#he's going to live his best life anyway and be a jerk to anyone who's in his way of that' section. I think it'll be fun.
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Finally finished Louie's introduction that I started here. All that's left now is Pom's section and then I'll post all three (four?) scenes together as one chapter! If you haven't seen the previous part, I definitely recommend checking it out for context.
--
Louie’s in a haze for the rest of the day. He packs, makes his call to his grandma, and picks up a coffee and a pikpik carrot muffin at the coffee shop that got him through high school. He hasn’t had time to stop by in almost a year, now. He leaves a generous tip.
The moments in-between are spotty. He’s not sure if hours or days have passed before he’s back at Hocotate Freight’s headquarters.
“Excuse me,” a tired voice says, snapping him back to the moment. He turns, now-cooled coffee halfway to his mouth, to see a woman standing behind him. She’s short and older than him, though he can’t tell by how much, given how recent the wrinkles and gray hairs must be.
They’ve never met in person, but he’s seen pictures. Even if he’s not good with faces, he knows this is Olimar’s wife.
“You’re Louie, aren’t you?” Unsure of how to respond, he just nods. “I see… I, well… I’m not sure how to say this.” She laughs halfheartedly. “You know, Olimar always talked about how he wanted to invite you for dinner. I can see why! You’re far too skinny for a boy your age!”
He looks down, then back up to her. “That’s what my grandma says too. Mostly because I eat too much.” For some reason he could eat and eat and never gain any weight. It probably had something to do with him being an outbreed. Nana always said full-blooded Hocotations had to be short and stout: short because all their food was either close to or under the ground, and stout to store extra water and nutrients for later. Louie had just gotten the short end of the genetic stick by inheriting traits that made him stand out.
Either way, his joke gets a full peal of laughter out of her. By the time she composes herself she’s out of breath and there are tears in her eyes. After a moment she sighs, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I see why my husband liked working with you,” she muses, wilting a little at the mention of Olimar. “I heard they were sending you to the planet The Transmission originated from. I… I have to be honest… I’m not sure what I want you to find when you get there.”
Louie’s eyes widen. She continues, swallowing down some nervousness before she gets to what’s been stuck in the back of his mind all day. “The speaker in The Transmission wasn’t my husband.”
“I know.”
Her jaw drops. Olimar’s wife looks at him with something like joy and disbelief. “You already know. That… makes this much easier to say, then.” She clears her throat. “As much as I want you to find my husband and bring him home… I don’t want anyone else to get hurt while searching for him. I… I know that he wouldn’t want that either.” She sniffles, dabbing at her face with her sleeve. It’s making Louie want to run away more and more with every passing second. “That’s all I had to say. Please be careful when you’re out there.”
He gives one last nod before turning to leave. He heads straight to his ship from there. He doesn’t see the President or any of his coworkers before he takes off toward the mysterious planet, so Olimar’s wife’s words are all he can think of as he flies toward the stars.
He’s not taking any risks when he gets to that planet.
#I have a lot of thought's about Olimar's wife and how she's characterized in-game. If you can't tell. Maybe I'll elaborate someday#I also have many thoughts about the differences in species we seen in the pikmin games so casually inserting my headcannons here#gosh y'all have no idea how excited I am for getting past the 'Louie realizes he's in a horror game' section and into the 'Louie decides#he's going to live his best life anyway and be a jerk to anyone who's in his way of that' section. I think it'll be fun.#pikmin#pikmin au#pikmin fanfic#louie pikmin#four riders au
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true hate's kiss, v2
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If his sixteen-year-old self could see him now, he’d kill himself.
Once, incandescent with youthful rage and entirely sick of being pestered by the demon known as Head Boy and all-around dickhead Tom Riddle, Harry had sworn to Merlin and the entirety of the Great Hall that he would rather die than spend even an hour in Riddle’s company, and he’d certainly never kiss him. Unfortunately, it just so happens that being cursed to tell the truth and nothing but the truth is a bit more disruptive to his daily life than death, and requires an immediate solution—a kiss, but not from just anyone.
From an enemy—the enemy, rather.
And only one person fits the bill.
Thankfully, Harry doesn’t have to spend too long in the Ministry’s hallowed halls before he spots his prey. There Riddle is, standing unaware at the end of the hall, surrounded by his cronies. It’s so like their Hogwarts days that Harry could vomit, but he figures he should save that for after the deed is done.
“Riddle!” he calls, marching toward him, a determined scowl on his face.
Riddle turns around, and his eyes go wide with surprise when he sees just who called his name. Not that Harry can blame him. If it weren’t for this curse, he’d happily never say it again. As Harry approaches, surprise turns quickly to alarm. He’s only a few paces away when Riddle’s hand twitches, likely reaching for his wand. He doesn’t get the chance to draw it. Instead, he only just has time to brace himself, like he’s expecting to be hit (again—though Harry maintains to this day that the prick deserved it), but Harry doesn’t hit him.
No. It’s far worse than that.
Not giving himself a chance to hesitate, Harry reaches for Riddle’s too-perfect face, tugs him just the slightest bit down, and kisses him right on the mouth. He stays there for a second, maybe two. Eyes closed, because he doesn’t even want to see him from a normal distance, let alone this close. Riddle’s lips are soft, a thought he immediately strangles and stomps upon.
Riddle’s lips part, and it’s like lightning jolting through him. He pulls back—or, he tries. Riddle catches him with an arm snaked around his waist, a hand cupping his jaw, before he can get very far. And then Riddle kisses him back. Riddle presses closer, until his back is flush against the wall, Riddle’s weight trapping him there as he does his best to steal the breath from Harry’s lungs.
A throat clears.
Harry gasps, jerks his head back and smacks it against solid brick, wishes the floor would swallow him whole. “What, Rosier?” Riddle snaps, and Harry feels his voice in his chest.
If Rosier responds, Harry doesn’t hear it. He’s too busy reeling, horror growing as the realization sets in: Ron and Hermione are never going to let him live this down.
- - -
“Why did you kiss me, anyway?” Tom asks later, once he finally manages to trap Harry in one spot—a convenient broom closet not far from his office—long enough to get an answer out of him.
Harry sighs, knocks his head back against the wall. He’s blushing. “It was a curse,” he mutters, eyes fixed on the ceiling.
“I see,” Tom says, and he allows himself a grin in his triumph. He knew Harry wouldn’t be able to hold out forever. “True love’s kiss?”
Harry only blushes harder. Tom has never seen anything so delightful in his life. Then, for the second time that day, in an attempt at distraction so pitifully obvious that he’d never allow it if it didn’t get him exactly what he wanted, Tom Riddle finds himself thoroughly kissed.
#tomarry#tom riddle is obsessed with harry in every universe#it's true sorry i don't make the rules#harry is equally obsessed#it's just that his wires are a bit crossed#anyway half of riddle's idiots think these two have been dating for years#the other half thought harry was going to ak him right there
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youtube
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Part 5
Keith is smirking at him, so Lance clears his throat and tries again. “I came back, yes.”
Keith cocks his head slightly. “Why?”
“Wha… Why?! Seriously?!”
Keith furrows his brow and folds his arms over his chest, looking serious, and adorable, shut UP brain. “Nobody ever comes back. Why did you?”
Lance sputters out a disbelieving laugh, “Because…” he gestures aggressively at all of Keith.
Keith’s frown deepens as he looks around himself trying to see what Lance is indicating. Ok, I’ve got myself a beautiful idiot, I’ve worked with less Lance muses.
“YOU!!” Lance yells loud enough that Keith startles and some birds fly out of the trees above them. “Um, ah, I came back because of you… I guess.”
“You… weren’t scared?” Keith asks.
“Of you? Oh you betcha. You were terrifying.” Lance affirms.
At this news Keith stands a bit taller, puffing out his chest. “I protect my water from all intruders.”
“Your water?” Lance jerks his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the waterfall.
Keith nods. “I protect it and all life that lives near its flow, and in turn it sustains me.”
Lance isn’t 100% sure what that means, but he’s about 78%, so he nods slowly back. “And me and Hunk… I just barged on in. I… I’m sorry.”
Keith squints at Lance as if trying to parse out his meaning, then looks away. “Okay.”
Lance resists the urge to prompt the cryptid on how to graciously accept an apology, the guy clearly doesn’t get out much. “You didn’t hurt me, us, though.”
Keith cocks his head at this.
“You said you protect this waterfall, but you didn’t try to hurt me.” Lance elaborates.
Keith snorts. “You weren’t a threat.” He deadpans.
Lance huffs, offended. “I’ll have you know that I am MORE than capable of being a threat.” Keith snorts again. “I just have manners.” Lance sniffs.
“Which is why you threw yourself into MY waterfall.” Keith retorts.
“Well, that’s… I… I mean, it’s not like there were any “no trespassing” signs or anything! Like who the hell would think that there’s a…” he gestures emphatically at Keith again, “a… a… YOU in there!! What are you anyways?” Okay, that last question was a bit blunt, but he’s flustered and this Keith is growing more annoying than frightening by the second.
“I’m a Water Dragon.” Keith’s response interrupts Lance’s internal monologue.
“You’re a dragon?”
“Yes.”
“But you’re furry.”
“Yes.”
“But dragons aren’t furry! They’re scaly, and have horns and wings and live in caves filled with treasure!” Lance waves in hands in a “clearly I’m a sane person” sort of fashion.
Keith scoffs, “Please, tell me more about dragons.”
Maybe it’s Keith’s disdainful expression, or maybe it’s because his idiot brain finally reminds him that he’s not talking to some dude in the woods, and is actually having a conversation with a cryptid, and doesn’t actually have the authority to tell Keith what he is or is not, but Lance decides arguing with the “dragon” probably isn’t his best move.
“Sorry.” Lance mutters, then sighs. “You’re just not like any dragons I’ve read about.”
“Clearly.”
“Hey! I said I was sorry, okay?” Lance snaps.
Keith glowers at him, mouth fixed in a hard line. Lance winces, no matter how irritating Keith is, and he definitely is, if Lance doesn’t watch it, he WILL get eaten.
They stand facing each other in silence, neither willing to give in, until Lance can’t stand it anymore.
“Well, sorry for intruding.” He grabs his backpack and turns to leave, “I’ll just get out of here now.”
Lance gets about five steps before…
“Are you coming back?”
He turns to see Keith glaring fiercely at the ground and clenching his fists.
“I promise I won’t. And I won’t tell anyone else. You don’t have to worry.” Lance assures with more bitterness than he intended.
Keith’s expression darkens and Lance turns to go.
“I WANT YOU TO COME BACK!”
Lance stops and spins on his heel. “What??”
Keith is making possibly the most frustrated face Lance has ever seen another being make, and slowly, PAINFULLY, repeats himself. “I want you to come back.”
Now it’s Lance’s turn to blink mutely.
“Never mind.” Keith huffs angrily, “I don’t know…”
“I’ll come back.”
Keith’s head snaps up so fast he has to have pulled something.
“I’ll come back.” Lance isn’t sure what he’s doing, but he knows himself well enough to know that he can’t walk away from this. If nothing else, he’ll have some unbeatable bragging rights.
Keith’s back to finding the ground completely fascinating as he mutters a barely audible, “okay.”
“Okay.” Lance agrees only briefly considering the vast multitude of ways he might be crazy.
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I realized that this got a bit longer than I intended and posted it all on A03. Also there wasn't anything interesting to draw from this part, so the art is from part 6 :)
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anyway the royal woman "explains" everything to geralt, and suddenly he feels like an outsider all over again. he doesnt understand anything on land, all he's doing is holding jaskier back from his future. he feels stupid, for ever dreaming of a cottage by the sea with a prince. he decides to leave. jaskier sees him go, but isnt fast enough to stop him, is only fast enough to see a flash of scales as geralt regains his tail and hides away at the bottom of the sea.
jaskier visits the beach every day, hoping for geralt to come back, now that he knows geralt isnt just his friend, but also his handsome rescuer. and geralt knows because he hides by the dock, hoping to see jaskier finally moving on. but he doesnt.
geralt hides. he stays hidden. it's what's best for everyone, he reasons. he cries, merfolk tears turning to jewels on his cheeks. he feels foolish. he feels like he'll cry himself a whole new ocean.
he collects them all, takes them to yen to trade. they're very powerful and very rare, after all, a sea witch could do a lot with them. he manages to communicate to her-- his legs are gone but the deal still holds, he traded his voice-- that jaskier stays on the shore, that he cant live his life there. he wants yen to use her magic to make him leave, so he can move on and be happy with his fiancee. she considers his deal, then tells him to visit the beach in three days, when the sun is high overhead. she takes the gems.
she finds jaskier there. on the beach. and she makes him a deal, too. come to the beach in three day's time, when the sun is high and only when it's high, wearing two shirts and two pants. and he'll get the answer he seeks. he asks why she's doing this for him, and she says she's simply an interested party. and who is he to look a gift horse in the mouth?
when geralt arrives, the beach is empty. blessedly empty. his heart aches, because belonging and joy and a future has fled him, but at least jaskier can move on. he lays his head on the sand and rests.
a hand grabs his arm, tight. tight enough he cant slip away. his head jerks up and he sees jaskier, standing there, clinging to him like a lifeline. "geralt! it's you, it's really you! why did you leave me?" he begs
geralt twists and squirms, but he doesnt want to hurt jaskier, and he's at a disadvantage on his belly in the sand. it comes out, eventually. he signs that jaskier has a life. a future. "you cant stay on this beach forever. you have a fiancee. you'll be king." his face is screwed up in agony.
"oh geralt," he says, pets geralt's hair, pushes it out of his face. "that's not true at all." geralt's head whips around to stare at him. "im not engaged to anyone. and im too far down the line to gain the throne. what made you think that?"
geralt feels dumbfounded. betrayed. unthinkably foolish. "i dont understand." he signs, because he doesnt. he doesnt understand kings and princes and being the 8th son, he doesnt understand jaskier's eldest brother has a brood of children of his own, all of them more ready for the throne than jaskier will ever be. jaskier tries to explain, but mostly what it makes geralt get is that he was lied to, and he bought it. he wants to bury himself in the sand.
"geralt, darling, who told you all this? why did you think i was leaving you?" and geralt tells him, tells him about the royal who misled him, who wanted jaskier's hand and his position. and jaskier's face grows dark. "no. no, i wasnt promised to her. and i certainly never will be, now."
geralt's head is spinning. "it doesnt matter," he signs, "it's too late. you cant live your life stuck on this beach. i gave up my legs."
jaskier shakes his head. "of course i can. who cares about that?" jaskier says, breathless, "i always wanted a cottage by the sea."
and geralt cant help himself. he surges forward, lips meeting jaskier's. jaskier holds him tight, cradling his face so sweetly. its everything they wanted but have been denying themselves for so long
geralt doesnt know how, but when he pulls away he /knows/. he can feel it in his throat. merfolk sing to communicate, and he thinks back, remembers the tune they'd been singing on the ship before it capsized all that time ago. twists the words to make it his own he sings soft and sweet, a low murmur; "my heart is pierced by cupid / i disdain all glittering gold / there is nothing can console me / but my jolly sailor bold"
jaskier gapes at him. "his eyes are ocean waters / and his hair is like a foal's / i will follow where he leads me / wherever he may go"
"you-- your voice-- geralt, how" he starts, heart beating out of his chest, and geralt just shakes his head
"i have no idea. i just knew it was back."
"took you long enough to figure it out." yen says, and they both whip around to stare. she lounges back against the dock like she hasnt a care in the world. "honesty was all you needed to get back your voice."
"you set me up." geralt says, because she did.
"and it worked out for you." yen says, because it did.
"you know the sea witch?" jaskier asks, and they both snort.
