#Jinxs stash

[lxxse-cannxn]

Can I request a board with Lucy from Elfen Lied with themes of despair and missed chances re: falling in love, and colors of muted red and low brightness? Warning if you don't know the source- the show pretty dark and bloody(splatter mostly) but a brilliant anime

Also do you do boards for self shipping or does that count against the no real people rule? (this request is not self ship related btw)

Hi! Finally opening my inbox after a bit of hectic-ness, self-ship is fine as long as the person requesting it is A OK with it! I meant it in the sense of say, for exampe, youtubers yanno?

[cynicjovial]

feeling much better today, I finished my spirit phone gauntlet, I'm gonna wear it at a music festival on the 24!

[lovebugism]

“guys come on, let’s take advantage of this. we can have fun!” Sneak into the Hawkins community pool with Steve?

thanks for your request, angel!! — the one where steve convinces his nervous, ditzy gf (and the rest of the gang) to sneak into hawkins community pool (1.9k)

bug's summer fic fest ♡

The golden hour was swept away by a sudden summer storm.

Eddie Munson’s van was your only source of refuge from the downpour, parked slightly askew at the edge of the clearing. Steve grabbed your hand just as quickly as he snatched the case of beer you’d all been getting drunk on, rushing you both to safety in the back of the old Chevrolet.

With a gentle hand, he blotted water droplets from your face with a spare towel Eddie had stashed away. 

The wild cadence of the evening rain sang pretty songs against the rusted metal roof. Your Stevie held you all the while. He wrapped an arm around your shoulders to press you into his side while his long legs fought with Robin’s shorter ones for more room.

You giggled quietly to yourself as they kicked at one another — neither of them needing as much space as they were battling for.

Summer rain clung to your clothes and turned you cold. Your cropped tee and pleated skirt did little to aid your dwindling temperature. You curled into Steve’s side when goosebumps prickled your skin. The boy so often radiated warmth — your very own space heater — and his vanilla-rose cologne engulfed you with its musk. 

The familiar scent of him contrasted heavily with the boyish scent of Eddie’s van: woodsy perfume, teenage boy, and the skunk weed you’d been smoking before the rain came in.

When the deluge faded to a soft sprinkle, the wild-haired boy decided to drive you all home. Steve, being halfway drunk and not all there, told him to pull into the empty Hawkins Community Pool parking lot. The gloomy weather and heavy clouds reduced the bustling spot to a barren patch of concrete.

“Guys, come on!” Steve pressed with a boyish chuckle when his idea was met with a chorus of groans. “Let’s take advantage of this! We can have fun!”

You couldn’t say no to Steve. Robin couldn’t, either.

Nancy followed behind you, and Eddie refused to be left behind — so against your better judgment, all of you ended up trudging behind Steve toward the entrance.

“Okay, but like… what’s the point?” Robin monotones from where she lags behind the rest of the group. Her oversized tee and baggy ripped jeans billow in the soft summer breeze. “Like, if you wanna swim, why don’t we just go to your place? You literally have a pool.”

“It’s the principle, Robin! It’s not nearly as fun!” Steve argues in response, leading the pack of you with his fingers entwined with yours. He clutches the abandoned case of beer with his free hand. You cling desperately to his arm while your legs try to keep up with his longer strides. 

The sandy brunette girl scoffs. “Why? Because there’s no threat of us getting arrested for breaking and entering?”

“Exactly!”

You slow when you reach the front gate. The rusted padlock is twisted between the entrance but left unlatched — likely forgotten in the haste of escaping the violent storm.

You squint and tilt your head to the side. “Is it technically breaking and entering if there’s no breaking?” you wonder aloud.

Steve laughs, boyish and airy — the exact sound of sunshine. He beams just the same. “See? Is this kismet or what?”

“Or what?” Robin and Nancy deadpan simultaneously. Both have their arms crossed and their hips jutted outward. The latter girl squints, a storm cloud in a pretty pink dress. The former meets the scowl with a beam. “Jinx. You owe me a coke, Wheeler.”

“What are you? Seven?” Nancy scoffs.

“Jeez…” the other girl murmurs with wide eyes. “Sorry for experiencing childlike whimsy every now and then. Won’t happen again.”

The curly-haired brunette girl rolls her eyes.

Eddie walks ahead of you and Steve and kicks the metal gate open with the toe of his dirty sneaker. It opens with a slow and eerie squeeaakk.

The boy glances over his shoulder at the group before stepping through the unlocked entrance. He holds his arms out like he’s just done some sort of magic trick, leather jacket rippling in the wind.

“Our kingdom awaits,” he announces with a mystical sort of accent.

Nancy follows after him. Robin follows after her. 

You and Steve idle at the entrance. He can feel your apprehension.

“Wait, guys,” you caution, voice wavering as your features scrunch with unease. “I don’t know about this…”

Steve’s palm squeezes your own — wide, warm, and reassuring. “Hey. It’s fine. We’re not gonna get caught or anything, okay? No one’s here, I promise.”

You miss the comforting, puppy-like look he flashes you. His brown eyes sparkle like amber beneath the orange streetlights, but your gaze is pulled elsewhere. There’s a large metal sign nailed to the brick beside you. No beers, bottles, cans, coolers, drugs, or cigarettes allowed on the premises. 

You motion to it with your free hand, brows pinched in a look of distant horror as your head whips to the boy next to you. “We can’t go in there, Stevie! We have all that stuff!”

Robin chokes back a laugh. Nancy shoots her a glare, and she swallows it down.

Steve doesn’t bother to hide his chuckle, though. He squeezes your hand again. “We’ll be okay, babe. I promise.”

“He’s right, princess,” Eddie affirms across from you. His wild curls bunch at his shoulders when he tilts his head to the side. His deep brown eyes glimmer beneath the lamplight, along with the tin can of drugs he grips in his left hand. He shoots you a mischievous grin. “That shit only applies when people are around to catch us.”

You turn to Steve again. The bridge of his nose scrunches as he nods. “What he said.”

“But there’s no lifeguard on duty,” you murmur sheepishly, peering up at the boy from beneath your lashes. Your gaze is wide with insistence and concern. “Like... What if something bad happens?”

“I’ll keep you safe, babe. I promise,” Steve whispers with a gentle laugh. He tugs on your hand and twists his body so you’re standing toe-to-toe. Your chest brushes his torso — his lean body adorned with a fitted collared shirt and vintage denim jeans. His chin tilts downward as he grins at you. “I was a lifeguard for a summer, remember?”

“So you’ll save me if I drown?” you ask him, just to hear him say yes, as you lean further into him.

“I’d give you mouth-to-mouth just for the hell of it, sweetheart.”

Your concern washes away with a beam.

Hawkins Community Pool smells like chlorine and summertime — all things clean and nostalgic. The blue water glistens in the moonlight when the rain clouds start to wane. The white lights in the walls make the cerulean color much more vivid than usual. 

Nancy sits on the edge of the steps, her boots propped up neatly next to her while her feet dangle in the water. Eddie lounges in one of the chairs just behind her, a lit joint lazing in his pink mouth — glowing softly orange with every puff he takes.

Robin was the only one actually swimming, though not of her own accord. She’d been under the impression that everyone was jumping in at the same time after Steve told her as much. Now, she floats amongst the soft waves of the pool, fully clothed.

Steve stands off to the side with you. His fingers are firmly curled around your elbows, steadying you as you dip your toe in the water. It’s warmer than you expected — maybe because it’s much cooler outside than usual.

“Cold?” the boy wonders with raised brows.

You shake your head. “It kinda feels like bath water.”

“Told ya,” he remarks with a tight-lipped smile.

He steps back from you and tugs at the hem of his shirt. He frees his body from the fitted fabric, baring his toned torso and fuzzy chest to the night sky.

You can’t help but gawk at him like it’s the first time you’ve ever seen him. Like his body is the first one you’ve ever seen, ever. He’s too pretty not to be admired.

Robin whistles lowly in the water as Steve tosses his shirt onto an empty lounge chair.

“That’s so funny— I was just about to say the same thing,” you giggle with a crooked smile.

Steve rolls his eyes at the both of you. “Your turn, babe. C’mon. Get naked.”

Your face scrunches at the brazen nature of his words.

“Well, not naked, just— you know what I mean.”

You don’t have any reservations about your friends seeing your halfway naked body. Steve’s seen you in a whole lot less, too many times for you to count. You, Robin, and Nancy have gotten changed together a few times, too. And Eddie’s… Eddie. You trust him too much to be too timid around him.

You toe your shoes and socks off first, then push your skirt down your hips and pull your shirt over your head. You’re left in a pair of cotton underwear — not overtly modest, but it certainly not the sexiest set you could’ve chosen. Your top is much of the same. It’s a borderline sports bra with lace trimming around the edges.

Steve looks at you like you’re wearing custom-made lingerie — like you’re a goddess carved from stone. His honey eyes only flit away from your form when he catches Eddie staring at you. “Stop ogling, Munson.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Harrington,” the boy murmurs through the blunt in his mouth. He hasn’t so much as blinked, too high to realize how unabashedly his gazing at you. “I am being perfectly respectful.” 

You extend your arm towards Steve again, cold without him embracing you. “Hold my hand?” you murmur with a sheepish inflection — as if there were any possibility of him turning you down.

“Don’t ask me that,” the boy scoffs. “Ever.”

His foreignly harsh tone makes you cower. Your eyes go wide as your head jerks back.

“The answer’s never not gonna be yes, babe,” he answers with a lopsided grin. His palm wraps around yours, clutching you like he was made to do it. 

Your brows pinch in confusion. Steve’s brown eyes flit to the starry sky as he tries to articulate his jumbled thoughts. “I mean, like, it’s never gonna be yes— Nope. That's not right, either. It’s never gonna be no. I’m always gonna say yes to you. Yeah. There we go.”

You understood what he said the first go around. Sorta. But you like when he gets all tongue-tied with you. He’s too perfect most of the time. His occasional ineloquence is perhaps his only flaw. 

But is a flaw really a flaw if you love it so much it makes you beam brighter than beams of blue moonlight?

“Right,” you nod, pursing your lips to the side when a smile threatens to take over your mouth.

“Let’s jump in before I make a bigger fool of myself, yeah?” he pleads.

You plunge into the deep end with Steve at your side. It’s a lot less scary that way.

You rise to the surface of the sparkling water with a gasping breath. You can almost taste the chlorine with the fierceness of your inhale. Steve comes up right after you, panting and beaming just the same. 

He looks like the rest of your life — wet hair as wild as the smile he looks at you with.

You feel like you could conquer universes with Steve holding your hand.

[archangeldyke-all]

Imagine roach and the rest playing Uno ouuuuu 😭 hell on earth

LMAOOOO

men and minors dni

it wouldn't last more than 15 minutes.

silco, singed, and lock would be the only ones following the rules and actually trying to play.

jinx would be stashing her cards in her pockets so she can get down to one faster

ran would be sneaking more cards into lock's pile while he's not looking

deckard is totally the kind of asshole who would try to change the rules the second they don't benifit him. one second he's certain that you can put a +4 on top of a +4, the next, he's insisting that that rule isn't 'in the handbook'

sevika would refuse to play, but she'd have her arm wrapped around you the whole time, whispering the plays she thinks you should do in your ear.

thieram would be losing. he'd be trying his best, but he'd just have the worst fucking luck. he'd have like 30 cards in his hand.

it would be complete chaos. especially when everyone realizes jinx has been stashing her cards.

taglist!

@lesbeaniegreenie @fyeahnix @sapphicsgirl @half-of-a-gay @ellabslut @thesevi0lentdelights @sexysapphicshopowner @shimtarofstupidity @love-sugarr @chuucanchuucan @222danielaa @badbye666 @femme-historian @lia-winther @gr0ssz0mbi3 @ellsss @sevikaspillowprincess @leomatsuzaki

[douglysium]

Episode 12 TMP Quick Thoughts

Housekeeping and Prologue

Hello, this is Douglysium and you might not know me as that guy who wrote over 100 pages of analysis on the Eye (which can be read on Tumblr here (https://douglysium.tumblr.com/post/735599414228484097/the-relationships-between-the-dread-powers-the) or Google Docs here (The Relationships Between the Dread Powers: The Eye- Knowledge is Fear and Ignorance is Bliss)) or as that guy who wrote an article on the Extinction (which can be read on Tumblr here(https://douglysium.tumblr.com/post/717929126195003392/what-would-avatars-of-the-extinction-be-like-a) and Google Docs here(​What would Avatars of the Extinction be like?: A TMA Speculation)). Suffice to say I might be a bit of a TMA fan. Also, spoilers for TMP up until episode 10. You can read my ramblings on the last episode here (Episode 11 TMP Quick Thoughts).

However, Protocol offers a very unique opportunity and experience for me because I didn’t actually get into TMA until after it was over and I binged all of it. So this is my first time experiencing something even remotely similar to what the original TMA fans probably experienced when waiting for each episode week by week and slowly having to put everything together with the limited information they had. So I decided to throw my hat into the ring since this might be my only chance to do something similar. However, I’m working on some longer form TMA content so I can’t spend as much time on these articles giving a bunch of super detailed thoughts. I will try to keep these short and that inevitably might mean some could have questions about why I think or predict certain things and in those cases I would probably recommend you read at least some of the two articles I mentioned above to get a better idea of where I’m coming from. This also means I won’t be giving you a play-by-play of every single thing that happens in the episode so I encourage you to listen to or read them yourselves and feel free to comment if you feel something is important.

These reviews are probably going to end up focusing mostly on the Entities and their manifestations as they are what I have thought about the most and spent the most time interpreting and there’s been a lot of… interesting theories floating around about how the Entities are manifesting that I want to go over.

