#the ultimatum was bad and it poisoned my feelings for him | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

pumpkinstrawbrew · 1 year

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you're toxic, i'm slippin' under with a taste of a poison paradise

...

(i always jokingly call their ship 'my chemical romance', mostly bc of the fact that crane is awfully good at chemistry, among the other things. n' i do dearly love this aspect of their relationships. gotta adore how it's literally 'toxic' love, bc the fear toxin is a thing, n' they both end up sniffing it, every time they met. so it's less of poetic language here. it's just that they end up inhaling fumes n' havin' a bad trip. plain as day.

anyho', these arts are circling around the idea of what if at one point, crane dosed both of them on purpose. n' what if he did it as the scarecrow. or more so, when he was in mindset of the scarecrow.

btas crane n' old comic ones are usually depicted as sadists, who ironically are afraid of pain themselves. as jonathan is the sort of man, who is afraid to suffer / be hit / be picked on, bc it was his whole life. he knows how it feels n' he's dreading it. n' while it's cute, i was wondering about more crazy n' drastic measures, that crane might take, even if he knows that it would hurt him, but at same time, would grant him smth that he wants very-very badly. in this context, some 'discomfort' should be fine. n' i believe, that if he's 'out of it' or desperate enough, he might do it.

in this context, him using ft for smth dare i say kinky, isn't out of question. i often think' that crane might view his ft as a connecting link between himself n' batman. even if he doesn't know who batman is, the difference between them is evident. starting from the looks n' ending up with their personalities. but when batman is afraid, it's like jonathan bringing bruce to his level, isn't it? at that moment, they're the same. crane dosing them both is almost a power move. kind of harmful, bc crane cannot quickly overcome his own toxin like batman does. but still, it would take batman aback. give jonathan those 10 seconds of being the 'big bad' man in the room. but that's just a cherry on top. the main point of this is that jon can get away with smth, like a kiss or smth more, bc it would all be lost in horror soon enough. with this nearly an ultimatum in mind, he can waste those few moments *where he still udnerstands what's real n' what's not* to be bold.

i feel like btas crane will be a tad more modest about it still vs his more unhinged comic counterpart. but batman would be caught off guard, either way! i generally do enjoy the situations, where bruce is ruffled n' taken for a ride from time to time. he's very serious n' very prepared, n' all that, but it's fun to let jon score a win. even if it's small, it still would plague batman for days. his enemy dosed both of them, crawled into his laps, kissed him n' then just.....refused to explain himself. n' while it would be puzzling from bruce's pov. i love how it would have been the fear-included kiss for both of them, but jon would have been afraid of it *touching lips with him* even without ft, so this what makes it painfully appealing to me.

i stan by a hc that pleasure is generaly very hard concept for crane. n' he doesn't fully know what to do with it. or how to proceed. any fantasy, where things just nice n' not complicated feels untrue to him. he can't do what harley did n' just smooch the bat. he's not a pretty gal or even someone, who has any skills in that area. more so, the mere idea about how the bat might be willing to do smth with him, outside of being low-key cornered into it or lured into, is beoynd him. which is pretty sad, but it just feels kinda....like, well, jon, haha. i can't picture him as someone, who can overlook his self-hatred n' disgust this easily. but causing smth, when controled by fear n' despair for having that one thing he's pinning for, now this would sound realistic to him.

as for bruce, he can take his revenge by simply kissing crane back. n' also explain nothing. i imagine, that when it happens, crane's brain will freeze. it's like an instant defeat.)

#batman animated series #scarecrow #batman #jonathan crane #bruce wayne #scarebat #brew draws

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rollforjackass · 11 months

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like on a couple levels, in terms of the metatron having bad intentions, the coffee theory has something to it. BUT NOT BECAUSE AZIRAPHALE'S BEEN POISONED/MAGICALLY MANIPULATED/REPLACED, OKAY. here's the breakdown of the major points imo:

aziraphale doesn't drink coffee, why would the metatron bring him coffee & why would he drink it?

because the metatron doesn't fucking care what aziraphale wants or likes. it's just that simple. he came to the bookshop to make an offer, and to get that offer accepted. he brought the coffee to prove that he means well, that his intentions are good, and that aziraphale is worth a gesture of generosity from the voice of the almighty. he wants aziraphale to feel appreciated, but he doesn't give a shit enough to bring something aziraphale would actually like, and he didn't stop badgering until aziraphale accepted it in a way that could not be taken back, i.e. drinking it. if aziraphale has taken a sip, then he's already accepted that he will hear the metatron out. it's pure lip service and manipulation.

2. the time jump between aziraphale very clearly saying "i don't want to go back to heaven" and "tell your friend the good news". why would the metatron be so sure he changed his mind in that time?

my theory is that the metatron's proposal to reinstate crowley as an angel was double-sided, and we only saw the first half of the proposal. my theory is that the offer was actually "we can bring crowley back as an angel with you, or we'll have to scrub him from the book of life completely so we don't risk you pulling a gabriel." i mean, it makes sense, right? heaven just lost their number one guy to his attachment to a demon he's spent 6000 years arguing with, why chance it a second time? the metatron wants aziraphale to accept that offer because heaven is in shambles, and he knows it won't be accepted if things are left as they currently are on earth, with aziraphale able to simply say "nah" and come back home anytime. an ultimatum like that is the only way to fly.

it's also a no-loss scenario, because you can bank on aziraphale, as someone who cares about crowley and who wouldn't ever want to threaten him into doing something he doesn't want to do, only wanting to tell crowley the first part. he wasn't there for the hellfire, remember? he might not even think it's a genuine threat, not worth repeating, especially if he's confident that crowley would choose to go with him rather than be separated. my theory is that aziraphale was trying to protect crowley by going balls-to-the-wall company man, and that his "i need you" was especially motivated by terror at the thought of losing him, terror that became more and more real as he started to lose confidence in his ability to convince crowley to be an angel again. (as a lot of folks who grew up in very manipulative households could tell you, me included, you can teach yourself to dismiss the severity of a threat from someone you believe loves you while also emotionally reacting to it.)

3. that smile in the elevator during the credits was NOT an aziraphale smile like ANY of the smiles we've seen from him before. not painfully polite, not genuinely joyful, in fact it was downright sinister.

i think that if we go with the theory that the metatron threatened crowley to get aziraphale to agree to come back, aziraphale won't let that shit stand. especially seeing how badly crowley reacted to the idea of becoming an angel again? to aziraphale going back? especially after that kiss?

if he's going up there to make heaven worthy of crowley, to make things better, then that means doing something about the people like uriel who relish the thought of turning innocent people into pillars of salt. the people like michael who hypocritically consort with demons and place their position on the corporate ladder above all else. the people like the metatron, who have access to the book of life and full willingness to use it. i think that's a smile that means aziraphale is about to start a war of his own, and make everything up to crowley as best he can by ensuring that crowley will never have to fear for his own existence again.

(of course, whether that's what crowley would want is something we already know the answer to. crowley wants aziraphale. danger and all.)

#obviously this is all throwing shit at the wall and seeing what sticks #and i LOVE how creative some folks have been (the CYANIDE THEORY w/ the doses of almond being changed is fucking BRILLIANT)#but i do think this is a bad choice born of an existence of manipulation and good intentions #and i do think it would make sense for aziraphale to be holding back the fact that heaven is Threatening crowley #if he's gonna try to convince crowley to Come Back to the place threatening him #(even if it also means crowley can't see that aziraphale's reasons are all because he loves crowley too)#anyway we have like 3 years so all theories are valid and i'm enjoying reading every single one of them #sobbing into my mug of cocoa as i am #good omens spoilers #go2 spoilers #coffee theory #good omens speculation #good omens #aziraphale

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weak-aesthetic · 1 year

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I think this had potential to be such a great story for Velasco that’s been executed very poorly. If they want to bring Churlish on it’s such a bad poisoned intro unless and Liv going hard for her is weird considering how she even told her what she did was illegal. Unless she messes up a cases doing something else illegal so she doesn’t stick around that long? Then what’s their endgame for Velasco? I can’t imagine how he feels being on a squad that doesn’t trust him. Then the one person potentially in his corner (Muncy) was MIA all episode. I’m really hoping we get more context with what Muncy did with what she knew. Cause I really don’t see her keeping it from Velasco. Sigh. So much potential but it’s just not there for me.

Mariska did AMAZING with the storyline for the victim and his wife. It was a truly beautiful storyline but Velasco’s character arc and backstory suffered dearly because of it. This was a huge pivotal point in the development of Joe’s character and it was wasted away.

Like when Liv asked Fin, what do we know about Velasco, the answer truly was what Fin gave. We don’t know much about him except he has a kinda dark past. Like Velasco has been on there for going on this is his second season and what did we know about him before tonight?

His dad wasn’t the best father and he kept his belt to remind him of what he overcame in childhood. He had been forced into a gang when he was younger, made a vow to only do good if this one kid who he helped set up for an assault lived and then was shipped to Nebraska to get out of the gang. Also we know he’s a huge soccer fan and is into wrestling and that he’s single, trying to find a girlfriend. That’s about it (I may be missing some things because my memory is fuzzy). I feel like we knew about Amanda’s sister Kim than we do Velasco tbh.

And it’s like, Liv is THIS quick to turn on him like he wasn’t a HUGE help in the BX9 case. She even said he would be her “maestro” at one point because he had so much knowledge on how gangs worked. And now all of sudden he’s “180 lbs of water in the shape of a man”???

Okay side rant here:

Velasco had to learn how to camouflage. He had to learn how to blend into his surroundings to survive when he was younger. His friend killed those people and lied to the cartel for YEARS because he knew Joe couldn’t do it because that’s not who Joe is. Joe isn’t a killer. He’s a protector, a friend, a lover if you will. But he had to learn to act like one to survive. His whole life he’s been forced to play a role (like Olivia pointed out) because it’s the only way he knows how to live. Joe’s self defense mechanism is to blend in with what’s around him and so that’s what he’s been doing. And I feel like this whole storyline can be a HUGE arch for him if we finally see him develop a sense of self. He doesn’t need to find his friend and turn him to prove himself to Liv, but to prove to himself that his past is behind him and he can stop blending into his surroundings. The only person we’ve seen him even be himself with is Muncy (the whole scene of him buying her a soccer ball). So it’s like, this has a chance to be a huge thing for him and it was handled so poorly.

And going to the Churlish thing, I really hope it blows up in Liv’s face tbh. Liv is being such a hypocrite when it comes to everything related to Velasco. She threatens Muncy and tells her not to tell him but if it had been her, Stabler and Cragen, she would have lost it on Cragen. And then let’s Churlish, a white shield, do the interview with Fin that was only happening because of her ILLEGAL recording. Are we forgetting all the times Ms. Benson crossed lines for Elliot? She’s being so hypocritical and it’s honestly making me so irritated. Like she’s okay with Churlish committing a FELONY of recording a conversation with an inmate and let’s her join the squad but pretty much gives Velasco an ultimatum of turn in your friend who SAVED YOUR LIFE or your job is toast. Yeah both committed a crime, but you shouldn’t reward Churlish’s criminal act with a spot on the team and threaten Velasco for his. And also?? Churlish being so defensive that Velasco looked into her background as if she didn’t record a personal story of his life?? Like bitch sit down and shut up.

Honestly as much as I’m for “women empowering women” I hope Muncy chews Churlish out because no one else seems like they’re gonna do it. Churlish seems like a VERY toxic character and tbh if she does stick around, Idk how long I’ll be able to stand it. She committed a whole crime and gets rewarded? Fuck that.

I really want to know what did Muncy do with the information too. She’s the only who seems to even care about Velasco because Fin and Liv turned on him so quick.

#joe velasco #grace muncy #olivia benson #law and order svu #tiff talks #law and order special victims unit

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chasingfictions · 2 years

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angel, wesley, riley

. this is so targeted and insane because i was thinking Today how much i dislike wesley and angel kajkldada i think im weirdly at the point where currently i dislike them both more than i dislike riley which is wild . like i can appreciate them as characters and enjoy writing them n their dynamics but also . the rage in my bones .

THAT SAID . ok this is a hard one . like . let's game this out bc im deeply unsure. if sam-frodo-gollum was an easy swoosh slam dunk layup this is a tangled web of choices this is like two guards at a doorway and they hand you a cup of maybe poison and one only tells lies and the other only truth. you know???

okay angel . my immediate instinct is one night stand simply because i think it would be funny . he wouldnt perfect happiness with me and also genuinely boreanaz is hot and i deserve that . husband angel or best friend angel are a close second ? if he's in his like . ats s3 era ? but also i think despite my rage at him he's the one i'd least object to spending time with ? like we could vibe in silence and i could annoy him and that sounds good. i think maybe i'd need cordelia or faith there as a buffer bc he is most enjoyable when #thegirlies are there to impact his behavior .

wesley is the toughie in that i . i do not want that man to touch me . like angel or riley i think i could enjoy physical contact with . but something about wesley gives me fight or flight gives me the fuckin heeby jeebies . so that makes him best friend ? which i think could work. sad for me if he is my best friend but we could vibe we could talk about books . we'd have a very toxic friendship where i like lowkey hate him and judge his life choices but i oscillate between either calling him out too much or not expressing any of that to preserve the friendship . i think in this scenario we like met in childhood and now are like bonded for life despite our incompatibilities as people.

i THINK that leaves riley as husband ???? which . to me riley more naturally fits in the best friend category for me, i think i could enjoy being his friend . i think as a husband he's shown himself to be a shitty partner like . his weird judginess and ultimatum to buffy and cheating on buffy with those vampires . to him then kind of emotionally cheating /microcheating on sam when he gets back to sunnydale by flirting with buffy without telling her he's in a relationship??? in a MARRIAGE ???? that said riley would be fun as a husband in that i think he'd be a fun guy to bring to events .like look at my big beefy butterscotchy husband, look how big his arms are :)))))) but the more i think about it the more i think it would be a deeply unfulfilling marriage that he wouldnt let be a marriage of pure show or convenience i think he'd be a whiny bitch about it . SO okay retooling

ACTUALLY marry wesley. but kind of a political medieval marriage where it's just on paper and we don't touch or hang out and are both fucking other people ? but we still can like. combine our shared power for our interests or whatever . i think he'd be a nightmare to have children with but so would any of them ??? i mean riley actually probably works better in the children scenario but i just dont think that works for the aforementioned reasons ....

and riley one night stand is out simply bc i think he is bad at sex in like a fumbling mediocre way i cant abide . angel, despite the fact that he canonically did not eat buffy out in s3 and for that deserves to go to jail, presumably does know How and how to do it Well . darla didnt raise a fool . so i think we maintain angel one night stand ? i think the final answer is wesley husband angel one night stand riley best friend????? but i cannot tell u how deeply unsatisfied i feel at this answer,,, there is no winning here.... anon why did you do this..............

