#but i don't think i'll ever finish it and also i'm quite unsatisfied with how i've written the existing chapters | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

trainerbede · 1 month

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HOPE PLEASE TALK ABOUT P5R I need to know how you feel about akechi at the end yudkdkfk and I'd also just love to hear your thoughts about the game and the characters in general! also, just to make sure, do you know what you need to do to unlock the extra content at the end of the game? otherwise you might miss it.

WAIT WAIT I was answering your other ask and I never saw this one. what. tumblr straight up did not send me an ask notification 😭

CELE AND I DID ACTUALLY FINISH P5R A FEW WEEKS AGO AND I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS, we unlocked all the extra content too, so no worries. somehow on a first try we managed to do most things: every Mementos request, all of the confidants with some free time to spare, and about 80% of the compendium. it'll be hard to put all my thoughts in one post but I'll try and just touch on the main parts!

first of all. Akechi. lmao. I definitely went in expecting to like him, since I've had a lot of mutuals who were very big into shuake from the time I've been into saiou and v3 (I guess they're ship-in-laws of a sort). I wasn't disappointed, because I did like Akechi quite a lot by the end, but I was a bit surprised that he didn't quite give me brainworms the way I expected him to.

if I had to give a character ranking, I think Sumire would be my top fave, followed by Maruki, and then Yusuke. Akechi probably comes right after him, and then I have a harder time ranking the rest (it's probably either Ann or Haru though).

I'm really, really glad we played Royal bc I cannot imagine only playing the original and being satisfied with that. especially when the Shido parts were so frustrating and had some of the weaker writing compared to the rest of the game. the 3rd semester was just such a better way to wrap things up and did a world of good for Akechi's character and fleshing him out a bit.

I really do find the relationship between Akechi and the MC so interesting. like, while I don't think Akechi will ever be quite as high up on my list of characters the way someone like Ouma is, I do think he shines best when it's as a foil for the protagonist. all of that resentment and feeling like things could have been so different if only he'd had the same opportunities or friendships, the whole "two sides of the same coin" thing, I LOVE that sort of thing in my ships. I also really wound up attached to the idea of the royal trio as an ot3 where Sumire and Akechi both just share the MC most of the time, lmao.

everything with the 3rd semester bad ending... I love it so much, those kind of "ideal worlds where something is actually very off and unsatisfying" is right up my alley. I kind of wish the game had gone even further with making the rest of the phantom thieves resist leaving Maruki's world and even getting mad at being told to doubt their own happiness, which was something they apparently touched on in some of the discarded voice files, but then they sadly cut them out and everyone came around pretty easily :(

the main reason I put Yusuke in my top 3 earlier I think is bc he actually gave me more of what I was initially looking for in Akechi's relationship with Shido, but with Madarame instead. I really was expecting the game to touch a lot more on Shido manipulating Akechi or essentially forcing him to become an assassin, you know, really focusing on the whole "kids trapped in their role in society by rotten adults" theme that is so crucial in the game, but there really wasn't... much of that? Shido didn't even know Akechi was his son (other than maybe some suspicions according to his cognitive self, but those didn't ever amount to anything so it's kind of the same) so he barely ever interacted with him outside of an employer-employee context. and Akechi was the one to actually approach him with the idea of murdering people in the Metaverse, so it's like... fkskjdjs agh, everything with Shido just really does frustrate me, I feel like he's got such weak writing but he's also impossible to ignore bc he's such an important part of the game.

meanwhile Yusuke and Madarame's relationship was such a more believably complex picture of abuse and manipulation (it reminded me a lot of Bede and Rose from swsh, lmao). I was actually really shocked at how well everything about the Madarame arc aged; usually Persona games have a few parts of them that don't age well at all, but it was totally the opposite here.

I had kind of gone through the early parts of the game back when it first came out without finishing the whole thing, but I remember thinking at the time that the whole Madarame plagiarism thing felt heavy-handed and too on-the-nose. now, living in an era where topics like art theft and plagiarism and art as nothing more than a soulless means of spitting out money is more relevant than it was 7 years ago... yeah, the Madarame arc just felt surprisingly relevant overall, and Yusuke's conflicting feelings of love and obligation vs. his growing awareness that he's being taken advantage of and seen as a tool was just the icing on top. also his autistic swag. I love him.

as for Sumire and Maruki—the game is so much better for them being in it. Sumire has one of the strongest arcs in any of the 3 "modern" Persona games, not just in 5. I'm usually a firm advocate for "girl they added in the remake game" supremacy (Marie p4g got done so dirty by the fandom and I'll never forgive people, she's a good character), so I was so, so happy that Sumire had such an interesting backstory and complicated relationship with her sister. her identity issues, her struggle with self-confidence, the way she can empathize the best with Maruki's view of the world bc she has also wished to just bury her head in the sand and run away. I love her.

meanwhile Maruki truly is the game's saving grace as an antagonist. Shido was god-awful and Yaldabaoth was, hmm... fine but not quite as interesting or compelling as either Nyx Avatar or (redacted p4 antagonist names bc I don't know if you've played p4 yet), but Maruki wipes the floor with all the other p5 antagonists. his tragic motivations, his fucked-up "I know best" attitude that dismisses human free will and autonomy, I love it. I think something about Maruki altered me and Cele's brains forever, lmao. also the choice to have him as yet another foil to the MC, from their designs (glasses, messy hair, sort of slouched/nondescript posture) to their inability to leave someone in trouble alone without helping them... it's just so interesting. I love you Takuto Maruki you messed-up man with a savior complex.

