#Cancer crew imagine

[opens-up-4-nobody]

hi so so sorry if this sounds genuinely deranged but I need to know did you write a fanfiction in like 2014 that was set during ww2 where zoro from one piece was sent to a japanese internment camp and sanji went to conversion therapy I remembered it recently because it blew my mind at age 13 and I had to reread it + need a kind of where are they now with the author so if that's you 1) what's your stance on the fic today 2) how much of the research was done during writing and how much did you just know beforehand and used as inspo 3) did you have any ideas for where the other characters ended up because I did always wonder if like idk chopper overcame the trauma of being in the war and also just what usopp's situation would be in general what with the political climate. once again. if you didn't actually write this fic so sorry this must look like the ravings of a crazy person. godspeed

Hi. Uh, yeah I did write that fic. I would have been like only 17 at the time. I did do A LOT of research, like the fic was basically an excuse for me to research Japanese internment and WWII history in general bc I thought it was super fucked up. I was absolutely hyperfixated on the topic and my parents probably thought i was nuts for my ability to talk at length on this particular area of history. I just finished skim reading back through the fic and woof. What a bleak fucking story. I was very cruel to everyone. It's frustrating bc I think it's an interesting and compelling idea for a story. But to me it feels like: here is all the research I did and also characters talking in what feels like a too modern way. Plus, I was 17 and didnt understand people very well. I wish I had the energy and motivation to rewrite it. Although, I forgot I used to do song lyrics at the start of each chapter and the tonal dissonance of Owl City lyrics at the top of a chapter of harrowing events around the time of WWII is unfathomablly unhinged.

[hvaneyflowers]

Family *******

Fernando Alonso x femreader! family!

Instagram au | Part 2

Fernando and y/n have been married for 10 years, and for the last 9 years, y/n has been fighting against cancer. Because of this, they can't have children on their own, so they decided to adopt.

***************

yourusername

liked by fernandoalo_oficial, astonmartinf1, and 400.634 more.

yourusername: First time flying for Matías! ✈️

view all 400 comments.

username55: So, it means we're seeing Matias in the paddock this weekend?

username33: I hope so! I'm dying to meet him!

charles_leclerc: YES! Little Alonso is coming! I'll have his gift prepared!

astonmartinf1: Can't wait to meet our new crew member!

carmenmmundt: yeah!!!!

username65: Do you think Nico's daughter will be there? I heard he is a little bit jealous hahaha

username910: What about K-Mag's daughter? Or Kelly's daughter? Hahaha username1938: a grid of little babies! I love it!

yourusername

liked by fernandoalo_oficial, f1, charles_leclerc, and 500.000 more.

tagged: fernandoalo_oficial, f1, astonmartinf1, charles_leclerc, lewishamilton

yourusername: First race ever! Matias enjoyed every second of it and was very surprised to find out his new dad was a superstar! Thank you astonmartinf1 and f1 for making this a very special moment for my baby. Also, thank you lewishamilton and charles_leclerc for the gifts! Matias loved them, but he named them lewusoso and charlitosrojo (lewusbear and charlitosred) ❤️🛣️

view all 500 comments.

fernandoalo_oficial: the best fan! Mi pequeño! (my little boy)

yourusername: Fan number 1! I'm number 2 now hahaha fernandoalo_oficial: In my heart, there's enough space for both of you being number 1❤️ yourusername: ❤️

username124: OMG! Look at that cute pie!! He's too cute!

username57: I don't know which is cuter., little Nandito or Lewis and Charles' teddy bears?

username78: Don't forget the names he chose for them!

lewishamilton: what a little boy you have! He's amazing! Very happy for you! Roscoe loved him and me too, he's incredible. Bring him back anytime! pss. I love my new name, I think I'm going to change my real name for that one 😉

charles_leclerc: LOVED THAT LITTLE KID!!! HE'S TOO CUTE AND THE WAY HE PRONUNCED MY NAME!!!

astonmartinf1: Loved having little Matias aka future World Champion in our garage! Looking for seeing him around more!

f1: Future world champion in the making! Come back anytime!

danielricciardo: He's too cute! I hope he loved my giraffe!

yourusername: Believe me, he adored it! It's name is Dani. danielricciardo: cool!

username23: I want to know what the whole grid gifted him!! @.yourusername make a post with all the presents!

username98: Yes! I'm dying to know!!!

landonorris: my gift was the best! 😚

carlossainz55: shut up!

yourusername

liked by landonorris, jensonbutton, kimimatiasraikkone, and 600.00 more.

yourusername: Because you asked for it! Here are the gifts my baby received from the whole grid, and some more! Thank you for all!! pss. Landonorris Matias crashed the car the first time he used it, sorry.

view all 600 comments.

landonorris: NOOOOO!

carlossainz55: I told ya! hahaha, he's too young to know how to drive! charles_lecler: and that's why a teddy bear was a good idea! alex_albon: and cars, too.

estebanocon: glad he loved the horse!

username44: OMG! Little Matias received so many things! He's so lucky!

username89: imagine going from being a little kid with nothing in the world to having Fernando Alonso and y/n y/ln as parents and the entire F1 grid as uncles? So happy for this little one! username788: he deserves the world!!

kimimatiasraikkonen: So happy for you guys! And glad little Matias loved my gift. Bring him to meet Mintu and the kids anytime!

yourusername: He adored it, but Fernando... he's another story. Anyway, we're hoping for him to meet your kids and Mintu! fernandoalo_oficial: I hate you Kimi. You, and Kevin. Why did you gift him musical toys? He never stops playing them! NEVER. kevinmagnussen: welcome to fatherhood, Fernando. Believe me, you'll get used to it. kimimatiasraikkonen: I second that. maxverstappen1: me too.

username990: I'm jealous of a 4-year-old boy! I can't believe it!

username787: I know! Me too!

fernandoalo_oficial

liked by yourusername, astonmartinf1, and 1M more.

tagged: yourusername

fernandoalo_oficial: first date night since becoming mom and dad! Missing our little boy made us end the night very early. Love you nena!

view all 1000 comments.

yourusername: Te amo mi amor!

fernandoalo_oficial: yo te amo más!

yukitsunoda0511: I need a girlfriend, ASAP!

danielricciardo: don't worry little man, I'll help you! yukitsunoda0511: no way! yourusername: don't worry Yuki. I'm sure you'll find the correct one, just be patient. When you find her, you'll know! yukitsunoda0511: ❤️

username88: couple goals!!!

username919: @.yourusername always so sexy!!!

username7188: Fernando has good taste!

username819: power couple!!

username189: Both of them are so good-looking! I hope they'll never break up!

username919: If that happens, I'd never believe in love again!

carlossainz55: a beautiful young woman... and Fernando.

