#I had a lot of fun with this one! Despite how kind of grim it is

[somegrumpynerd]

Horror's nightmare

Horror doesn't think much on his past anymore, but his nightmares often resurface the guilt he's buried about the idea that he could have prevented it all somehow, even if it came at the cost of his own life.

Thankfully, Nightmare is here to make him a hot drink to calm his nerves and promise him a visit to his brother when the sun is up, because Papyrus will always be very glad to see his brother alive and visiting (and as sleepy as ever).

[ryebread0605]

May I request a fic for Leona, please?

Reader (assumably Yuu) has a lot of cat-like behaviors that are really pretty unconscious. Things like scruffing Grim with their lips when he's being rowdy during class, grumbles that sound a lot like growling, other vocalizations, headbutting (nuzzling) & nibbling at people they're really close to, etc.

Some Beastmen find it kinda odd for a human to do?? But Leona kind of finds it endearing, especially when Reader gets closer to him & exhibits familiar behaviors from home without realizing they're lowkey courting him (and he's accepting the sweet behavior).

For the spice aspect?

Leona wants to see just how much like a cat they really are— including how they scratch at his back & growl in frustration while being edged. They may be a big cat, but he's the King of Savannaclaw. And while they're not a Beast, something tells him they'd make a good spouse who'd adjust quickly if he were to return to the Sunset Savanna.

- 🐈‍⬛ anon

I’ll do my best cat anon!! 

If you couldn’t tell, I absolutely ADORE Leona so this was a fun write!!!  (I made sure to add a cut where the smut begins!)

When he first met you, he didn’t think anything of you. Afterall, you were just another one of his classmates that he only saw the rare times he went to class. However, all that changed when he saw you interact with Grim in the greenhouse one day. 

The cat direbeast had been extra annoying that day, and although you loved him to bits, Sevens you were close to punting him. And so, to get him to stop running off and destroying stuff, you simply picked him up by his scruff with your mouth. To your surprise, and Leona’s, Grim immediately stopped misbehaving and just pouted in your grasp. 

From that day, you had gained Leona’s interest, and he noticed more little things about you that reminded him of cat beastmen like himself and Chen’ya. From bumping your head against people to show affection, gifting bones to people as a sign of friendship, and simply letting out a low warning growl at Grim whenever he misbehaved, he became convinced you were at least *part* beastman.

But no, no matter how many times he tried to find any other conclusion, you weren’t a beastman at all. However, him being interested in your behavior inadvertently got your attention on him as well. You felt yourself entranced by the way his ears would flick in irritation when chastised by Vil or how he still worked hard to maintain his unruly hair despite claiming he didn’t care how he looked.

Soon enough, he found random gifts being left at the door of his dorm room. It started small with some sticks, which he threw away thinking nothing of it. Then it progressed to small animal teeth before growing to full animal skeletons. After months, he finally caught you in the act as you left a fresh, high quality steak at his doorstep. He stared at you, arms crossed and eyebrow raised as his tail swayed in slight curiosity.

“Herbivore, what’re you doing here?” His voice was gruff, having clearly just woken from a nap judging by his mess of a mane. And yet, when things clicked in his mind, it was only a split second longer until you were tugged into his room with the door shutting behind you. 

Digging your nails into the sheets, you growled out moans as the lion prince rutted into you continuously. Your neck was covered in bite marks, showing everyone who had claimed you. Your back had cum on it from him, and yet despite him cumming twice he had refused to let you cum at all. Letting out another threatening growl as he pulled out just before you climaxed, he quickly gripped the back of your neck between his teeth just as you had done to Grim all those months ago to gain his attention. Afterall, you may act like a cute kitty but he had to remind you who truly was the one in charge here

[sunbl3achedfly]

Do the dead comfort you? Pt.1

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female Reader

Summary: On your night shift at the mortuary you discover a fresh mutilated corpse that isn’t supposed to be there, prompting the FBI’s arrival.

Content: Dead bodies, like lots of dead bodies (you're a mortician), stalking, murder, dark humour, reader is a little gothic and macabre, first time reader and Spencer meet, Spencer thinks she’s weird at first but his curiosity leads to him finding her endearing, reader is not used to socializing and has questionable coping mechanisms

Author's note: I’ve literally had this idea for months and needed to get it out of my system.

3,038 words

part two

masterlist

The hum of the mortuary’s refrigeration units was usually a comfort, but today, it felt unnervingly loud. The body wasn’t where it was supposed to be, and the one in its place looked like something out of a horror film—freshly dead, blood-soaked, and carved like a grotesque work of art.

You leaned back against the counter as the FBI agents filed in, their presence slicing through the eerie silence. The group was sharp, purposeful, and clearly used to handling chaos. Among them, one man immediately stood out.

He was tall, maybe six-foot-one, with tousled brown hair that looked like it had lost a battle with a comb. His dark blazer was slightly too big for his lean frame, and the way he adjusted his satchel strap every few seconds hinted at his slight nervous energy. But it was his eyes that caught your attention—warm and endlessly curious, darting around the room like they were cataloging every detail. He looked like he’d stepped out of a library and into a crime scene.

“Dr. Spencer Reid,” he said, his voice soft but deliberate as he approached you. His eyes lingered for a moment on your dark hair, the chipped edges of your blood-red nail polish, and the subtle skull pendant hanging around your neck. You could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he formed some unspoken observation.

“I’m the one who found the body,” you said, crossing your arms. His gaze flicked to your black long-sleeve shirt, noticing the faint wrinkles near the cuffs from where you’d been tugging at them earlier.

Spencer tilted his head slightly, studying you like you were just as much a puzzle as the case itself. “You work here?” he asked, though the answer was obvious.

You raised an eyebrow. “No, I just hang out in mortuaries for fun. Great ambiance.”

His lips twitched, the hint of a smile betraying his otherwise serious demeanor. “Right.” He glanced at the body, his tone growing more professional. “You said you found the body when you came in for your night shift?”

“Yes,” you replied. “This drawer was supposed to have a heart attack victim I was preparing for burial. Middle-aged woman, very boring. When I opened it today, this was waiting for me.” You gestured toward the bloodied body on the table, your voice calm despite the grim subject matter.

Spencer’s eyes followed your gesture, narrowing slightly as he examined the victim. “You’re certain this wasn’t here yesterday?”

“Dead certain,” you said without thinking, then winced. “Sorry. That wasn’t—I cope with dark humor. Occupational hazard, I guess.”

Spencer glanced at you, his expression softening. “I understand. It’s… not uncommon in this line of work.”

You studied him for a moment, noticing how his slight awkwardness seemed at odds with his sharp intelligence. He had an air of vulnerability about him, but there was also something strikingly self-assured in the way he analyzed everything around him. You wondered how someone like him—bright-eyed and endearingly earnest—handled the kind of darkness he must face every day.

“Do you recognize him?” Spencer asked, gesturing to the body.

You shook your head. “No. Never seen him before. And no one else has access to this section of the mortuary after hours. I locked everything up before I left last night. Whoever put him here must’ve known what they were doing to sneak it in.”

Spencer nodded, his gaze flicking between the cuts on the victim’s body. “The precision of these wounds… they were made deliberately. Whoever did this wasn’t in a hurry. They wanted us to notice the details.”

“Well, mission accomplished,” you said dryly, folding your arms. “They’ve got everyone’s attention now.”

Spencer glanced at you again, his expression unreadable but thoughtful. “You seem very calm for someone who just found… this.”

You gave a small shrug, brushing a strand of black hair out of your face. “It’s not the first time I’ve seen something gruesome. Probably won’t be the last.” You hesitated, then added with a wry smile, “Though I’ll admit, finding a surprise corpse is a new one, even for me.”

Spencer studied you for another moment, his head tilting slightly as if he were piecing together something about you. “You said you locked everything last night. Did you notice anything unusual before you left?”

You thought for a moment, absently tapping your nails against the counter. “Nothing out of the ordinary. But then again, ordinary isn’t exactly a guarantee in this job.” You paused, your eyes flicking back to the body. “If someone’s messing with me, they’ve got a pretty sick sense of humor. And that’s saying something, coming from me.”

Spencer didn’t respond right away, his gaze lingering on you for just a moment longer than necessary before he turned back to the body. “This wasn’t a joke. Whoever did this wanted to send a message.”

The weight of his words hung in the air, and you found yourself wondering just how deep this case would go. You had always been fascinated by death, but now, for the first time, it felt like death was staring back at you.

After the FBI had concluded their search and cameras were packed away and evidence collected, the usual silence you were used to began seeping back into the cold, sterile atmosphere of the mortuary. The body had been carefully documented and removed, leaving behind the faint antiseptic smell of bleach and cold steel. You stood by the counter, gathering your tools and preparing to get back to work once the team left.

You could feel the day's weight pressing down on you, but you refused to let it show and tried your best to keep your movements steady. You snapped on a fresh pair of gloves and reached for your notebook beside your workstation. The slight tremor in your hands betrayed your calm exterior.

Across the room, Spencer watched you. He stood near the doorway with his satchel slung over one shoulder, fidgeting with the strap as he lingered. He didn’t know why he hesitated to leave—there was something about you that held his attention. Maybe it was the way you handled the situation earlier, calm and composed despite the horrifying scene. In a way it may have seemed suspicious to someone else. Or maybe it was the way your dark humor revealed cracks in your otherwise detached demeanor. Whatever it was, he found himself walking toward you before he could think better of it.

You didn’t notice him at first, focused on arranging your tools in neat rows. It wasn’t until he cleared his throat softly that you looked up, startled.

“Oh,” you said, your voice sharper than you intended. “Still here?”

Spencer hesitated, not knowing how to handle your straightforward behaviour, his hands awkwardly stuffed into his pockets. “Yeah, um… I just wanted to check in with how you’re coping... After everything earlier?”

Your first instinct usually would have been to shrug the concern off, but the question had caught you off guard. You blinked at him for a second, unsure how to answer. “I—” You paused, tilting your head slightly as you studied him. “Oh I’m great,” you replied, your voice laced with sarcasm. “Finding a bloodied corpse someone snuck into my mortuary? Best day I’ve had in weeks, really.”

You winced at your own words, immediately looking down after saying them. “Sorry. That was—I shouldn’t have said that.” You fumbled for an excuse, your voice tight. “I just… I don’t talk to people much. I guess I don’t know how to… be normal in situations like this.”

Spencer’s expression softened, his voice gentle. “It’s okay. People cope in different ways. And after today, sarcasm seems pretty appropriate.”

You studied him for a moment, your eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion. “You’re weirdly nice for someone who spends his days chasing psychopaths.”

The comment seemed to amuse him, though he didn’t quite smile but instead pursed his lips slightly. “And you’re surprisingly calm for someone whose workspace just turned into a crime scene,” he countered lightly.

You almost laughed, the tension in your shoulders easing slightly. “Guess we’re both a little weird.”

For a moment, the two of you stood in silence, the hum of the refrigeration units filling the space between you. Then Spencer reached into his pocket and pulled out a small card.

“If you find anything else,” he said, his voice deliberate but kind, “or if you think of something that might help the case, call us. Here’s my number, just in case.” He held the card out to you, his fingers brushing yours as you took it.

You stared at the card for a moment, surprised by the gesture. It was small, routine, even, but it felt like more than that. You looked up at him, your usual stoicism softening into something almost vulnerable. “Thank you,” you said quietly, your voice warmer than before.

Spencer smiled, the kind of smile that was barely there but sincere. “Take care,” he said, adjusting his satchel as he turned to leave.

As he walked off, you couldn’t help the slight giddiness bubbling up inside you. It was a new sensation, as you tended to dislike most people, however, there was something about this handsome stranger that had you way more interested than you would've liked to admit.

It had been approximately 2 weeks since your ‘corpse surprise’, and work at the mortuary carried on as usual. There had been no leads or updates from the FBI regarding the mysterious body. No one had come forward to claim it, and any investigative efforts seemed to have hit a dead end. The unsettling memory lingered in the back of your mind, no matter how hard you tried to focus on work. The thought of someone managing to sneak a corpse into the mortuary without being caught still made your skin crawl.

You had just finished up with the cremation retort, the faint heat from the machine still lingering in the room, and had begun sweeping and cleaning up the crematory floor. The rhythmic swish of the broom against the tiles filled the quiet, accompanied only by the faint hum of the ventilation system.

As you moved toward the far corner, you noticed something out of place—a faint scuff mark on the otherwise spotless floor near the entrance. You frowned, leaning closer. It looked fresh, like someone had dragged something heavy through the room. A casket, maybe? No, you’d been the only one in here all morning, and the retort was prepped before your shift.

Brushing it off as nothing, you returned to sweeping, but a prickling sensation ran up the back of your neck. The kind of feeling you got when someone was watching you. You stopped mid-sweep and glanced over your shoulder, scanning the empty room. Nothing but sterile counters and a row of sealed urns waiting for pickup.

The ventilation hum seemed louder now, almost deafening in the otherwise silent space. Shaking your head, you muttered, “Get a grip,” and went back to cleaning.

Then came the noise.

A faint shuffle, just beyond the doorway that led to the preparation room. Your hand tightened on the broom handle, your heart thudding against your ribs. It wasn’t uncommon for sounds to echo strangely in the building—pipes groaning or metal trays shifting on counters—but this sounded different. Like a footstep.

“Hello?” you called out, your voice echoing back to you. No response.

Setting the broom aside, you stepped cautiously toward the preparation room, your shoes squeaking faintly against the tiles. As you approached, the air seemed colder, though you couldn’t tell if it was the room or just your nerves.

