#kind of an odd poll to make i know. but i was curious
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hey i was curious about this.
keep in mind i'm talking about consensual stuff here. define "losing your virginity" however you like.
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Steve Rogers as the Winter Soldier
Ok. So I know I said I would let a free and fair election decide what my next rec list would be. But then I saw @16woodsequ ask for Steve as the Winter Soldier recommendations, and I blacked out and when I came to I had discovered this list almost completed. So I guess the poll will be determining my next next list.
if time is all I have by tielan (@tielan) (Gen, General Audiences, 4,217 words)
Summary: Maria knows what that look means. She knows the mindset behind it. She's seen it in the resolve of agents who knew the odds of going in, heard it in field operatives calling for an exit in impossible situations, witnessed it in extraction targets who didn't believe that they'd actually make it out. And sometimes the odds were defied, the impossible happened, and everyone made it out in one piece. Sometimes.
To see that expression in the man they call the Winter Soldier....
The Kind You Save by TooManyBattles (Skarabrae_stone) (@captaintoomanybattles) (SamSteveBucky, Mature, 37,074 words)
Summary: When HYDRA sends the Winter Soldiers to assassinate the new Captain America, they expect the mission to be an easy one. After all, they're super-soldiers-- how hard can it be to kill one unenhanced human? As more and more of their attempts prove unsuccessful, however, the Soldiers' respect for Wilson grows, as does their suspicion that HYDRA's motives are not what they seem.
If Sam Wilson is a good man, what does that make them…?
The rest after the cut!
Series: marvelous wolves by orphan_account (Stucky, General Audiences, 13,150 words)
Summary: Part 1: They are a Soldier without a handler, a Hunter without someone to point her at targets. They can’t go through the rest of their lives feeling like they’re in an in between state, benched, resting, just waiting for the next mission, the next handler.
They break into the small, unassuming place, and they wait in the shadows for their handlers to come home and see them.
Part 2: Bucky introduces Steve to the rest of the team.
Fortunate Son by orphan_account (Stucky, Teen And Up Audiences, 2,368 words)
Summary: Bucky wakes up in the future to a world that needs Captain America; meanwhile, a Cold War-era supersoldier assassin emerges.
Also available as a podfic read by sisi_rambles
Series: Preserved by Domenika Marzione (domarzione) (@laporcupina) (Gen + Steggy, Not Rated, 80,189 words)
Summary: After the rescue of the 107th, Steve Rogers cashes in all of his favors and makes what deals he can to get Bucky a medical discharge from the Army, sending him home to Brooklyn and far from enemies and curious scientists both. But Steve's war goes on until it ends badly, in an exploding plane over the Black Sea. Captain America is presumed dead, his shield recovered and returned to a grieving America while his body remains undiscovered.
Seven years later, a new danger is threatening to unbalance the already-roiling Cold War: a Soviet assassin let loose from behind the Iron Curtain. Peggy Carter isn't sure she wants to believe that the assassin is a super-soldier because of what it could mean, but she does know that whoever it is, she'll have to break her promise to keep Bucky Barnes far from danger.
Don't Give it a Hand, Offer it a Soul by TooManyBattles (Skarabrae_stone) (@captaintoomanybattles) (Stucky, Mature, 30,734 words)
Summary: An Avengers training mission gone wrong, a HYDRA plot in the midst of SHIELD, and a mysterious prisoner in the basement of an abandoned bank-- and that's just the start of Bucky's day. While the Avengers rush to prevent HYDRA's plans for world domination, Bucky finds himself drawing closer to the stranger he rescued... a man who is almost certainly an agent of HYDRA.
The Curious Case of Steve Rogers by this_wayward_life (@wayward-lives) (Stucky, Teen And Up Audiences, 3,610 words)
Summary: Steve Rogers is not who anyone expects him to be.
Series: One More Troubled Soul by sara_holmes (@captn-sara-holmes) (James "Bucky" Barnes/Natasha Romanov + Stony, Mature, 61,415 words)
Summary: Part 1: How Bucky Barnes made a shitty speech when aliens were invading, saved the day, got the girl and ended up feeling like he was actually Captain America and not a two-dollar knock off.
Part 2: And Tony realizes that working out who the Winter Soldier used to be and who he is now are two entirely different things.
Part 3: Steve Rogers is the Winter Soldier. He has his missions, he had his orders, he has his place in the world. If people would just stop reminding him about that time he was Captain America, it would be a lot easier to stay in that damn place.
Series: tear me to pieces, skin to bone (hello, welcome home) by voxofthevoid (@voxofthevoid) (Stucky, Explicit, 48,488 words)
Summary: This isn’t his Steve. This isn’t Captain America, and this sure as fuck isn’t the little guy from Brooklyn who was too dumb not to run away from a fight. This isn’t the Winter Soldier either, Hydra’s mindless machine.
Whatever came out of all that, of the man who was all of those at some point in his life—Bucky’s not sure if it’s someone he wants to know.
But it’s Steve.
Steve reaches out, one bear paw of a hand reaching for Bucky’s face. Bucky grits his teeth and forces himself not to flinch. He’s expecting another blow, maybe fingers pushing into his mouth, but what he gets is a finger tracing the cleft in his chin—the spot his Steve used to love to kiss. Bucky shivers at the gentle touch, caught off guard and floundering. He’s only more unsettled when Steve’s hand settles on his cheek, big enough to cradle the entire side of Bucky’s face.
“Pretty boy,” Steve murmurs. “Should I keep you?”
-Captain America is sent to hunt down a ghost.
Live as I have lived and love as I have loved by tigriswolf (@photosbytigriswolf) (Stucky, Teen And Up Audiences, 2,865 words)
Summary: "Oh, shit," Tony says. "Please don't be a Winter Soldier."
Mirror!Steve's eyes go straight to him, face as blank as Robocop's. "Stark," he says calmly. "I know I killed you."
Also available as a podfic read by sisi_rambles
Tempest in a Teapot by AvocadoLove (WinterIron, Teen And Up Audiences, 30,742 words)
Summary: Or, how Bucky watches his best friend die in his place, wakes seventy years in the future, takes up Captain America's shield, joins a group of super heroes, and finally begins the process of forgiving himself.
Seven times Steve Rogers was not what everyone expected him to be (+1 time he really, really wasn't what everyone expected him to be) by StuckySituation (Stucky, Teen And Up Audiences, 3,515 words)
Summary: Steve Rogers’s patriotic eyebrows jump up. “Holy cow.”
That was not what Tony would have expected from Captain America. “‘Holy cow’? Did the history books mess up? Was your family actually from India and not Ireland?”
“Fuck off, Stark. I ain’t shitting on what comes out of your mouth, so you better leave my goddamn cows alone as well.”
Tony doesn’t know whether to feel awestruck or betrayed. “You,” he says and points at Rogers, “are nothing like I expected.”
“Sorry to be a fucking disappointment,” Rogers says with a scowl and pulls his ridiculous helmet on, covering the sleekly styled brown hair. It was astonishing how even Rogers’s golden hair had been false propaganda -- but of course the great America had wanted to present its figurehead as Aryan perfection in the time of eugenics. “Suit up, everyone. Let’s get this shit done.”
the long game by enemyofrome (@enemyofrome) (Stucky, Mature, 6,869 words)
Summary: In 1945, Steve Rogers trades himself to the Red Room in exchange for the Winter Soldier. They accept his offer, but don't let Bucky go. After all, their supersoldiers come as a matched set.
(Featuring crafty Steve, pining Bucky, and a very noisy metal arm.)
Also available as a podfic read by quietnight (@quietnighty)
#what can i say#it’s one of my all time favorite tropes#steve rogers#steve rogers as the winter soldier#marvel fic rec
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Concerning Pink Lemonade
So, in the wake of yesterday’s brief lemonade discourse with @prismatic-bell, I started wondering. I began my researches at home, by consulting my late-70s edition of the Betty Crocker Cookbook. Yes, Betty Crocker is a corporate invention and shill, but her cookbook (at least for that edition ) is very handy for a lot basic things. If a dish is frequently found on American tables, odds are good it’ll have some sort recipe for it, even if it isn’t your favorite version of the dish. And sure enough, “pink” was down as a variation on lemonade, and the lemonade recipe itself is an acceptable one. Alas, to make pink lemonade the instructions are to make basic lemonade and add two tablespoons of grenadine syrup and a drop or two of food coloring! Which is about what you’d expect from commercial lemonade but I think we can all probably agree that it’s a cheat in a private kitchen and not worthy of the name “home cooking.”
So I started considering what I knew, or thought I knew, about pink lemonade, and why I thought so. That it was made from grapefruit I had no doubt - I distinctly remember my mom’s voice telling me that when I hesitated to drink it the first time. But I think the rest of the idea I had about it, though logical and experience-based, is not something anyone ever told me. (I have never actually made the stuff myself; never had that much grapefruit juice on hand.) Because, pink lemonade excepted, if a drink is made from a fruit, water, and sugar, it is fruitade - lemonade, limeade, orangeade. But grapefruitade is not a word and you only have to see or say it to know why. So grapefruitade became pink lemonade - essentially the same recipe, with an appropriate amount of grapefruit juice in place of the lemon juice. If a fruit is added to lemonade it becomes fruit lemonade - strawberry lemonade, raspberry lemonade, etc. Add one more fruit and you’ve got yourself a fruit punch.
This all seems tolerably obvious to me. But prismatic-bell’s evidence demonstrates that, to some people, strawberry lemonade is an alternate term for pink lemonade, not a separate thing.
So I asked my husband what was in pink lemonade and he said: “Well, if it’s real pink lemonade, grapefruit.” Which was highly gratifying but not definitive. He’s from Georgia and my family is all midwestern (though I”m an Air Force Brat and my cuisine, like my accent, is a kind of American Fusion). We are, however, the same age, and I thought it entirely possible that the original pink lemonade had fallen out of fashion and that Kids Today had never known The Real Stuff. So I cranked up the old search engine and went looking for pink lemonade recipes and culinary histories.
Well! Imagine my consternation when I turned up not one single pure grapefruitade recipe, only a lot of variations on fruit lemonade. Cranberry is apparently far the most common, but prismatic-bell’s strawberries, raspberries, pomegranates, and even watermelon appeared. Even more shockingly, one of the legends of its invention (which are lost in the mists of the 19th century circus) is that it was created when a refreshment stand worker threw cinnamon candies into the lemonade. I can believe a lot of things, but I do not believe that.
So now I’m curious. I have no particular hope of a poll made on my blog getting any traction, but I’m going to turn the Shiny New Post Editor back on and make a poll, and plead for it to be reblogged around. I’m typing this in Legacy because I forgot and anyway who’s going to read all this before voting in a poll?
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Redoing the first post I ever did on this blog: Trying to assign a shark to CFO🦈
The first time i did this I was honestly very nervous about putting my stupid takes out into the fandom, but I'm ready now, and I have stronger CFO shark opinions. I'm linking to all the sharks' Wikipedia pages, for those interested in sharks!!
I gotta be honest, this is about Charles, but mostly this post is me sharing fun shark facts. I hope you guys are chill with that.
Same as the last time, I still have some honorable mentions.
(ALSO i tagged this post under some shark tags, this is the guy we're talking about, btw, I'd love for you guys to vote in the poll at the bottom of the post)
I considered something like the Basking Shark. However, they're quite large, and I think Charles looks harmless, so the Basking shark was out. Additionally, despite they're large size, they're pretty docile. They're one of the three species of sharks that eat plankton! But, I envisioned a slightly more slender, swift hunter type of shark.
I also considered a type of Thresher Shark, as I liked their unique appearance, but ultimately I couldn't decide on a species. I think I wanted Charles to be one just because they have cool caudal fins.
I very briefly considered The Great White, because to most people that's the shark. But I just wasn't feeling it. They're cute, but I don't see Charles being one.
In the original post I listed The Silky Shark, but I'm taking this back, because now that I think about it, I just wanted Charles to be a Silky Shark because they're my favorite....
Moving on to the real choices now.
Bull Shark (Carcharhinus leucas)
The Bull Shark is one of my favorite sharks. It's in the family Carcharhinidae, which makes it a Requiem Shark! (which is also where I get my tumblr name from) I didn't do this on purpose, but all the sharks in this list are actually Requiem Sharks. Requiem sharks are known for being very fast and efficient hunters, and of course the Bull Shark is no exception. Bull Sharks are known to be aggressive towards people, alongside the Great White and the Tiger shark (though don't let a certain awesome 1975 movie fool you, you're odds of being attacked by sharks are very slim, these bad boys are just know for doing it the most) Bull sharks are euryhaline, meaning they can adapt to water of varying salinity, meaning they can do just fine in freshwater. This sort of adaptability reminds me of Charles, and tbh, I think Bull Sharks just kind of look like him some how.
Blue Shark (Prionace glauca)
The Blue Shark looks like a goober. You can find them fucking everywhere, check out this map from Wikipedia. They're one of the most wide-spread shark species!
The Blue Shark's name isn't a stretch, they really are blue! Curious, and not typically aggressive, they've been known to approach divers. They're also known to be more social than other sharks, and sometimes travel in schools separated by sex, at least as juveniles. It's slender, streamlined appearance makes me think of Charles, in the sense that somehow the Blue shark looks like it'd wear a suit, but maybe more like a silly colored suit. Like blue! The long pectoral fins also remind me of him, for some reason. I don't know why, it's not like he has long arms?
If you're familiar with the BLÅHAJ, you may know the blue shark! The common name for Prionace glauca in both Swedish and Dutch is blåhaj, which just means Blue Shark!
Oceanic Whitetip Shark (Carcharhinus longimanus)
A shark with a very good design, look at that aesthetically pleasing coloring and the rounded fins? This is someone's OC shark, i swear. The Oceanic Whitetip is listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. They cannot pump water through their gills, so they're one of the shark species that has to always be moving! They're more leisurely while swimming, and have been known to breach the water.
