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multi-obsessed-fanfic-writer · 3 years

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The War Within (Anakin x Reader)

Author’s Note: I hope this is what you wanted, anon! I had a lot of fun writing this & all the angst in it :) let me know if you guys have any other requests or feedback for me! You’re all amazing <3

Requested?: Yes, by anon- “hi dear, could i request an oneshot where the reader was anakin's wife before he turned into vader,and when we turned (he comed to the dark side,but don't burned in mustafar,like he don't use the suit) he thought she was dead but in fact she joined the rebelion, and now she is Captured for interrogation and he finds out that she was alive and had the twins (leia and luke). Srry if it's too long or confusing, english is not my first language and it's very hard write complex things. have a nice day ( ˘ ³˘)♥”

Summary: You deal with the repercussions of your husband turning to the dark side while you join the rebellion.

The War Within

Anakin Skywalker x female!reader

Word Count: 4.1k

Warnings: depictions of canon-type violence & torture, like one curse, and a lot of angst (but also fluff!)

“Anakin has turned to the dark side,” Obi-Wan tells you, sorrow dancing in his expression as he looks at you. You stare back with defiance.

“You’re lying! Anakin would never do such a thing. He’s sworn to defend this galaxy.” You sneer, turning away from Obi-Wan. You’re a couple of months pregnant with Anakin’s child, as he has been your husband in secret for a while now. Your bump hasn’t shown yet, luckily.

“He was deceived by a lie, (Y/n). We all were. Listen to me, when did you see him last?” Obi-Wan asks, stepping in front of you again.

“That’s unimportant! Anakin would never turn to the dark side, he’s the most caring person I know!” You scream, tears pricking at your eyes.

“I saw it myself. There’s...a security hologram of him killing...younglings. In the temple. You were away, but...he’s gone mad, (Y/n). He’s a danger to himself and everyone around him. Help the Jedi. You’re one of us. You know what the right thing to do is.” Obi-Wan tries to convince you. You look up at him, tears streaming down your cheeks by now.

“Do I? Your Jedi order is the one that got us here- he- I don’t…” You sob, sitting down on the nearest thing as the emotions start to overwhelm you.

“Reach out to him, (Y/n). Through the force. Then you’ll know I’m telling the truth.” He murmurs to you.

You do as he says, confident that Anakin won’t prove you wrong. Your Anakin could never turn to the dark side and do such horrible things.

Then you feel it.

“Ani!” You gasp, breaking out of your trance as your hand flies to your stomach to hold your barely-there baby bump. More tears spill down your cheeks as you feel the darkness that surrounds Anakin’s force signature.

“You know it, now. Please, do you have any information on where he might be?” He asks. You put a hand over your mouth to trap the sobs, one hand still resting on your stomach.

“Are you going to kill him?” You ask, looking up at Obi-Wan. His eyes glance down to your hand cradling your stomach.

“...You’re pregnant, aren’t you? And Anakin’s the father?” Obi-Wan asks. You don’t answer him, just look down as the salty tears drip from your chin onto your robes.

“Please don’t kill my husband,” You whisper.

“I will do what I must,” Obi-Wan says and turns around to make his exit. He turns back around to look at you one last time and says, “I’m sorry.”

Then he’s gone. And so is your hope of living a happy life.

~+~

It’s been four years since you gave birth to Luke and Leia. During that time, you had helped establish the rebellion against the empire. You’re the current leader, dedicating your time to fighting against the evils that haunt the galaxy. You know Anakin is out there, and he calls himself Darth Vader now. You honestly hope to never run into him, knowing that you won’t be able to face the consequences if you can’t turn him back to the light. If he stays dark and rejects you, you’re not sure what you’ll do then. It’s the ultimate slap in the face for you.

“General Skywalker, we’re under attack!” You hear from the entrance of the rebellion base you’re currently hiding out at. Your head whips to one of your men being shot down by a stormtrooper at the entrance.

Your body kicks into action before your brain does.

“Get Luke and Leia out of here!” You yell, gently pushing your children toward a group of the men you had been leading.

“But general, what about you-”

“I can handle myself. Get them out of here, I can’t have them getting hurt. I’ll be right behind you guys and I’ll catch up with you later.” You hurriedly rush everyone out of the back of the base.

“We’re not leaving you behind, sir!” Your right-hand man and closest friend, Bail Organa, insists. You hear the stormtroopers getting closer.

Turning around, you give the group a small sad smile.

“You don’t have a choice.” You use the force to slam the door shut and crunch the doors into place so that they are harder to move.

“Freeze!” You hear a modulated voice behind you. You raise your hands slowly and turn around, coming face-to-face with a platoon of stormtroopers with their blasters aimed at you.

“How unfortunate that it must resort to violence,” You sigh, obviously not that disgruntled about the situation.

“Remove your weapon slowly.” The stormtrooper at the front commands, gesturing to the lightsaber at your waist.

“What, this old thing? Oh, please, I don’t know if it even still works,” You scoff, unlatching it from your waist. You twist it around in your hand for a second, not making a move to set it down yet.

“Put it on the ground!” The stormtrooper demands.

“Relax! It’s not like I’m going to do,” You ponder for a moment, looking at the weapon, “this.”

In less than an instant, you’ve lunged at the first stormtrooper in the front and cut him in half with your lightsaber. You cut through men left and right, dodging the blaster fire or deflecting it back onto them.

However, the more stormtroopers you get rid of, the more stormtroopers flood in. Eventually, you’re corner into a wall as you try your best to keep the upper hand.

“We have an order not to kill! Drop the weapon!” There’s a frenzy of orders as you try to fight your way out, but it’s no use.

After a few more minutes of fighting, you get hit with a shock that sends jolts through your body until everything goes dark and you feel your body hit the ground.

~+~

You wake up to a dingy, dark cell aboard an unknown imperial ship. You’re currently on both your knees with your hands and feet chained behind your back.

You know where you are. You’d heard descriptions from spies about this ship before. No one has made it back alive. Yet.

The cell door opens, causing you to wince at the sliver of light it blinds you with. Two stormtroopers walk in with blasters aimed at you and a cart behind them.

“What are you gonna do with those fancy tools, hm?” You crack a smile, eyeing the silver cart behind them with curiosity. They stay silent, picking up a small blade from the cart.

“Tell us about the rebellion. What are your plans to overtake the empire?” One of the stormtroopers, the one not holding the knife, asks you. You stay quiet, making as much eye contact as you think you can through the visor of his helmet.

“We know you’re the leader of the rebellion! You should talk before your information hurts you.” The other trooper demands. You glare up at them from your kneeling position.

The first one, without the knife, kneels next to you and puts his blaster to your head.

“I could pull the trigger right now and no one would even care.” He gets close to your face, taunting you. You look at him directly and do something you’re not sure anyone’s ever dared to do on this ship before.

You spit on his helmet.

Immediately after your spit makes contact with his helmet, you feel a knife slash across your left ribs. The wound starts bleeding viciously, indicating that the cut is probably pretty deep.

You cry out sharply at the new pain, but immediately clench your jaw shut to keep as much satisfaction from them as possible.

“Need to rethink your answer?” The knife-wielding stormtrooper asks.

“Never.”

“I guess we’ll have to get to work, then.”

~+~

That continued for a few hours. Then a few days. After about a week and a half, they were getting frustrated. You’re guessing it’s because their superior is starting to pressure them more. That pressure is probably life or death.

“Listen, bitch. You’re going to talk or you’re going to get someone new in here and you’ll like him a lot less.” The first stormtrooper, whom you’ve nicknamed Blaster, threatens you.

“Try me.” You growl. This earns you a sharp slap across the face and some blood on the floor.

“That’s it, man. We’ve been at this for over a week. I think it’s time to call the boss.”

“He won’t be happy.”

“We don’t have any other choice.”

“Fine. Let’s go get him.”

~+~

That was the last thing you heard for three days. You went the next three days without light, food, or contact of any kind. Luckily, they had given your chains a little slack so that you could change positions occasionally.

Currently, you’re facing the wall and meditating. You had gotten good at meditating after Anakin turned to the dark side. You were constantly trying to reach out to him, but he would never let you. There was a wall in the way of some kind, he couldn’t even tell you were there.

Suddenly, you hear the door slide open behind you and you see the lights turn on. You grimace at the light but try not to let it distract you. There’s an especially dark force behind you, but you can’t tell who it might be.

“Well? Don’t think you can intimidate me by just standing there in the darkness. Come in here if you really want to make me talk.” You scoff, knowing that the hall light is still off. You can feel it. Whoever this is, they want the effect of a dramatic entrance.

“You sound familiar...did I know you?” The voice finally speaks behind you. The realization makes you go cold.

It’s Anakin.

You don’t know how to respond for a moment, whether to turn around and cry out for him or to stay cold and unforgiving to this man you no longer know. You opt for the latter option.

“You did...at one point.” You pray to the force that your voice stays even, not showing any signs of weakness. Your heart is the complete opposite, hammering in your chest like you’re on the brink of death. You honestly might be.

“What is your name?” He asks, and you hear him step forward into the room. You take a deep breath and steel your nerves.

“(Y/n) Skywalker.” You finally turn around and stare into the cold eyes of the man you once loved.

She sees the posture of Darth Vader go slack as he stares into her eyes. His own eyes lose their anger and his pupils dilate slightly, taking her in. You see the yellow of his eyes start to fade already.

“(Y/n)?” He asks and the edge in his voice is gone. You hear the old Anakin through the façade of the powerful man in front of you.

“It’s me, Ani.” You smile slightly. You’re getting to him just by him seeing you, which is better than you ever imagined.

“I...You...You’re dead. Obi-Wan told me that...you died. I thought...I thought the Jedi got rid of you.” He seems completely breathless from just the sight of you, questioning everything he’s been working on for the past four years.

“Why would they do that? I was one of their best assets. Besides, did you...did you never look for me? At least for my force signature?” You ask, eyes softening as the old Ani comes back to you. The Anakin that you knew and fell in love with. Your husband.

“No, I...I lost all hope...You…” He screws his eyes shut. You can feel the internal battle he’s having currently. The struggle between the light and dark raging just beneath the surface of him. He was so wrapped up in the darkness but the mere sight of you has awakened the light he didn’t know he still had in him and it’s torturing him.

“Ani…” You murmur, wanting so badly to be free of these chains so you can reach out to him and help.

“No.” his eyes open forcefully and the yellow iris of the dark side has returned, staring coldly at you in front of him. Your heart aches but you know that this isn’t easy for him. It’s not just a switch he can flip, but you’re willing to keep trying. If the first appearance of you is anything to go by, he’s now teetering on the edge and you just have to gain enough traction to push him over to the light side.

“Anakin, I’m alive. Look at me,” You plead, looking at him with love adorned eyes. The love you had for your Anakin never faded. After all, Darth Vader is not your Anakin. But he can be your Anakin again.

“You may as well be dead to me now. After all this time, you knew I was alive and you plotted against me. You turned against me.” He growls, and you see his fingers twitch. You had heard about the infamous force-choke that he was known to subject people to if he was angry. You’d have to diffuse the situation as quickly as possible.

“No...Anakin-”

“That’s Darth Vader to you!” He yells, lashing his hand out to grip your throat with the force. You notice that he does not immediately choke you or lift you off the ground, just leaves the force there as a threat.

“I turned against Darth Vader. I never once turned my back on my husband, Anakin Skywalker. I never will, either. Anakin’s legacy will live on through me and our children.” You promise, staring defiantly at him even though he’s threatening you. The force leaves its grip around your throat and you see his body go slack once more at your words. His hand drops to his waist.

“Our...children?” He murmurs, the softness returning to his voice. Once again you see the battle ensue in him. The storm batters his mind endlessly as the yellow starts to fade again.

“Yes. I gave birth to Luke and Leia Skywalker. They’re beautiful, Ani. They’re ours. I love them. And your storm troopers almost killed them.” You tell him, hoping that he sees the light through this. Through your little family.

“Almost...killed…” He trails off, and through the force, you can see how wretched he feels. He’s so torn between the two sides that he doesn’t even know what to do with himself at this moment. You watch as he drops to his knees and lets out a feral scream as he clutches his head in his hands. You want so desperately to hold him at this moment. More than anything else you just want to hold him and help him.

But you can’t. This is his battle, not yours, and you’re currently chained to a wall.

