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theostrophywife · 6 months

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kiss with a fist | chapter nine.

masterlist 💋 chapters 💋 playlist

pairing: theodore nott x reader.

song inspiration: only love can hurt like this - paloma faith.

author's note: i'm truly sorry for this chapter. that's all.

The following week was the busiest you’ve ever been since term started. During the first two days alone, you had an exam in Alchemy, an essay in History of Magic, and a presentation for Charms. Combined with your prefect duties and the array of clubs and organizations you were involved in, you felt utterly drained by the time Wednesday finally rolled around.

You slumped into your usual spot at the Great Hall and muttered a greeting to the entire table.

“Merlin’s beard, you look more ghostly than Peeves,” said Mattheo. You glared at him in response, but opted to stay silent as you shoveled spoonfuls of mashed potato and gravy into your mouth. “Not even an insult, Y/N? Now I’m officially worried.”

“I’m exhausted,” you grunted. “I can’t even spare a single breath on how stupid your hair looks today, Riddle.”

Mattheo grinned. “And she’s back.”

You glanced around the table, not even realizing that you were searching for Theo until your gaze landed on his empty seat. You hadn’t seen him since the Hogsmeade trip, but you assumed it was because you’d skipped most meals to study at the library instead.

“Where’s Theo?”

Draco shrugged. “We thought he’d be with you.”

“I haven’t seen him all week.”

“Come to think of it, neither have I,” added Blaise. “Berkshire?”

Enzo looked up from his muffin. “I’ve only seen him in class. I figured he was studying with you, Y/N.”

“He’s probably just out for a smoke,” Pansy suggested.

It made sense. Theo did have a weakness for the little cancer sticks. You didn’t think much of it at the time, but when the week winded down to a halt on Friday morning and you still hadn’t caught a glimpse of Theo, you were beginning to think that something else was going on with him. He hadn’t accompanied you to feed Henry either, which you found extremely strange.

Ever since you first introduced him to the baby thestral, Theo never missed your visits to the Forbidden Forest. When you asked the boys, they said that while he did seem more moody and distant than usual, Theo still showed up to classes and quidditch practice. The only time he was noticeably absent was during meals at the Great Hall, which he obviously knew you would be present at. It might’ve been paranoia creeping in, but you were beginning to think that Theo was purposely avoiding you.

Fortunately, you had Potions with him that afternoon which would either confirm or disprove your suspicions. When you walked into the classroom, you did so with your head held high despite the obvious lingering discomfort from the slug club dinner. Professor Slughorn bowed his head as you took your seat, but you were too busy worrying about Theo to care. He was nowhere to be found.

You and Draco exchanged worried glances until Theo came bustling through the door exactly a minute before class started. He said nothing as he passed the aisle, skipping the table you usually shared to sit next to Malfoy. The blonde seemed surprised by this and shot you a questioning look.

Well, that all but confirmed it. Theo was definitely avoiding you.

You barely paid attention to the lesson as you racked your brain for a logical explanation. Was he mad at you about something? The last time you spoke had been the night of the Hogsmeade trip. You ate a perfectly pleasant dinner at the Three Broomsticks and even chugged a heinous amount of butterbeer together. On the trek back to the castle, Theo insisted on carrying your bags and kept hiding the fudge from you.

Nothing about that night indicated that he was upset with you. There had been that moment in the snow, but he had been annoyed with Mattheo and Enzo for the interruption more than anything else. Unless Theo had expected you to bring it up again, which you most definitely did not.

But still, you hardly thought that was a reason for him to suddenly give you the cold shoulder. Maybe he was embarrassed. Maybe he regretted it.

The possibilities weaved an endless thread of thoughts in your mind. By the time class winded down, you had given yourself a headache from thinking so much, which made you cranky and slightly angry because you realized that you hadn’t paid attention to a single thing Slughorn had said for the past hour and a half.

As your fellow classmates and professor filtered out of the classroom, you stayed behind and waited for the chance to talk to Theo. He seemed to be packing his things slowly, probably expecting you to grow impatient and leave before missing your next class. Sometimes it irked you how well Theo knew you.

You marched up to his table with your arms crossed.

Theo slowly looked up from his seat. “Can I help you with something, Y/N?”

“I haven’t seen much of you this week.”

He carelessly tossed a quill into his bag. “I’ve been busy.”

“Obviously.” You took a deep breath and pushed down your irritation. “I just...thought I’d check up on you. That’s all.”

“I’m fine,” he snapped.

“You haven’t shown up to any meals and you even skipped out on feeding Henry. Draco said you’ve been acting off all week.”

“Malfoy needs to mind his own goddamn business.”

You frowned. “He’s just worried about you, Theo. So am I.”

“I told you, I’m fine. Don’t bother worrying about me. I’m not your responsibility.”

“I never said you were,” you snapped back, barely leashing your annoyance. “If you want space, that’s fine but you don’t need to lash out at me or anyone else.”

Theo clenched his fists. “Well I’m sorry that my mood has become such an inconvenience, but seeing as none of you know how to leave me the fuck alone, I don’t really give a shit if you feel like I’m lashing out.”

His words lit a fuse in you until your irritation bubbled into anger. “What is your problem?” you bit out.

Theo rolled his jaw, averting his gaze. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“This,” you exclaimed, waving your hands over him in frustration. “This is what I’m talking about. I don’t know what I said or did to upset you, but obviously there’s a reason why you’re this pissed because you’ve been avoiding me all week.”

He sneered. “Please, don’t flatter yourself.”

You wanted to throttle him. You wanted to lean over the table, grab him by the collar, and shake him until he came to his senses, but you knew that nothing good would come out of this conversation if you stooped to his level of stubbornness.

“Why are you acting like this, Theo?”

For the first time that day, he looked up and met your gaze. Something unreadable flashed through his eyes, but Theo snuffed it out quickly. That mask of cocky arrogance, the one that he had lowered more and more over the past few months suddenly locked into place. It was painful to physically watch him put his walls up.

Those endearing dimples and playful sense of humor that you've grown so fond of were nowhere to be found. His lips curled into a sneer, those watercolour eyes devoid of emotion. There was no cheeky smile, no suggestive banter, no trace of the boy you had come to think of as your friend. This wasn't your Theo. You had no idea who the stranger standing in front of you was.

“Like what?” He said in a venomous tone. “This is how I’ve always been. You said it yourself. We’re rivals, remember? It’s not my fault that you thought we’d be anything more.”

“I thought we moved past this petty rivalry bullshit.” Your chest tightened as though someone had reached into your heart and wrenched it out of place. “I thought we were starting to become friends.”

“I am not your fucking friend, Y/N.”

You flinched and took a step back. Theo clocked your reaction and winced, but it was too late for his regret now. It felt like he had poured a cauldron full of acid over your head. A part of you wished he had instead. It would have hurt less.

Out of instinct, your defenses locked into place one by one. You laughed bitterly. “So what? You can fuck me, but you can’t even call me your friend?”

For a split second, Theo’s expression fell, but it was swiftly replaced by anger. “What did you expect? That we’d walk down the halls acting like we’re best mates? The Ravenclaw and her little Slytherin simpering after her like some fucking dolt? That’s not us. We fight, we fuck, and that’s it. Honestly, Y/N. I don’t know what the fuck you want from me!”

You could have let it go. Obviously you knew that there was a deeper reason why he was acting like this. You could have walked away and accepted that Theo was just incapable of communicating his feelings without pushing you away, but backing down from an argument had never really been your style. You were like a rabid dog with a bone. Incapable of admitting defeat.

“I want you stop being a fucking asshole and tell me why you’re so goddamn angry because obviously something’s set you off since we last spoke.” You rounded the corner of the table and got in his face. The chair made a scraping sound against the floor as Theo stood and easily towered over you. His height advantage didn’t deter you from pointing your finger in his face. “What is your fucking problem?”

Theo growled as he seized your wrist. “Don’t fucking push me, Y/N.”

You yanked your arm out of his grip and tugged at his tie. “Why not, Theo? Hm? Are you afraid that your little asshole charade will crumble the second you have a genuine moment? Godric fucking forbid you express an actual emotion without deflecting it with humor.”

He pushed you against the table, his eyes flashing like a dark sign in the ether. You knew it was a bad idea to push him, but you just couldn't help yourself. Something inside of you longed to activate the big red button of Theo's temper. “You have no idea how I feel.”

“That’s exactly the point! You hide behind that cocky, arrogant little smirk and you think it makes you strong, but it doesn’t. In fact, it makes you weak.”

“Shut up,” Theo snarled. “Shut the fuck up, right now.”

“Why don’t you fucking make me?”

As soon as the words came out of your mouth, you knew you would live to regret it. Theo smashed his lips against yours, cutting off whatever insult you were about to hit him with next. You gasped as he slipped his tongue inside your mouth, his kisses possessive and punishing.

“You drive me fucking insane,” Theo growled as he picked you up and placed you on the table as though you weighed nothing.

“And you don’t?” you shot back, pulling at the curls at the nape of his neck. “You’re so frustrating that it makes me want to fucking scream.”

His teeth grazed your neck and he bit down hard. “Why is it that you insist on having the last word every time? Why can’t you just leave things alone?”

“Why can’t you stop being a prick and say whatever it is that you want to say instead of throwing a goddamn tantrum?” You retorted as you unlooped his tie. “You’re not a child, Theo. You need to grow the fuck up!”

He nearly ripped the buttons off of your shirt, his hands shaking with anger and anticipation. “Oh, like you’re so fucking mature. Cornering me. Riling me up. You knew exactly what you were doing, Y/N.”

“What was I supposed to do?” You said angrily as you undid his belt. “Making you angry seems to be the only way to get you talking.”

“If it wasn’t already fucking obvious, I don’t want to talk!”

“So what? You just want to sit around and pout, leaving the rest of us to figure out what the fuck is wrong with you?”

“No,” he growled, gripping your thighs so hard that it was sure to leave marks. “What I want is to fuck out my frustrations until I stop feeling so goddamn angry.”

“So fucking do it already!”

“Bend over,” Theo snarled, spinning you around until your back pressed against his chest. “Bend the fuck over right now.”

You leaned over the table, your cheek pressed against the smooth surface as Theo pumped himself behind you. He hiked your skirt above your waist and palmed you through your soaked panties. Theo hissed when he felt how wet you were for him. He didn’t even bother removing your thong, opting to push it to the side before slotting himself inside of you.

“Fuck,” Theo cursed, bracing himself against the table. “God, you’re so tight.”

“Stop talking and fucking mo—“

You didn’t get the chance to finish your sentence before Theo thrusted sharply into you. He chuckled darkly as your moan echoed off the walls. Theo ripped the scrunchie holding your braid together and gripped your hair in one hand while the other pressed gently against your throat.

“I told you,” he whispered harshly, his lips pressed against your neck. “There’s nothing I enjoy more than fucking the attitude right out of you. Not so brave now, are you Y/N?”

“Fuck you, Theo.”

“Technically I’m fucking you,” he said with a smirk.

The pace he set was punishing. You were vaguely aware of glass breaking and books scattering to the ground, but you didn’t care. This was familiar. Fighting with your bodies made sense to you.

All of the pent up feelings and tension made you anxious. It was a disaster waiting to happen. The anger within you was Mount Vesuvius, boiling and roiling with hot magma, ready to explode and erupt at any given moment, while whatever complicated relationship that had blossomed between you and Theo served as Pompeii. There was nothing strategic or logical about any of this, but at this moment, you wanted nothing more than to lose yourself in angry, meaningless sex.

Except it wasn’t meaningless. Not really. Because when Theo turned you around and placed you over his lap, you felt like you couldn’t breathe.

“Look at me, Y/N.” You clamped your eyes shut. You didn’t trust yourself not to cry if you opened them right now. Theo caressed your cheek. “Please, just look at me.”

“Why?” you asked, your voice breaking. “What good would that do?”

“I want to see your eyes,” he answered. “I need you to see what you've done to me. I need you to see that you've wrecked me, ruined me. I can't breathe when you're around and it's even more painful when you aren't. I feel like I've gone mental. You've lodged yourself so deep that I wouldn't be able to get you out even if I ripped my heart out of my chest."

“Don’t,” you hissed, snapping your eyes wide open. You felt like a cornered animal, lashing out at the closest thing. “I don’t want to hear it, Theo. You’re only saying that because we’re having sex and you want to clear your conscience. Don’t fucking bother. We can fuck and get it out of our systems one last time without you feeling guilty about it.”

Theo stiffened. The gravity of your words rolled over him like the eruption that had destroyed the ancient Roman city. Whatever precarious thing that may have existed between you died right then and there. Everything turned to ash and the bitterness of destruction lingered in your mouth, choking you with its acrid taste. Theo pried himself away from you and angrily pulled his clothes back on.

“Is that what you think this is?” He seethed, his voice dripping with venom. “Just a quick fuck to get it out of our systems?”

You tugged your shirt back on and smoothed over the front of your skirt. “What?” you challenged. “It’s like you said, Theo. We fight, we fuck, and that’s it.”

His expression crumpled as you threw his words back at him. It tasted like ash in your mouth, but the bitterness was nothing compared to the ache in your chest as Theo pinned you with his gaze. There wasn't any trace of anger left in him. Instead, you saw nothing but disappointment.

It struck you harder more than his fury would have. You didn’t understand why he was acting like this. Theo was the one who pushed you away first. You were just returning the favor.

Those watercolor eyes that had become so familiar to you had never seemed farther, like they belonged to a complete stranger. “I may be weak for hiding my feelings, but what does that make you?” His wounded expression cut you to the core. “You’re always so smart, so calculated. Two steps ahead of everyone else. There isn’t an argument that you aren’t determined to win." His lip trembled as he averted your gaze. "Well, I’m done fighting. No matter what I do, you just keep rebuilding that impenetrable armor of yours and I’m tired of trying to break through, Y/N.”

There had never been anything more tragic than the look of absolute defeat on Theo’s face. You watched in silence as he walked out of the empty classroom.

