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jess-rewatches-prodigalson · 3 years

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Ouroboros (S2, E8)

The hiatus almost killed me. So glad we have new content <3

As usual, my time-stamped thoughts for this episode are below. As always I reference Malcolm’s mental health. A lot. So if that’s going to be a trigger for you, don’t keep reading.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

0:04 - That scarf is so extra.

0:26 - OH LOOK THE FIRST SUNSHINE SIGHTING OF SEASON TWO!!! It only took 8 episodes. *insert eyeroll*

0:40 - Ugh. This montage makes me hate Hoxley. He embodies the type of human I abhor: self-important, egotistic, obsessed with appearance.

1:19 - “No I didn’t.” LMAO. Mr. David is so done with Martin’s bullshit.

1:36 - That makeshift shiv in the dude’s arm.....that’s Daryl’s shiv from a few episodes ago right? Am I going crazy?

2:25 - Sooooo Birdie hasn’t left New York? She’s moved into the Milton’s “Murrayville Building”. Huh. Wait. Was Birdie in the house when Malcolm and Ainsley fought? Do you think she heard?!? Birdie might become a problem for the Whitly’s later this season....I hope?

2:43 - Jessica doesn’t know about the contents of the fight. Interesting. How long has it been since the end of 2x7?

2:58 - “I’ll be there at 8.” hahaha OMG. I swear Malcolm was a terror during his ‘rebellious teenager’ phase.

3:38 - Yep. This fog horn reinforces the fact that I believe Hoxley is a dick.

3:40 - Awww.... the way Malcolm jumps/flinches at the fog horn is both hilarious and adorable.

3:58 - “And who the hell are you?” YES GIL. YES. Don’t let him talk like that to Malcolm <3

4:04 - Duuuuude. Gil looks pissed and scared. He does not like Europol snooping around his crimes. ALSO I’m like 95% sure that Gil knows (or at least has a hunch) that Malcolm is somehow involved with Endicott’s murder. I’m pretty sure Gil is scared that this dude is going to try and arrest Malcolm.

4:07 - OMG. JT is adorable. “You’re that guy. The mind sleuth.” Personal headcanon: JT read Hoxley’s book to try and understand Malcolm better.

4:22 - DANI IS MY QUEEN. SHE IS MY ICON. I LOVE HER SO FREAKING MUCH. “No.” This girl is fierce. <3

4:23 - <3 <3 Malcolm’s heart eyes, head tilt, and visible pride is so so so precious. THIS is why he’s attracted to Dani. She’s not afraid to assert herself.

4:31 - “And then took in his son.” ....Okay, so this infuriated me. Nothing Hoxley is saying is untrue. BUT something about the way he’s saying it just gets under my skin.

4:45 - I think Hoxley is pissing me off so much because he’s psychoanalyzing Malcolm in front three of the people Malcolm trusts and loves most in the world (3 out of a very very short list of people). He’s trying to humiliate Malcolm and I hate it. I hate that Dani, JT, and Gil haven’t told Hoxley to shut up. I hate that Hoxley is trying to drive stakes of doubt into the three people whose opinion Malcolm treasures.

5:25 - “Aim a little lower, Whitly.” and and and.....then Hoxley looks to the team as though he wants them to laugh. I’m furious.

5:32 - THANK YOU GIL. STEER THE CONVERSATION AWAY FROM MALCOLM

6:04 - Malcolm is so obvious. There’s no way that the team doesn’t know that he was involved with Endicott’s murder. If they didn’t before this episode - they HAVE to know now. Right? They’re detectives. Malcolm is a terrible liar.

7:00 - Oh. So now Ainsley cares about the crime. Now it’s “how much trouble are we in”. And let’s be real. Ainsley doesn’t even seem very worried or scared. She’s concerned that the crime will get out - she’s not sorry she committed the crime. She’s not sorry that her big brother tried to take the fall for her.

7:15 - “We said no more secrets.” ...when. When did you two say that? Was there a ‘fight part 2 - the tentative truce’ that we didn’t get to see?

7:33 - A mention of Sophie Sanders. Finally. I still hope she comes out of the woodwork and takes the fall for this. I want more closure on her. Did the team ever find out that Malcolm found her? How did the Eddie murder finally get resolved (I’m not satisfied with the “not every case gets solved” line)?

7:42 - Yo. I don’t care about the time constraint of a 45 minute episode. I don’t care that it was required to move the plot along. The fact that Ainsley starts typing frantically into the computer at about 7:42, stops typing at 7:47ish and has found at least 4 different articles relating to murdered random people (who apparently helped hide Endicott’s body?) is SO UNREALISTIC. I just can’t. I can’t suspend my disbelief on this one. The article headlines say nothing about ‘couriers’. It’s stuff like ‘Local fisherman found dead’. HOW THE HELL WOULD AINSLEY KNOW THEY WERE HELPING MALCOLM IN LESS THAN 10 SECONDS OF GOOGLING?!? Nope. I can’t justify this one. Fedak - you dropped the ball.

8:40 - Poor Malcolm looks terrified. :(

9:04 - My first impression of Natalie was that she’s a beautiful young lady who seems really sweet and a little socially awkward. Kudos to the actress.

9:41 - Another mention of Sophie. God - I hope she becomes a twist in this season’s storyline. I’m not content with how her story arc ended.

10:21 - “I didn’t have anything to do with Endicott’s death and neither did Jessica.” Yep. Gil definitely knows (or at least suspects) that Ainsley and Malcolm are somehow involved with Endicott’s murder. It’s killing me that we’re not getting the big “team and/or Gil find out and/or confront Malcolm about it” moment.

10:31 - OMG. Alan Cumming’s eyebrow wag here. hahahahaha

10:35 - Look at how pissed off Gil is as soon as Hoxley suggests that he and Jessica have a romantic history. 1) Gil still has it bad for Jessica (and is hurt that she rejected him again 2) Gil’s a pretty private dude and probably doesn’t like his personal business being speculated upon by a total stranger with ill intent 3) Gil is also getting protective of the Whitly’s. Not just Jessica but Malcolm (and maybe Ainsley) too.

10:58 - Europol agents aren’t allowed to make arrests?!? THEN WTF IS THE POINT OF HOXLEY’S CHARACTER?!? TO DRIVE DOUBT INTO THE MINDS OF THE TEAM WITH REGARDS TO MALCOLM?!? FOR REAL. WHY?! TO FORCE GIL TO ARREST MALCOLM AND AINSLEY?!?!

11:08 - “To watch you put the cuffs on Mr.Endicott’s killer. Deal?” “Deal.” oooooooohhhhhh no. I do not like the foreshadowing here. If Gil has to arrest Ainsley and/or Malcolm.....idek. Part of me wants to watch it for the emotional whump (of all parties - including Jessica). Part of me wants to ugly cry at the thought of it though.

11:39 - “How do you know so much about yachts?” ....THANK YOU JT. DANI HAS A STRANGE AMOUNT OF NAVAL KNOWLEDGE IN THIS EPISODE AND WE ALL KNOW “I watch a lot of Below Deck” IS UTTER HORSE CRAP. Ugh. I want to know more about Dani and JT’s personal lives. So. Badly.

11:44 - <3 <3 <3 The look Malcolm and JT exchange when Dani claims that she watches a lot of Below Deck is absolutely precious. It’s like they’re best friends and/or brothers. They both knew Dani was lying. <3

11:54 - “At least he’s the real deal.” Ouch. I honestly can’t tell if JT is just teasing Malcolm here or if JT genuinely believes this. ....Is this JT’s way to letting Malcolm know that he has suspicions about his involvement with Endicott’s death?

12:06 - “Says the guy who bought his book.” HA. Dani is on fire this episode. The snark queen. Look at how pleased Malcolm is that Dani is defending him. <3 Warms my cold dead heart.

12:09 - annnnndd now JT is definitely teasing Malcolm. “What our boy Bright needs is a moniker.” hahaha watching Dani and JT come up with stupid profiler monikers was so cute. I love it when the team gangs up to (lovingly) tease Malcolm.

12:30 - “No. Nothing yet.” Again - Malcolm is a terrible liar. The team must know that he’s involved with this thing. They’re detectives.

12:59 - Martin’s physical reaction to Malcolm saying, “No. That woman does not deserve to die.” Is HILARIOUS. Martin is so freaking desperate for Malcolm to become a serial killer that he doesn’t even care the Ainsley has already murdered someone.

13:19 - “He has a perfect track record.”.....what? So does that mean he’s solved every case he’s ever worked on? Taken credit for solving every case he’s ever work on? Hand picked the cases he works on so he knows he can solve them? Probably a combination of the above. Sometime about Hoxley reminds me of Gilderoy Lockhart from Harry Potter. You feel me?

13:23 - The fact that Tom Payne (a Brit) is being told that Hoxley has “perfect teeth. For a Brit” by a Welsh man is hilarious.

13:34 - Does this fish packing joint have no security?!? Like Malcolm didn’t have to pick a lock or anything. He just walked right in (and he’s not being quiet).

13:51 - “I can think ruthless. I don’t know if I can be ruthless.” THIS. THIS is Malcolm in a nutshell. Think about Nicky Covington. Malcolm wanted to act ruthless but he couldn’t. He ended up saving Nicky because he couldn’t go through with his ruthless plan. That’s the difference between Malcolm and (quite frankly) the rest of his family. Jessica, Martin, and Ainsley can all be ruthless. All of them. Jessica on a lesser degree but Martin and Ainsley are confidently ruthless. Often.

13:57 - Ok. For real though. HOW HAS NO ONE OVERHEARD THESE PHONE CALLS BETWEEN MARTIN AND MALCOLM. THE PHONES HAVE TO BE TAPPED RIGHT?!? IN A SECURE MENTAL INSTITUTION FOR MURDERERS?!? and I stg that Mr. David knows things. That man is not a moron and he’s pieced stuff together (not from this scene obviously, but still).

14:13. - “Why don’t I break out.” The fact that Malcolm hasn’t mentioned that Martin wants to escape to anyone (since 2x4) is really stressing me out. I know Martin’s going to break out - the promos have made that very obvious but I’m still anxious about it. Mostly I’m worried for the health and safety of Malcolm (and Gil, Jessica, Dani, JT, Edrisa...).

14:17 - “We all go on the run together.” Martin is delusional. He thinks that the whole family will go on the run with him?!?!? He might be able to convince Ainsley. He might be able to blackmail or threaten Malcolm. BUT Jessica? She’s not going willingly. Hell - she might kill him herself if Martin escapes and tries to come near her (which.....I would actually kind of like to see).

14:48 - The fact that Malcolm apologizes to a corps is so precious. Really reinforces the fact that Malcolm is not a killer.

15:00 - Oh look. Another scene for Malcolm’s nightmares. “The time I cut off a dead guy’s thumb to protect my sister”

15:24 - annnndd Malcolm is really close to having a panic attack. Look at that face. :( Someone give this guy a hug. Please.

15:34 - Where the HELL is Edrisa!?!?!?

15:42 - Malcolm, you utter moron. What possessed your stupid ass to show up at a crime scene with a soaking wet arm and draw attention to your arm by shaking it?!?! WHEN THE BODY WAS JUST DRAGGED OUT OF A VAT OF WATER. AND YOU TAMPERED WITH THE BODY?!!? YOU DUMBASS.

15:52 - This is Gil - terrified. He’s scared because 1) he knows Malcolm is lying , 2) he’s concerned for Malcolm’s mental health and 3) he’s starting to think that either a) Malcolm killed this guy, b) Malcolm knows who killed this guy and is obstructing justice, or c) Hoxley is going to pin this on Malcolm and Gil won’t be able to save him.

16:14 - “I’m never buying frozen fish again.” hahaha Dani is killing it this episode. <3

16:23 - Check out how Gil is staring at Malcolm. Gil totally thinks Malcolm has the thumb.

16:50 - “Older model” Shit. Seriously? Are finger print scanners on phones old?!? My phone isn’t that old......I got it 6 years ago?

17:16 - MALCOLM IS A TERRIBLE LIAR. Honestly, the pure terror on his face throughout most of this episode screams “I KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT THE MURDER.” If the team hasn’t pieced this together yet they’re not worthy of being detectives.

17:29 - I’m not going to lie. I had to fast forward through the Martin/Capshaw scenes for the rewatch. I find them so upsetting to watch. I just can’t do it more than once. Their whole dynamic is gross, creepy, and just ugh.

20:00 - Jessica and Hoxley talking about Endicott’s death is so satisfying.

20:35 - “Jessica Whitly. Played for a fool. Yet. Again.” Ok Hoxley. You are not allowed to disrespect my girl Jessica like that.

21:10 - The biggest problem with Jessica and Gil’s “mock interrogations” by Hoxley is that neither of them mention Ainsley or Malcolm. It’s super suspicious. They mention other people by name. People who should be connected to Ainsley and/or Malcolm given the context of the sentence. Hoxley is a moron for not nailing Ainsley and Malcolm for the crime during this episode. It’s so so so obvious.

21:19 - hahahahahahahaha Jessica grabbing the martini out of Hoxley’s hands. hahahahaha I stan.

21:35 - annnnnd Jessica is a terrible liar as well. Seriously - why doesn’t she just say “ENDICOTT WAS KILLED OVER HERE!!”. Another parallel between her and Malcolm though. Malcolm + Jessica can’t lie well. Ainsley + Martin are expert liars.

22:54 - Again. Ainsley is intrigued at the fact that Malcolm has a thumb in his freezer. Much like Martin would be if he knew. Jessica on the other hand shares Malcolm’s fear and disgust about the situation.

23:00- “We”?!!?!? AINSLEY YOU HAVEN’T DONE ANYTHING. MALCOLM HAS BEEN COVERING FOR YOUR ASS. YOU JUST HAVEN’T TURNED YOURSELF IN AFTER YOU REMEMBERED. THAT’S YOUR ONLY CONTRIBUTION TO THE “KEEPING ENDICOTT’S MURDER A SECRET” SITUATION.

23:07 - “Do you even see what you are doing to him.” This line both terrified and delighted me. On one hand - I’m grateful that Jessica can see how much emotional pain Malcolm is in because of this situation. One the other hand - Ainsley looks pissed that Jessica is blaming her for Malcolm’s general brokenness. If Ainsley goes full serial killer - Malcolm is going to be on her list. “The brother that overshadowed her.” “The favourite child” “The reason she had to be a perfect daughter” “The reason she was ignored”

23:32 - “Got it.” Damn. Ainsley is bitter. She wants to control this situation. She doesn’t like taking orders from Malcolm.

25:00 - MR.DAVID IS RIGHT THERE. IF HE DOESN’T BLOW THE WHISTLE ON THIS I’M GOING TO BE SO DISAPPOINTED.

25:12 -”The Brain Fart” hahahahaha OMG.

25:53 - “You’re being rude Hoxley.” ......Martin being the nice guy? I’m genuinely disgusted.

26:26 - “Your son Malcolm.” THIS. THIS is why Ainsley is so pissed off. Everyone has always thought Malcolm would turn out like Martin. Ever since they were kids. She’s pissed off that no one considers her to be a threat. They’re all concerned for and scared of Malcolm. Not her. She’s invisible. Why do you think she became a TV reporter? To force people to see her.

26:50 - I’ve never wanted to Martin to kill anyone more than I have in this moment. I do find Martin’s protective love for Malcolm interesting though.

27:37 - How long was that phone in water before Malcolm grabbed it?!? Anyone ever drop a phone in water? I don’t care how much rice you have. It’s toast 90% of the time.

27:44 - Malcolm explaining murder to Sunshine is so cute.

28:22 - And my heart rate has skyrocketed.

29:10 - “To protect your sister.” Huh. I find it interesting that Hoxley has considered that Malcolm may have killed Endicott to protect Ainsley. It suggests that he thinks Endicott was a threat to Ainsley alive. Makes me wonder about what happened to Ainsley before Malcolm got back to the house in 1x20.

29:16 - “You all had something to gain.” Did they though? Martin had something to gain - keeping his cushy Claremont cell. Ainsley had something to gain - “A news story.” Jessica had something to gain - “safety”. But Malcolm? He didn’t personally have anything to gain. He wanted his Mom and sister safe but he never thought about himself.

30:11 - “Perhaps the murder weapon is still among your mother’s silver.” I find it interesting Hoxley has pieced that together. I also find it highly unbelievable but that’s just me.

30:15 - Hoxely, rich people don’t carve their own Christmas roasts. The Whitly’s have staff for that.

30:24 - “You’re still just a scared little boy. Hungry for daddy’s love.” Ouch. It’s true but it still hurts. This is not helping Malcolm’s mental state. At all. Istg if we don’t get a Malcolm mental health crisis soon I’m going to have my own mental health crisis. Seriously. I want to see this boy lose it. I’m a monster. I know. I want ugly crying. I want panic attacks. I want him to go catatonic. I want someone to comfort him.

32:35 - Nat’s a good liar. Very convincing. Too bad Malcolm’s a good profiler.

33:53 - Check out Spider Monkey Malcolm. <3

34:14 - Earlier this episode when Malcolm said he can think ruthless but not be ruthless? This is the proof. He could’ve sat back and let Natalie kill Hoxley. In some ways - it would be good for Malcolm. But Malcolm’s not ruthless. He values human life. He’s an A+ dude. For better or for worse he tries to help people.

34:26 - Really Hoxley? Do you plan on stabbing Malcolm?!? (FYI - this scene is very reminiscent of Lockhart pulling his wand on Harry and Ron in the Chamber of Secrets #justsaying).

34:45 - “I’m going to be killed by a millennial. What a twist.” hahahhahahahahhaa

35:22 - “I’m British.” hahaha I love this scene so much.

37:14 - FINALLY THE PAPA!GIL CONTENT WE”VE BEEN WAITING FOR. (it’s weak but I’ll take it)

37:39 - AHHHH the fact that Gil and Malcolm are both non-verbally communicating that Natalie didn’t kill Endicott is killing me. Does Malcolm think that Gil hates him? Does Gil really think Malcolm killed Endicott? Or just that Malcolm covered it up? I NEED TO KNOW.

37:46 - Concerned!Gil and a hand on Malcolm’s shoulder. <3 <3 <3 My icy heart has melted.

