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gamarancianne · 5 months

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Azriel x reader - In Between part 2

Part 1

Summary: trying to regain your confidence after your broken heart, you met someone in the same position as you and developped one of the best friendships you had ever had. A genuine and sincere friendship. But this person may be closer by other ways to you than you thought.

Warnings: still angst, alcohol in a not healthy way, heartbreak again, hypocrite Elain (kinda slander ig), Lucien being the best.

Note: well maybe a part 3 ig 😅, I was really inspired tbh. Thank you all for having loved the part 1 and shared it with me ! Ily 💗💗 and don't hesitate to ask me something or chat with me in my inbox or dm, or in the comments !

You had been a crying mess for two weeks now, sometimes you went out in a bar to drink so much you would forget even your name. That was the point, forget the constant sting in your heart and you head. Forget him, his beautiful Hazel eyes and inked tattoos on his broad and golden chest. And here we go again: the tears flooded themselves on your face. It was a day to drink today, or tonight, you didn't really have a time notion for the past two weeks: waking up at dawn or dusk, eating, crying and sleeping. You had to forget about all those beautiful things about him, you had to empty your brain and heart. You didn't want to feel something again.

As you were walking to the nearest bar, you thought about those letters elain had sent you, saying you were her dearest friend and asking if your confession went well. You knew she knew that it was you in her apartment that cursed day, but she still pretended and even was saying the complete opposite of what she had said to azriel, falsely comforting you. Was she ever was your friend at this point ? Or has she always criticised and stabbed you behind you back ? Anyway you had decided that it was way better for you to ignore her and keep living your life, if you could still call what you were living a life, without her.

You didn't even noticed when you had arrived in front the door of the bar, but you did and entered, going directly to your now favorite spit in front of the barman : the alcohol was there easier to get. You didn't see then, the redhead man who was at the exact place you had been the few days prior. How dare he steal your chair like that ? Approaching slowly you stilled and you understood that this man was surely in the same situation as you, a heartbreak, seeing his bent frame and the many empty glasses in front of him. They could only have been his because no one was seated near him, and everyone was judging him. They were all avoiding the poor man whose name you didn't know.

"I was almost mad at you for stealing my favourite seat" you stated, seating next to him as his head shot to your side wondering if you were really talking to him.

"Yes I'm talking to you"

"Ah, I'm sorry for your seat do you want it back ?" He asked, genuinely embarrassed, his cheeks flushed.

"No I'm fine here, I can speak with you ...?" You asked ?

"Lucien".

"I'm yn, and as I was saying, I can speak with you here Lucien" he nodded.

"Nice to meet you yn, but you don't wanna talk to me, don't you see all the glares everyone sends me here ?" He drank in a one shot what seemed to be whisky and stared again at his now empty glass.

"Oh gods you men !" He looked at you confused "I know what I'm doing fuck ! I'm a grown up woman and I can make my own choices ! You re the second on in two weeks who tells me what I want or not." You snapped.

"Oh I'm sorry, then stay if you want." He apologized quickly.

You asked shots to the barman and stayed silent a bit nefore you both asked in one voice "what are you here for ?". You two chuckled a bit before you said "you first".

"Well I've kinda learnt that my mate, who knows that she is my mate is dating someone else. And I feel like I'm not allowed to have just once an ounce of happiness." You were hurt for him as you heard his story that he told you with a careless demeanor. He must really be at his lowest.

"Ouch that hurts, I'm sorry man. She's a fool if you want my opinion." He smiled sadly at your answer and pointed you from his chin asking you silently your story.

"Well im heartbroken as well, my best friend encouraged me confessing to the man I love, but he rejected me, and not in a nice way. But as lucky as I am, I learnt that he is dating my best friend who is a back stabber." I emptied my glass in one drink.

"Ouch that hurts too, I'm sorry." He said echoing my words.

We spent the night drinking, and drowning ourselves in alcohol but in a more joyful way than usually.

I then went more and more at the bar to see him, but we drank less and less, leaving place to real conversations between us. It became quickly a routine, and Lucien became one of my best friends, well my only friend of the time actually. And I was one of his only friend as well. Two broken hearts healing parts of eachothzr then didn't even break. Lucien had explained to me his family problem, and how his former male best friend was a toxic man in relationships, how he had been poorly treated in his biological family, and how his actual best friend was his mate's sister so he didn't know how to approach her anymore. He came a lot in my appartment to spend time with me, he even slept in sometimes, because he couldn't face his current family. He practically had his room in your home, some of his stuff never really left.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

After 2 knocks on your door you unwillingly got off your couch and opened it letting a wild and out of breath Lucien appear in front of it.

"Lu ? Are you okay ?" That was his new nickname, he loved it, because he felt like he was loved for once in his life.

"Yes.. no ? I need you to come with me like right now ! "

"Oh okay let me get me keys and I'm coming" you trusted Lucien too much to ever doubt about him, if he needed you then you were there for him.

You left your apartment and went to the direction he indicated. After a while you panicked a little, seeing that you were going to the high lord's house.

"Lucien you know I love you but where are we going?"

"To a family dinner, I can't go alone. See, my mate's relationship got complicated and she always complains to me when I'm alone, which is all the time. So I feel like I'm just a plan b and I'm really uncomfortable when she does it. Don't worry I've told them that someone was going with me."

"I understand Lu, but at the high lord's ?" You asked sceptical.

"Well yes, because my best friend I told you about is Feyre."

"What ?" Lucien, had never told the names of his family members, and you neither, so discovering that his friend was you high lady so that you were going to see Azriel made you weak to the bones.

"Lucien ? Your mate is Elain ??"

"What, yes ? How do you know ??" He exclaimed as he stopped on his tracks.

"She is the fake friend I told you about !" You answered on the same tone.

"So it means that.."

"I am in love with Azriel... yes."

"Oh gods" you both sighed.

"Hum yn ?" He asked unsure of what to say.

"Mmh"

"Have I told you that Cassian and him were the ones to get us to the house?"

"No, no, no. Please no ! But what would we even need to be picked up ?"

"We can't winnow so it's either that or climb 10 000 stairs".

Both fearing the fast approaching dinner, the last part of the walk was silent and the air heavy with tension. You held your breath when you saw two winged big figures, Cassian and Azriel. The first one shot his head in your direction and smiled confused.

"Yn ?" Azriel stiffened as he heard your name. "What does owe us the pleasure to see you ?"

"I'm the one to go with Lu today but I didn't know it was with you...". Azriel froze completely still turning his back to you. He wasn't sure it was you but now it was certain and he couldn't face you after the mean things he had said to your face. He hadn't talked about it to anyone except Elain and he kinda regretted it now. Things had got complicated between them because after your love confession she had grown so much jealous! He couldn't bear it anymore, he was a free man, he hadn't wings for nothing! They would argue a lot more and he hated that because it triggered bad memories in him. Plus he felt a bit bad about you. You hadn't done anything to him to deserve to be treated that way, he was ashamed of his actions because he knew that, as insecure as you seemed to be, you might have been spiralling since. That wasn't him, that wasn't how he was supposed to be. When he got Elain, she changed him a lot, and he wasn't sure anymore that it was for the good. She crushed all of his efforts to keep the bad parts of him inside. He was meaner, colder, he wasn't himself. Rhys have scolded him a little about that and he had really reacted in a bad way. An evidence of what Rhys had advanced. Azriel was sure he had made you feel bad, and he didn't want it : you were a nice and smart female, a little clumsy but still beautiful and lovely. As he finally turned to you, all of his regret splashed on him when crossing your look and seeing you pained eyes. You quickly put your head down and he felt even more bad to have made lose enough confidence for you to fear to hold his gaze. Thinking about it, he didn't understand you insecurity of the beginning, before the altercation. How could you, a very beautiful female, ever doubt about yourself ?

Realisation hit him, that he would have to take you flying because it would be awkward if he took Lucien, his girlfriend's mate. He knew she was complaining to him, and he felt even sorry for the poor Lucien. But a question lingered in his mind: how did you two know eachother ? And why the fuck would Lucien bring you to a family dinner ? Were you dating ? Fear crossed his eyes for a second before regaining his composure. You couldn't be dating Lucien, it was impossible, you had just said two weeks ago that you loved him. Could you have moved that fast ? It frightened him, knowing that he had grown to like you when thinking of your shared moments at training, where you two had laughed, sometimes until crying joy tears, and regretting the mean rejection he had given you in return of something so intimate and innocent as your love and devotion for him. Damn him he had even insulted you ! He cursed himself more and more until he got out of his head when Cassian called him.

"Azriel wake up ! You take yn." He said when shooting in the sky Lucien in his arms.

You both stayed in an awkward bubble, without moving an inch, avoiding the gaze of one another, for 30 long seconds that felt like hours.

"I'm sorry" and "so how are you doing" came at the same time from him side you. You awkwardly chuckled but he stayed still so you stopped finally having the guts to look at him in the eye for more than a millisecond.

"I'm sorry." He repeated, louder this time. You froze. You didn't want that to happen. You didn't want him to face you abut what happened. It would made it real, and you still hadn't enough courage for that.

"What for ?" You asked, your voice breaking.

"You what for".

You hesitated a lot before responding. "No actually I don't. Was it for mean rejecting me without an ounce of regret or nicenessin your words ? Or maybe the fact that you destroyed my confidence? Oh no ! I know, it was for the time you mocked me in front of my friend, who is in fact your girlfriend, and a fake friend!"

"You weren't supposed to be there that time." He said, suddenly finding the floor really interesting.

"Maybe but I was, so it's the same result and the same mean words that came out of your mouth."

He knew you were right. You were completely allowed to be mad at him for the way he treated you. But it was still hard. Azriel had never been in proper relationships nor had he ever been confessed to. It wasn't a proper excuse but it still made it hard to accommodate to those things for a boy deprived of love for all his life. He didn't know how to react, so to him, the better solution was to stay silent. You sighed, disappointed and he came awkwardly closer to you to hold you and shoot in the sky, following Cassian and Lucien, long arrived and waiting for you worried (especially Lucien).

Elain was waiting for Azriel, or Lucien, no one knew, on the balcony of the House of Wind and almost fell when she saw you. You in Azriel's arms, accompanying Lucien. Azriel struggled to let you go, especially after your conversation, but the second you were out of his hold, Elain held you in a crushing hug. You rapidly got out as well, feeling uncomfortable after her hypocrisy. You gave her a sad smile and Lucien introduced you to Feyre and Rhysand who had already told you to call them by their name, and to Mor and Amren. They all welcomed you warmly except Elain and Azriel of course who both looked like ashamed puppies with their tails between their legs.

After dinner, everyone went out in the garden for a tea and you found yourself on a couch behind Lucien sat on the floor. Automatically, because it was something you were now used to do, your hands found his head and started playing with his hair. Everyone had their eyes on you, confused on your proximity but you didn't notice and kept going on braiding his hair.

"I'll do yours later I promise" Lucien said, looking at you from above.

"I hope so !". Leaving everyone even more confused now.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

When you were ready to left with Lucien, Elain caught you and asked you to have a word with her.

Lucien gave you a worried look and you nodded making him understand you were okay for now.

She led you to a private room and paced in it awkwardly. She opened her mouth twice and closed it almost instantly like she wanted to say something but didn't know where to start.

"So, you ans Azriel ? Huh"

"You have actually no right to be mad at me." She cut you off.

"Excuse me ? But I have every right to be mad at you right now ! You have treated me poorly faking to be my friend and laughing at me when you should have been comforting me !" You snapped, angry.

"Well, it's not like someone could ever treat you well."

"What, what do you mean ?"

"Look at you yn, nobody would ever really be with you. You're not ugly but you're not beautifu, you're not dumb but you're not smart, you're just.. Well you. And that's clearly not enough." She looked at you disgustingly.

"But Lucien is treating me well.." You said tears welling in your eyes.

"Don't be blind, yn, he's a man, and like Azriel he will ran to me when he'll see that you're no longer interesting. You were nice and all, you listened to me but I guess I just got bored of you, anyone would." And with that she left the room, leaving 8 pairs of eyes on you as she opened the door. They instantly approached you, Feyre apologising a thousand time for the mean behaviour of her sister and Azriel staying in the back, his eyes full of worry and apology. He was trying to make you feel like everything she had said was false, that you were so much more than that, worthy of the stars,of two shining stars. Because yes they had heard everything. Lucien made his way to the crowd of his family surrounding you and hesitated before he hugged you out of nowhere. Azriel clenched his jaw and his hands turned into fists. When Lucien released you of his grasp, your expression hadn't changed, its like you were empty, just one single tears had escaped your eye. Cassian and Azriel flew you to the ground of Velaris and the last one had kept his hand on yours to make you look at him.

"I'm sorry, for what she said. It's not one bit true."

"Don't worry, she's surely right..." You had answered your gaze falling on his hand. You had never noticed the scars an them, they were so beautiful, so textured, so unique. You eyes widened at the sight and Azriel quickly hid them behind back before keeping going.

"No she wasn't, please don't doubt yourself because of what came out of her mouth because of jealousy. Because that's what she was and still is, jealous."

"Thank you Az really." You sadly smiled at him before joining Lucien who was waiting for you.

He didn't know why, but something clicked in him seeing you walk away under the arm of Lucien and hearing again his nickname from your mouth. He thought it rolled well on your tongue and really wanted to hear it again, as soon as possible. And it tensed him a lot to know that this man who touched you, was probably sleeping at yours tonight, maybe in your bed to comfort you after this emotionally hard day. It puzzled him a lot and didn't even know why, until his shadows came to his ears and murmured repeatedly "want to be him".

Tag list:

@kalulakunundrum

#acotar #azriel x you #azriel x reader #azriel x yn #elain archeron #lucien x reader #inner circle #morrigan #nesta archeron #feyre archeron #rhysand #cassian #amren #acotar x you #acotar x reader #acotar x y/n #writing #writers on tumblr

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poisonheiress · 15 days

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Vivziepop and Queer Rep

As we all know, many fans and media reps alike have commented on the apparent "queer rep" seen in both Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel with many sighting their MLM relationships and use of Sallie May as proof of Vivzie's dedication to queer rep. Yet for how much this idea is spouted across social media, I cannot say that Viv truly cares about Queer Representation in her shows. The apex of this disagreement comes from phrase that man people seem to not remember when it comes down to queer rep: Representation for one is not Representation for all.

In her hyperfocus on thin, cis mlm relationships, Vivzie creates rep for only those relationships, leaving behind countless other queer identities and relationships that also heavily need queer rep. The largest dismissal of queer individuals/relationships in HH or HB appears in characters that fall into one of three categories, The Fat, Sapphic, and The Nonbinary.

The Fat

When some of you look at this, you may be confused as to what fatness has to do with queer rep, I would tell you that it has a lot to do with it. Fat people are not inherently removed from queerness and have been there since the beginning, the creation of the term Bear is proof of that. This is the first strike on HH and HB's records.

As many other creators have thoroughly pointed out, fat representation is abysmal in both HH and HB with either shows either lacking fat rep completely or having fat characters made using more fatphobic stereotypes than I could count. With this poor managing of fat representation, its no surprise that Vivzie pop ignores all possible avenues of queer rep with fat people involved. This also impacts her presentation of mlm ships with all those in these ships only appear as thin cis men, not a single bear or trans man in sight.

The Sapphic

The second largest and arguably most obvious strike against Viv comes in her disturbing lack of sapphic relationships in both shows. While HH has at least one sapphic ship (Charlie and Vaggie), HH has none to speak of. As a result, Viv's ratio of Sapphic to Achillean relationships is heavily one-sided.

