#Why yes he somehow has all the kids with him in the vents as well

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 298

“So uh, is anyone gonna’ stop… that?” Honestly, no one here had ever had to deal with a borderline feral acting Batman, and Supes wasn’t there to do anything to help. Not to mention Diana just found their failure to do anything hilarious. 

“I don’t know Hal, do you have any idea on how to get him out from vents he shouldn’t by any logical reason be able to fit into?” 

“Well no, but I mean, it’s freaky! He just read a file, cursed more than I’ve ever heard him and just, okay, how did all of them even fit inside his cape-”

“Current theory is some sort of shadow dimension.” 

[noted-aj]

Feeling so tired, really falling apart.

hazbin hotel (some of) cast x gn!reader

comfort / angst headcanons

HCs for if the cast found reader crying in their room, yet they attempt to hide the fact that they were. reader is gender neutral, they/them are pronouns used along with Y/N <3

(SORRY THIS IS SO SHORT!!!) first post ever :3

characters included: angel dust, charlie, husk, alastor

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Charlie:

💌 - Charlie would definitely bring snacks or things that comfort you to your room.

💌 - She can be a bit much at times, and my accidentally pry too much.

💌 - I swear, her hugs could probably comfort anyone within seconds. Just imagine a soft yet intense cuddle sesh with her

💌 - She wouldn’t want to be too pushy, but would definitely offer to stay with them and help cheer them up.

A light knock sounded from your door and a soft yet somehow still energetic voice followed it. “Hey, (Y/N)?..” A small sniffle could be heard from the other side of the door, coming from you. A strained “Yes?” you said. The door creaked open, your head staring at the bubbly woman who stood in your doorway. “I just wanted to check on you, you haven’t been out of your room all day.” You swiftly wiped the tears from your face “No, no, I’m fine Charlie. Don’t worry.” Charlie gave you an empathetic look and walked over to your bed, sitting down on the corner of your bed. “Tell me how I can help.” She wrapped an arm around you with a smile.

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Husk:

🍻 - Husker is definitely great at comforting others, but doesn’t like to do it to people he doesn’t trust or know.

🍻 - He would be similar to a father figure just letting you rant about what happened, but not trying to shut down your problems.

🍻 - Asks what kind of drinks you like and make them for you, or have Charlie help him find comfort objects for you

The door to your hotel room creaked open softly, but loud enough for you to hear. You wiped your eyes and stood up defensively, taking a few sniffles. A cat demon looked down at you slightly, a melancholic look on his face. You sighed and turned away from him, giving up the attempt to hide the fact you were crying. “You alright, kid?” You nodded largely, not saying a word. He looked down with you and then back towards your face, turned away from him. “..Would you tell me if you weren’t..?” You looked away shamefully, still remaining silent. He placed a hand on your shoulder, giving you a small smile “That’s okay. I’m here for you if ya need it.” He chuckled.

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Angel Dust:

💒 - Depending on what you were crying about, Angel can usually always help in some way or another

💒 - His hugs are immaculate, he has 6 arms for a reason. And he’s soft as hell too.

💒 - He has a lot of problems as well, and I’m sure you two could have such a relieving vent & cry session together.

You walked up the stairs on the hotel lobby, not speaking a word to anyone in the lobby. You received a few concerned and confused glanced for someone who was usually striking up conversations, you didn’t spare a glance to any of them. “I’ll check on ‘em.” Angel walked up the stairs behind you, and paused before knocking on your door. He hesitated but eventually tapped his knuckles against the door and was met with a “Go away.” and a few sniffles. He opened the door lightly and frowned at your clearly upset state. “C’mon doll, you know you can talk to me.” He reassured and walked over to your bed, sitting on the edge and placing a hand on your shoulder.

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Alastor:

📻 - Despite seeming so careless about everyone, he took pity on you when he saw your depressive state.

📻 - Will NOT leave you alone until you tell him what happened or why you’re so upset.

📻 - Someone hurt you? Done, killed. Someone accidentally hurt you? Also done, killed.

📻 - Won’t get physical, but will offer some advice.

(Similar to the last scenario)

You walked into the hotel foyer, looking around and only seeing Niffty dusting a window sill while Husk was slumped at the bar, his face stuck right in it. Alastor, Charlie, Angel, and Vaggie were nowhere to be seen. You saw this as a great opportunity to not talk to anyone. You sniffled and wiped your eyes with a huff, perking up the staircase and maneuvering to your room. As you closed the door to your room, you sighed and leaned against the door when you felt the tears come back again. All of a sudden, Alastor manifested in your room, towering over you. “Mind telling me about your melancholic facade?” He smiled at you, in typical fashion. “I’m fine, Alastor. Leave me alone.” He saw right through your persona, and his gaze narrowed. “Now, now, let’s not be hostile. Fill me in.” He sat down on your bed, patting a spot next to him.

authors note: i started this in early march and COMPLETELY forgot about it.. please request ideas, I NEED STUFFS TO WRITE BEFORE I RUN OUT OF MOTIVATION!!!!

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[lxstfathier]

Storm

Police! Rodolfo Parra x Reader

Summary: you’re crying, overwhelmed by your problems, and it all leads to an unusual encounter with a police officer.

Warnings: dysfunctional family, anxiety, depression (?).

A/N: i’m kinda proud of this one, i think my writing in english is improving, it still isn’t nearly as good as what i write in spanish but i’m happy with it. So… enjoy, hope you like it 💗

The cold autumn wind blows relentlessly, moving the tree branches until their orange leaves fall to the ground. The sky is full of big dark clouds, announcing a storm about to start at any given moment. And you can’t help but shiver at the harsh weather, hating that you’re there without any other piece of clothing to keep you warm besides your oversized shirt and tiny shorts.

It’s a complicated evening. Another one of those where your house is a living hell, both of your parents yelling at each other for hours and your older sibling blasting music at full volume in their room, making it all fucking unbearable.

That’s why you’re outside, sitting on the sidewalk, a few blocks away from home, bawling your eyes out. But at least with some peace. The streets are empty, so it’s only you, the birds chirping, and your horrible loud thoughts.

Still, your misery is interrupted when a cop car pulls up by where you are. And you try not to mind, staying in your own business, but once you see the officer get out, walking straight to you, it’s impossible not to consider this as the worst day of your life. Maybe he thinks you’re a drug addict, or a criminal, or a homeless, who knows, but his attention is the least thing you need right now.

“Are you ok?” He asks, genuinely worried to see a girl crying in the middle of a lonely sidewalk, wearing nothing but a shirt when it’s about to rain.

“Yes, i’m fine, officer” you answer, not even looking up at him, only seeing his black boots next to your naked legs.

“Well, you don’t seem fine. Do you need help? Assistance? Anything?” there’s nothing a police officer can do for your situation, so you just shake your head, hoping that he’ll finally go away and leave you alone.

A few second pass, hearing the sounds of a zipper and windbreaker fabric, not knowing what is he doing. And then you see him, scrouching down to be at your level, offering you his jacket to stop you from freezing.

Your vision is a little blurry because of the tears, so you can’t see his face clearly, but he’s young for sure, probably not more than ten years older than you. He has dark hair, with a matching stubble, and pretty brown eyes. His uniform is all black, wearing a bulletproof vest around his torso, the shiny star of the “Policía Estatal” on the left side, and an embroidered patch of “R. Parra - Comandante” on the right.

You usually don’t trust new people, let alone a cop, but he seems nice, and the cold is pretty bad, so you take his jacket, muttering a “thanks” while putting it on. It’s way too big for you, although really warm, smelling good, as clean and masculine cologne. So you can’t complain.

“Mind telling me why are you crying?”.

“It’s just some family problems” you shrug. “Nothing too serious”.

“I’m a good listener… if you wanna vent” he says, a kind smile appearing on his lips, and you feel safe enough to tell him just a little bit about your personal hell.

“I don’t get along with my family, they’re always screaming and fighting, and i’m sick of it. I just want some peace in my life.” Tears roll down your cheeks, soon feeling his thumbs against your skin, gently wiping the wet trail.

You don’t know how to react. Why is he doing that? Why is he so sweet to a random girl on the street?. You’re not used to being treated nice, it feels really weird, but somehow you crave more.

“I’m sorry. I know how that feels like”. His voice is soft, soothing, and for the first time in your life you’re not being yelled at for expressing your emotions.

He understands you quite well. Parra was once a hurt kid just like you, with parents who fought a lot and mean sisters that seemed to enjoy picking on him. Until, one day, he decided to focus all that sadness and anger into something better, joining the police and forgetting about everything until he became a Commander.

The only difference is that you can’t find the strength to get back on your feet.

Suddenly, fat droplets of water start falling from the sky, and both of you know it’s time to go before you get soaking wet. He can keep working, and you… well, you have no idea.

“Ok, pretty girl, i should take you home” he says, standing up again, offering you his hand to help you do the same.

“I don’t wanna go home” you pout, looking up at him. Going back to such a chaotic place sounds awful right now.

“Where do you wanna go, then?”

“I don’t know. I have nowhere else to go, but any place is better than home, i don’t care.” You reply, accepting his hand to get up, still feeling your legs slightly weak.

“I can take you to the police station, we don’t have any problem with letting you spend the night there. How does that sound for you?”.

Once again you feel strange. As if someone finally saw you like a human being instead of a simple burden. And you know that his job is literally to help people, he probably does this everyday with different persons, but you like it, it warms your heart, and also it makes you feel kinda special.

“Sounds good, officer!” you tell him, forcing a smile. “Or should i call you Comandante Parra?”

“Either is fine” He shrugs, letting out a little chuckle.

Parra asks for your name too, and then guides you to his car, allowing you to be on the passenger seat. What a honor. You really thought you would get thrown into the backseat like any other lawbreaker. So now that you’re in the front, getting full view, you feel like a little kid, excited to get a ride in a cool cop vehicle.

Of course he notices your enthusiasm, even though you try to be subtle, but not daring to say a word about it. He just looks at you while driving, wondering why such a cute girl had to get a shitty family like his. It’s not fair, you should be smiling instead of crying.

“Will you be working at the station?” You ask, trying to make conversation now that you’re in a better mood.

“No. I’m supposed to be patrolling today.”

His response is not really what you wished to hear. Of course you don’t want to stay in a police station full of strangers, that would only fuel your anxiety, and it’s not like you already know Commander Parra, but you trust him enough to be by his side a few hours.

“Can i stay with you?” you ask, almost begging, thinking that he probably will tell you a negative answer. “I won’t give you trouble, i promise, i’ll just be the passenger princess.”

That question is unusual to him. Why would you want to spend your free time in a boring night of work with a police officer? that makes no sense. However, he won’t tell you no, not when you’re being so adorable.

“Fine” he agrees with a smile. “You’ll come with me, but you might get bored.”

“Gracias, Comandante” you thank him in a low tone, still a bit shy, but Parra hears it clearly.

Rain starts pouring, the water creating a relaxing sound as it hits the car. He drives around aimlessly, not caring about the storm, and you try to distract yourself away from your problems, contemplating the drops running down your window, tracing your fingers through the smooth fabric of his jacket.

Sometimes, you even turn your head to the left, just to catch a glimpse of him, appreciating his side profile and flawless uniform. And Commander Parra has to pretend he doesn’t notice you watching.

[cookisugarrdraws]

Okay this is kind of a vent but am I the only one who thought s4 of The Dragon Prince felt really,, off?

Like it was good and well executed and all of this could very well just be a consequence of COVID and Netflix messing with season four's production but something about this season felt really weird. And, truthfully, it's kind of the everything that feels off.

A lot of the characters felt very out of character. I'm sorry but Callum should've been rightfully VERY upset with Rayla. She abandons him on the day of his birthday after he nearly loses her to the moon lake, after she makes a promise to stay with him and get through all of their shit together, and she DOESN'T COME BACK FOR YEARS. And when she does come back, they're suddenly just really awkward but still in love??? HUH??? Did I miss something?? Why are they still in their "awkward, before they get together" phase??? Callum should rightfully be extremely upset with Rayla if not furious with her!! You could have kept them amicable when Rayla comes back! She could be a bit distant but still hopeful that Callum will forgive her easily but realizes Callum is angry and is trying to be kind to her even though he's clearly not happy! Let him tell her off! Why didn't he do that??? You could still have him be nice but there's a bittersweetness to it.

Speaking of Rayla, she felt off too. Idk she just,, wasn't distant enough. You'd think after being alone for years on end she'd be a bit less trusting of others, even the friends she knew. But people change! She shouldn't have been sure how much Callum would've changed. Also her lemur doesn't look right. She noticeably stands out amongst the other characters and creature designs. Bait, although he looks a bit like a plushy, works because he feels like a unique creature to this world. Rayla's lemur just straight up looks like a doll. She doesn't look right. Also she's just a lemur with extra limbs. That's it. And she's kind of purple. Why not get weirder with her and mash her up with another animal? Like a squirrel or maybe a hawk? Idk she just doesn't look right.

Claudia also feels,, very strange. Like yes she's funny and dorky but her antics felt really amped up this season. She feels dumber somehow. And Claudia isn't dumb. She's very smart actually but she can be oblivious sometimes. But I dunno she feels too comedic this season which creates such a whiplash for me. She's the villain and brought her father back from the dead. So why is she so,, dumbed down? Also her boyfriend,, he's fine I suppose? But why would Claudia be dating an elf? HE'S AN ELF. He also doesn't like dark magic?? Huh?? Wouldn't it be more of a novel concept for him to be an elf who also wants to do dark magic? Shouldn't he be in favor of that? Why was he against it? Terry never feels like a proper villain. And outside of dating Claudia, he has no motive to stay with her or her father! He doesn't like dark magic so why is he with Claudia? How did they meet? How did they become friends? What made her like him?? CAUSE HE SEEMS THOROUGHLY ALIGNED WITH THE ELVES in terms of worldviews on magic! Terry also feels out of place in terms of his comedy. The fart joke thing got old fairly quickly for me as well. I get it, it's a kid show, but I dunno it felt a little too much like writer's weird fetish in certain places.

Ezran feels fine though in terms of writing. He still feels in character and like he's evolved. He's wiser and has been ruling as king for a while now. And I like that they kept the friendship with him and Zym the same, that was nice! I just wish Zym could talk now that's he's older. Also, shouldn't he be a bit bigger? Tbh I always thought dragons grew super quickly as adolescents. Ah well, not issues with them. Also Soren. He is still the loml and I can't ever hate him. I do wish he could've bonded with and kept a wyvern though. That would've been cool as hell.

Now for the animation. It was too smooth for me. I love the choppy uneven Spiderverse inspired look of the second and third season so much! But in s4, I could barely find spots where the animation wasn't super smooth. The colors of this season are also way off. We spend a majority of the time in (what I am assuming is) Earthblood elf territory but the colors don't look right. They don't gel together very well. This is especially noticeable in the cave scene towards the end of the season. All of those crystals were so deeply saturated and NONE of those colors looked nice together. Especially on gray speckled rock. It was hard for me to see what I was supposed to be looking at! Emphasis and focus were two aspects which this show really seemed to struggle with this season in terms of visuals. The updated character designs look nice though, I don't have any qualms there (aside from the lemur).

Except for the Earthblood elves. WHY DID YOU TAKE AWAY THEIR COOL TREE BRANCH HORNS CONCEPT ART. They had moss and leaves on their shoulders and bodies. And cool swirly carvings. Why did they take that away :(

This season also feels like it's missing a LOT of setup for a LOT of lore and plot points. Especially the plot point with Callum being possessed by Aaravos. WHERE DID THIS COME FROM?? HOW CAN AARAVOS DO THIS?? THIS BEGS THE QUESTION WHY AARAVOS DIDN'T FORCE VIREN SO CUT HIS HAND AND DO THE CATERPILLAR THING WILLINGLY. AARAVOS SHOULDN'T HAVE THE ABILITY TO AFFECT THE OUTSIDE WORLD RIGHT?? AM I GOING INSANE?? AND WHY DOES AARAVOS EVEN WANT TO POSSESS CALLUM?? BECAUSE HE CAN DO MAGIC?? HE ONLY KNOWS SKY MAGIC AS OF S4. I FEEL LIKE I'M GOING INSANE.

Idk maybe all of my issues with this season will be remedied by s5 which I still need to watch. Just needed to vent this out. I still like this show and I'll keep watching it but man, it's gained some problems for me I can't really seem to ignore. Especially since the first 3 seasons were so well paced.

[quietbluejay]

Angel Exterminatus 6

Raven Guard daily affirmations we've gotten back into the silly zone also i can't help but think of "hrrrg i'm trying to sneak through the vents but my body is too dummy thicc and my armour too cumbersome and-"

quietbluejay was then shot by a raven guard sniper

not in this universe they ain't

Nykona: I need enrichment in my enclosure. This is why I am sneaking around on the ceiling

aloooone

incredible sharrowkyn batmanning it up like i am darkness i am the NIGHT tarsa: oh hai there

tarsa realizes that to talk to nykona you need to break everything down to small manageable phrases

welp over to the captive Fists again. Life continues to suck for them.