Honestly, I think this is a good candidate for Charles shark because I just love the way these sharks look!
Sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus)
This silly guy is the Sandbar shark, one of the largest costal sharks in the world! They're known for their brownish coloring (another common name for them is the brown shark) and their tall dorsal fin. They also have rather large pectoral fins. They are listed as endangered, as they are hunted for their fins. I chose this shark honestly because it's brown, and the aforementioned tall dorsal fin. I was mostly choosing the sharks based on looks, and this one easily looks the most like Charles to me.
Anyways, thanks for reading my silly shark post! When I did this like, three months ago, I was working on this AU thingy, but I'd got totally sidetracked trying to assign a damn shark to Charles. The original idea was he was gonna be like... y'know, a mermaid or something, but I never got around to working on it, mostly because of the sharks. If you have any interest in it, I could do Dethklok/any one else from MTL as sharks. Honestly, i'd love an excuse to combine my interests.
Oh also.
#metalocalypse#mtl#charles foster offdensen#charles offdensen#sharks#bull shark#Blue shark#oceanic whitetip shark#sandbar shark
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We are so back. Well, I somewhat am. Welcome to Episode 11 of (Waku) Puyo Extras.
(What a lovely image of Rulue and Minotauros as a team. Surely nothing bad will bestow him...seriously, this image is amazing.)
Hey everyone, Gren here, back from my break. It was a nice break, and I was able to focus on schoolwork. We don't talk about my Pre-Calc grade (just know I got a C) but I got an A in every other class. This episode is a little late because I was focused on the Splatoon 3 Splatfest (I was Team Handshake, GGS to all,) but it's here nevertheless.
As the year is slowly coming to an end, my workload increases. I think this'll be the last Extras episode until the NEW Episode of Waku Puyo Translations. Which means me dying to Kikimora text. Fun, yeah? Yeah.
So, with my absence, what game will we cover this time around? Well it's one I've mentioned a couple of times, which is...actually kind of nice, no researching history for me; Rulue's Spring Break of Fists...or Rulue's Iron-Fist Spring Break. For today, I'll use the first version.
This game is thankfully one of the easier ones to get footage of. Besides, the game itself is fairly interesting with its current casting, with people that you don't really see every day. And hey, this is the first time we've properly covered Rulue here, so there's a first for everything.
With this, I really hope you enjoy this and my derusting of my skills.
Oh, and random thing. My account turned 2 recently, though I began posting...in April of this year? Wahoo.
What's the Origins for the Game itself?
Similar to many games I've covered here (if only I had a good computer, I would probably make a funny YouTube series,) Rulue's Spring Break of Fists is a Disc System game released on Volume 14 of Disc Station Magazines in 1997.
(The opening to the game. Nothing amazing, but certainly an...opening?)
The game itself is somewhat of a Choose Your Own Adventure game, with you playing as the lady herself, Rulue. Here, you get to...choose your own adventure. There's three main things you can do:
Find the five divine treasures.
Explore the land. Or "The Wonderful Land".
Gather ingredients to cook.
It's interesting how the character most associated with fighting has a game where... you kinda don't fight unless it's a very specific circumstance, which I'll get into later.
Visually, I won't deny, it depends from person to person. If you like the 90s Moe eyes, then this artstyle is genuinely amazing, but if not, lotta characters look weird.
(This is a prime example, with Kikimora. Her eyes are huge, and personally I like them, but I can totally see why someone doesn't.)
So for this episode, I'll throw a question/poll:
This'll last a week, and I'm curious to see.
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How About Gameplay?
Something I want to note for this game is that in this... there's a LOT of different dialog choices. You're gonna have split paths all the time, though to my knowledge, they more just impede you until you guess right...or get a bad ending.
(Something like this. Also, rare Black Kikimora appearance, though...with an item Rulue gets, she transforms back into Kiki? It's odd.)
Whilst exploring and doing the routes, something you'll note is that there's a lot of quizzes, questionnaires, etc. Now why does this matter?
Because some of these questions are fucking hilarious man
What do I mean? Well, y'all know Momomo? Silly little shopkeeper? Well, they ask you a question for a quiz, and guess what the question is?
How much Yen will it cost to buy Disc Station Magazine Vol. 1 through 13 on their online store?
(This is Rulue trying to solve that question. Lowkey...I forgot the answer.)
This guy really thinks I know. And I think inflation has really made these prices seem cheap in the long run...
Oh, and another question, one I've mentioned before. You encounter Witch in one of the routes (oh boy), and she gives you a quiz also, albeit one that's...certainly biased towards her, asking stuff is "How cool am I?" And them sorta deals. Though, one question is literally "What is the size of my top?"
This game loves its odd questions.
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So, What's the Story? Well, Stories?
Well, simply put, apparently this game is after Chaotic Final Exam, and is MUCH calmer than said game. People from the game apparently have new personalities due to the events of the game, and Rulue...is delivering letters given via Masked Prince.
As stated prior, there's three routes in this game:
Characters that appear on all routes are Arle, Rulue, Masked Prince, and I believe Momomo.
Route A:
Rulue sets to find 5 magic items. Most notable characters here are Apparently Schezo, Serilly, Draco, Minotauros, and shockingly, Count and Vamp.
(Quite the shock, eh?)
This route...is certainly interesting. Between seeing Mino battered and bloodied by a fight, a literal possessed Arle by Count (or Vamp,) you FIGHTING Arle due to that, same deal goes for Schezo, he also got possessed, and a final fight with Count if he was overly buff...it's certainly one hellva route.
(This is...wow. What an experience.)
Route B:
Rulue, with envelopes given via Masked Prince, has one of them stolen by something, and she goes to investigate it. Getting sucked into a "Wonderland," younalso get some backstory about Rulue, notably hearing her grandmother. I'll tell y'all, I was given help by people who work on the Puyo Nexus and other Puyo Translations:
Rulue and her grandmother were very close, and she gave Rulue a music box when she was about 5 years old, under a Sakura tree. When she turned 6, her grandmother fell ill, and Rulue, upset that she wasn't spending time with her on her birthday, breaks the music box.
However, when Rulue sleeps, she has a dream about her grandmother, with her saying to not be upset with her...and when Rulue woke up, she felt like she'd never see her grandmother again.
(Edit:
Notable characters here are Kikimora and Black Kikimora, Serilly, Rulue's grandmother, and Demon Servant. Yeah, he's alive in this game.
I forgot to credit the main person who did this part, @klug. That's completely on me, my apologies. They did help quite a good bit for this, so thank them for the research and info. Wouldn't have gotten this without them. Again, apologies for not putting credit.
Here's their Puyo Nexus page. Go check em out.)
(YOU'RE ALIVE IN THIS GAME?)
So you know when I said this game was a lot more casual? I look real silly saying that now.
Route C:
Easily the most casual route, Rulue...is trying to cook. The grill calls for her name. I'm not joking when I say that the only characters here are Momomo and Witch. I guess Witch can cook?
This route is uh, odd. You spent most of the time doing quizzes and route splits because...I guess Witch and Momomo feel devious today. This route is notable for Witch asking that question in her quiz and only having 5 endings...Yep. 5 endings.
Something I've neglected is the ending to these routes.
There's about 30 of them.
Yeah. Good luck.
(Autism be damned, Witch can apparently cook. Just have fun on the quiz.)
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So, The OST and Final Verdict?
The games ost is honestly decent. I can't describe it well but a lot of the music is just flat out solid, with no real complaints here. I'd say check it out at least.
And the final verdict?
The game itself is honestly very fun to browse and look around. The game gives us Rulue lore RANDOMLY that I'll gladly accept, Demon Servant, Count, and Vamp make an appearance, and the game, while confusing, is really fun to watch.
I'd say for Disc Station, it's very solid.
With that...that'll be all for today. Next week I won't post due to Thanksgiving and spending time with my family, but next time we meet, we'll finally continue our Waku Waku Puyo Puyo Dungeon translations after SO long.
See y'all then. Hope you enjoyed the show.
#madou monogatari#japanese translation#puyo puyo#sega#arle nadja#rulue puyo puyo#disc station#satan puyo puyo#witch puyo puyo#puyoposting#why did this game give me rulue angst
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THE DOCTOR | Part 4 | The Mandalorian
< PART 3 | Part 5 >
GIF by akariownsyasuke
SUMMARY: The Child makes progress, and the Mandalorian keeps busy.
PAIRING: eventual Din Djarin x OC afab!reader (no physical descriptions; reader has relatives, a surname, and backstory/personality)
WORD COUNT: +2.2k
A/N: That took a minute 👀 What I originally wrote didn't really work imo, so I had to scrap it and rework the idea for this part. I kind of settled on this bit, so I hope it all works. I know it's slow, but we're ~easing into it~. Double-ish my usual WC to make up for the time. I have a poll thingy on Google Forms, if anyone would like to drop some feedback (anonymously!) because I’m curious. Thank you for reading ❤️ and I hope you enjoy! Oh! Also, this officially takes place at some point before Episode 7: The Reckoning.
WARNINGS: Slow burn. (I guess?) Mention of offscreen/prior Din x Omera, or at least ✨something✨ between them.
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When your father passed, operating the clinic without him or returning home to a silent abode felt strange. Your old man was always up to something, the air alive with his hum or the bustle of a side project. Of course, you were thankful for your brother-droid’s company – you don’t know how you would have navigated such a loss without him – but 2-1B just didn’t occupy space in the same way as another creature of flesh and blood.
Once lively lulls quickly became cavernous, and though your lone companion never voiced his feelings (did droids feel? you think so), you both needed to adjust, and it took time. Lots.
You filled the air with music or audiobooks for many cycles, even asking 2-1B to just talk. At some point, you reached a point where you could wean away from the drone of background noise, and comfortable silences once again became commonplace in your home. You hadn’t considered your readjustment to organic noise when you offered the Mandalorian and his foundling a place to stay.
You weren’t opposed – just surprised.
For his first four days in your home, you hardly see or hear the Mandalorian, who evidently picked up work from old Kasa on her farm. In exchange for a generous sum, she kept him busy from when you left in the morning until nearly dusk, though you couldn’t tell it from how the man carried himself. Kasa was an appreciated community pillar, so he’d evidently made quite the impression by how her word quickly swirled and shifted their perception of the “metal man” to “Mando.”
Having the Child around had been a small joy, particularly around dinnertime. While the Mandalorian rested, you had entire conversations with the expressive baby, whose eyes and ears conveyed as much as his spirited trills and gurgles. His propensity to you made it easy to take his vitals at both mealtimes, and you were pleased to report that he would quickly be ready to leave your watch.
Your being starstruck waned, and though you shared few words throughout the days, you were comforted by the fact he remembered you, some college kid he’d met ten years ago. The bit of time you shared, between the Child going to sleep and dinner being done, was often bridged by quiet, and the Mandalorian nearly melting into the couch in the den. At the same time, you fiddle around with things and pipe up an odd question about his work for Kasa or what you heard from the old folks’ rumor mill before parting ways for the evening.
On your fifth morning with the pair, you wake to distant sounds in the kitchen and bolt upright, heart pounding and mind racing to where the blaster rifle is tucked away in your closet. You nearly reach the closet door – when you realize why you hear the noise. Who you’re hearing.
You glance at the clock and see the glow of 04:07 and groan. Perhaps the silver lining is that you can get an extra early jump on the day?
The pneumatic door announces your presence before gentle footfall does, dampened by soft slippers. Squinting against a lone light in the kitchen, you find the Mandalorian standing at the open door of the cooling chamber. The Child is sitting on the counter, watching his guardian expectantly, and there’s a slowly steaming pan on the stove.
You can’t help staring – you’re confused, coming off a disorienting mix of adrenaline and sleep.
“Sorry. The kid was hungry, and I didn’t want to wake you.” The Mandalorian shuts the cooling chamber and turns like a child caught sneaking sweets. You almost laugh, but your languor wins, leaving you with a pleasant smile.
“Well, I appreciate the effort. Can I give you a hand, or have you got it?”
The helmet turns from you to the stove and back. Then comes a cautious answer, “I’ve got it.”
“Alright, I’ll leave you to it. But let me know if you change your mind.” You make sure to look into his visor pointedly (or as much so as you can muster), to which the Mandalorian nods.
He maneuvers the space carefully around you as you set a pot of caf to brew, methodically grinding the beans and measuring water as though ritual – and, to you, it is. Most mornings began with it, unless on a day that 2-1B insisted you take off – then, it was mild, herbaceous tea to set the tone.
You feel the Mandalorian’s eyes on you here and there as you tap out stubborn grounds or climb onto the counter to reach something too high-up, and though you’re sure it’s well-meaning, you hate how it makes your hands tremble. All the while, he did well to fix the Child a bowl of meat and broth despite being unfamiliar with your setup, adding a dropper of medicine and stirring, just as you demonstrated that first evening.
With a cup of caf and your datapad in hand, you assume a comfortable, sleepy silence in the den, scrolling scholarly articles published by Coruscant University. The Mandalorian methodically disassembles and cleans the components of his amban rifle as the dawn bleeds blue and the air is filled with the Child slurping on his breakfast. Come the time the sky is goldenrod, it is of soft snores, with the Child passed out between his guardian and the arm of the couch, porringer still clutched in tiny hands.
The Mandalorian rises, presumably to deposit the little being into bed again for a short nap before the long day ahead. Meanwhile, you get up and fix another cup of caf for yourself and another unaltered one for your guest. When he returns, the confusion is evident in how the visor regards the cup for a beat, then pans to where you linger at the edge of the kitchen.
“Have some caf. It’s going to be a long day,” you sigh, fingers lacing around the front of your cup as you move toward the corridor leading to your room. “I’m going to get ready. It’ll probably be about thirty minutes, so you can relax. 2-1B won’t come out ‘til I’m leaving, and I’ll announce myself, too.”
