopes he didn’t hear.

“Mike’s brother looks pretty cute,” Blaine spots him on the dance floor. “And I can confirm he comes from good genes. Would be too weird for me but he is here for a night on the town,” Blaine suggests half-heartedly. This is what they’re here for so he’s playing along.

Kurt looks up quickly before turning back to Blaine. “He’s cute but too young.” Blaine nods, a slight feeling of relief that he doesn’t want to acknowledge. Back to the drawing board. Who might be next? “You know, I think tonight may just be one of those nights that I leave alone,” Kurt says, blessedly ending the discussion. Blaine turns to him, not sure if he’s joking. But Kurt’s face is sincere and calm. His eyes are warm and almost sad, and he is, in fact, getting up from the barstool.

Blaine nods and gets up himself. “Yeah,” He knocks into Kurt’s side. “Me too. I’m coming with you.”

Kurt looks at him. He looks back but doesn’t say anything else as they exit the club. Blaine didn’t mean to be so ambiguous, didn’t intend for “I’m coming with you,” to have two possible meanings. But it does. And he has no idea which one he meant.

#klaine advent 2020 #klaine advent: vanish #gleekto writes #unsolicited advice

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imanativeofswlondondahling · 4 years

Text

Hiding in Plain Sight (1)- Tom Holland X Reader

Word Count-1792

A/N: This was inspired by this wonderful post by @starsholland. Without it this would not be happening. This will be a multi part fic, but I don’t know how many chapters or when it will be posted so if you’d like to be tagged let me know:) Welcome to Tom being undercover on Tumblr. Quick notes- Y/T/B = Your Tumblr Blog, Y/A is your age :)

“You’re not going to make me go undercover on Tumblr are you?” Tom asks as they hook up the mike to his white t-shirt. “I’ve heard dangerous things about that site.”

“No, no. We’re sticking to Reddit, Twitter, Youtube. Maybe some Quora and IMDB.” The redheaded assistant sitting across from him states as she places the GQ laptop across from him. Tom sees Harrison’s shoulders silently moving up and down, laughing at the idea of him having to go undercover on the site that he had been telling horror stories of for weeks leading up to this interview. “If any of these don’t sound good to you, we can skip them.”

“No, those sound fine.” Tom says. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

“Camera A ready?” She asks the camera man sitting diagonally from where she is. In response she gets a nod. “Tom when you’re ready say something like I’m Tom Holland and I’m going undercover on the internet to answer your questions. It’s actually me. Something like that.”

From across the room Harrison watches as Tom flows through the questions easily, hoping from site to site with better technical luck than he normally has. He can guess that some of the answers will be giffed and blasted around social media within minutes of this interview going live. It would shock him if it didn’t.

“Check it out mate.” On his screen flashes Tom saying I drink tea darling over and over again. “Your fans love it. Which is good, seeing how upset a lot of them are over the Disney/Sony thing.”

“Where is this?”

“Your favorite site.”

“Instagram?”

“Tumblr.” Tom rolls his eyes and falls back into the couch.

“Why are you even on there?”

“Why aren’t you? So many fangirls, so little time.” Tom shoots a dirty look at Harrison. “But in all seriousness, there’s a lot of great reactions and gifs that you can only find on Tumblr. You should check it out.” Tom reaches for Harrison’s computer but he pulls away. “Make your own account. It costs nothing.”

“Ugh, fine.” Pulling his phone out of his pocket, downloads the app and creates an account. Expecting one of the fangirls to have already have taken his common username, he’s surprised to be able to fill out the form with tomholland2013 as his username. Will that seem too much like him? Who knows. It’s not like he’s planning to actually use this site. He just using it to see what Harrison wants him to see. “What do I look up?”

“Just search the hashtag Tom Holland and look under recent for the most recent stuff. Most of it is your undercover interview. Or you can look under the Tom Holland top posts and see what your fans are obsessed with.” Tom is on the main page and sees a suggestion of blogs. A lot of them have his name intertwined in them with his picture as the profile picture. Guess it wouldn’t hurt to follow some blogs while he’s on here?

The first one he follows is @starsholland who seems to write fanfictions about him but also shares a lot of marvel pictures. By clicking follow it brings up a lot of suggested blogs to follow. He clicks on @tonguetiedholland and sees another fanfiction writer but also a lot of posts between them and other bloggers. “Is this site just fanfiction?”

“No, there’s pictures and edits and stuff too. Why? You only interested in the fanfiction?”

“I only seem to find fanfictions.” Tom replies as he clicks on a blog called @tomhollandsstan, finding a mix of fanfictions, pictures and conversations. However his eyes scroll through one of the fics and find something much more raunchy than he anticipated finding. “Holy hell. What are they writing all of this about?”

“Reading something steamy Tommy?” Harrison teases. Tom feels his face flush with the embarrassment of knowing that there are girls and guys out there picturing stuff like this with him as the main feature.

“I’m getting off this site. It’s bloody porn.”

“No wait, you’ve just stumbled down the wrong path. Let me send you some blogs to look at.” Harrison pulls up some of the ones that are mostly pictures and reactions. “What’s your tumblr handle? I’ll send them to you?”

“Tomholland2013.”

“Really? It wasn’t taken?”

“Nope.”

“See how long it stays secretive.”

“I don’t plan on using it.” Tom says as he hits follow on some of the other blogs that Harrison sent him, including one that was @Y/T/B. He found himself scrolling through it a little more in depth than he had with any of the other pages he had been on. The posts and your reactions were more what he expected of tumblr. Glee filled, but not thirsty. Hitting follow was a no brainer.

Across the country, your phone lights up as you get a notification from Tumblr. You’re about to swipe it away, since your day is currently going down hill as the recipes you’re in the middle of trying out are turning into pinterest fails. Also you should have checked before you started baking a cake that you had powdered sugar to make frosting, so you’ll have to do another pinterest deep dive for a frosting recipe since you can’t use your tried and true recipe.

However, the name on the notification catches your eye- Tomholland2013 has followed you. Wow someone finally snatched the name. There had been jokes around the fandom for months that someone should snag the name so Tom could have it whenever or if-ever he decided to join tumblr. But it seems someone has decided to be Tom. Whoever it is though seems to enjoy your posts because they’re liking your posts in succession. While your stand mixer whirls, you open to their blog and see there’s nothing there. Not even a banner or an icon photo. They must be a super new blog. You back out of their blog and almost back out of the app when you see a message from this Tom Holland wanna be.

From: Tomholland2013

I really like all your edits of Tom. Can I use one as my profile pic? X

You pause for a second before replying. This person wasn’t the first to ask to use one of your edits as a profile picture. Why does this feel different though? It has to just be because of the name. You click to reply to the ask.

I’m so surprised someone finally took the name. Me and @imanativeofswlondondahling had a bet going on for how long it was going to stay open in case Tom wanted it. Anyway, feel free to use my edits, or if you have a favorite picture of Tom, send it my way and I’ll make an edit for you.

You hit send on the ask before you can change your mind and then you turn back to your cake- which has probably been overwhipped now.

“Do I have a favorite picture of Tom?” Tom mumbles to himself as he reads over your reply. He’d love to see something that was made for him, but that means finding a picture of himself that he wants edited. “Harrison, com’ere mate. Take a selfie with me.”

“What’s this for?” Harrison asks before posing. @Y/T/B wouldn’t know this was just a selfie. You’d probably think he just did a Google deep dive.

“Need a profile picture. For my blog.” Tom teases, before clicking back to his messages on tumblr. There has to be a way to send a direct message instead of an ask like he did before. He had been planning to use an edit you had done of him saying I drink tea darling, but he wasn’t going to toss up having a custom made icon. After fiddling around on the app for a few minutes Tom finally figures out how to send a message and sends the picture he had snapped with Harrison a few minutes earlier. He tacks on a quick message asking her to do whatever she wants with the picture and to take as long as she wants and or needs. After hitting send, he clicks back to your blog's main page, trying to learn more about you.

At the top of your page, simply stated, it reads Y/N, Y/A, Tom Holland Fan. Well that does tell him you’re around his age, so that makes him feel less like a creeper. He wants to know everything he can about you, but all he can find through scrolling is mainly, well him. He can’t explain why, but there’s a sort of pull towards you from what he can find in your messages to other people and responding to anon messages, you seem like someone he’d want to be friends with. You have a great sense of humor and make jokes as often as you can in your messages.

“Haz, can I turn on notifications for, like a certain blog?” Tom calls across the living room.

“Thought you weren’t going to use it.”

“There’s a couple blogs I like.”

“Sure, let me show you.” Tom passes his phone over and watches as Harrison turns on notifications for your blog. “Oh she’s great. Her reactions when news is posted is great.” A notification pops up on your screen. “Apparently she just posted.”

A cake maker I am not destined to be. Gordon Ramsay will make an idiot sandwich out of me.

A picture of a very sad looking cake appears under her text. “Maybe she should stick to making edits.” Harrison jokes.

“Mate, that’s rude.”

“But it’s not wrong. Plus it’s not like yours would look much better.”

“Mine would be worse.” Taking his phone back, he clicks on the comment bubble and types out: looks better than anything I would make X His inbox dings a couple moments later.

How have I never seen this photo of Harrison and Tom? Did it get posted while I was attempting to bake?

I think it’s an old photo. Found it on my phone. X And technically that’s not a lie.

Well I’ll hop on that edit. Any colors you prefer?

Blue or Red would be good I guess. X

I’ll get right on that. What’s with all the x’s?

Oh it’s a European thing. It’s just how we sign off texts and messagesX

If it’s annoying I can try and not do it?X

It’s fine. Just didn’t know why it was there.

Do you think Tom does it?

Oh most definitely. What kind of Brit would he be if he didn’t?X

Well I’ll go get on the edit, hopefully I’ll have it done in the next day or so

No hurryX

Thanks againX

#Tom holland #tom holland tumblr #tom holland undercover #tom holland x reader #tom holland x you #tom holland imagine #harrison osterfield #imanativeofswlondondahling #starsholland #tonguetiedholland #tomhollandsstan

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lizabethstucker · 3 years

Text

The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe edited by Josh Pachter

Subtitled: Parodies and Pastiches Featuring the Great Detective of West 35th Street

I loved this collection of stories, with only a few exceptions. Overall, I would give it 4.5 out of 5.

Introductions: Trouble in Triplicate

“At Wolfe’s Door” by Otto Penzler ~ about the characters.

“A Family Affair” by Rebecca Stout Bradbury ~ Rex Stout’s daughter provides a peek at the author.

“Plot It Yourself” by Josh Pachter ~ how the collection came to be.

Pastiches (Respectful imitations of the original works)

“The Red Orchid” by Thomas Narcejac

Translated from French, the story was written in 1947. The first English publication wasn’t until 1961. A young woman comes to hire Wolfe to discover who is trying to kill her uncle, a man who claims to have developed a red orchid. More creepy than respectful, especially how Archie hits on the female client. Too offensive for me. DNF

“Chapter 8 from ‘Murder in Pastiche’” by Marion Mainwaining

Published in 1955, this novel can also be found under the title of “Nine Detectives All at Sea”. A notorious gossip columnist is murdered during a sea cruise across the Atlantic. There are nine famous detectives on the ship as passengers. Trajan Beare, aka Nero Wolfe, is the focus of this particular chapter. It is hard to judge the whole book based on just one chapter. However, the characterization should be noted as being extremely close to the original source material. A nice read. No rating as it is just an excerpt.

“The Archie Hunters” by Jon L. Breen

Written in 1968, but never published until now. A cross of Nero Wolfe and Mike Hammer. Mock Himmler beats the crap out of anyone he encounters, particularly if they disagree with him or do something he doesn’t like. After beating up a news seller for carrying a “commie” magazine, Mock discovers an ad in the back requesting a private investigator for a missing person case. The ad, placed by Nero Wolfe, leads Mock to presume the missing person is Archie Goodwin. I’ve never been a fan of Mike Hammer nor his creator, Mickey Spillane, finding both of them to be disgusting in their love of violence, misogyny, and attitudes in general. I did enjoy this story nonetheless. 4 out of 5

“The Frightened Man” by O. X. Rusett

Gave up early on this anagram-stuffed story, even to the author’s name. More annoying than clever or cute. DNF

“Chapter 1 from ‘Murder in E Minor’” by Robert Goldsborough

I read the whole book when it was first published and, frankly, wasn’t too impressed. I do know that Goldsborough was selected by the Stout Estate to be the official author of the novels and I have read a few of his more recent books. I may try and reread it sometime down the road to see if my opinion has changed. No rating as it is only one chapter.

“The Purloined Platypus” by Marvin Kaye

While Goldsborough has the exclusive novel rights, Kaye asked to write short stories and was given the Estate’s permission as long as no novels were ever written. Benjamin Moultrie, president and board chairman of the Museum of the Strange, Odd and Peculiar, wants to hire Wolfe to investigate a robbery at the museum. As I wasn’t reading the magazines such as Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock, I missed reading any of these stories. Which is quite a tragedy. Excellent portrayals of not only the characters, but the case itself. 4 out of 5.

