#also i'm proud of me for condensing.

[kbsd]

john and gale in stalag luft iii // "violet hill" for @swifty-fox

if you love me, won't you let me know?

[amomentsescape]

Thank you for replying to my question! In that case could I request a Bruce Wayne imagine. One where the reader graduated college, bought a car & is now working a lot at her job. She’s been a bit stressed bec she hasn’t taken a break. Bruce surprises her at her job once her shift ends to take her on a date. & her coworkers & friends start teasing her. Basically Bruce wants her to destress and have fun. Then he expresses how proud he is of her. Just him being a supportive and loving boyfriend.

Also if you could throw in the reader’s friends asking if Bruce bought the car & if she’s gonna quit working bec he’s rich. But she says no to both bec she wants to make her own money & work hard. (Bruce ends up hearing this & it just confirms to him how she loves him for himself and not the money)

Sorry if it’s long lol!

More Than Riches

Gotham! Bruce Wayne x Reader

Summary: Even with Bruce as their partner, Reader still aims to do what they want with their life and love Bruce earnestly at the same time.

Warnings: Overall fluff with maybe one or two bad words

Word Count: 849

A/N: Thank you so much! Based on your request, I wrote it as more of a drabble since my version of an imagine usually only comes with about a paragraph of writing like this. But if you'd like a condensed version that's made into an imagine, let me know!

The past few months have become all blurred together in your mind. To be honest, you were certain that you've spent more time at work than you have at your own home.

Adulthood wasn't quite what you had expected it to be. Graduating college and jumping straight into the workforce seemed like everyone's ideal, but this meant that you hadn't gotten an opportunity to take a breather.

But you supposed this is what you signed up for. A car loan wasn't going to pay itself. But even then, there was something fulfilling about what you did. Being able to be independent on your own terms gave you a sense of security you never knew you desired.

With that being said, you still wished you had a little more time for yourself and your boyfriend.

The thought of him almost made you a little emotional. You two haven't had much quality time together recently and yet, Bruce had been nothing but supportive towards your ambitions.

He told you time and time again that if you ever needed help with anything, all you had to do was ask. It truly felt nice to have someone on your team for a change.

You looked up at the time and realized that your shift was finally over.

You sighed and wandered back to clock out and grab your things when you heard hushed whispers and giggles.

Your coworkers were all huddled together, talking to each other like they were sharing a secret.

"I can't believe- oh! (Y/N), get over here! The Bruce Wayne just walked in. I can't believe it!"

Your eyebrows furrowed together. "I thought I was supposed to see him tomorrow..." you said under your breath.

When you looked up, all eyes were on you.

"You know him?" one of your coworkers asked eagerly.

You gulped. "Well, yeah. He's my boyfriend..."

You suddenly felt hot.

Your coworkers were absolutely stunned at this.

"You're kidding. You're in a relationship with the city's rich boy?!"

You just nodded, not sure how to respond.

"Oh my God. Then why the hell are you working here? He could literally pay all of your bills and then some! I bet your car is already paid off because of him, huh?" they giggled.

You almost wanted to roll your eyes at this. You were your own person. You didn't need saving, and you didn't need the man you love paying for everything that you could have earned yourself. It just didn't feel right to you, but to each their own you supposed.

"I'm actually paying off the car myself. And why would I not want to work? I enjoy putting in this effort to support myself and see the impact I'm making. He can do what he wants with his money, and I'll do what I want with mine. Now, if you excuse me, I am going to clock out."

With that, you grabbed your bag and jacket and walked over to the entrance, finally seeing that familiar face you love so much.

The moment he caught sight of you, his eyes lit up, a soft smile spreading across his lips.

"There you are. I was starting to wonder if I came at a bad time."

He leaned down and gave you a gentle kiss on the cheek, taking your hand in his as you both exited the building.

"I'm sorry. I just wasn't expecting you today," you answered honestly.

His smile widened. "I wanted to surprise you. I know things have been busy and stressful for you recently, and I was hoping a date night would alleviate some of that."

You stopped walking and looked at him, your stomach doing a couple flips.

You just kept staring at him, taking in just how perfect he was for you. He knew how to make any bad moment better in an instant. It's like he always understood what you needed even when you didn't know it yourself.

"What is it?" he chuckled nervously, a little bit shy from your gaze.

"I don't know what I did to deserve you," you responded softly.

This made his cheeks go all rosy, causing your heart to speed up. He was perfect.

"I could say the same for you," he reasoned.

His hold on your hand tightened as he pulled you into him, holding your body close to his.

"I overheard what you said back there, about me."

Now it was your turn to blush.

"Yeah?" was all you could produce.

"Yeah." He placed a kiss on your forehead. "I'm so lucky to have found someone like you. You're one of the only people I know that makes me feel seen as me, not just by my last name."

Your eyes met his at this. "Bruce, I'd love you even if you were just an average person like me."

He leaned his face a little bit closer to yours.

"You're not average, (Y/N). Not to me."

He then pressed in a little further and joined his lips with yours, kissing you like it was the first time all over again.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA for bringing a fake boyfriend to my friend's party?

to condense as best i can, i (30, transwoman, city of pop. >10million) recently become the mother hen to a brood of wonderful baby queers (8 total, 17-23, boys and girls, all moved for school in the last year or so, most had never set foot in ANY city before). we live on the same floor of an apartment complex, and we've all grown very close over the past months; i help them use the metro, they tell me when they're going on dates and text so i know they got home safe, i cook weekend dinners, and they all slept in my living room for a week when another apartment on the floor was broken into. i think of them as somewhere between friends, younger relatives, or even my own children.

recently, one of the older ones (21) has realized he's also trans and come out to me, and i'm so proud and grateful that i can guide him through his early transition. unfortunately, there's his mother.

he'd first told me her response to his coming out was "better than expected", so i assumed she was tolerant, if not supportive yet. i've since learned she continually misgenders him, thinks this is a "tomboy phase" he'll marry out of someday, and has begun listening to more right-wing podcasts and news sites in order to "hear from both sides".

along with the other 7 kids, i've been invited to stay at the family's farm for his birthday in august, & while he's assured me she won't make a scene with company around, he's implied she has many opinions about my prescense, but said that i shouldn't tone myself down, and that if anything "it would be good for her to learn to be kind to you early, since we're family too now". two of the girls are partners, which the mother knows, but she does not seem to care about this and said that bringing a date was fine.

i have another friend (31) who's much more loudly queer than i am. on top of this, he's heavily tattooed (HUGE taboo here), rides a motorcycle, and is very outspoken and unshakable. i told him about all of this, and he offered to come along as my boyfriend, both to bother this woman, and so i won't be in a tiny (population SEVENTY-THREE!) unfamiliar town alone if anything happens. he's met the kids several times now, they get along well, and the birthday boy has said "that all sounds hysterical. do whatever you want."

my worry here is that the mother is already MUCH worse than he'd first lead me to believe, so i don't know that i can trust the kid's judgment that everything will be fine. i don't care about hurting this woman at all, and both i and my friend have dealt with even nastier people before so i'm not afraid of her, but i DO NOT want to do anything that could put this boy in a difficult position, especially since he'll likely be living with his family every summer until he's finished school, if not longer. i know what i can personally tolerate, but i don't know what he can, especially from a mother.

would i be an asshole to bring my "boyfriend" along? is it best to just go solo? or should i stay away entirely until he's back in the city?

What are these acronyms?

[vivalas-vega]

new perspectives // part ten // jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

howdy !! I think this is the shortest chapter in this series yet, but kind of a heavy one nonetheless. I'm getting back into the swing of writing and am hoping to bring this series to it's close within the next 3-5 parts! as always, please let me know what you think!

new perspectives // part ten // jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

prologue - one - two - three - four - five - six - seven - eight - nine

add yourself to my taglist

word count: 2.5k

warnings: we are diving into jupiter's deployment so mentions of warzones and guns but nothing too graphic or in depth

The Hard Deck was thrumming just as it always was on a Friday night but lately Jake had lost the desire for after-work hangouts at the bar… darts and pool didn’t feel the same anymore, and he was having a hard time enjoying anything because he knew wherever you were you weren’t having fun. He tried to tell himself that maybe in the quiet moments, when the sky wasn’t falling and people weren’t relying on you to save their life, you and your team were able to unwind. Maybe kick around a soccer ball or play card games to pass the time and provide some sense of normalcy but he knew even if that was the case it didn’t change anything. You were in a warzone, and he was here at the bar. 

But, that didn’t stop him from trying. Your deployment was hard on everyone, not just him, and he knew that if he pulled away it would only make your friends feel it more deeply, he was the only tether to you and he also knew he needed to be here. If he wasn’t he’d be at home staring off into space and making himself sick with worry. It was better for him to be preoccupied, which was why he had taken on more responsibility at Top Gun, and why he was currently engaged in a game of darts with Coyote, trying to distract himself from the fact that he hadn’t heard from you in a month.

You two had discussed this going into it, and he knew communication would be infrequent. You had real life or death problems on your hands day in and day out, in a foreign country in the middle of an active warzone. Just because you didn’t call, or didn’t answer any of his, didn’t mean that something had happened to you, or that you didn’t want to. It just meant you were doing your job, and trying to stay safe in the process… but knowing that didn’t make it any easier of a pill to swallow. 

He also knew there was an order, and it wasn’t his turn. You two were no strangers to infrequent communication and you were adamant that your marriage could handle it. His turn had been first, and then your parents, and the next time you had the opportunity to call home it would be Rooster’s. He wasn’t angry about that, not at all… Rooster had quickly become your closest friend and confidant outside of him and he knew that you missed him just as much as everyone else, that in your darkest moments he would be one of the people you needed to see. He was grateful for it, to know that you had multiple people in your life you loved so deeply, trusted so implicitly… but that didn’t make it fun to know that the next time someone heard from you it would be the goofy guy across the bar laughing loudly with his arm slung around his new girlfriend’s waist and not him, that the next time he got an update on you it would come from him. 

He was endlessly proud of you, for how strong you had been and how devoted you were to your life’s calling. Putting yourself into such imminent danger to help others was just about the most you think he could think of, and he knew you could handle yourself. When you left you were off to a very condensed boot camp where you learned basic survival skills outside of medicine, you received a crash course in all the things you would need to know, and received training if god forbid you ever found yourself in the position of needing to defend yourself. He knew you were well equipped to take care of yourself, but he also knew that you likely had seen things and done things that would leave a lasting mark… but that was all he knew.

That was the hardest part for him… not knowing what you were going through. Even in your spottiest bouts of communication over the course of school and deployments he always knew what was going on with you, and his worst case scenarios he’d concoct when he worried were you stressing yourself into exhaustion. Now, his worst case scenarios were something he couldn’t even dare to verbalize, something if he thought about even a second too long would send him careening towards a ledge. 

“I’m sure she’s fine,” he heard from beside him suddenly, jumping slightly as he turned to see Coyote and he gave him a soft smile. 

“I know,” he replied and Coyote just nodded.

“She’s tough. Like, scary tough, my shoulder still makes a weird creaking sound from when she tackled me during dogfight football,” he said and this made Jake laugh, something that was pretty infrequent now.

“I still can’t believe she took you down like that,” he replied.

“Yeah, that one fights dirty, man… so I’m sure she’s holding her own just fine.” This provided Jake just enough reassurance in the moment that he was able to shift his focus somewhere else entirely, so much so that he didn’t notice the way Rooster pulled out his phone and quickly ran out of the bar.

“J?” he asked, the video on his phone taking its sweet time connecting and he heard his second-favorite laugh on the other end.

“Hey Roo, sorry, the video is super spotty here,” you said just as it fully connected and he finally got to see you for the first time since your wedding night. His first thought was that you looked different, almost unrecognizable if it weren’t for those few characteristics that were so completely you. You were thinner, primarily in your face and he couldn’t ignore the way your eyes lacked their usual warmth, it sent an ache through his chest to see you look so… hollow. 

“How are you? Are you okay? What’s going on over there?” he fired off in rapid succession and this pulled another soft laugh from your lips. You hadn’t realized how much you needed to see that stupid porn stache until it was staring back at you through the screen of a tablet. 

“Don’t worry about me, I don’t have long so tell me everything… what have I missed?” you asked and briefly he wanted to press, try to get you to open up about what you were going through over there but he realized that probably wasn’t what you needed right now. You needed a distraction, reminders of home, and you didn’t have much time to get it.

“Well, Eliza and I made things official a few days ago,” he said and you smiled, a real one that almost fully reached your eyes.

“Oh my god, that’s amazing! I’m so happy for you, Roo. Where did you take her for your first date?”

“Well, our unofficial first date was your wedding, but the real first date was mini golf… where she completely smoked me by the way,” he said and you chuckled. “She’s… incredible, JJ, I’ve never met a woman like her before.”

