#and the fucking. the fact they make boats for the world government and they use that as political leverage to do basically anything they
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water 7 geopolitics.
water 7 is an independent citystate of the world government despite having a working contract with the world government they don't have to enforce their law because they're not under the world government
it's complicated, the laws are independent and the world government doesn't enforce their law 99% of the time because of the fact galley la could just stop making boats for them and that would be extremely bad
galley la is able to use the boat relationship as leverage politically to the detriment of the world government (this is why they got away with enies lobby no consequences style) as long as they keep making boats for them/in aid of the civil war on pirates.
water 7's political strategy protects their own independence while playing both sides in regards to the civil war on pirates, which you could argue is actively harming other nations independence of the world government (like wano)
#modposts#i LOVE the politics of water 7#its so interesting because theyre the first independent nation we see#that actually welcomes pirates#and the fucking. the fact they make boats for the world government and they use that as political leverage to do basically anything they#want. is hilarious.#water 7 is my favourite setting in one piece because of its politics and political history#w7 is less special now that we've seen other independent nations#- a loser would say that they still have the best political worldbuilding in all of one piece#the themes of workers rights within the relationship between galley la and the world government... yeah...#i was having a discussion with my friend about one pieces political commentary and talking about how one pieces villains can often be#shallow political props like wapol and i made the argument that while i do think that that isnt the case sometimes#the thing that makes one piece amazing political commentary is the worldbuilding and stuff like the political history and reality of water#meta#i have to tag this now because i accidentally did commentary in the tags oops.#op#one piece
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Sexiest Podcast Character — Unscripted Bracket — Round 3
Propaganda
Glenn Close (Dungeons & Daddies):
#Propaganda for Glenn Close: one of the other PCs mentions multiple times how hot he is #Actually several characters point it out but especially Henry #Also the only person in a podcast that has to put a disclaimer about not being a BDSM podcast to have had sex during the course of the show
PLEASASSWEEPLEASE TOU DONT HUNRERFSTABDS
GLENN GLENN GLENN ITS GLENN VOTE GLENN VOTE FOR THE BOY
We didn’t do hot Glenn summer for him to LOSE. Spoilers for his story but MORE PROPAGANDA FOR YOU:
Young hot rocker dilf
Loyal to his dead wife <3
Does in fact smoke weed
BARD!! HES A BARD. HE WAS LEAD GUITAR IN HIS BAND (that he was kicked out of)
His band was a Christmas cover band btw.
Literally the fandom had hot Glenn summer which consisted of drawing him being incredibly hot and sexy
Anti government (ofc)
Kind of cringefail (Disney adult) (was on dilfs of disneyland)
Young and sexy not your style? Then how about HIM AFTER YEARS LOCKED IN A TIME PRISON WITH A DAMN HANNIBAL MASK ??
Lost an eye and wears a fucking eyepatch
One incredibly buff arm
Has a pet rat named after his son <3
Immeasurable amounts of trauma in this man- becomes progressively more unhinged
OH OLD HUMAN BARD ISNT CUTTING IT? FINE
HE BECOMES A FUCKING DEMON
A COOL HOT ONE-EYED DEMON WHO WANTS TO KILL HIS DAD (also sexy)
HE CANONICALLY ENDS CHRISTIAN HELL VIA CHRISTMAS
IS ALSO WAY OVERLEVELED
Becomes a demon hunter for the rest of his existence
Also nonwhite !!! We are done with cringefail whiteboys !!!!!!!!!
I can’t put into words ok just know he is the best plz love him.
GLENN GLENNNNNN
Listen, I don't know this other character but I've seem some good arguments for her However Consider Glenn Close winning through no effort of his own in a bullshit way despite being a dick is the most in character thing ever. He leveled up three times and got a crab mech, we GOT to give him this win, it's fitting
I haven't dedicated the last 2 months of my life drawing Glenn close for him to lose
Vote for Glenn Close or I will make you read the parody I did of the vaporeon copypasta
I don’t regulate if minors follow me or not bc I’m a pretty chill space but I hope the world is aware that’s the only reason I haven’t been downright nasty about Glenn close. I’m down bad. I’m NOT in the boat of ‘Glenn isn’t sexy but I want him to win bc it’s my fandom’. I would estimate I have 200+ drawings of Glenn on my phone that AREN’T safe for work. Way more that are. Where did they come from? That’s MY business. But I tell you this fact to assure you- Glenn IS sexy. I’m not voting to represent my fandom I’m voting out of TRUTH AND LOVE. IF YOU DON’T GET IT YOU DON’T GET IT!!! I just think my level of feral over this man is more powerful than y’all realize. If you don’t get his sex appeal that’s okay, but don’t doubt that this is my truth.
VOTE GLENN
Glenn fuckers fought tooth and nail to get us here from like 38% dawg we DESERVE THIS. GLENN IS THE SEXIEST MAN!!! HE WAS THE FIRST FICTIONAL CHARACTER I FOUND HOT AND HE’S GONNA CONTINUE TO SWEEP!!! Your hot goat woman sounds sexy don’t get me wrong but I’m forever fighting for the man that changed my brain chemistry. Proud of our fandom tbh. I don’t think y’all understand the sheer amount of effort I have put in to get my boy where he is today but this placement feels well earned. TO GLENN SWEEP!!
THE FUCK YOU MEAN GLENN CLOSE ISNT WINNING IM BOUT TO THROW HANDS FR
Okay but Glenn made a minivan cum by talking to her so
Yalll better vote glenn i swear to god
Vote Glenn or else the bird gets it🐦🛸
HOW IS MY DUDE NOT WINNING????
GLEN GELN NELG GLENNANN HE DESERVS ITTTT
HE HAS A BOOK THAT HE MARKS X’S AND CHECKS FOR EVERY DAY TO SEE IF THAT DAY WAS A SUCCESS OR NOT. TO SEE IF HE DID GOOD THAT DAY. ITS ALMOST ENTIRELY X’S. HE WAS CUCKED OUT OF A SON. AND A DEAD WIFE. HE DIDN’T EVEN GET TO KILL HIS DAD IN REVENGE. There’s absolutely nothing going for him except his sex appeal in his life. Nobody he loved remembers him. He lost his eye. All he has is a pet rat and friends who admit they don’t really like him that much. He was kicked out of his own band. The band was named after him. He was kicked out of the Glenn Close trio. All he could do was deez nuts the big bad and be sexy. If nothing else, then pity him. Look in his eyes. Look at his heart and soul. Do you think pickman needs this to feel good about herself? Can she not accept a loss for the sake of a pathetic father? Can she shake hands with the minivan fucker and his human gun and just take the L on this one? He did not do the BDSM episode for this I’ll tell you what. Do this for my his sake. Do it for Nick Jr, who needs the prize money to pay for his rat snacks. Do it for his son. For Morgan. Ganbatte.
Mod Note: While I will still take "bad dads are sexy" propaganda and "bad dads aren't sexy" anti-propaganda, I kindly request no more discussion on whether or not he was a bad father. This is a sexypoll, not a parentingpoll. If you see a post you strongly disagree with, you can just not reblog it.
Taako (The Adventure Zone: Balance):
A celebrity chef from another plane
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Forever's Entire Proposal to BadBoyHalo
q!BBH Analysis + Transcript below the cut.
Before I start, I want to make clear this is from BBH's perspective + mentality, and I do not speak Portuguese, as well as none of this is intended as character writing criticism. I really like the direction both of these characters are going in, I just want to highlight how much of a horror show this scene is! I'm starting much earlier than what's shown in the clip at the top, unfortunately Tumblr's file limits exist :/ Timestamp for the entire clip I'm using is at here in BBH's vod.
Some preface for everything going on in this scene and context:
For one, Forever's current drugged arc has continued references to the Vargas Era in Brazilian history, which, to heavily oversimplify, is a period when culture was suppressed by Getúlio Vargas, a 1930's Brazilian dictator, and made to look very perfected to the outside world to cover up the many issues from the government at the time. (I really recommend looking more into the Vargas Era on your own, I can say I've found every reading on this topic to be both interesting, as well as gives Forever's current arc a really good layer of historical reference with his presidency. It's a good topic to look into!)
Mostly, it's a representation of how fucked Forever's mental state currently is. Not only is he erratic from the drugs he was put under - He's actively been washed over with nationalistic propaganda. That's fucking horrifying for the President of the island to be under! It gains another layer of horror as well, because to all of the islanders, Forever is the only community member with any perceived sort of power. Him becoming erratic - pulling a gun on Phil, forcing other people to sign up for the drugs and medical procedure he went under - it's something that carries weight in terms of the island being united and working together, and is currently reinforcing the concerns the French group had with seeing him as unfit for power, with BBH included in all of these presidential coup meetings as being a sort of "honorary french" deal.
On Bad's side, however, is the known fact he finds marriage overrated, and meta-wise cc!BBH has mentioned he's playing a "more aromantic approach" because he doesn't want to be another character stuck in the shipping boat. (This isn't a knock against shipping, I just think it's good knowledge to have about q!BBH's character/stance on romance going into this.) And then finally, when the link timestamp starts, but before Forever has truly begun his serious conversation, BBH does this:
He switches out his regular Totem of Undying to specifically a Death totem. It's very quick, but I think it sets up his mentality going into this... I think he expected Forever's final reaction.
Forever: Here, Bad.
BadBoyHalo: Hello.
F: Hello!
F & BBH, simultaneously: So, uh -
BBH: Do you know where any of the kids are?
F: I know where Richarlyson is, but, oh uh maybe we should go a little bit further there's a translator screen.
BBH: Okay.
F: Otherwise, I want my chat to know what we're talking about.
[Break for when they move the benches again]
F: Here, nice, nice, nice.
F: OH! It's even better!
BBH: Yay.
F: It's perfect, I would say!
BBH: So, you don't -
F: Yeah, I don't know where the eggs are, Bad, but I'm really - there's something I know, okay?
BBH: Uh-huh.
F: I can tell you.
BBH: Tell me.
F: They are just good and fine, okay?
BBH: What do you mean?
F: They're fine! They're well!
BBH: Look, what do you want, Forever?
F: Ah, I want to get married!
BBH: No, I mean, like, what do you want?
F: Why?
BBH: Like, if you know what happened to the -
F: Why… don't we just get married!
BBH: Do you know what happened to the eggs? Do you know where they are?
F: Let's get married.
BBH: What's happening, Forever?
Etoiles: [mumbling]
Fit: Hooray.
Tina: Hip Hip Hooray!
F: Let's - Let's just get married.
Fit: Hooray.
Tina: Hip Hip Hooray!
Fit: Hooray. Wooooooo.
Tina: He saved us. That's crazy!
BBH: Okay. Oh, hey Etoiles. You - You're not focused, Forever.
Tina: It's probably the most beautiful battle ever! Of all time! In a rose field!
F: Yeah, I'm totally focused! I'm happy!
Etoiles: Thank you, Tina!
Tina: Yes!
BBH: No - No, you're focused on the wrong thing -
Etoiles: You see, I clicked well! I clicked well!
F: Guys, can you give me and Bad a moment, please? -
Tina: [Overlapping with Forever] I'm so sorry -
F: - We are having a deep conversation, I am asking him to get married!
Tina: - I'm so sorry Mr. President, I didn't know.
Etoiles: Okay! Okay, Forever, what I, Forever, I - I don't understand, like, there's the code who's attacking us, and you don't give a shit, but you are the president?
F: Where - Where is the codes? I want to help you guys! Everything will be perfect! Tell me.
Pierre: Congratulations Badboy and Mr. President, congratulations
F: If the codes are not here right now, Etoiles, you are just being inconvenient, because I want to get married, and you are just in the way, man -
Etoiles: Okay -
F: - Go away, please!
Etoiles: Okay, okay, I will go away. Okay, okay.
F: If the codes show up, you will tell me, okay?
BBH: [short confused laugh]
F: [cheering as Etoiles walks away] YES!
BBH: [looking around at the sky]
F: See, Bad? This is how we solve problems. Isn't that perfect?
Pierre: Can I be your best man for the wedding?
BBH: What? No? There's not gonna be a wedding -
F: He asks me for drugs all the time, Bad, he just asks me for drugs.
BBH: - okay?
F: [laughing]
Pierre: Huh?
BBH: He's obviously not in his right mind, AyPierre.
Pierre: Yes, look at this smile! Must use a lot of uh…
BBH: A smile doesn't mean a whole lot.
F: Pierre, I will, I will tell Cucurucho, man, I told you already.
Pierre: Yes, I want to be happy…
F: Cucurucho will come to you and he will put the smile on your face!
Pierre: Yes!
F: Now go away, I want to get married.
Pierre: I want it!
F: (Portuguese as Pierre leaves)
F: Oh my god, finally some silence. So Bad,
BBH: mhm.
F: Don't you think this place looks beautiful?
BBH: I guess.
F: Oh my god, they're still around so the translator is just crazy. Let's change it again please. Sorry, but -
F: (Portuguese, I am assuming it is more ooc focused, my apologies. If I'm wrong, feel free to correct me!)
[Break for when they move locations, this is where the clip above begins.]
F: So Bad,
BBH: Yes?
F: What is it going to be? Are you going to get married, or not?
BBH: Why do you want to get married?
F: Yeah, because everything's perfect, right? A marriage would be perfect, as well!
BBH: Why do you think everything's perfect?
F: Why don't you think everything's perfect?
BBH: Because we don't have our kids, Forever. They're gone.
F: No, no they're just fine, man! You are not seeing the world the way you should, Bad, and I'm going to tell you -
BBH: How should I be seeing it?
F: I'm here for you, buddy. I'm here for you, buddy, okay?
BBH: Is anyone here for you?
F: And I'm going to tell Cucurucho that he should help you! Like he did to me.
BBH: I don't want his help.
F: You need his help, Bad. Just -
BBH: I don't need his help, Forever.
F: - Bad, you are looking bad, Bad, -
BBH: I feel fine.
F: - you know?
BBH: You know what would help me, Forever?
F: So let's get married!
BBH: Forever. You know what would help me?
F: Hm? What?
BBH: Tell that white puffball to give me my son back. To bring back all of our kids.
F: White puffball? What does that mean?
BBH: Cucurucho.
F: Okay.
BBH: What does he want? What does he want, Forever? Does he want diamonds?
F: Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with the eggs? Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with your child?
BBH: I know it was him, Forever.
F: What are you guys getting from exploding the whole city? Why did I become the president that's trying to help everyone, and you guys are just exploding everything? This is funny man, this is perfect. [laughs] You know? You guys are just too crazy! [laughs] Man, you guys are exploding stuff, and you all are saying that I need help? [laughs] That's funny, man, that's funny!
BBH: We need our kids back, Forever. That's why. We'll stop, all Cucurucho has to do is return the eggs. I want Dapper back, I want Pomme back, all the kids back.
F: Why do you think Cucurucho is the one with the eggs?
BBH: He obviously is the one with the eggs, okay?
F: What proof do you have?
BBH: Remember -
F: Cucurucho's great, Bad.
BBH: - I saw -
F: Uh huh.
