#I know this is my old username but I can’t fix it oops

[quortknei]

jack frost, my favorite boy!!

[copper-skulls]

hey lemme just put stuff about this undertale skeleton oc here before I get it lost on my non-searchable personal so:

(Courier) Code, they/them

Bitter Old Bastard (BOB for short), actually called that sometimes. by friends (Gerson). shh. they’re old. They’re bitter.

actually called Courier Code but only like 3 people are allowed to refer to them as Courier. For everyone else: Just Code.

begrudging engineer at UnderNet. I am Convinced undernet runs on like 4 people, duct tape and spite, so they’re mainly a backend developer (mostly databases and security), but tend to do server admin and maintenance along with that. And if things are especially dire, they’ll do frontend development too but They Will Complain Loudly

right humerus is a mess with a very ugly uuh. spiral fracture? like, it was twisted. holds together literally only thanks to medical tape: if you pull hard enough, you’ll yank it right off! And get yelled at, a lot

usually hidden under long sleeves, babey

right hand dexterity is affected just slightly, but they can’t lift anything with it and will complain about humidity

do Noooot try to get stuff about the Surface or the War from them. they’ll try to refer you to Gerson first, and if that doesn’t work, they’ll unload the worst details on you in an attempt to get you to just Drop It, Goddamnit, Go Away (this does not exclude kids. they’ve gotten yelled at by angry parents for this before)

lives in Hotland somewhere

doesn’t talk much, kind of a hermit. If they talk, it’s usually seeped in sarcasm

soul trait?? who knows?? they haven’t glowed in uuuuuuuuh. a long while. (it’s Integrity but it’s rather faint nowadays)

no soul magic, bullets are bones or 0 and 1s

legend has it they can smile. sources are dubious though

skelebros whomst? all they know is that CoolSkeleton95 has an uncanny knack for finding the most obscure glitches and bugs (and they’re somehow always critical or high-priority in their impact) and [whatever username sans has] makes the most insufferable tickets ever (always for a different reason. it’s like it’s his hobby or something-). probably doesn’t even know they’re bros lmao

probably knows Alphys somewhat. i think I had more details on this. i forgot them. oops.

local dumbass shows affection by deciding to voluntarily exist in your vicinity from time to time (it takes a While for them to actually un-guard themselves but it Can be done)

Their Deal is codes and ciphers! It used to be “”“simple”“” hand-encrypted stuff during the War (they were an actual courier then), but they kept up with the technology and currently are really into encryption algorithms and data security.

Their font changed at some point. Used to be Courier 10 Pitch, nowadays it’s, well, Courier Code. it’s not much of a change but it is there

has a UN profile but it’s completely blank. talking to people? just… like that? nah

‘that poor machine has done nothing to you, why are you angry at it’

[talks to a computer while fixing it, apologizes to it when they open it up to mess with the guts]

is probably politer to most computers than people

constantly complains about their job but secretly likes it. Will trek through Hotland to the server room at 3am to figure out why did all their server alerts suddenly turn red

[stuckylibrary]

Group Ask 185

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Please send us an ask stating which group ask and which person you are replying to. Thank you so much in advance!

glaciatedglades said:

hiya! i'm looking for a shrinkyclinks fic where bucky works in the police force as a new guy and the team (esp. tony) are trying to find out who the mysterious new guy is. i remember a scene where tony has a corkboard with all his ideas on and bucky finds it? then they're all suprised when the tiny rage machine bucky has to bail out is actually his boyfriend. sorry if this is too vague, any ideas?

Anon 1 said:

Please help!!! I've been trying to find this shrunkyclunks fic in which Bucky doesnt know Steve is Captain America, and they've been texting/flirting/kind of dating. And during an attack in New York, Steve couldnt contact Bucky and it's because he was on a subway and a large debris fell on his arm as he was holding a child. The avengers finally save him all the while the others are teasing steve that bucky is his secret boyfriend.

Anon 2 said:

I'm trying to find a fic where both Steve and Bucky are amputees, but one of Steve's legs was amputated. I think he also has a problem with perfectionism, or maybe OCD? It shows itself when he makes cupcakes and they aren't all perfect I think. The title is something about a tattoo I think

Anon 3 said:

I’m looking for this fic where Bucky kidnaps Steve and chains him up naked in a safe house and kinda hurts him but Steve just lets it happen because it’s Bucky. Any ideas?