ANYWAY these were most of my thoughts 😭 I could go on and on even more but I've already rambled a lot! I'm still so mad Tumblr never sent me the message notif for this, I just looked back at my inbox after answering the other one and I was like. WHAT. at some point I really should talk about all my thoughts on the other main phantom thieves too but there are so many of them and I've already written so much fksjsksjsj

#detectiveseapancake #ask #p5r spoilers

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hematomes · 2 years

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I could definitely see momoe being intersex! It definitely happens to where ppl dont even know about it or realize it! I like this headcanon for her, a little light in the darkness. ☺️

My thoughts on the show though...oh man. They are very negative so I'm sorry. 😫 You don't have to read it all if you don't want to. Warnings ahead for mentions of child abuse and suicide:

In a nutshell it's some kind of preachy anti-suicide propaganda piece, and it goes about its message in such a weirdly perverse and victim-blamey way. It's also sexually charged in a rly low-key way where it's romanticizing the way these children are crushing on and/or being abused by adult men. Ah I can't articulate it properly but it comes off as so sinister in its intention and it's easy to miss, *especially* for the target audience of, well, 14-year-old girls.

The end was so nonsensical that I can barely even remember what happened, but by that time I was already so upset about Frill and realizing what the show's message truly was that I don't think I was even registering what little plot that show had to give.

Also, as a trans boy myself, I have mixed feelings about Kaoru, but I don't think I'll ever watch the show a second time to let those thoughts fully form.

i just finished the last episode (without the extras) and im gonna be real with u i didn't understand it at all 💀

i see your point and i agree, especially with the last wonder egg & the whole thing with ai's/koito's teacher. i got the ick really quickly but the 1st real nail was the fact that he painted an "adult" version of ai and called it beautiful/gorgeous etc (and said she'd look like her mother, WITH WHOM HE IS IN A RELATIONSHIP......) and i thought it would be addressed later on, but they just. dropped that and then made it worse by saying that in a parallel universe she confessed to him and that he was her first love. without it being weird somehow idk. not to mention how breezily they hypothetized that he could've abused koito hello..... however ill give them the benefit of the doubt for that since it was a discussion between 4 teen girls and one of them did step up. even tho she just stepped up to defend her uncle. oh well.

i think i see their point in the way that teenagers sometimes get attached to their teachers, but it's the teachers' responsibility to draw a FIRM boundary and that guy clearly didn't with neither ai nor koito. im also quite unsatisfied about how his relationship with koito remained vague till the end of the main show (can't say abt the extras)

overall i still enjoyed watching it and got attached to the girls, but it really went sideways with the episodes 10-12. not really sure how i feel about the frill situation which frustrates me to NO END bc i literally started watching it for her </3 anyway

kaoru is... an extremely unimportant character, barely one episode etc and his trauma (and the trauma of all the wonder eggs tbh) was basically overlooked, which is also why im desperately clinging to the queer momoe hc. also disappointed bc he really deserved. so much more.

ANYWAY i was 0% ready for the last 3 episodes, and idk if ill watch the extras bc that was really weird and rushed. i feel like they should've explored some stuff way more, specifically around frill and how she's linked to what's happening. plus her motives etc, bc at the end of the day it's up to interpretation but like so vague i can't even really think of smth that would fully make sense

so, yea. imo amazing start but some very important things were left out (which sucks bc as u said the target audience is teenagers) and glazed over when it could've been an opportunity to point out how fucking WEIRD and dangerous some teachers are and the end was kinda fucked.

in conclusion. hoshiai no sora is better

#— answered #— nonnie #wonder egg priority spoilers #suicide mention #child abuse #long post

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theunlabeledbitch · 3 years

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Stuck Together pt. 9

[NOTE: Long chapter up ahead. Includes link for a song that is essential to the plot.]

---

"I'm sorry baby but this is really important."

Denali frowned as she watched Rosé pack her bag. They were supposed to go on a date the next day but to Denali's dismay, her girlfriend cancelled at the last minute.

Rosé had to meet with some people and will be staying for at least three days to finish some work. The past month had been very hectic for the both of them; they hadn't seen each other a lot due to the conflict in their schedules and for their date to get cancelled was almost heartbreaking for Denali. She had been looking forward to it since the day they marked their calendars for it.

It wasn't that she didn't understand Rosé. It was just, she couldn't understand why the universe decided to spoil their date with work.

"I'll be back before you know it." Rosé's voice broke Denali's train of bitter thoughts. She felt a quick peck on her lips before Rosé walked past her. Unsatisfied by the half-hearted kiss she received, she reached out to pull Rosé by the hand, crashing their lips together. Not a moment later, Denali heard the bag hit the floor and felt Rosé arms wrap around her waist. Denali deepened the kiss, before moving down to Rosé's neck to leave a mark. Rosé moaned at the sensation, barely keeping her thoughts intact as Denali pulled away, glaring at her.

"You better not be meeting anyone else behind my back or else…" the younger threatened.

"Or else what?" Rosé taunted, raising an eyebrow. Denali stared angrily at her for a while before beginning to pout.

"Or else I will cry and no one can ever make me stop," she finally said, now fully sulking at Rosé. The latter's lips formed into a smile before placing not one but two delicate pecks on Denali's lips.

"I would never dare look at anyone else, baby, I promise you that."

Denali sighed before wiping the frown off her face. "Fine. Just...call me when you can okay?" She looked sadly at Rosé who gave a quick nod. After one final embrace, Rosé picked up her bag and went on her way, leaving Denali to feel all alone.

After taking a shower, Denali grabbed one of Rosé's shirts from the closet and threw it on, basking in the familiar scent of the woman she missed. This wasn't the first time Rosé had to work away for a couple of days but it felt like it was. She climbed onto the bed and curled up in a ball, burying her nose into the sleeves of the shirt until she fell deep into slumber.