It might’ve been minutes or hours later before you finally peeled yourself off of the table. You walked through the dungeons alone, feeling cold and numb. The sun had started to set over the horizon when you finally made it back to Ravenclaw Tower. You held yourself together until you opened the door to your dorm. Luna took one look at you before rushing to your side.

Your friend caught you just before you crumpled to the ground. Luna held you in her arms as you sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. Somewhere deep within you, a dam had broken and all of the emotions and tears and ugly, complicated feelings that you kept contained behind a steel wall of logic spilled out of you in waves.

“It’s alright,” Luna whispered, rubbing your back. “It’s going to be alright, Y/N.”

You didn’t have the heart to tell her that she was wrong. Nothing would ever be alright again because you hadn’t just watched Theo walk out of that empty potions classroom.

You watched him walk out of your life as well.

Taglist: @annaisabookworm@marina468@yaraasthings @the0doreslover@bubybubsters@moony-artemis @natasha887@lucyysthings@criesinlies @bunnymallowo@niktwazny303 @letmedownslows @siriuslyalovergirl@wordsarelife@clairesjointshurt @daydreamingabthar @mishtay @cherry-hoe @littlebookbengal @maybefoxysouls @nomup @aliensknowmyillusions @cinderellawithashoe @starsval @kalulakunundrum @lucyysthings @siriuslysmoking @purplegirls-posts @unstablereader @lqclercs @whatsupb18 @rikirritated @psychedeliccc @jetblackpayne @clairesjointshurt @ama1a2 @omwtkydttfym @cinderellawithashoe @xeqr @txzii @goldenmagnolias @ilikefictionalmen @xxpeachyxo @dirt-cup-draco @willowecho25518 @shulipp @pompeygirl89 @lame-ferrum @dustbunniess @justdizzie @sopsopsopy @therealallisonspear @sweetwonieee @spacecadet16 @moonsreid @grrbrielew

Please let me know if you'd like to be added.

#i am so so sorry like i hurt myself with this too #theo nott #theodore nott #theo nott x reader #theo nott smut #theo nott x y/n #theo nott x you #theodore nott x reader #theodore nott x you #theodore nott x y/n #theodore nott smut #theodore nott imagine

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asterlark · 5 months

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me and den @unloneliest were just talking about murderbot and ART's relationship and i want to discuss how they quite literally complete each other's sensory and emotional experience of the world!!

there's a few great posts on here such as this one about how murderbot uses drones to fully and properly experience the world around it (it also accesses security cameras/other systems for this same purpose). but i haven't seen anyone so far talk about how once MB stops working for the company and consequently doesn't have a hubsystem/secsystem to connect to anymore (which for its entire existence up to that point had been how it was used to interacting with its environment/doing its job), after it meets ART, ART starts to fill that gap.

ART gives MB access to more cameras, systems, and information archives than it would normally be able to connect with while MB is on its own outside of ART's... body(? lol), but also directly gives MB access to its own cameras, drones, archives, facilities, and processing space. additionally, so much of ART's function is dedicated to analysis, lateral thinking, and logical reasoning, and it not only uses those skills in service of reaching murderbot's goals, it teaches murderbot how to use those same skills. (ART might be a bit of an asshole about how it does this, but that doesn't negate just how much it does for murderbot for no reason other than it's bored/interested in MB as an individual.)

we all love goofing about how artificial condition can basically be boiled down to "two robots in a trench coat trying to get through a job interview" (which is entirely accurate tbh) but that's also such a great example of ART fulfilling the role of both murderbot's "hubsystem" and "secsystem", allowing it to fully experience its environment/ succeed in its goals. ART provides MB with crucial information, context, and constructive criticism, and uses its significant processing power to act as MB's backup and support system while they work together.

from ART's side of things, we get a very explicit explanation of how it needs the context of murderbot's emotional reactions to media in order to fully understand and experience the media as intended. it tried to watch media with its humans, and it didn't completely understand just by studying their reactions. but when it's in a feed connection with murderbot, who isn't human but has human neural tissue, ART is finally able to thoroughly process the emotional aspects of media (side note, once it actually understands the emotional stakes in a way that makes sense for it, it's so frightened by the possibility of the fictional ship/crew in worldhoppers being catastrophically injured or killed that it makes murderbot pause for a significant amount of time before it feels prepared to go on. like!! ART really fucking loves its crew, that is all).

looking at things further from ART's perspective: its relationship with murderbot is ostensibly the very first relationship it's been able to establish with not only someone outside of its crew, but also with any construct at all. while ART loves its crew very much (see previous point re: being so so scared for the fate of the fictional crew of worldhoppers), it never had a choice in forming relationships with them. it was quite literally programmed to build those relationships with its crew and students. ART loves its function, its job, and nearly all of the humans that spend time inside of it, but its relationship with murderbot is the first time it's able to choose to make a new friend. that new friend is also someone who, due to its partial machine intelligence, is able to understand and know ART on a whole other level of intimacy that humans simply aren't capable of. (that part goes for murderbot, too, obviously; ART is its first actual friend outside of the presaux team, and its first bot friend ever.)

and because murderbot is murderbot, and not a "nice/polite to ART most of the time" human, this is also one of the first times that ART gets real feedback from a friend about the ways that its actions impact others. after the whole situation in network effect, when the truth of the kidnapping comes to light and murderbot hides in the bathroom refusing to talk to ART (and admittedly ART doesn't handle this well lol) - ART is forced to confront that despite it making the only call it felt able to make in that horrifying situation, despite it thinking that that was the right call, its actions hurt murderbot, and several other humans were caught in the crossfire. what's most scary to ART in that moment is the idea that murderbot might never forgive it, might never want to talk to it again. it's already so attached to this friendship, so concerned with murderbot's wellbeing, that the thought of that friendship being over because of its own behavior is terrifying. (to me, this almost mirrors murderbot's complete emotional collapse when it thinks that ART has been killed. the other more overt mirror is ART fully intending on bombing the colony to get murderbot back.)

in den's words, they both increase the other's capacity to feel: ART by acting as a part of murderbot's sensory system, and murderbot by acting as a means by which ART can access emotion. they love one another so much they would do pretty much anything to keep each other safe/avenge each other, but what's more, they unequivocally make each other more whole.

#the murderbot diaries #murderbot #asshole research transport #network effect #mine #idk what else to tag lol #BIG thanks to den unloneliest for helping so much with the drafting/editing of this!!!#we both were having some brain fog issues yesterday so we joked that with our combined forces we can make one (1) post lol #just like mb and ART fr!!!!#anyway im so fucking emotional over themmmmm #murderbot meta #the murderbot diaries meta

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froschli96 · 8 months

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As an asexual Good Omens fan

There's something I've noticed in this fandom that makes me really uncomfortable, and that is the way that Crowley and Aziraphale's possible asexuality is constantly being connected to and justified by them being not human.

I just honestly really hate that, because implying that asexuality is something that somehow "logically" follows from characters being nonhuman is ... not great. Like, I hate having to be the one to point this out, but asexuality is, in fact, very much a human attribute.

And unfortunately, most of the time when I come across this take, it doesn't feel like someone seeing themselves in the characters and relating to their experience, but rather an othering, this kind of otherwordly pure non-sexualness, where people put these characters above such trivial things like sexuality.

I am not asexual because I am somehow confounded by this oh so complicated human concept of sexuality, or because I don't ever think or care about sexuality at all (a lot of thinking was unfortunately involved actually before I finally came to a conclusion about my identity) it is just a fact of who I am, as a human being, it’s a part of my human experience.

And let's be honest, attributing asexuality to nonhuman characters is not the hot new take a lot of people seem to think it is — this trope has been around for ages. And it hasn't done a great deal to normalize asexuality. In fact I'd argue it's perpetuated an othering of ace people, but you take what you can get, really. (This is not to say that it is in any way wrong to identify with these kinds of characters, I definitely do, too! It's just sad that the topic of discussion is always about how "human" someone can be considered when they don't feel sexual or romantic attraction)

To be honest, I don't actually see A&C being asexual as canon — as a lot of people seemingly do — just because the author kind of suggested it in a tweet where he basically conflates "asexual" and "sexless" (for the record, this is not a dig at Neil, I just think the implications were kind of unfortunate, even if it might not have been intentional, which makes it all the more frustrating that a lot of fans just ran with it). And yeah, going around calling people aphobic for seeing the Ineffable Husbands as gay rep or any other identity, when they’re oh so obviously canonically ace, is honestly kind of insane.

I get that it might feel nice and tempting to be able to "claim" these characters and this relationship and being able to tell other fans off whose headcanons on their sexuality differ from your own because it is hard to come by any kind of representation when you're ace and there's finally a creator who's not only not contemptuous towards but even supportive of fans reading his characters as queer. And if you feel represented by A&C as it is then all the more power to you. But the thing is, it doesn't matter what kind of justifications there are or what canon might or might not say (bc when has that ever mattered in fandom spaces) or what the creator says, you cannot convert people to your opinion about a character, and you're going to have a bad time if you spend your time in fandom trying to do that.

And really, I am just wondering why we necessarily even need an explanation or justification for them possibly being asexual. Why does it have to be that all angels and demons are asexual by virtue of being nonhuman, and so A&C have to be too? why can't that just be an aspect of them that is completely unrelated to them not being human? Could these characters maybe not simply identify as asexual, not because they're nonhuman, but in spite of it? (btw, in the same vein it is equally stupid to argue that A&C can't be ace because they have "gone native", which is also an argument I've come across)

Honestly, I'm not even asking anyone to fundamentally change how they see these characters here — if you think they must be asexual solely because they're angels and have no concept of human sexuality, then whatever, I can't stop you and I don’t want to police anyone's headcanons bc as I said that's stupid and a waste of time. What I am asking you is that you maybe reflect a little bit on why exactly it is that humanity and sexuality are somehow so intrinsically linked in your mind to the point where you automatically use it as a way to distinguish between human and nonhuman characters.

Anyways.

Tldr: please stop equating asexuality with non-humanness thank you and good day.

#good omens #gomens tv #ineffable husbands #aziraphale #crowley #asexual #lgbtqia #This is a long post and I’m probably kicking the hornet’s nest here even if only a few people see this #but I had to put this into words before I explode.#bc this take is so pervasive in this fandom #and its frustrating bc theres never any real discussion about how their relationship might be relatable to ace people #its just taken as a forgone conclusion

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soullessdianthus · 8 months

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can i request ghost x reader, kind of like an enemies to lovers/hatefucking type situation 🫣 can be as kinky as you like. thank you <3

A/N: I'm living for this trope with Ghost! Because I believe he could be absolute douche sometimes, but at the end of the day, he would just drown you in sweet affection. (˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ )

Warnings: enemies to lovers (idiots in love), implied age gap, angst???, smut (p in v, slow and gentle sex, unprotected)

Word count: 4.2k oops

It felt like literal eternity serving within the British Army. But in reality it’s only been three years since you enrolled. Since the very beginning of your personal excursion along the nine circles of hell, the devil was looming above your head – Lieutenant Riley.

God damn bastard.

Around a year ago Captain John Price was selecting only a few privates to see if any of the “fresh blood” was fit to join his special forces. You happened to be one of the lucky soldiers.

During this intense year of service you managed to get promoted to a sergeant, allowing you to be more independent during missions than a rookie or a private. To be honest, you were amongst the youngest sergeants out there in the army, along Soap MacTavish.

You were good. That’s what Price told you at the end of the selections. You weren’t as strong as men larger and taller than you, but you catch up in the different fields. Swift yet seamless in the way you moved, quietly. A good aim and fast ability to evaluate the situation.

Sometimes your biggest flaw was panicking during shootouts. Especially when your team was getting slaughtered, one by one and your cheeks were splashed with thick, warm blood. If not your slightly strayed aim and heavy breathing no one would even know.

You were extremely young for such missions Captain (or Laswell) sent you on, so honestly, the way your body reacted was a basic human reaction to such stress and trauma.

And there he was, a man soaked in crimson, his skull mask remaining untouched. Ghost walked right by you inside of the helo, when Soap tried to console you by nudging your arm.

You felt his dark eyes looking at you with scorn, disappointment maybe. Ghost never praised you, not once, even if you saved their arses. All of them.

━ Pull yourself together, sergeant. ━ Lieutenant snarled, before sitting down on the opposite bench.

━ Ignore him, lass. He’s just a grumpy sad man.

Johnny was more than right about Simon Riley being a sad man having a sad life. Perhaps that’s why he got so used to crushing each bundle of joy in his life.

You thanked God in situations like this, that there was always Soap or Gaz to ease the tension between Lieutenant Riley and you. Because no matter how much you acted unbothered and tough or how much you tried to ignore his hatred towards you, Ghost’s attitude was painfully scratching your heart.

Obviously you made some mistakes, all of them had. You were just humans at the end of the day. So whenever you tried to impress the others, looking out for friend’s approval, you were struck by his empty stare full of pity.

You hated to admit it to yourself, you never wanted to, but you couldn’t just treat him indifferently. There was some fucked up part inside of you that didn’t want to let him go. And it only brought more pain.

There was no logical explanation why Ghost despited you so much. You were humble about your job or abilities and overall polite (well, most of the time, lately you began to talk back to the grumpy Englishman).

But what you didn’t know was that Ghost was actually jealous.

He couldn’t stand how quick it was for someone as young and fragile as you to climb to the sergeant’s position. Ghost didn’t possess the features you had – the way you made friends so easily among the comrades, how you practically every time executed your job without a slip up or how you put a spell over Soap, Gaz and even Price. They were all fond of you.

Once, when you got hurt, Ghost couldn’t help but to trace the dripping blood from the cut on your cheekbone. The blood trickled down your soft skin over the curvature of your face, which he involuntarily found pretty for a woman. The crimson substance dripped down your chin and onto the cleavage of your shirt.

Simon swore, he could see your round, full breasts through the tight shirt. Only then he snapped back to reality. Since then he hated himself even more for casually showing such fragility. Ghost couldn’t let you be his weakness. The ghost had none.

But all you could see in this situation was that your lieutenant was disappointed with you. That you managed to get hurt on such an easy mission. “Such a failure in his eyes, am I?”, you thought to yourself.

