#'Not a ter-' He is the only exception.

[batfamfucker]

Wishing I could have joined the protests in London for a General Election tonight but I was working. Happy Bonfire Night! Manifesting an Election and the Tories gone 💅

[respectthepetty]

Yak deserves all the praise for continuously checking in with Dee throughout the night during sex, but I also want to point out that Yak kept apologizing to a drunk and passed out Dee because he knew he was violating his privacy.

He apologized when he was trying to figure out where Dee lived and even though he smiled when he picked up Dee's phone, he still apologized.

Which makes me think that this conversation isn't all about Yak's dick.

Yak is used to people being intimidated by him. He is a fighter. He is a scary guy.

But Dee doesn't give a shit.

Yak is annoyed that Dee doesn't know who he is.

But how nice must it be to not immediately get the normal reaction from Dee that he probably gets from others.

Yak doesn't threaten Dee with violence in the bathroom, but Dee, who is in the wrong, still argues with Yak as if he is the one who is annoyed.

But, even then, Yak makes it clear that he isn't a mean man.

Which is true.

Yak is as kind as he can be in those circumstances. He apologizes to a person who is not awake to hear those apologizes. He carries Dee to his home. He fully intends to leave him once he gets into the place. He checks in throughout sex. And he asks if Dee is scared.

Of his dick? Yeah, he directly asks that, but also of him, to which Dee sizes him up and firmly establishes that there is really nothing to be afraid of.

Because feisty Dee is actually the scary one here when pissed off and the only reason he was "vanilla" was because he wanted Ter to believe he was vanilla, but Yak has proven to the gentle giant.

But nobody ever gets to see that.

Except Dee.

[singingcicadas]

Rodimus and making Necessary Sacrifices

The most famous one: blowing up Nyon

Btw Megatron could totally have saved the people in Nyon if he wanted to; he knew about Zeta's plan beforehand. All he needed to do was give Hot Rod and the citizens an evacuation alert. But he didn't because he wanted to give Optimus a good emotional impact with all the deaths and who cares about the common lowlife anyway, all they're good for is getting bodily thrown at Zeta until his weapon overloads from draining too many people.

Kimia station in Chaos Theory:

Red text bubble is Optimus. He doesn't wait for Optimus to agree before directly giving Omega Supreme orders to shoot Kimia down.

Reaction after confirming that Doubledealer is a traitor:

Using Rung as bait for the sparkeater:

The last two panels also gives us something on how he views (his own) authority. Because while he's always held a position of authority in high command, the high command is still a council. On the ship his authority is absolute.

The next three scenarios form a pattern. It always starts with Rodimus telling someone to kill a comrade, the person tasked with the killing goes 'what I don't want to do that', and Rodimus tones down the order from death to wound.

Ordering Rewind and Swerve to shoot at Fort Max:

Ordering Swerve to hurt Ore:

Ordering Cyclonus to shoot Brainstorm:

Each of these scenarios is in response to a critical situation. Rodimus' first orders of 'aim to kill' are, while extreme, not disproportionate to the level of threat presented. They're within reason and authority. And ceding from kill to wound when protested is proof that he doesn't not care. But it also shows that his first instinctual reaction towards threats is to kill first ask questions later, even if the threat used to be his friend, comrade, or compatriot, he's able to weigh the lives on a scale and make that hard decision. He's also the type of person who's very comfortable with taking the fates other people into his own hands and deciding whether they should live or die (which is why him choosing to spare Getaway after retaking the Lost Light is a sign of character growth).

His characterization is fairly consistent throughout the comics, except for this:

Everything in Spotlight Hot Rod goes against his later presentations. In his spotlight he's said to repeatedly beat himself up over one failed mission and is averse to taking responsibility towards other people for fear that he'd get them killed but in later issues he has No Problems doing exactly that. He displays no preferences for 'going solo' aside from the mission to retrieve the matrix and that's because everyone else kicked him out. When he wanted to leave on the Lost Light he made speeches to convince other people to join him despite the fact the Autobots were already outnumbered on Cybertron and taking people away would make their situation worse. Whenever he went anywhere in mtmte he assembled a team to accompany him.

This scene especially contradicts Spotlight Hot Rod in every single way. The only consistent aspect of his character is the recklessness. He forces Optimus to authorize a rescue mission, of which he declares himself the team leader, ignores Optimus' caution about keeping it clandestine and tells everyone to barge through the front door, shuts Ironhide's objections down by pulling rank, then falls into a trap and gets Ironhide killed. Mission failed too obviously, they only got Prowl out. Optimus takes responsibility for the failure and surrenders to the humans, of which Rodimus' response is: "he freaked out because he couldn't hack it" and promptly also proceeds to drop everything and leave because yay there's no one to keep me on this stupid planet anymore and whoever wants to can come with. Where. is the guilt.

That and the whole fiasco with Swindle and Menasor were probably Rodimus' worst moments lol. Overall he's the type of leader good with stressful trolley problems but bad at considering the larger or long-term implications of his actions. His flippancy towards life and death and tendency to solve problems with the bluntest approach bleeds heavily into his leadership decisions and... just how his character is in general. Thank goodness there's only one of Drift and he's gone for most of the Lost Light voyage, Rodimus really doesn't work well with too many yes-men hanging around.

[aliceisathome]

Wandee Goodday is EVERYTHING. Except not enough Kao this week - bring me my asexual king! It's only ep 2 though so I'm scared about the angst to come because it can't keep on being this delightful for another 10 eps without some pain.

In the meantime, Dr Ter is a manipulative bastard, Top from LITA pops up and is, if possible, even more of a jerk in the scant handful of minutes he was on screen than he was in that.

I loved the maturity of the FWB discussion and felt a bit sad about the kiss (or lack of). Let the boy kiss you, you fool! He's given you his necklace and you've dried his hair - just a little lip nibble is all he wants (well, maybe not all).

Also lovely grandma is lovely and I expect her to smack some sense into our boy at some point.

[vinntea]

Bsd Actors au!!!

-NOT a modern au of the characters being actors BUT it's an au where the show is 'live action' and there are physical actors portraying the characters -For convenience the character names are the same as the actors except the actors' names will be shortened versions of the characters to avoid confusion! Name key- Actor names will be either the first 2, 3, or 4 letters of the character depending on the name. If any of the names I pick turn out to be bad things in Japanese let me know and I will change them!! Onto the au!! Chu and Daz off camera are really good friends and do silly goofy shipping bait posts on insta for shits and giggles Atsu and Aku started off a bit awkward with each other since, well, they're both as awkward as their characters but quickly became friends after spending time with the cast Mar and Chu are brothers, Chu heard they were casting for gingers to play a fratboy type asshole character and said "I know a guy". People mistake Junichiro for being their brother so often they've started treating him like a brother as a bit and it is no longer a bit Po and Ran are real life husbands! Po gets really flustered and giggly at the fans simping over him and Ran laughs at him for it Daz and Atsu have the 'Spoils shit on accident' and 'Stops the other from spoiling shit on accident' dynamic during interviews, I'll let you decide who's who (It's both) Fyo is super sweet and it freaks out the rest of the cast Lu, Yosa, Lou, Gi, Kou, and Hig go out drinking together Ladies Night style (Ladies/afabs/fem identifying cus some of em are trans) Aku and Gi are twins! Ang and Od treat Daz like their son off camera Q, Eli, Ken, Ter, Kyo, and Ay have tea parties after final filming days for each season NO ADULTS ALLOWED CUS THEY NASTY in Ter's words Mor goofs off with Chu and Kou all the time on the set Aku gets really apologetic to Hig after filming scenes together cus he feels so bad and Hig is like "It's fine Lmao" Fuk, Mor, and Fran are the oldest and are constantly being taught how to use technology by the younger cast members Kun likes to tease Daz off camera to 'Get him back' and they have fun with it Daz makes goofy faces at Aku while filming to help him relax/be less embarrassed at the fact he has to wear so much green/special affect gear on set Chu has gotten so used to being attached to ropes and wires he's considered trying aerial acrobatics non seriously Kyo and Atsu have a sibling like relationship off camera and have starred in other shows together before Bsd Chu, Daz, Aku, and Atsu hang out and take lots of insta pics together not just for the pr Nik is uncomfortably chill out of character and it gives even Fyo whiplash every time he gets in character Sig is super funny and flirts with Nik and Fyo platonically to relieve tension after filming (Homie has to get STRESSED in all his scenes he NEEDS a way to chill afterwards) Tach and Gi are secretly dating cus yes and the only one who knows is Hiro (they don't know that he knows) oh and obviously Gi told Aku and Tach told Kou (his sister) so really, three people know Kou and Yosa are besties (Yes, they see the shipping but refuse to acknowledge it cus lurking on social media and seeing fans unfiltered is too funny) Kun is like a father figure to Ken, Ken being an oblivious kid and Kun being a concerned adult trying his best to not let this kid do anything stupid on camera Q hides costume pieces from the other actors to mess with them (All their scenes are really sad let them play a little) Sometimes when Daz or Atsu have particularly heavy scenes that hit a little too close to home, they'll take mental breaks together whether that means being on their phones in silence or talking to each other in one of their dressing rooms This ended up not having as much to do with their characters as I thought it would but oh well LMAO. Feel free to use this au if you want! Just make sure to credit me!!

