#also nothing to do with the rest of this post really

[kangals]

oh i forgot to write up an update on the embark situation!

if you missed my posts last month (or didnt read them because they were certified walls of text): i got kep an embark test and in addition to the expected stuff, it also flagged him as having some genes related to copper storage disease - specifically that he had 1 gene for copper accumulation, and 2 genes that make accumulation less severe, meaning he inherited copper-related genes from both parents. when i did some reading into it,i couldnt find ANY studies or resources regarding copper disease in collies - it was almost entirely focused on labradors and dobermans, with an occasional hand-wavy comment of "sometimes seen in other breeds idk." because this test only got added by embark last month, i ended up doing a new test on stellina to check and see if she also had it.

basically my thinking was: A: does the presence of these genes mean that kep is actually at risk for copper storage disease, OR B: was this an incidental finding and the genes really only affect labs and dobes.

with stellina's test results, i think i'm pretty confident in guessing that the answer is B!

stellina's results also flagged as having one gene for copper accumulation - which, since i know that kep and stellina are pretty distantly related, indicates to me that it's much more likely that the genes are widespread in the greater collie gene pool as opposed to both of them just so happening to pick up a rare and harmful gene.

and most notably, now that's been a month and embark presumably has more data, they also had this new information listed:

those are HIGH numbers - and is an even bigger indicator that the gene, for whatever reason, simply doesn't affect these breeds that much. great pyrs, for example, are primarily working, livestock guardian dogs - there's no way that 80% of these dogs are suffering from copper storage disease. and while frenchies and cavs are certainly poster children for "breed with lots of serious health problems", copper storage isn't one of them. given the extreme popularity of frenchies, if 90% of them had this disease, someone would have noticed.

(interestingly, last week when i looked at this instead of pyrs it had pembroke corgis listed in that spot at around the same numbers - i wonder how many other breeds have large percentages of this gene but embark is just only listing the top few. this is such a new test that i expect a lot of information to change)

so i'm guessing that copper storage genes are actually pretty common in dogs - especially breeds with known low genetic diversity, such as collies, cavs, and dobermans. but given that there's nothing noted in studies about breeds besides labradors, dobermans, and a few terrier breeds, it just might not affect the rest of them. similarly, i know stellina carries the gene for "saddle tan" coloration, as do a certain %age of collies - but collies don't come in saddle tan. it's suspected there's another gene needed to "'activate" the pattern that's missing from collies. i'd guess the same thing is happening here - lots of dogs have the gene, but the "activation" genetics are only in a few specific breeds.

i'm definitely still going to be keeping a close eye on it, the test only released in May so it's still very early and i imagine they're getting a ton of data from this - would love some research into if my thinking is correct. if you have a dog that's gotten an embark health test from may and onwards this year, i'd be interested to know what breed(s) your dog is and if they also carry these genes. but i think, overall, this indicates that it's more incidental than a real concern.

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

Congrats on the followers! May I request “Can’t Catch Me Now” by Olivia Rodrigo for Crosshair?

Hello Anon,

Thank you for such a wonderful song request: Can't Catch Me Now by Olivia Rodrigo.

I hope you enjoyed my interpretation of it.

I do apologize for the delay as mentioned in my previous post, things got hectic this week.

Love oo

Can't Catch Me Now

Warnings: Pain, grief, mentions of torture, follows Season 3 finale, mentions of nightmares, trauma, tender feelings. I think that's all of it, if I miss anything please let me know.

Italics - flashback

Main Master List   | Star Wars Jukebox Roulette |   AO3 Link

Crosshair limped his way off the transport, fighting the pain from the bruises he received, on the bright side his hand was no longer shaking. 

However, it seemed the rain followed them from Tantiss to Pabu. It wasn’t even a light drizzle, this was a tropical storm at it’s finest, just sheets upon sheets of rain pounding the ground, preventing his vision from taking in his surroundings. At least he wasn’t as hampered as his brothers though with their vision.  