BBH: - It was a strange person in the federation building, Mysterioso or whatever his name was?
F: [laughs] Yeah, he doesn't like [I cannot figure out what he says here]
BBH: I saw him at the federation building. I bet that's the same person who gave Sofia's plans to Maximus.
F: [laughing]
BBH: That means the Federation was responsible for Sofia.
F: Okay, okay.
BBH: That means they're behind everything! There's not anything they don't know about.
F: Did Maximus tell you that that man is the same one that gave Sofia to him.
BBH: He said it was a mysterious hooded figure, and there's only one -
F: There's only - Can only be one -
BBH: - mysterious hooded figure.
F: - It can only be one.
BBH: If the federation does not - did not take the kids, they know who did, and they know where they are -
F: Ohh.
BBH: - I just want them back, that's it.
F: Yeah.
BBH: What do they want - What do they want, Forever? Mr. President? You're in contact with them, what do they want?
F: Well, Bad, I can tell you something, you know? This is actually quite funny, this is actually quite funny.
BBH: What's funny about it?
F: So everyone on the island thinks that I, being the president - me, being the president - means that I'm working for the Federation, but do you know what you guys don't see?
BBH: What?
F: I am the only one working for you guys! A favor(?), you know, the federation does what they want. I'm the only one that tried to represent the people of the island.
BBH: So you're trying to get our kids back?
F: Oh, they're just fine right now.
BBH: Where are they?
F: I don't know, sleeping maybe?
BBH: How do you they're fine?
F: Cucurucho said it's classified! Isn't that funny?
BBH: Do you believe it?
F: That it's classified? I don't know, is there anything to believe in that?
BBH: [sighs]
BBH: What happened to you, Forever?
F: What?
BBH: What happened to you? What did they do to you?
F: Uh, I don't know what you're talking about, Bad. I'm just feeling so good, 'cuz everything's so good man.
BBH: This isn't like you. You're not acting like yourself.
F: Why? Why, I'm happy? I'm not happy? You say I'm not a happy person?
BBH: That's just it Forever, you wouldn't be this happy with Richarlyson missing.
F: Richarlyson's okay, he's just -
BBH: Is he? Is he?
F: - sleeping a lot.
BBH: Has he gotten up? Has he danced around? Has he put any signs down? Has he said anything to you? Have you built any projects with him recently? Have you done anything with him at all?
F: [Deep sigh that turns into a laugh] No, no.
BBH: Then how is he fine?
F: [long pause] Bad, I have something I would like to show you. Or maybe test on you.
BBH: What?
F: You know, you guys are just so funny with that clock joke.
BBH: Clock joke?
F: Yeah, I want to test something.
F: Don't you want to get married?
BBH: I want my son back. I want Dapper, Pomme,
F: [begins launching mines]
BBH: [evades, throws health potions]
F: STOP THAT FUCKING CLOCK NOISE.
BBH: You like your mines, Forever?
BBH: It won't bring Richarlyson back.
To start from the beginning, BBH is under no pretenses that this would be a marriage proposal of all things. All he is aware of is that Forever wants to have a serious discussion with him. He's also gone out of his way to put himself on a Death totem, meaning he has every possibility to be downed if Forever were to successfully attack him.
With Forever's current mental state and reinforcing a societal idealism & a desired performance of aggressive happiness and "normalcy" - his character now desiring something like a marriage can be read multiple ways. For one, an imitation of how one of his closest friends, his ex-husband no less, was recently married and is currently considered one of the best federation workers (albeit begrudging on Cellbit's part). For two, a marriage is a pretty huge symbol of a plastique performance of a perfect life. Especially in this context, it's saccharine, it's a status symbol, everyone wants it. With the medication as well, we don't truly know if Forever genuinely feels strongly about BBH to want to marry him, or if he feels he has to be in a marriage for a "perfect" life with BBH being "the best option" as a spouse. (Again, this is not a criticism of Forever's character, this is a very symbolically rich move for him to do, and I, personally, cannot get enough of it.)
Now back to BBH, this is a guy who is admittedly not looking for romance, not trying to romance anyone, and is currently in the middle of a character arc having to do with how pissed he is at Forever for not running the government in a way he approves, and then getting wrongfully jailed by Forever. I do not think BBH is in any way afraid of Forever as a person, but I do think BBH has concerns about what he may be forced to do in an attempt to get his children back. BBH as a character in general has very, very little regard for his own life, watch a pov of himself in a dungeon and just see how many totems pop, but he does care about his kids more than anything else in the world. The way his character goes about his care for his kids isn't something that often occurs in more masculine-presented characters like him either, frankly I think a lot of more ship oriented readings of him end up hyper-feminizing him* because of this "maternal" archetype.
In a return to Forever's saccharine performance of perfectionism, I find the moments Forever makes the both of them move across the rose field - The rose field, previously quite literally stained by blood as Etoiles had just finished another battle with the code there, tensions are running high and everyone is still distressed from the eggs going missing - I realize it's because cc!Forever ooc wanted to move to not have the chatbox be interrupted by other people speaking, but it's just so good thematically. He keeps moving to have a better view of roses. It's never perfect enough. They have to keep moving. They have to be alone. Nobody else is allowed to be around when he corners BBH with the marriage proposal. Nobody can get in the way.
Speaking of people interrupting, the other members appearing in the middle of the conversation adds to the fridge horror that's been subtly happening all the way through. Nobody pauses and makes sure BBH is okay throughout this scene, everybody is extremely sure that he is fine and can handle himself. The only person to even make a criticism of Forever is Etoiles, over being somewhat irritated that it looks like Forever has been doing little to nothing as President to aid new members or former islanders (despite this technically not being true, Etoiles has seen none of it, and has been giving new players items continuously in an effort to help them, as well as has had little time to do anything except fight code entities).
And then onto the rejection, BBH never agrees to the marriage at all, because why would he? I've seen quite a lot of discussion thus far that he doesn't reject Forever outright, but I disagree, it's a little moment in there, and I couldn't get it in the video posted itself, but he explicitly tells Pierre "there's not gonna be a wedding," and then is cut off by Forever. It's quiet, I don't think many people heard it outright, but BBH is right in his assertion Forever isn't in his right mind to be asking for marriage in the first place.
The other side of that, however, is that BBH is very well aware Forever didn't want to hear an outright rejection either. BBH knows what Forever is capable of, and he knows this version of Forever is not his usual self. It's not an easy situation, especially when he's fully under the impression Forever does have some power with the Federation, and fully believes the Federation has the eggs. Whether or not this is actually true doesn't really matter to Bad's perspective here, he's deadset in this belief. With that belief in mind, how is someone supposed to respond to being cornered about marriage - a concept he has little interest in - but the person cornering him is 1. known to be volatile due to recent events, 2. potentially has some form of contact to the people currently holding the eggs captive, and potentially put his children more at risk than they already are, 3. the literal only person in power on the island.
I don't think BBH ever believed he had the option to outright tell Forever no, he's in a depressed state as is, his kids might be dead for all he knows, and he has the impression Forever could bring harm to them.
Admittedly it is interesting how many outright untrue facts BBH holds onto, but cannot change his belief in them. His opinion and perspective of Forever is one thing, but it's much, much more obvious when he brings up the connection between the new Mysterioso and the previous masked person who gave the plans for Sofia to Maxo, those were two separate unknown figures as we know as the audience, but Bad does not know this, and does make assumptions and connect dots in his own right, tending to his own detriment. This is all intended here, he's wrong about Forever factually, but to his knowledge he's acting in the best way he can. He's under the impression Forever is just not telling the full truth to him about everything with the eggs disappearing, and believes the federation is lying. I think it's made even more obvious he's prioritizing the eggs over everything else here, especially with his final statement about Richarlyson. BBH believes the eggs are the only true way to every player's heart, and blatantly ignores the actual romance aspect of what marriage implies, because romance genuinely does not matter to him at all. He doesn't have time to worry about being in a relationship if his son might be dead.
Mostly, I find this scene to be a great relationship horror set up, because damn if I haven't been on dates like this, where I feel like I can't say no or something might happen. I understand the paranoia and anxiety surrounding q!BBH's mindset in the moment. It isn't a rational response by any means, no, but it is a very aggressively human response to this situation for a demon to have.
Basically, I don't think BBH is a fundamentally romantic character in the first place, nor do I think he'd ever be happy in a cutesy marriage position anyway, he never once responds romantically to any of this, and solely prioritizes the eggs, the final Richarlyson line cements this fact. It's not a dig at how Forever will never have BBH romantically - it's a dig at Forever based on what BBH's priority is, his kids.
*I want to be clear this statement is meant to be a neutral fact, it's just worth mentioning in an analysis like this that BBH as a character is more typically set on the feminine side by the fanbase, and how his character's interpretations are influenced by that reading.
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I see conversations about people being tired of fantasy works having fantasy racism bc other than often not being handled well, the presence of it implies there is a valid reason for it kinda like how ogres are often treated as pure evil. Thinking about Arknights, I think Oripathy manages to avoid the issues? Systemic prejudices against the infected like classism, ableism, & they make statements with it all & have nuance, it's not just racism for the sake of it but real + complex issues in Terra
I understand your point but Arknights very much does have fantasy racism with the Sarkaz. It takes a backseat to general oripathy discrimination and hidden by the fact that plenty of the main cast is Sarkaz, but you have lines from Meteorite for example stating her surprise that Rhodes Island hired Sarkaz like her in public-facing jobs.
I do like though how Arknights handles the topic of racism towards the Sarkaz. They're shown to actually be a hugely diverse group of people, they're the minds behind the whole Rhodes Island project (Theresa, Closure, and Warfarin are all Sarkaz), and the "reason" for their discrimination isn't because they have superpowers (fucking everyone does) or otherwise are naturally dangerous, it's because they are simply different (everyone else represents an animal, while a Sarkaz is a mythological monster).
Fantasy racism is often eyerolling because it's usually like "In this world the race called Normies are discriminatory towards The Exploders, a race that eats the brains of passerby and then explode. However, when this Normie cop finds a ten year old Exploder lost in his backyard, they will go on an adventure to break down the walls of society, and hopefully not explode."
Arknights explores the topic of the Sarkaz with some nuance, and the careful explanation that the reasons they continue to be discriminated against today came about BECAUSE of their oppression. They are often mercenaries and hired muscle, because there are no other jobs for them. Many are depressed, cynical, and violent from living such a hard life where their lives are seen as expendable, further enforcing the stereotype of Sarkaz as a race of warmongers. Their only land to call their own was ravaged by foreign invasions and then by a civil war.
Even Buldrokkas'tee's entire backstory was about Sarkaz oppression. During Theresa's reign over Kazdel he brought his clan with him to Ursus seeking a better life for them (keep in mind Vigilo called Theresa a great war hero, implying her reign or the leadup to it was marked by war with other nations), and when they arrived in Ursus they were thrown to the frontline of a demonic invasion, made to fight horrifying and inhuman monsters to prove they were worthy of Ursus. It's almost understandable why Buldrokkas'tee sternly told his son not to rock the boat, not to protest the Ursus government's treatment of the infected: they had already fought so hard and sacrificed so much just to get here, just to be citizens.
It's also why Rhodes Island as a creation of a Sarkaz venture is important to the games' themes. Almost every single nation in Terra is a complete dystopian nightmare and yet from the most beaten, oppressed, and discriminated people comes a genuine effort to Make Things Better. Not only does RI reject the status quo of status and power by being a community effort where everyone works according to what they can do and is given according to what they need, they're also the most advanced Oripathy research institute on the planet because of the Sarkaz's own long intertwined history with the disease.
It's a fantasy, in a way. "Yeah you all treated us like garbage but we'll save you anyway while saving ourselves, fuck it. This pandemic will kill us all if we don't."
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aren't you embarrassed to be a fan of something written by a transphobic antisemite
okay. i deleted the previous anons relating to this earlier today and didn't respond when they were outright death threats/hate accusing me of transphobia, sent to me all afternoon simply because i got called an "adult HP fan" by OP (for context, see here). truth is: i didn't want to show what "side" this hate was coming from. i think it's very detrimental to the cause, and actually harms trans people at large. this being said, i've fucking had it now, so i will respond.
first of all (and this is anecdotal, at this point), i fucking stand by what i said this afternoon about the original post. the post itself was fucking ludicrous. it meant nothing, was the epitome of someone trying to sound clever using words that held absolutely no substance in context (which is elitist and nauseating), was deeply ignorant and demeaning of an art form that has existed for centuries, and the author was incredibly hypocritical in their response to the backlash they received - not only from myself but from other creators. the fact that i've been receiving hate from their followers all afternoon and that "adult HP fan" was the only actual "argument" they could come back with actually proves my point. cleary, i have hit a nerve, lol.
obviously, as someone who has an entire podcast dedicated to the art and craft of fanfiction, the fact that these ignorant opinions "exposing" fanfiction as a "lesser" art form that "missed the boat on narrative multivalence" (whatever the fuck that means?) are still getting posted and reblogged on tumblr (of all places) is truly incredible. a friend of mine (who i'm not going to tag here because i don't want them to get hate), likened it to: going to Disney and saying all the people there are stupid and not doing their vacation right. While they themselves are at Disney. how's that for "complex figurative language," eh?
secondly (and most importantly, in my opinion), you and your idiotic friends think you're fighting the good fight, right? congratulations on your moral high ground. i have news for you: there are few things more harmful to the trans cause & community than sending death threats/hate to people on the internet. it makes you sound insane. and, you know who wants to make you sound insane? fucking transphobes.
this type of behaviour is so harmful to the trans community. it is so harmful to trans activists around the world who try and make educated, well-articulated points that support trans rights as basic human rights. (which, for the record, they are). and, as someone who does actually support the community, nothing makes me angrier than getting this sort of hate online. because, what if i didn't support the community? you think all the death threats and hate i've been receiving all afternoon would change that? you are not doing anything, here, to support the trans community. you are actually harming it by cheapening and endangering the point that countless people are trying so hard to make to our people and government. and, for what? to suit your own sense of righteousness and entitlement. it makes me sick. and, you should be embarrassed and ashamed of yourself.
this is the bloody reason trans rights aren't progressing. because for every death threat and hate comment there is a bigot at the other end who uses those to "prove" that trans people are crazy and a menace to society. i am beyond furious at this. and, here i am, deleting half the hate i got this afternoon because i don't want to harm the cause by posting it. because i tell myself that posting it will be one more "proof" for the bigots to latch on. fuck you.
this is revolting and fucking disgusting.
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Spoilers for Laika Aged Through Blood
Summary:
I have autism so im going to make a master post of all the coming and going themes in Laika
WIP - Feel free to add.
Its literally an post-apocalyptic world. what more do i need to say.
Mentionin, theres a quest that involves human bones? Are all furries humans? Did there used to be our world humans before doom fell? Did the animals mutate? The only non-human intellect i can think of is the whales in the ocean which is a stretch.
Jacobs Cassettes - Hes gone but hes with you the whole game. You add on to what he began. Something he loved. (and Laika makes fun (?) of him for shooting the player to get the thing out but thats the only way she will open them after his death).