[hadesisqueer]

When I was a kid, and still now, I took care of all my books. Some of them are fifteen years old now and I've read them like twenty times and you could still think I bought them only like a year ago or so. Some were inherited from my cousins and are clearly old but I fixed them up myself: for example, I never spent a penny on any H****y P**ter books because I inherited all of them from one of my oldest cousins when I was six, and she really was careless about her books (she still is, which is why when I let her borrow a novel last week I told her that if I saw ONE ripped page it's on sight); so basically all of those books are held together with duct-tape (my mom once asked if I wanted to by a new copy of the third one since it's the one that looks the worst, but I told her I'm not giving Her a single penny so no lmao). My The Little Vampire books are over thirty years old I think, and they also look like that. But the ones I didn't inherit? Yeah those look pretty good. My Fairy Oak and Geronimo Stilton books look almost as new, like most of the books I had as a kid.

Except the PJO ones, because I let my friend borrow them when I was 11/12. You can tell that my The Last Olympian copy isn't new because I let a friend borrow it and when I got it back the cover was... well, it really looked like her little brother had tried drawing over it, only that he couldn't and instead fucked it up. Then I saw that it was also dog-eared everywhere (and I specifically told my friend to please not to do that because I don't like it after I saw that she had done it with the other four books; I even gave her my Camp Half-Blood bookmark and she still didn't use it) and some of the pages were half ripped. I'd gotten that book for my birthday only like three weeks ago and it was brand new when I let her borrow, I told her to be careful with it and when saw how it looked when I got it back I wanted to yell at her because for fuck's sake what the fuck did you do to MY NEW BOOK? And she was like "oh sorry about the cover and all yeah but like it's no big deal right?" and 12yo me had to have a lot of self-control. I told her that yeah sure, but that I wasn't letting her borrow any more books ever again. You wanna read The Lost Hero? You wanna read another one I talked to you about? Buy it or something but you're not getting my copy after what you did with the other five. For fuck's sake they're not your books María.

[writing-havoc]

I can't STOP thinking of an idea for inej ghafa x fem!reader so here you go (let me know if I'm freaking you out or if I need to stop, please!). i've read several kaz fics where he gets jealous of r very close relationship with some crow, so imagine that except with inej, where r is kaz's childhood best friend and they are a duo in the eyes of practically everyone (some even consider them a couple). r and inej have been mutually interested in each other for a long time, but r doesn't do anything because she's afraid of the consequences if the information gets out and inej doesn't try anything because she's in doubt whether r likes girls the way she (inej) does. maybe after a heist gone wrong r narrowly escaped death and now inej can't stop thinking about what could have happened if something worse had happened and r had died so the two talk privately and both admit what they feel one for the other. I can't get this idea out of my head and now I want to know how you would write about it. love inej and would like to see more of her point of view on her. oh, it would also be really nice if there was a spotlight on the platonic kaz x reader relationship. something like "we have a problem" and "no you have a problem, I have a problem friend". I imagine too much kaz rolling her eyes at every involuntary sigh of r for inej and at the end when r goes to tell her and inej getting together, kaz just like: "really? and the sky is blue?" but secretly glad her friend and the wraith are together. just inej and r being crazy about each other and kaz turning a blind eye (no romantic feelings for either of course)ssalto que deu errado r escapou por pouco da morte e agora inej pode ' t parar de pensar sobre o que poderia ter acontecido se algo pior tivesse acontecido e r tivesse morrido então os dois conversam em particular e ambos admitem o que sentem um pelo outro. Não consigo tirar essa ideia da cabeça e agora quero saber como você escreveria sobre isso. amo inej e gostaria de ver mais de seu ponto de vista sobre ela. ah, também seria muito bom se houvesse um destaque na relação platônica kaz x leitor. algo como "nós temos um problema" e "não, você tem um problema, eu tenho um problema amigo". Imagino demais kaz revirando os olhos a cada suspiro involuntário de r para inej e no final quando r vai contar pra ela e inej se reunindo, kaz tipo: "sério? e o céu tá azul?" mas secretamente feliz por sua amiga e o fantasma estarem juntos.

Fist bump

♡ Summary: Inej contemplates whether her feelings for you are reciprocated. A nearly fatal injury throws all apprehensions out the window.

♡ Pairing: Inej Ghafa x Fem!Reader, Kaz Brekker x Reader (platonic!!!)

♡ Fandom: Six of Crows, Grishaverse

♡ Warning(s): Gunshot wound, says y/n three times

♡ WC: 5.4k

Hello!!

Thank you for the request. It was nice getting to write for Inej again. While I've only written for her once before, I feel confident that I'm closer to getting her character right

Kaz is slightly ooc imo. But I feel it comes with the territory of him actually having a lifelong friend instead of being completely alone. So be prepared for that!

Hope you enjoy it regardless <3

Please excuse any grammar and spelling mistakes

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"What the hell am I looking at?" You ask, frozen in place.

Kaz sighs from somewhere deep within his throat, tone riddled with annoyance. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Inej takes a moment to stare. Her mouth might be open as she squints at the scene, but that's... the least of her worries.

Jesper and Wylan were currently flirting with eachother on the ground floor of the Crow Club, not even at any specific game. Every once in a while pieces of their conversation would float to her ears, and it was just plain horrible.

It's honestly surprising. Jesper has no problem attracting anybody of any gender, but with the way he's talking to Wylan right now she finds it truly unbelievable that Jesper was able to pull anybody at all.

What's even more unbelievable was that Wylan was actually enjoying it.

Seduction tactics don't really interest Inej. But even she is able to distinguish between a good and bad pickup line.

The moment she hears something about a fruit she makes it a point to stop listening to them completely.

"Whatever it is they're talking about I don't think its wise for us to listen anymore." Inej turns away, body facing towards you.

"Agreed." You scoff, turning a little towards her too. "I'm not all that into exhibitionism."

Kaz's eyebrows raise. "Surprising."

He's mocking you, which you immediately recognize and shoot a glare at him, knocking your heel into his cane. "Budge off, limpy."

"Oh no. Not my limp. Anything but the limp."

It's really only funny because Kaz isn't bothering to fluctuate his voice at all. It's monotone, and his eyes remain half lidded and he hoists his cane up and brushes off the dirt you got on it.

Inej smiles, holding back a chuckle as she watches the crowd around her, people steering clear if only for the fact that Kaz is nearby.

"Yes, the limp. Your worst fear." You giggle when you watch his eyes roll.

Nina comes in, standing below the railing where you stand, eyes flickering between you and Kaz.

"How are the lovebirds doing?" She jests.

It sends a little pang through Inej's heart.

Your closeness with Kaz has been a topic of interest within the crows since they joined the little inner circle. And it's not all that surprising.

You have known Kaz the longest out of any of them. You were with him when he joined the Dregs, when he climbed his way up the ladder until he became floor boss and when he managed to secure fifth harbor. You even own a share in it, taking the risk and knowing full well Kaz would have gotten it up and running.

He let's you closer than anyone else, his trust intrinsic to the fact that you have been with him through thick and thin. Inej can tell something big happened an your guys' past, small looks shared here and there, pursed lips when someone mentions a niche topic.

But with the way you hang around eachother, when you sigh with a far away look and Kaz wacks your shin with his cane just gard enough that it aches, when you can have a conversation with just a glance, it's only natural that people assume.

"In his fucking dreams." You chuckle. "This lump of coal is my best friend and nothing more, we've told you this."

Nina smirks, looking between you two once more. "You tell me and yet I can sense your heart beating like crazy, my dear Y/n."

Inej watches as you prickle, flustered, but her gazing is interrupted when you turn your body completely away from her, focusing solely on Nina.

"Hearts can lie, Zenik." Inej watches as the smile falters slightly on Nina's face. "There are people who have mastered the art of lying without any spikes in heartbeat because of grisha power. Unrelated, im simply inebriated and just witnessed the most foul and frankly disgusting conversation between Jesper and Wylan."

Nina groans. "Oh don't even get me started on that. They walked right next to me and let me tell you, I learned more about Wylan than I ever needed to know."

And just like that the topic is dropped, but Inej's mind was still gripping it, trying and failing to squeeze any sort of meaning beneath your words.

Because that conversation between those two boys hadn't flustered you in the slightest. You made jokes, voice and posture lacking any semblance of embarrassment.

You like someone. If not Kaz, then someone else. Someone you know. She takes the little hope that bubbles in her heart and gently pours it into a bottle, corking it and putting it away.

Hope is dangerous. But not unnecessary.

She'll look at it later. When she has time to feel what she needs to feel.

"Well that's a delicious specimen." You purr, watching a man in a bright yellow-green suit walk into the club.

Nina looks where you do, Inej and Kaz following your gaze.

"5." Is all Nina says.

"James Denker." Kaz relays. "Dirt poor, dressed in an attempt to impress."

"Ugly suit color." It wasnt, but it clashed horribly with the reds and blacks the club adorned. He stood out like a sore thumb.

You groan. "You're all the worst."

"We're simply saving you from having the worst time of your life." Nina downs a glass being cleaned up, Rotty taking it back once it was dry. "Speaking of, I need to go find Matthias."

"To torture him?" You lean into the railing, resting your head in your open hand.

Nina hums. "Torture is not on the menu tonight."

Kaz rolls his eyes, immediately leaving to go elsewhere as Nina strolls away, off to find her burly boyfriend.

You stay planted exactly where you are, looking out at the little tide pool of people rolling dice and flipping cards.

"Everyone's so obsessed with sex today." You remark.

Inej raises a brow. "You literally just called a man a 'delicious specimen'."