The door to the preparation room was slightly ajar, just enough for a sliver of shadow to spill into the hallway. You could’ve sworn you’d closed it earlier. Pushing the door open slowly, you peered inside. Everything seemed normal—the stainless steel countertops, the neatly arranged tools, the faint smell of disinfectant in the air.

And yet, the feeling of being watched persisted.

You turned to leave, but your eyes caught on something—a small object sitting on one of the prep tables. It hadn’t been there before. Approaching cautiously, you realized it was a photograph.

A photo of you.

It was grainy, taken from a distance, but unmistakable. You were outside the mortuary, standing by your car, looking down at your phone. Your throat tightened as you stared at it, your pulse roaring in your ears.

A faint creak sounded behind you, and you spun around, your breath catching. The door you’d left ajar was now fully closed.

Your hands trembled as you stared at the now-closed door. Despite every instinct in you screaming to leave, to run, you couldn't move. It was as if your entire body had been drenched in ice water and no longer wanted to respond.

When you had finally regained control of your movements you reached for your phone and fumbled through your bag without thinking. Your fingers brushed against the business card Spencer Reid had given you after your first meeting, his handwriting neat and precise on the back: Call if anything comes up.

You hesitated. Would he think you were overreacting? Maybe. But the photograph on the prep table stared back at you, a tangible reminder that this wasn’t just paranoia. You tapped the number on your phone and pressed it to your ear, your breath shallow as it rang.

After what felt like years, you finally heard Spencer's familiar voice on the other end, calm and professional, "Dr. Reid."

“Hi, uh, it’s… it’s me,” you said, trying to sound casual as you leaned against the prep table for support but still refusing to take your eyes off of the door. “From the mortuary? The weird body situation a couple weeks ago?”

“I remember,” Spencer replied, his tone softening. “Is something wrong?”

“No, not exactly,” you replied, but your voice cracked slightly on the last word, betraying your attempt to keep your composure. “I mean, nothing urgent, I don't think. I just… thought I should mention something odd that happened. Probably nothing.”

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. “You don’t sound fine,” Spencer said, his voice quieter now, almost gentle. “What’s going on?”

You swallowed hard, gripping the edge of the table to ground yourself. “It’s just… someone left a photo of me in the preparation room. Like, an actual printed photograph. I’m not sure how it got there.”

Spencer’s end of the line went silent for a beat, then: “A photograph of you? Where was it taken?”

“Outside the mortuary. By my car, I think. It’s grainy, but it’s definitely me.” You tried to laugh, but it came out weak. “I know it’s probably just someone messing around. But um..." You paused for a moment, wondering whether you should tell him about the odd noises from before and risk sounding paranoid.

“The photo wasn’t the only thing. I thought I heard footsteps earlier, and there was a mark on the floor like something was dragged through the crematory. I… I don’t know, I was sure it was clean this morning when I came in for work, but maybe I’m just spooking myself.”

“You’re not spooking yourself,” Spencer interrupted, his tone more insistent now. “This is serious. Are you still in the mortuary?”

“Yes,” you admitted, glancing toward the door as if expecting it to move again.

“Okay, listen to me,” Spencer said, his voice steadying you. “I need you to leave the building. Lock it up if you can, but get somewhere safe. I’ll notify the team and come to check things out.”

Your chest tightened, a mix of relief and apprehension at his words. “You really think it’s that serious?”

“I don’t take chances with things like this,” Spencer replied. “Neither should you.”

You nodded, even though he couldn’t see you, and pushed yourself off the table. “Okay... Okay, I’ll leave now.”

As you ended the call and pocketed your phone, your eyes darted around the room one last time. The photograph still lay on the table, a grim reminder that whoever had taken it might still be nearby.

You moved quickly now, the hairs on the back of your neck standing on end. Grabbing your bag and coat, you threw them over your shoulder and cast one last glance around the dim room. The photograph still lay on the prep table, but you couldn’t bring yourself to pick it up. Your fingers trembled too much anyway. You just needed to get out.

Sliding your phone into your pocket, you tightened your grip on your keys and made your way to the door. Your footsteps echoed in the stillness, each sound magnified in the empty mortuary. Every shadow in the room seemed alive, every creak of the floorboards sending a shiver down your spine.

“Just get out, just get out,” you muttered under your breath, your voice barely above a whisper.

You reached the door, exhaling shakily as you reached for the lock. But just as your hand brushed the handle, a cold, sharp sensation pressed against your throat, freezing you in place.

“Don’t move,” a low, raspy voice growled behind you, the words sending a bolt of terror down your spine.

Your breath hitched, your mind racing as you registered the unmistakable feel of a blade pressing against your skin. You didn’t dare turn your head, every muscle in your body locked in place once more.

“You scream, and you’re dead,” the voice continued, so close you could feel the warmth of their breath against your ear.

Your keys slipped from your hand, clattering loudly to the floor. The sound echoed in the silence, a cruel reminder of just how alone you were.

“Good,” the voice murmured, the knife pressing ever so slightly harder against your neck. “Now be a good girl and do exactly as I say.”

Your pulse roared in your ears as panic clawed its way up your throat. You had no choice but to comply.

And that was when the lights in the mortuary flickered and went out, plunging you both into darkness.

[otakusheep15]

Twisted Wonderland Queer Headcanons - Updated!

Happy Pride Month everyone! In honor of this month, I wanted to do an update on one of my first Twisted Wonderland posts. Not a whole lot has changed for me, but I wanted to flesh my headcanons out, and I also wanted to talk more about my ships as well (minus ships involving Yuu)! This will definitely be a longer post that's mainly just me ranting, but it's Pride Month and I can do what I want >:)

Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle is genderfluid (pronouns he/she/they) and unlabeled. Growing up so sheltered, Riddle didn't know much about queer identities, so his first experience with anything of the sort was NRC. A lot of people at NRC are very open about their identities, and Riddle learned a lot throughout his first year. He started questioning his own gender around the midway point of his first year. The Heartslabyul dorm uniform and makeup are already rather androgynous, but he found himself enjoying the more feminine aspects of the look. It didn't set in immediately, and he definitely did not have the terminology to describe how he was feeling, but after some research and some (albiet awkward) talks with Cater and Trey, he discovered genderfluidity. He denied it at first, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked it. As of his second year, he's only out to Trey and Cater, but that's enough for him right now. As for sexuality, Riddle doesn't really have a label for it. He's unsure about attraction in general, and he hasn't spared much thought towards it. For now, he just considers himself unlabeled.

My favorite ship for Riddle (and my favorite Twst ship in general) is him and Cater. I just adore their dynamic, especially in Book 2. There isn't a whole lot of content for them, but I'm obsessed. Other ships I like include Riddle x Azul, Riddle x Che'nya, and Riddle x Ace.

Ace Trappola

Ace is still questioning. He knows for a fact he likes women, but he never really considered the possibility of being attracted to men before. But then he gets to NRC, and suddenly that changes. There isn't one person in particular he has a "gay awakening" with, but a mix of people who slowly make him realize he might like men. He doesn't fully know if he actually likes guys, or if he's just in close proximily with a bunch of attractive rich people, but he's figuring himself out. The first person he ever told about this was Deuce, who was very supportive. He told Yuu and Grim the next day, and Trey and Cater kind of sussed him out pretty quickly. It's a constant crisis for him, but he's doing his best.

My favorite ship for Ace is him and Deuce. It's a no-brainer for me to like them. They go through a lot together, and despite the constant bickering, they are close. Plus, they have a cute dymanic that suits them both well. Other ships I like include Ace x Riddle, Ace x Sebek, and Ace x Epel.

Deuce Spade

Deuce is gay and trans ftm (pronouns he/him). He knew he was a boy very early on in his life, and his family was very supportive of him. Growing up, he felt like he had to be as masculine as possible in order to be seen as a "real man", which is part of the reason why he became such a delinquent. However, after many talks with his mother, he realized that men can still be nice and don't have to rely on anger and toughness to be men, which is another reason he was compelled to become an honor student. As for his sexuality, he realized he was gay almost embarrassingly late. Between his middle school delinquency and his high school studies, he just never really sat down and thought about it. Then one day it just clicks while he's helping Ace with his own sexuality crisis. Ace makes fun of him of course, but he's supportive nonetheless. Besides Ace, Yuu and Grim know, as well as Trey, Cater, and Riddle. He's currently hyping himself up to tell the rest of his first-year friends. Unlike his sexuality though, he is very open about the fact that he's trans, and everyone he speaks to regularly knows.

My favorite ship for Deuce is him and Epel. Their bonding during Book 5 means the world to me. They are also such a t4t power couple. They have a lot of common interests, and they get along very well despite their intense personalities. Other ships I like include Deuce x Ace and Deuce x Jack.

Trey Clover

Trey is pansexual. He constantly hears "pan" jokesfrom Cater, but he's gotten used to them. He never really had an "awakening" moment or anything, but Cater (and his constant online-ness) introduced him to the specific label. Trey has never been one to focus on gender. He's had crushes on all sorts of people of every gender, both small crushes and more serious ones. He doesn't talk about it much on his own, but it's one of those facts that everyone just sort of knows anyway. He's also the one people will regularly go to for advice on their own sexuality, and despite his constant worries that he's not very helpful, he's actually pretty insightful. He's also the source of a lot of underclassmens' gay awakenings, and he's really not sure why.

My favorite ship for Trey is him and Cater. They're my go-to for angst, as they have a very tragic dynamic I really love. I think they have a lot of potential, but there's always that one boundary keeping them separated. Other ships I like include Trey x Rook, Trey x Jade, and Trey x Vil.

Cater Diamond

Cater is nonbinary (pronouns they/he), bisexual, and demimantic. He definitely knew all of this from an early age. Being chronically online helped a lot with figuring out labels, which they're grateful for. They went into NRC knowing how they identified, and he is very open about his experiences. Depsite being nonbinary and enjoying some feminine things, Cater does generally prefer to be percieved as masculine, as they still have a complicated relationship with femininity thanks to his sisters. As for their sexuality, Cater has always been open with the fact that he likes men and women, and will actively hit on anyone he thinks is cute. However, a lot of people don't know that he's also demiromantic, and he wants to keep it that way. Cater does, on some level, desire close relationships, and that includes romance. However, much like friendhsip, they see that as an impossibility. They reduce themself to casual flings here and there, knowing the likelyhood of finding someone serious is slim.

My favorite ship for Cater is him and Riddle. As I stated before, they are my favorite ship in all of Twisted Wonderland. If anyone wants a cute fic for them, I highly suggest Nearly Falling by whimsicott on ao3. It's a beautiful fic. Other ships I like include Cater x Trey, Cater x Idia, and Cater x Leona.

Leona Kingscholar

Leona is bisexual, aromantic, and trans mtf (she/he). She genuinely does not care about labels, but people kept asking so she just chose these and is sticking with them. None of these labels are 100% accurate for her, but she isn't a fan of microlabels, so she just uses the general spectrums to describe her feelings. He never had any sort-of awakening for his gender or sexuality; it just popped into his head one day and he decided to roll with it. He's plenty comfortable with his sexuality and gender, but he doesn't talk about it much. If someone asks, she'll begrudgingly explain if she tolerates them enough. If not, he'll just shut them down and walk away. He's technically out to everyone, but only because she's too unbothered to try and hide it. The only people who don't really know are her family, but that's because she never wants to talk to them about this sort of thing.

My favorite ship for Leona is him and Malleus. They are objectively hilarious together, and they definitely insult each other as a form of flirting. They bicker like they hate each other, but they're also insane about each other. Other ships I like include Leona x Vil, Leona x Idia, and Leona x Cater.

Ruggie Bucchi

Ruggie is bisexual and trans ftm (pronouns they/he). They never had an issue with their sexuality or gender. For a while, he did kind of push it off to the side because they had more important things to focus on, but he eventually found time to sit down and think about it. After that, he never thought about it much again. It's not something Ruggie speaks of often, but he's not secretive about it either. If someone asks, they'll tell. Being bisexual is definitely fun for him, as he's very comfortable flirting with people for discounts and freebies. While not on the aroace spectrum, Ruggie is still picky about relationships overall, as they have so little free time to spend with a partner. It's hard for him to fall in love because of this, but he still finds himself being attracted to people fairly often.

My favorite ship for Ruggie is him and Kalim. I have been their biggest fan since day one, and I absolutely adore their dynamic. They have such a surprisngly sweet friendship, and I can see a lot of ways in which it can blossom into romance as they get older. Other ships I like include Ruggie x Riddle and Ruggie x Silver.

Jack Howl

Jack is gay and demisexual/romantic. Romance and sex have never been at the forefront of his mind, even as he started going through puberty. Hearing his middle school classmates talk about relationships always made him feel weird, and even now in high school he still struggles to understand. The closest he's come to understanding them is one time when he had a crush on a boy in middle school who happened to be a friend of his. That's the only crush he's ever had. Jack kind of figured out he was gay pretty early on in his life, but demisexual/romantic are more recent labels. He's not entirely used to them, and he'll usually default to gay if someone asks, but he likes the labels.

My favorite ship for Jack is him and Sebek. They are very underrated, but they're so cute. Definite workout buddies for sure. I also like the loud x quiet dynamic they have. Other ships I like include Jack x Epel and Jack x Deuce.

Azul Ashengrotto

Azul is trans ftm (pronouns he/him) and unlabeled. Body dysmorphia mixed with dysphoria is never a good combination, especially for someone like Azul. Growing up was difficult for him, even with the unconditional support of his family and the Tweels. He's very insecure about being trans, and he prefers that people don't know. He's 100% stealth, and only the Tweels know. Even though he knows other people who are trans, he's jealous of their confidence in their identities, so he keeps quiet. As for his sexuality, he has no clue. He's too focused on his business to care much about relationships, so he doesn't bother. If anyone asks, he just redirects the question to avoid answering.