Spirits - on the nose here but literally talks to those who have past. She cannot move on (to the after life). People only talk to her about it when they want comfort that their loved ones are okay (She has no idea).
Laika Herself - Starts the game wanting to die. Whole existence is defined by the daughter that she was forced to have. The one she loves more than anything else. She hates the curse. She hates the idea of Puppy taking her place more. The people around her set her worth to her warrior ability. She does anything but train Puppy, which puts her clan in state of disaster. Her reason to live was because the people need her. All she does all day is what other people tell her to do. Her excuse for not finding pochiee (?) was the elder told her to do otherwise. Maya straight up tells her that she shouldn't think and just do what the elder says. Laika speaks out against the elder but still enacts thier will.
In her journal writes about how futile thier resistance is. As the game goes on she does all these fetch quest. She doesn't understand why she bothers but 'its the difference between living and survival'. She says it gives the villagers and her hope. Puppy gets kidnapped due to Laika not prioritizing her grief. (For having death be desensitized) (Puppy being sheilded from death) She drops everything to save her daughter. She sees that even the bird citizens hate thier government and are going on suicide missions (they die either way) for the prospect of peace. She laughs at them because she sees them as they want to appear - The Ultimate Unity - The Living Machine - not as the scared and whipped people they are. She kills all involved in the kidnapping. Puppy gets the fever that killed all her other daughters. Laika comes face to face with the fact she may not be immortal anymore or another loved one will die. (She takes her helmet off at this point idk why) Kills 'god' and immediately told afterwards that Puppy will live (Laika wont) the bomb drops and she jumps down after it. She accepts death somberly so her loved ones will live.
Little Moments
Ray? Rotiers? Boat Man. Lost his family to the birds. The only way he can afford to eat is to work for them. How he thinks of his father when he sees the light house. Laika telling him about the view-
Mini point: The ocean is filled with debris and filth at the coast line but when you can look out to the far horizon the water is clear. Laika sees a whale. (symbol of the beauty of the old world and how they were thought to be gone)
- Laika apologizes because he wanted to leave and she was to focused on the goal to care. He says dont be. He sees ghost whales. Laika can only imagine.
Mina- Gives Laika an invitation to her birthday. Laika is touched but before she can get her thanks out Mina asks her to give it to her brother. Bro is dead, still had a present for her. Laika gives the news and gift to Mina and is paid with silence.
Pebbles - The fucking iris and the prettiest pebble. Laika knows its impossible that Iris put it there but tells Pebble otherwise. All dialogue with them after this point is them talking about Iris.
Dominat Birds- Thier goal is to rise above the petty trials of life and death and ascend to godhood as the sole race. Lose thier humanity in the process. Also All in one government plan. (Millitary Law and God i think? i was to busy backflipping to catch that) Assimilation. The fact the birds have thier ability to sing taken away at birth.
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I accidentally followed someone on Twitter with a similar name as someone I was intending to follow a couple-few years back, when I was deep in my Twitter addiction (actual, it was hell). It took me a couple of months to realize my mistake and then I was too embarrassed to unfollow.
It entered a weird state after that because this was, in fact, a total rando. I realized I was on the wrong boat by going "Jesus I didn't know X was a conspiracy theorist", Not X was posting...nothing hateful or malicious, but serious headtilt moments, and I became mildly fascinated.
I managed to quit Twitter with a lot of effort, but I went back on recently to get my archive.
Not X was kinda weird in the day. Now they're utterly brainscorched. They think France is going to collapse "by the end of the summer" and that the rest of Europe will crumble after. Not lightly so, the word they used for France wasn't "altered" or "(political party)", it's "gone". They think it's going to move on the same path as WWII, and that there's no hope except to "ascend", but they're worried that this total devastation will set back the development of the "God machine" until it's "too late".
It's really on my mind right now. Not for purposes of ridicule, and certainly not for fear of WWIII (I casually texted one of my multiple contacts in France and went "Hey X are you on full social media lockdown because the French government doesn't want you to interact with the larger world" and their response was "What the actual fuck kind of bullshittery", disproving the idea nicely), but just...because it's on my mind.
We keep saying "social media isn't good for us" and "echo chambers are bad for us" and "this is turning people into conspiracy nuts", and everyone nods and ignores it because *their* usage is safe, *their* echo chamber has the right sort of people in it, and *they* would never fall for misinformation.
The truth is, social media is bad for us, echo chambers are bad for us, and we are all vulnerable to being misled, especially if it's misleading in a way we like.
But hey, making fun of conspiracy nuts is shooting fish in a barrel, right? We all love doing it. I'm as guilty as anyone. We see something that makes sense to someone else and no one else, and we just...laugh and point and move on, while those lives, those skulls real people are stuck inside, those brains on sticks, are further confirmed by persecution reaction chemicals, and they get more and more anxious and afraid sure everyone is out to get them, and it builds up into a cult or down into a bullet, and so it goes.
It's definitely about hubris, and about having hubris.
#Shit involving me#conspiracy theories#conspiracy theory#Just because something is wrong doesn't mean people don't believe it#I hope they can break out#They seem nice#I tried but they're not taking requests#Not one cult but three#We can do better#Social media#Echo chamber#Humanity#Human#human things
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writing asks: 13, 17, 30
13. Do you outline your fics? How much of a headache would someone get if they just looked at an outline of yours without reading the fic?
Hahaha no. Incarnate Inchoate is the only one I've ever done an outline for and that outline was often useless because it didn't make sense to me either. One of them just says 'plinko "we is a strong word joe"'. That must have meant something at one point!
17. How obsessively do you sit and stare at your fic after you’ve just posted and wait for feedback?
I don't do this anymore. I used to be very obsessive about it to the point where it genuinely fucked up my mental health. Now, I post something and then I close the tabs and shut off everywhere I could receive feedback for ideally at least three hours.
30. Post a snippet from your current WIP without context - no more than 300 words.
The journey out from Sam’s hidden island is painfully awkward. Tubbo sits backwards in his boat, unwilling to let Michael out of his sight. Michael clings to the front of Tubbo’s vest. Eret is lost in thought, staring out at the glittering waves. The only one who seems even slightly calm is Technoblade, who is doing that weird thing he does where he stares into the middle distance and goes on some kind of face journey as he rows towards his arctic home. At least he looks like he’s having a pleasant face journey.
Tubbo still isn’t sure about this arrangement. He doesn’t exactly feel comfortable around Technoblade. Sure, they’ve cleared the air between them, but– Put it like this: Tubbo is very appreciative of the fact that Techno left his rocket launcher at home and he still sees it every time he looks Techno’s way.
“So, I should probably ask this before we get to your place,” Tubbo starts. He watches as Techno’s attention returns from wherever it had wandered off to. “Why did you break Dream out of prison?”
“I owed him a favor,” Techno shrugs like it’s the easiest thing in the world. Say what you will about him (Tubbo has a lot to say about him), but Technoblade keeps his word.
“Why’d you owe him a favor?” Eret asks and it’s the exact question that Tubbo had really hoped xe wouldn’t because he and Techno both know the answer and Tubbo had been trying not to bring it up.
“Well, you see, Eret, there was this government,” Techno drawls.
(that's literally all i have on that fic but i might keep going on it if there's interest)
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Chapter 1: Code 10-15
Favorite Crime
Series Summary: Y/n L/n, daughter of the villainous group, “The Gisbourne”. They’re known to do the cruelest things around the world in order to get what they want. In order to stray away from her family, Y/n is the founder and sole member of the vigilante group, “The Robins”. She does what she can in order to assist those in need of help in New York City.
However, what happens when the Avengers are tasked with finally defeating the Gisbournes? What happens when they use their newest member, Wanda Maximoff, to get to the black sheep of the family? What happens if they both fall in love? But what if it was all a mission to Wanda?
A/n: This story is told through different splices of Y/n and Wanda’s story. Italics are generally flashbacks. And be sure to read the lyrics of the story. It’s not in the same order as the original song but this is purposely done :) (Not my GIF)
Warnings: Betrayal, angst, cursing, happy ending
Word Count: 2.9k
Masterlist
Chapter 0 | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Bonus
Know that I loved you so bad
I let you treat me like that
I was your willing accomplice, honey
“Guys, let me introduce you to our newest member of the team, Wanda Maximoff.” Heads turned as the brunette timidly walked into the room. She fiddled with her hands as she shyly mumbled a quick hello to the intimidating crowd. It was Natasha that broke the silence first. “Welcome to the team, Wanda.”
Soon introductions happened but Wanda had yet to say anything else. All she could focus on was trying her best to not read their thoughts. It seemed that Natasha was the easiest to sit by since her thoughts were surprisingly quiet. She found Tony and Thor to be the loudest while Bucky’s felt a little...damaged.
Nonetheless, Steve excused the two as he led Wanda to her new room. Opening the door for her, Wanda found herself to be in a spotless and minimalistic room. The colors were on the grayscale and everything smelled and looked brand new.
“Here’s your room.” Wanda walked in, enjoying the fact that she can finally have something of her own. But considering who she was living with, she felt a little overwhelmed at the possibility of the bed itself being worth more than her childhood home.
“Everything in here can accommodate your needs just as long as you know how to work one of these,” Steve said as he held up a small tablet for the room controls. Wanda laughed a little and jokingly asked, “Are you telling me you don’t?” Her voice was strongly laced with her Sokovian accent, which was something Wanda lightly cursed herself about.
This was a change. This was new. This was a place she could start a new page and maybe even a new Wanda.
Steve slightly blushed as he scratched the back of his neck. He placed the tablet back on the nightstand and said, “Well...let’s just say I’m not one with the current times.”
“So, an old soul?”
“You could say that.” Slowly backing to the door, Steve held on to the handle and said, “But, I’ll give you time to adjust. Also, before I forget, we have a talking robot in the building. So if you hear a very smart alek voice, that’s just the robot.”
Steve gave Wanda a comforting smile before closing the door. Looking around once more, Wanda noticed that she had her own flat screen in the room. There was a desk in the corner as well as two various doors. Going through them, one door led to her own luxurious bathroom and the other led to her own walk-in closet.
Wanda walked back into the main room and saw that she had glass doors leading to the balcony. Pulled in by the breathtaking view, Wanda slid out to the balcony and watched the scenery in front of her. It was night time yet New York felt as lively as the morning. “This really is the city that never sleeps.” And as Wanda continued to watch, she could only hope that this was the new beginning she needed.
“So you’ve been here a couple of months,” Clint stated as he and Wanda finished their training session. “How do you feel?” He tossed Wanda a towel which she caught with ease. While wiping the sweat off her face, she responded with, “I feel good.”
It was an obvious lie yet Clint didn’t manage to catch it. And if he did, he would’ve figured it was the nervousness talking. However, Wanda couldn’t help but think that she’s never felt so lonely till now.
“Well, that’s good to hear.” Clint picked up the various items they used for training and started to place them back in their original places. “Heads up, I think Steve is going to give you your first big mission.”
Wanda was putting back the weights when she said, “Really?” For the first few months, she’s been shadowing the other Avengers during their missions. Sometimes they would ask for Wanda’s opinion on how she would have handled the situation and other times she would just watch.
“Yeah. The team is impressed. You learn really quickly.”
“I don’t want to let anybody down.” It was rather late for it because Wanda already felt like she let herself down.
“You won’t. I know you won’t.”
Looking down at the file given to her, Wanda first noticed how young the girl looked in the picture. There were tiny scars on her face but none looked prominent. The thing that pulled in the most was her alluring eyes. They appeared soft at first but Wanda had a feeling there was more to those tired eyes.
“So, her name is Y/n L/n and my mission is to get close to her?” Wanda asked. She couldn’t really wrap her thoughts on why she was needed on this mission. The girl didn’t seem like the type to know much combat. So it shouldn’t be too hard for the Avengers to get her.
“Correct. You’re tasked with getting close to her to the point she can trust you. Since not a lot of people know you’re a part of the Avengers, you can help us use her to get to her family.” Wanda sighed. She didn’t want to disappoint them on her first big mission but why did it feel like the Avengers were in over their heads?
Regardless of her anxiety, Wanda swallowed it down and said, “Okay, when should I start?”
Those things I did
Just so I could call you mine
The things you did
Well, I hope I was your favorite crime
Natasha, Steve, and Wanda sat in hiding. They were currently waiting for their target to arrive at the designated location. Various S.H.I.E.L.D. agents hid with the scenery and the night had only aided in their secrecy.
As the minutes ticked by since Y/n’s last message, Wanda couldn’t help but feel nauseous from her actions. Here she was, standing with the good side of history yet she couldn’t help but feel so repulsed by her actions.
Doubt plagued her mind which only increased her anxiety. While fiddling with her fingers, Wanda could only think about her. She thought about everything that could happen to Y/n. From how the government could possibly treat her to the possible interrogation that she would have to go through.
Oddly enough, she hoped that it wasn’t Natasha that could have a chance of doing that. Because if it were her, Y/n would end up in two ways. Beaten and bruised or hopelessly enamored by Natasha. Both ways made Wanda more anxious for this outcome. As sick as it was, Wanda would rather have Y/n be beaten and bruised than the latter. Jealousy was an ugly look on Wanda as well as betrayal.
“Do we really have to do this Steve?” Wanda could feel her hands start to shake but she quickly pulled herself together. Steve was right beside her. At any chance he felt that she was distracted, he would have her immediately escorted out.
“It’s the only way, Wanda.” The lack of doubt in his voice made Wanda shiver. She felt hopeless yet she was the only one to blame. She practically led Y/n to slaughter.
“But she’s nothing like them. You see what she does on her own.” Although Wanda knew there was no chance of pleading her case to Steve, she still tried because this was Y/n for fuck’s sake.
“I’m sorry Wanda but one good person can’t make up for what her entire family has done to many.” Looking back to the entrance of the tunnel, Wanda could only think about the good things that Y/n has done with her. Because to her, one good person was enough.
It's bittersweet to think about the damage that we do
'Cause I was going down, but I was doing it with you
Yeah, everything we broke, and all the trouble that we made
But I say that I hate you with a smile on my face
Wanda and Y/n were hanging out at an abandoned playground near the boat docks. Surprisingly, things were still intact despite the wear and tear they’ve been through. Y/n hung upside down on the monkey bars as she watched Wanda swing closely by her.
Maybe it was the way her hair flowed through the night breeze. Or maybe it was the way that she still shone through the darkness of the night. Or maybe it was this new happy look she had on her face. Or maybe - no - it was just the way she was - always is. She’s Wanda Maximoff.
With all the blood rushing down to her head, and this overbearing feeling in her chest, Y/n said, “You know that I love you, right?”
Wanda stopped swinging and looked over at Y/n. There was a small bewildered look on her face but she didn’t look disgusted by the question. “What?” There was suddenly a rush of blood pounding in Wanda’s ears. She hoped that her mind wasn’t playing tricks with her especially now.
“I know it’s crazy - I haven’t even taken you out on a first date or anything but,” there was a glint to Wanda’s eyes and that confirmed everything that Y/n was feeling, “...I do.”
