#it’s been fun watching this one escape containment based on the new fandoms being mentioned in the tags

[astridbecks]

the power of friendship will [checks notes] somewhat mitigate the effects of the apocalypse

#cr liveblog #cr spoilers #exu spoilers #critical role #exu calamity #ring of brass #elvie.txt #it’s been fun watching this one escape containment based on the new fandoms being mentioned in the tags

[alpha-centari27]

The Thoughts and Reflections of Someone New to Reylo and the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy

This is a really, really long post and contains spoilers.

Please be polite and respectful if you choose to comment and / or reblog.

Ok, so before I get too heavy discussing my thoughts and reflections there are a few things I want to make absolutely clear.

- People can ship whoever they want.  And it is perfectly fine for people to disagree and have differing tastes and opinions.  Obviously some ships are better supported by canon than others.  And there are shipping relationships that are toxic, but people ship it anyway.  I think a great non-Star Wars example is Harley Quinn and Joker. 

- I have delved deep enough into the reylo tag and other related tags to get the sense that anti-reylo are claiming a moral high ground.  “As a ship reylo is wrong and therefore anyone who ships reylo is a horrible person.”  And my simple rebuttal to this is--no, that’s not how this works.  If someone ships reylo this by itself is not sufficient evidence that someone is a horrible person.

- Based on everything I have read about TROS Ben Solo’s story arc and character development could have been so much more than what it was on screen in TROS.

- Having said that a lot of other characters were short changed by whoever was pulling the strings and making the decisions: Rose Tico, Poe Dameron, Finn and Rey and arguably Leia, Luke and Han were short changed by some of the decisions made in TROS and earlier in TLJ and TFA.

- Being part of a fandom should be fun, so can we all agree to chill out, relax and be civil?

Moving on...now that hopefully I have cleared up any preconceived assumptions.

I am relatively new to reylo and the sequel trilogies.

The first time I watched The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi was only a few weeks ago.  Some of the cable channels have been doing Star Wars marathons to get people pumped and nostalgic to pay for a movie ticket to The Rise of Skywalker.

One of the cable channels was doing yet another Star Wars marathon last night, so I again sat down to watch The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, but this time I watched the films with more awareness of the various critiques, criticisms and elements that have been deemed problematic.

I also went to the trouble of jotting down some notes.

This post is kinda all over the place, but I am going to go over my notes and observations and a main topic I want to look at is:

How Rey’s relationships and interactions with Finn and Kylo Ren differ and what sort of implications does this have.

Since stepping my toe into the reylo tags and other related tags I have NOT been able to fully articulate where I stand on whether reylo is toxic, Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is abusive, whether Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is worthy of redemption and to what degree Kylo / Ben being abused and manipulated excuses his actions.

I have to confess that the more parallels and similarities I see between Kylo Ren and Anakin / Darth Vader the more uneasy I feel about shipping reylo.

Regardless of my opinion people are free to do what they want.  If shipping reylo makes you happy, who am I too badger you into doing otherwise?

Me, writing out this long post is an attempt to flush out my thoughts at the present.

Watching the movies again I was struck by how different Rey’s interactions were with Finn and Kylo Ren.  There is a sequence in The Force Awakens between Rey and Finn that reminds me of the throne room sequence between Kylo Ren and Rey when Kylo offers his hand and asks her to rule beside him.  ((Please pardon me for paraphrasing and not having all the lines of dialogue memorized.))

Rey and Finn

At Maz’s place when Han, Rey and Finn are trying to arrange transport for BB8 to the resistance and / or get another ship to avoid detection by the First Order.

Maz looks into Finn’s eyes and remarks that he looks like someone who wants to run away.  Maz tells Finn that there is a way out.  That there are some beings that will arrange transit to the outer rim and exchange for work.

Finn approaches the beings and tells them not to leave without him.

Rey is frustrated by this.  How can he just leave?  What about BB8?  What about the resistance?  I believe this is when Finn comes clean that he is not actually with the resistance.  That he is a stormtrooper and he is not going back to the First Order and wants to stay as far away from them as possible.

Finn asks Rey to come with him.  To join him.  Rey says no.  And I believe Finn tells Rey to take care of herself.

There are no hurt feelings on Finn’s part.  He doesn’t try to persuade or manipulate her to change her mind.  He simply wishes that she takes care of herself.

Here are a few other bullet point items I want to highlight.

- Kylo Ren force pushing Rey into a tree and Finn coming to her aid and kneeling beside her reminds me of Anakin choking out Padme on Mustafar and Obi-Wan Kenobi going to Padme.

- Finn’s main motivation for going to Starkiller base was to rescue Rey.

- Rey clutches & hugs an unconscious Finn who fought and lost to Kylo Ren.

- After Starkiller base is blown up and Rey, Finn and Chewbacca are in transit.  Rey plants a kiss on Finn’s forehead as he lies unconscious.

- When Finn wakes up in The Last Jedi the first thing he says is, “Where is Rey?“

- Finn’s motivation for trying to get away in an escape pod is basically keep Rey safe.  Finn thinks the fleet is doomed.  If Finn can to an escape pod and reach safety, Rey will be able to find him and she will be safe.

- I want to say that there is another time that Rey hugs Finn.  Maybe this is when Han, Finn and Rey first find each other on Starkiller?

Finn is not a perfect person.  He does lie to Rey about being part of the resistance.  In terms of being an honorable, moral and ethical person I think it is quite clear Finn is a better person than Kylo Ren / Ben Solo.  

But in real life and in fiction people can be attracted to and fall in love with horrible people.  ((I suppose right here my own words are a damning statement against reylo.))

Some observations I made from watching The Last Jedi

- When Kylo Ren and Rey have their first force skype call.  Kylo’s first reaction is confusion.  And his second reaction is to reach out with the force to try to manipulate Rey to bring Luke Skywalker to him.

- When Rey pushes Kylo Ren to explain why he killed his father, Han Solo--I find it curious that Kylo deflects the question and starts talking about Rey’s parents and how they threw her away.  Given the plot twist in TROS this now makes Kylo look like a manipulator and a liar.  In the best case scenario Kylo was telling a version of the truth that is incomplete.  I suppose in a way Kylo does indirectly answer Rey’s question by saying, “Let the past die.  Kill it if you have to.  That’s the only way to become what you are meant to be.“  This could be read as manipulative and an attempt to push Rey to the dark side by killing Luke.

- I’m still not sure what to make of the 2nd force bond scene.  The connection is terminated and Kylo Ren is wiping his face with a gloved hand and we see...water?  Kylo Ren’s tears on his glove?  There is a wave of water crashing against some rocks in front of Rey just before Kylo is seen wiping his face.

- When an unconscious Kylo Ren wakes up in the throne room.  It is just Kylo Ren and Hux.  It’s quick, but it looks like Hux reaches into his coat to draw a weapon and shoot Kylo Ren.

- What did Rey tell Chewbacca to tell Finn?  I’m sure someone knows, but I just need to do some more digging online.

- Kylo Ren vs Luke Skywalker.  Near the very end of the fight Kylo Ren says, “I’ll destroy her [Rey] and you and all of it.“

- Overall I’m just surprised how often Rey is brought to tears throughout these movies.  It’s understandable because of what she is going through and what she has been through.  Someone must have counted how many times Rey cries and how many times it was with X or Y character and what they were talking about. 

Rey and Kylo Ren: The Throne Room

Ok, so let’s sum up the events leading up to Kylo Ren’s proposal.

Rey is brought before Snoke who tortures her for information about Skywalker.

When Snoke gets the information he wants AND it becomes clear that Rey is a true Jedi who will not serve him, Snoke then orders Kylo Ren to kill Rey.

Kylo Ren spares Rey and kills Snoke.

Kylo Ren and Rey fight off the guards together.

Kylo gives his speech about letting old things die.  What stands out to me is Kylo does NOT specifically mention the First Order.  Snoke, Luke Skywalker, the Sith, the Jedi, the resistance all need to die, but not the First Order.

Rey pleads with Ben not to do this.  Not to go down this path.  Which is reminiscent of what Padme said to Anakin on Mustafar.

Kylo / Ben says, “You’re still holding on!  Let go!”  ((Holding onto what exactly?  The resistance?  Hope?  The Jedi path?  The light side of the force?))  And once again Kylo / Ben talks about Rey’s parentage.

“You’re nothing, but not to me.  Please.”  For a while I have interpreted this as Kylo Ren / Ben Solo being honest and blunt to a fault, but seeing and listening to this again in it’s full context this does read as Kylo Ren being manipulative. Breaking Rey down, she comes from nothing, she is nothing, she has no place in this, but hey why don’t you join me and have a seat right next to me on the winning side. 

Final Thoughts:

- At the very least Kylo Ren’s conduct and behavior are red flags.  Regardless of the extent that Kylo Ren was manipulated and abused his behavior and his interactions with Rey in the TFA and TLJ are troubling to say the least.  There does come a point when someone cannot use the excuse of being abused to justify their abusive behavior.  “Ok, so you were abused and learned some bad habits and coping mechanisms, but here is the thing your actions are causing real harm to another person and that is not cool.”  It’s hard and it’s difficult to change those habits and people will slip up on the road to recovery.  I think we also need to recognize the complication that Rey and Kylo Ren are at war on opposite sides. 

