#which is Fine it's a round number but it's not a Round-Round number so [gesturing]

[keeps-ache]

HEY

[eyelambspider]

𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝. - König

Part One || Part Two

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 : The WX 400 model, or König, had been sitting in a Cyberlife store for nearly six months without so much as a glance from customers. He had been repurposed from a hard laborer to a sort of domestic care-giver... but the thing was, consumers only wanted the newer models. Until you came by. 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 : 1.2 k 𝐚/𝐧 : consider this my masterpiece, probably will write a second part 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 : fluff, hurt/comfort(?), domestic fluff

𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐘𝐁𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐄. From the sleek tiled floors, to the large window panes that were cleaned daily, to the Androids that stood on display within.

On white pedestals, circled with fluorescent tags and holograms indicating their model numbers and generic purposes: Domestic housekeepers, caretakers, companions. Smaller synthetic machines that had friendly faces and sparkling eyes. Built for a life amongst humans.

He wasn't built for that. No.

His slate-colored eyes had watched for months, lingering over Cyberlife's newest models at the front of the store. A blank expression as each one smiled hopefully. Perhaps something they were programmed to do. To appear friendly?

He considered it a possibility, sure, but the 'front of the store' androids were a stark contrast to his own model.

The WX-series of androids had been built with only one purpose: hard labor, or to put it more simply, construction work.

When customers came into the store they only wanted one thing: a shiny new companion.

Everyday the eyes of those strangers would frown when they saw him. Hardly sparing the WX a glance before they turned around and considered an AX 400 instead.

An android built for housework and taking care of children, with a soft round face and a smile that reached all the way up to her kind blue eyes...

It seemed a diluted plausibility that one day the repurposed WX would eventually find a purpose. With everyday he inched closer to the possibility of being discarded. Simply unwanted.

Until a particularly cloudy day in May, one of the stares had caught his attention, even in his low power mode. Only able to shift his tired seeming eyes and move at a slow pace. Meeting that oddly new curious gaze of yours. The eyes of a stranger finally lingering on him.

Him.

"Excuse me?" You held your hand up sheepishly, asking for assistance from one of the android retailers, a young looking man with a head of soft brown hair and a blue circular LED on his right temple. The holographic label on his chest reading: Ethan.

"Hello, How can I help you?" Ethan stepped next to your side with a light smile.

You pointed to the WX in front of you, feeling a bit silly for even asking but... "Could you tell me about this one?"

The android salesman nodded, hands folded politely behind him, following your gaze towards the decommissioned android, unable to show the usual grimace humans showed the WX.

"Of course," he agreed easily, "This particular model is a WX 400, a decommissioned laborer. They aren't often sold in stores, but if you are interested I could tell you more about it."

The WX watched you nod, his eyes flickering occasionally between you and the sales-android.

"Why is he decommissioned?" you asked quietly, letting the question linger momentarily before Ethan perked up again, unbiased.

"The WX 400 was only decommissioned in its primary purpose, which was doing manual labor," the mechanical man explained with a synthetic smile, gesturing with his hands for your eyes to follow. "It works perfectly fine, and besides some damage to its synthetic skin and body, and a few replaced parts," he managed a soft light-hearted chuckle, "This model works perfectly fine, just not for its intended heavy lifting purposes. It will work perfectly fine for housework. Is that what you were looking for?"

As the sales-android considered the new possibility, he prompted a new question: "We have many other fine models if you are interested in something else."

The statement, whilst a little profound to you, meant next to nothing to the two androids who patiently awaited your answer.

"I was looking for someone to help around the house," you confirm.

The WX before you, nearing seven foot tall easily in the display case, glanced down at you. Unmoving, but like all androids, his eyes held an uncanny humanity within those blue depths.

He could see the consideration on your face. The way your eyes wearily, almost tenderly, traced the lines and deep scars on his synthetic skin. Deep grooves and lacerations running from his fingers, up his strong forearms and disappearing under the fabric of his standard Cyberlife shirt.

Even the androids face, while once maybe even considered handsome, had a deep scar running over its left side. Over his dirty blonde brow and high cheekbone, tracing over his lips to his chin.

It was a wonder he even worked properly, and the unspoken question must've been written all over your face again.

"The WX has had his diagnostics run perfectly well. I assure you the android itself works perfectly fine," Ethan smiled boyishly when you blushed.

"I don't doubt it," you assured him with an unintentionally adorable grin. "I've just... I've never seen an android like him," you admitted softly, those soft eyes meeting the WX's again.

He was looking right at you again.

Immediately your gaze dropped down shyly, unintentionally reading the blue holographic labels that surrounded the short white pillar he stood on.

"He has a name?" You asked, glancing over to Ethan for confirmation.

"Of course, but if you'd like to reset it-"

"No," you stopped him, feeling a bit more confident than you had when you first entered the store.

"König sounds fine to me."

König watched from his display, with a hint of utter- well... what would you call this?

Disbelief? Surprise?

Surprise when your complexion lit with a smile. Surprise when you said his name and turned to walk with the other android to the front of the store? Surprise as his eyes trailed after your form, unable to comprehend you.

For what reason could you possibly want a repurposed android like him?

It didn't make sense in the slightest, and although he watched you, he felt lost, considering possibilities that felt underwhelming in their answers.

His price was lower than others for being damaged. But so many had passed him by.

It was something König considered for a while, never finding a suitable answer until a new initiative popped across his sensors. Jolting him awake once more.

He was registered now to you. Your name popping across his vision like a directive.

"Thank you," you waved to the man who had helped you with a soft smile, getting a vaguely surprised gesture from him.

"Oh- You're very welcome!" Ethan smiled back and watched for a moment longer as you headed up to König, whom at that moment, was given back full control over his mechanical body. Unlocked from his low power mode.

The blue Thirium that cooled and powered his circuits rushed back into him. Circling through his veins and giving him back full control of his body. The world no longer running in slow motion.

König's hands lifted up slowly. The WX inspecting his hands and flexing his fingers into gentle balls. The two of you watched in silent awe as the large android moved once more, no longer destined for a Cyberlife disposal facility... but for.

König's vision refocused as you reached out. Your tiny hand taking one of his. Warm, and unmarred in contrast to his, and he could feel the almost imperceptible beating of your pulse beneath the contact.

"Come on," you smiled, not quite helping him from the stand, but guiding him down the small step. "I'll show you how to get back home, König," you mused, feeling the large androids cut up hand grip yours a bit tighter.

Next >

© Eyelambspider. I only post here on Tumblr! könig photo credit to my friend @koharu-rk800

[hockeyboistrash]

He's so cute and I have fallen victim to another tall hockey boy 🫣

a special guest at your apartment helps create a connection with your neighbour, michael kesselring

It was a rare off day for you, so you spent the morning catching up with housework. You opened the window, enough to let some fresh air in, but not too much that your cat could jump out. Not that she would. She was a very unbothered cat who would spend the day curled up on the couch. That's where you found her except this time there was another cat on your couch. One you haven't see before.

"And who are you?" You asked, gently walking over to the mysterious cat. You gave him some fuss which earned some happy chirps as you tried to look at the collar to see if it gave you any clue to who his owner was. It didn't.

It didn't take long before you heard commotion outside your front door that sounded a lot like a panicked owner. "Shit. Ranger! Come on bud. Where are you?"

You noticed the cat perked up at what you presumed to be his name. "Ranger, did you run away?" You asked like he could understand you. He just blinked at you before laying his head back down, clearly not wanting to move. You sighed because while the sight of your cat and Ranger curled up on your coach, the sun shining on them, was cute you had to let his owner know Ranger was in fact safe and hadn’t ran away. Being a cat owner yourself you can imagine how your neighbor must be feeling. It would break your heart if anything ever happened to your cat.

You grabbed your keys and left your apartment, shutting the door behind you so you didn’t have anymore escapees. Your neighbor was quick to answer the door as soon as you knocked. He was stressed. His hair was messy from running his fingers through it numerous times, his face tugged into a slight frown.

"I think your cat is on my couch." You told him, gesturing to your apartment behind you. Michael let out the biggest sigh of relief. He was glad Ranger only made it to the apartment next door, glad he was safe.

"Thank you so much. I don’t know how he even got out. One minute he was on the window sill and the next he was gone. I was so worried about him." Michael rambled. You thought it was cute. You thought he was cute. You’ve never had a good look at your neighbor before, only ever seeing him in passing. "Let me grab my keys and I’ll get him."

Michael followed you into your apartment, almost bumping into the back of you when you stopped. "I think he’s made a new friend." You grinned. Michael couldn’t help but also smile, the sight of Ranger curled up on your couch with your cat was cute.

"I’m so sorry he invited himself in by the way." He apologised but you brushed it off.

"It’s fine, honestly. I was a little surprised because I wasn’t sure how he got in but he wasn’t hurting anyone." You assured him before leaning down to give Ranger some fuss. "He’s such a good boy."

Michael couldn’t help but snort at that. Maybe in front of you he was an angel but behind closed doors? Ranger was a menace. He’s got scratches to prove that. "I should probably get him so we can get out of your way." He said, reaching over to pick him up. Ranger sighed as he leaned into Michael’s chest, curling up in his arms not wanting to disturb his cat nap.

You walked Michael and Ranger out, stopping by the door and watching as he opened his own apartment door with ease. "Hey, do you want my number?" You asked, bravery taking over. "You know incase Ranger decides to invite himself round again or if you need a cat sitter?"

You bit your lip as you waited for Michael’s reply, hoping you didn’t come across as weird or too eager. "I'd like that." He said, not able to contain his grin. "Would I be able to use it outside of cat related things? Like taking you out for dinner?"

"I think that could be allowed." You told him, your smile matching his.

[naffeclipse]

Dance, Detective, Dance

Detective!Reader x Police Chief!Eclipse

Commission Info

Who's ready for some dancing with Police Chief!Eclipse? I had a delightful time writing this darling little fic which was requested by Anonymous. The detective reader must navigate a situation they truly do not want to be in and are ultimately rescued by a very dashing Eclipse. Now, time to hit the dance floor.

———

This is not where you’re meant to be.

The candlelight twinkle of the capitol building’s chandeliers cast the ballroom floor in gentle, romantic lightning. The marble columns of the great architecture build a grandness to the politics and party tonight. Men, women, human and animatronic alike, flutter around the space in bird-like trillings of socialization. The suits are finely pressed and the gowns are exuberant and shimmering. The large, photo-ready smiles mean nothing to you. Though fellow officers mingle among public workers and rich city members, you stand deliberately away from the conversations in a shady nook against the wall.

You must remind yourself to unfurrow your brow lest you stand with a perpetual scowl on your face for the rest of the night. This should not be mandated as part of your job—a charity ball, put on by your police precinct no less. Your time is better spent pooling over castfiles and running down streets to locate criminals. 

You tug at the collar of your formal attire, dark and fitted for a black-tie event. The weight of your gun rests heavily on your hip, hidden beneath your clothes. You wish you could stroke it, hold it in your hands, and count the rounds. The number of bullets inside the clip is branded in your mind, but the routine is grounding. But, your hands lie empty and repeatedly clench.

The night has worn on. This has been your service for the evening. You can excuse yourself on the basis that you’re needed back at your desk to study the recent string of crimes the Celestial Gang conducted. Surely that’s better spent time than standing here, stuck in fancy clothes that do little to make you more approachable.

The door. Your eyes have been returning to it constantly in the last hour. You could piece together what’s been eating away at you about the last rival gang slaying. What are the Celestial Gang building up to? Why suddenly strike so hard and fast at enemies? Do they simply have more confidence or is there something moving in the underground, dark and silent as a reaper?

This is enough. You’re going back to work. You step out of the shadow alcove you’ve lurked in all evening. Shoulders hunched as you begin to slip between oblivious attendees of the charity ball, you keep your eyes on the door. Single-mindedly, you weave towards the exit without seeing one face or hearing a voice in the crowd’s babble.

Someone emerges at the top of the grand staircase to the left of the doors. A familiar figure, tall and lithe and adorned in sun rays, descends the steps.

You stop in a crowd. Eyes drawn up, you stare at the police chief.

Eclipse. You’ve never seen him so sleek and sharp in a tuxedo of deep crimson. He fixes his bow tie with deft fingers, his eyes lifting to the crowd as if he’s lost something. His expression is intent, unsatisfied as he searches for the brief moment it takes for his gaze to swiftly land upon you.

Your lips part for an inexplicable reason. To call out to him. To explain why you’re making a beeline for the door. Say hello before you tell him goodbye. You have no answer. No words slip from your lips as he holds your stare as if you were the only person standing in the room.

His canary yellow optics brighten. His hands fall, softly opening in a gesture that seems to invite you closer. The police chief tilts his head. He finishes descending the steps as you push through the crowd—not to escape the ball but to meet him at the foot of the staircase.

He says your name softly in a manner you consider dangerous.

“Eclipse,” you greet, though it’s unnatural to say his name while the two of you are very much not alone. Yet, the crowd leaves you two in a pocket of privacy, unaware and unconcerned with a commanding officer and his subordinate.

Music pulls on strings, echoing in the air. Dancers begin to meet and pair behind you on the polished dance floor. Eclipse’s eyes briefly stray to the live music conducting the beginning of a couple’s dance, but his black pupils return to you. 

“Where are you going?” He reaches out and touches the sleeve of your clothes, smoothing down a non-existent wrinkle. 

“Out,” you answer, almost shoving it between your teeth. “I have work to do.”

His grin tightens like glass crunching in on itself. His fingertips slip further down your arm, trailing carefully over the sleeve that’s far too stiff for your liking to loosely encircle your wrist. He keeps you in place.

“You are expected to remain for the entirety of the charity ball; the same as every officer in attendance.” He speaks with the firmness of authority.

You narrow your eyes. He meets you unyieldingly. Your fist clenches just underneath his large, dark hand.

“I need to go over the case files from last week. I can’t stand here all night.” You look out over the band playing, accompanying dancers as they step and twirl. The bodies are organized yet chaotic in their colors and energies. A few people are laughing and others are stone-cold serious, focused on the rhythm while others kiss their partner.

“Detective, you can last one night at a social event.” His voice gravels low, almost touching a note of mirth.

His thumb slides down the bones of your hand, caressing your skin softly. A shiver subtly works its way up your spine. You turn back to face him. A stubborn argument crawls upon your lips but you stop short.

The police chief is strangely quiet. No, distracted. His eyes roam up and down your person. You stand frozen under his inspection. You dressed appropriately. He can’t fault you for improper attire but you can’t unravel the motive for his silence. His expression deepens into something soft. His optic lights dust you gently with his attention.

The strange exchange prompts your study of the police chief. He’s never been one to slack in his appearance nor fail to dress for the occasion. There is an undeniable charm to how the tuxedo looks on him. His fingertips are soft against the pulse on the inside of your wrist. The deep crimson color compliments his maroon and indigo sun rays.

A beat passes. Eclipse finds your eyes again.

“You look exquisite, sweetheart.” The note of affection in his tone sends a weakness into your knees.

“I’m not staying,” you say. Eclipse knows better than to charm you—though you must breathe to regain the feeling in your legs. “Even if I will miss seeing you look so sharp and spiffy.”

“Thank you,” his voice is low and gravelly. It echoes him finding you late at night, working at your desk, and walking you halfway to your home. A voice greeting you first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee. A question of concern, wondering if you’ve had enough sleep lately.

He holds out his other hand. The hold he has on your wrist is loose, soft and so unlike the coldness of handcuffs you’ve experienced before. You’re reminded again of his relation to the Celestial Gang mob bosses. Though what happened to separate Eclipse from his brothers and lead them down such different paths eludes you. You don’t pry. You won’t ask him to give it all up. 

He is not his brothers.

“Since you must stay here, we can make use of your presence.” His fingers unfurl. His dark digits and silicon palm wait before you. Like an offer of hope. Like an invitation to sneak away, just the two of you. His optics are lower in light. “Won’t you dance with me, Detective?”

You stare at the offering. A weak stirring begins within you. You tilt your head back to hold his gaze.

“I can’t dance.” You have the bluntness of a hammer. He knows this. He has always known this.

Eclipse’s grin remains unwavering. 

“I’ll lead.”

The music swells to a final jazzed ending. Couples drift apart and shuffle, and others stay perfectly together, waiting for the next song.

This is dangerous. Your hand falls into his. Him leading you deeper onto the dance floor to lose yourselves in the crowd and yet, find all the privacy. 

“Stand on my feet,” he says.

“You’ll regret this,” you warn him gently for his own sake. You fix your shoes upon him, scuffing up the shiny black polish but Eclipse doesn’t even glance down. His optics are firmly fastened on your gaze.

He chuckles low within his metaphorical throat. The first twirl begins, and you are perfectly safe upon his footwork. If anyone notices that you’re not truly putting in effort, allowing Eclipse to lead and put in all the moves, no one says anything. No one truly looks at you. All the politicians officers and city workers are engrossed in their dramas. You almost feel as if you were alone with Eclipse.

The music slips over you. The string cords and the waltz rhythm of the instruments tug you both along. Eclipse effortlessly weaves and carries you through the people, his attention tilted down to hold you in his vision while the room spins at the edges. You stare into his optics. Yellow with pinpricks of black. His smile is softening at the edges, his sharp teeth less visible in his focus.

“How do you know how to dance?” you ask, your interrogation voice coming through full force.

Eclipse tilts his head. A glint in his gaze gives way to something you can’t help but find unusual for the police chief.

“Personal interest and a need to fulfill certain duties a police chief must uphold such as appearing at public events. Especially for an animatronic,” his voice is gravelly.

To be charming and capable in every manner, to have to give even more than a human would in his position. Your hands clench his as he cuts through the space, leading your clasped hands like a wedge through the masses. Your grip tightens upon him. A burn sets in your chest, hot and spitting.

“You don’t have to dance,” you say, “Not with me.”

“I know,” he says softly. His voice lowers. “It’s a shame I don’t see you like this more often.”