Y/n pulled her body upwards and replaced her legs with her hands on the monkey bars. She swung back and forth to get her blood flowing in other directions besides her head. She looked at Wanda and saw this doubted look on her face. So Y/n quickly added, “Yeah, I love you.”
“And what makes you say that?” Wanda had various answers in mind to her own question. Y/n could possibly be on drugs or she hung upside down for far too long. Or maybe, Y/n is just out of her fucking mind. But still, Wanda only hoped that Y/n would reassure her that she heard correctly. That she does love her.
Thinking about it for a moment, Y/n suddenly found the right words to say as she swung forward and landed right in front of Wanda. She placed her hands on the ropes of the swing, her face lowering down Wanda’s, little distance between them as Y/n said, “Well, you see me as my own person. Not somebody that’s the daughter of something. Just...me.”
Wanda’s breath was caught in her throat. Suddenly her senses were filled with anything about Y/n. Her ocean scented cologne, the hair pomade she uses to style, and the way her face looked so beautiful as if it was constructed by Michelangelo.
“Anyone can do that Y/n,” she whispered. Her eyes showcased her heart as she kept looking down at Y/n’s lips. But the way Y/n’s masked made her eyes looked constantly made Wanda look back up.
“I wouldn’t call you anyone,” Y/n said cockily. “You’re Wanda Maximoff. The girl that sees the best in people and the girl I so happen to be in love with.” Love. It was so easy for Y/n to say to Wanda despite everything she has been through with her family.
No one taught her love yet when she looked at Wanda, all she could do is feel it. “You feel so comfortable saying that around me yet I haven’t said it back,” Wanda joked. By now, her breath caught in her throat with how close they were getting.
By now, their foreheads touched as Wanda’s grip on the ropes of the swing tightened. “Well, I have a feeling that you will someday. And if you don’t, at least I got it off my chest.” And someday would be today.
Slowly, the two were leaning in when - RING!
The annoying alarm that blared through Y/n’s beeper made her groan. Now, someday would be in the future. “Uhhhhh - duty calls,” she said in distaste, however, Y/n had so badly wanted to stay with Wanda. Surprisingly, Wanda felt the same way. But vigilante duties were important to Y/n. So with another kiss on Wanda’s cheek, Y/n saluted goodbye. “See you Wands. You better practice saying those words now.” Y/n left with a wink and a smile on her face.
The room was tense as Y/n stood before her family. Sharp eyes looked into Y/n’s soul as they beckoned her to finally say her peace. “I don’t want to be a part of this family anymore.”
This type of tantrum was nothing new with Y/n. Everyone knew she didn’t like being part of this family but it never got this intense. “You don’t know what you’re saying Y/n,” her Dad reasoned but frankly, he was getting aggravated by this whole shenanigan.
“No, I do know what I’m saying.” She knew her family wouldn’t treat her seriously. They never did and she was hoping that they would once more because, after this fight, she would never come back.
“You’re throwing your life away, over what? Some girl?” The whole thing was quite pathetic to them. How could you throw the whole world away for somebody they believed Y/n hardly knew?
“She’s treated me better than you,” she countered. However, her family simply rolled their eyes at her statement.
“Oh yeah? Go ahead with your little friend then but don’t come running back when things go south.” The cigar in his hands was placed into the ashtray nearby. Y/n’s parents hardly looked when they heard Y/n’s footsteps leaving the room for they truly believed their daughter would come back. Because in a family like theirs, blood is the only thing you can trust.
Perched up on the balcony, with the breeze of the night flowing past them, Wanda and Y/n were laughing at the various things their powers did. However, the night turned with Y/n teasing Wanda endlessly. “I hate you,” she said as she slightly shoved Y/n as she smiled. “Sure you do,” Y/n replied with a smirk plastered on her face.
“I seriously do,” Wanda said as she noticed Y/n look at her lips. The two leaning in closer to each other. “Okay, and what are you going to do about it?” Y/n licked her lips as she could feel her heart explode with how little space was between them.
“Thi-,” the moment was cut short was Wanda’s phone rang. Their foreheads touched at the obvious annoyment to the interruption. Y/n had to physically remember to breathe as Wanda gave her a sorry smile. “Duty calls?” Y/n said to lighten the mood.
“Duty calls.” Seeing the frown on Wanda’s face made Y/n want to kiss her even more. “God, her lips must be soft,” she thought loudly. Wanda blushed at Y/n’s words but Y/n hardly noticed. All she wanted was to remove her frown. So she settled for the next best thing. She kissed Wanda’s cheek, letting it linger for a couple of seconds.
“See you later Maximoff.” Feeling overwhelmed with joy, Wanda shoved Y/n off the building as Y/n saluted her goodbye. Smiles were still plastered on both faces.
The ringing still went as Wanda saw Y/n successfully swing away. She picked up her phone with a sigh, having to remove all her flustered emotions as she answered the call. “Hello.”
“What the hell was that, Wanda?” She knew it was coming especially since the team had a very close eye on this mission. Failure wasn’t an option. “It was called acting, maybe you should try it, Tony.” She could already feel his eye roll from a mile away.
“You’re lucky I called when I did.” Luck...if it was luck, then her heart shouldn’t have ached this much. “Yeah...thanks, Tony.”
Y/n arrived at their place in huffed breaths. The adrenaline from breaking away from her family still running through her veins. “Wanda?!” She yelled out. The tunnel echoing her voice. “Wanda?!” There was still no response.
Before Y/n could call out again, the sound of combat boots echoed through the tunnel. Y/n sighed in relief knowing that Wanda was here. “Love - I think we can still make it before my family finds…”
Slowly, the figure stepped into the light provided by the moon. His chiseled jaw and god-like physique caused Y/n to go into a defensive mode. Y/n didn’t need to see the shield in his hand to know this was Steve Rogers aka Captain America.
“What are you doing here? Where’s Wanda?” Steve didn’t respond as he pressed his fingers onto his comms. “Target is here. Move forward.” Suddenly, Y/n could feel something latch on to her back, a spread of electricity shooting through her body.
Y/n dropped to her knees, groaning in pain as she still looked at Steve. A hard boot to her back made her face roughly connect to the dirty concrete. The electrifying feeling intensifying more than ever.
As they cuffed her arms and legs, Y/n couldn’t help but focus on how much her body was on fire. She thrashed and struggled in their hold and all she could think to yell out was, “Wanda!” Screams of pain and helpless begging for Wanda’s presence echoed through the tunnels.
And as Y/n slowly faded in and out of consciousness, Wanda stood at the exit of the tunnel, hearing the love of her life begging for her to save her.
Chapter 2
Taglist: @abimess @dandelions4us @lostandsearching @magically-queer-stuff @olsensnpm @randomshyperson @somewhatgreatexpectations @spacevoyager2 @when-wolves-howl @xxromanoffxx @yourtaletotell
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Upon request, here is a rec list of bottom Louis fics where Harry radiates sex appeal. We hope you enjoy this fics! If you find our rec lists useful, please support them by liking the post and reblogging it to help spread the word. Happy reading!
1) Gimme Gimme | Mature | 5957 words
He dragged himself to his bedroom and flopped down face-first onto the bed, groaning, and started thinking about that new neighbor. Maybe this was his chance. Maybe this was the time for him to actually try and find a love interest that lasted longer than 2 weeks. He rolled over and sat up on the bed, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked out the window.
And what he saw was probably the most amazing thing on the planet.
Walking into his new neighbor’s house was a man in a suit, carrying a briefcase while his Porsche sat in the driveway.
2) Under the Vanilla Sky | Explicit | 8006 words
Who the hell wears a hat like that on a yacht? That's one of the things Louis thinks when he sees Harry from across the deck of the most expensive, ridiculous boat he's ever been on. He also thinks he'd like to get closer. Just to see what's under those aviators. Just to verify that, yes, in fact, those white swim trunks might be a little see-through when wet. Just to see if someone could really be that hot in real life. On a yacht. In the Caribbean sea just off the coast of St. Barts.
Here's what really happened on that yacht.
3) Sweet Like Cherry Vodka | Not Rated | 8039 words
When he exits the building he instantly sees him. He’s leaning against his white Mercedes Benz convertible. The car makes him look more expensive. Of course, the navy blue suit that fits tightly around his broad shoulders — making Louis want to fall to his knees, mind you — also helps to get the message across. He looks up from his phone, his sleek black aviators block Louis from seeing his dark eyes.
When Louis knows Harry's watching him he smiles. A grin grows on Harry’s mouth, his strong jaw moves cockily while he chews his gum. How does someone make chewing gum so hot?
“Need a ride sweetheart?” Harry calls to him, the statement adds to his cocky demeanor.
“You know I do, silly.” Louis laughs at how ridiculous the older man can be.
4) You And I ‘Till The Day We Die | Explicit | 10807 words
Prompt 124: A fic inspired by Groupie Love by Lana Del Rey, where Harry is a Rockstar and Louis is his cute little boyfriend who tries to hide himself in the middle of the crowd. (Preferably set in the 80s)
5) Guns N Roses | Mature | 14069 words
Harry's an assassin, Louis is a government agent. They hate each other but not really.
6) My English Love Affair | Explicit | 19198 words
Note: This fic is locked and can only be read by AO3 users.
The thing about sleeping with a member of a famous indie band is that the inevitability of having a song written about you is most likely a hundred percent. The second thing is that in the end, nobody's supposed to find out it's about you.
The one where Harry writes a song about his English love affair and Louis sleeps with someone in White Eskimo and all he gets is a stupid song written about him.
7) The Way The Storm Blows | Explicit | 21649 words
Louis doesn’t have a habit of thinking about Harry’s dick.
That would be weird, seeing as they’re best mates, and they share a flat, and they’ve spent holidays at each other’s family homes. Their friendship hasn’t ever risen to a point where Louis should want to see his mate’s dick, and he’s happy to keep it that way.
Except, all that Louis can think about is exactly that. The size of it. The shape. The amount of people it’s been in.
Maybe it’s the tequila talking, or the fact that Louis’ just recently walked in to an eyeful of Harry taking turns on some slags that he’s never seen before, but. Louis’ mind can’t stop obsessing over the idea.
8) Even The Best Laid Plans | Explicit | 25190 words
Louis wants to have sex with someone and decides Harry is the perfect alpha for the job.
9) A Trail Of Honey Through It All | Explicit | 27086 words
The boy in front of him, well really, the man in front of him, was like something out of a confusing wet dream. Built, tall, tan and muscular, his skin glistened with sweat after a long day of working outdoors with his hands. He was wearing a cut up old American football shirt, the bottom hem was torn and the sleeves were cut off to the point where the t-shirt was really just a loose tank top. The shorts he had on had clearly been full length jeans at one point, and were now just crudely cut off above the knee. His white socks were pulled up too high on his calves, and the brown work boots he had on were old as fuck, the leather peeling along the edges of the soles. Curly brown hair stuck out from the edges of his backwards snapback, and there was a smudge of grease wiped along his brow bone. The smattering of hair along his jaw proved that he hadn’t shaved in a week or two, the hair growing in thicker across his upper lip and around his chin. His sinfully bowed mouth was pink and plump, and Louis was suddenly hyper-focused on the way that he chewed at the toothpick stuck between his lips. He looked like he needed a shower. Louis wanted to lick him.
10) Carnelian | Explicit | 30631 words
Louis finds himself donating blood to the most beautiful being he's ever seen.
11) Take My Pure (And Wash It All Away ‘Til I’m Cured) | Explicit | 40629 words
They're all 19. Louis is a twink, Harry is a frat boy hunk. Harry for some reason wants his makeup done for pride, and Louis is just trying so very hard to stay clear of all alleged fuckboys this year.
12) In The Still Of The Night | Explicit | 68568 words
The Dirty Dancing AU where Louis is a feisty omega who wants to change the world, Harry is an alpha from the wrong side of the tracks, and nobody puts Louis in a corner.
13) Waiting On You | Explicit | 76576 words
“Vampires,” Louis says with disgust, glaring over at the vampire who is noisily slurping from the woman’s neck nearby.
Zayn gives the neat fang marks on Louis’ neck a meaningful look.
“Can’t live with them, can’t live without them,” Louis finishes, ignoring Zayn when he rolls his eyes.
Louis takes a long sip of his milkshake, presses his fingers against the marks on his neck, and definitely doesn’t think about the vampire who left them there.
14) Your Name is Tattooed on My Heart | Explicit | 86809 words
Note: This fic has mentions of top Louis.
Louis is ready to find the love of his life, but first he has to stop falling for the punk rocker next door.
15) Beyond The Point Of Weird | Mature | 108331 words
Louis meets Harry one night and well... Of course things lead from one thing to another. How could Louis not be interested in having a go at the ex-Rockstar who'd starred in his first wet dream?
When Harry asks him to pretend to be his boyfriend to help him clear up his image, Louis agrees because why the fuck not. Yet it kind of feels like the only 'fake' part of their relationship is the title they chose for it... And then it gets confusing.
Louis' pretty sure he walked right into a trap - one he's not quite sure he wants to escape.
Check out our other fic rec lists by category here and by title here.
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for the meet uglies, sternclay 60 sfw? OwO
Here you go!
60 Sterncly SFW. we’re both on a reality show (like the queer bachelor) where we’re told to be friends but the first time we met, you were incredibly rude and judgmental and I don’t know if I can do this for the damn cameras
“So, Barclay, now that we’re a few days in, what’s your impression of the other contestants?”
“They, uh, they all seem like great guys. We come from a lot of different backgrounds, so that’s kind of interesting to be around but, uh, I live in a place that’s like a big, chosen family, so being in a house with a bunch of types of personalities is kinda, uh, homey.”
“There’s no one you think you’ll struggle with?”
“Uh. Well. I, uh, I don’t like Joseph too much. He came in and he’s so, like, phony from all the years in the FBI. It’s like he’s trying to be polite and charming but really he thinks we’re all idiots for being here. Which, like, buddy, last I checked you signed up for this the same as the rest of us.”
------------------------------------------------------
“Joseph, any worries about the other contestants?”
“No. I mean, we’re competitors on a dating show, not enemies. I think we’re all trying to show Vincent the best versions of ourselves.”
“There’s no one you’ve had conflicts with?”
“........I, um, Barclay and I got into a small argument earlier about the house rules. But I’m sure if we both stick around long enough we’ll come to an understanding.”
----------------------------------------------------
“Gentlemen, this cannot continue.” Ned, the producer, sits on the couch across from them. Barclay glares at Joseph, but the other man keeps a cool demeanor. Great, he’s making Barclay look like the big, angry mountain even off camera.
“I thought reality shows needed conflict to thrive.” Joseph cocks an eyebrow.
“They do, but about big things, like love and rivalry. Not how to properly load a dishwasher.”
“I’m just trying to be efficient.”
“My way is perfectly fine.” Barclay snaps, “jesus, I worked in kitchens for years, I know how to get clean plates.”
“That doesn’t make it optimal.”
“Do you have to be right about everything?”
“Gentlemen, you recall we have a housekeeping staff, right?”