- I think there was descent chemistry and a connection between Rey and Finn, but I feel like that gets de-railed at the end of TLJ when Finn is tending to Rose and Rey is interacting with Leia. 

- I think Rey and Finn is a lot less problematic than Rey and Kylo Ren / Ben Solo.  Just compare the throne room scene to the interaction between Finn and Rey at Maz’s place.

- Do I still ship reylo?  Here is how I will answer the question for now.  As flawed as Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is I do like him and find him to be a character I can relate to alongside Rey.  I have not seen TROS in theaters and don’t think I will waste my money going to see it.

I would have LOVED to see a happy ending for Ben Solo instead of a variant of Darth Vader’s redemption and death.  This has already been done, why not do something different?  Isn’t this ending more hopeful?  You know instead of Han, Luke, Leia dying in vain to save Ben. 

I would have LOVED if the people making TROS put more careful thought and consideration into Ben’s story arc and character development.

Fitting with the theme of: finding the balance, not everything is black and white, there are a lot of grey areas / ambiguity, etc.

I would have been fine with some sort of ending where Ben faces some sort of punishment for his crimes and he is neither condemned to death or is completely pardoned without consequences.

I am very curious to know what political scientists and psychologists would say about sentencing someone like Kylo Ren / Ben Solo for war crimes.  In the comics that have been released so far it seems like Ben Solo is much younger when he is turned to the dark side and taken in by the First Order.  I think in TROS it’s revealed that Ben’s current age is 30 and he was 23 when he joined Snoke and the First Order.  At age 23 Ben Solo is considered an adult, he is not a child soldier.  “But he was being manipulated before he was even born.“  I hear you...unfortunately I don’t know how or if that would factor into Ben Solo’s being charged with war crimes.

Right now, I am in favor of ignoring the mess that is TROS and replacing it with fanfiction where Rey and Ben Solo are able to live a health and happy life.  And perhaps some day they will rebuild a new Jedi order that strives to accept and learn from the mistakes of the past.

- Is Kylo Ren / Ben Solo worthy of redemption?  I think in order to answer this question we need to ask, what does it mean to be redeemed?  What does someone have to do in order to be redeemed or atone for their wrong doing? 

I think the short answer is it’s complicated and everyone has different opinions.  Some people are probably of the opinion that Kylo Ren / Ben Solo is beyond redemption.  There is nothing he can do.  He can never do enough to make up for what he has done.

I think the more complicated answer is it’s a long process and not everyone will forgive you--heck maybe no one will forgive you. 

And whether you are punished or not punished is an entirely different matter. 

There are things Kylo Ren / Ben Solo has done that he can never take back.  Kylo Ren cannot bring Han Solo back from the dead or any of the hundreds or thousands of people he has cut down.  The fact Kylo Ren has murdered even one person is probably reason enough in the eyes of some people for why he can never be redeemed.

Kylo Ren / Ben Solo turned toward the light and toward Rey.  In my opinion I think this action could be considered an act of repentance, but falls short of redeeming / atoning for all his past sins.  I think full redemption / atonement is a much more lengthier process.

Ultimately, I think this is a question worth pondering for ourselves.

#reylo #the force awakens #the last jedi #the rise of skywalker #ben solo #kylo ren #rey #rose tico #poe dameron #finn

[momentofmemory]

fictober - day twenty-nine

Prompt #29: “I’m doing this for you.”

Fandom: Spider-Man (Marvel Cinematic Universe/Tom Holland Films)

Warnings: None

Characters: Peter Parker

Words: 1719

Author’s Note: just a simple, fluffy fic of peter being soft with kids, like God intended. set post homecoming, pre-infinity war, no spoilers for anything.

>>Dumpster Damsel

Peter’s barely two hours into his patrol when he hears a child crying in an alleyway just outside of Jackson Heights.

The evening’s already been a little busier than normal—the Macy’s Parade was this morning, and even if he’s not in Manhattan, there’s still plenty of confused tourists and beleaguered locals out. The recent weather report’s got everyone in a bit of a panic, too—a cold snap’s fallen over the state, and the first proper blizzard’s supposed to roll in this weekend. Peter’s helped at least two different groups of college students install metal studs on their car tires in preparation, not to mention the many grocery bags of bread and milk he’s helped carry.

He’s never been more grateful for the heater in his suit.

The child’s distress breaks him out of the easy-going mood he’d been in, however, and Peter quickly isolates the direction of the sound and swings over, adrenaline singing through his veins.

He drops down into the alley a good twenty feet away from the sound, but his danger sense is oddly quiet.

At first he can’t see where the noise is coming from, but then he sees a tuft of fluffy black hair peeking out from behind a dumpster.

“Hey,” he says—just loud for the child to hear him, but hopefully not so loud it frightens her. “You okay, miss?”

The hair vanishes, but the sniffling continues.

Peter rises from his crouched position and, attaching a web to a nearby fire escape, swings over so that he’s hanging upside down in front of the dumpster.

“Are you lost?” he asks. “’Cause like, I’m pretty good at helping people get un-lost if you’d like.”

“No.”

Peter blinks, his mask squinting in response. “No, you don’t want help, or no, you’re not lost? Because I have it on good authority from at least two other heroes that dumpsters do not count as prime real estate.”

Two brown eyes peek around the edge of the container, and teeth chatter as their owner speaks. “Mother says I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.”

“Your mother sounds super smart.” Peter lowers his feet to the ground and lets go of the web. “Maybe we should start over. I’m Spider-Man.”

The eyes narrow. “I know.”

“So we’re not strangers then!” Peter squats down, trying to get a better glimpse of her. “If you know my name, is it okay if I know yours, too?”

A moment’s hesitation, and then:

“No.”

She scurries all the way back behind the dumpster, and Peter swears he’s never had this much trouble with a kid in his entire career.

“…Okay.” He rocks back on his heels. “You remind me of someone I used to know, so I’mma call you Mary, if that’s all right.”

She doesn’t respond, but the sniffling seems to have stopped. Peter bites his lip and starts fiddling with his web-shooter, just to have something to distract him from the cold.

He clears his throat and tries again. “So what’d you do today?”

A shuffling sound. “Mother took me to see Hello Kitty.”

“Whoa, you went to see the parade?” Peter’s brain spins. That was over nine hours ago; surely she can’t have been lost for that long. Not in these temperatures, anyway.

“…That’s awesome,” he says, remembering to hold up his side of the conversation. “I had Hello Kitty pajamas one time, and they were super fuzzy.”

The eyes return, more curious this time. Peter makes sure not to react too strongly. 

“So did uh, did you walk all the way over here by yourself?”

“No.” She moves another inch closer.

“…Sightseeing?” Peter has Karen search for any reports of a missing child, and three pop up from within the last three hours.

“We went back to the hotel so daddy could take a nap, but mama wanted to go shopping.”

“Yeah, my Aunt does that sometimes.” Peter shoots a line of webbing at a rock and starts fashioning a Yo-Yo while Karen provides an annotated map of the area for him. “Did you at least get anything cool out of it?”

There’s a long pause, and then the girl finally comes all the way out from behind the dumpster. Her black hair is caught up in two bushy pigtails on top of her head, and Peter thinks she might be about six based on her size. She holds out her arm, and there’s a bright pink Hello Kitty watch strapped to her wrist.

“No way,” Peter gasps, his breath forming into mist as it hits the chilly air.

“Yeah.” She tries to hide it, Peter can tell she’s pleased by his reaction. “My mom wrote my name on it. Imani.”

“Definitely a wise woman,” Peter says, internally fist bumping himself for reaching the first-name basis.

Score One for Spider-Man, Best Babysitter Ever.

Karen blinks a warning in the corner of his feed that the temperature is rapidly dropping, and when Peter sees the thin long sleeve t-shirt Imani’s wearing, he tempers his mood.

“So,” he says, casually testing out his new yo-yo as Imani watches, “where on earth did you get such a cool watch?”

She rattles off list of stores Peter recognizes as an area off Roosevelt Ave., and if that’s where she got lost, her parents probably would have gone to the 110th Precinct to report a missing child. Karen confirms his suspicions, and she tips off the station that they’re on their way.

It’s about seven blocks from here, which won’t take long at all if Imani lets him carry her.

“Hey, Imani?” Her hand freezes from where it’d been reaching for the yo-yo and it darts behind her back, but he presses on anyway. “Since we’re Hello Kitty buds, how would you feel about swinging to the police station with me?”

Just like that, all the goodwill he’d built up vanishes, despite how much she’s clearly shivering.

She crosses her arms in front of her chest. “No.”

He takes his earlier victory dance back; his reputation as Best Babysitter Ever is going to be ruined.

“It’s super fun, though,” he pleads. “Like flying in Aladdin!”

“No.”

He squints his mask’s eyes at her. She remains unmoved.

Peter does the math on how long it’ll take them to get to the police station by sidewalk, and sighs. It’s doable.

“Would you… walk with me?”

She doesn’t turn him down immediately, and Peter takes that as a positive. “I’ll even let you carry the yo-yo.”

Imani purses her lips—worriedly tinged blue, to Peter’s mind—and then snatches the yo-yo from him.

“Okay, Mr. Spider.”

