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surftrips · 2 years

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who's the guy?

pairing: jj maybank x reader (ft. the pogues!)

summary: the pogues find out y/n is seeing a new guy, and will not stop until they find out who he is.

word count: 846

a/n: just a short fluff piece! <3

"Soooo, what's his name?" Sarah asked, leaning towards you and batting her eyelashes.

"Whose name?" JJ had just joined you and the rest of the Pogues in John B.'s living room.

"Apparently, there is a mystery man in Y/N's life and she won't give him up!" Kie explained.

"Oh, is that so? I hope he knows how to fight," JJ said, looking at you with a glint in his eye.

"Hey! No one is fighting anyone!" you responded, actively trying not to blush at his comment.

"Okay, but we need to know if he's good enough for our Y/N. What does he look like?" Kie pressed you for answers.

You sighed, "He's tall, has blonde hair, he's super smart, like Pope level-"

John B. interrupted you, "You being for real? No one is smarter than Pope."

"If you hadn't interrupted me, you would've heard me say that he is as smart as Pope, I didn't say smarter," you replied matter-of-factly.

Sarah giggled, "Ignore him. What else can you tell us!!"

Honestly, you didn't want to give too much away. As much as you loved the Pogues, you also enjoyed the thrill that came with having a secret relationship. Plus, there was no pressure to make appearances or act a certain way in public. You two could just be yourselves.

However, this conversation was a whole lot of fun, and you and him had figured it was about time to reveal your secret soon anyway.

"Well, let's see..." You tapped your index finger on your chin as you contemplated what to reveal next. "He likes to go surfing and on fishing trips."

"Okay, so literally any other Pogue on the island?" Pope joked.

"Oh, yeah, he's a Pogue if I've ever seen one," you chuckled.

The room was silent for a second while everyone tried to figure out who it was you had been sneaking off to see for the past few weeks.

"Ugh, I don't know," Kie groaned. "You're positive we've met this guy before?"

"Yes. 100%." It took everything in you not to erupt into a fit of laughter right then and there.

"Alright, but on a scale of 1 to 10 how handsome would you say he is?" JJ asked.

John B. nudged his friend in the arm, "JJ, how is that going to help us?"

"Because! I'm clearly a solid 10, and John B., you're like a seven, so we can use that to compare!" JJ barely finished his sentence before JB was throwing his pillow at him.

"Chill, dude! I was joking... kinda!" JJ said in-between the thumps of the pillow hitting his body.

"If you must know, I think he's a ten," you said with a smile, causing John B. to halt his assault on JJ.

Surprisingly, no one caught on to the very obvious hint in front of their faces.

"I seriously can't think of anyone on this island that's a ten," Kie said. You made the mistake of giggling at the thought of her reaction when she would finally find out who it was you were describing.

"What are you laughing at?" she chuckled nervously.

"Oh, nothing. Just how stupid you're gonna feel when I tell you," you answered.

"Are you ever gonna tell us?" Sarah sighed, on the edge of defeat.

"You know what, I don't think I ever will," you said jokingly.

Immediately the room filled with groans and complaints of "Come on!" and "Just say it, we won't judge!" from everyone. Everyone except JJ.

"Dude, you don't wanna know who this guy is?" Pope was asking him.

"I... kinda have a feeling who it is already," he winked at you.

This next hint did not go unnoticed by the rest of the Pogues.

Again, the room erupted with the sounds of your best friends, but this time with confusion and surprise.

"WAIT WHAT??"

"Are you kidding right now?"

"You're sleeping with JJ???"

JJ wrapped his arms around your waist as he came up behind you. "Hey! Watch how you speak about her boyfriend!"

You couldn't help but giggle like a little girl with a crush, because that's exactly how he made you feel.

"You're right, Y/N, I do feel so incredibly stupid right now. It was right in front of our faces this entire time!" Kie exclaimed.

"Yeah- all of those times I 'stayed at home' or left to check on Y/N were just excuses to see each other," JJ explained.

You wish you could've captured the faces of your friends as they reacted to this news. It was priceless.

"Wait- there's one thing I don't get though. Didn't you say he was as smart as Pope....?" John B. asked, both confused and amused.

"Yeah... haha about that... I only said it as a joke to throw y'all off," you admitted.

"What?? So you don't think I'm as smart as Pope?" JJ said to you, acting, or actually offended, you couldn't tell.

"Babe, I said you were a solid ten. I think that should be enough for your ego today."

#jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj x reader #jj maybank imagine #obx #outer banks #obx x reader #obx imagine #rudy pankow #rudy pankow x reader #jj maybank x you

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lilpomelito · 9 months

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“What's wrong with Pop music?”

Eddie stops mid rant and spins around. Steve is sitting upside down on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, his silky hair touching the floor.

“I mean,” Steve continues, his voice a little strained by his position, “if so many people like it, there has to be something good about it, right?”

Eddie shares a look with Jonathan, hoping to find an ally, but the man looks zonked out of his mind. Argyle really brought the good shit with him.

“That's not the point, Stevie,” Eddie explains as he sits down on the floor next to the guy's head. “It's popular because it's the only shit the big corpos are pushing on the radio. It's what everyone listens to, so everyone thinks they have to like it to be liked. To be accepted. And it's not even good music! Where's the artistic merit in cheap studio synthesizers mixed with braindead lyrics like wake me up before you go go?"”

Steve frowns. “Not all popular music is like that. Also what's wrong with wanting to be liked?”

“Do you not like Freddie Mercury?” Robin gasps, lifting her head from Steve's stomach, and she sounds heavily offended.

Eddie blinks for second, confused as to where the conversation has suddenly turned. But Steve nods, apparently following her line of reasoning.

“Yeah, man. Queen is like, the most popular band in history. Do they not have artistic merit?”

“No, of course not, that's not what I–”

“And the government is not conspiring to push pop music, Eddie, we've seen they're too busy experimenting on children and opening portals to a parallel dimension,” Robin says.

“What about Bowie?” Steve says. “You loved Labyrinth. Didn't shut up about it for like a week. He's pop!”

“The point,” Eddie insists, flustered, avoiding to watch directly Steve's upside down smirk, “is forced conformity. Queen are all nerds! Bowie is a huge nerd. Where would they be now if they had played high school football?”

Jonathan nods slowly, but doesn't comment.

“What about astronauts?” Nancy asks, from where she's sitting at Johnathan's feet. “They're nerds, yes, but they also have to be in great physical shape. I bet most of them were athletes in school.”

“Yeah, totally!” Steve nods. “Remember Casey Johnson? He was captain of the basketball team when I was a freshman. He was valedictorian, and I think he went to Standford on a sports scholarship!”

“Yeah, I remember him,” Robin says, rolling her eyes. “One of my friends had a huuuuge crush on him.”

Steve's cheeks go red. He incorporates himself, despite Robin's protests, and sits on the couch like a normal person.

“Whatever. He was a nerd and an athlete. What's conformist about that?”

Eddie stares at him, narrowing his eyes. “Nothing, I guess. Or everything. He succeeded at academia, which was designed to shape kids into exploitable workers under capitalism—”

Jonathan groans behind him.

“—and made captain in a sport that's basically throwing balls into laundry baskets and calling it strategy. Praising people for that to the point where schools are giving scholarships is a little too much.”

“You try it, then, man,” Argyle calls from where he's laying on the rug, star shape style. “I bet you ten bucks you can't win at throwing laundry into baskets against Steve. Or my boy Lucas.”

Robin laughs maniacally. “Oh, I want to see that! Steve please destroy him, his ego needs a little humbling.”

The conversation moves on after that, since everybody looks like they're already over Eddie's rant. He doesn't mind, really. It's fun to ramp up the dramatic indignation against The Man, or whatever. It always causes a reaction, and even people who agree with him somewhat eventually hit a limit. Eddie likes to stick his finger and find that limit.

But not Steve. He's looking at Eddie like he's fascinating.

“You're a hypocrite.”

Eddie falters, biting down a smirk. “How come?”

Steve scoots a little closer. “You want to be a rockstar. You don't just want to live off making music. You want to be famous. You want people to like you.”

Eddie stares at him for a second, frozen in place.

“That's not—”

But Steve smiles, gentle. “That's alright. We all do. And you want to know a secret about being popular?”

Eddie can't resist. For all he protests about popularity and conformity and being so normal everybody likes you, he does wonder what it feels like to be on the other side. So he nods.

Steve smiles sadly. “It doesn't actually change anything. You think it means more people like you, but it just means more people are aware of you. What you do, what you say. Who are your friends, who you date. Where you go, when you go there. And at some point you feel like you can't escape it. And yeah, you do start to conform to the norm. Not because you think it's what's best but because you're so aware of people's opinions of you that you always choose the path of least resistance.”

Eddie... has never considered that. He moves a little closer to Steve as his voice goes quiet.

“You think it was fun to run into a random suburban mom in the grocery store and have her be furious at me because I was dating Susan Davis? Who apparently was her daughter's cousin, and she had a crush on me, and was planning on asking me to prom? How on earth was I supposed to know that? And she was double mad that I didn't even know who her daughter was. Like there's two hundred kids in Hawkins High. I can't know everyone!”

Eddie tries not to laugh, because Steve seems upset by this, but the situation is kind of ridiculous.

“And I think they got into their heads that because they knew of me I was supposed to also know them. But they didn't actually know me. I made prom King, people were mad. I was captain of the basketball team, people were mad. I then turned down being captain of the swim team and was just co-captain, people were still mad. I took a job, and people made fun of me. I lost that job because the mall caught on fire, people also made fun of me. I took another job, and people say I'm "wasting my potential", whatever that means. I don't know man. I think you can never win with people.”