“It doesn’t matter” Barclay doesn’t take his eyes off Ned, “we’re supposed to all get along, not all try and prove we’re the smartest guy in the room.”
“See, this is your problem, you need everyone to like you, to see you like a big brother, but you’re missing the fact that at least three of them have decided your gentle giant persona is a threat and they’re trying to oust you.”
“It’s not a persona, it’s just how I am. We aren’t all government shams disguised as men.”
Joseph’s facade cracks for a moment, blue eyes trying to light Barclay on fire.
“Enough.” Ned shakes his head, “you may despise each other as much as you please behind the scenes. In front of the cameras, please try to act as if you’re not ten seconds away from coming to blows. Agreed?”
They trade a final, furious look.
“Agreed.”
------------------------------------------------------
They’re a little over three weeks in; Vincent is still doing lots and lots of short, individual dates between the group outings, so the contestants have ample time to hang around the house and get on each others nerves.
Case in point: Joseph was right when he warned Barclay that others saw him as a threat. Chad, Alex, Nico, and Rich have all decided to go after him. Just this morning he’s been told he’s not man enough for Vincent (he shooed a wolf spider out of the kitchen with a broom instead of squishing it), too girly (he offered to make cupcakes if people wanted), and too big (who'd want to fuck a six foot tall puppy).
His mood is not helped by Joseph chatting away on the couch about his former job with the FBI. Barclay swears it’s all the asshole knows how to talk about. Maybe it’s time for Barclay to play a game of his own.
“Hey, Joseph.”
The other man turns, black hair perfectly slicked back like he thinks he’s some kind of movie star.
“I bet you ten bucks you can’t make it until eight tonight without talking about your job.”
The other contestants in the room snicker, several even giving Barclay a thumbs up.
Joseph adjusts his shirt sleeves, “You’re on.”
Ten hours later, Barclay is forced to get his wallet. The other man never mentioned the FBI once. In fact, he did Barclay an even bigger favor; he didn’t talk at all.
He finds the agent sitting on the back steps leading into the garden. Stays standing as he holds out the cash, “you win fair and square.”
Joseph looks at the money, then looks away, “I did it to show I could, not for the bet.”
“I mean, you didn’t have to go, uh, quite so hard on the silence thing.”
“I didn’t mean to. But, um, every time I was going to open my mouth, I realized it was somehow related to work. So I kept quiet.” He sighs, stretches out his legs. He’s in slacks, because of course he is, “I must have been so tedious to listen to, no wonder I was driving you up the wall.”
“Joseph-”
“I really am married to my career. I guess it’s not surprising my last chance for love is on a T.V show.”
“Hey, I get it.” Barclay sits down next to him, “when I was first working in commercial kitchens my hours were crazy; I barely saw my apartment, my friends, my boyfriend who pretty quickly became my ex. But it was what I needed to do to build the career I wanted for myself. To do what I loved.”
Only the crickets and the distant waves reply. Then, “You said you were a private chef now, right? Along with writing cookbooks?”
“Yeah. Kinda surprised you remembered.”
“Listening is a major skill in my profession. Besides, it’s polite to pay attention to what people tell you.”
“What’s your job now? You only ever talk about the FBI stuff?”
“Paranormal investigation. I never bring it up because people assume I’m out chasing Bigfoot with a shaky-cam or trying to communicate with haunted dolls.”
“So...what is it instead?”
“Helping people figure out they’re homes aren’t haunted or the monster on their property is just some owls. I like the challenge of solving the mystery, and I like helping people feel safe in they’re homes.”
Loud voices form inside; the caterers must have refilled the bar. He doesn’t really want to go in. It’s too nice out here.
“You wanna hear about the restaurant my coworkers swore was haunted?”
Joseph perks up, turning to face him, “Yes, please.”
-----------------------------------------------------
He’d been really looking forward to beach day. Six guys are already gone, and Vincent has taken his fleet of suitors to the sunny San Diego shores. Barclay is dismayed to find all but three of the other guys have waxed their chests. Joseph hasn’t, but his happy trail is nothing compared to fucking black forest on Barclays torso. Nico’s gotten half the guys to call Barclay “bigfoot.”It makes him feel like he’s back in high school P.E freshman year, and his body image is rapidly sliding into that of a shy fourteen year old.
“Barclay!” Joseph comes jogging out of the surf towards the towels they lay down side by side when they arrived, “you should come in, it’s really the perfect weather for swimming.” He drops onto his towel, black hair a bit mussed. The swim-shorts that he thought were blue with green spots turn out to have not dots, but tiny UFOs on them.
“I, uh, I’m good. I, uh, I burn easily and I don’t think anyone wants to rub sunscreen on my hairy back.”
“Hey, Bigfoot, what’s wrong? Scared of what’ll happen if the cameras get a load of your gut?”
Barclay growls, stares at his toes. Joseph tracks Nico as he finishes jogging by. Then he calmly picks up a frisbee, aims a throw, and knocks his snapback off his head. He’s sitting down before the other man can work out who threw it. Barclay chuckles, but doesn’t get up.
“Bigfoot’s my favorite cryptid.”
“Uh, thanks?”
“And who gives a shit if you have a stomach.”
“Easy for you to say, you’re cut.”
Joseph grabs his sunglasses, “because I like that for my body. I happen to like yours just as much. Um I, I mean, it seems like Vincent likes it.” He tips his head towards the Bachelor, who gives them both a long once-over.
“...Will you do my back?”
“Of course, big guy.” The nickname sounds so right on his tongue it makes Barclay want to set his head in his lap and ask him to pet it.
It’s late afternoon when Ned herds them all onto a boat which promptly steers towards some cliffs. Joseph stays close to Barclay, pleasant expression noticeably tightening the closer they get to the rocks.
“I’ve been dreading this. Cliff diving is not something I’d pick to do on my own.”
“Heights?”
He shakes his head, “Deep water. I know it’s not rational, and I even checked to be sure there hadn’t been large shark sightings in the area, but I can never shake the feeling there’s something waiting just out of sight, ready to surge up and eat me.”
They all climb up together, Vincent staying on the boat to watch them jump (this is technically a friendly competition to show off how brave they are). As they’re turns get closer, Barclay sees Joseph doing deep breathing exercises.
They hit the edge. The agent freezes.
“Shit. I don’t think I can do this.”
“C’mon, where’s my daring special agent?”
Joseph still doesn’t move.
“You, uh, you wanna jump together? Maybe the megaladon or whatever will eat me instead.”
“Megalodons are extinct; we’d know if they weren’t, same as we know Whale Sharks aren’t.”
“They you are.” Barclay murmurs, smiling.
Joseph manages a smile back, “On three?”
“Yep. One, two” he grabs Joseph’s hand “three”
The water rises to swallow them with terrifying speed, but nothing is waiting for them except one very startled fish. They surface together, Joseph laughing triumphantly, hair plaster to his head and sun shining in his ocean eyes.
If Vincent doesn’t pick him, he’s out of his mind.
--------------------------------------------------------
“Ohmylord, we have to play this.” Joseph cannot believe his luck; he figured the barcade group date would mean a lot of solo time, but here’s his favorite game in the whole wide world.
“Monster Hunt?” Barclay laughs as he lets himself be lovingly shoved down into the seat of a cut-out Jeep, “very on brand.”
“They had this at the bowling alley near my house. I’d play when my parents had league night but couldn't get a sitter. I never could beat the Mothman level without a player two.”
He doesn’t have that problem tonight, even with Barclay distractingly delighted and handsome in the seat beside him. After that, they make it their mission to find every two-player game in the thrum of flashing colors and tinny music. He finds they both like the Bowser Bourbon Smash, and somewhere around their fourth, heated game of air hockey they each polish of one too many of them to stay upright without the support of a game, a helpful show staff member, or each other.
When they get back to the house (their fellow contestants all in a similar state to themselves) they manage to make it to Joseph’s room before collapsing into a giggling heap on the bed.
“That, hic, that was fun. Games are, hic, fun.” Barclay blinks at him, “what’re you laughing, hic, at.”
“You, you got the hiccups. S’funny because you’re so big, like, like watching a, a pitbull with a, um, a” he makes a squeezing motion that his sober self would recognize as “squeaky toy.”
“M’not big” Barclay pouts, “I, hic, maybe everyone else is, hic, just small. Ever think of th--hic--at.”
“S’not a bad thing.” Joseph shifts so they’re facing each other, “like how big you are. Makes you sexy.”
Barclay blushes, “you’re, hic, one to, to talk. You’re hot, so, hic, so fucking out. Got, got those eyes. That, hic, that face” He touches Joseph’s cheek, “love your face.”
“Love yours too.” Joseph says, stroking his beard. Then they’re moving in inelegant tandem, grabbing at each others shoulders and faces as their mouths find each other. Barclay is so warm, whimpering when Joseph rolls him on top, nipping his lips and pawing at him like a puppy hoping for a treat. Joseph is going to hold him close and let him have it.
A clatter from below, one of the other men knocking something over in the kitchen, breaks the spell.
“Wait, wait” Joseph reluctantly slides his hands of Barclays ass, “we, drunk, we’re drunk, too drunk.”
Barclay blinks down at him, pouting a little even as he groans “fuck, you’re, you’re right. Wanna, gotta remember this. Don’t wanna” he yawns, “regret it.” The instant he flops onto his back Joseph climbs into his arms and falls asleep to the slow rhythm of his breathing.
-----------------------------------------------
After that night, they agree to be more careful; they’re here for Vincent, to see if one of them is his true love. That’s what the contract they signed says.
“More careful” turns out to mean watching their alcohol intake around each other and only touching platonically (including falling asleep on the couch together. They wake up to cameras recording their nap. Barclay isn’t sure what Joseph threatens Ned with, but the footage never sees the light of day).
But unless they’re on a solo date with Vincent, they’re by each others side. Barclay teaches Joseph dominoes and how to make biscuits. Joseph introduces him to terrible old horror movies that they watch on his laptop and compliments his cooking every chance he gets.
They must be doing something right, because they move to the next round week after week, Vincent clearly enamored with both of them. Barclay certainly understands the feeling. Just not for the person who he’s supposed to.
“Joseph? If, uh, if neither of us win, what are you gonna do after this.”
“Go back to work. Maybe pitch my book about U.S cryptids.” Joseph’s smile goes shy for a moment before recovering, “but I wouldn’t worry, big guy; I think you’re the front runner for sure.”
Barclay knows for a fact that Joseph is a fan favorite and the suitor most people think will win. Which is why, when Vincent selects his final four, he’s not surprised Joseph gets the first rose. Then everyone but Barclay is holding one and Vincent is touching his shoulder.
“Barclay, please don’t take this as a sign I’m not deeply fond of you. This wasn’t an easy choice but I, well, I feel like your heart may not be in this anymore.”
He takes Vincent’s hand and squeezes it, “It’s okay. It was wonderful just to get to know you. All of you.” He looks at the final four, at Joseph’s calm, polite expression. He meets blue eyes as he says, “I hope you find someone who makes you happy.”
With that he turns, all too aware of the cameras tracking his exit, his face, how he’ll have to do a final interview and not reveal that he’ll hate Vincent forever but not blame him in the slightest if he marries Joseph.
“Wait!”
Every eye, lensed or no, turns back to the gazebo. Joseph is at the edge of the steps, poised to run. When he sees Barclay stop, he turns to Vincent.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t accept this.” He hands the bachelor the rose, “I hope you understand.”
There’s no soundtrack on set, but strings swell in his ears all the same as Joseph descends the stairs and leaps into his arms, kissing him so hard he still has stars in his eyes when he opens them.
“It’s not a marriage proposal” Joseph whispers, kissing his cheek, “but I do have a question for you.” He pulls back, all cameras on them but his attention for Barclay alone, “would you like to be my boyfriend, big guy?”
Barclay rests their foreheads together, “Yeah, babe, I really, really would.”
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Thess vs Centres of the Universe
Nope. Gotta vent about a thing.
A webcomic writer I used to respect ... well, I don’t follow his Twitter anymore but I follow an artist friend of his, who reblogged and agreed with the following sentiment: “Just remember how much better 2021 was than 2020″.
Keep in mind, dude’s Canadian. And as far as I’m aware, not stuck in Alberta. So I probably shouldn’t rage overly about the fact that dude clearly isn’t paying much attention to ... well, anything that isn’t in his immediate orbit. For him, I guess it’s “Well, we have a vaccine now, I could see family and friends over Christmas, and things are settling down, so 2021 was obviously better all the way around”.
Yeah. Tell that to the people in Afghanistan. Tell that to the women in Texas. Hell, say that to my face - me and everyone else who lives in this country. Because believe you me, on balance ... 2021 was way worse for most of us on this wet little ball of rock.
Since I don’t live in those other countries, I’ll talk about living in England. The fuel shortages. The food shortages - those are still ongoing, by the way. The rise in National Insurance contributions coming at the same time as the drop of the vital £20 per week Universal Credit ‘uplift’ and increases in the price of heating and electricity. Hell, the number of electricity providers that went under this year was fucking insane. Then consider the government mired in sleaze, forgiving themselves their trespasses and no one seeming to care because they’re more angry about being asked to wear masks and get life-saving vaccines. The bill that gives carte blanche for police to stop and search whoever they want for whatever reason they care to give, criminalises pretty much all protest and forces trans women into male prisons. The bill that showed the government giving up even the pretense that they’re not stealth-privatising the NHS. The discussion of the Human Rights Act needing to be scrapped because it’s been ripped wholesale from the EU, led by a man who has gone on record, on multiple occasions, as saying he doesn’t believe in human rights. The fact that this country is taking a line on refugees that Trump would have been proud of - the response to nearly 100 refugees dying on a small boat while trying to get to England was largely, “Well, they shouldn’t have come here and we’re looking at making sure that death is more of a risk if more people try it”. (Seriously, Priti Patel has been on about pushing refugees back with fucking gunboats.) All that on top of some of the highest Covid numbers in the world - and that’s hospitalisations and deaths, not just cases. Given how small our population is in comparison to countries that have fewer deaths? Oh, yeah, and also remember that the way the NHS and the pandemic have both been mishandled has led to people having to be treated in fucking parking lots.
Do not tell me that 2021 was better than 2020. Yeah, it was the year that Trump left office and that left a lot of people breathing easier. Yeah, I was even one of them. However, our country hasn’t got rid of its Trump yet and won’t for another few years - and that’s if they lose the next election. Hell, there’s worse than Johnson - smarter and crueller than Johnson - waiting in the wings if the party libertarians decide that they’ve gone as far as they can with the mussed buffoon in charge. So, y’know, given where the country in which I’m basically stuck living has been going this year? No. 2020 was bad. This is worse. Maybe what that webcomic writer is living is not worse. His experience does not speak for everyone, and he is not the centre of the universe.
I’m glad he had a somewhat better year this year. However, on a public forum, he’d probably be better off remembering that other people are living a different experience to him. Like, Texas’ horrible abortion law. The fall of Kabul. Brexit kicking off in force. A good chunk of the world has spent this year suffering in ways that made the lockdown look like chicken feed. Yeah, having dinner with my parentals this Christmas was nice. It doesn’t compensate for the hell I’m living now.
