#varsity jacket gideon | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale · 3 years

Text

TWDG: The Final Season | Character Discussion | 1/2

Part 1 | Part 2

“Everyone’s counting on me to step up. Be the leader they need me to be... I really want to be that for them.”

So.... let’s talk about Marlon.

I mean, let’s really talk about him. Ever since I started this blog, some common questions I get revolve around Marlon- “How do you feel about Marlon?” “Do you think he deserved a redemption arc?” “Why do you think he was sent to Ericson?” “In your opinion, is Marlon a bad person?” and many others.

Some ask with expectations that I’ll express a distaste or hatred for him, while others ask with a more sympathetic approach. If you know me, if you’ve been here for a while, then you know that I do indeed like Marlon as a character, and today I want to talk about him from my perspective while playing this game.

And with that comes a seemingly unnecessary disclaimer, but one I feel I need to add in order to make it abundantly clear: I will be discussing MY thoughts, experiences, and feelings about Marlon within TFS and give my take on his character. Because we’re not the same person, you may have a different opinion or perspective on his character, you may disagree with something I say, and that’s perfectly okay. You’re entitled to your opinion as I am mine, and I do encourage you to join in on the discussion and express your thoughts about Marlon, but I also want to let you know that you can do that without attacking me or anyone else.

Really, this is pretty much me looking at Marlon’s role and arc within TFS, discussing points of his character that I find interesting, exploring the why’s and how’s of his actions, maybe coming up with a couple theories as to why he was sent to Ericson, and basically giving a lot of personal opinions of him. It’s a discussion meant in good fun, that’s all I’m saying.

Before we dive right in, I do want to thank @pi-creates for providing me with most of the screenshots used in this. I appreciate the help! If you haven’t already, go check out Pi’s blog for some of the best screenshots and model swaps in the TWDG community! Thank you, thank you!

[First and foremost, y’all are sleeping on Ray Chase’s performance as Marlon and it really shows]

“Looks like I was announced as Marlon, the central focus in this first episode of The Walking Dead Season 4 coming in a few weeks. I've been playing this series since the beginning, and it was a real honor to be a part of the canon. I hope you enjoy!“ - Ray Chase’s Twitter account | July 26, 2018

I want to start this off with praising Marlon’s voice actor, Ray Chase, for doing such a perfect job of bringing Marlon’s character to life. Every emotion and infliction feels genuine, and there’s isn’t a single moment where I don’t “see” Marlon, y’know? I mean that in the sense that every line delivered is believable and doesn’t break my immersion with, “Oof, they really used that take?”

I know we throw praise upon Melissa, Tayla, Sterling, and Gideon [and for good reason, they’re all fantastic, too!] but even with them there are a couple of lines that I notice have a lack of flow or sound just a bit off. I’ve played TFS how many times? And not once have I had that issue with Ray Chase as Marlon, so bravo to this man. Credit where credit is due, his performance is damn near flawless.

Especially in the confrontation scene at the end of Done Running. I’ll get into that scene as a whole later, but just looking at the performance and the intense, impactful emotion brought to that scene, just..... *chef kiss*

Thank you, Ray Chase.

[What’s up with your haircut, Marlon?]

“Uh, I look cool... I say, I look cool.”

Lemme talk a little bit about Marlon’s design- I think he looks great.

I love the little details in the Ericson varsity jacket he wears... including the fact that it looks just a tad bit too snug on him. Like, either the boy doesn’t have another jacket or he’s grown so attached to this one that he’s not willing to admit that he’s outgrown it a bit.

I’ve had a lot of people point out that it’s nice to see a teenage character in these games with actual acne since most media pretends that acne just doesn’t exist, and I agree. We all know that if this were more realistic, then everyone would have terrible, greasy, dirty skin but... y’know.

And y’know what? I like the mullet! It’s unique! And I choose to believe it’s a representation of Marlon’s past with bad decisions he’s too stubborn to admit were bad decisions... I mean, he’s had it since he was a kid and hadn’t grown it out or cut it off [to our knowledge, I suppose] sooo... there’s that.

Or maybe he does actually think it looks badass. Either way.

Hell, my biggest complaint about Marlon’s design is that I wish they kept more to this concept art attire:

Because Marlon looks super good in this concept art. I love the headband with the mullet and his clothes actually look more comfortable... but like, it’s fine. He still looks great in the game, his little jacket’s cool, bringing back the mullet...its fine. I’m just sayin’. He looks great.

[Marlon’s introduction in TFS]

“It's our little kingdom. I just do what I can to keep the peace. Wasn't always like this, though. There used to be a lot of us, but...you know how it goes.”

Let’s talk about how Marlon’s introduced.

We get our first look at him after Clementine and AJ crash their car during the walker attack. A bunch of arrows come flying, hitting walkers attempting to get ahold of them, and as Clementine glances over she sees a figure pulling AJ out of the car. And even though you can tell it’s Marlon, this closer shot from Pi-

-100% confirms that it’s him. Not that you had any doubt, but still.

What’s interesting, though, is that while snooping around for some insight about Marlon from the writers/devs, wandering around reddit, replaying the game myself, and even glancing over the all-knowing wiki that’s never wrong ever, it seems agreed upon that Marlon wasn’t alone, despite no one else being specifically mentioned to have helped Clementine and AJ.

Which makes sense that that’d be the case, but I did come across a handful of people who are pretty adamant that he was alone, which is an interesting take, though I disagree.

I’m pretty sure most people do, too. I mean, Marlon says, “It's good we found you when we did. It wasn't easy getting you two out of that wreck, and walkers were on the way.” So I don’t even think that was the writers’ intention of it being solely Marlon who saved them.

What’s funny is I came across a post Instagram [I know, the most legitimate source for info and thoughtful opinions] that was surprisingly trying to redeem/defend Marlon rather than chastise him by claiming he’s a hero who saved Clementine and AJ by himself.

The thing is, they’re both unconscious after the wreck, so unless Marlon has super-human speed to grab AJ, zip around the car to grab Clementine, and then uses super-human strength to carry both of them AND their belongings all while killing any threatening walkers coming after them with his bow... I’m gonna have to press [X] Doubt.

Besides, I like the idea of it being vague. I like to think that was the intention. “Who was Marlon with? A hunting party! You fill in the blanks!” That sort of deal.

With everything that we know about Marlon and the safe-zone, it does lead to questions about why he and whoever felt they had to go outside it to see what was happening. Marlon points out in his conversation with Clementine that they “had to work fast. I don't know what would've happened if we hadn't seen the smoke...” And later Violet mentions an explosion, so I think it’s safe to say that they heard the explosion and followed the smoke to the location.

