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mememanufactorum · 4 years

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Ace Combat Zero quotes

* Feel free to share as you please, no credit needed. Change pronouns or anything else as desired.

“Oh, him? Yeah, I know him.”

“Did you know there are three kinds of aces? Those who seek strength, those who live for pride, and those who can read the tide of battle.”

“It was a cold and snowy day…”

“It’s starting to come down.”

“You’d better have our pay ready and waiting.”

“Be ready to pay up. We’ll be back before you know it.”

“[name], I got a feeling you and I are gonna get along just fine. Buddy.”

“It all started on that snowy day.”

“My first impression was… He had potential.”

“I forgot about my job and read everything I had on hand.”

“We were all on an equal footing, fighting under the same conditions. No affiliations or ranks to hinder us.”

“The only rule of engagement was to survive.”

“We WILL survive, [name].”

“I figured you’d say that. This is gonna cost you extra.”

“Unlike you mercenaries, I fight for a real cause.”

“The ones who survive are those who fight for their convictions.”

“Dead men’s words hold no meaning.”

“Those mercenaries are crazy!”

“He hesitated. A vulnerability that can be exploited.”

“I was certain I would win.”

“We protect the meek and give our lives for honor. But that does not mean that we are generous… Since generosity will cost us our lives.”

“Well, then, let’s have some fun.”

“I figured it was just temporary chaos and it’d be over by the time I got there.”

“Every now and then, guys like that appear on a battlefield. Someone special, y’know?”

“War is something fought on the desk of politicians. As long as they win in the end, that’s all that matters.”

“But for us, it’s a matter of survival. In order to survive, you need to be able to analyze the situation in an instant.”

“Time to hunt some wild dogs.”

“Looks like we were just a couple of decoys.”

“Yo, Buddy, you still alive?”

“Back then, I was bursting with pride.”

“Staying where it was nice and warm wouldn’t accomplish anything.”

“Whatever it may be, the fact remains I was forced to walk a different path in life than the one I had envisioned.”

“They only fight for their own power and fame.”

“[name], let’s do this right. We got the pride it takes to win!”

“They’ve got a reason to fight. This battle’s over.”

“Let’s take care of them.”

“It takes time to admit you lost.”

“[name], you hear those people screaming for freedom? That’s where we come in!”

“It felt like he could see right through me. He was always one step ahead of me.”

“I didn’t feel like I was fighting with a human being.”

“I wanted to end that battle as quickly as possible.”

“It signals peace, but to me, they are the sounds of death.”

“Everyone is a hero and a villain. And no one knows who is the victim and who is the aggressor.”

“And what is ‘peace’?”

“Looks like we live to see another day, [name].”

“Mercenaries like us are disposable to the guys in charge.”

“But in the end, we survived.”

“When are you planning to buy those flowers?”

“Wait around too long and another guy’s gonna steal her away from you, you know.”

“This is no time to talk about my personal life!”

“Yo Buddy, you’ve got everyone fired up and believing in miracles.”

“Right on! Now that’s what I call teamwork!”

“[name], you hear that warm welcome? It’s the sweet sound of victory.”

“Not bad for a group of misfits, huh?”

“Dammit, there’s too many of them! We can’t handle them all!”

“Time to dive into the fireworks!”

“Looks like you’ve still got the touch.”

“It’s happening just as you thought.”

“It’s about time we got out of this dead-end job.”

“Not just yet.”

“They’re attacking without mercy. Do they plan on burning everything?”

“He can’t be human!”

“He’s like a demon…”

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“I fight for peace. That’s what I’m up here for.”

“While you’re up here ‘fighting for peace,’ tons of blood is being shed on the ground. Some ‘peace,’ kid.”

“And I’m here to put an end to that.”

“You think you can stop the bloodshed by shedding more blood?”

“Flying with all those ideas floating around in your head is gonna get you killed.”

“Anyway, I’d really gone out with a bang this time.”

“It’s a scary thought, but it also makes you feel alive.”

“But it gets pretty lonely up there all by myself.”

“Guess they’ve come to pick on the dead again.”

“This is the worst kind of support we could hope for.”

“Those mercenaries smell of money and death. They’re nothing but vultures… Scavenging for profit through the blood of others.”

“Sorry about the accommodations. It goes with the business. I’m not active during the day.”

“Something unexpected happened.”

“I figured the least I could do was take them down in return.”

“Of course, that was where my luck ran out.”

“Though I guess it’s hard for bad guys like us to die.”

“The real heroes always manage to die first.”

“We live the rest of our lives in hell.”

“But, then again, being alive is proof that we were good.”

“This will be your final lesson.”

“I’ll show him he’s only digging his own grave.”

“What’s important on the battlefield is to let go of hate, to survive, and to adhere to the rules you’ve set for yourself.”

“There was no more need for an old soldier like me.”

“Hatred cannot be the only motivation for war. It only brings about more pointless deaths.”

“I will never overcome that grief.”

“I’ll just look on from here.”

“He was unstoppable.”

“It didn’t matter where the battlefield was, the man had complete trust in his own powers.”

“He was born for battle, a Demon Lord who struck down all opposition.”

“He was born for combat. It was no wonder they called him a Demon Lord.”

“That said, it was hell trying to keep up with him.”

“He was cool-headed and proud. A combat professional.”

“Maybe the man was blessed by the goddess of war.”

“Before long, everyone had taken notice of him.”

“People wanted to burn his image in their memories.”

“Hell, they weren’t the only ones.”

“Learn to accept it, kid. This is war.”

“There’s no mercy in war. It’s a collision of powers.”

“Even war has a set of rules to follow!”

“Damn them all…”

“Nobody knew why they were fighting anymore.”

“All I felt at that point was sadness for the world.”

“You gonna get remarried to your girl?”

“We’re both getting married for the first time!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll catch up.”

“Nah… I’m just sad.”

“There’s no impossible jobs for us mercenaries!”

“Your fairy godmother’s here, Cinderella.”

“How can you say that after what just happened?”