“Thank you. That’s very kind.” The tone of his voice is dichotomous – flattened by the modulator but almost gentle.
“Of course,” you smile.
-
It’s not often that Din is shown hospitality. He learned very early, once of age to begin venturing out, that most did not take a shine to Mandalorians – they were unreadable and armed to the teeth, and his occupation of choice lent him no favors. Instead, it earned him more disdainful stares as his reputation steadily preceded him, as his notoriety now does. So, he felt fortunate for what unquestioning kindness he received, especially of late. From Kuiil. Omera. Peli. Now you, and even your once-withdrawn neighbors.
Din sighs, and the kid warbles curiously, crumbs from the cookies you’d sent him off with falling from his tiny mouth. Sorgan was only a short time behind them, yet he felt he should feel better about what could be. A life of anonymity – domesticity – peace (possibly with her), dashed by the innumerable blinking fobs in the universe, all pointed at the Child. At him.
“Mando, dear,” Kasa’s voice carries from deep inside her home, resounding off the high curved ceilings. Drawn from his reverie, Din pushes off his knees to stand, meeting the woman at the threshold of her front door. She’s a tiny and kind human with a serene expression framed by wisps of salt-and-pepper hair pulled into a neat braid. He wonders if she has kids – family, somewhere out in the galaxy.
She hands him a woven sachet of credits, whose weight drops firmly into his palm. “Thank you for all you’ve done, truly, and please feel free to come visit if you’re close by,” she beams up at him, patting the orange fingers of his gloved hand tenderly, and Din wishes he could convey the smile that creeps onto his expression.
“I’ll do my best, Kasa. Thank you, ” he ensures, tucking his wage and the Child into his sling bag. Would he survive to? He pushes the thought aside, straightening.
“I look forward to it,” Kasa says earnestly and turns to step back inside. “And please tell the Doctors hello!”
She seems satisfied by his nod and waves to the kid, who babbles around another chunk of a cookie, his own au revoir.
Despite his initial surprise, Din was relieved that Kasa had cut him loose early. She seemed to have an endless list of things needing doing around her property – repairs, things moved, something fetched from so-and-so – just slightly beyond her, so much that he could probably spend weeks helping out. Yet, she took mercy, urging with a matronly touch to relax and enjoy the remainder of his time on Chaira – ”it’s a beautiful place!” Shame he wouldn’t have much more time to take it in.
The main street is a long but straight shot from Kasa’s back to your home, along which Din takes the time to peruse the merchant pop-ups again, espousing many handmade goods or fresh food. Most residents seemed to have a business here, if not the family of arborists up the mountain, providing a diverse array of wares. A skewered crispy creature for the kid and a big paper-wrapped “artisanal” soap block later, he’s on the move again, back toward your residence.
You seem well-loved by the stream of locals he’d noticed stopping in simply to chat. How they watched him intimately, he realizes, is protective of their resident doctor. Din expects to hear your voice spilling into the street when he reaches the clinic, carrying on in some conversation but finds your lone droid sweeping the foyer. The Child coos, prompting 2-1B to turn their way and wave a pincer.
“Out foraging in the hills behind the house. Go past the pond,” he says of you before Din can reluctantly ask.
“Thanks,” he gruffs and sets off that way.
The walk there is refreshing. The back terrace gives way to rugged steps inlaid to the hill, framed by thickets of greenery and dense undergrowth that brush against his greaves and low-hanging branches that tap his helm. It disseminates to undulating hills blanketed in knee-high grasses dotted with vegetation and craggy rock.
He finds you deep in a far gulley, toeing its edge to spy you in its trough. The Child coos, causing you to straighten from behind a bush sporting large umber flowers – one of many around here. A rifle stock peeks over one shoulder, and a woven basket the opposite, brimming with color.
“Mandalorian,” you greet, clearly pleased to see him. Then your expression shifts, eyes dropping to the distinct green ears at his side. “Did you need something? Is the kid alright?”
“He’s fine. I just finished up Kasa’s work.”
“Wow, she let you go?” You raise your brows, circling the bush you’re at to pluck away a few more stems of choice, placed gingerly in the basket. “You know, if you wanted to give up bounty hunting, Kasa could probably use a hand like you. Might be steadier money, though maybe not as much?”
You meticulously pick over the brush for full blooms, leaving behind unopened buds, and fortunately miss how the Mandalorian’s helmet turns, or his fingers clench and release. As appealing as it is, to slip away, such wistful thinking isn’t realistic for someone like him. It would jeopardize more than just him or the Child to stay.
You’ve moved on to another cluster of bushes by the time he follows over, imperceptibly eying the rifle slung over your shoulder. It’s nice if a bit dated – Alliance issue – and looks curious upon your back.
“What do you need that out here for?” he asks, indicating with a nod.
“Dogs,” you say plainly, rising once your basket is full. The helmet inclines dubiously.
“Dogs?”
“Big ones. Like, you-size,” you emphasize and gesture a finger up and down to send it home. The Mandalorian scans the expansive field surrounding the gulley, posture tightening. A hand brushes the blaster at his hip, like a gunslinger out of a holofilm. You chuckle.
“They don’t usually prey on us here,” you indulge and begin to climb the steep incline, hands forward to steady yourself. “But if they get sick, they do. So, I carry it just in case.”
The Mandalorian only grunts, retreating a few paces to allow you room as you boost yourself over the top edge.
“So, are you done for the day, or are you done-done?” you ask, dusting off your gloved hands.
He seems to parse over your choice of words, and as you begin to walk in tandem you suspect you’re getting side-eye.
“Done-done,” he says flatly, and you smirk. Following a beat, he continues, “Since the kid is doing well, I think we’ll take off this evening. Need to keep moving.”
Your brow furrows. You want to pull some kind of “executive decision” as the kid’s physician to keep them longer but fall short. Even if you did come up with something, it was selfish (you already got what you want) and you didn’t want to rub the Mandalorian the wrong way.
“Are you on the run?” you ask after a moment, casting the metal man a sidelong glance.
The Mandalorian doesn’t give you an answer.
< PART 3 | Part 5 >
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#i've been toying around with making some fun dividers n banners#so hopefully for the next installment i can have those done!#ALSO AGAIN i hope this is decent#i went back and forth FOR SO LONG on this#and i am capital-s Settling#just to get on to the next bits#the mandalorian#din djarin x reader#mandalorian x reader#the mandalorian x reader#star wars x reader#mando x reader#din djarin#mando#the mandalorian fanfiction#gif cw#series: i dream of chrome#fic: the doctor
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The Dark Secret of Zootopia? (Part 1, Identifying the Problem)
What? If you're a fan, you already know Zootopia's "secret."
It was originally a dark dystopia where the predators wore "tame collars," but the Zootopia team got nervous about how depressing it was and did a last-minute rewrite that used most of the old assets and plot points! Right? So are we gonna do a deep dive on that?
Not quite.
What if I told you that despite the rewrite that took out the obvious metaphor for systemic oppression, more evidence of systemic issues remains and... it probably doesn't make any difference?
So that half-assed poll I put up suggests more than one person would like to see me take Zootopia apart, and that probably means delving into the racism metaphor, but, man, I don't have the headspace for that today! So I took a spin through the Headscratchers page, hoping to find something a little more compact. There had to be something other than the racism metaphor that a lot of people had trouble with, right? Sort of an appetizer for a busy Tuesday?
Nnnot really.
Here's an obvious Libertarian voter who can't fathom that people would be racist when it runs contrary to good business practices! We go through quite a few tropers positing non-racist or less racist reasons to refuse Nick service - including one who believes prejudice against predators "wasn't a thing" until Judy's press conference, and before that people just didn't like foxes - before some hero arrives with a fire extinguisher and says, I'm paraphrasing, "Racism isn't rational! End of story!"
Then we got this question, which has the answer contained in it already!
I've trimmed the first response, from someone who apparently sees nothing wrong with just rolling up and asking to pet a sentient being. "It doesn't have to be a metaphor for anything"!? They go on to posit that maybe it's a taboo in funny animal society. 'Cos, you know, you don't have to read Zootopia as a metaphor for human society if you don't wanna.
(The Author! He's already dead! Why you gotta desecrate the corpse like that?)
It takes a few more self-soothing responses from evident people-petters before, again, someone rolls up and says, "It is exactly white people wanting to 'pet' black people's 'weird' hair, something that is unfortunately a fairly common patronizing occurrence in the U.S., at least."
And after that, we still get this:
"I have a Black friend and he lets me pet him all the time! Cut white people some slack! They're just curious! Let us pet you!"
Zootopia is racism lite, folks. Zootopia calls out racism primarily as something an individual does when they make decisions based on their preexisting biases - which, in Nick and Judy's cases, stem from childhood traumas that we get to see on-screen.
This is a version of racism that a child - with a little hand-holding from a caregiver - could understand. All but the most toxic conservatives ought to be okay explaining this kind of racism, including the toxic neoliberal centrists! "You see, little Kayden, there is no such thing as 'society.' 'Racism' is what happens when a lot of individuals make bad decisions. All you have to do to stop it is make better decisions, and encourage others to make better decisions too! Why, when I was your age, we chose better hairsprays without CFCs in them, and that fixed global warming and the hole in the ozone layer forever!"
"Auntie Margaret Thatcher, isn't climate change still a..."
"WE FIXED IT FOREVER, LITTLE KAYDEN." *strained smile* "So just don't buy fox spray! If enough people don't buy it, they'll stop making it."
"Why is it okay for someone to make a spray specifically to hurt foxes in the first place?"
"...If you don't stop asking questions, I shall bury you under the Aberfan coal tip with all the rest, little Kayden. Eat your popcorn."
But even that's too much for some folks! They retreat behind the ambiguity of the metaphor and wonder why the funny animals make such odd decisions, in the willful absence of context. With no context, why would a bunny be able to say, "It's okay if we call each other 'cute,' but you shouldn't." That's blatant hypocrisy. Bunnies don't own "cute." It's just a word!
Don't apologize, Benjamin! Why would you do that?
This entire movie is a modern Aesop fable and you need that human context. "Cute" privilege to "n-word" privilege is a one-to-one correlation, like petting a sheep is to petting a Black person. It only makes sense because you live in human society and you can fill in the blanks - because you have seen similar manifestations of bias and you already know they're not okay. You don't even have to know why or agree. To get the joke, you just have to know this stuff happens and people think it's rude. That is not a high bar to clear!
And that is, apparently, the level of anxiety we have about unpacking our own racism. Not even the systemic kind. Not even the big issues those scary "woke" zombies are trying to "cancel" you about. Just, "An individual - including you, for you are an individual - can make bad decisions based on their experiences."
Whaaaat? No I don't!
"These animals have nothing to do with me and therefore, this movie makes no sense."
These are the people Zootopia needed to reach. Not the ones who already had a clue, the ones who were so scared of getting one that they buried their heads in the sand and refused to acknowledge reality itself. So here's a cheerful little film with an animal metaphor and an optimistic resolution! Surely they must feel safe enough to unpack racism in this context?
But they didn't. Much like Green Book, this film was safe and simple enough to walk away with an Oscar from an Academy that's mostly white, male, and terrified of minorities - and the people who didn't want to get "woke" slept right through it. I don't think that's what they were going for, given that V 1 of this film had systemic oppression worn around the neck of every predator with a blinking light on it.
Remember, they reused assets and plot points from the original and rewrote everything fast. Traces remain. But if the ostriches in the audience can't understand "cute" privileges, do they have any hope of noticing Judy's bathroom at the police academy has a toilet that can kill her and no accommodations for a species her size?
Well, they might have. But the way the film handles it gleefully assassinates everyone's chance to see the systemic issues and respond to them appropriately.
Tune in next time, for Judy Hopps, bunny cops, "Black Excellence" and our old friend Barack!
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EDIT: I know this poll is over, but I am still genuinely curious if people have thoughts on Logan's timeline/which version is more accurate. Please feel free to leave comments :)
(Also the 1 vote for Option A was me accidentally clicking it as I scrolled on my main account lol)
Okay so I know logan is not everyone's favorite apprentice, or one they dislike completely.
He is one of mine for sure though (tbh i love them all), and I have some thoughts on his timeline I wanted to hear what others thought on them because I felt like I interpreted things differently.
I tried posting on reddit about this but it sounds like I don't have enough karma or something for it to post so I'm coming here haha I'm not on that site ever so we'll blame my naivete on that :)
I used a sideblog for my normal account to post here where I don't have anything else posted, but who knows this could become my saw sideblog.
A. Interpretation I always hear of Logan's timeline...
Logan is an xray tech and messes up John's scans.
Logan in the barn trap due to his careless xray mistake. John saves him because HE made a careless mistake on Logan with the tranquilizer/sedation so Logan didn't deserve to die.
Logan helps with RBT
Logan goes to war. His kid is born some time in here. He gets PSTD after being a POW and is discharged.
Logan comes back from war and begins work as a medical examiner while in treatment (I believe Halloran read something about official PTSD treatment in the movie somewhere like on a computer?).
Movies 1-7 would happen between #4-5.
Logan's wife dies. 2 years later, Jigsaw 2017 happens.
B. What I had understood Logan's timeline as...
Logan starts working at the hospital (while being treated for PTSD) as an Xray tech. Because he's dealing so much with his PTSD, he makes the careless mistake of mixing up xrays including John's.
Logan gets married young and joins the army. He is a medic there, becomes a POW, and gets PTSD. Is discharged. Gets sent back home.
I am super aware that's not the right timeline nevessarily for the war they indicated he was in. They seemed a little confused on those details overall as was, which CZ'S world mentioned in his video so that's why I think this is a possibility.
Logan in the barn trap due to his careless xray mistake. John saves him because HE made a careless mistake on Logan with the tranquilizer/sedation and realized Logan shouldn't have to die for John's mistake. Logan says he came back from the war a broken man and Jigsaw put his life together. I know the 10 years since the trap thing is a general time amount and will never be perfect, but this at least jives with the came back from the war a broken man after the war thing. If he went to war AFTER the trap, it seems kind of odd (not impossible though) that jigsaw/jigsaw's method would have put Logan's life back together when the trap would have happened so many years ago.
