#Something about the doctor moving the stars in the only way he could without the tardis

[neon-psychopomp]

"Who Moved The Stars?"

Text reads: "How many seconds in eternity?"

Will I ever get Over Heaven Sent? Probably not.

Finished my sketchbook cover! I'll never pass up the opportunity to do a doctor who flower motif :D

I also made it into a free phone wallpaper that you can find over on my Ko-Fi

[deadsetobsessions]

Ghost King Phantom was an odd addition to the League. J’onn was often the last to find others odd but from the get-go, Phantom was the only quiet spot he’d have in his telepathic field. At first, it was off putting as most of the people that slipped beyond the reach of his immediate field tended to be villains and the like. But as Phantom remained in the Justice League, J’onn had come to learn to appreciate the calm spot in the turbulent sea of his friends’ and coworkers’ thoughts.

“You have taken to me faster than the others. Why is that?”

Phantom hummed purringly, another peculiar sound that J’onn had yet to see any of his human or alien heroes recreate with any success. They sat at their usual spot, face facing the cosmos and backs guarded by their friends. Plus, J’onn and Phantom could look directly into the sun without painfully loosing their sight.

“I guess I’ve always been fond of the stars. Of space, and everything in it. What about you? Why did we become friends so fast?”

J’onn shook his head, a human motion he’d learned a long time ago to imitate. “No, we became slower friends than most, as my telepathic abilities allow for easier communication and understanding of one another’s motives. With the exception of Batman but I have found he is often the exception to most expectations.”

“That checks out,” King Phantom laughed. “Well, I’m glad we became friends. It’s very cool to meet a Martian. Space is one of my Obsessions, you see.”

J’onn nodded. “I see. I am sorry that I am the only Martian you will meet.”

“You are?”

J’onn nodded again, slower. Sadder. His facial muscles, in this form, does not imitate human patterns well and he knew that most people could not pick out his emotions without his verbal expression.

Intuition tells J’onn that Phantom knew regardless.

“Would you mind telling me what happened?” His voice is gentle, the emotions that Phantom pushes at him are gentle and questing, but not demanding. It has been a long time since anyone has asked him of memories he clung to. And so, J’onn J’onzz speaks in the way that was natural to him, the way his people communicated.

With his mental voice flowing into Phantom’s head, J’onn tells him of the wonders that used to be his home. He provided images and sounds of how his home shone as the sun rose, how the shadows that fell when the sun dipped beneath the horizon felt as comforting as a Martian’s first telepathic cradle. He tells Phantom of his twin brother, grief and agony entwined in the memories of someone he had loved. He spoke of his wife and their daughter, and their cozy home on the windswept plains of Mars.

King Phantom sat still with him as the Watch-Tower moved along, around a king and his friend who was recounting the stagnant grief of his past.

J’onn tells him of the virus, borne of his twin’s hatred, and how he watched everything around him burn. How he had desperately tried to prevent his wife and daughter from using their telepathic abilities. He spoke of his failures. He wove together a tapestry of insanity and grief, built upon the burning bodies of his wife and their beloved daughter. He tells Phantom how the Mars now was just ashes and dust of his former home. How he could not look upon the planet and not see the shades of his wife and daughter and parents and friends, walking upon a barren planet that no longer held anything familiar to the last Martian.

Phantom had hummed again, a soothing rumble. Sadness dripped from the edges of his consciousness.

“If it was not for the Doctor, I would be dead and shattered.” J’onn spoke for the first time in three hours. “It is… less painful to live. I have purpose.”

“I am glad that you are not either of those things.” Phantom stood. “Come with me. I have to show you something.”

J’onn trusted Phantom, and thus followed the king into the glowing green portal.

They flew past many doors, Phantom often glancing at him before shaking his head and changing directions.

They stopped at a door that felt familiar. J’onn knew it from somewhere.

“Go ahead, open the door. But know that you can’t stay long. You don’t belong to this realm quite yet. Not for quite a while.” Phantom moves, hand gesturing towards the door without a knob.

“How..?”

“How else? You have telekinesis, don’t you?”

J’onn blinked. Right. He opened the door and- oh.

The door warped with the screaming storm of grief and love and oh-how-I’ve-missed-you that J’onn unleashed.

Because there in front of him were M’yri’ah and K’hym, his wife and daughter.

The door was an imitation of his home, back when he had not known true loss.

“Impossible,” he stumbled back.

“You are in the realm of the dead. You didn’t think the title of the Ghost King was for fun, did you, J’onn?” Phantom smiled and- a move J’onn would definitely engage in petty payback for, later after he’d gotten over the shock- pushed him flying right into the room.

M’yri’ah and K’hym cradled him with telepathic swirls of love and husband!-dad!-love-love-love-safe!

And J’onn shuddered and gathered the his world in his arms to say goodbye.

——

[lovelynim]

Bad day

Honkai: Star Rail - Aventurine x Dr. Ratio

A/N: HAPPY (LATE) BIRTHDAY @fluffy-ami!! I'm sorry for being such a horrible friend and only noticing the date has passed me by almost two weeks later. I hope this humble mess can make up for my delay. Love you, *mwah*

Summary: Ratio had a bad day, so Aventurine came to the rescue!

Word count: 1153 words

Ratio looked down at the hands wrapped around his chest, pondering whether he should question it or not. He was nearly sure he did warn that idiot gambler about the risks of pestering him tonight, so why, of all things, were Aventurine holding (or, at least, trying to) him down?

“Let go, gambler,” Ratio sighed, tapping the back of one of Aventurine’s hands with the vain hope it would be enough to convince him. “I’m not in the mood for your foolery.”

The only answer he got from the other man, however, was something suddenly pressing on his back. The doctor looked over his shoulder and could tell that the gambler was… leaning into him? Without moving his arms a single inch, Aventurine pressed his forehead on Ratio’s back, nudging slightly. “This isn’t ‘foolery’, I’m trying to be nice here, doc”.

“Then do it to someone else, can’t you tell I’m busy?”

“I can also tell you’re in a bad mood, doc,” Aventurine spoke softly, his words almost muffled by Ratio’s body. The doctor sighed, looking up to the ceiling. Oh Aeons above, what did he do to deserve this idiot in his life? “I thought someone as smart as you would be able to tell what a ‘hug’ is,” Aventurine teased, tightening his embrace.

Ratio wasn’t exactly restrained, but he couldn’t properly move either. Aventurine’s arms kept his won from moving all the way, leaving him in a quite difficult position. “Sigh, I’m serious, let me g-”

“So am I, doc,” Aventurine mumbled, leaning into the other as he tried to get closer to his face. The gambler stood on the tip of his toes, but still lacked a couple inches to properly reach Ratio’s. “What happened? Did you have a bad day?”

“Gambler,” Ratio warned, tugging at the back of Aventurine's wrist with a messed up grip, his fingers barely managing to graze at the other’s arm. “...why are you so clingy? Are you even sober?”

Aventurine couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle, planting his heels back into the ground. “Did you just hesitate?” He said smugly, tilting his head to the side to try to peek at Ratio’s expression.

His attempt to fend the other off with snark didn’t seem to work, Ratio noted mentally. Maybe it was the tiredness from work, but responding to Aventurine’s teases seemed to be a more difficult task than he first anticipated. “That was just another of your delusions, I’m afraid. Now, care to let me go?”

“Not until we work on this bad mood of yours, doc,” Aventurine insisted, pressing his forehead on Ratio’s back again.The scholar gritted his teeth, regretting not keeping in mind how persistent the other could be at times. “My mood will improve greatly once you let me go, gambler.” 

Against his expectations, what followed the short conversation was absolute silence. Almost as if he was actually pondering the matter, Aventurine only hummed quietly, making the doctor feel somewhat… uneasy.

Aventurine could be pretty unpredictable - an aspect of his that Ratio always despised utterly. Bold moves, careless thinking and an awful attitude, yes, that was Aventurine. On top of that, the fact that things always seemed to work in his favor only made it worse. 

The moments in silence seemed to drag on for hours and were making Ratio more anxious - to not say “curious”. The room was so quiet that he could almost hear the gears inside Aventurine’s head turning, plotting his next flawless plan. 

“Alright, that enou-ugh!” Ratio widened his eyes. If looks could kill, Aventurine would already be a better place by that time. “Gamb- ah! G-Gambler, don’t you d-dare.”

Aventurine laughed sheepishly, nuzzling the tip of his nose between Ratio’s wing bones. “‘Dare’ to do what, doc? I’m not sure if I’m following.”

Before Ratio could voice another retort, he felt those pesky fingers digging into his sides again. An electric sensation ran across his body, not to mention the fact that Aventurine kept his arms tightly wrapped around him, preventing him from moving. Damned gambler.

“Y-yohou know what I’m tahahalking about!” Ratio giggled against his will, moving his torso as much as he could inside the gambler’s hug, but his efforts were all in vain. If anything, whenever he moved, Aventurine would poke his sides again in an awfully tickling manner that would make him jump in place. 

The gambler pressed the tip of his fingers on the spot, taking advantage of Ratio’s fashion choice to rub small circles on the bare skin. “Come on, you’re too handsome to be frowning like that ~”

Ratio wasn’t sure if it was an extra measure to keep him moving away or something else entirely, but Aventurine was suddenly leaning on him again while his hand wrecked havoc against his half exposed side. Now, besides finding a way to deal with the annoying tickling, Ratio also needed to be careful to not make Aventurine fall to the ground or, worse, be dragged along in the other’s fall.

“Gahahambler! S-stop it!” Ratio hissed, his hands desperately trying to dislodge Aventurine’s, but he always seemed to be out of his reach. “You ihihidiot!”

“Ehh? How mean!” Aventurine chuckled, vibrating his fingers under one of Ratio’s ribs, making the scholar let out an uncharming, loud laugh. “I’m very worried about you, doc! N- now, could you squat a little?”

“W-whahat?!”

Ratio had been tickled by Aventurine before, yes. He also returned the favor a few times. And considering the history of episodes regarding this matter, this particular request became even more odd. It wouldn’t surprise him if Aventurine teased him or threatened him with more tickling, but… squat?

“I c-can’t reach your face, you’re too tall…” The gambler muttered shily, almost innocently, but his hand didn’t stop - not for a single moment. The contrast between his acts and his attitude annoyed Ratio even more. “C’mere, please ~”

“H-how cahahan I move with you hohoholding me, yohou imbehehecile!”

“Agh, fine,” Aventurine groaned, deciding to take the other’s requests in consideration and, at last, letting him go. 

Ratio gasped, quickly reaching for his abused side and trying to rub off the ticklish sensation. “You d-damned gambler,” he panted, turning around to face Aventurine, who wore that handsome stupid smirk he always used to.

“Nah-ah, before you scold me…” Aventurine ordered, pointing towards the ground as a reference to his demand. Ratio usually would’ve denied but, just this time, he decided to oblique.

Slightly bending forward, Ratio’s eyes were almost at the same level of Aventurine’s, waiting for the gambler to take action. “So, what did you want?”

“This, doc,” Aventurine muttered, gently wrapping his arms around Ratio’s neck and planting a kiss on his cheek. “I hope you have a better day tomorrow,” he whispered close to Ratio’s ear, burying his face in the crook of his neck.

“...gambler,” Ratio called softly, letting out a pleased sigh.

“Yes, doc?”

“Thank you.”

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

For full headcanons: What do you think a lazy day with the M6 would look like? Say that somehow MC and their love interest have a free day all to themselves to just relax.

The Arcana HCs: Lazy Days with M6

Julian

He's been looking forward to this. Did he tell you that he would try to sleep in? Maybe. Does he succeed? Unfortunately not

However, not needing to head straight out the door to the clinic means that you get to sleep in and wake up to the sight of your relaxed doctor leisurely sipping some coffee in bed next to you

As much as Julian savors the delights of domestic life, he's quick to get a little stir crazy. How about an outing together?

For a dramatically roguish nerd like him, an "outing" could mean getting dragged to a leech convention, watching a play, doing something legally not-so-recommended, or visiting a library

Either way, since the point of the day is to be lazy, he's more likely to want to head home come evening rather than stay out

Does he enjoy social time? Sure, but even more than that, he cherishes you. He can meet you for dinner at the tavern any day, but he doesn't get every evening completely free like this

Dinner is peaceful, intimate, and slower than usual because he insists on eating by candlelight which means not being able to see your plate very well

The way his eyes feast on you instead of the meal makes up for it

Asra

Nobody can match this magician when it comes to lazy days

They. Are. Sleeping. In. They aren't even going to think about getting up until the sun is high enough to fill the room with golden light and the street outside your window is bustling with activity

Even then, the tranquility stays. There's no part of the day when the pace picks up. He'll move with you slowly from the bed to the kitchen with a sleepy smile, prioritizing snuggles over cooking

And that's how the day goes - lazing from the cushions to the kitchen for more tea and snacks, trading silly stories and engaging in the occasional tickle/pillow fight between books

Asra will start at least one experimental craft, only to put it down halfway finished because focusing on you is way more enjoyable

Right around sunset, they'll need a change of scenery. That will most likely take the form of taking you by the hand and pulling you into their oasis for some prolonged snuggles and whimsy time

However, being predictably unpredictable, there is the 25% chance that he'll decide he doesn't want to keep a lazy pace all day after all, and pull you out into the darkening streets for an adventure

Either way, it ends back in bed, gazing out the window at the stars

Nadia

Oh, she needs this and she's been planning for it for weeks

Everything is set up ahead of time. All pressing matters have been dealt with, and she's delegated responsibilities so that unless the world starts to end, someone else will have to handle it

She is going to indulge in every relaxing moment she's been putting off and she's going to do it without lifting a finger and you are going to join her for every blissful moment

She rarely has time to sleep in and hold you, so she is taking her fill

Breakfast appears at the door to her chambers when she rings her bell, and after sitting you in her lap and taking turns feeding each other, she's drawing you into her private bath all set up for spa day

With her mind carefully blocked off of work, she'll turn her attentions to you. How have you been doing? What's been on your mind? Tell her something about you she hasn't heard yet ~

Since you can't spend all day in the spa, she does take a couple hours in the afternoon to herself in her tower. Your company is delightful and refreshing, but even she needs a moment alone

Dinner happens on the veranda, just the two of you in a nook hidden from view, lounging on cushions and savoring a slow night

Muriel

Lazy days ... kind of happen whenever one of you needs them to happen. Living self-sustainably in the woods has its perks

At the same time, there's some daily duties that just can't be skipped - feeding the chickens, drawing water, etc

Lazy days are what happens when one of you looks at the other of you and you both know you need a break. A day without all the added routine tasks, a day to just breathe for a little bit

Lazy days start by spending the day before getting ready to rest

Waking up is one quick trip to throw a bucket of feed at the chickens before darting back inside to warm up next to the veritable furnace that Muriel becomes under a blanket

Breakfast happens late, sitting by the fire instead of at the table, slicing the loaf of bread between you as you want more and toasting it idly while Inanna steals the crumbs

If it's a chilly, rainy day, you spend it adding logs to the fire from the pile you built up yesterday and curling up with each other under the furs. On sunny days, you might lie down outside

Maybe you talk, maybe you sleep, maybe you work on a craft - but it passes in peace and quiet and grounded, steadfast love

Portia

Does Portia need a lazy day? YES. Is Portia good at lazy days? Not. At. All.

