#want Mike fucking dead but when it's the other way around it's just funny and embarassing for Mike? and not just small things like this

[uselessnbee]

sometimes i feel so petty i want to make a big post about all the times Will and El weren't that great towards Mike just to ..you know.. balance it out a bit

#it's always here's all the times Mike hurt Will and El's feelings and never here's all the times Will and El hurt Mike's feelings #it's so unfair like i saw people hating Mike over fucking MILKSHAKES because they just had to find a reason to hate him it's so stupid #if i went on here and started hating on Will and El for not laughing at Mike's vomit green joke cause it made him sad yall would call me #absolutely crazy and delusional like be fucking for real Mike just breathes wrong in Will's or El's direction and he's the devil himself #but Will and El could literally call Mike a slur to his face and yall would be like hE dESeRvEd iT tHeY DiDnT dO aNyThiNG wRoNG like fr #there are so many small times when Mike tried to get Will's attention like the vomit green joke or the they're conspiring against me moment #and everyone always just laughs how Mike is a loser trying to get their attention but they always just ignore him or whatever but if it was #reversed? if it was Will trying to get Mike's attention only for Mike to either ignore him or yell in his face how it's stupid to be #concerned about something so small? oh yall would go ballistic suddenly yall wouldn't care how small these things are suddenly you would #want Mike fucking dead but when it's the other way around it's just funny and embarassing for Mike? and not just small things like this #when we point out how El invalidated his feelings and dismissed his bullying everyone is like oh she didn't mean that she meant it like #this she meant it like that she said it because of this and that and the situation is like this so this is why she said that #and blah blah blah she didn't do anything wrong but when it comes to Mike suddenly it doesnt matter if he meant it differently or if it was #the situation and messy feelings making him say something hurtful no he's just an asshole oh i am cursing you all #i hope you step on lego every day and your favorite snack is always sold out in every shop i hope every cat you try to call will ignore you #or hiss at you i am so tired of the double standards when it comes to Mike and willel i am so angry #mike wheeler #mike wheeler protection squad #blue's 'mike's extreme defender' ramblings #i got a little carried away in the tags but i'm not sorry i said what i said #and idc if i get hate for it cause i'm right anyways

[cherries-and-smoke]

I’ve never been to New Mexico

“Hey mom.” Steve is leaning against the fridge, wrapping the phone chord around his finger. He already wants this conversation to be over.

“Hi Steve,” she grimaces back, as if he’s already done something wrong. She says something about New Mexico, and a business conference and how it’s unbearably hot and Steve is doing what he always does during these phone calls, emotionally detaching so the sting of his parents words don’t cut into his skin.

“You would hate New Mexico.” That snaps him out of it.

“What?” He chokes out. He pretends it doesn’t hurt.

“We’re in the desert, and you can see all these stars from the house we’re staying at and it’s so boring.”

Steve swallows.

Steve wonders how his mother can take the stars in the sky and turn them cold.

And also how she’s so far from knowing him, the real him, that its almost laughable.

“It’s just dreadful here - oh look your fathers home! Don’t get into any trouble Stev-”and the line clicks dead.

Steve shakily sets the phone down and inhales. Part of him wants to rip it off the wall and smash it into a million tiny pieces. He never wants them to contact him again.

The funny thing is that yesterday, Nance, Rob and Eddie had all come over to help him plan their summer road trip. They took some of Erica’s left over My Little Pony stickers and mapped everything out. There was currently a pink pony placed carefully next to Santa Fe on the map. Eddie and Steve had watched as Nancy and Robin launched into an argument about which route they should take and they both ended up covered in unicorn stickers. Eddie and Steve shared a knowing look.

They all needed a break from the upside down. From what happened during spring break. So when Jonothan suggested that the kids spend the summer at Argyles family’s beach house in California, Joyce and Hopper didn’t put up much of a fight. Nancy, Robin, Eddie and Steve were going to meet them and spend the rest of the summer bugging the kids to put on sunscreen and heard them from activity to activity.

Steve loves the kids, he does. He loves the way Dustin always comes to him with his scientific discovery of the day, he loves Erica’s sense of humor, although some manners wouldn’t hurt, he loves the way Will always quietly says thank you, how El says bitchin’, how Mike can always find a way to trip over air. He loves Lucas’s high pitched laugh and the way Max rolls her eyes at Steve when he makes a lame dad joke. But the month long break had been nice. It gave him time to focus on other things.

He was actually looking forward to New Mexico.

His parents always assumed he hated the outdoors because he spent the summers of his childhood locked away inside trying not to bother anyone while his parents fought, or his mom drank too much, or when they inevitably left. Steve wasn’t exactly going to summer camps like other kids his age. Didn’t mean he didn’t want to.

Steve places his hands on the kitchen island and takes a steady breath. He isn’t going to let her get to him.

“Honey I’m homeeeeeee,” Eddie calls out from the entryway. “You would not believe what happened at practice, Gareth had the audacity to fuck up the one so- Eddie freezes and gives Steve a once over. “What’s wrong?”

“Mom called.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“What’d she say?” Eddie steps around the kitchen island and takes both of Steve’s hands in his own. Steve fidgets with Eddie’s rings.

“That I would hate New Mexico,” Steve whispers not even bothering to look up at Eddie.

“She doesn’t even know you, how would she know that?”

Steve’s silent. He wants to travel across the entire country with Eddie, do it all. And secretly he hopes that maybe one day they’d somehow have a family and do it again. Maybe every summer.

Eddie brings Steve’s hands to his face and kisses his knuckles, the sensation grounding him.

“She doesn’t deserve you Stevie.”

Steve gives Eddie a soft smile. Eddie always tells him that. Steve never fully believes him.

“They don’t deserve you,” Eddie leans his forehead against Steve’s when he says it.

“Also, the girls are coming over, we have a surprise for you.”

“What?” Steve says looking up. Eddie just raises an eyebrow and an epiphany crosses his face.

Steve watches as Eddie pats himself down till he finds what he’s looking for. He pulls out his black bandana with a smirk and motions for Steve to turn around.

“Is now really the time?” Steve muses.

“Shut up.”

Steve lets Eddie tie the black bandana around his eyes so everything is pitch black. Eddie carefully guides Steve by his shoulders till they’re standing in his front lawn.

“Eddie what the fuck.”

Eddie giggles.

“Just wait.”

Steve huffs as his boyfriend wraps an arm around the nape of his neck and pokes at his frown till it turns into a smile.

Steve suddenly hears a honk.

A very loud honk that‘s getting closer and closer. Eddie absentmindedly runs his thumb in circles on the back of Steve’s neck.

He hears a pair of footsteps on the hot pavement. “Dingus!!” Steve feels a crash of weight on his side and tries not to let that startle him. He can tell it’s Robin from a mile away.

“What are you guys doing?” Steve says, bandana wrapped tightly around his eyes as Robin squeezes his hand.

“Hey Steve!” Nancy’s voice rings out from across the lawn. He‘s faintly aware something’s jingling in her hand.

“Are you ready? Are you ready? Are you-”

“Robin,” Steve says exasperated.

“I’ll take that as yes.”

“Ok guys on the count of three,” Steve hears Eddie say.

They all inhale and in unison Robin, Nancy and Eddie start counting.

“One. Two. Three.” The bandana comes off.

Parked right in front of Steve’s house is a brand new, state of the art RV. Steve is kind of having trouble breathing.

“Guys…” he trails off.

They all look at him waiting for his reaction.

“Who’s RV is this? It’s really nice.”

Robin groans, Nancy hits her shoulder lightly.

Eddie’s hand is still resting on the back of his neck.

“It’s yours,” Eddie finally says.

That seems to snap Steve out of his daze.

“What?”

“Guys this is too much. I mean look at it!” Steve motions with his hands.

It’s the newest model. Big enough to fit the entire party and more.

“So Steve,” Robin begins, looking up at him hopefully.

“You know how Owen’s gave us all hush money? Well we talked to the kids and we were talking about how much we love you and how much you do for us, and how we want to spend as much time together as we can before the kids leave for college, and you know before we all move and everyone gets separated and how we should start doing family vacations and basically-”

“Robin,” Steve sighs.

“Let me finish! Basically we decided that we want to do family road-trips… every summer.”

Steve drinks in the words “family road-trips.” Sweat is prickling his skin from the Indiana heat.

“And we decided to all pitch in and get an RV, it’s in your name by the way, we want you to have it.”

Steve is at a loss for words. Robin is still waiving her hands around in excitement, Nancy‘s looking at him expectantly and Eddie’s palm is now cemented on his shoulder.

“Why me?”

“Because we love you dingus, duh.”

“Plus we gotta make room for those six little nuggets huh Stevie,” Eddie whispers into his ear with a smile.

Steve lets their words wash over him. He loves them so much. He doesn’t know what he did to deserve them but he’s grateful nonetheless. Steve breaks out into a wide grin and catches Eddie’s gaze.

Robin makes a gagging noise as Nancy presses the RV’s keys into his free hand. The key is dangling from a unicorn keychain.

She smiles. “Wanna see the inside?”

#platonic soulmates stobin #platonic stobin #steddie #stranger things wip #stranger things #stranger things fandom #stranger things fic #stranger things ficlet #fruity four #ronance #found family

[homocrafting]

turns out whatever instinct in me makes me want to make tma aus is unstoppable and all consuming. so here's qsmp tma au focused on the brazillians:

cellbit- he HAS to be the archivist ok this man is so eye aligned it's not even funny. HOWEVER because qcellbit and fcell are the same person, Events happened to him before he became the Archivist, ala from the archives grian. local paranormal enthusiast finds dead half eaten bodies, gets arrested for it (he SWEARS he didn't eat those people), goes to prison for 10 years, goes nuts (becomes F!Cell), kills himself in the island, wakes up in his room and Felps tells him "bro you disappeared for 10 days are you ok" and he's just like. What.

Worth mentioning that he fucking speedruns the archives. also known as the qsmp. Cucurucho, who is kind of like elias but a bit less (I inagine the Host would be elias, wjoever they are), thinks "wooo new archivist I wonder how long it'll take them to find out abt the horrors" and then cellbit shows up 3 days later running on 2 hours of sleep and 20 mugs of coffee with a consipracy board connecting a bunch of statements and theorizing about entities

ALSO the web is around him like all the time. if you pay attention there's at least 2 spiders near him at all times, usually hidden because he squishes them when he sees them. he's tangled in the web of lies that is the plot I'm making for this au and his ass is NOT beating it

Felps- Stranger type of guy who doesn't even know and takes like. a year to realise something's up with him. don't worry abt it ok I don't know why he's stranger-y to me either. it's the vibes just trust me

Mike- ok so. I am Very unsure for pac and mike, PLUS I've not seen herobrine a lenda, which means I don't know all their backstory, BUT I'm thinking Lonely for Mike, so far? he kind of distances himself from everyone after richas dies with him, so far is the only person I've not seen much gay happenings happen to, tends to disappear to fuckall nowhere apparently, as one does. also the fact that, back in prison, he seemed to have the most difficulty connecting with others.

also, the Desolation hates him personally. he doesn't know why. his house has burnt down thrice. he gets burnt by the littlest things for no reason. he's banned from the kitchen. an avatar of the desolation tried to kill him once. he watched his own son die in front of him. this is based on nothing from qsmp or anything I've seen Mike do I just think it's funny

Pac- I can only think of Vast and Spiral for him tee bee eich. Leaning heavily towards the Vast because, you know. gestures to the giant hide and seek maps, and also O RAIO, even though I have 0 context for that. he just... he explores the world and made giant hole (yeah yeah holes are the buried but consider: it's big.). it's his "I can show you the world" vibes. again dude just trust me

note abt tazercraft: both of them are very, very touched by the Spiral. reason? Chume Labs

Forever- I'm thinking either the Buried (mostly the digging aspect- he's destroyed a whole mountain and dug up and entire desert), or the Hunt (his intense hunt for Phil's love, the insane grinding that could be seen as hunting for resources, the werewolf hc my beloved). Leaning more towards the Hunt bc dogboyyyyy

The plot I have in mind is very different from the tma plot, but I'm not sure of everything yet, so for now you get this little bpnus :)

[CLICK]

[Cellbit]

We've been back from the Adoption Center for about a day now. Not a timely update, but things happened, and, well.

We found... we found a weird... creature. It- he? Acts human, although he can't talk. He communicates with us through a little notebook, and overall acts incredibly childish. He sure looks like a child. One with- with some material akin to... to egg shells as skin. He has hair, despite apparently being all... eggy. It's black and curly, covers his face. He doesn't like it when we try to move it away from there, but we're working on a safe way to see what's under there.

He seems not to know where he came from, but I know he's lying. It's- there's no way he doesn't, not with what he said, I don't care if Pac and Mike or, hell, Felps believes him, He called us fucking- he called us dads! That's the first fucking thing he said! It has to be some kind of trap, some kind of spy, I don't know yet but when I find out I'm going to fucking-

Shit. That wasn't too professional. Alright, where were we.