#ask #anti angel #anti wesley #anti riley #i fucking guess?????#this was so mean to do to me anon

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thebibliomancer · 3 years

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Tides of the Dark Crystal liveblog pt 11

Tides of the Dark Crystal by J.M. Lee because uh oh Amri’s in trouble!

Last times on book: Amri and co are on a quest to unite all the Gelfling clans, a quest that is starting off on the wrong foot already. Maudra Ethri of the Sifa told them no thanks and it turns out that she’s hosting the Skeksis Mariner skekSa. Sifa Tae gets poisoned while the heroes are adjacent and they get briefly blamed for it but skekSa sleuths out the real culprit. But while Dr. Detective Captain skekSa is healing Tae, Amri tries to stab the Skeksis for reasons that seemed like a good idea at the time.

Chapter 11

Maudra Ethri’s plan and spider crimes

With Tae healed and rehydrating, skekSa calls everyone into the accusing parlor. Which is still her lab but she’s sitting in a nice chair chugging something from a decanter.

“Go on, then. Let it all out. All the pieces are here. I will preside, to make sure no one gets untoward... or tries to kill me.”

The last she tossed like a stick on the fire in Tavra’s direction, though the spider had retracted all her legs so she looked like any other gem resting inertly on the table. Amri soured with guilt. He had been the one who’d tried to kill skekSa, not Tavra.

YOU GOOFED UP AMRI.

Amri wants to confess that the spider is blameless but since skekSa hasn’t retaliated, he holds back hoping that everyone can get out of this okay.

Since nobody volunteers to be first in the accusing parlor, skekSa volunteers Captain Staya to air his grievance. But instead he apologizes to Tae, saying he never meant for her to be in danger. He only wanted to drug her and pick her brain! Tae is wry about his apology but this isn’t want skekSa is here for.

“Enough apologies. I want grievances!”

Hah.

She’s been out on the sea alone so mama needs her drama fix!

At her prompting, Staya says that there’s been a rumor because of the pink petal message that the Skeksis have betrayed the Gelfling and that Maudra Ethri has called them together in Cera-Na not to rise up but to gather all the Sifa to flee.

Which Ethri casually confirms. Yes, they’re all leaving tomorrow at sunset.

Staya is aghast but Naia is furious. She tears into Ethri for abandoning the rest of the Gelfling. But Ethri says that as maudra “if I choose to lead my clan out from under Emperor skekSo’s claws, that is my choice to make.”

Staya has a different objection.

“But, Maudra, you ignore the signs! The wind is against us. The tide is against us. With every limb of its body, Thra pushes us back toward the south, yet you’d sail in the face of that? You’d trust a Skeksis over the signs of Thra?”

“I don’t need the wind or the tide! The Lord Mariner has looked after the Sifa since we first touched toe to the sea. Has sailed with us far from the Castle of the Crystal and the traitor Skeksis. We have our Sifa charts and navigators, and skekSa’s ship will break the waves for us. She has promised us this, and I believe her.”

skekSa’s only response was to take another swig of her drink, as if she were watching a performance and was pleasantly entertained.

Which, in fairness, has been her attitude throughout.

Interesting how she’s forcing the airing of these grievances when she’s part of them but it doesn’t really feel like she feels like she’s part of it.

But taking her favored clan out of the clutches of the other Skeksis who she doesn’t like, I wonder whose head that idea originated in.

Naia growls at Ethri that despite what Onica said, Ethri is just a coward and a traitor, and Ethri momentarily looks as lost and confused as Amri feels.

She’s the youngest Maudra and she’s suddenly been exposed to this idea that the power structure is feeding on the Gelfling in a very literal way. She has no trust that the All-Maudra will stand against the Skeksis given how she hasn’t so far. Even Onica doubts Mayrin’s commitment to resisting the Skeksis. And she was in the shared dream conference call!

The moment passes and Ethri gets her steel back and relays an ultimatum.

“Staya, you are welcome to remain in Cera-Na if it pleases you. Stay here and die. But if you will choose wisely, then you will set sail with the rest of the clain tomorrow night.”

Then she helps Tae to her feet and leaves the accusing parlor. And after a moment where Staya internally struggles, he follows after her. Which, I guess, is a metaphor for him falling in line. Probably.

With that out of the way, skekSa turns back to the elephant in the room, so to speak.

Hm. I wonder what Thra has that fills the ecological niche that elephants do.

“Now then, on to other matters.” In a single garish movement, she lifted the jar and flung it over a shoulder so it crashed against the wall. She leaned in and sneered. “Tell me what you want, Arathim. Spider. Have you reported all this to the Emperor, then? Shall I expect he and General skekUng will arrive shortly to dispatch me? Or will it be skekMal, your mad pet?”

OKAY!

So there’s a lot here.

First, skekSa is dramatic as heck.

Second, reasonably enough, she assumes that a Gelfling with a spider on him trying to stab her is an Arathim. And so working for the other Skeksis.

I didn’t realize that the bad blood between skekSa and the Castle was ‘send assassins at her’ level bad. Or, I guess, that she was paranoid to assume it is. Then again, a Gelfling with a spider on him did try to stab her while she’s about to sail off with an entire clan the next day so maybe that’s the most reasonable paranoid thing to assume.

I wonder if the Emperor did send assassins after her before. Not out of any desire to have her actually deaded but just to send the message that he’s not happy with her doing her own thing.

A lot of questions being raised.

Third, huh skekUng is the General. I wonder if skekVar exists in the J.M. Lee continuity. And what his title is.

Anyway, Tavra refuses to speak up and out herself so skekSa decides to grind her to spider dust. Kylan scoops Tavra off the table and insists that she’s not an Arathim.

“Of course it’s Arathim,” skekSa retorted. “It’s a spider, isn’t it? Sworn to Emperor skekSo. The crystal-singers, the silk-spitters, the whole squiggly lot of them. Make my scales crawl, they do.” She eyed Kylan suspiciously, but tossed the pestle over her shoulder to join the broken jar. “What’s going on here?”

Amri can’t think of anything to say so skekSa drops the matter, just promising that one day they’ll tell her. “I will wait. After all, I have eternity.”

Then she gives Amri his sword back as “A reminder of my generosity” and calls a boat to transport them back to shore since she can tell they’re afraid she’s going to do something while they’re on her ship.

Dang, skekSa, you’re so classy. You’re going to turn out to be evil but you’re doing a great job at it.

The group regroups on Onica’s ship and catch her up on what happened.

Kylan, that nerd (affectionate), asks Onica Far-Dreamer whether its true that all the signs are against Ethri’s plan.

“There are many signs, all with many meanings. What I know is that the tide is against a northward journey, and the wind this time of season would make it impossible if it weren’t for skekSa’s promise to help. And aside from that, no one even knows what’s across the Silver Sea. Ethri is well aware of all this, yet she plans to defy the signs... It is not the Sifa way. Something has come over her. I don’t know if it is the fear of the Skeksis, or that she is being manipulated by Lord skekSa.” Onica sighed and pushed her fingers through her hair before adding, “Worst of all, I fear she is no longer the Ethri I knew.”

Still low to medium key fascinated about this Unknown Continent. All the action of Dark Crystal just takes place on this one place. And if the coast sees snow up where the Vapra lives, how cold is the unknown land that Ethri wants to sail to?

Tavra comforts Onica, promising that they’ll speak with Ethri again and change her mind. And then apologizes to Amri for biting him, saying she didn’t take control of his body on purpose.

But he’s just imagining what would have happened if Tavra hadn’t stopped him. Hitting skekSa with a teeny little Gelfling sword and only enraging her, ensuring Naia’s death because he wanted to act the hero.

“I’m tired,” he said.

He took the sword from his belt and set it on the table beside Tavra. He found a darker corner of the cabin among the cushions and quilts, wrapped his cloak tight around his shoulders, and pretended to go to sleep.

#dark crystal #the dark crystal #Tides of the Dark Crystal #liveblog #Amri #Kylan #Naia #Tavra #Onica #skekSa #the Mariner #Maudra Ethri

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freerebelmentality · 4 years

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The high cost of living

AN: ***TRIGGER WARNING*** MENTIONS OF DRUG USE AND OVERDOSE. ** Ok may I request a Winchester brothers x sister reader where the reader is depressed harms themselves and feels like she not good enough and is a drug addict like does weed and other drugs drinks to relieve her pain and her brothers found out and are not happy it and the reader just not having it and doesn’t want help and can’t handle being lectured about her brothers so she runs away and overdoses and her brothers find her but in the end her brothers help her in recovery and it fluffy in the end And can the reader age around 16-19 is up too you i hope this is ok for u if not I can change it. Requested by @supernerdycookietrashblr ** I took out the self harm and just stuck with the rest of the request. Sorry if this got way too long but I got carried away and I just really enjoyed writing this. Ideas came and wrote those down. So I hope you all will enjoy this and enjoy reading

************************************************************************

Word Count: 2,762

On the road again, you thought while sitting in the back of the Impala.

Looking out the window, seeing the trees pass by at great speed is when you begin to feel sick.

“Dean, Dean. Pull over, Im going to be sick” you say rather quickly

With one quick stop, Dean pulls over to the side of the road and puts baby in park

“Geez, are you ok? You want some water? Mint? Mouth wash?” Sam asks as he rushes to your side.

“Mouth wash?” you reply while Sam runs back to the car and searches his bag for his mouth wash.

“Feeling a little hungover? Or just sick, sick?” Dean asks as he comes check on you as well

“A little hungover” you lie to Dean while Dean goes back to the car and reaches for a beer.

He decides something a little stronger than beer.

He pulls out his flask and walks back to your side.

Sam notices how incredibly sickly looking you’ve become and begins to worry that you are coming down with something.

You knew you were coming down from your latest high, well more like from you latest fix and you needed another. Fast.

Dean hands you the flask and you greatly take it from his hands and drink the entire thing. The whisky made things a little more tolerable.

“Thanks man, I needed that” you tell him and walk slowly back to the car.

Dean and Sam looked to you and noticed how you were walking. Like as if you were in pain and cold. The weather was warm and a beautiful day really.

“Are you sure youre feeling ok?” Dean asks as soon as he gets into the car

“Yes, step on the gas. I wanna go home already” you irritatingly reply back.

Dean didnt like that, so he did what he was told and stepped on the gas to head back to the bunker.

Finally arriving.

You get out of the car as fast as you could and into the bunker. You ran all the way to your room and found your stash hidden in your room.

You felt as though you werent moving fast enough but you made it to your room.

Dean and Sam looked at you oddly as you ran fast into the bunker.

“What the hell is wrong with her?” Dean asks as he takes the stuff from the car and into the bunker.

“Maybe she needs the bathroom again” Sam replies following Dean.

“Hmm’ is all Dean says and goes to his room to put his things away.

Once you got the needle ready, you sat on the toilet and poked the needle into your favourite vain. You pulled back the syringe to draw blood is when you injected the stuff. Slowly

Once the stuff reached your body is when you started to forget about everything else. Your withdrawals, depression, everything. Numbing out everything perfectly.

Or so you thought.

You came out of your room to look for your brothers to hang out with or just to get them to stay away from your room anyway.

“Are you feeling a lot better?” Dean asks while turning away from his cooking

“Yes, I feel a lot better” you reply way to happy but oh well you replied anyway

“Ok then” Sam says while he adds more notes to the folders in front of him

He has been adding the men of letters archives, well the both of them have been doing that and they thought you were doing the same but you dont remember a thing from your last hunt.

All you thought about was how to get your next fix or even next high. Weed wasnt cutting it anymore ever since getting into the opiates.

Stupid for getting into those. Oh well choices were made and it makes the feelings go away.

As the days go by which weeks go by as well. Dean and Sam begin to notice how incredibly bad you got while hunting, sick, and more sicker.

After the sickness, you would be at your normal self and be the great hunter they knew you to be. But when the sickness came, it was as if they didnt know who you were. Didnt look like you or anything.

“Let me know when she goes out, ok?” Dean asks Sam as he watches you walk to your room

“Uh, ok. Why?” Sam asks not really sure if he wants to know the answer but he is curious to see what Dean is up to.

“I want to look through her room, I want to see if Im right about something. If not then I am going to feel like a complete dick about it later” Dean explains himself as he looks towards the hall.

“Right about what?” Sam asks looking out for you as well

He hears you coming out of your room and walk the hallway and waits for you to appear.

“Hey guys, Im going to head out for a bit and I will be home in an hour or something” you tell them and head out the door.

You didnt give them any time to say anything cause you needed to head out and look for the number one thing you have been needing. You needed your next high. You needed it bad.

“Ok, go” Sam says to Dean as he books it to your room

“What exactly are we looking for?” Sam asks as he digs through your stuf

“Needles or drugs” Dean replies as he sees a box in the bottom of the sink in your bathroom

Dean hoped it wouldn’t be the things he is looking for. Other wise all of you weird behaviour he has noticed for the past couple years would be more understandable now.

He has seen this type of addiction before in fellow hunter friends, their addiction to opiates and how they passed to overdosing.

He opens the box and sees his worst nightmare

“Sam” is all Dean could say and drops the box

Sam rushes to Dean’s side and sees what has fallen to the floor.

All the used needles, cotton balls and spoons. Along with the rubber bands. He also sees the unopened rigs.

“No” Is all Sam can say

He doesnt understand why you would want to inject anything into yourself with poison.

They get out of your roomand wait for you to come back to the bunker.

Dean has a few words for you.

Sam has a few questions for you.

They couldnt believe their baby sister would turn to drugs

Dean is beginning to understand the border line alcoholism but he always thought it was just something to help you sleep. He didnt think it was something to settle the withdrawals.

The next morning, Dean and Sam are still seated in the library waiting for you to walk through the doors. None of them moved from their seats, they stayed seated like that and waited for you. Dean was to heated to even move from his seat.

His anger turned to worry when you never showed. Until now, his nerves settled and now all he wants to do is hug you and lock you away. But he needed to say a few things first before he can do that.

