#I really should get rid of the backup sheets

[ego-sum-arbor]

Hopefully I have acquired a suitable replacement for my bedsheets. I knew the old ones were getting worn, but it was still somehow a surprise when I rolled over and ripped the bottom sheet open.

[nightmareonashstreet]

saw your post saying you're looking for requests and also saw you wanna write for until dawn. so I was wondering if you could do a post about Matt, like dating headcanons and preferably for a female reader please and thank you

Thank you sm for requesting and for choosing Matt as your request, he's really underappreciated and should get sm more love from the fandom so this a great way to kickstart our account.

DATING MATT TAYLOR WOULD INCLUDE...

Special treatment all the time every time, if there is one thing Matt's good at is treating his partner as if they're royalty, he'll do anything for you and always puts your feelings first before anything else.

He's always helping out with little things, if you are too short to reach the top shelf, Matt can lend you his helping hand. If you need to rant, he listens and is patient with you, even if he doesn't understand a lot of what's got you so upset.

Date nights aren't special occasions for him, what's the point when he can make every night date night. He'll bring snacks over and let you choose whatever movie you'll watch, he lets his arm grow dead when you lie on it to get comfy, he doesn't mind when the sheets are stolen from him, if it makes you happy, it makes him happy too.

He may not be the brightest but he's smart enough to know if something or someone is bothering you, he doesn't like to push you to open up, he'd prefer for you to be comfortable enough to come to him. He always seems to know how to make you feel as if everything is going to be alright.

This boy is the definition of protective, someones done something to upset you? He'll be ready to be backup in case a fight breaks out. You've ended up getting a paper cut? Call an ambulance but not for you, he can't find the bandaids.

Studying last minute or cramming for tests, Matt's worst enemy. With you by his side he actually does get some work done before the study notes end up on the floor and neon highlighters are being drawn on his face, locking lips instead of locking in to get those grades up.

His letterman jacket is a signature look for him, he never takes the thing off, but if he even caught the slightest chitter or risen hair coming from you, he's forcing your arms into the sleeves insisting for you to wear it.

Overall, this boy is the greenest flag ever, you were more than happy to be with once he got rid of that god awdul selfie stick.

[callipraxia]

From A Certain Point of View

I managed to rewatch "Double Dipper" in its entirety, and was inspired to try my hand at recreating a scene from the point of view of one of the clones. Specifically, from the point of view of Dipper Three, later known as Tracey. Paper Jam Dipper's dialogue and maybe half the rest of the dialogue is transcribed from the cinestory comic. Enjoy!

The high-pitched humming which filled his ears ended in a sort of shtunk noise, and Dipper had just enough time to notice how weird the ceiling looked from his current point of view before he felt himself falling. Lightly, lightly falling. Drifting, really, for the few feet between the printer tray and the floor of Stan’s office.

And then, all at once, he could see his own nose again. A moment later, the ceiling started looking normal as his eyes blossomed into 3D form and Dipper stood up, shaking away the excess paper which had encased his limbs. Tyrone grinned at him and gave him a thumbs up, which he returned.

“’ Sup, man?” they asked each other simultaneously, and then they both laughed.

The copier lid screeched, and Dipper Pines clambered down on the floor to beam at Dipper and Tyrone. It occurred to Dipper that one of them was really, really going to need to come up with a third name they liked. Maybe he should be Mason? It felt kind of weird, plus he knew Dipper – the original Dipper – was sort of thinking about maybe calling himself that someday, too, maybe in high school or something, but he was going to give himself a headache at this rate, if he didn’t come up with something to call one of them other than Dipper….

“Eugh,” he said in the meantime. “Fair warning, guys, that jealousy fantasy you just had? It’s not any more fun remembering it than it was seeing it.”

“I know, right?” chorused the other boys, and Dipper felt a fleeting sense of dislocation – he was the Dipper who was out of step, but they were all Dipper, so how could they not be in step? They’d all just had the same memory, simultaneously, for crying out loud –

The Other Dipper made a face. “Our entire plan – “  the long to-do list Dipper had written earlier – “will be completely wrecked if anything like that ever happens in real life – “

“ – so we’ve got to get rid of Robbie,” Tyrone finished for him.

“And that’s where you come in, number three,” said Other Dipper, leaning forward to scribble a 3 on the front of Dipper’s hat.

The other two were still smiling, but Dipper saw a problem that neither of them seemed to have considered, and frowned around another fleeting moment of desynchronization as he pointed it out to them. “But what if Robbie catches me?” he complained. He glanced at Tyrone for backup. “I’ll be all alone.”

“Yeah, he makes a good point,” said the clone with a 2 on his hat, but Other Dipper was already nodding.

“Okay, one more,” he agreed with them both. “One more clone.” He lifted the copy machine lid and scrambled up onto the copying surface once more. “Four Dippers. This is a four-Dipper plan.”

The machine hummed again, and light washed over Dipper’s face as he perched beside Tyrone on the desk, just as it must have washed over Tyrone’s face alone only moments before, though Dipper hadn’t been able to see that at the time. This time, though, another perfect copy of them all didn’t fall to the floor immediately, and instead, the humming of the machine was overridden by a horrific screeching.

“Uh-oh,” said Tyrone, jumping down to help pull Four out of the machine, seemingly ignoring how it was smoking and smoke meant at least the potential for fire and fire probably wasn't good for any of them. “Paper jam….”

Tyrone glanced back over his shoulder with a slight smile at Dipper, which was why Dipper was, by a millisecond, the first one to yell “aah!” in surprise as something that nobody could ever mistake for Dipper began to materialize in front of him.

“Nyanyanya!” wailed the misshapen face rising from the crumpled sheet which had apparently not been improved all that much by Tyrone’s efforts to smooth it out on the floor before Number Four could rise. “Nyanya-Naaaaa-naaaa!”

Dipper had no idea what that meant, but he was pretty sure he agreed. Or would have, anyway, if he had been a paper jam clone of himself – but he’d never been a paper jam copy of himself, so –

“Aaxuxaa!” exclaimed Paper Jam Dipper, laboriously pulling himself into a sitting position beside Tyrone, who was still kneeling on the floor, paralyzed, like Dipper and Other Dipper, with shock. “Ssuaa-aaaa!”

The three normal Dippers all glanced at each other at the same time, and Dipper knew the other two were thinking the same thing that he was: if nothing else, this Dipper would sure be able to act as a distraction, all right….

“C’mon!” he exclaimed when neither of them seemed like he was likely to get there any time soon. He understood why Tyrone and Other Dipper were a logical team, it had been their joint decision to even print him in the first place, but - “You’re not gonna make me partner up with him, are you?”

He expected Tyrone to immediately agree with him again, so it came as a surprise when the other clone glared at him, getting onto his feet and carefully lifting the Unidentified Dipper-Like Object from the floor.

“Ssshh!” snapped Tyrone. “Don’t be rude!” He turned back to look at the mangled version of them in his arms. “Hey, buddy,” he said kindly to it, further continuing to act like he thought it could even understand him, even though they had absolutely no evidence to support that idea right now. “Hey, it’s okay – “

“Aaaa-kkkkxx-kkkkxxx-a!” gabbled Paper Jam Dipper. Dipper, out of options for clone solidarity at this point, looked instead at Other Dipper, who was still seated on the copying machine and who nodded.

“Okay, just one more clone,” he agreed, lying down and pulling the lid as far shut as it would go for a third time while Paper Jam Dipper somehow maneuvered its hands well enough to grab the bill of Tyrone’s hat and pull it down over the other clone’s eyes.

While Tyrone scrambled around trying to push it back again without dropping P.J., Dipper hopped down from the desk to hover anxiously over the output tray as the copier hummed back to life again. This time, though, there were no screeches or puffs of smoke, and he caught and then quickly smoothed out a sheet of paper which held another perfect replica of the boy on the copier, only distinguishable from Dipper and Other Dipper because he was currently two-dimensional and in black and white.

“Whew,” said the latest Dipper as he stood, shaking off his excess paper as he finished assuming his third dimension and the ink on his body dried into the standard colors they all had. “Am I glad that worked better than the last time….”

“Dude!” complained Tyrone. “You’re supposed to be us, why are you both being like this?”

Dipper exchanged a glance with his newest clone and then said, “be-cause you’re also thinking the same thing and just not saying it because you were printed off before we realized a magic copier could paper jam?” he hazarded a guess. “Unlike us?” he pointed to New Dipper.

“Yes I am!” said Tyrone. “And so’s he – “ Paper Jam Dipper shrieked again – “and him, too.” This with a nod to the original Dipper, who was once again getting down and opening his Sharpie in order to write a big 4 on the blank patch of New Dipper’s hat. “We’re all we, guys, come on.”

“We are?” said New Dipper. “I – “

“ – don’t have time to have an existential crisis right now,” said Other Dipper, snapping the cap back onto the Sharpie with a click that seemed meant to cut off that line of thought. “We’ve got to get moving. You’re good with the plan, Dipper Four?”

“Of course I am, Dipper One,” said the newly-christened Dipper Four, with a bit of an eye roll. “I made the plan, remember?” They all laughed, and Dipper Four grinned, clearly pleased with himself for restoring the good mood. “So, how many Dippers do we think it takes to change a lightbulb?”

“Probably more than it takes to steal a dirt bike,” said Dipper, before the new Dipper could embarrass themselves any further. “Since that’s just the two of us. C’mon, let’s get this show on the road.”

[synthaphone]

firefox HATES my enormous laggy pokemon spreadsheet (pictured: me trying to switch to the tab that has my in-progress list of every pokemon i own in it. ignore the insaniquarium window in steam idk why that popped up lol)

while part of me wants to keep stubbornly forging ahead, another (wiser?) part of me is thinking that i should Perhaps split it into two spreadsheets, divided into pre-switch and post-switch games

pros of splitting it into two (or maybe even three... if i isolated the 3DS era of games...) Sheets:

it would help reduce the ridiculous loading times

i'd only need to move Pokemon over to the Switch sheet as necessary when i transfer Pokemon, since you can't send shit backwards

the earlier games' sheets could have less columns for ribbons and marks (marks didn't even exist in those games), and cut out the 'tera type' column. maybe i'd replace it with a pokerus column...

i'm only like, 1/3 through adding just the gen 5 pokemon i have in HOME, and its already struggling to load... Ruh Roh!

maybe i'd actually be able to 'sort by' different parameters instead of just filtering columns- i've been scared of what might happen if i try to reorder everything on a spreadsheet this big

i don't usually need older game's boxed pokemon info at the same time as i need switch-era pokemon info

if i wait any longer before i decide to do this, it'll only get more difficult to do

cons of doing this:

it'll be a pain in the ass

it'll be an even BIGGER pain in the ass to change my mind once i've started doing it

the best way i can think of to do it is to duplicate the one i already have and delete all the switch game and HOME entries from the copy

splitting the sheet defeats the purpose of being able to sort all of my pokemon's data and view it in different ways- for instance, a lot of my favorite pokemon i imported are clones of my pokemon from earlier games, because i didn't want to leave those games barren. being able to compare (and keep track of) their different iterations can be useful

what if the big sheet with all of my pokemon in it really COULD work. i'll never know if i split the sheet off now...

if i DO change up what columns exist between different sheets (like getting rid of Tera Type or adding Pokerus), it'll make importing pokemon a lot more annoying to update the spreadsheet with, because i'll have to reenter data instead of just copypasting it. but if i don't, then i'll have a bunch of extra pointless columns bogging down those spreadsheets. so i think i'd have to do it

anyway. i think. i'm going to split it off. i think it'll probably be worth it for reduced lag. augh. ough. maybe. i'll save a copy of the whole spreadsheet file as it is now as backup, just in case i start doing this and realize i hate it

[kazuhamarryme]

headcannon that scara has small scars on his doll-like puppet features he got from the past or from wandering/combat. He has this small scar next to his cheek, it doesnt ruin his features since he's so perfect anyway 💯 but reader once stuck a small decorative heart shaped sticker on the scar on his face. it doesnt really do anything but scara kept it ong 🤭🤭🤭

-not proof read

-no gender is mentioned for reader

Sticker.. ?

The wandererー or who you'd like to call "Kuni". You're an adventurer tasked with various commissions. Some time ago, you were commissioned to investigate somewhere in Apam Woods until you were face-to-face with not one, not two; but atleast eight Fatui skirmishers. They appeared to be investigating something there as well.

"Hm..? Ohー an adventurer, alone in a forest..?" You heard one of the Fatui snicker under his breath while bringing out his weapon.

The best you could handle is three or five of them, but eight..?. You stood there, ready for combat but also imagining your death right there in Apam Woods, and you haven't even met any aranaras yet. You managed to get rid of atleast three of them ー but to your horror, they had backup.

"Argh.. of all timings.." You mutter to yourself.

As soon as you thought that was your end, a smurf pallete looking flying hat guy came in and annihilated every single one of them.

"Giant hat guy.." You gasped and looked at him in awe and admiration.

"Thank you so much..!- How would you like me to repay you..?"

"No, I just saw you looking so weak and pathetic standing like that. And besides, I despise those idiot skirmishers anyway.."

"I like your voice." You commented, making him blush a little.

"W-what kind of remark is that..?!-" You laughed at his flustered reaction.

Ever since then, you've never left his side. One day while walking around Sumeru with him, he caught you staring at him.

"What are you doing..?" His eyes squinted, looking at you.

"Was this scar ever here before?" You asked out of curiosity, pointing to the small scar on the right side of his cheek.

"Ah.. just a small scar. It's not that bad" He cupped his hand around your finger that was on his cheek.

"Ohー right ! I wanna show you this sticker sheet a kid gave me earlier !"

You heard him snicker. "It's just a sticker sheet though , Y/N."

As you let him watch you put stickers around your notebooks, backpack and all, he catches you staring at him again.

"Hm?ー" You peeled off a small heart-shaped sticker and stuck it onto his cheek with the scar.

"Cute ~" You smiled while lightly poking his cheek.

"Tsk. It doesn't even cover the scar anyway. It doesn't even look good on me either." He holds your hand that was poking his cheek as you felt his cheeks flush red.

"If I have a sticker somewhere, then you should too." He peels off a small sticker piece and sticks it onto your adventurer's hat.

+ bonus:

You caught him staring into a mirror with his finger on the sticker that you put on him. He smiled while laughing softly to himself. You pretended as if that didn't happen when you talked to him after that. He'd definitely deny it and get flustered if you ever brought that up for sure.

A/N: scara ily.

Thanks for reading until the end ! <33

[elianas-cozycorner]

𝓜𝓲𝓭𝓷𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓒𝓸𝓷𝓯𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓼

Title: “Midnight Confessions”

Author’s Note: One of the final three (3) requests I have from 2018, this particular scenario is something I’ve wanted to write for a while. I absolutely love this plot device, no matter how cliché or overused it may be. I hope you guys enjoy this and have as much fun reading it as I did writing it. To the anonymous requester, I hope you see this. I really wanted to bring justice to your idea, even if it’s more than two years late. 

