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thedevilssinner · 7 months

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Elven soulmates - Astarion x Elf!Tav - Headcanon

I listened to one song and for some reason it screamed Astarion x Tav at me. This man is really ruining my life 😅

Anyway… the song was ‘IDK you yet’ and I just thought about the two of them being soulmates or something like that and then I found a thread on https://www.enworld.org about elven relationships and someone mentioned soulmates which got me searching and I found this page https://www.realmshelps.net/charbuild/races/elf/leaf.shtml where is mentioned that elves can find someone they call their thiramin which should mean soulmate in elvish language.

Here’s the part from the https://www.realmshelps.net :

Upon reaching adulthood, elves continue their sexual explorations. Eventually, though, each discovers that his heart has developed a capacity for lasting and exclusive love. Like most other important things in their lives, elves describe this in mystical terms. They believe that a person's spiritual progress is unknowingly intertwined with that of another. This soulmate is called a thiramin. Upon meeting his thiramin, an elf's heart fills with passion and certainty. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, the other party is felled by the same feeling of immediate and eternal devotion. (Though rare, an unrequited feeling of thiramin is always disastrous, bringing centuries of wrenching heartbreak. Sufferers often commit suicide or succumb to the temptations of evil.) Elves almost always feel thiramin for people they meet for the first time: In other words, visitors from other communities. Intermarriage between communities strengthens the bonds of communication between settlements, allowing them to quickly band together against the armies of evil that march across the land.

Now… You can imagine what that did to me, when I thought about the idea of Elf Tav knowing Astarion before he was turned into a vampire so… here’s some headcanons. Suffer with me.

Tav and Astarion met in Baldur's gate. Tav being new to the city. Young elf exploring the world outside their home.

Maybe they met in an art gallery or a tavern or some other place… that’s up to you, but when their eyes met, they immediately knew the other one was their thiramin. Heart beating wildly as they smile at each other.

They start dating, of course. Trying to get to know each other and spend as much time together as possible.

I think that Tav would call Astarion their star… or maybe even ‘my starry night’

Astarion would call them ‘my moon’ (idk, I just love the idea of them using moon and stars as pet names)

Or… inspired by Game of Thrones - Astarion would call Tav ‘my sun and stars' while Tav would call him ‘the moon of my life’

Maybe they dated for a year or two, thinking about buying a house together.

But then Astarion was beaten ‘to death’ by the Gurs.

Tav could immediately tell that something was terribly wrong. The connection they felt with Astarion severing and sharp pain piercing through their heart. Panicked, they tried to find Astarion, going to his home but they already came too late.

Their blood turned into ice when they saw the mercenaries from the Flaming Fist already around his home. Seeing them carrying an awfully pale and beaten body of Astarion. (I don't remember if it was mentioned if Astarion lived in a Lower or Upper city before he was turned, so I chose a Lower city 🤷🏻‍♀️) (Also, not sure how and where exactly were he turned so I hope this is fine)

After a few days, Tav still couldn’t comprehend what truly happened. They felt just… empty. As if every color, every piece of happiness was ripped away from their soul. Not even able to visit Astarion’s grave because of that.

When Tav's family found out, they came to them, taking them to their homeland, because they knew how bad losing your soulmate could end for an elf. Tav fell into a deep grief and depression that lasted almost 100 years, doing some questionable things here and there until they started to function again.

On the other side - Astarion was beaten by Gurs but his final death came from Cazador, the change itself working just like if he truly died. His connection to Tav is severed and the shock of his change into a vampire erases all memory of them from his mind.

And then the 200 years of torture begin. Astarion doing anything he could and needed to do for survival. Flirting and luring victims to Cazador. He was good at it, great even, but something always felt wrong.

Well, everything he did for Cazador was wrong, but touching another person, sleeping with them, and whispering words of love to them seemed wrong for another reason he couldn't understand. It was as if his subconscious was always trying to tell him something, but he couldn't say what.

There was just always something wrong with the victims. Wrong eye color, wrong tone of voice or even their pet names they sometimes used for him.

Is he missing something? Someone? Longing for the embrace of a specific person that is unknown to him.

He always blamed his vampirism for this feeling. Thinking that’s just how it is. The feeling of wrongness and emptiness residing in him for the 200 years of his unlife.

Until the Mind Flayers and Nautiloid.

But back to Tav:

After a hundred years of grief, Tav finally started to get better. Diving into learning the profession/class they have chosen. Trying to enjoy life as much as they could, but the emptiness never fully disappeared. As if part of their soul was still gone.

They even tried to date, pressured by their family to at least try, but when their new partner tried to kiss them… they just couldn’t do it, dull pain spreading through their body and guilt flooding their mind. They immediately break up with the person and decide never to find a partner again.

But apart from that, they were relatively happy. Another 100 years slowly drifting away, the memories of Astarion remaining, if a little faded.

Until the Mind Flayers and Nautiloid.

Game plot:

Tav was walking with Shadowheart and Gale when they heard someone call for help.

Of course, they immediately headed for the voice, trying to help all the survivors of the crashed ship.

But when they finally came to the person they heard, the blood ran cold in their veins, the weapon they held falling from their grasp. It was like seeing him for the first time in their life but at the same time not… Astarion.

They notice that he looks different. His eyes are the wrong color and he’s so pale… but it’s him. They know it is because their soul sang when their eyes locked… but how?

“Hurry, I’ve got one of those bran things…” Astarion's voice trailed off as he fixed his eyes on Tav and gasped as an unfamiliar sensation filled his body. It was as if everything finally clicked and his mind was flooded with memories he didn't know he had.

That's how far I've come with this idea. I'm not sure how it would have gone on, but I imagine it would have taken a while for Tav and Astarion to become partners again. Both mourning the years they could have spent together if it weren't for Cazador. Tav learning to love the new Astarion he has become, because he was different from the elf they knew before and Astarion learning to love again overall.

#astarion #astarion x tav #astarion x elf!tav #astarion x reader #astarion x you #astarion ancunin #baldur's gate 3 #baldurs gate 3 #headcannons #astarion fanfic idea #fanfic idea #astarion headcanons #astarion x gn tav #astarion x gn reader #elf tav #Spotify

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sleepyangelkami · 9 months

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COLD HANDS e.williams

☆ WORD COUNT - 2K

ELLIE WILLIAMS X FEM!READER

☆ SUMMARY - a drabble of the wintery christmas' spent with you and your girlfriend, ellie williams, in jackson.

☆ WARNINGS - none, pure fluff :) (that felt weird to say) petnames, intended lower case, nothing i write is ever proofread 🩷

"for god sake, angel." ellie tutted as she cupped your hands in hers, ignoring the light tone she used with her almost harsh words. "what have i told you about wearing your gloves?"

you smiled, a ditzy, dumb smile at her as you tilted your head. she rolled her eyes and yet her lips curved up. it was hard not to grin at you when you smiled at her like that. but you couldn't help it either, she was so sweet when she fussed over you, it made your heart melt and your knees almost give out.

it was mid-december and jackson was covered in snow and frost. you adored winter and everything about it. even when it was just rain, no snow, you couldn't help but absolutely adore cuddling up in front of the fire with your lover, making hot coco that you had found on a run and using one of the old dvd players to watch some sappy christmas movie that again you and ellie went scowering for on a run.

you remembered blissfully, the very first one you had found.

it was merely approaching november, but you were a christmas finatic so naturally, you were already humming little christmas jingles that joel had showed you and ellie on the guitar. you dreamed of a normal christmas, without the apocalypse, with a santa clause and elves, with everyone dressed in red and green with little santa hats on their heads. you dreamed of putting up a christmas tree that you had bought, then again, you did adore the pine trees tommy and joel always found for the community of jackson, just as you adored putting it up with ellie in your shared living room.

upon seeing everyone elses christmas trees, you realised you and ellie had sort of failed the task. everyone chose set colours, whether it be red, or silver, maybe even black and gold whereas yours and ellie's tree was covered from head to toe in many different coloured baubles, green, purple, pink, red, yellow, you name it, it was stuck on the tree. along with the beeds and tinsel you had both found together, wrapping it all nicely. and of course, ellie always lifted you to put the star on the tree because she adored your excited giggle just as much as you adored christmas.

while you didn't have a santa clause, you still heard stories of the old saint nicholas from joel miller. sure, you knew he wasn't real in the real world anyway, but the thought of parents struggling to pretend to be a make-believe man in the sky just so they could see the happy smiles on their childrens faces, it was beyond admirable, the thought too made your heart swoon.

ellie never understood your fixation with the big fat man who fell down chimney's, but she always shared stories with you on what her friends used to tell her when she was younger, the older people of the boston quarantine zone would tell her all kinds of folklore and fairytails of the man, so of course she just had to share them with you too.

you were both on patrol, searching the area when you came across an old dvd store, so, of course, you both dived in as fast as you could. you were always one for movies. "careful." ellie muttered, lifting a large branch out of your way so you could enter the run down building. it looked desperate from the outside, as though it was merely remains of what a dvd store used to be. but upon entering, you and ellie both realised that the only damage was to the outside, for the inside was... ethereal, unlike anything you had ever seen before.

it was massive, so large that when you glanced up, you almost felt queasy of how high the building was. your eyes as big as saucers, your mouth hanging open, ellie just had to chuckle at your face. but you paid no mind, turning to grasp her hand. "c'mon, let's look!" tugging her along as she shook her head, still chuckling.

"okay, baby, just calm down." though, she knew you would indefinitely not calm down any time soon, and she didn't really want you to, for that pretty look on your face was enough to make her own heart melt, eyes boring into your face, gazing at you with eyes filled with so much love and acclamation, she truly wished to spend a million more days, a thousand more christmas', she wished to spend the rest of her future with you and she would. one day, she'd ask the question, one day. but you were both still young then, as you were now. so she'd wait, because she knew you would too.

it didn't take long for you both to become engrosed in the dvd's, flicking through as many as you could find. you had a pile, ones in which you would bring home today. of course, the dvd store was beyond huge, you surely wouldn't look through everything within a month, let alone a day. "oh my god!" ellie turned, brows knitted together at your loud yell. "look, ellie, look!" shoving a dvd in her face.

"what is it?" she laughed at you, taking it into her hands so she could push it down, away from her face and gaze at the cover. the title read 'the muppet christmas carol.' you and ellie had watched a number of the muppets, never had you thought there was a christmas version. the cover showed a picture of cermet the frog, another little frog sitting on his shoulder and standing next to them was miss piggy along with gonzo, swinging from a pole, all covered in snow.

she lowered the dvd to see your face, big bright eyes staring up at her. "Isn't it amazing!" you were over the moon. "can we watch it tonight?!"

ellie chuckled once more, hand reaching out to tuck some hair behind your ear, she loved when you were excited, so much so that it made her beyond dumb. "of course we can." she'd just about agree to anything you asked. pressing a chaste kiss to the top of your head, watching as your face heated up in a pink blush. "now c'mon, we need to get back before maria thinks we're doing something else." wriggling her brows. that didn't just make you go pink, you went an insane red colour.

and that very suddenly became you and ellie's 'thing.' you'd constantly be looking for dvd stores on your patrols, always circling back to that one, taking a dig at boxes upon boxes. sure, you were both looking for any kind of dvd, but you knew it had been a good day when you found a christmas dvd. and very suddenly, your supply closet was overflowing with boxes.

however, not all days of december were filled with such joy.

"you need to listen to me more often." the girl stated as she kicked the front door closed, dropping her bags so she could cup your hands again, rubbing her own off yours so she could heat them up with friction.

"i do listen to you." you claimed and ellie couldn't help but purse her lips for she knew you did listen to her but sometimes that warm and fuzzy feeling inside of you when she told you what to do simply got too much for you to handle and you found yourself listening but not listening. "jus forgot."

a blanket of snow had fallen upon jackson at this time of year, so the cold nipped just a little harder, and the sicknesses bit a little rougher. she knew how prone you were to sicknesses, just as you were to accidents due to you being just so clumsy. she told you this morning to wear gloves and yet you left your gloves, hat and scarf at home, the only thing you actually showed up to the stables with that would help was a long jacket. she kept one enlarged hand over your two small ones, the other coming up to tuck hair behind your ear, thumb tracing the line of your jaw. she loved you but oh, how you'd be the death of her. "you go upstairs and get on some fluffy pijama's okay, i'm gonna light the fire 'n i'll be right up, alright?"

"okay, ellie." big grin on your face as you reached your face up, pressing a kiss to her soft lips. it wasn't a long sensual one, a small peck and yet so much passion was pushed into the little way your lips pressed against her own. her hand smacked your bum on your way causing you to turn and playfully glare, hands coming to cover your behind as you made your way up the stairs, ellie could only laugh.

the girl knew you took downright forever to get ready so she didn't have a care in the world as she found herself placing sticks into the fire, loading it up with coal and so on. by the time she was finished, you still weren't down so she made her way up to the shared bedroom of yours. she could hear you getting dressed in the bathroom, so while you were busy, she too decided to get into comfortable clothes. a grey baggy-ish sweatpants along with a white long tee, sort of tight but loose enough. she rolled her eyes with a smirk when you still were not ready. no matter how many times she told you hurry, you never did, always getting distracted by the little things, whether it be the little droplets of condensation on the mirror, or tying something on your top. your thoughts ran too fast, you'd get distracted, fail at tying it. stop, try again, think too fast, fail, stop, try again and again and again until finally, you yelled ellie's name and asked for her help. but she never got mad at you, on the contrary, she simply smiled and laughed while you stared up at her with big puppy eyes.

you found yourself ready soon after ellie headed back downstairs. you were in, as told, a fluffy pijamas. tommy miller had gifted it to you one chirstmas, it was a grey pijamas with three polar bears sitting on the front of the jumper. you loved the clothing dearly, always slipping it on in december, you loved the feeling of being cozy in the cold. it was one of the many reasons why you'd pick winter over summer over and over again until your last breath.

when you came down from the stairs, you spotted ellie sitting in front of the dvd player, between the now lighting fire and the coffee table in which two mugs of hot coco was sitting upon. you couldn't help the way your face lit up, that massive grin on your face as your eyes began to crinkle. the girl turned around, controller in her hand as she too matched your smile. "took your time." she joked, a soft look etched to her face. "can you grab the blanket, baby?"

you nodded your head, muttering a small 'okay' before making your way towards the couch and picking up the checkered brown and green blanket that reminded you of how close christmas was.

it didn't take long for the movie to start. ellie decided on the muppets christmas carol again, just as she always had, stating it was her favourite. you too loved it, so who were you to deny? ellie wrapped the blanket around her back, sitting up against the lit fire as you sat between her legs, your back to her stomach as her arms enveloped you, wrapping the blanket around you too.

the feeling made you drousy, the room was supposed to be dark, however, the lit fire, the tv playing the movie and the little christmas lights that danced on the trees made it hard not to alluminate the entire room. however, with your head falling on ellie's shoulder from behind, the taste of hot chocolate in your mouth and the feeling of her arms, enveloping you as if you were a baby.

well, you couldn't help the way your eyes began to close, your lips pushed together into a pretty pout as you slowly succumbed to sleep in the embrace of your lover.

main masterlist/ellie's masterlist

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dragonrider9905 · 11 months

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Don’t Call Me Flower

Alright @techs-stitches! At long last, it is here!!!!! I finally finished the square you requested! I really hope you like it and thanks for the prompt :)

This story is a participating piece in @clonexreaderbingo.

Square: Phee

Attempt number 283: failed.

You fumbled and mumbled over your words and the babbling turned into a short stutter.

Luckily he didn’t seem to notice.

Ugh.

You’ve tried starting a conversation with Tech 283 times since he arrived on Pabu, but each ended in a complete and utter failure. You were cut off, not loud enough, or your tongue would tie itself in knots.

This isn’t saying you haven’t talked to him; you have…just never from your own initiative. Phee helped introduce you a great deal (you believed there was more to her motive here than just being friendly and inclusive like normal), one of the other Batchers or Omega brought you into the conversation, or Tech himself struck up an interesting comment. If the latter was the case, most of the time you just listened anyway and didn’t have an obligation to say much other than your appreciation of his observations.

It’s been exactly three weeks since this ragtag group of clones arrived on your little paradise. Good thing they came when they did too. They’d become an important part of the community after the tidal wave that wreaked havoc on the island’s home and uprooted their entire lives.

They were the breath of fresh air on a hot summer’s day which cools, but doesn’t chill. The kind that fills you with contended energy, and adventurous spirit.

And Tech, well, he’d caught your attention right away at Shep’s house; Phee invited you to join them for dinner the first night they were there. You smiled, seeing him hunched over his datapad. It was kinda funny, and cute in a way and you decided to try to pull his attention from it. You weren’t very successful. Phee was better at it than you but she worked some magic with her words then somehow always left the conversation suddenly and you and Tech would be ‘stuck’ with each other.

Then the tidal wave hit and you, Tech, and Phee made a great team rescuing the people of Pabu.

That introduced a whole new tie you had with the clone but somehow, even though you worked well together, you were still shy when it was only the two of you, and struggled with making yourself seen or heard in a semi-intelligent way.

Tech would come by more often than not with a new idea about improving town life (if you didn’t know any better, you’d say he’d enjoyed it and wanted to talk to you. Did he seem excited when he approached you? You wanted to say so *shrugs internally*) which would segway into other ideas and conversations. The topics always varied, but whatever it was, you always enjoyed it.

What really made you fall for Tech (or when you finally realized it or stopped denying it or admitted to labeling this nonsensical attraction that drew you to him—you haven’t decided which one to choose yet) was when you were discussing your name to the Batch. How it came up, you didn’t remember. You thought maybe Wrecker or Omega commented on how cool it sounded. It was a normal name to you, and you told them what it meant and how your parents chose it for you before they passed. Phee had mentioned she had various nicknames for you. Of course, you turned bashful as she was naming them off but couldn’t help your outburst as she concluded:

“Those are my special names for her. I don’t know what you lot will call her, but you can’t borrow mine. They’re exclusively for me to use, so you’ll just have to think of something else special for her.”

“Call me anything, but DON’T call me flower!”

“Why?” Tech tilted his head curiously to the side at your pout and curious out of character announcement.

“Would you like to explain to them why I don’t want to be called that?”

“It’s short for wallflower. Many of the town's kids growing up would call her that.”

“Wait, what? I don’t get it? Flowers are nice.” Wrecker scratched his head, confused.

“Ah, I understand the negative connotation. Wallflower is a term defined as a person who from shyness or unpopularity remains on the sidelines of a social activity. Often, the term is given to mean someone who is unattractive as well.”

You groaned and couldn’t repress an eyeroll, regretting it minutes later. You cringed at how you must have sounded at Tech’s explanation.