It shouldn't take me having to say this for many of you to realize that you cannot claim to have true or complete queer representation when you ignore a whole side of the queer community. While this issue in sapphic relationships likely tied to Vivzie's smaller amount of women in her stories, this does not excuse it. Having one or two of these secondary characters be in a sapphic relationship (especially Sallie May) be shown or even mentioned in passing (not random background shoots) has having a girlfriend would fix this issue, but we cannot even get that.

The Nonbinary

The final strike against Vivzie's queer rep comes in both shows ignoring the existence of nonbinary characters as a whole. While we get some presentation for the binary trans community (even though most are background characters never seen again besides Sallie May), we have yet to see a single nonbinary character in either show's canon.

This is honestly fucking ridiculous. To ignore an entire gender identity because its easier or you simply don't want to is ridiculous and should strip any claimed queer rep media from their title. Nonbinary people have always existed throughout time in different countries and cultures. To think that they're wouldn't be a single nonbinary sinner or demon in hell after all this time does not make sense.

Trans people on the binary and nonbinary side have the right to representation equally, and even if we were to ignore the concerns about Viv's current trans rep, trans people deserve more rep than random background characters and a one dimensional trans woman.

The Finale

As I end this essay, I do want to say that I wanted to discuss HH and HB's treatment and ignorance of asexuality and aromanticism as they are both highly relevant to the discussion. However, I need to do more digging on Alastor and his ace situation first before I do so in order to prevent spreading misinformation.

But even without this section, I still stand on my belief that neither of Viv's shows should be paraded around as good queer media or as truly supporting queer rep. While HH has a little more leeway with Viv's only sapphic ship, HH and HB still ignore large sections of the queer community. It feels more like Viv is picking at the parts of the community she likes more, grabbing at the more marketable identities and appearances until she has enough to call her show queer.

I hope one day Viv will listen to her fans and critiques about this lack of other queer identities but I will not hold my breath. All that is left to say is that queer people deserve better especially in adult shows and in animation. Picking and choose what queer people you include in your media simply because you like one more is the farthest thing from queer rep.

#I am all of the mentioned things so please don't say Im coming from a place of ignorance here #queer rep is important #and it is not only mlm ships that you can make cutsey fanart of #nor is it only skinny people #helluva boss critical #hazbin hotel critical #vivziepop critical #hazbin hotel criticism #tw fatphobia #helluva boss criticism #The floor is open for questions and discussion #yall should tell me your sapphic headcanons #in the comments

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lulublack90 · 14 days

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Prompt 27 - Blind Date

@wolfstarmicrofic May 27, word count 984

Sirius had agreed to go on a new TV show designed for you to basically pick a blind date. It was hosted by a blonde that he couldn’t quite remember her name. Nita, Tina?

He was behind the scenes being prepped by a producer or something.

He was placed behind the stage, ready to go on when he was called. With him was the presenter. He still couldn’t remember her name. She completely ignored him and barked orders at her poor PA.

“Ready when you are Ms. Skeeter.” A woman with a headset and microphone said.

“Good, let’s get this over with.” She said with a total lack of enthusiasm.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s Blind Date, and here is your host, Ms Rita Skeeter!” The announcer told the audience. Rita burst through from the side of the stage, waving and blowing kisses at her cheering audience.

“Hello and welcome to Blind Date.” Rita smiled, opening her arms wide. “We have three lovely young men all hoping to go on a blind date tonight and here they are!” She swept her arms to the side and that was the last Sirius saw, as he was promptly spun around so he couldn’t see the stage.

“He shouldn’t have been left here!” Someone shouted. “He can’t see the contestants, that's the whole point of the show.”

He was rushed to another part of the backstage while Rita introduced the three men he was going to choose between.

“Right you’re on,” He was suddenly pushed out a little door and onto the main stage.

There was a single chair in the middle of the stage and a large partition, blocking his view of the others.

“Hello, Sirius!” Rita gushed. “Sirius is from London and from what I’ve seen, all of our contestants will want to take him home.” Sirius sat in the chair, holding the cards with his pre-written questions. “Right, Sirius, you have your questions, so let’s get started!” The crowd clapped as Sirius cleared his throat.

“I’m a boy who likes a good time. I don’t like to be bored. If you could keep me entertained, what would we do? Er, contestant number 1.” He spoke clearly.

“What an excellent question, Sirius, but let’s make sure to keep our answers clean gentlemen.” Rita spoke a bit louder over the partition. The crowd ate her words up.

“Well, I’d take you to my favourite spa and treat you to a bit of pampering and then, after that, I have a box at the theatre.” Contestant number 1 answered. Sirius pulled a face, he was bored already.

“Er, thanks number 1. Number 2, same question.” He hoped it was better than the last.

“I’d take you to the races and then out for an elegant dinner at the savoy before we head back to mine for drinks looking out over the Thames.” Was the answer number 2 gave. Sirius rolled his eyes, fat chance of that happening. He felt like giving up already.

“Sounds like fun,” He tried to smile. “Number 3 your turn.”

Number three took a second to answer.

“I’d take you on a tour of London,” Oh lord, Sirius thought, all duds. “But the secret London. I know where the hidden passageways are and the gorier stories to tell. I’d probably end up at my favourite bookshop, which has a fireplace and café where we could curl up with a good book before we go out in the dark to search for the hundreds of ghosts that are meant to haunt London.” Sirius was literally on the edge of his seat. He didn’t need to hear anymore. He'd already decided who he wanted.

“Oooo, such different answers,” Rita cooed. “Next question, Sirius,”

“Dogs or cats? For all three again.”

“Cat,”

“Neither,” That one got a boo.

“Dogs,” Sirius smiled. He shuffled to his last card.

“How do you feel about motorbikes?” He had his fingers crossed.

“Love, love, love, them,”

“Sorry, no. They don't agree with my hair.”

“Hate, not a chance you’ll get me on one.” Well, 2 out of 3 at least.

“Alright Sirius, you’ve asked your questions, do you know who you’re going to pick?” Rita asked, trying to look serious. He nodded.

“Yes, contestant number 3.” Cheers erupted from the crowd.

“Let’s see who you didn’t pick. Come on over number 1.” A tall dark-skinned handsome gentleman walked around the partition. “Kingsley, such a shame,” Rita shook her head. Sirius shook Kingsley's hand, and he walked off the stage. “Number 2,” Rita called. A blonde man, who’d clearly spent too much time on his appearance. “Poor, poor, Gilderoy. Don’t worry sweetheart, you’ll find someone,” Gilderoy waved at the crowd and blew them kisses, forgetting to shake Sirius’s hand before he left. “And finally, the moment we’ve been waiting for. Sirius’s pick. Let me introduce Remus!” Rita cheered.

Remus walked around and Sirius felt his heart skip a beat. Remus looked shyly at him and rewarded him with a smile. Sirius forgot he was on a TV show and took Remus’s hand before trying to lead him off the stage. “Wait!” Rita called," we have to give you your getaway prize.”

Reluctantly, Sirius led Remus back across the stage and waited for Rita to continue. “Well, Sirius and Remus, we are sending you on a weekend trip to the lake district. What do you think of that?”

“It sounds wonderful Rita, thank you very much. Now, if you don’t mind, this one’s got a tour to start.” That time he ignored everyone and he and Remus made their escape.

“Hi,” He said once they were outside.

“Hi,” Remus said back. Sirius knew just from sight that he and Remus would work out. So, being a bit cheeky, he pushed Remus up against the side of the recording studio and leaned in for a kiss. Remus closed the gap and that was that.

#wolfstar #wolfstar microfic #wolfstar fic #wolfstar au #sirius black #remus lupin #sirius orion black #remus john lupin #rita skeeter #kingsley shacklebolt #gilderoy lockhart #did i watch old episodes of blind date?#yes i did #sirius loves his motorbikes #remus does not #sirius picked well #love at first sight #blind date

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artist-issues · 2 months

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My curiosity keeps knocking, so I've gotta pull the thread. Why would you erase Joker from existence if you could?

I'll break it down:

1. The Joker has no point.

There is not one consistent message in The Joker. It's not trying to "say" anything at all, because it commits to nothing. Instead, it almost says several things. It almost comments on the haves versus the have-nots. It almost comments on mental illness. It almost comments on society's treatment of those with mental illnesses. It almost comments on the government's spending. It almost comments on violence and comedy. But everything it tries to comment on feels like a sentence that gets cut off at the halfway point; after telling you the bad news and promising good news, it fails to deliver.

I'll tell you how it does this. Arthur Fleck is introduced as mentally ill. (As in, there was a developmental problem with his brain chemistry that causes him to miss social cues and laugh nervously.) This means that when he is mistreated by background characters for "being different," the audience should start to feel sorry for him and consider how a mentally ill person should be treated. But wait. He's not actually mentally ill because of a diagnosable problem with his brain chemistry—he claims he feels clearer and better when he's off his meds. Add that to the revelation that he wasn't born with a brain-chemistry issue. He was abused by his mom's ex. So, maybe he's not actually "crazy." Maybe, he's seeing the world as it really is? After all, it's been dark and terrible for him since he was a child. Or no, because what about that laughing tick, that's not normal, right? And he's hallucinating a life with a girl he's attracted to, and believes it enough to walk into her apartment like that's normal. So is he crazy, or just the only one responding correctly to a world as dark as he is?

The movie won't tell you. It starts a sentence, then cuts off before any thought or truth statement can be completed.

The movie also sets itself up as if those who have should be taking responsibility for society's "have-nots." Or it starts to. Mr. Wayne is introduced as directly responsible for the hardship Mrs. Fleck has fallen into. He is Arthur's father, and should be caring for him. But instead, he beats up and ignores the guy most entitled to, and in need of, his help. Just like the way he ignores the poor people in his city, right? But wait. No. Maybe none of that is true. Maybe Mr. Wayne is entirely innocent of abandoning Arthur and his mother—this was all the delusion of a selfish drug-addicted woman, and the rumors she's spreading ultimately lead to the assassination, not only of Mr. Wayne's good character, but of his actual life. And his wife's. So is the character who has power and influence and badmouths the poor a portrayed in a negative light, or a positive light? Is this character a selfish rich person who cares nothing for those less fortunate than himself, or is he just one more guy who could've been good if others' cruelty (Mrs. Fleck's lies) hadn't pushed him "past the breaking point?" Does that justify his cruelty, if it's true?

Both. Neither. Nothing at all. The movie won't tell you.

So you can pick whatever ending you want. But. No you can't. You can't even do that. Because guess what? It's all in Arthur Fleck, inmate of Arkham Asylum's, crazy head. Maybe none of it was real.

2. The Joker is therefore only successful as a piece of entertainment.

Everyone could've guessed that as soon as they saw it was a movie about the Joker. Nobody needed this movie in any sense. We already know more than one origin story for the Joker, as a character. We've already done-to-death every interpretation of his craziness. Everybody knows who he is and what he's like. So obviously, this was just going to be entertaining.

That's bad enough. Stories are supposed to remind you of goodness, beauty, and truth. Why? I'm not going to dissect it because everyone can read the pinned post on my blog. But because: the world's dark enough already, and it's easy to lose your sense of goodness, beauty, and truth. A story, even if it's a tragedy, even if it has no "happy ending," can still take you out of your present state of mind, sit you down in a fresh state of mind, and remind you of truth. Being "entertaining" is just one of the tools that the story uses to take you there. Or it's supposed to be.

When you take the point, the truth, the message, the "theme," out of a story, then it's just the Romans distracting the populace with coliseum spectacle so they forget that they're losing money and wasting their lives. Woohoo. "Fun. Entertainment."

You can disagree with me about that if you want. You can believe, like many I know, "it's fine to just turn off your brain and be entertained! Not everything has to mean something! I bet you're fun at parties!" Okay, cool, so you like being entertained, and The Joker entertained you.

The problem is, what were you being entertained by?

Because:

3. The Joker increases an appetite for evil in the audience.

I don't care. I said it. It's painfully obvious.

First of all, you came here to what? Watch the bad guy lose and the good guy win? No. This movie's got no Batman. You came to glut yourself on two hours of the bad guy with no pesky good guy to share his spotlight.

Is that too harsh? Maybe you just came in expecting the Joker to be about how a good man goes bad. Okay. Uplifting. But sure, maybe a cautionary tale could be useful.

But that's not what you get with the Joker. We already established: there's no lesson, no point, to this movie besides entertainment.

And I don't just mean "aw booo, there was way too much icky blood and scary suspenseful music. Oh no, a movie about a villain had villainy in it!!"

Nope.

I mean, tell me why Arthur Fleck only has moments of peace and transcendence after he murders someone? Why's the sunlight warming him up, like a benevolent gift from the heavens, in the shot after he smothers his mother with a pillow? Why are those somber strings playing out a ditty he can "be himself" and dance to after he shoots three young men? Why is he only experiencing clarity after he kills?

Why are the most "interesting" parts of Joaquin Phoenix's portrayal the parts where the character is killing, stealing, or thinking about killing?

Why is so much effort put into telling the story as if Arthur Fleck is sympathetic, no matter which way you look at it? He only kills mean people. Except his mother. Oh but she was kind of mean, too. Never mind that whatever caused her to ignore, lie, and abuse her son was also played off, in the movie, like a mental illness. The very thing we're meant to feel sorry for Arthur about.

The movie won't tell you who's right or wrong. But it makes you see everything through Arthur's eyes, with nobody to stop him or correct him or offer a differing point of view—and that alone is dangerous. Your mirror neurons are going to make you sympathize with that main character, regardless of how heinous his actions are, when the storytellers are so careful to offer you all these reasons why his actions were "justified."

The Joker was invented to have a Batman. Introduce a villain—even a sympathetic villain—but you have to also introduce the opposite of that villain. It can be one line of dialogue; it doesn't have to be a hero. But you have to say something about the evil when it is represented. Instead of inviting everyone to feel for the villain...then leaving them feeling vaguely satisfied when he commits atrocities. They can't help it. It's the first time he's looked at peace, or in control of anything. That's how the movie is made.

So you're entertained by looking for a statement that isn't there—or by watching one man brutally slay five people, one of whom is his mother, because you were just so excited to see some blood, to see a man snap. Panem et circuses. At its finest. And you paid for it. Smart. Cultured, of you.

I'd wipe that movie out of existence and force the writers and directors to stare at a wall while sad violin music plays in the background for exactly how many days it took them to make that movie, if I could.

#Asked #answered #the joker #Joaquin phoenix #joaquin pheonix joker #arthur fleck #joker 2019 #discourse #Movie #movies #storytelling #The joker fans #joker love #dc joker #not you avoicefromthecorner #Just anyone who thinks this was a good movie in any sense at all.

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doberbutts · 5 months

Text

I also think- having recently seen a post that said Blue Eye Samurai isn't a queer story, it just has queer elements- that sometimes it feels like fans cannot make up their minds.

Do we or do we not want stories that treat being gay as a perfectly normal, perfectly common experience the same way straight people are depicted in every story to ever exist?

In BES, no one is outright stated to be queer. That's partially because in Japan, until Japan felt the need to sanitize itself to appeal to foreigners, it wasn't unheard of at all for men to be gay. Multiple famous samurai and swordsmen and nobles were either outspokenly gay or are commonly theorized to have been gay in modern historical readings. Abijah making multiple references to swinging both ways, Kaji's offer of a male prostitute, the various scenes we have of men being together in sexual positions, they're not met with surprise because homosexuality was an acknowledged thing that happened.

Taigen's erection while he's wrestling Mizu, even though he doesn't yet know her secret, is treated awkwardly because they're supposed to dislike each other and also he's supposed to be in love with Akemi, not because "whoa bro no homo".

