#Mike went from doing something to saying other people doing it was wrong without acknowledging his role in that from the beginning

[chirpsythismorning]

There isn't much discourse about how Mike went from saying that El was a weapon in s1, even encouraging the others to use El's powers when she was still recuperating after finding Will in the void, to then in s3 accusing the others of being reckless with her powers, saying she's risking her life for no reason.

Now, I want to make clear that I'm not bashing Mike here, this has less to do with what he's doing being right or wrong. What this is about is how Mike went from doing something himself, to calling out other people for doing it, without acknowledging that fact and why the writers chose to frame it all this way.

You might think it's insignificant, but these two following scenes are clearly being paralleled to each other. And so the fact that Mike himself is acknowledging this as something to be critical of, makes me wonder what exactly is going on in his mind...

I want to preface this scene from s1 by saying that Mike is giving very off vibes here. I know that I certainly viewed this scene as romantic the first time I saw it, but since rewatching it recently, I was getting completely different vibes.

They literally make a point to focus on Mike being distracted, on the verge of impatience. Then, the way El reacts upon Mike getting up abruptly, gives this feeling of uncertainty about Mike's consideration for her in this moment, as she's clearly not what's on the top of his mind right now. And it just makes you wonder, are we truly supposed to be feeling peak romance rn?

I never realized how out of place this scene was until now (or is it...). It's just such an odd choice to have El resting her head on Mike's shoulder for comfort, only for Mike to cut it short with him being distracted, and with Dustin and El looking awkwardly at Mike like "Okay?...", then followed by a scene where he's trying to convince the others to use El's powers to help.

Here we have s1 Mike displaying behavior that s3 Mike was calling out the others for displaying:

Here we have Lucas, who was very, very critical of El being dangerous ALL of s1, and yet now in complete contrast to that, he is showing more consideration and common sense for El's well being than Mike, the supposed love (at first sight) interest ...

'That's the most important thing, remember?'

A question, followed by Mike just standing there in silence, like he's only just now really thinking about El being safe as their main priority... This is something that combined with everything else unfolding over the course of this season and the seasons after, that makes Mike's behavior a whole lot easier to understand.

I'll have to make several other posts about this, because there are a lot of aspects to it, but for now I'm just going to focus on these two parallels.

Here we have what happens in s3, with Mike being critical of the others doing something he himself literally did in s1:

In fact, how careless all of you are.

THIS. When Mike makes it a big deal to call out everyone for doing something he himself has already done, he's outright admitting that it's something that he believes is wrong, and by not even slightly acknowledging his role in doing something similar in the past, it's very likely that he feels guilty about it.

This was probably his way of trying to make it right, by standing up for El in a way that he didn't before because he was treating her like some superhero and not a real person back then.

It's just that the word love slipped out, in the heat of the moment. And El, upon overhearing this, is seeing this development of Mike herself, with s1 Mike going from, yes being more kind and considerate than the other 2 boys in the beginning, but still sort of expecting stuff from her without her being able to verbally agree to it, to now having developed and changed to saying that one of his big priorities is her safety.

El is taking this as being evidence he went from not loving her, to loving her. Another reason why it's pretty obvious El didn't believe Mike's monologue, bc she herself witnessed Mike develop his apparent romantic feelings for her over time, and so him saying it was love at first sight, was probably the catalyst that made it abundantly clear to her that he wasn't being truthful, bc she knows it's not the truth. She's not stupid.

Again this isn't about Mike doing this back then or even the others doing it now as being bad vs. good, this is about the writers going about it this way, sending a message that Mike feels guilt, enough to try to make things right, but is apparently not ready to unpack the actual guilt that is beneath the surface which lead him to this point.

And then there's this scene, which... it's actually terrifying how obvious it is they instructed Sadie and Caleb to lean out of that shot with Will and Mike reacting to El entering the room... Like... It's SOO obvious when you watch it now what they're trying to hint at without saying it.

Not only are they hinting at Will's feelings, because that is part of it, they're also hinting at Mike's internal struggle. Will is always on the back of his mind whether he's willing to address it or not. And all while that is happening, he is feeling unaddressed guilt about how he treated El when they first met and spent that one week together helping her run away from the bad guys while also looking for Will, something Mike viewed as being worthy of El using her powers...

I'll have to make the other posts regarding this soon, because it all starts to click what's going on with Mike when you look at all of these things together.

While Mike is just a kid like pretty much everyone else in this story, and while he didn't mean any harm by asking El to help them find Will (none of them did), I think that's kind of the whole point?

I think that he got lucky superman landed on his doorstep, who just so happened to be in danger herself, giving him his own purpose to help her too, with her needing him as well, and so it became a situation where they both needed each other.

But because El could literally not speak, it's not like she could really voice her feelings about things they were doing, beyond yes and no. She had Lucas sort of being critical of her, with Mike encouraging El to do things that would make the others see her as being worthy of sticking around so they can find Will. It goes without saying she felt obligated to do these things, even if they didn't outright tell her she had to or else. We literally see almost all of these scenes with her doing stuff for the others being instantly juxtaposed with scenes of Brenner doing the same. It's not the same scale of severity, but it is an acknowledgment that although she is outside of the lab, she still feels like her powers are what define her and it's all people want from her.

I think what it comes down to, is that in that moment when she is sacrificing herself to the demogorgan at the end of s1, we are seeing in real time Mike realizing what he and the other's have been asking of her this whole time, without outright asking her.

And you can literally see the retaliation and devastation hit him all at once. The instant regret, where he's backtracking and El stops him from even trying.

'Goodbye Mike' singles him out, because while he was the one out of the three that showed her the most kindness from the start, he was also the one who at the end of it all, was still expecting her to risk her life for them...

And that just makes it hit so much harder when you think about how that made Mike feel in that moment.

And then in s2 how that impacts Mike and his journey going forward.

His breakdown at the end of s2 upon her return.

His behavior in s3-4, in relation to him juggling his relationship with Will and El, now that they are both in his life at the same time.

It all starts to make sense.

I won't go too much into it because those other posts are bound to be long with a bunch of pictures too!

But on that note, there's at least one thing Mike isn't acknowledging, and it's literally what led up to the unintentional love confession that then led us to 10 more episodes of miscommunication because of it...

It's going to be important for him to address this guilt for him to fulfill his arc and to also close off his expectations that he has to have a romantic relationship with El in order to keep her in his life at all.

The audience themselves seeing this and being forced to face it is also going to make it a lot easier for them understand why Mike did what he did, not only because he's a queer kid in the 80's who has every reason to doubt and repress, but also because he understandably feels sort of indebted to El after everything.

It's more complex than him just falling out of love with her and falling in love with Will because of XYZ.

I think there is a lot of guilt and shame and trauma connected to their meeting and the events that followed. And addressing that is going to give a lot of closure to the ending of the story and also the beginning.

#byler #stranger things #mike wheeler #i feel like mikes arc always comes off as convoluted to most viewers bc they’re missing the whole picture #like this is literally canon #Mike went from doing something to saying other people doing it was wrong without acknowledging his role in that from the beginning #and so ppl using that development as aww he loves her now… #doesn’t even work when apparently he loved her since the moment he saw her… #not being willing to pay attention to how they are building up mikes arc #dancing around all of his actions with #everyone makes mistakes bc they’re children and that’s okay #and just leave it at that… #bc yes obviously all of the characters should be able to make mistakes and be forgiven #but were ignoring the elephant in the room here #it’s canon Mike feels guilt for how he treated el in s1 yet he hasn’t acknowledged it… #instead of acknowledging his history of doing something similar #he’s pointed out everyone else doing it as if they’re doing something wrong he himself would never do… #as if he doesn’t have first hand experience #they could have actually made this moment romantic and genuine IF they wanted to #they could have had mike open up about how he used to do that #but after getting to know el and realize she is her own person #it made him think differently and he wants to do better by her #then maybe when she confronted him in front of everyone he could have said it again or asked to be alone to say it to her directly #and to apologize for how he acted in the past by expecting stuff of her #and THATS why he is extra cautious now #and then got her reaction #instead they give fans the impression Mike is the ideal male love interest #who is perfect for el #with this moment being one of their top reasons #and it’s a scene where he avoids confronting series long built up guilt…

[itsjustbyler]

S2. Mike having his breakdown with Hopper. what your thoughts?

Cause like, a lot of GA and other people believe it to be all about El.

But I actually believe it has nothing to do with her. She just triggered everything he’s been pushing down for so long. And hopper realized that after a couple of secs, resulting in Hopper stopping Mike from hitting him and letting him cry it out.

Especially when he says “NO NONE OF THIS IS OKAY”

emphasis on “NONE OF THIS” it’s not just the El part. It’s everything from last year and everything currently happening with Will, and how El could’ve saved him, and he feels inferior and he can’t do anything to save Will.

like to me, this scene has always, always shown me that it had nothing to do with Will, or El, and everything to do with Mike not dealing with his emotions, and how everything was effecting him but he pushed it down. He’s the leader and he might feel pressured to always look okay, and especially when Will is scared, he doesn’t want Will to know that Mike is scared too.

Like to me, Mike’s meltdown is about Mike. He’s feeling way too much for a 13 year old boy. And fearing that he’s losing his best friend once again, and already grieving the girl he becomes friends with year prior searching for that best friend is tough. And then seeing her alive and hearing she could’ve helped with Will, it’s a lot to take in. He was bound to crack. And I’m glad Hopper was the one who was there. Because Mike seems like the type to not want to cry in front of others.

Also Hopper and Mike are very similar when dealing with emotions, so I think that’s why Hopper mid-way through their fight, he realized it wasn’t a fight, and it was Mike crying for help, and being frustrated.

My friend keeps telling me to post this theory and interpretation but yeah.

Pleeease you should actually post it because I agree 10000% with you!!

Mike is just a kid who had to see his best friend being missing for a whole week, he saw people dying in front of him, including the girl who he made help him to find Will. He doesn't have anyone to talk about it because he wants to be strong for the party but nobody seems to care about everything that happened around him. Not even Nancy, who knows, who was there too. Mike was grieving for El and feeling so guilty, he was with his best friend all season watching him kill people and suffering and El could've helped him but Hopper was hiding her. Its like no one cares, just like his family. The only person he was able to open up was Will but look what happened to him next? That meltdown was about Mike and everyone who doesn't acknowledge how Mike was suffering throughout the whole season. The boy had to come up with a plan to kill the MF without killing his best friend. Imagine if something went wrong? He screamed at Hopper that he lied about El but Will/mf also lied to him, made will kill people and almost killed him too. This is just too much for him... Im glad that Hopper noticed it and just let him cry. He needed that...

Ty for the ask!!

#byler #ty for the ask <3

[gayofthefae]

Will was introduced to the audience as a love interest for Mike first. He honestly was. But El was introduced as a character first, so the focus was on her character while all that really existed of Will in his absence were Mike’s feelings for him, El was more tangible throughout season 1. That put Mike and El at the forefront of people’s minds because everything onscreen is so important, you can’t waste a second thinking about anything - or anyone - offscreen. Even if they’re trying to get to Will, you aren’t thinking about him or what he’s doing, you’re thinking about how they’re trying to get to him. You’re thinking about what they’re telling you to be thinking about and what they’re thinking about. So El takes the forefront then the backburner. 

But that makes Will taking the forefront come a bit secondary in the romantic scheme of things because thought the established relationship makes COMPLETE romantic sense, it’s sort of established retrospectively. We see one representative scene of them to jumpstart Mike’s grief, see Mike and El meet, then are told that Mike and Will's story - which we knew happened before Mike and El’s, but we didn’t know what it was yet. Again with the show vs tell! We are shown El and Mike’s meeting as a story and told Mike and Will’s with the emphasis of story being on the present, but that makes their present story come AFTER his with El, making hers still take precedent with a sort of viewership “dibs”. But everything else makes sense without that, it’s just being buried right now. 

So then season 3, they break up and you assume they’ll get back together. And they do. But Will also brought up a good point about how Will and El can’t seem to coexist in Mike’s life, so that plants an idea - or more importantly, urges out an existing idea via hope that it’ll be addressed. But that’s left hanging there because now NEITHER of them are gonna exist in his life for a minute. And then they have another fight about Will and El not coexisted, which it is now VERY clear with El and Mike RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER that they can’t. Will doesn’t say much out of the ordinary here - it’s mostly just the same argument. The one who changes it this time is MIKE. He repeated bullies’ words last time which was strange and yet to be addressed but this time he directly stated that Will and El could not coexist in his life because he was romantic with El. That Will contradicted his relationship with El.

And boom, now it’s conscious. It isn’t so much that it went unnoticed as you put aside ideas you don’t expect to be addressed in order to enjoy the show more. But they said it - directly. They addressed the viewer’s observation of Mike and Will that they labelled as contradictory by having a character acknowledge it as existing-ly contradictory. THIS was the turning point. Because Mike pointing out precisely what would have nullified EVERYTHING were it to not be acknowledge. Mike’s line here was directly to the audience to say “I know why you don’t think this will happen and you’re wrong”. He was the voice of the writers saying “we know we planted both of them in there as love interests. we meant to.” And maybe the GA doesn’t go “I knew it” because it wasn’t a conscious observation, but they DO go “that makes sense”. Because it explains a subliminal feeling they were left with. 

The writers established Byler by making Mike’s feelings clear but not tangible, distracted from Byler by establishing something else consciously in the viewers first (why they use “tell”, it’s informational to explicitly establish it this way), revived suspicion by acknowledging that it was contradictory, then brought full attention back to it by acknowledged HOW and what idea that contradiction made you bury in the first place. 

Now it’s known. Now it’s clear. Since the rink. They were special friends but we didn’t know more than they were special friends who couldn’t be anything more then they were special friends suspiciously displaced by romance then they were two people explicitly REplaced by romance - by deductive reasoning, naming their own relationship romantic. And now they’re a romantic relationship not IN a romantic relationship that is replacing the other in its absence, and even bleeding into it, while people reorient to the fact they’re issues mean by relation that their relationship is ending and try to catch up to predictions.

And then we meet in the middle. And then they’re caught up with us. And we’re just all speculating on how it’s gonna happen. Because we all know that it is. Because NOW, we’re supposed to. The GA separation from us now is just how we figured it out and how soon.

(This also means that Byler will be canon because we don’t have any more information than the general audience should now. We know about metas and HOW that information was planted in RETROSPECT. But actually knowing? We’re all in it together. Nothing is supposed to be hidden about what’s going to happen anymore. That’s the fun in predicting how much is hidden of how)

#stranger things #general audience byler #byler #byler endgame #narrative analysis #byler analysis #byler proof

[newgrangespirals]

At this point it just feels as if the Duffers are punishing Steve for being a fan favorite when they did not want him to be. He is the cool, good-looking jock. I always got the impression that Jonathan was a stand in for the writers. He does some really shady things that no one ever brings up again, but people constantly bring up Steve being an asshole, when, on screen, we really only see him acting reactionary toward what he perceives to the be the truth. In season one, a girl goes missing from his backyard and a kid goes missing at the same time. Then he learns that a guy (already known for intentionally isolating himself) was in the woods behind his house the night the girl goes missing taking photos of his girlfriend changing. Then he learns that that same guy’s brother is the kid that went missing. I know what I would think in that situation. Steve does not know anything supernatural is going on. Then that same guy starts hanging around the girlfriend that he was stalking the same night her best friend disappeared. I would think he might have had something to do with it as well, regardless of the assumed cheating. Which is probably a trigger for him if Tommy’s comment about his parents meant anything.

However, Steve realizes he took it too far and apologized and made it right. That should have been the end of it. And moving into season 2 it was. Steve was partnered with Dustin and the Lucas and Max and was really cool and decent about the whole Nancy and Jonathan (even though this time she was cheating on him), however, putting Steve and Dustin together made the character too popular. The jock with a heart of gold and that was protective of the kids was never supposed to be a fan favorite. Jonathan was the artistic loner type, he was supposed to be the one everyone loves the most. Steve was supposed to get his comeuppance and have everyone cheer at the jock getting knocked down by a bigger jock. But that is not how it went.