“Flowers are also fragile and weak. Often trampled without a second thought.” You finished for him, crossing your arms annoyed. “So any way you look at it, it just isn’t…” you waved your hand dismissively.

“Yes, but flowers are also…beautiful.”

The way he looked at you just then made your heart melt, your stomach twist with too many butterflies fluttering, and a red heat filled your face.

His eyes were perfect and shining. Not looking down at his datapad making an off comment, but rather, they focused on you and his words felt very intentional. A small smile graced his lips and something gentle blanketed his face.

“Besides, flowers can surprise you by being rather resilient and resourceful. Never underestimate.”

He proceeded to name many species that were eye-catching and cunning for being plants.

How could you not?

Tell me, who could blame you for letting something blossom in your heart after that?

Thinking back to that day always made you feel better after a blunder. As mentioned, 283 times, but you never tired of looking back. It calmed you and encouraged you to try again; maybe you’d be able to have him look at you the same way again.

Currently though, you were sitting on the deck of Shep’s boat. Leyana wanted to take everyone out on the water after a long day of rebuilding the city. She and Omega were playing about the boat, Shep was steering the ship, and everyone else sat about stirring their drinks and telling jokes, laughing and relaxing. Tech was on his datapad but also joined in with comments of his own. When Phee asked him why he didn’t just put the thing down, he claimed he could do both.

That earned an eye roll from Omega and Wrecker. You wondered what warranted that.

“What’s got your tongue tied, Gorgeous?” Phee came up beside you, while all the others looked out over the water at the coming sunset, putting an encouraging arm around your shoulders. By the look in her eye, she already knew.

You and Phee had been attached at the hip ever since you were born. She definitely was the older sister you never had. Growing up, she was always getting you in trouble and pulling you out of it. Phee looked out for you and practically raised you. She was only a few years older but sometimes when she got protective of you, it felt like she was much older than she naturally was. Kids weren’t always kind; you got bullied and called all sorts of things but Phee never let it slide. She got put in detention a few times at school for the extent she’d look out for you. You’d wait for her on the swingset outside and walk home together, every night without fail.

You loved her, and never minded how different the two of you were. She was everything you weren’t, and you admired that. Together, you felt like a complete circle. Where she was outgoing, adventurous, spirited, confident; you were calm, shy and nervous. You were cautious when she threw credits to the wind. You were observant, watchful and insightful, playing in the shadows, calculating, accurately foretelling, while she confidently and boldly put out her ideas. You never minded being in her shadow, until now. It felt like only she would ever see the light you had to offer. It wasn’t the same kind as hers, but that didn’t make it any less special. She made sure you knew that, but it would be nice having it come from someone else as well…

You groaned.

“How do you do it, Phee? It all comes so naturally to you. You can flirt, be fun and express what you feel and it comes across amazingly. When I try just getting a sentence out around him I can barely string a thought into words. And it doesn’t have to be an important thought either. Just saying I like the same berry juice he does sounds stupid. Why am I like this?”

You let your head fall forward and hit the table with a bang.

“I’m hopeless.”

“You must reeeaaaally like Tech if you’re vaguely mentioning him.”

You didn’t reply. You just let your shoulders droop and turn to face her with a scowl. Her grin was teasing but her eyes sparkled softly.

“I think you and Brown Eyes would make an amazing couple. He could learn a few things from you. Hun, just let him see the amazing woman I know.”

Phee gave your arm an encouraging squeeze.

“And I got a few ideas that might help him!”

“Really?”

“Of course! That one can be kind of dense. He probably likes you but doesn’t even know it. Let’s help him realize it, shall we?”

“I don’t know about that…I don’t know if he even knows I’m alive.”

“If he doesn’t, I’m going to fix that too; even if I have to smack him in the face.”

“Don’t do that!”

“Not literally, Hun, figuratively.”

“Oh, as long as it doesn’t hurt.”

Phee chuckled, “Oh I can’t promise that. I’m going to make him notice you one way or another if it’s the last thing I do.”

“Now I feel like I should be nervous. Phee, what are you planning?”

“You leave that to me. And why on earth would you be nervous; it’s me we’re talking about here!”

“Isn’t that reason enough?”

“Very fair.”

Your grins were missed by everyone except for a goggled pair of eyes. He didn’t know why you were smiling, but he was happy to see it. He only wished he could have been the reason.

— — —

Phee’s first attempt at matchmaking arose the next day, and did she have an idea! Phee assigned you and Tech to work on a pier so there could be more ports on the island for fishing and boating.

You were handy and confident working with your hands. Phee knew you’d be at ease doing something you were capable of with your eyes closed. Perhaps you could teach Tech a thing or two as well. That would boost your confidence and your conversation topics.

And Phee was right, for the most part.

You and Tech worked in perfect synchrony—and the repairs took the entire day so by the time the work was done, it was sunset. There were absolutely no hiccups with the construction.

“I think we’re set!” You said excitedly testing the boards you both were kneeling on, “We should be able to head in for dinner.” You spoke too soon. The nails poking out on the board just under you caught your eye. You’d have to make sure those were bent out of the way so no one would get hurt. “Oh drats.”

“Hm, it shouldn’t be too hard to fix. We’ll only be delayed a few moments.”

Tech rolled up his sleeves. Your jaw dropped in a gawk.

“Oh…”

Tech’s eyes snapped to yours, head tilted curiously.

“Ohhhh…..ohhh! Look!” You tried to cover up your blunder by pulling your eyes away from his forearms and to the water, pointing down at the glowing algae. “They never glow blue. They usually are green. Do you know why?”

You looked up at the same time Tech was bending over to look down, hitting your heads on each other. The shock of the hurt sent you both hurtling into the water.

Gasping and spluttering, you both emerged from the water covered with the glowing sea plant.

“Well this was an unexpected pleasure.”

At first you couldn’t tell if Tech was being sarcastic or not but then you saw him examining the algae. “Quite impressive.”

“Yeah, it is.”

Looking into the water surrounding you illuminated by the mysterious blue, you missed the enchanted look he gave you. Of course, you couldn’t read his thoughts, but if you could, you would have known that the incident made him chuckle internally and it was worth it to see you crowned in the elegant plant. It was beautiful, tangled and dripping from your hair while the orange gold of sunset threw its color on you. You rather looked like a siren, calling him to you.

But no, instead, you could only think all you accomplished was getting Tech thoroughly soaked and even more late for dinner because of your mishap. Now you’d have a matching bruise at least. That was something, right? Maybe? Maybe not? At least he got to examine the algae, that was a win. But he probably now thought you were a klutz.

You couldn’t know how impressed he was with your skill.

— — —

Phee wasn’t discouraged though. Her next idea was great in the planning and execution, for the most part. You somehow found a way to bangle it up.

She asked you to make your favorite dish so everyone could go on a picnic. There was a beautiful field on the other side of Pabu where the scenery was green and lush and the animals were frequent visitors. It would be a fun and relaxing way to end the day.

Originally, it was supposed to be Phee, Shep, Leyana, and the Batch…or at least that is what you were told, but somehow, Tech was the only one who showed up—also under the same impression.

You immediately saw right through the scheme but said nothing, blushing a deep red and internally cringing at the fact you didn’t see this coming. In fact, this is a scheme you pulled on Phee last year. She was just reusing it. You were relieved to see Tech did not catch on and thought it was a mishap the others didn’t show up. His brothers and sister had a last minute accident resulting in them not being able to go (which of course you knew was orchestrated between Phee and the others. How could it not. You’d put money on the guess Omega was in on this too.)

“No use letting the food go to waste, right?” You tried to shrug off the awkwardness, and it worked.

Tech heartily agreed and while you ate, your shyness melted away. You found yourselves swapping stories about those who you both loved and were not present. Laughing at foolish stories and regalling in the exciting ones.

“Phee’s really brave. I’m not so much. I’m kind of her shadow. Everything she is, I isn’t.” You winced at the weird choice of words. It’s fine. Play it cool. Everything is fine…Everything is not fine. That sounded so dumb.

“I don’t get opportunities to be brave like she does. She creates those opportunities. If they came along by chance, I’d probably miss them or go running in the opposite direction.”

Before Tech could answer, a clan of moon-yos jumped you from behind, tangling themselves and laughing. The things clung to your arms and legs while the little ones stole away the cake you made for dessert. The treasure acquired, all the little annoyances left.

You could only sit there and stare, dumbfounded.

How? What just happened?

In retrospect, you knew this about moon-yos. You should have seen that coming…you were just so eager to share your favorite fruit cake with your friends you didn’t even consider the creatures had the same taste as you. You normally foresaw this kind of thing! What was wrong with you? You were too eager, that’s all.

With a heavy sigh, you closed the basket.

“Are you alright? Their claws didn’t hurt you?” You asked him, only letting a small bit of exhaustion into your voice.

“No, it was rather an unusual occurrence…I would be alright if it didn’t happen twice in a lifetime though.”

“For you and me both, I guess we’d better head back, yeah? Lots to do tomorrow.” Packing up hid your embarrassment well, feeling like you wanted to die inside.

Tech helped you clean up, but in your distractedness, you missed the grin on his face and the wonder in his eyes. Their attack barely phased you. You were calm, cool, collected. Many would have shrieked and panicked. Not to mention how well you handled the loss of your famous desert.

The day certainly didn’t go as planned, but when was that a bad thing?

— — —

A few days later, after one of Tech’s famous flying lessons with Omega, the Marauder needed some light repairs. The close proximity sensors went out…again. Phee slyly and quickly suggested that you could assist with the repairs to your great horror. You didn’t know anything about mechanical stuff. On the island, everything was hand built practically. You were good with a hammer, not a spanner.

“Relax, Tooka,” Phee chuckled, “he probably won’t let you touch anything anyway. He’s rather particular about that ship. You’ll just talk and keep him company.”

What shocked everyone was when he excitedly agreed to your help.

You were not there to just keep him company.

Furthermore, dropping jaws, Tech was showing you what he’d like you to do.

Tech was under a desk panel inside the ship, and you were on the comms outside working on the roof, connecting the wires he told you, when he told you. Sweating buckets, you wiped your palms on your pants again. This was his ship. His pride and joy. You couldn’t mess this up. Breathing heavily, you waited for the next set of instructions.

“Alright, now connect the red sensor wire with the port of corresponding color. Then connect the blues.”

“Consider it done!” Somehow you managed to sound more confident than you felt. But that was a simple enough task. So far his instructions were easy and clear. But when you looked down at your panel, you noticed something looked off. The orange wire looked like it was melted into the port. If you connected the red now, you were sure the whole system would short circuit again.

You knew you should have asked but you didn’t. Instead, you took a firm hold of the orange wire and pulled.

Sparkles flew everywhere, a small explosion sound startling you. A scream escaped your mouth and you fell off the side of the ship.

Tech, hearing the snapping, was already on his way out to see if you needed anything. Good thing, as you fell almost right into his arms, the force almost knocked him over but he somehow righted himself.

“Are you alright?”

He set you down and started to examine your hands.

“You are fortunate, you are not burned, what happened?”

Throat constricting, you tried to explain the situation. Tears pricked your eyes but you wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of falling until you were alone.

“Let me take a look.”

When Tech reached the top, he looked down at the panel amazed. He guessed right away you weren’t a mechanic, but he was excited to have you around and share this with you if you were willing. But, actually, if you didn’t do what you did, this would have been much worse. The tiny explosion would have been a bigger one. You had an amazing head on your shoulders and a great knack for technology. All it would take was a little training and you’d be a natural. He’d be more than happy to show you.

He was going to offer just that, but you’d disappeared before he reached the ground. Perhaps you needed space after the shock. That was logical. He’d finish this up. He’d see you at dinner and ask how you were.

— — —

Tech did not, in fact, see you at dinner.

Indeed, Tech didn’t see you much after the accident. You were present the following morning when the boys and Omega went to market but after that you made yourself scarce and by the afternoon, he’d decided to seek you out. It didn’t take long to find you. You were on the ledge of the pier the two of you worked on together a few days ago. The thought made him smile.

Tech watched you hunched over on the pier, staring into the water and dangling your legs carefully over the edge. Your easy, relaxed smile he would often see on your face when you were alone or you thought no one was watching, was not present, and a feeling of worry washed over him.

Your eyebrows pressed together, hyper-focusing on something that wasn’t there. Lips were turned into a frown and mind distracted.

That really wasn’t like you. From what he observed, you were quiet…but also observant. You watched and understood everything that was happening. You always knew your surroundings and not much got past you. Your eyes were ever watchful, a hidden light which carried a flame underneath. A mysterious flame that intrigued and fascinated him. It danced with an unshed energy which promised something great, though what was yet to be seen—your power veiled behind a mask.

There was so much to you.

And he enjoyed every moment you let him in to discover something new.

The hidden garden of knowledge in the vastness of your mind and imagination was beyond anything he’d ever experienced. You brought up points he never even considered, and they excited him. Not many people outside his family had the ability to evoke an emotion of happiness from him.

You did.

And he found himself wanting to do the same for you. To be the reason you smiled. To be the reason you blushed and laughed. To be the reason for the clumsy mistakes out of distracted love.

He chuckled thinking of your late encounters. They didn’t ‘end well’ according to what Phee explained at lunch (though to be honest, he didn’t understand how), but each time left him with a glowing feeling in his chest which spread to his cheeks in a blush. How could they not have ended well when each one left him feeling a glow of love and pride towards you?

You’d been down today, that he knew, but he didn’t know it was this bad. Tech thought it was merely your social anxiety he found got to you when things were loud and crowds pressed in on you. The market was hectic getting ready for that festival. He thought that was all it was.

This wasn’t that…He wanted to check in with you and make sure you were alright after that last incident but now he was unsure. Did you need some alone space? Would he only make matters worse? Then again, Omega had commented on it being nice knowing you’re cared for even if you didn’t want it at the moment.

A huge crash broke him from his musings and Tech watched you turn in horror towards the source of the sound.

You started yelling something in a language he didn’t understand, tripping over yourself to get to the collapsing building. You didn’t stop to put your shoes on, you didn’t hesitate. You just ran.

He started running too, there could be people who needed help but there was something about your urgency that made him pause. Why….

Oh.

Tech doubled his speed. “Hunter, we have a problem. The orphanage under reconstruction is collapsing. I fear some of the children are still inside.”

“On it. I’ll get Wrecker. We’ll be there shortly.”

— — —

This just wasn’t a good day.

You screwed everything up. You were sure Tech wouldn’t want to speak to you again after what happened. After everything Phee had done to help you. After how far you thought you’d come, you’d always be the screw up.

You sighed and ran your fingers through your hair, feet dangling over the edge of the pier. In a better mood, you’d playfully kick in the water but now, they just hung idle, lacking the energy for anything more than allowing a cooling, numbing sensation to creep up your legs.

Perhaps you were just overthinking everything. A little bit of sleep might do you some good. You and the boys had been doing so much to repair the town, you’d gotten little rest. Your mind would go into overdrive when you were tired. Perhaps that was just the case here. No need to panic (yeah right). Some little sleep would show you you were not over with (maybe). You’d gather the courage to apologize and fix your mistake.

You would make it up to him somehow.

If your friendship wasn’t permanently damaged, you’d find a way to mend it. You had to. Tech had grown to mean too much to you for you to let him go so easily.

Disaster after disaster went before your eyes and you thought them through. Analyzed where you’d gone wrong. How you’d fix it or how you would make up for the blunder. It might take a while but it’d be worth it.

However long it took.

You’d talk to him first. This time, you wouldn’t stutter. You’d have to practice but you were determined. You would be heard and you’d get it out right.

Before your plans could progress further, a huge crash broke through your thoughts. You turned to see the orphanage had collapsed. Fear coursed through your veins. Some of the children were helping where they could; they prided themselves in their hard work of what they contributed. They could be trapped! When you heard shouting and screams, you knew you were right.

“Hold on, I’m coming!”

You pulled your feet and dashed toward the construction site.

“I’m coming! Lil, run to the village and get help! Myles, go get the physician! Tali, get Shep!”

You quickly took stock of the situation around you. One of the walls fell outward, seemingly because the upper floor was unstable and tumbled through it.

You heard your name cried out over and over and saw little Trisy running up to you.

“Hep! Hep! Tabby is twapped inside, please hep!” She cried and pressed herself into your leg. You held her and knelt down to her level.

“Hey, hey Tristy, look at me.” You swiped the hair from her face. “I’ll get her, ok? Where was she? Is anyone else inside?”

Tristy shook her head emphatically. “No, only Tabby.” She whipped her face only for the tears and mucus to be smeared over her cheeks and forehead as well. Her breath was coming in heaves.

“I’ll get Tabby; you stay here, ok?”

You only waited for her nod of confirmation before dashing inside the building.

“Tabby? Tabby! Where are you?”

You carefully tip-toed your way around the fallen logs, not wanting to upset anything.

“Tabby, please answer me!”

“I-I’m down here!”

You looked down and saw a part of the floor was broken through one more level. A pair of shiny eyes looked up at you with newly enkindled hope grappling with fear.

“Are you hurt?”

“N-no? I fell in after i-it fell. I think my ankle hurts a little, that’s all.”

Looking around for the best possible solution, you grabbed a rope to use as a pulley. Tossing it over what looked like a stable beam, you tested its strength, pulling and tugging. When it didn’t give, you tied one end around yourself and lowered yourself down into the pit.

When you reached the bottom, the child crawled over to you and clutched your middle. The poor thing had been crying but was trying so hard to be brave.

“It’s ok, I’m here now! I gotcha.”

Wrapping one arm around the child, you slipped the rope around her.

“Hold on tight, ok.”

The child nodded and you hoisted the two of you up with a huff and humph. Grunting, you tugged the rope, dragging your body and the extra wiggling weight up. Sweat beaded on your forehead. Shoulders and arms squeezing and solidifying. Lumps formed where your muscles used to be and your neck felt like it was ready to burst. You just had to reach the top!

Hand over hand. Break. Heave. Hand. Hand. Heave. Heave. Hand. Heave. Hand. Heave. Heave. Heave.

“We’re almost there. Almost. There.”

Gasping for air, you tugged one more time. Your muscles were shaking and you knew you couldn’t hold on much longer. You were so close to the top but you couldn’t let go. Tabby would get hurt if you fell. You just had to reach the top…

“May I be of assistance?”

That voice. One that you did not expect but yet were so happy to hear made you laugh and tears sprung to your eyes. Looking up, you saw a pair of goggled eyes looking down at you worriedly, hand stretched out in hopes of helping

“Can you grab her?”

“She is secured against you rather well. I would not be able to maneuver her without hurting her. I’ll grab the rope and pull, just hold on.”