Finally, I’m just going to say it right now, spoiler warning for all of The Magnus Archives. I know that Jon and co said one could start with Protocol and be fine, and while that’s probably true, media like this tends to be made in conversation with or take into consideration what came before it in the irl chronology in order to connect them. While I’m sure you could skip The Magnus Archives, I don't really see the point of skipping over it when we are already getting characters from TMA showing up in TMP in Protocol. So to me it’s pretty clear that if we want to understand the full picture of TMP and all the things it is trying to say then we can’t just try to pretend TMA doesn’t exist or scrub it away. Just because you could understand what’s happening without the context in broad strokes doesn’t mean you're getting all the nuances.

These articles are meant to be quick and short so sorry if there’s typos and if I don’t address every possible question or possibility. I don’t want to repeat myself too much in this series outside of the prologue so be sure to skim some of my other articles.

Episode 12 “Getting Off”

I think this episode is definitely one of the more straightforward Protocol episodes we have gotten so far, so hopefully this Quick Thoughts won’t br too long (but knowing me I probably just jinxed it).

We take in the scene through a CCTV in the breakroom of the OIAR at night. The transcripts clarify that Celia is very tired and searching through the cupboards for something and it is quickly made apparent that she is looking for tea and, since the break room has run out, Sam gives Celia a teabag from a secret stash that he apparently has. Sam then asks Celia out on a date and while she is busy at the moment she does show that she is willing to go out with Sam on “Saturday, 6? under the clock at Leicester Square. That work? We’ll go for dinner- well, breakfast- you know what I mean.” Once again, we see that the OIAR jobs appear to be very exhausting and have odd work hours. I also wonder what Celia’s end goal is. Does she genuinely like Sam or does she see him as means to an end. Is Celia here to help Sam and co or is she here to harm them?

As Celia leaves, Alice walks in and proceeds to make fun of Sam for clearly being extremely nervous as he asked out Celia. Alice says “(normal again) You know it’s rude to have absolutely no game? Christ, all these years and you still ask people out like a baby foal learning to tapdance.” A reference to the fact that she and Sam dated at some point, and how Sam probably acted very similarly when trying to ask her out. Sam does point out “Look it worked didn’t it?” which seems like it could be a sort of double meaning. Sam’s nervous approach got Celia to agree to a date but also Alice presumably agreed to go out with him in the past too.

Sam apologizes to Alice for dragging her to the ruins of the Institute only to fund nothing… well nothing Sam and Alice know about since something escaped the Institute. Sam says he’s done with Magnus stuff and Alice responds with “So you’re telling me that if I had a case full of emails with the title “Magnus Institute re: Samama Khalid – Massive Conspiracy” you wouldn’t be tempted?” to which Sam says no before asking “You don’t, though. Do you? That was just, like, a joke. Right?” Alice then says “Come on, for now let’s just focus on getting you as jaded and apathetic as possible.” Considering that Alice does appear to be pretty jaded about listening to the cases and piecing them together this could be related to her point about ignoring the talkers and not getting caught up in thinking too much about what’s happening. 

NORRIS starts expositing the next case

“Claim Review: EL-56920 

Policy Holder: Soho Jack’s Ltd. 

Policy Number: 548651-656 

Policy Type: Employers’ Liability 

Site Address: Soho Jack’s, 9 Carlisle St, London W1D 3BK 

Affected Employee: Ms. Jordan Bennett 

Date of Incident: 9 March 2024 

Incident Location: On site. 

Documentation: Crime Report – Submitted 

Medical Practitioner Report – Submitted 

Incident Book Entry – Submitted First Aider’s Report – Submitted 

Supervisor’s incident Report - Submitted 

HSE communications - Submitted 

Health-And-Safety policies - Submitted 

Employment Contract - Submitted 

Claim Valuation: £1,560,000 Assessment 

Conclusion: Claim Denied Reason: Fraudulent claim (see incident description and police report)”

This, along with some information Jordan mentions later, means Jordan is suing Soho Jack’s Ltd. They go on to say that their lawyer has advised them to cooperate with Soho Jack’s insurance claim as a show of good faith, even if they’re planning on “suing your asses to kingdom-come.” They start recounting an event that occurred on the company’s property and apologize for their terrible handwriting (which we later learn is probably because Mr. Bonzo bit off one of their hands).

They go over how they started working at Jack’s in the spring of 2021 after they had finished Flair Academy. After struggling to find a job they managed to get an interview and then job at the aforementioned Jack’s. The club seems to have a good reputation as Jordan refers to it as “the Soho Gentleman’s club.” The company’s building “...has dances on the bottom two floors with VIP suites for hire above with a dedicated bouncer keeping them separate. Really, it’s just a quieter box with a private bar, some comfy chairs and the option of private dancers.” Despite this being “THE” Soho Gentleman’s club Jordan says “It’s always booked up with swank dickheads trying to show off, but Stags are the worst: they’re cheap, they’re loud, they drink too much, tip too little and only ever hire one dance for the groom. Plus there’s always some “nice guy” that won’t shut up about exploitation without even bothering to stop staring.” 

Jordan begins to explain how the party the specific party that led to them wanting to sue Jack’s. They state that this specific party’s lot was not the worst and were “Just a bunch of heavyset, middle-aged lads with names like Ozzer, or Rozzer or whatever. ” and notes that “The groom was fine, acted embarrassed even though he was obviously keen and they were easily pleased. ”

“They started giving the groom gifts. Same old tat as always, cufflinks, poo gags, all the standard stuff. Then the groom spotted the last one on the table, this cheap yellow and purple kids lunch box. It looked old and shoddy and no one admitted to bringing it but the groom just squealed with glee and carefully opened it before pulling out a bunch old souvenir merch. Pencils, postcards, keyrings, all sorts of crap, all the same yellow and purple and last of all a cracked CD case. When they saw it the whole bunch gave this big laughing cheer.” I have talked about how I think Mr. Bonzo is probably tied to The Stranger if we view him through the lens of Smirke’s 14. I will retread some of those reasons later but right now I want to point out that no one admitted to bringing the Bonzo CD. It could simply be that it’s a prank and someone happened to grab an artifact or something tied to Bonzo, and maybe someone from the OIAR even planted it there, but it could also be connected to the idea of The Stranger and the fear of the unknown because it could be that no one actually knows who got that CD.

We also know that The Stranger is no… stranger to dropping off or delivering strange artifacts in order to feed on the fear of people interacting with unknown /mysterious objects. Breekon and Hope’s delivery service are a good example of this (strangers that show up and drop off never before seen or uncanny objects and artifacts).

“I could see which way the wind was turning and sure enough the bestman came over and asked if he could play it. The cover had this awful comic sans title: “Mr. Bonzo’s On His Way” and I wasn't exactly thrilled by this.” Jordan explains that “Mr. Bonzo was way before my time and from what I had seen online he had always looked pretty messed up. But hey, it was their night, if they wanted to spend it on some cringy nostalgia trip, who was I to say no?” Which could mean that Jordan doesn’t know a lot about Mr. Bonzo, and lack of familiarity with something is one of the things that we know entities like The Stranger love to prey on.

“This kind of thing happened often enough that we kept a battered old CD Player in the back that we could patch into the room's speakers, just in case. So, I ducked back there, put it on, turned the volume down as low as I could get away with, and prayed it wasn’t too obnoxious. Immediately the cheering children’s voices blared out the speakers accompanied by bouncy tubas loud enough to drown out the rest of the club’s music. It was awful but I could hear the lads stamping the floor in rhythm and as the kids started singing the men were singing along: “Mr. Bonzo’s on his way, he wants to stay, he wants to play! Mr. Bonzo’s on his way, he wants to stay, he wants to play!” If you want to listen to the song Jordan is referring to it is actually available on Youtube: Mr Bonzo (from 'The Magnus Protocol'). Maybe you can put yourself in the shoes of an annoyed Jordan or ecstatic old man at the club.

Jordan clearly finds the song annoying and after waiting a minute, in order to avoid being a “total killjoy,” they decide to turn off the song before “ Derek came down from the office to “have a word.” I assume Jordan meant Derek would complain about the music. However, when Jordan turns the CD player off it “...just grew louder, rattling the glassware in the bar: “Mr. Bonzo’s on his way, he wants to stay, he wants to play!” I even yanked the cables from the speakers, but it just kept getting louder.” Obviously, something supernatural is going on but Jordan reasonably assumes that the player just broke and begins to reach for their walkie talkie in order to call for some tech support. However, as they do so they are interrupted by a massive crash coming from another part of the room followed by a cheer. Jordan gets ready to reprimand the party goers for whatever mess they might have made but instead sees Mr. Bonzo. “It was hunched in the doorway, a bulbous figure with a purple hat that cast crazed shadows in all directions thanks to the club’s lighting effects. Then it doffed its hat and pushed itself into the room, foam catching on the doorframe with a squeak that set my teeth on edge. Its massive bulbous google-eyes seemed to roam all over the room before settling on the groom and it was almost as if the huge toothy grin grew wider when it saw him.” We know that Gwen delivered a name and address to Bonzo and in the previous episode Lena even tells Gwen “I’m sure you’ve already worked that out. But just in case you haven’t, keep an eye on the case loads over the next few days. It should become abundantly clear.” Implying that this could be the case Lena was alluding to or that the groom (or someone else in the room) is Bonzo’s target (but it’s almost definitely the groom).

Everyone in the room assumes the appearance of Bonzo is some sort of gift or prank and “The rugby boys were tripping over themselves to get in and hug it, laughing and pushing the groom to the front and so I figured at that point it was a prank. Again, none of them took credit for it and there was a moment of genuine hesitation, until one of them yelled out “It's ya lapdance, Baz!” and they all fell about laughing.” Jordan is furious that a coworker named Joey presumably let Bonzo in and the idea that Joey might have bailed on Jordan again by “ducking out for a smoke.” But as Jordan moves forward they notice something- “I began to stride over, readying for the inevitable complaints then hesitated as I saw something far more unnerving than the ugly costume that was capering with the groom in the middle of the group. There was a pair of heavy boots on their side, poking just inside the still open doorway. Joey’s boots, and they weren't moving. Just then the google eyes looked turned to me, and a puffy finger raised cheekily to its mouth.” So Joey was killed by Bonzo and all the while “the men had all started chanting “Bonzo! Bonzo! Bonzo”, stamping their feet and banging the tables in a circle around the pair in the center…” and the music kept getting louder. So loud that it began to sound distorted from the strain the song was putting on the speakers.

Out of all the Entities the Slaughter seems to have a pretty strong connection to music but The Stranger also has a strong precedent for music. For example, The Calliope in TMA is an artifact tied to The Stranger. In MAG 024 (Strange Music) it is mentioned that the instrument has "Be still, for there is strange music" carved into the cover of the keyboard. While The Slaughter’s connection to music is probably due to an association between rhythm and war (think the marching of an army or the phrase “drums of war”) as well as the fear of “violent” music, The Stranger’s connection to music seems to come from the idea of either strange unknown sounds or a song / sound that sounds really uncanny. It is noted by Jordan that Mr. Bonzo’s song grows louder and more distorted overtime which would mean that the song is becoming more and more incomprehensible as it would slowly change into a song with lyrics you couldn’t understand or identify as easily. It could also be that the song sounds uncanny in the sense that it is familiar in some ways but something is off about it.

Jordan tries to call for help on his walkie talkie but can only hear Mr. Bonzo’s theme blaring out of its tiny speaker. Jordan tries to warn everyone and get out but no one can hear him over the music. Bonzo takes the groom and begins to “dance” with him by spinning around faster and faster until Bonzo decides to rip his arms off and even as this act of gorey brutality took place the other party goers present continued to laugh and laugh until Jordan’s scream caused them to realize this wasn’t some sort of prank. Almost everyone begins to yell in terror but some yelled in rage and proceeded to attack Bonzo: “A few of the bigger guys picked up chairs or bottles and began to beat and slash at the thing. It didn’t seem to notice, its bulbous, bloodshot, eyes staying fixed on the groom’s body as it raised it overhead.” Bonzo then proceeds to continue pulverizing the body by smashing it against the ground over and over.

“For a split second, all was still but the music just pounded on, barely recognizable now over the distortion from the smoking speakers as those voices, no longer childlike, still chanted the words “He’s here to stay… He wants to play…”” “Then Mr. Bonzo turned towards us with its head bowed almost reverentially and everybody went silent. Slowly, awfully slowly, it raised its head, titling it coquettishly to one side. Then the seams across its face split revealing its gaping maw filled with even larger, sharper teeth.” Jordan admits that they don’t remember much about what happened after that but “I dream about it most nights. In the dream it digs through all those men to get to me, grabbing fistfuls of them and throwing them to smash against the wall. The strobe fires as its hands plunge into the pile of us and each flash shows a little less flesh between me and it, between me and all those teeth… finally everyone else is gone. I raise my arm to protect myself and it gently but inexorably lifts it into its mouth, smiles and bites… None of us was left whole but I was the luckiest. All I lost was a hand, it wasn’t even my dominant one.” The biting was set up previously in episode 10 when the transcripts mention “Gwen holds out the envelope and Mr Bonzo snatches it into his mouth, audibly chewing it. His teeth are not soft.”

Jordan says that they “told the investigators everything I know, doctors too. I don't know why nobody outside the room heard or saw anything, why the cameras weren't working, why it let me live. But I do know why there weren't any bodies. All I actually want is my hand back so I can tend bar but that isn’t going to happen is it? So I’ll have to settle for the next best thing and sue you for everything I can get, because I don’t know what happened that night but it was in your venue and no one came to help. Not Derek, not another doorman, no one. So yeah, you’d better have one hell of a settlement waiting for me, or I'll see you in court.”

