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#the other space themed games fit her whole starry theme
konno · 3 years
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trying so so hard to think of franchouchou rhythm heaven remixes......
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fayewonglibrary · 3 years
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1994-2020: Faye Wong Advertisements (2020)
On August 19th, Faye Wong was officially announced as the newest global spokesperson for the underwear brand NEIWAI, which shocked the industry.
What’s interesting is that underwear advertisements are usually extremely sexy and show a lot of skin. But because it’s the heavenly queen, it became a high-class style of sexy. The heavenly queen’s image on the posters is quite covered up and her poses are elegant and comfortable as usual. It is rumored that Faye Wong's endorsement fee is sky high.
The former brand models Maizi and Du Juan gave the impression of coolness. Faye Wong is definitely the master of this temperament to the extreme.
The press release by NEIWAI said that they aim to "explore the freedom of body and mind in a more pioneering, profound and international way." Indeed, the endorsement of the heavenly queen suddenly added a touch of international style and high-class to this domestic brand that was founded on Taobao not long ago. It gives that feeling no matter what the cost is.
You must know that Faye Wong has always been very picky about advertising. Before NEIWAI, she accepted an offer to be the global spokesperson for Helena Rubenstein in 2019.  Last December 7th, L'Oréal Group's top luxury beauty brand Helena Rubenstein announced that Faye Wong became the first global spokesperson for its brand.
I still remember the queen attended the promotional event in all white and wrapped her head in a golden scarf. Her skin looked smooth and firm. The most impressive thing was that her facial features were more beautiful than even when she was young. It was surprising. After all, the queen is over 50 years old.
I could see that she was in a very happy mood, chatting and laughing with the host on stage. She described this cooperation as proof that it was love at first sight.  The flawless firm skin of the heavenly queen can help a beauty counter to sell thousands of bottles of expensive product.
For so many years, Faye Wong was sought after by advertisers for her image as a high-end, avant-garde, free spirited woman of a new generation. Her manager once proudly said that their main job was rejecting offers. Faye Wong’s advertisements are notoriously sparse and also notoriously expensive.
Today, let’s take a look at the advertisements by the Heavenly Queen since her endorsement debut from 1994 to the present day. It can be seen that her strategy is "less is more". The big brands she has cooperated with, of course, pay well. Ease is another important criteria for her to choose a job.
The advertisements that Faye Wong has received over the years reveal the changes in the status and mood of the queen. Of course, we can also see the changing of the times from her advertisements. Popular brands that are still ongoing, but some brands have completely ceased to exist. The changes and the rise and fall of a brand is really interesting.
1994-1997
Avant-garde idol, trend setter for the youth.
In 1994, Faye Wong released her iconic hit "Sky" making her the free spirited idol of the young generation. That year she received an advertisement for Just Gold.
At that time, the Hong Kong-based gold jewelry company was preparing to enter the Taiwan market. In order to abandon the old and outdated feel of the past style, this brand, hoping to find young customers, wisely found a budding singer who was also ready to enter the Taiwanese market. Back then she was called Wong Jing Man.
In the advertisement, Faye Wong read the narration in her beautiful languid voice. The whole concept seemed to be very trendy and forward-thinking, making women suddenly realize they do not need to wait for men to buy them gifts and gold jewelry. They can own it on their own initiative. It was the new idea of feminism that women rely on their financial strength to satisfy their inner desires.
Just Woman, Just Gold; Real Woman, Real Gold. Faye Wong's life attitude of being courageous to live her own life fits the brand's pursuit of "real woman" characteristics. The following year, the brand also specially designed the "Fei collection" with the theme of "true", "beauty" and "life".
Coincidentally, the Virgin Atlantic advertisement of the same year also took a fancy to Faye Wong's distinctive personality.
At that time, Faye Wong's performance in the movie "Chunking Express" left a deep impression on people, and in the advertisement, she also had a similar short haircut, various styles, and she even had airplane props. She swayed her body and narrated in Cantonese.  This advertisement made the top ten of Asia TV in 1995 and won the most popular TV commercial female star award.
In the ad for Virgin Atlantic's direct flight from Hong Kong to London, she used her hearty laughter to inspire people to take off whenever they pleased.
Faye Wong became a big hit in 1996 and appeared on the cover of Time Magazine. She became the second Chinese artist and the first Chinese singer to appear on the cover. She was called one of "The Divas of Pop".
Faye Wong willingly lived in a Beijing hutong for love, married Dou Wei, and gave birth to her daughter Dou Jingtong in January of the following year.  The old photos of the two riding horses in Yesanpo bared witness to years of love.
Marriage and childbirth did not affect Faye Wong’s status. In October 1997, Motorola hired Wong Kar-wai to direct and spent 60 million on a large production to shoot her StarTAC (Palm Treasure Series) commercial. Anyone who has experienced that era knows that Motorola had a monopoly on the mobile phone market.
But with the advent of smartphones, after 2013, Motorola long lost its momentum. Motorola’s headquarters in Beijing has been downsized repeatedly. The era of holding a Motorola in one hand is gone forever.
Although shooting only lasted for 5 days, it was a huge collaboration:  big name stars, director Wong Kar Wai, cinematographer Christopher Doyle, and designer William Chang. It was a movie level production. And the actor was Asano Tadanobu who was popular in Japan at that time. Reportedly, the reason for seeking him back then was because his hair was messy enough to match with Faye Wong.
The whole commercial lasted less than 30 seconds, but it was full of Wong Kar-wai's individualism and uniqueness. It is considered the most unusual commercial advertisement. And Faye Wong, whose pay was as high as six figures per hour, had only two lines:  "Moshi Moshi".
Photographer Wing Shya also shot a set of print advertisements. Ah Fei as seen through the lens was smart and playful. With brilliant colors, it is entirely worthy of blockbuster art.
1999—2003
The fast-moving market adores the unconventional idol
In 1999, Faye Wong divorced the talented Dou Wei, which caused a commotion in the entertainment industry.
Pepsi spent 8 million Hong Kong dollars to invite Faye Wong, making her the first Asian female singer to endorse Pepsi. You must know that Pepsi’s strategy for so many years was aimed at the youth market. The stars they have invited over the years were the most popular among young people.
At that time, the commercial "Wish" depicted Ah Fei returning to an elementary school and seeing a little girl who resembled herself when she was a child. She recalled the scenes from when she was a child, expressing the theme: as long as you work hard, your wish can come true. The commercial song "Spectacular" was co-written by Faye Wong and Zhang Yadong, and included on the album "Only Love Strangers".
The following year's "Starry Sky Infinite" was a collaboration with Aaron Kwok. One was the god of water and the other was the god of ice. In the hot summer, the collision of ice and water brought coolness and pleasure.