Eddie grabs Steve's hand, touching softly his palm. It seems to work, and Steve relaxes a tiny bit under his touch.

What Steve said sounded exactly like what Eddie was talking about: the pressure to be what society wants, not what you want. He can tell it's a touchy subject for Steve, who has been under the crushing spotlight of being a relatively small town's golden boy.

So Eddie doesn't push any further.

“You got me there, though,” he says.

Steve smiles again. “Yeah?”

“Yeap,” Eddie nods. “I do want to be a famous rockstar. I do want to be known and liked and admired. I've never had that. But I guess you're right. We can't have it both ways.”

Robin, who up to that point had been discussing with Argyle the difference between an oboe and a clarinet, jumps in. “It's the horrifying ordeal of being known.”

Steve laughs. Eddie can't help it, his laugh is too contagious. He can't understand how people in this hellscape of a town ever looked at this boy and thought "he's not enough." With him? He gets it. Eddie's list of failures is a mile long. But Stevie? Sunshine incarnate, puppy-eyed, bitchy beautiful and smart Steve Harrington? There's nothing to complain about.

#steddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #stranger things #robin buckley #nancy wheeler #Jonathan byers #argyle #the fruity four #my fics #mine

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itsclydebitches · 1 year

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We've all rightly been gushing over Trent listening in on the parent-teacher conference and there are a lot of cool interpretations for why he'd eavesdrop: a crush on Ted, a tendency towards gossip (as seen in "International Break"), the fact that you just can't take the journalism out of the boy, Trent is clearly picking up personal tidbits for the book if the group's initial "Don't print that" worries are any indication, etc. So yeah, it's clear why he'd want/be okay with the door staying open.

Meanwhile, I'm slightly feral over Ted letting the door stay open and what that conveys to Trent.

Based on what we've picked up about his personal life and the direction of this season, we have good reason to believe that Trent was a deeply isolated man prior to Ted arriving. His job makes enemies simply by virtue of the profession itself, especially when you "bring the heat" as hard as he did. Roy flipping the press off at the gala in Season 1 and Nate sneaking out at dark this last episode shows us how journalists are treated on the regular: ignored, dismissed, told to "fuck off" as a matter of course. That's often well deserved, as Roy's two personal stories (Trent's article about him + the response to Isaac's attack) attest, but the end result is still a profession that alienates you from anyone other than your peers. When you're a "colossal prick" in your articles, people hate you all the more.

So Trent at least has other journalist buddies, yeah? Well, not that we've seen. I always think back to that chorus of "--The Independent" in the press room when everyone knew what Trent was going to say and how it... wasn't entirely fun ribbing. I think there's a fair bit of mockery there. Even if others disagree, I doubt that was received well by someone who wears their professionalism as an armor, who takes off his glasses as soon as they're complimented, who was, notably, closeted into his 40s. Trent is a man who is deeply aware of how others perceive him (pointing out his "vibe" feels quite calculated now: highlight what you want people to notice rather than waiting for them to find something on their own) and he is likely to read the worst of most interactions. Cue his shocked, "You really mean that, don't you?" when faced with someone like Ted who is not only genuinely nice, but blunt about it in a way that Trent can't misunderstand, or brush off via denial.

What's his home life like? Married to a woman when he's gay and that's putting a serious strain on them both. He tries to come out and isn't believed. The only other family members we know about are a toddler (who, while lovely I'm sure, can't provide Trent with the kind of emotional support an adult needs) and a father who, if we read the series through Lance's headcanons, may not have been very supportive of his son. Who else does Trent know? Uhhh... other subjects who hate him? Owners like Rebecca who want to use him? A random, potential date that he felt so little for he ditched to get a quote?

(EDIT: I can't believe I forgot to mention the strong implications that Ted was bullied in childhood/as a teenager, based on how he reacts to the whole of the club ignoring him -- resigned but unsurprised -- his reaction to Roy telling him to fuck off after he tries to mend that relationship -- disappointedly awkward "I can't believe I even tried that. What was I thinking?" -- and his body language during the locker room scene -- jumping, furtive glances towards Ted, backed up against the shower stall because shit, he's been in this situation before.

So uh, yeah. Trent may not have had a lot of friends growing up either! That was not the response of a social butterfly, but rather someone who is already very used to being ignored/dismissed/cursed out/threatened, not just within his profession, but within the school-like atmosphere of Richmond's family too.)

I'm by no means reinventing the meta wheel here, but Trent has truly undergone a STAGGERING transformation in Season 3 and the result of that is the reframing of his Season 1 and 2 scenes as, frankly, more depressing than they originally seemed. Seeing him now smiling, singing, gossiping, dressing just in t-shirts, casually snacking, making jokes, letting go enough to be a complete, hyperactive "dork" in front of others... it just hammers home how deeply unhappy Trent was before. How closed off. How closeted--in more ways than one.

So what must it mean to someone like Trent for Ted to leave the door open?

It's not just an open invitation towards community--sit near me, listen in, quietly participate, there's literally no barrier between us--but a staggeringly personal one too. I don't care if a 10-ish year old failing science is inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, the fact remains that letting anyone hear a parent-teacher conference with your ex is a hell of a show of trust. That would mean a lot to Trent in general, this acknowledgement that someone trusts the ex-prick journalist with that amount of personal information, but Ted in particular? Oh boy. Ted is the one Trent betrayed with that article! And yeah, Ted forgave him the instant he learned of it, but Trent himself was obviously feeling a lot of guilt, hence him burning his source and orchestrating a firing. Toss in the fact that Ted, despite being a VERY open man on the regular (I still laugh at his "I don't mind" to Rebecca when over-sharing about Michelle) has in fact denied Trent information in the past. No, I won't tell you that was a panic attack. Yes, I will continue the lie that it was food poisoning. Perhaps for Ted it was less about Trent knowing and more about anyone getting at the truth, but at the end of the day it amounts to the same: there was a time when Ted did not fully trust him and Trent justified that fear by writing the very article Ted was looking to avoid, even if Trent approached that situation with as much grace as he could.

So this moment, beyond the humor, just makes my brain go !!!!!! for Trent. Ted Lasso, of all people, has left the door open for Trent Crimm, also of all people, to hear the messy details of his, Henry, and Michelle's life. He is not at all afraid that this information will be spun in a bad light--Local Gaffer's Son Suffers While Father Plays at Coach Across the Pond--despite the fact that Trent is actively writing a book about him. Trent himself is so unguarded in this moment, dressed only in a t-shirt, playing around with his orange, making little quips. The Trent of Season 1 would NEVER. I mean, I think we see small glimpses of the real Trent back then, especially when Ted amuses him enough to coax his guard down for half a second (Trent's reaction to “Make like Dunst and Union and bring it on, baby!" comes to mind. That's a gesture we're seeing a lot now that he's comfortable around the club), but on the whole he was still so, so, so isolated. No one knew the real him: gay, funny, dorky, inquisitive, longing for companionship and using the artificial 'closeness' of journalism to cover that ache up.

Now? Trent is fully a part of the Richmond community and he knows he's a part of it because everyone--Ted, Beard, Roy, Colin, Rebecca--are going out of their way to tell him that, notably in very overt ways. Trent strikes me as someone who wouldn't fully believe it when he's told someone enjoys his company; the kind of wounded, anxiety-prone person who, if casually invited to participate, would assume they're just being polite and he'd actually be an annoyance to them. Trent needs overt, obvious, beat-you-over-the-head-with-it reassurance, which is why Ted is so very good for him because Ted is composed of THE most over-the-top positivity you've ever seen. (Compare that need of Trent's to Michelle thinking that Ted is too much...) When faced with a defensive journalist Ted says explicitly that he liked spending time with Trent. When faced with a still unsure writer who thinks of himself only as an observer--never a part of the team himself--Ted literally begs with monkey noises to hear Trent's opinions. He's blunt to the point of absurdity and someone like Trent who has likely spent the majority of his life hiding/being told that his true self is inadequate needs that level of constant, neon-light reassurance.

So Ted leaves the door open to a personal conversation, refusing to literally bar Trent from his life. The best part? Colin re-opens the door because he understands Trent and he knows his coach; of course Ted wants him included. Colin asks permission to CLOSE the door, not open it, and Trent is seeing this openness again and again over the course of several months, with each episode bringing him further out of his shell as he slowly unlearns that self-doubt. Yes, please stay, please tell us what you think, please offer your advice, please join our Diamond Dogs, please ask us questions (they're no longer perceived as a threat), please become an integral part of our lives. We trust you and we like you and we want you here.

Everyone's waiting for Trent to catch the door again because, you know, the rule of three, but what if he doesn't need to? What if he's past slipping a hand or a foot through the crack and scraping by on what that gets him? He caught the door before it could close to get closer to Colin. He caught the door before it could close to get closer to Ted. Now they've both kept the door open for him, his presence welcomed from the get-go.

Trent doesn't need to sprint for that opening anymore.

#Ted Lasso #Trent Crimm #Tedependent #ted x trent #mymetas

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junipers-archive · 1 year

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*ੈ✩‧₊˚✧VALENTINES DAY CONFESSIONS

❥ James!potter x reader (You've had a crush on James for months now, he finally gets the nerve to ask you to be his Valentine, only to find you were on your way to ask him.) Word Count: 700

"Jus' don't know if she'll like it!" James was in the common room discussing his singular girl problem with his friends. "I mean we've been friends for a while, but I still don't even know if she likes me!"

Sirius who was languidly laying across one of the armchairs nearby rolled his eyes as he answered, "Your delusional if you don't see it."

"He's right James, she really does like you, laughs at every one of your bad jokes enough." even Remus had enough of his jabbering, most of their conversations almost always ended up with James bringing up your name.