You chuckle. "I wasnt actually going to do anything. I would never go for a man dressed like an unripe lemon."

She hums, coming to rest her hands on the rail next to you. Out of the corner of her eye she sees you begin to track someone, a smile pulling at your lips. She follows your gaze, and sees a women in a dark blue dress, low a-line revealing her stomach. A feather boa rests on her shoulders, a matching dark blue bandana pinning her hair back in a mass of curls.

"Men tend to have the worst fashion taste."

Inej looks at you, your face relaxed and pupils wider than she's ever seen them.

The girl comes up to the railing, looking up at you. You give her a toothy smile, allowing her to take your hand and give it a kiss.

It squashes her heart and shocks it all at once.

You're so gentle with the woman below, who introduces herself as Femke, at it pains Inej that it's not her, but also uncorks that bottle she had just put away and pours it all over her.

She feels it in her hands, the way her eyes avert as you giggle at eachother with your hand in the safety of your pocket, the way her feet want to run and jump between the highest rooftops.

Kaz was incredibly right. Hope is dangerous.

"I have to go, but it was lovely conversing with you." You say politely, giving Inej a look she knows is begging you to follow her.

She does so, taking an alternate route out of club, pulling up a mask and throwing the hood of her tunic over her head.

She heads out a side door, melding into the shadows of an alleyway as she begins to scale the side of the building, fingers still electrified. Balconies become footholds and launching points and gutters become ledges to hoist herself up.

You're a bit further behind, but not terribly. You opt for a ladder placed on the back of a building two addresses down. You hop along the top of the curved rooftops, bouncing between the dormers and sliding down gabled edges whilst Inej followed, a grin pulling her mask up until you both reach a flat roof.

The view below is rather pretty compared to the rest of the Barrel. The distance you had crossed places you closer to East Stave, the wide canal full of boats and gondolas.

Lamposts were beginning to turn on, the lamplighters going around and lighting them. People began to bunch up, drawing their coats around their shoulders.

She looks at you, then. Worn out, the thinnest sheen of sweat making you glow. She wants to know just how warm you are.

She stays where she is.

"You're rather popular tonight." Inej begins, biting the topic in the ass.

"Hm?" You ask, catching your breath. "Oh, Femke. I guess."

Inej quirks a brow. "It didnt go as planned?"

You chuckle. "You were standing right next to me, Inej." Her name sounds like sweet treats her parents used to get her coming from your lips.

"The moment felt private."

"Femke was pretty, yes. She was... fucking gorgeous." You laugh, a kind of manic one when you remember her features. "But I couldn't be with her even if I wanted to."

Your face turned a little more solemn, eyes glancing around Inej's face.

"I'm sure she would have agreed to a night together if you showed interest."

"Thats not the problem. But thanks for the vote of confidence." You turn away, hopping onto the edge of the roof, hanging your legs off the side.

She walks to the edge, prefering to stay where she could quickly flee, hands resting on the concrete. "Do you want to elaborate?"

She hopes you'll say yes. Hopes you'll let her in.

You swing your feet, lip sucked between your teeth as you tear off the skin.

"I have... a rather quiet appreciation for the attractiveness of women." You say, staring out at the open street full of people. Inej cannot help but think of how romantic this all could be, if the day had been different. The topic lighter. Your words bobble around in her mind relentlessly. "Aside from the fact that me being with someone could compromise their safety, women get enough people who will yell how pretty we are with the caveat that they'll hurt us if we take it negatively in any way. I wanted my love for women to be quieter, out of personal experience, but there all the same."

It feels like Inej's mind is playing tricks on her, some sort of intoxication manifesting in auditory hallucinations. But when you look at her out of the corner of your eye, mouth upturned so perfectly, she knows in her wildest dreams she couldn't have thought of something even half as stunning.

She looks where you were just looking, seeing parades of men with their arms slung around eachother stumbling down the road, women hooking their arms through the other and talking quietly into the others ear, families tugging their kids close and loners standing on the corners of buildings with blunts and cigars resting between their fingers.

She understands. "You've got a beautiful soul."

She'll treasure the way she could hear your shoulders relax, hand coming to rest right next to hers.

-----

"Kaz!! Kaz Kaz Kaz Kaz-"

Inej was startled from her perch in the window when your voice boomed up the stairs, door to the office flying open.

You were slightly out of breath, and your hair was a mess of strands flying in random directions, like you'd been running your fingers through it. Pulling it even.

Kaz didn't seem worried in the slightest though. In fact, she wasn't even sure he recognized you were there until he said, "What is it now, Y/n?"

"We have a problem."

"No we don't. You have a problem. I have a friend who is obsessed with making them." He looks up from his desk, not even bothering to set down the pen from his hold. "What happened?"

Your lip wobbled, and Inej was quick to tag it as fake when you threw yourself into the lonely chair that sits across from Kaz's desk, body melting into it. "There's no more Kvas."

He sighs. "Of course there isn't." His fingers find the bridge of his nose, pinching it just slightly.

"We had four bottles left yesterday." Inej notes. "Was there some sort of celebration?"

"No. All jobs that took place yesterday, while necessary, wouldn't have warranted a celebration like that. I'll order more tonight."

Immediately you brighten, face splitting open as you hop up from the chair, a giggle spilling from your lips. "Thank you Kaz!"

"What's the ocassion?" Inej asks. Her heart stutters when you turn that wide grin towards her.

"Remember that businessman Kaz had you spy on a few days ago?"

That got both her and Kaz's attention, the both of them staring at you. "I do."

"Well, I happened to run into him today and had a chat with him when I realized he was wearing a pocketwatch of the same type that my father used to wear." The mention of your family only makes Inej more interested.

You and Kaz never talk about where you came from, not unprompted anyway. The only tidbits of information that Inej has been able to scrounge up and overhear was that your family was very close friends with Kaz's, and that both of your parents, judging by how you talk about them, are either dead or too busy to bother contacting you.

"And this is meant to mean... what? Exactly?" Kaz prompts, a bit of caution dripping from his tone.

"I'm getting to it! Anyway, we had a rather long conversation about it and how useful they can be. Which of course led into talk about businesses and meetings and the such- he mentioned that there was about to be a huge rise in, like, 4 different stocks because of something going on over in Ravka. I have it written down, um, here!"

You root around your jacket, taking a card out of one of your inner pockets and handing it to Kaz. Inej stood up and walked over, taking a look at the writing.

There 5 stocks written down in your own messy scrawl, the card itself being the man's business information. One of the stocks she recognized as being really low from when Kaz talked about it the day she had to spy on him.

"I also managed to nab his wallet. You would not believe the stuff this guy keeps in here. There's a deed and tons of other interesting things." You take a wallet from your pocket, leaning forward and dangling it in front of Kaz's face.

He grabbed it from you, opening the leather receptacle.

"Aren't I just the greatest bff you could ask for?" You posed, going out of your way to exaggerate each one, sending a wink Inej's way when she eventually made eye contact with you.

"Annoying, is what you are." Kaz remarks.

You two were incredibly confusing sometimes. He treats you differently than he would everyone else. You make fun of him and tease him and get closer than anyone would dare, and he takes all of it in stride, turning your teasing right back on you, pulling you around by your waist with his cane when you particularly annoy him or when you're about to run into something.

But maybe that's just a statement of your friendship. In a way, Inej doesn't think anyone will ever be able to get so deep beneath Kaz's walls like you have. Kaz deserves to have that someone that he can just be who he is around. There's some semblance of a boy within that bloody battered exterior.

And who better to bring that out than you? The person who came here with him and who holds so much compassion that it's truly a wonder it hasn't been beaten out of you yet? You hold a certain appreciation for life that brings a balance to the apathy Kaz likes to exhibit and uplifts others.

It makes Inej remember the little moment last night. The way you looked so calm and the way the lights of the lampost made your skin glow.

You... you really like girls. And it makes Inej feel so giddy and hopeful. It translates as a smile that you return.

Kaz sighs. "Inej, I need you to return this once I look at everything."

She glares at him. "We've talked about this."

"Dearest Inej, will you please return this once I'm done?"

"Can I come?" You ask.

"Unfortunately for you, no." Kaz gives you a glance. "Youre needed with Jesper and I after I do this."

Your eyebrows snap together, mouth opening to say something before the whole expression fades into realization. "Oh yeah." You drag out the words. "For that thing near the lid."

Kaz neglects to answer, still going over everything in the wallet. He pulls out a few bills of kruge, which he immediately stows away into his shirt pocket. Everything is taken out and placed methodically around his desk, any wet papers being skillfully avoided.

"That thing is a ten thousand kruge job. So you better remember what it is."

There's a silence for a few moments, your wide eyes trailing towards Inej. She shrugs, and you cup your hand around your mouth, a stage whisper exiting your lips. "I don't remember."

Kaz drops the wallet, scratching his chair against the floor as he says "of course you don't, filthy lovebird" and walks to a drawer in a dresser, pulling out a blueprint.

'Lovebird.' Inej thinks the same time you whine out an 'I'm sorry' but Kaz ignores it, shoving the paper into your hand. You quickly unroll it as Kaz starts going over the plan once more, eyes flickering to find the starting point.

"It's simple. You will use your curse of an ability to start conversation with complete strangers and distract the guard at the west point by asking for a bathroom..."

Inej remembers this. Kaz had briefed her for it as well before realizing her presence, for once, wasn't all that necessary. You were acting strange that meeting, half of it you were off staring into space at Inej.