As you come walking down the stairs and see your brothers in the library looking at you all tired looking. You were about to say something when you see a familiar box. Your heart begins to race.

“Morning guys, sorry I didnt come home last night and sorry I didnt call or anything” you say to break the ice but knew you should have said nothing and should have went straight to your room

“Y/n? What the hell is this crap?” Dean asks opening the box and pushing it towards you.

Your heart begins to beat rapidly because your brother has found your dirty secret. Your life long dirty secret.

“You went through my room?” you ask not even going to lie about the box they found.

What was the whole point in lying? They found it, they figured it out and you werent going to lie about it.

It was as if you secretly hoped they would find it, maybe them finding it would finally get you to stop and go to treatment.

“Of course we went through your room. We wanted to know what was making you feel so crappy and during hunts” Sam says next, he finally finds his voice.

“You found my dirty secret. Now what?” you ask as anger begins to form.

“Why? How long? This needs to stop now” Dean replies sternly, he didnt want to get too angry. Otherwise he would have ruined the whole plan he had.

“Or else what?” What are you going to do if I dont stop?” you ask while looking to both of your brothers

They both went quiet, they didnt want to give any ultimatums cause they feared you would pick the poison over them and they knew you are going to pick that over them.

They wondered what they did wrong to make you turn to something else to numb out everything.

Sure Dean hasnt been the poster boy about opening up his feelings about anything and he feels he should have done that with you. At least.

Sam should have pestered you more about opening up. How he does with Dean, he should have done the same for you. He didnt and he feels ashamed.

“You know, I’ll make things easier for you” you break the silence and walk down the hall and into your room

“What do you mean make things easier for us?” Sam asks as he follows you down the hall

“Where the hell do you think your going?” Dean asks next following behind Sam

You grabbed what you could and what you thought was clean. At least it was warm clothing anything, it was beginning to get a bit nippy out there.

“Im leaving. That way I wont be such a burden to either of you anymore” you reply while walking back down the hall and up the round stairs

“Y/n, no. Stay here and we will help you” Sam pleads with you as he follows

“Y/N!! Stop” Dean raises his voice

“You arent a burden. Stay, so we can figure out how to help you and let us help you” Sam continues as he looks to you.

You are at the top of the stairs and finally with one final thought. You turned the door knob and walked out.

Dean runs up the stairs and tries to block you from going any where but he is too late. He ran out the door and you were gone. He yells for your name, looks around and continues to yell for you.

Nothing, it was as if you disappeared into thin air and he wondered where you went or what direction you took.

“Son of a bitch” Dean says as he looks around with both of hands behind his head.

Tears fill his eyes as a lone tear streams down his face. He falls to his knees, feeling defeated he let this happen. Defeated he let anything go this far and didnt notice anything to begin with.

Sam comes running to him and looks around as well.

“Sam, shes gone. I couldnt catch up to her. I let her go” Dean tries to keep his emotions together. But he releases a sob

“We’ll find her, someone has to see her and security cameras are every where and one of those ust of caught her” Sam says as he helps Dean to his feet.

Months went by, Dean and Sam never stopped searching for you. Drove from town to town, Dean always tracked better when he was on the road. But his leads always went cold. You knew better to go off track cause you knew he would track you.

Finally Dean’s phone begins to ring. He takes out his phone so fast and answered it like his life depended on it. In a way it did.

Dean talks on the phone for a long period of time and Sam is getting anxious. He doesnt what is going on or who is calling.

Finally Dean gets off the phone.

“Well who was that? What did they say? Say anything about y/n?” Sam asks way too quickly

Dean couldnt understand a word he said, all due to the phone call he just got and that shocked him more.

“That was Y/n’s doctor. She was admitted yesterday and he told me that they saved her from an overdose. That its their third time saving her from the overdose. Why they never called the first couple times was because she didnt list any family members as emergency contacts. Sam we got to go. We got to get our baby sister” Dean finally says and begins running to his room to begin packing.

Sam couldnt believe those words came out of Dean’s mouth. More like he couldnt believe you wouldnt add him or Dean as your emergency contact to begin with. Until now.

They drove for hours and hours.

As they stand at your door, they see you laying on your hospital bed, IV in one hand while the nasal cannula is inserted.

Your attention is brought to the door and you couldnt believe your brothers are standing right in front of you.

“Hi” you break the silence as the greeting came out a little raspy and small

Your brothers came further into the room.

Dean is the first one who hugs you.

“Hi, I missed you” as a tear streams down his face

He hold yous a little longer, feeling as though he is going to wake up and realize its all a dream and have to wake up to a bunker without you in it.

“I missed you so much” he says as he holds onto you a little longer and tighter.

He feels as though you were going to dissolve away if he let you go. Again

“What the hell happened?” he asks taking a seat by your bed side

“I chased and ended up here” you simply answer your brother.

Well you felt ashamed by answering him

“Your face” is all Dean could say

He sees the bruises on your face, the dark circles around your eyes and how sunken in your face is. He is thinking as if he is looking at your skull.

“Ooh, I owe money to my dealer and he made an example out of my face. A few times. So to medicate, I chased the high so much, that I practically chased myself in here” you reply to your brother and look around the room

“The only way for us to get you out of here is you go to treatment and get help. Dean and I were talking along the way and thats our ultimatums” Sam says while Dean looks to him in annoyance

Dean wanted some time with you before he sent you to treatment.

“Ok, ok. I will get the help. I will go to treatment, I wanna come home” you tell them as you begin to cry.

Sam is happy and hugs you. Tears stream down his face as a sigh of relief escapes his mouth

“Thats what I want, for you to come home and go get help. We want to be there for you. We love you” Dean says as he hugs you.

He felt relieved he heard those words coming out of your mouth, as if all of his stress has been removed and now he can finally settle his nerves. Kind of.

For them it was an eternity. Dean felt as though he was in hell all over again but this time felt longer.

Sam felt like he was in the cage all over again in trying to look for you. Or he felt as though he didnt have a soul. Having you around was better and you are Sam’s other half just like Dean is his other half.

When all three of you are together, its as though everyone feels complete but when separated, thats when everything crumbles.

You felt like you are getting your family back, after being away from your brothers for so long. Well more like after running from your problems and creating more. You really felt like you are getting them back and earning their trust.

You and your brother hunted like a family again. Better than ever.

#supernatural #supernatural fic #supernatural fic request #request #dean winchester #sam winchester #hunter family #family business #sister!winchester #reader insert #supernatural reader #spn reader #spn fic #spn fic request

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youarejesting · 4 years

Text

Quarantine.70

[Masterlist]

Beta: N/A Pairing: BTS x reader Friends2Lovers Genres: friendship, drama, romance SLOWEST OF BURNS. until the anticipation kills us all… Rating: PG-13 and above Summary: Your brother works with a few BigHit dance teams and whilst having permission to accompany him at work the city shuts down banning anyone from stepping outside for a whole WEEK while they disinfect the streets. If you step outside you might get arrested, shot, or poisoned by the chemicals they are emitting through the city. Words: 1.3k Announcement: This is the end of this Arc we have an interlude and then the final ARC begins there is a great deal of events I am so excited to write about so stay tuned

[Part 1] [Part 69] [Part 71] [Tag Yourself Here]

Mister Dong walked you to the elevator and you took out your phone and began recording hoping to catch a confession to use against him. “Did you tip off the press?”

“Not me, But it happened at the right time, someone else ratted on you, before you could affect the boys career.” He sneered

“You're an asshole, you know that right, I perpetually hate you,” you smiled at him as you got into his car. “The anger is bubbling inside me and I hope you know I won’t go down without a fight”

“I know, that’s why I have an ultimatum, you leave for good from South Korea and take this money and I will let your brother and Areum keep their jobs” he smirked, “think about that.”

“So you're threatening me and my family, that if I don’t leave the country you will fire my brother and his girlfriend?” You were beyond furious with the man, what the hell did he think he was doing, why was he trying to sabotage the boys and yourself. What the hell did he gain? The more you pondered the more you wondered if he was actually working for another company.

He pulled up outside your brother's home and you stepped out phone ringing. Answering you gave mister Dong the finger as he left in his car. “Hello Mal-chin are you okay?”

“Are you okay?” His voice was shaking, he sounded close to tears but not from sadness, he almost sounded like he was in shock “that article, I just saw it. It's from my dad's Pen name. He is a reporter. I didn’t think he would do something like this, I am so sorry?”

“It’s okay, I hated being treated like some kind of saint and getting awards, whilst keeping such a big thing a secret” There really was something freeing about finally getting the judgement you deserved.

“You don’t hate me?” His voice was so tiny and unsure, you smiled softly, no longer feeling the weight on your shoulders but you felt a little sick. Sick that he had to deal with the negative sides of his father's work.

“No I don’t hate you” you sighed, phone buzzing, “I have to go I have another call”

“Hey, Y/n, don’t worry, we have just posted the official article about what happened. The new report says our officers are responsible for shooting the man and you were just present we spun the story a little to pardon you from the limelight”

“I am sending a statement, read it and memorise it if any reporters ask you to tell them exactly what is written” you agreed and quickly hung up.

“I was there, with former captain Won-shik and his team, mister Kim Seokjin and we had just rescued Jeon Jungkook, who had been taken by Mister Choi’s people we were heading back in a peaceful rescue mission to retrieve him when we ran straight into Mister Choi he held a gun to Seokjin’s head and told us to stay back. As we were trying to negotiate I got to close and he shot me in the leg while the soldier shot him before he could kill anyone else” You mumbled it felt a little like a lie but the officer on the phone said you were working with Major Won-shik and a part of the team so they consider you in that moment a soldier and are keeping it ambiguous.

Thanking that you had a spare key to your brothers new house, you headed inside and took a seat on the couch. Jungkook facetimed you, you could see him and Taehyung sitting on the couch in the living room. “Can you sneak over?”

“Not tonight boys, Mister Dong has banned me from seeing you. He is threatening Areum and Thomas’ jobs, I am wondering what I should do?”

“What do you mean wondering?” Yoongi hissed snatching the phone and looking at you through the screen. “If you are even contemplating it then clearly we are dispensable and you should just leave”

“Woah Yoongi that is harsh,” Hoseok said as Jimin tried to calm him down. “We all were contemplating quitting for her and she isn’t thinking the same way?” “Listen if it was my job on the line I would, but it is my brothers and his girlfriend. I would never kill someone to save myself’

“That’s funny, the news says you would” He spat, throwing the phone onto the couch you assumed he left judging by the others calling out his name, Taehyung called your name but you hung up.

Everyone was too stressed but that was such a childish way to handle the situation. You called your brother, hoping the three of you could come to a decision. Needless to say the two refused to let you sacrifice your happiness for their jobs.

It had been almost an entire week since you had spoken to the boys, of course they texted you and you texted politely back but you were working through things. Mostly paperwork with Doctor Chang at his little clinic and your liaison with the Korean army was Major Won-shik who was filing the paperwork and you were given a full military scholarship to be Doctor Changs apprentice.

Finally on the friday you were meeting Wendy and Mal-chin after work the three of you were having a wonderful time, eating frozen yoghurt and window shopping, Mal-chin's hair was still so long and you couldn’t see his eyes.

“Hey do you want me to get you an appointment for a haircut?” He didn’t seem to like that idea as in a split second he blanched before trying to tame his expression. “No, it’s okay if you don’t want to, do you want me to pin your hair out of your eyes?”

He nodded and looked up at you softly letting you move his hair to the side retrieving a pin from your hair you frowned, “I only have a little bow clip, is that okay?”

“It will be fine, I don’t know anyone here besides you two. Just don’t make me look silly.” He smiled and you placed them into his hair. He checked his reflection and deemed it appropriate before you each continued on.

“Let’s have some dinner” The three of you had dinner and you walked Mal-chin to the train where he returned the clip.

“Thank you for letting me borrow it” He smiled, “I just don’t want to cut my hair yet, a lot of guys my age have long hair so I want to fit in and make friends”

“I get it, try all these fun things, while you're young, it’s just hair and you have the rest of your life to change how it looks and the colour--” Cut off by a big hug your last words a wheeze.

“Thank you for everything, for just being here even though my dad…” He sniffed eyes watering and he wiped it on the corner of his dress coat sleeve. “If ever you need anything, I will help however I can”

“Well actually, I know your dad is a good reporter, perhaps we can do business, I have someone I want him to look into”

The meeting was called at the end of the week, on Saturday and officially your name was cleared. There wasn’t much to do that morning, Wendy and Mal-chin had already helped pick out a business outfit, ‘something powerful like the girls in Kdrama’s’ Mal-chin had proposed when you presented them with the challenge of appropriate attire.

So here you were feeling bad ass with some heels and it had taken a long time to be able to walk in them again and tight black business pants and a deep purple v neck with cap sleeves. You had your nails and hair done as a group, Mal-chin obviously sitting out when it came to the salon but sporting a navy nail polish.

But you were ready and you meant business, this was going to be one meeting they wouldn’t forget for a long time. Because you had information they didn’t know about Mister Dong.

[Part 1] [Part 69] [Part 71] [Tag Yourself Here]

Tags: @theneverdays @hi-itstt @bubbletae7 @lovemusicandotps @taetaebq @w0lfqu33n @anaiss97 @moccahobi @maddymal @lilacdreams-00 @lethargicalyssa @knjkitten @pieislife @kthstrawberryshortcake @vividwoosan @seesawsmin-flower @tinyunknownflower @gguksfilter @fawnzilla @passionate-love-57911 @btrombley13 @novaprime-59 @hd-junglebook @infiredsunflower @take-u-2-an0ther-w0r1d @simplymemyself @pars-ley @juanitapatricia @unicornnomore @moments-of-melancholy @tatastaetae

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romeulusroy · 4 years

Text

Going From The Streets To Kings Dominion With Your Boyfriend Marcus Would Include:

Requested: anon

You knew from the start you'd like him

And hate him at the same time

You saw him around a lot, hanging out in the same spots where the other kids lived without homes, always picking fights with others

One day you have to get in the middle of a heated argument, scared if you didn't stop it he'd get his teeth knocked out

"I could have handled that on my own!"

"Yeah sure you could have. What are you, some kind of loony just begging for a broken jaw?"

"Just mind your own business."