(This is also why I keep saying that it's difficult for me to put into English words what I think Mizu's gender is, because gender and sexuality quite frankly did not work the way my 2020s American brain wants to contextualize it, and I think it's important to consider the cultural aspects here esp in a show so heavily leaning on a racial story)

However, compared to many other shows out there even regarding the same area and country, BES is significantly more queer than the majority of them produced in the last 30 years. Is Mizu herself queer? Well... maybe, depending how you define it. Back in the day, otherwise cisgender crossdressers and male-impersonators were still grouped in with those we'd call transgender nowadays. She seems to be exclusively interested in men, but also seems to be equally receptive to considering herself sexually as both a man and a woman pairing with men, than as a man or woman pairing with women which she has adamantly refused with zero interest on multiple occasions.

Is Taigen bi? I mean, maybe! He seemed more mortified that he had an unwanted erection in front of someone he wanted to impress and play with, than that he had it over someone he considers a man, using the excuse that he misses his would-be fiance.

Abijah certainly seems to be bisexual, considering we see him having sex with both women and men, and his various sexual references talk about both men and women as well. This is ignoring whatever weird sexual tension thing he's got going with Heiji, who seems both receptive and repulsed by it.

And, not to be remiss, but there is a reason I specified that homosexuality among men was pretty known. Due to the more rigid policing of women's sexuality in this era, homosexuality among women was less commonly reported (though I have heard stories of noble women and their handmaids, or the working poor women, or among prostitutes living together in the brothels, so also not unheard of but perhaps less accepted as women were largely bought and sold in marriage and sex trafficking) - but even with all of that, Kaji and Kinuyo have something together. Whether that is a mother-daughter thing, or if they were lovers, is up to interpretation. The implication that out of everyone at the brothel that Kaji genuinely cares for, Kinuyo was special, and that wasn't a particularly uncommon arrangement historically if I'm hearing about it 400 years later in a completely different country.

So this "well it's not a queer show" and "if I was told this was a queer story I'd be disappointed" is honestly just ridiculous hooey to me. Do you want characters who are able to explore their sexualities without looking over their shoulder out of fear of homophobia, or not?

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kamiversee · 3 months

Note

OKAY. HERE WE GO. I DID IT, I WENT OVER THE CHAPTERS AND PULLED OUT DIFFERENT THINGS. IM SO SO SORRY THIS IS SO LONG. PLS KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE UR STORY AND IM SORRY FOR HOW LONG THIS IS!!!

....

Chapters that include Sukuna: 23, 24, 25, 32, 33, 34

Chapter 23: The Party Era "Well… around a time like now, that asshole is probably somewhere in the middle of the party," Gojo explains.

The way he refers to Sukuna as an asshole has you worried. Are you going to have to deal with another Naoya?

Swallowing down a large gulp of nerves, you bat your eyelashes at Gojo, "Asshole…?"

He tenses up beside you for some unknown reason, "Uh… I mean, yeah." He shrugs, "Sukuna isn't the nicest guy in the world, everyone knows that."

Satoru describing Sukuna as an asshole, tensing up but only saying that he isn't the "nicest guy in the world".

"Sukuna…" Gojo pauses, thinking hard about something before shaking the thought away, "He uh… How do I say this… He'll," The man looks down at you again, "He'll be nice to you."

He wasn't worried that Sukuna would hurt her. It makes me believe there could be a closer hint towards Sukuna knowing who the reader was prior to this. If he knew about her then it would give Satoru a reason to be able to leave her alone with him without worrying that he would harm her (if Choso was being honest about the abuse-- which he would have no reason to lie about?).

Your body language made it so painfully obvious that you didn't want this guy touching on you and you eventually turned your head back to him, noticing that it was the same person Gojo snapped at earlier.

That realization caused goosebumps to form all over your skin and you tried telling the man to back off you. He definitely heard you but clearly ignored you, going as far as groping your ass and creepily smiling at you.

The exact same man from before? It seems suspicious that the guy would go after the reader more than once in the night, especially after being practically threatened with Satoru's eyes… maybe this was set up? (I'm stretching it).

In the blink of your eye, one second he was trying to come to touch you again and the next you saw a fist make contact with his jaw, a crack heard even through the music as his body stumbled to the side and then made contact with the floor.

Sukuna doesn't even bat an eye before he whacks this man to the floor for harassing a woman. It makes me feel like there's something there. Does he know her? Or does he genuinely just hate people making women uncomfortable, but that also defeats the purpose of what Choso said-- why would Sukuna beat a guy up for making a woman uncomfortabe if he beats them.

The smile that was once spread across his face drops completely when he looks at you.

???

Chapter 24: The Heavy Tension

FIFTEEN MINUTES. That was the exact amount of time it took you to seduce Sukuna.

The act was way too easy. Actually, it was suspiciously easy.

It's one thing for him to have made his introduction by knocking a creep out for the sake of you but it's an entirely different thing for the man to then order you to dance with him.

Still feels weird to me, but I'm not too suspicious given his history with women (provided in future chapters).

His introduction seemed pretty odd as well. I feel like because the man was doing this to multiple women maybe this was still planned??? But he's also a creep SOOOO!

A voice was right in your ear, lips brushing over your skin and giving you literal chills, "You're not uncomfortable with me touching you, right?"

SEE IT JUST MAKES ME SO CONFUSED!!!!

"Bullshit," He utters, "Nobody dresses like this without the intent of gaining my attention," Sukuna claims while his hands slide back down along your body.

This is probably nothing but I thought I might just add it?

"Care to be my next victim?" Sukuna requests, his wording making your face scrunch up a little.

"What a poor choice of words…" You murmur in response, taking him by complete surprise.

IM SORRY I HAD TO ADD IT LMAO

You glance over to a nightstand you pass by and notice a single framed picture. Stopping, you can't help but pick it up. It's Yuji. The resemblance between Sukuna and his younger brother is uncanny, they look identical with the exception of Sukuna appearing older and having face tattoos.

"Is this your brother?" You blurt out.

Sukuna's head turns back to you again, his brows furrowed and a vein popping out in his forehead at the mere mention of his sibling. "Unfortunately, yes." He sighs deeply, rolling his eyes at how curious you are and returning his attention to whatever it was on inside the bathroom.

If this isn't Choso's room, which I don't think it is… Why would Sukuna have a framed photo of Yuji? He obviously doesn't like his brother, but I feel like there's something weird about that fact.

Only to be stopped by another banging against the room door, this time followed by some guy calling Sukuna's name.

…

His phone buzzes on the counter and his head snaps back before he snatches the device up. Sukuna's whole face sinks and he looks like he's about to kill someone.

"These fucking idiots…" He sighs, unlocking his phone and responding to something. You sit idly on the floor, staring up at him until he looks down at you again.

With a sigh Sukuna shakes his head, "Someone threatened to call the cops and shut this party down so, I gotta' go." He explains.

I'm sorry this was definitely Satoru no one is telling me otherwise…

Chapter 32: The Heavy Tension

He nods his chin toward the picture you just had in your hands, "You know my brother, don't you?"

There is no way he could have guessed that??? She picked up a picture of Yuji last time and he didn't think she'd know who he was, but Choso?

"He's talked about you before," Sukuna says suddenly.

I know he said this in a joking way, but is there any way that Choso and Sukuna still keep in touch?

It's slow but he soon meets your eyes, "Bad one. Fucker' snuck a hit on me like the little bitch he is," Sukuna curses.

Oh he's definitely talking about Satoru c'mon.

"No, but, I fight a lot and I'd love to have a pretty face like yours taking care of me after each one," Sukuna comments, his words making your heart race.

I JUST DONT UNDERSTAND ANYMORE…

Sukuna releases one and then brings the other to his mouth, placing a kiss on the palm of your hand.

He's being so gentle here????!?!?!

Chapter 34 - The Degrading Era

On your body was this large t-shirt and… your underwear? Except, it was freshly cleaned? Holy shit, how long were you out for?

He even takes care of her the morning after, which feels weird because of his character.

"How do you feel?" Sukuna cuts off, uninterested in your questions as to why he's so close to you.

…

When you opened the device and went through it, you noticed your notification from your bank, a lovely deposit of six thousand USD having been sent to you within the last hour.

Okay so Satoru already knowing did seem fairly suspicious. But then again you were gone for awhile…?? But he wasn't with you… UGH I DONT KNOW!

That's oddly specific. You didn't think much of when he called you a whore last night, since, y'know, you like being degraded. But, something about that being his assumption for your occupation is a crazy coincidence.

Especially considering how hellbent Gojo was on telling you not to call yourself that. The more you think about it…

Gojo got upset at something from Sukuna's party, he didn't want you to call yourself a whore all of a sudden, Sukuna seems to have believed that was your actual job, and you remember how pissed Gojo seemed as he thought about you sleeping with Sukuna-

Holy fuck. Are the two connected somehow? Is something going on? What does Gojo owe Sukuna? Does Sukuna know you only slept with him as payment to clear Gojo's debt? Is-

I DONT CARE IF SUKUNA SAID HE WAS JOKING. THIS IS TOO SUSPICIOUS!!!! "You've got the kinda' pussy men pay for. Hell, I…"

I know this is because he didn't want to compliment the reader BUT 1. he's seeming a little to sweet to her if this isn't how he normally treats women. 2. I DONT THINK HE WOULD JOKE? DID HE PAY??? HELLO!!! IM CONFUSED

You're quick to wrap your arms around his neck as you're lifted into the air and Sukuna carries you to his bathroom.

"Do not get used to this." He says sternly.

You've got a big smile on your face as he assists you with readying yourself for the day.

The man helps you to brush your teeth, cleanse your face, get dressed in your clothes from the night prior that have been washed, and then he basically carries you everywhere around his house.

After which, Sukuna says he's driving you home and you end up spending a lovely morning receiving princess treatment from the man.

I'm sorry HELLO? I'm telling you this is weird behaviour for someone who supposedly fucks and dips… he seems to caring, especially towards her. I know he doesn't have feelings for her but what is it!!!

(i put this on my acc also if it's easier to read that way i dont know if these messages get cut off lmk!)

if u read this... thank u, and im sorry.

ly girl ur great!

Oh you’re gonna eat the next chapter I upload up ngl

So to start, I can’t confirm or deny anything as typically said :/

But I’ll instead give you more things to consider based on these thoughts of yours! These are in no specific order btw so bear with me pls !

—

One, as said before, no one knows the time frame on what Choso said about Sukuna being abusive to women & I’d also like to point out how it’s clearly said that Choso moved out of their shared home the moment he got the chance to years ago.

While this doesn’t make up for anything, it is something to consider since he was quite kind to the reader & for him to act such a way it’s just out of character compared to what Choso says :)

—

Two, the creep who harasses the reader twice is simply just an example of men who just dont take the hint. He blatantly ignored Gojo’s threat and still approached the reader anyways — it wasn’t set up at all ^.^

—

People keep asking why Sukuna would assume the reader knew Choso. Well, they do attend the same university & as seen in the most recent chapter, most people are aware of the two being brothers — the reader being the only one out of the loop. Hell, even Shoko knew a bit about them since she said Sukuna doesn’t like being referred to as Itadori.

—

It’s never stated that Sukuna typically fucks & leaves. If anything, notice how he offers to be fwb to the reader. Never is it specified that Sukuna is the type to fuck someone once & then dip, especially as it’s later revealed the reader isn’t the only woman he’s interested in having sex with as he says he called the “wrong whore”.

Plus, despite Choso’s claim of Sukuna hitting women & us not knowing the time frame on that, note that his aftercare could just be who he is. I had to make him the king of something in this fic & I chose aftercare💀

That being said, sure, later down the line you could assume Sukuna would lose his temper and lay his hand on someone but never would you know if his aftercare to the reader is exclusive only to her or just how he is.

—

Gojo sending the money the next morning isn’t unusual in any way.

When the reader slept with Toji, Gojo knew (assumed) she’d done it without even receiving a text from her so it’s safe to assume he did the same with Sukuna and figured after not hearing a word from the reader, she’d completed her goal.

—

I believe that’s about all I wanted to explain, the theory girlies are gonna eat this tf up so ty for the break down🫶

Oh, you still missed the detail I said no one found btw ;)

#kamiversee!answers #tfl!theories

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fromtheseventhhell · 10 months

Note

Saw a Sansa fan say this about Arya when ranting about how unfair it is how everyone is treating Septa Mordane. "Ned gave her the impossible task of making a lady out of Arya, but he indulges his daughter when she rolls on mud or behaves in a socially unacceptable way. So Arya obviously doesn’t listen to Septa Mordane (or Catelyn, for that matter) when she tries to correct her behavior. Why would she? Septa Mordane’s power comes from Ned, and with his behavior he’s taking away her authority to establish rules and to enforce discipline". They just want to completely ignore the fact that Septa Mordane bullied Arya to the point of tears, attempting to embarrass her in front of Myrcella.

The "Septa Mordane was trying her best" takes are always hilarious because they always ignore the context of the situation. They act like she was some poor, frazzled old woman who was at her wit's end when it came to dealing with Arya.

First, nowhere is it that Arya routinely disregards Septa Mordane. I know people have this idea that Arya was just running around Winterfell doing whatever she wanted, but it's clear she was subject to very structured learning practices. The two major examples of her disobeying Septa Mordane are both under uncommon circumstances. If Arya was truly so disobedient and never faced consequences for her actions, then she wouldn't have been in her sewing lesson and attempting her work in the first place. Instead, she is working on her lesson without issue until the moment when Mordane remarks negatively on her work and embarrasses her to the point of tears. Arya's remark that she's going to "shoe a horse" is in response to Mordae telling her she has the hands of a Blacksmith, so it's obvious that her insulting Arya's work and making an example of her was a fairly common occurrence. She also uses her as a measure of bad behavior; she tells Sansa that she is "as willful as Arya" when she's behaving "improperly" and Sansa internalizes this + later thinks she felt as "wicked as Arya".

The second time is when Arya leaves a meal without permission. The lack of empathy for Arya is just so blatant because moment's before we have Arya's internal monologue of mourning her friend's death and thinking she doesn't feel safe among her father's men like she used to. All of this gets ignored and this moment is reduced to Arya being difficult. This person used Ned's quote about Septa Mordane turning Arya into a Lady but apparently, they neglected to read the entire conversation.

"I wasn't playing," Arya insisted. "I hate Septa Mordane." "That's enough." Her father's voice was curt and hard. "The septa is doing no more than is her duty, though gods know you have made it a struggle for the poor woman. Your mother and I have charged her with the impossible task of making you a lady."

This moment that they quoted is Ned doing exactly what he, supposedly, never does and supporting Septa Mordane + disciplining Arya. This entire conversation between the two is Ned telling Arya that she has to grow out of her wild behavior and listen to her teacher. And the only reason that they're having that conversation in the first place is because she went and told Ned of Arya's behavior. So I'm really lost on this logic. There is not a single moment in the story where Septa Mordane is undermined by either Ned or Cat. She has their support in both instances of Arya disobeying her. She isn't even ever faulted for Arya's lack of progress. She is allowed to be incompetent at her job with full authority. So I guess??? Ned and Cat were just never supposed to be nice to Arya or allow her to have fun??? I'm not sure what their idea of Ned "properly" supporting Septa Mordane looks like since we already have that in the story.

Septa Mordane as a teacher, and an adult, has authority over Arya. Whether or not her every word is being directly enforced by either Ned or Cat, that power dynamic still exists. And again, both times that Arya disobeys Septa Mordane she faces consequences. I'm not sure how Arya playing on the way to KL is an example since literally nobody but Sansa remarks on such as an issue, but it's obvious this person is just in the camp of "Arya's behavior is unacceptable". That's why they want her to be constantly corrected by everybody and think it's a failure on Ned's part that he *checks notes* allows his daughter to have fun while they're on a very long and tedious journey. I'm sure this person was also upset when Ned comforted Arya after her emotional outburst. As for Septa Mordane's abilities as a teacher, I think the fact that we never actually witness her teaching anything says it all.