“Today is your lucky day, [name]. Like your birthday.”

“And you’re here to pull me off in a magical carriage, huh? To hell I suppose…”

“Buddy… I’ve found a reason to fight.”

“This is where we go our separate ways.”

“And I like to play polo. You know, the game with the horses?”

“…Maybe we should get going now.”

“I should be able to do that too.”

“This war should be over already.”

“Why would they do this after all that’s happened?”

“I’m going to put an end to this war.”

“We’ll decide when this war ends… And now is not the time.”

“Today is a day of hope.”

“We have to go into battle.”

“Are they being stupid or is it just part of a plan?”

“The rest is up to you.”

“Our lives might’ve been different.”

“I will never forget his overwhelming power.”

“I returned alive from that battlefield.”

“There’s no meaning there now that he’s gone.”

“He soon passed away, leaving me behind.”

“We were only able to spend a short time together in peace and quiet.”

“But those who hearts are in the sky will always return to the sky.”

“And he died there, never to return to me.”

“It’s an awful place, but the fastest shortcut.”

“Don’t even think about heading back.”

“What are you fighting for?”

“I will eliminate the false hero.”

“You will make a worthy opponent.”

“What are you doing?! The war’s ended long ago!”

“It’s time for a perfect world without restrictions or wars.”

“He’s going to destroy everything!”

“I’ll follow [name] to the end!”

“I thought I was watching magic.”

“I’d never felt fear toward an opponent.”

“The same went for my ideals. I wasn’t afraid to take on even an entire country.”

“But when I was fighting him, something felt different.”

“There’s always a war somewhere and I’m sure he’s on some battlefield somewhere fighting even now.”

“He’ll always have a place to live.”

“Let the victor be justice.”

“I was hoping to meet you under different circumstances.”

“The table is surrounded by politicians who have never placed a foot on the battlefield.”

“It’s a necessary discussion to build a peaceful world.”

“It’s a disgusting squabble on who gets the largest share of the pie and that’s why it needs to end.”

“It is for that duty that we raised the King.”

“Let’s begin.”

“This place is no longer a battlefield.”

“Clashing greed is the cause of all conflict.”

“Style and skill does not matter in battle.”

“We will carry out the new creation of destruction through the power of righteousness.”

“Territories, peoples, authorities… All will be liberated.”

“Neither nations nor nationalities have meaning.”

“We will erase these unnecessary borders.”

“The world will change.”

“He’s not destroying anything unnecessarily.”

“This darkness and that little window are my entire world now.”

“I’m actually rather fond of it.”

“The darkness envelops me in a borderless world, a world with no boundaries.”

“No matter what the desired outcome is, the world can still change as long as people expand their knowledge and desire change.”

“If I’m with you, I know I can do it.”

“I’ll follow your lead.”

“We’re gonna stop it, no matter what.”

“I never want to see that barren land again.”

“We’re gonna be rich!”

“We’re gonna be heroes!”

“I’m gonna propose to her when I get back. I even bought flowers!”

“So, have you found a reason to fight yet?”

“Here comes the snow…”

“Those who survive a long time on the battlefield start to think they’re invincible.”

“I bet you do too, Buddy.”

“Can you see any borders from here? What has borders given us?”

“We’re going to start over from scratch.”

“It’s pretty ironic, Buddy. A couple of dogs like us fighting the last battle.”

“There’s no mercy in war. People live and people die. That’s all there is to it.”

“You fired up? Come shoot me down.”

“It’s time.”

“Too bad, Buddy.”

“This twisted game needs to be reset.”

“You’re the only one who can stop him.”

“I pray for your success.”

“You and I are opposite sides of the same coin.”

“When we face each other, we can finally see our true selves.”

“There may be a resemblance, but we never face the same direction.”

“Fire away, coward!”

“Come on!”

“Come on, let’s go back home.”

“We wouldn’t want to keep anyone waiting for you.”

“Maybe this was one path to achieve peace.”

“I should have died that day. But I didn’t.”

“I felt an unbearable sadness when I witnessed that landscape.”

“It may be true that the world has no need of borders. But would getting rid of them really change anything?”

“The world won’t change for the better unless we trust people.”

“Trust is vital in a peaceful world.”

“But that’ll never happen.”

“I want to see for myself what borders really mean and what their volition really is…”

“I may not find what I’m looking for but I still wanna try.”

“Anyway, that’s what I’ve come to believe and I think that’s enough.”

“Yo Buddy. Still alive?”

“And thanks friend. See you again.”

“I was never able to find out what kind of a person he really was.”

“But whenever they talked about him, they always had a slight smile on their faces.”

“That, perhaps, might be my answer.”

#Ace Combat Zero #Ace Combat #roleplay meme #roleplay prompt #rp meme #rp prompt

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p-artsypants · 5 years

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Longest Night (23) Rocking

And Marinette had thought Highschool had been hard. Right now, in this moment, she'd give anything to go back to those petty arguments and gossip fueled drama. But she couldn't. Instead, she and Adrien were trapped here, being punished, humiliated, tortured, for being heroes, all broadcasted for the world to see. At least she and her kitty were in this together. For now. Whump!Fic

Ao3 | FF.net

I’m very musically minded. I was voted ‘Most Likely to Break Out Into Song’ in Highschool. So it’s no surprise when I have a songfic chapter. I had a similar chapter in my previous ML fic ‘Nine Lives’ where Jagged performs. I’ve always thought Jagged Stone’s music would sound a lot like Radiohead, despite his name being a pun on the Rolling Stones.

Song list and link to playlist at the end of the chapter.

—

Four weeks earlier

Luka was four hours late coming home from work. As a delivery driver, work was often impeded by akuma attacks. As it was, Paris had yet to be given the all clear from the newest akuma, a wreck ball man who was causing absolute chaos through the town. As it grew later and later, Luka’s boss decidedly sent him home, with the warning to be careful.

So Luka biked home. In a city as big as Paris, as accustomed it was to Akumas, people were still out and about, rushing to get where they needed to go. There was no slowing down.