Tech reached for the rope and pulled the two of you up, easing you into the unstable floor around the hole. His grip was firm and gentle. If you had time, you’d marvel at it, but your head was still reeling and you gasped for breath.

“Thank you.”

He didn’t anwer. He merely nodded…and placed his hand on your cheek? Quickly withdrawing it, he warned:

“Be careful, move slowly toward the outer part of the room. You should be safe then.”

As fast of a talker as Tech was, he didn’t speak fast enough for Tabby who was already trying to hobble toward the opening in the wall. Your eyes went wide, seeing the unstable beam before anyone else.

“Tabby, no!” You darted, scooped her up and tossed her (praying you didn’t hurt her) to the opening where you knew the floor was ok.

Breaking through and falling through the floor in the process.

Wood ate your leg, shards of teeth scraped all the way up from where you stepped. Hot blood seeped through the scratches as you tumbled into the darkness below. You were vaguely aware of someone shouting of your name.

You hit the ground with a sickening thud and crack.

You couldn’t breath and you couldn’t move.

Debris fell on top of you so whatever wasn’t broken, was weighed down.

“Just great.” You gave a little sigh when air could enter your lungs again, trying not to give up too much breath. “This is fine. Everything is great.”

Closing your eyes and focusing on your breathing, a peace settled over you. You knew you should be scared, but you weren’t. Shouldn’t you ask for help? Shouldn’t you be trying to get out? Definitely. But you could only lay there.

Everything hurt…but it felt so nice to just lay there and sleep…

You loved Tech but why was he shouting at you? What was he shouting?

Oh.

“Wake up! You cannot go to sleep! Wake up!”

When did he climb down? How did he get down? How long have you been laying there? Surely not long…

Wait, did he just slap you?

Your eyes fluttered open.

“Hey.”

You tried to focus on Tech, eyes scrunched with undisguised worry as they searched your face and body.

“That wasn’t nice. Waking sleeping people isn’t nice.” you mumbled with a slight smirk.

To your surprise, he didn’t spout off a fact like you expected him to, instead he smiled a little sadly. For the first time, he seemed unsure of what to say.

“It is, if you’re afraid they will expire in their unconsciousness.”

“Fair enough.”

Wait, he was afraid of you dying? WAIT? WERE YOU DYING?

Panic overtook you. Eyes wide, you started to gasp and move around, words failing to form. Thankfully, Tech guessed your line of thought.

“Nothing to worry about. I have already woken you. You just need to stay awake for me, alright? I’ll move the debris off, and you will be just fine.”

“Are you lying to make me feel better?”

Tech looked at you and readjusted his goggles. “Now why would I do that?”

Wanting to shrug but not being able to, you settled for a sigh and fell silent.

You felt a piece lifted off you…he was so strong…you could get lost in the movements of him heroically saving you but then he stopped. You nearly pouted but held back.

“Please, while I work, give me assurances you are still conscious. Talk if it isn’t painful or clench and unclench your free hand. I…was worried before. You fell rather far and hit your head.”

“Ok…”

Your mind searched for topics but the only one that came to mind was the thought that gave you comfort these past few weeks. You laughed a weak huff.

“Like I said…easily crushed…very appropriate…right…about now.”

“No,” His voice was firm, not angry but steal-like, “like I said. Beautiful, brave, resilient, resourceful.” His soft smile returned. “Seems like Phee isn’t the only brave one of the two of you. My hypothesis was correct; I just wish you didn’t test it in such drastic measures.”

Your head nodded a little, the ghost of a laugh on your lips while your eyes fluttered closed.

“Please don’t go to sleep. I can’t lose you like this.”

Wait…he was worried he’d lose you?!?

You wanted to comment on that. You didn’t know how, so after opening and shutting your mouth a few times, you settled on something equally important.

Not knowing what else to say, you decided now was as good as ever to apologize. He might even be more forgiving with you in this condition.

“I’m sorry…for everything, Tech.” Tears started to well in your eyes. “I messed up so much. I ruined your ship. I—”

“You’re upset because you thought you hurt me or I was angry with you?”

You nodded, letting out a little sob. You couldn’t look at him, so you clamped your eyes shut and bit your lip, the pain keeping you from falling asleep. …he said your name so gently, the lump in your throat returned.

“You didn’t at all. I am sorry you thought that. I would have talked to you sooner had I known that is what upset you so. You were so grave I thought you needed some space as when you were overwhelmed. Phee told me you thought you ruined some important moments together, but I did not equate that with the toll it took on your mind. How could I when everything you did evoked a feeling of love for you?”

You sucked air through your lips and let the tears fall.

“You’re not teasing me are you? Because l love you. And if this isn’t real, I swear…”

But you were startled into opening your eyes anyway.

Did you die, or was Tech actually kissing you?

Tech placed one of his hands on your cheeks, stroking it gently with his thumb. His lips moved over yours ever so softly, as if he was afraid the movement would hurt you, yet there was a firmness there which reassured you that he wasn’t timid of you or how he felt.

“You’re my beautiful flower. Nothing will ever change that. I promise. Now let’s get you out of here. If you wilt before, that is simply unacceptable and unforgivable after this confession.”

You chuckled, “Alright. Deal. No croaking before we leave.”

“Or after.” He sighed. “That was not giving you permission to ‘croak’ after being helped to safety.”

You could only laugh.

“I won’t plan on it. Not when I’m finally yours. And Tech, only you can call me flower.”

“I thought it would be obvious...my flower.”

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ceruleanwhore · 11 months

Text

So I’ve seen a lot of posts talking about the potential for canon Ted x Trent in the finale, but there’s an angle or two I haven’t seen examined yet that I’d like to discuss here. What I am referring to is mainly why the writers chose to have Trent be the one to support Colin through his arc, coming out and everything, instead of using Keeley, who is canonically bi and was in a sapphic relationship during Colin’s arc. They didn’t need to have another character come out and everything for the sake of supporting Colin through his arc, and yet they chose to do so anyway, and I do think it’s important that they chose Trent specifically. I think it’s also important to acknowledge how limited lgbtq rep has been in media and how already, just by having Keeley and Colin be written as they are, this show has gone far beyond most others. Likewise, it should be acknowledged how having that role in Colin’s arc would have been genuinely very good for Keeley’s own character arc and how well it could have tied into some aspects of her relationship with Jack, so it’s not as though using her for that would’ve just been a cheap cop-out. The fact that they didn’t do that indicates to me that they have something specific and even better in mind.

When you keep that in mind, suddenly the signs are everywhere that this could actually, genuinely happen in canon - Trent’s red string bracelet, Ted’s comment about Sleepless in Seattle, Trent meeting Ted’s mom, etc. My whole thing with this pairing is that, when I look at it, especially in s3, there’s so much there that I genuinely believe they’d already be snogging if it was hetero and in a different show. In this context, I can only see Trent coming out and Ted “I was a straight man” Lasso making that movie reference as our indication that they bat for the other team, as it were, and yes, this can be something other than friendship.

The other thing I would add is that in the mom episode we get open acknowledgment that Ted’s biggest problem is how he runs around helping others but can’t accept help from anyone else for himself. I would then point out that the only time he’s received the same huge, self-sacrificial type of help he gave Beard with prison and everything is what he got from Trent Crimm revealing an anonymous source and then leaving his entire career to show his support and respect of Ted. Yes, a lot of the others around him have supported and helped Ted in different ways but I think it’s huge that Trent is the only one who’s done so on that level. I would also add that Trent has supported Ted multiple times while being one of the only characters to do so without ever acting against him. Beard stole his car, Nate turned on him, Rebecca was plotting against him and using Leslie to do so, etc., and yet Trent from the beginning was skeptical at most and never really acted against Ted. Beyond that, I also think that the first article Trent wrote about Ted in s1 is hugely indicative of Trent’s potential compatibility with Ted.

For one thing, Ted talked quite a bit in s1 about curiosity and went on that whole speech with Rupert in the darts game about how he values it but how so few people are genuinely curious - but Trent is. Trent shows up to write about Ted, skeptical but curious enough to pay close attention and allow his view of this other man to shift and to not be clouded by biases. I think the truth element is also huge - Ted’s ex wifey couldn’t accept his communication style and got an override from their therapist to force Ted to be outwardly truthful in a way he wasn’t comfortable with, and yet Trent clearly demonstrates his ability to accurately discern the truth from Ted without ever pushing him in such a way. Trent over and over again respects boundaries, never pushes people to share beyond what they’re comfortable with, and still gleans the truth from what he does see and hear, which is exactly what Ted needs.

Lastly, I’m not here to go off ragging on tedbecca and tbh I wouldn’t be mad if it did happen, but I want to talk about why I just don’t see it happening in canon real quick. First and foremost is that she’s the only other character than Ted’s ex (is her name Michelle? I genuinely can’t remember and that’s the only reason why I’m not using it) who uses ‘Oklahoma’ with him, and I don’t actually see that as a good thing. This is especially the case ever since it came out that Michelle(?) is now dating the therapist she and Ted saw who had them start using that in the first place, since that new relationship calls all the therapy she and Ted did into question.

Also, it’s not just that Rebecca used to be plotting against Ted, it’s that from s1 e1 on she’s been using him in one way or another to get back at or one up Rupert. Whether it’s working against him in s1 or then really trying to get him to win, especially with that one game against West Ham in s3, she’s just continually trying to use Ted as a tool against another man. What’s more damning is that when she does start to show interest in men who are not Rupert, it’s never Ted- Ted’s just there to bring her biscuits and engage in occasional attempts at girl talk, which really fits into the trope of a token gay best friend. I think they do have a good, solid relationship and, like I said, I won’t be mad if they do end up together, but I don’t see them as being set up to be in a romantic relationship.

But yeah, I think that’s all for now lol

#ted lasso #tedependent #tedtrent #ted x trent #trent crimm #ted lasso s3 #ted lasso meta #tedependent meta #tedtrent meta

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callmearcturus · 8 months

Note

Regarding the reception of Ilsa's death, what personally upsets me about it is that by refusing to interact with it on a story level (ie blaming McQ's misogyny, saying that it's just fridging), people completely miss out on the thematic richness of the movie, and how much that death influences that.

It's a pity that people aren't giving them any credit for the story because they focus on that part of it, so thank you for talking about it!

(Sorry, not really a question!)

(heads up this is gonna be a bitchy post!)

Yeah I am to a point that I'm becoming actively annoyed at the discussion around DR1 because I walked out of that movie both times like "I cannot BELIEVE what they're doing here with the IMF, with the ethos of the movies, I can't wait for ppl to get over their shock over Ilsa's death and actually think about the point"

and that has just not happened and it's so boring. To watch DR1 and go "i hate this movie bc Ilsa's death was pointless" and to keep thinking that even after you've cooled off is imo a media literacy failure. like, DID WE FUCKING WATCH THE SAME MOVIE?

did anyone else see Ethan's introduction to the movie, where he gets to play an elder member of this organization basically inducting and welcoming someone into the fold with a distant kindness?

did anyone else see how the Entity affects the entire western intelligence community and cements them as the villain while the IMF are fighting to maintain basic free will?

did anyone notice the purposeful contrasts, how everyone swayed by the Entity's potential power exist in flashy ultra modern sets while Ethan's team live in the warm shadows of old abandoned buildings?

how about the return of Kittridge, the spectre of history and obligation cast over everyone?

HOW ABOUT REFASHIONING THE MYTHOS OF THE IMF INTO A "CHOICE" EXPLICITLY MAKING ALL OF THESE PEOPLE SELF-SELECTING AGENTS OF OUTRAGEOUS ALTRUISM. I'm sorry but how the fuck are people not losing their fucking minds over the fact Christopher fucking McQuarrie has been building on this IDEA since Ghost Protocol, that Ethan Hunt doesn't believe in the trolley problem, that if you present him with a trolley problem he will try to kill himself pushing the trolley off the tracks, there are no acceptable losses even in the face of nuclear armageddon, and they made it fucking CANON

and then they made Luther and Benji go "well yeah that's the IMF, we all chose to be this kind of batshit fanatical to the preservation of life"

Ilsa died OPTING INTO THAT. she was never IMF, she was a loner who occasionally fell into the orbit of Ethan and co, and rather than leaving it up to Ethan to make a choice, she walks open-eyed to save a woman she doesn't even know because why would that matter do you get it yet, we're talking about themes here

I'm just. I get it. Or I got it. For the first few weeks after DR1 came out, ppl were sad that Ilsa died

but now that we are this far out from it and people are still saying "her death was pointless", my patience is done. you failed to read the movie. which pisses me off because i am super into what this movie, this franchise, is trying to say!

anyway yeah my name is arcturus, i love ilsa faust, and i love that she died because her death fucking meant something /jazzhands

#threeoaksy #mission impossible #dead reckoning spoilers

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ecriter · 1 year

Text

Make the Bond - Pt. 3

A/N: erm this part got a little long but i had a lot to say ! anyways enjoy and let me know if I missed you on the tag list!

ao3 ver.

Part 3 of ?

Part One Part Two

Chapter 3 - Close Call

"Tss, watch it!"

The staff swiped past your head, almost nicking your ear. Your left shoulder was still smarting from the last blow, a purple welt definitely growing on the afflicted area. It had been over a week since Quaritch had first introduced himself to you, since your father had assigned him as your ward, and through that week you had gotten a better sense of who the man was. His Na'vi was infantile at best which made communicating with him difficult, yet he had worked hard over the days he had spent healing, intently watching your indications and repeating your words slow, syllable by syllable. Progress was minimal but it was still progress and he could manage stinted phrases of good morning, how are you? and The weather is very beautiful today. The formality always made you giggle when you arrived at his tent each eclipse rise. At the same time Quaritch was learning your language, you slowly began to pick up his. It was a mutual exchange of culture and employing the sky people's words when Quaritch was frustrated helped to calm him down. So far, you'd learned words like hello, goodbye, fruit, and fuck. The last one you'd picked up without meaning to. Quaritch said it often beneath his breath during your lessons and when you'd first repeated it, he'd stared at you with an open jaw before full peels of laughter erupted from his chest. It was the first time you'd heard him laugh and it left something warm in your belly.

After that first week, Quaritch had healed remarkably well with the proper diet and care and all that remained now were three pale stripes that sliced down his back, the only indication of the marred wound that had crippled him. The sight of those, too, left a suspicious curl of heat within you, which you chose decidedly to ignore. After linguistic lessons, you progressed to the more tactical elements of your culture. Fishing, combat, and swimming lessons were conducted from eclipse rise to eclipse fall and left the both of you (though you more than him) tuckered out as you went to your respective pods. Fishing was the worst of Quaritch's skills, having never been one for patience. He would cast the net too quickly, believing the glint of the sun on the water to be a fish breaking the surface and when he pulled it in it would be empty save for damp seaweed clinging to the fibers. His face would twist into a puckered scowl, reminding you of a sour child and you would stifle a laugh. These moments are where you heard the word fuck most often.

"You need patience. Patience! You are throwing too quickly." You would scold him, adjusting his grip on the net to the proper form. He would just grunt and flick his ears. You knew he could understand the gist of your words. Quaritch's listening skills were far more adept than his speaking, or he just preferred not to speak. You couldn't figure out which was the truth.

Combat is what you struggled to teach him the most. Quaritch clearly had training in his past because he bested you almost every time and when he didn't, it was because he was taking pity on you. When the two of you would return to the village, you often sported more bruises than he did, many of them to your pride. That's how you happened on where you were now, poised across from him in a sandy pit often used to train younger warriors. Qauritch had been jabbing at you with his blunted spear, only just missing your extremities. Your body was worn out and exhausted, but it seemed he had hardly broken a sweat if the fluid jabs of his staff were any indication. Spear limp in your hand, you kneeled over your knees and tried your best to catch your breath.

"Take a break?" Quaritch asked in his lilted Na'vi, smugness oozing from every crevice and pore. The cockiness was the worst part, particularly when you were aching with fatigue and not much in the mood to be gloated over.

"Not in your dreams," You ground out, meeting those yellow eyes that were squinted in a smile. You pushed yourself off your knees and leveled your spear at the avatar, grip admittedly weak and lacking any resemblance of proper warrior form, but you felt even lifting the spear was an achievement. Quaritch snorted at the pathetic attempt, hardly bothering to brace himself against the sand for the attack. His body was always coiled and prepared for defense, stance shoulder width apart by default, ears twitching at the rustle of the brush and shudder of the breeze. Your assault would be pointless, easily diverted, not even by Quaritch's spear but by his hands and then you'd be flat on your back again with a bruised tail. But you were way too stubborn to give up, especially as he smirked down at you, taunting you to make the first move. Weren't you supposed to be the teacher here?

Steeling yourself and trying not to think of the hurt you were about to endure, you stuck out your tongue in a war cry, toes digging into the loose sand underfoot. There wasn't much traction, at least not as much as you'd have liked, but you pushed off the ground anyways, leaping high and arcing through the air to bring the blunt end of your spear down on Quaritch's shoulder. For a second, you thought you had him right where you wanted him. You were so close, so close, there was no way Quaritch could avoid the swipe of your staff. Those stupid eyes looked up at you, lowly lidded against the sun, insultingly bored, and the wood of your spear brushed his blue shoulder before he was gone, and all of the sudden you were flat on the sand looking up at thick white clouds lazily sweeping across the sky. The familiar sting of pain was at the base of your spine, breath completely lost from your lungs. You tried to grapple for your spear in the sand, push yourself to your feet and recover but your muddled brain could hardly figure out how you had ended up on your back all of the sudden.

A broad blue frame came into focus in your swimming vision, blocking the sun like a monolith. Its mouth moved, saying something, and you blinked slowly back. How wonderful it smelled, like sweat and salt and musk. It held your arms and legs immobile, pleasantly heavy weight that left you stirring lithely on the ground. The hulking thing said something again, a warm paw pressing to your cheek. Its face was so close that it was the only thing in the world, warm breath fanning against your mouth and wet nose nearly brushing your own.

"Wazzat?" You slurred, tilting your head to the side and blinking sleepily. The creature shifted before a smack tilted your head against the sand hard and your surroundings came back to you completely. Quaritch was close, so, so close, golden eyes like the earth and moon and sun. "You awake kid? You dying?" He asked.

"Mm not dying and get off."

You heaved against the weight on top of you, struggling against what felt like solid stone but the skxawng didn't move, didn't even budge, only smirked down at you with those stupid blunt fangs and that sly look and you swear he purred at seeing you so helpless, but the heat was already crawling up your neck and cheeks in embarrassment and you didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing you like that.

Your head turned away, dark hair shielding your blushing face, and you shoved halfheartedly at him again.