"we're on again off again." yen replies dryly, "though it seems off again for the forseeable future." just to make them both turn red.
she removes a bottle from the bag she has slung around her hips. she holds it out to him. her eyes are softer then before. "merfolk tears. a powerful ingredient. since i did no magic here, i figure you could take back half the payment." geralt looks shocked. "plus a few other ingredients."
he takes it from her carefully. "you wont be a merfolk with legs if you drink this." she warns him. "you'll be human. your tail, your gills, the depths of the sea, will be lost to you forever. no going back."
he thinks about it for all of a few seconds before tilting his head back and swallowing it all. "that's what i figured." yen says quietly, a soft smile playing on her lips.
it hurts worse than the last time. scales slough off in so much bloody viscera, and jaskier's eyes well with tears as he holds geralt through it. yen stays for it all.
when it ends, finally, with geralt whole and human in jaskier's lap. there are scars on his legs, starting at his feet and running in a straight line all the way up to his crotch, as if his fin had been ripped in half. but he's whole, and he's human, and he kisses jaskier again. and again, and again, and again.
when they part for air, jaskier panting and geralt naked as the day he was born, jaskier's face lights up and he says "oh! that's why you told me to wear two!" he peels off one of two shirts to give to geralt, who looks at him quizzically. "i thought it was a magic thing, you sneak."
"it's a sort of magic." yen says, smiling slyly. "just remember, geralt-- you owe me for this." he nods in agreement, and she slinks back to the depths, the air too dry for her to stand much longer.
jaskier lends geralt a pair of pants as well, too tight but better than nothing. they walk back to the castle together, hand in hand. and in a few years' time, they get that cottage by the sea
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Screw it, can we just get a script for part of an episode of A-town at this point?
[For those of you just tuning in: A-Town is the shitty postwar sitcom inspired by the life of Jake Berenson, to the eternal annoyance of Jake Berenson. The main character is a kid named Brandon A., who lives with his nuclear family — mom Dr. A, dad Mr. A, sister Daisy A. (secretly a yeerk named Zeptron 420), dog Mopsy (secretly Brandon's friends in morph) — in Southern California at the height of the war. Brandon secretly leads a team of alien-fighting shapeshifters that consists of him, his best friend J.J., his cousin Trina, his sometimes-girlfriend Crystal, Trina's sometimes-boyfriend Liam, and Liam's stepsister Gina.]
We open on the spacious kitchen of a large suburban home. Mr. A sits reading the paper and smoking a pipe inside, while his son Brandon sits at the same table with a large set of schematics spread out in front of him. Dr. A, in a lab coat overtop a house dress, walks into the room.
Dr. A: Brandon, what's that?
Brandon: *throws himself bodily over the map* Nothing!
[cue laugh track]
Dr. A: Is that... Dear sweet heavens above, it is!
[The camera pans up to show Brandon is clearly failing to cover the floor plan for a Blade ship, and that Mr. A is now craning around the side of his paper to see what the commotion is about.]
Dr. A: Honey, our son... is doing... *loud gasp* Dunces and Dragoons!
Mr. A: *drops his pipe on his paper in shock* *lights the paper on fire, must hastily tamp it out* Dungarees and Dingbats? My own SON?
[cue laugh track]
Brandon: Mom, Dad, I would never! I'm just... I'm only... It was... *directly to the camera* I have no choice — they think I'm playing Dunkin' and Dragnet! *to Dr. A.* There's this alien invasion, Mom, and me and cousin Trina are two of the only six people who have the power to —
Mr. A: *very high pitched* It's affecting his mind already! Look at him, he's lost the plot!
[Cut to a set that looks like the waiting room for a dentist's office. Brandon's older sister Daisy is standing near the front of a queue that stretches the length of the room. Like almost everyone else in line, she is wearing a t-shirt for The Gathering; hers is bright pink and cut into a crop-top, paired with a pink miniskirt and platform heels. The walls are adorned with posters that have slogans like "Do your part for the Yeerk Empire today! If you see a suspicious animal: slay, slay, SLAY!" and "Don't forget to sign up your host's friends and family for our Eternal Member perks program!" Visser Six-Hundred is at the front of the line, typing names into a computer.]
Visser Six-Hundred: Next!
Daisy: Um, hi? I'm Daisy, and after you guys lured me into the Gathering by promising I'd get to meet shirtless Tom Welling — which still hasn't happened, by the way — you stuck my head in a pool and then this total jerk named Zeptron 420 took my body? And anyway, Zeptron never showed up after that last feeding, and I was just wondering...?
Visser Six-Hundred: Not my problem.
Daisy: No, I get that Mr. Welling is a very busy man, but I don't think I'm supposed to go anywhere without Zeptron controlling me?
Visser Six-Hundred: Also not my problem. You have any idea how backed up we've been around here since the kandrona shortage started? Leave now, check back in next cycle, and if Zeptron's not back by then we'll call you.
Daisy: Okay, but...
[camera pans to Daisy's face; the actor, does a very convincing job of realization dawning on the world's silliest airhead]
Daisy: K-thanks-bye! *runs for it*
[Cut back to the A family kitchen. Dr. A is taking Brandon's temperature.]
Dr. A: Looks normal to me. Maybe he isn't getting Durkins and Drainage syndrome yet.
Mr. A: Yeah, if anyone has brain rot it's that darn dog. Thing ain't right, I'm telling you.
[Cut to Mopsy, a fluffy grey-and-white terrier. The dog is currently staring intently at a copy of For Whom the Bell Tolls, which is propped open on the floor.]
Dr. A: What do you mean, ain't right?
Brandon: Yeah, Dad, 'ain't' isn't a word!
[cue laugh track]
[Cut back to Mopsy, who has clearly overheard this conversation and has attempted to hide the book by sticking it underneath a laptop computer, and is playing innocent by staring at the screen instead.]
Mr. A: Just look at her! She's playing Minesweeper!
[The camera zooms in on the screen, revealing that this is in fact the case. An extreme close-up of one of the dog's paws moving across the computer track pad is paired with a shot of the screen going to Xs as she hits a mine. A dog's upset whine is heard.]
Brandon: Come on, she's not even doing well.
J.J.: *in voiceover meant to indicate thought-speak* You try avoiding mines with these tiny paws, loser!
Dr. A: You know, maybe we should get that checked out.
J.J.: VET? Not the vet!
Brandon: *out loud* Don’t be such a baby! Get control of your morph, man!
Dr. A: Then again, maybe the Dungenous Drags are getting to him.
Brandon: Uh, I mean...
J.J.: *runs for it* Bye!
Brandon: I mean, after her!
[While Dr. and Mr. A chase "Mopsy" around the house, J.J. maneuvers Brandon into being the only one in the room when he demorphs. Brandon has to hastily morph into Mopsy to avoid being found out. Trina and Liam stop by Brandon's house to ask Brandon a question, and Brandon maneuvers Liam into being Mopsy just as Mr. A is pulling out the pet carrier. But then human Trina rushes into the room, creating a diversion by claiming a "hairspray emergency", and Mopsy runs off. It's at that point that the B plot intersects with the A plot.]
[Daisy walks into the house. She's wearing black skinny jeans, fingerless gloves, and rainbow hair extensions. There's pop punk music blasting from the giant headphones slung around her neck.]
Mr. A: Get the— *watches Mopsy escape out the front door* Dang it!
Daisy: Dad, you might have noticed I’ve been going through some changes lately. Like I’m becoming a whole different person.
Mr. A: Honey, at your age, it's perfectly normal.
[Mr. A pulls out a box of tampons, seemingly from nowhere, and hands them to Daisy.]
[cue laugh track]
[Liam-as-Mopsy runs around the side of the house, now pursued by J.J. Trina is running after J.J.; together they complete two entire loops of the house. Meanwhile, Brandon is on the phone inside, everyone else passing by in the background. There's presumably an unseen swap, because Liam-as-a-human is seen chasing a different Mopsy, pursued by an enraged-looking Trina who is now holding a knife, while she is in turn pursued by Gina, who appears to be trying to talk her down. There's no audible dialogue, but we cut to Crystal on the other end of the phone, standing in her living room.]
Crystal:... got it! *hangs up the phone* *yells up the stairs* Hey, Mom?
Crystal's Mom: *enters the room* Yes, Crystal?
Crystal: You're looking a little unwell. Why don't you...
[Crystal touches her mom's arm. We hear the tinkling piano notes used to indicate someone is being acquired, and glitter effects briefly fill the screen.]
Crystal's Mom: Now that you mention it...
[She passes out onto the couch, apparently as a side effect of being acquired. This has never happened before, but with this show it's generally best to avoid asking too many questions.]
[Cut back to the A house. Daisy and Dr. A are standing in the kitchen.]
Daisy: Mom, do you ever feel like the whole world's out to get you? Like, do you ever suspect there's a giant conspiracy of alien invaders who are...
Dr. A: *distracted* Oh honey, did you get passed up to be Prom Queen again?
[Dr. A drops a kiss on Daisy's head, before running off in pursuit of Mopsy, who has gotten ahold of the knife and is trying to use it to pick the lock on the back door.]
[Cut to the exterior, where Liam and Brandon are watching the knife blade repeatedly stab through the door six inches off the ground.]
Brandon: You cheated on her again?
Liam: *sighs* Yeah, I cheated on her again.
[Cut back to the interior. Cue ominous music, as the chase speeds up. We see Trina-as-human again, gloating over who we can only assume is Liam-as-Mopsy. They struggle, and she makes an exaggerated face of shock as the dog is meant to have bitten her. Mopsy goes running off again, only to be caught by J.J. There's a scuffle, they roll behind the bushes, and a human Liam emerges holding J.J.-as-Mopsy. Brandon comes running outside with an expression of horror, and Gina dive-tackles both Liam and J.J.-as-Mopsy. Using extreme close-ups, we get only tiny hints of the scuffle, but the human J.J. and Liam would suggest that Gina has now ended up as Mopsy.]
[The montage sequence becomes something straight out of Scooby Doo, with all of the characters sprinting between doors and various mini-encounters including one where two copies of Mopsy are seen backing into each other and yapping in horror, running off in opposite directions before Dr. A can see their error. Why anyone is bothering to morph the dog at all remains an open question.]
[The montage ends with a clang as Mr. A shuts the door of the pet carrier on a Mopsy. The camera pans to a scratched and dirt-covered Brandon, then Trina, then Liam, then Gina... It's J.J. in the pet carrier. As the camera pushes toward J.J.'s fluffy little face frozen in an expression of horror, there's a smash cut to Crystal-as-Crystal's-mom standing in a vet's office talking to a middle-aged woman.]
Crystal: No, I did not lose your hamster — I know exactly where he is. I left him in the same room as Mr. Tyrus's ball python, and... *leans around a door frame to look off camera* *winces at what she sees*
Middle-Aged Extra: Y-yes?
Crystal: You can still see him... He's that big lump right in the middle...
Middle-Aged Extra: *screams* *faints*
Crystal: *to the camera* Brandon better hurry up. If she thinks that's bad, she should see what I did to the parrot.
Parrot: *off camera* And f[bleep] you too, you [bleep] [bleep] [bleep]!
[J.J.-as-Mopsy gets loaded into the car. The music is getting ominous, and all is looking lost, when suddenly Daisy runs out in front of the minivan.]
Daisy: Mom, Dad, I can't take it anymore! I've had someone inside me, and his name is Zeptron!
[Thus, the day is saved and J.J. is snatched from the jaws of a routine pelvic exam by Mr. and Dr. A cutting the vet visit short to instead rush Daisy to the doctor for remedial Sex Ed. Only Brandon realizes what she's talking about, judging by the expression on his face, but the camera doesn't linger there. Instead we see the minivan pull up to the vet at top speed. Mr. A gets out only long enough to thrust the pet carrier into the arms of Crystal-as-Crystal's-mom, and then the car drives off. It screeches to a stop at a near-identical office, only the poster of a dog wearing a stethoscope out front has become a poster of a uterus wearing a stethoscope. Dr. A walks in, dragging Daisy by the arm and shaking her head.]
[Cut back to the vet's office, where J.J.-as-Mopsy licks Crystal-as-Crystal's-mom on the cheek. Cue laugh track. Cue awww sounds.]
[As the credits fill half the screen, we get one last scene of Brandon standing outside Daisy's door. He's obviously nervous, rehearsing a conversation. Brandon leans against Daisy's door and it swings open, causing him to stumble into the room. Cue laugh track.]
Brandon: Hey, Daisy? About what you said earlier...
[Daisy is sitting with her back to the camera. When she does turn around, we get a slow reveal that she's back in pancake makeup, blond hair, and a pink sundress. She has the Myspace page for The Gathering open on the computer in front of her.]
"Daisy": *long pause* Yes, Brandon? You are my human brother, and I am happy to assist.
Brandon: Uh. *slow close-up on his face, as he clearly realizes what has happened* Never mind.
"Daisy": *another long pause* I'm sorry to hear that, Brandon. Human minds are often imperfect, are they not?
[cue laugh track]
[credits fill the screen]
Announcer: DON'T GO AWAY, WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK
#animorphs#a-town#long post#postwar headcanons#animorphs ficlet#jake berenson#<- kind of but not really#allusions to purity culture#allusions to the bubblegum misogyny of mid-2000s pop culture#'PART of an episode' you say#bold of you to over-estimate my self-control in this way
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i love imagining hob and dream as actors cause if you squint and don’t think about it too much dream can still be famous for playing a character named The Sandman. but anyway the two of them worked together on some film, they became friends but nothing more even though they obviously have some kind of tension going on. there’s an event (premier, award show, something) that they have to go to together and hob finally corners dream in the bathroom. dream tells him he can’t, he’s married, he’s straight (wrong), but even though he’s giving hob 100 reasons why he shouldn’t hook up with him right then, hob still sinks to his knees and sucks dream off anyway. and dream lets him.
afterwards they’d continue to have an affair, and they’d try their best to get casted together in future projects to have an excuse to be around each other more often (especially since dream is in denial and needs a plausible excuse for all this). it’s only when they’re in a romance together and they’re “playing up the chemistry” for the press that calliope catches on and there’s a big messy divorce with tabloids and paparazzi
Omg yes. I love that Hob is the seductress here!!!
Hob is less well known than Dream, but he's got a good little fanbase all the same. He could have anyone in the world, more or less. But he doesn't want just anyone, he wants Dream. Dream who is famous and rich and a huge star. For a while, Hob thinks that Dream might resist him... but eventually he gives in. He might be "straight" but he sure does cum hard down Hob’s throat that night in the bathroom.
It's difficult with Dream being so famous, but Hob is determined to have his man. They sneak around and fuck like rabbits when they can, go on subtle dates which could be seen as just friends hanging out. When they go for coffee, Hob will secretly be rubbing Dream’s cock through his jeans or jerking him off in the bathroom. He totally gets off on it, the secrets and the sneaking around.
They finally get to kiss in public when they do a romance movie together... unfortunately people start catching on that it's definitely more than acting. Dream makes all kinds of denials to the press but it's not exactly convincing when a picture of Hob happens to drop out of his wallet...
5 years later, Hob gets to marry the man of his dreams. All because of a blowjob in a bathroom. It didn't do either of their careers any favours, but Dream is happy to retire out of the limelight and Hob is happy to live his life as the notorious "other woman" who got to have his cake and eat it too.
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youtube
Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared
The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!
#ACLA24#ACLA24Leaders#youtube#youtube video#climate leaders#climate solutions#climate action#climate and environment#climate#climate change#climate and health#climate blog#climate justice#climate news#weather and climate#environmental news#environment#environmental awareness#environment and health#environmental#environmental issues#environmental justice#environment protection#environmental health#Youtube
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elysian.
