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matan4il · 1 year

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Buddie 617 meta

I’m gonna be honest here, this was one of the funniest 911 eps to me. I loved how this ep showed us both Buck and Eddie completely sucking at dating. It was very obvious in Buck’s case, what with each attempt to have quality time with Natalia being ruined by one of his past decisions, but then when he called out Eddie for also sucking at it, Buck wasn’t wrong. Eddie’s attempts seem half-hearted at best. First off, if he really wanted to date, then Tia Pepa’s help and dating apps are actually not that awful as options. Magic might happen there as well. The right person could even stand out more against a sea of not so great choices, turning the dreary experience into a colorful, magical one. But even when Eddie tries on his own, his attempts are LAME. Seriously, there are pastime activities that offer way more potential to start a conversation, and maybe a romance, than the ones Eddie chose. Not only that, these are not his actual hobbies, where he knows he’ll find someone who likes the same thing he does (the way he shares so much with one tall firefighter that we’re all thinking of right now. Eddie’s also being dumb about wanting it to “just happen” as if that’s not exactly what he got with buck. Also, just a friendly reminder that Buddie have been dating for almost 5 years, and they are GREAT at it when it’s with each other).

On top of that, we for real got a guy checking Eddie out (hi, hello, should I start a collection of him checking and being checked out by guys?) as well as him witnessing a woman he was looking at being embraced by another one. Why the hints at being surrounded by queer people? Your guess is as good as mine, but I’m here for it no matter what. ;D Now, I’ve talked before about the ongoing theme of Buddie’s dating life being intertwined in terms of when they start dating someone, or of why they break up, but now in addition to them dating at the same time, we also see them simultaneously sucking at it? Yeah, that takes the connectedness of their dating life up a notch. ~~

Which brings me to one line that grabbed my attention in this ep. THE line that offers the explicit resolution for the most important romantic plot here is the one from Gina, the insurance lady, to Chimney, about not regretting the attempt. Yes, even when the result is bad. That’s what Madney will embrace. One of the biggest obstacles to Buck and Eddie, besides their obliviousness, is the fear of ruining the good thing they have by attempting to take it to the next level. But here we have Chimney being reminded by Gina that it’s worth it, to try. Because the good thing you can have, if it works out? Is worth it. And you never have to live with the “what if” of it all. Now look at Buck and Eddie being once more adorable morons together on the job! Imagine the moment when they stop running around and let themselves try taking it to the next level, because they realize no matter what the result will be, they would never regret the attempt. ~~

Speaking of Buddie paralleling one of the canon couples on the show who were acting lovey dovey in this ep, the way Bobby described what made him and Athena happen reminded me of Buddie connecting. In both cases, there’s an intense and upsetting call, after which one of our first responders turns to find support (Buddie promising to have each other’s back) and comfort (Eddie wants to go grab something to eat together) in the other one. ~~

I did not miss Taylor Kelly, and true to form, she was back because she’s advancing her career by exploiting her personal connection to Buck and the exposure to the 118 it provided her. I’m pretty sure this basically buries any option of any showrunner ever trying to re-set these two as a romance, since it echoed and reinforced Buck’s decision to break up with her. It WAS funny to see her and Lucy cockblock Buck (I do think Lucy’s tone with which she spoke of their past also closes the door on anyone ever trying to set her and Buck up as a serious couple), but what I found to be funniest is that Buck tells Natalia he was trying to figure out the perfect place for their date, and then he took her to the bar where he kissed Lucy. A bar reminiscent of the one where he hooked up with Taylor. Possibly a spot where he hooked with other women during his Buck 1.0 stage based on how it’s THE hang out place for the 118 and we know Buck had no issues hooking up anywhere back then. Natalia, hon. This is not a good sign for your r/s with him. ~~

Speaking of which, there’s an ex who didn’t come back in this ep, but her spirit loomed large over Buck and Natalia IMO, and that is Ali. The reason why she and Buck broke up after 218 is because at the end of the day, she couldn’t accept the choices he had made in his professional life (hoping he would move on from firefighting). In the same way, Natalia revealed in this ep that she can’t accept Buck’s choices in his personal life. A small reminder the only partner we’ve ever witnessed truly seeing and accepting Buck, in every aspect of his life, has been Eddie. ~~

Another funny thing about this (911 is a comedy, y’all) is how Natalia flees the second she comes across Kameron. I mean, this is in addition to the hilarity of the death doula’s first name connecting her to birth and to all things natal, yet she flees the second that she sees a pregnant lady. Because if this is Natalia’s reaction when it comes to a bio kid that Buck explicitly said he is not going to raise, what would she do once she realizes he co-parents a fully grown kid? (and a very sassy one, too. LBR, Natalia doesn’t stand a chance in a show down with either Diaz boy) ~~

Much like Natalia doesn’t seem like the right fit for Buck based on this ep (or based on 616), neither does Marisol. Can I point out the fact that Eddie’s disapproval in the last ep of Buck dating Natalia applies here, too? They both met these women on calls. Second, Eddie wanted it to happen naturally, which is why it’s so lame he tried through all sorts of activities that he’s not ACTUALLY into and wouldn’t continue doing past the initial stage of meeting someone else. And that holds true for Marisol as well. We saw that her brother and her are very into DYI, which I guess was meant to lay the groundwork for Eddie running into her in a DYI shop. But the thing is, Eddie himself isn’t into this! Sure, he can do it, because as a single dad he’s had to, but it’s not something we’ve ever seen him being passionate about. He’s only at this store because of Christopher’s project. And then once more, just like he steps away from Pepa’s help, dating apps and chooses the wost places for a chance romantic connection, he walks away from Marisol even when the whole scene plays out as if she’s the climax of his search throughout this whole ep. This might all hint that despite initial appearances, just like the people he came across while golfing and hiking wouldn’t be the right fit, Marisol wouldn’t be either. Even more importantly, just like Ana at first appeared like she would be perfect for Eddie in 312, starting out in a “it just happened” sort of way and with supposedly being fated because she happened to guess correctly that Eddie stands for Edmundo, this thing with Marisol might look in the moment like it’s exactly what he was looking for, but it will fizzle out as well.

~~ (my weekly meta posts) (my Buddie gifs) (all of my content)

~~ My tag list will follow in the reblog, please let me know if you wanna be added/removed here.

~~ Thank you from the bottom of my heart to the incredible @whosoldherout, there are no words to describe how much I love your gifs and appreciate you!

~~ Thank you to anyone supporting these meta posts. I could never express enough how grateful I am and that they continue to exist thanks to you!

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archangeldyke-all · 3 months

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I feel like if Vika had a baby she wouldn’t baby talk and have full on conversations with them. Like she’ll tell the baby how whiskey prices went up and how “fucking stupid” it is, or she’ll talk about some new kid at her job and how “the fucker” can’t do anything right LMAO

sugar u r the smartest person i know

men and minors dni

you and everyone who meets the baby talk to her like anybody talks to a baby, cooing and exaggerating and using an exaggerated baby voice.

your typical conversations with your kid for the first year of her life go something like 'awe, do you have a poopy? sweet baby made a big poopy.' or 'can you say: mama? mmmma mmmma?'

sevika, however, talks to your kid like she's an old friend.

you'll catch her feeding your daughter baby food, scooping up the goop that falls down onto her chin as she chats. "fuckin' silco was gettin' on my last nerve today. would you be pissed if we revoked his 'godfather' status? i know he spoils you, but i think we could find a suitable replacement, someone who doesn't have their head stuck up their ass. he thinks he runs the fuckin' place, he forgets we're co-owners. co. that means both. you're so lucky you don't have to work, you know that? you've got it made, kid, shit, you don't even have to feed yourself."

or, after you've had a long day at home with the little fucker, who's been screaming her head off and refusing to latch onto your tits to drink, you overhear sevika talking to her as she gently dances her around the living room. "you gotta give your mom a break, kid. i know you're probably sicka breast milk, but it's important you drink it, it's got all kindsa good shit in it that'll make you strong. like this, see?" she asks as she flexes the arm not holding your daughter. "keep drinkin' your milk and you'll be as strong as me in no time. well, you'll have to have a pretty strict workout regiment too, it's not all genetic. though, don't tell your mom, but i'm glad you've got my build-- she's a little wimp. you're strong like me. she hates it 'cause you came out so big 'n tore her pussy apart comin' out but i think it's great. you'll be a great athlete once you figure out the whole walkin' thing..."

or at bathtime, while she's got your baby in the sink, gently shampooing the two or three hairs on her head, you're guaranteed to find her catching your daughter up on the latest drama on the soap opera she swears she doesn't watch. "i know, it's fuckin' crazy! but, then, get this, molly, the homewrecker from season three? she shows up pregnant, swearing it's travis' kid! mind you, this is all at a funeral-- at shepard's funeral!" your daughter coos. "oh, shepard's the one who came out gay in season four but then decided to marry miriam in season five, because she needed her greencard." your daughter coos again, and sevika takes this as understanding. "right, you remember. anyways this pregnant bitch molly comes marching in while we're all crying because shep's dead, and she's like 'everybody look at me and my big fat belly!' turns out? she's stuffing her stomach with blankets..."

the funniest thing is that your daughter seems to understand it all, blinking up at sevika with big, interested eyes, absorbing her every word, cooing when she's silent, like she's responding to sevika's commentary.

after a while, it starts to rub off on you, and pretty soon, both you and sevika are talking to your little girl like she's an adult.

it's all fun and games until she starts talking, and her first words are 'fuck' and 'mama' and 'dickhead' and 'milk'

taglist!

