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rafescoke · 3 years

Note

hi ! i'm obsessed with your work ! <333 can i request a rafe cameron x reader

the reader is always there for rafe when he's sick or in trouble but rafe doesn't really show any reaction or gratitude from the reader's affection - but when reader goes sick (or nosebleed) he immediately begins to worry/make sure reader is okay. basically fluff !

August ; Cupcake! Rafe Cameron

masterlist

Read Cupcake if you haven't before you start this fic!

Pairing: Rafe Cameron x reader

Summary: In which Rafe cares more for the girl he likes rather than himself.

Warnings: Extreme fluff! Mentions of alcohols and drugs, Rafe Cameron being a complete sweetheart

A/N: After a week full of nothing but angst I've decided to give y'all what y'all have been screaming for; fluff. Thank you for all the love over my stories, I love you more than anything else in the world <3

p.s, I'm so sorry @blank-velvet if this isn't what you had in mind :(

"Hello, beautiful."

(Y/N) rolls her eyes, giving him a side smile as she locks her front door. "You're late today."

Rafe pouts, pulling her into a hug as he breathes into her scent. She doesn't smell like cupcakes anymore, thank god, because he can't take another few hours of flashbacks of him whisking the batter.

Turns out, the children's home becomes a fortnight habit for the both of them. They would bring so many cupcakes for the kids and spend the new 2 hours chatting and playing games.

Rafe hates to admit this, having to show the soft side of his, but he likes it. Every single bit of it; children telling him he's the best person in the world and how they like his frosting over (Y/N)'s because his were more 'unique'.

"Are you thinking of another girl?" (Y/N) teases, poking him by his side. Rafe looks down to her height with a shocked expression and shakes his head.

"Never."

"Yuck," she replies, but she's smiling. She keeps her hands in his, loving the way his fingers are wrapped around hers. His metal rings knock against hers, and she can feel the slight tightening every time the light turns red.

She wishes she can assure him that she'll never leave his side, no matter what happens. She knows how hard his life is for him, dealing with his family and his addiction, and she swears to be in his life until he's okay.

"I don't want you to leave once I'm okay."

"I don't mean it that way, Rafe. I'm just saying that if you decide to find anyone else after this whole bullshit ends, I'll be fine."

Rafe shook his head, "I don't want anyone else, (Y/N)."

"Now you're thinking of a guy," Rafe rolls his eyes playfully, turning into a corner before stopping directly before a fancy restaurant (Y/N) can't roll her tongue to call it. He steps out, helping her to her feet, and proceeds to give his car keys to the butler.

"You don't have to pay 30 dollars for valet parking," (Y/N) rolls her eyes. "I'm perfectly fine with walking a long distance, you know."

"Not in that heels," Rafe answers, pointing to her pink mules. "You'll get your dress dirty too."

Rafe escorts her to their table by the beach with her arms in his, and the couple never looked so beautiful. Rafe's hair is left messy today, since (Y/N) likes it that way, and anything that (Y/N) likes, Rafe will try to obey.

"We can eat at Fraiser's and I'll be happy, Rafe. This is too much."

Fraiser's is Obx's famous burger shop located in The Cut, and sometimes even the kooks would come down to the other side of the island to enjoy the food.

(Y/N) stares at the beach, hearing its calming waves and turns to Rafe. He's still admiring the view, his lips pulled into a charming smile, and (Y/N) has the urge to kiss him.

"I want to," he says. "I'm glad we met."

The candle burns brightly by the side of their table as he gazes into her eyes, feeling himself getting lost in them. Her (E/C) eyes are mesmerizing, and it had struck him.

"Stop. You're getting all mushy mushy."

The dinner is perfect. To (Y/N)'s surprise, Rafe had requested her favorite song to be played by the band earlier. When the starting melody to August by Taylor Swift starts playing, she's basically gaping at Rafe.

"Shut up! You did not!" she hits him on his arms as he laughs.

"I thought you'd like it," he shrugs, stuffing his mouth with the garlic bread. "Do you like it?"

"Are you crazy? I love it, Rafe!"

Before Rafe can process his mind to what she just said, she pulls him into a hug from the other side of the table, and the other diners glance at the sudden sound of a chair scraping against the wooden floor and clanking of cutleries.

Rafe relaxes, "You're embarrassing us."

She pulls away, her face red, but Rafe holds her tightly.

"It's okay. I like it. Embarrass us even more, please."

(Y/N) feels like she's in heaven, soaring high above the clouds with Rafe by her side. Her life can't be more perfect; being in a close relationship with the boy he likes, doing so many things together she feels like they were married already.

Keyword: close relationship. He never proposes her to be his girlfriend, and she's too afraid to bring it up.

But whatever they're having now; she loves it. More than anything else in the world.

"Let's go to the beach."

"Okay," she giggles, gathering her clutch and her forgotten shoes somewhere under the table. She feels like leaving them, but the heels were one of the many presents from Rafe a few weeks ago, and she intends to keep them until the day she dies.

She stops, placing the clutch against his chest. "Have you paid?"

Rafe looks up to her, "Nah."

"Go pay."

"No."

"Rafe!" she widens her eyes, closing her mouth with her hands. "They'll catch us!"

"Not if we act like we've paid. Come on, they know me. They wouldn't suspect me of fleeing before paying."

She bites her lips nervously, but her heart is thumping wildly against her chest. Fleeing away from paying is never on her bucket list, but she always likes watching these kinds of scenes on the big screen.

"Okay. Fine."

"Okay, sweet. Come on."

He pulls her hands in his as he walks towards the exit. The waiter close to them bows, giving them his thank you, and when (Y/N) feels like they're safe, a loud voice from behind them shouts.

"Sir! Madam! Have you paid?"

(Y/N)'s grip around Rafe's hands tighten, but Rafe is a natural at lying. She wonders if he ever lied to her before.

"We have, a few minutes ago. This is a very bad moment for me and my wife, we are catching a flight back to Paris in an hour and you're wasting our time."

(Y/N) looks at him, gawking. His wife?

(Y/N) isn't sure if his lie would get them out of this situation, because his fake British accent does not sound anywhere near British and no English couple would spend their summer in a place like Obx.

The manager, (Y/N) assumes takes a step back, bowing down to them. When he looks up at them, he still has the curious glint in his eyes.

"Can I get your name?"

There's a long silence between them, and (Y/N)'s getting more and more nervous. "Coke." she blurts before she can stop herself.

"Coke?"

"That's her nickname, right, my love? It's not coke, my dear, it's Cookie," Rafe sighs and turns back to the manager. "I'm sorry. She had had a few drinks tonight."

"Sir," the same waiter that had muttered his thanks to them says, standing beside the stern manager. "They haven't paid."

"Run!" Rafe exclaims, running towards the exit with (Y/N) in his trail. There are shouts behind them, but they don't stop, running for dear life until the music from the band playing sounds a distance away.

Eventually, the gravel turns into sand, and they stop running. (Y/N) is the first one to laugh, throwing her head back and pulling him into a hug.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you, Rafe, that's the best thing that has ever happened in my life!" she exclaims, placing her arms around his neck. The adrenaline from before is still flowing at a fast pace, and she never felt more alive.

Rafe smiles, catching his breath. He let her in his arms, smoothing her locks and lifting her slightly from the ground.

"Let's go in the water!" she says excitedly, pulling him towards the waves.

The cold saltwater pools around their ankles as they stand in the water, intertwining their fingers. (Y/N) looks up at him, watching as he stares at the darkness ahead.

She looks in the direction he's gawking at and sees the silhouette of a huge boat somewhere in the distance.

"What's wrong?" she asks, tugging at his hands.

"Someday, (Y/N), I'll bring you around the world."

She smiles. Always the charmer, that one.

"Rafe!" She suddenly shouts, bending down and letting the water soak her dress. "Something bit me!"

Rafe snaps back to reality, holding her in place and trying to find the mysterious creature in the water. Can a piranha get this far?

"I don't see-"

(Y/N) cuts him off by splashing the water at him, and he steps back with a shock.

"You'll regret doing that."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"I'm not feeling anything."

"Get ready."

"For what?"

Rafe splashes her with a larger amount of water and uses the stalling time as she gasps and tries to get away from him by pulling her down into the water.

"This," he laughs, watching as she screams playfully. She's between his legs now as they sit peacefully, letting the water soak their expensive clothes.

"I'm sorry I'm ruining the dress you bought for me."

"It's okay. It's just Dior. Besides, I'll probably ruin it by-"

"Later," she cuts him off, placing her pointer on his lips to silence him. "Let's just watch the ocean."

And Rafe obliges.

A walk back to your home doesn't take long when you're in love. (Y/N) has Rafe's hands in hers, swaying them back and forth as they skip back to her apartment.

"I'm not going to be responsible for your car if it goes missing, Rafe."

He smiles, "It's okay. I have insurance."

She's on cloud nine; singing along to August and letting Rafe twirl her around under the night sky full of twinkling stars.

"I love this," she whispers, stopping midway. "Thank you, Rafe."

"For what?"

"Being the best."

He kisses her cheeks in response, "Always."

Just before they can continue their walk back to her apartment, a familiar blue mustang pulls up beside her, and Rafe pulls her to his other side in reflex.

He waits until the car window pulls down, revealing a half-drunk boy with his black hair messily slicked back.

(Y/N)'s breath hitches, and she pulls Rafe closer to her.

"What do you want?" Rafe sighs. "Can't you leave her alone?"

"Rafe," she whispers, pulling him in alarm. Out of all the time in the world, her ex-boyfriend decides to surprise them after a good night full of good memories.

Jack ignores Rafe and stares at (Y/N), smiling in a taunting way. "Hey, (Y/N), why are you all wet?"

"Rafe," she pulls him again.

"Come on, I'm just asking," he laughs. "I thought you liked getting wet."

"Fuck off," Rafe says, gritting his teeth. His chest heaves with every breath he takes, and he longs for the moment to connect his fist with his smug face.

"Aw, come on Rafe, you used to be so fun," Jack fakes pout, sighing. "Now you're all up in her ass. Does she feed you bone?"

Rafe steps forward, but (Y/N) quickly pulls him back.

"Does she beg you to go to the some children's shit too?"

Rafe stalks forward again before (Y/N) can help it, and launches Jack's car door open. He topples over from leaning over and not wearing the seatbelt, and Rafe uses the chance to throw him on the road.

"Wanna talk shit again, asshole?" Rafe yells, pushing him as he staggers backward. Jack clutches onto his chest, holding a hand up and moving backward.

(Y/N) cries, waiting for Rafe to come back. As Rafe turns away to go with her, Jack takes the free time to bring him down to the road again and throws a punch against his face.

"Jack! Let him go, please!"

Rafe groans, feeling his bones cracking, but he's too fueled by the snickering Jack had made toward (Y/N). He turns him over and continues his punches against the thrashing boy.

(Y/N) pulls Rafe's arms, not wanting him to get hurt, but the pull is so strong that when he finally lets go of Jack, she topples backward and falls straight on her bottom.

He gushes out beside her, "You're okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to push you!"

Jack scatters into his car again, muttering a curse word under his breath and saying something along the lines of 'I'll get back at you, Cameron' before speeding off into the night.

(Y/N) groans, rubbing her legs and turns to Rafe. She gasps, holding his face in her hands. "Oh my god! Your nose, Rafe!"

Rafe grunts, pushing her hands away. "I'm fine. It's just a nosebleed. You scraped your thighs!"

"Just the side of them," she mumbles, glancing at the ripped part of her used-to-be beautiful midnight blue dress. "Let me see your nose."

"No."

"Please."

He sighs and lets her examine his broken nose. His eyes are red, and (Y/N)'s sure there's some kind of a broken blood vessel in there, and there are bruises starting to form under his eyes.

To compare with her pain, Rafe is a hundred times worse.

"Jesus Christ, we have to get you to the hospital."

"No!" Rafe exclaims, pulling her hands away from his place. "No, please. I hate hospitals, you know I do. Let's just get home."

(Y/N) sighs, knowing there's no way she can win this fight against Rafe and helps him to his feet. She staggers backward, feeling the sudden pain coursing through her from the gash on her side.

"Oh god, you're losing so much blood."

"No, I'm not. I'm perfectly fine. It's just a scratch," she bites her lips.

"Let me carry you." he stops her.

"No! You're an idiot. If anything, I'm the one who's supposed to carry you," she rolls her eyes and turns to look at him again. "Rafe, you're crying blood. Let's get to the hospital."

"I'm not, I just drink too much red wine."

"It doesn't work that way. Please, Rafe? I'll be there with you the whole time."

Rafe sighs, and after a long time of thinking and weighing his options, he nods.

"If they start telling me to open my clothes, I'll head out. I will only remove my clothes from you tonight."

He can still joke around at a time like this?

(Y/N) bites her lips, "You will do exactly what the doctor says."

"You're my doctor," he shrugs. "Be my doctor?"

(Y/N) decides, with Rafe limping beside her, walking towards the hospital will be the stupidest idea ever. She orders an Uber, and before the driver can ask why they're booking to go to the hospital at 11p.m. on a Friday, he speeds away when he sees the sight of Rafe.

"It's not too late to just go home," Rafe mumbles against her neck. Her hair tickles his nose, but he likes it like that.

He feels safe. Protected.

"We're not sleeping in my apartment tonight."

"Can I still make love to you in the hospital?"

"We'll think about it."

(Y/N) pays the driver, muttering her thanks, and attends to a groaning Rafe again. One of his eyes is shut, and the other is fighting its best to stay awake.

The EMTs grab a wheelchair for Rafe as soon as she pulls him in through the automatic door, and when (Y/N) finally lets go of him, he shouts over the loud orders of the workers.

"She needs to stay with me or I'll die!"

One of the technicians looks at (Y/N), and she sighs. "I'm sorry. We got into a fight, and I think he's just not thinking straight right now."

She nods and asks (Y/N) to wait for him in the waiting room.

Half an hour later, with a coffee from the 24 hours cafeteria near the emergency room in her hands, the doctor finally calls for her attention. She stands up, her dress sticking to her bloody wound, and she winces from the pain.

"Why didn't you tell us!" the doctor sighs, pulling her into the same room he brought Rafe in. Rafe isn't in there, and (Y/N) can't help but search around.

"He's okay. He's sleeping. He's suffering from subconjunctival hemorrhage. It's nothing serious, really, but we decided to keep him under our watch for one day."

(Y/N) nods, slightly relieved, and let the doctor removes her skirt so he can take a better look at her wound.

He clicks his tongue, "What's your name?"

"(Y/N)."

"Okay, (Y/N), we called for your boyfriend's parents and they'll be here in an hour. Do you have any parents I can contact?"

"I'm okay. I'm not suffering from any hemorrhage."

The doctor sighs, "I know. But you just confessed to being in a fight, so I have to get the parents involved. It's protocol."

Fuck.

(Y/N) mumbles out her brother's phone number, and she hopes against hope he's out with his friends and getting drunk so that she wouldn't have to face her family.

"Okay. Do you want to see your boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend. But yes, I want to see Rafe."

(Y/N) holds out his hands as she sits beside his sleeping form. She smiles, grazing her fingers across his soft skin as he breathes peacefully.

"I'm awake now."

She pulls her hands away, gasping slightly at his tired voice.

"Come on, hold me again."

She rolls her eyes, but her fingers are around his again. "We look so corny."

"I know. Wanna know something cornier?"

"What?"

"Take that thing out of my pocket. No, not that, that's my dick, (Y/N), my pocket, yes, yes, take that box out."

(Y/N) holds out the small box in her hands, letting the white light from above illuminate the box. Her face is still red at the mention of accidentally touching his private part, but she's more intrigued by the box now.

"Open it," he says softly.

(Y/N) hesitates, and pops the box open. She gasps, having a small diamond glinting back at her.

"Do you like it?"

"You did not, Rafe, oh my god."

"Wear it. Wait, fuck, I messed it up. Wait, wait, let me just-" he sighs, trying to sit up, but (Y/N) stops him midway. "Would you like to be my girlfriend, (Y/N)?"

She looks up at him, her eyes teary now, because God, no one has ever done this to her.

"Would you?"

"Of course, asshole, even when you're asking me in the middle of your deathbed."

He smiles, "Okay. Now you can put the ring on."

She slides the ring on her ring finger, holding her hand up and admiring the way the ring compliments her hands.

She loves it. More than anything.

"Oh, and they called Ward and Rose. I'm sorry it's going to be your first time being my girlfriend and meeting them."

She laughs, leaning over him and placing a longing kiss on his lips. He kisses her back, feeling so much better now he can walk out of this hospital.

"You're like a princess. Nursing me back to health. None of these Harvard graduate doctors can compare to you."

"Urgh, shut up," she rolls her eyes. "Now you're pushing it."

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sinner-as-saint · 4 years

Text

Love Made Me Crazy - 4.

CEO/ Mob!Bucky Barnes x Reader.

Part 4 of the Love Made Me Crazy series.

Run-through: It was all strategic; a plan meticulously constructed by you and your business partner; against James Buchanan Barnes. Not to take him down, no. But just to be one step ahead of him in the business world by uncovering his secrets; to learn his ways and hope to be better than him in every way possible. The façade you put up – of being close to him and earning his trust was supposed to be short-lived, most importantly; harmless. But then as always, things got a tad bit more complex when feelings intervened…

Themes throughout the series: ceo!bucky, angst, smut, fluff, somewhat manipulative reader, mob!bucky

You woke the next morning feeling all warm and cozy.

Wrapped in soft blankets, head on a fluffy pillows and snuggled up in Bucky’s warm embrace. However the moment you realized that you were in fact tangled in bed with him; you carefully scooted away. Making sure not to wake him up.

Your body immediately missed his warmth, and you laid on your side and you looked at him. He always looked so peaceful and innocent while he slept. His lips were always in a slight pout. Back then, his long hair used to sprawl all over the pillows but now, his shorter hair was just messy.

You looked at him and had trouble believing that he was the same mob boss half the city was terrified of. To you he just seemed like the Bucky you knew a while ago. Sure he had changed but, you were certain that the Bucky you once knew was still in there somewhere; hiding behind the dangerous, cocky and shameless mob boss.

You sighed quietly as you looked at him. Mornings with him used to be so fun…

-flashback-

You’d often wake up to Bucky being up to no good. And this morning was the same; you woke up to his face in between your hips.

You giggled, still half asleep and your hands almost instinctively found their way into his long hair and you gently tugged on it as he ate you out.

He placed his hands on your thighs and spread your legs further apart and attached his lips to your core without a second thought; the lower half of his face completely submerged into your dripping core. He moaned as he tasted you, shamelessly.

His tongue slipped past your folds and teased your entrance; occasionally flicking your sensitive bud mercilessly. You whimpered under his touch, feeling his beard rubbing against your soft skin; it burned a little, but you enjoyed each and every second of it and craved for more.

Wet sounds erupted from where his mouth latched on to your core, and the sight was just as sinful.

A man of his caliber, head in between your legs and his mouth touching your body in the most intimate way possible. Pleasure and an unusual power washed over you as he teased you with his tongue.

Your arousal drenching the lower half of his face as he ate you out relentlessly until you were nothing but a moaning, hot mess, squirming on the bed.

“Come on, baby, come for me,” he whispered and got back to assault your sensitive spot with his warm and wet tongue; relishing your taste.

You didn’t have to be told twice, and the pressure was building up nicely as well. So with a few more strokes of his skilled tongue, you let go and gushed out all over his face.

He didn’t stop even then, he kept at it while your orgasm washed over you; lapping up whatever you gave him. He couldn’t get enough of you. He licked you clean and kissed your thighs a few more times before finally standing up, admiring how much of a mess you were; panting, and trembling just with his tongue.

And most of the times, you’d return the favor.

Taking him into your mouth; pushing him in further inch by inch while he groaned about how good your mouth felt. You slowly took him out and pushed him back into your mouth again, bobbing your head around his tip.

He gripped your hair gently and told you how much of a good girl you were. His taste and scent was all you could focus on; the occasional saltiness of his cum and the feeling of his smooth skin against your tongue and the top of your mouth. You felt the veins, and his firm cock ramming in and out of your mouth.

He bucked his hips forward very gently into your mouth, and loved the sight of your spit coating his cock. You felt his muscles tightened under your touch, and you knew he wouldn’t last much longer. So you quickened your pace, and he moaned your name over and over again as he reached his high.

With one rough push into your mouth, you felt him come undone. His cum trickled down your throat and you swallowed him obediently. Your lips were swollen, and spit ran down your chin along with his cum. You were panting; an overall mess. Yet, he believed you were beautiful.

-end of flashback-

A voice dragged you back to reality, and broke your reverie.

Bucky’s.

“Now who’s being creepy and staring at me while I sleep, huh?” he asked, peeling his eyes open and looking right at you, with a slight smirk.

You felt a pleasant chill run down your spine at the sound of his voice. You always did have a thing for his morning voice.

“You’re annoying.” You simply said.

He chuckled quietly.

“Oh very. Is that why you snuggled up to me all night long? Whimpering in your sleep each time I turned my back to you, huh? Right, it’s probably because I’m so annoying.” He said, a smug smile on his face. “Don’t lie, you feel safe with me.”

You scoffed.

“Whatever, it was probably just cold.” Your argument was in vain, because even you knew that you might’ve sought his warmth even in your sleep out of an old habit. One you thought you had gotten rid of, but clearly not.

Bucky laughed, letting you win this one. “Okay. I’m going downstairs, what do you want for breakfast?” he casually asked, lifting the covers and getting out of bed.

Did he just ask you that?

“Is that how you treat all your hostages? You make them breakfast?” you asked, sass dripping from your words.

He slipped his sweater on and looked at you with a smirk. “No. But you’re not a hostage, you’re my wife. Plus, I’m trying to earn husband points here.” And there it was again, the reminder that you were his wife. “What do you want for breakfast, babe?” he asked, fake sweetness in his tone.

You rolled your eyes at him and got out of bed and walked towards the bathroom.

“I don’t want anything.” You mumbled, loud enough so he heard.

He sighed loudly. “Alright, pancakes it is then.” He said as he walked out of the room, while you disappeared into the bathroom.

So he still remembered?

You sighed in frustration while you washed your face. Was he being nice just because? Or did he have some other messed up tricks up his sleeves?

He spent all this time, plotting and tracking you down; taking everything from you. Changing your name and in some ways, forcing you to marry him, all for what? Just to treat you nicely?

You walked downstairs with those questions on your mind. This didn’t make sense. Why was he being… nice? Why not make your life a living hell? Why not hurt you back, like you hurt him?