Anon 4 said:

i can’t seem to find this fic but it’s based off the movie “handsome devil” where Steve ends up rooming with Bucky who is the captain of some sports team in their school? any help would be great, thanks!

Anon 5 said:

Hey! I’m just wondering if you know of a fic where Steve goes back in time and sees younger Bucky, and stays and talks to him for awhile. I’m also pretty sure he mentions that he and future Bucky are engaged. Thanks!

Anon 6 said:

Hi! This was like an endgame fix it. Steve was missing for a while but then he comes back, he's in the hospital for a while and in the end, Carol comes?! Stucky obviously.oh and i think Nat and tony survived

mickey09543 said: (cw:rape/noncon, consent issues)

hi! i asked the old page, oops! I am looking for a specific fic: bucky is seemingly recovered (in therapy, law school) and dating sam and steve, but no one realizes that his idea of consent is all wrong. he does not understand he can say no to sex. he has sex with a girl and boy from law school (boy is abusive) and when steve and sam find out there is Lots of Angst and they feel they have raped him and he feels depressed that he "ruined" things with them. Thanks!!

Anon 7 said:

Hey I’m looking for a slow burn fanfic where Steve is helping Bucky recover from being the Winter Soldier and they move into a big house together. I know that’s not much to go by but j really enjoyed it and have been looking for it forever.

Anon 8 said:

hey im wondering if anyone knows about a fic whereby steve and bucky were married but steve never had time for bucky and they got a divorce because bucky decided he needed to find his happiness and steve tries to win him back? i think it was written by shore_11 but they have since changed username(i think) and I can't seem to find it anymore so im not sure if it was moved to a different username or it was deleted. does anyone know?

noneofusthesame said:

hey there! I'm looking for a fic, and I only remember a few things about it: it was mainly about steve; nobody called him steve tho, the avengers called him cap and (if it's the same fic not 2 different ones) i think the end has steve on a rooftop(?) and the avengers confront him about how what they think of him isn't at all who he is? I'm pretty sure it isn't longer than 30k words. I've tried searching steve & the 21st century and those types but i couldn't find it. Thanks for this blog!!!

Anon 9 said:

Oh my god so I read this fic a while ago and I can’t find it anywhere. It’s pre-catfa; Steve is asleep in his bed that he and bucky share, and Bucky brings home a girl and has sex next to him. It’s on AO3 but I cannot find it to save my life!!!

Anon 10 said:

hey there! I'm looking for this fic in which bucky is kinda dark/morally grey post-winter soldier. its a bit like the murder ballads. i remember that he had a strange friendship with tony and had this e-cig that lit up blue

Anon 11 said:

Hello! I'm looking for a fic that was Shrunkyclunks but still had a badass Bucky with a metal arm. Bucky works in a coffee shop that the Avengers slowly infiltrate trying to find out who's been making Steve so happy lately. But, Steve insists they are friends but it's obvious that to others they are more than pals. It isn't until NY is attacked and Bucky punches an alien that Steve asks him to marry him.

Anon 12 said:

Hi! I've been looking for this fic forever. It was modern bucky/cap steve, I'm pretty sure there was an age difference between them, bucky being pretty young. They lived in the same apartment complex and Bucky would sneak down through one of Steves windows while Steve wasn't home, until Steve caught him and they had some type of relationship? And i remember at the end, Steve went out to give a public speech and he saw Bucky in the crowd so all he did was smile and wave? and then it ended! help!

[lilydalexf]

Old School X is a project interviewing X-Files fanfic authors who were posting fic during the original run of the show. New interviews are posted every Tuesday.

Interview with Tabula Rasa

Tabula Rasa has 8 stories at Gossamer, but there are even more X-Files fics at AO3 and her website. She writes Mulder and Scully in a very lovely way. I've recced 3 of my favorites of her fics here before: Bird in Snow, Fall: East on M St, and Skuamorph. Big thanks to Tabula Rasa for doing this interview.

Does it surprise you that people are still interested in reading your X-Files fanfics and others that were posted during the original run of the show (1993-2002)?

I'm always extremely pleasantly surprised to get kudos (or, very rarely, a comment) on my old fic, but I'm always happy to see it! I did post them all (I think) to AO3. I'm not surprised people are still reading fic, though. It's an iconic show and now with streaming, it's really easy to watch older shows and natural to want fic about them!

What do you think of when you think about your X-Files fandom experience? What did you take away from it?