@lesbeaniegreenie @fyeahnix @sapphicsgirl @half-of-a-gay @ellabslut @thesevi0lentdelights @sexysapphicshopowner @shimtarofstupidity @love-sugarr @chuucanchuucan @222danielaa @badbye666 @femme-historian @lia-winther @gr0ssz0mbi3 @ellsss @sevikaspillowprincess @leomatsuzaki

#sevika #sevika imagine #sevika arcane #sevika x reader #sevika x you #soft sevika

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kalcifers-blog · 7 months

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Pissa Headcanons to rattle around my brain like Tallulah's maracas

I feel like I shouldn't need to clarify this but I will anyway- this is all about the Cubitos, not the CCs

Sun and Moon relationship, but they look like opposite of what they are (Philza looks like he's the sun but he's actually the moon and vise versa)

Missa's hair is significantly longer than what it was after he returns to the island (Philza LOVES it)

Missa is deffo the type to give lots and lots of small pecks just all over Philza's face. Philza is just constantly sat there blushing and smiling

Missa likes to teach Phil how to play guitar (yes he does the thing where he sits behind him and holds the back of his hands to show him how to play. Great stuff)

Philza loves horror and doesn't get scared easily, Missa also loves horror but does get scared easily. Cue movie marathons between them where Missa is constantly jumping and Philza (playfully) laughing at him

I'm sure this is basically canon now but Missa also loves to teach Philza how to dance- in return Philza likes to help Missa out with fighting and offers to spar with him. They both have equally flustered reactions to the other showing them how to do said activity

Missa is very physical affection oriented. Whenever Philza is in his vicinity they're hardly apart for even a second because of how close Missa wants to be all the time (90% of the time he's not even doing it consciously)

Missa is taller than Philza (Avians tend to be shorter on average since it helps out with flying) it's not major or a huge difference in any normal circumstance but it definitely feels that way as soon as they're close in proximity to each other (it does not help that Missa wears those big ass goth boots with thick soles/heels, making him appear even taller than usual)

Philza likes to collect items that remind him of the people he's closest too (i.e, Technoblades emerald, Wilbur's guitar pick, Tallulah's amapola, Chayanne's rubber duck etc) for Missa it's a sugar skull mask Missa decorated for him (it includes his green colour scheme and the hardcore heart)

Missa also loves to braid Philza's hair and preen his wings and takes great pride in doing so (he's not AMAZING at it, but he still loves to do it)

Every government assigned couple were given rings when they first joined, at first Philza and Missa wore theirs as necklaces before they actually developed any feelings for each other- now they both wear them on their right ring fingers (they unconsciously agreed that they'll move the rings onto their left hands if they ever actually got married)

Philza can understand birds (he mostly understands crows but he's able to piece together what other types of birds are saying as well) so he's often telling them to "shush" when they catch him and Missa alone together

Missa has death touch, meaning anything living will die if they touch his bare skin. Anything besides (Death's favourite) Philza of course. (Also the death touch does not work on undead which is why he still hides away from Zombies and Skeletons, which is partially the reason why he's kinda shit at fighting)

Trans ftm q!Philza but his top surgery scars are the shape of an upsidedown heart (Missa thinks it's SO PRETTY)

Mumza is watching all of this go down with a bowl of popcorn like her personal weekly telenovela. She finds it the funniest thing that Philza's type is essentially "tall, dark and emo"

Wilbur did not know that Philza would like men, the whole "Phil- I didn't know you were bi, and polyamourus" is still canon, but at first Wilbur was kinda just joking not thinking there was actually anything behind it. You can imagine his shock when in fact, his dad does indeed like men.

#qsmp pissa #pissa #death duo #q philza #q missa #qsmp shipping #qsmp #kalcifers blog #kal rambles #headcanons

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 2 months

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lets lighten to mood here a bit: what are your top 5 kataang moments?

"Top five" hahahahahahahahaahahahahahahaha, what kind of nonsense is this? I need a top 15!

#15 - Them bickering on Kyoshi Island (01x04)

This one was one my favorite scenes in the whole show, even back when I didn't really care for Kataang as a ship. It's just such a funny, accurate representation BOTH of "When you wanna hang out with your friend, but you're still too mad to talk things out" and "When your is getting attention from other people and now you're really, really jealous."

Scenes like this are why I never felt Kataang was truly one-sided, again, even back when I personally didn't like the ship - it's just so obvious that with how close they are, lots of moments that could have been purely platonic end up having a romance vibe, so the eventually romance feels way more earned.

#14 - Aang nearly cofessing his feelings to Katara (02x18)

It's a short little moment, but I like it a lot. Aang is just so shy and nervous, it's adorable - and I actually don't mind that they were interrupted because we got lots of flirting in book 3.

#13 - The first two damn episodes (01x01 & 01x02)

I know, I know, putting not one, but two whole episodes is cheating like crazy, but I don't care. Aang likes Katara IMMEDIATELY, they go penguin sliding, he offers to take her to the North Pole long before he finds out HE needs to go there, Katara is ready to throw hands with everyone for wanting to banish Aang and is then losing her mind when he is taken by the Fire Nation. Even Sokka noticed they were getting a bit too clingy for two people that just freaking met and goes "Let's save your boyfriend."

#12 - "Baby, you're my forever girl" (03x09)

This one is just HILARIOUS. It starts out looking very realistic, sweet and romantic... and is then derrailed into embarrassing teenage fantasies, and Aang clearly feels so awkward when he realizes he had just been standing there like a dumbass. The entire episode is great, but that scene is easily top 3 of the funniest moments in it.

#11 - Flirting after he gives her the necklace back (01x15)

They are freaking adorable in that scene. Aang joking around when returning the necklace to her, Katara kissing his cheek and making him blush... peak cuteness. Gets extra romantic with the added context that those necklaces are basically the same as engagement rings.

#10 - Aang finding out Katara brought him back from the dead (03x01)

Aang just looks so in awe of her in that scene, like he can barely even comprehend how someone could be so amazing. The look in his eyes, man! I can't! I CAN'T!

(And for real, how can ANYONE still have doubts that the whole "Aang needs to let go of Katar FULLY AND FOREVER, ALL DAY AND EVERYDAY otherwise the world is doomed" thing is bullshit? The show literally looked us straight in the face and said "True love/friendship saved the day because if it wasn't for it the world's last hope would be fucking dead")

#9 - Cave Of Two Lovers (02x02)

Once again I'm cheating, and once again I don't care. Katara and Aang both blushing when she suggest that they kiss, Aang trying a little too hard to act like he totally doesn't want that kiss, Katara getting offended at it, "I'm saying I'd rather kiss you than die, that's a compliment!", the light of the torches fading away as they get closer to each other, Aang looking all lovestruck after it, then them both blushing after they're out of the cave - INCREDIBLE! SHOWSTOPPING! BEAUTIFUL! ADORABLE!

#8 - Katara not wanting Aang to go into the Avatar State (02x01)

I understand why Aang going into the Avatar State to save her on this same episode gets so much attention, but this moment is criminally underrated AND what makes that other scene hit so hard.

Katara can't stand to see Aang in so much pain and rage and thus refuses to be part of that plan. She is the one putting his humanity, his feelings, and his well-being before his responsibilities as the Avatar. She'll always encourage him to do what's right and help him do what's needed to save the world - but she'd never put him in any unnecessary harm. She'd never take him granted and act like she, or anyone else, is entitled to put him through so much stress and pressure just because of his duties as the Avatar. She'd never take advantage of Aang's kindness.

When Aang went into the Avatar State, it wasn't just about the protagonist saving his love interest (which is already an epic moment) - it was a friend saving another, a survivor of genocide saing another, the hero saving an innocent person who was in harms way. And more importantly, it was someone who was constantly treated like he needed to be a soldier/weapon first, person second, saving the girl that had always been his ride-or-die from the very beginning and that had just proven yet again that she cared about HIM, not just about the Avatar and what he could do for the world.

#7 - Aang and Katara VS Pakku (01x18)

Once again, Aang and Katara showing that they both take the concept of "ride-or-die" VERY seriously. They are really excited to learn together, and Aang is so pissed off when Pakku refuses to train Katara solely because she's a girl, that he says "Fuck this guy, fuck my mission, I'm out of here." Katara, of course, then accepts dealing with that unfair situation because she knows Aang's mission is important and doesn't want to stand in the way of it, even if she obviously isn't happy about it.

Then, once Sokka gives them that idea, Aang is super eager to teach Katara everything Pakku is teaching him, because, once again, Katara's personal goal of wanting to be a badass fighter is as important to Aang as his mission to save the entire freaking world.

They're caught, everything is going to hell, and Pakku now refuses to let train either of them unless he gets an apology, and so Katara goes into fighting mode with no hesitation. Aang, the absolute sweetheart that he is, lets her know that she doesn't have to do this to get Pakku to teach him - then steps aside when she explains this is about HER, her pride and her right to knock some sense into that sour old man.

Finally, after everything is resolved, we get Pakku saying Aang should start calling her "Sifu Katara" - which leads me to:

#6 - Sifu Katara (02x09)

That. Was. So. Fucking. Cute.

Aang wants to make sure Katara knows just how much she means to him, how much he respects her as a fighter/master and we KNOW he absolutely means it, and Katara is very touched by it.

And I gotta love how comfortable they are with each other. Aang practicing waterbending and talking with her to clear his head, Katara giving him advice as to why he's struggling with earthbending AND trying to make Toph change her approach into something Katara knows works on Aang, the push and pull/ying and yang motions showing how they just click and are in harmony with each other - it isn't just AANG showing he appreciates Katara's role as his master, it's the show itself doing that.

#5 - Aang & The Painted Lady (03x03)

That boy was simping for and flirting with the Painted Lady before he even realized it was Katara, because she was a kind "spirit" that he went out of his way to mention looked REALLY pretty even though he couldn't see her face. Then, of course, he has to praise her for wanting to help the people of the village and goes on to help her blow up a whole factory.

You google the meaning of "being in love" and Aang's face is the first the thing that comes up, I swear to fucking God, I can't with this boy.

#4 - Katara threatening to end Zuko if he ever hurts Aang again (03x12)

Once again, Katara and Aang take the idea of "Ride-or-die" VERY seriously. Katara doesn't trust Zuko really changed, but she does trust Aang's judgement and knows that he has the right to choose his firebending teacher, and that they don't really have much of a choice at the moment.

But she didn't forget what Zuko nearly took away from her, and makes damn sure he knows that if he screws up again, he isn't getting a third chance.

And I gotta say, we as a fandom don't talk enough about how, much like Aang's love for his people is explicitly stated to still live on through his love for Katara, the girl he already sees as family and would eventually marry, Katara was only ever willing to kill for two people - Kya and Aang.

This is one of those moments that proof that, even if one doesn't care for the ship, NO ONE can deny just how strong their bond is and how much they mean to each other.

#3 - Finale Kiss (03x21)

Even though I think they should have officially become an item after their kiss during the invasion and that the last minute conflict of "Maybe Katara doesn't actually want to be with Aang" that we got in Ember Island Players was REALLY forced, I still love this moment.

They look so happy, so at peace. They don't even need to say anything. They just lock eyes, smile, embrace each other and kiss. It's oen of the most romantic moments not just between them, but in the whole show.

Also if anyone has a Katara doll with that dress, please mail it to me, because my inner 5-year-old cannot deal with how pretty she looked on that scene and NEEDS it to be immortalized in a doll I can put on the shelf and stare at for hours.

#2 - Aang saying Katara gives him hope (02x12)

Okay, okay, okay, OKAY, we are once again in the territory of "Even back when I didn't like the ship, I still adored this scene." It's one of the moments that I'm always super excited to reach whenever I'm watching the show yet again.

