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autolenaphilia · 1 year ago

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One thing I noticed talking about Linux and free software is that a lot of people seem afraid of learning things about technology. I constantly read things like "I hate windows, but switching to linux would mean learning a new OS, and you have to be some super-smart programmer-hacker to do that." Or even: "Switching to firefox would mean switching browsers and I don't know how"

And that is precisely the attitude tech companies like Microsoft and Apple try to instill in their users in order to control them. They create these simple and “friendly” user interfaces for their products, but these hide information. From their OS being pre-installed to their settings apps, they keep people from learning things about how their computer works, and letting the companies make the decisions for their users.

I think people are underestimating themselves and overestimating how hard it is to learn new things are. It is like Windows/Macos have taught them some kind of technological learned helplessness. Not knowing how computers work and being afraid to learn how is how companies like Microsoft controls you, and justifies that control.

For example, people hate the forced and automatic system updates on Windows. And Microsoft justifies it as necessary because some people don’t know that their computer needs security updates and therefore don’t update, so they have to force the updates on them. That’s definitely true, and Microsoft’s tech support people is definitely very aware of that but it is a operating system that presumes that the user is incompetent and therefore shouldn’t control their own computer. And of course Microsoft abuses that power to force privacy-invading features on their users. Windows updates are also badly designed in comparison, no Linux distro I’ve used required the update program to hijack the entire computer, preventing the user from doing other things, but Windows does.

This is the dark side of “user-friendly” design. By requiring zero knowledge and zero responsibility for the user, they also take control away from the user. User-friendly graphical user interfaces (GUI) can also hide the inner workings of a system in comparison to the command line, which enables more precise control of your computer and give you more knowledge about what it is doing.

Even GUIs are not all made equal in regards to this, as the comparison between the Windows Control panel and their newer Settings app demonstrates. As I complained about before, Windows have hidden away the powerful, but complex Control Panel in favor of the slicker-looking but simplified and less powerful Settings app for over a decade now.

Of course this is a sliding scale, and there is a sensible middle-ground between using the command line for everything and user-friendly design masking taking control away from the end user.

There are Linux distros like Linux Mint and MX Linux who have created their own GUI apps for tasks that would otherwise use the command line, without taking control away from the user. This is mainly because they are open source non-profit community-driven distros, instead of being proprietary OSes made by profit-driven megacorps.

Still, giving that control to the user presumes some knowledge and responsibility on part of the user. To return to the update example, by default both Mint and MX will search and notify you of available updates, but you will have to take the decision to download and install them. Automatic updates are available in both cases, but it’s opt-in, you have to enable that option yourself. And that approach presumes that you know that you should update your system to plug security holes, something not all people do. It gives you control because it presumes you have knowledge and can take responsibility for those decisions.

All this also applies to the underlying fact that practically all pre-built computers nowadays have an operating system pre-installed. Few people install an OS themselves nowadays, instead they use whatever came with the computer. It’s usually either Windows or MacOS for desktops/laptops, and Android/IOS for smartphones (which are also a type of computer).

Now all this is very convenient and user-friendly, since it means you don’t have to learn how to install your own operating system. The OEM takes care of that for you. But again, this is a convenience that takes choice away from you. If you don’t learn how to install your own OS, you are stuck with whatever that is on the computer you bought. It’s probably precisely this step that scares people away from Linux, few people have installed even Windows, and installing your own OS seems impossibly scary. But again, learning is the only way to take back control. If you learn how to install an OS off an USB stick, you now have choices in what OS to use. (Sidenote: the hard part IMO is not the actual install process, but fiddling with the BIOS so it will actually boot from the distro on the USB stick. This old comic strip illustrates this very well).

That’s how life is in general, not just computers. Having control over your life means making decisions based on your own judgment. And to make sensible, rational decisions, you have to learn things, acquire knowledge.

The only other alternative is letting others take those decisions for you. You don’t have to learn anything, but you have no control. And in the tech world, that means big corporations like Microsoft, Google and Apple will make those decisions, and they are motivated by their own profits, not your well-being.

Computers have only become more and more capable and more important in our lives, and that can enable wonderful things. But it also means more power to the tech companies, more power over our lives. And the only way to resist that is to learn about computers, to enable us to make our own decisions about how we use technology.

#my writings #linux #technology #foss #computers #microsoft windows

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rjzimmerman · 1 year ago

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Excerpt from the Substack Distilled:

In the last few months, the Biden administration has quietly passed multiple federal policies that will transform the United States economy and wipe out billions of tons of future greenhouse gas emissions.

The new policies have received little attention outside of wonky climate circles. And that is a problem.

Earlier this year, I wrote that Biden has done more to mitigate climate change than any President before him. For decades, environmentalists tried and failed to convince lawmakers to pass even the most marginal climate policies. It wasn’t until Biden took office that the logjam broke and the climate policies flowed. And yet few American voters are hearing this story in an election year of huge consequence.

It’s been two and a half months since I wrote that article. In that short time, the Biden administration has passed a handful of climate policies that will collectively cut more than 10 billion tons of planet-warming pollution over the next three decades, more than the annual emissions of India, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and the entire continent of Europe—combined.

One climate policy that flew under the radar recently was the administration's latest energy efficiency rule, unveiled at the beginning of May. The new rules will reduce the amount of energy that water heaters use by encouraging manufacturers to sell models with more efficient heat pump technology. The new regulation is expected to save more energy than any federal regulation in history.

Most people give little thought to how the water in their homes is heated, but water heaters are the second-largest consumer of energy in the average American home and one of the largest sources of climate pollution in the country.

A few days before the administration announced its water heater efficiency rules, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced another sweeping policy.