Denali spent the next day drowning herself with work just so she could take her mind off of Rosé's absence and their cancelled date. It was a successful ruse---until she got home. Immediately, the house felt empty, knowing that Rosé wasn't coming back that night. She thought about giving Rosé a call but she decided against it because she thought that the less interruptions she makes, the quicker Rosé would finish her work and come home. Instead, she dialled the number of the person she knew could give her the most comfort she needed.

"Hi, mom." Denali almost sobbed when she heard her mother reply from the other side of the line.

"Hey, pumpkin! How are you?"

Denali flopped down on the couch, sighing deeply. "I'm...not so okay," she said truthfully.

"Why?" Her mom's worried voice sounded. "Did something happen?"

Denali shook her head as if her mother could see her. "No," she replied. "I just...Maybe it's just me but I feel like Rosé and I are going downhill." She heard her mother sigh but say nothing, a sign that the other was waiting for her to continue. "We've been quite busy with work and we were supposed to go on a date today but she cancelled. We've been planning for it since a couple of weeks back but at the last minute she said she had to meet some clients and not just that, she has to leave for three days!"

Denali was fuming by the time she finished her sentence. She didn't realize this angered her so much until she said all of that. "Whoa, pumpkin, calm down," came the loving voice from the other side of the line. There was a moment of utmost silence before Denali's mother continued.

"How about, you invite her over for the weekend?" she said. "Maybe it's finally time for you to introduce her to us?" She could sense Denali's hesitation.

"Look, sweetie, relationships need work. If you want to make this work then you have to try a bit more. You can drive down here on Friday night after your work, and we can have supper together and then breakfast before your dad and I leave for his highschool reunion. We won't be back until Sunday night so you girls have the house to yourselves for at least a whole day. Y'all can do whatever you want. Just don't forget to clean up and change the bedsheets."

"Mom!" Denali exclaimed, blushing at her mom's final statement. She heard her mother laugh and then, she realized that maybe she was this angry because she was also sexually frustrated. She thought maybe they could do it that night but no, cancelled. "Fine," she finally agreed. "I'll talk to her about it when she returns. If she cancels again, that's it. I'm going to cry."

"Can't break up with her, can you?" her mother teased.

"No." Denali pouted as she delivered her answer, not even wanting to think about breaking up with Rosé.

A soft chuckle came from the other side of the line and Denali could almost swear it sounded like Rosé. But she pushed the thought aside, thinking she was hallucinating things because of how much she wanted to see her.

"Okay, then," her mother said with finality. "Talk to her and then tell me if you girls are going because I need to fill up the fridge."

Denali smiled as she sank back into her couch.

"Thanks, mom," she said. "I love you."

"I love you, too, pumpkin," her mother replied, blowing a kiss into the mic before hanging up.

When Rosé arrived the next day, she found Denali whipping up some mac and cheese in the kitchen. She quietly set her bag down on the floor before creeping up behind Denali.

"Boo!" Rosé shouted simultaneously with the stomping of her feet. To her surprise, Denali did not budge. Slowly, the latter turned to her with a little pout. "What's wrong?" Rosé asked worriedly.

"Nothing, I just miss you."

Rosé sighed upon hearing the reply. She immediately pulled Denali into her embrace, gently squeezing the other's arms as she swayed her. "I miss you too, baby," Rosé replied. She leaned down to bury her face in Denali's hair, filling her senses with the sweet scent.

"How about we go away this weekend?" Denali suggested, hoping that the other would say yes. Rosé pulled away, looking at her with interest.

"Where are we going?" Rosé let her arms rest around Denali's waist as the latter put her arms around Rosé's neck.

"I called my mom yesterday and she wanted to meet you," Denali said truthfully. She laid down the plans, gauging Rosé's reaction. To her dismay, Rosé had this unreadable expression on her face and by the time she finished her vacation pitch, she was nibbling on her lower lip in anticipation. "So?" she nervously asked.

Rosé broke into a smile. "I'd like that," she said. Denali heaved a sigh of relief, letting her head fall on Rosé's shoulder. “Are you worried I would say no?” Rosé asked and Denali nodded. “Silly, I can’t say no to you even if I tried.”

“But you canceled on me the other day!” Denali protested, whipping her head up to glare at Rosé. The latter laughed, pulling her close again.

“I know, baby, I’m sorry,” Rosé cooed. “I’ll make it up to you, okay?”

Denali narrowed her eyes at Rosé. “How?” she asked.

“We can skip to dessert,” Rosé suggested with a wink. “Your mac and cheese is burnt anyways.”

Denali’s eyes widened in shock as she remembered that she was cooking. “Shit!” she exclaimed, pulling away from Rosé to get the pan off the stove. She cursed under her breath for getting distracted and wasting the food she was cooking. However, she was secretly rejoicing because she knew she would finally be cursing for a whole different reason later.

Denali almost missed a step as she hurried down the steps of the building entrance to meet Rosé who was parked in front. She clocked out early so they could start their drive early as well. Rosé got up surprisingly early that day to shop for some snacks they could eat on their way. It was a 4-hour drive from their place to Denali’s parents’ house but Rosé was treating it like it was some sort of an excursion---not that Denali was complaining. It’s been long since she saw Rosé this excited about something and she loved it.