XF was my first fandom, definitely my first online fandom, and so it will always have a special place in my heart. Also... I had a great time! I stumbled upon and joined the Scullyfic email list by accident, but it was the best thing I could have done. I learned a lot about how to be a writer and how to be in fandom, and those lessons are still important to me. Foundational. Also, in terms of modern fandom drama, XF was more low-key on the drama (although it didn't seem like it at the time!). But I learned something that's always served me well: find like-minded people, and hang out with them. Don't worry about the rest.

Also... you can't control the show, but you kind of can control the canon.

Because of Scully, I ended up taking a forensic anthropology class in university-- and now I have a Master's in a forensic science! Part of the Scully Effect, and proud of it!

Social media didn't really exist during the show's original run. How were you most involved with the X-Files online (atxc, message board, email mailing list, etc.)?

Definitely mostly email list! I never really got the hang of message boards. Posting fic was exhausting, and tbh I never figured out how to work Ephemeral. I checked it every day, though! I loved, after a new episode, everyone sending in their thoughts and reading everyone's experiences together. Fandom was a lot more work back then, tbh!

What did you take away from your experience with X-Files fic or with the fandom in general?

That fic can be just as good, or better, than traditionally published works. There are works of XF fic that have stuck with me for years now, far more than some books I've read. That fan writers can know the characters better than the show writers. The fandom in general was really smart, and mostly more adult than me (I joined fandom when I went away to college, so I always felt at the younger end of the scale. That was good though!).

Also, my first time reading and writing porn. Not gonna lie, I was shocked the first time I accidentally read smut. But I adjusted fast. lol

What was it that got you hooked on the X-Files as a show?

I was still a kid (now we would say preteen) when the show premiered- I think in middle school. But I was already into ghosts, aliens, monsters, solving mysteries, and I'd already imprinted on the dynamic thanks to Square One (really)! I was also just old enough to start developing celebrity crushes. Hilariously, I did not twig to the fact that I'm bisexual the entire time I was in XF fandom, despite having enormous crushes on BOTH Mulder and Scully. Ahhhh!

Also, my whole family was into the show, but I was definitely the one with the hyperfixation. I used to take notes and record the episodes as I watched. It just had the right stuff and hit at the right time. And I've always been obsessive.

What got you involved with X-Files fanfic?

As a kid I also really liked Star Trek, and someone had given my dad a book about the history of Star Trek, which I read. This included mentions of fandom and fanfic. As soon as I had a private-- and perhaps more importantly fast-- internet connection (in college), I went looking for XF fanfic, and that was that. Hooked immediately. Also I shipped them A LOT so that's what I went looking for.

What is your relationship like now to X-Files fandom?

I tend to not go back to a fandom once I have a new fandom, so I wouldn't say I'm in it. I did hang around the edges for the revival, of course, because I wanted to experience that with the same people, but since the revival was mostly not that great (with a few exceptions), I didn't get pulled back into it. But I still think of the people I knew in the fandom a lot, and always hope they're doing well.

Were you involved with any fandoms after the X-Files? If so, what was it like compared to X-Files?

I've never left fandom, and I've been in a BUNCH: Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Bandom, Supernatural, now CQL/The Untamed and other Chinese-media fandoms, with many smaller ones in between or on the side. I feel like at their core fandoms tend to be similar, although where you host the fandom makes a big difference: Livejournal, tumblr, twitter. I think that because fandoms now tend to be bigger and more diverse (which is good) there tends to be more wank (which is bad). In some of them I was close to a group of people, some of them not. Honestly the best thing is when someone you know from an old fandom is in your new fandom. It's so much fun. I have really good friends thanks to fandom, and I've had them for YEARS. Like. 15 years.

Who are some of your favorite fictional characters? Why?

I tend to focus more on ships than characters, but some of my all-time favs: Scully, Hermione, Sirius Black, Castiel, Lan Wangji, Xie Lian. That's just fandom-oriented ones, otherwise we'd be here all day. :D

Do you ever still watch The X-Files or think about Mulder and Scully?

I don't often rewatch episodes any more, although if I come across an ep on tv I might. I definitely still think about them though! For example, I'm a teacher now, and just a couple weeks ago one of my colleagues mentioned he'd heard the students saying they shipped two of their classmates, and he was like "Ship? I don't get it" and I was like "HOO BOY, do I have a story for you!" And I explained how shipping came from XF fandom, and why. That was fun. I definitely still think about Mulder and Scully too-- I mean, they're cultural touchstones, so they do come up sometimes in greater pop culture. Also, I was in Hannibal fandom for a while, and Gillian Anderson is still The Best.