It helped keep life to some sort of normality.

When Luka arrived back home, he parked his bike and headed inside.

“Home, ma!” He called.

“Aye laddie! About time! I’ll warm up yer dinner.”

Luka sat on the couch, catching his breath from his rushed trip home. “Where’s Jules?”

“Oh!” called Anarka, with a gasp. “Her and Rose went off with their classmates! Seems Marinette’s gone missing!”

Luka was back on his feet and hurrying into his shoes. “Where did they go? I’ll catch up with them!”

“You’ll do no such thing! You’re going to eat your dinner, and then you’ll wait here. I was worried sick having you both out there with that akuma still on the loose!”

“The akuma hasn’t been seen in several hours,” he pleaded. “Come on ma, you know how much I like Marinette!”

“Butt! Chair! Now!”

Luka did as his mother instructed, but not without crossing his arms in protest.

As he waited, he flicked on the TV. The cooking channel was on. He didn’t much care about cooking, but he didn’t feel like watching anything else.

Any news about Marinette? He texted his sister.

Then it was back to waiting, his foot tapping too quickly, and his eyes darting between the TV and his phone.

Five minutes passed before Juleka texted back, ‘No, Adrien is missing too.’

He was already feeling sick to his stomach, but a knot coiled in his gut. He couldn’t help but feel like their disappearance wasn’t just a coincidence.

Think positive. He told himself. Maybe Adrien finally opened his eyes, and they’re together, and just lost track of time.

Luka knew what was going on at school. Juleka had told him, confessing that Lila’s story didn’t sit right with her. It sure as hell sounded like utter garbage to him. Marinette had been forced to confess her crush in front of her class, in front of Adrien.

That had to have been painful, and Luka bemoaned the fact he wasn’t in her grade. He would have protected her from this! He would have done something!

“Here ya go, boy-o. Hot soup!” Anarka handed him a tray with a bowl and a baguette.

“Thanks ma.”

Still not hungry, Luka stirred the soup with his spoon, unable to do anything else.

He felt useless. Utterly useless.

Suddenly, the TV turned to static, the show cutting out.

“Damn antenna…” he muttered as he lifted the tray off his lap.

The picture came back, but there was a woman with reflective sunglasses instead.

“Good evening Paris. Please excuse me for interrupting whatever pointless drivel you were consumed with. My name is Salo. I’m not an akuma, but you’ll soon wish I was. I have succeeded where all the others have failed.” She stepped back to show Ladybug and Chat Noir, bound and gagged.

That had been nearly a month ago, and the truth that Ladybug and Chat noir were Marinette and Adrien still hadn’t sunk all the way in.

Yes, Luka acknowledged it. Yes, he believed they were both more than capable.

But he didn’t want it to be true.

Because that meant he didn’t stand a chance.

And that was a very selfish thought.

Ladybug, Marinette, had entrusted him with a Miraculous of his own (on loan of course) a couple of times. That had to mean something, right?

If she trusted him enough for that, then that was enough. She did care about him.

But now it was time to move on from liking her, to supporting her. Things would get rough once they got out. And he was absolutely confident that they would! Ladybug and Chat Noir! Heroes!

Still, as he sat back stage, there a flash of anger that course through his veins.

How did he not notice earlier? Surely, Chat Noir was pretty different from Adrien, but he should have at least had a hunch about Ladybug. He was usually pretty good about reading people.

And yet, the girl he cared about the most…he hadn’t even suspected it.

He shook his head in frustration.

“Nervous?” A voice cut into his thoughts.

Looking up, Luka made eye-contact with Jagged Stone, who was wearing an outfit Gabriel designed to match their costumes. Another fact that he hadn’t quite gotten over yet. He was playing a concert with Jagged Stone tonight!

In front of millions of people.

“No…well, yeah, of course, but…I was just thinking about Marinette.”

“Ah, a young heart in love. A lot of pain, a lot of joy…a pain in the arse.”

Luka chuckled at that.

“Look kid, you’re not gonna be alone out there…for the most part. That solo was your idea.”

“I won’t even be alone for that,” Luka smirked. “I’ll have Adrien with me.”

Jagged gave a hard pat to his shoulder. “I know it’s a somber occasion, but try to have some fun, huh? I know they’d really want it.”

“Yeah, I’ll do my best.”

The city had set up a stage under the Eiffel Tower, one that had no curtains, so the crowd could surround it on all sides. Technically, the band was under the stage, until it was time to begin.

Luka was all ready to go, having tuned his guitars, one electric, one acoustic. He glanced around the space watching people scurry about. Jagged’s band, Kitty Section, Clara Nightingale, Alya and Nino, and a handful of staff. There were some other people he didn’t know.

When he was approached about the concert, he had enthusiastically agreed, though he was warned what could happen if the people who took Marinette found out he was close to them.

They hadn’t taken anyone else yet, but it was just a matter of time.

Still, Luka wasn’t afraid, and he wanted to do this for them.

“Luka?” A girl asked.

He blinked out of his reverie again. “Uh…Kagami, right?”

“Yeah, it’s been a while.”

“Yeah.”

She sat next to him, without another word.

Without much thought, he started to pick at his strings, a soft little melody hanging in the air.

“That’s nice,” said Kagami.

“Thanks…it’s not much.”

“You’re playing tonight, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Nervous?”

“Who wouldn’t be?” He shrugged. He really hoped he wasn’t coming off as short. He just didn’t feel much like talking. That was something Marinette was good about, just willing share her presence and allow herself to get lost in the music with him.

But now she was lost in silence. And even after all was said and done, she’d probably be listening for a piano.

He hit a bad chord, and winced. Then he sighed, and stopped.

“You are fond of her, aren’t you? You went on that double date with us, after all.”

He began to play again. “Yeah, you could say I was fond of her.”

“Did you love her?”

He paused. And then continued to strum. “You know, for all the love songs I’ve ever played and ever wrote…I don’t think I’ve ever been in love before. I think I liked her, a lot. But…”

“Knowing who she is, and seeing it in comparison…it’s not love, right?” She finished for him.