Everyone remembers this poster. The heavenly king and queen who were still youth idols back then sang the commercial song "Starry Sky Infinite" together.
Faye’s styling in the ad now seems very ahead of its time. It was bold and creative. Whether it was the mini skirt with fishnet stockings or exaggerated color eye shadows, it is fashionable and cool at any time.
Also at that time, the theme song "Eyes On Me" of the classic game "Final Fantasy VIII" became popular in Japan. The song made the top ten of Japan's Oricon charts and Faye Wong also became a Japanese J-Phone mobile phone spokesperson.
As we all know, Japanese brands prefer their own artists, so Faye Wong's ability to break through and occupy a space is enough to prove her strength.
The six commercials that J-Phone shot for her at that time were all very advanced and full of new ideas.
The following year, she starred in the Japanese TV series "Usokoi" on Fuji TV. She worked with Takaichi Nakai and became the first Chinese artist to star in a Japanese drama as the main heroine.  Unfortunately, the ratings were lower than expected.
At the beginning of 2000, Faye Wong became the spokesperson for Head & Shoulders and it was rumored that the remuneration at that time was 32 million Taiwan dollars (about 8 million Hong Kong dollars).
The commercial contained 6 cool styles. The production cost was as high as 15 million. The jingle was her newly created song "Chanel", which was intoxicating and psychedelic.
What’s interesting is that she cut her hair super short when she attended the press conference. When asked by reporters whether this style would conflict with being the spokesperson, she replied in a way that is still so cool, "Don't you need to wash short hair?"
If the advertisements for the above high demand products were expected, Faye Wong's acceptance of the following brand is more interesting now.
In 2003, Baleno spent 5 million a year to invite Faye Wong to become a spokesperson. Baleno was first known as a Hong Kong brand. In 1996, it was sold to Guangzhou Deyongjia Group and then regarded as a mainland brand.
But it was willing to spend money to invite the most popular celebrities to endorse. At its peak, it had 4,000 stores in the Mainland.  Andy Lau and Faye Wong were invited to be spokespersons.
The phrase "brand, Baleno" caused everyone to laugh.
Ah Fei shot the posters and could manage all kinds of exaggerated makeup as always. At that time, Li Jianhui once wrote about the influence of Faye Wong on Baleno - hiring her was an upgrade for the entire brand.
The following year Faye Wong  became the spokesperson of Louis Vuitton in the Asia-Pacific region. A series of print advertisements shot that year now looks very advanced. She is lying sexily and lazily on a white sofa, and her poses exude a different charm with each different set of clothes. The Heavenly Queen had such magical powers and her cool expression enchanted people.
2004—2005
Getting older and moving towards the high-end market
Which brand was Faye Wong most responsible for helping to enter China? There is no doubt that it is Celine. It is Faye Wong who brought this French brand into the hearts of every Chinese woman who loves fashion.
In October 2004, at the age of 35, Faye Wong attended Celine's 2005 Spring/Summer Fashion Show in Paris as a close friend of the brand.
The queen’s photoshoot on the streets of Paris expressed her attitude towards life. She exuded self-confidence and self-reliance even when she was just standing.
In early 2005, Faye Wong appeared on the cover of the Hong Kong edition of "HARPERS BAZAAR" wearing Celine.
The magazine’s fashion spread was a blockbuster for Celine - just by simply sitting at a dining table, revealing her slender legs. The styles were both casual and fashionable. This photoshoot perfectly fits Celine's brand aesthetic with Faye Wong's own personality:  cool and sassy.
She also wore Celine's 2005 spring and summer collection and participated in the opening ceremony of the new store in Hong Kong.
For the next ten years, Faye Wong’s favorite was simply only Celine. She took brand promotional photos. She went to fashion week to participate in brand events.  She was photographed in major magazine editorials. Even in her private birthday celebration, she wore none other than Celine.
Celine's fashion style fits her own personality. She appreciates the brand's neutral, functional, and concise design concept, and its pursuit for a free and comfortable attitude of living.
Just as she always dared to love and hate, in the Spring of 2005, it was reported that she and Li Yapeng were about to marry.
It was also at that time that she had her first skin care product endorsement, Jovell. At the time, it was reported that Jovell paid tens of millions to invite her to become a spokesperson in Asia.
The Heavenly Queen was over thirty and her perfectly maintained face couldn’t not be used as a skincare platform.
This commercial was based on her daily work environment, with pure English narration. In April, she also attended the brand's launch event in Hong Kong. She maintained an awkward and polite smile, but she did not accept interviews during the whole process.
The endorsement was not satisfactory. Jovell, a brand used by so-called Hollywood stars, applied for liquidation after the defendant defaulted on a loan at the end of 2005. They were desperate to invite the queen to help out. They wanted to take advantage of this momentum to come back to life, but unfortunately could not in the end. Because of the company’s liquidation, there was no money for payment. Faye Wong's management company issued a lawyer's letter to claim 4 million Hong Kong dollars in remuneration, and it went to the High Court.
2005-2011
Coming back is not easy At the end of May 2005, Faye Wong’s manager, Katie Chan, confirmed to the media that the Queen had started an "indefinite rest".
On July 28th of the same year, Faye Wong and Li Yapeng married in a low-key banquet in Beijing. The wedding photos taken at Tianshan were only revealed many years later in a Smile Angel Foundation promotional video.
Faye Wong retired for four full years because of her marriage and newborn daughter, during which she only sang theme songs for a few movies. There was always news that she was going to make a comeback, but in the end it turned out to be nothing.
Until 2009, on the 20th anniversary of Faye Wong's debut, news confirmed that she was about to come back to endorse a shampoo brand. The sky-high price discussed was higher than Jackie Chan. It was also reported that it was because of Li Yapeng's failed businesses that the Queen had to return to make money.
The rich and powerful Bawang Group gave enough money and not much additional conditions. The two sides hit it off quickly, which also kicked off the first wave of Faye Wong's successful comeback. In 2010, the queen made a triumphant comeback. At the beginning of the year, she returned to the Spring Festival Gala stage after 12 years and sang "Legend".  At the end of the year, she held 10 sold out concerts.
She became the brand ambassador for the newly launched Chasing series shampoo under Bawang. Shooting shampoo ads was already familiar to the heavenly queen. 
Although the brand positioned itself as mid-to-high end, the commercials were not very flattering. Heavenly Queen wore a cheongsam with a huge lotus leaf hem and neckline, walked slowly like a scallop princess. The whole advertisement fell flat.
It can be said that this was a low period for the heavenly queen. Whether or not it was satisfactory, it was a means to make money. But I have to say that Faye Wong's role in the brand was still very obvious. The products turned out to be famous all over the country.