Parodies (Exaggerated imitations intended to poke fun at the source material)

“The House on 35th Street” by Frank Littler

Originally appeared in The Saturday Review in 1966. Little is known about the author, despite Pachter’s research attempts. A crowd is assembled in the Brownstone in a murder case, wanting to see some of the detective’s famous actions and quirks. There is an undercurrent of a very personal nature, especially at the end. 3.5 out of 5

“The Sidekick Case” by Patrick Butler

Another entry from The Saturday Review, this time in 1968, and another case of little information on the author. Wolfe objects to Archie being called a “sidekick” in a listing of the latest book. Cute. 3.5 out of 5

“The Case of the Disposable Jalopy” by Mack Reynolds

America has turned into an illiterate welfare state, Wolfe and Archie are old and sometimes forgetful, and things are beyond tight financially. Reynolds uses the last names of some of the biggest authors in Science Fiction in the story. These men want to hire Wolfe for a case of sabotage and the disappearance of a key developer. What a weird world Reynolds has built. As to the updates on the normal cast of characters in the series? Well, I never liked Orrie anyway. 4 out of 5

“As Dark as Christmas Gets” by Lawrence Block

An unpublished manuscript written by Cornell Woolrich is stolen during a Christmas party. The owner hires Wolfe wannabe Leo Haig and his Goodwin substitute, Chip Harrison, to recover it. I’ve come across stories in this series before and loved them, both for the obvious affection for the source material as well as the excellent characterization. 4.5 out of 5

“Who’s Afraid of Nero Wolfe?” by Loren D. Estleman

Arnie Woodbine, currently on parole, was fired from his last job for gambling on company time. He needs a job and finds an ad looking for an assistant sharp of wit. He finds himself hired by Claudius Lyon, a corpulent man with delusions of being Nero Wolfe. Arnie is hired as his Archie. Now all they need is a case. Since Lyon doesn’t have a private detective license and Arnie’s felony record prevents him from ever getting one, they would not be able to charge for their services. No problem as Lyon is actually quite wealthy. Their first case is regarding a poetry award that carries with it a $10,000 prize. One winner doesn’t appear to actually exist. Seriously one of the best sendups that I’ve ever read! This was a delight to read and deserved more stories. 4.5 out of 5.

“Julius Katz and the Case of Exploding Wine” by Dave Zeltserman

A friend of Julius’ that has a champion bulldog and heads a dog food company comes to see Julius with the dog in tow, asking for help to find someone to prevent Brutus from being kidnapped. He also asks that Julius find his murderer if he’s killed. Sure enough, the man is killed. Julius had agreed to investigate, but only after he gave the police a week to solve it themselves. Just as the week is up, an adversary calls to warn Julius that there is a bomb in his house, contained in a box of wine. Julius allows almost everyone to believe he is dead after the townhouse is completely destroyed from top to bottom. I absolutely loved this sorta tribute to Rex Stout. I’m particularly intrigued by Archie, an AI who is installed in Julius’ tie pin. That alone has me eyeing the book collections, but to be honest, this is a damn fine mystery. Julius is definitely not Nero Wolfe, at least in size, athleticism (martial arts), and loving women (a former womanizer who now has a regular girlfriend). He definitely is in the aspects of intelligence, laziness, and cutting Archie out of the loop. His collecting focus is wine rather than orchids, but both can be very expensive hobbies. 4.5 out of 5.

“The Possibly Last Case of Tiberius Dingo” by Michael Bracken

Age and diet are catching up to Tiberius Dingo’s body, but his mind and deductive reasoning is still as sharp as ever. His long-time assistant, Jughead Badloss, brings a client he dances with at the Senior Center, a woman who is certain she is being stalked. Family ties and age-old secrets are ripped out into the open before the case is done, for their client and for Jughead himself. The names are a little lame, but the story made up for it. 3.5 out of 5.

Potpourri

“The Woman Who Read Rex Stout” by William Brittain

Gertrude Jellison was the fat lady at a carnival sideshow, an intelligent woman whose extreme weight, over 500 pounds, kept her from her dream job of teaching psychology. Her partner, Robert Kirby, is the thin man, barely weighing seventy-five pounds. As a stunt, the carnival boss gave her Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe books to read during the shows. Surprisingly enough, Gert loved them and continued reading. She never expected to use what she learned to solve a murder, but sadly a newer member of the troup, a beautiful woman named Lili who was like a daughter to Gert, is murdered and the older woman knows she can solve the crime. This is a character that I could seriously have loved to read more about. A good little mystery as well, even if I quickly realized who the murderer would turn out to be. 3.5 out of 5.

“Sam Buried Caesar” by Josh Pachter

Police inspector Griffen had eleven children, each of whom was named after a famous fictional detective. Nero, just eleven years old, had set up his own detective agency, aided by his best friend and neighbor Artie Goodman. Their latest client, Sam, came to them after his dog, Caesar, was hit and killed by an out-of-state driver. Not wanting the poor animal to be left coldly abandoned on the street, he buried the dog in an empty lot. Coming back a short time later to get Caesar’s collar, the body is missing. He hires Nero and Artie to find the killer and recover the body. Sad and cute and inventive, but how Artie puts up with Nero will always be a mystery. 3.5 out of 5.

“Chapter 24 from Rasputin’s Revenge” by John Lescroart

The basic premise is that Nero Wolfe is the son of Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler. I’ve not read this particular book, but it appears to be the last chapter in which Archie and Wolfe, going under his original name, are in Russia, appeared to have come up against Gregori Rasputin (although the author has it as Gregory), and was helped by Holmes and Dr. Watson after they were wanted for murder. I’m not going to rate it as I don’t consider it fair to rate a novel based on just one chapter.

“A scene from Might as Well Be Dead” by Joseph Goodrich

Adaptation of the story into a play. Once again, not rated.

“The Damned Doorbell Rang” by Robert Lopresti

When their fourteen granddaughter came to visit in a snit because her parents won’t allow her to go with friends to a concert in New York City, Eve and Jack decide to tell her about why they left the City. When they were younger, they had a brownstone in the City. Their neighbors were definitely different, all men living there. Jack didn’t much like any of them and keeps disparaging Eve’s stories about what they saw while living there. But Eve tells a tale of how she saved the men’s lives. Too many close calls are the reason that they moved to New Jersey. How could I not love this outsider’s look at Nero Wolfe? 3.5 out of 5.

#book review #Nero Wolfe #collection #The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe #Josh Pachter #mystery #short stories

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petekaos · 4 years

Note

What did you think about the last episode!!

hi hi! so uhhh... this is going to get long and i’ve combined like 10 other asks i want to address, so your ask may be answered here! if you want Rahul’s Take On The 2gether Finale, then brace yourself.

...I didn't really like the last episode, I feel like it could've been a lot better/more emotional

I dunno if it's because I didn't like the last 2 episodes but even though the show literally finished I'm not emotional? The last episode I felt actually really happy watching was ep 9 but now I'm just 'ok, that show finished.' I'm sad bc I thought I would have a stronger reaction to the ending and them getting back together but I'm just meh :/

Really don't want to sound like those annoying people but damn really no kiss scene

I liked the ending, it was okay I guess but gmmtv better prepare for a shitstorm bc so many people didn't lololol

Honestly the best and well written episodes were ones where they still weren't a couple, like 8 and 9 were amazing

Although the finale was good, I feel llke in the future when I want to rewatch my favorite moments from this series, I will go for the first 10 or so episodes more often than not. It kinda feels like 2gether peaked around episodes 7-10, which is perfectly fine!! It was all in all a great series that did what it wanted to do and I’ll always cherish it but, I probably won’t rewatch much of the last two episodes

They made pam even worse!! Before she had her talk with tine anyway!!

My thoughts on the finale: could've been a lot better, could've been a lot worse

2Gether really felt like a giant inflatable castle that was carefully blown up for the past 12 weeks only to let it rapidly and poorly deflate in the end

The ending was fine and was expected but for me it's underwhelming in the sense that the past episodes, especially 4, 8 and 9 were really written in comparison so the finale is kinda meh bc I knew there was gonna be a happy ending. But still the YouTube comments and what some people on tumblr are saying is ridiculous, I don't want to even think about Twitter but imo I don't think any of gmmtvs other shows can top dbks ending like that ending was perfect,

i honestly love that 2gether focused so much on the story and the emotion and became so successful without all the usual fan service. i hope the whole industry takes something away from that! but i still felt like the finale was a little emotionally stunted when it came to tine/sarawat. i just wanted a big YES, I CHOOSE YOU moment, and tine's reappearance and the bracelet scene just didn't do it for me. you know what would have, though? a kiss. or a hug, or holding hands, or something sweet

okay, my friends! here is my opinion on the 2gether finale first, and then i’m gonna address what i personally hold of the more negative response the fandom has shown. i generally thought the finale had... a solid ending. i went into it with absolutely no expectations apart from sarawat’s song and a happy ending, because i knew it would be messy and not as good as ep 4 or 9 etc, considering the sheer amount of open storylines that were left to be resolved in one episode. i knew it would polarise the fandom--but i personally thought the ending was fine! a bit cliche, a bit rushed, but it was okay and it was a good enough ending for me to put 2gether behind me, the first season at least. the bracelet scenes and shots were amazing, the song was incredible (although i wish they would have had sarawat sing a bit more), the conversation pam and tine had was solid as well! there were a lot of things i liked about the finale and bright and win killed their solo acting as always. however, there are some things i wanna get into more detail about that i feel could have been done better, not only as a finale but as a show itself.

time allocated for the storylines. or: plotlines in general. this has been my bone to pick ever since episode 10. not gonna lie, this wasn’t good, especially from ep 10 onwards. there were so many storylines and plotlines that were dragged out further than necessary, and so many plotlines that should have started earlier. best example for this is mil and phukong, the mil redemption storyline should have started in ep 10 and should have had him be sincere for once, and the mil/phukong storyline should have actually made sense from the beginning and started in ep 11 at the latest. the mantype storyline should have also started a bit earlier than that and given us an explanation as to why type was crying at the retreat. however, mantype did pull it off!

writing! this ties in with the first point. the writing felt a bit inconsistent in the last two episodes and it’s a pity, really, that this is one of the downfalls :/ all the actors in this series, from the mains (bright, win, mike, toptap, frank, drake) to the side characters (gunsmile, love, gigie, film, etc.) are such good actors and it’s unfortunate that the last three episodes were a bit :// in terms of writing and plotlines. they all did the best they could with what was written and that... yeah.

conflict. this has to do with the first two points. the finale felt rushed. that’s something that i don’t think anyone really can argue? and i expected that, so i wasn’t too disappointed by it or anything. obviously it would have felt rushed considering the fact that they had to wrap up 3 or 4 episodes’ worth of storylines in one episode, which was a blunder on the writers’ part. the conflict fell flat, then. if they had had pam come in earlier and had tine and sarawat spend more time away from each other, we would have gotten an explosive reaction. i really do think that after they got together for real, the writers struggled to find conflict to keep the story going, jumping from tine’s insecurities to mil to pam for no reason whatever. i think it would have been much better done if we had mil as an antagonist wrapped up and on the road to redemption in ep 10 and had pam come in there, with tine’s insecurities as a b plot. i feel that would have been a bit more gripping. but, hey, guess that’s just me!

order of filming. this has to do with people saying that brightwin’s chemistry was off in the finale. i don’t think it was off, per se, but it was definitely lacking when we compare it to their chemistry in ep 4 or 9 or 10, y’know? that’s because i believe the finale was filmed earlier, when bright and win were still getting to know each other and figuring out how well they could improv. and they can improv, from what we’ve seen! so there really is nothing i can say apart from the fact that it’s a bit disappointing that they decided to film such a pivotal scene at the beginning. if it had been filmed in the end, it would have definitely been better!

flashbacks. the finale needed all the time it was gonna get, and i am disappointed by the amount of flashbacks they used, honestly. i would have cut down on the number of sarawatine flashbacks and used them sparingly when they reunited, because that just... makes sense and evokes emotion in the viewer, you know? the only flashbacks that served well were type’s view of everything and phukong and mil, because they were new. it just... felt a bit inauthentic.

pam. or: the girls in general. there is nothing i can do here but SCREAM. pam should have come in way earlier and replaced mil as the centre point of conflict for ep 11 and 12 to have been as good as the rest of the show, or ep 4 and 9 at least. her character fell so flat and the conflict she brought with her fell so flat as well, honestly. the girls should have been done better--more of earn and sarawat! more of pear! they could have tied into the plot effortlessly!