According to the new rules, existing coal power plants will need to either shut down or install carbon capture technology capable of removing 90% of their carbon pollution. The policy will also require any new natural gas power plants that provide baseload power—the ones that run throughout the day and night, as opposed to the peaker plants that only run for a small fraction of hours in the year—to install carbon capture technology.

The new power sector rules are effectively a death blow to coal power in America, which has slowly faded over the last two decades but still emits more carbon emissions than almost every country in the world.

The water heater rules and power plant regulations will help the country meet its goal of cutting emissions by 50% by 2030. But impactful as they will be, they weren’t the most important climate policy that the Biden administration passed in the last two months.

That honor goes to the EPA’s tailpipe rules, which are set to transform the auto industry over the next decade.

Today the transportation sector is the largest source of climate pollution in the United States. Within the sector, passenger cars and trucks are the biggest contributors to emissions. While electric vehicle adoption has grown in recent years, America lags behind many other countries in decarbonizing its vehicle stock.

The EPA’s new rules will force automakers to reduce the amount of pollution and carbon emissions that come from their vehicles. The federal policy doesn’t specifically mandate that automakers produce EVs or stop selling gas-powered cars but instead regulates the average carbon emissions per mile of a manufacturer's entire fleet over the next decade. That means automakers can still sell gas-guzzling, carbon-spewing trucks in 2035. They’ll just need to sell a lot more EVs or plug-in hybrids to bring their average fleet emissions down if they do.

Like the power plant rules, the EPA’s new auto regulations are designed to avoid being thrown out by a conservative and hostile Supreme Court.

#President Biden #climate action

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kikyoupdates · 3 months ago

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Bloodthirst ⭑˚💋⭑ 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑠𝑐ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑑

bnha x vampire!reader

reverse harem, my hero academia x fem!reader, my vampire!reader, slowburn

As punishment for your sins, you, a young vampire, are banished — not just from your home, but to a different world entirely. Now, you find yourself in a foreign place where Quirks and heroes are the norm. In addition to coming to terms with your new life, you must also face your greatest challenge: controlling your massive thirst for blood.

previous | story masterlist | next

It was a few days into your stay in this new world, and you’d finally managed to get your hands on the magical device known as a cellphone.

“How does it work?” you asked, eyes wide as you looked it over from all angles. You tapped on its screen, but nothing happened. “Mine doesn’t light up the way the others do. Did they sell us a faulty product?”

Izuku giggled. “It’ll turn on, don’t worry. You just need to plug it in so it can charge, like this... and you hold down the power button for it to start up.”

He fiddled with a cable that plugged directly into the device on one end, then into the wall, through what Izuku had called an “outlet”. You weren’t familiar with any of this stuff, so it may as well have been sorcery to you.

But true to Izuku’s words, the phone’s screen eventually lit up, and all sorts of vibrant colors and patterns soon graced your eyes.

“Wow!” you gushed. “How does it do that? It looks so cool!”

“This is just where technology is at in this world,” Izuku shrugged. “Cellphones used to be a lot more basic, just for making calls and sending texts, but now they’ve become mini computers. They can do a lot of really sophisticated stuff.”

“What’s a computer?”

“Ah... right. I guess I should have expected that.” He pointed towards the end of his room, towards what looked to be another screen, but way bigger than the cellphone’s. “Computers are devices that are really smart. They’re programmed that way. You can look up all kinds of information with them, play games, watch videos... there’s really no end to the possibilities. Cellphones are really convenient because they act like computers, but they’re portable, so you can carry them around with you wherever you go. It’s pretty neat, huh?”

“This is life-changing,” you mumbled breathlessly.

Izuku laughed. “Yeah, you could definitely say that. Here, I’ll teach you how to use your phone. It sounds more complicated than it actually is, I promise.”

That was what he said, but it sure didn’t turn out that way for you. There were so many different little features on screen. Some of them did things when you tapped on them; others didn’t. Izuku was doing his best to show you how everything worked, but it was such a staggering difference from what you were used to that it was just too much to take in all at once.

Not only that, but you quickly realized you had another problem.

“For the time being, I’m going to add myself as a contact,” Izuku said. He tapped on the screen a few times—not that you could really make sense of it—then eventually passed the phone back to you, smiling brightly. “See? You have your first contact now. That’s my name right there.”

You blinked. “What does it say?”

“Hm? What do you mean? It’s my name. Midoriya Izuku.”

“No, I mean... I can tell there’s something written there, but I can’t read it. The symbols don’t make any sense to me.”

Panic was quick to creep onto Izuku’s expression. “You can’t read kanji? Or hiragana? But... you’ve been speaking in fluent Japanese this entire time.”

“I’m not even really sure how that happened either. It might be a side-effect of the spell that brought me to this world, but I was able to understand the language pretty quickly just by hearing it a few times. I definitely don’t know how to read or write, though.”

“Oh, well... that’s not good,” Izuku swallowed, and it was clear that he was putting it lightly. For better or worse, this country, Japan, was your home now. You were kind of screwed if you didn’t have the ability to grasp written forms of communication.

Izuku pursed his lips, clearly lost in thought, then grabbed a blank piece of paper and placed it front of you. He’d brought some pencils as well.

“Try writing your name,” he suggested. “If you were able to understand our language just by being exposed to it, maybe it’s the same with reading and writing too. Maybe it’ll come to you much quicker than you think.”

You decided there was no harm in trying, so you did just that.

“This is how you write my name,” you smiled proudly, lifting up the paper so that Izuku could see it better.

Regretfully, he just looked even more worried than before. “I-I’ve definitely never seen anything like this before,” he stammered. “I’m pretty sure there’s no language like this anywhere on Earth. Then again, I guess that’s not surprising, since you’re literally from a whole different world...”