So ... yeah, seriously, I’m angry enough about basically everything, mostly because next year isn’t looking any better on my end. I’m planning on metaphorically slaughtering 2021 in the messiest ritual I can find and then putting its head on a spike on the battlements as a warning to 2022.
...Happy New Year, I guess.
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post-war ba sing se bimbo headcanons
so zuko becomes the firelord, and jin and jet think it’s hilarious. he’s so good at it. he’s so charismatic. they’re like “who the hell is this guy? when did he get mature and responsible???” and song’s like “when zuko wasn’t doing stupid shit, he was stopping you two from doing stupid shit, i saw this coming a mile away.”
jin joins the kyoshi warriors, and is overwhelmed by all the pretty girls she’s working with, but for the most part it becomes a sisterhood. she will forever and always have a severe crush on suki, however, and really, can you blame her? so when suki reciprocates, jin writes song a four-page essay about it.
anyway, when zuko asks the warriors to come to the capital, obviously jin’s there, too. jet and song show up almost immediately after jin does.
“what, you two are hanging out without us now?” song asks them accusatorily. “it’s not fair that only you get to see jin, zuko.”
“yeah,” jet says. “and i used to see zuko shirtless a few times a week. and i thought i was lucky! now jin’s a kyoshi warrior and she gets to see it every day?”
“she does not!” says zuko. “yeah,” says jin, while shaking her head the opposite.
attempts on zuko’s life are about as common as rain showers, so song starts testing basically everything he eats with some of her chemicals. every time she finds something insidious, she tracks down every link in the chain that got the food to him, and finds a way to rectify the situation. she doesn’t trouble zuko with this, because he’s got enough going on. also, he probably maybe wouldn’t approve of her methods.
(song is not inherently violent, but when it comes to her family, she’s downright vicious).
jet wants to get in on the action, but between song’s disarming sweetness and the kyoshi warrior’s intimidation, zuko’s basically protected. what he isn’t, is good with people.
zuko can make grand dramatic speeches all day long, but when it comes to the council, or local government officials, or merchants, or literally even jet, he’s the same awkward kid jet met on the boat to ba sing se.
“you are never going to make it as firelord.” jet tells him from the couch he’s lounging on while he watches zuko practice a very basic interaction in the mirror.
“okay, fuck you, too.” zuko says miserably.
“sorry, i wasn’t clear,” jet says, standing beside zuko. “you are never going to make it as firelord without me.”
jet tries in vain to get zuko to lie better, to present himself differently, to deceive just a little bit, but it just isn’t happening. zuko doesn’t even want to lie, he doesn’t want to be like his father and azula, so they take a different approach.
instead, jet teaches him how to spot liars, and how to play the game. it’s basic stuff, like let silence linger because they’ll want to fill it if they’re afraid you don’t believe them. ask them bizarre questions so they overcorrect. if they’re complimenting you too much, they’re trying to deceive you.
to jet, it’s survival. to zuko, it’s like a whole world has opened up he never knew about. he hangs on to jet’s every word, and at the end, he asks that jet join him in council meetings, naming him an ambassador from the earth kingdom.
this is how jet discovers that he’s AMAZING at politics. he can’t believe how easy it is. he considers taking it up as a hobby when he gets back to the earth kingdom.
“you can’t do politics as a hobby,” zuko says.
“why not?” jet says. “it’s just fun. it’s not what i’m meant to be doing forever though.”
“do you have a mysterious job back in the earth kingdom none of us know about?” asks jin.
“yes,” says song, irritable from today’s batch of poison discoveries, “he’s working full-time as a little bitch.”
the more meetings jet attends, the more he wonders if politics really is for what he’s meant. arguing and debating delights him and, unlike the exhausted zuko, he leaves the debates feeling energized. but it just feels so bureaucratic, so useless compared to what he did during the war.
he’s so torn about it that he finally asks song for advice.
“i don’t know anything about politics,” she says tiredly. he’s playing idly with her hair after she’s had a long day of Keeping Zuko Alive. “why are you asking me?”
“because you don’t hold back,” jet tells her. “because you let me know when i’ve gone too far.”
song’s glad it’s dark in the lounge, because she can’t believe she’s blushing.
“well,” she says finally. “what would you be in it for?”
“what do you mean?” he says. “i just like it.”
“do you like the attention?” song asks. “are you just interested in the drama of it all? or do you want to make a difference?”
“i want to make a difference,” he says confidently. “i want to help the earth kingdom.”
“well, then, there’s your answer,” song says.
“yeah,” jet agrees. “no politics for me.”
“wait, what?” song asks him, because how did he reach that conclusion?
“it’s just smooth talking and paperwork. it’s not gonna help the earth kingdom,” jet tells her. “i’m not selling out.”
“is that what you think zuko’s doing?” she asks.
“of course not,” jet says, rolling his eyes. “but he’s also the firelord. that’s different.”
“and he’s your best friend,” she reminds him. “and you also happen to be on good terms with the avatar and the leaders of the southern water tribe, so you know you have influential people who will hear you out. if you want to make a difference, this is probably the best way.”
he’s quiet for a while. he almost looks disappointed.
“not every battle is on the battlefield, jet,” song says gently. “it’s not as glamorous, or as dangerous. it’s tedious and difficult and boring. but it’s what’s left, after the war.”
“i guess that’s the thing,” jet says sadly. “i don’t know who i am without the war.”
“i do,” song says with so much sincerity jet almost blushes. almost. he’s still, like, cool.
if they fall into a routine where song fixes his hair into something presentable for council meetings and jet forces her to take a break and enjoy the sunshine once in a while, zuko and jin don’t feel it’s necessary to comment.
for like three days.
“you stole my boyfriend,” zuko accuses song after catching her and jet kissing. the fact that sokka’s napping with his head in zuko’s lap as he says so doesn’t seem to faze him.
“you stole my ostrich horse,” she says, for the last time ever, “so now we’re even.”
“what’s with you and guys with weird facial hair?” jin asks as she stuffs her face with fire flakes, her new favorite treat. “first haru and now jet?”
“haru?” jet squeaks.
“i liked haru’s moustache,” song says thoughtfully. “i thought it made him look mature.”
“at least if jet grew a moustache i’d understand what everyone sees in him,” sokka says sleepily. “no offense.”
“you’re just mad i kissed zuko first,” huffs jet.
jet stops shaving that week. everyone notices.
when song and jet finally prepare to go back to the earth kingdom, jet privately asks zuko if it’s true that he and aang are considering founding a city that unites the nations. zuko tells him it is.
“well, i want in. whenever that is,” he says, and jet and zuko hug.
song and her mother open up a hospital and sanctuary that specifically caters to displaced families. jet reunites with longshot and smellerbee, and they drift around but tend to come back to the sanctuary. they often go out on missions to try and reunite families. it’s not quite fighting, and it’s not quite peace, so it’s a good transition for jet and his freedom fighters.
eventually, things slow down and so does jet. he starts walking around the village they’re located in without his weapons. a child asks song where she got the scars on her leg, and when she explains it was a firebender, the child says “oh, did he get in trouble?” song laughs and laughs, because for the first time in years, there are children who don’t know war.
jin doesn’t stay as a kyoshi warrior forever, but she does decide to settle down on kyoshi. she never really wanted the dangerous life, she just wanted some adventure and sort of stumbled into the chaos of jet and song and zuko. the quiet island is perfect for her. she still stirs up trouble once in a while though.
“COME GET YOUR IDIOT SHE TRIED TO RIDE THE UNAGI.” suki writes in two identical letters, one to jet and song and one to zuko.
“okay, whatever suki tells you, i want you to know she’s lying. i DID ride the unagi and it was SICK. sokka was here recently and said someone invented an image-capture thing is that true? because if it is i want you to bring one and come here ASAP so i can do it AGAIN.” says the fervent letter from jin that arrived three days after suki’s.
jet and song arrive promptly, song laden with medical supplies and a sternly-worded letter from her mother to jin. jet brings a camera.
zuko shows up a few days later with the latest in camera technology and a photographer, as well as his one-year-old daughter. he goes all-out because this is his and izumi’s first trip together. jet grumbles about being one-upped.
“you’re the firelord, you’re gonna encourage this?” song asks him, eyes furious but voice sweet as she plays with izumi. “excuse me, song, but the war is over, i have no jurisdiction here. if an earth kingdom citizen wants to exercise her right to be a dumbass she’s more than welcome to,” says zuko in his most diplomatic voice.
“and,” he adds more gently, “i missed you guys.” song still thinks he’s being ridiculous, but she gives him a big hug anyway.
zuko has to firebend at the unagi to stop it from eating jin and song is left to mend jin’s broken arm. jet takes pictures throughout the entire thing, from her climbing onto the creature, to getting thrown, to being bandaged up and laughs the whole time. song produces a second letter written by her mother which she was instructed only to give to jin in the event she rode the unagi.
all it says in neat hand-writing is, “i told you so. now come home so i can feed you, you ridiculous child.”
“i’m 24,” pouts jin, but since she’s the youngest, the group agrees heartily with song’s mother.
the five of them go to the sanctuary, where iroh is drinking tea with song’s mother and trading stories about their new respective lives.
zuko has to return to the capital in three days, iroh’s got his tea shop to run, and jin isn’t planning on staying long because her “super hot girlfriend is doing something extremely sexy” and she has to get back soon.
“jin, please, just talk normal for once in your life,” zuko begs her, bouncing izumi on his lap. “fine,” she says, “she’s being voted in as the leader of the island and i want to be there for the ceremony.”
jet realizes it’s not often he’ll have all the people he loves in one place, and quietly asks song something important.
they get married the night before zuko and jin leave, in front of jet’s freedom fighters and song’s mother and iroh. jin and zuko stand as their maid of honor and best man. zuko cries.
for the first time in almost two decades, all of them start to feel at peace.
ty so much for this au @azenkii writing about it is one of the most enjoyable experiences haha. is this update softer than usual? yes, of course, it’s what they deserve.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 masterpost
#ba sing se bimbos#jin#jet#song#zuko#suki#sokka#izumi#iroh#song’s mother#smellerbee#longshot#song’s ostrich horse#kyoshi warriors#freedom fighters#jinjetsongko#songko#jinki#zukka#atla#avatar the last airbender#my stuff#life happens wherever queue are
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Just My Kind [Teacher!Calum AU] Part 1
A/N: So I caved and decided to post part 1 of this fic. The way I wrote Calum in this is different than the way I’ve written him in the past, I think--as in he’s just a little honey in this LMAO. I hope y’all enjoy!!!
The microwave in the teacher’s lounge was sparkling clean, and Odessa took that as good of a sign as any. The one in the high school she’d taught at in Nevada had never been clean, no one ever having the decency to clean up after their mess—and Odessa refused to do it, given that it looked as nasty on her first day there as it did on her last. It was why she always brought cold lunches from home so she wouldn’t be subjected to such filth. But this microwave was spotless, and Odessa had no qualms in placing her small bowl of spinach and chicken pasta to heat up during her lunch break.
As she waited for her food to heat up, Odessa allowed for her gaze to wander around the teacher’s lounge. It was large, bigger than her last, which wasn’t surprising given that she was from a town of barely four thousand people, with square table to eat at, couches, a bulletin board pinned with colorful fliers of latest school events. There was a hum of chatter from the few other teachers who were either on their lunch break or weren’t on cafeteria duty for the current freshman and sophomore lunch period. Large windows that looked out towards the front of the school parking lot allowed for the late morning sunlight to stream in, brightening up the space and bringing Odessa a sort of comfort her old town surrounded by mountains bought her.
“How’s your first day going, Odessa?” She turned to see Mrs. Brewer, the chemistry teacher, approaching her with a kind smile on her face. Mrs. Brewer was older than Odessa—as was most of the staff at the school, truthfully—but she’d been one of the first friendly faces to greet Odessa on her first day earlier that morning.
“Pretty well,” Odessa answered with an honest smile. Technically, it was everyone’s first day, given that it was the first day of the school year. But Odessa was new to living in a city she only came to for vacation, so her first day was relatively different than most people’s. With a gentle laugh, she added, “I’m in the same boat as the freshman so we’ve decided we’re in this together. The sophomores are pretty easy going, too.”
Mrs. Brewer chuckled, turning to the counter they stood by to prepare herself a mug of coffee. “Making friends with the freshman—smart.” Odessa smiled, opening the microwave when her food was ready. “Have you met any of the other English teachers yet?”
Odessa hummed thoughtfully. “I’ve met Bridget Donnelly and Justine Greggs.”
Stirring the sugar in her mug, Mrs. Brewer tilted her head as she followed Odessa towards the table. “You haven’t met Calum yet? I’m positive he’s the only other teacher here around your age,” she said with a laugh.
As soon as she sat down on the chair, Odessa’s eyebrows shot up at the name, clicking in her head like a snapping rubber band bringing forth a memory she’d forgotten about. Calum—of course! He was Luke’s friend, who Luke told her about as soon as she’d mentioned the school she’d gotten a job at. Calum was one of Luke’s closest friends, and Luke had informed her that he was the boys soccer coach at the school as well as one of the high school English teachers.
In the haste of moving out of Nevada and to California and preparing for her job as she settled down, the fact had slipped right out of Odessa’s head. She’d never met Calum, but she knew of him because of Luke, who Odessa kept in touch with even after they graduated college and she moved back to Nevada and he remained in California. She saw pictures of Calum on Luke’s social media, knew that Luke was in a band with him and two other guys. What a small world that she ended up with a job at the same school he was at—and yet she had gone almost half of the day without running into him.
“Oh, look—speak of the devil.”
Odessa glanced up at Mrs. Brewer’s words, following her gaze towards the door where she saw a familiar face walk through. Her back straightened as Calum entered, offering a smiling nod to Mr. Engels, the government teacher. Odessa easily recognized him in his pale yellow button down tucked into black jeans, running his fingers through short blonde curls, soft on sight, and flexing the muscles on his tattooed arm. She bit the corner of her lip as she watched him make his way towards the bowl of fruit by the stove, deaf to the way her mind was telling her to look away. He was handsome, the yellow shirt downright beautiful against his inked skin, the pictures she’d seen of him not at all doing him justice.
As if feeling her gaze on him, Calum’s dark eyes met hers right as he picked up an apple, and Odessa felt her cheeks warm at being caught but before she could even think to look away, she saw recognition flash across his features. Then, to her surprise, Calum was making his way over with a knowing furrow between dark eyebrows as he asked carefully, “Odessa? Odessa Kline, right?”
Odessa told herself it was just her polite nature that brought her smile, not the slight accent he had when he spoke. She sat up, nodding as she answered with a light laugh, “Yeah, yeah. It’s nice to finally meet you, Calum.”
He grinned then, a smile that brought sharp crinkles to the corners of his soft eyes, and Odessa chalked the flip of her stomach up to her hunger and not the way he instantly pulled up a chair to sit next to her upon confirmation of who she was. His body faced hers, elbow on the table as he played with the red apple in his hand. “Yeah, you too,” Calum laughed, the sound deep and rich and dangerously fluttering something in Odessa’s stomach. “Luke’s told me a lot ’bout you.”