My favorite ship for Azul is him and Riddle. They are so academic rivals to lovers and I'm insane about it. I also think Azul would love introducing Riddle to his family and showing him what a loving support system looks like. Other ships I like include Azul x Jamil, Azul x Floyd, and Azul x Idia.

Jade Leech

Jade is nonbinary (pronouns they/them) and aroace. They are genuinely so unbothered when it comes to gender or relationships. Genuinely could not care any less about either. They realized they were aroace first, as they never had much interests in dating, even when everyone else in their class seemed to. Nonbinary happened later on, as they don't experience much dysphoria. At first, they just assumed they prefered a more androgynous style, but after a bit of research, they found the nonbinary label and liked it. They haven't done much to change their appearance, as they like how they look just fine. They also don't particularly care who knows or doesn't.

(Queerplatonic) My favorite ship for Jade is them and Ruggie. A rarepair for sure, but they have a cute dynamic that I know intimidates most people. They are so chaotic together. Other ships I like include Jade x Trey, Jade x Riddle, and Jade x Kalim.

Floyd Leech

Floyd is genderfluid (any pronouns) and bisexual. He collects pronouns like Pokemon. He will use he, she, they, it, and basically any neo he comes across. Overall, he prefers he, as that's what people tend to default to, but any is fine. Never once had a gender crisis, which makes Azul crash out on the regular because HOW? Similarly, he also never had much of a sexuality crisis. Everyone is hot and that's it. Floyd does have a small preference for men, but everyone is on the table in his opinion. Very open and loud about this information, and will gladly tell anyone who asks.

My favorite ship for Floyd is him and Kalim. Their energy is unmatched and unhinged. They cannot be stopped, and they give Azul and Jamil headaches on the daily. No one is safe from their chaos. Other ships I like include Floyd x Azul and Floyd x Jamil.

Kalim al-Asim

Kalim is omnisexual. He likes all genders, and he's known this since he was young. The way he experiences attraction differs between genders, and his level of attraction for each fluctuates day-to-day. On most days, he says he prefers men, but some days that changes. He isn't one to bring up his sexuality very often, but he will gladly explain if asked. It's not that he's shy or unsecure about it; he just doesn't feel much need to talk about it since it's so normal to him. To him, it's just another part of who he is.

My favorite ship for Kalim is him and Ruggie. They are so silly, and they have a lot of potential as a ship. Please go read the anthology manga if you also ship them because they have a shocking about of interactions, all of which are so cute. Other ships I like include Kalim x Floyd, Kalim x Jade, and Kalim x Silver.

Jamil Viper

Jamil is transmasc (pronouns he/they) and aroace. They are not 100% aroace, but they don't particularly care about microlabels, so they just leave it at that. Relationships and sex are not important to him, but he's also open to the possibility of developing a relationship with someone in the future. As for gender, it was a complicated process. For a while, he ignored his dysphoria, as he didn't want to to impede on his work. However, Kalim sussed them out quickly, as they were obviously struggling with something. Everyone was supportive of his transition - which shocked him - as it allowed him to concentrate better without worrying as much about dysphoria. He's stealth for the most part, but if he's close enough with someone, they'll open up about it.

My favorite ship for Jamil is him and Azul. Their dynamic his so silly, and I am fully convinced Azul has a one-sided crush on Jamil. It's more of a crackship for me, but it's still iconic. Other ships I like include Jamil x Floyd, Jamil x Silver, and Jamil x Ruggie.

Vil Schoenheit

Vil is queer. That's pretty much the extent of it for him. He's not straight, but no label fits quite right. When asked, he fluctuated between saying he's unlabeled and saying he's queer. It mostly depends on the person and how he's feeling that day. He's fairly open about this, both in person and with his fans, as he doesn't see the need to keep it quiet. Vil is also pretty neutral about pronouns, to a certain extent. He prefers he/him and identifies as a man, but if someone refers to him with another set of pronouns, he won't mind. If he's doing a more feminine look for a photoshoot or movie, he doesn't mind if someone uses she/her because it's basically the same as using she/her for a drag queen, in his opinion.

My favorite ship for Vil is him and Rook. I'm not a big fan of either of them individually, but even I have to admit that their dynamic is unmatched. They are genuinely so married and it's not even funny. Other ships I like include Vil x Leona, Vil x Idia, and Vil x Cater.

Rook Hunt

Rook is on both the pan and aroace spectrums. Gender is the last thing on his mind when it comes to attraction. He experiences aesthetic attraction that is seperate from romantic or sexual attraction. He is able to find beauty in everyone, and he is very vocal about this. People often mistake his compliments for attraction, but he doesn't fault them. He is also pan, as whenever he does feel sexual and/or romantic attraction towards someone, their gender has nothing to do with it. To him, beauty comes from with in, and that's all he considers. He is very open about this, but he's not very good at explaining it in a way that makes sense to most people, so a lot of people tend to misunderstand him.

My favorite ship for Rook is him and Vil. Once again, they have been married for 25 years and they are so in love. I honestly have so many feelings about them and yet I cannot put any of them into words. Other ships I like include Rook x Trey and Rook x Jade.

Epel Felmier

Epel is trams ftm (pronouns he/him) and questioning. Epel and gender have a very complicated relationship. He knew he was trans from a very young age, and dysphoria hit him hard. Even the slightest mentions of femininity send him into a dysphoric depression that can last for days at best and months at worst. Getting into NRC was a dream at first, as it's an all-boys school. However, getting sorted into Pomefiore was a gut punch for him, as that's the most (in his mind) traditionally feminine dorm. It's especially bad now that he had Vil on his back 24/7 trying to make him act in a way that contradicts who he is. It's been getting better, but he still had bad days in which he gets especially pissed off with everyone. As for his sexuality, Epel hasn't even bothered thinking about it. He's far too focused on his gender to even think about who he's attracted to or what label to use on himself.

My favorite ship with Epel is him and Deuce. They are so t4t to me like I said before. I think Deuce could help Epel out a lot with his dysphoria in a way that no one else could. Other ships I like include Epel x Jack, Epel x Ace, and Epel x Riddle.

Idia Shroud

Idia is unlabeled (they/them) and demisexual/romantic. The gender binary confuses Idia and they genuinely do not care to understand it. To them, it's a waste of time, and they're much more comfortable being off the binary. That being said, they also have no interest in choosing any specific label for their gender, so they just tell people to use they/them and leaves it at that. Their sexuality is a bit easier to explain, as they're both demisexual and demiromantic. The idea of being even remotely attracted to a total stranger makes them want to vomit, but the idea of falling in love with a close friend gives them butterflies.

My favorite ship with Idia is him and Malleus. They are so funny to me in a way I cannot fully explain, especially after Book 7. I just love the dynamic of a technological genuis/shut-in and an immortal fae prince with no understanding of modern technology. Other ships I like include Idia x Cater, Idia x Azul, and Idia x Vil.

Ortho Shroud

Ortho is unlabeled on all accounts. Idia didn't program him with any specific gender or sexuality in mind, especially considering how young he is (mentally). Ortho will usually respond to any pronouns used, but tends to default to he/him for convenience. That being said, if the original Ortho were still alive, they would use he/they pronouns and would be bisexual.

No ships with Ortho as he is a child. However, my favorite platonic/familial relationships include Ortho and Idia (obviously), Ortho and Vil, and Ortho and the first years.

Malleus Draconia

Malleus is agender (pronouns they/them) and cupiosexual/romantic. Techinally, fae experience gender differently than humans, so Malleus's gender is actually a bit more complicated. That being said, they like this label and will most commonly use it when describing their feelings to humans and other non-fae. As for sexuality, Malleus has complicated feelings on the matter. They yearn for romantic love and sexual desire. They want to be wanted by someone like they've heard about in stories. And yet, they have never once felt that way towards someone else. It doesn't help that most everyone around them tend to cower in fear at the mere mention of their name. If they do eventually find someone, they would love to experience romance, even if they end up disliking it.

My favorite ship with Malleus is him and Idia. They're both so awkward and inexperienced when it comes to relationships, so I think they would feel very comfortable exploring their firsts with each other. Other ships I like include Malleus x Leona, Malleus x Cater, and Malleus x Vil.

Lilia Vanrouge

Lilia is bisexual, on the aroace spectrum, and unlabeled (any pronouns). We love a canon bisexual. Obviously he was in love with both Maleanor and Raverne. After them, however, he never really had an interest in sex or romance. Has he felt attraction to people before? Sure, probably. Has he actively pursued anyone since their deaths? No, absolutely not. This because especially true once Malleus was in his care, as he ended up spending all of his time caring for him. As for gender, Lilia genuinely does not care. People usually default to he/him, but if someone uses a different set, he enjoys it. Sometimes he even prefers it, depending on his mood.

My favorite ship for Lilia is him, Maleanor, and Raverne. They are the original angsty bisexual polycule and that's very iconic of them. Lilia fans love angst, and they put all of that angst into their fanfics, which I love. I wasn't initially on board with the ship, but I've come around to it. No other ships with Lilia.

Silver Vanrouge

Silver is trans ftm (pronouns he/him) and questioning. He came out as trans at a very early age, mostly with the help of Lilia's observational skills. Silver himself was pretty oblivious to his own feelings until Lilia pointed out how he preferred to present more masculinely. After that, he began his transition. By the time he reached NRC, he was fully transitioned, and he experiences very little dysphoria now. Sometimes he does, especially when someone refers to him with more feminine compliments or terms, but that happens very rarely. As for his sexuality, Silver never really thought about it until he started high school. He never really lived around people enough to develop crushes or ideas about different labels, so coming to NRC really opened his eyes. He's still thinking about it, but it's not much of a struggle for him like some other people. In his mind, he'll know when he knows and he doesn't feel the need to be anxious about it.

My favorite ship for Silver is him and Kalim. They are so sunshine and moonlight to me. Both radient and beautiful, but in different ways. They are also another perfect example of introvert x extrovert. They also both love animals, which is a cute detail too. Other ships I like include Silver x Idia and Silver x Ruggie.

Sebek Vigvolt

Sebek is bisexual. It took him a little bit to come to terms with, but he has a good support system, so it didn't take him very long. He's not the most open about it, but he will gladly start yapping the second anyone asks. He will absolutely be that social justice warrior stereotype who will yell at someone for any negative comment, even if its a small one. So many arguments, even if the person was just joking. It's cute, but it can also get a bit annoying considering how loud he is. On the bright side, everyone knows how much he's willing to defend his and others' identities. Plus, Lilia and Malleus are very proud of him too.

My favorite ship for Sebek is him and Jack. Like I said before, they're just so cute. They are so similar and yet so different in a way that makes for a silly dynamic. I also think that it would be very unexpected among their friendgroup, which would make for some funny reactions. Other ships I like include Sebek x Ace and Sebek x Epel.

[s7-evermore]

IDEA: Idia with a Science-y, girly pop gf

Okay so I was rereading one of my favorite romcoms “Love on the Brain” by Ali Hazelwood (one of my faves) and there’s this one side character there named Kaylee, the assistant of the ML who’s such a pink, girly pop character and she eventually falls for the FL’s assistant, who’s an emo girl.

And a thought occurred to me… what if Idia had a pink, girly pop prefect who loved science? Specifically astrophysics and engineering?

On top of being kind, earnest, and generous, she’s also fun, interesting to talk to, good with people, literally has the cutest smile, wears cute fashionable clothes, does her nails and just owns a lot of pink pink pink! Literally the definition of an it-girl but she’s ALSO intelligent, outspoken, witty, good at games, an AWESOME older sister (Ortho just LOVES her), and is just great at keeping up with Idia!

Idia’s initial thought when he first sees her would probably be “holy shit. It’s one of those extroverted sunshine mf who is the complete opposite of me so that’s another person on my list to avoid”

But then one day when he asks Azul to help him add updates to Ortho, Azul brings along Grim and the prefect and it takes everything in him not to PANIC because the PINK SUNSHINE GIRL IS THERE AND HE HATES IT

WHY is that living incarnation of SUNSHINE in Ignihyde where she’s NOT supposed to be?!

But suddenly she starts fawning over Ortho’s systems and asks him questions and eventually figures out how Ortho’s program works and Idia is suddenly swept up in a long ass conversation about engineering, and then they move on to games, and then Idia says his typical self-deprecating but also condescending stuff about her being a normie and she just DOESN’T get offended and even quips back with witty remarks and Idia just gets SO amused by her—

—that he suddenly realizes holy shit…. She’s actually… pretty cool……like…..I would….tolerate this human being……and she’s also hot……so…….

THE THOUGHT OF IT IS JUST SO CUTE?!! LIKE BRODIES IMAGINE:

Sunshine girlie pop prefect with her nail-art covered nails, twin-braided hair with cute tiny flower clips, white sleeveless crop top with the frilly pink skirt, a fuckin watermelon-shaped purse, pink flower earrings, and a pink flower necklace with the first letter of her name in the middle of it, holding a pink drink while she’s strongly going on about how standardized tests are institutional gatekeepers that graduate programs over-rely on for student admission and how expensive and outdated they are and that schools should focus more on a holistic approach for graduate admissions and blah blah blah…

And Idia is just…

Staring. At her. And he’s breathing quickly, lips parted, his cheeks are flushed, his hair is PINK like the flowers on her braids, and he clutches his tablet like he’s holding on for dear LIFE.

Despite her looks, she’s also realistic. She’s not needlessly naive nor is does she innocently believe that everyone is a good person.