Request: “Could u possibly do something where the reader and McCree share a bed on a mission (or maybe they just get hurt and r resting) and McCree lays w/ them n stuff and while they’re “sleeping” he confesses his love and that he’s scared to love but it turns out they heard the whole thing ? if not that’s fine, thank u! I love ur writing!” - Anon

Rating/Pairing: 

Jesse McCree/Reader 

Fluff & Brief Angst; GA (General Audiences)

2nd Person, Gender Neutral

Warnings: None.

Word Count: 2.2k | Added a “read more” due to the length.

When operations go wrong, there’s little that can be done to reverse the initial mistake. Not only are lives put on the line, but so too are relationships and the foundations of friendship. Being under constant fire, unable to reach backup or safety, really wears down the body and mind. Though some may find a thrill in it, eventually that too wears away. 

In your case, you had been pinned down for nearly an hour. Though your position had been defensible, it was on track to becoming more of a hazard than anything else. It wasn’t clear who was to blame for the mishap, everything having happened so fast, but one moment the team you were apart of was working together and the next you were alone with Jesse McCree. 

Sighing, you pressed your back to a stone wall. It was one of the only walls that sheltered you from the flying bullets and sniper fire. Jesse was crouched across from you, trying his best to peer around the corner for the next viable bit of cover. 

You picked up your earpiece, taking it from the place it had fallen when you had run for cover. Quickly bringing up two of your fingers, you activated the line. “Commander? Commander are you there?”

Jesse spared you a glance, worry in his eyes as he took in your features, before turning back to make sure no one had advanced on your position. There was a faint crackle of static before your attempt at communication was answered.

“I’m here, agent.” Reyes’ voice was rough and you could hear the noise of gunfire through his link. “What’s your status?” 

You knew that he could hear the gunfire on your end as you answered. “We’re pinned down, I don’t think McCree and I will be able to get to you.”

Reyes cursed under his breath before answering. “Everyone’s on board. We’re ready to get the hell out of here. This aircraft has taken too much damage for us to wait any longer. We’ll give you as much cover as possible, but you two are gonna have to get yourselves out of there. Figure out how to get somewhere safe, you know the drill, agent.”

McCree, whose communications system was linked to yours, nodded. You could see he was too focused to give a verbal answer, so you kept speaking. “Copy that. We’re ready when you are.”

__________

“We’ll keep in touch, agent.” The words ran through your head over and over again, even opened the door in front of you. 

After Reyes had provided enough aerial cover for you and McCree to get to safety, you had both gone to the nearest safe house. Each assignment Blackwatch, or Overwatch, gave its agents was well thought out and discussed. Drop sites that were busy had cheap motels or hostels listed in their information packets, or predetermined safe houses when the locations were more secluded. In this case, it was a secluded safe house. The information sheet you had pulled up earlier made mention of a stocked kitchen, running water, and first aid supplies. What it had failed to tell you was how small the place would be.

It was practically a one room flat in the form of a cabin. Half walls separated the less private rooms, with only the bedroom and bathroom having proper privacy. The rooms were cold, the thermostat untouched for a long time, but it would do.

Flicking on a light switch, you watched as the florescent bulbs lit up the kitchenet and living space nearest the door. A deep sigh escaped you as you finally allowed your body to relax, dropping the small bag on your shoulder near the door. “Well, Cowboy, this is home for the next 48 hours.”

The brunette man behind you had the decency not to laugh as he made his way past you. “Seems so, sugar. You can take the bathroom first, I’ll take a look ‘n’ find somethin’ for-”

“Us to change into. I know. You talked about showering and getting your wounds dressed the entire way here, Jesse.” You said, smiling despite the pain of your split lip, as you went to find bath supplies.

“Wasn’t aware I talked so much.” He laughed, shaking his head and making his way to the bedroom.

“You always talk, Jesse.” You were already halfway into the bathroom, a towel in hand, when you heard him laugh in reply.

You took your time removing your armor and torn, military grade suit. It wasn’t often that you came out of a skirmish so battered, so the shock didn’t fully register until you’d locked yourself in the room alone. Sighing, you focused on getting out of you clothes and tried to ignore the sounds of bullets echoing in your head. It was more painful a process than you’d expected, as you’d gotten grazed by more bullets and scraped by more gravel than you cared to admit.

Just as you let out a hiss, there came a knock on the bathroom door. You heard Jesse’s spurs jangle before he spoke. “You alright, darlin’? I left some clothes out on a chair here.”

You called out, “Just fine, Jesse! Thank you, I’ll grab them on my way out.”

“Sure thing.” He smiled as he spoke, and though you couldn’t see it, you could hear it in voice.

It made you smile as well, knowing you had your best friend looking out for you. The longer you thought about Jesse and his kindness, his thoughtful but flirty nature, the more your cheeks reddened and stomach fluttered. You’d harbored feelings for the modern gunslinger for a long time, nearly as long as you’d been friends. It was something you kept to yourself, mainly because of Blackwatch’s strict dating guidelines for its agents. Stepping into the shower, you knew the next 48 hours would be tough to get through. 

_________

Stepping out of the shower, wrapped in a towel, you found yourself staring directly at the bare chest of your cowboy partner. “Jesse.”

“Darlin’.” The smile on his face grew, becoming a large smirk, as he noticed the blush across your face. “Clothes are over there. Mind gettin’ out o’ the way? Man’s got to shower just as much as the next person.”

You shook your head, blinking quickly as you looked back at his face. “You’re the one in my way, Jesse.”

Chuckling, he stepped aside and let you grab the clothes before heading into the bathroom. The image of his bare chest replayed in your mind as you dressed, despite you having seen him that way before. Jesse was built well, sturdy and muscular. His body had definition and flexed with strength when he moved. Slim, muscled, and padded in just the right places, you’d say. Attractive. That’s what it was. Jesse had an attractive body and personality. 

Perhaps that’s why you’d spent so long harboring feelings for him, when you could have tried getting over it. Jesse was a good man, though he had his flaws, and he was always kind to you. He had been your first friend in Blackwatch, your first confidant. You’d been thick as thieves for the longest time, attached at the hip. You’d known him for so long, that it hadn’t been a surprise to you that you found his body similarly attractive. It had been painful to watch him go through relationships and flings, wishing one day he would chose you and stay.

Sighing, you tried to get rid of those intrusive thoughts by taking care of your injuries. Knowing Jesse McCree so well also meant knowing his trouble with commitment and genuine emotion. He got scared, you could easily tell, and pushed people away when they got close. He may have been worth it, worth the bumps in the road, but no one else knew him enough to know that. Not like you did. 

Clink. Clink. Clink. Your thoughts were interrupted by McCree coming out of the shower, fully dressed, and fiddling with his peacekeeper. He seemed to have taken care of his flesh wounds while in the bathroom, a couple bandages visible beneath the black shirt he wore. His damp hair stuck to his forehead, no hat on his head, and accentuated the small cut running down his temple.

He barely looked up as he stopped in the doorway. “Darlin’-”, He started.

You shook your head, standing to take his pistol from his grip. “Let me look at that cut, Jesse.”

Looking up at you, he gave you a gentle smile. “No need, darlin’, it’s not very deep. Ought to heal like a charm.”

“No, sir, can’t have that getting infected now. Besides,” You glanced at the only, small bed in the room and then at the couch just beyond the doorway to the room. “We can talk about sleeping arrangements as I do.”

Wordlessly, he sat at the edge of the bed and let you get to work. “You know, that couch is old.”

“Mhm,” You focused on your task, making sure to pay attention to his words nonetheless. “It’ll likely be a back killer.”

“Absolutely. Reckon I should take it.” He moved his head a little, wincing at the pressure you put against the cut.

“I have the better back, Jess.”

“Sure, but we wanna keep it that way. ‘Sides, I wouldn’t be much o’ a gentleman if I let you take it, would I?” His comment made you laugh and he smiled at you, glad to see you so happy.

“Stuck in the West again? Acts of chivalry are rare nowadays, Jess.” You said and pulled your hands away from his face, finished with your work.

“We could share.” His suggestion threw you off, especially when you saw he wasn’t joking. 

“You sure?” Your voice was a little nervous as you spoke, something he picked up on.

“As the day I was born. Only if you’re comfortable, darlin’.” 

“Yeah. Okay,” You smiled, helping him to his feet.

________

Jesse was wide awake, his thoughts running a mile an hour. On his back, he could feel where your back met his side, he could feel each even breath you took. He didn’t have any reason to suspect you were awake. You lay facing away from him, eyelids heavy, breath even, and mind somewhere else. He assumed you’d fallen asleep.

With a soft sigh, he pulled his hands from behind his head and turned around. He tried his best not to wake you, keeping his chest from being flush against your back. He tried his best to keep his hands from touching you, but couldn’t help it when he reached up to brush some hair out of your face. It caught your attention, but you didn’t move, too sleepy to care. You just listened as he sighed once more and shifted just a little closer. 

“Darlin’,” He whispered. “I’ve gotten ‘round to thinkin’...”

He paused, almost as if trying to convince himself to stop talking. “I’ve been thinkin’, and I can’t live without you. I’m scared. I’ve loved you for so long now but I’m jus’ so afraid. I could’ve lost you today. I don’t know what went wrong, I don’t want that fear of not knowing in my heart, but I ain’t strong enough to tell you-”

He took a deep, steadying breath before reaching out to you. He wrapped his arm around your waist and, carefully so as to not ‘wake’ you, pulled you completely into him. “Look at me. Confessin’ in the dark while you sleep, not hearin’ a word. It’s pathetic. Truth is, no matter how much I try, I can’t seem to say the words to your face. I want to look at you and say it, I want to keep you close, but I’m a coward. I’ve never been the type of man to commit to no one like that. I don’t think I’m the kind of man to love like that. Never have been. But damn, darlin’, if I can’t help wantin’ that with you. Want to keep you safe, by my side, always, but... but I ain’t the type of man worthy of you like that...”

He trailed off and you, now wide awake, could feel small drops of water hit the back of your neck. Jesse McCree, the strong, charming cowboy was crying. It broke your heart, so much so that all the words you’d thought to say to him left your mind. He was so worth it, so much more than he gave himself credit for, and you loved him. Just as he was.

Turning around, you watched his face mold from sorrow into shock. He tried speaking, but you didn’t give him the chance, “Darlin’-”

Your lips met his before he could utter any more words. It was a soft, emotional kiss that tasted of salt. His tears fell harder, and you only pulled away to hug him closer. Wrapping your arms around him and locking your legs together, you didn’t have to say much to get him to hear you.

“You are my everything, Jesse. I’ve always loved you.”

[fandom-necromancer]

Part 2 has been prompted by the wonderful DetReed900 on AO3! I hope you enjoy it!

Fandom: Detroit become human | Ship: Reed900 | AU: Cyberpunk AU

‘Quick, get in!‘ Gavin leaned on the passenger seat to hold the door open, as he watched Nines run towards him at full speed. The android jumped in, smashing the door close and Gavin drove off with screeching tires, while their pursuers desperately tried to get a good shot at them before they could disappear. But Gavin drifted around the next corner, accelerating again and taking several tight turns to lose anyone who might follow them. All the while Nines sat next to him laughing and cheering. Gavin looked into the rear-view mirror and relaxed a little as he couldn’t see anyone following them. He smirked, unable to be angry with the android although he likely should have been. As soon as they had made it on the highway, Gavin slowed down and weaved the car in between regular traffic.

‘How many times do I have to save you?’, he finally spoke a bit more serious. ‘Oh, come on’, Nines purred, leaning over. ‘You are just too good at that, it would be a shame letting that talent go to waste.’ Gavin turned his face towards Nines for a split second and smiled, pushing just a little on the gas. ‘You better start getting a talent for staying out of trouble, my friend.’ Nines laid his hand on his chest and looked accusingly at Gavin. ‘Do you see any bullet wound? I stayed out of trouble.’ ‘Yeah, and that gang will just forget about you doing… What even were you doing, Nines?’ ‘It’s a secret’, the android winked at him and leaned back in his seat. ‘Despite I really don’t think they would dare retaliate against us.’ ‘And why should that be?’ ‘Gavin, we could buy their whole organisation. I doubt they would dare attacking us openly.’ Gavin huffed. ‘Didn’t look that way when they were running after you.’

‘Hey, I’m fine, okay?’, Nines tried to change topics. ‘And I got what I needed from them.’ ‘Alright, Taxi Gavin reporting for duty, where can I bring you?’ ‘Stop with the sass, you get your fair share for this too. Just drive on, I have to hide it for the client in the city. I will give you directions.’ Gavin just sighed and turned up the radio.

‘What even is it with all that random side jobs you’re doing?’, Gavin asked standing next to the car while Nines hid a small package in the remains of some homeless person’s deserted shelter under a bridge. ‘If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you wanted to get rid of me.’ Nines stood up and stretched, smiling at the human. ‘Quite the opposite. I’m making sure we will do this together for a long time coming.’ ‘Alright’, Gavin chuckled, opening the door to the car. ‘And when will I be part of all the fun again?’ ‘Take a break’, Nines told him as he joined him inside. ‘For once in your life enjoy it. I will tell you soon enough.’ ‘It’s not because of Cyberlife, is it?’ ‘No. Elijah keeps his promise. For now, at least. And if he chooses to change that, I still have the backup of RA9 I can manipulate him with. We’re safe.’ ‘Good to hear. Can we go home then?’ ‘Yes. I’m done for today.’

They drove through the city, various neon signs glowing down on them and advertising the latest product you had to get immediately. Not too long ago, Gavin had lived in an old dilapidated house at the edge of the city. Once the dream of families with jobs in the city, the suburbs had now fallen into poverty and were taken over by criminal activity as the police didn’t care to patrol there anymore. Not when all the important people with money and influence were living in fancy apartments in the highest floors and everyone that still dreamed of getting there was packed like sardines in the mega-buildings. Now they were driving into their very own parking spot in a garage that had tighter CCTV as any street out there.  With only a short walk to the elevator, they were arriving at their flat in a matter of minutes.

Gavin exhaled with the satisfying clicking of the lock and the low hum of their security systems. The largest part of their Cyberlife money had been invested into this flat and the security measures and Gavin was thankful for it as it would at least get them more time should the corporation – or any other fraction for that part – decide to attack them. Nines walked up to the large glass front of their living room – reinforced to withhold everything up to a rocket launcher – and took off his white jacket he had exchanged his Cyberlife uniform with. Gavin watched how he pulled on the fabric of the tight turtleneck underneath and swallowed as he saw Nines’ smirk. Phcking all-seeing bastard…

He walked up to the kitchen and heated up the leftovers from yesterday’s meal, joining Nines on the sofa while eating. ‘Alright, I will go take a quick shower and go to bed. How about you?’ ‘I’ll skip straight to the bed part and warm it up for you’, the android muttered and took Gavin’s hand to pull him in for a kiss on his temple. ‘Don’t let me wait too long.’