We brought him to the Institute. Forever and I weren't thrilled about the idea, but it was 3 against 2. I can't believe Felps would- I get Pac and Mike, there's something wrong with them I'm sure of it, but Felps? I underestimated his braincells. What am I talking about, he doesn't have any.

(Soft chuckle)

We, we named him Richarlyson, he seemed to like it. We asked his name first, but all he did was draw a- (Snort) a stick figure shrugging.

The only clothes he has are a singular oversized Brazil shirt. The moços and Felps want to go buy him clothes.

I don't know how they'll justify the kid having, I don't know, pure white hard skin, but they said not to worry about it, so I guess I won't! I won't. I fucking won't.

... I'm gonna follow them tomorrow. Just to be safe.

That's all for today, I'm gonna go- I'm going to check some statements, see if there's anything even remotely related to this.

This is Cellbit, Head Archivist of the QSMP, which I still don't known what stands for by the way, signing off.

[CLICK]

#cellbit #forever player #forever #richarlyson #felps #tazercraft #pactw #mikethelink #brazil world domination #qsmp #hmmm I need a tag for this au #the quesadilla archives #<- idk if that's gonna be permanent but that's it for now #favela five

[sugarywishes]

How did the Aftons react to Evan's death via the bite?

About time I get an angsty question, let's dive right in!!

The Afton Family (we'll get into specifics in a minute)

- Well, it was a death in a established/popular entertainment location. Not to mention a gruesome death, so obviously everyone and their mother not only made several tabloids and news reports, they also interviewed/interrogated EVERYONE AT THE PARTY

- so what a joy it was to not only have the company's name slandered, but your family was constantly harrassed about the whole situation too!!

- Michael and Elizabeth's classmates would always ask them about the incident, to the point where William pulled them out of school for a while

- Their neighbors became extremely nosy abt it as well (asking about funeral plans, if they were gonna have Michael arrested etc) and the family itself was already pretty isolated, so they basically became antisocial afterwards and avoided talking to people

- I briefly mentioned this in the Charlie post, but William was kicked out of the company shortly afterwards (my version of Henry was originally kind of a self-centered, prideful man before Charlie...yk ☹) bc of the bad publicity towards him and the fact it was fucking up the business now (I'll list more reasons in a bit) so now the only friend the Aftons had was giving them the cold shoulder and cutting ties with them to avoid affiliations

Okay specifics time!! (This might be a long post so grab some 🍿)

Michael Afton (not the Michael color, I know, there's no gray!!)

- All Mikey wanted to do was just prank Evan, teach him a lesson for getting him in trouble more than usual.

- Nice going, Michael.

- Oh boy. This guy went to a literal state of shock (I'm talking HE FROZE IN FEAR KINDA SHOCK) as soon as Fredbear's jaw closed

- He didn't even manage to 'wake up' until they were already in the hospital (Lizzie dragged him there)

- and of course Mike was scared and remorseful, his prank was quite literally meant to be a funny haha moment which ended up as him technically becoming a murderer 😭😭

- He nearly vomited and passed out as soon as he heard Evan died

- When Michael returned to school, best believe he lost all his popularity, now everyone knew him as the guy who killed his brother (the other kids involved in the prank distanced themselves as far away from it as possible) and so he became a friendless outcast :(

- Even Jeremy stopped talking to him, mostly because of what Jeremy's mom said about them for clout

- which totally didn't help his now declining mental health

Elizabeth Afton

- Lizzie was actually hanging around the bathroom area talking with Charlie when the bite happened, she would've been too late to stop it anyway

- She literally lost her twin. It's not the best feeling in the world.

- Of course she felt terrible about the whole situation but also,,,a sense of liberation??

- like, the one person who stood in the way of her gaining her father's love is dead. Mike doesn't give 2 shits about Will, and Clara is already in a loveless relationship with him. So now it leaves her as his new favorite

- she surprisingly was able to move on faster than the rest of her family (at least on the outside, as I said she did lose her baby brother)

- but it's not a fun life afterwards, considering she no longer had friends at school now since Will pulled her out quickly (and plus, Henry started cutting ties with the Aftons so now she couldn't hang out with Charlie!!) And again, she started losing her mind just like the rest of the family

Clara Afton

- Girly was just tryna to find a camera in the car outside, she didn't see or hear the bite thankfully (she did have to see the image of her bleeding son being carried out by his father though)

- Evan's death is truly what got her motivated enough to actually start fighting against Will's constant mistreatment of her and the kids

- but of course that doesn't last long. (Guess who ends up in Ballora?)

- because of the news (and more specifically, one particular news article made by a Mrs. Helen Fitzgerald, mother of Jeremy Fitzgerald,,,👀) she was now labeled a neglectful, hosebag mom who was probably in it for those Afton bucks 💸 which ruined her relationship with her neighbors and friends

- Remember, EVERYONES reputation was terribly slandered by the bite (and by the media wanting to cause more drama)

- She was already a stressed out, meek person because of her marriage with William, she got a lot worse after her baby died

William Afton (his is the LONGEST sorry for the text walls)

- He was just about ready to carry out Evan's birthday cake as soon as he heard the screams of terror

- He reacted almost instantly. William is not a very physically strong looking man, but he is powerful enough to break a robot's jaw open.

- He pulled Evan's body out (as best as he could, he was rushing to save him so who knows if some...chunks were still left inside 🤢🤢 sorry for the mental image)

- He didn't acknowledge ANYONE else in the room. And he didn't even have the rest of his family get into the car, he placed Evan in the back with a blanket wrapped tightly around his head and drove off, leaving the rest of the family to find another way to the hospital

- but of course his efforts were all for nothing.

- Everyone kinda expected him to become deranged and violently (publicly) abusive but for a while he was just...numb. and detached from everyone and everything. He wouldn't talk to a single person and would isolate himself in his workshop/basement to grieve

- (he didn't even bother punishing Michael for the accident, which set off a lot of red flags for Mikey who knew that something would snap inside his father soon)

- His already inconsistent sanity started cracking when his name and family were considered pariahs now (thanks a lot Helen for further spreading rumors about them)

- it became even worse when Henry kicked him out (According to Henry's excuses, he knew Will was likely never going to recover from the bite so he might as well give him an 'early retirement')

- (Basically, Will wasn't coming to work at all and wasn't making them money, his damaged reputation would ruin the now shitty rep of the diner more, and bc of the Aftons now being associated with the words 'horrible' 'neglectful' and 'irresponsible' , Henry just decided to tie up loose ends and get rid of him to save face) (Remember that Henry was an asshole and only got to his redemption journey once his daughter died)

- So, great. But what's this?? The closed Fredbear's Family Diner Fredbear animatronic is acting?? Off?? Sort of seems...alive??? You bet it is!!

- And of course, we all know what happens from there.

Thanks for asking! If you want more just ask!!

#fnaf #five nights at freddy's #fnaf au #five nights at freddys #william afton #purple guy fnaf #Clara afton #mrs afton #mike Afton #Michael Afton #Elizabeth afton #lizzie afton #liz afton #the bite of 83 fnaf #Fredbear's family diner #henry emily #afton family #the afton family #hc #hcs #headcanons #headcanon #fnaf hc #fnaf hcs #fnaf headcanons #fnaf headcanon #the sugary wishes hcs list #jeremy fitzgerald #evan afton #crying child fnaf

[thestobingirlie]

Hi! I’m sorry I’m gonna write to you a fucking essay on lumax, because I’m going insane.

I’m sooo tired by fic writers making lumax seem less serious and like make Max not like Lucas and them ending up friends even when it’s not el/max. Like. They are not on and off, they are being goofy.

I mean, in order to be together, they had to make very serious decisions. Lucas had to go against the party again, and for a girl (directly contradicting his season 1 arc), and stand up for his beliefs. Even when last time he did it he was so wrong. And he chose Max again and again, even after understanding who Billie is. Him standing up to the party and being loyal to someone even though it directly contradicts the lessons he learnt in season 1 works so so well for his character.

And Max, being an abused, fatherless girl, from a racist household with two violent men who are not blood relatives, separating from her family and choosing Lucas and freedom, it’s such a heavy decision that most adult women in her situation are incapable of making! And she did it!

They work so well together, and I believe that they are really, probably are going to be together for life (Lucas asking his dad about his relationship with his mom shows that he is very serious about it from the very beginning). In season two they are so obviously making choices that are life altering! And then!! In season three!!!! They are just goofy ass teenagers. Like I honestly expected them being all star crossed, AND NO! They are fucking around!

Like I’ve seen sooo many fics where Lucas and Max are called “on-and-off again” and being compared to mileven or byler who are presented as romantic and true and I have to scream!

They are not “on again off again”! They are two middle schoolers!!! They are playing house!!! They are being over dramatic!!! It’s about Max saying to at least someone “I can just stand up and leave”, it’s about Lucas being loyal and replying to her “you can be as mean as you want and I will find it funny and challenging, I will never act threatened by your strength”!!! It’s a game where Max always comes back! That’s just them playing out scenarios and testing boundaries, they are not on and off!

lumax <3 my babies. best romance in the show, and i’m so dead serious about that.

i kinda see it both ways, i think the dumping thing is both just a silly, goofy kid thing. i mean, she dumps lucas just because el dumped mike lmao. but i also think it’s max testing lucas in a way.

like you said, she doesn’t have any positive male relationships in her life. so with lucas, it’s like she’s lashing out. seeing if he’s just gonna abandon her. if he’ll get tired and realise she isn’t worth it. but he doesn’t. he comes back every single time. and that’s so important!!!

they aren’t on and off because they don’t love each other, they’re on and off because they do love each other, and they’re kids and won’t always know how to interact in a super healthy way.

they’re literally a mixed race couple in the 80s, and max has a very racist family. to be together at all means that they’re devoted to each other!

how can you watch any of the seasons, but specifically 4, and think otherwise?

#lumax #max mayfield #lucas sinclair #stranger things #asks #anon

[dragonflylady77]

Mr Steve and the Monster Hunter

Here we go, the next chapter of my fic for @bigbangharringrove

Chapter 1

ch2 on Ao3

Steve gets some answers from Robin

Chapter 2 - You weren't even friends

Steve is still feeling a bit out of sorts when he arrives at Robin and Heather’s house. That dream has left him shaken. Not just that, but finding out Billy was alive was quite a shock to the system and he’s still processing.

He saw Billy die on the grimy floor of Starcourt Mall. The night is etched in his memory in vivid details, to the extent he still has nightmares about it sometimes. Steve shakes his head to clear the dreaded images and takes a deep breath.

“Fucking government and their stupid NDAs and their stupid secrets,” he mutters as he rings the doorbell.

Robin answers the door with a smile. “Stevie.”

“Hi.” Steve doesn’t have it in him to smile, not when he needs answers to so many questions he didn’t know he had. His life was simple until pick-up time yesterday. And now Billy Hargrove is alive and Steve wants to lick him everywhere.

He walks past Robin and heads towards the kitchen where Heather is getting a pan out of the oven. Whatever it is smells delicious, as usual. While Robin can cook basic stuff, Heather is the real chef between the two of them.

“Holloway.” 

“Harrington.”

Their relationship has always been on the frosty side and Steve stopped wondering why years ago. He reckons the bombshell dropped on his head the day before might have something to do with that, though he’s not sure what it has to do with him. 

Heather is busy cutting what’s in the pan and Robin stops in front of him. Her smile seems a bit forced.

“Sit down. Would you like a drink?”

“I picked up that white wine you like on the way over.”

“Oh, thank you. I’ll get us some glasses.”

Steve hands her the bottle and sits down, a glance to the right catching the silent conversation Heather and Robin seem to be having by the fridge. He sighs and the crushing loneliness he normally keeps at bay rears its ugly head. Everyone has found their person, except him. 

“So…” He taps his fingers on the table, bringing the women’s attention back to him. They nod at each other and Heather goes back to dishing their lunch while Robin sorts out their drinks. Two wines and an apple juice. Interesting.

“Steve…” Robin says as she puts his drink down on the coaster in front of him and sits to his right.

“Robin.” He turns towards her and makes a show of looking around, like he doesn’t know. “Where is your daughter, the delightful Olivia, today?”

“You know where she is.”

“No, actually, I don’t. I know who she is with though. And it’s funny, I’ve been her teacher since the start of school in August last year and she never mentioned she had a father, not until he picked her up yesterday.”

“We don’t reall—”

“Don’t bullshit me. She was so fucking excited, she couldn’t stop talking about how she was going to be hanging out with her dad all weekend. Her dad that I saw fucking DIE fifteen years ago.” His fist hits the table as he shouts the last part of his sentence and he sees Heather flinch out of the corner of his eye.

“Steve!” Robin chastises as she gets up to hug Heather.

“I’m sorry. Fuck. I just…” Steve folds his arms on the table and rests his head on them with a sigh. “Why did no one tell me, Rob? That Billy wasn’t dead?”

“Oh please,” Heather’s voice is thready but it has steel through it. “Everyone knew you hated him, we had no reason to tell you.”