Marcus isn't used to people speaking to him like that

He learned a long time ago, you have to be tough on the streets or you'll be messed with

At first you two can't get along

Always bickering and fighting, avoiding one another at all costs

You think you'll never see eye to eye, until one day

The winters were always the worst, always the most dreaded time of year

Snow was always pushed under the bridge where you slept, there was even less food you could find, and there was little you could do about staying warm and getting sick

Most nights you had to wander to find a place to sleep

One night you found him sitting on the sidewalk, shivering in a thin jacket, everything he had freezing in his backpack

You didn't have much to offer, but you had an extra hat and half a sandwich that wasn't completely frozen solid

Marcus is wary

"It's not poisoned if that's what you're thinking."

"I wasn't."

"Take it, or I'll take it back."

You sit beside him, not saying a word

Times like these, as much as you didn't like him, and you thought he had a bad attitude, you had to look put for one another

He finds you again, to thank you, wanting to give you back the hat, but you insist he keep it, maybe it'll help with his bad attitude

After that, you stick together, becoming inseparable

Eventually you start to tell one another stuff

Lighthearted things at first, like Marcus' awful taste in comics or his pretentious view of the world, but then things get deeper

You have a lot of late night conversations where you can't sleep

You talk about how you ended up there, your families, everything

Things you would never tell anyone else

And it feels nice, to trust someone again like that, to be vulnerable, to know he has your back when you thought no one would

"You really wanna kill the president?"

"Mhm."

"Okay. . . . Can I come with you when you do it?"

"Sure."

You're basically a couple before you even know it

You never even realize the way he gives you butterflies, the way talking to him becomes too easy, that you'd give him your whole winter coat, before it's too late

You never really have to say it to one another or confess any feelings, it just kind of happens: you become a couple

Nothing really changes, though

You'd been doing couple stuff from the start, now there's just more pet names and a hell of a lot more jealousy

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Y/n, they were looking at you weird. I'm gonna go talk to them."

"Let them. Who cares what they do or think?"

He kisses you goodnight every night

He's not big on PDA, but he makes it known to everyone your together

You're happy with him, in a way you never thought

Things are good for a long time

You're finally able to feel safe, let your guard down, love and be loved

Then it all falls apart

The cops find you, find Marcus, chasing after you for the crimes you committed

Saya caught their attention, created a diversion, but the bags are over your heads before you can stop it

You call out for Marcus, but there's too much noise

You really think this is it, it's the end

After hiding so long, getting too comfortable, you were finally paying for all the bad things you did, the things you did to survive

You have a pocket knife you try to grab, but it's no use

The two of you are restrained and taken somewhere

You hear them, familiar voices, and when you're able to see, you're faced with an unlikely group

Marcus is there beside you, one thing that brings you relief

Lin explains everything

Giving you a tour, giving you a history lesson, leaving the both of you stunned, questioning what the hell this place was

The kids look like they wouldn't hesitate to chew you up and spit you out

Through it all, your hand never leaves yours

Lin gives you an ultimatum

Stay here with food, shelter, an education, or go back

You have to talk it over with Marcus, not wanting to be without him

"Well, what do you think?"

"I, I don't even know

"I know, but think about it! A real bed!"

"And real murderers."

"Marcus. . . . "

Eventually you two give in, only because it beats spending another night in the cold and you can leave anytime you want as long as you sneak out

You're excited about the uniform, the shower, food, all of it

When you're washed and dressed you show off for him, all smiles

"You look nice."

"I didn't look nice before?"

"No, no that's not what I-"

"Kidding!"

As soon as you move in to your rooms, unpacking what little you have, you're back together again

You thought you knew how the world worked, but you guessed not, in a place like this, where school supplies were knives and grenades

"Isn't this great?"

"Great isn't the word I'd use."

"Aw come on, don't be so negative!"

Learning fast that because you lack any "important" status you're back at the bottom of the food chain

Marcus can't help but be protective

He thought the streets were bad, but these kids were something else

Whatever you were expecting from school, it definitely wasn't this

#i could go on forever if anyone wants a pt two?#hope you like it love!!!#requested #headcanon #marcus lopez #marcus lopez headcanon #marcus lopez arguello #marcus lopez arguello headcanon #deadly class #deadly class headcanon

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karmaholmes221 · 3 years

Text

Vicomte de Phantom

Part 20- Beyond the Lake

The love story of Raoul and Christine is timeless, how they overcame everything to be with one another, but there is much more to their story than that... there was another woman, Raoul's first wife. The first Vicomtesse de Changy. And she was just as much a part of the story as any other character.

I stepped over the crumpled dummy of Christine as I began to prepare things that needed to go with us as we made our escape, knowing that there was no chance that we could stay here. I tried desperately to keep the memories of the last time I had had to run from my mind as I moved carefully around the room, getting lost in the all too familiar routine. Suddenly Erik and Christine appeared, Erik dragging Christine roughly. I hardly noticed the wedding dress clinging to Christine’s body as I moved around the large throne-like chair.

Christine pulled herself free of his grasp and backed away from him as he stared blankly around the room, taking in my half finished preparations. Christine glanced at me, as though expecting me to jump forward and reprimand Erik for his behavior but I simply ignored her. When it became clear to her that I would not come to her aid she turned her attention back to the phantom and, braving the terror clear on her face, addressed him fiercely. “Have you gorged yourself at last, in your lust for blood?” She paused for a moment, but Erik gave no reply, and so she continued. “Am I now to be prey to your lust for flesh?”

Erik finally looked at her,a cold look in his eye.“That fate, which condemns me to wallow in blood has also denied me the joys of the flesh...this face, the infection which poisons our love...” He leaned over slightly to take the bridal veil from the dummy and moved slowly towards her. “This face, which earned a mother's fear and loathing... A mask, my first unfeeling scrap of clothing...” Erik said softly, placing the veil on her head. “Pity comes too late. Turn around and face your fate, an eternity of this before your eyes!”

The two of them were now so close they were nearly touching, and I watched, slightly impressed at the fact that Christine’s face remained calm and cold. “This haunted face holds no horror for me now... It's in your soul that the true distortion lies...”

There was the sound of splashing water and my eyes flashed to the portcullis as Raoul appeared his eyes connecting with mine for a moment before Erik caught sight of him as well. “Wait! I think, my dear, we have a guest!” He turned to call out to Raoul. “Sir, this is indeed an unparalleled delight! I had rather hoped that you would come, and now my wish comes true. You have truly made my night”

“Free her! Do what you like only free her! Have you no pity?”Raoul called pleadingly, grasping at the bars of the gate.

“Your lover makes a passionate plea!” Erik said dryly to Christine and I couldn’t help myself, I took a step forward trying to reason with Raoul.

“Please, Raoul, it's useless . . .”

Raoul’s eyes met mine again. “I love her! Does that mean nothing? I love her!” His eyes returned to Erik. “Show some compassion...”

“The world showed no compassion to me!” Erik snarled at Raoul harshly.

“Christine... Christine...” Raoul begged, his gaze set on Erik. “Let me see her...”

“Be my guest, sir . .” Erik said dryly. He turned to face me and gestured with his chin. I sent him a warning look before moving to the wall and pulling a lever beside the large organ. The fence began to rise and Raoul slowly entered. “Monsieur, I bid you welcome! Did you think that I would harm her? Why should I make her pay for the sins which are yours?”

Suddenly from out of nowhere, the Punjab lasso was in Erik’s hands and, before Raoul had a chance to move, he was caught by the neck and the rope had been threaded through one of the openings in the portcullis. Christine tried desperately to rush towards the two men, but I reached out and grabbed her by the forearms, pulling her back as Erik continued to taunt as he pulled the rope tight.“Order your fine horses now! Raise up your hand to the level of your eyes! Nothing can save you now, except perhaps Christine...” He turned sharply to face her. “Start a new life with me. Buy his freedom with your love! Refuse me, and you send your lover to his death! This is the choice. This is the point of no return!” Erik said, issuing what I knew would be his final ultimatum.

Christine shot Erik a hurt look. “The tears I might have shed for your dark fate grow cold, and turn to tears of hate...” she said, her voice rising to a shout at the end.

“Christine, forgive me please forgive me... I did it all for you, and all for nothing..." Raoul called out to Christine despairingly but she wasn’t listening.

Her eyes were locked on Erik but when she spoke again, it was to herself. “Farewell my fallen idol and false friend...One by one I've watched illusions shattered...”

“Past all hope of cries for help, no point in fighting.” Erik said, his voice sounding almost cold.

Raoul’s voice joined Erik’s and they spoke at the same time. “Either way you choose, he has to win...”

“For either way you choose, you cannot win! So, do you end your days with me, or do you send him to his grave?” Erik growled

“Why make her lie to you, to save me?” Raoul demanded and I stepped forward,looking to Erik.

“Angel of Music...” I implored, praying to whatever higher power may be listening that they would stop and see reason.

Erik continued on as if I hadn’t spoken. “Past the point of no return"

“For pity's sake, Christine, say no!” Raoul shouted.

“...why this torment?” I pleaded.

“...the final threshold...” Erik continued.

Raoul’s voice turned pleading. “Don't throw your life away for my sake...”

“When will you see reason...?” I gasped out, exasperated.

Erik's eyes remained locked on Christine. “His life is now the prize which you must earn!

“I fought so hard to free you...” Raoul said, a sliver of defeat making its way into his voice

“Angel of Music...” I repeated.

“You've passed the point of no return...” Erik continued to gaze at Christine who suddenly took a step forward, out of my hold.

“...you deceived me. I gave my mind blindly...” She hissed, accusation and betrayal clear in her voice and her face.

“You try my patience, make your choice!” Erik hissed, yanking on the rope, causing the noose to tighten further on Raoul’s neck.

It was silent for a moment as Christine reflected over her options for a moment. Then, her face set with resolution, she made her way towards Erik. She took a shaky breath as she took the first step and she began to speak, her voice quiet at first but growing with emotion. “Pitiful creature of darkness... What kind of life have you known...? God give me courage to show you you are not alone...” Her face remained calm as she took his face in her hands and pressed her lips against his.

My eyes caught on Raoul’s and I couldn’t help the smug smile that made its way onto my face at the look of horrified wonder on his face. ‘Now he knows what it feels like to watch the person that you love be in the arms of another.’ I thought, unable to find it in myself to feel bad for him. my attention snapped back to Christine and Erik as they pulled away from one another. Erik held Christine’s eyes for a moment. before he let a resigned sigh and made his way to Raoul, taking a lit candle from one of the brackets and held to the thread of the noose rope, after a slightly tense moment the rope fell, harmless.

I could hear the sound of the mob growing ever closer as they continued to shout. “Track down this murderer, he must be found! Hunt out this animal, who runs to ground! Too long he's preyed on us, but now we know, the Phantom of the Opera is there, deep down below... Who is this monster, this murdering beast? Revenge for Piangi! Revenge for Buquet! This creature must never go free...”

Erik quickly addressed Raoul. “Take her. Forget me, forget all of this... Leave me alone, forget all you've seen...Go now, don't let them find you! Take the boat. Leave me here, go now, don't wait... Just take her and go, before it's too late... Go... Go now, go now and leave me!” Raoul and Christine rushed to the boat, keen to get as far from this place as possible.

Erik remained where he was, gazing mockingly at his mask, where it lay on the floor next to the throne-like chair. I moved to the papier mache musical box, I reached out and put my hands on the box, accidentally turning the box on as I shifted it out of the way to open the trunk beneath it. I could feel Eric's eyes on me as he began to mumble under his breath. I strained my ears to pick up on what he was saying. “Masquerade... Paper faces on parade... Masquerade... Hide your face so the world will never find you.“

There was a slight sound behind me and I turned slightly to see Christine moving slowly towards Erik. I kept my face stoic and unreadable as she pulled the ring from her finger and pressed it into Erik’s hand. “Christine, I love you...” Erik said quietly, pain and heartbreak clear in his voice. She hurried away and I watched silently as Erik gazed at the ring for a moment before sliding it onto his finger.

I leaned over and picked up my cloak from so many years ago and draped it over my shoulders.

Christine’s voice carried quietly, from a distance as She spoke to Raoul. “Say you'll share with me, one love, one lifetime... say the word and I will follow you...”

I shook my head slightly to clear it and fastened the cloak in place as Raoul continued the familiar verse. ”Share each day with me...”

”...Each night...”Christine continued.

Raoul’s voice joined her’s and their voices merged together. “Each morning...”

Erik stood there for a moment, looking after her. “You alone can make my song take flight -it's over now, the music of the night...” He whispered, sounding more broken then I had heard him be in a long time. I watched as Erik walked slowly towards the throne, taking a seat on it as the mob grew louder and louder. “You should go.” Erik said and I stalked forward.

“Come with me.” I said pleadingly.

Erik simply shook his head. “I'm not going anywhere.”

“Then neither am I” I said stubbornly.

“Auroe…” Erik began and I could tell that it was going to lead to an argument.

“No, I’m not leaving you” I snapped. Erik sighed and I moved to kneel in front of him. “Come with me, we can start over again.” I begged and he nodded. I took his hand and we rushed away quickly. I had just slipped the covering over the hidden doorway back in front of the opening as the mob appeared above and began climbing down the portcullis. As the mob entered the lair, I caught sight of Meg Giry. I watched with bated breath as she crossed to where Erik’s mask laid and picked it up in her small hand. I let the curtain twitch back into place. I turned to face Erik and he held out a hand to me. I pulled the hood of my cloak up and took it and we disappeared out of the opera house and into the night.

The end.

#romance #phantom #opera #phantom of the opera #erik destler #raoul #pto #fanfiction #vicomte de phantom #part 20

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dotthings · 5 years

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While usually I’d post my ep-watching notes, I’m skipping that this time because 15.03 is such a deep dive emotionally on multiple character points. Also I’d normally rewatch before going into more depth on any one point but the Dean and Cas part in particular is a raw wound I need to get my thoughts out before I lose what’s left of my mind because of this show. That was a LOT.

Disclaimer because fandom is how it is: I will block anybody who brings character hate onto this post. You will, especially, not reblog me just to screech I have no right to consider Dean’s pov seriously and treat him as a human being and that Dean has no right to feelings how dare u. Disagreement is fine, if you see the characters and story from a slightly different angle, so long as the discussion’s in good faith, we’re good.