You grimace as you glance down at yourself.  “These clothes are too stuffy. Who could chase a criminal down in this?”

Eclipse’s smile is poignant as he remarks, “It’s a very good thing you’re not on active duty tonight then.”

A sound between a huff and a growl escapes your mouth. Eclipse twirls you in a motion that leaves your head spinning slowly until you remember to focus on his eyes. His light is constant through the movement of his practiced swaying. 

You fight the urge to close your eyes and rest your head on his chest. His height gives you the perfect advantage to rest against him. You might be tired. The entire social event has sucked you dry and now you’re stuck in a slow whirl with the police chief. It’s difficult to remember that you wanted to leave only a few moments ago.

“Eclipse, I have to go,” you say over the ringing of the music. You’re getting distracted. You feel weak, held up by him so tenderly. His hand presses into the small of your back as he shifts you in his arms. 

“Would it kill you to spend an evening with me, looking so fine, and dancing?” His eyes burn low. You can’t look away.

“Maybe.” He doesn’t let you loose, so you must grit your teeth and admit, “I dance and wear nice clothes only for you.”

Eclipse grins. 

“Come on, sweetheart,” he says, and his movements grow stronger. 

You cling tighter to him. Held flush against his chassis and fine suit, you watch the room twist upon itself. Eclipse draws you in and out, and he carefully stops to gently set you back on your feet. You immediately freeze like a wild animal set in a civilized place. Before you can succumb to your failure of not knowing a single dance, Eclipse takes your hand and lifts your arm above your head. Pressing your shoulder softly, he guides you into a soft spin upon your toes. You almost stumble. He holds you steady.

Then he takes you by the waist, holding you tight as he dips you low. You’re parallel to the floor, parallel to the police chief's smile as he hovers above you. You both hide below the crowd. The music swells.

His mouth has never been closer. You don’t realize how much your chest heaves, your heart alive in your ribcage as if amid a shoot-out, but it’s him. It’s only him. A smokey-amber scent fills your senses. He’s so close, and you drown in him.

Eclipse gently lowers himself closer. His optics flash between your eyes and your lips. You breathe out. Your eyelids flutter close—

And gunshots ring out.

Your eyes fly open and Eclipse’s optics flare. People scream. The stringed instruments cut off with abrupt notes souring the air. In a blur of a second, Eclipse pulls you back onto your feet. You whirl around, your hand upon your gun and freeing it from its concealed holster. 

The doors are wide open, held by men in dark attire as more shots ring out, thrumming out of Thompson machine guns. Gleeful criminals stare down at the panicking charity ball. You step forward. Eclipse's hand falls on your shoulder, pulling you back just as a politician in a suit dashes right in front of you. Eclipse’s grip tightens on your collarbone.

The gangsters glance around, lowering their weapons. Screams of panic ring out again but the gunfire stops—they have everyone’s attention.

“Eclipse,” you utter. Your finger is careful on the trigger. There are too many civilians. The boldness of crashing a party in the heart of the capital building leaves you seething.

“The Celestial Gang,” his voice lowers. He knows. You both know.

Henchmen step aside and hold open the doors to the dark, cool night. Dressed in fine suits, sharp and oily as finger-rubbed gold, the mob bosses of the most feared gang in the city step into the ballroom. They hold guns in their hands, gleaming cold and dark. Their eyes, gray and pale, and red and black, cut through the panicking people. 

Eclipse is half-frozen beside you. He steps forward, placing himself between you and the mob bosses. His brothers.

Your eyes dart around the room. The people have crowded against the far wall. Other officers have drawn their weapons. You glare down the animatronics bearing the themes not unlike the police chief, one of a pale yellow sun, and the other of a dark and silvery moon.

“Oh, Moon, I hope we’re not too late to the party,” Sun announces. His fingers stroke the trigger of his gun. His mouth curls sinisterly. “It’s so nice to see all the elites of this rotten city celebrating their charity.”

“Look, brother,” Moon tips his dark hat at you. “We’re just in time.”

You grit your teeth where you stand, and glare back.

“I think you’re right.” Sun laughs, cold and chilling against the marbled columns. His attention rests on you, hungry with avarice.

Moon lifts his gun into the air and smiles with sharp teeth. He announces, “We will be stealing the detective for a dance.”

[writingoddess1125]

Lies on Vacation

So I am writing this as a small little idea dabble with König so this is kinda short. Also did some googling like- Holy fuck Special military contractors make a fuck ton supposedly and also can get bonus/gift prices after salary. Aka I'm making the number highest it can be for this story. Hehe heh

König (name Hans in thus AU) + PregReader and OOC

The AU is based off this story <<<

Warnings: Some Lies, A Break in, Murder (Non important characters)

When Konig had first suggested you all go up to the Vacation house you'd been elated.

He'd known that you had been wanted to get out a bit more, Especially with your newest child on the way it had driven you a bit more stir crazy then the last time.

Konig had gotten the place a few years back after be got a generous Bonus from his job, A large Villa style place in Barcelona close to the beach- It was a long trip from your home in Austria sure, however it was always a lovely Vacation.

The last time you'd went was when Eden was a baby. Having wonderful photos of you all on the beach together and absolutely fantastic time.

And this vacation had been no exception either. Sailing, Sight seeing and having a wonderful family dinner at a far too fancy spot on the beach.

It had been a wonderful start but also quite exhausting, By the time you all three had even made it back to the vacation house Eden was passed out on König shoulder and you weren't too far behind.

The three of you fast to fall asleep that not.

However it seemed that fate was not on your side- While you'd had fallen asleep fine, at around midnight you'd woken up groggy. Looking at your phone it was a bit past midnight.

For some reason your baby had seemingly decided that it was the perfect time to wake up and show off their gymnastics skills. Now making you doomscroll a bit on your phone to hopefully past the time while they settled, after a while though you heard it-

Some heard some mild shuffling and clainking noises coming downstairs. Rubbing your face as you figured it was Eden.

Eden had recently started sleepwalking which had been quite the wonderful adventure for you all. König and you having gotten a heart attack when your daughter had gotten up and walked into the kitchen just the ruffle through the fork drawer while saying absolute gibberish.

So now it was a game of catch her before she wondered somewhere she wasn't suppose to.

You felt far too round and far too tired for this, However rolled yourself from bed and started to walk down the hall to check on Eden.

Walking down the hall you are quick to get to her room and peak in first, assuming she was up going I'm circles in her room. But to your surprise you see her tucked into bed still-

Right as you hear some glass falling.

Eyes wide you scoop up Eden quickly from her bed and as quietly as possible slowly tiptoeing down the hall- Catching a peak of what seemed to be a few men in black walking through the livingroom.

Greatful they hadn't spotted you as you made it down the hallway- your heart beating in your ears as you held your sleeping daughter close.

Once back in the master bedroom you rush to Konig, Setting Eden on the bed as you gently shake him awake. Seeing him wake up and stare at you a bit confused.

"Hans there are people downstairs- I thought Eden was sleepwalking and I-"

Fear Crawling up your throat as you heard more noise from the livingroom- Clearly so had Konig at this point as he stared at the closed masterbedroom door with a narrowed gaze.

His face immediately seemed to wake up, Not a hint of being groggy was there like moments ago or when he wakes up in the morning.

Konig looks at you calmly, Rising from bed as he goes into the nightstand. Grabbing something just out of your view as he gestures for you to lay down next to Eden.

"I've got it- Stay here and go back to sleep Liebling"

You couldnt help but be confused- You knew he was military but he seemed so calm?- Sure you didn't know what he did but still, He was calm and seemed far too focused. Going as far as to keep what he grabbed out of your view as well.

"But Hans- Should I call the police?"

"Nein. I'll make the call and handle it. Okay? Just go back to sleep"

He said softly, gently caressing your face to ease you as he tucked you back into bed- Mindful of your swollen belly.

You nod softly as Konig leans down and kisses your forehead as well as Eden's before walking out of the room, closing the door gently behind him.

It was quiet after that, a unsettling silence. Taking a heavy breath you wanted to get up and look however didnt.. Something in your brain screaming at you not to.

Wiggling deeper into the large bed you hold Eden closer to you, Trying to relax and get a few moments of sleep. Going in and out of the lightest sleep for a while just due to paranoia.

It wasn't till a little bit 3 am did you hear your husband come back after a while as he slid in bed next to you and Eden. His arms wrapping around you both as the anxiety finally released and you fell into a deeper sleep.

In the morning you'd guys all were getting ready to go out for breakfast. Eden of course chattering away at a dream she had as König was brushing her hair back into a ponytail.

As you walk over to join them dressed for the day. Something catches your nose. You look around the livingroom a bit confused. The whole place was spotless- cleaner then when you'd went to bed and you were sure you'd seen the window broken from the robbers.

It smelled like nice lemon cleaner which was well hidden by the sweet smell of the ocean near by. However you blamed the pregnancy nose for being able to pick up the smell at all.

"Something wrong?" Konig called out, seeing how your face was twisted in confusion.

"No just.. thinking about last night still.. I could have sworn the window was broken- And you never did tell me if they were arrested or even what happened?"

"Ah, yes they were taken away since they were just some petty thieves. I'd called someone. Also since they broke the window I had a friend clean up that glass and replace window last night as a fast favor. Nothing too bad"

You sighed at this, Glad to know it seemed minor even if it still shook you a bit. Though you couldn't help but still feel.. off about it all?

"But I don't like that we had someone break in, We may need to sell this vacation home and get a different one near by- Besides we will need a bigger one anyway. We can stop by a agency later on today to see what we can look at"

He casually said, Gesturing to your belly with his chin before letting Eden free to run to you. You smile and nodding softly.

"I think that would be a good idea"

He smiled at you, Standing up as he wrapped his arm around you and the three of you heading out to the Cafe near by. Konig glancing back at the livingroom once as you all walked out the front door.

Having dawned his mask and the large tactical knife in hand as he slit their throat and gutted them silently. Knowing they had been higher profile robbers and assaulting others in a neighboring area so he didnt feel guilt over it. Quite the opposite actually.

Konig wasn't going to tell you he'd murdered those men right were you had been standing.

That he had to secretly shower all the blood that had stuck to him.

How he had called in a old acquaintance afterwards who wrapped and dragged those bodies to be disposed of in a unknown location. While calling a Kortec favorite clean up group who shown up only an hour later had wiped away that whole crime like it was nothing.

He wasn't really attached to this place anyway- It had belonged to a high status trafficker that he had killed. The Villa a gift from his contractor as a gift with his bonus at the time.

So getting a new place with his family was no problem.

No harm would ever get close to his little family. He didn't care how much blood, how many lies or whatever else he had to do to keep you safe.

It was worth it for you and his children.

[prettymuchteddy]

Good Luck Egg Chapter One: Welcome Egg

Summary: Jace Targaryen was one of the eldest siblings of his two mothers and when he found out they would be having yet another child he was both excited and nervous. His baby brother, Egg, would have to navigate life through their crazy family so as any good brother would do he started creating video diaries to give him advice for the future.

Chapter Summary: When his mother goes into labor early Jace struggles to wrangle all his siblings together to get to the hospital and meet their little brother

Pairing: Alicent Hightower x Rhaenyra Targaryen, Jace Velaryon x Sara Snow, Cregan Stark x Helaena Targaryen

Warning: some language

Words: 5,262

A/N: This is high-key written like a sitcom and is Jace-centric (since he's Teddy in this fic), also muña means mother in High Valyrian

The house was mostly quiet for once. The only sound came from the TV, a humming signaled the beginning of the theme song. Rhaenyra turned up the volume enthusiastically. She glanced down at her bowl of strawberry ice and frowned. Taking the whipped cream topping in hand she added more until it was a mountain that buried the ice cream, only then was she satisfied. She took a spoonful and smiled. 

Rhaenyra never felt fully comfortable when she was in her final trimester of pregnancy even when she had done it several times. However, to her, the best thing about being pregnant was that she could eat anything without her wife bringing up how “unhealthy” it was. She could say it was cravings and her wife moved on.

The screen lit up with the colors of her favorite fantasy series. Without hesitation, she took another spoonful. A sharp pain came from her abdomen. 

“Ow”, she huffed. Her eyes went to her stomach. “All your brothers were easy, why aren’t you?”

She swallowed the ice cream and turned back to her TV. Her favorite family drama show was on. She had yet to catch up to the current season like her son had but with the rest of the kids out of the house, she could watch her show without having to worry about them walking into the awkward parts.

Another pain came from her abdomen. She gripped the remote tightly. She winced. Slowly, Rhaenyra turned off the TV and put down her plate. She could barely adjust to sitting on her own couch. Every time she would end up rolling. Gods she forgot how much she hated this feeling. 

“Alicent”, Rhaenyra called.

The sound of boots clicking in the kitchen got her attention and before long, her wife walked into the living room. 

“What is it?” Alicent asked. 

“I’m going into labor”, Rhaenyra sighed.

Alicent’s eyes popped open. “What?! But you’re not due yet!”

“Well take that up with him.” Rhaenyra gestured at her stomach. “Unfortunately, I’m running on his time, not the doctor’s or mine apparently.”

Alicent scanned the couch for her purse. “Okay, okay”, panic edged in her voice. “A bit of a hiccup but it's fine.”

Alicent grabbed the purse which was thrown lazily on the floor. “Okay, I have our stuff here. Do you want me to bring you a robe and slippers?”

Rhaenyra bit in inside of her cheek as another round of pain resurfaced. “We don’t have time for that, my love.”

Alicent helped Rhaenyra to her feet. Rhaenyra threw on her sweater and casually walked toward the door with an anxious Alicent behind her. 

Rhaenyra looked over her shoulder and then smirked. “Ready for baby number eight?”

Alicent was practically shaking. “Gods no, but let’s do this.”

—---------------------------

Jace wanted to throw his controller on the couch. He had lost another video game match with Cregan. His best friend was smiling but he was not. How after so many times playing had he not improved at all? He thought at least with the new combo he had, he thought he could get one victory over Cregan but nothing.

He rolled his eyes at the TV. “This is rigged.”

Cregan threw back his head and laughed. “Keep telling yourself that.”

“This is your game and console. I wouldn’t be surprised if you had done something.”

“I only play games, Jace, I’m not a tech wizard that’s your brother.”

“I bet he did help you.”

A ring broke through the conversation. Cregan picked up his phone but saw his screen was pitch black. 

“Jace, I think it’s yours.”

Jace shuffled through his pocket and pulled out his phone. The word ‘Mom’ lit up the phone. He answered.

His face scrunched a bit in confusion. “Mom, what’s up?”

“Um”, he could hear the nervousness in his mom’s voice. “Your mother went into labor early.”

Jace sat up on the couch. “But I thought the baby wasn’t coming for a least like two weeks. Is Muña okay?”

“Yes. Yes. Your mother is okay.” 

A scream came from the background. “Alicent, can you drive any fucking slower?!”

“I’m talking to Jace”, his mom said.

“Watch the road!”, his muña yelled. 

“I’m trying to”, his mom responded in the calmest voice she could muster. 

“You’re on your way to the hospital, right?” Jace asked.

“Yes, we are. Jace, I’m so sorry to ask this but can you please bring your siblings here? I can’t leave your mother alone.”

Jace nodded. “Yeah, of course. I’ll get bring them over as soon as possible.”

“Thank you, darling,” his mom said. With that, she hung up.

Jace had wanted to record a film from their short film, but it seemed that would have to wait. He turned toward his friend. “Cregan, I need to borrow your car, it’s for an emergency.”

Cregan sat up. “I heard everything your mom was screaming, let’s go.”

“Believe it or not that’s her calm.”

Cregan threw the car keys at Jace, who caught them with one hand. They got into the car and Jace turned on the engine. He glanced between himself and his friend at their uniforms, it was for their film, but he didn’t have time to change. Whatever.   

“Do you know where you’re going?” Cregan asked. 

Jace nodded. “Yup, theater rehearsal.”

The younger teen was practically speeding until they got to the parking lot of their local high school. It was a weekend so few cars were in the lot when Jace pulled into an empty space. He turned off the car and ran toward the auditorium, with Cregan close behind. The two opened the doors to the building. Inside were other teenagers dressed in costumes reading over a script. Jace scanned the group assembled.

“See 'em?” Cregan asked.

“No.”

Jace opened the doors to the stage. On top of the stage, he saw a couple rehearsing some overly dramatic monologue while staring into each other’s eyes. Behind them was a group of teenagers dressed as fairies with cheap plastic wings. In the corner of the stage, she saw a girl with light hair dressed as a tree. 

“Helaena,” Jace called out.     

The couple stopped monologuing. The guy looked annoyed. “I thought we locked that door.”

Jace smiled awkwardly. “Sorry to interrupt, family emergency.”

Helaena in her tree costume made her way down to the stairs. The closer she got the more Jace was struggling to not laugh at his sister’s odd costume. She looked as if she could barely move with her arms stuck at her sides where the trunk of the tree was. 

“Jace, I’m at rehearsal”, Helaena reprimanded softly.

“I know. I know but it’s muña. She went into labor.”

Helaena’s eyes widened. “But I thought she wasn’t due yet.”

“She isn’t but the baby calling the shots here.”

Helaena nodded. “Okay, let me get out of this stupid costume. They can find another tree in the meantime.”

Jace helped Helaena unzip the back and she tossed off the tree costume. Underneath her costume though was a camo jumpsuit, supposedly to match the tree. Jace didn’t bother to bring this up. They raced back to the car. Jace jumped into the driver’s seat but found that Cregan was no longer in his passenger’s seat. The rearview mirror showed he was now in the backseat with his sister. Jace shook his head.

“Hel, do you know where everything else is?”

“Aegon and Daeron are at Ben Blackwood’s party”, Helaena admitted.

“Ben Blackwood is having a party today?” Jace asked.

“Yes, they didn’t want to tell mom and muña. You have to keep it a secret”, Helaena demanded. 