While you could make an argument for themes of Entities like The Desolation, Flesh, Hunt, etc. I’m still going to primarily argue for Bonzo being tied to The Stranger or a similar Entity due to what we see in his previous appearances. For the sake of clarity, if there is any debate about what The Stranger embodies in MAG 200 it is stated “And as they learned to know their friends and kin, so too did they learn to fear the unknown figure, the coming of the stranger” and in MAG 092 (Nothing Beside Remains) Jonah tells Jon “We thrive on ceaseless watching, on knowing too much. What we face is the hidden, the uncanny, and the unknown.” while in MAG 111 (Family Business) Jon says “The Stranger is the unknown. The uncanny.” and Gerard doesn’t correct him.

However, a lot of Mr. Bonzo’s behaviours in previous episodes resembles The Stranger (and The Stranger has violently attacked or killed people in the past). Mr. Bonzo is also described as being a clown. Something we know The Stranger has a precedent for manifesting as, probably due to both the idea of the uncanny valley being achieved with a costume or makeup and the idea of a traveling circus full of strangers you don’t know from out of town in addition to a clown costume acting as a disguise that can obscure whoever is wearing it. Not to mention that Mr. Bonzo is described as a suit, which could very easily connect to an Entity like The Stranger. Firstly, The Stranger tends to have a big emphasis on wearing things like skins and suits. Additionally, Gwen mentions in episode 11 “That… abomination wasn’t a costume. That was skin. It was sagging, it was sweaty!” and we know The Stranger has a tendency for wearing skin, skinning things (such as with taxidermy), etc. as a form of disguise, in order to hide itself, or to metaphorically rob something of their identity.

This also applies to costumes in general since usually wearing costumes or disguises can actually obscure who is wearing them and thus their true identity is unknown. There’s also the fact that costumes themselves can easily fall into the uncanny valley. Ever since Five Nights at Freddy’s became popular there’s been an uptick in horror media focusing on how creepy and uncanny things like animatronic suits can be. Not that Mr. Bonzo is an animatronic but it is a suit. Also, Bonzo apparently has hard teeth and having solid teeth on a suit could look uncanny.

The surprise gift and sudden appearance of Bonzo that others assume is some sort of surprise or prank could also tie into The Stranger and the idea of something mysteriously appearing or not being expected. Bonzo was originally made to prank celebrities. As Nigel explains in episode 10 that his produce ““inviting a famous person on, someone really serious, and we tell them we’re going to have them do a segment with a popular children’s entertainer. Now, obviously these folks won’t have any idea about what kids are actually watching, so we could come up with the most horrendous thing, claim kids loved it and see how long it took for the guest to realize that they were the joke. That they’d been “berried”” and “The problem with a surprise prank is that doing it on Saturday night primetime means pretty soon everyone knows about it, and the guests knew it was coming. A couple even requested it. So the prank part of it sort of died, and he just became an SOS mascot. One of my many tormentors in the dungeon. By the end we’d even retired Mr. Six, and it was all Bonzo.” Once again, a focus on surprise and I think it’s interesting that Bonzo loses his punch the more people know about and understand him. Bonzo is a character that thrived specifically on the guests not knowing who he was and did. So a potential relationship with the unknown again.”

In episode 10 Nigel says to Gwen ““Try not to stare. He doesn’t like it when people stare.” Which could relate to The Stranger. While all the Entities are connected, overlap, and need each other for a ritual bringing them into the world to work, with even seemingly opposing Entities bleeding into each other or having overlapping fears, The Stranger can often have an antagonistic relationship with The Eye and forms of being known. The Stranger tends to thrive off the fear of being unknown so staring at something aligned with The Stranger might make it react negatively. In MAG 092 (Nothing Beside Remains) Jonah tells Jon “We thrive on ceaseless watching, on knowing too much. What we face is the hidden, the uncanny, and the unknown.” In MAG 165 (Revolutions) Not-Sasha says this in regards to The Eye’s Post-Change world “Do you know how it feels? To be – anonymous? And yet known! To have all the sweetest dread I can create tainted by the relentless gaze of that damned Eye. I’ve suffered enough.” So if my theory that Bonzo is tied to something like The Stranger is correct, that could explain a potentially negative reaction to being looked at for too long since aspects of The Stranger often don’t like it when people try to figure out what they are. This could ring extra true if it does turn out that the OIAR is somehow connected to The Eye.

Bonzo’s eating and biting could potentially be linked to The Stranger’s tendency for odd uncanny behavior, like that time Breekon / Hope ate a butterfly. The fact that this monster looks like Bonzo could also be related to the idea of the uncanny, since he would resemble Bonzo but behave and look a bit off. Also, it seems hard to tell if Bonzo is a costume or a monster resembling a costume which makes it harder to know what he is for sure, and The Stranger loves playing up mystery (think how we never know which character is Breekon and which character is Hope from Breekon and Hope in TMA, and Jon describes one of them as “one half of Breekon and Hope”). Also, Bonzo can only say his name which means you never really know what he’s saying or talking about.

Bonzo killing everyone in the room but leaving someone alive is not a completely unheard of idea. The Entities in general often seem to leave witnesses if in doing so more fear is generated and we see creatures like the Not-Them kill and replace people while ensuring that at least one person remembers what the original persona actually looked like even if no one else does. The reason for this is because if the Not-Them’s disguise was perfect and changed every bit of memory and evidence then there wouldn’t be anyone to be afraid of the idea that someone they know has been replaced by a stranger.

Jordan mentions “I don't know why nobody outside the room heard or saw anything, why the cameras weren't working, why it let me live. But I do know why there weren't any bodies.” which emphasizes his confusion about what’s happening. While confusion is often tied to The Spiral, in this case it stems from a bunch of unknown factors and variables, like why there were no other witnesses and why the cameras weren’t working.” As far as there being no witnesses and the cameras failing to work, the Entities are known for usually being on the downlow and not common knowledge but Entities like The Stranger tend to thrive off the fear of mystery and have a precedent for things like mysterious disappearances or hiding people / things. The Calliope I mentioned earlier mysteriously disappeared from the Institute’s archives at some point in TMA and in MAG 092 (Nothing Beside Remains) Jonah tells Jon “We thrive on ceaseless watching, on knowing too much. What we face is the hidden, the uncanny, and the unknown.” Jonah specifically mentions that The Stranger has a connection to “the hidden” among other things. In MAG 102 (Nesting Instinct) Jonah even says that The Stranger essentially hid Jon from him when saying “I was doing everything in my power to locate you. Everyone was working on finding the ritual site.” and “[Irritated] I am sorry, John, that my powers have not yet reached the level of omniscience.” Jordan does say that they know why there weren’t any bodies which implies that Mr. Bonzo probably ate them.

Jordan having trouble remembering exactly what happened actually does have a precedent with The Stranger since the Entity does have connections to memory loss or a loss of identity. In MAG 165 (Revolutions) we see Not-Sasha watch over a Domain that takes the form of a merry-go-round with people fighting over faces. People with no faces must fight over the faces of others to rip them off and regain some sense of identity. When they lose their face it is said “And soon enough they will forget they ever even had one, rest assured; it’s best to step the dance and keep your face secured as much as you are able. Just. Keep. Running.” Jon and co also face memory loss when they interrupt The Stranger’ ritual in TMA and forget who they are and what they are doing for a period of time.

Some other Entities this statement parallels are that of The Slaughter (with sudden brutal and gory violence), The Flesh (via bodily disfigurement by way of losing a hand, Bonzo being described as releasing “some vile mixture of putrid water, rotten foam and rancid meat.” when cut at some point, and Bonzo biting into people), The End (a lot of people brutally die), The Corruption (from the aforementioned vile mixture pouring out of Bonzo), and even The Eye (with the strange and horrifying dreams Jordan is forced to relive over and over resembling how people who give Jon live statements are forced to relive said moments in the form of nightmares over and over). Like always, I have to at least touch on the fact that The Eye doesn’t seem to just be the fear of being watched but also being a witness to something you don’t want to see. Jon can force people to recount and relive terrible moments, Jonah can force information into the heads of people like Melanie and Martin, and in MAG 200 The Eye is stated to have been born from the fear of one’s own eyes showing them too much.

All this being said, I still think the OIAR is somehow connected to The Eye. There’s the cases being like statements but also the fact that they supply sensitive information (such as names and locations) to things like Mr. Bonzo. People like Jonah could almost always know one’s location thanks to their Eye powers and The Eye is connected to the fear of someone / something knowing too much about you (such as knowing where and who you are). I wonder why Bonzo was sent to kill this particular groom when he was just partying? Did the groom know something or overstep some line or was the groom just some sort of offering to appease Mr. Bonzo? How was this person’s name and address obtained? Was it just mundane tracking or something closer to Jonah’s clairvoyance? Nigel acted like he was doing the OIAR a favor so right now it seems like this was a target decided by the OIAR and not necessarily Nigel. Unless you want to argue that the “favor” is aiding in keeping Bonzo pacified, under wraps, or something potentially more mutually beneficial. I wonder if Jordan’s dreams are somehow connected to being directly involved in a case or facing an External of the OIAR? It could also simply be that Jordan is traumatized.

We cut to Gwen and the transcripts say she “is sat at her desk, stunned by what she has just heard.” and she only says “Jesus Christ…” I wonder if this is because the case is unusually brutal or gorey when compared to most others or if she realized there’s a connection between the letter she delivered and what happens in this case. Considering what Lena said it's very possible that some of the cases the OIAR gets are connected to the activity of their own Externals (such as Mr. Bonzo).

ALICE CONT. 

“Gwen? Hello?”

GWEN 

“(dazed) What?”

Getting sucked into a statement like this and statements having a negative impact on one’s mental state are both things we have seen in TMA. Jon had a hard time stopping once he started a statement and at one point Jon expresses worry that Martin was listening to a bunch of statements for Peter Lukas and his plan in regards to The Extinction. Although, it could be that Gwen is merely shocked.

Gwen explains that she met one of the Externals but Alice seems to think Gwen is just referring to some annoying assholes as opposed to any supernatural monsters that takes the form of beloved childhood characters.

Gwen seems to finally wonder the question that I’ve been wondering for a while now:

GWEN 

“What do you think we’re actually doing, here at the O.I.A.R.?” 

ALICE 

“Apart from mortgaging our mental health for a wage packet?” 

GWEN 

“We’ve both been here long enough to know this place. We’re not doing good. We’re not just sifting random data. There’s something wrong here.”

ALICE 

“What are you getting at?”

GWEN 

“You never wonder what the point is? Who benefits from all this awfulness?”

ALICE 

“I don’t wonder. I know.”

GWEN 

(sitting up) “What? Really?”

ALICE 

“(portentous) Oh yeah. I’ve known for a while. What we’re doing here, it’s all part of a grand plan to satisfy one of the most unspeakable evils known to mankind... “

Gwen’s on the edge of her seat. 

ALICE 

“(almost a whisper) …the UK government.”

In TMA the point of the Institute sifting through statements and stuff was twofold. Firstly, to feed The Eye but also to set up the lynchpin for The Eye’s ritual with the position of the Archivist. I wonder if something similar is going on here but I can’t say since while you could argue that being an Externals Liaison is like the Archivist and shares the role as being a “living chronicle of fear” (especially since Lena remarked that Gwen should show fear via screaming because Externals tend to like that) Gwen had to blackmail her way into that position. I have no idea who was the Externals Liaison before her or if there are other Liaisons, if there even was one(s) before / with Gwen at all. Also, unlike the Institute, the OIAR is explicitly connected to the government and is meant to respond to things (not just watch). So it’s very likely that the OIAR has a role that is different from just “The Mass Ritual / Institute 2.0.” They could still be gathering fear related to the statements and being observed like the Institute in TMA though. However, even the Institute still wanted the Archival staff to do a good job following up statements and stuff. Jon tries to reorganize the Archives after Gertrude purposefully left them disorganized and Tim corrects Jon about some errors he made when reading some statements. The OIAR doesn’t really seem to care how well or poorly their workers categorize the cases and I don’t know if anyone checks.

Alice’s joke about the greatest evil known to mankind being the UK government feels like foreshadowing considering that the OIAR, and by extension all the Externals like Bonzo, are connected to the government.

Alice’s comment “Apart from mortgaging our mental health for a wage packet?” references how stressful this job seems to be.

Conclusion

Yeah, idk. This was a very simple episode overall and it mostly just seemed like it was following up Lena’s point about paying attention to the caseload.

Okay, hold on, before I end this I figured I should actually try to look at the voices in the computer system a bit more closely, since quite frankly, like with the alchemy symbols, I’ve admittedly been neglecting them and not focusing on them as much as I should have. This is because I actually couldn’t tell if there was any kind of correlation between the voices and the kinds of cases they read but a video by Maddie’s Maxis called “This Channel's First Video - The Magnus Protocol Analysis and Theories” (which you can view here This Channel's First Video - The Magnus Protocol Analysis and Theories) hypothesizes that there is actually a correlation. As we all know two of the computer voices sound like Martin and Jon and Maddie argues that the kinds of statements the voices read correspond to something that had to do with the character. For example, in theory NORRIS (Martin’s voice) tends to have statements relating to self-loathing and loneliness. I don’t know what they are feeding Maddie but Maddie is potentially cooking here. So I decided to glance over at some of the statements and see if there are any patterns.

I’m going to start with the theme that seems the most concrete in my opinion. The cases that NORRIS (Martin’s voice) reads seem to often be tied to themes of isolation, losing loved ones, or feeling abandoned. I should make it clear that while I know Martin in TMA is connected to The Lonely I am not saying all the cases NORRIS reads are connected to The Lonely. The mere presence of feeling alone or isolated doesn’t automatically make a statement Lonely related in the same way someone dying, getting attacked, or something taking place at night or in darkness automatically means End, Slaughter, or Dark respectively. Also, it’s important to remember that every Entity, even seemingly opposing ones, have overlap, shared fears, commonalities, etc..

But let’s look at the cases to see if this pattern is really there. The case NORRIS covers in episode 1 involves the Anglerfish, or something resembling it, killing and replacing their romantic partner. Harriet even says “And that voice I have loved for twenty years answered: “Some of him.”” So loss of a loved one.