The other time, when you followed him along the concrete wall, trying to flee the ambush, Ghost happened to be just too close to you. His broad shoulder touching you almost constantly.

His presence didn’t bother you, until the lieutenant's tight grip over your upper arm barely cut the blood circulation in the limb. He yanked you backwards so hard, you nearly stumbled.

━ Have you lost your fuckin’ mind? ━ Ghost growled in a raspy voice, making sure you weren’t shot. He brought you close to his own body, too close. You could feel the warmth of his body, almost welcoming you into embrace. Almost.

━ I got it covered! ━ His gloved hand snatched up to cover your mouth at once. Both of you stilled upon hearing the enemy walking past your cover. Simon retraced his palm only when he was sure the danger was gone. ━ You’re insufferable, Lt.

━ Congratulations, the girl finally noticed. You want some cheers or a confetti thrown?

━ Would like one actually ━ you agreed with a pathetic shell of a man, wasting all of the strength not to tell him to fuck off ━ but not from you. Let’s move.

Ouch, that had to hurt his fragile ego. But Ghost wondered why it actually made his blood boil. Why your little back talk got him riled up.

For years he got used to hearing insults or miserable comments from other soldiers. So why did he feel truly insulted when it came to you and your filthy mouth? He felt similar to a parent who failed to put their child into their place.

So he desired to torment you a little more. However, this decision ended differently than usual, when he toyed with you, mocking each aspect regarding your life.

This time you smacked him across his face, when you were back in the helo taking a few soldiers back to base. One too many malicious comments from the lieutenant and you snapped.

Of course you regretted being so carried out by emotions, but slapping Ghost across his stupid mask gave you a sense of relief. Bastard deserved that.

You were surprised when one of the women in the barracks told you that Ghost is asking for your presence in his office. That it’s urgent.

It has been a couple of days since “the incident” and since then you hadn’t been forced to spend time with him, not in the training area nor in the cafeteria.

You jumped out of your bed and pulled on the high trail shoes and stuffed the legs of your pants inside of them. There were many ideas coming to your mind, why he requested your presence. Perhaps, the little disagreement in the helo was too much. Maybe the Captain was there with him, ready to reprimand you for such disrespect towards the Lt?

Who knew, the only way to find out was to go and see for yourself. So you did.

The base seemed more empty than ever before, most of the soldiers being sent away on missions. Or on a training grounds, far from the main building.

So you walked with a steady pace down the hallway until your eyes managed to read the label “Lt Riley” on the doors. Before your hand reached for the handle, you acknowledged the state your body was in – wrist and slender fingers shaking, skin inflamed. Were you afraid of this confrontation? What was wrong with you?

A loud sigh left your mouth and your chest collapsed. You knocked twice and entered the office only when you heard his voice “come in”.

━ You wanted to see me?

━ Come, I might need your help ━ such foolishly selected words made your heart skip a beat. You closed the door behind and walked closer to where he was sitting. ━ Fill those just like the example here and then put them aside.

Ghost pointed to the one singular sheet of paper already filled out and your eyes wandered on the massive pile of those you were supposed to complete. The similar stack was on the lieutenant’s right.

━ And you can’t do it yourself? ━ You raised your brow, looking in a questionable way at him. Ghost sighed, rolling his eyes.

━ Can’t you just do what your told?

You grabbed the folding chair and set it next to the grumpy man. You carefully watched his reaction as you did so.

━ Soap wasn’t available?

━ He’s on a deployment, somewhere in Urzikstan ━ the man wearing a balaclava with solid skull sewed to it explained briefly. ━ Besides, I needed a woman to help me out with this.

━ Oh wow, didn’t know you were a sexist. ━ A surprised huff slipped out of your mouth, when you got comfortable on the plastic chair next to him. He sneaked a peek at your wiggling hips and felt a sudden wave of heat.

━ Fuckin’ hell ━ he cursed, passing you the pen. ━ You think Johnny or Gaz know how to sign their own name? At least you know how to write, yeah?

━ Look, you just said something nice for once.

A not so fake, but forced smile twisted your face as you accepted the pen he given you.

━ Don’t flatter yourself.

━ Nothing coming from your mouth is flattering, Lt.

Within the last spoken sentence you began filling the papers out just as he instructed. The task itself wasn’t difficult, just repetitive.

Minutes passed as you sat next to Ghost in silence. Only the sound of paper sheets being moved around intervened with the quietness. You unknowingly started to chew on your lower lip, distracting the man sitting beside you. But how could you know this, he just hummed from time to time, God knew why.

The tension between the two of you started to fade out as you felt more comfortable spending time with him. Work time of course, doing important things, but in a secluded room and all alone.

Your somehow guilty mind didn’t want to leave the business unclear, there was a need rooted inside of you that needed its explanation.

So you gathered enough bravery and finally spoke, breaking the silence.

━ You’re in a mood for talking, sir?

━ Not particularly ━ Ghost replied, eyes still glued to the documentation in front of him. ━ But since you addressed me properly… What do you want?

He was right. Maybe it was the first time you addressed him with “sir” since the beginning.

━ I’m not looking for trouble, alright? But, what is your problem? Why… ━ you paused for a second, your own gaze drilling into the pen you were gripping so hard between your fingers ━ are you so harsh to me?

━ What did you expect joining the military, eh? Would you like a special treatment?

━ An equal treatment would be great ━ you emphasized on the words, sinking further into a plastic chair. ━ See, you don’t even understand.

Why were you sitting there, listening to him taking out his bitterness on you? There was far more you deserve in life than this. You did nothing wrong to be treated as such.

━ I tried getting along with you, Simon ━ you continued after a moment of silence. You were so focused on the confusing feeling in your guts, that you missed the part when he stopped working to look directly at you. And the sadness painted on that pretty face of yours. ━ I really did. But you're pushing everyone away and that’s not my problem. So don’t dare take this out on me.

His short, but rough laugh echoed in your ears and blush of humiliations covered your cheeks. There was even a hint of you crying in a matter of seconds, but you kept your act together. That’s what he told you so often, right?

━ Jesus fuckin’ Christ. ━ The lieutenant muttered, your face twisted in pure anger.

That’s it. That was the fine line.

Suddenly you stood up, pushing the chair with the back of your thighs. It almost fell down with a thud, but you caught the backrest quickly, before it could actually happen.

Did he just laugh at you?

━ What the fuck is wrong with you?! ━ You let the emotions emerge to the surface, raising your voice at the masked man. But despite the wrong he did, what Ghost said to you, you couldn’t find a dash of hatred towards him. It made you feel sick. ━ Why do you hate me so much? I didn’t do anything wrong!

Ghost stood up from his own seat and out of the sudden his larger body caged you in between him and the solid desk. The Englishman placed his hands on both sides of you, over the countertop, taking away the possibility of you escaping. Slipping away through his fingers.

He pressed his chest and whole front of his body into your back. To your (and his) surprise, you didn’t even flinch. Ghost’s head was leaning next to your left ear. The significant skull mask staring directly at you.

━ I can’t stand your presence, sergeant. It makes my blood boil, especially when you laugh. Because it… ━ he paused, inhaling sharply through his teeth ━ you make me feel things. Though, I’ve no hatred towards you, Y/N.

A confusion overwhelmed your body, when he didn’t snap back or when he didn’t bother to be mean towards you further than that. Your heart was hammering inside of your ribcage.

All these months, he kept pushing you away with his repulsive attitude, just because Ghost didn’t want to allow anyone closer. His heart was cold, so how come you managed to stir something in him?

In a cold-blooded killer?

━ You’re better than me. All those atrocities we experienced, didn’t change you into a fuckin’ killin’ machine. A monster. Because you shouldn’t end up like me.

His right hand, not wearing any glove, slowly raised in the air until it reached your face. With the outer side of his palm and knuckles, the more scarred one, he caressed your features. The outline of your cheek and jaw, the curvature of your lips.

Your body instinctively leaned into his touch, into the tenderness it craved subconsciously. You would never imagine Ghost was capable of such intimate acts.

━ You’re not a monster, Simon ━ your mind was eased, yet body was inflamed with something more. The skin craved more answers, more clarifications. An assurance. ━ Just an idiot.

He chuckled softly, his chest tensing for a moment. You could feel it through the layers of clothes that separated you from each other.

His hand left the side of your face. The lieutenant removed his balaclava along with the skull mask. You knew it, because he placed it on the desk nearby, just in your sight. He was exposing himself to you. He wasn’t fucking around this time. He was serious.

━ Look at me.

Ghost tone was firm, a bunch of words sounding like an order. And like a good soldier you followed this one.

You slowly moved around, before leaning against the desk again, but this time you were facing him – Simon Riley himself. Not Ghost. Not a shell of a man.

His face was covered with many scars and memories, it was true, but you would never say that it mutilated him anyhow. He was still handsome, especially with his messed up blonde hair sticking to his forehead.

You didn’t even realize when the corners of your mouth twisted warmly at this sight. You couldn’t devour it for so long, because he grabbed both sides of your flustered face and pulled you into a passionate, deep kiss.

Something he was restraining himself from for so long. It became agonizing.

Your fingers shot up, surprised by the sudden grasp, filling the hollow depth between Simon’s knuckles.

This shouldn’t feel good, this should have tasted like a sin. He was in a way your superior, he was older than you and he made you believe you were his demise. Which in a way you were. He was ready to throw aside his grumpy mask, if that would make you smile more often.

Simon thought he would never expose himself like this, show his vulnerability to anyone. Until he met you.

The breathing between each kiss became a heavy panting – lovers stealing the air from each other. He has clearly shown how much he craved your closeness, the smell of your skin and the taste of your tongue. Something that was so prohibited for a long time.

━ I still can’t comprehend this, Simon. I really thought you hated me. You’re not playing with me now, are you?

You needed answers, you couldn’t just simply fall for his words. You were not a silly girl anymore. Maybe unintentionally, but during the last couple of months with such stupid behavior, he made you question a confession like this.

He abused your trust.

There was a feeling in your starved heart that Simon didn’t mean to use you or to hurt in any way, shape or form. But perhaps, due to his own life experience, he couldn’t express his emotions or desires otherwise.

Simon Riley was a strange, secluded man.

━ ‘m not. I’m sorry. But the way you fell for my teasin’, priceless.

Simon chuckled into your sensitive ear as he revealed the truth. When his warm breath tickled the skin over your neck, you tried to shield it from him, before Simon latched onto it like a bloodsucking leech.

He stepped closer towards your figure trapped in front of him, but only when he bumped into you, he realized how excited and bothered he got. How his trousers became instantly tighter against his manhood.

━ Fuck. ━ He murmured out, head hanging low in shame.

━ Simon ━ your sweet voice snatched him back to reality from the depths of his worried mind. You clung to his chest, pressing against his toned body, hands sneaking over his frame. ━ Would you like some help?

Fuck.

Simon barely managed to swallow his own saliva, when he nodded his head. He wanted to hold you, to have you. Entirely. To leave shady stamps over your skin, so the next morning you would remember this confession. You would remember him.

━ Not so tough now, aren’t we? ━ You jokingly said, when the lieutenant managed to relax a little bit. When he quit being ashamed of his boner.

━ You’ve put a spell on me, damn vixen.

━ Keep telling yourself, Lt.

The blonde man, still with the smudged black paint over his eyelids, squeezed your hip for a moment, before he reached for the thick blanket from the little, old couch. He unfolded it on the ground and you stepped closer.

Ghost grabbed your smaller hand and guided you to get down on your knees along with him. Your glossed eyes, shimmering with lust followed his handsome face. The face that he kept hidden for so long.

It was a matter of seconds, before the two of you clung to each other, lips connected with desire. Sloppily, you took some clothing off of him and yourself – like heavy, dirty shoes, his warm jacket or your trousers.

Your curious eyes noticed his tattoo. It wasn’t the first time you managed to sneak a peek, but it was a first look from this close.

Simon laid you down onto the plaid blanket and sat on his knees between your legs. His broader shoulders leaned over you, casting a shadow beneath. You kept his face close, leaving a trail of kisses over his features. His short beard tickled you here and there.

━ You okay? ━ He asked, sounding a little concerned that the things progressed so fast. But your eager nodding dispersed the worries away.

━ Still mad at you, it’s all.

━ I’ll apologize then.

Simon unzipped his pants, before he slid them slightly down the thighs. You noticed the bright, short hairs over his meaty legs, prior to him grabbing the sergeant and pulling closer to his groin.

He managed to maneuver your far more delicate form with no struggle, it amazed you how aware Simon was of his strength.

He smudged the flush tip of his hardened length down your now exposed slit. You gasped at the sudden touch there, pressing eyes shut. The soldier kissed gently over your fluttering eyelid and continued pushing forward with his hips.

When his stomach brushed in a swiping motion against your softer belly, you suppressed a mewl by biting onto your lip. Simon continued thrusting into your heat in a gentle way. In a way, you wouldn’t think that someone who hated you so much would do.

The blonde man propped against his right forearm, placed next to your head. You could clearly see how his bicep tensed with each movement. Simon’s other palm wandered over the side of your body, fingers counting the ribs under the skin.

In fact, he was so delicate his touch almost tingled.

Your thighs squished his sides, when the lieutenant speeded up the rhythm of the thrusts. You felt the crude way your bodies were connected and found pure, primitive pleasure with such an act.

How Simon moved within you, how the sex itself was passionate yet not painful, the way he made you feel secure and protected between his arms. In his arms.

When you opened enough for him, a couple of cute moans slipped from your mouth just as he pressed his forehead against yours.

━ Simon. ━ You whispered, the ecstasy of the moment becoming overwhelming.

You leaned for a sloppy kiss. No, not one. You wanted more. He kept holding himself back, waiting for your initiations.

So when you welcomed him inside your mouth, he clung to it tighter. The coiling pressure in your tummy grew stronger, making your fingers numb.

━ Si–Simon, I–

You didn’t have to finish the sentence, he already knew. The lieutenant could read you like a book. His favorite one.