Is just so rewarding. Every single episode we are reminded that Katara has complete faith in Aang, that he gave her hope before they ever met. Yet at that moment, because of Appa's kidnaping, he can't be the Aang she knows - be that he goofy, optimistic, super affectionate friend, or the kind, super empathetic, compassionate messianic figure of the Avatar. He is too hurt and scared, so he goes from lashing out to shutting everyone off - including her. He is doing his duty, but there's little to no emotion there.

Katara keeps the team together as they cross the desert, brings Aang back to Earth when he is snapping, parts the freaking sea, and then helps bring baby Hope into the world - and thus Aang is finally Aang again, and makes sure to let his best friend know just how much she means to him.

It's a nice role-reversal, with Katara being the one put on a pedestal and Aang showing reverence. It's sweet and makes all the moments in which she shows her blind faith in him all the sweeter. It easily could have been my number one.

If it wasn't for THE Kataang moment that is:

#1 - The Dance (03x02)

How could this not be number one? It's the definition of iconic. Literally invented romance. You open up a dictionary and see a picture of this scene in the definition of "chemistry."

Katara feeling insecure because of all the attention is getting, Aang going out of his way to make sure she doesn't feel left out, the way he says "it's just you and me", the way everyone is staring at them in awe... the lighting, the music, the camera angles, the freaking choreography... their smiles, Katara blushing, the way they lock eyes, the almost kiss, Aang holding Katara as they finally stop... it's too good. Just too freaking good. 11/10, no one is doing it like them.

#pro kataang #kataang

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joannerowling · 3 months

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have you seen this? https://thecritic.co.uk/j-k-rowling-is-honest-not-nasty/ the og article is rage-inducing. how dare she write books where there are bad men other than the one single bad guy!?

The Critic's article is great – short and to the point. The original though… First of all the accompanying image.

????? Anyone has any idea what that's supposed to convey cause i'm at a loss.

The actual article written by a certain Nick Hilton isn't just nonsense, it's badly written nonsense. What adult seriously calls someone "nasty"? Well, i suppose the kind of person who gets offended by the use of the term "sodomise" to describe the very act, in a novel which amongst other themes deals with sexual abuse (something that makes Nick apparently very uncomfortable), might.

(Side note on that, i counted, and he used "nasty"/"nastiest"/"nastiness" FIVE times in an article that's like 2000 words long including a fair amount of quotes. I just find that detail particularly funny, considering he complains about Jo using "sodomise" twelve times, "in its many tenses". And she conjugated it too! How uncouth.)

I'll skip over the bad faith claims that the world of Strike is "populated with paedophiles and rapists and terrorists who are never the murderers"; besides being patently false (Career of Evil and The Running Grave both have killers who are also rapists, and so does Troubled Blood even if it's not The killer), complaining about these topics showing up in crime novels is fucking stupid. What's next, an article decrying the amount of gore in horror novels titled "Stephen King Is A Big Meanie"?

But beyond all that weird pearl-clutching, it's also just… lazily written. There's no actual argument and the tone is all over the place as a result. Like, he expects you to naturally agree with him that JKR is "nasty", so he's just citing some book excerpts that are, i guess, supposed to speak for themselves? Like this:

… Ok, and? JKR was illegally hacked by a journal, the one bit character who works for said journal in her novel is unpleasant… conclusion she's nasty?? i don't get it Nick.

Because of stuff like this you're left wondering if he actually hates or rather admires her. Very bizarre. Not helped by the fact that he reuses JKR's own turns of phrase?

Like, was this on purpose in a clumsy attempt to parody her, or was it subconscious? I have no clue.

And finally, the funniest bit:

No comment.

#replies #anon #jkr #jk rowling

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vaguely-concerned · 2 years

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I have always been fascinated by the scene in Harrow the Ninth where all of God’s lies are finally revealed, so here is a post of appreciation for the last part of the book and also trying to pick apart some of what Muir is doing on a writing level, because I want to steal all of it for my own to gain even a tenth of her power lol

- “What? No tongue in your head, you—you mutant, you mistake, you great big calf-eyed fuck-up?!”

mercymorn is the funniest person to ever live probably dfhasjkfas (moira quirk’s delivery of this in the audiobook is out of this world, please experience it for yourself one day.) the metatextual layer that she’s essentially saying this to locked tomb jesus, and that she would 100% still be saying it if she knew just how much she’s talking to locked tomb jesus, because that is the very essence of who mercy is as a person... fucking immaculate

- God said, “Summarize, please. You both do tend to go overboard on the foreplay.”

no actually John Gaius is the funniest person who’s ever lived (and died and lived again etc.). in the middle of his ancient lies finally being exposed and all his death empire and personal life about to come crashing down around him as he gets exploded, he still takes a moment to be completely, comprehensively, needlessly, astoundingly and utterly petty. inspirational, in a way. if you commit the profane act of resurrection you, too, could spend ten thousand years working on becoming your very worst self

(also a definite indication that God is terrible in the sack, what the fuck)

also, Mercy throws John’s own ‘You’re trying to start a fight with me to get out of the fight I’m trying to have with you, which is a painfully domestic tactic’ from the beginning of the book back in his face here at the end, which shows that even so, John is merely a novitiate in pettiness, she will brook no comparison <3 I love her so much

- Upon seeing God getting exploded, Pyrrha straight up stands there with her cigarette until it burns down to ashes in her hand fhsdkjfhas. god this poor woman she’s been dying for a cigarette all that time and she’s too shocked by everything going on to even get to smoke it!!!

can you imagine what a mindfuck all of this is for her, though. she’s been doing the same thing as Gideon has this whole book from the back of her necromancer’s head for ten thousand years, she lost her necromancer like half an hour ago, max, and is figuring out being in the driver’s seat of his body (his corpse??? technically???) alone for the first time, she just mercy killed her ex, she found out that at least she and her necromancer didn’t kill both their lover and their child twenty years ago (and also it wasn’t their baby, it was baby jesus in a space pod, phew, that makes it... better? no, no not really huh), she finally got a cigarette... and then her siblings in death empire seemingly upend the entire natural order she’s known as long as she’s had consciousness.

“It was complicated.” she’s saying what we’re all thinking. if she simply wants to settle down on a farm somewhere and live a quiet life, no fucking wonder!

A lot more thoughts behind the cut Because Of Who I Am As A Person

- There was silence in that room. The air had cooled somewhat, but it was still hot and sticky, and it smelled like everyone’s sweat. It smelled like hot perfume and cigarettes and fear.

ever since the first time I read that part I’ve been astounded by how perfectly this captures the feeling of being young and ignored and witnessing adults Feeling deep, tangled things at each other that you don’t understand yet but can sense the outlines of as it settles over you too. ‘hot perfume and cigarettes and fear’. that feeling of peering at adulthood through the keyhole and only half-understanding what you see and that you’re terrified. between that and the way John can literally freeze people in place with a glance until he decides to let them go... it’s the weather front of emotional violence settling in a room, atmospheric and suffocating, as much in the pressure while nothing’s really happening as when the lightning strikes finally hit. hell, Gideon has been through all kinds of abuse in the Ninth House, emotional as well as physical, but this particular form of tension seems to be new to her and to (rightfully) freak her the fuck out. fuckkkkk Tamsyn Muir is just SO GOOD at this -- it’s the perfect set of sensory details to pull forward to get that effect.

(and of course the station is cooling, come to think of it, the Resurrection Beast and the Heralds have begun to flee! Didn’t catch that the first few times around lol)

- Augustine said blankly, “Mercy. Don’t do this.”

“You never loved him as much as I did,” she said, without taking her eyes from John*. “This is the moment. This is the chance for unlovable Mercymorn -- critical Mercymorn -- to show she is the most capable of her name. Every time you have said I did not understand the human heart, that I was unfeeling, that I only knew worship without adoration... Watch me, Augustine: I am the second saint to serve the King Undying. I will teach you a lesson in forgiveness.”

“You don’t even know the meaning of the word,” said Augustine.

John later says he ‘adored them all’, mirroring Mercymorn’s use of ‘adoration’ here. Also I think that she is showing her love, in a very Mercymorn sort of way... just not for John. It’s love for Cristabel, even after all this time, that means she can’t actually forgive John for making her die needlessly. John always assumes people's love for him trumps all other loves in the end, and it just came back to bite him big time. Plus, another case of Augustine knowing Mercymorn much better than John does; he is completely right, she does not intend to forgive anyone for anything lol (and honestly fair enough at that point).

(God asks Mercymorn what he has to do to earn her forgiveness, in his usual uselessly self-flagellating way)

Thick tears pooled in those bloody, stormy eyes. Augustine looked at her, and then he quite abruptly pressed his back to the wall and slid down until he was sitting, a posture of absolute defeat.

as I talked about in another post, the precise way Augustine catches on to what’s about to happen is actually foreshadowed in his and Mercy’s very first fight!

*interesting that this is one of the very rare times the actual narrative voice -- so Gideon’s POV in this case -- actually calls him ‘John’. It may be the only time? I haven’t been paying attention specifically to this, but it stood out to me really clearly this go around. it emphasises brilliantly the sense that John before Mercymorn in that moment is very much a person. the narrative does a great job at subtly shifting those around, how much he's a real human vs. concept to the people around him at any given point

John also says he will love ‘you three’ forever, which I’m presuming is the three original saints? well, I think that may be a record speedrun from him lying to it being revealed he was lying; instead of a myriad it took like five minutes this time

-Mercy turned around to Augustine. She was not weeping now.

“It is finished,” she said.

(Insert Gideon having an oh-so-valid little breakdown about her own speedrun back into orphanhood :’) I’m so sorry Griddle, if it helps it won’t last...?)

- The saint of Patience stood up and crossed to her. She reached forward and took big clawed fistfuls of his shirt.

“I wanted it to be me,” she said, in this weird, unearthly calm. “I didn’t want it to be you. I didn’t want it to be you, Augustine, after all. The sin needed to be mine.”

“It’s ours,” he said unsteadily.

(They take in the probable devastation that’s happening to the Houses right now; Mercy consistently calls them ‘our people’, which I find strangely moving despite everything)

“We don’t know how long it takes to undo the Resurrection. Millions of people. All those millions of our people. No. I had to do it. I’m not very nice, Augustine, and I was never very good.”

(Later he says: “As you chose to stain your hands so mine could be clean, you’re going to have to put up with the fact that you picked the wrong man to enter a suicide pact with. I hate ‘em.”) honestly I am still incoherent over WHATEVER THE FUCK their relationship is. they do hate each other, but she didn’t want it to be him. she did it, so it wouldn’t have to be him, and to him that is ‘absolute defeat’. like there are so many sibling feelings in my heart over that, when you want so desperately and futilely to shield someone even though it has by all accounts already stained you both indelibly and equally. Mercy has been the scapegoat child among the lyctor 'siblings' for so long so y'know, 'I was never very good anyway, I can take this for you', and Augustine is The Eldest Brother who they seemed to agree on beforehand would be the one to do it... but she did it, for both of them, and he couldn't stop her. the mirror of that in the way Gideon and Harrow wants the other to live, to be whole, even at their own expense, even though they 'hate each other' I have. space shrimp emotions.