Back to the Iron Hands

ohhh the Drukhari (proto-Drukhari for the pedants) are playing both sides

love this guy explosions and happiness on planet medusa

Sunk cost fallacy? What's that? Is it something you eat? No, that's sand and rocks

oh we're back to kroeger ❤️

i feel like mcneill is perhaps doing a theme here

i've honestly found this character trait of perturabo to be really interesting compared to how I see people talk about him (again I might be missing stuff) (i know a lot of it is memeing but you can meme on chocolate eclair backbone as well!) and yet it's absolutely a core character trait (at least in this book. who knows how he will be written elsewhere) perturabo lacks initiative he does not move unless moved upon he has pie in the sky dreams, but no real ambitions and concrete goals he is willing and able to work towards, no grand strategy this makes it entirely unsurprising that he was basically chilling in the eye of terror for ten thousand years it also makes it unsurprising that his move when he had enough was to just...pack up and nope out there's stuff he wants, but never enough to make a stand and go for it, or to say no.

i am feeling the teenager vibe in this iron warriors ship tonight

you're part of the team now kroeger you gotta go drinking with them

My goodness they're worse than the Thousand Sons

actually, this is basically Kroeger at all times

I like him already OH ITS THEIR WARGAMING ROOM

Kroeger (local jock) got bullied by the nerds to come down and play 40k yes. this is funny to me.

just watch i bet it was Soulaka who designed it

oh nvm Kroeger: can I get a restraining order Lucius: restraints you say fortunately for Kroeger his sempais are here to back him up

bruh??? since, uh, when, exactly, did imperial forces care about targeting the civilian population i mean in terms of "we shouldn't do it"

man this really is peak wargaming

and somehow perturabo and his combat robots manage to jumpscare them so much for astartes senses so they're trying to figure out how to do the siege of terra and their "vaunted" tactical prowess is…human wave tactics

"it's basically impossible" kroeger: nah, I'd win perturabo, showing up out of nowhere:

Kroeger: yep

owo

there's a lot going on here one, this is the big flaw of a lot of the most well-meaning people in the 30k Imperium (the "oh we'll just fix everything after we're done with all the conquests") this works really well as a metaphor for that

the second is how it ties into Perturabo's attitude about guilt

Perturabo is unable or unwilling to make the leap from "a thing once broken will always be broken" to "a thing once broken will always have been broken, but does not always need to remain a broken thing" ... he doesn't know how to recover from mistakes he's basically got gifted kid syndrome turned up to 11 because he woke up with like an entire library of technical knowledge in his brain but no life skills this is why he has all those designs and never builds them and can never be satisfied with all the little quirks that real life introduces to a design

[alheria]

Fresh wind on a hot day (9/9)

-That's why police officers and firefighters should stay away from each-other! For the sake of their sanity! -Street shouted, furiously searching for something in the living room, while Buck stood in the doorway, curiously observing his irritated partner from a safe distance. After knowing him an awfully long time, he knew well-enough this was just venting, not actually a beginning of some nasty argument, and it was better to watch, minimise any interaction.

-You are sixteen years too late for such realisation, babe. -he pointed out calmly, not sure what was happening, not even what Jim was looking for. Possibly something job-related since he was starting his shift soon. -Can I help you somehow? -suggested, and perhaps should’ve stayed quiet because the cold glance he got could surely freeze Hell.

-Actually, yes! You can help by not throwing your shit into my drawers! -the Omega barked while going through some papers.

-What's dad's problem? -wondered a quiet, curious voice of their twelve-year-old daughter, whose arrival Buck failed to notice, despite actually waiting for her all this time so he can drop her off at school on his way to work.

-Wish I knew, kiddo. -the firefighter sighed, glancing down at their unamused child, who was by now definitely used to Jim’s random outbursts. -Ready? -he asked.

-Is anyone ever ready to go to school? -Danielle frowned, making her father laugh. She didn’t look a bit like Street, but damn, her attitude was identical.

-Fair point. -the Alpha agreed. He wasn’t a fan of school at her age either. -Are you prepared tho?

-Yes, let’s go. -she nodded before looking at her phone and saying: 

-Ruby is already waiting.

-Jim, we're leaving. -Buck informed, spinning the car keys on his finger. He really wished that they had time to talk the odd situation through, however they were both just too damn busy. 

-Oh...um...okay! -the cop mumbled, not stopping the search even for a moment. -Stay safe. Both of you. -he added rather absently. -I'll see you later.

-Jim. -the firefighter sternly demanded attention, causing the older man to instantly look at him in both annoyance and confusion. -Love you. -he said, his voice soft, and affectionate. There was no way there were parting ways like that, in some weird hostility. They did once, then Jim nearly died at work. He got shot with an armour piercing round, had to undergo several surgeries and based on how bad his condition was, everyone thought he’s not gonna make it. Luckily he did, and never again they made the same mistake. No matter how mad they were at each-other, “I love you” had to be said because it might’ve been their last goodbye. So hearing those words, Street’s murderous gaze softened immediately, a warm smile appeared on his tired, gently wrinkled face as he stared at his husband in the same manner he looked at him when they just started dating, with fondness and reverence.

-I love you too. -he responded, making Buck very happy and fully ready to leave for the day.

---

-Who’s picking me up today? -Danielle wondered when they hit the road.

-Uncle Luca, I believe. -the Alpha hummed. He never thought about that before they had a baby, but having such a big “family” was truly a blessing when it came to taking care of a kid while working in a demanding, busy field. Especially Luca, who was truly a gift that kept giving. Not being interested in starting a family, but absolutely loving children, he eagerly took over quite a few of their responsibilities after switching from active duty to training.

-Finally. -the girl huffed. She has not seen her favourite person in over a week, and it started inflaming her irritable nature.

-Ouch! Right where it hurts! -the firefighter whined, theatrically clenching onto his chest. -What does uncle Luca have that we don’t? How do we win your cold heart, dear child? -he then asked, briefly looking at the smiling girl through the rear mirror.

Danielle was an absolute miracle. After Jim got shot, they were told their chances to have kids were very slim if any due to all that extensive abdominal damage he suffered. Street struggled horribly to accept this reality in which he not only is a stupid Omega, but one unable to give his partner children. Buck to this day felt heartbroken at the painful memory of him holding the absolute love of his life shedding silent tears for hours. And he didn’t even care, suppressed the need to be a biological father long before they met. He only wanted to be loved. So after weeks of deep reassurance it changed nothing, they moved on, kept loving each-other as usual until some two years later when Jim randomly got violently sick and their world turned upside down in the best way possible.

-He takes me to fun places, buys me things, and lets me stay up late. -Danielle explained. -You just need to spoil me like uncle Luca does, easy.

-He does indeed spoil you! And then we suffer the consequences! -Buck sighed, remembering all the “But uncle Luca…!”. -Maybe you should consider moving in with him if he’s so amazing. -he pouted, making his daughter roll her eyes.

-Nuh-uh. His cooking is terrible. I can’t live off snacks, and takeaway is too expensive to eat every day.

-So you are somewhat smart after all. -the blond grinned, proud that his little girl appreciates his cooking efforts. Ever since they've learned they will be parents, he's been on a mission to learn in the tiniest detail how to properly feed a child at all stages of growth. Therefore, at this point he was a true master chef, fluent in nutrients and skilled in the art of sneaking yucky veggies into meals.

-Hey, rude! -she giggled. -I’m very smart!

-I know, I know, just teasing. -the Alpha assured while they pulled over in front of a house where a young girl was sitting on a porch. -You’re almost as smart as I am.

-Wow. Nice self-burn dad. -Danielle snorted as she watched her best friend rush towards them. The second Ruby got inside, and they drove away, Buck didn't exist anymore, two girls too engaged in intense gossiping to acknowledge him. Which was fine, he was glad his daughter somehow managed to make a close friend despite not being the nicest person in the world. It was hard to admit, but damn, she could be harsh for a twelve-year-old who misleadingly happened to look like an angel with her long blond hair and bright blue eyes.

Once he dropped off the chatty duo at school, it was time to get to work, and hopefully finish dealing with the mountain of paperwork today. Honestly, he hated doing it, and wished he didn't have to, but that's sadly what you get when you're too ambitious for your own good and end up being promoted to Fire Captain. He never wanted to hold such a position, although as years passed by, the injured leg started to noticeably deteriorate, slowing him down as it weakened progressively. Which meant he had to either leave FD or accept an offer to take over for a retiring captain of a different station. So obviously, loving his job too much to quit, he chose the latter. Leaving the team he spent all of his career alongside wasn’t easy, however it was the right thing to do. Luckily, his new crew turned out to be a young, friendly bunch, one he got along with very quickly. And today they were welcoming a probie, which was very exciting, and he just couldn’t wait to arrive at the station and meet yet another member of his weirdly big, amazing family.

---

Going to work after finding the documents he needed, Jim felt guilty as fuck for snapping at Buck. Again. And the fact their daughter had to witness his frustration made him feel like a proper asshole.

Lately, he's been stressed real good because, apparently, being a team leader is not easy at all, despite everyone else making it look like it’s basically effortless. There was this overwhelming responsibility for the lives of his teammates constantly eating him alive and a never shrinking paperwork mountain driving him batshit crazy. Of course, Street deeply loved being in charge, although consequences of such love were quite severe, and sometimes negatively impacted his private life.

-Damn, Jim, you look like you're looking forward to those days off. -Chris whistled when he entered the locker room. Which was a funny thing to be said by someone who looked like they didn’t get any sleep last night. And the night before.

-Right back at you. -he grinned, patting her shoulder as he passed by. -I'll need to have a chat with higher-ups about this scheduling, we all are running on fumes at this point, I don’t care there is not enough manpower.

-Yeah, like what the fuck. -his second-in-command agreed. One team was out of commission after a meth lab explosion that injured all squad members, and forced everyone else to work overtime until they recover. It was exhausting, those extra long shifts, especially busy ones when time to rest was scarce. Like today. The team got a call literally the second they were ready to roll, a case of domestic violence turned into a hostage situation.

Unfortunately, the backup request came in too late. Once SWAT entered the building and apprehended the suspect, the victim was already gone, brutally beaten to death by their own partner.

-Oh God. -Street exhaled heavily, looking at the massacred Omega lying lifelessly on the floor in a large pool of its own blood. -What the fuck happened in here?

-That’s what you get for not being an obedient little bitch like you’re supposed to! -the clearly high on adrenaline, very agitated perp screamed upon being escorted outside by two officers.

-...I don’t even know what to say. -Chris shook her head as she approached. -It’s beyond fucked up.

-Poor guy. -Jim whispered, feeling raw anger creep up on him. -Can't imagine what he must've been going through for fuck knows how long. Sick bastard.

He also couldn't imagine the luck he had to have a partner who never got as much as mildly annoyed. His Alpha treated him with utmost respect and never questioned their unusual “relationship roles”. Every day, no matter what, he made sure both his favourite people felt loved by him, and would never dare to hurt either of them. Was the best person in his world.

Fuck, he seriously needed to apologize to his husband.

---

After finishing the particularly busy shift, Buck was more than happy to be back home and finally able to sit down for more than twenty minutes. The newbie, Chloe, seemed absolutely fantastic, but sadly they didn’t get to know her too much due to all those calls they had today. His poor leg screamed for mercy, so he got himself an ice pack and happily merged with the couch, accompanied by a comfort show as he awaited the cop’s return. Which did not happen anytime soon, four episodes later to be exact.

-Thank you for not being a crazy psycho. -the Omega announced upon entering the living room.

-Well, thank you very much for such a delightful compliment, dear husband. My pleasure to satisfy. -the firefighter mocked, closely observing his partner, who, honestly, didn’t look too good, slowly walk towards him. -Did something bad happen at work? -he asked, seeing that absent look in those tired, darkened eyes. It usually meant he witnessed something pretty upsetting.

-Yeah. -Jim admitted, heavily dropping onto the couch. -But I don't wanna talk about it. -quickly added, throwing his pounding head onto the backrest and taking a deep breath as he stared at the ceiling. -Where's Danielle?

-Learning for a test, apparently. -the blonde informed, grabbing one of his husband’s cold, rough hands and giving it a comforting squeeze. If Street didn’t want to go into details, there was not much more he could do to help him process whatever traumatic event had happened.

-Of course she is. -the officer snorted. Knowing their daughter, she was either drawing or chatting with Ruby, possibly both. -I'm sorry Buck. For being a pain. -he then whispered, shifting himself to rest his cheek on his Alpha’s shoulder.

-It's okay sweetheart. -the younger man hummed, pressing a gentle kiss to his Omega’s palm. -I'm well-used to it.

-I'm sure you are. -the cop sighed, aware he is not the easiest person to live with. -Thank you for not giving up on me. I know it's been...hard, lately. I've been hard on you. You don't deserve to be treated like that. You deserve better.

-Jim...you're an idiot. -the firefighter rolled his eyes at this stupid implication.

-Ouch. -Street pouted, playfully nudging his husband with an elbow, his hair getting ruffled in an act of revenge.

-I could never, ever, imagine having a better partner. -Buck confessed, pulling the Omega to rest his overthinking head on his thigh before continuing talking. -For me, you are absolutely perfect. Every relationship goes through hardships, but we still make it work, no matter what. You've been there when I needed you the most, not once I doubted how much you love me, and you happened to give me the most amazing, only slightly problematic daughter. Don't ever think you are not enough because to me, you are everything.

-...did you just call our child problematic? -Jim chuckled, rolling onto his back to have a better view of his man’s smiling face.

-I mean, she had to get something from my pool of genes other than good looks. -the firefighter laughed. -Please don't tell her I said that.

-I wouldn't dare. -the officer assured, reaching for his Alpha’s cheek and guiding him into a long, fond kiss. -I love you Buck. You make my life so much brighter.

---

The next morning was nothing but pure bliss. Street got over eight uninterrupted hours of sleep, he was off work for two days, and there was a beautiful person peacefully resting on his chest.

-Good morning, my love. -the cop hummed, gently brushing through the silky strands, while the other hand rubbed the scarred nape in order to wake the other man up.

-Mhm. Good morning. -Buck murmured, happily leaning into this pleasant touch. Nothing changed over those sixteen long years, he was still being showered with love every single day, for which he was incredibly grateful. -I cannot believe we both have the full weekend off. I can’t even remember the last time it happened.

-Is it off-off though, or did you make a ton of plans for us? -Jim asked. His partner was a true enthusiast of proactivity with so much natural energy, he needed to be constantly busy to not go insane.

-Damn, husband, you know me so well. -the firefighter chuckled, pulling himself up to join their lips in an affectionate kiss. -I made a ton of plans, we’re going to the science centre first at eleven but need to do laundry beforehand, so I suggest getting up right away.

-I don’t want to get up. Why are you such a killjoy? -the older man whined, loosening his hold a little regardless.

-How about a compromise? -Buck suggested as he began to get up. -I’ll go make coffee and you’ll come get it.

-I hate compromises, stay in bed. -Street huffed, grabbing the Alpha’s arm to prevent him from going anywhere.

-Nope. -the blonde grinned before stealing one more kiss and quickly leaving the room.

The Omega didn't move until the beautiful smell of fresh coffee reached him, fully waking up his half-asleep brain. Promptly, but lazily, he got himself out of bed and into the kitchen, where his husband has already started making breakfast. What the cop decided to interrupt by plastering himself to the taller man’s back, and peppering his neck with kisses while he inhaled that lovely scent. Solely because he felt like doing it. So they stayed in this close, silent embrace for a few delightful minutes, parted only when their little girl showed up, and probably needed to be fed.

-What's the plan for today? -Danielle asked as she sat herself on a stool, aware no day off in their household was left unplanned. Hearing they are going to see the newest exhibition in the science centre, her blue eyes instantly lit up with excitement. Just like her father, she had a huge interest in anything science related. -With Ruby? -she wondered, hoping to spend this fun day alongside her best friend.

-I think at this point it’s safe to assume Ruby is a default package deal. Of course we’re taking her with us. -Buck confirmed. Ruby’s mom had a long surgery to perform today, so they agreed to swap custody. -Oh, and better pack some stuff because you’re having a surprise sleepover at Ruby’s house afterwards.

-What?! -Danielle gasped in utter surprise, her jaw nearly on the floor. -Ugh! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?! -she then shouted angrily before sprinting to her room to probably get ready.

-I don’t think she knows what “surprise” means. -Jim snorted, gazing at his husband’s shocked expression from above the coffee cup.

-...is this the point in her life when she starts to hate us? -the blonde whispered, absently looking at the doorway the girl stormed out through.

-Babe, please don’t cry. -the cop frowned, seeing tears cloud his husband’s sight. -Fuck. C’mere. -he ordered, grabbing the Alpha’s arm and pulling him into a hug. -Sweetheart, I assure you, there is no way she’ll ever hate you. -hummed, reassuringly rubbing the taller man’s back as he sobbed quietly for the next five minutes or so before returning to cooking. Street was pretty sure once the firefighter "calmed down" and went to do laundry right after breakfast, he cried some more in solitude. He was still a very emotional person.

As expected, Danielle did not begin to hate her father, who forgot he was sad the moment Ruby arrived and the overexcited trio engaged in a heated conversation about the exhibition’s theme. It was fascinating to watch a grown up man shamelessly embrace his inner child. In a good way that is, although the officer felt a tad out of place while following the three kids through the filled with activities day, because after the science centre they went to have pizza, then visited the aquarium, had ice cream, and took a walk along the pier before dropping the exhausted girls off at Ruby’s house.

-Soo…we're child-free tonight. -pointed out the Alpha when the two of them were finally alone, his large hand sneaking onto the cop’s muscular tight, giving it a suggestive squeeze before they both burst in laughter. -It doesn't change anything, does it? -he observed, wiping out happy tears while starting the car.

-It does not, she's so low-maintenance. -Jim shook his head. Danielle was not necessarily a social kid, after school she wanted to be left alone, and spent most of her free time working on some art projects in her room. Sometimes it felt like they didn’t have a child at all, which was pretty convenient, but also made them wonder if they were perhaps failing as parents by not interacting with their daughter much.

-So low-maintenance. -Buck sighted in agreement. -We could go somewhere tho. -he then suggested, making the Omega gasp loudly.

-Evan Street, are you asking me out on a date?

-Absolutely I am. -the firefighter grinned. He actually had a place and activity in mind already. They needed to stop by the house first to grab a blanket and beer, then went straight to the familiar beach. And oh, it brought up such pleasantly nostalgic feelings, that short ride filled with chatting about everything and nothing, however this time without horrible singing. Even the weather was similar, although no clouds, just a warm orange orb on an empty sky.

-I thought you were taking me on a date, not on a first date. -the officer chuckled as they walked through the warm sand towards the calm ocean, their hands obviously joined.