━ Fuck, me too. ━ He groaned through his teeth, feeling his cock twitch inside of you.

Your hips bucked vividly into him, when you nuzzled your head into Simon’s neck – exactly where it meets with the shoulder. His scent was heavy in the air. The sound of his loud breaths filled your ears.

━ Don’t stop, don’t stop. ━ You chanted whispering, slowly drifting yourself into upcoming orgasm.

So when the coiling feeling of climax snapped inside of you, you let out a breathless moan. Your slender fingers squeezing around Simon’s arm and shoulder, lower half of the body spasming uncontrollably.

The lieutenant nearly lost himself within the divine sensations your body provided him with. Simon’s shoulders tensed, thighs flexed and he continued to lead you through your pleasure, meanwhile chasing his own.

And finally, when you started becoming limp on that plaid blanket beneath with a final, eager thrust, he climaxed too. His hips shuttered, mouth fallen agape while riding through his own peak. The Englishman muttered your name on repeat for a moment as his length throbbed.

Simon was so preoccupied with blinding delight that he hadn’t noticed when your hand cupped his jaw, another one sneaking onto his occiput, slowly rubbing circles.

━ You’re gonna be the death of me, darlin’. ━ He declared amazed, carefully resting down his body over yours.

You still, up to this moment, couldn’t believe what just had happened. The months of rage and scuffles ended in his office, on the floor. Nearly naked.

His scent was stronger than ever before – a specific brand of aftershave or a cologne? Nonetheless, it smelled like burned wood, like a campfire on a summer night. Perhaps maybe because of that you felt safe in Ghost’s embrace.

Since you laid down your head on his chest, he couldn’t stop touching your hair. The lieutenant played with the loose strands of it, flicking between his coarse fingers.

He had already given you his warm jacket, which you gladly put on and snuggled against his side, like a big teddy bear. One of your shaking legs, hooked over his. Simon pushed you even closer with his arm wrapped around your back.

━ So ━ Simon spoke softly, making sure you hadn’t fallen asleep prior to it ━ you still angry with me, eh?

━ Still debating about that, Lt.

━ Quit teasin’, bonnie.

You giggled like a foolish teenager again, your head adjusting on top of his chest. The lieutenant placed his palm over yours and you could observe how his ribcage was opening up and slowly falling down.

God, this shouldn’t feel so good.

━ Simon, shouldn’t we finish the reports?

━ Yeah, in a minute. Let’s stay like that a lil’ longer.

#request #reader insert #ghost #ghost cod #ghost mw2 #simon ghost riley #simon riley mw2 #simon riley cod #simon riley #ghost x reader #simon riley x reader #simon ghost riley x reader #smut #enemies to lovers

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etheries1015 · 2 months

Note

Imagine MC with a crush on Lilia, but Lilia is completely oblivious. When asked who MC likes, they're vaguely describing Lilia without name-dropping, and Lilia pouts over it because he thinks they have a crush on someone else

Cute! I can see it already...

*slumber party at ramshackle*

featuring ace and deuce, the wing men, who know you have a crush on Lilia. And Lilia, the oblivious old man who is utterly in love with you but can't seem to wrap his head around your hints. Thus, it was time to finally come clean to him!...to the best of your abilities!

Ace- Soooo...now that we're all settled in.....how about we talk about crushes and stuff, right? *winks at you*

Lilia- Ohoho!! I love a good love story! Now pray tell, (y/n), do you have a particular type or someone who has caught your eye?

Deuce gives you a thumbs up and a nod of confidence

MC, blushing- Hmm... well. I do, actually! He's shorter than average, and he's incredibly silly...He has the most beautiful ruby-colored eyes, and he never fails to make me smile.

Lilia was shocked to get an actual answer and analysis and is becoming increasingly worried. Who was this man?? All he could think of was the fact that you indeed had someone! The description didn't even phase him! He never thought you had a thing for him, but he thought he would notice the signs if you had fallen for someone, which he obviously missed! Woe is he, heartbroken and confused.

Lilia, sweating bullets- I see! He sounds...lovely. Does he go to this school?

Ace whispering to Deuce- Is he really this dense...? They practically described him verbatim!

MC, raising an eyebrow- He does. He's in Diasomnia-

Lilia, plotting for murder- Ah! Then I'm bound to know this person, as vice house-warden! Pray tell, who is it?

MC, confused why he hasn't gotten it yet- hmm. He's a fae.

Lilia, taken aback- A fae? Why, the few fae in diasomnia are... Ah! I think I have an inkling who this mystery crush may be.

MC, nodding and leaning in, getting excited- Yesss....

Lilia- Is it Sebek?

...how he came to that conclusion after the descriptions you gave, will forever be beyond me. And Logic.

Ace- oh come on bro even I'M not that dense! They like you, senile old man!!

MC- Ace!!!

Lilia was internally shocked about the "senile old man" comment, but I digress. Once you become that oblivious, how else could you justify it? You can't.

Deuce, getting up and rushing Ace out the door- Sorry, (Y/N). It had to be done. We are tired of you guys flirting and getting nowhere. Good luck!!

Ace and Deuce leave you and Lilia alone, Lilia with an excited and mischievous smile and a blush upon his cheeks (acting like this after the idiotic display...he has very limited brain cells, but it's okay. We still love him.) And then there was yourself, a blushing mess as the fae waited to hear your explanation... hehe.

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thesherrinfordfacility · 4 months

Text

timeline rundown

tbh this is mainly just for my reference and i will probably come back to it at a later date; a lot of other much cleverer people are spotting some scenes that appear to be out of order, and before deep-diving into scrutinising each scene and frame, i decided to (for the first run, anyway - im sure others have gotten much further ahead, but i personally like to do my own research) just go with a surface-level, basic approach of looking for time indicators.

edit 02/01: additions!!!✨

couple of notes:

this is initially going with the assumption that no fuckery is going on, and only highlights where things appear to be consistent or inconsistent

on the clockhands, and which way round to read them, this caused me no end of headache. for example, reading the ornate hand as the hour makes ep6 sensical, but then makes ep1 gibberish (and vice versa). so, im doing both! and colour coding them!

blue: ornate hand is the hour, other hand is the minute

orange: ornate hand is the minute, other hand is the hour

green: a timestamp that isn't shown by the clock, or has been surmised/hypothesised.

you can make your own conclusion as to which reads make the most sense, but i'll be adding commentary anyway!!!✨

episode 1:

aziraphale gets maggie's letter: the only thing we know is that the bookshop is closed which, given aziraphale's stunning opening hours policy, doesn't mean a whole lot but for the most part, he seems on average to open the shop between 9.30-10am, and close at 3.30pm

shostakovich: aziraphale gets the records and heads off to listen to them, saying that he will be doing so for the next 21 minutes. i know there have been theories out there stemming from mismatched serial number on the record - but for my money, the explanation is a bit more watsonian than that; that aziraphale has a certain amount of free time to chill out to some music before something else happens (ie., to me, before crowley arrives to the shop). therefore, i would say that it logically follows that the previous scene, and this one, is late afternoon after the shop closes.

crowley in st james' park: as the camera sweeps past buckingham palace, you can hear bell chimes in the background, likely posed as coming from big ben. it starts with the cambridge chimes melody, falls silent, and then rings the number of tolls for the hour. when the agent joins crowley on the bench, i can hear a count of five tolls, for 5pm. example of the 5pm toll here.

gabriel/jim arrives: when aziraphale pauses the record, it appears to be 4.20pm.

when jim is handed the hot chocolate, the main bookshop clock reads as 5.20pm, or 4.25pm. seems odd that there would be such a gap for the former, (albeit plausible given that aziraphale gets jim settled and fitted with a blanket etc.), but the latter is more likely.

- capture of the two preceding timestamps

shax and crowley again: crowley's phone reads as 10.35am which, needless to say, does not fit in the above and below timeline at all.

jim and aziraphale conversation continues: the main bookshop clock reads as 6.20pm, or 4.30pm. again, given that aziraphale immediately looks in the box after retrieving it from outside, makes the latter more likely. it also makes sense taking into account the following hypothesised timestamps.

aziraphale calls crowley: not time-stamped, but crowley notes that he is 'two minutes' away when aziraphale calls. jim doesn't appear to have moved, so presumably the call is made soon after the last scene, and when they are both in the café, it still seems to be fully open and running. if we accept that the start of ep1 is most likely around 4pm, and the aziraphale/jim conversation wraps up around 4.30pm-ish, this would make sense - that crowley arrives to the café around 4.40pm. they then obviously leave, and it cuts to:

maggie gives nina the record: same as the above; maggie remarks that she wants a little something "for the end of the day", and nina says she has to finish closing up. nina has cleared away the dishes from the boys' table, the café is has just emptied, and nina's colleague is getting ready to leave. if we treat this scene as concurrent with the "ah! gabriel!" scene, probably around 4.45pm.

crowley lightning strike: maggie is chucking away her tea bag, and nina is upending chairs. if we say that the "ah! gabriel!" and "so did i!" scenes together take maybe 5-10 minutes in-universe, could hazard that the lightning strike is around 4.50pm - 4.55pm.

interlude, where we then return to crowley getting back to his bentley, and it's nighttime. then gets abducted by beelzebub, before squealing off at 110mph+ back to the bookshop. there isn't a timestamp until:

from @katalina27ua (thank you!), crowley restores power: nina's phone reads as 9:02. this would suggest the morning, but i would suggest that given phones can be set to either the 12- or 24-hour clock, and coupled with darkness and emptiness outside, it's 9:02pm.

the dance: the main bookshop clock reads 1.45am, or 9.05pm.

episode 2:

"what comes after 'K'?": when aziraphale gets startled by jim, the main bookshop clock reads as around 6.53am, or 10.35am.

archangels arrive: the main bookshop clock reads as 09.55am, or 11.45am.

aziraphale starts playing the record: as has been pointed out by @canarybell, this scene is so clearly cut in half from the muriel-arrival scene* in ep3. possibly for timing issues, but still out of sequence of the above; im very tentatively putting the time of the main bookshop clock as somewhere around 11.40am or 8am... only the former could work in the ep2 timeline, but again, it is reasonably certain that this is cut from the beginning of ep3 where, in the context of that scene, it is most likely 8am*, and this scene's place in ep2 is just a continuity issue/post-filming to make up timings.

dirty donkey: no time-stamp, but going on face value of how packed the pub is, seems to be at least mid-late afternoon, or post-lunch weekend. im erring towards the former - that people have come in post-work, and it's somewhere around 3.30pm onwards.

jim remembers: the above makes sense with this scene in context, as the main bookshop clock reads 5.20pm or 4.28pm.

post-job flashback: when we return to aziraphale in modern day, and he calls for crowley, the main bookshop clock reads as 6.30pm.

crowley/nina conversation: the record store is still be open in this scene, which would be odd for 6.30pm onwards, albeit not impossible. the café is definitely closed (it's empty and you can see chairs on tables), and nina is only just leaving/finishing up the close. in which case, it makes sense that aziraphale dozed off for a couple of hours, crowley to have wandered off, and nina to have closed up (if her café closing time is, say, 6pm). so, im going with this being around 6.30pm also.

episode 3:

note: i miss out a fair few scenes in this episode and ep4, because a lot is so flimsy in the speculation. with scenes in the bookshop, we can help gauge time with the shops/crowds around it etc, but in ep3 - eg. when aziraphale is in the bentley - i don't think i have enough surrounding data to make a reliable estimate on when it is... so essentially, im just going on what timestamps we do have.

returning to *the muriel arrival scene from ep2: if we accept that this is meant to be joined with the ep2 scene, the main bookshop clock reads as, most likely, 8am (but reminder: could also be 11.40am) when he sits down to start going through the articles and drawn gabriel, which seems to take some time (given the next timestamp):

however, when muriel turns up at the door, and aziraphale pauses the record, the clock reads as what i think is 7.50am or 9.35am (quality is such that i can't quite tell which hand is which, but i think it's this way round). i think, however, given the continuation of the scene, the latter is the most likely:

cupperty: when aziraphale enters the main room with the teacups, the main bookshop clocks reads as 9.50am.

crowley enters: clock still reading as 9.50am.

- capture of all three preceding timestamps

a hefty jump forward to the gravity conversation: the main bookshop clock reads as 6.17pm, or 3.30pm.

another jump forward, when aziraphale gets to the graveyard, and borrows the phone: clock on the phone reads as 5.30pm.

crowley picks up the call: the main bookshop clock shows as around 5.25pm - 5.28pm - so a couple of minutes' difference, but still fairly reliable.

episode 4:

frankly this episode is anyone's guess, given that there's only two main scenes in modern day. but to start, aziraphale is obviously driving back during the night, so possibly late evening/very early morning. he says that he is late, and so presumably he was meant to get back to london before nightfall/at least, before its very late in the evening.

aziraphale parks up: nina's phone in the café reads as 6.47am. this is supported by the background crashing sounds; with lots of restaurants around, likely bin lorries emptying the bottlebanks/bins.

episode 5:

the opening, when aziraphale leaves to go invite the other shopkeepers, shows that the bookshop is closed but the café and marguerite's is open; the former doesn't really mean jack shit, but i reckon marguerite's is likely to be a lunch/dinner joint. so, with that in mind, likely to be sometime in the afternoon.

crowley has his 'oh' moment, and whistles aziraphale over: we obviously don't know how long crowley has been sat there, but long enough that the patrons have swapped over - so let's say maybe an hour, and again still likely afternoon.

crowley then leaves to go confront gabriel, and aziraphale presumably follows up behind him shortly after. when crowley returns downstairs, and aziraphale is sprucing up the shop: quality is once again dogshite so i can't be sure which way round the hands are, but fairly certain the main bookshop clock reads as 12.30pm or 6pm. the latter seems the most likely, given the following scenes/dialogue:

aziraphale sends out crowley to find nina and maggie, and make sure "they are on their way" - it indicates that the party, set to start at 6.30pm, is soon. rightly enough, crowley pops round to the record store and it's closed, but maggie is inside - and nina has closed up the café and set to leave also.

mrs sandwich and then mr brown arrive: the main bookshop clock reads as around 6.20pm - 6.30pm, but we then don't get a clear shot of the clock for the rest of the episode. we know it suddenly gets really dark as soon as nina flies into the bookshop, but given the demon raid going on outside it's not really a reliable indicator of time.

so up until now, ive been pretty certain that the orange timestamps are the more correct, as they seem to flow the most with the general in-universe happenings of the story, and correlate most with the external green timestamps of the eps. however, ep6 goes very screwy in this respect, and it seems that the blue timestamps suddenly become the more accurate.

episode 6:

demons enter, attack, and the bookcase falls/maggie and nina hold them off with fire extinguishers: the main bookshop clock reads as 2.30am or 6.12am.

crowley comes back from heaven, and the demons arrive: the main bookshop clock reads as 6.02am or 12.30am/pm.

just before the gabriel/beelzebub flashbacks: the clock still reads as just gone past 6am or 12.30am/pm.

gabriel returns: the main bookshop clock, over maggie's shoulder, is out of focus so i can't quite see which way round the hands are, but i think reads as either 7am or 8am, or 11.37am, just before they're ushered out by crowley. either one of the two blue timestamps seems the most likely.

crowley drops off nina and maggie: nina remarks that she should have been open "half an hour ago", which if she normally turns up to open up the shop anywhere between 6.30am - 7am (as per her phone from the end of ep4 - 6.47am), makes 8am more likely - that she turns up at around 6.45am, ready to open at 7.30am.

angels and demons arguing: the main bookshop clock reads, just behind dagon's head, as approximately 08.25am or 4.40am/pm.

michael threatens aziraphale, and metatron arrives: the main bookshop clocks reads as 8am (9am?) or 12.43pm.