So when Rosé handed her a dress she had never seen before, asking her to change into it while they stopped for some gas, Denali heeded. She went into the restroom to change into the new dress while Rosé filled up their gas tank. About fifteen minutes later, Denali came out, taking Rosé’s breath away. Denali had let her hair down; the soft curls that came from her bun were blowing gently against the wind as she made her way down to the car. The dress fit her perfectly; the light blue shade embellished with little floral details brought out the feminine side of Denali that Rosé loved so much. She looked like she came straight out of a movie and Rosé could feel herself falling in love all over again.

Denali noticed the look Rosé was giving her so she decided to twirl playfully before asking Rosé what she thought of her look.

“You look perfect,” Rosé said, almost in a whisper, still unable to take her eyes off Denali.

“Well, your taste in clothing is superior so I guess it’s all thanks to you,” Denali replied with a giggle. It was only then that she noticed that Rosé was in a pair of jeans and blouse that she had never seen before either. The color tones of the outfit Rosé was wearing matched hers. Rosé was wearing a pair of high waisted light blue jeans and a white polo that had a low neckline, pretty much the same as her dress.

“You really bought new clothes for the both of us just to make an impression, huh?” Denali teased as they both got back in the car. Rosé only shrugged, pulling out of the gas station. They continued their drive and it wasn’t long until they arrived.

The house was a cozy bungalow set up right in front of the beach. Denali’s parents decided to sell their old house and move out here after her father’s retirement and so far, both Helena and William Zuckerman were enjoying their life far from the bustling city life where Denali grew up.

“Where are they?” Denali asked when she realized all the lights were out. She immediately got out of the car as soon as Rosé finished parking, trying to reach her mom, but the phone call kept dropping. Denali furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to dial one more time. “This is not a joke…”

Her words trailed off when an array of lights lit up from post to post, creating a pathway towards the beach.

“...Is it?” Denali finished her sentence, looking both shocked and amused at the feat. She felt Rosé take her hand and lead her through the pathway. As they walked along the sand, Denali noticed a whole bunch of photos clipped on a wire, gently illuminated by the lights above it. They were photos of her; all of which she didn’t know existed. They were shots taken of her doing even the most mundane things in the place she called home with Rosé. She looked at each one of them, recognizing the quality of the photos that surely was a product of Rosé's favorite film camera.

It was all beginning to make sense to her. What Rosé’s excitement was about. The dress. All of it.

A few more steps took them right where they should be---at the beach, right in front of their closest friends and loved ones.

Denali took a look around with tears brimming in her eyes as she saw her friends, Joey, Kahmora and Mik. Utica was there too, standing beside Rosé’s cousin Andrew, and Gammy. And of course, her parents were there, even Aunt Tami was there, looking proudly at her. She turned to yell at Rosé for making all this up but she choked on her words when she realized what the other was doing.

Rosé pulled a velvet box out of her pocket, taking Denali’s hand in hers.

“Remember when I told you I’ll propose when I find the perfect ring?” Rosé asked with a smile. “Well, I found it, baby, so here goes.”

Denali tried to hold back her tears as Rosé knelt to the ground, opening the velvet box to reveal a beautiful emerald ring.

“Nali, I love you and I’ve never been more sure of anything other than I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Baby, will you marry me?”

It took a moment for Denali to find her voice and give her answer. With a nod, she said the word Rosé was hoping to hear.

“Yes!”

Their friends and family all cheered around them as Rosé put the ring on Denali’s finger. Rosé stood up cupping Denali’s cheek to give her a kiss.

“Thank you,” Rosé whispered as they pulled away, wiping the tears off of Denali’s cheek.

“Wha--Where did you find this ring? And how did you prepare all this?" Denali asked, out of breath from the euphoric feeling that washed over her.

“Well, that’s Gammy’s engagement ring,” Rosé said proudly, looking over her grandmother who was in tears. “She gave it to me when I told her about my plans of marrying you. As for all this…”

***

5 days ago.

"You better not be meeting anyone else behind my back or else…" Denali threatened.

"Or else what?" Rosé taunted, earning another angry look from Denali.

"Or else I will cry and no one can ever make me stop," Denali finally replied and Rosé had to stop herself from laughing.

"I would never dare look at anyone else, baby, I promise you that." Rosé said it with conviction. Denali had no clue what was in store for her.

After one more reminder for Rosé to call her when she can, Denali finally let her go and Rosé was on her way.

On her way to meet Denali’s parents.

She stole their contact number from Denali’s phone and asked to meet with them. She didn’t plan for it to be on the same day as her planned date with Denali but there was no way she was cancelling on her girlfriend’s parents because she was about to do an important task: ask them for permission to marry their daughter.

Rosé didn’t really believe in traditions like this but she wanted to do it out of respect for Denali’s parents. She understood that unlike her, Denali had a close relationship with her family and if Rosé wasn’t keeping this a surprise, Denali would probably tell her to ask for her parents blessing before asking her to marry her.

Rosé was prepared for the worst when she knocked on that door but to her surprise she was greeted with the warmest hug by Denali’s mom, Helena.

“Oh dear, oh my,” Helena gushed, looking over at Rosé. “You’re even prettier in person than in the photos!” Rosé laughed, thanking her for her compliment. Helena called her husband over, who gave the same warm welcome to Rosé.

“I’m glad you called and asked to meet us,” William said as they settled in the dining table for some snacks. “Denali seems very happy whenever she calls and tells us about you.”

“By the way, why didn’t you bring her with you?” Helena asked, sitting beside Rosé.

“Oh, I’m here to ask you something that Denali isn’t supposed to know,” Rosé replied. She pursed her lips as the husband and wife exchanged confused glances.

“What is it, dear?” Helena asked, looking gently at Rosé. The younger cleared her throat before replying.