Sometimes existing in Portia's presence means idly wondering if she subconsciously found the secret to perpetual motion and she's very busy trying not to forget it. She just never stops going!

Lazy days happen when you and the Countess gang up and make sure she has 24 hours of a clear schedule when she's on the verge of burning out and is in desperate need of a reset

The day starts by dragging her back into bed and telling her she's not allowed to make breakfast until she's slept as long as possible

Breakfast itself consists of trying to help her snap out of "work work work must get the next task done" mode while you brew some tea. The most effective way to do so is to put Pepi in her lap

After that, the day is delightful. Spending the rest of the morning and early afternoon lying on a picnic blanket in the garden, reading books and eating snacks and watching Pepi chase butterflies

The evening always involves visiting Mazelinka for family time. (It's also the best way to make sure Portia doesn't have to cook)

And nighttime - nighttime is for fireflies and pillow forts and kisses

Lucio

Lucio likes suggesting lazy days every day

Which means that, when the time does come to have one, the first word out of his mouth is "FINALLY."

He's been ready to take a slow day for weeks!! He needs this!!

Sleeping in is essential. If you try to get him out of bed before noon when there isn't a reason to he will start a riot

Went out the night before and maxed out his budget buying all the pastries on sale at the end of the day. Breakfast consists of him wolfing down sugary flaky dough at 1 PM, without leaving bed

He got them for you too - which is how you're presented with the sight of him beaming, shirtless, sitting in a ray of afternoon light with the sheets rumpled around him as he holds out a bite for you

The sugar high is enough to make him antsy. Yes, this is a lazy day, but lazy days are supposed to be enjoyable, and is a day even enjoyable if you haven't gone out to enjoy yourself?

Luxuriates in taking twice as much time to do his eyeliner

Saunters around the square of wherever you're visiting with your hand in his, pointedly ignoring the board of job requests

Stays up super late to savor every last moment of the day off

[sparklingjay]

Here is the whole Sonic X Shadow Sonic channel translation for you just in case you haven't read it before or if you want to read it again:

I got the translation from here:

Beneath the light of the full moon stood the trendy business and shopping district of Mission Street. Sonic perched atop a storefront that overlooked the block, stargazing.

He came here tonight to witness a celestial event.

As usual, Sonic arrived with time to spare, so he turned to watch the hustle and bustle of the city below — when he spotted a black hedgehog engaged in fierce combat behind a back alley… Shadow.

Shadow was one of Sonic's most formidable foes, rivaling his abilities in every way.

He didn’t always choose the dark side, but his ruthless “ends-justify-the-means” attitude had a dangerous unpredictability that sometimes put him at odds with Sonic and his friends…

What was Shadow doing here?

Curious, Sonic dropped to Shadow's side.

Before them lay the wreckage of several G.U.N. Beetle surveillance drones, spewing black smoke and sparks. This was serious.

With an accusatory tone, Sonic asked:

"Yo, Shadow. Looks like you're having a fun night?"

"This is none of your business. Stay out of my way."

Shadow responded curtly, then disappeared into the darkness — but Sonic wasn't one to be left behind. A high-speed chase ensued as they weaved through the twists and turns of Mission Street.

They ran along walls and leaped between buildings, coming to blows as they sped through the rumbling highway into the tunnel… After some time, Shadow kicked out his heel with fearsome agility, but Sonic caught it with both hands.

I'm ending this…

I couldn't dodge it…

They paused in blade lock until Shadow jumped aside, seething in frustration.

"Why are you following me?"

"I don't want anybody pinning your crimes on me again."

"Ha, aren't you paranoid? I'm busy. Farewell!"

Shadow pointed at Sonic, a flickering stone in his hand… A Chaos Emerald.

"Wait! Hold up!"

"Chaos — Control!"

There was a brief flash of blinding light! And when it cleared, Shadow had vanished.

Chaos Control… This was Shadow's signature move, wielding the power of the Chaos Emerald to warp time and space.

To perform this technique with a weakened Chaos Emerald, after exhausting his own power in the previous battle, was an impressive feat for Shadow. Left alone, Sonic could only stare up at the night sky.

"Shadow…"

☆ ★ ☆

Later…

A few blocks away, Shadow had silently infiltrated a suspiciously large bank. The wreckage of a newly-destroyed Beetle rolled at his feet.

"Here. I'm sure of it."

He dispatched another armed Beetle that emerged from the back and proceeded to the second-floor vault, incapacitating the guards who dared fire upon him. As he reached the reinforced vault door, he saw —

Sonic, standing with a smirk, twirling the key card between his fingers.

Using the energy detector he borrowed from Tails, he tracked Shadow’s location and snuck into the bank through an alternate route.

The fact that there were military Beetles all over town, that not one of them sounded an alarm after being destroyed, that they open-fired without warning…

Well, Sonic thought there was something unusual about the whole thing.

"So, what are you willing to exchange for that key card? …No, stupid question. You want the full story of this situation."

With a dour sigh, Shadow lifted his head and recounted the evening’s events.

"This place looks like a bank, but it's a fake… It's actually some sort of a G.U.N. research facility. They're conducting experiments on a mysterious electromagnetic capsule seized from the Doctor's base after our last battle. Now I fear they're using this place as a front to develop even deadlier weapons within the city."

Shadow slowly approached Sonic, continuing:

"I received intel that this capsule is a disguised time bomb set to explode at midnight tonight. If true, it has enough power to obliterate half the city. I tried to send a warning, but they failed to heed it. That's why I came here. What do you believe?"

Shadow paused in front of Sonic, glaring at him interrogatively. Several seconds passed.

"I don't know what to say."

It was a lot to take in. As Sonic worked out his reply, the detector picked up a sudden energy spike and sounded a loud BEEP! Whatever it detected was inside the vault.

"But I know I trust Tails' device."

Sonic grinned at Shadow as he slid the key card through the card reader on the vault. A heavy metallic clanging echoed from within.

Undeterred, Shadow placed his hand on the vault when…!

BANG!

The vault door swung open from the inside, and a group of researchers frantically rushed out.

"Get out of here!" "It's about to explode!"

Emergency sirens wailed as people fled the scene. The whole facility was in a frenzy.

When Sonic and Shadow burst into the lab, they found that it was much larger than they expected, and at the center was a glass-encased capsule about 6 feet tall, protected by an electromagnetic barrier, emitting intense light.

A swarm of armed Beetles spotted them and unleashed a barrage of bullets, despite the imminent countdown.

"Talk about a work ethic! Shadow, you get the bomb!"

“…!”

Sonic easily cleared out the three guard robots before him. Shadow leaped through the ensuing blast toward the capsule. The electromagnetic barrier sensed his approach and emitted an electric charge — then deactivated just before Shadow touched it. At that exact moment, Sonic found and destroyed the barrier generator. And then…

"Chaos — Control!"

A halo of light erupted from Shadow's Chaos Emerald, enveloping the surrounding area. And when the light subsided… There was no trace of Shadow or the bomb. Then, seconds later…

A massive explosion filled the sky above Mission Street.

The fireball was so huge that it eclipsed the moon. The soundwaves that followed shook the surface of the earth. Sonic saw it as he leaped from the bank and gave a cheerful thumbs up.

Meanwhile, Shadow, already outside via Chaos Control, looked on with frustration. He had intended to teleport the bomb into space. However, he could only do so much with a malfunctioning Chaos Emerald.

Shadow pulled out the Chaos Emerald and tossed it to Sonic.

"Shadow…?"

"This is no better than a fake emerald. If I give it to you, maybe your soft nature will restore it."

Sonic shrugged as he caught the Chaos Emerald with one hand.

"I was gonna say thanks, but I take it back…"

☆ ★ ☆

"Why are you still following me?"

Shadow asked without turning back as Sonic trailed him down a deserted road outside Mission Street. Sonic wrapped his hands behind his head and gazed into the night sky.

"I'm the one who should be asking the questions. Since when did you become such a guardian of peace?"

"I don't care about peace. I don't care about these people. What I can't stand are the fools of this planet who believe they can get away with whatever they want — whether that's the Doctor or anyone else, including you. So don't misunderstand me."

A few seconds of silence followed. Shadow scowled, but Sonic kept grinning.

"Okay. I getcha. I'll do my best. But I think some people out there would wanna thank you for what you did today."

"Nonsense. Who would —"

Fed up with Sonic, Shadow stopped cold and finally turned back to shut him up…

"…!?"

Sonic stood with his arm outstretched, the lights of the distant city behind him, pointing up at the full moon shimmering out in space — and floating just above that, staring down at them, was the Space Colony ARK.

The sight of this spectacle left Shadow speechless, the ARK appearing otherworldly in the glow of the moonlight.

The ARK… An ark of hope and pain. The place where Shadow was born, where he gained and lost so many precious things and so much time. A tomb lost in the void with nothing left to sacrifice for this planet.

Once a year, there was a night when the orbits aligned, and the ARK was visible directly above the full moon.

Mission Street was one of the best spots to see it, and Sonic loved the view of the two cold, majestic “moons” against the sea of warm city lights.

Shadow silently watched the ARK.

Nobody knew how many memories or secrets of the past remained in his heart or how he felt about them to this day. But to Sonic, his silence seemed like an answer.

As if in response, Sonic slowly lowered his pointed finger.

Shadow traced Sonic’s gesture downward with his eyes —

— until it landed on Sonic’s own smirking face.

"Enough…!"

Shadow dismissed, then straddled a hidden motorcycle in the bushes at the side of the road. It was a heavy G.U.N. bike. He must have prepared it there ahead of time.

The engine revved to life, drowning out any further comments from Sonic…

"It looks better on its own anyway."

Shadow sped away at full throttle. Sonic didn't chase him this time, but as he turned away, there was a hint of disappointment behind his smile.

☆ ★ ☆

Beneath the light of the full moon stood the trendy business and shopping district of Mission Street.

Beyond the peaceful glow of the city, a lone shadow drifted away as if it was exiled.

The shadow was indistinguishable from the darkness — except to the moon, hanging over the bustling metropolis, watching the shadow from above, always… ★

[azulock]

Day four it is! Shidou's drabbles really have like the hightest wordcounts, this one I had to cut stuff out and it's still big. They are the only ones to break into 900 ewords, go figure.

summary. when you spend long enough trying to hit on someone, but they are just too dense, you gotta start appealing to cheap shots. For Shidou, the cheap shot comes with a Christmas flavor, cause who knows, maybe Santa Claus could ignore how he is on the naughty list and give him what he wanted here.

pairing. Shidou Ryusei x Reader

wordcount. 932 words

4. Under The Mistletoe - Shidou Ryusei

A gush of warmth hit Shidou the minute he stepped out of the snowy night outside and entered the large house. Its vast living room filled with people made it hard for him to tell if the warmth was from the heating or from the sheer number of bodies. Honestly, he was a bit thrown off at how full this Christmas party was. It was held by one of the club's board members - at what was his winter home, gaudy as fuck.

When Shidou got the invitation, he really didn't plan on attending. What made him change his mind, though, was when he heard you would be there. You were part of the team's medical department, and he'd been trying to hit on you for a couple of weeks now. Trying being the operative word, because you were so immensely dense that he was wondering if you were a robot or something. Not that he would stop if you were, but he was kind of running out of excuses to talk to you.

This would also be the first time he saw you outside a work setting, he'd never heard of you going to any of the work events so far. So, this was his chance to test if you were just way too professional, and maybe see if you'd be a friendly drunk and give him a hand there. Great, now he just had to find you in this sea of people.

It didn't take long for him to spot you, drinking with a group of people and laughing about something. He wormed his way into the conversation and from there on worked to spend most of the party around you, hoping that he could get at least a moment with you alone. By this point, he'd probably make it happen if it just didn't naturally.

You were tipsy, not drunk but happy, friendly. It was a welcomed change from your typical serious demeanor. Not that he disliked the usual you, but now at least you were responding to him better. And soon enough you were both alone sitting at a window nook away from the crowd, but you were still damn dense. Fuck it, he'd have to take matters in his own hands.