He was blushing at even the mention of you liking him back, "What if she already has a Valentines though? What if she doesn't really like me? What if-"

"Give her the Valentine!" It was Pete, laying on the ground in a star-fished position, he'd almost drifted off into a sweet sleep before he was woken once more by James' worried voice.

He got up from the couch he'd been stationed at, quickly and quite bravely if he said so himself heading for the door. "Fine. But if I get my heart broken you will all be very sorry!"

As he left they all let out a collective sigh, they'd been attempting to convince him all week, maybe, just maybe if they could finally get you two together, they'd get some peace and quiet.

When James gets to you he's panting, having ran down several flights of moving stairs to reach you. You had come to the library to return some of the books you'd borrowed to study, he knew this since he was the one who offered to help you, just so he could spend more time with you.

"Y/n!" He tried to look casual, all the same hiding the gift behind his back as he approached your figure.

"Oh, hey Jamie!" you eyes were bright and your heart fluttered at his flushed cheeks.

"Have you got any plans for the day?" He was hoping your answer was no, so he could take you on a proper date, something you deserved.

"M'no don't think so, why?"

"W-well I was just hoping, since you're free, and its Valentines day..." your heart beat faster as he continued, you'd waited months for him to realize you liked him back.

"Well maybe you could, or rather we could, w-would you be valentine?" He swears you're the only to ever make him this nervous.

When he see's your pleased expression however he gets a surge of confidence taking out your gift and handing it to you, a beautiful bouquet of your favorite flowers accompanied by a small box of chocolates.

"Yes!" Your reply comes far too quickly, but you couldn't care less, taking out the small card and chocolate box you'd gotten him from your bag.

You shove it towards him as he gapes at you, "I-What-What is this?"

"Well, you were taking far too long, I mean I went to every one of your quidittch matches, pretended I needed help studying so you'd offer, laughed at every single joke of yours, godric I even went to your friends for help!"

"I never thought you'd like me!" He was bright red, how had he not seen it this entire time?

"Jamie I laugh at every single one of your jokes." You were exasperated, how had you fallen for such a sweet oblivious boy?

"Is that supposed to be an insult? Cause if I'm being honest it sounded-"

You stop his jabbering, placing the gifts on the table nearby and pressing your soft lips to his. Your heart melts as his hand comes to caress your cheek as if you're the most delicate flower in the world.

Because to him, you were.

When you pull back you're both grinning so hard your faces hurt.

"S'not and insult, just a fact." And it was, you would laugh at everyone of his jokes, no matter how ludicrous or ridiculous they were, you found him funny. And charming, and kind, and beautiful, and perfect, perfect for you.

"Well then, my Valentine, shall we begin our date?" He held out his arm as you smiled sheepishly at his name-calling.

"We shall."

#james potter #james potter x reader #james potter imagine #james potter scenario #james potter oneshot #james potter one shot #james potter one-shot #james potter headcanon #james potter headcanons #james potter hc #james potter hcs #james potter fanfiction #james potter fanfic #james potter fic #james potter blurb #james potter drabble #james potter dialogue #james potter fluff #james potter x reader fanfiction

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before-it-felt-like-a-sin · 3 months

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Ok, how about Natalie X reader, the scene where they find the lake, but reader is too self conscious to strip down in front of everyone and go for a swim?

Pretty Girls

Anon this is a lovely request but imma be so Fr I can't remember the exact dialogue so enjoy my bullshit <3

Warnings: insecure reader, mentions of body image issues, no smut but a bit of a heated make out, not proofread and also written on my phone <3

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"I found a lake," Taissa announced as she returned from her hike,"It's about four miles from here. We should hike it."

"We aren't leaving. What if the rescue team comes?" Jackie responded, clearly annoyed.

"I hate to break it to you, but it's been three days. They aren't coming, and we're running out of water. We need to head to the lake." Taissa's voice was firm.

Secretly, you agreed with Tai, but you weren't going to get in the middle of this argument. The last thing you needed was Jackie pissed at you. There was enough division as it was.

"We should put it to a vote," Jackie announced. So much for no more division, "All for staying here, raise your hands."

Three people agreed. Jackie, Lottie, and Laura Lee all raised their hands.

"Okay, all for heading to the lake?" Taissa asked now, and nearly all of the group put up their hands. Even Shauna, which was shocking. Who knew she'd go against Jackie like that.

"Looks like we're heading to the lake. Get your shit." Wit that, everyone began packing up any belongings not already in their suitcases.

About twenty minutes later, you all were ready to start your hike. You fell into step beside Lottie as you walked.

"Hey. I know you didn't want to do this," you said.

"Honestly, I was more worried about Jackie's reaction than actually leaving the plane." Lottie smiled at you. You laughed lightly in response.

The two of you walked in silence for a while, listening to everyone chatter on and on. A few girls had started complaining, and you heard Jackie say something about how Tai must have been wrong about the distance from the crash site.

That's when Van saw the lake.

"Hell yeah bitches!" She exclaimed, jumping up and down. Soon, everyone was racing down to the water, stripping off tee shirts and shorts. You hung back, not entirely wanting everyone to see your bare stomach.

"You don't want to swim?" Natalie spoke softly into your ear. You jumped at the unexpected closeness. The two of you hadn't really had time to spend together since the crash.

Your relationship to Natalie was a complicated one. You had began hanging out with her because Van and Tai had started spending more time with each other, leaving the two of you with each other. You'd had a crush on Natalie for a while, and you enjoyed spending time with her. Recently, though, she'd begun to flirt with you. Nothing major, just jokes about how pretty you were, or messing with your hair, or good-natured teasing about your interests. You weren't entirely clear on where you stood.

"Just not totally sure how I feel about stripping in front of everyone." You laughed as you spoke, as if trying to convince both Natalie and yourself that it really was a joke. Even if you knew it wasn't.

"You afraid they'll stare?" She teased.

"Yeah, actually. Just not for the reason you think." You giggled again, but it was harder to be convincing this time.

"Hey, if you're set on not swimming, that's fine. But no one is going to judge you for the way you look. I think we've moved past that point."

"Yeah, well, the rest of you have been changing in front of each other for ages. This kind of thing is new to me."

"Whatever you say, gorgeous. I'm swimming. You should too. I know I wouldn't judge you." She smirked at you in a way that made heat rise to your cheeks.

"Mm. And you've also never seen me naked, so I don't think you can say that yet."

"Okay, y/n." With that, she walked to the edge of the lake, stripping her shirt and pants as she walked across the pebbles.

You didn't stare. You in fact made a point not to stare. But it seemed that as soon as you looked up at her, she moved her head to catch you looking. She smiled at you, and nodded her head toward the lake.

As you looked back at her, you rolled your eyes and shook your head. There was no way you were getting in that water. The whole team didn't need to see your stomach and stretch marks.

Well... maybe you'd take off your shirt. You had a sports bra on. That was full coverage enough, right? Plus, your jeans had a high waist on them. Not much would be on display.

Cautiously, you peeled off your t-shirt, hoping no one would notice. Or care. As you shook your hair free from the confines of the fabric, you felt eyes on you.

In the middle of the lake, you caught Natalie staring at you this time. When she saw that you caught her, she averted her eyes. But something about her eyes on you made you feel good.

Not good enough to take your pants off, but you'd take what you could get.

You balled up your shirt and put it down on the rocky beach so you'd be able to lie down. If nothing else, you were going to enjoy the sun. Maybe not in the same way as everyone else, but you were going to enjoy it.

You lay in the sun for a bit, letting it warm you and only worrying a little bit about the sun damage that was occurring to you. You survived a damn place crash. Cancer seemed so irrelevant now.

It was nice, you thought, that even after what had happened, you were all able to have fun like this.

"Y/n! Get your ass in here!" Van called.

"No!" You yelled back, laughing.

"Lame ass," she responded.

"That's me." With that, you went back to your sunbathing and daydreaming. The only thing that would make this better would be-

"What the fuck!" You exclaimed, dripping water. Somehow, someone had managed to dump a whole bucket of water on you.

You looked up to see it was Van and Taissa. You'd expected Van, but Tai was a low blow. Although, best friends would do that kind of shit to you.

"Taissa Turner I swear to god. I could kill you right now." Your hair was soaked, your mascara was running, and your pants... well, wet jeans aren't ever the move.

"Now you have to swim," Van said, clearly not sensing your anger.

"No, now I have to fucking change out of one of the few pieces of clothing that's actually clean. Thanks for that."

"Whoa, sorry. We didn't think you'd be upset about it. We just wanted you to have fun." Taissa looked at you apologetically. You found yourself forgiving them almost immediately. They were just trying to get you to have fun. There hadn't been much of that lately.

"Still a little pissed at you. But it's fine. I'll just change." You started getting up to find your suitcase.

"Or... hear us out... you come swim with us. It'll be fun." Van looked at you expectantly, hoping you'd say yes.

Maybe...

No. You couldn't. What if they stared at you. What if Natalie stared at you. What if she saw you in your underwear and decided she was done flirting with you.

"Y/n, come on. We all know each other here. No need to be a prude," Van teased.

"Oh, well in that case." You rolled your eyes.

"You know you want to." Taissa poked your shoulder. And she was right. You did want to swim. You just didn't want to swim in front of everyone.

But it would feel so nice. And you'd be able to wash away some of the dirt and sweat from the last few days. Maybe you'd feel less... disgusting.

"Fine." You began to peel off your wet jeans.

Deep breaths, you thought, as the warm spring air hit your thighs. No one was looking at you. Right? Well, except Taissa and Van. But they'd seen you change before. You surveyed the rest of the team. No one was looking at you. Except-

Natalie.