Although money is earned, the risk of advertisements is also high. First, in 2010, a Hong Kong weekly magazine slandered Bawang shampoo for containing carcinogens and the herbal line of shampoo endorsed by Faye Wong was also not spared from testing. The star’s credibility was questioned for a while.
It took Bawang six full years to sue for defamation. In the end, they won the lawsuit, but only received a compensation of 3 million. However, the accumulated losses caused by the damage to its reputation over the years reached 1.7 billion.
Then at the end of 2014, it was reported that the intermediary claimed the fee from Faye Wong. When the case came to an end, the intermediary who originally claimed 3.35 million received only 600,000 compensation. Although the queen was cautious, she was sometimes not 100% insured. It was inevitable that there would be disputes. 
2012-2020
Safe and easy money is the priority In 2012, she endorsed a dairy brand with sky-high prices.  Yili Jindian Organic Milk, which focuses on high-end dairy products, coincides with Faye Wong’s status as a queen. The brand used her super popularity and influence to broaden its appeal and greatly increase sales.
Faye Wong’s commercials could be seen everywhere on major TV stations and variety shows.  The contents of these advertisements contained similar features of natural innocence and quality.
The beautiful grassland featured in the commercial is located in the Shin Kong Chao Feng Ranch and Resort in Hualien, Taiwan. It was also called "Faye Wong Prairie" after the commercial became popular.
She has been cooperating with Jindian for nearly ten years and each year's commercials are considered by fans as a new opportunity to see their idol again. This year's newest commercial was no longer limited to the grassland, but used light and shadow effects and it was just perfect.
In recent years, Faye Wong was really low-key.
The protection and mystery of her private life has deepened the public's desire and imagination of her, so that every public appearance of hers causes an uproar and there are always speculations about how big a bargaining chip is used to invite her to appear.
She has also been questioned a few times about making money. For example, the biggest public backlash came from her Fantasy Music concert at the end of 2016, which caused controversy because of the high ticket prices.
This was her return to the stage after her 2012 tour ended. The cheapest ticket was as high as 1800 and the most expensive ticket was 7800. This triggered an "anti” storm and she was accused of marketing and money-making.  Although the organizer clarified afterwards that the production cost could not be reduced because of technical requirements such as global live streaming, the public did not buy it.
After 18 years, she participated in her first variety show, Hunan Satellite TV's "Phantacity", where she was rumored to have been paid hundreds of millions of dollars. The news at the time stated that "the investment of the program is more than 300 million, of which 150 million is used to invite a certain heavenly queen." Of course, they also say that the top price of super first-line talent like Faye Wong is worth it.
When the MC He Jiong questioned her on the show, "Why did you want to come here?", she still answered so bluntly, "Because it’s easy."
It really was easy. Just sitting and talking can make you money.
This was a highly anticipated show that invited a large number of stars. But since the post-production process is too boring and many technical highlights couldn’t be shown on the TV screen, the freshness of the first two episodes faded and the following episodes were weak. Even Faye Wong could not save the ratings from declining. However, her performance in the last episode fulfilled fans' dreams.
Every time someone asks: is Faye Wong short of money?
Nonsense! Who is not short of money? The heavenly queen is human. She also needs to make money to pay for living expenses, including children's tuition and so on. Children’s education, the monetary cost of maintaining her own high standard of living (nanny, maintenance, self-care, etc.), and preparations for retirement, these all cost money.
Therefore, it is not difficult to see that the advertisements taken by the Heavenly Queen ten or more years ago were lively, interesting and creative. But after her comeback in 2009, they have been more grounded in a sense of reality. The long-term ten-year contract like Jindian Organic Milk is more worry-free and comfortable.
There is no longer a need to tailor songs for advertisements. You can easily make money by showing your face and narrating. Why not do it? It’s safe, worry-free, and comfortable. These are the benefits of advertising.
Of course, some people ask, why does only Faye Wong have such an influence in the advertising industry? It seems that you can pay anyone to stand there. Why don’t her contemporaries have such influence?
This only further proves that Faye Wong's body of work is excellent. She had continuous creativity and was always fresh. As the goddess of the music industry, she has been influential several times.  Faye Wong is the only super queen recognized by audiences on both sides of the strait. By gaining a big market, it is the simplest answer to this question.
Secondly, Faye Wong has an unparalleled personality. Her charm lead her to become an era’s rising female power and a new generation female legend. In layman's terms, she has lived the life that everyone wants, which is why she can bless the brand.
Her personality and charm is her brand premium. Her international style and her unconventional life are also her brand premium. This is why TV stations and merchants are willing to spend sky-high prices to invite her, because they can use their own efforts to upgrade the brand's profile. 
As for making money, Faye Wong is also a human being, not a god.  Like you and me, she has to work in life.
As for the so-called lowering herself to common mortals, as she herself once said, "I am not as perfect as you think and I admit that sometimes I can't tell the true from the false."  And sometimes mistakes are inevitable.
For 26 years, Faye Wong chose her advertisements. When watching these advertisements, we clearly saw time fly past us at a fast speed. The light and shadows were dazzling, and I sighed.
What can we say? The era has chosen Faye Wong and Faye Wong has accompanied us in every era.
She can do whatever she wants, since she has already given us beautiful moments in music.
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SOURCE: NETEASE // TRANSLATION BY: FAYE WONG FUZAO
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0poole · 4 years
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Some Retrospective Thoughts on Gen 7
Galar’s making me go nuts. You already know. Let’s look back on Alola because why not. I feel like I have stuff to say about it. Also, I just watched the last episode of the Alolan Anime, so there’s that.
Whenever I first think back to Gen 7, I think “Eh, it was alright. Nothing special, I guess.” The Pokemon were decent, apart from being almost universally slow, apart from like 3 speed demons, the starters weren’t much, the story was alright, the location was alright, etc. etc. 
Then, I ACTUALLY think back, and I realize… I have no idea why I was thinking that. This generation was actually amazing.
First of all, they finally put the motif of the Sun and Moon into game types. It’s definitely a breath of fresh air after they tried to use the fucking dimensions in 3D space for titles in Gen 6 (Loved that gen too, but seriously “Life” and “Death” would both be more fitting and not as strange. Maybe they don’t want “Death” as a title tho). Really fits in with how naturally themed everything is too, which is obviously for the best, since this is the most “natural” game to date. Even though we technically already had an America-based region in Unova, Hawai’i is so unique in its own right it definitely fits for a region. I’m usually the type who doesn’t like super overt themes in things, and kind of just wants a very generalized experience, but it’s probably for the good of everyone that they don’t actually follow through with that idea. 