She remembers her collar feeling a little stiff, heat making her sweat under your gaze.

Kaz ended up sighing and knocking the metal head of his cane against your forehead, making you yelp. He had to go over the plan again, Jesper laughing at your pouted lip.

"I don't need anything else from this wallet." The conversation fades back into focus. "The kruge and the stock card are all I need. Inej." He holds out the wallet to her, which she takes and immediately pockets it.

"How long will you be gone?" She asks, eyes flickering to you.

"No more than four hours." Kaz stands and takes his cane, heading to the coat rack to collect his outer wear. He gives you a stern glare. "If everything goes according to plan."

Your eyes roll, landing on Inej. "No faith. Absolutely none."

"Faith isn't in his vocabulary."

Kaz walks out the door, leaving it wipe open.

Inej expects you to follow, to jog to the door and disappear beyond into the darkness of the staircase with nothing but a 'see ya' yelled at her.

But you turn to her instead, hand rubbing over your stomach as if to quiet it. You wet your lips, her eyes following the movement. She stands a little straighter when you approach.

"No mourners, yeah?" You extend your fist.

Inej smiles, heart beating faster as she tentatively bumps her knuckles into yours. "Yeah. No funerals."

With a nod, you chuckle and leave, leaving Inej alone with her thoughts and a cold wallet pressed into her tunic.

You'll be fine. Jobs like these were routine, and Kaz and Jesper were two people she'd trust with your life any day.

But that doesn't stop the anxiety from bubbling in her gut, acid gnawing at the walls as she leaps out the window.

The chance for something to go wrong is never zero.

-----

They should be, though.

A loud, booming "Move" startles everyone away from the door. People dive out of the way, a cane flashing by their faces as Jesper carries a body down to the makeshift hospital beneath the Slat.

Inejs heart sinks, Nina rushing in after them.

There's only one person that could be.

She hops down the stairs, weaving through people like a needle and thread and swinging the door open with such a force that it bounces off the wall and squeals shut behind her.

"Guys please it's not that ba- OW!"

"You don't get to say it's not that bad when you lost nearly a quart of blood." Jesper hisses, grabbing at his head.

"What happened?" Inej demands, a rumbling in her chest as she does so.

Kaz nearly threw his cane down, chunks of his composure swiftly falling away. "Plan A failed, we had to resort to Plan J."

Inej wants to tug out her braid, to tug his hair out, "Which was?"

"Fucking book it." Jesper slumps into a chair. "Which we did, but one of them got lucky and hit her in quite possibly one of the worst places you can get hit."

Inej starts going through a catalogue of major arteries, sick intrusive images of your neck blown open and chest reduced to a gaping hole shoving their way into her mind.

But that's not the case. You were talking, sitting upright, protesting.

Now you're laid down, your nails carving crescent moons into your forehead as you shove the heel of your palms into your eyes, teeth gritting.

Nina's using her heartrending to look over your hip and thigh area, and Inej realizes the predicament that the novice healer has to deal with.

There's an artery that runs through the inner thigh. If it's hit, it's almost just as deadly as the side of your neck being slit open. The bullet managed to hit within that area, and a tightly bound blood-soaked piece of fabric was keeping pressure on the wound. Probably the only thing keeping you from bleeding out.

"It's been nicked. But the bullet seems to still be in you. I'll have to do my best to heal it while also trying to direct it out of your body." Nina doesn't even give you a moment to process it, immediately loosening the fabric.

Blood begins to gush from your wound, and Inej wants to scream.

Jesper follows your lead and digs his palms into his eyes. Kaz stands a good few feet from the table, watching the whole thing unfold. And Inej is...

She walks up to the side of the table, reaching out and brushing her finger through your hair.

"It'll be done soon, yeah?" She asks thought not really expecting an answer, watching your temple flex and your skin turn red as you held your breath. A rough scream escapes your lungs when you open your throat, gulping in as much air as possible before you go back under.

A small tink sounds against the table, bullet out. But Nina is sweating, glowing under candle light as she stitches everything she can back together.

"The bullets out. The only thing you have to do is wait for Nina to be done putting you together again and then you'll be done."

Healing, while ever so helpful, was far from painless. You're speeding up your body's natural process, your skin, muscles, veins being stitched back together on a cellular level.

A highly trained grisha healer could probably numb you while doing so. But Nina is not that.

Inej wants to be mad at her for being so inept when it comes to this. For not having the ability to just repair you with practiced ease and get this over with.

But she can't. She can't be mad at Nina for being who she is.

Instead she's grateful that Nina is here at all. Otherwise you'd be-

Saints, she doesn't want to think about it.

"What went wrong?" Inej asks, taking your hands away from your eyes when beads of blood build on your forehead. "This was supposed to be simple."

You grip her hands tightly. She squeezes them right back, hoping she's providing some sort of relief as she prays for your life.

"Simple doesn't cut it when your intel becomes outdated." Kaz snarled. "They changed the guard postings on the inside. We got found out shortly after retrieving this."

He pulls out a rolled up painting from a tube slung over a chair. It's a landscape of what looks to be from Fjerdan territory looking beyond towards Ravka. The Shadow Fold is missing, and in the distance she can see the artist took some creative liberties and drew the Ravkan palace.

"Supposed to be worth over ten times what we were getting paid for." Jesper uncovers his eyes, opting to cover his mouth and nose. "Doesnt really seem worth it for this."

He glances at Kaz, but Kaz looks at her, and in those dark brown eyes she feels like they come to an understanding. Kaz knows things that Inej hasnt bothered to voice to him outloud. He knows how she feels about you, and is probably just about the only person that on some level could come close to feeling the way she does now.

You're way too important to lose.

Nina let's out a deep breath, hands becoming slower and less steady. "I've got this mostly patched up, but for now the artery is pretty weak. I've got most of the muscles around it to heal to protect what it can but rest and the least amount of movement as possible while I monitor this for the next few days is whats needed."

Inej feels you relax, hands no longer squeezing the life out of her own. Your elbows knock against the table, foot wiggling on your injured leg.

You swallow. "Okay."

Inej has never heard you sound so small, which is surprising.

This isn't your first time getting injured like this, though it has been a long time. But even now she can remember you fighting them every step of the way when you were asked to rest.

Now you're more compliant than ever. You're not even making a move to sit up.

Kaz clears his throat. "Jesper, Nina, out."

Inej can hear Jesper get up from the chair, all too ready to get away from the situation. Nina, however, is less ready to vacate your side.

"I want to check over the rest of her for any other injuries you may have missed in your getaway plan." She places her hands over your head, slowly moving down your body.

"There are no other injuries. It was just the bullet. Out."

Jesper is already up the stairs, probably to find Wylan. She knows he'll come back later, once he's calmed down and can properly look you in the eye after being faced with your mortality. Nina gets down to your feet, and sighs.

"Just wanted to make sure your girlfriend-"

At the same time, you and Kaz state that you're not together. Your voice is a lot sharper than Kaz's, which is enough for Nina to whip around and give you a look.

You're sat up now, propped up on your elbows as you glare at her.

"I would really appreciate it if you stopped pushing us together, thanks."

Your hand squeezes Inej's, and it's like her heart gets zapped with a little lightning.

Nina eyes you for a moment, expression a little hurt but otherwise reserved as she searches for something.

When she looks at Inej, it seems she found it.

Her eyebrows shoot up, and her mouth falls into a little 'o' as she backs up. "How could I have missed that?"

Before Inej can silently ask what that means, she's smirking and basically running up the stairs.

Kaz collects his things, then gives Inej and you a nod before following.

The door above clicks shut, and a bound of wild creaking from above tells her that a few people were crowding around the door and waiting for news.

You squeeze her hand again, and Inejs attention is all on you.

"How bad is it?" You ask.

Inej swallows, then looks down. There's a mess of reds and purple around where the wound is. It's smaller than before, skin a little malformed where Nina put everything back together.

"It looks like you got shot."

You chuckle, moving to sit up completely. Inej helps you were she's needed, letting you use her to pull yourself up and position yourself without using your leg.

Silence followed. Your hand was still holding Inej's, your thumb going over rough spots on her palms. Your finger would stop, finding a spot that was particularly rough, and then smooth over it as if you could make it disappear.

"Thank you."

Her brows scrunch. "For what?"

"For staying."

"Of course."

You take a deep breath, exhale coming out shaky. Before Inej can ask what was the matter, you begin talking.

"I like you." You say. "I like you a lot, and I have for a while. Long enough that I can't be in a room alone without automatically looking for even though I know you won't be there. Enough that about half the time when I feel like you're watching me I'm right, and I can pick you out from the crowd."

Inej is smiling. She can feel it on her face, eyes pricking and ears ringing just a bit.

"Kaz has gotten so sick of me talking about you to the point he actually has resorted to knocking his cane against me when I sigh too loudly or when your name comes out of my mouth for the tenth time in a minute." A chuckle comes out of your mouth when you go to rub at a bruise on your shin. "He doesnt mean to be harsh but I think he forgets how solid his cane is sometimes."

She's laughs, the same as you do when she pulls your hand towards her and presses it against her chest, heart saying everything and more.

But words matter too.

"I like you too. For what sounds like just as long as you have. Believe me if I had known you liked girls I wouldn't have let you torture Kaz for as long as you did."

"What do you say? Girlfriends?" You let go of her hand and hold out your fist.

She bumps her fist against yours. "Girlfriends."

She loves the way your eyes brighten.

