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ornii · 1 year

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My Broken Little Sister

Eleven X Male Brother Reader

The Long Road, Under the Moonlight and Darkness

Destitute from most things, and only trees as far as one can see and a lone road leading and wrapping around the world. a single car races by, rubble echoes as the run down vehicle drives along, a pair of aviator glasses hang on someone's face. He taps along the side as music bellows into his Buick GNS, Blinding Lights by this new Sound, The Weeknd. He drives along the road as the synthetic beats radiate though his ears.

I've been tryna call

I've been on my own for long enough

Maybe you can show me how to love, maybe

I'm going through withdrawals

You don't even have to do too much

You can turn me on with just a touch, baby

I look around and

Sin City's cold and empty (oh)

No one's around to judge me (oh)

I can't see clearly when you're gone

I said, ooh, I'm blinded by the lights

No, I can't sleep until I feel your touch

I said, ooh, I'm drowning in the night

Oh, when I'm like this, you're the one I trust

The driver peers into the mirror and then back to the road, he drives further down the endless span of road, and then sees a Sign.

"Hawkins" the sign says.

"Perfect" he utters and speeds up, he slows down and begins to drive more civically as he leads himself into the small quaint town, the radio booms on and begins to play a song from the Hawkins radio. He checks his watch, one PM. The man slowly pulls into an apartment complex not far off near its High school, he parks and exits it. Wearing a pair of Boots, Denim jeans and jacket with a button up Hawaii colored shirt. Grabbing a bag and a box from his backseat, he heads inside. He's lead to a room by a sleazy man.

"Rents due on the first." He says, the man turns and nods.

"I really appreciate this opportunity you—" the man turns and walks away, leaving the young blood standing there, looking dumb, he shakes his head and heads inside his apartment room, admittedly it's lackluster, a basic bed, beige walls and a small bathroom shower, a TV and small couch. He sits down and opens up the box, it was files and lists of things, old that dated back to the 70s, he pulled up a file and began to read. The information begins to sour his face, and it reminds him of a memory, a conversation of him and his mother.

"This.. this is what dads doing?" He asks.

"It's what he was always doing, (Y/n)." His mother said, lying in a hospital bed. "I refused to let your father turn you into, one of those things too.." She continued, (Y/n)'s brow furrowed.

"Things?.. there are more like me?" He said, and the woman sadly nodded.

"Hawkins.. the, that's where the base is.. I couldn't watch my baby be turned into one of those Psychic things... so I divorced him, never looked back." She continues. "I know I can't stop you from going to Hawkins, but please.. be careful." She says, and the memory ends. Sitting there, he puts the file away, and rubs his wrist. He stands up and checks into bed, preparing himself for the investigation next morning.

The Morning sun beamed though his blinds and catches him in the eye. He awakens and wipes his eyes, preparing for the next morning, and with his one lead. Outside the Hawkins school he waits, and leans against his Car, a Ace blue car peels in next to him, he doesn't say much and he turns to the driver, who exits as well, in all denim, long blonde hair with an attitude that could kill. He and (Y/n) share a nod and go back to their waiting, and (Y/n) sees four Kids dressed as the Ghost Busters walk by, he ignores the slightly our of place kids and to a young kid with black hair.

"Excuse me. Troy?" He says to the Kid. And the boy looks at him, with a cast.

"What do you want?" He says, and (Y/n) approaches him.

"I just wanna talk, that's all." He says, the boy looks around and steps back.

"What's in it for me?" He asks, (Y/n) reaches into his wallet and digs out a ten dollar bill.

"This. I just wanna ask a few questions." He says, the boy looks wary but takes the money.

"What do you wanna know?" He asks, and (Y/n) looks around.

"So what happened to your arm?" He asks, and He looks around.

"I got broke.."he says, and (Y/n) raises an eyebrow.

"By?" He says and the kid scoffs.

"By Mike and his little band of gay little fairies." He says, with a lot of Harboring hate.

"Mike beat you up?" He says and the kid shakes his head.

"No he got his crazy little girlfriend to do it." He says, and (Y/n) picks up on it.

"A girl did that?" He asks and Troy gets more upset.

"Yeah but she had these crazy ass powers." Troy says, and (Y/n)'s interest is on high.

"Powers?" He says and Troy nods.

"Yeah; nobody believes me though, not even the police chief." He says, and (Y/n) looks around.

"This girl, she got a name?" He asks and Troy shakes his head.

"No, I don't know it.." he replies.

"Okay, what does Mike look like?" He says and Troy laughs.

"Weirdo dresses up like the ghost hoppers or whatever." He says, and (Y/n) looks around to see if he could find the ones he saw, but they're already gone. (Y/n) curses to himself and gives the kid a nod. "Anything stand out about any of em?" he asks and Troy points to his teeth.

"Yeah, one of the Losers got no front teeth, Dustin Hederson, Weirdo." He begins, and (Y/n) nods.

"Appreciate it." He says and walks away now with new information. He gets in his car and drives off. Getting back to his apartment he walks in with the new information and begins to piece it All together.

"So... this girl must be one from Hawkins, and Mike is the key to get to her. Now it's just getting to this Mike will be the issue..." he says to himself and checks more files. A single word keeps coming up, Brenner. He slams the book shut and begins to reel though the phone book, searching and gets it! The Hederson household! He checks the address and writes it down and heads to bed, two days later, (Y/n) is pulling up to the Henderson home, he keeps a fair distance. He watches as a kid steps out in, what seems to be gear for hockey? He sees another car pull up and a young man steps out from it with a spiked baseball bat.

"Why does he have a... this town is fuckin weird." He says, the two get back into the vehicle and drive off, (Y/n) puts his in drive and follows, eventually they continue into a road near off the train tracks, five to ten minutes pass and the car abruptly stops. (Y/n) does as well and takes a deep sigh.

"Ah shit.. here we go." He says, the boy with the Bat steps out of the car and (Y/n) does as well, and he approaches. (Y/n) takes a deep breath and prepares.

"Hey, Weirdo. Want to explain to me why you're following me?" He says, and (Y/n) shrugs.

"I.. need to talk to the child in the car with you." He says and he raises an eyebrow.

"You want to talk to Henderson? Yeah I don't think so, you're weird compared to the shit I've seen." He says and (Y/n) shakes his head.

"Okay.. well, I'll just apologize in advance for this." He says, he puts his hand up and the guy looks confused, until a flash of lightning hits him, knocking the boy down and out. (Y/n) walks over to the down man who's sizzling a bit and his hair frizzled.

"I'm.. really sorry about that." He says and walks up to the car to a terrified kid.

"Did.. did you just kill Steve?" He says, with a lisp.

"No, didn't kill him... I just wanna talk." He says, and the guy attempts to radio help, (Y/n) concentrated and flashes a bolt of lightning that zaps the radio.

"Now, calm down... I'm just looking for a guy called Mike? Says he knows a girl with Powers, powers like mine." He says, and Dustin begins to piece it all together.

"You.. you know Eleven?" He says, and (Y/n) stops, (Y/n) leans into the car

"Eleven, is that her name? Where is she?!" He says, and Dustin shakes his head.

"W-we don't know, she disappeared after she killed the Demagorgon! After that she's gone." He said, and (Y/n) frowns.

"Demagorgon?..." He says, he thinks and looks back at Dustin.

"Did she have a number tattooed on her wrist?" He asks and Dustin nods. (Y/n) shakily sighs and then be pulls up his, showing a number, three Zeroes.

"You're one of them too... Zero." Dustin says with shock and (Y/n) nods, and he opens the door and looks dustin in the eye.

"Eleven.. she, I guess you could call her my sister." He says, and Dustin leans back a bit.

(Y/n) and Dustin stood across from each other as Steven awoke, he groggily opens his eyes as he quickly gets up and grabs his back.

"Get back dustin!" He screams and prepares to swing, (Y/n) just stands there as Dustin calms the situation.

"Calm down! He's not with the Government! He's Elevens Brother." He says and Steven slowly begins to lower the bat.

"The Girl with the super powers?" Steve says as he lowers the bat.

"Yeah. That's her." (Y/n) says, "And since she's gone.. I guess I don't have any business in Hawkins, sorry to waste your time and, electrocute you, I do feel sorry about that Mister Harrington." He says, and Steve looks at him.

"It's.. Just Steve." He says.

"Oh, Sorry," he replies and walks off, Dustin reaches out.

"Wait." He says, (Y/n) halts and turns to him.

"This might be dumb to ask you for help but, we're tracking something from the Upside Down, the door eleven Opened. You could find some answers if you help us." He says, and (Y/n) thinks, and shakes his head.

"It sounds like you just have a lizard problem.." he says and Dustin groans.

"It's not a normal lizard." He retorts back.

"And how do you know that?" (Y/n) says back and Dustin answers.

"When his face opened up and he ate my cat." Dustin replies, (Y/n) stares and nods to himself.

"Yeah that's Uh.. that's not normal.." He says, and looks at them.

"But Demon Aliens from another dimension sounds a bit, far fetched?" He says and Dustin and Steven frown.

"Coming from the guy who can shoot lightning from his hands." Steve says, and (Y/n) gives in.

"Okay, Fair point. Alright I'll help." He says and Dustin gets in between them.

"Good, Steve, this is (Y/n), (Y/n), this is Steve." Dustin says and (Y/n) and Steve look at each other, and have a, tiny bit of an understanding. They get in their vehicles and drive off, (Y/n) unaware of the situation he's getting himself into.

Chapter 2: Dart.

The trio walk down a railway inside a forest, (Y/n) watches as Dustin and Steve toss bits of meat out of a bucket. (Y/n) walks slightly behind, listening to them talk, and Dustin tries to use his radio.

"Guys, this is Dustin again. Does anyone copy? This is a code red. I repeat, a code red! I really need someone to pick up here. Hopper's MIA, and I've got a code red. Code red! ....All right, it's Dustin again.

Seriously, I have a code red." He says and a voice comes back.

"Could you please shut up?" The voice says and (Y/n) walks up next to Dustin.

"Erica? Erica, is Lucas there? Where is he?" Dustin asks and (Y/n) peers over.

"Erica?" He asks.

"Don't know. Don't care." She says, (Y/n) could taste the sass radiating from that comment.

"Is he with Mike?" Dustin asks, gripping the radio.

"Like I said, I don't know and I don't care." Erica replies again coldly.

"Please tell him it's super important. Please tell him that I have a code—" Dustin says and Erica cuts him off

"Code red?" She says and he nods.

"Yep, code red. Exactly."

"I got a code for you instead. It's called code shut-your-mouth." Erica cuts the radio and there's nothing but static. (Y/n) looks over at Dustin.

"That girl sounds like a terror." He says and the. To Dustin.

"I guess she was no hell?" He asks and Dustin turns to him.

"Son of a bitch. You're really

no help at all, you know that?" Dustin says and (Y/n) shoots back.

"Then why the hell did you ask for my help?" He says and the three continue tossing meat, but another voice comes on.

"This is Lucas. Do you copy? Dustin?" Lucas says, Probably Erica's sibling.

"Well, well, well, look who it is." Dustin said with a smirk.

"Sorry, man. My stupid sister turned it off." He explains.

"Well, when you were having sister problems, Dart grew again, he escaped, and I'm pretty sure he's a baby Demogorgon.

"Wait. What?" Lucas asks and (Y/n) also adds in.

"You never told me what this Demagorgon does." He adds in and Dustin shushes him.

"I'll explain later.Meet me, (Y/n), and Steve at the old junkyard.

"Steve? (Y/n)?" Lucas asks obviously confused,

"And bring your binoculars and wrist rocket." Dustin says and hangs up. They get a few yards from the junkyard and are almost out of meat as Bait.

"I don't know. I just feel like you're trying too hard." Steve says.

"Well, not everyone can have your perfect hair, all right?" Dustin shoots back as (Y/n) smells the meat.

"Yeah, You and you dumb perfect hair." He adds in, Steve glares at him for a moment.

"Look, It's not about the hair, man. The key with girls is just...just acting like you don't care. It drives them nuts." Steve says, (Y/n) frowns a bit at this advice. But he doesn't say anything and just keeps tossing the bait.

"Then what?" Dustin asks.

"You just wait until, uh...until you feel it." Steve explains, but keeps most of it fairly ambiguous.

"It's like before it's gonna storm, you know?

You can't see it, but you can feel it, like this, uh..." Steve attempts to explain it, but it comes off as nonsensical.

"electricity, you know?" Steven says, finding the right words after looking at (Y/n).

"Oh, like in the electromagnetic field when the clouds in the atmosphere—" Dustin says and (Y/n) comes in.

"No no, i think Steve means like a, Romantic energy... when a girl likes you and you like her too, this feeling it's like it, like it runs though your bones." He says, and (Y/n) and Steve turn to each other.

"Like a sexual electricity!" They say at The same time, Dustin watches their two brain cells rub against each other on that one. (Y/n) turns to Dustin

"You're not falling in love with this girl, are you?" He asks and Dustin shakes his head.

"Uh, no. No." He says.

"Okay, good. Don't. She's only gonna break your heart, and you're way too young for that shit." Steve says, there's silence between the three.

"Fabergé." He says, (Y/n) and Dustin look at Steve

"What?" They say.

"It's Fabergé Organics. Use the shampoo and conditioner, and when your hair's damp not wet, okay? When it's damp... You do four puffs of the

Farrah Fawcett spray. You tell anyone I just told you

that and your ass is grass. You're dead, Henderson.

Do you understand? Goes for you too mystery man." Steve says and Dustin nods.

"I'm not a mystery man, you just never asked anything about me." He says, Dustin and Steve get a bit quiet and Steve asks.

"Okay. So, where do you come from?" He asks.

"Ohio. Heard from a good source about a Lab here, ran through some leads and that lead me here." He says, the trio slowly come to the scent of rust and the burning sunlight, they reach the junkyard. Housing rusted vehicles and old busses.

"Oh, yeah. Yeah, this will do. This will do just fine.

Good call, dude." Steve says, they dump the rest of the meat and stand around.

"I said medium-well!" Lucas yells, they turn to see Lucas a Short African American kid, and a ginger girl standing next to him.

"Who's that?" Steve asks, Looking at the girl.

"Who's that?" Lucas asks, looking at (Y/n).

"You told her?" Dustin asks as they approach,

"So what?" He says and Dustin gets pretty upset.

"So what?" Is that all you have to say?" He says.

"You wanted to tell her, too." Lucas retorts.

(Y/n) and Max look at each other, he offers a handshake.

"(Y/n)" he says.

"Max" she says back, the two share a short hello and go back to listen to them argue.