Probably the biggest thing to come out of this generation is the new habit of them posting short little videos on Youtube revealing new Pokemon/features/etc. Obviously they were super trigger happy with them then, but now it seems they’ve taken a step back a little. I do love this idea, though, because it actually hypes me up more than anything else ever could. I remember before, even though I was kinda-sorta trying to follow the updates on Gens 4-6, I never really felt like I could, and even though I was going to get the games no matter what, now I realize I really want to know what I’m getting into. 
I remember exactly where I was for some of the major announcements. For the starters, I was in my high school geometry class, where I watched and re-watched that video dozens of times just so I could keep looking at them. I started off on Rowlet’s side of course, but once I realized he was getting all the attention and ol Popplio was getting basically none, I changed my allegiance and stayed there to this day. Ignoring the fact that I don’t really like any of the final evolutions enough to actually use them in game, I LOVE Popplio himself. It’s seriously a shame that he didn’t become some clown seal like everyone was speculating. Unlike how it seems, I really, really like “normal” clown characters (as in, not “horror” clowns), so he could’ve easily become one of my favorites in that case. Decidueye is definitely my favorite of the final forms, and Incineroar I think is still underrated. Sure, whatever, he’s bipedal, and it’s weirder than it otherwise would be, but for some reason I love how his mouth was an actual modeled mouth and not just an image slapped on there like most Pokemon. It really made him more expressive than the average Pokemon. Plus, the animation for Darkest Lariat is really cool, with his hands flashing against a flat back background for a second before actually doing the move. Even better, it’s great meme potential when hacked onto other Pokemon, like Wailord.
I don’t remember if Solgaleo and Lunala were introduced in that first trailer too, but either way I love both of them. I was a bit more drawn to Solgaleo at first, but Lunala has since grown to be one of my favorite legendaries of all. The starry wings, golden rims, and white skeleton-y body are such a great combo. And yeah, sure, Solgaleo would’ve been more fitting as a fire type or whatever, but since stars form the heavy metals that make it onto planets it’s fine. I won’t accept that Lunala should’ve been a dark type, though. The Moon is a major embodiment of light in the night sky, so if anything it shouldn’t be related to darkness. As for Necrozma, I love his base form a lot. It’s such a strange look, especially how the back of his head is transparent. It’s the perfect “evil prism” pokemon. I really just wish Ultra Necrozma had more detail to him, though. He looks so flat for such a major figure in the games… At least he had a good battle and an even BETTER theme song, hot damn
Guess that’s a good transition to talk about the music, and I guess tangentially about Team Skull, since they were probably the best possible departure from the usual “Evil Team” formula. Them just being random hooligans causing trouble instead of a formal organization trying for world domination is a good change of pace, as pretty much everyone agrees… It wouldn’t have been so great if they didn’t at least try to incorporate rap/trap music into their themes. They’re probably the most music-oriented Team canonically speaking, so they’d have to have a great theme. Also, the idea that they feel left behind by the traditions of the Trials really makes sense, since something so important in their culture would definitely make someone feel left out if they couldn’t get through it. 
Other themes for the more calm situations, like Hau’oli City’s night theme, are also extremely good. I didn’t even realize how much I loved that track until I heard Insaneintherain’s cover of it. It almost sounds like something out of Steven Universe, for how pleasant it is (apart from the piano). Lillie’s theme still gives me the warm fuzzies every time I hear it, too. I don’t think a single game before this has ever done the credits so well, too. Apart from the fun artwork, the last shot of Lillie and the game’s legendary actually just kills me every time. She’s such an adorable, pure soul, it’s crazy to think that when she was first revealed, we thought she was the secret supervillain of the game, just because she looked kinda peeved in her official art. We weren’t far off, though, with the Aether Foundation and all. I love both the calm theme of the Paradise itself AND their evil battle theme. Even though one is obviously an evil theme, it does feel like it came from the same source. Same goes for Lusamine’s theme. I really love the Aether Foundation as a whole too, where we can now have “Good” Foundation archetypes to counter the Evil Team archetype. Plus, their designs all involve white with gold accents, which is basically my brand. I tried to design my own Aether outfit the instant I saw them, since I love their look so much. 
As for battle themes, I love how jazzy Galdion’s battle theme ended up. It made him so much more interesting than just a generic edgelord. The Elite Four’s battle theme might actually be the scariest theme to date for some reason, and yet all I can picture when listening to it is Acerola bobbing joyfully back and forth… Basically the same way, the Tapu battle theme is also pretty crazy, with tribal chants in the back of it. The Tapus are probably the coolest group of legendaries in the game, considering how unique they are, with their oddly wooden shells that represent animals. It really makes them feel like spirits brought about by the people of Alola themselves, instead of just some being that came out of nowhere. Probably the one theme that is the most nostalgic (yes, I know it was only 3 years ago, you can still feel nostalgia damnit) for me is the Kahuna battle theme. It was probably just some random comment on Youtube, but somewhere someone said that it was the perfect theme because it starts off intimidating, but quickly switches into a super fun melody, because ultimately, the Island Challenge is for fun. I just love that. I’m always looking for “Fun” stuff in pretty much everything, so I like a theme that represents that. Also, it’s just super catchy, and even expanded upon in Pokemon Masters. Let it be known that Hapu is the best Kahuna by the way. She cute. Also, watching her become the Kahuna is the best world building you could possibly muster up for this kind of setting. 
Of course, I’m intentionally leaving out a certain group…
You know what I think of when I think of Hawai’i? Pearly white sand beaches… Palm trees… Fruity drinks… oh, and let’s not forget fucking interdimensional aliens. 
The Ultra Beasts are the exact type of thing I’d want to insert into the Pokemon world, and that’s why I love them. They’re so weird in the best ways possible. When they were introduced in a trailer, I had the same reaction as I did with Type: Null. They put him up on the screen for a bit and was like “Haha here’s ‘Type: Null,’ okay next” like EXCUSE ME? YOU CAN’T JUST SHOW ME A POKEMON CALLED “Type: Null” AND NOT EXPLAIN WHAT’S GOING ON. Of course, that’s kind of what the games were for, but it was seriously a shock to the system to see Pokemon with code names instead of actual names. You also can’t convince me that Pheromosa wasn’t designed after Lusamine, and to a lesser extent that Xurkitree wasn’t designed after Guzma. I think it’s canon that Lusamine styled Lillie after Nihilego in her crazed state, but the uncanny likeness between those other two is pretty darn notable. I think from the first batch, Celesteela was my favorite of them all, being like a rusted copper rocket ship or something, who can even smack you with her two giant rockets. Also, Pokemon directly based on folktales are always welcome, no matter what. Meanwhile, with the Ultra games being the first sequels to introduce brand-new Pokemon, Blacephalon easily took top spot. I did say I liked clowns, didn’t I? Plus, the biggest evidence that he’s best boi is that in the anime when he appeared, he didn’t even try to attack anything. He just wanted to show off (specifically, believe it or not, by moonwalking… Whoever’s idea that was needs a raise). I also love detachable heads, which is a great idea to mix with clowns, and I guess also fireworks in this case… I just love him. I really hope that there will be future instances of Ultra Beasts, since it’s apparently super easy to just make them however the hell you want them, and since you’re not limited to a region’s natural environment. Lord knows whoever designed Buzzwole didn’t have any limitations. Exploring his, and really all of their worlds in USUM was extremely fun. It’s a damn shame Blacephalon and Stakataka (again, what a name) didn’t get the same privilege. 