Peter takes her hand gently into his own, hoping the warmth from his suit will carry over at least a little. She accepts it, to his surprise, though probably only because she’s distracted in trying to get his homespun yo-yo to work in her other hand. He leads them out onto the street, and while a few people glance their way, no one questions it. Spider-Man interacting with a child is not a novel sight for most New Yorkers.

They make it a block towards the station before Imani speaks again.

“What other heroes do you know?”

Peter glances down at her, and notices she’s shivering significantly harder than she was before. “Hm?”

“You said there were other heroes that liked du—dumpsters.”

“Yep, sure do.” Peter knows she’s not dangerously cold, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t miserable. He feels guilty about his own heater. “You wouldn’t like them, though. I don’t think they even know what Hello Kitty is.”

Imani says nothing in response. Peter gnaws at the edge of his lower lip—at the rate they’re walking, it’s going to be another thirty minutes before they get to the station. Around block two, they pass a street heater and when Imani leans towards the warmth, Peter has an idea.

“Y’know,” he says, rubbing a hand over his arm. “I think I’m getting pretty cold.”

She tears her eyes away from the heater, now several feet behind them, and looks at him with all the suspicion a six-year-old can muster. “Yeah, because you didn’t wear a jacket.”

“Have you ever seen a superhero in a bubble coat?”

She stops so abruptly Peter’s nearly thrown off balance, and a group of people clustered by one of the food trucks stare at them with open curiosity. 

She rubs her hands together. “Doesn’t the wizard have a cape?”

“Dr. Strange, yeah. But capes are like, a whole other subset of clothing so it doesn’t count. Entirely different from coats.”

She scowls, her nose scrunched up in thought. “I guess so.”

They stand there for a few more moments, Imani freezing and Peter pretending to be.

She huffs dramatically. “Are you really that cold?”

Peter gives an exaggerated shiver. “Capsicle levels.”

Imani glares at the sidewalk, and Peter crosses his fingers behind his back.

“…I guess we can swing.”

Peter lights up immediately, widening his mask’s eyes in a way he’s been told is exceedingly endearing. “Ready to experience a whole new world?”

She takes the hand he’s holding out to her, and with her permission, he hoists her up onto his hip.

“I hope you know I’m doing this for you,” she says, voice sullen even as she wraps her arms around his waist.

Peter smiles. “And I’m very grateful.”

Imani shrieks in his ear as he takes off, and they make it to the precinct in less than five minutes. When she sees her mother waiting for her in the station window, she starts shrieking for an entirely different reason.

Peter feels warmer than he has all day.

He sticks around the police station just long enough to tell the cop assigned to the case where he’d found her, and is about to head back out when a small hand taps on his arm.

“You left this, Mr. Spider,” Imani says, holding out the yo-yo.

“You keep it,” Peter says, knowing the web’ll dissolve in a few hours, anyway. “And keep an eye on your mom for me, too. She seems super smart. You wouldn’t want her to get lost again.”

Imani nods. Then she squints up at him. “Were you really cold?”

Peter laughs despite himself, and shoots a web at a nearby sign before launching himself into the air.

“Not when you’re around.”

#fictober19 #peter parker fic #mcu fanfic #fanfiction #spiderman #peter parker #memsfic

[sleepyfan-blog]

warnings: Betrayal, cursing

Fandom: Underverse, 

characters: Dust, Killer, Horror, Cross, Dream, Baby Blasters Sans and Papyrus

word count: 2,891

summary: Dream wakes up to an argument, and realizes that he fled to the wrong au. Can he talk Cross into letting him go?

Dream woke to the sound of three voices arguing, low and fast, their emotions tense, fearful and uncertain and mixed with confusion. But he couldn't focus on what they were saying, as he felt as if his bones had been pulled from him one by one, soaked and acid, before being roughly shoved back. He was low on magic and curled around something in a very uncomfortable position. The guardian of positivity frowned at himself, took in a couple of deep, calming breaths and did his best to focus through the slowly receding pain to try to listen in on who was arguing. Their magic was somewhat familiar to him - but not in a good way.

"-and I'm telling you, one of us needs to teleport to boss, right now, and tell him." A rough, growling voice muttered angrily, sounding as if he was a couple of feet to Dream's left.

"Yeah, and I don't want to be the one to do it! You know how tetchy he gets whenever his name is mentioned around him, and he's going to lose his shit if he finds out that the ball of fuckin' sunshine is actually here. Why the hell he's here, I don't know." A second, lighter voice hissed from a little bit further away.

"I didn't realize that Sunny D knew where this timeline was. You'd think that boss would have picked a timeline that none of the Star Shits had been to before, given that our main base is here." A third voice purred "And wouldn't it be better if we just dragged him to boss in the first place? Because if we go and tell Nightmare that he's here, there's a chance that Dream will wake up and teleport off. And then Boss'll really be pissed."

"I can barely sense him though. Which means he's probably got like... Next to no magic. Do you really think he could walk in that state, much less create a portal to leave?" The first voice pointed out musingly.

Dream tried not to flinch as he realized that he'd... He'd come back to Dreamtale - and the memories of why he had instinctively fled to his former home caused the positivity guardian to try to suppress a violent flinch and a sob - Horror, Killer and Dust hadn't seemed to notice that he was awake yet - and he needed to make sure that the tiny, abused children that he'd rescued would be safe. And they really weren't here. He also realized that he had somehow managed to turn back into his original form - but at least he wasn't dog-shaped. At least it wasn't immediately apparent that

Cross spoke up - because of course all four of Nightmare's main minions were crowded around him - saying quietly "What I want to know is why are his clothes shredded? I've never seen his boots torn up like that - and his pants are all messed up as well."

"... That's a good point. Welp, something to ask him when he wakes up. Heh, we might be able to have a bit of fun with him before we tell boss." Dust responded, and Dream could hear the sadistic glee in the other's voice, not just in the other's magic. There was a dull smacking sound of bone against bone and Dust hissed "Oww! What was that for?"

"Don't be weird and gross, Dust." Cross scolded, discomfort in the other's magic as he spoke "I think that earns you the dubious honor of telling bo-"

Dream could hear the ringing of an interdimensional cell phone, and Dust answered "What's up, boss? ... Right now? I mean, we kind of... Okay! Okay fiiine... Yes boss... Recon and report. By myself or-? Got it. Yes boss." It felt like an eternity of silence before Dust spoke up again "Well, Horror and I have a mission - and he wants us to leave now... And there's the portal. I'll tell you the details once we get through. Have fun sorting this mess out you two."

The positivity guardian heard two sets of footsteps walk away from him, before their magical signatures vanished. Despite desperately wanting to try to get up - to try to move into a less vulnerable position, Dream was hoping that the two remaining Bad Sanses were still under the impression that he was asleep, and might give him an opportunity to flee with the very young Sans and Papyrus he was still holding carefully. Thankfully, both of the pups were still asleep, snuggled into one another and nestled in his arms. He didn't dare to even activate his eye lights in an attempt to see what was going on, as that would reveal, if one of them was looking at his face, that he was awake. He knew that he would have exactly one chance to try to escape with how little magic he had - and the fact that both Killer and Cross were efficient hunters.

"Soo... Let's fight to see who has to tell boss. Loser has to give him the news." Killer suggested.

"No. For one thing, Nightmare doesn't like it when we fight each other... Besides, you'll be the one going to speak to him anyways." Cross responded.

"Are you implying that you're stronger than me, Crossy-boy?" Killer hissed, irritation and indignation spiking in the other's magic.

"Yes. I know for a fact that I'm stronger than you are, Killer." The monochromatic skeleton answered back, supremely unconcerned about his teammate's annoyance.

"Then put your gold where your mouth is, you shit!" Killer growled, and Dream felt the other's irritation turn into rage and bloodlust.

"I don't need to prove myself to you, Killer." Cross responded back, his voice still calm. "One of us needs to tell Nightmare that Dream - and whoever he's got with him - is here and I don't trust you not to try to stab one of the three of them while I'm away. You've stabbed prisoners out of boredom before, and I don't think that Nightmare would take it well if you were hurting Dream. He's..."

"Really strange when it comes to that particular Star Shit? Yeah. I've noticed that much. I've been working with Boss for a lot longer than you have... And what do you mean by whoever's with him? It's just Dream." Killer growled, confused.

"He has two beings with him. A Sans and Papyrus who I've never sensed before. He's hidden their magical presence with his own, but I can sense them." Cross answered back.

"... Both of them must be really tiny, if that's true. Because I certainly don't see another Papyrus laying down next to him, and they're always tall... If they're full grown." Killer grumbled "Fine. I... I'll go talk to boss."

Moments later, Dream felt the tell-tale flash of magic distinctive to teleportation. With only one of the bad Sanses watching him, now was definitely the time to-

"I know you're awake, Dream. I noticed the difference in your breathing pattern, earlier." Cross spoke up, his voice suddenly much closer and more directly above him than normal. "So you might as well get up.”