Moving into season three, they are just straight up punishing the character. Everyone trets him like an idiot, even when he brings up legitimate points, and is the one to identify the music. Starting with Robin and her “Mr. Cool” speech. I love her and the scene in the bathroom is one of the most beautiful and well done of the show. But when they are tied up on the floor (after Steve has just been tortured) is not the time to tell this guy that he was a piece of shit for not noticing you. Robin was the year below Steve, why would he know her? Also, her sophomore year would have been 1983, he had other things going on. The only reason she didn’t like him is that her crush had a crush on him (something that was not Steve’s fault).

Every character on the show is consistently telling Steve that he is stupid, he can’t win fights (something absolutely untrue), and that he still needs to make up for being kinda a dick when he weas 17. He hasn’t been that way for years, and these are supposed to be his friends. Everyone has been just as much an asshole as we see Steve being in season 1 at some point. Mike and Dustin abandon their friend and don’t go to a very important game for him because he dared to have interests that they thought were stupid, all on the whim of a guy they have known for less than a year. Eddie himself won’t change the day. It would be easy to. Lucas doesn’t have control over the game schedule, but Eddie can change Hellfire. Asshole move. Nancy never recognized her part in the breakup with Steve. He was trying and she was not communicating her needs effectively, and then she told him, in the most brutal way possible, that she had been faking their year long relationship. She could have al least acknowledged that she hurt him and then cheated on him. Again Jonathan took naked pictures from the woods of Nancy without her knowledge, and then developed them in the school darkroom.

I am not saying Steve never messed up and did something wrong. He did. But he was never as bad as both the show and parts of the fandom want to make you believe. He is also the only one who has apologized for his behavior and then changed for the better afterward. Yet everyone in his life won’t let him grow with the change. They are still telling him he is that same asshole, stupid, jock. They keep punishing him for behavior he has grown past for years. Season 4 Steve is still paying for the things season 1 Steve did, where as, all the other characters are allowed to move past their mistakes with out everyone bringing them up every five minutes. Steve is the only character not allowed his deserved redemption arc, even though we watched it happen on screen.

It just kinds bothers me. What is the point of apologies and true regret and sincere growth, if everyone is still going to bring up things you did as a teenager. That really sucks if that is the case. Everyone else is allowed to say sorry and move on. Except for Steve.

#steve harrington #stranger things

[marcspectrr]

A word or two on Kiara's mental health...

Before I attempt to summarize the 39 page slideshow living rent free in my brain, a preface! This will include spoilers for s2, as well as a few mentions of suicidal thoughts! Also. I love Kiara Carrera with all of my heart so if you're not a fan of her, you might wanna keep scrolling. If you don't vibe with her that's perfectly fine, but this post is heavy with Kiara appreciation, be warned, my respect for her runs deep. The choice is yours, of course, just understand that I'm writing this bc @yellowlaboratory among others have encouraged me to get it out there because it's all I've been thinking about since I watched s2. This is not to start anything.

(This is also not me hating on Pope because I genuinely like his character, he's just made some very questionable choices throughout the show, some I can forgive and some that still don't sit right with me.)

Deep breath, here we go.

It's no secret Kiara has been poorly handled by the writers and therefore the characters at times. We got little development in s1 compared to other main male characters, leaving us to fill in the gaps as far as her ambitions, motivations, family, overall interest in the boys, etc. While I do keep this in mind, I could rant about it for days so for this I'm going off of what we have as well as what's been implied.

Kiara didn't have the same upbringing as the boys but it's clear the Carrera's had/have their struggles. She's got her foot in both worlds, not quite 'rich' but not entirely 'poor', inevitably giving her a fragile sense of belonging and identity. 16 is a hard age even without societal pressures and growing up in a classist environment, but here is where we're assuming the boys come in. They give her a place to feel comfortable in her own skin, with shared interests and accepting her for who she is, which we know the kooks don't provide. Just being around them helps ease those deep insecurities, helps her form meaningful bonds. We weren't given an explicit scene where this was shown but over the course of the two seasons it's clear how she feels about them and what they do for her mentally.

Her relationship with the pogues, however, puts a rift between her and her parents. Mike and Anna clearly want what's best for Kie but it's also obvious they've struggled with her even before the pogues. Anna wants Kiara to have the things she never got growing up, breeding a disconnect since Kiara doesn't share in her mother's interests. This leads into my biggest problem with Kiara's arc in s2, which was how Anna and Mike were written. 

Yes, Kiara didn't/doesn't treat them the best but it went both ways -- they all failed at communicating. Instead of finding a common ground and compensating for the things Kiara cares about, Anna shuts her down and ignores her, leaving her to feel like a problem rather than a person, further perpetuating even less healthy communication. Kiara even says in s2 that's why she doesn't like going home, because it always means walking into an argument and not feeling accepted.

I sorta expected a little more understanding from Anna considering her own background with pogues but instead it backfired. And Mike...he didn't contribute much at all. They could've all done better and need some work. Kiara could be more grateful and Anna and Mike are the parents, the adults, they need to make the space feel safe to talk. Kie didn't just wake up one day and decide to act out and keep her parents in the dark all the time, that stems from not feeling listened to when she does try and open up.

Expanding on this with...the whole Blue Ridge plot. Moment of silence for the show neglecting to acknowledge the academy,  even though it clearly had a big impact on Kiara's life. In s1 we got a brief look into how her 'kook year' affected her and it was not good. More isolation, blurred identity, insecurity and this time suicidal thoughts, with no one to turn to for support, assuming she was not on good terms with her parents then either. I'm assuming this because for them to send her to the academy, hoping to give her better opportunities only for it to end with her wanting to cut her wrists, to then thinking the best option is to send her away again? At this point I hope they didn’t know how badly the academy affected her because sending her away a second time with that knowledge is such a hurtful and oblivious move.

Kiara already thinks her parents see her as a burden, hurting her sense of worth as is. I really wanted to like the Carrera's and I still feel like they genuinely love and care for Kie, I just need to see more communication maybe. And if they choose to include the Blue Ridge plot, which I'm leaning towards yes on that one, I hope it's handled somewhat well, preferably not a tool to create drama even though I know a lot of people want to see it be used that way. I'm very particular, I'm sorry I'm this way.

Things I've seen her being criticized for in s2 is her behavior. The thing that people have to remember is that she's 16 and teenagers are just not the best with navigating their emotions. She made questionable choices (the 'murderer' thing and 'abusing' Pope) but these are both things that fit the plot and her character. She was by no means the only one grieving so I don't know why she's being targeted for it (although I'm not surprised, the fandom treats her horribly). Some of her core characteristics are her high moral integrity as well as her headstrong belief in people and causes. She's never been one to make herself palatable for people and s2 shows a lot of this (calling out the Cameron's, going off in front of the court, etc). Even if it caused them problems and even if they are flaws, that doesn't make her an inherently intolerable character, it makes her realistic. She was not in a good place emotionally and it would've been wrong to shy away from depicting it any other way, especially in a show where the teenage experience is decently represented.

Now with the Pope thing. I think it was handled as well as it could've been considering the circumstances. It really should've never happened but to justify it, emotions are messy, relationships even messier and they were both spiraling at the end of s1. I don't agree with the way it started (why give Kie the line of literally telling him she wanted something different only to show them together next episode, I'm forever confused) but I'm not mad about how it ended. They were both in the wrong at times so only bringing up Kie's faults is just unfair.

I believe they both tried their best and even wanted to feel the right things but learned quickly that's not exactly how it works, which was how it was supposed to be shown. Not as this romanticized, idealistic healthy relationship but as one that has its bumps and was bred out of all the wrong things. All of their body language pointed towards this. Pope didn't deserve to be hurt but Kie clearly didn't intend for things to turn out how they did. She wasn't mentally comfortable enough for a relationship and I can appreciate them showing this in the ways the writers framed it. Even the conversation with Kie describing their night on the beach, I think it was perfect. It was awkward but it was honest, which is so important.

Overall, I think Kiara's gone through a lot mentally that the show could be better at exploring. It doesn't have to be big, obvious lingering shots, they can be subtle and still mean so much to people who relate to her. Seeing someone on screen grapple with real life struggles (even if the show walks a painfully fine line as far as realism), it means a lot. Especially when mental health (more prominent than ever) is so rarely portrayed to translate in any significant way in media now. It's definitely something I would love to see get more time and effort so until then, just know I'll be manifesting the screen time Kiara Carrera deserves.

#obx #outer banks #obx s2 #outer banks season 2 #kiara carrera #whoever read this whole thing kudos to you #i also hate the tumblr app for posting it twice before it was finished :) #i have MANY thoughts on kie #as well as the rest of the pogues arcs in s2 #its a curse to have this many opinions agshdjf #obx rants #i guess?

[mable-stitchpunk]

Please rant abt fnaf interpretations I am, all ears

.I didn't expect such a positive response! 8D I got a few asks for them, and I'll see if maybe I can reply to a few of them with different interpretations...

...Also-

Let's begin with the rants. You might've seen some of these points before, but I'll bring them back up because I desire to.

1. The ghosts of the Missing Children are evil.

I don't read a lot of fanworks anymore, but I used to loathe when I would find those fics where the murdered children would be portrayed as vindictive little monsters who were going out of their way to ruin everyone's lives. Possessing main characters and forcing animatronics to go against their wishes to attack innocents for little reason.

I find this is the reason I also don't like the "animatronics are sentient and possessed by second consciousness" headcanon. Not all of them are bad, mind, you, but many of them eventually go the earlier route.

Why I hate this is because it's never a situation where we're being led to see the children as sympathetic, or corrupted by time, but a way to make the Missing Children less sympathetic to the audience. Or to raise drama by having a slew of ghosts who feel no sympathy and cannot be stopped.

Other versions show them as being especially bratty or excessively mischievous, which I just find a little annoying.

Funny enough, I don't think a child's soul going rogue is a bad idea. Such as in the case of Andrew, who I feel was massively underutilized. You can just tell when it is a pull to make the reader see in a specific direction. You can tell when there's a subconscious desire to make the murders seem 'not that bad'.

Also, the idea that the ghosts of dead children are evil because they're looking for justice for their deaths is kind of frustrating when so many headcanons try to excuse William's actions by suggesting that something traumatic triggered them.

Of course, in these cases the children are seldom actually looking for their murderer and instead are just circling around someone else.

...Oh yeah, and since we're on it-

2. William killed those children for revenge. (As a defense)

Specifically, when this is NOT used as a plotpoint, but instead used as a blame shield for William Afton. You can usually tell the difference by how the effect is cast on William.

If the tone is: William lost someone and then went on a kamikaze mission to ruin everyone's lives. Then typically it's fine.

If the tone is: William killed a lot of people- but he only did it because he lost his x! Then it gets frustrating.

It's the same boat as that Henry depression excuse, though it's worse in this case because William didn't just murder children, it's suggested that he hunted and tortured them, and then brought them back to continue making them suffer as animatronics.

3. William was a scientist.

Don't give him that much credit. This man didn't start doing science experiments until the plot got so elaborate that they needed to one-up him with himself.

4. Henry was a good father.

I absolutely loathe this one, because it hinges off of the novel's version of Henry, who actively abandoned one of his children to obsess on the other one. To the point of forcibly bringing them back without caring if the other existed- and then ditching that one too.

Sammy Emily does not exist to the FNAF fanbase. He's not a sympathetic character or an important character, he's just a plotpoint that's written out when it comes time for the big Shyamalan twist. He's pretty much totally ignored.

And by his father too. Henry never acknowledges Sammy, never cares about Sammy. He only cares about what happened to Charlie.

...But not enough to do anything about it.

Which is why I think a little acknowledgement that Henry wasn't great just because he died would go a long way. I won't even go into his more egregious actions.

5. Circus Baby's sexualization.

This is one actually backed by canon, but that doesn't make it any better. I hate the constant sexualization of Circus Baby... and especially the hypocrisy that surrounds it.

Let me give you one example of an event I had once.

When I was first writing CGHA and Mike and Mari got together, there were a lot of people who apparently missed the numerous references to the fact that Mari had aged in his many years as a puppet. This meant that Mari was now an adult, but they said since he died as a child that he is still a child. The word pedophilia was dropped a few times.

These are the SAME people who are all gung-ho about Baby dolled up in a sexy human body with skimpy skirts and long boots, dolled up by her daddy. But isn't SHE still a child?

Well, no... Because she's a bad girl, so she doesn't count.

Get off with that.

6: Vanny is in love with William Afton.

Unless we're talking Stockholm Syndrome, I don't think you're going to love a demonic entity possessing you and threatening to break your fingers if you do the wrong thing. I guess you can say that's abusive love, but like Joker and Harley Quinn, people somehow manage to forget that aspect.

I've gone into this before, so I'm not going to rant on it again. Largely because I don't know how FNAF will portray Vanny, and it's not above them to take inspiration from other sources.

Now, unlike some of these other headcanons, I THINK someone could actually write a story and make this work if they acknowledged that it was beyond "toxic". Vanny would have to be emotionally and mentally crippled to respond positively to such treatment, but it is possible if it was backed up with behavioral issues and a backstory.

You'd have to get on Silent Hill 2 levels of backstory, but it is possible if you want to go that dark.

---

I think I'll end it there for now. I know some of these might be hot takes, but I'm just voicing my thoughts here. Again, not saying anyone's wrong for holding these interpretations, but I think they should consider why they hold them.

Because it looks to me like these are used-

1: To make this Missing Children Incident less severe. 2: To make William Afton more sympathetic. 3: To make William Afton look cool. 4: To make Henry a martyr in contrast with William. 5: To have a forced femme fatal. 6: To underplay how gross the possession aspect- especially when it is a middle-aged man in complete control of a young woman's body and actions.

...But hey! That's just me. Rant over, for now. XD

#FNAF #Rant #Interpretations #The Missing Children #William Afton #Henry Emily #Elizabeth Afton #Circus Baby #Vanny #Vanessa

[justafandomfollower]

Thoughts on Stargirl S02E01

Season 2 is here! So, I watched the first episode last night and, while I don’t often do this for TV shows I watch, wanted to share/write up my thoughts about the episode. I mean, overall, I thought it was really good and I was grinning like a loon to see the familiar characters back onscreen. But, more than that, I had some thoughts on individual characters.

First, I really really liked the way they handled Courtney’s “overworking” as Stargirl. A lot of other shows would have the debate about how being Stargirl is dangerous and she’s just a teenager, etc., etc. But they hashed that out last season, and they’re not bringing it up again here, which should be the bare minimum but ends up just being refreshing. Pat never says she needs to put away the staff (except for that last bit where he grounds her, and even that’s temporary). Instead, he cautions her to find a balance between the superhero and non-superhero parts of her life, to pass her classes, get good grades, get some sleep, learn to take breaks every now and again, and think about her future.

I do think Courtney will ultimately be proven right about the threats that are out there (I mean, duh, we saw Cindy and Eclipso right there), but nothing Pat said was wrong, or telling her that there were no threats. So, yeah. Big fan of that part. As for Green Lantern’s daughter, while Courtney was her usual “act first, think later” self, I also kind of can’t blame her, because someone did sneak into their house and steal important JSA relics. There were faults on both sides here.

The rest of my thoughts I’ve thrown under a read-more because it’s long and rambling:

I’m pretty solid and happy with where the other three JSA kids are at the moment, but I figured I’d still break it down a little.

Yolanda: I like that she’s struggling with what she did, even months later. I like that she knows she can’t say anything at church, I like that she’s still able to talk about it with Courtney, and I like that Courtney was supportive without outright agreeing with or condemning her actions. It’s a tough thing for kids to talk about, and while an experienced adult like Pat might be able to understand it better, I like that Yolanda’s not completely bottling it up.

On that note, though, they said Cindy might have gotten crushed when the satellite came down, “like Brainwave”, so there’s a possibility here that nobody else knows what Yolanda did, which’ll be interesting to see play out, if that’s true.