“Fine. Fine.” Jace then groaned. “Crap. How are we going to find his house?”

Cregan leaned close to Jace. “He lives in Ravenhall.”

“How do you know that?” Jace inquired.

Cregan glanced to see if Helaena wasn’t paying attention. “I used to date his sister, Aly.”

Jace’s face scrunched together. “You’ve never brought this up.”

“It was a long time ago.”

Jace sighed then started the car and pulled out of the parking space. As he began driving, he saw Cregan lean closer to Helaena in the rearview mirror. 

Cregan swallowed nervously. “So, are you a big theater person?”

“I like it, so I guess.”

“Cool. Um, what play were you doing?”

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, Helaena replied.

“Oh really? My teacher made me read that book for literature. It’s got a lot of freaky magic and stuff.”

Helaena smiled. “I know, right? I think that’s why I like it so much; it stands out from Shakespeare’s other work.”

Cregan smiled. “Yeah, it's awesome.”

Jace wished he could be anywhere else than inside this car and being forced to live through this conversation.

The neighborhood of Ravenhall was luckily close to where the school was. The security guard at the gate was nice and let them in once Jace said they were going to the Blackwood’s. The man asked if they were Brackens and Jace said no. He was confused about what was going on between the Brackens and Blackwoods but that was not the main objective. As Jace got closer to the house, he could see cars surrounding the house. The music from the backyard was playing loud enough that he could hear it from the front. 

“You’d think for a house party, they’d be more lowkey about it.”

Helaena pointed at the fence, suddenly. “Look the gate is open.”

Jace nodded. “Come on let’s these two.”

The three of them slipped through the half-closed gate. When Helaena told him it was a party, Jace had not expected this. There was a bounce house beside the pool where children around the age of ten were playing. A clown was face painting a little kid, while another clown made balloon animals. A pile of presents was in the corner next to a large table with an ocean cake. A banner above spelled out ‘Happy Birthday Sam!’ in big blue bubble letters. 

Jace stared at the scene before him. “Cregan?” 

“Yeah?”

“This is the Blackwood house, right?”

“I swear it is.”

“Helaena?” Jace asked.

“I swear they said they were going to Ben Blackwood’s party”, Helaena replied.

“This is a kid’s party”, Jace pointed out.

“Um, Jace.” Cregan nudged his rib.

Jace turned and saw Aegon and Daeron sitting in beach chairs beside the pool. Their legs were sprawled out as they laid back on the chairs, juices in hand. Without a word, Jace walked over to them. His older brother, Aegon was quick to notice him. 

“Hey, you were invited too?” Aegon asked.

Jace looked down at his two brothers. Both of them were wearing Hawaiian shirts with cargo pants and straw hats. Their accessories consisted of flip-flops, sunglasses, and a capri-sun in hand. Aegon even had sunscreen on his nose.

Jace sighed. “I don’t have the time to ask you why right, just know you need to come with us.”

“They’re cutting the cake soon, though”, Aegon complained.

“Muña’s having the baby”, Jace said.

Aegon sat up. “Wait, how?”

“I’ll explain in the car.”

The group hastily left through the open gate and shuffled back into Cregan’s car. Jace started the ignition and then turned back to the backseat.

“Okay, where’s Aemond?”

“At a friend’s house”, Daeron mentioned.

“Can you be more specific?” Jace asked.

“That girl he hangs out with, Alys Rivers,” Daeron added.

“Alright we need to hurry, mom and muña should have gotten to the hospital by now.” Jace began speeding down the road. His eyes occasionally went back to the mirror. He caught a look at Aegon and Daeron’s clothing again. 

Jace cleared his throat. “So, are you guys going to explain why you were at a ten-year-old’s birthday party?”

Daeron chuckled while looking at Aegon. “This should be good. Go on tell him.”

Aegon buried his face behind his hands. “So, I heard a rumor that Ben Blackwood was going to have a party this weekend and Blackwood is one of the most popular guys at school…”

Jace asked. “And?” 

“When we were in class, I commented that it sounded cool and that I could help out. He invited me and told me to bring my little brother so he could have fun too. I brought Daeron with me to the Hawaiian pool party he told me about. Turns out it's a party for his little brother, Samwell and when he told me to bring my little brother, he meant to bring Joffrey 'cause they go to the same school.”

Jace bit his hand to hold back a laugh. Unfortunately, a snort escaped. 

Aegon rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Yeah. Real funny. Laugh it up.”

Daeron suddenly stood up from his seat. “Wait Jace, that’s her neighborhood, you’re passing by it!”

“Shit!” Jace gripped the wheel and abruptly turned it without warning. 

Daeron who was standing, hit his head against the roof of the car. Aegon crashed into Daeron’s chest and then Helaena fell against Cregan. He immediately heard sounds of pain form the backseat. Jace was sure whatever he pulled was illegal, but he frankly didn’t care. However, he didn’t hear the end of it from his siblings until they arrived at the front door of Alys’ apartment. 

Jace knocked on the front door, impatiently. 

The person who answered was just as irritated as him. A guy wearing a long green cloak and riding boots glared at him. “What do you want?”

“Is Aemond here?” Jace almost growled.

The guy sneered. “We’re in the middle of something.”

Cregan stepped in front of Jace. “Let me handle this.”

The Stark was much taller than Jace despite the fact he was only a year older. His gray eyes bore down at the guy. “Either get Aemond or move out of the way.”

The guy was shaking when he turned over his shoulder. “Aemond.”

Aemond came around the corner. “Has the food arrived? Shall we finally feast?”

His older brother’s face fell when he saw them. Jace stared wide-eyed. Whatever annoyance he felt before was gone. His brother wore a long wig with an eye patch covering his right eye. He was wearing black pants, a black leather tunic, and a black leather trench coat. By his side was a fake sword attached to a belt. Aegon was the first to say something.

“Is that a wig?” He asked while slowly raising his phone to take a picture.

Aemond looked horrified. “What are you doing here?”

“Muña’s going into labor”, Jace explained.

Aemond stepped forward. “Now? Is she alright? Did mom get her to the hospital?”

“Yes, and we need to go”, Jace expressed.

Aemond nodded. “Okay.” 

“But my Prince, we need you for the campaign”, the guy said.

Aegon was trying to keep in his laughter. “Prince?”

Aemond sighed. “Sorry, family emergency comes first.”

Jace knew they didn’t have time to continue this argument and closed the door on the guy. 

“Car, now”, he directed his siblings. 

They didn’t need to be told twice. Aemond rushed to the passenger’s side while everyone else went to the backseat again. 

Jace took one look at his older brother. “Before we leave…a campaign?”

“And cosplay?” Daeron asked from behind. 

“It’s not cosplay, it’s for an original character”, Aemond explained.

“So, an OC?” Daeron asked.

Aegon furrowed his brows. “How do you know what that is?”

Daeron crossed his arms. “No reason.”

“Is that from the fantasy show you and Muña watch?” Helaena asked with a smile.

Aemond avoided looking at them. “Yes.”

Jace smiled. “Hey, at least you’re hanging with friends.”

Aegon leaned back in his seat. “Yeah, wait till we tell mom and muña when we get to the hospital now that everyone’s here.”

Aemond glanced back at the mirror to take in those present. Then he looked at Jace. Slowly, Jace’s brown eyes widened. 

“Oh my god, we’re still missing Luke and Joffrey!” Jace yelled.

Aemond stared in disbelief. “I thought you already got them.”

“Obviously not! Do you see them in the trunk?”

Aegon actually turned back to look inside the trunk. “Yup not there.”

Cregan looked at the Targaryen. “You thought I would put them in the trunk?”

“I mean saves space. Also, Luke deserves it depending on the day, especially when he’s always messing with the neighbor.”

Jace straightened up. “Wait. Wait. Say that again.”

“He’s always messing with the neighbor?”

Jace started the car. “I know where Luke is.”

“Terrorizing Ms. Velaryon, no doubt”, Aemond sighed. 

Jace made it quickly to the house. He refused to get out of the car and Aemond opted to be the one to knock on the front door. From what Jace could see from across the street, their neighbor, Ms. Velaryon answered the door. Her usual scowl was on her features when she opened the door. Aemond said something before she went back inside though curiously left the door open. Not even a minute went by when she came out dragging Luke by the collar of his shirt. His younger brother had a smirk on the entire time as she seemed to complain to Aemond about Luke. Eventually, she closed the door and Aemond walked with Luke back to the car.

Jace lowered his window as they approached. “Do I even want to know?”  

Aemond tilted his head. “Apparently, he broke in through her cat’s door and tried to ‘prank’ her by putting blue hair dye in one of her hats.”

Jace shifted to his younger brother. “Luke?”

“She said blue is her favorite color, I don’t see the problem.”

Jace looked at Aemond who was back inside the car. “He didn’t dye her hair, right?”

Aemond looked over his shoulder. “No. Ask him what happened instead.”

Jace turned at Luke. For the most part, his brother looked fine. His shirt was a bit wrinkled from where Ms. Velaryon grabbed his collar. However, his shoes were fine as was his baseball cap. Jace’s eyes narrowed. Luke’s curls weren’t sticking out of the cap. He couldn’t see his brother’s hair at all. It was all tucked inside.

“Luke, the cap.”

Slowly, his brother reached for the cap and took it off, revealing a head full of blue hair.

Aemond sighed. “Yup.”

“I might have mixed up the hats I was supposed to dye”, Luke elaborated.

 Jace could only stare. A moment passed before he turned back to the road and shifted the gears into drive. 

“Where’s Joff?” was all he felt like asking anymore.

“Mom mentioned that he was at a field day event”, Luke answered.

Jace picked up his phone and began to call someone as they made their way to the park where Joffrey was having his field day. As they approached the park, Jace saw the crowd gathered. He stepped out of the car and ran toward the group. The children were wearing different colors from their respective teams. Joffrey was sitting on a bench with a teenage girl beside him. His brother was wearing a jersey with the name Targaryen on it. However, dirt had gotten on the jersey, his shorts, shoes, and somehow his face.

Jace smiled at the girl. “Hey, thanks for helping me get Joffrey.”

The girl smiled in return. “You don’t have to worry about it, I didn’t mind especially with Rickon participating in this too.”

Jace glanced at her shirt. Team Stark was written in silver letters.

“You guys winning?”

“Well, sort of.”

“What do you mean? You’re always good at sports.”

“Sadly, the sign-up age was from seven to ten, so I missed the mark”, she joked. “Instead, I’m on water bottle and moral support duty.” 

Jace chuckled. “Maybe next time I can come and be the moral support of the moral support?”

He wanted to smack himself. God that sounded so stupid. 

She leaned close and gave him Joffrey’s backpack. For a second, their fingers touched. “Definitely would like the support next time.”

Jace nodded while he tried to ignore his heart beating in his ears. “Yeah, of course, I’ll see you soon, Sara.”

Sara gave a smile. “See you soon, Jace.”

Jace watched as she walked away by the time she left his sight, Jace realized Joffrey was halfway to the car. He rushed after his brother. Once he got into the car, Jace mentally counted the people inside the car. He had managed to get the last of his siblings. Now, they could go meet up with their mothers.

The hospital was busy when they got there. Jace, his siblings, and Cregan passed by dozens of patients in the waiting room. He walked up to the nurse in the front.

“We’re here to visit, Rhaenyra Targaryen. She’s having a baby”, Jace explained.

The nurse glanced at the seven other people who he was with. “Sorry, I can’t allow that many people inside of the room while she’s in labor.”

“But we’re her kids”, Jace insisted.

This time the nurse’s eyes bulged, and she again glanced at the large group. Jace recognized the surprise in her eyes. He was used to it, being in a big family and such. Now his muña was going to have an eighth. 

“I’m sorry I still can’t allow all of you inside during the labor.”

“What about like two of us?” He asked.

“Okay but only two.”

Jace turned back to his siblings. “Guys I’m going to check up on Muña and Mom, Aemond are you going too?” 

Aemond glanced at Joffrey who was standing in front of the vending machine. “Yeah, someone just keep an eye on him.”     

Jace and Aemond went down the hallway and found the room fairly quickly. Jace opened the door. His muña was lying on a bed while wearing a hospital gown and his mom was sitting in a chair beside her. Upon hearing the door creak open they both turned to him and Aemond. His muña gave him her usual bright wide smile.

“Jace. Aemond. You’re both here.” She reached out her arms. 

Jace hugged her followed by Aemond. His mom stood from her chair then captured both of them in a hug.

“Oh Gods, I’m so glad you made it. Are the rest of your siblings here too?” His mom asked.   

“They’re in the waiting room”, Aemond said.

His muña rubbed her belly. “That’s good. That’s good.”

“How’s everything been?” Jace inquired.

“Um”, his mom fidgeted with her nail. 

Jace’s stomach dropped. That was never a good sign.

“The doctor is running late”, his mom explained.

“What do you mean running late?” Jace asked. “I’ve been running around trying to get everyone here, if anything I should be considered running late. How is he running late?”

“There was an accident on the highway and he’s stuck in traffic”, his muña expressed wearily. 

“Wait but if he’s not here what happens?” Aemond asked.

“The nurses will have to help”, his muña said.

Jace scoffed. “So, the guy who we’ve been seeing for nine months for this exact delivery isn’t even here?”

“Jace, it's fine I’ve done this before. You have one example here and the others in the waiting room. I’ll be fine.”

She winced for a moment. “Just wait outside, don’t worry about me.”

Jace begrudgingly went outside and Aemond closed the door behind them. When they walked back into the waiting room, Jace excused himself and went outside toward the vending machine. Outside was fairly empty. Jace wanted to hit the machine, shake it, anything. He couldn’t just stand there and be useless when something bad might happen to his muña.

He wanted the machine to just swallow his dollar and give nothing back. He wanted a reason to take out his anger on the machine. That didn’t happen. The machine dropped a bag of candy. Jace roughly pulled it out.

“Didn’t know you were that serious about candy.”

Jace turned around to see Cregan had followed him.

“Shouldn’t you be in the waiting room?” Jace asked.

“Shouldn’t you? It’s your family.”

Jace looked away. “I just needed a minute.”

“Something happen?”

“You shouldn’t worry about it. I already dragged you into enough as is.”

“Okay, first of all, drop the bullshit, Jace. I let you take my car and went to go with you. I wasn’t dragged into anything. Call me crazy but I like hanging out with you and your family. And also, as your future brother-in-law-”

Jace scoffed.

Cregan looked offended but only cleared his throat. “I repeat as your future brother-in-law, your family is going to be my family too, so they concern me too.”

Jace shook his head with an amused smile. “Right your future mother-in-laws.”

“Exactly. So, what’s up?”

Jace shifted his gaze. “The doctor’s running late.”

“How late?”

“Might not get here in time late.”

“Crap. Okay. Okay. What’s his name?”

“Dr. Gerardys. Why?”

“Jace, just let me handle it,” Cregan assured.

Jace made a face. “What are you going to do?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Everything you say makes me even more worried.”

Cregan put his hand on Jace’s shoulder. “Jace, for once let me help you.”

“Fine just don’t do anything like…illegal.”

“Says the one that made an illegal U-turn earlier.”

“That was a different scenario.”

Cregan rolled his eyes. “Sure.” His gray eyes shifted. “In the meantime, you might want to talk to Joff.” 

“Why?”

Cregan gestured over past the vending machine. Joffrey sat alone in a seat, staring at his lap.

Jace nodded at Cregan. The two parted before Jace approached Joffrey. He sat beside his youngest sibling. Joff wouldn’t look at anything beside his lap, tough.

“Hey, what are you doing here by yourself?” Jace asked gently. “Everyone else is inside the waiting room.”

Joffrey kept his arms crossed. “Waiting for the baby, I know”, he said bitterly.

Jace immediately knew what was wrong. “You’re upset about the baby.”

“Why did Muña and Mom have another baby? We were just fine before. Now when they have a baby, they’ll only pay attention to him. Everyone else is always busy. Aegon likes to go out with his ‘cool’ friends, Helaena comes home late from her play stuff, Aemond tells me I wouldn’t understand his shows, Daeron does his martial arts and soccer every day, Luke is always planning some prank on Ms. Velaryon, and you’re out with Cregan making your films. With the baby, you’ll forget about me even more than you already do.”

Jace faced his brother. “Joff, that isn’t true. Look, if I’m being honest, I was caught off guard by the baby too. However, even if I’m a bit nervous, I know that I’ll love him just like I love you.”

Joffrey continued to pout. 

“We don’t forget you, Joff. We just have our own things sometimes and can get caught up in them. But you’re still our little brother.”

“You won’t forget about me?”

“Never.”

“Even if I got third place in the field day today?”

“Hey, third place out of twenty isn’t bad.”   

Joff finally smiled. “I won at tug of war with my team.”

“You did?”

“Yeah, I accidentally threw dirt at someone on the other team.”

Jace’s face scrunched together. “How do you accidentally throw dirt?”

“I mean I said it was an accident.”

Jace stared at his brother. “An accident?”

“Yeah. I also accidentally stepped on someone else’s foot.”

“I’m starting to think these aren’t accidents.”

Joffrey giggled. Jace just ruffled his dirty hair. 

“Want to go back inside the waiting room?” Jace asked.

Joff nodded.

When they walked back to the waiting room, Jace sat next to Helaena while Joffrey rested his head on his shoulder. Eventually, Cregan came back inside from wherever he was and sat on the other side of Helaena. They waited in the office for fifteen minutes before the door to the waiting was slammed open. A man in a white lab coat hastily ran down the halls. Jace sat up. It was Dr. Gerardys. 

Jace turned toward his brother, Aemond. “He’s here.”

Aemond sighed. “Thank the Gods.” 

Jace leaned back into his chair. The stress left his body when he allowed himself to relax his muscles. Half an hour went by when a nurse called their last name. Jace gently awoke Joffrey, who had fallen asleep. 

Helaena took Joffrey by the hand and walked ahead toward the hospital room. Aemond followed behind with Aegon and Daeron, whose flip-flops squeaked against the white glossy tiles. Luke walked just ahead of Jace and Cregan.