- it seems like the population of all the Houses doesn’t reach the billions! interesting factoid, I guess it makes sense the Death Planets aren’t that hospitable to human life or expansion long term lol

- Gideon likens the look on Augustine’s face to that she found on Jeannemary after Cytherea murdered her. There’s some very deliberate language and framing going on in this part of the scene to compare Mercy and Augustine -- The original immortal evil space vamipires slash war criminals lmao -- as two scared children clinging to each other. Ianthe too, actually:

Ianthe was staring into space, looking like a child, for all her height. Little. Bemused.

Tamsyn Muir is such a good fucking writer. The expert subtextuality in this scene of God as the Father (and the dad joke amen), bitches!!!! Lord and Emperor and God and Dad (and sort of Spouse, for Mercy and Augustine), all in one. And when (it looks like) he dies, despite all his unforgivable crimes both personal and y’know against humanity, they are all still reduced to frightened orphans.

- “You have a job, Joy. If you kill yourself now, you’ll leave everything remarkably untidy. And that’s not like you, is it.”

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRGGGGGH remember “Cristabel always said I was tidy”?????? he wasn’t even there for that, so he just knows! he knows that is the exact button to press to make her stay alive!!!!! I am going to throw myself off a cliff!

- “We’re going to go round up the ships, everyone who’s left. Sue for peace, as best we can, get the Edenites on side. And then we’ll find a place to fulfill the old promise. Somewhere out there exists a home not paid for with blood. It won’t be for us, but it will be for those who have been spared. Babies always get born, houses always get built. And flowers will die on necromancy’s grave.”

Her throat was working. “Augustine...”

The lyctor took her silently in his arms. They held each other like children who’d had a nightmare, and had woken in a fright. Just as silently, they detached.

She said in a low voice: “He was right. There can be no forgiveness.“

“Then let us not seek out forgiveness, but forgetfulness,” he said. “Bury me next to you in that unmarked grave, Joy. We knew that was the only hope we ever had, that we would live to see it through, and pray for our own cessation. Oh, we’ll still hate each other, my dear; we’ve hated each other too long and too passionately to stop. But my bones will rest easy next to your bones.”

kill me. strike me down. this whole part has haunted me from the very first moment I read it and it won’t let me go, I think it did something irreversible to my brain. who let augustine say the most beautiful things while being one of the worst people. it’s so unfair.

And if you think about it… there’s probably no way he could have stopped her, if she really wanted to kill herself right then and there. She could have just triumphantly dropped dead and left him to deal with everything in the aftermath alone, with a message telling him where to find the instructions for her hilarious 24 minute funeral. But she doesn’t. She wants to go out with him, because they have a deal. *sobbing hysterically* all they wanted was two unmarked graves side by side and they couldn’t even get that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- God taking Mercy’s robes immediately upon killing her and ‘coyly pulling it closed’ as he puts it on is such.......... Peak John-ness. objectively hilarious, objectively horrific.

also he says he ‘never likes cleaning house all at once’, which makes for some...... deeply troubling implications around the gradual dying off of the other lyctors, doesn’t it???? um what the fuck, actually?????????

- the scariest thing about John to me is that I think he really means it, when he says he wishes Harrow was his daughter. I think he genuinely feels that, and does not see all the nightmarish shit he does to her as antithetical to it in any real meaningful way. literally having her attempted murder staged over and over and over again, ‘for her own good’, and I believe his affection is still as real as anything he can feel anymore. he is so terrifyingly, insidiously good at reframing the world around parts of himself in such a way that he’s always ultimately justified. he could have sat down with harrow and helped her figure out what was going on with her, even as one scientist to another, never mind everything he should be doing if he intends to be her teacher or her father figure! he’s GOD! even apart from being god, he’s the ur-necromancer! if he took her and her condition seriously for five fucking minutes and actually sat down with her, he probably could have helped her figure it out and relieve at least part of her suffering!! (and thank god he didn’t, I guess, but in principle at the very least)

and like... why on earth doesn’t he? is he just that emotionally lazy and feckless? if he thought getting G1deon to kill her over and over would be more ‘expedient’, then surely that is belied pretty quickly when it doesn’t fucking work. it’s an evil way to go about it in the first place, but even aside from that it’s uh... scientifically indefensible to repeat an experiment that’s clearly not giving results? is he afraid that if he digs too much in Harrow’s Situation (being a 200 soul Frankenstein’s monster and all, I’m so sorry Harrow), people will be able to follow the threads of that back to what he did and how his powers work?

(I will say that this is one of the best portrayals I’ve ever seen of an ineffectual and covertly harmful adult in relation to a mentally ill teenager. It’s almost scary how true to life it feels at times. If you don’t catch yourself you could find yourself defending him like ‘well, what was he supposed to do, how was he supposed to know, how could he have done anything differently, it’s not his fault’, like he isn’t, again, GOD, and also a grown fucking man positioning himself in the role of her father)

- I have said it so many times before, but Augustine asking John to ask him if he forgives him just so he gets to finally tell him ‘no’... fucking amazing.

Augustine murmured: “You said there was no forgiveness.”

“I pardon him, as God shall pardon me.” so smug in his lonely references no one else can get! I hate him! I love him. I wonder if John was religious before the Resurrection or just like... chronically went to Catholic school, if you see what I mean fhaskfa. Now there’s a fascinating mindfuck that’s relevant only to him, he has a conception of ‘God’ no one else in the Houses could have, because they only know what he set up for them. (which I think is also the narrative point being made with the memes in this series, btw, maybe I'll write out my thoughts on it properly at some point)

this I have also observed before, but the last thing Augustine does before turning down John’s ‘forgiveness’ is looking around a room of dead siblings, with the eyes of a dead sibling, and with Mercy’s heart still splattered all over him. Alfred was the first person to die for John’s lie about lyctorhood (narrowly, since it’s implied Augustine and Mercymorn became lyctors pretty close together. well this is true mostly symbolically, I think all the fucked up shit they did to Teacher & co had already happened by that point lol), and Mercy is the last, and Augustine stands there marked by them both and doesn’t forgive it.

- I wonder if Pyrrha actually has any kind of loyalty left for John or if this is just Strategy and playing out the role of Saint of Duty. (Ianthe is 100% only self-serving strategy, which, you know, at least she’s honest about it haha) I’m assuming it’s mostly Strategy. Also interesting that she seems to be trying to avoid him finding out it’s her and not G1deon, while she might be about to tell Augustine before God poofs back onto the stage?

- It feels so good to have Gideon looking with clear eyes at how everyone’s been treating Harrow and affirm that ‘that is fucked up, go to hell’. Like it’s so good just to have Gideon back in general that it gets lost a bit in the cloud of euphoria for me, but having her validation and care in relation to all Harrow’s been struggling with and that it wasn’t all in her mind? She’s had like fifteen life changing revelations the last twenty minutes and her sense of justice and compassion still breaks through it all. I know we all love Gideon very much but I truly love Gideon so very much help

- But it was the girl’s face that sent Harrow’s neurons in a thalergetic spin

+ bonus ‘I don’t know what the people who think Harrow and Gideon’s vibe is primarily sisterly are on, and whatever it is I don’t want it’ lmao, the entire description of Gideon in the coffee shop AU is so deeply unmistakably sweetly horny. Romantic and sexual attraction is only one set of brushstrokes making up the beautiful yet inconceivably fucked up painting that is their relationship, but I think it’s kind of willfully obtuse to say it isn’t there at all or isn’t also important. Harrow didn’t make TWO dream bubble AUs with explicitly romantic elements for you to overlook her bone gremlin horniness like this

There may be a lot of punctuation and orthography weirdness in this post; this is all transcribed from the audiobook version as best I could figure, I don’t have the books in text format! Only a few days left to go before Nona the Ninth, you guys, I don't know about you but I'm about ready to vibrate right out of my skin

#the locked tomb #harrow the ninth #the locked tomb meta #mercymorn the first #augustine the first #john gaius #pyrrha dve #gideon nav #griddlehark #I've been wanting to write down some of this for ages and finally The Time Has Come #my brain is currently a wasp net on fire being run over by a truck but I hope some of this is readable anyway lol

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fatuismooches · 4 months

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Gosh i love the hc of the Fatui agents have a dedicated Fatui guide/handbook about each of the Harbingers 🤣 ngl it breathes a ton of fun stuff to think about.

For example, that one with Dottore having a sweet tooth (thx to his s/o for that info) and now everyone starts bringing some candies with them whenever they got assigned to him is probably the funniest one yet 😂😂

Also, i believe each of those handbooks have different size and pages according to which Harbingers on the front cover. I think Capitano probably have the least amount of pages, since he treats his subordinates well and then both Dottore and Sandrone probably have lots of pages, since.. you know.. they like to experiment on their own subordinates, etc. 💀. Also idk why, the more i think about it, the more it feels like these handbooks is like a "Survival Handbook" for the Fatui- 💀

-🥝

AHAHA ME TOO!! It really just gives a lot of brain rot, and it's funny to think about how each generation passes on the book to the next new recruits and stuff just keeps getting added. (A lot thanks to you. You have a habit of accidentally exposing them, don't you?)

Dottore and his segments will probably never recover from your little slip-up. At some point, they have to accept the new ways of the Fatuis, not just for them, but also because the agents like to offer sweets to you as well to show their respect. And you love that! Free food! Just don't think you can get out of every situation with a mere piece of candy...

Capitano definitely has the least pages regarding rules, but the longest pages as to why the recruits love him so much. He is highly respected after all, his soldiers could go on and on about how great of a leader he is. Some of these reasons were also provided by you as well - (Lord Capitano is an animal person. Lord Capitano feeds the stray cats and dogs of any nation. Lord Capitano helped a lost bird return to its nest. These facts are a courtesy of [Name].)

Ah Sandrone... the agents know you as the only one she doesn't have a bad temper with all the time. The one who knows how to prepare her tea the way she likes it and how to set the sweets on the table in the proper manner. She doesn't bother hiding her like for tea parties. She just really doesn't care what others think. (A big rule in her handbook is that if Lord Sandrone asks you to prepare her something, it's best to seek [Name] out first so you do it the correct way. Or risk failure. And then risk pain.]