“I want you guys to know that Denali was the best thing that ever happened to me,” Rosé began. “She was like this ray of sunshine that just made everything better. And I don’t ever want that to end. I want to spend the rest of my life with your daughter, so I’m here to ask for your blessing to marry Denali.” She looked at both of them hopefully.

After a minute of silence, William finally spoke up. “What if we say no?” he asked, looking seriously at the woman asking for her daughter’s hand.

Rosé did not back down. She looked at him with the same seriousness. “I will still marry her,” she replied truthfully. “Because honestly, I can’t imagine life without her. Not after living the past year with her. I just can’t.”

The couple exchanged looks before breaking into a proud smile. Helena took Rosé’s hand, patting it gently as she said, “You have our blessing, dear.”

Rosé spent the rest of the night looking through old photo albums and listening to the growing up stories the couple were sharing about Denali. It was past midnight when the couple decided to retire to bed. On the other hand, Rosé was still full of energy from the welcome and blessing she got from Denali’s parents. She took out the velvet box from her bag and opened it. Inside was her grandmother’s engagement ring that was also passed down to her by her grandmother on her wedding day. She came to visit Gammy the other day to tell her about her plans about marrying Denali and to cheer her on, Gammy gave her the ring.

The next day, after breakfast, Rosé came to accompany William to the fish market to get some fresh catch for lunch.

“Were you surprised when you found out Denali was dating a woman?” Rosé asked as they walked back to the house. William smiled and shook his head.

“I’m not sure if Denali remembers but when she was younger, she would always fall into a daze whenever she sees this one girl in her kindergarten class,” he said. “Every night at dinner she would talk about how beautiful that classmate of hers was. When their halloween party came, the girl came dressed as Cinderella. I remember her running up to me and saying, ‘Dada, I wanna marry Cinderella when I grow up!’ For the life of me, I don’t know why I never told her she can’t marry Cinderella because she’s a girl. I never told her she should marry Prince Charming instead. I guess I just felt happy with how happy Denali beamed the moment she said that.”

William looked over to Rosé and gave her a proud smile. “I’m glad she found her Cinderella.” His eyes were a bit misty from the tears that threatened to fall anytime. “Take good care of her, okay?” he asked, earning a nod from Rosé.

“I promise,” Rosé replied, raising her hand in pledge.

“You better keep your promise, young lady,” William said in an overly serious voice. “Or I’m turning you into a mouse by midnight!” Rosé laughed, realizing where Denali got her harmless threats from.

After lunch, she spent some time with Helena in the garden, watering and weeding the plants. Rosé sighed when she realized how beautiful Denali’s family was.

“Everything alright?” Helena asked, hearing the younger one sigh for the nth time that day.

Rosé jolted up, immediately shaking her head. “Nothing, I just…” she sighed again. “I just wish my family was like this, too.”

Helena nodded, slightly understanding Rosé even without hearing the full story. “Well,” she shrugged. “We’re your family now, too.” Rosé looked at her in surprise. “You’re a wonderful person, dear. Denali is blessed to have found you.”

Rosé was filled with nothing but the purest form of bliss. She had not felt this much warmth from people she barely knew in a long time. If anything, she felt like she was the one who was blessed to have found people like Denali and her family.

That night, they were busy laughing at Rosé’s story about her first encounter with Denali when Helena’s phone rang.

“It’s Nali,” she said with a shocked look. William told her to answer it and put it on speaker and so she did. William and Rosé kept quiet as the conversation began.

"Hi, mom." Denali’s voice was cracking and it broke Rosé’s heart because she knew what Denali was sulking about.

"Hey, pumpkin! How are you?" Helena greeted cheerfully in an attempt to lift the mood. Unfortunately, the reply that came was, "I'm...not so okay.”

"Why?" Helena tried to sound as worried as she could. "Did something happen?"

"No," Denali replied. "I just...Maybe it's just me but I feel like Rosé and I are going downhill." Denali stopped for a moment before continuing. “We've been quite busy with work and we were supposed to go on a date today but she cancelled. We've been planning for it since a couple of weeks back but at the last minute she said she had to meet some clients and not just that, she has to leave for three days!"

Rosé shuddered at the anger in Denali’s voice. The couple flashed her a sorry look, clearly knowing how Denali was like when she was angry.

"Whoa, pumpkin, calm down," Helena tried to soothe her daughter. She flashed a look at Rosé and smiled knowingly before speaking again. "How about, you invite her over for the weekend? Maybe it's finally time for you to introduce her to us?" She looked over at Rosé who seemed mildly intrigued about where the suggestion was going.

"Look, sweetie, relationships need work,” Helena continued after a moment. Denali’s hesitation was apparent and her mother was having none of that. “If you want to make this work then you have to try a bit more. You can drive down here on Friday night after your work, and we can have supper together and then breakfast before your dad and I leave for his highschool reunion. We won't be back until Sunday night so you girls have the house to yourselves for at least a whole day. Y'all can do whatever you want. Just don't forget to clean up and change the bedsheets."

Rosé blushed at the same time Denali screamed “Mom!” into the phone. The couple tried their best to keep themselves from laughing at the young ones.

“Fine," Denali finally agreed. "I'll talk to her about it when she returns. If she cancels again, that's it. I'm going to cry."

"Can't break up with her, can you?" Helena teased, glancing over at Rosé who was grinning.

"No." Rosé chuckled a bit too loudly upon hearing Denali’s answer. She only realized it when Helena signalled her to shush, quickly covering her mouth with her hands.

"Okay, then," Helena quickly said in an attempt to cover up Rosé’s voice. "Talk to her and then tell me if you girls are going because I need to fill up the fridge."

"Thanks, mom, I love you,” Denali replied before they hung up.