As Gavin slid under the sheets, Nines had indeed warmed up the space comfortably. With his heated skin from the long shower, the softness was like heaven. The android’s hands in his hair gently massaging his scalp an added bonus. The man relaxed completely, closing his eyes as Nines dimmed the lights and switched them off completely. And with how tired he was and how good just lying there like that felt, he decided he would think about everything that happened tomorrow, if at all.

~

Gavin was woken up by the sun shining through the clouds directly into his face. Groaning, he slapped an arm over his face and turned, only to see that the other side of the bed was empty. He frowned. ‘Nines?’, he called into the flat, slowly sitting up and rubbing his eyes. As he didn’t get an answer, he shrugged and stood up piking up some lose-fit pants from the floor to wear. He yawned heartily as he walked up to the kitchen to make himself a coffee. His fingers hadn’t yet hit the button as his eyes finally noticed the post it note stuck to it.

Good morning, darling. I’m off for the day, but it shouldn’t take long. Don’t worry, I’ll stay out of trouble for today. -9

Gavin took the little piece of paper and leaned against the counter, reading it again. He sighed, flinging it behind his back and getting back to his coffee. It was okay, it could happen, he told himself. Nines could do whatever he wanted. That was fine. He let himself fall onto the couch, sipping his coffee and cursing at himself for being so impatient as it was still far too hot. Maybe he had gotten a call by Fowler or any other Fixer in the city. Maybe he was preparing for a job. Maybe he was just out to buy some more equipment, who knew?

He shouldn’t worry. But he did. He had been betrayed a fair share in his life already and he had always been prepared should his recent partner do the same. But Nines was different. He wouldn’t do that, right? He couldn’t imagine the android doing that. And there was no reason for him to do so. They were a good team, made for each other since their very first mission together. There was no reason for Nines to leave him behind, right? ‘Phck’, Gavin cursed. If Nines did do that, it would destroy him. He knew it.

He sat there almost the entire day, watching the news, reading up the truth behind the media’s lies and checking in with the gang territories and job offers. After that it was cooking for himself, going for a short drive and after that: waiting. Until the android came back home. Because he needed to know. He would confront him today.

He perked up when the door unlocked with a familiar click and the android entered the room. ‘Gavin, I’m-‘ He stopped as he saw the man sitting in front of him, eyes fixed sternly on himself. ‘I’m home’, he finished in a more appropriate volume and shut the door. ‘Welcome back’, Gavin said. ‘We need to talk.’ Nines grimaced at that but nodded. ‘Okay. Just a moment.’ He hung up his jacket on the next chair and joined Gavin on the couch. ‘What did you want to talk about?’

‘I need to know what is going on’, Gavin decided to get right to business. ‘I need to know what you are doing and why you keep disappearing like this without any information. Sorry.’ Nines let his head rest in his hands for a moment, then lifted it out with a sigh, looking over to Gavin. ‘I know how this might look like, Gavin, but I can only tell you it isn’t what you think’, he began. ‘Hell, that makes it sound even worse now. I can’t tell you what I’m doing.’ ‘Alright.’ Gavin was short of standing up and leaving, but Nines grabbed his arm and gently pleaded him to stay with him. ‘Listen, I can’t tell you yet. I’m asking for two more days of your patience. Friday evening I will show you what I’ve been working on the past weeks, okay? It will all make sense then, don’t worry. I’m not leaving you behind or plan on betraying you. But I can’t tell you what it is, yet.’ ‘So a surprise, huh?’, Gavin asked not at all satisfied with the answer. ‘Yes’, Nines grinned and his smile reassured Gavin a little. ‘Yes, you could call it that.’

~

Friday evening was coming faster than thought, even if Gavin spent most of the time alone in their flat or out drinking in a bar. But that evening, Nines had told him to wear something comfortable and snatched the keys to his car from him as they left the flat. Now, Gavin was sitting in the passenger seat of his own car feeling weirdly out of place. ‘So where are we driving?’, he asked finally. Nines smiled at him and just asked in return: ‘I thought you knew these streets?’ ‘Yeah, I know we’re driving out of the city. I don’t know where you plan on bringing me though.’ ‘You’ll see. You just have to wait a little longer.’

Gavin spat some expletives his way in his mind and sighed, obviously uncomfortable. They had long left the city behind them and it dawned on Gavin where they were going. As Nines turned on the dusty road that would lead them to a very familiar hill, Gavin frowned. ‘The shed? What are you planning?’ Nines just chuckled and parked the car behind the bushes like Gavin had done before. ‘Do you know it has been a year now?’, the android asked him and stepped out of the car.

‘Exactly a year?’ ‘Yes.’ Nines helped him out of the car and led him towards the shed. ‘Wait.’ The android stopped him and watched the shed that lit up on command. The roof had been fixed and a few lightbulbs dangled from cables fastened to it. A few insects buzzed around the light sources and Nines hurried inside, leaving Gavin standing there admiring the comfy yet out of place looking decoration. As the android came back, he held a box and walked towards the tree, beckoning Gavin to follow him. In one swift motion Nines placed a blanket on the dried grass and leaned a few pillows against the tree. Then he sat down and looked up at Gavin expectantly.

‘What is this all?’, Gavin asked sceptically. ‘Just sit down’, Nines laughed and patted the ground at his side. Slowly, Gavin approached and sat down. Even before he was fully seated, Nines had pulled a few bottles out of the box as well as plates with snacks. ‘Seriously, what is this all?’, Gavin asked, by now more perplexed than suspicious. ‘I believe you could call it a picknick, darling’, Nines explained. ‘Exactly one year ago, we were sitting here and didn’t know what to do next. You changed my life that day and I can’t say I regret it.’ ‘And…?’ ‘And I really like how that new life turned out in the end. Thought it was a reason to celebrate.’

Gavin just stared at the android. ‘Wait. Wait a moment. You disappearing all the time… How did this lead up to this?’ ‘Do you know how difficult it is to get real lightbulbs in a city that relies on neon lights? Everything calming and warm is ridiculously expensive, because some people intentionally push up the prize. I thought to change that by breaking in, getting what I need and sell the rest.’ ‘You… You didn’t really run face first in gang hideouts just to plan a picknick, did you?!’ Nines shrugged at Gavin’s incredulous eyes.

‘I wanted the best for today. The wine is made from real grapes, it’s not that synth-stuff you get at every bar. As is everything else. I could have either spent all our money on this or get them myself. It was easier.’ ‘Holy shit and I thought you were ratting me out for some kind of deal!’, Gavin called out in embarrassment. ‘I would never’, Nines grinned. ‘Although I do have some kind of deal for you, darling.’

Gavin looked up to the android and lifted a brow. ‘Really?’ ‘Yes. Gavin, we have lived together for a year now and I can’t imagine a life without you. And considering how high the chances of an untimely death are in our business, I think it’s long overdue that I asked you.’ ‘Asked me what?’, Gavin asked, not believing what was about to happen.

Nines simply turned around to him and pulled something out of his pocket. It was a tiny silver ring made from what looked like parts of machinery. ‘What is that?’, the human asked and couldn’t keep his eyes from it. ‘A ring, dumbass. Remember that Job from Fowler last month?’ ‘Yes. How could I forget that? You nearly died!’ Nines nodded and took Gavin’s hand in his. ‘That settled it for me. The ring is made from my damaged part and I want you to have it. If you want it.’ ‘What exactly are you asking, Nines?’ Nines looked up to him and he saw his LED turning at insane speed. ‘Gavin Reed. Do you want to marry me?’

Gavin stared at him, then at the ring and lastly at his surroundings. Who was he kidding here, he had hoped for his dream to come true, but he still couldn’t believe it as he saw it right before his very own eyes. Grinning like crazy, he dove in for a kiss instead and only afterwards panted: ‘Yes! Yes, I would love to.’ Nines couldn’t hide his own smile and pushed the ring onto Gavin’s finger where it lit up in the same colour and rhythm as the android’s LED. ‘I love you, Gavin’, he whispered, brushing his thumb over the ring before pulling the human in a tight hug, the man returned in equal strength. ‘I love you too, tin-can’, Gavin laughed and looked down on the ring over Nines’ shoulder.

He really was far too lucky for this world. But he wouldn’t ever think about complaining.

[21stcenturyhope]

BTS Imagine // Mafia!AU Redux with Yoongi

Min Yoongi

genre: mafia!au

length: 760 words

warnings: possible mentions of death, violence and all that bad stuff

Your clientele happened to be of a specific nature.

After all, only criminals would hire a hitman with your kind of skills. With a perfect success rate and the ability to leave no trace behind, you were highly coveted in the black market. Which worked to your advantage since that meant you could charge an exuberant amount of money for your services.

You had met some pretty twisted sickos in your line of work but none of them were as dangerous as Min Yoongi.

Min Yoongi’s mob operations spanned across the entire country. There wasn’t a line of business that he didn’t have his hands in. The nation’s business leaders and politicians all resided in his back pocket for they had all relied on him at some point to get to where they were. You didn’t succeed in this world without the underground backing of Min Yoongi.

This wasn’t the first time he had hired you for a job but it was the first time he had sent along escorts.

If you had known he was going to become this possessive and overly-protective, you would have never started things up with him.

~

How you ended up in Min Yoongi’s bed of all places, you didn’t know, but you figured it was probably a common occurrence for him to bring pretty, young things back home. What had started out as a typical transaction to receive payment for your services had somehow turned into a one-night stand.

Wrapping the sheet around yourself, you prepared to start picking up your clothes scattered across the floor.

A pale arm snaked around your waist to pull you back into bed.

“Where do you think you’re going, Y/N?”

“Uh… home?”

“Do you know how long I’ve waited to have you, Y/N?” Yoongi started trailing kisses across your shoulder. “Let me hold you a little longer before you make me catch you again.”

Huh. You really didn’t peg Min Yoongi as the sentimental type.

“What makes you think you’ve caught me this time?”

Yoongi’s fingers delicately traced the blush that had started to creep up your neck.

“I suppose I’ll just have to persuade you then.”

Finally capturing your lips in a heated kiss, he successfully convinced you to stay the rest of the night.

~

You were determined for it to be a one-time thing. But Yoongi kept offering you jobs with fat paychecks that you just couldn’t turn away.

So, it happened again each time you went to collect your payment. He insisted that you come collect it personally and you’d wind up in arms for the night. Eventually, there were nights you spent with him that weren’t even related to work. At one point, you finally caved and that was how you spent every night in Min Yoongi’s bed.

Which you guess meant the two of you had some sort of relationship. This was the first job in a while that Yoongi had offered you since the two of you had gotten seriously involved with each other. For some reason, he found it necessary to assign you two dim-witted bodyguards despite you insisting that you worked better alone.

You were currently setting up your lookout point in an empty apartment on the 34th floor of the city’s tallest tower when Dumb and Dumber started talking.

“What a waste of time. What’s the point of hiring a snipe if they can’t even get the job done without backup? Boss should have had us done it the old-fashioned way. Why get the bitch involved?”

“Probably because she’s a good lay. You know she’s only it for the money. You reckon the boss would let us have a go if we ask nicely?”

Were these guys idiots? Did they not realize you could hear every word they were saying? Maybe after getting your mark, your hand would “accidently” slip and rid the world of these two scumbags. You were sure Yoongi would forgive you for it.

The sound of your phone ringing interrupted train of thought.

“Y/N,” Yoongi greeted when you picked up. “If you don’t kill those two fucking idiots, I will.”

“Tell me you did not bug the room, Yoongi. Don’t you think you’re being a little overprotective? I have done this once or twice, you know.”

“That was before you got involved with me, love. I’m looking forward to you collecting your payment afterwards.” You rolled your eyes at his salacious comment before promptly hanging up the phone.

Well, since Yoongi gave you permission, you could probably charge him extra for the two additional bodies.

[jennifercrowart]

D&D Diary - The Yawning Rodent, 9

Refresher: Our adventurers Lugs (grung barbarian), Lurk (grung rogue), Aelia (tiefling cleric), and Valas (drow sorcerer) with tagalong Deku (ratfolk cleric) returned to the Sunless Citadel after dropping off Calcryx (the Kobold Gang's dragon) with the ratfolk, having taken a break at the Rat's Nest and Yawning Rodent tavern. After being greeted by a Kobold Gang guard on duty, they return to the Goblin Gang's territory but walk right into an ambush. The battle spans the haze-filled hallway as well as the large chapel hall that now serves as the Goblin Gang's living space. After defeating Grenl, an important-looking goblin, the hobgoblin leader has finally charged out into the fray.

Sunless Citadel spoilers!

The fight rages on. Deku, Lurk, and Valas are in the hallway, while Aelia and Lugs are in the chapel hall. The last goblin from the initial hallway ambush tries to flee, shooting his bow and hitting Valas in the side as he goes. The drow is unable to keep standing and collapses, rapidly beginning to bleed out from the deep wound. Deku, his closest ally, manages to make it to him in time and cast strong enough healing magic to bring Valas back to consciousness, and imposes his tiny but well-armoured frame between him and the goblin. "Come and get me!"

The goblin shrieks and continues trying to run away, escaping through the open door to Calcryx's old room. Valas gets back on his feet and follows him, casting Chill Touch and sending the ghostly hand straight through the goblin bandit's body, spookily just knocking the life out of him.

Meanwhile, the hobgoblin boss' twig blight - Ripper - circles around Lugs at its master's command and tries to distract the grung, gnashing its barky teeth. Aelia backs away into the door of the hallway, and, although surrounded  by goblins, aims another Burning Hands spell. The sheet of fire from her fingertips easily bowls over the two goblins in front of her, as well as Ripper, who squeals in fright as the flames make quick work of its tree-like body.

"Ripper! Noooooooo!" the hobgoblin boss yells, as furious as he is distraught at the horrific demise of his pet. He points his longsword at Aelia, commanding his gang. "What are you waiting for?! Kill her!"

Lugs, who's been weathering the brunt of the Goblin Gang's assault, is beginning to look rough. One goblin bandit in particular tries to imitate Lurk by hiding behind one of the tents and firing a surprise attack at Lugs, but misses, and sheepishly steps back behind the tent to pretend nothing happened.

Suddenly, Aelia and Lurk - standing closest to the doorway between the chapel and the hallway - hear a bunch of marching footsteps coming from the south. The southern door into the hallway is thrown open, and out runs the elite guards from the Kobold Gang, along with Yusdrayl, who swiftly casts a Mage Armour spell on herself so her small kobold form is covered in an armour of light resembling stained glass. The kobold leader shouts, "we're here to provide backup! Where are you keeping Calcryx, Durnn??"