However, she does not love that the door to the room comes open again.

The distinct sound of metal on wood tells the both of you immediately who it is. While Inej's annoyance only slightly decreases, yours disappears immediately.

"Kaz!"

"Y/n."

"Look!" You gently offer your hand, and Inej slips her fingers between yours, interlocking them. "We're dating. Inej likes me back."

He rounds the corner, looking at the both of your hands. He puts up his shoulders, raising an eyebrows.

"And im actively disabled. Dont waste my time with the obvious."

You chuckle. "Thanks, Kaz."

While Kaz mulls over whether it's worth it to stay down here, Inej helps you off the table, easing your leg down to the ground where it remains limp.

"Oh my saints, twinsies."

Inej looks between you and Kaz. Your limp leg is the same as his.

"If I ever hear you say twinsies again, you will lose me as your friend."

"Impossible."

Kaz takes that as a challenge, and moves up the stairs faster than she has ever seen him go.

As you call out to him to get his ass back here, Inej takes a moment to think about how perfect everything is.

Your leg may be out of commission, but you're happier than she has ever seen you before. You asked her to be your girlfriend, and still you're gentle and wait for permission. She's giggling as you do when you trip a little and catch yourself on the step.

She's so incredibly happy to be where she is today. And even more excited to figure out where the both of you will go from here.

∘₊✧──────────────────✧₊∘

Tags:

@xx-all-purpose-nerd-xx @kylie18 @morrigan-crowmwell @venomsvl @milkshake0

[181patheticpaperclips]

having thoughts about marlene mckinnon for way too many words

In honour of breaking up the fanon characterisation of Marlene a little, here’s every bit of information I could find about Marlene from canon, and variants of Marlene that aren't a Marauders' year Gryffindor that I think could be really fun to write! As a fandom we all seem to stick to the same few traits for the characters like Marlene, to the point where it almost creates a kind of ‘canon’ which kind of defeats the creative freedom which makes writing in the Marauders era so interesting.

And please note that this is not a criticism of fanon at all, headcanon what you want to headcanon, there are so many talented writers and artists who do amazing Marlene work within her fanon characterisation as a Gryffindor classmate in the Marauders’ year. I just had a lot of thoughts.

So anyway, here’s the three quotes we have that mention her:

“No one lived after he decided ter kill ‘em, no one except you, an’ he killed some o’ the best witches an’ wizards of the age - the McKinnons, the Bones, the Prewetts - an’ you was only a baby, an’ you lived,” - Hagrid, The Philosopher's Stone

“That’s Marlene McKinnon, she was killed two weeks after this was taken, they got her whole family,” - Moody, Order of the Phoenix

“Wormy was here last weekend, I thought he seemed down, but that was probably the news about the McKinnons; I cried all evening when I heard,” - Lily, The Deathly Hallows

Let’s get into it. Alright, so to get an indication of what Hagrid means when he’s talking about “the best witches an’ wizards of the age,” we can look at the Bones and the Prewetts.

“That’s Edgar Bones… brother of Amelia Bones, they got him and his family, too, he was a great wizard” from Order of the Phoenix. Apparently, his mother and father were also murdered by Voldemort (fandom wiki). It’s unclear whether “great” refers to magical skill or strength of character; however, we know Amelia Bones, his sister, was a fair and principled woman, so it probably includes elements of both. 

“Gideon Prewett, it took five Death Eaters to kill him and his brother Fabian, they fought like heroes.” Combining this with the Hagrid quote, we can gather that the “best witches an’ wizards” likely refers to prodigal magical skill, as well as strength of character - generally acting like a hero. 

So from these quotes, we can gather that Marlene was either a great witch herself, or at the very least, most of her family was skilled at magic, and that they all had great strength of character. By strength of character, I guess, from looking at the type of people the Prewetts and the Bones were, I mean that she valued stuff like justice, compassion and courage, and also, to put it simply, had a backbone and could stand up for what she believed in. 

I don’t think this necessarily makes her a Gryffindor, although it does make it more likely. The Bones family was known to be affiliated with Hufflepuff (Susan Bones), and people of every house can exhibit these traits. Although still very much possible, I find Slytherin to be the most unlikely house for her, as Hagrid does tend to harbour certain biases towards Slytherins (i.e. he tells Harry that there wasn’t a witch or wizard who went bad who wasn’t in Slytherin) so would be less likely to describe a Slytherin-affiliated family in such a positive manner. However, realistically, all four houses are open options for Marlene. 

Now, onto her relationship with Lily Evans. Lily does not refer to her by name, only as part of a collective “the McKinnons,” implying that to the extent Lily knew Marlene, she was also associated with more than one member of the McKinnon family. Her death is also mentioned in a throwaway sort of line, as an explanation of Peter’s sadness, meaning she had to be somewhat close to Peter for it to be reasonable that he’s at least as sad as Lily about her death. This also reads like it’s the first time Lily has discussed her death with Sirius, and it’s been about a week. This, to me, seems to indicate a relationship that isn’t necessarily very close, more like coworkers than anything - if they were closer, I think we could expect more of a specific comment about Marlene rather than a generalised one about her family. As this letter is addressed to Sirius, it’s also likely that Sirius wasn’t particularly close with Marlene either, as Lily offers no attempt to comfort him about her death, which occurred sometime close to “last weekend.” Given Lily is often shown as quite a caring character, if either Lily or Sirius were extremely close to her, I think you’d expect more from Lily. However, Lily still does “[cry] all evening” when she hears, so it isn’t completely detached news of something happening to a stranger. Casual friends or acquaintances, maybe, but probably not a deep friendship.

We’re looking at a relationship close enough to warrant an initial shock reaction from Lily, but not close enough to warrant continual intense grief for more than a week, with a connection that was to the whole McKinnon family, not simply Marlene. In my personal view, while being Gryffindor classmates fits this model (allows Lily, Peter and Sirius to all be familiar with her, and could have a similar level of detachment as Harry has from Dean or Seamus), I’d think sharing a dormitory for seven years and also fighting in a war together would form a deeper connection between Marlene and Lily (think of Harry’s connection with Neville by the end of Deathly Hallows), or at least warrant a mention of Marlene in particular rather than “the McKinnons” in her letter. 

Moody also doesn’t point out additional members of the McKinnon family in the photo, implying that they were absent when the photograph was taken or were not members of the Order. I think it likely that more McKinnons than Marlene were in the Order, as this would allow Lily, Sirius and Peter to be connected to the family. There are three scenarios: the McKinnons are in the Order photograph and are simply not mentioned by Moody, the McKinnons are in the Order but not the photograph, and the McKinnons are not in the Order. In the first scenario, Marlene is singled out as the most significant member of the McKinnons, as she is the only one named and the others are referred to as “her family” - she could be more involved in the Order than the others, or she acts as some kind of leading figure for the household, or she was simply better known to Moody than the others. In the second scenario, she is mentioned as the only one present, while the others are absent - they could be in hiding, although Lily and James were in hiding and were still present for the photograph, or are on some kind of Order activity (like Lupin, who is also not mentioned as being in this photograph). In the third scenario, Marlene is the only Order member in her family. The way Moody describes her death as “got her whole family” also suggests an element of being caught, as if the whole family was wanted to some extent by the Death Eaters. Hagrid also says that Voldemort had “decided ter kill ‘em,” further implying that the whole family were targets, not just collateral damage from targeting Marlene. For these reasons, I find it more likely that she is not the only member of the Order in her family.

Lily, James, Sirius and Peter are seated in the same row of the photograph - from this, we can gather that there likely wasn’t arranged seating and people sat with those they were friendly with. Marlene is standing nearby to Dedalus Diggle, Frank and Alice Longbottom and Moody, implying these were the Order members she was closest to, not the Marauders. For this reason, I think it’s reasonable to interpret Marlene as older than she often is portrayed. Frank and Alice’s ages are unknown, but they are well-accomplished Aurors, repeatedly stated throughout the series to be an extremely challenging career with training for at least three years after graduation to even enter the position, although they are not too old to have Neville (the average age of first-time mothers in 1981 was about 25, but given that Alice was a well-established Auror by the time Neville was born, she was probably a bit older), likely placing them somewhere in the mid twenties to thirties range. Dedalus Diggle could be any age, but he is quite an eccentric and cheerful character, wearing a purple top hat, known for enthusiastic displays like summoning shooting stars in Kent upon Voldemort’s downfall, bowing to Harry in a shop, and attempting to be friendly to Vernon Dursley (a monumental task). Her association with Dedalus Diggle implies she isn’t bothered by this kind of behaviour - or maybe she is, and she’s unfortunately stuck standing near him. Moody is described as having grey hair, and just generally comes across as an older man (grizzled appearance, gruff, battle-hardened cynic). Given Moody is also nearby, Marlene is now associated with at least three Aurors, so she could reasonably be interpreted as an Auror, or Auror-in-training.

So, in conclusion:

Marlene is a member of the Order, likely at least a few years older than Lily and James. Her family members, whether that be her children or parents or siblings, are also in the order, and she is probably fairly close with them, given they were all murdered together. The McKinnons are highly skilled wizards and have strength of character, standing up for their beliefs, to the extent that they become a specific target for Death Eaters. Her closest associates in the Order are probably the Longbottoms and Dedalus Diggle, as well as Mad-Eye Moody. 

Marlene Variants!!

I think being described as one of the best of the age, not her age, but the age, might imply that she was either a younger member of a well-known magical family like the Potters (James Potter’s parents), or was an older, well-accomplished witch in her own right. 