“Well I’ll be damned, Bradley Bradshaw is serious about someone? I leave for two months and suddenly the world turns upside down.”

“Shut up, I’ll have you know I’ve been serious about people before,” he protested before adding, “but not like this. I think this is it, J.”

“You keep that to yourself for a while longer, don’t spook her too soon,” you teased. “How is he?” you asked suddenly, getting serious and he knew what you meant without further clarification.

“He’s… good,” he replied and you furrowed your brows. “He’s just worried, is all. Just wants to know if you’re okay, we all do.” 

You nodded, “I don’t know if I am, Roo… and you can’t tell that to him, okay? I just… I don’t want him worrying anymore than he already is.”

“I won’t, but… talk to me? What’s going on over there?”

You sighed, “I don’t have enough hands, or supplies, or time… I’m picking and choosing who lives and who dies based on a twenty second evaluation and I just… never know if I’m making the right choices, never know if I’m actually making a damn difference out here.”

“Hey, you are. If I know you like I think I do, I know you are.”

You nodded but it didn’t really do anything to make you feel better. “I know this is our turn, but-”

“I texted him a few minutes ago, he should be out any second,” Rooster cut you off and you just smiled softly. 

“Thank you. I miss you way more than I thought I would, Roo,” you said and he let out a shocked laugh.

“What the hell does that mean?” he asked but he was interrupted by the door to the patio opening.

“Come outside in two minutes, alone? What kind of cryptic bullshit is that, Chicken?” you heard distantly and couldn’t help but laugh, warmth filling your chest at hearing your husband's voice after so long. “Is that- give me that,” he said, snatching the phone from Rooster’s hand and confirming for himself it was really you.

“Hey you,” you said and you thought his face might split open from how wide he was grinning. “Might want to not be so hard on Rooster, seeing as he gave up some of his phone time for you.” 

“God, I miss you, are you okay?” 

You nodded, forcing yourself to smile and Jake saw right through it, saw the way it didn’t fully reach your eyes. “I’m okay.”

“I’ll give you guys space,” Rooster said from beside Jake, “I love you, JJ, stay safe, okay?”

“Love you too, Roo,” you replied and suddenly there was a commotion from outside your tent that made him stop in his tracks as Jake’s eyes widened in concern.

“Jupiter, what’s going on?” he asked, trying to pinpoint the sounds he was hearing. The visual was blocked by you pressing the tablet against your chest as you poked your head outside the tent and the sound became clear as day on their end. Gunfire. 

“I have to go.”

“Jupiter, talk to me,” Jake tried but you’d barely heard it, barely registered.

“I can’t- I’m sorry, I love you,” was all you said before the call disconnected and Jake stood there frozen, staring at a black screen as he tried to process what had just happened. 

“Was that…?” Rooster started, not entirely sure of what to say. He knew whatever he was feeling was magnified in Jake tenfold, but that didn’t make it any easier to push through to try and be there for him. 

“I think so,” Jake said after clearing his throat. Logically he knew you’d face situations like this, it was the biggest thing he was struggling to come to terms with, but actually hearing it was a completely different beast. Right now he was standing here with your best friend on the patio overlooking the ocean at sunset… it was peaceful, yet somewhere halfway across the world you were under fire, undoubtedly under stress as you were probably assessing wounded soldiers and civilians, trying to do your job the best you could. 

Rooster noticed the slight tremble in Jake’s hands, noticed the way he was currently retreating into himself and trying to not spin out and he gently pulled the phone away and put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey man, come on, let’s go sit for a minute,” he said, and Jake followed him almost mindlessly out onto the beach where they both sat down. “I know this might not sound helpful, but she’s been out there two months already, I’m sure this isn’t the first time… she knows how to handle herself.”

Jake let out a humorless laugh, “you’re right, it’s not.” He knew what Rooster’s intentions were behind the sentiment, you’d gone through this before and made it out the other side, and you’d do it again now, but all it served as was a reminder that this was your life right now. He was focused on the fact that you didn’t sound worried at all, you’d said you had to go and that you loved him as simply as you used to when you’d call him in between patients. He was sitting here, mind spinning with the possibilities of what could be happening and you’d sounded as calm as ever. That should have proved reassuring, in some small way, you weren’t fazed… you weren’t scared, but it wasn’t. If anything, it made his chest ache more. 

“She’s gonna be okay, man. It’s Jupiter, she can handle anything,” Rooster said, even though he might not have fully meant it. He saw you, heard the unsure tone as you spoke to him and saw those hollow eyes, you were different. You weren’t the Jupiter you left as, weren’t the Jupiter they knew like the back of their hands… and Rooster knew it would happen, had told you as much sitting right here in this same spot just a few months ago. 

“I don’t know… I should have told her no, told her not to do it, anything to get her to stay put,” Jake sighed and Rooster chuckled.

“We are talking about Jupiter right?” he asked and Jake couldn’t help but laugh too. “She knew what she was signing up for. We talked about it, you know... what she'd see, what she'd do, briefly, but she knew. She never bites off more than she can chew.”

“Yeah, I think this time is different,” Jake said and Rooster nodded.

“Maybe… but she’s got you, and she’s got the rest of us. We’ve all got her, no matter how she is when she comes home.”

“If she comes home,” Jake nearly whispered and this took Rooster aback. It felt like a weight off his back to finally say his biggest fear out loud, but only seconds later that weight came crashing down as he fully realized it was a genuine possibility. It wasn’t some hypothetical worst case scenario he’d concocted, hearing that gunfire proved that, it was simply how things were. If you came home. 

“You can’t think like that right now. Her tour is over in just a few weeks, she’ll pull through.” 

Jake sighed again, “I just need to know that she’s safe.”

“She’ll call when she can. That much I know for certain, I’m sure she didn’t want to leave things like that. She’ll call, or she’ll email just as soon as she’s able.” 

“I think I get it now,” Jake said and Rooster gave him a confused look, “why she likes you so much,” he practically mumbled and Rooster laughed. 

“Come on, man. There’s nothing either of us can do except wait, and she wouldn’t want you spinning out over this. Let’s go back inside,” he said as he stood and dusted the sand from his pants, and Jake followed reluctantly. He was right after all, he couldn’t do anything right now except go back inside, nurse his beer and hope you were okay.

taglist: @mamaskillerqueen @clancycucumber230 @the-romanian-is-bae @alldaysdreamers @zzsloth @emma8895eb @novagreen04 @classyunknownlover @purplevortexx @mamachasesmayhem @ohgodnotagainn @smoothdogsgirl @swiftsgirlfriend @memoriesat30 @the-fandom-ness @midnightmagpiemama @shanimallina87 @charles11700 @angelbabyange @wildxwidow @sp1rit-realm @alluringshawn @taytaylala12 @starcatcher48 @buck-nasty @misshoneypaper @4evinlovewithfictionalmen @devil-angel-winchester @callsignspirit @thegodessc @failuretothrivestuff @olliepig @cruelmissdior @underaveragefangirl @grxcieluvr @amatswimming @camilaricci @nolita-fairytale @dempy @pinkpantheris @aviatorobsessed @tiredqueen73 @pono-pura-vida @binnieslove @nik2blog @waklman @abaker74 @halstead-severide-fan @percysaidnever @memeorydotcom @eli2447 @dumb-fawkin-bitch @toobouquet @a-v-a123 @rae-you-gotta-be-kidding-me @86laura11 @justenoughmadnesss @yoonbutterfly @djs8891 @mamamaystbr

[funficwriter]

A Wolf and A Snake (Wriothesley x Reader)

Chapter 3: In the Low Gardens

A/N: Thank you all so much for being patient with me! I wanted this chapter to be fun to read, but had so little time to write this week. I just hope I have a little more freedom in the future. Anyways, enjoy!

Synopsis: Being a noble meant that marriage was a chess game, not an affair of love. Unfortunately for the pristine Balthazar family of Fontaine, Y/N has long been enamored with love and sought it out before their priorities. After her grey, boring time of courtesy, she meets Duke Wriothesley, who makes her yearn for the first time in her life, and it's the same for him. Threatened by the idea of losing this first, it seems they'll stop at very little to be together...

Taglist: @yue-caelum, @reyy-chanx, @mis-disaster, @ladyarchiviste, @keigo-hawks-takami-simp

Warnings: Talk of murder/violence/corruption, yandere talk, Wrio gets a lil primal, a few smutty details, does scheming behind the back count as a warning? Lol

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

Your parents were not the type to sing, least of all sing to express joy. But whenever they peered at you from the balcony, they looked like they could explode in song any minute. They never looked as jubilant, as proud of their daughter as they saw her, arm linked with the chivalrous and gentle Duke Archandelle.

You supposed any other girl would kill to be in your place. Duke Archandelle hailed from a long and well-respected lineage, and made a fortune for both himself and Fontaine's economy through his commerce. He was rather handsome, had a voice described as 'light honey with mint', and towered over you, the lady he was going to protect with that advantage. Hopefully, for the rest of your lives. On top of that, he was cultured, up-to-date with Fontaine's classical and modern trends, but was no pansy; He was an excellent swordfighter and hunter. You almost heard their voices yelling at you: "You've got the perfect gentleman falling at your feet, and you're not grateful?! How dare you!".

There you two were, in one of your manor's many gardens. This was the highest, prettiest one of all, and had a lovely table among the flowers where you would soon take your tea. Both of you were well-dressed, engaged in conversation (he carried most of it) and took tiny steps to ensure it stayed that way. You looked like the perfect royal Fontainian couple. Add on the fact that Archandelle has decreed himself 'fervently in love' with you, and didn't look like he was going to give up... No wonder your parents were probably even happier than they were on their own wedding day.

'Fervently in love', my ass. If I wasn't so angry, I'd laugh. Maybe with his stupid monologues or my last name's history book... My Wriothesley could teach him a thing or two about love.

"And I say, it was so dastardly for them to write that ending! I mean, to let these filthy 'protagonists' get away with their crimes! I can think of youngsters reading this novel. What will they think? How are we raising them and- My dear, are you with me?".

The funny thing about his tirades was how they can be condensed to the same strand of puritanism, either outrageous or righteous. You barely had to listen and should he feel testy, you had an answer.

"Ah, forgive me, my dear Duke. I was just appalled at the text, to the point where I didn't know what to say. But do know I'm in full agreement!".

He beamed: "Why, of course you are. Your parents raised a fine and virtuous young lady who knows right from wrong.".

Your agreement seemed to have calmed him down. He stopped to take your hand and kiss it.

"One of the countless reasons I fell in love with you.".

Liar!

You wished you could shut him up. As he embodied the peak of your social class, he also had all the ideas you wanted to criticize as loud as you can, but couldn't risk. One of them was this picking on cultural output not based on whether it was good, whether they liked it, but whether it was 'moral' or not. What's more is the power they hold. Should something not be 'moral', that would mean another secret trip to the bookstore for you, before it got fully banned.

Though you couldn't shut him up, you had two tools up your arsenal: The first was thinking of Wriothesley, which made you surprisingly more patient than you imagined. The second was hearing Archandelle be less of a whiner, more of an admirer.

"Say, my Lord, surely you've seen some good plays where this doesn't happen, right? I'm sure we'll all need good recommendations.".

Once again, he beamed, and you could tell he was restricting himself from being too physical. But perhaps he felt a bit more daring, because he put an arm around your waist and carried on walking, while talking about 'good' plays he's seen (which you were sure were total dogshit if it came from him.).

The butler had called you for tea time. It wasn't the day for your favorite dessert, but a quick wink from Agatha, who was passing by, let you know who twisted his arm into bending the unofficial rule. You felt a bit of remorse for not being able to tell her who you really liked, but you decided to do it when you were in a more secure position with Wriothesley.

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

Curse whoever decided that falling in love with a half-wolf (or any hybrid, for that matter) was a curse, and bless your own canine lover for using his affinity towards the night to pick this one. The stars shined along with the soft moon, with only a few cloudy wisps passing by. The air was crisp, cooling but not so much that you had to stay in.

The hour struck. Your heart did a leap so brusque, you had to take a deep breath. The clock said it all: It was time.

You picked a simple dress for your rendez-voux; Flattering, but no hassle. Your mother wasn't fond of it, because she thought it didn't 'do justice to your beauty'. Another one of millions of differences between you two, separating her and your father into the loud and showy sun, while you counted the minutes until you could entangle your hand into his under the moon. Though everyone slept, the night was still young... Should you desire it, would more than that happen?

No one could police your desires if you thought of them.

Let him hold me again. Let him hold me securely, claiming me as his under the full moon as his own culture decrees. I'm asking a lot... But please, let him kiss me before Duke Archandelle does and let him scream it out to the world so it could throw me into his arms.