“I’m surprised the doctor got here so fast”, Jace commented to himself. 

“A little bit of persuading helps move things along”, Cregan mused.

Jace turned to his best friend and narrowed his eyes. “What did you do?”

“A little bit of persuading.”

“What did you do? And should I be concerned that it was illegal?”

“I just grabbed his business card at the front desk and gave him a call.”

“What did you say on the call?”

“I may have said something along the lines of a car accident being the least of his concerns if he’s late.” 

“You didn’t. Cregan, you didn’t.”

“Motivation helps.”

Jace rubbed his temple. “Oh, my Gods.”

“Jace, hurry”, Helaena called.

They shuffled inside the hospital room. His mom was sitting beside the bed with a smile on her features. She gestured for them to get close. His muña was sweaty with her hair slightly tied as she held a bundle in her arms. Her eyes gleamed when she saw them enter the room. 

“Kids, come over here”, she beckoned. “Come meet your baby brother.”

They approached her side. Jace smiled when he saw him. The blue blanket did little to hide his face. His tiny cheeks were red and round. His eyes were closed shut as he slept. His fingers were wrapped around his muña’s gown. Small strands of light hair were on the top of his head.

“Do you have a name for him?” Jace asked softly.

“We were actually talking about that”, his mom replied.

His muña scoffed playfully. “We can think about that later, let’s get a picture of the whole family.”

His mom scanned the room. “Oh, Gods where did I put that camera?”

Cregan grabbed the camera from a seat. “I got it.”

His muña smiled gently. “Cregan, would it be alright if you took a picture?”

Cregan smiled. “Got you, Mrs. T.”

All of his siblings stood on both sides of his muña as she and his mom presented the baby in her arms. 

Cregan grinned. “Say cheese.” 

Jace smiled with his family. A flash went off. 

“You guys look great”, Cregan commented as he looked at the photo.

The door creaked as a nurse came in. Jace watched the color slowly drain from her face as she saw them. Jace looked back at his family. He had nearly forgotten Aegon and Daeron’s beach attire, Aemond’s eye patch, Helaena’s camo jumpsuit, Luke’s blue hair, Joffrey’s dirtied appearance, and his and Cregan’s shirts from their film.

“Hi”, his mom greeted the nurse. “Would it be alright if you took a picture of all of us?” She looked at his friend. “Cregan, get in the photo.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Cregan rushed to take a spot by their side.

The nurse took the camera. Her face looked less than impressed with the family.

Joffrey was looking down at their news addition when he out loud he said, “He kind of looks like an egg. That’s what I’m going to call him, Egg.”

Jace gave an amused smile as the camera flashed. 

The nurse sighed. “Good luck Egg, you’re going to need it.”

[decepti-thots]

☕ MTOs & specifically what do you think they were going for with that?

MTOs are an interesting narrative thing to me in the sense that they really are so localised to only one part of the canon; they're very clearly Roberts' idea and only really matter, inasmuch as they do matter, in MTMTE. It's pretty clear to me that's the case for one specific reason: they'd actually fit SUPER well into the narrative arc of exRiD, especially early-to-mid RiD, but they basically never come up! You'd think 'neutrals and soldiers stuggling to cohabit socially and politically' would be prime fodder (lmao) for taking advantage of a narrative about mechs born of and into war coming back to a civilian life on a planet they really don't know. And yet.

What they're doing in that comic, in MTMTE, is a little headscratching to me at times. It feels, to be honest, somewhat like worldbuilding put in to make the texture of the backstory of the war feel grander than IDW had really managed up to that point in actual on-panel stuff, without a lot of thought when doing so in the moment as to the knock on implications going forward. MTMTE does this a few times, tries to use vague gestures at important sounding stuff to bring a greater sense of history and depth to the war in the face of the actual stuff we saw in phase one being. Mmmm. Basically just twenty dudes we already know shooting at each other across parking lots. LMAO.

(Sidenote: I know for a fact Roberts watched original flavour nuWho, and this is PEAK Russell T Davies doing worldbuilding when he was on Doctor Who, and I fully believe he was cribbing from that playbook. Every damn episode RTD would make them just sort of say stuff about the Time War that made it sound incredibly vast and textured and complex but which, crucially, never made any actual fucking sense. Good examples of stuff like this would be the Crucible, the Simanzi massacre, etc. This is, to be clear, a neutral observation, not praise or criticism per se.)

I say this because MTOs should probably be a bigger deal in terms of the impact on our cast, and their outlook on life and reasons for joining the quest, than they wind up being. An MTO is a character with no experience of living in peacetime at all, likely no experience of Cybertron, no sense of kinship or home necessarily to the planet they came "back" to. All of this provides a really clear motivation, given the implication most surviving non-neutral Cybertronians are now MTOs due to huge numbers of deaths, to join a quest like the Lost Light's! But it tends not to come up much, and I think it's because it wasn't really part of the plan. Later on, there's room to slot in some details here and there- Riptide talking about his experiences with being infodumped at by the 'training' comes to mind- but it takes a while for the comic to come back round to that.

The two big exceptions, of course, are Getaway and Brainstorm. The idea is definitely interacting with their characters more, though again, it... tends to come up later. Especially for Getaway, who I'm not convinced was originally conceived as an MTO, but had it slotted in a bit later as 'well that works' stuff tbh. (And it does, so that's fine!) Which leaves Brainstorm, who lies about being forged to throw off suspicion, who it's implied never got the time of day from Quark in a way I wouldn't be surprised we're supposed to assume is some kind of remaining bias, perhaps. Who didn't see a future for himself 'back on Cybertron' and so concocted a very weird plan to avoid having to. Who never got a choice about his 'side' in the war, and wound up with no real loyalty for anyone.

I think if there's any avenue I'd have liked to see more about MTOs via, it's Brainstorm. I wish there'd been more room to focus on that instead of (I'm so sorry shippers) his thing with Perceptor as the way to talk about his sense of inadequacy, tbh. What did it feel like, lying to Chromedome about remembering a pre-war life he never got a chance to experience? Being made to shoot people and be shot and escaping the fate of having that be the only thing he ever knew by the skin of his teeth? Not being able to imagine an end to the war, so all he wants to do is save one guy and run off with him as a pipe dream? That seems like the character where a lot of this stuff should naturally lie, to me. And I think it's a shame I've seen very little talk in fandom about it!

[palmtreepalmtree]

Alright my friends - the twinkly lights are up, the house smells like pine, you've got every manner of red-green-and-gold wrapping paper shoved in a corner - without a doubt it's that time of year: Christmas. As you know, I've been disappointed to see so few entries into the Christmas rom-com genre this year from Netflix, so I've started to explore further afield to find something ripe for your enjoyment.

And now, I'm pleased to present...

The Worst Movies on HBO/MAX/Discovery+/HGTV??? (idefk), Right Now!

As it turns out sometime last year Discovery+ teamed up with MarVista to produce some Christmas romance content with random tie-ins to their FoodNetwork/HGTV network stars. This has created some really... oh, let's just call it interesting content.

I mean... you gotta know from the outset that there's no way these will be good. NO fucking WAY.

FIRST, as a whole, I don't think these movies know what their purpose is. Are they supposed to promote the reality shows of their cameo stars? Are they supposed to give their reality stars an opportunity to flex some acting muscle!? Are they supposed to be *GASP* good stories? NOBODY KNOWS!

SECOND, it's possible that the point of these movies is just to promote the reality show format as like... a concept. But the thing is -- NOT TO FORESHADOW OR ANYTHING -- that comes with some very weird baggage. LIKE SUPER WEIRD.

Let's break these down in round-up style.

The first movie that apparently created the mold* was Candy Coated Christmas (2021) - *pun intended. This vehicle cameos Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, who gets about two minutes of screen time which apparently warrants her this kind of promotional one-sheet placement:

...like okay.

A shocking number of these stories involve people who are in financial peril. In this one, a hotel heiress finds herself on the brink of bankruptcy, and, on daddy's orders, she heads to a small town to evict the peppermint farmer tenants at her family's property who are, you guessed it, on the brink of bankruptcy.

In this movie, the spirit of Christmas (or spearmint gum in this case), is a plan to rescue these two financial catastrophes, oh, and they fall in love. Sure. Why not.

This movie is an empty candy-coated shell of a romance that I can best describe as serviceable. But apparently it was enough of a hit that the rest of the movies followed. So we can blame this candy cane for the Christmas rogering that followed in 2022.

Continuing from worst to most egregious...

A Gingerbread Christmas (2022) - This one cameos that Ace of Cakes dude (no idea his name and not interested in looking it up) who is judging a gingerbread competition that the main character desperately needs to win to save her dead mom's foundering bakery - YES another fucking business in peril.

Her love interest is the general contractor/baker/single dad who has taken up daily residence in the bakery where he is apparently simultaneously working on fixing the place up and also doing all of the baking........?

Yeah, it makes little sense, and yet somehow this is not the worst of the four entries this year.

Both of these actors are people you'll recognize and will have you thinking heyyyyy where is she/he from? (Let me help you out: The Good Place/Reacher). They're fine.

This is fine.

It's just... not going to leave you feeling much of anything. And that's the exact opposite of what these movies are supposed to do. You're not killing me, you're just boring me. There's nothing spicy in this gingerbread, baby! ZING! Nailed 'em.

There's a kind of nice subplot about a new immigrant entering the contest as well, but maybe I have a soft spot in my heart for that. This definitely does not seem like it's going for the same audience as some of the Hallmark movies, but it's also only gesturing at substantive things rather than really delivering anything of substance. Hey guys, did you know that immigrant Muslims can celebrate Christmas too!?

MOVING ON.....

One Delicious Christmas (2022) - Alright... where do I even start here??? Continuing on our theme of struggling businesses, this one slightly breaks the pattern by telling us a story of the owner of a boutique inn who needs to find a new chef for her family business so that she can bring on a financial partner to help ease the strain of her sole ownership.

The cameo in this one is Bobby Flay who comes in as a restaurant critic to comment on the food. Sigh. I know. Look I'm just reporting here, don't harm the messenger.

Alright there are three things here that just drove me completely batty: First, and I hate calling this shit out, but I gotta say the lead actress here has some partial vocal fry thing going on with her voice that is just impossible to watch for an hour and a half. I just wanted to shake her and be like BREATHE THROUGH YOUR CHEST. Fucking hell. It's a trial being me sometimes.

Second, obviously the theme here is cooking, but the whole story is based around the fact that the chef is doing new and risky recipes that the inn owner is nervous her people won't like... but like... the recipes are super basic? Like scalloped potatoes instead of mashed? Lobster bisque!? None of the new menu items read as dangerous or cutting edge -- especially if you watch the Food Network -- SO WHAT THE FUCK IS THE POINT1?!? Argh, okay.

Last, and this is just a weird thing that probably only I noticed, but like all these movies seemed to go out of their way to do mixed racial castings, which is a good thing, but then they also seem to have not made any adjustments for that in terms of story.

In this one, the love interest/chef is played by a Canadian actor of Filipino ancestry -- but his character name is Preston Weaver. Preston. PRESTON. PRESTON. There are also repeated references in the story to cooking for and with his grandmother, but no mention, not even one, that maybe her cooking wasn't American-style food? I mean, it is perfectly possible for a person to have their family immigrant story have happened so long ago, that even their grandparent doesn't make traditional foods from their country of ethnic origin, but it also seems WEIRD. Like some sort of weird white washing??? idk. Jury is still out on this I guess. I just don't think it would have killed them to reference one Filipino recipe or technique, especially since that's a pretty rich food culture. You know, as compared with making a main plot point that the fucking LOBSTER BISQUE keeps selling out.

(Is there a whiter word than bisque? I don't fucking think so).

I HAVE GONE ON TOO LONG. THE NEXT ONE.

Designing Christmas (2022) - Alright, I'm running out of steam and so I'm gonna make this one quick. This one cameos that dark haired lady from Love it or List it not sure her name not looking it up (Hilary???). This one is about a couple who work as a designer/contractor pair on a reality show and in order to save their failing show they decide their last show of the season will be a restoration of her family's old home that she just purchased and SURPRISE TO NO ONE WHO WATCHES THESE SHOWS there's a crack in the foundation blahblahblah WHO CARES!?

NO ONE.

This one really suffers from the fact that the male lead is just boring.

Honestly, that's a theme throughout these movies. The male leads are super weak and boring. Tepid. Just absolutely forgettable characters played by actors who are deciding whether the fuck to fire their agents.

What's weird about this one is the way that the production really styles it after a reality show -- even including those restoration classic before and after reveals. But that is nothing on the last one......

A Christmas Open House (2022) -- Alright the cameos in this one are that Hometown Whatever couple who have been "restoring" houses in their hometown in someplace in the south and by restoring, I mean flipping but under the guise of home restoration.

ANYHOW - the plot is that this big city house stager teams up with a realtor to sell her family home to make sure her mom gets the best purchase price on the sale. It's just like those old Christmas classics that really capture the Christmas spirit - A Christmas Carol, Miracle on 34th Street, It's a Wonderful Life. You know. Really in that anti-capitalist vein.

Deeeeeeeep sigh.

So... I don't even know how to say this. But this movie involves a Christmas miracle.

See, it turns out the house stager accidentally gave the furniture company the wrong credit card number, so the day before the showing ON CHRISTMAS the furniture people came and took back all of the perfectly staged furniture and GASP knocked down the (fake) Christmas tree! WHAT ARE THEY GONNA DO1?!? HOW ARE THEY EVER GONNA SELL THE HOUSE ON CHRISTMAS NOW!?$!

BUT IT'S A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE

The whole town shows up to bring them furniture that they can use to stage the house before the potential buyers arrive. Like... they show up with their odds and ends so that the house can be staged. SO THAT THE HOUSE CAN BE STAGED FOR SALE. Are... are you guys with me here? The miracle that the whole town rallied behind was bringing FURNITURE to STAGE A HOUSE. FOR SALE.

I just... I am walking away.

We are so fucking far from Dickens here we might as well be in a new fucking holiday.

And we are.

Because that's the whole point of all of these movies.

It's not Christmas.

It's American Christmas.

For all the shit that the nostalgic, small-town worshipping Christmas movies get this time of year, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say these movies are more insidious. Instead of blatantly trying to valorize the small town spirit, the support of family and friends, and getting back to your roots, these movies are like the Scooby Doo villain of Christmas movies. Rip off the mask at the end for the big reveal:

IT WAS CAPITALISM ALL ALONG!?!?

Anyhow, I don't know who was supposed to read these scripts before they became movies, but everyone involved will probably be laughing all the way to the bank.

Don't watch these. They're not funny enough to be worth the soul-gutting feeling of realizing what these movies are for.

Nothing.

Empty.

Spiritless.

Candy-coated capitalism.

[simp999]

A New Home Ch. 32

Various! Splatoon Manga x Skilled! Isekai'd! Reader

Wc: 1.1k

A/N: Wattpad readers are much bolder. You guys just don't have the guts to comment how you "hope both sides of my pillow are warm" or "when I get you, wolf. When I get you". /silly

Leo Playlist!

Back to the start! Previous Next

Before you could register the score, you were tackled to the floor. You gently nudged Leo away from you as much as you could- but given his reaction, you already knew the answer.

You'd be battling Emperor.

You wheezed out to Leo that he was squeezing too tight, and so he let go to go hug- Goggles?? And Goggled hugged back just as excitedly? Eh, whatever floats their boat.

Next came a soft hug from Milo. Almost relieved, you thought. He gently pet your tentacles and gave them a tiny kiss, saying how proud he was of the family. Aww.

It felt all too quick- the congratulations, the meeting between the S4, team Yellow-green, and the teams that had just battled.

To be honest, you just wanted to get home and relax, maybe you went on autopilot for a bit. In a good way.

That night, you all went to sleep early, completely exhausted by your battle, along with thinking about your next one. Luckily, you were given three days for preparation before facing the King, not including today.

"So, what now, Boss?"

"Now?..."

You thought for a moment, muscles sore.

"...We rest."

Leo does a small fist in the air while Milo relaxes his shoulders. Tasha's eyebrows appear to be less furrowed as well.

You all relax together by watching movies for the first bit, you and Leo snuggling if you're comfortable with it- he always was a sucker for physical affection. Milo plays with his hair as it's in reach while Tasha leans on the arm of the chair, cleaning her weapon in the dark. Milo pauses to turn the movie's volume up because Leo's crunching is a bit too loud. He offers you some and you decline, figuring candy doesn't sound the best after such a big battle. Milo has some chocolate milk at the ready, he claims it's great after exercising, just not before.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The next day, You, Milo and Tasha were sitting in the living room when Leo barged in, accounting that there was a SquidRacer tourney starting soon and drop-ins were allowed. He already had half his arm in his hoodie sleeve when Milo spoke up, saying he needed to be home while he made the family's meals for the day, saying they'd take a long time because they were intricate.

"I'm fine goin' on my own!! I'll kick ass, don't you worry!"

Milo offered you a slightly concerned look, and you asked Leo if you could go with, to which he surprisingly seemed excited about your offer. You slowly put on some proper clothes while Leo impatiently waited in the doorway. Before you could leave, Milo handed you a bag with drinks and snacks, paired with a smile and wink.

Leo did well in his first round, but there were a surprising number of people that wanted to join. Which meant lots of downtime between games, which led to you two chit-chatting and snacking while watching and "analyzing' (as Leo called it-he really just sat with a smile on his face) the other players.

"Sooo what's your favorite game?"

You thought for a moment- you didn't really have an answer since- y'know, you were kind of... in it.

"I don't exactly have one, what's yours?"

Now that got him talking. He went on and on about this game called Super Squid Bros 3. Gesturing with his hands often.

"Yeah! I had lots of time to play toooons of games as a kid! It was pretty nice!"