It definitely doubles as a survival booklet, especially if you happen to work under Scaramouche... (the biggest rule - please fetch [Name] if you think Lord Scaramouche is about to electrocute someone.)

#smooches talks #🥝 anon #dottore love notes <3 #capitano love notes <3 #sandrone love notes <3 #scaramouche love notes <3 #DBADBSA SUPER CUTE!!! i like to think some of the rules are a bit ridiculous because the agents still fear the harbingers despite their-#respect for them so that leads to some funny stuff

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matan4il · 14 days

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911 ep 705 first watch reactions

Of course 911 would "punish" the "You are the boss of you!" guy with an alien hand that attacks him, and does what it wants. Pooor Buck and Eddie paying the price for that...

Okay, love the storyline with Hen and Karen possibly eventually adopting an older girl. Too many shows just find easy, unrealistic ways to give their same sex couples kids, and I am really glad that 911 shows the reality of it, and that it is a more complex struggle for many, that it's an act of continuously choosing to be parents. That's actually an amazing, difficult thing, and it should be faithfully depicted and respected, for all of its heartache, and the little moments of triumph.

Buck and Tommy on a date, and Eddie comes along with Marisol? Love how Buck's bisexual awakening and coming out continues to involve Eddie so much. Tell me they're end game, even if they're not gonna get together right now, without telling me they're...

I did not need to learn Marisol is moving in with Eddie like this, with any build up, or even any sort of insight into the relationship, and nope, that does not bode well for them. IDK how 911 managed to do it, but they have somehow managed to give Eddie a love interest the show is even less invested in than Ana.

And the funniest bit, is that Marisol and Eddie's big development is only there to further Buck's journey anyway.

"You can never have too much closet space" LMAO the way 911 both made me laugh, and feel sorry for poor, baby bi Buck. XD

Hmmm. Were parts of this scene cut out? We don't get to see Eddie on his own date with Marisol, but constantly looking over at Tommy and Buck? Boo. I'm glad we at least got the BTS photos, then. But seriously, why!? That was gonna be so delicious.

Oh, Tommy's breaking up with Buck. I mean, good for him, and he ain't wrong after Buck's "after this, we're gonna go out looking for chicks" reaction, but man do I feel sorry for Buck. Him and Tommy might not be my end game (Buddie forever will be), but I do think this relationship could be good for our baby bi. Tommy being in the same profession, knowing what it's like to have this gap between who you are and the image of guys in your line of work, plus he's got more experience than Buck, is sure of himself, can help our boy figure himself out, and also Buck obviously does like his vibe. He deserves to be with someone he actually likes, not just the first woman willing to be with him that the plot pushed in his way.

Oh, baby Buck. :( You didn't even tell Maddie about Tommy. You really aren't ready it. But also (and as a Buddie shipper, more importantly), Tommy broke things off with Buck, but what is eating him up, is that he lied to Eddie. XD Yeah, this gonna end with wedding bells, sooner or later. On screen, off screen after the show ends with canon Buddie, or only in my head if 911 never dares make Buddie canon, I don't care. That kind of emotional devotion is not something that my hopelessly romantic heart can ignore.

OMG, this is how Buck comes out to Maddie? XD Via random pronoun mention, and as a by product of trying to figure out how to tell Eddie the truth? This is hilarious. lol It really makes it clear that, after all, the issue for Buck really isn't people knowing he is also dating guys (or checking their asses), even when it's the other closest person in the world for him, it's Eddie. Specifically. Buck's ready, even if he doesn't have the exact clear words yet, he's just not ready to tell Eddie. Can't imagine why. XDDD

What was that awkward post-sex scene with Eddie and Marisol? And the issues with her moving in are popping up a second after she has. But yeah, we have no idea who this woman is as a person, she's been a cardboard cut out so far, and then one of the first things we do learn about her, is that she would call her stuff better than Eddie's? Once again, this is not the stuff great romance is made of. Or... even just the stuff any kind of romance is made of.

Wait, Marisol was a nun, and Eddie didn't even know!? This whole ep is telegraphing in the news of how weird and awkward and underdeveloped this r/s is, not just for us as viewers who know nothing about Marisol, but apparently for Eddie as well.

And of course his Catholic guilt is gonna kick in now. I'd care, except 911 has given me absolutely no reason to. Seriously, I care more about Buck and Tommy after just 2 eps, than Eddie and Marisol, even though this is technically her 2nd season on the show.

Of course Buck went to find Eddie, and spotted him at the gym. Forever 201 vibes, with Eddie being the focus of Buck's attention. ^u^

I couldn't care less about Eddie's Catholic guilt crisis, and how it's actually a projection of what his real issues are with Marisol, but it's nice to see that as always, Buck's the one who can tell when something's off, and offer Eddie exactly what he needs (even when that's to talk to someone else, but Buck figures out immediately who the right person to address is), and then they just very naturally switch, because Eddie can also tell when something's off with Buck, and he wants to tell him something. Soulmates. THAT is the stuff that great romance IS made of.

:/ The imagery of Catholic nuns has not been around for over 2,000 years, please stop being ignorant about your own religion, and the very different way it looked in its early days.

Bobby is forgiven, he does give good advice, and his "her ex, the Lord" bit, which prompted that reaction from Eddie, is hilarious. XD

So... when Eddie is having issues with Marisol, he already knows he has to figure out how he feels about her, but instead of doing so, he goes to his safe place... Buck's loft.

Man, Eddie being into Tommy's choice of avoidning relationships with women, and hanging out with boys, after in the past, Eddie had dealt with his Shannon issues by running away from her, and re-enlisting in the army, where he gets to hang out with boys, when we all (Buck included) know why Tommy's "hanging out with boys"... I do like that if they want to (and hopefully they do), this further lays the groundwork for Eddie's own queer realization.

Buck and Eddie helping each other with their respective romantic problems, without realizing they are each other's respective romantic solution is gonna make me chew on my own fists. Again. But I'm not even a little bit surprised that Eddie was totally fine and accepting of Buck being bi, or that the first thing he thought of is how this reflects on them. Because their friendship IS way deeper and closer than normal for platonic friends, and Eddie's little reassurance is also an admission of that.

Man, for a second I was worried they also cut out Eddie in the loft, once more putting his thumb on Buck's pulse point possessively, in a perfect parallel to 303. I would have sued for emotional damages. But yeah, it says so much that the peak of emotional meaningfulness for Buck when coming out is in relation to Eddie, and that the scene itself peaks with Eddie, instead of finishing rushing out to take care of his own romantic business, hurries back to Buck first, to hug him, place his hand on Buck and give him orders. "Sure, you're gonna be dating this guy, but I'm still your real husband."

Well, at least Eddie amitted to himself and Marisol that he doesn't actually know her. But... I have never seen two people being both being so happy about not moving in together, and I'm supposed to think this r/s has a chance? Okay. Suuuure.

The scene with Buck going to Tommy to set things straight ready for something was lovely, it was nice seeing him excited, and get to choose, and hear he's wanted. But since the note Tommy and Buck's storyline in this ep should have ended on, is Buck showing Tommy he's ready enough to let others know he's dating a guy by inviting Tommy to come with Buck to Madney's wedding, then why is the very next scene playing the romantic switch again, making us think Buck's car just arrived at the wedding with him and Tommy, only for Buck and Eddie to walk in together? I see what you did there, 911.

Thank you for reading! If you're looking for more, you can find my s7 reactions tag here, and more of my Buddie meta and content in my pinned post. xoxox

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jenneferofjengaberg · 1 month

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I recently finished Mary & George, a limited series that portrays a fictionalized version of the story of Mary Villiers and her son George, aka The Duke of Buckingham, who rose to power in the early 17th century court of King James VI (Scotland) and I (England).

It's very good, probably one of the better historical pieces I've seen this year. Julianne Moore (Mary Villiers) and Nicholas Galitzine (George Villiers) are excellent in their roles, and it's full of a great supporting cast as well, with particular honorable mentions going to Tony Curran as King James, Laurie Davidson as Somerset, Niamh Algar as Sandie, Nicola Walker as Lady Hatton, and Mark O'Halloran as Francis Bacon.

The story basically goes like this. Mary Villiers, the widow of a minor member of the aristocracy, molded her handsome son George into becoming a lover of King James, who was well known to prefer the company of beautiful young men. (Or as the show puts it, in probably the funniest line I've ever heard, James was, "So cock-struck it's like a curse.")

The trailers for the show seemed to lean heavily on the raunch and comedy aspects, and there certainly are plenty of steamy sex scenes and irreverent laughs to be had, but there's a more serious story here as well, with themes of corrupting power taking precedence over the lighthearted.

Mary Villiers is obsessed with gaining power and favor, and more than willing to pimp out her gorgeous son to do it. And yet Julianne Moore adeptly shows Mary's side of the story, with the complicating factors of being a woman in the 17th century and therefore lacking in any traditional access to the avenues of power and wealth. "Women grow by men", as Shakespeare's Nurse famously puts it, in a play written around the time that Mary was giving birth to her son.

Moore and the script infuse the character with wit and sarcasm, even when she's being her most evil self. And yet Mary is an unreliable narrator at best. There's a scene in the final episode, where she questions George's by now outrageous behavior, and seems to sincerely claim, "You are not who I raised". But her every action thus far makes that an obvious and galling lie, and the fact that she believes this lie renders the character's level of self-awareness as practically non-existent. To the end, she seems to accept no guilt or responsibility at all for either the predictable corruption and downfall of her son or the brutal consequences suffered by her girlfriend and co-conspirator, Sandie (Niamh Algar). But Moore's performance of this unconscious amorality is both fascinating and liberating to watch.

Galitzine is also exceptional at presenting the journey of George Villiers from a vulnerable young man into quite a monstrous egomaniac. In the beginning, George seems to act mostly out of a desire to keep his mother satisfied and even, at times, a sincere affection for the King. But as time goes on, and he must scheme and plot to maintain his place as the King's favorite, he transforms into an arrogant, selfishly ambitious, and recklessly dangerous member of the royal court. It's a complicated portrayal of a character that's a little slutty, a lot scheming, but still occasionally sincere, and sometimes even struck by conscience. His best moments, such as his patience and care for his neurodivergent brother, make the audience mourn the loss of the uncorrupted young man he was, and not the petty tyrant he turns into. Galitzine also looks screen scorchingly beautiful in every scene, which doesn't at all detract from his more nuanced performances.