Dream hesitated for a moment before turning on his eye lights and looking up at Cross - startled that the other was kneeling directly in front of him. After a moment of awkwardly starting at the other's mis-matched eye lights, the older skeleton shifted his hold on the sleeping Sans and Papyrus in his arms so that he was holding both of them with one arm, using the other to slowly and painfully push himself up into a sitting position, a quiet groan of pain leaving him as his joints snapped and popped a little bit as he straightened his spine, staring blearily at the other. He didn't know Cross very well - but he knew that Ink did... And that the other had counted the other as a friend. Perhaps he could reach out to the other, while he had the chance? Keeping his voice low so that he hopefully didn't wake up the sleeping children, he pleaded quietly "Please let me leave, Cross. I hadn't meant to come here - I've... I've never spoken of this place to Ink or Blue, ever and I... It's vanishingly unlikely that I ever will. Please I-I've got to get the little ones to safety!"

Cross stared at him, the other's eye lights widening and Dream could feel the horror and confusion within the other's soul as the younger skeleton seemed to be at an utter loss. "I... What... What the actual fuck happened to you, Dream?"

Ah. Time to lie. "I... N-nothing much, I just... Uhm..." Dream looked down at himself - Cross's horrified staring was... Oh no. His clothes were ripped to shreds, and since he'd moved, his cape wasn't covering much anymore. A bright gold blush appeared on his face and with his free hand he tugged his cape over himself (and the pups) "I... Cross please..."

"No. Seriously. What the hell happened?" Cross growled, his eye lights intense "What did he do to you? I can sense traces of his magic on you, but I wasn't going to say anything in front of the others. What the fuck did a Gaster do to you?" The other grabbed one of his shoulders, shaking him a little.

The sudden movement startled Dream, causing him to flinch and curl in on himself, and the rough movements forced a whimper of pain to leave him "I... P-please... I-It's p-probably n-not as bad as you th-think! I just... The G-Gaster b-briefly experimented on m-me but he c-couldn't keep me contained for v-very long. I f-found the Sans and Papyrus in a cell and broke them o-out and... I was r-running on instinct and I h-had only enough m-magic to 'port us to one AU and I... I-I went home... I d-didn't remember at the t-time that it's n-not safe here anymore. It ha-hasn't in a long time but I... I-I fled here to Nigh..." Dream immediately stopped talking, shifting his hold on the pups again, so that he was holding them in his arms again "But that's not important. What is, i-is getting the children to safety. Please let me leave so I can get them to safety. I-I'll bring you along too! S-so you won't get into trouble for letting me escape."

"I... I don't..." Cross responded, his facial expression - half hidden by his scarf - showing absolutely nothing. But the other's emotions were unsettled and unsure - as if the other was trying to figure out what to do. The other's gaze fixated on the tiny bone puppies in Dream's arms. "Why do they look like that?"

"Oh... You've never been to a Baby Blaster Beast AU?" The guardian of positivity asked, blinking a little in surprise "Or even a Gaster Blaster Beast AU before? I... I'll explain but please - at least let me open a portal to set the children in a safer world, Cross?"

"No, I haven't... they're... So small..." The monocrhomatic skeleton responded, his red and white eye lights still focused on the very young skeletal creatures in Dream's arms. "I... I can see why you'd want to protect them. I... I can't open portals, you know. And I'm not going to try to summon that treacherous, two-faced bastard. He'd probably force you to try to put them back in their own au... Despite the fact that you've clearly just rescued them from somewhere terrible because he doesn't like to interfere or some bullshit like that. But... I... Sure, I'll help you." There was a strange emotional flutter in the other's magic that Dream wasn't aware enough to identify, much as the positivity guardian tried to keep as in tune with his surroundings as possible.

"I know that... But I can - but you'd have to not attack me while I'm trying to summon up enough magic to do that, so I don't lose concentration." Dream explained, hope building in his chest. He had no idea how much time he had left before Nightmare showed up - it depended on how reluctant Killer was to talk to the fallen guardian. But he suspected that he didn't have much left.

"I... I wouldn't attack you, not when you're carrying helpless children. I've... Done a lot, for Nightmare. But I... That's a line I'm not going to cross." The monocrhomatic skeleton responded, nodding definitively as he stared at the tiny skele-pups.

Dream could sense a rising determination within the other, and despite the seriousness of the situation, he couldn't help but chuckle a little, commenting "Nice pun, Cross." If he were less tired, he might have tried to respond back, but he was already focusing on making a portal.

The other groaned, burying his face in his hands "I didn't do that on purpose! The others make way too many cracks about my name as it is! I'm just glad that none of the others heard me say that. Otherwise I'd never hear the end of it."

Dream smiled kindly at the younger skeleton before responding "I'm sorry to hear that the others tease you for your name, but again, tha-" His eye lights widened as he felt his magic rush out of him and fizzle. "No... Why... Why can't I open a portal? I.. I sh-should be able to... To do so..." He felt himself falling over again, Cross' arms wrapping around him as darkness started to envelop him.

The positive guardian heard Cross speaking, his voice apologetic, and the feelings in the other's magic and soul guilty and determined "I'm sorry... But I can't go against Boss. I need him to fix my timeline."

"But... You... You promised to help me..." Dream responded, a look of betrayal flashing across his eyes. He should have known better than to hope that one of Nightmare's people really would help him - but Cross had genuinely seemed intent on wanting to help the children... "But... Please... At least make sure that the children are safe, Cross. I don't... I don't know what he'll do to them."

"I... I'll try. That I am genuinely promising you. I don't know how much I'll actually be able to do." Cross promised, grabbing Dream as he stood up, the shorter skeleton's feet dangling a couple of inches in the air. "I've just gotten a text from Killer. Nightmare's expecting you."

Dream struggled against the other's grip, kicking the taller skeleton, but the violent movements caused more pain to course through the positivity guardian "No... No! I won't... Won't be captured without a fight..."

"You barely have enough energy to keep conscious, much less to actually fight me. You won't be able to escape, even if you manage to get away from me." Cross pointed out, his tone of voice almost sounding as if he was thinking that Dream was being unreasonable. "If you continue to fight like this, you'll wake up the kids - and you don't want to upset or distress them, do you?"

"A-As if the three of them being captured by Nightmare will be any better." Dream hissed, still struggling and fighting against the other as best as he could - kicking at Cross's knees, trying to get the other to fall over - or at least stumble, barring that. He also felt no shame whatsoever in shifting a little and biting one of the other's arms that was restraining, unaware at first that he was growling .

"Ouch! What the fuck?" Cross swore, startled that the other bit him - he hadn't thought that the guardian of positivity was one to do something like that "You bit me!... And you're growling." He was... Really surprised. He'd never seen the other in such a... Feral? State. He'd expect this sort of thing out of one of the Fells, but not Dream.

"You're trying to capture me, and it's one of the few ways I can fight back." Dream hissed. He needed to save every bit of what little magic he had left for the teleport out to a different AU, which was why he wasn't trying to use his magic on the other. The positive guardian was continuing to hold the sleeping skeletal puppies as gently as he could, not wanting to wake them up.

Cross yelped again as Dream continued to bite him and growl, teleporting into Nightmare's castle "Oww, fuck! Stop that!"

"{NO!}" Dream growled in Hands, unaware that he was doing so, his form shifting and cracking, warping and prompting pained whimpers from the frustrated guardian as he was forcefully turned back into Gaster blaster beast form, shrinking to half the size of the Sans-pup, who was ten inches snout to tail.

Cross cursed colorfully in shock, using his gravitational magic to hold all three of the small dog-things before they crashed to the floor. He scooped them up in his arms and headed straight to Nightmare., making sure to wrap all three of them up in Dream's cape, grabbing the stubborn guardian's crown just before it hit the ground as well. Not a single damn thing about this situation made a single bit of sense. Hopefully someone would explain. He felt three squirming lumps in the cape and murmured quietly in hands “{Settle down, would you? The kids won’t be hurt. That much, I did earnestly promise, Dream. As for what happens to you, that’s Nightmare’s decision, not mine.}”

#bad things happen bingo #my writing #dream #dust!sans #killer!sans #Cross!sans #baby blaster sans #baby blaster papyrus #betrayal #Horror!sans

[ylc1]

Fanfic Master List (Johnlock)

I left this pairing for last since it’s the one I’ve written more fics about so... well. Here we are! Enjoy!

Burned hearts

Johnlock, complete, 7300 words.

Summary: A retell from the scene at the pool in TGG, in which John is never revealed to be Moriarty’s hostage. Believing himself fooled, Sherlock goes through a bit of a meltdown.

Some personal notes on it: this idea came to me when I first watched TGG. I think that I could have expanded it so much more and make it even more angsty but well… I still like it.

Additional notes: angst, lots of self doubt, Sherlock doesn’t cope well, Mycroft and Greg are very concerned.

Apples and Oranges

Johnlock, complete, 600 words.

Summary: Kid Sherlock is attempting to figure out why would people like kissing. John helps.

Some personal notes: this was a fill in for a tumblr prompt. Just some kidlock fluff.

Additional notes: AU, kidlock, fluff.

Long shot

Johnlock, complete, 44200 words.

Summary: Omega werewolf Sherlock is engaged to human Prince John, after having scared off his last suitor. It seems it might be working out for the best though- at least until the Dark and Immortal Wizard Moriarty rises again.

Some personal notes: when I write original fiction, I tend towards fantasy with a mix of romance. Indulging in my love for both genres was a joy. Also, this was my work with most kudos for a long while, so I guess it shows ;)

Additional notes: A/B/O dynamics, Mpreg, arranged marriage, angst, pining, misunderstandings, Jim being Jim (he’s the perfect fairytale villain, honestly)

Wildest dreams

Johnlock (although victorian), complete, 3800 words.