Logan helps with RBT.
Logan goes off to his family (I can see John encouraging that since he personally did not get to do that with his family) and gets further treatment for his PTSD (which I believe Halloran had read about on that screen in the movie? I think ZZworld mentioned it).
This is when movies 1-7 would be happening (#5-6)
Logan (outside of occasionally being the muscle for John or doing surgery/medical help with gordon) lives his life quietly off to the side, working on his mental health/PTSD and being there with his family. This would explain Logan's absence in the original movies though: He believed in the cause, but also wanted to live his life with his family/daughter for John, who did not get that with Jill and Gideon. Logan's daughter looks about 1st-3rd grade level as well, so this makes a little more sense he would be in a place to have a child during this quiet time and after treatment, than when he was actively in the middle of or just finishing treatment for PTSD as I think option A would require?
Eventually, after enough treatment, Logan transitions working as an xray tech to a medical examiner during that giant gap of time, potentially after the death of the medical examiner by Hoffman (was that in #6? Not sure which movie it happened in but there was definitely a job opening after that).
Logan's wife dies, jigsaw 2017 happens.
I'd love to hear any thoughts on this or just votes in general :) I'm really curious if I found connections where there aren't as concrete of ones, but I have seen a few other people who also thought the same interpretation as me.
I saw someone asking if it was even possible for logan to be in Saw X because he was away at war and it confused me tbh
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Ya know I figured I'd start with some of the familiar early game enemies, but this shit's about to get busy/complicated fast so buckle up! The Gobs are at least pretty straight forward, but there's just a bunch of them... So today's enemy poll is,
The standard GOB(LIN) started as a pretty basic D&D derived design at the start, briefly detoured in WA2 into being an obtuse Gundam reference, and then settled into the WA3 design that would endure for the rest of the franchise.
The HOB GOB(LIN) was a pretty sensible recolor for a beefed up Gob. The original swapped green skin for orange, but later iterations would opt to keep skin tone and instead change out the Gob's green uniform for an orange one. This in turn makes Alter Code F's odd one off recolor, the BRAVE GOB nearly identical to WA3's Hob Gob, while F's own HOB Gob actually became more brown than orange.
The original Wild Arms also had a blue skinned GOBLIN SHAMAN recolor that was for some weird reason localized as "ORC LORD." I'm counting the SHIELD GOB from WA4 as a kind of throwback/spiritual successor to the shaman. And then in WA5 a recolor of the Shield Gob was used for the boss quartet of military ranks Gobs, named GOB DIRECTOR.
In WA1 there was an enemy called GOBLIN PRINCESS that got renamed to "GNOME" in English for, again like the shaman, no discernable reason. She would make a comeback in WA4, and her model would be reused in WA5 as the DOCTOR GOB enemy. (She also appears on the back cover of the ADULT MAG enemy in WA4 and 5.)
The funky blacksheep of the family... CALUPDIS in WA1 was a recolor of the GOBLIN PRINCESS but would go on to have a unique model for the rest of the franchise. This would be further obscured by WA2's localization randomly choosing to name the enemy, "RED BARNEY." It would go back to being CALUPDIS until finally being transliterated correctly for the first time in WA4 --the name was of course always meant to be CHARYBDIS, as in the Greek mythological monster... (confusingly she is mythologically associated with the monster Scylla, which also appears in the Wild Arms franchise, yet the two have never actually appeared together.)
In a curious move WA4 splits the standard Gob into two types of common enemy, the SHOTEL GOB and the AXE GOB, although in WA5 the AXE GOB is elevated to mini boss status while the SHOTEL GOBs are treated as subordinates. The GOB CHIEF in WA5 is a recolor with a blue uniform.
The AXE GOB is as mentioned above, and had an orange recolor in WA5 called GOB GENERAL. It feels like that should kind of link it retroactively to the HOB GOB, but I'll keep them separate options here.
Like I mentioned, WA2's Gobs made reference to Mobile Suit Gundam: The standard GOB was modeled after the MS-06 Zaku-II, RICK GOB was modeled after the MS-09R Rick Dom, the GEL GOB was modeled after the MS-14 Gelgoog, and an unused and unnamed design was modeled after the MS-07B Gouf. (Presumably the Gouf inspired design would have been blue, which may have been a reference to the GOBLIN SHAMAN's blue skin, and/or referenced back to by the GOB CHIEF's blue coloration.)
The BOGLE is a yellow recolor of the WA3 GOB that appears along side a black recolor named COB. The Bogle (also spelled Boggle or Bogill) is a Scottish umbrella term for a broad array of more specific folkloric creatures. The wikipedia page on Bogles mentions giants associated with Cobb's Causeway, aka The Devil's Causeway, which is where I assume the name for the accompanying COB came from. (As it happens the etymology seems to be shared with that of Bogey(man) and Goblin, which is appropriate.)
And finally BARBAROI GOB is a block recolor with a spiked helmet like a German pickelhaube, and a sword; kind of an odd overall German vibe to reinsert to the design. And WA5 uses this same character model for the GOB COMMANDER.
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Yeah. It’s a bit of an interesting part of his character when you stand back and try to unravel it. But hitting women is a quick way to turn a character unlikeable.
Before getting into this series, I was not expecting well… any of this. I was genuinely believing it was going to be the same as other masculine media that seeks to uphold that very masculinity in very off putting ways. The kind where every guy is obnoxiously straight. Really took me by surprise to see Kiryu who’s crazy about toy cars, Yokoyama depicts him as a virgin, he lacks social skills (me too, king) and he’s still really cool. Majima is uh, everything about him. Ichiban needs no explanation. And Shinada is a sexual character who sometimes says something kind of perverted, yet hes got a lot of depth, a real golden retriever attitude, and has a lot of kind things to say about sex workers. Normally, I can’t stand the lovable pervert trope, but Shinada feels so different from that. I could stand here all month talking about just the surprising characters. The homoerotic subtext is something else 😭
I suppose I’ll be looking forward to the potential ask lmao. But it’s crazy how personally Mine took the stuff that happened when he went out with Daigo. Oh boy, I’ve made a few jokes about Nick and Daigo, but I’m wondering what you’ll have to say about them.
Wooooow. I noticed the pretty boy features, but didn’t know there were that many. The Dead Souls one sticks out to me a lot. Starting to really wonder if Yokoyama has a subconscious thing for GNC men. Do you have a picture of that man, btw?
I remember making a joke about Hayashi (while we were looking at the original Ishin) being a fruit to my friend and cousin which mortified them because it’s Hayashi. When I learned they switched it to Awano I was shell shocked and still kind of am💀
Baba and Zhao in that role really says a lot of course. Especially given how they already are in their own respective games. There’s some questionable behavior like Zhao’s excitement to see Ichiban nude if you choose that along with implying he’d want to get naked with him. A lot of things really, but there’s also an odd line from Baba and Zhao (although in his case it was being said about him) using the same word: horete. I only recently learned what that word can mean, and I’m still really curious about it and the scenes themselves. Seong-hui telling Ichiban that at the last minute just made me wonder “Why???” Baba though…
Japan liking 5 a lot makes sense. I remember seeing a popularity poll from around that time. The placements were pretty shocking.
Me neither! But I think that's one of the reasons I ended up giving the series a chance, because I'd read an article about how the series subverts traditional masculinity and that was one of the first things to get me interested.
I think before that I'd expressed that I was adamant about not getting into it, but I honestly have no memory of that, I just take my friend's word for it lol. Of course, there are also ways the series upholds traditional masculinity, but the characters are overall super refreshing.
With Shinada and Ichi, I especially love how those themes started to be explored in Y5 and were followed up in Y7 with Yokoyama having more to say and a better grasp on what he wanted to say. Of course, all of the protagonists (and even some other characters) have influenced Ichi's character in some way, but I was a fan of how big of a piece of the pie Shinada seems to have since we have yet to see him since.
And yeah! I don't think there's too much to conclusively say about Nick and Daigo, it's all the implication, but it's fun to connect the dots. Because I generally feel like the Champion District is a mix of Golden Gai and "Nicho," Shinjuku's hub of gay subculture.
At least that's the impression I get from the cluster of Bars Of A Certain Variety in the Champion District; I feel like if you're a regular there despite it being a "bad neighborhood," that probably says something about you. And of course Nick frequents Earth Angel, but Mine and Daigo's favorite bar is also located in the Champion District.
Well, of course some of Yokoyama's comments raise eyebrows, but in complete fairness he had basically nothing to do with the development of Dead Souls and I don't want to speculate too much. I'm a little split on DD as a character, but I'm trying to keep this "short" since I have a stream to get to, so here's DD and his actor Peter/Shinnosuke Ikehata (honestly slay):
Arguabiy Hayashi's always been like that too haha, but he and Awano definitely were Choices. Someone has to play Takeda though, right? I think all three make for entertaining villains at the very least, so they fit well in that regard.
Baba I honestly don't remember too well (though I remember him fondly!), because I missed Saejima's part in my friend's playthrough of Y5R when it came out and haven't gotten there myself, but of course when you have a bond like that it's noteworthy.
Zhao, on the other hand, I kind of honed in on him immediately even when Y7 was only out in Japanese, for sure. Since Ichi is pretty much canonically into men their interactions were a lot of fun to watch. Seong-hui does a fair amount of hinting, not just with Zhao but also the Florence Nightingale comparison with Nanba, right? But I think it's natural, because queer people somehow just find each other.
The usage of horeru I generally don't put too much stock into, at least by itself, though. I'd need to go back over the scenes to be sure, but usually when it means something, there are other clear indicators or it's worded in a really intense way.
Because I did go and compile a number of usages of the word by itself when KHHSubs found my post, and more often than not it wasn't romantic or anything by itself, and in some cases it would've been kind of alarming if it were. So a huge point in my updated post ended up being that it's never just the word by itself for Mine.
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⤿𝐦𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐤𝐲𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬
chapter i ➳ a murder in the dining carriage; the tokyo express is comfortable, quiet, & meant to be superior travel. murder, however, is neither comfortable or quiet, and the circumstances are less than ideal.
dessert pairing; multiple characters x investigative journalist! gn reader
a/n; here we go ! remember to read carefully — clues are hidden everywhere ! — & keep an eye out for the poll at the end of the chapter !
calm.
the train compartment is quiet, calm as you slowly pull away from the station. you’ve been blessed with your own room, an odd number of passengers in this particular compartment — 11, including yourself. you haven’t seen them yet, too focused on organizing your belongings to venture into the other carriages. you’d be on this voyage for six days, you had more than enough time to get acquainted with them.
your room is closest to the back of the compartment, as you’d requested; quieter, less distracting. there was little chance of someone stumbling past your door, isolated from the other double rooms. you were here on business after all, not pleasure; you needed peace & quiet.
investigative journalism required focus, a keen eye for detail that you’d had since childhood. essentially, you were a detective without the restrictions of the law — and without its protections — & with an obligation to find the truth. the public deserved nothing less, & your determination had brought you fast promotions & faster assignments.
you were currently on your way to Sendai, on the trail of a particularly exciting museum theft — your press had paid for this excursion, so you were sitting comfortably in first class, the premium compartment at the back of the train. the rooms were at the very end, then the washrooms, then the dining & lounge carriages right before the coatroom. everything was a little gaudy for your liking, red velvet drapes and gold fixtures, but you couldn’t deny its comforts.
a rustling just outside your door made you pause; setting aside your notepads, you slid open the door a crack to peer into the sunlit hall. there’s a man & woman arguing a foot or two away from your room, clearly frustrated; the woman jabs a finger into the man’s chest with enough force to shove him back against the wall before storming off towards the dining carriage, and you slowly slide the door closed once more to avoid detection. how odd.
you settled into the dining carriage at half six; only a few of your seatmates had done the same. you counted four, all looking rather serious; you do your best not to stare & enjoy the pasta on your plate.
slowly, the carriage fills up; a heavily tattooed man in a button down and ripped jeans sits to your left, wholly out of place in the elaborate room. two businessmen follow after, both in expensive suits; one seems almost angry, scowling into his chicken as the other talks animatedly about stocks and prices. the arguing couple from earlier slip in silently, having seemingly resolved their previous spat; they hold hands, but the fondness of the act doesn’t reach their eyes.
the rest of your seatmates were there when you arrived, & you could only recognize one; ushijima wakatoshi, a well renowned national volleyball player. he’s joined by the couple, & says nothing as he eats. interesting, you think to yourself, & continue with your pasta. another pair of gentlemen are off to your right, quietly discussing nothing at all, & you can tell by their faces the conversation is forced. one is tall, with a mess of black hair over one eye; the other is shorter, a grown out blonde with a permanent disinterested expression.
the last seatmate is seated directly behind you: a slightly disheveled & exhausted looking man in a loose fitting suit. you only know he’s there by his extensive sighing, peppered by the scratching of his pen against paper. there’s a badge on his hip, & a gun concealed under his arm — law enforcement of some kind, probably a detective. you try to drown out his sighs with your paperwork as you eat.
after dinner, you move to the lounge carriage, not quite ready to retire to your quarters. socializing was important for the mind, & you were more than a little curious about your seatmates. [& perhaps you were a little starstruck over ushijima — who could blame you?]
sitting against one of the plush, dark velvet couches, you flick through a simple mystery novel as you observe your surroundings; both the businessmen are here, arguing over the best way to cook a roast duck, as well as the two serious young men. ushijima has sadly returned to his quarters, & so you busy yourself with the hushed argument taking place off to your right. you can’t fully hear them, but the taller man is clearly upset, & you just barely catch the words “abandoning me” & “petty gossip” before he storms out. the two businessmen silently watch the exchange, clearly invested, & you take a mental note. odd, that strangers should be so saddened by someone else’s argument.
all the excitement is more than enough for one evening, & you make to gather your things & retire for the night. you’re stopped, however, by a heavily tattoed hand covering the front of your book; it’s the man from earlier, the one who seemed just a hint out of place.