As you made your way down, your reverie was only interrupted when you passed by your elder brother's room. Being married, he split his time between his new villa and your manor. You weren't looking forward to his next visit, especially when he caught wind of your 'engagement' with Duke Archandelle and sent you a long, pompous letter congratulating you as his 'equally prestigious sister, upholding the Balthazar's powerful unions'. Ugh.

In retrospect, perhaps you should have hurried along; Just after you continued, you bumped into a curvaceous figure you knew well (after all, she held you more than your mother) and made an audible "Ow!".

So much for not being caught, least of all by your own hissing governess. Should you be caught, she'd surely get heat for not making sure you were in bed.

"Y/N! What are you doing out of bed? You have lessons tomorrow, don't you?".

As she talked, she pulled you away from your brother's door and the bedrooms of the floor. After all, she was just in as much danger as you were.

"Agatha! Hey, um... I was... I was going down to grab a glass of water. I'm thirsty.".

Forget the fact that you weren't in your sleeping attire and that your voice was racked in nerve. How could you have hoped to lie to her, your true mother figure who knew every inkling of you hiding something on your face? Her quirked-up brows clearly let you know that she didn't buy it, but what really made you want to spill the beans was the slight glimmer in her eyes: She was hurt by you lying to her.

"Really, Y/N? After all those years, you think I'd believe that? I have raised you as my own, yet you act as if I were hired this morning.".

"Agatha, I'm so sorry. Please don't be sad, I'll tell you but...".

You couldn't believe it; You were about to tell someone that you were seeing another man behind your arranged partner's back. It would be one thing if he were some king and your parents were idiots at making their final verdict. But you were seeing Duke Wriothesley of Meropide. You were seeing a wolf-hybrid, a dangerous kind to human beings (even though you'd argue that correlation does not equal causation). You were seeing a prison warden, a polite but hardy, brutish man.

Agatha could sense that your secret was a big one. She ran a hand through your head: "My dear, I've always kept your secrets, haven't I? What is so scary that you would hide it from me of all people?".

"Oh, Agatha, it's not scary at all. It's wonderful and lovely and beautiful. It makes me get out of bed with hope in my heart. it sends me to sleep as the happiest girl of Teyvat.".

Her face broke out into a smile: "By Focalors! What is it then?".

"But I'm the only one who sees it that way! It's not scary to me at all. He brings me all the joy in my life, and yet if anyone found out that would spell the end of me and him! Agatha, why did you have to be up tonight of all nights?".

A moment of silence eclipsed, you wallowing in the realization that you gave her a hint. In both your hearts, you felt that she knew you didn't like Duke Archandelle, as with most royal women. But to go to the lengths of seeing another man... Did she think you had it in you?

"Who is he, Y/N?".

"Duke Wriothesley of Meropide. We snuck by the last two socials, and we were planning to meet up tonight in the low gardens.".

You could see the shock in her face. Anyone would be, pairing you with him of all gentlemen. You couldn't blame her. If anything, you wanted to burst in tears, put your head at her feet and thank her for her tolerance. Rather than alerting even the most insignificant servant in the house, she patted your hand and stayed.

"Does he make you happy?".

"Yes. Happy enough to live.".

"That's a lot of happiness. A level you've always deserved, but if you're honest, only recently acquired. If at last my prayers for your joy are answered and they come in his form, who am I to judge you?".

A small, meek smile made its way on her face. You threw your arms around her shoulders.

"Thank you, Agatha, thank you!".

She helped you up, then looked out of the window. Whether it was at the skies or the gardens below, you couldn't tell nor had the time to ask. She grabbed your hand and continued the way downstairs.

"Let's not keep him waiting.".

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

You stepped out, feeling light and relaxed under the cool moon. Then there he was: Your very own prince charming, who was expectantly waiting in front of the garden's backdoor. His ears perked up. Once he saw you, your time of admiration from afar was over. A few loud steps resonated before you felt his embrace engulf you, and at last you were in his arms and everything felt (was) alright.

What made it better was his reciprocation; From the big, dumb smile, to the twitching ears (how cute!) to the feeling of his strong muscles protecting you from whatever misery could strike you right then and there...

"If I told you of how much my heart screamed out for you, you wouldn't hear the end of it.".

He kissed your hand as per usual. You supposed that if you wanted more, you had to catalyze it yourself: "I don't want to hear its end, Wriothesley.".

You didn't have to hear it, for you were still held against him. His heart was beating frenetically, reverberating into your own body.

Only when he looked up and saw Agatha, that wonder dwindled.

"What the... Who are you?".

"Wait, Wrio. She's on our side. She's the only one who supports our romance.".

He let out a small 'oh', trying to relax but with worry clear on his face. Agatha, being ever so talented at soothing, stepped in.

"Greeting, Lord Wriothesley. I am Y/N's governess. Forgive me for being out, I wasn't supposed to know of this. I just caught her by accident, but I promise I won't tell a soul.".

He took a moment before speaking up: "Agatha? Oh, Y/N has mentioned you before. In that case, I'm glad it was you who caught her, and no one else. And thank you for keeping up the secrecy, though it won't be that way forever. I intend to marry her, one way or another.".

"Frankly, anyone who can take care of her and makes her happy is great, in my opinion.".

Her warm, motherly smile has lowered many people's guards. You could tell his worry was fading away, knowing she could be trusted. He nodded one more time, and off you two went. The good thing about the low gardens was the fact that unless someone was close, no one could hear you. It was the 'abandoned' garden per se. While it wasn't as grand as the higher ones, it had many beautiful flowers, a lake, and you could never uncouple your memories of playing hide-and-seek there with Agatha or your friends.

But nevertheless, it didn't stop your displeasure at the fact that you weren't recognized at his yet. You wanted to show all of Teyvat who you really loved, who had the right to call you 'mine'.

"I wish... I wish I could have shown you the higher gardens.".

He squeezed your hand and you looked up to him. You could have died with the beautiful vision in front of you: Did the moon make his piercing eyes glow better, or was that just you?

"My love, there will be a day where we can stroll out in the open, in whatever garden you want. And besides...".

He looked on his surroundings as you kept walking, now linking arms.

"I like the secrecy aspect that comes with this one. It's like... Like our social world doesn't want you to be mine. And yet here and now, you are. Always were, always will be.".

It made you blush. It only got worse when you wanted to tuck a piece of hair, and he caught a glance at the wolf bracelet: "And from the looks of it, you want to be all mine, don't you?".

"Oh, yes. I wear it all the time Father isn't around. I'm sorry if I was morose earlier. It's the fact that I can't stand being someone else's fiancée, especially when I had no say in the matter.".

"Don't beat yourself up. I know well that we're on the same wavelength. I'm already scheming on it, too...".

While you loved talking about being his, you knew that alone wasn't enough. There had to be some sort of plan, some idea as to how he'd get you. And much to your happiness, he wasn't empty-headed to doom you to just keeping your affair, an affair. You leaned close to listen.

"So I'm presuming he wants to marry you because of your family name, yes? Like all other shitty noble marriages...".

You laughed a bit: "That's the one.".

"I already have an investigator to look further into his. Depending on whether he committed serious crime, going above the general corruption that's too often seen and brushed aside, you as his future wife have the right to file for a 'Motion of Marital Worry'. Then the Court could look into how that may affect you, and thus stop you from marrying him even if your father objects.".

This was... Wonderful.

"Why, Wriothesley, I love a man who's proactive! But I have one worry about this plan: Fontaine may be less corrupt than other nations, but there's still crime that's deemed as 'not serious', especially from our class. What if they bribe someone? That's what always happens.".

"Nah, don't worry. I myself am well acquainted with some... Important figures in the judicial system. They'll be sure to look out for such a motion with your name or mine on it. And if the crime is very serious, there's no way they'll turn their head.".

He stopped walking, letting the soft howl of the wind play out before continuing: "And anyways, that's only the first plan. I've got more ideas in case it doesn't work.".

"You really think ahead, eh?".

"If it concerns you? I think about it all the time. Even my sleep is yours.".

All the time. All the time, for me. This union was nothing like the trash your father wanted to force you in. In the other one, you belonged to Archandelle, but contrary to his spiel about love, he didn't belong to you. Maybe not other women if he were 'loyal', but you saw his attitude towards seeing you as a Balthazar, versus seeing you as... You. He really only belonged to himself.

"Don't worry. If he didn't do anything, I'll just make him. If his hand is clean, I'll twist it until it bleeds then yell bloody murder until he's sentenced for life.".

Wriothesley long made it clear, and he kept making it clear to reassure you. His loving gaze, his obsession, his thought of you that went as far as remembering everything you've ever loved or told him (and believe me, it's a lot) said it all: He belonged to you, and you belonged to him, as true love should be.

You stroked his cheek, taking in his eyes as he did yours: "And when you twist him into the wrangled, bloody mess you can make... I'll cheer you on. I'll praise like I'm watching the greatest of theater.".

Perhaps it was the fact that everything has been so dreary, or that the full moon just made people playful, but you broke away from him, your arms brusquely rejecting him and giving you distance. His stunned look hurt you a bit, but the fun you wanted was priceless.

"But Duke Wriothesley, the prince must always fight hard for the one he desires, yes?".

His boot made a quiet crunch as he approached you, and you took a step back. In a way, it was fun, withholding yourself from him as he ached for you. However, he reciprocated your playful smirk, understanding what your intention was. As you stepped back, you did the occasional twirl as your dress flowed with the moon's shine.

Teasing him was so fun: "Aren't I right? Isn't what he desires most, the most guarded and forbidden by everyone else? Shouldn't he be ready to do anything if he loves the princess that much?".

"My... Are you underestimating the limits I'll break to call you my wife? While I try to be calm to avoid prejudice, I have no issue tuning into my violent side if it's for you.".

The string snapped. You turned back and ran off: "We'll see about that, Your Grace!".

How long has it been since you ran? You forgot the freedom, the breeziness it offered.

"I'll make you see, alright!"

But that wasn't where your true excitement laid. It was the quicker, heavier crunching sound right behind you.

Off the wolf went, chasing down his partner. He had the advantage of being fit, and his hybrid blood granting him more speed than the average human. But you were also flighty and you knew the garden better than he did. Whenever he thought he had you, you ran back another corner, and even pulled your tongue at him if he was far enough.

At some point, you hid close to the lake. He had not reached this area yet, so you were safe to catch your breath. If only this could last beyond your couple of hours together! Not even factoring the end yet, you thought of him, smiling and chasing you both literally and figuratively. Only when you looked down to check on your dress, did you notice your legs clenching tight and the sudden warmth, the higher you went...

Perhaps you should have remembered that you were still being chased, ergo had no more time than a few quick breaths. You didn't hear the rustle of the bushes. Before you knew it, large hands grabbed your waist and their owner let out a victorious growl, lifting you up.

"Oh no, the wolf got me!".

"Damn right, he did! Now you're his to devour!".

He wanted to carry on, but a loving state always reduces one to recklessness. He tripped on a pebble, but made sure to switch so he'd take the fall rather than you. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as he expected.

"Wriothesley, my dear! Are you okay?".

He chuckled at your worried face: "Nah, don't worry. It was way softer than I expected. Hah...".

A crimson blush spread upon both of your faces (but especially yours). It just dawned on you: You were on top of him, like on his body, and the chase excited him in the same way it did you. His red cheeks and the hard poke you felt against your thigh said it all.

"Archons, I... I'm so sorry, Y/N. I tend to enjoy that sort of stuff, running around and chasing...".

"It's okay... I enjoyed it, too...".

The time stopped when you (slowly, yet surely) shook off the awkwardness, as you sat up in his lap. How do you proceed from there? How do you deal with feeling so clueless in what you want? You barely processed that, as you ran a hesitant hand through his hair.

"I really like your ears.".

"There it is.".

His arms tightened around your waist as he replayed the phrase in his head: "I really like your ears.". And you liked his dark attire above all the others'. And you liked his voice and his way of comportment, and by Focalors, you were madly in love with the human and wolf halves of him, never conditionally or pretending some part of him did not exist.

In the midst of this prolonged yearning, you two could no longer wait. He leaned down and sealed his promises with the kiss you've long thought of and saved just for him.

The full moon made its appearance on the lake reflection. The wind rustled the plants around you a bit. Unbelieving that this was actually happening, you pulled him in closer, wishing you could merge your bodies together. Even when you were dipping slower, slower into the ground, you knew he wouldn't let you fall harshly. You knew his tight grip was ever present to protect you from that or any other dangers, and its warmth of love and appreciation was only for you.

And you took in his mint breath, each time breathing in more and more. You were starved for your lover, and so was he, keeping you in his arms and away from a world that wanted you two apart. It already did enough of that throughout the day. The night was yours.

You two broke away, panting and looking into each other's diluted pupils. Sometimes, you couldn't believe how being with him was like having your own puppy. He whispered: "I love you with the marrow of my bones.", before dipping his head into your neck to kiss it. If marrying him, sharing the same bed, meant you could nuzzle your face into his fluffy hair, you had another reason to fight away from your other suitor.