“Yeah…you—you got it right on the head. What about you? Did you love Adrien?”

She shook her head. “Same as you. Thought I did…but…Adrien was my first real friend. I think I assumed the admiration I felt for him was love, when it was just…well, love. But not in the way that I thought. I’m sorry, I’m not great at explaining my feelings. I didn’t mean to heap this on you. You’re about to perform and I’m bothering you—“ She stood.

“Hey, no, Kagami…you’re not bothering me at all.” And she wasn’t. Not anymore. “You put what I’ve been feeling into words, and I’m really thankful for that.”

“Really?” She asked, sitting back down.

“For sure! I’ve felt…kind of selfish lately. Like…really really selfish. I should be worried sick for both of them, and I am! Believe me! But…I’m also hurting. Knowing the feelings I had for her are nothing in comparison for how Adrien feels for her…”

“Hey.” She said sternly. “You felt for her. That’s enough. You’re allowed to be upset. Everyone in this whole darn city is upset. No one will judge your reasoning.”

His lip twitched in a smile. “Darn?”

“I’m not allowed to swear.”

“Well, I won’t tell.”

She glanced around and then finally uttered a soft, “…damn.”

Luka snickered. “That’s the spirit.”

“Thanks for talking with me, Luka.”

“Of course, any time.” And when she stood, he gently grasped her wrist. “I mean it. Any time. We broken hearts have to stick together, right?”

She smirked at him. “Just don’t expect me to fall for you right away.”

His eyes widened. “Right away?”

“Uh—“ She blushed. “Or at all.” She cleared her throat. “Well, break a leg.”

Luka felt himself missing her once she had left, even though she’d only been here for a moment.

Maybe he was just lonely. Despite his still conflicted heart.

“Five minutes!” The stage manager shouted.

And just like that, all of Luka’s frustrations and sadness disappeared to be replaced with total and complete nervousness.

He exhaled slowly, and put on his mask—the one Marinette had made—and got into position.

He was a few steps behind Jagged, surrounded by other band members, waiting on a hydraulic lift. Any minute now, it would raise up and he’d see the thousands and thousands of people that had come out.

He could already hear them. The crowd was talking, voices muddled together in waves and waves of humming garbage.

His heart pounded in his chest as he swallowed thickly.

Jagged looked over to Clara and nodded. Then they both looked to Luka, who nodded too.

He wanted to do this. For Adrien. For Marinette.

The floor started to move.

Oh god

Jagged strummed his guitar, beginning the first song. A favorite of Adrien’s, he was told. The whole set list was made up of their favorite songs from the three bands.

Including one that Luka wrote.

Jagged started to sing.

I do not

Understand

What it is

I've done wrong

Full of holes

Check for pulse

Blink your eyes

One for yes

Two for no

I have no idea what I am talking about

I'm trapped in this body and can't get out

Oh, oh

Now that the music started, it was a lot easier to breathe. If he just focused on his guitar and on Jagged and Clara, he’d be fine, totally fine.

Make a sound

Move back home

Pale imitation

With the edges

Sawn off

I have no idea what you are talking about

I'm trapped in this body and can't get out

Oh, oh

Feeling braver, Luka looked up and out into the audience. He almost stopped playing completely. It was an ocean of people, jumping up and down, cheering and singing along. They flooded the entirety of Champ de Mars, so far back he couldn’t see the end of the crowd. Speakers dotted the edge of the park, assuring that everyone could hear the music.

The concert of the century.

Has the light gone out for you?

'Cause the light's gone for me

It is the 21st century

You can fight it like a dog

And they brought me to my knees

They got scared and they put me in

All the lies run around my face

And for anyone else to see

I'm alive

I've seen it coming

The roar of the crowd was incredible. Thousands and thousands of people gathering together, to support his friends. It made Luka nearly weak in the knees.

“Thank you!” Jagged called, the crowd quieting down more. “Thank you all for coming out tonight. It is my esteemed honor to play tribute to the heroes of Paris…Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste…that’s Ladybug and Chat Noir, if you didn’t already know.”

More cheering, a sonic boom of devotion and praise.

It was touching to hear Jagged refer to them by their real names first, and not their titles.

“The first time I encountered Marinette was not too many months after she debuted as a superhero. She was helping out at Le Grand Hotel where I was staying, and she was assigned as my gopher. I tasked her with finding a pair of glasses with Eiffel Towers on them, nice and big and totally rock and roll. The first pair she brought back weren’t what I wanted, and I told her as much. She went away and returned an hour later with these glasses,” he gestured to his face. “She couldn’t find the ones I wanted, so she decided to make them herself. I was so thrilled with them! They’re still my favorite accessory! Of course, that same day, Ladybug and Chat Noir both saved my butt from an akuma. Since then, Marinette has designed two of my album covers, and Ladybug and Chat Noir have saved me from akumas, and from akumatization. The moment I saw what happened…I was devastated. Marinette’s become like a little sister to me. I appreciate all the things that she and Adrien do for Paris. And tonight I want to give back. I want to let the world know that we’re not giving up! We are looking! And eventually, we will find them!”

Again, the roar of the crowd was incredible. The sound made the strings of his guitar vibrate against his fingers. It almost hurt!

“This is a song—This song is called Lucky, and I wrote it for Ladybug the first time she saved me.”

The bass guitar started in, a rolling chord setting the tone.

I'm on a roll

I'm on a roll this time

I feel my luck could change

Kill me, cera

Kill me again with love

It's gonna be a glorious day

Pull me out of the aircrash

Pull me out of the lake

'Cause I'm your superhero

We are standing on the edge

The sun hadn’t quite set yet, but the light in the park was rapidly dimming. As the crowd sang along with Jagged and Clara, little lights flickered on in the throng of people. Lighters, cell phones, and candles were raised and swayed in time with the beat.

