#i don't really trust either of my parents with this they're both constantly going behind my and each other's backs

[rapidhighway]

going to dinner with my dad, manifesting nothing going down 🤞🤞🤞

[psychicreadsgirl]

Pick a Kpop Album Cover: How Others Will Perceive You and Your Next S/O

Pick the cover that draws you the most. If you can't choose between 2, then take a look at both of the readings. This is a general reading, so it might not resonate with everyone. Take what resonates and leave what doesn't behind.

#1

They will see you two as a power couple. You two seem to have it all and everything seems to be picture perfect, even though it might not always feel like that deep down.

You do have some people supporting you two as a couple.

There'll be a lot of jealousy from others. Many will try to lure your s/o away from you or they will try to lure you away from your s/o. These situations can perhaps cause tension between you and your s/o.

#2

People will feel like there's something sketchy or odd about your relationship. Some can't really pinpoint what's off, but somehow this pairing makes people wonder why you two are together. You two might perhaps be polar opposites or just don't seem like you'd be the type to be together (i.e. maybe you're the nerd and they're the jock etc.)

I don't feel like you have a lot of people rooting for you two to have long union. It seems like most people feel like you two are destined to break up and if you do break up, there'll be people coming to you going like oh I knew that would happen etc.

#3

People don't really feel much about your relationship. You two seem sort of like wall flowers in people's lives. They don't care about you two being together, which isn't a bad thing. People won't particularly judge you two. They will just see you two as a couple and that's it.

I don't see people particularly hating, loving, or caring about you two. You two will probably have quite a bit of privacy from others and probably will not have many friend groups. It's possible that you two both have very small families too or perhaps no family (i.e. parents have passed away and no siblings etc.)

#4

All eyes are somehow on you two. You two are the "gossip" that people are constantly talking about behind your backs. Somehow the way you two get together or perhaps the fact that you two are together just makes people chit chat. It's possible that one of you is either quite well known/rich/powerful within the community, area, city, town, province, state, country or perhaps one of you just knows a lot of people. For some reason you two will become "gossip" and your relationship may perhaps land in online forums, newspapers, articles, social media, etc. If not, you two will certainly be talked about behind both of your backs like people texting/calling each other to discuss you two.

You have a mixed set of people rooting for you two, hating you two, wanting you two to break up etc. You'll definitely have some haters and some supporters. It's really a mixed bag.

My advice to you is just to not let the "Gossip" get to you or your relationship. Your friends or colleagues or family may come to you with stories or news or articles or whatever that they heard or learned about your s/o, but you should take those things with a heavy grain of salt. Much of it, if not all are false; you should trust your gut. Your s/o's circle of people might also do the same to them.

The key is to trust your s/o and trust youself. Don't let others get to you.

#5

I feel like a lot of people are expecting you to run away from this relationship. They feel like your s/o is toxic or is not good for you. They want you to leave your s/o. In some cases, these people are right, but in other cases, they are wrong about your s/o. It will be up to you to make that call.

I do sense that people don't particularly like your s/o. They feel like your s/o doesn't match you and that you should break up with them. They feel like your s/o is like a leech? At least that's what I'm getting.

I just feel like people are generally concerned that you're dating this person. Perhaps this person has a bad reputation previously (like maybe they were a player and now people feel like you're just getting played or perhaps they have a criminal record and so people don't think you are safe wtih them etc). In these situations it's really up to you to decide whether you should continue your relationship with your s/o.

#6

I see that your family or their family (more so like parents/grandparents/elders) really support this relationship. They feel like this a match in heaven. They really like your s/o and hope you two will be together for the long run.

Generally people feel like you two are quite cute together and admire your relationship with your s/o. You two give off like those cute couples on IG that make a couple's IG account.

You may, however, have someone, perhaps a friend, who wants to break you two apart. It might come from your end or theirs, or maybe it's one of their siblings that really dislikes you.

[void-botanist]

I have come to some conclusions about Marcus and his story that I think are going to pay off.

In AOM:

He and Horatio don't have a romantic thing going on but they are extremely cuddly friends which also makes them the perfect pair for Sid to misinterpret. Which I think is a useful setup for Sid's whole deal and also gives me the soft nonsense I desire

Sid probably still ends up hiding at Sorian's house but for any kind of long-term parent evasion he would have to go to Marcus's because his parents would never look there. Still looking for a good excuse to make that happen. Sid and Marcus should also be friends and not just in a "thanks for testing my hair dye" kind of way

In Marcus's own as-yet-unnamed story:

In previous versions his love interest was a Hallmark-movie businesswoman type who was learning to pay attention to her own needs and desires, so that when Marcus was forced to tell her his deep dark secrets it was like she was getting her hard-won happiness stolen away from her. But I don't want to write that anymore and I want a story that is more about both of them. So I present to you:

Love interest is the bat-eared fox shifter I mentioned earlier, named Heith (for now at least - I might change my mind but that was her name in the last version). They're a traveling punk singer who is touring Aephar. Probably they look badass as fuck when shifted because that's a lot of ear real estate for piercings.