Happy with its softness against your running hand and face, and his sweet kisses, you couldn't help but purr out: "I can't wait until... Until we can do this all the time, whenever we want.".

"Hah... And that time will come. I've already handed so much to the world, I'm not handing you out too.".

He looked up at the sky to tell the time, then chuckled in a morose manner: "Time sure flies by when I'm with you. It's like I lose control over it so easily.".

He made a sad, but true point; For one, you had to head back into your chambers, because dawn would emerge soon enough and you needed time to change, actually sleep... There was also the fact that even if he got onto the active part of taking you from your father and Archandelle (funny, you just remembered his name), your parents would probably want to have you married soon. Time was of the essence, and that essence was short-lived and impossible to take back.

As he walked you back to the backdoor, hands squeezed tight, he leaned in: "My dear, can I ask you for a favor?".

"Of course. Anything for you.".

"Next time you have to meet that idiot your parents call 'your fiancé', look at whether he behaves out of the norm. Specifically, if he's nervous or uncomfortable. Or maybe if he talks more about politics.".

"I see...".

"Nobles who feel like they have something to hide always act like that. Depending on what's found against him, he could be called for questioning. That's enough to cause unrest.".

You laughed: "As with every other noble guy. You'll probably find worse skeletons in my father's closet.".

"The question isn't whether there are skeletons. It's how you use them.".

You liked that idea a lot, enough to make you smirk. Now that you thought about it, there were many 'skeletons' around you, especially those belonging to your father. And now, you were growing into a position where you could use them, where you could be as knowledgeable in the law as Wriothesley and use it to your advantage. Sure, that might get you called 'disgraceful', but you'd be ripping yourself away from them faster, ergo into your lover. And if Fontaine was all about fairness, what was happening to you was unfair. You were just rectifying an error.

"Uh-oh. My mischievous darling is smiling like that of all ways. What do you have in mind?".

"I just liked what you said. It feels a lot like how the world works.".

"It's not far off.".

Agatha was sitting down next to the backdoor. She stood up and bowed, but her smile grew bigger when she caught sight of your intertwined hands. You felt very lucky to have her by your side.

Before bidding goodnights, Wriothesley turned you to him, and kissed you one more time, before stroking a strand of hair from your face: "Dream of me. Let us meet in the realm of sleep and continue this, until we won't have to dream anymore.".

"I promise.".

Much to your heavy heart, you headed back in, and he was off to the nearest teleportation waypoint. The ending of your meetings always brought sadness to your heart, but he worked so hard for a reason; He would rather die than you two not be together. His very passion was you, and you knew that if he was yours, some things had to be done. And you were sure that could happen, starting with the favor.

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

"Y/N, you said he made you the happiest girl of Teyvat?".

"Yes.".

"Well, you sure look like that right now! How was it?".

[luminousdryad]

to make things brief cause I suck at organizing what I have to say, the live action was definitely Something™.

Cast: 10/10 kinda biased personally but yall can't take this from me

Gordon as Aang and Dallas as Zuko were the standouts imo. Gordon needs some direction on line delivery and the angstier scenes but overall he's very charming and I'm so proud of him for getting so much exposure!

Ian as Sokka was great, I just wish he was allowed to be more...messy? like Sokka pretends to be chill and all that but he's actually dramatic so I hope that gets improved in the next season if there is one

speaking of improvement, Kiawentiio as Katara brought out a softer side to the character but sadly diminished her spark and passion. I like that Katara now actually feels like a younger sister, it makes sense within the context of the story that Sokka and Gran Gran would shelter her after what happened, but as someone said, her anger is so central to her character and I just wish that got shown more. It's more of a script and direction problem tbh, if you look at Kia's interviews she has the sass and feistiness Katara needs

Lizzy as Azula is great, the writing is a bit clunky though so she did the best she could with it. Can't really comment on Mai and Ty Lee yet because they're kinda just there but it's a nice setup

Maria as Suki? perfection show stopping never the same she is a queen and I love the tidbit of Suki backstory which she never really had in the og show. I love her being such a loser around her crush we love to see girlfailures girlfailing. I wish the writers didn't make them KISS though 😭 slowburn ftw

the adults were great

Writing: 6.5/10

There were genuinely good moments and I love the concept of mixing up certain plot points to condense the story

But they just suffered from too much Telling instead of Showing WRITERS PLEASE LISTEN TO THE CRITICISM YOU HAVE TIME TO IMPROVE PLEASE

Omashu, mechanist, and Jet plot mixing as a concept was fine, but it dragged on and my friends and I got bored of it. I like it in theory but if it was going to take THAT long couldn't they have just separated one of those storylines for a different episode?

I appreciate that they tried to develop the water siblings' relationship by making them the stars of the Secret Tunnels, but I would've changed the way they "conquered" the problem (really? badgermoles respond to love? cute in theory but like why). If anyone's watched Barbie: A Fairy Secret there's a part where Barbie and her frenemy accuse each other of why their friendship failed, and it helps them make up and breaks the curse put on them. So that's what I would've done, force them in a life or death situation in which they have to say the unsaid things, maybe hug it out and boom

The way they handled Koh and the Spirit World was a Mess™ but the effects were decent

Zhao meeting horrible ends in every incarnation is so deserved

Yue having more agency was a welcome change AND I LOVE THAT SHE WATERBENDS. Then waterbends even when the moon is gone. It's such a nice visual nod to the fact that she has the moon spirit within her

That said, the show could definitely use more visual storytelling, less weird dialogue. Like it's so strangely common for shows or adaptations these days to exposition dump. Like they did not have to make Yue say that the ocean spirit was angry, literally just show me the dead moon fish and I'll get the idea. Then Iroh says "That's Wrath" that's just redundant now isn't it

I like that they saved Katara bringing Aang out of the Avatar State until last even if it could've been done better

HOW DARE THEY MAKE ME LIKE HAHN HE WAS A JERK IN THE SHOW BUT THEY MADE HIM A GENUINELY GOOD CHARACTER. Yes to brown men not being portrayed as jerks but also in the original it was a nice contrast to how far Sokka had come because Hahn reflected who he used to be. But live action Hahn </3

I like that they showed the deaths and blood. I wanted a live action that was both lighthearted but more realistic when it came to the injuries and death, and that'd kind of what I got

Other thoughts + overall

You can tell they put so much heart into this show, watching the bts, the bending boot camp with the correct martial arts, the easter eggs, the nods to the comics, the beautiful adaptations of Cabbage Merchant and Secret Tunnel nomads, there's so much passion behind the show it's a shame it suffered in its writing

which is why if they read reviews and criticism from the bigger name fans (TheAvatarist, HelloFutureMe, etc.) it would really help them improve for future seasons! The cast is stunning already and they have great chemistry (hopefully gets improved too!)

The live action is just a different angle to the show. And I'm saying this as an Avatar fan–the original wasn't perfect, either. I had some problems w it but the overall show was genuinely so good and heartfelt, those problems weren't glaring enough to put me off (unlike The Dragon Prince, sorry). The live action definitely wasn't perfect, but it tried to give us a new look into Avatar. Again, no adaptation will ever be a 1:1 remake and none should be. Where's the fun in that? But while the show is so full of heart and with actual fans working behind the scenes, I doubt if they listen to any criticism that they can't pull this off better next season.

[thewisaaaaad]

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE MASTERPOST FOR

SINS OF THE GODS

mostly so i can more easily find the info i need, so i can be a bit consistent

Condensed idea

imaginary friend

THE GOOBER

torture (tw: suicidal implications)

Kallamars reasoning

"fun" fact

The crowns proof

Sealing and Sin

less than a servant

The vessel of the vessel

Invasive procedure

Hecket receives forgiveness

Motivations

Accursed Torments

naming a dream

What is as it should be, what ever was, what always will be.

A display of power

ones horny, ones thorny

Friend in the shadows

A lack of regret, a need for atonement LESHY INTERLUDE

Everything goes wrong, pt1. pt2. pt3.

He's green now/Eternal Servant Bruford

Yellow cat interlude

The Cream Crown

A dry land of death

Sins of the gods (FIRST CHAPTER)

The tower, upright. (SECOND CHAPTER)

the one who sits

Hekets love

A lack of regret, a need for attonement REWRITTEN

The Sins... And Pride

Goat of steel

Ref text

officially tagged the referenced posts as "sins of the gods au" :)

Other tags that i use:

#narinders locker

a piratical cotl au!

#anemoia au

A creepy jester circus themed au, currently has one post.

#i really don't know what i'm doing

My personal tag, contains all my mad ramblings.

holy cow i added so much

Thanks to @rshtg7776 for the name

Not part of the AU's but I'm still proud of:

I am Not Myself a one-shot narilamb fic involving amnesia. :)

ALSO QUESTIONS ARE FREE AND WANTED. please ask me abt my blorbos im beggin.

[polina-me]

Happy birthday duckboys!

Dewey *throwing off the blanket*: Today is our day!

Huey: We've gotten older!

Louie: And richer.

Donald: Boys! It's time for breakfast!

Yay!

*each boy has his own plate of pancakes: Huey with condensed milk and blueberries, Dewey with chocolate chips and marshmallows, Louie with maple syrup and strawberries*

*everyone has tea with strawberry juice*

Dewey: Yummy!

Huey: Wow...

Louie: Cool. *took a picture for my blog*

Donald: Happy birthday, boys. Bon appetit~

HDL: Thank you, Unca Donald!

HDL: *make the first piece*

HDL: !!!

Louie: Did you-

Dewey: Did you add chocolate to the pancakes?!

Donald prodly: Yes, I am.

Huey: Wow!!

Della: Um, Donald?...

Donald: I made the chocolate for Huey myself, so there are sweeteners there.

Donald: Wait. Did you think that I didn't know my own child?

Della: No! Of course no! I just!-

Della: *sigh*

Della: I'm sorry... Sometimes I forget that you know boys better than I do. Although I am their mother...

Donald put his hand on her shoulder: Everything is fine. I also sometimes forget that you know me better than yourself.

Donald looking at Scrooge: And someone else.

Scrooge: *trying not to cry*

///////////////////////////////////

Scrooge: All right, boys. Since today is your birthday, I...

Donald who stands too close: *stings his side painfully*

Scrooge: I'll... buy whatever you want... But only one piece at a time!

Scrooge: *looks at Donald*

Donald: *nods approvingly*

Huey: Okay, well... Difficult choice...

Dewey: Okay, listen!!

Louie: Hehe. Okay~

Scrooge: "My money suffers only for their happiness..."

/////////////////////////////////////

Della: Aaaahhh, boys! Here I am!

Huey: Hi, mom.

Dewey: Hey, mom.

Louie: Yo, moona.*

Della: Well, today is your birthday and therefore, as your mother, I will spend it with you! All day!!

Louie: Nah, thanks.

Dewey: It's cool, but no, mom.

Huey: Sorry, no.

Della puzzled: Whit waat?

Della: But why? What's wrong with spending your birthday with your cool mom, huh?

Dewey: Nothing at all! Just..

Louie: It's just that today is OUR day, Mom. And we have already planned how to spend it.

Della: Oh, yeah. I see..

Della: I'm so proud of you! You're so grown-up, making plans and all that...

Della: Haha, yeah..

Louie: Well, we haven't started making plans yet, so why don't you sit with us for now? M?

Della: *practically literally sparkling with happiness*

Della: Of course! Come here, my ducklings!

Della: *jumps on them with hugs*

Huey and Dewey: Wakhak!

Louie: Don't call us like that!!

//////////////////////////////////////

There will be no continuation, because I do not know how to write on behalf of children.. I'm sorry...

[canonicallyobserving911]

Buddie & Madney - 7x6 & Karaoke

I'm still frustrated about the fact that 9-1-1 promoted episode 7x6 by using clips of Buck and Eddie to get people to watch. Also, I'm going to be real about it because the reason they did it was to get engagement but that's not the only thing that's pissing me off.

The Buddie and Madney 'ships have been intertwined since 2x6 "Dosed" when Buck, Eddie and Chimney helped Maddie move into her new apartment. They're ship pairings are similar to the Bathena and Henren 'ships because Hen and Athena are best friends and the four of them play cards and spend time together all the time. They don't necessarily hang out with Maddie and Chimney or Buck and Eddie like they do each other.

Buck and Eddie aren't married (Yet! If the narrative continues the way that it began in season 2 they will be but only TM knows what he's trying to accomplish with them now) but their friends to lovers love story has paralleled Maddie's and Chimney's and it appears the karaoke scene was intentionally added to parallel with Maddie's and Chimney's karaoke scene from 2x8. Furthermore, Maddie's and Eddie's lives parallel (both are the eldest siblings and they also had to shoulder a lot of their parents' responsibilities/secrets). Also, believe it or not but Buck's and Chimney's lives do too (they both have abandonment issues. Reminder, Sang left Chimney to fend for himself when he moved back to Korea).