Rick: Again, I like where he’s at. He’s more confident in who he is, a little more settled, but also still lost. He claims Tyler as his name again and knows he’s a hero, but he doesn’t know where he goes from here. I think that’s part of why he’s seeking out Grundy, because he’s still clinging to that part of his past because he doesn’t have any clue of what’s in his future.

He’s still very much an angry teenager new at being a superhero, ranting to that teacher about how he saved her, but knowing his character (and acknowledging how crappy that teacher was), I can’t entirely blame him for that. Was it a good move? No. Did it make sense? Absolutely.

Speaking of that teacher, she was not a good one. Can I understand her wariness about the bad boy of the school suddenly getting every answer right? Sure. But, 1) it’s been months, so surely there’s been some gradual improvement, 2) that’s not the way to do it; talk to him about it, sure, but don’t refuse to accept his explanations, and 3) refusing to accept his name change is a jerk move that a figure of authority shouldn’t be making. I could wave away the first one from TV-time-skipping-magic, but not the other two. I don’t really think we’ll see this character again (but maybe in summer school), but she’s more of a vessel to show us 1) how Rick’s changed and 2) how the way others see him hasn’t, so, I suppose, in that regard, she did her job.

Beth: It’s neat that the goggles still seem to be (mostly) working, but it’s the AI that’s not functioning. Not the route I’d thought they’d go, but it’s really interesting because it gives Beth a chance to expand her skill set, or at least expand it to the viewer, and give her a role as a coder/computer scientist. It also doesn’t cheapen the “death” of the AI that happened last season.

Also, like the others (Rick at school with the teachers, Courtney and Yolanda having a discussion in the middle of main street, even Pat with STRIPE), she’s not great at hiding her activities. They’re just goggles, maybe, and she could explain them away fairly easy, but I don’t like the way she just leaves them out around the house. I’m okay with it for now because 1) she’s a teenager, still learning, and they are pretty innocuous, 2) some of it’s probably just TV “requirements”, like not wanting to cut from scene to scene or whatever (idk, I’m not in the TV business), and 3) her parents seem pretty clueless.

And speaking of her parents, man did I not like them even more this season. Every time I saw them on screen my mind went straight to: “good people, terrible parents”. Did they ever even want a kid, or did they just like the idea of having a kid to fit into their “perfect lives” until even that wasn’t enough to keep them together? They’re barely aware of what Beth does on a day to day basis, she still seems to be the one doing all the cooking, and they forget to tell her they’re coming home late? Bad parenting, and selfish parenting at that.

Overall, my mood about Beth this episode can be summed up like this: Do I like Beth struggling? No. Does it open up possibilities for what could be a really intriguing character arc? Yeah.

My biggest complaint about our JSA is that there weren’t really any scenes of them together, but that’s more of the time constraints of having so many characters we needed to get concrete information on regarding where they stand. They had that nice patrol scene in the beginning to let us know they’re all still solid friends, so I’m happy enough with that for now.

Other thoughts:

Barbara wasn’t really in it much (no mention of her job, though the newspaper article did say something about The American Dream going through changes after the death of its leader or something like that), but I can sympathize with her wanting a vacation and not getting one. It’ll be interesting to see how okay she is with Courtney as Stargirl as things get more dangerous.

Mike, likewise, wasn’t much present, but it’s clear he’s still struggling to be a part of things. Pat wasn’t wrong, when he said that the discipline, etc. from having a job was important, but it still feels like he’s brushing Mike aside and not letting him be involved, so I can see some more resentment brewing this season. Better than last season, but c’mon Pat. Mike just wants to help. Still, hopefully we’ll get a better idea of where Mike stands in future episodes.

Artemis. Really interesting the way she brushed aside her parents being in jail as them being wrongly convicted. I’ve seen Young Justice, so I’m looking forward to seeing if they turn her into a villain or hero here.

Zeek. (Is that how he spelled it? It looked like that on his hat.) I’m, probably unnecessarily, wary of how interested he was in working with Pat at the show (does he know something?) but for now I’m mostly just mildly amused at his “I don’t care what you do on your time, but hey, do you think that robot could use a flamethrower?”. Also. Pat. C’mon man. You’ve been in this business for decades. Hide your robot better. (Though, I’ll admit, he was only resigned when he realized Zeek had found it, so... Did he have an excuse ready? Did he just not read Zeek as a threat? I’m probably reading too much into this, but it’ll again be interesting to see where it goes.)

Cameron’s back, seemingly unaware of everything, and it looks like his murderous grandparents are taking care of him. Not great, but, eh, we’ll see what happens.

Sylvester is still tracking down Pat. I’m a little bit glad the landlord either didn’t give him, or didn’t have, Pat’s information from that end scene last season. I’m also interested to see if Maggie (Mike’s Mom, if my understanding of comics I haven’t read is correct) sticks around. Sylvester seems supremely unworried and in a mostly good mood, despite his desire to track down Pat, so I really want to know what’s up with him. I’ve seen some fan theories of time travel and him being a displaced Starman, which could be interesting, but I have no idea if they’re accurate. He certainly seems to be the real deal, at least with all the right memories.

Cindy and Eclipso. That opening scene was creepy, and made me question if I’d turned on the right show, and the connection with the McNider family is really interesting. Did not like the way she had Mike’s picture, but from a writing POV I really liked it. I don’t want Mike to go villain, but I mostly trust the writers to see how this plays out.

Other thoughts: The town seems to have moved on from the mind control/satellite-dish-from-the-football-field thing, so I’m guessing there weren’t too many causalities. New principal makes sense, and I like that they didn’t need to shove it in our face to remind us what happened to the old one (plus that scene where Courtney bumps into her kid; nice and simple and shows a little of how he’s coping). I appreciate that Henry hasn’t been forgotten. No glimpse of Yolanda’s home life yet, or Rick’s uncle. No idea how Rick managed to change his name, but the threat he was hiding from is more or less gone, so it makes sense.

I may have forgotten something here or there, but anyone who’s made it this far deserves a cookie, so, thanks for reading! I’m always up for discussion if anyone wants to add on or debate any of my points.

#Stargirl #My thoughts #just talking to myself

[simplyshelbs16xoxo]

‘wreck my plans’ chapter 6: your heart was glass...

FFN | Ao3 | Buy Me a Coffee?

.

.

               They took the night train into Sheffield. Tom sat across from her, a science fiction novel open in his hands. It was only a two hour ride, but Molly wished she had brought something to distract her from everything. Instead she sat there, her heart hurting, wishing she had the courage to bring up what she needed to speak to him about. There had been a lack of that lately, courage. The first weekend of the new year, she had a symposium to attend where she’d be giving a talk about her most recent published article.

               Curious, she decided to at least say something. “Did you ever read my paper? The one that was published a few weeks back?”

               Without looking up from his book, Tom furrowed his brows. “What paper?”

               “It was the one about the unusual cases of tandem bullets and how to spot the findings of such an injury,” Molly reminded him.  

               “Uh, no, sorry, Molls, can’t say I have,” he replied, still not looking at her. “You know it’s not my cup of tea.”

               Not his cup of tea, indeed. She rolled her eyes. Of course he hadn’t. But Sherlock had. And without prompting. A small smile bloomed on her face at the memory. He had told her it was brilliant. “My clever Molly,” he called her.

               Molly turned her head toward the window, watching as more stars dotted the sky the further from London they got. She blinked her eyes slowly, fighting the exhaustion she felt. It wasn’t long before everything went black, dreams of Sherlock in her head. This time, she didn’t fight them. They were lovely dreams of Sherlock kissing her, holding her, touching her, making her his. It was more than she could bear. Then they were dancing, the song playing in the background tugging at her heart.

                                     Goodbye, my almost lover

                                   Goodbye, my hopeless dream

               Tears stained her face as she slept. She’d cry an ocean for him, the water’s colour matching his eyes. He was calling out to her, her name like a prayer on his lips. What followed were the words she had longed to hear him say: I love you. And damn it, she could no longer deny that she loved him too.

.

.

               Arrived in Sheffield safe and sound. It probably won’t be long until I’m dead to the world. Happy Christmas to you too, Sherlock. And thanks for thinking of me.

                -Mx

                Sherlock read over her words several times before finally setting his phone down to look over the sheet music in front of him, adding the final notes to his composition for her. Reaching for his violin, he put the bow to the strings, allowing the first sorrowful notes to overcome him. The music coursed through his veins as it poured out from his heart. The tone shifted into something tender, romantic. He thought of her eyes, her laugh, her smile; the way she lingered long enough to drive him crazy when she kissed his cheek.

                Downstairs, Mrs. Hudson listened to the music—she loved it when he played—with tears in her eyes. “You poor dear…” she blubbered, using a tissue to blow her nose. She so wished he would just tell Molly how he felt. There was no doubt in her mind that the girl loved him back. They were both so damn stubborn.

                 As Sherlock brought the music to a close, he let out a ragged breath. Setting the violin back in its case, he thought of how much he wished he could have her here for Christmas. He wasn’t overly fond of the holiday, but it sparked joy in her. They could spend it together—just the two of them by the fire, he in his chair and her, legs curled up on his lap. It was a nice little dream. Sherlock so desperately wanted her to know he loved her. He wasn’t giving up without a fight this time.

.

.

                  Molly looked around at all the once-familiar faces. The house was crowded with Tom’s family—people she met only a small handful of times—but she never felt so alone in her life. When she thought of family, images of John and Mary showed up, Greg, Mycroft, Mrs. Hudson, and, of course, Sherlock. They were the ones she should be spending Christmas with. It wasn’t that Tom’s family was awful—quite the opposite. It had been so long since she had a parent-like figure in her life.

                   “Have you two set a date yet?” his mother asked. She threw a stealthy wink at her son.

                   Tom shook his head, amused by the question. “We discussed April in the beginning, didn’t we, Molls?”

                   “Hmm?” she said sleepily. “Oh, uh, yeah.” They only discussed it, never officially choosing anything yet. Or, at least, she never did. “Sorry, just a bit tired from the ride over. Thomas, do you know if my phone is done charging yet?”

                   He headed over to the small charging table across the room and retrieved it for her. “All charged up,” he smiled, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

                   “Thanks,” she replied, a sad smile on her face. Tom did love her, she had no doubt about that, but it wasn’t the way she had always imagined. Then again, life wasn’t a fairytale. But it could be, Mary’s voice rang clear in her head. Molly unlocked her phone finding another text from Sherlock.

                   Glad you made it safely. Have a good night, Molly. Sleep well and have pleasant dreams.

                   -SHx

.

.

                   She had no idea how long she sat there staring at the little ‘x’ he added beside his initials just for her. Needing to be alone with her thoughts, Molly headed upstairs. A few people—his mum, aunt, and grandmother—bid her goodnight. She acknowledged them briefly, happy when she was able to turn the corner at the top of the steps. It was another hour or so before Tom joined her. He slipped in beneath the duvet, oblivious to the fact she had been crying. Not that she knew what for. She wanted to start a fight with him if only just to feel something other than the pain that had been eating her up for weeks.

                   “I don’t think I’m who you think I am,” she muttered to him.

                   Tom turned toward her. “Where’s this coming from?”

                   Molly sighed. “From a long overdue conversation, and please don’t just shut me down like you always do. It’s getting old. I think when you met me, I was a shell of the person I am. You fell in love with the wrong girl.”

                   “Come, now, Molls, I know who you are,” Tom tried to assure her. “This is just wed—well, engagement jitters. Is that why we haven’t done much of anything to plan? I know it can be overwhelming.”

                   She shook her head. He really didn’t know her at all. “What’s my favourite colour?”

                   “I—what’s that got to do with anything?” he asked. “It’s green.”

                   Molly smiled sadly. “No, it’s not. It’s yellow.”

                   “It’s just a colour, Molls,” he told her, yawning.

                   “It’s your favourite colour,” she told him.

                   “What is?”

                   “Green,” she replied. “That’s the colour you like.”

                   “Actually…it’s not,” he admitted.

                   Molly scrunched her face in confusion. “Then why do you wear green so much?”

                   Tom ran a hand through his hair. “You said you really liked green on me when we were first dating.”

                    She tried so hard, but couldn’t control the laughter that came out. Tom joined in, knowing how ridiculous they’d been. Sharing a laugh helped lessen the tension, but he couldn’t deny she had a point. Like most things though, he let it roll off his shoulders, chalking it up to nerves or pressure. Maybe if he could make things easier on her. Wedding planning was a bit contrived. Perhaps she’d prefer spontaneity? The cogs were turning in his head, though it wasn’t long before they both drifted to sleep, facing away from one another.

.

.

A Little Over a Year Ago

                “Molly! You made it!” Meena shrieked in excitement. The pub was crowded, music from the house band thumping through the speakers around her. She dragged Molly over to the bar. “I’d like you to meet Tom! He’s a friend of my brother’s!”

                “Hi,” Tom greeted her somewhat awkwardly. He held out his hand to her and Molly shook it.

                “Hello,” she replied, forcing a smile, unable to ignore how he dressed similarly to a certain consulting detective. Some days were still difficult since Sherlock had gone. It had been nearly a year since he left. Molly knew he was alive, but she grieved him just the same. She felt his absence in everything she did, searching for him in the lab or expecting him to come sweeping in the morgue like he did before. Mike had caught her once in the lab, heaving sobs wracking her body.

                “It’ll be alright, Molly,” he had told her, silently asking permission to hug her. She nodded and let him comfort her. He knew how much Sherlock meant to her. “We all miss him.”

                Needless to say, it wasn’t difficult for her to convince everyone of her own grief. She prayed for his safety every single night. And, Meena, bless her soul, was trying to help Molly move on.

                “Would you mind if I bought you a drink?” Tom asked.

               Determined to enjoy herself, Molly replied, “Not at all. Thank you.”

               Meena’s brother joined them moments later, and the four of them traded stories from Uni, laughing at all the shit they got into. It was the first time Sherlock hadn’t lingered in her mind since his departure, and Molly felt lighter than she had in months. Tom was lovely, treated her kindly. They bonded over their love of BBC’s Miranda and Doctor Who. She learned that he liked to go to the pub on weekends to watch football with his mates.

               Molly was hesitant to share anything about her. She certainly didn’t want to tell him she was still grieving the loss of her closest friend, though it would eventually come out later thanks to Meena. She listened to him talk about his family, growing up in Sheffield. When he asked about hers, all she could muster was, “There’s no one left. Just me.” The emptiness left inside her made itself known once more at the reminder that she really had next to no one left in her life. She had Meena, and of course that should be enough, but somehow it wasn’t.

               “Hey…you okay?” Tom asked, breaking her free from the depressing thoughts in her head.

                “Hmm? Sorry.” She laughed nervously. “I tend to get lost in my head sometimes—it’s been happening a lot more often lately.”

                “Nice to see you joining the land of the living,” Meena joked.    

                Molly rolled her eyes playfully. The rest of the night eased her troubled mind. They had gone and played darts, girls against guys. Only by two points, the girls had lost, but it was because of Tom’s insanely accurate throws. She felt flirty with the alcohol in her system, and decided to present a proposition to Tom. “Take one more shot, and if you hit the bullseye—“

                “And what?” he asked, teasing her, his eyes practically undressing her. “Do I get a snog out of this?”

                Meena’s brother whistled loudly.

               Feeling bold, she nodded. “You better not miss.” Surprising her, Tom took a moment to line up the shot and hit it right in the center. Meena and her brother cheered and started shouting in excitement when Molly pulled Tom in for a searing kiss. From that alone, she could feel the void that had been left in her life from Sherlock’s absence start to close up bit by bit. And it left her wanting more.

 Nine Months Ago

               It had been a bit of whirlwind. Molly had dated Tom for a month before they made it official. Now, two months in an actual relationship, she felt content. His gentle demeanor was exactly what she needed in her life at the moment, and she was thankful for it. They were to have dinner tonight over at his place. She was excited mostly to see his dog, Milo, who always looked put out every time he took a whiff of her, smelling her cat’s scent on her clothes.

               “Molly,” he smiled brightly when he opened his door to his flat. “Come on in. Milo’s missed you.” He shut the door behind her after she stepped inside, and kissed her lips firmly. “I’ve missed you too.”