-It was such a good date it deserves to be repeated. -the Alpha smiled, stopping near the water line where he threw the blanket on the cold sand. -I can’t believe it was sixteen years ago. Makes me feel old. -he sighed, sitting down in front of his partner, happily letting himself be pulled closer to the cop’s chest, whose one hand quickly sneaked under the shirt, arm wrapped tightly around the waist.

-Sixteen years, huh? -Street hummed, laying his chin on the taller man’s head. -Back then, it didn't even cross my mind that we would get to the point where we are bonded and married with a whole teenage kid and a house mortgage. Crazy concept.

-Not that crazy, actually. Back then, I really thought I'd eventually have all that…but with Eddie. I wonder if I’d ever move on if I haven’t met you. -the firefighter confessed in response, and instantly felt the Omega tense a little. -I'm so glad your carelessness brought us together. -quickly added, reassuringly patting the officer’s leg.

-Hey! That was a freak accident! -Jim laughed, blushing slightly at the cringe memory of him dangling from the ceiling like an absolute idiot. -No need to open old wounds. -whispered, resting his cheek on his Alpha’s soft hair.

Buck only snorted in response before sinking into that strong body holding him firmly. No words followed, there was no need to talk. In comfortable silence the couple enjoyed the refreshing wind and relaxing sound of splashing waves as they watched the sun lazily hide behind the horizon. And when it got dark and cold, meaning the time came to go back home, they made each-other a promise to return here in another sixteen years, in the exact same manner: alive, happy, and still deeply in love.

[whats-wild-to-you]

Dr. Daredevil (Jay Park AU)

Chaeyeon

Who knew that Park Jaebeom, the guy who dry-heaved at the sight of blood in med school, would be working in Seoul’s most prestigious hospital. But then again, his grandfather must’ve pulled some strings. 

I heard Ahn So Hee’s distant voice calling my name and shook my head energetically, getting rid of Jaebeom’s face in my brain.

“How do you know Park Jaebeom?” She asked again, lightly pulling at my coat.

“From med school.” I simply answered, unable to elaborate further despite seeing So Hee’s interest peek. “He works here too?” I asked instead, hoping she would say no. But all signs pointed to yes.

“He’s a God. A genius! Steadiest hands! 100% success rate.”

Park Jaebeom?

“What’s his specialty?”

“That’s it. The guy can do anything! Clip an aneurysm during an open craniotomy, perform a CABG surgery, resect tumors. Everything!”

Impossible!

“Wow! He must be really good then.” I mumbled more to myself.

“You said you knew him in med school. Wasn’t he a straight-A student?”

Him? Far from it!

I stifled a laugh at So Hee’s comment. “I guess. We didn’t really interact.”

Could it be that Park Jaebeom got his shit together and actually learned something?

Maybe his grandfather straightened him out because he didn’t really strike me as a man who would do something only to appease others.

“Oh, this is good then!”

“Why?”

“I see here you’re assigned to the same attending. You’re lucky! Dr. Song even lets his 4th-year residents run the OR.”

“What?!”

“Yeah. Of course Park Jaebeom gets to pick surgeries first since he’s the chief resident but Dr. Song usually gets the most intricate cases, so…”

“Wait! What?! Chief resident? Aren’t you the chief resident?”

“Temporary chief resident. I’m second in command, so to speak.” She clarified and a cold shower ran down my back.

What is going on here?

~

Somehow I’ve made it through my first day in my new workplace without bumping into Park Jaebeom again. All I needed now was a shower, to get out of these clothes and talk to Soojung. I doubted she knew about him working at SNUH, and I wasn’t really sure if she’d care at all, but I needed someone to vent to.

“You’re kidding! Park Jaebeom?”

“Right? And on top of that he’s the chief resident! How is that possible?”

Soojung shrugged, leaving me to wonder how Park Jaebeom managed to turn from an indifferent student to an overachieving doctor.

“A lot can change in 6 years. Maybe he got his act together.”

“Park Jaebeom? THE Park Jaebeom? I’ll only believe it when I see it with my own eyes!”

The week went by fast. Park Jaebeom expertly avoided me while I trailed Ahn So Hee. I found out that she was a quirky girl but also a great surgeon. But because of her timid appearance no one appreciated her contribution. I had talked to Soojung about it one evening over pasta and wine.

“Why do you think I went shopping with you? You could be the best surgeon in the world but if you don’t look the part, you’re overlooked.”

I nodded, letting her believe that I waltzed in the hospital wearing the expensive outfits we bought together when in reality I dressed in jeans and a sweater every day. What was the point of dressing up? I was wearing my coat on top.

“It’s just, unfair, you know? She has potential, I know she does, but the attendings keep doubting her. The race of who would become chief resident was between her and Park Jaebum as well but in the end they chose him for his looks.

“See? That’s why I’m glad I don’t have to work in that field. Imagine busting your ass in med school only to be overlooked for someone more popular.”

I nodded and chewed on my pasta in silence.

“Have you talked to Park Jaebeom yet?”

“I haven’t seen him around. He’s either incredibly busy or avoiding me.”

“I know you probably don’t want to hear it but what if he simply doesn’t remember you anymore.”

The thought crossed my mind. More than once. And each time I felt upset. Sure, it might not have been a big deal for him but for me it was. After all, he was my first kiss.

“That might be it. Who are we kidding! I’m not that memorable.”

I decided to drop the topic of Park Jaebeom. Whether he acted like it or really didn’t remember me, wasn’t something I was willing to lose any more sleep over. Instead, my mind circled around Lee Kangmin. I never expected to miss him this bad. Except for Ahn So Hee I didn’t really get close to any other doctors. I harbored a faint suspicion that every doctor viewed their colleagues as competition. It wasn’t like this in Andong. The hospital staff there is like family.

On my way home I called Lee Kangmin, hoping that he had already finished work.

‘It’s so nice to hear your voice, I thought of you today.’

“Yes? Why?”

‘Your favorite patient came. He was looking for you and when I told him that you work in Seoul now he scoffed and left.’

“What?! I hope you held him back!”

‘Nope. Hwang Inseok said we can’t keep a patient against their will.’

“How’s work? Is it manageable?”

‘I should be asking you that!’

“So far all I’m doing is observing. These hotshot surgeons in Seoul don’t let just anyone in their OR. Image is more important than saving lives.”

‘So I guess you don’t get along well with your colleagues?’

“So far I’ve only talked to one. Ahn So Hee. She’s quirky and a good surgeon.”

‘Hey, Chaeyeon, I have the week off next week. Should I come to Seoul?’

“Please, yes! You have to save me from boredom.”

I hung up, realizing that I was already home. Smiling content I got in, showered and fell asleep within minutes of lying down.

The next morning I studied the OR board. Park Jaebeom was scheduled to perform back-to-back surgeries all day. One in particular caught my attention. Hunting down Ahn So Hee, I asked her if I could get in on that. She looked at me and shrugged.

“I don’t see why not.”

Elated, I walked over to the board, adding my name to the list.

Later that day I happened to walk past the OR board again, noticing that my name had been erased.

“Odd.”

No one was around, so I added it back.

“Dr. Baek, I could use your help.” I heard Dr. Song calling after me.

“Of course.” I walked in the room, where a particularly unruly patient was causing havoc.

“Thank you.” Dr. Song smiled.

“Can I ask something?” I asked, once Dr. Song looked up from his chart.

“Sure.”

“Can I join you in the OR on your next surgery?”

“Of course. But, honestly, I don’t know when that’ll be. As you know Dr. Park has been running my service, and very successful at that. So maybe it would be best to ask Dr. Park instead.”

I nodded. I hated that idea. He and I were equals. I didn’t understand why I had to suck up to a colleague.

Dr. Park’s surgery was pushed back. Also, my name has been erased again. A coincidence? I highly doubted that.

I made a mental note to hunt him down tomorrow and demand an explanation. For today I was done and deserved to leave this place.

On my way home my phone beeped. A text from Hwang Inseok appeared on my screen.

How are you doing? You’re having fun?

Sure.

My answer wasn’t convincing enough because soon after I hit [send] my phone rang.

‘What’s wrong?’

“What makes you think something’s wrong?”

‘Stop bullshitting me! Tell me what’s up?’

“Nothing. That’s the problem. Since transferring here I haven’t seen the inside of an OR. It’s not like this is my first day. I’m not fresh out of med school either. But everyone’s dismissing me.”

‘You’re the new kid. You have to prove you’re good before you’re accepted.’

“And how do I do that? By the way, that doctor Kim Donghyun was raving about, is his name Park Jaebum?”

‘Yes! That’s him. Did you meet him? He’s impressive. Try to get along with him and you will see the inside of the OR more than your own home.’

“Funny. I’ll keep that in mind.”

‘Lee Kangmin mentioned he’ll be in Seoul next week? Did you know?’

“Yes. I plan to show him around this impressive hospital so his ambitions grow and he decides to apply for a job here.”

‘Funny. I gotta go. Talk to you soon.’

“Good night, Hwang deapyonim.”

~

I caught a glimpse of Park Jaebeom as soon as I entered the hospital, but because I didn’t want to yell, I ran after him and caught him waiting for the elevator.

“Good morning.”

“Morning.” He mumbled, irritated.

“Any interesting surgeries planned for today?”

“Enough, why?”

“I was wondering if I could scrub in with you.”

“Sorry. My OR is full.”

As soon as he uttered these words the doors sprang open and Park Jaebeom walked away without another glance in my direction.

I wondered how he knew if he hadn’t even looked at the OR board but I had no time pondering over that as Ahn So Hee came running towards me.

“Oh, good, you’re here! Quick! Get changed and meet me on the rooftop. A patient in critical condition is arriving by helicopter.

‘Finally!’, I thought. ‘Finally I’ll get to see the inside of the OR.’

Excited, I quickly changed into my scrubs and ran to the elevator.

The surgery lasted longer than expected but the patient was stable and so Ahn So Hee left for her next surgery.

I didn’t get to scrub in on another surgery, instead I stayed back and went through patients’ charts making sure they were doing okay. After a long day I finally walked out of the hospital. Because I was late this morning I had borrowed Soojung’s car, so instead of walking to the nearest bus stop, I headed to the parking garage.

I spotted Park Jaebeom, and yelled after him. He was walking to his car, a red Maserati. When I caught up with him, I tapped him on the shoulder, making him whirl his head around.

“Hello. Can I help you?”

“Yes. You can. I want to know why my name was erased twice off the OR board the other day.”

“My OR was already full.”

“I see. What a coincidence. Then, since I have you here, can I scrub in on your next surgery?”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible.”

I blinked a few times, certain I heard him wrong. “Excuse me?”

“I have my team. The doctors and nurses I work with. I like it that way.”

“You’re playing favorites? Why am I surprised?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dr. …”

“Baek!” I said, mildly irritated.

“Dr. Baek, the chief knows this and he’s fine with it since I attract many patients and positive media to this hospital.”

“Fine. Sooner or later I’ll find a way into your OR.”

I stomped off, climbing into Soojung’s SUV. I needed to get away from here. Fast. Otherwise I would be tempted to run him over with her car.

The highlight of the following week was when Lee Kangmin met me in the hospital’s cafeteria for lunch. Usually doctors didn’t frequent the cafeteria since it was open to anyone. Being in the same space with patients or relatives, they immediately got bombarded with questions. Questions they had to answer, otherwise they’d be called rude. But if you were a starving doctor and only had fifteen minutes to eat, the cafeteria was your only choice.

“… and he acted like he didn’t know you?”

“Like he forgot my name!”

“Maybe he did.”

“What? He doesn’t strike me as an early dementia candidate. No, he’s faking it. I just don’t know why?”

“Maybe he’s embarrassed. Since you know him. He doesn’t want his colleagues to know he used to be a lazy student and that’s why he’s acting like a stranger.”

Kangmin wasn’t wrong. Park Jaebeom was practically a stranger. But I knew about his past and he didn’t want to give me an opportunity to damage his image and status.

Late at night as I got off work, I watched him step into the elevator and quickly ran after him.

“I’m not going to embarrass you. I just don’t like being overlooked.” I quickly said as the doors closed.

“I’m sorry?”

“I’m talking about the past.” I said, looking at him intently.

He sighed deeply, raising an eyebrow. “Do we know each other?”

I looked like a fish out of water as the elevator door opened and Park Jaebeom stepped out, casually walking up to his car.

“He’s impossible!” I found Ahn So Hee in the break room and had to vent. I didn’t know how close she was to him but that didn’t matter.

“He’s a jerk, yes! Everybody knows that. Arrogant and with a God complex. But he’s good at his job. Does a lot of difficult surgeries, operates on those who have been rejected by other surgeons. Every one of these surgeries means publicity. Publicity means investments and investments means money.”

“He’s a megalomaniac asshole, that’s what he is! I heard no one wants to work with him.” I didn’t really hear that, mainly because no one talked to me since I arrived here but I figured I had to throw So Hee a bone.

“From the beginning he said he prefers to work alone. Then slowly he formed a team around him. He always has the same people in his OR.”

“I noticed. What’s up with that?”

Ahn So Hee shrugged. “Maybe he’s superstitious.”

I highly doubted that. There was an other explanation for his strange behavior and I would be the one to uncover it.

-> next chapter

[angelcatsiel]

ok gotta vent gotta get it out no one has to read this it’s long and boring probably but I need to get it out

My last visit to see my family didn’t go great to the point that I was honestly dreading seeing my parents this visit. Then yesterday was an absolutely terrible day that caused me to have my first meltdown in a long time. I had to fly over here at 7 this morning (had to get up at 4) running on about an hour’s sleep after a day of panic attacks and meltdowns, I honestly wasn’t sure I’d make it through the airport but I somehow did.

Anyway, me and my dad actually had a nice conversation earlier. Then this evening we had the tv on and he was looking through stuff and stopped on the Elon Musk show and I pulled a bit of a face, like ‘ugh’. He told me I should try watching it because I was probably biased and needed to just give him a chance because Elon is such a great person. I was like no, I really don’t want to watch it, maybe another time. I honestly would have watched it with him if I could just be prepared because I don’t like to think I’m biased and I like to have as much knowledge as possible before forming an opinion, but this evening I knew I was absolutely not in a headspace to do that

But he put it on anyway, so I tried. I watched it, and we talked a bit during it, and my dad was like ‘he’s never done a bad thing in his life’ and I started mentioning negative stuff I knew about and every single thing I said was just ‘that’s probably not true, you can’t believe what you read on the internet’ so I was like ok well have you looked into this stuff? And he was like no I just follow him on twitter and watch things about him because then you’re actually seeing him and what he’s really like

And of course I was like well even this doesn’t show what he’s really like, it shows us what he wants us to see and the people making this show want us to see, it doesn’t show us what he’s like as a person, how he is with his family, his kids, etc. I mentioned his trans kid changed her name as she wants nothing to do with him now and his transphobia on twitter and it was all ‘well she probably hurt him by being trans! You need to understand the older generation grew up with different views’ which like. FUCK that. And then it was back to the ‘he’s never done anything bad to hurt anyone’ and I was like well clearly he hurt his daughter. ‘Well that’s just kids for you!’ Yeah you’d know all about hurting your kids right dad? That’s just normal, right?

And then he was explaining autism to me and kept saying ‘on the spectrum’ which was irritating and just kept explaining to me how autism works and that Elon can’t control what he says and all this shit and I’m just here like... I’m autistic! I am still responsible for what I say if it’s hurtful! Being autistic doesn’t mean having free reign to be a dick!

Then when he described him as being a good person I tried to kind of at least steer the debate to a slightly different place and took the opportunity to explain how I feel like ‘good person’ and ‘bad person’ are unhelpful and useless terms during this kind of discussion, I don’t think we should sort people into those categories, we’re all simply people who do good and bad things, some more bad or good than others. But he laughed at me. Asked me if I thought serial killers and abusers were bad people. I tried to explain that yes, of course those are bad things, and there’s no excuse for doing those things, but there’s probably a reason behind it, and they might not have done those things with the right upbringing and stuff. Which to that he said ‘a lot of them would! It’s mental illness! Some people just have something different in their brains that just makes them bad people’ (ew) and again, I tried to argue that that was out of their control and how we can’t just sort people into good and bad because it’s more complicated than that, and we need to understand WHY people do bad things beyond just going ‘well they’re just a bad person aren’t they?’. Then he asked ‘so is a serial killer a good person?’ and I started to say ‘well, no-’ only to be immediately cut off with ‘so they’re a bad person then! See!’

Throughout the whole thing I’m finding it harder and harder to get the words out and explain myself, because he’s just talking over me and interrupting me and dismissing every single argument I have as ‘some fake story on the internet’ and I can’t get a word in edgeways, so eventually he’s just making his points and I’m just fucking sitting there feeling so fucking stupid and pathetic because I can’t say anything. There is nothing I can say that won’t just get interrupted or dismissed, and by this point I can barely string a sentence together anyway because I’m so frustrated and upset. And then finally I get a condescending ‘you need to stop believing everything you read online’.

To me, fact checking is insanely important. Having informed opinions is important. This is stuff I’m really passionate about; reading entire articles and not just headlines, checking sources, thinking about what biases the author of an article might have, or where information has come from. So to have him talk to me like I’m a kid forming all my opinions scrolling through tiktok or twitter really fucking hurts. I feel like the way he handled this whole thing was childish and immature (especially the trying to trick me and manipulate my words over the bad person/good person thing), yet he still has a way of making me the one to feel childish and stupid and uninformed and gullible. Every time debates like this come up, I want to understand and teach and learn, but it feels like he just wants to win and feel smart. And even when I try to just avoid them, these topics come up anyway.

Anyway idc if anyone reads this but I just had to get these words out or they’ll be going round in my head too much for me to sleep

[telekinetic-electronica]

Gregory has been at the Pizzaplex for some time now - speculation

So, I do know of the question of “why did Gregory climb into Freddy” appears a lot, but I think we already got an answer for that. Let me explain.