The smell of breakfast got you to stop overthinking momentarily. And you gravitated towards the kitchen, following the sweet scent. And there he was.

Your husband; making you breakfast.

“Plain buttermilk pancakes and syrup, just like how you like it.” He winked at you and placed a plate in front of you. And you quietly sat on one of the stools and kept your mouth shut.

You wouldn’t lie, he was a good cook. And the pancakes looked amazing. So you decided to shut up and not argue for once and just eat.

He took a seat across you at the kitchen island, and both of you ate in silence. If this scene happened a while back, the two of you would be so cheesy that it would hurt.

But here you were now, in complete silence. But surprisingly, it wasn’t uncomfortable. You did steal some glances at him, when he wasn’t looking. And he did the same, when you weren’t looking.

Things went on like this for a while. Since you were always either in the house or in the yard, you stopped keeping track of time.

You and Bucky were always either arguing or giving each other the silent treatment. You still slept in the same bed, and he never tried anything.

And no matter how hard to tried, you would always wake up in his arms in the morning.

“I need to borrow a car.” You said one morning, setting down your fork and picking up your big coffee cup. Surprisingly, he still remembered how you liked your coffee.

He looked up at you with a raised eyebrow. “What for?” he sounded almost defensive.

You rolled your eyes at him.

“I’m not gonna run away, chill. I just to buy some things from the store.” you explained, really not in the mood to argue right after you’ve had your favorite breakfast.

You could see he wasn’t so tense anymore.

“Absolutely not. Make a list. I’ll have someone get whatever you need.” he answered, knowing damn well how much you hated it when you were told ‘no’.

You clenched your jaw and faced his smirking face with annoyance. “I can’t even go to the store? What are you gonna do, keep me imprisoned inside for the rest of my life?” you kept your calm.

He stood up, picking up your plate and his and placing it into the sink. “If I have to.” He answered and just like that, he was back to his cold, insensitive self.

“Your mood swings are giving me a headache.” You said as you walked out of the kitchen and walked upstairs.

You made the list and went to find Bucky. He was in his study, and you felt a weird, sudden anger so instead of saying anything, you just slammed the list down on his wooden desk and turned around to walk away.

“Jesus, what’s with the attitude?” he asked, monotonously – unfazed by your behavior yet questioning it just to rile you up.

“Shut up.” You simply said and walked out of the study. And you could hear him chuckle right before you slammed the door shut behind you.

You didn’t feel good for the next couple of hours; and you knew just why. It was that time of the month and being stuck inside with someone who was making you go crazy for almost 2 weeks now, wasn’t helping at all.

Bucky found you curled up in bed when he came to give you all the stuff you asked for; tampons, pads, pain killers, hot water bottle and a crap ton of junk food and candies.

He was well aware of all the pain and misery you had to endure every month, so now he was actually concerned.

“You okay, baby?” he asked, walking into the room and cautiously walking towards the bed; vigilant because it wouldn’t surprise him if you started throwing things at him.

“Go away.” Came the sound of your voice from under the blankets. You sounded like you were in pain. And now he felt really bad for messing with you all morning.

“I got your hot water bottle, you want it?” he asked, and he got no reply back so he took the risk and set all the things down, took the hot water bottle and lifted the covers and sat on the edge of the bed and placed the bottle against your back.

You didn’t open your eyes, or said anything to him as he helped you out as much as he could. You were in pain, and you didn’t have the energy to fight so you just laid there and let him do whatever he was doing.

“You want some pain killers?” he asked, sat against the headboard, his hand gently rubbing up and down your back.

You wanted to tell him to fuck off by his touch was soothing. Bucky used to take care of you back then, each month; he just knew what to do. He knew you liked back rubs, and liked it when someone held you to help you through your cramps. But now, he was hesitant to cuddle you.

Meanwhile, his behavior was giving you a whiplash. One moment he was the cold mob boss, the next he was a teasing, cocky little shit, and the next he was back to being the caring Bucky you knew. And you couldn’t handle it.

The confusion was always here, the guilt was too. The reason behind his actions was unclear and you couldn’t read him anymore – which pissed you off more than anything.

“Baby, do you want me t-,”

“Enough!” you snapped as you cut him off.

You rushed out from under the covers and stood up by the bed, hands on your hips. And your face told him you were pissed off.

“Stop! Just stop whatever sick game you’re playing with me! I’m sorry, okay? I am so sorry for what I did back then, but I need you to stop right now. You made your point, okay? You win! Just stop fucking with my head!” you sounded much more tired and broken than mad.

Bucky sighed. “You’re in pain. Just come back to bed before you faint, I-,”

You cut him off again.

“No, I just need you to tell me what you want. You threatened to hurt my mom if I don’t marry you. It’s been weeks since I’ve heard from Tony because God knows what you did to him. You keep me imprisoned in your home like I’m some hostage but then you act nice to me. What the hell is wrong with you? Make up your mind!” you raised your voice a little and he just looked down at his lap.

He sighed.

“Are you done? Now get back here, b-,”

You pick up the nearest pillow and throw it right at him. It hits him right in the face and then falls down on his lap.

Bucky keeps a straight face and takes a deep breath, then looks right at you. He sees the same confusion and the same hurt on your face which he felt when you abruptly left him some months back.

“You’re insane!” you spat at him, bitterly.

He chuckled.

“Yes, you made me.” He answered, taunting you like it was all your fault.

Although it partially was.

“You are confusing. You’re making me lose my mind, okay? You’re making me go crazy, so just stop! What didn’t you just end it all back when you finally found me? Why didn’t you just shoot me or something and be done with it, huh?” you realized you were the hyper one while he was calm and composed.

He finally answered after quite some time.

“I wanted to at first.” His answer was vague, and it only fueled to whatever mixed emotion you were feeling inside.

“Then why didn’t you? I thought the mob boss was ruthless and cold, then why didn’t you?” your tone was less hyper, but more bitter now.

He scoffed and looked down at his lap before looking up at you again.

“Because unlike you, I didn’t lie when I said I love you.”

---

Tag List for this series (OPEN):

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amlovelies · 3 years

Text

Addie

Part 1 of 3: Hunger

pairing: vexx serif/f!traveler (Adonia) ratings/warning: mature-some light spice. angst words: 2.2 k a/n: parts 2 and 3 are written I’m just editing them. this is very self indulgent and my first time writing for a6 so please be gentle 💜

this is a prequel fic set right after the flashback scene in chapter 3. spoilers for chapter 5

read on ao3

Adonia’s heart is pounding as they round the corner and slide into yet another of the hidden passageways which traverse the palace walls and grounds. She isn’t sure if the guards figured out the entrance behind the tapestry or not, but they wouldn’t be so lucky twice.

She slumps against the cold stone wall of the passageway. A laugh threatens to bubble up and burst out of her chest. She can’t remember a time when she’s felt so alive. The whole night feels like a dream, a wonderful dream, and she never would have experienced it if it wasn’t for Vexx.

She never would have been brave enough, or reckless enough to attend if it wasn’t for him. She’d gotten so used to just creeping through the empty halls and watching others’ lives unfold from the shadows.

Her heart swells as she looks at him. He’s hard to see in the dim light, especially with his ear pressed up against the false wall listening for any sound of pursuit. Not that she needs to see him to picture his face. His green eyes shining with mischief behind his simple black domino mask and his hair in messy tangles after an evening of dancing and leading his fellow guards on a merry chase.

“It looks like we lost them,” he says as he turns to face her. He dips into a deep bow before rising and offering her his arm, “shall we promenade your highness?”

“But of course, my dear sir,” she says with an extravagant curtsy as if they are still in the center of the great hall before a gaggle of assorted nobles rather than in a cramped cobwebbed passage with only the spiders to observe them.

Adonia slips her arm into his with a giggle and he takes the opportunity to pull her closer and place a brief kiss on her cheek. It’s enough to make her heart skip a beat. It’s almost too easy for him to effect it.

They set a slow and leisurely pace along the passageway. Neither of them seems to be in any hurry to reach the other side. Their steps are soft, but still echo in the confined spaces. They don’t speak. There’s no need, and besides they’d rather not alert any one to their presence in the walls.

When they reach the end, Adonia hesitates before stepping into the moonlit gardens. Even the familiar paths feel more magical tonight, the white blossoms glowing as if lit from within. The air is sweet with their fragrance and she can still hear the music from the party. It is faint, but she can still pick up the melody. She lingers at the edges unwilling to step onto the manicured path. It’s one step closer to this night ending, and if she could, she would stretch this moment out forever.

Vexx tugs on her hand, “don’t expect me to carry you. I told you not to wear those shoes, besides it’s not much further.” He gestures with a toss of his head to where her rooms lay just across the way.

“It’s not that,” she says with a roll of her eyes. “Thank you for tonight, Vexx. I don’t know if I ever had so much fun.”

“Not even watching those street performers last month?”

“Not even then,” she answers with a smile.

They’d stayed out later than usual that night. Both unwilling to return to the confines of the palace and their assigned roles. It was so much easier to be Addie than to be the Princess Adonia Selene Peg’asi. The performers had been fascinating and delightful, but what Adonia remembers more is the way that Vexx kissed her when they finally maneuver through the patrolling guards and found themselves in the familiar darkness of the passageway.

He’d never kissed her like that before, always so careful. Hands on her waist or cupping her face. His kisses soft and tender, never pushing, but that night he had pressed himself against her, his hand tangling in her hair and pressing her back against the wall of the tunnel. She remembers in perfect clarity the shock of his hand delving under her shirt and running over the bare skin of her back.

It’s not that Adonia is oblivious about sex. When you spend a good part of your free time creeping through abandoned halls you come across some pretty interesting scenes. She remembers a few years ago when she happened across a pair of guards tucked into a corner. She had fled from their soft moans and whimpers a profound feeling of embarrassment overwhelming her normally curious nature.

She hadn’t been able to run from the way that kiss had made her feel. In the month since there had been a hunger to their kisses that hadn’t been there before.

“It doesn’t have to end so soon,” Vexx says and Adonia’s skin heats at the way his eyes trace over her body, linger on the curve of her breast, and finally fixate on her lips. “We can still hear the music, how about one more dance?”

This dance feels different from the ones they’d shared in the ballroom. There it was all fun and laughter, but this feels heavy and wanting. When his hand drifts lower on her back it feels like a question, one she isn’t sure she knows the answer to, but she wants to find out.

He hums as they spin in the garden pulling her much closer than propriety would allow in the crowded ballroom, even for an anonymous masked couple.

“I didn’t know you were musical, Vexx,” she teases. “What other secrets are you keeping from me?”

His steps falter and she almost loses her balance from the jarring movement, “there was a rock,” he mumbles by way of explanation. They find their rhythm again quickly this time without any humming from Vexx.

Even this attempt at elongating the night comes to an end and they stand in front of her bedchamber door.

“Good night, Addie.” He drops a brief kiss to the edge of her lips and begins to walk away back toward the barracks.

“Wait,” she says the word a little too loud for the quiet hallway.

“I could use some help,” her voice shakes but she swallows down the nerves that threaten to overwhelm her. “With the dress, I mean.” She turns to show the long line of buttons lining the back.

She’s thought about it for weeks. Lain awake and imagined his lips and the feel of his bares skin under her hands. They have already thrown caution to the wind tonight, so why not this?

Her face burns as she waits for his response. His hand reaches out and his finger runs down the line of her spine along the neat row of buttons sending a shiver through her body.

She can’t read the expression on his face, and she can’t bear to wait for his response. She leaves the door open behind her as she enters her room and crosses to turn on the small lamp beside her bed.

She hears the door click shut behind her and her breath stops until she hears his footsteps approaching her. Her heart is beating so loud, he can probably hear it. She doesn’t know what to do with her hands or her arms or any part of her, so she just stands at the edge of her bed waiting.

He doesn’t touch the buttons, but instead reaches up to untie the mask covering the top half of her face. Her hands shake as she removes it, but she’s at least happy to have something to do with them.

His hands sweep her hair out of the way before placing a soft kiss to the side of her neck. A small whispered gasp of surprise escapes her lips and she feels more than hears the soft chuckle that escapes him.

His nimble fingers make quick work of the buttons as his lips ghost over her neck. She can feel each kiss like a brand on her skin.

He reaches the end of the buttons. She swears that, even though they aren’t touching, she can feel the heat of his body on the exposed skin of her back. She thought she would feel more afraid right now, and she does, but more than anything she feels an excitement coursing through her veins.

She turns to face him and lets the dress drop. It flares out around her as it falls like the petals of a gigantic flower.

“You’re so very beautiful, Addie.” The words hold none of Vexx’s usual snark. His eyes trace over her face his hand skimming down the column of her throat and dancing lightly along the edge of her breasts.

Perhaps she should feel bashful, feel nervous and exposed under his gaze, but all Adonia feels is breathless. She could spend forever under his gaze; she hopes she will.

He still has his mask on. She reaches out and gently removes it from his face. His green eyes are darkened by desire. Desire for her. It’s a heady and new feeling and causes warmth to pool in the pit of her stomach.

“I am yours. You have to know that,” she says answering his question from earlier in the night.

She’d been his since that day he took her hand and led her out into the city streets. She’d been his since he called her Addie and looked at her like a real person.

The kiss starts gentle. Vexx is tentative, but she is done with being tentative. Adonia wraps her arms around his neck and parts her lips with a sigh, inventing him to deepen the kiss, inviting him to take her breath away. With a groan he pulls her body flush against him. One palm is firm on her lower back keeping her pressed against him while the other hand roams over the bare skin of her waist.

She feels dizzy like she forgot to spot. She is already spinning; it’s too late now. Perhaps she should be afraid, but with his arms firm around her Adonia feels safe. He will not let her fall. Her Vexx would never let anything happen to her.

He walks them backward until she feels the edge of her bed pressing against the edge of her legs.

“Are you sure?” he asks as he breaks the kiss his eyes searching hers.

“yes. I’m sure,” she responds. And she is. She wants this; she wants him. She wants to feel his body against hers and lose herself in his arms.

His next kiss is hungry. Hungrier than any of the stolen kisses they have ever shared. He pushes her back onto the mattress and then he is hovering over her, his hands skimming along her waist gripping her thigh, pulling them closer together. His lips leave hers to kiss down her neck. Trailing over the thin gill scars. Her hands knot in his red hair.

It’s as if he is everywhere. She feels consumed by him; His name leaves her lips in a soft moan. Her heart is swelling, overflowing, overcome with love. She loves him.

“I lo-“ she begins as their eyes meet, but something she sees there makes her pause. Where only a moment ago there was nothing but desire in his eyes something else clouds his expression. He leans forward to press his forehead against hers.

“Addie,” he whispers before kissing her. This kiss is soft, a gentle press of their lips against each other. The heat that was there only a moment ago is gone, replaced by something stiff and distant.

“Adonia,” he says as he pushes himself off the bed and into a standing position. A chill runs through her as the cool night air fills the space he had just occupied.

“It’s late, you should get some rest Princess,” his voice isn’t cold per say, but formal. The way he would address her in a room filled with other people.

Adonia’s heart plummets and she feels a sinking pit of dread in her stomach. Had she pushed too far? Was this not something he wanted to?

“Is something wrong?” she hates how pitiful her voice sounds. “Is this not what you want?”

“No, it’s not that!” he answers stepping towards her as if he wishes to reassure, but pulling back before he touches her. “It’s been a long night. I don’t want it to be one you regret, Princess.”

There it is that Princess again. He hasn’t called her princess in private for months. He rarely even calls her Adonia anymore. She’s always Addie with him. She’s only Addie with him.

Words die on her lips as she takes in the firm set of his shoulders and the grim line of his lips. Lips which only minutes ago had been blazing a path over her skin. It doesn’t matter that she’s thought about this a hundred times. He’s made up his mind, and to admit that now would only leave her more embarrassed than she already is.

He spares her any need to respond. She can feel the tears rising up in her eyes and she tries to blink them away. What had gone wrong?

“Goodnight,” he says before slipping out her door.

tagging: @alavidzes @pearlsandsteel and @roses-and-roo

#andromeda six #a6 vexx #vexx serif #oc: traveler adonia #lovelieswrites #a6 #nsft

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buckyswinterbaby · 3 years

Text

Always By My Side — Chapter 1

Click here to read the Prologue.

Synopsis: The fates have spent millenniums correcting the daily mishaps that interfere with soulmates ever meeting. Will they find a way to bring together Bucky and Zara, two people separated by time and circumstance, just as they’ve done a thousand times before?

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Black!OFC Ziarah Heartwell

Warnings (will change with each chapter): flashbacks, PTSD, mentions of past sexual assault, angst, bits of fluff

Word Count: 3,791

Acknowledgement: I’ve created this AU alongside my best friend Taylor in roleplays, along with many of the plots and scenes that will be featured. I’m posting this with his expressed permission as we both continue to work on the story in our chat. Credit for its creation goes to both of us.

Please like, comment, and reblog (I love that shit). The divider was created by me, please credit me if you use it. The gifs are not mine. Click here to fill out the form to be added to my tag list!

Note: Here’s chapter one of my new series “Always By My Side”. It takes place in a soulmate AU where a bond is triggered when one or both halves experience a life threatening level of distress. The bond allows them to see imaginary versions of their soulmates to help support them while they wait to meet their other half. Just a warning, up until we reach the current time in the story, there will be significant time skips for plot progression’s sake. The time changes will always be labeled.

Addition: I said I’d tag you when I posted my WOC OFC story so here’s chapter one, @bucky-the-thigh-slayer !

[Bucharest, Romania -- 2016]

The Romanian streets were bustling with early morning energy as Bucky took the final steps outside of the clearly worn apartment complex that he had been calling home for sometime. He seemed unfazed by the sixteen year old girl practically jogging to keep up in step with his longer strides. He had grown rather accustomed to her presence and her commentary since she first appeared to him in 2014. It had been during his final brainwashing session with Hydra before they fell. He couldn’t help but view her as a banshee of sorts, harkening the end of what remained of his mental stability. He couldn’t fathom another reason as to why he would hallucinate an opinionated teenage girl.

Even so, he found comfort in their conversations and how at ease she seemed around him. Almost as if she had always been with him, a piece of himself that still saw the good that was left. Never addressing him with fear or apprehension, never as the monster and killer he was forced to become.

Her features were young and innocent, seemingly unscarred by life despite the bruises that graced her skin--which he was never sure why they existed. At first, he feared that she had been one of his countless victims who had returned to haunt him in her afterlife, though the theory became less likely to him as more time passed.

The defined coils of her hair were pushed up into a messy bun, edges laid smoothly to her forehead in defined loops. When she first started showing up, Bucky had attempted to make sense of the witty phrases and references that so frequently adorned her clothes but he had long since given up on ever understanding them. He had to admit that the shirt she wore that day, a middle finger painted with pink, yellow, and blue, was quite the fashion choice. Not that he could particularly judge with his similar pieces of clothing that were practically identical besides in color.

The pair made their way down the familiar stretch of pavement on their way to the outdoor market that Bucky had made a habit of visiting. He had found that a reliable schedule throughout his week helped him better grasp the passing of time, a fact that his companion had been informing him of for weeks before it finally seemed to click.

The girl’s nose clinked as they neared the fresh fish stand, just as it did every week. Bucky couldn’t help but chuckle at her childish antics as they were so few and far between for someone who seemed quite mature despite her appearance.

“It smells like cat food,” she whined, making a clear act of breathing primarily through her mouth as she jogged to keep up. “How are you not gagging?”

“Not all of us have the luxury of being a figment of someone’s imagination, Zara. If I start gagging, I have a feeling a few people will start to notice.” The man gave her a knowing look. Drawing attention to himself was the exact opposite of what he wanted during his brief outings. “Besides, I can’t say I’ve smelt cat food or have any intention to. So I’ll just have to take your word for it.”

Zara rolled her eyes as the smell began to dissipate the further they moved past the stand, her trademark smile working its way onto her features. “Could’ve had me fooled, I thought that was your guilty pleasure. I can’t say I’ve ever intentionally gotten a whiff, but when I feed the outdoor cats at my house, it’s kinda unavoidable.” She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly as if it was the most natural thing in the world for an imaginary person to have their own home and animals.

Bucky’s eyebrows furrowed as he narrowed his eyes down to her smaller form beside him. “You don’t have a cat because you aren’t even real,” he retorted. Somehow the idea that she could be real made her presence in his life even harder. The idea that she was just some girl he had passed by in the street or on a mission and his brain decided she’d make the ideal emotional support apparition.

“Who are you to declare that?”

“The creepy hundred year old man who hallucinates a sixteen year old girl, occasionally in her pajamas, for one.” His voice raised a bit louder than he intended, drawing the attention of a few nearby pedestrians. Bucky offered them an awkward smile before ducking back down under the bill of his hat and picking up his pace a bit. She couldn’t argue with his logic so she focused on keeping up until they reached their destination, the produce stand that had the best plums in the city, or so Bucky described.

Zara watched as he spoke Romanian with the merchant, only catching a few words she had learnt over the past few months from their conversations. She couldn’t help but smile at how effortlessly Bucky seemed to interact with the man and how it contrasted so starkly to how he acted when he first arrived in the city. Decades of next to no positive human interaction left the soldier awkward and clunky in his exchanges, often stumbling through questions and requests, or simply forgetting them altogether. It had taken a great deal of patience and metaphorical hand holding to build up his confidence and ease his anxiety on the matter.

It wasn’t that he didn’t know how to blend in, in fact he was almost too good at it at times. Over their conversations, she had managed to show him that yes, blending in made him go through the motions of life, which was better than nothing. Yet, the beauty of his life now and the freedom that came with it was that he no longer had to settle for simply surviving and he could instead use it as a chance to learn to live again. It started small, like convincing him to get a pillow and blanket for the mattress on the floor, to which they compromised with a sleeping bag. Soon came two pillows for the couch and a lone floor lamp that he shoved in the corner near his bed for the late nights when night terrors had him scribbling away in his journals. They were minor improvements, in truth, but the progress spoke volumes as Bucky worked on building a place that felt a bit more permanent than his last few hideouts.

Zara had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn’t even registered that Bucky completed his purchase and had moved to stand at the edge of the sidewalk. She approached him curiously, watching the way he hesitantly analyzed the seemingly anxious newspaper peddler from across the street. It was very clear something was wrong from the way his demeanor had changed.

“Buchanan?” Her voice raised a bit at the end of his name, concern now replacing her curiosity as he began to make his way to the stand. He either didn’t hear her--which she found unlikely--or he simply opted to ignore her as he picked up the paper, ocean blue eyes scanning over the headline. The color seemed to drain from both of their faces as they took the accusation in, not having to speak to know what it meant.