As for the Pokemon as a whole, like I mentioned, off the top of my head I don’t feel super crazy about many of them, even though that’s a total lie. Shiinotic appealed to my inner mushroom-character-lover so much that I basically designed a character that looked identical to him. He’s easily the best mushroom Pokemon to date, where he looks pretty cute while also being just slightly creepy enough, with those souless eyes. The concept for Araquanid is amazing, where he’s a reverse Diving Bell spider. I might’ve designed him a bit differently, but he still looks super cool. The ideas behind Oranguru and Passimian are also cool, since we haven’t delved much into intelligent ape Pokemon enough. Wishiwashi is another great concept, and probably the best fish Pokemon in my opinion because of it. Lurantis and Minior are total cuties, the latter being one of those Pokemon that isn’t always in the forefront of my mind, but the instant it is it reclaims its place as one of my all-time favorites. Golisopod and Kommo-o are two of the coolest Pokemon designs to me, the latter being my all-time favorite Pseudo-Legendary. Vikavolt looks awesome, despite being deceptively slow. Dhelmise looks weird until you realize it’s actually insanely large (like, Wailord large). Mudsdale is just an all-around good-looking horse. Oricorio also looks really cool, especially in her fiery form. Tsareena is, well… Tsareena… That’s not even including the adorable Magearna and Marshadow, who are in generational limbo… Also, I think Mimikyu might be the overall best addition to the franchise ever. No Pika-clone could ever compare. 
I mean, specifically as far as a single Pokemon goes, Mimikyu is definitely the best addition to the franchise. Meanwhile, as far as concepts go, the absolutely HUGE idea of Regional Variants is the best addition. Again, I remember where I was when I heard the announcement: it was some sort of weird fantasy house, with a ton of cool details in it to make it look like a setting in some movie or something. It was awesome there, even if we were staying for only a night or so I think. Either way, the concept of different Pokemon adapting to different conditions in the region is the most perfect way to bring attention back to older Pokemon, and I’m so glad they seem to want to keep the idea for all future generations too. It’s especially fitting for Alola, since it’s a super remote island. I love how goofy Alolan Exeggutor is, especially because everyone else seems to love his goofiness too. Same sort of goes for Dugtrio, since his hair is actually based on a real thing… Marowak becoming a spiritual fire dancer is definitely the best possible iteration for him. My favorite might be the colorful Alolan Muk, though, even if Alolan Vulpix is infinitely cuter and better than fiery Vulpix in every way. I cannot be convinced otherwise.
Also, she’s a perfect fit for Lillie, so I guess I’ll use that as my transition into talking about the characters/anime. I’m just gonna be real with you. I’m not going to hold back. Alola has some of the cutest girls in the entire franchise. But first of all, let’s divert that train and instead lust after a man who is easily the hottest professor in the games yet, Kukui. What self-respecting researcher wouldn’t wear his professor-mandated lab coat without any undershirt? He needs his bulging abs as target practice for his Pokemon’s moves, people. He needs to let them breathe. Also, I was kind of enamoured with Sycamore before him, but you can’t deny the tinted skin gets to you a little. Burnet’s a lucky gal, let’s just say.
Okay, now that we’ve established that my pants don’t discriminate, we have to talk about Wicke. So now that that’s covered, can I just say I love Mina? I’d say she deserves more attention, but she was the only Alolan to make it into Lets Go for some reason, so I guess she’s well off? First of all, I love hippie-esque girls (idealized hippies, at least), so that’s a major plus… I mean, I should probably stop using the word “cute” altogether because it applies to every girl in the game, but yeah. Lana’s highly deserved spotlight in the anime made me love her too, where she was a perfect combination of extroverted while still more soft-spoken. I don’t know if that kind of characters’ an anime trope, but lord knows it’s not in western media, so I love how unique her personality is. Her interacting with Mallow and Lillie in cute, girly ways felt so wholesome. If the anime’s anything, it’s wholesome. 
One sec, though. I have to mention that I really like Hau. He’s obviously the one pinned as “Boo, he’s not a giga-asshole! That means he’s bad!” because I guess the fandom’s hive mind has collectively agreed that the only good rivals are assholes now. Like I said before, this stuff’s more about fun now. Hau’s a fun friend to fight, to the point where you beat him as the Champion you kinda feel bad for knocking him down so much. You feel bad because you like him, you know. Also, I forgot to mention this earlier but even though he isn’t entirely difficult himself, the trials in these games are actually both a difficult and interesting challenge. A 2v1 where you’re at the disadvantage is a great boss battle idea, especially with the strategies set out by a Pokemon’s different abilities and moves. Probably the best was Totem Lurantis, who of course summoned a Sunny Day-based Castform to activate her Chlorophyll and buff her Solar Blade, while adding a diverse fire type into play. It was really difficult, to be honest. Those who say it wasn’t either got lucky or have insane standards that cannot be met because they’re Pokemon Veterans who know every little thing about everything. I’m pretty much in that camp, and I still had to actually plan during the fight. Same goes for Totem Araquanid in USUM. I literally had to poison (not toxic, base poison) stall that guy because I couldn’t do anything to him otherwise. He was pretty much one-shotting everything I sent out, anyway, so I had to stall however I could. You can’t argue that that means it was “easy” because I knew how to beat him. It’s only “easy” if you can just send out pretty much whatever and do whatever and still win. Then there’s the Rainbow Rocket episode in USUM, which is just crazy… There’s not much to say that isn’t obvious there. It was fun seeing the villains that were victorious in a different dimension.
Anyways, for the anime, I also have a similar stance. It really seemed like the only people who started off hating it were anime nerds who had no concept of an in-between frame. I will say that it was a step down from XY/XYZ though, but those seasons’ quality was unusually high. Compared to the animation quality of every other season, it was so much better. First of all, I really don’t even like “anime style” that much, so a slightly more western style was very welcome. Like pretty much every show ever, the animation quality is seriously high where it counts, so there’s not much to be said about that, but I’d say the overall animation quality is a step up in general. The more simplified style only really looked weird in Ash because we’re so used to his more pointy style. Every other character looked totally fine, in my opinion. 