For those who don’t know, if you defeat all of the Princess Quest games, you do free Vanessa from Afton’s control. However, I haven’t seen people talk about this detail, either. 

Those are obviously Glamrock Freddy themed shoes. So, it got to me thinking. I think Gregory has been staying under the Pizzaplex for some time now. Think about it. Gregory is a homeless, orphan kid who’s not afraid of getting dirty to survive, because again, when you are in constant survivial mode, you don’t think about other people. You think about not dying.

I think Gregory probably slipped in with a lot of big families to enter the Pizzaplex. And why wouldn’t he? While it isn’t a proper home for a human it has food, beverages, and protection from the outside elements. I can totally see Gregory stealing food or drinks, or even money from families to get stuff to survive. Not to mention, it has arcades and places for kids to play.

It has stuff to keep him entertained and keep away from the harsh realties of his life until 12:00 AM. I’m not sure why Vanessa was chasing him in the first place, but as usual, kids don’t like getting into trouble I think he somehow snuck into Freddy’s room, and just climbed into his stomach hatch to away from Vanessa.

Back onto the topic of Gregory’s shoes, I wouldn’t be surprised if Gregory also stole clothes and shoes from the giftshops, or from the lost and found, or stuff people left behind. Gregory is a jaded kid, but he’s a smart jaded kid. Gregory probably has a lot of street smarts, and he probably used these during his time there, and surviving the events of Security breach.

Now you might ask, why wouldn’t Gregory just ask for food? Well, the harsh reality of that is people have a stigma towards homeless people, yes even homeless kids. So, I don’t think people would randomly just give stuff away to children. Along with stores. Not to mention, it seems Gregory is used to getting hurt and being on his own, when Freddy got some alert thing that Gregory scratched himself inside the vent. Little dude just wanted to truck on. 

i.e. let’s be thankful gregory has mr. fazdad now with him

[leggerefiore]

Far Away Eyes (Chap. 2)

Chapter 1

words: 3313

cw: yandere (implied)

Pairings: Ingo/Reader, Emmet/Reader, Background Maxie x Archie (Reader is their kid)

Summary: Life continues on for you in Unova. You become comfortable with your new friends.

The time came for you to finally challenge the Battle Subway and get Emmet to shut up about it. He had been pleading with you to do it over text for the past week. Growing tired of it, you decided to take your day off there. You brought your not-electric based team with you. 

The Gear Station was always a sight to behold, no matter how many times you had seen it. Wandering around in astonishment, a depot agent ran up to you and asked if you were lost. You asked for directions to the Battle Subway lines. He was glad to direct you, mentioning how his bosses had been complaining of a lack of challengers. You were led to the Single Battle Line. That sounded right. You thanked him before heading to the platform.

Another depot agent explained to you the rules of the line quickly and signed you up as a challenger. Twenty battles to even see a Subway Boss, apparently. Well, Emmet better be glad you loved him. You boarded the train and steeled yourself for an onslaught of improvised strategies. 

Your first challenger was a preschooler. Lovely.

They were tough, you would admit. Your trained skills and practised ideas proved true, however. Battle number twenty was completed. On the other side of that door should lie Emmet, ready to battle you with the best of his skill. You slid it open, your hand feeling the cold metal under your touch. On the other side…

… Was a very strange looking Emmet. His face was held in a frown while his posture was uncomfortably stiff. Work must really be tough on him. He did not even appear as if he knew who you were. That hurt. You strode to the side of the car to face him properly, hand on your Camerupt's pokeball. "Emmet! Are you alright? I thought you were 'verrrry' excited to have me finally challenge your battle facility?" you asked before he could get a word in.

He stood even more stiffly, rising to his full height. His chrome eyes narrowed at you. A moment of silence befell the train. Only the sound of the tracks was heard. "I apologise, I do believe you challenged the wrong line if you are wanting Emmet," his voice was different from your friend's own, "I am the Subway Boss, Ingo. You've mistaken me for my twin brother." What.

"Excuse me, twin? Twin brother?" you asked, feeling a extreme annoyance overcome you. Ingo nodded, "Yes, we're twin brothers. Did he not tell you?" Had he? You honestly could not remember. Truly, you did not think he had. You shook your head. Ingo sighed. You tossed out your Camerupt, and he was taken aback for a moment. His Crustle came out. No words were needed. You planned to vent your frustration in a healthy manner.

Ingo was a tough opponent, more so than you had expected. You weren't quite sure why you had not thought that a battle facility head would be easy, especially having seen Emmet in action at the battle cafes. Your Sharpedo managed to overcome his Crustle, while Camerupt handled his Kninklang, but his Gabodor proved a harsh wall to scale. They wore down your weakened Camerupt with ease, and toxic slowly ate away at Sharpedo's health. All that remained was your Manectric. It was extremely close, yet somehow your canine friend managed a hard-hitting thunder.

The garbage-heap pokemon was called back while Ingo was silent. Suddenly, uproarious applause came from him. "Bravo!! I am quite impressed!" his voice had increased in volume, "Do you actually know my brother? You never introduced yourself." Oh, you did not! Loudly, you blurted out your name. His eyes went wide. "You're them? It is so lovely to finally meet you! Emmet has been chattering about you since he first met you, and Elesa has been demanding I take some time off to meet you." You were flustered. Had they really? You weren't anything too special.

Ingo walked you off the train. "Here, let me take you to our office. Emmet's there right now filling out a report," he explained and motioned for you to follow him. You did, wanting to see your friend and tell him about how you had beaten his brother. People watched as you were brought into the adimintrative area with a stricken curiosity. It was rare that they brought anyone back there, after all.

The door was held open for you to enter by Ingo. You peered into the office. It was an ordinary room, you would say. Two desks sat side by side, and a couch was tucked away into a corner with a coffee table in front of it. Two sitting chairs for guests were provided. A fern sat near the door. Emmet perked up from his writing when he heard the door open. His eyes landed on you with a smile. "You challenged the wrong line," he states with assured confidence.

"I did. I met your brother, though," you bantered with him lightly. Ingo shut the door behind him and moved to go to his desk. "What do you think of him?" Emmet inquired, his monotone making a return. What did you think of Ingo? A stiffer, well-spoken Emmet? "He's you but more mature." Ingo's eyes went wide at that, while Emmet gasped dramatically. The betrayal. 

You were told to sit on the couch while Emmet hopped up from his desk to join you. Ingo rolled his eyes at his brother's antics. "Do you like Ingo? He's verrrry mean," Emmet whined, pulling you close to him, "He took away my flan last night! Meeeeean!" You giggled at his dramatics and leaned into his side. The physical touch that the twin so loved was something that had grown on you. Though, his affinity for sweets was something that dug into your heart.

Your dad always loved his sugar. It was often that you caught him sitting at his desk with a lava cake and a cigarette. A pale hand combing through his maroon locks. He would catch you peering at him and give you a genuine smile. A sigh left your mouth. Where were they? You still have not heard from them in months.

Emmet noticed the shift in your expression. His arm squeezed you closer. "What's wrong?" he cooed softly, his smile growing sheepish. Identical eyes met each other in concern, but you shook your head. They would likely judge you for who your parents were. You moved here to get away from it, but there was no easy way to sever ties with them. Even during your time away from them in Hoenn, you knew they were there. Team Magma and Aqua grunts were spotted wandering about to remind you that they were alright.

"Just… Lonely. I miss home," you told a half-truth. Emmet hummed against you and closed his eyes. "Well, you aren't alone! I am Emmet, and I am your friend! Elesa, too! And Ingo! We all care for you!" he chirped. Ingo looked up from the papers that he had settled across his desk. Emmet moved to properly embrace you. His warmth was something solid and reassuring, but his hug hurt. It reminded you of your papa and his hugs. He had always been so affectionate.

You buried your face in his shoulder and sniffled loudly. Your arms came tightly around him as you let out your pent up emotions. You had not cried since your first day here. Everything had slowly congested under the surface and finally split the skin to spew out. Emmet's hand rubbed your back reassuringly. It felt nice to just lean into him, to have something solid to give yourself to. You even forgot that Ingo was in the room with you both. His lips were sealed as you sobbed into his brother's embrace. They stared into each other's eyes once more.

The next time you saw the twins was when they popped into the gym to visit Elesa. Emmet waved you over with a bright smile, and Ingo greeted you kindly. They were both excited to see you, it seemed. A conversation was had with them and Elesa. You could hear some of the other gym trainers chatting. A nervous turn of your head confirmed that a few had gathered together for some gossip, eyes staring at you. It was uncomfortable. Elesa put an arm around your shoulder, "Hey? Are you coming or not?"

"Oh, what?" your attention returned to your group, but you had no idea what they were talking about. "To dinner? The twins and I are planning on going out to this nice Kalosian restaurant tonight. You coming?" she asked, head tilting and her hand gently squeezing your shoulder. You couldn't afford that. The model must have known that. 

Shaking your head, "Ah, sorry. That's out of my budget." All three of them looked distressed. Was it that big of a deal? They could afford nice things with ease as their career choices paid quite well. Yours didn't. It paid a reasonable amount and a liveable wage, but nothing overly luxurious was a common purchase. 

"I'll pay for it," Ingo offered, silver eyes gazing at you with gentle kindness, "You are a member of our little group now, it's only fair." You shook your head. You could not. With someone you had just met, especially? Certainly not. 

"I'll cover it then," Elesa cut in, pulling you close to her, "C'mon, consider my treat. I owe you for helping me so much around here. You even covered as leader when I had to go out of country for a shoot." That felt easier to accept, but you still didn't want to. You would do anything for Elesa in order to repay her seemingly neverending kindness towards you. Her blue eyes stared at you with a silent plea. 

Despite your consciousness begging you not to, you agreed.

The dinner had been a pleasant event. You sat beside Elesa, across from the twins. It was a more formal event, so everyone was dressed quite elegantly. Elesa's outfit was lovely, but you wondered when it was not. The brothers, however, had caught your attention. Ingo wore a dark, ribbed turtle-neck shirt, which fit him handsomely, while Emmet wore a button down and a fluffy sweater vest. They were both… Attractive, you realised. You could acknowledge their beauty before, but something about the environment seemed to shift your perspective into viewing them in a romantic light. Perhaps Emmet more than Ingo, still being unfamiliar with the latter. 

Elesa told you to order whatever you would like, but you still held back. You refused to be a burden to your friend and boss. A light order of some rice side dish that appeared to be the most inexpensive item on the menu. You had gotten a look from everyone at the table, but you just shrugged and claimed to not be hungry. The model sighed in near sync with Ingo while Emmet only huffed. He was not one to talk. His order of Mont Blanc alone was nothing to be respected. They overlooked it and a conversation started about something… Strange.

"So, I know you're from Hoenn… But, y'know, Wattson never did say why you wanted to move," Elesa rested her head in her hand as she looked at you, hair stiffly tied into a bun with a braid wrapped around it, "You always seem so homesick… Did you want to leave?" You had not been hiding it well at all, you knew. Your mind was rushed with lies and half-truths to further obscure the actuality of the matter from them. They would surely hate you, too, if they found out that you were some eco-terroists' kid. 

"Elesa!" Ingo's voice cut in before you could begin a panic attack, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. It's obviously a personal thing that you have no obligation to share without feeling comfortable." Your shoulders dropped at his words. He read the mood easily and quickly deescalated the situation. Silently, you thanked him with an appreciative look. A curt nod was his only response. Elesa flinched from his scolding. "Oh! I'm so sorry, I didn't even think… Don't ever feel force to say anything," she apologised, grabbing your hand reassuringly. You smiled. It was nice.

You liked the friends you made.

The lull of autumn gave way to the frozen lashes of winter. Another season passes as you grow more into yourself in Unova. It was easier to find your footing as you gained more and more support from those around you. Elesa had been terrified to learn where you lived and insisted you move in with her. It was safer, and she did not mind the extra company. You found yourself inclined to agree. A couple of mugging and assault incidents make you feel unsafe in the area. 

Living with Elesa helped ease the pain of loneliness and gave you a new perspective on some things. She made sure you ate a healthy amount, having caught on to you skipping some meals in order to save money. There was help in getting you clothes that were both fashionable and affordable and fitting for whatever you liked. She was happy to help you out however she could.

You found yourself growing closer to the twins, too. Elesa, Emmet, and you were a common group to catch going around the city together. Evenings when Elesa seemed busy with back-to-back shoots and Emmet was caught doing overtime or working a graveyard shift led to you spending more alone time with Ingo. He did not like to get out as much as his younger brother, but happily invited you into his home to unwind during the evenings. 

They were always spent in an ease with him teaching you how to cook. Your fathers were always too busy to sit you down and teach you, and when you lived alone, you preferred to just pick something up. Ingo was a patient teacher, carefully explaining each step and offering a hand whenever you were clearly struggling. His larger, warmer hand gripped yours to help you stir the sauce at a slower pace. You blushed at how surprisingly soft they were. 

"Is it true that you get manicures with Elesa?" you asked after the food had been made. The two of you sat at the table across from each other. There was a pleasant domesticity to it; something that you had not experienced since you were extremely young. Shaking the thoughts from your head, you instead focused on the lovely man in front of you.

"Ah- You heard about that? I suppose there is no point in lying," he spluttered, eyes travelling to his well-taken care of nails, "Yes, I do. The experience is so relaxing and relieving after a stressful day of work." You smiled. Ingo would be the type into self-care. A workaholic and high-maintenance, you worry for his future partner. 

The rest of the evenings would be spent watching some show or movie together and lightly conversing about happenings in both of your lives. You learnt that the station was at its most hectic at this time of the year as the approach of the Unovan holidays consumed everyone's schedule. You noticed a lack of challengers as of late, so that made sense. 

"Do you plan to do anything for the holidays? Any family coming?" Ingo asked, eyes breaking from the sitcom he had turned on. It was a dated one from the late fifties. You leaned back against the couch. Family. You wish your family were coming to visit you. There still had been no reply from either, nor any other forms of contact. You expected at least an email from Courtney telling you whether your dad was alive or not. She would not care about your papa, unfortunately. 

"No," you answered with a sigh, "My fathers are… Well, they're busy. I don't think I've really spoken properly with them since I was sixteen, hilariously." That was when they really leaned into their endeavours with their respective teams. That was when you decided to run away from your dad's apartment. 

"That's not funny at all… I am deeply apologetic that your life has been like that," Ingo gently grasped your hand, a reassuring heat sinking into your skin, "If you wish to, you are free to join my brother and I for them. Elesa will be here, too." Well, if she was going, then you were going to be dragged along anyway. It was sweet to hear Ingo say such kind words. You grasped his hand back. He was not as affectionate as his brother, but his words were often well-spoken and well-thought out. 

"I'd like that Ingo," you smiled, "And don't be sorry, it wasn't your fault. I'm fine with everything now." He simply nodded and returned the expression. His attention went back to the show. You decided to give it a chance. 

It was not as bad as you imagined it to be.

Elesa watched you with strange eyes as you showed her different outfits for the evening. You had a date! She needed to stop being so iffy and complaining about the guy. He was extremely sweet, and you did not care if she claimed that he smelled like cheese. He was cute! Your date was a depot agent that you had met during your visits to the Battle Subway and the twins. You were excited about it, too, naturally. The last date you had been on was before your fathers nearly ended the world. 

You snorted to yourself at the strange way of measuring time, but it worked. If Elesa did not like this outfit, you would simply go with the one you noticed her eyes sparkle a bit after seeing. "Mmm. I wouldn't," she squinted at your outfit. "Do you think maybe that this date is a bad idea? I mean, do you really know this guy? What if he hurts you?" You rolled your eyes. The concern was appreciated but unneeded. You changed back into that one outfit and gave it a once-over before leaving your room.

"I'll be fine," you reassured while retrieving your wallet from the kitchen counter, "I'll text you if anything happens, y'know." She nodded but remained clearly malcontent that you were still going. The model waved you goodbye as you shut the door behind you. 

A strange urge consumed your thoughts as you stood in the elevator. Pulling out your phone, you sent a new text to your papa. 'going a date!!! :( ur not here to judge them tho' You smiled for a moment. Your papa used to scare off all your dates during your adolescence. The device was slipped back into your pocket as you exited the elevator. 

Your date met you at the restaurant with a nervous grin. He looked so different out of his uniform! A baggy sweat shirt covering a nice button up replacing that green jacket. His fluffy black hair was fully revealed, too. "Hey, Tony!" you waved at him. He returned the gesture. 

The date went fine, despite Elesa's misplaced concerns. Tony was a gentle soul and would never do anything harmful towards you. He walked you to the station, seeing it as his duty as both your date and a depot agent to see you safely off. You chuckled at him and pulled him in for a hug. A chaste kiss was pressed to his cheek before you parted from him. His cheeks were bright pink, and he waved a quick farewell.

Unaware were you of the older Subway Boss watching nearby.

Unaware were you of how his heart shattered into thousands of little pieces.

Unaware were you of the call he made to his brother, and then his brother to Elesa.