"I almost had to slap someone for this, stupid people standing in my fucking way," he grunted, coming to sit back down at your side as you watched the snow fall outside.

"Careful that you don't punch someone important by mistake," you laughed, looking back at him and taking the beer he offered you and clinking your bottles together before taking a swing.

"Hey, I'm not that stupid," Shidou protested, pouting in your direction for a moment.

"But you are that crazy," you laughed again, nudging him with your shoulder before you turned back to the window, leaning forward to watch the movement of the cars in the entrance below. "Fuck, look at all those expensive cars outside, do you imagine how crazy dangerous those sports cars are in the snow?"

That was the moment Shidou saw his chance. If you were that blind, maybe he could get a little help from the holiday spirit to make things move along. When he went to get your beers, he snatched a mistletoe from one of the garlands and figured a way to just glue it to the arch over the nook you were on.

"Oh, doctors, so worried all the time," he snickered, long arm stretched as he glued the mistletoe in place without you noticing. "Do you wanna take one of these for a ride and find out?"

"No, thanks, I wanna keep my life after I leave this place," you sneered.

"Oh, you got anything planned after here?"

"Not really," you shrugged, turning back to him. "I'm not an energetic sports star like you, I'm boring, I'll go home."

"Well, I could help you change that," he responded, shooting you a mischievous smile.

"Sure," you laughed, closing your eyes and relaxing against the window.

"Hey," Shidou started, too impatient to wait for you to notice the thing on your own, "did you notice we are under a mistletoe?"

"What? No, we aren't, I'd have noticed that," you said, eyes snapping open and turning towards the arch above you. "Hmmm, that looks out of place."

"You are thinking too much, come on, you know what we gotta do," Shidou tried to distract you, leaning forward and invading your space.

"There is no garland here," you muttered, moving around him and turning to look at where the mistletoe connected before turning back to him. "Hey, that's stuck with gum. Ryusei, was this you?"

"Me? Nonsense."

"You know, if you wanted to kiss me, you just had to ask," you laughed, leaning in closer with a tipsy smile.

"Ask?" He couldn't help but laugh at your words, not even noticing when you got closer. "This is what I've been trying to do the whole nig-"

You silenced him by with a kiss, soft lips molding into his own. It started off soft, but quickly it turned more passionate, his tongue finding its way into your mouth as his large hand held your face in place while you braced yourself on his shoulders. After so long, he was finally getting what he wanted, and it tasted so much better than he could imagine.

"Oh," you blurted out the minute you had to break the kiss for air, "I thought you were just messing with me."

Holy fuck, you were the very definition of dense. Good thing he liked you anyway.

shout out to: @fivenightsatwhoreville @minarinnn @loser-vxbez @pinksodacan

[superums]

niran "bua" Pruksamanee x tank! reader

gn!reader. fluff. alight angst. slight ableism (its in passing). no y/n or name usage. established relationship. reader is an overwatch agent. usages of thai, tell if they're wrong pls :3. no pronouns besides one mention of the word 'woman'. no gendered terms. both reader & niran are 28-31. you're a tank though its not explicitly mentioned.

colored text: niran. you.

sorry i've been gone from so long i started playing baldurs gate😭

general headcannons

you used to be a famous boxer. you were on billboards, headlining major fighting events, making tons of money goes pay-per-view fights—you were a star. you loved hearing your fans chant your name, telling off hecklers in the crowd and the adrenaline running through your veins you left the scene.

during your professional career you used to watch the news and wish you could do something about the things that were going on in the world.

you wanted to help badly but you weren't super human nor did you have any smarts to make up for it. you were just a boxer with a mean right hook.

then your life seemed to change for an instant—you lost both your arms a terrorist attack. it happened quickly; one minute you were fighting at the heavyweight championship the next you were screaming at the top of your lungs as smoke clouded your vision.

you ended your career not long after. you felt like a shell of yourself, not only because of your new disability and the phantom pains that came with it, but also because all you know is fighting.

the prosthetics the doctors offered you didn't feel the same. some couldn't hold a punch, others were hallow and the force of your you exerted would smash it into pieces without you trying.

for a while you were hounded by paparazzi, every time you were in headlines they would run up to you and say things like "it must be hard for you to go from on top of the world to nothing all in a year" or "i pity you really."

you tried to get used to the comments but no matter how many times you tried to swallow the humiliation you felt it just wouldn't go away.

after viral picture of you at the beach without your prosthetics on where people called you everything but a child of god you just decided to go far away from everyone.

you moved to a cabin on a prairie. being so far and out of the way it was a miracle you found him, or well—he found you. he came when you were close to giving up on your dream of fighting ever again.

you were sitting on your porch when you saw him from the corner of your eye standing at your warn down shack. he might have been trying to break into your house or knock you out you're not sure but you offered him a place to stay.

it might've been crazy, to let a stranger live in your roof but it was a decision made out of loneliness. he said his name niran. you let him stay with you. at first it was just for a couple of days; but then it turned into a week, then a month become months.

after a while finally he told you why he was trying to break into your house to begin with.

"i'm a fugitive." came out of his mouth as you both sat next to each other. his cold metal hand would be on top of yours if it was still there.

you turned to face him, calculating what you should say next. you've only know him for a month, its too short to know someone but you felt like he was the nicest person you've met. "i have a price on my head in a few places... seventeen to be exact...." he continued; voice getting lower as he continued. his brown eyes searching for anger or disgust on your face. instead he was met with a mix of curiosity, confusion and maybe a little fear.

"w...what for? if you can say." silence filled the room for a bit, niran was fidgeting with his prosthetic before opening his mouth again. "i...i made a new form of life, i want to heal people."

his voice wavered a little. back then his mind really didn't understand why but in his heart wanted you to accept him, not because he was alone—but because he loved you.

you accepted him without a second thought and after that you let him stay with you. over the months he started to have feelings for you; seeing your smile, the soft voice that was so much different from the one you used in the ring. seeing how you talk to him he might have fallen in love with you as soon as he met you.

you let him advance his technology in your basement and in return he gave you new arms out of hard light.

you knew you liked him but after that; giving you a second chance with arms you could feel things with, if you didn't love him then you definitely loved him after that.

with the new pair of new arms you felt indebted to him. you started training very soon after you got used to your arms not only because you missed it but because now you feel like you have to protect him from vishkar.

when you started dating he's so sweet to you. i'm a strong believer that niran is soft with his lovers even if he is a bit of a flirt. he never rushed things with you, always going slow with everything

it took him weeks of not months to kiss you for the first time, he didn't want to rush anything with you especially when if you're still vulnerable about your situation.

he set up a lovely picnic when he realized he so desperately wanted to kiss you. a large pink tree stood in the large plot of land you call a backyard. he planted plants both real and artificial— hoping it conveyed his love for you well.

he held your hands, his flesh and cybernetic hands held yours with such softness. as he led you to the picnic blanket you felt like you were in a movie; the baby pink tree pulsated and it made you feel gooey (in a good way), the phantom pains you experienced seems to disappear in that moment, leaving just you and niran.

as you both ate he talked to you like about his day how he planned this for months. at some point in your talk strayed away from normal topics, you felt his flesh hand caress your jaw only then you noticed how close you two were; niran peering down at you.

"i've been thinking..." he whispered, you twos lips almost gravitating towards each other—stopping when you two were only a foot apart. "i want to take things slow, not to rush you.." the tree pulsed again as you stared into his eyes, his voice so gentle with you as if you'd break if he talked louder than a whisper.

"can i kiss you?" he asked, you heart warmed at the words; you didn't even speak instead you leaned in more until your lips touched. it was a kiss you of a movie, his cybernetic hand went to you back as his flesh one held your jaw. passion flowed through the two of you and its all you've ever wanted; a movie like kiss with niran.

i imagine he's very passionate when it comes to you. when he kisses you it's almost like it'll be his last; he puts his hand on your chin and cradles your head literally every time it doesn't matter whats going on

his nicknames for you หัวใจของฉัน, ดอกไม้ของฉัน, love, darling and rose

translation: my heart, my soul

he wants his pet names to represent how deeply he loves you and if you don't speak thai he'll use the most intense words he knows.

you're devoted to not only loving but protecting niran! you've tried to train him for the worst case scenario of vishkar coming; and you've come to realize he's a lover not a fighter

so when he told you he was going to join overwatch you told him you were going to follow him and were prepared to argue with him if he said other wise but instead he told you "i was hoping you'd say that"

in game head cannons

while niran flirts with the roster in a joking way just know he seriously means it when he's talking to you! some moments playful and fun while others are more... intense

you: *sigh* it's so cold, i don't know how you're dealing with this

lifeweaver: lets hug! we can warm each other up!

you: *sigh*... it's so cold, i don't know how you're dealing with this

lifeweaver: i just imagine you and i feel so warm (sexual innuendo)

he thinks it's funny to mess with you even if it's in-front of your friends. down worry in reality he wont say things like that too loud... just between you two.

when you get elems he has multiple voice lines where he's in absolute awe in what you can do and they vary on how many kills you get.

1-2 kills usually gets a "you're so cool~" or "you're blooming!" while 3-5 gets a "it's amazing such strong actions can belong to someone so gentle."

i imagine being life gripped feels the same as being dropped from a super high place almost like a roller coster so maybe you have voice lines where you express you hate getting pulled

lifeweaver: *pulls you*

you: ah! it feels so weird when you do that

lifeweaver: *pulls you*

you: im gonna hurl..

if you're critical when he pulls you however your tone changes to something more thankful and sweet

lifeweaver: *pulls you*

you: you love me! you really love me!

reference

lifeweaver: *pulls you*

you: oh niran, i could just kiss you right now!

reference

you two probably have skins that match for sure. you have an epic that just a recolor of your normal skin but its mostly white and you have baby pink forget-me-nots made out of biolight in your hair.

when he eliminates you he's always so cheeky about it. he says "*laughs* forgive me my love!" and "ยกโทษให้ฉันดอกไม้ของฉัน"

translation: forgive me my flower

when he kills you via melee however he always says "*gasp* you must train some more!" and "it looks like i'm the strongest now! *giggles*"

when you send him to the spawn room his voices lines always make him seem more in love with you than upset. he says "*sigh dreamily* oh i love that in a woman" , "such brute strength makes me love them more..." and "พวกเขาทําให้ฉันกระเด็นออกจากเท้าของฉันอย่างแท้จริง!"

translation: they knocked me off my feet literally!

[nuttersincorporated]

Small changes I would have made to Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary episode

For the most part, I really like The Star Beast. However, here are a few things I would have done differently.

Firstly, I think they should have made it clear that Rose Noble is nonbinary before the Meta-Crisis was reactivated. A trans woman is no more nonbinary than a cis woman. They make it very clear she’s trans but not that she’s nonbinary. Can a person be nonbinary while using exclusively she/her pronouns? Absolutely! However, they don’t make it clear that’s what they are doing.

The easiest way would have been to have Rose use she/they pronouns. I would have had Rose wear a badge with ‘she/them’ on it. I would also have added and tweaked a few lines when Donna and Sylvia were talking about Rose in the kitchen.

Sylvia: I don’t know. When I say she looks gorgeous, is that right? I mean, is it sexist? Or is it even the right word for someone who’s nonbinary? I never said it to him when he was… Oh… oh sorry.

Donna: Does she look gorgeous? Yes! So, stop worrying.

Sylvia: I just get so clumsy.

Donna: I know. So do I. You know Rose uses they/them pronouns too. You could use those if it’s easier.

The other thing I would change is the stupid line about a male presenting Doctor not ever thinking of letting something go. I hate that line. Not only is it sexist, it’s also said to the Doctor who – in one episode – has already been more emotionally open than any of the ones who came before including the one who was a woman.

Instead, it would have gone something like,

Doctor: We’ve still got to fix you two because the Meta-Crisis might have slowed down but that thing is wrapped around your cortex.

Donna: Yes, we know.

Rose: We know everything. Thanks.

Donna: And you apparently know nothing, even though you really should.

Rose: We’ve got all that power but there is a way to get rid of it.

Donna: It isn’t even a part of us, not really.

Rose: If a part of who you are isn’t really you or it’s hurting you, you can let it go and change.

Donna: How many times have you changed Doctor and this didn’t even occur to you! Anyway, like my wonderful daughter taught me we can let parts of ourself go and so we choose to let it go.

Then afterwards, there would have been a conversation about how Donna couldn’t have done that the first time around. It was happening to quickly; she didn’t know it was an option and she didn’t think she was worth anything without it. Now she knows better.

Then they’d talks some more about why the Doctor has his ‘old face back’. Is it because he isn’t able to change and move forward at the moment or is there another reason?

[arandomdai]

Leuce and Hades: A Tragic Love Story We Were Robbed Of

⚠️ WARNING: I'm just saying my opinions just like everybody else. So in Demeter fashion, put your tin foil hats on. It's going to be a LONG read. Enjoy!!! ⚠️

• Hades and Leuce: The Titanomachy

I feel like The Titanomachy should've been the start of the book. A part 1 and 2 (and/or 3) of what happened before and after the war. During the fight, Hades was severely injured by Kronos which caused him to be on bed rest. First, the scene with Hera helping Hades should've been Leuce instead. He could've saw how beautiful she was and she would've thought the same about him. Leuce would've talked to him about how brave he was, feeling bad about him being hurt and being trapped in his father's stomach. After, she's done with taking care of him, she could've kissed him on the forehead showing that she cares about him. Next, after the war is over, he meets with Leuce at the beach saying thank you for taking care of me while I was hurt and feeling sorry that she had to see him that way. Leuce would've said it was fine and that she was okay helping him. Hades then asked about the forehead kiss. Leuce would say that she liked him, and wanted to let him know that he was loved (in her own way). After talking about their troubles and giving advice to each other, both experience their first kiss (which could've been the backstory on why he hates the beach). Finally, everyone was ready to move on with their lives. Hades asked Leuce if she wanted to go with him to the Underworld ( Zeus didn't trick him into ruling the Underworld in the myths and Hades didn't need to eat a pomegranate to rule 🙄), and so she said yes. Once they get down there, they get started on building the kingdom.