“ah, leaving so soon ? i was hoping to finally get a chance to speak to the mysterious cutie with the room next to mine,” he smiles, & up close you can see his tongue is pierced, & his messy blonde locks are covering a sleek undercut. you can’t help your little snort, a half-amused smile on your lips as you reply. “does that work on everyone you flirt with, or only the truly desperate?” you ask, & he mocks a hiss as he sits across from you.
“oh my poor heart, that stings. and here i thought you were nice,” he pouts, & you actually laugh; he perks up almost instantly. “now that’s a lovely laugh, i like it. i’m yuuji, yuuji terushima.”
“[y/n] [l/n], at your service,” you counter, deciding to humor the man in front of you; what more could you do, really ? he moves to speak, a charming glint to his eye that you can only assume comes from another attempt at flirting when a shadow looms over you both, & his face hardens immediately. it’s the sighing detective who sat behind you at dinner, looking displeased.
“is he bothering you?” he asks, hands coming to rest on the table, & yuuji swiftly stands despite your reassurances that you were just fine.
“sorry to cut this short, sweetheart, but detective hardass here has a raging boner for me, & i’d rather not spend the evening in his company,” he says curtly, taking a moment to savor the reddening anger rising on the other man’s face before making his exit towards the coatroom.
with the distractingly charming man now gone, you turn your attentions on your “savior” detective, who’s looking much more sheepish than the imposing figure of just a moment ago. “i apologize for intruding, i’m certain you can handle yourself. it’s him i’m not very fond of.” you smile a little, leaning back into the sofa as you eye the exhausted man.
“i can tell theres no love lost between the pair of you. care to tell me why, detective...?” he’s quick to flush again, sitting in the now vacant seat across from you.
“detective daichi sawamura, of the tokyo police department. & so you know, i do not have a “boner” for him. i arrested him for grand larceny & fraud; he’s a well known con man.” you raise your eyebrows in surprise, but a part of you knew yuuji seemed just a little.... greasy. “well, thank you for protecting my wallet,” you joke, gathering your things.
“i’ll leave you to it then, detective. have a good night,”you call over your shoulder as you disappear into the corridor; you’d had just about enough of socializing for the evening.
upon returning to your room however, you find another dilemma; the lock to your doors been tampered with, & it’s nearly impossible to open without scraping against the frame. a call to the front carriage only brings more bad news — maintenance won’t be available till morning, & you resign yourself to a night trapped inside your room. at least no one would be able to get in.
there’s hurried footsteps outside your door suddenly, & harsh voices; you pause, before it grows quiet again. faintly, you think you hear the telltale sounds of vomiting, but it’s soon silent, & you brush it off as your exhaustion creeping up on you. you’re fairly certain you look like detective daichi, & you shake your head to clear it.
you turn out your lights & curl up in bed, wholly unprepared for what the morning would bring.
you’re awoken by a blood curdling scream, just as the sun creeps over the horizon.
the sound shocks you awake so clearly you’re certain you dreamed it for a moment, before a symphony of shouts and panic stream out from the hall. scrambling to find your bed slippers, you stumble towards the commotion in your silk pajamas, pausing at the entrance to the dining carriage.
gone is the smell of pine and mint, replaced with the heady scent of alcohol and blood. face down on the carpet is the black haired man who’d been arguing in the lounge the night before, blood staining the back of his white dress shirt — he’s clearly dead, and the pool of blood beneath him only solidifies that fact. your seatmates are scattered amidst the room; some behind you, following you into the chaos, some perched on the sofas in distress. detective daichi keeps everyone at bay; “this is a crime scene now. please, don’t touch anything,” he orders, still wearing his rumpled suit from the night before.
slowly, carefully, the train staff begin ushering everyone out of the room, leaving you & daichi alone with the body. “his name is kuroo tetsuro. travelled alone, met an old friend on the train, kenma i think he said his name was,” he informs you, & you nod slowly. “i think i saw them together at dinner last night. what a horrible way to start a journey.”
daichi turns to you carefully, weighing his next words. “we’ll arrive in Sendai in six days. between you & i, their police force is .... well. they try their best, but this case will go cold faster than we can blink.” you follow along with his subtext, shifting in your fuzzy slippers as he speaks.
“you want my help,” you clarify, and he nods. “well, i’ll be happy to give it. but trust, everyone is a suspect— even yourself, detective.”
“i’ll say the same to you. for now, we should examine the scene, question everyone while it’s still fresh. we’ve got oikawa tooru, iwaizumi hajime, kenma kozume, tanaka ryunosuke & tanaka kiyoko, ushijima wakatoshi, & yuuji teshurima. i say we start with yuuji. he’s a shifty one, & no one saw him return to his room last night,” he decides, but you’re quick to counter.
“don’t you think that’s your prejudices talking? i’d say we should start with his old friend — he was the last to see him alive last night in the lounge,” you say, & daichi frowns.
“i don’t agree. i’m fairly certain yuuji may have run into kuroo last night, after the incident in the lounge.”
what will you choose ?
question yuuji ?
question kenma ?
vote here.
#haikyuu x reader#daichi x reader#iwaizumi x reader#haikyuu fic#haikyuu imagines#oikawa x reader#kenma x reader#kuroo x reader#ushijima x y/n#yuuji x reader#tanaka x reader#kiyoko x reader#haikyuu fanfiction#murder on the tokyo express series#evywrites
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Shane Madej X Reader
College Bookshop AU!!
Summary: You are in college and for the past eight months you have been wrapped up reading books from a mysterious recommender that is only identified as “S” in your look bookstore. You have been trying to piece together who “S” is for month to no avail- but when you meet a handsome and helpful sales clerk you think you might have found your man!
Part 2 of 5; Part 1 Part 2 (I will link the updates as they come out!)
The next day you were back at the cafe, skimming over the book again and nursing some caffeinated beverage to perk up. You had woken up early- partially due to the fact that you never had really gone to sleep- and had sprung out the door. Thoughts about what could- what should happen had been filling you up- dancing in every quiet space of your mind.
It had been a little thing- the cider- but it was the little things that mattered. In your bag beside you laid the washed cup. You didn’t think you could ever be that nervous about washing a cup- but you had been- rubbing it squeaky clean with care. That cup could be the beginning of something- and beginnings are so fragile.
You must have looked like quite a sleepy wistful puddle of preoccupations- because at this moment Steven paused as he passed your table. Steven was your barista. Well, there were other baristas of course that worked the shop across from Calypso's, but Steven and you were friends. And not just the transient, “oh your usual?” type of coffee shop friends either. Steven was genuine like that- honest.
“You know,” Steven said, putting down the dish tray, “Sometimes too much studying isn’t good for you.”
“Oh-” You jumped, regaining your presence in reality, “I’m not studying,”
Steven frowned. “Then why do you look so beat up?”
You waved the book.
Steven squinted down at you. “Wow? Was the recommendation that good this week?”
Steven knew that you were following “S’s” recommendations. It would have been impossible for him not to, considering how you wouldn’t shut up about it the first couple of months you had begun reading them. But Steven didn’t know how obsessed you were. He already thought you were crazy enough for believing in conspiracy theories and paranormal activity. Adding being a “book stalker” to the list wasn’t something you were willing to admit to as well.
“Yeah,” You said, with an unconvincing smile that you hoped would deter the conversation. “It was a real-” You grabbed at the air, “You know a real gripping story.”
Steven was not convinced, you could tell by how his eyebrows were cresting above the frames of his glasses. Your anxiety jumped into your throat as Steven drug up a chair and sat down across from you with a look that told you he intended to get to the bottom of this.
“What’s a matter?” He said simply, as if it could be answered simply.
You thumbed the edge of the book up and down, the pages zipping across your fingertip.
“Do-” You bit your tongue, “Well I mean- do you see a lot of people here? Like working behind the counter?”
“Of course?” He scrunched his shoulders, “I see maybe half the campus- well half the liberal arts people- just in the morning shift alone. We don’t really get the STEM people. The Life Sci building is too far away for them to come down in the mornings. In the evening we might get them though.”
You mentally ran that through the list of possibilities. From Shane’s vibe, you had already pegged him to be an art history major- or maybe even something odd-ball like metaphysics. But when you scanned around last night at various art clubs and societies- yes you had done that like a psycho- you hadn’t found him listed in any one of them. He wasn’t even on Calypso's instagram as an employee… It was possible that he could be a STEM major- or something else strange- there was a certain chemistry. You frowned. Your humor was bad even in your own head.
“Why exactly are you asking?” Steven asked, with an ernest insistence
You felt yourself becoming hot- the table becoming suddenly really interesting. “There’s…. There’s this guy.”
“OOO-”
“It’s not like that!” You protested, knowing it was exactly like that.
Steven’s serious expression had completely flipped, turning into a cheshire grin, satisfied that his senses had been right. You had been messed up about something.
“Where’d you meet him?”
“Calypso's,” You said reluctantly, “He’s working the counter.”
“Calypso's?” He exclaimed, “Don’t you like live there or something? How do you not know him?”
“He’s new? Or well- I think he is new- it might just be I have never seen him before-”
“And you thought I might have? Y’know seen him.”
“Right-”
“Right- Right-” He quickly repeated, rubbing his chin with an intellectual air. “Certainly- Yes- Yes- tell me and I will see if my eyes have come across this certainly lovely man with which you have been so affected by.”
“Should I roll my D20 or are you going to lay off the game night bullshit!”
Steven’s expression remained unchanged- elated- curious- and eager.
You sighed defeated, “He’s- I don’t know- He’s tall-”
“How tall?”
“Like- tall enough to be a telephone poll.”
“Attractive-”
“Yeah- yeah- yeah- well he’s got long brown hair that kind of sticks out everywhere”
Steven nodded. “Brilliant”
Why were you so bad at this! “Oh he has a nice smile- and kind of a stache”
“Oh- a stache man?”
“It’s not a creepy stache-”
“Of course.”
“More like a professorial stache.”
“Oh?” Steven's eyes lit up with implications.
“He’s young-” Your hands shot up, “He’s not like a daddy or anything.”
God had you said that outloud. Steven started wheezing- dying actually. You were dying too but not from laughter.
“So-” Steven croaked, trying to recover, “Does this- not daddy- have a name?”
You twisted in your seat, your face still boiling. ”Shane.”
“.....Wait....” Steven’s composure changed, he leaned forward confused and startled,“You don’t mean Shane- Shane? Like Shane Madej?”
Your eyes grew wide.
Steven rubbed his mouth- a grin slowly forming on it- and sighed: “...Christ....” He paused, his thoughts cementing, “You do mean Shane Madej- of course!” He sat back in his chair running his hand through his hair thoughtfully, “...Shane Madej… I mean he’s definitely not bad?”
Not bad? He was perfect.
“What do you know about him?”
“He’s not an employee-” Steven’s eyebrows shot up, “He’s the owner so… I’m mean… he is kind of a daddy-”
“Steven!” You snapped, wanting information and not games. “What on earth do you mean he owns that place?”
“Yeah-” Steven sighed, “He inherited it or something- like a year ago?”
“So you know him?”
“Well- I mean not like personally? He came over when he first got the place and said hello and whatever with the owner here and occasionally he stops by pretty close to closing and gets some cold brew togo- or whatever- he’s pretty nice? He’s kind of shy- quiet- I guess I have never really stopped to fully talk to him?”
Never stopped to talk to him. What a crime. But your mind didn’t linger on that for long. The pieces were starting to click. A new owner, trying to get involved in the business, starts reading and recommending books. He might have gotten the place a year ago- but it would have taken a while to get adjusted and get on his feet. Perhaps he started reading because he had a crisis… The books in September were starting to make sense now… It was almost the perfect profile...
“So…” Steven said, interrupting your train of thought, “What are you going to do with all this knowledge?”
“I-” You paused. You honestly hadn’t thought you would get this far. You had to lend it to yourself, your detective inclinations were excellent. “I actually don’t know. I guess I was just curious...”
“Curious… right,”
You didn’t like Steven’s smirk. It was far too big and happy. It was still early- but Calypso’s was open. You hadn’t intended on making your exit just yet- you didn’t want to look as desperate as you felt- but you sure as hell couldn’t stay here with Steven knowing what he knew. That would be a slow death by embarrassment and knowing sighs.
“I have got to go now,” You announced, shuffling up from the table.
“Really?”
“Yes, really,” You picked up your bag and drink and quickly smoothed yourself out.
“Don’t worry- you look great,” Steven reassured, still smirking.
“Who said I was going to see anybody?” You bristled, getting blushy already- this was not a good sign.
“Not me,” Steven's voice trailed as you headed for the door, “But now that you mention it-”
The door to the cafe closed behind you. You didn’t look back- but you knew- you just knew Steven was watching out the window and smiling. The rain had stopped, but it was still foggy and dark. You crossed the overcast street, the cup burning a metaphorical hole in your bag with each step. As you reached the door and swung it open, your eyes brightened, anticipating to see his cheery face peering at you from behind the counter…
But he wasn’t there. Perhaps he was upstairs?
A strange nervous energy filled you. What if he hadn’t meant anything by it- by giving you the drink? Maybe he just wanted to be friendly? Maybe you had taken it the wrong way and he knew it- so now he was ghosting you! You hated getting ghosted. It happened to you more times then you liked to-
Your thoughts paused as you hit the landing of the stairs. The door to the upstairs office was open. You had never seen into the office before. In fact you weren’t sure if you were supposed to be seeing it now. From the crack in the door it looked like a crowded and homey place- it’s old wood paneling shining auburn in the lamp light- and it’s no doubt creaky floor littered with stacks of books and papers.