37:54 - annnnnd Hoxley ruins the moment.

39:39 - I’m not content with this ending. It’s all too convenient. Hoxley still thinks Ainsley and Malcolm did it. Mark my words. This isn’t over.

39:53 - Ainsley is so smug here. I want to slap her. She’s elated that she’s getting away with murder. She doesn’t care about how it’s hurting her family.

40:00 - Did they really do the interview inside Jessica’s house?!?! Gross.

40:17- I might be the only one but I love that polo on Malcolm. Something about it is adorable.

40:22 - ......is Ainsley really trying to take credit for “putting this Endicott mess behind us”?!?! Because - she didn’t. OMG. She absolutely didn’t. Even if she did - she’s the reason they’re in the mess to being with!!!!!!! I can’t. I just....can’t.

40:45 - The episode ends right here for me. I know Capshaw and Martin kiss. It makes me want to hurl and I refuse to watch it again. I also know that Capshaw takes the scissors away from Martin. I think their whole dynamic is upsetting and creepy. I’m like 95% sure that Capshaw is a serial killer on the DL. Or at least some sort of psychopath. Martin and Capshaw are both manipulating each other and it’s too stressful to watch.

I didn’t love this episode. It was a bit all over the place. If you stuck around this long - thank you. I’ll see you guys next week. <3

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asterekmess · 3 years

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S3A - E8

I’m realizing just how damn far behind I am on working on season 3, but I don’t wanna skip any episodes of the rewatch, so let’s get to it! Double time, double time!

Content warnings for discussion of cannibalism.

Forewarning, this one is a doozy, so be prepared to Read More:

Lesgo!:

First thing’s first, Derek has experience with those awful sound thingies? Can you imagine how freaked he must’ve been seeing Chris bring those out when they were tracking Boyd and Erica?

Also, Chris Argent has been hunting Derek one way or another since he was a child. Even BEFORE Kate. Why the hell do we have a Derek & Chris broness in the later seasons? This kind of shit doesn’t just go away. I can’t believe I forgot about it.

I love how awkward sweet bby Derek is trying to run through the trees and tripping on branches everywhere. It’s honestly so much more realistic for a teenager than just the crazy cgi stuff. Also, since we know Derek is comfortable in the woods, it really gives you a hint as to how truly messed up he is from fear right now. He’s off balance in a dozen ways.

DEREK HAS BEEN WATCHING PEOPLE DIE IN FRONT OF HIM SINCE HE WAS 15. I’m gonna CRY. If I wanna hurt myself even More, you could argue that the Random Beta (RB) got shot bc he stopped to talk to Derek. So...guilty minds would assume Derek has been watching people die because of him since 15. I hate everything.

PETER comin’ in clutch. Also, hilarious that they use that arrow catching move so much.

I almost like how they tried to make Gerard look younger by just having him wear a douchey leather jacket instead of the serious grandpa one he wears in S2. He swaggers over to the body of RB, and it’s hilarious.

Okay, what is this bullshit about “Bring them back alive, we go by the code?” If you were going by the code then you wouldn’t be fucking hunting them AT ALL. They’re innocent! Why the fuck are you ‘bringing them back’ in the first place? Chris, you piece of shit. This is supposed to demonstrate that you’ve always been a stickler for the code, but all it does is emphasize how little that code actually means. “We hunt those who hunt us.” Fuck off, you hunt anything you deem ‘dangerous’ and find excuses to kill them so you can feel righteous.

Gonna casually note that RB was shot in the Throat with an arrow, but bc of makeup necessities they moved the arrow down to his chest when he’s shown on the ground. It’s funny. :)

It’s seriously so hard to hate Peter, do the writers realize that? Like, yes, he did horrible shit and I’m not denying that, but when you show him running into the hunter-filled woods to save his nephew’s life at 24 years old, then hiding with him in a cellar for two fucking days when he could probably have escaped on his own, it’s hard to see him as a heartless bastard.

I’m almost afraid to find out why Cora knows the details. Can you imagine? She would’ve been, what, 9-10? Her big brother and uncle both go missing for two days after a hunt and she had to stay at home waiting for someone to say they’d found their bodies. God, the lives of the Hales are so fucked up.

The rain is really making the mood here.

I gotta say, I’m confused about this initial Cora-Stiles interaction. He goes on about everyone who’s died or nearly died, but then Cora assumes he wants Derek to do something about the deaths, and Stiles agrees? Except that Derek currently fits the COD that all the other sacrifices have hit. Missing for about two days. Everything Stiles has said implies that he’s worried Derek is also dead. I don’t get why they go with ‘I’m worried about the missing man that I’ve been helping for the last four months because I blame him for the Alphas even coming to town”?

One thing they got on point here is just how disgusting they made Gerard. The slime and the spitting and ugh *shudders* it’s just so gross.

I’m also...I think intrigued is the right word--that they shoved this whole story into the episode without ever addressing the fact that Derek IS missing and they should go looking for him or something. It starts with Stiles asking where the hell he is, but then everything else is about this past moment. Talk about going off on a tangent. I mean, I don’t blame them, but if I shoved this much character background into one chapter people would call me out for the infodump that it is.

Which is all this episode is. Info-dumped exposition. Here’s how werewolves were made. Here’s why Derek’s cranky. Here’s why Duke’s an asshole. Here’s why the Hales are ‘special’

Again, I don’t blame them. It’s just...a lot.

Just a tiny thing: Why do they both roll up their sleeves when Scott only has to touch Gerard’s hand?

It is also very hard to believe that either Allison or Scott are remotely good people when they’re both lying to everyone about Gerard’s existence.

*finger guns, bc now i have to use the tag* I think this is the longest I’ve ever gotten before using it.

Another thing: Why does Gerard make the gross noises like he’s in pain, when we know it doesn’t hurt to get the pain taken away from him? It certainly didn’t hurt that lady in the ER.

I know this is a weird thing to notice, but I find it interesting that Paige is wearing actual makeup. Not just the ‘natural’ look, but eyeshadow that’s visibly dark. *shrug*

Is she Actually playing the cello? The notes Don’t look like they match up with her bowing and fingerings.

HA that music cut in is fucking Hilarious. Derek turns around like he’s in a teen rom-com, with that casual “I never stop smiling all the way bc I’m the coolest guy around” grin and the music just WHAM. That’s right, Derek Hale used to be a JOCK. He didn’t used to be ‘a lot like Scott.’ He was a lot like JACKSON.

So, this group of cronies Derek has. What is that about? He’s gotta have that posse just like Jackson did in S1? Unnamed people to cackle at his jokes.

Paige’s face, right there? That is the SHIT for me. That’s not hidden attraction, that’s genuinely “What the fuck is my life, why are you so lame?” and I am LIVING for it.

Derek peacocking is also hilarious. Peacocking so hard he (THE WEREWOLF) didn’t notice that she’d left the hall, is even more so.

I hate to tell you this Paige, but THAT is where I could tell you liked him. Giving in to his bullshit offer was the first step, that look on your face when he said, “Hold on” was Blatant “Holy shit, my crush wants to talk to me” but then all you idiots did was make eye contact. Paige, if you’re trying to get the ball, try looking away from those pretty eyes, okay?

Derek, you always go too far. You can see Paige lose interest when she realizes that he’s not actually into Her, he’s into showing off.

OOOF, i guess they weren’t such good friends after all, cus’ they left when Paige did.

I also feel the need to point out Derek is WEARING A CHECKERED SHIRT. *inarticulate screaming* Everyone who makes jokes about him thinking plaid is disgusting owes me five bucks bc he CLEARLY didn’t think checkers/plaid were that bad when he was in high school.

I’ll admit...the instant sorry is like...really good. If they’d had him come in and be More of a dick and then end up together, I’d be a lot more bugged. But his First real introduction to her is an apology.

THEN he goes back to being a dick. But at least this time it’s not about him, he wants to know about Her.

And I LOVE the turnaround! THIS is flirting. THIS is cute teasing. She plays his game Back at him, shows her own skill and forces him to get on her level. Then he weasels out of it, but in a Cute Way.

If there’s one thing that I’m routinely impressed by in TW it’s the scoring. They’re Really good with music to fit the moods and the vibes of the whole episode. For instance, all the transition music in this episode is Cello, bc it’s about Paige.

I hate agreeing with Gerard on Anything, but he makes a good point about the Dark Druid taking and killing someone else right alongside Deaton. Why would she take 4 people when she only needed three? She wouldn’t know that Deaton got a message out or that Scott would save Deaton. Plus the addition of the mountain ash circle is kind of weird, don’t you think?

Yah, I have no clue why your body is producing anything Either. You literally make no sense and you shouldn’t be alive. Period. Bringing you back was a lazy way to have someone who could be a sub-sub plot and hand out exposition and red herrings that are totally useless.

HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT GERARD? You weren’t There when Deucalion found out he could still see with his Alpha Eyes (Which makes no sense btw, he doesn’t have TWO sets of eyes???) and if you’d interacted with Deuc since then he’d have ripped you to shreds.

SERIOUSLY people, why the FUCK are we getting this information from Gerard when it makes WAY more sense for Deaton to tell them this? He was THERE for the whole thing!

I get that the point of the episode is supposed to be “Unreliable Narrators” (The whole show has an unreliable narrator.) but you had that covered with Peter’s story. You could’ve Instilled TRUST in Deaton by making a contrast and having Deaton TELL THEM THE TRUTH. Show the difference between reliable and unreliable. Gerard doesn’t need to be here!

Stiles, asking the real questions.

AND GETTING THE MOST BULLSHIT ANSWER IN THE UNIVERSE.

Could these writers GET any lazier? Put some fucking effort in and give us some information about Werewolves IN YOUR WEREWOLF TV SHOW.

What the fuck were Paige and Derek into that they knew where an abandoned distillery was when it wasn’t even in TOWN? And you’re telling me they left town every time they wanted to make out? Even worse, are you implying they had SEX in that distillery? And then trying to tell me that none of the fucking Alphas and their packs noticed the smell of Derek and his girlfriend all over the building?

...what...do people seriously not remember being teenagers? What the fuck Peter? In what fucking universe is “one minute it’s ‘i hate you, don’t talk to me’ the next it’s frantic groping in any dark corner’ remotely accurate to real life?

Teenagers in the majority don’t DO that. I really fucking hate that all teenagers are made out to be like this. Like they’re “run by their hormones” and “everything is sex to you” STOP. Seriously, STOP. Saying shit like that completely negates the fact that Teenagers are Real fucking People. They’re not just buckets of hormones and sweat that need to be shaped into an adult. They’re fucking PEOPLE and reducing them to sex-crazed idiots is lazy and stupid.

Are you ALSO telling me that the hunters dragged RB’s DEad Body to an abandoned building, then strung the corpse up and cut it in half? AND that someone happened to go the abandoned building and found the body and called the cops, or that they MOVEd the two halves somewhere they would be found, Or that They were the ones to call and report the body?

Has teen wolf got even a Single brain cell?

ALSO, what the fuck is this timeline? Derek and Peter went missing for two days after RB was killed, but the packs don’t get together to discuss RB’s death until After Derek has run out of the building with Paige because he could smell blood from RB being hemisected. So, they waited at Least two days before talking to each other about RB’s death? And Derek apparently recovered Instantaneously from his two day nightmare and went right back to macking on his girlfriend and laughing freely the Day he was found? Or did they wait even longer? I��m so fucking confused!

Okay, you tell me that this place is their favorite makeout/groping spot, but they seriously just walk in the door and start kissing in the middle of the room? You guys didn’t bring some blankets and pillows here? You’re gonna stand there the whole time?

WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU MAKING PETER A PERVERT? He was fucking watching his nephew make out with his girlfriend through the wall??? WHat is WRONG with you?

ALSO, Cora was alive and active in Derek’s life at that point. She wasn’t That young. She could easily point out that Peter being Derek’s best friend is total bullshit if it weren’t actually true. Which means Peter is telling the TRUTH here. Hell, she doesn’t call out his heartbeat for lies the entire time, and while they imply at the end of the episode that Really Good Liars can just force their heart to be steady while lying so they don’t get caught, that isn’t a thing for the entire rest of the show. Derek trusts KATE when she says she’s not lying. So the evidence actually points toward Peter telling the TRUTH in this entire episode.

THAT is accurate to teenagers. Using the word “like” and “liking” so many times in a conversation that it doesn’t even sound like a word anymore.

Paige...dude, I’m so torn. Like I’m glad you’re being honest with Derek about your worries, but also it’s a complete dick move to just Assume that he’s gonna bail? To say to his face that you Know he’s leaving you and you’re just waiting for it? Fucking rude.

Ennis...bro...how exactly did your Beta “Accidentally” kill a hunter? How would that happen?

AGAIN WITH THE TIMELINE. If the packs only CAME to beacon hills because of Ennis issue with the hunters, why was RB running through beacon hills when he was killed?

Also, side note: Where are all of these werewolves staying? Are they territorial so they like, all claimed different hotels to take over? Or do they not mind, and THAT’S why the Hale house is so big for such a small family? Because they had a ton of guest rooms for packs that visited to get that sweet, sweet Hale Wisdom?

I firmly believe that werewolves are clothing-optional people. Talia straight shifts into a naked human form in front of over a dozen other wolves.

Also, where the hell is the Hale pack here? Some random chick comes up and gives Talia a robe, but that person is standing with Deuc’s pack. So....what?

I’m so curious about the formation the wolves make when they hear Talia coming. Everybody backs away, except Deucalion. And they do this weird focus on his face as he watches her come in. And her eye contact is JUST with him.

OH GROSS. DID DEUC HAVE A THING FOR DEREK’S MOM????

I will admit that watching things with subtitles sometimes ruins the surprise. There’s that little pause before “I’m just a deputy” like it was supposed to be shocking to the audience, but the subtitle on Amazon Prime just Pops up right away and it kind of ruins the effect.

Here we go! The one piece of concrete information on “Packs” and “pack members” that we’re given in the whole fucking show. Word for Word. “Losing a member of your pack isn’t like losing family, it’s like you lose a limb.”

That is....severe. Now imagine that your entire family IS your pack. And losing almost every one of them. Is it any wonder that Cora, Peter, and Derek are so messed up? That they’re so dark and wounded looking?

I s2g sometimes Peter literally just sounds like he’s a self-insert for the writers. He explains shit that the writer’s are showing Really Badly as if to wave away the fact that the Ennis flashback is pretty much Completely unnecessary. “You just don’t understand my artistic genius, it’s never just a single moment, it’s a confluence of events. I have to show you all these random flashbacks because you need to understand why Derek is soaked in MANPAIN all the time. Which is totally relevant to the current plot bc....bc....bc ART (and also Tyler Hoechlin was busy so we could only get one shot of him for the entire episode)”

That is just the cutest shit oh my god. Derek listens to Paige’s music while he’s in class and doing homework. THAT is love, you realize? He doesn’t just deal with her dedication to her music, he loves it.

THat little wince when he says “Are you sure about that?” Paige knows he’s gonna screw with her.

THAT IS A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP. He gives her space! She likes studying during lunch so he Leaves her Alone. I LIKE IT.

What do you mean “Laura told you about the packs being here.” Derek KNOWS they’re here because he watched RB DIE IN THE WOODS. Seriously, I”M SO CONFUSED.

FUN FACT (that I might’ve already shared) Oak wood was liked by the Celts because it was really sturdy and hardy and bore food, but it wasn’t their favorite type of wood! Rowan was the favorite, and Irish pagan practitioners used to sleep in rowan trees so they could have prophetic dreams. After that, it was Hazelwood. :P

I...do not enjoy when they bring up the Celtic Druids. *Scuttles to get my textbook bc this is my nerd shit*

“We’re in a Nemeton” This is the correct wording, actually! A “Nemeton” isn’t a thing, it’s a “sacred meeting place” as Chris calls it. Go chris! Nemeton refers to the entire grove/area around the main tree.

I can’t speak to whether they chose a ‘Large, older tree in a grove” but it does make sense bc if we’re talking about Oaks they were a symbol of food and safety (acorns were a staple to Celtic diets) so choosing an older tree would not only look more impressive, but it would probably bear more acorns for the clan.

“It would represent the center of the world” *Puts on vine voice* THat is NOt Correct! The tree at the center of the Nemeton was called a “crann bethadh” or “Tree of Life” and it was essentially a Totem that marked the center of the tribe’s territory. It was not ‘the center of the world’ it was the center of THEIR world. Their land.

“There was a belief that cutting or harming the tree would cause serious problems for the surrounding villages” Not sure if ‘villages’ is the correct term for the era, but the rest of it sounds like a close mistranslation. See, in Ireland there were raids people would do against other clans where the SOLE PURPOSE was to destroy their crann bethadh, because it was demoralizing. It’s like graffiti-ing the front of a church. But technically, it WAS severely frowned upon to harm the tree in any way.

This is mostly because in most Celtic areas, Oak trees were considered symbols of the “Father of the Sky” or the “God of Thunder.” Of course you don’t wanna piss off Thunder man.

Also, you notice how I’m saying CELTS and not DRUIDS. It’s because DRUID isn’t a cultural label, it’s a SOCIAL CLASS. It’s like saying “The Educated”

Okay, back to the--OH WAIT. Before anyone gets any ideas, the blood on the crann bethadh isn’t human. Estonian Celts smeared animal blood on the tree roots as an assurance for rain and good harvests. This is the same concept as TONS of other religions, including Christianity. (Abraham was supposed to sacrifice his son, Isaac, to God, but God stopped him and had him sacrifice a Ram instead. So, Yes. Christians used to perform animal sacrifices.)

NOW back to the show.

THe fact that gerard doesn’t know this stuff implies that Chris is the nerd of the family.

I LIKE THIS. I hate that I like it bc it’s Gerard, but I LIKE IT. Gerard gets up from his wheelchair. He doesn’t need it All the Time.

I’ve never seen another show that bothered to have a wheelchair user who wasn’t wheelchair-bound, which is stupid because it’s Very Common for people using wheelchairs to not need them all the time.

though it does beg the question of why he’s sitting in a wheelchair when he’s in his own bedroom? Was he going somewhere? Or did he know he wouldn’t have enough chairs and didn’t want Allison or Scott to sit in his chair?