I’ve talked here a few times about why Dean feels the way he does about recent events, why he has a right to anger, hurt, pain, and this is a little similar, as I’m definitely not going to stop treating Dean like the layered, sympathetic, complicated character that he is any time soon, and he has every right to the anger and the hurt and the pain, but in this specific scene, his words are in the wrong. It’s in the same zip code as “you’re dead to me” and Dean delivering ultimatums to Cas, both of which are things I’ve criticized. This doesn’t mean Dean doesn’t have a right to his feelings or I’m going to ignore why he might act the way he does instead of knee jerk simplifying, which does the character, the story, his relationship with Cas, and the entire show a disservice. He has a right to that anger, fear, pain, hurt. However there’s a distinction between things Cas actually did where I can see why Dean might still be upset with him—shutting Dean out, not trusting Dean enough, not trusting in THEM enough--and then there’s Dean saying things are are untrue and unfair.

In the final scene of 15.03 Dean pins every screw up onto Cas, he uses the word “always” and it is a shockingly unfair statement, and you could make a history reel of Team Free Will demonstrating how off-canon that statement is. Let’s not repeat that cyclical thing, because it’s a trap like a hamster wheel and maybe some infernal device of Chuck’s to get fandom to fight, but anyone with an ounce of sense, who pays attention to canon, can see that Sam, Dean, and Cas have set things in motion that make big messes, repeatedly.

What Dean says plays into all of Cas’s deepest insecurities and fears, and the intention of the episode is very very clear that even Dean doesn’t believe what he’s saying. He says it anyway, which is a whole mess right there and I’ll get into that, but the things Dean says to Cas aren’t Dean’s truth. Jensen’s incredible, beautiful acting makes it obvious immediately not only that Dean doesn’t truly believe what he’s saying, but that Dean deeply regrets it the second they come out of his mouth. Most people have at one time or another said stupid things in anger they don’t really believe, or give into the impulse to lash out. Dean’s tendency to do this isn’t constructive or positive behavior, it’s a character flaw, but he is also a sympathetically portrayed character, not an asshole or an abuser, and we are always shown the sources of the hurt and the pain that brings him to that point. That doesn’t mean he can do that to Cas and it’s perfectly okay. But it’s a deeply ugly, bad hot take to treat Dean as monstrous or abusive.

Understanding where the pain comes from that gets Dean to the point he’d lash out like this doesn’t mean that what comes out of his mouth on the other end is right.

There is no part of Dean that really thinks Cas ruined everything and is always what makes things go wrong. It’s actually laughable to suggest this—I will for reals laugh at anyone who tries to earnestly argue that as a reliable take on canon. That’s pretty much someone who has divorced the canon and isn’t paying attention to years and years of material. This line isn’t in fact actually about Cas ruining Team Free Will save the world plans. It’s something much deeper, about Dean’s fears and Cas’s. Which I’ll get to a sec.

Dean also is incredibly unfair in blaming Cas for Rowena’s death, and if Cas had just let Bel devour all those souls and become a Lucifer-level problem, TFW would again be completely screwed. And he is also uncharacteristically cold to Cas about sending him on the mission to Hell with Bel. These are all red flags and build-up to the final scene.

Fandom loves to yell about OOCness. This isn’t OOC, these things, this hurt, they are a part of Dean, but they aren’t how he really feels about things, they are purposefully crafted as red flags to show the audience something is wrong. Not that Dean isn’t himself, or possessed. It’s like a figurative, emotional possession. His deep sense of despair is eating him alive and his relationship with Cas is taking a hit from it.

It’s also interesting Dean voices what AU Michael said, which was AU Michael using Dean’s greatest fears about how Cas might perceive how Dean feels about him. This isn’t proof that AU Michael was speaking the truth about how Dean feels after all. It’s that Dean remembers witnessing AU Michael saying that to Cas, taunting Cas with it, and it’s still among Dean’s big fears—that Cas thinks he ruined Dean’s life, that Dean doesn’t love him back and blames him for all the troubles. Then there’s Dean’s fears that Cas doesn’t love him back, that Dean ruined an angel, Cas’s falling was his fault and so every bad thing that happens to Cas, deep down, Dean self-loathes himself for.

Dean has done a lot of growing but the vestiges of the Dean in S9 who said “I’m poison” are still there. That kind of thing doesn’t just magically go away never to return.

And here’s this huge chasm that has opened under Dean’s feet. Dean is doubting the meaning of his entire life right now, because of the revelation about Chuck. Because of Dean wondering if anything he’s gone through is “real” — if any of his actions and feelings and pain and struggling and losses and wins had any real meaning at all or was it all puppeted. It was good in this ep seeing Dean not giving up, determined to fend off or seal away the ghosts, and up yours, Chuck, but he isn’t over his sense of despair.

One of Dean’s fears here is that what’s between him and Cas isn’t real, that the things Cas did, for him, their closeness, none of that was authentic. Remember that their relationship started as *movie announcer voice* it was only supposed to be a mission...it became something more. Cas’s introduction into Dean’s life was Cas as a chess piece, sent as part of Heaven’s bigger clockwork plan.

Dean’s entire world is caving in, and he’s not ready to see that everything Cas feels for him, Cas's deep and genuine love for him, is in fact very, scarily, in your face real.

He’s shutting himself off, he’s shutting Cas out. The feelings he has for Cas aren’t gone, but Dean’s a mess.

Interesting how this ep shows a demon ripping Ketch’s heart out of his chest, because Dean figuratively rips his own heart out of his chest in the last scene with him and Cas. He hurts someone he really REALLY doesn’t want to hurt, who he loves so so much--you can insert here a sizzle reel of 11 seasons of Dean listening to Cas, defending Cas, offering Cas shelter and protection, saving Cas’s life, caring about Cas, being there for Cas, grieving for Cas, feeling insecure about Cas, showing fondness for Cas, in one way or the other. There is so much. That doesn’t mean the relationship doesn’t have problems or their own issues and poor coping mechanisms and circumstance and familial dynamics haven’t made things difficult at times. Dean hurts Cas on the most raw, biggest fear Cas has and interestingly, the biggest fear or criticism Cas fans have about the show.

And there’s Bel—demon of marital strife—playing on Cas’s fears all throughout the ep, taking little digs about how expendable Cas is, how unimportant he is to his friends. He’s like the angel in S11 who tells Cas he’s expendable and Sam and Dean “are the real heroes.” Maybe it was part of Bel’s plan all along to have Dean and Cas divided, along with his bigger take over Hell agenda.

I’ve been saying this and saying this--while it’s valid that Dean is still hurt over what happened with Cas, Jack, and Mary, and is still, remember, rawly grieving Mary’s death which was mere DAYS AGO—it’s also not actually what it’s about, and it’s not even entirely about Dean’s Chuck-induced despair, although that ground falling away is what’s pushing things to this point. What it’s actually about underneath is Dean and Cas and their relationship. Years of unresolved Dean and Cas issues. I sure called that one. Dean’s fears. Cas’s fears. Dean’s abandonment issues, Cas’s leaving, Dean’s fears of losing Cas, Cas’s fears of not being loved, Dean’s fears of Cas not loving him the way he loves Cas.

One thing that is so so tragic about Dean’s despair is that just last season, Dean reached a point of self-like. Liking who he is, who he’s becoming, the family he’s chosen. Being good with his life.

And then boo the crushing reveal that Chuck was manipulating their circumstances all this time. Which doesn’t mean Chuck was controlling them or their decisions or feelings. But Dean doesn’t feel that way.

Which, emotional horror that this is, also just serves to show just how much Cas actually means to him, how important Cas is. This big Destiel drama and hurt and pain rises from Dean and Cas loving each other and being in love and being complete and utter dumbasses. It hurts. It’s supposed to hurt. Their friendship has been mostly functional. Their love story is a car wreck. If Cas wasn’t so important, all this emotional horror wouldn’t be taking place. Dean and Cas’s relationship right now is a lightning rod for the fallout on pretty much everything.

And it’s really strong, and it’s going to endure this, but not without taking some hits to the bow.

On Cas’s part, Cas isn’t in a great headspace but he’s in a less self-destructive and harmful and despairing headspace than Dean. He has grown a lot and I think a few seasons ago, Cas would have endured, looked grim and said nothing, and stayed. He would stay doubting himself, or stay thinking Dean is really unfair, but he’d stoically take it. But not this time, and Cas did the only thing he could now. He had to leave. There’s only so much hurt he can take and Dean is shutting him out and not listening to him.

Here’s the twist about Cas. He both does and doesn’t believe Dean is speaking his truth. Cas’s gutted, shocked face at what Dean says brings Dean up short, it’s so raw. Dean’s realization of OH F*CK WHAT DID I JUST DO comes instantly, both from his own words ringing in his ears and from Cas’s reaction. The thing about Cas’s reaction, is that it has a bit of “oh you did not JUST” to it, where I think maybe Cas knows this is total BS and Dean is full of it but Cas also believes it. Cas feels like a failure. He feels like he has failed everyone. And now here’s Dean, his favorite person in the actual literal universe, telling him he is. Blaming him, when Cas knows intellectually that it isn’t actually all Cas’s fault, but nobody blames Cas for things more than Cas himself does.

This jacks right back into all of Cas’s deepest fears about not belonging. About being lonely. About being expendable and the afterthought in Team Free Will. One thing I’ve pointed out over and over is part of Cas’s drive to protect Jack is needing to be needed. Dean and Cas is not a parallel relationship to Sam and Dean, it wasn’t formed the same way, it doesn’t function the same way. They are very very close, but there also is no Sam to Cas’s Dean, until Jack. This is not about seeking or needing a codependent relationship. Putting it more baldly, while there’s a brothers-in-arms aspect to Dean and Cas, they are not sibling bonds/like-sibling bonds/parent-child like bonds, Dean and Cas are lovers, spouses, chosen not-actually-platonic life-mates, they are coded as a couple or as spousal over and over. Strip that layer out and trying to meta this becomes a lot of “but why??”

The answers are simple. Don’t strip out the subtext, and the by now textually-level implied nature of Dean and Cas’s relationship. Which doesn’t mean I am saying it’s been consummated, but it also is what it is.

I’ve also pointed out how Cas’s immortality offers him the emotional horror of being the survivor, of Sam and Dean dying and Cas losing them and living forever onward without them. Ironically, becoming so attached to Sam and Dean fed his loneliness, because now he has that fear of losing them and living on forever without them.

Cas too has done a lot of growing, and like Dean, just last season showed how far he’d come. In Cas’s case, when he voiced that he knew Sam and Dean were there for him, and that Cas realized that he was enough. But as with Dean, those deepest shadows and insecurities don’t just magically go away and Cas still fears that he doesn’t mean to Sam and Dean what they mean to him and Cas, right now, feels like a failure to everyone he loves. Shoulder tap from another Dean and Cas parallel—“you fight and you fight for this family, but they don’t need you, not like you need them” which the YED used to taunt Dean way back when.

No matter how much Cas might understand about what Dean really feels, or about his own actual culpability, I don’t see how Cas could do anything now but walk out. Cas has never left Dean because he needed to leave Dean, because staying with Dean hurt too much. Cas has had to leave Dean, or left Dean, at various points for various reasons and it was never because he personally needed to leave because of his Dean feelings. Cas has had to leave because of world-saving stakes angel business missions, or because he was captured, or brainwashed, or murdered, or because his own headstrong decisions resulted in events that separated them, or he was protecting their son Jack. It wasn’t because Cas wanted to leave. Cas doesn’t want to leave now but he also needs to, personally.

The fact that Cas so candidly stated those fears here startled me. I was hopeful for more emotional candidness, but this is even farther than I’d hoped. This is going to the root. And yes it is incredibly exciting. As emotionally horrifying as this storyline is, the purpose is to move things forward to an even better place. This arc isn’t here for destruction. Things are being shaken out big time and it’s only going to make the bonds stronger once things are worked out. There’s already been a string of big moments in the show’s history showing just how deeply Cas is loved, and how much Dean loves him. If you were waiting for even more verification, just wait for it.

What’s also leaving me SHOOK is how very very very SPECIFIC this is. There’s a reason my Dean individual meta and my Cas individual meta is all mashed together here in a post that veers into talk about how Destiel is real. It’s things like this that show me recent SPN is serious as a heart attack about Destiel. Even if they can’t make it overt. I think a distinction needs to be made between overt/not-overt vs canon/not-canon. Destiel being non-overt doesn’t make its intention and its presence in the story not-canon. But my main point, this final scene isn’t about Team Free Will or a collective “how Cas feels about humanity.” This is unambiguously about Dean, and about Cas, and about Dean & Cas and their long relationship, and SPN is really f*cking serious about how important this is to both of them and how important it is to the show’s story.

#Dean Winchester #Castiel #meta #destiel #spn #supernatural #supernatural spoilers

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milwrites · 4 years

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Weird that it happened twice, right?

chapter four - masterlist

a/n: i’m really proud of this one, it’s a real favourite of mine, and is the end of where the story follows canon. obviously no one has died that does in-game, and i intend it to stay that way :) italics are john/narrator as usual :)))

word count: 3k

T/W: sexual assault, death, blood, lots of swearing.

Fingertips brushed against each other once more as guards pulled us in opposing ways, the 17 men being separated from the 2 women. I resisted violently, the men restraining me simply slipping a gag into my screaming mouth. A yell from John and I was thrown into the second cell in the past month. The women around me were terrifying to begin with, all of them much older than me and they spoke with not an ounce of tenderness, but I appeared to bring out the maternal nature in all of them. Perhaps the sight of a battered teenager in a prison that most died in before they were even hung softened even the hardest of hearts. They all seemed to protect me in some way; a few offered me some of their food from between the bars, others sliding me illicit bars of floral soap. I didn’t know what to make of it, didn’t think I deserved it until many of them opened up. They were mainly killers, but most had exacted revenge on a man who wronged them, and then kept killing. I told them stories in return. I had been educated as a member of the upper class, even if I had been treated poorly, and could recall many tales that had offered me escape from my life. I told told them stories of the mighty Thor and devious Loki from the norse myths, and managed to condense entire plays of Shakespeare into about ten minutes. It let us leave the penitentiary for a while, go to Asgard or Venice or the faerie kingdom of a Midsummer night's Dream.