Shane’s books and papers.
No. No. No. This was getting too personal- too quickly- you needed to escape back down the stairs before it looked like you were being a creep. Cause you certainly weren’t a creep. Even if you did do it on occasion.
You made an abrupt turn to go back down and find somewhere normal to wait out this chill of anxiety when your foot came in contact with something warm- fuzzy- and catasphrophic. You tripped forward- face first- ass second- onto the floor- causing a horrid- simply terrible- noise. The fuzzy shape wormed out from under your feet and pounced up on you.
It was a cat- an orange one- and it was smiling down at you- happy with its work.
“OBI!”
Your eyes quickly focused past the cat to see Shane rushing out of the office. He quickly dumped his books and reached down and snatched the cat.
“I’m so sorry,” He tilted the cat up to face him, “Bad kitty- remember what we said about sneaking out of the apartment.”
Apartment? So he lives here?
“Oh- no it’s fine-” You grabbed your bag and the cup that had knocked out- thanking god it wasn’t broken.
“Here,” Shane put the cat down and reached towards you, “Let me get you fixed up.”
He took the cup from your hand and then softly grasped your forearm, helping you up. While your feet placed themselves underneath you firmly- your knees were weak. You were standing so close to him- the same scent and feeling brushing over you as before- the soft pine- the warm heat- the utter perfection of it all.
“Oh-” He retracted his arm, realizing that he had been holding on to you for a little too long, “You're not hurt or anything?”
“No,” You said, “I think I might have hurt the cat more then the cat hurt me- with my feet all-”
“Hogwash- the cat’s resilient,” Shane waved his hand dismissively, “Nine lives and all of that,”
Yes- of course. An awkward smile crept up on your face. “Um- well I just wanted to give you back the cup.”
“The cup?” Shane’s eyebrows went up, “Oh- yes the cup!” He shook it back and forth.
“Yes- and I just wanted to say thanks for the cider- y’know cause it really was cold out there- and I did appreciate it-”
“Sure- sure-” He nodded earnestly- a hint of nervousness in his voice, “It was- well it was- y’know- it was-”
“It was nice.”
Shane stopped mid ramble- a hint of pink dashing across his face. Had- had you just made him blush? Oh god- Oh jeeze-
“Um-” Shane turned back toward his office, “Do you want to step in for a bit?”
Your lips parted.
“It’s the least I can do- it’s quiet up there- you know you can work on all that- well- work you need to do- I have some cookies? You like cookies?”
He couldn’t even look you in the eyes as he said it. And you thought you were the jittery one.
“Cookies are great.”
Cookies were fucking awesome.
He laughed haltingly, pushing back a shock of his hair, as if he had never imagined this scenario happening today. He definitely wasn’t alone in that.
“Well- ah after you!” He made a swirly gesture with his hand, trying to regain his usual smooth confidence.
You put your hand to your lips not to giggle and stepped into his office.
#shane madej#buzzfeed unsolved#shane X reader#shane/reader#BFU#bfu x reader#reader insert#bfu fanfic#bfu au#shane bfu#shane madej x reader#buzzfeed unsolved x reader#buzzfeed unsolved fanfic
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A Strange Play Request
Weiss Schnee can’t believe herself right now, as she is standing in front of a house where a resident brute is living her own luxurious life full of games and shenanigans. And what more is she is standing right here asking for a little bit of help from her.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this. I will never get to hear the end of this.” Sighed Weiss. She hesitantly lift her arm preparing to knock, but the door flew open in her face and she jumped in shock.
“Hey, Weiss! Saw you standing there so I opened up.” Grinned Yang. Weiss groaned in exasperation.
“Warn me next time, Yang.” Weiss said with a deep scowl.
“Next time.” Winked Yang.
Yang being a gentlewoman that she is opened the door wide enough to let Weiss inside. Weiss thanked her for her courtesy and looked around the house.
“Is Blake here?” Asked Weiss.
“Nope. She’s out to meet Sun and Velvet, something about Faunus meeting somewhere here in Vale.” Said Yang, going to the kitchen. “Want some tea or coffee?”
“Tea? You drink tea?” Asked Weiss in confusion.
Yang shook her head from the kitchen. “Not really. It’s more of Blake’s tea to go, while me I just dig in. I like the Menagerie blend though.”
Weiss nodded as if Yang could see her. “Do you have like coffee beans?”
Yang looked behind her to see Weiss. She looked up for a moment in thought. “Yeah, I think. Since Raven likes her coffee beans from Mistral.”
Weiss smiled. “Mistral coffee beans pack quite a punch. Both on the taste buds and pocket.”
Yang laughed at the comment. “That is quite true.”
Yang brewed the coffee and went to the living room to give Weiss her share of coffee goodness. She reached out the cup of coffee to Weiss, which the latter gladly accept.
“You sure make good coffee.” Weiss compliments as she took a sip.
“Gotta hand it to those times Blake and Raven having hangover from time to time.” Chuckled Yang.
“Blake drinks?” Blinked Weiss. Yang nodded.
“But it’s occasionally. With Sun and others, or those rare nights with me.” Yang replied.
Weiss hummed in consideration. Weiss continue to drink, not knowing where to start her ‘odd’ request.
“So, what brings you here in this wonderful abode of the almighty Xiao Long.” Grinned Yang. Weiss rolled her eyes playfully, but smiled.
“I have a rather odd—request.” Said Weiss, looking around nervously.
“Odd? How odd exactly?” Asked Yang.
“Something that you would never thought I'd request.” Said Weiss, blushing.
Yang held out a hand. “Weiss, I’m taken, no.”
Weiss looked at Yang in confusion, before she gaped at her in horror. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Yang! Gross!”
Yang roared up, laughing. ‘Sorry, sorry. So what’s it?”
“..me.. ga..” Muttered Weiss.
“Teach me gay? Weiss, you’re already gay enough I assure you. You don’t need teaching you useless lesbian.” Laughed Yang.
“TEACH ME HOW TO PLAY GAMES, XIAO LONG!!” Exclaimed Weiss, surprising Yang and the sudden shout.
“G-games?! Who are you and what have you done to Weiss Schnee?” Yang panicked. Weiss frowned at Yang.
“I’m being serious, Yang.” Said Weiss, with utmost sincerity.
Holy shit, she is serious.
Yang coughed. “And what brings you to that request. And you’re right, I never get to imagine the day you’ll ask something like that.”
Weiss coughed. “W-well, I want to know what does you and Ruby find in this sorts of activities, fun. And I kind of want to play some with Ruby but I’m too afraid to ask her to teach me.”
Yang blinked. She grinned.
“Don't worry, Weissy! I got ya covered!” Declared Yang, pointing her thumb to herself.
Weiss sipped her coffee. “I hold you on to that.”
***
“Yang, please stop. You’re taking my kill!!” Yelled Weiss, tapping aggressively on her scroll.
“Then finish them faster.” Grinned Yang.
“I am trying and you’re cheating!” Said Weiss.
“Come, Weiss. All is fair in love and war!” Laughed Yang.
“Shut up, Yang.” Growled Weiss, trying to kill Rafaela. “Stupid, healer.”
“Oh come on, don’t diss the healers.” Said Yang. “I’m our healer, here.”
“Which is unusual. Shouldn't you be a tank or fighter?” Said Weiss, killing the minions around the turret. “Ah! I died.”
“It's okay, Weiss.” Said Yang. “I died too.”
“Well, I don’t feel bad about you dying in the game.” Said Weiss. Yang put a hand on her chest.
“You wound me, Schnee. Or should I say Mrs. Rose.” Teased Yang, nudging the latter’s side.
“Not yet.” Smiled Weiss.
“Oho, Schnee is marrying my sister, eh.” Smiled Yang in amusement. Weiss looked at her.
“Of course, I would. I love your sister. And she made me the happiest woman living on Remnant.” Weiss softly smile.
Yang pats the latter’s back, albeit a bit harder than expected causing for the heiress to almost end up being on the floor at the force.
“Yang, you're making my character dead!” Panicked Weiss, tapping on the skill set she had.
“Quite ironically and also it makes sense that you would pick Ruby as the your hero.” Mentioned Yang. Weiss blushed and shush Yang, who laughed at the comment.
“Adorable little Weissy. Always so smitten for Ruby.” Teased Yang.
“And I bet all my money that on a certain upcoming poll, you’ll suggest a character that is similar to Blake.” Muttered Weiss, killing Akai.
“Woah! You already got your first kill.” Yang exclaimed. “Nice one, Schnee.”
Weiss’s teammates are already in shambles and is getting killed by the other team. While Yang is trying to heal everyone that is currently ‘alive’ which means nearly dead in the game.
“I know some healers are a bit kinda sloppy, but this time it’s not the healers fault.” Commented Yang. Weiss hummed in agreement.
“I may be a ‘noob’ as you would call us newbies, but this is entirely ridiculous.” Said Weiss as she watched another teammate die.
“Weiss, let’s end this.” Said Yang with determination.
“Alright, support me Yang.” Said Weiss, readying herself.
Weiss dashed towards the turret, pulling Elsa, I mean Aurora on the turret where she finishes her off with the help of the turret and Yang. Yang healed Weiss nearly low health to make her fit to battle. Their teammates came running and providing support and killing some hero’s and minions along the way.
Weiss decided to push and destroy the remaining turret from the other team, clearing the field so that they can execute more attacks. Weiss used her first skill to kill the minions and the second skill to stun nearby enemies and then killing them on her third skill.
“MONSTER KILL! MANIAC! UNSTOPPABLE!”
On the top flashes the words that meant to say that all enemies are killed and they are now charging to the base. One more slash and..
“VICTORY!!”
“Weiss!” Yang side hugged Weiss and cheered. “You did it, Weiss!”
“Did what?” Wheezed Weiss as Yang crush her ribs. “Yang, my ribs.”
“Look at your scroll!” Yang exclaimed. “Who got the MVP?”
Weiss looked at her scroll and saw her name.
“Oh.” Weiss looked at her scroll. “What’s that suppose to mean?”
“You are the best player, but of course not as best as me. I’ll just let you take the cake for now.” Said Yang.
“Is that so?” Weiss smiled. “Why thank you, Xiao Long.”
“No need. That’s what sisters are for.” Said Yang. Weiss’s neck do a whiplash and looked at Yang wide eyed.
Yang, only just noticed what she said and looked away from Weiss, blushing. Weiss bit back a laugh, but eventually ended up giggling before laughing at the display in front of her.
“So, I got your approval, huh?” Said Weiss in amusement, teasing her fellow teammate.
“N-no! You need to do more than that to make me say yes to you marrying Rubes.” Countered Yang. Weiss chuckled.
“I don’t think I need that. I already got the answer even before this happened anyway.” Said Weiss.
Yang was confused.
“What do you mean?” Asked Yang.
“Oh nothing. Let’s just say it involves with you being drunk and telling me a lot of compliments and other pleasant words about Ruby and I.” Said Weiss, smiling in triumph.
Needless to say, Yang was terrified and quite curious as to what she said on that particular day.
#rwby#bromance#freezerburn#the gay bros#weiss schnee#yang xiao long#rwby whiterose#whiterose#rwby white rose#bumbleby
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RWBY Volume 7 Chapter 6 Review/Runthrough
I know I’m very late with this, but finals were hell.
This chapter went from a middle ground of curious tension to the highest hype to the deepest dread and despair over the course of its roughly 16 minutes of run time and I hated that. And I love it. I hope y’all did too, but let’s take it step by step together.
It starts somewhat close to where chapter 5 left off, the riots in Mantle have been quelled and several people are in handcuffs, including three familiar thirsty moms. Guess the Happy Huntresses are popular with housewives, wish fulfillment of making a difference in the world yourself and all that. Robyn herself is being interviewed as we’re shown the riot aftermath and people getting in line to vote at electronic polling machines. And we get our first major surprise of the episode. There were two other candidates we never heard about, Ivy Brown and Pearl Wistier! So can we get some F’s in the comments for these two, who didn’t get any recognition or screen time and with the election ending probably never will? As Robyn talks about hoping voters will make the right choice and that the connection between her supporters and the riots is pure coincidence, we see Team RWBY and JNR training while Oscar watches. Blake and Yang are jumping around atop towers, Weiss is sparring with Winter again, Ruby is practicing her semblance, Ren meditates, and Nora and Jaune are bouncing a dodgeball back and forth to test his new shield. The Bees jumping around reminded me a little of the Chibi episode where they played tag, so I liked that. Weiss bounces Winter’s Beowolf around on black glyphs in a manner that made me think of a move Sans uses in Undertale, a very fun connection, and then she knocks Winter off guard by sending a small version of her knight to attack Winter’s ankle. Her playful smirk says she’s not sorry~ Ruby’s petal form splits into three parts to go around a pillar, and Oscar finally calls her out on that being a little unusual if her Semblance really is speed. The dodgeball keeps getting hit harder and harder as Nora puts her thunderous all into it until it dissolves against Jaune’s shield when he uses the Dust upgrades to better defend. He takes some damage to his Aura but recovers again very quickly, much to Oscar’s enthusiasm. Ren’s meditation seems to suggest he’s trying to unlock some kind of precognition or ability to sense other people like he had in Volume 4 when Tyrian was approaching to ambush them. But he doesn’t quite get it down yet and instead Ironwood and Clover enter.
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Ironwood is impressed by how hard the teens are pushing themselves, with Ruby affirming it to be necessary with the current state of affairs, and Ironwood seems to think the info on his Scroll is evidence of that. The poll numbers favor Robyn, which is undeniably better than Jacques winning even if the Happy Huntresses and the military are in a silent stand off, and the young heroes think the general should make more of an effort to be open with her about what they are doing since they’re all on the same side of wanting to help Mantle. Nora argues for the sake of Mantle quite vehemently, furthering my theory and probably many others’ that she was born here. Jaune seems to agree, but Ironwood says that kind of communication will have to be a two way street and by his tone of voice I’m guessing he doubts that will happen any time soon. Before Nora can offer a rebuttal Ren asks why the General is here. Turns out, with the election happening tonight and the teams having done so much work recently, they’ve decided the kids should get the night off before things really start changing once Robyn or Jacques is elected. Ruby doesn’t seem to like thinking about that, probably because everything in Atlas will get very different once the Amity Project is complete and she still doesn’t know how that will go.