               She laughed, feeling her face flush. “You know I’m only with you for your dog, right?” she joked, bending down to scratch beneath Milo’s chin. He sniffed her, letting out a disapproving growl. “You’ll have to just get used to it, Milo.”

               “I knew you were too good to be true,” Tom joked back from the kitchen. “Milo gets all the love.”

               They eventually sat down to eat the delicious dinner Tom had cooked up for them. There wasn’t a lot he was good at making, but Molly didn’t care much, for she wasn’t one for cooking, herself. “There was this tumor I found during my autopsy today; it was so small, but intricately woven throughout the tissue. So sad for the poor man, of course, but it was fascinating!”

               Tom blanched, fighting the urge to vomit. “Is that so?”

               “Oh! Sorry, I forget I can’t just talk about that stuff with anyone.” Molly wanted to slink beneath the table, embarrassed of her enthusiasm.

               He smiled weakly. “No worries, just maybe no autopsy talk tonight?”

               “Right, of course, sorry.” It was the fifth or sixth time she felt she had to apologise for her more…odd interests.

               They finished up dinner and settled on the sofa for a movie that, about halfway in, was ignored in favor of a little snogging. Molly tried to get herself to relax, matching his enthusiasm in an effort to clear her head.

               “I think I love you,” Tom had spoken against her lips.

               Molly paused, unsure at first, and then spoke slowly, “I think I do too.”

#sherlolly #wreck my plans #my fanfiction

[bakubabes-tatakae]

For The Love Of Humanity’s Strongest (Part Five)

Author’s Note: If anyone wants to be in a taglist for this feel free to let me know! Happy to do it for anyone!

(Levi Ackerman x Reader)

Summary: When all seems lost Y/N knows that she can count on one person to always be there for her brother, Eren Jaeger, and herself. Can humanity’s strongest not only keep Eren in line, but keep his relationship alive as well?

AO3 Link

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four

Part Five:

I had been dreading the day that Eren would be put on trial since Levi and Erwin has sat me down to talk to me about it. I know their plan was to get him out of this, and I believed them when they said they could, but the thought of my brother being in shackles in front of all of those people was something I couldn’t grasp. This poor boy had been through so much lately.

Hange approached me, noticing that I was just standing in front of the door to the military police holding cells, not even attempting to go in. My brain couldn’t get out of its own way. She put her hand on my shoulder, startling me. “They’re waiting for you Y/N. We have to get him up there soon.”

I turned to look at her. “I know Zoe, but I can’t bring myself to walk forward.”

She smiled weakly at me. “I’ll come with you, how about that?”

Zoe Hange might be a mad woman, but she had been my best friend since the day we met. The day I joined the scouts was the day that our bond began. I took a deep breath and slowly opened the door, walking down the steps to the cells.

When we approached his cell Eren was already sitting up, a military police member on each side of the entrance. Hange flung herself at the bars and jumped Eren. I walked up next to her. “Zoe, calm down.”

She spoke to Eren, she had always been fascinated by the Titans, so being near a person that could become a Titan was making her gears turn. “So then... you’re Eren. Are you well? How are you? I’m really sorry you’ve been waiting so long, but here’s your chance to finally get out.”

Eren’s gaze was going between Hange and I. I tried to calm him. “You can trust her, this is Zoe Hange, the girl I always talk about.”

He relaxed a little. She took a pair of handcuffs off her belt loop and held them through the bars of the cell. “If you wanna get out you’ll have to put these on for me, okay?”

The military police members approached the cell and reached their hands out for the cuffs. I held my hand up and took them. “Let me do it, please.” They hesitated. “He won’t hurt me, he’s my little brother.” The men clearly didn’t trust me, but they opened the cell door and unlocked the shackles around Eren’s arms and legs.

Eren slowly stood and turned around, holding his arms behind his back for me. I spoke to him as I put the cuffs around his wrists. “I’m gonna figure this out Eren. I won’t let them hurt you. Trust me. Levi and Erwin will get you out of this.”

* * * * * *

As we marched down the hall with a couple other scout members Hange started the introductions. “I’m Zoe Hange, I’m a section commander for the Scouts.”

As usual Mike was being a weirdo, sniffing Eren, clearly making him uncomfortable. I walked over to the other side of Eren and moved Mike out of the way. “This is a fellow section commander. Mike Zacharius. Don’t mind him, he makes it a habit of giving new members a thorough sniff.”

We reached the door to the courtroom way quicker than I had wanted us too. “It’s probably best if we don’t explain what’s going on Eren.” Eren was starting to fight back with the military police members that had come with us.They started to push him through the door. The fear in my little brother’s eyes was breaking my heart. “We’ve put all our faith in you Eren.”

Eren fought back harder. “Wait, Y/N, what’s happening?!”

Mike grabbed my arms and started to lead me away, knowing that Eren has always been my weakness. Zoe took over “Best of luck.” She shut the doors and turned to me. I could still hear Eren yelling through the doors.

I turned toward Hange and she grabbed onto me. “I know it sucks Y/N, but you know that Levi and Erwin are going to do everything they need to to help him.”

“I know, I just need a minute. You guys go in ahead of me, I’ll meet you.” The emotions running through me knowing that if Levi and Erwin weren’t successful basically warranted my brother’s death was more than my anxiety could handle.

When they all walked away and headed to the balcony entrance of the courtroom and I knew the coast was clear I leaned against the wall and let myself slide to the floor, burying my head in my hands, allowing myself to break down for a second.

* * * * * *

After ten minutes I had calmed myself down, knowing I had to get into there and see what was happening. When I walked through the door there was tons of hollering going on, I was still too far to make out anything they were saying. As I stepped out next to Hange I heard a voice speak my name. “Y/N Jaeger.”

The commander of the military police, Nile, was speaking to me. I looked down at him from the balcony. “Yes sir.”

Levi had his eyes locked on mine, he was worried about what Nile was going to do. “Is it true that after Eren transformed into a Titan in the mission to retake Trost that he attempted to assault you?”

My eyes grew wide. There was only one group of people who would have said anything about that. My eyes turned to slits as I stared at the garrison members that had ratted us out. When I didn’t speak Nile spoke again. “He might be your brother, but this is a court room, you can not lie.”

I hung my head and spoke through gritted teeth. “Yes sir, it’s true.”

Gasps were heard through the courtroom and more hollering started. Eren had a look or pure shock in his face when I looked back up. People started to shout about Mikasa and I possibly being Titans since we had managed to survive his attack. The courtroom was now convinced we were all in cahoots. People shouted about how they should dissect Mikasa and I along with Eren. Eren’s face has a mixture of panic and anger as he heard the words spoken about us.

To the shock of all of us Eren spoke up, screaming at the top of his lungs to be heard over the chaos. “You leave them out of this, if you want to call anyone a monster and make someone suffer than let it be me! Y/N and Mikasa have nothing to do with this. They’re innocent!”

Levi’s gaze flashed to me again as he heard people making threats of dissecting the woman he loved. I could see his anger level rising with the people around him and saw Erwin’s rising as well. Erwin put his hand on Levi’s arm, trying to signal to him to calm down, he didn’t want the others seeing him get consumed.

“They must be Titans too if you’re protecting them!”

Eren was getting way to angry, we still had no idea what exactly made him transform. This anger could be really bad. Eren lunged forward, the shackles clanging loudly against the pole that held him in the ground. “Stop it!” As he lunged everyone went quiet, afraid of what could happen. “You’re wrong... about it all. But you’re so hellbent on pushing your selfish agendas that you’re blind to what’s in front of you!”

Nile was the first to speak as the silence in the room became deafening. “What do you mean?”

“What does it even matter? None of you have even seen a Titan. So why are you so afraid, huh?” He was taunting them. I knew this couldn’t be good. “There’s no sense in having power if you’re not going to fight! If you’re too scared to fight for your lives then fine, let me do it! YOU’RE ALL COWARDS!”

I leaned forward on the railing and Hange and Mike each grabbed one of my arms, afraid I would fall over. “Eren, stop it!”

He lunged forward again. “JUST SHUT UP... AND PUT ALL YOUR FAITH IN ME.”

I hadn’t seen Eren scream that loudly since we were kids. The panic in my eyes could be seen a mile away. Before anyone could even respond to him I saw Levi hop over the edge of the court room and enter it. What was he going to do? I saw Levi raise his foot and knew exactly what he was about to do.

A foot hit Eren square in the jaw, sending a tooth flying out of his mouth, but he didn’t stop there. Next was a kick to the gut before Levi grabbed his head and pulled him too him.

I lunged forward and hollered. “LEVI!” Levi didn’t look up, he didn’t even acknowledge that I had even spoke. What was he doing to him? How would this even help us? Hange grabbed my arms and held me back away from the railing.

“Y/N, stop, I don’t want to have to drag you out of here.” She had an arm around my neck. “I’m sure Levi has a reason for this.”

Levi flung his knee into Eren’s face before pushing his head into the concrete below him, stepping on his head like he was a bug. “You know, personally, I think nothing instills discipline like pain.” He was staring down at Eren as he spoke. “You don’t need a good talking too, what you’re in need of boy, is to be taught a lesson. And you happen to be in perfect kicking position.”

Eren gasped as Levi sent more kicks into his gut and back. I fought against Hange as I watched. I didn’t care what Levi’s reasoning was behind this, all I could see was red. Eren was my responsibility. It was my job to keep him safe. I had promised my mom that I would. It was her dying wish.

Nile stood in shock, he couldn’t believe what Levi had the balls to do in front of the entire court. “Now hold on Levi.”

Levi interupted him before he could speak further. “What is it?” Levi now has Eren’s head pinned against the pole behind him.

“It’s dangerous. What if he gets angry? Turns into a Titan?”

Levi kicked his face. “Don’t be silly.” He grabbed Eren by the hair and lifted him up. “After all, you guys just want to dissect him, don’t you?” Levi let him go and looked around. “They said that during the time that he was transformed Jaeger was able to kill twenty Titans before he finally ran out of strength.” He looked straight at Nile. “As an enemy his intelligence makes him all the more dangerous. But I could take him down without a problem.” He looked at the crowd. “How many of you can say the same?”

Everyone in the courtroom looked terrified. The fear that humanity’s strongest put into people was both terrifying and intoxicating. “Before you torment the beast you better think. Can you actually kill him?”

As Erwin stood I calmed myself some, still seeing red at Levi, but that would have to wait. “Sir,” he raised his hand. “I have a proposition.”

The General spoke. “Proceed.”

“There’s still too much we don’t know. And no doubt his danger will be ever present. As such I suggest this: Eren Jaeger will be placed under Captain Levi’s supervision and we’ll conduct a recon mission outside of the walls.”

“And Jaeger will join you on this excursion?”

“Yes sir, and then you can look upon the missions results for yourself. If he successfully controls his abilities Eren will have proven his value to mankind.”

“Eren Jaeger will be closely supervised?” The General looked to Levi. “And should he become out of control?”

Levi looked behind him. “I can definitely kill him if it comes to that.” His words cut me and I fought again. “There’s only one downside to that. There’s absolutely no middle ground.”

“Then I have made my choice..... the Scouts are now in custody of Eren Jaeger. He will be under the command of Commander Erwin and Captain Levi.”

* * * * * *

When we left the court room Hange stayed glued to my side, afraid of what I might do. Eren had been released from his shackles and was standing by the wall, rubbing his wrists. I ran to him and buried myself into his chest. “I’m so sorry Eren.”

Eren clung to me. “For what Y/N, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“For Levi, he should never had done what he did in there.”

“If he didn’t then who knows if I’d be standing here right now. He showed them that he had power over me when my brain wouldn’t let my mouth stop moving.”

I knew Eren was right, but I couldn’t let myself believe it. Levi walked out of the door beside us and when he saw the anger in my eyes he prepared himself. I walked over to him, trying to make myself look calm, and when I got close enough I threw a punch aimed for his face. He dodged me with ease, growing up in the underground had taught him excellent hand to hand combat. It didn’t even phase me, I continued to throw punches.

As scouts surrounded us and tried to grab onto me Erwin stopped them. “Leave them be, Levi can handle himself.”

They all stepped back and as I threw my last punch Levi spun me around and held me to him, pinning my arms at my side. “Will you stop it and let me explain?”

My breath was ragged as I tried to break free. “Why should I?”

“Because I just saved your brother’s life, now come with me.” Levi grabbed my hand and dragged me down the hall, finding a room that was empty and dragging me in. He had never liked to make a scene when it came to his personal life. “I know you’re mad, but I didn’t have a choice.”

I didn’t speak, just watched him. I walked to the desk behind where I stood and sat on it. He walked closer to me and put his hand on my cheek. “Will you please talk to me?”

I didn’t let him speak. I put my hands behind his back and pulled him toward me. Getting my hint he put his hands behind my head and pulled my face to his, planting a kiss on me, clearly wanting to let our emotions speak instead of our words.

Taglist 💕 @super-peace-fangirl @pjimochi @izzythefanfreak @gamegirl23100 @always394patronus @echimozart @titaniabuck

Part Six: *NSFW Ahead!*, Part Seven

Updated: 5/13/2020

#levi ackerman #levi #ackerman #levi ackerman imagines #levi ackerman fanfiction #levi ackerman fanfic #levi imagines #levi fanfic #levi fanfiction #ackerman imagines #ackerman fanfic #ackerman fanfiction #levi ackerman x reader #levi x reader #ackerman x reader #imagines #anime imagines #anime #fanfiction #fanfic #anime fanfic #anime fanfiction #attack on titan #attack on titan fanfic #for the love of humanitys strongest #attack on titan imagines #shingeki no kyojin fanfic #shingeki no kyojin fanfiction #shingeki no kyojin imagines #jaeger

[poc-movie-supremacy]

My Dad

A.N.: Pat with all of his kids! That’s kinda it. I hope you like it! Comments and likes are appreciated. (I do not own anything related to the Stargirl tv show or the comics) :D

----

Pat didn’t plan on being a Dad. The superhero gig took up most of his time. He was fine with it too. He knows he’d only get a kid if he had time for one. Sylvester was the one who really wanted kids. Pat was more focused on keeping him alive to see him or her or they grow up. Sylvester was pushy though. Late nights when they were relaxing after patrolling he would day dream about little feet running about. 

He finally got his wish years into their superhero routine. Sylvester and Pat had been living together for years. If they could get married, it would’ve been their 4th anniversary, and on that day, they brought home little Mike Pemberton Dugan. They argued for a long time on what his last name should be. In the end they flipped a coin and Dugan won. Life was fine for a few years. Then the ISA got worse. Pat begged Sylvester to not go and fight, but he wouldn’t listen. 

“What happens if I don’t show up, Pat?” Sylvester would always ask him. “If I don’t show up, what kind of world would Mikey be subjected to?”

“A world without you,” Pat would always think, but never say. Eventually Sylvester would win the argument, and Pat thought it was the worst choice he ever made. It was a couple weeks before Christmas, Mikey was turning two. He was babling and walking down around the house, elated when Sylvester would come home. 

Sylvester and the rest of the gang went out giving Pat specific instructions to watch over the kids. Pat didn’t listen. He found a sitter and paid her good money before rushing out to join them. 

He was too late.

He was too late.

He was too late. 

It kept running in his head, “He was too late.” The ISA had won and almost all of the JSA had died. Pat didn’t know what to do. How do you tell the little boy waiting at home that his other dad wasn’t ever coming home? 

Mikey didn’t take it too well. He became moody and irritable overnight. A small funeral for the deceased JSA members was held a few weeks after their deaths, two days after Christmas. Him and Mikey were on their own after that. Pat tried to date other people, but nothing seemed to stick. Besides, the ISA were still out there so there were other things to worry about than dating. 

Then he met Barbra. She was the sweetest, prettiest woman he had ever met. He thought, maybe, it was time to settle down again. Courtney was a slight problem though. She didn’t take too kindly to Pat. He thought maybe he should end things with Barbra, but she promised everything was going to be okay. And it was, Courtney, very slowly, opened up to Pat. Trust was there, and Pat tried so hard to be a good not-dad for her.  Then it broke when they had to move. 