Durnn, the hobgoblin boss, scowls. "Yusdrayl, you coward - hiring mercenaries for our turf war! This is between you and me!"

"He's right," Valas chuckles under his breath.

Durnn continues to shout. "We don't have your fucking dragon anymore! Your mercs already took it yesterday!"

Aelia and Valas start to sweat. Frantically, they lie and tell Yusdrayl that they haven't found Calcryx yet. Durnn yells in frustration, and charges at Aelia with his longsword, though not able to deal as devastating a blow to her without more of his allies around. The remaining members of the Goblin Gang are now easily outnumbered by the party and the Kobold Gang, as the elite kobolds start cutting down the goblin bandits and interns like a well-oiled machine.

Yusdrayl narrows her eyes, and tells Durnn she won't fall for him trying to pit her against her hired allies. Durnn tries to tell her that the party would obviously steal the dragon from her, as they would know what it's worth and wouldn't want to give it back.

As he's now up close - and, unlike Lugs, she knows more of what's going on - Aelia recognises the crest on the chestplate of Durnn's shiny metal armour. It's the Hucrele family crest; the family of the two human nobles the party was initially hired to find. "Your armour! Where did you get that??"

Durnn snarls, and says he took it from a recent group of prisoners. Aelia tries to press for more information, but he yells, "fuck you!"

From behind him, Lugs deals the finishing blow to Durnn with his club, sending Durnn straight to his knees. Panting, Durnn grits his teeth and clenches his fists, leaning on his longsword and refusing to die through sheer force of will.

"Fine - parley! Parley!" he pants, defeated.

Lurk leans in with a dagger pressed to Durnn's throat, and grins, saying, "ok, let's parley."

"I might be able to tell you some information... if you let me and my gang go free," Durnn growls.

Lurk retorts, "give us the information first, and I might let you live. Tell me something I want to know!"

"About Belak? About the experiments? What do you want to know? ... You already have the dragon!"

With a start, Lurk leans in closer, whispering in Durnn's ear, "tell Yusdrayl that we haven't found the dragon yet."

Durnn's eyes grow wide with fury, but left with little other choice, he agrees. When Yusdrayl again demands to know where he's really keeping the dragon, he says, "... fine. The dragon is really being held on the floor below."

"How do you get to the lower floor? My gang has never found a way down," Yusdrayl says.

Durnn tells them that there's a well in his chambers that is an open shaft leading down to the lower level. "But you'll regret going down there. You won't come out alive," he adds, almost grinning.

Yusdrayl has almost all of her elite guards escort Durnn and the very few remaining hobgoblin and goblin bandits and interns out of the Sunless Citadel. Durnn threatens that he'll be back for revenge for her cowardice and tricks.

Left with just the party, Yusdrayl turns to them and says, "we'll begin searching the nearby rooms and the rest of the Goblin Gang's territory. Thank you for finally helping me get rid of them."

As the guards begin to search, Aelia adds that the party found the room down the hallway where Calcryx must've been kept normally, because it was filled with ice, snow, and her waste. However, she lies and says that the Goblin Gang must've moved her when they heard they were coming. The elite guard sent to search the room confirms for Yusdrayl that the ice and snow in there looks to be about a day melted. The party is relieved to have gotten away with their lies so far, as Yusdrayl seems to believe them.

Not wanting to try their luck too much for the time being, however, they suggest that they'll go down to the floor below to continue the search - and get away from Yusdrayl. The kobold leader agrees, and says that after searching the area and making sure Durnn doesn't try anything else, she should be able to send some gang members down after them to help later on.

Lugs, the most heavily wounded of the group, sits down in the chapel hall by one of the fire pits to take a rest while the others start investigating the area. Lurk goes into the room where Durnn initially came from, finding it to be his chambers - though it's more like a throne room, with a big stone throne next to an empty pot where his twig blight pet must've stayed. In front of the throne is a big chest, and in the centre of the room is the large open well that Durnn described. Deku and Valas try to peer down into it, seeing sickly white vines lining the walls of the shaft, but not being able to see too far down before it gets too thick with dust clouds, illuminated by milky violet light produced by glowing fungi.

Lurk inspects the lock on the chest, and picks it with his thieves' tools. As soon as it unlocks, he gets pierced with a needle trap, coated in poison. However, being immune to poison all his life by virtue of being a grung, Lurk shrugs it off. Inside the chest he finds a few thousand gold pieces, as well as some large onyx gemstones. Pocketing the gemstones, he shares the gold with the rest of the group.

Other rooms connecting to the chapel are now-empty guardrooms, with not much more of note other than waterskins of goon. Aelia takes psychic damage whenever she is reminded of the taste of the cheap and sour wine.

In the chapel living space itself, they find a fair bit of gold pieces on the bodies of the Goblin Gang members. On Grenl's body - the mohawk goblin who used the Faerie Fire spell scroll - they find another scroll of Expeditious Retreat.

The rest of the party joins Lugs, and takes a short rest to tend to their wounds. They level up to 3!

Ready to continue on, the party begins descending down the vines lining the well shaft in Durnn's throne room, as Yusdrayl says farewell and prays that they find Calcryx down there before too long. The climb is easy for Lugs and Lurk, with their grippy frog hands and feet. Similarly, despite his heavy armour, Deku is able to adeptly climb with his clawed ratfolk hands and feet. The two who have trouble are Aelia and Valas, only able to climb down the vines at half the pace, though Deku slows down to keep up with them so the tiefling and drow won't feel too bad. The shaft is full of stale air and thick clouds of dust and dirt, loosened by the vines and fungi growing out of the walls.

After climbing about 80 feet down, the air gets more loamy and damp. The party drops down into a large square room paved with old cracked stone, and lit by more of the violet glowing fungi clinging to the walls and ceiling.

Two animated skeletons in robes have their backs turned to the group, as they shovel compost and soil in the overgrown garden beds that line the room. Aelia calls out to them, trying to be friendly, and they sleepily turn around. Quicker than the skeletons react, however, are two twig blights who tear themselves from the garden beds and run at the party, snarling and feral. Following their hostile lead, the skeletons wordlessly raise their shovels at the intruders. With his good eyesight, Valas also already spots a bugbear and two giant rats sitting around a fire pit in the adjoining open cavern. Time for another fight!

[metzili]

skincare reviews because my workplace closed and my classes went online

you already know. it’s been two days and i’ve been reduced to writing about skincare when this is a fan blog. take it or leave it this is the accumulation of skincare products (mainly korean products) i’ve tried out for about three years. I don’t do the 10-step routine, because I like having one or two products with active ingredients that work their magic so I can tell what product works or not. I feel like if I did multiple steps, all the products would cancel each other out and I’d never be able to pinpoint what worked. My skin is normal/dry, with some patches of eczema during the colder months. I had a lot of acne my first two years of high school (2015-2017), so I mainly focus on fighting that discoloration and also hydration. This is in no particular order, by the way. 

Acwell’s Licorice pH Balancing Cleansing Toner ($18)      Really love this! I’ve repurchased maybe three times already? Only toner I’ve used that actually helps to lighten discoloration. 10/10

Banila Co’s Clean It Zero Cleansing Balm, Original ($19)      Very lovely cleansing balm; does it’s job at removing makeup and leaves skin hydrated after rinsing. Haven’t tried any other cleansing balms, so I can’t really compare. I think I do remember it leaving the tiniest bit of residue, but I always follow up with a water-based cleanser, so it’s not a big deal for me.  9/10

Some by Mi’s AHA-BHA-PHA 30Days Miracle Toner ($16)      Pretty nice. Did it’s job, but I don’t see the whole fuss about it. With the amount of AHA and BHAs inside, as well as the tea tree water and papaya extracts, it almost crosses into the realm of being a chemical exfoliant. Probably better for those leaning oily. Still good, especially for the price. 8/10

Versed’s the Shortcut Overnight Facial Peel ($20)      Even though this is a Target brand, it’s priced a little higher than the previous items, which I find a little funny. But I don’t mind it at all! A very lovely facial peel, leaves my skin nice and soft in the morning. There’s a mix of lactic and glycolic acid that act as the exfoliants. I prefer chemical exfoliants to physical ones because my skin gets sensitive when it’s really dry. Good to try out! 9/10

COSRX’s Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence ($21)      I. Love. This. Product. I know it’s a little offputting, for the product to be a whopping 96% snail mucin, but its specially formulated for the use on skin. It’s intensely hydrating, but it sinks into the skin super quickly. (I used this in my morning routine before makeup) Really helps with discoloration, too! And it lasts SO LONG. I think I had the same bottle for six months, and I was using this shit everyday. I think it’s really worth the try. 10/10

Enature’s Birch Juice Hydro Essence Skin ($39)     This is up there in price, but I managed to get this on sale for $16, so I’ve decided to try it out. I’ve only used it once, but found that I really liked it. Very hydrating, sinks into skin very quickly, and a nice, light scent! I think I’m going to really like this one. The problem is the future divot in my wallet when I buy this off sale....9/10

Klairs’s Freshly Juiced Vitamin C Drop ($23)      After hearing everyone’s praises on this, I caved. It’s very nice; almost the consistency of a dry oil? Sinks in quickly. I’ve used this on and off since November (so my skin couldn’t get too used to it) and my discoloration has brightened considerably. Enough that I’ve been going to class and work without makeup pretty often in the past two months. It takes some time, but the results pay off. 9/10

Fourth Ray Beauty’s Remedy 10% Niacinamide Serum ($16)      I’ve been buying from Colourpop for over four years now, so I felt the need to try out their new skincare brand. Niacinamide is a miracle ingredient, working to clear acne, lighten discoloration and so much more. I’ve been using this as my only serum in the mornings since it’s such a stable ingredient and not sensitive to sunlight. My skin definitely looks brighter, but this formula...it leaves my skin feeling sort of tight and tacky. I’m not in love with it, but I’ll finish it out. 6/10 Fourth Ray Beauty’s AM To The PM Gel Cleanser ($12)      I don’t like this cleanser. It does its job, yes, but my face feels really dry after rinsing. I thought it was just my initial reaction to it, but halfway down the bottle my skin still reacts the same. Only keeping it to use as my backup cleanser if the one I’m currently using runs out. 3/10

Klaris’s Rich Moist Soothing Cream ($23)      !!!!!!!! I love this! A thicker moisturizer perfect for the colder months. Doesn’t leave my face feeling oddly tight afterwards like some moisturizers do. Not tight as in its not moisturizing, but almost like there’s a super thin cast? Anyway, it doesn’t have that. I’ve repurchased twice already. 10/10

Kiehls’s Ultra Facial Cream ($32)      I also really love this moisturizer. It’s what I was using before I found the Klairs one. A little more lightweight that Klairs, but still very moisturizing. More suited for the warmer months. Pretty sure I bought this at least three times. No weird tight cast after applying! 10/10

Simple Kind to Skin’s Replenishing Rich Moisturizer ($9)      I....don’t like this. Moisturizing enough, but it leaves that tight, cast-like feeling after applying. Was using it as a backup moisturizer when I finished the Kiehls one and hadn’t bought the Klairs yet. 4/10

CeraVe’s Moisturizing Cream ($15)      Yes, the cream that comes in the tub, not the lotion that comes in the bottle. I recently ran out of the Klairs and had to find something quick. Surprisingly enough, this feels almost exactly like the Klairs, if just a little thicker. It leaves the tiniest bit of a cast, but that feeling’s gone in less than an hour, which can’t be said for the previous moisturizers. The thing is, when I apply this at night and wake up the next day....my skin feels so supple. There’s no other word for it. I really love this. And for 16oz of product versus the Klairs’s 2oz, I think I’ve found a new favorite. 10/10 

Garnier’s SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water All-In-1 ($7)      Does it’s job. 13.5 oz for the price is a pretty good steal. Removes my waterproof mascara really well. Nothing too special about it. 8/10

NeoGen’s Real Fresh Foam, Cranberry ($19)      I’ve only just bought this and have only used it once, so take with a grain of salt. My skin kind of badly reacted to it? The symptoms went away after 15 minutes or so, but I’m not casting it aside just yet. I’ve never used a foam cleanser before, so my skin could have reacted from not being used to such a medium. It still cleansed my skin well.The foam itself was very cloudy and soft and the fragrance was very light. It doesn’t scream cranberry, which is what I was worried about. EDIT: After washing a second time the next day, there was no stinging whatsoever. The reaction was probably my skin saying yo what the fuck is this texture? But the pH is 7, neutral, so its a little more alkaline than the skin’s natural pH, meaning there was a bit of tightness after patting my face dry. Would recommend for normal/oily skin. 7/10

Drunk Elephant’s C-Firma Day Serum ($80)      This is....the most expensive thing I’ve ever bought for my skin. I was pretty desperate to get rid of my discoloration about a year ago since it was only getting worse and I was hearing so much praise about this, so I caved. I still only used this at night, since it was still a vitamin C product, despite it saying it was safe to use in the daytime. I feel like it did help a lot with my skin; it delivered results a little quicker than the Klairs serum. Maybe after two months I saw the changes? But what put me off so much is the scent. It smelled so....herbal. And not in the good way. And it was super strong. And after applying, it felt like a heavy oil that wouldn’t sink in. It took forever. Even if it delivered results relatively quickly, I won’t be buying again just because of how strong that scent was. 5/10

Neutrogena’s Hydro Boost Water Gel Lotion SPF 50 ($13)      I’ve been using a BB cream with SPF 30 for years, so I never thought to have an additional SPF product. After hearing that SPF 30 is the minimal protection you should have, I thought to look for something better so I’d be more protected, because I wasn’t reapplying at all. (I wasn’t about to redo my makeup every two hours) This lotion doesn’t leave a white cast which, with my tan skin, was my main priority. It takes a while to sink in, which isn’t that great, since I apply my makeup after putting this on, so I have to wait a little longer. It smells...exactly what you think sunscreen smells. Pretty strongly, too. I’m currently looking for a better SPF 50 that isn’t like $50, but I’ll be using this in the meantime since it doesn’t make me look like a ghost. 7/10 BONUS! Lush Cosmetics Fresh Face Mask of Magnaminty ($15)      This is the only wash-off mask I actually like. (I usually stick to sheet masks) I swear it cleared all those bumps I used to have on my forehead. Like, actually. I love using this on the week I have my period, which is the only time I really get acne now. Really lovely results. 10/10 belif’s The True Tincture Chamomile Cleansing Stick ($30)      This is here because I just found out it’s discontinued.....a real shame. This also really helped those bumps on my forehead. I swear that this, and the mask, got rid of them in less than a month. I repurchased twice before trying out other things and forgetting about it. I really wish this wasn’t discontinued! And that’s it! All that I remember ever trying. Throw down a comment or DM me if you want a more detailed description for any product or if you actually want me to keep doing this for any future products. 