You frowned, then took another peek back at the contact Izuku had saved on your phone. No matter how hard you tried, you failed to understand how the symbols he’d inputted were meant to translate. You were lucky to have grasped the spoken language right away, otherwise you would’ve probably been speaking in gibberish on the streets and people would have thought you were insane. Unfortunately, as for reading and writing, it looked like you were going to have to learn it the hard way.

“I’ll do my best to teach you the basics,” Izuku reassured. “But, um... while you’re here, I think it’d be good to consider going to school. You’ll learn everything you need there. And there’s a limit to what I can teach you all on my own.”

“School sounds fun,” you beamed.

“Have you been to school before?”

“Not really. My parents hired various tutors to teach me academics back at home.”

“R-Right. I guess royalty have a different way of doing things. But,” he perked up, “I’m sure you probably received a really solid education, so you’ll have no trouble picking things up here. It might seem intimidating at first, but you’re smart, [Name]. I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out.”

“How do you know that I’m smart?” you asked.

“Well... aren’t you?”

“Am I?”

You both stared at each other for a good while. Clearly, this was a stalemate.

“Anyways!” Izuku continued. “I’m going to start with the foundation of all the basics. And you can learn to write your name while we’re doing this. It’ll be a good first step.”

You gripped your pencil tight and nodded, eager to learn.

Japanese was hard. Actually, you supposed you should say that learning a new language from scratch was hard in and of itself, but based on what Izuku had told you, Japanese was one of the most difficult languages to learn in this world—especially for a non-native speaker.

So, yeah. That was great.

Even so, you weren’t deterred in the slightest. It wasn’t like there was much you could do about it, after all. Moving to a different country all of a sudden certainly wasn’t an option, plus, you weren’t willing to sever your connection with Izuku either. This was your home now, and you had a good feeling about this place. You just needed to put in the effort to make it your own.

Izuku did what he could to teach you, but attending school was obviously the most efficient approach. Actually getting into school, however, was a different matter altogether. You’d initially been thinking that your stay with Izuku would be a temporary one, but you were already afraid of being separated from him. You didn’t know what you would do if you were left alone. Teenagers like you weren’t allowed to live on their own, so most likely, you would end up being placed in an orphanage since no one was around to take care of you.

Frankly speaking, you hated the thought of that, so you decided to pull out all the stops and come clean to Inko.

“I’m from a different world,” you blurted all too suddenly over dinner. Izuku’s food quite literally fell out of his mouth from shock, and Inko gave you a funny look, although she didn’t seem too worked up over it. She probably just thought you were saying silly things as a joke.

“Is this some sort of reference I’m not getting?” she frowned.

“N-No,” you said sheepishly. “I’m really telling the truth. I didn’t want you to try and contact the police or anything because I don’t even have a family to return to. At least, not in this world. I ended up here one day, and Izuku was nice enough to help me out when I had nowhere to go. I was thinking of keeping this a secret because I figured I would only be staying here for a little while... but I’m honestly scared to leave. I don’t know where I’ll go.”

Inko probably still didn’t believe you, but her expression seemed more solemn now.

“[Name],” she said gently. “What’s going on at home? You can tell me. No matter what it is, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure you’re safe.”

Ah. She still thought you came from a complicated family, and probably assumed you didn’t want to go back home to be around your parents. If you went with that story, though, at some point, you worried she really would get the authorities involved.

No. Even if it was a long-shot, you needed to convince her. She was Izuku’s mom, and he already knew your secret. You just hoped that even though she was an adult, she wouldn’t dismiss you as some troubled teen making up excuses.

“[Name], wait,” Izuku mumbled, but you’d already stepped out of your chair and begun moving closer to Inko.

She watched, looking confused beyond measure, as you opened up your mouth and revealed your teeth, which sharpened into fangs. You knew it would probably take more than this to convince her, but it was a start, at least.

“I’m a vampire,” you said. “I need to drink blood to survive. My world is very different from this one, filled with all kinds of creatures and different species that don’t exist over here.”

Inko swallowed uncomfortably. “[Name], I’m not sure where you’re going with this, but I really, really want you to be honest with me. You don’t need to make up stories. What exactly is going on with you and your family?”

“I wish it was a story,” you sighed heavily. “My parents aren’t with me. They’re back in my old world. Vampires like me are pretty strong and heal quickly too. Don’t you think it’s weird how fast my injuries healed up? I got hurt pretty bad, two days in a row, but I’m already as good as new.”

Instead of giving you a direct answer, Inko glanced towards her son, who had gone awfully quiet.

“Izuku,” she frowned. She seemed to be searching his expression for some sort of explanation. “[Name], what is she—?”

“She’s telling the truth,” Izuku mumbled. “Mom, I know it all sounds super ridiculous, but I don’t like to lie to you. [Name] doesn’t even know how to read or write. Not just in Japanese, but in any language, for that matter. She has no clue about how technology works either. You could ask her when the second World War took place, or even what it is, and she wouldn’t have a clue.”

Inko’s bottom lip trembled. “What the... t-this is all sounding very strange, you two. Izuku! Are you sure your friend is alright? This a serious matter, so I’m begging you, don’t play games with me.”

“It’s not a game, mom. We’re serious.”

“About vampires? But that’s just not possible.”

“I could show you if you want,” you offered. “Izuku’s let me drink his blood before, back when I really needed it.”

Oops. Perhaps that wasn’t the best thing to say to a mother, especially when it involved her own son, but Izuku backed up your statement with a hasty nod—all the while blushing profusely.