As they start to form a romantic connection Marcus is constantly worried that she's not gonna like some aspects of his life that he's not willing to give up/compromise on, like the aforementioned friendship with Horatio. But she keeps being so chill about everything, like nothing is ever a problem to her, and he slowly accepts that maybe this whole "finding love in a faraway system" thing isn't so hard.

This was the end of their tour, but Heith keeps putting off going home and her band leaves her behind to go back to whatever island they came from (believe it or not Imni and Aephar are not the only islands on Rade). She doesn't seem bothered by this either. It starts to become clear (at least to the reader) that whenever things get hard, she just dips from relationships, but things haven't gotten hard with him yet.

But then (spoilers I guess?) a military escort ship arrives from Iecunem and Marcus has to explain that the general belief that he was escaping shitty parents or a shitty job or maybe even the law when he left Iecunem is only a sliver of the story. His awful manipulative mother is now dead, and he's the heir to her kingdom. Not only that, but he has multiple spouses there and multiple children that are legally considered his. He tries to explain the complexities of this and that he'll be right back after he goes to the funeral and abdicates to his sister, but it doesn't seem like Heith is going to wait that long to disappear.

And this time, no one would really blame her if she did. This is a lot of stuff to suddenly digest. But she's also been here long enough to have considered not just running away. At the eleventh hour she shows up at the warp station to join Marcus on his trip back to Iecunem. Horatio high key had not realized that Marcus had only intended to take one other person on this trip, but when Marcus insists that he stay and take care of their collective plants instead of going to Iecunem he's also kind of relieved because he doesn't really trust anyone else with them.

Shifters taglist: @outpost51 @kk7-rbs

[isagrimorie]

J7, JC, and Data/Geordi for the ship ask?

from the ask game

Janeway/Seven

Ship It

What made you ship it?

What didn't make me ship Janeway/Seven?

The chemistry between Janeway and Seven was electric.

There were a lot of complicated things going on behind the scenes but on screen both Kate Mulgrew and Jeri Ryan were consummate professionals. I also think this is what contributed to their chemistry onscreen.

You (and I certainly didn’t until years later) wouldn’t know they had much more drama later.

The moment Seven stepped on board Voyager the trajectory of Janeway's focus shifted to Seven.

And Seven's anger and willingness to push Janeway when she thinks Janeway is wrong.

Actually, Kate Mulgrew said it better in her own words:

Janeway is given a blessing in the form of a half-human, half-Borg, very beautiful girl, who we call Seven of Nine. So, I am taught vulnerability. I am taught my limitations. I am taught how small I am, in the face of this kind of possible love. Seven of Nine is what brought Janeway to life, as a deeply human woman… and I am deeply grateful for that - Kate Mulgrew

I think the first time I shipped them (that I remember) was during the Killing Game when Seven was playing the chanteuse Mademoiselle de Neuf and Katrine.

2. What are your favorite things about the ship?

It's the way they constantly challenge each other. Also, doesn't hurt that they look damned good together.

I love that Seven does call Janeway out on things, and challenges Janeway. I know they tried it a bit in the first three seasons-- B'Elenna was the most I think but they quickly kind of folded that in. I think they hadn't figured out how to write for Kate Mulgrew's Janeway yet.

But also, it's not just them pushing each other, I love that they also do like being in each other's company. Otherwise, Janeway wouldn't spend time with Seven in their Philosophical Discussions and their Velocity game.

And I love that they do ask to trust each other, and the trust is given when they didn't know each other.

And that they're also incredibly competitive with each other. And they're willing to do anything for each other.

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

I don't think I have an unpopular opinion -- wait, maybe there are fanfic trends I've been seeing that make me uncomfortable.

The way Seven's written in some fic as Born Sexy Yesterday in a way Seven was never in the show. Sure there were some cringe-y moments on Voyager but other than the biosuit, Seven herself was never Born Sexy Yesterday.

And this is not just ship-related but as a character in general -- and I know Kate Mulgrew says it but IMO Seven doesn't think anyone aboard Voyager was a parental figure.

As far as Seven was concerned she had parents and none of them were onboard Voyager. Tuvok is not her dad figure, Janeway is not her mom. She's not looking for a parent or to be parented. She's an adult who has memories of species floating around in her head.

Maybe the closest thing to a parental figure was the Borg Queen, and like her birth parents, Seven also doesn't care for her either.

Janeway/Chakotay

Ship It! I answered this here!

Data/Geordi

Don’t Ship It — or Don’t NOT Ship It.

Why don’t I ship i?

This is a complicated question because I don’t not ship them. I ship them in the conceptual but also I love them as friends. I also love that Geordi kind of draws androids and Borgs to him like catnip.

I can still ship them but they’re not an OTP, I can see them as really great friends.

I’m still mad at Picard S1 for killing Hugh — both for never getting Seven and Hugh on screen once, and because Picard s1 killed Hugh and never even mentioned Geordi. Hugh imprinted on Geordi! Geordi is Hugh’s friend! Like, I get that Hugh is grateful for Picard (for not turning him into a weapon of mass destruction against the Borg, for deciding to let him live and finally see him as a person).