[themockingcrows]

Companionship Through Circuitry ch. 6: Setbacks

Bro/Hal cw: blood, violence, deathclaws, and a generally bad day in the wasteland

Journeys are never without their inherent dangers. When you're living in the wasteland, it's to be expected. Doesn't make them suck any less, though.

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20942408/chapters/64071430

     I spy with my little eye-

     “Hal, pick a new game already.”

     I can assure you this is the best game to play out here.

     “Fine,” Bro said, exhausted. They’d been traveling for days on the remains of the highway by now and there was no sign of a proper township. He smelled, his back and legs hurt, and despite having plenty of food water was always a precious commodity. He also had at least four letters to send by now, including a few sketches and schematics he’d designed after toying with the Furby body some more, in case Dave wanted to get his hands on a little guardian bot of his own. The kid was smart, even he’d be able to handle basic scripting to make a functional system for it. Surely someone else he was buddies with could figure out an AI of sorts for it, too. 

     True, it would have been easier to follow another path by now, but following the main point of the highway just seemed the best, most direct route for him. Who’s to say it was brahmin who made the trodden paths that led further into the wastes, or humans? What if it was mutants, or worse, deathclaws stalking the wastelands? Scuttling parties of mole rats or vicious dogs.

     Would you like to know what I spy or not, Bro.

     “I don’t want to know, but I’ve got a feelin’ you’re gonna tell me anyway aren’t you.”

     Correct! I’ll give you a few hints.

     Bro groaned in irritation.

     “A bloatfly,” he guessed off the bat.

     No, though it is annoying.

     “As annoyin’ as you? Why isn’t there a fuckin’ mute option on these shades..”

     Your second hint is that it’s bipedal.

     That perked him up somewhat. Bro scanned the horizon further off for signs of a city or outpost, a wanderer, a courier. Anyone. Instead what he saw was the lanky, sharply pointed edges of a juvenile deathclaw. A definite pain in the ass, but nothing he couldn’t handle.

     “...And how long have we been in deathclaw territory for, Hal?”

     Uncertain, my saved map mentions shopping centers, not deathclaws.

     “Ooh, shopping centers?” he said. “Put a peg in it, if we find somewhere to trade soon we might do a run back to grab some more supplies for trade and keepin’.”

     The deathclaw is still nearby, you know.

     “I can avoid it if I want,” Bro said, taking out his sword. A juvenile would take some fast work, but he knew he was good for dispatching the monstrosities, and people paid good money for their clawed hands, even the small ones. Hell, even he wanted some bits off of one sometime, though mostly for show. How sick would a deathclaw fang necklace be, after all?

     You appear to be approaching the small one instead of fleeing.

     “Watch and learn, Hal,” Bro said as he shifted his weight and began to run. Aching feet or not, his boots cut into the crisp cooked layer of topsoil and sank ever so slightly with each step. The deathclaw noticed him and turned, beginning to awkwardly run towards him, long limbs ungainly but just as deadly as an adult. They met in the middle, Bro’s sword singing off the armored hide of the creature’s forearms, taking a chunk with it as he went. The deathclaw lunged for his middle with a shrill noise, catching a chunk of shirt on the end of one of its spiky hands, but just missing his tender vitals. He turned, and used the momentum to slice at the space where its behorned head connected to its body, the sword sliding against softer skin. Staggered, the small deathclaw stepped forward, then tottered back unsteadily as it began to bleed out.

     Bro lifted a foot and kicked the creature backwards to its spiny back, then followed with the sword to spear its chest, cranking the blade to the side once it glanced off a rib, forcing downwards till it stopped moving. Planting his boot on its chest, he yanked his sword free and swung it in the air a few times to rid it of blood, and smirked. Fuck, that felt good. Nothing like taking out a little nightmare to give a nice rush of adrenaline and dopamine. Hell, he wouldn’t even say no to a smoke or a drink right now, ride that high long as he could.

     Excellent, now how do you intend to deal with the mother?

     “Mother?” Bro asked, about a half second before he felt something plow into him like a freight train, sending him flying and pain searing through his right shoulder blade. He landed flat on his face and skidded before rolling over, hand on his sword raising it defensively and other hand reaching for his gun.

     Shit. Shit, shit, this was definitely a mother death claw, the hide was darker than usual. He must’ve just killed one of her brood. Not a good look for someone not interested in dying in the middle of nowhere. He fired a quick two shots, missing the first and nailing her in the left eye  with the second, though it only seemed to make her more enraged after a brief second of shaking her head. She raised a hand and slashed downwards where Bro was scooting backwards, forcing him to block with a weakened grip before the second slash sang home across his chest, blood spurting where her claws shredded flesh and fabric alike. One of the straps of Bro’s bags was severed, leaving him half dragging it as he continued to try crawling backwards, firing till his clip was empty.

     Hal was urgently trying to tell him something, but Bro couldn’t hear anymore, couldn’t think, could only focus on the burning in his chest and the taste of copper in his mouth. Things were flashing through his mind as he stared down the deathclaw, who was raising both of her hands for a double slash that he wouldn’t be able to block in the slightest. Things he still wanted to do, to say. Memories.

     Dave the day he left home to travel to the city, bag on his back and barely a look back as he wove past the traps. Dave as a lanky tween, perched by his side on the counter top as he cooked an omelette for them both, telling him a joke that he still didn’t think was funny but that he’d laughed at anyway. Dave at five, sitting on his lap as he fiddled with a new project that would eventually become a birthday present game for him, looking up at him with big red eyes almost full of tears when he refused to tell him what he was working on.

     Dave, still struggling to put weight on as an infant as Bro kept him warm on the sofa through a bout of fever, trying to coax him into eating just a bit more from the bottle, wondering if he should make the trek to find a doctor or keep hunkering down and hoping it would work itself out. Being scared out of his fucking mind about this tiny, sick thing in his arms and on his chest, worried he’d break if he moved wrong.

     This wasn’t fear he felt. It was acceptance. Dave being sick or hurt was fear, even when he’d been the one to hurt him in the preparations he’d run repeatedly over the years. A deathclaw? This was his just rewards for being cocky without backup. He wanted to have time to apologize to Dave, like he always really meant to.

     He wanted to apologize to Hal, too, for not managing to take him to get his body. For getting his hopes up about Dirk and then dying with him in the middle of nowhere. Maybe the shades would get crushed by the deathclaw after he died, spare him much misery. They’d both just go out like a candle in the breeze and nobody would be any the wiser.

     A shot rang out, and blood spurted from the side of the deathclaw’s head. She staggered, stomping her sharp feet on his abdomen and legs as she adjusted her balance and snarled in alarm at the new threat. More shots, each one more precise than the last, till finally one hit the same eye he’d shot earlier, and the beast went down on top of him. Though his ears were still ringing, Bro could feel his pulse slowing down and everything going darker as the feeling of faintness took over.

     Bro. Bro!

     “Sorry, Dave,” he mumbled, blood on his lips and eyes unfocusing as red eyes stared at him. No, wait, not Dave. “Hal..”

     AMBROSE.

     The last thing Bro was aware of was a high pitched repeated beeping pattern ringing out from the shades on his face, a signal he knew so well. Anyone out here could recognize SOS when they heard it, but Bro couldn’t care anymore who did hear it.

     Darkness claimed him.

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

     “...p. See? I think he’s waking up! Jake, push more fluids!”

     “I’m going as fast as I can, don’t you think he’d bl-........”

     “...ver if we don’t. Sometimes you have to do dangerous things in a time of crisis, just pu-...”

     “...rry chap, we’re doing our best. Why were you playing with a deathclaw mot-...”

     “...’s going under again, God damn it why don’t we have more gauze!”

     “...aid last time we wouldn’t need that many, let me check his ba-...”

     “....tting sick, stupid coat, ugh! Hand me a clo-...”

     “...ehozaphat he’s rolling in meds and chems! Lookit all this, it’s a kings ran-...”

     “...ab whatever you can, inject him with at least two, and hand the alcohol to me so I ca-...”

     “...nk he’ll make it? He’s in an awful way, Jade. We’re still at least a few miles out fro-...”

     “...re he’ll make it, we just need to hur-...”

     ...ve him. Please. Pulse is falling at an alarming ra-...

     “...re trying our best, believe me, it’s up to him if we ca-...”

     ...n’t lose him to-...

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

     When Ambrose woke, it was to clean sheets and a bright light coming from a window. He reached up to touch his face and panicked to realize the shades weren’t on him any longer, looking around as he tried to sit stark upright to look around. Tried being the correct term, considering when he got a few inches upright his abdomen and chest sang with burning pain and forced him to lay back on an aching shoulder. Sighing an exhale, Bro took the room and himself into account.

     The room itself looked to be a standard medical setup for a scap town, shelves of supplies and a few more beds shoved into the same room with him, a shabby gray curtain sectioning the space off from another area. He was laying on a cot with the aforementioned clean sheets, which were a hell of a commodity, and wrapped what felt like head to toe in bandages. His chest had padding underneath that seemed fresh enough, as well as his abdomen, and another bandage seemed to be wrapping his shoulder. His forearms had bandages, a shift of his legs revealed smaller areas of wrappings and-

     Bro snatched the sheets and lifted them upwards, looking down towards his groin in worry. Okay. Phew. Dick still there and in one piece, no need to panic. Thank fuck.

     Were you honestly more concerned for your dick than me? Came a voice from the top of the shelves, arms folded in and tucked at an angle to not get damaged or in the way.

     “To be fair, I’ve been attached to my dick longer than you,” Bro said, giving another try at this standing thing and getting as far as sitting upright before he had to stop, dizzy. He was also connected to an IV he realized, two bags half drained already and the tether attached to his arm carefully with another bandage and some tape to keep it from moving. One of the bags was unmistakably blood. “Where’s my stuff.”

     I’m fine, thank you for asking. I can really tell you were concerned for my safety after being nearly disemboweled. I can also tell you’re just dying to know how you went about not dying.

     “My stuff, Hal.”

     In the other room, safe and fucking sound.

     “Thank you. Gimme a second and I’ll come get you,” Bro said, running a hand through his hair. He realized with surprise that it was clean instead of gritty with sand and dust and blood, freshly washed like the rest of him. Someone had taken care to wash him thoroughly it seemed. Hell, even his fingernails were spotless. Shocking. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d been this squeaky clean, it was almost a shame he didn’t remember it. “How long have I been out?”

     Almost a week.

     “Jesus,” Bro rasped as he finally stood up on shaky fawn legs, reaching for the IV stand for balance before making his way over to the shelf, naked as the day he was born save for the bandages. He groped for the shades hurriedly when he started feeling faint again, and had just grabbed them when the curtain pulled back.

     A tall girl with dark skin, shocking green eyes and long wild hair tied back into evenly sectioned ponytails stood owl eyed behind large round glasses with a single crack in the left lens, a stethoscope around her neck and familiar leftover military gear covering her from head to toe. She frowned, and immediately rushed forward to grab Bro by the elbow and middle of his back, steering him back to bed.

     “How long have you been awake!” she asked. “Why didn’t you wait till someone came to help you? Are you in pain? Do you need any water? Food?”

     “Few minutes,” Bro said, more than a little startled. He sat and covered himself soon as he could, but the young woman didn’t back off in the slightest, swooping close to shine a pocket light in his eyes, checking his pupils.

     “Has there been any bleeding? Any night terrors? Do you have any numbness or weaknesses?”

     “I feel like shit, but otherwise,” Bro said, grimacing and jerking his head back from her grasp as she turned the light off.

     “I’ll get Jake to bring some lunch in for you, I’m glad you’re not running on glucose anymore. Actually, I’m glad you’re running at all,” she said with a grin. Her canines were strangely sharp looking. “My name is Jade Harley, and I’m half of the reason you’re alive right now.”

     “Is the chap who tried to cuddle the wrong end of a mother deathclaw awake yet?” asked another voice from beyond the open curtain.

     “He is! Get some of those mirelurk cakes and mac and cheese, please?”

     “I’ll bring some of that slackjaw jerky too, I imagine he’s half starved for real food,” said the male out of sight, before Bro heard distant sounds of dishes and metal scraping metal.

     “...So what, you a doctor?” he guessed.

     “We both are, in our own right. My cousin, Jake English, is the one who spotted you first out there. The primary reason you’re alive, however, is because we’re both sharpshooters! There wouldn’t have been much left to save if we hadn’t pegged that bitch into the dirt,” she said enthusiastically.

     Bro’s lip twitched in amusement. This person couldn’t have been older than her early twenties, but she was a doctor? And a sharpshooter?

     “So who really saved me?”

     Jade’s smile sharpened somewhat, looking predatory. “I don’t think I’d tease like that when you’re still so weak. All it’d take is a cushion to take you out right now, I bet.”

     “Sorry, just. You’re so young…” he trailed off as another figure entered the room with a dinner tray. This person didn’t look much older than Jade if he was a day, face clean shaven and hair styled but messy, standing at about the same height. He looked much more solid, though, shoulders broad and chest straining a little at the fatigues shirt he wore, and his demeanor seemed much sweeter than his cousin at first glance. More innocent somehow, or somehow less aware of the intensity of their surroundings.

     “Here you are, I’ll get some juice for you as well in a few ticks. First time I’m seeing this much of your outside as opposed to your inside since we got you scrubbed down!” he laughed, setting the tray on Bro’s lap. The food smelled fresh and was warm on his thighs beneath the sheet, mirelurk cakes looking greasy and delicious, mac and cheese that smelled plenty creamy from the box, and some kind of soft looking jerky rubbed with spices that made his mouth water as much as the fresh stuff before him

     “Try to eat slow,” Jade warned him as Jake trotted back out of view for a moment and came back with juice as promised. “Hope apple’s okay! It’s what we’ve got.”

     “Apple’s fine,” Bro promised, tucking into the mac and cheese first, eyes closing in bliss. Salty, creamy, rich. He could feel it flooding his system already, a body starved for nutrients beyond the bare minimum of functioning and safety. Once he shoveled a second bite into his mouth, he slid the shades onto his face and grinned a bit when haughty red eyes looked at him. Hal was clearly annoyed, angry even, but those eyes were full of concern too.

     “We’ve got tea too, though not everyone enjoys what we brew,” Jake chuckled.

     “Their loss, it’s delicious,” said Jade with a shake of her head.

     Scans show temperature readings as normal. Pulse normal. Pupils overly reactive to light, but not abnormal.

     “I hope he didn’t talk your leg off,” Bro said. “He’s kind of annoyin’.”

     You have terminal stupidity, I propose an immediate lobotomy to put you out of my misery.

     “Will you knock it off for ten seconds and let me eat before rippin’ me a new one?”

     It’s true. The doctor said so. You’re just stupid.

     “You were snuck up on by a creature twice your size in the wasteland,” Jade pointed out with a smirk. “Though I’m glad Hal’s giving you a positive reading. He was quite useful while we were saving you.”