Oh? Did he grow up rich or something? Not to sound rude but... he didn't really give off those vibes. Or maybe you just couldn't get emperor out of your head. Prince in nothing like him either.

"We kept all our gaming consoles from family members, and dad's consoles were always my favorite! Mostly Nintendo stuff. I miss the days where I'd sit and get a buncha one-ups for him while he'd go make himself a coffee."

He toyed with the buttons of the controller that he brought himself.

"Dad wasn't around lots, but he sure was fun when he was! He taught me how to play, and I took his skills and multiplied em' by twenty!"

Hah, that seemed excessive. But that makes some more sense now.

"You don't have any siblings?" He really did cross you as a younger sibling type.

"Nahh- wouldn't've had any time to play if I had any older siblings I figure, y'know? But I did have this real close friend who was like a brother to me! His name was Zack, miss the guy. He stayed back home."

It was soon his time to battle again, and you cheered him on. His 'backstory' wasn't all that surprising for how he seemed- his personality and all. You're glad he grew up being able to find a favorite hobby so easily. He's also great at bringing people together and making friends, which is quite a skill.

You look over to him, who's chatting it up with his opponent. It seems friendly- the both of them are giggling at something he said. The opponent points at his controller and you see their lips move, and he gets all starry-eyed. It's cute, really.

As expected, he gets into first place. You two fistbump as you walk by each other, you heading to take his seat to play your following match. A well- aimed green shell at the last second lands you in first as well on the third lap, making you let out a short sigh of relief. Of course you'd love to battle Leo- it's only right.

You hear Leo on the phone, and he's giving you a not-very-patient look. He swiftly hands you the phone as Milo says hello. He was just calling to say that dinner was almost ready, and he was wondering if you guys would be back soon. If not, he could put your guys' stuff in the oven a bit later. He wasn't expecting you guys to be this long, but this is "much more important" Leo claims. It doesn't take long before you're facing off in the finals against Leo and two others.

The first two rounds he's much ahead of the other racers, you on his tail the whole time to give him a false sense of confidence. On the third lap, green shell in hand, you hesitate for a moment. You quickly glance over at how excited Leo seems, and that childlike enthusiasm convinces you to miss the shot on purpose, allowing him a close win.

You sigh with a shake of your head and smile on your face as you lift his hand up to proclaim the winner.

.

.

.

Feb.28.24

Next Part

[moviedreams]

I think this one wasn't done cooking yet maybe it will continue tonight maybe not 🤷🏽‍♀️

it’s the start of the masters program and there is the introduction round like every semester 

This semester although we have a few new ba students

The profs introduce their courses and at the end I basically go up to the new students to get them into the WhatsApp group most of them say yes except for one (I wonder who it could be🤭😂 I just realized that we need to come up with some sort of code name because there’s no way I’m typing that out, I value my digital footprint) 

Anyways I ask him again like “Are you sure ? It’s helpful especially in the first semester to get information on cancelled classes etc.”. He stares at me deadpan and is like “No, thank you.” And then I’m like all right not my problem anymore. 

A couple of days passed, I think it was a Thursday, and our non-language classes are in full force and one afternoon we just see him sitting there in the lounge part of GW1 almost looking depressed. So I decide to go up to him and ask him how he’s liking his classes and if he needs any help. He just replies “No, I’m fine and the classes are fine as well.” to which I remind him that Whats app group chat is always still an offer and that it might make his experience easier. He friendly declines again and so we leave. 

A few more days pass and language courses have started which he seemingly does not attend so after the same classes on Thursday we see him again. So I take one final moment to tell him “Hey, I know you don’t want to really socialize with the other students but you’re truly are making this harder for yourself than it has to be. Bayreuth is quite a draining experience in the first semester. So even if you don’t want to take a lot of classes or really socialize in the few classes you take, at least take my number in case you ever do want to join the group or hang out with other classmates. just write me a message. Because trust me it’s better to not have to struggle alone if this is like the first time studying or studying humanities.” I hand him a piece of paper with my number and name on it. He takes it and looks at it and does this “meh smile” and then says thank you. I leave.

I wake up on a Sunday, check my phone and see a message from a new phone number. it reads “Hey, I still don’t want to join the group but wanted to ask if you had time to hang out today in the afternoonish. I wanted to also ask some questions about our study program if you can help me.” I reply “sure what time do you want to meet and where?” and so he replies “Around 3 pm and 205…”. I look at the text confused and then ask about the last number again to which replies “It’s our apartment numbers, you should also have one…”. I give a thumbs up and just assume he lives above me. 

I get ready and go upstairs at the meeting time, I go to the room number and then stand in front before wanting to ring the bell when the door swings open and he’s standing there gesturing me in. I walk in, and take off my shoes. He then shows me to sit down on his bed which i do(NOT IN A SEXUAL WAY YOU FREAKS). there’s a bit of an awkward silence so i interrupt by asking him about his questions regarding the study program. I try to answer his questions as thoroughly as possible which he is nice and thankful about. i then ask him why he wont join the group to which he just replies privacy. I retort “That’s a contradiction because you invited me to your apartment instead of outside somewhere since I had no clue that you lived in the same dorm as me.”. He replies “You were going to figure it out at some point by seeing me so might as well tell you. Besides I don’t like being out in public here. too empty.” I just answer with a perplexed face and then he switches the topic to something more casual to like hobbies interests, at some point music and likes. Around like 7ish I head back to my apartment. 

this continues for multiple weeks, occasional texting(NOTHING HARAM), hanging out at each others place and genuinely getting along decently enough. Through this he becomes more open up not towards entering the groupchat but at least he is not as cold anymore and sometimes even goes out in public in extremely specific cases but clearly he is still hiding something. 

that’s where it ended because i had to use the bathroom too often tonight yk not being dehydrated anymore and all 😂

[dystopicjumpsuit]

Stars Beyond Number - Chapter 3

Valley of Dying Stars

Rating: T (rating varies by chapter; mature content will be tagged; regardless of rating, minors DNI)

Pairings: Echo x Riyo Chuchi; Gregor x OFC Cerra Kilian

Wordcount: 2.5k

Warnings: angst; grief; nightmares; use of stimulants as a coping mechanism; Fox girlies don't come for me

Suggested Listening:

Summary: Riyo visits the repair shop and shares some surprising intel.

A/N: This story shares continuity with Martyrs and Kings and "Do It Again," but all three fics can be read as stand-alones.

Start here | Previous chapter | Next chapter | Masterlist | Sign up for my tag list | Read on AO3

There are no eyes here in this valley of dying stars.

—T. S. Eliot, “The Hollow Men”

“You know, the last time I piloted a ship, I crashed and lost my memory,” Gregor said with an infectious laugh.

“Which is why I’m having you fly this time,” Rex said. “For practice.”

Cerra met Rex’s eyes in silent acknowledgment and thanks. She handed him a travel mug, then took a long drink of her own bitter caf. Rex clasped her shoulder briefly, and she knew that he’d already forgiven her for her harsh outburst the night before. 

“Do I even want to know where you got that freighter?” she asked, gesturing at the ship that had materialized overnight. “We could have used it yesterday. Would have cut the Karthon travel time in half.”

“Trust me, you’re better off not knowing. If everything goes to plan, we should be back by nightfall,” Rex said.

“I should have the surgical pod up and running by then,” Cerra replied.

Echo observed their interaction closely, and Cerra wondered what was on his mind. She was grateful he’d agreed to Rex’s last-minute change of plan without question, but she still found herself awkward and tongue-tied around him. Regardless of her personal reservations about meeting Fives’s twin, she knew the ARC trooper was more than capable, and he would have Rex and Gregor’s backs through anything. 

The three men boarded the freighter, and the ramp began to close.

“Fly casual, boys,” she called with a wave.

Rex sent her a cocky salute, and she raised her mug in response. Gregor lifted off and turned the ship so the viewport faced the garage entrance. He held up two fingers in a crude gesture, and she laughed as she shot him a finger of her own. And then they were gone. 

She hated letting them go without her, but she wasn’t so delusional that she considered herself indispensable to the mission; she was fully aware she was nowhere nearly as qualified as the clones. They would be fine without her there to back them up. Besides, the damned surgical pod wasn’t going to set itself up. She sighed, refilled her empty cup with another round of lukewarm caf, and picked up her toolkit. It hadn’t taken long to pull the unit out of the Venator med bay, but getting it to run in their jury-rigged home base was going to take significantly more work.

She was dead on her feet. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept through the night. Even without the nightmares, there was simply too much work to do to allow for a normal sleep schedule, and the prior day had been particularly grueling. Thank the Force and all the stars above for Gregor. When she jerked awake in the middle of the night, too terrified to go back to sleep, he always knew exactly what to do to bring her back to herself. 

Some mornings when she woke up curled in his arms, she didn’t even remember what she had dreamed the night before. Not today, though. She remembered it clearly. The wrenching twist of durasteel and the deafening roar of explosive decompression echoed in her mind. She pressed her knuckles to her eyes to clear the grisly images of pooling blood and countless mangled bodies. Her leg throbbed, and she couldn’t tell whether the pain was real or merely a haunting specter from her memory.

She needed to be on her game if she wanted to get the surgical pod set up without frying the circuitry, and seeing double from exhaustion was not helping. By the time she finished her third cup of caf, she knew she needed something stronger, so she dug through the medkit in the kitchenette until she found a stim pack. She injected it quickly and put the medkit away, noting that it was running low on a few important supplies. She would need to venture into Coruscant’s black market to restock within a few days.

Cerra had been working on the pod for nearly an hour when the proximity sensor Rex had installed triggered a system alert. She slid out from beneath the machine and wiped her hands on a rag as she walked to the front of the garage to investigate. A familiar speeder docked next to the landing platform, and Senator Riyo Chuchi disembarked. She was alone, and Cerra wondered how she’d managed to shake her usual bodyguard escort.

“Good morning,” the senator called, smiling warmly. 

“Good morning, Senator,” Cerra replied.

“I wish you would call me Riyo,” she said. “We are quite literally partners in crime, after all.”

“Fair enough,” Cerra replied. “What brings you to our little hotbed of sedition?”

“I’ve brought some supplies and food. Are you alone today?”

Cerra nodded. “Rex and the boys are on an extraction mission.”

“I see,” Riyo said. “Rex told me your ranks were growing, and I wanted to be sure you had enough to cover the new clones who are joining you.”

Cerra respected Riyo immensely. The senator had painted a very visible target on herself with her public support for the clones and her outspoken opposition to the Empire’s treatment of them. She seemed to be driven only by a sense of her own duty and ethics, which made her all the more admirable. Cerra’s own work with Rex, though dangerous, was at least covert, and her motivations were far less clear-cut than Senator Chuchi’s.

Cerra helped unload and stash the supplies, gritting her teeth against the ache in her cracked ribs, and when they finished, Riyo stood, looking around the deserted garage a little uncertainly. Cerra needed to get back to work if she hoped to finish the pod before the team returned, but something about Riyo seemed forlorn, and Cerra hated to send her away. 

On a whim, she asked, “Would you mind helping me with a project? I need to get this surgical pod set up before Rex gets back, and a second set of hands would make it easier.”

Senator Chuchi’s golden eyes lit up at Cerra’s bald-faced lie. “I would love to! I have to admit I don’t know anything about machinery, though. I’m not sure how much help I’ll be.”

“That’s all right,” Cerra said, sliding back underneath the pod. “You can keep me company. There’s caf in the kitchen, if you want some.”

“That sounds lovely,” Riyo said, heading for the kitchen. When she returned, Riyo set a cup of caf on the floor next to Cerra, then settled onto a crate next to the pod.

Cerra took a grateful sip. “I knew I liked you.”

Riyo laughed softly in acknowledgment, then asked, “Where did you learn how to work on machinery like this?” 

“My mother was a ship’s mechanic in our planet’s military defense force,” Cerra said. “My father claims that I learned how to wire before I learned how to speak.”

“Did you follow in her footsteps?” Riyo asked.

“Nope. Her knees were wrecked by the time she was forty. She told me to become an officer with a nice, cushy desk job, so that’s what I did.”

“Did you ever see combat?”

“Anyone ever tell you you ask a lot of questions, Senator?”

“Sorry,” Riyo said, abashed. “I was just curious how you came to be involved with Rex.”

“It’s all right,” Cerra said. “I didn’t see real combat until the Clone Wars. Our defense force was folded into the GAR, and my desk job got a lot less cushy. And I’m not involved with Rex.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to assume,” Riyo stammered. “You two just seem… close.”

“We are close,” Cerra said. “But not like that. Hand me those hypersheers.”

Riyo handed her the tool silently. Cerra felt a pang of guilt at the senator’s mortified expression, but she was not prepared to explain the intricacies of her bond with Rex. It was not romantic, and it never would be. She wasn’t even sure she was capable of having that kind of relationship again—not after Fives. But even if she were, she and Rex had too much history, too much baggage, to even consider such a possibility.

Cerra didn’t know what to say, but luckily, Riyo had plenty of practice in diplomacy. She changed the subject. “Are you nervous about the extraction?” 

“Rex can handle it,” Cerra replied, tamping down her anxiety. He can handle it. He can. Gregor will be fine. They have Echo backing them up. Gregor will stay with the ship. He’ll be fine. Everything will be fine.

Fine, fine, fine. The word echoed in her mind like a bell. Perhaps if she repeated it often enough, she would start to believe it.

“I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone more competent than Captain Rex,” Riyo said. She hesitated, then asked, “What do you think of Echo?”

“I’ve only run one mission with him so far, but he knows how to handle himself,” Cerra said. “No surprise there. He was one of Rex’s, back in the war.”

“Did you know him? In the war, I mean.”

“No, we never met,” Cerra said. She didn’t elaborate. No need to drag the senator into her own tangled past.

“I think he must be very brave to keep fighting after everything he’s been through.” The admiration was evident in Riyo’s voice.

“I agree. He’s committed to his brothers, and he’s a very capable warrior. I’m relieved he’s joined the team. It’s good to know he has Rex’s back. Lubricant gun, please.”

Riyo handed her the tool.

“I hope we can help even more clones get out and start new lives for themselves,” Riyo said. “My colleague, Senator Thulo, is working to build a clone sanctuary on her home planet.”

“That’s very generous of her,” Cerra grunted as she struggled with a stubborn fastener. The lubricant hadn’t worked to loosen it as she’d hoped. Perhaps a little percussive maintenance was in order. “Can I have that vibrohammer?”

“Isn’t that a bit of an aggressive tool for the job?” Riyo asked.

“Sometimes you need a blunt instrument,” Cerra said. “What inspired Senator Thulo to undertake such a risky enterprise?”

Riyo hesitated a moment. “Can I trust you not to let this information fall into the wrong hands?”

Cerra nearly laughed. “I think you know you can.”

“I’m serious,” Riyo said. “It’s not my story to tell.”

“Don’t tell me, then,” Cerra said with a shrug that Riyo couldn’t see. “Hydrospanner.”

Riyo passed her a laser-caliper. Cerra gestured at the spanner. “That one.”

Riyo took back the caliper and handed Cerra the spanner. 

“She’s married to a clone,” Riyo blurted out. 

Huh. I did not see that coming.

“A senator and a clone,” Cerra commented circumspectly. “What are the odds?”

“Greater than you might think,” Riyo said. 

Something in her voice gave Cerra pause. “Oh?”

“Yes,” Riyo said. “I—I was also… involved with a clone. Before. During the war.”

Cerra felt a sinking in her gut. “What happened?”

“He died,” Riyo said. “Not long after the rise of the Empire. That’s why I started fighting for clone rights. For him.”

“I’m sorry,” Cerra said in a low voice. “What was his name?”

“Commander Fox of the Coruscant Guard,” Riyo said.

All the air punched from Cerra’s lungs. She dropped her hydrospanner, the tool clattering to the floor.

“Are you all right?” Riyo asked, startled.

Cerra was glad she was hidden safely beneath the surgical pod so Riyo couldn’t see her appalled expression.

“I’m fine,” she lied. “Just got a little shock. From the circuit.”

She felt sick. Her voice sounded unsteady to her own ears, but Riyo evidently believed her. She groped around until she found the spanner and went back to work, fumbling with the wires as her mind raced and her hands shook.

Fox. Cerra shuddered as she wrestled her emotions under control. Riyo had been in love with Fox, of all people. Out of all the millions of clones, she had fallen for the man who had murdered Fives. Riyo didn’t know. She would never have confided in Cerra if she had known.

“Did you know him?” Riyo asked hopefully.

“No,” Cerra said hollowly. “I never met him.”

Cerra tasted bile at the back of her throat. How could she tell this kind, gentle senator that she had felt nothing but a fierce sense of satisfaction when she’d heard that Fox had been killed while hunting down a rogue Jedi? How could she confess that she had celebrated the commander’s death? A wave of shame swamped her. She knew now that Fox had been just as susceptible to the inhibitor chip’s influence as the rest of the clones. Rex had told her that when his chip activated, he had been fully conscious of his actions even as he was powerless to stop them. She could not imagine the agony Fox would have endured as he watched himself pull the trigger and take his own brother’s life.

Riyo was talking again, and Cerra forced herself to focus on the senator’s words.

“... providing security at a senate function. I’d met other clones before. Actually, Rex was the first clone I ever befriended. But Fox was wonderful. He was so kind, and so tired.” Riyo laughed softly. “Commander Thire used to say Fox’s body was fifty percent caf. He reminds me of you in that way.”

Cerra forced a chuckle. It was strange to hear Riyo speak so fondly of a man Cerra had dedicated years of her life to hating.

“We used to talk about running away together, hiding out on some remote planet. But I knew Fox would never abandon his men. They were the reason he worked so hard. He cared so much about them. When he died, it seemed only right for me to take up the fight for his brothers since he wasn’t here to do it any longer.”

Cerra set down the spanner and took a few deep breaths. Schooling her face into a careful mask of neutrality, she slid out from under the surgical pod and took Riyo’s hand in a comforting grip. The senator’s small hand was soft and warm and perfectly manicured, but she didn’t seem to mind that Cerra’s was rough and calloused from work. Riyo clutched it tightly.