•The Loss of Leuce

After building everything and trapping Kronos in Tartarus (with the help of Hecate's powers), Hades was planning to propose to her and wanted to do it at Zeus's party. But he discovers that she doesn't look well, and wanted to know what's going on. Leuce explains that she is dying and that she almost lived a full life (keep in mind that they are the same age in this tragic love story). Hades tries to find away to make her live long enough to stay and be with him forever, but it was no use. Using this picture because this could've shown while working in his office, the glowing butterfly could've been a sign that she was about to pass away (or she sends it to him to let him know to be with her). And so he goes to the room, but before he does that, the doctors warned him that he only has 2 minutes to talk to her until she passes. Hades wonders if it was anything they could do, and they shake their head no. Hades walks in with sadness in his eyes with a happy smile. Before Hades could say anything, Leuce tells him something like...

"When I first saw you, I knew that you were the one for me. The love I have for you has grown stronger and stronger than ever. You understood me in a way that no one else could. I witnessed your crystals, your stars, and the real you. Hades I will always have you in my heart for centuries to come. The laughs we shared, the fun we had, and happiness we both have for each other will live on in your heart. Hades no matter what happens, I will always love you and I want you to be happy. Promise me you will be happy (He would tear up and says "I'll try"). My time has come. I love you Hades. I will always love you."

Hades would be crying while holding her hand telling her I love you too. Out of grief and sadness, he turns her into a poplar tree and started wearing a poplar leaf on his suit ever since. Losing her could've been the reason he's bitter, mean, somber, drinking, sulking and having bad dreams. We could've had a enemies to lovers story about him and Persephone (without the "I can fix him" mentality). I feel like him going to that party mad and upset because he is still grieving would've made more sense.

Sidenote: I wish that Hades hair stayed long and his hair would be Obsidian Black (like the glassy mineral since he is the God of Wealth) with swirls and everything. A missed opportunity once again 😒.

•My Rant

The author calling herself a Greek mythology expert is just...not true. When going into the myths, it is a stated that Hades first love was Leuce up until she died, turned her into a poplar tree, and puts the tree in Elysium. So why call this a feminist retelling, when there's nothing feminist about it? Why is Leuce made to be this delusional and gold digging nymph? Why is Persephone being a asshole to her and saying "clout chaser" (which is so cringe)? Having a self insert and a fantasy boyfriend isn't doing this book or the character(s) any favors. Leuce deserve so much better than this. And to see this story just mentions Greek gods and goddesses without giving them their own stories (mythically accurate at that) is sad to see. Just bad writing, bad morals, and a dream.

[random-knowone]

The Kids Are 14.

AN: Sorry if this is OOC or anything, I’ve only seen it once. Constructive criticism is welcome, this is just the second draft. I'll move it to AO3 when I get my invite

TW slurs/internalized homophobia

The kids are 14. 

They lay side by side on the roof of Doug’s house, staring at the stars. There was a light chill in the air, the first hint of Fall around the corner. Corey’s dad wouldn’t let him have sleepovers, so instead he snuck out after his dad fell asleep so they could stay up all night talking about nothing and everything.

Doug groaned loudly. “It’s so not fair, summer break’s almost over and I’ve spend like half of it with this fucking cast on my arm.”

“Well maybe if you hadn’t stolen your dad’s car and tried to drive it all the way to the theater to see some stupid R-rated movie, you wouldn’t’ve crashed it into a tree. The doctors said you were lucky you got away with just a broken arm.” Corey said, with that tone he uses when he’s pretending to be smarter than Doug, even though they both know that isn’t true.

“Bullshit, I didn’t see you stopping me! You were right there in the passenger seat. Of course you only got a concussion, nothing serious ever happens to you.”

“Because you said you knew how to drive! And it’s easy to not get hurt if you’re not a total dumbass, you should try it sometime.” Corey protested. “Why did you want to see that movie so bad anyway?” 

“Brian Kelley at school saw it, he said there were, like, 3 different girls who had their boobs out in it.” Doug said, wiggling his eyebrows.

Corey scoffed. “Gross, you’re such a perv.”

Doug rolled his eyes. “Grow up. If that makes me a perv, everyone’s a perv. Don’t you think about girls?”

“I… You’re disgusting, Doug.” Corey said, shrinking away slightly.

“C’mon, man, don’t you?” Doug’s tone was eager, but playful. He poked at Corey with his good arm, trying to get a reaction.

“I don’t… I don’t wanna talk about it.” Corey muttered, his tone betraying that something was wrong.

Doug leaned in closer. “Do you… Think about boys?” His voice was soft, hesitant to even bring up the suggestion.

“W-what? No! Don’t be an idiot.” Corey exclaimed nervously, fidgeting with his hands.

“Corey, it’s okay, you can tell me.” Doug reached out his arm to comfort him.

Corey shoved him away. “I’m not a fucking faggot, Doug! You don’t know what you’re fucking talking about so just shut up!”

Doug froze. He dropped his gaze, staring at his feet. Corey could count on one hand the number of times he’d seen him act like this. He seemed… Hurt, Scared, almost.

“I… I do think about boys sometimes.” Doug muttered. “I thought maybe you… I guess I’m the faggot.”

Corey stared at him for a second that seemed to stretch on forever. “Shit, I--  I’m sorry, Doug. I didn’t mean… I didn’t know…”

Doug wouldn’t look him in the eye, and started to stand up. “I… I think you should go. It’s getting late, your dad’ll wake up soon, he might notice you’re gone.”

Corey shot up. “W-wait, Doug, come back!” He grabbed Doug by the shoulder. Doug turned around to face him. He stared at Corey, whose face was bathed in the heavenly glow of the moonlight. 

“I… You were right. I do like boys. Not girls too, like you, just… Just guys.” Corey stammered. “I’m the fag, not you. I’m a fag just like my dad’s always said, and I’m nothing, and… And…”

“No, you’re not.” Doug said, slowly stepping closer. He reached up to cup Corey’s face in his hand. “You’re everything.”

Doug leaned in to kiss him, and Corey was too shocked to react. They stayed like that for a while, lips pressed together, two bodies melted into one, under the stars. Slowly the sun started to rise and the two boys crawled back through the window inside, without saying a word.

______________________________________________________________

AN: I loved the dynamic change in making it gay, but I felt like there was a lot of potential in there that was lost by just having Corey's name switched, so this is my attempt to add more of that gay angst

@dsm--v @milolovesbmc

[sinner-sunflower]

P.2 HH Lucifer-centric AU 13/?

STORY 1, PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5, PART 6, PART 7, PART 8, PART 9, PART 10, PART 11, PART 12, PART 14, PART 14.5, PART 15, PART 16, PART 17, PART 18, PART 19, PART 20, PART 21, PART 22, PART 23, PART 24, PART 25, PART 26

Luci is the older sib among the Sins but he's the youngest among the Archangels.

I guess technically, he's the suffering middle child.

If y'all see a mention baby bro or little brother in the Prequel, pretend like you didn't see it ;laksldakl;

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

Perhaps Lucifer should've requested a 1 visitor per visit rule just like he should've expected that he's going to get tackled and suffocated in physical affection by the Sins and Charlie as soon as Belphegor opened the door.

Not that he doesn't like the hugs but he's just one tiny guy and he's pretty sure he's about to be buried alive under these giants.

Thank fuck for Belphegor for prying them off of him before he actually suffocated.

Belphegor: What did I say?! What did I just say?! What are you all? Children?!

A gasp and a coughing fit later, he finally calmed down enough to get his breathing steady. He thanks Alastor for the water, taking huge sips to fix his throat.

'Not to self: don't get buried alive. It's not a fun experience.'

He looks over at the now kneeling Charlie and Sins, head bowed as the Sin of Sloth relentlessly scolds them.

Belphegor: -powers in Hell and you can't follow one simple rule? May I remind you all what happens if I'm disobeyed while I'm treating someone?

All: Visiting rights will be stripped off.

Belphegor: That's right. And I am not above putting a ward on any of you to make it stay that way.

Never mess with Dr. Belphegor. As much as Lucifer is amused, he takes pity on his kids (his kids!) and speaks up to save them from the doctor's wrath.

Lucifer: I think they get it, Bel.

The kneeling demons cower as Belphegor sends them one last glare before huffing and went to typing something in her tablet again.

Beelzebub: Sorry for getting carried away, babe. We just got scared.

Asmodeus: Charlie's call really scared us. Did something happen in Heaven?

Satan: Tell me if that bastard Michael did this, I'll go to Heaven myself and beat his ass! In fact, I'm going over there right now. Open a portal.

Leviathan: Christ, Satan. Can you do one minute without thinking of doing something impulsive?

Satan: Don't say that name here! And fuck you! You're one to talk. Which one of us almost obliterated their ring in anger earlier, huh??

Lucifer: Wha- Levi??

Leviathan: I have no idea what you're talking about.

Mammon: Wait, is that why the elevator took so fuckin long to work? I thought I was gonna be stuck there foreva!

Charlie: At least you're all here now!

Charlie's wholesome sentiment made her aunts and uncles coo, wholeheartedly agreeing with her.

Lucifer: My duckie is right. Even though I said I was fine, you all still came for me. I'm starting to feel bad about making you all rush here every time I get hurt.

Satan: Don't you dare. No one is forcing us to be here.

Beelzebub: Right! Plus you always did the same for us.

He remembers those moments. When the rings formed and the Sins grew enough to move and handle them on their own, he was pretty lonely. Sure, he had Lilith, but children brought a different kind of joy with their company.

Plus, he loved indulging in others and all the children wanted was his attention, which he was always so happy to give.

The last person he would've thought to call him for help first was, believe it or not, Leviathan.

Levi had always presented himself as independent, acting like he's not as young as he was. Lucifer saw the aquatic demon's admiration for him, often mimicking how he talks, walks, and even dresses.

Lilith says it's envy (Because what else could it be, Luci? Isn't he the Sin of Envy?) but Lucifer knows better. He knows that Leviathan only looks at him in admiration. He looks at him like he hung the stars. Like Lucifer means something. Like he deserves to be looked at that way.

He doesn't but he's not going to tell young Leviathan that.

Anyway, Levi couldn't get the raging storms of Envy under control despite trying so hard. He was crying, begging Lucifer to believe that he did everything he could but nothing was working.

So he did what every good sibling/pseudo-father wouldo.

He drops everything and headed straight to Envy. In fact, he ran so fast he forgot to tell Lilith he was leaving.

Instead of fixing the situation himself, Lucifer chose that moment to teach Leviathan. He stayed in Envy until the other got it and not once did he berate Levi for not knowing something that wasn't even taught. It was his fault after all that Levi couldn't control it as he should've known that it doesn't come to everyone that easily.

The little scolding he got from Lilith when he came home super late was worth seeing a proud face on little Levi.

Lucifer: And I always will.

When it doesn't look like they're leaving him anytime soon, he figures he could just tell them now. He sat up a little straighter and internally braces himself for the expected uproar.

Lucifer: Heaven is on the verge of a civil war.

He winces. 'Way to rip off the bandaid, Lucifer.'

The room halted. They stared at him as they try to comprehend what he said just said. Then all at once, everyone bursts into screaming and panic, asking questions at him, at each other, at no one, at everyone. It was chaos and Lucifer can feel something rumble inside him. He figures Roo is enjoying all this unfold.

To be fair, he should've thought better than to say something like that out of the blue.

Lucifer: Sorry from dropping a bomb like that suddenly.

Satan: A bomb???

Mammon: Mate, that's a fuckin' nuclear one if I know one! The fuck you mean a war??

Lucifer: A civil war.

Charlie: What? How are we roped in it?? It's not because of the last extermination right?

Belphegor: You couldn't have told us this the moment you arrived?

Satan: Are we involved? Is that why Michael shot a freakin' laser through the sky??

Lucifer: No but-

Beelzebub: Oh god.

Lucifer: Guys, if you just-

Leviathan: Ozzie, how is our forces? Do you think we have enough manpower?

Lucifer: Guys-

Asmodeus: If it's only our fighting forces, then no. I'm sure a lot of demons would be willing to fight. Plus we have the firepower.

Lucifer: I-

Belphegor: Do we even know if angelic weapons would harm a higher ranked angel?

Oh for fucks-

Lucifer: Ê̵̡̟͔͉̱͓͓̪̝̫͙͇̞͛̓͐͒͒̎͒̋͘Ǹ̶̛͙̲̮͓͈̳̗̟̣̊̍͋́̇̀̋̐́̚̕͜O̷͇͔̒̇͋́͋́̓́͂́͆͋̅͘U̴̡̙̫͕̞̩͎̭̤̤͙̠̓̐̊̚͜G̵͖͇̘̘̩̟̗̠̬̐̈́͛́̾̈́̾̍́̈́̏͠͝H̶̢̬͉̯̞͇̯͈͙̜̬͚̟͙̊̈́͋͂̂̾̒̅̈́̆͊͗͂̚͝.̷̧͇͔͖̜̳̲̪̤͇̇͊͑̋͛̾̓͜͜

.

.

.

The room rattles from his voice. He stop his horns and halo from coming out. Lucifer can't see it but everyone else is staring at him in abject horror as his skin turned into a dark, glitchy mess.

He calms himself by taking in deep breathes until the fire in his mouth extinguishes.