“Everyo—does everyone know? The kids? Dustin? All of them?”

“Well, Harrington, you know your kids, if one knows, all of them know. Billy says he gave you his card, and I’m sure you had a look on his company’s website so you know that four of them work with him.”

Steve nods.

“I don’t know about Dustin and Mike, from what Max said, they kinda lost touch after El broke up with Whiny Wheeler,” Heather adds, showing a familiarity with the kids that Steve was unaware of.

He snorts at the nickname and wonders briefly if Billy was the one to give it. “I never really hated him, you know.”

“You sure about that? Because that’s not how he tells it.”

“Heather!”

“What? Billy told us he apologized about the fight.” She glares at Steve, daring him to contradict her. “Didn’t he, Harrington?” 

“The-the fight?”

“Yes, the fight that night you lied to Billy’s face about where his sister was. You threw the first punch and got your ass kicked, before Billy got drugged and threatened, then beaten up by his piece of shit father for coming home off his face and without his sister. Surely you remember that?”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“You heard me.” Heather squeezes Robin’s hand. “Sorry, babe. I know that’s not why he’s here but I’ve been waiting a long time to get this off my chest.”

“It’s okay, sweetie, I understand.” Robin turns to Steve. “Basically, Billy told us that beyond his apology to you and Lucas for that night, he kept his word and stayed away like Max had demanded. That summer you and I met at Scoops, he got the job at the pool with Heather and he was… caught… one night on the way to a date. Then, after, um, after Starcourt, when he finally got out of hospital, Owens organized for him to move to California without anyone knowing.”

“I knew.” Heather sits very still, her hand holding Robin’s, her eyes slightly unfocused, like she’s trying to remember something.

“Yes, you did.”

“I’m sorry,” Steve says, feeling like he fucked up. It’s a feeling he hasn’t experienced in some time, his social interactions these days are usually limited to his students in class and their parents. “Do you want me to leave? It’s been so long, I’m a different person now than I was then, we all are. It doesn’t really matter.”

“It mattered enough for you to message me at midnight last night, dingus.”

“I was in shock, or something, okay? Give me a break. My favorite student got picked up by a guy I thought died fifteen years ago.”

“Again, not like you cared about the guy, you weren’t even friends.” Heather is glaring daggers at Steve and it takes all he has not to recoil in fear. He’s surprised when she gets out of her chair a second later. “I’m sorry. Babe, I’m gonna go lie down for a bit, okay?”

“Yep, sure thing.” Robin gives her a kiss then watches her go down the hallway before she turns towards Steve again. “The whole subject stresses her like crazy. She still has nightmares about it, you know. Being possessed and the stuff the Mind Flayer made her and Billy do. Therapy helped, of course, but some nights when it’s cold, she wakes up screaming.”

“He likes it cold. I remember. I guess that explains why you go to California for Christmas.”

“That and Billy lives there. Listen, he’s been nothing short of amazing as far as I’m concerned. He saved the world then got to leave Hawkins and his asshole dad. He built a good life for himself out there and then… then he gave us the most precious gift.”

“Can you tell me a bit more about that, please? The website was very vague. And the whole ‘he’s a dad’ thing.”

Watching Robin take a sip of her wine reminds Steve about his but he doesn’t feel like it anymore.

“Okay so long story short, the Upside Down is still a thing, there are portals in many places and Billy goes in and rescues people that get taken. El helps him find them, Will and Lucas go in with him to get them out, dead or alive.”

“Wow. That’s both scary and amazing.”

“Yeah. Max handles all the paperwork, NDAs and stuff.”

“There was someone else on the website, some guy with no last name.” Steve tries to remember.

“Argyle. Super cool dude. He was Billy’s friend before he moved to Hawkins and he took Billy in when he got back. Steve… I gotta ask, why are you suddenly so interested in knowing all this?”

“I, um, I missed him, I guess. After… you know. And I never really understood why. I mean, it’s like Heather said, we weren’t exactly friends, but he was always kinda in my face from the day he arrived in Hawkins, and then, I don’t know…” Steve trails off. “I’ve been not thinking about all of that for so long, and seeing him yesterday, hearing his voice, it, um…”

“Steve, what are you trying to say?”

“I don’t know. Tell me how you ladies ended up having his baby.”

He is grateful when Robin shakes her head and drops the subject.

“Oh, well, Heather does the baby growing. That whole pregnancy and birth thing, soooo not for me. Way too intense.”

“Yeah, that explains nothing.”

“Billy and Heather kept in touch and one day she let it slip that we were looking at sperm donors and he… he offered. We had a big long discussion about it, the two of us then the three of us and he came over and they did the thing and boom. Baby.”

“When you say they did the thing…”

“Oh, haha, no, not literally ‘did the thing’ because hello, gay, all of us, and you don’t need the details.”

“What do you mean, all of us?”

“If you tell me you still think Billy is straight, I might actually slap you. I know it’s bad form to out a person but it was obvious to me back in high school that boy was queer as hell. And I know for a fact you’re bi so don’t even try me, Stevie.”

“Fine. I guess I can see it now, even if I didn’t back then.”

“Really? Come on? If nothing else, the nicknames he gave you were a dead giveaway.”

“The nicknames? You know about that?”

“Steve, he’s my child’s other parent. We talk.”

“You kept very quiet about that, Rob.”

“Yeah, well, me and Heather raising a kid as our own isn’t exactly legal, dingus, so excuse me for not shouting it from the rooftops. You’re in the know because we’ve known you since high school and I trust you not to blab.”

“I’m touched.”

“Shut up. You keep derailing my story. He wasn’t gonna be involved at first, but we saw the look of wonder on his face the first time he saw Livi and held her, and we decided we wouldn’t keep them apart. Well, anymore than his job already does.”

“Aww. And now you’re going to do it all over again?”

“Huh?”

“Apple juice.”

“Ah well, yeah, we’re trying. And we’ve been talking about moving to San Diego as well so the kids can see Billy a bit more.”

“What? You’re leaving?”

“It’s too cold here, and too far from Billy and Elumax.”

“Elu-what now?”

Robin snorted. “Don’t worry about it. You’ll find out when you’re meant to. Don’t want your brain to bleed out of your ears from too much information.”

His stomach growling stops Steve from replying and the loudness of it makes them both laugh. Robin goes to get Heather while Steve sets the plates she prepared earlier. His mind is whirling with all the new information he is now privy to. He knows he needs time to process but he also knows he definitely wants to have a chat with Billy in the near future.

The end credits of the movie roll on the screen and Steve nudges Robin, who’s half asleep on his shoulder. Heather went for a nap halfway through the first movie and hasn’t emerged again.

“I should go home, let you get on with your evening.”

“Or…” Robin checks her phone. “You could wait another twenty minutes for Billy and Olivia to get home and you can take him out for coffee or dinner or whatever.”

“They’re coming here?” Oh crap. Oh no. Fuck.

“Um yeah, this is where Livi lives. And Billy lives in Cali so he stays in the guest room when he’s in town, duh.”

Steve starts to freak out. He’s not prepared to face Billy so soon, not after that stupid dream he had last night. Oh Jesus. 

“I, um, I need to go. I can’t… I can’t be here… I need to…” He knows he’s flustered and rambling and he knows Robin will pick up on it, but he can’t avoid it. 

“Steven Middlename Harrington.”

“That’s my name.” He gets off the couch but Robin pulls him back down.

“Steve…”

“Uh huh?” Steve keeps his eyes on the TV, totally ignoring Robin because he’s nothing but a mature thirty-something year old.

“Why are you suddenly so anxious to leave and why is your face all pink? What are you hiding?”

“No-nothing.”

“What did you… oh my God! Steve!”

“What? Stop it. I need to go. Now. Before—”

“Before Billy gets back and he sees the look on your face that will tell him you totally had a sex dream about him last night? That about right?”

“Yes. No. Fuck. Shut up.” Steve drops back onto the couch with a groan, hands over his face. He’s not sure what’s more embarrassing, the fact he had a sex dream at all or that Robin can still read him like an open book.

“It’s okay. I won’t tell anyone. I promise. But I know that Billy was keen to catch up with you and I think you should give him a chance.”

Steve lets his hands drop so he can look at her. “Rob…”She put both hands up. “You don’t have to. But you might regret it if you don’t.”

Chapter 3

#harringrove #billy hargrove #steve harrington #billy x steve #harringrove big bang #harringrove bigbang #harringrovebigbang #dragonflylady77 #mr steve and the monster hunter

[briefcasejuice]

𝐢𝐢. daredevil headcanons!

a giant list of comic, live action, etc. daredevil headcanons i've been growing in a twitter thread since late august. > part 𝐢. | masterlist

COMIC/LIVE ACTION AMBIGUOUS

matt's the kind of person that speaks through their yawns; like he’d be mid-sentence and yawn, he doesn't wait for it to be over till he starts talking again.

matt has auditory hallucinations of his dad's voice when he's sleep deprived and his dad's is the only face he dreams about.

matt texts with full punctuation proper caps and everything, foggy texts with full punctuation but uses a lot of shortenings and emojis, karen doesn't have auto capitalization on but uses full punctuations and cute emojis; she’s a white heart user.

matt soothes a hand over his beard (or chin if he’s going clean shaven) when he's thinking (the way charlie cox does in interviews).

foggy played the acoustic guitar in college (to get girls of course).

foggy has one those dad phone cases with the flap that goes over the screen. matt would've gotten one but it's annoying to handle as a blind person.

matt talks in his sleep; sometimes it's cases he's working on, sometimes it's random phrases like, “gotta keep you safe”, “he's behind there” and other times it's just stupid stuff related to whatever dream he’s having.

every time matt's ‘dead’ or missing, foggy quotes thurgood marshall to himself whenever he misses him, is in a situation where he would usually ask matt for advice or just needs a little support.

matt picks up a lot of foggy's speech patterns and doesn't even notice it (autism).

even though matt wears his glasses a lot, if you've known him long enough you can tell he'd been crying because his nose goes temporarily red for a day after he has a really good cry.

foggy has an extensive dad joke notebook. matt actually learned to read ink with his fingers by stealing jokes from the book.

matt used to hang out with an older stray cat when he was younger, before he was blinded and after he was blinded, for every cat he met, he pictured them as that childhood cat.

matt takes whatever foggy hands him almost on instinct and it’s lead to some really funny scenarios like matt holding all of foggy's belonging in his arms in the middle of a colombia courtyard because foggy can't find something in his bag. he also gets this ultra serious look on his face whenever he takes the items like foggy's trusting him with the world.

COMIC

matt's definitely the type of guy to stand in the living room listening to news on the television for 40 mins — dad style.

matt, foggy and kirsten listen to abba; they’re huge fans.

matt is a certified dark chocolate guy, karen is a milk chocolate gal, foggy will have any kind.

you tell mike and matt apart by which one has smile lines around his eyes.

the reason matt keeps changing the shape of his glasses is because he keeps losing them. whether it be around the city or just random shenanigans of putting it down and forgetting about it.

mike says, “matt jumpscare” whenever matt enters a room he's in.

before stick found matt, mike taught him how to do spinning tricks with his cane. after stick found him, matt became super good at it and taught mike some new tricks. mike noticed the sudden uptake in skill but didn't comment on it cause matt was already good at everything plus at least he was learning cool new stuff out of it.

matt hates lollipops; it's just sucking on your own saliva to him and he doesn't want to be tasting himself (in this context).

both matt and mike have really distinct laughs; matt's is very sudden, enunciated and his head gets thrown back while mike's is like a snort-giggle before he full of laughs and he bites his lip on a smile at the end of it.

sam's workplace once handed out father's day mugs but he doesn't... y’know so he passed it onto matt. matt didn't know it said ‘happy father's day! best dad ever!’ until mike used it. matt had gotten upset because it's his favourite mug and mike was like, “matt, what the fuck, why's your favourite mug the father's day mug?” and matt goes, “the what mug?”

definitely unrelated but after that, matt started buying things for sam which sam thought was really random but it was usually just items matt came across in stores that reminded him of sam.

both matt and mike mimic/mock people with a whiny voice to make fun of them. foggy hates it ‘cause they do it to him (affectionately) the most.

matt uses mike and (or) foggy as sensory anchors.

mike used to be so annoyed at having to 'drag his brother around' after matt was blinded but soon, he got used to it and was really jealous when matt started gravitating towards foggy and trusting foggy to lead him.

matt dreams about mike sometimes which can get really funny because even as adults, mike still has the same 9 year old face in his dreams.

mike got pretty good as acting for matt early on because they'd switch places a lot; it only got more complicated when matt was blinded and suddenly they had to worry about a lot of things only matt could or would need to do. in soule's run mike (spawns) begins existing with an identical pair of matt's glasses — i like to think it's a product of that. matt buys two lots of pairs of the same glasses for a multitude of reasons but one of them's always set apart for mike, not just only in case he needs to act as him but also because they actually take a weird sort of pride in being twins.