"But I didn't, all right?" Lucas says, and then turns to (Y/n).

"You told this guy." He says and (Y/n) chimes in.

"For the record I kinda already knew some of this, I just didn't know about the Demagorgon and Upside down universe part." He says, and Dustin defends him.

"He wanted to know what happened to Eleven, she's His Sister." He explains, Lucas Turns to him a bit mesmerized.

"Can you move stuff with your mind too?" He asks and (Y/n) confidently shakes his head.

"No, watch this." He says, (Y/n) turns to face a old car and it's window, much like his younger sister, he raises his hand and focuses, blood pours form his nose but streaks of electricity form down his arm and to his palm, he focuses and looks straight at the window.

"Boom."

In a flash, a bolt of lightning bursts from his hand, it blasts a hole though one window of the car and then to the other. The others stare in amazement and shock, Dustin, Max and Lucas rush to the window to see the melting glass dripping off the window.

"Holy shit." Dustin says as they gaze at the hole.

"You really are a superhero." Lucas says and turns to (Y/n), who's taking a few deep breaths.

"Yeah.. I guess I .. guess I am.. Uh, you guys have like a car battery or something? I'm a little, little drained." He says, everyone looks a bit worried as he walks over to see a power pole. He extends his arm and lightning comes from the pole, hitting his palm it begins to transfer to him, almost revitalizing his body. He looks a bit more rejuvenated and he turns to the group.

"So, How's that for Superhero?" He asks, they look pretty surprised. Later, Dustin and Lucas are talking behind a car.

"And you haven't heard from Mike?"

"No."

"Or Will?"

"No."

"Hopper?"

"No! No one is around. Why do you think I'm

with Steve Harrington and (Y/n)... Uh, (Y/n)—"

"It's Walker!" (Y/n) yells.

"Right, Steve Harrington and (Y/n) Walker" Dustin Finishes his sentence.

"Something's...Wrong." Lucas says and Dustin nods.

"I agree. Which is why we need as much help as we can get." He says, the two turn to Max who's helping bait and trap the junkyard.

"She didn't believe me anyway." Lucas says sadly.

"You probably didn't tell it right, That must be it." Dustin says.

"So, we good?" Lucas asks, they nod and Steve shoves Himself into their conversation.

"Hey! Dickheads! How come the only ones helping

me out is this random guy and girl? We lose light in 40 minutes. Let's go. Let's go, I said!" Steve yells and the two sulk and follow.

#netflix #male reader #reader insert #stranger things x male reader #eleven x reader #eleven hopper #Eleven X Male Reader #stranger things x y/n #stranger things #stranger things x reader

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overseer-picard · 1 year

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Final Thoughts on ST: Picard Season 3

I loved it. All of it.

I was filled with anxious dread when it was announced that the entire cast would be back. The first two seasons were not for me and I was worried all of the things I disliked would bleed into this season and infect ALL my beloved characters, not just Picard (who is my all time favorite fictional character).

But those fears were quickly quieted and I found myself looking forward to each new episode in a way I haven't done since the days before streaming.

There are still things I personally would've done differently, but just because I dislike something doesn't mean it's inherently bad (and vice versa, if I like something it doesn't mean it's objectively good).

I feel that the characters behaved in ways that made sense for their history (which was a pleasant 180 for Picard from the first two seasons) and they came together in organic ways that were integral to the plot rather than just thrown together for a reunion show.

I loved how they brought Data back, I thought it was fresh and creative, and it was fun to see him become the thing he always strove to be: human. I loved seeing Riker and Troi and their love for each other, Picard and Beverly as they navigated the very human emotions of reconnecting and saving their son, seeing Geordi as a dad to his adorable daughters along with his joy at seeing Data again. And Worf being the most Worf he's ever Worfed.

Every note I needed was hit with perfect pitch and tone.

The story was tightly woven with ample plantings and payoffs of key details (I'm excited to rewatch specifically for this reason). The stakes were high and had personal connection. The tension was well paced with solid structuring and anytime things DID slow down, it was to allow some breathing room for the characters to develop and exist. The characters were proactive rather than reactive, they had to actually make choices with no easy answer (a staple of Trek storytelling).

I loved the themes of family, both biological and within friendship, and the importance of loving and appreciating the people who truly matter in your life. I loved that the Trek universe felt connected again with the callbacks to the other shows, cameos from old characters, and our main seven recognizing that their most important years were the years they spent not just with each other, but with us, the audience. You can call this fan service with as much spite and venom as you want, but I call it universe cohesion.

After the first two seasons of Picard that could've taken place in any fictional universe because they were so brazenly disconnected from the key aspects that make Star Trek, Star Trek, I am grateful this team of writers took the care and effort to give these details back in meaningful and narratively useful ways.

And most of all, I loved the countless moments where I felt genuine, heartfelt, emotion. I am not a weepy person by any measure, but I teared up multiple times. Seeing these characters I've loved for so long be happy, connected, and moving forward brought me more satisfaction than I could've ever imagined.

I'm genuinely filled with so much gratitude towards the hundreds of people who came together to create this season of television. The care, dedication, attention to detail, respect, and reverence it holds towards the franchise that I love has brought me deep, lasting joy.

It is not the best show I've ever watched, and maybe I'll break down its flaws one day, but it's easily become a favorite that will forever hold a special place in my heart.

Not many shows get this kind of goodbye 30 years later and for that, I am incredibly grateful.

Sorry to those of you who did not enjoy it, you are not wrong to feel the way you do, we all enjoy media in ways that are unique to us.

#picard spoilers #star trek picard #sorry that I am not brief in thought nor word

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mermaidsirennikita · 8 months

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also now that rwarb was such a successful adaptation, which queer romances would you like to see them tackle next?

Weeeeelll if there were zero budgetary and casting restrictions in place, if I could just wave a magic wand and make great adaptations--

Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid--SEEMS like one of the easiest options, comes built in with a sequel, and it's like. Along the same lines as RWARB, while being.... a lot more sexual and a good bit angstier because the stakes are arguably HIGHER (mostly I'm thinking of Ilya being a world-famous Russian athlete who's also like. Bi.). I feel like it's funny and swooningly romantic in a manner similar to RWARB, but it's the next level up in a sense re: maturity. I also think, again, they could actually do this... albeit with a lot of obstacles re: both sexual content and like, casting dudes who could be fake hockey players lol. And one of them has to either be Russian or miraculously do a bang-up Russian accent. Both of these things are challenges.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian--would be SUCH a good mini? A historical romcom with the soft bisexual former highwayman and the flashiest motherfucker who's ever walked into the tavern or whatever like "HELP ME ROB MY DAD... and I will consider letting you look at my ankles". And then he SWORDFIGHTS LMAO? Perfect perfect perfect. then you could have the Marian book as a sequel.

Something Fabulous/Something Spectacular by Alexis Hall--you begin with a mini on the ultimate m/m romcom roadtrip romance, then you transition to the equally funny but also deeply emotionally stirring book about two nonbinary characters falling in love? and one of them is BASICALLY a rockstar?

A Long Time Dead by Samara Breger--the sapphic Interview with the Vampire, incredibly good and wry and dark and funny and ROMANTIC

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall--would be an amazing sweeping four part period drama; I just love the premise so much, with the heroine transitioning by faking her death at Waterloo and her best friend never emotionally getting over it and then meeting her again after her transition and not recognizing her until he realizes she has THE SAME FRECKLES??? JESUS. A full-stop ROMANCE romance.

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles--JOSS DOOMSDAY and his gay exploits in the marsh! Blackmailing his old hookup to continue his smuggling operation and then following that old hookup home and going "so like... you down to fuck or....?"

This is completely impossible but I'm gonna pie in the sky and say Tiffany Reisz's Original Sinners would make the most demented borderline-impossible explicit TV series ever. Imagine the ongoing antics of a bisexual dominatrix, her ex-boyfriend except actually not except the love of her life who is a Catholic priest that gets sexual pleasure out of inflicting pain, a totally straight man (according to himself) who has nonetheless been in a 20+year off/on thing with a bisexual French guy who runs the kink underworld of New York City or something. And they all fuck together sometimes. Like at Christmas. Complete with a snowball moment! Because Christmas!

New Camelot Trilogy--will never happen, but in my wiiiiiiildest dreeeeeeams this would be like, a 10-episode miniseries (or more??? Like a full outlander-style 13 episode series..... or a three season deal with 8 episodes per season...). It's just one of my favorite romance series of all time, it does such a good job of melting from the simple love triangle to this complex menage a trois of possessive wounded messy people? And somehow two of them are the president and the vice president lmao??? Of course, in the same sense... I'd love a Thornchapel miniseries. Like, you'd get a m/m/f throuple, a f/f couple, and this one bi priest guy they all fuck with at points? But nobody wants me to have the Gothic polyamorous friend group romance I want.

#romance novel blogging #once i started listing i just went 'actually all my favorite queer romances deserve adaptations'#original sinners is ... debatable on the romance thing. it's definitely a LOVE STORY lol

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flincher · 1 year

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I'm gonna preface this by saying that I liked S1 and 2 of Picard. They were flawed seasons, yes, but I enjoyed them; I thought its titular character's arcs were interesting, if contrived, and I liked the new characters well enough to really feel their absence in the third season. They were good pieces of Trek, and I appreciate (most of) what they did and tried to do.

I find the third season to be in a similar boat. It isn’t hard to feel sad about losing almost all of the supporting cast of the first two seasons (though over time I’ve grown more forgiving of it). Similarly, it’s also hard not to feel apprehensive about a full-blown TNG reunion (They’re old! What story could you possibly tell?).

Now, though, having seen it… I think S3 is a pretty impressive feat.

I know. Big surprise coming from someone whose icon as of time of posting is Jack. But I like it and I stand by that.

It’s not perfect. There are plot points I don't agree with. I think it stretches out the Jack mystery a couple episodes too long for its own good. I lament how the changelings practically vanish in these last two episodes despite doing all the legwork to make the Borg plot possible. I squint at the way it's so noncommittal towards providing any definitive status about Picard and Beverly and Laris. And I think it goes headlong into luxurious fanservice a bit too much at times, main culprit being the museum scene.

But I like this season and I think it works primarily because on a thematic level, it understands itself really well.

Nowhere is this more evident than in their choice of villain. We have the changelings causing paranoia, and we have the Borg with their parasitic, twisted means of connection, both of them reminders of the sins of the past. And ultimately they're thwarted because the characters choose to open up to each other. Beverly and Picard, Troi and Riker, Ro and Picard, Geordi and Data, Data and Lore, Raffi and Worf, Picard and Jack—over the course of the season all of these permutations of characters open up and meaningfully connect with and learn to trust each other. On a plot level, these heart-to-hearts accomplish one of a myriad of functions (e.g. verifying that the other person isn’t a changeling, reclaiming a positronic matrix, convincing the other to return from an assimilation), but on an emotional one, that’s the way they move on from their pasts.

I'd even argue that it's great follow-through on where S2 leaves Jean-Luc! He sees this brash, roguish son of his, this man who outwardly echoes the young Picard we see in Tapestry and, with the added characterization of Picard S2, carries a similarly fatherless pain, along with the trauma of the Borg inherited by one generation from the last. “I know now I would never have been my father,” Jean-Luc says in the third episode, and he spends the rest of the season trying to prove this right. He chases after Jack. He reaches out, works on becoming a good dad. Patiently, he stays by Jack’s side at the end of it all, and in doing so, they save each other. It borrows a page from a certain other franchise, but I’ll let it slide.

Because I think this season argues that yes, you don’t choose who you’re born into, but loving them is a different matter entirely. All family is chosen family.

Maybe that’s a little too simple for Trek. But I think here, presented cohesively and as a culmination of Jean-Luc’s emotional arc through three seasons, it works. Season 3 of Picard isn’t the perfect conclusion to this show—far from it, what with how vastly different it is from the rest of it—but it’s a tremendous ending for the TNG cast and specifically Picard the character. I’m glad it exists.

#star trek picard #picard spoilers #i have a mountain of other thoughts re: data resurrection and jurati's collective but that's For Another Time #st #star trek #star trek spoilers

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stilldancewithyou · 2 years

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Everyone is so focused on EJ being jealous of Ricky because of everything with Nini in S1 and Gina in S2 and it makes me sad that his character has been reduced to that. yes, Ricky "stealing" the girls from EJ (or however you look at it) is an important part of EJ's character build up and it plays into his insecurities but I don't think that's the biggest/only reason for the tension between them, there's a big chunk of the show's storyline for EJ that I feel like everyone is overlooking: It was EJ's senior year, the last high school musical productions he'd ever get to be in, and Ricky got the leading male parts in all three shows (also EJ didn't really get to audition for Frozen bc he has to direct it).

In season 1, he was soooo excited for HSM and he had spent a lot of time preparing to audition for Troy, his heart was set on that part and he even talked about how he thought he was the perfect Troy, and he was so confident about it. And then Ricky swoops in, not knowing anything about musicals, having never even seen the movie and having no understanding of the character, only auditioning to impress Nini, and he gets the part EJ wanted so badly. EJ has to be content with being the understudy and then he ended up reading Miss Jenn's casting paper to see why she didn't think he was good enough to play Troy and it was kinda mean tbh (and remember, after he read it he started really trying to be better) and I feel like everyone kind of put him down that season. He was so happy when he got the chance to go out as Troy on opening night but then he ended up supporting Ricky, building him up and telling him he was "the better Troy" and that he deserved the part. In season 2, it's the spring musical and the last musical of EJ's high school career! and we know from season 1 he really wants the lead part, and we find out about his dad's expectations so I think it's fair to say he also wanted to impress his dad and show him how talented he is, but at the same time, I feel like he just wants his moment in the spotlight that the others have gotten, he wants that validation that he is capable of playing the leading man and get it right and just that validation and confidence....but again, Ricky gets the lead, and EJ has to play the villain (don't get me wrong he was the perfect Gaston and I am not mad about that). In season 3, he's so excited to have all his Wildcats at camp with him, and have a great last summer; he and Gina talk about how they hope to be the leads together and it's EJ's last chance to have that spotlight leading role moment bc this is the last theater production for him to be in unless he gets onto Broadway or goes to a performing arts college. And EJ can't even properly audition for it bc he's been forced into directing it, and Ricky got the lead again, as Gina's love interest no less- and Ricky doesn't know the show well again and he casually jokes about it to EJ. And throughout all the seasons, EJ just puts on a happy face and supports everyone else and lifts them all up and helps them out; he's happy for Ashlyn when she got the lead, he's happy for Gina when she got it, he's even happy for Ricky. Even though the girls get to be upset when they don't get the parts they wanted, EJ is expected to just accept that he's not a leading man.