yourusername: Oh, come on! I'm 32! landonorris: you look like a 20-year-old schoolgirl next to Nando! yourusername: come on, gusy! He isn't so old! He's just... 50? fernandoalo_oficial: I'M NOT 50! NEITHER OLD! landonorris: yes, you are. carlossainz55: Yes, you are. You were my idol when I was young, now, I compete against you... do your math, old man! yourusername: OMG! I'D FORGOTTEN THAT! Yes, you're old, baby. fernandoalo_oficial: That's not what you say when I'm on top of you, nena. 😉 landonorris: 😮 carlossainz55: 😮 yourusername: I don't know what you're talking about. fernandoalo_oficial: oh, really? I recall last Sunday when you were screaming my name, "Oh, Nando, please, more, more!" landonorris: 😮 carlossainz55: 😮 charles_leclerc: 😮 danielricciardo: 😮 yukitsunoda0511: 😮 maxverstappen1: 😮 yourusername: well, I need to remember... Do you want to help me remember? 😏 fernandoalo_oficial: of course, nena! I'm heading to the bedroom! roscoelovescoco: 😮

[arjwrites]

Back On the Beach- Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: Reader and the Winchesters find themselves at the beach for a rare day off after a long string of difficult hunts. Something about the special day changes things forever. Warnings: Some language and angst but nothing crazy. A/N: Nothing heals my heart more than a happy Dean Winchester. Hope you enjoy <3 Another hunt was in the books. That was the third one this week- you'd lost track beyond that. You and the Winchesters had definitely been “cranking and ganking,” as Dean had been calling it, but you all were exhausted to say the least. No rest for the wicked, though. When you arrived back at the motel after taking out the vamp nest, it seemed like Sam had already found another hunt, and all of you prepped to ship out in the morning.  

You woke after a near restless night, your entire body weighed down by a lack of sleep. Getting up and into the shower felt like moving through Jell-O, so you couldn’t even imagine how Sam and Dean felt. Even more so Dean, who had blamed himself for one of the casualties of last night’s hunt. Before climbing into your bed the night before, you had given him a tight hug. “We can’t save everyone,” you reminded him with a gentle whisper. But you still heard him pacing the whole night- he didn’t so much as sit, let alone lay down and close his eyes. So you were up all night, partially from worry and partially because of the noise he was making. And if you had been kept up, you knew Sam had been too. That’s why you were surprised to hear some particularly chipper laughter and discussion between the two boys as you emerged from the shower. 

“Y/N! Bobby took over that case I found last night. He was in the area, so I guess we have a day off. I was thinking we could just take the time to get some rest, but Jimmy Buffet over here wants to hit the beach,” laughed Sam, hucking a packed bag into Dean’s chest. Dean caught it with a huff before holding it out to one side in order to show off his ensemble. 

“Hey, when in Margaritaville, right? How often do we get a case somewhere like this, huh? Let’s live a little.” 

Dean was decked out in Hawaiian patterned swim trunks clearly purchased from the tourist shop down the street, complete with a towel around his neck and a pair of gas station sunglasses. He was right, how often were you taking cases in Florida (seriously, enough freaky shit goes on there, yet somehow none of it is supernatural)? Your first instinct was to laugh, because he looked ridiculous, but simultaneously, your heart soared. To see Dean getting excited about something so mundane as a little beach trip was a small miracle. Things hadn’t been easy on the road recently, and it seemed like Dean had taken the brunt of it- the guilt, the sleepless nights, the long, long hours. It always hurt you to see the way he took it all, never giving himself any kindness or time to relax. So for you, it was an easy choice to humor him a little. And after a bit of convincing Sam (okay, maybe you and Dean begging and annoying the crap out of him), you got him on board too. 

 After remedial stops at the tourist shop for swimsuits for you and Sam, and the gas station for beer, sunglasses, and the sunscreen you insisted on (“Dean Winchester I have seen you take on some scary shit, so help me God, skin cancer will not be the thing that takes you out”), your crew finally found their way down to the water. And from the moment you stepped foot in the sand, the gentle crash of the waves washed the worries from your minds. It was rare day when you three could be normal. Normal people at the beach, with no monsters to kill, no world to save, no burdens weighing you down. 

It had been a picture perfect beach day. Seriously, Dean made sure you all got the full experience. He had picked up beach chairs and towels and a football for him and Sam to toss back and forth. You sat reclined in one of the chairs, reading a book (a non-lore book, you couldn’t remember the last time you read for pleasure) and watching over the boys, laughing at their interactions. After zoning into your story for a while, you lost track of the boys. Figuring they had gone exploring down the beach, you let yourself fall entirely engrossed in the cheesy romance you were reading. They didn’t call them beach reads for nothing! The protagonist was finally alone with the love interest, who was about to lean in for a kiss, until- the book went flying out of your hand, and you went flying over Dean’s shoulder. 

“HEY! Put me down!” Your words seemed frustrated, but your tone was anything but.

Dean raced down to the ocean as you bounced rhythmically off of his strong back. You playfully whacked at him in protest, but it was no use. Finally deep enough into the water, Dean gracefully slid you into his arms and tossed you under. After catching your bearings and emerging from the surf, you surveyed the scene. There was Sam, laughing his ass off. Dean held a smug look, arms crossed and a teasing smile. And you, now soaking wet, caught completely by surprise.

“I will KILL you Dean Winchester!” You ran after him, laughing and splashing. While you had chased down plenty of adversaries recently, there was something about this enemy that was compelling- pretty cute, even. 

That was the rest of your afternoon. Playing in the surf, munching on soggy gas station sandwiches, sharing a few beers, and your constant nagging at the boys to reapply sunscreen. Though none of you ever spoke it aloud, there was a shared agreeance that this was so nice. That it was a luxury to feel normal and that in that moment, you three were the luckiest in the world. And it was so fulfilling to sneak a glance at Dean and see him smiling, really smiling. You let your gaze linger, snapping a mental image and filing it away to remember for when things got tough again. You wished you could give him this peace more often.

The sun was setting on your perfect day, but the three of you remained on the beach, stalling the oncoming nightfall and thus, the return to your reality. After a serene while, Sam rose from his chair, wrapping a towel around himself and throwing you and Dean a knowing look.

“Alright, I’m going to head back to the motel and start packing our stuff. You guys stay down here a little longer.”

So there the two of you sat, side by side, leaned back in the chairs, toes dipping into the still-warm sand. You weren’t sure if the subtle pink of Dean’s cheeks was the beginnings of a sunburn or the effects of the day’s alcohol drawing the blood to his face. Warm, tipsy, sunkissed, happy. This was a Dean you wish you could get used to. 

“Thanks for taking us here today, Dean. It was a really great idea.” A soft smile graced your face as you reached your hand out, resting it on top of his own. 

Your voice drew Dean’s gaze over to you, and the look on his face triggered a pang of hurt in your chest. Though his lips were drawn in a tight smile, his eyes slightly watered and held in them all of the angst of the last few years. It was as if you could see each harrowing memory in their glassy reflection.

“What if we just stayed?” Dean asked, already knowing the answer. His question hung in the air for a moment without a repsonse. You couldn’t stay, you both knew that. There were always going to be people to save and things to hunt. Still, you deserved some peace every now and then. And that was all you wanted to give Dean in this moment- some peace. You wove your fingers into his and pulled him to his feet, meeting him with an embrace. He wrapped his arms around you and continued.