Rosé removed her hands from her mouth and tilted her head in confusion. “So...am I supposed to act like I haven’t met you guys yet when we come over here on Friday?” she asked, looking at Helena.

“That, or…” Helena trailed off, her eyes glimmering. “You can propose to her on Friday.” William stared at her in shock and Rosé in excitement. “I mean, do you really want to put it off for too long?” Helena reasoned. “You can tell us how you want to do it and we’ll help you with preparations.”

“Really? You would?” Rosé exclaimed. With a final affirmation from her future in-laws, the deal was sealed and the planning began.

***

“Told you she’s a keeper,” Joey nodded after Denali reiterated everything Rosé told her earlier.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re a brilliant one,” Denali replied, playfully rolling her eyes at Joey before looking over to where Rosé was being fawned over by her mom and Aunt Tami.

They were gathered on the porch, hanging out with some drinks and stories, and most of all, happy thoughts for the newly engaged couple. As the night grew deeper, their friends left to go back to the hotel where they would be staying. Andrew and Gammy were supposed to drive back but after Denali’s parents insisted they stayed the night, they finally agreed.

“And what about us?” Denali nudged her mom after Gammy and Andrew settled in the only guest room in the house. Her mother only grinned at her in reply.

“I believe your wonderful wife-to-be over there has plans for both of you,” Helena replied, pointing towards Rosé who was washing the dishes. Denali gave her mom a suspicious look before walking over to Rosé.

“Rosie, where are we staying tonight?” Denali asked, resting her chin on Rosé’s shoulder.

“Are you tired?” the latter asked as she finished up the chore. Rosé turned around to get a good look at Denali who was nodding. “Well then, I guess we should get going then.” Rosé called out a good night to Helena and William before taking Denali back to their car. They drove for a good thirty minutes before they reached their destination.

It was a villa that Rosé had rented for the weekend, situated at the edge of the town, looking over the calm midnight sea. Denali sighed in awe of the view as they walked towards the house. She chuckled, thinking about how extra Rosé was and how she could have prepared all of this in just five days.

“What?” Rosé asked, looking over her shoulder to find Denali standing still in her place, just lovingly staring at her.

Denali shook her head with a smile. “Nothing,” she said. “I just can’t believe this is actually real. I feel like I must be dreaming.” Rosé walked back towards her, pulling her in for a soft, and gentle kiss.

A mix of emotions exploded in Denali’s soul. She couldn’t explain exactly how she was feeling but she was feeling magical. She kept her eyes closed even after they pulled away from the kiss, not wanting the feeling to end.

“Baby, look at me.” Rosé gently ran her thumb across Denali’s cheeks and the latter’s eyes fluttered open. “I love you.”

She delivered the words with her whole heart and soul and as she looked into Denali’s eyes she knew, she would never tire of saying those words.

Months after the magical proposal, the wedding preparations were almost done; their wedding outfits have been delivered, the venue has been booked, the invitations have been sent out. The only thing missing was the actual ceremony.

With only just a month to go before their final day, Rosé decided to go somewhere she didn’t like going to: Harvey’s grave. She felt like she needed to see him one last time before the wedding, just to know that it was okay for her to finally let him go and move on with her life.

“Hey, Harvs,” Rosé greeted as she put a hand on his tombstone. “I’m sorry I didn’t visit you that often. I just...I couldn’t believe that you were really gone.” Rosé sniffled, wiping a tear away from her face. “I’m here today, though, because I wanted to tell you that I’m finally getting married. She’s an amazing woman and I think you two would have been great friends. Her name is Denali. She’s smart, and caring, and beautiful, and...she loves me so much I can’t even believe it sometimes.”

Rosé’s eyebrows knitted together as she became unable to hold back her tears.

“I miss you, Harvs,” she sobbed. “I’m sorry. I wish I could have done more. I really do. But… I want to let you go now. I want to stop hating myself for what happened. Is that okay?” Her grip tightened around the cold rock as she continued to cry. “Denali, she… she deserves to have me completely,” Rosé continued. “And that won’t happen unless I let you go, so that’s what I’m doing. I’ll let you go now, Harvs. And I hope...I hope you’re proud of me.” She placed a kiss on her hand before running it across Harvey’s name. “I love you, Harvs.”

Rosé gave one last glance at her brother’s grave before walking away. She had only taken a step when she stopped in her tracks, recognizing the woman that was in front of her.

“Hi, sweetie.”

Her mother looked like she had been crying. Rosé realized that she must have been standing there long enough to hear everything she said on Harvey’s grave.

“What are you doing here?” Rosé asked, too tired from crying to act hostile towards her mom.

“Well, uhm,” her mom waved an iPod in the air with a tight smile. “We heard from Gammy that you’re getting married soon and I just wanted to give you this. You weren’t there when we were cleaning up Harvey’s room and uhm, there was a note on this that said this was a song for your wedding.” Nora took a cautious step to hand it over to Rosé. She heaved a sigh of relief when Rosé took it without any qualms, giving a tight smile before leaving.

“How did you know I was here?” Rosé asked, making her mom turn around.

“We went by to your place and Denali said you went to visit here and so we went here,” Nora replied.

The mother and daughter stared at each other for a while. Nora was about to leave again when Rosé called after her with the name she never thought to hear again.

“Mom,” Rosé called out and Nora looked at her hopefully. “Do you wanna, uhm... listen to it together?” She held out one of the earphones to her mom who gladly took it. They sat down in front of Harvey’s grave, staring at his name as the music played and his voice came on.