“My parents don’t exist in this world,” you continued, looking a bit more dejected now. “I promise I’m not lying. I didn’t even know about Quirks or any of that until Izuku explained them to me. You could call just about all the police in the country, but I can guarantee that nobody will be able to register me anywhere. It’s a crazy situation, and I know how it sounds, but it is the truth.”

She’d gone completely silent, and you were actually a bit worried that she was going to turn you in and have you committed to some sort of mental institution, but thankfully, Inko really was Izuku’s mom. She was kind to a fault.

Her shoulders sagged. “Goodness... I-I don’t even know what to say. Okay, then. Let’s say for the sake of argument that I believe you. I would still want some sort of proof.”

“Hm... you could wait it out for a little while and see how close I’ll get to dying if I don’t drink any blood?”

Both Inko and Izuku stared back at you in abject terror. Okay, so that suggestion was a dud.

“I could hurt myself really bad and then show you how quickly I heal up once I do drink blood?”

Strange. They didn’t seem too keen on that one either.

“In that case, I’m fresh out of ideas,” you shrugged.

“Mom, we’re really telling the truth,” Izuku insisted. “I don’t even know if it can really be proven, but [Name] knows nothing about our world. It just doesn’t seem like something that would be possible unless she wasn’t actually from here. She has nowhere to go. If you call the cops, social services, or whatever... she’ll be alone. And afraid. And I really don’t want that for her."

Inko stared at you for a few good moments. Out of nowhere, she gripped you by the shoulders and squeezed down tight.

“I’ll only ask this one more time,” she said sternly. “Your family... they haven’t done anything to make you too afraid to go back home? Enough that you would make up a crazy story like this to convince me to let you stay?”

You smiled. “Nope. I’m not scared of my parents. I can’t say they’re as nice as you, but I didn’t leave home voluntarily. One day, I’m going to find a way to get back to my world, no matter what it takes.”

Inko let out a shuddering breath. “It... really doesn’t look like you’re lying. At the very least, I can’t see it in your eyes. Or maybe you’re just a terribly good liar and have me completely fooled. Oh, alright. If you really have nowhere else to go, and since you’re the first friend Izuku’s had in a long time... then, yes. You can keep staying here with us.”

It hardly took a second for you and Izuku to break out into cheers.

“Yes!” you exclaimed, rushing towards your friend and wrapping him in a big hug. He reacted with a nervous little squeak and a bright red flush, the way he always did, but he too seemed to share your enthusiasm. “We get to stay together,” you grinned. “I don’t have to leave and find somewhere else to live! I’m so happy!”

“Y-Yeah!” he beamed back. “This is great news! Thank you so much, mom! Thank you for helping us out.”

Inko smiled warmly. “It was worth it just to see the looks on your faces, if nothing else. I still don’t even know what I believe... but I can tell [Name] is a good girl. For now, that’s more than enough.”

“Oh, right,” Izuku blinked in realization. “She needs to attend school. That’s the whole reason she wanted to tell you the truth. If she goes to school with me, she can learn a whole lot more about our world this way. I’m trying to teach her as much as I can, but it’s harder than I expected.”

“School? Well, I can try enrolling her into your middle school, but I’m pretty sure I’d have to be her legal guardian for that to work.” Inko nibbled on her lower lip. “It’ll be difficult to obtain those documents, especially if there’s no record of [Name] to begin with. I’m not sure how it’ll go.”

“It’s worth a shot,” you grinned, completely unbothered.

You were on cloud nine right now, and it was going to be damn hard to dash your spirits. Which was why, the very next day, you dressed up all pretty in one of your new outfits and made a prompt visit to Izuku’s middle school, which you would hopefully be attending soon.

Both Inko and Izuku had come along with you, naturally, and you found yourself face to face with the school’s principal.

Currently, he was staring down at your admission documents with a puzzled expression. “Different last name, I see. Mrs. Midoriya, do you have legal guardianship of this child?”

“N-Not yet,” Inko stammered out. “But she’s been staying at our home for the last little while. I can provide proof of our living conditions, and she’s been properly taken care of.”

“Well, can you get in contact with the child’s family?”

“My whole family’s dead,” you chimed in—a bit too eagerly, perhaps. “Izuku and his mom are, um... very, very, very distant friends of one of my late relatives, so they took me in.”

The principal gave you a look of disbelief. “Uh-huh. Well, my hands are tied here. It sounds like a complicated situation, but I can’t very well allow someone to enroll a child that they don’t have legal custody of. Sort out the matter in court first, and try to transfer in later.”

From what Izuku had told you, these legal matters could take a long time, and quite frankly, you didn’t feel like waiting. There was also the issue of getting other people involved. You didn’t need anyone poking their nose into your business and realizing how many things about you just didn’t add up. It would raise a whole lot of undue suspicion. Worst case scenario, the authorities would take you away from Izuku by force.

There was no chance you were going to let that happen. But thankfully, you had an idea.

Admittedly, a reckless one.

You turned towards Izuku and Inko with a smile. “Do you two mind waiting outside for a minute? I just want to try and talk to this nice man on my own.”

“Sorry, kid,” the principal sighed. “No matter what you say to me, my answer will be the same. I’m not looking to get in trouble with the law.”

Your smile didn’t drop, and although Izuku and Inko were staring at you with visible confusion, you still gestured for them to leave the room first.

Once you were finally alone with the principal, you leaned across the desk. “Sorry about this,” you mumbled quietly.

“Huh? What are you—?”

You grabbed him by the arm before he could get a proper reply out, then sunk your fangs into his skin. He briefly yelped out from the pain, of course, but you didn’t drink very much blood from him. You didn’t need a lot. After all, you had a different purpose in mind.

“You’re crazy,” he winced. “Absolutely crazy. I’m really going to call the police now.”