My one quibble with the piece is the script's characterization of King James. Actor Tony Curran is very charming as the romantic, mercurial, and "cock-struck" King, but that may be a fault rather than a feature of this depiction. James gets off rather easy, compared to everyone else. After all, he's the one who turned his personal relationships into a patronage system that basically boiled down to a sex-for-power scheme. People like Somerset, Mary Villiers and Buckingham may have exploited that system, but they didn't author it. And, although this is obviously imposing a wildly modern set of sensibilities on a historical show/events, one wonders if a man who made a habit of sleeping with much younger men who had far less power than he, should be made out to be quite so much the victim as he is in this series. Particularly the way they changed the historical circumstances of his death to fit the narrative of the pitiable gay king who just wanted to be loved but was continually let down or betrayed by his lovers.

Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy the performance overall. And his relationship with George also seemed touchingly sincere, but I also think they could have examined his role in corrupting those around him, both Somerset and Buckingham, more fully, rather than winking at it and mostly letting him off the hook.

Grade: A-

#mary & george #mary and george #nicholas galitzine #julianne moore #tony curran #review #spoilers #mary & george spoilers

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suffarustuffaru · 10 days

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The fanbase is scaring me, the redesigns brought up some weird people that are REALLY passionate about Liliana being half naked

Like theres a whole war going on on twitter rn and the poor character designer got harassed

My problem is with the amount of people upset with this, like i knew we had a bunch of pedos around because of the way tappei writes the girls, but damn i didnt think there were this many of them 💀

yes ive heard about that....... im answering your ask late oops haah but i hope the situations a Bit better..... the toxic parts of this fandom give me a headache but my usual motto is to stay off twitter, touch grass, ignore people, and then hold onto my own viewpoints unless proven wrong alsjdflsdj but like. yeah this fandom is a bit tough to stay in when it comes to certain circles (for example the amount of people low quality shitposting / ranting about the fandom or whatever on rezero ao3 atm in the past days/weeks is. mm. interesting). not my first time being in larger fandoms that make you sometimes feel like youre fighting in the trenches (you could name off a few big fandoms notorious for being toxic that date back to like 2016 and odds are ive been in a couple lajdlf) but yeah seeing people complain about liliana and capella's designs and then overly fixate on emilia's boobs when these three characters have more to bring to the table than just that and theres lots and lots of good things to say about the s3 trailer and their designs..... mm. yeah. im squinting hard at a few of the things ive heard on that. but anyway!!

like the new designs are an Improvement. In General. like ok, as a boob haver myself ("boob haver" is the funniest phrase to me alsdjfls but it is true nonetheless, i am one) i do not give a shit about emilias larger boobs like ok?? her boobs are bigger?? she is still my fav ever and sometimes it just happens when youre still a growing teen/young adult and emilias back to her more revealing main outfit when she wore a different outfit in s2 so the difference in chest size is really not that much. but liliana and capella? those are Improved designs. i think ive talked abt the treatment of underage characters / characters who appear underage on my blog before (and i definitely couldve worded myself better then but i stand behind the fact that some of the stuff otsuka and tappei do regarding this in rezero is just Unnecessary).

could designs like emilia's still be improved on in other ways? yeah 100%, just in the sense that there could probably be changed a bit to fit her slightly more timid and soft spoken personality. or you could take different directions on it in general if you wanted. ive seen some great redesigns of her main outfit!! though her main outfit in of itself is pretty nice to look at imo and its iconic and well-known for a reason. im of the personal opinion that i wish it was a little less revealing in the same vein that her s2 main outfit was (i like that outfit a lot!!) but its still a really solid design overall.

i had some faith after seeing the anime designers fix up typhoon's original design to be More Appropriate, and i love how the essence of liliana and capella's designs were kept the same. like its not just that theyre a little less revealing (and even then, theyre both still showing a lot of skin!!! which is good!!! i like the improvement while keeping the main stuff the same), but stuff like liliana's pants aren't transparent (probably to make it easier to animate?) and the yellow/orange gradient in capella's hair looks great!! they also both look more like grown women which is a bonus. unless youre Weird about this shit which is unfortunately a small percentage of the rezero community. like you cant win with those sort of people ig, bc capella's boobs are bigger too ljasdlfj youd think that win more people over.

also i appreciate capella's sports bra bc unlike elsa's outfit it Actually looks like it's supporting her chest. if youre someone with boobs and you dont have a flat chest, youre gonna need support when being active or itll Hurt. and elsa Does Not have proper chest support okay. ill forever wince remembering elsa's design in that sense HAH....

anyway but i digress. i got no clue what to do with toxic people in fandoms despite spending a lot of time lurking in large fandoms with loud toxic people haah.... its hard to do much about it especially with increasingly declining media literacy rates everywhere.... the notorious misogyny/homophobia/etc that can happen sometimes in anime communities.... that sort of thing. i kinda just avoid it when it comes to rezero in specific, or briefly talk about it on here, or rant about it to myself in my head or chat with pals about it in private if it really frustrates me that much!! and id say im a pretty patient person hah... im not frustrated often. and the fandom is not all weird people of course and i can attest to that as ive chatted with a lot of people here... ive also seen a lot of people leave due to the fandom's Issues which is. totally fair tbh.

and i think rezero is often a "baby's first fandom" so to speak... i dont mean that in a bad way of course but its more like its the first exposure to fandom and fandom etiquette and fic etiquette and that sort of thing when it comes to english circles. or at least its a pattern ive noticed, so my theory is that that occasionally that combines with toxic fans and then you get a few people complaining about the community and how bad our fics are on rezero ao3 ig lajdlfjsdlf. which is false by the way :<< and an annoying misuse of ao3 as a free creative archive :<<

but ultimately i hope the rezero character designer's alright (and honestly theyve done super super great work - like the anime Did Not need to give emilia a bajillion outfits and go above and beyond with improving liliana, capella, giving the suwens and their hometown a whole unique aesthetic, etc). and also while i have stuff to criticize with otsuka and tappei... and the toxic parts of the fandom hah... i still enjoy rezero apart from that and the uproar with the designs has not chipped away at me too much!! ive been in this fandom long enough i guess lmao i just roll with punches at this point T^T but i also just try to look on the bright side a lot in general so ;-;;;

these are the sorts of things i like to be aware about but i dont like to get myself super involved with it (since itll probably make it worse and/or make me stressed for no good reason lmfaoo) and i wont let it enjoy the parts of rezero that i do enjoy a lot (which is to say like. the other 98% of rezero hah). so. getting off twitter is the biggest godsend i promise lajdlsfj.

but anyway!! yeah i dont have much organized thoughts on all of this, this is just me rambling my feelings on it. hope this all makes sense anon <3

#idk how things are on the eastern side of the fandom but the western side can be a little. wild yes.#ask #i try to be as fair as possible in my opinions ljasldfjd but yeah like. people complaining about the designs. i dont agree with it for a Lo #t of reasons. and on a lighter note #honestly my only thing with capellas anime design is that her eyes arent more red!! :<< but her pink eyes look very nice too though <3 #i hope to see like a red-pink gradient on them maybe... thatd be cool...

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miamochi-writes · 1 year

Text

Daycare Snacks Vash AU Part 4

Hi everyone! I’m so sorry for taking long with this! This might be a little more longer than the others and a bit more in depth. Honestly, I wrote this based on one of my dates when I first started going out with my partner. Also I’m going to make this a 2 parter just because I think the next one will be a bit longer. Hope y’all like it!

“Liz, I need your help. What do I do and what do I wear for tomorrow?” he pleaded.

“Don’t worry Vash, I’ll tell ya,” Liz said as she smiled knowing part of her plan was in motion.

~*~

It was a cool Autumn Saturday, the day you and Vash try out that cafe. You wore a comfy knit sweater, pants, and ankle boots that all tied in together. You preferred to be comfortable and stylish for today, and you couldn’t contain your excitement for today. Not only were you going to try delicious sweets and drinks, but you were going to hang out with Vash outside of the daycare. You couldn’t tell which was making you more excited, as your mind decided to wander off.

‘What was Vash like on his off days?’

‘How would he feel about trying things with you?’

‘This is the first time you’re hanging out with him only.’

The last thought made you stop in your tracks as you slightly got a bit red over the idea.

“Come on y/n, you’re literally just hanging out with one of the sweetest and funniest person at work. No big deal right?” you talked to yourself as you kept walking.

You were interrupted by your train of thought with your phone vibrating. You checked to see you got a message from Vash.

“I’m outside the cafe in a red jacket! :)” it read.

‘So he’s just as expressive through text as he is in real life,’ you thought smiling.

You messaged him earlier to have a light breakfast and that you would meet him outside the cafe at 10am. You mainly wanted to try the desserts since that was what the place was known for.

You kept walking around while looking for that familiar tall blonde man in red.

After looking for a bit, your eyes finally found Vash but you had to look again when you noticed what he was wearing

He was standing by the cafe near a lamp post. He had his usual orange shades, but you noticed how he wore a gold hoop earring on one ear. You also noticed how he was wearing a leather red jacket that adorned his black fitting turtleneck with black pants. combat boots. You gazed at him from afar, just in awe of his whole look. You knew he was good looking, but seeing him right now, good looking is an understatement. Were you even sure this was the same person you worked with? You felt your cheeks grow hot and your heart slightly race at the sight of him. Just how is he this beautiful?

You snapped out of your thoughts and calmed yourself down taking a few deep breathes before walking over to him.

“Hi there! Hope I didn’t keep you waiting!” you called out to him.

He looked at you and flashed that smile you grew to love as he walked towards you.

“Hey y/n! Not at all! You look great today! I mean you look great every time I see you. It’s just you look especially great today,” Vash complimented you as you returned the smile.

“Thanks, you do too! I wasn’t sure if it was really you or some model,” you said, then realizing what you actually just said out loud a little too late.

“Ahaha, stop this old thing? This is how I usually dress when I’m not at work. But honestly I could say the same for you,” he said looking a bit flustered.

“Oh stop, you’re too kind,” you told him immediately feeling a blush creeping on your cheeks.

“Oh yeah, are you ready to go inside?” you asked remembering what you came here for.

“For sure! Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he replied as you both walked side by side towards the cafe host.

“Good morning, do you have a reservation?” the host asked.

“Yes! I have a reservation for two under y/n” you told him while showing the confirmation email on your phone.

“Ah right this way,” he said while grabbing a few menus and brought you inside.

The minute you walked in, you were in awe of the interior design. The ceiling looked like it was a wisteria tree with pastel leaves and petals hanging down. The wallpaper inside was a lavender color with gold accents with a few mirrors hanging from the side. The tables were marble with lavender chairs and booths that looked comfy to sit on. You were in for a treat. The host brought you to a booth and placed down the menus.

“Your waitress will be right with you. Please enjoy and let us know if you need anything,” he said as he went back outside to bring more people in.

“This place looks so cool!” Vash said as he was taking everything in.