─── THE BEGINNING ; 01.
elysian
adjective; relating to or characteristic of paradise
summary: when you lose your job out of the blue, you’re pretty sure this is the end of the road for you. at least until you reconnect with your childhood best friend aether and he offers you your ideal job and a place to stay. the only condition is that his office will be behind the store you’ll be running, and under no circumstances are you permitted to enter. that’s how you begin your new life as a florist, though you’re not sure how to focus on working when aether seems to have too many pretty boys working both for and against him. your fresh start gets a whole lot more interesting when you discover just how many secrets these men are hiding, but somehow you think you’ll still be able find the elysian ending of your dreams.
pairing: various genshin male characters x gn!reader
a/n: hello!!! i've been talking abt this for ages, i'm sorry it took so long :( i had to rewrite this a billion times until i finally came up w smth i liked hehe <3 this is the first part of the set-up for the universe in which my most recent milestone event takes place ! if you're confused just send me an ask & i'll try to explain better LOL. anyways without further ado let's get right into it !! hope you enjoy <3
elysian masterlist. // next.
If anyone asked you what you do for a living, you doubt that even in your wildest dreams would you have imagined replying that you ran a flower shop as a cover for a gang. It's so outrageous that sometimes you think you owe your past self an apology for going off the rails. But it doesn’t make sense to start telling your story from there – it’s better to start all the way at the beginning: a chance encounter in a coffee shop.
“Y/N? Is that you?”
You’re wallowing in the depths of despair, doing your best not to cry into your cup of iced coffee, when you hear a familiar voice call your name. Jerking around instantly, you scan the room filled with chatting teens, businessmen on important calls and smiling couples until your gaze lands on a man with a long blonde braid sitting at a table a few feet from you.
Your eyes widen, “Aether?!” His face lights up when you recognise him, and he moves to your table, “It is you! Mind if I sit here?” “No, not at all. Just… wow, I can’t believe you’re here. It’s been forever!” “It really has. I’ve missed you,” Aether’s features soften into an easy smile, “I think the last time I saw you was at our college reunion party. How long has it been since then?” Attempting to ignore how his smile still manages to make heat rise to your cheeks, you chuckle, “At least three years, but you were always the one with the better memory. How have you been?”
You don’t know if you’re imagining the shadow that seems to cloud his expression, but it dissipates in a second as he replies, “I’m doing well, actually. Moving here was a great decision, I’ve got a new company and everything.” "Really? That's incredible, Aether!" you beam, "At this rate you'll be taking over Teyvat." "I wouldn't go that far," he rubs the back of his neck bashfully, "What about you?"
Now you're fumbling for an answer. How do you tell your college roommate who you haven't seen in years that you've just been fired from your job and your landlord refuses to renew your lease? "Not too good on my end, if I'm being honest," you start cautiously before plastering on a bright smile, "But I'm hoping things will turn up soon!" Genuine concern floods Aether's face and he frowns, "Y/N, what happened? I don't mean to press, but you always did have a tendency to downplay your problems." "It's nothing, really," you try to laugh it off, but you can't meet his eyes. In fact, you can't even take yourself seriously for trying to delude yourself into believing that you being homeless with no source of income is not that serious.
Aether places his hand on yours, which shocks you enough that your eyes dart up to his and he says softly, "You can tell me, you know. I'm the last person who has any right to judge anyone." "It's not that, I just don't want to dump everything on you," your voice seems to be stuck in your throat, and it comes out a lot less convincing than you hoped for. "Hey," he flicks your forehead gently as a playful smile curves his lips, "I don't think anything can compare to listening to you rant about all your different college crushes for hours." That coaxes a laugh out of you, and you sigh, "Fine."
When you finish telling him the sad story of your life (AKA just the awful news of today), Aether is quiet. Fantastic. Now he thinks you're a jobless loser, and he's going to pity you and this is going to destroy the dynamics of your friendship and- "Would it sound crazy if I said I had the perfect solution for you?" Your train of thought comes crashing to a stop, "What?" "There's this building I have on the outskirts of town. It's our… base of operations, so to speak. But we only use the back storeroom, and the entire front area feels wasted. It used to be a flower shop, and we haven't had time to renovate it into anything we could use. Also, it would be really helpful to have someone I trust keeping an eye on the place," Aether explains.
No way. This has got to be impossible. Could a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity like this really just fall into your lap? Aether smiles, "I remember you once said your dream was to be a florist. And there's an apartment on the second floor, so you don't need to worry about looking for a place to stay." He must be kidding, right? He's definitely joking, and he's going to drop the punchline any minute now. But a few seconds pass in silence and he doesn't say anything – he just looks at you. Tilting his head, he asks, "So, what do you think? Of course, there's no pressure to accept. This must sound pretty wild."
It seems too good to be true, but a part of you doesn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth. You've known Aether for years, he's someone you'd trust with your life. He couldn't have undergone a complete personality change in just a couple of years with no contact, right? Everything will be fine and all your issues will be resolved if you agree to this – who wouldn't want that? Inhaling a deep breath, you look at him with a determined expression, “Alright. If you’re serious about this, I’d love to!” An excited grin spreads across his face, “Awesome! When will you be moving in? I can text the rest of my team to prepare anything you need for the store, just say the word.”
The reality of what’s happening seems to crash in on you as he looks at you expectantly, you’re moving into somewhere you’ve never even seen and becoming the owner of a flower shop after years of working a 9-5 desk job. But strangely enough, it isn’t overwhelming at all; it feels like you’re taking the first step towards a new beginning, and instead of nervousness, elation is what’s bubbling up in your heart right now. So it’s with an eager smile that you reply, “Would today be okay?” Aether’s expression mirrors yours, “Definitely!”
And that’s how a coincidental meeting in a coffee shop changed everything for you, placing you on the path that would eventually lead to an elysian dream of a life.
© starglitterz 2023. do not repost or modify in any way – reblog & leave comments if you enjoyed !
#💫 — elysian !#genshin impact x reader#genshin x reader#genshin impact fluff#genshin fluff#aether x reader
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Why I still think Ed Teach is a sympathetic character
1) He doesn't know the full story of why Stede left him; as such he fills in the blanks with the worst case scenario (the one he addresses to himself in the Gravy Boat): "I am unlovable and I hate myself; it makes sense that he would abandon me."
This has already been articulated brilliantly HERE.
The reason for this knee-jerk reaction? Trauma, trauma, trauma. Keep reading.
2) Ed didn't have some of the social advantages Stede had as a child, when their respective fundamental outlooks on the world and human relationships were being established (NOT to establish a "who had it worse" discussion, but to explain that it will create two very different adults).
'Stede had a fucked up childhood and ended up kind!" Yes he did, but he also had his basic needs met, he was white and affluent and passed as straight (for a while) in a Europe that implicitly rewards those identity markers, his life was not constantly endangered by a violent substance abusing parental figure who was also the only breadwinner, and he never had to live with committing the murder (while still a child!) of a primary caregiver in order to stay alive. Stede learned to play a role--that of the placating, cultured and witty gentleman-- in order to obtain safety (within the nuclear home, and within the conventional European gentry as an adult); he still does this. Ed, on the other hand, learned how to destroy the source of danger at all cost; pair that need to always seem scary with his positive caregiver (his mother) telling Ed quite unequivocally, "we weren't mean for fine things," and the violent, thrill-seeking, substance-abusing monster who results from this is no surprise. Ed's playing a role, too. Is Stede braver and kinder? Yes, and it could be that a great deal of that is inherent, but we're not arguing who is the better person, because not all sympathetic characters are good people. We're only dealing here with whether Ed is worth our time: whether he is still redeemable.
3) There are different KINDS of trauma response; Stede is Fawn, and Ed is Fight.
See above. Fawn responses look like overly placating everyone even at your own expense. They look like doing favors, compulsively centering your identity on helping, pleasing, assisting. Fight responses look like aggression and hostility, denying any trace of vulnerability or guilt, going on the offensive before your perceived "threat" can go on the defensive.
4) The biggest reason: this has always been who Ed, as an adult, is, and the Larger Narrative™ is being told from STEDE'S POV and perception of Ed and of the world of Piracy. The audience is in Stede's shoes.
To quote @captainbonnetslog , "And [ Ed's ] always kinda been like this just minus the suicidal tendencies. The show is kinda developing with Stede. As his naivete fades we see darker things with more nuance." I suspect each season will reveal an Edward Teach of greater complexity. It's not just Ed, either; we sense greater depth and complexity in the personality and motives of the entire og crew (particularly Oluwande, Jim, and most notably, Izzy). The season opens with Stede's (rather charmingly, like our own) naive and romantic fantasy of killing Izzy on a beach at sunset and dramatically rushing into damsel!Ed's arms, apologizing and being instantly forgiven. It's not like that in his reality, or anyone's. Relationships are messy. We're meant to see the worst of Ed. We're meant, if we identify with Stede (who is the best of us all), to love Ed anyway.
5) Related to the above: the INCREASED sympathy we feel toward Izzy Hands, one of the previous antagonists, is a brilliant way to open our eyes to the more nuanced problems in the Ed, Stede, and Izzy triangle. It is NOT a reason to feel LESS sympathy for Ed.
it just means that Ed has hurt Izzy as much as Ed has been hurt, and as much as Izzy has, in jealousy, hurt Stede. Hurt people hurt people. Each viewer will sympathize more with, to return to point 3, a different specific character's way of coping (or failing to cope) with that pain.
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Valicer OT3 Week, Day One: Meet Cute!
Hi all! As per @ot3-week the tumblr, this week -- March 17th through the 23rd -- is OT3 Week the week! So what better way to celebrate than with a week of Valicer fics? :D We start today in the Modern!AU verse (the one where Victor, Alice, and Smiler all meet and get together as modern-day college students, most often seen in my Not-Incorrect Quote collections) with the "Meet cute" prompt -- and what cuter way to meet than the classic Crash-Into Hello? Though only two of the polycule officially met that way -- one was just observing...
--
It has to be them – right?
Alice frowned as she gathered up the various books and notebooks so necessary to her life as a college student, turning the question around in her head as her fellow students hurried out the door. I mean – there can’t be that many people out there going by “Smiler,” she continued to herself, eyes flicking to the person in question as they too gathered their things. It doesn’t feel like a common nickname, at any rate.
“It’s not a nickname at all – it isn’t Nick,” Hatter declared, tapping the ground with his cane. “Unless that’s what the professor had on his screen, in which case that is the nickname – and if that’s the case, this person seems to have disavowed it, given how insistent they were on being called ‘Smiler.’”
Oh hush – you’re focusing on the wrong thing entirely, as usual, Alice though, rolling her eyes as she stuffed a textbook in her backpack. Ugh, really hoping this doesn’t telescope my spine before my next class...anyway, I just think it would be even more of a coincidence to run into someone going by Smiler who wasn’t the curator of that website my boyfriend likes so much than one who was. Especially one taking a psychology class with lots of focus on altered mental states.
“And yet, not impossible,” Cheshire said, appearing beside her. “Which is why you haven’t actually brought the subject up to them for confirmation, I purrsume.”
That, and it would be incredibly awkward – “Oh, hi, I’m not a fan of your website because I don’t get why people would like being hypnotized because of this one asshole psychiatrist who tried to get me to forget he was the one who killed my entire family, but my boyfriend really loves your work, to the point where he’s embarrassed to tell me how often he actually visits your site.” How the hell is anyone supposed to respond to that? Alice shook her head and hoisted her backpack up onto her shoulders. No, better to stay quiet for the time being. It’s not like it’s a huge deal anyway – as previously stated, I’m not the one listening to those inductions. I’ll mention it to Victor later, see what he thinks, and then we’ll see about getting to know this Smiler better. If we decide to do that at all.
Backpack secured, she headed out of the classroom and into the hallway – ironically, right behind Smiler themselves, who fortunately only had bright yellow eyes for their phone. Alice stuck close to the wall to avoid the hustle and bustle of bodies going to and fro as people hurried to their next class, or toward the common area, or outside to get a breath of fresh spring air. Right – common area, to get a jump start on my homework, Alice decided, mentally planning out the best route. And then off to my history class, and then I should be –
“Alice!”
Alice jerked her head up to see Victor fast approaching, smiling and waving at her. “I thought I’d come down and keep you company!” he called as he neared. “My science class was – oh!”
Thunk! Victor jerked backward as he smacked headlong into the equally-distracted Smiler. Their shoulder bag slipped as they juggled their phone, and a couple of textbooks came tumbling out, sliding across the floor. “I’m so s-sorry!” Victor gasped, immediately dropping to his hands and knees to retrieve the lost property before it could get kicked away. “I-I should have p-paid more attention to w-where I was going.”
“Oh, don’t worry about it!” Smiler said, living up to their name as they got their bag resettled properly on their shoulder. “I wasn’t paying attention either. Accidents happen – it’s no big deal!”
Victor froze mid-reach toward the second book, eyes wide. “Ah – uh – um – y-y-yes,” he managed after a moment, blinking rapidly. “I – s-still.” He grabbed the book, then handed it and its sibling over, staring at Smiler with an expression that hinted he didn’t quite believe they were real. “S-sorry.”
“Seriously, it’s fine,” Smiler assured him, happily oblivious to Victor’s shock. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. See you around!”
And with that, they were off, rejoining the flow of humanity around them with ease. Alice watched them go, then walked up to Victor as he slowly got himself off the floor. “Well – that answers that question,” she said.
“Huh?” Victor said, still staring at the spot where Smiler had been.
“Whether the Smiler who just appeared in my psychology class is the same one that’s been melting your brain on the regular,” Alice clarified. “I had an inkling, but...”
Victor went bright pink. “I – ah – yes,” he finally got out, rubbing the back of his neck. “I – wow, I t-thought for sure they used s-some sort of voice changer...”
Alice snorted. “How about we discuss it somewhere a little more private?” she offered, taking his hand. “So not everyone has to see you burning your face off during this conversation?”
Victor gave her fingers a squeeze, swallowing hard. “Please.”
#ot3week#valicer#prompt#fanfic#human smiler AU#victor van dort#alice liddell#smiler alton#starting strong with the first Valicer verse I came up with#thought it might be cute to show this moment#poor Victor he never expected to run into the creator of his favorite hypnosis stuff out in the wild#much less LITERALLY run into them XD#while his girlfriend is watching amused by his reaction#fortunately things get less awkward after this point#mostly there's another very awkward bit after the first time Smiler hypnotizes Victor in person#but that's how they ALL realize they have things for each other and want to be together#so it's awkwardness that was worth it#but for now accidental in-hallway crashes XD#queued
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Hi hi😁 im really glad to catch ur requests open. Ten, would it be alright to adk for a comfort fic with Akashi and his insecure fem! best friend in their 20s? Like sure akashi is perfect abd all but with each other they can share their ups and downs as young adults navigating through life. They experience heartaches and breakups and drunk nights and happy moments, victories, failures, anxieties, hilarious moments etc that theyll remember forever. Theyve fought too and made up throughout the years. Theyre both confused with their careers and perosnal lives. Akashis more sure definitely but she doesnt know where shes going. I thinj this has thr potential to br a funny story hahaha. They just sypport one another always! Maybe they end up together in the end or just implied? Lots of fluff please!! Thank u so much. If it's too vague mayve just akashi tirelessly motivating her and believing in her always never once doubting her potential? You can of course tweak all the details to ur liking judt this general vibe is more than okay. Really need this one! (me im confused 20 something lol) thank you so so much this would mean the world to me.
Hi anon! Let me start by saying how much I adore this idea. I was thinking of how I could incorporate the scenes you listed. At first I was thinking of writing headcanons, but I think writing a narrative of Akashi’s POV will allow him to be more expressive. Anyways, without further ado… ^^
Pairings: Akashi Seijuro x bestfriend!reader
Akashi Seijuro knows what your every breath meant.
He watches you furrow your brows, pucker your lips and make a sharp exhale as you scan the list of entrance exam passers on the board. He waits for you to find your name (there, in the middle of the people sharing your surname. He’s seen it minutes ago), and when you finally did, he observes your sigh of relief.
A radiant smile stretches your lips.
“I passed,” you announce, as if he didn’t know yet.
“Of course,” he answers. His voice brims with confidence. If there’s anyone who could put her mind to something she wanted, it was his best friend.
“Come on, I’ll treat you!” you enthuse, hooking an arm around his as you walk away from the crowd.
Your breathe trembles. Excitement zapped in with flavors of anxiety.