Do you ever still read X-Files fic? Fic in another fandom?

I haven't read XF fic in years, even the ones I remember as being really significant/important to me. I still have my all-time favs saved on an external HD though! Fic in another fandom- every day lol.

Do you have any favorite X-Files fanfic stories or authors?

Blinded by White Light by DashaK has stuck with me. Mr. and Mrs. Smith and the Ruby-Throated Warbler by I forget I'm so sorry -- that's lasted as my ideal post-canon MSR and as an interesting and different way to tell a story.  [Lilydale note: It’s by rah.] I was always thrilled to see fic by Brandon, JET, MaybeAmanda, Syntax6... and, frankly, everyone on the Scullyfic/ Emuse list. So many talented people in that fandom!

What is your favorite of your own fics, X-Files and/or otherwise?

Things Outside, which is the only thing I've ever written based on a dream, and I'm really satisfied with it. It was hard to write but so much fun to revel in the weirdness. I always kind of wanted to write more because I know a lot more about the situation, but otoh, I like the open, ambiguous ending (usually I am very HEA).

In other fandoms, King & Country in bandom (MCR) and in Supernatural I'm very proud of Hope and Clay. I struggle to write casefics even though I love to read them, but that one really worked out.

Do you think you'll ever write another X-Files story? Or dust off and post an oldie that for whatever reason never made it online?

I don't think I'll ever write something new. There is an old fic that may be done but it was smut so I was too shy to post it at the time. In theory if I find it and it's decent, I could post it!

Do you still write fic now? Or other creative work?

I do! I write fic very slowly, but I do write still! I have a million ideas for stories, but I'm so slow at the actual writing part.

Where do you get ideas for stories?

I usually take a jumping-off point from canon, or of course, something I need to fix or expand on. Or sometimes I start telling myself a story as I fall asleep and the idea grabs me long enough I can manage to write it.

What's the story behind your pen name?

I was getting into fandom and realized people didn't use their real names. I flipped through my history book looking for inspiration, and decided tabula rasa was a great name for a writer. I tend to add an X because it's rare to get "tabularasa" as a username, and the X is indeed for X-Files (so I'm something like tabulaxrasa most places). I usually go by Tabula Rasa or Tab, though. And I still use it because 1) it IS a great name for a writer; and 2) it's not fandom-specific so I can keep it in every fandom.

I identify with it so much I have answered to this name in class (oops). I have a "Tab" t-shirt (as in the soda, but I have worn it to Comic-Con for ease of ID-- better than a nametag!). And my mom got me a necklace with a "tab" typewriter key as a charm, which I adore. Yes, I have accidental merch of myself.

Do your friends and family know about your fic and, if so, what have been their reactions?

As you can tell from the above, my family knows (my family being my parents and sister). They are supportive! I think my mom read a couple stories? But obviously she has to know the fandom to get it... I got my sister into fic, and we even wrote a couple fics together (in Gundam Wing). She's a lot more selective about fandoms, but she's joined fandoms on her own, too. She's just not in one constantly, like me. :p

I tend not to tell not-online friends unless I have felt them out and know they're super fannish, or they bring it up first.

Is there a place online (tumblr, twitter, AO3, etc.) where people can find you and/or your stories now?

Most of my old fic is now on AO3 and I hang out on twitter a lot, @tabula_x_rasa

Is there anything else you'd like to share with fans of X-Files fic?

I'm really glad people are still in this fandom! It will always be so important to me. Thank you Lilydale, for this nostalgia trip!

(Posted by Lilydale on March 30, 2021)

[notveryglittery]

so @/dysaniadisorder​ posted this really cute zoom moxiety art and then i posted some selfies in a discord server and the reactions from that + this moxiety art got me feeling even more Fluffy than usual so here’s a very rambly au that i stream of consciousness wrote in half an hour lol 

idk about anyone else, but i had a pen pal through english class in middle school for a little while. so what if, patton and virgil meeting through being pen pals. patton's letters are as bubbly as his stories, he includes stickers on the pages and the envelope, and uses *so many* exclamation marks. virgil meanwhile, tends to write very little and mostly just in reaction to whatever patton said. because sure, the letters are sent to the school and they've been told not to give away personal information, but y'know... Just In Case.