“Don’t you dare,” you ordered, and the man’s hand dropped right as he reached for his phone. You could feel your head throbbing, the way it always did when you tried to use this technique, but at least it seemed to be working. “Here’s what’s going to happen,” you smiled. “You’re going to let me attend this school, and the same class as Izuku, too. You’re not going to stir up a fuss and demand that Inko shows you the paperwork, and you’re also not going to tell anyone about what just happened. You’re going to forget I ever bit you, actually. All you need to do is approve my enrollment, and that’s that.”

You snapped your fingers, and just like that, the hypnosis came undone.

“W-What?” he blinked, glancing all over the place in confusion. “I was just... what did I...?”

“You were just about to celebrate the fact that I’m starting classes tomorrow,” you beamed. “Right?”

He stared at you for a few moments, with a vague look of understanding, but eventually nodded his head, suddenly much more sure of himself.

“Oh, yes!” he beamed. “That’s right. [Last Name][Name]… ah, perfect. Yes, it looks like everything I need is in order. And you can start classes as early as tomorrow, you said?”

“Yep! I’m super excited to meet everyone and make tons of friends!”

“That’s a good attitude to have. I’m thrilled to welcome you to your new school, [Name]. I’m sure the other members of our faculty will feel the same way once they find out.”

“Awesome! I’ll get plenty of sleep tonight, so that I can be ready for school bright and early,” you grinned. “Thanks so much for everything, Mr. Nice Principal. It was lovely to meet you!”

The principal chuckled softly and waved you off, up until you left his office. Only once the door fully shut did he allow himself to wince, then rolled up his sleeve and furrowed his brows in confusion.

“Are these... bite marks? How in the world...”

Back on your side of the door, Izuku was all over you, fretting incessantly. “[N-Name], are you okay? It sounded like he got angry with you for a moment... we thought we heard yelling. As expected, it’s a no-go, huh?”

“What are you talking about? He approved my admission.”

“Eh?”

Both Izuku and Inko were staring at you in bewilderment. Your head was still aching quite a bit, and it would probably continue to do so for a little while, but it was worth it. You normally hated putting people under the effects of your hypnosis after drinking some of their blood. It felt like a slimy thing to do, and it kind of was, but you really wanted to go to school with Izuku. It was just this one time. Just this once.

“Don’t worry about it,” you grinned. “I have my ways.”

You said that, but you’d been lucky that it had even worked, since you weren’t very good at using hypnosis to begin with. Maybe this was fate, though. There was that saying that everything happened for a reason, after all.

Izuku peered over at you while you walked through the halls, his eyes slowly narrowing. “Um... [Name]. That’s not blood on your lips... is it?”

“Hehe. Oopsie.”

“What did you do?!”

It wasn’t at all uncommon that Katsuki found himself in a bad mood, but he’d been in an especially bad mood these past couple of days.

And it was all your damn fault.

Finding out that Izuku had somehow made a friend was already irritating enough, but to make matters even worse, you’d gotten on his damn nerves and challenged him to a fight. A fight that hadn’t gone as planned, as much as he hated to admit it. He’d underestimated you. Clearly, you were a lot stronger than you looked, which begged the question as to why you hung out with that goddamn loser.

Then again, you seemed to be one hell of a weirdo yourself. Katsuki still shuddered every now and then when he remembered the way you’d greedily slurped up his blood. Seriously, who did that?

My shitty mom screamed at me for hours after I got back home looking all beat-up like that... fucking hell. If I ever see that bitch again, I’m gonna make her regret messing with me.

Katsuki rubbed at his bruised face and grimaced. Class was as damn boring as always, and it didn’t help that he could see that shitty nerd fidgeting in his seat out of the corner of his eye. What the hell did he have to be so restless about? It was fucking creepy.

“Ahem,” the teacher said, clearing his throat all of a sudden. “It’s a bit unexpected during this time of year, but I’d like to take a moment to introduce a new student to our class. Everyone please be sure to give her a warm welcome. You can come in now, by the way!”

The door slid open, and Katsuki yawned loudly, tears prickling the corners of his eyes. As if he could care less about whichever extra was joining the class.

“Hi, everyone!”

Katsuki’s eyes widened. That voice. He knew that voice.

A pathetic wheeze left his mouth, and he couldn’t help the way his jaw dropped nearly all the way to the ground. There was no way. There was just no way.

And yet there you were, grinning and waving at everyone, with so much as a care in the world.

It was only until your eyes locked with his that your expression changed, but it didn’t shift into discomfort or fear.

Instead, you openly smirked at him.

“You fucking bitch!” Katsuki roared, slamming his palms down on the table loud enough that everyone turned their heads.

The teacher gave him a cross look. “Come on, Bakugou. Let’s not start this early in the morning. Be nice to your new classmate.”

“That’s right,” you kept on smirking. “I’m excited to be friends with everyone, including you. Don’t you feel the same way?”

Katsuki officially had a new person on his shit list.

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vlassk · 7 months ago

Text

KEEPER

After learning of Stanleys past with Ford y/n decided she wouldn't be getting close to the twin. But I find it difficult as Ford is just so damn cute

Warning: age gap, angst, sorta 18+ MDNI Swearing. Pervy Ford(lmk if i missed any) not proof read as i no no wanna

You only ever have a few days off. This day was slow and calm as you sat in the shop with the Pines family. You were reading a book when the door slammed open. Ford stood in the doorway with an octopus looking creature around his arm

"Why bring it in here?" You get up as the kids do as well. Ford punches it, and it escapes scurrying around the floor.