Summary: Watson puts an end to his relationship with Holmes, in order to marry Mary Morstan.

Some personal notes: have I told you how I love Taylor Swift’s songs? I had been trying to avoid writing this particular fic because I worried about my abilities to write something with such a strict historical setting, but I should probably have stopped listening to the song because it soon became too much :P

Additional notes: victorian (but a bit loosely I think), angst, pining, unhealthy coping mechanisms… HAPPY ENDING

Mistaken impressions

Johnlock, complete, 16300 words

Summary: John is convinced his neighbor’s boyfriend is a jerk. He sort of is, but he’s actually Sherlock’s brother.

Some personal notes: I liked this idea, but as I started writing… I lost my way a bit. So now I’m a bit stuck with is, since I have no idea where exactly I want to go with it, although I have what I think might be the last chapter half-written.

Additional notes: references to past abusive relationships, past drug addiction, unhealthy coping mechanisms, angst, drama, pining, MISUNDERSTANDINGS and some attempts of humor.

Hopeless

Johnlock, complete, 45800 words.

Summary: John’s a slave in Lord Magnussen’s household. When a new slave arrives and the Master takes a fancy on her (although it’s really him), John finds himself doing the best he can to protect him.

Some personal notes: this idea came to me in a dream. Which is why it’s far darker than my usual writings and also the reason for Trans Sherlock. I don’t like fighting my inspiration and well… I went with it, even if it added another layer of complications to this particular fic.

Additional notes: trans character, misgendering, implied/referenced noncon (although there’s nothing explicit), underage (it’s never explicitly stated, but Sherlock is 14 when the fic starts), slavery, sexual slavery, very dark, very angsty, mentions of violence, murder and abuse. It has a happy/hopeful ending, though!

Home for Christmas

Johnlock, complete, 8500 words.

Summary: When Mycroft Holmes informs his family he’s bringing along a friend for Christmas, the household is thrown into utter chaos: Mummy Holmes is delighted, of course and Mr. Holmes is just baffled. Sherlock, however, is determined to figure out what is his brother up to. Mycroft doesn’t do friendships, let alone relationships, so who is this mysterious Dr. John H. Watson and what’s his business with his brother?

Some personal notes: this is the actual summary on AO3, but I really don’t know a better way to describe it ;) I think my attempt of humor did work here, even if it endeded up including a bit of angst (but not much)

Additional notes: Alternate First Meeting, humor, Christmas fic, misunderstandings (of a sort), family.

Black magic

Johnlock, complete, 7400 words.

Summary: John ends up with a magic love potion (he was drunk, don’t judge him!) and in a fit of desperate longing, he gives it to Sherlock. He didn’t expect it to work since magic does not exist, so he’s a little baffled when Sherlock starts acting love-struck.

Some personal notes: this was the first fic I meant to write for the fandom. I never got around finishing until now, when I figured I might as well give it another try. I think it could have been longer, but I had no idea what else to write :P

Additional notes: attempt of humor, magic, a surprising amount of discussion of consent issues, not actually unrequited love.

All is fair (in love and war)

Johnlock, complete, 6300 words.

Summary: Eurus’ “game” forces John and Sherlock to confess long hidden feelings. It turns out as well as you’d expect.

Some personal notes: It started as a rewrite of the “I love you” scene in TFP, turned into a sort of fix it fic. I like it, even if I’m not completely sure the logic holds :P

Additional notes: angst, drama, hurt without comfort, but has a happy ending!

Priceless   

Johnlock, complete 22485 words.

Summary: Sherlock is a Prince with a Kingdom at war. He makes a deal with the all powerful wizard called “the Dark One”; the wizard will stop the war if Sherlock stays with him forever.

Some personal notes: this fic is result of the FandomTrumpsHate auction, for the lovely @sherlock-and-john-getting-it-on​. I was asked for a “Beauty and the Beast” inspired fic with John as the Beast. I asked for the chance to use the Once Upon a Time spin of the tale and this is the result.

Additional notes: magical AU, pining, misunderstandings (they’re both so silly it hurts!), includes my attempt of some proper smut, Jim wrote himself into it and in doing that provided me with an ending :P

Saving all my love for you

Johnlock, 

Summary: Unrequited love is no fun.

Some personal notes: I just wanted to write something angsty, heart tugging. There isn’t much plot, really, just a lot of pining and self reflection.

Additional notes: based on the song by the same title,angst, pining, sad, unilock.

The art of letting go

Johnlock, complete, 47400 words.

Summary: Sherlock convinces himself that if he can’t remember what happened on the stag night, then it didn’t happen at all. Until he finds out he’s pregnant and he can’t keep pretending, that is.

Some personal notes: Oh, I loved working on this. I have a thing for unplanned pregnancies (as you can probably tell) and while writing a character as trans always makes me nervous, I thought it worked well. The story is very angsty at points and it doesn’t get hopeful until the very end so… be warned!

Additional notes: Trans character, Mpreg, angst (a lot), jealousy, pining, Mary and John are married but she isn’t pregnant, pos TSoT, follows HLV more or less.

A fortunate encounter

Johnlock, complete, 4528 words.

Summary: While escaping a group of enemy soldiers, Sherlock ends up in a mysterious island.

Some personal notes: after watching the Wonder Woman movie I couldn’t contain myself and ended up writing this short thing ;)

Additional notes: Wonder Woman AU, love at first sight, spoilers for the movie (somewhat, but not really), romance.

Just friends

Johnlock, side mystrade, complete, 4400 words

Summary: Just friends don’t live together, have sex and generally enjoy a life of sweet domesticity.

Except John and Sherlock do, apparently.

Some personal notes: Cliche, I know, but cute. I became a little obsessed with the idea of friends with benefits due a song :P

Additional notes: alternate universe- college, a little angst, friends with benefits (except not), lack of communication.

The answer

Johnlock, very side Mystrade, complete, 16700 words.

Summary: Friendless and penniless, John agrees to participate on a study conducted by the renowned researcher, Sherlock Holmes, to find the answer to what’s probably the most important question in the world: what’s love?

Some personal notes: this is vaguely based on the book “The answers”, going in the direction I thought the author was going to go when I started reading it (I like my idea much better, I must say)

Additional notes: fake/pretend relationship, a little pining, Sherlock is bad at feelings (and so is John), pseudo science (don’t look too deep into it), lack of communication.

Don’t forget me (I won’t forget you)

Johnlock, complete, 2600 words.

Summary: Sherlock wakes up one day to find he’s the only person who can remember John Watson.

Some personal notes: this idea came to me one day and refused to leave until I wrote it down. It’s just the beginning of a tale, but I don’t have much a plot planned so it’s marked as finished.

Additional notes: Eurus has actual telepathic powers, a little angst, memory alteration, open ending.

And that’s it! They weren’t quite as many as a feared :P 

I hope you’ll enjoy them! Kudos & comments mean the world to me.

And if you can, maybe Buy Me a Coffee

My other lists are here: rare pairs, johnlock & mystrade, mystrade

Last updated 18.12.2018

#my fanfics #fanfic master list #johnlock

[xadoheandterra]

Title: Don’t Write Me A Postscript Chapter: XI (I / II / III / IV / V / VI / VII / VIII / IX / X / XII / XIII) Fandom: Red vs Blue Characters: Church | Alpha, Kaikaina Grif | Sister | Agent Kansas, Cornelius Thromwell Andersmith | Agent Oregon, Kappa, Sarge, Michael Caboose | Agent California | Michael-210, David Church | Agent Washington | Recovery One Summary: He was all sorts fucked up and didn’t want to admit it. Being alone for fourteen months didn’t help matters--except, well, Church was tired of being alone. Tired of people leaving and dying--and he thought, no more. I’m done. I’m out.

Won’t Say You’re Sorry (I / II / III)

Do You Even Feel Compassion? (I / II)

Kai stared down at the missive sent directly to her from a name she had not, in fact, ever expected to see again. For a long moment Kai just stared, and stared—and a part of her contemplated pretending she’d not received the message at all and go back to her plans for tonights rave to piss off the old shotgun man who shot at her Dex for fun across the Gulch. For a moment Kai contemplated outright murder—except she and Dex talked, after her arrival and after everything, and she knew Dex liked Sarge for whatever reason and Kai was determined not to ruin this too for her brother. She ruined enough between the both of them while growing up already. If it weren’t for her Dex wouldn’t even be—

With a frustrated grunt Kai grit her teeth and slammed her hand down onto the table, next to her tablet and bowed her head over her knees. She let the pain rush up her arm and bit back a scream—let it ground her down into the moment until the thoughts she didn’t want to focus on left her. With a huff Kai leaned back and stared up at the cement ceiling, strung up with lights of all colors that were, for the moment, off. She ran her fingers along the back of her neck and massaged them into her shoulders, welcomed the twinge of pain that followed the movement, and sighed.