She wasn’t happy about the move, Pat knew that. He also knew that he wasn’t her biological father, but he wasn’t going to let her get into danger fighting Brainwave. His brain screeched at him to acknowledge that Sylvester had another kid, but he shoved it down. That possibility could be dealt with later. Right now he had to figure out a way to keep his step daughter alive. 

Joey Zarik dies and Pat has nightmares that it could’ve been Courtney. 

Rick Harris seems like a nice kid. Troubled though, and Courtney figures out that he’s a legacy, Hourman’s kid. Pat was surprised, the kid’s grown up a lot since he last saw him. He decides to give him a gift, a piece of the car that he remembered Rick needing. At his house, something felt off. Rick’s uncle reeked of alcohol and he didn’t seem like the nicest person in the world. Pat didn’t want to say anything yet, he opted to just keep an eye on Rick whenever he could. 

He hears that Courtney recruited a bunch of other kids, Rick included, to join the Junior JSA. Pat wonders if he has grey hair yet. He knows he’s going to get an ulcer soon. Sylvester would probably laugh at him. Pat spends most of his time planning on different strategies to keep them safe. 

He fails. 

He tried so hard to prevent this, but Beth gets injured. They were fighting off Tigress and she was out for blood. Rick picked up Beth and cradled her in his arms. Pat picked them up in his giant robot hand and flew them off. Barbra was waiting for them in the auto shop and immediately went to help Rick with Beth. Pat pointed out where the antidote was then flew back to help Courtney and Yolanda. 

Despite the fear in his heart, he couldn’t help but feel pride at watching Courtney and Yolanda fight. They have improved so much, their moves were more precise and graceful. Pat stayed back and only attacked when needed. 

They managed to knock Tigris out. Courtney and Yolanda dragged her body over to pat and together all four of them flew back to the auto shop. Barbra was taking Beth’s temperature while Rick clutched Beth’s hand. 

Court and Yolanda took Trigis to the basement of the auto shop then put as many heavy objects as they could over the door. Sure it was a fire hazard, but they figured if worst comes to worst, Rick could move all the stuff off the door.  

“How is she?” Yolanda asked. Rick was quiet, Pat noticed his usual brooding borderline angry look was replaced by complete sadness. He looked like his world was falling apart. Pat filed that detail away for later. 

“She seems to be fine, currently she has a low fever and in a minute I’ll take her to the emergency room so they can monitor her.” Barbra replied clipped and profesional.  

“She should be fine, guys. Green Lantern was hit with it once and he survived. I’ll call all your parents and tell them that you’re having a sleepover.” Pat reassured. 

“But that doesn’t cover how Beth got poisoned.” Courtney almost yelled. She was pacing around fiddling with her fingers. Rick still hasn’t said anything, his eyes never straying from Beth’s face. Yoland crossed her arms and eyed Pat defensively as if asking, she’s right Mr. Dugan.

“I’ll think of something. For now, all of you get changed out of your uniforms. Take a shower, I’ll talk to your parents. Then we’ll take a trip to the emergency room.” Yolanda and Courtney left to go change while Barbra went to fix up the car so it could take Beth to the emergency room. Rick stayed though. 

“Rick, she’s going to be fine. You need to change.”

“It should’ve been me.”

“Rick.”

“If I was just fast enough, then it would be me instead of her injured. It should’ve been me ‘cause now she has a fever and she’s in pain. And I’m not leaving her side, what if she needs me.” Rick swallowed a lump in his throat. “What if something bad happens?” Rick spews out quickly. Tears are threatening to fall now and his grip on Beth’s hand has tighented. 

Pat scooted closer to rub Rick’s back in a hopefully soothing manner. “You don’t have to leave her side. I can stand my ground against your uncle. He’s been drinking too much for him to be a problem. Anyways, Beth’s going to be fine, medicine is advanced than it was ten years ago. And, don’t think that way Rick. Self-hatred will get you nowhere. After this we can analyze the fight and see what went wrong and what we can improve up and what we did right. I only need you to leave her side for a moment. You shouldn’t stay in that sweaty costume any longer than necessary.”

“Pat-”

“Now Rick, and don’t punch Tigris in the face quite yet. As is she’s quiet, I don’t want to deal with another thing right now. Beth and calling you parents, but mainly Beth needs my full attention.”

Rick reluctantly left Beth’s side to do as Pat said. He was surprised, he expected more of a fight from Rick. Then he realized that Rick probably left so he could compose himself and  ‘shower’ by spraying febreeze on himself.  

“The car’s ready for transportation. I called Mike, he’s up and he said he’ll bike over to the hospital but I refused. After dropping off Beth, I’ll pick up Mike. He seems pretty spooked.” Barbra rubbed her hands on Pat’s shoulders. 

Pat rubbed his hand over his face. “I’ll bet. You okay honey?” Pat turned around and ran his arms up and down her to try and soothe her. 

“Yeah, a little spooked, but she’ll be okay? She’ll be okay.” Barbra said in an effort to reassure herself. “I never thought I’d be this stressed as an adult. They’re doing well for themselves though. Very impressive.”

Pat nodded in agreement. “I should start calling all their guardians.”

“We need to do something about Rick’s uncle,” Barbra commented. 

“Yeah, but I want to be careful about it. One wrong move and CPS will send him halfway across the country.”

“You’ll figure it out.” Barbra reassured. The calls went easier than expected. Rick’s uncle didn’t even pick up, and Alex picked up and he seemed fine that his sister was having sleep over. It was the Chapel’s that made him nervous. Her father was on a business trip, but her mom was already at the hospital and she promised to ready a bed for Beth. By the end of the call everyone was ready to go. Pat got into the drivers seat while Courtney, Yolanda, and Rick sat in the back holding Beth to their laps. Barbra made sure it was as safe as possible before climbing into the passenger seat. Pat got them to the hospital in record time. Rick picked Beth up bridal style and carried her into the ER. Mrs. Chapel showed Rick the right way to the emergency room. Barbra kissed her husband on the cheek before going to pick up Mike. 

Yolanda and Courtney walked hand in hand into the hospital. Pat was right behind keeping an eye on them. Sue him, his already frayed nerves were completely broken after watching Beth get injured. “How are you girls holding up?” 

“Beth- She’s like this bright light. She’s kind and she's positive and she always says the right thing you know? It feels wrong like something is deeply wrong in the universe, you know? It- not her. It never should’ve been her.” Yolanda tells him. Her voice sounds more hollow then usual, but her eyes her entire being radiates anger. 

“I get what you mean.” For the thousandth time, Pat wondered if this whole game was worth it. They were kids, amazing kids, but kids nonetheless. At least with the original JSA they were adults. Pat knew they were in too deep, so he just texted Barbra to bring more coats before taking a seat in the waiting room with everyone else. Rick eventually came back, seething somewhat. Pat assumed that he was kicked out the hospital room and just gave him some space. 

Barbra came back with blankets and coats and Mike, who looked dead asleep, was carrying a couple trays of drinks from McDonalds. “Mom and I stopped by McDonald’s for drinks. They’re all labeled.” Pat smiled at Mike calling Barbra mom, it was a small thing, but it made him happy. Mike went to everyone before heading back to his father. There was a seat open between Courtney and Pat so Mike took that one. 

He, with his big puffy coat, curled into Pat’s side. “Everyone’s ok?”

Pat thought hard before answering Mike, “Well, we’re in the hospital, but we’ll be okay.”

It was a cold and long night. Mike dozed off not long after coming here. No one else could sleep. Horrible, awful, what-if’s ran through their mind. After a while, Rick was coaxed out of his brooding by Barbra. She gave him a blanket and a seat to sit on. No one said anything. Maybe they should’ve, but then a nurse entered the wait room and talking was forgotten in favor of listening to the nurse. 

“For Beth Chapel?” Barbra and Rick shot up. Pat couldn’t with Mike and Yolanda and Courtney were half-asleep. 

“How is she?” Rick asked. 

“She’s going to be fine. Any of that weird substance in her system isn’t putting her in danger and the fever should pass by the night. Her mom is with her now, but soon multiple visits will be allowed.” 

A collective exhale was let out around the room. Beth would be fine. Rick smiled. Barbra let out a relieved chuckle and gave Pat a kiss, careful of Mike. Yolanda and Courtney gave a sleepy whoop. They pulled Rick in for an hug that he got trapped in once they fell asleep. Pat felt himself finally relax knowing that they were all safe. He never planned on being a dad, he wouldn’t change his situation for the world. 

#stargirl #pat dugan #barbra whitmore #courtney whitmore #yolanda montez #beth chapel #Tigirs #Mrs. Chapel #Mike Dugan #I'm sorry for Beth whump #I didn't mean it #hournite #pat x barbra #ella's stargirl fics #we're all fic writers here #rick tyler

[commander-hanji-zoe]

Reassuring you - Part 2

Hey I know I’ve been a bit absent this past week, i’ve got loads of stuff I’m working on but sadly none of it finished (a lot of it is 50% there). Had real lockdown blues and also getting super anxious about the new state of equilibrium we’ll have and just generally feeling overwhelmed. 💔 But today I decided to get this written and it’s made me feel a little better, I hope it helps some of you too :) These are quite a bit shorter than the essays I wrote for Erwin, Levi, Mike & Hange. 

Today I’ve written about Moblit, Nanaba, Ness, Gelgar & Rico ( ͡ᵔ ͜ʖ ͡ᵔ )

Moblit 

Moblit is an incredibly good judge of character and knows exactly how to read people.

So when he sees you looking nervous/worried and a little too alert he recognises what you’re going through.

Is cautious when he approaches you not wanting to startle you or be too overbearing. He understands that sometimes when people are feeling low the last thing they want is to be crowded by others - but he also wants to let you know he’s there for you if you need to talk or can give you space for now and come back in a bit.  

He walks up to you from the front, again not to startle you. He’ll clear his throat and when you make eye contact he’ll offer a small smile, “Hey just wanted to let you know I’m here if you need to talk.” 

He wants to give hugs but knows it can be too much so they’ll be a reassuring pat on the shoulder, a slightly more awkward smile and a pause while he waits for you to respond.

If you need space, he’ll come back later with a drink each and just sit with you on the grass while the two of you talk things out. He can relate to a lot of what you’re going through and hearing that makes you feel better. Moblit is someone you can easily sit in silence with and it never feels awkward, it’s just pleasant to be in his company like home.  

And if you feel like you don’t belong (in the cadets/scouts wherever you chose to join) he’ll let you know that you’re not alone in that. That many cadets feel somewhat lost and join to find a home, a family, but often it can be confusing - he too had suffered with the same thoughts and nightmares. Being in Hange’s team and finding his place by their side really helped.

Nanaba

Nanaba is a sweet heart and the best big sister to anyone who needs her to be just that. 

If you’re not yourself during training exercises or when you’re around others, she won’t ask you then for fear of embarrassing you in front of the others. Rather she’ll wait till the training is over, if you seem to be struggling a little or looking like you’re going to cry/making clumsy mistakes she might call it a few minutes early or ask Mike to take over while she takes you to the side.

Whatever has happened she’ll listen without interruption, acknowledging what you’re saying as you speak so you know she’s taking in your every word.

Is really good at calming people down when panicking, helping with breathing exercise and grounding. 

Will take you somewhere quiet but also neutral, so away from others or anything that reminds you of the experience you’re worried about.

Reassuring back rubs/hand holding etc. (if you’re happy with physical contact) if not Nanaba understands and will reassure you with words which she is exceptional with, sometimes it’s like poetry with her. 

Like many of the others will tell you a story about when she was younger and in love with someone. She made a mistake which very few apart from her closest friends know about and it still occasionally haunts her. 

Hearing someone so strong and determined talk about something that made them feel how you are now makes you feel a lot less silly for feeling that way as well as less alone. 

Ness

Like Nanaba, if he notices in the class room or during training that you’re not your usual self he’ll do his best not to draw attention to you, picking on the other cadets instead.

When you go to leave the class room he’ll ask to speak with you quickly, “Everything okay?”

There’s something so friendly and genuine about Ness it’s hard not to like him or to open up to him. A day before you’d never have imagined speaking to him about the personal things you ended up telling him, but it turns out he’s one of the easiest people to speak to.

He’ll smile often, it’s not condescending or gloating, it’s just pure kindness that radiates from him.

He may not be as good at advice as some of the others, or really know what to say apart from that time heals and in a few days you’ll feel different. Or that someone else you know is bound to make a mistake or do something embarrassing in the next 24 hours that will distract you and anyone else who knows what you did. It makes you feel better. 

When you’re done talking he asks if you’d like to visit the stables with him and help groom and feed Charlotte as well as some of the other scout horses. It’s really relaxing and a perfect distraction to the chaos that’s going on inside your head. 

Ness tells you that whenever you’re feeling like this, you’re always welcome at the stables or to come and give him and the others a helping hand. 

He also tells you a few things he has done (some in the not too distant past), pranks played that went wrong, embarrassing moments when asking someone out on a date. The stories make you giggle. 

Gelgar

Not the best at reading other people as he gets a little too wrapped up in his own mind sometimes. It doesn’t mean he doesn't care but he isn’t as observant as others, so if you want to talk to him about something you’re going to have to be blunt.

Will at first laugh about it, possibly making a joke at your expense. It isn’t meant to be cruel, he’s trying to help you see the funny side of it but you probably won’t see it like that. What’s worse is that even if you do react badly, he’ll probably repeat it several times and exaggerate, hoping that you’ll see the funny side eventually. He also knows if he stops talking he’ll have to address the awkward silence which is bound to open up. 

However, when he realises just how upset you are over what’s happened and that you’re still not laughing he’s the kinda guy who will apologise and then continue to apologise for making you feel worse, saying sorry way too many times than is needed. But he will be genuinely concerned and want to reassure you that it was a joke with best intentions.

Afterwards he’ll give you what will probably be a really awkward hug.

Offers to get you a drink (of course he does) so you can go somewhere and talk further. Whether you’re in his room, by the river or in a bar, once he’s had a few drinks he starts to open up, confessing this is how he deals with his own issues.

But Gelgar, for his awkwardness and poor way of dealing with things at first, he recognises the situation and while he opens up to you he doesn’t try to make it about himself, he’ll always bring it back to you and how he can help.

Just listening to him talk does help though and the fact he has opened up to you means something.

Rico 

Pragmatic to the core - like Levi she may seem a little harsh at first and try to get you to snap out of it and focus on the bigger picture. 

Who cares if you embarrassed yourself in training/asking someone out - come tomorrow they’ll be someone else to talk about and more important things to worry about. 

Again it isn’t that she doesn’t care but she’s seen so much and many incidents where others have made mistakes which have cost lives. 

But, she tells you, the thing is you can’t dwell on it. If you did you’d drive yourself mad.

She tells you this from experience (she kinda looks sad when she confesses this) and in opposite fashion to Gelgar, will make a joke at her own expense to try and make you feel better.

After the initial slightly cold approach she will soften a little and apologise, patting you on the shoulder and letting you know she’s always there if you need to talk.

She understands that it’s not as simple as ‘just cheering up/forgetting about/stopping worrying’ etc. but she tries to put things into perspective while equally letting you know your feelings are valid and sometimes it’s okay to feel like this. 

Reminds you that we all learn from our mistakes and that is how we grow as people. 

#moblit berner #nanaba #Gelgar #Rico Brzenska #Dita Ness #snk #aot #snk x reader #headcanons #my writing #reassurance

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

January 1, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

Congress began the new year by repassing the National Defense Authorization Act over Trump’s veto, finding the two-thirds majority it needed to override one of Trump’s vetoes for the first time. The House of Representatives passed the bill on Monday by a vote of 322 to 87. The Senate vote was 81 to 13, with 6 Senators not voting.

The NDAA allocates the money Congress has appropriated for the military, and since Congress passed the first NDAA in 1961, it has never failed to pass.