LIVE ACTION

matt and foggy would go to ihop in their pjs after doing unintentional all nighters in college.

foggy’s tackled matt into a hug while he had an injury multiple times before and it hurt but matt dare not say it did ‘cause foggy’ll feel bad then order him to stay home.

matt has a slight lisp.

matt and karen like dark chocolate, foggy likes milk and dark (in that order) but will eat whatever's there.

foggy used to say 'dude' a lot when he was younger; brett and matt still make fun of him for it.

karen goes as rapunzel for halloween every year.

matt obviously didn't know they were getting the nelson and murdock sign in 1.09 so: foggy and karen would whisper in foggy's office about ordering it and where to hide it once it gets here etc., matt knew of course he just couldn't let them know he knew because it would ruin the surprise for them.

emergency ice packs (& other medical supplies, lollipops included) in the office.

foggy mimic/mocks people with a whiny voice to make fun of them.

buying silk sheets was one of those 'when i get my first paycheck!' type promises for matt until he met stick who drilled it into his head that he didn't need nor deserve that kind of comfort and he went for a futon (canon). after elektra, when he started forcibly growing older because of the trauma their relationship left behind and the corrupted closure of his father's death he started dreaming like that again and did indeed buy silk sheets with his first paycheck from landman and zack; granted, it was most of his paycheck.

#can you tell ive been hyperfixed on mike for like a month LOL #anyway time to start a new thread #daredevil #daredevil comics #marvel's daredevil #netflix daredevil #matt murdock #foggy nelson #karen page #kirsten mcduffie #blindspot #sam chung #mike murdock #mattfoggy #nelson and murdock #murdocks #stick my head down the canon

[sco07ut]

bbc ghosts,,,, i love u,,,,,

ok ok so my mum n i finally finished watching ghosts and i’m completely insane so erm. rvb ghosts au

carolina is alison (funny) and wash is mike (i don’t ship carwash, in this au im imagining they’re sibs just living together bc the economy’s fucked yk how it is) they inherited the house from their estranged dad, dr leonard church and after a near death experience carolina gains the ability to see ghosts

delano house (ok . if i was going by Actual logic with the character assignments it would Technically be called gene house but i don’t think he deserves that much credit, and i’ll explain this when i get onto simmons little introductory section) is inhabited by eight main ghosts (and a plague pit of zealots in the basement but dw about those guys) from a bunch of different time periods and they all sort of hatelove each other bc none of them can leave (unless they, by some miracle, ascend) so they kind of jst endure each others’ presence

anyway, without further ado: caboose is kitty (georgian noble), simmons is thomas thorne (victorian poet), tucker is julian fawcett (modern day mp), donut is stephanie button (edwardian noble), doc is patrick butcher (1980’s scout leader), sarge as the captain (ww2 captain), grif as mary (stuart era witch trial victim), lopez as humphrey bone (tudor noble) and locus as robin (caveman)

(more in-depth character stuff under the cut !!)

caboose:

caboose as kitty! i jst think their characters align really nicely, they’re both loveable idiots who follow their best friends around. i def think carolina reminds him of church (who is annie in this au who basically ascends a few hundred years before carolina is even born) so he follows her around like a miserable little duckling. the ‘sister’ that bullied him is fuckign miller from rat’s nest

simmons:

this pathetic worm is thomas !! he isn’t in love with carolina the way thomas is in love with allison, instead he sees carolina kinda like a big sister figure and always asks her for dating advice. his backstory is where things r interesting tho i think. in the show, thomas is in love with a woman called isabel, however her father is against the two of them being together, so when he attends an event where isabel is also present he wants to converse with her to make sure the two of them are still secretly an item but can’t find the opportunity to do so. his cousin, francis button, offers to deliver a letter to isabel with his feelings but backstabs him by faking the letters (saying they basically don’t love each other anymore) then tricks thomas into engaging in a duel that gets him killed (he then also denies thomas’ last request to see isabel by telling her he’s already dead). yikes. anyway. in this au, gene is francis button, and instead of simmons being in love with some woman he hears some guys slandering his own dad’s name (hargrove) and engages in a duel with them over it. the reality behind the situation, however, is that gene essentially orchestrated his death. the people he ‘heard’ talking shit abt his dad weren’t actually, gene jsut told him they were. when he then begins the duel, gene tells him it’s 20 paces when in actuality it’s only 10. once simmons is shot and requests to see his father one last time gene pretends to go do that but actually tells hargrove that simmons was dead when he got to him

okay !! so i mentioned that delano house should technically be called gene house if we were to go by the show’s lore. once francis tells isabel that thomas is dead, he then essentially woos her and marries her, moving into her home and which then becomes button house. so in the au ig it would technically be called gene house however i don’t rock w that because it would then later mean donut is called franklin delano gene which is wrong on so many levels. so instead, gene just takes the existing name of the house, delano. yk i’ve just typed all this up and realised that i’m probably the sole person in the world who actually cares about it. darn

finally moving on, tucker!

self explanatory, julian dies in the middle of shagging someone and is now doomed to spend the rest of eternity wandering round with no pants on. it’s so ridiculously in character. plus ig the whole ‘being able to interact wit the real world’ thing ties into tucker’s whole main character schtick

donut:

the lady of the house ! in life his mother, chrovos, was very insistent about marrying him off to a richer family to try make up for all their debt but all he wanted to do was become a famous fashion designer. maybe if his mother had let him follow that passion he might’ve made a brand famous enough to claw them out of debt but instead he got an early death from an adulterous husband (genkins)

doc:

pat my absolute beloved. he had taken out a group of kids (the ai) to the house’s grounds for a day of archery, however while going through the safety protocols o’malley accidentally let an arrow loose that got him straight through the neck. he then managed to traumatise the entire group by dying slowly in front of them ❤️

sarge:

again another character that’s just a perfect match, sarge doesn’t have a name, the captain doesn’t have a name, they’re both obsessed with a war that’s long gone, they’re both fruity asf. not even joking, the lieutenant that the captain has a crush on is one butch flowers in this au, sarge misses him but has started to find a new object of affection in wash (despite the fact that wash cannot see, hear or interact with him at all)

grif:

burned at the stake for being a witch ! in reality he was just a man passing through the town and everyone Thought was some sort of woman who was harbouring satan in her throat or something. his long hair and curvy form Tricked them all n he paid the price. his death kinda did a number on him though, and it took a while for him to come back out of his shell (essentially after church dragged him out kicking and screaming)

lopez:

the noble that managed to survive a coup only to immediately accidentally behead himself with a pair of decorative wall swords. unlike the show, lopez is the one that doesn’t speak english while his arranged wife shiela Does and planned the murder of the monarchy under his nose. he still loved her tho.

and last but not least, locus:

i definitely hc that his name was actually locust/lotus but the first few ghosts that met him kept getting it wrong until he eventually just settled on locus (in the same way robin is actually called ‘rogh’). he’s been there the longest, definitely took a Long time to warm up to other humans after being betrayed before his death (felix and sharkface, or lick and face, pushed him into what they Thought was a bear den so that they could escape but ultimately it lead to their deaths while locus managed to get away, only to be struck by lightning immediately afterwards)

i think that covers everyone who has a canon death thus far ! sorry for going a little insane over simmons

#rvb #not tagging everyone i can’t #rvb!ghosts au #bbc ghosts

[boldlyvoid]

Would you consider writing a argyle/eddie blurb? Would love to see touchstarved eddie deal with a cuddly high af Argyle.

They saved the world a few days ago, unbeknownst to Eddie, they weren’t alone in doing so. Jonathan, Will and Mike, along with their special help from Argyle, managed to turn a pizza freezer into a sensory deprivation tank for Eleven to mind fight with vecna… that’s a sentence that makes him feel like he should be locked up in a mental hospital. But it happened. 

Now, the whole gang is back together in Steve’s backyard, sharing beers and some of Argyle's weed… and argyle is adorable. 

Eddie hasn’t been able to take his eyes off him since he arrived, standing awkwardly behind Jonathan as he made out with Nancy, with his long hair and helpless expression. He was so handsome and funny and nice and he brought some really fuckin good weed with him. 

Robin left with Vickey, Nancy and Jonathan snuck off somewhere, and Steve was ready to head up to his own room when Argyle and Eddie looked at each other with a shrug. 

“I guess it’s just us now…” Eddie says with a sigh as he plops down beside him on the ground. Argyle's been sitting there watching the stars most of the night, anyway.

“Yeah,” Argyle agreed, not knowing how to talk to him. “So, like, how’d you get into this?” 

“I was selling ketamine to a cheerleader and vecna snapped her neck in my trailer,” he explains, making it as insane as he possibly could so argyle understood why he didn’t want to go home. 

“oh man, what the fuck?” He looks disgusted, “Are you okay?” 

He laughs, no one has really asked him that, everyone just expected him to join the ranks of the Hawkins secret army and deal with it. “I guess?” 

“They put a dead guy in my van and made me bury him,” Argyle shares, scooting closer to him. “It sucked.” 

“I bet,” Eddie reached out an arm and wraps it around him, letting him cuddle in close so they could get the affection they’ve both been craving. 

They end up laying in the grass together, staring up at the stars, Argyle points to specific constellations and explains what they mean to Eddie. He asks what his sign is, Eddie has no idea so he tells him his birthday and they find out he’s a Capricorn… “that’s unfortunate, man, I really liked you.” 

“What?” Eddie gets offended, “why?” 

“Capricorn men are so… ugh,” he can’t find the words. “Workaholic, grouchy and bossy types.” 

“I’m not a workaholic,” he can’t agree with that one… the other two, however, sound like him. 

“Your moon and rising probably combat that,” he says and Eddie has no fucking clue what it means but he doesn’t care. “You’re redeemable.” 

“thank god,” he sighs, kissing the side of Argyle’s head, “cause I like you too.” 

He snuggles into Eddie's side, “I’m more surprised I like a Capricorn over finding out the upside down is a thing.” 

He laughs, “yeah well if you told me a week ago some kid from California would be cuddled into me in Harrington’s backyard, I’d tell you to get help.” 

“I don’t want to go back,” he admits. “You’re all so fun… and you’re— you’re you.” 

“I graduate soon,” Eddie reminds him. “If I’m off the hook for murder… but when I’m done I can come see you? I’ve always wanted to play in California.” 

“Play?” 

“I have a band,” he shares, excited for Argyle to meet the guys one day. 

“You’re so fuckin cool,” he swoons. “My own rockstar.” 

“Your rockstar…” Eddie repeats, liking the way that sounds. 

Argyle kisses his cheek softly then, “yeah. Mine.”

General Taglist 

@ncsls0515 @stevesmunsons @reidsbookclub @wroteclassicaly @sweetyyhippyy @manuosorioh @mrs-dr-reid @k-k0129 @eddiemunson-rp 

#ask #blurbs #eddie munson #argyle stranger things #eddie munson stranger things #stranger things #eddie munson imagines #eddie munson imagine #stranger things imagine #stranger things season 4

[shopcat]

anyway. i know other people have said this far more succinctly than me but if we are going to have some fun here why not pique an interest of nuance into it all...

stranger things is an ensemble show with multiple converging storylines and it always has been. there are no true main characters just like there's no true PLOT, there are no actual overarching villains or antagonists (which is why with season 4 people tend to be dissatisfied with vecna being the One True Villain) because to each of these individuals they DO all have different goals and therefore different stressors and roadblocks.

the draw of the show IS the ensemble and the lack of main character, and it IS being able to choose who you like the most if you so want to without devaluing the other (protagonist) character's importance to the over all story... because it is a story and the characters are there for a reason. to try and find a True Main Character which people tend to end up doing betrays the only straggling beaten corpse of a core theme this show has which is FRIENDSHIP.

not only are they all main characters they ARE all major characters, GENERALLY. importance to the plot does not lean on the amount of SCHEDULED APPEARANCES or LINES it is Quite literally the fact that they exist and they exist for the plot to move forward in some way or other. calling any character FANSERVICE is a disservice not only to the character but to your OWN understanding of what this show is even about in my opinion... like yes maybe to you this is the Mike Wheeler's Friends Show or maybe the Hopper Joyce & Murray VS the government show but that doesn't mean the other characters aren't... literally vital. without nancy and jonathan they wouldn't be where they are now, without ARGYLE the entire california group would be literally no where, without steve at least half of them would all be fucking DEAD by now and it is soooo... not even frustrating just SILLY when people act like we can't, by virtue of this show starting as the kids on bikes mikedustinwilllucas find ET in the woods extravaganza, enjoy or find depth in any other character as much as or even equal to "The Main Character".