mil and phukong x mil. yeah this is a... whole ass bulletpoint, unfortunately. call me a clown all you want for expecting him to have at least a half assed redemption arc in the finale but goddamn was that... not good. really bitter over the fact phukong was straight up okay with being a “replacement” for tine even though... that doesn’t even make sense. i just... yeah, this wasn’t good. i feel super bad for frank and drake because they deserve a well written show or at the very least a well written storyline for all of their chemistry and work they put in, considering the fact that they are so so young. i could go on about a good mil arc for ages but i just... yeah i’m writing a fic, so y’all will see.

the reunion. this stems from the flat conflict and the rushed-ness of it all, but yeah. it wasn’t particularly hard-hitting, but i still enjoyed it because it’s sarawat and tine. this has to do with when they filmed as well, and just... because the angst didn’t start early enough for it to hit home. and i really do wish we’d had a scene after that with the both of them, alone. a lot of their things happen with a lot of people around them... and nah.

one year later. bro. bro. bro. the music club thing was cute! but i would have just... loved to see them alone, y’know? a scene of them being alone and intimate, just sitting next to each other on the couch or at a football game or sarawat continuing bringing the cheerleaders snacks, even a year later. them going to another concert. anything where they were just... alone. i wanted to see them together! we got that with mantype and we even got that fucking... scene on the roof where mil and phukong were just fuckin around? yeah? i would have loved to see that with sarawat and tine so much. (also btw pretty sure the rooftop scenes with mil and phukong is also where drake and frank took this photo and it made me so happy dhsndh like... the shot where mil took his hand off phukong’s eyes? i called it immediately and my partner was like ???)

intimacy. chemistry. the biggest thing everyone is talking about. now comes the part that y’all all wanted to know if you’ve been reading this far lmfao, my take on the fact that was no kiss in the finale! and my take is... i expected there to be no kiss in the finale somewhere deep within, and honestly i’m fine with not having a kiss. my only problems with all of this are first of all, that we didn’t get a proper kiss in the entire series and had sarawat kissing tine one-sidedly. secondly, i would have loved verbal intimacy as well! an i love you, or y’know, some hand holding, anything! this is also due to the fact that i believe the series was filmed relatively early on. i just wish... again, that they would have been alone one year later and we could have just seen them being domestic, as we have already seen them!

so those are some of my thoughts on the finale. considering the fandom’s response... i can see why people are upset or disappointed but i don’t think it’s, like, that justified to throw the whole show away as well. yeah, the ending wasn’t perfect, but if you’ve enjoyed the show as a whole... maybe it’s okay, y’know? like, personally, i don’t think i’m ever going to rewatch the finale. but i do love the earlier episodes and i am gonna watch them back at some point, probably! it’s all well and good and valid to criticise the lack of intimacy and kissing in the finale i guess, but if you’re a straight girl then maybe... watch your words. 2gether has portrayed a wonderful love story between two men and to see straight people throw it away as “bromance” or say it’s the “straightest bl of all time” or whatever because of the lack of kisses is kind of hurtful. i am completely open to discussing this with lgbt people, mlm specifically, and you can come talk to me about your thoughts if you’re a straight woman as well. all i’m asking for is that you maybe show a little bit of empathy and respect, y’know? i also do think 2gether peaked around episode 9/10 and i’m fine with that! it gave me so much more than characters and relationships--it gave me the fandom and everyone here and words cannot express how grateful i am for all of you. maybe the last few episodes were poorly written and the finale wasn’t everything y’all hoped for... but i did and do love this show. i cannot wait to see where brightwin go next.

#tried to put this under a cut but it gave up on me lmfaooo #also yeah dbk finale was perfect nothing can compare dsmdhs #2gether the series #2gether finale #for my own tagging purposes #ref #rahul answers

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violetwolfraven · 4 years

Text

Touch x5

No one asked for this but y’all can’t stop me. Basically 3 people who experience the Newsies habits involving physical touch, (and why specific individuals touch each other) 1 who is reintroduced to it, and 1 who completely misreads what it means.

Warnings: Uh... period-typical homophobia/internalized homophobia, referenced physical abuse, PTSD, brief mentions of injuries I guess?

...

Les thought the atmosphere that was created by most or all of the Manhattan Newsies (plus a couple of Brooklyn boys, occasionally) was exciting.

He’d always had friends back in school, but his old buddies weren’t like this. They didn’t randomly jump up against a building to vault off it and do a backflip just to hear the cheers and laughter of their friends. They didn’t check each other over carefully whenever someone was hurt. They didn’t take a second to stop and ask if you were okay if you did anything that indicated you might be sad.

But mostly, Les’s old friends didn’t touch each other as much as his new ones did.

Back in school, it had always been ‘hands to yourself,’ except when they were playing tag or football. But with the Newsies, it was a constant stream of friendly touches. Les was always getting his hair ruffled or his shoulder squeezed or his arm punched in a friendly way and he loved it. He even loved the way one Newsie would take his hat off so another could slap him with theirs if he said something stupid.

Les was well aware that in school, it wasn’t that way because... well, that would be weird. You didn’t just sling your arm around your friend for an entire conversation or jump on their back and cling there until there was a risk of falling over just to surprise them. You just didn’t.

But you did with the Newsies. You didn’t question it. You just did.

Les thought it might be about the way everyone reacted after the strike, when everyone was in pain and those who were in a little less were helping those who were in a little more. Les vaguely remembered Race rubbing his arms to try to calm him down and flicking his nose in a friendly manner before quickly setting his broken wrist with a stick and some stray strips of fabric and telling him not to take it out of the sling until it didn’t hurt anymore, plus a day, just to be safe.

And after he was okay—well, not crying anymore and more okay than a lot of others were—Les noticed how even when all of them were covered in cuts and bruises that would probably just hurt more if touched, the stream of physical contact didn’t end. No, it just got a little more gentle, taking away the fearful adrenaline and helping everyone feel safe.

Kid Blink still leaned against Mush’s knee despite his bruises, sitting in front of the crate the other boy was on. Les knew that the only people around to see in the alley all the Newsies were clumped together in between some dumpsters as they patched each other up enough to move back to the Lodging House were each other, but that didn’t make it any less surprising when Mush stopped stroking Blink’s hair and leaned down to kiss the top of his head.

Les knew even most of the other Newsies didn’t touch each other that way, so he guessed maybe ‘best friends’ wasn’t a term that applied well to the pair.

Well, confusing as that may be, Les didn’t see how it could be anything but natural in a group that made each other feel safe even while most of them were hurt.

...

Sarah knew not a lot of girls sold newspapers, and sometimes she asked Davey to go grab her papes to avoid the Delancey brothers’ comments, but she certainly enjoyed this more than her old factory job, and besides, now there was room to make friends.

All of Davey’s new friends were fun, but at first Sarah thought they were a bit handsy, with the way someone was always clapping her on the back or bumping her shoulder or grabbing her hand just to squeeze it before running off to their spot. But then she figured out that they acted like that with everyone, and they always stopped if she asked them to, and it wasn’t just because she was a girl around their age.

It took some getting used to, but Sarah eventually found it just another part of her day. It became routine; block Jack’s hand before he could mess up her hair, let Mike and Ike adjust her form when they teach her some self defense, throw her arm around Jojo to stop girls from flirting with him so he doesn’t get uncomfortable... it was easy. Physical contact was written in everything the Newsies did. It was as essential as breathing.

And then there was Katherine, and Katherine didn’t have as much time to hang around the group, but she’d joined it around the same time Sarah did, and was just as new at all of this.

Katherine’s red hair shined in the sun and her hands were always gentle when she helped a little one patch up a scraped knee and Sarah really wanted to hold her hand but she wasn’t sure if Katherine would be okay with that, with how the reporter often brushed away Jack’s and Romeo’s touches as annoying.

And since Sarah spent practically every day with the Newsies, she knew their gossip better than Katherine could. She knew that several pairs of them were... more than friendly, even being the same gender, and while it wasn’t safe, the group didn’t care. Sarah had no intention of telling anyone that she was attracted to girls, but she was. She understood what they felt but didn’t know if Katherine would even want to be her friend if she knew.

But then one day, Katherine was hanging around the girls’ corner of the Lodging House, where Sniper and Smalls slept and had a couple spare blankets to drape down from the top bunk so the boys couldn’t see them change, and Sarah found out that the reporter didn’t mind at all.

Sniper was leaning upside down over the edge of the bunk, trying to win a bet and shoot a can set up on one of the boy’s beds, when Smalls very suddenly kissed her, making her miss her shot, though Sarah noted that Sniper didn’t seem to mind that much, just content to keep doing what they were doing.

Katherine’s only reaction was to roll her eyes and smile, swatting Smalls with a newspaper and complaining that she’d cheated. And when the short brunette fell backwards next to Sarah sitting on the next bunk over, Sarah was glad that it was acceptable to reach over and squeeze Smalls tightly in her excitement.

...

When Katherine first started hanging out with the Newsies, she’d figured out pretty quick that touch was their love language, and not even in a romantic way, for the most part. Touching each other was how they made sure each other were okay and how they showed their brotherly bond. It was beautiful to Katherine, if very different from how Bill, Darcy, and all the other men she’d grown up with expressed affection.

For the Newsies, it was the most natural thing in the world to celebrate a good headline by grabbing the nearest friend and dancing a messy little do-si-do, or to huddle together on a cold day. Not a one of them bothered with social conventions that men weren’t supposed to show affection, and definitely not by touching each other constantly.

But that was how the Newsies worked, and Katherine couldn’t say she was sorry that they adopted her effortlessly, incorporating her into their existing friendship like she’d always belonged there.

Katherine liked waking up early to meet them at the gates for a bit of hangout time before work started. She liked meeting Davey halfway for a one-armed hug, or dodging Jack and Romeo’s joke-flirting only to let them clasp her shoulder in greeting, or making up a new secret handshake with Race because they both forgot the one they made last time.

Actually, it was through Race that Katherine learned how some of the touches between certain Newsies weren’t just about friendship.

She was meeting him over at Sheepshead, since supposedly he had a scoop on one of the trainers sabotaging other people’s horses, though Katherine was a little skeptical about if he’d actually found anything or was just over-dramatizing things.

She’d turned a corner to the place under the stands where Race usually was when he took a break from selling, only to find not only her good friend Racetrack Higgins, but Spot Conlon, and well... even for the Newsies, being pinned against a wall while someone kissed you senseless wasn’t a platonic gesture.

The two jumped apart the second they saw Katherine, and Race tried to say that it wasn’t what it looked like, but Katherine assured them that she wasn’t going to tell anyone, but wanted to know if the Newsies were okay with that kind of thing; being in a relationship with someone of the same gender.

Race was puzzled, but responded that, yes, the fellas were fine with it, and that various combinations of their group had courted at one point or another, with several pairs currently together. Spot chimed in to report that even a few inter-borough relationships happened, his and Race’s being one of them.

That fact known, Katherine felt absolutely no guilt when Medda put on a special show after hours just for the Newsies as a one-time thing, and Katherine put her arm around Sarah near the beginning of it, the two of them more or less cuddling for the duration of the show. And she definitely wasn’t complaining when a love song came on, and Sarah gently turned her face up so her lips could meet Katherine’s.

Somehow, the fact that Jack had seen and told pretty much everyone didn’t embarrass Katherine too much. Or maybe she just enjoyed the playful camaraderie of her friends coming up to congratulate her with a handshake or a slap on the arm.

...

Crutchie had always known that his friendship with the other Newsies worked differently than a lot of friendships, but he’d never really registered how differently until he was forced to go without it.

In the Refuge, there was no Jack helping him get down a ladder, or Romeo offering a one-armed hug as a good morning, or Finch ruffling his hair when he predicted the weather. Even being new, Crutchie noticed the sore absense of any kind of positive contact between anyone. Even boys who claimed to be friends never touched unless they absolutely had to.

No, contact was limited to Snyder and the guards giving a beating, or someone roughly shoving their way down the hallway because they judged those in front of them too slow, or a hard slap against a limb to try to jostle for more space on the bed or get someone’s foot out of their face.

The only remotely positive interactions Crutchie got were sympathetic grimaces from a boy who saw his bruises, or an only slightly grumpy hand handing him his crutch, but those things were not even close to what he was used to and not nearly enough after years of nearly constant friendly contact from boys he considered his brothers.

Then Crutchie was released, and he got back that contact he’d been hanging onto the memory of, but somehow it wasn’t how he remembered it. He suddenly couldn’t let Race throw an arm around his shoulder to greet him in the morning. He couldn’t accept a double-hug from Mike and Ike when there was a good headline or keep from flinching when Jack tried to make sure he didn’t fall on the way down from the Penthouse.

Crutchie didn’t understand. He’d spent his time in the Refuge missing this and now he could barely take any of it? It didn’t make sense.

When he tried to explain to Jack, the older boy just smiled sadly and nodded in understanding. He said that he’d gone through that when he first got out; not being able to let anyone touch him for a while. Jack still couldn’t handle people touching his left shoulder unexpectedly, but they all had little triggers like that. Random touches or tones of voice paired with specific words that couldn’t be used. Crutchie just didn’t understand why he seemed to be triggered by practically everything.