“Obviously we can’t. But, what if we did. You, me, Sammy. We could do this every day. I mean, we’d have to get jobs, but even that would feel like a day at the beach compared to… everything else. We’d be so happy,” he sighed.

“We’re hunters, Dean. We’ve gotta make our own happy.” 

“You make me happy.”

That was all you ever asked for. Dean Winchester, in your arms, happy- and because of you, no less. In that moment, you decided that this would be your own personal slice of heaven. A moment you could return to as often as you wanted- something that could never be taken from you. A perfect instance that could remain untouched by the horrors of your world. Everything in this difficult life had lead up to this moment, and every day from here on out you would exist in a world in which you made Dean happy. 

With the kind of sweetness that brought tears to your eyes, Dean brought his hand to your cheek, cupped it gently as if it were the most precious thing in the world, and joined his lips with yours. They fit in the way you always knew they would, and the touch sparked the feeling you had always imagined it would. It wasn’t nerves or butterflies. It was so incredibly tranquil. Kissing Dean, finally kissing Dean, felt like bathing your troubles away in the ocean. The hurt, blood, sweat, and tears pooled off of you, and you felt clean, new, at peace. You knew that this wouldn’t fix everything, for either of you. Both of you had your demons, and you’d both be facing plenty more. But from this point on, you could return to this moment- return to each other, and feel your worries wash away. You could come back to the beach for a short while, and things would be okay. You could make your own happy, together.

[gaydaroreilly]

Fleshing out left Mav and my brain went WHAT IF DUKE FLEW IN KOREA TOO AND ENDED UP AT MASH 4077? He got injured in a dog fight, ended up getting fixed up by Hawkeye and became besties with the crew (Cus just imagine Mav with uncles Hawkeye and Trapper and Radar??? and they talk about all the shit that’s the American military. He comes home disenchanted and yet he’s stuck because he’s required to serve in Vietnam.

He makes it home by the skin of his teeth, but he’s fucking angry and done and raises anti-war activist Pete, and brings him to visit his weird commie lefty doctor buddies out East. They spend a lot of time in Maine with Hawk and Trap, especially after Pete’s mom dies of cancer when he’s 10. Pete’s especially close with his ‘cousin’ Carol MacIntyre (Trapper’s daughter who he raises with his ACTUALLY JUST PROFESSIONAL yesverygay partner Hawkeye).

Pete and Duke do their father-son bonding over planes and cars and bikes. Duke does flying lessons and hits up airshows and buys a mechanic shop that he operates with Pete’s help. They do good work for fair prices and they are a community pillar in their small town. Pete starts flying as soon as he can and is an infamously brave sport pilot and folks start calling him Maverick. He goes to college to get a degree in mechanical engineering and there he meets NROTC student Nick Bradshaw. . .

Pete is very cautious cus the navy owns Nick a little, but they become best friends and Nick is pretty bummed he thought his only option for school was through the “service”. With Pete taking him up in planes Nick decides to go for aviation. Ends up becoming a RIO called Goose and also a husband to Carol and dad to Bradley (all in very quick succession). Goose plans to quit the navy as soon as his contract is up (Hawkeye makes him swear on life before the shotgun wedding).

Idk should I write this wild crossover lol?

[royal-confessions]

“I love Kate & I'm glad she's recovering, but honestly I don't like any of the videos that have been released of hers in these recent months. All of the videos seem too weird, awkward, disingenuous & unnecessary. I'm dealing with an illness myself & I can't imagine posing for the camera like that, it's so bizarre! acting like an out-of-touch celebrity. Should've just released simple statements or spoken normally on TV, instead of the awful attention-seeking short films she had filmed by a crew.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“Kate's new video is so cringe and over top. Seriously what's the link between the images and her message? She simply should have done a talking video, looking straight at the camera, with William and the kids joining her at the end. She would have looked so much more genuine. But between her looking toughtful or frolicking with William, she looks like a content creator who's romanticizing her life.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“That video that the BRF released of Kate being cancer-free looks like they took a note out of Queen Rania book. You have to admit that’s something the JRF would do. I was getting second hand embarrassment just watching it. Those fake candid moments is something I’ll see from family vloggers on YouTube not from a Royal Family. Safe to say the whole thing was a failure the statement was enough we want to see back working not relaxing while living off the working class.” - Submitted by Anonymous

“The video of Kate free from chemo is beautiful, I'm happy for her, but it's become obvious what KP's approach is. After the H&M documentary about them being formal and the royal family having a reputation for being cold, now W&K want to appear romantic, something they NEVER showed in public (William is the guy who kisses Kate on the cheek come on).” - Submitted by Anonymous

“I love love love princess Kate and I’m glad she is doing better but that video, phew 😅 it was so incredibly unnatural and while I did enjoy the voice over, it was painfully cringe to watch, couldn’t finish it, deada$$ made me feel embarrassed to be a royal fan. 😟” - Submitted by Anonymous

“let me just start off by saying that I love Kate and glad she's getting better. but something feels off about her recent video. it lacks the same impact that the one from a few months ago where she announced her diagnosis did. but I cant put my finger on what it is.” - Submitted by Anonymous

[quillthrillswriting]

i never ever stop thinking about sokka and yue. THEM.

also ASTRONAUT SOKKA. PLEASE AND THANK YOU.

presenting: "There's a Star-Man, Waiting In The Sky," by quillthrills on ao3

a flash-fiction atla modern AU in which yue passes away from cancer early in life, and sokka becomes an astronaut so that he can go to space and be close to the moon she always loved so much ☾

୧‿̩͙ ˖︵  ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ︵˖ ‿̩͙୨

“Y’know,” Yue turned back to Sokka, smiling softly, her features bathed softly in starlight. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be up there, alongside the moon.” She reached down, gently picking up another chocolate dipped strawberry, her arm of silver bracelets clanking together.

“Not sure how much I’d trust you in space.” Sokka raised an eyebrow as he leaned in to kiss away the spot of chocolate caught in the edge of Yue’s full lips. He shot her a teasing grin. “Looks like you can’t even properly finish your food.”

She shot him a glare, shoving him sideways onto the picnic blanket. “You know what I mean.” Her eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment as she gazed up at the moon. “Can’t you imagine how beautiful it must be up there?”

“Yeah,” Sokka almost whispered the words, his eyes never leaving her face. “It must be breathtaking .”

Yue turned back to him again, her brow slightly creased now, as her once-soft tone became strained. “When I die, I hope to go up there.”

“That won’t be for a long time.” Sokka had intended the words to be decisive, but his voice shook as his eyes drifted back at the white-and-blue paper bracelet around Yue’s too-thin wrist, the hospital blotting out the stars behind them.

She only tipped her head, smiled in that sympathetic, selfless way she had. “I will, Sokka. You know I will.” She raised that same bracelet-wearing arm skyward, her fingers tracing the moon in a soft caress. “And when I do, you’ll find me up there .”

୧‿̩͙ ˖︵  ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ︵˖ ‿̩͙୨

Sokka adjusted his helmet, his gloved, bulky hands reaching out to the button- speckled dashboard before him. He moved his way across the sparkling lights as if he’d been born aboard a spacecraft, but his hands still shook. They’d been shaking since he’d awoken that day.