In episode 3 NORRIS covers a case in which Dr. Samuel seems to feel immense guilt and sorrow about the death of Maddie. Once again, the loss of a close loved one.

In episode 8 NORRIS goes over a report Terrance submits about the effects of brutal liminalism. While no one dies or is replaced in the actual events of the case, Terrance does mention “originally took my role as a night janitor at Forton following a protracted divorce which cost me the majority of my friendships.” So while their partner isn’t dead they did lose a loved one, and if you read my thoughts on that episode you know that I actually think the case has a lot of similarities with The Lonely. The fog, the vaguely familiar but impossible to understand gibberish, people with repeating features, being isolated in a dark void, etc.. Even if you disagree that it’s The Lonely there is still a connection to themes of losing someone close and being alone.

If there was an episode to disprove this theory it would probably be episode 12 since it’s just Bonzo murdering a room full of people. Jordan does say “I don't know why nobody outside the room heard or saw anything” and earlier in the case they mention that they believed their coworker by the name of Joey the doorman might have ditched him again but this definitely feels a bit more like a stretch. Jordan does seem to blame the establishment for what happened and this is because from the perspective of Jordan no one came to help despite how obvious and loud the commotion was. Which could maybe tie into the idea of being abandoned or left alone but this is definitely pushin it and it’s clear that our understanding of what kinds of cases each voice reads might expand as the series goes on.

Maddie argues that CHESTER (Jonathon’s voice) seems to usually cover cases related directly to the Magnus Institute. Which is generally true, CHESTER covers the cases of RedCanary spelunking in the Institute’s ruins in episode 1, and the gambling dice being submitted to the Institute in episode 9 for example. But CHESTER also covers the case about Tom wanting to watch Voyeur in episode 5, the case regarding Hilltop Center in episode 7, Gordon’s encounter with the tattoos and Ink5 during construction in episode 11. It’s very possible that these are just related to the Institute in ways we don’t understand yet, for example some of the characters that appear could be members of the Institute or something, but in my opinion this definitely throws a wrench into some things.

CHESTER seems to have a stronger case for a theme of curiosity and a desire to know in general as opposed to just the Magnus Institute. RedCanary investigates the archives out of curiosity, Tom really wants to see the Voyeur movie for their blog, the narrator explains that they experimented with the gambling dice to figure out how they worked, and Gordon keeps talking about how they “just need to see it. I need to know what’s in the water.” As I’ve mentioned previously, The Eye also has a major emphasis on a desire to know and understand something even if it comes at the cost of yourself and / or other people. Hilltop Center still seems like a bit of an outlier here but while Dianne isn’t spelunking through ruins or anything she does mention that she was looking for people to help her work at the center. Which, while a bit of a stretch, could fit with a theme of curiosity or desire to know in the case of Chester. Or at least the idea of something being searched for as a theme at least. 

If you wanted to argue that CHESTER actually related to things being looked for you could say that the case about the gambling dice revolves around the narrator giving the Institute artifacts, and they even say “So yeah, I tell you all about them, how I got them, all that crap and you just… You take them away, right? You accept them? Good. I think. I’m pretty sure that’s how it works. It’s how it worked for me, at least. Put them in whatever vault you like, bury them, drop them in the ocean, for all I care. All that matters is that they’re yours now.” So you could say that the Institute was looking for artifacts. You could also argue that the narrator was looking for people to roll the dice, looking for good luck, or started making their way towards Gary when they found him.

AUGUSTUS has a voice I am not familiar with (and we will get to the popular theory in a moment). I can only recall AUGUSTUS voicing one case, I might be forgetting one or something, so I don’t have a lot to go on. AUGUSTUS could be covering really old statements, as Sam notes the one in episode 4 is from the 18th century, or statements revolving around others climbing their way to their top and doing whatever it takes to do so. It’s kind of unclear until I can see some more AUGUSTUS statements.

There’s also some obvious character associations with this theory. Martin, someone connected to The Lonely, has statements reflecting some kind of isolation or abandonment, Jon, the Archivist with a strong tie to The Eye and someone who was strung along while trying to solve Jonah’s plan and learn the truth about the Entities, has statements involving extreme curiosity or people looking for things, and Jonah, someone who is really old and ruthless (so ruthless that they made the world a fear hellscape in an attempt to avoid death), has had a statement taking place in the 18th century involving someone giving a blood sacrifice to play violin super well.

There’s a popular theory going around that the three voices in the computers are actually Jonathon, Martin, and Jonah, and this definitely seems like one of the more credible theories floating around the community to a degree. AUGUSTUS’ unfamiliar voice could be the voice of Jonah’s original body. Jon, Martin, and Jonah were all in the panopticon when the Change ended which could be the event that got them tied to the computers. It could also have to do with being the pupil of the Eye somehow. Jonah and Jon were both the Eye’s pupil at some point and Jon got his position by killing Jonah to take his spot. It’s possible something weird happened like Martin was about to become the Eye’s pupil after removing Jon from the position, giving them this common link, but I can’t say for sure.

Maddie also points out another big thing to remember in the video. I have mentioned that Annabelle seems generally right about what happens to the Entities’ various Monsters and Avatars after the Entities get pulled into the next universe. Monsters, like potentially the Anglerfish, presumably get sucked into the new universe since they are part of the Entities. Other people may or may not get sucked into the universe depending on how attached they were to the Entity. It’s also possible that they will always just be left behind. However, Annabelle also mentions that it’s possible the Entities will take the aspects of a person that are connected to or are a part of the Entity. So, it’s possible that the parts of Jon, Martin, and Jonah in the computer are not them in their entirety but merely specific aspects of their personality or being. It could literally just be their voices taken by one or more Entities for all we know.

We also know that some Entities, like The End, seem capable of making copies or “memories” of people after / when they die. In MAG 154 (Bloody Mary) Eric states “I know that I’m not really Eric; I’m just a memory someone wrote down. It hurts, most of the time. I don’t like it.” So one could argue that the voices in the computers are not the fully sentient original versions of Jon, Martin, and Jonah but “memories” or copies created by one or more Entities. This could also explain why the third voice might be Jonah even though Jonah potentially died before the Entities jumped universes. This voice could simply be The Eye’s metaphorical recollection of Jonah or Jonah wasn’t completely dead when the Entities switched universes. This also means that the voices in the computers could be more malicious than we first assume if there’s a chance they are in actuality not Jon, Martin, and Jonah or are in truth aspects of The Eye or bits of their personalities trying to achieve a specific goal.

As I’ve mentioned previously, the cases the voices read out don’t seem to be completely random. The second Sam is about to give up his search for the Magnus Institute CHESTER spits out a case that is perfect for reigniting his curiosity with the addition of a new clue, and when Celia takes the job the first case she gets is about Hilltop Center (which could relate to Celia’s questions about multiversal and time travel). I still can’t say if the CHESTER or any other of the computers are trying to help Sam or use him for more nefarious purposes.

I’m not super confident about this being the patterns the computers follow at the moment because frankly there isn’t a lot of cases to go off of, and I need to see more AUGUSTUS. It’s also possible that the cases are more variable or context dependant. What the voices read could depend on the person at the computer, for example: it’s possible CHESTER reads a bunch of cases connected to the Institute because that’s what Sam was most interested in. There are also some cases we don’t have enough context behind yet, for example the mysterious figure in the Hilltop Road case could be connected to something like the Institute in some way, or that some of the voices focus on certain Externals Liaisons, people, etc..

If you want another TMAGP theory video to watch here’s one by Pinkelotje: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX51EHLy7BQ&ab_channel=pinkelotje.

[ihavemanyhusbands]

Honey Bun (18+ Series)

(Aaron Hotchner x Stripper!Reader)

Part 2 // MINORS DNI

WC: 2.2k words

Song Inspo: Time - Sevdaliza

Series Warnings: Eventual smut, bit of an age gap (placing reader at around 25-26), cursing, alcohol consumption, formalized sex work (Stripper/Pole Dancer), occasional angst, drama, and that's all I can think of rn but lmk if I missed anything!

A/N: Can you hear that? That's me screaming in the distance as I wrote this. PLS ENJOY AAAAA!!!

---------------------------------------------------

Aaron had been stuck in your head all day. You couldn’t help it, really. Even when you tried to concentrate on other things, your mind would betray you and stray back to him. It was puzzling, but also pretty frustrating.

You thought about him as you got ready backstage — frosty blue eyeshadow that matched your outfit, lips irresistibly glossy, smelling of frangipani and vetiver. Eyes roaming over your reflection, you thought of just how good your name sounded on his lips. How titillating it was that he’d called you Honey, entirely too close to being in on your secret.

For once, flirting had not felt fake or uncomfortable! And not to mention how respectful he was…

You thought of his piercing gaze and the way the low light glinted in his dark eyes. You tried to imagine him in the crowd, standing out among all those anonymous faces watching you on stage now.

An expanse of bare skin aglow in the neon lights; Strong limbs and taught muscles. Bending and swaying and making pretty shapes as you spun on the pole.

How might he look at you then? 

You tried  — really tried — not to think about that too much as you absently gathered your newly earned riches. Automatically, you went straight backstage to stash it away with all your things.

“You seem distracted, Honey Bunny,” Gia — your closest friend at the Crimson Lounge — commented, adjusting her mesh top in front of the mirror.

You snapped back to attention. “Do I?”

“Yeah, you’ve been a little spacey. Everything okay?” She asked. “All good with Sadie?”

You nodded quickly, forcing yourself not to sigh. Great, you had a silly little crush and suddenly it was like you forgot how to act. You needed to stay sharp, there was no time to be pussyfooting around.

“Yeah, Sadie’s fine. She’s got midterms right now, so she’s been stressed,” you said. “I guess I’m just not in the zone today.”

Sadie was your younger sister, who was living with you while she went to community college. She was one of the main reasons you worked two jobs.

After your mother passed away and your father remarried and left, you took it upon yourself to look after her. You basically had to drop out of college in your first year and start working in order to keep a roof over your heads and food on the table. 

She wanted to dance, too, which you had no problem with, but you told her to finish her education first. You wanted at least one of you to have a degree.

“Are you sure? You know you can tell me anything, right?” Gia said, looking at you through the mirror’s reflection.

You smiled appreciatively, grabbing your lip gloss to reapply. “Yes, I know. But all’s good, really.”

In all the time you’d known Gia, your love life had been practically nonexistent. Sure, you’d unfortunately dated one or two assholes, but you never let it get too far. It was better to be alone than in bad company.

She knew some of your worst stories and would never judge you, but you didn’t really want to tell her about Aaron. You didn’t want to jinx it, in a strange way, but there was also not a lot to tell. 

Plus, it was kind of nice to have the secret to yourself for now.

“If you say so,” she conceded as you stepped up to the mirror next to her. “Here, I’m up soon, give me a lil bunny kiss for good luck.”

You turned to face her with a small chuckle, and the two of you gingerly rubbed noses together.

—————————

“Well, well… look who’s back,” you said with a smirk as Aaron sat on a stool by the bar.

He smiled lopsidedly. “It’s nice to see you again, Honey.”

Almost a full week had passed since you last saw him. Most of those days, you would sneak hopeful glances at the door. Whenever she caught you, Josephine would snicker to herself, shaking her head in amusement. 

You were actually kind of surprised he’d actually shown up again, especially so close to the end of the night, but you weren’t going to complain.

You poured him his drink and slid it over. “So, you couldn’t resist the lure of the Duchess for too long, huh?”

He chuckled, taking a sip of scotch. “Well, this is actually kind of embarrassing but… I came in on Saturday, but you weren’t here. Didn’t stay long then.”

Your traitorous heart began pounding in your chest. You snuck a glance at Josephine, who was busy closing someone’s tab. Had she seen him?

“Oh, yeah, I’m not here on weekends. I have another job,” you shrugged, trying to be nonchalant.

“Where?” He asked seemingly before he could think about it.

You raised an eyebrow. “Why? So you can come stalk me there, too?” 

His cheeks actually grew red and his eyes widened a little. “Um… ha, well, I-”

“I’m just kidding, silly!” You chuckled. “I’m sorry, you should see the look on your face.”

He shook his head, visibly relaxing. “Just felt like yanking my chain, didn’t you?”

“It is kind of fun,” you smirked.

“So you are a busy girl, you weren’t kidding,” he commented, with admiration in his tone. “And of course, you don’t have to tell me about all that you do.”

“A girl has a right to secrets, doesn’t she?”

“I do like a little bit of mystery…” 

“What about you?” You asked. “You haven’t told me what you do.”

“Well I’m an open book, so I’ll tell you.” He brought something out from his pocket, opening it to reveal an FBI badge. “I’m a profiler with the FBI. Formerly a lawyer.”

How fitting, you thought to yourself. Still, you couldn’t help but deflate a little at this revelation. Not that you were expecting anything with him, but this made the chances much slimmer.

“No wonder you’re a workaholic,” you said. “Needing to catch so many bad guys out there and all.”

“I try to,” he looked down at this glass, nodding absently. 

He seemed lost in thought for a moment, so you decided not to press the issue. When he looked back up, he’d decided to change the subject.

“This is going to sound weird, but do you know of a good place to get pancakes in the middle of the night?”

—————————

And so you found yourself sitting in a booth across from Aaron, the much brighter lights of the 24 hour diner letting you get a better look at him.

It was two AM and he looked exhausted but content, not to mention oh-so-ruggedly handsome. You hoped you didn’t look worse for wear under the fluorescent glow.

He’d gotten a short stack of buttermilk pancakes with a side of bacon, which he was now digging into with fervor. You’d opted for some fries and a vanilla milkshake to dip them into.

“Someone was hungry,” you commented, utterly amused.