Goddammit.

She just kept staring as you stripped down to your underwear. Luckily for you, you were wearing something full coverage.

The way she was looking at you was almost hungry, like she was drinking in your entire body. Nothing would take her eyes off you.

This was it. This was when she decided all the flirting was over. She didn't like the way you looked under the sweaters and baggy pants. She-

Was walking towards you. Out of the water. Away from everyone else.

"Tai-" you started, before you realized that she and Van had walked away. Shit. Shit shit shit.

Without thinking, you started walking towards the lake. The sooner you were submerged, the better. And you really didn't want to talk to Natalie when you were this exposed.

As you passed Natalie, you wrapped your hand around her wrist and drug her along with you.

"Come on. We're swimming. You can't get out as soon as I decide to get in." She doesn't resist as you pull her behind you, back into the lake.

"Whatever you say. I'm glad you decided to get in."

"Well, Taissa thought it was a good idea to dump water all over me. I would've had to change in front of everyone anyways. Might as well suck it up and get into the water while I'm at it."

"I told you no one would stare." She smirked and pushed the water toward you, splashing you a bit.

"Mm. Someone was staring," you responded, trying to get her to tell you why she had looked at you the way she did.

"Who?" She asked. You couldn't tell if she really didn't know who you were talking about, or if she was feigning innocence.

"Um. You?" You replied, looking at her with a quizzical look on your face.

"That was because I wanted to see if you were really going to swim. Not to judge you."

"Oh, yeah, sure. Whatever you say."

"Did you want me to be judging you? Because I wouldn't do that. To anyone. But especially you. You're like, really pretty or whatever."

"Really pretty or whatever? Such a romantic, Scatorccio." With as much force as you can, you splash her.

After she recovers from the shock of the water being splashed in her face, she looks at you with a challenge.

"No Nat please I didn't-"

Before you could finish your sentence, finish apologizing, she shoved you under the surface of the lake. You didn't have time to do much, except inhale right before she pushed you down.

When you resurfaced, the first thing you heard was her laughter.

"Wow. That was a bit excessive," you said, once you had caught your breath. She was still giggling.

"Had to retaliate somehow." She shrugged, but she did look slightly apologetic.

"Asshole."

"It's how I show my love."

"Awww, you love me?" You mocked.

"Oh, fuck off."

You just laughed at her.

She was doing it again. Staring at you. Subconsciously, you tried to cover yourself up with your arms. It didn't really have the desired effect.

"You're gorgeous," she said, eyes still on you.

"You don't have to say that." You tried to be nonchalant, but you felt your cheeks heating up.

"I'm not just saying that." She moved closer to you. When she reached you, she gently moved your arms out of the way of your body, leaving you more exposed than you'd like.

She looked at you straight in the eyes. Something about it made your knees weak. There was so much love in her face. She was looking at you like you were the only girl in the world.

"I want to kiss you so bad," she whispered in your ear. You shivered at the closeness.

"Maybe not in front of everyone," you whispered back.

"Embarrassed of me?" She joked.

"No," you laughed, "I just hate PDA"

"I have an idea then." She beckoned for you to follow her out of the lake.

You walked behind her as she led you across the beach. The only person that seemed to notice you was Taissa, and she just smiled as you passed.

Natalie continued to lead you to the edge of the woods, in a place just secluded enough. You could still hear everyone, but they wouldn't be able to see you.

Before you knew it, you were pressed up against a tree, the bark scratching your bare back.

"Can I kiss you?" Natalie asked, brushing your hair out of your eyes.

You nodded, and as soon as she got your consent, her mouth was on yours. Her lips were slightly chapped, and you appreciated the roughness of them. But her movements were soft.

Her hands rested on your hips, and her fingers were cold. Her lips felt too good on yours for you to care. You tangled your fingers into her damp hair, pulling her closer.

She pulled away for a moment to whisper to you.

"Do you believe me about you being gorgeous now?" She asked, looking at you with her pupils blown out and lips puffy from kissing.

You laughed, "I guess."

Seemingly satisfied with your response, she went back to kissing you. But now, she was kissing any inch of skin available to her. Your forehead. Your jawline. Your ear. Your neck. She didn't go any lower than that, which you appreciated. You weren't sure how ready you were for anything more. Especially in the woods.

"Y/n? Natalie?" You heard Tai's voice from a distance. "Lottie saw something. We're going to go see what it is. Come back, please."

With that, Natalie looked at you again, eyes full of hunger and want.

"Do this again later?"

#yellowjackets #yellowjackets showtime #yellowjackets season 1 #natalie scatorccio #natalie yellowjackets #natalie scatorccio x reader #natalie scatorccio x curvy! reader #natalie scatorccio x fem reader #natalie scatorccio x you #natalie scatorccio x y/n #natalie scatorccio headcanons #teen natalie scatorccio #teen natalie #natalie Scatorccio x insecure reader

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munson-blurbs · 1 year

Note

Hello my darling sister wife! How about a little angst where reader meets Eddie and he’s all touchy and affectionate with her and she thinks he likes her back, but then she realizes he’s that way with everybody! Up to you if it’s a happy ending or not 🥰 - @corroded-hellfire

Went with angst to fluff because apparently I have an aversion to leaving things angsty :/

Warnings: some language

WC: 1.1k

"So this is the crew!" your co-worker, Robin, makes a sweeping motion with her arm. "You already know Vickie and Dingus, of course; and this is Nancy, Jonathan, and Eddie. Everyone, this is Y/N!"

Nancy and Jonathan give shy waves, with the girl throwing in an obligatory, "Robin's told us so much about you!" You smile back at them.

Eddie, on the other hand, throws a tattooed arm around your shoulders and brings you in for a bear hug. "Welcome to our weird little family," he says with a laugh. "We've been expecting you!"

You get butterflies at his touch; it doesn't help that his deep brown eyes are the loveliest you've ever seen and his smile could light up a room. His hands leave your body too quickly for your liking, and you try to hide your disappointment as he picks Robin up and swings her around.

It seems that Eddie's a touchy-feely kind of guy with all of his friends: bumping chests with Steve when they win the coin toss for movie choice, tossing a piece of popcorn in Vickie's mouth from across the room and high-fiving her when she catches it, and laying himself across Nancy and Jonathan's laps with and teasing, "don't make any Byers babies tonight, you two!"

It’s embarrassing how much you want him to flirt with you, how much you crave his attention. While he’s bothering Jonathan and Nancy, you take the opportunity to plop onto his chair, pretending like you don’t notice his jaw drop in mock-offense.

"Hey!" he calls out, rolling off of the annoyed couple and marching over to you. "Get up, you little seat stealer." He grins as you stick your tongue out at him defiantly.

"Finder's keepers," you tell him, snuggling deeper into the La-Z-Boy, your legs dangling from the armrest.

"Oh, that's how it's gonna be?" Eddie leans over and slips his arms underneath you, scooping you up from the chair. A heat creeps through you as one hand wraps around your torso, the other around your thighs. You expect him to place you back on the ground; instead, he seats you on his legs. "Here, we'll share," he compromises. The rest of the group seems unfazed by this display of affection, further confirming your suspicions that this is simply par for the course with him.

When the movie ends, everyone stays where they are. You're certainly not complaining.

"God, that Alex woman was crazy!" Eddie groans. "How could he not see that from the start?"

Steve laughs. "Please, Munson," he jokes, "if that was Chrissy, you wouldn't notice, either."

You wrinkle your nose at the mention of the girl's name. "Chrissy?" you ask, your mouth suddenly feeling dry. "Is that your girlfriend?"

"He wishes," Robin snorts. "She was his crush all throughout high school, always lusting after her and her pom-poms." She waggles her eyebrows at the double entendre.

She was a cheerleader, you think woefully. Probably had a perfect body, perfect hair, perfect...everything. You shift slightly so that you're looking at him. "You never asked her out?"

"Nah," Eddie shakes his head sadly. "Almost asked her to prom, but then I chickened out."

"Plus, Jason would've kicked your ass," Nancy adds, and Eddie flips her off playfully.

"Fair point," Eddie mutters. "'Scuse me, sweetheart," he says to you, and you smile at the pet name, "gotta take a smoke break." Jonathan stands up to join him.

Once they leave, you work up the courage to ask your friends the question that's been on your mind all evening. "So, um, what's his deal?"

"Eddie?" Nancy says. "What do you mean?"

"Like, we just met and he's already sharing seats with me and calling me sweetheart," you explain, chewing on your bottom lip anxiously.

Steve laughs. "I swear, that guy flirts and doesn't even realize what he's doing." He doesn't say it to be mean, but it still stings, like there's a reason Eddie shouldn't be flirting with you.

Vickie notices you wince at Steve's comment. "If you're interested, we can totally do some snooping," she jumps in. "I think you'd be cute together, actually."

You shake your head. "No, it's okay," you mumble. The last thing you need is a blow to your ego when he inevitably replies, "Yeah, she seems nice, but she's not my type."

"I'm gonna head home," you tell them with a sad smile. "It's been a long day." It truly has been; you'd worked a double shift at Family Video before coming over to Steve's place for movie night. You hug everyone goodbye as you grab your bag and walk towards your car.

You pass by Jonathan and Eddie sitting on the steps, deep in conversation as they take drags from their cigarettes.

"Whoa, hey," Eddie says softly as you scoot by. "Where y'running off to, sweetheart?" There's that nickname again; you pray he can't tell that you're blushing.

"Wha-oh. 'M just tired; gonna go back home." You're suddenly too shy to look at his face. Your brazen move of taking his seat seems foolish now that you know he wasn't actually flirting.