except for one towards the end of the program, when patton really doesn't want to lose contact with virgil, so he shares his instagram. and he says no pressure of course i dont even know if you have an instagram but here it is if you ever wanna try to keep talking. and bc roman's his best friend, of course virgil has instagram (ugh). so of course he checks patton's profile. and oh *no* he's as cute as his bubbly handwriting and his stories and stickers and exclamation marks

virgil's never really mentioned this whole pen pal thing to roman, because roman's english teacher did not sign her class up for it and he knows roman would be jealous. but he made the mistake of checking patton's profile in roman's presence and if anyone's going to notice a Gay Panic™, it's roman

so of course roman grills virgil and virgil caves bc like what?? else is he gonna do?? but anyway, roman hits the follow button for virgil but then virgil throws his phone across the room and breaks it so can we get an f in the chat

meanwhile patton's studying with his step-brother logan when he gets a little chime from his phone and? oh a new instagram follow that's neat, who's [insert cool username for virgil]? except of course virgil's profile is private so patton has to follow back to see any photos. except virgil's phone is busted! bummer

cue virgil not getting a new phone for a week or two bc idk he's in trouble for breaking the old one to begin with and by the time he finally does get a new one, he totally spaces on installing instagram. so it's like a month and a half later when roman asks him why the heck he hasn't been liking roman's pictures that virgil remembers. and then he also remembers patton. *oh god patton* how could he ever forget, he is a fool, and patton probably hates him now, or he must be super worried, bc the pen pal program is over so they havent been writing and then he just disappeared off the face of the planet which?? well patton should have expected it a little because he did say it would be okay if virgil didnt want to keep in contact but *oh god patton*

virgil installs instagram and finds patton's follow request (and like 32 comments from roman demanding that virgil like his photos what kind of best friend is he smh)

and he accepts it 

and then while he's still riding his bravery high, he messages patton "hey it's virgil" and then Very Calmly sets his phone down before screaming into a pillow

meanwhile patton's busy cheering logan on at his swim meet but this does mean that he's posting all sorts of encouraging cheesy stuff to his story which means virgil is already getting a sneak peak into patton's life and wait oh my GOD is that his voice???????

virgil is very gay and he is having a Time

anyway patton also almost breaks his phone when he sees the follow request approved *and* the message!!! because lowkey , he considers virgil a pretty close friend!! he vented in some of those pen pal letters! said some things he couldn't bring himself to say to anyone else. and virgil was always so patient and kind and reminded him of all the good things to help and balance out the bad things.

so y'know, fast forward thru lots of instagram interactions. messaging each other late into the night. virgil always liking patton's photos and leaving a single "💜" comment on every one. they talk about roman - and how he's virgil's best friend and he may be dramatic and loud but he's reliable and genuine - and they talk about logan - and how patton wouldn't know anywhere near as much as he does w/out him and how they have sleepovers in the basement every saturday.

and fast forward to moving on from instagram to discord, and joining servers of fandoms they're both in. making a server for themselves + roman + logan (and *oh boy,* introducing roman and logan). sending silly memes and posts that "made me think of you", late night texting that ends with one sending the final “i guess you fell asleep, sweet dreams <3″ message, and the other sending the “oops i did, good morning <3″ message in return 

and sure, roman might post pictures on instagram of himself and virgil, but virgil's always half-in half-out of frame or he's blurry or he's looking away. and so one day, he posts a selfie in their friend server because he's just got his hair dyed purple and he's *so excited* and patton. patton didnt even have time to prepare can we get an f in the chat

there are a LOT of keysmashes and hearts lol

roman is still laughing by the time patton manages to calm down. patton sort of flat out demands for a group video call aljsdf

logan and roman, all this time obviously because they can't be out done, have already had plenty of personal voice and video calls themselves. sometimes it's just to help roman run lines or help logan study for a test. but they have been on the receiving end of patton and virgil gushing about their respective crushes so they're in full support of this tbh

so they set up a group video call that night, roman and logan like immediately muting themselves bc let's be real we all know the real reason behind this. patton is gushing about virgil and virgil's hair like, right off the bat, and virgil is slowly but surely disappearing into his hoodie and the lighting in his room isn't very good, but gosh patton is *melting* and then

and THEN

patton pauses to finally drink out of his cooling hot cocoa and virgil takes the opportunity to clear his throat and sit up a little out of his hoodie cocoon and says thank you

and y'all we thought virgil was all Gay Panic™ when he saw patton's face in photos for the first time? and then he broke his phone when roman followed patton for him?

patton does a spit take and chokes on his hot cocoa and kind of maybe shorts out his laptop ajsdkjhsf

because we gotta go full circle baby

roman disappears from view on his camera because he just rolled off the bed he's laughing so hard

you know logan definitely anticipated this, so he's been on best buy's website this whole time, ready to find laptops on sale / schedule an appointment to get patton's laptop fixed

and uuuhhhh yeah :) pen pals to friends to lovers long distance moxiety, with background probably-qpr logince because that's the Vibe i'm getting. with bonus best friends prinxiety and familial logicality!! thanks for reading :D 

[dabblinginmarvel]

Stardust (Part 2)

Plot: The Reader is a fallen star who attached to the Time Stone and, along with Stephen Strange, they go on an adventure to get rid of the villain who brought you to Earth.