"I said get off."

Quaritch's smile fell away, a look that was impossible to decipher passing over his face before he pushed off the sand, off of you, and got to his feet. You expected him to go for his spear and leave you in the dust to recuperate but instead, he offered you a hand, tail snapping behind him like a whip in agitation. What was he so annoyed about? You were the one that had faltered again and landed ass up on the ground like a youngling who'd never seen hand-to-hand combat before. The sting of insult was still fresh and you batted his hand away, getting up yourself. Quaritch's bared teeth brought you an inkling of satisfaction.

"I don't think there's much left for me to teach you," You said, brushing dust and sand off from your back and front and picking your spear up from the sandy bank. "You fight like a warrior. I think you are teaching me a thing or two."

"This ain't my first rodeo. My people call ourselves soldiers and train with more than sticks."

"Soldier, warrior, it is the same thing. And these sticks are what you will fight with while you stay here, so get used to them. " You mounted the spear on a wooden rack that housed other melee combat weaponry. "We will move on to something else. If you wish to continue combat training, I'm sure my father can assign a warrior to be your partner."

Quaritch flapped a hand in dismissal, placing his spear in the empty mount beside yours.

Indicating for Quaritch to follow you, you made your way toward the compacted sand at the edge of the tide. Your muscles were tired, your back hurt, and you didn't know if you could stand one more second in close proximity to Quaritch without your body betraying your frustration or other unfamiliar feelings, which meant you should probably move on to the third element of your training. It was where you were most comfortable and most confident and knew that Quaritch would be most out of his depth. His footsteps crunched behind you, pausing just at the edge of the water where foaming tides lapped at your feet. You thought you detected a trace of hesitation in his usually confident step but it was gone if it had even been there at all.

"We have practiced breathing for many days now and I have decided it is time to practice in the water. Are soldiers taught how to swim?" You asked.

The avatar scoffed, pressing forward into the waves, cool blue water lapping at his ankles. "'Course I can swim, I ain't no baby."

You shrugged. "I would have thought you couldn't when you washed up on my shores like a piece of broken coral. Did you swim then?" A teasing smile stole across your mouth but when you turned to look at Quaritch, to poke jest at his pride as he had done to yours, he had fallen silent and still. He wasn't looking at you at all, instead watching the horizon of the sea where three giant hazy spires broke the flat monotony miles and miles away.

"Quaritch?"

"Let's just go."

The dismissal stung a bit and your ears flattened. So he could dish it out but couldn't take it? Or was there something deeper, something locked tightly away in a little box that Quaritch had not and perhaps would not reveal to you, something about his past? You couldn't dwell on these mysteries long because the soldier was paving a path through the tides, bright bursts of white splattering his thighs as the waves knocked against his legs. He was leading you again and you hastened to keep up.

The water was warmed by the sun, so familiar that it soothed any tension, melting it away into swirling pools of brilliant blue. When it became deep enough, the water rising to the back of your thighs, you pressed your palms together and dived into its depths. The plateau of the shallows dropped off a few feet from the shore into a field of corals, deepening into a canyon teeming with life. Beneath the waves, fish darted between glowing flora, anemones that waved in gentle currents, and Ilu, freed from their pens, caught tides that ushered them into deeper and colder waters. The sea was penetrated by the clicks and chirps of ocean life, schools of fish bursting with vibrant yellows and oranges darting out from caves formed by archaic old stone. This was home, where you were most familiar.

The water behind you disrupted as Quaritch dived in after you, clumsy feet kicking hard at the water. He wasn't adapted for the water like you were, lithe limbs built for grabbing vines and leaping from tree to tree, and it made his endeavors beneath the surface twice harder to learn. Breathing, the most important element of diving, was where he struggled the most. Everything about the man was about control and under the waves, he was at the whim of the water, dictated by its ebb and flow. The bubbles escaping his puffed mouth indicated his anxiety.

Pressing a hand to your chest, you mimicked its rise and fall, urging him to slow his breathing as you had practiced. Slow heart.

His hiccuping chest stuttered into a slow tempo and you nodded, gesturing him forward with you.

Over sandbars the two of you swam, small crabs clicking their pincers up at you, through forests of bright pink salt weed whose stalks glittered in beams of sunlight. Fields of rock croppings peppered the sea floor, hiding creatures with many eyes and many teeth, who prepared to spring from their decrepit caves and snatch a fish. How wonderful to be in this activity, among the pattern of the ocean which thrummed with life, flush and fertile. Generations had lived here, died here, and still more generations would. What a wonderful life, you thought, to live in this muted silence, where vibrant colors filled the quiet and currents sent by Eywa caressed your face.

Ahead, macropods sprouted up towards the surface, reaching for light they couldn't receive in the cooler waters of the deep. Their vibrant yellow fronds rippled, like thousands of leaves tugging at their branches to blow about. You wrapped slender fingers around Quaritch's thick forearm, tugging him along towards one of the air pockets hidden in the cup of the pod's bloom. You could sense Quaritch's breath running out, the stir of a hiccup building in the back of his throat. No matter how frustrated you still were with him after sparring testing the extent of his limits in the deeper sea wasn't a wise move. You knew this field grew here, which could give Quaritch a breath and teach him about the resources of your home if he just knew where to look. You reached for the stalk of the macropod as you approached it, clasping its base in a firm grip to hoist Quaritch up before yourself so that he could breach the surface and take large swallows of air.

"Are you ok?" You asked, brushing wet curls from your face as you emerged after him, clasping the lip of the macropod to hold yourself afloat in the air pocket. Quaritch caught his breath, leaning his forehead against the wall of the pod where thin membranes stretched across its thin skin. "Yes," He gasped, wiping water out of his eyes. "I'm fine. Shit. I just keep running out of air. This breathing shit pisses me off."

You didn't know what shit meant but caught this tone. "It is your breathing. I keep telling you you are not doing it correctly!" You insisted. "Slow your heart. You are filled with too much worry and it makes your heart race, quickening your breath. If you focus on the rhythm of the water, your breathing will slow and you will hold it longer. Be calm." The flat of your palm pressed to the center of Quaritch's chest, feeling the gentle pulse of life under his pectoral muscle. The skin was warm there and damp. The pale blue stripes that arced like lightning across his torso were flushed pretty pink from the exertion of swimming, flush stretching up the cords of his neck and to the tips of his ears. The hollow between his ribs was thumping, beating so fast that you were almost afraid for him. When you looked up he was close, pupils dilated to slashes of black in pools of gold.

Your breath shuttered, pierced beneath those eyes. It was dark in the pod, the walls emitting a faint glow in the dying light. It illuminated the hard planes of Quaritch's cheeks and brow in soft amber, catching the strands of his braid that clung to the nape of his neck. There it was again, that heat in your stomach, unfamiliar and scary and yet so warm it was stifling. He was glowing, you thought, holy and ethereal, blessed by Eywa and you were lucky to be in his presence, share his breath, and feel the brush of his tail against your calf. Quaritch breathed something undecipherable, maybe English or maybe Na'vi. Its low resonance had your fingers curling against his hard abdomen. His eyes had dropped to your mouth but you weren't speaking, just breathing in soft puffs that were magnified by the stillness of the macropod. You were used to him watching your mouth for indications of speech but at this moment, where he had nothing to decipher from empty air, the look had you faltering. You wanted to kiss those eyes that looked at you so intently, that slender nose and plush mouth-

"I got something on my face?" He asked abruptly, shying away from you. "I’m good now. Let's go back."

The moment snapped like a rubber band pulled too tight and the tension that had thickened between the two of you, a tension you were sure would break into something, disappeared. You felt some strange sense of rejection even though Quaritch hadn't really rejected anything. You had been overcome at that moment, carried away in the swing of whatever fizzle had erupted between the two of you. It was too embarrassing, the idea that you had imagined a moment between the two of you or, worse, that Quaritch had sensed the very same thing you had and turned away from it. You wanted to dwell in the feeling, mortified at its millions of meanings, hide away and never come out but Quaritch was already gulping air into his broadened lungs and dipping beneath the placid water. You couldn't very well leave him to navigate back to the shore himself so you slid beneath the surface, too, black curls pulling away from your face. Had he thought of kissing you, too? Had he counted every glowing freckle on your face, like you had him? Traced the contour of his strong throat down to broad shoulders that could have been between your-

Quaritch was kicking hard away from you in the direction of the shore, powerful thighs rippling with muscle built from his life before you, before your clan. What life? you wondered. A life with another family, another woman? Where he was a soldier, meant for more than being trained by you? The man was still so shrouded in mystery, having revealed little of himself despite the hours you had spent together. He kept carefully to himself despite his cockiness, always a sturdy wall between you and any vulnerability he may betray. Had you not proved yourself? Shown him you could be trusted?

Lost in thought, you missed the dark shadow that passed over the ocean floor, blotting out the sun for only a second. It blocked out light, fish shrinking away into the coves the coral provided. It was a threat, a foreboding of danger approaching, and you'd missed it despite your duty to guide and protect, despite your familiarity with the sea and its dangers. You were always on alert, instincts humming, but now you were distracted, mulling over that moment the two of you had shared.

The shadow passed over you again.

Now you noticed it. The quiet of the ocean always seemed to buzz with life and atmosphere but now was devoid of any motion. You were paused in your tracks, grabbed hold of a long plant stalk that waved in the current beside you. Your stomach knotted and you looked up, seeing nothing but open sea, beams breaking through the surface. A warning fizzed in your brain, a reminder of something that you couldn't remember. Your head whipped over to where Quaritch had been just moments before but he was gone, disappeared in the corals towards the village. You clutched yourself tighter to the stalk, desperately wanting to melt into it. Something felt off. The sea had become silent when, just moments earlier, schools of fish drifted lazily in the warm sun-

A flash of black.

Bubbles escaped your mouth as you chirped, jerking back, and the ocean sprung to life again in a moment. The jaws of the akula barely missed you, reared open to snap powerfully. The stalk you had been holding snapped in half beneath the force of its beating tail and you somersaulted over yourself, hitting the wall of a stone precipice. Disoriented, you scrambled to untangle the situation. Where the hell had that thing been hiding? Quaritch was gone, hopefully far from the scent range of the akula. This was a small comfort, knowing you wouldn't have to worry about yourself and him, or worry that he would see the akula swallow you whole. The predator curved sharply out of the corner of your eye, whipping through plant fronds and breaking coral structures apart with its powerful jaws.

You needed to move. Now. How far were you from the village? Probably still a couple of meters out, an unswimmable distance with that beast on your tail. Your blood was rushing, forcing alert signals into your brain, pumping fear through your system. You pushed yourself away from the rock, tail propelling you through the water. At every beat, you waited for the blinding pain of the akula's teeth on your fin. A shattering thump behind you indicated the akula had made contact with the rock a breath after you jumped away, gouging out furrows in the stone's surface. You grabbed the arch of a nearby reef structure, pushing yourself deep into the web-like system. Behind you, you could hear the splintering of exoskeletons as the predator ripped apart coral, forcing itself into a space much too small.

Fuck. You were alone, quite nearly in open water, and flagging. You had seconds before the akula would be on you and the lattice network of your temporary shelter was coming to an end. Corals were here to shield you, but they were shorter in the shallows and could barely guard against the beast's gnashing jaws. You had gone too far out, too far from the shore, couldn't remember the last time you'd been away from the village this far out. This was almost the reef where your father warned you not to go especially without the Ilu, and now you were alone, moments away from death. Your chest was beginning to ache as your brain and accelerated heart ate up the oxygen reserves you had.

You darted out from the structure and into a shallow alcove guarded by fronds of saltweed, the only shelter you could spot before the akula would discover you weren't in the coral. When it did, it let out a powerful roar that shook the ocean floor, the final bell of your death. You pressed yourself flat against the back of the cove, tears beading in your eyes. This was it. This was where you would meet your end. There was no other way out, no genius plan for survival. Your moment of death had come.

The akula snarled, three pincers spreading wide and revealing its rows of teeth. Chunks of debris whipped past your head, crashing and sending plumes of dust up and out of the holes in the alcove as the akula ripped its way toward you. From the violent murk, you only saw the looming form of the akula, black as death, mouth opened wide to swallow you whole -

A painful, searing tug on your arm pulled you through a small hole that had broken open in the cove. The rough edges of it shredded your skin, plumes of red streaming into the murky blue. The akula broke through the corals and chomped at where you had just been, inhaling the scent of blood that curled through the water. The sight was haunting and would have stamped itself on the inside of your brain if your shoulder didn't burn in pain. You were positive it was dislocated, no other explanation for the pain that rocketed down your arm, but then your foggy mind connected the squeezing grip on your wrist. You looked up to spy your savior and there Quaritch was, arms and legs pumping powerfully in the water to pull you toward the beginning of the plateau that led toward the shallows. Your lungs were hiccuping for air, chest shuddering. You had to be dead, the sight of him too good to be true. Qauritch glanced over his shoulder, searching the empty and murky depths for the akula, but it seemed the animal had darted away after breaching your hiding place, too close to the shores to hunt you further.

The avatar squeezed your wrist, hard, demanding your attention. He indicated for your help and you paddled your tail and legs feebly to generate momentum to the shore. You were so tired and now had lacerations to add to your bruises. Your mind couldn't grapple with the fact you were alive, saved from the man you had lamented about moments before. It was like a sick twist, repaying his life for yours, but you thanked Eywa all the same that he hadn't left you behind as you thought he had, and that his timing had been so perfect.

The two of you breached the surface with a splash, your feet finding purchase on the smooth bottom of the ocean floor. Your lungs were searing, filling with great gulps of delicious oxygen that returned some sense back to your head. You tried to find your footing and steady yourself, but Quaritch was still pulling.

"We're not stopping until we're out of this cesspool." He barked, yanking you along. "That thing's gonna be back, gonna come for us if we don't-"

"Won't come to the shallows," You gasped. "Only stays in the reef."

Quaritch slowed, his grip loosening. The water was at waist height now and you bowed low, exhaustion pulled at every limb.

"You need a medic. And I don't want to be in this goddamn ocean a second longer."

You wheezed out a laugh, reaching for Quaritch's side for support.

"I second that," You wheezed. Your head was still spinning and you couldn't believe that an outing meant to be a training exercise, where the worst part of your day was just to be your wounded ego, had almost ended in your death. A gory death at that.

"Thank you for saving me," You said weakly, blinking away fresh tears brimming on the edge of your vision. You looked down at your hands, realizing they were shaking. You tried to get them to stop, press them together to still the tremor that seemed to take over your whole body. Larger hands crept into view, encasing yours. They slid up from your hands to your forearms, then to your shoulders. You looked up at Quaritch through watery eyes and found his expression had taken a softer edge than you could remember seeing, a gentleness you didn't think him capable of possessing.

"I can't take my eye off you for a second, can I? Just consider this as repayment for you saving me." He smiled and tapped the bottom of your chin. "Let's get you back to the village, kiddo. You look like a drowned rat."

Tag List!

@capitanostella @kacchasu @nin3kyuu @perseny @onehalfshrimp @blossom618 @shuriri4life @lyn-lotte @ikranwings @waterstrawberry @disaster-in-waiting @gremlinfuck @deadpoolsvodka

#avatar #avatar way of water #avatar imagine #quaritch fanfic #na'vi quaritch #avatar quaritch #quaritch x reader #quaritch imagine #miles quaritch #enemies to lovers #strangers to lovers #jake sully

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rainbowwing251 · 4 months

Text

The Other Chris (Wild Kratts Tickle Fic)

A/N: I can’t. Believe. I’m doing this.

Seriously, I can’t believe I’m doing this. I should not be doing this, but I’m doing it anyway.

So uh… yeah, this is… a thing! It’s a tickle fic for the PBS Kids series Wild Kratts!

I know I said I didn’t want to make tickle content for the show, but truth be told… I really wanted to for… almost as long as I’ve been into the show. The only reason why I decided against it was because I was afraid. Afraid of how the Wild Kratts fandom would see me for making this kind of content. Afraid that the tickling community wouldn’t care about tickle content for this show. Afraid that somehow, someway, the Kratt Brothers themselves would find my content.

But recently, two out of my three fears have been proven false. It turns out that there IS a tickling community for Wild Kratts and that the tickling community as a whole does enjoy the limited amount of tickle content there is for it. I’m still concerned about whether or not the brothers themselves will find it, but I guess I shouldn’t worry about that for now…

This is a long author’s note, and I apologize for that, but before I get onto this fic, I would like to mention that this fic is a collab! This is a collab between myself and @kittyfluffies on Tumblr, whom I may have accidentally dragged into the Wild Kratts fandom with me… oops.

Well, let’s see how this goes! Real quick, this fic takes place shortly after the events of the episode “The Other Martins”!

P.S. Interpret this as Krattcest and I’ll get the sniper rifle. That shit is DISGUSTING.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today was a horrible day to be Chris Kratt.

Everything that could go wrong today did go wrong, except for the appearance of one or more of the villains. But would that have been any worse than falling into a pile of rotten apples, nearly being dive bombed by a Purple Martin (multiple times in fact), finding an American Pine Marten, having an American Red Squirrel steal your Creature Power Suit, getting tickled by said squirrel and your brother at the same time, and falling into a body of water, in that order, all on the same day? All while your brother teases you relentlessly the whole time? Chris would argue that this is worse than anything the villains could throw at him and the rest of the Tortuga crew.

He tried to combat his bad luck by calling it a day early to try and think of animals that shared his name, but there was one problem with this plan: he can’t think of a single animal that has “Chris” in its name. Not a single one.

“Come on, there’s gotta be one animal out there with the name Chris that isn’t me…! There has to be…!” he thought as he laid in a bed in the basement of the Tortuga. He had intended to lie in one of the hammocks that was in the central room of the ship, but remembered that none of those were his. They belonged, from top to bottom, to Aviva, Koki, and Jimmy Z, and as much as he would have liked to be in a hammock right now, he didn’t want to risk being scolded for taking a hammock that wasn’t his. That, and he was already feeling irritated by the events of the day and didn’t want to be angered any further, so he chose to isolate himself to try and calm down.

This worked for some time, but eventually, the peace was disturbed by the appearance of someone else.

The moment he heard those footsteps, he knew who it was. And he groaned.

“Oh no…” He should have known that there was no way he would be able to go the rest of the day without seeing the one who was responsible for half of the troubles he faced today, and yet somehow, he thought he would be left alone.

The door to the basement opened, and in came the reason he was even lying here in the first place: his older, mischievous, and sometimes annoying brother, Martin Kratt.

“Hey bro!” he greeted before noticing the look on Chris’s face. He’s seen him direct that face at the villains and sometimes him a couple of times, but something about that expression in this moment seemed… off.