The story of Lycaon, who was considered a savage ruler of Arcadia and Zeus went to his house disguised as a human (this is v common in myth) to find out if he was batshit. Lycaon and his FIFTY SONS (he also had one daughter) wanted to know if the stranger was a human or a mortal, so they fed him human flesh in stew. Zeus flipped shit and blasted the room with thunderbolts, murdering all but one of Lycaon’s sons, and then turned Lycaon into a wolf.

So...this whole ‘myth of lycaon’ is totally fucked up when it didn’t need to be? Like, they didn’t NEED to change it to make it a messed up origin story of wolves. It already was.

There’s three major versions to choose from

Lycaon was a pius man who founded the city of Lycosura on Mount Lycaeus and used a child as a sacrifice to Zeus, thinking it would please him. Zeus flips shit and turns Lycaon into a wolf. FROM THEN ON; at every sacrifice made to zeus a man was transformed into a wolf and if he managed to restrain himself from eating human flesh for 8-9 years, he would be turned human again.

The same story as the first, except Lycaon Knew Zeus was in disguise and the child he fed him was Zeus’ own son, and it was revenge for seducing his only daughter Callisto.

If you want to make it match what you’ve already said about wolves in the show, they could’ve used the last one and it would’ve demonstrated how Ingrained the concept of vendetta/revenge is for wolves.

If you wanted to focus on the Turning Human part and working with Celtic Druids to learn to become werewolves, you could’ve used the second one.

there was no reason to add in the bullshit about Prometheus except as an excuse to make Deucalion look like he picked his name to be an asshole, which he fucking didn’t.

I’m so sorry about all the classical shit (i’m really not) but I studied it in college and I can’t just let this bullshit stand.

I’ll give them a pass on the ‘the lesser known part’ bc it’s technically plausible for the wolves to have run north to the Celts and beg for help, And the Druids (those who’s education was specifically in magic, not all of them) were known for shapeshifting (though not usually into animals. They did that to Other people, not themselves)

I cannot believe this is so long, i’m so sorry.

But WHY tho, Cora? How is an Emissary supposed to keep you connected to humanity if No ONe KNows Who They Are?? How are they supposed to do their job??

Yeah, well now Deaton is a sour bitch who has a chip on his shoulder against the Hale pack so like...fuck his advice.

I will say though! Pre-fire Deaton doesn’t give me the heebies like post-fire Deaton. He’s much more clear about the advice he’s giving, and it’s actually helpful! He still has a dumb little anecdote/parable about the scorpion and the frog (which...in most circumstances I hate. It doesn’t even match what happens) but he gives Real Advice instead of vague asshole nonsense.

“I’m an Alpha, I never walk alone.” I have an inordinate affection for this line.

Paige is clearly some kinda bad bitch if she thought nothing of going to hang out in the school in the middle of the night with Derek.

Okay, but like...why would he attack Ennis like that if he was the one who asked him to bite Paige? And why is the moment played up “A fifteen-year-old boy against a giant” Derek was literally swatted to the side while Ennis walked out of the building. this wasn’t some big showdown.

If she’d already been bitten, why was Ennis still grabbing at her??

....seriously? Peter is literally right there? And no one noticed?

Again with the “Scott is a genius now” LIsten, bro, why the fuck would Scott know a sanskrit fable? If he Did know a story like that, it would be bc Deaton taught him. In which case he would know the FROG and the scorpion. Come on, guys.

OH MY GOD GERARD DOES IT TOO. GERARD, PETER, AND DEUC all have a CHRONIC case of verbal diarrhea when they’re trying to be intimidating.

I do NOT understand this warehouse scene. It’s a GAS gerard, if you stabbed yourself with some sort of...antidote or whatever it wouldn’t save you from the GAS you’re inhaling. At the very least you would be shouting like everyone else because it HURTS going in.

why did it take so long for Talia to come? It’s implied that Peter left to get her, so why did it take so long? Even PAST peter looks fucked up at seeing that Paige is dying, it’s not like he would wait.

I’ll be real, i get weepy so i’m skipping the actual death. Just know that it hurts me. Severely.

Y’all know how much I hate this ‘innocent life’ bullshit for blue eyes. It’s very True Alpha-y in that it’s impossible to pin down the specifics. What constitutes an ‘innocent life’? What constitutes taking it? With wolf claws? With a gun? What counts and what doesn’t count? Ugh.

Eyyy, so I’m exhausted and this is so long that my computer is fritzing. There are five minutes left and nothing happens in them at all. Just Scott pointing out the heartbeat thing and threatening to kill Gerard (so he’s still fine with murder at this point in time. Good to know). Stiles telling Cora that he doesn’t think Peter was telling the truth (which she would Know if he wasn’t) and that he’s gonna ask Derek about it (which we never got to see). And Deucalion murdering his own Beta (who, tbf, tried to kill him first. Which, again, what the fuck is up with Deaton’s office that wolves are able to rip each other apart in it, but it’s still ‘hard for someone like Scott to cause me any trouble.’ I’m just so confused

Final Thoughts: This episode actually had some interesting stuff in it, which is kind of sad considering there was no PLOT, just Exposition. I look forward to tweezing the bits out that I want and dumping the rest in the garbage where it belongs. Oh, and like I said, the music was on Point.

#personal #anti-Scott McCall #TeenWolf-Rewatch #long post

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k-s-morgan · 4 years

Note

Love your tomarry fics. I also follow your thoughts on Merlin, and I was inspired by your posts to jump on the Hannibal wagon. I liked it, it's weird and beautiful but I am still confused with the characters. Which moment did Will decide to support Hannibal in season 2 is blurry to me, he was playing along nicely I seem to be missing which moment did he honestly like/love Hannibal ! Will seemed to be angry and hating Hannibal is all I got :( Season 3 last scene was the only exception.

Part 2 of the question. I have also huge doubts about several things. Does Hannibal really 'love' Will in any capacity ? If yes then why did he abuse him relentlessly ? Does Will love him - He tries to catch him in s-2 but fails because he becomes disoriented when Abigail shows up. Then tries to kill him and finally gets married, Will seemed to love his wife and child a lot, then suddenly at the end he embraces Hannibal.

Final question - minor doubts. What meat did Will bring to Hannibal ? Because Freddie was later not-dead :D ! How did Hannibal not recognise the meat as not-human ? I think it's a plothole. Once I watched the series I ended up shipping Alana with Will, the two kindred souls.

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

Hello! Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed my story, and it’s great that you decided to watch this show)) That said, I do think you need to watch it again! It’s a complex one, and many people realize its nuances only after several re-watches.

Will never hated Hannibal. Even in the first half of S2, when he was feeling betrayed and thought Hannibal doesn’t care about him, he couldn’t bring himself to feel hatred. He says as much to Peter in E8, admitting that he envies him his hate because killing Hannibal would have been much easier if he hated him. Hannibal is the only person who understands Will. You mentioned Alana, but she and Will are absolutely incompatible. Will craves normalcy, but he isn’t a normal person, and his feelings for Alana were only ever superficial, considering how he acts toward her and how he doesn’t give a damn about her at all in S3, easily risking her life. Alana was a socially acceptable potential partner, but she didn’t have what Will needed: darkness, the ability to understand it, and willingness to accept it in Will.

When Will is released from prison, he makes a plan to entrap Hannibal, but he’s drawn to him more and more. He’s genuine in most of their discussions, such as the ones about their loneliness, Will’s love for murder, darkness as a concept, etc. Will doesn’t take chances to arrest Hannibal when he can because he enjoys being with him too much. He set him up to be killed by Mason, but when his death became the real possibility, he changed his mind and saved him. Then he covered for him by lying to Jack - they agreed Will would arrest Hannibal when he tried to kill Mason, but Will did and said nothing. Will fully chose Hannibal in S2 finale when he called him. This is how he explains it later:

Will: I wasn’t decided when I called him. I just called him. I decided when I heard his voice. I told him to leave because I wanted him to run. Because he was my friend... and because I wanted to run away with him.

So, Will didn’t become disoriented after seeing Abigail. He already chose Hannibal and he wanted him to leave. He rushed to his house and took out a gun after hearing Jack is inside - he never pointed it at him. He directly tells Hannibal:

Will: You were supposed to leave!

Will chose Hannibal but it was too late, and he got his heart broken just like he broke Hannibal’s. He also dreams about murdering Jack with Hannibal as the version of his perfect world. Will has always been a closeted killer, and Hannibal gives him the freedom to be who he is. Will admits it further in S3:

Will: I’ve never known myself as well as I know myself when I’m with him.

In E2 of S3, Will keeps talking to himself about how much he wants to go to Hannibal still, how he shouldn’t have lied to him, and how they should have left together. He forgives him, he appreciates his gift (a Valentine heart), and he’s trying to find him. This episode is a huge love confession from Will to Hannibal. His attitude begins to change only after he meets Chiyoh and Bedelia, thinking he has been replaced and getting bitter and angry again.

I’m curious, in what scenes did you feel like Will loved Molly and Walter? Because his marriage is deliberately shown as weak. He and Molly share about two nice scenes where they are smiling and laughing, but other than that, there is no closeness. Will doesn’t go fishing with them, even though he loves it and dreamed of doing it with Abigail; he doesn’t return Molly’s “I love you”; he doesn’t initiate physical contact with her, which is a contrast to his behavior toward Hannibal, and he leaves her at the first opportunity. We know he never told her the truth about who he is - she easily jokes about him having the criminal mind, having no idea how dark and dangerous this topic is for Will, who delights in murder and who killed, mutilated, and ate people (bringing and cooking the meat of one of them with Hannibal willingly). He reunites with Hannibal at the first chance and he leaves Molly and Walter after the attack, concentrating on his feelings for Hannibal instead. He plots with Francis, who tried to kill Molly and Walter, and leaks information about the transfer to him, setting loose two dangerous killers at once - killers who targeted his family. It’s not something Will cares about, which proves how cold and self-centered he usually is. Molly and Walter come from nowhere (we have no idea how they met, how their relationship developed, etc.) and they disappear when their use runs out.

Hannibal loves Will with all his heart. He sacrifices his reputation, freedom, and life for him. He didn’t abuse him, although his S1 behavior may indeed be seen as such. From the start, Hannibal’s intention was to help Will Become, accepting his real self. He used his illness in S1 to blur his self-control and make him understand who he is. Starting with S2, when Will’s aware of everything, Hannibal is the one being manipulated. He’s loyal to Will - the only times he hurts him happen after Will hurts him first, like in S2 finale or in E6 of S3. Their relationship is mutually violent. But Hannibal learns from his mistakes sooner. By E7 of S3, he realizes he doesn’t want to live without Will, so he admits Will’s victory over him and gives himself up, hoping that one day, Will is going to choose him, too. He agrees to his TWOTL plan despite knowing it might involve his death, shields Will from the bullet, and allows him to push them down. He stays with him after they survive and they hunt Bedelia together.

Will brought Hannibal’s Randall’s meat, so it’s not a plot hole. We saw him store his butchered parts in his fridge.

If you’re interested, you can see more about the evolution of Will’s feelings for Hannibal and Hannibal’s love for Will here https://k-s-morgan.tumblr.com/post/618023666166464512/wills-vs-hannibals-ways-of-expressing-love.

Hope that clears up things a bit!

#hannibal #will graham #hannigram

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alloverthegaf · 4 years

Note

I'm in the mood to watch old episodes of criminal minds, do you have suggestions? Preferably from seasons 1-12 cause that's all that's on the us netflix. And also preferably ones that heavily feature Spencer cause he's my baby

“preferably ones that feature Spencer” BABE I GOT YOU

S1 E6 LDSK: Hotch and Reid become hostages in an emergency room

S1 E9 Derailed: Elle gets trapped on a train with an unsub but Reid goes in to save the day

S1 E10 The Popular Kids: not hugely Reid heavy but near the end the unsub holds him at gunpoint in front of Morgan

S1 E18 Somebody’s Watching: A Hollywood actress is targeted and she and Reid experience a bit of a romance

S1 E22/S2 E1 The Fischer King: an unsub targeting the team personally brings out the identity and the mental/health issues with Reid’s mother. Near the end Reid is the one to try and diffuse the unsub, and get hurt because of it

S2 E7 North Mammon: not Reid focused but in my opinion an excellent episode

S2 E8 Empty Planet: the unsub’s goals are based off a book Reid knows back to front

S2 E10 Lessons Learned: again, not entirely Reid focused, but he with Gideon and Prentiss travel to Guantanamo to interview a prisoner, very interesting and exciting episode

S2 E14/15 The Big Game/Revelations: in the first episode the unsub and his murders are analysed but in the second Reid has been kidnapped by the unsub and the team spend the episode searching for him while also seeing what is being done to him. The next few episodes do look at Reid’s trauma, coping methods, and recovery from this experience.

S3 E2 In Birth and Death: Reid is concerned because Gideon has gone missing

S3 E10 True Night: again, not Reid focused, but great episode

S3 E12 3rd Life: at the end Reid is the one who tries to talk down the unsub

S3 E16 Elephant’s Memory: while dealing with a recovering addiction, Reid and the team find themselves tracking an unsub who was treated horribly by his parents and peers. Reid empathises with the unsub, making dangerous decisions and keeping things from the team in the process. He also has a moment with Morgan where he describes a traumatic moment of his high school experience.

S4 E3 Minimal Loss: Reid and Prentiss go undercover at a cult the same time local authorities decide to raid the place

S4 E6/7 The Instincts/Memoriam: a case in Reid’s home of Las Vegas causes him to have dreams about an unsolved case from when he was a kid, which prompts him to find and confront his father

S4 E8 Masterpiece: while mostly about Rossi, this episode does start with the unsub acting fascinated in and wanting to interact with Reid. Also just a good episode.

S4 E11 Normal: not a Reid episode, but a very good one

S4 E16: a Hotch focuses episode, but again, really good

S4 E19 House on Fire: again, not Reid focused, but great

S4 E20 Conflicted: a good episode by itself, the unsub ends up bringing old traumatic memories up for Reid that he discusses with Morgan at the end

S4 E24 Amplification: the unsub releases a strain of anthrax in various places. Reid ends up contracting it while still managing to help solve the crime and find the unsub.

I can give another list if you need more after season 4! Just give me some time, lmao, cuz this took me a while. I’m not complaining though, I enjoyed compiling this.

#criminal minds #spencer reid #asks #chaoticeddie

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thethirdwheel404 · 4 years

Text

What is the Med Rewatch Series?

if you’re new here, I started this new series where I rewatch parts of the show Chicago Med, in order to defend the honor of my favorite character, Ava Bekker, who the writers absolutely destroyed. it’s a crime.

The rewatch is ongoing, I watched the first and last episodes of season 2 because Ava is referenced in the first episode, and makes her first appearance in the last. Then I watch all the episodes of season 3 that she appears in.

If you’re interested...

The reason I am rewatching after avoiding the show for two years is because I recently developed a theory explaining why Ava’s behavior is so erratic over the course of the series. My theory posits that at the end of season 3 when Connor is offered the job at the Mayo Clinic, the storyline resolves with Connor somehow giving Ava the job offer, and she leaves the show. The only reason she stayed (and had the messy messy s4 storyline) was because she had become such a fan favorite character. They had never planned for her to stay for more than a season.

This theory then has a flipside, where at the end of season 3, what would have happened if Connor had really just... left? In my mind, this means that Ava fills the necessary surgeon role and becomes the ‘main character’ of the show, the same way Connor was.

After I finish the rewatch, I plan on doing a rewrite of a little bit of season 3 and a lot of season 4, in the world where Ava actually gets to be a good character. (I have already rewritten a scene from S3 E2, which you can read here, and I have written tiny things throughout my notes on each episode)

So, the rewatch series is basically me gathering evidence for my big theory, and then my subsequent conclusion.

Here are the links to each episode, and a brief explanation on why each is important:

Part 1

S2 E1: Soul Cares. This is the first reference to Ava in the series, when Dr. Latham explains to Connor how Ava (or, at this time the young woman from Groote-Schuur) was actually Latham’s first choice. I expand on how important it is that Ava was mentioned a full season before she first appeared, that level of planning and self-control is unprecedented for Med.

Part 2

S2 E23: Love Hurts. Ava’s first appearance on the show. Her first impressions are... strong. One of my additional arguments is that Ava was always meant to be a groundbreaking character. The fact that Ava is Connor’s rival means that she should be strong enough to take his place on the show, because they are equals. This episode has a lot of good commentary, just because I named all the additional points about Ava that we comment on moving forward.

Part 3

S3 E1: Speak Your Truth. This episode wasn’t that big for Ava, so I mostly comment on other storylines. In this episode. Ava ends up stealing Connor’s surgery (but I talk about how that isn’t really that bad, and how it doesn’t mean Ava is malicious).

Part 4

S3 E2: Nothing To Fear. This was a pretty cool Ava episode. This is the episode with the scene where Ava brings Connor coffee while he looks exhausted in the cafeteria. In this ep, one of Connor’s previous patients comes back with complications. I talk about how Connor’s behavior (and Latham’s as well) towards Ava in this episode is really unfair. (and I wrote a little reesker scene for this episode)

Part 5

S3 E3: Trust Your Gut. In this episode, Connor is super controlling and Ava just takes it in stride. I also talk about how in the beginning of the episode Ava is just casually in the scene, which is what I want for her. I want her to just be always there, doing her own thing. Ava also shows an immense amount of concern towards her patient, being super empathetic and not psychopathic at all.

Part 6

S3 E4: Naughty Or Nice. Ava doesn’t have a lot of lines in this ep, but I talk a lot about different subtle nuances, like how she seems to express sympathy for Robin. She has a bunch of fun one-liners, too. Also, at the end of this ep, Ava asks Connor out for drinks, and I explain that one away as well, so, pat on the back.

Part 7

S3 E7: Over Troubled Water. This is hands-down the best Ava episode in the series, and I am confident in that claim. This is the episode where her and Connor go out to help the guy who’s leg got pinned under the building. She has more fun lines, a moment to shine when she comforts the patient, and this is the episode with her hair in a braid, so... I don’t have a lot of words on this one, just because the character redemption is so obvious.