“Famished,” he confirmed, wiping some maple syrup from the corner of his lips with a napkin. “Sorry if I’m losing my manners a little bit here.”

“All good, I’m kind of enjoying it actually,” you giggled, dipping a fry into your shake. “This is one of my favorite treats.”

“Can I try?” 

“Sure, come closer,” you said, and he leaned forward so you could feed it to him.

“Hmm, not bad. It’s interesting.”

“My little sister and I used to have it all the time when we were kids. My mom got us into it,” you said, smiling a little at the memories. “She was such a sweet tooth.”

“Always nice to honor tradition,” he smiled, understanding there was something tender about this moment. “Right in this diner, too?”

“Oh no, it was back in our hometown. That diner was close to the highway, so a bunch of trucks would always be parked outside. Bit of a seedy place, sure, but I kind of loved it. The food was great, but definitely greasy. I remember there was an old jukebox that always played things like Buddy Holly or The Mills Brothers.” 

You looked out the window for a moment, mind wandering back to the past. To a time when things weren’t so complicated and you always felt safe and happy and taken care of. It all seemed so foreign now. Not that you weren’t happy these days, but… it was just different.

“So you like old, old music,” he said, bringing you back to the present. “I do like me some Mills Brothers, too.”

“Yeah, I’ll listen to anything. I love music, but there’s something about those old songs… They’ll get you.”

“Bit of a romantic, aren’t you?”

You couldn’t help but grin, feeling uncharacteristically coy. “How do you figure?”

“Hmm, let’s just say I have a knack for these things,” he smirked, pushing his empty plate to one side and leaning his arms on the table. “Have I told you yet that you are beautiful?”

“You have, but I don’t mind hearing it again.”

Your phone buzzed with a new text message from Sadie, and you saw it was nearing three AM now. 

“Should we get the check?” You asked, reaching into your purse for your wallet.

“I’ll get it,” he said, waving you off as he flagged down the waitress. “And I’ll drive you home, too. No arguing about it.”

You raised both eyebrows. “Is that an order?” 

“Yes.”

After settling the bill, you climbed into the passenger side of Aaron’s SUV. He handed you an aux cord so you could plug your phone in, and you decided to play some Chet Baker on shuffle.

And of course, ‘I Fall In Love Too Easily’ just had to be the first song to come up. Neither of you made any comment on it, instead remaining mostly quiet on the ride to your place. You guided him through the darkened streets, sneaking glances at his profile. 

When he pulled up to your condo, you unbuckled your seatbelt but did not get out just yet. You looked at each other, both unsure of how this night would end. 

“I’ve really enjoyed spending time with you,” he said finally. “I’m sorry I didn’t ask for your number last time, I just didn’t want to presume…”

Wordlessly, you extended your hand towards him. He handed you his cellphone, and you saved your information on it. You even took a selfie blowing a kiss at the camera to keep it as your contact picture, and you saw he was smiling lopsidedly as you handed his phone back.

“Problem solved,” you said with a wink. “I’ve had a really nice time, too.”

“We’ve got to figure out a better time for our next date. Can’t just take you out gallivanting at the hour between the dog and the wolf… It speaks poorly of me.”

You smirked mischievously. “Oh, so this was a date?”

He hesitated for just a brief moment, once again worried he was stepping too far. In that moment, it only made you want him more. After all, you shouldn’t even be jumping into conclusions about where this could all lead or what it meant. There was only the present.

You leaned on the dashboard between you, propping your chin on your hand and fluttering your lashes. 

He swallowed hard. “I suppose I could’ve been clearer but… yes. To me it was.”

“Well, if this was a date, does that mean I can bid you a proper goodnight?” Your voice was low and sultry, eyes drawn to his lips as you leaned in even closer.

In the next second, his hand was cupping the back of your neck, pulling you in to meet his kiss. You adjusted so you were kneeling on the seat, hands on his face. Softly, he sighed your name into your mouth as you parted his lips with your tongue. 

It was a slow and sweet kiss, very much exploratory. He let you set the pace, tongue tangling with yours. You let your teeth graze his bottom lip, which elicited a deliciously deep groan from him. Desire roared to life within you, and you wished you could press firmly against him.

When he tried to adjust his body, he accidentally elbowed the horn, and the two of you abruptly broke apart as it blared a single note. You momentarily shared a startled look, but then you couldn’t help but laugh.

“Forgot myself for a moment there,” he panted, also chuckling at his own clumsiness. “But I guess that’s my cue.”

You tilted your head to one side, just a little perplexed. His dark eyes were glazed over with lust, but he didn’t even ask if you’d invite him inside. For your part, you were craving more — so much more — but you weren’t going to push if he wanted to be such a gentleman. 

You leaned in for another quick, chaste kiss — One that had a promise for more behind it. When you pulled away, you let your eyes rove over his face, a smirk tugging at your lips.

“Sweet dreams, Aaron,” you said as you opened the car door. “And by that, I mean I hope you dream of me.”

“I really hope so too, Honey.”

[buddiefix]

Fluff (Hugs/Kisses/Cuddles) Fic's

The following are some of my favourite buddie fanfictions that involve accidental kisses, hugs, and sleepy cuddles!

(Any new fic's I find that fall under this category will be added to this post, so feel free to check back for edits!)

and i feel just like i want to kiss you underneath my mistletoe by oklahoma

9-1-1 (TV)  

“So, you’re telling me,” Ravi starts in, all wide-eyed and giggly like he’s been given a secret he can’t wait to share, “that you’ve never kissed anyone under a mistletoe? Ever?”

Eddie shakes his head. “Nope,” he replies, shrugs, and adds a few extra spoonfuls of sugar to Buck’s coffee before sliding it his way.

-

5 times the team tries to get Eddie and Buck to kiss under the mistletoe and the 1 time they do. Kinda.

Language: English Words: 9,313 Chapters: 1/1

Loud as a whisper, soft as a feather by Klaerenn

9-1-1 (TV)  

“I didn’t have my money on Eddie kissing you after you lovingly rearranged his shirt,” Chim remarks.

Neither did Buck. Then again, he didn't have his money on Eddie kissing him in the middle of the station at all. No matter how sleep-deprived the man was or how brutal the last few days have been on their nerves.

Or after Abuela gets injured, Buck is determined to help Eddie get through the week preceding his flight to El Paso and, in particular, through an intense shift that ends up hacking the last bits of distance separating them.

Language: English Words: 9,785 Chapters: 1/1

kiss me, kiss me (i don't know if i can let you go) by ipretendtobesane

9-1-1 (TV)  

If anyone ever asks- they were both drunk.

Eddie knows they weren’t, he and Buck don’t like to drink during the week, regardless of whether or not they work the next day. If they are working, they don’t want to be out of it on the job, and if they’re not they don’t want to be out of it when Christopher wakes up the next morning at 7:00am with more energy than either of them can handle.

But there’s not really a good explanation otherwise. No other way to explain why, as Buck was walking out the door, Eddie leaned in and gave him a soft kiss goodnight.

Language: English Words: 10,285 Chapters: 1/1

Feels like falling in love by justhockey

9-1-1 (TV)  

It’s just - it’s too much, and not enough, and Eddie isn’t sure if he’s allowed to want more than this, but he does anyway. He wants everything with Buck.

(Or, five times Eddie doesn’t mean to kiss Buck, and the one time he does.)

Language: English Words: 5,245 Chapters: 1/1

if you say it with your hands by hammersmiths

9-1-1 (TV)  

Buck thinks it must be a habit he still hasn’t dropped from his days in the army, or maybe it comes with the territory of being a dad – but Eddie can nap pretty much anywhere.

or, Eddie starts casually falling asleep against Buck, and Buck is very normal about it.

Language: English Words: 9,936 Chapters: 1/1

The Day That Actually Did Get More Ridiculous by R_E_R6

9-1-1 (TV)  

"Any sign of Breaking Bad?" Buck voiced only to receive chuffs from the others before Eddie replied "Nothing yet, think I found the point of origin though. Rug is completely charred between the stash and a nice comfy chair, I'd bet my oxygen tank that the idiot was smoking his own stuff and set the place on fire"

"This story just gets better and better, I don't think this day could get much more ridiculous"

Now Eddie is not very superstitious, but as Buck said these words he could hear his Abuela in his head making proclamations of jinxes. The two had no idea how much more ridiculous this day was about to become.

Language: English Words: 12,869 Chapters: 2/2

Buck's New Normal by Booklover3600

9-1-1 (TV)  

Buck has trouble sleeping after the events of 4x14.

Correction: Buck has trouble sleeping alone.

Or Buck and Taylor never kissed, Taylor, May, and Buck are besties, Eddie just wants his best friend to get some goddamn rest, and Chris is confused as to why Buck has his own apartment.

Language: English Words: 8,273 Chapters: 1/1

Close Enough for Comfort by allyasavedtheday 

9-1-1 (TV)  

Their first hug doesn’t happen at the firehouse.

It’s at a bar where they’d decided to get a drink after work. Eddie arrives a little after he does once he drops Christopher off at his aunt’s place and when he joins Buck at the table he pulls him into one of those casual, back-slapping kinds of hugs.

It’s nothing to write home about. It’s friendly, comfortable, but Eddie’s hands are warm on Buck’s back and for the briefest second Buck can feel Eddie’s smile imprinted against his shoulder before it’s over.

He puts it down to missing Abby that he finds himself thinking about it when he’s trying to fall asleep that night.

-

A look at how Buck and Eddie's physical relationship develops from season 2 to season 5 AKA the one with all the hugging.

Language: English Words: 14,074 Chapters: 1/1

(Friendly reminder I do not own any of the works listed in this post, and all can be located on archiveofoureown.org)

[admrlthundrbolt]

Reckless Paradise (Silco x Chubby Reader)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Having a food cart in the Undercity could be boring. But having Jinx as a regular customer made for interesting moments. When she has a fight with her father and comes to you for comfort. Well Silco thinks it's time to meet the person that his daughter always seems to run to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hey guys, I'm back at it again. So I just watched Arcane and fell in love with Silco. That of course means that he became my immediate muse and needed a story written. Anyways I hope you enjoy.

---------------------------------------------------------

Jinx slammed a fist against his desk. “I just don’t understand why I can’t go to the meetings.”

Silco sighed. “Because your not old enough.” He gave the thirteen year old girl an irritated look. “We’ve been over this, it’s not safe for you.”

Her eyes began to water. Not wanting to let him see how upset she was, she ran out of the room.

As he watched her go his heart panged with sadness. It was always a hard task to tell her no.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rushing down the street, she went to the only other place that felt safe. Your food cart was outside of the brothel. Joking that the workers there were the ones that needed a good meal the most. This logic kept your pots empty and pockets full. It also came with the bonus of the bouncer looking out for you. Something you were going to snub your nose at.

So to see one of your favorite customers stomping over to you. It was a sight to behold. The small blue haired teen was in a mood you rarely saw her in. Sneaking into your secret stash of fresh fruit. Something you kept on hand for her. You started peeling and slicing, as she plopped down on a stool.

“How's my favorite customer doin'?”

Folding her arms onto the edge of the cart, she laided her head on top of them. “Fine.”

As you put the final piece of fruit in the bowl you sighed in a exaggerated way. “To bad. I suppose I could trade this bowl of fresh fruit for a bit more information.”

She perked up at the offer, but raised her eyebrows in suspicion. “How much do I have to tell you?”

With a shrug you said. “Enough to make you get it off your chest.” Then you stuck out your hand. “Deal?”

A smile spread across her face and she shook your hand. “Now give up the fruit.”

Chortling at her demand, you slid the bowl to her. Then listen to her complain about her dad. You could see both sides of the argument. A kid that wanted to make her father proud. On the other hand a dad trying to keep his daughter safe. It was a tricky situation to say the least.

“I can’t stand when he treats me like a kid. When is he gonna take me seriously.” Her eyes began to water again.

Leaning forward you put a hand on her head, ruffling her hair. “I know you don’t want to hear this, but he just wants to protect you." She gave you a hard look, still you continued. “That being said, you should always know that you’re welcome here.”

Her grin returned, only to dampen. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

Putting a hand on your hip, you smiled brightly. “Of course I am. You can make up when you get back home.” Wiping down the cart top, you put away the last of your wares.

Shaking her head feverishly, she stayed glued to the stool. “Nuh uh, I’d rather sleep on the streets tonight.”

Bitting your lip, you thought through the options. Only one solution seemed the way to go. “I can’t let you sleep in a random ally. Come on, were going to have a sleepover.”

Jumping up, she helped you finish packing up and push your cart home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He paced behind his desk, eyes occasionally darting between the door and window. Where could she be, it's getting late. The door opened, only for Sevika to walk through.

Her eyes looked over him and she scoffed. “She's still not back.”

He grumbled under his breath. “No, obviously not.”

Rolling her eyes at the boss’ mood, she nodded her head towards the window. “I'll go look for her, anything to calm you down.” Going back through the door she barely caught his last comment.

“As you should.”

She could hear the worry bubbling up, so she let it slide.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bring a spare blanket and pillow to the couch, you set up a temporary bed. As Jinx skipped towards you, you gave her a mock glare. “Did you brush your teeth?”

She nodded with a frown. “The paste tasted weirded.” Then jumped onto the couch.

Tucking her under the blanket you laughed. “Sorry I only have mint. Now off to bed, need to rest up if you want to help me with the cart tomorrow.” This got her to settle down quickly. Brushing a bit of hair, that wouldn't fit into the braids you gave her, you turned off the lights.

Doing your own nightly routine, you were bombarded by thoughts of the girl lying on your couch. You tried to look after anyone that needed it, but Jinx was a special case. She had been through so much tragedy in her young life. She also had a habit of clinging to you after a fight with her father.