Lucifer: Can I speak now?

[romanestuffsposts]

Hello wonderful

If you have time could you write about stucky's little who has fainting spells? Sometimes when I get too hot i end up passing out, all the noise goes kinda fuzzy and I can only focus on one object in front of me before everything goes black. Maybe the reader faints when they are out at the park/zoo and they both get scared because they forgot that happens to their little?

Hi there love!

Oh no i'm so sorry it happens to you! I really hope you're okay when you have to go through that, It must be hard. Please be careful and take care of you sweetie! ❤️

I hope you like how I wrote your request and I hope it wasn't too long.

Enjoy <33

****

Warnings : fainting spells, lots of sun, zoo, doctors, worried daddies, caring daddies, lost little reader, aftercare

Pairings : Daddies!Stucky ; Daddy!Bucky x Papa!Steve x Little!Reader

Summary : all you wanted was a perfect day at the zoo

****

You finally have the chance to see the koalas. They're in front of you, some of them hidding but the most beautiful koala you've ever seen is just in front of you, behind that giant window.

You had been waiting for weeks, months even before you finally hear a yes from your Daddies's mouths. You couldn't contain your joy from that moment until you step inside the parc.

Your Daddies didn't liked the idea of going to the zoo because it's a big place and knowing you, they knew you would only run around without caring if they're behind you or not. So they were really stressed and anxious whenever you ask them again to go there for a day and they had to come up with an excuse.

But they can't prive you from the funny things of the world so they eventually said yes. Which is why you're here now, gazing at this beautiful koala with your mouth wide open and stars in your eyes.

"it's beautiful, isn't ?" Your Papa smiles as he takes a steps forward. He rests a hand on your shoulder "it's just like you when you're wrapping yourself around us whenever you're in our arms" your Daddy teases as he takes a steps toward you too.

You couldn't thing about anything else, the loud sun peering behind the koala, hitting your head in the process doesn't bother you more than that, the loud chatters from people around you don't bother you so much, neither do the smell of food mixed with the smell of all the animals around because your mind doesn't focus on all of that.

Your Papa's hand slide up to your forehead because he wanted to put away some hairs that were in front of your eyes but he stops when he feels how hot your head is.

‘’Bucky’’ he discreetly calls to not alarm you. Bucky calmly walks closer and gives his husband a question look.

Steve’s eyes fall on his hand before going back in your Daddy’s, signaling him what he has to do. Bucky slowly and naturally rests his hand on your forehead once Steve moved his and his eyes immediately go wide.

‘’Baby ?’’ His eyes rest now on you ‘’are you feeling okay ?’’

You didn’t wanted to leave so you hadn’t told your daddies that you started to feel too hot to your liking. After the koalas you were supposed to go see the Penguins so it would be a place a lot more fresher than now. You had hoped it helped to make you feel better.

‘’Mh-mh’’ you nod your little head as your eyes stay glued to the beautiful animal in front of you.

‘’put your hat on, please’’ Your Papa orders in a gentle but firm voice. If you still feel fine then it’s not gonna last long with your head heat.

You whine quietly because you have to look away for a second to go in your bag and pull out your hat. But the way your Papa had spoke told you enough to not disobey him.

As you look down after putting your bag on the ground, you suddenly feel your head spinning just by the little movement of looking down instead of right in front of you. You lose your balance and extend your hand to try to grab your Papa’s leg so you’ll stay on your feet.

Your Daddies didn’t noticed until you fell on the ground that something were wrong but once they did, all their attention go on you.

Steve is quick to pick you up after you hadn’t respond his call while Bucky shout at everyone to move off of their way and to the staffs to do something.

You were quickly taken under care. The doctors of the park were quick to come meet you and they take your Daddies and you with them, toward a place quieter and hidden from eyes.

‘’Lie her here’’

The older doctor walk toward you once your Papa agreed to let you go and start his examen.

Questions and questions were thrown at your Daddies like ;

Ad she eaten anything since breakfast ?

Did she wear a hat ?

Did she had sunglasses on her eyes ?

Did she had enough water ?

Did they avoid areas that are too exposed to the sun?

They answered each one of them with the hope of finding what happened.

The doctor came to the conclusion that the sun had hit your head to much and said that you needed rest. They proposed to let you there until you feel better.

‘’Does it happen often ?’’ The young doctor asks as he pulls a blanket above you and rest a glass of water beside the hospital bed.

Bucky shakes his head ‘’no it ne- fuck yes’’ he breathes out after réalisation hit him. He runs a hand in his hair as now both of the doctors have their eyes on him ‘’ it already happened’’

He turns to Steve who looked at him with wide eyes. How could’ve they forgot such a thing ?

‘’It already happened ?’’ The older one ask ‘’ can you tell me the frequency of the fainting spells ?’’

‘’We- we don’t really know, it happened only three times since we-‘’ Bucky doesn’t finish his sentence.

‘’explain to us the situation of when it happened please’’

‘’Well the first time it was after we moved out. We just brought a house a few months after we meet her and at the end of the last day of moving she faints in the living room.’’

‘’The second time it happened we weren’t there. She stayed with a friend of us who loves her and they went to the parc and had a fun day out. Right before going in the shower before her bedtime she faints’’

‘’And the last-

‘’okay so she faints when she has too much exercices ?’’ The young doctor asks

‘’It’s not possible. We have a lots of days like those and it doesn’t happen each time’’ Steve states.

‘’It’s normal it doesn’t happen each time. Usually it’s factors that change and we cannot alway plan what will happen before it happens. Sometimes there are signs and other times there aren’t any’’ the older one say.

‘’Now that we know it’s not only because of the sun, we’re not gonna call an ambulance but I advice you to go see a doctor. He will be able to help you and her through it. Maybe someone in who you have your trust in’’ he adds.

They know the perfect person for that.

The doctors leave the room you were all in to give you some quiet. They said to take all the moment you needed and that they’ll come every fifteen minutes to check in.

Bucky kneels at your head’s level and runs his fingers gently in your soft hair, he presses a sweet kiss on your forehead, waiting patiently for you to open your eyes.

~

A few minutes later which was an eternity for your Daddies. Your little eyes start to blink at the unknown room you’re in.

You let out a tired moan which immediately got your Daddies’s attentions. ‘’ princess ?’’

You look to the side and see both of your favorite men sitting beside you, their big hands around your little one ‘’hi there my sweet love’’ Bucky smiles with relief in his eyes as he finally sees your beautiful eyes

‘’Are you feeling okay ? Do you want some water ?’’ Your Papa asked, already on his feet to give you the glass before you even respond.

But you whine and shake your head which cause him to stop his movement ‘’alright but don’t hesitate to tell us when you want it’’

You nod your head and close your eyes, you just want to sleep

‘’you’re tired babydoll ?’’ Your Daddy’s fingertips keep massaging your scalp and hairs which make you want to sleep even more. You sigh through your nose and nod your head.

‘’Alright, rest sweetie. We don’t have to worry about the day, we still have lots of time to keep the visit and if you don’t have the strength to do it anymore then it’s totally okay, we can come back another day’’ your Papa whispers in your ear

‘’We’ll take care of you, always. You’ll never have to support your pain alone, no matter what pain it is. We’ll always be there, always’’

[corruptimles]

I R EMMEBERED TO SEND YOU ANOTHER ONE. 🌠🌪️🖍️🎀✏️✂️🏊🌌 november

sicko at the window for talking about beans

🌠 SHOOTING STAR - if they could make any wish with no repercussions, what wish would they make?

for if everything didn't happen (legacys deaths? the supernova? them?)

🌪️ TORNADO - what is the biggest change you've ever made to them? how have they changed from their original version?

November's characterization and appearance has actually stayed consistent since making them. At most, he doesn't talk as much anymore in his default state, and avoiding being outside of their suit more.

One thing that was retconned was a scene when November talked about missing safety railings. That was originally from Greyvember whose character was developed further later on, so the dialogue doesn't suit him anymore and Northvember said it instead.

🖍️ CRAYON - what advice would you give to them?

uhhhh that's rough buddy

🎀 RIBBON - how would they fit into other worlds / aus? what aus would you like to try out? what fictional world would they fit / not fit into?

November is really weird to fit into other worlds. He can't be in anything that doesn't include some form of a supernatural/magic system and/or creatures? Because if I were to simplify his concept down to what's recognizable: November is a collection of souls associated with a form or container where they attempt to be one guy or one thing. So any "modern au" without supernatural elements wouldn't really work. November's situation is not equivalent to irl cases of DID. Fantasy settings are probably fine. Be some weird cursed person or artifact, easy. Armoured suit November? could you imagine. There's a Pokemon AU for Modleyverse, where the only difference is that Pokemon exist. BUT. If November WAS a Pokemon, they're like a Spiritomb.

✏️ PENCIL - is there a particular quote / lyric that you associate with them?

From the playlist made for them uhhh maybe these parts

from Each Time I Die - Bones & Beeker

from November - Sparkbird

✂️ SCISSORS - what is the "last straw" for them to cut someone out of their life? how easily do they let go of people?

November so far hasn't been in a situation where it's gotten to that. It's theoretically very easy to get November to start avoiding you if they become afraid. An example is when Mars accidentally sliced the suit and November got scattered and panicked, and so started associating Mars with his tools rather than as crewmate. They got slightly better though, because they're both on a spaceship with nowhere to go, with Mars trying to coax November out of the vents, and something keeps urging November to do his tasks, so he couldn't hide forever. Other situations wouldn't resolve as easily, especially if November doesn't have any connection to the person prior.

🏊 SWIMMING - can they swim? or are they afraid of water? how well do they swim? how do they feel about swimming in the ocean?

Nope! It's really hard to swim with a suit, and otherwise would be extinguished if it's enough water. If with a proper suit, still cannot swim well at all. How they feel about swimming depends, but you're most likely to get either "no.. that's scary.." or "yes, I am an excellent swimmer :)!" and proceeds to not move because of subconscious self-preservation.

🌌 MILKY WAY - what was the inspiration behind your oc? what was the first thing you decided about them?

First was their name. I just like code word stuff so I picked a couple names from the phonetic alphabet (my beloved) for an astronaut character. I think I had: bravo, kilo, november, tango, and whiskey? Friends suggested november because I was using the white suit and the month of november is cold. This influenced having a winter outfit theme later as well.

Visually, November was recycled from an old UOHRPG (different OC world) enemy + Vashta Nerada from Doctor Who

Other influences were also: The Flood (The Waters of Mars episode) which were liquid parasite colonies The Lux Foundation Library/Doctor Moon's concept of "saving" (which are also from Silence in the Library which is where the Vashta Nerada were introduced, and were the reason needing "saving") (cuz November is both the murderer and victim) That one specific burnt Elsen from OFF (which is what the UOHRPG enemy was inspired by) And the specific discomfort and fear I got from Everyman being swarmed in Undertale Obligatory The Thing mention, which may have also helped with the winter theme. And I like fur hoods, winter clothing in general -> the jacket/bag helmets and gas masks -> the fighter jet helmet uniform/military dress uniforms -> hat/neck tie/aiguilettes

[undiscovered-horizon]

would you ever do a chubby/plus-size!reader? i would love to see and 11th doctor x chubby!reader where they go to a formal and it’s the first time he sees reader glow like that, since she often hides herself in baggy clothes.

kinda hurt/comfort vibes. ahh i feel like 11 would be such a romantic dork, feeling all star struck. 🥺 not understanding why she thinks she’s anything but the most beautiful person in all the universes. because that’s how he sees her 😭💕

🫀REQUESTS ARE OPEN🫀 || Doctor Who-inspired playlist

"Blessing me" - 11th Doctor x chubby!Reader

WORDCOUNT: ~ 1.5k

Looking for an alien on an intergalactic banquet sounded like a blockbuster space opera but there was the tiniest detail that turned it all into a nightmare - being part of it yourself. Banquets, as it befits them, mean elegant people in fitted clothes and with graceful manners. In a bitter way, it was hilarious to you as it seemed like banquets were everything you didn't have. Nevertheless, it wasn't something you could just opt out of - you signed up for the charming and deranged yourself.

Sometimes being clothed felt worse than being naked and you were painfully aware of that at the moment. Maybe most of your skin was underneath the material but still, it felt like it creased and tightened in all the wrong ways and places as if it sprouted a mind of its own that was determined to make you look the worst way possible; like it wanted to show the entire universe just how ungraceful or inelegant you were, how out of place. The dress itself was absolutely gorgeous: pion purple velvet, leg slit, cleavage... It truly looked taken straight from a magazine cover. Except you could hardly call yourself a cover girl.

The moment he heard the creak of the hinges, the Doctor moved away from the side of the TARDIS that he had been leaning against. His expression became worryingly blank when his eyes fell on you: he could either be a victim of a storm of chaotic, dismembered thoughts or a complete lack thereof. It was hard to tell which one. For some reason, it looked like he was frozen in time for a moment, with no movement or even blinking. He just... stared.

"Do I... look okay?" you asked hesitantly.

The Doctor suddenly shook awake. Immediately, his eyes wandered off and he refused to look at you again. Still, putting on a brave and certainly aloof face, he clasped his hands and turned in the direction you two should be heading:

"Yes, right, lovely. Let's go."

He just began walking away without a care in the world, more interested in the imminent danger than you. His remarkable lack of engrossment sprouted a sinking feeling in your stomach like a lead globe pulling you underground, the dread stealing your ragged breath.

"Oh God, he can't even look at me," you whispered to yourself. Your day was about to get worse as if it wasn't bad already.

Not having much experience in walking in heels, you were doing a silly, fearful trot trying to catch up with the Doctor and his long strides. But your attempt at running wasn't the only silly thing - you felt it was all of you. Finally daring to wear something else than loose jeans and a jumper only to remember why it was your exclusive clothing choice in the first place.