She’s just who she is.

And holy shit. Idia is falling. HARD.

[stupidlittlespirit]

What got you into gravity falls in the first place??

It's kind of sad and grim but I don't mind telling you haha. Just tw for personal abuse and mental health stuff!

I got into Gravity Falls when it was airing, just at the start of the second season. I was about 19, I think? History is really fuzzy to me because of ptsd and stuff, I have a hard time pinning time down for sure so give or take.

I had been kicked out of home by my mother and was very lonely and low. I had a lot going on in terms of abuse at home and estrangement/distance between me and my younger sibling. I'd also just started noticing symptoms of BPD on top of everything else. So, as you can probably imagine, I was not in the best of places.

It was around that time that I started watching movies and tv shows constantly to drown out my thoughts. I've loved movies since I was a child but I was always controlled on what I was allowed to watch, whereas at that point, for the first time in my life, I was free to find what I wanted. So I started picking stuff up just because I could. I only had a tiny little old samsung phone because it was all I could afford at the time, but I would watch stuff on it 24/7.

I can't remember exactly how I heard about it, but I think it was via tumblr? I was already on the site and had been for a while at that point (in the Sherlock and X-Men fandom), and iirc I think I saw a few posts about GF on my dashboard. People were raving about it and I thought it looked fun, so I found a way to access it because I could do that now, I could watch whatever I wanted. And I did.

Given what I was going through at the time, I expect you can understand the impression that it left on me. I had absolutely no one and this show acted as a faux family for me for a little while. Here was this loser uncle who really loved these kids despite them being 'naughty' (realistically they were just being kids, but to me, I was taught that that behaviour was bad). There were lots of lessons about it being okay to be weird, which was something I was badly treated for by my own family, and this shared bond between siblings which I had lost/was losing. I was also super into cryptids and monsters, and I'd always wanted to be a cryptozoologist anyway haha!

My life experience at that time was running eerily adjacent to Stan's. It would continue to do so, but it struck me very deeply in the moment. I saw this guy who went through everything I was going through, and he was still kicking and people still valued him. So, I thought maybe I should take a leaf out of his book and keep kicking back as hard as I could. Maybe one day I'd find someone who loved me the way the kids came to love him or the way his brother inevitably would.

So, I would wait every week for a new episode and I would watch it in bed on my shitty phone at fuck o'clock in the morning (because the episodes were uploaded really late at night for me in the UK) and for about twenty something minutes a day, I didn't want to die.

I felt very familial about Stan and the kids, and then when Ford was introduced, I fell head over heels LMAO. I started writing fanfiction for it which developed into me exploring more through drawing/art, and into me creating worlds of my own. Although I never went because life had other plans, I even got into an art course because of it! I actually also wrote this huge AU for Ford with an OC. It never came to fruition, but I had a huge sketchbook filled with plans/layouts/architecture/character designs/story lines for it. I lost it in a move a while ago and I'm still sad about it, but I was so obsessed with it that I remember most of it anyway. It was the first time I ever created a full, fleshed out world in minute detail and it really started a fire in me for it.

So yeah.... It meant a lot to me and still does.

[utilitycaster]

I'm at a similar place than you, I think, regarding Scanlan's departure in the campaign vs the show.

Do you think, however, that Pike's presence throughout the show is possibly why they didn't go for the more violent Lament that people were expecting? Her support with regards to Kaylie was, I think, a big difference from where Scanlan was in the game.

(Also kinda sad that we're probably not getting Taryon, though cutting him makes sense especially if season 4 is the last one)

So, if I recall correctly, Scanlan's departure was much more motivated by the fact that he'd died in the Thordak fight, again in the Raishan fight, and everyone mocked him in Ank'Harel for the whole spice situation (and more generally that he was genuinely terrified throughout the entire conclave arc). It also, out of game, was partly inspired by Sam wanting to play another character for a while! I believe Sam at one point said that Scanlan's intention was not originally to spend time with Kaylie but just to leave; he brought that up while lashing out at everyone because he brought up anything he could because he was hurt and angry and scared and full of self-loathing, and when Percy said "then GO SPEND TIME WITH HER YOU FUCKHEAD" it changed what he was going to do. So I don't think that changed it.

I think what changed it is that, to be blunt, a lot of things that work in actual play don't work well in scripted narratives, and this is really one of the first cases we've seen of an adaptation where the original is fully available as well (I never watched Adventure Time but I know it's based in part off the creators' D&D games). Like...Scanlan messing around with suude works in-game, but it's kind of underbaked if you look at it. It's the same thing with Glintshore, and D&D combat in general. It's the same with Scanlan dying multiple times, which was a factor in him leaving, and frankly that kind of was an issue in-game: the amount of resurrections Vox Machina had was fucking bonkers, and everything CR has done since has made it clear they want to tell stories where character death is much more possible, likely, and permanent, from Candela to Daggerheart to the choices made in C2 and C3. Like, I don't think "oh it's an adaptation" is an answer to everything and I don't think that's how you should address people who are disappointed, but I do think that the changes made are in service of adaptation. It is really hard to write a S3 TLOVM script where a Bard's Lament makes sense, especially since my guess is S4 will be the last season.

Perhaps an unpopular opinion but while I adore Tary, the stretch of episodes he is in is the weakest part of the campaign since the pre-Briarwood arc days and as mentioned it's hard to write him in in a way that makes sense. The Vecna arc in-game is narratively great, but Vax's death comes quite early and it's GRIM. It's essentially an extended dungeon crawl where no one really thinks they'll make it out. I think the cast, to be clear, was still having fun! But Campaign 1 ends where it should have ended; Vox Machina's exhaustion by the end is palpable, and I think the improv nature and slow pace (not a bad thing, usually) of Actual Play lets the audience tolerate things far longer than they will in a scripted narrative and S3 of TLOVM seems to be thinking ahead in a very smart way, despite some of my personal critiques of Vax in particular.

[vickyvicarious]

Good observation that Dracula's great grimness at informing Jonathan that they must part soon changing to his usual smoothness when Jonathan refuses to return to his room as dictated. Or gives Dracula the pleasure to go "before we part and before you become one of us let's play one more time, lets see you walk back into my arms from danger once more, for good this time". Maybe he even expected this small rebellion from Jonathan, knowing him. Especially after he dared scale his walls. It's more satisfying to "earn" Jonathan's submission. An unbreakable will bending to his is sweeter.

I think Dracula absolutely loves Jonathan's stubbornness... but only with the caveat that he is in control of the situation and can prey upon it. This response is extremely belated, but I kind of like answering it now because I think Dracula's treatment of Renfield so far, as opposed to Jonathan, is so revealing. He's ignoring Renfield completely. He has no interest in him at all. Because Renfield wants to be with Dracula. And Dracula doesn't care to spend his time with people who want to be around him; he's only interested in forcing his company upon those who don't want it. It's a huge part of the fun for him.

If someone like... Seward, for example, had been sent to Castle Dracula, he wouldn't have lasted anywhere near as long. Because I think he would be too enticed/interested in the vampires, and thus he'd bore Dracula a lot faster by being too willing or even eager to play along. Then again, someone who refused to play along at all would get boring very quickly too - if they don't submit and play his game he'll force them into submission with violence and that'll be the end of it. Jonathan managed to thread the needle perfectly with playing along on the surface while still constantly trying to resist behind the scenes. It was interesting and fun, a challenge that never made Dracula feel truly threatened. (Of course, he didn't realize the full extent of Jonathan's resistance/that he did have cause to be threatened...)

And he loved it! He was having so much fun! He got to genuinely enjoy Jonathan's company, but also enjoy how little Jonathan enjoyed his company and how he couldn't do anything about that. He got to keep pushing and pushing and pushing him and watch Jonathan almost break again and again but still just keep bending. To tempt him into disobeying and then punish him for it. To force him to rely on Dracula himself for protection and thus stick even closer the more endangered he gets. He gets to work for it, while at the same time never actually facing real risk other than losing his new toy (and Jonathan always settled down in the end, always let the game continue). ...And then he had to call it quits, because he had a schedule to keep. Yeah, I think he was genuinely kind of upset about that. And so when he got the idea for the wolves, he cheered way up again.

Because Dracula was able to offer Jonathan exactly what he claimed he wanted, but in such a way that they both knew he would never accept it. Instead, he forced Jonathan into a situation where he was forced to "choose" Dracula instead, one last time and more definitively than ever before. It was the perfect way to end their time together. Well, except one final victory - 'rewarding' Jonathan's choice by honoring it with one last night together, with delaying no longer and finally drinking from him.

Contrast all of that to Dracula's complete disinterest in Renfield, despite his avowed goal of conquering England and spreading vampirism here. You'd think a servant who willingly came to him would be helpful for that. But no, because Renfield came to him truly willingly, wanted to enter freely and of his own accord.

Dracula likes the kind of person who enters freely and of their own accord... because they're alone in the wilderness with wolves at their back. He likes those who stay because doing otherwise would be their certain death. He likes those who don't want this (who struggle and struggle, who have an unbreakable will) and yet are forced by him into accepting anyway.

An unbreakable will who bends at his command - that's how Dracula saw Jonathan, and he loved him for it. Right up until the point he decided he was finished, and acted to break him once and for all anyway.

[hatefooled]

so. for clarities sake, this is kind of where my canon divergence is;

jericho blackburn ( blackburn is his adoptive parent's surname which he took after their deaths and the razing of his home ) , was taken in by nick and graey, when he was barely a year old. following the untimely death of his birth parents, due to some fighting between groups warring for land and resources. aeragan-epharshel hadn't been suffering from any scarcity, it was just how things were. most factions were pretty honorable, and good about even trade and laws set. but bandits tend to crop up in all sorts of places so. i take some inspiration not ONLY for his fandomless verse but also his homeworld from; mad max , trigun , and red dead redemption. his home world was beautiful, full of life, and natural wonders. it was everything to him, even with all it's complexities and difficulties.

the scientist he went to was very difficult to find. but he didn't do so until YEARS after his home was taken by the IPC. he tried at first to get his revenge as he was but, found his body lacking. he was also getting older, and found with all the injuries he'd suffered... his body was struggling. hence him seeking ways to improve himself, and turn himself into a weapon. he also did all of his modifications and changes in one go. not over time. it was a grueling process, sacrificing his entire sense of self to embody his own anger and his hunt for revenge.

he isn't censored. i think it's silly and fun, but my portrayal is darker and i try to be a bit more serious and grim with it. he might try to censor himself though around certain people- or he just wont curse at all if he can help it.

i think hyv is scared to explore genuinely dark characters. they definitely get close at times with boothill. he's violent, reckless, has very clear addictions and copes very poorly with his grief. but they keep softening the blow, pulling back to make sure you know oh - " he's not that bad ! " but he is. he's able to read right from wrong and can be rational when he knows he needs to. but he is angry, driven by his pain and anger, and hunts on a very narrow path. my portrayal leans a LOT into the morally grey part of his character. again he can be reasoned with, but who you are and how he sees you will determine how well that goes for you. i've made multiple posts on his morality before- and his sense of justice.

despite his grey morality, his sharp edges,,, he DOES try to connect with people and make lasting bonds. it's difficult. but he tries. and i love that because it's a good balance to all the awful and less than appealing aspects of his personality and character. it's just had when he believes himself undeserving, or that he doesn't have room there for any kind of long term relationship. so he requires... patience.

ive spoken in depth a LOT about his body, how it works here, here and here. though theres a LOT more around in my hc tag. :) and honestly i could talk about it for hours. i love... cyborgs.

[bluetortoist]

The Gift Of A Friend

CHARACTERS: Ortho Shroud, Piper Giuliani (OC), Sprinkles of the other first years, Grim and my Yuusona.

TAGS: Platonic, Angst that ends in tooth-rotting fluff at the end

WORD COUNT: 3,811

SUMMARY: A few weeks after the death of Piper's mother, Geneva Giuliani, She has been struggling with everything in her new life without her. Ortho decides that she needs to relax and have fun and invites her on campus to spend time with the first years. But after a minor accident occurs, Piper couldn't handle it anymore and lets out her grief to her best friend.

OP NOTE: I'm not really a writer, so I know most of this is probably going to feel rushed, still a few typos and out of character for some of them 😭 But I hope you'll still humor me because after watching that one scene from “M3GAN”, this sort of scenario was in my head for a while now and had to get it out lol. I also kind of sprinkled in bits of my Yuusona, Yūki, in there, but hopefully there is enough context in there that you can know more about them.

Lyrics are Gift Of A Friend - Demi Lovato

With that said, I hope you still enjoy!

Fall…

It was around the fall that things were starting to change for Piper. A lot of it, not so good.

Things, at first, went by as they always did for her. It was about the time students were either going home or on vacation for the duration of their break. But there were also some who stayed behind with no plans to think of. Given that Piper had no reason to leave anywhere, she stayed at home. Helping her mother out, spending time with her other Shining Star Academy friends who stayed on campus, keeping busy with her singing and acting projects she volunteered in, and of course, hanging out with Ortho Shroud from Night Raven College.

Around the time things began to change, Piper was away performing near the town's central water fountain with her other dorm mates. They were helping her with filming a music video for a song cover she was planning. As she danced, she was gathering a few curious eyes on her, feeling infectiously happy and at peace at the wooden girl's charming personality she brought with her performance. Next thing she knew, she got a call from one of the professors still back at the Academy. They spoke in a tone that made her feel like they were trying to keep themselves from bursting in tears.

…her mother died. Her mother, one of Shining Star Academy's oldest, but finest Conjuring magic professors; The one who had managed to give her life by some form of determination, luck and a miracle. Geneva Giuliani. She had just passed away.