#ask #anon #arya stark #septa mordane #ned stark #asoiaf #Septa Mordane was an incompetent teacher who let her own bias cloud her from doing her job properly #she was fr beefing with a fucking 9 year old and throwing her authority around to try and brow-beat Arya into place #/what did you expect her to do/ uhhmmmm her job?? maybe actually try and teach instead of just berating a child?#you don't have to be a certified teacher to know that's a horrible method that's not going to produce results #people are too busy justifying characters actions without looking at /why/ they're written that way though

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plentyoffandoms · 1 year

Text

Pedro Pascal x f/Reader

Main Masterlist ♡ Actors Masterlist ♡ Pedro Pascal Masterlist

Just like all my other stories, this has not been proofread, but please enjoy.

Warnings: Some swearing.

Gifs & photos do not belong to me. 1st gif @manny-jacinto 2nd & 3rd gif @imaginesbymonika

WC: 3003

Summary: Pedro runs into an old girlfriend, who has kept a secret from him.

Pedro Pascal's POV:

I was having lunch with Óscar when I looked up at the sound of a very familiar voice, that I haven't heard in a very long time, but there was a slight difference to it.

My mind must be playing a trick on me because there was a woman who looked very similar to an old girlfriend of mine, walking past our table, talking on the phone. My eyes widened when I noticed how pregnant she was, but it couldn't be YN.

This woman looks like YN did all those years ago when I left her. I still remember the day I walked out on her, not being able to handle what was going on in my life with my Mom and losing my agent.

"Baby, please talk to me. I know you want to shut everyone out, but I am here for you." She says to me as she found me on the floor of our one-bedroom apartment, trying to pull me into her arms.

I hate that I pushed her away at that moment. I could see the look of hurt come over her face, but I didn't care at that time. Not when my whole world felt like it was crashing down around me.

I remember screaming at YN to get out. That I didn't want to see her anymore. I watched as she packed her bag, crying and not saying a word to me as she did.

She placed her key to the apartment on the coffee table and walked right out that door, slamming it behind her.

I got high as fuck that night, only waking up to friends pounding on the door. I was so lost in my rage, I didn't realise what the hell I did to YN. I tried to get her back, but she practically disappeared into the air, and I haven't seen her since.

"Hey, are you good, man?" Óscar asked me, waving his hand in front of my face.

"Yeah."

"You sure, you zoned out completely there, I was calling your name for a minute. Thought you were having a stroke or something." Óscar said as he was still looking at me funny.

"I just thought I saw someone I knew." I looked back to see if I could see the woman again, but she was gone. Maybe she was just a figment of my imagination.

I continued catching up with Óscar, asking him about his family when I heard the voice again and I looked up once more, this time almost choking on the food I was eating when YN walked by me.

My eyes followed her as she walked past me, right in the direction of where her doppelganger was headed before.

"Okay, I know something is up. Are you gonna tell me what is going on or are we going to play 50 questions with you?"

I ignored Óscar and stood up, excusing myself from the table and I walked in the same direction that they went.

To my surprise, I saw that there just wasn't the two of them sitting at the table, but there was a young man there as well.

I was about to walk back to my table when I bumped into a poor waiter. The food went flying and we caused a loud commotion. Everyone turned to look at us, and that included the occupants of the table I was just looking at.

YN and I made eye contact and hers got real wide when she realised that it was me staring right at her. I held up my finger to give myself just a second as I helped the waiter with the mess I caused.

"Mom, is that?" I heard the young man speak for the first time."

"Yes, Lucas," I looked at this Lucas and I had to stop my mouth from falling open, he looks identical to me, except he has YN's eyes.

"Thank you sir, but I got it from here," the Waiter said to me. I stood up and contemplated walking back to Óscar, but I knew this may be my only chance to talk to YN.

"Excuse me, may we have another chair," YN asked a passing waitress, who quickly went to grab the item.

The rest of the patrons went back to their food and conversations, now that the excitement was over. The chair was placed between YN and Lucas and I sat down, getting a good look at all of them.

I first focused on YN, my eyes looking over the woman who I once loved. My mind going back to our first date and how nervous I was.

I blurted out how gorgeous she looked before she could even say hello and I remember the smile she gave me, it made me smile, knowing I didn't just mess up our first date.

"Hello, sorry to interrupt, but I am," I went to say but the young woman interrupted me.

"We know who you are," I looked at her and the young man. My mind trying to wrap around what I am looking at.

"Pedro, I want you to meet Emilia and Lucas Balmaceda." Those simple words just cemented what I was thinking.

I looked between the three of them and my eyes finally landed on YN, who was watching me to gauge my reaction.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You know why. I didn't find out until a few months later and I was already halfway across the country trying to start over."

"I could have helped." I tried to say to YN, but she just gave me a sad smile.

"Pedro, with everything that happened between us and the loss of your mom, you were not in the state of mind to talk to. I did what I thought was best at the time."

I wanted to be angry at her. I wanted to tell her that I missed out on their whole lives, but I knew there was no use as that was all in the past.

"I am sorry for everything and I am sorry that I missed out on your lives," I said to my children.

"Why don't you stay and eat with us? Get to know them if you wish." YN said to me.

"I am sorry, I wish I could but I am here with a friend and he is probably wondering where I am."

I can just see the look of disappointment on Óscar's face in my mind.

"But, please call me or text me. I would like to see you before I have to leave." I wrote down my phone number and gave it to them.

Once I got back to Óscar, he started his whole Mom routine and asked me where I went and why I ran off.

"I just saw someone I knew once and needed to say hi," it was the truth and I know he wanted to ask more questions, but he didn't. We continued with our lunch and as we left, I looked back, wondering if I should join them once more.

YN'S POV:

The moment Pedro walked away, I felt like I could fully breathe again. I looked at my children and they too were stunned that they just met their father.

"Are you two okay? Do you want to talk about it?" I asked them. I knew they waited their whole lives to meet him but I didn't think that day would ever happen.

"The better question is, are you, Mom?" Emilia asked me as she reached for my hand that I had on the table.

I never hid who their father was. I told them that he was a good man who was going through some difficult times when we broke up. I didn't tell them why until Emilia was trying to find a pair of earrings to wear to a party and she found my diary that I had hidden away.

That is when she found out what happened between myself and Pedro and what happened to his Mom.

I came home that evening, to Lucas and Emilia sitting on the couch, with the diary opened to the page and they asked me to tell them the truth.

I did and I reassured them over and over again that their father was a good man, a great man in fact and I still stand by this.

Even after watching him become the great actor that I knew he could be. I watch every single thing he has ever been in and his interviews, proud of the man he has come.

I raised the kids in Caliente, Nevada, a small town about two hours from Las Vegas. I worked as Head Nurse at the Medical Centre there.

Their lives growing up, they were bullied for having what many people called a hard-to-pronounce last name. They got told to go back to where they came from but I told them to hold their heads up high and to be proud of their last name.

I told them stories of Pedro's parents and what they did and how they risked their lives. After that, they never cared if people liked them or not and soon, the bullying stopped because people realised they weren't affecting them anymore.

"I am fine, just shocked is all but I am fine." I squeezed her hand and she gave me a small smile, wincing as the baby kicked.

Lucas looked back and forth between his sister and me, looking concerned. He has always taken the role of man of the house seriously and he still feels like he needs to protect us.

Even after they went off to University and started their own lives. He would drive home to visit me three times a month, and I could come home to him fixing what was broken.

Now he works for the most Prestigious Law Firm in all of New York, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP. He even offered to move me out there when he had enough money to get a nice condo, but I told him I am happy where I was.

That was until Emilia called me saying that she was pregnant and her boyfriend left her. She was living in California at the time and I told her to come home.

But then there was a fire at my house when I wasn't home and I lost everything. So, Emilia and I ended up moving to the fast-paced city that is New York.

I never thought I would ever end up back here, but life has other plans for me.

But I didn't stay in the City for long, missing having my own home. So I took the insurance money and bought a small home in Queens Village.

On the very first day of living in our new home, Lucas showed up to help put together furniture and that is when he met our new neighbour, Brandon. The two of them instantly hit it off and their wedding is only five months away.

Brandon and I became close as well, showing up whenever I needed him. Coming over for dinner, movie marathons, anything really.

The three of us finished our lunch and Lucas went back to work as Emilia and I went shopping, like we always do after our lunches with her brother.

As I settled into my bed that night, I pulled out Pedro's phone number and contemplated if I should even contact him.

But I felt my phone vibrate and I looked at the message, my heart beating wildly, 'nice to hear from you YN. I have missed you.'

I stared at the paper in my hand, biting my lip, wondering if he would ever respond. So I just took a chance, and I messaged him.

I didn't hold my breath, knowing he could be busy now. I mean, he is a massive star and could be doing anything at this point.

I didn't know how to respond, so I didn't. I have missed this man every single day since I walked out that door. Knowing I should have turned back around to try and talk to him, but I didn't.

I tried to sleep, but very little sleep came as his message kept replaying in my mind.

'I have missed you.'

PEDRO PASCAL'S POV:

I had messages from both Emilia and Lucas as soon as I left the restaurant but I held out for YN to message me, not knowing if she would or not.

But that night when she did, I fucked it up right away. I told her I missed her and she didn't respond. I am just hoping that she fell asleep or something but deep down inside, I knew I shouldn't have said anything.

So I didn't message her again. I spent most of the time texting Emilia and Lucas here and there. All I know is that his job keeps him busy but he hasn't told me what he does, but I have been busy with interviews mostly.

I was just leaving one as I walked past some law office when I saw Lucas with another man. I was about to call his name when I saw the man lean in and kiss Lucas goodbye and get in the Taxi.

I stood there, waiting for Lucas to turn around and when he did, he stopped and stared at me. I walked towards him and gave him a soft smile.

"Who was that?"

"My fiancé," a massive smile came over my face and I pulled him into my arms for a hug. "Congratulations are in order then. Let us get a drink when you have time." He looked at his phone and I assume his calendar.

"I have nothing more for this afternoon, you good with walking to The Blue Dog?" He asked me and I looked at the traffic that is nowhere near clearing up and nodded my head yes.

We walked, making small talk. People stop and ask for a photo or an autograph here and there, but he just stepped aside and watched all this.

"This normal for you?" Lucas asked me.

"Yeah, usually happens more when I have something come out." We continued our small talk until we got to the restaurant and got seated. I could see the camera flashes going off.

"So Lucas, tell me about yourself." I wanted to get to know him. He looks so much like me. You would never know he and Emilia were twins.

"Emilia and I were born on March 17th, 2000, right here in New York City. Mom came back for some nursing convention and we came early. I am the oldest one eight minutes. Grew up in Caliente, Nevada. We both graduated a year early and then went to University and then to Law School. Got hired at Cravath, Swaine & Moore right out of school."

"Sounds like you got your Mom smarts." I tried to tease.

"Yeah, and your Parents as well."

"YN told you about them?" He nodded his head yes as he took a sip of his water.

"Yup, she always told us stories. She told me how I was named after my Father and Grandfather."

"What do you mean?"

"My name is Jose Lucas, but I just go by Lucas, same with Emilia. Her name is Verónica Emilia."

I have to ask YN why she would name them after my Parents. I almost teared up at the thought of her doing that.

I heard his name being called and I saw that Lucas was waving at someone behind me. "I hope you don't mind, Emilia told me she was close by and I invited her."

The two of us stood up and I pulled the chair out for her and helped get her settled. She kissed her brother on the cheek and she smiled at me.

I am still stunned at how much she looks like her Mother.

"I hope I am not intruding."

"Not at all, this is a happy surprise," I told her and I was being truthful.

The three of us talked as we spent the afternoon together. I found out so much about them. Emilia is a Wedding Coordinator and organising her brothers Wedding.

"It helps with Brandon lives right next door and I can just stop over at any time." She teases her brother.

"Is that how you two met?" I asked.

"Yup, the first day Mom and she moved into their new place, I show up to put together some furniture and there he was, helping the two of them to move in. At first, I thought he was just hitting on them but to my surprise, he was flirting with me and well, we have been inseparable ever since."

Lucas left to use the washroom before we were leaving and it was just Emilia and me alone for the first time.

She winced slightly and I gave her a concerned look. "Baby is kicking."

"Do you know what you are having?"

"A girl, already have the name picked out, the nursery is all set to go thanks to Brandon and Lucas."

"What else do you need?"

"I am having a baby shower soon, so I have no idea what my friends have gotten me or my family, but I will let you know when after."

Lucas came back at that moment, and the three of us headed out the door. "I hope we can do this again sometime," I told them.

"We can set something up when I get a chance to look at my calendar at work. Got a big case coming up, so my weekends and evenings will be tied up with that for a while." Lucas said.

"And I have another wedding that I am working on, but I can make time for you. Just let me know your schedule." Emilia said.

I agreed and the three of us went in opposite directions, but I was on the phone with my sister, ready to drop this massive surprise on her.

Part 2

#reader imagine #female reader #reader insert #pedro pascal x reader #pedro pascal imagine #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal x you #pedro pascal x y/n #pedro pascal x female reader #pedro pascal

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bronx-bomber87 · 10 months

Text

Good Morning! Super excited for these next set of eps to review.

We’ve reached the iconic and pivotal DOD eps. I’m nervously excited to review these. I want to do them justice. They are momentous for not just Chenford but the entire series. Rosalind Dyer is one of my fav recurring baddies. I loved Annie from Castle as well. Was psyched she would be joining The Rookie. This was a rare one where I got to use all the gifs I wanted to. Yay. Kid in a Chenford candy store haha Thank you to all the wonderful gif makers out there. You are the real MVP's. Let’s get this started :)

2x10 The Dark Side

We start with Lucy and the guys out for a post work drink. Armstrong is there as well. They’re talking about Jackson dating a celebrity. Asking how that is? Lucy says they’re happy if he’s happy. Nick calls her bluff and says ‘Liar.’ LMAO Lucy cracks and says men suck ha They sure can. That the single men in LA suck. That whenever they find out she’s a cop they freak out. (To touch on not dating a cop bit. It is only a mistake when it’s not Tim. Let’s be real.) Especially while she's still a rookie just not a good idea (cough Nolan cough) He was never a good decision though....not even a little bit. I'll die on that hill haha

Armstrong joins the convo and comes in with some solid advice. ‘Those aren’t men they’re boys. Real men are not afraid of a strong woman.’ Your real man just isn’t ready yet my dear. Nor are you. I really love this scene though. I enjoyed Nick a lot as a character. Poor Lucy she goes on her 'Sister Officer Lucy Chen' rant ha Classic. Oh the irony of this convo. In S5 she definitely isn't in a nunnery anymore heh. That is quite awhile away from this point though. Have to note how pretty she looks in this scene. Her outfit is simple but she looks stunning.

Lucy leaves the table to get another round. That’s when Lucy runs into Caleb….really unfortunate that’s his name. That’s my BIL's name haha He seems normal enough with his flirting with Lucy. Both of them being ignored for another drink by the bartender. He's making her laugh and appearing nice and kind. Ugh run Lucy run…Their moment gets interrupted by Lucy noticing a guy stealing tips. She walks away from the convo and apologizes. End ups arresting the thief. The way she takes him down is bad ass I have to say. (Tim would be proud) Says 'Surprise I’m a cop’ haha

Roll call comes around and they find out about Rosalind Dyer. A rare unicorn in their world. A female serial killer. She’s agreed to show them the 3 bodies that were never found. In exchange she gets life with no parole instead of the death penalty. Everyone’s day is now centered around this. Tim and Lucy discuss her past murders. Lucy telling Tim she was in college when they found the first victims.