Prologue          Part 1

A/N: I’m enjoying brainstorming for this so much. Wish NaNoWriMo was going the same way, oops.

Warnings: None.

Word Count Total: 1024

Long Imagine #24

Title: Stardust

Part 2

Stephen offered you a seat and, as you slowly sank into the firm comfort of it, he disappeared around the bookshelves. Thunks and the fluttering of pages sounded from behind them and your chair, interspersed with frustrated huffs and hollow noises of hardcover books closing. The shuffling of his feet followed each change in book until he came back to the desk you and Wong were waiting at.

“Anything?” Wong asked. Stephen shook his head.

“Nothing.”

“Do we even know what we’re looking for?”

“No.”

Wong nodded. “Great.”

Stephen leaned on the desk and thrummed his fingers against the ancient wood. You looked up at him, admiring the sharp cheekbones and strong jaw.

“Maybe a break will bring a new perspective,” you suggested quietly. He looked down at you, then nodded.

“A break. Sure. I’m going to the store.” He swept out of the room, his red cloak moving behind him.

- - -

He closed the front door behind him and walked down the sidewalk. No one would notice him in his regular clothes. The store wasn’t far, so there was no need to use magic, anyway – but he still wore the Eye of Agamotto under his jacket.

He made it halfway down the street when a force on his sternum pushed him back. It was the necklace.

“What the hell?” he asked in hushed tones. He pushes forward again, but the pressure returned. Pushing his arm forward, he found it was only on his chest.

The Eye was stopping him.

Something was wrong.

He ran back to the Sanctum.

When he burst through the door, Wong furrowed his brows. “I thought you were going to the store.”

“Something’s wrong.”

Wong met him at the middle of the room. “What is it?”

“I don’t know. I couldn’t get further than three blocks and the Eye held me back.”

“How?”

“It pushed on my chest when I tried t move forward. It was like my chest hit a brick wall.”

“Could it be the stone?”

“It might be. Do you think I could -”

“Don’t even finish that question. You and I both know the stone is partial to you and will throw a fit if you leave it behind.”

“Then I should send you to the store.”

“It’s your money.”

“You’re making this very difficult right now, aren’t you?”

“I’m not trying to. It’s what happens when something unexpected happens.”

They were silent for a moment, in thought.

“I’ll go,” you spoke up from the doorway. If you have something I can put on my feet, I’ll be able to go.”

The men looked at each other, then nodded.

- - -

Stephen was brainstorming ways to fix the situation as you filled the cart with groceries.

“What if I were to try to send you back with the stone? I could undo what he did.”

You blinked a couple of times, trying to understand what the stone was weaving through your brain before you understood. “This type of magic can’t be undone by the Time Stone.”

He brought his chin to his chest and sighed. “Of course not. Any explanation as to why?”

You shook your head. “I can hardly understand what it tells me, let alone what it knows.”

“I see.”

You both fell silent as you rounded the corner to another aisle and he pulled groceries off the shelf.

More items were added until you got curious about a jar stuffed with liquid and long green things. You turned it around to look at it better, away from the label and bumped it too much. The glass began to fall off the shelf and you instinctively threw out your hands. It stopped falling. In fact, everything had stopped, even the music in the store. Everything, that was, but you and Stephen. He looked at you and you looked at him. His hand reached out, grabbed the pickle jar, and he put it back on the shelf.

“How did you do that?”

“It was the connection to the Stone, I think. I don’t know exactly how I did it. I just panicked at the sight of it falling and it stopped.” You looked around at the still-frozen store. “Well, I suppose it stopped everything else, too.”

“Do you think you can fix it?” he prompted.

You shrugged. He waved his hand around a small green circle in front of him and time started moving again. Inside your chest, you felt something turn as he used the magic. It caught you off guard and you clutched your chest, gasping.

“Are you okay?” He placed a hand on your arm.