“Yeah! It’s one of the reasons I’ve been wanting to come here. Which, I cannot thank you enough for coming with me last minute,” you said as you were truly grateful.

“Hey, it’s my pleasure y/n. So what’s the other reason you wanted to come here?” he asked giving you his full attention with his stunning blue eyes.

“Check out the menu,” you told him with an eager smile.

He looked and you could tell the minute his eyes widened, you knew exactly what he was looking at.

“NO” he said.

“Yes,” you replied.

The menu had shakes that were served in mason jars that was pleasing to the eye from top to bottom, along with pancakes that could satisfy any sweet tooth. Furthermore, they offered a range of sweet and savory crepes that you could customize along. As for their drink menu, they had a variety of coffees, lattes, teas, boba that came in iced or hot. Lastly, they had their dessert menu with small tarts, cakes, pastries, and their special donuts. They had a sample flight of donuts that came with the flavors: ube, matcha, strawberry, and churro.

“Please tell me we’re going to get that,” Vash asked as he looked at you.

“What do you take me for? Of course we’re going to get it. Feel free to order anything you like,” you reassured him as your waitress came by.

“Hi you two! My name is Mari and I’ll be your server for today. Anything I can get you two started with?” she asked.

“Could I get an iced strawberry matcha latte please along with your donut flight sampler?” you asked.

“I’ll have an iced americano along with the donut flight sampler please,” Vash requested as the waitress took down your order.

“Okay! I’ll be right back with those,” she said as she walked off.

“So how did you find out about this place?” Vash asked.

“I like to go try new places, specifically cafes. When I was in college, I couldn’t focus studying at the apartments or library. When I go to cafes, I tend to get lost in whatever I’m reading or studying and lose track of time. I’m not exactly from here, so I like to explore and get out of my apartment when I can. There’s something about cafes that makes me feel comfortable, you know?” you explained.

“Definitely, so that’s the kind of person you are. You mind if I ask what you studied?” he asked.

“I majored in Child Education with a minor in Public Health and Epidemiology. How about you?” you asked.

“I did Anthropology and Child education,” he answered.

“That’s cool! What made you drawn to that?” you questioned.

“I think’s its interesting how humans act and behave. Especially how they tend to grow up depending on what they’re surrounded by. Plus, I'm great with kids. There’s something about them having that endless curiosity and how fast they pick up things,” he explained.

“Oh definitely! They’re like little sponges, and they’re pretty smart on an emotional level. Sometimes we overlook that part, and-” you added.

Before you could continue, your waitress brought your drinks and the donuts you requested.

“Oh and since you ordered the latte, it comes with these heart glasses. It’s just something we do for the weekends,” she mentioned while handing over the item.

“Oh cool! Thank you!” you told her.

“Let me know if you need anything else,” she added and walked away.

“Again, I can’t believe you found this place,” Vash added as he looked at the drinks and food.

“Me either, I’m just glad you could join me,” you replied as you put on the glasses.

“How do I look?” you ask.

“Stylishly pink, now we both have cool shades,” he answered as you chuckled and moved your glasses to rest on the crown of your head.

You grabbed your latte and raised it towards Vash.

“Cheers to a fun weekend with great company?” you asked.

He lifted his americano drink to you as he gave you an endearing smile.

“Cheers to that,” he replied as you clinked your drinks.

You both took a sip and savored the flavors with each gulp.

“How do you like your drink?” you asked.

“It’s pretty good! Oh, which donut do you want to try? We can split it if you like,” he asked.

“Oh um, can I try the strawberry one?” you pointed out as he split the donut in half as best as he could.

“One for me and one for you,” he commented while handing you your half as you thanked him.

You took a bit of your half and your face just lit up with how sweet and fluffy each bite was. You let out a small ‘mmm’ in delight that you thought no one caught. Little did you know, Vash did as he couldn’t help but think you were the cutest thing in front of him right now. He had his right hand holding one side of his face as he enjoyed your little burst of happiness.

“Good huh?” he asked as you nodded a bit too excited.

“I’m so glad I was able to get a reservation for this place,” you commented and started finishing the rest of your half.

Vash just chuckled at your actions as he kept eating his portion, offering you to try another one of the donuts from the plate.

“Okay, so I think I’ll try the ube one next. Oh, before I forget, you said you wanted to explore a park today right?” you mentioned.

“Oh we don’t have to y/n. I think this is more exciting than a park,” he commented as he was splitting the next donut in half.

“No I want to! Ever since I moved here for college, I never got a chance to explore the parks or shopping strips in this area. I kinda rely on the bus system here since I don’t have a car. And if I wanted to go explore a bit farther, I didn’t really have anyone to go with me. So I’m kinda limited to things,” you explained looking a bit embarrassed admitting that last detail while he handed you your next half.

“Well if that’s the case, there’s actually a few parks close to us, and one of them happens to be a scenic route,” he added as he pulled up his phone.

“Really? That would be so cool! I do want to check one out for today. It’s the least I can do since I feel bad that I took up some of your plans for the weekend, without considering-” you said midway.

“y/n, you asked and I accepted for a reason. I wanted you to be able to enjoy today since you were looking forward to it a long time. You don’t have to apologize about anything. I’m just happy I'm able to do this for you. Plus, my weekend is already starting out pretty great than what I originally planned,” Vash explained as he looked at you with a soft smile.

You couldn’t help but look at him and what he told you just now. For the longest time you grew up trying not to impose on people. If you got too excited, you sometimes didn’t think if the person was really okay with your plans. Yet, Vash was telling you it’s okay, and that he was just happy to be here with you. You felt warm and gazed at Vash fondly. Just what was it about him that made you feel this way?

“Vash, thanks a million. I mean it,” you told him with a blush tinting your cheeks as his eyes slightly widened. He slightly looked away from you as you saw a bit of pink creeping on his ears.

“No worries, let’s finish up here so we can move on yeah?” he commented as you agreed.

You tried out the rest of the pastries and sipped happily with your drink. Everything was down right delicious and sweet and you both finished everything in silence. But this was a comfortable silence, not the agonizing kind. Heck you both looked content with each other every time you caught glimpses of him.

“So how was everything?” your waitress came back with a smile.

“Perfect, everything was delicious,” Vash commented while you agreed with him.

“Love to hear it. Well here’s your check whenever you’re ready,” she held the bill.

Before you can even reach for your wallet, Vash already handed her his card as you stood there shocked. The waitress took it before you could even get a word in.

“Vash, but I invit-”

“I can cover it, and you can cover the next time if you can beat me. Besides it feels wrong if I let you pay,” he explained.

“But I invited you, you’re my guest,” you retorted.

“Then beat me next time,” Vash simply answered as he raised his eyebrow a bit with a smirk you couldn’t even wipe off. His shades changed to where you couldn’t see his eyes but your own reflection staring at you.

“Fine, you win this time,” you sighed and pouted at your little loss looking away from him.

Once your waitress came back, you both walked out from the cafe to see other people waiting in line for their turn to dine in.

“Okay, so now that I got what I wanted out of the way, we can go to the park?” you asked looking at him.

“Yeah, I can lead the way. But you did say you never explored the shopping area right?” Vashed asked.

“Oh, I mean yeah..” you confirmed.

“Why not check it out? Might as well since we’re in the area,” he reasoned.

“Yeah, but your plans,” you reasoned.

“Hey, the parks are nearby anyway. And we still have a lot of time on our hands if you’re not busy doing anything else?” Vash added.

“No, all I had today was this with you,” you replied.

“So let’s explore,” he finished as he grabbed your hand while you looked at him.

This man remembered a small detail you mentioned and was enabling you to be a little bit selfish.

"Okay, lead the way,” you said as he guided with that smile you adored.

Vash was practically showing you parts of the outdoor mall that he was familiar with. He pointed out which places had the best snacks, trinkets, and some shortcuts he still uses to get around. While you walked, you stopped in your tracks when you saw a small photo booth on the way. You hadn’t seen one in a while ever since you moved out from your hometown. You missed taking photos with your friends and doing silly poses and collecting the small photo strips.

“Hello? Earth to y/n?” Vash asked.

“Oh sorry! We can keep going,” you apologized as he looked at what made you stop.

“Did you want to go try the photo booth?” he asked.

“No it’s okay we don’t have to,” you waved off not wanting to bother him.

“But do you want to? Because I don’t mind,” he asked further as you looked at him and back at the photo booth.

“I do,” you said a bit shy.

“Then let’s go,” he replied as you made your way inside with a small smile spreading across your face.

You inserted the coins once you had the chance and sat with him.

“Okay, so which poses should we do first?” he asked.

“Oh! A hero pose!” you suggested as the camera got ready and you both adjusted yourselves. You did the Sailor Moon pose while he did the Kamehameha pose. The camera flashed as you both relaxed.

“Okay a cool one,” he suggested as he made his hands look like a gun and you did the same. You liked the concept. The camera flashed again as you relaxed once more.

“Oh I know!” you suggested as you removed his glasses and put it on yourself as you gave him your heart glasses.

“Peace sign this time,” you suggested as you posed with both hands.

He did the same except his peace sign was different from yours. He crossed his index and middle fingers. The camera flashed and you looked at him.

“What kind of peace sign is that?’ you asked looking at him with a small chuckle.

“Oh it’s my peace and love sign,” he explained flashing it to you once more.

“You’re silly and I love it. Like this right?” you told him as you chuckled mirroring the same pose to him.

“Yeah that’s it,” he said laughing along as he did your peace signs. You didn’t even bother looking at the camera. You both faced each other just enjoying one another as the camera caught that moment.

“All done! Your photos will be done shortly!” the machine told you. You removed his shades and put it back on him, adjusting it where needed. Meanwhile he took off your heart glasses and placed them back on your head as best as you could. You didn’t realize how gentle he was with his fingertips and the care he put in to make sure you were comfortable.

The machine printed two photo strips you just took and handed Vash his copy.

“One for me, one for you," you commented as you looked at the photos.

You loved how each one came out. Each photo captured your personalities perfectly, but your favorite had to be the last two shots. You were grateful that you got to capture those moments with him. You were absolutely going to keep this somewhere in your wallet or hang it at home as you put the photo away in your bag.

“Thanks again Vash! I’m ready to move on!” you beamed as he put away his photo strip in his coat pocket.

You two walked around more as you noticed other pop up shops you spotted that you would go check out later in the future. There were even some specialty shops that carried specific clothes, collectables, and other items you could think of. But you both stopped at one particular area that Vash led you to.

“Sorry, but I wanted to show you the arcade I like going to. It brings me back when my brother and I used to play here,” Vash commented as he looked at you.

“You have a brother?” you asked.

“Yeah, a twin brother. But you won’t see him much. He’s studying abroad right now. Plus, we don’t come here as much since he hardly plays with me whenever I offer,” he explained as you understood Vash a little more.