Marlene, part of a large family affiliated with the Order, who knew Sirius, Lily and Peter through having been the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor one year. We know that, in Harry’s time, Dumbledore asked at least two former Order members to teach DADA in a six year time span (Moody and Lupin, from Harry’s first to sixth year), so it isn’t unlikely that Order members could be asked to fill in the role for a year. Professor McKinnon, who puts her students through almost military paces, but who sits on her desk while teaching, who knows which students are friends, who arranges her seating plans accordingly to make sure everyone has someone they can ask for help nearby. Marlene, who teaches the first years how to duel and goes tramping through the forbidden forest searching for Hinkypunks and takes her third years to the lake with Gillyweed to hunt for Grindylows, because doing is the best way to learn.

Marlene McKinnon and Dedalus Diggle as friends; whether Marlene is similar to him in being enthusiastic and just generally kind of extra, or whether she’s a kind of down to earth character foil for him, just… I think those two would be very interesting to see interacting. Marlene and Dedalus as old schoolmates, who love magic for the wild and the untameable, who charm rain into shooting stars and charm autumn leaves to fly in dizzying dances.

Marlene as an Auror. Marlene as Moody’s colleague, as around his age, as Frank and Alice’s colleague. Marlene who can hold her own against any given Death Eater, even when caught by surprise. Marlene, who can cast spells so powerful they make the floor crack under her feet and sear the walls with energy. Marlene McKinnon, who makes Death Eaters flee when she appears in the doorway, who can never be ambushed and can never be beaten, who decimates the ranks of every opposing force. Marlene, who isn’t afraid to kill where Moody spares, who can snap from kind to deadly in an instant. 

Marlene who is delighted when Alice tells her she’s having a baby, who comes around for lunch on Saturdays, who helps design the wards, and patches loopholes in the magic until it's impenetrable, and who makes Neville a quilt that is never finished. Marlene, who would have been an incredible aunt figure to Neville Longbottom. 

Marlene as an Auror in training, with parents who are already Aurors, potentially siblings too. Marlene who goofs around with Moody, who Tonks reminds him of years later, Marlene who dies despite her training. Maybe Evan Rosier is the one who kills her; maybe Moody remembers this when Rosier refuses to come quietly; maybe Marlene McKinnon is half the reason Rosier ends up dead that day.

There’s my brainrot analysis! This turned out a bit longer than I intended it to be. Feel free to use any of this in anything you make (maybe I’ll cough up some art eventually… tag me if you do, I’d love to see). And a friendly reminder that if you do headcanon Marlene differently, in the end, it’s all for fun, and you’re free to view her any way you’d like. And who knows, maybe I’ll get around to doing this for the other characters one day.

[strrwbrrryjam]

the relationship between mary and arthur is just. so heartbreaking to look into because while they love each other so so much to the point that years later they still hold some love for each other, but like dutch and molly's relationship, it likely would have never lasted, although for very different reasons

arthur comes from a home where his mother is gone, she died when he was young to the point that its likely he only remembers snippets of her (although i believe one of the reasons arthur connects more with woman and generally have lesser problematic relationship with them than men is because those snippets he remembers was good, that beatrice had cared for arthur, unlike lyle), his relationship with his father, while we don't know much about, we know that arthur is not sad to see him gone, and really, is only sad that it wasn't sooner, so his relationship with his father was at best, not good, and at worst, downright abusive.

he was born into this life of an outlaw, and typically, those who are outlaws don't typically come from the most privileged of places and aren't offered a lot of opportunities, being an outlaw is all he knows and all that he was taught

his father dies, leaving him alone for a couple of years, and since being an outlaw is all he has ever known and he doesn't know that he can be more than an outlaw, nor does he believe he could be more, i mean, it isn't like he is offered a lot of opportunities

he's young, living on the streets, he's not able to take care of his appearance, people back then weren't kind, and actually downright awful to "street urchins," and it bears repeating that being an outlaw is all he ever known, all he ever sees himself as, and all he ever believes himself to be

so when dutch and hosea (and susan) decide to take him in, offer him what could have been the first bit of kindness he's received since his mothers death, take him in their gang, provide him with food, water and love on the regular, for simply no reason at all, or at least, no reason that arthur understands other than it is the right thing to do, of course he's going to view them as his saviours and have them on a pedestal far into his adult life and return that love tenfold

mary on the other hand comes from a life of privilege, or at least, assumed privilege, she wears fancy clothes, has beautiful jewelry, lives in a house and has received an education

while we dont know much of her home life, we know that its incredibly likely that her mother died while mary was young and that her father is a disrespectful, alcoholic, gambling addict and does not treat her and jamie, her little brother well at all

in a way, her home life isnt much different than arthurs, except for the fact that she was born into a life of privilege and that has a large affect on their relationship, for the simply fact that it is likely that they would have never understood each other at all

arthur holds obvious resentment toward those who are privileged, seeing them as nothing but greedy, spoiled and people who have too much money for their own good and have done nothing good for the world, while mary cannot understand why someone like arthur, a man she repeatedly says is a good man, and is a good man, would choose a life of crime when the skills that he has learned as an outlaw can be used for a job in civilization, and doesn't understand that arthur is blind to the opportunities those skills he has offer him because he has been deep into this life as an outlaw for many many years

arthur cannot understand why mary and jamie doesnt want to leave their gilded cage and be free to live as they want to, but mary from the outside can see the dangers that come with the life of the outlaw, a fact that arthur has become used to, the violence and the risk of death is normalized to him, its just a simple fact of life, a fact that he's learned from when he was very young while mary isn't used to it, and hopes to never be used to it because the idea is just too terrifying to her and she could not possibly risk jamies life like that

arthur sees the similarities between his own father and marys father, and does not like him, views him as dangerous, which i believe he is right to do so, while mary comes from a world where as long as a father is bringing food on the table and money in your pockets, he can act however he wants, no matter who he hurts, it is something that is taught to her and ingrained in her mind, to the point that she doesn't see him as bad man, but a man who is trying and her and jamie defend his actions, actively telling arthur not to call him a bad man or insult him, as like the life of an outlaw has become normalized to arthur, the way her father acts is normal to her

mary sees dutch and hosea not as saviours, but simply men who have taken advantage of a good man and has turned him into their workhorse, their guard dog, a man who kills and beats at their beck and call and will do whatever jobs dutch and hosea ask him too, while arthur views dutch and hosea as his saviours, the men who took him in out of the goodness of their hearts and loved him and took care of him, saving him from the brink of death and giving him the first bit of kindness he has received in years

all of this is to say that while arthur and mary think the world of one another, and love each other so much, the difference between their worlds and the difference in their circumstances as well as how young they were means that they can never truly understand why they are the way that they are and that the end of their relationship was always going to be a tragedy and it is both so heartbreaking and interesting too look into

[ma-warriors17]

What if the characters from Invader Zim! Were in Hazbin hotel!!! (⁠ﾉ⁠◕⁠ヮ⁠◕⁠)⁠ﾉ⁠*⁠.⁠✧

part 2

That's right ! Let's go! Time to introduce the second person of this AU!

Isso ai ! Vamo lá! Hora de apresentar a segunda pessoa dessa AU !

DIB MEMBRANE !!!

This is the only digital drawing I've done of him so far, the rest will all be on paper kkk

Esse é o unico desenho digital que fiz dele até agora , o resto vai ser tudo no papel kkk

DEMON DIB

< animal

Moth

<characteristics

Dib has a pair of large wings with the outer part in a dark blue tone and the inner part in a bluish gray tone.

Four large red eyes that can express different types of emotions that Dib perceives and that sometimes even seem to have consciousness of their own

Dib has 6 arms, two of which are his own and 4 of which are robotic that appear "mysteriously" when he enters his Overlord form.

His appearance itself is actually quite human with the exception of his wings, and his pair of forelocks represent his antennae.

Dib is also "half vampire", which makes him have a justified bloodlust unlike other demons and uses his powers to catch his victims.

<Powers

Dib has the ability to hypnotize people who look at the large eyes on his wings, causing them to hallucinate paranormal things.

Furthermore, just like every member of the dib membrane family, it has an influence on electronics.More different from his sister where this power is limited to things that have to do with games or from his father who has a real ability to control electricity and robotic things, Dib's power is limited to making these things fail with his presence or even break

<History

Dib is one of the Overlords of Hell, and despite having a lot of power he does not see himself able to go against his father's wishes.

Dib is an extremely protective brother. He therefore feels guilty for not having protected his sister in life, and now that he has power he finds himself covered by it.

Dib meets Zim on one of his hunts, at first Dib would kill Zim, but when his hypnosis didn't work on the little butterfly, Dib began to be curious about the same thing, Since this creature was not powerful enough to go against Dib, something else was responsible for his resistance.

Demonio Dib

<Animal

Mariposa

<Características

Dib possui um par de grandes asas com a parte externa em um tom de azul escuro e a parte interna em ton cinza azulado .

Quatro grandes olhos vermelhos que podem expressar diversos tipos de emoções que Dib cente e que as vezes parecem ter até consciência propria.

Dib possui 6 braços , dois que são deles mesmo e 4 deles são robóticos que aparecem "misteriosamente" quando ele entra em sua forma Overlord .