It felt as though he’d been anxious to arrive since he and the other astronauts had boarded three days before. He’d been counting down the hours meticulously, pacing back and forth, so much so that another one of the crew members, Suki, had warily suggested he take a couple extra hours rest that night. When he did sleep, it was dreamless, light.

The first time Sokka had felt truly awake was when that beautiful silver sphere of light and crystalline rock drifted into view of the viewport early that morning. Since then, he’d been glowing with excitement, fighting tears with every minute. With every mile they came closer, and he could swear he saw her, her smile, her lips, her essence in the hills and valleys of the moon ahead. Yue’s photo was tucked into the frame of his helmet, and in the corner of his eye, he swore he could see her smile softly at him as the ship finally began landing procedure. With the gentle whoosh of the airlock, Sokka finally allowed himself a moment to cry.

As heavy boots pressed into the dust and rocks of the almost untouched heavenly body, a boy wept, reunited with the love of his life once more, if only for a moment.

check out this fic, and the rest of my works, on ao3 here ->

[ahedderick]

MIL

   My husband is the only boy in his family, and has three sisters. All of them married before he met me. You can imagine the trepidation I felt upon meeting his mother for the first time. Only boy? Oh boy 😳

   Oh. my god. We pulled up outside his sister’s house. I’m not just meeting his parents for the first time, I’m meeting the Whole Crew. They come streaming out of the house, all twelve of them, led by Carollee. She flings her arms open to embrace me. She already loves me. I am just what the doctor ordered. Perfect. Everybody else in the family just saluted Carollee and did what she said (as per usual custom.)

   I was boggled to say the least. (also wondering if anybody in my family would want to. take notes or anything? Copy this behavior at all? No?) That woman proceeded to treat me like I was God’s specialest princess for the next nine years, until her untimely death from cancer.

   I think about her a lot as I meet my kids’ boy or girlfriends, and as I get ready to let go of them as they move toward independence. She was a role model. We’re not Jewish, but the phrase “may her memory be a blessing” is an excellent way to describe it. I think of her when I pull out the recipes she wrote down for me, or tell the kids family stories. Grandmom wrote this down when Dad was nine. Look how nice her handwriting was. She loved gardens and flowers. She was nosy and watched her neighbors a little too closely. She loved to sew and knit. She had a Baltimore accent. She lived a small life and made a fuss over her grandchildren. She lived. We lost her twenty years ago. Her memory is a blessing.

[tadc-confessions]

Tbh, I feel like if any of the TADC crew were boss fights, Sun and Moon would be an ABSOLUTE NIGHTMARE to fight thanks to the fact that game devs could easily weaponize greek mythos along with astrology to make the bosses rage inducing.

For Sun, I feel like the idea of Felinthropy (basically werewolves but with cats) could be easily used as a phase transition if the boss were to have multiple phases as the zodiac that rules the sun is Leo (The Lion) and for fighting style, I feel like a Mixed Melee/Ranged fighting style would work since Zeus is the greek god that rules Leo

For Moon, I feel like a good inspiration for the Zodiac part (Cancer, the crab) would be King K Rool's breakable belly armor gimmick from Super Smash Brothers Ultimate due to crab shells and King K Rool's belly acting as shields for their bodies so the same can be easily applied to Moon. For fighting style, Ranged all the way since the greek deity that rules the moon is Artemis who is often depicted possessing a bow and arrow (A ranged weapon)

Either way, both Sun and Moon would give Cuphead or Dark Souls a run for their money if they had boss fights in TADC.

holy

fucking

SHIT

If Sun & Moon started duking it out GLITCH would FOR SUREEEE turn that into a video game /HJ

Imagine loading up Xbox, and the game you open:

THE AMAZING DIGITAL CIRCUS: Sun vs Moon

i would scream and throw anything not of value out of happiness 🤩🤩

Y’all my bets are on Sun 🙌🤭 my money’s on Sun

[loominggaia]

FUTURE LG STORIES EXPOSED: PART 4

—> Part 1

—> Part 2

--> Part 3

Please click the Part 1 link above for a full explanation. The following text contains MAJOR SPOILERS for the Looming Gaia series. For this reason I will place it under a cut.

Read at your own discretion!

Fractured Freelancer - The Freelance Good Guys are invited to Jelani and Azura’s wedding in Uekoro. This is a huge event with guests from all over Looming Gaia. Many fun antics are had at the palace. The crew is surprised to see Annagrok there, who is working security for the event. Her mouth cancer has been treated and she’s doing much better, but she lost her ability to speak. Javaan finds her attractive and keeps trying to get her attention, but for once, a woman is not interested in him. This is a huge blow to his ego and he can’t let it go. Annagrok instead has her eyes on Balthazaar, and she flirts with him throughout the night. Since she can’t speak, her flirtations are quite overt and really get Balthazaar’s attention.

After the wedding, Jelani hosts the FGG in Uekoro for a couple weeks. He knows a lot of people are mad about his marriage to an Evangelite noble, and there may be some attempts on Azura’s life, so he feels better having the FGG around as extra security until people settle down. During this time, Javaan keeps trying to get Annagrok to go out with him. He’s fallen for her like he’s never fallen for a woman before, and it hurts that she won’t give him the time of day. Meanwhile his jealousy and resentment grows as he watches her and Balthazaar grow closer. Before they return home, Javaan asks Annagrok for her contact information so he can write to her, but she refuses. This really upsets him. When they get back to the Hollow, he’s even more upset when he finds out that she gave Balthazaar her information. Javaan asks Balthazaar for her address and he withholds it, telling him to leave her alone and take the rejection like a man.

Javaan suddenly blows up at him, telling Balthazaar he was a terrible husband to Feredil and won’t be any better to Annagrok. In a fit of anger, he confesses that he had an affair with Feredil because he felt sorry for her. This enrages Balthazaar and the two get into a brawl. Evan breaks up the fight, but it’s not over. Balthazaar tells Evan that one of them must leave, because he will not work with this disrespectful jerk any longer. Javaan agrees. Evan begs them to reconcile their differences, but they refuse, and Javaan decides to quit the Freelance Good Guys because he “doesn’t belong” with them. Nothing the crew says can stop him, and they sadly watch him leave Drifter’s Hollow.

Calloused Hearts - Lilian has been taking cooking lessons with Ginger, but is getting frustrated at her own incompetence and emotional problems. Ginger suggests that the Order of Love and Light might be able to give her the help she needs to become a stronger person. Itchy escorts Lilian to the temple in Taybiya, where he learns that High Priestess Hope has been replaced by a minervae named Gratitude. Patience tells Itchy they have a lot on their plates since Hope was kidnapped and she’s not sure they can accept another lost soul right now. But Itchy says Lilian already has nursing experience, which is a requirement for all priestesses, and this convinces Patience to take her on as a student.

Lilian stays at the temple and learns about Karenza’s scriptures. She’s truly passionate about helping people, so Patience decides to take her to a mission in Yerim-Mor Kingdom, which has been getting brutalized harder than ever since Disgrace awakened. Lilian is tasked with caring for children in an orphanage. Taking care of them puts her own childhood in perspective, and she suddenly understands the gravity of Dario’s cruelty, as she can’t imagine ever treating these children the way he treated her.