“Same here,” Odessa nodded, feeling a small surge of confidence as she added, “I was gonna try to find you at the end of the day so I could meet you but I guess you beat me to it.”
“Not too disappointed, I hope,” Calum chuckled, making Odessa shake her head in response. She was getting pathetically ahead of herself, but she highly doubted she could be disappointed in meeting him. Not with that smile and voice. Calum’s gaze then flickered over her shoulder and he lifted his chin, charming smile ever present on his face as he greeted, “Afternoon, Mrs. B.”
Mrs. Brewer smiled back before gesturing between the two of them, raising her mug as she asked, “You two already know each other?”
With a shake of her head, Odessa answered, “We’ve got a mutual friend.”
“Good—now you have more than just the freshman on your side,” Mrs. Brewer teased Odessa with a smile before getting up. “Excuse me, I should probably get my lesson plan ready for the afternoon classes.”
She left, leaving just Odessa and Calum sitting at the table, and Odessa faced him once more as he hummed. “Mrs. B’s right—us English teachers gotta stick together.”
Odessa raised an eyebrow, picking up her fork and shooting Calum a smile as he bit into his apple with a sharp crunch. “Against who? The students or the rest of the teachers?”
He swallowed the bite, sharp jaw working as a teasing glint flickered in his dark eyes when he let his gaze briefly wander over to the few teachers in the room. “Both,” he answered with a small smirk once his gaze met Odessa’s, earning a laugh from her. “No, but really,” Calum laughed, lightly slapping the top of the table with his free hand. “You need anythin’, let me know, yeah? Luke’ll throw a fit if I didn’t.”
Twirling the pasta around her fork, Odessa raised an eyebrow at Calum, unable to keep her smile from turning teasing as she asked, “Oh, so you’re only offering because of Luke?”
Calum scoffed lightly, giving a subtle shake of his head. “Any friend of Luke’s is a friend of mine,” he told her, and his kind words had Odessa’s cheeks warming once more. It was totally because of his subtly accented words and not the smile that accompanied them. They both took a bite of their food, and afterwards Calum spoke, “Speaking of Luke—I’m assuming you’re coming to his bar Friday night? Since the party’s for you and all.”
Odessa paused in reached for her water, head turning towards Calum with a raise of her eyebrow and tone falling flat as she asked, “The what’s for who now?”
Calum blinked in mild confusion, eyebrows knitting together as he took in Odessa’s own questioning expression. Then, almost comically, his dark eyes widened in realization and he bared his teeth, hissing as he inhaled sharply through his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut in self exasperation. “Ah, fuck, I don’t think I was ’posed to tell you that,” he groaned, free fist pressing against his forehead as Odessa kept her gaze fixated on him, silently demanding him to further explain. Sitting up, Calum informed, “I mean, it’s not really a party. He’s just having a few people come over to welcome you. You know how Luke’s always lookin’ for a reason to celebrate.”
Odessa’s expression fell at Calum’s words, a small sinking feeling settling in her stomach. “Oh, God,” she huffed, leaning back in the chair and blank gaze falling on her lunch in front of her. “He knows I don’t like being the center of attention.” Odessa glanced at Calum, a half smile curling at her lips before she added, “Except in the classroom.”
He laughed lightly, nodding along and Odessa had a feeling that he may, in some way, relate to her words. When his gaze met hers once more, a warmth that somehow had the power of making her feel at ease despite the news of Luke’s party, Calum lifted his chin. “It won’t be too bad. You should definitely still come.” Then, with a small, boyish smirk and a raise of an eyebrow, Calum added, “We’ll even perform a couple of songs for you.”
Her stomach flipped. She kept telling herself it was because she was still hungry and not because of the crinkles that appeared alongside his kind smile. And despite the warmth in her cheeks, Odessa still said, “How can I say no to that?”
*****
“Grams, Grandpa, I’m heading out!”
Odessa’s grandfather, Zeke, sat up from his recliner and looked over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow as he asked, “You’re not driving, are ya?”
“No, the Uber’s gonna be here in a minute,” Odessa reassured him with a laugh. She entered the living room, leaning down to press a kiss to his cheek before stepping over to where Grams sat on the couch, a book in her hands and pressed a kiss to her temple as well. “I’m not sure when I’ll be back—please don’t wait up.”
Grams looked up at her, blue eyes holding a maternal concern as she asked, “You won’t be alone, will you?”
“No,” Odessa told her, shrugging on the deep red bomber jacket. “I’m gonna be with Luke—you remember him, right?”
“That tall, handsome boy we met at your graduation? How can I forget?” Grams grinned, earning a bemused scoff from Grandpa. Odessa merely laughed as Grams added gleefully, “Are you interested in him?”
Her question had Odessa laughing only harder, intensifying as Grandpa grumbled, “Kid looks like a mountain man.”
“I’m not interested in Luke, Grams,” Odessa laughed, her cheeks already hurting from the grin. She swore Grams was sometimes worse than her gossiping aunts, except she knew Grams only ever came from a place of warmth and good intentions. The same couldn’t always be said for her aunts. “He’s just a friend, and he’s got a girlfriend.”
Grams twisted her lips to the side, disappointment evident. Clicking her tongue, she looked up at Odessa pointedly and said, “I’m sure he’s got some cute friends. A boy like that’s got to.”
Odessa bit the inside of her cheek, a face flashing across the forefront of her mind that she instantly pushed back with a skip of her heart. This conversation was only bringing forth thoughts Odessa had repressed over the past week—particularly when she saw that familiar face in the school hallways or teacher’s lounge. He’d pop into her classroom in between classes, greeting her like they were old friends, chatting for brief periods before they had to attend to their students.
She appreciated Calum’s friendliness more than she thought she would. In the midst of settling down in her new job, getting to know new students and ironing out her lesson plan, it felt nice to wind down and relax for moments in the form of talking to Calum. He was sweet, charming, and from what Odessa gathered over her first week at teaching at the school, he was adored by his students. She was also pretty sure a bunch of them had a crush on him—not that she blamed them. Odessa herself wasn’t innocent of not harboring innocent crushes on her school teachers—or college professors.
Fuck. She couldn’t be talking about crushes and Calum in the same context.
Glancing down at her phone, Odessa noted the Uber waiting for her outside, and after a quick goodbye to her grandparents—as well as to Lettie, Grams’s American shorthair—Odessa was out the door and sliding into the backseat of the Hyundai. She kept busy on the ride by scrolling through social media, letting Luke know that she was on his way, who was still bothered that she didn’t let him pick her up. But Odessa had errands to run right up until she got ready, and she didn’t want Luke to wait around for her, and she didn’t mind taking an Uber—especially with driving being out of the question since she planned on drinking.
Her knee bounced during the ride over, a flutter of nerves making themselves known. Like Luke, Odessa was always down for a party—except when she was the center of attention. Honestly, she thought Luke inviting everyone to hang out to welcome her was both sweet and excessive, and when she had told him about her hesitation, Luke had been understanding. Of course, he’d cursed out Calum for ruining the surprise, but at the end assured Odessa that it wouldn’t be a big thing. It would just be people he was close with that he wanted her to meet, especially now that she was living in the area and Luke, who was a social butterfly, loved having all of his friends meet. And with Luke knowing how Odessa felt about parties centering around her, she felt a lot more at ease attending tonight.
Except it was easier to blame her bouncing knee on those kinds of nerves rather than the ones of seeing Calum outside of school.
Right as the Uber turned onto the street Odessa knew the bar to be on, she texted Luke that she was basically there, and as soon as she stepped out of the car after thanking the driver, she felt a smile grow on her lips to see Luke emerging from the bar, ready to greet her upon arrival. The sign above the bar was neon blue that read Borderline, the name of the joint, with windows on the bar front allowing to show how busy it was inside. Odessa prayed they were mostly people just enjoying a night out and now those who Luke personally invited.
“I still wish you would’ve let me given you a ride instead of wasting money on an Uber,” was how Luke chose to greet her, arms open wide to allow Odessa to step into his embrace.
She snorted, returning his hug, enjoying his familiar warmth as she returned dryly, “Hello to you, too.” When they pulled away, she smiled and patted his chest. “Next time.”
He rolled his blue eyes before dropping his arm around her shoulders and ushering her inside, bumping knuckles with the bouncer out front before they entered the loud, busy bar. It wasn’t bright inside, the lights dim and soft on the eyes as a DJ set up on a stand higher than the bar played music throughout. The first thing Luke did was lead her towards the bar, ordering Odessa’s go-to drink of a Malibu Bay Breeze which was ready for her quickly before bringing her to where a group of people—including a few familiar faces—were hanging out by a couple of tall tables.
Odessa returned the hug Sierra, Luke’s girlfriend, greeted her with before losing herself in the next few moments of meeting new faces. Luke’s friend Michael and his fiancé, Crystal, and Ashton with his girlfriend KayKay, and then finally—
Oh. Odessa hadn’t expected to see her.
“Long time, Odessa,” Paige, Odessa’s roommate from her junior and senior years of college, greeted with a too wide grin, stepping from the group and pulling Odessa in a hug she hadn’t expected. Paige’s rose scented perfume tickled Odessa’s nose as she returned the hug, hoping her mild discomfort didn’t overpower her surprise at seeing Paige, who pulled away with that grin still on her face. “I’m so excited you decided to move into the city! It’ll be great to catch up.”
The smile on Odessa’s lips felt strained, but she kept it in place as she forced herself to nod and respond, “Yeah, totally.”
If Paige picked up on the subtle lack of sincerity in Odessa’s words, she didn’t comment on it as she smiled and took a step back, grabbing her glass of mojito from the table. Gaze wandering over to Luke, Odessa saw the hint of apology in his blue eyes, and she bit her tongue. At least Luke was aware that she wasn’t too thrilled about Paige’s presence. Being her roommate for two years had been bad enough—Odessa didn’t have much of an interest in hanging out with Paige otherwise.
It wasn’t that Odessa hated Paige—it was just that Paige could be a bit much. In a bad way. It was always her way or the highway, and Odessa had become used to keeping her opinions to herself when she was around Paige in order to keep her then-roommate appeased and keep herself off of Paige’s shit list. Because she definitely had one of those. But after they graduated, Odessa had assumed she wouldn’t have to see her again—and she kind of wished Luke had given her some kind of warning that Paige was still a part of his life.
“Hey—the guest of honor’s arrived.” Odessa looked to the left to see Calum walking towards them, a friendly grin she often saw at school on his face as he made his way over, and Odessa tried not to think of how naturally she accepted his greeting embrace, the vague scent of cigarettes tickling her nose. The black lighter in his hand further confirmed he’d been smoking. She clicked her tongue at him at his words, and Calum chuckled and relented, “Right, right, this isn’t a party for you. Just a bunch of friends getting together.”
Odessa mirrored his grin, feeling her heart momentarily freeze at the teasing wink he sent her way as he grabbed the extra bottle of beer from Ashton’s hand. Next to her, Luke scoffed, “Yeah, thanks, man, for ruining the surprise.”
Calum shot him an apologetic grin while the rest of them laughed along, and Odessa came to his defense as she said to Luke, “You know I don’t like surprises. He basically saved you from getting smacked.”
Luke stuck his tongue out at her. “Last time I try to do something nice for you.”
The group of them gathered around a couple of round tables and chatted, and Odessa found herself feeling at ease in their company despite only having met some of them tonight. She was comfortable as she was asked questions about herself, the few who she didn’t know wanting to get to know her better, genuine interest lacing their tones, and Odessa returned the sentiment as she got to know them, too.
“So Odessa—you and Cal teach at the same school?” Paige spoke up, a curious smile on her face as she stood opposite of her. “How fun—it must be nice to have a familiar face in the building, right?”
“Yeah, it is,” Odessa answered carefully, stirring her straw in her cup. She had learned, a long time ago, to always be cautious when it came to talking to Paige. She knew never knew when her so-called friend would try to turn the conversation against her. Still, though, when Odessa answered, she glanced at Calum, who stood to her right and shot her a charming and agreeing grin that had Odessa’s stomach flipping.
Paige nodded, humming innocently, gaze sharp. “I bet; probably makes it easier, right? I know how anxious you get whenever you’re in a new place.”
Odessa bit the inside of her cheek. She genuinely wondered sometimes if Paige was being patronizing on purpose or if she truly didn’t catch on to the way she spoke to her. Instead of feeling embarrassed, especially since she had no reason to, Odessa shrugged. “I broke out of that habit a while back; it’s easy to when you have to teach a bunch of hyper high schoolers.”
Next to her, Calum scoffed and held his beer bottle out to her. “I’ll drink to that,” he said, and Odessa smiled as she tapped her cup to his bottle before they both took sips of their drinks. “Teaching those kids is no joke.”
Michael rolled his green eyes, waving his free hand as he said sarcastically, “Yeah, yeah, we get it—you’re modern day superheroes.”
Odessa laughed with everyone else, easily finding the good nature behind Michael’s words as she continued sipping her drink. All the while ignoring the feel of Paige’s gaze on her from across the table, refusing to meet her gaze as she allowed for Crystal to pull her into a new conversation.
“Hey, come here a sec,” Luke murmured about ten minutes later, and Odessa excused herself from a conversation with KayKay and Michael before following him a few steps away from their group and towards the bar. When she came to stand next to him, Luke looked down at her with an apologetic expression. “I should’ve told you that Paige was gonna show up—I wanna say she came to see you, but if I’m being honest, it’s ’cause she knew Cal would be here so she kind of just invited herself.”
Odessa blinked up at him, his words kind of taking her by surprise. An uncomfortable knot formed in her stomach as she reluctantly asked, “Oh, are they, like, a thing?”
Luke shrugged as he took a sip of his tequila, licking his lips after. “Not really. I mean, Cal said they hooked up a couple of times but if I’m being honest—” Luke offered a wry smirk. “—she’s more into him than he is into her.”
At that, Odessa chanced a glance to where their group stood, eyes catching the way Paige stood next to Calum as they chatted with Sierra. The music playing in the bar deafened Odessa as to what they were talking about, but it didn’t blind her to the grin Calum shot Paige as she said something Odessa wasn’t privy to. “Really?” she asked Luke, the doubt a lot clearer in her tone than she would’ve liked it to be.
“Yeah, trust me,” Luke scoffed out a laugh, and Odessa glanced to see him look back at her as well after following her gaze. “Cal’s just a nice guy. They haven’t hooked up in, like, months. I think Paige just doesn’t get the hint, ya know?”
“You seem to know too much about this,” she said suspiciously, prompting Luke to merely smirk in response. Odessa let out a sharp breath through her nose, shooting Luke a look as she turned to face the bar. “When has Paige never gotten what she wants?” she added dryly as she flagged down the bartender, her drink finished and in need of another one.
Luke rolled his eyes, knowing the the truth of Odessa’s words. “Fair enough. Still, though—can’t wait for the day she gets knocked down a peg or two.” With a smirk appearing on his lips to show off his dimples, Luke added, “I always knew I was right to have you as my favorite across-the-hall neighbor.”