That it was all anyone could talk about, wondering how a woman could be so barbaric? Tim shares his own story about it. How he worked a scene for the 4th victim. That he was advised not to look at the body. How he wish he hadn’t… The hindsight of watching this scene unfold right before they run into Caleb. It’s bone chilling to think about. Their convo being framed around this before he shows up.

Caleb shows up and Tim is immediately suspicious and does not like this guy. His face has me rolling the entire time. Gives Caleb a hard time about the word 'Perp'. His facial expressions I can not LOL Now part of this reaction is his cop gut. I truly believe that. Not trusting whoever this guy is for Lucy. His default is suspicion. The fierce protector coming out to play in this scene.

I think the rest of his reaction is him just not liking this guy being interested in Lucy. Jealously thy name is Timothy Bradford. Its seeping out of him and he can't stop himself. He's completely forgotten he's dating one of her closest friends in this moment. Written all over his face how territorial he’s being right now. I always love me some protective/jealous Tim. This scene and honestly this entire episode is full of that.

Lucy’s face is screaming ‘chill out’ the entire interaction. She's basically scolding him with her eyes above. They have a mini silent conversation with their eyes before the scene continues. If that isn't the most married look they've had so far. I love it so much. He definitely looks reprimanded in that second gif above. Tim is as transparent as person can be in this scene. Not even trying to hide it a little bit. Caleb has shown up and Tim's guard and protective nature are out in full force. Doesn't like this guy just showing up and sniffing around at all.

Caleb is clearly nervous around Tim (as he should be..) It's too funny he keeps trying regardless to talk to Lucy. Tim deftly snags the paper out of the air. She didn't have a chance of grabbing it. Caleb has to sense how much Tim doesn't want him here. He could not be less welcoming of this man. Tim reads the paper and he asks if Caleb has a last name LOL He says Wright. The irony of that last name...

I doubt our boy even knows why he’s reacting this way to Caleb. Only that he is and very strongly at that. All his feelings when it comes to Lucy are muddled and confusing for him. Yet he acts on them anyway. From the moment this guy showed up the green eyed monster was present. Tim continues to grill him. He asks what he does for a living? Says if it’s a screenwriter he’s going in a cell. He really hates screenwriters haha A theme through out the show for him.

Eric’s facial expressions during this entire scene truly is perfection. Look at the way he looks at Caleb as he leaves. If looks could kill he would be a dead man. Also you can see the mask on Caleb drop when he turns away from them (shudder). The immense distrust written all over Tim's rigid body language. You'd have to be blind not to see it. Both of their faces above are a summary of the entire scene. Lucy is happy to have caught the eye of a 'decent' guy. Tim doesn't trust this guy as far as he can throw him.

Tim doesn’t even think he’s done anything wrong till he turns around and sees her face. Kudos to Melissa for the great reaction. He says 'What?' All innocent like he didn't just drag that guy through the mud. Treat him like a criminal they deal with on the daily. She is so affronted and honestly confused as hell with his reaction. Her face basically saying 'What the hell was that?'

From the moment Caleb shows up to the moment he leaves Tim is NOT pleased with his presence. Lucy is truly confused as to why he is acting this way. She can’t put together why he was trying to kill that entire interaction. We all know Lucy included (deep down) this was jealously thorough and through. But she chalks it up to him being stressed about how crazy everything is right now. Sure that’s it Lucy…She demands the paper back with just her face and outreached hand. Tim is shocked she wants the number of this doofus. He relents and unwillingly hands it back to her. Almost rolling his eyes as he does so.

They’re driving in a caravan to the first burial site. Lucy is looking at Calebs online profile in the car. Tim snaps at her to focus. That this is going to be most dangerous day she’s ever going to spend on the job. Oh the weight of that comment when you know these eps….They both have no idea how true that’s going to be. Might seem like he’s mad when really he’s protecting her by getting her to focus. It’s his way of doing it. I also think it's a little frustration bleeding over from the whole Caleb thing. Not that he's going to put that together right now. Hell doesn't even realize how territorial and jealous he just was.

We rejoin Tim and Lucy once they arrive at the first spot. They're talking about Rosalind during this 'Hike' to find the remaining bodies. Tim asks if she’s less scary in the light of day? Lucy tells him no…but mentions how smart she must be. To have gotten away with this for so long undetected. Lucy smartly mentions there’s a play here they’re not seeing.

Tim tells her it’s just to jerk them around. Oh my love it is far more than that. Lucy is so sharp to observe this hike has to be more than just her deal. She is proven right when they find a fresher body in one of the grave sites with the old one. It’s obvious she has a partner on the outside they just don’t know who…

Lucy is looking at Caleb’s “profile” again. Watching a video of him with a puppy. Jealous/Protective Tim makes his next appearance. Could not be more obvious if he tried. Not a fan of her being enamored by this guy. He makes a snide remark saying I bet that’s not even his puppy. It’s scary how spot on he was with Caleb the entire time. It’s mainly from jealously and being protective of her, but it’s frightening how dead on his cop gut was. He turned out to right about everything with him.

Lucy naturally gives him push back and says she just wants to enjoy a cute puppy. That it’s been an awful day. Can't she just do that? Jealous Tim won't agree with her. So he is a little shit and says 'This your first decomp right? ' Watching her face go from happy to grossed out LOL Oh Tim. He knows how bad this smell is going to be for her and is enjoying it haha The way she follows after him is too funny. Melissa is also amazing at expressing so much as well.

The eerie part of this scene is it’s them being the ones to discover the DOD tattoo… There are so many forewarnings in this episode for her. For them. Literally smacking us in the face with them. That could’ve been her if things had gone wrong... Ugh my heart. They find out the newer victim was suffocated…What an awful way to die. I’m asthmatic and it gives me a pre-asthma attack just thinking about it.

A light hearted part of this scene is once again the lack of personal space. Ah personal space. They don't know her and never will. We're all ok with this notion. Nolan ends up getting Rosalind to lead them to the second site. They find a new body in it with a DOD Tattoo. The freshest one yet. They realize it’s every three months. That 12/09/19 is the the next DOD. John notes it’s 12/08 they have a day to find the next victim.

Tim and Lucy join Armstrong at the jail to search Rosalind cell once again. Trying to find some connection. A way her and this person have been communicating. Nick asks where her books are and they say they sent them back. He asks for every book she's read in the last 6 months.

They’re searching all the books and of course Lucy is the one to crack the code. I love it. Finds something in the binding. Its a coded piece of paper. She figures out the cypher fairly quickly. You know Tim loves how damn smart she is. He’s impressed. She figures out a name from the code. My girl. Bryan Coleman. Funny that doesn’t sound like Caleb Wright….

Harper and Nolan end up saving the next girl. They find out he’s been using the old abandoned zoo as his staging ground. What kills me is them saving her condemns Lucy. They stopped him from scratching that sick itch. Grey tells them all to go home and rest. Lucy spins around and tells Tim she’s just going to go home and crash.

Tim tells her that’s a mistake and gives her the advice that will haunt him in the next episode. Hell for quite awhile if I’m being honest. He will carry this moment with him for a long time. Says after a hardcore assignment she needs to blow off some steam. Find a way to decompress. If she doesn’t she’ll never get any sleep.

Lucy is super cute asking if he's really telling her to go get a drink instead? He tells her yes. Preferably a strong one even with another human being. We all know who that human being is going to be….Side note I adore the fact that he always opens the door for her. Doesn't even realize he's doing that. Just does it out of habit. Her real man standing right in front of her but it is far too early for that hehe

Literally makes me sick to watch her scene with Caleb. My skin crawls knowing where it’s headed. He took advantage of Lucy with her guard down. Her cop eyes we're retired for the night. Just trying to decompress. We go back to the station where Grey tells John and Nick they found a body at the old zoo. Bryan Coleman. Which can only mean one thing as we go back to Lucy. That Caleb is the apprentice….

She goes from giggly and relaxed to sheer terror in a matter of moments. He drugged her and Lucy is slowly realizing the situation she is now in. He also snags her phone before she can use it. Sadly she is over powered easily due the drug he gave her. Then sticks her in the trunk of his car. The ep ends there.