     “How much did he talk,” Bro wondered aloud.

     “A bit,” she admitted. “We discussed why you were traveling, though he wasn’t that talkative about details. He let us know about Dave when you kept saying his name, in case you didn’t make it. He wanted us to be sure to let him know, and to send your other letters.”

     “You’re a long way from home,” Jake chimed in, taking a seat on the nearest bed to talk while Bro shook his head and went back to eating. “But it’s all fine now. Er.. mostly.”

     “How much do I owe you,” Bro said almost immediately, breaking a mirelurk cake in half with his fork before stuffing it into his mouth. He’d worry about manners when he wasn’t sitting in a room with two strangers who’d apparently saved his life and seen him in more detail naked than anyone else had in years.

     “We’ll figure out caps in a little bit,” Jade said. “You’re going to need to stay here a while longer either way, and we had to use a lot of your medical supplies.”

     “Helped ourselves to a little bit of your food as well, but mostly it was the chems and supplies we needed at the moment. Lucky for us you were damn near carrying a medics inventory on your back!”

     “Yeah, I just got through a vault,” Bro said. “Place hadn’t been looted yet till I got there.”

     “A vault!” Jake interjected excitedly. “Was it like they say, all sterile and eerily perfect?”

     “It was full of the people who used to live there, and they weren’t human anymore,” Bro said simply.

     It was quite a show to see that many feral ghouls get put down in one go.

     “Oh, that doesn’t sound very dapper.”

     “Vaults rarely are. They’re either fulla deadly shit, full of a shit load’a nothin’, or fulla people who don’t want you to bother them because you’re all gross from bein’ outside and they know you just want the goodies they’ve got.”

     “My grandpa was from a vault,” Jade said with a grin. “He’s the one who raised both of us, taught us everything we know.”

     They traded conversation for a time while Bro continued to eat, though it waned when he finished and looked exhausted, surprised that the very act of eating took so much energy out of him. Jake took the tray away and Jade performed a followup examination as Bro settled back tiredly on the pillows. Before she left, he requested his belongings, or what was left of them.

     He had an important letter to write.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

     Bro’s head ached sickly by the time he finished writing the letter, nearly as much as his heart, and his eyes were wet. He didn’t dare to rub at them, nor to even draaw attention to them, but the fact he’d cried while pouring his fucking soul out onto the page wasn’t something he’d admit to anyone. Hal, bless him, remained quiet aside from occasionally offering a correction on a phrase to make it sound better. At first Bro had resented the dictation, but found the changes in wording to be a positive thing, eliminating double meanings. What he ended up with was the letter he’d envisioned sending Dave when the deathclaw was about to do the killing strike, and the fewer mistakes and misunderstandings that could arise from it was for the better.

     It took another few days of resting, eating, and conversing with the doctors before Bro was strong enough to go for walks around the town. First thing was first: he paid express for his letter bundle to be sent to Dave along with some money, the most recently written one marked URGENT in bright red stamped letters. Secondly, he got himself a cola and drank the entire thing in one go. The doctors had been kind enough to spot him some clothes, since his shirt was ruined and his pants were scrapped in the moment by bloodshed and emergency bandage use on top of their general wear and tear. The down side was he hated fatigues… but hey, beggars couldn’t be choosers.

     He was settled with another soda at the little bar and grill early one morning, having shared breakfast with Jade and Jake once more (his own recipe this time, which only Jake seemed enthusiastic about once they’d tasted the product), but wanting to just sit outside and enjoy the early morning before the sun really got going on cooking everything in the wasteland to death. Hal was quiet, watching as well he presumed based on the little target viewers moving around every time someone moved.

     What do you plan to do if you don’t get a reply?

     “Keep goin’,” he said with a shrug, taking a sip. “I’m not expecting a reply to any of my letters, but he knows which way we’re headed if he wants to write back. Kid knows how to use a map of settlements to send ahead of the curb if he wants to.”

     ...I was worried I lost you too, back there. But you’ve never once apologized to me yet.

     “Apologized for what?”

     For nearly making me watch someone I care about die. At least the first one had the decency to not die while wearinng me on his fucking face.

     Bro was pensive and stretched his long legs out from his seat before tipping it back on its hind legs, balancing in place as he took another sip.

     “I promise I won’t die while wearin’ you, then.”

     You f-

     “I wouldn’t wanna hurt you at all.”

     … That is acceptable I guess.

[loquaciousquark]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E73 (Aug. 6, 2019)

Gooooooood evening good evening good evening all! @eponymous-rose is off packing for a cross-country move (as if THAT’S an excuse), so here I am isntead to lay waste to all you love. 

Tonight’s preroll: Sam’s costume from the liveshow getting dunked in acid.

Tonight’s guests: Laura Bailey & Sam Riegel, in a fully human and normal tshirt and jeans. Everyone oohs and ahs over Laura’s adorable live show outfit; Sam waits eagerly for equal attention. And waits, and waits...

Tonight’s announcements: Huge thanks to everyone who came out to the live show in Indy last weekend (I was there! It was great!). Laura talks about everyone singing the theme on the intro. Sam sent his entire costume back with Dani so he wouldn’t get stopped in the airport. Poor Dani! Season 3 of Between the Sheets, featuring Amanda Palmer, is up for Twitch subs now and will be up on YT on Wednesday. CR is headed to Austin, TX, for a live show on Sept. 23! Everyone talks about how Doty will definitely, definitely be in this show: The Adventures of the Darrington Brigade, ft. the return of Sam as Taryon. Sam says he already has something in mind for his costume; everyone else will be playing new characters. Laura’s got an idea for a backup character for Jester, but BWF advises her not to use this for the live show since Jester will def be dead in less than 20 episodes. Go to critrole.com/events for more.

Episode 73: Uthodurn, which is not spelled at all like I thought

CR Stats! Nott dealt 124 damage this episode, only 23 of which was friendly fire. Sam: “You know, he just needs to get out of the fucking way.” Nott rolled her 50th nat 20, resulting in a 43 stealth check. Laura and Sam quietly talk about Sam’s tendency to touch everyone else’s dice as opposed to his “playing fairly.” Sam also laments he’s lost his dustbuster in the studio somewhere after the last bit. Jester is tied with Beau at 9 for the most HDYWTDTs. Jester also played her 50th prank this episode: creating the ballpeen hammer as an offering to the Allhammer.

Laura thinks part of Jester’s new anger in battle is part of losing Yasha, especially when she disappeared right in front of her and Jester wasn’t able to help her at all. “Jester mammoth-raged.” Laura raves about being a mammoth & talks about needing to work on her elephant noise. Both Laura and Sam fail miserably at making the noise.

Sam slowly drinks a shot. It’s... a thing.

We have a close-up of Sam’s nail polish, which was done for the live show. He doesn’t own nail polish remover, it turns out.

Nott will talk to Cad about the explosive arrow whenever Cad brings it up. First, Cad was invisible & therefore at fault because he couldn’t be seen; the second part of the blame goes to Laura Bailey, who leaned over and told Sam right before his turn he had to kill this thing right now. The explosive arrow was the best thing he had; Sam accepts one part of the blame for forgetting it would be fire. Sam & Laura agree the bolt should have had some thunder/force damage associated with it because of the concussive blast. (Hilariously, my father presented this precise argument to me with GREAT VIGOR right after this episode aired.)

Jester’s call to the Traveler was just in the heat of the moment. All of her power comes from him, so Jester calls out to him (and Laura thinks it cool) when she gets a big oomph. Sam wonders aloud if her powers genuinely come from the Traveler or not. Laura: “I mean...as far as she knows.” Sam’s also distracted that the question card had a straight-up name on it rather than a username.

Sam considers the outcome of the election a win, since he’s one of the bi-Presidents of D&D Beyond until further notice. “It doesn’t matter how you get there, as long as you get there.” Laura asks if he thinks about it being a hollow win when he goes to sleep. Sam: “Do I look like the kind of person to have thoughts as I’m falling asleep?”

Nott’s usage of the pistol’s single shot was pure pettiness. Sam thought Nott had a shot because she’s acrobatic & fast & has some tricks, and he just didn’t want Beau to win. Making loud noises & drawing attention didn’t even cross my mind.

Jester was very proud of Fjord making those strength checks, but she wasn’t surprised. “He’s very strong, even though he looks like he’s not.” Laura thinks it’s funny and poetic that Travis rolled so well after ditching his sword/powers.

Travis has three sets of dice. Liam has a bunch of sets, but they’re all red (says Laura, offended). Laura only used purple dice at the live show because of how she was dressed.

Cosplay of the Week: a great Scanlan cosplay with Ioun’s third eye by @cxptaingrayson.

Sam realizes something that’s been holding back the Nott-Fjord relationship is that Nott has always been a little suspicious of Fjord. Now that he’s “talking like a real weirdo” and is still brave, braver than before, she can trust him more.

Laura’s asked about Jester’s conflict between healing & DPS. Laura: “Do you think Jester asked to be a fucking healer?” When they were deciding their characters, Laura was originally going to be a warlock with the Traveler as her patron; then Travis was like, warlock! What a cool class! Can I have it? And Laura said sure, she’ll be a cleric, that sounds cool. “And now he got rid of his fucking patron! Who knows if he’s going to be a warlock anymore? What a waste of a warlock!” She likes being a cleric--but even from Jester’s very first inception she’s always been a healer who hates healing. Brian: “She’s a battle Mercy.” She’s not regretful she healed Beau; the reason Laura didn’t immediately heal her is that she thought from Matt’s face that the remorhaz was very close to death, closer than it actually was. She confirms Jester is Chaotic Neutral.

Brian tells Laura he texted Travis to tell him Laura accused him of stealing the warlock class. Laura: “YOU DID NOT!” Brian: “You said it on the air!!”

Travis, via text to BWF, apparently in all caps: “I WAS CHANGING RONIN. YES I STOLE WARLOCK.”

Nott’s teasing of a powerless Fjord is 100% just because she thinks it’s funny. Sam: “There’s not really a deep reason to it. They tease each other all the time. Why would that change just because he tossed his sword in the lava?”

Laura needs to do research on other animals she can become since she enjoyed the mammoth (and giant eagle) so much. Sam keeps a list of flying creatures Laura can turn into because Laura struggles looking it up and often keys it into her D&D Beyond app before she’s even started. BWF: “This is uncharacteristically unselfish.” Sam: “Well, Laura is--I love her. Laura is pure harp music and I would do anything for her.”

Their environments are just getting better and better for Nott in terms of how goblins are seen. She’s given up the mask now, but it’s nice to have people look and not scream.

Both Sam & Laura pause to fan over the design of Uthodurn. It’s way cooler than either the Empire or Dynasty to them right now.

Laura points out that Nott has been fairly outgoing lately; it’s been a while since anyone said “you’re a goblin, stone her!” She’s beginning to come out of her shell as she gets used to her body (not that she likes it in any way), but it’s a development from Veth’s original shyness. She’s also drunk a lot; Sam says this will continue until he gets more Laura Bailey speeches.

BWF still has Laura’s copy of Game of Thrones, which he borrowed in 2011. Laura doesn’t listen to books on tape because she likes the inflections in her own head.

Fanart of the Week: a cool grouping of portraits of the M9 by @dylanbydoodles.

They apparently threw an election party after the D&D Beyond President reveal. Sam talks about convincing the Lyft driver on the way back that it was a swinger’s party in the most ridiculous way possible. Poor Indianapolis.

Nott & Veth’s relationship is getting very complicated. Sam says they’re beginning to blend a little together, but he’s now coming to realize there’s a part of Nott deep down that is deeply scared of going back to Veth & losing her rogue abilities, her adventuring; she wants to be herself again for sure, since her body is definitely wrong, but she’s beginning to fear the loss of some of what Nott is now.

BWF sincerely thanks Sam for the effort and thought he puts into his character. Sam sincerely thanks him. It’s a lovely moment.

Jester’s slip about Fjord’s powers was deliberate on Laura’s part but accidental on Jester’s. Everyone’s a little worried about Fjord without powers, even though he proved himself in the remorhaz fight. She thinks the slipup happened because Jester wasn’t on guard--because Fjord had done so well in the fight, she’d forgotten.

So far, Nott’s choice to leave the family behind in Nicodranus is worth it; no one’s died and they’re making headway on their goals.

BWF: “The Mighty Nein: no one’s died-ish.”

Apparently Matt owns the building they’re filming in? I missed part of this and genuinely can’t tell if it’s a joke.

BWF talks about how Liam, Matt, & Travis have all been genuinely mad at him before. Matt and Travis were mad; Liam was just disappointed.

How did Sam lose the election? He doesn’t think it’s because of him or anything he did. He thinks there’s a demographic shift in America; the electoral college hurt him; both he and Liam ran the campaigns they wanted. Liam’s was serious issues & serious passion, while Sam farted around for three months. BWF asked Adam Bradford at D&D Beyond, who’s the General Manager, about the results; apparently the pie chart was VASTLY in favor of Liam with only the tiniest sliver for Sam. Laura thinks it’s because Sam’s done nothing but troll Sam for five years and this was their chance to troll him back. Sam: “To that I say: good job.”

Dani & Max both voted for Sam. Laura didn’t vote. BWF voted for Liam. Chris forgot there was a vote. Zach voted for Liam.

Sam talks about the game they play, the app for D&D Beyond, and how the whole campaign allowed him to shine a spotlight on himself. “I didn’t get as many votes as Liam, but I got a lot of attention.”

Everyone loved this last live show. Laura legit loved wearing her dress; Travis & Liam looked great. Tal looked normal. Brian marvels at his own tattoos. He and Tal went through a lot of ideas before they committed to the bag situation--he sent it to Jaimie Alexander before the show happened so she could vet it. Ha! “Her response was 25 crying emojis and ‘please send this to my boyfriend.’“

Reminder: Mica Burton, Overwatch League host (and daughter of Levar Burton), will be guest-starring on Critical Role this coming Thursday.

And we’re out! Is it Thursday yet?

[jade4813]

Temptation, Chapter 3

Title: Temptation

Rating: NC-17

Synopsis: Iris West is a famous supermodel who has been getting a string of death threats. Barry Allen is the bodyguard hired to protect her. A Westallen AU. Gift for @andie1223​ in appreciation of her grand prize-winning contribution to the 2019 Westallen Sock Drive!

Chapters:3/?

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

  Barry prided himself on always being professional. He had worked as security service for everyone from movie stars to diplomats. He’d once even provided backup security for a visiting duke and duchess who were in line for the throne of a foreign country. At each of his jobs, there had never been a question of whether he would maintain professional detachment. He often got along with his clients. At times, he even genuinely liked them. But he’d never forgotten that they were clients, and he was on a job.

Until now.

He found himself unable to concentrate as Iris escorted him into her house, showing him where he would be staying for as long as they worked together. When she went over her upcoming schedule, he found he was only half-listening, his gaze wandering to focus instead on the curve of her cheek, the gentle swoop of her lips. She was breathtaking.