‘Okay, Ro-ro-ro-your-boat! This isn’t an original song but I’m recording this anyway because this came on the radio while I was on the way to school and I just thought this would make a great wedding song for you. You know, for when you actually grow a heart and fall in love with someone.’

Rosé laughed despite the tears that were running down her cheeks. The soft sound of the piano began playing followed by the voice she missed hearing.

‘I never I never thought I needed saving

I was right where I should be

Good God, I know it's dangerous

But it's you that I need

I'm in love this time

What have I done?

What have I done?’

Rosé glanced over her mom who was silently crying beside her. It was only then that she realized how much her mother had been hurting. Maybe even more than she was. As Harvey’s recording continued to play, Rosé’s eyes wandered towards the car that was parked on the driveway. She could see her father’s silhouette from the window and it was then too that she realized he was probably the one who was hurt the most about what happened.

‘What have I done?

Oh no, what have I done?

You be brave for me, now’

Rosé removed the earphone and stood up, walking towards the direction of the car as Harvey’s voice echoed in her mind.

‘Oh no, what have I done?

You be brave for me, now’

Rosé tapped on the window of the driver’s seat, tears streaming down her face as her father stepped out of the car.

“Dad…” she sobbed, running into his outstretched arms. She buried her face in chest like she did when she was a kid. Her father put his hand on her head, trying his best not to cry.

8 years. It took 8 years for them to finally be released of the anger and pain that has been weighing on their shoulders.

8 years and a 5-minute recording was what it took for Rosé to heal.

Her parents gave her a ride back to her and Denali’s apartment. The drive was mostly quiet but it was the best kind of quiet Rosé has ever heard. Because in it, she found her peace. They pulled up in front of the building and Rosé thanked her parents for the ride. She got out of the car but then quickly turned on her heel. She tapped on her mother’s window and waited for her to roll it down.

“Uhm, if you guys want to come to the wedding,” Rosé began. “Gammy has an invitation so you can look up the venue from there.” Her parents stared at her in shock and she just shrugged. “I just uhm, think it would be nice if you were both there.” Her features softened as she looked her parents in the eyes and gently smiled. “Actually,” she corrected herself. “I would love for you guys to be there.”

Her mother smiled gratefully as did her father.

“Then we will be there.”

Denali poked her head out of the bedroom when she heard the door click. She saw Rosé’s puffy eyes and immediately ran up to her to offer a hug. “How was it?” she asked as they walked towards the couch. Rosé lied down on Denali’s lap, offering her one of the earphones.

“Mom and dad came,” Rosé said. Denali smiled, hearing that finally, Rosé was calling them mom and dad again. “They gave me this. It’s Harvey. Singing a song for my potential wedding.” She hit the play button and once again, she heard her brother’s little monologue before the song came on. She didn’t cry this time. Instead, she smiled as she held Denali’s hand closer to her chest, running her thumb across the ring on the other’s finger.

‘So there it is! Congratulations on your wedding! I mean if you ever decide to use your heart other than to pump blood in your veins.’

Rosé chuckled when she realized she hadn’t reached this part of the recording yet because of that moment with her dad.

‘Anyways, I love you, Ro. You’re the best sister anyone could ever ask for and whoever you end up with will be the luckiest person alive.’

In the background, Rosé could hear her own voice, calling her brother down for dinner before the recording ended. Denali leaned down to place a kiss on Rosé’s forehead. “I guess he’s right,” Denali said, running her hands through Rosé’s hair.

“I am the luckiest person alive.”

---

[A/N: their looks for the proposal are down below! i hope you enjoyed reading that chapter as much as i enjoyed writing it!]

#rpdr13 #rpdr fanfiction #rosénali #rosenali #rosnali #rosali #fluff #lesbian au #stuck in elevator au #stuck together

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coinofstone · 4 years

Text

2x11 The Witch's Quickening

Hey Arthur, remember last time you were on a manhunt in Camelot and it led you to Morgana's chambers, and she talked you out of searching them and later admitted that she'd been hiding a fugitive in there? Have you learned NOTHING

And Merlin too, he doesn't like, double back and confront Morgana or suggest Arthur do that?

Why is Arthur yelling at Merlin so much in this? Who wrote this episode.

::Coin watch the show instead of playing on her phone challenge::

Morgana being manipulated by a nine year old

Why is Arthur insulting the food as if Merlin cooked it himself? Every other meal he brings up is from the palace kitchens but on this occasion Merlin cooked himself? Ok.

Even the fkin dragon is OOC in this ep

Morgana is so much more intelligent than this.

Gaius needs to bring this to Uther in the throne room like a member of the public? He couldn't get a private audience with the king? Ok.

I really don't remember this episode being so terrible, maybe I'm in a bad mood.

You know, not for nothing, but from Mordred's perspective Merlin is being an absolute dick, not only siding with the oppressor but actively working to sabotage their plans and hurt their people. As we, the audience, are privy to the reasons behind this, WE don't necessarily questions Merlin's actions, WE know he's after the crystal because he's trying to prevent Mordred and Morgana from teaming up and bringing harm to Arthur - that's all good and well but like... Merlin could never bring himself to kill Mordred because he's just a boy, but yet he's allowed the boy to go off and become somewhat radicalized (I say 'somewhat' because honestly, it's not all that radical to plot to overthrow the king that has been waging a genocidal war against your people for twenty fucking years) without ever trying to bring him into the fold. If Merlin had explained his and Arthur's destinies to the boy, made an argument for waiting out Uther's reign in the hope that Arthur's reign will bring peace and magic back to Camelot, but which may not happen if he sees his father killed by sorcerers, and explained his reasons for hiding who he is from Morgana, regardless of Mordred's ultimate destiny to be Arthur's doom, Merlin would've at least had a shot at cultivating an alliance or at very least an understanding between them. Instead, all Mordred sees is this supremely powerful sorcerer who isn't even a druid, serving the very people that would bring an end to their entire race if they could. Although, it seems as tho Mordred has forgotten who exactly snuck him out of the castle and back to the druid camp in three first place. Makes you wonder if Morgana never explained to him that she was believed to have been kidnapped when they found her with the druids last time, and that she went along with that lie for her own safety.