But Geordi is the one Hugh looked for when we see him again when he makes another appearance in TNG. (And then PIC S1 just kill him off.)

Back to the point though— I feel more for their friendship and its one of the reasons why I adore Season 3 of Picard because it restored Data and Geordi’s friendship.

The story remembered that Data’s closest relationship was with Geordi.

But it's not that I don’t ship them I kind of do, but also I love their friendship too.

2. What would have made you like it?

I am really half way there, I just need a push but also sometimes I don’t need a romance because sometimes deep friendship is also great for me.

3. Despite not shipping it, do you have anything positive to say about it?

I do! A lot! But I think I’m going to go with the recent, after a drought of more than 20 years we finally have a heartfelt scene between Geordi and Data.

But also because now both actors, and especially Levar Burton are more seasoned. And he is finally given better emotional material, I love listening to the commentary and how the TNG cast say they appreciate being given the opportunity to act because people there age hardly given the opportunity to be heroes or hired for TV or movies.

I love how heartfelt this is and I do think it reached Data but the one who is holding the reins within the new positronic body was Lore…

Who seems moved but also, I 100% think this made Lore furious because Geordi was talking to Data and not to him, and no one has ever mourned for Lore, as far as he knew or believed.

I think this is 100% why Lore lashed out after this.

But gosh, I’m so glad Geordi had a chance to say this to Data because in the movies, he wasn’t even given the space or time to speak to Data before and after he died.

[venomous--fics]

Anon requested: I saw that one anon ask about requesting a child!reader fic and because dad eddie= adorable eddie of course I needed to request something of my own

either a.), just single dad headcanons for eddie in general, starting from little baby

and b.) a one-shot of eddie taking care of his baby when they're sick

Day 25!

A/N: I'll do you one better. Both.

So Eddie, as a single parent, is a train wreck.

Had to constantly call Anne to ask if the baby sneezing was good or bad, or "What size of clothes do I need, because nothing fits."

Has not gotten a full night's rest since the baby arrived, has no idea what sleep even is anymore.

Tired. Have I mentioned T I R E D.

He used to enjoy coffee with his breakfast every other morning, but now he needs it in order to cope and survive.

Complains about how expensive formula is. And I mean, really digs into the whole economic prospect of it all.

Does not trust anyone to babysit, sometimes not even Anne and Dan. Would much rather just work from home.

Bouncy chairs are his best friend. Now he can work and take care of a child, all at the same time.

He gets the hang of it all after awhile, doesn't mean he's not a mess, it just means he's a more contained mess.

Definitely talks to the baby like it's a grown adult, bugging the poor thing about his work.

Bonus: If Venom's in the picture, you can bet your bottom dollar that Venom has been made an honorary nanny. He takes the role very serious.

Eddie stood in the aisle with two boxes in hand. They seemed like the same thing, but clearly they weren't. What made them different?

"You want cherry or grape?" He asked, very serious, holding the boxes up to the infant in the cart.

The baby seemed more entertained with chewing on the straps of their car seat and kicking their little legs around. Not one single glance was casted Eddie's way.

"Grape? Good choice." He replied, setting the other box back on the shelf, "I just don't understand how you get sick all the time. We had a runny nose last month, don't you think this could've waited?"

The baby finally looked up at him, seat strap still in mouth.

"I'm talking to you like you can answer." Eddie sighed, "Can you even understand me? Do you get what I'm saying?"

The baby sneezed harshly and went back to staring up at Eddie, eyes big and bright.

"Not a single thought behind those eyes." He replied, booping the baby on the nose, "That's okay. My head's pretty empty too. At least you're chill about it."

He was going to regret those words. Because the second they left his mouth, the baby sneezed again, but this time they started crying. Eddie stopped the cart, shaking the box of medicine, hoping to get the baby's attention, "Lookie what I have."

The baby quieted down to a few whimpers, taking the box.

"I know you don't feel good." Eddie grabbed a few other items, "I'll see what I can do. If I can't fix you, I'm sure Dan can. Dan can do everything."

Eddie stared at his kid for a moment, "Dan's a surgeon. Technically. Is that still considered a doctor? Or are surgeon's and doctor's like....Different? Why am I asking you."

[dreams-of-wings]

Impossible (7/8)

Imagine Billy Hargrove with a Mixed/Biracial SO

Warnings: SEASON 3 SPOILERS, Swearing, mild violence, angst.

The rest of the week flies by, with Billy weaning himself away from hanging out with Tommy and Carol and more to hanging out with you.

Billy actually learned a couple things that just barely helped him scrape by on his tests.

You passed with flying colors of course.

Now y'all are in the "real world"

Billy snags a summer job as a life guard.

You got a job at the hospital as a patient escort (the hours ain't bad, and it pays good).

You visit Billy at the pool sometimes, and you both still hang out on weekends.