I mean...just think about it. EJ puts in all of this effort into being his best, he spends so much time understanding the character and rehearsing and preparing to be the best he can possibly be and Ricky, who puts in very little effort, doesn't know the character or even story/what the damn show is about, and doesn't really know that much about theater or acting just waltzes in and gets the lead three times in a row. (this also applies to the love triangles as sort of a metaphor in a way) Nini, Ashlyn and now Gina and Kourtney all get their time to shine in the lead roles they always dreamed of but didn't think they'd ever be good enough for but EJ has to suck it up and be happy for them and cope with the fact that this is his last show and he never got that big moment he wanted (despite the fact that he's basically a cookie cutter of the perfect leading man).

edited to add: yes, I do realize season 2 EJ chose not to pursue being the Beast bc he felt he was too busy with preparing for college and pls excuse my mistakes in this post/incorrect facts, it's been sooo long since I've watched the first two seasons so I went off what I thought I remembered when I was writing this post (so yeah, I'm a clown & I'll be the first to admit it but everyone who follows my blog already knows that lol). My mistake aside, my point is still the same. EJ has put in a lot of effort throughout all three seasons- with Nini, with Gina, with auditions, with all the shows, and he also went out of his way to atone for his past selfish actions (even tho he stepped back in s2 and worked on himself) and Ricky swooped in having no idea what he's doing and has effortlessly (if you're looking at it from EJ's POV- not trying to villainize Ricky cause I actually adore him) gotten everything EJ has been working hard for handed to him. In the present season it's not just that EJ is noticing the clear romantic tension between Rina, it's that Ricky is having the summer that EJ wanted to have- having fun, spending quality time with Gina and the other Wildcats, playing the leading male part alongside Gina in the show, enjoying EJ's camp friends (and becoming friends with all of them), participating fully in all the fun traditional camp activities and doing all of this with a carefree, Hakuna Matata attitude while EJ is literally about to combust from stress. It's as if Ricky has replaced him. (again, looking at this from EJ's POV). this is just a thought I had that I wanted to share bc I have seen so many posts about the love triangle and nothing about the other stuff so I apologize if I haven't articulated it in a way that makes sense but hopefully this clears some things up. I still think he should get his time to shine though bc he hasn't really gotten that in the show yet.

Also even though EJ was initially presented as being overly confident and kind of cocky, I always personally thought they've made it obvious he, like the other characters, has a lot of insecurities about himself and the cocky attitude is kind of a façade to hide that from everyone else. And considering how hard his dad is on him with all of his high expectations, I think EJ has probably spent his whole life putting in maximum effort to be the best at everything and acting confident and cocky bc it's how his dad wants him to be.

#hsmtmts 3 #hsmtmts #ej caswell #ricky bowen #listen. they better give ej his time to shine as director or something in the last ep this season #HE DESERVES THAT #he's going through it #i will defend ej with everything i have #i love ricky AND ej both #i also love both portwell and rina...like i'll be happy with either endgame but I really like portwell's dynamic rn #and I think both ships deserve more time and not to be rushed with the way both were built up

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nancywheeeler · 2 years

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I had a lot of trouble believing the haha ur dad is dead line. The skate circle of bullies yelling “freak go home!” was already ott but I could kind of roll with it and be like well it’s the 80s, they do everything with a little flare, even bullying. But this line just was not very believable; I can’t see that flying even in 1986. I get they put it in so we would be extra supportive of el in her moment of violent rage but I would completely have supported a roller skate to the face with or without the ur dad’s dead comment. Props to the angela actress tho - she is very hatable!!

yeah i've never bought into bullies making fun of someone for having dead parents, especially coming from a 14 year old like angela. it's just a bit too much of a narrative shortcut and like you said, we're already on el's side! angela trying to get el a failing grade for her project about said dead parent was more than enough for me!

hard agree on the angela actress — the casting team has always been great at finding the perfect bullies. tommy and troy are still up there in the least favorite characters poll for me

#ask #now that i'm thinking about it i think the haha dead parents trope happens in a series of unfortunate events too #basically if you're an orphan in any coming of age media #your dead parents are unfortunately fair game

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booksandwords · 10 months

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Perfect Catch by N.R. Walker

Read time: 2 Days Rating: 4/5 Stars

The Quote: I lay there until I fell asleep, wrapped in the arms of a man I loved and would probably never get to have. — Cal

Perfect Catch is the story of twenty-four-year-olds Calvin 'Cal' Lynch and Troy Hoffman, best friends since they were fourteen. It's the realisation of their chemistry, a decade of tension and want and the maintenance of their emotions in the wake of the change in their relationship all wrapped up with N.R.'s typical writing style and a sense of wonderful humour. There is a degree of awareness to the whole book that I appreciated. Like the best friend to lovers trope being called out, Cal and Troy know they are the stereotypical example of a trope. The humour used is fun and right. I like the characters. It feels a little like Arctic Fire in the limited cast and tent and full-blown intimacy. However, that works on entirely different core premises (I do so love it 😘). Perfect Catch is just cute af, it's low anxiety, best friend to lovers done right.

The slow reveals of the characters was an effective choice. Cal goes from being anxious and questioning in the first half to the driving force, confident and self-assured in the second. He's not a flawed narrator per se but he perhaps is unaware of his own convictions at first. Troy is endearing, human. The sort of character that is common in NR's novels. It is a narrative that moves fast but not illogically so. Their actions and the speed of them are backed by their preexisting relationship, connection and character traits. Such as Cal's relatable love of Steve McGarrett, which is tied to his love of Troy. Jesus, I so did that (though with different characters, and actors). The choice to include the conversation of what-ifs felt like it really was necessary given their hardcore feelings for each other.

Have a collection of quotes and notes • Total random note... Interesting choice of beer. • I adore Peta and Cal's relationship. Sparkie and Chippie as nicknames are perfect choices. Also, bless any author who gives us a female tradie. Peta gives as good as she gets and I'm here for it. • This particular book is set in outside a country town called Claremont (there are two, one in Western Australia and one in Tasmania neither align well to this location). • My folks were okay with it; well, my mum and sister were fine with it. I think my dad was just relieved I was still a man’s man. I was still keen to do my building apprenticeship and was one of the hardest hitting guys on our rugby team. I think my old man thought all gay men had a swish to their hips. But when he realised it didn’t change a single thing about me, he said he was fine with it. I had to wonder if he’d still accept me if I was more flamboyant. I’d never really thought parents’ love should have limits, but apparently my dad’s might have. — Well hellllooo toxic masculinity. Goddamn homophobia. Australia well and truly sucks sometimes. Because all Aussies know at least one guy who is considered a blokes bloke like that. I do of course know it's not exclusive to us. (Cal) • I knew that smile. It was his gone-fishin’ smile, his “weekend away with no mobile phone service” smile. Possibly even his “Friday night footy and pizza” smile. It was contagious. — I adore this. Just that knowing someone so well that you know their moods, their smiles. It doesn't have to be romantic, it can be a purely platonic connection, though it is of course heavily romantically coded here. Even if Cal and Troy are both entirely blind to the subtones of it. (Cal) • I longed to touch him, to have him touch me in return. I wanted him, but more than that, I wanted him to want me. I ached for it. — I don't know what it is about this that makes my stomach swoop. Because I remember this feeling, but it is uncommon to be reminded of that. (Cal) • Because, even if it turned out Troy would not, or could not, ever be interested in me, it was too late for me. I was in love with him. I had been for years. Was I supposed to risk it all? Was I supposed to tell him how I felt? Because it was getting to the point where I couldn’t keep pretending I wasn’t in love with my best friend. I didn’t have a choice anymore. I had to either tell him or walk away. And I couldn’t be the one to say goodbye. — There is so much desperation and emotion in this one section. It's a stark realisation. Cal is so painfully sweet. I felt this like a punch. (Cal) • He pulled off. “Look at me when I suck your dick.” His words and his tone almost made me come. I did as he demanded, leaning up on my elbows, and when our gazes locked, he slowly opened his mouth and took me in again. “Oh, fuck,” I whispered. “Troy.” — This exchange struck me, not because it is A moment but because I've read quite a bit of N.R. over the last year. This isn't her usual game. Honestly, it's one step off exhibitionism, not something I've seen her play with, that kind of kink. But for Cal and Troy, it feels more like a deep extension of their intimacy. Troy's need for intimacy. (Troy and Cal) • “I know. And that’s what I’m scared of,” he said. He looked away, out the kitchen window, like looking at me was too hard. “Scared of what?” His gaze shot to mine. “Of losing what we have,” he said. “Of risking it all. You’ve been my best friend forever, and I don’t know what I’d do without you, and that scares me.” — This is a key element of friends to loves, especially best friends to loves. Think of it as Schrodinger's cat relationship. stellarstacey put it really well in her buddie fanfic Buck's New Tattoo "I’m tired of being alive and dead with you. I’m so scared to mess up what we already have that I’m sacrificing what we could have. I wanna open the box on us." • “Now, if we’re going to do the whole best friends-to-lovers thing, we’d better go about it properly, yeah?” That made me smile. “I thought we crossed that line already.” “We frotted the line.” I burst out laughing. “Then we better cross it more thoroughly.” Troy chuckled, then with a deep breath, he took my hand. “If we do this, we can’t go back.” “I know.” “No regrets?” “No regrets.” — This made me laugh. This is a moment of full awareness of the trope. (Troy and Cal)

I keep coming back to N.R. Walker. I need a book I can read easily on a busy day which could include lots of disrupted reading I've found N.R.'s are brilliant for that. Engaging enough that you want to know how the characters get where they need to be for their happiness but written in such a way that you can pick it up and put it down without getting lost. This Perceft Catch is a prime example of her work, set in Australia with a minimal cast happiness galore. I will never complain about it.

#perfect catch #n.r. walker #readaustralian #friends-to-lovers #book review #read 2022 #ktreviews #booklr #lgbtq

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mirkwoodshewolf · 3 years

Text

Nightmare paradise; Doctor Strange x daughter reader

*Author’s note*

Now I know this may not be my best work but I have been DYING to make a Doctor Strange daughter fic since like FOREVER!! A lone solo without any real relationship patterns in tact (mostly Peter Parker WHICH I DON’T DISAGREE WITH AT ALL. I’m just saying I hardly see any other fics that just revolve SOLELY on Stephen strange and a daughter reader. THAT’S IT.) So in the end THIS is what ended up being born.

Also I LEAVE FACVE CASTING OF NIGHTMARE UP TO YOU GUYS!! I personally imagined Troy Baker’s voice for Nightmare but you guys can picture WHOMEVER you wish to be the character for Nightmare. Also this fic is LOOSELY based off of WandaVision but DON’T WORRY NO SPOILERS OF THE SERIES IS GIVEN. I just took a plot point from the series and had it work for the Doctor Strange universe. Enjoy my first Maevel fic in FOREVER dearies :)

Warnings: Swearing, the BLIP mentioned and described, Thanos mentioned (yeah he’s a warning), some battle sequences, blood (if you’re squeamish).

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@ixchel-9275

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@queen-paladin

@soy-guey

____________________________________________________________

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock blaring off. I groaned and reached out to try and shut it off but no matter how many times I was slamming my hand on my desk, my alarm was still blaring. Finally I got out from under my covers and unplugged my clock and saw just how bright it was outside. I let out a groan and collapsed back to my pillows.

“Why do I have to be woken up so early?” I groaned tiredly before heaving myself upward and out of my bed. I walked towards my jointed bathroom and took my morning shower. After that I got changed and went downstairs to eat my breakfast.

I lifted my hand and soon a pop-tart came into my hand and I unwrapped the tinfoil and took out one of the two pop-tarts.

“It somehow amuses me to see you use your mystic arts to bring you your breakfast when you could just get it yourself.” That deep familiar baritone voice spoke out to me.

“Coming from the guy who just last month used his powers to wash his car when he was teaching me the form of astral projection.” I sassed back at him.

“That was for the purpose of multitasking.”

“That’s not a real thing.”

“What are you talking about of course it is.”

“Is not.”

“Is too.”

“Is not.”

“Is too times infinity times infinity there I win!” I chuckled and teasingly poked my tongue out at him.

“When did you get sassier than me, dad?”

“More like you inherited your sass from me. But no one can out sass me.” He said as he playfully booped my nose.

“Yeah but never forget dad,” I then took his arm and kicked his leg in before tossing him over my shoulder to finally pin him down. “I’m the more clever fighter out of the two of us.” He hummed questioningly.

“You sure about that?” suddenly I was levitated in the air and constricted in a familiar red velvet cloth. I looked down to see the cloak of levitation had my arms pinned to my sides and was levitating me just a few inches off the ground.

“You cheat!”

“The Sorcerer Supreme never cheats.”

“But my father does.”

“You know you better choose your next sentence very carefully.” My dad threatened with that growl-like tone to his voice, but the twinkle of mischief and playful smirk on his face told me that this wasn’t a real threat.

“Or what? Parlor magician.” Next thing I knew the cloak of levitation had lifted part of it’s material up and it started messing up my hair. Not only getting it tangled up but making sure it gave my hair a static charge to it.

I exclaimed as I pleaded it to stop before it was too late, but soon enough my hair resembled a porcupine with it’s quills standing up. My dad laughed as the cloak finally released me and I fixed my hair.

“Very funny dad.”

“Oh I think it’s very funny.” He said through his deep baritone chuckle. I tried to adjust my hair but some strands still remained on end. “Here, let me help.” He then licked his fingers and I exclaimed.

“Eww gross you know I hate that!”

“Well it’s either this or we wet your hair again and you don’t have time to argue because you’re already 10 minutes late for class.”

“WHAT!?” I looked at the grandfather clock and saw that it was already 7:50am. “Shit!”

“Ah-ah-ah-ah language!” my dad scolded me. I growled lowly and said.

“Okay fine just fix it hurry!” he soon made my hairbrush appear and he gently re-brushed my hair to it’s normal way. Any crazy strand that was out of place, my dad would lick his fingers and tame it down by stroking it down to the rest of my hair.

“There you go, back to your normal gorgeous hair.” I then quickly opened up a portal to my school but before I left the cloak once again grabbed my arm preventing me from leaving.

“What now?”

“You know the rules, come on. No matter how old you get you never leave the house without giving your old man a kiss.” I looked up at him then stood up on my tip toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

“I’m going to be late.”