"KILL IT KILL IT!!" Stan stands screams, hitting it with his newspaper. Ford runs through jumping across tables. The kids run over in excitement. You watch as hr corners yhe creature. Stunning it and capturing it.

Dipper runs up to him excited and asks if he could help. Ford happily turns him down, yelling him to call for dinner

"Have Y/n help!" Mable exclaims happily, pushing you towards the man.

"What, why me? I dont want to work with this grump. " You cross your arms, the child still trying to push you in. You look down as she smiles up at you.

"Hmm...that wouldnt be too bad, i heard from Stan that you are quite smart. It would be nice having a helping hand who might be able to handle everything. " Ford puts his hand to his chin, thinking on the proposition

"W-what? She doesn't even want to help cmon Please, i already know what the creature is!"

"It's far too dangerous for you, Dipper..y/n i know you dont like me, but what do you say?" Ford smiles excited at the thought of working with you.

Looking to stan you see him give a small nod. He stands up, walking towards you. Leaning in to wisper in your ear

"Dont get too close, okay kid..he's dangerous." You smile and pat his shoulder. You look at Ford and frown.

"Ok, fine, I'll help... but really, you BETTER call me for dinner, okay dip! Stan said he's going to make us a special dinner for Fords return..."

"Haha, Stanley Cooks?"

"Uh duh? He's a great cook. Well, when he does make food, he's great. " You laugh as you both go back into the basement. You close the door behind you, the smell of that creature filling the air

"Gosh, you couldn't have done a better job keeping that contained?" You plug your nose disgusted

"Why do you like it?" Ford chuckles at his own low joke. You make a gaging noise as you both reach the bottom of the stairs. Ford putting it away.

"So Stan told you about me, huh?" You sigh as you lean against a table

"Hmm? Oh yes, he seems very protective over you"

"Yeah. He's great. " You smile at yourself. Appreciating everything Stans done for you

You look around the small controll room. Not really knowing what you should do at all.

"...soo what got you into the paranormal and weird..." Ford tries making awkward conversation. Something you weren't here for.

"That's none of your concern." You continue to stare at the wall. Again, I do not know why you agreed to go here.

" What do you need my help with?" You sigh, sitting up again.

Ford looks around, looking for something for you to do. Then he stops.

"Well, i know you're smart, but i don't know how smart or what you can do..." he smirks and watches as you roll your eyes.

"You know that moving sas-quach?"

"Yeah"

"I made it. At first, it was just a costume with some fluff. But i made the code and the structure to make the animotronic. I also made the warmer and the vibrations in Stans favorite chair. I've made a lot of the improvements here. i do love puzzles and decoding things.." You talk more on your degree

"Improvements, huh..." Ford looks around the dusty old basement. Things broken and wires poking out

"So... could you fix those for me? While i work"

"I guess..." You sigh as you just dumped your whole college career, and he only focuses on how you fix things. Bending down to look for all the broken wires and technology, you dont see that Ford is staring at you. His eyes roam over your bent over the body. He feels his face heat up, so he turns away. Continuing to work.

After an hour of working, you sigh and lean back against one of the machines. Watching as the old man works. You sigh, hot from the work. You watch as Ford pushes his hair back. A frustrated look on his face as he continues to write. Standing up and walking towards the man, you lean forward, your chest touching his back. You feel him jump under you. A small laugh escapes your lips.

"You're doing that wrong.." You point to the top of the page "see thats supposed to be this number here.. gosh, you're supposed to be this smart guy, but mess up on something so simple"

"I-i never even noticed... and im still the Smart guy. One mistake doesn't disqualify me. " he fixes his mistake and smiles at the equation that now makes sense.

"You distracted or something, or are you just getting old?"

Ford scoffs. You stand up straight again, beginning to walk away. He turns to look at you. Annoyed at your attitude

"Why- Gosh, why can't we just get along?" He looks up at you

"You know why" You begin yo walk away. Not wanting to talk.

"No, i really dont. I've explained my whole backstory to you, and stan did as well, yet im the bad guy?"

"Yes, you are"

"You know wha-"

"What?"

"Gah! You're such a brat you think you know the whole story, but you dont. You dont know me!" Ford stands up, walking towards you angerly.

"I don't have to know you to know that Stan would cry at the thought of you. The fact that it eats him that he caused you to fly into that protal and it ate him every day after! Do you think i didn't know the whole story before you came along Stanford? All that changed was the names for me. " You push the man," he stumbles back.

" And you trusted that ass hole Bill?! Let him use you. Gosh, men really are something he was always out to get you. You refused to explain to stan got kicked into a multi dimensional portal, and when He brings you back, you punch him!" You push him more a bit harder.

Ford stumbles back more, having enough he grabs onto you and turns you around, pinning your arms behind your back like he did to stan

" He ruined my life, okay? MY life, he ruined my project. Costed me my whole life, you wouldn't know because you got into that damn school!" Ford shakes you slightly, not realizing his violence or the position he put you in.

" You still got everything you wanted, no? You still got all your PHDs and to study in this stupid town!" You struggle beneath him, trying to have him let go. You accidentally grind against him without thinking or realizing it. Ford lets you go, stumbling back to lean on another machine. You turn around, getting ready to punch the man when he catches your fist, his face getting darker shades of red by the second

"I'm...im sorry..."he tries to think of anything to change subject."You're right. i-i got everything i ever dreamed... i couldn't even let you correct my work"

Your arm goes limp. You drop your hand and watch as Ford coveres his face

"I'm sorry for well, putting you in that position... for everything. " Ford drops his head, his face still hiden. His attempt to hide his red face, praying you don't look down.