also calling steve fanservice (which i have been seeing a LOT lately and seems to be the new fun buzzword) in particular is sooo fucking funny because like yeah sure the way he's been used as an, at this point, foundational pillar to the story and the other character's very livelihoods despite the TRAGEDY of character betrayal of not being taken seriously and treated as the goofy zany ex-jockboy "boobies man" who can't even be tortured without a metaphorical laugh track in the background is pretty like, on purpose, Orchestrated By The Show situation. i'm not even denying he IS used as fanservice, maybe, but it is not this insidious rot and you CAN in fact find complexity in his character and those affected AROUND HIM without resorting to "b b but he takes his shirt off and says silly things"

the "general audience" DO like steve and he IS the funny guy and the comedic relief (along with robin, and at this point dustin and even max) and they don't understand why people even care to see beyond the surface of that because he is, to them, sort of unimportant. and this is why we say he's been Abandoned Byyyy The Narrative (and he's not the only victim...) BECAUSE of the very nature of like, not being treated seriously and the fact that so many people are reinforcing it by being like PAH! he is just fanservice because people think he's hot or something just feeds into the literal like, idea that we're talking about. like, WE KNOW... AND, acting like people who maybe would ENJOY any narrative, but particularly his or even jonathan's or nancy's or ROBIN'S (or even what they did to karen's crash and burn of a character arc) being treated seriously just from a general, critically analytic standpoint is just at the very least unhelpful and at the worst kind of just like, sad. everyone wants to enjoy the show... :)

i also think as an aside it's like, odd that people think "all these people just think he's hot" is an actual critique of anything let alone the phenomenon of accusing everyone who likes him as like... sheeple? like it's just an insane point to make especially paired WITH the fanservice thing because like i literally don't know how to tell you joe keery taking off his shirt and spending half of season 4 with his tits out was in fact Fan Service and also does in fact mean absolutely nothing. or make his character suddenly bad or like, "unworthy". why are people literally mad about this. we also get a shot of hopper without a shirt and dripping wet every single season and joyce literally undressed in front of us in s4. moments of fan service in the very literal "looking hot for the camera" is such a fucking funny thing to be genuinely upset about and such a funny way to attempt to criticise a character storyline and i will say again the way steve gets treated almost like, misogynistically is kind of funny and insane. insane.

anyway. without steve they would be dead and being like "aw i wish they would like, be nice to him, narratively" doesn't make us fanservice-baited sheeple it makes us human beings with like brains. also without steve they would all be dead not to be a steveboy but come ON... his entire thing is he literally comes in clutch JUST when they need him putting his body on the line to do it and you seriously think he's just like useless comedy fodder.

#sts #🐾 #is crazy.... #not inspired by the poll thing. well maybe. mostly the asks sarah gets ppl r so obsessed w steve its crazy

[crushcandles]

Before I get into my thoughts on this episode, I want to say thanks to everyone who’s answered my questions and jumped into conversations with me about this season. I nearly always feel way behind in fandom, and I am so appreciative of anyone willing to slow the train down to let me on, even when I’m late to the station. The best part about watching TV is talking about TV, and you’ve all been the best.

Two and a half hours of observations and thoughts after the jump.

S4E9:

The best thing Hopper’s done all season is be beat to shit. Hubba hubba.

Omg everyone in their best Resident Evil cosplay. They all look great! (And Steve, Nancy, Robin and Eddie are so hot ofc)

I’m very interested in how the dialogue choices are written. Does Eddie say “Make ‘im pay” because he’s 18 in 1986 and regurgitating the action movies he was probably watching about 6 days ago, or does he say “Make ‘im pay” because the writers are lazy and making a boring no-brainer choice? This is not the only time I’ve had this thought this season.

I love Argyle, and I love every employee of Surfer Boy Pizza.

Again, I would love to see this foursome (+ optional Dustin) trapped in the Upside-Down for a longer period of time. Let me see what happens when they’re trying to survive for weeks.

Jonathan reaching out to Will while they make a pizza freezer sensory deprivation tank was really lovely. That relationship has really faded into the background but is really believable (the kid who plays Will can act).

I take issue with the sensory deprivation tank itself though. You know what’s a lot of sensation? Four people looming over an open tank and speaking to you.

Max confessing in the cool blue light while Lucas and El watch in their separate silences is so sad and beautiful.

Phase 3 being Eddie playing electric guitar to draw a monster charge is so super silly but I love it anyway. And him and Dustin celebrating was very kid brother and middle brother shenanigans.

Robin and Nancy holding hands for ONE SINGLE SECOND I AM DYING I AM ALIVE I AM LIVING @likecastle HOLD ME

Robin, Nancy and Steve getting fucked-up by vines? Hell yes.

The intercutting of Eddie fighting the monsters with El mindfighting Vecna with Lucas and whatever that guy’s name is physically fighting is great.

I really appreciate that it’s Max with El for much of this episode; Max is El’s most interesting and rich relationship.

I can’t tell if Stranger Things explains the Upside-Down too much, not enough, or I’m just too much of a dummy to wrap my brain around the whole concept and my inability to retain the info stems from that.

“You’re the heart!” - Mike, Will, give me a damn break. Sell me that line in S1.

Max!! :(

The idea that El is having a mind-altering, motive-changing meta fight with Vecna while Nancy, Robin and Steve are straight-up molotov cocktailing and shooting his body is so funny. Nancy is a BAMF though.

The remixing of Running Up That Hill while some of the ST music is awesome.

Don’t care about Hopper v Demogorgon. The adults storyline has been pointless aside from keeping the adults from helping the kids. They could have let Hopper be dead at the end of S3 and skipped all of this.

Very sad for Eddie, and for Dustin. I love how sharp Dustin and Steve are with each other, but the soft siblingness of Eddie and Dustin is so encouraging and generous.

While I am bummed about Eddie, I am not at all surprised. It’s the ensemble show way to bring in new characters to mix things up and then getting rid of them while refusing to kill or change core characters. I think it’s frequently a worse choice but people get attached and are afraid of change, so what are you gonna do?

The splitting of the world effect is so cool.

Byers and Co coming back to the wrecked Hawkins is NOT the end of the season??

Everyone seems supremely chill considering everything that’s happened. What intense and ongoing trauma? Who cares about her.

Robin, my love, get over Anne of Green Gables! Crush on Nancy instead. Their conversation is cute though.

I would argue that Dustin’s the heart of Stranger Things, if anyone is. He’s so much more than the annoying know-it-all by this point.

(Unrelated to the ending of the episode, but I just looked out into the back alley to see a near-perfect Eddie lookalike smoking and riding a hoverboard in the rain - incredible!!)

I wish the episode had ended on the spinning coke bottle. It’s a very poignant image.

(He’s still going! He’s so cool!)

And back to Will. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

+

Overall: It’s a bit bumpy, but I had a lot of fun. The pacing escalates well, but it was stuffed beyond the brim with a lot of busy storylines. I’m very sad to see the tide come in and pretty quickly go out on some new, interesting characters but did enjoy getting to spend some time with them. I’m excited for S5 and hope it can finish strong. Doubly excited to be able to understand fandom now!

#crushcandles watches tv #stranger things #stranger things spoilers

[the-warmesthello]

bbc ghosts au :)

(actually not really an au, just saf characters as bbc ghosts characters)

curt: either allison or robin. i really like the idea of his dead friends supporting him (also ties into Gay Flashbacks from saf) but if he were a ghost he'd absolutely just fuck with everybody on purpose like that

owen: CAP. repressed, gay, obsessed with something that's been over for a while, tendency to be overly militaristic and a bit ruthless, but can be really sweet if he likes you, willing to help in a murder way

tati: fanny. can look scary and unapproachable, knows how to play the game in social settings, but if you get to know her she's an incredibly intelligent person who just needs someone to get her

barb: pat (also kitty+fanny). i typed this whole thing out and realised that kitty's personality mixed with fanny's intellect is just pat, scout master always willing to help, almost too nice, a little intense at times

cynthia: julian. besides the fact that the fandom has to collectively ignore their politics to like them, i just think it would be funny if she dies like he did, also government pieces of shit, the both of them /pos

informant: humphrey. really quite reasonable and level headed (pun intended), but conflicted about who they are at their core, not really around much but a real delight when you get the chance to see them

mama mega: mary. not entirely sure what's going on at any given moment, but no one really gets her either, often seen as a bit weird and jumping to conclusions based on superstition

mama mega (alt.): mike. but only if curt's the allison figure, obviously different relationship type, but even though she can't fully understand what he's going through, she's super supportive

bonuses:

dick big: julian or barclay beg-chetwynde

vanger borschtit: nigel the plague ghost

sergio: mike or thomas (borat voice my wiiife)

susan: humphrey's body (informant is humphrey's head)

dma: thomas, but specifically that scene in s1e2 where he chases allison trying to convince her to be with him and she's running away

edits bc i never post when im actually done with this:

i think curt would also be very mike if owen were allison. but i wanted him to be able to see the ghosts bc he would HATE it (like more than mike) if there was this whole other thing and he wasnt involved in it. thats getting me thinking on another au where someone (owen) can see ghosts but thats unrelated. point is curt is very mike personality wise but i would like to see him in more of an allison or robin role

#PLEASE dont extrapolate that i think allison and cap should be together. i love mike and respect havers and whoever u ship him with #im right #curt #owen #tati #barb #cynthia #informant #mama mega #dick big #vanger borschtit #sergio #susan #dma #aus #bbc ghosts #agent curt mega #owen carvour #tatiana slozhno #barb larvernor #cynthia houston #mrs mega #spies are forever #tin can bros

[modgirlyreposts-revamped]

millie, maurice and michael headcanons-

- in actuality, michael and maurice aren't too far apart in age, maurice was born in 1962 in my au, and michael in 1968. however, michael being permanently trapped in the rotting husk of a 22 year old changes that quite a bit as despite michael only having been born 6 years later he is dramatically younger than maurice.

- maurice had seen michael once or twice in the original fredbear's family diner, but michael was only about six at the time, and maurice was twelve. they saw each other once in a while, but they never really interacted. he was 21 in 1983 when he heard about the bite, and he recognized michael's face in the paper.

- when he actually meets michael, it's way later in the timeline. michael has practically fallen off the deep end. in his adult years he's narrowly evaded- and sometimes not evaded- charges for possession and use of drugs (just weed lol), arson, aggravated assault, identity fraud, theft, motor vehicle theft, property damage, vandalism, resisting arrest and peace disturbance, plus barely avoiding manslaughter and assault charges (as well as underage smoking) from his teen years due to his dad literally not caring about cassidy at all and not pursuing any legal justice. and maurice looks at this psychologically and physically ruined, mangled husk of a man who really and truly believes he's beyond redemption and unworthy of love and goes "do you want to come over for dinner? :)"

- as soon as maurice connects the dots that michael was the kid who lost his brother in the bite, he decides two things: one, he is going to be as kind as he can to this poor boy, and two, he's going to very, very carefully monitor his interactions with millie and freddy.

- but michael, despite his literal criminal record and tendency to smoke weed on their porch at 3am, is kind and surprisingly mellow despite how he's broken to the point of just being unhinged. his heart is in the right place. when maurice asks him to be more subtle about the weed so the cops don't get suspicious he complies. (i think mike smoking weed is funny as fuck.) so maurice chooses to trust him. he's clearly learned from his mistakes, and he doesn't need them rubbed in his face. he needs someone to be kind.

- michael admires millie's bravery in facing freddy constantly despite what he did to her (my main ctw au millie is just dead fr and michael definitely knows given his experiences with the undead) and in trying to hold afton robotics' abhorrent deeds back without losing herself in the process, all in spite of her age. but he actually keeps a close eye on her and keeps her reckless, angry, spiteful and outright criminal behaviors in check (though her worst crime is really property damage and vandalism) because he knows the dangers of death and surviving after it and what it does to your psyche.

- maurice sees a lot of himself in michael, even in the worst of his regrets (namely the bite). he sees michael reflect a lot of his behaviors from when maurice was his age around the early 80s, which was his life's lowest point. he sees michael was a troubled, angry alt teen just like him who acted out and made a lot of mistakes, even if michael's biggest mistake was more heinous than anything maurice did, and is now in the horrible low where he has to do nothing but see the aftermath of his traumatic teen years. maurice really wants to help mike move forward, but michael doesn't really think that's possible until he atones for his father's sins, which he is ready to accept will likely lead to his demise.

- millie introduces michael to penelope scott. he refuses to listen to any song ever again but rät, moonsickness, sweet hibiscus tea, and soap. /hj

- millie sees michael as a cool almost older brother figure. cool being used very loosely. perhaps a more accurate description would be she sees michael as her cringe fail uncle. she tells him that to make fun of him. michael's view on millie is more "this is the feral dumpster rat i babysit on thursdays."

- also, millie in my au is associated with cats and michael with possums. cats are known to kill and eat possums. this tells you everything that "cringe fail uncle" and "feral dumpster rat i babysit on thursdays" does not about their dynamic.

- they're buddies tho, they're just both menaces

- maurice doesn't really see michael as his son, per se, not totally. rather, more like a kindred spirit in need of support maurice is glad to give now that he's older and able to do so. though that definitely translates to a parental sense of care for him. michael sees maurice as close to a father figure.

- michael is at first really upset at the idea of seeing maurice as a parental figure due to his trauma from william. but maurice is kind and patient, and doesn't force mike's trust. he tells him the same thing he tells millie- "all i want from you is for you to be happy here. no more, no less."