“Come back to me, Ani. Return to me. Please. Together we can rid the galaxy of evil and restore it to peace and justice. Help me. Help me raise our children….help me live a full life with you. Let me love you.” You beg, struggling against your chains as the tears start to fall down your dirty and battered cheeks. You hurt for him so much, the force and your bond only intensifying the pain you feel for him.

“Join...Join me, (Y/n). Join me here. We can be more powerful than you ever realized. We can rule the galaxy together. Me and you. Side by side. As it’s meant to be. Free of the Jedi on your side.” Anakin grits his teeth and looks up at you again. His demand is less of a demand and more of a plea. His eyes fade in and out of yellow, and you can see that the light is starting to win. The dark is desperately clinging onto him, but it’s not dominating anymore. You can do this.

“The Jedi are no longer. You made sure of that, Anakin. I...I only know of a few left alive. A few that you didn’t kill. The Jedi order has disbanded. There is only the rebellion left. The rebellion that I formed. The rebellion that we can lead to victory, to a new world, side by side. Obi-Wan is there. Your friend, your former master. Ahsoka is there, your friend and former padawan. Together we can lead in the light, it doesn’t have to become dark again. Please. Join me with our friends and our family.” You ask of him, straining hard against the chains that keep you away from him. He clutches his head in his hands again, breaths coming out labored and in pain.

“Side by side?” He asks, almost shaking from the utter pain he is in.

“In the light. We’ll be powerful together just not here. You don’t need the dark side to be powerful. As long as we have each other we’ll be fine. I’m not dead. Nothing’s been able to get rid of me yet. Maybe this has been my destiny all along. To bring the chosen one back to the light side so that he may restore balance to the universe. Maybe my destiny has been to love you all along. We were never meant to be a bad thing.” You murmur, eyes searching his figure for any sign of the light as he battles his instinct versus his feelings.

Then he goes still.

“...Okay.” He looks up at you, his eyes shining a bright blue. More tears stream down your face, but this time they aren’t in pain. They’re tears of joy.

You reach out with the force, brushing against his force signature and feeling the light force that emanates from him. You let out a happy sob, wanting to embrace him. He crushes the chains that keep you from him, freeing you from your captivity. You run to him and he envelops you in a deep embrace. Your face presses against his chest as your tears ruin his former uniform. Oh well, he won’t be needing it anymore.

“I love you. I never stopped.” You whisper into his chest, clinging onto him like a dying woman.

“I never stopped loving you. It’s...it’s what fueled my anger. Your supposed death.” He admits, holding you close to him.

“It doesn’t matter anymore. You’re back. We’ll never be separated anymore. I’ll make sure of it.” You promise, looking back up into his beautiful blue eyes.

“We’ll make sure of it together.” He cups your face, tilting it up and pressing his lips to yours tenderly but hungrily. The tears mix into your kiss, creating a salty taste. But neither of you cares. You had both been waiting for this moment for much too long to care about tears in the way.

When you finally break away, you let out a half-chuckle that gets caught in your throat. This is certainly a situation you’ve gotten yourself into.

“Now, how are we going to get out of here?” You ask, not daring to let him go even now.

“Leave that to me.” He tells you, brushing the hair behind your ear as he gazes at you lovingly.

Within moments, you’re back in chains and he’s leading you down the hallway, an angry façade on his face.

“Sir!” The stormtroopers salute him as the two of you walk down the hallway.

They’re terrified of him, you realize.

“Sir, where are you taking the prisoner?” A stormtrooper dares to ask, to which Anakin shoots him a glare and raises his hand threateningly.

“Imperial business, trooper. Know your place.” He growls, pushing you forward. You realize that Anakin has had your lightsaber strapped to his waist this entire time, making you smile. He knows it’s yours and he probably planned on asking you how you had gotten it before he realized who his prisoner was.

“S-Sorry, sir.” The trooper backs down immediately. The two of you make it to the docking area with no problems. Until one stormtrooper has some audacity.

“Sir...are you feeling well? You don’t look normal...wait a second, men! He’s not on our side-” Before he can finish, Anakin has cut him in half with his striking red lightsaber. The other troopers caught onto the cry for help, though, and are now aiming their blasters at the two of you.

“Well, I suppose we couldn’t have a clean getaway, could we?” You give Anakin a small mischievous smile that he returns.

“Not likely with the two of us,” He chuckles. The two of you spring into action. You realize you’re still bound by chains at the wrist so you put it over a trooper's head and start choking him, using his body as a shield until you can’t anymore.

“Saber!” You call out to Anakin. In a moment, he’s throwing your lightsaber to you. You catch it and activate it, cutting your chains in half. Now you’re ready to battle.

The two of you weave through troopers with ease, fighting back to back as if nothing had changed. You deflect blaster shots left and right, swinging through troopers as you make your way to the getaway ship.

Within mere moments, the two of you are on the loading ramp of the ship. Anakin goes to turn the ship on and the ramp starts to close. You lower your saber, thinking the fighting is over. Before you can react, Anakin is pressed against you again and deflecting a shot behind your back with his lightsaber. You turn just in time to see him crush the trooper that tried to kill you with the force. You frown slightly, knowing that there’s still a hint of aggressiveness and probably darkness in Anakin, but it’s nothing you can’t work on.

He’s back now, and that’s what matters.

“Let’s go home, yeah?” Anakin asks, sitting down in the pilot’s seat and offering you a wide smile. This is probably the most he’s smiled in four years.

“Yeah. Let’s go home.” You smile back at him.

~+~

Once you’re back to your lead rebel base, you’re immediately greeted by a crowd. Out of the crowd emerges three figures: Bail Organa, Luke, and Leia. You crouch down as Luke and Leia run up to you and hug you.

“Mommy!” They cheer, laughing as you stand up and twirl around with them in your arms. They giggle as you set them down, clearly happy to see you again.

“You’re back. Congratulations, I didn’t know if we’d see you again.” Bail gives you a chuckle of relief as he gives you a clap on the back.

“Well, it wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t found someone…” You trail off, looking behind you to see a sheepish Anakin step out. You sense the nerves radiating off of him. I mean, he is entering the camp that less than twenty-four hours ago he had promised to destroy.

The crowd of rebels takes a nervous step back, not sure how to react to your news. This was their sworn enemy, and now you’re claiming he helped you?

“How can you trust him?” Bail asks, sizing Anakin up with one hand ready on his blaster.

“He’s my husband.” You state plainly. This shocks the crowd.

“Your husband?”

“When did you two get married?”

“You’ve only been captured a couple of weeks!”

The crowd’s responses make you chuckle.

“I was married to Anakin Skywalker much before he became Darth Vader. He thought I was dead but...the sight of me made him abandon his sith side. He’s back to being Anakin Skywalker...my husband. I love him, and he will be accepted here.” You all-but-command. The crowd seems to ease just a little bit, but not much.

“Daddy?” Leia asks, a small look of skepticism on her face as she looks at Anakin. You see Anakin’s eyes shine with tears as he looks at his daughter, hearing her call him dad for the first time ever.

“I thought you said dad died.” Luke tugs on your leg, almost hiding behind you. You chuckle lightly.

“He did for a little bit, but...he’s back now. And he’s going to be a part of our life. We’re going to be a happy family now, okay?” You smile, tears pricking at your eyes for the third time that day alone as you look at your little family. The family you finally get to have.

“Okay…” The two of them cautiously approach Anakin. He kneels down, and they start to talk. You know they won’t be welcoming immediately, as he’s a stranger to them, but given time...you know that you can be a happy family again.