But Jack said to give it time. To let this get better with time and just try to be patient with himself.

And slowly, with help from the other Newsies, all of whom were willing to do whatever they had to do to help as best they could, Crutchie did get better.

Maybe not all of his scars could completely heal with time, but Crutchie was getting better. Now, when Davey patted his shoulder before they parted ways selling or Romeo leaned up against him while dramatically describing his latest failed romantic venture, most touch could feel as normal as it had before he’d gotten taken.

...

Davey had noticed the Newsies as very physically connected people even before he’d been one of them. That was to say he’d noticed them playing around, putting each other in headlocks and even one guy casually riding on another’s shoulders from the first morning he’d started selling.

And as much as Davey enjoyed this dynamic once he started getting included in it and got used to someone always touching him, it made it that much more painful, knowing that a certain friend of his touched everyone he cared about like that.

Davey had never fallen in love before, so he kind of missed that he did at first, before realizing that what he was feeling for one of the Newsies was everything he’d read in books that involved love. From thinking about him constantly to getting butterflies whenever he saw his smile, Davey couldn’t deny that he felt something more than simple friendship.

Unfortunately, Jack Kelly happened to be a boy, which made him completely unattainable, even if it made Davey felt like sparks were flying every time he touched him, and he had to remind himself that it didn’t mean a thing.

It didn’t mean anything that Jack practically picked Davey up in his excitement when there was a really good headline and he hugged him and spun around. It didn’t mean anything when he grabbed Davey’s face to check him for injuries after they got out of a fight. It didn’t mean anything when there weren’t any spare chairs in Jacobis and Jack chose Davey’s lap instead of the table.

After all, he’d seen Race hug Spot much tighter when he got excited. Sniper always looked that worried when she checked Smalls over after a fight. Kid Blink sat on Mush’s lap even when there were free seats.

And it wasn’t like Albert didn’t kiss Finch on the cheek some mornings before mock saluting when they went off on separate selling routes, or laugh loudly when the taller boy sometimes pulled him back to whisper something in his ear while keeping one hand on Albert’s waist.

All that was to be expected of Newsie friendships. None of it was weird with them because... well, it just wasn’t. The fact that he loved those friendships so much was why Davey could absolutely not tell anyone that he’d fallen for his best friend. They would never understand. The others would hate him if they found out, not that Davey could blame them. Guys weren’t supposed to love other guys. Davey knew that, so as long as nobody ever found out, those friendly touches and friendships wouldn’t change and Davey would never lose them, right?

Wrong, apparently.

It wasn’t common that the entire group wasn’t together after a day of selling, but when one of those days came, Jack was painting a backdrop for Medda, and the rest of them were hanging out in the Lodging House, Davey personally watching Race beat everyone at poker.

“So, when is Jack getting back?”

It’d been an innocent question. Fair, for a best friend. Davey didn’t think anyone would suspect anything.

Instead, Race turned around to give Davey a smirk, “Why? Only been a few hours since sellin’ time! Missin’ ya boyfriend already?”

“What? My—“ Davey sputtered, “Jack is not my— why would you think—?”

“Please,” Spot said nonchalantly, “As if we all couldn’t see how you’se been crushin’ on him since day one.”

Davey’s breathing sped up as he realized what they were saying. They knew. They all knew.

“Whoa, Davey, are you okay?” Mush’s voice asked, sounding far away.

Davey couldn’t breath. He was going to lose them all. He didn’t have any other friends and now he was going to lose the ones he had. Everything felt like too much, from the press of the bedpost where he was gripping it probably too tight to the others voices, all overlapping and sounding too loud and too far away all at once. Davey sucked in breath as fast as he could but it didn’t seem to be enough. He still couldn’t breath. He couldn’t get enough air.

One voice cut through it all.

“Whoa, whoa, what’s wrong? Davey! Davey, are you okay?”

Davey flinched away from Jack’s touch, and the other boy stopped trying to grab his shoulders, his hands hovering halfway between Davey sitting on the bed and Jack crouching in front of him.

“Davey, I won’t touch you if you don’t want me to, but you need to try to breath, okay? Just take a deep breath with me. In... and out.”

Davey did his best, breathing in and out as Jack instructed, slowly managing to come down from his panic.

Jack looked around accusingly at the fellas, “Alright, who did this? What did alls you’se do?”

“We didn’t do anything!” Spot protested.

“Spot mentioned things ‘bout Davey bein’ queer,” Smalls said.

“Smalls!”

“What? I tells the truth, unlike you!”

Jack looked back at Davey, and found that the other boy wouldn’t look him in the eye. Why would he? Davey certainly didn’t want to look at the boy he loved whilst getting kicked out of the friend group.

“Don’t worry about it,” Davey mumbled, “If it’s okay with you, Les’ll keep selling, but I’m sure I can find other work.”

“What are you...” Jack seemed to realize something, “Dave, can I touch you?”

Davey was surprised he wanted to, but nodded.

Causing even more surprise, Jack didn’t put his hand on Davey’s arm or hand. Instead, he grabbed the taller boy’s chin gently and forced Davey to look at him.

“Dave, what do you see when you look over there?”

Davey looked where Jack was gesturing with the hand that hadn’t moved to Davey’s shoulder. He didn’t understand, but he looked.

Blink was sitting in the poker circle, on Mush’s lap as he leaned back against the other boy’s chest, somehow neither of them having looked at each other’s cards.

Smalls was on a bunk behind them, laying back with her head close to where Sniper was sitting, who was softly smiling as she stroked Smalls’s hair. Smalls was playing, but Sniper wasn’t.

Race had his legs tossed across Spot’s, and he occasionally leaned over to try to get a look at his cards, though the King of Brooklyn always pushed him back with a fond smile.

Finch was playing as a team with Albert as they didn’t have enough cards for everyone, and the latter was between the former’s legs as Finch rested his chin on top of Albert’s hair.

Katherine wasn’t playing poker, but she was perched on a bunk nearby, sitting very close to Sarah, who was looking at Davey like he was stupid for some reason.

Sarah only gave him that look when she was genuinely frustrated with him, and Davey stared his twin down, not sure what she was trying to get at, here as they tried to communicate with just their facial expressions.

“Uh, what’s going on there?” Jack asked.

“It’s a twin thing,” Mike answered.

“You wouldn’t understand,” Ike agreed.

Davey gave up trying to get whatever Sarah was trying to communicate and turned back to Jack.

“What am I looking at?”

Jack made a small noise of disbelief, “You really don’t see it?”

“See what?”

Jack huffed and dragged his hands through his hair, “So, why do you think we wouldn’t want to be friends with you anymore?”

“Because I’m... I like boys,” Davey admitted, “Why would you want to be friends with someone like that? You’re all such close friends, and—“

“You think we’re all friends?” Albert asked, sounding disbelieving.

“Of course you are. Why else would you be—“

“Davey,” Mush cut him off gently, “That’s not... we aren’t...” he made a frustrated noise, “I don’t do this with my friends.”

Davey was fairly certain his brain short-circuited out of surprise as Mush leaned down and full-on kissed Blink on the lips. Sniper wolf-whistled, but other than that, nobody had really any reaction.

As they separated, Blink shrugged with a smile, “He does that with me, though.”

Suddenly, a lot of things made a lot more sense, and Davey wondered how he’d never seen it before. Even Sarah... oh, God, how had he never noticed?

“Yeah, we don’t much care if ya like Jack’s ass,” Spot summed up.

Davey froze. He’d just accepted that the fellas were okay with him liking boys, but that didn’t mean he wanted Jack to know he liked him.

Especially since... especially since even if Jack didn’t care, he’d been with Katherine a while back, and Sarah for a bit afterwards. He liked girls. He wasn’t one of the ones like Davey.

But Jack just stifled a laugh, “You like my ass?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that,” Davey mumbled, “But yeah, I... I have feelings for you. I have for a long time. And it’s okay that you don’t feel the same.”

Davey made a point not to meet Jack’s eyes. He didn’t want to know what the other boy’s expression was, because even if he wasn’t disgusted by Davey liking boys, he might be by Davey liking him specifically, and even if he wasn’t, he might feel guilty for rejecting him, and Davey didn’t want him to hurt like that or at all and—

“Why would you think I don’t feel the same?”

Jack’s words were soft in a way Davey had never heard before, and gentle in a way that he had never expected to have meant for him.

Davey looked up in surprise, meeting Jack’s eyes and finding that his expression was gentle and almost... loving?

“You were with Katherine,” Davey stuttered, “And... and Sarah. You like girls.”

He was finding it very hard to think as Jack ever so slowly leaned closer, laughing lightly.

“And that means I can’t like boys?”

“Well...” Davey’s brain melted as Jack leaned his forehead against his own, the gentle pressure sending fireworks through his mind.

“It just so happens, I like you a lot, too,” Jack said quietly, “And in case you still don’t get it...”

Jack pressed a small kiss to Davey’s lips and Davey felt warmth pass through him in a flash.

“I love you, Davey Jacobs.”

Davey took a shaky breath, not quite believing his ears, but responding anyway.

“And I love you, too, Jack Kelly.”

This time, Davey kissed him first, and he certainly didn’t feel Jack protesting as the shorter boy kissed him back.

It wasn’t until Sniper wolf-whistled that Davey remembered there were other people in the room. He hid his face in Jack’s shoulder as the room full of their friends actually applauded.

“Okay, okay!” Jack called, waving his hands around for emphasis, “You’se can collect ya bets now, but leave me and my boy alone, hear? We’ll be in my Penthouse if anyone needs me.”

As they left the room, several Newsies clapped Davey on the shoulders or ruffled his hair in encouragement, all calling out their congratulations.

Yeah, Davey decided that in a sea of friendly touches and a few more than friendly touches, he was happy.

169 notes · View notes

willthecleric · 5 years

Text

Why I am now 100% convinced that Mike is gay with internal homophobia, deeply in love with Will, and using Eleven as a projection

Okay, so before I start this post, I want to say that this isn’t just me being a mad Byler shipper angry about Mileven. This is me looking at subtext within the show (and especially S3) and analyzing from there. I’ve done a lot of rewatching certain scenes and looking into things deeper. I’ve also discussed quite a bit of this stuff with @kaypeace21 and we agree on pretty much everything.

For the longest time I thought Mike was BISEXUAL with a crush on El, projecting it as being way more than it was (because the dude went from 0 to 60). S3... S3 convinced me that Mike is not bisexual after all... I am now 100% convinced that he is GAY and suffering from internal homophobia (seriously, looking at his actions in S3 puts his ‘oocness’ and over the top behaviour in S2 into a lot better perspective). WILL’S behaviour also makes a lot more sense when you look at him as being gay and deeply in love with Mike (I won’t get too much into that though, because most of the fandom already believes that he is gay and in love with Mike).

Before I go into things properly, I would like to say that I am not implying that Mileven doesn’t love each other... They do. What I feel is that they love each other PLATONICALLY (El might have a bit of a crush on Mike, but mostly I think she gets confused).

Season One

Okay, so there wasn’t a lot of Byler in S1 - it was more Mileven based, but still. There WAS Byler content there. To start with, I would like to say that... I don’t really buy Mike’s crush on El. It feels... weird and forced. It never really felt RIGHT to me, and I never really saw the chemistry. It was weird.

Now, a lot of people say that Mike wasn’t THAT determined to get Will back in S1... I disagree. I actually think that he and Joyce were the ones that were the most determined to get him back... in the sense that they NEVER GAVE UP ON HIM (Mike and Joyce are actually paralleled A LOT. Like... A LOT. When it comes to WILL - as in they BOTH LOVE HIM DEEPLY). MIKE was the one who organized the search party after Hopper told them not to. MIKE was the one who was most visibly upset when talking to Hopper in the first place (boy looked like he wanted to cry and seemed really annoyed by Lucas and Dustin bickering). MIKE was the one who noticed immediately when Will wasn’t at school and thought it was strange. MIKE also was the one who most adamantly denied that Will was dead. I don’t think he even processed his death tbh. His reaction was... weird. He seemed to be more mad at El for lying to him than sad that Will was gone. And we know Mike loves Will a lot so it’s not that he didn’t care. He cared A LOT. He just... could not process it properly. And then AFTER SEEING WILL’S BODY JUST BEFORE... he heard Will on the radio (with pretty bad reception) and IMMEDIATELY knew it was Will. Like... in no seconds flat he was alert. And that boy clung to the hope. He didn’t even think he was losing his mind or anything. He KNEW it was Will because he never processed that he was dead. He even said when he saw the body in the first place that it COULDN’T BE WILL.

Lucas was determined too and I give him lots of love for it... Dude is BRAVE and LOYAL and risked his life. But he also was way more accepting that Will was dead than Mike and Joyce.