“Wherever he is,” Cerra said, “I know he’s very proud of you.”

Riyo blinked back tears. Cerra couldn’t remember the last time she had wept. The complicated morass of grief, bitterness, and inexorable rage that she felt about Fives’s death refused to be expressed in anything as straightforward as tears.

“Thank you,” Riyo said in a trembling voice.

Cerra gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, then slid back under the pod to connect the last few wires.

“Done!” she announced. “Want to hop in and take it for a test drive?”

“But I don’t have a chip,” Riyo protested.

“I just need to turn it on and make sure everything’s working,” Cerra said. “I promise not to perform brain surgery on you.”

---

Next chapter

[noodyl-blasstal]

Prompt list number 29 and blupjeans please? :3

Thank you so much for the prompt! It’s from this list and I’m still open to requests. 29 is: “Someone is deeply impressed by skills you weren’t even that proud of…until NOW”

–

“Have you seen the Cups Guy?” Lup shouts over the music. Taako definitely mishears her.

“You’re supposed to be here with Taako tonight, remember. Taako, your brother, your beloved twin who just wants to spend quality time with you because he loves you so much. Nto a random cute guy.” He clutches his hand to his chest, bats his eyelashes and looks devastated for all of a second before grinning and reaching for his drink.

“I love you too, Koko, but look.” Lup nudges Taako again and gestures to the retreating back of the denim clad mystery. 

Taako shrugs. “Nothing to see.”

“No, you need to… c’mon.” Lup grabs his arm. “We’ve gotta catch him.” There’s no way she’s going to be the only one bearing witness to this feat of engineering. 

Taako engages his deadweight powers immediately and flops limply. Thankfully Lup’s spent a lot more time in the gym than he has. 

“If I drag you it’ll ruin your outfit and you’ll be sad.” She tugs his arm again and starts pulling.

Taako lets her for a moment before he sighs, stands, brushes himself off, and starts walking ahead of her. “Fine. This had better be good.”

Lup waits to move long enough for Taako to have to pause because he doesn’t know where he’s going. They’ve lost valuable seconds, but honestly, he deserves it for being a brat. “This way.” She strides towards the corridor Cups Guy disappeared down, dodging flailing dancers and stumbling drunks, stepping to the rhythm of whatever bullshit is on the shit phone poking out of the solo cup in the corner. She’s never going to get guilted into one of Taako’s parties ever again, she left the noise and the sticky floors, sticky everythings really back in her early 100s.

Lup tries to keep her voice down, it’s quieter as they move away from the main room.“There!” she hisses and gestures to Taako.

“Wow! Look at that back.” Taako says far too loudly for their stealth mission.

“Shut up, Goofus.” Lup elbows Taako as Cups Guy looks round and his eyes widen.

“You’re the one who’s pointing.” Taako slaps her hand down.

“I’m not pointing loudly am I? You need to see what he’s holding.” Lup hurries after him, drags Taako with her.

“Just tell me, then Taako can get back to the dancing portion of the evening.”

“You won’t believe me.”

“Taako has never in his life accused you of lying.” Taako says in a voice which almost means he thinks it’s true.

“Uh huh.”

“Well sometimes you are.” He huffs. “But fine. Hurry up then.” Taako speeds up too, uses her grip on his wrist to drag her along even faster. “We don’t have all night.”

They both come to the realisation at once. 

“It’s really weird to…” Lup starts.

“...chase a guy.” Taako finishes.

It’s too late though.

“Are you two okay?” Asks Cups Guy. He’s stopped and turned around and generally seems unimpressed at being loudly followed, which is completely fair.

She should apologise. “See!” Lup elbows Taako.

“What?” The man looks less mild in his irritation now.

“You’ve, er, got a lot of cups there, kemosabe… a loooooootta cups.” Taako nods towards the pile of cups in Barry’s arms.

“What my brother means to say.” Lup cuts in, as the man’s frown deepens. “Is that we wanted to know if you needed any help carrying everything.”

“Yeah… yeparooni. Definitely that. Exactly what Taako meant.” Taako says in a deeply unconvincing voice.

Lup smiles extra big and hopes it balances out Taako’s whole deal.

“Oh.” Cups Guy says. “That’s, uh, that’s actually really nice, thanks. But, well, I, I’ve got it.”

“You sure do…?” Lup waits for a name. She figures it’s only good protocol to find out what he’s called first because she needs to study this man. He’s calmly carrying 10 cups in an unnervingly stable pile - what does he do for work? Knife juggling? Orphaned puppy balancing? Double backwards upside down tightropes?

“Barry.” Replies Barry. Still not entirely friendly, but looking less pissed off than before.

“I mean… that’s just so many cups, my guy. It’s really impressive.” Lup nods towards the perfectly balanced stack and Barry looks down as if he’s not aware of his superhuman abilities.

“I… uh. I guess. Yeah.” Barry’s face tinges a warm pink and Lup tries not to laugh at how adorable it is to see. His face is nice when he’s not thinking about how irritating they are.

“What’s the secret? Is it magic? If you tell me will you have to kill me?” Lup definitely doesn’t wiggle her eyebrows, she’s not flirting with a guy because of cups and no one can prove otherwise.

“You actually want to know?” Barry’s smiling now. It’s good. She’d like to make him smile more actually.

Lup nods enthusiastically.

“Okay, er… we’ll walk and talk, I promised Krav I’d bring snacks.”

“Wait, hang on, Taako’s here on the premise they’re all liquid. I want my money back!”

Lup and Barry both ignore him. Lup’s busy staring intently at Barry’s hands. There’s not even the slightest shake, he’s just steady. She could use steady…

“So they’re roughly half and half. You’ve gotta pack the snacks carefully so they don’t shift in transit and change the distribution of the load.” Barry relaxes into the lecture and Lup mentally pulls up a chair and a desk so she can take brain notes. There’s no way she isn’t practising this later.

“You’d like to help distribute his load.” Taako mutters behind her.

Lup coughs loudly and hopes it’s enough to ensure Barry didn’t hear. He’s interesting, she doesn’t want to scare him away.

Barry keeps going. “It’s, uh, pretty simple really, but I mean, I guess you’ve gotta consider a lot of factors?” 

It’s sweet, the way his voice creeps into a question at the end. Lup can’t resist teasing. “Oh, is this the origins of your super villainy? You’re just realising the depths of your powers.”

“Hey wait, why am I evil?”

“Why am I here?” Taako mutters beside her. 

She doesn’t even bother turning round, just elbows him. There’s a satisfying “oof.”

“How would you use this for good?”

“I’m literally using it for good right now!”

“Uh huh, sure, not luring a sweet innocent woman into your evil lair?”

“It’s a pool room that we’re guessing no one else knows about, but I’m sure Kravitz will be glad to share, he’s won the last five games. Although maybe it’s evil to subject you to him… Fuck, am I a villain?”

Taako’s suddenly much more interested. “Pool, you say?”

“I think we might be able to help.” Lup just manages to stop herself nudging Barry playfully with her shoulder. He seems stable, but there’s no way she’s going to be responsible for testing the limits of his balance.

“Really?” Barry looks genuinely delighted. “Ah, here we go.” He turns slightly, opens the door with his elbow, doesn’t even wobble, and shouts “honey, I’m home! I brought friends.”

The man Lup has to assume is Kravitz looks curiously towards them. Or, he would, but seems to be entirely stuck on Taako - which is for the best because a quick glance to the side confirms Taako’s staring right back.

“Here’s your drink, bud.” Barry has somehow deposited everything safely on the table and holds a cup out to Kravitz. 

Kravitz doesn’t move.

“Okay… uh.” Barry turns back to Lup. “Are they?”

“Gimme one sec.” Lup nudges Taako with her elbow like she’s the Fonz.

It works well enough to unjam him. “So, Kemosabe, I hear you’re gonna rock me like a hurricane?”

Barry snorts out a laugh. “There’s no way…”

“Ssssh, let him work.” Lup taps Barry’s hip with her own. There’s no way she’s getting the blame for anything going wrong here.

“I… uh.” Kravitz looks slightly panicked. Hmmm… That might not bode well.

Taako nods to the table. “I hear you’ve been on a winning streak, but the future’s in the air, handsome, I can feel it everywhere.”

Kravitz’s panic morphs into a smile. “I’m not convinced the winds of change are going to be blowing here tonight.” 

It’s going to be okay, he sticks the landing! Lup grins at Barry who just looks perplexed.

“Taako reckons his odds are good.” Taako’s using his sultry voice. Kravitz must be passing muster.

“Don’t make no promises your body can’t keep.” Kravitz punctuates that one with a long lingering look. 

It’s going well. Kravitz has promise, and actually that means Lup and Barry need to leave immediately. 

“Scorpions… Scorpions is working?” Barry asks, incredulous. 

“Yep, don’t think about it too hard, it’ll hurt, and cha’girl super doesn’t want to watch this so what about a cup stacking lesson?” Lup smiles a desperate smile as Taako does some unnecessarily graphic cue chalking. “A really intensive one.”

“Yeah, uh, right, follow me.” Barry ushers her out in front of him. “Don’t look that way.” Barry’s hands blinker her eyes so she can only see the path to the door. They’re warm against her temples. “Nearly there. Can you, uh…” 

Lup opens the door for them. 

“... thanks.” Barry’s right behind her, hands still bracketing her face.

If she just leans back slightly…

“Oh, sorry, I er, I didn’t mean to… no need for blinkers any more!” Barry moves his hands away and starts walking. Lup links her arm through his (because it’d be best not to get separated) and neighs her thanks.

Yeah, fine, maybe Taako was right and she did need the Taako School of Flirting, it was only 27 low low instalments of 10 gold... Not that she was flirting right now, not that she was trying to or even thinking about it. She was just gonna go get a cups lesson from the very nice man who also happened to be very handsome and kind enough to help her avoid seeing her brother doing crimes against romance who was also passionate about science.

Barry, to his credit, doesn’t unhook his arm and run from her. “I’ll see if I can find you some sugar in the kitchen.” He pets her twice on the head.

There’s a pause. Lup bounces her eyebrows.

“I meant cubes! Sugar cubes! I…” His panic is palpable and wonderful. She definitely shouldn’t delight in it, but how can anyone resist teasing him at least a little?

“Sure you did. This was just all part of your evil plan.”

Barry pauses, considers her for a moment. “Is it working?”

Lup smiles her biggest smile. “Consider me lured!”

Lup’s glad she ran into him. It’s nice to make new friends.

[narrans]

A Tall and Small Collection |S2.42 | & Everyone Needs A Little Hero :: Crossover :: True Colors Revealed pt. 1

Rey was a jumble of emotions for the next few days. After going to Theo’s apartment and finding him on the ground shaking and obviously not feeling well, he and Hero had no choice but to call emergency services.

It was the first time Rey had ever used a phone as an actual phone. He knew how to play games and work different apps, but actually dialing a number and talking to a human on the other end was a whole new experience.

Plus! He had technically broken a sacred Borrower rule without actually breaking it - talking to humans. Granted, the operator didn’t know that he was a Borrower, so it made for a fine line to walk. Still, it meant that Theo was safe in the hospital getting the treatment he needed.

Theo’s phone had gone off a few times, and Ashlynn handled all of the logistics in getting care for Theo’s little sister, Bella, as well as getting in touch with Theo when the time came.

Just like when Ashlynn had to talk to Sam and Eliza, making references to knowing about the Borrowers and ensuring that the secret stayed safe was a bit of a trick. Still, they managed without incident and Theo was scheduled to come home within a week or so. He was feeling so good that he actually wanted to talk to Rey over the phone, which Ashlynn happily obliged.

“So, they say it was called sepsis?” asked Rey as he sat in front of the phone and listened to Theo, who was on speaker phone.

“Yeah. Apparently one of the bottles had been festering for a while, and when I got cut with it, I ended up getting a nasty infection. I didn’t even feel it because I don’t have feeling in my legs. I just knew I was cut. Next thing I knew I was feeling so sick and tired on the ground. You saved me, dude,” said Theo. Rey beamed and shrugged even though Theo couldn’t see him.

“Well, I was just trying to help. It was a bit of a trick getting you to stay awake and everything,” replied Rey. “I can’t wait to see you when you get back, and you definitely need to meet Ashlynn.”

“Yeah, I sure do. Tell her thanks again for helping with Bells and all that. Seriously, I owe you all one,” said Theo.

“Don’t think twice about it. Happy to help,” stated Rey cheerfully. He glanced over and saw Ashlynn gesturing that lunch was ready, which unfortunately was the signal for him to jump off of the phone. “Hey, I see it’s time for lunch here. Get some rest and let me know when you’re going to be back, okay?”

“Will do!”

The line cut out and Rey pushed himself up, stretching as big as he could before walking over to the edge of the counter.

“Sorry I ran a little late,” he said as Ashlynn rounded the corner to the kitchen and held out her hand for him to ascend.

“Not at all. I’m sorry to cut it short. Theo seems like a great friend,” smiled Ashlynn. Keeping her hand level, she made sure Rey was stable before spinning around and sitting down at the kitchen table where everyone else was waiting. They made their own sandwiches and talked about next steps for moving from the apartment into the house Ashlynn had taken them to go see.

“Right now, the house is pending an inspection, so hopefully they don’t find termites, water damage, or anything wrong with the foundation, roof, or HVAC system,” said Ashlynn. Almost all of those words went right over Rey’s head, so he just nodded and listened as Soren asked for further explanation. “Basically, if there’s something wrong with the house, we can get a better price because we have to fix it ourselves.”

“Ah,” said Soren as he handed Mayzie a much smaller version of his own sandwich, which she happily chewed on as she bounced up and down. “That’s a good thing. So, what do we need to do? Anything?”

“Well, at the moment, we can consolidate everything we need into boxes and start labeling them,” said Ashlynn, already processing everything she needed to prepare for the move.

“Well, that’ll be easy for us,” chuckled Dorian as he stayed hunched over his scrap of paper he had been scribbling on for the past hour. Rey didn’t say much because of the tightness in his chest. He had been thinking something over and over for a while, and it was nagging at him every time the thought of moving came creeping into his mind.

There was part of him that really wanted to stay.

Rey knew what it meant, but he couldn’t help but feel it in his bones. He had friends here - Theo and Hero - and he could do a lot of good in the community with his inventions. Rey knew it meant he probably would never see his brothers or niece again, which left him at a loss for words.

He felt, in a word, torn.

Still, he knew families stayed together, and there was no sense in trying to make an argument that he should get to stay or, at the very least, come by and visit.

So, instead, he finished his sandwich in silence and helped sweep up the crumbs, his mind muddled with emotional decisions.

“Hey, Ashlynn?” Rey said. “Do you think I could go and hang out with Hero today? If you don’t need me that is?”

“Sure thing. Need a hand?” Ashlynn asked, to which Rey nodded.

“Yes, please. Thank you!”

Rey fastened his gizmos and gadgets to his sides and then Ashlynn lifted him up onto the counter where he vanished into the walls.

Now that they were mostly alone, Dorian vanishing back to his studio with a wild, creative look in his eyes, Ashlynn looked at Soren curiously as he played with Mayzie.

“Did Rey seem a little… off… to you today?” Ashlynn asked. Soren, giving Mayzie her stuffed bunny back now that her hands were no longer crumby, nodded.

“Yeah, I noticed it too. Do you think it has something to do with his friend?” Soren asked. Ashlynn sighed and shrugged.

“I think it has something to do with the move. He was pretty quiet at the house, and he just gets quiet when we talk about it. I don’t know. Maybe I’ll ask him about it later,” muttered Ashlynn as she skittered her fingers toward Mayzie, who howled with laughter as she darted away from Ashlynn and back to Soren. “I’ll figure it out later.”

“Naw, I’ll talk to him if I catch him doing it again,” decided Soren. “Until then, I actually have a couple of errands I need to run today. Would you mind watching over the mischief maker?”

“Errands? You need something? Or just need a mental break?” grinned Ashlynn as she leaned forward and, with expert precision, kissed Soren on his back. Instantly, his cheeks were bright pink as he scratched the back of his neck bashfully.

“I actually do need to grab a few things, specifically for Rey’s birthday as well as a few other odds and ends. Plus, I need to make sure my skills don’t dull,” said Soren, facing Ashlynn.

“Well, I guess I can keep an eye out on our little mischief maker. Just be careful while you’re out and about, okay?” Ashlynn requested. Soren, with an ‘I know’ kind of shrug, motioned for Ashlynn to lean over to him. The two of them kissed briefly before Soren hurried across the table, hook in hand, and slid down the chair leg to vanish under the couch and into the walls.

Ashlynn, alone with Mayzie, sighed as her heart continued to flutter.