And with this thought, the hope of living a happy life returns to you. And this time, you know it’s here to stay.

~~~~~

Tags: @thesmallestalien @rowley-with-ackerman @official-hitmxn

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radioactivepeasant · 5 years

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Fic Prompts: Star Wars Wednesday

It was truly a testament to the sheer chaos of his surroundings that he didn't realize there was a Sith present until it was too late.

Of course, his progress in using the Force to identify threats hadn't exactly progressed as far as picking out specific individuals. He'd just sort of had a constant buzz of impending danger and people with harmful intentions since he'd landed. It was a city with known Black Sun ties, after all.

Luke was just glad that his part in the mission was over. He'd made contact with a spy looking to leave the criminal organization, escorted them to the city, and kept cover even after passing them along to Rebel agents who would smuggle them offworld. Now he just needed to casually make his own getaway in a city district where everyone outside was looking at him like a potential threat or a potential target.

The "ambush" didn't catch him off-guard. For a boy who had grown up closer to Mos Eisely than he would've liked (even the other side of the planet would've been too close for most), spotting someone following him was almost second nature. So when the hulking human grabbed his shoulder from behind, Luke twisted out of his grip before he had a chance to shove his blaster into his back. He shoved the man, hard.

"Hey, I don't want any trouble," he said, in the warning tone of one who would start trouble if he found it necessary. "Just take it easy."

[[MORE]]

His attacker grinned, showing unnaturally white teeth. "Don't want any trouble? Well that's too bad, isn't it? You're trespassing on Black Sun property, kiddo. So unless you paid the toll, you're gonna have a bad time."

Luke grimaced. He'd heard better threats, in his experience. But the intent to harm rolled off this man clearly. He was probably just looking for an excuse to fight. Luke had dodged a lot of impromptu clashes between Black Sun supporters and smaller, local gangs who resented their presence. It had kept the local Imperials very busy, which had worked to Luke's advantage during the mission. But this was far less convenient.

There was a commotion down the street behind him, and the distant sound of blasterfire, but Luke ignored it when three other men joined the one harassing him. Three against one wasn't exactly good odds -- Han would tell him to forget the odds, Luke bet -- but Luke could hold his own in a gunfight. The problem was, this was much too close range. Finding cover would be difficult. And using his lightsaber here would draw the wrong kind of attention.

Luke was not eager to repeat his experiences on the smugglers' moon.

He felt a surge of warning, as if all his hair was standing on end. His chest felt tight, and he assumed it was just anxiety as he dodged the grasping hand of one of the attackers and jumped back several steps.

The four men halted so abruptly that they seemed to freeze in place. With a shaking hand, one raised a blaster and fired. But not at Luke.

The bolt streaked past Luke, high and to the left. The shooter dropped his blaster to clutch his throat, gasping. He dropped an instant later.

Luke had a bad feeling about this.

The man who had initially stopped him pointed his weapon directly at Luke's head.

"I think this guy's a Rebel!" he shouted, "Don't worry, I got 'im!"

Luke moved on instinct. In the half second between the gangster speaking and squeezing the trigger, Luke had brought his lightsaber up and into a guard position. The bolt bounced off the blade and straight back into the man's chest. He stared in disbelief at the wound for a moment, then fell.

"Your skill with the blade has improved, young Skywalker."

Luke came to the sudden, horrible realization that the Force hadn't been warning him about the gangsters. He turned slowly, too apprehensive to even think about the risks of turning his back on the other two men. Just as he'd feared, Darth Vader stood just a few meters away, with two stormtroopers.

This time, Luke wasn't going to rush in blindly the way he had on Cymoon. Not that he thought that would save him this time.

"You can blame your buddy, Kreel, for that," Luke croaked in an effort to sound defiant and not terrified.

Vader tilted his helmet slightly to one side -- a jarringly disarming gesture -- and made an unidentifiable sound. "Yes. I had hoped that he would at least further your knowledge beyond whatever dismal attempts Kenobi made."

Something cold and fearful twisted in Luke's gut. It slithered up his spine to wrap around his heart. Darth Vader...wanted him to learn lightsaber combat? But he had destroyed the Jedi! He had killed Luke's father! What was he trying to accomplish?

Vader took a step forward, and Luke stumbled a step back, despite himself. Behind him, he heard the last two men shift, and something metallic clicked. The Force swirled around him, warm in warning and yet at the same time colder than anything Luke had ever felt.

In front of him, Vader made a gesture with his hand. Behind him, there was a loud crack, and two thumps. Luke didn't have to look to know the men were dead. To his shock, the two stormtroopers with Vader dropped dead just as the gangsters did.

He killed his own men? Why?

Luke stared down at the bodies, then slowly raised his head to look at the Sith lord. He couldn't understand why he was still breathing. And then, as unexpectedly as everything else, Darth Vader spoke.

"At our first meeting," he said slowly, with no apparent need to rush, "You accused me of killing your father."

Luke remembered all too well.

"You don't even remember," he snapped, "You've killed too many fathers to know the difference."

"No."

That one word brought Luke up short. He tensed, trying to regulate his breathing with little success. His heart felt like it was going to just break out of his chest and make a run for it at this point. He raised his lightsaber with shaking hands. It wasn't much of a defense, but it was better than nothing.

With barely a twitch, Vader snatched the hilt from Luke's hand and switched off the blade. He clipped it to his belt and stepped closer.

"I spoke flippantly then, as I was not aware of your identity at the time."

There was something very dangerous in those words. An undercurrent of an old anger, and an imminent threat. Luke would have run if his feet hadn't been rooted to the spot. He tried and failed three times to speak before the words crawled out.

"Why does my identity change anything?"

As if a Sith and an Imperial would tell the truth. As if Vader wasn't about to murder him and ensure the death of another potential Jedi.

But Vader did not kill him. He was silent for three, nerve-wracking seconds before taking one final step towards Luke. He was inches away now, blocking out the fading light.

"I have killed many fathers, young one," he said in an unusually soft voice, "But not yours."

The ground seemed to fall out from under Luke's feet. Vader...hadn't killed Anakin Skywalker? He had to be lying. Because if he wasn't, then Obi-wan had been wrong. Or lying.

Without really knowing why, Luke asked shakily, "W- what do- what do you even want?"

He flinched as a hand, heavy as lead, dropped to his shoulder in an iron grip.

"To complete your training," Vader answered simply, "And to take back what is mine."

Luke stared up at him, horrified and bewildered. The Dark Side. He had to be talking about the Dark Side! Luke wouldn't turn. He couldn't! Which meant that he was probably going to die shortly.

Vader shifted and, almost tentatively, touched his other hand to Luke's forehead for an instant. "You have no reason to fear me," he said. The words sounded stiff and unpracticed, coming from him. "I do not wish to harm you. So long as you do not cause any harm in return, I can hide your existence from the emperor."

Luke trembled. If he was taken prisoner, everything he knew about the Alliance was in jeopardy. Compartmentalization protected a lot of those secrets, but he knew things about Leia most others didn't. And he didn't want Vader even speaking her name after what he'd done.

"Thought you killed Jedi," Luke managed, barely audible now.

Vader considered this, then began to walk. His grip on Luke's shoulder drew him along unwillingly and stumbling over his own feet.

"The Force is with you, young one." Vader sounded almost amused. "But you are not a Jedi yet. You do not yet understand the scope of the lies you have been told. But you will. Soon."

Luke had a very bad feeling about this.

#star wars wednesday #star wars au #Darth Vader #Luke Skywalker #in which Vader finds Luke early #takes place after the Grakkus the Hutt incident #Vader isn't as pressed for time. He's feeling oddly optimistic #that's why he's taking a considerably gentler approach after getting rid of the witnesses #fic prompts #writing prompts

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roses-foxes · 4 years

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TROS feelings but i try to keep it all in one (long) post

I’ve had some time to think about this film, read lots of different opinions on it, consider the things I hated and liked about it, and I guess I just want to share? Let’s start with the good stuff

What I liked

It’s really not much but some positivity is always nice lol

Adam Driver’s acting! He’s not the only good actor in this, but imo he’s far above the rest. I’m 90% sure he’s getting that Oscar for Marriage Story, but he’s also extremely good in this despite having probably more than half of his lines cut or altered (more on that later) and he deserves that recognition

The fact that Finn, Poe and Rey had stuff to do as a trio, even though it wasn’t well done (more on that later)

The Han moment with Ben

Rey being cheered on by all the past Jedi (more on that later too)

The concept of Rey burying the lightsabers and the last shot being on Tattooine at sunset

The lighstaber “””magic trick””” through the force with Rey and Ben

The entire dyad thing with Rey and Ben, actually

That’s literally it lmao I truly hate this film

What I think the problems are

Even if I hadn’t read stuff about it before, it’s super painfully obvious as you watch it that they had reshoots/line changes/storyline changes and it makes the film not make any sense at all, it’s such a mess.

A lot of super important lines by Kylo Ren are delivered with his mask on? There are also other instances without his mask where he’s either not in shot as he speaks or he has his arm in front of his mouth etc.. The more I think about it, the more I realise there’s literally no point at all in the story for him to reconstruct his mask. The scene where he does it is like.. 3 seconds long?? Like there’s no real emphasis on it even though it’s super important character-wise? UNLESS... it was done only to make sure lines (and therefore storylines) could be easily changed in the edit. I don’t think there’s actually a shot of anyone in the film saying, with their lips moving in shot, visibly “Rey is a Palpatine”, and that’s weird as hell? Rey herself never even really REACTS to it properly? In a saga that puts so much importance on legacy, she SHOULD have reacted, like Luke reacted when he learned Vader was his dad. Also Oscar Isaac said the actors had no idea that was a thing before the premiere..? Which implies there was no big table read with that part included and only a few people knew of that change? In my opinion it’s clear that this isn’t how the storyline was originally planned, and it probably was a last minute decision that they tried to make work with minor reshoots and some editing (the lightning when Rey blows up the ship Chewie is believed to be in could have been added in post-prod, for example).

That’s not the only change, a lot of people have pointed out that Rey speaks to Ben in the end (before the kiss), like, you can clearly see that her lips are moving and that he’s listening to her, but that conversation was cut for some reason? In many shots of that scene, Adam’s hair are longer then shorter, his hands are gloved then ungloved, Rey’s reaction to his death is super weird, he’s never mentioned again at all, he doesn’t get a force ghost even though Anakin did at the end of RoTJ, the shot where he falls back and dies makes more sense in reverse when you look at the angle of Rey’s arm etc.. it’s very possible in my mind that Ben Solo dying wasn’t originally planned either and they just reshot the kiss or something, but yeah that whole thing felt particularly sloppy to me. Props to Daisy and Adam for still making it kinda work though.

The editor of the film has said herself in a podcast that they used the “speaks with the mask on”, “not in shot” etc kind of tricks to allow them to change things up. Like idk what the hell happened to the original movie outline but I’m 10000% sure that it wasn’t what we ended up seeing at all.

What would have been my ideal TROS (or what would have at least slightly improved it)

Involve Rose Tico??? Instead of setting her aside for no reason at all, have her go on the mission with the trio, like it really isn’t that hard? Adding one (1) tiny little scene showing what her relationship with Rey is like would also have been great. Either continue the romance with Finn and develop it more, or establish that they decided to remain friends, but don’t cast it aside and pretend it never happened? What they did to her is fucking gross honestly. My heart breaks in a million pieces for KMT

Develop!! Rey!!! and Poe!! It’s clear that they were going with OT trio vibes with Rey/Finn/Poe, except that Finn’s relationship with Poe and Rey are developed separately, but Rey and Poe aren’t with each other. So it doesn’t really seem like a trio and more like 2 duos that have Finn in common, you know? In the OT, Han/Luke Han/Leia & Luke/Leia were all developed, and that’s why the trio worked as a whole by the end of the saga. Instead what TROS did was make Rey and Poe bicker 80% of the time for no real reason? Then hug? So.. are they friends or not bc it’s a bit hard to tell?

Cut that whole wayfinder plot to make it wayyy shorter. It was so stupid to watch (the knife needing to be placed exactly right at the exact right place, are you kidding me JJ Abrams? Is this Benjamin Gates or smth?), it didn’t do anything at all for the characters journey, it introduced people (Zorii and Jannah) that, as cool as they were, ended up not doing much at all...? Those were weird ass choices that ended up taking away screen time that could have actually been useful for the characters we already had. If you wanted a cool female character, JJ, Rian Johnson already had one. But where was she all that time? Oh, yeah. Off screen.