John didn’t get the same level of closeness with his inmates. The men were killers or worse, and while John could play the act better than all of them, he stayed silent as much as possible. His thoughts were so loud as to overpower his voice, he could feel death coming once more and this time he knew Vesta wouldn’t appear to save him. He wished he could have said good bye to Jack. He wished he could have told the kid how much he loved him, how proud he was, how he was going to be a great man one day. He knew Arthur would look after him, and hoped that upon seeing the man assume responsibility for a child, Mary Linton would return to him, and they would raise Jack as best they could. If not, he consoled himself that Sean and Karen adored the child, would spoil him rotten of course, but he would be happy. He wondered if he’d been good enough. He decided he hadn’t. Decided that a good father would have quit this life long ago, a good father most definitely wouldn’t be hung for his crimes before his child could celebrate his 5th birthday. Tears were falling freely, as he thought about the boy being told neither parent would return home, that he would never ride down to the river to see deer with Vesta again, never play cowboys wearing his father’s hat again. He bit his fingernails to stumps and his lips a bleeding mess just considering every one of his past mistakes.

A prison guard rattled my cell to wake me. My sleep was fitful, dreams bloody. I’d braided my hair days ago, flyaways sticking to my sweaty face, which to the guard must have seemed like an invitation to enter my cell and pin me to the wall. I scratched and bit and kicked at him, my every effort doing nothing against the large man. I was crying great gulping tears, terrified at what was about to happen and even in the moment feeling guilty as I thought of John. The man let out a choked gurgle, the wet sound of blood filling his throat.

The woman in the cell beside her had been hiding a shiv for weeks, not planning on using it but keeping hold nevertheless. She had lodged it in the man’s meaty neck, and I pushed him off me, shaking with residual fear and snot still dribbling down my chin. “We- we’ve got to-“ I sniffed. “Got to get him out- and hide the shiv.” I never got the chance to move him. Other guards had heard the racket and were gathering outside the cell. A younger man pulled him out before locking my cell again, and I cried out in horror as they shot my saviour there and then. Gone. She didn’t cry out as she fell, her eyes only widened and her lips parted in a silent gasp. A fresh set of tears gilded my cheeks, the woman having given her life only to protect me from the assault almost every woman in the jail had been through. I wondered if it had been the kindness I had tried to offer, or how young I seemed, or even that it was that enough women had been through hell at the hands of the guards, but it would stick with me forever, the selflessness of a self-proclaimed murderer.

I felt hollow and empty, like the fear of death had been wiped from my mind. Death was so casual here. There were hangings every day, multiple at once. The guards told me regularly that I was to be hung with Marston, and it gave me comfort to know the last face she saw would be the one she loved most dearly. It even set me counting down the days, eagerly waiting to die at the promise of seeing him once more. How far away England seemed, that simplicity of life only punctuated by threats and callous words.

I didn’t see the balloon pass over, and was unaware of the commotion it had caused. I also didn’t hear the shots fired as a set of guards were killed out in the fields and an ultimatum was shouted over the prison walls. And what an ultimatum it was.

My cell door was opened by a scared looking boy, barely older than myself, the grip he held on my shoulders tight enough to bruise. I knew in that moment my time had come, and wryly wondered if this would get me to Valhalla. I welcomed death at that point, as it meant seeing John, maybe for all eternity. I held my head high.

Until I was greeted by an ever-so familiar voice.

“She don’t look too bad all things considered. Head’s still up high ain’t it, Mrs Adler?” The deep tenor of Arthur Morgan was joined by Mrs Sadie Adler’s western drawl. “Let’s get Marston and then we can assess our wounds maybe.”

I gaped at the sound of them, speaking lowly to the boy still gripping me tightly. “Well I’ll be damned.” It had been long decided in my mind that no one was coming for us; the first few weeks had me nursing a candle of hope that spluttered out soon after.

Cobblestones gave way to weed ridden grass under my bare feet even as the cast iron gate of Sisika Penitentiary groaned and shuddered its way open. I stumbled across the threshold, over it, and out onto the island, wasting no time in careering into arthur. He slipped me a revolver and a clip of ammunition. Another protesting screech of ill-fitted hinges and the gates rolled open for a second time.

He’d grown a beard, I noted with a face of disgust.

The miserable expression he’d worn for over a month faded away to a tentative smile at the moment he saw her wrinkled nose and creased brows. A niggling voice in his head hissed poisonous accusations against the girl: she hated him now, she had been hoping he rotted there so she could leave and live a better life. She suffocated it with a beaming grin, leaving Arthur’s side to cannon into him at full pelt, only knocking most of the air out his lungs. She mumbled into his chest, a slurred comment about how much she’d missed him, peppered with expletives and the odd nonsensical noise. A low rumble of mirth and a sharp exhalation of air was his only reply, him not trusting words enough to express himself.

“Ah hate to break up this heartfelt reunion but they are startin’ to shoot at us.” Reminded Arthur, the world having faded quite away for us both. Indeed, bullets were raining down from the battlements, being blocked only by the brick wall the convicts and their rescuers had gone and hidden behind. Chunks of plaster flew from the wall, chinks of light shining through. Sadie started issuing orders.

“John, (Y/N), make a run for it now ‘n’ we’ll cover you. There’s a boat in the marshland.”

We bolted. John seized my hand and held tight, his long strides easily outstripping my much smaller ones, and practically dragging me across the fields. Engaging the guards was suicide, between us we had 12 shots while each guard would have around 16 - and would be on horseback too. Instead we hid, darting from cover to cover, Arthur and Sadie leaving piles of bodies in their ever destructive wake. I saw the boat with a gasp, the sudden realisation that I was still alive, still with John and oh-

We would see Jack again.

John clambered into the boat first, giving me a hand climbing in. Two neat piles of clothes sat in the bottom of it, one with a hat on top and the other with- “Are those my guns?” pure delight shine through my question, my eyes lighting up as I spied the distinctive blued metal of my pistols. I rummaged a little more in the pile to find that they were my clothes too, and I scrambled to get changed while we waited for Sadie and Arthur. John did the same, happier to see his hat than guns, but expressing enjoyment at the reassuring weight of them at his hip. I let out another delighted laugh; I had found that Sadie had fully stocked my bandolier with ammunition, it spanning my chest with shiny cartridges peeping out from their leather keepers.

The gunfire came closer, Sadie taking a running jump into the boat and Arthur following closely, giving the boat a powerful push before entering it himself. For a while the only noise was the splash of the oars hitting the smooth water and the breathless recovery of the fighters, until John spoke up. “I don’t know how to thank you. I thought Dutch was gonna orphan Jack if I'm bein’ honest.” Arthur and Sadie exchanged apprehensive glances. Arthur inhaled deeply, looking pained as he explained himself. “Dutch, well he didn’t exactly sanction us comin’ for yer. He actually told us not to. Said he had a plan and such but it was bullshit so we came anyway. So don’t expect a great welcome I guess.”

The silence returned again, none of us knowing exactly how to respond.

beaver hollow - 1899

John didn’t know how many more times he could cradle her close to him like this, broken and beaten. He held back his rage for Jack’s sake, who was soundly sleeping leant against his father’s other side, too tired to fully register their return. He hated that his every dream ended with her dying in his arms, and that he had to wake up and see her dreaming the same dreams. She shifted in her sleep, muttering something that sounded distinctly like a threat, and moved closer to him. Beaver Hollow set him on edge. They didn’t have a proper tent, more a canvas shelter with two bedrolls under it, and he found himself shielding her with his body from prying eyes when she woke up in distress most nights.

I hadn’t told him what happened in Sisika. It seemed needless to me; he already knew it had been hell, because he’d been though it too. I didn’t need any more pity from him either.

The early hours of the morning cast a rosy glow over our prone bodies and the quiet stillness of the camp. Neither us them were asleep, both pretending for the others sake that we were.

“John? I need you over here a moment.” Dutch hollered from the other side of the hollow. Not receiving more response, he strode over to them, calling John again. “Can it wait?” I had no trace of patience in the way I spoke to him. I hadn’t challenged Dutch's seeming lack of action to spring them from prison, but the deep injustice was constantly boiling beneath my skin. “You aren’t busy, Miss (L/N). Neither is John.” Her tone had riled Dutch and he talked coldly to her, still taking the moral high ground as ever. I had sat up to speak to him, a shawl draped across my shoulders to for warmth. John started to stir, placing a restraining hand at my arm that I ignored. Dutch turned from me entirely, addressing John about a job he wanted to send him on. I fucking snapped. Stood up and started talking. “Shut the fuck up. Shut up. How can you ask him to go out on a job for you right now? We have been back less than 24 hours, Dutch, his son hasn’t even been able to speak to him yet. Remember his son? The one you were more than happy to orphan as long as it didn’t mess up your goddamn plan? You claim to care about every one of us, and yet when it really comes to it it’s only Micah fucking bell that you rescue every single time. You sprung him from the gallows within a week, and let me and john rot there for more than a month, let jack be parentless for a month.” I laughed a spite filled laugh. “But fuck it, eh? We’re back now aren’t we? Never mind the fact that we were beaten to shit in the meantime, never mind the fact that he might not be ready to head out again. At least you still have the money.” A crowd was gathering, Micah moving to Dutch and urging him to shut me up. Dutch shrugged him off, letting me continue. “You know. A woman died for me. She had no ties to me, had no idea who the flying fuck I was, and yet she gave her life to protect me. A guard tried to rape me. In my cell. And she stuck a shiv through his throat. That woman was a killer, a murderer, a convict, and yet she was willing to die for me having known me three weeks. She did more for me than you. I have stole and lied and why? Because you asked me to.” My voice had broken, tears streaming down my cheeks and yet never breaking eye contact with Dutch. John’s hand reached for his gun, Arthur stopping him, at my words. I didn’t look at him, but reached my hand out to meet his, gripping his fingers tightly. I swallowed. Turned around and scooped a now awake Jack into my arms, wordlessly carrying him to the horses as he begged to see Bonnie.

Everything changed for Dutch in those moments. He watched the girl carry the boy toward the horse that had been so aggressive without her, her small body relaxing as she patted her mare. Piglet followed over, then John, who settled next to her with his arm around her waist. A family. He saw then that it was a family that without Arthur and Sadie would have been broken beyond repair, the child an orphan and the two animals never to see their mistress again. The sight of Jack wriggling from (Y/N)’s arms to play with the terrier forced him to recall watching the boy crying inconsolably into her wiry fur. It had been 2 weeks since John and (Y/N) had gone, and Jack had thrown as many tantrums as he could muster to bring them home. Exhausted, hurt and with nothing having changed, the boy had sat on the floor and cried floods of silent tears, which Piglet had come over to lick away. The dog had sat herself as close as she could before him and allowed him to just clutch at her. Dutch had ignored it as best he could, ignored Hosea too, refusing to take responsibility and instead letting Micah assure him that it was for the greater good. He should have known the man was only too happy to let them die. He felt a fool. “Quit wallowin’.” Arthur's voice cut through his self-pity. Dutch glared at him for a moment before nodding and moving to leave his tent. Arthur caught his arm. “I tell you this now, Dutch, I will kill Micah myself if you don’t. he’s a rat. he’s why Pinkertons been findin’ us so damn fast.” His voice was low with anger. “You do it. I'm done killing.”

We were still playing with the horses, I had myself wrapped up and grooming Bonnie's sleek coat properly, luxuriating in the way I was able to talk to John about nothing in particular. Jack and Piglet had tired already, sat side by side with Old boy grazing beside them. Dutch cleared his throat. I didn’t look up from the knot I was pulling from my mare’s tail. John raised his head, face set and arms folded, expecting confrontation.

“Sorry isn’t going to cut it. I know that.” Dutch began with his hands as if in surrender. “But I can only offer you my heartfelt apologies - I failed you, my son, you and your family. And vesta I-“

I turned around to look at him, my face already softening. “I can never understand how it must have been. But I'm getting you out of this. All of you. No more plans. I was thinking-“ I cut him off, filled with a rush off forgiveness for him, an urge to hug him taking over me. I never had that much self-restraint. I looked up at him from the hug. “Let’s start again.”

We watched the sun setting across Roanoke ridge, basking in the residual warmth before the wintery chill of November air really set in. He pulled me in even closer, his warmth spreading into me, he and kissed the top of my head.

“Let’s start again.”

#john marston x reader smut #rdr2 #john marston #john marston x reader

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littlemisssquiggles · 4 years

Note

Ruby could get kidnapped in V8 but with everything going on V9 will need to be something less stressful. Still I would be down for Oscar and Ruby reuniting and THEN talking about the trauma together. V8 though I do want self-reflection since Oscar is basically back in V4 status(all alone with Ozpin). Along with Ruby wondering what more she has to sacrifice whether it be Oscar or her life like her mom.

On the contrary Ghost; with the way things are going now with the events of the Atlas Trilogy, I feel like the showrunners are just going to keep upping the stakes. So perhaps Ruby being kidnapped for the next volume wouldn't be too bad of an occurrence.

I mean I've been an advocate for Ruby becoming a prisoner of Salem along with Oscar since V5. Salem has been interested in capturing Ruby since V4 and it wouldn't surprise me if she'll have her eyes set on capturing Oscar too; especially since she knows that Oz has been reincarnated.

As I was telling @crystalandbrass, what if…in V8, as a reverse parallel to V4, Tyrian Callows is once again sent to retrieve Ruby. In my interpretation of this hunch, I imagined Tyrian leading his own faction of Winged Beringels to ambush and overpower an unsuspecting Ruby who just happened to be out alone in Mantle with only Qrow as her company.

In the Wizard of Oz story, it was said that the Scarecrow was almost destroyed by the flying monkeys when they came to capture Dorothy Gale. So what if…we got a RWBY equivalent to that moment in which Qrow is overpowered by Winged Beringels and forced to look on helplessly as Tyrian relinquishes an unconscious Ruby Rose over to a Winged Beringel which takes her away to Salem.

Meanwhile, Tyrian stays behind to finish off Qrow only for the Branwen man to be saved in the nick of time by Jaune, Nora and Ren arriving to aid him; much like how he had come to their aid back in Anima in V4.

I quite like the concept of Ruby becoming Salem’s prisoner by the conclusion of V8. Perhaps this could lead into what some of Rosegardening Pineheads and Rosegardeners have been itching to see---a scene in which Oscar comes to Ruby’s rescue to parallel all the times she has protected and looked out for him over the past few seasons. I think it could be a neat moment for Oscar if he ended up challenging Salem to save Ruby.

Perhaps…we could even see my ole Oscar the Golden Cap Pinehead headcanon coming to fruition too with Oscar becoming so great and powerful in his magical abilities that he’s able to use his power to take control of Salem’s Winged Beringels (see my Oscar’s Luxx Pinehead headcanon right here)

In the Wizard of Oz story, the Wicked Witch was only able to control the flying monkeys through the power of the Golden Cap---a cursed magical artifact that allowed its wielder to control the flying monkeys at least three times.