"extremely alcoholic breakfast at the ritz": reliably informs, for the avoidance of any doubt, that this scene is in the morning. indeed, when crowley gets out of the armchair, the clock shows again that its around 09.02am, or 12.45pm.

crowley tidies up the bookshop: the main bookshop clocks reads as 09.23am, or 4.47am/pm.

"id better start talking": the main bookshop clock reads as 09.25am or 5.45am/pm. it remains this time for the whole first half of the feral domestic, right up until the kiss.

crowley leaves, and metatron returns: the main bookshop clock now reads as approximately 09.40am or 8.47am. we are shown the scene in pretty close, tight-knit order, with no conceivable gaps in the scene where 20 minutes could have gone missing.

aziraphale leaves the bookshop: the clock remains at 09.40am or 08.47am

again from @katalina27ua! crowley at the bentley: the time on his watch reads as, at least (from what i can tell at the quality i have), within the ninth hour. however, the linked promo shot shows clearer - if we accept this to be taken directly from live filming etc - that the clockface reads ~09:15am. edit 03/01: however, there is a different promo photo where it appears that the minute hand is pointing just between the 4-5, reading at 09:25am (i have hit the photo limit but will add to the rb!)

so. couple of things to talk about here.

for the most part between eps 1-5, the clock has been pretty consistent with not only keeping track of time as scenes have developed etc., but also matching up with other instances of where a timestamp is given to us outside of the bookshop. with that in mind, it is highly likely that the clock is a reliable source of marking the in-narrative time of the story. this, for me, is evident with the orange timestamps - where the ornate hand is the minute hand, and other marks minutes.

however, when we hit ep6, it goes to shit. the orange timestamps (providing that ive tracked this all correctly - but error on my part is a very high possibility, i couldn't be bothered to go get pen and paper) suddenly go screwy, and it's the blue ones that make more sense.

we'll revisit that second point in a minute, but returning to the first point - this tells me a crucial thing (imo). first, that the clock can be accepted as the constant in the equation upon which to compare the variables. therefore, for example, crowley's bell tolls in st james' park, and his phone clock, are immediately apparent as 'out of sequence'. the same goes for the part in ep2 where aziraphale starts drawing gabriel - this of course could just be down to a non/extra-diegetic we-need-to-cut-ep3-but-plump-out-ep2 reason (and i think that's probably the case), but crowley's phone is so purposefully and blatantly (and arguably needlessly - could have just answered straightaway and achieved the same result) displayed with the 'wrong' time, that it doesn't feel accidental.

so if the timeline more likely follows the orange, why does it go completely bonkers in ep6, and instead start to follow the blue? god knows, i really don't have much of an answer beyond the "freaky-deaky time shit is going on", and maybe "the demon incursion/crowley going to heaven/the angel and demon stand-off/unreliable narratorship all round might be something to do with it." but to my mind, it is the blue timeline that suddenly makes narrative sense - it's likely morning, crowley supports this with "breakfast at the ritz", etc.

similarly, what is interesting to note is that despite neil's answer that the 20-minute skip during the kiss was a continuity error (and i will say, full disclaimer - perfectly prepared to still accept this as the truth), the crew/team seem to have been fairly hot on keeping the clock otherwise within continuity for the whole show. for a scene of this magnitude, where they know it's going to be emotionally upheaving for fans, leaving them gasping for an Explanation for how it all went down, and therefore scrutinise it for every little detail? sorry, im personally not buying that it wasn't deliberate... will probably end up eating my words, but there we are.

my brain has melted out of my ears trying to wrap my head around this, but i'll probably come back to it at some point with, no doubt, some corrections - and some further thoughts✨

#good omens #honestly where there are errors just pls pretend you didnt see them. writing this has aged me by at least a decade

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outlanderskin · 4 months

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The Thing About Rationality and Logic

Someone who was stopping shipping once told me that she was doing it because she was a very realistic and rational person and her life was based on logic. So I asked her if by that she meant that people like me live in fantasy or are irrational. So, I patiently explained that what made me a shipper was exactly logic, more than imagination or fantasy. Because the logical explanation for many events in S&C's trajectory would be that they are together, but they don't want the outside world to know that they are.

I'll cite some examples: when you have a best friend and someone in that person's family dies, what logically do you do? You see, we're talking about best friends, very close people who publicly say how much they value each other and are close. The logical thing would be for you to show solidarity, post condolences and behave publicly in a discreet manner, in solidarity with the loss of that person you love so much, especially because you (by logic) probably have known the deceased relative. The logic would be stay by your best friend's side, support the family. But what we saw in that sad august days, (showed ostensibly for us to believe) was something that no logical answer about "best friends/siblings" could explain. The only way to explain the narrative created in those days would be that they are two people with a cordial, but superficial, relationship and I believe that from what has been stated by the two all these years, not even the Antis deep down believe that they are not close. . Again I ask: what is the need to hide that you were supporting your best friend in an extremely painful moment in anyone's life? Many people (famous or not) do this publicly, because after all it is not a crime, it is the expected logical behavior. So... Why hide it? We know what really happened because this a logical thing, but the others believe firmly he was not there for her.

Let's move on to another point: the man of the year award (or something like that); How can you logically explain that you chose your mother, your best friend and your co-worker to thank, as the most important women in your life? You who apparently had many "girlfriends", who still gets along well with your discreet ex-girlfriend who lives on another continent, who has others close female friends, but didn't mention any of them along with your co-worker. I've seen several men receiving tributes and the Acknowledgments always include the mother, another older woman of reference and the wives, girlfriends, fiancées. The only time I saw a co-worker mentioned (and that was after his mother, grandmother and wife), was when the achievement was due to his work at the company, so it was logical to mention the department secretary. What would then be the logical explanation for that speech?

Something that also defies logic: if I have a best friend and that person is in a relationship, I will obviously include that person's boyfriend/girlfriend on my list of people with whom I am always cordial. I'm not going to publicly act like the person doesn't exist in my best friend's life. We have a wonderful example of how CD & LL treat each other's boyfriends/girlfriends and they don't hide it. This is how it is when we think logically.

Another little point where logic calls us: your male best friend might talk about a female artist with admiration...you don't need to tell him "behave", after all he's not your husband. The most you can do in the case of friendship is admire her or say you don't like her, never act like you're jealous.

Maybe it's just me, but I never went on my best friend's social media to complain because everyone in the photo was wearing a suit and he wasn't. I also never apologized or justified why he didn't wear a tie. I do this normally with my husband. Because it's logical for wives to do this.

These are just small points, where thinking logically justifies what we believe. So anyone who thinks that we are not rational, live outside of reality or do not have logical reasoning is mistaken, or has not yet stopped to think logically.🙃🙃

#outlander #shipping #samcait

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ohdearlingwhathappened · 3 months

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A Pair Made in the Pits chapter 2

Falling Behind Part 2

Chp 1.

A/n: Here's Chapter 2 of this series. I have started my current semester, so chapters are going to be quite slow. Apologies in advance! This has primarily not been beta read, so let me know if you find any discrepancies. And most important, enjoy the chapter!

Having two robots kill them all by driving into the side of a cliff after quasi kidnapping them was not how Y/n thought this would go down, but with a shriek, she closed her eyes and silently asked any deity that may exist to please rain vengeance down on her kidnappers. That is, until she realized there were no sounds or feelings of the crash and the light beyond her eyelids dimmed from the harsh Nevada sun; opening her eyes, she realized that they somehow were now in a grey corridor that eventually lead to a rather large open room in which two more robots stood, probably having been alerted to their arrival considering their already apprehensive looks. At Bee’s stopping, the younger boy Y/n now knows as Raphael, or Raf as he prefers, gets out and she slowly follows him out and takes her place standing in front of the children. She knows, logically, that if anything were to happen, she likely wouldn’t be able to stop anything, but she might be able to buy them time, at the very least.

“I thought there were two.” The red and white robot questions the blue and pink bot. He was the first one Y/n had seen once they had entered the clearing, of sorts. He had been standing over by what looked to be a large computer, though she supposes it’s quite normal sized, or possibly even small, for them.

Ever snarky, the effeminate bot responds, “Haven’t you heard- humans multiply.” before walking more over towards the middle of the room.

Y/n snorts, unbelieving of the situation she and these kids are in, and looks around before hearing human-sized steps moving past her and toward the hulking figure of the green robot, “Miko! Don’t-”

“I’m Miko! Who are you?”

“Bulkhead?” The larger, green robot seemed tense, obviously not used to talking to many other humans, especially teenage girls, most likely. Oblivious to the apparent nerves, Miko gives an excited gasp and begins her questioning.

“Are you a car? I bet you’re a truck. A monster truck! Do you like heavy metal? How much do you weigh?! Have you ever used a wrecking ball for a punching bag?” The questions were an absolute onslaught that, despite not being the one having the questions shot at them, were making even Y/n’s head spin.

“Miko, hon, give um- Bulkhead- some space to breathe. Besides, I think there are more pressing matters at hand here.” Putting a hand on Miko’s shoulder, Y/n pulls the young girl away. Receding into her thoughts she tries to determine who exactly is in charge, so she can begin ripping into them, and no offense to any of the present company, but they don’t exactly seem like the leading type. “I’m sure one of these robots will have an explanation as to why we had to be dragged out to the middle of nowhere, instead of just letting us go back to our lives.”

“Puh-lease.” The red and white bot scoffs out, leading to Y/n glaring up at him.

This is the second time one of these indicated that they aren’t all that meets the eye, and the lack of explanation is beginning to make Y/n’s blood boil. However, before she is able to snap back some witty remark, heavy footsteps draw her attention back to another tunnel that weirdly appears to have an almost immediate dead end, but looks to have metal arches and wiring throughout the skeletal infrastructure, to see the largest one of these robots yet.

“We are autonomous robotic organisms from the planet Cybertron, also known as autobots.” His deep voice rumbles throughout the room, making Y/n feel as if she could feel the vibrations in her very bones. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Jack take a few steps forward and doesn’t stop him. For some reason she can’t explain, the alien before her has eased some of her worries and fears, making her trust that the kids were in safe hands. Just by answering a question.

“Why are you here?”

“To protect your planet from the Decepticons. We came here after our home became inhabitable after years of civil war.”

“I take it those are the guys who attacked you and Rafael last night? My turn for a question- why are we here?” No matter how much some of the explanation put Y/n at ease, there was still a lot to go over, hence why she dons the defensive and accusatory tone and crosses her arms. “No offense, but your war has nothing to do with these children. Why bring them here and further risk their endangerment?”

“Ms. Y/n-” Miko tries to interrupt, but the woman is quick to give her a pointed look.

“No, Miko.” She looks back up to Optimus Prime, and keeps her pointed look on her face, “Don’t you think yesterday was stressful enough for these kids? They are teenagers- Raf is only 12! They should be worrying about their grades, what new video game is coming out, who their soulmate is and what their quote says- not some intergalactic war.” Y/n huffs, annoyed with the situation in front of her. She may not be these kids’ parent, but she does feel responsible for them. “If it was a few other adults or even just myself, that would be different. We’ve gotten our quotes,” her words begin to fade, and she hangs her head, “even if they might be fucked.”

Miko flinches at the misted mention of her teacher’s quote. Having been a host student partially under the care of Y/n for nearly a year now, knows of the woman’s quote circumstances. When the teen came to the states, she had been ecstatic to get away from her overly controlling parents, but she didn’t exactly trust anyone in Nevada either. In a way to get her to open up, Y/n sat her down in one of the offices of the school and played a sort of 20 questions with the girl, to help her loosen up. The questions could be as impersonal as what’s the best place to get food in Jasper, or as personal as questions regarding her quote.

“So I can ask anything?”

“Yep. Anything you want.”

“And you aren’t going to back out if I hit some sore spot?”

“I promise I won’t. You have my word, Miko.”

“Okaaaay. How old are you?”

“Oooo starting off on the hard-hitting questions, huh?” Y/n smiled and pretended to think about it, “I know I must sound ancient, but I’m 26 years old.”

“Meh, you aren’t as old as my parents, so you aren’t that old.” Miko leans back in her chair, thinking about what to ask.”What’s your relationship like with your mom and dad?

“Well… my mother died when I was 12. It was a car crash- she was a lovely woman, from what I can remember. My father, on the other hand, changed after her death, and once I got my quote, he kicked me out.” She shrugged, smiling faintly. It wasn’t a fond memory, but it was nearly 10 years ago, so the pain had faded, but some scars still remained- metaphorically and physically.