This measure pushed back on a number of the president’s policies and demands. He wanted to be able to sue social media companies for things other people post on them—the law preventing such lawsuits is in Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act—but even staunch Trump supporter James Inhofe (R-OK) refused, noting that Section 230 has nothing to do with the military. Trump objected to the measure in the bill that requires renaming military bases that currently bear the name of Confederate generals; Congress left it in. Congress also specified that federal authorities must “visibly display” their name tags when operating in public, a rebuke to the administration’s deployment of officers in unmarked clothing this summer.

The NDAA also challenges Trump’s policies by slowing or stopping the removal of troops from Germany and Afghanistan, making it harder to move troops to our southern border, and blocking the removal of troops from South Korea unless the Pentagon signs off on the move. It caps at $100 million the amount of money the military can use on domestic projects, a protest of the president’s decision to fund his wall by moving $3.6 billion from other projects.

The NDAA also contains strong anti-corruption measures. Originally passed as the Corporate Transparency Act, these measures prohibit so-called shell companies with secret owners and operators, key tools of criminals and money launderers. The NDAA also regulates the antiquities trade, another haven for money laundering. The director of Transparency International’s U.S. office, Gary Kalman, called the bill “one of the most important anti-corruption measures ever passed by the U.S. Congress.”

After the Senate repassed the bill, Trump took to Twitter to call the Republican Senate “Pathetic!!!”

As the veto override indicates, the war between Trump and establishment Republicans is now out in the open. On the one hand are lawmakers who are publicly backing Trump and his on-going attempt to overturn the election; on the other hand are Republicans who don’t want to sign on to an assault on our democracy that, if it succeeds, would make Trump a dictator and remove all their power.

House lawmakers have indicated they will challenge some of the state electoral votes for Biden when Congress counts them on January 6. The process of gerrymandering, which protects Republicans from moderate challengers but leaves them open to challenges from extremists, has put a number of Republican radicals in the House, but the Senate has far fewer of them. A challenge from one house of Congress does not do anything, but a challenge to a state's electoral votes from both the House and the Senate means that both houses must debate whether or not to accept the electoral votes from that state. Then they decide by a simple majority vote.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has tried to keep Senate Republicans from challenging any of the votes because he doesn’t want Republicans to have to go on record either for or against the president. The election was not close. Biden won by more than 7 million votes and by 306 to 232 in the Electoral College. The Trump campaign has either lost or had dismissed 60 of the 61 cases it has brought over the election, and its advisers are increasingly unhinged.

Today, for example, a Trump-appointed federal judge threw out a lawsuit filed by Louie Gohmert (R-TX) that sought to empower Vice President Mike Pence to throw out Biden’s victory. Pence had opposed the lawsuit, and after the judge ruled, attorney Lin Wood, who is a supporter of the Trump effort, bizarrely predicted that Vice President Mike Pence could “face execution by firing squad” for “treason.” (Twitter suspended his account.) Trump himself today retweeted an 8-minute video claiming that the Communist Party in China has secretly infiltrated America through Hollywood and newspapers and has bought Joe Biden. It urges “patriots” to defend America. To the tweet, Trump added: “January 6th. See you in D.C.”

It seems clear that, with no chance of proving this election fraudulent, Trump is now trying to incite violence. Nonetheless, Republicans who are jockeying for the 2024 presidential nomination want to make sure they can pick up Trump’s voters. While McConnell doesn’t want Senators to have to declare their support either way, those vying to lead the party want to differentiate themselves from the pack.

On Wednesday, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) announced he would join the efforts of his House colleagues to challenge Biden electors from Pennsylvania and perhaps other states. This will not affect the outcome of the election, but it will force senators to go on record for or against Trump. In a statement, Hawley listed Trump talking points: the influence of “mega corporations” on behalf of Biden and “voter fraud.” Hawley seems pretty clearly to be angling for a leg up in 2024.

On Wednesday night, Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE) made his own play for the future of the Republican Party. He refuted point by point the idea that Trump won. He scolded his colleagues who are signing on to Trump’s attempt to steal the election, calling them “institutional arsonists.”

“When we talk in private, I haven’t heard a single Congressional Republican allege that the election results were fraudulent – not one,” he wrote on Facebook. “Instead, I hear them talk about their worries about how they will “look” to President Trump’s most ardent supporters.” They think they can “tap into the president’s populist base without doing any real, long-term damage,” he wrote, but they’re wrong. “Adults don’t point a loaded gun at the heart of legitimate self-government.”

Today, Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT), the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, launched his own bid to redefine the Republican Party with an attack on Trump’s apparent botching of the coronavirus vaccine rollout. In a press release, Romney noted “[t]hat comprehensive vaccination plans have not been developed at the federal level and sent to the states as models is as incomprehensible as it is inexcusable.”

But he didn’t stop there. Romney went on to say that he was no expert on vaccine distribution, “[b]ut I know that when something isn’t working, you need to acknowledge reality and develop a plan—particularly when hundreds of thousands of lives are at stake.” He offered ideas of his own, offering them “not as the answer but as an example of the kind of options that ought to be brainstormed in Washington and in every state.” After listing his ideas, he concluded: “Public health professionals will easily point out the errors in this plan—so they should develop better alternatives based on experience, modeling and trial.”

Romney’s statement was about more than vaccine distribution. With its emphasis on listening to experts and experimenting, it was an attack on the rigid ideology that has taken over the Republican Party. Romney has said he comes to his position from his own experience, not his reading, but he is reaching back to the origins of conservative thought, when Irish statesman Edmund Burke critiqued the French Revolution as a dangerous attempt to build a government according to an ideology, rather than reality. Burke predicted that such an attempt would inevitably result in politicians trying to force society to conform to their ideology. When it did not, they would turn to tyranny and violence.

Sasse’s point-by-point refutation of Trump’s arguments-- complete with citations—and Romney’s call to govern according to reality rather than ideology are suggestive. They seem to show an attempt to recall the Republican Party to the true conservatism it abandoned a generation ago.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#quotes #political #election 2020 #Heather Cox Richardson #corrupt GOP #criminal GOP #COVID-19

[oliverwxod]

Rush (Steve Rogers)

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader

Warnings: angst, Smuttttt, I mean it’s not much of an endgame spoiler bc I wrote most of it before the film came out, there’s only a really small bit that was from the film.

Summary: Reader attends the same therapy group as Steve, she’s very bitter and he finds her very irritating. (Like imagine sitting across from him and Steve giving you this look) !!

Steve couldn’t stand her for some reason. Every little thing about her made him tick, at the very sight of her he could feel his jaw clench unconsciously and his eyebrows pulled downwards into a frown directed her way. 

She could tell from where she sat every other week that the once so called Captain hated her guts. She could see it in the way he looked at her with dark hooded eyes, spelling out how much he disliked her whole being even though she had never done a single thing wrong to him.

Y/n liked to tease. She had always used other peoples hatred towards her to get back at them. So she would meet Steve’s glare with a barely there smirk but she knew he could see it, it showed in the same continuous twitch of his jaw, set in a hard line as he bit back a look of distaste. 

She always found herself raising an eyebrow up at him in question, well that’s what Steve assumed it was, but to Y/n it was a look of challenge. She wanted to play the game he was playing with her. 

There was only one problem though, Y/n had no idea what this game was and why she was so intrigued into why he hated her. 

Sure she could be quite loud, that was just her way of coping with everything, a way to keep herself grounded in this depressing world. They always say humour is the way of hiding and distancing yourself from the real problems around. 

Steve hated that she was loud. Yet for someone who had so much to say, she never spoke about herself and why she was at these group sessions. He knew she listened to what everyone else said, so he had to assume that she was benefitting from other peoples experiences and taking their advice and struggles on board. 

He was curious about her, he had to admit. But he would never go and ask her what her story was. Because everyone already knew Steve’s story. It was hard not too, it was plastered in every newspaper and magazine around the world, the pressure on him continuous, never laying off for one second to allow him to breathe. 

Therapy was the one place he never felt judged. 

Until Y/n joined. 

“That’s a wrap guys, coffee is to the corner like always” Mike the main counsellor spoke, everyone standing from their seats and making their way over to the coffee pots. 

Y/n stayed sat in her seat still staring at the Captain from across the room. Steve was doing the same, making no move to get up and leave. She didn’t want to give in to whatever this situation they created was, but she needed to know why he hated her so much. 

She stood up not breaking eye contact, watching as his face twisted into a dark look, his jaw clenching even tighter the closer she got to him before he looked down briefly. 

He stayed silent as she sat in the seat next to him, watching the crowd of people slowly disperse out of the room, a couple lingering behind chatting idly to Mike. 

“Soooo Captain” she dragged out.

“Steve” he grunted immediately. 

“Fine. Steve then” She said glaring at him briefly. “You don’t like me and I want to know why” 

He scoffed. 

“so?” she prompted but he was giving her nothing. “You know… I always thought Captain America would be a nice person, My parents used to buy me captain America posters and action figures, I dreamed of meeting him as a kid you know, but that would be impossible right? Because he was mean’t to be dead. It was a miracle when they found you, I remember the day so clearly, I was in college and my brother phoned me to tell me to turn the news on and I was so excited.” 

Steve listened, still not replying or giving her any acknowledgement, but this was the first time he had the chance to have some insight into his life. 

“But I must have been a naive kid right? Believing the papers that he was a ‘kind gentleman’” she spoke giving a small laugh. “A kid can dream though right? It’s just shit growing up and finding out the cold hearted truth.”

He still hadn’t replied the only acknowledgement being the slight barely there relaxing of his clenched jaw. 

“See you in two weeks” she spoke, standing up without even looking back at him. His eyes followed her until she was out of sight. 

——————————————————————————-

“So, I went on a date this weekend” a man named David was talking about his weekly achievement. Y/n listening intently while Steve watched her.

“It was.. alright; he cried. But so did I and now we’re going on another date next week” David said. 

“That’s great” Mike spoke, smiling gently at the man. “Why did you cry?” 

“well… we were talking, we got to the conversation of who we lost when everyone disappeared and that’s when we both couldn’t hold back”.

“That’s good. You’ve opened up to each other already.” Mike offered, before he started a conversation about coping methods. 

“Anybody else want to add in to the conversation?” Mike asked, his kind voice echoing in the room. 

“Steve?” he asked, looking expectantly at the Captain who had spent the whole session staring at Y/n. He shook his head without letting his eyes leave her. 

She glared at him, before speaking up for the first time. 

“Can I?” Y/n asked. 

“Of course” Mike spoke, kind and caring like always. “What do you want to talk about?” he asked, seeing she needed encouragement. 

“Oh- well- I didn’t think that far” she said, her eyes briefly flicking to meet Steve’s before looking away, her normally confident persona cracking under Steve’s watchful eyes. 

“How about you tell us what you’ve done this week?” Mike prompted. 

“right.” she spoke nodding slightly. “well…”

It was silent for a while as she tried to think of something, anything to say. 

“Okay. So- so this week I went to work… I’ve been working double shifts ever since-” she paused, taking a deep breath. “ever since everyone disappeared. See, the manager, the woman who owns the shop, it was a family run business, she lost her two daughters so I’ve been helping her, taking shifts and covering until she can hire new staff.” 

“That’s very kind of you y/n” Mike said, giving her another encouraging smile 

“Well, it’s not easy. But it fills my time up- most days you know, it’s - it’s something” she shrugged. “It’s not like I have…” 

Y/n paused again, looking up for the first time to meet Steve’s eyes. He was still watching her closely, intently. It was un-nerving. 

“Anyone else left” she finished, it was a whisper, said so fast under her breath but they all heard. 

“I’m sorry” Mike spoke, his voice sympathetic, Y/n shrugged. 

“I’m not the only one who lost someone and I’m sure I’m not the only one who lost every single person.” she said. 

“Thank you Y/n” Mike spoke. “Thank you for sharing” she nodded, giving him a tight lipped smile. She wished she had never said anything, sitting for the rest of the session in complete silence, not looking up once to meet Steve’s lingering stare. 

———————————————————————————-

“Let me buy you a drink” 

A voice startled Y/n as she was picking her bag up to leave. Everyone else had started to make their way over to the coffee pot and snacks, but y/n legged it home every time, the weight of Steve’s presence in the room always confusing her. 

She turned around, her backpack clutched tightly in her hands as she stared wide eyed at him. 

“I need to get home” she spoke, a pathetic excuse to leave to the comfort of her own bed. 

Steve gave her a pointed look, knowing from the last session that she didn’t. She didn’t have anyone she needed to attend to. She huffed aloud knowing it hadn’t worked.

“Fine, but only one” she said, watching as Steve waved goodbye to a couple people before leaving the room. She followed after him, her legs working quickly to catch up to his long super soldier strides. 

“Slow down” she huffed. “we’re not all Captain America” 

Steve glared at her. “don’t call me that” 

“But you are aren’t you?” she said quietly. 

“no. I’m Steve. Calling me Captain makes it seem like there’s still some hope out there, I don’t want to be giving anyone false hope”. he said sternly. 

“So you don’t- you don’t have any hope?” she asked, her posture slumping slightly at the prospect that not even Captain America was feeling hopeful. 

“Do you?” he asked, receiving nothing but silence. 

“I may not- but you- you’re Captain America- you can’t give up on the world when we need you most” she stated. 

“I said don’t call me that” he glared, stopping in his tracks to look straight at her. 

She smirked at him, finally getting him back for making her feel so nervous the previous two sessions. 

“Hit a nerve did I?” she asked. Steve almost let out growl as he pushed her up against the wall of a shop, his hand slamming into the brick beside her head. She stared back him, not flinching the whole time. 

“You’re so infuriating you know?” his face was close to hers as she met his eyes once again. In fact he was just close to her in every way. Y/n had forgotten how it felt to be so close to someone, the fact hitting her hard, her breath catching in her throat as she felt the need to cry.

But she held it together knowing this was the worst place to let her emotions get the better of her. 

Steve was still staring at her, his eyes intruding through hers, like he was searching, there was no way that he couldn’t tell exactly how’s she was feeling in that moment. 

“Don’t” she spoke weakly, one hand resting on his chest as she turned her face, Steve had leaned down, his face tilting towards hers as he was about to kiss her.

He stopped when she pushed him way slightly, meeting her eyes yet again in confusion. He had thought that was what she wanted. She broke eye contact with him, staring at the ground now, waiting for him to move his arms so he wasn’t caging her against the wall. 

He dropped both arms to rest at his sides, watching her in confusion as she gave him a small smile.

“I’ll see you around Steve” she spoke, calling him by his name for the first time. 

——————————————————————-

She wasn’t at the next session. Steve stared at her empty seat all throughout.

Had he really scared her off that much? Did he go too far by trying to kiss her? Was she scared he would do something like that again?

He tried to get involved with the discussion, telling everyone what he had done that week, telling them all to try moving on. But it felt fake to himself. How could he tell people to move on from the snap when he hadn’t even tried to. 

Steve skipped the coffee and snacks after, opting to go straight home to shower. He left the centre, taking a right turn that would eventually lead him home. 

“Steve” the familiar voice of y/n called out to him. 

He turned around, coming face to face with her. He thought she would stop, but instead she carried on walking, right up until she was stood a foot away from him. 

“Hi” she spoke. 

“Hey” he said softly. “Look y/n- I’m really sorry about last-”

She cut him off, pressing her lips against his in a haste. 

Steve was taken aback, his eyes wide and his hands by his sids, not knowing what to do. Not until she kissed him less hesitantly. His hand moved to rest on her waist, pulling her against him as he finally returned the kiss. 

“Come back to mine” she said, pulling away and stepping a few feet from him. 

Steve frowned, he was never one for a casual hookup. But the sexual tension between the two of them had always been there. 

He nodded, taking her outstretched hand and following her. It was silent as they made their way to her apartment block.

————————————————————————–

“We don’t have to -” Steve started to speak as she kissed him softly. 

“I want to Steve- I want you” she spoke between kisses. She grabbed at the bottom of his shirt pulling it up and over his head with a little help from him.

Y/n was momentarily speechless, taking in his perfection, staring at him until he chuckled to himself, pulling at the bottom of her own t-shirt and lifting it over her head, staring at her hungrily.

“You’re so beautiful” Steve spoke, as he couldn’t help but reach out to touch her bare skin. It had been so long since he let himself indulge in such beauty. 