NO REY PALPATINE. Makes no sense at all, is awful, has super weird implications that are never really explained, it’s full of plot holes... just big huge no. Rey being Rey Nobody was extremely powerful. It meant creating your OWN legacy, your OWN history, it connected her with the audience more. Rian Johnson actually surprised me with this, and I would have loved for it to stay that way. This is actually what crushed me the most about the entire film, I refuse this as canon completely.

Ideally,... no Palpatine at all? Him coming back kinda ruins Vader’s arc for me. Ofc one big bad was needed after Snoke’s death and Kylo Ren getting an obvious redemption (yes, it was obvious, I’m not even gonna go through explaining it, just rewatch the 2 previous films). But Hux was RIGHT THERE. We knew he was a big BIG mean guy since his dictator speech in TFA, he had more to do with Starkiller Base than Kylo Ren ever had (yep, thats canon hoes), he always hated Kylo Ren, he almost killed him in Snoke’s throne room, I mean??? Plus Domhnall Gleeson is an excellent actor, why waste him like this when you can give him a great character arc where he does a coup and takes over the First Order?? Nonesense

Have Kylo/Ben’s redemption earlier in the movie and show him actively save lives before joining Rey’s side. I don’t necessarily hate how it played out in the film but I was pissed off that for a movie called The Rise of Skywalker, the actual Skywalker still alive barely speaks or does much once he comes back from the dark side. If you go for a redemption, GO for it, make him break Vader’s mask intentionally, make him feel Hux’s betrayal, make him be heroic. And ideally, once he saved lots of lives, imply that he intends on rebuilding the things he broke.. and make him live. Because having a last minute good action then “poof, he’s dead!” isn’t reverse Anakin/Vader, it’s a direct parallel to it. Which is a lot less interesting to watch as an audience. Why make a new trilogy if the ending is so similar to the original one? Why make it all about balance if Rey ends up forever brokenhearted bc her dyad in the force died?

Still regarding Kylo/Ben: A FORCE GHOST MOMENT WITH ANAKIN WAS SO ESSENTIAL FFS? Even one with Luke? Or literally any other Jedi, like I’m so mad about that. He was the LAST Skywalker. Rey was cheered on by all the jedi and that was cool as hell, but when he was lying in that pit he should have been cheered on too? It would have been such an awesome scene to have that parallel between them (also them killing Palpatine TOGETHER would have been better, but whatever nothing about Palp made sense)

Heavier hand on the Rey/Ben romance. I’m one of the people who saw it coming since TLJ, so I personally wasn’t surprised at all, but a lot of casual fans were and that isn’t normal. There were so many opportunities for scenes reallyyy preparing the ground for a big epic space kiss that would have felt more satisfying, instead all we got in terms of clear romance pre-kiss was “I did wanted to take your hand, Ben’s hand”. That wasn’t enough. TLJ went hard, but stayed subtle. TROS needed to go harder, and not be subtle at all.

NO RACIST DRUG SMUGGLING BACKSTORY FOR POE!! And instead maybe an arc about taking over Leia’s legacy in the resistance, about him fighting since he was a kid, about his parents being Rebellion fighters... if there was a story to be told about legacy... that was IT. Bc that’s Star Wars. You have characters trying to distance themselves from their legacies (Kylo Ren), trying to build their own legacies (Finn, Rey), and characters honouring it (Poe, Rose). It’s so stupid that they didn’t actually go anywhere with that.

Give Finn something to do??? My boy was treated so fucking dirty I can’t believe. He’s an ex stormtrooper, why didn’t he, at ANY point in this trilogy, ever think twice about killing stormtroopers? If he KNOWS they’re brainwashed child soldiers.... why not have him do something with that? Create an arc around that? He’s really just gonna kill them left and right like it’s nothing to him? We’re gonna introduce Jannah, basically a female version of him (bc apparently that’s all woc get to have --’) who’s also an ex stormtrooper, and still not build an actual storyline around that? In a trilogy about BALANCE, ffs, which implies there can be good in the bad and bad in the good?? Like I’m losing my mind here lol that’s so so so dumb. Also for the entire film he’s got *something* to tell Rey, but there are some issues there: if it was a romantic confession, it doesn’t quite work bc TLJ already gave him another romantic interest (Rey too even if ppl like to deny it, Kylo was her love interest in TLJ) + made him care about the fight besides her. So making him be all “heart-eyes puppy following her around”, especially if you plan on having her kiss someone else at the end, seems particularly cruel. But if it was about him being force sensitive, it still doesn’t really work bc 1) it’s barely implied in the film and doesn’t actually go anywhere. It was a great idea! So why not fully lean into it? What was the point? I don’t get it. 2) They don’t even resolve it. Like, he tries to tell her that *something* like 3 times, and in the end it’s just never brought up, we leave the theatre not knowing what it was. I mean?????

Have Leia’s death be more meaningful and CLEAR as to why she dies. I’ve seen like 10 different interpretations of her death. None of them make absolute perfect sense, that’s how poorly executed it was. I know they didn’t have much to work with, but I hate her dying like that, its like they tried to kill her off but had no idea how so there were like “she lays down and dies”. She’s Princess Leia ffs. Giver her some damn respect.

I think I said pretty much everything I had in mind here. If you want to chat about it, my ask box is open!

I still love star wars, but i’m gonna need to refuse to see this movie as canon in my head, for my own sanity ^^

#star wars #tros

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teamicamea-scl · 5 years

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A Tour : The Trio

Hello, guys, we are excited to share this with you!! We love October and all the spooky things related. This month we’ll be sharing the Trio’s spooky adventures.

This one was so much fun to write, Pol and I ( @rossyele ) share a fascination for abandoned places so we came up with this idea from a prompt list going around. (Feel free to send us a request and a character, we’ll love to write something for you)

We aren’t going to say the place the trio is visiting but we’re sure you’re going to figure it out!!

Please enjoy the trio having a fun time :)

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The sound of his boots echo around the abandoned hallways as Castor takes a look around. Even with the sunlight streaming in from the windows with shattered glass, the place still looks hella creepy.

“You sure know how to pick a tour, Ly,” he comments, nudging a fallen piece of wood with his boot.

“I knew you’d like this peaceful place.” She steps over the broken glass, liking the sound it makes under her shoes.

“Peaceful...Heh, sure, it’s peaceful alright. ‘Coz everyone here is dead.” Castor rubs the back of his neck but one glance at the guy beside him who looks identical to Castor (except their hair) makes him smirk. Pollux’s eyes are wide and though he’s not talking, Castor notices his twin taking in everything he can --from the holes in the walls to the debris on the ground to the open doors leading to abandoned classrooms.

“Shit really went down here, huh?” Lyra asks picking on the chipped paint on a doorframe.

“A nuclear accident.” Pollux steps into one of the classrooms, adjusting his glasses. “Countless casualties, mourned by the entire world.” He trails a hand on one of the desks, eyes taking in the scattered pieces of paper on the desks and on the floor. Pencils and erasers once belonging to children.

“I knew you’d like it when I heard such a place like this existed.”

“Pollie likes the weirdest things.” Castor steps in front of the chipped blackboard and then clears his throat. “Lyra, where is your homework? Are you going to tell me it flew out the window again?” He puts his chin high up in the air and looks at Lyra, his imitation of one of their teachers making Pollux shake his head.

Lyra hurries and sits on one of the broken chairs, she clears her throat. “Professor, how did you know?”

“Because I have nothing else better to do than to torment you, Lyra.” Castor walks around slowly, as though he’s skating, hands clasped together by his waist. “I’m an adult, I know better than all of you so listen to me and submit your papers noooOOooooOOoooOOooow!”

“Professor!” She raises her hand. “Pol, is not seated.”

Castor whips his head to Pollux, his chin still pointed up. “PoLLUX!” he screeches in a girly voice. “Sit down, you beautiful bastard!”

Pollux arches an eyebrow and waves his hand over a seat. An illusion of himself appears seated on one of the chairs and the real Pollux moves to leave the room.

“Pollux!” Castor screams in the same girly voice. “Don’t turn your back on me young man! I’ll have you know I used to run marathons back in my day...about 600 years ago when I was a wee young lass!”

Lyra laughs throwing her head to the back, holding the sides of her stomach. “Pol, such a troublemaker.”

“I’m not interested in sitting on a dusty chair.” Pollux replies before going back to the hallway.

“Dusty?! Who said anything about dusty chairs! I’ll have you know this school hasn’t seen a dusty chair in a millennia! Because we always glue the butts of our students to the seats, that’s why!” Castor walks in that ridiculous manner, keeping up the act as he runs after his brother. “Pollux! Come back here and give me your butt!”

Almost falling from the chair Lyra laughs following the twins out of the room. “Professor, I can give you…”

Castor stops in his tracks and turns to Lyra, not breaking character. “Why Lyra...come here and lemme smack that booty.”

Pollux, seeing Castor not paying attention to him anymore, strides towards his brother and hits him across the back of his head. “Stop being an embarrassment.”

“Hey, you two, play nice!” Lyra tells them, her eyes catch something and she walks towards the window. “Fuck! Look at that!” She points outside, an old rusty ferris wheel stands not far from where they are.

The twins turn to where she’s pointing, Castor rubbing the place where Pol hit but a smile spreading across his face. “A fucking ferris wheel! Fuck yeah, there’s an amusement park here?! Let’s fucking go!”

Pollux shrugs and starts walking back towards the exit but on their way back, he sees a gas mask on the ground.

“Whatcha got there, baby bro?” Castor slings an arm around Pollux’s shoulders from behind but when he sees what Pollux is looking at, he gasps excitedly. “Oh fuck yeah! I can look like that guy from the movies! Those movies with the Jedis! Luke and Leah!” He starts to imitate Darth Vader’s breathing. "Heard the second movie's coming out this week. We should see it…"

While the twins are entertained Lyra picks a toy from the ground, a dusty teddy bear. The bear probably belonged to a kid and it reminds her of her own toy. She finds a place for it near a window. “Maybe they’ll come back for you, so sit tight.”

She doesn’t notice the twins have grown quiet, looking at her. Castor walks over to her and when Lyra turns around, his lips are waiting for hers. He presses a quick kiss to those soft red lips and he smiles at her. “You’re being real cute, sunshine.”

“Am not… I just thought it’d be lonely to stay here, too bad we can’t take it with us.” She glances one last time at the bear before leading Castor towards the exit.

While the two of them are speaking, Pollux wanders into another room, surveying the damage the accident caused on this school. The room doesn’t have much furniture in it, so he’s not sure what it was before everything was destroyed. But he sees a frame of a television set on the ground, and a doll lying on the ground near it. There’s another one of those gas masks at the other side of the room as well and Pollux finds himself wanting to leave something for future visitors.

“Leaving without you, Pol.” Lyra screams from the outside. Pollux admires his handiwork but moves to the exit as well, meeting up with Lyra and Castor. The three of them follow the path leading to the amusement park, each one taking in the abandoned city. It’s as though people left in a hurry, cars parked everywhere on the street, debris and trash scattered around.

The trio nears the amusement park. It’s a strange mix between the metallic structures and the greenery that has found its way back to the surface, claiming the territory. Lyra tightens her hold on Castor’s hand, the scene giving her the creeps. She’s not scared of death but the air is filled with a sense of abandonment and loss, as if the things left behind feel neglected and betrayed.

Castor squeezes back and allows more warmth to flow into hands without hurting her. He walks closer to Lyra and he knows she must be feeling the same way he is --kinda creeped out. But he knows the three of them can handle anything that comes their way, be it the lone wolves they spotted on the edge of town where the streets were covered by grass or maybe the ghosts of the people who used to live there.

On the other hand, Pollux doesn’t stop looking around him, imprinting the scenes to his memory. Everything about this place is fascinating. It’s...upsetting that there was an accident here, but the remnants of the city are beautiful, in a haunting but evoking way.

“So, I guess this is the main attraction.” Lyra tells them, watching the ferris wheel. Everything else on the park’s ground is old and broken, some of the rides having only a few pieces left.

Castor runs to what used to be bumper cars. Now, there's a thick green moss on the cars and ivy vines crawling around the walls and the ceiling. He stares at it and he can almost hear the laughter of children as the cars bump into each other or circling around the enclosed space and chasing other cars.

Lyra slowly swings her hand, her eyes focused on three of the bumper cars. Lifting her other hand, Lyra sees the invisible strings connecting her fingers to them. Lyra tests the waters and moves her fingers, watching as the cars slide a few inches. Castor jumps back, surprised, when he sees them moving. Pollux stands behind Lyra and a small smile appears on his face as he waits to see what she’ll do next. She starts making circles with her palms facing the ground and the ride comes to life, the circles grow bigger and she overlaps her hands making the bumpers clash against the other. There’s a satisfied smile on her face.

“Holy fuck, babe! Look at that! You got ‘em to work!” Castor exclaims, laughing excitedly. “You are the best! The fucking BEST, Lyra!” He starts running around, gesturing for them to follow. “Come on! Let’s see what else we can mess with!”

Pollux sighs as he falls into step beside Lyra. “I don’t think Castor will ever grow up.”

Lyra lets her arms fall on the side of her body and the cars come to a halt. “Have we, Pol? Because this feels just like when we used to run away to the woods… just, please, no weird gifts this time.”