As for the story, I will say I would’ve wanted the scope of the plot to be much larger, like how with the other seasons Ash was going on an adventure, whereas here it was very contained, and centered around the Pokemon School. But, still, like I mentioned, I did enjoy the casual wholesomeness of it all. Not only do I just like mindless fun, but it made the crazy shit feel even crazier. The episode where Faba was trying to catch Nebby is a perfect example. It begins with a nice fun game of all the Pokemon and people jumping rope and having a good time, with some slapstick humor with Faba failing to capture Nebby. Then he does, and shit goes down. First of all, he’s torturing the little thing. Then, ASH (not his Pokemon, Ash himself) tackles Faba. Tell me, what other season had humans fighting other humans? I honestly can’t think of a single time when fighting was done with fists and not Pokemon (although surely I’m forgetting something, there’s gotta be at least one other example, right?) Then, Lillie re-experiences her past trauma of almost being abducted by Nihilego, except now her mom gets abducted in her place… Like, what happened? It was so cute a second ago. That’s always the selling point for any cartoon, for me. Stay casual for a decent amount, then break it with some uncharacteristically high tension. The same goes for the segment where Ash goes into Guzzlord’s post apocalyptic dimension. As for mega-feels, It’s great that they made Litten/Torracat an actual character instead of just some random Pokemon, with Stoutland and whatnot. The episode where they go into Tapu Fini’s mist and Mallow meets her mother, and Torracat meets Stoutland just destroyed me. It was strategically remedied by Lillie and Gladion not seeing their father, suggesting he’s still alive. There were some really great episodes in the season, for sure.
So, yeah… Alola was a good time. Don’t deny it. Galar’s gonna be great too. No game’s ever going to be perfect, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be fun.
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robininthelabyrinth · 5 years
Text
Fic: The Beginning of Wisdom - Chapter 13 (Ao3 link)
Fandom: Flash, Legends of Tomorrow Pairing: Leonard Snart (Len) & Leonard Snart (Leo), Len Snart/Mick Rory, Leo Snart/Mick Rory, Len Snart/Mick Rory/Leo Snart, Leo Snart/Ray Terrill, Len Snart/Barry Allen
Summary: In which Leonard Snart is twins.
(the life and times and loves of Len and Leo Snart)
—————————————————————————————————–
Leo did end up shipping the metas – sans Nimbus, who as predicted ended up trying to murder someone immediately after being released and who Len disposed of via applied cold gun and some minor philosophical deal-related disputes with Barry – to Paris as part of his tech crew, a situation absolutely none of them had any objection to.
Mick accompanied him to protect him and keep an eye on him, but his watchfulness was probably unnecessary – the whole lot of them were far too starry-eyed to make any real threats.
While they were on the plane, private and chartered because Leo needed all that space to carry all of his gowns and shoes and accessories, they even had a conversation that sealed the deal: apparently, it was their first visit to Paris. Or outside of the state borders at all, for that matter.
"It's a great city, you'll love it," Leo assured them.
"How do you do it?" Bivolo asked, playing with one of the tiny salt shakers he’d received along with his airplane meal. "Thief, supervillain and fashion designer..."
"I work a lot," Leo said. They had very much opted not to tell anyone else about themselves – Barry was an exception under the newly established 'want to date' rule. "Sometimes, it almost feels as if I'm in two places at once."
"You broke us out, and now you're giving us a trip to Paris and cover jobs that will pay us," Mardon said, sounding suspicious. "What's in all this for you?"
"Well, I always appreciate a thank you."
"So you've said," Baez said dryly, but for all her cynicism she'd been the most wide-eyed with wonder at the suggestion of Paris, and she couldn't stop fingering the sequined dress on the hanger next to her seat.
"Also, if you ever come back to Central City, you owe me one," Leo said. "I've got plans to give the Flash a real challenge with my very own Rogues Gallery."
"The Rogues," Bivolo said. "Nice. I like it."
"Feel free to say no, of course, but – would it be possible – I mean – just if it’s not a bother – but – I don’t know – could I try on one of the dresses?" Baez asked shyly. “Just once?”
"Not these ones, for risk of tearing, but if you like, I think I have a sample jumpsuit from last season you could probably fit into," Leo offered. "It has multiple points of light from built-in battery – I was doing a light-related superhero theme –"
"That would be amazing."
“I’ll give it to you to keep if you agree to pretend to be a scholarship art student that I’m sponsoring.”
Baez blinked. “Uh, sure. I mean, I was studying medicine, not art, but I can fake art, no problem. Why?”
“I’ve been dying to convince the tabloids that I’m cheating on my husband,” Leo said with a shrug. “It’s good free publicity, but they just won’t damn bite.”
“Can I volunteer for that job?” Bivolo asked, half-jokingly. “If I get an outfit out of it…”
“If you’re serious about that offer, I will happily trade couture outfits for tabloid fodder. Paris loves a scandal, and a bisexual one is even better.”
Leo conveyed the entire conversation to Len in text, complete with emojis, smug with the knowledge that he was entirely doing his part of this particular job.
Len rolled his eyes – he, for one, did not see the appeal of appearing in French tabloids as anything other than "Mysterious Man Disappears With Priceless Treasure" – but with the question of whether the metas would become violent settled, he was now satisfied that Leo would be just fine.
He knew very well that joining a fashion show wasn’t just fun and games and indulgence: Leo would run each one of the 'rescued' metas absolutely ragged until they had no time to think, and they'd thank him for the privilege.
Len, in the meantime, had other work to do.
"All right, Scarlet," he said, walking into STAR Labs. "Metas are all taken care of and Lisa, Mick and I are escorting them on their way out of the city already. In the meantime, what can I do to help with your evil speedster doctor?"
Sounded like a nightmare, put like that. Sure, it'd be a help to doing surgery, but the amount a doc like that could screw a guy up from the inside...
"Wait," Barry said. "Which 'I' are you?"
"The one standing in front of you," Len replied, with some amusement. "Obviously."
"No, I mean – you said 'Lisa, Mick, and I' when you were talking about – him."
Len shrugged. "It sounds less weird than saying Leonard Snart like I'm talking in third person."
Barry clearly had more questions.
"Maybe now isn't the time?" Len suggested. "After we beat your evil guy, you can come over and ask all the questions you like."
"Including about your crush?" Barry asked, trying for brazen but underselling it by blushing.
Len smirked. "Including that, yes."
"Okay," Barry said. "So the plan right now is that we’re going to set up an ambush for evil Wells, calling in all of our allies – you guys, us, our friends from Starling, Firestorm –"
“Firestorm?”