And as far as Eleven in all this... Mike was IMMEDIATELY physically attracted to her. As soon as he saw her. While she not only looked like a BOY, but looked a lot like WILL. Seriously El and Will look similar! Hopper EVEN CONFUSED THEM FOR PART OF S1. That was deliberate I think, and clearly not because of Willel because Willel was never really developed. Mike only actually ADMITTED that she was pretty when she dressed like a girl, but he also started sending her heart eyes... like really quickly. When he barely knew her at all. It was... weird. And forced. I think he started seeing her as a projection for his love for Will (S3 strongly implies this to be the case). Naturally all of this was subconscious. Pretty much the whole series so far this boy is in denial. And a lot of people think Mike put El before Will... I disagree. Mike DID go to look for El, but keep in mind... EL COULD LOCATE WILL. At that point Mike was convinced he had a crush on her, but WILL was his priority. He KNEW El was crucial to finding Will. Think about this... they run charging into the gate... and end up in an Upside Down version of Hawkins with no real idea where Will is and a monster on the loose. Using El to find him was IMPORTANT. Notice how Mike was immediately back to wanting Will located as soon as she was with them again. How he wasn’t prioritizing her getting exhausted over her trying to find him. He even referred to her as someone they could use to find Will... multiple times. AND he told her that they could go to the Snow Ball when WILL WAS BACK. Mike didn’t forget about Will. Mike prioritized him! AND when they were in the hospital after Will was back... MIKE was the only person who was awake the whole time, eager to see Will, he was the first person in the room (that boy RAN and usually he can’t run for shit), and he put his head over his heart like he was checking he was still alive. People can interpret this as friendship... but I think S2 and S3 greatly contradicts this.

Season Two

I won’t touch upon this one too much, because it has been done to death... but this is the BYLER season. It was everywhere. And not in a platonic sense! Mike was... over the top protective of Will the entire time, and very affectionate. In ways that he is with no one else. I don’t think he ever was even like that with El. and there are SO MANY PARALLELS. With pretty much every ship that has been in the series. There are loads of examples. Most of the parallels were with Mileven... and I used to think that was a hint to Mike being bisexual... but now I think it is a hint to the LOVE TRIANGLE, not his sexuality. Mike was just... REALLY clingy to Will. He was basically attached to him the entire time AND they had a bunch of ‘romantic’ scenes.

Now, as far as El goes... Mike was WAY OVER THE TOP. Like... it was crazy. Very excessive (kind of like his behaviour in S3 but in a different way). At the end of S1 he was sad and missed her... but like a year later... he was... just too much. He was OBSESSED with El. I always found it really weird. I get that they ‘connected’ but Mike was acting like she was everything he needed in life when he BARELY KNEW HER. And his never giving up on her? He called her every night and that is great. He is a loyal boy... but he did WAY MORE for Will in S1. Mike... thinks he sees her outside his window, but instead of looking for her in the woods (the logical place he could go, where he could find her), he mopes around and acts emo. When Will was in another dimension he did more. Also Mike heard Will on the radio and was right back into action... but he saw El and just thought he was being delusional. He also stopped calling her when Will was in trouble. I’m not saying this like Mike doesn’t care about El. I’m saying that Mike prioritizes Will when need be. He cared for El, but mostly she was someone who he could project his love for Will upon. He could be with her and have a heterosexual relationship and be ‘in love’. This was SUBCONSCIOUS of course. No way would Mike EVER do that knowingly. He isn’t like that. And when El was back... he was SUPER over the top about her. Like.. this guy has convinced himself he is in love with her despite barely knowing her. At all. And his looks at her are so FORCED.

Look at Mike’s ‘soft looks’ towards Will in comparison. They are a lot more natural.

Season Three

A lot of people think that S3 is pretty much the end of Byler, but I disagree. I think actually S3 confirms for sure that they are in love. I mean... to me it is so obvious. And it explains their behaviour SO WELL. I mean look at Will. That boy was incredibly jealous of El. He had no problem with Dustin and Lucas having girlfriends, but Mike??? Will got REALLY pissy and there were multiple times he looked upset over Mileven.

And Mike? WOW. S3... is when I KNEW he most certainly had to be gay for ANY of his behaviour to make sense. Mike.. was an ass. Definitely. BUT I think there was a reason for his attitude - not justifying it, just explaining it.

What started me off with wondering was @kaypeace21 posting analyses on Mike’s behaviour and... they made A LOT of sense to me. (They can be found here and here). People can easily dismiss this... but I actually think it is wrong to. I mean... Look at Mike’s behaviour in S3. How he treats both EL and WILL especially.

Mike is... distant with Will while he also still clearly loves him deeply. He isn’t visibly affectionate with him anymore, but look at how he was with him in the theater... SOFT and concerned like usual. Look at him after he upset Will during the DnD game. Wasn’t he MORE upset over that than he was over lying to El and hurting her? When he is supposed to be madly in love with El? That... makes no sense. A lot of people think Mike doesn’t care anymore, but I think he is actually realizing that he is in love with Will and is trying to squash it. Notice now, when they are GOING THROUGH PUBERTY (you know... a time when you really get a better sense of your sexuality) he is suddenly being off with Will. Will who he is used to be very affectionate with and had no issues with. Now he isn’t really like that anymore. And he is suddenly wanting to act VERY hetterosexual.

Maybe because he has internalized homophobia???

See how he is with El. It’s... not at all how he was with her in S1 and S2. I think it’s because now he is going through puberty and El is going through puberty... and she looks more and more like a WOMAN. I think Mike’s obsession with her was breaking because it became A LOT harder for him to convince himself he was in love with her because she was looking less and less ‘boyish’. I mean... look at his behaviour. He was being a dick. And sexist. I strongly believe that he was trying to emulate the heterosexual relationships of his friends and the feelings that they had... but he was overcompensating for it. And acting too much like I AM A BOY WHO LIKES GIRLS. I AM IN LOVE WITH EL!

This is also why Mike was REALLY going hard with how much he loves El in public... When the Byers moved he was really going with it when they were in the group, but when they were alone he didn’t act sad really. Then they were outside again and he was being lovey dovey. Isn’t that more proof that he is trying to convince everyone else that he loves her?

All they really did was kiss. He barely got to know her more as a person and didn’t like her going outside in the world. He saw her more as a possession. He wanted to be with her romantically but he DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO. And then he tried emulating the people around him and took it a step further. He went way too far. Even CHARACTERS IN THE SERIES thought it was over the top. I think... Mike was trying REALLY HARD to convince both himself AND everyone else that he was in love with El. Just look at that cabin scene. Mike went crazy there, said he loved El... and everyone reacted strangely. And then MIKE reacted strangely too. It was like he had NO IDEA why he said that. AT ALL. Then in the store when he was trying to confess to her... I’m sorry but I don’t buy AT ALL that he was nervous. He was... way too over the top and forced and I could literally feel him forcing himself with it. Like wow. He was really going hard while not being able to express how he felt. AND he said that to him love makes you CRAZY. (like this, perhaps???) Interesting that of ALL the sayings he could come up with, it was that love makes you CRAZY. There are loads of sayings about love, but to him it’s going CRAZY WITH SOMEONE.

Also... when Mike told El that she was ‘the most important thing in the world’ to him, the tone was weird. Honestly I think he was trying to convince himself that it was true. His speech to Will was a lot more honest and heart felt. I think Mike understood the implications of what he said to Will and then was trying to force it onto El. Mike loves her, but he sure hasn’t treated her like she is the most important thing in the world to him??? Sounded empty to me.

I will note that Mike seems to parrot a lot of cliche ‘love expressions’ with El in general. Like he is saying what he thinks he is supposed to. Acting like he is supposed to.

Also funny how... when they are at Will’s house... MIKE CAN’T REMEMBER SAYING HE LOVES HER.And he probably can’t remember trying to confess either. Soooooo he can remember meeting Will when he was FIVE and the whole ‘crazy together’ thing from the year before... but he can’t remember either saying he loves OR trying to confess to the girl he is madly in love with THREE MONTHS earlier??? That... isn’t suspect to anyone? Really? In fact... that entire interaction was suspect. Mike was odd. And the only time he was excited was when he mentioned Will... which he tried to play off as being casual. Why do that when it’s just a bro? (And speaking of bros.. why is he suddenly referring to Will as one? That is... odd. Suddenly when they are older and more mature Will is a BRO. Like he is wanting DISTANCE FROM HIM). The whole exchange with El was really weird and not at all romantic.He was shocked by the kiss, didn’t close his eyes, and looked confused afterwards. That five second exchange with Will had more love and happiness in it. And it was flirty.

That exchange... was them saying that they would always love each other. Mike was worried that Will would replace him and Will said he never would. Will said he would ALWAYS love Mike. Which he also said during their fight (that he had believed that they would PLAY GAMES FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES). And Mike will always love Will too... during that ‘confession’ when he talked about ‘going crazy’ with someone, he added in that he wanted to GROW OLD with them. Mike will always love Will too.

Another aside is that as far as Mike goes, playing games is associated with Will and growing up is associated with El... you know... the thing that a man is supposed to do... find a girlfriend and grow up. I think the scene in the garage was Mike being defensive tbh. He was just crazy asserting that he was doing what he was SUPPOSED TO DO. And... when he wasn’t with El anymore, he started playing games again. He was doing what he WANTED TO DO. Playing games seems to be his natural inclination, but he is also curbing it... In that scene with El, he started talking about how he likes presents but then stopped himself and reprimanded himself. He wanted to sound more like an adult. To me it seemed like he was trying to force himself from what he wanted (Will) to what he was supposed to want (El).

Despite how awkward and not into it Mike was, he seems to be trying to cling to El still. To try and force himself back to how he was before when he was sure he was in love with her. I strongly believe that in S4 he will be with El again, but it will be like it was in S3. And if the Duffers aren’t cowards, they will actually have Byler in the end. Honestly at this point Mileven is just... it’s nonsensical more than ever. It’s a joke. I’m not sure how they can salvage it??? They... did not have good romantic chemistry AT ALL. I don’t think they EVER even had real feelings for each other. And we are supposed to think they are soulmates and in love? Nope. I don’t think so at all. And I think Mike is definitely gay because he tries SO HARD to act like a straight guy. How many straight guys in the season thought he was weird and over the top? A NUMBER OF THEM. Because it was true. The boy didn’t know how to be with a girl once she started LOOKING LIKE A YOUNG WOMAN.

Was some of this me overthinking? Maybe... but remember... while the Duffers have really messed a number of things up with this show... they have generally been consistant With Byler. Also if this is baiting, it’s the worst baiting I have ever seen. They... have gone way over the top with this while developing Mileven very poorly. IDK why they would do that if it was their precious endgame. They might back out at the last moment because they are cowards... but at this moment in time I think this is legit. And they are endgame no matter what because Mike clearly is in denial. Like... his character makes a lot more sense this way.

Mike loves Will NOT El.

#wow that was a hot mess #and i probably missed things #and made little sense #but that is my take on things #in a long ass post

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toziersoneliners · 5 years

Text

Losers! [Chubby Reader]

⛓ | summer |

For some, the last day of school could be sorrowful. However (Y/n) couldn't help but feel a little relieved. She wasn't worried about not seeing her friends until school started up again, Richie was her neighbor and she practically spent all of her time with either Eddie or Bill. Though recently she'd been hanging around the nice boy Mike Hanlon. Though a bit shy, he was sweet and gentle, something (Y/n) wasn't really used to. Though she was apart of the Losers Club and hung around all boys, she was never really a tough girl. Some could have said it was due to her abusive home, but nor her or the boys thought so. If it was really because of her constant abuse, then she'd be strong, not weak. Her mother was the villain in her story, and that woman scared the daylights out of the chubby girl.

(Y/n) feared nothing like she feared her own mother.

Usually you'd see the father being the abusive one, but that wasn't something (Y/n) could ever see happening to herself. Her father, Matthieu Snow, was the kindest man in Derry, Maine. No one could ever convince her otherwise, either.

Despite her horrid home situation, she was often finding herself distracted these days. Her best friend Eddie Kaspbrak had been locked up in his house for a few days, no doubt to the fault of his overprotective mother. (Y/n) was bored out of her mind. While Eddie sure wasn't the most exciting person to be around, she found the boy to be wholesome, reminding her of a lost puppy almost. Like mentioned before, she wasn't strong willed, so she didn't have the guts to show up at the Kaspbrak residence to go and ask to see Eddie. Sonya was terrifying to (Y/n), intimidation making her hesitant to even go near Eddie's house. It was extremely annoying, because she couldn't find Richie either. Her last bet was Mike, but then she'd have to take the risk of bumping into Henry Bowers, something that too, just like her own mother or Sonya Kaspbrak, scared the girl numb.

Instead, she went to find fun elsewhere, by herself. The arcade was the first place that jumped into her precious little head. Though she hated being alone, she knew that a good game of PAC-MAN or Street Fighter could cheer her right up, distract her from her loneliness. She should have known, of course, that Richie Tozier would be at the beloved arcade, training, as he called it.