That had her laughing as the bartender placed her drink in front of her, and the grin on Odessa’s face remained as she said to Luke, “I missed you too, Luke.”
--
tags: @irwinkitten @sweetcherrymike @loveroflrh @meetashthere @astroashtonio @loverofhood @captain-what-is-going-on @angelbbycal @singt0mecalum @hopelessxcynic @lfwallscouldtalk @bodhi-black @findingliam-o @softlrh @highfivecalum @calumsmermaid @erikamarie41 @quintodosuniversos @longlastingdaydream @babylon-corgis @lukehemmingsunflower @miss-saltwatercowgirl @pastelpapermoons @conquerwhatliesahead92 @rotten-kandy @metangi @neigcthood @ohhmuke @mindkaleidoscope @5sos-and-hessa @trustmeimawhalebiologist @vxlentinecal @pettybassists @vaporshawn @lu-my-golden-boi @visualm3nte @isabella-mae13 @dontjinx-it @lifeakaharry @neonweeknds @antisocialbandmate @ixcantxdecidexwhosxmyxfave @calpalbby @grreatgooglymoogly @sunnysidesblog @miahelizaaabeth @dramallamawithsparkles @kaytiebug14 @hoodskillerqueen @bitchinbabylon @empathycth @xhaileyreneex @inlovehoodx @bloodlinecal @sublimehood @madbomb @raabiac @britnicole11 @outofmylimitcal @wildflower-cth @bloodmoonashton @vxidhood @gosh-im-short @thesubtweeter @mycollectionofnuts @cthwldflwr @everyscarisahealingplace @socorroann @wildflowergrae
#calum hood#calum hood one shot#calum hood imagine#calum hood imagines#calum hood blurb#calum hood blurbs#calum hood fanfic#calum hood fic#5sos#5 seconds of summer#ashton irwin#michael clifford#luke hemmings#5sos one shot#5sos imagine#5sos imagines#5sos blurb#5sos blurbs#5sos fanfic#5sos fic#ashton irwin one shot#luke hemming one shot#michael clifford one shot#ashton irwin imagine#michael clifford imagine#luke hemmings imagine#ashton irwin blurb#luke hemmings blurb#michael clifford blurb#ashton irwin blurbs
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Yeah, Steve could have cleaned Sharon’s name after Thanos’s death, it doesn’t mean he didn’t try, but knowing she was stealing art, it may be that in addition to being seen as a traitor, she came to be seen as a thief, and who knows what else and it was impossible for Steve to do anything for her. People need to see what she has become, the government is likely to have clues to what she's been doing, and Steve couldn't do anything for her because of that.
Look, here’s the situation. She’s been gone for 5 years irl, they’re trying to address that stupid now, and there is, frankly, no way to do that that isn’t somewhat stupid itself, and that doesn’t make someone look bad. Frankly, the people I’ve seen complaining about Steve not snapping his fingers—pun intended—and fixing it all for her are the same people who blame him for Sarah Wilson’s financial struggles, and Scott choosing a relatively cushy house arrest gig where he could still see his daughter, or somehow forcing actual King T’challa to help fight Thanos in Infinity War.
The people complaining about it are mostly the same people who couldn’t care less about any of the characters they mention, except in the context of, oh, Stefe dum, here be another thing I can blame on Stefe. Most of the time they don’t even pretend to have bothered to do basic research on what they’re talking about, so their opinions are about as meaningless as always, but let’s try to get into this anyway.
As I said, Feige the All-God hasn’t bothered with her in 5 years. There is no way of explaining that canonically that isn’t somewhat stupid, depending what theory you take, but let’s be clear. Steve could not do a thing for her, as far as clearing her name between the end of Cap 3 and Infinity War. He was in the same boat as her, he was a fugitive, he could do nothing. So, that’s 2 years that aren’t his fault, at all.
EG is where it gets murkier. And more stupid, and a lot depends on what we may learn in future eps. Tumblr dates nothing, so be aware that as of writing, there’s only been 1 ep with Sharon released. That said, we know that, post-Snap, she was listed among the missing. I’m going under the assumption that she was not Snapped out by Thanos. This has yet to be word for word confirmed, but seems likely given how settled she was in ep 3, and the state of her kickass apartment. On the off-chance that she was in fact Dusted, then it wasn’t Steve’s fault at all, or any Avenger’s fault, but let’s go with option 1.
So, she’s already hiding, and has been for 2 years. The Snap happens. Chaos reigns, it’s nearly impossible to find out who’s here and who isn’t. She’s a spy. A very good spy, who’s already been evading capture for 2 years. How much more impossible is it to find her then, when the entire world is upside-down? Good luck with that.
So, Steve and Nat—who I’m including here because she was also at least acquainted with Sharon and she made it so much of her business to tape the world back together post-Snap—they have to assume she’s Dusted, or that she’s still hiding and as of now impossible to find. Not to mix fictional bs with real world stuff but you know, I’m gonna do it anyway. Look at how pathetic much of the US’s response to covid-19 was. Look at the fighting over what to do, look at the different states making their own rules, violating guidelines, look at the lack of supplies. Now multiply that by at least a hundred, probably more like a thousand.
Steve and Nat and everyone else would’ve been in utter chaos for a long, long time before things even started to stabilize. Finding out if Sharon was even alive anymore would’ve been next to impossible for awhile, never mind clearing her name. Like, it’s shitty, but for a good long time, helping Sharon is going to be A, nearly impossible, and B, not an A-list priority for anyone.
So, after that point. Say it’s been a year, or more—probably more—however long it takes for things to kinda sorta settle. The idea that Sharon is still on the Most Wanted list? That the government supposedly still cares after Steve and Nat are just back and hanging around and no one cares about the treason or the Accords anymore? That is both completely and utterly stupid, and also the exact kind of thing the US government would do. Like, it should not fucking matter that Sharon stole the wings and shield, not in a post-Snap world. It shouldn’t even fucking matter that she’s stealing portraits. Oh, this Monet is gone? Great, the curator’s entire family is gone. Look at the empty streets and stadiums we see in EG. You think that many people were perusing museums post-Thanos? There are billions dead, it should not fucking matter if Sharon is stealing paintings, even the good ones.
So, why does it matter? I see three choices here:
1. It doesn’t really, the government is just even more stupid than usual in a post-Thanos world, basically forgot Sharon was marked Public Enemy, and just never bothered to fix it.
2. It does matter to the government, because paintings=money and even in a post-apocalyptic hellscape, money is still king. Also, we can’t actually do much for anyone in terms of actually helping them, but look everyone, look, we’re still going after this evil traitor, still working hard!
3. We know Hydra never died completely. Hydra thrives on chaos. We know Hydra still had people in the government after SHIELD fell. Some of them may have kept Sharon a fugitive in the eyes of the law because she’s a Carter, the niece of the founder of SHIELD and the one who was always up in their business, and because Cap 2 proved that she will defy Hydra when given the chance, so let’s just make that harder for her.
It could’ve been some combo of the three of those, but the truth is that we have to make narrative sense of a real-life scenario that was stupid, and because of that, Sharon was left out in the cold and any choice you go with to explain that isn’t great. But what happened to Sharon isn’t on Steve, at least not solely. We don’t even know if he knew that she survived the Snap, and frankly, if she’d wanted him to, she probably could’ve gotten word out. Yeah, I know, fugitive, but again, the world was in absolute chaos immediately after the Snap, and for a long time after. She’s the ultimate spy. If she’d wanted or needed Steve’s help that badly, she could have gotten it. She could have found a way to let him know hey, I’m alive, long time no see. So, everything sucks now and it’s all on fire, but could you maybe see about getting me a pardon?
As far as we know, she did not do that. And even if she had, who’s to say anyone would’ve listened to Steve on it? Again, the government is stupid, possibly Hydra infused, and everyone who wasn’t a Hydra baddie had more immediate concerns than getting a pardon for Sharon.
And also, Steve is not affiliated with the government anymore. That’s kinda a big fucking part of CW. Steve does not have the ability to hand out pardons. He never did, and he sure doesn’t now.
So, did Steve fail her? Possibly. Maybe even probably, depending how you want to look at it. Maybe he should’ve looked for her more, been more proactive in seeing what was up with her. Is it bullshit the Bucky got a full pardon and Sharon didn’t? Yes, but that is not personally Steve’s fault.
What happened to Sharon sucks. She was failed, on multiple levels, and possibly by Steve.
Was it all entirely Steve’s fault, oh my God Steve, why didn’t you, personally, fix all of this yourself, somehow? No, no it wasn’t.
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Headcanon: Pacifica
(Before Sinday begins for me, I give you where Ash and Team CAMO are currently based out of).
Every continent on Remnant has islands off its coasts. Sheered off by water action, by cataclysmic incidents with the tectonics, or simply having formed seperatly, they dot the coastlines of most of Remnant's landmasses.
Solitas is no different. And because its Solitas, and the majority of it is a frozen hellscape, almost every single one has at least some habitation.
One has...quite a lot.
(Please excuse the WoR map, I couldnt find a proper official one and RT are jerks and wont make one that actually works)
This is the island of Pacifica, the largest island in the south-west of Solitas, directly west of Atlas itself and the closest settlement to the small port of Cross's Landing.
Though here it is one single, large island, it is in fact a psudo-chain; the large island of Pacifica, the smaller northerly island of Wakattu, and the uninhabited, cloud-shrouded isle of Peliu.
Though they are the closest island to Atlas, the people who live there are not actually Atlesian, in bloodline or in government. They come from much older stock, a remnant if you will of a forgotten age.
Originally a mostly bare island, with a minor native population of marine faunus (primarily orcas) originating from nearby Wakattu, Pacifica was first founded during the Great War, when (being the closest island to Sanus, which is almost directly south of it via Vytal) it was utilized as an arms and embarkation base alongside Cross's Landing to load the invasion force that would eventually steamroll through northern Vale. As the decade of the Great War rolled on, a city formed to support the base, and to allow for the production, repair, enhancement and resupply of military goods of every sort. As it became more and more important, and more equipment flowed into it, its military asset grew as well. And as the war ground on, Mantle began to fear a counter attack from Vytal into it, and from there, a stepping stone to Solitas itself.
And so they set about building Pacifica into an unbreakable Iron Cage; delving to the shallow sea floor, they raised great walls, thicker even than the ones that would later defend Mantle itself, bristling with Dust shield projectors and defensive batteries. The island itself was enforced with gun batteries, missile systems, aircraft launch systems, air strips, and dockyards for the entire Mantle Navy. A full Army was stationed there at all times, usually new recruits cutting their teeth in combat against raiding parties from Vale or the Grimm that seemed to constantly be attracted to Peliu. The populous was slowly consumed into this, making the island a military nation-state with the explicet purpose of brunting every and all aggression from Vale to Mantle.
And then the Great War ended in Vacuo. Everything stopped. Peace filled the world and everyone was happy.
Except for Pacifica. They weren't particularly happy about what had happened...and they liked the power they had now.
No longer were they merely a small outpost of something greater, they had TEETH now.
No pirate or bandit thought to approach them for they new the agonizingly fast death that would result. Aside from Peliu, the Grimm were no threat. Even the Wakattu, who at first had been hesitant to have so much equipment, so close, were grateful to have Pacifica's guns around when the largest of aquatic Grimm inevitably swam to their islands shores, seeking the creature that the people and the island itself were named for, as they had done for time immortal.
So when Mantle offered to take all their equipment back and restore the island to what it was before, the Pacifican Preatorian Defender (their equivilent of a king, or headmaster, or ruler) promptly told them, in no uncertain terms, to "fuck right off". Then Pacifica raised their sheilds, rolled out their guns, and stood on alert for anyone trying to come and take their power by force.
No one did of course. The time after the Great War was one of rebuilding. Mantle simply left Pacifica to do its own thing and 80 years of peace did the rest. Pacifica eventually became a productive member of the King of Vale's imagined peaceful Remnant.
Currently the nation is considered an island-state, with no official affiliation to any kingdom, but heavy trade ties to Atlas specifically (for obvious reasons). Their main imports are technology and Dust, unsurprisingly, with their main exports being aquatic food of all kinds, certain medicines Atlas can't make themselves, and enhancements to existing tech using some of the machinery that Mantle left behind. They also mildly trade with Vale for produce.
At least, that was the situation till the Fall of Vale...and, more recently, the Fall of Atlas.
During the Second Fall, Pacifica went into full military mode again; members of the Pacifica Guard swear up and down the Leviathan Grimm was approaching Pacifica itself, saw how many guns it had pointed at it and the swarm of interceptor fighters and the men and women in armor standing ready to face it...and it turned for Atlas because it would be a softer target.
When the CCTS went down fully, the island effectively went dark, relying on its internal equipment to maintain coms between units and citizens, unable to contact the outside world.
Needless to say, it was a rather nasty shock when, about a day into the siege of Atlas, an airship arrived.
Formerly an SDC Dust carrier, retrofitted into a heavily militarized "pleasure boat", this was the Final Solution, the personal vessel of Tahoma Vulcan of Vulcan Arms. On board was almost every Vulcan Arms employee, several dozen Mantle civilians who'd been swept up, every surviving Atlas "Helljumper" lead by their leader Hood Vulcan, the majority of the ladies of Madam Pappillion's Crystal Unicorn hotel (formerly the Glass Unicorn) alongside the Madam herself...
And Hunter-Killer Fireteam CAMO.
The uproar was quite something, but quickly settled down to military precision, as those that could fight were quickly and seamlessly folded into Pacifica's existing defensive measures.
The Madam and her ladies bid their leave here to settle on Wakattu, reuniting the Madam with her former bodyguard and head of security, Matriarch (head of the Wakattu tribe and its various pods) and the civilians were dispersed into the overall population to rest and recover.
And then literally half a day later, the shattered, battered remains of Atlas's Second Fleet arrived, First having headed south for Argus.
They told a horror story of what happened, of the destruction of the Whale by the Ace Ops, of Ironwoods sudden madness, and how, based on what they'd last seen, the kingdom was GONE, crashed into the tundra, burying Mantle with it.
With precision their forces were folded in as well, forming the First United Solitasian Protectorate Fleet.
And at some point during this, the 2500 meter long monstrosity known as the Spirit of Ice arrived...
And THEN, as if that wasn't enough, a couple dozen scrap-built ships came rolling in from the west, from the seemingly uninhabited dragon continent, all bearing the Grimm Eye of Salem.
Cultists, apparently, humans twisted to her worship or something similar. Madmen and savages to an individual...but in no way, shape, or form even near combat ready.
The USPF SLAUGHTERED them. The vindictive feeling soothed the rage of the Atlesians, and united them all in a common goal. A pact formed in blood of the unworthy, as the Lord Preatorian said.
As of now, Pacifica is the most defended settlement in the north of Remnant. And as of recently, they've finally begun opening the shield again to let teams out, to begin probing the tundra, the Atlas Wastes, and the new lake that covers both kingdoms...
And to let the Hunter-Killer team that shelters among them do their job once more.
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