If you don’t know about the raiders and the twins [like it’s your first time playing] then you probably assume that Marlon and his group were being kind in rescuing them, which I don’t doubt but it does make you wonder about things from Marlon’s perspective, y’know?

This is one of those “shhh, don’t think, just go with it” moments. If I had to give a reason, I’d say that the group he was with didn’t think twice about checking it out and even if Marlon did protest, he didn’t have much choice but to follow. Then, seeing that it’s Clementine and AJ, I believe he genuinely wanted to save them.

“All alone with the kid? Not a pleasant thought. I've seen some rough scenes. But that one would've been up there.”

We get our second and more official introduction to Marlon after Clementine escapes her dorm and confronts Tenn... and it’s pretty fucking good. I mean, everything from him being hidden in the shadows with his bow drawn, to the clear concern yet sternness in his voice as he assures Clementine they’re not going to hurt her and to put the knife down, to his sympathetic apology for scaring her is just an A+.

One thing this season does exceptionally well is introducing its characters. Marlon has such a confident yet chill way about him when you first meet that it’s actually disheartening to think that in two hours he’s gonna be pulling a gun and MURDER....

Sigh.

Let’s not jump that far ahead yet. I’m not ready.

What I find appealing about this next part is Clementine’s reaction to seeing the inside of Ericson for the first time and how taken aback she seems by it. I also love how easy and comfortable it is to talk with Marlon as they’re walking through the yard even though we just met him.

I enjoy that you can tell he’s trying to get a better idea of who she is without pressuring or overwhelming her and doing his best not to offend. And even when Clementine questions if he doesn’t think she can handle herself, he’s decent about apologizing and explaining that’s not what he meant. But he’s also not afraid to be upfront about AJ’s behavior since they brought him here, either.

He does come off as annoyed when talking about AJ being a handful. We don’t know how long Clementine’s been passed out or how long they had to deal with AJ after he woke up, so who knows how much of a little terror AJ was before they either dumped him with Louis or Louis decided to take him to the music room to chill... where he then bit Ruby.

Anyway, the first impression I got of Marlon is that he’s genuinely friendly, trying to help Clementine and AJ even if AJ’s been a nuisance, and he’s confident in the system he has in place for them. He is rather forward and proud about being the school’s leader when first telling Clementine.

Having played through the whole season several times and knowing how Done Running ends, it’s interesting to look at Clementine’s first conversation with Marlon with that all knowing perspective- knowing what he did to the twins, knowing that Brody’s involved and that Marlon’s going to eventually kill her, going to try and frame Clementine for the murder, knowing that he was planning on giving Clementine and AJ away...

I can definitely look at this conversation with a more skeptical lens and say he’s more so trying to sell the idea that he has everything under control in this kingdom for kids and he’s a proper leader with a system in place despite being so young with no adults around. But hey, that’s the natural progression- Ericson is a perfectly chill safe haven and the Ericson crew get along swell... except no, the cracks slowly begin to surface as the episode goes on until all hell breaks loose with Marlon at the center.

[Rosie is best girl]

“You said dogs brought back bad memories. I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were so scared of them. But I swear, Rosie's not as frightening as she seems...See? She's harmless. She just needs to get to know you, is all. Here. I'll show you. Do you trust me? “

I’ll be completely honest- the thing that initially sold me on trusting Marlon the first time I ever played this episode was his relationship with Rosie.

If you know me, then you know that I love dogs. I have a pup named Piglet that I adore, I’ve grown up with dogs my whole life, and I have a huge appreciation and soft spot for animals. I’m one of those people that can’t stand others who are mean or cruel to harmless animals. It’s different if you’re hunting for food or if an animal attacks you and you’re defending yourself... but I’ve known people who have gone out of their way to hurt animals. I’m out in a country area with a lot of dangerous roads for wandering animals, and the amount of people I’ve driven with who’ll swerve to hit a squirrel, a cat, a dog because they enjoy it is too many. After those incidents, I cut those people out of my life. If you don’t have that love and appreciation in your heart, then I want nothing to do with you.

So when I saw that Rosie, while the school’s dog, is more portrayed to be Marlon’s dog above everyone else, I remember thinking to myself, “Okay, I trust him. He clearly loves this dog, wouldn’t mistreat her, and that’s a step in the right direction.”

While I wasn’t skeptical of him and his intentions before, it really was that natural relationship he held with Rosie that kind of sealed the deal for me- “I like Marlon! He’s probably going to die because he’s the leader and they never last but when it does happen, I’m gonna be super upset about it.”

And well, to be fair... I was super upset when he died, just more so than I originally planned because there was also that element of betrayal mixed into the pain, y’know?

Speaking of trust and Rosie- My second favorite Marlon scene is the office scene. But let’s talk about the Rosie bit specifically. After Tenn leaves and Rosie comes in, she scares Clementine and brings back those traumatic memories of when Sam attacked her.

Marlon comes in and cools the situation, and I love the way he talks to Clementine in this moment.

I love that he doesn’t immediately turn to Clementine like, “What’d you do?” but recognizes that she’s afraid of Rosie due to her previous experience, one that he remembers her mentioning. He also knows how well trained Rosie is to recognize scents and people, which explains why she’s behaving that way- she doesn’t know Clementine.

I feel like I’m using this word a lot, but Marlon’s approach to helping Clementine with her fear of dogs feels so genuine. He holds his hand out and waits for her to accept, and if she does, he walks Clementine through what to do, beginning Clementine’s bond with Rosie.

“Get down on her level. Let her get your scent. It's okay. She's not gonna hurt you.”

It’s incredibly sweet and humanizing to see Marlon like this.

The best part about this scene, though, is that you can reject Marlon’s offer and he won’t be upset.

“No problem. I'm not gonna pressure you.”

And he doesn’t. He doesn’t get annoyed, he doesn’t press, no questions asked, and he doesn’t say anything to make Clementine feel bad for her decision. He respects that she isn’t ready to get close with Rosie.

The reason I love this is because how many times have we made decisions in this game, big and small, and had the other characters get annoyed or try to guilt us? “Oh, you don’t want to bond with the dog? Rosie’s the best, everyone loves dogs! What’s wrong with you?” None of that here. That’s something I appreciate about Marlon in this moment.

It shows that when he wants to, he can listen and understand those around him... something he clearly struggles with when it comes to certain members of Ericson.

I’ll swing back around and talk about that entire scene in a bit, but one last thing about Rosie... can I just say how heart breaking it is to hear her whine at Marlon’s funeral? Solidifying that she was definitely Marlon’s dog more than anyone else’s? And the way Rosie lays on his grave several times in episode 2?

Oof.