[beesmygod]

ugh

despite being such a gossip and drama hound myself, i do not relish being the subject of it. you might think its because being the subject of scrutiny and attention is stressful. it’s actually because the people who keep lining up to try to shots at me wind up being the dumbest people alive who knock themselves out somehow. i think its important to get in front of “a narrative”, especially in this case, where every player is a lying liar who lies ahahaha. this one is way funnier than morbi actually. up until now, i was tactfully setting aside what happened out of uh. whatever kindness was left in my heart, i guess. more fool me!

im not going out of my way to crop ppl out of this if you look bad its your own damn fault. no one made you type this shit but you. dont post shit you can’t cash.

you might have been confused by the exchange between anon and this guy yesterday when i reblogged it to set the record straight on morbi. i was, until very recently, an infrequent contributor to his webcomics discord. earlier this year, i tried to reach out into more communities so i could get to know more artists and keep up with what’s hot (what a stupid fucking idea that was, in hindsight). a few days ago, some weirdly supportive of kiwifarms tweets from a comic artist who was ruined by them were posted for discussion. everyone pretty much just noted that it was weird with one person asking what kf even was. everyone else explained so i added this stupid shit

note: this is at 5:24 am. because at 7pm that night, one of the people in the discord goes completely full fucking tilt out of literally nowhere. i have screencapped the entire conversation up until that point as proof that i 1. literally did not say anything else the entire day and 2. proof that the conversation was completely normal up until that point.

inexplicably, people in the server put on kids gloves and start trying to come to a middle ground with this dipshit like hmm yes maybe we are a little kiwifarms could you explain more so we can understand you. when i noticed an hour later i saw red.

for someone who was “not helping”, the attention-seeking hysteric suddenly evaporated into thin air. i dont think anyone has actually shamed them for their behavior before. the conversation was shut down rather than resolved because i raised the temperature. daniel invited me to speak to him more privately in his dm if i had any more concerns bc i was pissed it was being swept under the rug. so i did.

here is the conversation in full. im posting it bc it makes him look like a clown and because later, he characterizes this as “chasing him” into his dms. what i didnt realize until today is that he says that the person going nuts is a moderator’s sibling, which explains why they’re permitted to take huge shits on people with no repercussions.

having committed the worst crime you can do in a nerd group (be mean) i was subjected to a post-mortem about the event (?) which culminated with this unbelievable irony cap

after my 10 mins were up, i said “i am not a good cultural fit or share the same moral priorities as this server and i will show myself out” and left. i vented on my twitter with blistering posts basically saying “well they’re all young. its annoying and seems bad but what can i do but leave”. and left it there.

it seems insanely obvious to me, so obvious that i struggled to even have to explain it to people whose entire brain appeared to have leaked out of their skull, that allowing someone in your discord for artists accuse random artists of wanting to reboot the mass shooting and violent transphobia website is literally the worst possible behavior you could permit. i wasnt expecting the mods to leap into action and do something, as they seemed to desperately think. i wanted to not belong to a community that would tolerate or entertain this.

anyway, yesterday morbi happened. i reblogged that post and daniel, after being told he wasnt a problem, decided he absolutely had to be one right now. he followed me on twitter and began posting ominously about a “write-up” of what happened between morbi and i because “some people” (this could literally only be the discord chat, and the reason he didnt want to post it there so they could snicker at it to themselves was because he thought this would humiliate or scare me) were curious.

maybe you’ve noticed a little flaw in the logic both morbi and dan have when it comes to “doxing”: for two people who are very concerned about privacy they’re out here retweeting the very information they’re decrying as invasive and then dan goes and fucking googles her and posts on a public platform more information about her than i cared to know. i cant stop thinking about how these morons were completely convinced they were doing something noble and righteous here by standing up for someone that maybe might be a black woman (hence: racism) based entirely on like a pintrest account

the cloying, transparent attempts to seduce me into messaging him first to soothe his battered ego are so desperate and pathetic that they make you hurt from the sidelines. you can see me gently try to explain why they look like a complete lunatic clutching their pearls over unmasking anonymous hate before i give up. there was so much obviously wrong about what they were doing that i was in disbelief that they were telling me that they were doing it.

1. taking a “both sides” approach doesn’t work when one person is a serial sexual harasser and the other posted an email address attached to a near cry-typing comment.

2. the attempt to use black women as a cudgel to defeat his posting enemy.

3. whatever this. attempt at banter is. idk man.

all of this didn’t work, so he tried showing me a piece of what he was writing that was the most deliberately inflammatory in the hopes that this morsel would finally compel me to bite and come begging for a re-write to save my webcomic career.

i wasn’t posting in a way that was drawing attention to this, it was a nosy (positive) friend who noticed this happening and went “holy shit what the fuck are you doing” which caused him to backpedal furiously

i was planning on letting him post it and just letting it speak for itself. i cannot think of a more ruinous thing to do to yourself than to ally with a sexual harasser and post openly and transparently about how extremely mad you are about how a girl made you feel. what could have possibly gone wrong.

in the end, daniel signed off with this post, signaling a more positive future for himself and his comic since his plan to annoy someone with a reputation for being a huge bitch multiple times by trying to downplay the severity of his and his friend’s actions, somehow blew up in his face

ah wait hold on. im getting word that he posted this after deleting a different post. this one

if there were any doubt what this were all about, daniel went and tweeted it out (literally) because subtext is difficult. my demand for a public apology for being accused baselessly of a career ending lie in order to stop this behavior from ever happening again has been recontextualized in his head as mean old bea picking on him and forcing him to do terrible things like “moderate” as a moderator.

over the past week ive been subject to racists, sex pests and 0/10 trolls but the spineless, moral coward is the most egregiously memorable of the lot. despite the amount of leeway i gave him for his repeated weak-willed behavior, he always found a new way to own himself without external prompting. despite me walking away and being satisfied with that, he came back for more. there are some people you cannot help, there are some people i don’t want to help because they cannot stop putting their hands on hot stoves. and then there are people who are begging for it.

somehow, it will be my fault that he feels bad and embarrassed about his behavior because i have catalogued it after being pushed around enough and it will not be seen as a direct result of his repeated failure of conscience.

anyway lol, lmao

[delicrieux]

CORPSE REQUESTS???? HELL YEAH ALRIGHT so maybe one where the usual lobby is streaming but with bretman rock and he‘s kinda picking up on that cute we-like-each-other-but-we‘re-too-stupid-realize dynamic between corpse and y/n so he teases them and calls them out on it?? Idk just an idea, love you!

･:* ☆ author’s note: yo! yo! this is ✨cute✨ also....funky monky friday!!!

masterlist.｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

Typical game, typical stream, not exactly typical company. While Bretman is an unusual addition, he definitely adds a certain little something that not only makes the game funnier, but the dynamic more lively. If someone were to ask you if you could listen to him rambling for hours you would announce a resounding “Yes!” - well, no one asked, but you still told your stream that. They appreciated the honesty. Some of your followers, however, snuck in a few comments that vaguely read “u sure u don’t mean u could listen to corpse forever?” among the sea of keyboard smashes and emojis. You pretended you didn’t see them , focusing on that stupid card swipe that get’s you every time.

There are impostors among your group of friends, and your job as crewmate is to sniff them out. For some reason you have an inkling one of them is Sykkuno because he was just a bit too sweet during the last meeting, amping up the innocence in his voice to a suspicious extent; the second one, sadly, you are blind to. Though, if a surprise attack were to happen, you at least have Corpse beside you, guarding you while you do tasks. 

The fairy-lights in your stream room twinkle and dim, your eyes lingering on Corpse’s in-game astronaut for a tad longer than necessary. 

You have been following him this whole time like a lost puppy. Running in circles around his little character. At one point a chase ensued where he tried to catch you and you were laughing and you hope he was laughing too but quite frankly you were too afraid to check what the stream had to say because you figured it was going nuts. 

A meeting was urgently called. You frown softly at the X’s sprung on some of your friends’ icons. “I’ll avenge you.” You mutter before unmuting your mic.

“Okay, so, it’s definitely not Corpse or (Name).” James chimes so quick you barely manage to catch him, “I passed them on my way to MedBay and she was just running circles around him while he was, I don’t know, AFK? I mean, yes, king, work! Give us nothing!”

“I dunno guys,” Sykkuno says after the laughter dies down, “(Name) has been acting pretty sus. Have you even done any of your tasks?”

“It’s not (Name).” Corpse opposes quietly, though his voice is drowned out by a cacophony of conflicting opinions.

 “The hell, Sykkuno?” You exclaim, hurt. Is he trying to frame you? You knew something was odd about him this round, “What is this snake behaviour? Yes I did my tasks, Corpse is my alibi.”

“I was literally with her the whole time.” He confirms, all in that calm, baritone of his, “If she killed someone, I would have seen it.”

“How do we know you aren’t in cahoots?” Rae questions. Seconds tick by, draining the timer. This is getting nowhere. Worst of all, you’re slowly being led into the fire before they flame you. Honestly, you aren’t the impostor. If you were, you’re certain they would’ve caught you already. “I feel like (Name) and Corpse would be in cahoots.”

“Okay, good point,” James says, “but the body was found in Navigation.”

“They could’ve vented there.” Sykkuno offers.

Corpse hums, “Spoken like a true Impostor.” 

“Aren’t you in Navigation, Sykkuno?” You grit.

“Yes, I, uhh, I found the body with James.”

“Sus.” You say. Your stream chat echoes it a thousand times. Maybe more.

“I don’t think it’s Sykkuno,” James mumbles, “but I also don’t think it’s Corpse or (Name). Like, I’ve seen them doing tasks around the map. Never have they been anywhere even close to a body.”

“Yeah!” Sykkuno exclaims, “Isn’t that suspicious?”

You gape at your camera, like you’re in the Office, before hissing a “How the fuck is not murdering people suspicious?!”

“Guys, seriously,” Corpse says with a light little laugh, instantly hushing the hectic conversation, “we need to vote or skip. I say we skip for now. (Name) and I have been together since I ran into her in Electrical before the first body was found. I really don’t know what else do you want me to say. Let’s skip, okay?”

A chorus of “Okay��s shakes the discord call - if it’s anyone that can convince them to do something, it’s Corpse. This talent of his is both frightening and wonderful. It’s good having someone defend you, though if he ever wanted to vote you out, you’d be done for.

Somehow, you think he wouldn’t do that, though. A smile almost slips onto your lips before you swallow it down. Incriminating. You will not appear soft on stream! Your audience would tease you all the way to hell and back.

Bretman, who had been eerily quiet through the exchange (or, possibly, accidentally muted his mic again), suddenly speaks up, “Y’all are too cute.”

“What? Who?” Rae asks.

“(Name) and Corpse. Don’t think we don’t see y’all coupling it up.”

You’re suddenly incredibly happy you always stream in low lights - it feels cozy, more personal somehow - because your cheeks flush with heat and you lean back into your chair, as if to get away from him and the screen and the game and what he’s saying. You dare a glance at the chat but it’s swimming from the influx of messages. 

Corpse is quiet. You’re not sure whether that makes you feel better or worse.

“Oh my God, no kidding.” James says, the last one to skip vote, “They’re always like this, I swear, it’s the cutest thing.”

“What about me and Corpse?” Sykkuno asks, “I thought we had something special.”

“First you frame me,” You speak up, “and now you’re trying to take away my only friend? Cold, Sykkuno. Real cold.”

“Yaaaas, miss girl, don’t let him walk all over you!” Bretman cheers.

Thankfully, the timer ends, no one is flung into the void of outer space and all mics are muted again before Bretman can say anything else. 

You feel nervous. Corpse’s astronaut stands next to you, immobile. Swallowing, you circle around him again. You grin when he follows after you. Good, so he wasn’t weirded out by that exchange after all. 

Wait, why do you care so much anyway?

Well, whatever. There are still plenty of tasks to be done and you need to catch Sykkuno somehow. With renewed enthusiasm, you connect wires, thinking of a game plan. 

“here from corpse’s stream, he just called (name) angel:)!!”

You briefly wonder if it’ll make it into his stream highlights. Something so insignificant, such an offhand affectionate comment...Probably not, but you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want to hear it. Just to know how it sounded. To know if it really happened or was it just a little white lie from his fans meant only to tease you.

You wish you would've missed that comment in chat. Because now, with your heart racing in your chest, that’s the only thing you can think about.

.

hope you liked it! xx

.

[letarasstuff]

One kind of intern

(A/N): This was requested by @greenslifestuff :) It took me a week or two because I had to interact with my friends in order to get the inspiration I needed 😅 Summary: The team gets to work with a gen z teenager. Let’s see how that goes.

Warnings: Swearing and gen z humour

Wordcount: 2k

✨Masterlist✨

___________________________________

“Team, this is (Y/N) (L/N). She will be interning for the upcoming three months alongside this team. (Y/N), these are Agents Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi, Derek Morgan and Doctor Spencer Reid and our Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia”, Hotch introduces a teenage girl to his team like this happens every day.

“Wait Hotch, we don’t get interns. What is she going to do, no offense, but getting us coffee or what?” Morgan eyes her suspiciously. She looks like any teenager grabbed from the street. A band t-shirt, a torn pair of jeans and a cup from starbucks in her hands. Nothing you would expect to even enter a federal building.

“No offence taken, Agent Morgan. I know having an ugly pickly bitch working with professionals seems weird. It’s just I have summer break and I thought it would be a good thing on my resumé if I already interned in the FBI, because I just graduated and I wanted to go to the academy this fall. But if you wanna do a vibe check with me first, that’s fine by me. Whatever floats your boat.”

The room falls silent. Then out of all sudden everyone turns to Garcia, who puts her arms up in defense. “I don’t even know half the things she said, ask her yourself.”

That’s how the BAU gets their first contact with Gen Z culture and let me tell you it is a wild ride, so buckle up your seats, drink your tea up because we aren’t going to make any stops.

“(Y/N), I need you to come with me. We are going to the M.E. getting the latest reports from our last case”, Morgan tells her while passing her desk. In the blink of an eye the teenager is ready, putting her denim jacket with various pins and bits of patches on.

“Derek, can we get starbucks on the way back? The pumpkin spiced latte is back on their menu and I am on withdrawal. Pleaaaaaasseeee”, she looks at him with a pouty face. Morgan smiles. “Ok, under one condition: We both get one, take awesome pictures and send them to the group chat and then we act like we didn’t get them anything, but we actually buy them their usual.” He got the hang of it pretty fast. “Deal, Sis.”

While they are in the car on their way to the M.E. the agent groans. “Ugh, road work ahead.” “Uh yeah, I sure hope it does!” Morgan eyes her from the side. His whole demeanor says ‘old and confused’.

“What was that, kid?” But (Y/N) begins to laugh. “Don’t you know vines? Short dumb and funny clips people made?” It’s safe to say that this afternoon he learns to speak in vines, getting on Rossi’s nerves because nothing makes sense anymore.

“Ok, I heard you wanted to become a profiler. So I thought I would show you some old cases and then you try to figure out the profile. I’ll present them to you like I do to the team, alright?” JJ and (Y/N) sit in her office, safe from curious eyes. “As right as the law, Ma’am.” 

“Good, this is a case from several years ago. It happened here in D.C. Three men were murdered execution style in the middle of the night in an alleyway. They were all from different backgrounds. The only connection between them was that they were evicted for some form of sexual harassment or assault. The UnSub also had a signature: A shot into their groin while the men were alive.”

Unfaced by the presented facts (Y/N) pops a piece of gum into her mouth. “It do be like that.”

“What?” “I mean, it’s obviously a woman. She experienced any harassment or assault herself. She also has excess to the files, I assume she works as a paralegal, since most of them are women. Female serial killers are extremely rare, but they are better organized. The only thing left to say is good for her getting revenge.” The blonde looks at the teenager with wide eyes.

“I-I guess but you know you can’t say anything like that to Hotch, do you?” She asks concerned. “JJ, I’m dead inside, not dumb. I know this.” But the agent shrugs. “Good. Though I really want to see his face.” “Mood.”

Penelope Garcia is the closest one to relate to Gen Z culture, since a great part of her time is spent on the internet. She happily learns about all the phrases and their meanings as well as the newest trends and hypes.

“Purp is sus, I tell you”, is heard from the lair into the hallway. Spencer and Derek look at each other with concern on their faces. “Do you think they are alright or do we have to-” “IT’S A SELF REPORT I SWEAR PENNY! YOU WORK WITH PROFILERS IN GANDALF’S NAME!” Spencer’s question is answered by that.

“Baby girl, crazy girl, are you doing good? Do you need help or something?” The older one asks warily. But it’s drowned in another screaming match. “I TOLD YOU PURP WAS THE IMPOSTER BUT YOU HAVE TO TELL THEM I VENTED WHEN I DIDN’T! I WANT ALL TIKTOKS I SENT YOU BACK!” “YOU DON’T DARE TO REVOKE MY TIKTOK PRIVILEGES!” “WATCH ME GARCIA!”

“Whoa girls, what about taking a break?” Morgan tries to diffuse the situation. “Yes, I think JJ got new pictures of Henry and Emily brought cookies this morning”, Spencer adds.

The girls, who mere seconds ago were ready to jump each other's throats, look at the other one. “You get the cookies and I go to JJ, deal?” (Y/N) asks. “Deal!” Without sparing the boys another glance they run out of the lair. Their devices are still lit up. A red figure shines into their faces. ‘AMONG US’ is written underneath it. “I think we get too old for this stuff, don’t we Reid?”

Spencer always thought he was young. Of course, his mind is older, but physically he is not that old. But the intern proves him wrong. And boy is he wrong.

“Spencer, is there anything interesting to know today?” (Y/N) takes a seat on his desk, distracting the genius from his paperwork. It is a common occurrence for her to go to him to ask for a fun fact.

“Do you wanna learn something about sloths?” His knowledge (or the writer’s) on this subject is astonishingly big.

“Spill the tea, sis.” “Did you kn- What? But I don’t have tea to spill. And I don’t wanna spill anything, I-” Reid rambles in confusion.

“It’s just a saying, Spencer. There is no deeper meaning to it then ‘Tell me everything about it’. You know, it’s mostly used for gossiping, but I don’t really like to gossip. That’s why I use it in a different context. You got it?” (Y/N) explains it to him in a soft manner, knowing her generation can be complex.

“Yeah, I think I do. Thank you for telling me. I really like the phrase. It has a nice ring. What about you spill the tea about all the phrases you know and I tell you some things from my knowledge?” “I think you got yourself a teacher, genius. But now tell me about the sloths, I love them.”

A few days later Rossi catches her doing some weird moves. “Are you having a seizure or what is your problem, youngster?” Even though he tries not to show it, David took a great liking to (Y/N), thinking of her like a granddaughter. Still, most of her actions confuse the hell out of him.

“I’m practising a dance for tiktok. My friends and I worked on a choreo we wanted to film later. Come here, I can show you.” And that’s what she does in the conference room. The teenager walks him through every move of the choreo, explaining the meaning to it and how it correlates with the song.