“You’re always late.” The cloak finally freed me and I hopped through the portal and gave one last wave to my dad before closing the portal back up. As the last warning bell rang, I quickly raced through the back entrance of the school and raced to my first class.

The day went on as normal. First block Advance Science, second block, PE, followed by half of third block being English and then lunch at 12:15pm and that’s where I was right now. We had about a half hour for lunch before continuing the second half of 3rd block since that’s how second lunches go.

See my school has this strange set up based on whatever class you have for your 3rd block depends on your lunch schedule. If you had an elective class (choir, drama, band, orchestra, art), a foreign language, or science class you had 1st lunch at around 10:30am (so that means you eat lunch before you would go to your 3rd block class).

Second lunches (like me) follow under English and Math have the first half dedicated to class, then lunch then we continue our class. And then 3rd lunches are for the people who eat lunch after their 3rd block classes, they’d eat then go straight to their last class of the day (history, PE/driver’s ED, health, home economics).

I was sitting with some of my friends when I heard a voice call out to me.

“Hey (Y/n)!” I turned and saw my group of friends. I walked over to our table and that’s when one of my friends Courtney said.

“Yo (n/n) what be up?”

“Nothing much, just trying to get by in Mr. Gordon’s class.”

“I still can’t believe you somehow managed to pass his class when a friend of mine is struggling so bad. And he’s never done bad in the advance classes.” Said another friend of mine, Bobi said.

“I think it comes from having a neurosurgeon as a father. Well former neurosurgeon.” I said recalling the accident. Of course I never told my friends that my dad eventually became a superhero that could bend time and reality to his will all thanks to his training he did with the former Sorceress Supreme.

“Well no worries (n/n), I’m sure your dad will get back on his feet soon.” My friend Jay said.

“Yeah, he is a strong man.”

“Then how come he got bleeped away like the rest of the world did?” said Kira. I looked up at my ginger haired friend in shock.

“What did you just say?”

“I said then how come when my dad gets the shit knocked out of him, he just bitches about it?” I looked at her confused for a second and that’s when Kelsey answered.

“Just be thankful your dad at least tries to work. All my dad does is drinks and sleep.” I patted her shoulder comfortingly as I continued eating my pizza.

When school was over, my friends and I went down to the bowling alley since it was Friday. We reserved our usual lanes and got into our teams. I was up next to bowl for my team, I took hold of my red bowl, lined myself up and took a deep breath in then exhaled out.

‘(Y/n)! (Y/n)!’ my dad’s voice soon screamed in my head. His tone sounded urgent and—worried? What was going on?

“Yo (Y/n) you alright?” Mikaela came up to me placing her hand on my shoulder.

“Yeah. Yeah sorry.” She gave me a comforting squeeze on my shoulder.

“It’s okay, just make the shot otherwise we’ll lose and you are our best striker.” She went back to her seat and took a sip of her diet coke. My team was cheering me on, I took another deep breath but just as I took my run and let the ball go, my head suddenly felt like it was splitting open.

The ball went straight down the gutter and I was soon met with all these flashes. I saw my dad, Tony Stark, Peter Parker, and these—other people including myself on what looked like a deserted wasteland of rubble.

There was this giant purple being that we were all fighting, a flash of green and then I saw my dad turn to dust. When my vision came back I could hear my team groaning and my other friends who had their team cheering.

“WHAT THE FUCK (Y/N)!!!” Danielle exclaimed.

“Gurl you never. Miss. A. shot!” Mikaela snapped at me.

“What the fuck was that (Y/n)?!” Jay yelled.

“Ehhh thanks (y/n). Now you guys have to pay for the meal.” Courtney said as she snapped her fingers in victory.

And I don’t know how or why it happened but suddenly I was back holding the ball in my hands, staring down the pins and my team was cheering for me. How did I get back here? Why was I back here? I felt myself step forward a few times and release the ball and soon I got a perfect strike.

My team cheered as the pins were cleared and a new set was placed down in front of me.

“Alright (n/n)! One more strike and we win!” my ball soon came back onto the ramp and I picked it up, stepped forward and released the ball and low and behold another strike! My team cheered while the other team groaned in defeat.

“Oh yasss Queen!” Chris exclaimed.

“Alright Courtney, pay up you’re buying the pizza now!”

“Damn you (y/n).” Courtney sneered at me as she took out her wallet and left the payment for all our pizzas and a tip for our waiter.

After that it was already getting dark outside and when I looked at my watch I had seen that it was now 10:30pm.

“Well guys I gotta get going.” I told them.

“Yeah I promised my mom that we’d go shopping for my sister’s wedding next month.” Mikaela said.

“Yeah and I gotta get up and ready for work by 8am. See yah guys.” Courtney said and soon all my friends and I went our separate ways. I went into an alleyway to open up a portal to get me back home when I heard a sudden crash behind me.

“Hello?” I cried out. Nothing but silence replied back to me. “Who-who’s there?” another crash was heard just head of me but I didn’t see anything.

The quick fluttering sounds of a cape or cloak whisked past behind me and when I quickly turned around I thought I could see the cloak of levitation, but it was so dark and so fast I couldn’t tell for sure.

I quickly made my portal and jumped through it and immediately closed it before finally starting to hyperventilate. My knees turned to jelly as I collapsed to the ground trying to control my breathing.

“(Y/n)? What’s wrong sweetheart are you okay?” I looked up and saw my dad kneeling down beside me.

“I—I’m fine.”

“No. You’re not. Come on let’s get you up to your room and settled in your bed.” He picked me up, holding me like how he always used to hold me when I was little and carried me back to my room.

I was now in my sleep pants and an old nightshirt. My dad made a tall glass of milk appear by my bedside and he said as he brushed a strand of hair out of my face.

“Now, you wanna talk about why I found you hyperventilating at the bottom of the stairs?” I took a sip of my milk and said.

“It’s just…..I don’t know. Something weird happened today.”

“Like what?”

“Well there was something that Kira said to me. She—” but for some reason what I was about to say slipped my mind.

“She was going to say what?”

“She……she said……I-I can’t remember. I had it but now it’s….it’s gone.”

“Okay, what else happened? I know it couldn’t be just because of what she said.”

“Yeah, yeah then there was this sense of……déjà vu. Like when I was bowling I……” but again like before, when I was about to speak about—the thing it slipped my mind once again. At this point my dad was looking at me like I was mad. “I…..I can’t remember the déjà vu thing either. Daddy, am……am I going mad?” he pressed his hand against my forehead.

“I’m afraid so. You’re entirely bonkers.” He said gravely. “But I’ll tell you a little secret. All the best people are.” He said with a grin. I looked at him with my bitch face which made him chuckle.

“Must you always quote Alice in Wonderland to me?”

“It’s your favorite movie and book of all time. You remember how you’d always beg me to read it to you as a little girl?”

“One look with my puppy dog eyes and you succumbed every time.” He pressed his forehead against mine as his nose gently rubbed against mine as he chuckled that deep baritone chuckle of his. The type that always made me feel safe.

“How about this, tomorrow we just take a day for ourselves. Just the two of us. We don’t even need to leave the house.”

“Sounds like a good idea.”

“Great, love you sweetheart.” He leaned in and kissed my temple before leaving my room and shutting the door behind him. I downed the rest of the milk and suddenly felt sleepy. I collapsed onto my pillow and like a lightbulb I fell right asleep.

But throughout the night I kept tossing and turning as I was hearing not only my dad’s voice but Wong’s voice too. They were both frantic with worry as they kept calling out to me.

When I opened my eyes I found myself back at that wasteland and I saw myself fighting against the giant purple alien. I was holding the sacred sword of Vishanti. I saw myself leap into the air and swing the sword downward but the alien caught it with his bare hands. The two of us struggled with our strengths until he grabbed me by my white tunic and threw me like a ragdoll.

My dad soon came in with the bolts of balthakk which broke apart the ground around the purple giant but his gauntlet glowed a bright purple and shit a blast towards my dad. But my dad summoned a portion of the mirror dimension and used it as a shield to protect himself before sending it towards the giant.

While the giant was distracted I then suddenly came flying over my dad and sent the Crimson bands of Cyttorak to bind him while my dad multiplied himself using the images of Ikkon. He surrounded himself around the purple giant and each image created their own binding bands which shot down towards the giant purple creep.

But he used the gauntlet again and soon my dad’s image went back to just himself and my hold on him was also severed. He used the gauntlet to bring my dad closer to him but I couldn’t hear what he was telling my dad.

What I did see was him taking the eye of Agamotto and crush it into his palm before throwing my dad aside knocking him out. I then heard myself scream out towards me dad and saw the rage in my own eyes.

I saw myself let out a battle cry as I leapt into action. This time using hand to hand combat using the sword as well as creating my own shields to block his attacks. Wow I was a rageful monster with whoever this guy was. But—why is this so familiar to me? I know this couldn’t be just a dream, it’s like—a memory? A vision maybe?

All I know was that I saw myself getting weaker with each kick and punch I tried to throw. That was until I saw myself getting stabbed in my side. The purple giant then said.

“I respect you young witch. But now you’re starting to become a nuisance.” I then watched as he took out the sword from my side and I saw myself collapse onto the ground bleeding heavily.

I found myself gasping as I woke up and looked around to see myself still in my bedroom. I turned to the clock and saw that it was 1:45am. I quickly raced downstairs, in the total pitch black of my house not knowing what I was doing.

“And just where do you think you’re going little miss?” my dad’s voice soon said. He turned around in a chair as he turned on the light beside him.

“I-I was only…….”

“You weren’t planning on sneaking out were you? You know my rule. No venturing out after midnight.”

“No dad I-I-I wasn’t.” he stood up and placed a hand on my shoulder. However I felt his nail sink onto my skin piercing through my shirt painfully. I bit my bottom lip trying to keep in a scream or even a sound of pain.

“You know how it makes me feel whenever you disobey your father. You wouldn’t want to make father angry, do you?”

“N-no.” I whimpered out.

“That’s my girl.” Suddenly my dad was shot with a bolt of balthakk. I ducked down holding my shoulder and saw a small amount of blood actually on my fingertips.

“She’s not your girl, she’s mine!” I turned around and saw Wong and my dad?! Wait what was going on here? Why were there two of them? My dad was in his full Sorcerer Supreme outfit as the cloak of levitation had him hovering over a few inches off the ground.

My dad who had been shot across the room growled out as he stood back up.

“Impossible. You were gone! I’d seen it for myself!” he hissed. My other dad smirked and said.

“14,000,605 possibilities I had seen and only one victory. That possibility has already come to pass. Now I’ll only tell you this once,” he clapped his fists together and soon his shields came over his hands and he warned my dad. “Let. My daughter go less you face the wrath of the Master of the Mystic Arts.”

“(Y/n) you need to come with us now before it’s too late.” Wong told me.

“I—I don’t understand……how?”

“Sweetheart listen to me, I’m your real father. Just come stand behind Wong and I and we’ll get you out of here.”

“Don’t listen to him (Y/n). I’m your real father. Who would know what your favorite lullaby was?”

“(Y/n) I know he may seem like me but he’s not. It’s Nightmare. He’s kept you trapped in the Dream Dimension for 3 years.”

What? Then suddenly behind me a giant green and black blast of magic shot up in the air. As my dad’s body soon began to morph into another male’s body, wearing a familiar green and black attire, his hair growing wild and madded like a lion’s mane, his nails growing sharper and blacker like claws, his teeth turning to fangs and his eyes. Those once warm blueish-green eyes that once held warmth now turned a frightening and haunting yellow with a black pupil at its center.

Suddenly it all came back to me. When Thanos had snapped half of the population away, it gave Nightmare the advantage and power boast he needed to try and escape the Dream dimension and enter our own.

So three years ago I along with some other Sorcerers (those that were left) went to the Dream Dimension to stop him from invading Earth. But due to everyone’s fear and guilt of losing their loved ones and what the world had come to, Nightmare was almost too powerful to stop. He had killed one sorcerer who was still in her training and another one he had driven mad with fear.

In order to spare the others as well as the rest of the Earth, I volunteered myself as penance. I told Nightmare that he could have me if he spared everyone on Earth. He agreed and sent the rest of the sorcerers I had brought with me back to Earth leaving me under his control. I guess he had me relive a normal life with my dad where it was mainly us, no Thanos, no other Avengers, just me and him.

A haunting laughter was heard as Nightmare spoke with his true voice.

“Right you are Doctor. However you’re only partially correct this time around.” He walked right up to me and placed his hands on my shoulders gripping them once again. “Your daughter came to me by her own freewill.”

“That’s a lie! My daughter would never surrender herself to the likes of you!” Nightmare turned to me and disappeared into black smoke before reappearing behind me.

“Do you want to tell him? Or shall I?” he said as I felt one of his claw-like nails nick across my neck. I hissed in pain and felt a small amount of blood dripping down. His finger brushed across the cut and I could see him lick the blood off his finger from my peripheral vision.

“I’m sorry dad.”

“(Y/n)…….why?” before I could say anything Nightmare simply shushed me which in turn silenced me. I tried to speak but not even a peep came out of me. Nightmare had taken my voice.

“Seems she had more common sense than you did. The daughter of the Sorcerer Supreme is a precious treasure to uphold.” I felt him stroke down my hair, the very same way my dad would always do it to me.

“This is your last warning Nightmare, let her go or else.”

“Or else what? In case you hadn’t noticed I’m the one in control here. I’m stronger than I’ve ever been before. And you’re in my dimension which gives me the homefield advantage!”

“Yeah, but there’s one thing you still haven’t let go of. Your constant need to brag.” My dad said with a grin. Nightmare looked at my father confused which gave me the chance to free myself from his grip and I binded him with the Crimson bands of Cyttorak. Wong soon joined in and pushed a wall from the mirror dimension right towards Nightmare sending him out of the room.

My dad raced up towards me and the two of us embraced each other. I felt his left hand press against my temple while his right touched the base of my throat. I felt this warmth come over me and I said to him.

“I’m sorry dad.”

“Apologize later. Right now let’s get you out of here. You’ve been in here long enough.” He took my hand and we quickly made a run for it.

The normal streets of New York melted away and I finally saw the Dream dimension for what it really was. A dark black shadow surrounded the sky with haunting eyes staring at you and fanged mouths snarling or taunting you with your worst fears and guilt. Doors were also scattered everywhere, each one leading to somewhere you didn’t want to be or even get lost in.

And at the bottom of the trail we ran along at, an endless, empty abyss. One trip or a slip, then it’s a never ending fall throughout the Dream dimension. Wong let out a few shield platforms for us to hop across.