Although Salem is the creator of the Winged Beringels on the RWBY universe, she did so via the power of the Grimm Pools and her own magic.

Therefore, this squiggle meister thinks it would be a really neatorrific magic trick to see Oscar use the power he inherited from Ozma that he has come to make his own during his time with Ozpin to take control of the Winged Beringels; making him the RWBY version of the Golden Cap.

Gold is in his name after all and much like the Golden Cap from Oz, Oscar is a vessel of magic. Just saying.

I mean, I doubt we’d actually see anything like that for V8 but it would’ve been something cool. As a Rosegardening Pinehead, I really love the thought of Oscar immediately daring to challenge Salem on his own upon learning that she has Ruby.

I can definitely see this being a possibility, particularly in the event that part of Oscar’s story and development for V8 would be the young huntsman coming to terms with the importance of Ruby to him; mimicking how his fairy tale counterpart---the little prince---came to revere his beloved true rose.

Perhaps it’s even a case where Salem uses Ruby to lure out Oscar. Imagine if… Salem ends up capturing Oscar by forcing him to surrender himself over to her as a means of protecting Ruby.

Or…as an alternative to that, imagine if…Oscar sacrifices himself for Ruby’s sake. Like it’s a case in which Oscar gives Salem an ultimatum in which he trades his life and freedom to become Salem’s willing prisoner in exchange for Ruby’s salvation. Basically picture a moment in which Oscar boldly proposes for Salem to imprison him and do whatever she desires to him--- torture him for the rest of his days, even kill him---in that moment, the little prince was willing to lay his life at the mercy of the wicked witch so long as no harm came to his rose as part of their deal or exchange.

Equivalent exchange, am I right?

Kind of like how Azlan surrendered himself to be “killed” by the Ice Queen in place of Edmund Pevensie in the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,

Bruh, imagine if…we got a scenario where Ruby is left unconscious for most of the finale after being poisoned by Tyrian and by the time the Silver Eyed Rose regains consciousness, she awakens to her allies begrudgingly informing her of Oscar’s sacrifice for her. Imagine a scenario in which for the majority of V8, Ruby and Oscar never truly reunite. Even though we spent more of the story with Oscar fighting to get back to his friends and Ruby; in the end it’s a case where they still don’t get to see each other or rather; Ruby never gets to see Oscar again since he gave himself to Salem for her sake. Thus, Ruby has to live with Oscar making that sacrifice for her and her mistakes this time.

Y’know what I realized---much like Ozpin (and by extension Ozma and all the Wizards in his cycle), Oscar has become the proverbial martyr to constantly pay the price for others actions even when he attempts to rectify them.

Between V5-V7, Oscar was mainly chastised because of Ozpin’s actions and past mistakes. He became an immediate foe to Hazel Rainart who he was forced to combat due to his beef with Ozpin concerning his sister. He was punched by Qrow (technically while Oz was in control but Oscar still felt the aftermath of that) out of the bird man’s anger and frustration towards Oz for the lies he told him and others. And just last season, Oscar literally got shot and sent to his presumed death by Ironwood for trying to correct mistakes made by both his predecessor and his allies.

And what’s worse about that is that Oscar had no say in any of that. He more or less just has to accept punishment for the actions of others whether he liked it or not.

So imagine if…for another time---presumably the last time--- Oscar makes himself a martyr; paying the price for Ruby---only this time, it’s his choice to give himself up for the girl he loves.

Doesn’t that sound like an interesting plot point to see? Perhaps this could be another way for Ruby to see the weight of her own actions and mistakes in a way.

In the Lost Princess of Oz story, I recall Princess Ozma being captured with her best friend (and closest confidant) Dorothy Gale being the one to lead a rescue party to save her. This is why I’ve been more inclined towards Oscar becoming Salem’s prisoner with Ruby the one to ultimately save him as his closest companion and potential love interest. I still like this possibility very much.

Then again, this could also easily go the the opposite direction in which both Ruby and Oscar become unwilling prisoners of Salem. While in captivity, Salem makes sure to keep both smaller, more honest souls apart in order to play off of their bond and devotion to one another and sort of maliciously manipulate and torment them into submitting to her will. That’s another possibility that I like.

The way how I see it, V9 could potentially be a standalone Dark Domain season where either Oscar is captured by Salem after sacrificing himself for Ruby leading to her leading their allies into the Land of Darkness in order to rescue the imprisoned little prince or….it could be about Ruby and Oscar dealing with being prisoners of Salem.

For me, my money will always more be on Oscar becoming Salem’s prisoner especially if he does it in Ruby’s place because I still love my headcanon of Oscar becoming the Boy in the Lonely Tower with Salem imprisoning him in a castle of solitude like how she was first locked away before Ozma found her. I still love that theory.

But who knows. Neither of this ideas could become a thing, as far as I know. Even if the CRWBY Writers mentioned something along the lines of reading fan’s comments for certain things to happen for certain characters, I highly doubt any of em would lend to any of this squiggly Pinehead’s million and one headcanons. As always, these are only my theories, thoughts and ideas for things for RWBY.

Either way, I will say that I do think that something big could potentially go down for both Ruby and Oscar respectively next volume.

I do think we could get that self-reflection on Oscar’s part like you want Ghost---I’m just unsure how it will work given the whole 1-2 days’ timeline. Given the fact that Oz has been gone for probably a month or some weeks since the heroes got to Atlas, it would’ve been better to see more time pass in the story in order to make Oscar and Oz’s bond growing within that time more believable, y’know what I mean? At least for me. This is just my opinion here.

I mean I guess I can look at it from the perspective for their bond being forced to grow faster due to the emergency of Salem’s arrival OR….perhaps V8 could only be the start of Oscar and Oz finally learning to coexist with one another and in the event that Oscar does indeed become Salem’s prisoner---if he’s captured, that will prove the PLOT more time to have Oscar bond with Oz since for a second time, the young boy will be all alone with only Oz as his companion. That could be something.

But who knows, y;know? I guess we’ll only know once more news of the next season drops, I suppose. In the meantime, I hope I was able to answer you, Ghost. Let me know if I did, please.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2020)

#squiggles answers: rwby #oscar pine #ruby rose #oscar and ruby #rwby rosegarden #rwby theories #rwby volume 8 theories #ghostpegasus #squiggles answers

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malleus-maledicarum · 3 years

Text

Consciousness hits Dorian like a stone suddenly, tho he can barely tell as his eyes open to pure darkness.

And in that darkness he lays for a moment, gathering his bearings. Before too long objects start shifting into view; familiar objects. It hits him again This is his room. It's unmistakable. The desk with his collectibles, the wardrobe, the window overlooking the yard though right now the curtains were closed. He was home. But...how? What was this? A dream? Did...

His questioning is cut off by the door opening a crack to let a slice of light to cut into the room. Faintly, there's the sound of music coming from downstairs.

Whether by compulsion, or curiosity....or worse, fear, he cautiously heads to the door to follow the music. The house is empty, no signs of anyone having come through recently

More than that the halls feel Strange Still his house, absolutely but.... They're off. As if everything was moved an inch to the left. And all the portraits are blank, empty voids where paintings once lived.

And were the hallways always this winding? It feels like it takes forever to reach the stairs, as if walking a maze. His hand grips the banister in a feeble attempt to ground himself.

The music is closer, a grand sweeping melody that honestly sounds like something his Mother would request played. Suppose that makes sense then that the music seems to be coming from their entertaining room.

Through the closed double doors he can see passing shadows that interrupt the light in the cracks. Were his parents throwing a party and didn't inform him? That was odd but...surely he had studying to do? Honestly so many details were hazy right now.

Curiosity once again getting the better of him, he pushes the door open ever so slightly to catch a glimpse inside. The room is much larger than he remembered it, too large to even fit the house. Lights dot the room, almost making everything blur with an ethereal glow. Masked shapes elegantly dance amongst each other, perfectly in tune with the band.

It's almost like a dream. And he realizes, that's because it is. The fact becomes clear when he sees a very specific figure mingling in the crowd.

Holding the hands of a faceless figure is Karver, who turns and catches Dorian's gaze.

"Oh there you are!" He detaches himself from the dancer, who stands perfectly still and watching them. Karver pays them no mind. "I was hoping you would find me, come in come in! You've never visited my home have you? Here, dance with me while we talk"

Dorian cannot get a word or protest in edgewise as Karver grabs his hand and pulls him into the swaying fray of bodies. All he can feel is confusion and indignation as Karver takes the lead position, resting a hand on his hip and pushing him around like a broom.

Getting his bearings, Dorian attempts and fails to stop the waltz and just goes along with it until he can exit the dream. "So it's your fault I'm here. Typical. Wh- what is this place? You're "home"? What does that mean?"

Karver chuckles, dipping him and quickly snatching him back up. "Did you expect me to just live in the emptiness of that little head of yours? Of course not. During my imprisonment, I've managed to create a respite while I finish up my work. Lovely, isn't it?"

The room spins around them, streaks of colors and shapes. Vague in every sense, it's impossible to make out any details Except Dorian strains his neck, swearing he sees someone familiar but Karver just keeps them moving. "I wanted to have a discussion with you, Dori. Try and reach an understanding."

Dorian cringes at the nickname "Absolutely not. In every sense. I'm done listening to you. All you have to say is poisonous drivel and I'm beyond fed up with it."

"Okay. Yes, alright I've been...less than kind to you." His hand sweeps out and quickly pulls Dorian back in holding him almost intimately close. "Even tonight I've said some less than cordial things to you. I'm realizing I've been going about this the wrong way."

This takes him aback. Karver has never once shown any signs of empathy or kindness in the entire time they've been together. Rarely to others and certainly never to him. Dorian stares into the eyes of his disease for...well anything. Hints of lying, mockery. Anything to make this make sense. "You...Have made my life more of a hell than it already was." His tone is cold, doing its best at indifference.

Karver's expression furrows, a tinge of annoyance, but he plays it off. "Your life was never that bad. Anyways. Yes. I've been cruel to you. It's for that reason I want to make amends. Make the transition easier."

"Transition?"

"Yes, for when I take over the body. You see-"

At that sentiment, Dorian finally rips himself from the dance and firmly plants his stance to glade daggers into his double.

The room falls silent and the figures stand perfectly still.

"You. Are not taking over, do you understand me you fucking plague.?"

With a sigh, Karver steps forward. His face looks the closest to sympathetic Dorian has ever seen. "You're getting weaker, Dorian. You were already so...weak. So small. You were barely able to survive childhood. Even now, you're losing your fight. Each dose grows more ineffective as your serum does its work, as I do my work." He steps closer Dorian takes another step back. "You made me-"

"I did NOT. You are a failed experiment and the WORST side effect-"

"YOU. Made. Me. You wanted a total overhaul. A full body and mental enhancement. You. wanted everything better."

They continue their perfectly in sync walk, one following the other, until Dorian feels his back hit the wall. Karver poses himself over him, all but trapping him in their conversation.

"You wanted everything fixed, you wanted to perfect yourself, and my Detested I'm sorry to tell you there was simply too much to fix." His hand reaches up to gently tuck a lock of hair behind Dorian's ear.

The man finds himself frozen, memories of that night filling his vision. The injection The awful feeling the night after followed by a few nights of feeling wonderful. The first time he heard Karver's voice. The voice that continues to lecture him.

"There was simply too much work to do, and I think on some level you recognize that don't you? You were never fast or strong. Not even head of your class. It tried, your little mixture truly did...but the only option left was to start from scratch."

When did Karver get this close? When did he wrap his hand around his in such a tender embrace? Intimacy alone was foreign to Dorian, but from his disease it was baffling. "I am your cure. I am the solution you asked for. But I know...how terrifying this must actually be for you. Trust me, I know how bleak nothing is. I could have made the process less painful, but my anger got the better of me. I want to remedy that now, and offer you a choice."

"A..A...." Words fail him. He's backed against a wall by his greatest enemy in such a passionate embrace, speaking to him in a way he's never experienced before "A choice?"

"Keep fighting. Succumb tired and afraid, losing potentially every aspect of yourself...or. Come willingly." Now Karver is cradling Dorian's face.

"Let me assimilate you by your own choice, complete the transition, and not only do you go with some dignity and grace but who knows? Maybe some traces of you will remain! The best parts of you accentuating my already superior attributes."

And there it was. The confused look on Dorian's face contorts into pure horror. Karver is looking at him with full sincerity, his voice so gentle and calm. As if this was a good ultimatum.

"Y-you." Dorian is practically shaking. "You're asking me whether I wish to be murdered or EUTHANIZED?"

"If you have to put such ugly terms on it...yes. Go peacefully or go down swinging but regardless Dorian, you are going to succumb. You pushed the needle in, your inferior body created me to replace you, the least I could do is offer you some mercy-"

"Mercy??" He scoffs, attempting to wrench his hand free. "You call this MERCY? Asking me to give up EVERYTHING to you, my whole life thrown away for someone else to live!"

"Oh please you were barely living your life. The crime they pinned on you aside, you had the social skills of a thorn bush. You couldn't even make a friend with the one person willing to talk to you. You were nothing and even if you get rid of me you will go back to being nothing."

Ouch. That's why the face looked familiar. Dorian looks back out into the crowd, now realizing the perfectly still figures were all people they knew And sure enough among them was Douglas. Masked, but undeniable.

"You...why is he here...?" His voice is a whisper. "Did...you make him?"

Karver follows Dorian's gaze and is silent for a moment. "...He was brilliant. And talented. He would have done amazing things. Then because of you, all that was taken away. This is more evidence. All you do is break things. You were a runt of a child and have grown into a failure of a man. Once replaced, maybe this body will be put to use."

"I...That was NOT my fault." A strange new fire he'd never felt rose in his stomach. "I am TRYING. And yes. I fuck up. But that is part of living. I'm...I'm going to swt things right. I'm going to survive. They're going to help me find my cure, and you will be such a forgotten memory even I won't remember your putrid name."

Karver is silent for a long while, studying Dorian closely. He seems to come to some sort of decision and sighs closely before stepping very close to him. "I want it known...I offered peace. And from here on out you will be treated as a tumor. And I am going to have you cut. Out. Dorian Rathmore. I tried being civil."

Without warning, his teeth were in Dorian's neck. Pain shot through him and he could feel blood dripping down Karver's mouth.