“Fuck you Andersmith,” she grumbled, dropped her feet off of the table, and swiped the tablet up. “Fuck you and the horse you damn well rode in on.” With a growl Kai stormed out of the base. She didn’t bother to grab her armor or the protective undersuit. It wasn’t like Sarge would actually shoot her anyway—she knew Donut talked to him, once, and if she remembered the white-blond farm-boy at all she didn’t doubt he was convincing in his weird way. Plus everyone over on Dex’s team seemed rather fond of the farm-boy, anyway, so Kai had that going in her favor. Still, for safety’s sake, Kai took a moment to pause a good distance away from Red Base.

Kai looked down at her tablet, sucked in a breath, and looked back at the pockmarked ground. “OI! YOU OLD WHITE FUCK!” Kai practically swayed with the force of her yell and squinted over at the red base. She waited and watched for Sarge to pop up on top of the base, shotgun at the ready as he peered off in the distance at her.

“What do yer want, yer damned dirty blue?!” Sarge yelled across the canyon.

“IT’S ABOUT DEX!” Kai screamed. “AND THAT PASTY KISS-ASS OF HIS!” She watched as Sarge dithered for a second, and then disappeared from the roof without a word. Kai huffed and started to pace around the hill, her hands wrapped tight around the tablet with Andersmith’s message. Mentioning Dex and his not-boyfriend should get the old bastard right up to her. She noticed his soft spot for the nerd, so she hoped by mentioning him she’d at least get his attention.

Kai didn’t doubt if she just screamed about Dex he wouldn’t have even really listened beyond to give her his shitty condolences. Honestly what was Butch even thinking, picking a twisted up old creep like this to be the leader of red team? Not to mention her precious Dex! If she ever got her hands on his corpse she’d happily burn it—but she still hadn’t found where it’d gotten to. Butch didn’t seem to be in the caverns like that poor kid or the body Tex once housed. Kai wondered if he was even alive somewhere, holed up and waiting for the right moment to swoop back into the swing of things.

Her thoughts didn’t distract her for long, and soon Kai dug her teeth into her lips as she paced. Her gaze slipped down to the message from Andersmith and she looked back to the base while she moved with deadly precision and grace. Damn Andersmith for contacting her now, of all things, when she’d been certain everything would be fine. It wasn’t like Dex’s life would be at risk because of the stupid AI they had to keep an eye on anymore—or at least, it shouldn’t have. Now this? Kai pulled the tablet up and slammed her back against the trunk of the lone, twisted tree with a grunt. She swiped along the glass surface and shifted her shoulders so that the bark actually dug into the faint scars in a way to tug some of her attention and keep her senses sharp.

The video stuttered with slipspace radiation interference, one of the little tricks Omega Team used when sending secured messages if they weren’t on location with one another. The unique radiographic signature let Kai know that Andersmith wasn’t compromised, in need of rescue, or immediate assistance for whatever reason. It also let her know that the message was priority and that was what got Kai out here, now, speaking with Sarge of all people.

“Hey—Hey Kai,” Andersmith said, lips pulled into a wry grin. He wore the lip piercing Kai had gotten him during shore leave one day, and she saw several new additions all across his face alongside a tattoo of some alien script under his eye. “I k-k-k-kkknow you didn’t expect to h—from me again.” The static rushed through the video and cut through words like butter, but the context was still readable as he spoke. “We didn’t pa-a-a-arrrt on the best of terms, did we?”

Kai hunched her shoulders.

“Yeah,” Andersmith nodded and scrubbed his hand through his hair. The screen fizzed and jumped around some more before she found him staring, serious now as he looked at her. “Look the Director sent me a m-ii—ve. I’m en-rrrrrroute to Rhodam.”

Kai closed her eyes.

“I-I know,” Andersmith sighed. “You don’t want me near-r-rrrr Outposssssst Alpha, but I trust you wo-won’t shoot me down?”

“Don’t count on it,” Kai grumbled.

“Th-thought n-n-n-nnnnnot, so,” Andersmith continued. “S-S-So I’ve been given permisssssssion to break that one—” the words completely washed away into static, but when Andersmith popped back into the screen it was with a picture of Dex and his not-boyfriend to be held up. “—my collateral. I trust you understand?” His smile became almost bitter as he leaned back. “Yeah. Yeah I know you do.” He leaned back. “I’ll see you soon, Kai.” The screen broke up again into interference, and then just the brush of fingertips against the camera, a silent goodbye, before it completely cut out.

Kai smashed her back into the tree with barely contained fury. Dammit, Andersmith! Why couldn’t he have included something more than just—that? Oh when she saw him she was going to enjoy wrapping her thighs around his neck and listening to him gasp for it, Kai swore. She would’ve just been happy with shooting down his pelican but not now—not now. Not with the potential threat of Dex being on board that thing, as well.

“Well, little missy,” Sarge huffed as he came to a rest several yards away from her. Kai straightened up and noted that Sarge held his good loosely, but finger off the trigger like he had in all their few other interactions since everyone left the Gulch. “What’s all this hullabaloo about, then?”

Kai scowled at Sarge and crossed her arms—every inch of her a petulant child and just the way she wanted it to appear as she regarded the old man in power armor. She needed to play her cards just right, for this to pan out, and for her to get her shot in on Andersmith for this mess, but this was where Kai excelled. Playing people to her tune and pulling at the threads they left beyond—this was her talent, for all that Dex wanted to pretend she didn’t have it. With a huff, Kai began to spin her tale.

Cornelius ‘Corey’ Andersmith leaned back with his feet kicked up onto the console as he watched the expanse of space pass him by. He tried his hardest to ignore the muffled shouting that came from the cargo-space and the increasingly creative food-related insults that were tossed in his direction. There wasn’t anything Private Dexter Grif could say to him that would make him any more terrified than facing down Kai after the not-so-subtle threat issued toward her brother.

“Are you really sure about this course of action?”

Corey cracked open an eye to stare at the small, holographic figure that he’d come to know well over the years.

“No, Kappa, I’m not sure,” Corey sighed and closed his eyes. He ignored the way Kappa moved from in front of him to hover over his shoulder, washing his cheeks with faint red light.

“I don’t think this is a wise path to take,” Kappa said a little blandly. “You know what the yellow-demon is like.”

“And I told you to quit calling her a yellow-demon,” Corey shook his head with a sigh. “Just keep an eye on our systems and our heading.”

“The orange-round-one does not sound too pleased, either,” Kappa pointed out.

“Who would be happy in circumstances like these?” Corey mused. If it were him, back home on Chorus before Project Freelancer, before escaping the inescapable gravity well of the planet, Corey would be spitting fire and vitriol at his captors.

“One would think the orange-round-one would be pleased to not be in front of a firing squad,” Kappa replied. “Perhaps it is upset about the purple-red not-AI?”

“I don’t know, Kappa,” Corey shrugged. “It’s been almost a month now. I doubt anyone would be so forgiving, circumstances such as these or not.” Corey sighed and snuggled down into the chair.

“I would be forgiving,” Kappa moved toward the door to the cargo bay and stared at it contemplatively. “Should we not contact Xi? We are near to our objective.”

Corey shrugged. “Rather not bother Xi if it’s all the same to you,” he said and waved a hand in Kappa’s direction. “Not until we’ve got the target in sights, at least.”

Kappa twisted in the air for a second and then settled on top of Corey’s head. A little bit of shifting around had the small AI practically laying across the fringe of Corey’s hair. “I do not like this path.”

Corey shrugged his shoulder and ran his fingers through his hair, inadvertently directly through Kappa’s hologram as well. “Tough luck, you’re stuck with me.”

“I do not mind you,” Kappa said.

“Yeah, yeah. Just keep an eye on that heading, Kappa. I’m going to take a nap. Wake me when we’re close to planetfall.” Kappa flickered from atop Corey’s head, and then vanished the holographic form the second Corey’s vitals registered that he’d finally slipped into slumber.

Church pulled his motorbike up next to Washginton’s on the side of the road. It had taken him up until the second waystation to get Washington to admit to commandeering them a couple of vehicles that didn’t register as ‘cars’ on his ping-list, and as such would be exempt from his strange not-quite-cursed-fixation with the vehicles. It would take them far too long to travel to Valhalla elsewise, and Church rather wanted to spend as little time as possible between stops now.

“Something on your mind?” Church questioned. He’d finally relented now that Wash got them bikes and gave the Freelancer back his helmet. Caboose fussed for a while, but to make things ‘even’ Church allowed the big blue soldier to hand out the rest of the helmets too.

“What part of the pelican do you think landed here?” Wash asked, and tapped the map where Church had marked out a possible secondary site. They were rather close to the path off the main road they’d need to follow if they did choose to take the detour.

Church shrugged. “Could be any part of it,” he said. “Why?”

Wash folded up the map and looked up at the sky tiredly. “I need the ship’s black box specifically,” Wash admitted. “If I am to get the data from the flight, including record of its crash, then I need that black box.” Wash tilted his head down to look at Church. “Anything else, Freelancer tech included, is secondary. My primary mission is to find out where the Omega AI is now.”

“And the possible Omega incident at Valhalla makes that location more pressing,” Church agreed with a frown behind his mask.

Wash shook his head tiredly. He couldn’t be sure which was the better option for them at the moment—take the time out of getting to Valhalla and possibly lose what was most likely the primary crash site, or search this secondary site on the off chance of unearthing that black box. After a second Wash looked back at Church again. “Why did you provide me the alternate sites?”