“Come on! The door we came through won’t be in the same spot for long.” He was the first to hop onto the first platform but then just before dad and I could even take the first leap, a python suddenly shot out from the floor and took hold of my calf.

“(Y/n)!” my dad exclaimed. I was being dragged towards the edge of the trail. I tried my best to scratch myself back towards my dad but the python continued to drag me towards the edge till I was finally dangling over the abyss.

My dad summoned the sword of Vishanti and threw it straight into the python’s eye which forced it to let me go as it recoiled back in pain before disappearing into a puff of black smoke. Dad quickly brought me back onto solid ground and we both saw my leg was heavily bleeding.

“Never did I think I could hate snakes even more than I usually do.” I groaned out a joke.

“Just be thankful he didn’t conjure up a venomous one. Try to stop the bleeding.” The cloak of levitation came off my dad’s shoulders and wrapped itself around my leg, tightening itself up to stop the bleeding.

“You and Wong need to get out of here. You guys can come back with help.”

“I’m not gonna leave you here again that’s not happening!”

“Dad I can’t walk! And without the cloak you can’t fly.”

“We’ll think of something.”

‘I’m afraid there won’t be any time for you three, or should I say you two.’ That’s when we noticed that Wong had suddenly gone missing.

“Wong? Wong!” my dad called out.

‘Face it Strange, you’re in my dimension now. And thanks to your daughter’s powers I’ve grown more powerful than ever before!’ My dad picked me up bridal style and proceeded to run.

Somehow we managed to find somewhere to hide. One of many doors that simply looked like a dark cave. My dad sat me down and that’s when the cloak unwrapped itself from my leg and my dad began to heal my leg as quickly as he could.

“Dad…..if—if we don’t make it out of here…..”

“We’re gonna make it out.”

“Dad please I—I need to say this, after five long years please just let me speak my mind.” He looked at me worriedly but gave me a nod. “If we don’t make it out of here alive, I—just want you to know that…..I’m proud to call you my father. I know we had a—rocky start especially when I became a teenager but—after the accident I thought I had lost you forever. And then when—Thanos blipped you away. I’d come so close to losing you again without telling you how I’ve felt about you. I love you daddy. I really, really do love you.” He pressed his hand against my cheek and said.

“I love you too (Y/n). I love you so, so much. I know I haven’t been Dad of the year to you, but……I thought it was because I wasn’t ready to be a dad. I thought I would screw up and have you end up broken. But I am proud to call you my daughter, my little white witch.” I smiled at him sadly.

‘How sentimental.’ Nightmare’s voice echoed through the darkness. My dad pulled me close to his chest, his arms wrapped around me protectively, same thing with the cloak as it felt the red velvet material wrap it’s two edges around me.

“So what now Nightmare? Now that I’ve broken free of your spell you going to kill me?” I heard his haunting chuckle as he said.

“No of course not. He is.” Suddenly my dad was struck with one of Nightmare’s controlling spells. It hit him right in his eyes and I saw the black and green magic aura surround my dad, trying to manipulate him.

“No! Dad! Dad no please fight it!” I pleaded as my dad was groaning and writhing on the floor. He held his hands to his head as he exclaimed in pain. “Daddy no please, you’re stronger than him. You’re clever than him, you’re Doctor Stephen Strange!”

“Hate to break it to you sweetheart, but daddy’s no longer home.” Nightmare soon appeared as the cave light up by a single firepit just a few feet away from us. Nightmare stood on top of a ledge of sorts and that’s when I heard the snarl of an animal next to me.

When I looked down that’s when I saw my dad had now shifted into a Nightmare. Teeth like a wolf’s bared at me, gleaming like the full moon, his eyes now a haunting gold like a tiger’s eye but his pupils were slitted like a snake’s, claws like meat hooks, a whip-like tail that almost looked like a dragon’s tail and bat wings soon sprouted from his back as he stared me down snarling.

I backed up before hobbling away from him but my dad charged after me. That’s when the cloak of levitation came to protect me as it wrapped itself around my father’s face trying to smother him.

“You know maybe I should’ve made you deal with this the past three years. Your biggest fear is your beloved father turned against you.” I fell to the ground due to my injury and backed away up against the rocky wall. All the while I watched in horror as my dad actually began ripping the cloak apart before staring directly as me once again.

“Release him at once Nightmare! This wasn’t a part of our deal!” I snapped as I looked up to where he was standing above me.

“Contracts can be edited sweetheart. So long as I bind you to my will it doesn’t matter what you see. Unless by my word that I release you from your contract, you are stuck here for eternity.” I heard a snarl and when I looked forward, my dad was just inches away from my face.

His canine teeth gleaming right at me as he kept licking his fangs. He truly was a monster now, there was not a single trace of my dad anymore in this beast.

“No daddy.” He stalked closer and closer inch by inch till I could feel his hot breath panting right in my face.

“Sweet dreams love.” Nightmare gave me one last taunt using my dad’s real voice.

Then quicker than lightning the beast that was once my father actually lunged for my neck and I felt his canines pierce my skin and I let out a blood curdling scream.

“Blech! Blood, blood, blood! And—death!” I said as my dad released my neck grinning at my over dramatic death scene. I then collapsed to the ground and played dead with my tongue out and everything.

“Alright now you’re just milking it.” My dad spoke with a slightly more gravel to his normal voice (kinda reminded me of Smaug from the Hobbit films). “Besides, I think we’ve got him. Thank you Nightmare you’ve been a great costar.” Dad said as he helped me stand up.

“What?” oh the confusion on Nightmare’s face was priceless.

“Oh did you think you actually affected me with your Nightmare magic? Well spells can be contained by other spells, and your attack is trapped in the mirror dimension.”

“And I’ve been working on some other forms of magic like shapeshifting thanks to some Norse spell books.” I explained to him gesturing to my dad.

“My girl is a clever one. Cheeky at times too.” Dad said as he ruffled my hair. Nightmare growled and said to me.

“But you forget one thing, you’re still under my control (Y/n) Strange. So says my law.”

“Yeah about that.” I then pulled out a small tape recorder from my pocket, rewind it and played the part that I needed and soon Nightmare’s voice said.

‘I release you from your contract.’

“Now by your own law, I am no longer tied to the Dream Dimension, or your control.” Nightmare’s face dropped from pride to utter defeat.

“No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no!”

“Oh yes. It’s called a hustle bitch. Mic drop!” Soon a portal came behind dad and I and we both jumped through it sending us back to the New York Sanctum. The last thing we heard was Nightmare’s defeated tantrums.

Wong immediately closed the portal behind us and I dropped the spell from my dad turning him back to his normal self.

“You know he’ll try to return.” Wong told us.

“Yeah and now it seems I’m a bigger threat to him than you are dad.” I said.

“Well no matter what happens, we’ll be there to make sure he doesn’t try to return to Earth. Whatever it takes.”

Later that night as I was browsing through my phone, a knock was heard at my door.

“It’s open.” My dad soon came in and he said.

“How are you feeling?”

“After finally getting some real food in my system, and finally getting to use the Internet again. I’d say I’m doing better.”

“You know you didn’t have to be the one to do it. Wong was willing to hold Nightmare off.”

“I know, but the Time stone did show you that I needed to be the one to do it. Plus a poor, helpless, defenseless little girl willing to sacrifice herself for her friends. Nightmare could never resist such a scenario.”

“But to be tortured by him for three years? I’m surprised your psyche hasn’t been damaged.” He said as he sat down beside me.

“Well truthfully it wasn’t any different than what we’re doing right now. I was basically living a normal life with you, still using our powers but it was all before Thanos ever came into the picture. It almost felt like a sitcom at times.”

“Interesting.” Dad pondered.

“In all seriousness though dad, I’m fine. Mentally and physically. Well most of me anyways.” I said raising my newly bandaged leg. “But that’ll heal in the next few days thanks to Wong’s herbal remedies.”

“Well it’s getting late, so your head goes right there.” He said pointing to my pillow.

“Nah think I’ll just stay up all night. I mean I have been asleep technically for 3 years.”

“Fine, but don’t come whining to me when I come in here at first light for your morning training.”

“Please dad. You hate mornings even more than I do. Even when you were a neurosurgeon you hated your morning shifts.” He chuckled and gave me a kiss on top of my head.

“You really are my daughter.”

“And damn proud of it.”

“Goodnight (Y/n).”

“Night dad. Glad to have you back.” He winked at me before leaving my room. I laid back against my pillow and sighed heavily continuing to go through the web and looking at my old social media accounts that I hadn’t used in awhile and seeing just what some of my old friends were up to. “You may have created the perfect paradise for me Nightmare, but I wouldn’t trade my reality for anything else.” I spoke out loud knowing that Nightmare could be potentially listening in.

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brian-in-finance · 2 years

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The Contenders, 2022 Edition

There's nothing like Oscar season to get our competitive juices flowing. The front-runners may be obvious by now, so let's advocate for the actors, directors, and one rock-star composer we'd like to see go the distance.

Best Director

CREDIT: NIKO TAVERNISE/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS; KIRSTY GRIFFIN/NETFLIX; ROB YOUNGSON/FOCUS FEATURES; CHIABELLA JAMES/WARNER BROS. (2); ALISON COHEN ROSA/APPLE TV+; KERRY HAYES/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS

The Competition

JANE CAMPION (THE POWER OF THE DOG)

The return of the talent behind 1993's The Piano, Campion's first feature in 12 years was already cause for celebration. But when Dog turned out to be the strongest movie of her career, it was full-on astonishing.

STEVEN SPIELBERG (WEST SIDE STORY)

All Spielberg had to do was avoid mutilating a classic and he probably would have gotten a pass. His reimagining, though, succeeds beyond all expectations: It's shrewdly updated and progressive, with a real reason for being.

KENNETH BRANAGH (BELFAST)

Branagh was nominated for a directing Oscar at the precocious age of 29 for 1989's Henry V. It would be a tribute to his deep-boned talent and longevity if he made it back to the bracket again this year — and Belfast deserves it.

DENIS VILLENEUVE (DUNE)

The visionary behind the biggest gamble of the year — one that paid off artistically and commercially — should be honored here. It may take the second film for the saga's heft to kick in, but Villeneuve's command is already clear.

On The Bubble

REINALDO MARCUS GREEN (KING RICHARD)

JOEL COEN (THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH)

GUILLERMO DEL TORO (NIGHTMARE ALLEY)

Best Supporting Actress

CREDIT: NIKO TAVERNISE/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS; KIRSTY GRIFFIN/NETFLIX; ROB YOUNGSON / FOCUS FEATURES; A24; SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES; APPLE TV +; 20TH CENTURY STUDIOS

The Competition

RITA MORENO (WEST SIDE STORY)

The narrative is so perfect, it's hard not to root for it to happen, just for the sake of a good cry: Exactly 60 years after her Oscar triumph in the original, Moreno could be back at the podium, shining and showing us the way.

KIRSTEN DUNST (THE POWER OF THE DOG)

Dunst's fans (we're at the front of the line) have been dreaming of a performance like this: all of her vulnerability, sadness, and moxie poured into a nearly silent turn. Exquisitely, she makes the entire cast lean in.

CATRÍONA BALFE (BELFAST)

This is a turn that vibrates in every scene. As the beating heart and Mother Courage of Kenneth Branagh's boyhood memoir, Balfe finds room for the emotional gamut of parenting in a war zone during the Irish Troubles.

GABY HOFFMAN (C'MON C'MON)

Call it the Phoenix Effect (and credit us, please): If enough of the acting bloc falls in love with Joaquin's avuncular central character, they'll no doubt notice his brainy costar — a believable sibling with plenty of fire herself.

On The Bubble

CATE BLANCHETT (NIGHTMARE ALLEY)

KATHRYN HUNTER (THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH)

ARIANA DEBOSE (WEST SIDE STORY)

Best Supporting Actor

CREDIT: APPLE TV +; ROB YOUNGSON / FOCUS FEATURES (2); FABIO LOVINO/MGM; KIRSTY GRIFFIN/NETFLIX; NIKO TAVERNISE/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS; WARNER BROS.

The Competition

TROY KOTSUR (CODA)

If this Sundance crowd-pleaser has one performance that eases it away from the edge of sentimentality, it's Kotsur's father: gruff, bawdy, unbroken. Deaf himself, the actor allows us to laugh through the tougher moments.

CIARÁN HINDS (BELFAST)

It's a good year for dads at the movies: Hinds can seem spooky in films like There Will Be Blood, but his feisty, romantic grandpa in Kenneth Branagh's memory play is loaded with dignity and pure, overwhelming affection.

JARED LETO (HOUSE OF GUCCI)

We have eyes and thus can see that Leto's prosthetics-heavy turn as an untalented fashion scion is not for everyone. But once in a while, the Academy (especially its acting branch) is charmed by such deep dives.

KODI SMIT-MCPHEE (THE POWER OF THE DOG)

A long way from 2009's The Road, Smit-McPhee ain't your fragile moppet anymore. It took a skilled actor to embody Dog's most deceptively unpredictable character, and Smit-McPhee is already racking up critical wins.

On The Bubble

DAVID ALVAREZ (WEST SIDE STORY)

JAMIE DORNAN (BELFAST)

JON BERNTHAL (KING RICHARD)

Best Picture

CREDIT: NETFLIX; WARNER BROS.(2); NIKO TAVERNISE/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS; EVERETT COLLECTION; APPLE TV +; KERRY HAYES/20TH CENTURY STUDIOS

The Competition

KING RICHARD

Remember Rocky, Chariots of Fire, and Million Dollar Baby? Sports underdog stories are exactly the kind of movies that tend to make it to the top. Toss in the stellar performances of Will Smith and Aunjanue Ellis and we might be looking at the winner.

THE POWER OF THE DOG

Arty neo-Westerns have a way of crashing the final bracket — and sometimes prevailing. Jane Campion's triumph becomes richer and richer the more you think about it. And for a film shot in New Zealand, it feels distinctly American, a quality that helps.

WEST SIDE STORY

Audiences may not be coming in droves, but the pedigree here — both of Steven Spielberg's team and the property's legacy as a winner of 10 Oscars — is strong enough to make this one a force. Ariana DeBose's electrifying supporting turn may generate heat for the film's overall chances.

DUNE

The first half of Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi epic delivered on grandeur (if not on conclusions) and will almost certainly dominate the craft categories. Purely in terms of numbers, it will be the one serious contender seen by the most voters, which can't hurt.

On The Bubble

DRIVE MY CAR

THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH

NIGHTMARE ALLEY

A version of this story appears in the February issue of Entertainment Weekly, on newsstands Friday and available to order here. Don't forget to subscribe for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.