Eddie stands up and fixes his jacket. "Aw, okay," he pouts. He glances down at Jonathan, who gives him a small nod and stubs out his cigarette before going inside.

"It was nice to meet you," you tell him, desperate to make your escape, but he gently grabs your wrist before you can run off.

"Hey, um," he stammers, "do you like pizza?"

You almost burst out laughing at the question. "Yeah, who doesn't?"

"People without tastebuds, I guess," he looks at you through his long eyelashes. "Would you maybe wanna get some with me? Some pizza, I mean? Like, tomorrow or something?"

"Like a date?" you ask, hoping you don't sound too earnest.

"Y-yeah," he nods. "If that's okay with you. If not, we can hang out as friends. Just wanna get to know the girl who dared to de-throne Eddie the Banished." His bravado creeps back in with the last statement, making you giggle.

"A date sounds great," you answer with a big smile, and you see his shoulders relax. "Pick me up at 6?"

"6 is perfect," Eddie replies, and you give him your address. "See you then, sweetheart." He leans over, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek before re-joining his friends.

And though you're already halfway to your car, you can hear a loud chorus of cheers when he announces that he's scored a date with you.

#eddie munson #eddie stranger things #eddie munson fluff #eddie x reader #eddie x you #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson angst #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x f!reader #eddie munson x female reader #eddie x y/n #eddie munson fanfic #stranger things fanfic #fanfic #eddie munson stranger things #stranger things #requests

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hearts4youz · 5 months

Text

The Captains Daughter- Chapter 14

A/N: UGHHHHHH long wait again, im sorry!! just been so busy. I hope to get to publishing faster soon. this one is half assed. im not proud of it at all :( Enjoy chapter 14 yalls!!!

Taglist: @abbiesxox @n30n-j3lly @weird-katthing @kayoyamamegame @kroowonderemporium @astro-ghoul99

Word count: 800

Ghost pov:

Somehow, even deep inside the woods, covered in mud and grime, exhausted and sweaty, Y/N is still the most beautiful woman i've ever seen. Her face when she gets frustrated when we make a wrong turn is so adorable, I think i'm smitten.

There's no denying it at this point, i'm way too far down the rabbit hole.

I've recovered now after being sick last week. Y/N sure helped a lot. I think it was her presence that seemed to magically cure me. I can't stop picturing the hour we spent together, us talking, her taking care of me. It was just so domestic, so far from the violence and horror of the military. I've never pictured myself involved in anything besides the SAS, let alone romance.

Fucking hell, this girl has me wrapped around her finger.

And she doesn't even know it.

Because i'm a cold, composed soldier.

Romance and feelings have no place in my heart.

Well... maybe just for Y/N they do.

My thoughts are shaken by Price giving orders.

"A pilot just radioed, there's enemy choppers on his radar, it's not safe for us all to stick together. Gaz, Ghost, and I will walk east. Soap and Y/N to the north. Keep your eyes peeled for combatants in the area. Remember the goal, find the store of hidden weapons."

A chorus of 'copies' and 'affirmatives' ring through the air. Everyone is calm, but I feel distressed.

Y/N and I are in opposite groups.

How will I protect her?

What if something happens to her?

She'll be with Soap... she should be fine, right?

She'll be with soap.

Alone. Just him and her. In the woods. On a mission.

Jealousy corrupts my mind.

She's not into him... is she?

I take a breath, thankful once again for the mask to hide my pissed expression as our groups spread apart. I resist taking one last glance at Y/N as she walks in the other direction with Soap. I still have to maintain my reserved image. No one can know about this little... crush.

The word makes me feel the need to wash my mouth out.

Crush

It just sounds so unlike me, so soft and boyish. I am a soldier, a big, tough killing machine.

"What's on your mind, Ghost?" Gaz quizzes.

"Ah...um...nothing," I lie.

"Bullshit, you took a day off last week for the first time EVER, and you've been way quieter than normal ever since."

"M' just recovering, bad flu I guess" I say sheepishly.

Gaz sighs. "The Simon Riley I know doesn't take time for recovery, unless hes been SHOT" Gaz rebuttles.

I stay silent.

"I think you've got Y/N on the brain," Gaz says quieter, so the captain wouldn't here us discussing my crush on his daughter.

"What the hell Gaz, that's ludicrous," I try to defend myself.

Gaz continues to talk about my supposed crush on Y/N, I do all I can to deny it, until finally, I give in.

"Okay! Okay! yeah, fine. I'm interested in her." I say quiet enough to not capture the attention of Price, who walks ahead, blissfully unaware of the fact that we are discussing his myself as a possible love interest for his daughter.

Gaz smirks "We all know, by the way."

"Everyone!? even price?"

"Oh hell no, not price. He'd skin you alive."

"I don't blame him, i'm older than Y/N, I look kinda... edgy. I'm not the guy you want around your daughter."

"Hey, maybe he'll come around. He knows you already, you're a protector, a provider. I think that's exactly the kind of guy you want your daughter to date," Gaz tries to reassure me.

"Eh... maybe your right"

"You've just got to ask her out first."

Fuck.

I forgot about that.

*TIMESKIP*

Hours later, we continue to trudge through the woods. Our radios begin to crackle.

Soap's voice comes through the communication device.

"Weapons secured. Send your coordinates, we've radioed for an exfil."

The three of us sigh in relief.

"Alright, were out of here boys." Price says with a smile.

The helicopter touches down in the distance, we jog over to it and hop into the cab. As I hop inside, Y/N offers me a kind smile and moves to sit next to me. I feel my face heat up, thankfully covered by my mask. Soap wiggles his eyebrows at me and gestures towards Y/N while making kissy faces.

Ugh.

but then I look over at her, taking in her (hair color) hair as she gazes at the woods below us. It looks so soft and silky, well maintained and clean. A rarity in the military.

Fucking hell, i've fallen hard.

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zenkindoflove · 2 months

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I've been thinking about a comment I've seen thrown around in the great "whose book is next?" debate, which is "we don't know enough about Elain yet."

I wouldn't say I'm confused as to why people say this. I know it's because for many people, Elain is easily forgotten and purposely ignored because of her character archetype. Especially in fantasy, female characters who are more soft spoken, traditionally feminine, and have a penchant for following social norms or being generally agreeable as a way to get by in the world are often pushed to the side. You see it not only in how other characters act towards them but also how readers value them. We specifically see Rhys and Feyre actively choose to put Nesta's needs (and ultimately her story) before Elain's by focusing on "one sister at a time" which is explained by Nesta being the squeakier wheel.

But let's take a moment to understand what we have seen of Elain's journey so far.

We have seen Elain: live in poverty, witness her sister's kidnapping, mentally manipulated by fae magic to forget, see her family return to riches, have to navigate high society again, find a fiance and become betrothed, host queens in her home to help her Fae sister which she hides from her betrothed, kidnapped, made into a Fae against her will, have a mating bond snap with someone who isn't her fiance, grapple with becoming fae, learning the nature of her new powers, mourn the separation with her love, processing that she has a mating bond to another, receive visions of a powerful death god, try to get back her fiance and is horribly dumped, kidnapped again, present in a battle, killing the King of Hybern to protect her sister, losijg her father,process some more her trauma of losing her human life and grieving her father, trying to fit in with her new family and her new life, insisting she wants to help the NC and to learn more about her powers, pursue a crush and be rejected... Again, grapple with the codependent relationship she has with Nesta both in setting boundaries and trying to heal, reconnect with her sister Feyre, and witness her sister die and be resurrected in childbirth.

To me, that spells out quite a character journey of experiencing trauma of many types, overcoming adversity, and trying to find her identity and place in the world.

What is most important is on all three of those counts we have seen the start of this process but we haven't delved deep or had any resolution. And more specifically, because these are romances, we haven't seen how Elain will grow and make sense of her mating bond that she feels a lot of reluctance towards. I point all of this out because there is a lot of tension in Elain's narrative. There are several unresolved plots and actions that have happened to her character that we are sitting and wondering what she is going to do and what she thinks of all of these things.

I just don't think the statement that "we don't know enough about Elain yet" for her to have the next book is a valid argument to make when you actually sit down and take the energy to see Elain. To focus on what her specific experience has been so far in the books.

Her story is geared up and ready to go. Specifically her story with Lucien. And this is leaving out how connected she is to the overall fantasy plots because the bigger point I wanted to make is that as a character, Elain already has a lot to her story and even more to explore. She is more than geared up to be a FMC.

I know especially with the ship war it's easy to get caught up in rooting for what we want to see happen. But at the end of the day, this is a character we've known since the first novel, who has been integral to many parts of the story and directly affected by what has happened in the story. So the entire attitude that it's preposterous to think Elain is ready for her own book is really just doing what everyone else in her life does to her - underestimate her. And I can't wait for people to see how much they have misjudged and ignored her.

#elain archeron #pro elain #pro elain archeron #elucien

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doshmanziari · 4 months

Text

Without a doubt, and by far, the most marginalizing development I've seen within media analysis over the past decade is a shift towards the production of long, flashy videos which tend to require the same for a dialogue to occur. Literally nothing which has been written about Elden Ring, for example, since its release has enjoyed even a fraction of the visibility as a one-hour-and-forty-minutes video by Joseph Smith, or another of similar length by NeverKnowsBest. I don't know when exactly the shift started to happen most obviously -- maybe 2016 or 2017 -- but, today, circumstances are such that pretty much the only way to get real discursive traction on your thoughts about a piece of media is to make a colossus of a video.