Tommy and Carol don't hang around him anymore (because popularity status from high school no longer matters).

You're trying to help Billy move out of his house, but getting a place of your own isn't easy, so you manage to convince your parents to let him move in with you guys.

He has to stay in the guest room and pay rent though, obviously.

Billy still hasn't moved in yet though because he wants to save a bit of money before he has to worry about paying bills.

It's a smart idea and you support him.

For the most part your Summer is just working, hanging out with friends after work, and juggling the kids (Will, Dustin till he goes to summer camp, Mike, Lucas, and Max. You don't worry about Eleven because she isn't really allowed out of her house).

One day when the kids are all hanging out at your place, Billy walks in and treats the place like he lives there.

Just walks in grabs the milk from your fridge and makes himself a bowl of Cereal, before sitting in a stool by your kitchens island.

Thay all just kinda stare at him for a moment in silence.

"What?"

"Nothing!"

Billy just rolls his eyes and finishes his bowl before getting up to go to the bathroom.

"Ah, ah! Put it in the sink!" You just happen to walk past to grab something from your parents room.

He doesn't fuss, throw a fit, or even act remotely annoyed. He just back tracks and put the bowl in the sink, filling it with warm water before continuing on his way.

Once you both are out of ear shot, Lucas mentions how he's glad the two of you are dating, because Billy's gotten a whole lot better. He's still an ass, but old Billy would have tried to scare the shit out of the kids for fun just for staring at him. New Billy was just annoyed.

Max acts like she's disgusted, not at the idea of the two of you being together, but just because Billy is her brother and she's just grossed out by the thought of him with anyone really.

"They are not dating!"

"They totally are, did you not see the way they just interacted!" Mike is whisper yelling.

"Yeah, it was actually kinda..." Lucas shrugged and looked at Mike.

"Domestic," Mike found the word Lucas was looking for.

"Nu-uh! Billy's just moving in, so he should know house rules by now." Max tried to justify what just happened, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms, before sitting back into the couch with a huff.

"That statement really doesn't help your case."

"Trust us, they're dateing."

"Who's dating?" You walk in just then.

"No one!" "Mike and Eleven!" "Max and Lucas!" They all had conflicting answers to your question.

You just raised a brow in confusion at them.

At that moment Billy steps out with his red duffle bag and heads out for work, "Forgot I left my stuff here the other night," he explains as he passes you to the door.

The kids all look at each other, 'The other night?'

"Okay, there's leftovers in the fridge!" You call as he opens the door.

Billy pauses again and backtracks, closing the door, going to the fridge, and opening it. He paused for a moment as if searching, and then he pulls out a Tupperware container with last night's dinner in it, before putting it in his duffle and heading out again, "Thanks," he opens the door, "See you later!"

"See you!" You turn and look back at the kids, "Sorry, what were you saying?"

They kinda just stare at you gobsmacked.

"Nothing."

The kids actually make it there mission for a while to prove to Max that the two of you are together, but all they succeed in doing is getting caught and threatened by Billy to "Fuck off" and "take your sick jokes elsewhere." He doesn't appreciate peeping toms, especially when they're peeping at him.

Still kinda the same old Billy, just much less dramatic.

You notice something's up with Billy though after he gets attacked by the Mind Flyer.

He seems paranoid, tense, and almost bipolar.

You ask him constantly about it when you see him, and at first he tells you its nothing.

You thought his dad found out about him trying to leave because now he doesn't come around your house anymore.

You still see him at the pool, and he'll stop by, but he never stays.

He becomes awkward in conversations, like he's there, but not completely.

You wonder if he's depressed.

Then he starts avoiding you all together after Heather goes missing (of course you didn't know that she'd gone missing).

When you manage to corner him at the pool, Billy seems to revert back to his old High School self.

He's rude and tells you he wants you to stay away from him.

You're honestly really hurt now because you've made so much progress.

He was supposed to be moving in for gods sake.

Little do you know he's just trying to protect you.

You're the last person he wants to hurt.

He's already hurt one of his coworkers.

He almost hurt Mrs. Wheeler.

But you don't know about her.

When the kids try to spy on Billy, your house is the first place they go to.

Max has been sleeping over at Elevens house the past few nights, so she doesn't know he's been actively ghosting you.

"I dont know, he's avoiding me."

They of course thought that was weird, just a few days ago he seemed so comfortable in this house and around you, and suddenly he's giving you the cold shoulder?

"Did you guys get into a fight?" Max is concerned now because she's really hoping Billy is not the host. They're looking for Billy to do very un-Billy things as proof, and this- thus us very un-Billy.

"No, one day he was fine, then the next he acts like he doesn't want to talk to me if he doesn't have to, and now he's avoiding me all together!" You're actually getting very frustrated now.

"Do you guys know something? Did something happen? Is Billy okay?"

"No nothing," You still dont know about what's been going on the past year or so. You weren't there when they caught off the Demigorgon and you weren't there for the fall of the Mind Flyr either. They had to keep it a secret, "Max just noticed he hadn't been around you lately."