The arcade was dark, but the neon lights from the various game machines lit up the place like a huge Christmas tree. The only adults to be seen was the owner of the arcade and a few man-children, ones her father would tell (Y/n) to stay away from in the future.

'Whether you marry a man or not, stay away from those boys who still live with their mothers past the age of twenty.'

She could see why, of course. As soon as she was able to understand the complexities of boys, she knew what kind of person she'd want to marry in the future. Whenever she thought about it, Mike ended up coming to her mind, as odd as it may have sounded. She wasn't interested romantically, or at least she didn't think she was. (Y/n) had no idea what love was, and wasn't sure if she really wanted to know. Love, according to some of the girls at school, entailed showing your private bits to every boy who asked, and (Y/n) knew for a fact that she wasn't that type of girl, in fact she was sure that she never would be.

"Fuck!"

The vulgar manner of speaking belonged to none other than Richie Tozier himself. The boy groaned to himself in irritation as he lost a battle in SF, pushing his large glasses up with one finger. He catches a hint of light blue and turns around only to see the chubby girl he'd come to know over the years. Richie wasn't sure what had made (Y/n) a loser, but she was one... a very cute one. He didn't give a damn about her weight, she was too cute and it killed Richie. Her sweaters and ripped up jeans, high top converse, it all made her so... LOSER. It didn't bother Richie in the slightest, damn he'd say he loved her weird sense of style.

He'd wanted to ask her to join him in the arcade just as school let out, but like always she had run off with Eddie. Was it disappointing? Yes. But did that really matter now? Not really.

Richie could guess from her bored expression and no one accompanying her, that Eddie Kaspbrak was indeed locked away in his house. She only ever wandered around when there was no one else from the Losers Club to hang out with. However, she always seemed to find one of them anyway, just as she'd found Richie in the arcade.

He smiles goofily, stepping away from the video game machine and walks towards the shy girl. Sliding his extra coins into his pocket, Richie comes up behind (Y/n) as she was momentarily distracted, staring at the greasy seeming floor of the arcade with slight disgust. She loved the arcade, she really did, but couldn't they make it a bit cleaner?

Sneakily, Richie wraps his arms around her shoulders, scaring the living crap out of her.

"HOLY FUDGE!" She squeaks out, looking behind her only to see the toothy smile of Richie Tozier. She really should have known it'd be him, after all, who'd just come up behind some girl and squeeze them like that?

"Gotcha! Where's Eds?" Richie asks, letting her go. He kind of already knew the answer, but the girl in front of him didn't know that. She huffs cutely, fiddling with the ends of her light blue sweater. Richie was of course the one who scared her, her neighbor.

"Mrs. Kaspbrak won't let him leave the house, so I came here." (Y/n) explains, looking a bit sad. Though she definitely loved all of the Losers, Eddie was by far her favorite. After all, she'd known him for such a long time, what was she supposed to do without him?

"I was going to find Mike, but then I'd have to pass Henry's house and that definitely wasn't going to happen. After all of that I was boredom so I came to the arcade."

Hearing her explanation, Richie couldn't help but flinch. Earlier that day he'd seen Bowers walking around with his dumb goons, Belch and Vic. The freckled Tozier knew very well how scared they made (Y/n), and he had a sick feeling in his stomach telling him that they weren't too far away. It didn't matter though, Richie thought to himself cheerily. He would be there to protect (Y/n), because he was in every way, a man. He'd be damned if he'd let some dumb Henry Bowers scare him off. Still... it'd be good to stay away from the easily irritable teen. There couldn't be any harm in staying inside the darkness of the greasy arcade, right? Sure, it wasn't the best place to hang out with a cute girl, but shoot, she didn't seem to mind either.

"You're still here? I thought you'd at least go home for a nap." She says, snapping Richie out of his thoughts. He lets out a funny sounding laugh, that type of laugh he gave whenever he was nervous but trying to keep a good mask on.

"Yeah well, I might have seen Bowers outside of the arcade earlier, so I wasn't about to leave." Richie says, letting out another weird laugh. She was half expecting him to go back to his game, but he instead grabbed her hand and dragged her away from where they were standing. A soft squeak left her as Richie pulled her down underneath a dusty table, pushing her to the ground while holding a hand to her mouth.

He looked scared, she realized.

She also realized that Henry Bowers himself was snooping around the arcade, eyes glowering dangerously. She, of course, didn't know how long he'd been there, but he seemed like he knew what he was looking for. He didn't happen to see her enter the arcade, did he? A sudden feeling of guilt washes over (Y/n). Richie was just having a grand time before she decided to show up and ruin everything. There would hav been a huge chance that she was completely wrong, but she couldn't help the disgusting, slimy feeling.

The feeling she'd done something wrong.

Whimpering, she pulls Richie closer to her, her eyes wold as she watches the bully stalk through the dusty arcade. The neon lights of the games seemed to illuminate Henry's face, making the experience that much more horrible. He looked... terrifying.

Though he was trying to act brave in front of (Y/n), Richie was sweating, and he was sure she could feel it. His hand that was still covering her mouth was sweating. When he realizes this, he doesn't think much of it. Though he was sure if Eddie was there they'd get caught. The hypochondriac would flip his shit if he saw Richie touching (Y/n)'s mouth, it was, for some reason, a big no no.

Eventually, Henry passes.

Richie grabs his friend by the scuff of her light blue sweater and yanks her right out from under the dirty table, dragging her quickly out of the arcade.

"I'm sure he didn't just follow you into the arcade." Stan says, flipping through his bird book with an uninterested expression. Really, Richie brought out the worst in (Y/n). He brought out her paranoid side, and it was showing obviously right then.

The two eleven year olds were nearly screaming at Stan about their terrifying encounter with Henry Bowers. (Y/n) wasn't yelling like Richie was, and she definitely wasn't cussing like he was, but she still seemed panicked. If it had been just her that came to Stan, he would have believed her and tried to comfort her, but of course Richie was there. The trash mouth was always putting stupid idea into (Y/n)'s mind, and Stan was fed up with it. She was, unlike some of the Losers, a good kid. She got good grades, she was nice, and she was undeniably cute. She just seemed to choose to hang around with the wrong people.

People like Richie Tozier.

"Are you sure this actually happened? Or is this some stupid fantasy Richie put in your head?" Stan questions, rubbing the back of his neck hole looking at the wide eyed (Y/n) and Richie. The two of them were sweating, near tears, and motioning with their hands wildly. It was an odd scene, you could imagine. Suddenly (Y/n) stopped to stare at Stan with a monotone expression.

"Of course it happened!" She exclaimed, her eyes searching for any kind of doubt in Stan's expression. He sighed, pressing a hand down to close his bird book.

"Are you sure, though?" Stan asks, rubbing his eye slightly. He looked, above all, bored. His first day of summer break had been going pretty slow. He knew he was probably supposed to be studying for his Bar Mitzvah, but he wasn't exactly in the studying kind of mood. He had, initially, gotten himself into a better mood when he saw (Y/n), but this ridiculous story, or maybe it wasn't so ridiculous, had put him right back where he started.

She stopped to give Stan a look, that look. In all rationality, (Y/n) was the mom of the group. That look, it was the kind of look a scolding mother would give her young child for coming home too late or something similar. Stan never really payed attention to it, but he guessed that it wasn't just some fantasy Richie had put in her head. She only ever gave him that kind of look when she was serious about something, that Stan knew.

"Stan."

"Alright, I believe you."

"Didn't take too much to convince you." Richie muttered, wiping his sweaty palms on the material of his jeans.

Stan, Richie and (Y/n) had spent their first day of summer break walking around Derry. Running around with ice cream, soda, and several other things. They had caught Bill running around as well, and he had hitched with them too. Besides the encounter at the arcade, there had been no sightings of Henry Bowers or his stupid goons, and all of them were glad.

"I wonder... how long do you think Eddie will have to stay locked up?" (Y/n) asks, looking at Bill and Richie as the sun started to disappear from the sky, leaving the pink cotton candy to float around. Bill, handing her another cone of vanilla ice cream, lifted his lips up in a small smile.

"What? Can't deal with us by yourself?"

Richie snorts while (Y/n) takes a bite of her ice cream, it was her third one that night, but no one in the group was complaining.

"No... I just miss him."

Once again, Richie snorts.

"Hey, Marshmallow."

The Losers freeze.

{I'm reading the book, so things may be different, but I've also watched the 2017 movie, so that's the character design I'm thinking of. Probably not going to go in when they're adults, I prefer the younger version just because. This book is a little bit of an AU, not a lot of major character death happens. Trigger warnings for death and abuse, but it's not really that bad.}

#it #it chapter one #it scenarios #richie tozier x reader #eddie kaspbrak x reader #stan uris x reader #bill denbrough x reader #ben hanscom x reader #mike hanlon x reader #henry bowers x reader #beverly marsh x reader #pansexal reader #demisexual reader

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i-heart-danchou · 5 years

Text

Whisper

This is a slightly late fic for eruriweek day 5, Rumors! My confidence in my writing is shit at the moment but I tried my best. -- “Disgusting.” The words didn’t really hurt him anymore. At this point, Erwin was used to them. “What an unsettling little boy— he didn’t even cry at his father’s funeral, you know. I can’t stand this, how did we end up with him?? No one else wants him!” “I’m not surprised.” A shrill voice responded. “The way he smiles even.. it’s unsettling, the boy is clearly touched.” “I heard his mother died under mysterious circumstances too, you know? The whole family is cursed.” She took a long drag of her cigarette. “I bet he killed them. A child who killed his own parents, can you believe it?”

This was the third house he had been passed to, some very distant cousins who Erwin had never met before. The man of the house beat him, but Erwin never cried. He’d receive a blow that sent him to his knees, and all he could muster in response was an inquisitive glare through his cold blue eyes. The man found him deeply disturbing and showed him the back of his hand.

He was used to these whispers; they followed him wherever he went. When he was younger it was about how pretty he was, how perhaps his mother had had an affair, how odd it was for a boy of his standing to bury his nose in books.

Now… now the rumors held a grain of truth. Erwin Smith had murdered his father, and no one wanted him or loved him.

He bided his time until he was old enough, and he joined the military as soon as he could.

“It’s fucking unbelievable! I heard he cheats on tests you know.” A girl in his class hissed under her breath. “No one is that smart. No one. What a fucking prick, cheating his way to the top. I bet he just wants a cushy MP job while the rest of us work like dogs.”

“Makes me sick.” Her boyfriend agreed, squeezing her shoulders and pulling her close. “I bet he’s sucking dicks on the side too, getting in good with the brass. Making the rest of us look bad, you know? Course he’s gonna end up top ten.”

“Erwin fucking Smith.” The girl crossed her arms and let out a long breath. “He’s so weird, too. What kinda guy his age talks about his parents this much? Grow up, shit.”

He ignored them. They were wrong, they didn’t matter, and he was confident enough in himself not to adjust how he acted based on what other people thought or assumed. Still, success largely depended on getting people to like you. Erwin did his best to flirt and smile, to use his handsome face as a weapon to disarm naysayers.

He was smart enough that he could somewhat manipulate people into liking him, into trusting him… it wasn’t long before that girl was eating her words, quivering a little when he allowed his gaze to pass over her.

It might have been enthralling, if he could be bothered to care about her. The world was so much bigger than what people thought of him.

“He slept with Nile’s girlfriend. He could have any woman he wants, and he fucked Marie! What a dog!”

“Can you blame her? He’s the prettiest guy in the cadet corps! I’d fuck him. I think everyone in the girl’s barracks would probably fuck him. Ugh he’s so tasty, it’s not fair for him to be so attractive!”

“Still! Nile’s his friend, you think he’d know better… or at least have some damn principles.”

Erwin wondered if they even knew he could hear them. It was a crowded bar, he supposed, it. might not have been that obvious that he was in attendance but… His whole life he had been hearing little whispers about himself, and it always astonished him how blind and callous people could be about regurgitating their cruelty like this.

It wouldn’t have mattered, except that Nile was with him as well. He watched his friend’s shoulders sink, his ears turn red, and his fists turn into tight little balls.

“It’s not true, Nile.” Erwin assured him. “I haven’t seen Marie socially even once since you started going out with her.”

“I know that!” His friend hissed. “Marie would never— shit, I should go give those fuckers a piece of my mind.”

“Don’t bother.” Erwin said with a smile, sliding him a beer. “It’s not worth it.”

“Dammit!” Levi was straining with his whole body, trying to get away from the three men who are holding him back. “Let go of me! I’ll fucking kill them!”

Three other SC members were lying at Levi’s feet, bloody and cowering, trying desperately to scramble away from his ferocious kicks even now.

Someone ran to get Erwin, and he took in the scene with one eyebrow raised slightly. “Levi? What’s the matter?”