“I’ll have you know, we collected all those insects carefully. We didn’t want you to have two of the same species.” Pollux remarks, following after his...supposedly older brother. “But no, I don’t think we’ve had a chance to properly grow up yet.”

“So thoughtful, Pol.” She smiles but the expression fades away rather quickly. “We had to flee those years, that time of our lives, in order to survive. We abandoned that phase like people abandoned this place.”

“True.” Pollux is quiet for a moment, when something to his right catches his eye. “But it doesn’t mean we’re without hope, Lyra. It doesn’t mean the future is as bleak as it seems.” He points to a blooming red rose among the shrubbery. “I still have hope for the future. Our future.”

“Our future…? Hahaha. You really think we have one..?” She stops herself and shakes her head. “Future or not, we have now, right?” She glances at Castor who is still running around. Pollux follows her gaze.

“Ah...yes. We have now.” He watches his brother step on top of a swing and start swaying back and forth.

“Hey! You slowpokes! Hurry up! I don’t wanna be here when it gets dark!” Castor calls out to them.

Lyra looks at Pollux one last time before running to Castor. “Are you afraid of the dark?” She asks the blue-haired twin.

“Tch. Me? Scared of the dark? Babe,” he says, smirking. “I can shoot fire from my hands. I think the dark should be scared of me!” He throws his head back and laughs as he continues moving on the swing. Pollux, however, finds himself standing in front of the huge ferris wheel that they saw from the window. It still looks fairly intact compared to the rest of the city. But with no electricity, there’s no chance of it working. Too bad. He’s sure the view of the city would be really great from the top.

“Bet he wants to ride that.” Lyra tells Castor pointing at the younger twin. “But it’s too heavy for me, I can’t move it.” She tries from where she stands but all she can manage is to make one of the baskets swing. Castor hops off the swing and puts an arm around her shoulders, looking at the moving basket.

“You don’t have to, sunshine. Can you imagine that guy sitting on the seat? He was already complaining about the dirt inside the school.” Castor looks around and checks his watch. “We’ve been here for hours now...we should start heading back.”

Lyra looks up at the sky, the evening hues are starting to paint the abandoned city. “Yeah, who knows what comes out to play at night.”

Castor’s fingers slide down her arm in a soft caress before he puts his arm around her waist, slipping his thumb under her shirt and brushing against the side of her stomach. “Yeah...who knows?” he says in a low husky voice, a playful smirk on his face as he looks at Lyra.

There’s a sudden warmth on her cheeks as she looks at Castor and feels his finger touching her skin. “I…”

But the moment is broken when the two hear a metallic groan, then loud creaking. There’s a confused look on Castor’s face as he stares back at Lyra when they hear the younger twin call out, “Lyra, this is amazing! I didn’t know you could do this!”

“Pol…” Lyra watches the old ferris wheel making an effort to move, the solitude of the place allows the sounds to echo majestically. “Pol, come here, now!”

“Babe, that’s not you, is it?” Castor can feel the goosebumps spreading across his arms. Even without Lyra’s answer, he knows she can’t be moving that old monster of a ride; she just said so herself. “Fuck. POLLUX! COME HERE!”

Pollux takes a step closer to the ride, watching the ferris wheel start to move more naturally now, as though it’s managed to stretch and remove the cricks in its joints.

“Lyra’s gotten more powerful,” he murmurs under his breath. He’s certain the insides of the baskets would be filthy, but still...the view from the top must be worth it. Castor and Lyra watch in horror as Pollux starts walking toward the entrance of the ride.

“Fuck dammit, Pol!” Lyra screams throwing her hands to the side making sure every door of those baskets is shut tight. The older twin breaks off into a sprint, desperate to reach his brother in time. This is some fucked up horror movie shit and even though the three of them have powers, he doesn’t wanna mess with whatever otherworldly spirits are livin’ in this place. Forget what he said earlier --he doesn’t wanna deal with supernatural ghosties in an abandoned nuclear explosion site!

“Lyra, open one of the doors!” Pollux calls out, not bothering to look back as he stops in front of the operation booth. He glances inside and sees the lever moving by itself and he nods, impressed.

“You’re doing very well, Lyra!” he shouts to her.

“Pol, you idiot nerd! Get your ugly face here!!” Lyra shouts as she follows behind Castor. Pollux tilts his head to the side.

Idiot nerd…?

He turns back and his eyes catch sight of his brother and Lyra, running towards him like madmen. “Ah...just so you know, I don’t want to share a basket with either of you.”

“Pol we’re fucking leaving! NOW!” Castor leaps through the railings and grabs his brother’s arm. “MOVE!”

Pollux has no time to process this. He finds himself being dragged away by his brother for some weird reason. Glancing back at the spinning ferris wheel, he says, “What are you doing? I wanted to ride that.”

They meet up with Lyra and Castor holds her wrist with his other hand, pulling the both of them away.

“Pol, what the fuck? That wasn’t me!!” She looks back at the moving ferris wheel. Pollux lets her words sink in before he pulls his wrist away from Castor’s grasp, stopping midrun.

“You mean to say...that’s moving on its own? This is a supernatural occurrence?”

Castor skids to a stop, nearly tripping over himself but he doubles back and grabs Pollux again. “It fucking is! Pol, we gotta--”

“This is amazing.” Pollux cuts him off. “Let’s go back, I want to see if there are occupants inside the bas--”

“FUCK YOU WE ARE LEAVING!!!!!” Castor yanks him forcefully, the adrenaline pumping through his veins helping him pull Pollux away from that place.

Lyra keeps looking back, making sure nothing is following them -- not the kids who used to fill the park. Her skin crawls just imagining their laughs.

“They haven’t left.” Lyra says under her breath. “Did they choose to stay or are they trapped?” She won’t stay there to get an answer.

The scene behind her would send a chill down their spines though --well, except Pollux. The swings are moving by themselves, the bumper cars shaking, the empty booths rattling as though someone is shaking them. The ferris wheel spins faster before the machine groans and comes to an abrupt stop, making a loud noise as the baskets are all jolted, each swinging violently. The moment the ferris wheel stops, everything stops moving as well --the swings drop, the cars freeze, the booths still.

Castor hears the ruckus behind him and a string of curses leave his mouth. He doesn’t dare look back, not wanting to see whatever the fuck is going on behind him. The hair on the back of his neck rises as he gets the weird feeling that he’s being watched. He just tightens his grip on his twin and Lyra, kicking the metal exit open and not slowing his pace. The older twin does, however, hear a sigh behind him.

“This is why I don’t invite you both to places like these.” Pollux mutters darkly as they tear down the streets, eager to be as far away from that place before the sun fully sets.

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toonstarterz · 5 years

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BECAUSE I’M NOT POPULAR, I’LL READ WATAMOTE: CHAPTER #162

Tanabata has come around once again to offer a generation of high schoolers some false hope in order to distract them from the cruel reality that is life. At least, that’s what the old Tomoko might’ve thought. While the world ultimately didn’t hand everything to her on a silver platter, Tomoko’s half-hearted hope did actually manifest into something she holds dear. The question now remains...

What does she strive for now?

Chapter 162: Because I’m Not Popular, I’ll Make A Wish

“I wish that Watamote would get a 2nd season!”

Ahem...moving on.

Nothing like a little friendly brooding to start the day.

In a weird, ironic way, Yuri seems to empathize with Tomoko over mutual apathy. The one constant they share is that they both like to take the path of least resistance in life. While Yuri may be a little off the mark at times, having that unspoken bond is a great point to start from.

So we knew Nemo recognized that Tomoko was a former loner, but Yuri, too? Then again, it’s been hinted at before that Tomoko is kind of an open book and that the people around Tomoko are more perceptive of her than she’d like to believe. So yeah, Yuri knew Tomoko barely had friends before she met her (a fact that likely fuels her codependency tendencies). But like any good friend, Yuri stuck around despite that history.

Still can’t get over her casually calling her Yuri-chan.

For a hardcore introvert like Yuri, doing something for the sake of being social with no practical purpose seems illogical. It makes total sense that traditions like Tanabata aren’t really her cup of tea. Just how much Yuri is aware of that is still kind of fuzzy, but no less endearing,

Reiterating a joke I made in the previous chapter, but Tomoko really ought to take a crash course in psychological projection.

Taking a stab at Yuri’s desires, now...I’d say it would be to have someone who really understands her. Or for Minami to lose her fang. Either or.

Wow, I wouldn’t have figured that Ucchi was the type to write in all caps.

I always wondered if the sugar-sweet and dragged-out way that moe anime girls yell “Senpaaai!” was actually grating by real-life Japanese standards. Looks like I was right.

Now those school fan clubs for the ridiculously attractive girl/guy that you sometimes see in manga are starting to feel pretty legit right now.

“Pfft, basic bitches,” thought Tomoko.

Smooth like butter.

You know, I think that Tomoko being unable to come up with something is a solid indication that she’s relatively satisfied with her life right now. Sure, she has career goals and whatnot, but she no longer feels troubled by material desires or short-term gratification. Like Yuri, it may be that Tomoko has more intangible, emotional desires that aren’t easy to put into words. But also like Yuri, Tomoko may have recently already gained that.

Occasionally–just occasionally–a few earnestly pure-of-heart moments from a cute manga girl is all you really need.

...Especially when it’s immediately offset by Tomoko being Tomoko.

Ohhhh, boy. That last comment by Tomoko is opening up all sorts of questions regarding her sexuality. I’ve mentioned before that Tomoko may be dealing with some sort of gender dysphoria and I think that’s becoming more apparent than ever. For one, her totally normal-not-at-all-creepy desire to NTR her kouhai assumes that only a guy could do that to Hirasawa. It also implies that Tomoko would only acknowledge liking girls if she identified as male. Not once did Tomoko consider that she, as a female, could NTR another female. All in all, there’s a bit of internalized homophobia, repressed sexuality, etc. at play here, and it’s going to take a bit of soul-searching for Tomoko to sort it all out.

Once every thousand years, we get some actual chibi art out of this series.

Bless you, Nico Tanigawa.

The best part of this Hirasawa-vision is that Tomoko is drawn exactly the same, just with lighter tones. Hirasawa’s not blind, just optimistic, which makes her heroine-worship so much more earnest.

Normally, super innocent girls like Hirasawa who get overly excited on trivial things tend to rub me the wrong way, mostly because I have a hard time thinking young girls are that simple-minded. But there’s something about Hirasawa that feels genuine. It may be because her excitement feels like its deriving from a sense of loneliness. Like an overreaction from latching onto any lure of female friendship.

It’s also just cute.

Tomoko...I’m pretty sure that’s your confirmation bias talking right there.

We don’t even need to see anything above the waist, but you can tell exactly who this is based on context alone...

I was wondering how Ucchi actually manages to do that Darth Vader thing with her mouth...

...then I remembered how her face looks and it makes perfectly no sense.

Guys, I...I think Ucchi finally broke.

Actually, Miyazaki, it may not be phrased as a wish, but it definitely is a wish...

I really enjoy the little bits of characterization in everyone’s wishes. For Yuri and Tomoko, like the BFFs they are, they have the same, most basic wish since they don’t really have any other burning desires. It’s also short and sweet, and without any fluff, as they would normally be if speaking out loud. And lastly, Yuri doesn’t leave her last name, as if she doesn’t want to attach herself onto her wish that far.

Katou, on the other hand, is all giddy and sweet, using words like “hope” and “together” when effectively making the same wish. She uses “we” without naming anyone, making it an all-inclusive wish. Just what you’d expect from the class mom.

Tomoko’s habit of “lying on reflex” actually makes a great deal of sense. She’s the type who has trouble expressing her vulnerabilities, and lying is a standard defense mechanism, just like Yuri’s noncommital attitude, Nemo’s passive aggression, and whatever Katou most certainly has.

Oh, Yuri, you precious bean. I know jokes aren’t your forte, but your emotional responses–or lack thereof–makes for a great punchline.

Did ya’ll notice how Tomoko’s second wish is exactly what Imae wished for last year? Tomoko may not always make the best decisions when comes to carrying the torch of The Great Megumi Imae, but you can’t deny that she’s making a concerted effort.

Guess Tomoko isn’t the only one with enough nerve to turn a Tanabata wish into a dirty joke...

Damn, we all knew that Fuuka was getting an unhealthy fixation over Katou and Tomoko’s “secret” relationship, but never to the point where it was affecting her studies, and by extension, her after-high school prospects. It hints that the series may be taking this misunderstanding into a direction that’s not entirely played for gags. It’s a risky move because such a development could easily come across as contrived if taken seriously, but if they keep it character-driven a la Ucchi, it could make for some really engaging moments.

C’mon, Fuuka. How did you think people were going to take that?

Of all of the people who’ve been “corrupted” by Tomoko, Fuuka may be taking the most damage out of all of them. Poor thing.

Let’s see here...

Sometimes I worry about Itou’s sense of self when she always identifies herself by her relationships with others.

Yo, Komiyama doesn’t even bother mentioning the Lottes by name because “Who else of any importance could it possibly be?”. Never lose faith, Komi.

Sweet, naïve Mike. She (and her boyfriend who’s somehow still kicking) is set up to be this series’ greatest tragedy.