Even so, he’s glad you’re going to college with him.
– 0 –
There are times when Akashi wishes you saw yourself with his eyes.
Your hair sits like a worn-out mop on your head. Light make-up smudged at the wrong places. Eyes rimmed with exhaustion, hurt and self-contempt.
“I should’ve know,” you release a long-drawn groan. “I should’ve know he was a good-for-nothing jerk who just wanted me as some sort of a trophy!”
Akashi’s quiet gaze falls on your drink—warm milk, before a smile captures his lips. Who gets drunk on milk anyways?
“Am I not good enough, Sei?” you mewl. Your eyes are huge and watery, begging him to disagree.
He sighs. “I warned you early on that that boy was nothing short of trouble. Did you at least heed my words?”
You wince and lay your head over your folded arms. With another groan, you snuggle to the side of his arm. “I need my best buddy right now. Not a father.”
“And a friend I am,” he says. He thinks it over, and then, “He is blind.”
“What?”
“You are a supremely flawed human being. We all are. Needless to say, you are a definitely a cut above many.”
You hear the tease in his voice, narrow your eyes and huff. “Is that your way of comforting me?”
Akashi remembers the time you lightheartedly prepare a meal for your now ex-boyfriend. He recalls the genuine emotions dancing in your eyes. He hears your hopeful voice, the one that carries a song of future promises.
He wishes you’d see yourself through his eyes.
“No, it’s my way of telling you the truth.”
– 0 –
Akashi thinks you’re like the moon. Meek and fluctuating.
When you were kids, you always shied away from the adults. You preferred to play with him at the garden or in his room.
Whenever he invited you out to one of the family busines dinners, you begrudgingly tagged along. The polite smile on your face never left, but he could see hints of unease in the way you kept close to him.
When with his friends or teammates in Teiko, you’d exchange pleasantries, indulge them in small talks and even spill supposedly embarrassing things about him. He’d feel you stealing glimpses of him as you looked for reassurance.
“I think you’re like the sun, Sei,” you tell him one time, during the heat of an argument he’d rather not have. It was one of those times when you two walk home together in the swell of the night, university work keeping you both out longer than normal.
You’ve stopped on your tracks, and instead, you’re glaring at him.
“Pardon?” he says.
“I said, you’re like the sun. It’s like you’re meant to rule the skies. You’ve got everything figured out. You’ve got your path laid out for you, and all you need to do is walk over it.”
Akashi finally faces you. It’s then that he notices the slight glimmer in your eyes. Tears from you are rare, and that is why seeing them adorning your gaze makes his chest ache.
“I meant no offense,” Akashi explains. “All I am trying to say is that this indecision might deter you from realizing the things you really want.”
“But what can I do about it? I’m not so sure what I want to do. You think shifting courses is easy?”
He shakes his head. “I did not say that. But you need to start making choices that you wouldn’t second think at the last moment and waste valuable time.”
Your eyes flare at the jab. “Someone like you won’t understand what it’s like to be unsure and lost. You’re talented, smart and versatile. On the other hand, I have to work thrice as hard just to get by each day. I bet you’ve never experienced feeling empowered and ready to take the world one second, only to run out of fumes the next moment.”
A choked noise rumbles your throat as you inspire some air.
“And unlike you, I wasn’t born with a silver spoon up my ass! Stop pretending as if you understand me at all!”
The hurt etches itself on his face, you realize too late.
“Ah… Seijuro, I didn't mean to…” you begin, but he walks ahead of you.
“Let’s go home,” he tells you, not wanting to talk further.
The silence of the aftermath kills you, but it also kills him too, knowing that he could’ve told you about how he thinks the moon glows brighter at nights.
– 0 –
Akashi knows he isn’t infallible.
He’s been beaten by you in a game of cards multiple times when you were seven. He’s fallen a flight of stairs once, and just when he thought no one saw, a blast of laughter emanated from you. He’s worn clothes that were 'outrageously heinous’ according to you. He’s made you cry before, many times—sometimes because of the most mundane and pettiest of things such as eating your dessert accidentally, but sometimes because of almost irreparable damages such as when he told you he needed no one else but himself.
It was a lie of course, and you knew it.
So when he went home after Rakuzan’s defeat at the hands of Seirin, you were there, perched on his bed. Glowing with warmth.
“I figured you want to watch movies with me?” you said with a wry smile. You gestured at the cups of hot chocolate by his lamp.
He wasn't perfect. He won't ever be, but he figures that that's okay.
– 0 –
Akashi can tell when you're nervous.
"I'm so nervous, Sei," you verbalize his thoughts out loud, going over the mirror to strip down to your underclothes.
Akashi ducks, keeping his eyes back to his phone. "Will you please change in private?" he asks, peeved.
"What," you stick out your tongue, putting on that long, cream dress. It falls until your ankles. "We used to run around buck naked in the river when we were younger."
"Emphasis on the younger."
You try to pull the back zipper up, but it proves to be challenging given the low level cut of the dress. Instead, you walk towards him with your hand holding the fabric behind your back. With the other hand on your hip, you ask, "Well? Classy enough?"
"They say it's a trick question when a woman asks about how she looks."
"I'm serious," you hiss.
"You look presentable," he gives in, smiling a bit.
You beam at him before turning back towards the mirror. As you pick up a tube of lipstick, Akashi notices the journal sitting atop your desk.
"Hey, thanks for agreeing to this," you say all of the sudden, unknowingly disrupting his train of thoughts. "I just needed someone to be my date for this event. Otherwise, they'll accuse me of wasting a free ticket… that or, they call me unsociable. That's going to make me feel like crap again."
Akashi sighs for the umpteenth time that day, staring down at the yellowing cover and multi-colored marks of your worn-out journal. It’s the notebook he gave you a few years ago. Hands hovering above the worn out notebook, he says, "You need not to feel like crap just because there are scrutinizing eyes watching you."
"You don't get it," you reply. "This is huge for me and my career. If I screw up—"
"You will rise back," he completes the sentence for you. Akashi holds your nervous gaze, then adds, "Adversaries are meant to defeat us until we gain enough strength and means to overcome. Don't be daunted by the possibility of failure.
"Refrain from holding yourself back, and start believing in people when they tell you about how amazing you are in your own rights."
The monumental pause and gawking you give him is enough to make him grin.
Turning away before he sees your eyes glisten, you harrumph, "Always so flowery in your words, Sei. Whatever. Help me pull this zipper up, will you?"
Grin widening, he ambles over to you to do just that.
– 0 –
There are a number of things Akashi constantly wonders about.
For example, he wonders why you always make a fuss about him. You were also like this before. When he lost his mother, you did everything to fill up the gaping hole.
“Hmm, should you use this tie?” you ask, placing the said clothing article over his chest, “or this black one? I think the black one fits you better than this red one, hmm?”
You toss the chosen tie on the chair before he can let a word out. You proceed on rummaging through his closet, muttering under your breath about how rich Akashi is and how having too many clothes to choose from is a bother.
Akashi chuckles and grabs the tie you selected. “Calm down.”
“Calm down?” you repeat, incredulous. “You’re going out on a date! You have to look your absolute best, otherwise you’re going to live down that regret for the rest of your life!”
“An exaggeration,” he remarks. “And to set the record straight, this is hardly the first time I am going out to dinner with someone.”
“Damn right, it's not. But you wouldn't know if you’d actually be dating your soulmate, right? Better make a good impression.”
He wants to argue that he doesn't at all consider it a date. It was a dinner meeting his father set-up, one with the heir of a promising business partner. And still, you frantically run around his room like a madman who is at her wits end.
He looks at your back fondly.
Here you are, young adults venturing out on new chapters of your life—still going hand in hand, inseparable. You have always been there to keep him grounded. And he, in turn, never fails to guide you back when you seem to stray away.
"Please get it right this time," he hears you mumble as you finally emerge from his towering closet. "Your dates never seem to work out, for Pete's sake, Sei. I'm starting to think you're the problem here."
"I just do not like being in a hurry."
"Yeah, sure," you reply, completely unconvinced. "But it is weird. You're like the best, ideal guy out there. No one compares to you!"
You stare down at him as he stares back with a painted gaze. Giving up, you sigh and shake your head, shooting him an affectionate smile as you hand him his gray dress shirt.
"Bachelor of the year, they say. I wonder why the hell you're still single," you laugh.
He wonders too.
And he wonders whether it has anything to do with that saccharine smile of yours.
Taglist: @shakethatsassyass
#akashi seijuro x reader#akashi x reader#akashi seijuurou x reader#akashi seijuro#kuroko no basket#knb fanfic#the basketball which kuroko plays#akashi seijūrō#tenkasato writes
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Nestas abusive mom and grandma forbid her from seeing local blacksmith cassian but she’s had enough and runs away with him anyway to be safe and happy.
TW: Abuse, Abusive Family Relationships.
“Run away with me.” Cassian had blurted out one afternoon making Nesta glance up at him through her lowered lashed, her head resting firmly on his lap. His fingers rubbing tentatively at one of the bruises her grandmother had left on her that day, his face holding a sense of fury for her that Nesta had never known.
“Where could we even go that my family will not find me? Do you not recall the influence that they have?” Nesta told him, fiddling with an apple in her hands as Cassian grasped them gently, concern lighting up his features, his gaze saying he had something to tell her.
“What? What is it?”
“I got a job offer in a town far from here. It’s small and probably won’t make that much more than I already do, but-”
“It's a chance to get out of here.” She finished for him as Cassian nodded.
She sat up, glancing down at her hands, a feeling of dread at the one person who made her truly happy leaving her to this cruel fate, but she knew it would be selfish to ask him to stay when he had been dreaming of getting out of this town for all his life.
“If you wish to go-then I will not stop you.” Nesta told him as she felt him pulling her to him so she would glance at his eyes.
“You’ve misunderstood what I’m asking Sweetheart. I’m not telling you this because I want to leave you, I would never want to leave you willingly. I’m telling you this because I want to take you with me.”
“But my family-” She breathed out as Cassian placed his thumb on her lips seizing her words as they swallowed themselves down her throat.
“Will understand-you already said they are also looking for ways out themselves.”
“I need to make sure they’re okay first. I can’t leave them to the wrath of my mother and grandmother.”
Cassian’s arms tightened around her as if he didn’t want her to go back to the hell she was living in. As if he would take her and her sisters away if her had the funds and the choice to do so. but there was nothing Cassian could really say to change her mind.
“Your father-”
“Is useless.” Nesta argued as his shoulders slumped slightly.
“You should not be subjected to this life of cruelty because your father refuses to do anything about it.” Cassian told her, brushing his knuckles across her cheek. “You deserve all the happiness this love givers you and more.”
Nesta’s heart fluttered at his words, ready to lean in for another kiss as a voice made her stomach stink,
“Nesta Archeron! Get back here this instant!” Her grandmother yelled making Nesta suck in a breath. No. Anyone, but her.
Nesta tried her best not to flinch away from her grandmother as she charged up the hill, Cassian throwing his body protectively in front of Nesta, baring his teeth slightly as her grandmother reared her cane at Cassian as Nesta lurched forward taking the brunt of it as pian exploded in her skull and she heard Cassian cry out as her grandmother jerked her up roughly, her grip tight enough to bruise as she grasped Nesta’s hair pulling it so hard that Nesta was amazed she hadn’t ripped any strands out in the process.
“Get your hands off her!” Cassian yelled, lurching forward to try and grab Nesta back as her grandmother hit Cassian across the face with her cane a crunch sounding from his nose as a scream ripped Nesta’s lips.
“Take this as a lesson, girl.” Her grandmother breathed out, her grip so tight that Nesta couldn’t escape it, “Take this as a lesson that every time you disobey us, there will be consequences.”
Her grandmother lashed her cane at Cassian’s back making him cry out in pain, collapsing to the ground in agony as her grandmother spat at him in disgust, as if he were nothing but garbage.
“If I figured you have done anything to deflower my granddaughter and upheave her place in society, I will come after you and make sure you know exactly how much you don’t mess with the Archerons. I will make sure you remember your place.” Her grandmother growled at him jerking Nesta down the hill after her as Nesta turned her head back to Cassian meeting his eyes as terror filled them.
Nesta was thrown into the carriage, her grandmother beside her as Nesta winced at the impact, a scowl etched at her face.
“Just wait until your mother hears about this. It is up to her to pick your punishment, but just hope you didn’t give that boy everything or else it’ll be a lot worse for you.”
She had not given her body to Cassian, she had known how much danger he would be in if she had, but she had allowed his tongue to taste her. to indulge in the part she so desperately wanted to give him, and she had returned the favor for him, but they had never gotten past that, him knowing she wanted to wait until they were married to do so, but she would not tell her grandmother that. Would refuse to tell her grandmother and mother just how far her and Cassian's love had rooted within her. They did not deserve to know about a love so pure.
When the carriage had made a full stop, Elain glanced up from her position in the gardens. An uneasy crossing her face as their grandmother got out of the carriage first, opening Nesta’s door and throwing her out into the nearest mud puddle making Nesta cough and sputter as mud filled her mouth and coated her face and body.
Her grandmother’s harsh face sneared down at her in disgust,
“You better get used to that if you continue letting that boy defile you. How many times have you let him in between those legs of yours Nesta.
Nesta sputtered as the manor’s door opened and her mother grabbed her skirts crossing fiercely over to Nesta, the doctor and her father standing firmly by the door as her mother grabbed her by the arm, forcing her to follow her inside,
“Tell me the truth and don’t you dare lie to me, have you let that man take you to his bed, Nesta?”
Multiple times. Nesta wanted to shout, but the doctor would not know about Cassian’s multiple feastings upon her, as Nesta shook her head and her mother’s grip loosened slightly.
“Than you wouldn’t mind the doctor checking to make sure your maiden head is in tack.”
Nesta shook her head as Nesta made her way into the room, the doctor following her mother in as he gestured for Nesta to lay on the bed, examining as she sent a prayer of thanks to the heavens for the fact that Cassian had not feasted on her that day, leaving no traces that anything sexual had ever occurred between them as the doctor told her mother all that she wanted to know as Nesta let out a sigh and the doctor left the room, her mother offering her a thanks as Nesta sat up on the bed,
“See. I did not do anything with him.”
“Your grandmother said that she caught you laying with him.” Her mother challenged her eyes filled with fury.
“That was all we were doing, we have not went further than that.”
“I don’t believe that,. If you are lying with him then I have no doubt that you have let him taste your lips.”
“Kisses are harmless, mother.” She tried to argue as she felt the sting a moment later where her mother’s hand had lashed out across her face before, she grasped her face forcing Nesta to look back at her, pinching her cheeks together as Nesta struggled to get out of her mother’s hold.
“We both know what a kiss can lead to Nesta. Don’t be so ignorant you stupid, foolish girl.” She growled out, releasing Nesta as Nesta’s hand slid up to the pain in her cheeks.
Her mother huffed out, pacing the floor in contemplation.
“You will no longer see this boy, Nesta. Do you understand me?”:
“No.” Nesta blurted out as her mother welled to her, grasping Nesta by the hair and throwing her to the ground as Nesta cried out in pain.
“You will do as I say or i will lash him out of your system do you understand me?”
Nesta nodded, her soft cries filling the room as her mother let out a breath, opening the window for her as she stared out of it,
“What has that boy done to my obedient girl?”
Nesta bit down on her lip, refusing to answer as her mother’s voice turned cold. ]
“You will not see that boy ever again my sweet. I know it will be painful, but once you are in the arms of your betrothed I doubt you’ll even remember his lips on yours.”
“What?” Nesta inquired.
“Your grandmother has found you a suitor, one of the families that will secure your position in society, sure he would love someone more obedient and will only see you as someone who will bare his children as soon as he beds you, but you will grown used to it. It’s for the best this way, my sweet, you’ll see.” Her mother said about to roam her hands over Nesta’s hair as Nesta flinched away from her.