“Those— these absolute fucking pieces of shit! They—!” Levi glanced at Erwin and immediately stopped struggling. There was a war waging in his mind, and he shook himself free from the firm grips of his colleagues.

“Let’s talk in my office, Levi.” Erwin suggested, and Levi followed him closely, ignoring the mystified stares of the people who had witnessed his outburst.

“What happened?” Erwin asked patiently, offering Levi a seat across from his desk.

“They… they’re fucking idiots, Erwin. They were saying all this shit about you— that you’re gonna assassinate Shadis, that you’re a dangerous upstart, that all you care about is your own stupid power.” Levi’s jaw was tight, and he seemed to be biting at the words as they left his lips. The whole thing seemed terribly offensive to him. “So I fucking shut them up. Not gonna listen to that shit.”

Erwin smiled warmly, and Levi’s irritation seemed to spike anew.

“Oi! Get that shitty look off your face. The fuck’s wrong with you?”

“Well, Levi, I’ve…” He tried to think of how to say it. “I’ve never had someone defend my honor like that before. I’m quite pleased, actually.”

Levi didn’t seem to know how to respond to that. “Tch.” He said eventually. “They don’t know you. They don’t know how hard you work, or how smart you are. They don’t know that you’re gonna save humanity in the end. Shadis is an idiot. You should be commander and everyone knows it.”

Erwin’s smile was so deep, broad and real that it felt out of place on his face. “I just need to wait my turn. Levi, as much as I appreciate the sentiment, I would prefer it if you didn’t get into fights with the other troops, not over something like this. Let them think what they want, let them say what they want. It doesn’t matter. Rumors and gossip are only as important as you allow them to be, I think. Let them talk, Levi. The world is so much bigger than what strangers think.”

Levi just watched him with those sharp, grey eyes, and Erwin wondered what exactly Levi thought of him.

“He’s a monster. No soul at all, he’s not even human. He throws life away like it doesn’t even matter.”

“He’s a demon.”

“A devil.”

“He’ll drag everyone he cares about down to hell and never think twice.”

Levi stood close to Erwin like he always did, and shot nasty glares at anyone who dared speak out against the commander. As he’d risen to power, as the fate of their horrible world became more and more uncertain, the rumors followed him and swirled around him like a miasma.

It was hard, after all these years, to ignore what people said about him.

“He lost an arm? After all those people he’s killed? That bastard, probably sold his soul to survive a little longer.”

“Not human. No human acts like that.”

After the military coup, Erwin had taken some time to reflect on his true motivations… whether he was noble, selfish, or demonic. Zackly’s words kept playing in his mind, and despite his best intentions to the contrary, the little shield he’d built around his heart was starting to weaken.

There was only so much one man could take.

“He doesn’t even mourn his friends. Mike and Nanaba… with him for years and he…”

“Levi is brainwashed, clearly being manipulated by that megalomaniac. Their relationship is abusive, Erwin probably beats him behind closed doors and poor Levi doesn’t know any better but to lick his fucking boots.”

“He deserves to suffer.”

On an intellectual level, Erwin knew that his poor mood and sense of self were secondary to a lifetime of struggling and cruelty. It didn’t make it any easier to bear when the pervasive thoughts assaulted him each and every day.

‘His friends are dead and it’s his fault’

‘He’s incapable of love.’

‘He got his own father killed.’

“Erwin?”

‘No one respects him. Levi will turn on him.’

‘His life and death will be meaningless.’

‘Selfish. Selfish. All this horror and death because of his stupid, childish dreams.’

“Erwin.”

‘Monster. Demon. Not even human.’

‘He’ll rot in hell and the people will rejoice.’

‘He’ll doom us all. No one will remember him as anything but a devil.’

“Erwin!” Levi was curled up against him, poking him in the neck.

“Yes Levi?”

“You’ve got that shitty look on your face again.” Levi looked worn, worried. He looked sad. “Whatever bullshit you’ve got stewing around in that head of yours, stop it. Words are only as important as you allow them to be.”

Erwin kissed the top of his head and shut his eyes. He was annoyed with himself for making it so obvious that he was struggling. He didn’t have time for any slip ups.

“You’re a good man, Erwin.” Levi muttered. “The best man I know. You deserve better than this. Please.”

Erwin swallowed. “Please what, Levi?”

“Hear me.”

“He lead the charge against the beast titan you know. Against impossible odds, he still came up with the plot to lead to humanity’s victory.”

“What a man! What bravery! How selfless in his last moments, he saved us, he saved us all!”

“He was right about everything. We should never have doubted him.”

“…That Levi, though, did you hear? He betrayed the commander in the last moments!”

“A monster. A monster. Poor Erwin. How will we survive without him?”

Levi had never been a talkative man, and he kept his hands at his sides as the whispers came down around him.

“He was a good man, a brave man, a brilliant, beautiful man. We are poorer for having lost him.”

“A hero. The hope of mankind snuffed out so young.”

It was nice, though, to hear Erwin be lauded at last… even if he wasn’t there to see it.

“We didn’t deserve him.”

Levi clenched his jaw and kept his eyes forward. ‘No one deserved him.’

#eruriweek #eruriweek2019 #fic #eruri fic #my stuff #blahhhhh

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johannesviii · 4 years

Text

Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2016

I think everyone will agree that 2016 had “Impending Doom” written all over it, and as a result a lot of pop music became very depressed very quickly, and as such, I’m less enthusiastic about this list than some of the previous ones.

Disclaimers:

Keep in mind I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these top 10 things. There’s songs in English that charted in my country way higher than they did in their home countries, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

Of course there will be stuff in French. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible and I’m not a critic, just a listener and an idiot.

I have sound to color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

For a year that was so cataclysmic worldwide, 2016 was pretty mundane for me, so let’s just skip to the albums that came out that year and which I consider relevant to my tastes. Obviously (and unfortunately) there was David Bowie with Black Star. We should have known we had jumped right into the Worst Timeline when the year started with the death of Bowie. Nine Inch Nails also released Not The Actual Events, which was pretty good, and as I said previously I consider Coldplay’s A Head Full of Dreams to be more of a 2016 than a 2015 album. And then there was the biggest surprise of all, the return of Enigma after eight years of silence, with the very good Fall Of A Rebel Angel (even if A Posteriori is still my favorite “modern” Enigma album). EDIT: I forgot Ghostlights by Avantasia. Took me YEARS to listen to it & realise how good it was.

But no. Surprisingly enough, my favorite album of the year wasn’t any of those. It was... oh god, that title. Here we go. It was I Like It When You Sleep for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It by The 1975 - which I like to call “The 1975′s second album” instead, because what the hell, guys. Anyway. It had been a while since I had found a new band I’d consider to be one of my favorite bands. I really liked Chocolate from their previous album but that was it. But this one? What a breath of fresh air. A Change of Heart, She’s American, Please Be Naked, The Ballad Of Me And My Brain, Somebody Else, The Sound, This Must Be My Dream? That’s only the songs I listened to on a loop and that’s already nearly half of the album. Great music, love the vocals, but I especially love the writing, full of strange and awkward details and lines that make everything feel so alive. The first time I listened to some of these songs, some lines actually got a chuckle out of me, like the American girl wanting the narrator to fix his teeth, or him hopping on a bus to ask the passengers if someone found his brain, or his girlfriend complaining about his shoes and his songs then immediately adding “I thought that you were straight, now I’m wondering”.

As someone who’s constantly puzzled by human relationships and tends to act super awkwardly, all of this is extremely relatable. So yeah. Album of the year, love this band - impatiently waiting for that fourth album!

As far as unelligible songs go, as you can guess I’m furious The Sound (The 1975) wasn’t a hit because I was and I’m still listening to it on a loop. And that’s about it. Wait there’s also Kids by One Republic. It was super good. Apart from that, there’s also one (1) elligible song that I’m gonna put on the 2017 list instead because I really struggled to find enough songs I liked for that list, and that particular one is elligible for 2016 thanks to the French year-end list and 2017 thanks to the US year-end list, so eh.

Time for some honorable mentions.

This Girl (Kungs vs Cookin’ on Three Burners) - Number one of the year here. Every time I heard it (and I heard it a lot) I enjoyed it until that wretched drop.

Fast Car (Jonas Blue ft Dakota) - Not a good cover, but I love the original so much I’d be lying if I said I hated this completely.

Sucker for Pain (Lil Wayne & Imagine Dragons) - No, that slow, heavy, tortured beat that all recent Imagine Dragons songs have doesn’t work on topics like being a natural at something, being a believer, or describing thunder. It does work, however, with a chorus saying “I'm just a sucker for pain”.

Cheap Thrills (Sia ft Sean Paul) - Sean Paul, and a song about having fun without any money. Everything I want from an average hit song on the radio.

In the Night (The Weeknd) - This would be much higher if I didn’t find The Weeknd’s upper register slightly painful to listen to.

J’ai Cherché (Amir) - Hey look, the guy France sent to Eurovision that year. He’s still around, too. He’s pretty good, and that song is super cute.

Ride (21 Pilots) - Not the last time they will appear on this list.

Je Suis Chez Moi (Black M) - Pretty good song about racism, and the singer explicitly calls out a far right political figure who said some pretty terrible shit about him, and it’s a good answer.

Perfect (One Direction) - This is just Style by Taylor Swift all over again except slightly less good. But as I said before, copying good songs isn’t always a bad thing.

Human (Rag’n’bone Man) - Would definitely be on the list if listening to it didn’t feel like working.

Into You (Ariana Grande) - The last cut. The ending is wonderful and explosive, it’s just a shame that the entire song doesn’t sound like that.

And now... the list.

10 - Stressed Out (21 Pilots)

US: #5 / FR: #9

Defining song of the entire year, whether you liked it or not.

Fortunately, as you can see, I liked it a lot, even if I don’t have anything interesting to say about it.

9 - Don’t Be So Shy (Imany, Filatov & Karas remix)

US: Not on the list / FR: #2

I often joked that the melody sounded weirdly similar to Goldman’s “Envole-moi” by singing the lyrics of the verses over the Don’t Be So Shy verses, and it fits nearly perfectly. But apart from that, great song, great remix, very overplayed but never to the point of being annoying.

8 - I Took A Pill In Ibiza (Mike Posner)

US: #15 / FR: #29

There’s nothing I could say about this song that Todd hasn’t said before in what I consider to be one of his best reviews, if not the best, so here it is.

7 - Heathens (21 Pilots)

US: #21 / FR: #23

Super ominous and tense. It’s rare when a mostly grey song looks interesting, and this one definitely does. I also like the ending a lot. Don’t hang out with too many toxic people, guys, they will influence you over time.

I had no idea this was made for the Suicide Squad movie until very recently and frankly I wish it hadn’t because it’s way better on its own, especially the hand grenade line which works a lot better as a metaphor for self-destructive tendencies.

6 - Starboy (The Weeknd)

US: #58 / FR: #16

As I said before it took me ages to like The Weeknd. His voice is great but I found most of his songs fairly boring or disliked their lyrics. And then he teamed up with Daft Punk and to be honest, I didn’t even care if the lyrics of this one included weird lines about drugs on furniture, the beat was completely worth it and the singing was great. Not enough to put it on my mp3 playlist, but a delight every time it was on the radio.

5 - Faded (Alan Walker)

US: Not on the list / FR: #11

I adore this post-apocalyptic, contemplative music video. The music itself has this weariness and this quiet despair that felt super relevant, and even the drop is a bit slow instead of energetic. I usually don’t like this kind of song but this one found the perfect balance. If we really need to have more sad, exhausted hit songs, more like this, please.

4 - Closer (The Chainsmokers)

US: #10 / FR: Not on the list

I usually don’t like love songs if they are just that, random love songs without a good melody or good colors or good stories. If the melody isn’t particularly great and the colors boring, it needs to paint an interesting picture, and the more details the better, even if they are super awkward, like, as I said previously, in some of The 1975′s best songs mentioning bad shoes, or people’s jobs, or how a car smells like.

So yeah, what I’m trying to say is that my favorite thing about this song is the over-abundance of weird and kind of off-putting details that most people consider to be its main flaw. To each their own, I guess.

3 - Never Forget You (Zara Larsson & MNEK)

US: #46 / FR: Not on the list

See, this is one of the reasons why I decided to make these lists: to find great stuff I missed over the years. I discovered this song while making the 1.0 version of the lists on a google sheet in early December, and now this has a spot on my mp3 player. And it’s so weird because this song shouldn’t work. The drop is ridiculously lifeless compared to the soaring quality of the chorus and it actively works against the rest of the song. It takes a while to get used to it and I’m still not entirely sure it does work, at all.

But what can I say, framing is, once again, everything, and songs about imaginary friends are super rare, and that music video made me cry and catapulted this song from “that’s pretty good” right into the “holy shit that’s fantastic” category. And it made me rewatch Where The Wild Things Are, so yeah.