You sigh, turning around. You shake your head, not knowing what to say. You turn back to see Ford, his face still covered. Your eyes move down, his red sweater covered him. Your eyes moved lower. Your body is still turned around, and you see his pants, a small tent was forming. You look away quickly, your own face red

" Stanford, i-...Hahahaaa listen, it's okay, i can't promise we will be besties after all this, but i definitely feel better about ya." You remember the position you were in. It was fine when you were angry he just apprehended you, but now you're thinking about how it would be if it wasn't angry... you laugh hysterically.

"Really..? Just like that. "

"Yup! But you should apologize to stan" you try changing the subject.

"Absolutely not.."

"Ford!" You finally turn around seeing him finally

"No listen, I'll admit it to you, but not him okay, leave it at that kid," he uncoveres his face. Now recovered. He sighs in relief that you didn't see his problem.

" Kid? Im not a kid. You're just old. " You poke his chest. Turning to look at his work table

" You litt-" Before he could finish, Dipper fell through the ceiling. Knocking over the octopus looking creature.

You look as the kid crawls by the creature and to his book

"Dipper, stop!"

" Great, Uncle Ford!"

"Did you just fall through the cieling..." You look up at the hole

"What did i say about coming down here"

"My work is far too dangerous for a single living soul to spend even one second-"

"Am i dead now or..." You sigh being ignored still. You see how stern Ford got. You feel slight attraction to him.

"Wait, is that a 38-sided die from dungeons dungeons and more dungeons?!"

"Yeah! Y-you know that game?!"

" with pen and paper shield and sword... " Ford starts

"Our quest shall be our sweet reward!" The two shout in unison. They laugh softly together. You laugh at their repeat of the quote, finding it cute. You think back at the potition you were in before. You felt your face blush.

"This is my favorite game in the whole multi-verse. I can't believe they still make it"

"They do, and I've been looking all day for someone to play with me"

You watch the Two talk as the octopus slowly slithers away. You rise a leg in disgust as you avoid its path. You see Ford bend down. Holding the book excitedly. The creature jumps onto his face, and Ford pulls it off, still happy as ever.

"Y/n, do you want to play with us!" Dipper turns to you. His excited face warms your heart

"I haven't played since college... so i might be rusty, but sure, I'll play"

"Awesome!!" Dipper runs upstairs.

Ford turns around to look at you. A confused look on his face

"You play Dd&Md?"

"Yeah, duh, it's been a while, but i liked it. I just got busy. " You toy with your hair looking away

"I know how that is, i used to have a campaign of my own in college," Father puts away the octopus, placing it on top of a shelf.

"Ya know, Ford, it was kinda hot seeing you all stern." You laugh as you start walking upstairs. Ford is left a stuttering mess, trying to compose himself before he walks upstairs.

You go to your room to grab your old things. A small box contains a small bag with your die. The rest of the items is a small journal with your notes on your character. You head downstairs telling Stan about the game you three are about to play. He gets a bit angry. You go to the basement and see Dipper and Ford already sitting down. As the game starts, Ford gets into character, fluttering his eyelashes, and the dipper gets the first roll, as you both tell Ford about the change in art styles during the 90s.

"Great-uncle Ford, I've been meaning to ask you: where were you before you came out of that machine, and what have you been doing down here? Are you working on something behind that curtain?" Dipper points to the curtain behind Ford.

"Dipper, it's best if you and the family stay away from that subject. Honestly, I'm not sure any of you could handle the real answer." Ford says, setting up straight.

"But, but I can handle it"

"Dipper, just respect it, okay? i dont know either. " You pat the boys back.

"Ah-ah! But I can show you a little something I brought back with me, an infinity-sided die"

"Woah... that's so cool. And... impossible!" Dipper gets excited again.

"What even..." You lean back against the machines

You both listen to Fords explanation. A worry washes over your face. As Ford plays like nothing was talked about. Hours later, the session ends. Mable gets you for dinner, and you all head up. Finding stan cooking.

"How was the nerd game, ya nerds hahaha"

"It was fine, grunkle stan." dipper sits down

"No, really, it was. You would never play with me, so im glad Ford and Dipper invited me"

"Ya know, im starting to remember you asking me to play with you some years ago..." stan pushes you out of the kitchen, getting plates for you and the kids

"Thank you stan"

"Anything for you, chump." stan sits down, patting mable and dipper on the head as he passes you.

Ford inspects the food and takes a bite. I was surprised at how good it tastes.

Stan watches him eat the food. Pleased by the reaction.

"So how was working in the basement with my brother y/n"

"It was fine. He made me fix some of the old wiring. Some of the machines should be running better now, ford, " you say in-between bites

"Good, see chump, i told ya. Working here wouldn't ignore your talents!" Stan laughed. You just smiled and looked at your food.

"Ya know if you'd like, i could probably need more help. Im sure you have lots more to offer besides mechanical help. Why dont you work with me? still helping stan out, though."

"What, you can't steal, my girl!"

"Well, look at it this way. She's still staying here, and you said to yourself that working here would be a great opportunity. Well, now that opportunity is expanding, and she will get to show off her skills"

"But it's dangerous. Geez Ford, i told you to stay away"

"Listen, im all for taking cautions with the kids, but Y/n is grown and could actually be very helpful to me and my research." Ford places his hands on the table.

"I could help too! I've read all of your journals!" Dipper yaps about mable just laughs at his needyness

"Absolutely not." they both day in unison.

"Actually Stan i wouldn't mind so much. I still dont really like him, but i might get to do something with my degrees. " You finish up your good, watching as stan scratches the back of his head. You stand up and take everyones plates. Washing them when you see stan walk in with Ford.

"Let me help, kid," stan lends you, a hand putting away the dishes as you wash and rinse. He huffs and complains, like he didn't offer to help

"I'm no kid, Old Stan..." You smile scrubbing off any sauce.