The head of state has called for me by name

But I don't have time for him

It's gonna be a glorious day

I feel my luck could change

Pull me out of the aircrash

Pull me out of the lake

'Cause I'm your superhero

We are standing on the edge

When the song ended, Luka had to take a steadying breath as he was overwhelmed with emotion. It was just too much.

Above them was a giant screen. Several others were on the edges of the park, with the speakers, assuring that everyone could see the band and the footage that was shown.

What followed was Clara Nightingale’s music video she had created for Ladybug and Chat Noir back when they started out. It was an edited version, instead of shots of Clara, it was B-Roll footage that was taken while Adrien and Marinette were auditioning for Ladybug and Chat Noir. It was almost startling to see them in the costumes without the masks.

Because it was so painfully obvious at that point, and yet no one had noticed.

Luka had gotten to be in the final product, wearing a Ladybug mask and dancing with Marinette and Adrien. That was an incredible experience, one he treasured.

He watched as there were pictures of Adrien and Marinette posing together in costume, looking to all the world like the happiest couple.

The ache in his heart started to subside the longer he watched.

Clara spoke as the video ended. “Such wonderful heroes, together they make,

Marinette and Adrien are truly the best.

To raise awareness for both of their sake,

And so with this concert, I just couldn’t rest!

I met them first one warm November,

Adrien was naturally the perfect cat.

Nervous at first, but his eyes full of ember,

he picked up the role in no time flat!

Ladybug was hard to cast,

My blue eyed, black haired beauty missing,

And Marinette auditioned next to last.

I was becoming dismayed spending the whole day dismissing.

Marinette wasn’t even auditioning for the role,

But Adrien batted his eyes big and green,

And tickled something deep inside her soul.

She was whisked off to makeup and we started the scene!

But alas, what a shame!

Both of their masks had completely disappeared!

It was hard to know who was to blame,

But in the end the video wasn’t even cleared!

How sad I was, and angry too,

For my tribute to be shattered.

My heroes then came to push through,

And finished the battle only slightly battered!

I’m thankful for them every single day,

And hope they come home soon.

But their trials have inspired me in a new way,

So I’ll say it all with a brand new tune.”

She had a ukulele, plucked out a little melody, and started to sing.

When I am with you

I feel naked

I can't hide my scars

Piece by piece

You put me together

Till I am no longer

Broken

In between shots of Clara singing, there were photos of Marinette and Adrien together, with friends, in costume, anywhere together. One such was them asleep together on the train to London, looking absolutely adorable.

When I am with you

I can be myself

I don't have to wear a mask anymore

You see who I am

Deep down inside

I grow by the light of your gaze

You fill me with wonder

Fill me with hope

You have opened up my mind

I see eternity in every little thing

When you're by my side

Luka took more calming breaths and tried to think about the concert, rather than his suffering friends. He had two songs coming up, and it wouldn’t do them justice if he burst out into tears in the middle of them.

He glanced over at his band mates for Kitty Section. Rose was standing by Juleka, and she looked like she was shaking like a leaf. Quietly, he went over and rested a hand on her shoulder. “You okay?”

“Yeah…just nervous, and I miss Marinette and Adrien. They were both really good at comforting.”

Luka sighed softly, noting that Rose had said ‘were’ and not ‘are’. Past tense.

“There’s nothing to be nervous about. Everyone here is here to support them. If you get emotional, they’ll understand.”

Rose nodded.

“Besides, this is a battle song. We’re waging a war! We’re fighting back.”

Rose nodded harder. “Yeah!” She said a bit too loudly, though the mics didn’t pick her up.

When I am with you

I don't fear silence

The voices in my head

Leave me peace

Piece by piece

You put me together

And now

I am no longer

Broken.

The song ended and the applause was much more subdued from Jagged’s songs. It was obvious that people had been moved, and not hyped. Still there were whistles and tearful cheers.

A video began to play on the screen, one that Alya had shot a while ago. It showed Marinette outside of school, a bright blush on her face as she clenched the bottom of her shirt.

Alya’s voice spoke from behind the camera, in a nature documenter’s voice. “Here we see the nervousous pigtailious, commonly known as a Marinette, as she prepares to attract a mate.”

Marinette’s head swiveled over to look at her. “Are you seriously recording me right now?”

“A Marinette cannot detect our camera’s if we stay still. Perhaps we can capture the Marinette’s mating ritual for the first time.”

“You are mean and unhelpful.” Marinette said flatly.

“The Marinette is not typically a hostile creature, but will, on occasion, protect itself with a verbal lashing.”

“Well, I’m officially not nervous anymore, but I am annoyed. At you. If this blows up in my face, purge the evidence. If I succeed…play this at my wedding.”

Alya giggled as she said, “The Marinette has targeted her perspective mate,” she turned the camera to lock onto Adrien and Nino, who were a few feet away, chatting by the stairs of the school. “Her target is the sunshinious handsomous, a gentle and docile creature, most commonly known as an Adrien. Here, we see him interacting with a dorkus maximus.”

“I’m telling Nino you said that.”

“The Marinette gathers her courage to approach.”

Marinette glared back, and then inhaled deeply, her shoulders heaving. Then she stormed over to Adrien and Nino, who both beamed at her approach. From this distance, it wasn’t possible to hear what Marinette was saying.

“And thus begins the dance,” said Alya. “The Marinette is a creature of vast ingenuity, and capable of many surprises, but when it comes to finding a mate, she has had no such luck this season.”

The shot showed Marinette flailing her arms, as she backpedalled over her words. She was now shouting. “Not falling for you! Falling here! I fell!”

“And now the Marinette begins her mating call. A different one to be sure, unlike any other in nature. The Adrien has responded to it, but not with a mating call of his own…”

Adrien had taken his bag off his shoulder, digging through it before he took out a little white bottle, and a bottle of water. He tapped the white bottle on her hand, and then gave her the water.

“It seems the Adrien has misunderstood the call, and has determined the Marinette is in distress. A common miscommunication between the Marinette and the Adrien.”