As soon as you saw the shuttle’s lights, you didn’t hesitate and ran to the ramp. You couldn’t care less how much it rained, how windy it got, you needed to see him. You needed to hold him in your arms, to quiet the voices that told you, you’d lost him forever. 

When he escaped from Tantiss with Omega, he barely even looked at you. It was impossible to even hear his voice, as soon as he knew you were around, he clammed up and refused to talk to you or around you. However, slowly with the help of Omega and his brothers, he started to heal, started to open up to you again. In fact, things were starting to progress when Ventress visited.

You sat watching Omega train with Ventress, amazed by the abilities Ventress possessed and also by the complete 180 switch in her personality. She was nothing like you learned from the holo-briefings you used to be a part of. 

You couldn’t help letting out a giggle, as drool from Batcher’s lip slipped down onto your trousers. She had claimed your lap as her own, half her body covered one thigh, while her head rested on your other thigh. Not that you minded really, thankfully you had a boulder to lean against, so her weight wasn’t as unbearable as it could have been as you gently stroked her head. 

“You can go in, I’m sure that position isn’t as comfortable as you make it seem.”

You turned your head to see the snarly look of your favourite sniper.

“It’s okay.” You couldn’t help but smile at his sour face, “I’m someone’s pillow currently.” You pointed at Batcher. Even though it was almost imperceptible you could see the side of his mouth crook up in a smile. “Sit.” You patted the spot beside you.

“I think you’re confusing me with the mutt on your lap.”

“Not at all.” You smiled at him, “Because if I asked you to sit, you would’ve grunted a no and then walked off. This way, you don’t have a chance to reject my offer.” He didn’t say much, he simply crooked his eyebrow as he looked at you, you let out a sigh of annoyance “Alright fine, would you kindly please keep me company and sit with me?”

“Wow, look at that manners.” He teased as he sat down beside you, flicking his toothpick at your arm, a self-satisfied grin slowly appearing on his face. 

You simply rolled your eyes as you wiped off the spot he hit on your arm, shaking your head as you hid your smirk, turning your attention back to Omega. 

Silence filled the space between the two of you as you both kept an eye on Omega and Ventress, it wasn’t uncomfortable or awkward, it was actually rather nice. Peaceful. And if you two had been talking this entire time, you probably would’ve kept this silence going. 

However, you’d been dying to hear his voice ever since he appeared beside you, and waiting half an hour was long enough to let him feel comfortable beside you, before you forced him to actually talk.

“How are you feeling today?” You softly asked. 

Crosshair simply shrugged, he didn’t react to your question outside of stretching out his legs in front of him, “Better … well somewhat …” he let out a sigh of defeat, “truthfully, not really.”

“Is it the nightmares, again?” 

He turned to look at you, his eyes narrowing full of annoyance and accusations, he didn’t respond, letting his eyes do the talking.

“I didn’t ask and no one told me.” You held up your hand in surrender, hoping he’d believe you, “But …” you gently rubbed the back of your neck as your eyes shifted from his eyes to the ground, “your guys’ house is right next to mine and your bedroom window faces mine.” 

You shifted your focus, paying attention to Batcher, stroking her behind her ears. 

Cross focused his attention back on Omega, his annoyance and anger diminishing as you explained. It took him a minute before he finally answered.

“They come and go.”

You nodded, as you listened, “Is there anything that triggers them?”

“Not from what I can figure. Tech…” his voice faltered for a second, “if Tech was here, he’d probably would’ve figured it out soon enough. Probably would’ve figured out how to fix my hand too.”

You fought the tears that always sprung up when you thought of Tech, you cleared your throat as you focused back on the subject at hand, “Do you wanna talk about it? About the nightmares? Sometimes talking helps.”

“No.” 

It was the only answer he was going to give and you weren’t going to push it either, you simply nodded as you focused back on Omega.

“You know I’m always here for you. I’ve always been here for you. So if you need someone to catch you, I’ll be there”

“You can’t catch me.”

“I’m sorry?” You turned to look at him.