Her mother sighed as if Nesta was being the unreasonable one and stood, glancing down at her daughter with shame,
“Put some makeup on your bruises before you meet the Vanserras. I wouldn’t want Eris to see his future betrothed and see an ounce of imperfection.”
Nesta’s stomach sank at the name as she heard the door lock as Nesta swore the room lacked air. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t marry him when her heart belonged to another.
Not thinking about it, Nesta waited until her mother’s steps retreated, as her eyes fell upon the open window her mother had not bothered to close as Nesta . made her way towards it, knowing that she had enough. She couldn’t marry Eris she absolutely refused to.
She made the decision as easy as breathing as she went to her drawers, the money she had stashed there for emergencies still there as she stashed it in her bodice, her eyes glancing at the window, before hesitance passed by her.. Her sisters. Could she really leave them behind with the vipers in the house?
She took in a deep breath, glancing out and still noticing Elain in her gardens. She had to talk to her. Had to make her understand that she couldn’t stay here, not when her mother wanted her to marry that wretched man. Not when if she didn’t do this she would never see Cassian again.
She made sure no one else was around as she climbed out the window, her feet sinking in the soft grass of the gardens before she headed towards Elain, her gentle brown eyes, so much like their father’s, glanced up at Nesta in worry.
“Nesta, are you alright?” Elain asked as Nesta spread her skirts, sitting beside her sister.
“No, Elain. I don’t think I am.” She admitted, refusing to let the tears fall.
“They found out about him, didn’t they?” She inquired.
Elain had known about Cassian, had wanted stories about her sisters escapades as she listened and smiled at the fortune her sister had managed to get in their life.
“Yes.” Nesta told her, glancing down at her hands as Elain took them,
“Then you must go to him, Nesta. You must get away from this place before they try to take what is most precious to you in this world.”
Nesta glanced up at her sister, her blue-grey eyes meeting her sister’s brown ones as she said,
“But you and Feyre-”
“Will find a way, but I will never forgive myself if I knew you had a way out of this mess and I did nothing to encourage you to take it. I will protect Feyre and I, we already have a few plans in motion, but Nesta, take this opportunity or else there might not be one again. “
Nesta hugged her sister fiercely, as she whispered for her to go. With that one command, Nesta gathered her skirts, racing towards the one person who had truly ever made her feel safe and loved knowing that when she made it to him, she would never look back.
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Bangchan Mafia AU oneshot
Originally written by me on Wattpad
Mafia Au:
(16+) please be careful of certain suggestive themes. I've marked where they start with the ~ and where it ends with ~
It was no surprise to anyone when Bangchan destroyed the living room after one of your gangs' missions. Anyone besides Y/N of course, who was totally and completely oblivious to the feelings the leader felt towards her. She could hear the frustrated yelling from her room on the third floor as she changed into something more comfortable than the beautiful red dress she had on. A knock sounded on her door as she was hanging the dress.
"Come in." Though the man was already walking through the door. Y/N didn't need to look at him to know it was Leeknow, the second in command coming in for a debrief. He and Changbin were the only ones who stayed behind, watching coms.
"I'm here for-"
"The debrief, yes I know." Y/N cut him off. She sat in on the bed as he pulled up a chair. "I still don't understand why you do this because you see everything that goes on anyways." She thought out loud to him. Lee know gave her a hard glare but shrugged.
"I don't know either. Anyways, tell me what happened tonight."
Y/N crossed her legs, sitting cross-cross applesauce and grabbed a pillow to hug as she began her story.
~
Y/N walked up to the bouncer, showing her ID to him from her sparkly silver clutch. He eyes her, then the ID, before nodding to let her in. She made eye-contact with Bangchan, who was already sat a booth, before pinpointing where all the other members were. She found her target at the bar and walked over, sitting in the seat next to him. Ricky, tall, blonde, angelic looking Ricky. You never would have know he was apart of one of the nastiest gangs here in South Korea with how naturally sweet he was. But too much sweetness can make one sick.
"Well hello gorgeous, never seen you before." Ricky drawled, sipping his old fashioned. Y/N looked over to him and gave him a smile. "Hello, yes I'm just a tourist here, thought I'd try a new place." She shrugged before asking the bartender for a Shirley Temple. He set it down in front of her.
"Well I highly recommend here, so you chose well. You here with anyone?" The blonde next to her asked, taking a piece of her h/c hair in his hand and twisting it around his finger. Y/N internally gagged but forced a giggle.
"Actually no, thought I'd get out and see if I can meet anyone, since it's my last night here." She smiled and fluttered her eyelashes a bit. Her hand slowly reached towards a hair on his forehead that was misplaced, pushing it back. Ricky looked at her with hungry eyes.
"Well well well, how about I make your last night the best one of your life?" He said, jerking his head to the dance floor and holding out his hand. Y/N placed her hand in his and followed him to where couples danced against eachother. She started swaying her hips a bit to the slow beat as he held her waist. She placed her hands behind his head, bringing him closer. A little voice spoke in her ear.
"Now Y/N." She heard Han's voice crackle to life from her earpiece. Y/N spun to where her back was against his chest as she grinded on him, hastily grabbing the tracker from in between the folds on her dress. Ricky groaned in her ear as she pushed herself backwards onto him a bit before turning around and giving him a smirk.
"Anymore of that and you'll have to pay." Y/N teased, her arms wrapping around his neck again as she placed the tracker on his upper back. Ricky laughed, though she could notice he was now in an uncomfortable position by the tent in his jeans.
"Get out of there." A dark and brooding voice crackled to life in her ear again, this time it being Bangchan, though she didn't recognize it at first. Y/N pushed herself away from Ricky gently.
"I totally forgot about my drink! I paid for it, I should probably drink it and.... You should probably go take care of that." She pointed to his jeans and he flushed red a little.
"I'll come find you... when I'm done." Ricky chuckled, a little embarrassed. Y/N nodded. "I'll be waiting." She waved him off as he left for the restroom. She grabbed her clutch and paid for her drink before leaving through a side door. Slowly she walked to the black corvette down the street, getting in. All the members were there, looking at her wide-eyed. Y/N looked at them, confused.
"What?"
~
"After that, we came home and Chan decided to go destroy the living room for whatever reason, but you already know that of course." Y/N waved her hand as she watched Leeknow type out her side of the story. He finished up and shut it, pinching the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb and sighed.
"I think you should go talk to him..." was all Leeknow said before leaving her room. Y/N shrugged, pulling on a chunky cardigan and walking out of her room. The sounds of yelling were gone, so she assumed Chan was in his room. She walked over to his hall and knocked on his door. She was met with silence so she knocked again. Y/N sighed.
"Channie I know you're in there. I want to make sure you're... ok. Can I please come in?" She waited for a second and then heard the door click open. A fluffy haired, exhausted looking Chan in his tight fitting tank top. He looked at Y/N with dead eyes. She stared up at him a bit before clearing her throat.
"May I come in?"
He walked away but left the door open for her, so she walked in and closed the door. He flopped onto his Texas king sized bed and sighed, looking away from her. Y/N walked over and sat down, slowly starting to lightly rake her nails along his back.
"Do you... wanna talk about it?" She asked, and he shook his head. Then he stopped and faced her, looking up at her with puppy eyes.
"I just.... Hated seeing you flirt with him." He said slowly, then hid his face in his pillow. She brought her nails to the nape of his neck and started scratching the back of his head lightly.
"You... did?" Y/N asked. Chan nodded before looking at her again.
"And I didn't like him touching you. Or flirting with you. And I especially didn't like when you guys... danced." He sighed, burying his face into the pillow again. She stopped the scratches and stared at him for a second.
Was he... jealous?
Y/N started giggling and Chan looked up at her appalled.
"Are you laughing at me?!" He asked, shocked. She nodded. Chan sat up and grabbed Y/N by the waist, placing her laying down on his bed and tickling her sides. She gasped, the giggling now painful.
"Chan no!!!! Stop!!" Y/N tried to pry his finger from her sides, but to no avail. He eventually stopped, looking down at her. She smiled up at him as she caught her breath.
"That was mean." She gasped out. He smiled down at her.
"I love you."
Y/N looked up at him in shock, the roles now reversed. Chan was still above her, looking at her seriously.
"I love you." He repeated. "Tonight showed me how much I want you to be mine, that you shouldn't touch any other man like that, talk to no other man like that, nothing. That should be me. So... will you please?" He asked, looking down at Y/N. She felt like she could hardly breathe.
"I didn't know you felt the same way..." she whispered before nodding. "Yes I want to be yours. I love you too." She smiled before wrapping her arms behind his neck and pulling him down to her, placing her lips on his. Chan smiled into the kiss, returning the passion. It got to the point where they both couldn't breathe so they pulled away. It was that moment the door flew open to an angry Jeongin.
"Chan I'm not cleaning up your mess- OH!" He screamed, covering his eyes. Of course his scream brought all the other members who looked inside and also covered their eyes.
"Does this mean you guys are finally together." Changbin whined. Y/N had sat up and giggled.
"Yes Binnie~" she smiled, looking at Chan. He wrapped an arm around her waist.
"Guess that makes you their mother, will you be able to take it?" He asked. Y/N laughed.
"What do you mean? I always have been." She smiled.
~
First one shot done 😪 1500 words yall-
Who next :0
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Daybreak review
I finished watching Daybreak yesterday. It's a Netflix show. Only had one season before it was canceled. Amazing show. This review has no major spoilers, despite me wanting so badly to be specific about what I loved about it. I don't want to spoil anything just in case anyone wants to watch it.
It's a post-apocalyptic comedy show. It's about a teenage boy named Josh who is searching for his girlfriend, Sam, after the end of the world. The adults had turned into zombies, and teenage street gangs rule the city.
Matthew Broderick is in it. I loved him in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. It was nice to see him here. He was hilarious in this show. He plays Principal Burr, the funniest character in Daybreak.
The main characters are Josh, Angelica, and Wesley. The fourth one is a guy named Eli. He's in the white shirt in the picture I posted. Josh in red. Wesley is the Black boy. Angelica is the girl.
Josh wants to find his girlfriend. Wesley is a ronin-obsessed guy who wants to redeem himself. Angelica is a mischievous little girl. Eli is an annoying guy who lives in the mall Josh, Wesley, and Angelica end up staying at. There's another character too, an adult named Ms. Crumble. Her bond with Angelica is the best thing about this show. It was nice seeing them grow closer over the course of the show. There are other great bonds in Daybreak too.
Anyway.
The first two episodes were somewhat lame. I remember being a bit bored while watching them. Episode three was better. I started to (slightly) enjoy the show then. Episode three was when the characters started to bond with each other and stop being such selfish jerks. That's definitely what made me begin liking the show. The characters caring about each other.
Anyway, episode four was amazing. There was a big heroic moment. Funny moments too, like when two certain characters were fighting. One of them got something hot thrown into eyes, and he casually shouted something like "Ow. My eyes. That really hurt." It was hilarious because in real life, someone would be screaming in agony or yelling out a bunch of curse words if their eyes were in that much pain. Earlier in the episode, the same character casually said hi to him after unmasking himself. It was supposed to be a big revealing moment, but this character's casualness made the scene so hilarious.
Episode four really shows some great character depth, too. That's when the characters really start getting interesting. In this episode, the heroes in this show start to become fun to watch, and so do the villains.
After episode four, each episode is amazing and well-written. This show was so unpredictable, but in a good way that makes sense. You never knew what would happen, unless you've been paying attention or are a smart person. Like, one character was going to use maggots to deal with another one's infected wound. I knew what the maggots were going to do before the show even revealed it.
Every episode is unique in some way and you never know what's going to go down. And they use certain situations for humor in interesting ways. Like when some characters were temporarily deaf in the last episode. There was a drawn-out scene in the mall, and it was pretty funny how it went.
Sometimes big text on the screen is used as dialogue, like when Turbo "speaks". I thought that was pretty cool.
The foreshadowing is great. I never saw foreshadowing used so well before watching this show. And it's got cool references to other scenes. Like, one character would mention something, and then the next episode would show it happening. The show does this with minor stuff, too. For example, Sam mentions learning something from her teacher, Ms. Crumble. The episode after that has a flashback showing Sam learning that piece of info. I loved that.
The music is great. There are plenty of heartwarming, sweet moments. There are hilarious ones, too. A lot of them. But the best thing about Daybreak is the characterization. The characters in this show are amazing, interesting, and have depth. Wonderful character development, too. Great dialogue. And the flashbacks are all necessary. They matter to the show's present timeline, and the flashbacks were put to good use.
There are some cool bonds in this show, with the best one being the one between Angelica and Ms. Crumble.
I had a theory on who Baron Triumph was while watching the show, and the character I believed was him actually turned out to be him. It was so satisfying. That character was one of the best things about this show, too.
Also, Daybreak is not a zombie show. There are zombies in it, but they don't feature too much. The show is mainly about the teenage gangs.
I don't like fourth wall breaking, so I hate that this show has a lot of it. And if this wasn't a comedy, I probably would've loved it more. Because I love serious fiction. I don't like wacky comedies all that much. Regardless, Daybreak is an amazing comedy show with heart. Like that Japanese film Love Exposure. My favorite movie. Daybreak is probably the best comedy TV show I've watched, actually. The characters and the writing make this show so wonderful.
I recommend people watch this show.
Interesting characters. Excellent character development. Unpredictability. Great music. Heartwarming scenes. Hilarious humor. Good writing in general. Smart characters. Fantastic foreshadowing.
I'm rating Daybreak four out of five stars.
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Ninja Daily: Clarity 7
"K-kai!" She pulsed her chakra out to disrupt what she was seeing, despite the uncanny realism. But nothing changed except that her training partner's smug smile widened slightly.
Not a genjutsu, then. Huh.
"What the hell is that?" Aiko breathed, stopping in her tracks.
Obito made a 'herk!' sound and jerked to halt his attack, vines whipping backward. "Something you're supposed to dodge!" he said, voice oddly shrill. "You can't just stop whenever something is interesting. Lots of enemies will have techniques you haven't seen before."
Aiko made a low sound of understanding, frowning slightly. "Sorry, it shocked me. Try again?"
'Shocked' wasn't really the right word. When plant matter had rocketed out of the ground in the middle of their spar, her first thought was that Obito had turned to genjutsu.
'For a second…' Aiko cleared her face as she readjusted her stance, ready to dodge in any direction. But her mind was still stuck on what she'd seen a moment ago. Or rather, what she hadn't seen. For just a second, she had caught the wood-like material moving out of the corner of her eye and had expected to see that her opponent was a completely different man. Someone with carefully mussed brown hair, big sad eyes, and the weirdest forehead protector she'd ever seen.
'I'm sure Obito would love to know that I'm having strange visions,' Aiko thought with some amusement. She could tell him, of course, and he probably wouldn't think she was crazy. But she didn't seriously consider it.
It was either a strange hallucination, or a flash of memory. There would be no point in telling Obito if the case was that her brain was on the fritz. She much preferred the idea that it was a bit of memory from another spar, that Obito's attack had triggered a faint recollection.
Aiko was a hoarder lately. Not of physical things, but little bits and pieces of her old life. She was strangely reluctant to share what she remembered with Obito. Why should she? It wasn't like he'd opened up about the minutia of his childhood.
He probably wouldn't be that interested anyway. Remembering that she had been raised in a crowded orphanage with a skinny blonde boy and a pretty woman who wanted to be called 'Aunt Mikoto' was interesting to Aiko, but probably boring to anyone else.
(She wondered what had happened to the people she remembered. Was Mikoto really her aunt, or just a volunteer as her memory seemed to indicate? Probably a volunteer. They looked nothing alike.)
"Look, forget it." Obito shook his head, disgusted. "Let's try again when I get back." He clenched his hands, cutting off the wood jutsu altogether. "You were doing well until you got distracted by butterflies."
"It's just all the pretty colors," Aiko deadpanned. "I can't help it."
His lips pulled into a smile despite his disgruntlement. "Try to get it out of your system while I'm gone."