One day, the orphanage is unexpectedly raided by Crescent Cult troops, who kidnap Lilian and the children and begin dragging them through the desert to an agony farm. Along the journey, Lilian witnesses the way Goryx abuses Wretch and feels pity for them. They arrive at the agony farm. Goryx is now armed with a Staff of Agony of his own, and he taunts Lilian with it, telling her he’s going to save her for last so she can watch him torture all of the children first. Lilian catches him unawares and snatches his staff away. He’s shocked that she can somehow hold it without the agony crippling her, and she uses its power to transform into a giant, monstrous bat-form. She attacks the cultists and destroys the agony farm. Goryx and the rest of the stragglers retreat, but Wretch gets abandoned in the chaos.

Lilian transforms back into her elven form, now with Goryx’s staff in her possession. She approaches Wretch, cowering on the ground, and offers to take them back to town with her and the children. When they return, they find Patience and the Morite authorities gathered at the orphanage. Patience apologizes profusely and tells Lilian they will be relocating the children, then she’ll take Lilian straight back to Taybiya. Lilian agrees to go as long as Wretch can go with her.

Back in Taybiya, Lilian and Wretch make fast friends. Lilian thinks “Wretch” is a mean name, so she calls them “Buddy” and they seem to like it. She then decides she wants to change her name too, because Lilian is the name Dario forced on her, and he doesn’t get to make decisions for her anymore. From now on, she wants to be Lily, because that’s the name her mother gave her. High Priestess Gratitude is proud of Lily for her courage in Yerim-Mor and awards her the title of junior priestess. Her assignment is now to care for Buddy and teach them the ways of Love and Light.

Cosmic Surf - The Freelance Good Guys are mid-battle with some bonewalkers when Jeimos screws up a teleportation spell. They teleport poorly and smack into another teleportationist in the slipstream. Jeimos does not return, but instead, a minervae named Courage flies out of their portal. She makes quick work of the bonewalkers and explains to the FGG that their friend could be anywhere in the world, or even in another realm. She agrees to help them find Jeimos, but says it’s risky to teleport more than one person at a time. Evan can’t go because his leg is made of iron, so Isaac volunteers in his place.

Meanwhile, Jeimos finds themselves exploring different celestial realms as they desperately try to find their way back to Gaia. Courage and Isaac hop realms in search of them, until they eventually find each other. Isaac encounters some of the realms and celestial beings from his dreams and realizes they are, in fact, very real. Courage escorts Jeimos and Isaac back to their friends. She seems to know something about Karenza, but of course she’s reluctant to tell Isaac. He’s just grateful she backs him up when he tells the crew his dreams have been real this whole time. They finally believe him when he says he’s been astral-projecting into different realms his whole life.

More parts to come���

(I just want to mention that even if you’ve read these, you haven’t been 100% spoiled. A LOT of details and B-plots are missing from these summaries!)

*

Questions/Comments?

Lore Masterpost

Read the Series

[paperstorm]

Re the TK and Owen gifset, I really think this is something that deserves to be talked about more. I can tell you that watching someone you love go through addiction is the most painful thing. I can't imagine how it would be for a parent. And for someone like Owen especially who's already gone through so much loss and tragedy and who we all know hates feeling helpless and out of control (much like Carlos) and so for him to have to see his son like that and have to be in a position where he needs to ask him if he was trying to kill himself (and I don't think Owen fully believed TK when he said no) and for all of that to happen so suddenly when he thought everything was fine and right after he's found out he has cancer from the same event that already haunts him and led to him losing even more. I really think we as a fandom need to acknowledge more just how hard all of this would be on Owen and I'd also really like for his pov on TK's addiction to be explored more and to see their relationship explored more that way

Owen's trauma in general gets dismissed a lot and I think it makes him such a fascinating and sympathetic character. He has spent his entire life pinned down with the heaviest survivor's guilt I can even imagine. He blames himself for the death of his brother when he was a child, he blames himself for his parents splitting up, he lost his entire crew in one of the largest and most violent tragedies in human history, he lost the love of his life because of it, he put on a brave face through the pain of watching his only child go down the path of addiction and mental illness and watched that resilient kid pull himself out of that black hole only to have to walk into an apartment and find him flatlining on the floor. Owen has truly been through more than most people would be able to cope with and he hasn't handled any of it textbook perfectly because he's a human and none of us handle hard things perfectly but he's come out of it smiling and strong and unafraid of loving people. He saved TK's life. He brought Marjan and Paul to Austin because he saw past things that maybe other people wouldn't have, to the amazing people they are at their core. He didn't give up on Judd when he was going through his own PTSD. HE identified that Mateo had a learning disability and created a situation where he could thrive when others would have dismissed him. He saw pain in his son's new boyfriend and a need to be shown that it's possible to be masculine while still being soft and he gave that to Carlos. I really do love Owen. He can be frustrating at times but he doesn't get the love he deserves and his lifetime of trauma is constantly minimized because it's easier to dislike him if you don't have to consider his humanity.

[tanadrin]

What type of genetic engineering have the humans of the Sogant Raha universe done to themselves for the long ship journeys? For example, I could imagine tweaks like can "produce vitamin C" (and maybe other vitamins) or "increased production of essential amino acids" would help with a lot of dietary problems (which would also be supplemented by engineered food sources). Anything else (visual spectral acuity, mutation resistance)?

A big class of genetic alterations necessary to survive particularly in the interstellar phase of civilizations involves low-gravity adaptation and a slower metabolism. The human body being able to develop properly in microgravity and not suffer precipitous loss of bone density means you don't have to have large rotating sections on your spaceship, which makes building interstellar craft much easier from an engineering standpoint. And it makes them much lighter, which is important when trying to cover massive distances using rockets! Other important genetic alterations are going to include resistance to non-infectious diseases (infectious diseases are pretty easy to control when your environment is entirely artificial), like cancer and degenerative diseases of the brain and nervous system.

Depending on the branch of humanity we're talking about, and how far into the exile, some of the alterations were more dramatic--radiation resistance, adaptation to low-pressure environments, major morphological adaptations (say, toward something more resembling our arboreal cousins, handy in low-gravity environments), and optional or even obligate parthenogenetic reproduction. Some, but by no means all of these genetic alterations would be reversed or the underlying genes silenced during the planetary phase of civilization. By the late exile, genetic engineering is skillful enough in some branches that you might have human populations for whom extended periods in microgravity automatically triggers a reactivation of spacefaring adaptations.

When it comes to the people of Ammas Echor specifically, a couple of generations after the ship had been launched from Rauk, almost all of its inhabitants were adapted genetically and physically to spacefaring life. This was mostly down to records of genetic engineering technology preserved aboard its predecessor Gyandamantu, which meant that the Ammas Echor's passengers didn't have to rediscover all of that themselves, but it was also down to a heavy utilization of cybernetic augmentation in addition to genetic alteration--these augmentations improved strength, helped regulate the metabolism, allowed for long-term hibernation to conserve resources, and helped to both avoid and heal major injuries, such that most of the ship's crew enjoyed a healthy lifespan centuries long, and many longer.