“And then you move your arm like that. Exactly like that! You did a great job, David! Are you sure you don’t want to come with me later? We can make you your own account and name it ‘Grandpa-on-tiktok’. You can promote your books over there and it’s a way to float with the trend!”

Seeing her this excited Rossi can’t do anything but agree to the idea. Also, he secretly liked doing the dance thing. It made him feel young again.

“(Y/N), you said you graduated this summer. But your file said you are 16?” Emily asks her one boring day filled with paperwork and countless cups of coffee. “It is what it is”, she mindlessly answers, too focused on filling out the work in front of her.

“I mean yes but how?”

“Emily, smart people exist. I know, coming from me hits different, but here we are.” Finally (Y/N) puts her pen away looking at the raven haired woman.

“What are you talking about? I can’t really follow you.” The more the intern says the more confused gets Emily.

She sighs. “I don’t want to leave you on read here. I kind of am smart somehow. Apparently I was smart enough to skip a grade or two. But it’s no biggie. Many peeps do this, so I don’t sweat it.”

“Even though I feel like you are selling yourself short here, I know you are an incredibly intelligent person. Someday you will be an awesome profiler and any team will be lucky to have you. I really hope we will be the lucky team. But I’m still not sure if this is what I should say in this context.”

“Emily, you are goals. This fam is squad goals. I really hope to be a part of this someday”, (Y/N) admits. “I’m sure Hotch will do his best to get you on the team, you became a great part of it. I can’t imagine a future without you.”

Sadly Prentiss has to get used to a time without the team’s beloved intern. On her last day (Y/N) knocks at Hotch’s door.

“Hey, I wanted to say thank you. The time with you and all the others was amazing and I learned so many useful things for not only the academy but also for my daily life. I really had a glow-up here”, she says after coming in.

Hotch motions towards the chairs in front of his desk. “Take a seat, (Y/N). I got something for you. See it as a compensation for not getting paid for your internship. You really did great work and a better job than some agents, who are doing theirs for many years already but don’t know half the stuff you do. You are a valuable member to the team.”

“Wait, you speak in presence tense. I leave you all this afternoon, you know that, do you?” But the Unit Chief only gestures to a white envelope on his desk. Quickly the teenager takes it and reads it.

“Are you serious Hotchner? Because I will cry you a river if you joke”, she threatens him.

“I’m dead serious, (Y/N). Even though half of your talks are difficult to understand, the other half is twice as useful and important. Additionally to that, you are like a fresh breath of air that the team needed. That’s why a place here will be available for you as soon as you graduate from the academy. I trust you that you will pass with flying colors, I had to promise that to Strauss.”

“Of course, Hotch. I swear on my Animal Crossing Island that I will do my best and more. Thank you so much”, she leaps into his arms.

The others watch the interaction from the bullpen, pretending to not get teary eyed. Their favorite Gen Z Kid will come back to them after all.

Taglist:

Spencer Reid

@calm-and-doctor

[paradisecas]

my mother told me i should go and get some therapy

@midamoulweek day 7: resilience and/or storytelling irdk

Adam arrives at her door ten minutes late, panting but grinning. “Sorry,” he says. “I got Michael to whip something up for us so we didn’t have to meet here but then he made this house which defeats the whole purpose—“ He’s flapping his hands about, a move Kate rarely saw on him when she was alive. “So I had to deal with all that.”

It should be nice to see him so animated, but knowing the source of his excitement dulls the moment for her.

Michael. Once upon a time, he was just an archangel that Kate’s mom made her pray to at Sunday service. He was nothing but a sculpture outside a church or a warrior in a painting or a character in a story.

Now he’s her son’s boyfriend. The boyfriend that got him stuck in hell for a thousand goddamn years.

“Why would he make my house?” Kate asks.

Adam is leaning in the doorway, catching his breath. “It’s familiar to all of us,” he explains. “It’s where he and I hung out the most in—and Ghoul obviously—you know.”

And there’s the other problem.

Kate doesn’t remember dying that well. It was quick for her, in the end. Sure, she remembers being hunted in her own house; remembers the scratching in the walls and the thumping from the vents; remembers something grabbing at her ankle and pulling from under her bed. But after that, it’s pretty much nothingness. For her, being eaten alive was quick and messy. According at Adam, at least; he never saw the crime scene, he says, but he does have a first person account from the thing that ate her. Because he’s dating that thing too.

Ghoul didn’t give Adam the same courtesy of a quick death; his was long and violent, because he was John’s blood and not just a one night stand from almost twenty years before. And yet somehow, somehow, Adam doesn’t hold the hours of screaming and bleeding against him.

Is it her fault? Did she neglect him so much during his childhood that he resorted to latching on to monsters who hurt him? If she spends more time with him now, can she get him to see that he doesn’t need to be with them just because they have some sort of twisted connection?

Does she even have the right to speak against them, now that Adam is older than her by hundreds of years?

Who knows. All Kate knows is that she, for some reason, agreed to meet them. To have dinner with them.

She’s probably going to regret this.

“I got him to make our house. Like, on earth. So you can see what life is like for us!” Adam beams at her, and it’s hard to pretend to match his enthusiasm.

“I’m excited to see your house, baby,” she tells him, only sort of lying.

“Michael and Ghoul are super excited to meet you too.”

“Are they?”

Adam laughs. “Not really. They’re nervous I think. I mean, Ghoul didn’t get to know his dad until recently so he’s pretty sure he’s gonna mess this up, and you know Michael’s dad killed him so. Parents are weird for him.”

Ah, yes. The Ghoul that John killed is also in Heaven. And Michael’s dad is God. Like, The God. Well, not anymore. These days, The God is the devil’s kid. Apparently.

“Well,” she says. “We’ll see how they do.”

“Don’t get your hopes up.”

Oh, she won’t. Her hopes are all the way in hell at this point.

Because this is Heaven and spatial physics are nothing to literal angels like the one Adam is dating, Adam only has to lead her a few paces down the driveway before she spots a house across the road that wasn’t there before. It’s small, smaller than her house, but it seems—homey, at least.

“We live in Maryland for my school,” Adam says as they cross the road. “Michael actually created this house for us there too ‘cause we wanted something kinda further from town. Ghoul and I had an apartment in Minnesota while Michael was dead but it wasn’t big enough for three people anyway.”

He says it so casually. While Michael was dead. Like it’s normal to come back from the dead.

But after everything he’s told her about his life, maybe it is normal. He’s done it twice, so what does Kate know?

At the door, Adam stops. Turns. Shuffles his feet.

“What is it?” Kate asks immediately. Is he having doubts about dinner? Is he having doubts about his relationship?

“Michael and Ghoul are really important to me,” he starts.

Damn.

“I’m honestly not expecting this to go well at all because neither of them make a good first impression but... maybe keep an open mind?”

“My mind is already wide open, Adam,” Kate deadpans.

“That’s fair.” He huffs a laugh. “Okay, yeah. We should probably—if I take too long Michael will think I’ve run off with Gabriel again.”

Gabriel, also an archangel. Because Adam is friends with other angels, too.

The inside of Adam’s house—or its heaven recreation—is nothing like she’d expect from him. They weren’t minimalists when Kate was alive by any means, but there are a lot of trinkets and paintings and little things scattered about. None of the walls have any clear space, the couch in the living room is little more than a heap of blankets and pillows, and beside a window decorated with hanging bits of stained glass in the shape of a butterfly is whole bookshelf filled with everything except books.  

One shelf is just little angel figurines, which maybe they think is funny? One is just rocks in shapes and colors she’s never seen on earth or in Heaven before which actually checks out with what Adam told her about Michael’s proclivity for showing off the planets he helped create. One shelf has a dozen framed photographs crammed together so tightly that she can’t even see them all, but the ones she can all feature at least one Adam.

On the other side of the window, there’s also a bookshelf being used for its intended purpose and overflowing with books, some small and some massive and very few that Kate recognizes. Those on the top shelf all have thick, weathered spines gilded in gold lettering that maybe isn’t actually lettering. Since she died, Adam’s become quite the linguist; he says he’s fluent in the language of angels now. Which is not something she’d ever expected for him, or anyone really.

It’s the house of a well traveled family, which makes her happy, but then she sees two real-life Adams who are not her son and the happiness fades.

“Hey guys,” Adam says. He stays by Kate’s side instead of joining either of them, for which she’s grateful. “This is my mom. Mom, this is Michael—“ He points to one with a flat sort of frown. “—and Ghoul.” The other one is grinning in a way that perfectly mirrors Adam’s, which Kate does not like.

They’re all wearing different clothes, but Kate immediately forgets who is who. “How do you tell them apart?” she asks, before cringing at the realization that she sounds like she’s talking about two cats that look the same instead of two potentially very dangerous beings.

“Everyone always asks that,” Adam laughs. “I know we have the same face, but I really think we look nothing alike.”

Kate thinks if Adam and—Ghoul?—swapped places enough times she wouldn’t know who was her son and who was the creature. They really are all identical.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Milligan,” the one she thinks is Michael says. “Was the journey okay?”

Kate blinks. It was like, five feet from her front door. Of course the journey was okay.

“It was like, five feet from her front door.” Adam says, exasperated but smiling. “Of course it was okay.”

“I’m just trying to be polite,” Michael grumbles. “You’re the one who told me not to be rude.”

“And I really appreciate it,” Adam says. At that, Michael’s frown melts into a little smile that takes a decade or maybe an eternity off his face; he looks young in a way a primordial being should not.

“You can call me Kate,” she tells him, because she can be polite too. And there’s something not right about an archangel calling her Miss anything.

“Kate,” Michael echoes. He turns the soft smile onto her and she doesn’t know how Adam handles it. There’s too much in his eyes.

Then the other one steps forward. “Great to see you again Kate,” Ghoul says. “Big fan of your work. Sorry about the—“ He mimes grabbing and pulling and biting. “You know how revenge is.”

Actually, she doesn’t, but she might soon.

“If it’s any consolation, your liver was exquisite. Best I’ve ever had; you really took care of your body!”

Adam rolls his eyes fondly—fondly!—and says, “I told you not to bring that up.”

Ghoul shrugs. “Just thought I’d mention the elephant in the room before it got any bigger.”

Kate can’t do much but try to smile back awkwardly. This is weird. Too weird. She almost wants to pinch herself to make sure it’s not some weird fever dream, but what is Heaven if not the biggest fever dream? Anyway, she’s already pinched herself plenty of times since Adam first broached the subject of his love life. It’s all too real.

“Should we eat?” she suggests. The sooner they eat, the sooner she can leave.

As Adam leads them all into the kitchen, Kate catches sight of a—a few bones and a skull? just sitting on a small table at the end of the hallway. They vanish a split second after she sees them, and when she turns her gaze it’s to the sight of Michael averting his.

It turns out that Adam made baked ziti, the one real meal she’d taught him when he was a teenager. It warms her up a little to think of him sharing her recipe with his family.

Except Michael doesn’t take a plate because “angels don’t eat,” which he explains almost sheepishly, and Ghoul has his own bowl of—something. Something that Kate does not want to look at too closely.

So it’s horribly awkward as they eat. Adam compliments his own cooking, because of course he does, and Kate also compliments his cooking, because of course she does. Michael at least comments that it looks good, and Ghoul holds his (full!) mouth open until Adam feeds him a bite.

“It’s fine,” he says, chewing thoughtfully, “but my stuff is better.”

Kate shoves a massive forkful into her mouth to stop herself from asking about what his stuff really is.

Conversation doesn’t really flow either, which is maybe due in part to the fact that Kate never has an empty mouth for more than a few seconds at a time, but what is she supposed to say?


With Kristin, they’d talked about college and careers and school stuff. Little things that Kate could relate to. How can she relate to anything about the lives of two monsters?

There are customs for meeting your kid’s partners, right? The shovel talk, or whatever. She never had to give Kristin the shovel talk because Kristin was kind and funny and like, sixteen years old.

Something in Kate’s gut tells her it’s maybe not a good idea to threaten an archangel and a thing that already killed her, plus the whole ‘hurt him and I’ll hurt you’ thing is a moot point by now, so she avoids that conversation. But she can still ask, “What are your intentions with my son?” so she swallows her mouthful and does just that.

With lightning fast reflexes, Adam reaches out to clamp a hand over Ghoul’s mouth that was just beginning to open.

Kate does not want to know.

“My intentions?” Michael asks, the picture of grave seriousness. “All I want is to love and cherish him as I have done for many centuries now. Your son saved me, Kate, so I will do everything within my abilities to make him happy.”

Cute sentiment, really, and Kate does enjoy the way Adam’s face burns a bright red, but Michael kinda ruined it by bringing up the centuries and the saving. Her baby shouldn’t have to save anyone except in a hospital setting. And he definitely shouldn’t have been alive for centuries. A century, maybe, but that’s it. 
“And how do you plan on doing that?” she asks.

“I will do whatever he asks of me,” Michael answers. “I even let him keep the Ghoul.”

Kate opens her mouth to say something along the lines of, “I don’t think that’s a good thing,” but Adam cuts her off.

“Michael helped with all my paperwork,” he says, wrenching his hand off of Ghoul’s mouth and wiping it on his pants. The motion leaves behind a smear of blood, but his skin is unbroken. Kate tries even harder to avoid eye contact with Ghoul’s bowl. “We were both declared missing and then I missed a decade, so he’s the reason I even got into school again.”

It’s like he can’t even hear himself. “And why were we missing, Adam?” she asks, unable to help it. “Why did you miss a decade?”

Everyone shifts uncomfortably.

“I mean—“ Adam starts, but he doesn’t finish his thought. It’s his turn to take a too-big bite of ziti.

“I assure you, I will spend the rest of my life making up for what I did to him,” Michael says.

“Right.” Kate wipes her mouth. “What about you, Ghoul? You never got to answer my question.”

“My intentions?” Ghoul giggles, strained and high pitched. “Um, same as Michael. Love and cherish him or whatever. Make up for killing him. Rock his—“

“Okay!” Adam interrupts. “See, mom? They feel bad. So. We’re all good here.”

Sure. They feel bad.

“And don’t you think they’re cute?” Adam continues, which.

Yeah, they are cute, but only surface-level cute and only because Adam is cute.

“Wait, I know how to win her over,” Ghoul smirks. “Remember when you were a kid and got her to buy you candy?”

And then he pulls the exact same face—puppy-dog eyes and all. It is incredibly cute, but again, less so with the knowledge that he only knows how to do that because he has Adam’s memories. Which he got from eating him.

But Adam laughs at Ghoul, and even Michael twitches with an amused smile.

“He still makes that face,” Michael tells Kate hesitantly. “As if he needs to beg for anything.”

“No, come on, you can be stubborn!” Adam’s grinning again. “Just the other day I wanted to stop at that diner and you said no!”

“Because you should eat better,” Michael says. He sounds like he’s scolding Adam, and Kate doesn’t know what to think of that. “You’re going to be a doctor, you know. You really should eat a vegetable sometimes.”

“He took us anyway,” Adam whispers, winking at Kate. “I guess the face does come in handy.”

Ghoul chimes in after that with his own rowdy anecdote of a time when they had to beg Michael for something. In this story, it’s taking them back in time to see a certain concert. Apparently, Michael didn’t want to upset Jack—the devil’s son, now God, also his nephew—but still caved.

Kate lets them tell their little stories. The smile doesn’t fall from Adam’s face for the rest of the dinner.

She has to hand it to him; her son knows how to move on. When John first entered their lives and did not act the way a father should, she’d seen it in Adam—the inability to forgive. And as the years went by, she saw that inability grow into resentment and then into something like hate.

The hate is still there, even, especially when he talks about Sam and Dean, John’s other kids that Kate knew nothing about until she was dead.

For human slights, like with John, it seems that Adam has no interest in forgiving. Sam and Dean did more than just skip the holidays with him, she knows that, but even Adam’s hatred for them is something very human. It’s why his relationship still has her so perplexed; he can’t forgive blood, but he can choose these two guys?

But the way he laughs. The way he lights up.

Kate can’t forgive Michael or Ghoul. Most likely, she’ll never get over what they did to her baby.

Adam is stronger than her. She’ll let him have his happiness as long as possible, and when it crumbles—because there’s no way it can’t, like when a kid thinks a feral cat can be his friend but it still ends up swiping at him—she’ll be there to pick up the pieces. Just as she disinfected the scratches and pressed superhero band-aids and kisses over his wounds back then, she’ll keep him safe as he pulls himself back together for what will likely be the hundredth time.

Until then, though—he can play happy.

Once the food is gone and plates are cleared, the three of them seem to just fall into each other. Ghoul leans against Adam who leans against Michael and they’re all a bit hesitant, still, but it’s obvious they’re just going off of muscle memory and Kate can’t stick around and keep watching. She can’t.

“What did you think?” Adam asks as he walks her home.

Instead of answering with words, Kate offers a grimacing little smile that he seems to understand.

“Okay, yeah, I thought so.” The enthusiasm he exuded for a minute there has faded into resignation. “You’ll just have to come see us more,” he says, more confidently. “We can keep the house up.”

“You’re sure these are the guys for you? I’ve met some very nice men and women here and I’m sure there are plenty more who are still alive—“

“Mom.”

“This just isn’t what I wanted for you,” she sighs. “It’s not normal, baby. They hurt you. They killed you. I don’t understand how…”

“They also love me.” His voice softens. “And I love them, and they’re right for me. You’ll get it someday.”

Probably not. Probably, she won’t even try, because someone has to see reason.

“Maybe,” she says, and they both know she’s lying.

Her house is dark. It’s never seemed so empty; Heaven brings life to even the lifeless. But now there’s no Adam making her breakfast in the mid-afternoon morning and all the pictures are a thousand years old for him and—something she’s never considered before—they’re probably weird to him, knowing that it’s only ever him.