[Ericson’s perception of Marlon prior to the final confrontation and after]

“...when the world went to shit, he bailed. All the other adults did. Left us behind to fend for ourselves... Now it's just us kids left.”

I want to touch on how the Ericson crew seem to view Marlon as a leader before and after the final confrontation.

When looking at and discussing a character, it’s important to not just focus solely on them. You can gather a lot about a character based on how others respond and perceive them.

Not everyone expresses something towards Marlon within Done Running. Y’know, like Omar or Ruby, for example. Though we do get a bit more from them after Marlon’s death, their perception of him is different now that they’ve learned what he’s done and witnessed his murder.

So we don’t know how Ruby, Omar, Willy or Mitch viewed his leadership prior to those events, y’know? It’s safe to assume that they’re fine following him as a leader since they’re background characters at this point and make no objections to his leadership at any time before the confrontation. But, after learning the truth, they turned against him.

Then things get complicated when Marlon’s murder traumatizes them.

What a mess.

But for this section, there are two characters I want to get into specifics about. They’re worth talking about because they further Marlon’s character, but they’re not the most important, y’know? Characters like Louis, Tenn, and Brody will get their own sections.

The one I find most interesting among side characters is Aasim. Right off the bat, you get a feel for what his relationship is like with Marlon:

Marlon: “How'd it go out there?”

Aasim: “How do you think it went?”

Brody: “Be nice, Aasim.”

Aasim: “The safe zone's nearly dry. I could barely find enough for tonight. We're gonna have to scout out further if we want food for the winter.”

Marlon: “We'll talk about it later.”

Aasim: “Bullshit, we should talk about this right now-”

Marlon: “I said later, damn it!”

So... they’re not exactly besties. The game makes a clear point that Aasim is more vocal in his disagreements and concerns towards Marlon than the others. They even reiterate it when you talk with him later:

“He keeps pulling back the safe zone. We have fewer and fewer places to hunt. Which means we're gonna have fewer and fewer things to eat.”

No one else opposes Marlon like he does, not counting Brody in the basement since that’s a whole other thing and Brody will get an entire segment to herself later.

It’s pretty clear that this isn’t the first time they’ve had this conversation, but because Marlon’s in a place of power, Aasim doesn’t have much choice but to go along with it. Because no one else is speaking up, he doesn’t have anyone to back him up, and you can tell he goes with it reluctantly. He also voices annoyances when it comes to how Marlon treats Louis if you go hunting.

Knowing this, you can infer that Marlon doesn’t want to hear what Aasim has to say, and he doesn’t appreciate someone questioning his leadership. When Aasim steps in Marlon’s path and says, “Bullshit, we should talk about this right now-” what does Marlon do?

He shoves his shoulder into Aasim’s as he pushes past, and in a louder, commanding tone, replies, “I said later, damn it!” which leads to Aasim glaring after him... but he doesn’t pursue. Marlon has a hard time with someone like Aasim and his response is to shut him down rather than stop, listen to his concerns, and address them.

That’s something Marlon struggles with as a leader- control and listening. Control over his temper and anger, listening and addressing the concerns of the people he swears to protect.

The reason I bring this up is because Aasim is our first indication that the image Marlon was giving off previously isn’t as spotless as he wants us to believe. Aasim plants a seed of doubt, y’know? He gives an argument that the player can get behind.

“Yeah, why not extend the safe zone? If food is really as bad as you say it is, then what other choice is there? Just be extra cautious so no one gets hurt,” which can then lead to thinking, “Why is Marlon so insistent about the safe zone? Is he hiding something?”

Once that seed is there, it grows.

Now as for how Aasim’s view of Marlon changes during and after the confrontation, you can see that he’s one of the few that wants to hear Clementine’s side to things, and he steps forward after Louis/Violet intervenes.

Then after Marlon dies, Aasim is... well, he’s rather neutral? And I say that meaning he’s more in a middle ground between Louis and Violet, who are on extreme opposite ends. Aasim isn’t okay with Marlon’s death, nor is he okay with AJ killing him, but he can see that kicking Clementine and AJ out isn’t the best solution. Hence why he voted for them to stay.

You can see he’s still angry at Marlon for what he did during the funeral scene, but the game doesn’t care to show more beyond that. Which, in my opinion, was a missed opportunity on their part.

And because I’m me, I also want to add that this perfectly sets up the idea of Aasim taking over once Marlon died and the writers shot themselves in the foot for wasting him like that. Good job.

Now let’s talk about Violet. People love when I do that.

Marlon and Violet don’t interact too much prior to the confrontation. The most we see them together is during the card game, and they’re chill. Violet makes fun of his hair, he says he looks cool, they’re decent to each other, it’s all good. They’re on friendly terms.

Which I do find it interesting that she seems like she’s chill with Marlon, but she has such a hard time with Brody. Granted, that’s because she was supposed to go with them but asked Brody to cover her, and then when the twins died, she felt guilty. But you’d think that she’d also have some issues with Marlon, given that he was also there and, like Brody, unable to save them.

You could argue that because Violet and Brody were friends before it had a stronger effect, whereas she and Marlon weren’t ever that close, so it didn’t strike as bad, y’know?

Though this does kind of get explained later if you choose to stick with Violet through ep4. Well, sort of? A little? She tells you:

Violet: “...I remember how Marlon described it, what we were gonna turn Ericson into. It's not the way any of us pictured it.”

Clementine: “How did you picture it?”

Violet: “I guess I couldn't. I just listened to what Marlon said. How it would be a home, a real one. But I couldn't really wrap my head around it.”

And when she talks about people who cared about her that she pushed away, she does list Marlon as one of those people, which is super interesting given all the loathing she’s done towards him after the truth came out.

It could be that in the past, she saw Marlon as the leader and why would he lie? He’s the one who stepped up, promised that they’d made Ericson into something special, into a brand new home... what reason does she have to distrust him?

So when she finds out the truth... well, that betrayal completely shatters everything she has for Marlon, going as far as for her to believe that AJ was justified in what he did and shit talking Marlon in front of his mourning best friend.

So her reaction to Marlon after this makes sense, but what does this tell us about Marlon himself?

Again, depending on how you view him, you can look at this idea of Marlon being kind to Violet and them being on friendly terms after what happened to the twins a few different ways- Marlon was manipulating Violet solely for his sake, or Marlon felt guilty that something he did hurt her this bad and tried to make Violet feel better, or both.

I think it was both. After the twins died, we all know the amount of guilt Marlon carried with him, so having to be confronted with the fallout of that in the form of someone like Violet... he had to be careful. I don’t doubt that he cared about Violet or that he tried to reach out to her, but he also had to protect himself for the sake of maintaining his leadership and control of Ericson. So, of course, he had to lie to her which manipulated her feelings about him and the situation.