“Your quote is that bad? What is it?”

“I do not know.”

“Well, what language is it?”

“If I knew that, I would know what my quote says, wouldn’t I?”

“Can I see it?”

“No.” The smile evaporates from Y/n’s face, not a trace of it remaining.

“But you said-”

“I said I would answer your questions, Miko, and I have. This is the one limit I have, and I request that you respect that… Ok?” Miko’s eyes flicker between Y/n’s and nods. Noticing the tension, Y/n smiles gently and clears her throat, motioning for the girl to continue- “Now back to your questions- I can’t imagine you’ve gotten them all out.”

“I understand your worries… Ms. Y/n,-” The giant in front of her snaps her out of her reminiscing; it had only been a year and yet the girl had become a trusted and dear person, to Y/n. “-but Decepticon activity has spiked, and with some of their warfront having seen the human children, I fear they may not be safe. Our war has been ongoing for a long time, and while we have not seen nor heard of their leader, Megatron, if his return is as imminent as I believe it is, it would be best to keep the children, and you, in our care whenever we are able.” Optimus looks down at the woman before him, the worry obvious on her face, and kneels down to better look her in the eye. “I assure you. These children will be safer nowhere else.”

“You understand this is a lot to take in, right? I am going to have to not only have the burden of these kids’ safety on my shoulders, but I am going to have to lie to both pairs of Miko’s parents and if I see Jack or Rafael’s I’ll have to lie to them as well. If anything goes wrong, I will never be able to forgive myself.” Y/n’s arms wrap around herself, hands gripping onto the fabric of her blouse. She breaks eye contact with Optimus and looks Jack, Raf, and Miko over, trying to confirm what she was thinking.

The truth is, the woman had already made up her mind, but she was hoping for a slip up, a wrong comment, anything for her to be able to deny the mechanical giant before her. But looking into his eyes, there was nothing but determination and truth glowing from his steady gaze. She drops her shoulders and brings a hand to rub her face, regretting the action slightly when she feels some of her mascara come off in small grains- today had been long.

“I understand your concerns-”

Y/n lowers her hand and looks back at Optimus with determination of her own.

“But I believe you will keep them safe.”

The base is quiet until Miko lets out a cheer of excitement and throws her arms around Y/n’s neck, thanking her for choosing the right choice, before going back over to the boys and speaking rapid fire- likely about how cool this situation was and how much fun they were going to have.

Miko always had the ability to look at the brighter side of situations- apparently even when being taken under the supervision of giant, alien robots who call themselves Autobots. Raf, despite the little time she has spent with the young boy, Y/n can see that he is a more positive person, with a somewhat more logical spin on things. Finally, there was Jack Darby- a boy who she had seen throughout the halls of the high school and of which Y/n was able to make acquaintance with his mother- a nice woman, a little older than Y/n, who liked to drop off things like a lunch or Jack’s work uniform to the office whenever she got a moment away from the hospital; Jack was more of a mystery to the woman- only knowing he became embarrassed when his mother came to the school and that he was doing just fine in his academics.

“Optimus, with all due respect, the humans are in as much danger here as anywhere. They have no protective shell!” The grumpier mech of the bunch brings up his own counter argument, waving his hand to refer to the four humans before continuing, “If they get underfoot, they will go… squa-iish.”

“Hey!-”

“Then for the time being, Ratchet, we must watch where we step.” Optimus ends the argument before it can truly begin, cutting off Y/n and inadvertently telling the other bot that the humans will be staying for the foreseeable future.

But before anyone else can get another word in edgewise, a green light begins flashing while an alarm blares throughout the compound, making the bots turn to the giant computer screens and the humans stiffen.

“What’s that?” Jack calls out over the alarm, bringing Bee’s attention back to the group, the beeps and chirps from earlier is the only response he gives.

“Proximity sensor. Someone’s up top.” Raf pipes up from behind Y/n, making her quirk an eyebrow at the fact that he can understand the yellow bot, but it is quickly overshadowed by the fact that another human is aware of the Autobot’s existence.

“That would be Special Agent Fowler- he is our liaison to the outside world. As he tends to visit only when there are issues, it may be best if you do not meet him at this time.” Optimus turns back to the four smaller individual in the room, once he was aware of who was dropping in to visit, and at his explanation, Y/n reluctantly ushered the children to go hide around the corner of the platform, positive it would keep them out of sight, just as long as this Agent Fowler didn’t walk too far forward or do a survey of the base’s condition. As the leader of this group spoke to the agent, Y/n turned to the children and pinned them with narrowed eyes.

“While the boys are talking, I’m setting up ground rules,” Y/n whispers, her hands finding their place on her hips as she begins her little TED talk about spending time with giant robots. These children would listen to her whether they wanted to or not, “First of all, and quite possibly the most obvious- no talking about this with anyone, not your parents- host, biological, or otherwise; no one at school; work; band; clubs- nobody. Second, they are in a war- this is not an intergalactic daycare program- this is not fun, happy times-” As if on schedule, Bulkhead ripped a piece of equipment out of the electrical socket it was welded into and crushed it while speaking to Fowler, “-so treat it like the warzone that it is. Third, none of you are to go on any kind of mission. I don’t care if they need a human sized partner for some easy peasy scouting mission, if one of you are able to fit in a small area, or whatever the hell they do- they have the help of the government, so they can ask them for any help. The fourth, and hopefully the last rule, be careful and rely on me. Jack and Raf, I know you two don’t know me very well, but I promise you can come to me for anything.” She looks at Miko and grins, “You already come to me instead of your host parents- that still applies here. You kids are my responsibility and priority- if something happens at any point, you get the fuck out of danger. I don’t care what you lose- your phones, a school book- it doesn’t matter. Am I understood?”

All three of the kids nod, each murmuring some form of affirmation of hearing her.

“Great! Sounds like the agent has left, so let’s rejoin the lot of them and figure out where to go from here.” Y/n, dropping the serious- and downright intimidating- stance she held, smiles and walks around the corner not waiting for any more of a response from the three.

“What do you mean Cliffjumper’s life signal came back online?” Arcee, who had previously been leaning against the elevated platform that leads to the elevator which Agent Fowler had left through, straightens and approaches Ratchet and his computer systems. The kids, following Arcee’s interest, had made their way up onto a railing-lined platform to get a better look at the computer themselves, leaving Y/n at the base of the main structure’s stairs. “Is that possible?”

“It shouldn’t be. It’s probably this primitive earth tech that we’re stuck with.” Ratchet slams his fist against the base of the computer, hoping it would possibly make the computer

“If there’s any chance Cliff’s alive-” Arcee looks up to Optimus, hope for their previously thought-to-be dead comrade easily seen throughout her body.

“Ratchet, prepare the sick bay- we may need it.” The stoic bot nods to the others and they all begin to walk towards the stunted tunnel Optimus had come from earlier, leaving Y/n to wonder if there was some other sort of trap door like there had apparently been when she and the kids entered the base with Bumblebee and Arcee. Miko, as if already forgetting what she was just told, leans over the railing,

“What can we do?!” The girl was thrilled at the prospect of seeing some giant robot action, only to be brought quickly back to reality.

“Absolutely nothing! Did you not remember a single thing we just went over, young lady?!” Y/n snaps, making the girl visibly droop and glance at Optimus, hoping for another reaction.

“Miss Y/n is correct, you will stay here- with Ratchet.” His words ring with finality, making both Miko and Ratchet give a whine and groan respectively, and before anyone knows it, a portal appears composed of all sorts of shades of blues and greens. It would have been gorgeous, if it’s appearance wasn’t so sudden and startling. “Autobots, roll out!”

And just as fast as it appeared, almost as soon as the autobots disappeared into it, so did the swirling mass.

“What just happened?!” It was now Jack’s turn to nearly fall over the railing, leaning as far out as he could- as if he didn’t believe his eyes. To be fair, Y/n herself was still trying to believe hers.

“I transported them to the designated coordinates via the groundbridge.” Ratchet explained nonchalantly, as if whatever he just said was common knowledge.

“Oh, yes, because that explains everything.” Y/n grumbles to herself, tired of all the new information she’s been receiving today. She already had to deal with one attitudinal robot after dealing with attitudinal children and coworkers all day, she was not going to listen to another one for whatever condescending and blatantly bothered comments he may throw at her and the kids’ way.

As he gives the kids a rundown of the “groundbridge”, Y/n half listens as she looks around the base, trying to get some stable understanding of where she is; with everything changing and new information being thrown at her every five minutes, the need for something to be relatively unchanging was almost necessary, unless Y/n wanted to pass out from information overload.

The base itself is older- it had to have been abandoned by the government far before the Autobots arrived. And upon further inspection, there are three tunnels, not two. There’s the tunnel they arrived through, the stunted tunnel that holds the technology for the groundbridge, and then there’s the third tunnel that Y/n could only assume went further throughout the silo’s infrastructure. Walking towards the new area, she begins to wonder about the bots’ living quarters.

I wonder if they have their own rooms here. I can’t imagine them all spending every second of every day with each other- they’d go mad. I wonder if their suites would be suited to their vehicle forms… like a kind of habitat. Pfft they could call it a habsuite. Though, that sounds as if I’m likening them to animals so perhaps not. Having a short giggle to herself at the random word, Y/n’s thoughts are abruptly cut off by Optimus’ voice coming through the computer system ordering Ratchet to open the bridge-thing. Heading back over towards the ambulatory mech and the kids, she notices a lack of a new body among them.

“Cliffjumper?” Ratchet inquires, bringing everyone’s heads to hang, confirming the worst news- he was gone. The air is solemn, the loss of anyone- mechanized or organic- is always a hard blow to be dealt to one’s psyche, and Y/n’s heart goes out to them for the loss of their friend.

“What was that explosion?! Was there a fight?! Can I come with, next time?!” Miko once again taking her place at the railing, misses the que that now is not the time to be asking about their next adventure. Y/n knew the girl was just excited, but she was coming across as insensitive.

“Miko-”

“Hey hey, Miko, let’s go see what the bots hide in their sock drawers.” Thankfully, Jack had a better grasp on the situation and led Miko away so that what happened could be discussed, despite her aired grievances.

Optimus approached Arcee gently, it being obvious that she was the most shaken up over what had happened on the other side of that portal, “Arcee, what did you see?”

The bot in question wrapped her arms around herself. Any trace of the spunky bot who Y/n met earlier that day was gone, leaving behind a shaken, hurt woman who was still in shock after seeing her friend gone.

“Not Cliff. At least, not anymore. He was mutated. Butchered. Like… something from those con experiments during the war.” And before anyone could catch her, her knees hit the ground and her arms caught one of the cases to keep herself up. Bee whirred in what could easily be understood as concern for his friend, but she waved him off, “I’m fine… just dizzy.”

Ratchet, the obvious medic of the group, immediately begins running diagnostics and scans, finding what Y/n could only see a glimpse of some kind of purple goo.

“Cliff was covered in this stuff- leaking it.” Upon hearing this, Ratchet scrapes some off of her and tells her to take a decontamination bath at once. She nods and accepts Bee’s help to the makeshift shower.

“Optimus?” Jack calls the attention of the giant mech who leans down slightly and waves his phone a little, “I hate to bug but no bars?”

Not having even thought about the time, Y/n looks down at her own and startles at the time blinking back at her- 10:32. While it might not be a big deal for her, she can only imagine the panic the kids’ parents might be going through. Miko might have the excuse of going over certain study materials with Y/n, but the two boys had nothing to protect them from their parents’ wrath.

“I didn’t even think of curfew!” Y/n yelps. “Miko, I don’t normally encourage you to lie to your parents, but this is kind of a special case. Just let them know I was helping you with some of your studies and wanted to speak with you about possible extracurriculars. I’m sorry, boys, but I don’t know if I can help you come up with any excuses as to why you’ll be getting home so late. I suppose you can partially blame me, Jack. Your mother has my number, so she might call me, and I can cover for you.”

“Earth customs… I hadn’t considered.” Optimus hums stands upright. “The issue of your safety remains. Bulkhead, accompany Miko home and maintain covert surveillance in vehicle form.”

“Curbside duty, got it.” He nods in response to his orders.

“Bumblebee, watch over Raf. And Ratchet-”

The mech doesn’t even turn around, “Busy!”

“Arcee, you’ll accompany Jack.”

After a moment’s pause, she brings a hand to her forehead and heaves a sigh, “Oh, still dizzy.”

“You’re fine, says your physician.” Ratchet deadpans, foiling Arcee’s attempt to get out of babysitting, leading her to hunch her shoulders and groan.

“And I will join you to your home, Ms. Y/n.”

“Oh! Um alright.” A sort of awkward smile is shot up at him and with everyone’s positions set, the humans get situated in their guardians and they all ‘roll out’.

* * * * * *

The drive back to Y/n’s home was quiet. Staring out into the desert seemed to be the only option she could come to; today was… something. One second she’s hearing yet another rambling session from Mrs. Albert and now, she’s riding home in a sentient semi-truck that can transform into a metal man from outer space. A metal man who seems to have the worlds on his shoulders and on top of it all, he’s lost another soldier- another friend just hours ago. There is nothing Y/n could possibly say to begin expressing how sorry she is for his loss and for adding to his already-present, heavy workload. Not that she had the time- even though she could have sworn she had just been looking at the wide expanse of the desert, Optimus was rolling up to the front of her house.

After a moment of neither of them speaking, a sound that would normally be the noise of a semi stopping rings out, and the air coming from his vents could easily be understood as a kind of exhale in attempt to gain Y/n’s attention, “Ms. Y/n, we have arrived.”

“Just Y/n is fine. Unless you’d like me to start calling you Mr. Optimus or Mr. Prime.” The woman snorts and the seats vibrate slightly as a low chuckle runs through Optimus’ alt-mode.

“Understood.”

“...I-... I’m sorry. About your friend, I mean.” Fiddling with the ends of her right-hand sleeve and noticing it had started to bunch up at some point in the day, she pulls it as far down as possible.