It’s a crazy stressful two-parter. So damn good though. I remember when this first premiered how hard it was to wait for the next episode. I’m pre emotional just thinking about analyzing the next episode. Can’t wait to do it though.

~~~~

Side Notes-Non Chenford

Wopez good scenes not many but really good. Wes clearing not handling his post traumatic stress well. Mixing his prescription with alcohol. Angela coming home asking if he was trying to kill himself. He says I don’t know… Not a great answer bud.

The whole Rosalind SL. It’s so dark but so good. Getting a deeper look into Nick and seeing some chinks in his armor. What he sacrificed to catch her. It’s very good. I enjoyed his character a lot and getting more depth with him as well.

Thank you as always to those that like/comment/reblog these reviews. It’s means the world to me. I love doing these and they take time to assemble. But they’re so worth doing to enjoy this rewatch together. I’m also enjoying the hell out of analyzing these eps and our beloved couple. I’ll see you all in 2x11 :)

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dragynkeep · 11 months

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If you insist…

Why is nart so shitty with it's female characters?

Because 9/10 they don't do anything.

Not only do we have such a weird gap between the female characters and the male ones, were even the teams have two - three and the girls are nearly always stuck at one, to the point that the senseis have literally one woman who got benched before actually doing anything, but those female characters don't get nearly the amount of time or energy to their stories.

Sakura has the best given that she's on the main team, but compared to Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi? Even Yamato? She is given the brunt end of the stick constantly, with her achievements either ignored overshadowed, her story so often revolving around loving Sasuke or pushing up Naruto, and the ending completely omitting her from recieving any reincanation powerup or even the final fucking fight.

Hinata is the same as Sakura, where most of her character and her story is revolving around how much she loves Naruto, whereas the more interesting parts like her inheritence being passed over to Hinabi, or her being the target of Neji's trauma and anger towards how their clan runs and what her father did. All of that is barely given anything in Part 1, and practically nothing in Shippuden.

Ino and Tenten are the worst in the Konoha 11, but poor Tenten doesn't even have a last name. She had a chance to actually get something during the War arc with the powerful weapons being something she is literally a master in, but then nothing happens of it.

Outside of that, we had Temari, who at least got the screentime and one of the better written romances with Shikamaru, but again it's devolving another female character's whole thing to romance. We don't even get her and Kankuro dealing with their abusive dad in the War arc.

She had some good moments, don't get me wrong, but that's not enough to what others get.

And Ino's just there. Really the Hidan and Kakuzu arc was mainly centred around Shikamaru, as both Choji and Ino got pushed into the background for it, but Ino didn't even do anything in the final fight. At least Choji and Kakashi got more, she just fucking stood around.

There's others but I also wanna mention that the only female Hokage we got was Tsunade, who's main jokes are how big her boobs are, her skill as a medic, and that she makes herself younger when most of the women in Naruto aren't allowed to actually look their age or even have less "pretty" features like the guys do.

TLDR: The girls are reduced down to love interests, mothers, who just are in the background with very little to do compared to their male counterparts.

#naruto #naruto critical #sakura haruno #hinata hyuuga #tenten #temari #ino yamanaka #tsunade senju #answered #luke.txt

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lookmomiwrite · 2 years

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Art by @robustaart. Check them out! They're very talented and do commissions.

I found this art on Reddit and after reading thirsty comment after thirsty comment, I was inspired to write a story with this character. Enjoy! And follow for more.

The Serpent of Selune

The doors of the tavern swung wide and rain sprayed across the old wooden floor. A young woman followed, head held high and her veil dry, despite the raging storm. The typhoon stayed even the most daring captains from leaving port and forced sailors to take refuge in taverns along the harbor, gorging themselves on food and drink in a gluttonous celebration of respite. Sarelin let the doors shut behind her as she left a trail of watermarked bootprints in her wake. She stood for a moment, eyes scanning the patrons before her.

Their eyes latched onto her and murmurs spread through the groups of sailors and dockhands; though, most returned to their games, food, and drinks. A man stood from a table sat in a dark corner of the tavern and made his way to Sarelin. He was covered in ragged clothes, pants ripped above the ankles, boots with holes, and a sweat-encrusted shirt with its sleeves haphazardly rolled up to his elbows. He stopped before her, bottle of rum in hand, and swayed side-to-side as he drank.

“Miss, you’re standing before Dungan, known as Blackburn, The Prince of Pirates,” he said with another swig of his bottle and a stifled laugh. He swung around to face gawking patrons, hands held high in an expectation of praise and applause, but when none was received he turned his attention back to Sarelin. “Why don’t you come join my boys over there, we’ll show you a good time.” He reached for her with an unsteady hand but Sarelin swatted him away before he could make contact.

“You smell like a stray dog.” Disgust filled her voice as she spat those words at him.

Sarelin pushed past the drunk and he stumbled back. Onlookers mocked Dungan with laughter as he retreated to his table. She carved a path through patrons to sit at the bar next to a man dressed in a fine leather tunic over a white sailor’s shirt, both opened in the front, which revealed his bronze skin below.

“Do you always have to dress like you’ve just left a brothel?” She asked.

“Only when I want to annoy you, Sare. Besides, if we’re talking about sex appeal, I’m completely outmatched. Half the tavern still have their eyes on you. No one but that drunk has noticed me.” The man chuckled as he motioned to Dungan — in a way someone laughs when nervous to meet an old friend — and downed the last of his ale. His solemn countenance returned. “I take it since you’ve traveled all the way from Alomont, you’ve accepted?”

“I just thought I’d hear you out in person, Garrick. Besides, I’ve missed our little adventures and the hunting grounds in Alomont are becoming sparse.” Sarelin removed a mirror from her bag then adjusted her veil. She shifted the mirror to look over her shoulder, the image behind her dim but still bright enough to reveal the sailor who harassed her. “It looks like poor Dungan had his feelings hurt.”

“Ignore them, they’re not worth your time. Tonight should be about reminiscing of the past and looking to the future. I’ll buy you a drink and tell you about the plan, they have a special ale here that I’ve—”

“No, not yet, there are matters to attend to before we start. Excuse me for a moment.” And before Garrick could try to stop her, she was halfway to stairs that led to the guest rooms. Unlike the well lit and noisy dining hall, the maze-like hallways of the upper floors were calm, dark, and empty. The noise of patrons below faded as Sarelin walked deeper into the labyrinth, replaced by bellowing winds and taps of branches against walls and windows — an otherwise cozy place if not for the foul smell of the fish market.

Sarelin spun at the sound of floorboards croaking and met the glare of Dungan. His breath reeked of rum and vomit, his gait wide and boorish, his words slurred nearly to the point of drivel. Dungan dropped his empty bottle and grabbed her hands. “It’s dangerous for a little lady like you to be alone at night—“ he paused a moment before feigning spontaneous thought, ”I know, how about I help you find your way back. I’m the Prince of Pirates after all, what is a prince if not chivalrous.” Dungan belched out a drunken laugh and pulled her towards a nearby room as she screamed. *** “Ho! Innkeeper, a pitcher of Holn White Ale, will you? Heard it’s your new specialty.”

“Aye, Garrick,” the Innkeeper answered, “Haven’t seen you in years, what brings you to Holn?” The Innkeeper was a heavier set man and renown for his ales. Twenty years of serving up food and drinks from his family run tavern made him a man of secrets, and not just of the brewery.

“Just a bit of business, as usual. Anything interesting? Rumors, bounties, murders maybe?”

“Murders, ay? There is a new killer. Guards found bodies two weeks ago. Already been five deaths since. The Serpent of Selune, they call ’em. Leaves the bodies shriveled up like jerky, no blood or wounds, say’n it’s a vampire — I’m not sure what to think but the church put a thousand gold piece bounty on the killer’s head. Not sure about you, but I’ve never seen a bounty that high for just a vampire.” The Innkeeper paused before being called by another patron. “Busy night, lad, tell me some stories when it dies down. If you want the bounty, I’ll give you the bishop’s calling card. White Ale, on the house.”

Garrick gave the man a nod and drank from the wooden tankard. The tavern was as lively as ever. Years ago, Garrick brought his own crew to shelter under the same oaken roof. Six long years traveling the world by ship, making a name for himself that would become his legacy, and returning here for rest. The sound of heavy-footed drunkards freed from his thoughts and he set down his ale as Dungan’s crew surrounded him.

A man leaned over the bar and smiled as he propped himself up by his elbows. “Where’d your lady friend go? Hope nothing bad happens while you’re away.” The men laughed on cue as if they rehearsed their petty threats beforehand.

Another one spoke, “What? Can’t hear or someth’n?”

A third joined with a crooked grin, “We’re say’n we’re gonna join the captain. You gonna stop us?”

Garrick turned to the men and raised his tankard. “That lady friend is a woman who needs not the protection of a man like me.”

Dungan’s crew glanced at each other, faces contorted, trying to grasp Garrick’s reluctance to help a woman they thought he was acquainted with. Each shrugged and stumbled to the stairs. “Guy’s not very fun. Was hoping to step outside and teach him a lesson,” one muttered. *** The door swung open and Dungan’s crew walked in, met by a woman sat in a chair next to the bed, one leg crossed over the other and her head resting in her hand — bored. Dungan hunched over a pillow in a dream-like state, humping wild as he cried out for his men to join him. The men cackled in unison.

“Control yerself boss,” the lead man said.

“Too worked up to see he’s fuck’n a pillow.”

“A bit too much rum,” another said.

Tears rolled down their cheeks as they verbally lashed their boss. Sarelin straightened in her chair and placed her hands into her lap. She looked to the trailing crew member, a scrawny man with scars that lined his body and gave him an air of authority among scoundrels. “Close the door.” Her voice cracked like a whip and her eyes glowed yellow. The man stiffened and shut the door behind him immediately.

The other men turned on the man as they laughed, Looks like the captain isn’t the only one who's overeager. Good boy, Vernon.”

“Silence.”

Dungan and his crew froze and the room fell to silence. Sarelin stood from her seat. “Men like you are pathetic. You drink a bit of alcohol and lose control. You believe you are strong and I am weak. But here you all are, frozen with fear, charmed by a woman far more dangerous than the seas you hide from tonight.” She turned towards Dungan and placed her hand on his head. Her fingers bit into his flesh as she squeezed, but they did not pierce the skin to wound him. Instead, they passed through like a phantom in the mists, doing damage not physical but ethereal. “There are things much worse than death — Watch.”

Sarelin pulled her hand away and a flash of red light filled the gap. Dungan’s body began to shrivel. The light grew dim and took his form, shrunken by Sarelin’s black magic and malformed, closer in appearance to a tumor than a man. She ripped her hand away and held it high. Dungan’s body slumped over the pillow. “This is a soul. An ugly one, made grotesque by his actions. And I’ll have each one of yours soon enough.” Sarelin walked to the leading man, her gait light, each step slow and deliberate. She seemed more a queen than the demon she was. A tear rolled down his cheek. A relic of the laughter the men shared moments ago or from the fear he felt now, Sarelin couldn’t tell — nor did she care. *** The dining hall quieted as guests retreated to their rooms. It was nearly midnight. Sarelin strolled down the stairs, her face bright and lively despite the hour, eyes sharp and focused as she took her place next to Garrick.

“A full meal tonight… Guess I’ll order for myself then.” Garrick said with a smile. “Why not have a drink? The Holn White Ale is quite good.”

“How chivalrous of you, to notice a parched lady’s thirst. I expect nothing less from the true Prince of Pirates.” She leaned into Garrick and wrapped her arms around his. “Now, let’s hear about your plan to plunder the church’s treasury.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you made it this far, thanks for reading! Please, follow for more stories and if you have a request, leave a comment!!

#fantasy #short story #creative writing #writing #fiction #magic

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theemporium · 3 months

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daniel's comment was disappointing but i'm not surprised. especially because we all know that basically every driver on the grid would say the exact same shit

like i love lando, alex, kevin, valtteri and the whole lot, but i'm not gonna pretend like they wouldn't say (or at least feel) the exact same thing as daniel if it were their team principals or bosses. and like the amount of people i've seen saying that daniel should kill himself over a poorly worded, stupid comment... yeah, they might have a lot more in common with that asshole of a workplace bully horner than they'd like to think

also this is not to say that daniel shouldn't be criticized. it's just so annoying and disappointing that this has all turned into a whole stan thing of "omg your fave driver sucks!!" instead of a serious conversation about the struggles that women in motorsports face. like i already saw this coming when the investigation first went public, and people were cheering like "red bull downfall!! best day of my life!!". a woman bravely making a complaint about her boss being controlling and a bully was made into a celebration for all the wrong reasons, and it really just pisses me off that people can't look past their stan lenses to see the seriousness of a situation

(also this is not about you at ALL, babes, and if you do not want to post this, then you really do not have to at all either ❤️)

no no, I completely agree with you!! it’s incredibly disappointing to see daniel’s comment in the same way it was to see lando’s response a few years back about the fans who got life bans after harassing female fans at races. it just makes you wanna shake these boys a bit until some common sense and general empathy reaches them.

but it shouldn’t make people stop focusing on the real problem. that poor woman was so brave and risked her whole career, and despite over 100 pieces of evidence, it was still shoved to the side like nothing. I can’t even begin to imagine how heartbreaking and disappointing and frustrating it must feel for her to know the likes of christian horner get to keep his job and continue on like nothing is wrong. it’s disgusting, truly and I want to hope that there’s still time for justice to be served because it’s what that woman deserves.

and not to compare the situations (because they are both horrific and disgusting) but it reminds me a little of the hockey canada situation when the five players’ names were revealed. instead of focusing on this horrific thing happening and the fact it has been ignored for so many years, people treated it like a competition of “my team could never!” or “my favourite player would never do this!”. and that isn’t the fucking point of it all.

the point is that situations like these keep occurring to women in sports, whether they are working in the sport or just happen to have these interactions with people high up in the sport, and the whole thing gets turned into a joke rather than focusing on it being a reoccurring problem. it’s disgusting. it’s vile. it’s horrible that these people are being protected by huge industries whilst the women in the situation are forced to risk everything and get no justice in return.

have your opinions on the drivers’ comments on the situation—god knows I’m insanely disappointed and frustrated with them too.

but please, for the love of everything holy, do not forget the bigger picture. do not forget the people who’ve actually committed the crimes. do not let this get brushed under the rug like they are trying so hard to do.

do not let these victims’ stories be reduced to a few jabs at your least favourite team or driver or player.

#cece answers

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justseveralowls · 2 years

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A message from your friendly neighborhood Appalachian Latina:

Okay so today being the day that it is and me being the person I am I heave decided to talk about Appalachian heritage and culture vs what a bunch crappy people have tried to make it. This is all my experience not universal also some will be funny and totally fine to laugh at.

Im starting on the more serious note here because I feel these things really need to be addresed and as a Appalachian woman of color I often have felt that people dont think that both parts of this identity are compatible.

Things that are not Appalachian:

- Being racist

-being xneophobic

-Being homophobic or transphobic

-Flying a confederate flag (most of Appalachia was border states if not fighting for the Union side)

-Drinking shitty beer

- Licking the boots of cops and corporations

- being against higher education

- being an anti vaxxer

- glorifying the coal industry and the lives it has cost and is still costing

- hatred towards indeginous people

-Supporting a toxic or abusive family dynamic

-denying woman human rights

- shaming poor people

-Intentionally making your truck stupidly loud

-Union busting, and being against care and support for the disabled and elderly

-Poaching (Appalachian people value our resources and nature) WE hunt to eat not just to kill or destroy

Moving onto some lighter stuff, now these are some of things I love about being Appalachian and part of this culture and community.

Things that are actually Appalachian:

-Running from cops (seriously its like a whole ass thing)

-Fighting for Unions and Workers rights (The actual origin of Redneck, that term is not for racist fuck heads, it originated from red bandanas worn for Pro-union rights

-Being completely and terrifyingly unphased by coyotes

-Making your liquor

-Ignoring the screaming in the woods because that aint your problem

-Folk magic and traditions and superstitions rooted in Paganism and some indigenous magic

-Being part of the underground railroad (The appalachians made a ton of safe houses and protections pre and post civil war for people fleeing the south)

-Hunting to control Deer population and for food

-Knowledge of homesteading, useful herbs, and homeopathic remedies

-Strong sense of community and family

-Ignoring whatever is moving in the corn feild because you arent a white guy in a horror movie

-Women forming safe houses from abusive husbands or from other types of danger

-Valuing and appreciating the land and the connection we have with it

-Fist fighting God in a coal mine

-Weird ass folk tales and cryptids (see MothMan)

-Not letting your commuity go hungry

-caring for the old sick and vulnerable not out of pity but out of compassion and respect

-Fighting for your rights and the rights of others

-Resilience and strength in times of adversity

-Knowing at least on person who’s grandmother was some kind of witch with psychic abilities

-Knowing when the woods is silent something is wrong

-Screaming back at screech owls to assert dominance

-verbal history

-vibrant stories and music

These are my experiences as an Appalachian woman of color who loves both parts of her heritage and desperate wants to discourage the narrative that Appalachian people are rude prejudiced and uneducted. We are a resilient and loving people, we are full of stories traditions and a melting together of the new and old worlds. We are people with a murky history, yes, but we are full of acceptance love and strength.

To all my fellow Appalachians who hear these mixed narratives, know that we are the authors of our story. TO all my fellow people of color know that this mountainous region is not built exclusively on hate. Know that you belong, that your cultures are valid and that progress is not about rejecting your culture but about adaption to embrace new perspectives and beginning new stories