I believe Violet recognized it, too. When she says they should’ve asked more questions about what happened, I think that’s her being more pissed with herself for trusting Marlon and not questioning him further, for taking his word for it.

I’ve come across theories suggesting that Marlon actually manipulated Violet into placing blame onto Brody rather than him, which is why she is on friendly terms with him but not so much Brody. And that’s a valid interpretation. There isn’t any solid evidence of this within the game to suggest either way, but I can definitely see how someone would come to that conclusion. Especially after the confrontation.

Now let’s touch on Violet if you appeal to her, because Marlon does something that makes me go “Hmmmm...”

Clementine, when she appeals to Violet, say, “Violet you have to believe me.”

To which, Marlon immediately steps in and says, “You don't. You met her, like, two days ago!”

He doesn’t even give her a chance to speak.

With Louis, he’s so overly confident that he has him completely wrapped around his finger that he doesn’t feel the need to say anything. He feels he has control over Louis. But with Violet, he feels his control might not be as strong, so he needs to remind her that she just met Clementine, whereas she’s known him for years- something he uses against the whole group.

And when Clementine tries to talk to her, Marlon takes a low blow and it’s super shitty.

“Don't let her get in your head. Hey, what would Minnie want you to do? She was my friend, too. So was Brody.”

He’s desperate to crawl out of the grave this situation has put him in that he’s willing to go this low, doing everything he can to make sure Violet doubts Clementine... and y’know, whose to say this is the first time Marlon is using Minnie to manipulate her? And when it doesn’t work, he gets frustrated like “Violet being difficult. Why am I not surprised?” which could suggest that it hasn’t always worked.

It goes back to what I was saying- Marlon tried to get close to Violet and she never let him. She was difficult to be around after the twins died due to her grief and Marlon struggled with that.

When he finally comes clean, this is where the real shift happens with him and Violet. You can see the hatred burning on her face every time the camera pans over to her now that she’s felt betrayed by him and his actions.

Right before Marlon dies, if you choose to say nothing, Violet will step forward and start saying that he doesn’t get to stay, but gets cut off when AJ shoots him.

All in all, Violet is a big case against Marlon and a showcase of how far his manipulation as gone within Ericson.

[Marlon’s office and foreshadowing of motivations]

“Whenever someone goes outside the safe zone, bad shit happens. People die or disappear. I just... I could really use the help, Clementine. Taking care of these kids, it's not easy. I'm worried that if I don't figure something out, if...if I don't fix our food situation... I can't lose anyone else. We've already lost so much. Friends, siblings... I can't let another kid die. It could break us.”

Swinging back around, let’s talk about the rest of the scene in the office.

First off- it’s implied that Marlon uses the office as a bedroom given the mattress on the floor and some of his personal belongs laying about. Like the photo he keeps of him and Louis.

The bed isn’t for Rosie, we assume, since we later see her sleeping outside while chained up. This might be just because they wanted Rosie present for the confrontation scene but didn’t want her loose, so they put her outside when you’d think that she’d sleep inside with everyone else.

Or, maybe she just prefers to be outside when the weather’s nice, or they keep her as a guard in case something were to happen, that way she can alarm them.

Anyway, why does Marlon potentially sleep in his office rather than in a dorm? Or does he have a dorm that he’ll sleep in, but keeps the mattress there just in case?

Well, a show of authority, for one. Even if he does keep a dorm room, it’s likely that he made the office his own as a way to be like “The headmaster is gone, this is my office now. I’m in charge.”

Which makes sense.

And when you think about what Louis tells us about Marlon having all these sleepless nights and tough calls, it’s not hard to imagine him spending late nights in his chair going over different plans and stressing over the food situation/safe zone, as well as letting the guilt of the twins weigh on him to the point were he’s too exhausted to even leave.

Moving on to the actual conversation between him and Clementine. He does show a vulnerable side to her, which I like. He can feel the pressure he’s under and sense the loss he’s suffered. But...like before, looking at this knowing what I know, it’s not hard to see certain things in a different light opposed to what you’d see as a new player.

What’s interesting, though, is while I do enjoy this conversation and the bits of insight it gives to Marlon’s character, there is this subtle, slightly off undertone of the whole scene after the Rosie bit.

At this point, we’ve talked with Aasim and he’s planted the seed of doubt.

We’ve heard the story about the twins. Violet came and talked to us about it, we could visit their graves and learn that they died at this time last year. Anyone who has played any game or heard any story can pick up on that the twins are important. They’re not going to use these girls as some throw away lines. They’re going to come back one way or another.

We’re literally living in their dorm. The dorm that Marlon put us in. They’re heavily connected to Tenn and Violet, two important characters I previously discussed. Then, Violet comes barging into our room and talks about them some more.

It makes the gears turn, y’know?

And with Marlon being very insistent that they stay in the safe zone, it’s not hard to question the story about the twins. I went through and skimmed a couple play throughs on youtube to this scene and a lot of them were theorizing that the twins weren’t actually dead or something wasn’t right, some cracks are starting to show. Why else bring it up? Marlon being the one to push the dangers of the safe zone and everything with Aasim... it’s not hard to pick up that he might be hiding something.

The thing I find fascinating about people’s perception of Marlon is how they interpret his motivations when it comes to Clementine and AJ, and that can be tracked back to this scene.

We all know that he’s planning on giving them to the raiders if they come back. It’s a hard fact. Brody warned us before she died, and dialogue during the basement scene backs it up.

But the question I’m curious about is... when did this motivation begin?

When did Marlon decide that he would give Clementine and AJ to the raiders if they ever came back?

Because the text doesn’t tell us anything until Brody’s death, I feel like we all have a different moment where we believe that became Marlon’s secret motive, y’know?

In all my digging, I’ve read posts about this idea, people giving their thoughts on when they think Marlon secretly turned on us, or if he was ever really on our side.

One has people theorizing that Marlon saved Clementine and AJ with the intention of giving them away from the beginning.

So he saw taking these two in and earning their trust as an opportunity to save everyone else at the school [the people he cares about] rather than have to sacrifice anyone else like they did with the twins. Clementine and AJ were just a means to an end if the raiders came back.

Which is a rather sinister way to look at it and puts quite a negative spin on Marlon’s actions towards them - like how he’s willing to let them stay at the school not out of kindness but out of bad intentions, and every kind thing he ever did was to win over their trust so he could lure them out into the woods and do a trade if necessary.

The line “Take this. I don't want you gettin' lost.” gets pointed at a lot due to how Marlon says it, the infliction of it, and it’s theorized that the hidden meaning behind it is “Take this, if you get lost then I can’t make the trade.”