Church bit his lip. He hadn’t been sure why he’d pulled up everything he could remember that he’d calculated out while at High Ground, let alone why he gave it all to Wash. Ever since their crash and the life-or-death scare David had given him—the realization—Church tried hard to avoid thinking in too much detail about what he was doing. He didn’t want to think. If he let himself drift off into questioning—into looking too closely at everything—Church felt afraid.

“You’ve grown on me,” Church said, eventually, almost like giving away a secret. He refused to look at David as he continued, voice growing fainter. “And you…remind me of someone, actually. Someone I thought I’d never see again.” Church shook his head. This wasn’t the right time, nor the right place. He glanced over toward the forest and the direction he knew the secondary site would be.

“Church…” David murmured, and yeah that was definitely David and not Agent Washington.

“You know I didn’t have to listen to you,” Church said. “I could’ve just let you kill yourself trying to get into High Ground. Would’ve saved me so much fucking trouble…” Church sighed and slumped over the bike. “Just holler when you’ve made your decision. I’ve got my own reasons for seeing that crash site, anyway.” Church kicked the bike back into gear and rode over to where Caboose had pulled off to the side of the road and the big blue soldier worked on preparing snacks for the group.

Wash watched him go with a frown beneath his mask.

#rvb #red vs blue #leonard church #caboose rvb #agent washington #kaikaina grif #sarge #kappa #alpha church #alpha ai #kappa ai #agent california #agent kansas #agent oregon #grif rvb #simmons rvb #this was harder than i wanted #got distracted by minecraft #fic: don't write me a postscript #fanfic

[butsomeofusarelookingatthestars]

Unwind (II)

Here’s the second part to Unwind. Enjoy <3

Fandom: Criminal Minds Pairing: Luke Alvez x Reader Prompt: Request (follow-up to Unwind (I), based on this request)

Description: The morning after your incredible night with Luke, you have to confront an uncomfortable reality.

“I think you’re overreacting.”

You shook your head defiantly as you stormed into the elevator, not even waiting for Luke to catch up with you as you slammed the button down harshly. Your morning had gotten off to the best start imaginable – waking up in Luke’s arms as he greeted you with an enthusiastic kiss had been almost dreamy. But, then reality had kicked in with the buzzing of your phone alarm. It was a work day.

All the fear and dread came flooding back as you shot up, clutching the bedsheets to your chest as you held your face in your hands. Luke had tried him best to console you, but his close proximity only made it worse. You had been torn between wanting to escape and wanting to jump him. The memories of the night before making your cheeks flush as your tried desperately to compose your thoughts.

Avoidance hadn’t really been an option considering that the two of you had quite literally slept together. But, you had tried your best anyway – dashing off into the bathroom covering yourself up with the flimsy sheet to hide from him for most of the morning.

You had hoped he would get the message and take the opportunity to return home in order to get changed for work, but he hadn’t. Instead, he had cheekily told you that he had a change of clothes in his FBI locker, stealing a kiss from you as he informed you that you would be traveling into work together.

It felt strange that he was being so openly forward about his intentions with you. Clearly, he was willing to act on the feelings that had led to your explosive session. But, you were less convinced – worried about potentially ruining your deeply-valued friendship with the former ranger.

It wasn’t that you didn’t feel the spark with him. Of course, you did. Last night had been one of the greatest nights of your life. But, it just seemed so awkward to have to be stuck in the office all day with profilers judging your every movement. Not to mention that your brother could always read you like a book.

The last thing you wanted was an interrogation from your older sibling about your love life.

“You told me you wouldn’t regret it.”

His voice was quiet and the hurt it contained stung your heart. You never wanted him to feel rejected. It was just confusing at the moment. But, the one thing you were sure of was that you would never regret last night.

“I don’t Luke.” You insisted firmly, shaking your head at his implication. “I promise you, I don’t.”

He nodded slowly, shifting closer to you. The intensity of his gaze and the proximity of his warm breath was making your legs twitch slightly, your breath hitching in your throat as he inched closer. Was he trying to kill you?

He licked his lips as he looked at you curiously, trying to gauge your thoughts. He might be a profiler, but the mixed signals you were sending him were driving him crazy.

You felt your cheeks blush furiously as your eyes flickered to his tongue.

“You taste so good.”

“You’re so tight.”

You bit your lip to contain a whimper at the sensations the mere flashbacks of last night were sending rippling through you. You clenched your legs together in an attempt to stifle the wanting.

You exhaled slowly as you tried to refocus your thoughts, ignoring the knowing smirk on Luke’s face as he watched you squirm in desperation.

“It’s just my brother- Matt can’t find out.” You wanted to congratulate yourself on the swift change in conversation, your brother was the perfect topic to keep your mind from wandering.

Even though Matt definitely wasn’t the overprotective big brother type, he probably would have an issue with his little sister and best friend, both who were his colleagues, hooking up behind his back.

You didn’t want to hurt your brother and, most importantly, you really didn’t want whatever it was between you and Luke to mess up the team dynamic.

“I…” You trailed off as Luke’s gently brushed a stray strand of hair from your face. His touch reigniting a fire inside of you. You glanced down as he laced his fingers through yours.

“I know I’m not the only one who feels this connection.” Luke whispered quietly, squeezing your hand gently. His eyes conveyed the certainty of his feelings, causing your breath to hitch in your throat.

Of course, you wanted him.

But, before you could open your mouth to respond, the doors opened to reveal Matt leaning against the wall.

A horrified gasp threatened to rip from your lips as you quickly pulled your hand from Luke’s grip, ignoring his sigh of protest.

“Hey Matt.” You greeted nervously, twisting your hands in your dress nervously as your brother glanced curiously at the two of you. He didn’t have to be a profiler, or even your brother, to know something was up.

But, it was always fun to tease you. So, he placed his hand against the door – trapping the two of you inside.

“Morning Y/N. You’re late. I tried calling you.” He told you, folding his arms across his chest as he expectantly awaited a response.

“The traffic was awful.” You shrugged your shoulders as you attempted to blow off his suspicions. But, his inquisitive gaze only refocused on Luke for a moment before returning back to you.

“You both look tired. Late night?”

You couldn’t control the blush spreading across your cheeks, cursing yourself for betraying your secret so quickly. You could hear Luke soft breaths behind you, only making you think of the breathy moans that had slipped from his mouth last night as he…

You quickly shook out of your daze, deciding to make a swift escape before Matt made you buckle under the pressure of his questions.

“Something like that.” You muttered under your breath, ducking under his arm as you rushed off to the sanctuary of your desk.

Luke’s eyes followed you, the longing in them only confirming Matt’s suspicions. His fellow agent sighed as he stepped into the elevator to talk to him.

“Is that the same top you had on yesterday Alvez?”

Luke glanced down to realise he hadn’t had the time to change his shirt yet. It was a little awkward to be trapped in an elevator with the older brother of the woman he had… But, Matt was his friend and he cared about you. So, he probably owed him an explanation.

Luckily, Matt seemed to read his mind.

“I don’t know what happened…I don’t even have the right to know. It’s her and your personal business.”

The sincerity in Matt’s words surprised Luke. Judging by your reaction, he had expected his fellow agent to go crazy at the news. But, he seemed calm. Perhaps even pleased by the revelation.

However, Luke was still slightly unnerved as Matt fixed him with a piercing glare.

“Just treat her right, okay?”

Luke immediately nodded, surprised that Matt even had to ask that question. His feelings for you had been there for a long time. In fact, he now suspected that Matt had always had an idea about how he truly felt about you. It was the only explanation as to why your older brother didn’t seem particularly shocked by the news.

“You have my word.” He confirmed, his words utterly sincere as he held Matt’s gaze.

A smile broke out on his fellow agent’s face as he clapped Luke on the shoulder in response, evidently pleased by the promise he had made.

Your older brother was relatively calm about the situation because he already trusted Luke with his own life, not to mention yours, and he knew the former ranger was a good guy. He could only wish you the best.

However, knowing how stubborn and difficult you could be when it came to discussing your feelings, he decided to give Luke a helping hand.

“She likes cupcakes…”

He chuckled softly as Luke glanced at him in completely confusion – the outburst seeming a little random given the circumstances.

“If you want to get her to talk, that’s how you do it.” Matt explained, winking at Luke knowingly.

He couldn’t help, but give him a push in the right direction. The two of you just seemed great together.

It had been the longest day at work ever. You had never been so grateful to pick up your things at the end of the day. All day, you had been on edge – avoiding Luke’s attempts to seek you out and trying not to blush as you caught his gaze from across the bullpen.

The new strange dynamic between Matt and Luke had only worsened your apprehension. Why on earth was your brother nodding encouragingly at him as he passed his desk on the way to the elevator?

Something had clearly been said between them.

You were so eager to pack up your things that you didn’t even notice Luke approaching your desk. You gulped nervously as you realised that he had you cornered in the deserted bullpen.

His lips curved upwards into a small smirk as he extended his hand to you, offering you a little cardboard box. You gazed at the label in confusion, noticing that it was from your favourite bakery.

“Cupcake?”

You narrowed your eyes at him as you accepted the thoughtful gift. “What’s Matt told you?”

Luke chuckled softly, his shoulders shaking. Apparently, he found your suspicion hysterical.