This is Tomoko Kuroki, everyone. The girl who can’t see the raging emoji-faced horndog right in front of her, but will misconstrue a single misunderstanding as a pervert. Selective perception, ain’t it?

Well, it is a great opportunity to anonymously judge people’s inner desires, so Tomoko’s probably right.

Here we go again...

Nice to see that Nemo has practical, but optimistic expectations for her goal. She knows that she’s in her prime and is ready to hit the ground running.

The thing about Yoshida’s wish is that it implies that she knows she’ll be faced with resistance. Still, I gotta respect her individuality.

Okada’s wish feels like a cry for help if you look at it another way. That’s probably not the case, though. Probably.

That’s the beauty of it all, Tomoko. In the end, you really didn’t do anything. At least, not directly. What you did was make yourself into an example for Nemo to follow. One of Tomoko’s greatest attributes is that she’s unapologetically herself, which is how she eventually got noticed–and in Nemo’s case, admired–in the first place.

Quakey legs + short people problems = cute Tomoko.

Aw man, what I wouldn’t give for this to be a running gag. That in all those chapters where Tomoko was all alone, there was actually somebody she knows now that was in the scene, too. It (sort of) first happened with the dick-pics-in-class chapter and the three-legged race guy, after all. Poor Tomoko has all this baggage that can be used against her now.

For those with shitty memory like me...

“I want to lose my virginity in a year so I don’t lose track of my bigger goals.”

Of course, she’d forget about the part that actually mattered.

Well, you know, Tomoko, they do say that every joke/lie has a kernel of truth.

I noticed that a lot of (comedy) manga seems to like elevating the value of losing(or saving) one’s virginity to absurd levels, at least in the inexperienced minds of its teenaged male characters. Tomoko herself has perpetuated this notion in the past. But even so, the “in-universe” outside of Tomoko’s mind never really aggrandizes sex, and I find that it to be a very refreshing change that shows how, in reality, as Nemo suggests, losing your virginity isn’t really that big of a damn deal.

Good ol’ Tomoko logic at its finest.

Nemo looks...surprisingly serious about that. Normally that kind of talk would catch her off guard a little, but she had no hesitation with that retort. I think that’s solid evidence that Nemo has done more research into the nature of the voice acting industry, especially after Tomoko unintentionally trolled her with that eroge.

This could lead to even more intellectual (if not openly sexual) conversations between Tomoko and Nemo that go beyond their usual bantering. That’d be pretty lit.

Well, if Tomoko is a direct reflection of the author, then she probably thinks light novels are mostly for loser otaku trying to live their perverted fantasies through self-insert literature (at least, what I gathered from Write Sisters).

Well, I’m be damned if that isn’t blatant foreshadowing for where Tomoko’s future is headed.

Even though I saw it coming a mile away, it still gives me the warm fuzzies.

As fantastic as it would be for Tomoko to be an accomplished light novelist with Nemo voicing a character in her anime adaptation, I feel like that level of success would be a little out of reach for this series’ approach to realism.

If I were to look into the future, I’d say that Tomoko would write a light novel that’d be successful just enough to be greenlit for an ultimately mediocre anime adaptation. And Nemo, being a rookie, would either be not cast at all, or be given a bit part for a background character.

Of course, that’s all speculation. As Nemo says, the freedom to dream is the one thing we can count on. And if there’s one thing the mangaka has learned from doing this series, it’s that being realistic doesn’t mean you can’t have a happy ending.

I guess being considerate/decent to complete strangers is still locked out of Tomoko’s comfort zone.

I think we found a member of Rena’s family.

Man, the more we get these tidbits of Imae’s legacy affecting the school (and Tomoko), the more nostalgic I get for her. I sincerely hope we get to see her at least one last time before the series is over.

And in tried-and-true Watamote fashion, we get a little bit of Tomoko’s wisdom to end off another thought-provoking chapter.

In retrospect, there wasn’t a whole lot of “action” in this chapter that could be built upon later. It was mostly a series of gags sprinkled with some nice conversation (at least until Nemo’s part). One of the core themes that Nico Tanigawa seems to be playing with is, “Now that Tomoko has come this far, where does she go from here?” And the answer is...

They don’t know.

Legitimately, I don’t think the mangakas know exactly what Tomoko’s endgame will be. Sure, they have some strong ideas in terms of school and career, but nothing definitive. As s result, I think playing with the gags and jokes a bit more is their way of “stirring the pot” and seeing what comes out. All of Watamote’s greatest developments did originate from comedy, after all. The first Tanabata chapter is a prime example of this, and I have no reason to think that the stars of the second Tanabata chapter won’t shine over Tomoko once again.

#watamote #watamote review #chapter 162 #no matter how i look at it it's you guys' fault i'm not popular!#tomoko kuroki #yuri tamura #mako tanaka #shizuku hirasawa #emiri ucchi #asuka katou #sakaki fuuka #hina nemoto #review

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chicgeekgirl89 · 5 years

Text

Arachnophobia: Chapter 1

A/N: I wrote for not-my-fandom again. I think I’m like...in now. Whoops. Sonny whump inside!

“Shit!” Sonny said in surprise and then, “Fuck!” as his second boot landed deeply in the mud beside his first. Within seconds he was up to his knees. “What the—“

There was a crunch behind him and he threw out a hand in warning, craning his neck around as far as he could since his legs refused to do anything except sink. “Wait! Hold up! Don’t come down here!”

Clay’s face appeared first, weapon drawn, his eyes narrow with concern. It took him a second to realize what he was seeing but when he did his face split into a wide grin. “Don’t you say a word,” Sonny warned as he tried to wade back toward him to no avail. He nearly face planted and it took every bit of core strength he had to keep himself upright. “God damn it!”

“You a little stuck there buddy?” Clay said.

“Will you quit smirking and get me out of here?”

There was more rustling and Jason and the rest of the team appeared through the trees. “Careful boys!” Clay said. “We’ve got a situation here.”

“Sonny, we can’t take you anywhere,” Ray said with a laugh.

“I am not the only one who didn’t know there was a mud hole through these trees!” Sonny said. He was nearly up to his hips at this point. “I just happened to be the only one brave enough to go first. So you’re welcome that you’re not all down in this mess with me.”

“You know people pay a lot of money for stuff like this,” Jason said.

“Yeah it naturally exfoliates your skin,” Trent said.

When they all looked at him he shrugged. “What? I listen to the women in my life.”

“You mean your mother?” Brock said with a snicker.

“Would you all shut the fuck up and get me out of here!” Sonny snarled as he sank another inch.

“All right, all right.” Jason took a few steps closer and then braced himself, reaching for Sonny’s arm. “One, two, three!”

In the end it took all of them hauling his sorry ass up the slope to free him from his muddy prison. “I fucking hate the rainforest,” Sonny gasped when he was finally lying on solid ground again.

They’d been in Brazil for a week hunting down someone on Mandy’s wanted list. It was the rainy season, hell it was probably always the rainy season, and they’d spent a good deal of their time hiking up and down the rainforest. It was a recon only mission and it had all gone exactly according to plan, meaning mood on the way out was fairly high, even if they did have to walk practically half the country to reach the exfil site. Apparently setting a chopper down in the rainforest was kind of a big no no.

“Yeah well it obviously hates you right back buddy,” Jason said, slapping his shoulder. “Up and at ‘em boys. We’ve got another six miles to cover today.”

Six miles in his sodden, muddy gear. Perfect. Sonny tried to wipe some of it off but the stuff clung to him like glue. “Of all the damn places in the world, we’ve got to end up traipsing through the jungle,” he grumbled as they walked.

“If we were in the desert you’d be complaining about the sand,” Clay said.

“You know for a guy who knew what he was signing up for when he joined the team you seem awfully surprised that it’s not always a vacation,” Ray told him.

“I’m just saying would it be so bad to have a mission that took us somewhere that the nature didn’t want to kill us faster than the baddies?” Sonny asked.

“And where exactly would that be?” Trent replied. “I don’t think they authorize too many covert ops in the Bahamas.”

“I said somewhere the nature wouldn’t kill us,” Sonny shot back. “They have sharks in the Bahamas. Do you know how many--”

“All right, enough,” Jason said. “The next time they authorize a mission to Boise you can head it up. Until then, quit whining and walk faster. Emma’s got some kind of recital thing coming up and if I miss it I’m going to have to add another award to my Worst Father of the Year collection.”

By the time dusk arrived they were more than ready to set up camp. Everyone was tired and just wanted to get some sleep before their final hike out in the morning.

Sonny collapsed onto a fallen tree and began unlacing his boots. “Oh Sonny no!” Trent groaned and everyone else joined in the protest.

“Hey! I’ve got mud squashing between my toes. I ain’t walking out of here tomorrow with half the rainforest in my boots!” he said.

“Well at least sit downwind,” Ray told him as they began breaking into their MRE’s.

Sonny glared at him and went back to trying to remove some of the mud and debris from his gear. It was pointless, but if he kept his boots off all night at least they’d be a little drier in the morning.

“I’ll take first watch,” Brock offered.

Sonny knew he was as eager to get home as Jason. The length of their mission and hike through the jungle with who-knew-what kind of animals hanging around meant the furriest member of their team had stayed home. Brock was missing him something fierce, even if he’d never admit it, and Sonny was too. There was something comforting about having the dog’s presence with them. Without him it felt like somebody was missing from the team.

“You took first watch last night,” Jason said. “Clay’ll do it tonight.”

“Fine with me,” Clay said, shoveling in another bite of his dinner as if it was Texas BBQ rather than flavorless cardboard.

“No falling asleep on the job there kid,” Sonny said. “If you let a jaguar eat me I’ll kill you.”

“It would take one bite of you and spit it right back out,” Brock said.

“Hey, out of this group I am obviously a jaguar’s first choice. It ain’t going for Clay’s skinny ass. That’s not going to get him very far.”

“I don’t know I think Jason looks like a pretty juicy jaguar steak,” Ray said with a grin.

“Nah, he’s way too tough,” Trent said.

“You all keep this up and I’ll feed you to a jaguar,” Jason chastened them, leaning back against a tree and closing his eyes.

One by one Sonny listened to his brothers fall asleep. After so many years together it was easy to know who had nodded off. Trent snored like a lumberjack. Jason breathed like Darth Vader. Ray tossed and turned. Brock, who was typically a pretty quiet guy, muttered things. And Clay, always Mr. Go, go, go, got so still they sometimes wondered if he was breathing.

Sonny settled against his pack, staring up at the canopy above. His skin itched and his shoulders were stiff from carrying their gear. But honestly, for all his complaints, he wouldn’t trade this for anything. Traveling the world with his brothers and blowing shit up along the way was the stuff eight-year-old Sonny had only dreamed of.

“Kinda pretty isn’t it?” Clay asked.

“If ya like trees,” Sonny said.

“Keep an eye out for snakes,” Brock said, his hat pulled down low over his face. “Drop down from the trees and wrap you up before you even know what happened.”

Sonny stared at him. Brock was a pretty serious guy, which meant you never knew when he was pulling a fast one. “Now why’d you have to go and put that thought in my head? How am I supposed to sleep knowing that there’s tree snakes up there waiting to dive bomb me?”

“With your eyes closed,” Trent said. “Shut up.”

Despite Sonny’s worries he must have drifted off at some point because the next thing he knew Ray was shaking his shoulder. “Come on. Time to move.”

Sunlight had barely started filtering through the canopy. The others were already up gathering their gear. “What’d you guys have breakfast without me?”

“Tried to wake you three times,” Clay said. “Thought about just leaving you here to live with the monkeys but Ray said it was too much paperwork.”

“Ha ha.” Sonny stretched, his shoulders and neck popping after a long night of sleeping on the ground. “You’d better watch out young Jedi or I might just let a croc get you on our way out of here.”

“Sonny!” Jason said. “Let’s go!”

Sonny shoved his left foot into his stiff, dirty boot and pulled the laces tight. His right foot went in next and almost immediately he felt a sharp pain in his ankle. “Ow! What the—ow!!” Something stabbed him a second time and he quickly withdrew his foot.

He turned the boot over and banged it on the ground. A spider the size of his hand skittered out and slipped away through the undergrowth. “What the hell is wrong with this place?” Sonny asked as he jammed his foot back inside. The others had already started making tracks.

“Sonny let’s go man,” Clay said, disappearing through the trees.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m coming. Just had a spider the size of Mount Everest in my boot but sure, leave me behind. It’s fine.”

He caught up easily even with stabbing pain in his ankle. Damn thing probably jabbed him with its giant pincers or legs or antennae or whatever the hell spiders had.

“Don’t you even start with me Jason Hayes,” Ray was saying from the front of the pack. “You know you’re the worst golfer on this team.”

“You’re not particularly good yourself there Ray,” Sonny said. He shivered as goose bumps ran up and down his spine. “If I recall, last time we went out you ended up owing some pretty big dollars to the course for that golf cart you put a dent in.”

“That was Clay’s fault and you know it,” Ray said.

“I was just testing to see if your SEAL focus could stay intact even on the green,” Clay said with a cocky grin.

“Yeah how was your focus in the sand trap? Did you feel right at home there?” Jason asked.

“Just like being back in country,” Clay said.

Sonny laughed with the rest of them and then paused to adjust his boot again. Now there was a burning sensation spreading down his foot into his toes. What in the hell?