There was no pondering as to what was going on through the wooden doll's head during those days of mourning. Everything seemed to have both frozen and gone fast forward somehow at the same time. Both students and the staff alike had tried to comfort her in many different ways, stern advice such as “you're going to have to be brave for your mother now” or well-meaning phrases like “She is in a better place now, you don't have to worry about that”. But honestly, Piper wasn't sure how to answer any of that. She wasn't even sure how to answer Ortho when he tried to offer some comfort to his wooden friend. The day she moved into her new dorm room, which now functioned as her new home for the time being, was the day it truly sunk in for her that despite hugging her kitten, Fionna, and petting her cricket Jerome, she felt truly alone.

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A few weeks had already gone by. Piper had made attempts to focus on other things both for her sake and everyone else. As soon as she finally settled into her new living arrangements, she first tried to get back to her schooling. Piper was not all that good at studying and had trouble paying attention sometimes, but she attempted to pour herself into her lessons…Only to see that not much had really improved. She was then met with both many pitying replies of “don't worry about it. No one's blaming you” or “It'll be alright, you'll get it eventually”.

She was starting to feel a sick feeling in her stomach…

When that wasn't working, she came to the idea to switch to something else. She went back into her dancing and acting projects. Out of anything, that was one thing that made her feel proud of herself everytime she gets on that stage and brings smiles to people. She went back to her Performance Club and got straight to work on the stage play that they were going to take offshore as a trip and perform. However, in the couple of days she worked on her role and her dance numbers, the more she was both mentally and LITERALLY stumbling over herself. The more times they had to retake a scene or to take a break, the more she was getting frustrated with herself. Everyone on set was getting worried about her, so they decided to tell her that it'd be okay for her to go back home. “Go ahead and get some rest. We understand.”

No. I can do it. Don't look at me like that!

…

Wait, huh?

She was a bit stubborn and insisted she could keep going. But everyone managed to convince her to head on home early. Piper took her time heading back to her dorm room and once she got back, she immediately tried to keep herself busy. Tidying whatever space she noticed, feeding Fionna and Jerome, finishing up whatever homework she had left, gathering her laundry up for tomorrow. Then she had no choice but to acknowledge that she done all she could do. Piper plopped onto her bed, starting to feel the dreaded pains of reality come back up.

Jerome attempted to hop to her side onto her back hand and bellow out song-like chirps for his friend's comfort. Piper gave a weak tug at the corner of her lips in a half smile. She gently stroked one of her fingers down Jerome's back as if saying to him “Thank you for trying for me at least”.

Remembering the past weeks of struggle with everything she used to love about her day-to-day brought her back to feeling upset with herself. Despite remembering her frustration from her mistakes over the weeks, that wasn't what she was focusing on. Piper remembered everyone trying to help her feel better. She was startled at herself, starting to feel…annoyance? She truly appreciated what they were all trying to do for her, but it was making her feel worse. She didn't want pity. She didn't want any of this to happen. She just wanted her mother back. She wanted to hear her voice as she hopped down the stairs to follow her to class or the humming of her singing that helped wash away her troubles during the night.

Why'd she have to die? Why'd you leave me? Can't you see I still need you? How could you!? I hate you!

Oh…oh no.

No no, I didn't mean it!

She said, scolding herself in her mind. Even if she didn't say it out loud, how could she think such things? Oh heavens, if her mother were here…Well…

Oh Mom…what would she think of me now?

Her phone suddenly started ringing. Honestly, Piper was debating on whether to pick up the phone at all. She didn't know if she would be up to talking to anymore people today. After sitting there for a minute, she decided to reach for her phone and check the caller ID.

It was Ortho.

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Two childlike humanoids, one mechanical and sporting a metallic, suited form of black and blue and the other made of wood, adorning black shirt and red overalls, were flying through the air above the little town and roads below them.

“Where are we going Ortho?”

“We're going back to Night Raven College. I thought you would like to hang out with me and the others at the sports fields. It never hurts to take a break from something for a brief moment, right?”

Ortho called earlier yesterday and asked if she would like to come with him and enjoy some time with his other first year friends after school. Piper knows these friends fairly well too, and even though she doesn't spend as much time together with them like she does Ortho, she still considers them part of her friend group too.

Ace and Deuce were pure entertainment in her eyes. Piper loved Ace's magic tricks and Deuce letting her ride on his blastcycle with him. She thought Epel was very pretty, but Piper learned quickly that he doesn't like being called that, but he lights up when she wants to play more competitively with him. Jack was pretty good with her given that he knew how to handle younger kids due to his siblings. He really wished she would stop asking him to transform into his wolf form though. Sebek was loud and could be kind of rude, to say the least, but she can tell he has a good heart (and fun to give him the runaround sometimes). Finally, there was the mysterious but reliable prefect from another world who lived in the Ramshackle house. Yūki and their beast-cat friend, Grim, had a homely, familiar air to them. They reminded Piper of her older friends at school and after going so long thinking they were magicless, it was soon discovered Yūki had started slowly gaining their own magic abilities! You could say the fun and intrigue increased. Sadly, Grim would try to run from her whenever he could due to her being an avid cat lover as well, much to his dismay.

He came by to her gates to meet up with her and then they flew back to NRC campus. Piper wasn't completely sure if her being there would be a good idea, but Ortho managed to convince her that him and the others have been missing her and thought it would be good for her to be around friends right now. The notion made sense to her since It's been a while since she made any attempt to keep in contact with any of her friend groups. She has been missing everyone lately too. Maybe this is what she needed.

“Mm...yeah, you're right. Okay, sure! It's been a while since I've seen everyone else too I guess.”

By the time they got to NRC’s school grounds, everyone was all standing in the middle of the field with their broomstick at the ready. After catching up with everyone and what the gang has all been up to the past few weeks, they were all excited to finally get this game rolling. Epel was explaining that he wanted to try out this new tactic he learned about for spelldrive practice. Yuki was still trying to get used to being on the broomstick, so they and Grim were floating lower and slower than the rest of the group, but both were still offering as much support they could give. The competitive air mixed with the rambunctious and cheerful energy of finally letting loose when one scored a goal was infectious. Everyone was having a great time. Even Piper was finally starting to forget about her troubles. Even if it was just for this brief moment, she was glad that she could finally have some bit of familiarity while hanging out with her friends. She hoped this day would last on a little longer. Maybe she could ask Ortho if they could hang out some more later; maybe play some games with his big brother, Idia.

“Piper!”

“LOOK OUT!”

“Get out of the way!”

Piper heard the cries, but didn't completely catch on what was going on in time. Deuce accidentally shot a magic projectile, thinking it will hit the disc in the direction he was going for, but ended up missing and was flying in her direction at a dangerous speed. She didn't have time to think, she pointed her pen, trying to remember saying the spell, but stumbled her words trying to remember how it went. Next thing everyone knew-

BOOM!

The blast from the magic ball vibrated through everyone's ears. As the air finally started to still and quiet down, all of them started to drop back down to the ground to check on Piper. Since Yūki and Grim were closest, they got to Piper’s side first, Yūki helping her up and hoping that she was still conscious from that far a drop. Thankfully, she groaned from the impact of the drop and slowly pushed herself back up. Other than a slight throbbing pain from her head and stray grass in her hair, she was alright. Yūki exhaled in relief.

“Uuugh. Heheheh! I Guess I really lucked out on that one.”

“You think? Haha. It’s a good thing you have a pretty sturdy head, I guess”

“Phew! That sure was close…Mrah!? Hey, kid! your hand!”

“Huh?....ah?!”

Piper looked down at her left hand and saw that Grim was right. Her wooden hand had a noticeable split down the middle of her palm all the way down to the wrist. Half of her fingers had been charred and got bent out of their joints in different directions, but were still thankfully attached.

Ace was next to catch up. “HOLY CRAP! Piper! Are you okay!?”

“Aw heck, that looks bad!” Said Epel.

Deuce was looking the most guilty since it was him who fired the magic shot. “Oh no! Piper, I'm so sorry! Are you hurting any?!”

The first year group either stood in panic or rushed over to see if any more of her got damaged. The sudden wave of worry from everybody started to make her feel disoriented. She couldn’t think clearly from being crowded and was still processing that her hand had just been severely mangled.

“Piper!” Ortho quickly flew over to her side. He took her hand in his and ran a bright blue scan over it to analyze the damage. The inside of his head was going miles a minute coming to precise conclusions in just a couple of seconds.

“Hmmm… It looks pretty bad. But it’s not unsalvageable. I think it'd be best if I take her to the infirmary to rest for a bit. I’ll see what I can do for her there. Hold on tight. I'm going to jet us over there, okay?”

“I-uh…O-okay” Piper seemed like she still wasn't fully there like she was in deep thought. She still secured her arms around his neck, making sure to watch her bad hand.

Sebek was the one to have finally spoke up.

"…I wonder why Ortho wanted to take her all the way to the infirmary. Is he not able to help her right here? I doubt there's much he can use in the infirmary for a wooden doll like her."

Jack looked over at Sebek ."You mean you didn't notice?"

"Huh? Notice. what?"

Epel joined in as soon as he landed on the ground since he was flying the highest. You didn't see the look on Piper just now? "How out of it she looked? I think he saw that and just wanted to take her someplace private."

Deuce looked to the ground ruffling his hair. "Oh man. I hope I didn't scar a kid for life."

"Dude, I doubt you did anything THAT serious. You didn't mean it, it was an accident." Ace replied.

Yūki, meanwhile, just kept looking in the direction the kids flew in, feeling a pang of worry in their heart. "I just hope Ortho will know what to do."

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The two humanoids walked into the gym building and Ortho led Piper to sit down onto the sturdy bench. It was quiet She sat there in complacent silence while the robotic boy ran a quick diagnosis on her hand and turned away to instantly pull up a page of data and pictures that Piper couldn't really make out.

“Don't worry, Piper, I don't really have proper tools for your kind of body on hand, but I can pull up screenshots of your basic blueprints and see what I can do for a temporary fix-up!”

And the next thing he heard:

“UWAAAAAAAHAAAHAAAAHHHHH!!”

To his shock, Ortho turns to see Piper sobbing. Or at least making sobbing sounds. If she had tear ducts, she would be crying, but all her wooden body could let her do was let her wail to let the emotions she had in the pit of her heart and mind out.

“Piper?...are you okay?”

She didn't answer right away, Her cries have lowered now, but still let out some pained hiccups.

“W-why are you shouting, Piper? Is it your hand? Does it feel uncomfortable after all?”

“N-no”

“Then, what is it?”

“...It's… It's just that… I'm messing up everything around me. I'm m-messing up my dancing, I'm messing up at school, and now… now I messed up my stupid hand!”

E-Everything feels like it’s falling apart. Nothing is the same. A-and now…I'm waking up everyday and it's not my room. It's not my home! I'm walking outside and I'm just reminded that…my mama is gone! I have…no one. No one there waiting for me.”

“....”

Ortho knew that Piper was feeling very down and being hard on herself. All this absentmindedness, all this frustration and pressure, all this withdrawal with everyone. But Ortho internally thought he should have figured this out sooner. He knew her mother's recent passing was going to be hard on her, but he never thought that Piper would try to keep it all to herself. She was usually so more open about her feelings. She tried to deal with this for as long as she could, but he guessed this accident from that magic spell was the final straw in her mind. Ortho let her keep speaking…

“I know I'm supposed to grow up! I've got to be brave and- not worry. People tell me she's in a better place now, and I want to believe that… But I'm lying. I…I don't f-feel like that. I miss her so much, Ortho! I don't want her somewhere else! Am I being selfish for wanting her back with me? But I can't. I can't help it! l’m…I'm afraid.”

“I'm afraid what if the longer I mess up like this…if i keep forgetting the things i, I'm going to forget everything about her too! I'm going to forget everything about her! Like, I'm going to see pictures of her and just see a stranger! I want to be strong but…I don't think I can do it.”

The two sat there in the quietness of the musty sitting room for a brief moment. Ortho hovered in silence, looking like he was trying to process something suitable for this situation. The silence only broke when the vents of his hovering legs pushed out to bring him forward to Piper so he could sit next to her on the couch.

“Hey. Tell me something about your mother. Something that makes you happy.”

“I…I don't know if I can right now.”

“It's okay. Just think of the first thing that comes to your mind.”

Piper looked down in thought as she was trying to gather her thoughts so she could focus on remembering something.

“One time, she found a frog in one of the cuckoo clocks we had. I was trying to hide it from her but then I lost sight of it. It scared her so much, she screamed and the frog got scared too. It set off all the clocks it managed to land on and spooked Fionna before I caught it in a fish bowl. I expected her to be mad at me but…for some reason, she ended up laughing at it all. We both ended up laughing at how silly it all was…It was pretty funny.”

Ortho had his eyes closed briefly, leaving Piper wondering why he suddenly went silent in those few seconds.

“...Okay! That's one memory that you'll never forget.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I mean I'm keeping it for you. In here…”

Ortho placed a hand to what would be considered where his heart would be. And to the wooden girl's surprise, a spot in the middle of his chest started to glow a bright white and flickered as it started playing a recording of her just talking about her happy memory.

“Anytime you want to tell me something special about your mom, anything funny or sad or anything at all, just tell me and I'll keep it safe inside my hard drive. And we can listen to it whenever you want.”

And Piper…dont think you have no one waiting for you. If you ever feel that way, don't feel afraid to talk to me if you want. You're my friend, so you can come to me if you ever need one.

He began to sing one of her favorite songs.