Same thing with “Just remember to stay in the safe zone. We need you to come back home in one piece.”

Which isn’t a wrong interpretation of this. You can totally look at this conversation between Marlon and Clementine as Marlon subtly foreshadowing his turn, or betrayal, at the end of the episode.

“...It's how we've kept ourselves from unwanted attention for so long. Well... For the most part, anyway.”

“I can't lose anyone else. We've already lost so much. Friends, siblings... I can't let another kid die. It could break us. Sorry. I'm just... There's a lot of pressure.”

“What, did you think I was gonna throw you out?“

Then there are the middle ground people who believe Marlon didn’t save Clementine and AJ with that intention in mind, but it started to appear as an option to him either a bit before or during the office scene. Y’know, it came as a passing thought that ended up lingering until he acknowledged it as a solution to a potential problem.

Again, pointing at the dialogue from before- him suggesting that he’ll do whatever it takes to keep his community alive... just like he did before.

And while he gets along with Clementine and AJ [or as some would suggest, he appears to be friendly], they’re not his family. He isn’t close to them the same way he is the rest of the school. and if he has to give anyone away, it’s going to be them, whether he wants to or not.

Marlon didn’t want to give Sophie and Minerva away, and he’s carried that with him up until this point. We see it manifest to a breaking point that lead to Brody’s death and, eventually, his own.

Finally, there are the people who believe that the idea of giving Clementine and AJ away didn’t occur to him until after the incident with Abel. After Brody panicked and told him about getting robbed, then Clementine claiming they met a man with different colored eyes who wanted food, and the realization that the raiders could be back.

This is where I personally stand when it comes to this idea. I believe that Marlon didn’t decide on this until he heard about Abel, and solidified it during the fight with Brody down in the basement.

But what about the dialogue in this scene that potentially has double meanings? Well, I believe that’s the writers suggesting Marlon’s turn and motivations rather than Marlon himself, if that makes sense. Like I said before, you could take nearly everything Marlon says as some sort of foreshadowing or suggestion of what happened to the twins, what his true intentions are with Clementine and AJ, and what will happen to him at the end of the episode.

That’s the thing- Marlon doesn’t ever go on a mustache-twirling monologue about how he knew he could use Clementine and AJ as trade if the raiders came back and that’s the real reason why he saved them, nor do we see him come up with the idea on the spot.

Hell, Marlon never admits to the player that he was going to do that. The most he says is, “Shut your fucking mouth! I made the right call. I saved the lives of everyone in this fucking school! If they came back... I'd do it again!”

Brody is the one who told us everything, and every time Clementine throws it back in his face, he tells her to shut up and threatens her with the gun.

But from what I’ve tried to gather about what Marlon and Brody talk about in the basement before Clementine gets down there...

Marlon: “Why can't you just do what I ask you to do?”

Brody: “Because we caused all this, and now we have to deal with it!”

Marlon: “I am dealing with it!”

Brody: “By tradin' more of us away? That's not fixin' the problem, that's runnin' away from it!”

[I’ll come back to this full conversation later when I go over the basement scene by itself. It gets pretty dark.]

Which.... yeah. So, I’m not trying to say Brody was lying or anything just because Marlon never flat out admitted it to us the player, I’m just saying that we don’t know for sure when he made up his mind about this since the game never gives a clear suggestion for the sake of his dramatic turn from friend to antagonist.

Did he have this idea from the start or did he come up with it during this conversation?

We don’t know, but it’s interesting to look at the different views surrounding this question and how it applies to Marlon’s character. Because yeah, if you truly believe that Marlon had this intention from the start, it makes all of his actions in this episode pretty scummy. And again, that’s not wrong because there isn’t an answer here.

I choose to believe that maybe the idea came as an unwanted thought in the beginning, but manifested into something real when he heard about Abel. He shared his plan with Brody, who didn’t want to go along with it.

And y’know what... let’s finally get into the basement scene and Brody...

Continued in Part 2/2

#twdg marlon #twdg character discussion #twdg clementine #twdg aj #twdg louis #twdg violet #twdg aasim #twdg ruby #twdg mitch #twdg willy #twdg omar #twdg brody #twdg tenn #twdg sophie #twdg minerva #marlon character discussion #twdg #long post

61 notes · View notes

dailynewswebsite · 4 years

Text

The clothes make the candidate: The sartorial politics of this year’s key Senate races

Conservative go well with? Examine. Rep tie? Examine. Mitch McConnell seems each inch a senator. Scott Applewhite/Getty

When Richard Nixon praised his spouse’s “respectable Republican material coat” in his 1952 Checkers speech, her garments weren’t the purpose.

Quite, Nixon drew a direct line from a coat to the values he proclaimed – frugality, integrity, public service – to counter accusations of monetary impropriety.

Nixon understood that garments are the story we inform about ourselves. Psychologist Dan McAdams’ work on narrative identification highlights the significance of the tales we inform about ourselves to our capacity to make sense of our place on the planet.

For a lot of – significantly public figures – clothes is a extra intentional, outward manifestation of their story, or narrative identification: It reveals who they need to be, the model of themselves they need the world to see.

For politicians, clothes is a option to challenge authenticity, or consistency with a super sort. Perceptions of authenticity give voters confidence in candidates’ integrity, persuading them that candidates will fulfill marketing campaign guarantees as soon as elected.

It’s worthwhile contemplating the message candidates ship via their costume. Towards what ideally suited will voters measure them? The style selections displayed in three of this 12 months’s high-profile U.S. Senate races present some illustrative contrasts.

The household of Richard and Pat Nixon, after he received the GOP nomination for president in 1960. Bettmann/Getty Photos

Decisions totally different for incumbents, challengers

As an organizational theorist who researches authenticity and social analysis, I discover that we decide others – imperfectly – based mostly on how carefully we really feel their picture matches their message.

Most political challengers discover it simple to challenge authenticity via costume. They will tailor their wardrobe to focus on themes from their campaigns and private histories. This guides voters’ understanding of who the candidate is and what they stand for.

The wrinkle: Sending a message with clothes is inherently trickier for incumbents as a result of their workplace constrains the picture they will challenge. A gubernatorial candidate can put on denims and boots to the state honest, however as soon as put in within the Capitol, they’ll extra typically be seen in a go well with. A fast Google Picture seek for a present candidate and the incumbent they’re difficult reveals a near-universal fact: As soon as elected, the candidate’s most seen public picture is that of the workplace they maintain.

This implies that whereas a candidate will be genuine to their distinctive marketing campaign message, the incumbent is extra more likely to be genuine to their workplace, as an alternative.