2 - Perfect Strangers (Jonas Blue)

US: Not on the list / FR: #70

This, on the other hand, stayed on my mp3 player for about two years, and the music fits the lyrics perfectly. It’s not a groundbreaking song, it’s not even that original, but in such an average year for pop music, “happy energetic song with beautiful colors and nice lyrics” meant the world to me. It’s kind of telling that it was enough to put it as high as #2, though.

1 - Hymn For the Weekend (Coldplay ft Beyoncé)

US: #73 / FR: Not on the list

And with this, Coldplay has officially topped as many of my lists as Linkin Park. If, back when The Scientist dropped, you had told me how much I would love this band in the future, I would have laughed pretty hard, but here we are.

But yeah, it’s one of my favorite songs on the album and it’s a super weird combo of heavy and aerial sounds, soft and super colorful notes, and I love the lyrics that completely mirror that feeling, feeling “drunk and high", “poured on a symphony when I’m low, low, low”. A great party song that’s also strangely melancholic. Exactly what I needed.

And then the Seeb remix happened and added a truely fantastic drop on top of an already great song, like turning the saturation up and adding little pulsing lights and transparency effects and shit. It’s sincerely hypnotic and visually so complex and fragile I’m afraid I won’t be able to draw it if I ever attempt to turn it into a synesthesia drawing. Just like A Sky Full of Stars, I was driving the first time I heard that remix on the radio, and I wasn’t expecting that drop at all, and I was gawking.

Godspeed, Coldplay, I’m so glad you’re still a positive force in my life, especially in these trying times.

Next up: Oh my god are you telling me that after 15 years I can finally put a song from that other band at the top of one of my lists

#Johannes’ bad not good pretty terrible music lists #music #long post #eye contact tw

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ahumansvoid · 4 years

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Misc WIP Folder

So I’m going through my WIPs folder’s subfolders.

One is labelled Misc, so that’s the one I’m going through now. Everything will be below the cut because this will probably be a long post, there are sixteen files in this folder.

Most of them are from different fandoms, so I’ll put what fandom it’s in + what title I have for it in my folder in bold before I talk about it. I’ll be going from oldest to newest. Technically not because I can’t sort Google docs like that, but rather “last modified by me” so, longest abandoned to newly abandoned I guess?

Also Spoilers for any of the fandoms, maybe? Probably.

If you have any questions about any of the fandoms, message me or send me an ask. I’m open to talking about any and all of them.

Fandoms Involved (Ordered by appearance):

Murdered: Soul Suspect (Video Game)

Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia (TV Show)

Gravity Falls (TV Show)

Until Dawn (Video Game)

Avatar: The Last Airbender (TV Show)

The Mummy (2017) & (1999) (Movies)

Assassination Classroom (TV Show/Anime)

Red vs. Blue (Online Show- Rooster Teeth)

Camp Camp (Online Show - Rooster Teeth)

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency (TV Show)

Devil May Cry (Video Game + Anime)

Aladdin (2019) (Movie)

Castlevania (TV Show)

Murdered: Soul Suspect - MSS

So there isn’t much in this one, just a bullet pointed outline. Murdered Soul Suspect is a video game, if you don’t know it and are curious you can google it or message me.

Anywho. This is just a little part I thought was funny.

It’s essentially a Ronan survives AU of the game, pretty standard and I thought it would be fun. Honestly this part about Ronan and his cracked spine just reminded me of Obi-wan and how I write him in ignoring his injuries (and how most people write him) so it made me laugh a bit.

There’s really not much here, I didn’t even finish the outline.

Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia - trollhunters au

I am very creative with my titles. Clearly. This is another bullet point outline. but this one is longer and irrc I actually started writing this, and that file would also be in this folder so if I did write it’ll also be featured on this post.

This is an au where Claire is the trollhunter rather than Jim.

The top bit is literally just for context on the next star point. Anywho Writing AAARRRGGGHH/ seeing it spelled out is funny to me. Also I’m pretty sure I rewatched bits with AAARRRGGGHH with subtitles on to see how it was spelt and then replicated that.

The second star point is funny to me because I describe annoyance/anger (rightful, both of them) as pissy. And that’s funny.

There’s more but if I’m write and I wrote it out, then that’ll be featured later.

Gravity Falls - Gravity Falls

... Okay I’m not creative with titles until I have to be. Once more, bullet point outline. So this is an after-canon AU where Bill left a remanent of himself in Dipper and it’s become apparent when they’re in Piedmont.

I just like the rules I had Dipper give Bill. I thought they were neat. Also, I like Mabel convincing Dipper to let Bill live because he’s pathetic. This is a demon who has tormented them for an entire summer, but nows he’s pathetic so lets help him.

Not much of interest in this. I probably didn’t write it because it’d be a long and day-in-the-life type fic. It’d just be Dipper and Bill coexisting and going through life and IDK how well I’d of written that. So I didn’t write it.

Until Dawn- Until DAwn AU

FYI I’m keeping the titles case-sensitive. Another bullet outline. So this is a Josh survives/exorcised AU, also an Everybody Live AU. I’m pretty sure I wrote this when I was heavily invested in Until Dawn and Josh (because I like him.) And I was reading Until Dawn fanfic in which Josh is blamed for what happened on the mountain. And I think I was getting pissy which lead to this:

So in this AU the Until Dawn Group splintered into Sam, Josh & Chris, and Mike, Emily, Jess, Matt & Ashley. So this conversation/fight is between Chris and the second group. So Chris is the 1st,3rd and 5th talking bullet point. I don’t know who’s talking in the 2nd &4th bullet point but it’s one of the second group. Probably Emily, Mike or Jess maybe. Not Ashley.

Im 90% sure that I wrote out this entire outline just for this little interaction.

It just tickles my id. I still kind of like it, but I honestly don’t know what else I’d write for this AU.

Avatar: The Last Airbender - Zuko is the avatar

Title is self-explanatory. Also, I really like bullet outlines. So. Anywho.

Aang is still a 12 year old in this, he used up all his “avatar energy” (that’s literally what I wrote) to keep himself alive so he’s just an airbender now.

I just love Iroh. And this is just funny to me.

If I ever wrote this, it’d be a lot of hijinks of Katara and Aaang (and eventually Toph) covering for Zuko whenever he bends anything other than fire. More cracky than serious.

“The Mummy (2017)” and “The Mummy (1999)” - Mummy x Mummy

I watched the 2017 version of the mummy (got it from the library for 2 bucks) and since there are some throwbacks to the 1999 movie I decided to try to combine them. This also became an AU where Evie and Rick save Imhotep in Mummy 2, and due to Evie being revived meant she was functionally immortal (doesn’t age, but can still be killed). And due to everything, by the Mummy 2017 rolls around it’s just her and Imhotep hanging around, investigating ancient egypt and whatnot.

Honestly this is just part of the outline. None of this is really amusing to me, just, if I ever tried to write it, a lot of work. Although, the fact that I can’t remember the blonde lady friend from the Mummy 2017 is kind of amusing and I literally call her ‘BLF’ throughout this entire outline. I think her name was Lisa. Or Sara.

i’ll google it.

Assassination Classroom - AC AU

At this point, I might as well tell you when it isn’t a bullet outline than saying when it is.

This was really just a Reaper/Koro-sensei raises Nagisa rather than his mom.

People panicking around children is amusing to me. Again, long AU. And this was probably an excuse to write some baby assassin Nagisa and whatnot. Honestly whenever I read this I do remember more details on this, that I have never written down.

Murdered: Soul Suspect - Murdered: Soul Suspect

...

Okay I think this is just a repeat of the one I posted earlier???

I- I don’t know what this was? Like this is newer than the other one?

?????

Uh, brain weirdness?

Let’s move on.

Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia - TRollhunters

Ok! So this is the written out of the bullet point earlier. I did not write out much. But I’ll talk about it a bit more? So this AU is also a Bular survives and Jim finds him and helps AU.

This is literally all I have written. So, right after this, Jim would find an injured Bular and helps him. There isn’t much to add, but I will add what I had written as Barbara’s reaction from the outline:

Large AU, but it would be fun to write. I would most likely end up writing Claire’s journey of Trollhunting along with Jim’s adventures with Bular.

Red vs Blue - Meta, no, that wasn’t, he wasn’t

Okay, that’s not the full title but also the full title is literally the first sentence. Which is a long one so you get part of it. This is actually a written au, it’s about Agent Maine/ The Meta surviving and meeting up with Siris. This is just the first couple paragraphs:

Nothing I read was particularly funny to me, so just the first two paragraphs. Essentially what would’ve happened is Siris would help Maine find Washington (on Chorus) go to Chorus. Find Felix and Locus. Drama Ensues.

I might actually write this. Maybe. There’s potential, if the drive hits me.

I havent watched RvB in a couple of years, but I did like the series. It was interesting.

Camp Camp- Camp Camp

Y’know since this is ‘misc’ I get just having fandom names. Lot easier to identifiy.

So, this file is currently loading still, but I remember this. It wasn’t that long ago. This wasn’t so much a fic as a comic I would of like to have done. I definitely would’ve needed to brush up on my art skills (I am mediocre at best) but it’s just a small little comic I would’ve done on Camp Camp.

First little bit. I actually wrote out most of this rather than just bullet pointing it.

There is a little bit I’d have to polish up, but I could probably post this entire thing. But I kind of want to actually do the comic first. But boy that’s a lot of work.

I love how most of the reason I’m not writing these is that they’re a lot of work.

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency (TV Show) - Project Cheron

This is an AU where Priest is one of the projects of Blackwing. Specifically Cheron and I think my reasoning is that he makes people go where they need to be. IDK. I actually wrote a couple of these. But this one is essentially Priest getting a bunch of projects together to help something. Idk.

This entire thing is weird and would probably be labelled crack if I ever finished it.

Okay. This entire scene is funny to me. Just, this girl rushing out in front of the car waving happily with a decapitated head in her hand. I like it. So, Aine and Herodias are OCs. Both are projects Priest is collecting.

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency (TV Show) - “Dirk

Another Priest is a Blackwing Project AU but that’s not really the focus of this story. This story is about a project (Project Carman- OC) who can trap people in their certain significant memories of her choosing. Carman gets annoyed at Bart, Dirk and the Rowdy 3 so she traps them in memories signifcant to their stay in Blackwing and Priest.

I’ve only written 2 of the six memories, so that’d be fun to complete. These are also just sad. They’re not happy memories. So, random moment that’s somewhat amusing:

Also, title is the first sentence in the fic.

Devil May Cry - “Should I

I- why did I decide to do this from oldest to newest? Part of me is embarrassed, the other part is reminding me I have no reason to be? It’s a video game fic. But also this is a game of my childhood. It’s about Nero looking for his dad and finding Dante instead. Canonically Dante’s twin brother, Vergil, is Nero’s dad.

Just a random moment because I didn’t write that much of it. Also I thought it was kind of cute. Patty shows up in the Devil May Cry anime. Which I watched before I played the games.

Aladdin (2019) - Aladdin AU

A mix of bullet outline and written. I don’t actually have much of this AU, but essentially before Aladdin wishes to become a prince, he notices some mercenaries kidnapping a little girl and decides to rescue her.

This girl is the princess of Shiroba, Aladdin takes her back to Shiroba. The Queen/ Sultana appreciates Aladdin going out of his way to help her so she invites him to stay in the palace.

Eventually word gets to Shiroba that Agrabah is planning to attack so Aladdin and the two twin princes of Shiroba (that I made up, OCs) make a plan to infiltrate and see what they’re planning. They’re not planing espionage, but as Shiroba is a peaceful nation, they want to see if they should start evacuating people and whatnot.

So you get the Prince Ali stuff with the Genie and yada yada.

I have none of that written. I just know that’s what I intended to do with it.

So, first little bit. Long AU that would take a lot of work. Also, I know this isn’t super popular but I liked the 2019 version of Aladdin. I really like the changes they made.

Castlevania (TV Show) - Waking up in Jail wasn’t a new experience

Again, title is first sentence. Not writing that out. Anywho, this is a kind of complete canon AU to Castlevania. Essentially we haven’t reached Lisa getting burnt at the stake yet. So, loving Dracula fam. Trevor and Sypha meet earlier due to circumstance. Alucard gets attacked by something and gets rescued by Trevor and Sypha. They travel together for a while. And then Sypha and Trevor get to meet Alucard’s parents.

That’s where this AU will go if I ever write it. To be fair, last time I wrote in this file was March, so I guess that’s technically possible. Don’t hold out hope.

First couple of paragraphs.

Also, that’s it! Misc WIP folder done!

Oh, if you’ve made it this far, a)thank you and b) if you want to continue/write any of these, go ahead, but tag me or send me a link. I will be very happy to see/read what you create if you like any of this in an inspo way.

Also. This is long, so, IDK if Imma go through the other folders rn. Maybe tomorrow.

#a humans wip fic folder #a human yelling into the void #my writing #WIPs #Wip #Fanfiction #multiple fandoms #I'm not going to tag all of them.

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