“And when the hope crashes down

Shattering to the ground

You, you'll feel all alone

When you don't know which way to go

And there's no such leading you on

You're not alone”

He leaned his forehead over to press against hers. A small, but intimate gesture of care and empathy. Piper couldn't help but give in to the closeness of it all. The corners of her lips began to twitch back into a small grin and Ortho's kind gesture. She quietly joined in with him, gradually singing in harmony with him.

“The world comes to life

And everything's alright

From beginning to end

When you have a friend

By your side

That helps you to find

The beauty of all

When you'll open your heart and

Believe in

The gift of a friend”

Piper gave a smile and after finishing the lyrics, she couldn't help but embrace him. It startled him at first, but very quickly embraced her back.

“Ortho. Is there anything you can't do?”

“Well, for one thing, I can't consume organic materials. And half of my gears aren't water-proof, so I have to be careful when I’m in-.

*giggle* “not literally silly!”

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Meanwhile

Outside the window was the gang looking in to get a better view at the show going on at hand.

Yūki looked as if they were about to tear up like they just saw two little critters being wholesome together. “OK guys, I think I'm going to literally cry, that was very adorable.”

Sebek was trying to peak into the edge of the window to get a better look. "What is it? What are they saying in there?!"

"Phew. I was worried when she started crying like that." Deuce said.

Nonchalantly, Ace replied. "I guess? I felt like the song was too sappy for my taste, but if it works, it works."

The rest of the gang started seeing the two kids get up from their seats with Ortho forming his index finger into a tool, concluding that Ortho was finally going to do some emergency first aid on Piper's hand.

"I think it's best we leave them be now. They'll be out soon enough." Jack said.

"Mreh. I hope it won't be too long, I want to get back to playing some more!"

Yūki couldnt help but wearily sigh at Grim. "I swear, How do you always have this much energy…"

[heartslabyulzz]

Brain not functioning therefore that means it's time for...

TWSTERY DUNGEON AU LORE Part 2 - Nightwing Guild and Rescue Teams

Masterpost

This one will be a lot longer, so strap in!

So where we left off in my last au rambling post, I discussed the way that I thought the prologue would... Generally play out in my au. It ended, of course, with Yuu and Purrloin (Grim) becoming official members of the Nightwing Guild!

But just. What is the guild, exactly? And who are the members?

Obviously, the guild is your standard rescue team guild, led by the ever gracious and kind Corviknight, of course!

But the guild actually doesn't follow standard guild structure in terms of how rescue teams are formed.

For generations, the rescue teams that were involved in the guild have been the same nine teams- Heart, Wilds, Deep-Sea, Shine, Mirror, Styx, Thorn, Nightwing, and Spirit.

Team Outsiders is the first new team for the guild in years, as most new recruits (such as Combusken and Floragato, who were rescued in the previous post) would be placed within one of the various larger teams based on personality, team composition, etc. but because Yuu and Purrloin are so... Peculiar and not of this world, Corviknight honestly had no idea what to do or where to place them. So in all of his magnanimity, he "allowed" them to form their own team.

Members of the teams can swap between teams or assist others from time to time, but there generally has to be a good reason for it.

For example, Decidueye (Rook) of Team Mirror was actually once a member of Team Wilds. After a tag team mission with Team Mirror's current leader, Milotic (Vil), though, Decidueye decided that perhaps he would be better suited to the beautiful and powerful style of the team instead (that and... Some of his former teammates found him to be unsettling. They did not complain when he left).

As stated before, though, before Team Outsiders was created, there were nine established teams within the guild- Teams Heart, Wilds Deep-Sea, blah blah blah I don't feel like retyping that all. But what is each individual team like, including team Outsiders?

Team Heart is one of the several rescue teams affiliated with the Nightwing Guild. Run by the short-tempered Roserade, they tend to put a lot of focus into upholding the law, not just in Sage Town, but also wherever they explore. They often focus on missions that deal with rescuing lost pokemon, returning stolen items, and dealing with big bullies.

Team Wilds is led by the slothful but cunning Pyroar, this team’s members tend to be of the same ilk, almost all brawn and limited brain, save for Pyroar and a few others. While Team Heart seems to be more of the “bully buster” kind of rescue team, Team Wilds is a bit more like the actual “bullies”, often taking on missions that require brute strength or immense athletic prowess to complete.

Team Deep-Sea is comprised of a group of Pokemon from, well, the deep sea, this guild is quite proficient when it comes to tackling underwater missions. They also ask for a steep price when requesting their aid, especially on land-related missions, so when missions are assigned to them, they are sometimes, but not always, a bit more on the difficult end of things. This isn’t a concern for them, though, as they have more than one way of dealing with tough conflicts.

Team Shine is led by the ever-cheerful Buizel and his intelligent partner, Arbok, this team is considered one of the more “fun” teams to be a member of or to be helped by of the guild. Team Shine will take on any request they can get their hands on and will often do it with a pep in their step (for the most part). Things are a bit different when Arbok is left in charge, however…

Team Mirror is filled to the brim with “beautiful” Pokemon, this rescue team is often home to those with “diva”-Esque tendencies. Despite their gorgeous and/or delicate appearances, Team Mirror are not to be trifled with, especially their leader, Milotic, who is as gorgeous as he is formidable. Team Mirror, much like Team Shine, takes on any tasks they can get into their grips, however, many members do try to avoid missions that require getting too dirty.

Team Styx is run by two Pokemon who tend to act as one, Chandelure and his brother, Litwick, this rescue team doesn’t actually go out on expeditions as often as the other teams due to their more introverted personalities. Instead, in order to still meet requests, missions that require item repair or delivery will often be delegated to them, however the one delivering will often be from another rescue team (or Litwick, if he feels inclined), and rewards will be divided accordingly.

Team Thorn is, by far, the most enigmatic of the Rescue Teams of the Nightwing Guild. Led by the elusive mischievous Hydreigon Crobat(?), the team rarely goes on missions unless they are deemed to be of a particularly noteworthy level of challenge or even danger. They're known for being incredibly powerful pokemon, not just within the guild itself, but among rescue guilds in the world as a whole. Many people say that the real leader of the team is quite terrifying, and so Crobat tends to handle the more public and social aspects of things.

Team Nightwing is the head rescue team and namesake of the Nightwing Guild. As a rescue team, they do occasionally take on rescue missions, however as the guild masters, they often stay around the guildhall to deal with various tasks such as documenting missions taken, recruiting and training rookies to join the various other rescue teams (or forming new ones, in the case of Team Outsiders), and managing the guild shop, where adventurers can exchange currency for equipment and resources to carry in dungeons. Corviknight is the leader of this rescue team as well as the guild and is usually alright at keeping an eye on his guild members…

Team Spirit is quite an old team of the Nightwing Guild, but most of its members have left the guild by now for one reason or another. There is no distinct leader among the three remaining members, Gengar, Trevenant, and Mismagius, but all three are quite mischievous and enjoy playing pranks on other guild members. They seem to have all taken a liking to Team Outsiders.

Team Outsiders is the newest rescue team in the Nightwing Guild. The only two members, at least at first, are exactly what their team’s name implies, since both are foreigners to the guild, as well as Sage Town as a whole. This rescue team takes on whatever missions they can get their hands on, as well as assisting and receiving assistance from other teams when necessary.

Pls pls pls if you read thru to the end send me asks about this au I want to talk about it so bad to the point where I may actually just make a blog for it eventually.

[gotxpenny]

Surviving Love || {ii/lvii}

Emilia McKenna was deemed to be a sweetheart in the eyes of others who met her, but in the eyes of John Brady she was an itch he couldn't scratch. The tension between them was palpable, yet, over time, as they saved each other's lives and saw past the tough exteriors, their respect for one another grew. And despite their initial hatred, an undeniable attraction simmered beneath the surface.

Paring: John Brady x Fem!Oc

Prompt: they hated how much they made the other felt

Word Count: ~3,900

Genre: Frienemies to lovers, SUPERRRR slow burn, mostly fluff but angsty towards the end

Setting: Bluie West One Airfield, South Greenland

Warnings: mentions injuries

Note || There aren't many Brady gifs so expect a lot of repeated gifs...Anyways I absolutely LOVE writing this trope, it's always so fun writing the arguments and bickering because I am just delusional and want it to happen to me irl. BUT I hope you like the second chapter...there is more to come. love les, xo

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"To burn with desire and keep quiet about it is the greatest punishment we can bring on ourselves." – A Coloured Mind

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| MAY 1943 |

AS the ambulances pulled away, the heavy engines rumbling over the snowy ground, Emilia took a deep breath, trying to steady herself. The biting cold of Greenland's unforgiving air gnawed at her cheeks, a stark reminder that she was far from anything familiar. Greenland wasn't home—not even close—but it had become her reality, filled with long days, sleepless nights, and friends who had become her makeshift family.

She turned and started walking toward the barracks, her mind replaying the tension between her and John Brady. She couldn't let him get under her skin, not when there was so much else to worry about. But no matter how hard she tried, he was always there—teasing, provoking, and making her feel things she didn't want to feel.

She hated how easily he could rile her up.

Brady had that infuriating smirk—cocky and unreadable—that seemed permanently stitched onto his face. Always lounging around like he hadn't a care in the world, cracking jokes even when the wounded poured in like floodwater. He had a way of sauntering into a room and stealing all the air without even trying. He called her "McKenna" like it was some kind of private joke, always with that drawl that made her want to either throw a scalpel at him or...God help her, laugh.

He was reckless, arrogant, always too loud in the mess hall, and far too comfortable making up nicknames for everyone, including her—"Sugs" or "Florence Nightmare" depending on the day. She had tried ignoring him, then snapping at him, then outwitting him. Nothing worked. Brady just kept showing up, brushing off her barbs like they were compliments.

What bothered her most was that he saw her. Not just the nurse in the uniform or the woman trying to keep it together in a frozen wasteland—but her. The parts she tried to bury under efficiency and steel. And when he looked at her, really looked at her, like he was peeling back every layer with those sharp, amused eyes, it made her feel exposed.

And that scared her more than anything.

Because no one was supposed to get close. Not out here. Not in a place where everyone was temporary.

She clenched her gloved hands as she stepped through the icy wind toward the barracks, jaw tight. Whatever game John Brady thought he was playing, she wasn't going to be the fool who fell for it.

At least...that's what she kept telling herself.

As she neared the medical tent, a familiar voice called out from behind her, "Hey, Em! Good to see you're alive, you look like you've seen a ghost," it was Maggie Lawson, one of the other flight nurses, and one of Emilia's closest friends on the base. Maggie was a bright spot in an otherwise grim existence—sharp-tongued, quick to laugh, and always up for a good story. She had the kind of energy that made people want to be around her, even in the darkest of times.

Emilia forced a smile and walked over to her, "I think I've just been in the sky too long today."

Maggie raised an eyebrow, her eyes glinting with mischief, "Or maybe it's that flyboy who's always hovering around you, huh?" she teased making Emilia shoot her a warning glance.

Emilia scoffed, trying to brush it off, "Please. Brady? He's insufferable."

"Yeah, but you're always talking about him," Maggie said, nudging her with an elbow, "Seems like you two have a lot of...tension," Emilia rolled her eyes, though she couldn't help but laugh.

"Tension's one word for it. More like he's a pain in my ass."

"Uh-huh," Maggie grinned, clearly not buying it, "Well, he's certainly got his eyes on you, Sugs," Emilia groaned at the mention of Brady's nickname for her.

"God, don't you start."

Maggie laughed, shaking her head, "I'm just saying. There's something there, whether you want to admit it or not," before Emilia could protest, another familiar voice joined the conversation.

"Leave her alone, Maggie. Not everyone's falling for one of the pilots," Sam Jenkins, one of the ground crew mechanics, chimed in as he walked over to them, wiping his hands on an oil-stained rag. He had a boyish grin that made him impossible to dislike, and he was the type of friend who always had your back.

"See? Sam gets it," Emilia said, giving him a grateful smile.

Sam shrugged, grinning back at her, "I'm just saying, Emilia's got her hands full with all of us. She doesn't need some hotshot pilot—especially Brady making things more complicated," Emilia groaned in annoyance as she placed her head in her hands.

Maggie smirked, folding her arms, "True, but complicated can be fun," Emilia rolled her eyes again but couldn't help the small smile that tugged at her lips.

These moments, with Maggie and Sam, were a welcome relief from the constant pressure of the war. They were her lifeline, her grounding force, reminding her that despite everything, there were still things to laugh about. Still, reasons to smile.

As the three of them stood there, the conversation naturally shifted to the more mundane—complaints about the weather, rumours about upcoming missions, and the usual scuttlebutt around the base. It was a brief respite from the chaos that loomed over them daily.

But even as they talked, Emilia's thoughts kept drifting back to Brady. She hated how much space he took up in her mind, but she couldn't deny that he intrigued her. There was something behind that cocky grin, something deeper than the brash persona he put on for everyone. And as much as she wanted to keep her distance, part of her was curious. Maybe even more than curious.

"So, are you coming to the officer's mess tonight? I heard they managed to get some real coffee in. Probably just a rumour, but worth checking out," Sam asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah, I'll be there," Emilia said, nodding, "After I finish up with the medics. Someone's got to make sure those boys don't fall apart," a chuckle escaped Sam's lips.

"Like I said, you've got your hands full," Sam teased, flashing her a grin before he headed back toward the mechanics' shed.

As she and Maggie started toward the medical tent, Maggie gave her a sidelong glance, "You know, you should come out with us more. It'd be good for you to have some fun, Em. You've been working too hard," Emilia shrugged.

"I'm here to do a job, Mags. And with the way things are going, there's not much time for fun."