The thing that's really irritating me about 7x6 is from the start it SHOULD HAVE ONLY BEEN ABOUT MADDIE AND CHIMNEY getting married. That's it! There shouldn't have been this whole Chimney gets kidnapped/abducted or whatever is supposed to happen because they've been through a lot. Why couldn't they have simply had a nice wedding episode that highlighted their relationship? It could have included flashbacks that showed where they started and how they arrived at the point they're at now. Also, it could have shown how they overcame adversity even after they decided to end things when they were on their way back to L.A. after Maddie left in season 5. Then they could have proceeded to show how they rekindled their true love in season 6. Too much has happened for them off-screen and also, they've had the most tumultuous relationship especially with the Doug Kendell of it all when he tried to kill both of them.

Buck and Eddie's party shenanigans might still be included but if they never intended to air their "karaoke scene" (they knew they weren't going to include it by the end of 7x5 because it's been said it takes 2 weeks for an episode to be edited but they kept promoting Buck and Eddie instead of Maddie and Chimney), therefore they shouldn't have focused on Buddie as much as they did. Additionally, OS said he was terrified of singing karaoke but he did it and he's proud of it. RG and OS both looked like they were having a good time doing it so IMO, they could have at least included 15 seconds of the song and eliminated something else.

I'm really trying not to feel like they're using Buddie shippers for views but that's what it seems like. If they wanted people to genuinely watch Madney's wedding for their love story then there wouldn't have been a need to add Buck and Eddie in the promos and they should have let JLH and KC do all the interviews after 7x5 aired in preparation for 7x6.

Finally, since they have more than an hour and a half of footage, it appears the wedding should have been slotted for 2 episodes instead of one and they could have accomplished it if they would have planned better. A lot of things that's included in 7x5 could have been condensed or added to 7x4 so they could have started the wedding scenes at the end of 7x5.

Be clear, this is NOT 9-1-1's first time filming a 10-episode season, that was season 1. Also, season 4 only had 14 episodes and that was because of the pandemic so they're not strangers to understanding how to fit everything into a limited number of episodes. Maybe they need to focus on time management instead of adding people to the ever-growing list of recurring characters and focus on their mains. Karen, Denny and Ravi are all recurring characters who've been around for several seasons (Karen and Denny since season 1 and Ravi since season 4) but for some reason they keep bringing new people and giving them more screen time instead of focusing on the core cast. We've all seen it before in season 5 with all the time they gave Taylor Kelly so this 7x6 debacle basically comes down to poor planning. IMO, someone who's responsible for the decisions that were made with the promos and the final edits should say something to the audience about it.

#BuddieDeservesBetter

#MadneyDeservesBetter

[bb-enablefreebuild]

NTN opinions

so I haven't read NTN very recently (or the other locked tomb books) but its the most recent installment about Nona I think about a lot.

Muir said that she was splitting Alecto the Ninth into two parts, NTN and then ATN. She explained that Nona already had a complete story arc and could be its own separate book. Obviously there's nothing wrong with that.

But to be quite honest, I feel like most of NTN could have been cut. The most important parts of Nona are these:

More detail about the Blood of Eden

Nona's relationship with Varun the Eater

Her dreams of John Gaius

Now don't get me wrong, I loved seeing Nona going to school as a teachers aide and making friends! The problem is, the relationships she develops with the kids like Hot Sauce aren't...very important. I think it would have been better if Nona developed relationships with characters that she already knew, like Crown (Coronabeth) for example.

If Nona being friends with a group of kiddos is important, then maybe she should do it specifically with kids from the Blood of Eden. Out of all of Nona's friends, her relationship with Noodle the dog is the most important, and maybe Hot Sauce. She could be another niece of Wake, the same as Pash. It would explain why Hot Sauce is so suspicious of necromancers and why she shot up Nona in that one scene.

Also, If Nona is the secret weapon, why isn't she more involved with B.O.E? It's implied that the Blood of Eden is on the struggle bus. Wouldn't the inception have more depth if Nona was among their ranks right before their eyes, it'd be a major example of why they've failed for so long to stop Mr. Jod.

Cam and Palamedes could have gathered a few trust worthy relationships used to protect Nona too. Heck, the Blood of Eden could have a "school" of their own where they teach the kids of their soldiers propaganda, look at how Pash was raised!

I genuinely believe that all of the stuff that happened could have been condensed to a feasible first part. As an author, cutting things we're proud of writing is like shooting yourself in the head then doing it again. But I think if I was in Muir's shoes, I would've done it. I love Hot Sauce, Kevin and the other kiddos so much but they're just...not important enough for the over all plot :(

Lastly, and this is where I'm getting super nit picky, but I wish there was more world building. I 100% appreciate Muir's trust in the readers intelligence and for us to put the pieces together. I understood that Steles were used to travel far distances and "flip" planets to be colonized for necromancers. I VASTLY prefer this instead of five hundred pages of exposition (Fourth Wing) slammed into the beginning of the book.

That being said, a little bit of exposition is fine. Gideon The Ninth does this perfectly with explaining thanergy and other necromancer related info. We learn more in HTN as well. I think Muir was thinking that "Nona wouldn't know these things, so it can't be expressed in the book" which I totally get, but Nona has a canon excuse for just Having knowledge! Her uncanny reading of body language and understanding of different languages? Her ability to draw animals from Earth that were lost to public knowledge? Nona just casually absorbing information and thinking about it in her internal monologue is completely reasonable. I say this to point out that Muir was too vague with the world building in NTN. Yes, I could fill in the gaps but I would have loved more information about the colony planets outside of the House system! She's doing too much showing, which I think is precisely why NTN got much too long.

Anyway, PLEASE take all of this with a grain of salt. I love Nona the Ninth and I think the way it was written is digestible and good! It's just not how I would have done it. Please Tamsyn I'm begging you for lore I am BEGGING YOU FOR LORE.

[cheekinpermission]

Happy 500 followers!!

How about 1 and 10 for the ask game?

Thank you for you participation, anon! Ask game is here! Send them in if you want <3

1. Who's hand did you first grab? Why? Would you choose someone else if you could do it over again?

I grabbed Idia's hand! When I first got into TWST, I had absolutely no clue what I was getting into so I really just went based on which voice actors I recognized LOL. I know Kōki Uchiyama from a ton of different anime (JJK, Buddy Daddies, Haikyuu, BNHA, Yuri on Ice, etc.) so I just went with his character. While Idia doesn't crack the top 5 for me, I don't think I'd choose again. The only reason I would is if it impacted the story somehow but I really doubt it will. I'm COMITTED.

10. Top five favorite characters?

Grim occupies all top five spots. BUT since that's boring, so I'll limit my choices to the main cast lmao. (My love for the dire beast is PROFOUND) I got VERY wordy here so here's the short answer: 1. Riddle Rosehearts

2. Vil Schoenheit

3. Malleus Draconia

4. Ruggie Bucchi

5. Kalim Al-Asim Explanation below the cut! (I got very excited to talk about my favorites and wrote a lot so I figured I'd condense it for people who didn't want to scroll through it all lol whoopsies.)

1. Riddle Rosehearts - I have no explanation for this?? He's pretty much the opposite of my usual favorite characters so idk what happened here. I've always been drawn to the Alice in Wonderland aesthetic so maybe that has something to do with it? He's got such great character writing, too?? Everything about his personality just makes sense when you know his backstory. When we learn that Riddle's tyrant of a mother was strict and controlling over him, the pieces just seem to fall into place. His whole life was just following her rules and studying like a good little boy, and when he stepped out of line even a little bit he was reprimanded harshly for it. Of course, he's going to the exact same thing once he's in a position of power. It's all he knows. He's just another version of his mother. Not only does he uphold the tradition of punishing rule breakers rather severely as he was when he was younger, I think there's also an element of fear there as well. Like, his mother just instilled an innate fear of breaking rules because bad things would happen if he didn't follow them exactly. I really do see Riddle as a scared little boy who is suddenly realizing that he was set up for failure by his own mother. And THEN he makes an honest effort to improve himself post-overblot?? His transformation after the fact is one of the more obvious ones and I'm just so proud of him. A THOUSAND HEAD PATS!! Okay, I'll stop rambling about him lmao I love Riddle sm (Also want to make clear I'm not saying Riddle was right for anything he did, only that I appreciate how his character was handled. Added for legal purposes so people don't come after me :c ) 2. Vil Schoenheit - This one comes as no surprise to me. Pretty boys who challenge gender stereotypes are RIGHT up my alley. Like Riddle, I think Vil has some great character writing is one of the more complex characters in the game. He just feels so compassionate to me?? I don't know how to explain it - he just gives such nurturing vibes. I'd trust this man with my drink at a bar fr fr. And then he tells Epel off for saying ballet is too "girly" for him?? Thank you TWST for bringing me this man. I pray at the altar of Vil Schoenheit. 3. Malleus Draconia - Doesn't Malleus top everyone's lists LOL I think my favoritism for the dragon man is more to do with his relationship with Yuu than anything else tbh. He's like one of three characters that actively engages with the main character and I think they've got such a fun relationship. Two people who feel very alone in the world finding friendship (or something more for you malleyuu shippers) in each other is so beautiful. I'm glad they can be there for each other like that. Side note: I adore romantic Malleyuu for sure, but I think it's equally as endearing if all of Malleus's flirtatious lines were never meant to be romantic but he's just really bad at communicating his feelings in a platonic way. Like, he doesn't mean to flirt he's just socially inept. 4. Ruggie Bucchi - Gremlin hyena boy is just too good for words. Ngl, I started off not really liking Ruggie all that much because of what he did in the Savanaclaw book. My mans was basically shoving people down flights of stairs?? I'm not really sure where the turn around happened tbh. Mischievous personality types do tend to draw me in in fiction so that probably has a lot to do with it. I also felt really bad for him at the end of the Savanaclaw book when Leona was ready to Thanos him out of existence despite everything Ruggie had done for him (and continues to do for him). I appreciate his work ethic, I can respect the hustle, and he's got such a cute little laugh. I wanna pet those big ole ears of his. Leona - pay this man more smh 5. Kalim Al-Asim - SUNSHINE BOY!!

He's such a breath of fresh air in this game LMAO. As much as I love the fact that most of the cast are unapologetically flawed, it's nice to have a few characters that are genuinely good people. His VA (Kazuki Furuta) absolutely kills it imo. I can hear his laugh in my head as I'm typing this - it's just so warm and happy :D He also breaks the sterotype of most rich characters in media by just being a nice person? He's not evil or greedy (although naive and entitled) and he just wants to be bffs with Jamil. Break his heart Jamil and we're gonna have WORDS. Also just like FORGAVE JAMIL??? His bfffl yeeted him across the desert, brainwashed him and admitted to wanting to get him kicked from the school and Kalim didn't really hold it against him. He was so understanding and sweet about everything AHHHHH

[basket-of-cats-and-witches]

Tidbit Tuesdays: Sometimes Sylus Deserves to Get Punched

....in sparring. Usually.

Tidbit Tuesdays is where I share little bits from my WIPs or pieces that I'm particularly proud of. In this case, it's mostly just funny segments where Sylus spars with Kit (or AUs where she hates him) with a surprise extra!

Obviously warnings for blood and violence.

If you liked this, it would be wonderful if you could leave a like or reblog. It lets me know that people like what I'm doing, and encourages me to keep writing!

Side note, I think because Sylus is so tall, he's occasionally thrown off by fighting people who are also tall. It doesn't happen often, but Kit's 5'11, sooooo.

Notes:

First up is AU where Kit is the MC. There's another tidbit further down that you'll see that mirrors this one, and it's because this one is the best parts of that...thing condensed and changed into something else. Sometimes when you write, you just have to Frankenstein it into a different piece entirely.

⭐

This kitten is vicious.

Her foot crashes into his cheek, swift and unrelenting.

It's been long enough since he's fought someone who's almost his height that he's nearly thrown off by it.

Sylus whips around, using his evol in an attempt to pin her down.

“Cheap,” she snarls. “Having to resort to your stupid red shit.”

He scoffs, spitting blood. The injury is already beginning to heal. “I'm merely using the tools at my disposal.”

She writhes violently, her eyes gleaming with a feral light.

The twins are off in the distance, the shouts of their prey quickly being cut off.

“Hold still or this will hurt.” His warning only causes her to fight harder, and Sylus sighs.

His evol tightens, making her face him.

The bright flare of his eye is reflected in hers, and she looks confused. Pain lances through her face.

The blade whips out almost faster than he can predict it, slicing into his cheek.

“Is that how you treat your host?” He asks, and she tenses as the cut heals. “It looks like you really don't remember anything."