Regardless, Team RWBY make plans for the evening. While Weiss stands around glumly looking at the news feed on her Scroll, Blake puts on some eye makeup that I’m too uninformed to know the name of and Yang stares longingly at her from her bed. At least, that’s how I saw it. The two of them are going dancing with Team FNKI, in a club where it will be too loud for Yang to be able to hear Neon’s voice. Just the way she likes it~ Meanwhile Ruby is going with Ren and Nora to meet up with Penny at a party in Mantle to celebrate Robyn’s surefire win of the election. Because overconfidence like that has never backfired in media before. Weiss is still mentally torn about her father’s big layoff stunt and how in the world he thought it would actually work out for him with what a cunning man he’s always been. Yang thinks it was just a power play that backfired, but Weiss worries there’s a grander scheme below the surface. Then she’s asked which group activity she would rather be a part of, so after seeing Blake’s adorkable attempt to do a dance move Yang is showing her she chooses the suddenly appearing third option: going to the movies with Jaune and Oscar. Volume 2 Jaune would be so impressed his older self got Weiss to agree to that kind of thing with minimal effort... but also be very upset by all the terrible things that happened to the guy up to that point. So it barely matters to our Jaune anymore. Still, hope it was a good movie cuz that’s the last we see of those three for the rest of the chapter.
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Ruby and Renora are next seen walking down the street as celebrating Robyn fans pass by in a truck. Ren admits he sees Weiss’ point about celebrating a bit soon but Nora tries to be an optimist about it, that the people should be allowed to enjoy this supposed surefire thing. Ruby admits nothing will probably be a sure thing anymore once the Tower goes up and Salem’s existence becomes known, with Ren and Nora affirming that they’ve spent so long worrying about the secrets they’ve been keeping they haven’t thought about how they would have no plan to face her even once they get past that. Afterall, Jinn said she can’t be beaten. Ruby reminds them the exact phrasing was that she told Oz he couldn’t destroy her, and Nora picks up on the specifics. If Oz can’t, then maybe someone else can. And with her Silver Eyed powers Ruby seems like their best gamble for that. Personally I’m still of the mind that the point Jinn was trying to make wasn’t that “Oz can’t destroy Salem” and was instead that “Oz can’t destroy Salem”. Redemption and the restoration of her kinder former soul may be the best solution to this. But who knows? Regardless, Ren is restless and thinks they should go back to training, that they don’t have time to waste with social gatherings and fun distractions, but Nora says they’ve done enough for now and they need to unwind otherwise they’ll snap. So they’re at odds now, unfortunately...
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The three reach the town hall/auditorium where the rally is taking place and meet up with Penny, who is very happy to see them but wonders why it is only these three. Nora explains what Weiss and the boys are doing and that the bees are off doing their own thing, and Ren comments that he’s relieved the two are back on good terms after everything that happened. But Nora sees this as an opportunity to be passive aggressive. See, the situation with Blake and Yang is very similar to her tumultuous “will they won’t they” with Ren. So she calls into question whether or not Blake and Yang are actually just friends or something more intimate and close after being through such deep bonding experiences, but we can tell she’s actually asking about where she and Ren stand. Ren picks up on what she means immediately and fires back how he feels on the matter while keeping up the pretext of this being about the others. It’s kinda funny to realize they’re being so indirect and also teasing how romantic things seem with Blake and Yang when the fandom has been having similar arguments. But it does offer insight into their actual feelings: Nora wants to take that step and has always worn her heart on her sleeve so she’s ready to show how she feels but she also wants to be sure Ren feels the same so she doesn’t misread the signs. But Ren is worried that with all the deep political stuff happening and the impending threat of chaos Salem’s reveal will bring, now isn’t really the right time for relationship stuff. Nora fires back that they can’t figure anything out unless they talk about it, and I do kind of agree. If there’s tension like this between the pair then it might affect their teamwork and trust.
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Ruby wants no part of this awkward conversation and slides over to Penny’s side, who also realizes the argument probably isn’t about the Bees. So the two head backstage instead, where Marrow is waiting and initially seems happy to see Ruby before getting back into a work mindset and says she shouldn’t be here since she’s still an amateur who wasn’t assigned to this job. But Ruby says she’s just here to be with her friend, and offers Penny a fistbump. Penny looks overjoyed to see this invitation, and eagerly gives Ruby a bump. Unfortunately, steel fists really hurt and Ruby’s hand starts throbbing red. Ouch~ Marrow just tells her not to get in the way, since they need to stay vigilant in case of any trouble. He is interrupted by the one and only... May Marigold, one of the Happy Huntresses we saw when they stopped the truck last episode.
May is... a deep new kind of character, for reasons that have become clear in recent days and were first brought to my mind when I saw the cast list for this episode. May is voiced by Kdin Jenzen, a lovely woman who works for Rooster Teeth and is memorable for such feats as being able to handle super hot chips with ease on the last two RT Extra Life livestreams. She is also a trans woman. This does nothing to diminish my opinion of her and it should not affect yours. This fact also adds a layer of depth to the character, as the likelihood of May being trans as well seemed rather possible. And as of December 17, this is confirmed: May Marigold is RWBY’s first confirmed trans character. An extra layer of diversity to the world of Remnant is most definitely welcome, and it also adds some depth of character to Robyn Hill. Her group is comprised solely of women, and its a very good look for her that she sees May as one every bit as much as Fiona or herself. Because as we all know, TRANS WOMEN ARE WOMEN. Okay, tangent over for now.
May sasses Marrow a bit, saying the Happy Huntresses won’t be the ones causing any trouble and are there to make sure nothing goes wrong. So Marrow can scram, he’s not welcome. The poor pup tries to stand up for his faction, saying Ironwood just wants to help and the Ace Ops are there for good reasons. He’s interrupted by Robyn herself though, who accepts his presence as protective assistance as long as he stays out of the way. Clearly this isn’t what May or Joanna were expecting to hear, but Robyn says they need to learn how to get along if she’s gonna be on the council. Marrow tries to give her attitude by saying getting along will be easy as long as she stays within the law. Clearly her prior roadblocking activities make him think she hasn’t been. She tries to appeal to him and get through the strict military obedience, saying the law isn’t fair to everyone and he shouldn’t always have to obey it to the word. But he’s a Faunus in Atlas, it’s preaching to the choir at this point. She says all she wants to do as a council member is make Mantle and Atlas a better place for everyone, including the Faunus. But Marrow is unmoved, he still wants to guilt her about keeping her activities legal. But she matches his attitude tit for tat, everything so far has been totally legal and he can’t prove otherwise~ Their staredown is interrupted by the absolute angel that is Fiona Thyme causing feedback on the microphone and reminding Robyn she needs to get back to the party activities. Marrow backs off and tells Ruby to leave so he and Penny can do their jobs, so she sticks her tongue out at him behind his back and waves goodbye to Penny before returning to Ren and Nora... where things haven’t gotten any better. So she just turns right around to hang out at the front of the crowd.
Fiona has a very touching speech about how this victory has been a product of Mantle’s united effort to make things better, how this is their moment and they all know Robyn will do right by them. She even gets emotional herself, and then invites Robyn herself to come on stage and talk to the crowd a bit. The two seem to whisper to each other a little, likely encouragement by Fiona that she’ll nail her speech and reassurance from Robyn that the dear girl did a good job just now. Robyn opens with a joke that her difficulty with public speaking is a bad match for this career in politics, and Ruby seems amused. She always has seemed to sympathize with Robyn and think she’s a good person, and for the most part I would agree.
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The speech proper starts with Robyn thanking her gathered followers for their votes and for thus putting their faith and belief in her. And she assures them the feeling is mutual, that she believes in the strength and change a single determined person can bring just as much as she knows there is unlimited potential to what people can do when they work together.
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And with that unity, it doesn’t matter if she wins or loses because they will all continue to fight for the sake of the city that brings them together. That earns a lot of applause and she leaves the stage, though she starts to show visible concern as the radio announcer points out how close the votes are as the deadline draws fatally near. The Happy Huntresses are still confident she’s got this in the bag...
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But she’s no less tense.
With all this talk of unity in mind, Nora tries again to try and address the tension between her and Ren, but deep talks like this really aren’t his thing. Ren has always been emotionally closed off, it’s just in his nature and with emotion being so important for his Semblance it’s clearly been ingrained in his mindset for a long time. Talking is not his love language, he’s always shown how he feels through acts of physical contact. Hugs, leaning on her, holding her hand at the end of Volume 4. So while she’s seeking verbal validation that it is something deeper between them, he’s not used to that and doesn’t really know how to articulate himself and express all his feelings how he wants to. That’s how I interpret it anyway. Nora gets her own read out of his attempt at an answer, and it seems pretty similar to my takeaway from it. Clearly it was encouraging enough for her to know he does like her back he just has so much on his mind he can’t figure out how to say it. Why? Because she literally says “screw talking” and kisses him!!! A KISS FOR RENORA, 7 YEARS IN THE MAKING!!!!! So the two get blissfully lost in the kiss and each other’s company for a little while, and I’m so happy for them.
Unfortunately, this is where we start to have a bad time. We cut to Watts hiding out somewhere booting up several Scrolls in front of a screen showing drone footage of the party as well as older video of Penny’s hero work in Mantle, and he’s activating tech in his rings as we see that Tyrian is in the party crowd in a cloak ready to strike on his partner’s command. The polls are about to close, Ruby is looking over at Penny happy as can be... and sees Tyrian’s tail. She moves to get a closer look, and eyes meet between former foes. She screams towards the stage to watch out, but it’s too late. The lights go out as the election countdown chant hits one, Ren and Nora are holding each other close unsure what’s happening... and Watts gives the order to begin.
He starts doing vague techno stuff with the Scrolls that‘s mostly theatrical hand waving, while at the party Robyn drops her microphone and Ruby gets knocked to the ground by the panicking crowd. Tyrian has started killing people in the audience, in an attacking style seemingly unlike his usual work. Penny activates her night vision at the prompting of Marrow (who SHOULD be able to see in the dark as a Faunus but maybe he’s in a bad position to see what’s happening or her tech optics can do more than ordinary eyes Faunus or otherwise?) and pulls out her swords before she tells Tyrian to surrender. But either that scorpion boy has some mad jumping skills to get to the rafters or Watts could hack Penny’s eyes, because in the time it takes a panicked person to run in front of her he is gone. Watt’s puppeteer act continues as he seems to lift Penny’s movements from one video and put them into the footage of Tyrian’s massacre over the image of his body. How terribly devious. And with a single tap of a district map on one Scroll he changes which candidate several entire parts of Mantle voted for. He may very well have been doing this little by little over the course of the night so the election fraud would look natural, or maybe a significant portion of people actually were voting for Jacques and Arthur just forced the final push. I think the former is a lot more likely.
Meanwhile, Marrow is calling for backup and Robyn calls her Happy Huntresses to her side so they can all keep each other safe. Fiona wants to get Robyn to safety, and at the last second sees Tyrian running across the stage to attack them. His eyes and right arm both glow purple, and he scratches a hole in Fiona’s Aura before slicing at the exposed spot with the blades on his other arm. Seems his Semblances is being able to tear through Aura and then attack a person’s body directly. Useful skill for a killer like him... Still, we know only his tail is poisonous so she probably won’t die. That was likely on purpose too though... If they found venom in her they would know Penny didn’t do it cuz she doesn’t have anything like that. Speaking of Penny, she flies up to tackle Robyn to the floor when it looks like Tyrian is going to attack her next, but he just jumps up to the rafters and giggles maniacally. This part was planned too, because when the lights come on Penny is the one standing on stage with swords drawn over an injured Fiona and confused Robyn. Much like Pyrrha and to a lesser extend Yang before her, Penny has been set up as a brutal killer. Worse yet...
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Jacques has officially won the election and gives a live acceptance speech that seems like a total slap in the face. And if we look more carefully at those lying dead on the floor, a few familiar outfits can be seen. The same thirsty moms last seen getting in trouble for taking part in the riots are now going to be orphaning their children... Whether he meant to or not, Tyrian has proven his ultimate villainous status above all others. Ruby, Marrow, Ren and Nora all rush onto the stage to help Penny and Robyn, but the latter doesn’t trust them at all and the former is in shock that such brutality is blamed on her, that she’s failed her purpose as Mantle’s protector when it mattered most. It’s not helped by the fact that a survivor loudly proclaims Penny did it, and refers to her simply as “Ironwood’s Robot”. Dehumanizing her, saying she’s just another machine that’s been taken over and used as a tool of evil. When the Happy Huntresses and angry members of the crowd charge to attack Penny and those that would try to help her, Marrow uses his Semblance for some literal crowd control, making all of them freeze in place. Ren and Nora are quite unnerved to hear Tyrian was the perpetrator, but they get Penny out the back door to relative safety while Robyn stops pointing her weapon at the girl long enough to shove Ruby out of the way when she was trying to help Fiona. Our dear sheepy says she’s gonna be okay, but Marrow still feels bad and offers assistance. Too bad that means he relaxed enough for his Semblance effect to wear off and Joanna starts shooting at him so he and Ruby leave too, though he does try to assure Robyn that Atlas had nothing to do with this.