- is now a bad time to point out that when their timelines would collide would be like 2017, which in this au is the time of pizzeria simulator? where michael burns to death. just like caleb (who ik it's been a hot sec since i talked about, michael's partner, the mechanic) maurice wants him to reconsider sacrificing his life to end his father's crimes, but he up and refuses. he sees no out, no end where he survives. no matter how much maurice tries to connect with him, his efforts are in vain and michael's days are numbered.

- while it took michael a short time to determine millie's supernatural nature, it took much longer for him to actually discuss it with her. he tries to pry subtly one night while she's working on homework, as he watches her write like there's no reason she shouldn't be able to:

- "i'm impressed at your fluency."

- millie raises an eyebrow. "in what? i'm fourteen, y'know. most kids my age can write."

- "not that. the way you can carry and control things so easily despite being incorporeal. if i didn't know better, heh... i may mistake you for a living girl."

- though she tries to play it off, her confused expression forcibly deepening, he sees her tense and go pale when he says it. "what... what the heck are you talking about?"

- mike sighs, then glances out the window.

- "i take it i'm the only one who's found your body in the workshop?"

- she freezes, unable to even try to deflect.

- "i knew from the moment we met eyes. the window to the soul... unfortunately they're a pretty dead ringer for when a soul is all you are."

- knowing millie is dead and clinging to life, he feels bad for leaving her without closure, and for no longer being there to guide and ground her despite being able to, but she insisted she wasn't going to go, she was happy here and she wasn't ready for "closure" like the other children's spirits were.

- he actually does discuss this with her and tries to convince her she has to let go, but she refuses, until he points out that someday someone will find her dead in the workshop, or eventually people will notice she hasn't aged a day since fourteen, and she can feasibly only keep up the facade for so long, even without accounting for the mental and spiritual damage such a feat would cause her, eventually reducing her to nothing but her pain and suffering and traumatic memory of being brutally decapitated.

- millie cried when he told her that. things had only started to get better for her once she was dead, and it felt cruel that even then she wasn't allowed happiness. she didn't want to let go, not now, not ever, not now that she knew what she'd taken for granted climbing into funtime freddy's chest cavity. she wanted to stay until she could see her parents again. she wanted to spend time with her friends and do normal teenage things and stay with her dear grandpa so he wasn't so alone with no young children who needed his care and no pets and no wife and no frequent visits from grandkids. she wasn't ready to accept that she would never get to stay like that, even though michael tried to help her reach that point.

- only afterward did millie think to question why michael "mental illness" afton was trying to basically give her therapy.

- she went to point this out to him only to find out he had died and her reaction was a mix of bittersweet mourning and "oh you motherfucker"

- then a few years later millie goes to the pizzaplex, now supposedly 19, still contemplating trying to let go, and when she goes to see glamrock freddy, maybe for reassurance that it's okay to let go, she's surprised when his eyes light up silver- weren't they blue in the promo material?- and he gives her a familiar smile, waves, and makes some sassy comment about how much she's grown since he last saw her.

- as soon as she realizes it's michael she sucker punches him not only for the sassy remark but also for leaving everything he could have had behind and leaving her like that. michael is surprised at first, but then realizes millie was hurt by his death, and has taken his concerns about her form to heart. he's far less surprised when he realizes this as millie is becoming more volatile and emotional as she spends more and more time as nothing but a product of her agony and is starting to resent her ghostly form, even though her maturity grants her more mental fortitude against that, but he opts not to point that out. he instead says it's good to see her again, and she grumbles something about how she missed him.

- when he sees brooke, sarah and dylan with her a moment later he realizes he may have lowballed how long she could keep up the facade despite visibly not aging, since despite all of them being 19 now, dylan, brooke and sarah are all shorter than her.

- they make a pact that when michael finally leaves glamrock freddy, millie will rest her own soul.

- they both know that ain't really happening until michael drags her to the afterlife by her ankles.

Millie being dead, but staying as a spirit because she doesn’t want to let go is a really cool idea with a lot of angst potential that I am not ready for lol-

And Maurice looking at Michael and simply being all “do you want to come over for dinner? :)” is such a Maurice move I love him ghfsgjjnfxvjkgdsjhdd-

#asks #answered #valleyfthdolls

[nessarolla-in-constant-flux]

🧇Unpopular Opinions & thoughts (some nice, some not)about Stranger Things🧇

✨️Spoilers ahead✨️

I was writing this while watching season 4 and recalling past seasons. These are just my rambeling thoughts about the show as I watched. I'd love to hear others thoughts about it as well since right now I'm not feeling it, Mr. Krabs.

Strap in Bitches, bros, and non binary hoes!!

It should have ended after season 1.

I don't care for Max or Billy or their story from season 2.

Will needs better friends all together.

Season 2 was alright.

Season 3 I just can't.

Season 4 so far...I am not impressed.

The episodes are soooo long.

Joyce is a terrible mother. Yes, just fuck off to Alaska and leave Jonathan holding the bag, AGAIN.

Nancy and Jonathan should just breakup.

Jonathan needs therapy and he deserves better.

Billy did not deserve a heroes death.

Lucas is a dick to his friends.

Max needs MORE therapy.

Eleven needs someone to sit her down and talk to her about her social cues and therapy.

Hop should have stayed dead.

His Russian stuff is meh.

Everyone is a characature of their season 1 selves.

We get it, Dustin is the tech, Will is the outcast, Mike is the hero, Lucas is the 2nd banana, and El is girl..until she has powers in the most crucial of moments.

Angela is a bitch. I don't care that her face is broken.

The group is so big its split into 4 different places.

I actually LIKED Erica this season.

EL and that bullshit monster speech. Of course people are going to look at you like "DUDE WHAT THE FUCK?!?" when you hit someone with a rollerskate!!!

If anyone could understand being bullied and feeling like an outcast it would be fucking Mike!

I like Eddie. He is not a "cArBoN cOpY" of Billy in any way. Billy was a prick fuckboy who would have beat up a guy like Eddie. Stabbed even! Eddie is actually a good dude. He sells weed and (crack?) but at least he didn't abuse anyone.

Fuck Billy.

If you genually like Billy the character, and not just because of the actor who plays him, just saying red flags all around.

Nancy and Steve have nice chemistry still.

That being said, I do not like Nancy.

I'm sad Chrissy died. I liked her with Eddie.

I seriously forget about the Upsidedown and then they show the monster and im like oh yeah.

Dnd satanic Panic hits home.

Lucas is a friend abondoning douche until it hits HIM to close to home.

The jocks can suck my nut.

Nancy's attitude towards Robin because of Steve.

SHE BROKE UP WITH STEVE.FUCK OFF NANCE.

Like Robin is super nice but bitch is jealous?!?! Hello?!? Who wrote this?!? Did they watch the past seasons???

Oh but now that she knows the truth she can be nice to Robin???? Fuck youuuuuuu.

Nancy just break up with Jon. He deserves better.

I find it funny that Hopper has been in Russian prisons twice and both times as an adoptive father.

To many plot lines.

I miss when this was about a close knit group of friends one summer in their quiet town.

I hope this is the end END.

I COMPLETELY FORGOT ELEVEN LOST HER POWERS!

I legit don't remember the dude talking to her at the diner.

Wow, who would have guessed Max's symtoms were supernatural, not me never.

Avengers Assemble??

End of S4E1-2-3 viewing.

Again these are my rambeling thoughts as I was watching S4. I ended on Episode 3 because I'm tired but I do plan to finish it although it feels like a slog now. There are some good things to this show don't get me wrong but it all feels so repetative and dull. The death scenes were really cool and gruesome but I just don't feel that spark with it.

Ill hopefully continue tomorrow because I want to finish it and be done with it but who knows, maybe my opinion can change?

Like always no hate to any actors just the characters in the story. And no hate towards me please. Lets talk about it! I'd love to hear what you like or didn't like!

#stranger things unpopular opinion #stranger things #st season 2 #st season 3 #st season 4 #st season 1 #1 was the best #i will take that to my grave #wrote this while watching #did i mention I didnt even watch season 3?

[atlabeth]

nightmares - mike munroe x reader

summary: It was a deal made by two almost-friends in the early hours of the morning after the worst night of their lives, when they realized that all they really had left was each other.

a/n: so this is once again. not my normal content but ive been on an until dawn kick lately and fell in love w the characters all over again. i dont know if anyone still reads or writes for this fandom but. here u go. enjoy

warning(s): lots of cursing, canon typical violence, mentions of graphic violence/death (but nothing too descriptive), mentioned depression, insomnia, and alcoholism, some heavy themes but its hurt/comfort so it ends in fluff

wc: 4.8k

You were running.

You were running, and it was freezing — fuck, it was freezing.

You knew your surroundings; how could you ever forget? Every fucking moment on the goddamn mountain was engraved into your mind for what you assumed would be the rest of your life, an assumption that had since been proven correct.

And now, against your will, you were back. Of course you were back.

A shudder ran through your whole body as that all-too-familiar screech rang out behind you, each second of it like nails on a chalkboard in the worst way. Your lungs burned like all hell but you couldn’t stop — if you stopped, you were as good as dead.

Some part of this fucked up thing was almost funny. Humans were always boasting about how they were the top of the food chain, how they were the height of evolution. There was nothing to keep an ego in check like being hunted by a supernatural creature.

Any thoughts of bullshit philosophy were dashed from your mind as you took a hard right, nearly falling over from the sharp curve of the mountain but just able to catch yourself. Your heart was thundering in your chest, the beats nearly lining up with your sprinting. You felt an intense urge to turn around, try and gauge your chances, but the thought of slowing down for even a second terrified you. It’s not like you needed to anyways — you knew exactly what was after you.

You were nearing the end of your road, both literally and figuratively. You stumbled over a tree root, your hands splayed out in front of yourself at just the right angle to keep your momentum going and, in some feat of luck, stay upright and running.

But your luck had just run out.

Your senses were proven correct as the harrowing cliff edge came into view, and a thousand things screamed in your mind at once as your demise stared you right in the eye. You barely managed to catch yourself, very much aware that the snow falling into the void could’ve just as well been you.

That fucking screech again, even closer than before, and you whipped around as you took an instinctive step back. Your hands patted around everywhere, searching for something to defend yourself, but you had nothing. No gun, knife, even the ground around you was devoid of rocks.

You had nothing. You had nothing to defend yourself from this goddamn nightmare creature, and you were going to die.

Your eyes darted around wildly in an attempt to find something, anything, to save yourself, but there was nothing. You took another step back and felt your foot slip, your breath catching as you barely managed to save yourself with a twist and a lunge away from the edge. The shock of the ground and the cold against your skin was just enough to remind yourself that you were actually alive. Another pile of snow mimicked the fate that seemed imminent as it trickled over the side of the cliff, and you screwed your eyes shut as you tried to shut your mind up.

Think, goddammit, if you wanted to get off of this fucking mountain you had to think—

The screech that pierced through the night sky was far too close for comfort, and as your head snapped back towards the woods you swore that your heart stopped beating.

It had caught up. You were out of time you were going to die but you didn’t have anything and you were going to fucking die—

A flash of white pushed off a tree and lunged towards you, teeth bared as it emitted that horrible screech. You didn’t even have time to scream, completely frozen in place as one clawed hand reached your neck, and you braced for the moment of release.

You shot up in your bed, breathing rapid and unsteady with a barely contained cry on the edge of your lips as your hand instinctively flew to your neck. You heaved an almost strangled sigh of relief to know that your head was still attached to your body (it might’ve seemed obvious, but… your head wasn’t exactly on straight at the moment, all jokes aside) and collapsed against the headboard.

You ran your hands across your face as you tried in vain to calm yourself down, ultimately having to turn on your lamp to ease your troubled mind that there was nothing going thump in the night.

It had been this same routine almost every night — horrible nightmare, wake up crying or screaming or both, and start the day at 3 am because you couldn’t fall back asleep.

It was exhausting. You were exhausted.

You knew you couldn’t go on like this, but what choice did you have? Therapy had been mandated by the police for a certain amount of time after the incident, but… it’s not like it had helped. How could it, when no one truly knew what you had gone through?

Well… that wasn’t completely accurate.

One person knew what you were going through, and you hadn’t said as much as one word to him since that night. You didn’t really… know what to say.

Hey. I know we’re not all that close, but I’m sorry your girlfriend and all your friends were killed by a Wendigo and that I made it instead. Hope you’re not going insane with grief. I’ll send you a card at Christmas!

...yeah. You had no idea what to say to him after months of no contact.

The relationship you had with Mike Munroe was a strange one, to say the least.

None of you were the same after that night on the mountain. The horrors of the mines would be forever entrenched in your head, flashes of the Wendigos appearing every time you closed your eyes. You and Mike were the only ones who made it off, and the guilt you carried everywhere was a burden you knew you couldn’t shoulder. And even after the physical scars had faded, you knew the mental ones never would.