⭐

Notes: This is an fake/pretend marriage WIP that I really should get back to. I pulled it up for this post and remembered how much I loved it. Not much to say here except researching sparring/self defense is fun.

Edit: I looked further, this is one of my first Kit/Sylus fics before I'd nailed down personalities! How cute! I always thought Kieran was the chatty one...

-

A week later, Luke and Kieran appeared during their daily sparring match.

“We have presents!”

Sylus looked up from putting Kit in a headlock, his hold tight as she writhed and scrabbled at his wrist.

“Oh?” He glanced back down. “Kit, we talked about this. Wedge your hands and chin, step under and away.”

“It would be easier if I just bit you,” she grunted, yanking forcefully out of his grip. Sylus went to grab her hair, dragging her back towards him, and she used the momentum to slam her head into his gut, making him cough.

One stomp on the instep later, and she'd whirled a short distance away, panting heavily.

Sylus nodded. “Good. You're getting better.” He glanced towards the twins, gesturing them over. “What is it?”

Kieran handed him two tiny boxes, and he smirked. “Good. Kit, come here.”

She trotted over, wiping her face with a towel.

“Hold out your hand, sweetie.” Sylus opened one of the boxes, slipping something onto her ring finger.

She glanced down and her eyes widened. “Boss-”

“Sylus. You were doing so well. You're going to have to get into practice for this mission.” He arched a brow. “Unless you want them to think we have a different sort of relationship.”

Blushing violently, Kit corrected herself. “Sylus. Right. I didn't…I didn't actually expect you to get it.” She looked up at him, confused, completely unaware that the twins were fixated on this exchange. “It's just for a single mission. It doesn't- “ she swallowed hard. “It doesn't mean anything.”

Sylus hummed, considering his response. “You liked it,” he said simply. “Kieran and Luke are easy to please, but you're allergic to any sort of gifts. Unless they're weapons, of course. Consider it a sign of my appreciation for your service. It's yours to keep.”

Kit felt her heart stutter, her skin heating. The weight of something so small felt so odd, the ruby shimmering in the gym lights like a particular glint she knew so well.

She cleared her throat shakily. “Thank you, Bo- Sylus. It's beautiful.”

He gave her a strangely tender look, accompanied by an odd smile. “Of course. You never ask for anything. It's my pleasure. Now, it's your turn.” He held out the other box.

She shot him a confused look, opening it.

Inside was a heavy rose gold band, subtle geometric shapes patterning its surface. She gasped as she noticed the most dazzling element- a strip of amethyst inlaid in the middle.

Sylus chuckled. “Well? Are you going to do the honors?” He held out his hand.

Kit pulled the ring out gingerly, ignoring Kieran’s snickering.

“I'm pretty sure if she blushes anymore she'll turn into a tomato,” he whispered to Luke.

Luke elbowed his twin sharply and shushed him.

It was strangely simple, the act of sliding a ring on Sylus's finger. His hand was warm and sturdy, the rough calluses of his skin scratching against hers in a way that made her involuntarily shiver.

Kit glanced up to see Sylus smiling. “There we go,” he murmured. “Easy as could be.”

Her lips parted in surprise. Why were his ears turning pink?

⭐

Notes: This one is pretty damn suggestive. Which is the reason I never posted it, because it's borderline NSFW. It's mostly inspired by the very first scene where MC is hunting for the brooch and Sylus is just. In a towel. I imagine when you're that close to the boss, you're bound to get an eyeful at some point.

Notes:

-

“Come in.”

Kit walked into the bedroom, looking around. “Boss…?”

A glass door clicked open, steam billowing into the room. Sylus poked his head out, his skin flushed from the heat. “Here, Kit. Report. How did it go?”

She froze in place, eyes wide. A few droplets of water slid down the column of his neck, dipping into his collarbone and caressing the line of muscles as it trickled down, towards his-

Kit turned scarlet and immediately whipped around, making a strangled sound as she pressed her palms to her face.

A warm, loud chuckle sounded from behind her. “Oh, come on. Our little assassin is afraid of a little nudity? I'm sure you've killed people in worse conditions, sweetie.”

“Usually I wait until I can't see their dick,” she hissed sharply.

He snickered. “Perhaps not as expert an assassin as I thought, if that's all that stops you.”

Kit whipped around, lunging at him with blade in hand, pressing it to the slick skin of his neck. He simply tilted his chin up, glancing down at her.

“Just because I'm inexperienced in some matters doesn't mean I won't push through for the job,” she growled at him.

Sylus quirked a brow at her. The heat and humidity coming off of him pressed against her thin houseclothes, and she quickly became aware of how close certain parts of him were to her.

“Wow,” he commented. “I've never seen someone turn into a tomato in real time before.” In a flash, the blade clattered to the ground, and he pinned her up against the glass barrier that separated the bathroom from the bedroom.

Kit felt her heart rate spike as his damp skin came into full contact with her, his hands sliding up to entwine his fingers with hers.

She could feel her thin shirt growing wet, the water droplets on his skin turning the white fabric translucent in places.

His face was too close to hers, his breath warming her face as he spoke. “It's my bedroom, kitten. You should be prepared for what you're likely to see when you walk in, next time.”

⭐

Notes: Ah, the misunderstandings fic. Also our bonus OC for this post. Depending on when I decide to post it (or the ADHD kicks in and I forgot I put this here, because I schedule these) you may see the WIP as an actual fic posted before this one comes out. Anyway, Kiri, being the actual MC, genuinely doesn't like Sylus because she's best friends with Kit. Go figure. Kiri will always be a Zayne girlie, and more power to her.

-

Sylus catches the fist before it hits him.

Cold, steely blue eyes glare sharply at him, and he's impressed by the sheer extent of the rage on Kiri’s face.

“If you've hurt her,” Kiri snarls.

He doesn't give her the chance to continue. “Our spat will have to wait, honey,” he bites out, sickly sweet. “I have to go resolve a misunderstanding.”

A hard boot slams into his shin, and he grunts in pain. Sylus flicks his fingers and launches her gently out the bedroom doors. They swing open on his command. “Get out. I'm not in the mood to play.”

“She's my fucking friend, asshole!” Kiri snaps back. “What the hell are you doing to her? Why did she look so…so…”

“Heartbroken?” He supplies. His voice is quiet as he walks past, not bothering to help her up. “I'm sure you're smart enough to figure that out.”

Kiri surges to her feet, following after him. “You were the one who insisted we resonate!”

“And it didn't work,” he calls over his shoulder. Two people walk out into the hallway, see Sylus, and immediately duck back into whatever room they came from. He ignores them, continuing. “We'll have to find another way.”

She stiffens. “If hand-holding was your first method, the next one better not be-”

“Don't flatter yourself. There's only one woman I want, and right now she's filled her head with all sorts of ideas. Stay here.” As she opens her mouth to protest, red mist gathers around her, depositing her neatly into the twins outstretched arms.

“Sylus!” Kiri yells. He's already gone.

⭐

Not every fic gets abandoned because I was procrastinating or didn't feel like finishing it. Sometimes, like this one, it's because I recognized that it would be relatively incomprehensive to most people. In any case, assassin AU (Kit's already an assassin, that's not the AU part) where she accidentally gets MC's memories for some reason.

That's why they're in bold vs hers in italics. As I said, incomprehensive.

-

She is standing with her hands wrapped around a blade, covered in blood. Not her memories, but somehow they are.

Red mist slams her against a wall, and she coughs, the air forced from her lungs. She fights wildly against the bindings as the man stalks forward. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knows that he's bare of any clothing, but survival is forefront.

She has to kill him. Stab him.

Right through the heart.

Right through the heart.

She is present, and memories that aren't hers drag at her consciousness, forcing her back under, like sirens at sea pulling a sailor down to his doom.

“This is a surprise,” he purrs. That voice is achingly familiar, but she can't afford to dwell on it. It's her or him. “You did well to get this far, kitten.”

“Seven?” The red eyed demon says, unimpressed. “That's not a name. That's a number. I'll call you Kitty. You hiss and spit like one.”

“You can't just ask for someone's name and decide you don't like it!” She snaps back. “I'm not going by that!”

He smirks. “You'll learn to respond to it if you want my help. A thing doesn't need assistance. A person, on the other hand, can beg for it.”

Kit snarls, swinging a leg out. She manages to clip him across the jaw.

He touches the cut left behind, smearing blood, and it fades away like dust.

Horror sinks in her gut like a rock. Bridget was right. She should have never taken this mission.

The red mist tightens around her throat, and she feels tears prick at the corner of her eyes, her head going floaty as she struggles to breathe.

“A waste of your talents,” he says evenly. “If you want to hurt me, you'll have to try harder than that.”

The man steps closer, and Kit seizes her opportunity. She grabs a blade from her boot and slams it through his bare chest.

It wounds her more than it does him, a feedback loop that rips through her mind with a piercing whining scream.

She is holding a blade, and hands wrap around hers. Are they claws? Fingers? She can't be sure. Despair and terror slam through her, leaving her breathless.

“You must press on.” The voice is pained, struggling.

“No,” Kit gasps. She's crying now, she knows it. Something throbs in her chest, like her heart is slamming against the prison bars of her ribcage, trying to get out.

The man - Sylus - scoffs. “What's wrong, cold feet? The little assassin can't stomach killing a man?” He grabs her hand, wrapped around the blade, and forces it in more. “Try harder.”

She recoils, even as spots begin to dance at the edge of her vision. “Sylus, stop!” Kit cries out. “Please, not like this!”

He flinches. “What did you just-”

It's too late, though. She used the last of her air to yell, and everything goes black.

= later in the same fic =

Sylus, on the other hand, is quiet. He meets her gaze dead-on, searching for something in her expression. For what, she doesn't know.

Kit already prepares herself for what's to come, letting herself go numb. Assassins like her do not survive.

“You're not going to tell me anything.” He states. He seems almost…impressed, despite himself. There's an understanding there, like recognizing like in this awful world they occupy.

Kit drains the cup, setting it on the side table next to the bed. She turns to face him. “The only thing I'll give you is that I'm a professional. And if you're any good, you know what that means.”

He sighs, shaking his head. “This will hurt.” Oddly, it feels like a warning.

She braces herself.

A large hand grasps her chin, forcing her to maintain eye contact with him.

“What are you-” his eye glows, cutting her off.

It is the most unpleasant sensation. Like ants crawling through her mind, skittering across her thoughts and scratching at the insides of her ears.

She shrieks and fights him, but his grip is too strong. Every time her nails rake across his wrist, trying to force him away, the scratches heal instantaneously.

It feels like he's forced his fingers inside her skull and cracked it open to examine the blackened insides.

The smell of blood and fire fills her senses, leaving her nose burning from the inside, and she screams, feeling copper spatter on her tongue.

In the awful, bloody end, it's Hector who brings her back.

The sharp memory of him gripping her hair and hissing, “Endure or die.”

Kit brings her knee up and slams Sylus in the jaw, forcing his mouth shut with an awful click, and slots herself back against the very corner of the bed, pressed up against the wall.

He spits blood onto the floor and gazes at her sidelong.

“Come work for me,” Sylus says bluntly. “Ever is a dead man’s game.”

Kit stares at him.

“What?” She whispers hoarsely. “Are you on drugs? I tried to-” her voice gives out, finally petering out to nothingness. She coughs into her hand. There's a smear of red.

Sylus snaps his fingers, and a handkerchief is placed in it. He hands it to her. “I know. That's why I want you. No one else would be crazy enough to try, let alone skilled enough to almost succeed.”

She looks at him suspiciously, and it's almost as if he can read her mind. He snorts.

“I'm not desperate, sweetie. If I wanted you as my bed warmer, we wouldn't be having this conversation. And it would be because you wanted it, not because I forced you.” Sylus stands, stretching, his back popping with the motion. He sighs pleasantly. “You're good at your job, clearly. So do it for me. I'll pay well. We can discuss your contract when you're healed up. For now, rest.”

If she had a voice, she'd snap at him for being so overconfident.

For now, however, she doesn't have a choice. Kit’s out of options. She can't afford to bite this particular hand.

Not yet.

⭐

As usual, thanks for reading! I know this post was a meaty one, but I had a blast writing these and so I thought they were worth the share.

Enjoy your Tuesday!

[bumpkinspice0]

Parallels Chapter 9:

Efficient, quick, and dirty

Miguel O'Hara x Spider!FemReader

No use of y/n

Rating: Mature

Word Count: 4734

Summary: There's a massive breach to Spider Tower, Miguel needs the help of the entire spiderverse to contain it.

Warnings: ACTION, ACTION, ACTION (I've never written a battle scene before, I'm sorry) cannon typical violence, little fluff, little angst

A/N: I didn't mean to make this whole chapter Miguel's POV but here we are. I tried to condense his history from the comics down and add my own little things I want for him in this story. Also, mentions a lot of various Spider villain's in the chapter. Hope it's not confusing! Please let me know if it is!