The ballroom was filled with aliens most of which you'd never seen before even after all this time and adventures with the Doctor - your world was still tiny. The place was packed. Every person you laid your eyes on looked fascinating even if not exactly beautiful by human standards. They left a lasting impression that made you all the more conscious about your own outstanding looks. Not the good outstanding, to be clear.

"So, looking for an alien, right?" You tried your best to seem unbothered and collected. Whether you were successful or not, Doctor's attitude remained the same: avoidant.

He was answering you while squeezing past various alien specimens in relatively elegant attire. It was difficult to hear what exactly he was saying as laughter and music echoed through the ballroom. "Yes. Well, no. An android built by an alien."

"Tomato, tomato. We're still looking for something not human on an intergalactic charity ball. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

The Doctor stopped abruptly. You were watchfully following his gaze and it felt like time slowed down as you saw him glance at you and hurriedly look away. He was nervously rubbing his hands. "Well then, let's find a magnet. Shall we?"

As if he wasn't a strange enough man already, the Doctor's behaviour only became more bizarre. Sometimes you'd notice, out of the corner of your eye, his curious but reluctant gaze as if he wanted to look at you but didn't want anyone else to know. Perhaps, he didn't want you to know.

The dread only continued to pull you towards the ground, the tips of your fingers turning cold and trembling. A panic raised in your chest, and obsessive thoughts kept rushing you to just go, just leave and disappear - like you were never meant to be in this place at this time.

The aforementioned lead sphere kept dragging you and dragging until you've known nothing else except desperation and panic. You needed to know the reason, to either burn in shame or laugh at your far-fetched conclusions. Whatever the answer was, you had to end that dreadful silence.

"Why won't you look at me?" you asked him.

"What? I am looking at you, what are you on about?" Despite his reassurance, he hardly gave a glance vaguely in your direction.

He kept on leading you through hotel-like corridors, guiding you to a destination he never thought to disclose. The Doctor's attention was focused on the painfully mundane furnishing: ferns, brackets, dusty oil paintings, nauseating carpets and doors that had been repainted a little too many times.

"See? Even now, we're talking and you're staring everywhere but at me. If I look hideous, just say it and let's get over it."

"Hideous?" he repeated as he suddenly stopped walking. He looked over his shoulder at your but only for a short moment. "Of course you don't look hideous, why would you say that?"

"Well, I'm not blind," you said as you vaguely pointed at your body. It was a nice euphemism, a lot less raw and honest than consciously thinking about the graceful, elegant aliens you were surrounded by. "Which is exactly why I noticed you've been refusing to look me in the eye ever since we got here. Why's that? Just... just be honest. For God's sake, just tell me why."

"Because I can't!" he suddenly raised his voice. Whatever nerve you struck, it was a quite prominent one.

"Can't or won't?"

"Both I suppose."

"But... why?" Perhaps if it was so difficult to get an honest answer from him, you shouldn't want to learn it, after all. Maybe there was a reason he kept circling around the truth.

"A Christmas tree!" he exclaimed with excitement. His eyebrows raised ever so slightly. "Everyone loves a Christmas tree. It's lovely, it's gorgeous. Very distracting. Best not to look at it if you've got work to do."

"I'm... distracting?" Although he made it sound fairly good, a distraction could hardly be considered an advantage of any sort. Especially in your current line of business.

"A lot more than I'm willing to admit. Now come on, we've got the universe to save."

The Doctor was about to turn around and probably run off straight into the jaws of danger hiding behind the corner but you grabbed his arm. "No, hold on a minute. You're not going to elaborate?"

"I think I made myself clear, didn't I?"

"Not exactly. 'Distracting' is a little ambiguous, don't you think? Do you mean good distracting or bad distracting? Butterflies of mosquitos?"

He pulled his hand out of your grasp. His eyes stared at your face in a manner so intense, so passionate, it nearly made you want to look way as if his gaze could burn through your skin. The Doctor was bursting at the seams, all the words he hadn't said seeping through.

"I mean distracting as in the whole universe could implode and I wouldn't care because you're here. 'I could die a happy man because I've seen you' kind of distracting."

Your mind was filled with static and even that was an understatement. Maybe you heard him wrong? Or he never said anything close to admiration and you were simply overinterpreting his intentions? Silently, you stared at him. For the first time that day, he also stared at you as if he finally gave in to an urge. At that moment, his eyes dared not look away.

"You keep on blessing me and it makes my mind go all stupid and it's distracting. Does that settle it?"

"Yeah," you answered although you didn't quite believe your own words. Truth be told, you weren't sure what to say or think. How does one accept such a confession? "Yeah, I think it does."

A distant crash and blood-chilling scream distracted both of you from the intimate words. Maybe, in some funny way, it was the android that found you, instead of the proper way around.

"Great! Now let's go on a little hunting trip."

Perhaps his eyes couldn't stay on you but his thoughts never left your side.

[wheeljack-boom]

Entropy

The entirety of this can be found here.

I've posted numerous bits and pieces before for fun, but this is the initial piece of writing I did several years ago. Only recently have I gone back to it and decided to keep writing, despite it initially being intended as a one-shot. Originally when I wrote this years ago I was inspired by the way the 5th Doctor meets Amy Pond. Don't know why, but here we are. It was a bug I couldn't get out of my head.

No warnings. Cybertronian/Human relationships. Platonic only, but lots and lots of fluff. Human is an AFAB original character. Non-canon AU.

Like clockwork, the earth’s moon rose high into the atmosphere, a burning white disk of reflected solar energy that bathed the terran landscape in cool white light. The tidally locked piece of rock, perpetually circling the organic planet in the solar system designated 876B, was itself a consistent reminder of the passage of time. It was predictable, and observable with all the reliability of a Cybertronian energon flux. The earth’s entropy relied solely on its inhabitants and its ever-changing climate, but never its predictable partner in the black. Order, and its close approximate chaos, were two parts of the same spectrum, just as the order of the cosmos inhabited the same plane of reality as the chaos of the living, changing planet.

Chaos was the friend of the large, robotic mass now currently trying to navigate through the relative quiet and darkness of what was usually a place thrumming with life. Chaos was what he thrived on; it breathed creativity and ingenuity and change, and that was something that heralded some of the greatest scientific discoveries of order and truth. The order of the cosmos, sometimes got very dull.

Now, however, the particular bit of chaos that Wheeljack found himself in was nothing if not unsettling.

Wheeljack’s joints groaned with a subtle whir as he moved, the transformium paneling on his legs shifting and one shoulder wheel spinning slowly as he crept forward through the darkness. The Autobot scientist was suddenly very self-conscious that he was out in the open, vulnerable and undisguised in his much more conspicuous bipedal form. A collection of small buildings surrounded him, but none of them even came close to his own height, so he had to duck slightly as he crept his way through to his target: the human power station.

The surrounding landscape was only inhabited by a scattering of human agricultural settlements, so the night hours afforded Wheeljack some privacy without having to worry about being seen. It still made him uncomfortable however, as every movement he made seemed uncharacteristically loud even to his own audio receptors. Every scan he omitted could potentially be picked up by human equipment, including their own military base some miles away, but the Autobot took care to be brief. His audible presence, and to some extent his invisible presence could be easily explained away, but his visual presence was not something that the dominant organic life forms knew existed. Quite simply, if a human saw him, the probability that they would react poorly was quite high.

With this in mind, the large Autobot moved carefully in the black, mindful of the way the moon highlighted his white armor panels. His glowing blue optics were soft and searching in the dark, but were obvious markers of his presence as he awkwardly tried to retain a quiet, steady pace to his destination. He dimmed their brightness, but didn’t expect it would make much difference. He wasn’t exactly outfitted for camouflage; he wasn’t a soldier per say, but necessity never particularly cared for those details. The open night sky above him was filled with more stars than what he remembered seeing on Cybertron, but he couldn’t take the desired time to admire their scientific wonderment. Wheeljack was practically a glow stick against the inky black, illuminated with the night’s natural ambiance.

A nearby sound startled the large form, and he froze, ducking his head as the soft thrum of machinery reacted to his sudden movements. He wasn’t entirely sure what he would do if he got caught sneaking around. Current positioning was too tight to transform, unless he wanted some sort of catastrophic misalignment on his way down; wouldn’t that be fun. His only option was to duck harder, maybe make himself less obvious and a visual illusion in the darkness—human eyes weren’t always reliable unaided at night—but at roughly two dozen feet in height and made out of living metal, that wouldn’t really do much. He waited a few minutes longer, systems and venting cycles stilled until he was satisfied with the lack of movement in his immediate vicinity. His destination was so close, and a sudden urgency overcame him as he vented the air he’d been holding inside his chassis.

The central power grid for the immediate human population center sat before him, relatively small, but about the right size one might expect for a settlement of this size. It would do for what he needed: that being the desperately sought out energy reserves him and his fellow Autobots required to keep their shielding running. So far from home, on an alien planet, stranded and functioning at not even half capacity with a skeleton crew, they could not synthesize energon themselves. Wheeljack had developed a process—unbeknownst to a certain Prime that would highly disapprove—that could convert the electrical currents from human power grids into a slightly lower grade energon. It would do to keep them functioning and protected, but it would require more in terms of sheer volume to do the job that a fraction of naturally occurring energon could. This was a stop-gap that wouldn’t last for long, and eventually he’d have to come clean to Prime and the rest of the Ark crew that he was using human resources.

Wheeljack was one of the most brilliant Autobot scientists to ever live, possibly the only one left, and this organic planet had him scrambling for scraps and drastically understocked of supplies needed to carry out any idea he might have. He was trapped and didn’t know what else to do, but the other Autobots were looking to him for an answer. He could deal with the truth later, and Primus willing, would have enough time to come up with a means of synthesizing what they needed without stealing it from the native life forms. Until then, it was his secret, and the most they had to know was that he figured out a purely practical way to produce a lower-quality brew that could at least tie them over.

The main power conduit was just on the other side of a chain link fence. Wheeljack stopped just short of it and crouched. He didn’t even have to climb over the tiny barricade. He could just reach in and take what he needed.

This gave the Autobot pause. It felt wrong, but Wheeljack was disconcerted with how this was becoming easier to justify in the name of survival. Theft, and deception was not something the Autobots did. It was one of the many things they had fought against when trying to save their planet; when they had failed. What he was about to do was something that was typically more associated with the Decepticons, the other side of the war that had proved to be too relentless. Even the more morally reprehensible acts the Autobots had engaged in—out of necessity and against their very nature—could not even compare to the atrocities committed by the opposing faction. Driving them off their planet was not enough. Now, the lingering impact of being alone and crippled was a continuing punishment, but even then, to the Decepticons it was not enough. They followed their evacuation, lurking somewhere out in the shadows of the cosmos, waiting for one Autobot misstep that would give away their location.

Survival however, was a drive that was strong not just amongst organics, and the Autobots would not survive without energon. That much was simple. They would either go offline from malnourishment, suffer catastrophic injuries that were beyond repair without the life-giving blood of their species, or be blown apart by the Decepticons once their shielding failed and they were finally found. Energon was used for just about every component of Cybertronian life; it was little wonder that its availability and the fight to appropriate the dwindling resource would bring about their ultimate downfall. The Autobot scientist had no other choice.

Wheeljack carefully reached an arm towards the main conduit but paused. Doubt and fear nagged at him. As soon as he started syphoning power there would be no going back. Their presence would be detected, and even if the humans didn’t immediately determine what was happening, it would still open up many questions.

Their existence was probably going to be detected soon enough anyway, Wheeljack reasoned. Either the Decepticons would find this backwater planet and make themselves known, or force the Autobots to make themselves known preemptively. It was a matter of when.

Reaching back over the fence, Wheeljack sub-spaced the minute form of an energon cube. As he edged it closer to the power source, its programming cycled through the myriad of commands Wheeljack had dictated to it. It expanded as a series of bicortex nanotubes took root into the human machinery. The cube started to glow, pulsing as it grew with the energon that began to trickle into it, filtering through the anchored piping that had now weaved its way into the cracks and entry ports of the central power conduit.

There was a brief hiss, which turned into a low hum that seemed to emanate around Wheeljack, growing in intensity as the energon cube increased in mass and brightness. It was working, and as the few lights around him started to power down without the sufficient energy flow to feed them, Wheeljack felt a sense of guilt.

“Well, not like I can put it all back now...” He muttered to himself, looking at his prize. Like the ancient human story of Prometheus stealing fibre… I’m gonna be in a lot of trouble—

A sudden ping on his internal com system alerted him to an additional presence attempting to make contact. It was like a prickling into his awareness, a sudden sense of no longer being alone in his own head and it made him jump with a start. Nobody was supposed to know what he was up to, much less where he was, and if they were contacting him on his com link rather than searching him out that meant they knew he wasn’t in the Ark.

“Wheeljack.” The voice pressed. It was abrupt, and sounded very, very annoyed.

“Ratchet!” It was the Ark’s chief medical officer, which also meant Wheeljack was about to get an audio full of whatever had Ratchet’s temper up this time. It was usually him anyway, so he was used to it. Whenever Wheeljack wasn’t in Ratchet’s med-bay partially blown apart, melted, electrocuted or otherwise incapacitated in some way of his own doing, Ratchet usually found other things to get angry about.

“What are you doing?” Ratchet sighed with the typical tone of resignation, as if he was expecting Wheeljack to attempt to lie his way through this. Sadly, that had been exactly what he was about to do.