He limped a few more steps and stumbled. Clay caught his shoulder. “Careful there buddy. Don’t need a repeat of yesterday.”

Sweat dripped down his neck. He pulled at his collar. Even in the early hours of the morning the jungle was like being inside a wet paper bag.

“So what’s Emma doing at this recital?” Trent asked.

“Some song. I don’t know. Something by Lady Gaga maybe? Isn’t that who the kids are into?” Jason said.

“I say we get Sonny dressed up in that meat suit and then see how Cerb likes it,” Clay teased.

Sonny’s throat seemed strangely tight. He blinked, tried to clear the sweat out of his eyes as pain shot up his whole leg. He reached out a hand to steady himself against a tree and then found himself sinking down onto a stump.

“What are you doing?” Clay asked.

“I gotta take my boot off,” he said, trembling fingers reaching for his laces. It felt like someone was stabbing him repeatedly and he needed to fix it NOW.

“Sonny what’s up?” Ray said.

“I can’t,” he squeezed his eyes shut against the pain, “I can’t get it off!”

“Well then just leave it and come on!” Ray said.

Sonny shook his head, his breath coming out in short gasps. Clay rolled his eyes. “All right Cinderella.” He knelt and grabbed hold of the boot. Sonny had to grip the stump he was sitting on and bite his tongue to keep from yelling as the pain reached a new level of excruciating.

“What the hell?” Clay asked when it didn’t budge.

“Come on Clay, Jay’s not gonna wait for us,” Ray said.

“It won’t come off,” he said in confusion.

“What?”

“Guys,” Sonny took a breath and gritted his teeth. He’d tolerated a lot of pain in his life, he’d been blown to hell, shot, stabbed, but nothing compared to this. “I need you to get it off. Now.”

“Okay, all right, relax,” Ray said calmly. “Jay!”

The rest of the team stopped and turned around. Jason spread his hands. “What the hell are you three doing?”

“I can’t get his boot off,” Clay said.

Jason stared at him. “His boot? Why are you taking his boot off?” he looked at Sonny. “Why are you taking your boot off?”

“Jason, I swear to you, there is a god damn red hot poker in there and I need it off now,” Sonny said. He felt something akin to panic rising in him as the pain continued to increase. It was making his chest tight, his breath wheezing in and out like he’d run a marathon.

“Well just pull it off!” Jason said.

“I think his foot is swollen or something,” Clay said. “It won’t come off.”

“We could cut it,” Ray suggested.

“We still have two hours to hike. What’s he going to walk out of here with one boot on?” Jason asked.

“Sonny can you put weight on it?” Trent asked. “Whatever’s going on we can’t fix it until we get out of here anyway.”

His hands were shaking and he felt dizzy. “I can try.”

Clay and Trent helped him up and the instant he put weight on it he let out a howl and went to his knees.

“All right, all right sit down,” Trent said, pushing him back onto the stump. He looked up at Jason. “I think it’s gotta come off.”

Jason nodded grudgingly. The small part of Sonny that wasn’t in excruciating pain felt guilty for holding everybody up but he was in true agony and didn’t think he could move even if he tried.

Brock handed Trent his knife and the medic carefully began to slit the laces. Every movement caused a flare of pain. “Oh my god Trent,” Sonny said. “Just rip the damn thing off if you have to!”

Trent didn’t even spare him a glance, just kept working steadily away until he was finally able to ease the ruined shoe off.

Sonny thought he would feel instant relief but as Trent peeled his sock back alarm slammed through him. His entire foot was red and swollen with two distinct sets of puncture marks along his ankle. “What the fuck is that?” he asked in a shaky voice.

“Looks like a bite,” Trent said turning his ankle back and forth. “When did this happen?”

“I uh, maybe it was the spider that was inside my boot this morning?” Sonny said. His heart was starting to flutter uncomfortably inside his chest.

“A spider? How big? What did it look like?”

Even in the worst agony of his life Sonny spared a half second to glower at him. “Like a fucking big spider Trent.”

Trent rolled his eyes and continued his inspection. “Looks like an allergic reaction. Not much I can do. Long as it doesn’t spread you should be fine.” Privately he was a little worried about how quickly Sonny’s foot had blown up, but with no good medical help for several miles the only thing to do was keep on. He smeared antibiotic cream over the punctures and made Sonny take a couple Benadryl then nodded to Jason. “We’re good to go.”

Jason and Clay hauled Sonny to his feet. “Oh god,” he croaked as his vision blurred. His stomach turned and he swallowed hard, trying not to vomit.

“Tough it out Sonny, come on,” Jason demanded as they began to walk. He sounded harsh but Sonny knew him well enough to pick up on the subtle note of concern. If Jason was worried he must be in deep shit.

The next hour was the most miserable experience in Sonny’s recent memory. His foot burned like it was on fire. Sweat dripped down his face, stinging his eyes, and breathing seemed almost impossible. His stomach churned in his belly and was accompanied by stabbing pains there as well. His heart was beating so loudly he could feel it in every part of his body. He wondered idly if the others could hear it as they dragged him along.

They made it another fifteen minutes before Sonny felt his knees give out. “Whoa!” Clay said, taking on his full weight.

“Trent,” Sonny gasped, “something ain’t right.”

“All right let’s get him down,” Jason ordered.

Clay and Brock helped lower him to the ground. Clay shoved his pack underneath as a makeshift pillow while Trent appeared directly above Sonny’s head. “What’s going on? Talk to me Sonny.”

“I can’t uh, I can’t breathe,” Sonny said gasping for air. It felt like his heart was going to explode out of his chest if he didn’t die of asphyxiation first.

“Let’s get his gear off,” Trent ordered, his fingers already stripping off anything he could reach. Clay helped and in short order they had him stripped to his undershirt and pants.

“TOC this is Bravo One we have a situation here,” Jason said into his radio.

“I—“ Sonny tried to speak but his stomach cramped violently and everything that he’d eaten in the last twenty-four hours came right back up.

“Whoa! Get him on his side!” Trent yelled.

Sonny choked and retched until there was nothing left and then the guys rolled him unceremoniously onto his back. Trent reached for his wrist and began taking his pulse with one hand while he shoved a syringe at Brock with the other. “Open this,” he ordered.

Sonny’s head was swimming and he was having a hard time following what was happening. “Trent—“ he rasped.

“I’m right here Sonny. You’re going to be fine.” But Trent’s face said he was worried. “Tell me what you’re feeling.”

“’m dizzy,” Sonny said, closing his eyes as Brock returned the needle. “And my chest is—“

His whole body seized.

#SEAL Team #Sonny Quinn #Sonny Whump #Arachnophobia #Brazil #Spiders #Poison #Venom #Jason Hayes #Clay Spenser #Trent Sawyer #Ray Perry #Brock Reynolds #SEAL Team CBS #SEAL Team Fanfiction #Sonny Quinn Fanfiction

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scoutshonor56 · 4 years

Text

KWID DOH NO!

Our Kartoon Prezident

Well, as year #3 of this torn and frazzled, circle-the-wagons administration comes to a close, it’s time to look back and reflect on the Little King’s record thus far. After all, “some” say he’s the greatest president since Lincoln, maybe even better! Well, OK, he does anyway… Oh Little Donny, you are one for the history books, you’re certainly right about that!

In the short span of three years in office, due to your ego, stupidity, and gullibility, you’ve made our country a punchline and a bad joke to the rest of the free world. You’ve soured relations with pretty much all the major democratic nations of both hemispheres and it’s become abundantly obvious that you prefer the company of despots and dictators, because they curry your favor and feed your ego while playing you for a sucker and a clueless rube. You play international diplomacy not like a shrewd card shark, but someone who still gets confused when playing “Go Fish”.

While your own top advisors, the CIA, and our National Security team strongly suggested you throw in the 4 and the 7 and take two cards, you said, “But I asked them, and they said they got nothing – I’m betting it all on what I have!”

Did Putin rig the 2016 election? “I asked him, he said no…”

Does Kim Jong-un intend to stop his nuclear proliferation? “I asked him, he said yes…”

Did Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman order the killing, dismemberment and disappearance of Washington Post columnist, Jamal Khashoggi? “I asked him, he said no…”

It’s just a theory of mine, but I suspect that you find the intricacies of democracy waaay too complicated; too much reading! Whereas in Russia and N. Korea, it pretty much boils down to “the supreme leader makes the rules, and if you don’t like it, tough shit.” – see? Simple is good!

Fuck it, what do my own hand-picked Intelligence team know anyways? They didn’t write my best seller, “Art of the Deal”! They lack my incredible business insight and my sharply honed negotiating skills; my intuitive judgement of character!

No argument there Mr. Prezident… well, except for the six former associates, cabinet appointees, and campaign advisors now spending their holiday in prison for a few minor offenses like tax evasion, campaign finance violations, lying to Congress under oath, lying to the FBI, conspiracy against the United States, obstruction of Congress, and witness tampering… oh, and your revolving door of high level appointees and cabinet members who pass through the White House like the line at a drive-thru McDonalds, or a frantic, rookie coach trying to stabilize his list of starting players as they drop one game after another on their way to another losing season.

As a matter of fact, you’ve had more turnovers during your first three years at the helm than any other previous first term president during their entire four-year term - many of them replaced multiple times!

Hey, I get it – shit happens when you’re a “stable genius” big-time finance wizard like yourself, who built a huge casino in New Jersey primarily financed with junk bonds, ran it into the ground, stiffed all the construction contractors and workers out of millions, and turned Atlantic City into a ghost town.

Oops, well, and there are those six bankruptcy filings while you were in the private sector… and the bogus Trump “University” scam that you quietly had to settle out of court before taking the oath of office to run the country, paying out $25 million to the students (dupes) who showed up one day only to find the front doors locked and a sign taped to the glass…

Oh, and the Trump “Charity” organization, which was recently sued by the New York Attorney General and found guilty of misuse of funds, funneling millions toward your election campaign and paying off business debts… oh, and the purchase of a huge $60K vanity portrait to hang in one of your exclusive country clubs. The “Charity” foundation was ordered liquidated and $2 million was dispersed among actual, non-affiliated charities… Whadda guy, am I right!? A true philanthropist, with a heart as pure and genuine as his hair!

Well, OK, but that’s all dollars under the bridge, now you’re in the BIG chair, running the whole show – how’s that federal deficit coming, the big hole in our national budget that in your 2016 campaign you promised to fill in eight years? Yikes! Lotta shoveling still needed there, better roll up the sleeves, put down the golf clubs and get to work; looks like the federal deficit for this past year surged 26% from 2018 to $985 billion, and the Congressional Budget Office projects it will top a record breaking $1 trillion next year, primarily due to your 2017 tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the rich and mega-rich.

Speaking of golf, let’s return again to 2016 and your campaign rhetoric:

“If I am president I'm not going to play much golf, because there's a lot of work to be done... Obama went golfing every day. 'Little Obama, go play golf every day.' He's played more than most PGA touring professionals play... I'm going to be working for you. I'm not going to have time to go play golf."

You leave me speechless. There are whoppers and then there are WHOPPERS! And we all know your whoppers are triple beef patty and cheese, hold all the green and tomato, extra bacon! This past weekend, down in Par-a-Lago, you teed up for your 251st game at – of course - one of your own exclusive resorts. Yup, the president of the United States owns twelve courses across the U.S., three in Europe, and one in the Middle East, with three others still under construction. You even wanted to hold the 2020 G7 Summit at your exclusive resort in Miami until your own party members quietly suggested, ahem, this might not go over too well with the rabble… could be seen as gratuitous and self-promoting.

You know, it’s not everyone who can get elected to president of the United States even after tapes are uncovered of him saying ten years prior to running, “Yeah, that’s her. With the gold. I better use some Tic Tacs just in case I start kissing her. You know, I’m automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything.”

Damb! J.F.K., Bill Clinton, sit down you amateurs! You nervous, pimple-faced freshman at your first high school dance trying to cop a sweaty feel! Donny was putting it to a well-known porn star just a year after his third marriage and just months after the birth of their first child, Barron. His longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to eight federal crimes, including making illegal contributions to the Trump campaign on the same day he admitted cutting a $130,000 to said porn star (AKA Stormy Daniels) to buy her silence before the election.

“I did not have sex with that woman.” Oh, those were such innocent times, the ‘90’s! A little hanky-panky with an intern, a cum stained blue dress… To date, Trump has 25 allegations of sexual misconduct against him, and those are just the women who came forward.

I could go on and on… and on, but let’s stay with the big picture, the broad brush strokes for now, and start to bring this sordid summary to a close. So, you’re the champion of coal and the petrochemical industry, and the chief spokesperson for the nostalgic days of big, gas guzzling cars. You get a hard-on whenever you see a tank, sparking fantasies of military parades down our streets, you’re a climate change denier, think wind energy is produced by windmills that give you cancer, and are the Darth Vader to renewable energy in any shape or form. Your target list also includes endangered wildlife and protected federal land and you are quickly closing in on 100 rollbacks (95) of any current environmental regulations. You’ve essentially turned the EPA into a paper lion with missing teeth, a bunch of token federal workers down the hall who may as well show up whenever they feel like it, take long lunches, spend their days web surfing, and punch out around 3:00 for all the good they can do under your watch.