A sudden knock at your door startled you from your pondering. Waiting a moment, hoping it was someone at the wrong place. But as another louder knock sounded, you made your way over to the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sevika grunted in annoyance and glare into the distance. It didn't take long, after asking around, to find out where the brat had gone. A food cart that hangs around the brothel. The only problem was no one would tell her where you lived. How was she supposed to question you if nobody would give up your location.

After more time than she would like to admit, someone spilled the info. It was a useless little welp that often gets thrown out of the brothel for wanting free services. He called you a stuck up bitch, because you wouldn't give him the time of day. So he was all to happy to direct her to your home.

Now that she was in front of your door, she hoped this would be simple from here on out.

Though when the door opened it wasn't at all what she expected. There you stood plump and with prominent laugh lines on your face. You looked all of a motherly type. So the frown on your face as you stared at her seemed out of place on you.

“Can I help you?”

She glanced past you and her eyes widen as she spotted the girl. Pointed her out, she said. “I'm here for her.” Seeing you block her view, by closing the door a bit, she added. “Bosses orders.”

Narrowing your eyes at her, you flashed a look over at the kid. Stepping outside of the doorway, you quietly closed the door behind you. “I'm not sure who your boss is, but I can make a guess.” You placed your hands on your hips as an exasperated expression sat on your face. “Look she's already asleep and doesn't want to go home. Do you really want to carry her back kicking and screaming.”

She cringed at the thought, the brat was bad enough in a good mood. Giving you another once over, she thought back on her search for you. Not one person had a bad thing to say about you. Plus if the brat was comfortable staying with you, what was the harm.

“Tell you what, my cart is set up at the brothel. Why don't you let her father know that he can pick her up to his leisure there tomorrow. I'm sure the gesture would make a better impression on her than dragging her home.”

You made a good point. So with a shrug and a smirk she said. “I'll let him know the situation. But I can't guarantee that I won't be sent back to kick in your front door.”

Putting your hands up in a sign of peace you shook your head. “No need, if he insisted I'll let you in. I just think him picking her up would mean a lot. Be it tonight or tomorrow.”

With a nod she starts making her way back to Silco. Only to stop after a few steps and turn back to you. “You know you have quite the reputation around here. Made it more of a challenge than I would have liked to find you."

This caused a sheepish smile to settle on your lips. “It helps when you can provide a hot meal.”

Her smirk deepened. “Maybe"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When she got back to the office he was half asleep in his chair. Slamming the door shut, she quietly snickered as he jump in his seat.

“Wha.” He scanned the room and glared as his eyes landed on her.

She couldn't help but noticed how the look fit much better on him than you. “I found Jinx.”

Glancing around her, his visage swapped to one of confusion. “Well, where the hell is she.” He gestured about her and grew more agitated.

Folding her arms across her chest she slid onto the chair before the desk. “With a food vendor that sets up shop in front of the brothel.”

Rubbing his temples, he tried to kept his temper in check. “And you didn't bring her back because?”

“The woman made to many good points.” She then launch into a recap of her conversation with you.

As the explanation was given, he couldn't help but agreed with you on most points. What he didn't like was you not giving him his daughter. How dare you keep what belongs to him, even if it was for only a night. He could tell by the way that Sevika spoke of you, it seemed you had garnered her respect. Which was a hard won thing to achieve. “Do you agree with her?”

This caused her to pause. Then realize that even if it wasn't what he wanted to hear, the truth was her answer. “Yes, she has the trust of the common folk and Jinx. Trying to disrupt either could result in negative backlash.”

He had to consciously unclenched his jaw. It was a thought out and comprehensive analysis. But not what he wanted to consider. “I suppose that given the situation, a little time apart could do us some good. Does she seem of the trustworthy sort.” His scrutinizing gaze rested firmly on her. Taking in any body language that may betray her thoughts.

“In all honesty, I didn't hear a single bad thing about her. Except that waste Mitch, but his opinion matters as much as a sewer rat's. It's like she's made herself a positive facet in the tunnels of the Undercity.” Placing her hands on the arm rest she leaned forward. “She might even be able to help with getting through Jinx's teenage years. Having some one she can confided in that's outside of the family business. Someone that you could keep in your back pocket for times such as these.”

The suggestion made his hackles fully lower. That could be a great boon in helping keep his daughter in line. For the first time that night he smiled. “Yes, it may be the right moment for me to meet this vendor. I will be freeing up tomorrow morning to gather Jinx from this woman.”

Nodding she had to restrain herself from smirking. She had a feeling that this meeting would be an entertaining event, to say the least.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

He walked down the street with his usual swagger. The past couple of years had his reputation skyrocketing. Taking shimmer from a small lab to a large scale production had made him a respected yet feared person.

Still it seemed there were people like you. People who weren't under the thrall of his power. So to say he was taken aback at seeing you for the first time, would be an understatement.

Your cart was homey and decorated with many personal touches. There were a few plants hanging about the canopy. Odd sizes of seating set up in front of a bench attached to the cook top. Jinx was next to you, listening to you give her patient instructions.

Then there was you. Comfortable casual clothing clung to your plump body in an alluring manner. Your cheeks were flush with effort as you mixed together a bowl of ingredients. A beaming smile made him glance away, for fear your brightened expression would blind him.

He pauses and took a moment to gather himself. This was not at all the type of senerio he saw himself stepping into.

You noticed movement not to far from your cart and glanced towards it. It wasn't hard to realize it was Silco, Jinx's father. The marred eye was his biggest giveaway. Still you couldn't help taking in his lithe figure and handsome angular features. You had no idea that such a tantalizing treat was scouring the Undercity, right under your nose too.

It was a few moments later that he heard his daughter call him over. Putting on his best face he made his way over to the pair. “Hello Jinx, how pleasant to see you this morning.” He was hoping the jab would be understood.

She looked up at him with excitement as she flipped the cooking batter. “Hi, can you believe how good this smells. I've never had breakfast from here.” She turn her attention back to the cook top and continued flipping.

“Well thank you honey. I'm glad that you feel that way." Facing him you nodded your head at the seats. “Take a seat, it won't be long before it's ready.”

He was grateful for the invitation. She was right about the smell, it was heavenly. “I believe I will take you up on that. My daughter didn't give you to much trouble, did she?”

Shaking your head with a chuckle, you began to plate up some fresh fruit and hot cakes. “Not at all. If anything she's been a great help. Didn't even complain about waking early to set up the cart.”

She perked up and jumped onto the seat next to him. “Yeah, we were out here before the morning rush. You should have seen all the people that came by.” She began shoving food in by the shovelful.

Noticing a plate had also been slid in front of him, he took a bite. It was delicious, the pairing of the lightly dressed fruit and warm pillowy cakes. He hadn't enjoyed a meal this much in a long time. Finishing the dish faster than he would have liked to admit, he couldn't keep his gaze from you.

You moved with such practiced precision behind the cook top. The way you wielded your knife made him believe you could transition into a proper assassin easily. But as he looked over at his daughter, smiling and chatting with you. He knew that you were in a better postition here.

Finishing the delectable dish he brushed away any debris from himself. “Thank you for the fabulous food. But I think it's time we be on our way.” He stood, then turned to Jinx. She was disappointed, though she followed his lead.

Smiling at the duo you held out a container filled to the brim with various items. “Here's something for the road. And I don't want either of you to hesitate to come back either.” Winking at the pair, your smile widened at the happiness on the kid’s face.

Nodding at you, he hoped his expression didn’t show how flustered he was. You were stirring feeling in him that he hadn’t felt in quite some time. “We will have to do this again then, Mrs….”

A more alluring cast settled on your face. Full attention landing on him you said. “Actually it's Miss (Y/N).” Holding out your hand, you gave his a healthy lingering shake.

Keeping a calm appearance he released your hand. “A pleasure, until next time.” Walking away with Jynx, as she called out her goodbyes. He couldn't help glancing back. Only to be shocked at your eyes raking over his own figure. Your gaze met after a few moments and you gave him a heated look. The spell broke as his daughter yanked him forward, going on about how much fun she had with you. It had him thinking about all the fun times that you and he could have together. But that would come in time. For now he would enjoy you through the stories Jinx were telling.

[purplefangirl42]

Neat Little Rows

Summary: Reader picks up a new hobby and learns something interesting about Silco.

Pairing: Silco/GN!Reader

A/N: This is a belated birthday gift for @silcoitus 💜 love you lots and lots Coi! This is a continuation of some requests I've written for them, which don't need to be read to understand this piece, but they are in my Arcane requests if you want to check them out!

Tags/Warnings: Family Fluff, Fluff, Hobbies, Knitting, Gift Giving, Established Relationship

AO3 Link

A soft curse left your lips as your fingers slipped from one of the bundles in your hands, falling to the floor with a thud. You attempted to shift the other ones to one arm so you could pick up the fallen package, sighing when they wouldn’t cooperate. There was no way you would be able to get all of them up to your studio in one trip. 

Your gaze drifted down the hall in the direction of Silco’s office. Your husband would be gone until the evening, which meant the room would be a good place to stash your spoils until you could transport them up to your own space.

Abandoning the fallen package, you carried the rest of your goods towards the office. You had to pause to dig your key out of your pocket to unlock the door, but you were soon inside. You released the bundles from your arms to drop into a pile on the couch before returning for the one you left behind. Once everything was safely in the room, you closed and relocked the door, heading down to grab some lunch before doing anything else.

When you returned, you were not surprised to find your packages ransacked. Skeins of yarn in every color littered Silco’s office, all surrounding the culprit sitting on the floor. Jinx looked up at you with wide eyes when you entered the room, an apology on her lips. 

“I thought maybe there was food,” she said.

“So when you opened the first one and found something that wasn’t food, you decided to open all the rest of the bundles regardless?”

Jinx gave you a shrug, tossing one skein from hand to hand, throwing it higher with each pass.

“I wanted to see all the pretty colors,” she said, wincing as she missed the falling skein and it hit her in the face. “What did you buy all this for anyways?”

You moved about the room, gathering each discarded skein in your arms before dropping them into a basket you had saved for holding them. 

“I’m going to start knitting. I learned some when I was younger and wanted to pick up the hobby again.”

“Can I learn too?” Jinx asked, grabbing a mismatched pair of knitting needles and banging them together. “I can’t be that hard, right?”

“I thought you’d be interested,” you said, reaching into a bag that she hadn’t managed to get her hands on. “So I got you this.”

You handed her a simple how-to-knit book that you had picked up when you purchased the yarn. Jinx let out a whoop of excitement and stood from her place on the floor to wrap her arms around your midsection.

“I’m going to make all of the things!” she shouted as she ran from the room with her long blue braids trailing behind her. 

“Jinx!” you called after her, laughing softly. “You need supplies to make things, not just the book!”

When you received no reply, you knew that your daughter hadn’t heard you. Shaking your head, you placed a few things for her in the bag and set it aside to give to her later. You grabbed the pattern book you had purchased for yourself and started pursuing it to find a project to work on. Once a specific one caught your eye, you picked the colors you wanted to use out of the basket and started unrolling the skeins. The yarn would be much easier to maneuver in ball form, but that unfortunately meant you had to unravel the entire thing and start over, which left you in a giant pile of yarn.

That was how Silco found you when he returned to his office later that evening. You had moved to sit on the floor after a while, which meant the loose yarn was strewn about the floor with you. When your husband entered his office, he was not expecting there to be a tripping hazard and nearly fell on his face when one of his feet caught on the string.

Silco cursed as he caught himself on the door handle, his good eye roaming the room to see the mess you were surrounded by. His eyebrow rose at the sight before him, confusion clouding his features. Carefully stepping over the trap he had almost walked into, he closed the door behind him before making his way over to where you sat.

“Are you planning on helping Jinx make a very elaborate booby trap?” he asked, peering down at you.

“Nope. Just planning on doing some knitting. I’ll finish this ball as soon as I can and your space will be yours again, I promise.”

“Was one creative hobby not enough for you? Or have you given up on your paintings and this is your new fixation?”

You returned his curious look with a pointed glare. 

“You know very well that I would never give up on my painting, Silco. This is just another project for me to work on between paintings. Besides, I thought I could do some good with this. Make some hats and scarves for winter.”

Silco let out a soft chuckle before moving past you in the direction of his desk.

“It’s only the very beginning of summer and you’re thinking about winter?”

“I’m likely a bit rusty, so I’ll have plenty of time to build up my skill again before we need the hats and scarves. Jinx is also interested in learning how to knit, so it will give us something to do together.”

Silco made a humming noise that sounded a bit too doubtful for your liking. You weren’t sure how long the interest in knitting would last once Jinx started to learn, but if it helped keep her occupied and she enjoyed it at least a little bit, it was worth the effort to try and teach her. 

Eventually, you reached the end of your yarn and it was all rolled up in a neat ball, which you added back to the basket. You picked up the basket and rested it on your hip, gesturing to the now yarn-free room.

“The office is all yours again. If you need anything, I’ll be up in my studio.”

As you made your way towards the door, you stopped at the sound of Silco calling your name. You turned to look at him, shifting the basket to a more comfortable position.

“You’re welcome to work here,” Silco said. “Knitting is a far more transportable activity than your paintings are.”

You could hear the underlying hopeful tone in his voice. He had suggested the idea of working together in the same room before, and this seemed like a good opportunity to do so. You could easily plop yourself down on the couch and work on your projects while he worked. Your renewed interest in this hobby was already showing you some benefits, which you would be glad to exploit.

“Maybe once I get something started,” you said. “For now, I think I’ll leave you to your work.”

You set the basket down on the floor and crossed the room again to his side. Leaning down, you placed a gentle kiss on his cheek before returning to your basket and leaving the room.

Teaching Jinx wasn’t as difficult as you had originally thought. She took to the craft quite well with only a few stumbles and was soon confident enough to work on her own without your help. She took a few skeins of yarn off your hands and disappeared off to her own space, leaving you alone with the project you had been working on. 