Tl;dr: communication is important kids!

Do I even need to point out how much sense Morgana's little tiff with Uther did not make? Or her sudden distrust of Gwen? If anything she should think Gwen would be an ally considering a) her father was killed by Uther, as an innocent victim of Uther's war on magic, b) Gwen was party to Morgana's previous involvement in aiding and abetting a druid fugitive, c) Gwen L-I-T-E-R-A-L-L-Y sacrificed herself to save Morgana from Hengist's men, the is zero reason to question Guinevere's loyalty to Morgana, and d) Gwen has never said a WORD against sorcery or hinted at any kind of prejudice against druids or anyone with magic.

I looked up the writing credit for this, it's Jake Michie who is also credited with some fantastic episodes like Lancelot, Beauty and the beast, and the Lamia to name a few. It was directed by Alice Troughton who has also done some good eps, including other eps written by Jake Michie, so like I really don't understand what went wrong here.

Oh God there's a commentary track on this episode. I don't wannnnnaaaaaa but maybe I'll learn something, like why it turned out the way it did.

Commentary by Julian Murphy, Alice Troughton, and Katie. I do not have high hopes.

Katie right off the bat explaining shit that's important to note, God I love her on these tracks. Apparently, this was one of the last things to be shot (Merlin films everything out of order and films several episodes concurrently, depending on filming location.) and it was being shot while three other episodes were being wrapped up - so they had FOUR episodes filming concurrently and a lot of THIS episode was directed by Julian Murphy, and Jeremy shot some of it as well. This COULD explain a lot of the inconsistency, but I question how much since Julian seems to be involved in filming lots of scenes in lots of episodes. But I guess it's possible that just that on top of the rush to finish and the pressure of so many spinning plates in the air right at the end. They've just said that for this episode they had the least amount of days to shoot it out of all the episodes they've done, which is partly why they had so much going at once. It's as good a reason as any to explain it being so off, but I don't really see that explaining the wildly off characterization.

Katie going on the whole thing about Alvarr-as-revolutionary and Alice picks up on Morgana's sort of desire to be in that position and they're having a quite meaningful discussion then Julian:I think she just thinks he's hot 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Katie says the script changed a lot even as it was filming, and that things were being changed as it was filmed so I'm kind of thinking for whatever reason this entire thing was a mess and that's why it came across looking so disjointed to me.

At least Julian realize the soup scene was terrible.

Idk why they're ganging up on Katie over the chemistry between her and Alvarr. She says she wasn't playing it that way and that she wasn't feeling it and they're just like "yea uh huh sure."

They're talking about having two units filming like a few feet away from each other in the forest, while there is another two units going in France.

Julian says they had added Alvarr's girlfriend in because they wanted to dramatize his charisma and calculation... but it's not manipulation - ?????????? Someone get the man a dictionary. 'We added a random blonde in four him to kiss so that the audience knows he's got a girl already, who sees him working his charm on Morgana and comments on it 'you played her well', but Alvarr isn't actually manipulative' ??????????

They've just pointed out two entire significant beats within a sequence that was constructed on set and off script. Arthur's confrontation with Alvarr in the forest and Merlin's slow motion tracking the crystal to show its got a powerful draw. The more they describe the specifics of filming the more it sounds like an utter disaster which kind of makes me feel bad for being so harsh on the episode.

I keep having to rewind to focus on what they're saying and I feel like I've been watching this episode for about 4 hours.

Awkward bit of prop-exposure there. Trying to work out what LK could even stand for.

Idk everyone's really happy with this scene between Morgana and Uther and I'm still sitting here thinking the dialogue was utterly ridiculous.

They talked about changing that final scene, where Uther clearly knows/suspects it was Morgana who helped Alvarr escape, so that it doesn't prematurely push the story too far ahead. They cut a look Morgana gives Merlin which, rightfully so, because it would've been too much too soon. The ending to this episode still feels wholly unsatisfying to me. I understand the little tag with the dragon yelling for Merlin to release him, I don't mean that, but the ending to the main story where Alvarr just escapes and Uther not only accepts that but also accepts that Morgana must've helped him. Overall Uther's been entirely sort of neutered throughout this episode, which I understand that partially has to do with it being Morgana, but like, in previous episodes when she's been so defiant against him, he's had her by the throat and locked her in a dungeon overnight. So I just doubt understand him being so subdued here, especially since he directly threatened her when he found pr Mordred escaped, and now another druid's escaped and he essentially knows she was involved given how she spoke to him, yet he doesn't do anything? Just wildly inconsistent behavior.

Anyway apologies for overanalyzing this episode, I realize I tore it apart pretty thoroughly during the commentary and the post became quite long. I wish there was a way to add a cut on mobile but there isn't. I'll have the S2 finale post up in a few hours - I might hold off on posting until I've watched the extras, I didn't do that for S1 but then I felt the extras didn't quite warrant a whole post on their own, so I might just tack on any thoughts I have to the 2x12 post. We'll see.

#bbc merlin #merlin #bbc merlin spoilers #merlin spoilers #merthur #2x11 #bbc merlin 2x11 #merlin 2x11 #the witch's quickening #onceandfuturerewatch

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