But he couldn’t afford to give in to the distraction. He was here to do a job. That was it.

“So where do we start?” Iris asked, dragging his attention back to the present. Chastising himself silently, he forced himself to focus.

“I know you probably won’t like this, but there’s a chance the person we’re looking for is someone close to you. Someone who’s had access to you, to your life. Someone you trust. I’m going to need a list of names so I can look into them and rule them out.”

He watched her shoulders lift and fall with the force of her sigh. “All right,” she agreed, changing direction to head to her den. She crossed to a laptop sitting on a desk and opened one of the desk drawers. Pulling out a yellow legal pad, she handed it over.

“What is this?” he asked, surprised that she capitulated so easily. He flipped through the top few sheets to find name after name listed. Some were crossed off, but others had notes jotted to the side.

“That’s everyone who has worked for me, for Linda…everyone who’s worked at one of my shoots. Everyone Linda and I could identify who could have gotten the access to me that this would require.” At his visible surprise, she laughed lightly. “I may not have ever done this before, but it had occurred to me that this person might be someone I’ve met before.”

“Oh. Okay. Um…what about…boyfriends? Is there anyone you’ve dated who might be -”

“It’s not someone I dated,” she said firmly, her face flat and devoid of expression.

He considered pressing the point, but their working relationship was still fragile. He didn’t want to push her too fast. Besides, it would take some time to work through the list of names she’d just provided. So instead, he just offered her a slight smile. “All right.”

He saw her visibly relax and he shot a glance at his watch. “I’ll need to call my team with an update, ask them to bring by some of my things.” He was used to traveling from one job to another, so he always had a duffel bag filled with necessities ready to go. A member of his team could drop by his office to retrieve it and bring it by with his car. “Once I have my computer, I’ll be able to get started. You said you had an event tonight? What time was that again?”

She nodded. “Eight o’clock sharp. But I’m sure there will be plenty of security there, if you wanted to get settled in instead.”

“Trying to get rid of me already?” he asked, his voice slightly teasing.

Iris’s grin was unrepentant. “Can’t blame a gal for trying!”

She could feel his eyes on her as she stepped forward, smiling for the cameras that flashed as she passed by. Knowing he was watching her every move, she swept the slit in her skirt aside, letting the cameras pick up on the long line of her leg beneath the fabric. The slit went nearly up to her hip, and she threw the cameras a flirtatious smile. Though she pretended her actions were for the delight of the watching paparazzi, she knew she was showing off for only one man. Barry.

He was attracted to her. She could see it in his eyes when he looked at her. And when she’d come down her stairs earlier that evening, dressed in the provocative gold dress on loan for the evening, she’d seen his desire. She’d watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down as his gaze swept her body, though his voice was even – bordering on disinterested – when he finally spoke.

She recognized his attraction. His desire. That was nothing new. She often saw it in the faces of the people she met. She made her living off recognizing it. Even cultivating it. What was unusual was the desire she felt in return.

She was attracted to Barry. She had been from the first time she saw him. It was true she’d kissed him to break the ice. Thinking he was her modeling partner, she had wanted to get over the initial awkwardness of feigning intimacy with a stranger. But the truth was, she’d wanted to kiss him, as well.

Standing there in his suit, there had been something about him that was so different from the men she worked with every day. The men she worked with were all attractive, of course. But there was a preoccupation to their good looks – a constant awareness that their appearance had to be perfect, that they had to be ready to show their best angles to the cameras at any given time.

Iris had noticed Barry in part because he seemed to lack that awareness. His suit jacket was slightly rumpled – unfashionably so. His hair was just a touch longer than current fashion dictated. It was a little windswept; not mercilessly held into place through copious amounts of product. She’d been tempted to run her hands through it, to see if it was as soft to the touch as it looked, and had been gratified to find that it was.

It was inconvenient, being attracted to her new bodyguard. At the very least, it was a complication she didn’t need at the moment. But every time she caught sight of him out of the corner of her eye, she felt the same temptation to run her fingers through his hair. Knowing his eyes remained locked on her as she walked the red carpet, Iris ran her tongue along her lower lip, remembering the taste of his kiss.

It was inconvenient, that was true. But there was no point pretending she wasn’t attracted to him. And she had no doubt he was attracted to her. The question was, what were they going to do about it?

Countless times over the course of the evening, Barry had scanned the crowd, watching for Iris’s stalker. For anyone who stared at her a little too intently, anyone who seemed a little too interested in her every move. Anyone who couldn’t seem to look away from her. Anyone other than him, of course; try as he might to keep his attention on the crowd, his eyes kept traveling back to her. The event was attended by models and movie stars, a veritable Who’s Who of A- and B-list celebrities. But Iris outshone them all.

He was attracted to her, and he knew he couldn’t be. He couldn’t afford to desire her when he was supposed to be protecting her. He definitely couldn’t afford to be watching her when he should be watching everyone else. Maybe he should pass on the job – or at least pass it off to a member of his staff. He knew Linda insisted that he work on the case, but surely he could come up with some sort of story that would make her understand. Or at least one she would buy.

There was no way he could tell her the truth. He couldn’t tell her that he’d almost tripped over his own feet earlier that evening at the sound of her laughter, his heart racing in his chest as he glanced around to see what had made her smile. He couldn’t tell her that the sound of his name on her lips swept across his skin like velvet. That when she smiled at him, she drew him to her like a moth to a flame. That every time he closed his eyes, he could remember the taste of her kiss.

He couldn’t tell Linda the truth, and he didn’t dare tell Iris. So, as they left the event that evening, Barry drove her back to her home in uncharacteristic silence as she gazed out the window, lost in her own thoughts. Finally, as she let them into the house, she asked, “You heading to bed?”

“Not unless you are,” he replied, striving to match the lightness in her tone.

Iris rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You really do take this whole bodyguard thing seriously, don’t you?” But she didn’t seem to expect an answer as she kicked out of her shoes and tossed her bag on the table. “I’m too wired to go to sleep just yet, so I was going to work out. Join me?”

“Now?” he asked in surprise. It was almost two in the morning.

Iris just shrugged and walked towards the back of the house. He followed, surprised when she didn’t turn down the hallway that he knew led to her indoor gym. Instead, she opened the door leading to her back patio and stepped outside.

Barry watched as Iris walked to the edge of the pool and leaned against the doorframe. From force of habit, he scanned the yard, looking for threats, but they were alone. He expected Iris to head to the small pool house, where he imagined she kept her swimsuits and towels. Instead, she reached behind her, unzipping her gown to let it fall at her feet. He gulped when he saw that she wore nothing underneath.

Iris dipped a toe in water, sending ripples across its smooth surface. Lit from below, by the bright blue pool lights, her skin seemed to glow. Like Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, come down to Earth to tempt mere mortals. Or a Siren, leading him to his doom. Wherever she led, he already suspected he had no choice but to follow.

There was laughter in her voice when she threw a mischievous smile at him over her shoulder. “Well?” she asked. “How about it? You want to join me for a swim?”

[shabby-blog]

Shabby writes some more villian erasermic au

No tw's

They had been quiet for far too long. Having to go into hiding after once again making the Top Ten list, Aizawa and Dezabel had been hunkering down in one of their many safehouses just outside the city.

Shouta had loved every minute. He liked the piece, the quiet, the calm. All he needed in his life was his Hizashi. So long as he could be with him, the rest of the world could burn for all he cared.

But he could see his husband was getting twitchy. Hizashi didn't do well confined. He craved the freedom, the noise and movement of life. He needed an audience. It had been over 2 months since Dezabels last appearance and shouta could see his beloved getting more and more tightly wound the longer they spent here.

Shouta rolled out of bed one morning to find his zashi sat at the table with papers scattered all around him, half written on, scrawled over, pictures roughly sketched, and some balled up and thrown across the room. He went and wrapped his arms around his love pressing his chest against Hizashis back, and kissed into his neck. "What are you working on love?"

"our Come Back performance. I can't stay in here much longer and I want us to come back with a Bang!"

Shouta could tell from how tense his husband was, his leg stimming, that he was wound up and full of an energy he couldn't get rid of. "That sounds like a good idea. We can check if we're off The List after breakfast." He slid a hand from his husband's waist up his chest to press against one of the bars that ran though his nipples. Playing with the piercing he kissed at his husband's neck again, "but why don't we get rid of some of that energy first, songbird?" The deepness of his voice and the rare use of his petname causing Hizashi to groan.

Spinning in his chair he kissed his husband firmly on the lips, "that's the best idea today" he replied before kissing him again and pulling him back towards the bedroom.

It was later as they were tangled in the sheets and tangled together, shouta drifting back into a doze that zashi brought up the subject of their Return again. "I know you don't like the limelight, babe. But you should take part in one of my shows." shouta just opened his eyes to look at him. "You have a great voice when you sing. And I'll be on stage with you"

"these are your shows. You're the star of them. Not me."

"no. But you're my soulmate. You're just as much a part of me as my quirk is"

".... I'll consider it" shouta really didn't like having attention from strangers. He tolerated it from his friends. The only person he actively craved attention from was Hizashi. But he would also do anything for his husband, his soulmate, this beautiful man.

They were still on The List which meant they would still be arrested on sight, when they checked after breakfast. This meant they had at least another week in hiding. But that suited shouta fine as he had an idea of how he could 'take part' in their return show but needed some time to figure it out properly.

A week later and they were free once again to return to the city and the second they were back Hizashi, or rather, Dezabel, was a whirlwind of organisation. He gathered his backup performers and found the venue he wanted and got everything arranged and ready for their show that night. Shouta was always amazed with how his love could do so much in such a short ammount of time. Before he knew it, it was show time.

Shouta was in his usual place, unseen in the crowd. He loved getting to watch his husband perform, he was incredible, beautiful, and mesmerising. He loved being a part of the crowd, just like the first time he saw his love. But now he also listened to the crowd. Taking out any threats of rebellion or talk of escape. People don't usually notice him in a crowd which meant he was the perfect spy amongst them to weed out any threats.

"Failure find me to tie me up now. Cause I'm as bad, as bad as it gets" his husband's unique voice sounded out across the room. As always commanding the attention of everyone in there. "Failure find me to hang me up now. Bite my neck cause I'm a fate worse than death" the lyrics were quite different to his usual shows, and shouta smiled at his husband's voice singing them.

A light flooded the makeshift stage, lighting up his husband in a breathtaking contrast of light and shadows. He looked more than just incredible. He didn't even look real, so beautiful and powerful with his golden hair floating and framing him like wings, shouta was sure he had somehow managed to marry an angel.

"Good even my captive audience! How are we all doing tonight?" Dezabels voice resounded out. "You have all been invited to our exclusive Come Back performance! How lucky are you? I have a special treat for you this evening! This first song was written by my dear husband and I want you to show your appreciation so let's hear some screams!" And with that the music swelled again, the base vibrating through the floor as his magnificent songbird started the best performance these people will ever see.

[kittysukagasterfics]

Cloning Incident

Note: Yay! An introduction to some new characters! Some tiny Gaster clones to be exact! Anyway, onto the fic!

Handplates belongs to: @zarla-s

Requested by: Anonymous.

Summary: After realizing how full his schedule is, Gaster decides that it’s the perfect opportunity to test out his new cloning machine. What could possible go wrong?

    “How did my schedule even get this full?!”

     Gaster was looking through his little planner book that Sam had gifted him. He honestly didn’t really have a need for one but they wouldn’t take no for an answer. Besides, it was helping him be more organized, well, more organized than he already was. The planner proved to be useful for helping to keep track of his work schedule, which Gaster was now realizing he was behind on.

    “Ugh, at this rate, I’m going to need to-”

    “*You ask Gaster if everything is alright.”

     Upon hearing the skeleton panicking, Sam had walked into the work room. They were carrying a sleeping Subject 1 while Subject 2 was following close behind. The Human had been watching the brothers and Toby while Gaster got some work done. Gaster sighed at their question before turning to answer them.

    “No, Sam, I’m not alright. I am completely behind schedule and while I can easily catch up on my work, Alphys is only going to get more suspicious the longer I take...”

     Sam knew what Gaster was getting at. Lately, he had been telling them how Asgore and Alphys were starting to take notice of his sudden mood change and he was running out of excuses to give them. Gaster would be constantly worried about one of them unexpectedly coming into the Lab and finding Sam. The Human didn’t fully understand what could if happen to them if they were found out. Sam would try to calm Gaster’s fears by saying that they could all try to be friends. Gaster never found the courage to tell them what could actually happen.

    “*You ask Gaster if there’s anything you can do to help.” ‘*He shakes his head at you...’