#appalachia #appalachain mountains #appalachian #appalachian witch #appalacian poc #liberal appalachian #appalachian history #mine #latina and proud #latina appalachian #indeginouslivesmatter #indigenous appalachian #progress #reclaiming the narrative

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samasmith23 · 7 months

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The Retconning of Aunt May's death from Amazing Spider-Man #400... aka, screw John Byrne!

Wanna know something else we can criticize John Byrne for aside from his general creepiness and bigotry? He undid Aunt May’s death in the beautifully written Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #400, "The Gift," aka one of the best stories to come out of the entire infamous Clone Saga era.

Like... when Linkara reviewed the Web of Death storyline, one particular complaint he brought up was how all of the all the beautiful & emotional moments between Peter Parker and comatose Aunt May were severely undermined in hindsight due to the later retcon that this wasn't actually May Parker, but instead an highly-skilled actress whom Norman Osborn replaced Aunt May with after her stroke and made resemble Peter's aunt through cloning technology.

youtube

And the person who was responsible for this controversial retcon? None other than John Byrne!

Byrne apparently refused to even initiate his divisive 1999 Chapter One and The Next Chapter reboots of the Spider-Man titles unless he was allowed to utilize Aunt May as a member of Peter's supporting cast. Consequently, this meant completely retconning Aunt May's lovely and tragic send-off by J.M. DeMatteis & Mark Bagley in ASM #400, even though that issue was highly regarded and celebrated by even the most hardened detractors of The Clone Saga era as a whole.

And you know what made the retconning of Aunt May's death even more stupid? It directly contradicted Norman Osborn's own recounting of The Clone Saga from his perspective in The Osborn Journal one-shot after he was revealed to be the true mastermind behind the whole saga. Writer & editor Glenn Greenberg specifically made sure to include these passages from Norman's private journals:

-"And as luck would have it, the clone -- Reilly -- learned of May Parker's stroke and returned to New York to be near her during her final days. This saved me the trouble of concocting some elaborate scheme to lure him back to the city."

-"Then the old woman finally died, delivering a major emotional blow to Parker and his wife. My only regret is that I was NOT the cause."

Yup, Greenberg wanted to make sure that DeMatteis' brilliant work from ASM #400 wouldn't be undone by having Norman himself state in his private journals that May's death was strictly due to natural causes instead of another part of his behind-the-scene's manipulations. Which makes sense considering that the entire issue was dedicated to Peter & Aunt May's final days together as she revealed to her nephew that she had always known he was Spider-Man and was deeply proud of him before passing away in her bed right besides Peter, Mary Jane & Aunt Anna, with Peter's final words to his surrogate mother-figure being him quoting his favorite childhood novel Peter Pan to her, telling Aunt May:

"Let go. Fly. 'Second to the right... and straight on until morning.'"

Its honestly one of the most simultaneously heartbreaking & beautiful scenes that I've personally ever read in a comic. The silent panels of Ben Reilly crying to himself on the roof of the house, unable to be by his Aunt's side during her final moments since he's only a clone of her nephew, especially tug at my heartstrings (poor Benjy)! And its an issue that resonates with me even more deeply today than back when I initially read it a few years ago, since I now know what it feels like to lose a dearly beloved relative, with both my paternal grandmother (Nana) and maternal grandfather (Paps) having since passed away.

But then John Byrne decided in his infinite wisdom to screw it all up, ignoring all of that emotional weight and feelings of down-to-Earth loss by not only revealing that the Aunt May Peter watched die was actually just a random actress whom Norman Osborn "genetically modified via the Jackal’s cloning technology" (which again… makes ZERO sense), but that Osborn apparently now lied in his own personal diaries or something?

So yeah, the resurrection of Aunt May by John Byrne during the Spider-Man: The Gathering of Five/The Final Chapter arcs is easily one of the most insulting retcons that I've ever encountered since it spits in the face of one of the most beautifully written single-issues that I've personally ever read (both because of how it personally resonates with me as someone who's lost two grandparents, and because is J.M. DeMatteis is among my Top 5 favorite comic book writers).

But trust me, this is the LEAST of John Byrne's problems, which fellow comic creator Ramon Villalobos made an excellent thread discussing in detail if you want further information:

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ratcatcher0325 · 2 years

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A Fraction of Justice (Chapter #22)

HELLO! 🎃HAPPY HALLOWEEN!🎃 What’s spookier than goblins and ghouls??? Returning to a fic after 8 months of completely unintentional hiatus only to come back and drop the angstiest chapter so far! 👻 But I am so happy to finally return to telling Alexander’s story. I missed him and I hope you did too!

Can’t thank @not-a-space-alien enough for beta reading and giving me some great feedback on this one! You rock!!

Seriously though, this chapter is angsty as hell. He is mistreated and dehumanized and it’s all very stressful for our poor hero. But don’t worry, It’ll all be okay in the end.... Just not this chapter! YOU’VE BEEN WARNED!

Chapter #22. Alexander’s life is a horror movie. Happy Halloween I guess??

Previous: Chapter #21

Next: Chapter #23

Word Count: 6,606 Read Time: Approx. 41 mins

CW: adult language, extreme angst, dehumanization, infantilization, fearplay, injury

Tag list: @gatlily @grbene @patrocolus3 @beautifulunknowntrash @titan-god-420 @andraimeide @themarlo @cup-o-chai @lucentbliss @raccoontoaster @tolsizedlove @not-a-space-alien , @thegodmother007, @honey-olive, @bittykimmy13 ,@aceouttatime, @imvenusasaboy, @liminaldaze, @windshield-patent, @joxter-coded, @rosella35, @narrans, @rubeau-art, @littlescaryinternetguy, @jae-from-discord, @kitn-underfoot, @secretly-small, @writing-forever, @iinogongju

Btw, DM me if you wanna be added to the tag list! I feel like I definitely forgot to tag some people here!

_____________________

A Fraction of Justice

Chapter #21: Morbidities

[Alexander’s POV]

In the bent, scratched surface of the reflective swinging door, I could just discern the pastel multicolored blob that appeared to be me. My hair a streak of straw color against the overwhelming purplish backdrop of the human’s scrubs which surrounded me like the edifice of a living, breathing building. At a foot or so away, suspended in midair by the palm of this young woman’s hand, there may as well have been a mile of distance between me and any hope of returning to the room I’d just occupied.

Still, in spite of the emptiness of the gesture, I leaned forward, arm outstretched in the chasm of open air between my pathetically little hand and the barrier between myself and the only human I’d come to tolerate. I pictured her warm eyes boring a hole through the selfsame door on the opposite side. As I leaned forward in fruitless desperation, quelling my rising desire to call for her by name, the air was suddenly chased from my lungs as two fingers slammed over my abdomen and chest, yanking me back and forcing me to catch myself with a hand to keep from being forced into a prone position. I wrenched my shoulder away at the touch, coughing slightly from the pressure on my throat, as she mused, her voice lilting and sickeningly sweet, “Awwww careful there, little one, let’s not give ourselves more of an ouchy than we’ve already got…”

I felt my vision go red as I whipped my chin upwards to meet her eyes, pointing a sharp finger as I spoke, trying to ignore the hazy whiplash it gave me, “Do not touch me more than is absolutely medically necessary and never speak to me with that condescending tone, again, or I’ll—“

My voice was quickly drowned out by boisterous laughter. My platform shook as she shamelessly laughed, pulling me before her eyes. All in a rush, two latex-clad fingers surrounded either side of my face. I snarled, and writhed, but for all my efforts, there was no hope of breaking loose. She smiled broadly, flashing bright white teeth, “Oh my god, you’re one of those grumpy little guys aren’t you? You know we have a name for that? It’s called ‘Little Man Syndrome’. You’re just all mad cuz you’re cute as a little button… yes you are!!”

She shook my head, trapped between the massive pads of her two fingers as she emphasized her words, speaking in a most infuriating tone of voice. I scowled as I felt my cheeks burn. I clawed at her rubbery, gloved fingers but to no avail. Drawing breath to verbally eviscerate her, I felt my stomach, suddenly, drop out from under me. She lowered me down, in one terrifying rush, sending my heart flying into my throat and causing pain to blossom throughout my nervous system. My vision clouded as I felt myself on the precipice of losing consciousness. As much as I vehemently desired to put this woman in her proper place, I bit my tongue, recognizing this all would be far worse if I couldn’t even advocate for myself.

Blood pounded in my ears as she began to take a jostling step forward. I felt as though I had cotton stuffed inside my cranium, as the world seemed like a dulled, hazy blur. I could hear her voice, seemingly miles above, as she cooed some meaningless nonsense about how she’d “...take me home, if only she could”. I grit my teeth at the asinine comment before focusing on regulating my heart rate.

My cardiovascular and nervous systems went into overdrive as my brain instructed my body to fight for survival. The air here was sharp, acrid, and cold as it entered my nasal cavities. A chill ran down my spine as my hair stood on end. As soon as she began to bound away from that portal which separated Natalie from me, a mere few inches of hinged metal, sliding across a cold, peeling linoleum floor, I felt myself grow more and more uneasy.

As much as I did not care to touch her, I found myself clinging to the latex which wrinkled around the curves and undulations of her hands, just to keep myself steady. My stomach was already twisting in knots, but whether that was from anger, or motion sickness I couldn’t tell.

As my vision returned to a somewhat clearer focus, I glimpsed at this drab space full of aluminum surfaces: machinery with display screens, lights, knobs and switches. With a quickening pace of my already racing heart, I noticed and, then quickly tried to ignore, the wall of dim, little kennels stacked one on top of the other along the furthest wall. I had no desire to see what might be held in them. Overall, this place was blindingly bright, each piece of equipment sharp in its angles and edges, cold and unwelcoming. I could hear a cat howling behind a closed door. My skin crawled. I hated with every fiber of my being to admit it, but as I was throttled with every footfall of the human who held me, I was….dare I say it, terrified.

A pallid wash of overhead fluorescent light cast unflattering purple and blue shadows under the eyes of the humans my captor was approaching. They seemed to be fellow technicians, both young, both despicable to me by their mere existence. While being thrashed around, I had a hard time discerning their individual characteristics, but the moment my captor was upon them, she stopped in her tracks, causing me to lurch forward, again, and be dubiously smacked across the chest by not so gentle fingers… again. I wrenched away from her touch.

As she approached, garnering for her co-workers’ attention she spoke shrilly with far too much enthusiasm, “Hey! Look at this one we just got back…. Look, he’s a grumpy little thing, watch!!” Suddenly I found myself with an audience of three looming over me like intrigued onlookers in a curio shop, as if I were some kind of fascinating, entertaining object.

Three giant faces took me in as I snarled back at them, “I’m not grumpy…. I’m in pain. I need… I need medical care…” my breathing was labored, my brow slick with sweat. My pride was far more injured than my leg, from having to ask for help. I couldn’t keep from gnashing my teeth, as I felt the immediacy of just how little, and, consequently, helpless I was.

The countenance directly above me, looming overhead and all around, belonged to my captor: with a sharp, pinched face, a choppy bob of raven dark hair, she didn’t exactly cut the expected image of a veterinary technician. In front of me, dominating the rest of my, admittedly limited, field of vision, were the others: the face closest to me belonged to a young man with broad shoulders and a strong chin. Finally, a fraction of a step behind the hulking figure, but still separate enough for me to tell at a glance she was less in league with the others, was another young woman: eyes slightly obscured behind lenses, her expression was less utterly delighted and more quizzical. Perhaps, by human standards, her features would be considered less traditionally attractive than her counterparts… but I paid attention to none of that, beyond a momentary cursory glance. What I observed next was far more important to me: a glimmer of compassion in those huge, hazel eyes. I desired more than anything to be in her grip over these other two moronic musketeers. I swallowed, staring at her with an infinitesimal softening as I willed her to see me as these others could not. It was the only possible hope, so far, that I could cling to.

However, I found my moment of pleading for mercy was cut short, as I was suddenly wrenched through the air. Held aloft between finger and thumb, both of which jammed into the thin flesh of my ribcage, I was soon face to face with one, icy-blue eye belonging to the hand I was captured in, charcoal makeup surrounding its lid. “Isn’t he adorable!?” The squeal of delight made me growl. I snapped and snarled, wincing from the ear-shattering volume. I prepared to retaliate with an ever-intensifying fervor, when another voice, human, female, beat me to the punch.

“H-Hey… you shouldn’t be doing that. He’s showing clear signs of distress…” Distress is a bit of an understatement, at this point, but I’ll take what I can get. The voice belonged to the compassionate one, her delivery far from commanding.

It seemed the other humans were as unconvinced as I was. Instead of heeding their co-worker, they scoffed, the male siding up next to that clear blue iris, his massive, thick finger hooking beneath my chin and forcing my gaze towards his. My whole body stiffened against his touch, I set my jaw, baring my teeth, writhing as much as my sore and aching body could, “Awww, nah, she’s full of shit, isn’t she? You little guys love getting loved on, dontcha?” Still held by the soft underside of my throat, a female finger descended upon the crown of my head to tear at and ruffle my hair. I was weak, I was afraid, and I knew, despite my boiling rage, I had little to no control over what happened to me next, but I couldn’t stand it anymore: I lashed out.

“TOUCH ME AGAIN WITHOUT MY CONSENT AND I WILL NOT HESITATE TO BITE YOU!!! LISTEN TO ME YOU THICK-SKULLED, DIM-WITTED, DULL-EYED CRETINS… I WILL REPEAT MYSELF ONLY ONE MORE TIME…. I HAVE AN INFECTED BITE WOUND THAT NEEDS IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION. IF YOU CANNOT BE MOTIVATED TO SIMPLY DO YOUR JOB I WILL NOT HESITATE TO ENSURE THIS PLACE IS STRIPPED OF ITS LICENSES AND CLOSED PERMANENTLY!!”

They pulled away, their fingers, thankfully, removed from my head and face. I was still dangling aloft, high in the air, but I finally had enough space to breathe. I was puffing after screaming my lungs out like that. They stared at me. All three. And for a pregnant moment, there was nothing but stunned silence and the rather sickening sound of a whirring saw in the far off distance. I felt, with acute sensitivity, a bead of sweat as it trickled from my scalp and down my brow, the tattered and laborious sound of my own, broken breathing, the rush of blood to and from my heart as I hung, literally, in suspense, to see what they would do next.

They exploded with laughter, painfully loud at this intimate distance. I darted my eyes beyond the shaking shoulders and twisted, mirthful countenances of the man and woman before me, to lock eyes with the third party. She was wringing her hands, clearly torn between her conscience and fear of conflict. It was painfully clear that the other two held her in no high regard, likely because she actually seemed to be at this job for the right reasons. She stared back at me, brow furrowed.

“Did you hear that? He’s gonna shut us down!” I watched through clenched teeth, as the young man pointed and held his own split sides. He was practically crying from thick, belly laughter.

“Hey… guys, you should really stop fucking around… Dr. Greene will be back any minute, and—“ I wished the only one here with any sense had a fraction of my resolve. Couldn’t she just push them aside and take me in hand? The adrenaline was wearing off and I was feeling less than adequate, to put it lightly.

“Shut the fuck up, Lindsey,” the retort came from the sharp, biting tongue of my black-haired captor. The intended target of the verbal wound, winced. It was clear the power dynamic here was stacked far out of my favor. I jutted my chin and puffed my chest when those blue irises bore into me, once more. I would not let her see me tremble. She broke into a bright, delighted smile, “Awww, look at that grumpy little face! You upset with me? Hm? Was I not giving you enough attention? I’m sorry!” She jutted out her lower lip in a mock pout, “Got any other big words you feel like yelling and screaming?”

Lindsey, the only one to seem to care about my well-being at all, stepped forward, hand outstretched, reaching for me, “No, I- I mean it, Nina, you should really stop! He clearly doesn’t like it and you’ll hurt him holding him like that much longer!” I swallowed hard, waiting and watching. It was all I could do.

“Oh my god you’re so annoying! Can you just be cool for, like, five minutes?? We’re not doing anything but having a little fun! Isn’t that right, little guy? We’ll take great care of your fucked up leg, there, don’t worry, we just wanna love all over you first! Lindsey doesn’t know anything about that, does she?” Before I could wrench away, my face was pressed between two fingers once more. Despite all my efforts to resist, she easily took control of my head, and forced me to shake from side to side as if expressing a negative sentiment, “No, she’s just got a big stick up her ass about fucking every little thing, doesn’t she?” She beamed, positively gleeful at this newfound form of humiliation.

“Let go of me! I won’t stand for this!”

“Awww, sweetheart, of course not! You’re not standing, I’m holding you! Silly little thing, did you forget?” She puppetted my head up and down to nod in the affirmative. I growled and writhed, to no avail, “What’re you so mad about, huh? We just think you’re adorable! What’s so bad about that? C’mon, cheer up! Lemme see you smile! Let’s see that pretty little smile!” The gigantic pads of her fingers started to pull on either side of my mouth. I gnashed and writhed, but was unable to sink my teeth down on her latex-covered flesh. I burned white hot with rage, my skin slick with sweat, my muscles aching from being suspended like this.

“Nina! Cut it out–”

“Oh, don’t even start with me! I know it was you. You’re the one who filed the anonymous complaint about Greene botching the surgery on that pet, you tried to make it look like it was the client who complained, but I know it was you. You were the only one actually paying attention to surgery rotation that day. There was information in that report only you could’ve known. Don’t fucking lie to me. I’m not as dumb as you think and I don’t have to keep that information to myself. I’m happy to go tell him right now and get your ass fired, or you can calm the fuck down and let me have a moment of fucking joy at this godforsaken job. What’ll it be??” My heart pounded in my throat, but the resulting silence was all the answer I needed. My stomach flipped. Lindsey cast her eyes down to her shoes. Nina scoffed.

The thin flesh on either side of my ribcage was bruising and awash with pain as she continued to pinch me, her fingers stronger than any muscle in my body. It was painfully clear, I was trapped. What was all that about botching surgeries? I couldn’t help but quake. I wanted to cry but I would never give them the satisfaction. I felt the defeated party’s eyes on me but I refused to turn to her, she wasn’t going to help me after all, so what was the point? “Now,” my captor continued, “Where were we? Oh! Yes! You were bitching at us about getting us all fired! How cute!!” She caressed my chest with a finger tip and she paused over the smiling unicorn, about the size of her nail. She seemed to really notice my shirt for the first time, “Okay what comedic genius put him in this??”