“Cliff Jumper was a brave soldier and good friend. I will see him and our other lost friends when I eventually rejoin the Allspark.”

“The Allspark?”

“A well of power and energon from which all life on Cybertron came from and will return to- until all are one…” There’s a wistfullness to the mech’s voice, as if there are more meanings to the what he’s just said, ones in which he yearns for. Jolting himself out of whatever thoughts were whipping around in his head, Optimus continues, “...but that is a story for another day. For now, you must recharge. I will see early tomorrow morning, Y/n.”

The door to Y/n’s right pops open, and she hops out- albeit a tad awkwardly- and looks back at the semi, “Thank you, Optimus. For promising me to keep us, but most importantly the children, safe. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Y/n.”

Stepping into her house and into her bedroom, she didn’t even get the chance to change out of her work clothes. Looking at the bed, she decided it would just be best to just pass out and deal with anything that needed to be done in the morning. Before long, her eyes were fluttering shut and sleep finally had her within its grasp. That is until one particular realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

Her car was still parked in the school’s parking lot.

What a day.

Taglist: @the-unhinged-raccoon, @hystericalanarchy

#fanfic writing #transformers #angst #tw angst #slow burn #tfp megatron x reader #megatron x reader #tfp megatron #transformers Prime #transformers x reader #soulmate au #afab reader #fem reader #part 2 #a pair made in the pits

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infriga · 8 months

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I convinced my mom to try the live action One Piece, because she's the type to like this style of show even though she isn't into animation and would never read manga, but I didn't think I'd be able to convince my dad because he's usually a stickler for more grounded and realistic stories (his favourite genre is war movies, his favourite movie is Saving Private Ryan, for reference). But, when I brought up with him how I figured it probably wouldn't be his thing because it was fantasy, he mentioned to me that he does enjoy some fantastical stuff if it has like an internal universe logic, like Star Wars, and the more I thought about it, the more I remembered that he also enjoys campy fun action adventure stuff that doesn't take itself too seriously like Indiana Jones or Pirates of the Carribean.

And One Piece has both that internal logic for why people can perform crazy feats (even if it isn't explained right away) which I mentioned to him (just that there is a reason why people can do crazy things in this world), as well as the campy fun action adventure thing going for it, especially in the Live Action (the fight against Morgan's base even has a major Indiana Jones vibes ngl). So I explained that to him and asked if he wanted to try it, and he agreed to watching the first episode with me to decide if he'd watch it with my mom and me.

AND HE ACTUALLY SAID IT WAS INTERESTING SO FAR!! Like, he is NOT the kinda guy to enjoy anime or manga or even western cartoons, always refuses to watch anything anime and doesn't show any interest when I talk about it (I've managed to convince him to watch a few movies like Sword of the Stranger but it's obvious that even when he's not bored or doesn't hate it, it still doesn't catch or keep his interest), and he's really picky about anything fantasy or SciFi, if it like sets off his bullshit meter too much he starts nitpicking the logic behind certain abilities, or decisions, or explanations, etc. I once tried to get him to try Gravity Falls and he wanted to stop after the first episode. He's THAT picky.

So the fact that he actually laughed several times while watching the first episode of OPLA with me, commented about Luffy's character positively several times (he seems to think Luffy is really funny which surprised me cause I thought he'd be the most entertained by Zoro but I mean I can't blame him it is Luffy after all), never cringed or criticised or said anything about how ridiculous it was, means a lot coming from him cause he's always really blunt and honest about his opinion on this sort of stuff (which is fine I don't want him to pretend to enjoy stuff when he doesn't). He actually watched the whole first episode without it losing his attention, and seemed to have fun! And he agreed to watch the rest with my mom and me!

This sort of thing is one of the reasons why I dislike when people just dismiss the idea of live action adaptations entirely. I get that people are jaded with past failures, and don't like when live action is treated like a replacement for or improvement from animation when it isn't. But it is a valid medium just as much as animation or comics or writing are, and can be used to produce some amazing things. And the fact is, there are people who have a hard time connecting with other mediums who will otherwise never engage with this media in its original forms. Live Action, when done well and done right, can reach new audiences and welcome them into the fold in ways the original formats never can.

One Piece didn't need the live action to be popular, obviously, and the live action cannot and will not replace the original, nor should it. But I love that we get to have it alongside the manga and anime. It's just more of what we love, it's the cherry on top of an already stellar multi-layered cake. It complements the original rather than taking anything away from it. And for the first time in over a decade I might be able to share One Piece with my parents, who would only ever have a chance of experiencing it and enjoying it in live action. There's just something so awesome about that for me personally. I just wish more live action adaptations would understand what the One Piece live action understood about the adaptation process, and that's how to keep the heart of the story in-tact, so more people from more fandoms could have a chance to share something they love with more people who it would otherwise not reach.

Anyway, thank you Oda and the OPLA cast and crew for doing live action right for once!

#one piece #one piece live action #OPLA #When Luffy was talking about breaking into the marine base my dad was like #'he seems like he's got a lot of confidence going for him' with a grinnand a chuckle #And then when Luffy was talking to Nami in the base my dad said something like 'other people seem to have a hard time saying no to him'#Also with a grin and a laugh #And bro if my dad becomes a Luffy fan too I will explode #Like he did laugh at Zoro and Nami a few times but he had the most to say about Luffy and none were complains #He didn't even seem to blink an eye at Luffy calling out attack names lmao #Long post #Just your regularly scheduled post where I gush about OPLA for too long #Tv show thoughts #It's not even that my parents have anything against animation they just for some reason have a really hard time getting immersed in it #Or connecting to what's happening #Even when they try something for my sake they just can't really get enthusiastic about it the way they can for live action stuff #Which I mean some people just don't vibe with certain mediums and that's okay

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izzyspussy · 7 months

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Rating Ted Lasso Characters Based On If They'd Respect My Pronouns (Correctly)

Roy "We Stayed At GAY Til 3AM And Then We Had Crepes With Some Drag Queens" Kent: 11/10 no fucking shit. He would defend me from misgendering also, even if we weren't friends. He's the very embodiment of that guy who fought the trans guy and then fought the authority figure who scolded him for hitting a girl.

Nate "Genius (Code for Autistic)" Shelley: 11/10 are you kidding. If only quarantine had happened in his universe he'd have pronouns too. Also his girlfriend obviously already does.

Jamie "Prettyboy" Tartt: 11/10 duh. No, he doesn't know off the top of his head what part of speech a pronoun is, but only because nothing in the universe could matter less. And much like Roy, if he saw someone else being contrarian for the purposes of being a prick for absolutely no earthly reason, he would be eager to do something about it.

Keeley "Just The Tip" Jones: 11/10 did you see her. Never have I personally received more solidarity than from (butches and) full tilt Barbie Girl femmes like Keeley. She may be cis and she wears "women's" clothes, but she's still doing drag every day. She gets it.

Colin "Right by This Pink Triangle?" Hughes: 11/10 obviously. He would be so good at not making a big deal out of doing it correctly himself or correcting others, because he knows what it's like to just want to live your authentic life without being a spectacle.

Coach "You Should See Him In Drag" Beard: 11/10 which you should've guessed. Look at him. Look at him with your heart. You know he has pronouns you've never even heard of that he takes out for special occasions.

Ted "We Don't Not Care" Lasso: 11/10 why is this even a question. Practically the entirety of Ted's goals in life are to be respectful and kind and help others do the same. Sometimes that's hard and he fucks it up, but this is easy. C'mon.

Sam "Social Justice Warrior" Obisanya: 11/10 like. Obviously. I have nothing else to say, like. Obviously. Obviously.

Bumber-"Impending Class War"-catch: 11/10. If anything, given the opportunity, he would encourage me to have more pronouns.

Dani "Joy" Rojas: 11/10. These are getting very simple now, and require less and less explanation. He promotes joy. What else do you want.

Rebecca "Ask Your Daughter What It Means" Welton: 11/10. She's a cutthroat and a genuine feminist. She doesn't care if a bunch of freaks are scared of strangers' genitals, and she's certainly not going to let something so petty get in her own way.

Jan "I've Run Out of Fun Epithets For Everyone And He Wouldn't Mind This Unfun One That's Blunt About That Fact" Maas: 11/10 of course. There's no logical, moral, or social reason not to, and there is a wealth of evidence supporting gender affirming behavior.

Isaac McAdoo: 11/10. And he would (unnecessarily) instruct all the other lads to do it too. He might struggle with it at first if we had known each other previous to my transition, but not out of malice or negligence, and once he got on track he'd stay there for life.

Leslie Higgins: 11/10. He's a jazz musician with ten thousand gen Z children. He knows at least as many trans people already as any natural member of the queer community.

The Rest of The Lads: 11/10. We all know this to be true. Next.

Georgie Tartt: 11/10. Have you seen her son. She's prepared for this.

Sharon Fieldstone: 11/10. Have you seen her do her job. She's good at it.

Dottie Lasso: 9/10. Her heart's in the right place and that matters! She is inescapably Midwestern in both the good ways and the bad ways, though.

Jake: 8/10. Have you seen him do his job. He's bad at it.

Rupert Mannion: 6/10. He's a trans inclusive misogynist lmao. He also will treat correct pronoun usage as a privilege if he gets butthurt enough.

James Tartt: 3/10. He'd respect a trans man who performed masculinity to his standards, but he is definitely afraid of girlymen and women who are better than him (most women).

#jack facts #ted lasso #hc #i do vague sir but i do not vague at you sir #also yes i do know beard and bumbercatch's first names but i thought this was funnier

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celaenaeiln · 4 months

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I’m not sure if this is something you’ve talked about before so sorry if it is, but I’ve just been reading a bunch of your Bruce and Dick centric posts and was wondering,

They are mutually codependent and there is SO MUCH genuine love there is between them, but obviously their relationship leads to a lot of hurt on both sides (I feel that Dick gets the shorter end of the stick there but anyway) and one of if not the main point of contention in their dynamic is the fact that Dick wants freedom and autonomy in a way that Bruce fears because of his own insecurity about Dick and his trauma regarding having a lack of control.

Do you think there could ever be a situation that would make either of them (personally I’d say likely Dick because again, in their dynamic Bruce mainly acts however he sees fit in order to keep Dick with him rather than anything else) permanently cut off their relationship? Either totally or just in a personal sense while still working together professionally as heroes.

Then as a follow up, if their relationship was cut off, how do you think this would affect both characters (and possibly how it would affect Dick’s dynamic with the Titans, considering how a big issue with them is how devoted Dick is to Batman)?

I was gonna say I can't think of one but then I remembered the Batman Beyond Comics!

But even the Batman Beyond comics where Dick and Bruce are estranged, they aren't able to provide a reasonable explanation for why Dick abandoned him.

In one of the two fates, Dick gets shot by the Joker

Batman Beyond (2010) Issue #4

Which is not a great explanation because I know for a fact the cape is bulletproof because I've seen bullets bouncing off it. But also the purpose of Batman Beyond is that Bruce is alone and no longer Batman but the city still needs a Batman. Therefore Terry becomes Batman. If Dick stayed as Nightwing, then there really wouldn't be a need for Batman because Dick would just become Batman instead or pass it on to someone else. Bruce would still have his emotional support system and that can't happen. So the best writers could come up with to create an abandonment scenario is the bulletproof cape isn't bulletproof.

But even though Dick completely cuts off Dick, Bruce says in the continuing Batman comics in lieu of apology something along the lines of "you're still my heir, Dick." to which Dick just walks out and Bruce feels depressed. He could've taken Dick out of the will or cut him off too but until his death he kept waiting for Dick to come back even if he never admitted it. So yes, Dick is more likely to abandon Bruce under the extremely worst made up and not logically circumstances because even in the most nonsensical scenarios, it's impossible to write a comic where Bruce abandons Dick.

The second reason Dick leaves Batman is because Bruce slept with Barbara but worse tried to use that to prevent Dick from marrying her. Barbara explains the story to Terry.

Batman 2.0 Issue #28

Now this, this is the believable part. Not Barbara cheating on Dick with Bruce but what comes after -

Batman Beyond 2.0 Issue #28

It's Bruce using other people to get Dick to stay single. Bruce's attachment issues are out of this world.

He promised Barbara not to say anything and the second she left he ran to Dick to tell him everything first!

Even after Barbara cheated on Dick, which still isn't believable, it can be excused for a night of passion where she was aching and missing him. But what's Bruce's excuse? He missed Dick too but he has no love for Barbara and much more clear-minded. He slept with her knowing that Dick would eventually find out one day and he used that knowledge as a weapon to keep Dick from getting married. Bruce and Barbara both know they don't love each other and Bruce could care less that she's pregnant but the potential of manipulating Dick into staying single was evidently too good to pass up.

Literally why Bruce???

But putting aside how both of these circumstances technically shouldn't happen for the sheer reason that it doesn't make sense for them to, the only answer for when Dick would abandon Bruce or vice versa is never.

But let's say it did happen and something went so egregiously wrong that Dick left him. How does that affect relationships? One answer - everyone would unilaterally side with Dick. When Bruce fired Dick, Superman was ready to fight him (verbally). But if Bruce had done something so horrible as to get Dick to actually leave him forever, given how Dick sticks with Bruce through everything and is canonically stated as Bruce's confidant, then at that point Bruce has become irredeemable.

It's not a surprise at all that no one, absolutely no one, stays with Bruce in Batman Beyond. He's completely alone with no family or friends. Because if Dick refuses to stay with him, then who will?

But one thing always stays consistent no matter what happens between Dick and Bruce. Whether it's the past, present, or future because even if Dick abandons Bruce for reasons undefinable - Dick will always come back for the kids.

Batman Beyond (2012) Issue #23

Batman Beyond 2.0 Issue #2

So no, realistically there isn't a circumstance in which Dick would abandon Bruce. In fact during Batman/Nightwing: Bloodborne, Bruce gets infected with a killer virus so Dick takes a vaccine that's been completely untested - purely experimental - and undergoes a blood transfusion with Bruce to save him.

Batman/Nightwing: Bloodborne

"I've got nothing to lose."