“So are you” She gestured to her bed, watching as he followed her. Steve sat against the headboard watching as she rid herself of her skirt. Climbing onto the bed and moving until she was sat on his lap, straddling him.

Y/n leaned down to kiss him softly before her hands hurried to undo the buckle of his belt, pushing his trousers down as he helped by kicking them off until they hit the ground. She moved her hips forward, rutting against him as his hands rested on the skin of her waist bringing her down closer to him and letting out a pure moan of ecstasy.

She repeated the action wanting to hear the sound fall from his lips again.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Steve asked as she pulled her underwear down her legs, tossing them away in a hurry. She repeated the action with his boxers, carelessly discarding them on the floor.

“Yes” she spoke, her hands wrapping around him as he gasped, his head thrown back in pleasure as she finally touched him where needed.

“Wait” he spoke, catching her hand gently. 

“What?” she asked confused, her heart beating fast as she waited for him to reject her at the last minute. Was this part of his game?

“I can’t promise you anything” he spoke. A sentence that actually made sense to her. 

“I don’t want anything from you” she said, slightly defensively. 

“I’m not in the position to offer you anything- a relationship” he spoke softly, worried she might get the wrong intentions, needing her to know before they went any further. 

“I don’t do relationships” she spoke bluntly. “ You don’t need to worry”

Steve nodded, he had a hunch she wasn’t the type to be serious with anybody. He was glad they understood what this was. 

She looked away from him, lifting herself slightly in his lap, one hand around his neck to support herself, the other wrapped around him, lining him up with her entrance. His hands resting on her hips ready to guide her onto him. She sunk down onto his length, crying out as she threw her head back.

Steve was quick to pull her down onto him, a firm grip on her hips. His lips connecting to the skin of her neck, making his mark, not that anyone would see it. She lifted herself slightly again, using one of Steve’s shoulders to grip onto tightly. Steve didn’t think he had ever experienced such pleasure. He couldn’t help the loud moan that fell past his lips as he watched y/n use him for her own pleasure. It was thrilling, an unknown feeling to Steve.

His hands were gripping tighter with every movement from her. Until Steve decided she had taken control long enough. Tightly gripping her thighs with both hands and fucking up into her with harsh thrusts, his pace reckless and aggressive now. Y/n moaned loudly, her head falling with exhaustion, resting in the crook of Steves neck as he thrust his hips up into her faster.

She hadn’t felt like this in a long time. In the years since the snap she never let herself get close to anyone, not even for a one night stand; too scared she would get attached and that she would eventually lose them, just like she had lost everyone else. 

“Hey” Steve said. “Look at me” he spoke, his voice soft. She didn’t look up at him, her head still resting in his neck, looking at him would make it too intimate and she wasn’t ready for that feeling. 

“Hey” he spoke his thumb stroking the inside of her thigh. “Look at me” he spoke again, gently and lovingly. He wanted to see her face, wanted to remember how she looked and commit it to his memory.

Y/n knew she shouldn’t but she lifted her head to meet his eyes, resting her forehead against his. The intensity becoming too much for her. No one had ever looked at her this way before. It was overwhelming and the only words passing through her mind were to not get attached, do not get attached.

Steve moved his hips slowly with purpose watching as her eyes closed in pleasure. Steve knew he wasn’t going to be able to last long, not even with being a super soldier. It was effect she was having on him, the effect of not having been with someone for a while. 

“Oh fuck” he cried as she clenched around him tightly, crying out as she came, wriggling in his lap. He pulled her hips down so she could no longer move, stilling inside her as he reached his own high.

“wow’ He spoke, his head falling to rest on her shoulder now. 

“Yeah. Wow:” she said, having nothing else to say. 

She stood up, leaving the warmth of Steve’s body, picking up her clothes and putting them on. Steve hadn’t made to move, just watching her watch him from the other side of the room now. 

Y/n wanted him to leave, but she didn’t want to be the one to tell him to go. She assumed he would be gone by now. He got what he wanted, she got what she wanted. There was nothing left to say now. 

“You should probably go” she mumbled. 

“Oh- right yeah” Steve stumbled over his words. “If that’s what you want” he spoke, his words catching her off guard. 

Did she want him to? 

She wasn’t sure. Did she want the company or did she want him?

All those questions she was unsure of. She hadn’t felt anything like this for such a long time. Was this a part of his game?

“What do you want?” she asked without being able to stop herself.

“Why are you asking me that?” he asked, frowning slightly in confusion. 

“I- don’t know - you were the one who said it first” she said.

“I should go” he suddenly said, standing from her bed to start picking up his clothes. Y/n watched as he redressed, pulling his trousers up his legs and buckling the belt. She stared at the muscles on his back quickly before shaking her self out of it. 

“Yeah you should- “ she spoke quietly. 

“See you around” Steve said, giving her a small half smile before basically bolting out of the door, leaving Y/n feeling worse than before.

#Steve Rogers imagine #Steve Rogers smut #Steve Rogers au #Steve Rogers x reader #avengers imagine #captain America imagine #Steve Rogers angst #captain america x reader #Captain America smut #avengers endgame #avengers au

[bustedbernie]

It’s been just about a week and a half since Sen. Elizabeth Warren went all the way in on former NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg over his use of nondisclosure agreements in dealing with sexual harassment/assault allegations during the last Democratic primary debate. Well, it appears that Bloomberg’s isn’t the only campaign that uses NDA’s to cover up their wrongs.

According to AP News, Sen. Bernie Sanders — who is often touted as a civil rights ally and is currently clamoring for the black vote along with his fellow primary candidates — founded a group that has also used legally binding “zip-it” contracts forcing black people to remain silent about racism they’ve experienced while working on the Vermont senator’s campaign.

From AP News:

A political advocacy group founded by Bernie Sanders entered into a nondisclosure agreement with an African American political consultant that bars her from discussing a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination at the organization and the Vermont senator’s 2016 presidential campaign.

The consultant, Tezlyn Figaro, confirmed the existence of the nondisclosure agreement to The Associated Press without providing additional details.

The deal is tied to a 2019 lawsuit in which Figaro said she was fired from the Sanders-created political group Our Revolution a year earlier due to her race and in “retaliation for complaining about the organization’s treatment towards her and African-Americans.” The lawsuit was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount of money. Though the lawsuit was aimed at Our Revolution, it included broad criticism of Sanders’ campaign, arguing an all-white leadership staff “was accused of racism” by black staffers and failed to engage black voters.

Last year, Sanders acknowledged and apologized for the mistreatment of women and people of color who worked on his 2016 campaign and, along with his advisers, has vowed that his 2020 run for the presidency will not be plagued with such issues as corrective measures have been enacted and Sanders, in his own words, is building a “multiracial, multi-generational movement” to defeat President Donald Trump.

“To women in our campaign who were harassed or mistreated, I apologize,” Sanders said last year. “Our standards, our procedures, our safeguards, were clearly inadequate.”

It’s worth mentioning that Sanders was a lot more contrite in his apology than he was when he initially responded to the 2016 allegations by telling CNN he was simply a “little bit busy running around the country trying to make the case.”

But Sanders’ new attitude towards his campaign’s handling of mistreatment allegations and his vow to do better appears to fall flat with legal experts who say that any continued use of NDA’s will undermine any effort to improve conditions.

“Anyone running for the presidency should be accountable to the electorate, and we should have access to the full set of information,” said Debra S. Katz, a prominent employment attorney in Washington who is a supporter of Elizabeth Warren, according to AP. “If the allegations are about his campaign and running a racist operation, he should direct this organization to let her out of those non-disparagement obligations and talk about it,” She continued referencing Figaro.

Figaro isn’t the only one who has had past grievances with Our Revolution. John Solomon, who was based in Atlanta for the 2016 campaign, said this about his experience with the group, according to AP:

“People will say it’s not a racial issue, but if I’m hired to gain support from African Americans and you go direct me to do something other than reach out to the African American community, what are we doing?”

He, along with other black-outreach staffers, said that the team booked several successful events, including a rally at Morehouse College, but after resources began to dwindle, so did the respect Sanders’ campaign showed for them as Our Revolution began blowing them off. He also said news of Figaro’s nondisclosure agreement reinforces his experience on the 2016 campaign.

“I know he wants to move past this, but I feel that he still has some work to do.”

Apparently Sanders’ campaign is also aware of the work still needing to be done. In a statement, Sanders campaign spokeswoman Sarah Ford said, “We oppose using NDAs to silence the victims of toxic workplace issues.”

We’ll see, I guess, but this certainly doesn’t sound like “Our Revolution.”

#bernie #berniesanders #bernie sanders #notmeus #feelthebern #fuckbernie #neverbernie

[clumsybookworm18]

and my burden to bear is a love (i can’t carry anymore) | pt.6

ao3 | Moodboard | parts: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

Summary: Josh awakens after dawn and makes an upsetting discovery.

A/N: This is me trying to write a simple flashback scene that ended up turning into a whole chapter and a bunch of ANGST™

 Enjoy :)

Josh didn’t remember how he got here.

One moment he was in the mines. The next, he was walking through the station’s doors. The precinct was crawling with activity. Phones continuously ringing, rangers coming in and out, even a few EMTs walked in. For the life of him Josh couldn’t remember how he got here. Everything was so fuzzy. 

The mines... He’d been in the mines with Mike. They were supposed to regroup with Sam and the others at the lodge. But he doesn’t remember getting out of the mines… He followed Mike. He saw a stranger's body hanging on a hook. He jumped into the freezing water. And then… and then… and then what?

Josh peered down at himself. His- the Psycho’s- overalls had been replaced by black clothes. His hands weren’t dirty anymore. His face no longer hurt. What happened? Did he make it out? Had the others?

He approached the man sitting in the front desk. Josh cleared his throat. “Excuse me.” 

The man didn’t look up.

“Uh excuse me,” he repeats a little more louder. The man still didn’t look up.

Okay, rude. “What are you, deaf? Hellooo?”

Still not looking at him.

“Listen pal, I just had one of the worst nights of my life so if you could help me out here, that’ll be fucking swell.”

But the man kept scribbling some forms on the desk and didn’t answer him. 

Oh, fuck this.

His eyes flickered towards the open door where an officer just came out of. Since the man in the front desk was still ignoring him, Josh saw no fault in walking in. Nobody stopped him as he made his way through the hallway, nobody acknowledged him. 

For a moment, Josh wondered if this was another of his hallucinations, but it didn’t feel like one. Usually his hallucinations involved accusations or pointed fingers at him. Here, there was nobody telling him what a piece of shit he was, instead they were just ignoring him. 

“Okay…” he murmured to himself. “This is freaking me the fuck out.”

Even with all the activity, there was a preternatural quiet- like an omen. Josh kept walking, ignoring the trepidation that tugged inside him. The flutter of uneasiness that grew as he slowly treaded farther. He took a turn and-

There she was. Sitting alone in the hallway, was Sam, her fingers clutching the blanket thrown around her shoulders. 

“Sam,” he breathes, relieved to see a familiar face.

He doesn’t hesitate to approach her but she doesn’t look up, not even when he’s standing right in front of her. Josh frowns, studying her in the wan light, his eyes going to the blood smeared across her forehead and her cheek. She looked like she’d been to hell and back. “Sam.”

She didn’t answer. He grew more nervous with every passing second of silence. Josh knew he’d fucked up, that he and his friends weren’t on the best terms at the moment but Sam wasn’t one to ignore him for the sake of it. Especially at a time like this. Josh kneeled before her, her unseeing eyes making him uneasy. This wasn’t the same girl he saw in the mines. 

Something was wrong.

“Sammy?” He raised a hand to brush a stray lock of hair from her face only for it to go through her. Josh stumbled back, falling on his ass. 

Something was very wrong. 

He touched his chest, his face, but they felt solid. He felt a sinking dread as he reached out, as he tried to touch Sam again but his hand went straight through. 

What. The. Fuck.

“Samantha Giddings?” 

They both looked up to see a cop approaching. Josh didn’t react fast enough, didn’t have time to move away before the man walked right through him. He doesn’t feel it, not physically, but the reality of the situation arrowed into him. 

No. No way this was happening. Not to him. This had to be some mistake, he couldn’t… he wasn’t...

Dead.

Josh’s ears were ringing. No one can see him, no one could hear him, no one could touch him. Shit, someone just walked through him like he was nothing... 

The cop said something. Josh couldn’t hear him. His eyes went to Sam again. She was being led to a door labeled as Interview Room 1. He called her name in a hoarse whisper. 

Look back. Please.

She didn’t.

***

Rain fell without mercy as Josh walked upon rows and rows of gravestones, the sound of water hitting stone growing louder with every step he took. The cemetery was empty, something he didn’t find surprising, considering that not many people liked to spend their time among the resting dead. 

After that godawful funeral that put his memory to shame, Josh didn’t know where else to go. Didn’t know what else to do. Since there was no way in hell he was going back to the manor (he had already haunted those halls long enough), he’d ended up making the graveyard his new lair. Josh was still getting used to the idea of being dead when he wasn’t actually gone. Not completely. And he found the grim ambiance of it all a perfect fit for his new predicament. 

He finally reached the miniature city of mausoleums, striding his way across the sea of white marble to enter what had been appointed as his permanent residence. It had grown dark inside thanks to the stormy weather, the only light in the room coming from the candles placed on the small altar and the entryway. 

The Washington mausoleum was a big, black block of granite with stained glass windows and arched bronze doors, placed on the outskirts of the cemetery with the ominous Washington supported by roman columns. Posh. Lofty. A bit Gothic. Pretty hard to miss. 

What can he say, his family had a dramatic flair. Himself included.  

For the past few days, he’d been prowling around the grounds, searching for signs of any other ghosts, lost souls, anything at all. Something that indicated that he wasn’t alone on this other side. And the cemetery seemed like the perfect scenario for wandering spirits, with its eerie atmosphere, and the obscure mist surrounding the graves. Makes perfect sense that it would be haunted. Right?

Yeah, no. 

So far there have been no sightings of anything. Zero. Zilch. No other ghosts or spirits. No guardian angel to lead him up. No fiendish demons to lure him down. Not even the Grim Reaper himself. Nothing. He was truly alone on this ghostly plane. 

So Josh had been biding his time, lingering close to his crypt. Waiting for any signs or answers because something had to give. Fate, God, Death or whatever the fuck is supposed to be in charge couldn’t just leave him here. Stranded.  

The echo of footsteps alerted him to a presence. Josh instantly recognized the gait of the person striding his way. The heels of her shoes clicked against the polished granite floor, drowning the sound of the drizzle beating against the windowpanes. 

She hadn’t been to the funeral. Everybody else had gone. Chris. Ash. Mike. Even Emily. But not Sam. So nobody could really blame him for being surprised when she showed up to his family’s mausoleum out of the fucking blue. That she even showed up at all. 

She looked so tired. Even in the faint light he could see the smudged purple beneath her eyes, that familiar haunted look brought by a night of nightmares. He wanted to believe he was wrong, that this couldn’t be her. But it was. Josh was surprised to see how much she’d changed in such a short time. 

Sam stopped in front of the joint grave beside his and murmured something he didn’t quite catch, before hesitantly moving to his own. She ran a tentative hand over his name engraved on the stone. Josh didn’t like it. It felt so… final. Well, as final as it could get, since apparently death wasn’t as permanent as he would’ve liked it to be. 

Two tears slid down her face. Swift and cold. She didn’t wipe them away. “You lied to me.”

He went to stand next to her. “As much as I want to apologize, you can’t hear me,” he offers with a sad smile, looking at her face glowing in the dim light of the candles, her skin still glittering with rain. “So I won’t.” 

“I am so angry with you. Furious,” she went on, unaware of the ghost at her side, her eyes desolate. “But for the most part I’m just tired. Tired of racking my brain, of trying to understand why, and I just-” The snag on the words was like a blow to his intangible gut. Sam puts her hands on her face, running them up through her wet hair. “Fuck, I don’t even know what I’m doing here. It’s not like you can hear me or anything.”