You cleared your throat, the pressure subsiding. “Yeah, um, I think I’m okay.”

“Let’s discuss this later, we can’t be away for too long.”

You two paid for your items and hauled the bags back to the sanctum as quickly as you could.

While you and Stephen were unloading the bags in the kitchen, Wong entered, looking grim.

“We have a problem,” he said, an old leather-bound book in his hand.

“Where did the book come from?” Stephen asked.

“It came from a portal,” Wong replied slowly and evasively. “But the book isn’t what caused the problem. It’s what’s in the book. I’ve found out why the stone was used. Don’t ask me how I found the book, it’s a long explanation.”

“Then tell us what’s going on.”

“Certain gems have the power to pull stars from the sky. They bond with this gem until they die and if you kill the star, you get everlasting life.”

Stephen looked at the Eye of Agamotto, then at you. “Okay. But how does this involve the Time Stone?”

“That’s the part I’m confused about. This book is all about myths and legends, but it doesn’t talk about Infinity Stones.”

You cleared your throat and rubbed the dip in your collarbone absentmindedly. “I have a theory about that, actually.”

They turned to look at you before you continued. “The man who wanted to kill me may have wanted to gain the powers of the stone.”

“Then we’re in deeper trouble than we thought,” Wong said quietly.

 - - -

Masterlist

Permanent Tag List (please alert me if you change your username, want to be tagged for only one character, or if you want to be untagged): @abbybills22, @breezy1415, @coffeebooksandfandom, @cxptain-americaa, @deceivedeer, @dreamer821, @everything-but-the-not-natural, @elxrini, @fangirling-equestrian, @feelmyroarrrr, @hellomissmabel, @httpmcrvel, @iamwarrenspeace, @kudosia, @m4df4n, @marrvelle-fics, @mindlessnerd89, @ms-cellanies, @mylittlefandomfanfictions, @princessleah129, @space-helen, @susiejustsusie, @tea-with-loki, @thisismysecrethappyplace, @wkndfrvr, @wxnchestervevo (tag list is open!!)

Strikethroughs are blogs I can’t tag.

Reminder, if your name is not linked and you are not getting notifications you have been tagged, please refer to this guide here: https://dabblinginmarvel.tumblr.com/post/168371559776/strikethroughs-i-cant-tag

[cynicalseven]

thank you @jessefandomunited for tagging me!!!! (& giving me the opportunity to overshare haha oops)

Name: Dave!

Birthday: August 27th (im 17!)

Zodiac: virgo but man ive absolutely never related to virgo astrology in my life

Height: im like 5′3 but im the same height as a friend who says hes 5′4 so wheres the lie 👀

Sexual orientation: gay mostly id say??

Favourite colour: green!!!! all the green shades & i like muted tones a lot too

Favourite book: Toby Alone, hands down, although i did read it in french so I can’t guarantee the english translation is as good but i highly recommend it

Favourite (book) series: Toby Alone is technically a two book series but im gonna go with Harry Potter

Favorite artist: *stare into the camera like im in the office* im assuming this means visual artist and atm i dont have a personal influence cause art school messes your MIND

Favourite band: my playlist is currently such a huge fucking mess of different artists so im gonna dodge this question and say ive been especially listening to video game soundtracks lately (journey & professor layton specifically)

Last movie I watched: The Eagle Huntress for my international cinema class? (it’s a really good documentary about a mongolian tradition i really suggest it if you like mountains and nordic landscapes it’s very beautiful!!!)

Hogwarts house: Slytherin!! 🐍 (one of the soft ones)

Random fact about me: i love learning and i enjoy school and really try my hardest but im spectacularly bad at it tbh but i got a job at a nearby circus school and i’m coaching kids as well as part of a show so!!! some hope there.

Random fact in general: lithography and chromatography were the preferred techniques to make posters during the golden age of magic!!

When did you create your blog: according to tumblr this blog has existed since  the beginning of February but i’ve been on tumblr since late 2013 (i am. shocked)

Do you have any other blogs: haha oh boy here we go 

@lizrdscales is my main blog (currently fixing the desktop theme) thats where I follow from

i have the url @grxvityboy cause thats my old username if you click on it theres a pretty redirect page

@rosefoxandprince is my aesthetic blog but i desperately need to fix the theme

i have a few other url saved that i plan on using a little later 👀

What made you decide to get a tumblr: uhhh it was a LONG time ago i believe it was because i saw a bunch of screenshots from it on facebook and the format intrigued be so i joined? i made this specific blog cause i wanted a platform to interact with the (very.... small) nysm fandom and not have to bother them with my other millions of interests

Why did you choose your URL:  its a funny story actually i was in psychology class and the teacher was pissing me off by how not lightly she was talking about severe issues and i was being very cynical, which my friend pointed out and joked i should make that my new url so i just added “seven” because of danny’s card trick in the first movie!!

i think literally everyone i know from this fandom has been tagged already so ima just tag @wilderofhearts in case she wakes up from her hibernation 👀 but thank you for tagging me!!!