Remember when something was conspicuous by its absence? As recently as 13 January, EW ranked it #1 for Best Picture. 🤷🏻‍♂️

https://ew.com/awards/2022-oscar-predictions/

#Tait rhymes with hat #Good times #BelfastMovie #Entertainment Weekly #The Awardist #19 January 2022 #Belfast #Worldwide 2022 #Twitter #Campaign To Shorten Awards Season

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caswellprmanager · 3 years

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drawbridge

read it on ao3

Ship: Ricky Bowen/EJ Caswell

Summary: Snippets of EJ Caswell's life leading up to the mystery that is Ricky Bowen.

Notes: Hello. I decided to bite the bullet and post something here! This technically is in my Trans!EJ and Genderqueer!Ricky AU but I haven't properly written anything for it yet so consider this one to be the first official fic within that universe. Feel free to send some asks or other headcanons in my inbox about the AU! I'd love to hear what people think (but don't be unnecessarily mean. I will delete that very quickly.)

Disclaimer: I'm not an expert in all things transgender or genderqueer. I am writing from my own experience within the spectrum however so it's truthful to what I have been through, but will not represent everyone else's experiences. I also have friends within the spectrum who have given me great advice on how to go about these things but once again, it won't be accurate to everyone's experiences.

Warnings: Mentions of gender dysphoria, transphobia, and neglectful parents

People always told EJ that he had the picture perfect family.

His mom and dad were successful corporate lawyers, they lived in the wealthiest suburb in all of Salt Lake City, and he was the kind of child other parents would compare their own children to saying, "why can't you be more like EJ?"

But EJ knows that's farthest from the truth.

He doesn't have the picture perfect life or the paragon of White American families that people think they do. His parents are affectionate and supportive only when there are people around to comment on it. Most of the time, they're not even at home, leaving all of the child raising to their maids and other house servants. EJ spends more time at Ashlyn's house than he does at home because at least his aunt and uncle actually treat him like a son.

Because there are days his parents would forget they have a son. Sometimes they'd slip and call him their daughter, which makes EJ want to disappear from this world altogether. He supposes he should be grateful that they even bothered to pay for all the things he asked for — binders, testosterone shots, and regular visits to the doctor to check up on him throughout his transition. And he is grateful. He knows so many kids like him that can't even afford a decent sized binder without going bankrupt. He used to be that kid until he gathered up all his courage to come out to his parents.

But what they told him?

"Well, if you're gonna be our son, you will have to work twice as hard to make us proud now."

Yeah. It's a lot to process when you're 12 years old and scared shitless that you'd be disowned for "disrupting the natural order." But he figures things could be worse. So he sucks it up and vows to become the kind of son that his parents could truly brag about.

When EJ was a kid, he loved mysteries. His parents were the greatest mystery of them all. He's spent so much of his time trying to figure out what makes them happy, or angry, or sad. He's put the clues together and has a cork board of pictures and red string at the forefront of his mind whenever he so much as tries to interact with them. Soon, he sort of figured out what makes his parents smile at him — when EJ is excellent.

So, he became excellent at all kinds of sports, took up piano lessons, studied until his eyeballs burned with the lowlight of his desk lamp — all so that he could maybe get a pat on the back from his dad and a small smile from his mom. Their versions of "good job" or "keep it up." He drank that all in, craved it even, and worked his whole life until now to get even an iota of his parents' affection.

So, when he meets Ricky Bowen, the lanky and extremely clumsy skater who seems to live in the detention room, he was met with a brand new mystery to solve.

"Who's that?" EJ whispers into Nini's ear, who just seems to be irritated by the new person's presence.

"That's Ricky," she says with the barest hint of affection but with a whole lot of irritation. "My ex."

"Huh," He says, intrigued by the way Ricky's movements stutter like a half-finished stop motion film and how their wide doe eyes scan the room like — unironically — a deer in headlights. They looked nervous, confused, and all around terrified and EJ wants to reach out to them and tell them that this was a safe space. That they could be whoever they wanted to be in the theater.

He glances at Nini when Ricky starts singing a song that she seems to recognize. The immediate tensing of her shoulders and the way she subconsciously reaches out for EJ's hand for support tells him that this song... means something. Or meant something. EJ's not quite sure but he squeezes Nini's hand in silent reassurance, bringing himself to half-glare at the guitar playing skater just a few feet before him.

He met Nini during theater camp. A firecracker of talent with a voice that could melt the heart of even the coldest man on earth. She was beautiful in the spotlight and even more ethereal beneath the stars. She was kind, gentle, and a mystery that EJ solved quickly enough. She wore her heart on her sleeve despite it being broken because she believes that broken hearts can be mended with time and patience.

Nini was patient with him. She was patient with him when he took her up the little hill next to the campsite just to watch the stars on an old picnic blanket he stole from the camp counselors. She was patient with him when he couldn't keep up with the dance steps. Her hand was warm in his own and the flush of her palm by his neck was a grounding force that kept his head from going in the clouds.

She was especially patient with him when he took her to an empty tent and told her about his life. Nini was kind. Nini was patient. Nini was safe. And if she were to walk away and tell him that she wanted nothing to do with him after what he told her, he would have understood and learned to not associate kind brown eyes and ukulele calloused fingers to what could be barely described as home.

But she held his hand in her tinier ones, a smile on her face that radiated warmth that seeped into the depths of his soul, and told him that she was proud of him.

It was the first time that someone was proud of him... for just being him.

He cried into her arms that night, knowing he's got a lifelong friend within the kind brown eyes and ukulele calloused fingers of one Nini Salazar-Roberts.

"She thinks I'm a Chad?" He asks, less incredulously and more with a burning curiosity.

Nini rubs his arm comfortingly but he keeps staring at the cast list like it was going to burst into flames any second. "You're still a Troy understudy! You could still go on as him in one of the shows."

"Shows only run for three nights, Nini." He says with barely concealed frustration. Great. If he can't even get the role he was technically destined to play, how the hell is he going to explain himself to his parents?

You're not the lead? Oh, then we won't watch. If you're not onstage the whole time, why be there?

EJ grits his teeth and slowly brings his gaze to the person who has just taken away one more way for him to prove himself to his parents. Ricky Fucking Bowen, who stands there once again with their enormous brown eyes, gaping like a fish. EJ wants to deck them in the face. But Nini's hold on his arm grounds him back to reality and he lets out a long breath through his nose.

This is gonna be a long next few months.

"Look, I'm just trying to make the best out of a bad situation."

"Don't try," He ends up saying, still wiping at the blood caused by the basketball Ricky hit him with only moments ago. "It's painful to watch you do something you clearly don't want to do."

"What makes you think I don't want to do this?" Ricky asks with furrowed brows and EJ throws the wadded up tissue paper stained with his blood into the trash.

"You hated musicals before you auditioned. You landed the part of Troy without even fucking trying. And now you think you can get through rehearsals without fucking trying? It's tiring to work with someone who couldn't give two shits about this musical in the first place!" He says, every sentence rising in volume as he steps closer and closer to Ricky. "You also need to stay the fuck away from Nini."

Ricky scoffs then. "Why? Cause you're her boyfriend?"

"What? And you are?" He retaliates, which effectively makes Ricky click their mouth shut. EJ smirks. "Yeah. That's what I thought."

"Nini can choose whoever she wants to talk to." Ricky ends up saying with tense shoulders and a glare that could murder if EJ weren't already a person who doesn't fear death. "You can't tell me what to do."

"Well someone has to!" EJ throws his hands up in frustration, grabbing his jacket and zipping it up angrily. "Because you don't listen to Nini though, do you? Have you ever listened to her? Do you listen to anybody?"

"EJ I—"

"You better listen to me right now Ricky Bowen," he laces every syllable of Ricky's name with venom. "Stop trying to make things right. Stop trying to become a person you're not. If you actually cared about Nini or – god forbid – the musical, you'd stop trying and just get your shit together."

EJ doesn't even bother to look back at Ricky as he exits the bathroom, unaware of the look in Ricky's eyes when he walked away.

It isn't until Ricky approaches him one day after rehearsals that EJ was finally starting to unravel the mystery that was Ricky Bowen.

"Hey... EJ?" Ricky asks, looking at anywhere but at him and EJ would have been annoyed if it weren't for the way Ricky was holding themselves in front of him. They were tense, eyes glassy and unfocused whenever EJ caught a glance, and their fingers were gripping their bag straps so tightly that he was afraid Ricky was going to rip it apart if they weren't careful.

"Hey Ricky," He says with a softer voice than he's ever used with Ricky. "Is there something you need?"

Ricky's eyes dart around the still full rehearsal room, at the dangerously close proximity Miss Jenn was, at the stage managers that were just behind EJ who were reviewing the blocking notes, and finally at Nini who was engaged in a conversation with Carlos and Seb. Ricky's eyes lingered on Nini for a bit before they reluctantly settled on EJ's pristine white sneakers. "I would have normally asked Nini for this but – and you can say no by the way I'd completely understand – it's just..."

Ricky looks around again before leaning closer to EJ and shakily whispering, "Do you have any tampons?"

And just like that, the walls that were built around a certain Ricky Bowen were starting to crack. And EJ was allowed to see the smallest snippet of the kind of vulnerability that Ricky was capable of.

And it was the kind of vulnerability that he could relate to completely.

"My emergency stash is in my locker," He says, hastily packing up the rest of his things while Ricky continues to stand there dumbfounded. When EJ turns back to him with his own bag over his shoulder, he could see that there are a few unshed tears shining in Ricky's eyes. EJ softens for a second, knowing how difficult it must have been for Ricky to come to him for something so private.

"Come on. I'll even guard the bathroom for you." Ricky eventually follows him after a few seconds of just staring at his back and they fall in step around the corner. Ricky stays silent, fingers all fidgety and eyes still darting around like they'll be caught any second. EJ, instinctually, wraps a comforting arm around Ricky's shoulders. Ricky doesn't relax immediately but they do lean a little closer, somehow finding the weight of EJ's arm around them safe.

They eventually reach EJ's locker and Ricky smiles a bit because it's directly across from Sharpay's famous pink lockers. "Did you choose this spot specifically for Sharpay's lockers?"

EJ glances behind him and chuckles, rummaging through his stuff. "Oh yeah. If you say Ashley Tisdale three times in a row while touching her locker, you're guaranteed good fortune for at least a week."

Ricky looks at him with a smirk. "Have you tried that before?"

"Every year during finals week. I'm telling you, that shit works."

"Or maybe you're just really smart."

"Maybe," EJ says, finally locating his emergency stash of period essentials. "Or maybe it's just Ashley Tisdale bopping me to the top."

That's when Ricky lets out a laugh — an honest to god booming belly laugh that makes EJ pause just to stare at him. They look... nice like this. Without the worry lines and longing gazes at a girl who won't give them the time of day. They look just like a little kid, carefree and alive despite the world crumbling all around them, and EJ feels a weird surge of pride at being the person who made Ricky laugh like that.

He wants Ricky to laugh like that more. He wants to be the person who makes Ricky laugh like that more.

And so the walls around Ricky crack a little further, and the drawbridge is opened for one weary traveler to come in.

EJ doesn't notice the cracks on his own walls, nor the knowing little princess who watches from the east tower, smiling.

"Hey, what are your pronouns?"

Ricky doesn't look up from their practice skateboard, concentrating hard on their balance. "I don't have any. I'm just Ricky." They look up though, giving EJ a warm smile. "But go ahead and use any pronouns with me. I don't mind if it's you."

"So would you mind if I call you your majesty?"

EJ doesn't miss the flush on Ricky's cheeks at that and definitely doesn't miss the way they say "I'd like that very much." with the barest hint of embarrassment.

"Okay," EJ says with his chin propped up in his hands. "Your majesty."

Ricky falls off of their practice skateboard then, soon glaring up at a cackling EJ still with a blushing face.

EJ forgot his binder today.

And his body loved reminding him every time he took a step.

Thankfully, there wasn't going to be water polo practice today and he could get away with wearing multiple layers to school. But even with the sports bra, the t-shirt, the sweatshirt, and the letterman jacket doing a good job at making his chest look flat, he still felt his skin crawl looking at the mirror. His jeans hugged him a little too tightly, forcing him to notice the still feminine curve of his hips. His sports bra was a tad smaller than the last time he wore it, so the pinch at his chest doubled in size.

EJ resolved that he was not going to have a good day today.

But today was tech rehearsals and he couldn't ditch that. He was starting to really enjoy rehearsals now that he and Ricky are on good terms. Even the stage managers ask him to hang out with them time to time outside of rehearsals. EJ actually felt like... he really belonged somewhere now. And he wasn't going to let this ruin it for him. Not today.

"Hey EJ," He heard Nini say to him as he got out of his car. "What's with all the layers? It's pretty hot today."

"It's one of those days, Neens." He says with a heavy sigh and Nini just grabs his hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze. Ricky rolls up to them two seconds later, their head suspiciously missing a helmet.

"How many times do I have to tell you to wear a helmet when you're skateboarding, Ricky?" EJ tries to scold the junior despite this weirdly overwhelming fondness growing inside of him every time he even looks at Ricky now.

"Haven't gotten into an accident yet," Ricky shrugs, smiling politely at Nini and changing it into a cocky little smirk the second they look at EJ.

"Yet being the operative word here," EJ rolls his eyes and opens his trunk for Ricky to stash his board in for later. "I won't drive you to the hospital if you end up getting a concussion for not wearing a helmet."

"Yes you will." Ricky says, knocking their shoulders together. "You love me!"

EJ freezes for a bit but before he could even respond, Ricky is already catching up to Big Red and Gina, waving back at EJ and Nini with a wide grin. EJ stares at him for a few seconds, not quite sure how to process the last few moments, until Nini waves a hand in front of his face.

"Hello? Earth to EJ?"

"Huh?"

"Care to share with the class what's going on?" The little smirk on her lips says it all and EJ was not going to fall for that.

"Nope. There's nothing to share."

"Mhm," She says, looping her arm around EJ as soon as he closed his trunk. "Of course there isn't, EJ." Nini pretends not to see EJ staring at Ricky as they walk into school. EJ pretends to not notice that she's pretending to not see EJ pretending to not overtly stare at Ricky.

Besides, EJ has gotten pretty good at pretending.

Aaaannndd that's it for now. I hope you guys liked that! I really enjoyed exploring trans!ej and genderqueer!ricky through this au and it means a lot to me. Maybe next time I'll write something in ricky's pov but for now thanks for reading !!