“What? Aren’t you happy to see me?”

“After everything you put me through today? No, absolutely not.”

That upsetted Martin a little bit, but he did understand why he’d feel that way. It didn’t stop him from teasing him a little bit more, however.

“Awww, come on, Chris! You got to see animals that share a name with your bro! Does that not make you happy? Not even a little bit?” he teased, putting his hand on his shoulder and leaning towards his face.

Chris rolled his eyes at his brother’s actions, “Remember when I said that purple martins didn’t annoy me anymore, but this one-” Chris put a finger on Martin’s chest, “-not so much? I meant it.”

“Awww, you’re no fun, bro. I was just messing with you! I wanted you to enjoy The Day of the Martins!”

“Your teasing didn’t help me get my Creature Power Suit back from that red squirrel.”

“But I still got it back!”

Chris sighed and poked his brother again, “You don’t get it, do you?” He was about to lecture his older brother before he heard what sounded like a mix of a giggle and a squeak, “You’re still laughing at my luck, aren’t you?”

“N-no, just watch where you’re poking me!” Martin explained, grabbing Chris’s wrist and pulling it away from him. Chris looked down to see where he had poked him, thinking he had poked him in the chest again, only to realize that he had accidentally poked his brother in the stomach.

Suddenly, he got an idea. An idea on how he could get back at his brother for his merciless teasing.

If he couldn’t think of any animals with Chris in their name, then he’ll have to invent one. One that can give him the power to take revenge on his brother.

“...Chris?” Martin’s concerned voice pulled him out of his thoughts, “You alright?”

A malicious grin formed on Chris’s face, “Chris isn’t here right now.”

Martin raised a brow at his younger brother’s statement, “Huh? What are you talking about, bro? You’re right here! What do you mean you aren’t-”

“Chris. Isn’t. Here. Right now.” The green brother grabbed Martin by his wrists and swiftly pinned him down onto the bed. “Only his alter-ego~”

Upon hearing that teasy tone in his voice, Martin immediately knew what was about to happen. “C-Chris? Can we talk about this…?!”

Chris let out a sinister-sounding chuckle, “I already told you, Chris isn’t here~ Only…” he brought his hands into Martin’s vision and wiggled his fingers.

“W-wait, nohoho! Don’t-!”

“The TICKLE MONSTER!” The younger brother drilled a finger into the other’s armpits, “But right now, you can call me the ‘Other Chris’~”

To Chris’s slight shock, Martin had already burst into a fit of giggles with a few laughs mixed in for good measure.

“Nohohohoho, Chrihihihihs! W-We can tahahahalk about thihihis!”

“Laughing already? And from a single finger in the armpits, no less~? This will be easy~”

The blue brother was already squirming under the ticklish touch, trying and failing to throw Chris off of him.

“Trying to throw me off, are we~? I think that warrants a punishment, wouldn’t you agree~?” Chris ignored the unintentional rhyme and snuck a second wiggling finger into Martin’s armpits, causing his giggles to rise in volume and his squirming to become a little more violent.

“C-Chrihihis nohohohoho! That t-tihihihihihickles!” Martin cried out, his arms coming down in an attempt to protect his armpits, but unfortunately for him, that only served to trap his brother’s fingers in there.

“I told you, I’m not Chris! I am the Other Chris!” The “Other Chris” protested as he broke through the blue Kratt’s defenses to slip a third finger under his arms.

“Chrihihihihis, I knohohohow you’re in thehehehehre!”

“Nope, Chris is nowhere to be found right now, but I promise, he’ll come back once I give him what he wants~”

“Whahahahahahat? What d-dohohohoes he wahahahant?”

Chris gave him the most evil smirk he could muster. “Revenge~” With that, he skipped the fourth step and slipped the last two fingers under Martin’s arms. With all ten fingers tickling him, Martin went from squirming to thrashing uncontrollably, nearly throwing Chris off of him a few times. He’d also started kicking his legs, desperately trying to distract himself from the tingly sensation under his arms.

“NOHOHOHOHO, BROHOHOHOHOHO! C-CUT IT OHOHOHOHOUT!” Martin seemed to nearly scream out as he kept kicking and thrashing for a few more seconds, only stopping when he felt a hand on his ankle.

“Are you trying to kick me~? How rude~!” Chris teased. He was about to stick a hand back under his brother’s arm before he was hit with another idea. Martin, who had squeezed his eyes shut during his laughing fit, opened them and giggled in anticipation. “C-Chrihihihihs?”

The evil grin his brother had on his face nearly made him burst into laughter again.

“You know, Martin… I’m pretty sure it’s not a good idea to kick another person, and yet you tried to kick me anyway. I think it’s time for me to switch spots and teach you another lesson~”

“Whahahahat?” Martin questioned through his giggles before he felt his shoelaces coming undone. “Whahahaha- hehehehehey! Don’t remove my shoes, plehehehehehese! Chrihihihihis!”

“It’s too late to beg for mercy now, Martin~” Chris slowly pulled both shoes off before slipping a finger into the blue brother’s socks.

“Nononononono dohohohohohon’t! Dohohohon’t do ihihihihit!”

“Do what~?” Chris asked him, pulling one sock off of his foot, “Take your shoes and socks off? Well too bad, I will not stop until you apologize to me… and to Chris~”

“But yohohohou are Chrihihih- NOHOHOHOHOHOHO!” Martin burst into laughter upon feeling a hand on his bare left foot.

“Laughing already~? This will be easy~” With that, Chris dug in, scribbling his fingers all over the other’s feet. Martin absolutely lost it in response.

“NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO, CHRIHIHIHIHIHIHIS! S-STAHAHAHAHAHP!”

“Begging for mercy again are we~? I don’t remember you giving Chris mercy when he told you to stop, so why should I~?” Chris ribbed, leaning in closer to Martin’s face in an attempt to make the teasing worse for his older brother. Needless to say, it worked like a charm.

“PLEAHAHAHAHAHAHASE STAHAHAHAHAHAP TEHEHEHEASING MEHEHEHE!”

“And why should I do that~?” the younger brother asked, focusing the tickling on Martin’s arches, a spot he knew was unbearably sensitive to any kind of touch, “Does it tickle more when I tease you~? Does it make you lose all of your strength so you can’t fight back~? Tell me, Martin, does teasing make you weak to tickles~? Even more so than you already are~?”

Martin’s only response was to throw his head back in uncontrollable laughter before immediately rushing to cover his face with a pillow to muffle himself.

“That was not a response, but I’ll take it anyway~” Chris reacted with a giggle, far too amused by how much his brother was laughing. “Besides, now that you’re covering your face, you won’t be able to see what I’m doing~”

To prove his point, the younger Kratt suddenly switched from scribbling Martin’s arches to scratching under his toes. Just as he predicted, Martin’s laughter increased in both pitch and volume, though it was muffled a little by the pillow.

“CRIHIHIHIHS NOHOHO-MMMPH!” The older Kratt had lifted the pillow a little to plead for Chris to have mercy on him, but he had to cut himself off by pulling the pillow back over his face because he was afraid his laughter would alert someone upstairs.

“You brought this on yourself, Martin~ All you had to do was get Chris’s vest back without tickling him, but nope, you couldn’t resist~”

Chris looked down to return his focus to Martin’s feet when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a bright green disc in one of Martin’s shoes. For the third time that day, he was hit with an evil idea. He slowed the tickling under Martin’s toes to a stop and waited for him to catch his breath.

“Hey Martin~”

“A-are you fihihihinally going to have mercy on mehehehe…?” Martin let out his after-giggles and slowly lifted the pillow off of his face. Chris grinned a little at seeing the bright pink blush on his brother’s face, a clear indication that this was a job well done so far. He nearly laughed when he saw his eyes widen in horror.

“T-that’s…!”

Chris let out the most malicious laugh he could muster. “The Pine Marten Power Disc~” He then leaned in towards Martin again. “I think you know what I’m going to do with this, but first, I need to find a pine marten~”

The other Martin tried to snatch the Power Disc out of his brother’s hands, but Chris just dodged each attempt effortlessly.

“Now… how am I going to keep you from escaping…?” Chris pondered, realizing that he had not considered the possibility of using an animal’s Creature Powers to tickle Martin. At that moment, both brothers heard the door to the basement open.

“What’s going on down here? I thought I heard someone laughing…” Aviva walked into the room and spotted the brothers. Martin’s blush deepened into a dark shade of red while Chris’s face turned a bright pink, just like his brother’s face was a few seconds ago. The blush quickly faded from the green brother’s face when he realized that the answer to his question had just caught them in the act.

“Aviva, keep him pinned down for me, will you?”

“Huh…?” Aviva was very confused, but upon seeing the tears of mirth in the corners of Martin’s eyes combined with the blush and residual giggles, she quickly caught on to what was going on, “Ohhh, I see~ Sure thing, Chris~”

“I’m not Chris, I’m the Other Chris!”

Aviva couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that, “Whatever you say, ‘Other Chris’~”

Chris elected to ignore the sudden embarrassment that welled up within him upon hearing Aviva’s teasing words and walked out of the basement to go find his “partner” in crime. As soon as he left, Aviva turned to face the flustered mess of a Kratt brother on the bed.

“Hehehehey Avivahahaha…!”

She couldn’t help but giggle at him, “Chris got you good, didn’t he~?”

“Yeahahaha, and he’s not even dohohohne yet!” Martin answered as the remaining after giggles slowly subsided. “You’ll get me out of here, rihihight…?”

“Hmm…” The inventor pretended to ponder his question before she pinned him down, just as Chris asked her to, “Nope~ Don’t want to get on Chris’s- sorry, ‘Other Chris’s’- bad side~”

Martin’s giggles quickly returned as he realized there was no hope of escape, “Nohohohoho! I mehehehehehean, I geheheht it, but nohohohoho!”

“No what, Martin~? Do you want me to get on your brother’s bad side~? On ‘Other Chris’s’ bad side~? After everything he did to you~?” Aviva smirked at the blue Kratt’s sudden laughing fit, “No way~! If you can’t handle his tickle skills, how do you expect me to handle them~?”

Before Martin could respond (if he would’ve been able to answer at all given how hard he was laughing), both he and Aviva heard the sound of a Creature Power Suit being activated upstairs, followed by the sound of quiet footsteps approaching the door to the basement.

Aviva couldn’t help but let out an evil chuckle as she saw her pinned victim’s eyes widen in horror, “Looks like your time is running out, Martin~”

“NOHOHOHOHO!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The whole time Aviva was teasing his brother, Chris had entered the main room of the Tortuga to find a pine marten. As soon as the door opened and he stepped inside, he finally allowed himself to break character.

“Phew… keeping up a fake persona is tiring… but oh is it worth it~” Chris thought to himself, “Let’s see… is there a pine marten in here…?”

Chris looked around the room and noticed that two certain crew members were nowhere to be found. “Koki and Jimmy aren’t here…? That’s a little odd…”

Before he could further question their whereabouts, his eyes landed on a pine marten that was sitting in Aviva’s desk chair. Chris grinned, “But right now, I need the help of my ‘partner’ in crime~”

He made sure to carefully approach the pine marten so as not to scare it away before he put on his Creature Power Suit and took Martin’s Pine Marten Power Disc out of his left pocket.

“Hey there! Li’l Marty, was it?” Chris asked the little creature as it turned to look at him, “Well I’ll need your help to get revenge on Big Marty~”

He put his gloves on. He was finally ready to enact the last part of his plan.

“Insert Pine Marten Power Disc!”

He put one gloved finger on the pine marten.

“Touch pine marten!”

He pressed the central button on his vest, and…

“Activate pine marten powers!"

The suit activated, and within seconds, he had become a pine marten.

“Haha, I finally got the chance to use pine marten powers! But I’ll have to test out the pine marten’s hunting tricks some other time. I have a more important prey to devour downstairs~”

Chris ran out the door and down the steps to the basement.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He made it to the bottom of the stairs, but waited a moment before entering the basement to listen to the pure terror that found its way into Martin’s laughter.

“Did he hear me activate my Creature Power Suit?” Chris wondered before smirking, “Good.”

He finally entered the room to see Aviva holding down a hysterical Martin, but while they did hear the sound of the door opening and looked to see if he was there, they failed to look down towards the floor, where he actually was.

“Look down here~”

Aviva looked down and giggled upon both seeing him and hearing Martin shriek out a “AVIHIHIHIVA, LET ME GOHOHOHOHO!” She just ignored him and greeted Chris.

“There you are Ch- Other Chris!” she corrected herself.

“You see what my plan is now, Aviva~?”

“Sure do~ Want me to stay here, or do you want me to leave you to it?”

Chris tried to think about his response, but couldn’t hear his own thoughts over the sound of his brother’s uncontrollable laughter. Out of playful spite, he decided, “Leave him to me~”

Aviva nodded, “Okay then~ Sorry Martin, but it looks like you’ll be stuck with him for a bit longer~ See you later… if you’re still alive that is~” She released said Kratt from her grasp before walking out of the door and heading back upstairs. The whole time she was walking away, Martin was pleading for her to reconsider and help him escape, but it was futile. She and Chris had already made their decisions.

Martin’s laughter had subsided a little after the inventor left, but he still had a hard time controlling himself, especially when he looked at his younger brother sitting on the floor. Watching. Waiting there. Menacingly.

“C-Chrihihihihihs? Hellohohohoho?”

Chris leered at him, “Are you ready for the grand finale, Martin~?”

“Nohohohohoho, nohohot at ahahahahahahall!”

“Well too bad~”

The green pine marten ran over to one of the legs near the foot of the bed, climbed up it, and ran across Martin’s body to get to his neck. The whole time he ran across his brother’s torso and ribs, he dragged his tail behind him, intentionally tickling him and sending him into another fit of laughter.

“H-hehehehehehey, wahahahahahatch the taihihihihihil!”

“What do you mean? I was watching my tail!” Chris snuck up to Martin’s ear before he spoke again, “I was watching it tickle you~”

He could feel Martin shiver as he brought his now-free hands up to his ears to cover them up. Unfortunately for him, the ears were the last spot his brother had in mind.

While his hands were up and covering his ears, Chris made his way to his neck and stood dangerously close to the collar of his shirt.

He could practically feel the heat radiating off his brother’s skin as he took note of the blush that had managed to spread from Martin’s face to his neck. He saw the tips of his ears through his fingers and noticed that they even had a tinge of red on them. He didn’t know his older brother could get this flustered!

“You ready~?” He asked teasingly, knowing full well what Martin’s answer was going to be.

“N-nohohohoho! Chrihihihis, d-dohohohon’t do ihihit!”

Chris couldn’t help the smug grin that made its way onto his face, though he didn’t turn to show it to his brother, “Too bad~ Here we go~!”

He stuck his head into the collar of Martin’s shirt, slowly inching his way in. He was only a few inches in when he suddenly pulled himself out and began sniffing at the blue Kratt’s neck. Martin was in no way prepared for this sudden change and nearly let out a squeal as he desperately tried to move his head from side to side to get his brother’s face away from his neck.

“H-hehehehehehey, don’t sniff my nehehehehck!” I-I dohohohon’t smehehehell!”

“That’s not what I’m going for, Martin~ I’m just here to make you laugh, and unless you apologize for what you did to Chris today…” Chris moved down to where Martin’s blush ended on his neck and went right back to sniffing, “You better prepare yourself~”

“I-I cahahahahahahn’t!”

“You can’t apologize? And here I thought you knew basic manners~”

The green pine marten stayed at Martin’s neck for a few more seconds before the sniffing came to an end. However, while his brother had his guard down, Chris quickly zipped into his shirt and ran across his stomach over and over again.

Martin’s only response to the sneak attack was a squeal so loud that it nearly stunned Chris. While he knew that the walls of the Tortuga are rather thick, he highly doubted that Aviva, Koki, and Jimmy were unable to hear that squeal, even if they were outside of the ship.

“CHRIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIS, NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! I-I CAN’T- AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“Huh? What was that, Martin~? I can’t understand you, you’re laughing too hard~” Chris taunted as he kept up the pace and continued to race around on his brother’s torso. He dragged his tail behind him once again, swishing it back and forth to make it tickle even more, and even stopped running a few times to pretend to use it like a paintbrush on Martin’s navel, which nearly resulted in him getting pushed out of his shirt by his hands. It didn’t take long for Chris to notice that Martin’s squirming and pushing was gradually fading, a tell-tale sign that he was nearly at his limit.

“Ready to say sorry yet~?”

“Y-YEHEHEHEHES! YEHEHEHEHEEHS! I’M SOHOHOHOHOHORY! CHRIHIHIHIHIS, PLEAHAHAHAHAHAHASE!”

The moment Martin said sorry, Chris brought the tickles to a halt and carefully climbed out of his sibling’s shirt, doing his best to not make any of his steps tickle him any further.

“Now that wasn’t so hard, was it~?” Chris teased him one last time before he hopped off of him and onto the floor, waiting for his giggly mess of a brother to catch his breath and calm down.

“T-thahahahaht… that wahahahahs evihihihihil…!”

“Good~ That’s what I was going for~ So next time, when you try to bully your brother for an entire day, remember… I will be here to tickle you until you apologize to him for your behavior~” With that, Chris stood up, said, “Deactivate!” and reverted back to his normal appearance and personality.

“You okay, bro?” he asked and held out his hand, worried that he might have taken his tickly punishment a bit too far.

“Y-yeah…” Martin breathed out, taking his younger brother’s hand and letting himself be pulled up into a sitting position. “Just give me a few more seconds to breathe…”

After two deep breaths, he got up off of the bed and stood next to his brother, “Do you think the crew heard me squeal…?”

“Only one way to find out! Come on, let’s see if they’re upstairs!”

A light pink blush returned to Martin’s face, but nonetheless, he went upstairs with Chris into the main room of the Tortuga. When the door opened, they were greeted with the sight of Aviva waiting in front of the big computer, while Koki and Jimmy were at their desks, having turned to face the brothers.

“So…” Aviva started with a smirk, “Who’s going to explain that loud squeal we heard downstairs~?”

Martin’s blush turned a dark red, while Chris just stood there, trying to look as though he had no idea what she was talking about.

“I’m not an expert on human noises, but I don’t think that squeal belonged to any of us.”

“Certainly didn’t come from me! I’d know my own squeals anywhere!” Jimmy responded to Koki’s comment, completely unaware of the engineer creeping up behind him until he heard a, “Boo!”

“AAAAAAH!” Jimmy didn’t squeal, but he did indeed scream and bolted behind Koki and her chair. Everyone couldn’t help but laugh at his panicked reaction.

“Hehehe, I think that’s enough to prove that it wasn’t him~” She then turned her attention back to the brothers, “Sooooooo~?”