"Well, make time," Maggie insisted, "We're all together, right? Doesn't hurt to blow off some steam now and then," Emilia smiled softly, appreciating the concern.

"I'll try."

As they reached the tent, Maggie waved her off, heading toward the barracks, "See you tonight! And remember, no hiding in the corner. You owe me a drink!" Emilia waved back, chuckling to herself. Maggie was right. She did need to let loose, even if just for a little while. But right now, she had soldiers to tend to and thoughts of a certain pilot to push out of her mind.

She pulled the flap of the med tent open, stepping into the warmth with a sigh. The familiar scent of antiseptic and canvas wrapped around her like a second skin. Her eyes scanned the cots until they landed on the kid who'd taken the prop blast to the arm—Jackson Sadie, barely twenty, with freckles and a permanent flush to his cheeks like he was always embarrassed to be alive.

He was propped up with a wool blanket pulled over his legs, cradling his bandaged arm, "Afternoon, Doc," he grinned, his voice scratchy but cheerful.

"Sadie," Emilia greeted, approaching his cot, "Just checking in. How's the arm?"

He shrugged with his good one, "Hurts like hell, but I'll live."

She crouched beside him, gently inspecting the dressings, "You're lucky. The shrapnel didn't hit anything vital—missed the artery by a whisper. Another inch, and you'd be on your way home in a box instead of back to Boise with a war story."

"Lucky," he echoed, then smirked, "Hey, Doc?"

"Hmm?"

"What's the deal with you and Brady?"

Emilia blinked. Froze for a beat too long, "What?"

Jackson just grinned, undeterred, "Y'know. You always look like you're about to throttle him. Or kiss him. Can't tell which."

She scoffed, focusing on the bandage to hide the flush creeping up her neck, "He's reckless. That's what I've got against him. Doesn't take anything seriously. Not life. Not death. Especially not the line between them."

Sadie studied her a moment, then said quietly, "He's a damn good flyer, you know. Brave, too. But...he only flies reckless when you're around."

Emilia looked up, brow furrowing, "Excuse me?"

"Yeah," Sadie scratched his jaw, "You're the only one he shows off for. He never did that back in training. Back then, he was all fists and attitude. Never talked to anyone but Zim. He'd mouth off to anyone else who tried to get close. Nearly got kicked out a dozen times. Guy had a temper. The bad kind."

She blinked, taken aback, "And now?"

"He's...different. Since you showed up. Talks more. Smiles more. Doesn't pick fights. Still cocky, but it's like...the fun kind now, not the self-destructive kind. You changed him, McKenna. Whether you meant to or not."

Emilia leaned back on her heels, arms folding across her chest. Her throat felt tight with something she didn't want to name, "If he's trying to impress me, he's doing a shit job. This isn't a place to show off, Sadie. It's a place to survive."

"I know," the young man said, nodding, "But maybe he started trying to survive because of you."

That shut her up.

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The quiet hummed in the tent, interrupted only by the soft groans of the injured and the distant howl of wind outside. Emilia let her gaze drop to Sadie's arm again, tugging the blanket up a little higher.

"You'll heal just fine," she murmured, "Give it a few weeks and you'll be back giving your mother hell."

Jackson smiled, eyes softening, "Thanks, Doc. I get to see my Ma because of you. Thank you," something stung behind her eyes, but she just nodded, rising to her feet.

"Get some rest, Jackson."

As she turned away, her thoughts drifted back to Brady—and not the version she built in her mind, the one made of smirks and swagger, but the one Jackson had just described. The one who had a best friend named Zim. The one who had been angry, closed off, and had somehow started changing because of her.

God help her. She wasn't sure if that made things better or worse. | MAY 1943 |

LATER that evening, as the freezing wind whipped along the edge of the hangar, Emilia tucked herself behind a stack of crates, her coat pulled tightly around her and an unlit cigarette between her lips. She had just finished unloading the last of the medical supplies from the transport when one of the flight crew handed her a small envelope—worn, smudged with fingerprints, and bearing the familiar handwriting of someone she missed with every part of her.

Alan. Her youngest brother.

She slipped the letter from the envelope, her fingers stiff from the cold, and carefully unfolded the creased paper. The moment her eyes landed on the first line, something in her chest loosened.

Dear Emmy,

He was the only one who still called her that. The only one who could get away with it.

Not much to say from home, really. Everything's the same—just quieter without you. Dad has been keeping busy, though he still talks to your picture some nights like you can hear him. I guess maybe you can. I know you two weren't the closest but somewhere deep down in his heart he misses you most. But I understand if you wouldn't care, because I know all the shit he had put you through. But enough of Dad.

I thought you might want to know that Paul's working now. Can you believe it? He's doing shifts and classes and all that grown-up stuff. That's probably why he hasn't written in a while. He's always busy now.

She frowned.

Paul? Working? College?

It didn't add up. Paul had spent most of his life avoiding responsibility like the plague. He used to joke that he'd rather "sweep coal dust with his tongue" than go to university. She could still hear him saying it, laughing with his feet kicked up on the kitchen table.

This wasn't like him. And Alan...Alan was too trusting to question it.

Her fingers tightened around the letter, the edges crinkling. Something was off. And suddenly, she hated being so far away. Hated that she couldn't just pick up a phone or knock on Paul's bedroom door.

She read on.

I miss you, Em. I miss how things used to be. Before all this. Before all this death in the world. I keep dreaming of you coming home in your uniform like one of those big hero stories in the paper. I hope that happens. I really do. I'm keeping your spot at the table, just in case. I get to brag about how my sister is off saving the men that are fighting on to save our country.

You're the real hero.

But I miss you. I miss you being here at home. Without you it just feels so empty. You were the light to every room, and now without you it just seems so dark. But I look up at the skies everyday knowing that you're up there saving men, and then I remember that without you they would be just as hopeless, bleeding out on a plane in the middle of nowhere, as I am sitting in my room sitting at my desk writing this letter to you.

I just want you to come home alive and not just your dog tags and a telegram. Just stay alive Emmy. Love you forever.

Her throat tightened.

Love, Bean.

Her eyes welled, but she blinked the tears back. She couldn't afford to cry—not here. Not now.

But the ache lingered even after wrapping up her shift.

Later that night Emilia did find herself in the mess hall. The air was filled with the hum of chatter, the clatter of trays, and the occasional burst of laughter. She spotted Maggie and Sam sitting with a few others from the ground crew and made her way over.

But as soon as she sat down, she felt it—the unmistakable presence of John Brady. Sure enough, he was at the far end of the hall, leaning back in his chair with that same cocky grin, talking with some of the other pilots. And of course, his eyes met hers almost immediately. He raised his glass to her, smirking like he'd won some sort of victory, "Looks like your friend's here," Maggie whispered, nudging Emilia with her elbow.

"Don't say another word," Emilia muttered, though she couldn't stop her eyes from lingering on Brady for just a moment longer than necessary. She shook her head and turned back to her friends, determined to enjoy the night. But deep down, she knew that keeping John Brady out of her thoughts was going to be a losing battle. The mess hall was buzzing with the sounds of soldiers trying to forget, at least for a few hours, the war that loomed over them all. Emilia sat with Maggie, Sam, and a few others, sipping her drink and half-listening to the conversation. Her mind, however, was distracted, and it wasn't long before she noticed Brady standing up from his table across the room. With that signature cocky swagger, he was making his way toward her, "Oh no. Here we go," she muttered, sinking a little lower in her chair.

"What's that?" Sam asked, glancing up just in time to see Brady approaching.

"I think your flyboy's coming over," Maggie smirked, leaning in.

Emilia groaned, "He's not my—"

Before she could finish, John Brady plopped himself down in the empty chair next to her, all casual arrogance, "McKenna, fancy seeing you here. I thought you'd be off saving the world, one poor soul at a time," his cocky grin was begging to be ripped off.

She shot him a sideways glance, unimpressed, "You know, Brady, some of us actually have work to do around here. We can't all just fly around causing trouble."

He grinned, unbothered by her barb, "Trouble? You make it sound like I'm not the one keeping you in business. Who do you think brings those poor souls back to you in the first place?"

"Half the time, I'm cleaning up after whatever reckless stunt you've pulled in the air," she shot back, her voice laced with mock exasperation, "Maybe if you weren't so busy showing off, I'd have fewer broken airmen to patch up," Brady chuckled, leaning back in his chair.

"Aw, come on, Sugs, you know you love it. Gives you a reason to keep that sharp tongue of yours in practice."

Her eyes narrowed, "And you're giving me way too much practice, Lieutenant Wiseass."

"Good thing, too. Wouldn't want you getting bored," his smirk deepened, and Emilia could see that glint of mischief in his eyes—the one that always seemed to challenge her, daring her to rise to the occasion.

She crossed her arms, leaning back slightly, "You think you're so charming, don't you?" she shot at him.

"Oh, I know I am," he said, flashing a grin, "Admit it, McKenna, you'd miss me if I didn't come bother you."

"Miss you?" she repeated with a laugh, raising an eyebrow, "I'd get a lot more done, that's for sure," Emilia quipped followed by an eye roll.

"But it wouldn't be nearly as fun, would it?" he teased, leaning closer.

She rolled her eyes again, trying to ignore the way her pulse quickened, "You're impossible."

"Impossible? Now that's harsh," Brady made a mock wounded face, placing a hand over his heart, "And here I was thinking we were starting to get along."

"We'll never get along," she said flatly, though the corner of her mouth twitched.

Brady leaned in even closer, his voice dropping a notch, "I think you secretly enjoy having me around, Sugs. Keeps you on your toes."

"Don't flatter yourself," she muttered, but her attempt at dismissiveness fell flat. He was getting to her, and they both knew it.

Sam, who had been watching the exchange with a mixture of amusement and mild concern, cleared his throat, "Alright, children. You're making the rest of us feel like we're not even here."

Brady didn't even look away from Emilia, "Just a little friendly conversation, right, Sugs?" he blinked innocently but his eyes were filled with mischief.

"Friendly?" she scoffed, "You've got a strange definition of friendly."

"Looks like flirting to me," Maggie chimed in with a grin.

Emilia nearly choked on her drink, "Flirting? With him? Are you kidding?"

Brady leaned back in his chair, a smug look on his face, "See, even Lawson knows what's up."

"The only thing that's up Brady, is your ego and Mags, don't encourage him," Emilia said, glaring at Maggie.

"Why not? It's entertaining," Maggie replied with a smirk, "Besides, you two bicker like an old married couple," Emilia shook her head, mortified, while Brady just chuckled.

"See, McKenna, it's not just me. People are starting to talk."

"They can talk all they want," Emilia muttered, crossing her arms, "Doesn't mean they're right."

Brady shrugged, unfazed, "Suit yourself. But the way I see it, you're stuck with me. Might as well get used to it."

Emilia narrowed her eyes, "I'd rather not."

"Oh, come on, Sugs, admit it. You'd be lost without me." he grinned.

"I'd be a lot less annoyed, that's for sure," she said dryly.

"But a lot less entertained," he shot back smoothly, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

She couldn't deny that he was right about one thing—he did keep things interesting. Annoying as he was, there was something about their banter that felt...familiar. Comfortable, even. As much as she tried to resist, she knew deep down that John Brady had a way of getting under her skin like no one else could.

"Tell you what," Brady said, leaning back in his chair with a smirk. "Next time we're up in the air together, I'll try to behave. Just. For. You."

Emilia narrowed her eyes at him, lips tightening as if preparing to fire back—but nothing came. Because his voice, playful as it was, wasn't as cocky as usual. There was something else beneath it. A flicker of something real.

Just for you.

She hated the way those words settled in her chest—too warm, too dangerous.

And suddenly, she was back in the med tent, Jackson's voice echoing in her head.

He only flies reckless when you're around...

He started trying to survive because of you.

She hadn't believed it, not really. But now—watching Brady lean back with that grin, eyes flicking toward her with an expression that wasn't entirely smug—she didn't know what to believe. The Brady she had built in her mind, the one made entirely of swagger and arrogance, didn't line up with the one Jackson described. And it definitely didn't line up with the man sitting in front of her now, half-serious behind the teasing.

She wanted to laugh it off. Shrug and say. "Good. Maybe next time you won't get us both killed." but the words stayed stuck in her throat.

Because a part of her—an inconvenient, treacherous part—was beginning to wonder if the recklessness wasn't about showboating after all. Maybe it was his way of trying to be seen. Not as a hero. Not even as a pilot. Just...seen. By her.

Damn it.

He was still annoying. Still impossible. But maybe—just maybe—he wasn't the only one being affected by all of this.

Emilia looked away first.

"Try harder," she muttered, walking past him before he could see the way her expression had softened.

And behind her, she swore she could hear him smile, "Don't miss me too much, Sweets!" he called out as she walked away.

"Trust me, I won't," she called after him not sparing a glance back, though there was no real bite to her words.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Maggie leaned in with a knowing smile, arms crossed and eyes twinkling.

"Oh, you are so in trouble, Flyboy."

Brady's smirk didn't falter, but it shifted—less smug now, more thoughtful. He leaned back further in his chair, arms behind his head like he didn't have a care in the world, but his gaze lingered on the spot where Emilia had disappeared.

"In trouble?" he drawled, "Please, Carrots. She hates me."

Maggie scoffed, "Oh, sure. And that look she just gave you? That was pure loathing?"

"She always looks like she wants to strangle me."

"And yet," Maggie said, tapping the side of her temple, "She never does. She talks about you, though. A lot. With that exact same expression she just walked out of here wearing—confused, annoyed, and a little flustered."