"What's on the schedule?" she pried, interlocking her fingers and twisting her arms above her head. Aiko rolled her neck, cracking it while she walked. Her friend winced, but didn't pause in stepping inside and holding the door open for her.
"Well, after a shower," Obito prevaricated, "I'm going to go poke around Suna."
"What's in Suna?" Aiko cocked her head curiously, blinking up at him.
He looked away before responding, eyes distant. His voice remained congenial, though. "A reasonable man."
Aiko snorted. "Well, we can't have that," she said gamely.
Obito huffed a little. "No, we can't," he admitted with a twitch of a smile. "Our business is best done when the great countries are communicating as little as possible. When you live outside the law, effective communication and cooperation between the lawkeepers is less than beneficial to your continued well-being."
"In other words, screw that guy," Aiko concluded cheerily. She flopped down on her customary chair and gave him a cheeky look. "Are you going to kill him or something?"
"Nothing so drastic," Obito scoffed. "Better someone I can predict, for now. No. As I said, he's a reasonable man. If his people are upset and there are reasons for him to be wary of what his allies tell him, he won't commit to a course of action that would help international tension simmer down. He probably thinks that the Mizukage is greedy, the Raikage is impulsively violent, and the Hokage is holding back information." He gave an easy shrug. "A reasonable man wants to believe the best and prepares for the worst. If a couple of patrols go missing here, a spy is discovered there, and he comes across unsettling information every so often, he won't be able to be the voice of reason forming that gaggle of egotistical fools into something remotely competent."
Aiko paused.
"That sounds kind of fun," she admitted. "Can I do that?"
"Maybe later." Obito gave her a sideways look, smiling slightly. "It is pretty satisfying."
She made a rude pfft sound, despite not really being that upset. Her pout had no effect, but she hadn't really expected that it would.
He heaved a sigh and turned to fully face her, clearly amused. "Just come out and say whatever it is."
"I don't know what you mean," Aiko deflected.
He looked unimpressed.
"Alright, fine," she admitted with a dismissive wave. "I may have heard about a job request that sounded interesting. But it seems more like a two-person job."
Obito hummed under his breath, sucking on his cheek thoughtfully. "And you wanted me to adventure with you?" She looked sheepish. "Well, I'm sorry that won't work out. And-" he blinked in realization. "Zetsu is preoccupied for another week or so."
Aiko nodded miserably. "Right. Someone else will snap it up if I wait that long."
He looked at her sad little face, debating internally. She would stay at the base or take a duller mission if he asked. On the other hand, what would it hurt to treat her?
He sighed. "You know, we need a longer term solution for you. Zetsu and Kakuzu are capable of working without partners and prefer not to, and there's no one else I'd trust on missions with you. But taking little jobs whenever something interesting comes up through whatever contacts you've found involves a lot of travel for generally small jobs." Judging by the resigned frustration on her face, Aiko already knew that.
Oh, hell. He rubbed at his temples, feeling a bit sorry for her. All she wanted to do was stay busy and help. Was that so wrong?
"You'll have to work with a stranger on this one," Obito warned. Her eyes immediately brightened, and she nodded hastily. "Kakuzu is not a particularly approachable man."
"That's fine!" Aiko chirruped.
"Alright." He absently pulled down his mask. "I'll contact him right now. Do what he tells you, alright? You'll have to wear the uniform, or at least the cloak, so that he recognizes you. Don't let anyone else see you in it; the cloak is distinctive but reversible. We're keeping a low profile at the moment."
"I know," she stressed, having heard this speech. "I'll wear the stupid cloak."
He held up a hand, struck by one more thought. "Where is the mission? I'll tell him to meet you there."
Aiko shrugged. "Someplace called Kiichigo Fīrudo. It sounds nice."
"Prepare to be surprised," Obito responded distractedly.
'What a dump.' Aiko braced her elbows on her knees and tried not to frown too vigorously down at the grubby little farming town that had hosted a surprisingly well-paying mission request. 'I wonder who in this town would have that kind of money.'
She had an excellent view of people going about early morning chores from her perch on an overlooking bluff face.
Kiichigo Fīrudo boasted perhaps two hundreds souls—farming families, simple folk who lived off the land. They were currently going about all sorts of wholesome things like milking cows and hoeing fields and – and that was all the farm-ish things that Aiko could recognize to list, but there were doing plenty of other things.
Aiko crinkled her nose in mild revulsion. 'It wouldn't be so bad if it didn't smell so much like goats. This whole place should probably be cited and quarantined.'
She was actually rather thankful for the oversized cloak Obito had stuffed her into before he'd let her leave. The high collar easily covered her nose, which filtered out some of the funktastic smell.
("Deidara was actually closest to your size," Obito had chatted cryptically while she grumpily held her arms out to the side. "Konan's would be less broad through the shoulder if a little longer, but she's gotten rid of all her uniform clothes, so the point is moot.")
Well, whatever. She didn't care that much about bespoke cloaks.
"I take it you are to be my partner?" a low voice ground out.
Aiko took a moment to respond, still scowling down at the villa below. She was not looking forward to getting closer.
"Yes. You must be Kakuzu. Let's get this over with, shall we?"
He responded with a grunt and started walking. Aiko's fingers hovered at her collar for a while—Obito had said that she should take it off after Kakuzu recognized her. More specifically, he'd recommended that they turn the tell-tale cloaks inside out before anyone else saw them. But he'd also ordered her to follow Kakuzu's lead, and he didn't make a motion to remove his cloak.
Besides, the inside of the cloaks were emred/em. She didn't see how that was less conspicuous than black with a couple of clouds.
'Well, I'll do what Kakuzu does,' Aiko decided. 'At least this collar keeps some of the reek at bay. I don't care much if it's right-side-out.'
It wasn't until after they had formally accepted the mission that Aiko realized that her partner was highly uncommunicative. Perhaps not going through the motions of civility with her current partner had been a mistake. Kakuzu-san seemed put-out with her.
Maybe her rudeness had hurt his feelings? He didn't look like a particularly delicate flower, but appearances were deceptive.
'I'll just be extra nice,' Aiko decided.
He apparently made no such resolution.
"You should have been capable of completing this mission without any assistance," Kakuzu criticized after a long period of silence. "If you are worthy of this organization, five shinobi should pose no threat to you."
She blinked in mild surprise. He didn't seem like a talker, but then again, it wasn't like she had much else to do for entertainment while they waited for the band of missing-nin that had apparently been extorting the little town. "All the mission request said was that it was a team mission sorting out gang-related problems," Aiko said finally. "I didn't know that it was such a small number of missing-nin."
That was true, although she'd half expected to find out their opponents were civilians and genin washouts.
Kakuzu grunted, not pleased by her answer. "You should have gathered more information before you accepted the mission. How did you expect to make a profit without knowing how much effort you would be expending? Foolish brat."
Aiko felt her hackles rise at the insult and greedy outlook.
'Don't engage. He's rude, but that's his problem, not yours,' she tried to convince herself. 'Arguing will only waste time and get me mad for no good reason. I'll get the mission done as soon as possible and we'll part ways.'
That in mind, she pressed her lips together and looked away dismissively. After a moment, she calmly managed, "I don't mind doing extra work for the reward. The mission sounded like it would be mildly entertaining and keep me out of the house."
It also counted as her good Samaritan deed for the week, she thought. She didn't share that part. Kakuzu didn't seem the type to appreciate hints of benevolence.
Aiko was actually rather proud of herself when her response came out civilly. Kakuzu grunted in what seemed to be disapproval, but he let the subject drop. It was a relief when a small caravan crested a distant hill and wound around the dirt roads that led into town.
"What's that, eight people on foot?" Aiko confirmed, squinting a bit. "There could be more in the carriage, of course, but I bet that's where the loot is."
This gang was at least ostensibly a group of travelers who offered mercenary protection for merchant's goods. It was actually a pretty good idea, Aiko thought. They'd transport others' goods from place to place as a sort of delivery company. Being on retainer theoretically made the prices much lower than transport protection that could be arranged on an individual basis with shinobi villages, and made it much easier to make multiple trips and sell a lot more merchandise. Produce, in this case.
They were almost certainly smugglers, in Aiko's opinion. That'd be what she would do, if the business was hers. Of course, she would take care to remain on their clients' good sides to skirt under the law and not all but rob them at knifepoint, but no one had ever accused most bandits of being particularly business-savvy.
She stood, giving a little stretch, and then began leisurely walking to close the distance. Aiko wanted to see them up closer. The odds that another group was using this road when the gang was expected were not good, but she'd like to be sure. It would be pretty embarrassing to accidentally murder random travelers instead of the people they'd been contracted to eliminate. They were supposed to be able to recognize their targets by kanji the hired muscle wore—lucky travels.
"That's them," her partner noted. The group was just now noticing the two cloaked shinobi, and raising a small commotion amongst themselves.
'They're deciding whether to be friendly or if we look like too much of a threat,' Aiko decided, curling her fingers around the length of wire she carried.
"Leave a survivor to question," Kakuzu ordered hoarsely. She nodded without thought. She'd already known that.
It took longer to loot the corpses for information than it did to tear them apart. Kakuzu apparently favored brutal ninjutsu. Aiko frowned at the excess, but she was a little jealous, frankly.
Obito had been working on perfecting her weapon skills, and not paid much attention to teaching her ninjutsu at all. He'd conceded that any active shinobi needed to be able to use henge, shunshin, the body-switch jutsu, and a bunshin of some sort, but those were the only combat jutsu he'd taught her.
She really shouldn't complain. Aiko couldn't learn everything at once. It did make more sense to prioritize the little things that helped in tracking and camping like the fire-spark jutsu and the really large jutsu he needed her to learn to help in bijuu extraction than it did to prioritize combat jutsu. Ninjutsu specialists were generally front-line, close-range fighters. And he didn't want her to be one.
'I could be a close-range fighter,' she thought resentfully. 'I bet I'd be good at it. I have lots of chakra.'
Aiko shoved down the internal complaint that Obito was being unfair in favor of helpfully clearing the road of corpses and debris. She glanced at the carriage—the horses attached to it were wide-eyed and distressed, but their hooves were still caught in the mud Kakuzu had made. There really wasn't any need to block the road like that.
He was busy interrogating their sole prisoner, and it wasn't like she had anything else to do…
"Hey, Kakuzu. Let the horses go. I'll take the carriage into town and report the first half of the mission is complete."
By the time she returned (with enthusiastic thanks ringing in her ears and a hefty tip in her pocket) Kakuzu had apparently gotten all he needed and disposed of the gibbering, sobbing survivor. She cast a dispassionate glance at the corpse out of curiosity. He'd apparently sliced the man up—it looked a little like the corpses she'd made with her wire.
'I thought he'd stick with ninjutsu. Then again, I suppose that would have been terribly wasteful in terms of chakra.'
Oh well. It didn't really matter.
"Aren't you going to clean that up?" Aiko asked instead.
Kakuzu stood. "No. We haven't been paid to do so." His lips twisted slightly into a sneer. "I'm sure this mess will be less offensive than the fertilizer currently in use here. Perhaps they should pay us extra for leaving them the bodies."
Aiko was torn between 'that's not very kind,' and 'that's not far off from the truth.' Instead, she cracked a smile. "I didn't know you were funny, Kakuzu." Honestly, she hadn't expected him to make a joke at all, even if it was a bit macabre. "I think I like you much better than Zetsu."
"Spare me your flattery, kunoichi." He began walking away, forcing her to hustle to keep up. "Even if you did not resemble a child, you are entirely the wrong sex to interest me."
Aghast, her jaw dropped.
He thought she was flirting with him? She didn't know if that was arrogant or just so cynical that it was sad.
"What, I can't be nice unless I want something?" Aiko snapped, offended.
All Kakuzu did was snort. "Come along."
The rest of the mission was completed in a tense, sullen silence on Aiko's part, interspersed with occasional brisk orders from Kakuzu. It took them several days to hunt down and eliminate the criminal elements of what turned out to be an actual, legitimate business.
The only time Aiko spoke up was to convince Kakuzu to let the actual owners, their family, and their staff live.
She had to resort to his language to do it, however, because she wasn't thick enough to think 'That's not very nice' would work on him. "We haven't been paid to kill businesspeople," Aiko pointed out. "In fact, allowing them to remain in business offers us future opportunity for further profit."
The woman who had founded the company nodded furiously, clutching her ten-year-old son so tightly to her chest that her fingers were white.
"Either they'll end up accidentally hiring more thugs that we'll get paid to kill without having to do the preliminary research again," Aiko listed in a stroke of inspiration, "or actually, I could replace their missing team. It'd be a long-term mission, paid very well since I can substitute for all the lower-level thugs, and you won't have to be involved at all."
It would also be easy drudgery that gave her an opportunity to get paid exorbitantly to travel and make money on the side moving contraband, but she left that part unsaid.
Kakuzu accepted that argument, but forced the business owner to sign a contract that he wrote up on the spot before he would leave.
"Sorry about him," Aiko apologized to her new employer as soon as Kakuzu's steps had faded. She didn't want his bad attitude to color her new business relationship, after all. "He's a bit of a grump."
The middle-aged brunette managed a quivery smile, still carefully placing her body between Aiko and the door she'd shooed her son through.
"Yeah…" She scratched at the back of her head, mildly uncomfortable with the continued tenseness. "Let's talk business, then? I don't do grunt work, so you'll still have to hire a couple of people to do packing and transport. What's the route like? And oh-" Aiko clapped her hands together sharply, remembering something. "I know it's not in the contract, but I don't sleep outside unless there's really no other option. What kind of accommodations are available in the various stops?"
She wouldn't intentionally intimidate this poor woman any more than Kakuzu had already done, of course. But if asking about accommodation right now netted Aiko a better deal, she wasn't too morally upright to pass that up. Now that she'd met the organization's financial manager, she was beginning to suspect that she would not be getting a wonderful budget for hotels
Aiko wouldn't need a place to stay tonight, of course. She wasn't that far from a safehouse.
'I'll just stop by and leave a note for Obito,' she thought cheerily, already expecting praise for solving the problem of finding lucrative employment that Obito didn't have to pull another member away from their own work for. 'Other than that, I could start anytime. I wonder if she (Aiko suddenly remembered she didn't even know her employer's name yet) would notice if I made a detour. Moving produce is nice and all, but I'd make a lot more money if I pick up some other merchandise.'
Life was pretty good.
"I'm afraid that I have something to say."
Even the Raikage shut his trap and turned his stare on the Ame representative, who had somehow managed to find a comparatively dark corner to lurk in, despite the meeting place being both well-lit and circular. Konan had been pointedly, painfully silent except when directly addressed on their first meeting. That had been two months prior. After a flurry of exchanged messages, international opinion has settled enough that it had been possible to arrange another meeting to hopefully settle affairs.
This can't possibly be any good.'/em Tsunade raised an eyebrow and leveled an impassive look on the younger woman.
"I would like to confirm the Hokage's report at our last session."
Wait, what?
Tsunade was still trying to figure out Konan's angle when the other woman continued speaking. "The criminal organization known as Akatsuki is still a threat to international relations. As a gesture of goodwill, I have prepared dossiers on the remaining members of the organization."
Displeased, Mei's lips twitched slightly. "There are only a small number of members available," she demurred. "Surely they do not present an urgent issue."
Konan gave a tiny smile. "On the contrary," she said smoothly. "Nagato was neither the leader nor the most powerful member of Akatsuki. The man responsible for forming the organization is one that you might remember, Mizukage-dono." Before Mei could spit fire at her for insinuating that they were social equals or that she was familiar with criminals, Konan waived a hand slightly. "He has been directing international events for longer than I have been alive."
It was a little bit of a thrill to realize that she knew where this was going.
"Uchiha Madara, the original nuke-nin, is responsible for the formation of Akatsuki."
The dropped jaws around the room were sort of hilarious. Tsunade wished a moment later that she had feigned shock when Gaara's eyes narrowed on her slightly.