They bid each other goodnight, Kate holding on to Adam maybe too tightly and for too long as they hug, and then he’s off into the night, heading back to the monsters she has no way to protect him from. 

Kate has to step into her dark, empty house all alone.

[archetypal-archivist]

Tommyinnit and Hermitcraft- Heartstone

So this builds off of the whole "Tommy has somehow found himself on Hermitcraft after the exile arc" thing that got really popular with @redorich and @petrichormeraki on tumblr. Basically it's an excuse to give Tommy therapy and 20+ parent figures. One thing that's a common thread in those stories is that Tommy is shocked that Hermitcraft has infinite respawns and all of the hermits are quick to reassure him that he really won't perma-die in their world. And I had the thought- well, what if he wasn't in their world anymore? And thus came forth 1500+ words of angst~

It begins like this. Evil X is stuck in the void, alone and with no one to talk to. He misses daylight, he misses touch, he misses hearing voices other than his own. One day, he sees something get shot through the void as if by slingshot, leaving a trail of code in its wake, tethering the whatever it is back the way it came. This is Tommy, and while he begins to get adjusted to Hermitcraft and company, Evil X watches as the string of code begins to imprint itself into the void, and eventually learns that he can interact with it, albeit only on the most superficial of levels. On Tommy's end, he slowly begins to heal from his time spent in the war zone that is the Dream SMP, making fast friends with Grian and several of the other hermits in the process. He goes pranking with his newest, winged older brother figure, laughs at the antics of Impulse, Tango, and Zedaph, builds a cobblestone tower with BDubs, etc. But for all that he's healing, such a process isn't linear. No one on the server can truly understand just what sort of stuff he has been through, and so he often finds himself alone, trying to deal with his wildest emotions by talking to himself.

One day, however, a little voice in his head starts talking back. It's rough and gravelly and not very nice at first, but it's faint enough that he chalks it up to his imagination and moves on with his life. He follows Stress around like a duckling for a day, plays squire for Welsknight, and has a roaring panic attack after an unfortunate spar with False leads to him getting flashbacks to the Pit with Technoblade. He retreats back to his tower for a good cry, and in the midst of his tears, he hears the voice again. This time it's a bit nicer, sounding unsure and a bit panicky as it tries to encourage him to stop crying, god this is awkward, kid, it'll be fine. Wait, are you a kid? You seem tall for a munchkin.

This time, Tommy knows that it isn't his imagination, but half of his old server seemed to have voices in their heads so he really isn't all that alarmed that he seemed to have developed one of his own too. And he does something that no one else does when Evil X reaches out- he starts talking back. It's rough going, at first, especially since both of them have abrasive personalities, but eventually they settle into a rough estimation of friendship that means more to them then they are willing to say. From Evil X's perspective, this is the first time someone has actually listened to him and hasn't been turned away by his violent streak, his bad manners, and lack of proper social skills. For Tommy, this is a chance to vent to someone who seems to understand his pain. It helps that neither of them are inclined to ask too many questions. Tommy, on his part, has no clue that Evil X is an actual person and not a voice in his head, while Evil X can't bring himself to ask why Tommy has left a trail of code in the void and why it's all so glitched. He especially fears asking about the perma-death clause that seems to naturally have occurred in his code.

He will come to regret this choice.

The day is like any other, at first. He begins his day with a slice of sweet melon and then flies off to whatever hermits are awake at the time to "share a meal with them." Really, it started as an excuse to make sure that Tommy was eating at least one meal day, even in his most dissociative of states, but has since turned into an opportunity to eat weird things in front of people to see their reactions. (Etho is his favorite. He's always up early and half the time, asks to try a bite of whatever Tommy is having. They both agree that spider eyes taste a lot like sour boba.) From there it's off to the shopping district to restock his dirt shop and claim his share of the profits from the hole-digging service he runs with Grian. After that, there's just enough time to complete an order or two and collect more cobble and dirt before he has to meet up with Grian to go on their biweekly End Busting session. The two usually have a lot of fun as they go about it, Tommy jokingly shoving Grian off the platform only for his adopted brother to catch himself and fly up to join him on the narrow platform spanning the emptiness once again. Every once in a while, Grian mock-threatens to do the same in return, but he knows better than to actually attempt it after he did it once and had had to catch Tommy when he started screaming and even after they had gotten back to solid ground, he wouldn't stop for the better part of half an hour.

On habits die hard, after all. Tommy may have been told time and time again by everyone on the server that infinite respawns are a thing, yes really, but he still has a hard time believing it. He actually has a rather insane number of levels racked up- even more than Xisuma, which is impressive- because in all the months that he has been on Hermitcraft, he hasn't died once. It's a combination of survival skills taught to him by Philza and his own paranoia which has kept him alive for so long, and most of the hermits agree that it is rather impressive, if not entirely healthy for him to be so scared of dying. (Doc once offered to kill him as evidence that yes, it really is safe here and you will respawn, but for all that death by crazy redstone machine might of been cool, Tommy took a hard pass on that. Grian low key took exception to Doc offering to kill his adopted little brother, really man? Not cool.)

Anyway, Grian and Tommy meet up in the End and start off bridging with the insane amount of cobble that Tommy has stored up. Usually Tommy is in front, placing the stones, and Grian is in back, watching out for any sign of a slip up, but this time they decide to switch it up a bit, head in a new direction, play around with who's doing what this time. It ends... poorly. They bridge out into the black, on and on and on, farther into the void than they ever have before. Slowly, the islands of floating white stone stop appearing with such frequency, but they become larger in size and stranger in shape. Every once in a while Grian will see what he swears to be a glowing white mountain of Endstone in the distance, although Tommy calls bullshit each and every time. They chalk it all up to bad luck and going nuts from boredom, but really, neither one of them knows how to quit while they're ahead. As the islands disappear altogether and all that remains to orient themselves is the tenuous lifeline of cobblestone beneath their feet, the unthinkable happens.

Grian slips. And Tommy, taught compassion by the very world that will now kill him, reaches out to save him.

For one, brief moment, the two brothers clasp hands- and then Grian's weight pulls Tommy right over the edge and down, down, down into the void below.

Grian fell out of the world.

Tommy fell out of the world... and into a new one.

----

Xisuma wakes up late that day. He's been doing that a lot, if he's honest, given how late he's staying up most nights finishing up builds and the like. Those hours of sleep have to come from somewhere, after all, and he's far from an early bird. He gives into the impulse to relax a bit, drinking some tea sweetened with just enough honey to rot his teeth, and then heads off to his computer room to start up his duties as admin for the day. It's the red lights that alert him to something being wrong, and at first, he thinks it's just one of hermits' cam accounts being buggy again. Perhaps it got shut off while the hermit was bridging through the void and the hermit in question simply hadn't retrieved it yet? But who would name their cam account Tommyinnit? The looming dread sits cold in his gut as he flicks his fingers to open up his admin panel... Best to check, just in case.

The death messages are clear enough- Keralis had just perished to a ravager yesterday, likely Tango's from Decked Out if he had to guess. Zedaph had been slain by a piglin twenty minutes ago. And Grian and Tommy had fallen into the void. But if that were the case... why had only one of them respawned?

On Grian's part, he comes to with a lingering chill deep in his bones and an awful headache. The bed underneath him is warm and the sheets are a soft rosy color, likely one of the ones in Scar's magical village if the persistent smell of spruce is anything to go by. He winces against the light filtering through the window and turns to the side, squinting at where Tommy had placed his blue bed right next to his, apology on his lips for his stupid mistake. The sheets are undisturbed. Huh. That's weird, he could have sworn that he and Tommy had set their respawn points at the same time. Maybe Tommy had just forgotten and he was back in his base or at spawn? Grian rises to his feet slowly, giving his body time to adjust to the colors and sounds of the Overworld, then flaps his wings and takes off to go looking for his Tommy.

He doesn't find him.

---

The reactions to Tommy's "death" are many and varied, although for the most part, the hermits are split into two camps- those that think Tommy is gone for good, and those that think he may still be out there somewhere. For the first few days of Tommy's disappearance, most everyone is in the latter camp. Xisuma spends hours upon hours scanning the code, becoming increasingly more frazzled and terrified as his lack of sleep gets to him. Tango and Doc join him in the endeavor, although none of them have any luck or are able to spot the piece of code that caused the problem. No additions, no changes to the text, nothing. Grian leads the other team, those who set out on foot and one wing and with pick in hand to scour the world for their youngest charge, taken from them too soon. They begin in a grid pattern, setting out in ones and twos to search the whole world, but as the distance increases, the neat, orderly flyovers turn into frenzied boosting as panic starts to get the better of them. Some of them hold onto their composure better than others, but Grian ends up flying over the same patch of forest three times because he can't see for his tears. False, Impulse, Welsknight, and Beef cross the Nether, fighting their way into Bastion after Bastion and leaving Nether portals in their wake. In their tracks comes the fliers- Grian, Ren, Iskall, and BDubs. Each one takes a portal and does a sweep through the corresponding patch of Overworld before picking a direction to continue the search. Cubfan, iJevin, and Scar take to the seas, Mumbo, Stress, xB, and Zedaph to the End, Etho down into the depths of the caves below. Strangely enough, there are a few hermits who don't join the search- Keralis, who got the unlucky task of taking care of Xisuma and the others searching through the code, Tinfoilchef, who doesn't provide a reason but everyone gives him a pass because of his age, and Joe Hills and Zombie Cleo, who refuse to explain themselves.

Eventually, the searches dry up. Eventually, some of the hermits admit defeat. Hundreds of thousands of blocks out from spawn, down to the bedrock below, beneath sea and sky and every place that lacks the sun. How far is too far? For Xisuma, enough is enough. Tommy is dead. The search is over.

He stops looking. And soon, others do the same.

And the tone of the server... shifts.

For the first time that any of them can remember, a person has perma-died. Sure, they've all heard the rumors, of servers where infinite respawns is not the norm, of servers where the world glitched and a creeper is supercharged enough to damage a player down to their code. But they'd never thought that one of their own would be on the receiving end of such a curse. And to the hermits, the possibility of dying themselves suddenly becomes all too real. The constant flying is the first to go, and for those that insist on it anyway (outside of Grian, who has wings), checking the elytras' durability becomes more than just a habit. Eating spider eyes and other junk is out of the question, now it's golden apples or nothing. The Nether is all but abandoned, as is the End, and everyone on the server either groups up so that they are never alone, or retreats into their bases, becoming true hermits befitting of their server's name.

The joy that had once been so characteristic of the server is gone, and in the hearts of all, there lingers the dread that any one of them might be next- although, there are still those that hold on to hope that Tommy may not be as gone as he seems.

---

The hermits who think Tommy is dead for good and have stopped searching: Doc, Etho, Xisuma, Welsknight, Grian, BDubs, Cubfan, TinfoilChef, Stress, False, Iskall.

The hermits who think Tommy is still out there, alive if still missing, and that the search should continue: Keralis, Mumbo, Tango, Vintage Beef, Impulse, Zedaph, Joe Hills, Zombie Cleo, Scar, Rendog, xB.

Doc and Etho are old. They don't like to admit it, but they've been around since the beginning, back when players were first learning how to jump servers and communicator technology was undergoing its first upgrade. They've seen a lot and know well by now that dead is dead. Tommy is dead. All that is left to do is mourn and move on, and they have shed their tears already. Call them cold for it, but in the face of a kind of drive that can keep a man going after his entire server has burnt down around his ears (Mindcrack will be missed), they know they need to keep moving forward. There are enough broken messes on the server these days, and it is through their efforts that shops remain stocked and the torches don't burn out. They hold onto normalcy with an iron grip and hope that some day, the rest of the hermits will join them in rationality.

Stress too has a comparatively healthy approach to all of this. She doesn't want it to be true, god no, but so far everything is pointing in the direction of Tommy being dead for good. She eats a couple dozen bowls of ice cream, has a some good cries, doesn't leave her base for a week, and even afterwards she can't bring herself to wear pink for a while. But she's mourning. She's accepted things. She lets her heart break, and as time passes, she lets herself heal. And that's enough for her.

Scar is of the opinion that Tommy is still out there, and while he clings to that hope with all his might, it's fragile and Cub just knows that his best friend is going to be cut to pieces when that hope inevitably breaks. So he takes Scar aside for a quiet conversation, to break his heart before the world can break it for him. Afterwards, Scar stops talking about Tommy as if he's coming back, but his smile is never as bright as it was before. And Cub's heart breaks too.

Team ZIT swings the exact opposite way as the rest and are firmly of the belief that permadeath is impossible and thus Tommy must be alive. The three of them aren’t known for their impulse control at the best of times, and with so many hermits having given up, the trio is rightfully vicious about the fact that the others, in their eyes, have abandoned their friend. Zedaph, Impulse, and Tango all kind of feed into one another and start doing lots of dangerous stunts, as if daring the universe to permakill them and prove them wrong. If one of them does something, the other two join in and escalate things, which gets impossibly dangerous very, very fast. Tango is furious, Impulse is bitter, and Zedaph is straight up heartbroken that his other friends would give up on another of their number. They do things like fly incredibly high, go cliff jumping in the Nether only to catch themselves at the last minute, and sprint across the End bridges. If they have doubts, they never voice them. Even when Tango feels like he’s burning up from the inside and wonders at his newfound hate. Even when Impulse is utterly terrified but goes along with things anyway because Tango is doing it and he can’t bear to leave a friend alone. Even when Zedaph looks at his friends and can’t help but feel scared of and for these strangers wearing the faces he knows so well. Even then.

Team ZIT often gets dragged into and starts lots of screaming fights with the other hermits who believe Tommy is dead, especially Doc, BDubs, xB, and False. False especially gets vicious, as while pvp is no longer permitted on the server, her tongue is as sharp as any blade. She believes firmly that the others are trampling on Tommy’s memory by insisting that he isn’t dead and she is determined to make them stop. And if they refuse to give up their foolishness? Well, all she might have left is her words but with them she will make them bleed.

xB and Vintage Beef are as close to neutral as you are going to get from those that get into regular arguments. xB thinks Tommy is dead until proven otherwise, while Beef thinks the exact reverse. As some of the more chill hermits, they often get dragged in to play negotiator so that the fights don’t turn physical. And some days, when someone says something particularly hurtful, they’ll close themselves up in one of xB’s bunkers and drink until they can no longer remember why they ought to be enemies. It’s hardly healthy, but they both agree that it’s better this way. Better to forget than to hurt, after all.

Grian is… somewhat the same. Sort of. He was traumatized by Tommy, the boy he adopted as his little brother, dying before his eyes, and he can’t help but blame himself. That is, when he can remember that Tommy is dead at all. After the fall, Grian’s mind was badly broken and he couldn’t accept that his little brother was dead for the longest time. He fell into two weeks of deep depression, barely eating or drinking, and eventually Iskall came and took care of him when he realized that he hadn’t seen his buddy in ages. Iskall nursed Grian back to health, only to feel his heart shatter in his breast when Grian turned to him, eyes feverishly bright and tone childlike, asking where Tommy was. The winged man’s mind couldn’t cope with the loss so it had shut down entirely, making him forget the tragedy that had occured. Iskall had deflected then, frantically trying to figure out what to say, but after a few days of Grian wandering about in a dreamlike state, his memory came back to him and he collapsed in on himself once more. The winged hermit is now locked in a loop of this, while poor Iskall is stuck trying to keep his friend alive and relatively sane.

Iskall, for his part, thinks Tommy is well and truly dead. In part because of his own certainty, in part because anything else would be even crueler for Grian. He doesn’t resent his friend for his break downs, just quietly bundles him up and clutches him close, coaxing him to eat and bathe, to put down the guilt and realize that it’ll be okay, the world won’t end with Tommy gone. He gently tries to nudge Grian down that path of acceptance of Tommy’s fate, and though he faces many setbacks, he tackles each one with a special kind of patience born of platonic love. They’re bros, despite everything. It’s only right.

Mumbo is, weirdly enough, on the side of Tommy being alive. Iskall doesn’t exactly approve and while he and Mumbo sometimes get into whispered arguments over it, they try to keep their little disagreements from Grian. Both of them only want to see their friend happy again, and will do just about anything to make it happen. For Mumbo, this means putting together crazy redstone contraptions to try and find Tommy again, as he’s certain that Grian’s little brother is still out there somewhere- and he has a piece that might prove it. Iskall comes over one day, face drawn and haggard from a night of soothing Grian through another set of screaming nightmares, only to find Mumbo waist high in redstone wiring, all hooked up to a strange portal design that looks too much like Doc’s infinity portal from season 6 for comfort. At the top of the arch is Tommy’s compass, needle whirling about like a hurricane, and while the portal isn’t lit, it does give off a faint blue-black glow. Iskall is frightened that Mumbo is tampering with something that could get him killed and Mumbo rushes to reassure him that no, the compass was specifically linked to Tommy so if Tommy was really dead, it would have been reset, right? He’s merely borrowing that tie to try and figure out where the two ends lead. Iskall is less than sure about this, especially since Mumbo is just as drawn and pale as he is, if a bit more covered in redstone, but they agree that fighting is pointless. They care about each other and about Grian too much to put any of them through that sort of pain- and besides, there’s more than enough fighting on the server already.

Ren too thinks that Tommy is alive and he is one of the ones who gets into regular fights. He’s a lover, not a fighter, but something about this whole situation just burns him up. When the pressure gets too much, he goes flying, tracing over those old familiar trails they searched so long ago, trying to see if there is anything they missed. There never is.

Welsknight has made his peace with Tomy’s death, though the server tends to forget that he and Tommy were closer than most. He alone knew that Tommy was once upon a time a boy called Theseus (a name given to him shyly when Tommy had asked him if there were any great heroes with that name that didn’t die). He alone knew Tommy’s love for horses, or that he would spend hours whispering horror stories to them when he thought no one would hear. Tommy was his squire, and although he had accepted the tragedy, he still wept for the hurt it brought him. He alone knew of the little grave he had dug under the willow tree in his castle courtyard and the headstone he had placed there, engraved with Tommy’s true name, death date, and supposed date of birth. He couldn’t have been more than 17, and perhaps that was what hurt the most. Every morning at dawn, Welsknight brings a bouquet of flowers to that little grave and says a prayer before disappearing into the morning fog. The flowers are always the same- forget me nots, for remembrance, violets, for devotion, and clover. (Think of me).