“He gave me a helpful hint.” He told you, flashing you a charming smile. You flushed as he moved closer to you, gently intertwining his fingers with yours.

How this man managed to get you so flustered with just a touch was beyond you…

“I want you.”

Your breath hitched in your throat as you absorbed his meaningful words. Your heart fluttered as his warm brown eyes locked with yours. A small smile grew on your face as you glanced down at the cupcake sat on your desk.

You made a decision.

“I want you too.”

Three months later…

You paced anxiously as you tried to summon up the courage to tell Luke what was troubling you.

The past few months had been incredible, your relationship flourishing quickly and naturally. Given your already existing friendship, things had escalated fairly rapidly. Never would you have expected you or the former ranger to end up in a relationship this intense.

But, nothing could have prepared you for the news you had found out today.

You were pregnant.

It made no sense because you had both been extremely careful. So, the only explanation was that it must have happened during the night of passion that had started your relationship. Beer and lust were the main culprits you were blaming for the situation.

Your heart fluttered anxiously as you glanced at your confused boyfriend who was perched on the sofa waiting for you to share your worries. He had been concerned about how distracted you had seemed all week, urging you to confide in him about whatever was troubling you.

Perhaps he would regret his words.

“I’m pregnant.”

He looked completely stunned, but managed to recover his composure quickly as he reached out to pull you gently down into his lap. His arms wrapped around your waist as he looked up at you.

“I’ll support you whatever your decision.”

You nodded slowly, appreciative of his supportive words. You weren’t sure what you were going to do about your predicament, but it was nice to know that you wouldn’t be alone. Luke squeezed your waist comfortingly, prompting you to capture his lips in a sweet kiss.

As you pulled away, you saw a slightly apprehensive expression appear on his face.

“God, is your brother still going to be cool with us?”

You could only laugh softly as you pulled him into another kiss, reassuring him that your brother was the least of your worries right now.

#criminal minds #luke alvez #matt simmons #criminal minds imagine #luke alvez x reader #luke alvez imagine #requests

[ghostie-hoe]

Film Studies - Relationship between audience and production

The Princess diaries is a cult favourite amongst the younger demographic born in the early 200s and follows a young girl called Mia who is at the very bottom of the social ladder and finds out that she is in fact the princess of a small European country called Genovia by her grandmother. Films inflict feelings and impact onto audiences, in addition, audiences can impact the success of a film through fandom activities such as blogging, review writing, YouTube channels, writing fan fiction, websites, attending film premieres, collecting merchandise and being influenced to get into film production. Other films and shows can also help to promote a certain film by referencing it either directly or subtly that only fans of that film would understand. The Princess Diaries has been referenced in 90210, Orange Is The New Black, Bring it on and Miss Congeniality When the film was originally released in 2001, there would have been an active audience as social media wasn't as influential and part of everyday lives as it now. Audiences now would possibly be passive due to flourish in social Media, however, the timeless talent of Julie Andrews and the lighthearted humour would grip the audience and turn them into an active audience. The film is inspired by the popular Princess Diaries book series by teenage author Meg Cabot. Unlike most film adaptions of books, this film lives up to the expectations and standards of the books enough to satisfy the portion of the audience from the book series. However, some fans of the book series may not enjoy the slight change in the film. For example, in the books, Mia's father is alive but has testicular cancer and cannot conceive more children. Disney adapted the film and aimed it at families and therefore having her father be dead and her next in line to the Throne is easier for the younger demographic to understand and resonate with. The character of Mia's grandmother isn't supposed to be warm and friendly like Disney's Clarisse. However, as stated before, Disney adapts popular books into films and changes their origins to reflect on their family based audience and they wanted Julie Andrews for the part - someone who couldn't pull of the eccentric values of the original character - Julie's Clarice is much more toned down. In addition, Meg Cabot wasn't involved with the making of the film or the changes to the characters she created and I feel as though, the film would be far more satisfying if she were to have input. However, the books stay true to the tone of Mia being that she's resistant to take on Princess duties and just wants to get through her high school years. Despite Meg Cabots lack of contribution to the film, the following book after the release of the film references the film through the characters such as Lily being angry at the portrayal of her character, Lana being perfect and her Grandmother a warm and friendly soul. Not to mention the death of her father. Mia was Anne Hathaway's break through role and earned her many similar roles later on in her career such as Ella in Ella Enchanted and Fountine in Les Miserables, all films showcase Anne's vocal talent. Anne fit the character of awkward Mia perfectly through her clumsiness which was what actually landed her the role. The scene where Mia falls down on the bleachers wasn't in the original script, Anne herself fell and improvised and the producers decided to keep it in as it portrayed Mia's character perfectly. Apart of why the film fits the family genre is having Julie Andrews as Clarise. A huge portion of the audience would come from other classics such as The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins. Mary Poppins and Clarise are both warm and welcoming characters and therefore Julie was perfect for the role of Clarise. There is forms of intersexuality in this film as Mia goes from rags to riches in the beginning of the film after her makeover from normal girl to princess in relation to Sam in A Cinderella Story. Both of these characters have a glorifying moment where they walk down the stairs at an event and all eyes are on them. The Princess Diaries can be compared to both Mean Girls and Clueless as each of these films have the main character go through a transformation which changes the way they are treated in high school. Once bullied by viscous mean girls as they don't meet the expectations of social norms. Each of these films convey the struggle of being a teenage girl in high school. The producer, Marshall uses the same actors in his films and one who portrayed a waiter, Hector Elizondo quoted a line he used in Pretty Woman "It happens all the time." When Mia drops a grape at a dinner party and sets off a chain of laughter through the room. Social networking wasn't a huge factor in our society at the time and therefore films back then weren't widely discussed or advertised on social media. However, there were discussion boards and fan pages for the fans of the books. The film did have a trailer but that's the only involvement of social media within pre and post production. If the film were released now, there would be brand advertisement through Twitter including behind the scenes pictures and videos, trailers, fan made videos, Facebook pages, YouTube reviews, blog reviews, Tumblr fan accounts etc. The pre and post viewing of a film can be influenced by a few factors; how the individual watches it, where they watch it ect. If the audience member was dedicated enough to watch the trailers, read the books and interviews with the stars, it could raise their expectations for the film and the film could fail to reach their expectations - An example of this is Return to Oz, another Disney adaption. It failed to live up to the first film, starring a young Judie Garland - the film wasn't terrible - just incredibly dark and not suitable for children, in the sense that it would give them nightmares. The first film was a fun musical based comedy about friendship and adventure. In contrast, this film goes against everything the first film stood for and shows darker elements such as the character of Dorothy being in a state of depression - not being able to sleep after he first adventure in oz - and her Aunt Em puts her on a mental institution for electroshock therapy. Baring in mind, this is a Disney film. Dorothy's true agenda isn't addressed in this film, instead of being seen as a child with a vivid imagination, as most children are, her family are quick to identify her as mentally ill. This film is far more terrifying and sinister version of the original as Dorothy arrives in the ruins of Oz to find the people turned into stone by a woman who has a vast collection of woman's heads. The Demons of the story are psychotic wheelers, strange creatures with wheels in place of hands and feet. As I said before, the film wasn't terrible - just not what the audience was expecting. Trailers showcase the highlights and best points of the film - and sometimes this gives an expectation the film doesn't meet. Guardians of Galaxy 2, the second instalment to the franchise lived up to the hype and the incredible trailer. The film was gripping enough for me to watch it three times at the cinema. The storyline was incredible and the cinematic values - CGI, etc were phenomenal. Reading reviews of a film after watching it for yourself can be more giving than reading before to make a decision of wether to see it as the words of an individual can get into your head and affect your personal viewing pleasure. Reading reviews after can change your full prospective of the film. Viewing experience can impact the relationship between film and viewing - Watching a film alone on a phone or a tablet is a totally different experience to watching a film in a cinema with other audience members. The real experience is lost if watched at home as it doesn't have the same atmosphere as a cinema - especially if the film relies heavily on sound and picture. Watching at the cinema is magical as all sense heightened due to the darkness, screen size and sound. This adds to viewing pleasure. The audience also tends to be interactive wether that be laughing at humour or screaming at horror. The uses and gratifications theory suggest the four main pleasure viewers get from films such as personal identity, diversion, personal relationships and surveillance Most people watch films that reflect on their values or characteristics. Teenage girls may relate to Georgia from Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging as they struggle through high school in the boyfriend sector. Georgia is very relatable due to her awkwardness and being targeted by the villain of the film, Lindsey. Other people may watch films that reflect on a lifestyle they lead, for example, people who attend Universities or boarding schools are likely to watch films that showcase these things such as House Bunny or Wild Child. Diversion indicates audiences using cinema to escape reality. These types of audiences prefer supernatural or fantasy elements to their viewing pleasure, instead of a real life feel. An example of this comes from The Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Wars and Twilight. Some people may use films as a substitute for personal relationships. Films may contain a character that an individual would want to form a friendship or relationship with. Stories of friendship such as the Perks of being a wallflower is perfect for these kinds of audiences. Other audiences may find their viewing pleasure from surveillance, films that are education and breed information on a certain subject such as Saving Private Ryan which shows the struggles and triumphs of the war. As you can see from my analysis, the relationship between film and viewer are a complex one - yet one that is thoroughly engaging and fascinating