"Friends don't lie," Eleven doesn't like that they were hiding Billy's life being in danger. If something happens to him, you would be hurt, and it would partially be their fault for not telling you the truth.

They try to keep Eleven quiet.

Spoiler, it doesn't work.

So they have to tell you everything that's happened since Will disappeared.

You didn't believe them at first of course, but then Eleven shows you her powers and you start to second guess yourself.

It would at least explain Billy's sudden odd behavior, and why Will acted strange after he returned.

Of course you had always blaimed it on PTSD since you didn't know what the kid had truly been through.

Now you see it's much worse than you could have imagined.

So now your in on the madness.

The next place the kids go is the pool.

Shocker, he's there.

"Its too hot outside to be wearing a long sleeve," is your contribution to their debate on whether or not Billy seems like Billy right now.

"True, but light color cloths make it a bit cooler."

Also true.

None of you could see from this distance, that Billy us sweating buckets right now.

But at least the sun isn't hitting him directly, so he skin won't burn and give him another lesion.

The boys are talking about their plan, but your too lost I thought watching Billy to notice them leave you, Max, and Eleven behind.

It was odd to think that this person you were watching wasn't really Billy. He looked like Billy, but he didn't act or think like him.

When the boys come back then fill you in on the plan.

For the most part you're just hiding with Max, but you will come in handy if the real Billy is still in there somewhere.

You show yourself alongside Max.

Billy pauses for a second, like his mind is trying to comprehend that you're a part of this.

"Why?" He actually looks vulnerable and his voice sounds broken, till it slowly contorts into a look of anger and he starts banging o the door.

Your a little unnerved.

And your having flashbacks from back in High School when you and Billy still didn't get along.

He doesn't understand why this is happening to him.

Everything was going great.

He had a job.

He was working on getting out of his father's house.

And he actually felt like he had someone he could trust.

Then you had to go and do this to him.

That's when it occured to him.

He's been treating you like shit these past few days.

And he's done terrible things

Maybe he deserves this.

That's when he screams in frustration, anger, and sadness, before he starts sobbing.

"Its not my fault...."

"Please."

"I'm sorry."

"I didn't mean to."

He's pleading to you and Max with a broken voice and a broken spirit.

For once Billy looks the way he's always felt on the inside.

Desperate, alone, and afraid.

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you."

"It's not my fault, I promise you."

You're the first to approach the door, and Max follows right behind you as she begins to question Billy.

"He made me do it."

When Max questioned him about who "he" was and what "he" made him do, Billy seemed to retreat into himself more.

The sight broke your heart.

After high school, Billy seemed better, and after he started slowly getting away from his father he actually seemed more confident- and not that fake ass peacocking he didn't in school either, like actual confidence.

But now he was fighting something he couldn't get away from.

He slowly lays down on the floor and continues to beg and plead.

He can't even say what he's done.

You almost open the door, till Mike and Eleven stop you.

Your almost on the verge of tears.

"He's my friend....."

"That's not Billy," Mike says sternly.

"He's hurt," you're trying to get them to let you open the door.

But you stop when Will tells you he can feel "him."

Mike backs of first and tells you and Max to get away from the door.

You're confused at first, but you see Billy just as he comes for the window with the piece of tile.

You push yourself away from the door, and take Max with you, saving her from being hurt by the thing posing as her bother.

When Billy manages to get out and starts hurting the kids, you call out to him.

He stops to look at you and you can see the real Billy in his eyes and in his lip that quivers slightly at the edges.

When El starts throwing him around the room all you and Max can do is hold eachother.

Billy had changed, and you all had gotten so close, and now you have to watch someone you have come to love get hurt.

It breaks your heart to see how desperately he wants to fight this thing. He's always tense, like he's trying to hold his body back, and the tear that trails down his face tells you that again, he's so sorry for what he's doing right now.

You're relieved when he runs off because it means that he can't hurt the kids, and they can't hurt him anymore.

Max is glad she at least has you with her.

Sure she has Lucas, but her friends never really liked Billy, so they don't understand why she cares so much.

You go to the hospital with the kids when Nancy and Jonathan take them along.

You pose as Mrs. Driscoll's grandchild as well.

It was terrifying seeing a pile of gore come to life and chase your friends down.

After you all got back to Eleven's house, you can't stop pacing up and down, and you're just making Max more on edge.

I mean who could blame you though.

Those guys at the hospital who turned to mush were under that monsters control, so what was keeping it from doing the same thing to Billy?

What if he dies a horrible painful death? And you can't be there with him?

Max tries to reassure you that everything will be alright.

After all, they've beaten this thing before.

Though it does sound more like she's trying to convince herself more than she is trying to convince you.

You sit down when Max and Mike get into an argument about Eleven. Honestly, after the night you've had, you've just realized how physically, emotionally, and mentally drained you are. You didn't even think you've slept in almost 24 hours - the kids came to your house, you went with them to the pool, you watched Billy till the end of the day when his shift ended, trapt him in the sauna (mind you it was already dark when the Sauna Test went down), craziness happened, went to Eleven's place so she could find Hopper and they could fill him in on what's going on (because apparently the Sharif is in on this madness too), and that's when Nancy and Jonathan arrived with their information on Mrs. Driscoll, and now your here.