Adrien patted her shoulder warmly, waved to Nino and walked over to his car.

“Once the situation is rectified, the Adrien takes his leave.”

Marinette stomped back over to Alya, her face red and shoulders hunched, as Nino followed behind, laughing uproariously.

“I tried to do the old, ‘did it hurt when you fell from heaven?’ schtick, but instead I said, ‘it hurt when I fell for you. No, when I fell down the stairs, not falling for you. Falling here. I fell. I think I hit my head, and I’m loosing my mind.’ Then he gave me some ibuprofen from his bag and I love him so much!”

After Alya stopped laughing so hard, she finished the recording by saying, “Nature is beautiful.”

Luka watched the video fondly, having seen it earlier in rehearsal. But now it was his turn. Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale both nodded him on.

Oh god

Rose cleared her throat and spoke into the mic, with her incredibly sweet voice, “It’s been said a dozen times already, but thank you all for coming out tonight. We’re Kitty Section. Adrien played the piano for us on occasion, and Marinette designed our costumes. Tonight we’ll be performing a song called ‘Take Me to War’. It wasn’t originally written with Adrien or Marinette in mind, but I think it certainly fits. And they both really liked it too.”

Luka had originally written the song as a response to all the negative feedback they were receiving online. Metal heads didn’t take kindly to metal about glitter and unicorns.

But after watching the stream, Luka had tweaked the lyrics ever so slightly, and found it was a perfect fit.

He started out with a funky beat, before Rose came in on vocals.

I've earned myself a reputation

That my bark is much worse than my bite

But I keep snapping at Goliath's hands

With all of my tiny might

There are no stones at my disposal

There's no God to award me a crown

But I am always swinging at

Somebody I can't knock down

All of the fire I've swallowed

All of the sparks that went dark in my gut

I am always burning up

Luka tried to focus on the music, as his heart thundered in his ears. The sun had set now, and all he could see was an ocean of glittering stars, swaying in time with the music.

Dress me in red and throw your roses

And I'll rankle the beasts with words

It's a graceless dance of epithets

We learn to make someone hurt

They will consume your sweet resistance

And they'll carry your heart in their teeth

But I am always feeding them

The ugliest parts of me

All of the words I've swallowed

All of the sharp things I've kept in my mouth

I am always bleeding out

Up on the screen, between shots of the band members, there were photos and short videos of Ladybug and Chat Noir, fighting their battles. Whether it was akumas or the media, Paris was getting another reminder of the hard work and dedication the heroes always put forward.

Take me to war

Honey, I dare you

I'll be the sweetest thing

To ever scare you

Give me a fight I can't resist

Give me something to break with my fists

Take me to war

Oh, honey, I dare you

Distantly, Luka thought about the parents. Alya had told them that Tom, Sabine, and Gabriel wouldn’t be at the concert, for their own safety, but he at least hoped they were watching. He had seen Nadja Chamack somewhere under the stage, right? They were broadcasting this, right?

Oh god he was on TV!

I watched a weed usurp the garden

And it poisoned the rest of the crops

It would take days of fighting stubborn roots

To tear the whole damn thing out

So I will leave it where it's standing

And instead I will find me a match

I'll turn it all to kindling

I'll burn it all down to ash

All of the ire I've swallowed

All of the coals that still sit in my gut

I am always burning up

As they came back to the chorus, Luka pushed all other thoughts out of his head, and played his heart out. This was for Marinette!

Take me to war

Honey, I dare you

I'll be the sweetest thing

To ever scare you

Give me a fight I can't resist

Give me something to break with my fists

Take me to war

Oh, honey, I dare you

The applause this time was breathtaking. Maybe it was a little selfish, but he reveled in the praise, savoring it. He worked hard, practiced day after day, and wrote the words in his heart. This concert was for Adrien and Marinette, but the applause was for him, for his sister, for all of Kitty Section. It felt nice.

Another video began to play. One of a young Ladybug, right at the beginning of their run during Stoneheart. She stood on the beams of the Eiffel Tower, proclaiming to all of Paris:

“Nice try, Hawkmoth, but we know who the bad guy is. Let's not reverse the roles here. Without you, none of these innocent victims would be transformed into villains. Hawkmoth, no matter how long it takes, we will find you, and you will hand us your Miraculous!” Using amazing acrobatics, Ladybug proceeded to capture every akuma that had appeared, destroying the hideous mask that Hawkmoth had conjured. “Let me make this promise to you. No matter who wants to harm you, Ladybug and Cat Noir will do everything in our power to keep you safe!” She opened her yo-yo, a cloud of Butterflies bursting forth and disappearing into the sky, the video transitioning to black.

While the video played, Luka had switched out his electric guitar with an acoustic, and took a seat on a stool. The lights on the rest of the stage went out, bringing the focus to Luka.

The crowd settled down, to a small murmur.

Luka swallowed, and spoke. “I…I’m not much of gamer.” He began. “Of course, I like a round or two of UMS, but, I’m not the dedicated fan that Adrien apparently is.” He licked his lips as his mouth felt incredibly dry with ten thousand eyes staring at him. “I was watching the stream really late one night, just checking up on them, since I couldn’t sleep, and I saw this moment…well, you’ll see.”

Up on the screen, there was a clip of Adrien from the stream, in his dark cage. The film was green, being shot with night vision. He had his head rested against the wall, and looked up towards the ceiling. The word ‘chatte’ was perfectly visible on the side of his head.

Luka picked out the notes, before Adrien began to sing.

Alduin's wings, they did darken the sky.

His roar fury's fire and his scales sharpened scythes.

Men ran and they cowered and they fought and they died.

They burned and they bled as they issued their cries.

Immediately, people recognized the song, as Luka could hear little gasps. But no one sang along right away, just listening to Adrien. When the chorus broke, a murmur of voices rolled over the stage, in a cloud of harmony, as kindred spirits sang together.

Dovahkiin Dovahkiin naal ok zin los vahriin

Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal

Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan

Dovahkiin fah hin kogaan mu draal

As Adrien sang, he became a little more triumphant in tune, as his notes filled the silence he was suffocating with.