Bucky would have to pick up his life, yet again, and run. Find a new country, new home, and start the process all over again. The ex-assassin hardly seemed surprised at the realization, as there is no rest for the wicked.

[Boston, Massachusetts -- 2016]

Zara made her way down the hallway to her bedroom, an imaginary version of Bucky trailing along behind her. She let her book bag drop to the floor once she entered the room, stepping out of her shoes before flopping down onto the soft, sunflower themed duvet of her bed. A look of weightlessness overtook her features as she let the events of the day settle in. Today she would graduate with a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from MIT, top of her class. It was the culmination of years of pouring herself over every textbook her parent’s provided, testing out and early graduations. At only sixteen, Zara would join the ranks of some of the youngest individuals to ever receive a doctoral degree. It truly seemed unreal to her.

Emerald eyes drifted to where Bucky sat at her desk, his arms crossed loosely in front of his chest.

“I wish you could be there tomorrow,” Zara commented, propping herself up on her elbows as her fingers pulled at the frayed threads on the yellow quilt folded at the end of her bed.

A smile teased the corner of Bucky’s lips as he leaned back against her swivel chair, long hair swaying as he tilted his head to the left to look at her. “I will be there, maybe not in person, but I’ll be there cheering right along with everyone else,’ he assured.

“It’s not the same and you know it, Buchanan.”

“I know. Just try to focus on the positives. Tomorrow is your day, you’ve more than earned it.”

Zara nodded, though her disappointment was still evident. On the average day, Bucky’s seemingly invisible presence to everyone else but her came in handy. As she was willing to bet her parents wouldn’t be too keen on the amount of time she spent alone with the grown man, let alone if they knew who he was. The public’s perception of James Buchanan Barnes, who she had quickly identified him as, was low to say the very least. Though it was days like this that she found herself wishing the most that he could truly exist in her life outside of her mind.

She could never quite pinpoint why she began hallucinating him two years prior. Though, the time before and after her fourteenth birthday had flown by in a post traumatic daze so it was even more difficult to analyze. The aftermath of four older boys assaulting her in her own bedroom left her wishing to repress that portion of her life altogether. Zara squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the ghost of their hands on her body. Grabbing, groping, pulling and tearing at clothes. She had hardly seen them since their attack but her mind was still trapped in the room with them.The feeling took her back to meeting Bucky that night, or more so the Winter Soldier, as he appeared at that time.

Upon entering her room, Zara failed to notice the masked man sitting silently in the corner of the room, illuminated only by the small lamp on her bedside stand. When she caught a glimpse of the figure, her body jumped to it’s fight response, just as it had an hour or so before. The young girl grabbed the closest thing she could find, a textbook on advanced chemistry, and held onto it tightly before turning to face the intruder.

“You need to leave,” she ordered, her voice wavering at the end of the demand. Her green eyes only met a pair of dark glasses securely strapped to his face. She couldn’t make out any facial features to identify him by, as all but his forehead and hair was covered.

It wasn’t just his silence that sent an unnerved shiver down her spine. It was his demeanor, cold and nearly unresponsive to her presence and defensive stance. Had his head not briefly turned her way when she started to speak, she’d question if he even heard her at all.

A large gun, likely a rifle from what she could tell, was resting across his lap. His hands weren’t actively gripping it, but something told her he could take aim in the time it took her to breathe her next breath. A variety of handguns and knives were also visible from the holsters adorning his thighs. If he had this many weapons visible, Zara could only imagine how many he had stashed under his tactical vest and heavy boots.

Her green eyes followed where she believed his gaze had drifted. He seemed laser focused on the strip of light just barely visible from under her door as a roar of laughter could be heard from just outside. His hand moved to rest just over the barrel of his gun. The young girl analyzed him for another moment before lowering the textbook, while still keeping it tightly in her hands.

“Will you at least tell me why you’re here?” There was a hint of desperation in her voice, one that vocalized all of the fear she had been trying to hide. She was met with more silence, which quickly became deafening to her. She was afraid to make a move to get his attention again, naturally unsure of how he would react. Yet, at the same time she couldn’t relax, not with him in her space.

After another few moments of no response, she allowed herself to consider the possibility that he wasn’t actually there. She had just been through something horribly traumatic and it was entirely possible that this was her brain's way of coping with the stress and fear. That it had conjured some masked figure to sit at her bedroom door and keep all the bad away.

She knew how best to test her theory, but she recognized the risk that came with it as she picked up a neon pink highlighter that she had been using earlier that night. She gripped it for a moment while weighing her options, throwing it across the room only seconds later. She didn’t put too much force behind it, hoping that if it gently came into contact, he’d be less likely to be angry. The consideration meant very little as the marker passed straight through the man and knocked against the wall before falling to the floor. She watched as it rolled across the floor and disappeared underneath her nearby dresser, a bittersweet feeling washing over her. On one hand, he wasn’t real and couldn’t hurt her. On the other, she was truly alone and definitely going crazy.

“This is fine,” Zara tried to reassure herself with very little luck.

She was pulled back from her thoughts as Bucky called her name for the third time, snapping her back to reality. Their eyes connected for a moment as she attempted to ground herself again, focusing on the small changes between how he was now versus then.

He had since lost the mask and goggles, she remembered him removing them a month or so after he first appeared. His current casual attire contrasted starkly with the hard kevlar of the tactical vest she first met him in. His features were more at ease now, no longer reflecting the fear that she could only compare to an animal in captivity. While she wasn’t fond of the comparison, following what she had learned of the real James Barnes, it wasn’t entirely far off.

As if the world was reading her mind, she faintly heard the voice of the local news anchor from the living room directly below her bedroom. Her features scrunched as she focused in on hearing the report, only catching snippets here and there. The words explosion and Sokovia Accords were most of what she could make out along with what she could’ve sworn was the suspect’s name, James Buchanan Barnes.

Before Zara could even question it further, she found herself racing down the main staircase of their suburban home, sock clad feet skidding to a halt on the polished dark oak flooring. Her eyes widened as she took in the security camera footage that was believed to place Bucky near the scene of the crime. Despite having no real proof, something deep within her gut screamed that it wasn’t true. She knew him, maybe not the real version, but he’d never do that.

Imaginary Bucky followed her into the living room a minute later, his pace slow and relaxed in comparison as he shoved his hands into his pockets. Being held responsible for the most recent atrocity was honestly just beginning to feel like the average Tuesday to him. More than anything, it was Zara’s reaction that took him the most by surprise. Her unwavering faith and loyalty was unexpected and as he believed, undeserved.

He had committed unspeakable acts over the years and this was likely far from the worst he was accused of. Sure, they had grown close in the two years since he first appeared and he imagined that made it easier for her to block out the rest of the stories, since she knew at least some version of the person in question.

Zara was good, in every sense of the word. Of course she had flaws, but who didn’t, especially at sixteen. But he saw the way that she looked at the world with love and curiosity despite the violence and violations she had experienced. It was a strength of character that he truly wished he could grow to embody. Bucky couldn’t help but find it funny that he was left looking up to a teenager who hadn’t even passed her driver’s test yet; but she honestly had more morals and heart than most of the adults he had met in his life. All of those facts being true is what made her belief in his innocence all the more confusing.

His eyes fell to her father, Gabriel, as he sat on the couch to take in the evening news. The man’s head shook in what seemed to be disappointment, or maybe it was anger, Bucky honestly couldn’t be sure anymore. They had never spoken, as Bucky’s intangible form made communication with anyone other than Zara impossible, but he knew Gabriel was a black and white kind of person. He couldn’t help but accept that to anyone who didn’t know him, the evidence would be damning.

“They need to just put him down while they have the chance,” Gabriel scoffed, speaking to no one in particular while switching the flatscreen off before they could finish the broadcast.

“He’s not a wild animal to be euthanized.” Zara’s expression twisted in disgust at her father’s casual nature. “He’s a human being. If he's guilty, and that’s a really big if with how blurry that security footage is, he deserves a trial just like anyone else!”

Gabe turned to look over the back of the couch, clearly displeased that she would defend the man. “I’m in no mood to debate with you, Ziarah.” He rose from his seat and dropped the remote onto the foot stool before leaving towards his study.

Zara watched him leave, her eye practically twitching with each step he took. She wanted to tell him he was wrong, to make him see that there were likely more sides to the story than they were seeing but she knew that it was useless. Her father rarely took her opinions or beliefs to heart on things that actually mattered to him, a topic like this would truly be a lost cause.

She looked up at Bucky as he shook his head lightly, letting her tension fade away as she accepted that it was pointless. “It’s okay, Zar,” Bucky assured, his small smile wiping away any lingering doubts she had. “There are more important battles to pick with him. This isn’t a hill worth dying on.”

Zara would’ve liked to argue that defending her friend was more than a worthy cause but she nodded nonetheless.

“How about we go find your mom. I bet she’s already working on the cake for your graduation and knowing you, you can convince her to let you lick the spoon.” His tone was playful as he coaxed her into motion, the promise of sweets and a friendly face luring her into the kitchen behind him.

Hanna was busy mixing away the different batters she would need for the next tier, the sweet aroma of baked goods filling the air. She hummed lightly as she worked, creating her own personal mix of her favorite 80’s songs together in a unique medley. Her green eyes moved to the doorway as she heard Zara walk in, a bright smile overtook her features as she set down her mixing bowl.

“There’s my little scholar,” she praised, moving around the kitchen island to take her daughter into her arms. Her warm embrace was a welcomed escape as Zara melted.

“Momma,” Zara grumbled as her mother placed a series of kisses on her forehead. “I thought you stopped doing that since I was a baby.” While Zara whined, deep down she always loved her mother’s open displays of affection. Not that she was willing to admit it.

“That’s the beauty of you always being my baby. You’re never too old for me to embarrass you. Just be grateful that I’ve opted to do it now instead of at your party.” The woman grinned away as she moved back to her work.

Zara honestly couldn’t argue with the logic as she found a seat on one of the tall bar stools. She quickly lost herself in the pleasant conversion with her mother, happily opting to clean the excess batter and frosting off of the bowls and mixing spoons like the helpful child she was. Imaginary Bucky sat quietly at the kitchen table, watching the women as they fell into the usual banter and discussion. After they finished her conversation she quickly grabbed a snack and made her way towards the door.

“I believe you’re forgetting something,” Hanna reminded, sending Zara a knowing look.

She huffed lightly before turning on her heels to grab her blood testing and insulin kit, waving it at her mother knowingly. She quickly turned back around and left the kitchen, making her way back upstairs.

Bucky didn’t hesitate to follow after her, stopping only when he saw Zara staring in her old room, which now housed her older brother Daniel. He could practically see the wheels turning in her mind as she ran over the events that more often than not had her scurrying past said room without acknowledging it. It was easier to just pretend it didn’t exist.

A few more moments passed before Zara pulled herself back from the darker parts of her mind, focusing in on everything else in her life that was good and worth celebrating. She had known pain and a time in her life where she often considered if it would’ve been easier to just fade away, but she had made it through to the other side. She had a lot going for her now and that was enough to push her feet forward again.

Chapter 2

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lizacstuff · 3 years

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Edser / Sen Cal Kapimi ep 30+ asks

(Asks under the cut)

@jan31 Hi Liza, in the fragman Selin was in a white dress, was it a wedding dress?

Hello! I don’t think so. I think that’s what she was going to wear to the dinner she’d planned for the four of them (from the fragman, Eda, Serkan, Deniz and herself) but BOOM goes the MELO. Thank you Melo, lock that witch away so Serkan and Eda are not haunted by her evil presence, and can maybe spend some time together.

Though, you know, I wouldn’t mind if it was a wedding dress. We know Serkan ain’t gonna marry her, so if they go so far as to put her in a dress, then we’re on the precipice of her humiliation and departure which can’t come too soon for me.

jan31 Hi Liza. Please can you explain to me the fireside scene. It was so beautiful, emotional and just what we needed. Were the lights going out representing his sub conscious and the darkness he feels, reaching out for Eda instinctively without realising why. And the lights coming on was the reality that he did not remember anything. Or am I completely going in the wrong direction? Oh and the music gets me every time 😢😢

That scene fired on all cylinders!! I definitely think you’re on to something thinking the lights coming on represented the reality of him still not having any memories back. I think the whole scene was Serkan trying to reconcile this one flash of memory that has been playing in his mind like a movie. He was re-enacting what he saw in his mind, trying to figure out if it was a real memory and if the real memory was about Eda.

I really liked that it was Serkan who asked if they can talk without arguing. Being the calm, rational one is his role in their relationship, how many times have we heard him say “sakin” so it was comforting to see him taking those reigns for a few moments. Also for him to realize that almost all their exchanges had been heightened and fraught with explosive emotions and wanting to talk to her without that.

Both Eda and Serkan with their eyes filled, brimming with tears really got to me. Serkan not really understanding as his heart took over and tried to make sense of what his confused mind couldn’t. Eda’s complete heartbreak when he still didn’t remember anything. However, though, she might not know it, he certainly felt something.

He’s already so drawn to her and he can’t compute why that is... why he fell in love with her during the time he can’t remember, but he’s slowly starting to see how it could have happened. This was an important scene for bridging that gap between them. So freaking beautiful, one of the best acted scenes of the entire series, and the scene that made this episode worthwhile.

Anonymous said: if that scene in front of the fireplace made me so emotional and it was just him trying to remember.. trying to recreate that one moment he was flashbacks of... i cant imagine what the actual scene of him remembering will do to me. both their acting in that scene was something else.

Hande and Kerem were both absolutely fantastic in that scene. Really stellar. Their chemistry never disappoints, but here they were both right in the moment, very raw, very real. I’m impressed with the emotional range they both showed, kudos to both. If nothing else this story is giving them a lot to chew on as actors.

Anonymous said: memory loss doesn't bother me that much if we can have beautiful scenes like the fireplace one. but the main couple is separated again, dating/fake dating other people and they don't have scenes enough to fall in love again

Well they made huge strides in two episodes. From Serkan not willing to even contemplate remembering her, to him sitting down and asking her to tell him a memory of their relationship and saying he wants to know about her and their love. And them having an absolutely beautiful, emotional, heartbreaking moment together.

Serkan made other leaps as well. He went from wanting Eda out of the business to admitting she had talent and freaking out that she was planning to take a vacation. He was already coming up with every excuse to keep her in town and working. They argued as they did in early days, he had moments that obviously hit him as familiar (”I hate you Serkan Bolat.” “The feeling is mutual, lady.”) plus lemons and crusts.

Don’t you worry, he’s already falling in love with her again.

However, I wouldn’t judge what they’re planning too much by this episode. It felt like a transition episode and was pretty unevenly paced. Perhaps the claims of rewrites on this chapter had some truth to them. Because the last 4 episodes were pretty well written, narratively solid, and well paced, and this one was not. It was boring and everything not directly related to a scene where Eda and Serkan were alone was lackluster.

Also I feel like some things were changed and perhaps removed to make allowances for Hande’s injury. She had a strained neck and was in a brace for almost the entirety of the filming of this episode. For instance, I’m pretty sure they did fewer takes with her in several scenes. Specifically you can tell in the scene where Serkan picks her up and carries her back.

We go no full wide angle shot from the front of him carrying her to match with the scene in episode 5. I’m sure they wanted that, but I’m guessing they really had to limit the takes of him picking her up so they couldn’t do multiple camera set ups. The still photographer on set was able to capture it from the front, it’s a shame they couldn’t get the full hero shot for the show, but poor thing was injured and these things happen when you shoot on such tight timelines.

So some of the lack of Edser could have been scenes that were shortened, cut, and amended due to that injury. And others could have been changes in the script perhaps as they figure out if they’re getting another ep order from Fox.

Anonymous said: idk what they’re doing with Ceren but I really need them to keep Deniz as a genuinely good friend. He’s perfect and I don’t want them to make him sketch. Not sure if you’ve seen OTH but that’s the only other show I’ve seen with a great male-female friendship. Other parts of the show are messy to me right now but I’ve been loving this.

I guess my opinion would be unpopular with you, but I am not as enamored with Deniz as others seem to be. Dude was putting a LOT of pressure on Eda to move on and forget Serkan. Serkan has been back approximately 3 days! HE ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND HAS AMNESIA. Can the woman have a chance to catch her breath and assess the situation, before her “good friend” is pressuring her every which way to forget him?? And planning romantic getaways under the guise of friendship? That’s not being a friend, that’s being an opportunist, looking for his chance to slide in there.

So, yeah, I’m not as impressed as most seem to be with Deniz. He made me uncomfortable with that. I hope it was not a harbinger of things to come.

As for OTH, I haven't really watched, but its a fav or my bud @echoapothecary so she might be willing to discuss that show.

Anonymous said: Any chance they decide to throw Melo and Ferit together? I don't care about any of the other side romances going on but these two still have their rights in my book in regards to Edser and they seem like genuinely people?

Let’s do it, baby! I’m on board They both are genuinely good people, and I’m with you, I don’t care about any of the side romances at the moment. Piril and Engin put me to sleep this episode.

Ferit certainly deserves better than psycho Selin, but he also deserves better than petulant Ceren. And while her behavior escalated to WTF levels this ep, she’s always leaned a little this way. I think it was episode 18 (because the girls were in the library before Serkan finds Eda there) that Ceren was furious at Ferit all episode and I honest to goodness had no clue why or what he did.

Anonymous said: at first sçk was about women supporting women and we have one best friend turning against the other FOR A MAN. I'm so disappointed the writers are destroying characters one by one.

No this show has always been about the love story between Eda and Serkan, but it did have some nice female relationships as well. Can I tell you a secret? While I really like the girls dynamic, and hope they don’t destroy Ceren and Eda’s friendship, I really only care about 2 characters, and that’s Eda and Serkan.

So while I get your concern, and Ceren acted OUT OF HER DAMN MIND this episode, if she needs to be a casualty to keep things moving, so be it. I mean I reserve the right to roll my eyes over it, but I’m not going to get too worked up about it. From the beginning Eda and Serkan were the only two characters that matter and they still are.

Anonymous said: I'm kinda concerned that they're actually going to say the next episode takes place on Valentines Day because this would be the biggest timeline error yet. I know we've already been suspending belief here after they touched on New Years so quickly but umm, yeah....

I think you have to just give over to the timeline on this show and not do any math or calculations. We already had July to December take approximately 2 months in straight linear storytelling, LMAO.

Also, if it is valentine’s day and that’s going to be their excuse to give us some actual romance, then I will take it, no complaints. To me that’s one of the easiest things not to be concerned about, because its never going to make sense. I’ll take the holiday themed episodes over strict adherence to the calendar any day.

#Sen Çal Kapımı #sen cal Kapimi #edser #sckask #sck episode discussion #edser discussion #asklizac #sck 1x30 #anonymous

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snkpolls · 3 years

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SnK Episode 68 Poll Results (for Anime Only Watchers)

The poll closed with 59 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results for the Anime Only Watchers’ poll. If you wish to see the results for the Manga Readers’ poll, click here.

Anime only watchers, beware of spoilers if you venture over to the manga readers’ poll results.

RATE THE EPISODE 53 Responses

The response was overwhelmingly positive with 88.7% of responses giving the episode a 4 or a 5. In addition, there weren’t any 1s or 2s this time around. A noted contrast to the previous episode. Suppose Sasha’s death ruined the experience for some.

it epic

I NEED MORE

awesome

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING MOMENTS WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 55 Responses

The scene with the largest amount of reception (18.2%) was the final scene of the episode, where Eren repeats his mantra to himself in the mirror while revealing his new look. Behind that was the reveal that Armin is talking to Annie (10.9%). At a tie (9.1%), people most enjoyed Hange’s eccentric greeting to the Marleyan soldiers and Onyankopon explaining why he believes people are different. At another tie (7.3%), were the scenes where Sasha is enjoying Nicolo’s cooking, and the scene where Eren is washing himself at the sink.

WHAT WAS THE MOST EMOTIONAL PART OF THE VISIT TO SASHA’S GRAVE? 57 Responses

The visit to Sasha’s grave was packed with many tragic moments. According to the responders, the most emotional of those was Connie’s line about losing “his half” (47.4%). Following that we have the scene of grieving Mikasa with 24.6%. In third place is Nicolo’s general grief. Other responses were, in this order, Sasha’s Father agreeing to a free meal from Nicolo, seeing the girl that Sasha saved from a Titan all those years ago and simply Sasha’s family appearing.

AFTER SEVERAL TENSE AND ACTION PACKED EPISODES, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE TRANSITION TO SOMETHING MORE CALM? 53 Responses

Ever since the series started, AoT has had a clear contrast between the content of its episodes. Episode 68 of the series notably contrasts with the prior 3-4 episodes. So we wanted to know how the fans respond to these sorts of things. 32.1% stated that they enjoyed the slower paced episode after weeks of chaos. An equal number of responders (32.1%) noted that although they far preferred the action-based content, they understood the need for the slower episodes. A little over 13% said they actually preferred the exposition-esque content, so they were happy with the change and finally, a bit over 11% stated that they were indifferent.

I view exposition equally as important as action.

Watching the show dissect what happened before and after the attack on Marley made everything so clear, I love how they were able to capture the drama of both sequences

I'm definetly here more dialogue heavy epiodes and flashbacks but maybe with a slower pacing. It felt a little messy because the episode was also dealing with Sasha's as well as backstory. I think thst was probably intentional though.

They both have their merits.

Still feels great

WOULD YOU RATHER GET A SURPRISE GREETING FROM EREN & HANGE, OR ARMIN & LEVI? 55 Responses

Marleyan Soldiers got two sets of surprises in this episode. One from Eren and Hange, one from Armin and Levi. The fans would clearly prefer to get one of those from Eren and Hange (78.2%) than Armin and Lavi (21.8%).

ON A SCALE OF 1-5, HOW HAPPY ARE YOU TO BE BACK ON PARADIS? 55 Responses

We recently returned to Paradis Island and according to the responders, it was a much wanted development, with 85.4% giving a 4 or a 5 when it comes to hype about the return to the island.

ARMIN SAYS THAT ONCE EREN INFILTRATED MARLEY, THERE WAS NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO ATTACK IN ORDER TO PREVENT IMMEDIATE RETALIATION. DO YOU AGREE WITH HIM? 55 Responses

The raid on Liberio is being questioned not only by the audiences, but also by the characters in-universe. Still, when it comes to Armin’s justification for the attack, the majority (69.1%) think that there was no other choice for Paradis, be it because they could afford to lose Eren/Founding Titan or because Marley would have retaliated easily. Others (~10%) think that they either should have made more effort to find Eren before it came to the raid or should have just let him go. 14.5% simply aren’t sure.