The light pink blush Martin had the entire time turned a dark red again as his embarrassment grew, and even Chris couldn’t fight the faint pink blush on his cheeks as he tried his best to play it cool and pretend that he didn’t understand her.

No one said anything for a few seconds, then the blue Kratt finally spoke up, “I-It was me… and I’ve got to admit, Chris is a surprisingly good tickler if he got me to squeal that loud!” Martin quickly regained his usual energy and peered at his brother, who just looked at him with a confused expression.

“Huh? What are you talking about, bro? I didn’t tickle you!”

Martin gave him a “you’re really doing this?” look and decided to play along, “No, that was totally you, Chris, I swear!”

“No way! I’m not as good at tickling people as you are!”

“I think I remember hearing your voice teasing me into oblivion! I’d know your voice anywhere, bro!”

“I’m not good at teasing, either! Martin, I swear, you’re confusing me with someone else!”

For a moment, Koki and Jimmy thought that they were having a genuine argument over a supposed tickle attack, but when Aviva gave them a knowing grin, they immediately caught on to what was really happening.

“Nope, that was totally you! And you know what~?” Martin’s voice turned teasy out of nowhere as he brought his hands up into Chris’s view, wiggling his fingers, “I was lying when I said I was sorry~”

“Huh? Wha-” The younger brother was initially confused before spotting the wiggly fingers that were slowing approaching him, “W-wait, Martin noooOOOOHOHOHOHO DOHHOHOHOHON’T!” He immediately cracked when he felt his older brother’s fingers on his sides, ribs, and belly. It didn’t take for him to try to fall to the floor to escape the ticklish hell that was unleashed upon him, but unfortunately, Martin had followed him down, never stopping his assault.

“Haha, revenge sure is sweet!” Martin cheered, “Okay, I was sort of lying when I said I wasn’t sorry, I did feel bad for you, but right now, I care more about getting my revenge~”

Chris could only laugh and try to curl up as he felt Martin’s hand close in on the center of his stomach, but he managed to trap his hands there instead, sealing his tickly fate.

Aviva, Koki, and Jimmy couldn’t help but laugh along as they watched the chaos unfold in front of them.

“Hehe, these boys will never change, will they~?”

#tickling #wild kratts #Giggle Rats #lee!Martin #ler!Chris #with a little bit of lee!Chris and ler!Martin at the end #featuring a very teasy Aviva #I still can't believe I did this #But I AM CRINGE AND I AM FREE #fun fact: I typed up the last 430 words of this fic on December 22nd (the day before I posted this)#and I'm posting this on December 23rd which just so happens to be Martin Kratt's birthday #Happy Birthday Martin Kratt! What's your gift? your tickle monster of a brother apparently #one more thing: Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!#this is probably going to be my only fic for 2023 #unless I finally finish that Splatoon 3 fic I was working on prior to this one #but if I don't you can expect to see that fic in 2024!#…oh shit I completely forgot that this was a collab fic #sorry fluffykitties!#If you want to see cute headcanons for games like Mr. Love or anime like Boueibu go check her out!#HELP THIS FIC WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE A TITLE #It’s The Other Chris if you want to know!

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enough-spider-noir-stuff · 2 months

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Writing from Hobie's perspective about ATSV is actually super interesting because he has like, zero of the context we do from ITSV. Like, about the dynamics between the characters.

Like, Peter B? Wonder what Hobie thinks about him. Like, okay. There's Miles and he hasn't been allowed into the Society yet because "canon" and these people he's very close friends with haven't deigned him important enough to contact anyways. Okay. That's not looking good.

Now, Gwen Hobie has some context for. She's stayed over with him canonically, he probably knows she was kicked out and her dad tried to arrest her. She doesn't have options outside of the Society. Frankly, they have a concerning and incredibly messed up amount of control over her. (Also that's a perfectly valid reason to hate Miguel, especially since Hobie has a predisposition against authority figures like that. How much Miguel's motives are understandable is also entirely irrelevant in this case.)

So, Gwen didn't contact Miles. Or she did, but only very recently and it immediately spiralled out of control. But it makes sense why she didn't try to reach Miles. It makes sense because she literally did not have a choice.

Peter B on the other hand? That's the only other OG ITSV-gang member Hobie gets to know, from what we see in canon. He's obviously also close to Miles and they mean a lot to each other. But he, too, kept Miles in the dark about everything. He's trying to stop Miles from saving his dad.

Peter B isn't a special case within the Society. Basically everyone is ready to put canon over saving actual lives. But this guy here should have another motivation. And he has nothing stopping him, really. He isn't dependant on the Society. He doesn't rely on them, he can live without them. And still he chose not to visit Miles.

Now it's a bit more complicated than that (and also we're moving into headcanon territory).

"It's not that simple" is easy to say. Peter B has a baby and has to take care of her first of all. He has responsibilities. He's acting according to what he thinks is the right thing, he believes in canon, so why shouldn't he wait a few months and then comfort Miles and help Miles and do all the proper things to do without endangering an entire world or even the multiverse? It's not good, it's not easy, but in the grand scheme of things it's the only right thing to do. Right?

But now we have Hobie, who thinks a lot more than he lets on. He literally built a dimension watch, okay. He's a punk. This guy is smart as shit and he questions everything, especially when it's portrayed as a universal black-and-white truth, especially when going along with that universal truth keeps you in line and just following what the power structure - in this case Miguel - wants you to think.

He's an anarchist. He's a punk. He fights the system. He fights against societal norms - against the society of his home world just as much as the Spider Society. It's a horrible place he comes from, we know that, and community, the punk community, leftist community, whatever, it's the only thing he can likely actually rely on. Okay, headcanon territory, but we're still very close to ATSV and comic canon, I think this is more than reasonable. "If you don't control your government, people want to kill you." (- Anti-Flag). He has canonically killed cops and in the comics it was also the literal president.

If you don't look after your people, your friends, your community, then what are you doing? That's all you have. Community is the core principle of everything. Survival in a world that tried to kill people like you. Being strong enough to fight against that system and bring about change. You can't do any of this alone.

So, whether a rule from above makes sense or not - and this whole canon thing feels dodgy as fuck anyways - friends go first. Friends before government, before absolute rules with no room for any shades of grey.

I think, with what Hobie was able to think and see in ATSV, he wouldn't trust Peter B. At all. This guy chose the rules over a friend. He chose conformity over community. That's the people who enforce the government's rule even without being cops themselves. That's the ones who make the world worse through inaction.

If Hobie was in Gwen's shoes, I think he'd have gone after Miles regardless, but - and this is headcanons based on the comics, but it adds up okay - but Hobie never had the chance to fit into a system in the first place. He never would have been accepted, never could have kept his head down if he tried, or he wouldn't have ended up the face of a revolutionary movement. Comics Hobie evidently didn't give a shit about consequences when they stood up against Osborn and the Venom cops. "I'm a radioactive suicide machine" - he wasn't in a good space of mind, but I think the attitude fits. Fuck consequences, fuck the future you might never even see, what matters is that you do the right thing for as long as you can, and that might be just now and never again. ("That's the way I like it baby, I don't wanna live forever.")

Gwen doesn't think like that and she's scared and drifting and dependant on the Society. It's not the right thing, maybe, but it's somewhat understandable. She's a kid who just lost everything.

Peter B has no excuses.

I mean, every character acts in accordance to what they think is right. They all have a point, in their own ways. That's honestly the beauty of the spider-verse films - there's no paper cutouts, all those characters have their own motivations (all understandable in their own right), and the conflicts are natural.

And it's so so so fun to actually get really deep into Hobie's perspective to explore all of this.

(Also anyone, feel free to add on or anything really, i just pulled this out of my ass but it's so interesting sdkjcsncdhbaks)

#hobie brown #spider punk #peter b parker #gwen stacy #lowkey analysing the characters lmao #a biscuit's rambles #vaguely related to #wmm #when multiverses meet au #character analysis #?#idk

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donner-mathis-official · 11 months

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Time to think about Molly because all of the characters in this game drive me insane with the little tidbits we get to know about them.

Ok so it’s pretty clearly hinted at that her husband was a terrible man that she didn’t want to marry (“I could have been something!”, really the whole conversation about his death), and directly stated that she very intentionally left him to die.

There are two things about her, though, that I really find fascinating. They’re more theory than outright, but I think I can back them up. Those are:

1) Molly tried to get out of the relationship as best she could with what she was given, long before the events of the game.

2) Molly knows that her murder spree is morally questionable, but has decided that even if it’s wrong, if she saves someone else from being hurt by a bad man, then it’s worth it.

Let’s start with the first one.

I firmly believe she talked to Father Thomas at some point about her relationship. He’s a religious leader, and, based on the fact that he was the one to gather people into the community centre, is probably a community leader as well. The type of person you go to when you need help. Molly says Father Thomas won’t help Astrid (indirectly but she has been roaming Pleasant Valley for a week post-first flare at time of our first entrance, so she must know he’s the only one there when she says “nobody there will help you”), and it tracks that he likely would not have helped her out of that relationship. Most Christian sects, to my knowledge, are against divorce to some degree, and we’ve seen that Father Thomas has no qualms with pushing his religious views onto others (making Astrid take the rosary). All of this together means it’s highly likely Molly tried to get out the “right” way first. She did everything she was supposed to, and still found herself stuck. Given that scenario, it’s obvious why, when the wolves gave her an out, she took it.

As for her knowing what she’s doing is wrong, I’d like to point to her asking if Mackenzie is one of the good ones. I absolutely love this line, because it says so much about who she is. It’s her offering Astrid something she was never given; a chance to get out. It’s her acknowledging that there are good men, and that she doesn’t want to kill them. That she only wants to kill the ones that will hurt people like she was hurt. Then following that up with “then I hope I never meet him”? This is probably my favorite exchange in Wintermute because it’s so short and direct yet says volumes. She wants Astrid to be happy and find her good one again. She would rather a risk a good man dying than a bad man going free. This isn’t just a revenge quest against any man she thinks is bad; it’s her trying, in her own way, to keep people safe and make the world better. This shows too, in her choice to leave Father Thomas alive. He’s a sitting duck, with no way of protecting himself. She could have killed him. She clearly holds contempt for him, and if you subscribe to the first theory I posited, he’s a large factor in why she had to stay in that horrible marriage. But she chose to leave Father Thomas alive, and I think that’s in no small part because she knows that those plane crash victims need him. That even if he screwed her over, he’s making the world better right now.

Anyways I love her and I think more women should kill people

#the long dark #tld #tld Molly #astrid greenwood #tld father thomas #long post #i wrote this in one go in the passenger seat of my car please excuse any mistakes

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thranduel · 2 years

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van scene analysis (+ hidden lines that got cut)

mike smiles a bit, looking back at that drawing, feeling better now.

will byers made mike wheeler feel better. his painting and his words made him happy and gave him strength. he was struggling before that and no one else could help him. only will.

don’t you think it’s crazy that mike has been in a relationship for several years, and the entire time, he never felt truly needed or confident about himself? how is that healthy or fair for a teenager with so much unresolved trauma? and how do you think el felt too? he couldn’t even say “i love you” to his own girlfriend or write it on paper. there is no communication or trust or honesty with their relationship, because if there was, their issues would’ve been resolved a long time ago WITHOUT the help of someone else. mike has been insecure during this entire relationship which has mentally affected him AND el.

several years of being in a relationship. kissing, hugging, holding hands and probably hundreds of letters sent as well. and yet, mike still didn’t feel needed. he didn’t feel confident. he didn’t feel loved enough. but all it took was one beautiful heart-to-heart conversation with will that changed everything. just ONE scene where will confessed his own feelings and told mike how much he loves him and that he’ll always need him, and mike suddenly felt strong and loved. he believed every word because it all came from will, and will was talking about his OWN feelings for mike. isn’t that crazy? one painting and one conversation with will byers and mike wheeler felt loved, truly loved, for the first time in his life. he felt more loved and needed in that single moment than he has felt during his entire relationship that he’s been in for years. mike doesn’t trust anyone the way he trusts will and he can’t be his true self with anyone else either. THAT is what shows us that mike and will are the ones that need each other more than anything. they make each other feel loved and needed because they have a connection that no one else has and they understand each other better than anyone else.

and the thing about mike and will is that their relationship is NOT based upon emotional attachment because they saved each other’s lives or feel like they owe each other something. no, they found each other when they were both lonely and mike made the choice to walk up to will. he didn’t have to choose him, but he did. out of all the other kids in the playground, he chose will. he didn’t even know anything about him. he just saw himself in him, another lonely kid, and thought that he might need someone too. then they became close because they’re so similar to each other and share the same interests. it has nothing to do with idolising each other or being amazed by what the other can do. they’re just two regular boys that love each other for who they are. they found each other when they needed each other most, they stayed by each other’s side through all their struggles (being bullied and outcasted) and they played games together as an escape and distraction from the real world. they have known each other for most of their lives, understand each other better than anyone else and have a connection that no one else can replace. after all, mike did say that asking will to be his friend was the best thing he’s ever done.

anyways, moving on. the fact that mike and el are unable to make each other feel better about themselves without the help of will says a LOT… el’s letters and her constant affection wasn’t enough to convince mike she “needs” him. he was still insecure and couldn’t even tell her he loved her when she was sobbing. mike also couldn’t comfort el or make her feel better during the entire roller rink incident. he just triggered traumatic memories and made her feel like a monster, which she literally told him.

but then will, kind and selfless will, gave mike his beautiful painting that he worked so hard on and pretended it was commissioned by el. already, that’s gonna make mike think “wow, she cares about me so much and she was thinking of me so she went out of her way to ask will to paint this. she knows how important d&d is to me and she sees me as the leader and the heart of the group” or something like that, but the thing is, she didn’t say any of that. and mike should’ve realised it wasn’t from her because she literally mentioned in her letter that will was painting something for someone he likes but he won’t show her. also, i’ve never even seen el talk about d&d. does she even know how much it means to the boys? mike and el don’t have anything in common and haven’t even had a proper heart-to-heart conversation where they’re actually honest with each other. they barely even know each other.

anyways, will then gave his speech about the heart. this was a very big thing that gave mike strength and confidence. will literally told mike that he inspires all of them and that he’s the leader, and the heart can also be seen as a romantic symbol. mike still thinks this is coming from el and that she made all that up herself when she didn’t.

then will continues. and here’s where it gets confusing. it’s extremely weird that mike doesn’t pick up on the fact he’s not talking about el, because the words he says literally cannot be applied to el. it doesn’t make any sense.

“but… you make her feel like she’s not a mistake at all — like she’s better for being different.”

we already know this is false. and mike should too, considering his last conversation with her was their fight where she said “you think i’m a monster too.” not to mention all the times he’s been scared of her, yelled at her and triggered traumatic memories from the lab which parallel brenner (i still find it weird that mike has the most parallels with brenner in regards to the way he talks to el sometimes and how he only praises her for her powers and for being a “superhero” instead of who she actually is as a person. obviously mike and brenner are very different people, but it’s just weird how the show intentionally includes flashbacks of brenner whenever mike triggers el to show that’s who she’s thinking of).

even when mike was talking about her to will, he started with “she’s… special. she was born special”. that entire scene was only him talking about her powers, how she’s like superman, how it wasn’t fate or destiny but dumb luck that he stumbled on her in the woods (because he doesn’t believe in love at first sight and this has been clear since the beginning), and how he wants to be needed. he didn’t even mention the word “love”. he’s just worried about not being needed because he’s insecure about himself. the entire thing feels weird. their whole relationship just screams “two kids that saved each other’s lives during a traumatic time and are emotionally attached to each other and feel like they’re stuck in a romantic relationship because that’s all they’ve known since they rushed into it and kissed when they were 12 years old after 6 days of knowing each other”, and it’s really sad.

even though they didn’t start technically dating until season 3, romance was already pushed onto them the moment mike kissed her in season 1. it’s like he already decided what their relationship was going to be even though el couldn’t communicate at the same level as him and didn’t know what romance was. they had no time to develop a friendship first. they barely even knew each other. even now, they still don’t. they don’t have anything in common, they don’t feel like equals (both of them admitted this), they don’t understand each other, they don’t make each other feel better about themselves, they don’t have heart-to-heart conversations, there’s no trust and honesty, they always lie to each other, they pretend to be people they’re not and they can’t even be themselves with each other.

it’s also very interesting that this line from mike was cut from the final scene.

“she’s already beginning to understand she doesn’t need me. i saw it — i saw it in her eyes, that last time we talked.”

like, wow. even mike knows that el doesn’t actually need him. that’s why he’s so insecure. and that’s why it makes will’s monologue even more frustrating and heartbreaking because he tried fixing their relationship when he didn’t have to. they were probably ready to break up (which would’ve been better for both of them) if it weren’t for will pushing them back together. and isn’t it crazy that he pushed them back together by lying? something that all the characters don’t like? the iconic phrase “friends don’t lie” has been a part of the show since the beginning.

that’s why they have to come back and address this scene. they can’t just let mike and el stay together because of will’s lies that “fixed” their relationship (it didn’t actually fix anything because mike and el didn’t even communicate at all. i don’t think they’ve ever actually resolved their issues properly) and they can’t let mike not find out that the painting and monologue was from will because it was such an important scene. there are too many lies going on here and they can’t just leave it like that. but anyways, it hurts so much seeing will try to fix their relationship by sacrificing his own feelings and disguising them as el’s. will was clearly heartbroken too, but he just wanted to do what he could to make the people he loves happy. he didn’t want them to be sad. he’s the most kind and selfless person in this entire show.

anyways, back to will’s monologue.

“and that gives her the courage to fight on.”

again, that can’t be applied to el. the last time mike was alone with her, they were fighting and she was having a breakdown in front of him. he wasn’t giving her courage, he was hurting her. obviously he wasn’t trying to do that, but he was. and i’m not saying he’s never given her courage, because of course he has, but i’m specifically talking about the last moment they had together before she left to go with owens. the way he spoke to her and stared at her at the roller rink, the way he triggered a traumatic memory from brenner when he said “what did you do?”, the way he didn’t comfort her or talk to her after it, the way he made a sarcastic comment and made her leave the dinner table, the way he gaslighted her and called her ridiculous for confronting him about their issues (see, no honest communication), the way he couldn’t even tell her he loved her when she was practically begging.

like he said above, “she’s already beginning to understand she doesn’t need me. i saw it — i saw it in her eyes, that last time we talked”. he’s literally aware of how she felt in that scene and he admitted it. so how does he believe will when he said he gives her the courage to fight on? mike knows el made the decision to leave with owens as well even though she might not ever see him again. she even sent him a letter saying “from, el” because she felt defeated and lonely and he wasn’t giving her the love she wanted. she also knew that saving her friends in danger was more important than her relationship issues with mike, and she thought getting her powers back might make her feel worth something at least since mike was no help. she was already insecure about not having her powers since that’s all mike talked about anyways.