The crowd fell silent again, listening to Adrien’s tale.

We need saviors to free us from Alduin's rage.

Heroes on the field of this new war to wage.

And if Alduin wins, man is gone from this world.

Lost in the shadow of the black wings unfurled.

Adrien closed his eyes, rocking back and forth, letting the music transport him out and away. To a land of dragons and warriors. It was the best thing for him, pretending to be somewhere where he wasn’t.

But then came the Tongues on that terrible day.

Steadfast as winter, they entered the fray.

And all heard the music of Alduin's doom.

The sweet song of Skyrim, sky-shattering Thu'um.

And so the Tongues freed us from Alduin's rage.

Gave the gift of the Voice, ushered in a new Age.

If Alduin is eternal, then eternity's done.

For his story is over and the dragons... are gone.

When the song was over, and the video cut out, the cheers were deafening. People were crying and sobbing. Adrien was the least prepared to sing in front of an audience. His voice was raw and breaking, some of his notes a little sour. The mic he had wasn’t great, and his throat was dry. He was singing for himself only.

But it was him. He was here with them all. It was his voice.

And that was enough to make everyone that felt completely useless to feel just a little bit better.

“One last song,” said Jagged, with his own acoustic. “A favorite of Adrien’s…and a bit ironic, if I’m being honest.”

Wake from your sleep

The drying of your tears

Today we escape

We escape

Pack and get dressed

Before your father hears us

Before all hell breaks loose

Breathe

Keep breathing

Don't loose your nerve

Breathe

Keep breathing

I can't do this alone

Sing us a song

A song to keep us warm

There's such a chill

Such a chill

You can laugh

A spineless laugh

We hope your rules and wisdom choke you

Now

We are one

In everlasting peace

We hope that you choke

That you choke

We hope that you choke

That you choke

We hope

That you choke

—

Radiohead songs in order:

‘Bodysnatchers’

‘Lucky’

‘Exit Music’

Then I used ‘Piece by Piece’ by Eivør for Clara’s song.

Kitty Section’s song was ‘Take Me To War’ by the Crane Wives.

Then the song that Adrien sang was ‘Song of the Tongues’ from Skyrim.

I made a playlist of all the songs that are (or will be) in this fic, and those that inspired it at on youtube

#longest night #miraculous ladybug #ml #luka couffaine #fanfiction #marinette dupain cheng #adrien agreste #adrinette #ladynoir #fanfic #jagged stone #clara nightingale #ladybug #chat noir #song fic

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beansthembo · 4 years

Text

I need to do a bit of a vent about the new Star Wars movie. Spoilers below.

I’m having some trouble processing what happened. If you’re reading this, you probably are interested in my opinion on it, and you probably also know that I was a big fan of The Last Jedi. By no means was it a perfect movie, but it took the chance of distancing itself from the rest of the series by springing off of what was established in TFA and building something new. A lot of people weren’t too pleased by this, and there are plenty of legitimate criticisms, but being completely transparent, I can’t listen to most critics of it because most of the people I know in real life who didn’t like it are racist or misogynistic.

TLJ tried to introduce people to the idea that, in reference to the new canon, just because it’s new and different, doesn’t mean that it’s bad. Kylo’s/Ben’s line, “Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to,” finds meaning in this, though a bit extreme. TLJ was going to learn from the past films and move on, for better or worse. TROS is determined to wallow in its past. As a lifetime fan of Star Wars, I can’t bring myself to hate it outright, like many vocal critics of TLJ, but I find myself severely disappointed by the decisions made in it.

I’ve honestly spent too much time composing those last paragraphs, as if I’m a legit critic or reviewer. I’m just kind of going to present my nitpicks and criticisms as they come to me.

So, first a few nitpicks:

-The opening crawl seems... poorly composed to me. The first line is “The dead speak!” Correct me if I’m wrong, but they don’t usually use exclamations in the opening crawls. I know I just spent the last couple of paragraphs defending new ideas, but the opening crawl always seemed as though they were meant to present information formally from a neutral perspective. Not a major criticism, but it did bother me a bit.

-What happened to Kyle’s TIE Silencer? I mean, it could’ve been destroyed in the previous movie, but I don’t really remember that happening. Either way, it seemed to me that they made the decision to make his ship more similar to the Interceptor, as, like, a ‘safer’ choice, but I don’t see why they couldn’t have just had the same ship.

-The Falcon has a round dish again? You know, now that I’m thinking of it, the dish may have been blasted off in TLJ. I just was surprised by that.

I may add to that list later. the actual problems I had were:

-Rey is sort of obsessed with ‘earning’ Luke’s (and Anakin’s) old lightsaber. Which has been repaired, by the way. She doesn’t actually ‘own’ it, even though she’s been using it for the past two movies, she’s just been borrowing it from Leia. I was really looking forward to seeing her make her own (or already have her own) lightsaber, which she does, but she waits until the end of the movie to show it off. And it’s rad as hell! Wtf? why couldn’t she have been using that the whole time! It’s one of my favorite lightsaber designs now and they show it for a whole two seconds!

-They finally give Snoke a backstory, and it’s... that he was Palpatine’s puppet the whole time. I’m gonna say, not the worst backstory they could have done, but they really tried to make him just not matter at all. I mean, yeah, the way he was done off with in TLJ was pretty unceremonious, but I always felt that meant that the real big bad was meant to be Kyle all along. Instead, the Skywalker saga becomes the Palpatine saga. I’m not opposed to the concept of Palpatine surviving and attempting to resurrect the Sith, but that’s something I’d expect from a novel, not the main story of the final movie in the franchise. And, honestly, regardless of whether or not Snoke was secretly Plagueis, I always thought he was supposed to be some other ye olde sith master, not just some sort of failed clone(?)

-Kyle rebuilds his fuUcking helmet. Why? What purpose does it serve? He doesn’t even wear it most of the time. The longest period he wears it is when the First Order officers comment on it. He’s just being dramatic. Which, I suppose, would be in character, but after the scene in which he shatters it in TLJ, it seems pointless.