Sometimes you wondered how you had even managed to get involved with the group in the first place — bonds that had been made in your freshman and sophomore years had somehow managed to stay strong enough throughout the rest of high school, strong enough to cement your spot in the friend group and the yearly lodge visits. You liked them all well enough, enough to go up to an isolated mountain with them for a weekend or so, but… yeah. Sometimes you did wonder what the hell you were doing with them.

But now?

Now, you would give almost anything to hear Sam’s laugh or one of her compliments, or tease Ashley and Chris about their very obvious feelings; hell, you found yourself missing Matt’s useless football facts. And even though Emily and Jessica weren’t always the nicest, you still had managed to worm your way into their hearts. Knowing that you would never get Emily’s brutal but helpful advice or get dragged to a football game by Jessica again?

If someone had told you the difference between life-long trauma and a completely normal existence was that blonde girl with the braids in your biology class, you might’ve thought a little harder before accepting that party invite.

The days after you were rescued from the mountain passed in a daze, questions and interrogations from police never sticking for too long. And it didn’t even feel like it mattered, the way none of them seemed to believe you.

They kept you separated from Mike throughout the whole process, and you were only able to catch glances of him when you were being transferred to different rooms throughout the long process. It really was like something out of a horror movie — a group of teens go up to a lodge in the woods, and only two return with a story of unspeakable horrors — and rather than try and work out what had happened, they seemed intent on pinning the deaths on you and Mike.

As if you weren’t dealing with enough after watching your friends get murdered by the monster of another friend, the people that were supposed to be helping you were instead trying to charge you with them. If it wasn’t so fucking infuriating, it would’ve been laughable.

The worst part? You could hardly blame them.

When you took a second to listen to yourself, to what you were spouting to the police, you sounded insane. If you hadn’t witnessed it all first hand, you wouldn’t have believed yourself.

You told them to go down to the mines. That the thing that killed your friends would be down there, and they could see it for themselves.

You didn’t know if that was the right choice. Hell, you might’ve been sending those cops to their deaths. But it was the only way you could think of to get them to believe you.

(You doubted they would go down there anyways. What was the word of two crazy college kids over actual logic? Not much, you imagined.)

You were in that damn interrogation room for what felt like forever until you were finally taken to a hospital to get your wounds treated. But even in the hospital bed, police were by your side asking about what happened every day of your stay. After your discharge, you were forced into custody until they got information that they deemed satisfactory.

By some miracle, you and Mike weren’t charged with anything. The news might’ve gotten hold of your story, but you didn’t know. You didn’t want to know. You didn’t ever look at the news after the tragedy, too afraid that you would see the smiling faces of your friends staring back at you, or pictures of you and Mike with news anchors trying to talk about how involved the two of you were.

If there was one thing worse than going through hell, it was other people trying to make a profit off of your spiral.

Your friends’ families offered their condolences, but not much else. You didn’t hold it against them. Your survivor’s guilt was strong enough to know exactly why they didn’t reach out further.

(You blame yourself for their deaths, after all. Why wouldn’t they?)

It was the same situation with Mike.

Maybe you had purposefully drifted apart from him, trying to build up walls of your own so that he wouldn’t be able to spring it on you first. You assumed he hated you after what had happened, and he had every right to. You might’ve helped each other through the night, but you had no other option. Now, everyone else but you was dead — people he cared about more than you — and you just couldn’t face that.

But as you stared at yourself in your bathroom mirror, you realized that you might have to.

You looked awful.

Weeks of sleepless nights were catching up to you, appearing in the form of

hollow eyes and dark circles, along with a slight discoloration of your skin. The scars from the mountain had mostly healed, but there was a particularly nasty gash on your cheek that was still showing — it wasn’t doing you any favors in the ‘looking completely normal and sane and not severely sleep deprived’ department.

You splashed some water in your face to try and wake up a bit, but the slight drowsiness that followed you everywhere seemed to be a permanent part of you now.

(It was almost funny, in a way. You were so paranoid and alert all the time, unable to fall asleep, and yet it was all you could think about in moments like these. You wondered when irony had become such a staple in your life.)

You had tried talking to therapists, your friends, your family, even searching the internet for advice on what to do after a life changing traumatic event. Nothing had worked.

The simplest solution had come to mind more than once, but you had pushed it aside with the determination to work through this on your own. But now, staring at yourself and seeing how much you had deteriorated…

You had to go talk to the only person who would understand.

~

You had considered turning around more than once on the drive over.

Because, really, what the hell were you doing? Showing up at his doorstep in the middle of o dark thirty because— because what?

Because you had a nightmare?

He had gone through the same thing you had, probably even worse. Losing Jessica right in front of him, having to cut off his fingers to get free, spending countless hours alone, dealing with the nightmare that was the sanatorium, and then…

Well, you had been in the mines with him and Josh when it happened. There was no doubt in your mind that the scene replayed in his head endlessly, just like it did for you.

Showing up… it was going to be a mistake. You knew it was.

For all you knew, Mike had moved on already. He was stronger than you, he always had been. Maybe your presence would send him spiraling once more, or maybe it would just earn you a verbal beating like no other. Mike had always been nice enough, but the trauma you had endured was enough to turn a saint into his own worst enemy.

You didn’t know what would happen. You didn’t know anything, and as you turned down his street you regretted more than ever not keeping in touch with him. Maybe then you wouldn’t be in this situation, scrambling after your last hope for salvation after slowly killing yourself over the past few months.

But there was no chance to turn back now, because before you knew it your knuckles were rapping against his front door.

The pause between your arrival and a response was so long that you considered leaving and pretending like this never happened, but just as you began to step back the door swung open.

You didn’t really know what you were expecting, but… he was there. The only other testament to the horrors of Blackwood Pines, and maybe the only person that could help you through this.

“...hi,” you murmured, swallowing the sudden lump in your throat as you looked the personification of your shame in the eye.

Mike blinked a few times, whether to try and wake up a little or out of surprise from his visitor you didn’t know, but it was a few seconds before he responded in kind. “...hey. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you around.”

You chuckled dryly as you nodded. “Yeah. Sorry for the sudden arrival. I’m, uh… I’m kind of surprised you even opened the door.”

He huffed out a short breath in a facsimile of a laugh. “Not getting much sleep these days.”

“That’s something we’ve got in common.” You crossed your arms across your chest and let out a loose sigh, eyes wandering around in an attempt to think of what to say next. It should’ve been so easy, but… but for some reason, it just wasn’t.

“Guess so.” That awkward silence stretched out once more, neither of you knowing how to fill it. Thankfully, Mike continued to take the plunge, but it wasn’t without a slight barb. “What are you doing here?”

“I—” you stopped just as you had begun, because you really didn’t know. You had come here for help, but could Mike really do that for you? He was the same as you — a fucked up teenager trying to deal with something so far beyond him.

“I don’t know,” you admitted as you made eye contact once more. “I… I really don’t know. I’m out of options, and… I can’t keep going like this. So I came here to talk, or— or to try and get some help. I don’t know.”

That same silence filled the air once more, the night ambiance the only thing in between the two of you. You missed when that silence used to be comfortable, but… you could only blame yourself for it.

“So— so, what?” he asked, the beginnings of a frown starting to crease his brows. “You just— we go through all that together up there, and then when we get back down you don’t say a word for months. And now— now, out of nowhere, in the middle of the night, you just show up and ask for help?”

“God,” you muttered. When he put it that way, it was true. It was ridiculous, to expect his help after the way you had just left him to deal with it all on his own for a reason borne of your own insecurity. “You’re right. This was— this was stupid. I’m sorry.”

You had already turned to go when you felt a calloused hand on your shoulder, causing you to stop in your tracks.

“No.” His voice was surprisingly soft as he sighed, stepping back with a shake of his head to make room in the doorway. “No, I—” Mike paused for a moment, as if he couldn’t find the right words to say. “I’m sorry. You can come in. Obviously, you can come in.”

Your eyes widened slightly as you tried to hide your shock at the gesture, but you weren’t about to turn it down. You nodded, and he stepped aside to make space for you to walk in. When you did, you were met with a mess not unlike the one back at your apartment, save for the beer bottles. Clothes were strewn about haphazardly on every surface, so you took a seat on a clean spot on the floor, leaning back against a chair and pulling your knees up to your chest. You actually preferred it this way — it was grounding, in a literal sense. Mike pushed aside a laundry basket and did the same, but pulled one leg up and let the other lay extended.

“Why?” he asked suddenly, breaking the silence that had been accumulating once more. “Why did you just…” he gestured around with his hands to try and get his point across but ultimately settled with a sigh. “You didn’t say anything. You didn’t try to text, or call, or write, or— or anything. Hell, I would’ve probably jumped to get a messenger pigeon from you. But it was just… radio silence.”

You picked at the dry skin on your thumbs as you tried to come up with an answer. “I… I don’t know,” you repeated. “It was stupid, and it was horrible of me to leave you alone. I mean… I don’t know why I did it. I know what I’ve been going through, and I know you’ve been going through the same. So I don’t know why I didn’t try to reach out and see how you were doing.”

He chuckled mirthlessly as his eyes swept over the empty bottles that had accumulated on the coffee table. “I’m not the best with alone.”

“I know,” you said quietly. “I thought…” you shook your head as you looked at the ceiling. “I thought that you hated me. I know that you cared about them all more, you were closer to all of them, and… and I thought you wouldn’t want anything to do with me. That I would just always be a reminder of what you lost. And… and, I don’t know. Maybe it was my way of trying to move on. Was a stupid fucking idea, though.”

That got a genuine laugh out of him as he ran a hand through his hair. “I guess I get that. I dunno why I didn’t try to talk to you either. Maybe since you didn’t say anything, I didn’t want to either. This whole thing fucked me up.” His gaze moved to you. “Fucked us both up.”

“You can say that again,” you muttered as you tapped your fingers on your knees. “I can’t look anywhere without seeing them. I mean, I see that fucking…” you grimaced. “I see Josh, and I see what that thing did to him, and I just— I’m right back to step one.”

He swallowed hard and nodded. “...yeah. That was seven layers of fucked up.”

“You can’t just keep saying everything was fucked up,” you said dryly. “It was shitty, too.”

Mike snorted, some kind of slightly masochistic humor going on between the two of you. “Nothing really gets the point across like fucked up.”

“Guess you’re right,” you finally conceded with a small smile. “This is… this is nice. I’d almost forgotten what it was like to… I don’t know, to talk to someone like this.”

“It is,” he murmured.

Another pregnant pause hung in the air, but the silence wasn’t as uncomfortable now. Trickles of what it used to be like, of your old life, were beginning to poke through.

“I never hated you,” he said suddenly. Your eyes flicked up to meet his, and it was like his brown eyes were piercing through you as he continued. “I never did. After it happened… yeah, I was mad. I was fucking pissed, but it was never at you. You were my friend too, y’know? Even though we weren’t that close, we were still… we were still something. And I’m glad you made it. I just wish you hadn’t convinced yourself that you had to go through this alone. Maybe things would’ve turned out different, these past few months. For both of us.”

You nodded, choosing to avert eye contact first because you almost couldn’t handle the sincerity. Your heart sank a bit at the sight of all the beer bottles, and you knew that he was right. Maybe things would’ve been different if the two of you had weathered it together from the start. And so you said that.

“I still can’t help but feel like I’m to blame for—” you gestured around at the mess with a sigh, “for this.”

“Look.” His voice was raspy as he ran a hand through his disheveled hair, and as he met your eyes once more you were able to see how truly exhausted he was. With dark circles that matched your own, scars that were still healing, and a certain hollowness behind his eyes… It was like looking in a mirror. And it made you realize how fucked up the two of you had really become.

Mike had always been good at holding himself together, putting up his signature egotistical-douchebag-jock act in the face of anything that threatened to tear him down, and more often than not he came out victorious. But not even class presidents were immune to the horrors that they had faced, and it was taking more of a toll on him than you had realized.

“It’s not your fault. You— you did everything you could; I know I’m still alive because of you. Besides, we were idiot teenagers — we still are — and none of them deserved to die because of it. Not Hannah, not Beth, not any of them.” Mike shook his head and sighed. “Not even Josh. Man was fucked up even before all of this, but he didn’t deserve what happened to him. He needed help, but instead he got his fucking… god. I can’t even say it. But he didn’t deserve it.”

You let out a breath you didn’t even know you were holding, the subconscious process having stopped because of the weight of his words. It was cliche, but you didn’t know how much you needed to hear those four words: it’s not your fault.

“Maybe you should be my therapist,” you joked weakly. But as you let your eyes trail back to Mike you bit your lip. He hadn’t included himself in that statement, and it wasn’t too hard to figure out why.

“Mike… it wasn’t your fault either. You’re not just saying bullshit to try and make yourself feel better, it really wasn’t your fault. What do they say? ‘Getting through your guilt is the first step to recovery’ or some shit? You deserve to be here just as much as I do.”

“But it was,” he insisted. “It’s easy for you to say that. You tried to stop it, I… I just went along with it. Fuck, I started it all. Hannah and Beth went missing because of me, Josh went out of his fuckin’ mind, and if he hadn’t brought us all back up there for his revenge plot then they wouldn’t have died. How is it not my fault? Why do I get to live when all of them died because of me?”