“Yeah, it’s two people who join together to light on fire; I’ll introduce you.”
“What is with all of these light-themed superheroes?” Len complains. “I feel like we’re starting to repeat on a theme.”
“Cold – Snart – Len. Focus.”
The plan to capture the bad guy, much to Len's surprise, actually worked.
He'd really been expecting something a little less, well, anti-climactic – it was the final boss battle! Surely –!
But nope. They all gathered up, they found the individual in question, they captured him.
Of course, once Wells (Thawne? Eobard?) was locked away, he sold the whole team a boatload of crap about saving Barry Allen's mother from being murdered via time travel, which would also conveniently allow him to go back to his own original time period, the existence of which he'd been using to justify murdering people in this time period.
Apparently people’s lives didn’t matter if they were historical figures?
Len’s not even trying to figure out that logic.
"Uh, no," Len said when Barry asked his opinion. "Obviously you shouldn't do it."
Barry blinked owlishly at him. "What?"
"...is that not the answer everyone has been giving you?"
"No," Barry said. "They all said they couldn't make the decision for me and it was up to me."
"Well, that's crap," Len said.
"Why shouldn't I do it, then?"
"I have a whole list," Len said. "Starting, first and foremost, with the fact that it's obviously a trap –"
"I don't think it is," Barry said. "He sincerely wants to go back to his time. It's what he's been building towards this entire time."
"Yes, about that," Len said. "Why is it that you're okay with illegally and indefinitely imprisoning people whose biggest crime is aiding and abetting Grade B theft – not even committing Grade B theft, just aiding and abetting – but somehow the multiple murderer that killed your mother gets freedom and everything he wants?"
"It's not that –"
"It really is, Scarlet."
"I have a chance to save my mother from being murdered, Snart!"
Len shrugged. He didn't expect the existence, or lack thereof, of one Nora Allen to affect his own life in the slightest – he never did interact much with people from the fancier suburbs other than steal from them, and Barry's family wasn't rich enough to interest him – so he didn't really have a dog in this race other than disliking the unsatisfactory narrative it created.
"How much of your life will you miss?" he asked instead.
"What?"
"Well," Len said. "You became a CSI because of what happened to your mom, right?"
"Yeah."
"And you lived with the pig and Iris, right?"
"His name is Joe, you know."
"Sure, Joe 'Pig' West –" Barry rolled his eyes. "– but that's not the point. Would you say he taught you anything? Excluding morality, of course; can't teach what you don't have."
"Of course he taught me stuff," Barry said, pointedly ignoring that last part. "He practically raised – oh. I think I see what you’re saying."
"Imagine a world without your friends," Len suggested. "Without your powers. Without your job. A world where you, yourself, are an entirely different person, because you don't have any of the memories that make you who you are – do you think Leo and I are the same person? Now that you've spent some time with us, I mean."
Barry blinked, clearly taken aback by the seeming non-sequitur. "No," he said. "Not at all, even though you make it confusing sometimes with the way you talk about yourselves. He's – uh – would it be weird to say that he's too nice to be you?"
Len tried to hide a smirk. "A bit of a misreading of his personality, but I get what you mean."
"No, I'm not saying it right," Barry said, shaking his head. "He's – I knew lots of people like him in school. Nice, friendly, and they'll forget about you the second you turn away. And understanding! Ugh, they're so understanding that you just want to scream – uh. Not Leo, I mean, just, you know –"
"I know," Len said. "School traumatizes us all in different ways. So we're not the same?"
"No," Barry said firmly. "Not at all. Leo's too, well, too nice; I could like him, but I probably wouldn't be friends with him – not proper ride-or-die friends –"
Leo wasn't ride-or-die for anyone but Len, Lisa, Mick, and maybe – maybe – Ray, so that was fair.
"And anyway, I don't like him the way I like –" Barry fell quiet and turned red.
Len grinned. "That's okay," he said. "I like you, too."
Barry turned even more red.
"But do you get the point I was trying to make?"
Barry blinked at him.
"Imagine a universe where there was just one of me," Len said. "And in that universe, there were a certain set of life experiences that would make me, me, and another set of life experiences that make Leo, Leo. But in that universe, there aren't two of us – there's just one. And what set of experiences I live makes me into either Len or Leo."
Barry nodded slowly. "So if I change my past –"
"You could go from being your own version of Len to being your own version of Leo."
"But I remember what happens when I time travel," Barry protested.
"So you'd be a Len in a Leo's world," Len said with a shrug. "Even worse: all your friends would expect you to act like someone who grew up with two loving parents, you'd never be able to be yourself or talk to anyone or explain your phobias, they'd think you'd gone crazy from the personality change –"
Barry shuddered. "What if my memories do change?"
"Then the person you are now is dead, and a new person gets the life you've always wanted," Len told him. "All this, of course, assuming that you saving your mom back when you were eleven doesn't remove your powers and strand you in the past, like, say, another interfering-in-the-proper-course-of-time speedster we know of..."
Barry winced.
"This is literally a no-win scenario, Scarlet," Len said firmly. "You do this, then the guy who ruined your life gets everything he's always wanted and you get either dead and replaced, stuck in a world that doesn't fit you, or stuck in the past. And all that's before your speedster buddy has enough time in the future to come back and try to kill you like he did the first time around –"
"I still have to try," Barry whispered. "I have to see her."
Len shrugged a second time and watched him go.
And then he picked up his cold gun and made his way towards STAR Labs.
He was familiar with this, after all; Leo also had trouble making the hard choices like this, the ones with loss and risk. Leo was good at emotions – Len was good at ruthlessness. He'd learned how to kill, over the years, watched it get easier and easier; he could do this for Barry, now.
Because as far as Len was concerned, this Eobard Thawne wasn't making his Back to the Future dream come true – even if Len had to ice the speedster himself to make sure of it.
"Snart?" Cisco asked, even as Joe put his hand on his gun. His partner-cop – who looked traumatized – and pretty little Iris were there, too, holding hands and looking exhausted. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to help," Len lied. "Didn't Barry tell you I was coming?"
Yes, he put a little stress on the word 'Barry'. Len fully acknowledged that he was an asshole like that.
"He must have forgotten," Caitlin said with a sigh. "I don't know what help you can offer, though; he's going to be making the attempt momentarily. He’s in the Particle Accelerator right now, with Wells – uh, Thawne – er, Eobard Thawne, he’s there, too, in his time ship."
"In that case, I'll just watch for now," Len said.
"Brave of you," Snow said. She was a lot snippier now that she wasn't being kidnapped.
"Why?" Len asked, frowning. "Is there a risk? Barry didn't mention."