#ej caswell #ricky bowen #nini salazar roberts #rj #hsmtmts #trans!ej #genderqueer!ricky #tw: gender dysphoria #tw: transphobia #tw: neglectful parents #cloud's writing now #hsmtmts fanfiction #they're not really together yet here but #ej is Definitely pining at the end tho #and nini is the best i will not tolerate nini slander in my blog #caswen #ricky x ej #ej x ricky

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imrandymeeks · 3 years

Note

This is probably a reductive question, but have you got a a fave Community character? It used to be Abed & Annie for me since I related to them most when I started the show like 8 years ago, but on a recent rewatch I realized how great and funny Gillian Jacobs is as Britta; plus, she has a way more balanced/consistent character arc than I realized. I also think she and Jeff would've been nice together despite their various disfunctions. They always seemed on the same level of (im)maturity

I like all of them actually, even the later additions to the gang, especially Frankie.

I probably relate the most to Abed, but I’m kinda in awe of the entire cast and their characters. This show just has a fantastic cast. Even the somewhat weaker actor (cough, Joel McHale, cough) is precisely in the right place of the detached jerk who can’t help but do the right thing against his better judgement. Like, Jeff is basically McHale’s The Soup persona with a more elaborate dramatic arc and daddy issues, and it works perfectly.

Not to start a shipping war, but I like him more paired with Annie, because this pairing is wrong, but it works so right, but then they’re both aware it’s kinda wrong even tho it demonstrably works so right, and then it ends on a perfect note of them both dissing superhero movies and parting ways as friends. In retrospect, I can’t stress enough how much I appreciate that Community was never actually hanging on a romantic storyline at all.

Except Dean Pelton and Jeff. That was the backbone of the show. But other than that, no long-term load-bearing romance in sight.

On a related note, the unfairly overlooked pairing is Jeff and Shirley. Not as a romantic thing, but as two equal adults with very different character traits (Is Christianity a trait? Call in with your takes!) who successfully weaponize those traits and also have a lot of fun talking shit behind everyone’s backs. Whatever Jeff has going on with Britta or Annie at any given moment is take it or leave it for me, but those few episodes with Jeff and Shirley front and center are great, they make one hell of a buddy duo.

Also, Yvette Nicole Brown sings her every line and that’s just fucking nice, especially when she drops her voice and growls something menacing without missing a beat. Alison Bree doing Annie meltdowns is great for similar reasons.

Gillian Jacobs growing more and more unhinged as the show goes on is also great. Britta is, I think, the relatively rare female fuckup, a character more traditionally male (citation needed, I know, but it feels like it, right? like, ouside of Girls, not a lot of Brittas around at that time at least), and Jacobs excels at being a disaster while looking like a conventionally pretty TV lead.

(Gillian Jacobs and Joel McHale look like they should be the focus-grouped Jennie Garth and Luke Perry of the show, but are allowed to be much weirder and less pleasant. Reason to love Community #25634128635.)

And the gas leak fourth season, which I will defend forever and ever, gives her an interesting development of still being kinda wrong about stuff, but then actually helping and fixing things with her wannabe-therapist shtick (see the Jeff’s dad Thanksgiving episode).

Look, I like all of them. Pierce messing with everyone’s minds with gifts, Vicky stabbing Pierce with a pencil, Troy and Abed’s whimsically undiagnosable codependency situation, the Freaky Friday breakup episode written by the Academy Award Winner Dean Pelton (which alone is a reason to not dismiss the fourth season out of hand, like, it’s a lesser season, but it’s not bad I swear), the Chang hijinks, Leonard rating frozen pizzas, all that stuff. Love that stuff.

#movies #community #randy answers

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disneytva · 4 years

Photo

August 2020 Synopsis Highlights

Saturday, Aug. 1

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Big City Greens “Friend Con/Flimflammed”

(8:00-8:22 P.M. EDT)

“Friend Con” – When the Greens attend Farm Con, Bill and Chip Whistler become friends.

*Darin De Paul (“Overwatch”) guest stars as Good Ol’ Joe, and Paul Scheer (“The League”) and Cheri Oteri (“Saturday Night Live”) return as Chip Whistler and Gwendolyn Zapp, respectively.

“Flimflammed” – Cricket stumbles into $100 and is persuaded to invest it.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Season Two Premiere on Disney Channel

Amphibia “Quarreler’s Pass/Toadcatcher”

(8:22-8:44 P.M. EDT)

“Quarreler’s Pass” – Hop Pop drops Sprig and Polly off at an obstacle-filled mountain trail designed to help them get along.

“Toadcatcher” – Sasha and Grime must reconcile their differences to escape Newtopia’s most skilled warrior, General Yunnan.

*Zehra Fazal (“Voltron: Legendary Defender”) guest stars as General Yunnan. Anna Akana (“Youth & Consequences”) returns as Sasha, Matt Jones (“Breaking Bad”) returns as Percy, and Troy Baker (“Young Justice”) returns as Grime.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

The Owl House “Really Small Problems”

(8:44-9:06 P.M. EDT)

King confides in a carnival fortuneteller who makes his dream come true, but it comes at a cost.

*Parvesh Cheena (“Outsourced”) returns as Tibbles.

TV-Y7 FV

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Saturday August 8

The Owl House “Understanding Willow”

(9:06-9:28 P.M. EDT)

Luz, Willow and Amity take a trip down memory lane.

*Rachael MacFarlane (“American Dad!”) guest stars as Mrs. Blight, Amity’s mom.

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Big City Greens “Greens’ Acres/Dolled Up”

(8:00-8:22 P.M. EDT)

“Greens’ Acres” – Young Bill will do whatever it takes to keep the family farm in business.

*Andre Robinson (“The Loud House”) guest stars as Young Bill, Candace Kozak (Disney Channel’s “Just Roll with It”) guest stars as Young Nancy, and Jason Maybaum (Disney Channel’s “Raven’s Home”) guest stars as Young Keys.

“Dolled Up” – When Tilly and Nancy celebrate Saxon’s birthday at a fancy doll store, they set their sights on a seat next to Cantaloupe Sinclair, the tea party’s posh VIP.

*Melissa Fumero (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”) guest stars as Cantaloupe Sinclair. Wendi McLendon-Covey (“The Goldbergs”) returns as Nancy Green.

TV-Y7

Amphibia “Swamp and Sensibility/Wax Museum”

(8:22-8:44 P.M. EDT)

“Swamp and Sensibility” – When Anne discovers an old friend who has been living a double life, she becomes fixated on helping him be his true self.

*Kermit the Frog guest stars as Crumpet the Frog and Hugh Bonneville (“Downton Abbey”) guest stars as Wigbert.

“Wax Museum” – The family visits a mysterious roadside oddities museum where every treasure comes with a price.

*Alex Hirsch (Disney’s “Gravity Falls”) guest stars as The Curator and Frog Soos.

TV-Y7

Friday, Aug. 14

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Puppy Dog Pals “Pups in the Apple/Won’t You Be My Puppy”

(9:30-10:00 A.M. EDT)

“Pups in the Apple” – On the morning of the Playcare bake sale, Bob is devastated when he can’t make his “Big Apple” pie because he’s out of apples.

“Won’t You Be My Puppy” – Bingo and Rolly go on a mission to find their favorite television host’s special sweater in time for his show.

*Malcolm-Jamal Warner (“The Resident”) guest stars as Floyd, a dog, and Chi McBride (“Hawaii Five-0”) returns as Mr. Kimble, a television host.

TV-Y

Saturday August 15

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

The Owl House “Enchanting Grom Fright”

(8:44-9:06 P.M. EDT)

Luz experiences Grom, Hexside’s version of Prom, and it’s not what she expects.

TV-Y7 FV

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Big City Greens “Gabriella’s Fella/Cheap Show”

(8:00-8:22 P.M. EDT)

“Gabriella’s Fella” – When Cricket’s crush, Gabriella, returns, Remy seizes the opportunity to help push Cricket out of his comfort zone.

*Jenna Ortega (“You”) and Betsy Sodaro (“Duncanville”) return as Gabriella and Community Sue, respectively.

“Cheap Show” – The family wants to visit a street fair, but Bill wants to stay home to save money.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Amphibia “Marcy at the Gates”

(8:22-8:44 P.M. EDT)

The family must defeat an entire ant army before they enter Newtopia.

*Haley Tju (“Bella and the Bulldogs”) guest stars as Marcy, Michelle Dockery (“Downton Abbey”) guest stars as Lady Olivia, and Keith David (“The Princess and the Frog”) guest stars as King Andrias.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Saturday August 22

The Owl House “Wing it Like Witches”

(8:44-9:06 P.M. EDT)

Not your average underdog story.

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Big City Greens “Green Mirror/Cricket’s Tickets”

(8:00-8:22 P.M. EDT)

“Green Mirror” – When the Greens visit BigTech, Tilly jumps at the chance to test Gwendolyn Zapp’s new technology, which promises to make them the “perfect family.”

“Cricket’s Tickets” – Cricket wins tickets to a show and must decide whether to bring Tilly or Remy.

*Lucy Lawless (“Xena: Warrior Princess”) and Tim Robinson (“Saturday Night Live”) guest star as Mimi O’Malley and Gregly, respectively.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Season Two Premiere on Disney Channel

Amphibia “Scavenger Hunt/The Plantars Check In”

(8:22-8:44 P.M. EDT)

“Scavenger Hunt” – Anne, Sprig and Marcy receive a mysterious message from the king of Newtopia that sends them on a puzzle-solving mission.

*Nicole Byer (“Loosely Exactly Nicole”) guest stars as Gertie. Haley Tju (“Bella and the Bulldogs”) returns as Marcy.

“The Plantars Check In” – Anne finally meets with King Andrias and tries to enlist his help in getting back home.

*Kristen Schaal (“Disney’s “Gravity Falls”) guest stars as Bella the Bellhop. Keith David (“The Princess and the Frog”) returns as King Andrias.

TV-Y7

Saturday August 29

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

The Owl House “Agony of a Witch”

(8:44-9:06 P.M. EDT)

On a school field trip to the mysterious Emperor’s Castle, Luz strays from the group and into danger.

Original Series –

The Owl House “Young Blood, Old Souls” Season One Finale on Disney Channel

(8:44-9:06 P.M. EDT)

Luz’s skills as a witch are put to the test when she attempts the impossible.

*Matthew Rhys (“The Americans”) guest stars as Emperor Belos alongside series cast members Wendie Malick (“Just Shoot Me!”), Sarah-Nicole Robles (“Star Darlings”) and Alex Hirsh (“Gravity Falls”) as Eda, Luz and King, respectively. Season One Finale on Disney Channel

TV-Y7 FV

Big City Greens “Times Circle/Super Gramma”

(8:00-8:22 P.M. EDT)

“Times Circle” – Tilly and Remy put on a sidewalk play while Cricket and Bill meet their favorite costumed superheroes.

“Super Gramma” – Cricket and Tilly try to keep Gramma at home while she recovers from eye surgery.

*Sandy Martin (“Ray Donovan”) guest stars as Gertie.

TV-Y7

Original Series – Season Two Premiere on Disney Channel

Amphibia “Lost in Newtopia/Sprig Gets Schooled”

(8:22-8:44 P.M. EDT)

“Lost in Newtopia” – Anne and Polly vow to experience the city like locals but end up on a wild ride through the streets of Newtopia.

“Sprig Gets Schooled” – Sprig is offered a spot at Newtopia University.

Sunday, Aug. 30

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Junior

Fancy Nancy “Trois Cheers for Mrs. Devine/Escar-No!”

(12:00–12:30 P.M. EDT)

“Trois Cheers for Mrs. Devine” – When Mrs. Devine gets the blues, Nancy becomes determined to cheer her up.

*Christine Baranski (“The Good Fight”) returns as Ms. Devine.

“Escar-No! ” – Nancy questions her love of all things French when she encounters French food for the first time

Friday, Aug. 28

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Channel

Mira, Royal Detective “The Mystery of the Secret Room/The Mystery of the Magnificent Musicians”

(8:30-9:00 A.M. EDT)

“The Mystery of the Secret Room” – When Mira and her friends get stuck in a hidden room in the palace, it’s up to her to find a way out.

“The Mystery of the Magnificent Musicians” – When some of the townspeople’s musical instruments go missing before a big music jam, Mira must find out what happened.

*Danny Pudi (“DuckTales”), Parvesh Cheena (“Outsourced”) and Sonal Shah (“Scrubs”) return as Sanjeev, Manish and Poonam, respectively.

TV-Y

Sunday, Aug. 23

Original Series – Episode Premiere on Disney Junior

Elena of Avalor “Coronation Day”

(7:00-8:30 P.M. EDT)

As plans for Elena’s coronation are underway, Esteban’s team of villains unleash legendary spirit misfits, the Four Shades of Awesome. In order to save her kingdom, her family and her friends, Elena must journey to the Spirit World and back and face the ultimate test of her courage and character before becoming queen.

*Jenny Slate (“Muppet Babies”), Mark Hamill (“Star Wars” franchise), Fred Armisen (“Saturday Night Live”) and Andy Garcia (“Ocean’s Eleven”) guest star as the Four Shades of Awesome, and Patrick Warburton (“The Tick”) voices Grand Macaw, ruler of the dark side of the Spirit World.

TV-Y

#Amphibia #The Owl House #Owl House #Big City Greens #BCG #Puppy Dog Pals #Puppy Dog Tails #Elena Of Avalor #Mira Royal Detective #Fancy Nancy #Disney's Fancy Nancy #Disney Channel #Disney Junior #Disney Jr

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greekbros · 3 years

Text

"greek-Bros: The Return of an Old Enemy"

Chapter 5: One Man's Weakness is his Own Wife

The preparations for the Dionysia was underway; maenads, satyrs and villagers decorate the streets with flowers, purple and gold ribbons. The amphitheater was being prepared for this year's theme of "The Downfall of Troy", a theme that Apollo earlier in the month repeatedly objected towards but Dionysus completely forgotten why Apollo didn't approve of....until the Dionysia.

Dionysus was helping his theater troops with the set. "A LITTLE TO THE LEFT!" Dionysus shouted to two stage hands movie a large crude cut-out of a very angry Zeus, "NO THE OTHER LEFT!" he shouted again.

The stage hands were at this point a little confused on where to go, so the both of them just stand completely still to see if Dionysus actually noticed. Dionysus tilts head head to see if the angle is right and stares at the cut-out. "..... perfect, now all need to do is fix the curtains an-" he suddenly felt a light tap on his shoulder, he turns around and sees Apollo we a stern look on his face with Ariadne next to him with a look of concern.