They had no choice but to retrieve Eren, but that doesn't necessarily mean a full blown attack. I think Armin is trying to convince himself here.

Yes. Marley could have captured Eren and had Zeke or someone else eat him for the founding powers.

DO YOU THINK IT’S PLAUSIBLE THAT MARLEY WILL FIND A WAY TO QUICKLY COUNTERATTACK ANYWAY? 53 Responses

When it comes to Marley, one could wonder if they will attempt a quick counterattack. 67.9% believe so, 15.1% dissent. And 9.4% state that they have been spoiled. For the write-in responder who feels that we are spoiling via the question itself, we assure you that anything we ask here had once been a matter of debate among manga readers when the corresponding chapters were fresh and we did not know the outcome. We would just like to give anime only watchers the same opportunity to have these debates.

I don't know.

The fleet has been destroyed, but what about the airforce (if they have one)? I doubt Paradis has the mean to counter that.

I'm not really sure honestly

This question is a spoiler itself: if you ask this, maybe it means that's what will happen. Thank you.

WHEN EREN FIRES HIS GUN AT THE END OF EMA’S TALK, IT TRANSITIONS TO SASHA TAKING A BULLET IN THE PREVIOUS EPISODE. DO YOU FEEL THAT THE NARRATIVE IS TRYING TO PIN THE BLAME SOLELY ON EREN? 55 Responses

Eren’s rifle shot was juxtaposed with Sasha’s death, showcasing a possible thread in the narrative. Does the narrative believe that Eren is to blame for Sasha’s death? 38.2% think it’s a yes and 45.5% think it’s a possibility. On the other hand, almost 11% don’t think the story is trying to go for that route.

While I don’t think it’s trying to pin the blame solely on Eren. I think it’s trying to say he shares a large portion of the blame.

He may be partly at fault, but not fully.

Yes. But they shouldn't. Because it was GabBitch who killed Sasha, and GabBitch alone.

DO YOU BELIEVE THAT ZEKE, YELENA AND THE VOLUNTEERS ARE SINCERE IN THEIR WISH TO HELP PARADIS? 55 Responses

Zeke, Yelena and Co. are a set of characters. Are they a trustworthy set of characters? Certainly up to debate. 67.8% believe they’re trustworthy to a degree, at the very least. In contrast to 23.6% who find no trust in them. A select few have been spoiled.

Mmm Yelena & co. maybe...I love Zeke but he's big sus this season

I think they are loyal to Zeke, and his goal is to get the funding titan. At the moment, this means allying themselves with Paradis, but that could easily change.

They are very sus, Yelena is especially loose. IDK who they'll be loyal too.

DO YOU THINK THAT EREN WANTS TO USE THE WALL TITANS AS A SIMPLE DETERRENT, OR DOES HE WANT TO FLATTEN THE EARTH? 55 Responses

The possibility of a Rumbling has been brought up more than a few times throughout the series (mostly this season) and the question remains, “will Eren use the Rumbling to flatten the Earth?” 60% think that’ll be the case, in contrast to almost 11% who dissent. 27.3% were already spoiled about the outcome.

That idiot definetly wants to flatten the earth. Empathy and logic has never been Erens strong suit.

DO YOU THINK THAT EMA HAVE BECOME MORE DISTANT FROM EACH OTHER? 55 Responses

The iconic EMA trio has been together through thick and thin, so something truly must happen for them to “break up”, so to say. Would one say that they have grown apart? 56.4% think so, but only insofar as Eren goes. 25.5% believe that they all have grown apart to a degree. 9.1% dissent to these assertions and a select few have been spoiled.

Even Mikasa and Armin seem distant! They were coping on their own after coming back to Paradis.

I like to refer to them as E MA. lol. Yehhhh anyway- somethings defs off with them.

ARMIN SAID HE DIDN’T SEE ANY NOTEWORTHY MEMORIES FROM BERTOLT WHEN EREN ASKED HIM ABOUT IT. DO YOU THINK HE’S BEING TRUTHFUL? 55 Responses

A whole bunch of people doubt Armin’s statement about not seeing anything useful in Bertolt’s memories (81.8%), though some (14.5%) think the boy’s telling the truth. A select few have been spoiled.

DO YOU THINK MIKASA IS LOSING HOPE IN THE WORDS THAT ONCE GAVE HER STRENGTH? 56 Responses

Long ago, Mikasa stated that one must fight, survive and win. If they don’t fight, they won’t survive and will lose. But with some losses drumming up on the plate, could she start doubting this mantra? 46.4% believe that we cannot say one way or another until we see more. 26.8% don’t believe that Sasha’s death will shake her confidence in that belief and it’s just a brief moment of doubt, in contrast to 23.2% who believe that Sasha’s demise will irreparably change Mikasa’s philosophy.

No....? I did't even realise she was that close to Sasha. I feel like if she loses Eren THEN she'll lose hope.

what words?

Mikasa deserves better than emo world destroyer Eren!!! She's too pure.

EREN SEEMED TO BE MISSING WHEN THE SURVEY CORPS WERE INTERACTING WITH THE VOLUNTEERS. WHY DO YOU THINK THAT MIGHT BE? 54 Responses

Eren wasn’t present when the others were interacting with the volunteers. Some believe it is noteworthy, others do not think so. 38.9% simply aren’t certain. 29.6% think it’s the SC decision to keep Eren away from Zeke’s followers. On the other, 20.4% predict that it was Eren’s own choice of isolation. A select few have simply been spoiled.

Didn’t notice this until now

Maybe he had already left for Marley?

ARMIN WAS HOPEFUL THAT THEY COULD SOLVE THEIR PROBLEMS THROUGH DIPLOMACY. EREN FELT THAT PEACE WAS NEVER AN OPTION. WHO DO YOU AGREE WITH MORE? 54 Responses

A noted contrast in Eren and Armin’s beliefs was showcased in this episode. 57.4% find themselves siding more with Eren’s anti-diplomatic measures, while 42.6% support Armin’s more peaceful ways.

WE GOT A GLIMPSE OF ANNIE IN THIS EPISODE. WHAT BEST MATCHES YOUR THOUGHTS? 55 Responses

Annie has been encased in that crystal for years at this point, both in and out of universe. Is she going to get out of that crystal? Just a little over 69% believe so, in contrast to the one person who doesn’t. 23.6% were spoiled one way or another.

Sis is running out of time...it would really suck if her 13 years were up before she even got out of her lil crystal

This has GOT to wake up, surely.

She got a nose reduction surgery

HOW DO YOU THINK ZEKE WILL RATE HIS STAY AT THE HOTEL OF GIANT TREES? 55 Responses

Zeke seemed shocked to find his hotel to be a forest of Giant Trees. An iconic location, seen throughout the series. We asked how you believe Zeke will rate his stay. A plurality (40%) think that he won’t be there long enough to do so. 29.1% believe he’ll give it an average score, in contrast to 23.6% who imagine Zeke loving his getaway! 7.3% have been spoiled.

WHAT BEST DESCRIBES YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT PIXIS ARRESTING THE VOLUNTEERS? 55 Responses

It would appear Pixis detained the volunteers while the SC were away. The majority (52.7%) don’t find it to be a controversial decision, noting that both parties have a mutual understanding between each other. A noted minority (29.1%) thought that it was actually the best course of action, arguing that the Paradisian Military has no way of knowing whether the volunteers are trustworthy or not now that Zeke is here on Paradis. In contrast, 18.2% thought that it was mistake, given how much assistance the Volunteers have provided to the islanders.

WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE WAY THE PARADISIANS ARE SEEN TREATING MARLEYANS? 55 Responses

We saw some noted mistreatment of Marleyans by the Paradisians this episode. So we asked the responders what their thoughts were on this development. A plurality (47.3%) couldn’t say one way or the other and needed to see more to pass their judgment. 34.5% were open in their condemnation of those actions, in contrast to the 12.7% who were supportive of such activities.

Cycle of haaaate. No one is justified in acting that way but it's understandable that they do

Some good, some bad. Military police doing the worst of course.

An eye for an eye ✌

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

I don't know what to say anymore. This episode made me question my previous ideologies regarding the characters

In my opinion, this episode has more fanservice than usual, from the ship moments of Levihan and Aruani, and to the display of Mikasa's ass and Eren's abs, but Mappa is not over the top and can still get the plot moving and still have those moments that can move the viewers.

I believe in Onyankopon supremacy

Even though I love Mappa post timeskip designs, the pre timeskip design of some characters seemed a bit off to me (particularly Armin and Eren). It distracted me a bit from the action.

Eren standing Infront of the mirror was way better in manga. Mappa need to put more effort. No hate tho.

Idk, didn't blow me away. I'm seriously concerned for Armin, he's definetly losing it. Appreciated the flashbacks and the new characters too. Onyankopon has captured my mf heart, if he dies, I die too. 😌

Chad Eren

Niccolo x Sasha OTP

What the shit dude…

Gabi will forever be the worst character to me, no matter what the anime tries to do to justify her

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 54 Responses

Thanks again to everyone who responded!

#snk poll #snk polls #snk spoilers #snk s4 #shingeki no kyojin #attack on titan #snk #aot

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give-seconds · 4 years

Text

Back To You

Summary: You and Mark are all each other have, he’s easily the most important person to you. But something happens and you both are slowly separated, so you work your hardest to be accepted into a college in Korea so you can find your way back to a home with him again.

Masterlist | Main Masterlist

I hope this makes up for how boring the other chapters were, I didn’t really know how to set it up. But now I have a decent idea what I want to do! Just some info for this chapter, Johnny is two years older than Mark rather than four. Also the bold is like a flashback (for lack of a better word). Enjoy!!

---Part 4

Four years ago

“Okay,” Mrs. Lee says, pushing the door open to their apartment. “We’re home!”

The Lees managed to convince the police to let you spend the night in their care while they try to set you up in a foster home nearby. So now, you and Mark are nervously walking behind the Lee’s as they lead you into the apartment.

“Mom?”

You and Mark freeze, awkwardly standing in the space between the kitchen and the living room. A boy is standing in the hallway, he's maybe a few years older than you both. He's staring at Mark as if he can’t quite believe it, as if Mark will disappear as soon he turns anyway or even blinks.

“Oh John,” Mrs. Lee happily cries. “It’s him, it’s really him.”

“I cannot wait to tell you what you’ve missed,” John whispers, walking towards you both slowly. He stops in front of Mark, eyeing him up and down with watery eyes. A small smile spreads across his face, and he pulls Mark into a hug. “I’ve missed you so much, we’re all so glad you’re back.”

Mark turns his head to nervously glance at you, arms hanging awkwardly at his sides. You look over to the Lees who are smiling fondly at the scene from the opposite side of the room. You catch Mrs. Lee's eyes, who averts her eyes back to the boys and says something in that foreign language.

In response, John lets go of Mark and smiles down at him apologetically. “We’ll talk more after you get settled in, yeah?”

“Um, sure,” Mark mumbles, scratching the back of his neck.

John shoots you a smile, before looking over to his parents

“Okay, now let's go look at your room.” Mrs. Lee announces, motioning for you both to follow as she walks down the hall. From behind you, you hear John ask Mr. Lee a question. In response, you hear Mr. Lee say your name. His voice has a hateful edge to it, but maybe that’s just how he talks about people he doesn't know very well.

“So the room might be a bit messy- we only started redecorating a few days ago,” Mrs. Lee explains, looking around the room.

“It looks great, what was it before? I hope you didn’t have to give up anything of yours just to make a room for me,” Mark says shyly, looking around the room to avoid her eyes.

“Oh no,” she answers quietly. “This has always been your room. Joon-Young and I just never had the heart to change it from the room you had when you were three.”

She rubs her arms as if she were cold, smiling fondly. A silence falls around the room as she looks around the newly furnished room, equipped with a queen-sized bed, two bedside tables, and a fancy looking wood dresser. This room has everything a comfortable room should have, even more. Well, everything except the feeling of home.

Clearing her throat, she shakes her head and motions to the dresser. “There are clothes for you in the there, we also bought you a toothbrush that is under the bathroom sink. You can just open the package and take out a new one. Y/n, as we did not expect you to be joining us tonight, we don’t have a place for you to stay. So if you don’t mind sleeping on the couch-”

“It’s okay ma’am, she can sleep with me,” Mark interrupts, looking up to meet her eyes.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” she answers hesitantly.

“It’ll really be okay, we’ve done it before. We grew up together, it’s not like this is the first time we’d be sharing a bed,” Mark states, offering a friendly smile.

She meets his stare, face hard to read. Then, something changes and her face softens. She sighs, looking away from him and instead at the wall behind him. “I guess that’s okay, it’s just for tonight anyway.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Lee,” you say quietly, afraid that if you speak too loudly you’ll remind her that she doesn't like you and change her mind.

She nods her head before turning around to open the door. “Ready to finish the tour?”

“Okay, well dinner will be ready soon, John is a pretty good cook now. I’ll call you when it’s ready,” Mrs. Lee says, opening the door to the bedroom for you two.

“Okay, thank you.”

She nods her head, sending Mark a longing look before retreating to the kitchen.

“I don’t think I can do this,” you admit as soon as Mark closes the door.

“What do you mean?” Mark asks, moving to sit on the bed.

“What do I mean?” You repeat, laughing sarcastically. “I mean, this family hates me. Mrs. Lee only bothers to include you in the conversations, I’m convinced that if I say anything she’ll throw me out in the blink of an eye. I’m only here because you refused to come here without me.” You can feel Mark’s eyes on you as you pace the length of the bed, arms hugging your sides for some comfort. “And then there is Mr. Lee, who hates me. Haven’t you heard the way he talks about me? I guarantee you by the time they ship me out to whatever a foster home is, John will hate me too. And that’s not to mention the fact that our dad has been arrested and no one is telling us anything.”

Looking at him, you stop pacing as you process the emotion in his eyes. Empathy. Straightening your back, you meet his eyes while trying to make any trace of anxiety disappear from your own. If your dad had taught you anything, it was not to let others feel the need to give you looks of pity or anything resembling it. Normally, Mark is the exception. But now, you both are in uncharted lands. Now isn't the time for empathy.

“I’ll be honest, I don’t know what to say. I’m just as confused as you are, but what can we do? Everyone has painted us to be victims, they’re not going to listen to what we have to say. I think our best bet is to entertain the idea that I am their son, and maybe if we do that well enough they won’t make you leave.”

You wrap your arms around yourself again, letting out a defeated sigh “Mark, we both know that isn’t going to happen. You heard Mrs. Lee, she said that even if they were able to take me in they wouldn’t. All they see me as is the daughter of the man who ‘took’ you, and I can’t live like that Mark. I can’t have these people see me as the villain, I won’t live like that.”

“Then I don’t know, y/n,” he grumbles. “I don’t understand what’s happening either, and like I said, I don’t think they’re going to listen to anything we have to say. So what do you want me to do?”

Rolling your eyes, you suppress a scoff. “Listen, I know this is stressful, but don’t talk to me like that. I don’t expect you to do anything Mark, I’m just talking and hoping that if we talk we can somewhat figure this out. So maybe chill.”

“I don’t know if there is anything to figure out. We don’t know what to do. We’re practically helpless, so I’m sorry if it seems like I’m annoyed. I just can’t stand the idea that these people who have never met us are now deciding how we live our life.”

“What-”

“Dinner’s ready.”

“First bus leaves at 4:45 am,” you mumble, folding the paper back in half and putting it into your back pocket. You flip your phone over: 4:41 am.

I haven’t had a dream about that time of my life in a long time. Closing your eyes and leaning back against the bus stop walls, you take a deep breath. Maybe it’s because I started writing again.

You open your eyes, looking up into the sky. Mark, I don’t know what I’m going to do if I don’t find you.

You bring your head level with the street as you hear the whoosh of the bus pull up next to you.

“Little early, isn’t it?” The bus driver smiles at you as you pull yourself into the bus.

It takes you a second to understand what he said, so you just smile politely, willing your brain to work so early in the morning. “Ah,” you exclaim quietly, understanding the question. “I guess so, but back home it’s only around one in the afternoon.”

“Oh, where are you from?”

“Canada -I’m here for school.”

The bus driver chuckles, looking over his shoulder before pulling out into the main road. “I know, I picked you up from the school bus stop.”

“Ah,” you look away in embarrassment.

“So, where are you going this early?”

“I don’t really know, I just want to see the city before my friend takes me out. Just to get an idea, you know?”

He nods his head, looking up to meet your eyes through the mirror. “A lot of the cafes around here open at 5:30, so maybe stop by there until more stuff opens up?”

“I might, thank you. Do you think you could tell me which stop to get off at if I want to visit my friend who lives on Umanansangil?”

“Umanansangil? In two stops there is a bus stop on the street.”

“Okay, thank you.”

You lean back against the seat, a silence filling the bus. After you and Mark had been taken away from your dad, you’ve loved the mornings. Sure, waking up is a challenge. But being able to go out and be surrounded by people who are too tired to care about you reminds you of when you and Mark still lived together. Where you guys are from, no one would look twice at you.

“Have a good day, sir,” you say, pulling out the appropriate amount of cash.

“You too.”

You step off the bus, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear as you look around the empty streets. You pull out your phone, copying the address you have in your notes and pasting it into Naver Maps.

“Oh, how I miss Google Maps,” you sigh, struggling to read the Korean instructions.

“Ah-ha!” you cheer, successfully starting the directions.

As you make your way down the street, blindly following the colored path on your phone you can’t help the giddy feeling grow with each step. Waking up this morning, the urge to be near him started to grow. While getting ready this morning, a sense of excitement had blossomed. You realize that you’re not going to see him this early, but you’ll be there. You’ll get to be where he is, and that’s enough for right now.

Only now, standing in front of the building, you’re not sure why you came. “This was a dumb, impulsive decision.” You stare up at the living complex looming over you. “And now, all you feel is anxious. Good job y/n. A+.”

You rub your hands together, looking up to the brightening sky. “Why’d you have to make this so hard, Markie?”

You shake your head, turning around and walking back in the direction you came. You made sure to take note of a cafe that was setting up the first time you had passed.

When you get to the cafe, unsurprisingly it’s empty save for the workers tiredly cleaning the tables.

The worker at the counter looks surprised to see you, but smiles nevertheless as you approach the counter. “What can I get for you?”

“Um, may I have a hot chocolate?”

Tapping the screen, she looks up at you smiling. “Is that all?”

You nod your head, pulling your card out of your back pocket and handing it to her to swipe.

Once you pay, she turns around to start making your drink. Leaning against the counter, you look at the variety of drinks hung on the wall. The first time you had come to one of these shops, you had been amazed that someone knew what to do with this many different liquids. You and Mark had made a promise to try all the drinks at the cafe near his apartment. You guys barely made it through half the menu.

Standing back up, you thank the cashier as she hands you the drink while wishing you a ‘fantastic’ day. Whatever that means.

Turning around, you start walking towards a table you had seen when you had first walked in. The door swings open, and your attention is drawn to a man walking into the cafe. He freezes as he meets your eyes before his hands shoot to move the mask around his chin to cover his face. Strange.

Looking away from the man, you continue your walk to the table. Setting your drink on the table, you pull out the chair facing the window so you’re able to watch the city wake up. That guy was strange, but something about him seems familiar.

“May I sit?”

Speak of the devil. “Um sure.”

“So, what brings you here so early?” he asks casually.

You want to shift in your seat, but stop yourself before you can show him you’re uncomfortable. First, he has to sit at my table, and now he wants to talk? He doesn't have a drink, did he even order? “If it’s all the same to you, I don’t really want to answer that. I don’t know you.”

He nods his head, eyes scanning the walls of the cafe before meeting yours again. “Where are you from?”

You smile shyly, casting your eyes downward as you fidget with the cardboard sleeve around the cup “Canada, is my accent that bad?”

“It’s pretty decent, but as someone who’s around foreigners and Koreans every day, I can hear it.”

You look up at him, surprised he can speak English. “Fair enough. And seeing as this is my first time staying in Korea, I can’t say I’m surprised. Where are you from?”

“I am also from Canada -Vancouver.”

You lean back in your chair, feeling more at ease being able to speak comfortably and without much thought. That, and you’re 88% sure he isn’t here to kill you. “No wonder you seem familiar, I could probably sense that you are a fellow Vancouver citizen. What are you doing up so early, my fellow Canadian?”

“My friends and I have practice, and I drew the short stick in having to go and get everyone coffee.”

You nod your head, taking a sip of your hot chocolate “That must suck, having practice so early in the morning.”

He shrugs his shoulders “I prefer it to having to work late at night. Plus, we have a comeback soon, so that means lots of practice.”

You tilt your head to the side, unsure if you heard him right “Comeback?”

“Oh,” he says, sounding genuinely surprised. “So you came to Korea not to meet your favourite Korean idol?”

“Is that the only reason someone can move to Korea?”

“Well if my family hadn’t moved here when I was younger, that’s why I would’ve moved here.”

Choking on your hot chocolate, you throw your head back, rolling your body to the side and coughing violently into your elbow. The man just laughs softly at your misery.

“Are you serious?” you ask, having recovered from your near-death experience.

“Definitely,” he confirms, nodding his head,

“Okay.” You clear your throat. “So back on topic, are you telling me you’re an idol?”

“Sure am!” he announces, smiling proudly.

“Give me your group name.”

“Sure, it’s LokInNi.”

“And how do you spell that?” you ask, taking out your phone.

“L-o-k-i-n-n-i. Why, do you not believe me?”

“Nope,” you say, popping the p.

“Why not?” he pouts slightly as he sinks into his chair.

“That sounds like a completely made-up word.”

“Because it is.”

Putting your phone on the table, loading screen face-up, you lean back in your chair “And that helps your case, how?”

“Just look at your phone,” he mumbles, waving his hand dismissively towards your phone.

You smile at the childish action, shaking your head as you pick your phone back up to read the group's Wikipedia description.

‘The idol group LokInNi (Lok from the Thai word Thạ̀w lok, in from the Korean word segyejeog-in, and the ni from the Japanese word Sekai-teki ni. These all mean Worldwide) is composed of 12 members from five different countries. Taeyong, Taeil, Johnny, Yuta, Kun, Doyoung, Ten, Jaehyun, WinWin, Jungwoo, XiaoJun, and YangYang.’

You look up at him, nodding your head “Okay, I’ll give it to you that the group exists. But how do I know that this is actually you?”

“Look up a photo of Johnny, that’s me.”