They all exchanged glances.
"Tell me," Len demanded, his voice going hard. "Now."
"Well, it's probably not going to happen –"
"I didn't ask for your analysis," Len said. "Tell me the risk."
"We don't have to listen to you –" Caitlin started.
"If this goes wrong, it could open up a black hole," Cisco said all in a rush.
"Cisco!"
"What?! It's true! And he's scary!"
"Hold up," Len said, starting to get really angry now. As always, his voice remained steady and even, but despite that he thought that they might have gotten the idea, because everyone in the room exchanged alarmed looks. "Are you telling me that Scarlet is doing something that might help his own life personally, even knowing at the risk of putting everyone else on earth in danger?"
"It's not like that!" Iris exclaimed.
"Uh," Cisco said.
"The chance is miniscule, right?" Joe asked. His hand was on his gun again, and he was glaring at Len like he thought it might solve all his problems to shoot him now.
Typical pig.
He'd better not even think the phrase "officer involved" shootings, because Len could outdraw him any day.
"Yeah, super small," Cisco said hastily, looking relieved. "Really, really small."
"Tell me," Len said. His voice is still very even. "Greater or smaller chance of the Accelerator blowing up the first time it turned on? No, wait, of the Accelerator blowing up – due to intentional sabotage - because of the identity theft of the creator - by a time-traveller with super powers - for the specific purpose of giving someone else a specific set of superpowers – so that he could use him as a living battery in his souped-up Mandalorian?!"
"It's a time bubble ship," Cisco muttered, but his face had gone pale.
"We're not talking about that," Len snapped. "Tell me, what are the chances of that, which we all know actually happened, compared to Barry literally destroying the world in a fit of selfish assholery?"
"You don't –" Joe started.
"Shut up, hypocritical pig," Len said harshly. "No one wants to hear your opinion."
Joe puffed up. Predictable.
"Has Barry reported you yet?" Len asked before Joe had a chance to start yelling.
Sure enough, that stopped Joe flat.
"What?" the partner-cop asked. "Report Joe for what?"
"Illegal imprisonment without a trial or a warrant," Len said. "Human trafficking, at least attempted. Conspiracy to hide an ongoing crime from the police – should I go on?"
Joe's face flushed.
"But –" Partner-cop started, then he stopped, clearly reviewing. "Under the circumstances –"
"No man's above the law," Len said. "Barry agreed to report you to somebody up your chain as part of our little deal. Might not do anything, what with the CCPD's usual lax standards, but at least it'll be down on paper forever that you did it. You do remember that, right, the whole incident that happened within the last 24 hours or so, where a convicted criminal had to free the prisoners you were keeping here – in solitary confinement, I hear – torture –"
"We didn't torture them!" Cisco exclaimed.
"You know solitary confinement with no exercise is literally torture, right?" Len asked him.
Cisco flushed.
"You're all as criminal as I am; you’re just too self-righteous to admit it," Len said, rolling his eyes. "But we can deal with that later. Where – ah, there."
He marched up to the microphone, with no one stopping him. "Barry Allen," he said harshly. "You had better stop what you're doing right now –"
"It's too late," Cisco said. "I'm sorry. He's already running too fast for him to hear you."
Len snarled soundlessly. "Well," he said. His voice was still steady, he was pleased to note, no matter how ticked he was getting. "Who's going to show me to the Accelerator so that I can slow him down?"
He put his hand on his cold gun.
Silence for a long moment.
"I will," Iris finally said.
"Iris, no!" Joe exclaimed.
"Shut up, Dad," she snapped. She seemed extremely angry, though her eyes with a bit glassy with tears. "I was willing to forgive you for lying to me about the whole Flash thing for months, but I never thought – I never – I wouldn't – damnit, Dad, this is bullshit, and moreover, this is bullshit you should have told me about." She glared at all of them. "You all should have known better."
With that, she turned and walked out.
Len followed.
"I'm going to forgive them eventually," Iris said conversationally when they got to the end of the hallway. "So don't think you can use this against me."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Len said. "Don't actually care about you all that much, to be honest."
She snorted. "Thanks," she said, but she sounded sincere. "That makes you the only person who didn't immediately decide that you could make decisions on my behalf."
"Including Barry?"
"Oh, definitely including Barry," she said. "He wanted to tell me, but Dad made him promise not to because knowing might 'put me in danger'."
"More or less danger than he was allowing his foster kid to get into actually fighting as a vigilante?"
"Don't get me started on the misogyny of it all," Iris said. "I'm well aware of it. And I'm still angry at him. And at Barry."
"I'm pissed at him, too," Len agreed. "He didn't tell me all the risks of this process or I would've tied him up and kept him away."
"Speedsters can vibrate through rope, you know; that's why we kept Wells in the Accelerator."
"I'd find a way," Len said. "He's enough of an idiot that something could be devised."
"I feel like I shouldn't be agreeing with you," Iris mused. "But yeah, Barry kind of is an idiot sometimes."
"I can't believe I'm going to sleep with him," Len agreed. He rather liked that meme; he'd never thought he'd have a chance to use it in real life.
"Yeah, I – wait, what?"
"As soon as this is over," Len said. He still liked Barry, after all. Len acknowledged he was being something of an idiot, continuing to like Barry despite it all, but he didn’t let people into his heart easily – and once he did, he was stuck. Just like he was stuck now. "Assuming he doesn't destroy the world, of course."
Iris had a hilarious expression on her face.
Then, a moment later, she started laughing. “You know what,” she said. “You know what? Good for Barry. You’re really hot. You may even be hotter than Oliver Queen.”
“I’m cool, not hot,” Len said, waving his gun in the air a bit. “Though I agree with the second half of your statement.”
“That you’re hotter than Oliver Queen?”
“I hear he’s a cold fish,” Len said in his best deadpan.
Iris started laughing almost right away, which meant she got the joke. “That’s awful,” she giggled. “He just got rescued from his boat accident –”
“It’s been years.”
“Still. Too soon.”
“You assume I care.”
Iris shook her head. “Go and stop our lovable idiot, why don't you,” she said, nodding at the doorway.
Len looked at it – there were sparks visible around the sides – and pulled out a handgun with his free hand, offering it to Iris. “Know how to use this?”
“Cop kid,” Iris said, accepting it and checking it expertly. “Of course I do. But why..?”
“I was a cop kid, too,” Len said. “It doesn’t mean crap. You can be my back-up.”
Iris blinked. “Me? But – Barry –”
“I’m going to try to stop Barry from breaking time with his run,” Len said. “How do you think ol’ Eobard’s going to feel about that? Remember, he’s in there, too.”
Her face settles into a grimly determined expression. “Got it.”
16 notes · View notes