Brady chuckled low under his breath, running a hand through his hair as if trying to shake something off. But it clung to him anyway, "She doesn't get it," he said quietly, mostly to himself.

"Then help her," Maggie replied, softening, "But maybe try using something other than near-death stunts to show you care, huh?"

He sighed, eyes still fixed on the door, "Yeah," he muttered. "Maybe."

But part of him already knew—Emilia had seen something in him today. Maybe not everything. But enough.

And that was more than he'd had in a long, long time.

[hatefueled]

( repost ) for clarities sake, this is kind of where my canon divergence is;

jericho blackburn ( blackburn is his adoptive parent's surname which he took after their deaths and the razing of his home ) , was taken in by nick and graey, when he was barely a year old. following the untimely death of his birth parents, due to some fighting between groups warring for land and resources. aeragan-epharshel hadn't been suffering from any scarcity, it was just how things were. most factions were pretty honorable, and good about even trade and laws set. but bandits tend to crop up in all sorts of places so. i take some inspiration not ONLY for his fandomless verse but also his homeworld from; mad max , trigun , and red dead redemption. his home world was beautiful, full of life, and natural wonders. it was everything to him, even with all it's complexities and difficulties.

the scientist he went to was very difficult to find. but he didn't do so until YEARS after his home was taken by the IPC. he tried at first to get his revenge as he was but, found his body lacking. he was also getting older, and found with all the injuries he'd suffered... his body was struggling. hence him seeking ways to improve himself, and turn himself into a weapon. he also did all of his modifications and changes in one go. not over time. it was a grueling process, sacrificing his entire sense of self to embody his own anger and his hunt for revenge.

he isn't censored. i think it's silly and fun, but my portrayal is darker and i try to be a bit more serious and grim with it. he might try to censor himself though around certain people- or he just wont curse at all if he can help it.

i think hyv is scared to explore genuinely dark characters. they definitely get close at times with boothill. he's violent, reckless, has very clear addictions and copes very poorly with his grief. but they keep softening the blow, pulling back to make sure you know oh - " he's not that bad ! " but he is. he's able to read right from wrong and can be rational when he knows he needs to. but he is angry, driven by his pain and hate, and hunts on a very narrow path. my portrayal leans a LOT into the morally grey part of his character. again he can be reasoned with, but who you are and how he sees you will determine how well that goes for you.

despite his grey morality, his sharp edges,,, he DOES try to connect with people and make lasting bonds. it's difficult. but he tries. and i love that because it's a good balance to all the awful and less than appealing aspects of his personality and character. it's just had when he believes himself undeserving, or that he doesn't have room there for any kind of long term relationship. so he requires... patience.

i'll have to repost stuff but. i have a LOT of hcs on his body, and cannot shut up about it actually and how it works. so expect posts on it to crop up in the very near future. mostly reposts but also new stuff. i have a lot of thoughts!!!

[batmanfruitloops]

Oh what a coincidence, my sibling has been replaying Arkham Knight too! What are your opinions on the Arkham series? The story? Designs? I quite liked the first two, I wasn't a big fan of the car mechanics in the third but I appreciate a good scarecrow plot

I love the series but I enjoy playing more than the stories. My favorite of the series is Arkham Knight, I love the open world, the story, the environments, and the gameplay. It seems like most people hate the car, including myself but I do get a kick out of how violently I smack into things or how easily I flip myself over, especially while Eddie yells at me. I don't like that a big chunk of the puzzles are reliant on the car. I just enjoy being Batman and talking to myself in character. Also, I think Arkham Knight Scarecrow is hot, so more reason to play.

I do like how much all the games have in terms of content, there's so much to do and look at. Origins is my least favorite, I find it a bit boring and it's a pretty buggy game in my experience but it does offer a lot to do compared to City and Asylum. Also, I collected all the "riddles" in Origins TWO TIMES and it glitched in such a way it thought I still had one riddle left so I didn't get the prize for getting all the riddles. Despite these issues, I would like to 100% it eventually like I have with the other three.

I love the art and designs and all the little attention to detail. I appreciate that you can look at the concept art in each game, as I would love to do stuff like that for my career. Though I think artistically they're all pleasant I'm not a big fan of a lot of the characterizations, I wouldn't say the writing is bad the stories are pretty solid but it's mostly the way characters are written that I have an issue with. Especially, Batman, I feel like he's out of character a lot of the time and seems too pessimistic about things, especially in regards to the villains. He seems to have no hope of helping them and is pretty rude to them. Like calling Waylon ugly or just completely dehumanizing him calling Waylon an animal or referring to him as "it". Or when he brings up Eddie's diagnoses as if he's stuck like that or there's no hope for him to recover when there are most certainly treatments for someone with those mental illnesses/disabilities. It rubs me the wrong way whenever, at least when I perceive it to be that way, any kind of illness or disability (mental or physical) is treated like that makes you evil or it means there's no hope for you because the aforementioned "issues" prevent you from changing. You could argue that they are choosing to be horrible people, but I don't feel like that is what is being communicated. Maybe that's just my own bias.

Also, the conditions of Arkham don't seem to be brought up, in regards to Asylum and City. Like that's why they're not getting better and actively getting worse. It seems like Batman has little compassion for anyone and just wants to send the rogues to jail and the way he treats his allies doesn't seem like "I'm doing this to protect you because I care" rather that they are just in his way. Overall it's just too gloomy for me. Maybe because it's written for a video game and it's trying to avoid ludo narrative dissonance. I don't know, I'm not an expert. Because of this I always joke that I've killed whatever enemy (ies) I've taken out. I make my own fun and joke around a lot while playing to enjoy the world more. I don't want to think about the bleakness of it.

Despite the outlook being relatively grim and bleak, they are some of my favorite video games ever. I don't have to be enveloped in that story and can just enjoy the gameplay and do my own silly little thing being an absolute gremlin of a Batman and making the characters kiss in my mind. It's just a fun place to scream and yell and run around and say "I'm Batman" to myself while flirting or yelling at whatever character (or making them flirt/yell at each other).

-Fluffy

[thirdmagic]

there has to be like, some kinda fanfic or otherwise fanmade art that explores the darker implications of kirk's constant femme fatale thing and how it affects him right. because the way it plays out varies from episode to episode but that is kind of a fucked up thing to go through when you really think about it and there is no way there isnt some kinda trauma there. and like in some episodes his dynamic with the ladies has a bit of a bodice ripper vibe where he seems to be super into them despite the situation, and in some he actually feels like the one who has more power (.... because the woman in question is either framed as childishly naive and unaware or like, basically offered to him, or literally a slave, or all of these, just generally has very little agency) but in many he is clearly just not into them at all and only using himself to get to them and like this is made very clear in these cases and its like.... the implications are grim.

and this didnt bother me as deeply as it did up until the episode wink of an eye, which is an episode i really liked (even though it was SO STRESSFUL, again) but that was the one where the sexy villain lady of the week was coming on to him very aggressively and he was, just as aggressively, rejecting her, like physically pushing her away, it was honestly.... it was uncomfortable. and they did actually end up having sex as part of him doing the 'seduce the lady to get out of the situation' routine and that really. it haunts me, i suppose. it drove the discomfort home. that was a situation where she absolutely had power over him and he really had no way to get out of it other than pretending to 100% play into her hands and she basically wanted to enslave him. and for all that he did end up gaining the edge and getting power over her emotionally bc of how this show often likes to frame and characterize women (which, yeah), it still sticks with me what the situation was before they got to that point. it didnt feel like a bodice ripper kind of sexy fun 'ohhhh the sexy powerful woman wants me all to herself~~~' dominatrix fantasy that this show likes to play with, even though i feel like it was probably intended that way conceptually? but the way it's played off in the episode feels a lot more real as an experience of captivity and assault at least to some degree bc of his reactions and just the way she and all these aliens are characterized and. mm. it haunts me!!!

anyway i am sure this has been discussed to death because it's star trek everything has been discussed to death around this show and just a cursory tumblr search made it clear how unbold and unoriginal of a take this all is but now that i'm experiencing it myself. i feel the desperate need for closure over this. i need something to address the realistic implications this would have on a person's psyche and how that would impact their mindset. i dont even know what kind of fic or how i want to see it so long as its not too gratuitous and keeping in with his canon characterization but idk, it begs to be addressed in some way because this is too heavy of a thread to leave untangled

[raptorsaurusmelain]

Let me show you... Youtube - chapter 10

GUESS WHO'S BACK ??? Me.

My trip to Helsinki went well, I had a fun time with my friends. I went to a drag show there, it was very interesting ! It was my first one.

Warning : no proof reading, English is not my mother tongue.

If you are interested in reading this fic, the tag "#twst lmsyy" will give you all the chapters.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

Ace explained the situation : he ate a piece of the cherry pie for the unbirthday party, Riddle got angry, he got collared and he got here to ask to change dorms.

Yuu and Victoria looked at each other. Yuu then said, “You need to apologize.”

Victoria added a good. “And quickly on top of that.”

Ace began his long rant about how Riddle was a tyrant, that he was evil, gna gna gna… Really it was old news and sadly, compared to the game, you can’t skip the dialogue…

At the end of the rant, Yuu said. “You still need to apologize.”

Victoria added. “And still quickly on top of that.”

Ace grumbled and said. “You are both killing me !! You didn’t listen to a word I said !”

Victoria sighed. “Listen up buttercup, you did something foolish and you are harvesting what you sow. Plus, do you really want to live in this run down dorm ? It is called Ramshackle for a reason.”

Ace tried his best to convince the adult. “I can help restore it !”

Victoria arched an eyebrow. “Really ? You seem to be the kind of person who run away from your homework and complains about having to do it last minute. Or, you seem to run away from things that are not funny, and restoring a building is not funny, it is hard and very long. Still want to pass your weekends to restore the dorm with us ?”

 Ace flinched and laughed. “Yeaaaaaaah maybe not my jam. Can I at least sleep here tonight ?”

Yuu thought before speaking. “Yes you can but you need to sleep in the lobby, unless you want to clean a room right now ?”

Ace was definitely not having it. “We… could sleep together ?”

Yuu cringed at the prospect. Victoria, seeing the subtle movement, interfered. “No you’re not. You either sleep on the couch, or you go back to your dorm.”

And with that, she ended the discussion. While Ace was defeated by the prospect of sleeping on an old couch, Victoria and Yuu went to her room to search for some bed sheets and a pillow.

Yuu interrupted the silence. “Thank you, I didn’t know how to say no…”

Victoria had a small smile. “You’re welcome, Baby. It is not an easy word to say.”

Night was a charm, except for Victoria who slept approximately 3h. She was going to need a lot of tea to go through her day. 

She went to the kitchen, surprised that Ace was still sleeping despite the Sun shining through the window. She arrived in the kitchen and turned on the kettle. She also prepared a bunch of nutelli (again, an equivalent) sandwiches to satisfy her craving of sweets.

When the kettle whistled, Ace woke up grumbling and Yuu arrived, already in their uniform, followed by a sleepy Grim. Victoria put on the table everything they had for breakfast. Yuu settled for their fruit square cereal, Grimm for a bowl of milk accompanied by some nutelli sandwiches and Ace opted for some cherry jam on toast.

Victoria was filling her gourd and said. “Today you have to apologize, Ace. It is never good to let those types of bad blood going on. He can destroy your years in the dorm.” Before he could speak, she added. “I know you don’t see what you did wrong, but it is important for some people to respect their habits and ‘rules’.”

Ace answered her statement “Urgh… You truly don’t know him, there are too many rules ! I can’t remember all of them !”

Victoria then remembered the fact that there were 800+ rules. “Yeah maybe it is too much… Anyway, try to find a middle ground with him, ok ?”

Oh boy she knew where this was going and she didn’t like it… She will need to buy a whole lot of antiseptic and bandages. 

She straightened Yuu's tie. “You look ravishing, like always Baby. Believe in yourself and you will do great things. Now, go and crush the world.”

She knew it wasn’t much, but some words of encouragement will be better than nothing.

She looked at them go to the Heartslabyul dorm and dropped her shoulders. She didn’t need to fake the fact that she was well now that their little eyes are away.

She knew her state would degrade soon. Too much excitement and information for her brain to compute them correctly during her sleep. For the moment she could just hope for a quick relapse, so she wouldn’t need a doctor appointment with no social security.

She inhaled and exhaled loudly. [Everything is going to be alright, we just need time and rest.]

Sadly, instead of resting she had to work.

While she swept, she found a door slightly open. It was from one of the lecture halls.

She got closer and lent an ear. A deep masculine voice could be heard about a very boring subject. She had to swallow her laughter to not be heard by the teacher. She stayed there a few minute before she heard a scratch on the door and a deep “meeeeeow.”

Lucius was a four paws snitch.

“What can I do for you Mrs Devi ?” Trein opened the door a few moments later.

 Lucius was definitely a fur baby snitch.

Victoria looked at him with pleading eyes. “I am sorry to interrupt your class, the door wasn’t shut entirely and I got interested in your lecture.”

Trein grabbed the meowing snitch and sighed. “I admire your pursuit of knowledge but you should have just closed the door. Not eavesdropping.”

[Ooch, live ammo here.] Thought Victoria.

She bowed “I am truly sorry, it won’t happen again…” She turned and grabbed her broom, defeated.

He closed the door despite Lucius wiggling to go to the young lady.

It hurted Trein to see someone who so earnestly wanted to learn and yet couldn’t, just because she wasn’t a student here.

At noon, Yuu went to see her to talk about their plan for the afternoon and warn her that they would be late. Victoria nodded and they went to eat with their friends.

At least Yuu had some friends to help them in their story…

Tag : @boba-tea-fish @hipsterteller