Part 8

S3 E8: Lemons And Lemonade. This episode is also really good because it is just more of Ava teasing Connor. This is the one where Connor shows up with his swanky sports car, and Norma in this episode is just... brillant. I claimed that the previous episode was the one that made the audience fall in love with Ava, and then I said that this episode was the one that made us think she’s a lesbian. And it’s true. She teases Connor for his car, and even compliments him on the girl he flirts with. This makes the brotp true for me. (I also wrote a small little reesker thing mixed into the commentary here)

Part 9

S3 E9: On Shaky Ground. This is the episode with Ava’s mentor, where he convinces the team to perform open heart surgery on him while he is still conscious. This episode shows us a different side to Ava, where we see what happens when Ava actually cares what someone thinks of her.

Part 10

S3 E10: Down By Law. This is the episode where Connor brings in the lady who he just had a one night stand with for a workup and Ava gives him shit for it. This is also the episode where the patient’s husband hugs her, but she pawns it off to Connor. This episode has a lot of small, little Ava moments that I talk about a lot (I also write a small little thing about Maggie giving Ava an energy drink). And it contributes a lot to the idea of Ava being a stand alone character, independent of Connor.

Part 11

S3 E11: Folie À Deux. This is the episode where Connor and Ava first kiss, which, yeah, awful, but this is the part that I have devoted myself to rewriting, so it’s good for the rewrite. I help explain alternate routes the show should have taken, and how they make sense for Ava’s character, because the craziest thing med did was they created a brilliant character, and in her characterization, it’s like they almost forget she was supposed to be a love interest, because the theories I offer are far more satisfying and make much more sense.

Part 12

S3 E12: Born This Way. This is a very interesting episode regarding the theory. It is the episode after they sleep together, and it is also the episode where she gives her legendary speech about how ‘if you make a decision out of love, it’s never really wrong’. I give an explanation that is compliant with the theory about why Ava actually slept with him, which is very interesting, and a conclusion that I quite enjoy. This was a good episode, and I do hope you read this one.

Extra

S3 E5: Mountains and Molehills. This one is a bonus episode because I watched it without realizing Ava wasn’t in it, so if you enjoy the commentary part of the rewatch, check it out.

#chicago med #med rewatch series #mine #this takes so much brain power lmao #i fucking love it tho #thanks for sticking through

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penniesforthestorm · 4 years

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Twin Peaks Recap, Special Edition: “...Fire Walk With Me“

Greetings, friends, and welcome to a special one-off edition of my ongoing Twin Peaks recaps. This will cover the events of the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, in its original theatrical cut. I wrote two pages’ worth of notes for this; I’m not going to copy everything here because, even though this is largely a self-indulgent project, I do want to make it at least somewhat intelligible. For those who haven’t been following along, here’s a link to my recaps for Season 2 of the original series. I will be continuing in the same format for The Return. I’m not overly concerned with “solving” anything, necessarily, but there are certain patterns I want to follow, and one or two theories I’m developing, which should play out over the course of all of this. I’ll place a general spoiler warning here-- if you’re new to the series, I highly, highly recommend watching Seasons 1 & 2 of the show first, with Fire Walk With Me serving as a bridge between those and The Return. I think that covers it; now, to the business at hand...

Part One: “Are you talking about that little girl who got murdered?”

-The film opens with a TV set falling to the floor and breaking- this calls to mind the mysterious ‘black box’ in The Return

-Gordon Cole calls FBI Agents Chet Desmond (Chris Isaak) and Sam Stanley (Kiefer Sutherland) to Deer Meadow, Oregon, to investigate the murder of Teresa Banks, and via the coded instructions of Lil the Dancer, we learn that they won’t have much help once they get there. Unlike the relative efficiency and civic-mindedness of the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Department, the Deer Meadow office is under an almost impenetrable malaise- the deputy, the receptionist, & the sheriff all being in cahoots.

-Desmond & Stanley conduct Teresa’s autopsy themselves, discovering her now-missing ring and the scrap of paper under her fingernail. Off to Hap’s Diner, again, a kind of “dark mirror” to the cozy RR. In the entryway, under a flashing striplight, we can see the figures of two Woodsmen. They do get a few answers about Teresa- she had a cocaine habit, and before her death, complained of numbness in her left arm.

-Off to the Fat Trout Trailer Park, with its exasperated owner Carl Rodd (Harry Dean Stanton, my one true love). He shows them Teresa’s trailer, seeming more nervous and upset by the minute. “I’ve already gone places. I just wanna stay where I am.” Later, Desmond returns, and finds Teresa’s ring under her trailer. He reaches for it, and disappears.

Part Two: “We’re not gonna talk about Judy at all.”

-At the FBI office in Philadelphia, it’s 10:10 a.m. on February 16th, and Special Agent Dale Cooper is worried. “It’s about that dream I had,” he explains to Gordon.

-Enter Philip Jeffries (David Bowie), an agent who has been MIA for some time. He indicates Cooper- “Who do you think this is, there?” and we are taken into a vision: a room “above the store” populated by familiar figures-- old Mrs. Tremond and her grandson, the Man from Another Place, Mike, the Woodsmen, and BOB. Then, we see the red-curtained “waiting room” of the Black Lodge. Somehow, Jeffries passed through both of these places. He, too, vanishes.

-Cole sends Coop to Deer Meadow, to track down the missing Agent Desmond. Cooper has a bit of an easier time with Carl-- he knows how to appreciate a cup of “Good mornin’ America”. They find Desmond’s car, with “Let’s Rock” scrawled on the windshield. Coop is curious about a nearby empty lot-- “An old woman and her grandson,” Carl tells him. “Chalfont.” (Side note: for a while, there was a band in my hometown called The Chalfonts; I didn’t know the reference then, but I wish I had.)

-And with that, suddenly, we’re in Twin Peaks, WA, one year later, and somehow, in this part of the Pacific Northwest in the middle of February, the deciduous trees have all their leaves and the grass is green...

-Donna Heyward is played here by Moira Kelly, replacing Lara Flynn Boyle. She does a great job, and is arguably more believable as a high-school student, but I kinda miss Boyle’s icy edge. I do love the way she talks about James Hurley, wistfully saying how true his love for Laura is...

-Key moments: 1) Laura giving the diary, and trying to explain BOB, to poor Harold Smith, who isn’t equipped to handle any of this. 2) Cooper, in conversation with Albert Rosenfield, theorizing that Teresa Banks’ killer will strike again, and describing his next potential victim in ways that parallel Laura’s situation. (Albert: “You’re describing half the teenage girls in America.”) 3) Laura meeting Mrs. Tremond/Chalfont and her grandson, which leads her to the discovery that BOB is possessing her father Leland.

Part Three: “The football is empty.”

-Laura’s dream: On the table in the Red Room, she sees Teresa Banks’ jade ring. The Man from Another Place is there, and so is Agent Cooper. Coop warns her, “Don’t take the ring, Laura.” Then she finds herself back in her own bed, with Annie Blackburn laying next to her, covered in blood but alive. Annie explains that “the good Dale” is trapped in the Lodge, telling Laura to write it in her diary. Just before Laura wakes up, she sees herself in the doorway of the room “above the store”, shown in the photograph Mrs. Tremond gave her.

-Bobby Briggs sets up his next score, calling Leo Johnson and Jacques Renault.

-Laura is off to drown her sorrows at the Roadhouse/Bang Bang Bar, where she meets the Log Lady. (I love that Margaret is apparently a regular at the Roadhouse.) Log Lady places her hand on Laura’s forehead, and tells her: “When this kind of fire starts, it is very hard to put out. The tender boughs of innocence burn first, and the wind rises, and then all goodness is in jeopardy.” Inside, Laura weeps as Julee Cruise sings.

-Donna, angry at being shut out, has followed her here. I noticed, standing next to her at the bar, James Hurley’s biker friend Joey Paulsen, who makes a few appearances in the series.

-Jacques Renault sends two punters to Laura’s table, and Donna follows. Laura tries to get rid of her, but then lets her join in. All four, plus Jacques, leave the Roadhouse for a place across the Canadian border. Ronette Pulaski is here, and the link is established between Laura, Ronette, and Teresa Banks. Ronette laughingly points out poor Donna, who has picked up Laura’s jacket, laying over a table as one of Laura’s “customers” has his way with her. Laura immediately rushes to her rescue, screaming, “Don’t ever wear my stuff!” (If only Donna had stayed with the nice biker boy...) As they leave, there is a shot of cigarette butts and empty bottles piled all over the floor.

Part Four: “You always hurt the ones you love.”

-Leland picks Laura up from Donna’s house, and Mike the One-Armed Man nearly crashes into their car on the highway, shouting at Laura. On his hand is the jade ring. Leland flashes back to his meetings with Teresa Banks, his discovery that Laura and Ronette were her ‘friends’, and his subsequent slaying of Teresa.

-Bobby and Laura, drunk and high in the woods, are met by none other than the deputy from Deer Meadow. He reaches into his jacket and Bobby panics and shoots him. Laura, completely out of it, keeps repeating, “You killed Mike!”

-That night, Sarah Palmer has a vision of a white horse. She knows something is wrong, but she has been powerless to stop it.

-At school, Laura is utterly miserable; by the end of the afternoon, she is sobbing quietly at her desk. When she gets up to leave, the camera lingers on the empty seat.

-That night, James takes Laura into the woods. She tries to push him away, to break everything off, but he keeps coming back. This is the heart of it: Laura believes that she is evil, that she is unworthy of love, but James, solid-gold sweet James, loves her anyway, even as he watches her run away into the trees.

-A few notable things about the final sequence: Leo refusing to untie either girl as he leaves; the One-Armed Man prowling around the train car; and Ronette Pulaski seeing the vision of the angel from the painting in Laura’s room. Also interesting in that it’s much more “abstract” than, for example, Maddy Ferguson’s murder in S2:E8. I’m not sure which is worse.

-And we end with Laura in the Lodge, in her beautiful black gown, with Agent Dale Cooper comforting her as the angel hovers above. Sheryl Lee’s face is absolutely heartbreaking--’ecstasy’ not in the popular sense of ‘extreme happiness’, but actual catharsis, as she passes from one world to the next.

#watching twin peaks again #recap #fire walk with me #long post

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silverislander · 4 years

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tag game

tagged by @everestv

rules: pick 5 shows, then answer the following questions, don’t cheat. tag 10 (or however many) people.

i had to open netflix to check what i was watching for this adsghdg. i don’t have. time to watch tv anymore. and i’m also a fiend for not actually finishing shows. so in no particular order:

the umbrella academy

tales of the city (2019)

stranger things

i am not okay with this

black mirror

who is your favorite character in 2?

oh i love all of them sm :0 uhh either anna or shawna. both icons in their own right

who is your least favorite character in 1?

hmmmm after all the Disk Horse in the fandom i really can say i’m trying my best to love all of them equally (and i think i do). plus no matter what sibling i pick someone on here is gonna lose their shit at me. so i’m cheating and saying LEONARD. manipulative ass bitch reminds me of an ex friend who ruined my life. fuck him and fuck her for that

what is your favorite episode of 4?

i’m not done this one yet but so far probably the party’s over (e3). i am so fucking weak for party scenes with Dramatic Gay Realizations

what is your favorite season of 5?

ooooh. s2 has white bear which is my all time fav ep but s3 has san junipero but s4 has black museum!! they’re all so good i can’t pick

who is your favorite couple in 3?

idk, i’m not too into the ship side of things especially in this one. joyce and hop are cute tho

who is your favorite couple in 2?

there is no winning w this question they are all so god damn dysfunctional. i mean almost nobody ends up in the same relationship by the end of the season. i just want all of them to be the messy found family they are and that is my (non)answer

what is your favorite episode of 1?

hmmmmm maybe i heard a rumour (e8). it hurt sm to watch :^) or the white violin (e10) bc hrnngmn me big gay pretty girl in suit

what is your favorite episode of 5?

WHITE BEAR WHITE BEAR WHITE BEAR!! i will yell abt this episode to anyone who will listen i love plot twists and i love moral dilemmas!!!!

what is your favorite season of 2?

there’s only one :(

how long have you watched 1?

since abt a week after it came out, but i watched it bc i saw the youtube trailer first so like january if you count that

how did you become interested in 3?

i don’t remember actually! i think my nan (she’s a badass, loves scary movies as much as i do) started watching it and told me it was really good, and now we’re keeping up on it together.

who is your favorite actor in 4?

oh they’re all doing so good tho… either sophia lillis or wyatt oleff bc they also kicked ass in it

which do you prefer, 1, 2, or 5?

i haven’t seen black mirror in a while so it’s down to two…. and both of them are go-to comfort shows for me… ugh it really depends on my mood. totc is less stressful tho as a rule

which show have you seen more episodes of, 1 or 3?

i mean one has 3 seasons. do the math. (do it. ur assignment is due on my desk friday at 5pm)

if you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?

!! i mean the chance to have superpowers seems cool and all but i cannot lose my dad for them. i’d be a fucking wreck. i’ll pick dina, it seems like she has her shit together for the most part

would a crossover between 3 and 4 work?

like i said i haven’t finished ianowt so bear with me through any plot holes but YES ABSOLUTELY

so in the last st season, the byers moved away. let’s say they moved to a little town in pennsylvania. let’s also say they’re in the same timeline bc fuck you i’m god

and in this little town there is another short-haired superpowered weirdo teen who, somehow, is less well-adjusted than the girl who was experimented on for most of her life

so syd meets el at school, and through shenanigans, they figure out they both have powers!! what!!

i’m thinking syd could learn to control hers a bit better through el, and el could learn abt high school and more pop culture and making friends by not escaping a government facility and living in said friend’s basement for a week :)

will is a little bit of a space-cadet weirdo, stan is a little bit of a space-cadet weirdo… make friends maybe? i could see stan getting weirdly into dnd especially the rp side of it. he probably plays a druid powered solely by Marajooana and thinks it’s comedy genius

WAIT get the whole gang from both shows into a campaign… hell yeh that’d be a mess i’d pay to watch

overall, which show has the better storyline, 3 or 5?

ok bm doesn’t even HAVE a consistent plot and it’s still better than the Evil Russians™ st pulled out of their ass last season. i love this show but i cannot defend it over that the plot has gone off the goddamn rails lately

which has the better theme music, 2 or 4?

oh 4, duh. it’s way more my style tbh

tagging: @miss-galaxy-turtle @pyrostrix @franklywhelmed @smallsisnotthrowingawayhershot @nervousenergyyyy no pressure if you don’t want to do it!! i don’t know most of you anyway so sorry if it’s like. weird

#tag game #tv #television #stranger things #tales of the city #i am not okay with this #ianowt #tua #tua netflix #the umbrella academy #black mirror #long post tw #about lee #levi.txt

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entireoranges · 5 years

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Contempt

Not sure what made think to do this but it was fun!

Contempt level ranking between Jaime & Brienne during their episode interactions... 0 - 10 scale. 0 meaning they hold no ill will towards each other. 10 meaning they won't hesitate for a second if the opportunity to stab the other in the back arose. So a lower score is better :-)

I stole the episode list and description that been shared a few times. Sorry unsure who created it, but I’m grateful!

S2.E7: “A Man Without Honor.” Jaime and Brienne’s first meeting with Catelyn Stark in Jaime’s cell Brienne's score: 8 Jaime's score: 7 Jaime is slightly lower because he has no respect for her and doesn't really seem to deem her as a threat.

S2.E8: “The Prince of Winterfell.” Jaime and Brienne on the road Brienne's score: 9 Jaime's score: 7 Why did Brienne jump a point? It seems the more Jaime keeps running his mouth the more it pisses her off.

S2.E10: “Valar Morghulis.” Jaime and Brienne on the road, “two quick deaths” scene. Brienne's score: 5 Jaime's score: 4 At this point Brienne is more concerned with keeping her prisoner safe and having to work with him to do so. Jaime gets to finally see for what she is capable of and he finds himself impressed.

S3.E2: “Dark Wings, Dark Words.” Jaime and Brienne fight on the bridge and are captured by Locke Brienne's score: 8 Jaime's score: 9 Yeah the second he pulled that stunt she had enough of his shit, but knew to keep a handle on things; ie not kill him. His score would have equal to her’s until he realized her not killing the peasant got them captured.

S3.E3: “Walk of Punishment.” Jaime stops Brienne from getting raped by Locke and his men. Locke chops off Jaime’s hand as punishment Brienne's score (just for the conversation on the horse): 6 Jaime's score (just for the conversation on the horse): 6 They aren't exactly buddy-buddy and Jaime is still being a dick; yet he does genuinely care what might happen and Brienne seems to respect that. Brienne's score (just for the rape portion and aftermath): 3 Jaime's score (just for the rape portion and aftermath): 4 This is when Brienne realized Jaime did have an ounce of decency in him; however at the point she wasn't sure what/how/why exactly he did to save her; for all she knew Jaime was ploting with Locke. And much as it was nice he saved someone from being brutally raped I don't think losing his hand made him happy.

S3.E4: “And Now His Watch Is Ended.” Jaime and Brienne on the road with Locke. Jaime with hand around his neck Brienne's score (just for him falling off the horse): 0 Jaime's score (just for him falling off the horse): 0 He's way to hurt to give a damn about her either way. She has sympathy and concern for his well being. Brienne's score (just for the fire chat): 4 Jaime's score (just for the fire chat): 1 She is a bit annoyed at him for seemingly giving up so easily. Her pushing him to laying down the smack down restates with him.

S3.E5: “Kissed by Fire.” Jaime and Brienne share a bath. Jaime tells Brienne his Kingslayer story. Brienne's score: 4 Jaime's score: 0 I do feel bad ranking her as a 4 and I think at the end of the chat she was a 0 as well, but the majority of time she was too busy trying to figure out what his motives were.

S3.E6: “The Climb.” Jaime and Brienne have dinner with Roose Bolton Brienne's score: 0 Jaime's score: 1 Sorry to give Jaime a point, only doing so because for a nano second he seemed annoyed she helped him.