You freeze at the name. It’s gotta be a coincidence, John is a common name for people. Plus, what are the chances that I meet John here in Korea without actively looking for him?

Clicking on a website called ‘Kpop Profiles- Lokinni’, you scroll down to the photo of Johnny. And sure enough, it is the man in front of you.

“Look at that, it is you,” you say quietly, turning your phone around to show him the photo.

“Yep! That’s me, John Lee.”

Sucking in a breath you abruptly stand up from the table, causing your chair to scrape dramatically against the ground. He looks up at you, a questioning look on his face. “You okay?”

“I know you went through something terrible, but you need to hear this. He is my brother, not yours. He’s going to forget you eventually, I’ll make sure of that. You’re not good for him, y/n; you’re only holding him back. So you either cut ties with him, or we’ll cut ties with you. Your choice.”

You nod your head, grabbing your cup from the table “Yeah, sorry. I just remembered that I’m meeting a friend and am about to be late. Good luck with practice.”

You turn around, hoping to get out of the cafe as soon as possible.

“Hey, please wait,” you hear him call, his own chair scraping lightly against the floor.

You freeze, squeezing your eyes shut as you try to force the last words he said to you out of your brain.

“You’re not good for him, y/n; you’re only holding him back.”

“Did I do something to offend you? If I did, I’m sorry.”

You shake your head “Really, I’m fine. Like I said I have to meet someone. So if you don’t mind-”

“Do you need me to walk you? It’s still dark out, and if you’re not comfortable being alone this early my members will understand why I came late.”

“He’ll forget you eventually, I’ll make sure of that.”

You slowly take steps back towards the door, checking over your shoulder every few steps to make sure you don’t run into anything. “I’ll be fine. Plus you shouldn’t deprive eleven people of their coffee.”

“Really, it’s no trouble at all.”

“John I said no,” you snap, wrapping your arms around yourself. “So please, leave me alone.”

You timidly look up at him but look back down once you see the slight trace of hurt on his face. But what you miss, is the recognition that flashes after the hurt. “Okay, I’m sorry I pushed. I just didn’t want anything bad to happen to you, y/n.”

---

I hope the group name wasn’t too outlandish, it just seemed wrong to have NCT without all the members. So I made my own group name! Thank you to @mozartwasajungkookstan, she has helped me make this chapter something I am really proud of. I think this is defenitly the better of what I have posted, so I would really love to know what you guys think! Have a great day/night!!

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#NCT #nct mark #nct haechan #nct scenarios #nct imagines #kpop scenarios #kpop imagines #kpop #mark lee x reader #mark lee #lee donghyuck #johnny seo #nct johnny #haechan x reader

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anika-ann · 4 years

Text

Heart Too Cold, but Friends of Gold - Pt.11

Too Much

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader Word count: 2850

Summary: Avenger!reader AU. Part 2 of Melting Hearts series. Part 1 HERE.

The lesson with ‘Inna’ takes an interesting turn. Yeah.

“You are so good. So good, you’re always feeling so much. And sometimes it feels like you’re gonna bust wide open from all the feeling, doesn’t it? People like you are the best in the world, but you sure do suffer for it.” (Silas House)

Warnings: swearing, light angst, mention of an injury, sort-of-a flashback… eh

Story Masterlist

────── ·❆· ──────

“I have no idea how I can help you improve your English, you’re almost like a native speaker,” you announced, pretending to be awed.

On the inside, you were freaking out. A lot. The reason was simple; there was something incredibly fishy about your new student and it made your hair stand on the end.

The lesson had been nice – once Inna let go of the insecurity about her accent, she spoke fluently and she made a great conversational partner. You had pulled out one of the difficult worksheets you were using for students you believed to be on a very advanced level and she had no problem with it. Which was the biggest clue, really.

Because this woman didn’t need your help whatsoever.

Also, she was wearing a wig, which was suspicious on its own.

“Thanks!” she exclaimed, sounding excited at the praise. You would almost believe her she was being genuine. Almost. “I guess it’s the accent I’m worried about? I mean, I thought that with talking to you, listening to a native speaker, it could get less obvious. I heard not everyone is welcoming to a girl with accent like mine.”

You obediently made a face as you started picking up your stuff, slipping into a light coat. “Ouch. Okay. Well, thank you for the lesson. See you on next Tuesday, the same time?”

“Yeah. Same place?”

You nodded, smiling nervously at her, hoping it didn’t show. “If you want to.”

You might have set up a next meeting with her, but you would be damned if you showed up. You needed to pack your bags and disappear – right now. Maybe even without the bags. You tried to keep your cool when exiting the café, your new student right behind you.

“Where are you heading?” you asked politely, already coming up with a dozen of locations you could answer her with if she asked you the same. Your heart was beating its way out of your chest as you nuzzled your nose into your thick scarf.

Where would you go next? You couldn’t stay in Prague. Should you head for Slovakia? You had heard countless times that the culture was pretty similar to the Czech one and you had kinda grown used to it. Or should you change the environment completely? Escape to Bulgaria? Maybe Italy? You could use some warm weather for a change… then again, Italians were all for hugs and affection and you couldn’t really work with that…

“Oh, Karlín. You?”

Okay, so… you definitely needed a different direction and chances were she would be taking either the subway B line or the tram, which meant you needed to use A. Or maybe go to the other side of the square for C, but that might be too suspicious – God knew what Eva had told this woman about your whereabouts. You couldn’t lie too obviously.

“I’m going to Želivského…. That’s A line subway,” you added when she seemed a bit confused. You walked with her for a bit, parting your ways at the stairs to the subway.

“Alright. Bye, Brigit!”

“Bye, Inna.”

You gave her another quick smile before heading down, forcing your legs to walk on acceptable speed instead of running.

Head for the A line. Blend in with the crowd and let it slowly carry you to the transfer corridor to the B line. Take the escalator, stand straight, don’t walk up. Exit via B line station. Hop on a tram. Two stations. Change the direction and ride one station back, continue several others as the track goes somewhere else. Get off the tram with a crowd. Get lost in an alleyway as the crowd is passing. Be pulled by a strong-

“Hey! Let me go! Nech mě být!” you cursed, complaining loudly so you draw attention as someone dragged you aside to an alleyway.

A huge hand covered your mouth and you bit down on it before you could even see who your assailant was. It didn’t matter. They had you and you couldn’t use your powers to reveal yourself, at least not right away. Maybe they would believe they had the wrong person.

“Ow! No biting!” a male voice complained and your rapidly beating heart stopped.

Oh god, oh fuck, no.

That wasn’t happening. You snapped your gaze to the painfully familiar face with the most honest and genuine blue eyes you had ever encountered and your mind turned blank.

He couldn’t be here. He shouldn’t and he couldn’t, because you had been extremely careful. Apparently not enough and now they found you; whoever ‘they’ were.

And they were using masks and voice disguisers, because you would fucking swear this was the love of your life standing right in front of you. They were playing dirty, taking you by surprise like this.

And they succeeded. Whoever was trying to get to Steve so they could replicate the serum just got themselves a jackpot. Except you were pretty sure you were worthless at this point; but they could never be sure enough of that unless they tried blackmailing the Avengers or Steve himself. Also, Steve would never let anyone die on his watch, so his most likely non-existent feelings weren’t that important.

You were about to scream when the hand muffled the sound again – was it really healed already? Why hadn’t they tried to knock you unconscious yet?

“Goddammit, Frosty! Keep it quiet!”

“Don’t call me that, you bastard!” you muttered into his palm, your knee shooting up to his crotch – he had left it unprotected unwisely.

His face twisted in a grimace that made you feel sorry for Steve even when your Steve wasn’t the one truly suffering – he couldn’t be, this couldn’t be him. His hand disappeared and you pushed him away with all strength you had, managing to free yourself.

“Wait!” he called out and you barely gave him a glance over your shoulder as you ran off-

Correction. As you ran into a wall. With full force, hitting your head so hard that for a moment, you saw the infamous stars behind your eyelids.

You stumbled backwards with a groan and your hand at the injured place, your messy mind coming up with the only solution you had – you woke up your powers, somehow realizing you couldn’t have run into an actual wall, because it simply hadn’t been there before. You barely felt the energy filling your body as the darkness embraced your vision – and the last thing you saw was red plasmatic energy and Inna’s apologetic face.

────── ·❆· ──────

“Was it really necessary, Wanda?” you heard Steve’s (not Steve’s) voice from a distance and groaned, immediately remembering what had happened. Fuck, you were so screwed. “Snowflake?”

“Call me that again and I will freeze your balls off.”

The woman at the side of the bed you were lying on – yeah, really, bed, a bed you weren’t tied to, which was kinda sloppy to be honest – burst out laughing.

“She’s really something. I think I fell in love.”

“Good. Do you think that after you knocked her unconscious, she will fall in love with you too?” the man bit back, smoothening your hair from your forehead. You grabbed his wrist on instinct to stop the motion.

Also, you could feel your mask was off. Wonderful. You opened your eyes to see the wannabe Steve and shot him a pointed look.

“Don’t touch me. I have no fucking idea who you are, but do not touch me. At least be fair and show your real face, you dickbag.”

“That’s a lot of money to the swear jar,” Inna – Wanda? – noted and you eyed her only to see her crossing her arms on her chest. She looked completely different now and confused the hell out of you. She took her wig off, not wearing a mask (or wearing a different one) and the only reason you recognized her as ‘Inna’ was her thick accent. “And since you don’t believe him – or me – let me show you. I can connect two minds on a certain level and I will. Good? I’m so glad you agree with this procedure.”

Before you could do a thing, she took the man’s hand from yours and touched both of you simultaneously. You gasped and closed your eyes at the flood of pictures appearing in front of your eyes, the noise, the— the feelings. It knocked the air out of your lungs, flushing over you like a tide wave.

You saw it all. Every single memory of you and Steve, from the first meeting (oh how pathetic and scared you looked) and gaining each other’s trust to the cuddles and the teasing…

The longing (oh, so much longing, the inner fight, the struggle not to take advantage of you, the desire to kiss you as you smiled at you? No, him), the love declaration, your first time, fighting by your side (the overwhelming fear every single time, yet so much admiration and respect), finding you in a snowed-in room with Michaels; that one scene seemed to happen in a slow motion, letting your brain recover.

All of the memories were strange as you saw yourself from above, from an unusual angle, but this particular memory was standing out with one more thing – your eyes were shiningly blue, unnaturally even; Michaels had been right, your eyes had changed colour that day.

Then the pace changed again and there was the memory of the tenderest love-making and you could tell immediately it must have been a very fond memory and an intense one too – spiked with a bitter taste of goodbye. The sudden rush of pain and fear would make your knees give out had you been standing,

And then came the anger – so consuming that you saw red for a second, yet recognizing Michaels in his prisoner’s cell with painful clarity. A punch. Another one and one more, yet not helping the gnawing feeling inside you at all.

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Obviously, you wanted to isolate her. But you had that in Pennsylvania as well. Why go through all the trouble?”

“Oh, sweetheart, I knew you would be with her, even as a backup, running after her like sick puppies. She wouldn’t do that alone. Protecting the man she owed everything though…”

“Who do you work for? What do you want with her?”

“What I told her. We want to replicate the serum.”

“…you’re not talking about the super-soldier serum.”

“Course not. Pff. Super-soldiers are so yesterday. The powers your precious Snowflake possesses, on the other hand…”

You were literally kicked out from the memory and shoved into a roller-coaster of hope, disappointment, frustration and denial. You caught a glimpse of a little flask with an engraving that looked suspiciously like an Asgardian one, of starless nights, endless line of torn off punching bags, but it was like seeing it from a train, too fast and blurry.

And then Bucky appeared. S.H.I.E.L.D. fell. Sokovia happened – Wanda, Pietro and Vision happened.

Finally, there was you again, biting his hand and kneeling him, endless relief and confusion and a spike of anger as you ran into an almost invisible wall of energy created by the Scarlet Witch. The hesitance about deactivating your mask; the rush of affection when seeing your face.

And pitch black.

You blinked your eyes open, darkness dancing around the edges of the simple white ceiling. A ghost of a touch on your wrist was present, but the sensation was nothing in comparison to the aftershock of emotions that bombarded your brain and insides.

Steve was leaning onto your bed for support, possibly feeling the same weakness in his body as you were. Tears burned in your eyes and you tried to focus your gaze on him, to feast your eyes, because you were suddenly sure it was him. Your heart swelled at the realization, the vital organ too large for your ribcage all of sudden.

His dazed eyes met yours, relieved as he noticed the change. He managed to give you an unsure smile as he lowered himself, reaching for your hand.

“Are you gonna bite me again if I touch you?” he asked, the supposedly teasing note lost on the way from his brain to his mouth. He seemed hesitant, afraid of rejection. Yet, he was watching you in awe and poorly hidden hope.

You felt the blood rushing to your cheeks when you remembered that you had bit him and… kicked him in— oh boy. You already had an apology on your tongue when you changed your mind and forced a smile. There would be plenty of time for apologies.

“No. But I might if you don’t.”

His face brightened and he took your hand in his, squeezing gently, careful as much as he had been when you had seen each other the last time. It felt like eternity since then. And after experiencing the grief you had caused him… you actually felt guilty for running off – especially now, when you found out Michaels had been playing you and you had fallen for it.

You had run off for nothing. You had actually done exactly what they had wanted, isolating yourself and making their work easier. No contact, no life, no relationships. Hurting people you cared about. Loneliness being your only true friend for so long.

And all of that for nothing.

It was a little comfort that at least you managed to hide from Michaels’ minions or bosses effectively. It didn’t feel important.

The tears rolled down your cheeks as you watched Steve, emotions displayed so openly on his face; the concern at your tears if nothing else. His fingers brushed your forehead as if unwittingly, the tender touch making your eyelids flutter close. He immediately pulled back.

“Head that bad?”

“No, you dope,” you mumbled, snapping your eyes open again. He watched you curiously, searching for anything that could clue him why you called him a dope. Not that it was the worst thing you had called him today. “I… I missed you and— and I’m so sorry, Steve. I-- I know I made a stupid mistake and I didn’t want to hurt you, I swear, I didn’t want you to get hurt-”

“Hey, hey,” he soothed you quickly, his fingers running through your hair and you realized you started crying for real, sobbing and all the ugliness associated with the display of weakness. “Hey, Snowflake, it’s okay— …it’s not okay, I think I won’t take you back to others, because Natasha or Tony might actually kill you, but-“

“But you won’t? What do I get then? The silent treatment? A beating? ‘Cause I’ll take it, I know I deserve it.”

His eyebrows furrowed, creating a worried yet somehow tender wrinkle. “How about ‘I missed you too’ treatment?”

Your heart skipped a beat as you realized his face got closer, his thumb drawing circles on the back of your hand and the fingers of his other hand still caressing your hair.

“What— what does that look like?” you choked out, a growing lump in your throat suffocating you.

That couldn’t be real. He was mad. You had felt it. You had felt it all, the good things too of course, but the pain too. Fixing things, getting forgiveness, it couldn’t be so easy. Too easy.

“Whatever you want.”

You observed his handsome face, his worn features, the exhaustion radiating for miles as well as delight and careful hope.

“That doesn’t sound right.”

He pouted. Steve Rogers fucking pouted as if he wanted to draw attention to his lips some more. He succeeded. You licked yours at the sight, mentally slapping yourself at instant. You had broken his heart – almost two years ago. You had no right to want any of that.

“Oh my god, just kiss already, your emotional roller-coaster is killing me!” Wanda whined miserably and you honest to god jolted to your feet, almost colliding with startled Steve. Your head spun and it wasn’t only from the rapid movement.

Jesus, you forgot all about Wanda!

“Wanda,” Steve murmured lowly, no chance of her truly hearing it. You did though and you eyed him, biting your lip.

“Do you-“ you blurted out and stopped abruptly before you could finish the bold question.

“What?” he asked softly, his hands hovering at your sides, ready to catch you if your head decided to send you back to unconsciousness – or at least to the floor. Always the protector. The rush of affection towards him was too much to bear.

Yet, you couldn’t imagine leaving this room without him.

“Never mind. We should move. If you found me, then they-“

His hand actually fell on your hip and your gaze shot its direction before looking up to his face in surprise.

“Wait. Do you?”

You gulped as his eyes flickered to your mouth at his words and you would swear you heard Wanda mutter ‘yes, she does’. Your cheeks burned hotter.

“Yes.”

His lips slowly spread in a smile as he leaned in, his kiss landing on your cheek. You chuckled delightfully at the familiar yet so foreign feeling and returned the favour.

When he went for your mouth with silent ‘Can I?’, you sure didn’t protest.

Meeting his lips felt like coming home, even with the kiss ending way earlier than you wished. But him letting you melt into his embrace after that was almost as good as kissing him senseless.

────── ·❆· ──────

Epilogue

────── ·❆· ──────

Tags: @mermaidxatxheart, @murdermornings, @elisaa-shelby @ask-hellbent-tweek @cxptain, @kallafrench, @smilexcaptainx @scentedsongrebel, @orions-nebula

────── ·❆· ──────

*Draws a hallo above her head* Have some more knowledge of Prague infrastructure. It’s authentic :D

They reunited! Also, there’s only epilogue ahead.... and a bonus. Aaaand then the series continues.

#marvel #fanfiction #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #captain america x reader #captain america x you #steve rogers imagine #captain america imagine #steve rogers #captain america #avengers #avenger reader #mcu #heart too cold but friends of gold #anika ann

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transgamerthoughts · 4 years

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Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Thoughts and Ramblings

Surprised to dust this off but I want to collect my thoughts quickly now that credits are rolling on Remake:

In general, I enjoyed it quite a lot. As one of many players with a unique relationship to the original (I first “played” it watching a childhood friend over the course of several sleepovers before playing on my own and occasionally returning to it) I was skeptical. I’ve express some of that skepticism at Kotaku , a website I write at. Remakes and remasters sometimes fall short or deviate in strange ways. Remake forges its own path and I’m grateful for it.

SPOILERS AHEAD KIDDOS

So! Here’s some scattered thoughts. Maybe they end up on Kotaku, maybe not. And while I’m loathe to immediately rush to create content on a Sunday night, this game has my mind spinning. Here we go.

The characterizations in this game are very strong, perhaps stronger than the original’s Midgar section. Some of that is owed to a very bad localization in ‘97 (you can get insight into that from my former colleague Tim Rogers’ series here) but Remake takes a lot of effort to allow the cast to breathe. That can come from the ways in which Cloud alters his way of taking with Tifa, and it can come in the moment where Barrett is more explicitly an ideologue. It’s quite good even if the script has a flaw that we’ll talk about in a second.

That flaw is, frankly, that if you’ve not played the original then Remake is going to end up impenetrable in the final hours. This is particularly true once characters like Zack are brought into the fold and the visuals begin to mirror the original. (See: the hard cuts before Sephiroth and Clouds final duel mirroring the Omnislash moment from ‘97.) I don’t think that diminishes the character work here but I think that the more interesting meta-narrative stuff *so* damn crucial to this game that I can’t imagine what a newcomer will think.

Connected to this, I’ve seen folks disappointed that this is not a perfect remake but in this instance, I think that sentiment is misplaced. Valid, but shortsighted? You can’t make Final Fantasy VII today. Not in the way it existed in ‘97. Which isn’t to say the visuals or script but the context cannot be reproduced. New hardware, FMVs taking a forefront, an advertising campaign that positioned the game in competition with movies, and a cultural splash that the series hasn’t ever quite replicated. Because the weight of expectation hovers over Remake—folks have been obsessed with a new version since the PS3 tech demo stirred imagination at E3 2020—the game *needs* to be about that. To be a game about this moment, the moment gamers have waited decades for, Remake needs to be about itself in a very explicit way.

I can’t not see the Whispers and Arbiters of Fate as anything other than stand-ins for gamers, fans, and the culture as a whole. That’s an obvious reading but an undeniable one. The core question of Remake doesn’t really have much to do with the fictional stakes. It’s this: who owns Final Fantasy VII, and who owns the Remake? Is it the story tellers or the players? I have a cheat answer: it belongs to the characters. In unbinding themselves from player expectation, they claim ownership over the narrative now.

Aeris just flat out knows she’s in a sequel/alt-timeline thing. Her final line is about missing the surety of something as presumably ever present at the metal sky of Midgar’s plates.

I like the combat here more than FFXV, which isn’t saying a lot but worth saying. There’s more participation from the player. That’s it. I don’t think *more* active choice inherently makes a combat system better but it is the key reason this works better than XV.

Character swapping breaks things somewhat since enemy aggro is (save for using the provoke materia) focused on the player. Wish the combat design took this into consideration a bit more. It’s the one glaring flaw in the system.

Tifa is the most fun to play as in this game. It’s not even a contest. Starshower is overpowered as hell and Chi Trap rules. Love using her to increase the potency of the stagger meter when the time comes.

Fights do get occasionally Too Busy. Airbuster is a big culprit here. Too many phases for what was essentially a jobber of a boss in the original game.

Train Graveyard section is an atrocious pace killer as well. Again: “too many notes.”

I never found the Nail Bat and that was a bit of a bummer.

I tweeted out a quote from Barrett this weekend and it made the rounds. In general, for this game, Barrett works best in this revolutionary mode even if certain scenes (Shinra middle manager for instance) deploy visual language that’s dated. Of any character, he has the highest highs and lowest lows. Not surprising.

re: that tweet some folks kinda lost their shit about it(?) but I think the quote still holds. Remake does a good job of showing *individuals* within Shinra but Barrett does rightly note they are complicit to an extent in Shinra’s crimes. You can disagree with what Barrett does about it but that’s 100% true. Sorry, not sorry. (The discourse today was just a hassle frankly. Multiple things can be true at once, but I don’t think Twitter is a place where that’s ever acknowledged.) Whatever eventual regrets he might feel about methodology in ‘97′s script, he’s not wrong on this individual point. I’m interested to see where he goes as a character when it comes to all this.

Kinda related to the above, Remake arguably does a better job than ‘97 showing the alternative to Shinra. It’s the communal nature of the individual sectors. It’s the Neighborhood Watch and local leaders in Sector 7, the trio in Wall Market. Remake rejects Shinra’s autocracy and favors the various slums communes. This is made ever more clear by how little of Reeve we see in this script. Who are the leaders shaping life into a passable experience in Midgar? It’s not the Urban Planning guy with the cat robot.

Also: hey, is that Cait Sith in the plate drop cutscene? Yep! Hope you played the original or there’s just this sad cat that shows up for 4 four seconds.