“I was uh—”

“Save it. I know what you’re doing, I’m not stupid. I’m on Teletraan-1 right now watching you syphon off that power.” Ratchet of course meant he was detecting the energy fluctuations resulting from Wheeljack’s theft on the Ark’s central monitoring system. Wheeljack hadn’t even thought of that...

“We need this more than they do. They can just build a fire or something.”  Wheeljack knew the absurdity of his statement was reason enough for Ratchet’s impending incredulity but he was out of excuses. He hadn’t even thought of one to begin with.

“Primus help me, you can’t be serious.” There was an exasperated ripple that pulsed through their psychic com link. “That isn’t the point, Wheeljack. For one thing, stealing from the humans was expressly forbidden by Prime.”

“Don’t tell Optimus.” Wheeljack faltered. Not out of fear, as Optimus Prime was not the type to heavily punish his subordinates. It was shame, because then he would know that Wheeljack had let him down… No one wanted to let Optimus Prime down.

“Just get back here before someone else sees you.” Ratchet said tersely, as Wheeljack quickly retracted the now-full energon cube. It detached from the human power structure with a crackle of energy, a few errant drops of white-hot energon showering the ground as he subspaced the cube for travel.

“Alright, I’m comin’, nobody’s around for miles—” Wheeljack turned quickly, internals thrumming as he prepared to make a hasty retreat, but he froze mid-crouch. He was not alone.

Ratchet’s voice continued in his audio receptors. “Right, they may not be there now, but you know they have their own scanners and sensors, weak and understandably inferior as they may be, but they’re certainly enough to figure out that someone is stealing something—and Wheeljack are you even listening to me?”

He was listening, but Wheeljack had a far more immediate concern, offsetting Ratchet’s yammering to ambient noise. His entire body tingled with the intense need to flee, but he remained rooted to the spot.

“Wheeljack, are you still there? What are you doing? You need to get out of there.” There was a pause. “Primus, Wheeljack. Please, tell me nobody has seen you.”

“Somebody sees me.” Wheeljack responded slowly, his optics locked on the new development in front of him.

It was a small, tiny human being. It stood there, quiet and still, its optics locked on Wheeljack’s. There was an immediate hiss from within his processor as their joined com link was overcome with an exponential amount of creative expletives.

“How do you know?!”

“It’s lookin’ right at me…”

“Is it a threat?”

“I...don’t think so. No.”

“Then deal with it, and extract yourself immediately.” Ratchet severed the link, not so much out of anger, but sheer panic and necessity; self-preservation dictated that it was better to not take the chance in assuming humans couldn’t sense their link and track it to the source, but Wheeljack highly doubted that was true, at least with what he currently faced.

Ratchet’s more immediate demand of dealing with the threat was upsetting, the implied action behind it vague enough that it made Wheeljack feel queasy. The humans weren’t a threat, at least he didn’t think so, and the one that was looking at him now didn’t seem to be dangerous at all. Ratchet had megacycles more field experience than Wheeljack, however. The decisions the medic would have had to make on the battlefield were beyond Wheeljack’s desire to contemplate.

This wasn’t a battlefield however, and this did not appear to be a soldier.

It made a noise, much like a soft venting of air, but it was small-sounding and very much unthreatening if the way the small human’s optics were casually locked onto him was any indication. This didn’t stop Wheeljack from recoiling back in alarm, the noise startling him out of his frozen state and right back through the small fence and into the very power conduit he had just been stealing from.

As if things couldn’t get any worse for him, the entire structure came crashing down under his sheer weight. Whatever light or electrical device was still working with what power he’d left behind was now out, and would be for miles. The noise was staggeringly loud from cables, wires and metal panels piling on top of him as he scrambled to get upright. Eons spent on the battlefields of Cybertron had conditioned Wheeljack against his very nature to always be prepared to fight for his survival, so he’d gotten rather good at picking himself back up. Nearly offlining himself in his own lab on a daily basis certainly kept him well-practiced.

This wasn’t a Cybertron battlefield, and this wasn’t his lab, so as soon as Wheeljack was upright he quickly processed every nano-inch of his surroundings. His urgency was only matched by his concern for the human. Firstly, he feared that it had gotten hurt in such a display of uncoordinated prowess, and secondly being on his back and vulnerable meant that he was open season for anyone, human or otherwise, to drop a bomb on him.

The human thankfully had been smart enough to have scuttled out of danger, and was now peering at him from behind a nearby pillar with what Wheeljack thought he recognized as the human expression of amusement. A quick check from his memory banks told him that this human was female, rather small and underdeveloped for the species, and quite possibly not very—

—It was a child.

Wheeljack’s processor stuttered to a halt, the sudden revelation that he was standing in front of a human child fascinating, yet also very terrifying. By his estimation the female couldn’t be more than four feet tall, looking pale and somewhat disheveled in the moonlight. Human children were smaller, weaker, and mentally underdeveloped relative to their fully grown counterparts, which wasn’t saying much to begin with. That said, the sheer novelty of observing such a small human up-close was nothing compared to the trouble he was going to be in if he didn’t somehow coax the human into not seeing what she was currently seeing… and forget all about him.

The Autobot was so internally focused on figuring out how to get out of the situation that he didn’t immediately process the soft noise the human was making. It was laughter. The human was laughing at him.

This went completely counter to his expectations.

The noise was small, and quiet, but it was so non-threatening that Wheeljack instinctively lowered his guard. The small human was covering her mouth with a hand, her small dark optics just barely glimmering in the moon’s light but they revealed enough of her state-of-mind to tell Wheeljack that for whatever reason, this human child was not afraid of him.

It was then that Wheeljack realized maybe his full height was a little too much, and it also made him vulnerable to other prying eyes. He carefully picked his way out of the rubble he had created, mindful of the way he moved and how heavily he stepped. The little human didn’t seem to react, other than to remove her hand from her face, presumably the humor in the moment now gone. Wheeljack spared a glance at the flattened mess he’d made, ruminating that if he’d been able to get away with his little stunt undetected before, he certainly wasn’t going to be able to now.

“Are you a fairy?”

The soft noise made Wheeljack jerk back around, the immediate source unmistakable as the human child still standing in front of him. Her expression was one of naive wonder, and it made Wheeljack uncomfortable. Human expressions were not so different from Cybertronian, and that wasn’t an expression he often saw coming from his own crew mates when they were looking at him. It was usually terror. That was usually followed by something blowing up.

Wheeljack switched his speech codex to English, rapidly filing through data banks searching for an appropriate dialect; the North American continent, United States of America, New York City—large population center and common stereotype in human popular culture. Their current coordinates were on the opposite end of the continent, but it would do because he probably needed to say something. Communicating with her in Cybertronian would not have been productive as she wouldn’t understand it.

“A fairy?” He checked the local knowledge bank—the Internet—for the definition of the word. Once he was able to ascertain the visual representation of a typical mythological creature that went by that designation, he found himself perplexed.

“Duh. You have wings.” The child��s reply pulled Wheeljack out of his internal research and brought his focus back onto her. She was pointing at something behind him, and the frankness of her voice gave the Autobot the impression that she thought this was something that should have been obvious. It dawned on him that this human child was actually giving him attitude.

Wheeljack made a show of looking where she was pointing, at first not getting her meaning until it occurred to him what she was so focused on. She was talking about his rotary fins, purely sensory-net but freely rotating from his body. They most certainly were not wings…

“Oh these?” Wheeljack replied, the soft blue illumination from the venting panels on the sides of his face blinking with each syllable of English he spoke. “They’re not wings, but highly-sensitive neuro-net transmitters that—” Wheeljack was about two-thirds of the way through his highly detailed explanation before he realized that the human was definitely not listening, and more likely that she didn’t even know what he was talking about. She now seemed more distracted by his blinking then anything else.

“Alright, they’re wings. You got me. I’m not a fairy though.”

He took care to keep his voice low and unthreatening, not wanting to scare the small human away. It was probably better to humor the child rather than outright run away and leave her with questions… that she would later go to the much more mentally capable adults to answer…

“Oh.” The little human pursed her lips, then proceeded to point at one of the venting panels on the side of his head. “Why are your ears so big? And why do they do that when you talk?” She looked genuinely interested in him, and that made him even more uncomfortable. That was on top of the mild annoyance he was beginning to feel at having to explain his anatomy to her.

A microsecond scan revealed she was referring to audio receptors. She had actually mistaken a very important component used to consistently filter heat from his advanced processor for audio receptors. He hadn’t modified audio receptors to indicate his speech after the accident that left his face catastrophically damaged. That was simply ABSURD. “These ain’t ears.” Wheeljack jabbed a thumb in the general direction of one of his panels, optics narrowed slightly until he saw the somewhat incredulous look on the human’s small face. He softened somewhat, reminding himself that he was not trying to match wits with a juvenile human. She was clearly harmless and probably lonely; what else would a single human out all by herself be feeling? Primus, he was lonely, and he was surrounded by Autobots most of the time. Perhaps now was an opportunity to gather field intel on the indigenous life forms. It was kind of nice talking to someone that wasn’t afraid of him for a change.

What harm would there be in talking to her, for just a little while?

Wheeljack lowered his height, crouching down as low as his armor plates would allow in front of the female child. “You want to know a secret?” She didn’t even flinch, but even so Wheeljack kept his distance for safety’s sake. Who knew what sort of biological pathogens she carried. Biomechanical beings weren’t completely immune from purely biological ailments, although he doubted anything she carried would pose a threat to him. The girl nodded, eagerly.

“They’re actually motion trackers,” Wheeljack lied. “And they’re so big so I can track humans like you for miles.” Alright, I’ll play along.

“Well, I found you, so they must be broken. You should get them fixed.”

“Maybe I wanted you to find me.” That obviously wasn’t true—quite the opposite in fact—but he’d kind of walked right into that one. After all, this human child had managed to catch him completely unawares, and the mess around him was the proof of that.

“Lying is bad.” Clearly, she was sharper than he was giving her credit for too. Maybe human children weren’t as stupid as he initially thought.

Wheeljack allowed himself a sly smile with what was left of his mouth behind his battle mask. It was something she couldn’t see, unless she understood the shifting of his optical lids. “You’re clever. I like you. But what are you doing out here all by yourself little...female?” He hazarded gently, unsure of what exactly he should call her. He only realized he’d made an error in judgment when her face scrunched up into something close to indignation.

“I’m a girl,” she corrected pointedly, but then for the first time her small dark optics shifted around carefully and she began to appear uncomfortable. She began to sway, as if unsure of what to do with her own body, and actually looked sad. “I ran away…”

Wheeljack struggled internally with how to process this information. Part of him didn’t want to become any more involved in her life when he shouldn’t even be talking to her. But the other part, the deeply fascinated scientist that had to know, had to know. “Okay… why did you run away?” That’s… generally a bad thing, right? The irony in the fact that it was exactly something he had done when he needed to get away from the Ark and just think was not exactly lost on him...

She didn’t say anything at first, staring awkwardly at the ground. Wheeljack tilted his head, the illumination produced from his panels when he posed the inquiry highlighting the red, blotched hue on her skin and the moisture beneath her optics. He wasn’t sure what that meant, the biological and psychological links escaping him. He thought better than to ask her, and she probably wouldn’t know how to respond anyhow. It was reasonable enough to assume that she had been distressed before blundering into him—or probably still was but he was enough of a distraction for her to temporarily forget about it.

“It’s okay, you can trust me.” For a moment the girl was entranced in the light that rapidly flashed in-time with his words when he finally spoke. She raised one hand, holding it out in front of her and watched as the blue light illuminated her skin.

“My mommy is sick, and daddy got angry with me because I broke the radio. But he’s just upset because mommy is upset…” The little girl was looking around again, clearly unsure of herself in this situation. “It was already broken, I was just trying to fix it…” She mumbled, the sound so quiet. Wheeljack had absolutely no idea what to say, and thought about offering a personal anecdote until something she said caught his interest.

“Tryin’ to fix a radio, huh? That’s quite a big job for something your size.” Wheeljack was actually mildly impressed. Imagine a human small as this one was, actually trying to fix primitive, illogical human machinery without proper training…

“No,” she finally replied, almost indifferently. ”I fixed daddy’s Internet when he didn’t know what to do, and that was way harder.” She spoke as if this was just daily routine for her, and fascinating as this was, Wheeljack had to keep the conversation moving. He was on a time-table, and needed to wrap this up.

“Well, then maybe you shouldn’t have run away little girl… he might need you to help him with that radio thing. Besides, it’s dangerous out here.” Wheeljack did his best to sound soft, but authoritative, internally wincing at how awkward it sounded coming out of his mouth. “How did you even get in here anyway?”

“I heard something and wanted to see what it was, so I came in through that hole in the fence… same way you did,” she said, motioning towards the way she’d presumably come.

“Ah, I’m a little big for a hole in the fence little one. This is no place for a human like you to be all alone.”

“You’re all by yourself,” the little girl retorted, looking snarky again. “Did you run away as well?” She looked shocked. “Did you kill somebody?”

“What…? No!”

“Are you doing crime?”

“Do I look like a Decepticon to you?” Wheeljack put his head in his hands, growing exasperated, and starting to feel mildly guilty because technically...

“What’s a...De-cep-ti-con?” It didn’t take a moment to spot the look of confusion on her face and he realized what he’d blurted out. She cocked her head as she spelled the word out slowly, ensuring she got the pronunciation right. “Are they bad? They sound bad.”

“Look, human girl, I—yes. They are bad. If you see one, and I hope to Primus you never do, I—”

“Primus? What’s that?”

Wheeljack found himself staring blankly at her, struggling to think of a way to describe to her what Cybertronians considered a God of sorts; not quite a god or a creator, but something more transcendent, yet tangible at the same time—why was he even contemplating telling her about such things that she surely wouldn’t understand? He’d committed a crime, gotten found out by Ratchet, and was now accidentally revealing top secret and deeply personal information to a tiny human girl. This was not a good night for Wheeljack.