He sat upright suddenly. And a smile spread across Karver's face. After penning a letter and having it sent to the inn, he set off With newfound purpose and a new deal to make.

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frobin · 4 years

Text

astolfobia

hat auf deinen Eintrag geantwortet

“I can totally understand the Jinbe/Robin ship, it does make sense. But...”

>> What... do you mean about not being sure if Zoro reacted correctly or not about Usopp?

Hey hey,

okay this has nothing to do with FRobin and is more about Zoro, Usopp and the crew dynamics but since you asked I decided to answer. And I try to make myself clear because it’s probably VERY, VERY, VERY subjective and also comes from my female and very European point of view.

I read the scene again (in german bc I don’t have the official translation at hand) but I also looked if kaizoku-ni-naru has it translated and here it is: https://kaizokuou-ni-naru.tumblr.com/post/190464807603/thank-you-so-much-for-your-wonderful-blog-im

Also many of it is from memory because of course I’m missing the volumes with the beginning of Water7 More behind the read more:

Let’s do a little recap:

Usopp left the crew. Why? Because to him it seemed like they were leaving Merry behind because the ship wasn’t strong enough anymore.

That might seem weird since Merry is just a ship right? But we know that Merry had a soul, that manifested in the Klabauter. Merry was part of the crew but as soon as she was too weak (Usopp did not know that Merry was beyond repair), as soon as there was something better, Merry was replaced.

That hit Usopp hard because Merry had not only been a present from his friend Kaya but this ship had been with them through so much and who knows how strong the bond between Usopp and the ship had really grown (he had been the one to see the Klabauter and the first to hear Merrys voice) so of course for him it felt like they were abandoning not only a ship, a thing, but a friend and even a crew mate. Now, Usopp has a lot of problems. He feels weak, especially compared to Luffy, Sanji (who is also the cook) and Zoro who are The Monster Trio for a reason. Nami is a Navigator and so essential to the crew. Chopper is a doctor (also essential) and a literal monster!

But all Usopp can do is shoot. He is probably going to be the best sharp-shooter in the world but he is not aware of that. Not back then and not now. Even after all the amazing things Usopp did in the recent arcs, he still considers himself weak.

His self-worth is low and he loathes himself, probably feels like he is worth nothing. The only thing that he is good for is keeping Merry afloat, a memento to his island where he was important. Maybe the only thing that keeps him afloat too.

So, the crew is willing to abandon Merry. Who tells that they won’t abandon him? Right after he lost a part of the money that was supposed to be used for Merry, right after he had to be saved by his crew, because he is weak!

And you can bet that Usopp has abandonment issues too. After all, his father left to have adventures. Usopp lost his mother to sickness when he was still a small child. The village was annoyed by the child that ran every morning along the road to shout “Pirates are coming!”. Not as a threat but because he hoped that it would be true, that his dad would come back for him one day. Instead he grew up alone until he found some kids that thought he was cool enough to be their leader. He somehow managed to befriend the sick girl, and told her lies, like he did for his mother. And then Kaya was willing to renounce, to abandon him for Kuro.

Merry is important and they want to leave Merry - him - behind.

Usopp was afraid, got angry and he attacked Luffy.

Was it smart? No. Was is it understandable? Yes. Could they have handled all that better? Fuck yes!

But they are both teens who are stubborn and hot headed and in a tough and loaded situation. So I understand why it happened.

And Usopp again is beaten, even with his smarts and his knowledge of Luffy’s weaknesses. He could not win. Because he is too weak. He lacks. He is not good enough. Luffy not only destroyed Usopp’s (already beaten) body, but also another part of his self worth.

(I’m not crying you’re crying!)

Then, we all know that Robin was caught, while Usopp fixed himself up and then later met Franky. It was only then that Usopp learned that the ship was beyond repair but also learned that Merry had a Klabauter. And then more shit happened. What we also know is that Usopp had a very, very large role in the rescue of Robin and that he was one of the people who talked sense into her. Without him they wouldn’t have saved Robin and Luffy might have given up. He pep-talked him to continue fighting.

(It’s still you who is crying! Shut up!)

Anyway, let’s get to Zoro telling the rest of the crew that they can only accept Usopp back when he apologizes. Which, let’s be honest, makes sense.

Usopp should apologize. Because he was in the wrong. But his decisions came from a very specific place.

So yeah, Zoro is right. But I get a bad feeling at the whole display of aggression and that Zoro expects Usopp to live up to his (Zoro’s) also very specific views and values of a warrior and the honor associated with it, without caring for Usopp’s. Again, a boy who grew up alone without any role model except that vague idea of an amazing pirate that was sailing the sea.

And the whole “Either it is like I say or I go!” stroke me as especially harsh.

Because I’ve been confronted with that sentiment so often, that I felt that deep in my bones. When I read it first, I didn’t even realise why that scene shook me. But it was that exact sentiment that poisoned my club and ultimately made me leave it, because I gave the ultimatum right back “You will go if things don’t go your way? Then go or I leave!” I’ve been part of that club since I had been seven years old. I left it with 25 because I had more balls than that fucking asshole and I’m still pissed about it, ten years later. And I’m very forgiving.

What Zoro said was that everyone has to know their place or they are no material to be a pirate (which is kind of weird since some people become pirates to be free, if you want to follow and know your place, maybe you should become a Marine). Ultimately you have to know whom to follow and that is - in this case - Luffy and no one else. You have to trust his judgement because he is the captain or else he is not much of a captain.

And again this can make sense because if you don’t trust your captain or know your place on a ship it can be a death sentence at sea.

Then there is this thing that this is ‘no playing pirate’.

We still don’t know all of Luffy’s reasons why he wants to be pirate king but he often hints that he just wants to be free and have fun with his friends. That sounds a lot like ‘playing games’. At that point he only slowly learns that being a pirate is often way more serious and dangerous and filled with tough decisions than he thought. Playing games and have fun, that is why he was so delighted when he heard that Usopp wanted to come back. But playtime is over that is why he agreed with Zoro. Time to grow up they are at war after all.

We know why Usopp left the crew, went against his captain and friend, because Usopp felt like they were abandoning ANOTHER FRIEND.

But whatever reason there MIGHT BE does not matter for Zoro. He even says he does not know why all of it happened, does not care who was wrong or right.

I think that is a dangerous sentiment! Because personally, I feel like it’s important to try to see outside of your own perspective and I think you should never judge before you know all the facts. If you then still come to the same conclusion that is fine and if you come to another that is good too.That is what it means to make an informed decision, because the world is not black and white. Many things have reasons that are so layered that you can’t just expect everyone to come to the same conclusion when they don’t have the same information. That is why communication is important.

Usopp waited for the very last moment to reach out to his friends. The longer he waited the longer he could imagine that everything would be fine in the end. He gave himself to that illusion. Zoro would have never done that and so no one else should do it. He is not exactly empathic. I feel like Zoro can’t look farther than his own ideas.

But I can agree with Zoro to some amount. I understand where he comes from.

Do I like it? Absolutely not.

So, to slowly come to an end, we all know how this went. And I have to give it to Zoro, he also did say “I hear nothing” whenever Usopp tried to handle the situation like nothing had happened. He wanted him back too, after all.

And shit, it worked. Usopp cried out to his friends, he apologized and Luffy reached out to him to reel him in.

But I can’t help but think that it absolutely destroyed Usopp after all. He saw his friends leaving him behind in a foreign city without any support. He just got a bounty and so would get in the focus of the marines, especially them thinking he is still part of the Strawhat crew.

The crew, his friends, would leave him because he is weak and not worth anything and he would have no friends and be alone forever.

I don’t even want to start to imagine the pure despair he felt that moment. And it stayed with him, as we learn in Thriller Bark. And again and again.

So yeah.

It worked in the end but I think it could have been handled better.

Well, that is easy to say as a grown up with some more years under my belt and from an outside perspective. But even back when I first read it, it gave me a strange feeling.

I think at least one of the crew should have talked to Usopp and given him some clues. And I’m sure Franky would have if he knew what was up but he hadn’t been part of the crew. Robin didn’t for whatever reason talk to Usopp, but she also never agreed with Zoro, looked almost angry about it. Nami also didn’t want to go against her captain, I guess. Sanji agreed with Zoro, maybe also with a bad feeling and Chopper is even less experienced than any other of them.

Oda is an amazing storyteller with a lot of characters that have an incredible amount of layers but that does not mean I agree with him all the time and so I don’t agree with his characters all the time.

And that is what I meant. XD Sorry for the long text.

#astolfobia #One Piece #analysis #not frobin #aks #text #long text #Zoro #Usopp #Pirate Hunter Zoro #god usopp #meta #my opinion #kon #personal #the things you read and how you interpret them is always influenced by your own experiences #1900 words #damn

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ofhectors · 4 years

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[ michael trevino / male / 32 ] ❛ from over the ocean far hector reyes has come from curse of atlantis (boatswain) to sail upon the fortuna. HECTOR is known as the unenchanted on board, fitting considering they are quite meticulous & resentful. supposedly that’s why the captain chose HIM to be her surgeon. ❜

hey!! for those who haven’t met me, i’m alexa and i’m excited to be here. this is my first time writing a pirate, but i’m hyped to be playing my trash son, hector instead of him floating in my head. (fun fact: his first iteration was a silicon valley tech bro). interested in plotting? just like this post and i’ll reach out! or feel free to contact me on discord (alexa 🌙#2005).

basics.

full name : hector gabriel reyes vasquez nickname(s) : none age : 32 dob: december 27th, 1693 zodiac: capricorn (sun) / scorpio (moon) / aquarius (rising) gender: cis male pronouns: he/him orientation: heterosexual (or is he?) languages spoken: english, spanish, portugese (learning) languages written and read: english & spanish

his story.

on an island off the coast of mexico, hector was raised as a prince by his parents, but not enough to upset the spaniards who actually governed the island. his father was a fisherman, beloved by all and respected for his skill. while his mother managed the only inn on the island.

despite how well-respected his father was on the island, the reyes family knew their place in their place under spanish rule. at least, that’s what they attempted to teach their son. even as a child, he dreamt more for himself, daring himself to achieve more than the spaniards.

a naturally bright child, he had spent his childhood and early teenage years studying the secondhand books tossed aside. while others his age strayed away to forge their own path, hector only fell deeper and more determined to be a man like his father. he was no more than a child who never unlearned hero worship.

a childhood of eavesdropping on his parents taught him life was cruel. while they lived comfortably, hector believed they deserved more. a silent fury sat at his core and it only grew the more he found out from the people who visited their island.

power was currency, so he tailored himself adapting himself for every situation. he lived off the approval and praise of his peers. becoming whatever he needed to be for personal advancement till he was in the lion’s den - the personal doctor of the island governor. a glorified attendant for the man who made their island suffer.

as expected, it wasn’t enough for hector. however, before he could proceed to the next stage of his plan, his world collapsed on itself. some would say it was a case of bad timing. maybe if he hadn’t to help a farmer with their cattle, he would had been on time instead of running late. if he had been on time, maybe he could had continued to live in ignorance.

something died in hector the day he saw his father leave the bedroom of the governor’s wife. for a moment, his vindictive nature found a new target, his maker. only now, the vindictiveness he felt was nothing more than a cruel apparition of the sadness he felt.

for the first time, hector acted out in fury. he wasn’t his father’s son, he was a son prepared to protect his mother’s honor. over weeks, he gradually fed his father’s mistress poison. he watched in silence as the poison slowly killed her. when he was brought in to care for her, hector ensured the bag of belladonna was planted on his father’s boat. any love he had for his father died months ago.

though fate wasn’t done with hector. maybe it was punishment for his role in condemning his father to an early death, but a year later his mother found herself ill. despite fetching the physicians from the nearby islands, none of them seem to know a cure for her illness.

now, he wasn’t one to believe in fairy tales. hector had only cared for what could be proved with logic and reason, but the fear of losing his mother brought out desperation. there was tales of an old witch on a neighboring island who talked to forgotten gods and how she could perform miracles in exchange for a favor.

there was always a loophole he thought, the night he gave the witch his blood to seal their deal. the witch wouldn’t be the first person he fooled, his ego laughed.

yet, destiny was a cruel mistress. only two years later, the witch contacted him to repay her for her services. apparently it was his job to find a lost treasure, a locket that supposedly contained the heart of star, for the hag. he attempted to present her a forged locket which only caused the witch to laugh at his hubris, “magic can’t be forged, you foolish boy”.

when the witch’s patience with him growing thin, she gave him an ultimatum. leave the island and only return when he found the locket or risk the return of his mother’s illness. return without the locket and the witch promised to erase his mother’s memories of him. while he couldn’t prove the witch was actually capable of fulfilling her promise, hector couldn’t take the risk.

joining the curse of atlantis as the crew’s surgeon, he left his childhood home behind. over the span of two years, he climbed the ranks and became a boatswain if only to keep a closer eye on the loot the crew acquired. when word of captain biyu needing a surgeon reached him, he seeked her out leveraging his language on herbs and poisons. although he was no longer the foolish child he once was, hector never stopped wanting more for himself. the faster he found the locket, the faster he could return to his mother.

personality.

honestly? he’s a snake, but he drinks ‘respect women’ juice and is obviously a major mama’s boy.

“this isn't america's next top best friend“ - hector reyes. he’s not here to make friends, but he’ll protect the crew for the sake of saving face. he’ll drink and joke with the best of them, but only enough to seem sociable instead of actually living in the moment.

despite how bright as he is, he’s nosy in a fight. he has been a pirate for nearly three years and just learned how to sword fight. don’t hand him a gun.

type of man to deny thinking fondly of you, but also remembers your birthday and tries to do something nice for you.

“down with the bourgeois“ - also hector reyes. marx who?

he denies loving the pirate lifestyle, but there’s always a half smile on his face when he’s watching the sunrise on the boat.

he vehemently denies the existence of magic, but he’s also the first person to distance himself from anything magical or cursed. probably the type of person to hate astrology and call it a pseudo sciene.

his powerpuff girl would def be blossom.

connections.

no homo, bro: his entire life, hector assumed men were meant to be with women. yet, he enjoyed the night he shared with your muse.

who needs friends when you have an “ally”: hector doesn’t need friends, but he recognized how useless the lone wolf mentality is. it’s nice to have someone to talk to on the boat and joke around with.

his old crew from the curse of atlantis

the surgeon club: let’s get that group chat popping lmao. grey’s anatomy who?

more to come!!!

#fortuna:intro #(proofreading? who's that?)

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