Sua aparência em si naverdade é bem Humano com excessão de suas asas , elen desso seu par de topetes representam as suas antenas

Dib também é "meio vampiro " oq o faz ter uma sede de sangue justificada diferente de outros demonios e utiliza de seus poderes para pegar suas vitimas

<Poderes

Dib possui a habilidade de hipnotizar as pessoas que olham para os grandes olhos em suas asas , causando alucinações com coisas paranormais

Alem disso ,asim como todo o membro da familia membrana dib possui influência sobre os eletrônicos . Mais diferente de sua irmã onde esse poder se limita a coisas que tenham a ver com jogos ou de seu pai que tem uma verdadeira habilidade de controlar a eletricidade e cosias robóticas , o poder de Dib se limita a fazer esas coisas falharem com sua presença ou até mesmo quebrarem

<História

Dib é um dos Overlord do inferno , e apesar de ter muito poder ele não se vê capas de ir contra as vontades de seu pai .

Dib é um irmão extremamente protetor. Pois se sente culpado por não ter protegido sua irma em vida , e agora q possui poder se vê capas disso.

Dib conhece Zim em uma de suas caçadas , a princípio Dib mataria Zim , mais quando sua hipnose não funcionou na pequena borboleta , Dib começou a ter curiosidade pelo mesmo , já que tal criatura não era poderosa o bastante para ir contra Dib , outra cousa era a responsáveis pela resistência dele .

Previously made concept arts

[notanerdyprude]

fun things i noticed rewatching npmd act 1:

sam sweetly was investigating richies death

richie messed with his fingers absentmindedly

everyone pronounces stephs last name correctly (law-ter) except the teacher (low-ter) because teachers cant pronounce peoples names correctly

pete is almost always curled into himself while steph is almost always sat more like. outward. i dont know how to describe it.

petes plaid on his suspenders and bowtie matches stephs flannel

stephanie wears a lot of jewellery

ruth and richie hold on to pete at the end of “literal monster”’s first chorus

the literal monster choreogrophy fucking SLAPS byw

richie is such a bitch “its LIPSCHITZ 🙄🙄” “i never intended to walk through your hallway”

richie keeps his hands under his armpits most of the time

graces little “mhm. mhm.” after she says “his name is jesus christ” >>>

max and grace nodding at eachother is never not going to be funny to me

kyle is max’s biggest hype-man. homosexual activity if you ask me.

ruth and the nerd in purple enter the stage hiding behind the bleachers during max’s verse

“next time youre going to cheat do it like a lauter and dont get caught” so solomon most likely got to his position illegally

“somebody WALKS to the office with STEPHANIE LAUTER 🙄” richie is a Bitch

ruth cares very deeply about library rules

she immediately stops caring about them as soon as stephanie lauter calls him

ruth rolls her eyes when richie starts his “aot > star wars shit”, so shes clearly heard this a shit ton before

petes jumper also matches stephanies foannel

pete is in the shadows for a good part of cooler than i think i am because he keeps walking through them

as soon as the bridge is done he goes from being in the light to beingbik the shadows again

peter can also be a bitch

max doesnt come from money

max started being a prick in 4th grade

jason seems to be an actually good dude.

max has a major god complex obviously but like. it is bad. it is BAD.

mark, despite being married to her, calls graces mom ‘mother’

graces mom also wears butterfly clips

richies side eye the second steph walks over im DECEASED.

richie looks so horrified by steph touching him

cooler than him tune plays when they walk into the boys bathroom

richie side-eyes people a lot

“steph-an-ie”

pete’s “grace 🙄” i love him hes so bitchy

hatchet town tune plays in the bg a lot

richie naruto runs into the waylon place

richie is VERY excited by the plan “WE’LL MAKE HIM SHIT HIS PANTS 😁”

petes a marvel nerd. he does both the hulk and spidermans gestures

richie is ruths wingman confirmed

richie fiddles with the little tassles on petes jacket

max is very good at puns

will is scarily good at sounding like blood is coming out of his mouth

pete has a very short temper

grace actively cheers for ruth after she cuts off max’s nips

stacy calls richie “mr. lipschitz”. for some reason.

THE HARMONIES IN GO GO NIGHTHAWKS ARE SO GOOD

richie calls jason jace :(( /pos

“theyre my bros for life” they said ONE nice thing to you get some standards i BEG

richies face immeidately dropping as soon as max says “richieee”

richies wearing 4 layers on top and a pair of shorts. transgender.

max’s blood is sparkly.

max shakes his hand after touching richie

max thinks people in the smoke club are cool

max locks the door on richie

he does the choreo from thriller by michael jackson

richies squeal after max makes him fall

max is heavy projecting onto richie

max seems genuinely pissed when richie says ‘im not a loser.’ he only chills when richie says ‘please don’t kill me’.

he taunts richie by calling him his actual name. he never called richie his real name, only shit-lips. false sense of security type shit.

[yazthebookish]

Emerie 💜 - Where she was, where she is now

Emerie was one of the most prominent characters in ACOSF and she's extremely underrated, this is why I wanted to post this detailed summary of when we first meet her to where she is now.

Trigger warning: this post will discuss domestic abuse and death of a parent as it's part of Emerie's past.

**A COURT OF FROST AND STARLIGHT**

We first meet Emerie in A Court of Frost and Starlight in Chapter 8 (Cassian's POV).

The slender young female behind the pine counter was already standing still. Watching him.

Cassian noticed the scars on her wings first. The careful, brutal scars down the center tendons.

Nausea roiled in his gut, even as he offered a smile and strode toward the polished coun-ter. Clipped. She'd been clipped.

"I'm looking for Proteus," he said, meeting the female's brown eyes. Sharp and shrewd.

Taken aback by his presence, but unafraid.

Her dark hair was braided simply, offering a clear view of her tan skin and narrow, angular face. Not a face of beauty, but striking.

Interesting.

Her eyes did not lower, not in the way Illyrian females had been ordered and trained to do. No, even with the clipping scars that proved traditional ways ran brutally deep in her family, she held his stare.

It reminded him of Nesta, that stare. Frank and unsettling.

Proteus was Emerie's father who died during the War against Hybern in ACOWAR. He was wealthy enough to open a his own shop and was known to be a decent warrior. However, the scars on Emerie's wings was proof enough to Cassian that her father might be a decent warrior, but not a decent person.

Emerie introduced herself to Cassian as the shop owner and Cassian was impressed by her unfaltering stance and determination to run the shop despite the fact that it would have gone to any male relatives of Proteus since she was his only daughter.

Cassian kept drawing comparisons between Nesta and Emerie and this gave us a good idea that if the two had met, they'll likely be a force to be reckoned with.

"Fire in those words. Emerie would make the families take them, whether they them,

wanted to or not.

He'd seen that fire before- and the steel.

He half wondered what might happen if the two of them ever met. What might come of it."

Cassian hands over delivery money and asks Emerie to help those in need since a storm is about to hit Windhaven. She mentions to him many in this camp don't like her but she will do her best to deliver it to those in need.

**A COURT OF SILVER FLAMES**

Emerie makes her first ACOSF appearance in Chapter 9 through Nesta's POV when Nesta shows up at her shop, and that marked their first meeting.

One of the first things Nesta makes a note of about Emerie is she could possibly have a recent ancestor from another region, possibly the Dawn Court.

Nesta and Emerie immediately clicked. Nesta was impressed by Emerie enough to admit there was steel in the female.

Chapter 25 marks Emerie's second appearance when Nesta revisits her shop. It was also the first time Nesta encounters Emerie's awful cousin, Bellius.

Bellius showed up drunken at Emerie's with a message from his father about the ownership of the shop which Emerie is determined to keep. Emerie admits to Nesta she gets these little visits from her uncle's family every now and then.

Emerie was kind enough to offer Nesta to have lunch with her and they both started to get to know to each other better from then on. Nesta finds Emerie's dishes delicious and Emerie tells Nesta that she grows her own vegetables and she seems a big fan of spices which are in short supply at Illyria.

Emerie shares part of her past with Nesta telling her that her Mother died giving birth to her (which we later on know the truth of it), she had an older brother who died in a skirmish between war bands ten years before she was born, and her father died in the War against Hybern. She has no other family members except her father's family who try to claim his shop and his wealth as their own, despite it being rightfully Emerie's since Rhysand changed the inheritance laws to include females.

From Emerie's questions about traveling, Nesta came to the conclusion that Emerie was unhappy at Windhaven. She asks if she would ever move away and Emerie says that she never left the village and where would she go? she knows people at Windhaven at least.

Emerie also tells Nesta that she often adds willow bark to her tea to help her with her pains since her wings (the scars) sometimes hurt like an old wound.

It was at this chapter Nesta offers Emerie to join their training, which Emerie rejects at first. In Chapter 27, Cassian delivers a gift from Nesta to Emerie containing six different types of spices. The gift was also partly given in kindness and to try and sway Emerie to join training. At the end of the chapter, Emerie finally showed up to training and the rest is history.

Throughout the book, Emerie develops a close bond to Nesta and Gwyn. They at first start to bond over romance novels, especially Sellyn Drake's novels even while training.

Emerie admits to Cassian that it wasn't the healers who clipped her own wings, it was her father and she fought him which made his clipping even sloppier. She rejects Cassian's offer to have Madja check on her wings. Cassian was considerate enough to work with Emerie one-on-one on her balance and mobility after he instructs Nesta and Gwyn on their own exercises since Emerie is far behind.

Emerie quickly picked up on the hot tension between Cassian and Nesta and often teases Nesta endlessly about it.