Dick would give up everything for Bruce. Their blood transfusion gets interrupted halfway when villains try to kill them but Dick fights off like 50 people while having hallucinations, pain, and a high fever from the killer virus but he'll do anything if that's what it takes to save Bruce.

That kind of devotion doesn't die easily. They're both equally unhealthily overly attached to each other.

#dick grayson #nightwing #bruce wayne #batman #barbara gordon #batgirl #terry mcginnis #batman beyond #cl concerned k1wi asks #cl asks #thanks for the ask!

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mintyimperiatrix · 5 months

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so wild theory time but what if the Master is Omega's son

ok hear me out because that sounds insane but i think it kinda works? cause first off we know now thanks to the Timeless Children that the Doctor is the daughter of the Other(/Tecteun). the Other is a scientist and explorer and while their morality's differ to the extreme the Doctor does, on the surface level, adopt these traits from them.

we also know that the Doctor, in their first childhood, had a friend on Gallifrey. a friend with no name. a friend who... accidentally killed her during a fight. i know i'm not the first to say that the kid on the cliff is the Master but it's a good starting point

so then we get to Omega, someone who was friends with the other two Founders and yet easily the one who's life we know the least about, at least from before he was chucked into a black hole. he wasn't an explorer like Tecteun, he was an engineer. he wanted to build his own things, be famous for his achievements and use them to obtain godlike power but when his usefulness ended he was thrown aside by Rassilon. does any this sound familiar?

All of those traits are shared by the Master.

lets cut to the End of Time real quick. the Master builds a device to bring Gallifrey back into the universe, allowing the next 'ascension' to take place (before the Doctor broke the machine) but when his moment of glory was about to come Rassilon, like Omega before him, threw him aside. obviously this is all pretty circumstantial and doesn't actually prove anything but then there's this exchange earlier in the episode

"Two Children of Gallifrey" could just be a poetic way to refer to two random Time Lords. except we know it doesn't, because the Doctor isn't a random Time Lord and even if the average Time Lord doesn't know that the Matrix Does. so if the Doctor is the daughter of one of the Founders then she is (almost) literally a 'Child of Gallifrey'. take the same idea and apply it to the Master and logic dictates he would be the child of either Rassilon or Omega

i think the most interesting part happens after that though, when the Time Lord dude refers to them as 'the Enmity of Ages' (which would be an amazing name for a band just saying) and Rassilon immediately knows that this means the Doctor and the Master. the only time we've seen him meet either of those characters before is in passing during the Five Doctors. it's easy to infer that he'd know the Doctor from their role Time War but the Master? he didn't fight in the war, he mostly refused to work with the Time Lords during the War and then hid himself as Professor Yana when it got too much so why would Rassilon, who has only seen the Master once when he was tied up on the floor in the body of a Trakenite, know that the Master was the other half of the Enmity of Ages?

you Could say he learnt of the Master's reputation during the Time War but i frankly don't think he'd care about that? so to me at least it feels like the best explanation would be that he's met the Master before, way back when he was first President. and the reason he's so disgusted by the Master, the reason he finds it amusing that the Doctor's 'final act' is the murder of Gallifrey is because he knows who these two are. he is staring at the children of his fellow Founders, realistically these two are the only people in the universe he might consider a threat to his power or his status, and much like he did with their parents he tries to use both of them before casting them aside but just like before they both come out the other end alive

also saying the Enmity of Ages to me infers a greater conflict than just that of two normal Time Lords. from any single character it would be just a dramatic phrase but this is directly from the Matrix itself, which knows all of Time Lord history, so they are a Big Deal

but now we skip to everyone's favourite episode: The Timeless Children (genuinely one of my favourite finales it gets such a bad wrap). we learn the Doctor has unlimited regenerations, or at least had unlimited regenerations at some point because whether they still do or not is kinda up to interpretation. it was the Doctor's biology which allowed the Time Lords to unlock the power of regeneration, however the Other limited the number of regenerations to 12 lives when giving it to the rest of the population. i think Tecteun's presence in Flux implies that she never limited her own regenerations and you could probably say the same to Rassilon's, with that being his secret of immortality.

now in the episode the Master claims that Tecteun took the ultimate sacrifice by testing the raw ability on herself, but suppose she didn't. suppose she had another test subject first. suppose she promised one of her friends that his son, the best friend of her own child, could become the first Time Lord to receive the gift of infinite life. suppose then that Omega, wanting glory for himself and for his son, agreed to this and allowed Tecteun test her discovery on the boy, who was then granted an endless cycle of regenerations to match his friend's. from there Tecteun, now knowing the ability would work, put into herself, into Rassilon and into Omega before limiting it to a dozen lives per person and spreading it out among the population.

it's a lot of inference i'll admit but it would add a good few extra layers to these lines:

and this of course opens the door to the possibility that other character's we've met of cryptic origin with seemingly impossible knowledge but too dark a morality to be the Doctor could be the Master instead. characters like Lee Clayton or Gat (obviously not both at once) could be an early version of the Master. maybe Magus and Hazel from the Forgotten Lives books are also past versions of the Master. hell if you want to go wild maybe even the War Chief is the Master from before they had their memory wiped (but thats very unlikely)

also as i was finding the right screenshots and clips for this post i found these as well...

the way the Master refers to the Founders as 'our parents' (Tecteun and Omega being referred to as separate parents, as a Thoschei shipper i'm not touching the sibling theory with a forty foot pole) does make me wonder if he found out about his own past too but didn't tell the Doctor, not wanting to admit that he was the reason for the Doctor's first regeneration, the reason for Tecteun's torture and experimentation on her and the reason she could safely discover the ability for herself

so yeah who's to say that the Master isn't Omega's child who, like Tecteun's child, was captured by the Time Lords, regressed into a child, restricted to only 12 regenerations and robbed of all their memories. maybe he isn't any of that though. i mean maybe he is just a whiny crybaby who wants to be as important as his best friend. maybe he was the Timeless Child and the Doctor was the kid who pushed her. maybe he's actually Rassilon's child instead. who knows? not me!

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denimini · 7 months

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What is going on with Jimin, Jungkook and Jikook?

Warning: long post

I've been a BTS fan since early 2017. Back in the day, I ran this blog here, analyzing a lot of Jikook moments, but life sort of took over, and I stopped having the time for it. However, I never stopped being a fan and observing BTS and Jikook through the years. There's a lot said and written already about the supposed video of JK, but here are my two cents.

To me, the most logical explanation for that video is that this really is Jungkook. The layout of the apartment matches (yes, even the position of the security system, if you have ever watched JKs lives, you'd know that it actually is at his shoulder height, just like in the video), the dog looks like Bam, the couch is the same and this definitely looks like JK. There's also another video of the man in this apartment, alone, shirtless, and having a whole tattoo sleeve on his right arm just like JK. Obviously, we don't know for sure, but it looks like it's him. People say it was filmed in late Feb, early March, and I agree. JK had the same hair then, the outfits look warm, like winter clothes and not to forget, that when JK was stalked in his gym (late of February) there were a lot of fuss about a girl being there with him, so it all checks out in my book.

Now, what the video shows isn't that scandalous. A boy hugging a girl from behind and them playfighting/tickling each other or whatever. It isn't overly explicit. It could mean a lot of things, but it's clear the people are at the very least physically comfortable with each other. It's a short video. We don't know if they're even alone, but it looks like it. There are a number of possibilities for whom this person is to JK: a long-time girlfriend, a casual hook-up, a one night stand, or just a friend.

We'll probably never know for sure. What we do know is that this is an unacceptable invasion of privacy, and the person who took those videos should be sued for all they are worth. I hope we all agree on that, yes?

Now, if this girl is someone JK is dating/has dated/has slept with, where does that leave his and JM's relationship?

In my eyes, as someone who's observed them for literal years now, there's no way JM and JK have always had a strictly platonic relationship. Too much just doesn't add up. Sure, technically, they could be bestest friends with great chemistry, but as someone who is now 30 years old, I don't think I've seen this type of chemistry between people ever be just platonic. At times, it looked too much like sexual tension for it to easily be dubbed as "friendly".

My theory is this (keep in mind these are still just assumptions):

In 2017-2020, pre-Covid era, JM and JK spent A LOT of time together, basically all of it. BTS were super active, they didn't have any breaks. They were always working. Always on tour and doing smth else. JM and JK were pretty young back then (20-24) and this is typically the time when someone discovers their sexuality and starts experimenting, and I believe that at some point they did this together. They were best friends but also had this weird tension and air around them and I think they could've started a physical relationship back then. The members teasing them hear and there about being a couple, also kind of supports this, though of course, it doesn't prove anything.

Contrary to other people, I don't belive they only just fucked. It's very hard to have sex with someone who you are very close to otherwise, who you love and admire as a person, and not catch romantic feelings for them, so I think they did more than fucking. Whether they had a serious relationship or decided not to label it much, due to MS coming up, the group being in jeopardy or other reasons, I tend to think that other than sex, they also had feelings.

Side note: In any case, they were figuring thinks out about themselves as individuals, as well as a pair. I think maybe this is the time JM realized he is definitely bisexual (which he proudly expressed in his photobook of last year in my opinion). Idk what Jk figured out for himself, if anything.

Anyhow, by 2020‐2021 it seemed they had some sort of agreement about what/who they were to each other. At times they could have been on and off. There might have been other people/partners in-between, but I think they were mainly together by this point. It even looked like they lived together for some time. The fact they always took the same car and they were together on JKs birthday night when they first had number 1 on hot 100 sort of proves it. JM's birthday live in 2021 was also sus af (the way he was blushing while mentioning JK and their whole convos, very sus).

I think before Covid they had smth somewhat stable but then Covid hit. Their schedules changed, it was a tough period overall. Suddenly, they were not working and traveling so much, they were staying in SK. I think this was the time things started getting much more real and different. MS was also in the near horizon. Maybe one of them wanted a more committed relationship, and the other wasn't ready. Maybe they were both afraid. Maybe they tried and it didn't really work out. Maybe one finally realized his sexuality and the other had doubs. Whatever it was, the feelings of affection were still there. Chemistry as well. Proof: JM bday live in 2021 was just crazy, the way he blushed when JK was mentioned and the way the spoke to each other... man. Also, the way the were at PTD L.A. The way JK answered questions about JM etc.

So , all that connected them as people was still there, but I think their relationship come late 2021-early 2022 was definitely more unstable. Who knows what happened then. Personally, I don't believe in the theory that they opened their relationship, rather I believe by the second half of 2022, due to whatever reasons, things were simple mostly off between them. I believe they stayed this way all through the second half of the year and at least the first 4 months of 2023. They were friends, their families still loved and supported each other (JK's mom made seaweed soup for JM's bday, which one does for family) but that's about it. They weren't living together anymore, as well.

The beginning of 2023 we saw a very busy JM and a very not busy JK. Sure, they still commented on their welives but it seemed they didn't meet each other that often. Jm was working, JK was at home and occasionally with Tae. Yeah, JK watched a lot of JM content and often invited him over, but he also didn't know when his promotions will be over and it seemed they haven't seen each other for some time and JK was missing JM. I think if they truly were a serious couple back then, they would still have found the time to meet each other no matter how busy one or the other was, especially considering they live in the same city, and it wasnt the case. I don't think JK would have to resort to watching hours of JM's content just to satisfy his need-for-JM thirst, if they were a couple back then.

So, yeah, I think they were not more than friends by this point, for sure, which also ties up pretty well with the timing of the recent leaked video (February-March). To me it seems that JK and JM probably saw other people in that period, at least JK, JM was pretty damn busy then. Maybe they had some serious partners even, maybe just hook-ups here and there. Maybe this was JK's time to explore more of his heterosexual side, who knows. I don't think he stopped caring for JM in some capacity. In fact it kind of looked like he longed for his company but for one reason or another, they were simply not that much in each other's lives in the first quarter of 2023.

But then something weird happened around June-July. First JM is all scratched up from something (presumably Bam) indicating he saw JK and spent time with him. Then Seven came out and JM flew to NY. There they spend a long, fun weekend amid promotions. It wasn't a secret but they seemed to want to keep private and didn't really want to talk about it , judging by the way JK answered the question about JM being in NY as well. JM was practically silent. Then they returned and that welive happened. The one where they openly flirted, JM said he could handle JK naked, JK blushed like a school girl and tried everything in his power to get to JM but JM said "I'm not that easy". That welive. Idk about you, but that welive didn't seem platonic to me at all and if I had been JK's partner at the time, I would definitely be very angry with his behaviour. I don't think JK is disrespectful and a cheater, and neither is JM for that matter, so I believe there's no way any of them had a partner when that welive happened. I simply refuse to belive they are that type of people.

So, my conclusion is they were both single then and something definitely happend in July and NY. They returned somewhat different and they still kind of are. Jk posted pics of NY to Twitter for the first time. Jm shared a pic from then for JKs bday (shirtless, as we all know) and then recently another pic from a boat that could have been from back then, as well. The whole way they're acting offline and online strangely reminds me a lot of the time after their trip to Tokyo, actually. The way JM has been posting about JK very much give me nostalgia about the way he used to post Jikook often in 2017-2018 before he withdrew from social media. But maybe that's just me 🤷‍♀️

Anyway, to finish this long post I will say this. I don't know what Jikook were and are to each other and unless, it is explicitly denied the person in the video is JK, I will believe that it's him. But also, unless it is confirmed he currently has a girlfriend, I will have my doubts. The video is old and in any case, it doesn't prove much other than the fact JK is maybe into women (solely or also into them). This video though doesn't automatically negate everything I've seen between Jikook through the years. In some ways, it confirms what I've been thinking for a long time now. Unless JM and JK personally shut down any rumors about them and deny any romantic connection or confirm a relationship with someone else , I still believe that at some point in their lived their relationship crossed the platonic line.

Whether that was in the past or is currently true, I only can guess, but to me there's no way these two were always, all these years, just only friends.

For now, I will observe how JK, JM and Hybe are acting after the leaked videos and go from there. It will also be indicative.

Peace.

#jikook #jungkook #jimin #bts

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