In the time since picking the hobby back up, you had knitted a few hats and a scarf or two, which you had gifted to random people that worked for Silco. Some had seemed truly appreciative of the gesture, which warmed your heart. Even Sevika had thanked you, albeit begrudgingly, when you had given her the hat you made to match her poncho. 

With each successful project, your confidence in your skill grew and you thought that maybe this hobby wouldn’t be as temporary as you had originally thought. You hoped Silco wouldn’t mind the fact that both you and your daughter would be invested in this for a while. He was good at indulging you, so it was likely that he wouldn’t be too bothered.

Your latest project was a bit more complex than the ones you had finished so far and was taking you a bit longer to complete. When it was finished, it was going to be a gift for Jinx when the holiday season rolled around again. Thankfully, you still had quite a bit of time to finish it. Your aching fingers begged for you to stop for a break, so you followed their wishes, setting the project aside and standing up to stretch. 

You grabbed your empty tea mug and headed down the stairs in the direction of your husband’s office, wanting to check if he wanted some coffee or anything while you were in the kitchen. When you opened the door to his office, you nearly dropped the cup in your hand at the sight before you. 

Silco sat at his desk, a brightly colored hat perched upon his head and a scarf of clashing colors wrapped around his neck. Jinx was perched on his desk, working away at the end of the scarf with her needles. She didn’t seem to notice that Silco would suddenly jerk to the side when she pulled on the scarf as she worked. You covered your mouth with your hand to hide your laugh as you entered the room.

“Having fun?” you asked.

Silco glanced up at you, his good eye narrowing in a glare that you knew was a warning. You coughed in a further attempt to prevent the laugh from escaping you. Jinx looked up from her work, pulling the knitting with her, once again jerking Silco sideways.

“I’m making dad a scarf!” she said gleefully.

“I can see that,” you said as you crossed the room. “Usually you don’t make the item while it’s on the person though, sweetheart.”

Jinx pursed her lips in thought as her glance moved back to your annoyed husband. You could see the annoyance fade slightly as he tried to put on a brave face for her. His attempt only made you want to laugh again.

“I think it’s almost done. Just needs a few final touches,” she said.

“Yes, well why don’t you take it back to your room to finish it?” Silco suggested, unwrapping the item from around his neck. “I will be able to appreciate it much better if the final product is a surprise.”

Jinx took the scarf from Silco’s hands and wrapped it around herself as a method of carrying it before gathering her supplies and rushing past you out the door. When it closed behind her, you looked back to Silco with a smirk on your lips. He was still wearing the hat, which was bright green and did not go with his clothes at all.

“I blame you for this,” he said, pointing at you accusingly.

“I think it’s good that she’s having fun. I’m sure you won’t have to wear her gifts often to appease her. Once or twice should do it, and then you can just hang them up somewhere she can see."

Silco pulled the hat from his head, which only succeeded in messing up his slicked back hairstyle. You finally let a soft laugh escape you as you crossed over to his side to help him fix the messed up hair. When he was finally back to rights, you settled down on the armrest of his chair and he wrapped his arm around your waist.

“I am glad that she found something not quite as destructive to occupy her time with,” he said. “As long as she doesn’t get too out of hand, I’ll deal with as many mismatched items she throws at me.”

You smiled to yourself at the softness your husband had towards your daughter and her eccentric ways. It was probably a temporary relief to him that she wasn’t dripping paint down on him from the rafters for a change.

“I’ll try to keep her in check and not give her too many crazy colors,” you said. “Maybe throw in some gold and maroon for your sake.”

Silco hummed in response, giving your waist a gentle squeeze before releasing his hold on you to return to work. As he began to write on the papers in front of you, your eyes were drawn to how nimbly he was able to move his hands. 

“Silco?”

Another hum left him, indicating he was listening.

“Have you ever considered knitting?”

Silco’s pen stopped moving and you felt him shift beside you to look up at you. The raised eyebrow caused another soft laugh to escape you and you shook your head.

“Nevermind. Forget I asked.”

Silco leaned down and opened one of the lower drawers of his desk, pulling out a pair of worn, gray, knitted gloves and handing them to you. You turned them over in your hands, admiring the neat rows of stitches, still holding up despite the gloves being well used. 

“These are lovely, Silco,” you said, giving him a questioning look. “Where did you get them?”

“I made them.”

Your mouth dropped open in shock as you looked at the gloves again, admiring the skill that had to have gone into making them. While you were decent at making things, you were nowhere near this level of craftsmanship.

“You never told me you could knit!”

“You never asked,” Silco said with a shrug as he returned to his work.

You were shocked beyond belief. You knew Silco was a multi-talented man and had learned many things in his younger years to help him get by in the rough life he was forced to live, but this was not something that had crossed your mind.

“You have any other secrets I should know about?” you asked. “Do you play any instruments? Are you a wanted bank robber? Talented ice skater?”

Silco chuckled and shook his head.

“No, darling. I’m not keeping any big secrets like that from you, I promise.”

“Can you sew too? Were you always capable of doing that yourself and just pawned it off on me?”

“I’m afraid sewing is not one of my skills. Why do you think I have all my clothes tailored?”

“Lack of time?”

Silco reached over and patted your knee gently.

“You have no idea how much I appreciate it when you patch things up for me. It means a lot to have your personal touch on the things that I wear.”

You huffed and placed the gloves down on his desk. You weren’t really upset that he hadn’t told you about his secret knitting skill, more surprised by it. 

“I’m going to have to think of something special for your holiday gift this year. Maybe I’ll get you a new pair of knitting needles as well and we can finally have a hobby to do together as a family.”

Silco looked up at you with a small smile.

“You know I would love anything you gave me, my love. Although, your idea isn’t a bad one. I learned many times that those needles work well as emergency weapons if you need as well.”

That brought a smile back to your face. You shook your head in amusement at Silco’s comment before standing from your place on his armrest. 

“Leave it to you to weaponize knitting needles.”

“Don’t tell Jinx I said that,” Silco said. “She might start using them to bother Sevika.”

The image of your daughter poking Sevika with her knitting needles and the woman’s inevitable reaction made you chuckle. Silco may have a point. It would be best if your daughter never learned that use for her new found toys.

“I’m surprised we haven’t found Sevika tied up with yarn somewhere as it is,” Silco muttered, shaking his head.

“I don’t think yarn is strong enough to hold Sevika down for long.”

“You’re only saying that because you weren’t the one tied up in a scarf not too long ago. It’s stronger than it seems.”

You recalled the scene you had walked in on earlier and admitted that Jinx had the potential to turn this skill against Sevika if she so wished. Perhaps it would be best to discourage that line of thinking.

“Knitting materials are for craft purposes only. Got it,” you said, grabbing your discarded mug as you walked in the direction of the door. 

Silco turned down your offer for coffee so you left his office and returned to your original mission. As you walked across the bar, you saw a brightly colored line strung across the floor, ending at a barstool, which had yarn securely tied around the legs. While the stool was currently unoccupied, you knew that Sevika would often sit there. 

It seemed that your plan to keep the knowledge of weaponized craft materials from Jinx had already failed. You bent down and removed the string from the stool and followed the trail to where your daughter had attached the other end. No doubt she would wait here until the unsuspecting Sevika sat down and then yank the stool from under her. You did not want to deal with the aftermath of that prank, which would likely end with Jinx being strung up with her weapon of choice by the very angry Sevika.

“Jinx!” you called, knowing she was most likely close by. 

Before long, she appeared at your side. You held out the pile of yarn that you had gathered, giving her a pointed look.

“I’m trusting you to make better decisions with this,” you said as you handed it to her. 

Jinx pouted, her disappointment at you finding her trap evident. 

“I thought it would be funny,” she said. “It’s not like she’d get hurt.”

“Do your father a favor and save him the headache of dealing with the situation later. He may even be willing to help you learn some new things when it comes to knitting if you behave yourself.”

You could see Jinx’s eyes light up at the prospect of learning more things about her new hobby. She agreed to leave Sevika alone, for the time being at least. You placed a kiss on her forehead before sending her away with the tangled mess of yarn in her arms.

Sevika better appreciate the fact that I just saved her from being dumped on the floor.

You continued your tea mission and headed back up to your studio with the steaming cup, ready to start on your project again. You wanted to get as much finished as soon as you could so you could work on a gift for Silco as well. You still intended to get him the needles, but he would need something else too.

Many months later, the holiday season had arrived and you were excited to present your gifts to your family. You had been able to finish both Silco and Jinx’s gifts with time to spare, leaving you time to work on smaller gifts for others. When the day to open the gifts arrived, you handed the wrapped presents to your husband and daughter.

You had given the needles to Silco a few months ago as an anniversary gift, not wanting to deprive him of the ability to use them if he wished. The gift you had crafted was a sheath for one of his knives that he could wear under his large coat. It clipped onto his vest and matched his clothes quite well.

“Thank you, darling,” Silco said, giving you a peck on the cheek.

Jinx was equally as grateful for the large blanket you had finished for her. She wrapped it around her shoulders like a cape and ran around the room a few times before settling down on the floor in a big heap.

Silco handed you a neatly wrapped box with a large bow on it. You opened it carefully to reveal the gift inside and found a beautifully made pair of gloves in your favorite color. The stitches were just as neat and well-done as the gloves Silco had shown you months ago. They were nicer than any pair you could hope to buy at a store in the upper part of the city and fit you perfectly.

“Thank you, Silco. I love them,” you said with happy tears brimming in your eyes.

“You’re welcome, darling. Thank you for giving me the tools to make them for you.”

Silco wrapped an arm around you and pulled you close to snuggle up against him as you watched Jinx open the rest of her gifts. The warm gloves on your hands were more appreciated than anything he could have bought for you at a store, made with the love and effort of his own hands. You intended to wear them as often as you could, along with the hat Jinx had made for you.

You thanked Janna for bringing the two of them into your life and for allowing you this happy moment, hoping it would last forever in your memories long after the season had passed.

A/N: Give this a like, comment, and reblog and let me know what you think!

[starry-nights12]

love

One Word Prompt (Ekko's POV)

I told Vi and Caitlyn to meet me at The Last Drop at 2 AM.

I checked my stopwatch. It was 1:50 AM.

I've been hoping to avoid bumping into them again but I couldn't ignore them forever.

They were becoming suspicious of me. I have to at least try to ward them off.

I cracked a grin and chuckled at myself.

I was sitting in an abandoned bar going to be questioned by two enforcers about Jinx's whereabouts.

It's crazy what lengths you'll go through to protect the person you love.

To think if I ever saw her again, I would have helped Vi and Caitlyn take her down.

Back then I was confident that I would murder her and Silco with my bare hands.

Instead, I let Jinx make my sanctuary her home.

After seven years, I thought she could never experience it. But I witnessed firsthand that her smiles were able to show genuine joy.

Her eyes lit up when she did something as benign as blowing bubbles. Showing me her latest crayon drawing or watching firelights fly around the base.

She had a stash of candy hidden in her room that she'll sometimes share with me.

She loves plush animals and cuddling with me. She was ice cold yet I found comfort in her gentle touches.

I failed her so many times in the past.

I can't let them take her away.

I won't.

[lxxse-cannxn]

hii!! i hope you dont mind me askingg but how do you do the custom gradient text ? its cool as hell

It's no problem! I use This Site to make the gradient and select it's colours, you can select any colour and it has a few options like making the text rainbow or a 3 colour gradient too

After it generates the HTML (Important btw, BBcode doesn't work with tumblr), I copy it and paste it to Here, it won't work though unless you ask it to remove the ;

It won't work with the current version of tumblrs post maker, you'll need to swap it to the beta version sadly :( Other than that, swap it to HTML via the cog and just paste it and there ya go! Though to make it Bold and such ya gotta add that manually or do a easier way (which I do)

For a easier way to make blockquotes and bold etc, just type a single word or such, click whatcha want, then paste where the A is (after removing it of course!)

Hoped this helped Anon! <3

[lullabyes22-blog]

How would it go if Mel and Silco swapped bodies? I was going to ask the same of Silvika, but I feel like both of them would just be mildly miffed at the inconvenience and since Sevika is so competent, things would remain largely the same until they found a solution. But Melco…I feel they would take every opportunity available to methodically hijack everything in the other’s empire while they had the chance.

What do you think?

gjhfds lmao.

Yeah - if Silco and Sevika swapped bodies, they'd end up in close confidence for the duration of their 'stay', so Silco's empire remains on an even keel. About the only thing different would be that Sevika seems to be a bit more direct in public, while Silco stays diligently silent.

The crew would also notice she's way more eloquent and seems to love metaphors lately.

Poor Sev. She's been spending too much time with the Boss.

In private, Sevika would be horrified by the eye injections. Silco, in his sturdier body, would have to wrestle her down to take them so his infection doesn't reactivate and sicken her. They'd also be stumped about how to handle Jinx. Sevika wants the brat nowhere near her lap, and Silco's attempts to be nice to the girl would end with her dismantling his prosthetic arm.

("Hm. Perhaps Jinx is unnecessarily hostile to Sevika...")

By the end, however, they'd both emerge with a measure more sympathy for their respective roles. Sevika would realize it takes more than brute competence to manage an empire; Silco's ingenuity and charisma are half the winning package. In turn, Silco would realize how much his second-in-command routinely has on her plate, and how she always delivers results without letting anything interfere with his operation.

Once they're back in their own bodies, they'd share a drink and commiserate.

Silco and Mel on the other hand...

fhfds

Personally, I think Mel would have a full-on freakout, given how much tender lovingcare goes into the upkeep of her very lovely body. To have it snatched away and be thrust into that of a scarred, aging male who needs frequent medical dosages for his mutated eye would take significant adjustment.