Although worried and worrying discourse has complemented the unveiling of newer public A.I. technologies, we've already done a perfectly fine job of out-dating other forms of media communication by way of the aforementioned analytic format; just as, of course, earlier methods of industrial production rendered a whole variety of professions or emphases as outmoded. If you don't have the relevant editing tools at your disposal and/or don't want to spend hundreds of hours cropping footage and making it fit with music and your own narration, well -- too bad! And even then, of course, there's no guarantee that your video will reach your desired scale of an audience. I've found dozens of such videos on YT channels with only a few thousand views, if that; and on each channel it's clear that the people finally gave up after the monumental task of assembling these videos had no equivalent payoff.

Personally, I do still believe in the primacy of the text (or the spoken word, with no competing stimuli); in text as the primary form of critical engagement. More than that -- if I'm going to read a non-fiction work, I want the paged book, and not a digital version. Now, this preference is just that: a preference. And it surely is a preference a good number of people share. I find that a paged book lends itself better to my own retention of the material; and I really enjoy making my notes on the book's paper with a pen. But I don't believe that the construction of multimedia behemoths should be a baseline requirement for discourse.

I wonder if we will, in the near future, start to see some resurgence of the valuation of unembellished textual analysis complementing a more general fatigue with Internet-derived overstimulation. I've already run across numerous channels with fairly sizable communities where there is an appreciation for the "simplicity" of the formats: a person in a room just talking to the camera. I think a lot of people like engaging analysis where the only barrier of significance is devising a good script. To be sure, this is a formidable barrier in itself. I find writing long-form pieces to be the most difficult of any of my creative practices (which include drawing, painting, and music composition). But if writing on media were my main passion or goal in life, I'd feel fairly crushed to know that these projects now required me to put in perhaps quadruple the amount of time to make a blip on the radar of engagement.

EDIT: Thinking on this -- I wonder if there's a parallel to be found in the realm of supplementing one's work with excess-entertainment via social media engagement; e.g., daily Instagram videos. "Excess-entertainment" refers to material that's being made not because everyone who's making it wants to make it, but because each person is now beholden to an abstractly instituted algorithm of engagement -- an algorithm reinforced by audiences who, also under algorithmic influence, will wonder what's going on if a week goes by without something from a Content Creator.

Most artists who I've talked to regarding their Instagram videos say they would be only too happy if they never had to do another upload showing them adding paint or linework to a work-in-progress with lo-fi beats. Similarly, I wonder how many people making these mega-videos actually want to make them, and if we're not rather seeing the production of this material under a mutual, and mutually untrue, assumption of necessity, and the demands of a largely imaginary audience; and how long they'll be able to keep the act up, given the certainly enormous time investments they require (while noting that I am sure the more successful people hire others to do most of the editing for them).

#multimedia #media criticism #technology #communications technology

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teardrop-scales · 8 months

Text

The Dragon King relationship headcannons

A.N: Because come on, I know I'm not the only one who's got a crush on this dragon. Also this is my first time writing headcannons, so apologies if these are bad and kinda chaotic and if the dragon king in this is ooc. Also I tried to make the reader gender neutral.

No warnings I guess, just fluff mostly (although beware that these will be quite long, I have lots of thoughts about this guy)

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

First of all, as could be seen in the movie, this guy loves nicknames. Mostly he uses the classic ones, like baby, honey, darling, etc. Only sometimes when he's in the mood he will call you something creative or sickeningly sweet that will either embarrass you or make you flustered.

PDA depends on his mood and the people that surround him at the moment. If it's just Benbo and Babo and/or his subjects then he has literally no shame. In fact, he loves showing you off to his people and usually isn't afraid to show everyone just how much he cherishes you. But with the Immortals or other important people, however, Dragon King avoids PDA. Don't worry, it's not that you embarrass him or something, it's just that the Immortals for example already don't treat him seriously and it would be even worse if he showed them just how much of a softie he really is towards you. He wants to appear tough and intimidating. So in front of them, the most he'll do is take your hand and kiss it or something like that.

Honestly I see Dragon King as a person who usually avoids physical contact with people he isn't close to. But with you, his S/O, things are of course totally different.

Also in private he's quite clingy.

When it comes to touch, he's down for everything. Hugs, kisses, cuddling, he'll do it all.

He's great for hugging and cuddling because his body is literally filled with water, so he's really soft and squishy.

Also for some reason he will get really flustered if you boop his nose.

If you ask nicely, he will let you braid his hair/beard (idk how to call it)

Loves it when you do his makeup and is thrilled when you let him do yours.

Judging by the whole situation with the Stick, I think it's safe to say Dragon King is quite possessive. However he doesn't want you to think he doesn't trust you (he does, it's the other people Dragon King doesn't trust), so he only acts on his jealousy if necessary (though he's always cautious when you talk to another guy and watching the situation from the corner of his eye). Thankfully that doesn't happen often, I mean who would have the audacity to flirt with the King's S/O? Honestly they would probably got eaten by him or killed in another way if they tried anything like that.

If it's someone he can't punish, he will just come over to you and start engaging in the conversation, making sure to call you nicknames that prove you are his, he will also put his hand on your arm or around your waist.

As we've seen in the movie, this guy is a bit insecure and sensitive about his skin condition. So if you assure him that you don't care about that and that he's gorgeous to you no matter what, Dragon King will literally melt. If he didn't have such a big ego then might've even start wondering what did he do to deserve you. But he won't show any of that of course. Dragon King will just smile and bat his eyelashes. "Oh honey, you flatter me!"

Personally I don't think he would limit to just one or two main love languages, but I see Dragon King as someone who would love to shower you with gifts. Either some pieces of jewelry or something bigger, more random or personal, doesn't even matter. He's a King, so of course he can afford to give his S/O so many trinkets and other items.

Another thing he probably does a lot is acts of service. Of course most of the time The Dragon King isn't actually the one who does these things for you, his kingly duties and his skin condition on land won't let him, so usually he will send Benbo and Babbo to do it. But you know, it's the thought that counts. Although there's a selfish tone to it; Dragon King makes his minions do errands for you so you could have more time for him and give him your full attention. He is very full of himself after all...

But if you really must go on land to do something, he will give you the vial with the drops each and every time, so you could talk to him if you wanted and/or really needed.

Now onto the negative aspects of relationship.

I wouldn't say he's toxic, but he is quite egoistical and selfish at times. For example, he becomes really annoying and gets pouty if you are busy with something and don't have time for him.

Also, as much as he treasures you, I feel like he would still feel and sometimes act like he's better than and above you, especially if you're not royalty.

Dragon King can be a real diva sometimes, so you have to have A LOT of patience when dealing with him in a relationship.

But overall in my opinion relationship with Dragon King could be difficult to make it work, but also worth it in the end; he gives me vibes of someone who would love you to the moon and back if you proved yourself to be the right person.

That's it, although I might add something to this or make more headcannons later. I hope you liked it. Also, if someone actually read this, I guess you can send some requests for him to me if you want.

#dragon king #monkey king 2023 #the monkey king #dragon king x reader #monkey king movie #monkey king netflix

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desceros · 3 months

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Okay I have something of a long post/ask/critical analysis of Symphony AU that I want to address. you're free to ignore it if I'm just spouting off insane copium. Or whatever you want to do with it lol. This is more about the turtles that about the Violist.

First I'm gonna talk about Donnie because he's arguably the easiest one to talk about. And take less time. He spent at the very least 15 years of his life knowing exactly five people, three brothers, his dad, and a bestie/pseudo big sister. They're all people who completely understand/grew up with him. And he's used to people adapting to his needs without having to say anything because he's, well, they're brother/son. Speaking from a purely canon standpoint in Rise you can see it, Raph refuses to tell Donnie they hate his gifts because it'll crush him. Stuff like that. Leo calling him a "weirdo" doesn't really mean much of anything considering he's Donnie's brother, and this is about pineapple on pizza.

This is all to say I see how Donnie just didn't bother communicating this was all for his touch experiment. As far as he's basically aware, she already knew. He wasn't going to read between the lines because he'd grown accustomed to the way his brothers, April, and dads act. Which, in hindsight, bit him in the ass because the violist literally doesn't know him aside from "purple turtle science man".

So. I get him. I get where he's coming from even if it ended up kinda fucking up the violist. That's all part of the learning curve of knowing people who don't already know who you are and whatever.

Now for Leo, maybe this is REALLY just me on my copium life support but I see where he's coming from too. Again, when you look at it from a canon lens I see where Leo is coming from. He's always been protective of his family, even more so than Raph at points. He didn't trust Big Mama immediately, even though the rest of his brothers did. He was perfectly willing and happy to DIE IN THE PRISON DIMENSION to keep his family safe. Like, let's not forget he, as well as the others, has a ton of unchecked trauma that he's definitely not willing to address to anyone. A decade of unaddressed trauma will do things to someone's psyche, intentionally or not. The guilt of almost killing his brothers has been festering inside him for over a decade now, this doesn't really seem entirely like a "my brother touches you and not me >:(" thing.

The way I see it Leo's acting out because he's actually just terrified of someone hurting his family again. It's definitely not okay, and it's condemnable. But as someone who's done some pretty fucked shit when I was dealing with my depression before meds, I've been Leo before. That man needs help, and fast.

We've also seen, from Symphony AU that he's mostly accepted the violist as part of the family now. The comments he makes about her being "Donnie's toy" are, again, things he seems to be saying to get a rise out of Donnie. We know he's been doing that for a while. And I wouldn't really put it past him for continuing to try and do it now that Donnie's not allowed to do his experiments anymore.

I had a way better way of wording this last night but I ended up watching TMNT 1987 instead but to summarize my thoughts, I sympathize with both Leo and Donnie and don't believe either of them are irredeemable monsters. If I'm somehow wrong about Leo and this is all just conduit to getting Donnie and the violist together then I'm gonna be so :(. Mafuyu Main Story chapter 14 even.