Wow, what an impressive resume! We haven’t even touched on the constant barrage of lies and fanciful fabrications that spill out of your mouth daily like food spray, the daily policy “briefings” conducted by Fox News, the obsessive tweeting, the complete blurring of truth and fact, the drastic rise of nationalistic, racist hate crimes over the last three years, the rambling conspiracy theories, the child-like pettiness and immaturity, the juvenile name calling and belittling, the paranoia, the preening and neediness of a textbook narcissistic sociopath…

And now, to cement your place in the annals of history you’ve graduated to being only the third sitting U.S. president to face an impeachment hearing - bravo Mr. Prezident, bravo! You sir are indeed one for the books! A true piece of work never before seen, or even imagined, in our 224 years of American politics, and I salute you!

You let him in the game America; you wanted him, you got him! I can’t wait for the next four seasons of everyone’s favorite reality show, “Little Donny’s Playhouse!”. And if his mentally blunt and rabid fans have anything to say about it, afterwards it will go into re-run syndication for years and years to come!

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE, smoke ‘em if you got ‘em!

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maedre13s-sw-blog · 7 years

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Ah! I wanted to wait until your exams were over, but 143 please? :)

Hi!! So I finally- FINALLY- found the time to answer to this prompt (sorry it took so long, life happened :P)! I hope you´ll like it!!

143: “Just how stupid do you think I am?”

The pulling on the binder proved to be futile. Gritting his teeth, Luke refused to accept this fact and continued tugging at it stubbornly. The only reward he got for his trouble was a sharp, angered comment from his father. “Stop it, Luke. You’re distracting me. And you know I’m not going to open that binder.”

Luke rolled his eyes, silently glad that Vader couldn’t see it from his point of view. “Well, if you hadn’t taken my lightsaber and cuffed me to you, you wouldn’t have this problem! Couldn’t you have done so after we escaped those guys trying to shoot us?”

Vader huffed or at least Luke figured that was what the distorted noise from the vocalizer meant. “If you wouldn’t have gotten yourself into the midst of the worst criminal lowlife there is on this planet, you wouldn’t have the problem of people trying to shoot you.”

“Hey, it´s not my fault they ended up being pirates! They pretended to be interested in working with the Alliance! I didn´t know it was a trap!”

“Had you known, would that have stopped you from coming?”

“Of course.” Luke sulked. Another blaster shot sailed past his ear and he flinched. “Okay, but please, father, can you at least give me back my lightsaber? I can help you deflecting the shots until they give up or until we reach some safer place!”

“Just how stupid do you think I am? You will first use it to free yourself and then against me. I am not giving you your lightsaber and now stay behind me and stay still so I can move!”

“Please open it! Neither of us can move well like this and sooner or later, one of those shots is going to get through your defenses! I promise I won´t try to run if you open it! I promise.”

There was a tense pause as Vader was busy fighting off the blaster shots still coming at them and hopefully also considering his words. Then there was a silent click and the binder around Luke’s right hand came off. “Don’t make me regret this,” Vader growled, the threat clear in his voice.

Luke sent genuine gratefulness along their bond, hoping that Vader would feel some of it even though he shielded himself. “You won’t,” he said. “Now if we move over there…”

All of a sudden, there was the flare of a warning in the force. Twisting his body in the split of a second, Luke moved out of the way of one blaster shot coming from right in front of him- which meant it came from the opposite site as the previous shooting. “They are on the other side, too! They have encircled us!” he shouted alarmed, a useless information since Vader had probably realized it the second he had but saying it out loud was still very necessary from his point of view.

He was too slow and preoccupied with what that meant to fully avoid the second shot. It scratched his arm, leaving behind a burning and blistering wound.

“Luke!” Vader shouted, the entire concentration of the dark sun in the force that was his father turning towards him.

“I’m fine!” Luke replied quickly, holding his wounded arm close to his body and intending to straighten himself again. The words hadn´t even fully left his mouth when the explosion went off.

Luke didn’t see it coming, the warning in the force coming too late, but he got lucky. He was still crouching and the explosion came from Vader’s side and his bulk shielded Luke from most of the blast.

Both his father and he himself got thrown back and to the ground by the strength of the blast but while Vader didn’t manage to get back to his feet immediately, his heavy armour holding him down, Luke did, rolling nimbly, using the momentum of the blast and getting back up in one smooth movement.

For one second, there were no more shots being fired at them as the smoke cleared and the attackers wondered at the fact that they had actually managed to bring Vader down, even if he wasn’t seriously wounded. If he hadn’t been distracted, they wouldn’t have been able to, Luke thought numbly.

His mind went blank as he jumped over to where Vader was lying, his speed strongly enhanced by the force. While he was still suspended in the air he stretched out his arm, reaching for his lightsaber which he saw still hanging from his father’s belt.

The lightsaber soared through the air into his hand and lit up in an intense green the moment his feet touched the ground.

No second too late. Crouching above his father’s fallen body Luke deflected the shots which now came from two sites at the same time. His blade twirled in semicircles too fast for the eye to follow, leaving blinding lines in his sight- which didn’t matter since he trusted the force, not his eyes, to guide his movements.

All of this happened in a couple of seconds but they seemed like an eternity to Luke. Then Vader roared up with a growl of fury, bringing back up his lightsaber.

Without a word or a second glance, Luke turned his back to his father, entrusting him with his life and safety, his father doing the same so that they stood back to back as they reflected the attacks.

The ship filled with stormtroopers from the Executor descending from the sky, guns blazing, completed the chaos.

#I know bombs and hand grenades usually don´t work on Vader but he got distracted okay #His dear son got hurt!#I saw the possibility of writing a scene with Vader and Luke fighting back to back and I TOOK IT #how could I not

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kayfabejake · 5 years

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WWF In Your House: Mind Games 1996 PPV Review

While WCW is running perhaps the greatest wrestling storyline of all time, what is WWF doing? Just kind of spinning their wheels. Mankind and The Undertaker is the only interesting feud going on in the promotion right now in my opinion and Shawn Michaels cannot possibly lose! To be fair, Owen Hart is doing his Slammy Award-winning heel gimmick and I enjoy that, and I love me some Jim Cornette, but aside from those things I don’t see much going into IYH: Mind Games to get me excited.

Date: 9.22.16 / Arena: CoreStates Center - Philadelphia, PA / Attendance: 15000 / Tagline: N/A

Caribbean Strap Match Savio Vega def. Justin Bradshaw in (07:09)

Savio absolutely streaking into the ring and diving in like he’s sliding on ice

Not gonna lie, I don’t really see the point in having this stipulation over a flat out No DQ match and just bringing a belt or a strap in. The four-corners thing is silly to be honest

ECW chants already starting. We love ya Philly!

WAIT A MINUTE, WHO’S THAT IN THE FRONT ROW? TOMMY DREAMER AND THE SANDMAN ATTEMPTING TO JUMP THE BARRICADE?

Vega won, I kinda stopped giving a fuck after the ECW guys showed up to be honest.

My Rating [1*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [1.25*]

Jose Lothario pins Jim Cornette in (00:57)

Lothario comes out to HBK’s music, which I think is fucking hilarious

“Cornette setting an all time record for cholesterol levels!” -JR

Ugh this is such an idiotic dumb match. Nobody wants to SEE THIS GOD

I’m the biggest Cornette stan on earth and even I hate this

Thank god it’s over quickly

My Rating [0*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [-1*]

WWF Tag Team Title Match Owen Hart & The British Bulldog def. Billy Gunn & Bart Gunn “The Smoking Gunns” [c] w/ Sunny in (10:59)

Owen’s hip tosses are so damn crisp, you gotta love them

Absolutely vicious chop block headfirst slide from Owen to Bart Gunn takes out his legs

Bulldog working on Bart’s knees after that

Owen with a beautiful sitdown onto the injured knee into a figure four (I think it’s a figure four)

Bulldog may not be as impressive as Owen but he’s strong as shit and still totally off the sauce--hits a delayed vertical suplex and a kip up

Billy Gunn smashing Bulldog into the steps

Clarence Mason is now out as the Camp Cornette third

Billy Gunn with a flying punch after springboarding off the back of Bart

Bart and Billy hit a sidewinder but Owen breaks up the pin after a Clarence Mason distraction

Bulldog pins Bart while Owen DECKS Bart with a roundhouse kick

My Rating [3.25*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [2.25*]

Mark Henry sub. Jerry “The King” Lawler in (05:13)

“The only reason I watch the Olympics is to see if one synchronized swimmer drowns, do they all have to drown?” One of my fave King lines of all time

They’re putting over how unprepared Henry is so he’s probably going to fuck King up

Just some back and forth bullshit to show how strong Henry is and how big he is, pretty uninteresting

Lawler takes a nasty bump against the railing jesus christ

Henry wails on Lawler with the knees, submits him with a backbreaker

Helmsley and the New Rockers come in to fight Henry and he just fucks them up

Trips still paying for the curtain call I guess lol

My Rating [.25*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [DUD]

Final Curtain Match The Undertaker Goldust in (10:23)

The pop for Taker is ridiculous. That’s never going to change as long as he wrestles, man. What a fucking legend.

The “Final Curtain Match” stipulation means that it’s No DQ, basically. Just a fun name for that.

Goldust’s finesse is ridiculous--that fucking swinging neckbreaker is so smooth

Thunderous vertical suplex from Taker

Taker walking on the ropes is always cool asf

Goldust gives Undertaker a face full of...well, gold dust

Taker is fighting comically blind and punching the air after that lmao

Goldust drawing heat by lookin kinda gay, as he usually does

Loud fucking suplex on Goldust, holy shit

Undertaker being the best pure striker in the WWF, Maggle!

Massive flying clothesline spot in the center of the ring sends Goldust on his ass

Turnaround chokeslam on Goldust from the top turnbuckle

Taker hits a tombstone piledriver and destroys both Goldust and his fucking knees

My Rating [2.5*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [1.5*]

WWF Heavyweight Title Match Shawn Michaels def. Mankind by DQ in (26:25)

In a prematch promo, Shawn Michaels insinuates he’s going to fight Mankind’s mindgames by not having much of a mind himself, which is fucking hilarious

Mankind comes out in a casket with the druids and Paul Bearer. Speaks directly to my goth soul

JR points out how challenging of a champion Mankind would be to market

things we know about Shawn Michaels going into this match

he thinks he’s cute

he knows he’s sexy

he’s got the looks that drive the girls wild

he’s got the moves that really move ‘em

he sends chills up and down their spines

Fast paced right out of the gate with Mankind having the advantage

More ECW chants

Mankind throws Michaels into the barricade

Mankind rips the padding off the concrete but Michaels dropkicks him through it and then stomps on him a bunch of times

Shawn Michaels leaps up to the top and double axe handles Mankind

HBK drops that motherfuckin elbow yasss sexy boy

Brawling in the center of the ring with some hard right hands

MANKIND POSITIONING A TABLE AND MICHAELS LEAPS OVER IT! DEAR LORD

SNAP SUPLEX BY MICHAELS ONTO MANKIND INTO THE FUCKING STEEL STAIRS MAKING LITERALLY THE LOUDEST NOISE I HAVE EVER HEARD THOSE STAIRS MAKE

Michaels continuing to work the knee

A leg drag on Mankind. The absolute torque HBK applies here is insane.

And a figure four locked in on Mankind!

Michaels hits a low dropkick on that knee again!

Incredible psychology here

Mankind stabbing his knee with a pen jesus

Michaels takes a beating in the corner

HBK getting his fucking face bashed in on the canvas

Attacks back with a suplex!

Michaels flips headfirst into the corner off an irish whip and Mankind just goes to town on him as he’s tied up

Fucking rough bump on the stairs, then on the ringpost, from Mankind

MANKIND’S NECK GETS STUCK BETWEEN THE ROPES YET MANAGES TO APPLY THE MANDIBLE CLAW! MY GOD

MICHAELS BRINGS IN A CHAIR ON THE OUTSIDE!

Painful looking joint manipulation from Michaels on Mankind

SHEESH Michaels goes flying over the top ropes and is lying on the ground--and eats a Mankind elbow for his troubles

DDT from Mankind on Michaels for the two count

Mankind throws two chairs into the ring

Michaels gets shoved into the casket but escapes! Flying clothesline! And a kip up! And a top rope crossbody!

MANKIND TAKES HIMSELF AND SHAWN MICHAELS THROUGH THE FUCKING SPANISH ANNOUNCE TABLE DEAR GOD

MANKIND COMING OFF THE TOP ROPE WITH A CHAIR BUT MICHAELS JUMPS UP OFF ANOTHER CHAIR AND HITS THE AERIAL SWEET CHIN MUSIC

VADER JUST FUCKING RUNS IN WHY NO WHY UGHHHHHHHH

Psycho Sid comes in too? What a bullshit finish to an otherwise incredible match.

And somehow Taker was in the casket as well? What the fuck?

You can’t take away that much from what these guys did though, holy fucking shit.

My Rating [4.5*] / Daddy Meltzer’s Rating [4.75*]

Final PPV Grade: C

Dear lord this PPV is such a mixed bag. The Shawn Michaels / Mankind match is fucking incredible and frankly timeless, but there’s a bunch of boring and embarrassing shit on this card as well--and even the well-put together matches aren’t terribly exciting in terms of story. But, y’know, it’s an IYH. Not as disappointing as if one of the big PPVs was this mediocre.

#wwf #iyh #mind games #wrestling #pro wrestling #shawn michaels #mankind

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