Maybe it's been a little more than 24 hours... Perhaps you should lay down...

Meanwhile, Billy is off doing God knows what.

He's trapt in his own mind - completely aware of what's happening but he's unable to do anything about it.

This monster has taken control of him from the inside and the first few days it at least seemed like he had some semblance of control - like he was driving and the monster was sitting in the back seat telling him what to do. Of course at that point he didn't have to listen, but then it started showing him things. It migrated to shotgun and started messing with the steering wheel.

Now it just feels like it's in the driver's seat, but he's bound and gagged in the back passenger seat where he can at least see everything.

It was hard hurting those kids. He had promised Max he would never hurt her friends again, and honestly, because of you he and his little sister had grown closer, and he's actually been relatively happy. He had just been starting to think that maybe, just maybe, Hawkins wasn't so bad and he could stay.

Then shit hit the fan.

He had never seen you so afraid of him in the time he has known you. Not even when you both didn't get along in high school. Back then, you had more of a rebellious fire in your eyes, and no matter what he did to try and snuff it- to make you afraid of him, it only seemed to feed the fire. But back in the sauna...you looked petrified, unsure, on edge, afraid.

Ironic how now that he desperately wants to protect you and Max, you're both can't trust him.

Why is he like this?

Why does he always screw things up?

His mom left him.

His dad hates him.

He was a fuck up all throughout school.

He had shitty friends who, let's be honest, weren't really even his friends.

He hurt- maybe even indirectly killed his coworker.

He almost killed Karen. Oh God, Mrs. Wheeler. He regrets trying to get her to meet him at the hotel. He doesn't even have feelings for her - he just thought she was hot and wanted to get laid, and by an older woman at that. In fact, he had been on his way to meet her when he was attacked.

And now he's probably lost you and Max.

He feels utterly and terribly alone.

When you wake up, it's to the sound of El screaming. She's freaking out because of the vision she just had of talking to Billy.

The conversation about what she just saw was very sobering. You are wide awake now that the possibility of death looms over you, and the sound of screeching from the approaching monster in the distance doesn't help.

It found you.

You all get the house ready - shut the windows, close the blinds, block off possible openings and stand back to back.

You would feel much safer in a basement.

When it comes through the windows, you help Jonathan fight it off to the best of your ability, but you both end up getting thrown around the room.

Thank whatever supernatural being put El on this earth, because you all would have died without her.

Fast forward to you all going to Starcourt Mall

You help Eleven walk because she's injured, and since Steve isn't here, you're mom now.

Apparently everyone was somehow already on to fishy stuff happening? But what do Russians have to do with anything?

You're so worried about El, that bite looks bad. Like, infected bad, but it can't have been more than an hour or two since she got it, so it can't have progressed that quick.

You know something isn't right.

And you are proven correct when you see something wriggling around in the wound.

Props to El, for being so strong when Johnathan tried to remove that nasty thing, and then removing it herself.

They would have had to knock you the fuck out first if that were you- all the nope.

You all know what happens.

Part 8 will hopefully be the end. Idk we'll see, maybe I will get carried away and make it too long and then their will be 9 lol.

Like I did with this imagine. It was only supposed to be one part, but here we are going on 8.

I apologize for this part following season 3 so closely. As you all can tell I like to at least try and make my own content so it doesn't just feel like you're reading the show, and I think my struggles reflect on this part a bit. I have seen season 3 at least 4 times now because I was trying to find a way do this without just basically rewriting the season with the reader patched into it, but it was either this, have the reader just kinda loose contact with Billy and then find out he's "dead" (my denial is showing), or have reader become one of the flayed (let's be honest, not much would probably go on there). Plus this option has the most angst I feel.

Hope y'all are ready for the angst in the next part.

[kali-tmblr]

Snowbirds of a Feather: Parallels in the Lives of Qrow and Winter

I didn't pay much attention to Qrow and Winter as a potential couple in their introductory scenes in "Brawl in the Family" because I was so blown away by the improvement in the writing that those scenes represented. Such economical exposition! Yes, the couple's relationship could be called "cute", but there wasn't any real "meat" to it at the time. It wasn't until a volume and a half later in "A Much Needed Talk" that it became clear that the two of them had lived parallel lives on opposite sides of the track.

Let's revisit those scenes from the start of Chapter 3. Not a lot has really happened yet. So far there's been students fighting in the Tournament, vaguely underhanded maneuvering from Cinder's crew, and a flashy, drunken stranger watching the fights unimpressed from a barroom TV. Then an equally flashy ship flies overhead, and Weiss runs off showing more joy than she's shown in the entire series to this date. The drunkard also notices the ship, and declares it a warning of a far bigger fight than anything going on at the Tournament.