Or, again, maybe I'm just coping lol.

oh i'm all about symphony copium. breathe deep, anon-chan, hahahaha

aaaaand in true desceros fashion this got way too long so i'm tucking it under a cut. rolls eyes at myself soooooo hard

you're largely correct, though i will specify that for donnie it's not that he "didn't bother" to communicate what he thought was going on, so much as he thought he did.

i invite you-slash-everyone to read this passage from when the agreement was struck to see what i mean. i've removed all of viola-chan's thoughts and interpretations for you, and left you with just the core of the conversation, color-coded for clarity on who's speaking:

“We have… exhausted the limits of touching that I would perform with most people.” [...] “…What do you mean?” “I mean that all of the myriad mechanical touches I have experienced so far in my life, we’ve covered together. [...] I’ve become completely enured to them all, so long as you’re the one doing them. There is, of course, an obvious next step, but I wanted to discuss it before we begin.” “To… touches you haven’t done?” [...] “Correct." [...] “I… don’t understand." [...] “I’m referring to more… intimate touches. We’ve… already been pushing at the boundary a bit, so I wanted to be very specific and clear." [...]

“I… take it you don’t scent your brothers.” “No, I don’t." [...] “Donnie, I—[...] I like you. You know that, right?” “You aren’t very good at hiding it, no. [...] I, of course, like you as well, though I’d like to think that has been well demonstrated over our time together.”

[...]"…Intimate touches. [...] Like… what, petting? Kissing? Sex? What are we talking about, exactly?” “All of it, ideally. [...] I’m quite curious to study how I’ll react, especially considering the whole touch aversion situation.” [...] “…Do… Do you wanna try it? [...] …Us, together, I mean?” [...] “Really? With… With me?” [...] “Of course, I—[...]Donnie, I… of course. I’d be stupid to say no, right?” “Oh, that’s such a relief. [...] I’ve been making spreadsheets of things I’ve wanted to try for several days and wondering how best to bring it up, especially considering—well. It’s quite helpful that you did so yourself. Excellent work, consultant.” [...] “Well, I’d like to amend our agreement on how turtle time is going to go, from now on in light of all this, [...] We’re partners, now, so we have to take care of each other. [...]” “[...]Very well. If those are your terms for partnership, I accept.”

see how differently it reads without viola-chan's thoughts staining it? stripped of her thoughts, you can easily see where the miscommunication happened. other than a few incidental pieces of dialogue that don't affect the meaning of the convo, this is it.

in donnie's mind, he and viola-chan were very much on the same page. "partnership". "agreement". these are words that viola-chan uses. when he refers to spreadsheets, she just rolls with it. as far as he's concerned, they're talking about a scientific study here. he did communicate, and well. it's just... viola-chan put things there that he didn't. and that's not her fault, because at this point she hasn't picked up on how to communicate with donnie yet. and it's completely rational to assume, when discussing sex and romance and hearing someone say "i like you"--and then going on to kiss and have sex with that person--that it's a romantic relationship. as stated in the fic, my personal opinion (which to be clear, as someone who stands on death of the author, this *is* just my opinion) neither of them did the other ill. they literally just didn't know how to communicate yet. so i 100% agree with you on being able to see donnie's side of this. i have another long-ass ask somewhere in the meta tag discussing the lack of socializing specifically, if you're curious for more of my thoughts on that.

i also agree with you largely with the leo portion of your analysis. i... can't go into as much detail on his side of things, but rest assured that before everything is over, viola-chan and leo are going to have more than one conversation. and the two of them, despite everything, really do mesh well and talk about things, so it'll be a satisfying resolution, i think.

anyway WOW that got way too long but teal deer, i agree and love deep meta-analysis of my stuff so don't apologize in the slighest, yeehaw

#we're all coping for symphony it's ok anon-chan #“even you? but you're the asshole writing it?”#yeah but that means this shit is in my head ALL THE TIME. nOBODY copes harder than i do.#ask tag #symphony tag #symphony meta

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bengiyo · 5 months

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Cooking Crush Ep 3 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Prem began teaching Ten how to cook after first trying to make him go away, because Prem's sister lost her tuition money. Things got off to a rough start because Ten isn't used to open markets and also is touch-repulsed, but they made it through. Dynamite followed Fire onto his date and tormented him with faces.

Dish 3: Mission Steamed (Scammed) Egg"

I'm such a fan of Dynamite. Love him checking on Prem.

The timing of Fire getting to move into a condo and Dynamite having difficulties with his dorm is hopefully a setup. Still, was not expecting something as mundane as a neighbor passing and rotting in the apartment above you to be part of this show.

Okay, Ten is definitely flirting here.

Ten being a picky eater tracks. I don't believe him when he says he's not picky.

@lurkingshan pointed it out to me already, but I do like how Prem is trying to stay out of Ten's personal space.

Okay, but I wanted them to finish making the steamed eggs.

200,000 baht is quite a bit for lessons.

Dome and Aungpao is a great comedic pairing. I enjoy every scene they have together.

I was hoping Fire would move into this building. Now we'll get more scenes with Dynamite, Fire, and Samsi away from school.

Dynamite having no shame about his attraction to Fire is a treat for me.

Big fan of Ten fixing the glove, especially with how extra he's being about it. I like that he didn't hand the task to one of the staff.

I'm glad Ten's friends know about the classes and Ten doesn't feel like he's getting swindled.

Like with My Ride, I like when doctors experience The Heart Knows and think they're having a medical episode.

I enjoyed Dynamite's punny line deliveries this episode.

Off is actually doing a really good job as Ten. I've seen him a lot recently, and this character feels distinct.

Prem, please mute your phone in class! You're already underperforming!!

I love this cooking friend group so much. They said, "Girl, please clean up for your date."

This scene with Ten's friend confronting him about leaving early was also so funny.

Excellent! Everyone figures out their feelings next week!

I'm glad we're still getting BL romcoms, even if I'm generally approving of the more dramatic bent we've taken of late. This cast is pretty good at it, too!

#cooking crush #cooking crush the series #thai bl #bl series #Ben watches

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basicrese · 5 months

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oh my gods i could cry right now, i really could.

so here's my reactions to the first two episodes of Percy Jackson and the Olympians (long post ahead):

Episode 1

To start, I know we've seen and heard this from the trailer and sneak peeks already but hearing the line for real from the first episode, oh I almost lost it right then and there. This has been YEARS in the making.

Baby percy already embodying the snark and sass from facial expressions and internal monologue alone, i love him

In a similar regard, I know we've already seen it from sneak peeks but the possible Blackjack cameo made me so happy 🥹

The portrayal of the mist is everything I wanted and more actually

Sally being a Medusa ally, i know that's right!!!!!

"appointment to see Mr. Kane?????" "at D'angelo's??????" They're making me go crazy because all these subtle name drops and I have no idea if they're just tiny easter eggs or if they mean something in the long run 😩😩

the design for Mrs. Dodds as a fury?????? absolutely amazing and I love how they carried that entire scene out; how she was there one moment and gone the next and that Percy didn't suddenly turn into this invincible warrior. It perfectly set up the suspiciousness of what just happened because it all happened so fast and there was no room for Percy to process what actually happened because suddenly no one even knows who she is. BUT YET there's a momentary flicker of guilt and hesitation in Grover's face and curiosity in Mr. Brunner's (just as it was written!). You can almost hear Percy's inner monologue doubting their words because it didn't add up to their body language but simultaneously doubting his narrative too because everyone is proving what he saw otherwise.

"I'm all wet now" as Sally, dripping wet because she had just been basking in the rain, goes to hug him. there is little to none seriousness in this child's body

"You fell in love with God? Like Jesus?" unseriousness.

the very intentional lighting during the goodbye scene in the way it only cast golden on half of Percy and Sally's faces

the depiction of Sally being crushed like ofc we know she's being held captive in the Underworld BUT PERCY DOESN'T AND HE THINKS HE JUST WATCHED HIS MOTHER DIE IN SUCH A BRUTAL WAY RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIS EYES I COULD SOB LIKE THE WAY HE FOUGHT? THAT WAS ALL RAGE AND DESPAIR.

ngl Percy just dropping names left and right made me so anxious with the whole "names have power thing" HJGKLDSBSG had me going "don't say his name out loud!!" during the car scene

oh that end-credits was gorgeous. and the way it depicts the entire story even ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

the sneak peek of camp after the credits, we're about to eat!!!

i did not realize rick even cameoed until i saw it on twitter help

Episode 2

"You drool when you sleep." SCENE EVERYBODY CHEERED

Mr. D passed out while holding a can of coke is the only way he could have been introduced actually (and the first Peter Johnson!)

The Big House is so pretty???

The vulnerability in Percy's voice when he was asking for help to find his dad i can't do this 🧎🏻‍♀️

THE. CAMP. IT'S SO VAST AND BEAUTIFUL I COULD ONLY DREAM OF TIMES LIKE THESE IN THE PAST. also the way i'm taking it right now is that the cabins are already so gorgeous so when annabeth revamps the place by tlo? they are going to go crazier with the set design i fear

the supposed red herring on the scoring that makes you think luke is gonna bully percy but he's actually a good guy that'll be a mentor figure to him WHEN THAT IN FACT IS THE REAL RED HERRING LIKE IT'S THE GENIUS OVER GENIUS FOR ME

i was kinda lost on who the other guy with luke and percy was at first until i realized it was chris. he doesn't know what'll happen to him when the fourth season rolls around like laugh while u still can chris

percy already advocating for the unclaimed, he has always been a real one!!!

grover you sweet little satyr i need to give him a hug. the protector also needs to be protected 🥹

the way i could tell there would be an answer to the god of disappointment joke help; like they're quips to you percy but they will actually have answers to every rhetorical question you throw their way 😭😭

"ignoring me is one thing, but he doesn't get to ignore you." one thing about percy, his mother always comes first 🙏

i can't get enough over the gorgeous cinematography I CAN'T

dior embodies clarisse's pride and cruelty with such accuracy but she's so pretty i wanna forget how mean she is LMAO

the percabeth dynamics already going so strong i could cry, like that first interaction???

i love ms. annabeth chase so much she is everything to me, the poise! the confidence! the leadership!

the capture the flag sequences oh it was everything

"I am Sally Jackson's son!" EXACTLYYYY

overall, i am going through the motions and it has been absolutely beautiful so far and everything down to the cast, crew, production, set design, costume design, scoring, cinematography has been done immensely well. i can't believe we're actually here 🥹💙

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duhragonball · 20 days

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Neon Genesis Evangelion 19

I still don't get how this guy is still alive. I mean, big ups to him, but I still don't get it.