But few of these changes made it into the planetary population of Sogant Raha, since they represented overspecialization toward life in space--during the last century or so of final approach, the Archive considered reverting toward the more baseline form that had been common at Rauk. Attention also had to be paid to areas which had been long neglected by the genetic science of the Exile, like the immune system. Ultimately, the last couple of generations raised as they approached Kdjemmu were in some ways significant throwbacks--they possibly erred in reverting too far toward the baseline, but they were understandably worried about having children that would be totally unsuited to life in a complete, naturally-evolved biosphere.

The spacefaring type didn't go extinct overnight, though. Besides being long-lived, the Archive needed members to remain aboard the ship while it was in orbit and keep things running even as colonization began, and it was projected that the Ammas Echor would be the center of Sogantine civilization for a few centuries at least. Those Archivists who did venture to the surface had to do so in heavy environmental support suits. And when the ship was lost, the handful that remained would have lost the ability to maintain those suits if they broke down, much less create new ones.

Once the final Archivists of the spacefaring type died out, the Sogantine population would have been pretty close to present-day humans for the most part, with some key differences. Visually, they did not resemble any particular phenotype familiar to us. They lacked a propensity to most common genetic diseases familiar to us (though some of these, or new ones, might show up again in subsequent centuries). They were better adapted to childbirth--this is something Exile geneticists had worked hard at fixing, and weren't about to inflict on their children again--meaning much lower baseline maternal mortality rates. And the frequency of really negative recessive traits was reduced, meaning that despite being pretty genetically homogeneous during the Settlement period, the small population size was not as deleterious to long-term health as might otherwise be expected.

Sixty thousand years is a long time--long enough for plenty of new phenotypes to arise and for a moderate degree of divergence between widely-separated populations--but even quite late in the timeline, Sogant Raha mostly has less genetic diversity than Earth does today. Not that there aren't exceptions--the Dappese are outliers, far enough removed from other populations that pairings with them produce markedly lower fertility rates, and I haven't even begun to touch on the Cloud-Faced People.

[sasster]

many sweeps ago Maelia

No problem, Spec.

Memories

—

The walkie talkie on his left crackles to life.

It would have caught him off guard if the troll on the other end hadn’t elected it their primary form of communication during the workday since the day he wrestled it up for her. Her addition to his crew certainly livened up the place in a way he hadn’t expected of her assignment.

“Fledge to Mothership,” her voice fills the space of the crackling. “Come in Mothership. Over.”

Maelia smiles to himself as he takes the walkie into his hand.

“Go for Mothership.”

There is a beat of silence.

“You have to say over. Over.”

“Go for Mothership,” he amends, barely containing his humor. “Over.”

“Are there any threats in the vicinity? Over.”

Maelia pauses to take a sweeping glance across his office. He has no meetings scheduled today, and Petrix is off delegating some task to someone.

No threats.

“Only if you count lung cancer. Over.”

There is another beat of silence. He can just imagine the poorly contained giggle fit she must be battling against in response.

“Alright. Payload incoming,” she finally says. “It’s keylime. Over and out.”

[medicus-mortem]

Anonymous asked: Hmmm, considering Law has a nice full goatee and sideburns but no chest hair... does he wax his chest?? I imagine he has a pretty intensive skin care routine. Unprompted

My knee jerk reaction to this question was 'It's anime. Everyone is smooth and hairless.' But I have actually put some thought into this since getting the question.

So, I think naturally Law has a moderate amount of chest hair. I've said before that Law has the ability to grow a full beard but it'll take time and have to get past a stage of patchy growth first, but he can do it. Because of that I don't think he's particularly hairy else where. Like, it's a normal amount of hair growth. Nothing bushy and crazy.

Before getting his chest tattoo he didn't really care too much about his chest hair. It's just natural and there is no medical reason to wax it. In fact, waxing can be damaging to the skin if not done with moisturisers and such. But, after he got his chest tattoo Law decided he wanted nothing to obscure this tribute to his saviour. Which meant removing any hair growth and because Law's power lets him modify his own body Law performed a Room assisted operation that involved him removing every hair follicle from his chest. So he is hairless but he wasn't born that way.

As for why he doesn't do that elsewhere, for example, keeping his goatee perfect, Law likes the ritual of shaving and can't help thinking that maybe one day he'll want to grow it out.

Now, for the skin care side of this, Law does have a decent skin care routine. He of course makes sure to wear sunscreen whenever he is going to be outside because he is a doctor and cares about skin cancer concerns. Absolutely forces his crew to do the same. He does clean himself thoroughly with soap and moisturise after. Most of his skin care focus is on his hands, as they are the most important part of him. If they're not as perfect as they can be he can't do the perfect work he desires.

[twistedminutia]

Btw, when I read your fic chapter 2: nuclear energy. You never real gone into the effects of being exposed to radiation. Mostly, it caused cancer or any type of damage to your dna. Like imagine talking about radiation in general. Like Radium girls, radiated cutlery, and the most irradiated man alive.

Especially, the last part. When the guy was hit by shitton of radiation. His cells were so damaged, that they are unable to replicate, aka self heal. When we shed dead skin cells and all that, we can do that cuz we can heal ourselves throught cellular replication. And the man can't.

If you havent heard of it. I might recommend you Wendigoon video on the topic. It gives much more detail and sympathy to the family.

No, I did focus more on the nuclear weapons in general, as opposed to specific radiation issues. I considered it, but ended up cutting it because I couldn’t make Gray explaining it seem natural, and I wanted to focus more on the boy’s horror being that nuclear technology needed to become that advanced in Gray’s world in the first place, as opposed to it just being because of the horrors of radiation in general.

Adding to that, they do know about radiation sickness in Twst, or at least, in my headcanon they do. They still have stuff like X-rays. They never hit the point of radium girls or anything, but at least Riddle is aware of how dangerous mismanaged radiation is. And I do know about the effects of radiation on people. It just didn’t work for the chapter. When I tried to write it, Gray came across as if she was deliberately trying to freak them out, which I didn’t like for her character. I might touch on it again later, maybe with the Diasomnia crew? Might be funny to discuss something like that with them.

[subaerial-dweller]

My writing isn't working, and I'm not the best at drawing, so I'm just going to gift the world my ideas about the other people in Generation Loss Episode 2, because we all deserve that.

PART ONE: AUSTINSHOW

I have very specific ideas for fanart. I want to draw GL!Austin's family, like a family portrait that was obviously staged by Showfall. He doesn't know these people, those are child actors, this woman is a stereotypical blonde called Britney and does she like long walks on the beach? We don't know, we'll never know. They're all fake, but Showfall have made a bunch of things for it to make it seem normal, setting up a potential (I don't know if it exists in my genloss headcanon-verse) spin-off sitcom series about GL!Austin's family with fake laughs and the whole shebang. Like imagine, on the fridge, a child's drawing that looks just too perfect, but it's in crayon, so you can't argue, right? And on the walls, school photos, but none of them seem to age very much. And family photos, but all of them are just wrong. The whole family appears in every single photo, and they go on vacation to generic beaches, generic amusement parks, generic greenery. And they're always standing in the same exact order, in the same exact position, except on the beach one they're all holding the same flavour of ice cream. No brands visible, very "normal" clothing: GL!Austin and his sons are in shorts and a plain t-shirt, and Britney and the daughter, Sally (I think it was), they're in matching dresses, because it's all meant to be the most normal family ever and nothing ever deviates from that.