Democratic Senate candidate Mark Kelly is usually seen in bomber jackets. ActBlue

Clothes as a marketing campaign message

In Arizona, Democratic Senate candidate Mark Kelly – astronaut, husband of former Consultant Gabby Giffords – goes tieless in sports activities jackets or a bomber jacket.

His informal look telegraphs that he’s not a Washington insider. By referencing his navy and NASA background, he tasks the experience wanted to take an knowledgeable stance on nationwide safety and the authority to take a robust place on local weather change, a serious space of analysis at NASA.

Kelly is difficult incumbent Republican Sen. Martha McSally, a former Air Power pilot and Afghanistan veteran. She favors streamlined fits and sheaths, typically in daring reds, her hair a lot sleeker than in earlier campaigns. As a result of McSally’s costume reveals no trace of her background, she could also be sending the message that her navy expertise doesn’t outline her.

GOP Sen. Martha McSally in one in all her streamlined fits. Ross D. Franklin/AP

In Maine, Democratic Speaker of the Maine Home of Representatives Sara Gideon is usually seen at work in double-stranded pearls with a costume or a contemporary, tailor-made jacket. Her marketing campaign supplies present her together with her younger household in informal jackets – as soon as in a Patagonia model, a gaffe within the house state of L.L. Bean. She later eliminated the Patagonia brand from the photograph. Gideon’s relatable, chic-mom vibe suggests to voters that well being care and schooling could also be matters of precise dialog at her kitchen desk slightly than summary coverage points.

Maine Democrat Sara Gideon, who’s difficult GOP Sen. Susan Collins, in a photograph from her marketing campaign web site. Gideon marketing campaign website

Gideon faces incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican, who hails from Caribou, Maine, a metropolis of seven,600, the place her household based a lumber enterprise in 1844. Collins wears fits in deep, saturated colours, often with a pop of pink, and costly coats of the type not typically seen in rural areas. Her model is that of a Washington insider, belying nothing of her background or Down East values.

Sen. Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, in one in all her strongly coloured fits. Win McNamee/Getty

Lastly, distinction Senate Majority Chief Mitch McConnell, a Republican, with Democratic challenger Amy McGrath, battling for this Kentucky Senate seat. McConnell, on Capitol Hill since 1984, prefers darkish, well-cut fits and basic, jewel-toned ties, typically with a varsity stripe.

Senate Majority Chief Mitch McConnell, trying like a senator in a well-tailored go well with. Alex Wong/Getty Photos

McConnell’s costly garments make it clear how far he has come from his childhood in Alabama and Georgia, when his household “virtually went broke” coping with the results of his bout with polio.

McGrath is a former Marine fighter pilot and Afghanistan veteran. She favors open-collared shirts and flight jackets and is usually seen together with her three younger youngsters. Marketing campaign pictures typically function her in navy gear, giving voters the impression that she has credibility to talk on international coverage and veterans’ points.

Amy McGrath, who’s difficult Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, is a veteran who typically wears open-collared shirts and flight jackets. McGrath marketing campaign web site

The straitjacket of incumbency

Every challenger is ready to current a picture in line with each their marketing campaign platforms and their private histories. Their clothes presents a totally elaborated identification assertion – with out saying a phrase.

In distinction, the incumbents’ virtually uniform-like clothes offers voters little perception into both their personas or coverage positions. Their tailor-made silhouettes point out their membership within the political class, making individuation troublesome.

Observe that every incumbent’s marketing campaign web site additionally focuses far more on their incumbency than discrete coverage points.

Incumbency creates an authenticity bind: Incumbents can’t challenge each their workplaces and themselves concurrently.

That is maybe most constraining within the U.S. Senate, the place the principles of decorum are significantly sturdy. Most senators, with the notable exception of Kyrsten Sinema, stick with darkish, severe fits and ties. Members of the Home are allowed extra idiosyncrasies – assume Jim Jordan’s rejection of jackets or Matt Gaetz’s colourful wing suggestions.

[Deep knowledge, daily. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter.]

However senators have a tendency towards what sociologists name homophily, or flocking with related others. The consequence: They costume extra alike over time.

Incumbents’ sartorial constraints could enchantment to voters preferring a candidate with a demonstrable observe file, nevertheless it offers valuable little perception into the incumbent’s private historical past or governing priorities. The perfect sort to which these incumbents are genuine, subsequently, is that of senator.

Garments could not decide this 12 months’s winners, however the authenticity considerations that made Pat Nixon’s coat a strong picture nonetheless play a vital position in politicians’ lives. To a big extent, the clothes makes the candidate – if not the incumbent.

Jo-Ellen Pozner doesn’t work for, seek the advice of, personal shares in or obtain funding from any firm or organisation that might profit from this text, and has disclosed no related affiliations past their tutorial appointment.

from Growth News https://growthnews.in/the-clothes-make-the-candidate-the-sartorial-politics-of-this-years-key-senate-races/ via https://growthnews.in

#Growth News

0 notes

sometimesambroswrites · 7 years

Note

Okay, because of the malec varsity jacket thing you posted, I need a part 3 of that one High School AU you did of them, and I need Magnus in that varsity jacket as a thing if comfort. Pretty please?

I filled this one even though I’d said I’d be busy with another fic because I, admittedly, kind of asked for it; it also, it kinda grew? So now it’s a 2.6k fic, 5+1 thingy; read part 1 & 2 here. I hope you like it! Let me know? (I think it could be read as a standalone. I think)TW for homophobic language

You fit me better than my favorite sweaterorFive times Magnus wore Alec’s clothes and one time Alec wore Magnus’ clothes

He doesn’t even know why he’s walking on his tip-toes, trying not tomake any noise; it’s not like he can’t bethere.

It’s just weird – he’s never been in that pool and all the lightsare off except for one in the locker room and one in the pool itself,so it’s just bizarre.

He can hear Alec breaking through the water as soon as he stepsinside the building, and a smile curls his lips; he hasn’t seen himin a couple of days because Alec’s been too busy with practice, so hefeels giddy, alright?, whatever. Alec Lightwood has turned him into asap.

His boots are loud on the pristinefloor, humidity immediately clinging to his skin, the smell ofchlorine making his lipscurl.

Alec is in the middle of a lap, his back glistening under the pool’slights, and Magnus is mesmerized for a few moments, his eyes avidlyfollowing the way his muscles work under the water.

He sits where Alec’s left his stuff, and shrugs off his own jacket;he knows Alec has seen him, a grin curling his lips every time hecomes up for air between strokes; he grins back, his elbows on hisknees, watches him as Alec finishes his last lap and swims towardsthe edge closest to where Magnus is sitting.