So last time, Shinji refused to fight against the 13th Angel, which had an innocent pilot, Toji Suzuhara trapped inside it. So Shinji's dad hit the override on his controls and used a Dummy Plug to take over Shinji's Eva. Somehow the Eva was able to win the battle automatically, though it beat the Angel into a bloody mess and killed... well, it seemed to kill Suzuhara. Crushed his entry plug and everything, but he survived. Even so, Shinji is so furious about his father's betrayal that he refuses to relinquish his Eva, and threatens to use his remaining power supply to attack the NERV base.

Gendo orders the LCL fluid inside his plug to be increased, which... I guess is enough to incapacitate Shinji, I don't know. They end up prying him out of there, then he has to spend the night in the hospital, then they put him in a detention cell to cool off.

This finally culminates in Shinji being brought before Gendo to discuss the charges against him for his insubordination, and Shinji declares that he wants out of NERV. Gendo tells him to leave then. He accuses Shinji if running away again, of disappointing him again, but Shinji doesn't care. Gendo says they may never see one another again, and Shinji says that this is exactly his intention.

I don't want to spend a lot of time on this, because we've already seen Shinji quit way back in Episode 4. Sure, this time it's different, because he's made a lot of strong connections here, and his reasons for quitting are much more strongly felt than the indecisive fear he had back then. But it's a lot of the same imagery. Big Rigg Mahoney calls him to talk before he goes, but his voice mail gets cut off by NERV security. Misato sees him off at the train station again. But this time it's not enough that she just shows up to see him. He's revolted by his father and the whole NERV agency, and no one can say anything to talk him into piloting an Eva again.

But as soon as Misato leaves, there's another Angel attack, and everyone has to go to emergency shelters. That's the main difference. In spite of all the character development, the plot has now gone into overdrive. Angels are showing up more and more frequently, so Shinji can't just go AWOL or quit like he did back then.

Oh this one looks especially stupid. It's like a puppy when you pick it up with your hands under it's front legs, and let the hind legs dangle. And the arms of the Angel are like strips of paper. Just an absolute crap design. I'm now looking forward to seeing how the last one looks, since they seem to get dumber and dumber looking each time.

So with Shinji gone, and Unit 00 damaged from having is left arm blown off, it's up to Asuka to hold the line. Rei is reassigned to Unit 01, except it won't activate for some reason. They switch to the dummy plug again, but it won't work either. It's like the Eva is rejecting anyone but Shinji.

So Asuka's on her own, and she has to fight the thing inside the NERV base, because the Angel is so powerful it's already breached the underground shields by the time she's ready to deploy. The battle is a debacle. Her AT field is supposed to neutralize the Angel's AT field, which allows her weapons to have an effect, but for some reason it doesn't work this time, and the Angel uses its silly arms to cut off Unit 02's arms. Both of them.

It also cuts off Unit 02's head, which lands in the shelter Shinji's hiding out in. Damn.

I was going to make a crack about Asuka not being very good at this. I mean, she joined the team talking about how she and Unit 02 were specifically intended for combat operations, but her actual record in combat isn't exactly that impressive. All the battle's she's won involved Shinji's assistance, and everytime she's fought alone she gets beaten. Still, the competition is a lot fiercer than it was early in the series. The 13th and 14th Angels are very, very tough, and you can't fault Asuka's grit. She loses Unit 02's arms and charges headlong into the Angel with everything she has left. It just doesn't work. None of it works. It's like she's out there fighting with no Eva at all.

So Shinji rushes toward the battlefield. He hasn't changed his mind yet, but if he really wanted to write off NERV, he's heading in the wrong direction. On his way, he meets Kaji, who's tending his watermelon garden. NERV found out about his double-agent bit and now he's been taken off the combat roster. And since he's powerless to help, he figures if he's gonna die, he may as well go out doing something he enjoys. Sex is out of the question, since Misato's busy, so gardening it is.

Shinji explains what he's doing out here, and Kaji explains to him that Adam, the First Angel is down below the base, and if an Angel manages to reach Adam, it's said that this will mark the end of humanity, the Third Impact. He doesn't tell Shinji how he knows this or who said it. For that matter, I'm pretty sure Shinji's never heard of Adam, or knew that he's being kept in NERV's basement.

Still, Kaji does convince him to take action. Kaji can't do anything about this battle, but Shinji can do something that no one else can, so it's up to him to look deep inside himself and decide whether he's going to do it or not. This isn't as simple as quitting a job because your boss is a jerk. The fate of the world is on the line.

While they discuss this, Rei tries a Hail Mary play with Unit 00. It only has one arm, and she's still hurt from the last battle, but she figures if she can get close enough with an N2 mine, she can use her AT field to get inside the Angel's defenses and set it off. But it doesn't work.

So Shinji balls up his fists and demands to pilot the Eva. Gendo asks him what he's here for, like he wants to hear it clearly, so there's no confusion about this, and Shinji is resolute. He wants back in, he wants to pilot Eva Unit 01, and he wants to kick the 14th Angel's ass.

Speaking of the Angel, it's headed for "Central Dogma", which turns out to be the room where Misato does all the command center stuff. Well, that's nice to know. Or maybe this room is just on the way to Central Dogma. Either way, she evacuates the staff, and it looks like the Angel's about to kill them all when...

Yeah, get Shinji'ed, idiot!

Not sure how to read Gendo's expression here, but seeing him covered in blood is a good look for him.

Shinji forces the Angel to one of the launch elevators and Misato has it activated to bring them both to the surface, further away from the base.

Then he kind of goes apeshit and starts tearing the Angel's face off. At some point the Angel managed to cut off one of Unit 01's arms, but that isn't stopping Shinji, who seems to have things well in hand, until...

The battery runs out of power. Whoops.

So now everyone's fucked. Unit 01's a sitting duck without any power supply, and the Angel starts carving up its middle, like it's trying to get at the pilot, I guess. Luckily, that section is sturdier than the shoulders on these things, so it takes a while to penetrate. But it doesn't matter much, since Shinji can't do anything with the time he has left. All he can do is jerk at the controls and impotently plead for Unit 01 to move, even though he knows there's no power left to move it.

But wait!

Impossibly, Unit 01 has awakened, and it rips off one of the Angel's arms! Yes, through the power of Greyskull, a pure righteous heart, the ancient prophecy, a mother's love, clean living, eatin' me spinach, seeing Android 16's head getting stepped on, uh, to be honest, I have no idea. But it sure looks like Shinji has tapped into anime protagonist super powers and he's performing a miracle. Wait, why is the Eva putting the Angel's arm on its stump like that?

Oh! Okay... so it can do that now. Just absorb the enemy's flesh and use it to grow new limbs. Huh.

Apparently Shinji's synch ratio is over 400%, whatever that means. I don't know how they can tell any of this when the battery is dead, but okay.

Unit 01 defeats the Angel pretty handily from here, but it's not done. Nossir. It climbs on top of the Angel and...

Yeah, it's eating the Angel. This is not some bit where Shinji accesses the Light Hawk Wings and fulfils his destiny as the Legendary Super Pilot. The Eva was alive the whole time. The battery, the armor, all the other bells and whistles NERV put on the thing, they were designed to restrain and control the Eva's power. But now, with the battery dead, and Shinji begging it to act, it's free.

Ritsuko explains this, and also refers to the Eva as "she", so that's a thing. Anyway, she also says that the Eva is "taking the S2 engine into herself, which I don't understand at all. The only S2 engine was the one NERV-02 had in Nevada, and that's long gone. Is Ritsuko saying that the 14th Angel has it now, and Unit 01 is eating it? I'm confused.

This is so fucking cool. I'm glad I finally sat down to watch this show. This Eva is rad as hell.

That one girl on the laptop, who couldn't bear to watch the Dummy Plug Carnage from the last episode, well now she's dry heaving. I don't blame you, lady, this is nuuuuuuuuuuuuuuts. Also, we're in kind of a pickle now, because the 14th Angel may have been defeated, but now there's only one Eva left, and NERV can't control it. Also Shinji's in there with it, and how can they possibly get him out of there?

I'm mostly disturbed by how human the new arm looks. Anyway, Kaji watches all of this with some satisfaction. The crappy old men and Gendo Ikari can't just talk their way out of this one. From his office, Gendo observes that "this is the beginning", but the beginning of what?

Well, we'll just have to see next time...

Next episode preview is just Misato reaching for her glass. She doesn't even try to promise fan service to the audience anymore. Now she's just gonna get drunk and try to forget this is happening.

#neon genesis evangelion #2024ngeliveblog #shinji ikari #rei ayanami #asuka langley soryu #kaji ryoji #misato katsuragi #ritsuko akagi #gendo ikari #toji suzuhara

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