Previous. Next

Series Masterlist

AO3

_______________

Chapter 9

Efficient, quick, and dirty

Miguel had made many enemies over his career. Dawn a cape and mask and fight the forces of evil— Nemesis that vow eternal vengeance and all that jazz. That’s the job description. The biggest evils that threatened Miguel’s world, before the multiverse, weren’t just comical supervillains and back alley thugs, however. It was corrupt corporations. Men with billions of dollars and resources to assure they kept that power. 

He didn’t want this job. He never sought out being a hero—Being Spider-man. This was all a freak accident. But he, like the rest of his fellow spiders, was thrust into it. Unprepared and untrained. In doing so he saw a part of his futuristic society he couldn’t ignore. The forgotten and the downturned. The criminal back allies the less fortunate were forced to brave every day. The clique owned Downtown of Nueva York.

Those in charge depicted the city as a Utopia, and in many ways, it was— But a Utopia built on top of a nightmare. That’s where Miguel’s first villains fought him— in the forgotten sublayers of the city. Downtown. 

Once he saw it, he couldn’t forget. The people held under the oppressive reach of those with more power and money. He had to help them. He was the only one with the power to do it. The only one willing to stand up to the corruption. In doing so, he became a symbol.  

It all stemmed from Alchemax and its slimy CEO Tyler Stone, the silent benevolent ruler of his utopia. He had his sticky fingers in everything. He owned the drug market, the police, technology, politicians— everything. He kept the world dependent on what he’d built. Nothing was immune to his reach, not even Miguel.

In his continuing journey, Miguel came to learn Tyler Stone was his father. It was the only reason Miguel had the success he did in his scientific career at Alchemax. An unknown father helping his bastard son every step of the way. In doing so, Tyler had also inadvertently created his new greatest enemy— the Spider-man. 

It made Miguel feel dirty. Unworthy of all he thought he’d earned. All the people he’d saved, the loss he’d experienced, and the pain he’d caused— all overshadowed by a man he’d never call father. His life had spiraled since he became Spider-Man, and this was just another nail in the coffin. 

Stone eventually left Alchemax, pursuing a career in politics. In doing so, he had to give up his company— so he gave it all to Miguel, thinking his illegitimate son he’d shown so much kindness to had the same evil goals he did. Overnight, Miguel had more money and power than any normal person knew what to do with.

Miguel was never proud of how he obtained his power , so to speak. It was simply handed to him, like so many other things in his life.

He didn’t hesitate to use all of it for the better. He had everything he’d been fighting for at his fingertips now— The inside information, the power. He revealed himself, showing the world that Spider-Man and Miguel O’Hara were one and the same. He purged every two-faced cop and exposed every backward politician and self-serving scientist. The city was no longer in Alchemex’s grasp, but now shared in its prosperity. He gave back to the people what corporate greed had taken away for years— and they loved him for it.

For all intents and purposes, Nueva York was Miguel’s city. 

Along his journey, he’d discovered the multiverse. With all of Alchemex’s technology at his disposal, he dove further and further into the mysterious dimensions… until he lost himself completely. He’d wiped an entire dimension from the map because he wanted to play house. And somewhere out there someone else had blown a massive hole in the fabric of reality for their own selfish purposes. This power was dangerous, and it had to be kept in check— and there was only one way he knew how to do that. People he knew could be trusted with the responsibility of great power.

On top of the bones of Alchemex, and with the help of his brother, Miguel built Spider Tower. A giant fuck you to the corrupt old men he’d defeated. 

That pissed a lot of the wrong people off— Loyalists to Tyler Stone and the old police force and the religious zealots that saw him as a false prophet. You can’t hold this kind of power without those that want to challenge it. Or those that just want it back— For things to go back to the way they were when they ruled the world. 

And today, those that sought to dismantle everything Miguel built tried their hand at tearing it down. 

A group of nearly a hundred of them, all armed to the teeth and riding in on hover bikes. They banded together and stormed into Spider Tower in the name of taking it all back. Did they really think they stood a chance against hundreds of superhumans? What did they have— a lot of guns and rage? Yeah, good luck, fellas.

“Lyla, lock down the building. No one gets out. I want them all detained once this is over,” Miguel instructs as he bursts out of his lab. The fight was traveling up the whole main corridor of the tower— He knew he’d regret making the center of the tower so open. Whizzing hovercrafts, lasers, and webs were already all around him. He jumps into the fray. As annoying as such a massive breach in security was, this was at least going to be a little fun. 

Lyla made an announcement to the tower, ordering all spiders to detain the intruders. Like she had to tell them twice. Everyone was up and running in a second— There were just over one hundred Spiders in the citadel today. Plenty to contain a group of civilians.

It was absolute chaos, but still, something superheroes knew how to handle. A midair, hovercraft fight with dozens of guns aimed at you might as well have been a walk through central park. Just another Thursday morning in the life of a spider. 

Miguel dives down the main corridor, clotheslining several intruders off their bikes along the way. He webs them all to the closest structure as he does so. Efficient, quick, and dirty, just how he liked it. 

He makes it to the bottom lobby floor, landing in a roll. He checks the shields on the front doors, they are secure. Looking past the laser defenses he sees several more followers attempting to get into the building.

“Lyla!” He demands, “Call the Public Eye and get the outside of the building under control!”

“Already done!” She blips to his side, showing footage of the cops on their way.

“Good,” Miguel swings back up into the madness, “Have the arachnoid bots collect everyone captured and bring them to the lobby. Let’s round them up!”

And, like magic, the little 8-legged robots begin to descend the walls, detaining anyone caught in a web— Efficient, quick, and dirty. This would go by faster than he thought.

Miguel is about 30 stories up when he hears a familiar metallic shriek… one he had heard in years but could never forget. The groan of metallic wings. 

It hits him from behind, a force so strong it snaps him off his web. But he doesn’t fall— he continues to climb, held tightly in the arms of his assailant. They weave through the crossing walkways and pillars that connect the tower, separating from the main fight. He turns around and sees the face of the first man that tried to save him down in the depths of Downtown Nueva York.

“Vulture?!”

“Hello, old friend, hello,” the Vulture laughs, “Enjoying my welcoming party?”

“Ya know, I’ve never been one for surprise parties,” Miguel manages to claw at his captor’s forearms, the Vulture releases him instantly with a howl of pain. Miguel swings to relative safety on the closest wall. 

He hadn’t seen the Vulture in nearly a decade, one of the first foes he’d ever faced in those very first days as Spider-Man. He’d assumed the man was dead. The mech-suited cannibal lurked in the drudges of his city all this time, waiting to make a move. Today must be the day. 

They’d nearly reached the top of the tower, the fight raging on several stories below. The Vulture hovers in front of him, a sadistic smile on his face.

“Praise the new savior of the city!” The Vulture mockingly claps, “The S-Man, Miguel O’Hara the prince of Alchemax, the god of Nueva York.”

“What do you want, you cannibalistic freak!” Miguel spits. 

“Why, what I wanted since the beginning!” The winged maniac perches himself on a nearby ledge, “To join forces and bring this city to its knees.”

“And you're using Ty Stone’s loyalist to do that? Smart. I thought you hated Alchemax?”

“Mere pawns, I assure you. They were eager to fight you. I was eager to lead.” The Vulture waves dismissively. Pawns? For what? Surely he didn’t organize this whole thing just to get to Miguel, “Still with all the power in the world and you don’t use your greatest weapon to bring order.”

“What are you talking about?” Miguel sneers, now on edge. 

“Don’t think I don’t know what you’ve been doing here, O’Hara.” Maniacal laughter builds in the villain’s throat. Miguel pounces, silencing him instantly. 

“What are you talking about?!” He demands, bearing his fists down on the Vulture's throat. The villain doesn’t even bother to struggle, a sickening smile still painted across his face. Something was wrong— terribly wrong.

“Boss!” Margo’s voice crackles over his comm. “We’ve got a big problem down here. I need extra defenses… Now! They’re— Get the—” She cuts out.

“Oh, no, no, no, no…” Miguel begins to mutter, hearing a rising roar emanating from sector 2… the containment area. Below them, countless villains began to spill out into the citadel, roaring and fuming with rage. They never wanted to take back the tower, they wanted this. 

“Rise, brothers, rise!” The Vulture cheers at the horrific sight, “My home is yours! This city is—”

Miguel rips one of his mechanical wings from the mech suit and pushes what remains of his Vulture over the edge. He spirals down the tower’s center leaving a trail of smoke and deafening laughter left in his wake— insane freak, he had no idea what he’d done. 

For the briefest of moments, sheer panic overtakes Miguel. A thousand thoughts cross his mind in an instant. What could he do? How can he fix this? How can he stop them? It was complete madness and if he didn’t contain them now then the tower would be compromised… which meant the whole city is compromised. He had to act fast, but not just alone.

What did you tell him the other day? He has all the help in the known universe. Yes, he does… and he needs to use it. All of it. 

And in an instant, he’s back to the task at hand.

“Lyla call everyone… Everyone!” Miguel screams at his virtual assistant, “We have a category 5 breach. We have to contain it… NOW!”

No witty response from the AI this time, she nods and vanishes into her system.

Portals open above him in a flash of dazzling light, dozens of them. That was fast. The remaining of his spider-brethren begins to spill out from across time and space, diving towards the action. He takes the lead, guiding the new wave of spiders into battle.

They clash like waves on rocks— flailing limbs and flying weaponry. 

“Lyla!” Miguel calls as he claws his way through the masses. She blips to his shoulder, “Have the Alpha team move to sector 2, and add any extra security you can to the containment wing.”

“Alpha team go!” Lyla comically announces and several spiders break off from the main fight, flocking to sector 2. Every spider was assigned a sub-category for a mass attack exactly like this. Jess told him he was going too far when he proposed it in the beginning. 

Who's laughing now, Jess?

“Beta team contains. Get them any traps and net guns you can! I want every anomaly locked up and brought back to sector 2!” Several more spiders break off to the armory to gather any and every containment device. 

“And the gamma team?” Lyla asks, the final of the sub-categories. The one Miguel was assigned to. 

“Fight. Break them down. Stop them,” He growls, launching himself further into the chaos. Many of the villains were left unarmed and ill-equipped. All weapons and mech suits were confiscated eventually— at least the ones they could find. A lot of them still had explosives and sharp things hidden in hammerspace. Still, there were many that had enough strength to be a threat to anyone, even without weapons. 

Miguel lands on the back of a particularly massive Rhino. There was no mech suit on this one, he was 10 feet of pure flesh and blood. The giant man was charging a path down a corridor, toppling away people like bowling pins. Miguel’s mask fades and he bares his fangs. He sinks his teeth into the mutant's neck, injecting enough venom to bring down 2 full-grown elephants. The monster goes down in a sliding halt in an instant. Several robots descend on the massive Rhino, webbing him up in a containment field.

One down, a billion to go.

Miguel turns to jump off the ledge when it hits him— That all too familiar buzzing in his head. Even amongst the chaos it still blares like a siren, clear as day. Spiders from all over the multiverse were still pouring in, so why not you? He looks up into the bustling tower’s expanse and spots you instantly. 

You came. Of course you came. 

You’re with Jess, perched on the back of her motorcycle as she barrels down the citadel. He knew you were both part of the Gamma team— the fighting team. He was simultaneously overjoyed to see you and dreaded the fact that you were here. The fact that you knew how to fight meant nothing to his spider senses. For all his biology knew, you were his mate and you were in danger. Just another thing to worry about in the midst of this shitstorm— why not.

He sees you pounce onto the back of a soaring Vulture. He can’t help but follow. You web up the left wing, redirecting his flight pattern directly into the wall. You disarm him and web him up there for future disposal before moving on to your next fight. He forgot how clever you could be when fighting sometimes. Where he relied on brute strength you relied on speed and cunning. 

He swings to your side. 

“Oh, there you are!” You say, casually dodging a mirage of pumpkin bombs. “Thought you might be here!”

“Here I am,” He says back, bobbing between the bombs as well. You both find the Goblin that threw them, swinging his direction without hesitation, “I took your advice!” 

“I see that! Quite the party here!” You shout, banking to the left of your new Goblin assailant. Miguel swings at him head-on, knocking him off his glider. You web the Goblin to the nearest surface and he slashes the glider to pieces. Another one down, and still a billion to go. “Though I would have liked to see you take this on yourself!” you say, cheekily as you swing about a diagonal walkway.

“Don’t underestimate me!” He shouts back. 

“What the hell happened anyway?”

Miguel scoffs, “Sure, let me explain it to you in detail!”

You share a laugh as you both simultaneously dodge a pillar of rising sand from a rogue Sandman.

“Please do! I’m not doing anything important. I’m all ears!” Your cheerful demeanor was admittedly helping his mood about all of this. Typical spider, still throwing jokes in the face of possible annihilation. 