[thetechnicallytechnical-blog]

Environmentally Friendly

I am environmentally friendly.  Not in the sense of plants and shit.  I mean that’s great too; but I’m talking straight up developer space.  Not the environment in the office.  The office environment almost doesn’t matter for me.  I could program in a shed the size of my body plus laptop, as long as there aren’t distractions.  Maybe I’m a robot human.  Maybe I eat lasers for breakfast.  Technically, that should be LASERs... did you know LASER is an acronym?  Anyway I’m getting off topic... I am a human robot, I tell other, computer, robots what to do, and I need a slick set of a minimum three environments to keep those LASER robots satiated.  Recently, I was kept awake all night because of a sloppy set of environments.  In general, you want at least three for developing and releasing code: DEV (development), QA (testing), and PROD (production).  DEV is my sandbox.  It’s where I can run the program however I want.  I can cut in code, run it, stop it, swap it out again.  Maybe the security is disabled so I don’t have to waste time with it while I develop.  I test code by pasting in the jars personally, not the official release procedure.  Who has time for that boring garbage?  QA does.  QA should be an exact copy of PROD where the code that passes in DEV goes to see if it will really work in PROD.  QA is where, theoretically, anything working in DEV that will still cause issues in PROD, will be caught.  Now, getting a perfect copy of PROD is like being a perfect person, it doesn’t exist.  You can’t truly have an exact copy of PROD, and that’s how bugs get out.  Maybe Facebook’s Like button won’t click, or you click on a friend’s image and it brings you to a different profile than you wanted.  These are little bugs that should have been caught in QA, but for whatever reason got through the cracks.  It’s nothing like Apple’s mistake that let anyone gain root access to their computers by using a blank password.  I have sympathy for the developers in that case.  I can totally see a developer setting that up in DEV so he/she doesn’t have to type a password every time while running tests on a new feature.  Then, when the feature was finished, the credential work-around was forgotten.  QA wouldn’t catch it because it’s a bug that specifically goes around any checks that are in place.  Imagine that feeling.  A HUGE bug that is a HUGE security risk comes down to you forgetting to uncomment a few lines of code that you had commented out.  Oops.  I’ve never made a mistake that big but the sinking feeling you get when you realize it’s your fault is a feeling I think we all can empathize with.  All you can do is beat yourself up on the inside to be more diligent.  Sadly, I can also empathize with the follow-up bug.  The patch Apple released to fix the original issue turned out to have a bug itself, and again, I can imagine the developer screaming internally, Oh shit, I rushed to fix my mistake, got tunnel vision, and forgot to cover all my bases.  Could a better set of environments have helped here?  If my assumptions are correct, this was a work-around for the developer(s) to speed up the testing for a code change, it seems that the QA environment should have the code part that asks for username and password under lockdown.  I’m pretty sure that code isn’t changing anytime soon, so why is the developer writing over it at all?  Shouldn’t the changes only be where the actual code change takes place?

To get back to the beginning, I was up all night because of bad environments.  The project I’m working on is an old dusty bitch from last century, that no one had been upkeeping.  There is only a DEV and PROD environment.  So the code that’s working with all the wacky settings and workarounds in DEV, needs to be tested in the real PROD environment before going live.  This means that we have to shut down PROD; which means it needs to be during times with low customer traffic.  For us, that means 8pm-8am Saturday night into Sunday morning.  All night.  Now, as a developer, I didn’t really have to do much.  I just had to deploy the code, then be on call in case there were any issues.  Hey guess what?  There were issues.  In the end they turned out to be environmental issues; but those are hard to spot.  So I wasted hours combing through ancient code looking for causes to the bugs.  The problem?  Turns out, the server just needed to be restarted to get some updates needed for the code to run.  Everything was fine with the code.  A QA copy of PROD would have caught that during a normal work day when I’m not trying to get drunk with my friends.  Instead, I wasted my Saturday night.  Environments people!