Despite the clear logistical problems with what Konan had just claimed, no one seemed to dismiss the possibility. That, more than anything else, spoke to just what kind of legend Madara had. Konan hadn't been exaggerating when she described Madara as the original nuke-nin—the originator of that sin against country and kage, in a way. He may have been a Konona-nin, but he was in everyone's history texts.
'This is perfect,' Tsunade realized with a sharp bit of joy. Well, the news itself was bad, but it confirmed her suspicions and would hopefully convince her peers to come to a wiser consensus.
"What do you mean?" Gaara asked sharply, voicing what seemed to be the collective question. "How do you know that this man is Uchiha Madara? And what did you mean by your claim that he has been directing international events?"
"It clearly rankled the group to be dependent on Konan for information. That was probably why she had arranged the situation the way she had. She had probably been silently steaming since she had been summoned to that first meeting.
Satisfaction was plain in the victorious glint of Konan's amber eyes, even though she remained generally professional. And why wouldn't she be satisfied? From a position of weakness, Konan had made them all look like fools and took control of the session. "I simply refer to the time when he was unofficially the leader of Kirigakure," Konan demurred.
Mei turned red almost immediately.
"I am certain that Amegakure and Kirigakure have not been his only targets, of course, but I was never privy to Madara-san's whims. Nagato was his intermediary for Akatsuki and thusly contacted him more, but their relationship was… tense," Konan allowed delicately.
Oh, clever girl. By making Akatsuki ultimately emMadara's/em responsibility, Konan had made it that much harder for Mei, at least, to argue in favor of punishing the current regime for the last one's failures under Madara's control.
"Do you have any proof?" A bit out, not bothering to disguise his hostility.
"Little enough," Konan replied honestly. "Other than my own testimony, I have very little proof to offer. Madara-san showed his face to none and shared his identity with almost as few. I believe that the two subordinates he has left in Akatsuki are the ones most likely to have known his identity and been following his will alone." She gave the most graceful sort of shrug Tsunade had ever seen, inclining her head slightly. "I believe that Tsunade-dono may be in possession of some small corroborating information."
As all eyes turned to her, Tsunade resisted the urge to give Konan the stink eye. Little shit. "We had reason to suspect that the Akatsuki known as Tobi was an Uchiha," she admitted levelly. "Nothing concrete, of course, other than testimony based on the recollection of family scent characteristics."
"Smells like cat," Kakashi muttered half-heartedly. It was thoroughly inappropriate for a bodyguard to speak up unsolicited in this setting, but no one batted an eye.
A's face twisted into a sneer. "And I suppose you didn't share this information because you didn't want your village to look weaker than it already does," he accused.
She'd been expecting that. "It was an unconfirmed analysis that the culprit may belong to a specific family," Tsunade countered dispassionately. "There was no reason to jump to the conclusion that the Uchiha in question was a two-hundred year old man long thought to be dead. Had I brought such flimsy evidence to your attention, you would have dismissed it."
"That's very convenient," Mei said flatly.
She was cut off by a rude snort from A. "I'll say it is!" He brought both fists down on the table—apparently unconcerned with the fact that the shinobi brought as personal bodyguards jerked forward at the show of aggression. Tsunade hardly saw him leap to his feet (and she was reminded that A was possibly now the fastest man alive, and certainly not someone to underestimate). "It's obvious that you've been pulling everyone's strings!" he accused, pointing at Tsunade.
Oh, hell.
"I was made promises that you clearly have no intention of fulfilling," he continued, pacing. "The alliance of equals that you spoke so highly of seems to be a convenient fiction. And you," A snarled, rounding on the group. "Mizukage! Kazekage! You should be ashamed to act as lapdogs for Konoha."
"Excuse me?" Mei interrupted, tone dangerously cold and high. "No such relationship exists. Kirigakure is allied with Konohagakure on equal terms for mutual benefit."
"And that's why you jump when she snaps her fingers," A mocked. "Brats. You're practically suckling at her t-"
"Enough."
The Kazekage's voice was enough to halt all of them reflexively, whether it was due to shock or lifelong habit of taking orders. That was a hell of an accomplishment, actually, for a teenager with no real field command experience.
Gaara didn't revel in his minor victory. "This squabbling diminishes us all," he said levelly. Dark-rimmed eyes slowly traveled over every man and woman in the room with the weight of judgment. "Our duty is to ascertain the most reasonable, responsible, and beneficial course of action for our respective nations and to negotiate to a compromise. There is no place here for ego or insult. Amekage, please," he deferred politely, turning his face pointedly towards her. "What threat does Uchiha Madara pose, and what are his goals?"
"He wishes to collect the nine bijuu." Konan's words shocked no one. She visibly hesitated with her next words. "There was a time when Nagato-sama and I believed that Madara-san shared our vision," Konan admitted. "We desired to use the bijuu as an undefeatable weapon to force an end to human wars and violence. Now I suspect that we were tools in his acquisition. Hiding behind other regimes seems to be his modus operandi. I cannot say what he intends with the bijuu, but I do not believe it could possibly be to the benefit of the free world."
This was the first time that Tsunade had heard Nagato's moronic plan referenced since the day he had left Konoha and apparently killed himself in Ame after handing over the reins to Konan. It was just as annoying this time around.
Tsunade opened her mouth to speak-
"I'm done here," A said in disgust, pushing back his chair to leave. "Since none of you are going to come to your senses. Clearly we should be looking at Amegakure," he stressed, pointing one of his enormous sausage fingers at Konan. "If Akatsuki was really led by Uchiha Madara and headquartered there for a decade, that's where we need to begin rooting it out. We don't even know that this woman has abandoned her ties to Akatsuki," he criticized, glaring at Konan.
It wasn't a bad point. But there was also no way for outside parties to interfere in the selection of foreign leaders without setting the dangerous precedent that Mei was so wary of.
"Amegakure chose Konan-san as their representative," Mei said tightly. A muscle jumped in her neck. "As there is no indication of her continued involvement in Akatsuki and she cannot be held responsible for mere membership when the organization controlled the country without punishing every man, woman, and child therein, we must respect her authority over her domain."
A smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. "No, I see where you're coming from," he acknowledged. His body posture shifted from irritation to something confident, feet spread wide and shoulders pulled back.
That apparent agreement gave Tsunade a bad feeling about what was coming.
"I think it's the wrong stance to take and damned stupid, but I respect your consistency in applying the standard you have chosen. However." A leered rather unpleasantly at Konan. "Even if I am to concede that she cannot be internationally prosecuted for mere membership as a war crime, she has committed at least one international violation of treaty, and that must be investigated and punished. Wasn't it at your diplomatic conference, Mizukage-dono, where she attacked and participated in the kidnapping of multiple participants?"
He paused for a moment. Honestly, it was amazing that no one had brought this possibility up before. But Waterfall wasn't represented here, it was to Mei's interests if her disaster of a conference was swept under the rug, and Tsunade couldn't exactly produce Aiko to give testimony against Konan even if she thought it was worthwhile to have the blue-haired idiot thrown down from her position.
'He usually looks like such a moron,' Tsunade thought numbly. She had not expected this from the Raikage at all.
"Ah yes, it was," A answered his own question, since the room was silent. "I recall because one of my soldiers was in that party." He cracked his knuckles, giving the dumbstruck gathering a look that implied he would much rather be exacting a different kind of justice, but would milk this for all it was worth.
Konan was hard-faced and still as stone, but the pulse jumping in her neck belied her calm.
"As the first complainant, I believe that it is my right to take Konan-san here into custody. Unless, of course, the Mizukage chooses to supersede my claim. The crimes were committed in her country, after all."
Mei gritted her teeth. "Thank you for pointing that out, Raikage-dono. Yes. Konan-san, I'm afraid you will be coming with me today. You are expected to turn yourself into my custody with dignity and decorum fitting your station while you are investigated for war crimes." She stood, brushing off her dress. "Make the necessary arrangements with your representatives," Mei added tonelessly. "I will provide them an escort back to Amegakure as a good faith gesture."
'That did not go well.'
Tsunade sequestered herself in her diplomatic quarters –they were in the Land of Rice, this time around—and tried to soothe away her stress with a light novel she had picked up. Shinobi nations didn't get entertainment imports in nearly the amounts or for the low prices that the other countries did, so she'd never seen it. Unfortunately, the story about a little girl chasing rabbits failed to hold her attention. She was staring blankly at the wall when Shizune knocked on her door.
"You have a visitor, Tsunade-sama."
The professionalism in her apprentice's voice let Tsunade know that whoever it was could hear them at the moment. That was the only reason she restrained the groan that wanted to eke out and hauled her tired bones up and out to the front room.
Sabaku no Temari was curled in a chair as if she belonged there. She had also apparently managed to coerce or browbeat Hatake into fetching her tea. He was scowling and slouching slightly as he delicately filled two blue flowered teacups. Tsunade accepted hers with graceful aplomb and settled across from the younger woman as Hatake began to stalk off like an offended cat.
Tsunade kept her voice mild. "Hatake-kun, Shizune-chan. Please feel free to explore town and enjoy yourselves."
They took the platitude for the order it was and scattered. Her two companions were holding together a tentative truce based on avoidance of the elephant in the room. She had a feeling that this conversation might strain their ability to professionally pretend the other was someone else.
"Nice place you've got here," Temari said without looking up from her cup. "I think whoever assigned housing thinks that my brothers and I sleep in a pile like puppies. You have more room. Lots of space for activities."
Tsunade made a noncommittal noise, swishing around her drink. It tasted like crap. That was probably some passive-aggressive rebellion from Hatake-kun. God, she loved that kid sometimes. The Suna girl didn't seem to notice, sipping away gamely.
"I can't help but notice that you've had the same escort the last three times that I've seen you, and that they aren't your usuals," Temari prodded. "I thought you were training the Uchiha and Aiko-san for diplomatic work, what with the way they were always around."
Tsunade gave her an uncharitable look. "Say what's on your mind."
Her hard tone was enough to make the younger kunoichi fidget, pride and the fact that she was a skilled shinobi herself aside.
"I heard rumors that there were two casualties of your invasion, not one," Temari said bluntly. "Why are you hiding what happened to Aiko-san?"
'Rumors? How the hell did she hear that? It's not the most unlikely conclusion, given that almost no one would have seen Aiko alive after Pein. But I didn't realize that anyone was talking about it.'
"Aiko was in Konoha on guard duty when Akatsuki attacked, but she survived."
Sort of. Yes and no.
"That's good to hear, since she's going to be called as a witness for the investigation against Konan." Temari looked up at her, eyes hard and unamused.
'And the amnesiac will give fantastic testimony, I am certain,' Tsunade thought, pitying herself a little.
That information wasn't a shock, but she had to stall for time and obfuscate. She could not impede an international investigation, but Tsunade also couldn't give them the shinobi she didn't have.
That created a delicate conundrum.
'I can't lie. But if I imply that Aiko is on a confidential mission of undetermined length, they'll have to stall the trial. There's no way to force a foreign village to give up information about clients and private operations or compel me to cut it short. They'll have to wait. That won't work forever, of course. I need to ride Jiraiya's ass and get that girl found, yesterday.'
"I didn't say she was available," Tsunade said dryly. "You won't get any more than that from me. It's possible that she will be available for testimony."
Would the record please note that she said 'possible'? Not especially likely, but Tsunade did like to gamble long odds.
Temari gave a rude snort, dropping her cup with a clink and rubbing at her temples with both hands. "Be that way. I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page. You know that my testimony is going to be actively detrimental to Konan's case. I don't know if Aiko has any possibly mitigating information, but she's the only one who could help that rude woman." Temari shrugged. "She spent more time actually with Akatsuki members andem conscious/em than the other two, from what I understand. Yugito-san and Fuu-san will have no reason to pull their punches, especially since Yugito-san's kage is the one forcing this. He's completely right, of course," she admitted grumpily. "This trial is legal and ignoring the old lady's crimes would make a mockery of the treaties she broke.
Tsunade twitched. 'Old lady? Konan is quite a bit younger than I am.'
If Temari hadn't connected those dots, Tsunade wasn't going to be the one to enlighten her.
"But the timing is terrible," she continued for the younger blonde.
The Suna kunoichi nodded, apparently unaware that she was snarling slightly.
Those Sabaku kids were rather sinister, Tsunade thought quietly.
The family resemblance was much stronger when the otherwise pretty kunoichi exposed her teeth and growled slightly like that. Perhaps she'd soaked up the insanity that the Kazekage had shrugged off in order to better fit his nutty skull into his nice new hat. Temari's hair was certainly puffy enough to be hiding some secretive craziness.
It would probably be polite to not notice any of that. She took a sip of tea.
"I can't promise much," Temari said testily, as if concerned that Tsunade would beg her for favors. "But I think Gaara will be more than willing to suggest that we wait a little longer than strictly necessary for an international trial. There's a lot of pomp and circumstance involved, of course, and we'll have to arrange an intermediary like a Daimyo or an impartial foreign leader. So you should have time to drag Aiko out of whatever mysterious hole she's in and get her ready to save Kage Blue-Hair's wrinkly hide."
"Well." Tsunade clicked her tongue. "Thank you, I appreciate your assistance and discretion in this matter."
There was an awkward pause when Temari leaned slightly in, expecting to be trusted with more information. The Hokage blinked guilelessly.
"Right." Temari drew the word out mockingly, letting it turn just a little nasal. "I'm so glad we had this talk. I think it's just peachy keen that we can be so upfront with each other."
That actually did make Tsunade feel the tiniest bit guilty. The younger woman had come over for the explicit purpose of offering her help and expressing concern for their countries' mutual interests.
She realized she'd been manipulated even as she opened her lips to give Temari a bone. "As I informed the Raikage when he huffed and puffed his way into Konoha, Aiko is currently missing in action. I cannot give any more information than that, although I can share that we have reason to believe she is alive and well. Please do not let this information pass beyond yourself and Gaara-dono."
Temari opened her mouth slightly and then didn't breathe for a moment. Once thought had apparently re-asserted itself she pressed her lips together, raised her eyebrows, and nodded slightly. The expression wasn't especially pleasant. "I see," Temari said tightly, swallowing the words. "Thank you for this information, given in confidence. I presume that the Raikage is under the impression that you simply haven't changed her official status and that she actually died at Pein's hands?"
Tsunade carefully didn't nod, letting the younger woman take her lack of dissent as assent.
That was her hope, since Sasuke had opened his yap without her permission. If Aiko really had died (and stayed dead) in that fight, Tsunade might have tried to keep it quiet for a while. It was no secret that the other nations thought Konoha was outright lying about having exactly one fatality in their invasion. Obscuring and minimalizing combat losses to the international audience was practically tradition. No one wanted their enemies to know exactly what their resources were.
So, hopefully, the Raikage would assume Konoha was hiding that Aiko had died. They would be looking for confirmation of that story, not signs of an unprotected Uzumaki out of village walls.
Konoha needed to be the only ones looking for Aiko to have half a chance in hell of locating her. Otherwise, they'd have to sort through counterintelligence and fight competing interests looking to buy the information Konoha wanted.
It would have been nice to come home to an orderly office caught-up on paperwork and a happy populace. For the most part, things were in order. But Tsunade had barely settled into her desk the morning after she arrived back home before the corpse-pale former Root that she'd snagged for her personal guard asked for a chance to speak with her.
"Talk," Tsunade commanded wearily, wishing she'd had more than store-bought cookies for breakfast. That just wasn't enough fuel for whatever trouble he was bound to bring to her attention. And hell, she was right.
"I suspect that the tenuous balance maintained by my former organization has failed," Sai shared calmly. He sounded like he might be commenting on the weather. "ANBU had been maintaining equilibrium for quite some time since Danzo-sama's death. Likely, they were fulfilling lingering orders and scrambling for new leadership. However-"
Reflexively, Tsunade curled her hand into a fist, waiting for the next news to hit her like a blow.