He’d never actually done much banter with a friend before. With villains, sure— taunting them often led to results. Lyla always tried to have fun with him but he tended to tune her out when he was on the job. Part of being Spider-Man was having fun, that’s what the others said anyway. Was that what he was having with you in the midst of this horror— Fun? 

Yeah, maybe just a little. 

He feels the spider-sense ring— something’s coming up behind him. He ducks in response and a spear flies over the top of him, now heading directly towards you. You sense it just as he had, moving from its path just in time. You manage to grab it, midair and return it back to its holder— a Kraven parched on the adjacent wall. The spear rips through his fur cape, effectively pinning him to the wall. Okay— you were really good.

You both share a look, despite your faces being completely masked the message is clear. We’re stronger if we stick together. A spider-sense was invaluable in a chaotic fight like this. He could use a partner… just this once.

You both dodge and weave and capture in beautiful synchronicity, never once faltering. The two of you didn’t have the luxury of making mistakes right now. This required precision and vigor, there was no resting until the job was done. 

The Beta team was finally moving through the tower now, re-containing and deporting everyone they could. Margo informs him the intruders only managed to free half the villains in containment and the remaining half was being dutifully protected by the Alpha team.

The crowd was thinning. Not by much but it was a start. He’d commanded his army well and it was showing results. They all continue the grueling work for hours. Stopping, catching, and containing—repeat for every one of them. 

Efficient, quick, and dirty.

You never slowed down, keeping up with him like it was child's play. As much as he hated to admit it, it eased him to have you near. To have you close where he could see you— and protect you if necessary. So far, it hasn't come to that. 

He hadn’t seen you much after you’d rescued him a few weeks ago. The air between you both changed since then. You forced him to change. You were the only one that could seemingly push him, that wasn’t afraid to stand up to him. You’d seen him— all of him. You looked the roaring beast in its fanged mouth and didn’t flinch. 

He didn’t share much of himself with anyone and for a good reason. You were forced into his fucked up life and still found a way to accept him with glee. You didn’t seem pained or scared to be around him, like so many others did. 

You treated him like a person, that’s all it took for his unquestioned loyalty to be yours. He knows how pathetic it sounds. 

He wouldn’t hesitate to throw himself in harm's way for you now. The woman that knew all of him and still treated him like a man. He’d tear through this whole goddamn tower to make sure you were okay. He at least owed you that. 

Watching you weave and pounce between threats was mesmerizing. You were fast, he was strong. You both used it to your advantage. 

“Remind me to call you both for backup next time!” Miguel hears Jess shout as you both whiz by. You both just took down a Doc Ock that had been tailing her for a good 5 minutes.  He hopes you’re not being too obvious with all of it, but honestly who had the time to sit and gawk at you two in the heat of battle?

“We’re at 75 percent containment and minimal casualties,” Lyla announced on hour 3 of the battle. You decide to break off and answer a few distress calls from your friends. He wants to ask you to stay by his side but he holds his tongue. You’d be better used elsewhere now that the crowd was thinning even more.

The fight had dwindled away from the main hall and raged in various wings of the building. The ratio was practically 20 spiders to 1 villain now. It didn’t matter what tech or powers they had, no one villain could beat those odds. 

By the time the containment percentage dwindled to around 10 percent remaining, those still in action simply surrendered. Villains could be complete morons most of the time, but they knew when they’d been beaten.

“We have full containment,” Lyla announces over the intercom system. When the last of them are rounded up a victorious roar echoed through the entire building. It was over. He did it— you all did it. 

It all comes rushing to him at once— the exhaustion. He’d been fighting at full force for hours. He can’t recall the last time he’d done that… or if he’d ever done it at all. He wants to fall down and sleep for a thousand years right there.  

Miguel streams down to the lobby, filled to the brim with caged intruders and anomalies. The arachnoid bots dutifully sort them out, bringing the villains back to the containment area and the trespassers outside to their awaiting police cruisers. He makes a mental note to thank Gabe again for the level of automation he’d added to the building’s systems. He has to resist the urge to oversee and micro-manage every bit of it.

Miguel is humbly reminded of just how selfless his spiders were. He called for help and it was answered tenfold. They all came to the tower's aid without hesitation. He made the right choice gathering this team together. A team of people who simply just wanted to help, and in doing so that made them the most powerful force in the universe. A force for good. 

Sure the Tower was trashed and he’d have to beg Gabe to rework the security systems and do about a billion other tedious things to completely clean up this mess— but you all did it. The first major test as a team and Spiderkind passed with flying colors. Maybe he wasn’t as shitty at this leader thing as he thought.

He feels his spider-sense rise and a smile can’t help but tug at the corners of his mouth.

“Incoming!” Your voice rings out behind him. You swing down to the lobby, carrying a rogue intruder by the ankle. You swing directly for him, dropping your prisoner in a cluster of robots along the way. The wind is knocked out of him when you come barrelling into his arms, hanging yourself around his shoulders. He’s surprised when you kiss him openly. He wants to push you away, afraid someone will see but you’re both currently surrounded by robots and prisoners right now— so what’s the harm in a little victory treat? You’d both earned it.

This kiss felt different. It wasn’t as desperate and hungry as the hundreds of others you’d shared at this point. Something more than just the heat of the moment. It was a lustful thank you. A grateful embrace. Something sweet after hours of bitter struggle.

“Way to go, General O’Hara,” you congratulate him when you both finally come up for air.

“Same to you, little spider,” He breathes against your lips. You both linger there, him holding you in his arms and you gently cradling his face like a treasure— like no one ever had before. He could stay suspended in this moment forever. The incoming sound of more spiders thrusts him back to the situation at hand. He drops you back on your feet and you dust off your suit in an attempt to look more presentable. Funny how you were both grown adults but acted like teenagers playing hooky. It was a little fun in its own fucked up way. 

Miguel reminds himself to enjoy it more while he has you. 

Several spiders make a B-line straight for him, undoubtedly with reports from the fight or the various damage around the tower. And so the headache begins. You give him a nod and start to make your way back to the sidelines. He doesn’t want you to leave. You could stay at his side through all of this, just be there with him— if you wanted.

Miguel grabs your elbow before you’re out of reach, “Come up to the lab when this is all over.” He asks in a hushed tone. The request beneath his words was heard loud and clear. 

Find me after all this and I’ll fuck you so good.

You smile faintly and nod.

I’ll be there.

Good, now he had something to look forward to after all the bureaucracy. You fade into the background as the various spiders come to his side bearing news of their plight. In all honesty, he didn’t want to listen to any of them and was struggling to not tune all of the various reports out. His attention kept lingering back on you on the sidelines, conversing with your own group of spider colleagues. Jess and Gwen and that damn anarchist British kid from Earth-138.

You had a life outside of him, of course you did. He didn’t have much of a life of his own, being the reclusive scientist he was. So much responsibility rested on his shoulders. So many people that needed him, like they did right now. 

Even so, in the midst of the chaotic aftermath, he just wanted to be alone with you. You came to him. After it was all over you found him in the smoking quagmire of it all. You came and kissed him with meaning. With passion that wasn’t the result of some biological response. Just you and him— two simple people with an increasingly confusing relationship. 

Still, he finds it within himself to tend to his duties around the tower as leader. You come and go in his field of vision, helping clean up the mess wherever needed. No anomalies escaped and his universe's Vulture had been brought into the Public Eye’s headquarters for questioning— good. He needed to know just how far that psychopath’s control reached. He may have a new problem on his hands if the remaining cliques of Downtown were planning a hostile takeover. He prays it won’t come to that, after all he’s been trying to do for this city. 

He checks in with Margo in the containment center, everyone was accounted for and deportation to their home dimensions had resumed— a little faster than normal. Having villains still in the facility that had seen the rest of the Tower made him a little uneasy. A few spiders from the Alpha group volunteer to work in guard shifts as extra security until every villain that was involved was shipped out. 

People were starting to dissipate from the tower, seeing that they’d done all the help they could at the moment. After hours of swinging around, the only thing left was clean up and the bots could handle that. Miguel decides it’s time to head back to his home as well. 

Lyla lets him know the rest as he slowly makes his way to his lab. Any possible compromises to her system were neutralized. The bots should have the scattered battlefield of weapons and rubble cleaned up within 3 days, an approved crew was coming in first thing in the morning to assess any structural damage, and Bob’s your uncle. 

Massive crisis averted. 

And now he could have you alone back in his room, a reward for both of your hard work today. 

He’s standing at the entranceway to the lab when he feels you behind him. You gracefully land on the opposite end of the walkway leading to his room. The same place you opened up to him just a few short weeks ago. 

There’s still bustling from the bots and various spiders just below. The path was littered with remnants from the fight. The bots hadn’t gotten up this far yet. Pieces of mech suits, discarded guns and webbing. He’d worry about it later. It was being handled. Now, he just wanted you.

He feels his sense jump, but not in anticipation. The way it would in battle. His senses instantly hone in on a half-demolished glider left on the walkway— smoking and sparking over the side. It was still somewhat functional. Something was wrong and you don’t seem to sense it. The device was shorting out.

He jumps when you’re approaching point-blank range of the thing… but he’s too late. 

The glider and all the bombs stocked inside of it blow— and you go flying over the edge, limp. 

__________

Taglist:

@ineedgarlicbread @pinkiemme @thesilenthill @bontensbabygirl @fallenangelsongwolf

[windowsillwren]

[ID: a foggy mirror, with the words 'It's so lovely lovely to meet you again' written in the condensation. behind the mirror, a nude person with short hair and a flat chest has their eyes closed and their hands clasped together as if in prayer. in front of the mirror, two disembodied hands stroke the image of the figure. a ribbon is draped over the pair of hands that switches between the stripes of the asexual, pansexual, nonbinary, aromantic and transgender pride flags.]

And so lovely, lovely to be born again // Stop tracing over men // And their paper skin // But they had my heart and eyes // Looking down I'm free // It was worth the wait // Stay proud of me // It's your life // Take off the drag

Lyrics from NoSo's Parasites, my personal trans anthem

[ID: the colorless version, a colored closeup of the words on the mirror and a closeup of the lineart of the figure]

this post is also the 2024 followup to this illustration of mine from 2021

[neon-dynasty]

The Chrono Trigger

When I was a child, I read about Chrono Trigger in Nintendo Power magazine. I tell this story every so often, but my godparents got America Online in 1995. I spent the night at their place and they let me browse the internet. It was my first time on the web, and the first thing I looked for was Nintendo's website so I could find out more about this game with amazing artwork and incredible graphics.

I remember my godmother saying "Chrono Trigger? That sounds like a violent game!" I knew back then that a trigger meant more than the part of a gun that lets someone shoot, so I knew it wasn't violent. But I didn't know what "Chrono" meant, much less what the title could possibly have been referring to. I think I chalked it up to it just being a weird Japanese name, something that wasn't terribly uncommon at the time.

Playing the game didn't shed any light on things either. At least not until after the second act's climax. Crestfallen at their friend's untimely demise, the group talks with the Old Man at the End of Time.

He expresses his condolences and sings a dirge for Crono. There's nothing he can do but offer his thoughts. And then, after a spiel that Old Ben Kenobi would be proud of, he offers you THE Chrono Trigger.

Knowing what comes later, I think he was keeping it to try and rescue Schala. He hems and haws, but ultimately gives the egg to the party, knowing that Crono was the best hope for defeating Lavos.

So much has changed in my life since I've started this project. I moved halfway around the world. I've made new friends. I'm living my life in a way that I haven't in a long time. I took the picture for The Chrono Trigger back in July. There wasn't any fan art of the egg itself I could use, so I made my own. It's bronze and metallic brown and now belongs to my godfather, the same person who introduced me to the internet so many years ago. I used some graphics from the game to make it more like the egg was almost, but not yet complete. There's a tiny gate that's covering a dot that looks like a button on the real object. I'm proud of this image in so many ways.

As for Gaspar, he's the Guru of Time! He's also the most consistent NPC presence in the game, besides maybe Lavos. He also gives the party what they need to bring Crono back. I like how the perspective in the piece is wonky, like everything has been condensed onto the same two-dimensional plane at the End of Time.

[liesmyth]

💀hello i'm telling you this because I think you'd appreciate it. I was a member of a long-running crossfandom roleplay game for several years. it had some problems but I met a lot of cool people. I have to condense this for space but essentially the mods started dropping the ball on some serious shit like not applying CWs on posts and this culminated in them banning me for speaking out about it. hilariously the game then lost 50% of its population because they agreed with me. I started a spinoff of my own and the original game has since shut down due to lack of interest. I killed a ten-year-old game.

also the character I play is Ianthe Tridentarius. so while I didn't do it on purpose I think it's extremely fucking funny that I committed to the bit hard enough to commit a coup.

very proud of you for destroying a whole community. clearly they had it coming 💀