"I know...its just, ive known you for a bit now and you've treated me so well, last thing i eant to do is have you get hurt from me not protecting you. Especially from him.." he looks behind him, seeing Ford look through all the spices.

"Yeah, i do appreciate you, but you aren't my dad, and that's okay!" You see the sadness when you say it. Regretting the words

"Stanley. You're my best friend! I'm glad you aren't my dad because you dont have to deal with the hard daughter responsibilities. Ya know, if i ever get married, it'll be SUPER expensive, and you dont want this bill. " You nudge him, making the old man laugh.

"Yeah, i guess that's true," Stan laughs.

"Sooo true. And! If you were my dad there would be awful expections, like Y/n why dont you go back to doing your original plan, y/n dont poke that gnome, y/n stop stealing snacks from the shop. Ya know?"

"You what!?" Stan looks over to you

"Haha, seeeee," you throw some bubbles at him. He sighs. Cleaning off his glasses.

"Do you want to work with him?"

"Yeah, why not? Maybe I'll learn more about you guys as kids?"

"Haha, i hope not, i know im not your dad, and it's hard not to make the connection after so long. But fine, we are best friends, and I'd never do anything to stop that. Now get ready for bed you've got work tomorrow!" You both finish up, you rushing upstairs to get ready for bed.

Stanley turns around, looking at his brother, who's toying with different items.

"Let's sleep, you nerd," stan pats his shoulder as he walks away.

You walk past the kids' room. Hearing them talk. Smiling as you go off to bed.

The next day you get up and gey ready. Seeing that your new boss is setting up DD&MD with dipper in the living room

"Hey y/n wanna play again?"

"What about work"

"This ... this is work?" Ford looks up at you

"Sure," you roll your eyes. Seeing Ford smile with excitement.

You run upstairs to grab your stuff, hurrying back down, and you start the campaign. Stan walking in annoyed at Ford, you see Mables disappointment about her movie. Stan walks over, trying to take pages off the Tv. Ford grabs his hand

"Move that and pay the price" ford tightens his grip

"Oh, what 50 magical dwaf dollars?" Stan snatches his arm, moving them around

"Dont mock our fantastical monetary system!"Ford yells, letting go of stan

"I'll mock all i want. it's my tv room"

"It's my house you- listen Stanley, did it ever accur to you that if you join us, you might actually have fun?" He holds up his dice bag.

Stan gets angry, throwing the dice bag on the floor. Opening the case for the infinity-sided die. Granting the characters to come to life. Ford tries to fight them off, but they grab you three and leave. It feels like the adventure took all day. Maybe it was because you were so small for so long.

Ford takes dipper to the basement to talk. You wait upstairs to be called on. After a couple minutes, you see dipper leave saying goodnight and going to his room. You head downstairs, seeing stan leaning against his desk.

"I didn't know you were going to work tonight"

"Work is work at any time." You laugh going towards Ford to look at his work. He blushes at your closness. Still embarrassed about the day before.

"Hey...so i have a question"

"What is it?"

"When Bill took over your body. Did others not know it, wasn't you?"

"No one really knew but my journal..."Ford laughs a bit

" He's gotten sloppy..." You press your finger to your chin.

"What do you mean"

"Well, when Dipper was possessed, i knew right away. Bill ran off, though, had to go on stage, and the kids wouldn't let me on. I was late, though, if only i had talked to Dipper sooner that day"

"Y-you could spot him?!"

"Well, duh, it's so obvious he's such a weirdo, i mean no offense, i read yall had a thing going on, but he was noooot it. Such a creep. " You squint your eyes,looking at the drawing of Bill.

"You read my journal?!" He covered his mouth quickly shutting his journal.

"Yeah, Dipper showed me..."

He takes the book and walks away towards his room. Shutting the door.

You run to the door, knocking on it

"Ford...what the hell we gatta work!"

"No work tonight im tired"

"What? No Ford!" You knock on the door again a bit harder. He opens the door. You accidentally knocked on his chest. You look up at him, his face is red, and his eyes dart anywhere but you.

"Ford, are you embarrassed of your lifes work"

He looks at you. Pushing you away from the door. He shuts the door, but you put your foot in the way before he can. A small ow escapes your lips as he opens the door again

"Y/n im so sorry!!" He watches as he holds your foot

"Why are you embarrassed..." you lean against the door frame, slowly putting your foot down.

"I-i dont know, but i am. Listen, im... im sorry for walking out, i dont know, " he rubs the back of his neck. You see the red on his face still. You lean against the door, putting your feet on the other side, locking him in his small room. That was just a small couch with some blankets.

"So, no work tonight?" You look over at Ford, who now moved, sit on hid bed. He leans back his arm, resting on the couch. You look away at the rest of the lab. All the glowing machines and the cloth cover the window. You focus on every detail.

Ford focuses on you. Taking in your form, your hair, the way you relax against the door. He knew he shouldn't feel the way he did about you. But it's been 30 years since he had any connection. 30 years of being by himself. He gets lost in his thoughts.

"Ford?...ford!" He snaps back, noticing you're gone. He turns to look around seeing you next to him.

"No... no work tonight. im tired.." Ford leans back again, closing his eyes, trying to block out the thoughts.

"Okay, Ford...and im sorry about calling you out on Bill. i know you did your best. That monster won't get to us anymore. " You get up to leave. He looks to you

"Goodnight...y/n"

"Goodnight Ford," you wave your hand and leave the basement.

#fanfic #x reader #gravity falls #pines twins #stanford pines #stanford pines x reader #gravity falls stanford #ford pines x reader #ford pines #grunkle ford

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