“Mike,” you sighed. “I… I don’t know. I don’t know why we made it back when none of them did, but it’s not your fucking fault, okay? You— yeah, that prank was fucking stupid, but— but how could you know what was going to happen?” You huffed a laugh that was only slightly unhinged. “People pull pranks all the time. Native American legend cannibal spirit things don’t try to kill people all the time. You can’t keep blaming yourself. It’s not going to help them, and it’s not going to help you.”

That silence stretched out once more as he took in your words. You didn’t know if he believed them or not, but you did. That had to be worth something, right?

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking,” he muttered, breaking the silence once more. “And I… I don’t know. I don’t know why it took almost fucking dying from those goddamn things, a— and seeing what happened to all of them...”

“I don’t know,” he repeated, leaning back against the foot of the sofa. “All the shit that happened, all of them dying — I don’t know how long it’ll take until we’re okay again. Hell, I don’t even know if we ever will be okay again. What happened up there was fucked up in the worst way, and the fact that no one believes us makes it a hell of a lot worse.”

You chuckled darkly as you cupped one hand in the other. “You can say that again.”

His lips twitched for a moment as if he wanted to smile but ultimately thought better of it. “I know we aren’t that close anymore, but the truth is we’re the only ones on this fuckin’ planet that know what really happened up there. We’re the only ones that will ever really understand what happened to us, and… and I think we’re the only ones that can really help each other through this shit.”

He met your eyes once more, something resolute in them. “So the next time this happens, because it will, if you don’t want to be alone… you can come here. Any time, any day, no questions asked. Just knock on that door, and I will be there. No more isolation, no more trying to get through this on our own. We gotta be there for each other, because we’re all we have.”

You nodded gratefully, a feeling of warmth slowly creeping through your body with his reassurance. “Thank you, Mike. You… you have no idea what this means to me.”

“I think I have some clue,” he murmured.

As you exchanged weary smiles, you saw a faint twinkle in Mike’s eyes. He was always the kind of person to help others, even if it was for the wrong reasons, and that was one thing that stuck with him after the disaster. And in that moment, a long lost feeling washed over you — safety.

You hadn’t felt safe in… well, it seemed like forever. Adrenaline and pure instinct were responsible for getting you through those twelve hours, along with an overwhelming wave of numbness and denial. But once all of that wore off, the nightmares had begun. Your friends, the Wendigos, the mountain itself — anything and everything that your mind could use against you, it did.

It was a living hell. You could hardly ever sleep anymore, horrific images always jolting you awake after an hour or two and keeping you awake for the rest of the day. It was no wonder Mike had ended up with a drinking problem — it was probably the only way he could sleep, the only way he could bring some form of peace to his mind. By some miracle, you had avoided that fate, but… you would be lying if you said you hadn’t come close.

But somehow, for some reason, you could tell that things were going to be different. Now that you and Mike weren’t avoiding each other anymore in the name of painful memories… you felt like things were going to be okay. Or as close to okay as you could get these days.

You weren’t alone, and neither was he.

He had saved your life on the mountain more than once. Now, he was saving you again. Just in a different way.

-

perm tags: @dv0412 @siriuslyslyslytherin @maruchan77

ud tags: @kwyloz

#mike munroe #mike munroe x reader #mike x reader #until dawn x reader #until dawn #until dawn fic #mike until dawn #sadie writes #i always get so insecure when i post things that arent for atla #then i remember that. this is my blog and i can write what i want #lol

[troquantary]

Edward Cullen: That Boy Ain’t Right

So I was doing a reread of @therealvinelle 's collection of Twilight metas, as one does, and in "Edward, Denial, and a Human Girlfriend" she mentions that she doesn't believe Edward is sane. I thought, "ha, yeah, he's definitely not," and also, "but wait, what does that mean exactly, please say more about that." But since she's already inundated with asks, I've decided to use my own head-muscle and explore this idea. (TL;DR: I start out more or less organized, synthesize some points Vinelle has made across several posts (and have hopefully linked to them all where relevant but please tell me if not), touch a little on narcissism, then take a hard left into the negative effects of being a telepath.)

Just a couple things to note at the outset, though. Theses have been written already (probably) about Edward as an abuser. Edward being insane doesn't negate that at all; he's definitely an asshole and just...a disaster of a human being. (I find it more funny than anything, but YMMV.) I'm also going to try to avoid talking specifically about mental illness and how it relates (or doesn't relate) to abusive behavior -- that's territory I'm not really equipped to discuss, like at all. My starting point is "Edward has a deeply warped perception of reality," not "Edward has X disorder."

So: deeply warped perception of reality. The evidence? Goes behind a cut, because my one character trait is Verbose.

Vinelle provides a great example of it in the post linked above, which I'll just quote because she does words good: "[Edward] keeps acting like his romance with Bella is a romantic tragedy, and all the cast of Twilight are actors on a stage making it as sublime as possible." Edward's the one to pursue Bella, but he does so with the full belief, from the very beginning, that it will never last; Bella will "outgrow" him, go on her human way, and he can spend the rest of eternity brooding magnificently over his too-short romantic bliss. [Insert premature ejaculation joke.] Turning her is never an option, even though Alice, Noted Psychic, says that romancing Bella will either end with her dead (exsanguinated) or dead (vampire).

This framing, where he's a dark anti-hero in love with -- but never tainting! -- the pure maiden and eventually leaving her in a grand, tragic sacrifice to preserve her soul? It's fucking bonkers. Bella isn't a person to him in this scenario. As Vinelle points out, Bella's never really a person to him at all; he falls in love with his own mental construct, cherry-picking from what he observes of her behavior and her responses to his 20 (thousand) Questions to convince himself that she is the ideal woman.

Bella's not the only one who gets the projection/cardboard-cutout treatment. Edward sees everything and everyone through a highly particular, personalized lens. He filters his entire reality, which we all do to an extent, but the thing with Edward is that he starts with his conclusions and then only pays attention to the evidence that supports those conclusions. Often that evidence consists of what he admits in New Moon are only "surface" thoughts -- but recognizing that limitation doesn't keep him from taking those thoughts as representative of what people are. Edward then becomes absolutely convinced by his own "reasoning" and won't be swayed from what he has decided is Objectively True. It's obvious with Bella; it's also painfully obvious with Rosalie. (Vinelle explains this and brings up Edward's raging Madonna/Whore complex in the same post, so refer to that again -- she's right.)

He also catastrophizes. Everything. Bella's just vibing in her room, rereading Wuthering Heights for the 87th time? She's gonna be hit by a meteor, better sneak into her room while she sleeps. Bella's going to the beach with the filthy mundanes their human classmates? She's gonna fall in the ocean. Jasper's cannibal pals are stopping by for a visit, but know not to hunt in the area? DISASTER, DEFCON 1, ALSO FUCK YOU JASPER FOR EVEN EXISTING IN MY AND BELLA'S SPHERE YOU UNSPEAKABLE BURDEN. Edward must believe that Bella is vulnerable and in near-constant peril, to support the reality he has created in which he is the villain turned protector and maybe?? hero??? (!!!) for his beloved. So when the actual, James-shaped danger arrives, he goes berserk, snarling and flipping his shit and generally not helping the situation. His fantasy demands that Bella remain human, so instead of doing the very thing Alice, Noted Psychic, assures him will neutralize the threat (and not just a threat to Bella, either, but to Bella's family and any other human James might decide to include in the "game"), he vetoes it immediately, no discussion. Bella Must Not Turn, and he sticks to those guns despite James nearly reducing her to ground beef, despite leaving Bella catatonic with depression (but human! success!) in New Moon, despite Aro's order and his family's vote and, let's not forget, Bella's clearly and repeatedly stated desire to be a vampire. It's going to happen. But he doesn't accept it until Renesmee busts out of Bella like the Kool-Aid man and the poor girl's heart finally, unequivocally stops.

Sane people don't behave this way. I don't want to slap labels on Edward, but I can't help but note that he comes across as highly narcissistic. He's the only real person in his universe, the lone player among us NPCs. That probably has a lot to do with him being frozen in the mindset and maturity of a seventeen-year-old boy, but I think it's also just...him, on some fundamental level. His failure to connect with others and recognize them as full, independent beings with their own wants and priorities isn't like Bella's failure -- she's badly depressed. Edward is...something else, and I get the sense that his sanity has been steadily deteriorating over time. And a cursory google of narcissistic traits turns up some familiar-looking stuff. He's self-loathing, yes, but also grandiose; he hates himself for the monster he is (and hates most vampires besides Esme and Carlisle for their monstrosity, too) but still feels superior to humans, to the extent that he felt entitled to human blood and resented Carlisle for depriving him of his "proper" diet. He eventually returns to Carlisle, but he's far from content -- the beginning of Midnight Sun finds him in a state of ennui, bored and dismissive of (if not outright disgusted by) everyone around him, that has apparently persisted for years and years. He doesn't play the piano, he doesn't compose, he doesn't enjoy anything...at least until Bella comes along and then he becomes obsessed to a disturbing degree with her and his new, romantic tragedy spin on reality.

[Next-day edit: I’m not sure where else to fit this in, but the way Edward casually contemplates violence against people who have, at best, mildly annoyed him is...chilling. I have a hard time writing off his strategizing how to murder the entire Biology class as a result of bloodlust -- it’s so calculated, nothing like the blackout state of thirst Emmett describes when he encountered his own “singer,” and that is probably the default for when a vampire is extremely thirsty. But even ignoring the Biology class incident, Edward still does things like consider, with disturbing frequency, how he might grievously injure or kill Mike Newton, all because...Edward considers him his romantic rival (despite Bella barely giving the kid the time of day). He thinks about slapping Mike through a wall, which might be an amusing slapstick image, except as a vampire Edward’s actually capable of turning this boy’s skeleton to a fine powder. So it’s, y’know, kind of sick when you think about it.

But even worse than that, when Bella tells Edward about how she flirted with Jacob to get at that sweet, sweet vampire lore, Edward chuckles and then, after dropping Bella home, flippantly observes that now that the treaty’s broken, why not genocide? I’m not even kidding, it’s right there in Midnight Sun; he seriously thinks about the fact that he’d be technically justified now in wiping out the entire tribe because a teenager tried to impress a girl with a spooky story. That is fucked. Remember, Edward was there with Carlisle when the treaty was first established. He knows how remarkable it is that they even came to a truce in the first place, that it was only ever possible because Carlisle is...well, Carlisle, and that it marks a pretty significant moment in supernatural history. He doesn’t care; he doesn’t respect it, or he’d never think something like “Ha ha, if I went and killed them all, I wouldn’t even be wrong. I mean, I won’t do it, but I’m just saying, I wouldn’t be wrong.”

Again: not the thought process or behavior of a sane person. (Or a person that respects life in general -- sorry Carlisle, big L.)]

Finally, whether he's a narcissist or not, I think the fact that Edward has constant, unavoidable access to everyone's thoughts is a powerful contributing factor to his instability. He can tune out the mental noise to an extent, but he can't stop it -- so he comes to rely on it like another sense. This causes issues with disconnect and lack of empathy, of course, but there's another facet to this shit diamond: he's basically experiencing a ceaseless flow of intrusive thoughts. His narration in Midnight Sun suggests that he "hears" the words people think, can "see" what they visualize in their mind's eye, and can sense the emotional "tone" and intensity of their thoughts. Therefore, perceiving Jasper's thirst through his thoughts makes Edward more aware of his own, "doubling" the discomfort. This would be a lot to deal with even from just his immediate coven members, but Edward gets all of this pouring into his head like a firehose on a day-to-day basis because the Cullens live right alongside humans. I know Meyerpires have galaxy brains or whatever, but that's a ton to process.

Besides the compounding effect on his own thirst when he "feels" the thirst of others, Meyer never suggests that Edward has difficulty separating his own thoughts from other people's; even when he was newly turned, he recognized Carlisle's "voice" in his head as Carlisle's. That would create a whole different host of issues around identity, but it looks like Edward's escaped that particular torment. However, I can easily imagine that what he does experience is just shy of unbearable nonetheless, with an eroding effect on his sanity over decades. He can't sleep to escape it; he's on a dishwater diet and probably (like the rest of his family) experiencing a perpetual, low-grade physical discomfort due to his thirst never being fully satisfied; and he's around far more people than is the norm for vampires -- even discounting all the humans, his own coven is unusually large -- meaning more noise.

Honestly, it would be weirder if he were all there, considering.

And even though I feel like I lost a sense of structure around where I started ranting about telepathy, I've written like 1.5k words about Edward fucking Cullen and I think that's enough for one post.

#twilight #twilight renaissance #twilight meta #edward cullen #i stared too long and the twilight abyss gazed back #long post #major credit due to therealvinelle for having basically all the ideas already #theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin too since they agree and build off each other's metas a lot #idk how people who write meta can just crank these posts out i've been here for two hours #edited to add stuff i forgot to mention about edward's disproportionately violent fantasies