“Well, you’re in luck because I love arcades. We can play if you want?” you offered.

“Really?” he asked.

“Of course! I’m not really good at some games, but what matters is we’re having fun right? Plus it’s better playing together right?” you mentioned as you saw his face light up.

“Right, thanks y/n,” he said as he led you inside the neon lit area with all sorts of sounds coming from each machine. You walked around trying to look for a good game where you can both play together. You then stopped Vash as you pointed at a zombie shooting game.

“Let’s try that one!” you said as you led him to it.

There was someone playing, but you figured he was almost done playing. Sure enough he died and you were getting ready to play. Except, the guy continued playing another round until he died again.

“Excuse me! It’s our turn to play,” you spoke up to him.

“So, you’re just going to waste a round. Just wait until I’m done,” he argued.

“We’ve been waiting for 5 minutes already, it’s our turn,” you added.

“Go play some other game that you’re actually good at,” he chuckled as he was about to play again.

You were getting annoyed and ready to throw hands until Vash put his hand on you.

“Hey, my friend and I want to play. You’ve already had your turn. Can we please play a round?” Vash asked as you looked at him.

“Ugh, if you’re that desperate. Then one of you beat me at this game,” the guy offered.

You couldn’t believe the nerve of this guy and what he was saying. Before you could speak up, Vash grabbed the gun and put in a couple of quarters.

“Gladly,” he commented as he readied himself.

You looked at him, wondering what he was thinking, but Vash looked back at you and winked. You were caught off guard, wondering what he was going to do but watched as the two guys readied themselves.

“Good luck loser,” the other guy commented as the game started.

Both guys were shooting at the zombies, but you noticed that Vash was killing them off at a faster pace compared to the other guy. Heck, even when he was reloading he only took one second before going back to his killing streak. You noticed the other guy was struggling to keep up as Vash was effortlessly increasing his combo. You just stood there in awe at what was happening before you until time ran out. Both scores appeared on the screen and Vash was the clear winner with his score being more than double the amount the guy had.

“Ugh, whatever this game is rigged anyway,” the guy said as he put back the gun and left.

“Well now we have the game to ourselves,” Vash commented as he looked at you but noticed you were staring at him.

“Uh everything o-”

“Vash, that’s probably one of the coolest things you did right there,” you complimented as he laughed and rubbed the back of his head.

“Oh this is nothing. I’ve just had a lot of practice with first person shooter games,” he explained grateful that the dark lighting hid his blush.

“Still that was so cool how you did all that! I didn’t know I had an amazing partner to play with,” you commented as you grabbed the arcade gun ready to play.

Oh you had no idea how much you were stroking Vash’s ego right now.

“Ready when you are,” you said as you selected the co-op choice on the screen.

You clearly weren’t as good as he was, but in your defense you hadn’t played in a long time. Plus, you were just happy to play alongside with Vash.

“Wow, look at you go! Do you think you could give me some pointers on how to do better?” you asked while looking at him. You checked to see if anyone was waiting for a turn behind you both. Thankfully there was no one so you had another quick round to play before moving on. You inserted a few more quarters and readied yourself once more.

“Oh sure, here I’ll show you,” Vash offered as he stood behind you while his hands touched yours as you held the toy gun.

Your heart was racing once you felt his touch. You could feel his palms had some callouses but he held your hands delicately as he positioned your aim.

“Okay so it’s all about which target is coming at you first and where to hit. It’s easier to hit the chest but it takes longer to knock them out. If you aim for the head, it should be easier to finish them off but you need to be precise on your aim. As for the reload, you don’t have to move alot. You just slightly move your gun away from the screen, pull the trigger and there you go. You’re back at full ammo again,” he explained as he guided you with each step. You could feel his breath tickle the back of your neck as you were turning red. You did your best to calm down and follow his steps. Eventually you got the hang of it and started finding a good pace.

“See there you go,” he commented as you finished off a few more zombies than last time and saw your final score improved a bit.

“That was so much fun! What other games should we play next?” you asked as he led you around the arcade more. You eventually tried out a few other co-op games like Mortal Combat, Mario Kart, and Street Fighter. You both shared a few wins and losses. But overall, you were both having fun and passed at least 3 hours in the arcade.

“I haven’t had that much fun in so long!” Vash said as he was smiling from ear to ear.

“Well if you ever want to play again or need a Player 2 just let me know,” you told him as you both walked out from there.

“You mean it?” he asked.

“Yeah! Just hope the bus is still running,” you added.

“Or I can just pick you up?” Vash offered as you looked at him.

“You don’t mind?” you asked.

“Yeah, you can ask me for a ride if you ever need anything. Now that we have each other’s numbers,” he brought up as you realized that fact. He can practically contact you any time. Again, how were you this lucky to know him?

“I’ll think about it,” you said as you smirked at the idea. If you weren’t truly bothering him, it flattered you that he was offering.

“So park time right?” you asked.

“Yes, but we’ll need my car,” he said as he pulled out his keys.

“Oh? We’re riding there now? I thought you said it’s nearby?” you asked.

“Yeah, we can walk there, but you’ll see why we need the car,” he said as he flashed you a smile.

Please let me know what you think and look forward to the next part of this! :)

@marydragneell

#trigun #vash #vash the stampede #vash au #vash x reader #miamochi writes #trigun fic #trigun reboot #trigun stampede #vash x you #vash reboot #trigun vash

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etoilesbienne · 4 months

Note

Nice to see that apparently we’ve all read it runs in the family. It was my guilty pleasure fic and i didn’t expect to see other people talking about it. I started reading it like a month after i got into bad and dsmp and i was /obsessed/. It’s one of those fics that changes your brain chemistry and makes you stare at a wall after reading it. To this day im still subbed to it on the off chance that it gets another chapter.

like genuinely its an enamoring fic it has an odd premise but like the author has so much potential in, like, being able to write genuinely engaging narratives. i'm shocked at how much setup is put into the work and you can tell where the narrative is going in a way that's like watching a trainwreck. You know exactly where it is going but the journey of getting there is so fascinating to watch.

anyway i want to ramble about what i liked and what i didn't like in the fic. so. huge reader discretion advised, go look at the other warnings i posted about this fic before reading this (also spoilers for the fic ahead)

like part of its most interesting facets is it is one of the few fics that tackles this sort of heavy subject matter of assault and kidnapping and doesn't really shy away from how genuinely negative it is and can be. like don't get me wrong ive enjoyed other psychological horror before, but it was, like, nice? to see the "pets" all be like genuinely upset and respond realistically to the situation they're in. no "they really like it secretly" undertone.

not a criticism but my favorite part of this story is the random ass normal human names they try to give everyone. they made skeppy have a white ass last name. bbh's name is Bad Halo. purpled doesn't even show up but his name is mentioned to be, like, "nolan purpled but he goes by purpled because his cheating whore of a mom named him nolan and he hates her" genuinely funniest line of the whole fic one of my favorites i can never ever forget it. i need to find all the human names in this theyre so fucking funny.

also badboyhalo? while he IS woobified and made much more demure and defanged, he's still like... that IS badboyhalo. his moments of complete suspicion at every encounter. his doubting. refusal to break the mould and rock the boat out if fear something bad would happen. VERY badboyhalo sentiments. also the fact the writer knew about skephalo divorce. going to be honest, looking at how their other work contains a6d, i think the writer was/is a bbh watcher. and then the schlatthalo. the fact they made schlatt ask to curse? and then bbh laughed when he did? this person understood both of these guys. they did their homework. schlatt isn't a megalomaniac evil villain one note. i don't know if i'd call both of them "in character" per say, but i can definitely say they had consistent characterization and i could understand how their characters got to these versions.

also the technohalo multifaceted concept? techno seeing bbh as too innocent? putting bbh on a pedestal and denying his humanity in that way? WILD. the setup and writing was all there for, like, bbh using his body and manipulating techno to turn against phil.

like the good parts of this fic are such crazy highs and peaks it makes the lows look so much worse.

speaking of which: wilbur soot.

by god is wilbur soot not a character, he is a force of nature and just continuous digging deeper on trying to fix a problem the writer accidentally started. none of sbi really are fleshed out or rounded characters, but wilbur soot is like by far getting the worst treatment. im not even a wilbur fan LOL.

he's supposed to be a schizophrenic serial killer which already isn't a great start, and then you watch the writer realize the issue and try to fix what they've started. this is when schizophrenic medicated slimecicle comes in. followed by badboyhalo looking at the camera and going Not All Mentally Ill People Are Bad. which was just really funny in such a morbid way. but then the writer DOES go in an interesting direction with phil denying his condition and refusing to help him get medicated. however with the slimecicle medicated moment it comes off as a medication = The Good Mentally Ill Person narrative. genuinely i dont know how id solve the wilbur issue without extensive rewriting. he's just a mess.

phil i think is one of the most interesting of sbi, being made into a central antagonist and a genuinely good villain. his scenes have well made tension and poses actual threat and stakes to the narrative. he's a good villain! techno has an interesting arc with bbh but just isn't given enough screentime and doesn't have much beyond "brute to be manipulated" which sucks a little. tommy is tommy. only one of sbi i could see not dying in a fire at the end. wilbur, despite his other issues is a narrative driver with his capriciousness, but the schizophrenia plotline is such a mess that he just is not a person here, he's a plot device more than anything.

more abstractly i do wish they committed and, like, had sex scenes or were blatant about sex happening. like they keep dancing around it but so much of the fic does not make sense if sex isn't what's occurring here. like i get subtlety if the avoidance of sex is what they're aiming for! but its okay to, like, maybe make it more clear whatever techno and bbh have going on is obviously sexual, because that can be used to advance the narrative and make it more clear bbh is using his body to manipulate here, because that'd be a good plot point to continue the themes and motifs of the story. i also just do not know how else to interpret the relationship lol.

my other biggest criticism is make it less misogynistic. the only three named women are the dead samsung smart fridge (who is now a dead mom named samantha), minx the alcoholic witness, and puffy, who is somehow ranboo's mom. like the ableism is horrific here but its so over the top stupid in the ableism, while the misogyny is subtle and just reeks. genuinely why is puffy ranboo's mom that sucks so fucking bad. make her be his aunt or guardian or something. but mom? c'mon.

i rambled way too long lol there's more i can say but this fic is my roman empire. the writer has so much potential but just needs more life experience to understand mental illness and misogyny. also a beta reader to fix their formatting. and maybe make their dialogue more human. shoutout to ranboo giving his name and phone number to tommy after tommy literally fucking tells him he'd "make a beautiful corpse" CRAZY exchange. no human would do that.

#asks

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