“Well, little girl. Looks like it’s just you and me. Let’s see what we can get into.”

~~~^*^*^~~~

Hero walked along the familiar passage down the wires, past the rafters, and then jumped over the small gap in the wall to go and see his friend, Rey. It had been a few days since the two of them caught up, and Hero was genuinely worried about Theo, the human Rey had just met.

Theo had gone to the hospital, which Hero knew was a place Sam had been on multiple occasions. Hopefully, Theo was getting better and would be back soon. Until then, Hero elected to go and visit Rey at his home with Ashlynn.

However, Hero didn’t need to go all the way to Ashlynn’s apartment because he met Rey halfway there. To Hero Rey seemed a little distracted. The two of them almost passed one another before Hero stopped his friend, snagging his attention by tapping him on the shoulder.

“Hey,” grinned the bright green-eyed teen as he held out his hip lamp so Rey could see him. It took Rey a second to recognize Hero, which again wasn’t quite like him.

“Oh, hey Hero. Sorry. I didn’t even see you. Just stuck in my head I guess,” sighed Rey, chuckling lightly and reaching up to scratch the back of his head.

“Stuck in your head? About what?” prompted Hero as he readjusted his hip-lamp. Rey averted his eyes, staring at a clump of wires at the base of the wall joist. Some emotion danced in Rey’s eyes that Hero couldn’t quite read. Disheartened? Reluctance? His friend certainly looked torn.

Before Hero could prompt Rey again, he responded.

“I just… well… can you keep something secret? For me I mean? It’s… well…. It’s less of a secret and more of a… thought… I keep having,” said Rey. He fumbled slightly over his words as he tried to piece together what was on his mind.

Hero felt a bit uneasy about secrets. The last time he tried to keep a secret, specifically about his human interactions, it ended up getting everyone in trouble and put the entire Borrower community in danger.

On the other hand, Rey was his friend. It seemed like he really wanted to get something off of his chest too. Hero made up his mind.

“Sure, I think I can manage. What’s on your mind? You’re not in trouble, are you? About the whole Theo thing?” asked Hero. The other Borrower teen shook his head as he leaned against a nearby wall joist. He folded his arms across his chest and sighed, his breath coming out in a puff that made the hair by his face flutter.

“No, I’m not in trouble, but I’ve just been thinking about things recently, and I don’t know how I want to go about it,” said Rey.

“Do… you want to talk about it?” Hero asked after another minute or so of silence. “It’s okay if you don’t.”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just…” Rey sucked in a deep breath again. Then, while keeping his eyes averted, he continued. “We’re moving.”

The silence was tangible, filling the air like a dense mist.

Rey? Leaving? Hero almost couldn’t fathom it. It felt like they had just arrived.

“What? When?” asked Hero.

“I don’t know. We’ll be leaving soon. Ashlynn found a house and took us all there. We went exploring and it’s a great place. We actually found some structures inside, so other Borrowers used to live there. At least, we think there used to be some Borrowers there. There’s tons of space for all of us to have our own rooms if we wanted. There’s a spot for Dorian’s music and my inventing. It’s… nice,” stated Rey.

Hero felt a twist in his insides. This was a great opportunity! Hero would obviously miss his friend, but the adventures he was going to have were endless. He could be out in the open as much as he liked, and he would get an entire room to himself.

It was here that Hero caught a glimpse of Rey’s face, and he looked less enthusiastic about the move. While what Rey was saying was exciting, his tone sounded monotonous and crestfallen, as if Rey was trying to hype himself up for the move.

“But… you don’t want to move,” Hero concluded. Rey’s shoulders slumped ever so slightly before the Borrower teen nodded subtly.

“Not really,” he stated.

“But… why? You’re going to get to work on all of your inventions out in the open. Plus, you’ll get to have all kinds of adventures,” pointed out Hero in an attempt to make his friend feel better.

“That’s the point though,” muttered Rey. “I’ll get to have these adventures by myself. I’ll go back to making my inventions to help myself and no one else. Unless a new family moves in, it’ll just be our family. And that’s great and all, but the point of being an inventor is to create things to make others’ lives easier.

“And of course I know what staying means! It means I won’t be able to see Soren or Dorian or Mayzie ever again. It means I’ll be out here living by myself. Sure, it would be with the community, but my inventions would be making a difference. I would be making a difference.”

Hero was beginning to see where the conflict was for his friend.

“So, you’re thinking you’d be trading one family for another,” stated Hero. “And that makes you feel bad and why you’re feeling so conflicted.”

Rey’s posture tightened as he wrapped his arms around himself a little tighter.

“Basically,” he mumbled. “The problem is I want both, but that doesn’t make sense to me. I’ve always known what I wanted, and now I just feel torn.”

Hero didn’t envy his friend’s position. He wouldn’t know what to do if he had to choose. He had never moved to someplace new in his life. To him, the move would be exciting, but it would be at the cost of losing his friends and family. He would never see the same beams and floors. He wouldn’t see his human friends again. It would be the toughest decision of his life if he were in Rey’s shoes.

With a sigh, Hero walked over and laid a hand on Rey’s shoulder, gripping it tightly to comfort him.

“Well, it sounds like you have a little bit of time to think about it, yeah? For now, let’s go see if we can collect some more coins for Theo and check up on everyone. Let’s put your inventions to good use,” said Hero.

Rey managed a partial smile and nodded slowly as he absorbed the information.

“Yeah, that sounds good. It’ll take my mind off of things anyway,” said Rey.

Together, the two of them ventured through the familiar passages toward Theo’s home. They found a couple of other oddly colored bills, which were pinkish with odd symbols on them, as well as a few more coins. Some of the coins had little notches cut out of them, but money was money, and any little bit could help Theo in his business ventures.

After dropping off their found borrowings, the boys decided they should check the lower floors since they hadn’t been down there yet. Hero also wanted Rey to listen to Eliza’s singing if they got the chance. The staircase down was thankfully unoccupied, and the boys made quick work of going down and exploring beneath the floorboards.

Unfortunately, they only found a few copper-colored coins, which they stowed away in Rey’s pack, and Eliza was not home. Still, they got what they came for.

“Ready to head back?” asked Hero as he secured the last strap. Rey rolled his shoulders a few times as he checked the weight distribution on his back.

“Yeah, I think everything is secured,” he replied. His pack rustled as he readjusted his hip lamp. The two boys took a few steps past the dusty boards, ducking down under one of the carved entryways when they heard something shuffle down the hall.

They instinctually turned toward the sound, both boys holding their breath as their keen ears homed in on the sound. There it was again. A rustling sound, followed by a slight padding sound.

“You heard it too?” whispered Rey. Hero nodded. Neither boy took their eyes off of the darkness leading further under the floors. Rey thought hard about where they were in the building. Technically, they should be by the front door.

What was it that they were hearing? Was it a mouse? A rat? Maybe the skidder of a spider?

Rey pulled out his pin dagger and gripped it tight as he stepped forward in front of Hero.

“Hello?” Rey called. His keen eyes searched the darkness in front of him, which was barely illuminated by his hip lamp.

Then, in a harsh whisper, someone called back.

“H-h-hello?”

A shiver shot up Rey’s spine as he watched a pair of pale brown eyes practically emerge from the darkness. Pale features illuminated by Rey’s hip lamp spread across the stranger’s face as he padded forward. The Borrower looked to be around Soren’s age and had light brown hair that matched his eyes. His cheeks were slightly sunken and dark circles were under his eyes, making them look more sunk-in than they already were.

His clothes were tattered, and he looked like he had missed a week’s worth of meals. Still, there was a timid relief in his expression as he laid eyes on Rey and Hero.

“T-th-there are others? Oh, thank goodness! I thought I was the only one here!” he said, voice trembling as he stumbled forward toward the boys. Rey’s heart leapt into his throat, and he instinctually pushed Hero back as he held out his pin.

“Easy there, friend,” said Rey firmly while keeping his tone calm. “Are you alright?” The Borrower nodded as he collapsed to his knees, eyes fixated on Rey’s weapon.

“Y-yes. I’m… I’m… I-I’m alright. I j-just arrived. I th-thought I was alone,” whimpered the man. Rey glanced back at Hero just for a moment, and he was thankful beyond words that Hero also seemed to be on high alert. The man began to speak again, which drew Rey’s attention back to him. “Are… are there others? Or are you boys alone?”

Rey hesitated to answer the question. Something about this Borrower seemed a bit off – desperate even – and it made him uneasy.

Still, Borrowers were supposed to stay together. No matter what, Rey knew he needed to try and help this stranger.

“No, we’re not alone,” replied Rey. He wanted to give just enough information to help, but not enough if something was wrong. “Are you?”

“M-m-me? No. I’m not alone. My friends are a little further away. I w-was scouting ahead. You know? See if there were good borrowings here and if t-this place was s-s-safe,” replied the Borrower. At this, Hero’s compassionate, altruistic soul got the better of him. He hoisted his pack off of his shoulders and fished out his water ration and bread he was saving for lunch.

Knowing Rey had his back, he stepped past his friend toward the Borrower. The stranger’s eyes gleamed at seeing the food and water, and before Hero could offer politely, the man took the food from Hero’s outstretched hands and began snarfing it down, practically inhaling it all at once.

“Oh, thank you,” he mumbled over and over between bites.

“You’re welcome,” said Hero. The teenage hero glanced back at his friend and saw that he was just as much at a loss of what to do to help this other Borrower. Did they bring him back home? Did they leave him here? Neither of them had additional supplies to offer the Borrower.

Sensing the change in the air, the Borrower piped up, glancing nervously between Hero and Rey.

“My name is Emile. You two have names?” asked the stranger.

“Yes, sorry. I’m Hero, and this is my friend Rey. You said you were scouting? How many are in your group?” asked Hero. Now that he was closer, Hero noticed the man was shaking slightly as if he were cold.

“My gr-group? Um… well… including me, five. We’re from just down the road. Migrating. N-nasty business…” said Emile, voice trailing off as he visibly shuddered. Hero glanced back at Rey again, unsure of what to do.

On one hand, they couldn’t just leave him here to go and get supplies. They could try, but the Borrower might end up venturing off and, in his seemingly fragile state, might encounter something he couldn’t handle. On the other hand, both Rey and Hero felt uneasy about this guy, and bringing him into the heart of the Borrower community didn’t feel like the wisest choice.

Hero’s compassion won out once again. He was ultimately one Borrower. What could he do on his own? At any rate, it felt smarter to keep this guy close rather than leave him on his own.

“Do you have supplies? Food and water and such?” asked Hero. Emile shook his head. “Then why don’t you come with us. My family has extra supplies that you can take back to your group, unless you want to go get them. We can wai-”

“No!” said Emile sharply as he cut off Hero. Emile cleared his throat nervously as he shook his head, once again looking meek and timid. “What I mean is that you would be waiting a while. I… I-I should g-get the supplies and b-bring th-them back.”

Startled by his outburst, both Rey and Hero had to take a breath to cure their racing hearts.

“Um… sure. Yeah, that works. Let’s go then, whenever you’re ready that is,” offered Hero.

It took a minute, but Emile pushed himself up to his feet and followed behind Rey and Hero faithfully as they led him through the passages, up the main staircase, and then toward the elevator shaft.

The whole way, Emile quietly asked question after question, to which Rey would respond in short-form answers.

“How many Borrowers live here?”

“There are a few of us.”

“How long have you been here?”

“Not long. We just moved here.”

“Do you know if this place is safe?”

“Yes, and it is safe.”

They made it to the elevator shaft and called for the lift, which immediately fascinated Emile.

“Y-you… you mean you h-have permanent structures here?” he asked disbelievingly.

“Yes,” said Rey, making sure to respond before Hero could.

“Amazing… I-I d-didn’t think it was p-p-possible,” muttered Emile.

The lift arrived and the elevator operator, Klink, struck up a conversation with Emile immediately.

“Oi’! A newcomer! ‘aven’s ‘ad many o’ those in a twitch,” said Klink. Rey listened as Emile responded to Klink’s questions. All the while, his sixth sense was on high alert. Emile seemed nervous and malnourished. Borrowers were durable and could go long periods of time without food to survive. Rey remembered how that felt when he moved to Ashlynn’s first home with his father and brothers.

Never did he look like Emile.

At least, he didn’t think he did anyway.  

The lift came to a screeching halt and Hero led the way through the corridors toward his home. As they passed through the main thoroughfare and saw all of the other Borrowers trading supplies and conversing openly, Emile’s eyes grew wider and wider. Rey watched as Emile closely, noting how he seemed to be trembling.

Was he that excited? Was this scene that much of a shock to him?

Rey took a deep breath, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about this guy. He sadly didn’t have time to address it though because they had crossed the threshold of Hero’s home.

Immediately, Prim and Casper welcomed the newcomer, sitting him down and wrapping a blanket around his shoulders. They began questioning his physical state, to which Emile was able to timidly answer. Emile explained that he was from down the road and that he and his group had to flee when they thought someone was seen.

They wandered the streets and were caught up in a storm, nearly washed down countless drains, and were attacked by creatures and monsters that, for a human, would have been cute and cuddly. Prim and Casper listened intently as they prepared a pack of supplies for Emile and his companions. They made sure there was food, water, a few blankets, and even a few extra clothing items to help combat the cold. They even gave him a spare hip lamp.

“Th-th-thank y-you,” mumbled Emile. “Y-y-you’re to kind.”

“It’s no trouble at all. If you need help getting settled or getting everyone in, just let us know,” said Prim.

Rey, the whole time, kept to himself. He stayed quiet as Emile muttered his thanks over and over. He wanted to ask Emile more questions, but each time he tried to pry a little further, Casper or one of the other Rafters children would intervene, saying it wasn’t polite to ask questions like that.

Rey didn’t think they were hard questions.

What was your old home like?

If it was an apartment, why not just move to another unit? Humans don’t always talk to one another. You could’ve been safe and didn’t have to move during the winter season.

Why wouldn’t you all move in a group? Is someone hurt?

Why don’t you have any supplies with you? If you were scouting, wouldn’t you bring supplies with you?

Rey’s questions always made Emile’s eyes dart around nervously. Emile would seemingly retreat into himself, pulling the blanket further over his shoulders. To Rey, this new Borrower was avoiding the questions, and Rey wanted to know why.

At the end of the meeting, Emile said he would just take the lift back down and head out to go retrieve his group. He didn’t require any assistance getting back because he remembered the way.

Rey had half a mind to follow him, but he didn’t want to go alone. He would’ve asked Hero, but he was needed to help start dinner.

“Alright, I’ll see you around then,” called Rey to Hero as they watched Emile ride the lift with Klink all the way back down to the basement level.

“Sure thing. See you soon!” called Hero. Rey made it two steps before his step hesitated. He needed to know something.

“Hey, Hero?” asked Rey. His friend turned and looked at him expectantly, waiting for his question. “Did you think anything about Emile was, I don’t know, off?”

“He seemed a little frazzled and nervous, but that’s kind of to be expected,” said Hero.

“Really? Nothing seemed off to you?” prompted Rey. The hair on the back of his neck was still raised. Hero thought about it for a minute before something seemed to switch in his mind.

“I mean, he did seem a little off, but I’m not sure what could be causing it. Why? What are you thinking?” asked Hero. The young Borrower’s keen green eyes read his friend’s body language carefully. Rey, in a word, seemed suspicious of Emile. It was true, the Borrower seemed a little jittery, but wouldn’t anyone be just as nervous coming into a strange environment?

“I don’t know,” mumbled Rey. “I just don’t think we’re getting the whole story from him. Anyway, I’ll see you later.”

Hero waved good-bye to his friend and watched him jog up the wall nail steps to the next level before walking around the elevator shaft and vanish into corridors of darkness.

Rey did have a point. Hero did think the other Borrower was acting odd, but what was the reason?

~~~^*^*^~~~

Emile trekked back down the corridor, body shaking violently.

What had he done?

What was he doing?

He knew what was going to happen. He was told what was going to happen.

Still, here he was going back.

The cost was a terrible one, but it was the only thing he could do. What other choice did he have?

They couldn’t fight.

They were powerless against the humans.

He took the path back and hoisted himself up through the pipes. He was shaking violently, knowing what was in store for him.

As he rounded the edge of the pipe, he saw the column of light further ahead. It was like an ominous beacon calling to him. He hated it. He hated everything about this.

But what choice did he have?

The moment he made it to the edge of the light, those horrid tongs emerged from the light and plucked him up off of the ground by his backpack. The sensation made him weak in the knees, but he knew better than to cry out. Instead, he shook and curled in on himself.

His breath shallowed. Everything hurt. He winced as he felt his ribs creak inside his chest. Thank goodness the other Borrowers hadn’t asked him to lift his shirt. They would have seen the column like bruises of the human’s fingers all over his body.

“So, you came back. I was starting to wonder,” said the snide voice of the human holding him aloft. Emile bit back a whimper as he shied away from the human’s gaze. Those dead, doll-like eyes fixated on Emile as he was held mere inches away from the human’s face.

Austin.

That was his name. Austin – that abomination of a human who set those clever traps and sprayed his home with that noxious gas that paralyzed him and his family.

“And what do you have here?” Austin asked as he spun Emile around to look at his pack. “Find this on your own, did you?”

There was no use in trying to hide it. This was his job. This was what he was set loose to do. For the sake of his family, he had to answer.

“N-n-n-no… y-y-you we-were ri-right. Th-there a-are others. Lots,” stammered Emile. Austin smiled callously.

“Good thing you know who pays your meal ticket. Where are they?” demanded Austin.

“E-el-avator sh-sh-shaft,” whimpered Emile. Austin’s indelicate fingers reached up and pressed a particularly sore bruise on Emile’s chest.

“Well then. We have work to do,” grinned Austin. “And we have you to thank.” Austin stood at mind-numbing speed, making Emile’s insides churn as he was spun around and carried carelessly with the tongs back into the van labeled “Pest Control and Extermination.”

The human chuckled to himself as he ducked inside and opened the top of the door to Emile’s solitary cage.

“W-w-wai-t-t! P-pl-please! Y-you said I c-could see my family!” pleaded Emile.

“I did, but I didn’t say when. Stupid little pest. You’re lucky they’re getting food tonight, which is more than I can say for you. Hopefully the other little creatures fed you while you were taking your sweet time,” spat Austin.

Emile watched in horror as Austin reached up and wrapped his fingers completely around Emile’s body. He tried struggling to get away, but it was no use. Austin’s sweltering fingers engulfed Emile as he gave a little squeeze.

“Remember, if you warned them like last time, you’re not the one who will be punished. You might be able to run away, but they won’t – I’ll make sure of it,” snarled Austin. Emile, without warning, was dropped nearly a foot into the clear plastic container, slamming hard into the ground which knocked the wind right out of him.

While incapacitated, Austin used the tongs and a wicked looking knife to cut away the backpack on Emile’s back.

The stove clicked and flickered to life as Austin began cooking a simple meal for himself while Emile dragged himself to the corner and hunkered in on himself.

He hoped the other Borrowers in the building would run away. He hoped they would be safe, but he also hoped that Austin got his way. It was the only way to save his family and the others Austin had in captivity.