S3.E7: “The Bear and the Maiden Fair.” Jaime goes back to Harrenhal for Brienne. They rescue each other in the bear pit Brienne's score (just for his goodbye): 0 Jaime's score (just for his goodbye): 0 This was absolutely the moment he was like 'this women is ok' and when she realized he was an honorable person. Brienne's score (just for the rescue): 1 Jaime's score (just for the rescue): 0 Again sorry for the point on her end only there because a moment she's peeved he jumped in to save her. *Note if I could score Jaime making the decision to go after Brienne I would (which is 0 duh) however I'm only scoring in which they are together.*

S3.E10: “Mhysa.” Jaime and Brienne return to King’s Landing. Quick scene but worth it for Brienne’s *heart-eyes* look Brienne's score: 0 Jaime's score: 0 Really nothing to explain here.

S4.E1: “Two Swords.” Jaime and Brienne discuss Sansa. “Are you sure we’re not related” scene. Brienne's score: 3 Jaime's score: 3 They go up a smidge but it's more contempt over the situation and butting heads for the best solution.

S4.E2: “The Lion and the Rose.” Joffrey’s wedding. Jaime and Brienne share a quick look of concern while she’s talking to Cersei Brienne's score: 0 Jaime's score: 0 I almost didn't include this because they barely interact, but yet how could I not?

S4.E4: “Oathkeeper.” Jaime gives Brienne his sword and armor. Brienne names the sword Oathkeeper. So much mutual respect, so much *heart-eyes* Brienne's score (just for the sword and armor): 0 Jaime's score (just for the sword and armor): 0 If negative score was an option they'd get them! Brienne's score (just for the goodbye): 1 Jaime's score (just for the goodbye): 0 Her is only a low 1 and it's more of frustration being given a squire; sorry Pod!

S6.E8: “No One.” Jaime and Brienne meet at the siege of River Run. Brienne tries to give Jaime his sword back, Jaime tells her “it will always be yours.” Brienne and Pod row away in the boat, Jaime sees them and they wave to each other Brienne's score: 3 Jaime's score: 3 Another one I feel sad about especially since it had that beautiful line but the fact is there were tensions because of their differing loyalties.

S7.E7: “The Dragon and the Wolf.” Jaime and Brienne see each other at the parlay at King’s Landing in the dragon pit. The “fuck loyalty” scene Brienne's score: 5 Jaime's score: 4 Yeah Brienne is pissed he's being weak willed and he's annoyed she dared to ask him what she did.

S8.E2: “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.” Jaime and Brienne reunite at Winterfell on the eve of the battle against the Night King and the army of the dead. Brienne stands up for Jaime. Brienne's score (just for trial): 0 Jaime's score (just for trial): 0 Duh. Brienne's score (just for asking to fight with her): 1 Jaime's score (just for asking to fight with her): 0 Once more a point on her not fully trusting him at the start of the conversation. Brienne's score (just for the knighting): 0 Jaime's score (just for the knighting): 0 I'd give a negative 1000 I would!

S8.E3: “The Long Night.” Jaime and Brienne fight side by side in the fight against the army of the dead at Winterfell Brienne's score: 0 Jaime's score: 0 Pure perfection and respect

Brienne's average score: 2.69 Jaime's average score: 2.13 Almost a tie! Really not surprised!

Are there any moments I missed or ones that could have broken down more? Let me know!

#my thoughts #games of thrones #braime #jaime lannister #brienne of tarth

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julibf · 6 years

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QUEEN OF THE ASHES

I have been re watching the show from season 1, making notes in every episode and paying attention every time they change from one scene to another and its just unbelievable how much foreshadowing there is about Daenerys burning down KL. I believe that both Cersei and Daenerys will destroy Kings Landing fighting for the Throne, but the show has been pointing out to Dany pretty much from season 1.

S1 E3 – King Robert calls Jaime Lannister and asks him about the time he killed the Mad King Aerys. He asks Jaime what was the Mad King’s last words and Jaime says the king repeated what he has been saying for hours. **Burn them all**. The next scene its Daenerys in Essos riding with the Dothraki ordering them to stop the horde. Jorah comments that she is starting to speak as a queen and she corrects him: not a queen, a Khalessi. I have been re watching the show from season 1, making notes in every episode and paying attention every time they change from one scene to another and its just unbelievable how much foreshadowing there is about Daenerys burning down KL. I believe that both Cersei and Daenerys will destroy Kings Landing fighting for the Throne, but the show has been pointing out to Dany pretty much from season 1.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6GW03WsFgU&t=1s

S1 E10 – The sorceress Mirri Maz Dull tells Daenerys she killed her son because he would be the Stallion who Mounts the World, who would burn cities to the ground. The show is very precise about prophecies due the lack of time, they only show what is absolutely necessary. They left this prophecy because it will have relevance in the storyline. We now know that it was not Dany’s son, but Daenerys herself who would be The stallion who mounts. The prophecy says that the Stallion is the "khal of khals" who will unite all the Dothraki under his single khalasar and ride to the ends of the earth. That’s what Daenerys did in season 6 and 7. If the prophecy its confirmed, she will be the one burning cities and trampling nations into dust.

>Daenerys: My child was innocent.

>Mirri: Innocent? He would be the Stalion who Mounts the World, now **he would burn no cities, now he will trample no nations into dust.**

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLpvLlrlFgc

S1 E10 - Dany decides to kill Khal Drogo and burn his body next to her dragon eggs. She lays next to him and promises to reunite with him one day "When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east".

The next scene happens in Kings Landing Kings Landing with Maester Pyrcelle and Ross in his room; he is remembering the Mad King and what likeable and charming man he used to be in his youth, before madness took over him.

>“Aerys Targaryen, of all the thousands and thousands maladies, the Gods visits us, madness is the worst. He was a good man, such a charmer. To watch him melt away before my eyes, consumed with **dreams of Fire and Blood**”

https://youtu.be/wHJTYqLtRms

The episode ends with Daenerys entering the fire pyre to eventually hatch the eggs and give birth to 3 dragons. She had this idea from a dragon dream in the early nights.

S2 E4 - Dany arrives in Qarth and they dont want to let her in, thats the first time she threats to burn down a city and destroy completely. Daenerys is not mad or insane. Her pride its her weakness, she is a very arrogant woman and when her pride is hurt she loses her head and makes drastic and terrible decisions. This wont be the last time Daenerys threatens to burn a city to the ground.

>Daenerys: Thirteen!!!! when my dragons are grown, we will take back what was stolen from me, and destroy those who wronged me, we will lay waste to armies, and burn cities to the ground. Turns us way, and I will burn you first!!!

https://youtu.be/In7YGhGt9Dw?t=3m9s

S2 E5 – Tyrion finds out all the wildfire that its under Kings Landing, he mentions that its enough Wildfire to destroy all city.

**“The contents of this room could lay Kings Landing low”.**

The very next scene is Dany is Qarth, teaching Drogo to obey to her Dracarys order for the first time.

https://youtu.be/YqMrgvy9uMA?t=2m

S3 E4 – In this scene, Varys tries to alert Lady Ollena of how dangerous Littlefinger is. Pay attention at the words he uses to describe Littlefinger, those are the exact same words Tyrion used to describe Daenerys when he met her in Meeren.

>Varys: **"Littlefinger was born with no lands, no wealth, no armies.** He acquired the first two, how long before he has the army?" Peharps you laugh, but I know him better than most and this is the truth."Littlefinger is one of the most dangerous men in Westeros.... he would see this country burn if he could be **King of the Ashes**

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFZen-XO5II

Varys was afraid that Littlefinger would destroy the realm trying to get the Iron Throne, so he decided to bring Daenerys to Westeros, ironically, she will be the one turning the kingdom into ashes.

And here is something even better, this episode S3E4 ends with Daenerys literally acquiring her **first army**. She sacks Astapor and leaves with the Unsulied, getting her first army in order to invade Westeros. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGRyZSMzRyo)

S3 E7 – In the Throne room Joffrey asks Tywin about Daenerys and wonders if they should do something about her. Tywin dismiss his concerns and tells him that “Curiosities on the far side of the world are no **threats** to us. Westeros continues to ignore Daenerys and her dragons.

Westeros continues to ignore Daenerys and her dragons. George RRM called Daenerys and the Army of the Dead, much bigger threats that could destory the kingdom, but people were so worried about the selfish politics in Kings Landing that they ignore the danger. Joffrey was the only one who saw it the real problem but everyone ignored him.

>You know, one of the dynamics I started with, there was the sense of people being so consumed by their petty struggles for power within the seven kingdoms, within King’s Landing — who’s going to be king? Who’s going to be on the Small Council? Who’s going to determine the policies? — **that they’re blind to the much greater and more dangerous threats that are happening far away on the periphery of their kingdoms.**

https://youtu.be/tk5hKomP4MA?t=1m40s

S5 E10- Right after the scene where Stannis burns down Sheereen at the stake as a sacrifice for the Lord of Light, they cut to the scene in Meereen where Daenerys and Hizdahr are presenting to the reopening of the Fighting Pits. During their conversation Daenerys explain that destroying an entire city it may be ncessary in order to acheieve something great.

Hizdahr - That is a vital part of the Great City of Meereen, which existed long before you and I and will remain standing long after we have returned to the dirt.

Daenerys - One day your great city will return to the dirt as well.

Hizdahr - At your command?

Daenerys - If need to be.

Hizdahr - And how many will die to make their happen?

Daenerys - If it comes to that, they will have died for a good reason.

Hizdahr - Those men (in the fighting pit) think they are dying for a good reason.

Daenerys - Someone else reason.

Hizdahr - So your reasons are true and theirs are false? They don’t know their own minds, but you do?

https://youtu.be/xszXpZfsd7w?t=4m30s

This dialogue pretty much sums up Daenerys as a character. She is starting to rationale the idea of burning cities to the ground in order to achieve an objective, as something necessary, while not realizing that she is losing her humanity, just like those men who are fighting in the pits. She is using excuses of a greater cause to justify the deaths of millions.

S6 E6 - Bran Stark has a new series of visions and one of the visions include a dragon flying over Kings Landing. In the DVD comentary the producers D&D made sure to observe that the image of the dragon flying over Kings Landing it was one the most important image of the whole show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuBpz6iVEIk&t=3s

S6 E8 – Cersei shows up at the Throne room for a Royal announcement, Tommen declares Trial by combat forbidden in all 7 Kingdoms. Cersei then asks Qyburn about the rumor of wildfire under the city, he confirms that the rumors are true and is much bigger than they expected to be.

>Qyburn: “Your grace, that old rumor you told me about it. My little birds investigated.

>Cersei: And? Its just a rumor or something more?

>Qyburn? More, so much more….

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmqQo37R3As

The very next scene? Meeren being attacked by the rival cities of Slavery Bay. Missandei tells Tyrion: “The Masters have come to collect their properties”. That’s how Daenerys sees Westeros, something that belongs to her and her alone.

S6 E9 - Daenerys returns to Meereen and finds the city being attacked by the Masters of the rival cities. She then tells Tyion about her plans against the attack.

>Daenerys: “I will crucify the masters. I will set their fleets on fire, kill every last one of their soldiers, and return their city to the dirt.”

That’s the second time now that Daenerys threats to burn down a city and turn into ashes. The third time will be Kings Landing and no one will be able to stop her then.

S6 E10 – The scene where Jon Snow is crowned KITN, Lord Cerweyn tells the room that they need to go home.

>The Boltons are defeated, the war is over, winter has come, if the measters are right it will be the coldest one in a thousands years, we should ride home and wait for the coming storms.

>Jon Snow: The war is not over, and I promise you friend, THE TRUE ENEMY wont wait out the storm, he brings the storm.

https://youtu.be/AXAnxAA73xM?t=37s

Daenerys nickname that she likes to repeat is Stormborn. We all were led to believe that The Army of the Dead would be the greatest threat to Westeros, but its Daenerys and her dragons that we should all be scared of.

I now believe the Night King and TAOTD was a redherring for the real threath that will devastated Westeros and the way George did was kinf of brilliant. The very first scene of the book and show its the rangers going North of the wall and fiding the White Walkers and we were all so scared and terrified of them. Then the last scene of the book 1 and season 1 its the birth of the dragons and we all celebrated!!! We were soo happy and excited, DRAGONS, thats amazing. But Now I believe that it will be the dragons that will bring misery to the Kingdom.

They did the same on season 7. In the first episode Daenerys finally arrives on Westeros and we are all so happy, finally!!!! Dragons again flying over Westeros, thats amazing!!! we have been waiting for this for decades, then in the final episode the Army of the Dead breaks down the wall and finally enters the Kingdom and once again weare terrified!!1 They are here, oh my God, what will happen? But it was the dragons, again, in the first episode thatwe should have been scared of.

#game of thrones #jonsa #jon x sansa #house stark #queenofashes

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kayura-sanada · 5 years

Text

Beastmaster Season 4, Episode 3

Disclaimer: I know this is shocking, but BeastMaster is not mine.

Notes: Spoilers through the end of the series. Specific mentions of S2 E22, “Clash of the Titans,” and S1 E8, “The Last Unicorns.” Also, please note that this chapter in particular gets pretty dark.

Warning: Gratuitous violence and torture.

Extra Note: I noticed that the entirety of the second episode was in Dar's POV. ...Oops.

BeastMaster

Season 4, Episode 3

Return of the Mad King, Part I

“Beastmaster, you're a very dangerous man. But in my own way, so am I.”

Dar paced back and forth as the Vella went about their duties. Some entered with baskets full of berries and herbs; others hurried from the hive, emptied baskets in tow. The Queen sat on her throne, watching Dar as a wasp might a spider, preparing a swift, piercing attack. “Sharak agreed to take word to my family in the castle,” Dar said, “but Sendar's still out there dealing with bandits.”

Tao had already heard it before and had insisted they leave. Dar's gut churned at the thought, and he couldn't put his finger on why. He and Tao had faced danger before, and Dar had always walked sure-footed through each entanglement. He comforted himself with the knowledge that he had never failed to protect those around him, but the words rang hollow. Tao had been in danger several times. This wasn't going to change. Any hope for peace for himself and his friends would have to be put on hold.

Arina was double-checking her daggers, searching for any dullness or nicks that she might have missed. She nearly bounced where she stood. She'd missed her chance for a battle a few days before, and she seemed more than ready to make up for that fact.

Tao looked almost torn, however, and that, more than anything, made Dar stop from jumping forward. “Maybe I should stay behind,” Tao said, and Dar nearly hurt to hear it. It made sense, of course; while Dar had traveled with Tao, Tao had found himself in more and more danger. Near the end, Tao had spent more and more time in Eirokan, leaving Dar to travel alone, joined only by his animal friends. But Tao had always assured him that he stayed behind to translate the runes, or to help build Eirokan along, or to prepare Dar for his journeys. It had never been about danger.

Even as Dar’s heart tripped, Tao said, “I could start searching for that temple, or could go through the Vella's files again. Now that I know something was written as a chant, I may be able to find something I'd overlooked before.”

Arina shook her head. “Remember, too, that she said Awun would be after all of us? He seemed particularly interested in you, Tao.”

Tao paled, seeming to remember, and Dar banished all fear from his mind. It wouldn't help him. It wouldn't help his friends. “For now,” Dar said, “it's best if we all stick together.”

“We can't protect everyone,” Tao said, but he was already standing to join them. “What about Eirokan? Xinca? Everyone in this kingdom is now under your protection, Dar. If Awun wanted to hurt you, he could attack anyone.”

It was true, and Dar knew Awun would likely use the innocent people under his protection against him at some point. But Dar said nothing, because as much as he loved everyone, there were those he loved more. “The sooner we get to Sendar, the sooner we can be sure of his safety. After that, we can start searching for information. All right?” He knew Tao would want to pour himself straight into research, but Tao seemed fine with Dar's decision.

The Vella queen simply waved them off when they went to say good-bye, and she spared Dar the smallest of smiles, her gaze studying as he turned away. Sharak called to him, angry to have been left out of the reunion with Curupira, and led him west, toward the Rakshi tribe, where Sendar would hopefully be cleaning up the mess with the bandits.

As he left, Ruh perked up and sidled close to him, also upset at having been left out of the search for Curupira. The tiger huffed at Dar, and Dar murmured a quiet apology. He hadn't wanted any of his animal friends near Iara, and his efforts to protect them had kept them from his side when he'd needed them. The lesson was one he'd do well to remember.

Tao watched Dar as they traveled the next few days. An unseasonably cool breeze drifted through the eaves a few short hours after they headed out. At first he feared it was a sign of Awun's influence, but there was nothing else to suggest the man's presence, and he finally realized that Awun would have left a trail of bodies.

So without having to worry about the chill or the ferrets – having been cooped up in the satchel while they were with Curupira and been unwilling to speak with Dar about Septim (for whatever reason), they'd become a bit slower, a bit less ornery, as if trying to apologize to Dar. And in wanting to appease Dar, they were giving Tao some much-needed space. It left him all the opportunity in the world to study his old friend.

When Iara had given them the information on Awun, it hadn't escaped Tao's notice how tense Dar had become. It was as if the news of Awun's evil had made Dar freeze.

Tao, of course, knew better. It wasn't the threat of Awun's evil, but Awun's intent that got to him. He was afraid for Arina and Tao and the animals. Tao knew the worry and guilt were churning inside Dar; it was obvious with every glance back at them, every sharp, ungraceful movement, every short stop as Dar strained his senses to check for danger. Dar had always faced danger to himself as if it was a natural price. Yet any danger that could have fallen on another was thwarted. Dar had taken on the knowledge of the location of the Crystal Ark in order to protect Tao. He'd taken on the succubus in order to protect Tao and Arina. He'd gone up against Callista for Ruh.

Now, Iara had told Dar that no matter what he tried, those around him would be the ones to suffer. Dar wasn't handling the news well. It was half the reason Tao had wanted to stay behind – if Dar confronted Awun, Tao would be safely ensconced with the Vella or far away in the Downs or Mydlands. But Awun could find him, or his lackey, Jabez, and as Arina said, it wouldn't be safe. Dar would most likely lose sleep worrying. Tao needed to stay by Dar's side, if only to comfort him with his presence.

The first night, Dar stared into the fire far past the length of his shift. Tao woke with every one of Dar's unsettled movements, watched as Dar sank into the dance of flames and ignored the bed of moss waiting behind him. The rats, wakened, no doubt, by the bitter wind, looked to Dar for a few moments, chittering faintly, before slinking over to Tao and curling around his body. He closed his eyes then, unwilling to have them tell on him to Dar.