Is he a Chad? Well, he’s Chad-ley...

Not sure what to think of the Wutai stuff being more explicit but it feels right for 2020 for a variety of reasons. I’ve never been too interested in FF7′s realpolitik tho. It’s not really much of an expansion so much as a background element but one that’s deployed a bit lazily.

Roche owns in a way I was not expecting. He’s a balls to the wall anime motherfucker and I kinda love him? I’m really, really surprised that (as far as I could tell) he didn’t even come back for the final bike sequence tho.

I don’t really have the energy to litigate or talk about Wall Market much. I think it’s better than the original but pandering in the sense that it’s a very safe and commodified version of queerness. I appreciate that Nomura and folks looked at the original and were like “well, we can’t do *that*” but it doesn’t quite land for me.

That said: “yes, I know, nailed it,” is a fantastic line with a fantastic read from Cloud’s English VA.

Hell House announcers rule. Hell House fight? Kinda terrible actually.

Nice shout out to Kunsel in Shinra Tower. Crisis Core is a messy game but I like Tabata’s work a lot. Even the messy stuff, which is most of it. That game’s story is bonkers but I like Zack and I actually like the idea of the Digital Mind Wave as a mechanic. If nothing else, Squeenix lost a pretty exciting designer when he left.

Less nice? This game’s tendency to pad out dungeons. The whole approach to the Sector 5 reactor comes to mind. Train fight then tunnels then sun lamps then reactor. It’s a lot. Also: all of the extra Hojo stuff. I know we’re padding out like 5 hours but some of the sections could have been abbreviated. Probably would have made the game better.

Even less nice? Zack’s English voice actor. Maybe the only voice actor I didn’t like. Really miss Rick Gomez on this one.

Conversely, Red XIII? They nailed it. 11/10. Nanaki, I love you so much.

Counterstance is an amazing move and I can’t want to carry that over into Hard Mode.

The Jenova fight fuckin’ ripped. I was a bit huffy when I learned through leaks that there was a Jenova fight (since the first fight in the original is on the boat to Costa Del Sol) but this was a great set piece. One of the moments where everything worked.

Also good: Rufus fight. Bad: losing Rufus’ speech to the party.

Not a ton more thoughts right now? Sephiroth fight was good although for all his presence in the story I think we suffer without the full Nibelheim flashback to round things out. In all really liked it. Want to play again pretty much immediately. Will write something more cogent for the site I guess? Got a few ideas. But yeah! entered as skeptic and left mostly a believer on this one.

#final fantasy vii remake #spoilers

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hellsbells91 · 4 years

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The Witcher from the POV of someone who’s never read the books or played the games:

So I finished watching The Witcher, and apart from being disappointed when I discovered there were only 8 episodes rather than the 10 I thought there were for some reason, I quite enjoyed it...

But first it must be said that I’m coming at this as someone who’s never read the books nor played the games - the extent of my knowledge prior to watching this was that at some point there was a game called The Witcher. This is just to add some context to this review (something the show definitely doesn’t help you with).

Despite losing its way here and there, there are definite standout moments in the Witcher, and it would be a disservice harp on about confusing timelines or messy pacing without saying how sheerly enjoyable The Witcher is.

+ There is great representation. It’s nice to see POC characters who aren’t relegated to playing the part of ‘scary/savage/deviant foreigners’ - especially in a fantasy where this sort of thing is rife.

+ The Music/soundtrack is absolutely fantastic with a really cool, off-key folky vibe that sets the scene perfectly. And yes ‘Toss a coin to your Witcher’ is as catchy as everyone says it is.

+ Speaking of Witchers, Henry Cavill does an excellent job as the stoic, sarcastic yet kind-hearted Geralt. I found him totally convincing and far from the accusations of ‘blandness’ from some critics - I really cherished the moments where you could see his emotions peek through the solid ‘Witchers don’t feel emotions’ thing he has going on. The action sequences featuring him are brilliantly done and are a highlight of the series as a whole - he is very talented at fighting and the choreographers involved should be congratulated for making each fight play out like a brutal dance.

+ The monsters are also twisted, terrifying and awesome - the Striga in particular is genuinely frightening and with such an intriguing horror mystery surrounding it. If anything I wish there was more monster hunting (not that there isn’t plenty, only that I want more in the future).

Critiques:

Okay, the show’s not perfect and I had a few different complaints after watching but I soon figured most of them could be summarised as there being simultaneously too much information to learn, but not enough context. Names and locations are thrown around left and right and to someone new to the world it’s a lot to take in, and there’s little time to breathe or to ground the information, which then makes it harder to see the world as a living breathing reality. I’ve read fantasy novels that get around this by sticking a great big map at the front of the book so you can check when you’re feeling lost.

And whilst the use of different timelines is a really ingenious way to show long backstories without exposition dumps/excessive flashbacks, the hints of there being different timelines are often so subtle that they’re easily missed or disregarded as throwaway lines especially without that pre-existing knowledge of the world. I registered that something was off with the timelines but it didn’t wholly click until it was made super obvious in episode 4, but that might just be me.

It is a shame though because this confusion also led to me misinterpreting characters, of which Yennifer is the prime example. The fact that her disability was magically fixed and then shortly followed by the ‘makeover moment’ signalling her fitness to join society I found, frankly, offensive. I was unhappy with it and shocked at first that Tumblr was reacting so positively. But after reading a couple of posts from people who know more about her story than me, I understood a lot more about her motivations and her naive belief that looks and power would fulfil her only to find that it’s all fake as she struggles to live with the price she paid for it. It makes Yennifer a much more intriguing and complex character to follow than the shallow reading of ‘she’s hot now she can get everything she wants’.

The tone as well can stray all over the place, as if it can’t decide between being a serious fantasy horror or campy fun. I’m not knocking the humour, only suggesting some of it might have been better woven in. Jaskier is the comedic centre of the show and he is a great light-hearted presence to have around but sometimes his jokes just feel totally out of place. I suppose it’s there to highlight just how out of his depth Jaskier is, but sometimes it breaks the tension/drama of a scene and not in a good way.

On a similar note, while the setting is historical the characters feel quite modern - through their looks, mannerisms, speech etc. It’s not necessarily a bad thing - Merlin did a similar thing by making characters of legend feel modern and different - but it does add to the confused tone.

Nevermind all that though, when things start flowing more cohesively as you get further on in the series the Witcher shows real potential and I really look forward to where the story will go in season 2. Just gotta wait a year for it. I’m now wondering whether I should just play The Witcher 3.

#The witcher #the witcher netflix #the witcher spoilers #the witcher review

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astxriism · 4 years

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Blood Moon Rising

Title: Pup

Featuring: Rowan & Luna, Rowan & Angelica, Rowan & Leo (flashback)

Summary: Not a man, nor a beast but something more. When Rowan awakens to find himself thrust into a world hidden from him for years. Finding himself a part of a pack, and to uncover the mystery of his heritage and the two people that seemingly know him better then he knows himself. A prophecy on the verge of fullfilment; will Rowan be able to face this new life and the people in it? Or will his destiny be to much for him to bear?

A/N: So I made an outline ( a very messy outline) and I have a clear idea on where I want this to go. Since I had a couple of memes from saturdays meme day that went unanswered (from Elly and Di) This is me blending them together for this part and adding on to it. Hopefully, it works lol. Also, I’ve sprinkled in some of my other npcs that I now have to add to my growing list of thought babies on my character page. So, I’ll be updating that as well. Did I mention I love AU! Okay, on with the show. @storybot post

Cure, Uptown New Orleans

There were a couple of places in Nola that offered good food and drink. Rowan had preferred to stay away from the hussle of high tourist areas. Drunken frat boys, wild hen nights and boob flashing wasn’t really his scene anymore; if it had been ever. Cure offered him the good drink and food he craved without all the hoopla of what New Orleans was known for; party city of the western world.

“Penny for your thoughts.”

Rowan turned in his chair at the bar, looking at the man who took the seat next to him. Most people gave him a wide berth; tourist that happened upon him in the bar oftern didn’t stick around long because it was too ‘boring’. Locals, gave him a nod but mostly went about their business. Dark eyes ran over the man as he ordered a drink and asked for a menu.

He didn’t give off the appearance of someone unfamiliar to the area. But Rowan was sure he’d never seen him in the bar before. Six months, he lived in a small apartment near the french quarter. Six months he’d been coming to this bar. Seen many attractive men and women walk through the door, went home with a few of them too.

This man, was different.

“ My thoughts aren’t that intresting,” Rowan said.

The dark-haired man chuckled, turning his body towards Rowan. He liked his laugh, his was deep, resonating in his chest; a slight huskyness to it.

“ I don’t know. Those frown lines on your forhead would say you have lots of ‘em.”

“Or I’m a natural brooder and I wake up like this.” he grinned.

The man shook his head, pointing a finger towards his own chest. “ That would be me. I came out of my mother's womb with this scowl.”

Now Rowan laughed. He liked talking with him. Not just because he had the balls to approach him - because most didn’t. No, it went deeper than that. He had something, something that naturally drew him in. Tugging at the middle of his chest, leaving him feeling warm and safe in his presence. It should have been a warning sign, there was all sorts of strange and unexplainable things happening in this city. Happening around him, the reason why his memory was fractured and he couldn’t recall much— if any of his childhood. The people he came from, his family.

Solitude was all he knew, with the occasional dalliance here and there. He had no family, no friends, no home. A tumble weed in a world that seemingly wanted nothing to do with him and always seemed to cut him off at the knees.

It should have been a warning sign, when he streched out his hand towards the stranger. He should have gotten up and left when he felt the jolt of electricity that ran up his arm when their hands met. He should have been nervous as a warmth spread through him, calming and alluring. Making him think of words like home. Instead, Rowan stayed seated, eyes on the other and spoke.

“Rowan Polat.”

The butterflies in his stomach took off, as a knowing smile appeared on the other man’s face.

“ Leo Ronan, it’s very nice to meet you Rowan.”

The Bayou, New Orleans (present)

“Watch out!”

The warning call was enough to pull Rowan out of his thoughts. His hand reaching out to catch the flying object just before it hit him in the face. A group of boys looking back at him wearily. Giving the closest, and seemingly younger boy a wink. Rowan tossed it over to him. Who smiled waving in thanks as he took off running ball firmly in hand as the others followed.

The party was still going, though now it was late afternoon. Apparently, they would stay here until night fall. Before making their way back towards the 7th ward. From what he could gather- and that wasn’t much-considering people were either intrested in drinking, eating, or they were busy trying to figure him out. Which left him confused and looking for the solitude he had lost.

Once he had his fill of ‘meeting the pack’. Rowan had found a tree and took refuge beneath it. Watched as Leo and Jude walked away arm in arm and that left him in even more of a sour mood. So, he nursed a botle of mead someone had made and sat down and people watched.

“ What crawled up your ass pup?”

Craning his head, at the woman that stopped a few feet ahead of him. Rowan decided to ignore her less then steller greeting and focused on one word.

“Pup?”

“Yeah, it’s what we call first-timers. You did shift for the frist time last night right?” she said, arms crossed over her chest.

“ I did, i just didn’t think everyone would be calling me pup. You, Leo, that group of dick heads over there.”

The woman’s eyes followed where Rowan gestured. Burly looking men, a few feet away. Loud, obnoxious, and giving other people a hard time when ever they passed them.

“Ah yes, the goon squad.” she mused shaking her head.

“ Ignore Dale and is acolytes. Between the five of them, they can’t even fire off one brain cell. Let alone oporate 10% of their own.”

Rowan eyed her a moment before he started to laugh. She was funny, moody but funny.

“Guess I won’t go to them for a philosophical debate?”

She shook her head, “ Not unless that debate involves using your fist or teeth.”

Looking away from Dale and company, their eyes met. A simliar a quizzical look in her dark eyes. He was about to call her on it, before she took on a neutral expression almost bored look.

“Come on, I’ve got to take you to Angelica.”

“Who?”

Letting out an annoyed sigh she glared at him, “ Does it matter, Leo told me to take you to her so that’s what I’m doing.” she quipped “- don’t be difficult. I’m not in the mood .”

Turning she began to walk away from him. The petty side of him wanted to stay right were he was under his tree. But the need to do as he’s alpha said took over and he, reluctantly, jogging up next to her.

“You aren’t going to tell me your name?”

She raised a brow, “ Is that a line? Cause it needs work.”

“ I just meant everyone has introduced themselves in some way. Even your buddy Dale.” he chuckled at the look of disgust on her face. “ So no name then. Should I call you grumpy? You look like a Grumpy or maybe bit-”

“Geez, Luna alright. My name is Luna.”

Rowan grinned bumbing her with his shoulder, “See, that wasn’t so hard was it?”

“It was, and you’re annoying.” she huffed increasing her pace

Rowan was able to keep up easily enough, chuckling to himself. Was it to early to say that he liked Luna? He didn’t think so, it was a welcome change. While she might give off the vibe of ‘ leave me be or I'll cut you’. Rowan found he liked her energy. It didn’t take long before they were infront of a large tent closer to the woods. Luna turned back towards the other, jutting her chin towards the tent.

“ Go on pup, she’s waiting for you.”

Rolling his eyes - because the whole pup thing was going to get old real quick. He moved towards the opening.

“And Rowan...”

His footsteps haulted; turning to face her once more. As she ran a hand through her dark hair she gave him a little shrug and smirked, “ Welcome to the pack.”

For his part, Rowan mimicked her smirked giving a nod of thanks before entering the tent. The inside was darker then he would have expected. Considering they were now in the hight of the afternoon. A few candles were ablaze on a table. A wooden bowl in the center surrounded by the candles. Rowan frowned as he entered. His eyes landing of the figure in the far corner. She wore a long flowy dress, bracelets clinking together as she worked on something. Dark curly hair sat high on her head as her caramel- mocha skin glisten in the candle light.

“ Angelica I take it.” he called .

His eyes continued to take in his surrounding. The collection of plants and bottles strewn around the diffrent surfaces. When she finally turned around, he was met with the grey -blue eyes he had seen earlier with Leo, albeit briefly.

“ I am,” smiling softly; extending her arm towards the table and the pillow chair in the center. Rowan took the cue ,and made his way towards the table. It took him a minute to get comfortable. Sitting with his legs crossed and pulled under him. Resting his elbows on his knees as he watch her, effortlessly, take the seat opposite of him.

Angelica placed a knife next to the bowl in the center of the table. Her eyes never leaving his. A part of him, was wondering what was different about her. She was different, not like the others in the pack, more like him. Not that he could pinpoint how. Something akin to outer worldly in her eyes. For the first time, he felt a little on edge under her watchful gaze.

A knowing smile graced her lips, and Rowan was sure that she could feel his apperhension.

“May I have your hand please?”

He raised a brow, eyes drifting towards the knife, “ Why?”

She giggled, “You have a lot of questions Rowan, and not all of them will be answered in a day. All I ask is for you to trust me, can you do that?”

No. He didn’t want to trust her. He shouldn’t trust her. Look where trusting a beautiful face got him. Rowan trusted Leo, a man he hadn’t known only spending a couple of hours with him. Now he was a werewolf, surrounded by people he didn’t know but did. His life turned upside down and he had the sickening feeling that his life was only going to become more topsyturvy as time went on.

Even with everything in him crying for Rowan to get up and run, run and never look back. Damn it if he didn’t feel some kind of security with this woman. So, he stretched out his hand towards her. Shivering as soft, gentle hands took hold of his.

Rowan watched as she looked over his palm. Her digits dancing across the lines indented in them. Whispering words underher breath that even with his improved hearing he couldn’t quite make out. It was a diffrent language though. French, Creole?

“Latin,” she supplied her eyes still on his hand.

Okay, that wasn’t creepy.

“Isn’t that a dead language?”

“It’s only dead to the people who no longer use it.” she giggled again reaching for the knife. The wolf inside him was stirring and Rowan couldn’t help but fidget a little in his seat. When her steel eyes met his, he calmed his wolf ready to attack if need be.

“Trust me.” was all she said before she dragged her knife along his palm. His blood filling the bowl in front of them. The pain wasn’t so bad, but his hand did sting. When Angelica released him, he snatched his hand away, looking down to see how bad the damage was. But there was no damage, the cut was gone. All that remaind was slightly pink new flesh.

“How did yo-”

“You’re a werewolf now, we heal faster then most.” she grinned. “Ignis.”

Brown eyes widen as the bowl that held his blood became inblazed with the reddish, orange flame in the center. He was in awe as he leaned closer towards the flame. Passing a hand through it, he didn’t know what he was expecting. A hologram, some sort of trick of the eye? But as he felt the heat against his flesh he knew it was real. Eyes widen in wonder, he looked up at a very amused face of Angelica.

“Who are you?”

Giving a rueful shake of her head, she flicked her wrist as the flap of the entrance opened up, casting in the afternoon light once more.

“You’ll find out soon enough, mon cher.”

#[BLOOD MOON RISING]#[werewolf AU]#fiction writing #can yaman #C.Rowan

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gascon-en-exil · 4 years

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Joining the Game Late: S7E3 “The Queen’s Justice”

Synopsis

Jon and Davos are welcomed to Dragonstone, which has changed a lot since Davos was there: now there are dragons. Melisandre drops cryptic death foreshadowing, again. Daenerys is regal and stubborn and Jon sucks at public speaking, and they don’t get much of anywhere before Varys interrupts with news of their fleet’s loss. Theon’s on a random boat while Euron is hailed as a hero and his three captives are given the Cersei treatment. Cersei thought long and hard about the most appropriate way to kill Ellaria, so hard it made her horny for more twincest. The Iron Bank comes to Cersei to collect. Jon excels at brooding, but Tyrion suggests he network and convinces Dany to let Jon mine her dragonglass. Sansa takes charge of Winterfell, but then Bran comes home and creeps her out with his flashback powers. Jorah is cured, and Sam is commended but not rewarded. Tyrion talks through the siege of Casterly Rock and his knowledge of the sewers, but Euron shows up to burn the Unsullied fleet and Jaime’s off marching on Highgarden. Cersei though long and hard about the most appropriate way to kill Olenna, but Jaime talked her out of it and lets her go out painlessly. Too bad for him Olenna’s got him figured out and also uses her last moments to confess to Joffrey’s murder.

Commentary

GoT is moving at a breakneck pace now, but in this space I want to slow it down for a bit and do some character examination. I’ll have opportunities later to talk about the relationship between Jon and Dany or how much Tyrion sucks as a military strategist (seriously, Euron has singlehandedly foiled two phases of his master invasion plan at this point) or Sansa as a leader or Bran being...whatever he is now exactly, but this episode marks the end of both Dorne and House Tyrell as presences on the show. As interested as I am in the real world cultures on which the Reach and Dorne are based it’s only appropriate that I take some time to eulogize them, tangential to the main plot though they always were.

I’ll start with the easier of the two. Dorne was added to the board only in Season 4, and while Oberyn was a fully-realized and dynamic character in that season his lover Ellaria has been the backbone of their story ever since his death. She hasn’t been a good backbone, nor is it a good story: a straightforward revenge plot in a show that’s got several notably better examples peppered with elements that don’t go anywhere and not especially likeable characters. Her Sand Snake minions received almost no individual characterization apart from what weapons they wielded - probably why Euron killed two of them with those same weapons in the last episode - and I’m about 90% sure that the one who survives to be poisoned in front of her mother is the same one who taunted Bronn with a topless scene and had that terrible line about good girls and bad pussy. Even apart from their eagerness to murder their uncle and cousin, they’re not the sort of characters you’d ever care about, and their leader has been little better ever since her former character all but disappeared into her vengeance motivation.

And yet - in her last appearance Ellaria is set up as a deliberate foil of Cersei, a reflection of where the new Queen of the Seven Kingdoms might be if she’d had fewer resources and weaker allies. Euron’s captives are forced to walk through the streets of King’s Landing as the crowd jeers and pelts them with debris, and then Cersei makes Ellaria’s end personal by poisoning her daughter in front of her with the same poison that killed Myrcella. It’s the endpoint of a lengthy cycle of revenge, and the morality of it is as messy as it should be. Similar to Cersei’s torture of Unella, it’s both triumphant and painful to watch her exert her power and capacity for cruelty over these women, even though her victims are not sympathetic or even pleasant. It’s honestly more than I ever expected the show to do with these characters after so much unimpressive waffling and one-note villainy - perhaps not a fitting sendoff for one of Westeros’s less developed kingdoms, but a thematically solid one given what was available to work with.

All the more appropriate as well that the end of House Tyrell circles back to the assassination that kicked off that cycle of revenge in the first place. I have to say that I was not impressed by the visuals in the final sequence, which offered very few exterior shots of the fabled splendor of Highgarden with the little that appeared on camera not aesthetically remarkable (and hardly any flowers!). Yes, yes, budgetary concerns for what is really just the setup to a dialogue scene set in a single interior, but Highgarden is supposedly this world’s equivalent to Paris. A little more effort would have been appreciated. Nevertheless, the Queen of Thorns’s last scene was fantastic, a means of reckoning with the abrupt destruction of her house and her complicity in entwining the family with the Lannisters in the first place. As much as I enjoyed her final jab at both Cersei and Jaime I do have to wonder how this is building up to what I’ve heard about Jaime having a redemption arc thwarted at the eleventh hour by bad writing, because whatever progress the show may be pushing him toward here by having Olenna tell him that he’s too blinded by love to recognize how horrible his sister/lover is instantly reversed when she confesses to arranging Joffrey’s death and sneers at Jaime’s feelings for him both as a king and as the father he could never openly be. Really, Jaime has sex with Cersei again this episode because vengeance makes her horny, and now with ten episodes left I’m having a hard time imagining him fully switching course to turn against her only to come back to her one last time. It’s not like he was opposing her the other times the two were separated.

Oh, whatever - no point in speculating on the failings of episodes I haven’t seen yet. Olenna goes out as sharp as she came in, and while I would have much preferred a stronger focus and a more central role for the Reach in the overall plot I acknowledge that that’s not a fault of the showrunners or these Anglos-playing-French actors or anyone else involved in the production so much as it is an author whose fantasy is as Anglo-centric as the genre in English always is.

#Game of Thrones #GoT

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we-are-what-they-grow-beyond · 4 years

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some seriously self indulgent TROS thoughts that no one asked for: spoilers ahead!

(i’m gonna try tag every spoiler tag I can think of just in case anyone out there does care, but tbh this is really just for me lol)

the following is going to be a very ‘off the cuff’ series of ramblings so I apologise if it’s all over the place

Overall.. I think I liked it? I left the cinema feeling euphoric, which is honestly all I wanted from ix. While there were very few immediate things that I took offence to as I was watching it [unlike TLJ] I have a bad feeling that some doubts about certain scenes and character choices are gonna creep into my brain in the next few days. Like the longer I think about it, the worse it’s gonna get.