“and if she was mean to you or — or she seemed like she was pushing you away — it’s probably just because she was scared of losing you, just like you’re scared of losing her.”

another line that can’t be applied to el because she wasn’t “mean” to mike and never pushed him away. she constantly sent him letters. they were communicating the entire time. mike even saw the shrine she made for him in his room, so obviously he knows how much effort she’s been putting into their relationship.

the only person that was “mean” to mike and pushed him away was will. we know this because they lost contact. they literally argued about it. “maybe you should’ve reached out more, i don’t know”, was what mike said to will. and obviously will remembered that and he saw how hurt mike looked. so will was trying to apologise for that and let him know the truth about why he pushed him away (but obviously he disguised it as el… ugh mike how are you not putting it together??).

then the line “it’s probably just because she’s scared of losing you, just like you’re scared of losing her” is literally a parallel to mike and will’s conversation in 4x04. will is responding to what mike told him about being scared of losing him. mike said “it’s hawkins. it’s not the same without you” and “maybe i felt like i lost you or something”. these lines can only be applied to mike and will.

“because losing you — it just hurts — it hurts too much.”

this line is absolutely heartbreaking because it tells us how much will is hurting. the thought of losing his safe place, his best friend and the boy he’s in love with is so incredibly painful for him. why would they put him through all of this pain and make him be in love with mike from the beginning if they were just going to make it unrequited? like they said, it hurts too much. not just a little bit, but TOO MUCH. and after everything will has been through and how he’s been abused, bullied, kidnapped, possessed, traumatised, excluded and lonely his entire life, how can they make him suffer even more? that’s so cruel and unnecessary and they’ll get so much backlash for using will’s feelings as a plot device just to force another ship back together while leaving him heartbroken. also, how can this line be applied to el anyways? she chose to go with owens even though she was warned she might not ever see mike again. she even sent him a letter saying “from, el” which symbolised her being done with him. the “love” was no longer there (literally and metaphorically, in regards to the romantic aspect of their relationship). she already lost mike. she made her decision.

“so yeah — el needs you, mike. and she always will.”

mike takes this all in. emotional now too.

mike wants to be needed the way that will needs him. will’s painting and the words he said made mike emotional because no one else has ever made him feel that way. no one else has ever given him that much strength and confidence about himself.

“you really think so?”

“i know so.”

once again, mike is asking will for reassurance, because will is the only person he feels completely safe with. he’s the only person he fully trusts, the only person he can confide in, the only person he can be vulnerable with. mike and will have the closest relationship and understand each other better than anyone else. that’s why mike can only believe things when it comes from will.

the fact that will is the person that made mike happy and is the only reason why mike ended up saying his monologue to el is exactly why season 5 needs to come back to this scene and address everything. they cannot just use will’s painting and feelings for mike as a plot device for another ship. he cannot be the couple’s therapist that fixes their problems when they can’t even do that themselves. that’s just insulting to his character and it’s wrong for so many reasons. mike has to find out the painting was from will. he has to find out that will was confessing his own feelings the entire time too. all of this came from will. he put so much effort into that painting for mike and he meant every word he said. will needs mike. he’ll always need mike. and mike needs will too even if he doesn’t realise it yet. mike wants to be needed the way will needs him. he wants to be loved the way will loves him. he wants to be seen as the leader and the heart the way will sees him as the leader and the heart.

mike and will need each other more than anything and they have to finally realise that in season 5.

#byler #mike wheeler #will byers #stranger things #byler analysis #i’ve already spoken about most of this but there were some new hidden lines i had to discuss lol

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misstressshelby · 2 years

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So I saw some people talking about Lizzie and Tommy so, of course, it got me thinking. I can understand why people question the love between the both of them. Their love is realistic and subtle. They're not a fairytale, that wouldn't make sense for either character. But love isn't always perfect or pretty.

But there is love in knowing another person.

By S6 Tommy and Lizzie have known each other for 14 years and have been married for 7 of them. They came from the same place and both clawed their way to the top. She understands him better than most.

There is love in comfort.

He uses sex to bring him comfort and that is how their relationship begins.

Throughout the series, Tommy calms people down by grabbing their faces. Lizzie does the same for Tommy multiple times. Tommy holds Lizzie on the stairs when Ruby is sick. They share a lot of subtle touches the whole season. Like when Lizzie grabs his hand in his office and he has to tell her "not yet" because he can't allow himself that comfort at that point.

When he loses Grace and when he is dealing with the memory of Greta he turns to Lizzie. He could've gone to anyone either of those times but he chose Lizzie to be with in those vulnerable moments.

There is love in choosing the other person.

In S5 Lizzie tells Tommy that she called a solicitor but she hung up because it was still him. That was her telling him she could have left but she chose to stay.

Tommy chooses to marry Lizzie. I've seen people say it's because of his political agenda but I don't buy that. Plenty of rich men hide mistresses and bastards away from the public eye. I don't think him marrying a former prostitute wouldn't have helped his image. (Because I 100% believe all of those people know what Lizzie used to be.) But he chose to marry her anyway for whatever reason.

There is love in growing together.

At the begging of S6 Tommy and Lizzie are the healthiest we've ever seen them. They are communicating with each other. When Tommy has outbursts he apologizes to her immediately. Lizzie listens to him when he tells her to keep Ruby out of school, away from the river, and give her a black madonna. All of that is a huge improvement from their dynamic in S5.

You can argue if their love is romantic, platonic, or familiar but there is love between the two of them.

#i call them my dysfunctional duo for a reason #my dysfunctional duo #i could add more but im tired

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academyofbrokenhearts · 3 months

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Instead of Dancing Alone, I Should Be Dancing with You (II)

Kaya and Suna have a talk early in the morning, after their respective conversations with İfakat and Seyran, but prior to the epic Nükhet fake meltdown in 45.

AU scene.

Author note: I NEED THEM TO TALK SO BADLY might as well be my motto as far as KaySun is concerned. A true partnership is based on communication, so this is exactly what I want them to do. The basis for this was already planted in the previous chapter, and now they are starting to build on it.

AO3 link here.

Suna is deep in thought on the terrace, a mug full of cold, untouched coffee in her hands.

It's still quite early in the day, but she somehow managed to have a harsh fight with Seyran already. She had wanted to tell her sister not to worry, that everything was going to be okay, that Kaya was not influenced by İfakat, or anyone else, really, into marrying her. That they had taken a mutually beneficial decision like the adults they were supposed to be regarded as.

But all of it became suddenly too much; Ferit's judgemental attitude from the evening before, after having caught her and Kaya immediately post proposal, her father's unbearable pressure, Seyran's disbelief and her firm opinion that Suna, poor, naive Suna, was somehow manipulated into this, all of it exploding into hurtful words, screams and then silence.

She sighs quietly; she had hoped that Seyran would understand, that she would at least make an effort to, but it doesn't seem like it is in the cards for the time being. And it hurts, because she has always been on Seyran's side, and yet it seems like she is cursed never to receive the same energy in return.

"Even if you frown at that coffee, it's not going to get warm again, you know," she hears Kaya behind her, and turns to him, the corners of her mouth rising up in a small smile.

She hadn't seen him today just yet; her last glimpse of him had been last night, after they turned their back on Ferit and his neverending ramble, and entered the house hand in hand, letting go only when they reached her door. He never even kissed her, but she liked the way his hand squeezed hers before letting go, and the expression on his face when he said good night.

He keeps himself at a respectful distance; not even her father could normally comment on this scene, if he were to stumble upon it, although, Suna suspects, he would probably use it to put even more pressure towards their impending nuptials.

So she dutifully warns him:

"You need to be careful. My father could appear at any moment."

Kaya shrugs and smiles, unbothered.

"We are about to get married, and anyway, I need to speak to you. If he sees us, I can just tell him we were discussing our wedding. I don't think he would raise any objections to that. But forget him," he adds, when Suna tries to protest. "You don't look well, did something happen?"

"Nothing, just..." Suna sighs. "It's just Seyran, you know."

"Ah, let me guess," Kaya says, understanding glimmering in his eyes. "She does not approve."

"She doesn't," Suna confirms, eyes turning far away in the distance, words tumbling down before she can stop herself. "She thinks you've been manipulated into this by İfakat, that you don't want me, that I won't be happy, she told me all of that. Even more, she told me she won't support me as long as I insist marrying you, and I just..."

Her eyes are slowly filling up with tears, and she closes them, breathing in and out, in an effort to stay calm.

"I just... I always supported her, Kaya. Even back then, when I was rejected, and Ferit chose her, even if my life became a living hell since then, I was always at her side. Never asking for anything in return. And now... my father almost kills me in the middle of the street, and you... you are more on my side than my own flesh and blood, and it's just so... I just can't believe it. I would have reassured her, but she is just so quick to judge, and she doesn't even realise how much it hurts, she doesn't understand that I need to be free, to be my own person. Why? Am I asking for too much?"

"You're not," Kaya speaks, his voice full of tenderness, and then she feels him right behind her, his hands squeezing her shoulders gently, reassuringly. "I know. I know what you mean. God, I know it so well. I know it hurts now, but give her time. She will come around."

"And if she never does?" Suna asks, turning to him, her voice broken, sobs choking her breath.

"We will deal with it together when the moment comes," he promises. "No use to worry about that now. Don't cry. I want this to be a good moment for you, and no one is allowed to upset you, as long as I have a say in this."

And there's something about the way he says it, with determination, as if it's the most important thing for him at that very moment, that makes her set aside the mug and stand on her toes to kiss his cheek.

It's very brief, and she's blushing at the end, almost unable to look at him. When she finally does, she sees it: a mix of surprise, but also something that is definitely pleasure, in his eyes, and her heart skips a beat.

"Um, anyway," she begins, trying to act like she's not blushing even more, and like it's not obvious he noticed. "You were saying you wanted to speak to me?"

"Speak to you. Well, yes," he says. "I did."

"Well, then go ahead," she replies, when it becomes obvious he's not that eager to continue. "I hope there's nothing wrong?"

"Not necessarily, but not that pleasant either." He sighs, then goes on: "Mrs İfakat came to my room last night and told me to stop the wedding. I said no, of course," he adds quickly, not giving her time to say anything, "I told her I took a decision and that it was going to happen, and I am not telling you this to upset you. Just... for you to know. So that you can be careful."

Well, Suna thinks, bitterly. It was her fault, probably, for believing that İfakat could have something in her that might have resembled humanity.

At the same time, though, her heart skips another beat, because he is keeping his promise. He has her back, like he said he would. And it's right then and there, with her cheeks still keeping a trace of warmth, in spite of what is it yet another betrayal she didn't quite expect, that she's making a silent promise to herself that she will do her best to support him as well.

Later, when Nükhet causes an entire commotion, and announces she will leave the house and take Kaya with her, he declares in front of the entire mansion that he will stay behind and get married, just as he promised he will.

And Suna is not surprised at all.

#Yalı Çapkını #Yali Capkini #Kaya Sönmez #Suna Şanlı #Kaya Sonmez #Suna Sanli #KaySun #AU #fan fiction #Instead of Dancing Alone I Should Be Dancing with You #writing #made by me #a scene I made up in my head #why put the Suna and Seyran fight scene in written form when I could make KaySun talk about it instead #and build more trust in the process

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esther-dot · 2 years

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There is so much speculation about the Snowsequel! We have the “doom” side and we have the “Jonsa can still win” side and it’s kind of entertaining to see both sides lol. I am a bit surprised by the antis reaction too, it’s incredible how much they still hate Sansa when by show canon the one who actually won the game of thrones and wears the crown that was supposed to be Dragon Barbie’s was Bran??

Funny how they don’t say anything about how Bran will die and how much Jon hates him? Hmmm.

Anyway, I was wondering something about the show. We could say that technically all the Starks had a happy ending except Jon. In spite of the awful writing we can see how Sansa has a purpose, Bran is ruling, and Arya is out there having fun and discovering stuff.

But Jon is...punished, or exiled, or something like that, leaving audiences confused. They refused to present Jon as the villain and yet, he didn’t end as a hero either.

I find it quite suspicious, because in the final montage they present all the Starks as happy, and let Jon keep his sword and Ghost and his wildling friends and that is not the ending of a failed leader, or a broken man, cursed by kinslaying. Either Jon is part of the pack and somehow ends on top like the rest of them, or...falls and ends like a villain. In which case his ending should have been even worse that it was.

So, to me, Jon’s ending is purposely obscured and there is something inexplicable about his not cursed ending (as there is for Tyrion, but I digress).

Do you think the show omitted essential info (idk, something about Brandon’s Gift or something) about how Jon ends in the North again?

I’m on the “doom” side but I’m cheering on the “Jonsa can still win” side!

It really doesn’t matter to me if the rest of the fandom likes Sansa or not, but the obsessive hatred of her in some corners is disturbing. I guess maybe D&D spared Bran some hate by ignoring him instead of subjecting him to their crap writing and the the fandom kinda follows their lead and ignores him too. Silver linings? 😬

“...and let Jon keep his sword and Ghost and his wildling friends and that is not the ending of a failed leader, or a broken man, cursed by kinslaying”

I like your evidence that Jon isn’t cursed/this isn’t meant to be a hopeless ending for him. It’s certainly possible that D&D, out of fear of backlash if they gave Dany’s assassin a good ending, chose to send him to the Wall again rather than give him an unambiguously good ending. The riding off with the FF thing could have even been them thinking, “well gee, he’s our second most popular character, maybe it’s too much to send him to the Wall. Let’s fuzzy this ending to allow people to imagine it anywhere on the scale of back in the Watch or fucking off forever to make snow angels with Tormund.” I did think a lot of s8 was written to manage the audience, not to tell a good/believable story, so I wouldn’t put it past them to have had such a though process. There’s also the possibility that the weirdness around Jon’s ending could simply be the product of their failure to communicate well. The actors have said things that contradict the director of any given episode and D&D contradict that, and each other, and themselves, so that may be the explanation. They were each telling a different story? I mean, reading the finale script was surreal because some of what was said wasn’t really the same as what we saw 😂

When I heard Martin was on board for the Jonsquel, I did think maybe it pointed to the endgame being Jon in exile before a Jonsa reunion when they’re older. I’m not sure who pointed this out after the finale, but it would be another parallel between Aragorn and Arwen if this was the case. Aragorn fell in love with Arwen but then went off as a ranger for some time before they were reunited. It’s possible Martin thought to the end the stories with a promise that a sequel could explore, but then again, it could just be him trying to prevent HBO from going further off the rails with Jon. I’m trying not to read too much into it because I’m not sure that he could put the kibosh on anything even if he really disliked the idea, so I don’t think it confirms anything.

Jon, Lord of the Gift, is a very popular theory in our circle and for good reason. I can’t remember who started it now, but I think of it as istumpysk and agentrouka-blog‘s baby, each of whom I consider more an ASOIAF expert than myself. However, I totally believed Martin that GoT’s ending would be his, and in spite of how I feel about the ending, I’ve never been able to let that belief go, no matter how much I want to. I’m not going to try to persuade people not to believe in alternative endings, I’d like to believe it myself! This one in particular has lots of quotes that make you go 👀👀👀

"Who holds this land?" Jojen asked Bran.

"The Night's Watch," he answered. "This is the Gift. The New Gift, and north of that Brandon's Gift." Maester Luwin had taught him the history. "Brandon the Builder gave all the land south of the Wall to the black brothers, to a distance of twenty-five leagues. For their . . . for their sustenance and support." He was proud that he still remembered that part. "Some maesters say it was some other Brandon, not the Builder, but it's still Brandon's Gift. Thousands of years later, Good Queen Alysanne visited the Wall on her dragon Silverwing, and she thought the Night's Watch was so brave that she had the Old King double the size of their lands, to fifty leagues. So that was the New Gift." He waved a hand. "Here. All this." (ASOS, Bran III)

(each time we get Brandon confusion sirens go off in my head!)

and

"What happened to them?"

"They died or went away." Brandon's Gift had been farmed for thousands of years, but as the Watch dwindled there were fewer hands to plow the fields, tend the bees, and plant the orchards, so the wild had reclaimed many a field and hall. In the New Gift there had been villages and holdfasts whose taxes, rendered in goods and labor, helped feed and clothe the black brothers. But those were largely gone as well.

and

After. The word was a spear thrust. After the war. After the conquest. After the wildlings break the Wall . . . His lord father had once talked about raising new lords and settling them in the abandoned holdfasts as a shield against wildlings. The plan would have required the Watch to yield back a large part of the Gift, but his uncle Benjen believed the Lord Commander could be won around, so long as the new lordlings paid taxes to Castle Black rather than Winterfell. "It is a dream for spring, though," Lord Eddard had said. "Even the promise of land will not lure men north with a winter coming on."

If winter had come and gone more quickly and spring had followed in its turn, I might have been chosen to hold one of these towers in my father's name. Lord Eddard was dead, however, his brother Benjen lost; the shield they dreamt together would never be forged. "This land belongs to the Watch," Jon said.

(ASOS, Jon V)

and

Jon ignored that. "I have given you fodder for your horses, and once the stair is done I will lend you builders to restore the Nightfort. I have even agreed to allow you to settle wildlings on the Gift, which was given to the Night's Watch in perpetuity." (ADWD, Jon I) it’s included in The World of Ice and Fire

and

Though in these days it is said that Lord Ellard Stark was glad to aid the Night's Watch with the Gift, and took little convincing, the truth is otherwise. Letters from Lord Stark's brother to the Citadel, asking the maesters to provide precedents against the forced donation of property, made it plain that the Starks were not eager to do as King Jaehaerys bid. It may be that the Starks feared that, under the control of the Castle Black, the New Gift would inevitably decline—for the Night's Watch would always look northward and never give much thought to their new tenants to the south. And as it happens, that soon came to pass, and the New Gift is now said to be largely unpopulated thanks to the decline of the Watch and the rising toll taken by raiders from beyond the Wall. (The World of Ice and Fire - The North: The Lords of Winterfell)

The fact that this is an old Stark grievance and Ned and Benjen had plans to deal with it is very promising. Rectifying that old wrong, making the land safe and purposeful again, that definitely seems like it would fit really well as part of the endgame. I always liked the idea that Jon could take the throne, but instead makes it possible for Bran to be king to right the aftermath of the conquest (if we assume independence for Dorne as well, not just the North?), so if the followup to that is Jon getting to live out an abandoned dream…that’s beautiful! And it makes sense that Jon would be the candidate who can best keep peace between FF (those who settle South of the Wall, any who don’t) and the Northerners. So, it certainly is an idea that we can look at the books and argue there is evidence Martin is heading there.