The second night, Dar fell into an exhausted sleep, but he woke up with every flutter of leaves. His tension bled into Tao, waking him, as well, and finally into Arina, who took her pent-up aggression out on a bush the next morning, prompting another fit of sharpening the next evening.

The third night, Tao put an herb into Dar's drink to get him to sleep without interruption, and he waited until Dar fell asleep before sitting up and beckoning to Arina. Since Dar had always taken first watch, she'd apparently already figured out what he'd done. A smirk was playing about on her lips. “Good idea,” she said, before he could even speak.

“I can't keep it up. He'll know in the morning.” Tao tried not to think about how angry Dar might be about using herbs on him without his permission. “We have to find some way to calm him down before this gets any worse.”

Arina leaned back against the trunk of a tree and closed her eyes, fiddling lightly with a dagger. Tao wondered if he should practice with his, but let the idea fall. Arina was only doing it to keep her mind active, wary. In case they were attacked. “He'll bounce back,” she said, in reference to Tao's words. “Just give him some time.”

Tao frowned. “We're heading toward bandits in order to save Dar's brother – the one who tried to kill him, mind you – so we can get to him before the god of destruction can. And he's having trouble sleeping. Yeah, you're right. We should just wait.”

Arina sent him a sour look. “You know what I mean.”

“And you know I have a point.” The ferrets were enjoying Dar's still form, curling onto his stomach as he slept. Ruh looked at them from the clearing's edge and gave Tao a long look. “Don't give me that. You know I have a point, too. He needs to rest, or he'll be of no help to anyone.”

Sharak called to him, almost softly, and fluttered his wings. Tao hoped that meant he was on Tao's side. “Look, I'm not happy to have done it,” he said, and though he tried to not hunch his shoulders, he couldn't help it. “But Dar's worrying himself sick over something he can't do anything about. I don't know about any of you, but I have no intention of leaving Dar to fight this battle on his own, no matter how dangerous it is.”

Arina huffed only a short moment before Ruh. “So what you're saying is, you want to get him back on track.”

“Yes. Not worrying about us, just about Awun.”

She rolled her eyes. “That's not going to happen.”

Tao knew it, too. “Fine. Then at least him worrying about us less.”

Arina looked at Dar, his brow still slightly furrowed, even in induced sleep, and sighed. “You're right,” she said finally. “Of course you are.”

Tao wasn't thrilled to hear it. “So what do we do about it?”

Arina looked at Dar again, and her gaze softened. “Is there something we can do?”

Tao hung his head. “Wake me up when the moon is high,” he said, his chest tightening. The truth was that there was nothing he could do to help Dar. Not in this. He could show Dar the way, but he couldn't get him there.

Tao handed Dar a tea laced with herbs the moment he woke up. Dar gave him a short glare, but Tao caught his eyes and held it, and finally Dar dropped it and drank, letting the argument go. Tao was grateful.

They were only a few more hours away from the Rakshi home, and the breeze finally cleared into something warmer. The clouds that had sprinkled the sky were nearly gone, making way for the warmer weather. The trees shone in a rainbow of greens. Flowers opened their buds to the sky, filling the air with light, pastel scents. A few animals called out, though the morning had nearly gone by the time Dar awoke from his drugged sleep. Dar made no mention of it, though he shared his glare a couple of times with Arina, who looked supremely uninterested in his pouting, and finally said so. She lifted her chin, daring him to say it had been wrong of them. Dar kept his silence.

The tension was nearly bled out of them by the time they left the forest behind to meet a meadow, the grass overgrown as it went unchecked by trees. The tops of the houses of the Rakshi tribe could be seen, and Dar froze at the small wisps of smoke rising into the clear sky.

“Maybe they're cooking,” Tao said, his voice making it clear he didn't believe it for a second.

“Come on,” Dar said, and ran forward. His brother was supposed to have taken care of this dispute. Where was he? Had something happened to him? Bandits weren't supposed to be a problem. He didn't have much of an army – Dar didn't like the idea of wasting money on such things, and he didn't want to be known as a king who led with a sword, like Zad – but his army was skilled enough to handle bandits. Wasn't it? Even the worst could happen to the best.

The grass slowed them down and parted like the tide around their bodies, swaying like an ocean. Anyone looking for an enemy's approach might even hear them before they saw them.

But it became apparent rather quickly that whatever had happened in the town, it had happened a while ago. The smoke curled from roofs blackened by fire, the houses caving into themselves, the wood little more than cinders. Dar paused at the sight, but Tao charged past, calling out. “Is anyone there? Are there any survivors?”

But Dar could tell there were none. Not because the devastation was absolute, though it was, but because there were no bodies at all. Someone had cleaned the place up. If anyone had been killed, their bodies had been moved. If such work was done, what were the chances that the town hadn't been searched, ransacked? Dar hurried forward. There were also no signs of his brother or his men, no signs that anyone had been there at all, save the small plumes of smoke from tiny embers, starving on the edges of what used to be homes and benches and outdoor tables, where the Rakshi were known to eat as a whole family. All of it was slowly turning to ash.

“There's no one here,” Tao said, returning to Dar. Arina left Dar's side then, moving to search for clues. Dar looked, as well, and finally closed his eyes, calling to the sky. Ruh snorted through the ash, complaining of the smell. The ferrets squawked, demanding to be let out, and Dar let them go, hardly listening as they ran to the nearest burned-out house.

He called for the animals again, only to find they'd all run days ago. A few called back from far away, warning him to leave, telling him madness had come to their home. When he asked for more details, all they said was that it remained, a stain on the earth, a twist in the eye of the sky. He sighed and let it go. The animals were still afraid. Ruh snorted again, then shook his great head. He smelled something familiar.

“Dar,” Arina called, and Dar trotted through the blackened town. Wood fell apart beneath his feet, crumbled to dust as he passed. Tao was going in and out of houses, searching for something Dar didn't understand. Dar passed him and caught up with Arina.

Dar saw what she had immediately. On the ground, parting the ash and embers, were several drag marks. This was where the bodies had been taken, and Dar took a moment to grieve the loss of life. But it seemed as if some of the bodies had still had enough life in them to fight against the drag, and here Dar found hope. The bandits hadn't killed everyone. Dar hadn't let a tribe fall into extinction. “There are a few left alive,” Dar said, and Arina nodded.

Beyond the meadow were the bases of mountains, about half a day's travel away. Among those large rocks would be caves, even simply formations that could hide a camp. The bandits may have ridden the tributaries in, but they were almost certainly keeping themselves ensconced in the rocks.

Arina started forward, and Dar called the animals over. Kodo and Podo both came immediately, upset about the lack of food and nearly gray from ash. Ruh shook his head and came, as well; a bit of ash coated his nose and cheeks and crawled up his paws, but he was otherwise pristine.

The worst was Tao, when Dar called him over; it was evident that Tao had crawled around the ash looking for something, because his face and hair and arms and tunic were all nearly black. Still, his teeth broke the darkness, and he held something up. “A blade,” he said, and held it up. It was similar to Arina's, metal and curved. Dar made a short sound of surprise.

“The Nords?” Arina said. “You think the bandits are the few remaining Nords?”

Tao shrugged. “Could be. Or it could be the remnants of Zad's old fighting crew. Remember? Zad used them, then threw those who didn't want him to rule away. They watched me make the weapons.” His smile dimmed a bit at that, and Dar knew he remembered the price of his curiosity that day. It hadn't been Tao's fault, but it was a price, nonetheless. “In any case, we at least have an idea of what we may be up against.”

It was more than his brother had known at the start, and Dar feared for that. Still, he nodded and pointed to the tracks – obvious even to Tao. “They've most likely taken everyone to the base of the mountains,” he said, and pointed out to the rocks, far in the distance, hemmed in on the left by the encroaching waters of the sea. “If anyone's still alive, they'll be there.”

Tao nodded. Arina led the way, of course, nearly sprinting from the broken homes and into the grass once again. Around the town, the grass was little more than a finger tall, burnt to nothing by the fires. But beyond them the grass came to their knees, and Arina ducked down a bit more, until the grass touched the top of her thighs. Dar did the same, and Tao finally tried, as well, and nearly fell on his face for his trouble. Dar snorted.

Even though the distance was rather short, their hunched positions made it take longer than it normally would. The sun was orange in the sky, only another length or so from touching the horizon, when they finally found the first few boulders breaking the endless sea of grass. They were small, small enough that Tao more often than not found them by banging his shin against them. Ruh stalked forward, natural, in his element, and Dar stopped Arina and Tao to let him lead. Ruh reported that familiar scent again, stronger now. He reported it as an annoying human, one they'd fought before, along with several others he didn't recognize.

“Can you find the human?”

In answer, Ruh moved further ahead, quickly disappearing in the thick grass.

“Dar?” Arina asked. She looked antsy, one hand flipping a dagger back and forth over and around her fingers. Her gaze scanned the rocks beyond them, where the grass was finally defeated by the rock bed. They caught on a small cave, then again on a thick grouping of rock, each taller than a man.

“Ruh senses someone he knows,” Dar said, his voice little more than a breath. “He says we've faced him before.”

“Who?”

“Someone who had him put in a cage.” Dar frowned. Almost, he thought of Baha, but Curupira had taken care of him. Then he thought of Zad, but of course that couldn't be right. The Umpatra warrior was dead. Callista was dead.

It hit him just as Ruh roared in warning. Footsteps pounded against stone, coming from all directions, around the rocks. Though Dar couldn't see anyone yet, Sharak gave him a visual. The men were dressed like bandits, certainly, but they didn't move like them. There was a sort of formation happening, a pincer move that brought men in raggedy clothing around both sides to cut off Dar's escape. Tao hunched lower in the grass as men poured over the rocks and through the crevices, and Arina stood. “I recognize this move,” she said, and her words confirmed it.

Slow footsteps exited the cave as the men swarmed around them, forcing Tao to stand straight and put his chin up. Arina snarled, actually snarled as the white cape swished around the man's feet. He exited with his usual casual aplomb, his men making way for him as he drew closer. “Beastmaster.” He turned his gaze. “Arina.”

Her lip curled. “Voden.”

He looked almost pleased with her anger, but his gaze strayed back to Dar. “It's been a long while, Beastmaster.”

“Zad defeated you,” Dar said. His gaze took in the men, the poor clothing, the somehow impeccable look of the man before him. The last he'd seen, Voden was being torn from his throne by Zad and the elephants he'd taken captive.

Voden made a show of looking around, then raised his hands. “And yet here I am, alive and whole, while he has crumbled to dust.”

“Only because you ran,” Tao said, piping up from behind Dar, insufferably brave. Voden's glacial eyes turned on him for an instant. Tao stood his ground.

“I had been defeated. It was a novel concept. One I did not care to repeat.” He raised his head. “I was felled by treachery, Beastmaster. My own man, the most trusted, turned on me.”

“You led by fear.”

His words didn't anger Voden. Instead, the man actually nodded. “Yes. I saw the mistake in that. I should lead by respect, shouldn't I. The way you do. You keep your friends, Beastmaster. It's an admirable quality in a leader. But to be able to even sway others to your side.” His gaze flickered to Arina again. “Well, that's even more impressive.” Voden clapped his hands together, and Dar saw large rings on each hand, each holding a different colored jewel, making his hands glitter like the setting sun. “Don't worry, Beastmaster. I hold no grudge against you for it.”

Dar didn't believe it, but Voden didn't seem interested in continuing the conversation. He turned to one of his men. “Raidarch, do you think you can handle him?”

Raidarch glared at him with a dark brown gaze, a scar cutting the very corner of his left eye. “Alone, I would fail,” he said finally, and the words made Dar hesitate. He wasn't used to his enemies recognizing his skill.

Voden leaned forward, making his cape scrape against the man's leg, until his lips were nearly on his ear. “You won't be alone,” he murmured, and patted the man's shoulder. Fire rose from his left hand and rolled around Raidarch's sword.

Tao gasped.

Ruh roared and ran forward, forcing the men around Raidarch to turn from Dar and scuttle from Ruh's claws. Sharak cried out.

Dar jumped back as Raidarch attacked. He pulled his sword free, having to dodge a second swing, and watched as Voden exited the battlefield, passing the cave and continuing left. The outcroppings jutted around his form, making him seem like a fog or rolling mist, before he could no longer be seen.

Raidarch lurched away as Arina charged forward, slicing across the man's navel. Dar swung his sword, ready to assist, only to have it change in his hands. He looked at his staff with his mouth agape.

Then Ruh roared again, making the men yelp and leap backwards, nearly on top of one another, and finally Dar listened to Ruh's words as they snapped in his mind.

The one who killed Beastmaster's mate – Beastmaster's partner. The words tumbled together, coalescing finally in a quick, fool! He has your partner!

Dar jumped, his breath stealing through his teeth, and he turned around.

Tao was no longer behind him.

Tao tried again to kick out against the legs tugging him away from the battlefield. He'd hardly gotten a look at the scar curling around the man's cheek and from his lip, but he'd recognized him immediately. It made no sense. Qord was supposed to be dead.

So many people, as if the ghosts of their past were returning, and finally Tao thought there might have actually been more to the cold weather than he'd believed. Awun had to be a part of this. Hadn't he?

One of Qord's hands was over his mouth, keeping him from warning Dar, the other around his middle, curled so quickly around him that he'd been unable to get his arms out of the way. They were pinned to his sides.

He tried again to kick out, but doing it backwards was a bit counter-intuitive, and he finally gave up and tried to trip the man. He was shaken for his trouble, and some sibilant murmur was hissed in his ear. The words were extraneous – what mattered was the tone. And the tone promised death.

Tao strained his ears, but the sounds of battle were before him, diffusing with distance. No one was shouting his name. So everyone was still fighting and couldn't afford to search for him. But why would they? Tao wasn't a fighter, even now, but he was strong enough to hold his own. Unless someone came up behind him, neatly chopping his wrist until his dagger fell from his grasp. And then Qord had come, and just like that, Tao was taken. Not so different then from all those years ago, when he'd first met Dar. Maybe thinking he could hold his own was a bit of an overestimation.

They passed the cave Voden had come out of, and Tao saw Voden slithering around the rocks to join them. Voden looked on Tao then and smiled. “Tao, right? I remember you. You helped my mother and brother run from me.”

Ice skittered down Tao's spine. Qord and Voden. And he was at the dubious mercy of both.

“Hurry up,” Voden ordered, and Qord dragged Tao faster, leaving Tao to scrabble along the rocks, unable to get a foothold to slow them down. When the sound of his boots against the ground got old, Qord lifted him and carried him as if he were a sack. Voden watched it all with wide eyes, nearly unblinking.

They came upon another cave, this one nearly hidden behind rocks, and Tao was glad, because they would think the place hidden and forget that Ruh had an excellent sense of smell.

And then Voden looked up, rather expectantly, and Tao saw Sharak sailing above them. His heart gripped tightly in his chest. He heard a small chittering noise. His heart plummeted. Kodo and Podo. They and Sharak had all followed him, and Voden had expected it. Qord pulled him into the cave, scraping Tao's shoulder against the stone. Tao tried to thrust himself forward, but Qord snapped his head back with the hand over his mouth. A pain slid from his neck to his head and down through his back, and he barely managed to scrape a boot down Qord's leg, making the man hiss again, before he was inside the cave. The temperature seemed to drop several notches.

Then Voden held out his hands, and that odd light stretched out, from the brown stone this time – picture jasper – and swirled around Voden's fingers, making the whole hand seem to shine, just as it has when he'd used the red agate outside, and the rocks outside scraped and moved. Tao stared with wide eyes as the outcroppings moved like an advancing army, two, three of them, until they closed off the tiny entrance to the cave. The cave had once been wide open, but now was nearly hidden.

The cave was deeply dark now and somehow even colder, only a few cracks of light shimmering through the rocks. Voden held up his hand, and the red agate glowed again, creating a small ball of fire in the air. Qord lowered the grip of the hand over his mouth to keep his hands against his body, and he wondered if Voden would burn him alive.

But Qord just hefted him up again and followed after Voden as he made his way down the hall of the cave. The light made the walls seem to shrink and expand with every flicker. The cave split, one side opening into a wide cavern, the ceiling low and curved. Water dripped on one far side, building a small garden of stalactites. Several men nodded to Voden as he passed into the left corridor. Tao saw someone in chains on the ground, unconscious, and recognized Sendar. He leaned forward, hoping to see proof the man still lived. He wondered where the rest of the men were.

He soon found out; several more rocks hid a thin, low-hanging portion of the left hall so that men were trapped behind teeth. They each silently watched Qord dragging Tao, their eyes narrowed. They, too, were tied up, but in ropes, thick ones most likely used on the boats Voden had come over on. It seemed to be Voden's favorite way of entering someone's kingdom.

The cavern got thin, thin enough for Qord to have to step back a bit to give Voden and his swishing cape room to move. Tao took in the nearly-damp walls and wondered how close to the sea they were. The mountains spread from near the water's edge to the other edge of the meadow, until it linked to the edge of the forest about two days' hard travel away. Tao estimated the sea to be only about a short sun's edge from them, and wondered if the cave opened into a sheer cliff. The dampness said the water traveled nearby, or perhaps even flooded the walkway at high tide.

Finally the walls spread again, allowing them into a fairly small room. It was clearly Voden's chambers, with a large mat covered in thick furs and a few chests, most obviously of things plundered from the village. Tao worried about the villagers; he hadn't seen any amongst the soldiers.

Then he saw the thin rock, like a pole, against the right wall, and the chains that had been wrapped around it. And he knew exactly where this was going. He struggled anew, nearly tipping Qord back onto the ground, but Qord caught himself and snarled again. Tao felt the man's limbs starting to shake and pressed his slim advantage, squirming like mad. “Why are you doing this?” he finally asked, though he wouldn't be surprised if Voden simply chuckled and made some pithy retort about Tao having tortured his heart or something.

Voden simply flicked his fingers as if waving away an errant fly and pointed to the chains. “Do get on with it, will you?” And he went to one of the chests.