The beginning was a mess. I think every single person who has seen it can agree on that much. There was so much exposition and heavy handed course correction from TLJ that it felt laboured and disjointed. The pacing was at this crazy breakneck speed.. we must have visited at least six different planets in the first fifteen minutes. I think that Poe’s ‘hyperdrive jumping’ [?] sequence really set the tone for the first act - just a constant barrage of different locations and characters.

And I understand that they had to do this. The events of TLJ left them no choice, they needed to establish every main character’s position [both physically and mentally], portray the current state of the war as well as rebuild a believable rapport between our core trio all within the first fifteen minutes if they wanted to give the last act any chance of sticking the landing. And to some extent I think they achieved this. In all that running around on different planets, bickering amongst the trio and the funny asides from Threepio - it really felt like something straight out of the OT. For the first time since TFA I cared about these characters.

However. In doing this, they continually broke the cardinal rule of screenwriting; show don’t tell. While watching the first act I felt weighed down with information, like every five seconds another character would pop in with a monologue that sent them on another wild goose chase in which they had to find another hundred things that I would inevitably struggle to remember. ‘So now they need to go here, to see where Luke went, because he wanted to find this guy, who has this object, that will bring them to this other place, so that they can see Palpatine?’ It was so heavily reliant on dialogue alone that it ultimately lead to this sense of utter messiness.

Where the film thrived was in it’s action set pieces. I adored the way the force was portrayed in this film. The scene in the desert in which Ben [yes Ben, but more on that later] and Rey pulled that First Order Transport out of the sky sent shivers down my spine. We have never seen the force used like this before and the amount of power Rey held was absolutely staggering. I loved it.

The saber battle on top of the Death Star was a visual highlight. Even though I felt like I’d seen most of it in TV Spots the urgency never went away. The moodiness of the water and mist cut through by the blue and red light was beautiful.

The one shot of Poe, Finn and Chewie running through the Destroyer hallway felt like an echo back to everything that lies at the heart and soul of this saga.

We’ve been begging for more space battles and boy did we get a good one. When Lando and Chewie sauntered in on the Falcon with their thousands of rebel support ships set to the theme I was sobbing. There were so many little references in that one shot, from Rebels to Resistance to even Wedge Antilles - My heart swelled.

But where I really broke was on Ahch-To. One of my biggest gripes with TLJ was its treatment of Luke. Every time I watch it again that shot of his submerged X wing infuriates me beyond measure as Johnson never chose to do anything with it [despite there being an obvious answer]. We finally got that scene in this film, the scene I was so desperate for; a callback to perhaps my favourite moment in the whole skywalker saga entangled with an apology for TLJ’s treatment of our favourite jedi master. Set to Yoda’s Theme, I felt like for a split second like I was watching Empire, and that meant the world to me. Thank you J.J.

The characterisation is perhaps the most divisive part of the film for me. It took so many risks, it’s going to take quite some time for me to properly digest them all.

I want to start with our beloved Leia. The CGI, although perhaps not quite as seamless as some reviewers are making it out to be, worked well enough. With the knowledge of Carrie’s passing, it’s easy to poke holes in the performance - I found the beginning of her screen time particularly jarring, with her mostly addressing Rey with one word answers. I knew that there was supposed to be an emotional weight to all her scenes, as there she was, our princess, somehow miraculously on our screens for one final time. But I didn’t cry. I didn’t feel as if she was truly there in body or soul, and the emotional power of her scenes suffered as a result. Maybe in time, as we forget about the circumstances under which this film had to be made, this obvious detachment might fade away. And I sincerely hope it does, because the backstory they gave her is what truly deserves to be remembered about Leia in this film. The flashback scene of her training with Luke was glorious, the cgi really worked well here, and for the first time we saw Leia as a fully fledged jedi. This is something I could never ever have even imagined and I’m so pleased they did it, it would have meant so much to me as a young girl. As for her death, I believe they did the best they could with it. She ultimately died saving her son, protecting both the light and her family - two themes that have been so central to this entire forty two year saga. I don’t think they could have done much more.

I was shocked to see Harrison in this, surprised isn't even the right word. But this bewilderment that I felt thankfully didn’t overshadow his integral role in the so called ‘Bendemption’ arc, in fact I think it really tied the whole thing together nicely. I have hated the idea of Kylo’s possible redemption since the moment we found out his true heritage during TFA, I thought it was too simple, too obvious. But the way in which it was dealt with here was wonderful. It showed Kylo to be entirely complex and ambiguous, and at the end of it we saw Ben for what he was, a young and vulnerable young man who ultimately made some terrible choices, the conflict in him was brilliantly acted. It was ultimately his parents that pulled him back to the light, not just Rey, and that fact alone saved this story arc for me.

[I refuse to talk about the kiss. I hated it. It didn’t need to happen.]

Rey is a difficult one. Was the Palpatine bloodline convenient? Yes. Terribly so. Did it make sense story wise? Only kind of. But, I think it drew a definitive line under the nine film conflict which was ultimately at its core just Skywalker vs Palpatine, so in that sense I’m happy it happened in the way it did.

[Sheev on an aesthetic level looked dreadful I thought. Proper rubbery. And the logistics of how he survived/who all those chanting followers were/where he got all those Imperial star destroyers from is extremely questionable. I try not to dwell on it.]

My mixed feelings about Finn and Poe cannot be overstated. The film did a good job at giving them more to do, we really got to see John and Oscar bounce off each other and at the end of the day, that is my kryptonite. However, Finn had little to no character development throughout the whole trilogy. All he did was figure out that he didn’t want to be aligned with the First Order anymore, deciding he wanted to fight for what is right. But the thing is, we saw him make that decision about ten minutes into TFA. It didn’t need to be rehashed again and again in every film. We wanted more - we wanted him to be force sensitive, we wanted him to form meaningful connections with others. On some level they delivered on that, we saw a little force sensitivity, he got his own back with Hux, he found his tribe in Jannah and the other deserters.. but it felt like an afterthought. Nothing was ever dwelled upon- even his confession to Rey [whatever it was] was completely forgotten about in the end. Finn as a whole felt like an afterthought.

[Don’t even get me started on Rose, Kelly deserved so much more. I was embarrassed by the amount of screen time she had.]

As for Poe.. Oscar did a brilliant job in this, he successfully harkened back to our favourite scoundrel Han Solo stereotype and I felt that gave the trio’s dynamic a clear anchor. His interactions with both Finn, Threepio and Chewie as he kept crashing the falcon really made me laugh, it was nice to have some actual humour littered throughout, unlike the goofy slapstick stuff in TLJ. But.. the Zorii love interest and backstory made zero sense canonically. Zero. Aside from the ‘can i kiss you’ stuff being extremely contrived, there is physically no actual way Poe could have ever been a spice runner on this new planet that I can’t remember the name of. He lived on Yavin his whole life until he came of age to join the New Republic Navy, and from there Leia recruited him into the Resistance. This much has been documented in countless books and comics. J.J really decided to throw that all away so that they could what.. get that universal key thing? Did they even use it? Was there any other point of Zorii’s character other than that key? Not really. Don’t try to tell me that Kes and Shara’s son ran away from home to become a criminal for no reason. Just don’t. [He was still wearing Shara’s ring throughout and they didn’t do anything with it.. I wonder will we get more of an answer to this in the novelisation?]

[While I’m on the subject of the comics and novels, the decision to kill off Snap was brave. I really loved him in the comics and I’m sad he’s now gone and Karé is now alone. Not that any of that was mentioned but-]

Lando was used just the correct amount. I’m happy he got the ‘I have a bad feeling about this’ line, and I think any more screen time and we could have seen some holes in Billy’s performance. [sorry Billy]

Chewie had some great moments in this surprisingly. He was essentially just an extra in TLJ so it was quite refreshing to have him be a key player again. [I had forgotten about the clips from the trailer that showed him aboard the Destroyer, so when he ‘died’ I really thought he was dead for a moment and I was so angry that that was how he went lol.] But his reaction to Leia’s death was so touching and although it was a tad fan-servicey, I loved the fact that he finally got the medal he missed out on in ANH. It made me chuckle.

The same can be said of Anthony Daniels as C3PO and all of the other droids. I felt as though they really clawed them back into the mix this time - Threepio’s worrisome queries were wonderfully nostalgic and not to mention hilarious, and D-0 was a great new addition. The droids always brought a levity to star wars, it was their job, and they did this to great effect in this film. There was some questionable switching around of R2 and BB8 which I didn’t appreciate - there is absolutely no way that BB8 wouldn’t be Poe’s astromech for the battle against the Final Order but I’m willing to let it slide.. [also why was he on Tatooine with Rey at the end?]

It really sounds like I had more problems with this film than highlights, and I promise that’s not the case. In the end, it made me feel happy, like I was watching something akin to the OT again, and yes some parts of it were clumsy, but the heart of it was there. It all really comes down to whether or not you believe a film must be ‘good’ in order to be.. good. With something as big and sentimental as star wars I think it’s a lot more complicated than that. Return of the Jedi was an utter mess- but yet we all still worship it and the characters it gave us. Why can’t the same thing be said for TROS? It was clunky, but it was surprising, and powerful and fun. It gave us the characters we loved and some interesting new ones, some top-tier lightsaber battles and a conclusive ending to the saga that has defined so many lives. At the end of the day I think that’s all it needed to be.

#star wars tros #tros #tros spoilers #star wars spoilers #the rise of skywalker spoilers #spoilers #star wars the rise of skywalker #sw #sw spoilers #star wars the rise of skywalker spoilers #do you think i have enough tags lmao #i just really don't want to spoil it for people #rey #kylo #finn #poe #idk i feel like i have enough now

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lightsandlostbells · 5 years

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so, overall, what did you think of season 3 of stranger things?

It took me a while to answer this question because I had to sort out how I felt about this season! I guess if I had to narrow it down to an overall opinion: enjoyable, but very messy. Had some of the series’ best moments but also, while I was watching, I had far more grumbles and gripes than the previous two seasons.

I’ve never really been hung up on whether this show is derivative or plays too into nostalgia or w/e. Plenty of media does that. And despite all the time I’ve spent dissecting micro-expressions and weighty silences in European teen dramas that are filmed for the cost of a candy bar … I am way into genre films and TV shows. I love monsters and superheroes and spectacle! I watched Stranger Things the weekend it premiered because I love ‘80s movies about kids on bikes having adventures, I eat that shit up. So I don’t expect this show to be a hardcore deconstruction and re-imagining of those tropes (though that sounds like a pretty great show), I’m fine with it being what it is: a solid, spooky sci-fi/horror throwback series. What matters most is whether the story and characters work. Personally, I would say whatever criticisms you can make of S1 and S2, they had heart, and unfortunately I think some of that heart was missing from S3. Much of that, IMO, comes from sidelining some of the familial relationships that were at the center of the narrative in S1 and S2, like the Byers family and Hopper & Eleven, and to some degree the important friendships like the party, although there were other friendships introduced in this season so that wasn’t as glaring. It’s not a surprise that one of the best-received parts about this season, Steve and Robin’s friendship, is also responsible for one of the most heartfelt scenes Stranger Things has ever done.

There was also a way larger emphasis on comedy in S3. Comedy is probably my favorite genre, and I did laugh at a lot of humorous moments in this season. But I also felt like there was more comedy for comedy’s sake, like long sequences created intentionally to make the audience laugh. Whereas in S1 and S2, I can’t remember any scenes like that? The comedy was more understated and came from character personalities and relationship moments rather than joke set pieces. That’s perhaps another reason why S3 felt like it had less heart.

My hope for season 4 - and I am assuming there is a season 4, because apparently this show did mega ratings for S3 - is that they don’t add more major new characters (except love interests for the gay characters, go ahead with those, lol) and instead focus on the existing cast, which is already a very strong ensemble, yet many of the characters have gotten pushed to the sides. I would love if they added to the episode count: a lot of Netflix series drag out their seasons, like they have enough story for 10 episodes but have to stretch it out to 13, but Stranger Things has the opposite problem. I feel like if they had 10 (or 11, ha) episodes they could have more time for breather moments and more space for character arcs. This season was really fast-paced in my opinion, and although that’s a positive in many respects, I missed a lot of the down time.

Also, I think every season has taken place over like a week maximum, not including the epilogues, and like … you can make the story last longer than a week! Not everything has to go to hell in like a day or two.

Some more specific opinions underneath, obviously lots of spoilers.

First of all, I gotta say, I feel like a weirdo, because so many of the reviews for this season are like A RETURN TO FORM AFTER A DISAPPOINTING SECOND SEASON and UP THERE WITH SEASON 1 NOT THAT CRAPPY SEASON 2 THAT NO ONE LIKED and uhhhh … I liked season 2 just fine? It’s probably my favorite. There are things I don’t like about it, but the stuff I love is stuff I really, really love. Hopper and Eleven’s relationship, for instance. Steve and Dustin teaming up and Steve Harrington becoming a guardian to four children. Those are not just great elements to the series, but directions that I think only a second season could have taken - Hopper and Eleven’s bond wouldn’t have had half the weight if they weren’t established as traumatized, broken people in S1. Steve Harrington becoming a babysitter would not be nearly so delightful if we had not known him as the popular douchebag stereotype from S1 - if he were just a cool dude hanging out with kids from the get-go, the impact wouldn’t be as great. After S1 used Will Byers as a MacGuffin in S1, S2 gave Will a much larger role and that little actor acted his ass off. His performance generated a lot of genuine suspense and chills. There was Sean Astin being lovable! Paul Reiser’s character being a surprisingly good guy! Yeah, there are big flaws in the season, and you can argue it’s too much of a repeat of S1, but to me it was a version of S1 that made the characters more specific and interesting. I’m just … genuinely baffled by how it’s supposed to be demonstrably worse than the others. Because of the Kali episode? I didn’t think that one was terrible, either. I think it broke up the momentum of the chaos at Hawkins Lab, and Kali’s friends were obnoxious, it’s certainly not the greatest writing of the series, but as a whole the episode is like. Fine. It’s fine. It’s mediocre, not atrocious. It’s not the worst thing ever. It doesn’t ruin anything about the story or direction or the series. Most importantly it’s easy to ignore or skip on a rewatch if you don’t like it. The backlash was way overblown.

My biggest disappointment with season 3 was Hopper. Whaaaaaaat. Whaaaat did they dooooo.

Hopper in previous seasons is a flawed, messed-up human being, but I always knew where he was coming from. When he yelled at Eleven in S2, I still got why he did it. In this season he felt cartoonish. The overprotective paternalistic dad trope is annoying BUT I might have been less bothered had they connected it more to Eleven’s lack of experience with the world, less RAWRRRR KEEP BOYS AWAY FROM MY GIRL. Or if Hopper had not demonstrated like, actual rage toward Mike and we just saw him fuming about it to himself or venting to Joyce, if he was trying to keep that shit under control. (I did laugh at him singing “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” in the car, I gotta admit.)

But his attitude toward Joyce was what really bummed me out. I’m not into this show for shipping reasons, but I low-key enjoyed the possibility of Joyce and Hopper hooking up based on previous seasons. This season felt like they were writing a completely different dynamic for them, one that was much more aggressively obnoxious. I think their intentions were clear - they were going for a Sam-and-Diane relationship, something that was referenced early on in the Bob flashback - but the problem is that their relationship was not like that at all in S1 and S2. When I think of Joyce and Hopper from those seasons, I think about him supporting her after Bob died, or listening to her concerns about her son, or working together to find Will. They didn’t have this combative dynamic! Frankly watching giant-ass Hopper yell at tiny Joyce was viscerally unpleasant. (Side note but in the first trailer there was a shot of Hopper running at the Fun Fair with someone else who I assumed was Eleven, but no, turned out to be Joyce, Winona Ryder is just that tiny next to David Harbour.)

Also, considering this season ended with his death (and we all know he’s not really dead but OK) it’s such a waste that there were few Hopper&Eleven moments! Only the finale brought some quality content on that front. But otherwise their relationship was out of sight, out of mind for almost the whole season, which wasn’t a great choice, both to maximize the emotional impact of the ending, and to expand upon their situation post-S2. I mean, it’s been months since then, how has their relationship changed now? Hopper’s letter talked about the stuff he enjoyed doing with his daughter - why didn’t we see any of that on screen this season? It could’ve helped with the Mike angle, too, like show Hopper and Eleven watching TV together and laughing and having a good time, and then the phone rings and it’s Mike and suddenly Hopper’s watching TV alone as Eleven’s now focused on her boyfriend, we see his disappointment, etc.

Scoops Troop - Now they were a delight. They had such a ludicrous story but for the most part it worked due to the characters playing off each other and because the writing/acting/directing embraced the silliness.

Steve Harrington is easily one of the best characters on this show. I fucking love that guy. He’s consistently entertaining, he’s had possibly the best character growth out of anyone in the series, he’s evolved from a stock ‘80s asshole stereotype into someone who’s funny and sympathetic and likable. He’s this amazing blend of the ridiculous with the heroic. Steve and Dustin were great together, as they were last season, and I’m cackling that Steve acquired YET ANOTHER CHILD under his supervision without even trying. But the MVP of the season was the Steve & Robin friendship. Holy shit do I love that relationship. Holy SHIT.

Robin herself is a terrific new character, smart and funny and once you know she’s half-Uma, you can’t unsee it. I was loving her already and then the bathroom scene happened and I YELLED. I was so utterly overjoyed. If they had made Steve and Robin hook up, honestly … I would’ve been fine with it, like this show doesn’t need more heterosexual romance but at least they had a fun dynamic, but man, the friendship angle was so so superior. It’s a type of relationship that media is lacking, and the specific circumstances of this friendship made it genuinely moving to me. I keep wanting to write like a meta post devoted to just this relationship because I just have so many emotions about it! But they play well off each other as a comedic duo and as an odd couple friendship, and they’re really what each other needs, IMO. Steve needed this close friendship more than he needed a girlfriend; in this season he’s clearly adrift and we’ve seen the kind of shitty friends he had in like season one, is Dustin the best pal he had at this point? And I love Steve & Dustin but Steve needed a good friend his own age. Robin is a lesbian in small-town Indiana in the ‘80s, and she was clearly full of fear that Steve would hate her if he knew, and for him to accept her so easily, not even making a big deal about it? That’s kind of life-saving, really. I can’t wait to see more of them, if Netflix wants to make the half-hour Clerks-esque spinoff about them working in a video store and shooting the shit, I would be 100% down for that.

I have some mixed feelings about Erica because I think she could have benefited from getting the same humanization as the other kids (and I’m going to leave the discussion of racial tropes gently by the side at the moment but … yeah). The other child characters are played more like actual people with vulnerabilities, which has been part of the show’s appeal since the first season, and Erica was more like the sitcom kid who always has a snarky quip ready; however, she did make me laugh and I like that they tapped into her being a nerd, I wish they’d explore that in future seasons with the character. “I’m ten, you bald bastard” was one of my favorite lines of the season, I lost my goddamn mind.

Billy - Lmao, so Billy in S2 was the woooorst. This dude had ZERO redeeming qualities. His abusive dad creates a smidgen of sympathy, I guess, but Billy goes so far beyond normal teenage assholery that it didn’t make a dent in my opinion of him. You can redeem someone like Steve Harrington, first of all because Steve actually feels regret and works to correct his mistakes, but Steve also didn’t go to a point of no return in the first place. Billy did, for me. Physically and verbally abusing his younger sister? Attacking a black middle-schooler for the crime of being in the same room as his white sister? What a piece of shit.

With that in mind - I have no problem focusing on him as a villain this season, I really don’t. It justifies his inclusion in S2 other than as a human antagonist who’s ultimately not really connected to the main plot, as it retrospectively establishes him as an even greater threat in this season. I also think the actor did a good job with the material he was given. However, ultimately this dude’s arc was underwhelming. The thing is … I can tell they were trying to show Billy struggling with the Mind Flayer, but Billy is so lacking in any positive qualities that it’s kind of like, where does that struggle even come from? Yeah, even the worst people aren’t going to be wild about having a monster from another dimension hijack your body and use it to collect people for spare parts, but this is the same dude who was about to run over Mike, Lucas, and Dustin on their bikes last season for absolutely no reason. He beat Steve to point of unconsciousness and could’ve put him in the hospital. He assaulted Lucas. So I really need some evidence of Billy’s moral compass because it is not inherent and there’s in fact plenty of evidence that it doesn’t exist. I’m not very enthusiastic about redeeming a racist, abusive creep, but I also think if you’re going to go for him helping Eleven at the end … you have to show some current potential for goodness, not just “used to be a nice kid.”

A really glaring omission: the lack of any family/home scenes with him, Max, and their parents this season. We left off last season with Max telling him to leave her and her friends alone. How is their relationship since then? Is there still a lot of friction? Is there a tense peace? Has their relationship improved in any way? We really needed to see that follow-up. I get that Max crying over Billy this season makes sense in that he’s still her family and we can still have love for those who hurt us … but I also feel that we needed something between them to justify her pain, like even just the potential of their relationship being a fraction better, or the suggestion that Billy used to be OK to Max before he went full asshole. And I think we really needed to see Billy’s dad being currently abusive in this season - tbh, missed opportunity that the dad didn’t get flayed like, out of revenge (which would have been both satisfying and horrifying), missed opportunities for suspense when we think Billy might serve up Max and her mom to the Mind Flayer, etc.

Another missed opportunity: drawing parallels between Billy and Will. Both are possessed by the Mind Flayer. Both had shitty dads calling them homophobic slurs. Both could be read as gay (I’m not hungry to claim Billy as LGBT representation or invested in this interpretation but his scenes with Steve in S2 admittedly have that sweaty homoerotic dick-measuring vibe, if you want to take it there). Their names are both William, FFS. The difference is that Will is a sweet and gentle kid surrounded by loving family and friends who fought to save him, and Billy is a violent, cruel dude who probably doesn’t have any real friends, just shallow connections. You could show how the Mind Flayer could more easily possess and manipulate someone like Billy, but that wasn’t really explored.

Also, is anyone going to dwell on the fact that like … Max is living with an abusive man as her stepfather? He’s shown hurting Billy’s mom. Does that not concern anyone that he is very likely to attack either Max or her mom?

Oh, and thank God they didn’t take the Billy/Karen thing all the way. In retrospect, even weirder considering Billy’s mommy issues.