Jason leaned in to get a good look, “Ha! Oh my god! Look, at his dumb little…. Is that a unicorn?? Amazing! You look great, bud!”

She gasped, making me jump, “Oh, look, it sparkles! It’s so stupid!!” She pinched between thumb and finger and pulled on the fabric, wrenching my head and neck forward.

I burned with rage, “Stop it!! Treat me with dignity or I’ll—“

“—Or you’ll what?? Oh wait! That gives me an idea, come here. Jason, get me some paper from the printer…” She turned her back on the aluminum examination table and headed for another corner of the room, where a dusty, disheveled old desk sat. The lopsided swivel chair behind it was held together with duct tape and a prayer, looking ragged and torn. Besides a computer, the desk was littered with paper clips, sticky notes, folders, and a bobble-headed dog figurine, among other things. It was an obscene mess. Did this place really have so few resources that they had no spare room for a separate administrative office?? Natalie really had taken me to the bottom of the barrel hadn’t she?

Natalie. Did my heart skip a beat when I thought of her? Did I mind that? Was she still waiting for me? Was she worried? Did she have any idea I was being thoroughly humiliated back here? Would she do something if she did know? I genuinely thought she would. For me. I had someone who cared enough to fight for me. Her words echoed in my pain-dulled grey matter, “I know you aren’t going to let them do anything to you without a fight. So let them have it if they deserve it. You’re quick on your feet and incredibly smart. Use that to your advantage. Remind them how similar you really are to them.”

My heart beat faster; this time not from fear, but, rather, dogged determination. For once that bumbling, well-meaning fool of a human was absolutely right. I was vastly more intelligent than them, and I’d use that for all it was worth. Besides, I’d never been one not to make a fuss when necessary. I found myself being placed down on the surface of the desk. My bare feet landing on a single sheet of crisp, white, printer paper.

“You think you’re so smart? Go on, file a formal complaint and we’ll make sure it gets sent up the proper channels… See? Lindsey, we are respecting his boundaries. Happy now?” she was looming over me, her hands on her knees, that black hair falling about her face in such a way that made the angles of her cheekbones somehow seem sharper and more sinister than before, “Awww wait, you’ll need something to write with won’t you? Someone taught you how to read and write, didn’t they? I’m guessing so, since you talk like an angry little thesaurus…” as she spoke, she leaned over me, past my head and far away to the other side of the desk, showing off just how much bigger she was than me, as her outstretched arm cast a shadow over where I stood. With deft fingers, she snatched up a hefty, cobalt blue ballpoint pen, likely the heaviest she could find, before placing it squarely at my feet, “Well, go on. Pick it up. I wanna see you try.” She flicked at the pen with her finger, it rolled over, landing just before my toes. I crossed my arms tightly over my chest and flatly refused to move. My leg burned with pain, and I leaned as much of my weight off of it as I could, but I was determined not to let her see me falter, “Awww come on, you don’t wanna prove what a big, strong boy you are? Come on! You can do it! It’s only as tall as you!”

As I whipped up to meet her gaze, my rage boiling over as I grit my teeth, I saw she had her phone in hand. Was she documenting this?? I flew off the handle, kicking the pen as hard as I could in her direction and barked back.

“What sort of childish, pathetic little game do you think you’re playing? Unlike every other creature in your care (if it even deserves to be called that) I can report back on my service at this facility. I’m not some living doll, put on this earth to amuse you! Do you hear me? I’m a person, no different than you and your slack jawed boyfriend over there! And beyond that, I’m a patient at this institution. I will not participate in this cycle of humiliation you seem so bent on enacting. Frankly, you’re embarrassing yourself… this type of behavior is beneath you. How old are you? Early twenties? You’re far too old to find the torture of small creatures to be an acceptable pass time… although it is a harbinger of other psychiatric problems… is all this a cry for help? Perhaps you’re the one who most needs to be seen by a doctor…”

Her phone clattered to the surface of the desk as her gloved hand rushed me. I barely had a moment to blink, before I was engulfed in a crushing fist, “Oh fuck you, you little bastard…”

She jabbed her free index into my chest, but I wasn’t even listening, I just started screaming back, “I will personally see to it that you are sued for willful negligence, and animal rights abuse! You’ve no right to treat me this way…”

Her voice was joined by both Jason and Lindsey, all four of us fighting to be heard above the others. His first addition to the cacophony, a painfully late response to my insult, “Wait? What’d he mean by slack jawed? I have a great fucking jaw line, right, Nina?”

The bespectacled woman shouted, “Okay this is getting way out of hand! Everyone just stop yelling!!”

Nina continued, squeezing me about the middle and dragging her finger across the exposed parts of my body, “Who the fuck do you think you are?! Huh?? You ought to learn how to be sweet. Humans would like you much better when you’re sweet and cuddly and cute. All this anger and yelling is just gonna get you in trouble, little fella. You understand?” I watched her finger with hawklike precision, and as it traveled closer toward my face, I opened my jaws and bared my teeth ready to bite down hard. Just as the latex brushed against my chin, and I prepared to pounce, the slam of a heavy metal door and a boisterous voice made all four of us stop, dead.

“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?! NINA! JASON! LINDSEY, YOU TOO?? HOW MANY TIMES MUST I TELL YOU, THAT IS A PATIENT NOT A PLAYTHING. Do what I’m paying you for and get back to work!” Doctor Greene stood in the opposite corner of the room from where I’d come in, he’d entered from the door where I’d heard animal screams and machinery. My blood ran cold at the sight of him. I could just see him over Nina’s shoulder, as she turned to look. This broad, barrel-chested man stood with his hands clasped in front of him, the blue latex doused, his white coat and scrubs splattered, with bright crimson. I couldn’t help but shudder at the sight, “Hello?? Did you hear me?”

Lindsey managed to mumble a hasty, “Yes sir…” as the other two crossed back to the examination table, with me in hand. He tore the gloves off and threw them in a nearby trash can, before peeling off his coat, and holding it aloft.

“Lindsey,” he bellowed, “I don’t need all three of you to take vitals. You’re on laundry duty—“

“B-but, Doctor Greene, are you sure I can’t stay on this case? You have Nina on blood work in a few hours and Jason's on lab results after 3pm. It would make the most sense for me to–” Both the raven haired girl, and her gruff employer arched a brow and gave her a threatening stare.

“Remind me, Lindsey, who makes the schedule? You or me?” She crumbled under the pressure, taking the blood soaked garment, with a hesitant hand. She met my gaze, her brow furrowing in concern, as her lips moved ever subtly in a silent “I’m sorry”.

The veterinarian crossed behind the table and halted before the door across the room, turning over his shoulder to address the two techs who were left, “You two: I expect the initial prognosis to be done as soon as I return. And Nina? Stop wasting company time posting patient photos on your Insta-book, or whatever site you’re on these days. If I catch you doing it again I’ll dock your pay. Get to work… NOW!”

With the creaking of hinges and shuffling of feet on polished concrete, I was left all alone with my tormentors, and completely at their mercy. I was expecting to be splayed out on the icy aluminum tabletop, but instead I remained in a fist as the human it was attached to turned round and stepped back toward the desk. What on earth was she doing??

I was trapped in her hand, her thumb pressed across my chest, her index and middle middle my shoulder blades and spine. Her other fingers curled round my torso, but with less pressure. While my right arm was pinned to my side, my left was propped over her thumb. Squirm and writhe as I might, her grip was unwavering. The last thing I wanted was to endure poking and prodding from this maniac. I needed out of here. The infection didn’t seem so bad anymore. I needed to escape. She leaned against the corner of the desk, and retrieved her phone, pulling it toward her and blocking her field of view from me completely. She tapped a few times with her thumb and then, with a furrowed brow, appeared agitated. “Fucking gloves….” She grumbled under her breath, as she set the phone and, to my surprise, me, down on the surface of the desk. Could she really be that stupid? She started to peel them off, when a male voice behind her, captured her attention, “Yo, Nina, what’re you doing? Doc said to get to work…” in the split second she turned away from me, I bolted, ignoring the agony in my leg as I repeatedly pounded down on it with my full weight.

“He’s not gonna tell me what to fucking do…”

“I mean, you really think that’s a good idea? He seemed pretty pissed…”

“Dude, what’s your problem? Did Lindsey rub her goody two shoes act off on you? Lighten up— ah, ah ah! Where do you think you’re going?” She clicked her tongue as her, now bare, fingers descended with ease around me. I had only gotten a quarter of the way across by the time she noticed. Damn my leg. She jabbed me in the lumbar making me tumble to the hard surface of the desk, I did everything I could not to directly land on my torn knee. With an uncaring precision, she flipped me onto my back and pinned me down with one finger over my chest. She held her phone out before me, and I heard the shutter click as she took a photo. “You, little sir, are going in my Hall of Infamy album for very naughty patients… now come here…” Without looking up from her phone, she tapped away, using her other hand to reach for my ankle…. On my bad leg. She pulled. I screamed. She reached to pick me up by the collar of my shirt, I bit down on the ball of her thumb as hard as I could. She screamed. I grinned wickedly, hot blood tasting of iron and sweet success, before scrambling to my feet and taking off again.

“He bit me! The little motherfucker bit me!” I ran all the way to the opposite corner of the desk, skidding to a stop, as I reached the edge. Now what?? The computer cables were behind me, too far to get to before she could make her way around. I, frantically, looked about for an alternative solution, “Ha! Didn’t think that far ahead did, ya? Looks like there’s nowhere to run….” I sucked in a deep breath, closed my eyes…. And jumped.

Both humans gasped in surprise, but they hadn’t seen what I had: below me, the bottom filing cabinet drawer was open just enough that if I aimed carefully, I could dive into the folders and keep myself from a sudden and painful demise. It all happened in the breadth of a heart beat, I flew through the air, and landed, not inside of one of the hanging folders stuffed with documents, but along the wire frames of a few, which knocked the wind out of me and made my head spin.

Admittedly, I was grateful for adrenaline, because I should have long since passed out by now, except by sheer will to survive. The raking of the hard wire surface against my knee was excruciating but as I heard the hurried footsteps of both humans coming around the corner, I bit my tongue to keep from screaming. I knew I had one more task at hand to make my disappearance complete. Wasting no time at all, I flipped onto my back, balancing carefully on the, luckily, largely empty files toward the front of the drawer. I reached behind me for the lip of the drawer above, while I hooked my one usable foot onto the underside of the locking mechanism of the drawer before me.

Clenching my jaw and mustering what little strength I had left, those pounding steps resounding in my ears, I knew I only had milliseconds before they’d spot me. I pulled, using my own body to close the drawer from the inside. I only had about 2 inches or so to go, but at my size, it took plenty of muscular effort just to do that. I slid further inside the folders as the space grew smaller and smaller. My body was soaked with sweat and every muscle quaked as I got it almost closed, but not enough to lock it, which would’ve been another disaster entirely. When it was close enough, I dropped all the way inside, now huddled in the absolute obscurity of a metal drawer, inside a file, my heart in my throat as I listened for warning signs outside. As I lay, curled up, trembling in the dark, listening for activity beyond the walls of my hiding place, I couldn’t help but grit my teeth at the irony of it all. I’d been jammed into cramped, pitch black quarters, hidden from view, countless times in my old life. Now, here I was enacting it all over again. This thought made me shake all the harder. It seemed I was just in time, as, no sooner had I escaped my reverie and returned my thoughts to the present danger, I could hear their footsteps come to a halt mere inches from where I lay.

“What the fuck?!? What the fuck?? He can’t have just run off that quick… that fall should’ve at least broken his legs… where did he go?!”

“I think we fucked up…. Like, really fucked up. If we lost him, we’re dead.”

“Goddammit….Hey…. Hey, whatever your name is… Andrew? Fuck it, I dunno, I didn’t read the chart… come out, come out, wherever you are. We were just having fun earlier, we aren’t gonna hurt you…. Come here and we’ll get you all fixed up and back home in no time. You need our help, don’t you?? We can’t help you if we don’t know where you are…”

“Is he hiding somewhere, in plain sight? I mean he’s pretty little, right? He could…” my blood ran cold. How was the dumbest of all of them figuring it out?

“Wait, yeah… maybe you’re right… who was the last one in the filing cabinet this morning?” Sweat trickled down the back of my neck as I shook, in spite of myself.

“Uh… me? I think? Didn’t I have to pull the file on that black lab with the ear infection?”

“Doesn’t Greene always yell at you for leaving the drawer open?”

“He does. Daily. So? What’s your point?” Well, he still held first place as the greatest dullard of them all.

In another split second, the sound of metal grinding assaulted my ears as my whole body was jostled violently and light flooded in. I’m a dead man.

Snaking fingers snapped open files one by one. I could hear her getting ever closer to where I lay. What would she do when she found me?? Then all at once, a giant face loomed above, blocking out the garish, fluorescent light.

“There you are…” Instead of picking me up directly, she clutched the whole file and splayed it open on the surface of the desk. I scrambled to sitting, marking with a cursory glance, the black ink on white paper which stretched beneath me. The format of the document seemed familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it. “Look at what you did…” she shoved the pad of her thumb right in my face, showing the single drop of dark crimson that had bubbled to the surface, “You should know better than to bite people.” She pressed her thumb over my chest, slamming me down against the desktop, her blood soaking into the shirt and seeping through to my skin. I squirmed beneath her. I couldn’t take much more of this, my body was starting to give up, as my mind went hazy with pain and my breathing became labored again.

“Please. Enough. Enough, already.” I hated how my voice shook.

“You’re right, it’s time we made you the ideal patient… Jason, get me .2 milliliters of Buprenorphine, please…” An anesthetic. She was putting me under?!

I couldn’t help but whimper and wail, “No!! Please, no!! Don’t! I’ll behave, I promise. Restrain me if you must! Just keep me awake! Please! You can’t do this!” I shook like a leaf. All those cases of death from improper dosing of anesthesia and medical negligence flooded my brain. I didn’t want to go under. I didn’t want to die.

“I can, and I will… it’s part of my job. I thought you’ve been screaming at me this whole time to do my job, and now you’re suddenly unhappy? Jeez! Make up your mind!” That wicked smile made my blood freeze in my veins. Suddenly we were interrupted by a voice across the room.

“Uh, Nina? You sure it’s Buprenorphine and not Meloxicam? I thought we used Meloxicam on, like, mice and stuff.”

She turned back to her counterpart, annoyed, “He’s not a mouse, idiot. Just, goddammit… The fuck if I know! Lindsey’s the small animal nerd. Just…. Go with Buprenorphine, it’s an opioid, it’s fine.”

“You sure? That dosage seems kinda low…”

“Well, I don’t wanna fucking kill him, do you?”

I broke down and did what I promised myself I’d never do again: I groveled, “Nina? Nina, right? Please… Please, Nina. I want to go home, safe and sound. I’m relying on you to make that happen. I know we’ve had our differences, but… I have a desire to live just as much as anyone else. You can’t blame me for that ! Please… let me go. I won’t run. I’ll let you do whatever tests you need to. I’ll be the model patient. Just please don’t put me under…”

“Oh shut up, will you? I’m tired of hearing your obnoxious, naggy little voice. The whole reason I wanted to become a vet in the first place is so I didn’t have to talk to patients all day long… Jason? You almost done? I’m waiting… impatiently…”

I cast my gaze across the wide expanse of the room to see the young man slowly filling a syringe with a very small amount of liquid from a glass dispenser. It was as though everything went into slow motion as I desperately willed time to slow to a stop and to be spared from what was to come next. Each ragged breath and unsteady beat of my heart, marked the time like some weak and faulty drum. Jason strode across the room, each stride easily covering a hundred of my own, he was beside Nina in no time at all. I debased myself, begging with them, but it was no use. Jason pinned my chest and pressed and finger to my jaw to keep me from biting. He used his pinky to immobilize both my ankles. Nina, with ease, pinned each of my wrists down, and I watched as the massive needle, longer than my entire arm, sank deep into my flesh, stinging and burning as medicine was administered intravenously. I didn’t even have the energy to scream anymore.

“Night, night, you little fucker. That’s what you get for biting me. See you on the other side….” My eyelids grew heavier and heavier as my tongue went numb inside my mouth and my vision began to darken at the edges. Her hand, spider like, and all consuming, overwhelmed me on all sides and peeled me from the desktop, slowly, slowly lifting me up. My head lolled backwards with no support behind it. I blinked hard to chase away the blur as I finally got an aerial view of the paper I’d been lying on. I knew it’d seemed familiar! At a cursory glance, I recognized it as an American Animal Hospital Association form outlining compliance for the adequate treatment of creatures like me. I’d stared at versions of this document hundreds of times in my previous life. I’d helped the old man contest the legal validity of this very form in multiple court cases. I was going under, with no time to spare, my eye darted down to the bottom corner, the most vital section.

My vision swam as I struggled to read the official assessment, upside down. I caught only snatches of information, “Anonymous report… Doctor Richard Greene… less than adequate result… cotton left behind inside sutures…resulting in infection…severing of nerves and partial paralysis in Homo brevis… required, by law, to be made publicly available for full client consent… Suspension of surgical care… one calendar year… ” With wide, horrified eyes, I began to thrash and writhe. The date listed for the duration of suspension was only from a few months ago. They were violating state and federal law by accepting me as a patient. Not only that, but if this recent incident was anything to go by, I might be permanently disfigured or even killed by remorseless negligence!

My tongue was like a thick, lead weight in my mouth, I tried desperately to cry out, scream, beg, “Wait! Wait! Stop! You can’t legally treat me! Please, don’t hurt me!” But, instead, all that came out were desperate, inarticulate moans. My heart was ready to explode from my chest, even as I felt the anesthesia take control over my ebbing consciousness.

“Shhhh…. Shhhh… go to sleep, you little bastard….” She laid a thick, heavy finger over my lips. I couldn’t even shake my head. I just stared back, eyes half lidded, as I lost the fight, “Yeah, there you go, sweet dreams….” The last thing I saw was her looming over me, that wicked grin plastered on her face. In the next, ever-slowing heartbeat, I was out, cold.

#He's back and he's here to suffer #So sorry little nightmare #It WILL get better for you #Alexander vs 3 vet techs #Thanks for reading!#oc: alexander #a fraction of justice #g/t angst #g/t writing #Giant/tiny #g/t related #g/t fearplay

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