Qord made a growling sound in his throat, clearly not pleased with the imperious command, and Tao thought to press that advantage, too, until Qord slammed him into the wall. The damp wall was still hard, if wet. His cheek scraped against the rough surface.

Qord grabbed his wrists and yanked them over his head as he fought to find his balance. With one hand, Qord braceleted his wrists, and with the other, he unwound the chains from the rock. Tao pulled against his hold, then tried to kick him again. He was shoved into the wall again for his trouble. This time the stone scraped against his back.

“You know Dar will find a way inside,” he said, and thought of Kodo and Podo. Could they fit through those small cracks between the rocks? But even if they couldn't, there was sure to be another entrance. Along the sheer rock of the cliff, slippery from water and worn down over time, over a most likely deadly drop into water that may or may not be pockmarked with rocks? Tao no longer liked the idea of Dar using a second entrance.

“Through the rocks?” Voden said, and grinned at the concept. “He is strong, but is he that strong?” His icy eyes looked Tao up and down as Qord clicked one cuff of the chain around Tao's right wrist. He held Tao's left with much more ease and clicked the second cuff on in a fraction of the time it had taken the first. Then he stood away, granting him the full sight of Voden rising from his place beside a chest. He held something in his hand. Tao frowned, trying to place it. It looked like a bone, yet there were swirls in it. He'd seen the likes of it before, he could swear it.

Voden held it up. “Like it?” he asked, and twisted it, letting it gleam in the firelight still glowing in his other hand. He held the fire to a torch on the wall and let it go as the torch lit up the room. Tao eyed the thing. “It's a gift from Qord, a way of appeasing me.” Voden sent a fond, if narrow-eyed, look to the scarred man. Qord tilted his head. “He took it from the ruins of Zad's lost empire.”

Zad. Zad? Tao looked at the bone again. A horn, he decided. A straight horn.

Oh. Oh.

“An interesting piece. I hadn't believed him at first, of course. How could Zad have something so beautiful when he was so ugly?” The unicorn's horn glinted dully orange in the light. “And he let himself die.” Voden shook his head, his eyebrows raised. “What a barbarian,” he said, and moved over to Tao. “Now.” He held out the horn, let it play across Tao's cheek. He held his breath. “I have some questions for you. I do hope you have more answers than the others. I'm getting tired of letting people live, and I do owe you.”

Tao took a deep, shallow breath as Voden let the horn slip away from his skin. “Now. First, I want you to explain these.” He held up his fingers, showing off his rings. They were makeshift, Tao realized, as if Voden had needed them created quickly. Thin wire held two around his knuckles, most likely tied simply to keep the stone on his finger.

“They're shiny stones,” Tao said, and hardly had time to see the movement before the horn sank into his gut. Tao let out a garbled cry, pain lancing through him. The horn was taken out, and Tao felt his blood pour from the wound. He coughed, and his whole body shuddered.

“A better answer will do,” Voden said lightly, cleanly avoiding the puddle of blood. His white cloak was still pristine, and Tao finally got the point of it – no blood, no dirt, no tears. The indomitable leader. “Explain the fire and water and thunder.”

Water and thunder, as well? “How do you not know? You know how to use them.”

“Yes, but the message is faded, and the person who read it to me couldn't be fully trusted to be telling me everything.” He played with the horn, now bloody, in a way that told Tao exactly how Voden had gotten the information he so far had. “But then I thought, who do I know with such knowledge?” Tao tried to focus on his words, wanting to gain as much information as possible, but the world was turning black. Pain throbbed from his wound, and he could feel blood bubbling at the back of his throat. He hung limply off the chains. “And of course I thought of you. A bit early to return, I thought, but the answers are worth it.” And Voden finally turned the horn on its side and fixed Tao's wound closed. The pain echoed in his body, and the blood still coated his tongue, but the pain was only a memory now, a reflex.

“There. Now.” He tapped the horn against his palm, letting the slick splat of blood against skin echo in the small chamber. “An answer, please.”

Tao shook his head. “I don't know.” At Voden's unimpressed look, he said, “we only recently found someone who can do the same. We've been trying to figure out how it works ourselves.”

Voden still didn't look convinced, and he nodded to Qord. “You've wanted to say hello to the Beastmaster's… friend, haven't you?”

Qord grinned. “I have,” he said, the first words Tao had heard him speak yet. The man looked Tao up and down as well, but the look was completely different than Voden's. While the young king's had been intent, studying, Qord's were nearly hungry. “I owe the Beastmaster.”

Tao's fear ratcheted up a notch. While Voden wanted information, Qord just wanted revenge. “I honestly don't know,” he said, wondering what was safe to tell. “The man we met, he used a stone to create fire, too.” He wondered if it was red agate, too, but Dar didn't know gems like Tao did. “He – we thought he got his power from the Lord of Destruction.”

Voden held up his hand, halting Qord. The man scowled at the interruption. He walked toward Tao, once again sidestepping the pool of blood. “The Lord of Destruction? Tell me more.”

Tao worked his throat. “Awun,” he said at last. “It's said he's a member of the Triad.” He prayed this bought enough time for Dar to figure something out.

Dar knocked the last to the ground, breathing heavily and thankful he'd gotten his staff back, though he couldn't say how. He swirled the staff, almost startled when it changed back into his sword. He looked at it for a moment, but he couldn't see any reason for it to change now. Dar had believed its permanent change to sword meant he'd taken his place as king. Now it was changing back, and he worried if that meant he was no longer working as a king should.

Then he turned to where Voden had disappeared. Ruh was already hurrying forward. Sharak called to him, warning him before showing him an area with a bunch of rocks crammed against the side of a mountain. Dar frowned at the sight, and Sharak dipped closer, until Dar could see the outline of a cave. Sharak cried out again. Magic.

He raced forward, letting his instincts guide the way. Arina called his name, then followed him. “Where's Tao?”

“Taken,” he said, and a sound slipped her lips. Dar couldn't tell if it was one of distress or fury. He didn't waste the second trying to figure it out. He leaped over shorter boulders, skirted around a group nearly high enough to be miniature mountains themselves, and finally saw Sharak keeping himself aloft around the next bend in the mountain's base hills. And then he could see the rocks, like sentry, standing guard over the entrance to the cave. Kodo and Podo raced up to him, chattering one overtop the other, shouting about moving rocks and Tao trying to get away and Kyra's killer.

Dar's breath stuttered out at the second confirmation, but he couldn't let himself think about Qord and Tao alone together somewhere with only Voden as a buffer. He couldn't let himself remember Kyra going lax in his grip, because if he did, if he let himself imagine Tao doing the same, he would break, and he couldn't.

The stones blocked the entrance completely, so thoroughly Podo couldn't get all the way through; her head nearly got stuck between two rocks. She squeaked in alarm until Dar carefully pulled her free.

“No way through,” Arina said, her voice tight. Sharak hurried around to try to find another entrance before Dar even asked. Ruh paced outside the rocks, angry that he hadn't been able to get to Qord before it was too late.

But Dar was angrier, because he hadn't even noticed.

“We'll find a way,” he said, and touched the rocks, trying to find a weakness, a thinner area he might be able to tear down. Arina began doing the same, digging her dagger into the cracks in the rock. Dar took out his sword and banged the hilt into the rocks. The sound had to echo through the cave, but no one bothered to race forward. And why would they? Dar smashed the hilt against a crack hard enough to loosen a small cascade of dirt. Nothing broke loose. “Ruh,” he said, but Ruh was already ahead of him.

Dar pulled Arina out of the way, and Ruh reared up onto his haunches and tore his claws down the rocks. One at the top shuddered, and when Ruh landed, Arina raced forward and attacked the weakness with her dagger, then again, stabbing at it like it was flesh. Finally the rock fell. It was small, only about as big as Dar's fists clasped together, but it was enough for Podo and then Kodo to race through. “Look for another way in for us,” Dar said to them, and then he and Arina moved away again as Ruh repeated his assault. Dar's heart hammered in his chest as he watched Ruh crash into the makeshift wall again and again. He hoped Tao was well enough to hear that Dar was on his way.

Voden was looking decidedly less interested by the minute, and Tao had little else to add to make it more interesting. Jabez's subservience, Awun's interest in death for death's sake, and Awun's history were already spoken of, and Tao had no intention of telling Voden of Awun's interest in Dar or the fact that he took Balcifer.

Finally Voden waved Tao's dwindling words away. “So he's a god.”

Tao nodded.

“And he has already shown himself.” Voden's eyebrow rose at that.

That was not a point Tao thought Voden would get stuck on. “Yes. He wore yellow.” That was a point that stuck.

Voden narrowed his eyes. “My former interactions with others assured me that the Lord of Destruction was a legend.”

“He was. But so was Balcifer, once.” Tao saw the flash of madness in Voden's eyes, something he was unsurprised to find but less than thrilled to see. “Perhaps you were chosen by him,” he said, trying to curb the madness.

Voden shook his head and stepped away, and Qord came forward, grinning. Tao tensed. “I was chosen by no one. I create my own power.” He held out his hands, letting the turquoise glow until the condensation on the walls swirled forward and formed a small ball above his pale hand. Voden watched it dance for only a short moment before dropping it. It splashed on the rocky floor. “If anyone is to destroy this land, it is me.”

He walked off. “If he begins talking again, call for me.” He paused. “And ask about the Beastmaster. I hear he's king now.” Then he left. His cape swirled behind him.

Qord grinned down at him as Voden disappeared from sight. Tao tried to summon a glare, but it only lasted as long as it took Qord to reach out to Tao. He flinched despite himself. Qord chuckled. He touched Tao's chin, a small caress, before he turned away. Tao trembled, and the chains clattered. “I should thank whoever saved me from that snake's bite,” he said. “I thought my life was over. Chased by both the forest and Zad. But I was sent off to heal on my own, and I survived. Whoever put me on that boat saved me, the fool.” He knelt before the chest and opened it. This time Tao got a short glimpse inside, and he paled. He recognized the whip and what looked to be some sort of short, soft paddle. He'd seen Zad use one on his horse. The rest was unknown to him, and that, more than anything, curled the cold fingers of dread around his chest.

“Someone saved you,” he gasped out, trying to pull Qord into talking more. He hadn't missed how Voden had walked off with the unicorn horn.

“Whether they meant to give me some sort of funeral or simply wanted me gone, yes.” He stood then, holding out a chain with thorn-like spikes around it. Qord handled it gently enough to tell Tao just how sharp those spikes were. The chain was long.

Qord had survived. How? Tao knew the bite of that snake. It killed with even a glancing blow, let alone the deep sink of fangs Qord had suffered. No matter how the body was disposed of, it should have been a corpse.

Qord touched the chain to Tao's chest, and he flinched back. The spikes left scrapes, little pink lines that tore thin bubbles of blood to the surface. His breath hitched. They'd barely touched him.

Qord laughed. “Struggle if you want.”

If Tao struggled, the result would be even worse. He wouldn't escape it, not trapped as he was against the rock. He forced himself to stay still. His breath came in gasps as Qord stepped forward, the chain held before him. Tao watched, stone still, as Qord touched it to his chest, just a couple of inches below his collarbone. The thorns dug in immediately, cutting into his flesh, sending sharp little jolts through his system. Qord carefully wrapped it around his back, letting the thorns cut into Tao's shoulder blades, testing the sharp ridge of bone. Tao's jagged breaths cut the thorns deeper into his flesh, some of them jumping from one place on his skin to another, digging in anew. He winced at it.

Then Qord wrapped the chain back around to Tao's front and yanked. The spikes dug in deep, a thousand stab wounds, and Tao arced his body, not knowing where to turn to escape the pain, and cried out. Qord chuckled and wrapped the chains around his stomach, once again mockingly gentle before pulling tight. Tao keened then, and Qord wrapped it around him one more time, around the small of his back, before he finally ran out of chain. He pulled the edges of the chain tight and knotted them together, holding them in place as he stepped away.

Every breath tore the spikes deeper, until Tao could hardly breathe for the pain. He felt his blood streaming in small rivers down his body, coating his shirt, staining the top of his breeches. His arms shook as his strength gave out. He sagged in the chains. He tried to inhale, only to feel the chains pull taut. The spikes slipped a bit deeper inside him. He groaned.

“Well? Tell us how to use the stones.”

Tao shook his head. “I don't know,” he whispered. He looked up, and even that small movement pulled the spikes until he wondered if they would open him up like a knife carving open a fish, just pulling long lines until he looked like a piece of horror art. Qord seemed to want that to happen; his gaze traced the rivulets of blood as they trekked their paths across his skin. “I don't,” he said again, a bit stronger this time. “I told you, we've been trying to figure it out. Each seems to have some sort of property, and maybe only certain people can use it, but that's all…” Tao trailed off as Qord's face contorted.

“Only certain people?”

Oh. Oh. He was intimating that there was a power Qord couldn't achieve. “Maybe. We don't know.”

Qord seemed appeased with this, and suddenly less interested in demanding answers. Tao thought that might be a good thing – until Qord went back to the chest. Oh. Tao's breath hitched despite himself, and he gasped as the spikes drilled into him. The air choked in his lungs as he tried to escape the pain.

“If you know nothing about the jewels, I suppose I'll just have to ask you about the Beastmaster.” Tao looked up and struggled to make sense of what he was seeing. Qord was smiling, but his eyes were narrowed. Calculating. Tao wrapped his fingers around the cuffs chaining him, even as the movement made the thorns in his chest curl. When Qord stood, he was holding the riding crop. “So, how did he become king?”

“He was meant to be king,” Tao said, his every word making his chest heave. His stomach quivered. “It's his destiny. And he will be great.”

Qord gripped Tao's jaw and wrenched it up. The movement pulled on every last one of his wounds, and he coughed up a hoarse cry as they pulled and tugged within their holes. He felt the rivers of blood flow more freely. “Such defiance, for such a whelp,” Qord said, and lifted Tao a hair higher. The hoarse cry dragged itself from his lips, unstopping. “How about we try this again?”

Qord dropped him, a movement even worse than lifting him, as the sudden fall finally wrenched the spikes in his chest enough to cut small lines up. The blood nearly spurted now. The pain was too great for him to cry out. All he could do was gasp. “Tell me how he came to power. Tell me where his throne is. Tell me how he killed Zad.”

Tao almost laughed. He was so thankful, in that moment, that Dar's father had planned everything out so carefully. He was thankful for the mist, which kept those like Qord from Dar's rightful throne. He was thankful for the sword of light, a sword that would only allow someone of goodness, like Dar, to wield it. He was even thankful to Balcifer for having gotten rid of Zad.

Qord decided he was taking too long to answer and swung the riding crop into Tao's side, in-between the chains. Tao screamed and bucked, and the spikes shivered in his wounds, and everything turned to bright spots and ringing silence. He slumped back in the chains, his entire body burning like fire, and had no strength to try to pick himself up. He gasped for breath, but that only made it worse. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes.

“Perhaps I should just use you as bait?” Qord said, looking at Tao again. “The Beastmaster is powerless if one of his friends is captured.”

Tao hissed his breath in through his teeth. “But it will make him your enemy forever.”

Qord laughed. “Really? Because killing his precious lover wasn't enough.”

Tao closed his eyes. That was a good point.

He heard the air whistle and opened his eyes just as Qord slapped the chains on his chest. The pain from the crop was absorbed by the chains, but they dug so deep inside him he thought they might be carving into bone. He screamed again. The world tilted and swirled. Tao thought he might throw up.

He heard a small chittering coming from behind Qord. He jerked in his restraints. Both he and Qord turned to the sound. There, in the entrance to the chamber, stood Kodo, sniffing the air, chirping madly at Qord.

Qord's face contorted. Tao tried to warn the little rat, but his voice choked in his throat. Every muscle in his chest spasmed. His lungs froze, and he had to fight suddenly to breathe. Qord dropped the riding crop and hurried forward as if to step on the little ferret. Kodo skittered away and raced through the hall. Qord let out a sound of unintelligible rage and chased after, finally shouting for Voden.

Ah. Tao sighed in relief and grinned, and after just another few moments, Podo slid around the edge of the chamber. He hurried to Tao's side, then stopped. “Hey,” he said. “Where's Dar?”

Podo just squeaked at him, and really, he should have known better. The ferret sniffed his leg, then hopped up. The extra weight made his weight shift slightly, and he whimpered. Podo froze. “There isn't anything you can do,” he said. “These will take more than a little chewing. Get Dar,” he said. He thought, but he couldn't come up with anything. His mind was a foggy haze. “Ropes,” he said, his mind tugging insistently at him. “Ropes,” he said again, then nearly cried in relief. “The soldiers,” he said. “Go to the soldiers. They're tied in ropes, not chains. Get them free. They'll cause a ruckus. See if they know a different way in or… or something.” He wondered if Dar's men would think to speak to Dar's animal friends. He hoped so. “I think there's another entrance somewhere, maybe by the…” He huffed in a breath. His words pulled at the cuts on his chest. His arms trembled under the strain of holding him up. “But I think it's dangerous. Water.”

Podo squeaked again and thankfully got off of him. The ferret kept staring at him, though, and that wouldn't do. Tao could hear a ruckus down the hall. “Hurry,” he said. “Before Kodo gets caught. Just know that there's probably an entrance, possibly small, or something – it lets water into the cave every once in a while. Maybe when storms come, pulling the waves inside?” He needn't focus on the particulars. He just needed to point the way. “Around the cliff face, by the water.” He coughed and clenched his hands tight as the movement jarred the spikes. He refused to cough again. “Tell Dar,” he managed, then gritted his teeth. “Now go!”

The shout made the world fuzz to black, but he saw Podo leave, and that was what mattered. He hissed in a breath, two, three, until finally he couldn't fight the pain anymore and fell into black.

Dar knew things were bad the instant Podo spoke to him, relaying Tao's message, and refused to tell him how Tao was.

According to Kodo, Voden was able to spit fire from his left hand, and he seemed to be enjoying the sport of trying to catch Kodo within the flames. Kodo had few places to run to now, though, as Tao had told Podo to get the soldiers free in order to cause a distraction. She had no choice but to run back to the room containing Tao as Podo scurried to the soldiers' sides.