-Another nitpick, but when they expand upon Rey and Kyle’s ability to connect through the force, it seems a little... disjointed. I do like that they took the time to expand upon that, even though I thought Rey closing the Falcon’s ramp on him at the end of TLJ was symbolic of her cutting him off, the way they presented it seemed, well, off. Like, it makes sense if you take it at face value, but if you start to think about it at all, it sort of... weird. I dunno how to describe it. Like, they interact with each other’s environments, but can’t see what they can interact with until they interact with it, and they can trade items, and... yeah.

-The big one... Rey’s a Palpatine. Her father was Sheev’s son. (When did that happen, huh? Who’d want to get with that wrinkly mess?) Why the everloving fuck couldn’t Rey just have been Rey? Why did she have to be related to someone existing in the franchise already? JJ’s going around saying that this was his plan the whole time, which is bull fucking shit, because otherwise they would have communicated this to Ryan, and I’m pretty sure TROS was originally going to have another director in the first place, and ALSO I’m pretty sure JJ did say at some point that Rey’s parents only mattered to her. While I’m on the topic of fan theories and origins, nobody in the movies was ever concerned about who Snoke really was. They knew who he was-the Bad Guy. Nobody ever cared who the Emperor really was in 1983, so why was Snoke’s death and non-explained origins such a big deal? I have more conflicted thoughts than I can even put down, so i’m gonna move on.

-Oh, before I forget, they just completely write off Rose. She’s present, but they minimize her screen time. I get that a lot of people didn’t like her, and there are some valid criticisms of her that aren’t completely rooted in racism and misogyny, but I never found any problem with her. I actually felt she was pretty relatable. She meets a hero, trips over her own words, and then learns why you should never meet your heroes. Disillusioned, she’s about to turn him in but they come up with another plan, and together they visit a world full of people she joined the Resistance to get away from. I’ve got that same feeling about those sorts of things-while I do enjoy a decent amount of privilege, I still, you know, fight against the system that gave it to me. And I can’t stand to see people abuse others just because they don’t have that privilege, so hearing her speech about wanting to punch a hole through that city did mean a lot at some level. Then, at the end, when she’s like, “this is how we win. Not by fighting what we hate, but saving what we love,” I can even relate to that. It’s when, like, you explain to a kid how you hate something, and they jump on the bandwagon, and get real angsty, and then you’re like, “no no no that’s not what I wanted you to learn!” It’s hard to describe it with my rapidly deteriorating attention, but I never thought she was a bad character.

-DJ wasn’t in it! I mean, he wasn’t the most important character, but I still wanted to see him again.

-They have this fake out where they pretend Chewie was dead for a whole 20 seconds. I totally called it, too-the ship he was supposedly in blew up (or rather, Rey blew it up with force lightning accidentally), but since he didn’t die on screen in front of us, I knew it had to be a fake out. And it seems like the only reason for that was so they can find out that Hugs was the traitor, who is only betraying the First Order to see Kyle lose, which I mean fair, but then he’s unceremoniously killed off by the new big officer guy who we’ve never seen before but was supposedly one of the Emperor’s top men. I don’t think his name was even mentioned in the movie-or if it was, it had zero staying power. Also, they have this part where Threepio had his memory erased for a while before being backed up by Artoo. The lead up to it was very dramatic- Threepio’s generally been a comic relief character up to this point, and now he’s got to give his life for the cause (He had a translation of some Sith runes in his memory, but his programming prevented him from saying the translation aloud, and his memory needed to be wiped in order to access it), but as soon as his memory is wiped they do not give two shits that one of their best friends basically died right in front of them. Then Artoo brings him back and still no one cares.

-Poe and Finn do have a nice dynamic in the movie, but then we find one of Poe’s exes and he starts flirting with her and its like no Poe your husband’s right tHERE POE DON’T DO IT (and don’t dismiss this as shipper nonsense because John Boyega and Oscar Isaac both wanted FinnPoe to be a thing and acted through the movies like it was already don’t you say this is the first you’re hearing of this)

-The way that Rey defeats Palpatine is by crossing lightsabers in front of him to deflect his lightning?

-Reylo is canon NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO (Insert the gif of Vader yelling no at the end of ROTS)

-Also why does it always have to be a planet destroying superweapon? I know legends did that a lot but there doesn’t always have to be one for there to be stakes.

I think there was other stuff, but my brain is too scattered at this point to make any more cohesive thoughts. I mean, there was a lot of stuff I did like about it- Lando’s back! And i think Wedge is too, but he was on screen for about a second and a half, so I couldn’t tell. It was confirmed that Leia had force training, and even had a lightsaber! And I do like that they’re taking some inspiration from Legends, but I’m pretty sure Dark Empire was not one of the most popular series’ from it. I also did like Ben seeing a vision of Han; It’s not entirely clear if it was a force ghost thing (I am of the belief that Han was at leas a little force sensitive) or if it was just Ben sort of coming to terms with his actions, but the scene was pretty well done in my opinion. Also, Rey taking the name Skywalker at the end. That was nice, like she chose her family.

Now I just remembered a couple of things-Finn was basically confirmed to be force sensitive, but the way they did it felt very ham-fisted. Like, they weren’t like “he felt a disturbance wink wink nudge nudge,” they were like “HERE IS SOME SUBTEXT THAT ISN’T ACTUALLY SUBTEXT SEE HERE” like they never outright say it but it would have been less insulting if they did. Also, they introduced a force healing thing, which has been a more of a thing in the games, but we’ve never seen it on screen before. But like, Rey dies at the end and Ben brings her back and then [REDACTED] and then he dies, even though, like, a lot of things. I don’t know I’ve been typing for way too long I need off.

Anyway, it felt good to vent, thanks for reading if you did. I give TROS 6.5/10.

#Star Wars #star wars spoilers #the rise of skywalker #the rise of skywalker spoilers #vent

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