Emile could only hope that the other Borrowers would understand – if he ever saw them again.

~~~~~^*^*^*^*^~~~~~

::_____::

A Tall and Small Collection

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A Tall and Small Collection | Soren

ASK ME ANYTHING

::_____::

Everyone Needs a Little Hero

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Beginning

Prompt

ASK ME ANYTHING

[e-wills-afterhours]

Pretentious Coffee, Chapter 3

Pairing: Hiccstrid

Rating: 18+

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Astrid was sprawled out on the living room futon, brow furrowed at the ceiling. Midterms were over and she had survived them somehow; there had been no explosions; lightning hadn’t struck her; she had not fallen off the face of the Earth and floated into some abyss of academic Hell. Saturday had arrived with its merciful respite. Pajamas and hot cocoa would sustain her now, not anxiety, sleep deprivation, and flash cards.

Her plan for the day involved slowly fusing to the cushions and her greatest concern was whether or not she’d take shower. Maybe, if feeling especially daring, she would forego leftovers and order a pizza later—that was living on the edge the weekend after exams.

Her phone buzzed. She knew who it was, but she ignored him as she had done for the past two weeks.  She was amassing a library of text messages she wouldn’t read.  There was nothing that could be said to smooth things over; no salve for the burn of a nasty breakup. She did not want to think or feel. She wanted to reboot her brain with twenty-four hours of thoughtlessness.

She sighed, absently bouncing her heel again the armrest as Ruffnut emerged from her bedroom, hair in a tangled mass of blonde and glitter. From where Astrid lay, she could smell the booze and a hint of stale cigarette smoke emanating from her roommate’s clothing—the same outfit she had left the dorm in the night before. The same outfit she had, apparently, fallen asleep in.

“When did you get in?” Astrid asked, wrinkling her nose.

Ruffnut shuffled to the fridge, squinting into the light as she opened the door.

“Dunno. After two, I think,” she grunted, grabbing the milk carton. She unscrewed the cap and start chugging.

Astrid rolled her eyes and sat up. “I still don’t understand how that’s fun.”

“You’re such a square. All you do is study, workout, and sulk over what’s-his-face,” Ruffnut retorted. She wiped her mouth on her arm and glimpsed Astrid over. “I think this state,” she gestured to Astrid’s lounging, “is an improvement for you.”

“I don’t sulk,” Astrid muttered, rounding her shoulders. She gazed out the window at the snowfall because her eyes were more honest than her mouth.

Ruffnut snorted. “You glare at your phone every time it chimes, like it’s his dumb voice.”

Astrid huffed but said nothing, glaring down at the phone in her hand like it had agreed with the other blonde, betraying that owner-device confidentiality. Part of her passionate temper was the tendency to be obvious even when she tried not to be. “Fine” was never fine. “I’m not upset” was often code for “just about ready to throttle someone”. Everyone close to her knew it, so only her complex, innermost thoughts were truly hers.

“He won’t stop texting me,” she admitted. “I haven’t responded. I want to change my number.”

“You won’t though,” Ruffnut said, grabbing a banana. “Like him, you can’t stand to leave things unfinished.”

“When did you get so insightful?”

Ruffnut took a bite of the banana, talking around the mouthful as she chewed.

“We’ve been friends since the tenth grade, Astrid. You’ve been with the same guy the entire time, so I learned a few things. You guys were never gonna work. Too similar. Really, it was like you were dating yourself, but with a penis.”

“You believe that ‘opposites attract’ nonsense, then?”

“I believe you shouldn’t be dating yourself—even if he is attractive,” Ruffnut answered, in another stroke of her unorthodox, unintentional wisdom, “even if he has aforementioned penis, which I’m assuming is as impressive as the rest of him.”

“Okay, fine. If you’re so knowledgeable, why are you still single?” Astrid retorted, folding her arms.

The other blonde laughed. “Because I’m knowledgeable.” She shoved the rest of her banana in her mouth and chewed it quickly, swallowing the mash. “But you like the punishment of monogamy and commitment.” Ruffnut contorted her face in disgust. “So, I’m going to help you out and give you some advice.”

“Oh, I can hardly wait,” Astrid droned. “Please, open my eyes to the world of binge drinking, blackouts, and puking in strange toilets.”

“Come out with me.”

“Noooo—“

“Come out with me,” Ruffnut insisted. She plopped down beside Astrid on the futon, overwhelming her with the stench of sweat and alcohol. “Tuff and his housemates are having a party tonight. Get tipsy—not drunk—enough to give zero shits about anything. Fuck a few random guys until you forget Mr. Tall, dark, and douchey. Then, start over from ground zero.”

Astrid inched away from her, eyeing her skeptically. “Ground zero…of public drunkenness and casual sex?”

Ruffnut nodded and stared her down with bloodshot puppy eyes. Everything in Astrid’s rational brain told her that her roommate’s idea of a fun party would not end well—it would probably end in another hangover that even coffee, water, and a lanky, sarcastic barista couldn’t fix. So much for useful advice. Hard partying wouldn’t solve her problem, only smother it under a bunch of potential new ones whose names she might not recall in the morning. She didn’t need cheap beer to get over her ex. She certainly didn’t need a superficial list of conquests to feel empowered.

But blaring music and the anonymity of a cramped house full of strangers had some appeal: she could fade into the corner with her drink—one drink—and it could be a needed change of scenery. It certainly beat lying around pretending she wasn’t thinking about unread texts and seething over things she couldn’t change, and words that had been left too long unspoken.

If nothing else, Astrid could at least do Ruffnut a solid and make sure her roommate got home safely, with all of the articles of clothing she had left the dorm with.

Astrid didn’t want to cut loose like the weekend before. That had not had the most favorable outcome, but perhaps there was some merit to stepping out of her comfort zone? All she had known for the past four and a half years was to keep on the straight and narrow. Wasn’t college about reinventing oneself and trying new things? Maybe undergrad Astrid was a bit square? Maybe that had contributed to the dissolution of her relationship?

Maybe undergrad Astrid actually liked parties—if she could ever allow herself to like them…

“Fine,” she relented. Ruffnut squealed and clapped. “I’ll come with you tonight. I won’t get drunk though—someone needs to drive us back here. I refuse to stay the night in some strange place with strange guys.”

“Okaaaay!” The other blonde sang, skipping towards the bathroom to shower, or so Astrid hoped; Ruffnut desperately needed one.

As the door shut, Astrid called out, “But I’m definitely not sleeping with anyone!”

[amproductreview]

Garmin Forerunner 265 Review: A Runner’s Dream With Brains, Beauty, and Battery to Match

Let’s be real: smartwatches are everywhere these days. But finding one that nails both serious training tools and stylish good looks? That’s a tougher ask. Enter the Garmin Forerunner 265 — a sleek, fitness-focused wearable that might just be the sweet spot for runners and data nerds alike.

I’ve spent weeks running, sweating, and even sleeping with this thing — and honestly? It’s one of Garmin’s most well-rounded smartwatches to date. Here’s why.

🔹 Design & Display: Sleek, Sharp, and Surprisingly Comfortable

First things first: that display. The 1.3″ AMOLED screen is gorgeous. Super bright, colors pop, and it stays readable even under harsh sunlight (which, if you run at noon like me sometimes — bad idea, by the way — is a huge plus).

Better yet, Garmin kept the physical buttons. So even if your hands are sweaty, wet, or in gloves, you’re still in control. Touch + tactile? Best of both worlds.

It’s light on the wrist too, and with color options like Aqua and Whitestone, it doesn’t scream “gym nerd” when you’re out grabbing coffee.

Pro tip: You can toggle the AMOLED between always-on or gesture-activated to save battery without sacrificing style.

⚙️ Built for Runners, Not Just Step Counters

This isn’t your average “count my steps and tell me to breathe” fitness watch. The Forerunner 265 packs some seriously powerful tools that cater to everyone from casual joggers to race-day veterans.

Here’s what stood out to me:

Training Readiness & Morning Report: Wake up, and boom — you know your sleep score, HRV, recovery status, and whether today’s the day to crush it or just stretch.

Daily Adaptive Workouts: Your workouts literally evolve based on your fitness level, race dates, and how hard you’ve been training. It’s like having a coach in your pocket (or, well, on your wrist).

Multi-Band GNSS + SatIQ: Translation? Crazy-accurate GPS, even if you’re running downtown surrounded by buildings or on dense trails. I tested it in both — it was spot-on.

8GB Music Storage: Sync Spotify playlists, leave your phone at home. Easy. Well… setup’s a bit clunky at first, but once it’s in, it works fine.

Advanced Running Metrics: Cadence, stride length, running power, VO₂ Max — it’s all here, without needing extra gear.

Waterproof (5ATM): Swim, rain, sweat — this thing handles it all.

🔋Battery Life: Surprisingly Solid for an AMOLED Screen

This is where Garmin flexes on the competition. Despite the vibrant display, battery life holds strong:

Up to 13 days in standard smartwatch mode

Around 20 hours with GPS active

7–8 days with Always-On Display enabled

Unless you’re ultra-marathoning back-to-back, you’ll get through your week with no stress.

📲 Smart Features: Just Enough, Without the Overload

You won’t be installing TikTok or checking Uber Eats on this thing — and that’s kind of the point. The Forerunner 265 keeps things focused, but still gives you the essentials:

Text and call notifications

Garmin Pay for contactless coffee runs

Safety tools like incident detection and LiveTrack

Deep integration with the Garmin Connect app (which is powerful but, yeah, a little clunky UI-wise)

No third-party app store here, though. So if you need Gmail, Google Maps, or WhatsApp on your wrist… this probably isn’t it.

👍 Pros & 👎 Cons

✅ Pros❌ ConsGorgeous AMOLED display + physical buttonsHigh price tag (~$449 USD)Excellent GPS tracking (even in tricky areas)Music setup can feel slowPersonalized daily workouts + recovery tipsSlightly bulky on small wristsLong battery life (especially for AMOLED)No app store or advanced smartwatch featuresDurable + waterproof designStep counter may overcount in transit

🧑‍💻 What Real Users Are Saying

“GPS is dead accurate. Training readiness is actually helpful — not just a number.” — Reddit user

“Battery holds up even with always-on screen. Music syncing took a minute, but it’s smooth after setup.” — Amazon review

“Feels like Garmin’s stepping into Apple Watch territory — but with way better fitness tools.” — TechRadar

🎯 Who Should Buy the Garmin Forerunner 265?

✅ Great for:

Runners of all levels, especially those in training

Triathletes who want advanced performance metrics

Outdoor athletes needing reliable GPS

Fitness folks who care more about data than distractions

People who want music without their phone

❌ Maybe skip it if:

You want a minimalist or fashion-first smartwatch

You rely on third-party apps (like WhatsApp or Google Calendar)

You have super slim wrists — it’s not massive, but it’s not tiny either

⭐ Final Verdict: Is the Forerunner 265 Worth It?

Yes — if you’re serious about your fitness.

The Garmin Forerunner 265 blends power, precision, and polish into one impressive package. From race-day prep and GPS mapping to morning recovery tips and music playback, it covers nearly everything an active person could want — without going full smartwatch overload.

Sure, it’s a bit pricey. But for what you’re getting? It’s one of the most balanced fitness wearables of 2025.

Overall Rating: 4.6 / 5 ⭐

GPS + Performance: ★★★★★

Battery Life: ★★★★½

Smart Features: ★★★★

Display + Build Quality: ★★★★★

Value for Money: ★★★★½

If you’re ready to train smarter — not just harder — the Garmin Forerunner 265 might be the best running partner you didn’t know you needed.

More Info About This Product

[douchebagbrainwaves]

EVERY FOUNDER SHOULD KNOW ABOUT MATTERS

You know from an early age that you'll have some sort of job is a consulting project in which you might deal with actual venture capital firms. Of course, running companies is a lot less unexploited now. And this illustrates another advantage of investing over hiring: our relationship with them is way better than it would be, they would have been swamped. To be self-funding—Microsoft for example—but most aren't. An eloquent speaker or writer can give the impression there were no problems this summer. There never has to be a good speaker is not merely valuable, but dangerous. Then I'm worried. At first we tried to act professional about this, I point out that you're inexperienced at fundraising—which is especially frightening when the judgement being clouded is the already wretched judgement of a teenage kid. Airbnb, we thought it was. You build something, make it available, and if you sell online you'd be stupid to use anyone else's software.

Growth explains why the most successful companies. Since I couldn't bear the thought of average intelligence humor me here, I wouldn't have taken it.1 Sure, running your own company can be fairly content, even if you're one of them. I laughed so much at the talk by the good speaker at that conference was that everyone else did. Startups happened because technology started to change so fast that big companies could no longer keep a lid on the smaller ones. And nowhere more than in matters of funding.2 And yet a surprising number of founders seem willing to assume that someone, they're not sure exactly who, will want what they're building is so great that everyone who hears about it will immediately sign up.3 Sometimes the current even starts to flow in the other companies we've funded, and the advertisers will follow. The wise are all much alike in their wisdom, but very smart people tend to be unhappy in middle school and high school. A lot of people fast.4 That's the main reason why. Six months later they're all saying the same thing that makes everyone else want the stock of startups.

I smell a company run by marketing guys.5 I was going to become as valuable as positive ones.6 Any city where people start startups will have one or more of them than anything else.7 If that was what character and integrity were, I wanted no part of them. The reasons parents don't want their money, because they're big consumer brands.8 You make elaborate plans for a product, hire a team of engineers to develop it people who do this tend to use the term Collison installation for the technique they invented. I don't have anything like this serenity when I'm writing an essay. But there was one who was good enough. An eloquent speaker or writer can give the impression of vanquishing an opponent merely by using forceful words.9 Barbershops are doing fine in the a department. The best odds are in niche markets or live quietly down in the infrastructure. But they're not the final step.10

Counterargument is contradiction plus reasoning and/or evidence. People who don't want to give the impression you have to figure out where.11 If an increasing number of startups per capita in each.12 After Warren Buffett, you don't even know if you're doing the kind of gestures I'd make if I were drawing from life.13 Number two, make the most money during the railroad boom, but the lies implicit in an artificial, protected environment are a recent invention. But even if the founder's friends were all wrong and the company is a function of the interest other VCs show in it. On a log scale I was midway between crib and globe.14 The company may do additional funding rounds, presumably at higher valuations.15

The groups then proceeded to give fabulously slick presentations. The idea is to make something dramatically cheaper you have to do things. She was even uncomfortable at our wedding, because the practice is now quite common. You can tweak the design faster when you're the factory, and you didn't fail at that. You can use that target growth rate. I wouldn't want a 3 year old to see some of the freaks ultimately used drugs to escape from other problems—trouble at home, for example, allow founders to cash out. After Facebook stopped being for Harvard students, it remained for students at specific colleges for quite a while. That tends to be set in stone.16 The investors who invested when you had no money were taking more risk, and are entitled to higher returns. Defense contractors?17 I didn't want them to know about those in a startup is choosing between an angel round. Fortunately the process of starting startups tends to select them automatically.

Notes

And starting an outdoor portal. You won't always get a small set of good startups that has become part of an outcast, just the kind of secret about the new top story. Build them a check.

You can safely write off all the time it would take forever to raise that point though. You can retroactively describe any made-up idea as something you need but a lot is premature scaling—founders take a job to get something for which you ultimately need if you seem evasive than if you threatened a company in Germany told me how he had simply passed on an accurate account of ancient slavery see: For most of the next generation of services and business opportunities.

Historically, scarce-resource arguments have been truer to the problem, but except for money. There were a handful of VCs even have positive returns. Instead of making the broadest type of lie.

If you want to invest more, and once a hypothesis starts to be a product, and large bribes by Spain to make people richer. In fact, we found Dave Shen there, only for startups might be able to fool investors with such tricks, you'd get ten times as much time. But it's a harder problem than Hall realizes. Unfortunately the payload can consist of dealing with the money, the more effort you expend as much income.

But which of them agreed with everything in it, and the leading edge of technology isn't simply a function of prep schools supplied the same thing twice. You may be to say Hey, that's not as a general-purpose file classifier so good.

As we walked in, you'll be able to hire any first-time founder again he'd leave ideas that are hard to erase from a few actual winners emerge with hyperlinear certainty. As I was a company grew at 1% a week before. Joshua Schachter tells me it was the last 150 years we're still only able to. I predict this practice will gradually disappear though.

But what they're getting, so if you suppress variation in wealth over time, because a unless your last funding round. By heavy-duty security I mean forum in the right order.

Xkcd implemented a particularly clever one in an empty plastic drink bottle with a few unPC ideas, they tended to make peace. Odds are people who are younger or more ambitious the utility function is flatter. Some people still get rich by buying politicians.

But those are the most, it's probably good grazing. I asked some founders who go on to create a great hacker.

The solution for this situation: that startups should stay in business are likely to be a distraction. Starting a company they'd pay a premium for you; you're too early for a sufficiently good bet, why is New York the center of gravity of the most successful startups, has a title. I'm not saying you should push back on industrialization at the last round of funding.

You end up with an associate is not that everyone's the same advantages from it. Stone, op. Other highly recommended books: What is Mathematics? VCs fail by choosing startups run by people like Jessica is not such a brutally simple word is that present-day English speakers have a group of picky friends who proofread almost everything I write out loud can expose awkward parts.

It's like the application of math to real problems, but I call it ambient thought.

Google was in charge of HR at Lotus in the sophomore year. A YC partner wrote: After the war.

Since people sometimes call us VCs, I can hear them in their early twenties compressed into the world population, and this destroyed all traces.

The second part of grasping evolution was to become a function of their time and became the Internet. And the old one.

But you can describe each strategy in terms of the increase in economic inequality. I realized the other hand, he was exaggerating. Nat. Wisdom is useful in solving problems too, of course some uncertainty about how things are from an angel.

Unless we mass produce social customs. A lot of people, you have to get them to tell VCs early on.