Watts uploads his deep faked footage and packs up for the night, telling Tyrian their good work is done. Out in an alley, the good guys catch their breath and quietly panic how bad things just got while Penny just stands in despair and shock. Ruby reaches out a hand to try and reassure her before realizing it’s covered in Fiona’s blood. Marrow tells Penny she has to go back to Atlas, but she’s initially not responsive. She does fly off though,, just as the Grimm attack alarms go off and the others get ready for the long night ahead... with the girls not having their weapons unfortunately. As Manticores are seen flying over Mantle and into the streets, Jacques’ victory speech continues to lay faintly veiled dread into our hearts.
So yeah. Hell of an episode, and one I took way too long to review. School was hell, just like this chapter.
#rwby reviews#ruby rose#weiss schnee#blake belladonna#yang xiao long#jaune arc#nora valkyrie#lie ren#oscar pine#penny polendina#marrow amin#robyn hill#fiona thyme#may marigold#joanna greenleaf#arthur watts#tyrian callows#jacques schnee#james ironwood#clover ebi#renora#renora is canon#bumbleby#mantle council election#mantle election hacking#terrible awful murder#deep fakes in rwby#rwby spoilers#volume 7 spoilers#rwby volume 7 spoilers
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We lost her (A Michael Gray Imagine) (trigger warning)
The day you told Michael you was expecting your first child he was scared. He had already got a girl pregnant a year ago. But the difference was...He didn’t love her, But you... he loved you from the minute he Laid his eyes on you. He thought about it and he grew more and more excited to start a family with you.
You had got dressed and was ready to leave. When there was a knock at the door. Curious you looked out the window to see Polly. You sighed as opened the door, she smiled and walked in.
“Michael at work?” She asked as she walked through the house and sat at The kitchen table. Even more confused you followed her in. “Yeah he left a few hours ago i was just about to pop round there.” She smiled and leaned forward.
“Y/N I want to know your interest with my son.” You was taken back as polly has always been kind to you before. You was curious as to why she was asking these questions 10 months into your relationship. You decide to defend yourself.
“Polly the only interest I have with your son is to make him happy and to one day Marry the love of my life. I’m confused as to why this has come around all of a sudden.”
She leaned back in her chair and lit a cigarette, the urge to have one right now grew but you didn’t want to cause any harm to your unborn growing child. She exhaled and looked at you. “Because he has been distant from us. From the family for weeks and you have as well. I wanted to make sure that he wasn’t thinking of moving away.” You internally relaxed. Then thought about telling her the truth but knew Michael would want to be there as well.
“Look Poll there is reasons as to why we’ve been distant but we want to tell everyone together. I would tell you now but Michael isn’t here and I think he wouldn’t be happy if I told you without him being here.”
You could tell by the look in her eyes she knew already. She has clocked on, it was the Gypsy in her. She smiled and nodded. “Okay well let’s head over to the offices then.” She jumped up and put her cigarette out in the crystal ashtray that was already over flowing with cigarette butts.
You both begin walking over to the offices when you felt a odd pain in your stomach. You tried to play it off like nothing happened but Polly still asked as she could tell by your face you were in some sort of pain . “You okay Y/N?” She seemed concerned. You nodded and kept walking, you had began to feel sick. You brushed this off thinking it was the beginning of morning sickness.
Not to long later you arrived at the offices and sat down on the first chair you could find. The pain had gotten worse but you didn’t want to say anything. Then everyone would know. You just wanted Michael. You felt a hand on your shoulder. It was Tommy. He knelt beside you.
“Y/N you don’t look good. Why are you here Michaels in meetings.” Polly stood on the other side of the chair. You sighed. “I just want Michael.”
Polly spoke up. “She was okay until we started walking over here.” She grabbed Tommy and walked away you knew she was telling him you was pregnant. You decided to walk home and try and sleep this pain away. You stood up and became dizzy and that’s when everything’s turned black. You just prayed your baby was going to be okay.
~
Michael POV
I sat in the meeting with a few new potential business partners, this was big for me. I want to show Tommy I can be apart of every aspect of this company and that starts with the meetings. I need to start bringing in more money for Y/N and the baby. Money never bothered us but I want this child to have everything.
“So Mr Gray, the company can also provide protection?.” The short middle aged man asked I smirked. “Of course protection is something we pride in being able to provide. We have the best in Birmingham.” I lit my cigarette and i stood up walking around the office.
“We have many positives that come with the company. We have links across the country and in the US. Pairing with us wouldn’t be a mistake I can promise you that now.” I could tell by their faces they where in, it was just a matter of their verbal confirmation. There was a knock at the door I sighed “Yes?.” Finn walked in. I looked at his face and saw the panic. Worry filled my body. “Excuse me gentlemen.” My professional side wiped as soon as I shut the door.
“What the fucked happened Finn.” I flicked my cigarette on the floor. He was out of breathe. “Finn come on I don’t have time I’m in He middle of...” he interrupted me with words I didn’t want to hear.
“It’s Y/N she’s been rushed to hospital.” I felt my heart melt and my legs go weak. The baby and Y/N where in trouble. I opened the door. “Gentlemen do you mind waiting. I have a family emergency. Thomas will be here shortly to finish the meeting.” Tears streaming down my face .I tried so hard to not look weak but the thought of losing Y/N and the baby. It Killed me.
They nodded and you could tell they were sincere. “Finn get Tommy here now to close that deal. I need to go to Y/N.” Finn nodded and ran in the opposite direction back to the offices. I bolted to the car and drove straight to the hospital. I needed to know Y/N and the baby where okay I just needed them to be okay.
Y/N POV
Your eyes fluttered open and You looked around the room in the search of Michael. He was asleep on the chair next to you.“Michael...” you spoke softly but louder enough for him to here you, he woke up and jumped to your side. He stroked your face. You saw his eyes were red and puffy. You felt empty and drained. “What happened.” You asked.
Michael closed his eyes and a tear fell. You knew then what had happened. You shook your head repeatedly and began sobbing. Your unborn child was gone and it killed you inside knowing it must have been your fault.
You screamed “it’s my fault!” Michael grabbed your arms to get your attention, “Y/N it wasn’t your fault don’t you dare blame yourself. It happens all the time okay, look at me...”
You looked Michael in the eyes and saw how much pain he was in as well. You didn’t realise how much this had effected him too until this exact moment, you wrapped your arms around his neck. He held you closely. This was a big thing you would both have to overcome together, you knew you would both be okay though...because you had each other.
#michaelgray#peaky blinder imagine#michaelgrayimagine#tommyshelby#pollygray#peakyblinders#finn cole imagine#finncole
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Female orc x buff female reader (sfw, mostly)
Edit which I’m including in all my works after plagiarism and theft has taken place: I do not give my consent for my works to be used, copied, published, or posted anywhere. They are copyrighted and belong to me.
Anon suggested that there should be more buff/strong/muscular women readers, and I wholeheartedly agreed, and spent the rest of the day writing this story. It was posted on my Patreon on early release, and it’s time to put it up here now. If you want exclusive early access to all Tumblr stories (except paid commissions when they’re open), and a Patreon-only story once a month, then head on over to my page and subscribe if you can! There are monster aesthetics and polls to help me decide what to write next, as well as posts from my original fiction and little snippets that I’ve come up with along the way.
Anyway, here’s a modern orc lady and a buff female reader.
___
All gyms are essentially the same, no matter whether it’s a 24hr one or an exclusive city gym full of Instagrammers and fitness bloggers.
There’s the row of treadmills, filled with people puffing and panting, some just starting their fitness journey while others have steel-hard thighs and calves already; there are the bikes with the people texting and barely pedalling to the would-be Tour de France-ers going at it hell for leather; there’s the stupidly good-looking trainer walking around doing fuck-all and fist-bumping the regulars; and the shy folk working up the courage to use a machine in the main area: it’s the familiarity from which you draw comfort, even in a new place.
You adjust your thick ponytail and crick the tension out of your neck. You’ve done your warm up, and you’re ready to go to the hallowed weights section, enshrined in a far corner.
And sure enough, there’s the usual minotaur showing off how much she can bench, and there’s the orc doing bicep curls with a dumbbell as big at each end as your head, but it’s home to you. It’s only as you step closer that you notice the most beautiful orc you’ve ever seen, doing squats with a barbell.
Her ass is so perfect it makes you want to cry. She’s wearing tiny compression shorts that show every muscle of her gleaming, emerald green thighs, and a crop top that reveals washboard abs that actually make you a little dizzy. Her thick, red-dyed dreds are tied back in a low ponytail and they clack and clink with beads and shells. When she carefully sets it down and straightens, she glances over her shoulder, apparently looking around for her water bottle.
It’s sitting at your feet beside the racks. She catches sight of it, her liquid, dark brown eye seeing it, and then her gaze rakes up your body in a way that’s so much more than simply ‘appreciative’. Her lips part softly but before you can watch any more of her reaction to your tall, lean, hard body, you grin, stoop down and pick up the bottle.
“This yours?”
She nods mutely, and you toss it at her. She catches it flawlessly and drinks deeply from it before looking you straight in the eye and grinning her thanks.
“You free?” you ask, and she frowns, curious. You laugh at the crinkle in her brow. “If you fancy it, would you mind spotting for me when you get a minute?”
She eyes your biceps in the sleeveless top you tend to favour for weights days. “You look like you’d last longer than a minute,” she mutters. Her voice – a rich, rasping alto – sends a rush of blood straight down between your legs. She sets her bottle down and juts her chin at the bench.
As you set the weight and settle onto it, you toss her a cheeky grin. “Oh I can go for hours.”
“Careful,” she smiles, hands hovering momentarily as you adjust your grip on the bar. “Don’t distract me too much. You need me to count for you?”
“Sure.”
By now your little encounter has attracted the attention of the big male orc and his buddy, a massive centaur with the body of a draft horse. Even the minotaur has stopped her routine for a moment. They’re watching with unveiled interest and curiosity as you begin, and you feel that familiar, gritty determination sink into your muscles, into your bones, suffusing your whole being with the fervour to push yourself to your limit and then half a step beyond.
Your orc’s sculpted eyebrows, both pierced, rise a little higher as you keep going, until finally you nod and she helps you guide it back onto the rest. You’re panting hard, lactic acid burning your shoulders, setting the sinews aflame, but she’s just standing there as you sit up, one hand on her hip, the other flicking her towel over her shoulder. “Damn,” she finally chuckles, clearly at a loss for something more eloquent.
“I’d love to see what you can lift,” you say as you lever yourself to your feet and stretch your shoulders and arms out.
“I could always bench press you,” she grins.
“I usually save the acrobatics for at least the second date,” you reply instantly, and laugh as her eyes go wide.
It’s odd to see a shy expression on such a tough beauty. “You… You want to?” she falters.
“What, have you bench press me, or go on a date?” you chuckle, heading to the water fountain to refill your bottle, not looking back at her.
You know the shorts your wearing look good on you. You know she’s looking at your shoulders and arm muscles. It’s also the first time she’s seen the slogan on the back of your shirt, and she snorts with laughter as she reads it.
It reads: worth the weight.
You fill up your bottle and then stoop somewhat provocatively over the fountain, comfortable with the way your body moves, with the looks your hard muscles garner. It’s not to everyone’s taste, but you’re proud of your hard work, and you know you look good. Wiping the sweat and water off your chin with the bottom of your loose tank, you reveal your stomach to her before letting it fall to cover you again. “Coz I’d be open to either, preferably the latter then the former, but whatever works for you.”
“You free after your session?” she asks as you nod. “I’m Lily, by the way.”
Somehow the name really suits her. You tell her your name, and she repeats it softly, grinning around her big tusks.
She hangs around in the gym longer while you finish up, and you head down to the changing rooms and showers together. She comes out of her cubicle a while later with her hair piled out of the way on top of her head, her back is still wet, and she’s utterly, unabashedly naked.
“Warn a girl,” you mutter as you step out into the air-conditioned room, your own towel wrapped around under your armpits still.
She has the physique of an Amazon, and the gentlest looking hands. She turns over her shoulder and flashes you a grin. She’s got two dimples at the base of her spine and the curve of her ass was just so perfect you wanted to lay your hand on it. You can just see her rounded breast and dark nipple, pebbled against the chill of the room.
“Where’s the fun in that?” Lily replies with a grin. “You got me off-guard upstairs. It’s only fair I try to return the favour…”
She reminds you of the best kind of sparring partner and you grin openly at her. “I like you,” is all you have to say.
Your lockers are on opposite sides of the changing room, and when you’re done, you turn to find her sitting cross-legged on the bench in the middle of the room, watching you. She’s wearing a loose-fitting tank top, small, denim shorts, and baby-pink Converses. You’re surprised by the amount of jewellery on, particularly rings on her hands. It’s not overdone, but you’d not imagined she would be a jewellery type. Despite the rock solid muscles in her arms and thighs, her style suits her perfectly, just like her name.
She walks with you out of the gym, asking you about where you live and what you do. You tell her that you recently moved to the area for a new and better job, and she smiles. Lily works at the university, and rolls her eyes at your ‘brains and brawn’ comment. “You must get that a lot, I’m sorry,” you say, blushing.
“Coming from you?” she chuckles, shooting a sideways glance that rakes up your body again in a way that makes you shiver and your mouth go dry. “Come on, there’s this great ice cream place just round the corner from here. You’re gonna love it, and you earned it today!”
“You bet I did!” you laugh.
You both end up having chocolate and sitting on a park bench to enjoy it.
As you finish yours, you look up and see her watching you. Her tongue flits to the corner of her mouth, just catching her tusk.
“What, did I miss a bit?” you ask playfully.
“Yeah,” she says, eyes locked on your lips.
You smile and tilt your head in clear, if not overly-ostentatious invitation.
Her big, gentle hands come down on either side of your jaw and she leans down, kissing you so tenderly it’s almost hesitant.
“You’re not going to break me,” you whisper, and she inhales deeply.
“You want to come back to mine?” she asks, voice thick and rasping.
You nod. “Sure.”
Grinning, she stands, her denim shorts showing her legs off to incredible advantage, and she takes your hand and leads you back to her apartment.
___________________________
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