And the sitcom is about just them as a family, the very normal sitcom, like Horsin Around in BoJack Horseman, or Alexa & Katie except without the overarching storyline of Alexa having cancer. But it's wrong, everything is very wrong, because Showfall put all their budget into the main thing, and they've got lazy writers for Austin's Show (hehehehehe see what I did there :DDD). Like, in the pilot, he has seven children, but later on, he has four. Sometimes the script error means they change names, usually they're Steve, Billy, Johnny, and Sally, but sometimes someone misremembers and types in another name, and all of a sudden Sally is called Katie for two episode before the mistake is fixed. (And maybe they cannot deviate off the script, at all, so the actors can't point out it's changed). Also, the person who plays Britney keeps quitting, so she keeps getting replaced by different actors, which is where the joke about having "many wives" comes in.

But also, maybe it's not a sitcom. It's just their life, except it's not, because it's scripted and fake, but they can't escape from it, just like how GL!Ranboo can't escape from The Social Experiments. They're made to perform exactly right every time, but something can't catch with Britney's actor, so she keeps being discarded and replaced. And they don't have time to have little Sally draw pictures to put on the fridge, so the crew does it instead, with perfectly straight stick figures and round heads and a neat little signature even though she's like four years old. The school photos are all the actor's headshots but with different uniforms Photoshopped onto them.

[duck-in-a-spaceship]

say it back

More House M.D. fanfic! This time with ~chapters~ Also, this is mostly pre-written, so I should update pretty regularly. It's just four chapters, but if anyone wants to be tagged in future updates, lmk

Summary: What if when House tells Wilson he loves him, Wilson says it back?

Well, naturally they turn to humor until “I love you”, “I love you too” becomes the most convoluted, gayest inside joke ever. And then of course they realize they mean it.

Word Count: 2373

Warnings: Near-death experience

Next>>

+++

Chapter 1: Diagnosing the Afterlife

House is dead.

Well, alright, he probably isn’t, but he’s definitely on his way there.

And, in a way, that was his goal, so… hooray for him. If he ends up not-dead, he’ll have to host a celebration. A celebration where he proves that the afterlife, right before it collapses into nothingness, is just his office painted in a stark white.

Every pen, every picture, every fiber of carpet has had its color sucked away. Little details, grooves on the wood and dust on his knick knacks, have been consumed by the startling lack of color. Static, the one exception in the room, fizzles on House’s computer.

Outside of his office there’s true nothingness. A void of white shines on the other side of every window, every stupid pane of glass that surrounds him. If House’s body gives up, it’s easy to imagine me might end up walking out the glass doors and disintegrating into nothing.

It’s a tempting offer, if he thinks about it for too long, so House decides not to entertain it.

Instead, he pushes himself to his feet with his cane (it’s an action of habit, he notes; no pain burns in his leg) and crosses the room to his whiteboard.

“Alright team.” House addresses no one, uncaps the marker with a flourish. “Differential, go.”

“It’s not cancer. If it was, we wouldn’t be seeing-”

“No, not the patient.” In big, messy letters, House titles the board ‘Afterlife’. He taps the marker against the writing, turning around to face his suddenly materialized crew. Every single one of his potential employees is crammed into that room, shoulder-to-shoulder, knee-to-knee. One of the twins is sitting on the other's lap. If he looks at Big Love out of the corner of his eye, he starts to phase into Kutner. Not enough room in purgatory, apparently, for everyone to exist without physics breaking down. It was Cutthroat Bitch that felt the need to start giving him the wrong differential, and House points an accusatory marker her way. “You’re lucky that wasn’t actually you saying that, otherwise you’d be fired.”

She has the skill to look confused and offended at the same time. “That’s our patient. Who else are we supposed to be…?”

House turns back to his whiteboard.

“Right now, there’s not much I can do to help Toto and crippled Dorothy, and since none of you are real-” ‘White nothingness’, ‘Physics breakdown’ and ‘Familiar scenery’ are all added to the list as symptoms. “-there’s nothing you can do either.” The tip of his cane slams onto the ground to punctuate his point. It passes right through Taub’s foot. “Come on people! Differential!”

“You’re dead.” It’s Thirteen that pipes up that time, and House mentally fires her too.

“No I’m not. I’m almost dead. I’m on the tightrope with death, and the next person that says something stupid is going to be pushing me off.” Forget euphoria, forget the most ‘intense thing he’s ever done’, House’s version of almost dying was just a more migraine-inducing taste of reality.

“You’re having a near-death experience,” Taub corrects.

“Obvious, but not incorrect,” House grants him. “So, if this is near-death, then what’s that?” The tip of his cane moves up, through Taub, and points out the glass door into the shining abyss.

“That’s Wilson.”

“What?” House turns his head. Wilson is standing at the entrance to his office, the glass door to death still swinging closed behind him. He looks more real than anything House has seen since he stuck a knife into a socket. The applicants disappear. “Are you happy?” Wilson asks. He steps further into the room, bringing the gravitational pull of reality with him. Color flows into House’s office, shadows deepening every time Wilson’s foot hits the ground, details filling out where House hadn’t even noticed they were missing.

House blinks, and he’s suddenly seated at his desk, one foot propped up like it’s the most natural thing in the world, his cane mid-twirl in his hand. The only evidence that the past several minutes happened at all is the whiteboard still titled ‘Afterlife’, and the unnatural white still shining in from outside.

House fumbles with his cane, and it slips out of his fingers.

“Well?” Wilson demands. “Are you happy with yourself? Did you get your answer?”

“Well I was going to, if you hadn’t interrupted my differential.”

Wilson rolls his eyes. “Oh please, you were practically holding Taub’s hand. You already had your answer.” He leans down and picks up House’s cane, offering it to him by the handle. House drums his fingers on the desk, ignoring the gesture.

“Sure, but it’s more fun if you let them figure it out too. Sharing is caring, that’s what I always say.”

“House, take your damn cane.”

Well, it would be rude to turn down such a polite request. House snatches his cane from Wilson’s grip, and slams it into his foot.

“Ow! What the hell is wrong with you?!”

Huh, real enough to feel pain, even. Take that, Taub. “This is the land of near-death,” House announces.

“Was that really necessary?”

Wilson’s question goes unanswered. “And that-” House once again points towards the white void that shines outside his windows. “-is death. All that nothingness. No God, no long-lost family members, no paradise, no heaven or hell. Just nothing.”

“And do you feel better now, with your proof that every dying patient clinging onto a little bit of hope is a moron?”