Joyce - I get that it’s a big leap downward in emotional investment to go from “must save my son” to “fucking magnets, how do they work” but I liked that she had her own investigation that wasn’t full of emotional turmoil. Winona forever.

Mike - Everyone is ragging on him but I think he was less terrible than people are making him out to be. He was bratty in a teenage way, but he wasn’t the worst kid ever. I didn’t take his now notorious line to Will (“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls”) as something intentionally cruel or homophobic, just something that came out wrong and that he instantly regretted, and he and Lucas did seem genuinely apologetic over the D&D game and went over to Will’s in the rain out of concern. And the reason he lied to Eleven was because SCARY ASS HOPPER threatened him??? Also, his concern over Eleven overexerting herself was not misplaced, lmao! It really took that long for anyone to go, “Hey, should we be worried about the amount of blood coming out of her nose? Should we be concerned about the effects on her brain?” Sure, Eleven has the final say in whether or not she uses her powers, but tbh… she didn’t have a normal upbringing and her view of her powers is probably skewed. Like, would Eleven have enough basic medical knowledge to be worried about brain damage or nosebleeds, or would that just be the norm to her? Is she making these decisions with a full grasp of the potential consequences? Anyway, I don’t have a more negative opinion of Mike after this season.

Eleven - I loved Eleven a lot in this season. I don’t know if it did a ton for her character arc, but it’s nice to see her slowly develop into more of a normal girl. And the season was rough for her in terms of getting her ass kicked, she goes through so much mental and physical pain! In the end she loses her dad and her powers!

Of course one of the bright spots was her and Max becoming friends! Not gonna lie, there was something a little … simplistic about some of that depiction of friendship for me - just that so much of it was SHOPPING and GIGGLING and BOY TALK, girls being GIRLS, when Max has been portrayed as a tomboy and Eleven is a telekinetic kid raised in a lab, that maybe their interactions shouldn’t have fit the mold quite so much - but it doesn’t truly bother me because they were so sweet and fun. I loved them tracking down Billy together and I appreciate that their friendship carried throughout the season, that Max was the person shown carrying an injured Eleven along with Mike, Eleven comforted Max after Billy died, etc. That was a definite sore spot of S2, the girl-on-girl jealousy and Eleven flat-out rejecting Max’s friendly introduction, and I do think they took that feedback into account for the better here. I also like that Eleven was clearly taking cues from Max, the more “worldly” of the two about boys and clothes and teenage attitudes in general - it gave their friendship a more specific shape.

I cannot WAIT to see her living with the Byers family next season. Like if they don’t spend significant time on that dynamic, it will be the biggest disappointment. There could be 8 episodes of just boring mundane Byers domestic scenes and I would love it, please inject it into my eyeballs, Duffer bros. I want to see her bonding with all of them, trying to fit in at school, attempting the most normal life she’s ever had. Also lmao, she and Will can finally have a goddamn conversation??? I hope they’ve been withholding that relationship because they were planning to go all out with those new sibling vibes in S4. They are the two characters who have been most traumatized by the Upside Down, we deserve to see them connect.

On that note, I have a lot of thoughts about Will in this season! Mainly - underused as FUCK. After all that trauma of being possessed by the Mind Flayer last season, they barely utilize this connection in the second half of S3. Even his Spidey sense hardly came in handy??? Now that was really weird, IMO, because the least they could do was have that feeling alert the others or be useful, but lmao it was practically pointless.

It’s weird because I’m not sure if they just don’t know what to do with Will if he’s not being a victim (which is stupid because there’s plenty you could do with him), but at the same time, he has one of the most poignant subplots of the season. From the reactions I’ve seen, Will feeling rejected and left out as his friends move on really resonated with a lot of viewers. But then this thread is abandoned after episode 3, for the most part. Will cries and destroys the place that represents his childhood, a place that was created specifically in response to trauma (mentioned in S2 that he and Jonathan built it after their dad left), this is very rich emotional territory … and then the show’s just like ehhhhhh moving on. He’s just hanging out in the background and touching his neck for the rest of the season.

And now I gotta talk about that other thing with Will.

I am so confused by what the Duffer brothers are trying to accomplish with Will’s sexuality, because on the one hand it seems like they have a really clear idea about it and on the other hand they’re just like¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The thing is … it seems very obvious they have always thought of Will as gay. This is blatant from the original pitch from the show as well as one of the S2 scripts (the only one that’s available publicly, so who knows what else they’ve written). I accept that people have different interpretations, but The Line this season is far from the only textual support for Will being gay, and I think it makes for a much, much stronger narrative if you read Will as gay in addition to not wanting to grow up as fast as his friends and being stunted from trauma - that is an entire meta post in itself, though.

What gets me about the ~ambiguity is that the Duffer brothers planted the gay hints in the first place! They are absolutely not there by accident! Like I’m not speaking for the teenage actors but lmao, the adults involved in the writing and directing of this series absolutely fucking knew how that “not my fault you don’t like girls” scene would be interpreted, especially considering fans were debating Will’s sexuality from the beginning, based off the many homophobic comments leveled at him in S1. There have been TV shows where fans latched onto gay “subtext” that was likely unintentional, but this isn’t one of them.

IDK, man, it’d just be nice to have some confidence in where this is going. I loved Robin and the bathroom scene made me think that yeah, they might do a decent job with Will’s sexuality, something I might have doubted before. Under no circumstances do I expect a Skam S3-style coming out arc for Will, but I’m also uncertain if I should expect anything from the show on this front at all or if they’ll play it coy to the bitter end. Though I guess I’d still take the ambiguity over giving him a female love interest after everything. Lol, that would be a giant oh-fuck-no.

Real talk, though, let’s discuss what an utter waste it would be to not write a scene where Joyce tenderly accepts her son when he comes out to her. You really aren’t going to bring that instantly iconic moment to life, assholes? You’re not going to provide that for Winona Ryder’s and Noah Schnapp’s Emmy reels? MAKE IT HAPPEN, BASTARDS.

Nancy and Jonathan have a reputation for the most boring plots but they’re fine, w/e. I’m not deeply invested in their romance but I don’t want to fast forward their scenes or anything. Nancy is an underrated character; she’s extremely proactive and always has been, and I enjoy watching her shoot things. I think the best thing they could do for both characters, though, is to separate them next season, not just physically but storyline-wise. Jonathan would be best in a subplot involving his family, because he’s at his most likable as a son and brother, and Nancy should either go off with Mike (a sibling relationship that is VASTLY undeveloped), or she should team up with Robin. I mean it, Nancy and Robin would be a power pairing, let me show you my manifesto. Both are smart young women who are good at solving mysteries. Would Robin think Nancy is a priss after Nancy unloads several rounds into the latest demogorgon chasing them? Would Nancy find Robin a refreshing alternative to the crushing suburban conformity that she claims to want to avoid? Oh, the possibilities. Meanwhile, Steve tags along in the background, all like OH SHIT, my lesbian BFF and my ex-girlfriend are in cahoots!

Lucas and Max were playing relationship counselors to Mike and Eleven through much of the season. Max still had a fair amount to do, but Lucas needs a meatier subplot next time. I feel like they’re not sure what to do with him? I would like to see him and Erica interact more since their dynamic so far is one-note.

There is one hell of a conversation to be had about the Evil Russians of this season, but I’m really not the person to do it.

Also about the depiction of capitalism this season. That’s more thinkpiece-y than I am equipped to do right now.

The product placement is something that should bother me more but I’m just like … shrug. Except that New Coke bit because that was an actual mood-breaker.

Could have done without Russian Terminator guy. That was a blatant ‘80s homage so I get why he was there, he just wasn’t all that interesting. And was that guy supposed to be superpowered or something? Was he getting jacked on Upside Down steroids??? What was his deal???

Alexei/Murray was the true OTP of the season, let’s be real.

The trend of lovable, doomed minor characters continued with Alexei. Props to that actor for making you root for the guy. He even made me kind of love Murray? I was very WTF over that guy encouraging two teenagers to fuck in S2, and I’m still not into his habit of telling people to bang even when they’re adults, but I guess he just needed a sympathetic Russian buddy to win me over.

There were a ton of moments where I felt like the characters made stupid choices as opposed to earlier seasons. Will getting dragged into the Upside Down in the first 10 minutes of the series is an impressive example of a horror movie character doing everything right and making good decisions - a 12-year-old, no less. And he was still overpowered by the demogorgon so it’s not like making good decisions will always save you! Whereas this season I was like LORD some of these characters are drinking dumbass juice.

There was also so much silly stuff happening, like things that are even more far-fetched than previous seasons, but I just kind of went with it. Yeah, of course there’s a secret Russian base under a shopping mall. Sure.

This season is objectively disgusting in terms of gore and yet I was fine with it? And I’m someone who was repulsed by Barb’s corpse in S1. The Mind Flayer being made of people was some nasty shit but effective horror. I felt bad for the poor little rats :( Oh, and the flayed humans, too. Some of them. Was sad to see Mrs. Driscoll bite it but FUCK those cartoon misogynists from the newspaper.

Visually beautiful! Starcourt Mall is an amazing set and I’m rather sad that the mall was destroyed, although that was basically a foregone conclusion. Some great cinematography, too. On a purely aesthetic level I had a great time just blasting this season into my retinas.

I have had the motherfucking NeverEnding Story theme song in my head for almost two weeks and I’m suffering.

#lillypedalsxx #replies #stranger things #also they referenced my university this season so i dug that thx 4 the shoutout

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ateezpresent · 5 years

Text

MY ATEEZ MV THEORY: HOW THEY ALL CONNECT

Okay ah hahah so I wrote this in like june/july and kind of forgot about it in my drafts but now that everyone is putting out these theories regarding the new comeback i was like wait i want to be smart too so I dusted this off and revised it and so 짠 here it is

This is just my perspective of treasure ep 1-3 and how it all tied together and how ateez is going to move forward with it. Honestly its kind of a mess so I put a TLDR at the bottom huueh but if anyone wants to talk about it with me just slide into me inbox/dms! yeehaw lets go

So!

ATEEZ’s name itself means that they represent the all teenagers from A to Z, including their dreams and ambitions. States of dreaming and waking seem to be a common theme throughout their lyrics and visuals of their title tracks. When they say their MVs are connected in a story, I think it’s a switch between being awake and being asleep, which has been said by the members and also interpreted similarly by other ATINY. Hongjoong also mentioned that the story wasn’t released linearly, as in their Say My Name MV reaction, he says that Treasure Ep. 2: Zero to One is actually the prequel to Treasure Ep. 1: All to Zero. HALA HALA and Say My Name (Treasure ep. 2) come before Treasure and Pirate King (Treasure ep. 1), and then followed by Illusion and Wave (Treasure ep. 3).

(so uhh s/o to my european intellectual history prof who lectured forever and ever about freud because its what made me understand the importance of dreams and how life can be interpreted through dreams blah blah blah)

Going back to the MVs. Let’s start with HALA HALA, which is the beginning of the story.

The whole aesthetic of HALA HALA is very dark, violent, and mysterious. The outfits / makeup, as well as the location of the MV have a very concentrated concept: layered black clothes, chains, masked faces, sirens, flashing lights, very chaotic and anarchic. Even the choreography focuses more on the feel of the song rather than precise dance moves. A brief fight between San and Jongho in the 2nd pre-chorus may represent that, at this time, there was conflict within the team and they were unable to cooperate. It also ends with the members collapsing, with only Wooyoung standing. I think HALA HALA represents their nightmare, which is a result of their dark unconscious taking over their dreams. The unconscious holds unfulfilled wishes and unspoken desires.

“I’m nervous, my heart is pounding, this is the first time I’ve felt this way, meeting a new side of me” ➙ slipping into their nightmare, they may not understand what is happening, since in everyday life, they aren’t aware of their dark desires

“Deep in my heart, deep in my soul” ➙ referring to the unconscious

For ATEEZ, their unconscious may hold feelings of despair and frustration from working so hard for their goals. These desires will manifest themselves in dreams, on the surface level, as the images and events they see. Dreams can be further analyzed for certain symbols or themes to reveal those unconscious thoughts, which is what I believeTreasure Ep.2 is about. HALA HALA expresses a very primal desire to be on top, resorting to violence and chaos to reach their objective. Its a manifestation of raw emotions.

“Surprise, standing applause. Suicide Squad, the reality. Frightening, lets get burning now.” ➙ Suicide Squad were villains with nothing to lose, they’re willing to do anything to be the best

“We’re rising sun. No one refutes us, no. Burning hot.”

After being consumed by their ambitions, their dream turned into a nightmare. They couldn’t work together as a team and ended up destroying each other in the process, so that only one was left standing (Wooyoung), without the rest of his members. Which is why in Say My Name, they’re begging to be woken up.

Say My Name and HALA HALA have a lot of similar symbols in the MVs. The figures from HALA HALA make frequent appearances, and ATEEZ seems to be confronting them, or sees them in different places. Those figures appear as antagonists, keeping ATEEZ from waking up. It is, however, revealed in the end that Seonghwa was interrogating himself, showing that they are their own antagonists and it was their own unconscious that is keeping them from waking up. The lyrics heavily imply that ATEEZ wants to wake up, and are encouraging the listener (ATINY) to say their name repeatedly in order for them to escape their sleep.

“Say my name, wake me up from sleep, say my name one more time”

They aspire to wake up and see the world again, and don’t want to be trapped in their HALA HALA nightmare anymore.

“Looking only at the moon, seeing how beautiful the world is”

Lets talk about some of the symbols in this MV and what they represent in dreams:

The horn motif, which Hongjoong carries and is constantly center (visually), means that the dreamer needs to pay more attention to their inner voice and intuition.

San is seen looking in a mirror, seeing his own reflection as well as HALA HALA Yeosang, symbolizing a need to confront elements from the subconscious. He is also surrounded by shards of broken mirror, symbolizing poor or distorted self-image, and a need to put an end to old-habits / behavior.

Yeosang in his ‘cage’ indicates inhibitions and a feeling of confinement, seemingly by the HALA HALA figure (which I think is San?) pacing around him.

Yunho is seen at a desk, holding a quill and surrounded by a mess of supplies. The quill, a utensil for writing, cautions the dreamer of the power of words (maybe lyrics). Sitting at this messy desk shows that he is working through his problems, and figuring out his priorities. The hourglass on the desk represents a deadline, that time is running out.

wow I really feel like a high school english teacher

Some scenes are designed to appear as a museum, which represents a ****non-traditional path to success and risk-taking****, and also reflecting and learning from personal history. (I think this one is really important)

Typewriters represent a desire to communicate, maybe with ATINY, who is waking ATEEZ up. They all seem to be frantically trying to communicate in these scenes.

I think the hooded figures in Hongjoong’s scenes represent those who may try to deceit or underestimate ATEEZ, and since he’s the captain / leader, he is confronting them.

The strobe lights / flashing between Say My Name and HALA HALA represents chaos in waking up, skewing perspective… maybe making everything seem like an ILLUSION

I’m getting a little ahead because now we need to talk about Treasure and Pirate King.

So, storyline-wise, Treasure is supposed to come right after Say My Name, since we hear the beginning of the song at the end of the MV. Now that ATEEZ is awake, they’re embarking on a journey to find their Treasure.

“It can complete us, or it can destroy us, and it can change the world. People call it… treasure” // “It doesn’t matter what you dream for. So let me ask you. What is your treasure?… Will you join us?” (intro: long journey)

In the Treasure MV, they’re in the desert, which is mentioned in lyrics in HALA HALA (”In the middle of the desert, a few more footprints, we keep going until the wind reaches the end of the sand”), and there is a moon in the sky, as mentioned in Say My Name’s lyrics (”When the moonlight calls us”). This song is about their new goals, finding their treasure together (ATEEZ + ATINY).

“Lets leave for somewhere far away, it’s calling us, my treasure”

“Hold my hand, finding you in my dreams. It continues to shine on us: starlight”

“It’s fine with the two of us, I’m all set, let’s get it when you set baam”.

They’re willing to do whatever it takes to reach their goals.

“Nobody can stop us. To stop us, there’s no way”.

Pirate King is a continuation of Treasure, and idk why Pirate King doesn’t have an actual MV (which kind of bothers me) but the lyrics at least provide some insight into the story line. Pirate King is more about achieving something together.

“Now raise the anchor, walk with a dark heart. Anywhere, we can go. Whatever we are, you can follow us, hold your hand high. Under the burning light, you and me in the bright spot. Step 1,2,3 and 1,2,3 Let's go. Will you be my friend?”.

Whenever they talk about “you and me”, they’re both referring to them, ATEEZ, together as members, as well as ATEEZ and ATINY together. We’ll help them achieve their goals, and they’re asking us to trust them and stay loyal to them as they complete their journey.

“Anywhere, it doesn’t matter if you’re alone, hold my hand. I can go anywhere with you. Whatever stops us, I can get through it all. We can make everything together”.

** OKAY SO HEAR ME OUT THIS IS SOMETHING NEW THAT I THOUGHT OF BECAUSE I COULDN’T FIGURE OUT HOW EP 1 FLOWED INTO EP 3 BUT OK LET ME EXPLAIN:

ok so even though in the storyline ep 2 comes before ep 1, I think ep 1 is a flashback to bEFORE ateez became “evil” and “nightmarish” because they were getting shit done and being with atiny and yay

it makes more sense to go from say my name into illusion, because in say my name they want to wake up but are being stopped because of HALA HALA, and then illusion is more of a - wait or it - ILLUSION because they aren’t really awake yet

WAIT I JUST REMEMBERED i wrote that the flashing lights and cutting between say my name outfits and HALA HALA outfits in the end of the say my name MV represented CHAOS IN WAKING UP AND SKEWING PERSPECTIVE YES ITS TYING TOGETHER

so yeah i think ep 1 is a flashback to how ATEEZ was before their whole journey began, but their story technically starts from HALA HALA

i think they did this so they can continue to have flashbacks / time jumps in future comebacks alskdjl;skdj KQ your M I N D

so HALA HALA / Say My Name ➙ flashback with Treasure / Pirate King ➙ continue from Say My Name into Illusion / Wave

phew okay so

So now that ATEEZ is starting to wake up, they get a little too excited about getting back to achieving their goals that they become delusional and imagine this amazing Utopia where everything is great and happy when in reality, they’re still stuck in their dreams.

“I saw it, felt it, in my dream that day. I’m sure that we will find it someday. Following the blurry afterimage, one stroke each night. Sketch the map”.

For ATEEZ, that Utopia would be where they can be together with ATINY, having achieved all their goals, and can just relax and party and have a good time….

Now we’re in an Illusion! We’re still asleep, technically. The fake looking effects in the video add to the “illusion” concept, and everything looks a little too perfect.

“I feel like I’m dreaming, please don’t wake me up… a day, two days, three days, four days. I don’t know what date it is today. Who and where am I, and who are you? Its the first feeling I’ve ever felt. Here is paradise. I don’t know, just party all night long”.

They literally don’t know whats going on or what day it is or where they are, but they need to realize that this happiness is fake, and only temporary. All the colors in the MV and lyrics seem artificial, as we can see in the visuals, and are also described in the lyrics:

“The bluish sun, the purple star”

“its dazzling, dazzling, dazzling, oh dazzling”

“On the pink island. On the iridescent ocean. Should I draw a more fantastic dream? Everything is beautiful here…”

There are also symbols that connect back to the previous dream MVs, HALA HALA and Say My Name, with the masks from HALA HALA making a reappearance as well as a brief silhouette of a HALA HALA figure. We also get more symbolism of the hourglass and a compass. Theres also writing on the boat but my blind ass can’t read anything but one of the quotes says “the creative adult is the child who survived”, which contributes to the child-like nature of the MV. Towards the end of the MV, when they’re all marveling at the mystical scenery, they run through the tunnel where the HALA HALA figure was. This represents them snapping out of the illusion / trance to pursue their goals again. The end of the Illusion MV is them sleeping in the Wave MV settings, on a more realistic island. Now they’re waking up / snapping out of their illusion to keep pursuing their goals.

Before the Wave MV, though, is the Crescent track, which connects Illusion and Wave.

“Open your eyes”.

This represents them waking up, and now we’re in the superior title track #TeamWave. Once waking up, they band together again and just have a GOOD TIME which honestly is all I want for them. The lyrics talk about difficulties they may encounter during their journey, but to not take everything too seriously, and emphasizing the importance of having fun while doing what you love, even if its difficult.

“Shout after sweeping your hair up, hakuna matata ya… Go over the tough wave”

“Wherever you are I will be there. Hold my hands, hold my hands, we both are enough. Its okay if it’s more difficult, we’re just gonna play on it, we’re just going on~

If this moment is our wave, don’t be afraid and face it head on. We’re hotter than others under the sun, so don’t worry, go over the tough wave”.

Treasure ep. 3 is the end of the Treasure series, so it makes sense to end on a positive note, that ATEEZ will continue their journey without hesitation, and assure us that we will take care of each other through good and bad times.

me after revising this^

So, to summarize how all the MVs connect (TL:DR)

HALA HALA: the unconscious, ATEEZ’s nightmare, the result of them being obsessed with their goals to the point where they resort to violence and chaos, they don’t succeed as a team

Say My Name: wanting to be woken up from their nightmare, confronting their “enemy” , only to realize that its their own unconscious, continuing conflict with HALA HALA

Treasure: A flashback to what ATEEZ was like before they became violent and nightmare-ish, when they worked together with ATINY and had ambitions and goals

Pirate King: continuing the flashback, more adventure and getting shit done

Utopia / Illusion: continuing from Say My Name, becoming entranced while waking up with the ultimate dream so much that they become disillusioned, in a trance where they party and think they’ve achieved their goals but they’re actually still “asleep”

Wave: snapping out of their illusion to confront their difficulties head on, reassuring ATINY that they will support each other and keep chasing their ambitions

Predictions moving forward??

SO if we need to continue this story into the next comeback, now they will be on a new journey!! Theres a ton of theories being thrown around for that but tbh my few braincells are exhausted from thinking about this-

I think the HALA HALA nightmare will be a consistent motif throughout their future comebacks, like they’ll always be battling them, but maybe they’ll figure out how to finally get rid of them.

From the ONE comeback teaser pic thats been released so far I have no idea what the theme for this next adventure could be, maybe they’ll still be in the desert like they were in treasure ep 1 before they fell asleep

Whatever it is I think KQ did a really good job figuring out this theme for ATEEZ because it gives them a lot of flexibility with concepts and future plots for MVs.

#ateez #honestly the more i think about it the more theories i come up with that contradict the ones i just thought of so #ateez eXPLAIN pls help ya fandom out

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