The rest of Podo's message had been for him, and he sent Sharak the message to search for an entrance around the water's edge. He turned to Arina and beckoned her to follow him, urging Ruh to continue where he was. Ruh roared, his voice bouncing off the hidden inner walls of the cave. He hadn't yet been able to scrape any more of the rocks loose.

Arina stayed close to his side as he hurried around the mountain to the left, where the faintest scent of the sea could be picked up. “Please tell me you have something,” she said. Her voice was tight enough to bruise her throat.

“Maybe. Tao thinks there's another entrance by the water, high enough to avoid being constantly drenched, but low enough to still have water enter during the rains.”

Arina needed no more urging than that, and they nearly ran past the area. Dar was only slightly surprised when, just a few minutes into the run, the rocky outlining cleared to reveal a flat stretch of land. The rocks had been heavily condensed in the area before, and only now could Dar see that they'd been purposefully moved. The rocks were used to obscure the men, most likely to catch any who came near unawares – just as they had with Dar. With Tao.

The sun was starting to set, just barely sitting on the horizon, when Dar got his first glimpse of water. The scent of the sea was more powerful now, and Dar could see that the water stretched to a small island, then out to the horizon. Waves beat against the mountain's side, spitting drizzle over the land. The meadow dipped into a sheer drop on its edge, reminding Dar of the drop Jabez had taken and disappeared from. He walked to the edge and stared for a moment at the water below. There were no rocks, but the way the water beat at the earth made it clear falling could well mean drowning.

Sharak called out then, and Dar took a careful step back before allowing the eagle's vision to suffuse his own. Sharak had found the entrance, a small, flat piece that looked like Arina might be able to squeeze through, but Dar's muscles might prevent him. Nonetheless, he made to follow, and Arina strode in his footsteps. She didn't bother him, just looked from him to the edge to the mountain, her lips firming and brows lowering further with every glance. Her fingers danced on her hilt, tightening and loosening and tightening again, readying to either throw it or slash something, not knowing which to focus on and unable to do either.

Dar scoured the rocks ahead, though Sharak had shown him exactly where to go. He took in the small dips and ledges where he could safely climb up, but waited until the very last minute to start climbing, unwilling to lose time to the slower trail. So when the ledge started climbing up just a bit, the area was already a bit damp from the repeated rushing of the sea and the drop was a bit steeper. The mountain brushed straight into the sea, nothing but the edge of the meadow, just a corner of dirt, a place where even grass refused to grow, and the edge dipped enough to warn of unsure footing.

Arina wasted no time, understanding Dar's countenance as a sign that they needed to continue. She hurried up the slippery slope, no heed to the water gushing below, spraying them slightly with every wave, burning their ears with its rolling crashes. Dar hurried forward to check her footing, then waited as she clutched at the wall, dipping her fingers into crevices and testing the hold before hurrying on. Dar watched a few seconds longer, then clambered up behind her.

He called to Ruh, only to hear Ruh's frustration, and then Sharak was calling him again. He saw Kodo scurrying by the edge of the slim opening, and silently urged Arina to hurry. There was a tiny ledge jutting out beyond the opening, and Kodo skirted its edge, looking back behind her. Something within the cave flashed, and Kodo jumped back slightly. Kodo shouted for Dar.

Sharak let the vision go and Dar saw Kodo before him, huddling on the rock, one back paw slipping on the edge. “Arina,” he hissed, and she was scrabbling, the rocks here just a bit drier, just enough for her to hurry a bit more, the water breaking against the stones beneath them. Arina's leg slipped for a second, and Dar's heart tore into his throat, his mind flashing back to another time Arina had fallen into water, but she just used the lost momentum to pull herself up to the ledge, close enough to reach out her hand. Kodo wasted no time, hopping onto her hand and scampering her way down Arina’s arm to her shoulder. As soon as Dar came within range, Kodo returned to him, and Dar took a moment to put Kodo back in his pack. Kodo huddled inside, shivering, and told him that Podo had freed a few soldiers, and they were fighting some of Voden's men. But, Kodo warned, there were more scents than the number present, and there might be more around.

Dar couldn't worry about what may or may not be waiting back with Ruh. His focus was on what awaited him within, where Tao lay, hurt in some way he couldn't see, still alone save for a ferret and a few of his men.

Sendar, his mind whispered, but he couldn't let it wander any further. “Arina,” he said, “can you get in?”

Arina was poised at the entrance, her dagger out, her gaze focused on the crevice of the rock. Nothing more flashed, and after a moment, she grabbed the ledge and pulled herself up, and with one hand held herself up slightly as she took a quick peek. “There's no one,” Arina said, and with that, she pulled herself forward and splayed her upper body on the ledge floor.

Kodo squeaked at that, arguing that Voden had been just on the other side, and Dar's stomach knotted up. He knew where Voden would be headed. He watched, his body straining forward, as Arina shimmied herself underneath the edge of rock, her head and knife hand disappearing underneath. There were no shouts, no calls, no sounds of battle. She pulled herself forward a bit more, gaining more leverage, and then heaved herself the rest of the way through, her feet the last to vanish.

Dar wasted no time, hurrying after her, almost ready to tell her to go on without him, to find Tao before Voden took him away or, worse, killed him. But that was a thought Dar couldn't let himself think, and he tested his leeway in the crevice, even as a large wave tickled his boots as he hung on the short ledge. A few birds shouted to him, finally understanding the gravity of the situation and warning him whenever a wave neared. Their calls were soothing, and after a short time, Dar was able to wriggle his head into the crevice. It was a tight fit, and tighter when he pushed his shoulder and chest within. For a moment, he feared he would be trapped like Podo earlier, but he managed one arm through, and Arina grabbed his hand and tugged.

As Dar got further and further within and his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, he could see the dampness Tao had spoken of, giving the walls a slight, vaguely shimmering look. The space was narrow, and when Dar was free, he found that he had to bend slightly to keep from smacking his head on the ceiling. Arina's hair stuck to the top as it was. If it rained, the area would be nearly flooded. Each wave would rock against the ceiling.

Dar hurried Arina forward. It took only until they reached the end of the corridor to find that a few stalactites had been put in their way. Dar wanted to curse, but Arina touched his shoulder and pointed to the ceiling. Only two of the stalactites touched the ceiling. There was enough space between the two to climb through. Dar turned on his side and clutched the top of one of the stalactites and pulled himself up, straining his muscles, until there was just enough space to swing first one foot, then the other to the other side. He pushed off then and landed gracelessly on the other side, though he kept his balance. Then he turned away and traced the area while Arina pulled herself over.

The hall was wider, but not by much, only enough for one person to move comfortably. The ceiling sloped up slightly, however, and Dar was able to finally stand straight. “How does it look?” Arina asked, grunting as she fumbled her landing, same as he.

Dar nodded toward the sounds of the fighting. “There's the fight you've been looking for,” he said, giving her a slight grin. The hall continued, and one quick check with Podo told him it led to Tao. “I'll go to Tao.”

Arina was already squeezing past him, her body pressed to his for an instant before she was moving away. “Be careful,” she said as she she left, and Dar couldn't do more than repeat the sentiment before his legs were moving, carrying him toward Tao, his heart drumming hard in his throat.

Tao woke a few times, each only long enough for him to inhale and groan before passing out again. Most times he awoke to the sounds of fighting and could feel the slightest bit of satisfaction at the idea of the soldiers getting free. One time, he woke up to find Kodo running into the room and stepping on something, and the sound of rock grating on rock, then the sight of Voden chasing Kodo down an area that Tao had once thought was wall. Kodo had disappeared through the hole, and Voden had moved a rock back and to the side, taking after her with a snarl and a dancing flame in his hand.

The next time he woke, it was to a harsh slap on his cheek.

“Wake up. Qord, Laafi, bind him. We make for the temple.”

“We leave?” The voice was new, and as Tao blinked to try to make the world focus, he saw a third man, young, the hair on his bare chest fine enough to tell he was only just an adult. Beside him stood Qord, looking angry at it all.

“Yes. This man has friends who wish to take him back, and we can't afford to lose him. He will be able to tell us much more than any of the others we've retrieved.”

Retrieved. Captured and tortured, then most likely put to death.

Temple.

The message was faded.

Temple.

Oh.

The temple had to be the one Iara had mentioned. The 'message' – was it part of the chant? Did it hold some of the answers to defeating Awun? Tao listened a bit more then, begging them to give him a clue where it was or where he was going. They were silent as they moved, opening that dreaded chest and pulling out rope – oh, he thought a bit giddily, rope. That was good; the ferrets could chew through that.

Qord came to him grinning, dragging the rope along the floor, and Tao tensed despite himself. Qord's grin widened, and he reached up for the cuffs holding Tao up.

No. No, he wanted to say, as he envisioned what would happen, but he couldn't find his voice, and it didn't matter in the next instant, as his hand fell to his side. The movement wrenched the spikes, though he couldn't find it in him to do more than flinch and whimper. Then his other wrist was freed, and he fell, unable to hold himself up. His chest slammed into the ground, and the chains dug in, dug in, and he finally found his voice in a scream. It was muffled by the floor, but the cave walls made it bounce, nonetheless.

Qord straddled his back and pulled his arms back. He screamed again as every wound throbbed at the tug. His arms were limp as Qord wrapped his wrists together. The rope sank into the small chafes in his wrists, but the pain was minor, only noticeable for how it differed from the pain of the spikes. The kid, Laafi, went to Tao's ankles and bound them, as well. It didn't hurt nearly as much.

“Leave the others,” Voden said. “Anyone strong enough to survive the battle will join us later.” Tao wondered if any of those men would be willing to tell Dar where Voden was heading. Laafi and Qord didn't bother responding to Voden's words, but neither of them looked upset about their comrades being abandoned, and he finally thought to wonder who those so-called bandits were and where they came from.

Qord pulled Tao onto his knees, his arms wrenched behind his back. The chain in his chest struggled to push in deeper and settled finally for springing once again to sharp focus.

Voden looked Tao over, up and down, before finally waving in his general direction. “Take them out; we'll have to leave them. No time to pack.” Laafi frowned at that, but he didn't argue. Tao watched the young man as Qord pulled at Tao's hair, bending him backwards as the man reached for the knot at the small of his back. Tao stilled, his eyes widening as the chain slackened slightly. Of course it hurt even worse as the chain was quickly ripped off him; he screamed once as one side was pulled off, then again, higher, louder, as Laafi came and unwound the opposite side, around and around, until in just a few moments it was pulled from him entirely. His scream turned garbled as he swayed on his knees, and Qord finally let go of his hair. He fell. For a moment, he thought the slight squelching sound due to water on the floor. It came through a muddy mind that there hadn’t been any before.

Voden picked his way to his side, most likely avoiding several red puddles on the floor, and patted his shoulder – right on a wound. Tao twitched, but just that effort to escape the touch made everything worse, and he finally lay still. Voden hummed approval. “We'll make you useful yet,” he said. Tao gritted his teeth. He heard Voden ruffling around in his cloak and wanted to weep.

The feel of his wounds sewing themselves up nearly made him pass out again. Only the thought of Dar nearby, of the battle raging just a short distance away, made him keep his head. If he fell unconscious, he would simply be dragged away from Dar. He had to stay awake.

He was turned to his side, then his other, and finally Voden fixed his chest and stomach, hovering the horn over Tao's body just long enough for the wounds to seal.

It still took a moment for Tao to move, as his body remembered wounds that were no longer there, but when he did, he struggled to even sit up. Qord, apparently bored now, moved to grab a few things from the room as Voden went to the wall he'd come through. Tao looked there, as well, and heard a noise like footsteps. Somehow, somehow, he recognized the gait. Dar. It was Dar. He just barely managed to get his legs underneath him, nearly falling over for his efforts, and turned to the sound. “Dar!”

Voden glared at him and raised his hand. Tao leaned forward, ready to trip the man with his face if he had to, but Laafi grabbed his shoulder and yanked him back. The rocks ground against one another as Voden pulled one along the floor. It was large, its top chopped off in a way that said it might have once been a stalactite before someone put their weapon to it, and it nearly filled the hole in the wall. Tao struggled in Laafi's grip until the young man had to wrap around behind him and hold his other shoulder, too. “Dar!” he shouted again, just as the grating sound subsided, but he couldn't hear Dar's footsteps anymore. The echo had been cut off.

“Get him up,” Voden said, turning as the glow dimmed to nothing again. Voden didn't even bother looking at Tao anymore. “We'll go the other way.”

Laafi cleared his throat. “There's a tiger there, sir,” he said.

Tao's relief didn't last a second. “I will bar its path to us.”

Tao heard something slam into the rock Voden had moved, and he swiveled his head once more to the sound. “Tao!” he heard, and the sound of Dar's voice made him weak.

“Dar!” Laafi let him go, only for Qord to return to him.

Something rang against the rock again. Most likely, Dar was using his sword as a battering ram. “Tao!”

Voden raised his hand again, already moving into the hall, his hand glowing brown once more. Beyond him, Tao could hear more stones shuffling, but this time he heard Arina shouting. He perked up.

Qord grabbed him by his upper arm and dragged him forward, following after Voden. Laafi pulled up the rear.

He saw quickly what Voden had done; the large cavern was now barred with the stalactites that had once kept the prisoners in place. Beyond them was a battlefield, men lying wounded or dead on the ground, a few more guarding Sendar, who was still trapped in chains. Arina fought like a lioness, her teeth bared as she caught sight of Tao, her hair whipping like a mane behind her. She roared and charged forward, stopped by two men. She kicked one out of the way and screamed Voden's name. Voden barely spared her a glance. “If you hurt him, I'll kill you!” she said, then caught Tao's eye again. Then her gaze skimmed down, and Tao could only imagine what he looked like, his wounds healed but his blood still covering his chest, his shirt torn. Her snarl grew until she screamed, her battle cry incoherent. She slammed the hilt of her sword into the second man's head and ran until the stalactites stopped her. Then she was out of sight, beyond Tao's field of vision.

Voden raised his right hand this time, and it glowed a strange yellow-white. Tao heard something outside the cave crackle. They were close enough to the entrance now for Tao to hear Ruh snarling, to hear the dull, crashing echo of something slamming against the rocks again and again. The pounding finally stalled as Ruh caught their approach. Tao imagined the big cat backing up a few steps, all the better to launch himself at someone's neck.

The crackling sound repeated, and then a light cracked across the sky beyond the rock, and Ruh snarled loudly. Tao trembled, wishing he could stand, wishing to press his face to the small hole in the rocks – bigger than he remembered – and peek out. Was lightning truly coming down in what had been sunny daylight? Tao remembered Voden's words then – water and thunder. People often called lightning thunder. Was that what Voden had meant? He glanced at the man from the corner of his eye, but all he could see was the bright glow and a few beads of sweat on the man's face and neck. The next time lightning flashed, loud and bright enough to show it had likely been only a few paces from the door, the amount of sweat multiplied.

It was Voden, he realized, but it was a difficult spell. He couldn't keep it up. Tao tensed to yank himself free as soon as an opportunity presented itself.

The rocks at the entrance moved. Tao prepared to fall in the general vicinity of Ruh. He froze as the rocks showed the outside world. It was dark, darker than he'd expected. He hadn't known he'd been captured for so long. But worse was the sight of Ruh, on his side, on the ground. Unmoving. Tao's hands trembled in their bindings. “Ruh,” he breathed. The tiger didn't move. Sharak shrieked from above and swooped down, clawing at Qord's face, and Tao realized he was supposed to escape. He wrenched his arm free and fell backward, his gaze caught on the sight of Ruh. He didn't even think to crawl back inside the cave, toward Arina and Dar. Instead he wormed his way to Ruh's side.

Once he was closer, he could see that the tiger was still breathing. There was no mark of injury, no burn mark, but that happened sometimes. Tao hadn't seen many survive a lightning strike. He leaned his head on the tiger's belly, the best he could do with his hands bound behind him. Ruh's heartbeat was smooth – that was strange. His breaths was even – that was unheard of. He leaned back up and frowned down at Ruh's body. Voden shouted something from behind him, and he heard footsteps hurrying to him. Sharak called out. The lack of a wound made it apparent Ruh was injured by the lightning. But lightning did more than simply knock someone unconscious. Had it only hit a glancing blow somehow?

Or, he thought, remembering Dar's explanation of what Jabez had done – thrown a giant length of flame at him – and reconciling it with what Voden had done – small fireballs. He'd managed to move the earth enough, and that was impressive. But what if his other skills were relatively negligible? What if the best Voden could do was enough only to knock Ruh unconscious?

He nearly collapsed from relief, as all the nagging details slotted into place: the party tricks (a water bubble in Voden's hand), the large stones moved back and forth, but never used to attack, the lack of knowledge, the ramshackle rings, the paltry power supply (two lightning bolts and he was done?). Voden was magically weak. Perhaps he had little ability at all, if any. If that was the case, then Voden wasn't as dangerous – in that way – as they'd been led to believe. The displaced king was playing at being a powerful being. The Sorceress could probably use him as a toy.

He heard Voden taking potshots at the sky and turned, just in time to see Qord raging toward him, and he lifted his chin high. He wouldn't try to run, not with Ruh in such a vulnerable position. Voden, beyond Qord, was grinning like a loon, waving his left hand in the air, attacking the air with little bursts of fire. Sharak was dodging and turning and flapping his wings madly, trying to keep away from the assault.

Qord wrapped his hand around the back of Tao’s neck. “King Voden,” Qord said. “I believe it's time to go.”

Voden turned to Qord and tilted his head. “Fine.” He sent Sharak another look, then threw one last, thin line of flames at the bird, forcing him to dive away or risk his feathers catching fire. Laafi hurried over to help Qord with Tao. Tao struggled, wrenching his shoulder away from Laafi's hand, but Qord squeezed Tao's neck until he choked. Laafi managed to get a firmer hold on him then.

Finally Tao was lifted, and Tao sent one last glance at Sharak and Ruh, unwilling to fight too much with their lives at stake. Sharak screeched as Voden led the way into the meadow. Tao thought the eagle might be making Tao a promise – to keep his eye on him until Dar found him again.

Tao closed his eyes and took solace in the thought.

#sorry!!!#voden just... does his own thing #same with qord #beastmaster #dar/tao #dar #tao #fanfiction #my fanfiction #beastmaster season 4

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