"in recent weeks, Sasuke-san first noticed changes in the mission-taking statistics of upper level shinobi."
Tsunade blinked. Sasuke? She would have thought that his hands were full enough in his absence that he wouldn't be able to start compiling information on anomalies he noted until she returned.
'If nothing else, he's efficient,' she remembered, a little proud.
Sai continued pleasantly, gaze professionally focused on her eyes in a way that even Sasuke struggled to maintain at times. "Several shinobi have significantly increased the number of times they report and petition for additional work. Had this begun months prior, it might have been patriotism. It seems more likely that these are operatives who have been completing extracurricular work until recently and are maintaining a steady workload by supplementing their official missions. This means, of course-"
"That until recently they've been occupied with work that was off-the-books, yes," Tsunade agreed. She was pleased with both his insight and initiative in bringing this to her. "That's good news, as far as I can tell. I prefer to start my mornings that way."
Sai inclined his head slightly. "I would concur with your analysis that these shinobi have decided to remember that their first vow is to the Hokage," he began carefully.
Tsunade caught on with a groan nearly instantly. "But you don't think that this is all of Root, do you," she confirmed. Her shoulders slumped slightly when he nodded. "Wonderful. Does that mean that their former compatriots will still follow whatever agenda Danzo left for them, or are they wildcards now?"
Sai blinked twice, long dark lashes almost shocking in contrast against his skin. "Any who have not chosen to give you their allegiance are likely still committed to Danzo-sama's cause," he admitted with a little trepidation in his tone. "However, they may not share the same interpretation of Danzo-sama's cause, how to go about achieving it, and if they should remain aligned with any or which of his contacts. The situation has every likelihood of becoming complicated and messy."
"Do you have a recommendation?"
She was glad she prodded a moment later.
"Hai, Hokage-sama," Sai said formally. "It is my lowly opinion that now is the time to ensure that the infrastructure ROOT maintained has been destroyed, especially in regards to the underground transportation network. Eliminating those would go a long ways toward preventing collusion within the village. Once isolated, an individual operative is little threat. Additionally, it would be wise to increase patrols and security in the closest sectors to the village to prevent information dealing that is out of your control."
Most of that sounded good, but- "Is there really a possibility that any of Danzo's tunnel system survived?" Tsunade asked a little skeptically.
The question was rhetorical by the end. While the unnatural attack used by Jiraiya's former student had done terrible damage to the village and probably collapsed any tunnels, she couldn't afford not to make sure. Tsunade repressed a sigh. "How far have you gotten on that map I wanted you to make up?" she prodded wearily. That hadn't been high priority, but now…
"It is completed to the best of my memory, Hokage-sama," her ANBU murmured with a slight bow. "I feel confident in my familiarity, but it is always possible that information was withheld from me. In order to be certain, I would ask that either a skilled genjutsu user or a Sharingan wielder accompany me to ensure that no hidden areas remain to pose a risk to village security. I anticipate that it would take several days to clear out the entire structure and make certain that it is unusable."
"Several days? That's not so bad. And your request for assistance will be granted, of course." Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose, thinking. "How is your doton?"
When the boy hesitated, she waved a hand.
"No matter. This mission is going to be big enough that it makes much more sense to assemble several teams. Your logic in wanting either a Sharingan wielder or a genjutsu master is sound. Kakashi, Kurenai and—well, it'll give Itachi something to do as well," she decided on a whim. "You'll be involved due to your familiarity with the territory, of course, but I won't send down a group that doesn't have at least one expert doton user to keep the group safe in case of cave-in. Yamato meets that criteria," Tsunade mumbled, trailing off.
She was tapping the desk with her fingers and trying to visualize logical configurations when she realized Sai was still standing there at attention.
She cleared her throat a bit sheepishly. "Good work, Sai. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Please do your best to separate the map into three sections so that three teams can safely access every point labeled without more back-tracking than necessary. I'll call you in tomorrow to begin work on this project. You may go."
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MEEBIES LORE!
(Has something to do with @ask-shelby-and-her-kitty-cats)
Meebies was born on November 19, right around when his older sister, Shelby, was like around 2. He was born, by luck, as a half Saiyan, half human for some unknown reason other than pure luck, making his own blood type unknown. Over time in his life, Meebies, with his time with Shelby, would gradually develop more and more talents, such as playing piano, singing and art. But those were more or less hobbies that Meebies would have, with Shelby on his side, ready to support whatever he was doing. Things for Meebies would change when him and Shelby's parents would take him to a martial arts dojo for recreation. They thought that Meebies learning martial arts would be "a fun thing that he could like." But apparently, it was way more than that. The more he went to the dojo, the more powerful he became. By the time Meebies was 3, he could already take down anyone in the dojo, even his own master, with a single blow. He has surpassed everyone's expectations and Meebies became so powerful, he was kicked out of the dojo. His parents couldn't understand that and kind of started to hold a grudge against him because of that. When Meebies started school at the same age, an unknown kid, whom Meebies has never asked for his name, but still became good pals anyway, would start to recognize his abilities and potential with his strong fighting strength. One day, he would come up to him and train him on something called, "Ki." Meebies, being the half Saiyan and half human he is, learnt ki in no time flat and could use it with ease. The problem was through, he didn't master ki yet and didn't know the responsibility of it or the power it possessed. The moment Meebies learnt ki, he would go on rampages around cities and towns without realizing it. He just was having fun destroying civilizations and countless lives without even noticing what he was doing. At the same time of learning ki, Meebies also was self-taught, with his ki, the ability to fly. This made it hard for the police to even catch the innocent, unknowing troublemaker, in some cases of his rampaging, having the government be sent to take care of him, only to no avail. At the age of 5, one day, Meebies wanted to show his ability of flight to his sister, his mom and dad. So he sent them to the front porch to check it out and there he went flying. The thing was, though, Meebies didn't master flying at the time, so...
He lost his way home without realizing it...
Meebies at that time was now public enemy number one worldwide. Many governments have been doing their best to try and stop him, only to fail. He was being attacked by the world. His whole time of using ki, he had a bounty of $10,000,000. He was a wanted criminal... On Shelby's side of things, her parents didn't even want to talk about Meebies to her and over time, even with the bounty getting higher with every civilization that he destroys, even his own sister forgot about him...
Meebies' innocent rampaging would end when he crashed into a small little village, where when the village folks wanted to attack him, a man stepped forward and proposed the idea of taking care of Meebies and teaching him responsibility with his powers. After all, he was only a child...
As the village took care of Meebies and he learned responsibility, the bounty just got lower and faded into obscurity. Meebies was no longer wanted. He was now a peaceful man. When Meebies was ready to go out into the world again, one day, while flying around the world, he set foot in a random woods somewhere. Out of the woods, was a small little neighborhood. Meebies peeked on one of the houses. There, was a report on "the incident" with Shelby and her family. Meebies at that point forgot who Shelby was and said the following...
"That jerk... That monster..! If I ever were to meet her, I'd punch some sense into that girl!"
He would say more things about her but that's as far as we'd want to go.
One day, while flying, Meebies finally realized who he was badmouthing on that day... It was his own sister... With the rage that he went through and his screaming in anger on saying kinds of stuff to his sister, something snapped in Meebies and then...
He became a Super Saiyan.
It was then he finally found the way back home from pure sheer anger and when he did, it was too late. He didn't know where his mother was and his father already hated him, yelling at him to get out of the house.
That's when Meebies developed his depression. He felt as though no one cared for him. He felt as though he couldn't go on. He felt like his sister was long gone... He felt like... It was all over... But with his optimistic personality, he still had the guts to keep going in life and see what it had to offer. Not even depression could stop him from trying to keep going...
Meebies, with the people he would meet during his travels, would start becoming more and more friendly and start having a desire to protect the Earth and stop things happening everywhere. That's when he decided to become a patroller. (Not a Time Patroller.) It's like being an officer without a license. He just did it for the sake of it. During that time, he would meet Master Roshi and Master Shen and would use their training to learn some techniques, such as the Kamehameha and the Dodon Ray.
One day, while patrolling a city, he heard a loud explosion from another city. The explosion came from East City, where two Saiyans named Vegeta and Nappa landed on Earth to fulfill their mission.
Meebies would lay low at first, detecting their power level as it would move somewhere. Meebies would still stay low during the Saiyan battle up until Piccolo's sacrifice. That's when things were serious to Meebies and he would step into battle. There, he found three dead and two still standing with Nappa about to crush a small person. That's when a certain someone would swoop in and save the kid. The person would call himself "Goku" and would take down Nappa with his "Kaio-Ken" or what he calls it, Meebies says. Meebies wouldnt take part in the Saiyan battle up until the battle with Goku and Vegeta. He would be of minimum amount of use by swooping out of nowhere and landing blows on Vegeta without Vegeta realizing it. He would also be of use when Vegeta turns Great Ape by trying to distract the ape and letting Goku charge up for his Spirit Bomb. He survived the battle with many bruises and battle damage and was hospitalized shortly after the battle. During the battle, Meebies would get to know a little bit more about Goku and his friends and him and them soon after the battle would become sort of friends but more or less companions.
During hospitalization, Meebies randomly passed out out of nowhere, with others thinking he was presumably dead. Actually, Meebies, yes, was in Other World, but he would take the chance of flying down Snake Way to meet King Kai. There, he met him, Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu and Piccolo and would learn techniques from all of them before regaining consciousness, such as the Spirit Bomb, the Sukiden and the Dodonpa and strangely enough, Double Sundae, all thanks to an encounter with Raditz while flying through Snake Way.
By the time he regained consciousness, Vegeta was just about to kill Dodoria. Meebies wouldn't go to Namek but he could mentally sense the battles going on on Namek. From that, strangely, he learnt a few new techniques that Meebies would practice on when he was fully healed, such as the Break Cannon, the Ultra Fighting Miracle Bomber and the Crusher Ball.
Meebies would also not really take part during the time period with the Androids and Cell and the time period with Majin Buu. He would participate in the Cell Games, fairly holding his own against Cell but was overpowered by Cell anyway, and during the Majin Buu time period, where he would survive Super Buu's Human Extinction attack, but would later be knocked out by Super Buu during the fight with Ultimate Gohan, interrupting the battle along with Tien but then killed when Kid Buu destroys the Earth.
Since the battle with Majin Buu, Meebies has been going through his normal life once again, patrolling civilizations around the world and making friends with people he meets. He's also got a cat named Gilbert that keeps him company ever since he was 13. Together, they just watch their favorite TV shows and anime after Meebies is done with his patrolling. So as of right now, nothing is really happening with Meebies' life... Maybe something... Something might happen during his travels...
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The Star Trek Generations Review I Posted on Letterboxd Earlier
Cuz I know y’all like Star Trek!
Yeah it’s not very good. I think most of the TNG flicks are a mixed bag at best and while this isn’t the worst, it’s a mess and really rough at times. I would, however, be remiss if I didn’t point out the nuggets of good ideas mixed in here, and I think the best is Picard’s arc. Picard is confronted with a traumatic event in his Brother and Nephew dying off screen, leaving him the last of the Picards. I think his knee-jerk to immediately regretting not raising a family of his own is a little abrupt given his reputation for hating all children, but it is sensible in the face of a great tragedy. And once within the Nexus he’s tempted with his own zoo of kids. It’s what he wants at that moment. And the resolution is a wise choice. Picard doesn’t end the film with any sort of child, surrogate or otherwise, but just a renewed appreciation of his life and decisions. You will always have regrets, so it’s important to treasure the decisions you’ve made. Yes, it isn’t the most revolutionary statement, even within Star Trek which already has many movies about getting old, but it is effective.
The same motif is played with Kirk. And it’s much worse. Kirk seems to regret his whole life as a Starfleet Officer, in the Nexus living out the moment he told his lover he would reenlist in Starfleet, effectively dooming that relationship and setting him on the course to all the adventures we know and love. Only this time he stays with her, casting Starfleet to the side. Star Trek? Fuck that! It’s a character decision that not only clashes with how Kirk had been developed over the last 4.5 films, it doesn’t even develop naturally within Generations. Kirk’s whole journey starts because he finds out Sulu managed to raise a family*. But we know that it was never an either or decision because Sulu was in all those movies doing the Starfleet thing! Hell, in the opening sequence we even see Kirk still striving to get into the action of the Captain’s seat. This is not a character that comes off as regretting being a Starfleet Captain. And to make matters worse, the woman he gives it all up for is literally never mentioned before the final act of this film. If you’re going to make one of the iconic heroes of screen give up everything that makes him heroic, you should let the audience understand what he’s doing so for. Hell, if they didn’t want to spend time developing another character, they could have referenced someone from a previous episode or movie, like Carol Marcus, since this movie expects you to have seen every previous Star Trek anyway.
That last sentence is really what pushes this movie from an eh Star Trek film to a bad one. So many TNG plots are tied off in this. On one hand, yeah it is rewarding for fans. Just because it’s going to the cinema for general audiences doesn’t mean they need to abandon plotlines the Trekkies have been following for seven years. But they take so many of these and while they try to recap the broad details for anyone who missed an episode or just plain forgot about them, it diminishes the impact everything has. All the references to El-Aurians and the Borg feel simultaneously integral to this plot and not nearly developed enough for us to really connect with the Sorin character. Same with the references to Picard’s family. But all the other stuff? Save it for other movies! Like the Duras sisters didn’t really need to be here, and they barely even remind you what their agenda is beyond “Klingon nonsense.” The Emotion Chip? Yeah, doesn’t connect to the main plot at all. You gotta have Riker because he’s main cast, but he has nothing to do here. I’m shocked Q didn’t stop by just to say Hi.
All of this complicates a plot that barely has legs anyway. The basic premise, guy is obsessed with getting back to the Nexus to get away from his tortured ending existance, is reasonable enough as a plot. Him kidnapping Geordi and probing him for information about Trilithium? Absolutely pointless. Sorin already knows how Trilithium works and he has no reason to assume he can use his VISOR to spy on the Enterprise. Then they get into a needlessly confusing prisoner exchange scene and patience is tested. About getting into the Nexus. I’ll buy that yes he has a missile that can shoot into the sun in 11 seconds and that for some reason he can’t fly into the Nexus but can stand on a planet being annihilated by it because reasons. It’s at least addressed. Sorin’s method of moving the Nexus ribbon by destroying stars fucking with Gravity. They could dwell on the ramifications a little more but it’s a cool concept. Here’s what’s dumb though: If they don’t stop Sorin they get sucked into the Nexus. And that happens. The nature of the Nexus is it is a place without time, so you can exit it at any point. Even ignoring the stupid idea to pop out just seconds earlier instead of days where they could have saved more lives. The issue I have here is that, there is no tension. You fail to stop him? You go to the Nexus. Where you can leave whenever. So you can try to stop him again. And if you fail that time? You go to the Nexus, leave, try again. And on and on. They would have infinite chances to stop him so… who cares? Picard and Kirk literally cannot lose….
So there you have it. It’s stupid mess of a movie that tries 9 million things and only kind of succeeds at one. If it weren’t for Nemesis existing it would easily be the worst TNG flick. I’ll still take its attempts at life philosophy over anything in the Abrams films, but it’s just not a good successor for either TNG the show, or the Star Trek films. And it absolutely does not work as a stand alone film.
*I like that Kirk says it wouldn’t be the Enterprise without a Sulu at the helm, when literally the previous movie Sulu is captain of a whole different ship. Which yeah that’s another thing. Sulu raised a family AND became captain. He didn’t have to give up shit! BAD PREMISE.
P.S. Yeah it’s very obvious from the dialogue that Chekov and Scottie were supposed to be Spock and McCoy. Would have been a great character moment if Kirk was reminiscing about Spock and Picard was like, oh yeah, one time I was sent to arrest him. Great friends with his dad, though!
P.P.S. Oh yeah, Shatner and Stewart have no chemistry. No threat to the Spirk shippers here. They’re literally riding horse in the most romantic setting on Earth, with Kirk preparing a homemade breakfast and everything.
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