Weiss introduces the audience (although not Ruby who is standing right beside her) to her flashy older sister, Atlas Special Agent Winter Schnee. It's a painfully awkward meeting. My first reaction to Winter was, "What a tin-plated asshole." A second later it became, "This is the most socially awkward character in an entire show full of socially awkward characters, and probably the shyest as well, hidden underneath a thick armor plating of formality."

In their meeting the Schnee sisters are each "code-switching" with each other between two different behavior models without seeming to find anything odd about it, and giving poor Ruby (and the audience) a case of whiplash, as well as a sense that things are seriously messed up in the Schnee family. Weiss vacillates between excited little girl and cold formality, with a side order of abusive to Ruby when Ruby is informal. Winter vacillates between cold, sneering, condescending, and abusive; and mere cold formality. In the case of both sisters it quickly becomes clear that cold, sneering, condescending, and abusive within a hierarchical structure is what they grew up with. Winter can sneer at and abuse Weiss, but Weiss can't do the same back at Winter. Instead, she abuses the lower-ranked (to the Schnee family) Ruby. More to the point, Weiss and Winter obviously expect nothing else from each other. It becomes clear that they do care about each other, but they don't know any other way to show it.

But while sneering condescension and abuse is clearly the default mode in Winter's mind for meeting with her little sister, it's not the mode she stays in. She overtly makes an effort, not once, not twice, but three separate times in one conversation to code-switch from abusive condescension into the merely cold, militaristic formality that she must have picked up at the Atlas Academy. It obviously doesn't come naturally to her in speaking with her sister, it's the abusive condescension that comes naturally, but darn it, she keeps trying!

It's heartbreaking.

This scene is just so elegant. It not only introduces Winter and shows us a ton of details about the Schnee family dynamics, but it also provides callbacks to Season 1. The audience is reminded of what Weiss was like when she arrived at Beacon and how much progress she has made in socializing. We're also given a hint as to maybe why Weiss chose Beacon over Atlas Academy if that's all the social skills her sister learned there. And we're also given the contrast between the cold formality of the Schnee sisters and the loving warmth of Ruby and Yang. At the end of the scene Winter and Weiss are headed for the dorm, where I am eagerly looking forward to Yang teaching Winter a lesson on the proper care and maintenance of baby sisters, especially baby sisters who also happen to be Yang's teammates, which may or may not involve fisticuffs.

I'm still waiting for that scene, because that's when the story takes a turn.

The drunkard lurches forward, easily decapitating two of the latest models of Atlesian Knights in spite of being unable to walk in a straight line, and begins hurling insults on the Atlas military directed at it's highest ranking member present, Winter. He calls her ship "gaudy", which while it is objectively true, is also ironic coming from the only man we've met who wears a cape. She calls him "Qrow", the name of Ruby and Yang's heretofore unseen uncle, and he calls her "Ice Queen", to the confusion of Weiss.

In this scene what Winter doesn't do is even more interesting than what she does do. She's being insulted by a falling down drunk, and she DOESN'T respond with the same sneering condescension she just used on her own dear sister, even though many people routinely use that tone with drunks. She maintains a now angry formality. He's handing her opportunities to sneer on a silver platter, and she's not taking them. This tells us that sneering condescension is a holdover from her childhood, not something she normally uses in her adult life.

More importantly she allows her own little sister to prance right up to this drunkard and confront him. She doesn't react at all when the drunkard puts his hands all over her sister's head and uses it for balance before gently pushing her sister to the side. This scene tells us one of two things. Either Winter doesn't care about her little sister's welfare, or she is convinced that even though obviously incapacitated by alcohol, with his motor functions, vision, and reason clearly impaired, the drunken man is in spite of this no threat to the young woman. That level of conviction speaks not only of lots of prior experience, but a high degree of trust in spite of their current animosity.

The insults continue with Qrow upset about Ironwood's humiliation of Ozpin before the Vale council at the end of Volume 2 , reminding the audience of that development. However much the two leaders have been downplaying their disagreement in their personal meetings, it obviously has their loyal bannermen up in arms.

(Some people have assumed that Qrow and Winter were former lovers, but I don't see anything here that really supports that premise. They're simply arguing over policy. Lovers would have a more thorough knowledge of each other's buttons.)

Winter holds her ground until Qrow starts threatening to blab state secrets in the public square, then she changes tactics. Unfortunately for her she attacks him instead of grabbing him by the arm and dragging him somewhere out of earshot. But it's fortunate for us, as we get the best 1v1 duel so far.

As good as it is, it's also clear Qrow is holding back. Judging from the Ursa we will see Winter summon in the next episode, so is she.

Qrow keeps one eye on the Beacon Tower, and when he sees Ironwood coming up behind Winter, he goads her into attacking an unarmed man in front of her superior. In this way he publicly humiliates Winter as Ironwood's proxy in a similar manner to how Ironwood has publicly humiliated Ozpin with the council. The action is childish and petty, but not personal, a drunken, juvenile payback.

Winter's opinion on the prank isn't known, but she is clearly furious.