“Hey, hey. Don’t.” He cups her face between his hands, trying to wipe away the tears. The corners of his mouth turned down when he couldn’t. “Don’t say that. I’m right here.”

He scans her eyes, her face, looking… What was he looking for? Some sign of recognition? And if so, was he able to handle Sam’s reaction? Would she still be saying the things she’s saying now? Would she recoil at the sight of him? Would she be scared? Or would she be angry? 

He drops his hands. If Josh were alive, she would hate him. He knows that much. 

But her face didn’t change. Her eyes were still liquid, somber, lost. “You know I was thinking about what I last said to you,” she said, her voice quiet and loud at the same time in the silent mausoleum. “‘Josh, do you have the key for the cable car.’ God, I was so stupid…. All I was thinking about was getting us out of that mountain, you know? I didn’t think about saying goodbye- didn’t think I needed to. You were supposed to come back with us.”

He remembers her urgent expression, clear in the darkness of the mines. The light of her headband shining brightly on his filthy face. Her cold, bloodied hands brushing his palm, her touch brief but soft as he handed the key. Her voice, somehow still composed, even after everything she had gone through, as she and Mike planned their escape while he uselessly stood on the sidelines. The quick glance she gave him before she climbed away.

Sam took a shuddering breath, her voice turned unsteady. “I know you were hurting. That you lost your sisters, that  your parents became more distant than they usually were, that you pushed everyone away but you had me… You had me. I only hoped that you saw that through this mess.” 

Josh doesn’t know what to do, doesn’t know what to say. Not like it would matter anyways. So he only stands frozen in place as she walks out of the mausoleum, the rain still beats outside. 

Later that night, he finds himself staring up at Sam’s bedroom window like he had done so many times before. Only this time, the lights were off. 

***

Josh stays around her after that. 

The days came and went, and Sammy seemed unaware of the time passing. She mostly stayed in her room, not getting out of bed, refusing to eat, not answering any of her texts or calls. What little time she managed to sleep, she awoke gasping and shaking. The liveliness that lived inside her now quiet. A static that made him uneasy.  Everything about her was now static. 

She was a ghost. Just like him. 

Josh has stopped trying to make sense of it. He was dead and he couldn’t do anything about it. Instead, he spends his time trying to communicate with Sam, trying to let her know he was still there. But it’s proving to be difficult, especially when she doesn’t care about anything. She couldn’t hear him, no matter how loud he talked. He tweaks and moves some stuff here and there but she doesn’t pay any mind to it. Josh doesn’t bother to try touching her again, not wanting to see his hands go through her again. 

It was hard to see her like this. But Sam was strong. She could survive this. She could survive anything. 

Josh didn’t leave- he couldn’t. He wouldn’t. When he needed someone, Sam had been there. Month after month, Sam had been there for him. Even when he pushed everyone away, couldn’t bring himself to care about anything, Sam hadn’t given up on him. 

And Josh wouldn’t give up on her.  

***

She searches for him in the dead of night. Puzzling, since he was the root of many of her nightmares and yet she wakes up coated in cold sweat, her hand palming what used to be his side of the bed, searching for the familiar heat of his body. Hoping that her nightmares were just nightmares, and not the cold, harsh truth. But she could never forget for long. Inevitably, she relieves her grief all over again when she finds nothing but frigid sheets and emptiness. 

Sam adds it up to the fact she had gotten used to sleeping next to him, to the codependency they both developed  the last year (even though deep down she knows it was more than that- for her at least). A habit, she tells herself. And habits die hard. 

But she can’t help but feel that his presence was still there with her, hiding in the shadows. 

***

One afternoon Sam picks up her sketchbook. The one he gave her for her 19th birthday- the last one they celebrated together. She stared at it for a long time. Long enough that Josh was convinced she might throw it out in the trash or even burn it. But to his surprise, she flipped it open, flashing through the pages with enough agility that he couldn’t catch a glimpse of her older drawings, as if she herself didn’t want to see them either, until she settled on a blank sheet. 

Mindlessly grabbing a pencil, she started sketching, brows furrowed and hand gliding through the page forming unsure lines that turned into rough curves that turned into confident shapes, transforming into something. Josh looked over her shoulder and-

Huh. 

She had captured its cloudy predatory gaze, all of the sharp teeth and sharp claws, with its long limbs curved, the Wendigo looked ready to strike out of the page. Of all the things she could’ve drawn, she drew that. Don’t get him wrong, he was all in for the weird and creepy shit, but Sam? Trying to get her to watch a scary movie was a trial in itself. 

Sam doesn’t stop to take it in. No, she passed that page and started doing another sketch. Then another. And another. Before they both knew it, it was already dark out and Sam had spent most of her day doing something other than moping.  

***

The creepy drawings became a thing. Not that Josh was complaining. Her coping mechanisms were a hell lot better than his, that’s for sure. 

In a matter of days, Sam had turned her room into a makeshift art studio. An easel beside the window. Paintbrushes in glass jars. Charcoal stained finger prints. She’d dropped out of all of her classes and had nothing else to do but paint and draw. Channeling all of her pain, sadness, and frustration into her art. Josh lingered by her side as she poured her heart out, filling white sheets with mountains and darkness, with monsters and death. It was terrifying… he loved it. 

Sam had always downplayed her artistic skills, something Josh never understood. Sam was an artist, had always been. He’d seen it from something as simple as her nails, over to the rare occasions she’s shown him some of her drawings, either of a landscape she saw during one of her hikes, or a quick sketch of one of his sisters doing a silly pose (Beth) or staring off with a dreamy look on her face (Hannah). Hell, he was pretty sure she was the one that had helped Hannah design her tattoo. When he’d ask, she’d always shrugged it off with an It’s just a hobby. 

Josh knew, even if he was stuck on his own personal hell, that Sam was gonna be alright. 

Tags: @xmxisxforxmaybe​

Anyone who wishes to be tagged can let me know! 

#until dawn #josh washington #sam giddings #jossam #ghost au #ud sam #ud josh #until dawn fanfiction #jossam fanfiction

[greekgeek21]

The Codependency Competition Ch. 3

Hey guys! I just want to mention that I'm actually doing ok with my updating schedule! Like, somebody document this rare occasion! Ok, that's it. Comment, like, and follow. Happy reading! Thanks to my amazing beta, JJ, this story doesn't suck!

- your author

ΩΩΩ

With just a simple text telling Percy she was going home, Annabeth left. Percy had practice until 4:00, so she had decided that it would be best to just go home. That way she can get SOME homework done before Percy is able to distract her.

When she got home, which is the Jackson-Blofis apartment, she headed straight to her desk in her room (well, technically, it's hers and Percy's, since they share a room). With only 45 minutes left until practice ended, she needed to rush in order to get enough done.

She chose to start with English, her hardest subject, so that she could just get it over with.

Meanwhile, at the school, Percy's team was laughing at him, hysterically.

"What–what did you do to get that girl to hate you so much?!" Mike asked once Percy had pulled himself out of the pool.

"She doesn't hate me," Percy frowned, wiping himself off with a towel.

His friends shared a look, "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that."

"Whatever," Percy sighed and then smiled, "Five extra laps for that!"

Sometimes, being the captain has its perks!

After that, nobody dared mention the encounter, at least not to his face. In fact, it seemed like the team was putting an extra effort into their work today. It made it seem like practice flew by, to the point that their couch needed to remind Percy that it was two minutes until 4:00.

"Oh! Everybody out! Practice is over!" he exclaimed, rushing to the locker room to shower.

By the time he had showered, left, and finally reached his apartment complex, it was 4:20.

He was in a rush to get home for his scheduled Annabeth-time. To some, this might sound idiotic, but to someone who only gets so much time to spend with his girlfriend, it's completely normal. When Percy was allowed to acknowledge Annabeth as his girlfriend, he became pretty clingy.

When he barged into the apartment, Annabeth was just finishing up her last problem on her Math homework. She was only able to finish English and Math during her alone-time.

As soon as she heard the door slam open, she turned her chair around and grew a small smile on her face. Like clockwork, Percy went straight to their room and ran right to her. In his excitement, he just went on instinct and lifted his girlfriend up into his arms, giving her a big, deep kiss on the lips.

At first, Annabeth gasped and didn't respond, but eventually, when she realized Percy wasn't going to stop, she started to move her lips against his. Without even realizing it, they had started to drift towards their bed. Before they knew it, Percy was leaning up against the headboard with Annabeth straddling him and kissing down his neck.

They probably would've kept on doing this for hours if Paul hadn't decided to come home at that moment, "Percy! Annabeth! I'm home!"

With a sigh, Annabeth pushed off of Percy and just leaned her head against his chest, "That was nice."

Percy, with a content grin, said, "Yeah. I miss you being my girlfriend. Why can't we just call this whole thing off?"

"I miss you, too, but we can't stop now. There is no way that Leo was right!" she responded.

"Fine, but it's just getting kinda boring now. At first, it was fun, but now it just makes me have the urge to jump you every time I see you," Percy admitted shamelessly.

Annabeth started to roll her eyes, but then she had an idea, and her features changed completely.

Percy, noticing the change, realized what was going on. That look was her 'I have an idea' look. You can never know what to expect from that look.

"Annabeth. You have that look on your face again. What's your idea?" he asked.

"What if–what if we spice things up a bit?" she muttered, looking up at him.

"What do you mean?" Percy asked, skeptical.

"We can turn this whole challenge into a competition. Whoever breaks first loses," Annabeth answered.

Percy thought about it for a second, and then realized that this could work. It would let them still prove Leo wrong...while creating a competition for him and Annabeth. Their relationship can't really survive without something for them to win.

"Ok, deal. We start tomorrow at school," Percy said, nodding his head and gaining a look of determination.

Annabeth smiled, "Oh, I'm so going to kick your ass."

"Sure you are," Percy countered.

"I sure am!" she defended, her pride flaring up.

"Ok," Percy said simply and leaned in for a kiss to silence her.

"Mmph," Annabeth tried to struggle against his hold, but it was no use.

Percy was on a mission to enjoy his Annabeth-time, and that meant spending it doing whatever he wanted. And right now, he wants to kiss his girlfriend. Sure, they would need to emerge before Paul decided to go looking for them, but for now, they could spend a little bit longer doing this.

ΩΩΩ

The next day, Percy and Annabeth were both silent on the way to school. They had unconsciously decided to go into competitive-mode as soon as they had woken up. The only proof from that morning that showed they were dating was a quick peck on the lips after breakfast.

Convinced she had to make the first move, Annabeth had worn a large sweatshirt over her shirt today. Instead of wearing a scandalous shit, like some girls might do, she decided to wear a white, cropped tank top under her cropped, sea green crochet shirt. It has always been Percy's favorite, partly because it was the color of his eyes, and partly because it was what she wore on their first official date. To top it off, she had a secret weapon to add once she had revealed her outfit.

Percy and his friends were, as per usual, clumped around his locker, and Annabeth and her friends were standing on the other side of the hallway around some of their lockers. Percy and Annabeth were both trying to act like they were actually listening to the conversations, but in reality they were trying to not-so-discreetly keep an eye on the other.

"Oh! And then there's something I forgot to mention: People think you and Annabeth Chase hate each other!" Kelsey exclaimed, getting really close to Percy.

"Huh?" Percy said, finally zoning into what his friends were talking about.

"Yeah, apparently there's a rumor going around that she pushed you into a pool, and now people think you hate each other," she replied.

"Well, it isn't a rumor. That girl definitely pushed him in!" Chloe confirmed.

"That bitch! I'll destroy her, Percy! I will!" Kelsey said, looking up at him with eager eyes.

"No! I'll deal with it!" he yelled, a little too quickly.

Kelsey pouted, but she didn't seem like she was quite done yet. No doubt she was planning on doing it anyway.

Meanwhile, Annabeth had just shut down her friend's many questions about her and the school's most popular boy.

"How can you hate him?! He's, like, the nicest guy in the school!" Nora exclaimed.

"For the last time, I DON'T HATE HIM! I just don't necessarily enjoy his company," Annabeth said.

She just couldn't bring herself to say she hated him. Even if her pride was at stake.

However, it would be a little suspicious if she didn't say ANYTHING bad about him after pushing him into a pool. Annabeth still had a cover to maintain!

Her friends seemed to finally realize she wasn't going to change her answer, so they gave up momentarily. Fortunately, Percy happened to glance over at their group right at that moment, so Annabeth took the opportunity to make the first move.

She slowly lifted her sweatshirt off, revealing her first trick. A look up, and she saw Percy's eyes widen slightly. Then, as her surprise attack, Annabeth let her hair out of its messy ponytail, leaving it to cascade down her back in her perfect blonde, princess curls.

That's what got Percy's mouth to drop. Unfortunately, he got ahold of himself before too much notice was taken. Then, his gaze hardened into its wolf glare, and he walked away.

Even if it could've had more effect, Annabeth still counted that as a win.

For Percy, he was having the realization that Annabeth had just upped the stakes. Now, he needed to retaliate with something better.

ΩΩΩ

During Greek, Percy gave Annabeth the usual glance, and then he completely ignored her presence for the rest the period. He was planning his counterattack.

Plenty of ideas came to him, but none of them seemed to out-do what Annabeth did. Her actions may seem small to ordinary viewers, but to him, they have an unimaginable effect.

Just as he was sitting down for lunch, and he had spared a glance over to Annabeth and her friends, the idea hit him like a brick to Jason's head. It was so simple, yet so perfect!

Annabeth had decided that she could enjoy some time with her mortal friends while Percy was recovering. Little did she know that he would recover faster than expected.

"Ok, seriously, we need some context for your encounter with Percy," Ethan insisted.

"Fine, I finished getting changed, he walked over to me, we talked, I pushed him into the pool. That enough for you?" Annabeth answered.

"No, but I don't think I'm going to be getting much else. You really must hate this guy if he's making you act like this," he muttered.

"I DON'T HATE HIM!" she yelled, throwing her hands up in the air.

Percy chose that moment to strike, "That's great, cuz' it was really starting to seem that way."

All of her friends' eyes widened, and some of their mouths even dropped, but Annabeth just kept on looking straight ahead. She would not give him the satisfaction of getting a reaction out of her!

Percy sat down across from her, "I mean, everybody thinks you hate me. It's so weird what one little incident at the pool can cause, right?"

"Yeah," Annabeth said.

Even though she had a pretty excellent poker face, Percy could see right through it. He knew what he was doing to her, and he wanted to add to it. Percy reached his foot across the ground, under the table, to where it was just touching Annabeth's. That's what shocked a reaction out of her. Her entire body straightened, like she had just gotten shocked by one of the Grace siblings.

It all made Percy's troublemaker smirk grow larger. Normally, Annabeth would find his smirk cute, but not now. Not when she was on the other end of it.

In an attempt to redeem herself, Annabeth sharpened her glare, grabbed her tray, and left the table. She didn't say a word, just kept glaring Percy right in the eyes.

Nothing could stop Percy now, though. He was on Cloud 9! At least, for now.

When he got home, that could be a whole other story. Because somewhere in the back of his mind, he registered that Annabeth was silently confirming that they were going to be discussing this later. Even if she had been in the wrong, too, he was probably going to end up being the one sleeping on the couch tonight.

In the words of Jason, Percy was majorly whipped. He would do anything to make Annabeth happy, including admitting he did something worse when he really didn't.

Anyway, he left the table soon after, but he didn't go back to his friend group. Instead, he left to wait by his next class' door.

As he got farther and farther away from the cafeteria, Percy started to get more and more worried. Knowing Annabeth, she would wait until they were alone at home, and then she would start yelling at him. And then she would act sad, whether her emotions were real or not, and to make her stop, Percy would agree to anything. It worked every time.

ΩΩΩ

Sorry if this was a little jumbled. I didn't want to waste the sudden opportunity of inspiration. I couldn't really find a good ending, so I just kinda stopped. I needed to go to sleep.

That's it! Comment, like, and follow! Happy reading!

– your author

chapter 4 :)

#percy jackson #annabeth chase #percy jackson and the olympians #heroes of olympus #teen #high school #percabeth