“My name is Allison, by the way.” The human girl was looking up at him expectantly, and Wheeljack suddenly realized he had just dug himself into a very deep hole. Primus… don’t tell me your name… don’t make this harder than it already is…

“Look, little g—Allison.” Wheeljack vented air, underestimating the strength of it as it kicked up the loose strands of organic fiber on her head in a gust of heated wind. She seemed thoroughly overjoyed by this oddity. “I’m out here all by myself cause my friends can’t know I’m here. It’s a surprise… so this is our little secret, got it? You never saw me here.” Wheeljack saw an opportunity and ran with it, and the little girl named Allison nodded enthusiastically. Although, she still had a look of expectation in her eyes, and Wheeljack realized he better get it over with.

“Okay, fine. I’ve already revealed all my other secrets. My name is Wheeljack,” he said, pointing at the broadside of his chest where his Autobot insignia was. “I’m an Autobot.”

“Oh! I know what a wheeljack is. It’s that thing that fixes wheels on cars. What’s an Auto-bot? Is that like a Decepticon?” Allison looked perplexed, but genuinely interested, and he realized she would have no idea what an Autobot was. That was obvious when she seemed to stumble over the word, sounding it out in two chunks, much like she had done with Decepticon.

“No!” Wheeljack answered that one a lot faster and more indignant than he probably should have. “Autobot means I’m a good guy. Decepticons are nothing like we are.” Well that sounded ludicrous, but he didn’t know what else to say.

Allison seemed to think about it for a moment. “Okay. I trust you because you sound funny.” Wheeljack didn’t know what to make of what she’d said and whether or not it was a compliment, but he couldn’t respond before Allison followed up with another question. “What do you do, Wheeljack?”

“What do I...do?”

“Yeah. Like...what’s your job?”

“I’m a scientist. An engineer, specifically, and it’s not just a job, it’s more important than that. I help my friends stay safe by inventing useful equipment.” Wheeljack knew he was being a little loose with the word “safe.” Not all of them fit that description. “Though, I have been known to occasionally dabble in biomechanics. I recently finished writing a technical spec on the Tersial III replication and induction plate—”

“That’s neat,” Allison interjected, changing the subject. “Can I ask you something else?”

Wheeljack shrugged, sad to hear the young human wasn’t as excited about his proposed model for improving the wingspan of Tersial III quadrupeds. “Okay, sure. What is it?”

“Why do you talk funny?” This was the second time Allison had raised the issue of his voice. The question was nothing if not direct, and it then occurred to Wheeljack that he had likely made an error in judgment when picking the dialect that he did. He should have paid more attention to how she spoke.

“What’s wrong with it?” He cocked his head, now curious as to what about his choice was apparently so offensive. Instead, Allison laughed, betraying the idea that it was not so much offensive, but different.

“You sound like you’re from one of the shows my daddy likes to watch, dummy.”

Wheeljack didn’t know what a dummy was, but he assumed it wasn’t a good thing. “Doesn’t everybody talk like that around here?”

“No!” She was laughing at him again, and Wheeljack was getting frustrated. This shouldn’t have been that complicated—how many stupid dialects were there on this rock?!

“Look, I underestimated the linguistic diversity amongst your species. I didn’t realize accent was divided up by zone on this planet. It makes no sense—” He saw her expression start to go wide and realized he was losing her again. “Anyway, that was more than a question, that was two. Now it’s my turn to ask you one.”

“Okay fine.” The girl huffed, looking mildly startled and confused by his abrupt rant. Instead of the question he’d been intending to ask—that being what is the purpose of all that organic fiber on her head—Wheeljack opted for something a little more friendly. He was talking to a child, a fact of which he kept forgetting.

“Can you guess where I’m from?”

Allison looked blank for a moment, presumably trying to come up with an answer to his question. He had to stop himself from being abrupt with her. Perhaps if her experience with him was a pleasant one she was more inclined to trust him and do what he asked—that being: don’t breathe a word of this to anyone.

After a moment she shook her head, unable to even hazard a guess as to where he was from. So he pointed skyward, thinking she would get the point. But she didn’t.

“You’re from up?” In a shocking turn of events, she’d directed her optics in the vague direction of where he was pointing, looking at nothing and everything as if there was something very specific she was going to see. He probably should have felt guilty teasing a human child like this, but Wheeljack admitted to himself that this was actually a rather fun little exercise.

“Further.”

“The moon?”

“Even further!”

She thought for a while. “The sun? Pluto? A satellite?”

“No; that’s not a planet; and now you’re just guessing. The correct answer is I am from Cybertron.”

“Cybertron.” She repeated the word slowly like she did all the other ones. If anything she seemed very careful about learning new words. Primitive, but respectful. “I don’t think we have any place called Cybertron in our solar system. That must mean it’s pretty far.”

“Your deductive reasoning is correct. It is very far. Farther than you can travel in your lifetime, little one. Think of your solar system. Now think of another solar system, one that just looks like a tiny star in your sky, but it’s actually two stars! Closer than you might think, eh? Cybertron is a lonely planet that sits in the middle of Alpha Centauri, undetectable by your human technology.” He didn’t even realize that he started gesturing passionately until it was too late. “That’s where I’m from.”

Something dawned on her then, and her eyes widened. Something close to absolute joy spread across her face as something clearly now had her excited, making Wheeljack wonder if he should have just kept that detail to himself; he’d been trying to make conversation.

“You’re an alien!” Allison declared happily, clapping her small hands together in a show of positive acceptance as she put the pieces together. She was definitely smarter than he was giving her credit for, and was now practically lit up with such a revelation.

Something broke loose from within the Autobot and for a moment his perception dulled. There was an internal distraction at the edge of his awareness and he couldn’t place what it was. He lost focus and several barriers in his coding fell down all at once, unlocking a cache of programming that had been put away a very long time ago. There was a stirring of something in his spark that he hadn’t felt in eons: something warm and nurturing; he was actually starting to enjoy talking to the little human named Allison. He was afraid he was starting to care.

Whatever was happening, it was because of this girl, actually enamored and happy to be in his presence. She wanted to be around him. Autobots tended to avoid him when they could, not out of hate, but a general unease in his presence. Decepticons wanted to capture him and use him. Primus, he was lonely.

But he had to go. He couldn’t linger. If anything, his presence in her life was a danger not only to her, but to himself and the other Autobots that despite everything he still cared for. Needing to care for a human life was a liability he couldn’t risk, and there was no way he was going to let a human, much less a human child, get caught in Decepticon crosshairs. It wasn’t even his place. She needed to be back with her own parental units.

“Heh, okay, but remember, this is our secret okay?” Wheeljack leaned forward, trying to emphasis the point as gently as he could while cutting into her excitement. She nodded her understanding, but he had to make sure. “You promise?”

“Yeah, yeah!” Allison said, and she did something that Wheeljack was not expecting. She reached up and touched his face. It was such a soft, barely perceptible touch, right on the planes of his battle mask but it was enough to nearly make him rear back. It was a reaction that for sure didn’t match the level of threat she presented so it made no sense, but neither did what he actually did. He froze. He stopped moving as if the small hand on his face was going to cut him should he so much as shift in place. It was the first time he really looked the young human in her optics, and she didn’t so much as flinch as she returned his direct stare. His optics were neither unsettling or threatening to her. It was just a purely natural connection, unyielding without learned bias or mistrust.

He hadn’t even realized he’d been in arms reach, small as she was, which meant he’d really let his guard down. That frightened the large Autobot more than anything. His first time interacting with a human and he’d completely opened himself up to any number of attacks.

An attack—

Suddenly Wheeljack reared up, head snapping in the direction beyond Allison to something in the distance. He heard something approach—a vehicle, not one of his own, and he suddenly knew he had to go. Their time together was over. He looked down at Allison with a sad sense of finality that she wouldn’t be able to understand. She looked distraught, hand still hovering precariously above her head where his face had just been moments before. It was obvious she didn’t hear what he had.

“I’m sorry Allison. I have to go.”

“Why?” She sounded sad.

“Someone’s coming. Nobody else can see me, so I have to go.” He started to retreat, forcing himself to crouch back from her faster than she could catch up to him. Something tugged at his spark as the little human called after him, something Wheeljack wasn’t willing to spare another nanosecond thinking about in that moment. He had to transform, and for that he needed room.

What if it’s someone that means to do Allison harm… do humans hurt the offspring of other humans? Sadly Wheeljack knew the answer to that question. They had access to global news, and had been monitoring it for some time. I can’t be seen… but I can’t just leave her here. Maybe I can just hang back until this person passes… Pit, why did he care?

Wheeljack was thinking through how we was going to appear nonchalant as a white drag car just hanging around this ruined power station with a human child standing there, when the approaching human vehicle slowed. He heard an adult male’s voice calling Allison’s name, and thankfully Wheeljack reasoned this laid all his concerns to rest. He could leave content in knowing that her father had come to retrieve her. She finally heard it too, and she looked back in a manner which implied recognition. This gave Wheeljack the needed opportunity to leap back from her and transform into his vehicular form, the sound of which drew the girl’s attention back to him for enough time to see what he had become. It wouldn’t matter, because he’d be gone by the time her father arrived.

He couldn’t linger, a pang of guilt settling on his spark long enough to make him hesitate as he retreated but he knew he had to move on. It would be better for Allison to move on as well, so the sooner he disappeared, the better.

How wrong he was.

[rinayeas]

going through the worst writers block fucking ever so here's a ficlet/something headcanon something about my interpretation of the clone theory ft snipes bc he is my fav and also i love writing him

Cw: depression, depersonalization?, you can just skip to the end after the small lines to read my explanation on the theory.

He felt an emptiness in his chest.

The first day after getting logged into respawn, his head was killing him. A piercing pain through his right eye, extending itself to the rest of his body. The doc had morbidly joked about how that's what a lobotomy felt like, but with every passing day Sniper was thinking that he had actually gotten lobotomized.

Something felt wrong, life was colder, it felt like he had something ripped out from within him. He went through all his belongings, trying to recall what each of them meant to him, and he got all of them right. His memories were not missing, so what was wrong with him?

He wasn't a fan of going to the doctor, but inevitably had to take it up to Medic, who ran a few tests in him and told him everything was completely normal, that maybe he should try speaking to a psychiatrist or a trusted one. He didn't know how to feel about that one, his trusted ones were kilometers away from him, and he'd heard psychiatrists were for basket cases, and if there was something he'd tried to prove throught all his adult life, it was that he was Not Crazy.

He found himself growing quieter by the day, he was a man of few words, but he didn't even feel like saying hi to his coworkers, opting to shutting himself off from the world in his room. He slowly lost all enjoyment from the things he used to love, like hunting or camping. Nowadays his evenings were filled with music and his own thoughts.

He was getting better at his job, though, more strategic, maybe. He chalked it up to having extra time to meditate his next moves at night, laying on his bed. He'd become perceptive enough to catch the enemy Spy red handed enough times in one match that the frenchman had just stopped bothering him that day.

He'd picked up on a new hobby recently. He'd climb to the highest point on the base, perch himself with his rifle and some coffee, and just, watch through his scope. He felt like a creep the first few times, but the more he did it the more it felt like he filled up whatever hole was on his chest. He sometimes watched his own team, it was a quiet affair. But most times his scope was drawn over to the RED territory, the ruckus, explosions and screams being so loud they involuntarily called to him like a siren.

He watched people that looked exactly like his coworkers, but felt and acted so different from them that his brain could barely process them being the same people. He was mostly fixated on his counterpart, the RED Sniper. Living in a van outside the base, he watched as his clone retreated for the day, sometimes crawling up to his roof to watch the stars, and he felt a nasty envy crawl up to him.

It didn't even make sense, sleeping in the base was the smarter option, it was warmer during the cold desert nights, he had easy access to whatever he could need, and he didn't have to walk like an idiot every single morning to the battlefield, and still, the other Sniper chose to sleep in solitude, his only company being the nature that surrounded him. It didn't make any sense, and yet Sniper wished he was him, covered in a mantle of stars, enjoying coffee at 2 am without even thinking that it would make his insomnia worse and arriving 5 minutes before battle the next day for the prior reasons.

Nothing about the other man made sense, and he missed when life felt that way.

One night, he removed his hat and his glasses and he poked his head out of his outpost, he stared at the stars and stayed like that for a bit, imagining he was the other guy. He closed his eyes and felt the breeze hit his skin, and just for a second, the ache in his bones dissapeared, making him feel whole again. But his eyes snapped open and he found himself staring at the ground, a few meters below him. He remembered he had to get up at six the next morning.

And he felt a bit silly then.

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

Anyways my clone theory is that the mercs got split into right brain (red) and left brain (blu)

Like all of the red team is wayy more impulsive, creative, and just, loud and passionate. While the blus are more analytical and logical. (This theory also makes it so that emesis blu could completely theoretically happen within the canon timeline while the red team is teleporting bread so haha funny)

Naturally the two sides of the brain work in tandem so to them it DOES feel like something's missing they just aren't sure what it is. And by the time 1971 rolls around their two halves merge and they go back to being whoever they were before everything (which isnt very different they r still the same guys just more complete like a side a or b of a cassette). This last thing is scientifically not true but i like to think that some mercs just are more in tune with a certain part of the brain ergo some ppl like spy medic or engie choosing to wear blue in stuff like the comics or the official mvm cinematic. It's not scientifically viable but like, this is fucking team fortress 2 does anyone really care abt that??? anyways!!!! This was garbage mama but i just wanted to get smth out of my system im still on brainrot mode im sorry to my followers!