To say nothing of the fact that Mel's style of wielding power is far more gentle and diffuse than Silco's. Ruthless and clever as she is, she's also the opposite of bloodthirsty (hence her banishment). This might backfire significantly in an arena like Zaun, where brutality is a blunt language, and a weapon to be wielded. She'd have to channel her inner wolf, as Ambessa warned, or else she'd meet a deeply tragic end.

If Sevika doesn't end up killing her first.

On the plus side, I do see her developing a strange tenderness for Jinx, who displays so much trust and vulnerability with her father figure. Mel would glean quickly that they are very close, and begin subtly manipulating Jinx into working to undermine Zaun's cause for Piltover's gain. Ironically, she'd also begin feeling shame over how bad conditions are in the Undercity, and start wondering just how merciful she's been as de facto head of the Council.

Long term, unless she learns to savor blood, her days as a kingpin would be numbered. But she'd be good for Jinx's mental health, (shockingly!), because unlike Silco, she'd go out of her way to cultivate the girl's inner delicacy as opposed to unleashing the monster. They might even start painting together.

(Jinx: "Whoa! I didn't know you could paint, Silly!")

(Mel: "There's a lot you don't know about me.")

Meanwhile in Piltover, Silco will be freaking out for completely different reasons. His empire, his cause, his child - are all in the hands of a sly fox with profit on her mind. She might stash away secrets for blackmail - or outright get him killed if she missteps and the chem-barons catch a whiff of vulnerability.

On the plus side, Silco's insinuating style of power works quite nicely in the Council. He'd use Mel's beauty to his own advantage to secure deals and resolve disputes that benefit the Undercity. If we're in the mood for a darker take, he might also abuse Mel's body by sleeping around.

Including with Jayce. Because why not?

By the end, he'd be leaking Hex-tech secrets to his network, and funneling Council funds into the Undercity's pockets. A satisfying game, but he'd miss Jinx horribly and fear for her safety.

In fact, Jinx might be the reason he and Mel end up working together to get back to their respective bodies - and agree to actually cooperate for a better future.

Spoiler: once they return to their own bodies, they'd discover somebody knocked somebody up in each respective city.

Prizes if you can guess who.

.-.b<3

[ripslingerfan13]

I’ve finally gotten back to working on both CPC fan fics! Here’s a sneak peak from each of them!

Princess Minerva:

Of course still wanting to keep this a secret for now had asked everyone if they could refrain from calling her ‘Minerva’ in public and just continue to call her ‘Frederick’ and refer to ‘her’ as he/him for now, promising that she will not feel insulted in any way. Another hurdle has now been cleared as Minerva reaches the more difficult challenges. Slowly hinting to her parents, mostly her mother, as well as going through her own transition.

The next day in her room Minerva sat at her dresser, her secret stash sprawled out in front of her as she worked on her makeup. “Well good news, things went by a lot easier than I expected. Let’s just hope it continues to go this easy…” she paused eyeliner in hand a look of unease on her face “Why do I feel like I just jinxed myself?” Because she did, as not a moment later there was a knock at her door! “Frederick? Are you in there?” And it was her mother. Crap! Mother! Minerva scrambled as she quickly gathered up all her makeup and stuffed it back into her desk “One moment!” Shouting as she hastily grabbed one of the makeup wipes and began viciously scrubbing her face! Come off come off come off!!! She looked back to see a majority of the makeup was gone with just a little glitter from the gloss leftover. Close enough! She quickly got up and ran to her door taking a few deep breaths to calm herself before opening the door to greet her mother. “Sorry about that mother I was…in the bathroom! Did you need something?” Mother’s intuition already told Isolde her ‘son’ was hiding something. “No Frederick I just wanted to know if everything was ok? Lately you’ve been a little off dear, is everything alright?” She asked with a look of concern in her eyes as Minerva gave a mental groan of embarrassment. I really was that bad at hiding it! Even Mother suspects something! She thought real hard trying to come up with an excuse…when an idea came to mind. I guess this would be the perfect opportunity to start.

Forgotten Heritage:

…Some time after Hisashi was forced back through the portal, everyone seemed to calm down a bit despite the fact that they could still hear the angry mob trying to break in. They wanted to trust that Hisashi’s spell will keep anyone from breaking in and didn't want to risk possibly breaking said protection spell by opening the door to even peek out. Fortunately there was a window with curtains that Maria, Lorana, and Miss Molly had been using to peek out, Lorena always having one or two books in hand in case they happened to spot someone trying to climb up. No one has said a word since then…until now. “Sooo…” Maria started taking a seat next to Blaine, Frederick taking a much needed nap on his lap…or at least trying to. All the screaming of threats and hurtful words made that a little difficult. Blaine stroked his brother’s hair as he shook in his lap, “An old imaginary friend that turned out to be an actually mythical- well not all that ‘mythical’ now japanese multi-tailed fox.” Maria chuckled nervously trying to make a little joke out of it hoping to lighten the mood…it didn’t work. Blaine just shrugged as he simply stared off into nothing, he was still trying to process what had just happened. Of course after discovering that your childhood imaginary friend wasn't so ‘imaginary’ afterall is a lot to take in.

……..

I also want to thank @yaminobean for all the advice they gave me for how to go about Minnie’s transition!

And little heads up next chapter of Forgotten Heritage is going to have a lot and I mean a lot of emotions! So be prepared.

[mirconreadzztuff22]

Analysis, Theories & Background Information On:

This thing

Smeech!

Smeech is a Yordle chem-baron and the boss of the Scrap Hackers.

Based on his appearance alone (the only features really shown are his face, torso and hands), Smeech is a cyborg.

While Smeech doesn’t necessarily look tall based on the small appearances in the show, Smeech is most likely around 5’6 to 5’7. As stated in his wiki page, Smeech has mechanical limbs attached to his hands and feet to make himself as tall as a normal human.

While there isn’t much to Smeech’s character, it’s stated that his origin region is Bandle City.

Because Smeech is a Yordle (like Heimerdinger), perhaps is also nearly 400? Maybe around that number.

More depth/Background + Theories within:

According to Smeech’s wiki page, Smeech’s business as the boss of the Scrap Hackers involved with a lot of technology and mainly cyborgs within his organization. A common theme in Silco’s business are Cyborgs (such as Finn, Smeech and (not entirely) Sevika). Perhaps because of this, Finn and Smeech make business deals or just generally hang out?

Speaking of Finn and Smeech, it also seems that Smeech and Finn are close coworkers (especially considering Smeech was involved in the discussion.)

In the first (and most likely final) scene where Smeech is seen, Smeech also seems to be a character who is easy to ‘be placed in line’, such as how Smeech immediately backed down from Finn’s offer after Silco planned the gas attack.

Also, based on his appearance (and this is just a theory), perhaps Smeech was experimented on with Shimmer like Deckard was (based on how battered and frail Smeech looks, along with his eyes being a similar color to Jinx’s in the last episode).

Smeech also advertises his company; “The Scrap Hackers provide body augments to anyone willing to pay the price, both physically and monetarily. From genome hacking to mech-exoskeleton construction, we make the impossible possible. Whether you’re in the market for purely cosmetic enhancements or modifications to augment strength, speed and agility - we have the technology to make your bio-dreams a reality.”

According to Smeech’s wiki page, Smeech isn’t one to be messed with, especially if it means someone isn’t paying their debt. In his wiki, it states that he had a problem with someone in the lanes, so he “sent him a signed note and a warning to not go to his compatriots and made a joke about the man's amputated leg. He then had his henchman break into the man's warehouse to go through the man's things and presumably steal what was believed by the investigators to be a stash of medical equipment. Because the target confronted his docile but strong lackey, the man was killed, with part of the encounter seen by a witness, and became the subject of a homicide investigation.”

[scarletttries]

Hey!

I found your profile thanks to my friend, and you’re doing great job! By the way, wish you everything great for your wedding!

Wanted to make a request for myself 👉👈

- “Moon Knight”

- I like all guys from here, so maybe you can choose by yourself?😅👉👈

I think that will be very interesting

- Me: https://pin.it/CIaLnTa

I’m she/her

- I’d like to have something fluffy (but I’ll accept at your ideas!)

Thank you so much for your well wishes, and your pinterest was so cool to check out I love your aesthetic! I ship you with.... Steven Grant 💞

- You would catch Steven's eye walking through one of London's parks, immediately capturing his full attention. He'd be sat on a little bench enjoying his lunch break, watching you go about your day, spending the full hour trying to build up the courage to speak to you. You look so much cooler than him it's a little bit intimidating and before he gets the nerve to speak to you he has to hurry back to work, cursing his cowardice the whole way back.

- So when he sees you walk through the Museum foyer just an hour later he's convinced it must be fate, the stars aligning to give him a second chance at a first impression. He doesn't let himself waste a second overthinking this time, scrambling out from behind his little desk and rushing over to introduce himself, offering you a private tour despite the unimpressed looks being shot his way by his manager.

- He talks your ear off as you go exhibit to exhibit trying his best to seem cool, and knowledgeable, and not at all like he's desperately trying to impress the prettiest girl he's ever spoken to.

- It would be obvious to you very quickly that he was doing his best to impress you, his blushing pink cheeks and stammering words giving away just how nervous he was to have your undivided attention. Luckily for Steven, you found his awkward nerdy demeanour endearing, thanking him for the tour and offering to meet him at the pub after his shift was finished. Poor Steven would be tripping over himself with excitement as he accepted your offer, spending the rest of his shift staring hopelessly at his watch, begging the time to pass just a little bit quicker so he could be back in your company again.

- After a perfect evening of swapping stories curled up in armchairs next to the roaring fire of a local pub, Steven works up the nerve to ask you on another date, and then another, and then another, until you become the earth that his little moon revolves around, the centre of his whole universe, the force he couldn't exist without. It wouldn't take him long to recognise your kindness and company are something he wants to keep in his life forever, planning how to pop the big question and tell you exactly what you mean to him.

- Both the proposal and the wedding would be pretty low key, any kind of public audience enough to have Steven trembling with anxiety, but he would take your every thought on planning incredibly seriously, wanting this day to be perfect for both of you. Steven never thought he would find someone to be this close with, so he gets very excited that he's finally getting married, reading up on all the traditions and insisting you spend the night before apart so that nothing can jinx his dream come true.

- For that one night he has to spend away from you, he writes you a letter you find stashed secretly in your overnight bag. It outlines the hundreds of ways that you've made his life better, telling you that he's not the same man you met all those months ago, he's happier and more confident and there's nothing that will make him happier than becoming your husband the next day, and being the best husband he can be every day after.

[fruitjedi]

Of course, we are! (Wait! We're married? sequel)

Can be read as standalone but I wrote a sequel to "Wait! We're Married??" From Eddie's perspective.

Eddie Diaz didn’t believe in jinxes but after the intense shift he’d been having ever since the new transfer said the Q-word Eddie was starting to believe his teammates had a point.

The call they just had was brutal. There had been a massive housefire and Buck had gotten stuck inside when the roof collapsed while he was trying to rescue a little girl. Buck had made his way out (with the girl) but never in a thousand years was Eddie going to forget that helpless feeling as he just had to stand by and watch as the only apparent exit became blocked.

That’s why as soon as Eddie got back to the station as soon as He and Buck were alone he clenched Buck’s turnovers fiercely in his hands and kissed Buck silly. Eddie didn’t need a declaration. Eddie didn’t need flowers or a parade. He just needed this. He needed Buck in his arms safe.

After they kissed Eddie worked up the courage to go up to Buck and ask him to dinner. He was petrified but Buck just nodded and said “Sure dude”. The only mistake Eddie made was not mentioning the kiss or even mentioning it was a date (He thought it was implied).

That one mistake of not mentioning it was a date was the catalyst to the whole relationship. It started with makeouts and not discussing them because Eddie assumed they were dating by then and it grew by not specifically telling Christopher they were dating (and just letting him figure it out) or not telling the team cause Eddie assumed Buck never brought it up because he wanted to keep it a secret.

By their third “date”, Eddie had brought a ring and stashed it in his dresser with plans to propose.  By their fifth Eddie had asked Bobby for his permission. When Eddie finally proposed  Buck hadn’t even let Eddie get his speech out before “Yes, yes, a thousand times yes”. Looking back at it Eddie decided not specifying it was a marriage proposal was a mistake when it came to Buck.

They had moved in together after the proposal when Buck’s lease ran out but they never actually discussed moving in. It just kinda happened. Slowly Buck had moved his things over and one thing led to another and then bam they were living together.

When they got married they just did it on a whim cause Buck had almost died again and Eddie was sick of not being family. They didn’t even say vows.

Eventually, the day came when it all came to a head. The new guy had asked Buck about being Queer and Buck said he was straight. Eddie had heard this from Hen who thought they were married (they were) and was quite confused. Eddie was confused too. Buck wasn’t the guy to lie about his sexuality (especially in such an accepting place).

So Eddie stormed over to his husband, asked him what the hell he meant by saying he was straight, and then after a quite confusing conversation Eddie finally accepted that he married a complete and total idiot (Who the hell is married to a man, still thinks their straight AND doesn’t even know they were dating in the first place)

Buck’s not knowing he was straight (or that they were together) wasn’t mentioned again until the day they adopted their daughter Minvera Grace. They were doing the paperwork for her and the lady mentioned they were getting more and more queer dads and Buck was like “Why is that important I’m straight”.

That required that for the second time, Eddie had to correct his husband and tell him that by definition he was queer.  It was a very confusing hour but at least they made it out of it with an adorable baby girl.

It was late one night and Eddie and Buck were resting with Minnie between them and Eddie turned to Buck and asked him “Why do you never remember that your not straight?”

Buck laughed and smiled and brushed Eddie's hair out of his face “Because babe when I look at you I don’t see gender or sexuality or any of that I just see the person I love, The parent of my children. Plus before you, I was only attracted to women and I haven’t been attracted to another man romantically or sexually since. You can call me queer. I just simply don’t see myself like that”

Eddie laughed “Ok, Love. I understand now”