And I do believe that D&D were so determined people wouldn’t guess the ending that they could have chosen not to do the necessary set up and then sent Jon to the Wall because there didn’t have anything else to do. I’ve also seen spec that their ending is premature, that Jon is sentenced but then Sansa as QitN brings Jon home. After s8, it’s impossible to think D&D cared much about Jon/his ending, so I do always have that little bit of hope that theirs is a variation of the ending, not the real ending.

I have a big gripe with the ending as it stands for Jon reasons (obviously) but also, I don’t think the Watch should continue to exist? Forcing these kids to swear away wives/children/their lives is gross. But, I don’t have anything that I can point to as proof that the Watch will be disbanded. I find that possibly wishful thinking on my part. Although, I don’t know why we spend so much time witnessing the futility of making kids forswear family if there isn’t some change. And the one thing that does give me hope there (and this would indicate Jon’s ending is something else) is that I believe the Wall will fall, so something about how the Watch functions will change. One other thing that seems promising is the inclusion of the idea of being a shield/protector of the North in both the Watch’s vows and the Gift idea:

“the shield that guards the realms of men” which makes the quotes about the Gift very very interesting: “as a shield against wildlings” and “the shield they dreamt together would never be forged” (AGOT, Jon VI; ASOS, Jon V)

If the Others are completely gone, the main problem in the North would be reconciling the two cultures, finding a way for the FF to live without being a threat to or threatened by the Northern lords. Jon could be the means of progressing Ned and Benjen’s plan into the future/using his sympathy and understanding of the FF he’s developed through the series while continuing to shoulder this role he picked up in AGOT.

And yet, because of things Martin has said in general about the tone he wants for his ending, because of what he’s said about his favorite type of romances (I am a firm believer in Jonsa, just not the HEA kind anymore), and lines in Jon chapters that in hindsight are pretty upsetting, I accept that he always intended Jon to go back to the Wall or a self-imposed exile. I’m not happy about that, but there are some things I just can’t believe were D&D’s idea. It’s a little too tidy when s7-8 had so so so much sloppiness.

I was rereading AGOT, and I simply can’t accept that Martin wasn’t writing AGOT, Jon VIII without thinking of ways to further test Jon. I don’t think he wrote that convo with Aemon solely about Jon attempting to leave the Wall in AGOT, or about Jon trying to leave in ADWD. It feels like the grounding for Jon’s final test, the same way we’re clued into Bran’s role in defeating the others in AGOT, the same way we’re hammered over the head with Arya’s noncomfority and strong sense of justice, the same way Sansa is the voice against violence and the representation of innocents who suffer as a result...Jon’s fate seems clearly fixed in the author’s mind with the love/son/family issue mentioned before he joins the Watch, brought up again here, and so damn likely in the end. And, the sacrifice that it would entail makes the ending meaningful. If Jon were to betray and/or kill Dany onyl to escape any consequences, I think it wouldn’t tell the story Martin wanted to tell with him.

The ending of this Jaime chapter seems very significant when it is followed by the Jon chapter in which he is sent off to assassinate Mance:

Defeated in the Whispering Wood by the Young Wolf Robb Stark during the War of the Five Kings. Held captive at Riverrun and ransomed for a promise unfulfilled. Captured again by the Brave Companions, and maimed at the word of Vargo Hoat their captain, losing his sword hand to the blade of Zollo the Fat. Returned safely to King's Landing by Brienne, the Maid of Tarth.

When he was done, more than three-quarters of his page still remained to be filled between the gold lion on the crimson shield on top and the blank white shield at the bottom. Ser Gerold Hightower had begun his history, and Ser Barristan Selmy had continued it, but the rest Jaime Lannister would need to write for himself. He could write whatever he chose, henceforth.

Whatever he chose . . . (ASOS, Jaime IX)

The crimson and white is very Jon, there’s always a lot about those two colors and him, blood on snow, and there’s this very interesting quote in the following Jon chapter:

"Aye," Slynt said. "A blind man with a chain about his neck, who does he think he is?"

Aemon Targaryen, Jon thought, a king's son and a king's brother and a king who might have been. But he said nothing. (ASOS, Jon X)

I always thought there was a lot to mine in the Jon and Jaime parallels although I haven’t read all that much about them. I wrote this little thing after s8 though because again, some of this stuff folds together a little too well to be a coincidence. But anyway, this idea of determining who you want to be, accepting the consequences of those actions and what people may then think of you, choosing your fate...this will be a huge thing for Jon going forward, and the line “he said nothing” really gives me pause. I find the idea that Jon might choose to be Snow rather than Stark or Targ very compelling. The idea of him remaining Snow only has meaning if he makes that choice, creates himself, chooses his own path, so to me, having the chance at a Stark crown and then a Targ one, refusing both, that’s rewarding. It’s my preferred reading. And, it actually brings me back to your mention of Jon’s sword. It isn’t the Stark sword, and the Mormont bear was replaced with Ghost, so it fits well with Jon’s being his own person, shaped by Ned’s ideals but influenced by other mentor figures, given a weapon that Ned didn’t offer him the same way Jon’s additional mentors teach him things/encourage him to function in ways Ned wouldn’t have…lots of fun things to think about there. Also, Bran has a peculiar line that could eventually be a parallel line to Jon’s, wishing for Summer, rather than the Stark sigil, on his chest,

“He would sooner have had Summer than a silver wolf on his breast” (ACOK, Bran III)

By that I mean, Jon having Longclaw in the end of GoT and Bran a raven sigil isn’t necessarily out of nowhere. The idea that neither is an extension of House Stark but rather, the outgrowth of good things into far bigger, and also, far more personal things...well...that seems very likely although, not really what we would want if the endgame is Jon married to Sansa in Winterfell.

This ASOS chapter stresses me too. The combination of R+L=J, Jon having to assassinate someone, and all of it preceded by this--

A grim day. Jon Snow wrapped gloved hands around the bars and held tight as the wind hammered at the cage once more. When he looked straight down past his feet, the ground was lost in shadow, as if he were being lowered into some bottomless pit. Well, death is a bottomless pit of sorts, he reflected, and when this day's work is done my name will be shadowed forever. Bastard children were born from lust and lies, men said; their nature was wanton and treacherous. Once Jon had meant to prove them wrong, to show his lord father that he could be as good and true a son as Robb. I made a botch of that. Robb had become a hero king; if Jon was remembered at all, it would be as a turncloak, an oathbreaker, and a murderer. He was glad that Lord Eddard was not alive to see his shame. (ASOS, Jon X)

Well, it looks like a bleak future for our boy. I’ve written alternative interpretations of this quote, and I suppose someone could argue that it is about Jon attempting to leave the Wall in ADWD, but the Aemon reference means this is also about what comes later imo. I’m dragged back to AGOT by this quote, where Jon leaves the Wall and thinks of Aemon and honor and betrayal there as well.

When Jon did not appear to fetch the Old Bear's breakfast from the kitchen, they'd look in his cell and find Longclaw on the bed. It had been hard to abandon it, but Jon was not so lost to honor as to take it with him. Even Jorah Mormont had not done that, when he fled in disgrace. Doubtless Lord Mormont would find someone more worthy of the blade. Jon felt bad when he thought of the old man. He knew his desertion would be salt in the still-raw wound of his son's disgrace. That seemed a poor way to repay him for his trust, but it couldn't be helped. No matter what he did, Jon felt as though he were betraying someone. Even now, he did not know if he was doing the honorable thing. The southron had it easier. They had their septons to talk to, someone to tell them the gods' will and help sort out right from wrong. But the Starks worshiped the old gods, the nameless gods, and if the heart trees heard, they did not speak. (AGOT, Jon IX)

and

But he had not left the Wall for that; he had left because he was after all his father's son, and Robb's brother. The gift of a sword, even a sword as fine as Longclaw, did not make him a Mormont. Nor was he Aemon Targaryen. Three times the old man had chosen, and three times he had chosen honor, but that was him. Even now, Jon could not decide whether the maester had stayed because he was weak and craven, or because he was strong and true. Yet he understood what the old man had meant, about the pain of choosing; he understood that all too well. Tyrion Lannister had claimed that most men would rather deny a hard truth than face it, but Jon was done with denials. He was who he was; Jon Snow, bastard and oathbreaker, motherless, friendless, and damned. For the rest of his life—however long that might be—he would be condemned to be an outsider, the silent man standing in the shadows who dares not speak his true name. Wherever he might go throughout the Seven Kingdoms, he would need to live a lie, lest every man's hand be raised against him. But it made no matter, so long as he lived long enough to take his place by his brother's side and help avenge his father.

(it is very similar to the ASOS quote)

and then we have this weirdness

He could not see the smile. Hard as he tried, he could not see it. He found himself thinking of the deserter his father had beheaded the day they'd found the direwolves. "You said the words," Lord Eddard had told him. "You took a vow, before your brothers, before the old gods and the new." Desmond and Fat Tom had dragged the man to the stump. Bran's eyes had been wide as saucers, and Jon had to remind him to keep his pony in hand. He remembered the look on Father's face when Theon Greyjoy brought forth Ice, the spray of blood on the snow, the way Theon had kicked the head when it came rolling at his feet. He wondered what Lord Eddard might have done if the deserter had been his brother Benjen instead of that ragged stranger. Would it have been any different? It must, surely, surely … and Robb would welcome him, for a certainty. He had to, or else … It did not bear thinking about. Pain throbbed, deep in his fingers, as he clutched the reins. Jon put his heels into his horse and broke into a gallop, racing down the kingsroad, as if to outrun his doubts. Jon was not afraid of death, but he did not want to die like that, trussed and bound and beheaded like a common brigand. If he must perish, let it be with a sword in his hand, fighting his father's killers. He was no true Stark, had never been one … but he could die like one. Let them say that Eddard Stark had fathered four sons, not three. (AGOT, Jon IX)

And here is where I give up! As always happens when I start looking at passages to help me come to a conclusion, I get less clarity the more I think about them! Not only do we have Jon wrestling with who he wants to be/who he is, what he can/can’t accept of how others view him, betrayal/honor/love/duty, we also have a lot of Stark and Targ stuff in these chapter, as expected. But what the heck is that last thing supposed to mean?

We can interpret all of these in a couple ways, say it’s about one instance and one instance alone, but to me the ASOS chapter means Jon will voluntarily kill Dany. Except, it makes no sense that he would be punished for killing her as she will have burned KL by that point, but that Ned and Benjen thing did make me wonder if, at least at one time, Bran was meant to judge Jon for deserting? Ned was very judgy about Jaime, but there could be no finding fault with Jon if he kills Dany after she’s burned KL to hell. All the same, it’s an odd quote, and it’s interesting that Ned and Benjen are also referenced in that dream for spring idea, so perhaps the idea shifted?

I enjoyed reading Martin talk about his process the other day and I do try to bear in mind he may start down one path towards his goal only to have to give up and forge a different path to reach it:

The judgment idea felt like something he planned to revisit, at least when writing AGOT, because I think Bran has to be contrasted with other leaders so that we have a sense of his justice, not sure how that could possibly work here though. Martin did have Arya kill a deserter which felt very ominous to me. As in, if Starks are killing people for deserting, it wouldn’t be just to show favoritism to a family member and let them go unpunished, but she isn’t Bran so maybe we can ignore that. Obviously no Starks will be killing each other, and the idea of Jon going back to the Wall is dumb as heck, but imo, there’s something Martin wanted to say there once, maybe not now?

Basically, there’s enough stuff in the books that worries me that I can’t convince myself D&D made up his ending entirely on their own. I’m not sure of the path Martin will take to get there, but to me, the biggest indicator that we’re moving somewhere that Martin always intended with Jon --and that it’s the Wall or exile, *cries*-- is the way he builds on Jon’s Aemon connection and what he chooses to include as he does:

It made him feel odd. "My lord, why have you told me this, about Maester Aemon?"

"Must I have a reason?" Mormont shifted in his seat, frowning. "Your brother Robb has been crowned King in the North. You and Aemon have that in common. A king for a brother."

"And this too," said Jon. "A vow." (ACOK, Jon I)

and then

"Aye," Slynt said. "A blind man with a chain about his neck, who does he think he is?"

Aemon Targaryen, Jon thought, a king's son and a king's brother and a king who might have been. But he said nothing. (ASOS, Jon X)

and then this

"His Grace is not an easy man. Few are, who wear a crown. Many good men have been bad kings, Maester Aemon used to say, and some bad men have been good kings."

"He would know." Aemon Targaryen had seen nine kings upon the Iron Throne. He had been a king's son, a king's brother, a king's uncle. "I looked at that book Maester Aemon left me. The Jade Compendium. The pages that told of Azor Ahai. Lightbringer was his sword. Tempered with his wife's blood if Votar can be believed. Thereafter Lightbringer was never cold to the touch, but warm as Nissa Nissa had been warm. In battle the blade burned fiery hot. Once Azor Ahai fought a monster. When he thrust the sword through the belly of the beast, its blood began to boil. Smoke and steam poured from its mouth, its eyes melted and dribbled down its cheeks, and its body burst into flame."

Clydas blinked. "A sword that makes its own heat …" (ADWD, Jon III)

It isn’t conclusive, but the Aemon quotes keep getting those additional “of a king” tidbits that may very well be true for Jon too in the future as they feel increasingly pointed. The fact that Jon’s all important honor/duty vs love conversation with Aemon kicks off all of this and seems to predict a lot about his entire arc and possibly his ending with his attempts to/breaking vows for the Starks, and then there’s the assassination/stabbity stab stuff in such close proximity to those references...well, I don’t think it’s nothing.

I suppose that means, yes, the show omitted essential steps in how Jon ends up where he is, likely, Jon refusing the crown which paves the way for King Bran, and if it is a fate of his own choosing, and in that choice he protects the Starks, his ending would be that of a hero (to us), but a subversion of the generic fantasy in which the secret prince becomes king or the hero is rewarded. If Jon’s actions give him a HEA, it undercuts what it cost him to make those choices, and I’m no longer thinking that’s something Martin will do. He seems pretty into making things painful.

Jon might be in the Watch, possibly even a Lord Commander (again) who makes good on all the promise of the Watch which would be an answer to that mess. He might oversee the settling of the FF in the Gift and see it used the way it was meant to be and keep the peace so maybe that’s how the Gift fits in to such an ending. Or, if his end is in real exile, that Jorah is at the Wall and Jon must stay beyond the Wall for some time, maybe D&D weren’t that wrong?

Another thing D&D (may have) cut that would make Jon’s ending a little more filled out is the fulfillment of this quote:

Benjen Stark stood up. "More's the pity." He put a hand on Jon's shoulder. "Come back to me after you've fathered a few bastards of your own, and we'll see how you feel."

Jon trembled. "I will never father a bastard," he said carefully. "Never!" He spat it out like venom. (AGOT, Jon I)

I’m not sure that the child would be a bastard as I’m a fan of the secret wedding idea, but it’s possible other characters think the child is because Jon can’t be with Sansa due to new hatred for the Targaryens post Dany funtimes. Perhaps, instead of getting that, instead of being King to Sansa’s Queen, it may be Sansa who rules and then her son after her, in which case, Jon would be “uncle” to a king, to callback to that last Aemon quote, and round out all the dad/uncle confusion that happens throughout the story, and circle all the way back to this moment.

@sepedarodatiga wrote about foreshadowing in the show for a Jonsa baby (link) and @istumpysk wrote about book foreshadowing (link), and I think that could be the missing sweet in Jon’s bitter. The idea of Jon not being able to publicly be his son’s father, it’s crappy, but I think it’s very possible that was Martin’s intention when writing AGOT because in the all significant Jon and Aemon convo, we have this:

My grandfather named me for Prince Aemon the Dragonknight, who was his uncle, or his father, depending on which tale you believe. Aemon, he called me …" (AGOT, Jon VIII)

We all seem to be on board with the Jon is Aemon idea, most Jonsas recognize Aemon the Dragonknight as being big Jonsa foreshadowing, so the whole “is it the father or the uncle?” idea...I suppose it could just be about parentage reveal and Ned/dad/uncle, but considering how the son stuff crops up with Jon, I think it’s likely talking about his future, not just his past.

I know this is really rambly and nothing conclusive, but part of my inability to decide on anything specific is that each path prohibits or secures certain endings. If Jon accepts legitimization as a Stark, even if the truth is later revealed to some or becomes public knowledge, I don’t think he could be with Sansa. I just think going from being Jon Snow to Jon Stark to a Targaryen is too much to make the people accept in such a short period of time. So, if he becomes KitN, it’s possible he feels that it is necessary to self-exile because he never should have been king (regardless of any assurance by Sansa to the contrary) and secures her reign by leaving. If on the other hand he refuses it all, defends Sansa as the true Stark heir, well, then when the truth is revealed, we have far less of a mess and it works with my preferred version in which he rejects both Stark and Targ crowns. The problem with that is that I do think Jon bending the knee makes sense as a statement about choosing peace (where Robb didn’t), so he’d need to be king for that. Which brings me to another beloved theory in which Jon becomes KitN, the truth is revealed, so he marries Sansa to keep the North unified, and if that’s the case, if he then bends the knee to another Targaryen, the North may be pissed. If he then somehow ends up entangled in the mess in KL, I’m not sure that he can emerge without being perceived (by non Starks) as yet another Targ in the worst sense. That could be a reason he leaves. He wouldn’t allow his chance at happiness prevent Bran and Sansa from peaceful reigns.

Of course, the one thing we know for sure came from Martin is King Bran, and if Jon or Northern armies are involved or present during the burning of KL (rather than, say coming to the city too late to stop Dany, too late to save Aegon?), then I don’t see how Bran is the peace candidate. Like, how will he distance himself from Jon so effectively that people will voluntarily choose him to rule after that? So, perhaps Jon will arrive too late, deal with the mess, and then get to go home and live in peace. Hope springs eternal no matter how hard I try to prevent it. :)

Anyway, if I had to pick one path, I’d say, it’s a variation of the Aemon stuff. That feels right to me, and then a similar ending at the Watch or exile for some, as yet to be determined, very believable reason. 😑

So, the answer to your question is yes? They stripped his ending of all agency and meaning, I think Jon will have experienced good things that make his sacrifice worth it to him, but also, no, I don’t think it will be that different.

And I really think the meaningful stuff would have transpired pre exile, so I’m not sure that the show will retroactively be able to make it make sense, and I fear, would just continue the course s7-8 set for show Jon. :(

#ask dot #jon show #jon's ending

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