    “No, you’re already busy watching Subjects 1 and 2. I’ll try and manage but it’s not like there’s two of me-”

     Gaster stopped himself. Two of him? The scientist did build a cloning machine sometime ago but would that really work? Well, it wouldn’t hurt to try. Getting up from his desk, Gaster told Sam that he needed to work on one of his inventions and to continue watching the brothers while he worked. The Human nodded and he left the office.

~~~~~~

     Walking down the hallway, Gaster came up to a locked door. The scientist pulled a shiny gold key out of his pocket and unlocked it. Gaster always made sure to keep this specific door locked at all times. Sam, the brothers, and that little mutt Toby had a tendency to wander around the Lab exploring while he wasn’t there. The skeleton didn’t want any of them getting hurt (God forbid he let Toby get hurt).

     Entering the room and closing it behind him, Gaster immediately went over to a machine that was covered up by a white sheet. Removing the sheet revealed his cloning machine. Gaster had forgotten why he built it in the first but it was probably a backup plan in case his first experiments failed...

     The skeleton switched on the machine and starting messing around with the settings. He had also forgotten what each setting mean but that didn’t mean he couldn’t figure it out. After finding a setting that looked correct, Gaster stepped into the machine.

    “I hope this works...”

     If there happened to be anyone in that room at that moment, all they would be able to see were bright flashes of lights. The lights were blinding and seizure-inducing. There were loud beeping and whirring noises coming from the machine. After a few minutes of this, the noisy machinery finally settled down and although a bit dazed, Gaster was able to finally step out.

    “Alright, that should do it. I now should have a clone of myse-...Oh no...”

     What Gaster failed to realize before he stepped into the machine was that he had accidentally set the number to 50 and the size to mini. Now, instead of having one regular-sized clone, he has 50 tiny ones. One of them walked up to him.

    :...?:

     Picking up the tiny Gaster, the scientist inspected him, making small observations about the tiny skeleton.

    “Looks relatively healthy. That must mean that the cloning machine works as intended...”

     Gaster smiled proudly as he placed his clone back on the floor. As usual, the skeleton proved once again that his intelligence was superior to others. He had done the impossible when others could not. That shows how much closer he is to breaking the Barrier. If Gaster can make a working cloning machine, surely that means there will be no problems in finding a way to break the Barrier.

     While he was boasting quietly to himself about his accomplishment, Gaster failed to notice that all the clones were escaping. Some went towards the office room where the brothers were napping while the other half went towards the kitchen where Sam was.

     The Human had just finished washing the dishes from breakfast and was now searching the cabinets for the box of cookies Gaster bought yesterday. He never specifically said that they couldn’t have any sweets while he worked so now Sam was helping themselves to the boxed pastries. Finding the cookies, Sam sat down on top of the counter and was about to start enjoying them when a voice suddenly stopped them.

    =Sam, you’re not suppose to be eating any sweets right now.=

     They jumped and rapidly looked around. It sounded like Gaster’s voice but the skeleton was nowhere to be seen. Confused, the Human started to begin eating again but the voice spoke up once more.

    #You really shouldn’t be eating sweets, Human...#

     Sam was getting freaked out now and looked around rapidly again. That’s when they noticed the Gasters giving them stern looks, a lot of them and they were...tiny. They were...so adorable! The Human squealed in pure excitement and they immediately scooped up the tiny skeletons into their arms, nuzzling and giving them kisses. True to regular-sized Gaster’s attitude, the tinies began to protest and tried to wiggle free from Sam’’s grasp.

    >Sam, put me down!<

    ¥I’m not a stuffed toy you can just hug whenever you want!¥

     While Sam was busy cuddling the Gasters, the brothers and Toby walked in with the rest of the clones not to far behind. They looked confused but also a little tired. The tiny clones must’ve had the babybones do some test. Subject 1 sat down by the Human’s feet and fell asleep while Subject 2 just leaned against them, struggling to stay awake.

    “*You tell 2-P that he can sleep next to his brother if he wants.” ‘*He refuses your offer.’

    “N-NO, HUMAN SAM. I-IT’S...-yawn- ALRIGHT. I’M NOT EVEN THAT SLEEPY!”

     Before Sam could say anymore, Gaster rushed in looking panicked and frantic. He must’ve been searching for his clones when he realized that they had escaped from the room.

    “Sam! Have you seen-”

    “*You interrupt Gaster by excitedly asking where he got all these adorable, tiny versions of himself.” ‘*He goes silent for a moment before speaking...’

    “I...Ok, there’s no point in lying at this point.”

     Gaster then went on to explain how he had gotten the idea to try and clone himself so he could get more work done faster. But it didn’t go as planned so instead the skeleton got 50 small clones of himself. Gaster started to look upset now.

    “And due to all this wasted time, I’m not going to able to get any work done and-”

    X/Actually, we’ve gotten most of your work done so all you need to do is bring it in to work tomorrow.../X

     The scientist blinked in surprise when he heard this. He honestly didn’t expect for the tiny creatures to be able to get a huge load of work done. Gaster didn’t know what to think as Sam hugged and kisses him. He felt a lot of things: relief, shock, and most of all, confusion. What was he supposed to do with all these Gasters now? He had to at least get rid of some, right?

    “*You ask Gaster if you can please keep all of the clones.”

     Guess that answered his question...now he was going to have to take care of little versions of himself...not that he minded of course.

Note: Sam’s going to have lots of fun with their new Gasters! I hope you all enjoyed reading this fic! Thank you so much for reading! I love you all so much! Stay tuned for more.

[gooddadstan]

Fuzzy Walls and Tired Eyes

I wrote something, and people didn't hate it so what a way to start off than crossposting to tumblr?

Everything was going to be okay. He’d made a will, sent the company back to Bruce, tried to make sure they’d be able to understand his case notes, and did his damndest to let them know that it wasn’t any of their faults and he loved them. He was the only one to not die yet, after all, and statistics just spoke the cold truth. He was going to be next, and he’d prepared for it. So yeah, Tim was pretty sure that everything was going to be just fine. Maybe he hadn’t anticipated it happening like this, but c’est la vie, sometimes you’ve just gotta take what life chucks at you and run with it.

With that preparedness and peace of mind, the actions he’s taking feels like nothing more than an aimless ritual than a fight for life. Turn on the emergency tracker, take the bandages from his belt and start trying to patch up what he can, activate the comm and ask for backup. None of them would make it in time, anyway. He’d been watching as they fanned out, just blips on his GPS screen as they forge on with the search for the Joker that Red Robin had abandoned for taking care of the drug case he’d hyperfocused on over the last couple of days. Every one of the bats was too far away, and even the newbie Signal was out and about in the darkness.

But maybe if he’d left the drug case for another week or two just to catch the Joker and come back, he wouldn’t be bleeding out in an empty warehouse on the pier. Maybe if he’d only thought to bring his phone with him he’d be able to call Bart or Kon and the voice he couldn’t raise above a whisper would be enough to bring him back to the cave. Maybe if he’d asked Babs to stay by the computer that night instead of letting her rest while nursing her case of the flu, citing worry over the Joker search instead of his own agenda. He’s sure she’d know what he’d been up to anyway. Maybe if he’d let Alfred stay in the usual schedule instead of being a part of the mob convincing the clearly overworked man to take a vacation, he’d be able to call for the caring butler and the familiar sight of the Batmobile rolling to a stop outside wouldn’t only be a projection on behalf of his exhausted mind, and the almost laughable visage of the cowl still leaving a mustache visible above the suit so finely pressed and painfully out of the ordinary in the dirty streets would be by his side muttering assurances instead of staring ominously in typical hallucination-showing-your-worst-fears fashion. Maybe if they’d actually gone through with calling Alfred back after the Joker broke out of Arkham instead of forcing him to keep relaxing wherever in Europe he was at the time without knowledge of the situation, he would’ve been sitting with a cup of coffee next to Alfred’s tea, having been convinced by a short mention of being lonely left at the computer watching the comms alone.

Maybe there had been so many ways to avoid this, and not have to subject the others to his rambling notes and ill-articulated theories as they take over his cases, but he’d been too incompetent to see them. Maybe he should at least try to get back to the cave and into the medbay, not make them go through the effort to retrieve his body to keep some random thug from unmasking him and placing suspicion on his family. Maybe he should’ve been more careful, gotten rid of his blood on the scene, confiscated the knives and guns fired and stabbed at him, not have been so sloppy in his form with the takedown.

It’s a bit too late for that now, though.

The drugs were blown up, the police were likely on-scene arresting the goons by now, and the gangs that instigated the bust in the first place were too small to not be terribly crippled by the loss. Their promise in rising through the ranks was at least put off long enough for the Bats to attend to the more ‘super’ of their enemies in Gotham for a while. His family would take over his remaining cases, likely finishing them faster than Tim himself would’ve been able to. He had enough reason to be okay with this situation in the end. His own fuck-ups aside, he’d gotten done what he needed to. He swore, by this logic, that his family would be just as well if not better off because of the way the bust ended up.

So who’s going to care if what bandages he does apply are a bit too haphazard to be effective, if he doesn’t repeat his request for backup with his current location after what he’s pretty sure is five minutes passes and protocol says he should. Who’s going to care if in the end he’s not really helping himself. If any of them cared any more than for the necessary hassle of moving and burying his body, creating a false death for his public persona, and going through the motions of mourning the acting CEO of W.E., Timothy Drake-Wayne, for the sake of the rest of their secret identities, maybe they would blame his current carelessness on the blood loss. Maybe they would blame it on what’s probably a major concussion visible from the sheet of pain going from his left temple to his chin. They could even blame it on Tim himself, no injury to buffer it. He could deal with that. After his vision goes black in just a few more minutes, he shouldn’t be able to think and feel things about it anyway. That’s how Jason described it, anyway. Painless and empty and without your own mind really there to interfere.

Though, at this point Tim’s entire body was pained, from the dull aches of sore muscles to the sharp piercing hurt of his assorted knife and gunshot wounds. As much as he trusted his brother, he wasn’t sure if it was even possible for all of that pain could just cease to exist. He wasn’t sure if the brain could even comprehend what was beyond, if anything really was, or if that comforting nothing Jason had almost seemed wistful for was just the way the human brain tried to fill the gap in comprehensibility that was created after that bomb went off. When had he asked that, anyway? It must’ve been over… oh. A week ago, at most. Not the most convenient time to be dying, he supposed. Too coincidental. It’s not like he’d meant to go out and get killed.

Which was true, wasn’t it? He’d thought he could handle it, and just didn’t want to distract any of the others from the Joker, right? There was no way that he’d done this on purpose, much less subconsciously. Except, he’d known how many people were going to be at the trade tonight. He’d known that there would be less people at smaller ones later on, far less armed and more calculated aggression levels. Less dangerous. He’d known that he’d likely suffer at least some of what Alfred called ‘excessive injury’, but he was okay with that. He’d planned to get out of the situation with maybe a gunshot wound or two at most. Nothing too fatal, he’d had worse and lived through it. There was no way that this was intentional. But he could have asked someone else for help, couldn’t he. He wouldn’t have been able to take Bruce or Jason away from the Joker, of course, maybe not even Damian from the way he growled and made threats as the group left, but asking Duke or Steph to watch his back would probably be feasible with minimal effect on the effectiveness of tonight's search.

So why’d he go out alone again?

Right, yeah, taking out the Joker took priority. The effectiveness of their search would still drop without another person, and whereas his involvement would likely not help at all, the others were imperative for this plan to work. All useful hands on deck, and he could take this alone. He was sure of it. Well, he was sure of it before. He should’ve at least made it back to the cave, no matter how injured he was. He was just being dramatic, his bike’s only a couple blocks away and here he is still only lying here while he’s got two working- two vaguely working- one vaguely working leg. That should be enough to get him to the medbay, right?

The others would only be disappointed in his performance right now, no doubt they’d all have been back in the cave if they’d taken the case, taking a nap after pressing enter on the completed report. Even if they’d gotten the same injuries, which they never would, they’d take care of them more efficiently and wouldn’t even have to take those antibiotics somebody managed to shove down his throat every time he was injured while going on about his lack of a spleen. No wonder he was laying here so pathetically as his comms buzzed in his ear. Wait, his comm is buzzing in his ear. Somebody’s trying to contact him. That’s not right. Did they catch the Joker already? It’d only been maybe a day and a half since the escape, nothing ever happens this quickly. Unless one of the others got hurt in a trap the Joker had placed? God, he knew he should’ve been out there instead, the others shouldn’t have to intercept the Joker’s traps.

Fumbling with the comm in his ear, the familiar click of getting into the channel rings small, smaller than it ever should be, bringing yet another injury to Tim’s attention as the scowl that had formed subconsciously grew deeper.

“-mmy! Timmy you’ve got to answer me, can you hear me?” The surprise that sinks through Tim’s chest isn’t enough to get his drooping eyelids to rise even a centimeter as he hears Di-Nightwing’s, no names in the field, voice echo through his head sharply even with the low volume.

“Nightwing?” It comes out as even less than a whisper, pleading and croaking and so undeniably pained that it sends an overwhelming wave of shame through his soul that hadn’t been there before.

Nightwing, on the other hand, didn’t seem to notice the tone. At least, he didn’t let the likely increased levels of worry about Tim’s wellbeing bleed into his reaction in the slightest if he did, the steady voice still the same hardly panicked steadfast rumble it is in most situations. Tim can’t help but resent that Nightwing had to have perfected maintaining that controlled expression. “Yeah, yeah it’s me, Nightwing. Timmy, Black Bat and I are coming to pick you up and bring you back to the cave. Is your tracker still on you? How badly are you injured?”

They shouldn’t be here, they should keep looking for the Joker, not bothering themselves with coming back here, go save more lives! Come on, you stupid mouth, object to this, do something! His grumble of frustration doesn’t even make it past his lungs, a noise so pitiful it could barely even be considered a cough bursting from his lips instead as his entire body still managed to shake and scream against the movement. There’s no time to focus on the pain, just report and convince the others that he can get back to the cave himself and they don’t need to leave their mission. Make them believe that he’d hit his emergency tracker on accident, and had been doing recon in this warehouse without realizing it was even on.

As Tim tried to angle his head so he could assess his injuries in a way that would be remotely coherent as well as significantly more non-lethal than they actually are, didn’t he do that before he got here, the swaying support beam in his line of sight caught his attention. Heh, it looks like that one thing on the internet where- no, wait, that’s not something support beams are supposed to do. That’s fairly concerning, seeing as the entire warehouse is in danger of falling on top of him should his eyes not be betraying him. Trying to form at least another word, at least mentioning the concussion so they wouldn’t have to guess on it, maybe even the fact that the building might fall and he’d be on his way out, his tongue stopped feeling like a piece of his body, and more like some weird… meat sausage warm hurty thing. Yeah, that’s what it is. And hold on, no, that’s a muscle that definitely belongs to him and is a part of his body, not some random lump of meat in his mouth. He knew that, he’s always known that. What’s even going on with his brain? Wasn’t he doing something? Why’s he on the ground?

Pushing himself back into a sitting position, he chokes out a groan and lets everything slow the unceasing screech against his entire existence before opening his eyes again.

Hm. That’s mildly concerning.

Now, Tim’s fairly certain that he’s not any kind of expert on warehouse construction, as he usually focuses on infiltration rather than means of building, but giant splotchy pools of red along the walls and floor don’t exactly scream up to code. Looks almost like blood. That isn’t his, right? Was he bleeding? Oh, wait, yeah he is, he very much is. That would probably go along with the absolute agony spreading through every ounce of his being like a nuclear bomb going off on repeat every two seconds. Didn’t he know that? There’s some kind of wacky buzzing in his ear, like a fly managed to get right into his ear canal, and one arm flings up to swat it away for some black cold thing to intercept his hand as it goes backwards into what might as well be an abyss for how much Tim’s spatial awareness is doing its job. Hey, the buzzing’s gone, but now his arm feels like it’s got at least seven nukes going off in it, which seems like it should be a concerning number of nukes.

And oop, walls probably shouldn’t go wildly in and out of that fuzziness, but who’s to say? Technology’s gotten pretty wild since aliens revealed themselves to be a thing, and maybe somebody decided they wanted walls that could morph into fuzzies at any point in time. That’d be kinda cool to have in a house. Wait this isn’t a house, right? He doesn’t think it’s his apartment, he wouldn’t have had the time to install fuzzy walls, and this floor is too hurty to be his own. He would know, he spends a lot of time lying down on it. Why isn’t he home right now? A nap sounds like a good plan right now, but he’s in somebody else’s house. Should he be bleeding on somebody else’s floor? That doesn’t sound good. But something that does sound good? Just closing his eyes and ignoring the alarm in the back of his head screaming at him to get up and do something, whatever that something is, just a little bit quieter than the pain crashing through his body, holding him in a vice of suffering. Yeah, he thinks, I’m gonna… I’m gonna do that.

And around Tim, as his head hits the metal of the warehouse underneath him with a resounding thunk, the world fades to black.