One of the nicknames Emerie picked if she owned a sword was "Foe Slayer".

Emerie was the first trainee to try and cut the ribbon. She obviously failed.

At Chapter 26, Nesta was surprised to find Emerie lingering at the library even though it's been hours since their training finished. Emerie said she wanted to see where Gwyn and Nesta work, her eyes were still on Mor and Clotho.

Emerie nods at Mor's direction and admits how she always forgets how beautiful Mor is and that Mor never comes to Windhaven these days, which could indicate that Emerie makes a note of how many times Mor shows up at the village. Nesta noticed Emerie's cheeks turning pink at that. Nesta had to call out Emerie who still had her gaze on Mor to walk out.

At the same scene when they stopped at level 5, Emerie's face paled and she swears to Nesta that she can hear her father screaming at her and the sounds of furniture breaking from the darkness below. It was later revealed to Nesta that the darkness was showing Nesta, Emerie, and all those priestesses all those dark, broken pieces because it was the same as them.

At Winter Solstice, we learn that Emerie feels an obligation to visit her awful family during solstices despite Nesta inviting her to spend it at the River House with them.

During the Blood Rite, Emerie bares the truth of her tragic past and what was done to her and to her mother.

Emerie's father constantly subjected her mother to physical abuse and it gotten to a point where he beat her mother so badly and she died. He even made Emerie dig her mother's grave at night. He told everyone else she died because of a miscarriage.

He never laid a hand on Emerie until her mother was gone, mostly because her mother shielded her from him. He beat Emerie once so badly that he had broken her back and kept her in bed for weeks. That was not the only instance, Emerie still feels the impact of him slamming her head into the wall, or crunching her fingers in a door, or just hitting her until she blacked out.

Yet the sad part was everyone in the village always believed him because of his charming persona and they told Emerie how lucky she is to have such a father to the point she started to think if she imagined all the abuse she was subjected to. Her scars remind her of the reality of it.

He never let her have her own money or allow her to earn her own. He never let her eat more than what he deemed appropriate. She can still hear him whenever she looks into the mirror or make a mistake.

When he died she felt so happy that the nightmare was over yet people expected her to mourn him.

She came to training because she knew he would have forbidden it. She came to training to get his voice out of her head. She came to training to stop any male of ever putting another hand on her even though it would never make things right for her for the fact that she hid while her father beat her mother.

And for her mother, Emerie scaled the summit and faced the breaking.

For her mother, Emerie became the first Illyrian female in history to become a Valkyrie and a Carynthian warrior.

.

.

I wanted to share this detailed summary of Emerie's story and to remind readers of what a wonderful and resilient character she is.

I'm hopeful about Emerie's journey in the future, and I really hope she will be able to move away from her hateful relatives and see the world alongside Nesta and Gwyn. I hope she finds the love she deserves and maybe her and Mor could find love and healing together. I hope the Illyrian females see her as a beacon of hope that they can become more than obedient wives and daughters they are molded into, that they are capable of becoming more than that and dream bigger.

This was a long one I had to do my girl justice 🫶🏼

I'm also re-sharing along this post one the favorite art pieces I commissioned representing Emerie's journey 💜

Reminder: Emerie Appreciation Week is happening on 12th-18th November.

[annoyingblondebracket]

Submission Rules

- The character must be considered annoying within the actual text itself. If it's mostly just you and a couple of your friends who find them annoying, it doesn't count. (Exceptions may be made if you can convince me though!)

- They have to be blonde or blonde adjacent. White / yellowish white hair is okay!

- Fictional characters only!! As funny as it would be no submitting real ass people okay!

- Not accepting OCs at this time, but depending on how this goes I may open an "annoying blonde OC" bracket in the future :~)

- These characters automatically get into the bracket: Theseus Hadesgame (because he is my wife), Ronaldo SU, and Marcille DunMeshi (by request of a cherished mutual ^.^)

- I don't believe they have characters that fit this descriptor but just in case. No characters from Sou/th Pa/rk, Haz/bin Ho/tel (and related properties), or Har/ry Pot/ter. I ain't looking at that 💕

- Please note that I'm doing this poll out of a genuine love and affection for these types of characters 🙏🏾 so be nice!

- More to be added if I feel it's necessary!

- If you've read everything, you can send your submission here !

[aliceisathome]

I have been saving ep 4 of Wandee Goodday like a particularly delicious sweetie. Also I wouldn't allow myself to watch it until sorted out at least half of the mixture of clean, not clean but still too clean to wash, and dirty clothes from my chair and floordrobe.

I've done the floor - what more could be expected on a fine Bank Holiday weekend. So that's good enough and I just can't wait anymore!

Look at them holding hands when they're asleep! Gah. So cute.

My main takeaway is how do these lovely dumbasses not realise they're in love with each other yet? I mean they actually kinda know but haven't even admitted it to themselves. I suppose (as with Ming with Tong in MSI ) it's hard to realise that someone 10 times better than the one you've been crushing on for years is right in front - or possibly behind - you. At this point the old crush is just habit - or addiction.

Vying for the Best Bestie of the Year crown is, once again, our Ace king Plakao. He was full of clarity and throwing truth bombs this ep - I just love him to bits. Plus I approve of his business sideline.

In fact I like everyone, with the obvious exceptions of Ter and his cheerleaders. Fuck him and his dog in a manger attitude, and OF COURSE he lives in condo 666. Excellent. But don't talk about your fake relationship in the pool of the building that you share with him you eejits. I loved Dee standing strong - I'm very proud of him.

Anyway, they're already sniff kissing - I've never seen this come before kissing kissing in a BL before - it's so CUTE. And if we don't get Yak doing that same speech from the balcony scene to Dee - finished with The Kiss - I will annoyed.

And finally HPV vaccination info and promotion - it's just all so good. I fear there will be several episodes of doom coming soon though, and as the only two series I'm watching as they air are this and My Stand In I think I will need someone to line up support in the form of a therapist, cake and possibly booze.

[buildarocketboys]

Writing Patterns Tag Game

Thanks for tagging me @floralegia @cryptophasiac !!

Rules: list the first lines(s) of your last 10 fics and see if there's a pattern.

1. doesn't change what's in your blood 

Boromir hadn't intended to leave Faramir in the dark about what would happen the night he pledged allegiance to their father.

2. found the cure to growing older 

Patrick lugs his still half-wet, half-dirty laundry up the three flights of stairs to his apartment, swearing under his breath. 

3. take teardrops of mine, find yourself wetter 

"YOU NEVER LET ME DO ANYTHING!"

4. the truth hurts worse (than anything I could bring myself to do to you) 

Patrick tries to concentrate on singing and playing while Pete rubs up against him. 

5. I hide behind these words (but I'm coming out) (chapter 2)

"Patrick," Pete hisses from his bedroom.

6. keep telling myself (I'm not the desperate type) 

Being a bunny boy is hard. 

7. I know it's just a number, but you're the eighth wonder 

Patrick's 30th birthday is less than a month away, and Pete is panicking.

8. stuck in the sunshine riptide 

Patrick is drunk, and Pete won't let him go to the bathroom.

9. tastes like you only swe(a)ter 

They're clearing out Patrick's childhood bedroom.

10. frame me up on your wall just to keep me out of trouble 

Patrick bangs on the door for a solid ten minutes after Pete leaves, but no dice.

Hmm well I think most of these start with an establishing sentence to set up character and setting/scenario to some extent, except the two dialogue starters which just throw you straight in there to some extent. Most of them also start out with some kind of indication of where the character/s are emotionally (or sets up physical stakes) which I think makes sense for the kind of internal character-focused writing I tend to do (especially in fic).

Gonna tag @afoxnamedmulder @notjusthespongenextdoor @writtenwolves

[totaleclipse573]

(slides into your inbox) au where Gerald got Terios and Doleon got Shadow. Would much change?

I CAN'T TAKE ANOTHER AU (/j of course I can I love au's)

I'd keep their personalities mostly the same, actually. They are the way they are with the influence of trauma responses, so even if said traumatic event now swaps between them, how they react personally is still the same (And...now Terios is the one who has tried to destroy the Earth while helping Eggman. WOW.)

Terios turned out to be silent and nervous because he feels overly responsible for Maria's death. His excess need to help others also comes from being told his purpose was to help cure Maria, but he couldn't in the end. Shadow turned out like. Shadow. Due to Doleon's brutal training, brainwashing, etc. Except now he has a connection to all the Shards of Chaos and serves the Black Arms, WITH THIS MENTALITY. Ter has to redeem him, but has trouble even speaking up. Yet if he doesn't, he could be dooming the whole planet.

Terios at least would've gotten to grow up somewhat happier 😅 Doleon wouldn't have liked Shadow's stubbornness. He'd try to stamp it out of him but could probably only lessen it slightly, at most. Also, Terios (outside of this au) was trained to respond to finger snaps as a way of saying listen or obey by Doleon. I think the same would apply to Shadow here :(

I also think of this one detail in OC universe where while Doleon has Terios seek out the Shards of Chaos, he gets Shadow to go after the Chaos Emeralds. Now its in reverse.

And lastly for now, a tiny detail. Terios only has those markings around his eyes due to the "power ritual" done with the Shards on him when he was young to ensure he held a connection to their power. He wouldn't have those anymore! Shadow would, but since he already has a bit of red near there regardless, it would just look like Doleon's markings instead.

So to summarize : their pasts made up A LOT of who they are and what they did. Change those few events or details, and they go completely separate ways.