Then the action switches to inside Beacon Tower, where it becomes clear that both combatants are intensely loyal to and highly valued by their respective Headmasters, although Qrow outranks Winter and has her thrown out. Then we move on to info dumps and plot developments galore.

The way these scenes fold so much information inside them is vastly improved over the first two Volumes. But as lovely as our snowbirds look together, there's no real reason to ship them - yet. That would wait until we began to get Qrow's backstory in Volume 4. Once Qrow begins to talk about his childhood, it gradually becomes clear how much his life story has echoed Winter's life story. Shall we count the ways?

1) Horrible childhood: Qrow grew up an unloved, unwanted child in a chaotic, abusive bandit camp, and quickly becomes the camp scapegoat. From what we have seen Winter grew up in a home that was cold and abusive, where order and affection came from the servants, not her parents.

2) Grew up in the shadow of a narcissist: Winter grew up in the shadow of her narcissistic father Jaques. Qrow appears to have grown up in the shadow of his narcissistic sister Raven. Both narcissists have shown that they only regard other people as tools or enemies, including family. This tends to leave a child with major insecurity issues.

3) Escape to Academy: Both Qrow and Raven made it to Huntsmen Academies, where they encountered genuine order and a semblance of fairness for the first time. The Academy was the first decent thing that happened to them, and in that environment both of them blossomed.

4) Remade themselves into the Headmaster's pets: Both characters appear to have used their time at their respective Academies to reinvent themselves. Both of them took the ethos of their schools and their Headmasters to heart. Each one strove successfully to become their Headmaster's trusted eyes and ears in the field.

5) Flashy exterior, insecure interior: In each case a flashy exterior conceals deep insecurities.

6) Guilt over children: This one's a bit of a stretch, but not much. Winter constantly telling Weiss she has to be strong sounds like guilt over the fact that Winter had to leave Weiss behind in an abusive situation in order to go to Atlas Academy. As for Qrow, after growing up unwanted I think he would have panicked over Yang and Ruby growing up motherless, tried to be there to help Tai as much as he could, and felt guilty about having to leave on missions for Ozpin, which wouldn't help his drinking any.

7) Socially Awkward: They're both socially awkward. Winter conceals her social awkwardness behind a formal exterior. Qrow hides his social awkwardness behind drinking and physical seperation.

8) Arrested Development: Both of them successfully escaped traumatic childhoods and reinvented themselves as Teacher's Pets, completely loyal to their respective saviours. And there both of them seem to have stopped maturing. Growing any more would have meant questioning their idol, and neither one was willing to do that. We saw how Qrow was shaken to his core when the man he reveres turned out to have feet of clay. Should Ironwood fall from grace, it will be no less traumatic for Winter than Ozpin's fall from grace was for Qrow. But perhaps on the other side of that they will both finally find themselves standing as their own people.

[angstybandito]

Alright, I have some things to say about this:

1. There's a difference between having a mental health episode and needing to apologize and having a mental health episode because of the person you blew up at. Chances are that if they have a mental health issue they'll apologize for the smallest things they do, it isn't always anger and frustration and taking it out on others. You have no idea how much people with mental health will take out their frustration on themselves. They'll end up cutting or wanting to kill themselves. And no, cutting doesn't always mean they want attention

2. If other people lose patience while another is having a mental breakdown, it hurts, it really does. I know it happens. People have done it to me and I've done it to others, it's important to talk to the person that was hurt later on, because they will constantly think everything was their fault, and they will blame themselves for who knows how long. Make amends and figure out the situation, don't just leave them behind and leave them alone with their struggle, no matter how much it annoys you

3. Yes, I do disagree with what this person says, because it is not an accurate representation of both sides of either having a mental health issue and not having one. If I'm driving my friends insane because I annoy them about being depressed, then they aren't my friends. If they're abandoning me because they lost patience then they were never my friends. The thing about loving a person is you're there no matter what. That goes for family, friends, and significant others. If they love you, then they aren't going to abandon you.

4. I understand that being around people with mental health issues is tiring and hard and it makes it easy to lose patience. If they're talking about their mental health then they trust you to know about it. You never know if you're the only person that they can talk to about it. You don't know what everything is like for them. So do your best to be patient, and do what you can to help. Sometimes you'll feel like you need an apology, and sometimes you deserve one. But a person with serious mental health issues can barely comprehend their own reality, much less see exactly how their actions impact others.

5. Some people have bad experiences with therapists and medications. Some people aren't able to get the medication they need. Some people's parents won't let them get therapy if they need it. Just because they aren't getting help doesn't mean they refuse to receive it, which is why they're probably talking to you about it so much

6. Even if we seem egotistical, it doesn't make us that way. Our brains are telling us that everything is wrong and nothing we can do will ever make us feel loved, or wanted. So only being told that we are egocentric feeds that reality and makes us worse. We seem egotistical because we don't know what the heck we're doing or what is happening to us. We feel the need to talk to everyone about it to get some sort of affirmation that what we're experiencing isn't different and is something a lot of others experience too