"Um.... Dionysus....is THAT supposed to be dad?" Apollo questioned as he pointed to what basically was the equivalent of a child's drawing of Zeus with sharp teeth, a unibrow and a few inaccurate details that would be obvious to most people.

"Um yes. Yes it is.", Dionysus defended the depiction with all his heart, "I made it myself....with Kale's help, he's been extremely helpful." He points to Kale, who ironically is the director of the play for Dionysia, helping with choreography with a group of maenads. He turns back to Apollo and Ariadne, he steps past Apollo and goes straight to Ariadne, romancing her with the same vigor as if it was still love at first sight.

"Ah sweet pea, you made it" he gives a small kiss her hand, "-listen I have been dieing to get your opinion on the set up for act 3 ," gives another kiss up her forearm, "-the maenads have helped with casting pretty well so far buuuut I may need-" kisses again up the arm, "-someone to fix the costumes for Ares and Heracles though, mostly because it's a little too small for the both of t-" again Dionysus was interrupted mid sentence with Ariadne placing he finger on his lips. As much as she adored Dionysus's courting and him in general, she also equally adored her subjects as any queen would. She lets out a sigh and gives Dionysus kiss on his nose.

"Dionysus, love, we need to talk.", stated Ariadne, "It's about the festival, we HAVE to call it off and continue on another day." she continued. "Apollo told me everything about what's been going on. If it's not safe for the public to be out as soon as the sun goes down, than we must postpone the festival." she argued.

He couldn't believe his own ears, first his brother and now his own wife attempts to convince him to cancel a celebration. So he attempts to continue his 'counter measure', he continues to woo her. He picks her up in his arms. "Oh don't worry my little pomegranate seed, things aren't THAT bad, it was probably the cats being naughty.", he tried to convince her as he started to nuzzle her neck. His stubble tickled Ariadne, she lets out a few giggles, suddenly the two are now locked into a battle of dodging the topic and inappropriate amounts of "pda". The two went back and forth on topic of canceling the event for the safety of the residence. It was between the traditions to party hardy or to prevent a possible mass animal attack that has yet to be resolved.

Meanwhile Apollo is standing three feet away completely growing tired kf the two's public displays of affection, mostly because he personally feels not only is this a massive waste of time but also it makes him feel internally irritated knowing he doesn't have anyone to do this with at moment... subsequently feeling left out. "You two DO realize it's four hours until sunset, I need to at least know you two will be safe before I leave." He interjected.

The two were currently locking lips with each other, Dionysus knew full well this couldn't go on much longer. Dionysus finished his kiss with Ariadne.

Like most men, he didn't like his mind or his plans changed. "How about....we make it during the day?" he suggested, he reasoned that since the attacks have mostly happened at night that there was plenty of time to celebrate.

Ariadne nodded her head no, "No, Apollo had mentioned some these animals have attacked during the day too. He's seen them occasionally, we have to postpone. Maybe during a day that..." She thought about her request...." No nevermind.", She blurted.

Dionysus was confused, was there truly a way out of this annoying cancelation? "... nevermind what?" He asked.

Ariadne has set her trump card, "oh, maybe...just to make the people feel a little bit safer... invite your father to the Dionysia?", she bashfully asked.

Dionysus stood there with a blank expression, a few seconds later, he started laughing. "Ahahhahaha, oh Ariadne, that's really fucking funny hahaha!" he laughed continuously, he looked up and saw Ariadne's face, she wasn't very happy. "Ohhhh you're serious." He realized what she was suggesting wasn't a joke, but a genuine suggestion. "Look, I'm NOT going to bother my dad to babysit us. Delphi honestly isn't in any danger, and we've had two attacks....in three months!" He argued. The conversation started to get a little more serious.

Ariadne let out a small huff, "I know you want to keep the festival going but the safety of people are a little bit more important than tradition right now. I don't care if it was two, or three or a thousand attacks, you know very well that the festivities will be ruined if someone gets hurt.", she told him. "Please I beg you, not just for my sake but the sake of whomsoever might get hurt. It's either you get your father to come over to make sure nothing bad happens....or no sex....for a year, plus no cuddles either. Seriously Dionysus, if someone gets killed over this I swear I probably won't talk to you afterwards!" She was at her limit, if Dionysus was going to be stubborn about festival, than she was going to be stubborn with him.

Dionysus was at an impasse, he couldn't risk making his ultimate wine-wifu upset and to top it off he could not stand the idea of being ignored by her for such an undisclosed amount of time. He also couldn't just CANCEL one of the most important holidays in Greece, mostly Dionysia was also a performing arts contest, and Delphi has been going strong for several years against Delos and Sparta so his ego was on the line. He turned around and pondered to himself, hoping to figure out a way he could make both parties happy. "What if I raised the defenses around the town?....what if I can make wine bombs....that makes wolves too drunk to attack people?" he suggested,.

Ariadne stood there speechless, trying to decide if she was shocked or not to hear this from Dionysus. She motioned to one of the maenads to hand her a prop. A maenad handed her a peacock feather, mostly she didn't want to be responsible for any injuries the Dionysus could probably sustain from this. Ariadne with a gentle smile, worked with what she got, started whipping him with the feather. "YOU. ARE. SO. DAMN. STUBBORN. WINE. CAN'T. SOLVE. NOT. BEING. ALIVE." She shouted as she 'mercilessly' hit his shoulders and back.

Dionysus couldn't help but defend himself by curling up and blocking his face. At this point, he was already in hot water with Ariadne, so he decides to pretend to actually be hurt and start screaming.

Apollo was now just sitting on a director's chair that was provided but one of the stage hands, in fact the whole amphitheater's staff and volunteers were watching this incredible marital dispute. It was rare to see Dionysus and Ariadne fight, some even started to provide snacks to each other. "HOW ABOUT THIS-" Apollo announced.

Dionysus and Ariadne both stop and looked at Apollo. The two pausing midway through their dramatic theatrics.

Apollo stood up and let out a long sigh, "look, if it makes you feel better Dionysus.....as compensation for losing a day-" he said mid sentence.

"A WEEK" Ariadne shouted, she hoped to at least wait a week to make full sure what ever has been going would be solved within the week.

"NO. THATS TOO LONG!" Dionysus furiously responded but was again getting pelted by Ariadne's peacock feather. "AAAH NO NOT AGAIN!" he shouted.

Apollo continued on, "..... loosing a week of the Dionysia, I will make it sunny....for a whole week....just so that you celebrate...none stop...for a whole week." Apollo knew he was going to make BILLIONS of mortals completely confused, ruin many people's sleep schedule...but all to convince the god of wine to cancel a party.

Ariadne was very happy about the idea but it was something. "DEAL!", she shouted, she stopped whipping Dionysus with the feather. Dionysus stood up, not even feeling anything, with his ego a little bruised having had his will be bent. He begrudgingly decided to the agreement, "Fine. But I better get a summertime blow out during that week dude." He conditioned.

Apollo could breath a sigh of relief, he had at least avoided disaster for the citizens of Delphi. Now it was off to Delos to arrange some defenses around the countryside. Delphi may not have any 'wolves', but he was worried of Delos did. "Well, good to see we're at an accord. Dionysus, please be careful tonight and good luck to you, Lady Ariadne." He waved as he went to find his chariot.

Ariadne and Dionysus waved goodbye to Apollo. Ariadne looked up at Dionysus and tried to tickle him the the peacock feather on his neck. He tried to not crack a smile but he couldn't resist being ticklish let alone be mad at his wife. "Hahahehehe, ok ok, sorry sweetie. I just really hate canceling anything." He apologized.

Ariadne chuckled and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "it's ok, but your brother is right you know." She assured him. "Come on, I'll help you pack a few things up." She went on to help put away some of the decorations. Dionysus turned around, "Ok pack up the small stuff everyone! Dionysia is cancelled for the week!" He announced. The staff and followers were all shocked and some started to comment amongst themselves. "Don't worry, the party will continue next week with a full week of sunshine and hardcore partying. As of tonight...um...just like... don't go out at night. Stay home and get wasted indoors my dudes." He finished off his announcement, turned to went to help with putting away some of the things.

Kale had finally comeback from a 45 minute wine break and was completely confused as to why everyone was putting away everything. "Ok seriously I need to lay off the marlot because WHAT THE FUCK did I just FUCKING nap through the Dionysia?!" He shouted. A satyr walked up to fill Kale in, "um nah brah, Dionysia is cancelled until next week....after that its party time on steroids." Kale at first was frustrated because he worked on the dance routine for the play, until he realized there was a whole week to make some changes. "GASP! I must go, improvement awaits!" He dramatically left to come up with another part of the scene.

End of Chp5

#greek bros #greek-Bros #greek bros: the return of an old enemy #chp5 #dionysus #apollo #Ariadne #greek gods #greek mythology #short story #yes kale is a recurring character because why not

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bibuckbuckley · 4 years

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do you think we’ll get a juke kiss or are we all setting ourselves up for heartache

HOPE BABE ILYSFM THANK YOU

okay so, this is an excellent question that I’ve casually seen a lot of ppl talk about but hadn’t fully paid attention too much of what they said. I think I should start with what I have seen ppl talk about, which is them being worried about Madison (Julie) being a minor and Charlie (Luke) being like 22 and not wanting her to have to be forced to kiss someone older if she doesn’t want to, especially since they’ve noted how she and Charlie would act all gross out by the thought (but I would also like to point out that they both are Team Juke and her dad is like Juke’s #1 fan.) However, from what I’ve see from Maddie and what she’s talked about, she always has her dad on set and her sister comes there a lot, and it seems like Kenny and the crew treat her really well and give her a great work environment. So it seems that she wouldn’t do anything that she would be uncomfortable with. After all, going back to what I said, she’s mentioned several times that she’s Team Juke and wants them to happen as well. Also, just like today or yesterday she posted (i think on her ig) about a gum (i think spearmint but don’t quote me on this) giving her great gum to help her in juke kissing scenes and she was gonna give it to charlie so that take as you will lol. Also, I think they all knew what they were getting into when they were casted (since they’re the main ship i can see them having a chemistry read with each other during auditions) since the Juke ship is pretty obviously a big ship in s1 (I mean they literally wrote Perfect Harmony and wanted Juke to have an epic Troy and Gabriella- eques dance and Charlie was the one who suggestion that Luke’s guitar sing to Julie so...). My conclusion? They’re both professional actors and I think they’d both be professional and okay with it, but if they’re not then I can see the show respect their wishes and do something for juke that is still natural and explores their epic romantic relationship, maybe even another epic song/dance.

Okay, now that that long explanation is out of the way, we’re gonna go with the idea that they’re both cool with it and go from there.

Okay, tbh when I first saw the show and the final scene where they finally get to touch and they’re looking all loving into each other’s eyes with their hands placed all lovingly on each other’s faces, I totally thought that they were gonna kiss! (same goes with the last Willex scene). It makes sense that they didn’t tho since a lot was going on and Alex and Reggie were right there. But, what seems like their newfound abilities where Julie can now touch them (which means more hugs yay!!), they can actually kiss now. Yay! Which begs the question, what does this mean for their relationship since that’s now an option?

As a sidenote, tbh if it wasn’t for Luke dying bc of Caleb’s spell, i think that porch scene would’ve ended with them making their ‘interesting little relationship’ official since the episode started with Julie turning down Nick (her big crush that she had in the beginning of the season who she preseries seemed to be on crushing on forever and is an actual lifer like her) bc she didn’t think that it was fair to him since she had feelings for Luke even though she thought that nothing could happen bc of it. And then you see you her go to Luke’s parent’s house to give them Unsaid Emily bc she just wants to help him feel better bc she knows how badly that he’s hurting. And then the way he tries to hold her hand, forgetting for a moment that they can’t touch, but then says, “This is an interesting little relationship you and I have.” And they’re both so adorable looking at each other when the other isn’t looking. Also, when he said ‘there’s something I have to tell you” the way Julie was sorta standing up and down on her tippy toes and sorta looked like she was anticipating something, I feel like she was expecting Luke to officially say something about him liking her. I really think that without him dying and having to focus on trying to crossover, they might’ve started some sort of relationship even though it would’ve been different. (again she could’ve started one with Nick but refused bc she liked Luke). And that was when they couldn’t even touch. Although of course you can have a relationship without touching, from what we’ve seen between Julie and Luke, it looks like they craved each other’s touch i.e. all of her looks in Perfect Harmony and back to that porch scene where they forgot that they couldn’t touch and wanted to hold each other’s hands and the way that they looked at each other’s lips at the end of Edge of Great. So I think it’s save to say that they did wish that they could touch.

Which leads me back to the end, where they can touch and don’t have to worry about him crossing over any time soon (since it looks like the boys will wanna stick around for a while and not look for their unfinished business anytime soon since they’d want to continue on their music career). So, with The Phantoms not going anywhere anytime soon, and all that had happened with Juke prior to that, I think it wouldn’t take long for them to try to start something, unless something stood between them. Which seems like caleb!nick could in fact put a wedge between them (especially since Nick was there to give her flowers and ‘fight for her’ as Caleb said). But even without that that wedge, I’m still kinda unsure of if Juke would officially admit their feelings to each other right after that night, or still kinda have it sorta linger in the air.

Either way, whether they do get together pretty quickly or take their time bc of outside and internal obstacles (i.e. Nick and their own inner worries of not being sure if a lifer/ghost relationship would work) I think the show will take their time with a kiss. There’s a lot of Troyella parallels for Juke, and I can see them pull a troyella where we get almost kisses and but always get interrupted (i.e. HSM 2) up until A Big Epic Moment™ toward the end. I mean in a way, we already got something similar to that when they wanted to hold hands back in the porch scene but their hands went through bc he’s...you know...a ghost. So since we already had a scene in that similar vain, I can totally see that happening. Especially since this ship is already so agonizing like that.

But back to your original point, I think (if the actors are okay with it ofc) we will get a kiss. Whether it’s s2 or another, I completely believe that we’re gonna get a kiss at some point. So I don’t think our hearst will break on that front (although that is valid concern given our track record with ships). However, there is also the big question of whether or not they end up together, since he is after all still a ghost (unless him and the boys become alive again at like the end which i really want to happen). But that’s a whole question for another post, and this is already super long.

In conclusion, if the actors are okay with it, then I really think that we’re gonna get a Juke kiss (and hopefully Willex too), but I also think that they might torture us with it before it happens.

Anyways, sorry this is so freaking long and probably doesn’t make any sense. But thank you so much Hope!! ILSYFM BABE and I absolutely LOVE talking Juke with you!!

send me some fun asks

#kj gets an ask #hcourageous #brotp: we like pain #juke #the hope tag

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