Magnus is careful closer to the edge of the pool, his boots not thebest choice with the floor this slippery, but he will take that riskto kiss Alec.

-Hey,- Alec smiles, his breath slightly laboured, his arms crossed onthe floor as he floats effortlessly into the pool; he doesn’t lookridiculous even with his blue swim cap and the goggles’ marks on thesides of his nose – in fact, he looks fucking gorgeous. Magnuscrouches down, slowly, even though the smell of chlorine is trulydisturbing: -Hi,- he says, his hands hanging between his knees,expression helplessly fond on his face, -Can I have a chlorineflavoured kiss?

Alec’s grin is bright and shiny when he pushes himself out of thewater, the muscles in his arms tensing as Magnus leans down, theirlips meeting for a wet, cold kiss that makes them chuckle, theirlaughters the only sound in the pool.

-Ow,- Magnus says, brushing his hand against his wet lips and chin,-No more kisses for you as long as you’re wet.

Alec pouts: -That’s not fair. I’vebeen in this pool for two hours and I haven’t seen you in twodays. I need kisses.

Magnus shakes his head: -Uh-uh, no can do.

Alec eyes his clothes, glances at the small pile of their stuff onthe bench behind Magnus: -You’ve left your phone with my stuff,right?

Magnus squints at him suspiciously:-Yes, wh – Alec, N –

But then he’s diving face first inthe pool, Alec’s hand fisted in his shirt, his protest useless; here-emerges spluttering, the awful feeling of his clothes and hisboots just soaked,clinging to his body, water running from his hair, and he glares atAlec with everything he has: -What the fuck,Alexander Gideon Lightwood, are you insane?That’s it, I’m breaking up with you, this is my break up spee –

But Alec doesn’t look like he’slistening to him, one breath away from kissing Magnus, a dopey happysmile on his lips as he lookscontent to simply float there for a few hours, and Magnus huffs.Rolls his eyes. Digs his fingers into Alec’s muscles, wet skin underhis skin as he holds onto him, and obnoxiously kisses him. He’salready soaked, so. When in Rome.

The – admittedly only – downsideis that it’s freezing outside becausehis clothes are soaked becauseof someone and Magnusgrumbles as he takes Alec’s arm and wraps it around his ownshoulders, burrows closer into Alec’s side to steal some of hiswarmth, whining when Alec lowers his arm, but then a jacket is beinglovingly placed on his shoulders, warm and incredibly welcome – nota jacket, thejacket, school colours and all,and then Alec’s arm is around his shoulders again.

Magnus wraps the jacket around himself, the sleeves covering hishands completely as Alec kisses his wet hair; he can just picture thesmug smile on his face. Whatever. At least he’s not cold anymore.

It’sten p.m. and Magnus is half watching Brooklyn 99 half falling asleepwhen his phone rings; he frowns, feeling a bit more awake as he seesAlec’sname on the screen; he swipes left to answer.

-Hey pretty boy, what’s up?

Heknows, as soon as he hears Alec’s broken breath, he knows somethingis wrong; he sits upright on the bed, his feet already on the floorwhen Alec says: -I– can I come over?-his voice shaky, and Magnus thinks fuck,because he sounds like he’s been crying: -Of course. Where are you?Are you hurt? Do you want me to come pick you up?

-N-no,I’m –- he sniffles, -I’maround the corner,-and Magnus thinks fuckthese shoes ashe gets up and runs down the stairs in his socks, sweats and at-shirt; -I’m there in a second, okay?

Heruns out the door as Alec says: -Okay,-small and scared, bolts through his garden and down the sidewalk andhe slams into Alec, clearly overestimating how far he’d been, reliefrunning through his veins as he can make sure he’s physically okay;something breaks in his chest when he looks up and sees Alec’s redrimmed eyes.

-What happened?- he asks,whispers, almost afraid to know, he tentatively reaches up with hishands, his thumb brushing his tears away from his cheeks.

Aleclooks utterly broken, shocked, his lips bitten red, his eyes swollen:-He called me a fag,- he whispers, oxygen running out from his voiceas he curls down over himself, and Magnus freezes, Alec leaningagainst him, shaking; heholds him tighter, his hand in Alec’s hair, he feels like he’simpossiblytrying to keep him together.

-Your– your dad?- he whispers, and closes his eyes when he feels Alecnodding against his shoulder.

Rageand sadness mix inside Magnus’ stomach leaving a bitter taste on histongue as he stands on his tip-toes, Alec’s arms tight around hiswaist like he’s afraid he might disappear, he whispers: -It’s gonnabe okay,- and feels Alec’s tears on his own skin.

-I’msorry,- Alec says, voice rough and muffled by Magnus’ skin, butMagnus slips his hands into his hair: -Don’t even,- he says, harsh,blinking tears away from his eyes.

-You’refreezing,- Alec says, rubbing his hands on Magnus’ back, but Magnusshrugs: -I’m always freezing.

Alecchuckles: -True.-, shrugs his leather jacket off his shoulders, hisforehead still pressed against Magnus’ jaw as he drapes it on hisshoulders, warm and comforting, and Magnus whispers: -I should be theone giving you my jacket and everything else.

Alecsnorts: -Like your jacket would ever fit me.

Magnusnips at his jaw, turns it into a chain of kisses that ends on hislips; Alec sighs into it, breath shaky.

-Doyou want me to take you to your mum’s?

Alecswallows, brushes his thumb against Magnus’ cheek; he nods, but says:-Can I stay with you for a bit longer?

Magnusnods: -You can stay as long as you want.

Alecisn’t in the mood for Winter Formal; Magnus knows Alec’s only takinghim because he thinks he wants to go – which isn’t a wrongassumption, but it’s just Winter Formal and Magnus only wanted anexcuse to dress up. He’s dressed up. Winter Formal is bullshit.

Sohe tugs on Alec’s hand when they arrive at the school entrance andsmiles when Alec confusedly looks at him, walks backwards as he says:-Come on.

Heleads him around the school, towards the football field, the grassdump under their feet.

-Whatare we doing here?- Alec asks, half a smile on his lips.

Magnuswraps his hands around Alec’s neck, his wrists crossed on his nape;he kisses Alec’s lips: -Dancing.

Alecsighs closing his eyes, his forehead against Magnus’: -We can go tothe Formal, I’m sorry if I –

-Alec,-Magnus says, waits until Alec’s eyes are open again: -Shut up. Iwant you to be comfortable. That’s it. If you want to go get friesand a burger or ice-cream or comfort food, I’ll happily go with you.Or if you want to be alone, I can take you home,- he looks back andforth between his eyes, wants to make sure Alec is listening to him,-Whatever you want to do, I’m okay with. Okay?