“Oh for sure, real weight off my shoulders. They’ll be thrilled to hear the news.” Pain runs up and down his leg like wires carrying electricity. It feels like his foot fell asleep, and now it’s waking up again, lighting his nerves on fire. House rubs one hand over the muscles, trying to relieve some of the tension, but it only makes him realize the pain is not limited to his leg. It burns in his hand as well, tingling in the palm and spreading out to sizzle in his fingers.

“Of course! What dying person doesn’t want their final comfort taken away?” Wilson is prattling on. “You should tell them their existence was meaningless next. That’ll really… Are you okay?”

“Well, I’m about to start living again, which is annoying.”

Wilson sighs, a comfortingly familiar sound. “Better than the alternative, at least.”

“We could just compromise. No dying, no living, I’ll just stay here. Become the new Coma Guy that my replacement can use as a table for his sandwiches.”

“Why would you want to stay here? I mean, no cases to solve, no Cuddy to torture, no team to play games with. You’d hate it here. It’s nothingness, it’s banal, it’s everything you try so hard to avoid.”

“Well the lack of pain has been nice. Besides, you’re still here for me to torture. I’d have you.”

Wilson shakes his head, briefly looking up at the ceiling before his eyes settle back on House. The pain in his leg is reaching reality-levels of excruciation, and the pain everywhere else is catching up fast. It makes it hard to focus, when Wilson walks around House’s desk, when he leans down so their faces are nearly touching.

He looks like he’s about to say something. He doesn’t, so House thinks about taking up the mantle instead. There’s something to be said here, he knows that. It’s what that eludes him.

Then again, maybe there isn’t something to say, because all the sudden, Wilson is kissing him.

House’s brain has run over time again. It skipped the part where Wilson settled on his lap, stuttered over the seconds where he placed one hand on House’s cheek, ignored the moment where he moved his other to House’s leg.

They must have happened, because they are happening, but the connective tissue is gone.

House decides it’s not really worth questioning, not at the moment at least.

Imagining kissing Wilson isn’t something House has liked to make a hobby of, but if he had ever given it a shot, he probably would’ve come up with something like this. Something with soft lips, with overeager zeal, with just enough gentleness to make House want more.

After a moment, a moment too long and a moment too soon, Wilson pulls away. House doesn’t know what to do but stare up at him in shock. He’s pretty sure he’s dying, now, but he doesn’t know how to say that, either.

Wilson sighs, pulling his hand away from House’s cheek. House tries to stop him, tries to grab onto his lingering fingers, but he must grab onto his sleeve instead, his hand closing on soft fabric. One of his ears is ringing, pulsating in what sounds like high-pitched beeps.

Wilson shakes his head, at least, he probably shakes his head. It’s getting a little hard to see, through the blinding white suddenly shining through the windows.

“You’re an idiot.”

It takes a moment for those words to sink in. More accurately, it takes a moment for House to realize that Wilson has said them out loud, that the brightness he’s squinting into is not a white void, but simply the hospital’s lights shining above him, that he’s not sitting at his desk, but in a bed. God it’s bright.

“You nearly killed yourself,” Wilson continues, as if they weren’t just having an entirely different conversation, an entirely different scene.

House blinks. Wilson is dressed differently, a simple dark green shirt instead of the lab coat he was just wearing, but other than that, he’s identical to the pseudo-Wilson House was just talking to, down to his expression: frustration mixed with annoyance mixed with concern. “That was the whole idea,” House points out.

“You wanted to kill youself?”

“I wanted to nearly kill myself,” House corrects. Wilson just stares, incredulous, the concern in his expression multiplying. Which is ridiculous. He should be relieved, all things considered. Trying to nearly kill himself was much better than the alternative.

House looks away. “Is he… better?” He has bigger things to worry about than Wilson’s concern. He can’t let this experiment have been for nothing.

Wilson just shakes his head, defeated. “No, but he doesn’t have cancer. We think it might be eosinophilic pneumonia. Maybe you didn’t want to die-” Oh great, he’s back on this and he hasn’t even answered the question. “-but you didn’t care if you lived.”

“You insisted that I needed to see for myself.”

Wilson pushes away from the stand, takes a couple steps to the side. Another admission of defeat.

“Was he discharged?” House presses.

“No, he’s dying.” Wilson comes to his bedside, turning to face him. “You’ve already had two near death experiences.”

“Not that guy.” Why does everyone think House wants to talk about his patient? “The- the guy in the car accident. With the knife. I… I need to talk to him.”

“He… died almost an hour ago.” Wilson says it like it’s obvious, like he’s confused why House would even be asking. “Apparently it’s bad to electrocute yourself within days of suffering massive internal injuries.”

Goddamnit. House presses his head against his pillow, closing his eyes. The one person he might like to talk to right now, have questions for, is dead.

“Why did you need to talk to him?” House doesn’t give Wilson an answer. What the hell is he supposed to say? I diagnosed the afterlife in my office? You were there? We made out at my desk? “Did you see something?” Wilson presses, and if House was just a little less rational, he would’ve swore that Wilson knew, somehow. Knew what he had seen, had been there, even.

“Eosinophilic pneumonia.” House opens his eyes, staring up at the ceiling. It’s easier, currently, than looking at Wilson. The old, dirty tiles are a strange comfort. The blinding lights are all-too familiar.

“House? What did you see?” Wilson asks. House doesn’t need to look at his face to know he’s switched to full-blown concern; it’s practically leaking out of his vocal chords. Can’t be healthy, really, having that much care for another human being.

“Nothing,” House answers on instinct. He looks over at Wilson. “Whose idea was that?”

“Brennan. Nothing you don’t want to talk about it, or nothing-?”

“Which one’s Brennan?” House cuts him off, and they’re back to their old dance, two conversations fighting for dominance. “Is he the ridiculously old guy?”

“House, you gotta talk about this.”

“If it’s aggressive enough, it might have gotten past the steroids.” House flexes his burnt hand, testing how far he can push the pain. “Start him on cyclophosphamide.”

“I already did.” Regret taints Wilson’s voice, although House isn’t exactly sure what he’s regretting. Encouraging him to try and get a taste of the afterlife? Not being able to convince House to open up about what he saw? Becoming friends with him in the first place? “Just looking at you hurts,” he continues, grabbing the clipboard from the side of House’s bed. “I’m gonna order up some extra pain meds.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” It takes Wilson a moment, it seems, to process what he’s just said. His pen slows on the paper before stopping completely, cutting whatever he was writing off short. “I mean- ah. Well you… you know what I mean.” He starts writing again, like that will somehow do away with the pink that has spread across his cheeks.

“Do I?” House tilts his head to the side, like he’s really considering the question, like it’s really something that needs his consideration. “Honestly, I’m not sure I do. Care to elaborate?”

“You’re an ass.” Wilson glares at him, but the effect is entirely ruined by how completely flustered he is.

“And yet, you love me.”

“You said you love me too!” He gestures with the clipboard, brandishing it at House like a weapon. “I can’t-” He cuts himself off with a sigh. “I’ll come back later to make sure you haven’t found some new way to kill youself.”

“I’ll miss every second you’re away, darling!”

“Goodbye House!” The glass door clangs shuts behind him.

House smiles, looking back up to the dirtied tile and bright lights. Maybe his little brush with death wasn’t such a waste after all.