Tinfoilchef stays out of it- always has and always will. He’s too old to rush about searching or to feel as wildly as the others do. He feels, of course, but more so as the mountain does, steady and strong despite the winds that tear at its surface. Tommy is dead, but then, so are many of the people he has known in his life. It’s best to just keep plodding along.

BDubs is a mess. He had never spoken of it, but long before he had come to hermitcraft, he had had a daughter- a beautiful baby girl whose heart was too big for her chest, and she had died for that difference. He had grieved for years, but eventually the peace of the hermitcraft server had left him soothed, if a bit different than before. Tommy had been another chance at fatherhood, not that he could ever bear to call the teen that, even in the privacy of his own mind. Instead, he had taught the kid to build cobblestone towers that weren’t entirely offensive (if shaped a bit oddly) and had been the first to volunteer any time Grian was out and Tommy needed a place to spend the night when the nightmares were particularly fierce. They had so many fun sleepovers like that, and staring at those awful cobble towers in the distance, BDubs can’t help but bawl his eyes out at the memories. He waffles between taking the towers down or leaving them up- they really are ugly, and the feelings in his chest that they inspire are even more so, but somehow, he can’t bear to see them gone. Instead, he dries his eyes, flies off to grab a shulker of cobble, and sets about adding a few more to their number. A final remembrance for the boy he would have gladly claimed as his own, if only he hadn’t been too late. (He ends up building a lot more than a few).

Joe and Cleo are somehow the only ones who are actually neutral in the whole mess. Whenever they are asked their opinion on if Tommy is truly dead or not, the pair simply smile mysteriously and refuse to comment. Joe always seems to know more than he lets on and Cleo is his closest confidant, after all. Despite the anger and tears directed their way for refusing to commit to either side, the two keep their silence. (They know the truth of the matter, after all. Everything will be okay in time).

Xisuma has given up. Tommy is dead, and there is nothing he can do but spend days and days going over the code with a fine tooth comb, trying to find the glitch that cut the life of their youngest member short. Keralis takes it upon himself to take care of his long time friend, but it’s not an easy task, not when the other is so determined to make sure that such an incident never happens again. And Keralis can’t find it in himself to complain, especially since he is laboring under the impression that Xisuma agrees that Tommy is still out there and is trying to find him. It is only when Keralis mentions it in an aside, thanking the admin for his dedication, that Xisuma breaks the illusion and explains. Tommy isn’t just dead, he says tiredly, his very presence is well and truly wiped from the world’s code. All that is left of him is the faint impression his code had left behind, and trying to read it and understand what went wrong is a bit like trying to read small letters that have been drawn out in dry sand. Even for a voidwalker like himself such a task is near impossible, and Xisuma can only do so much. The needs of the many above the needs of the few- best to secure those he can now than worry over those that are gone beyond his reach. And Keralis can’t help but look at his friend with new eyes, a fleeting sense of betrayal in his heart. He had thought better of his Shishwammy, and he says as much. 

He cries while Xisuma watches on in solemn, mournful silence.

---

TBC  :)

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Stupid Decision

 MAIN MASTERLIST

Steve Rogers x Reader

Word Count: 2,950ish

Summary: Steve makes a stupid decision regarding your relationship. (Angst/Fluff)

Notes: This is my entry for @sylvie-writes​ writing challenge. I didn’t bold the prompts but I used 23, 30, 32, 36, 44, and 52.

“I can’t do this anymore.”

The five words no one ever longed to hear when they were in love. Especially when you were in love with none other than, Captain America. You knew something had been off before he left for the mission a week ago. And now, he had gotten back and went straight to your room. You tried to welcome him back with open arms, only for him to say.

“I can’t do this anymore.”

Your heart broke instantly. “Wh-what? Why?” Your voice was small, which made Steve almost wince.

“I just… I can’t.” He turned to leave but you quickly stopped him.

“No! You don’t get to just say you can’t do this anymore and walk away. I am owed an explanation.”

“I’m sorry, Y/N. I just can’t any more. It’s not you, it’s—“

“Bullshit! Just tell me.”

“I have another mission, Y/N. I just came to tell you it was over. I have to go.” 

He opened the door, walked out and quickly closed it. You were so shocked that you couldn’t move to chase after him. It wasn’t worth it anyway if he was done. There was no point in fighting it. You began crying into your hands, slowly lowering yourself onto your knees. Unbeknownst to you, Steve was still outside the door. He was leaning against it, head up and hand still on the door knob. He was looking at the ceiling, wishing for his tears to disappear as he listened to your cries.

The mission had been rough, as many were. But this time they had clear information on you. Your patterns, your likes and dislikes, everything down to your elementary school grades. They threatened him with your life and he could not risk it. It was killing him the whole way home that he had purposefully put together another mission to get back out there as soon as possible. But right now, Steve couldn’t get himself to move. You were inside your room, heart broken, and all he wanted to do was fix it. But he couldn’t. Not until the threat was completely gone.

~~~

Tony, Natasha, and Clint were all in the kitchen, fixing themselves breakfast, when Tony suddenly stopped what he was doing.

“What is it, Stark?” Natasha wondered.

“Shit’s about to hit the fan,” Tony answered, squinting his eyes and looking around. “I can feel it.”

Clint laughed. “You can feel it?” Clint repeated. “Since when?”

“Since ever. Trust me on this one. Something’s off about today.”

You slunk into the room. Sleep had eluded you, so you already were struggling to look decent. But it was also clear that you had been crying.

“Y/N?” Natasha questioned. “What’s wrong?”

You let out a shaky breath. “Steve broke up with me,” you answered quietly.

“What?!” Clint and Natasha exclaimed.

“See!” Tony shouted. “I told you shit was about to hit the fan!”

“Tony,” Natasha scolded, coming to your side. “Why would he do that?”

You pursed your lips, trying to keep your emotions in check. “He just… he just said that he couldn’t do it anymore. Then he left. Said he had another mission to go on.”

“Another mission?” Tony repeated. “There was no plan for another mission.”

“Well then I don’t know where he is then, Tony!” You yelled, letting it all out. “That’s what he told me, after… after…” You started hyperventilating, unable to fully take in air.

“Y/N, I need you to breathe,” Natasha coaxed, running a hand up and down your back. 

You shook your head, struggling. Nat guided you to a chair and knelt down in front of you. Tears slipped down your cheeks and you failed to take in any full breaths.

“Focus on me, Y/N,” Natasha guided. “Focus on my voice.”

“FRIDAY,” Tony called out to the AI, “I need a location on Rogers.”

“Captain Rogers is currently flying in a quinjet with Sargent Barnes and Mr. Wilson,” FRIDAY responded.

“I need details on their mission sent to me, now.” 

“I don’t…” you choked out. “I don’t… un-under-stand-d… is he… see-ing… someone… else…?”

“Impossible,” Clint replied, shaking his head. “Cap’s head over heals in love with you.”

“Th-then wh-yyy…?”

“I’ve given you all the details I have to Captain Rogers plans, Boss,” FRIDAY stated.

“I’m going to figure this out, kid. I’m going to bring them home and give ‘em hell,” Tony said. “I promise.” He press a kiss to her head before hurrying away.

“Nat…” you cried. “It hurts…”

“I know,” she rubbed her thumb over your knee. “I know… let’s get you back into bed. You need some rest.”

~~~

After Clint and Nat tucked you in, you slept for hours while they tried to figure out what Steve was thinking.

“They’ve somehow cut FRIDAY out of the quinjet,” Tony said, him and the others in his lab. “And they didn’t put in any flights plans before FRIDAY got disconnected.”

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Clint said, looking over everything. “Steve came to me a few weeks ago, asking when I knew Laura was the one. I asked him if he thought Y/N was the one and he said yes. He couldn’t have changed his mind that fast… right?”

“I think I’ve found something,” Natasha said, sitting in front of a computer. “This is the footage from Steve’s suit cam from the last mission.” She pulled screenshots up. “There’s information all about Y/N here. Like, everything. Her whole life story, her day-to-day routines. Everything.”

“He thinks he’s protecting her,” Tony whispered, looking over everything. “He thinks this is his fault and that he has to be the one to fix it.”

“Stupid, idiot men,” Natasha muttered. “Always feeling the need to protect us by doing stupid shit. We need to get him back here before she turns around and does something stupid herself.”

~~~

It was now the middle of the night and you couldn’t sleep. You were craving sugar, hard core, and you knew exactly where to find it. Sneaking out to the kitchen, you found where the cans of frosting were kept. You grabbed a spoon before carefully opening the can and sat up on top of the counter. You closed your eyes and moaned as that first spoonful ran across your tongue. 

“Did I just witness you eat frosting straight from the can?”

You jumped at the sound of Clint’s voice, almost slipping off the counter.

“Shit, Clint! You scared me.”

“Sorry about that.” He waltzed into the kitchen and stood across from you, leaning against the counter. “But seriously, are you eating frosting straight from a can?”

“It’s not a crime, Clint, it’s just my coping mechanism. Deal with it.” You put another spoonful in your mouth. 

“How are you holding up?”

“How do you think? As you’ve pointed out twice now, I’m eating frosting from a can.”

“He’s an idiot.” 

You nodded in agreement, taking another spoonful. “Yeah…” you sighed. “Clint, I don’t know if I can be here when he comes back.”

“What? You can’t seriously be thinking about leaving?”

“I am seriously thinking about it. I’m not even a part of the team nor do I work here at the compound. I moved in to be with Steve and now he doesn’t want to be with me, so I really don’t see a reason to stay. Technically, the room I’m in is his anyway.”

“Y/N, really think about this. Are you sure?”

You took a minute to really think about it. “I’m sure.”

~~~

“Are you going to tell us what’s going on here, punk?” Bucky asked. 

He and Sam had been dragged into the quinjet almost immediately after Steve had gotten home. They knew that something was wrong, but Steve wasn’t talking.

Steve sighed. “I guess it’s time that I told you,” he said. “I broke up with Y/N?”

“You what?!” His friends both shouted.

“Why? It doesn’t make any sense!” Sam continued. “Bucky, wasn’t it just a few weeks ago when Steve told us he was going to marry the girl. And now you’ve gone and broke up with her?! Do you have brain damage?!” Steve simply clenched his jaw, unable to look at them.

“Why did you do it, Steve?” Bucky asked.

“Cause they know everything,” Steve replied, quietly.

“Who knows everything?”

“HYDRA… On the last mission, I found a room dedicated to her. They’re planning on using her against me.”

“They can’t do that,” Sam said, shaking his head. “She’s perfectly safe at the compound.”

“Except she’s not. When I say they know everything, Sam, I mean they know everything. Her habits, her likes and dislikes, every moment we’ve spent together… In order to keep her safe, I needed to break up with her.”

“Was that’s HYDRA’s call or your call?” Bucky asked. Steve didn’t answer. “You idiot.”

“I had to do what was needed. We’re on our way to another base. I can’t be with her until they’re gone.”

“Did you ever think about the effect this would have on her?”

“I did. But I had to do it. She’s safe under Tony’s care right now while I fix this.”

“You didn’t even think this through, did you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Y/N’s not an Avenger. So she had no reason to be living at the compound besides you. It’s only a matter of time before she moves out. And we all know she’s not safe out there.”

“I’m sure the Team can keep her there.”

“Are you sure?” Sam asked. “Do they even know what’s going on?”

“They don’t. But if I know Natasha, she’ll do anything to keep me and her together.” 

“She’s going to kill you for doing this to Y/N.”

Steve winced, imagining what Nat will do to him when she sees him again. “Well, we’re not going back until this mission is complete.”

~~~

Clint watched you through the vents throughout the night. He wanted to see if you were really serious. And you were, you packed up all your belongs before dawn. You had also found a new apartment already. Almost every box was in the moving truck by the time Clint woke up from his spot in the vent. Upon seeing the room with only Steve’s things in it, he rushed to the lab, where Nat and Tony were still trying to get a hold of Steve, Bucky, and Sam.

“Guys! Guys! Guys!” Clint ran in. “We have a problem!”

“What is it, Legolas?” Tony asked. “I’ve almost hacked into the quinjet here.”

“Y/N’s leaving! She’s packed up and almost out of here!”

“What?!” Natasha and Tony shouted.

“We have to stop her! We need to get Steve back here!”

“I’m trying, Barton,” Tony said. “You and Red find a way to slow her down. I think I’ve got a location on them. I’m going to take a suit and go after them.”

~~~

You were walking to your car to go and meet the moving truck at your new place, when suddenly there was a red head in front of you.

“Where do you think you’re going?” She asked, hands on her hips.

“To my new apartment,” you answered. 

“Why? This is your home.”

“No, this is Steve’s home.”

“And now yours.”

“Nat… I really don’t want to do this right now. I just want to get to my new apartment and sleep.”

“You can sleep here.”

“I’m sorry, Nat.” You tried to move around her, only for her to get back in your way. “Seriously, move.”

“Try me.” She narrowed her eyes at you.

“You know I can’t compete with you. Just, Nat… I can’t be here when he gets back… he doesn’t want to be with me anymore. And that’s… well it sucks and, honestly, I may never recover. But I have a better shot at doing so someplace else.”

“Y/N…” Natasha reached for your hand, but you stepped back.

“No.” You shook your head. “If you touch me, I will break. And I don’t want to break in front of people. I have to be strong.”

“Rogers is an idiot.”

You gave her a small, but fake, smile. “I never said he wasn’t. Please, Nat, let me go.”

“Fine,” Natasha sighed. “I’m coming with you to help you unpack.”

~~~

Tony landed on the quinjet, that was still in the air. He was furious at the Captain he knew was below him. Not bothering to open the ramp, he used a laser to cut a hole in the top of the quinjet and jumped through it.

“What the hell, Stark?!” Sam exclaimed. The three men were armed.

“What the hell is right,” Tony said, making his helmet disappear. He pointed at Steve. “I can’t even believe you.”

“Tony, you don’t understand,” Steve said.

“Oh, I think I do. You think you’re protecting her but Y/N is back in New York, heart broken and moving out of the compound.”

“Moving out? She can’t move out, it’s not safe. Why are you letting her do that?”

“I’m not letting her do shit, Rogers. She’s her own person who was basically told that she wasn’t worth it.”

“I never said that. I could never—“

“Doesn’t matter. You gave her no other reason, so she’s immediately feel to that.”

“It’s too dangerous—“

“Our lives our too dangerous, Steve! You don’t see it, but she doesn’t sleep when you’re gone. Always worried sick that you might never return! You think you’re protecting her by doing this, well you’re wrong! You’ve now pushed her out of the safest place she could be!”

“I may regret saying this, but I’m with Stark on this one,” Bucky said. “You’ve been a complete and utter idiot, Steve. Yes, protect her. Go out and destroy all of HYDRA, we’ll help. But break her heart in the process,” Bucky shook his head, “ridiculous. If you told her what was going on, she would have understood. The team could have created a plan to keep her safer, but instead you did the most stupid, cliche thing in the book.”

Steve fell back into the pilot’s seat, running a hand down his face. “I really am an idiot,” he whispered.

“Damn right you are,” Sam agreed. “So what do you say to destroying this HYDRA base we’re heading to and then going back and fixing things with your girl?”

~~~ 

Both Natasha and Clint helped you unpack, though they didn’t make it easy. They kept trying to put things back in the moving van to take back to the compound, but you wouldn’t have it. After having dinner together, you forced them to leave you alone. It was now the early hours of the morning and you were sitting out on the fire escape just outside your new bedroom window. You were lost in thought, staring at the sky.

“You are probably the only person in the world who can look this beautiful at 3 in the morning.”

Steve’s rough, yet timid voice caused you to jump in surprise. You didn’t say anything though, simply stared down at him. He wasn’t too far below you, still in his suit and roughed up from the mission.

“I know I’m probably the last person you want to see,” he began slowly, continuing up the fire escape. “But I had to see you.”

“Why?” You sounded weaker than you wanted to. “You said you couldn’t do it anymore…”

“And I was so incredibly stupid.” He sat on the same level as you, far enough away to give you your space while still being close. “I… the mission got into my head. They… they knew everything about you.”

“Everything?”

“Everything,” he nodded. “They were planning to come after you and use you against me. And I couldn’t… I couldn’t get past it to see another way then ending it with you.”

“Steve,” you moved slightly closer. “You could have just talked to me about it.”

“I know… I wasn’t thinking… And for that I’m so sorry.” He met your eyes. His blues were glistening with tears. “Is there any way to fix this mess I’ve gotten myself into?”

You sighed, turning back to look at the sky. “I.. I… I’m scared… Scared of getting hurt again… But I’m more scared of not being able to love you.”

“Me too… Y/N, I made the stupidest decision I have ever made, by telling you I couldn’t do it anymore. It was me not thinking straight, acting on impulse. I should have talked to you about it all, gotten your opinion… I just love you so much, the thought of losing you was—“

“Too much to bare.” Steve nodded in agreement. “I know, cause I feel that way every time you leave for a mission. There’s always a good chance that you don’t come back, that doesn’t mean that I would ever break up with you.”

“You’re stronger than me… you always have been.”

You rested your hand on his closest to you. “We’re both strong in our own ways, that’s why we work so well together.” You moved closer to him, so your arms were brushing against each other. “I love you, Steve. You just need to promise to talk to me, or this isn’t going to work.”

He cupped your cheek, rubbing his thumb against it. “I don’t deserve you… I love you, so much. I promise to talk more before I make a decision.”

You held up your pinky. “Pinky promise?”

Steve laughed as he brought up his pinky to wrap around yours. “Pinky promise.”