Alec’sokay issmall and grateful and relieved, and Magnus smiles, presses anotherkiss against his lips: -Okay. So, what do you want to do?

-Ice-creamsounds great,- Alec says, almost bashful, his hands running up anddown Magnus’ arms, -But first,- he winds his arms around Magnus’waist, -My boyfriend looks incredibly hot tonight so I thought maybeI could take advantage and have one dance with him.

Magnushums pensively, biting his lip: -Let me go get him, I’ll see what Ican do,- laughs when he pretends to take a step back and Alec followshim, his arms tightening around his waist, his chin on his shoulder.

Magnushides a fond smile in his neck; he whispers: -What are we dancing to?

Alecshrugs: -Whatever you want, as long as I don’t have to take more thantwo steps.

Magnuschuckles; Alec can’t dance to save his life. He starts hummingThinking OutLoud,says: -I know you love Ed Sheeran,- as soon as Alec lifts his head toprotest.

Alechuffs but doesn’t answer.

Magnusresumes humming, his forehead against Alec’s neck; he smiles.

Itstarts raining when Magnus is in the middle of Shapeof youand he’s purring the lyrics in Alec’s ear, half laughing half seriousas shivers run down Alec’s back, and they both curse, startled,freezing rain pouring down on them as they run, mindful of the wetgrass under their feet.

Theyjump in Alec’s car, laughing and shivering, shit,it’s cold, I’m freezing,and Alec reaches towards the backseat to retrieve his varsity jacketand drops it on Magnus’ lap before turning up the heating.

-N-No,you take it, I’m f-fine,- Magnus says.

Alecraises a sceptical eyebrow at him: -Your lips are blue.

Magnusharrumphs but drapes it on his shoulders, rubbing his hands together.

-Hey,-Alec says, and Magnus looks up at him; his hair is wet, his clothessoaked. He looks handsome in his suit. -Best Formal ever.

Magnusopens his window, half asleep, catches sight of Alec surrounded bysnow and closes it again.

-Hey,-Alec protests, loudly, -Don’t be rude!

Magnusopens the window again, pouting: -It’s coldandwet,come wake me up when it’s summer.

-Ifyou come down here, I’ll let you take me for a ride on that deathtrap you call a motorbike.

Magnuspauses in the middle of closing his window. He looks down. Alec lookssmug. -You swear?

Alecraises his right hand: -I swear.

-Onyour favourite copy of Pride and Prejudice?

-Itold you that’sIzzy’s – Fine, yes, on my favourite copy of Pride and Prejudice.

Magnusgiddily claps his hands: -Great! I’m coming.

Thiswas such a bad idea, Magnus is regretting every single thing in hislife.

Heis freezing,absolutely freezing,he can’t even feel the tip of his nose or his cheekbones, he’sprobably lost a toe or two.

-Stoplaughing atme,- he says, outraged.

Alecbites his lip in a futile attempt to contain his laughter, runstowards him when Magnus moves to go back inside and wraps his armsaround his waist – stilllaughing,the dick. -Sorry, sorry, it’s just ridiculous how cold you get.

-Youwon’t be laughing when I’ll die of hypothermia and it’llbebe all your fault.

-You’reright, sorry, here … -, Magnus turns in Alec’s arms as he unzipshis jacket,the fool,andwraps it around Magnus as well, making them stand as close togetheras physics will allow them to.

Magnusglares at him: -I still hate you for this.

ButAlec looks at him with fondness, a soft smile on his lips, the tip ofhis nose and his cheeks red for the cold: -I love you too.

Magnus’heart skips a bit as his lips curl into a smile even though he triesto hold it back: -Oh, fuck you Lightwood,- he murmurs, and Alec issmiling when he kisses him.

Alecis still asleep when Magnus wakes up, their legs tangled, Alec’s armthrown over his hip.

Hemoves slowly trying not to wake him, holds back a chuckle when Alecgrumbles in his sleep, sounding disappointed, and shivers at the airin his room, cold especially if compared to Alec’s warmth.

Helooks around and grins when he sees Alec’s sweater thrown on thechair at his desk.

Heslips it on, warm and heavy on his skin, lets the sleeves fall overhis hands and feels immediately better.

-Lookso good in my clothes.

Magnusturns towards the bed where Alec is smiling at him, sleepy, half hisface buried into the pillow.

-Areyou saying I don’t usually look good?- he teases, taking a few stepsto kneel on the bed.

Alecturns on his back, all soft edges and messed up hair, and Magnuscrawls on him, lets Alec wrap his legs loosely around his waist: -Youalways look beautiful.

Magnuskisses him slowly: -Sap,- he murmurs.

-Youlove me,- Alec says.

Magnussmiles: -I really do.

-No,uh-uh, no way I’m riding that thing.

-Apromise is a promise,- Magnus says, holding the helmet out to him,unyielding.

-Thatwas monthsago,-Alecprotests, -And I only asked you to come out in the snow, how is thisfair?

-IsAlec Lightwood afraid?-Magnus teases, taking a step closer to him, helmet against his chest.

-Damnright he is!,- Alec says, -We are going to dieonthat thing and you look ecstatic.

-Doyou think I would everlet something happento you?

Alec looks at him dubiously.

-No,precisely, I would never. We’ll go slow, promise.

-Fine,-Alec says, taking the helmet from him, -Just until the end of thestreet.

Magnus throws his fist towardsthe sky as he dramatically exults: -Yes!

-I hate you,- Alec says, pushingthe helmet down on his head gracelessly.

Magnus holds out a motorbikejacket too, and Alec looks at him: -Are you just doing this to get meto wear your jacket?

Magnus blinks: -No.

-Youare,-Alec accuses, but he slips thejacket on anyway.

Magnuslooks at him for a few long seconds: -Nope, I’m not. Definitely not.

Alec sighs patiently: -Do I lookhot?

Magnus exhales: -Sohot.

-Can I not do this?

-Nope,- Magnus turns towards thebike, -We got you all dressed up, we are doing this.

-I hateyou,- Alec says,throwing a leg over the bike, clearly unconvinced, -So, somuch.

-Love you too,- Magnus grins,twisting to kiss his visor before slipping on his own helmet.

-Ready?- he asks.

-Fuck no,- Alec says, his armstight around Magnus’ waist.

Magnus laughs as Alec hides hishead in his back and screams Ihate you while thewind roars around them.

#malec #malec fic #malec fanfic #malec fanfiction #otp: heart & soul #magnus bane #alec lightwood #shadowhunters #shadowhunters fic #malec prompt #malec fic rec #Anonymous #ambros writes

60 notes · View notes