“I’m falling. Falling into despair, and … I know you want to be there for me. I know. However, the truth is you can’t catch me. You can’t stop me from falling. I … I don’t want you to be tainted by my own demons.”

For the first time since he came back, you both finally looked into each other’s eyes, you offered a soft smile, “I’m not afraid of being tainted, and maybe I won’t be able to stop you from falling, but that doesn’t mean I won’t keep trying.”

So here you were, waiting for him to come off this shuttle as you gripped your arms doing your best to stay warm despite the cold rain. 

As soon as your eyes landed on Crosshair trudging along, holding his arm against his stomach protecting it from the elements. He looked exhausted, in pain and just done. The moment his foot hit the floor of Pabu, you didn’t wait, you rushed over, jumping to wrap your arms around him, pulling him closer and holding him as tight as you possibly could. 

Despite the fact, you were prepared he’d toss you aside not wanting close contact, you were surprised when he didn’t push you away. Instead of feeling him pull away, he gently and tenderly wrapped his arm around you, pulling you impossibly close as he buried his face in the crook of your neck. 

The two of you stood there holding each other despite the rain, despite the pain he was in. You both ignored the looks and shocked expressions on everyone else’s faces as they stood watching the two of you.

Crosshair let out a shaky breath as he found comfort in your arms and peace. In truth, he found his home. He finally felt like someone had caught him. That you caught him, and he wasn’t going to walk away. Not now. Not ever. 

“Please don’t let me fall.” He mumbled into your neck.

“Never. I’ll never let you fall. I’ll catch you every time.”

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Tag list:

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@darkangel4121 @discofern @kavecika @monako-jinn-stories @ladykatakuri

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@griffedeloup @leotatombs @leotawrites

[cauqhtz]

Luffy & Zoro thoughts

so I saw a post about how if Luffy asked zoro to kill one of the straw hats Zoro would do it. (Oda confirmed)

The majority of the comments were all like oh yeah Zoro would, but he also knows Luffy would never ask him to do such a thing, at least without a good reason or if he wasn't in his right mind.

This was also my first thought as well, but then I thought about it more. I mean I really thought about it…and that's not even remotely true.

Now, I don't doubt Zoro killing one of the straw hats if Luffy told him to, but it's the "he knows Luffy would never ask him to" That's the part I dont agree with.

That's just not true at all, because Zoro is one of the few besides Robin that doesn't try to make sense of Luffy or how he thinks.

But let's say for the sake of this argument that. That is true and Zoro knows that Luffy would never ask him to do it...That doesn't negate the fact that Zoro would still kill a straw hat if Luffy said so. So I guess that part of situation really doesn't matter. Zoro will do what Luffy asks of him either way.

Why?

Because Luffy is not the type of person/captain to give DIRECT orders in the first place. Have you realized that?

I can count on one hand how many times Luffy has given a direct order in general, but we're going to focus on Zoro for right now.

Albasta. When Luffy told Zoro to save Smoker. "Zoro. Quick! You have to save Smokey!"

Ennies Lobby. When Luffy told Zoro to cut the sea train carts in half. "Okay, Zoro. Cut them."

In Alabasta when Luffy told Zoro to save Smoker. Zoro protested not understanding why Luffy would want to save the enemy. Not caring about the fact that Smoker was a devil fruit user and would've died without his help. He expressed how much he didn't want to do it, but he did it anyways.

Ignoring Sanji when he picked at him for saving Smoker, but when Smoker came to and questioned Zoro on why he saved his life?

Zoro's reasoning was. "I was just following my captain's orders. It was just another one of his crazy whims. Pay it no mind."

I think this was when Zoro really started to not question Luffy. Deciding it'd be a lot easier on every one if he just went with it rather than trying to make sense of his captain.

Not just that but Zoro is his own man. He doesnt follow Luffy blindly. It's just that the majority of the time. Luffy and Zoro are on the same wavelength mentally. They're cut from the same cloth. Though, Luffy is more of a wild card. He does what he wants, when he wants, wherever the hell he wants to. Where as Zoro is a lot more put together and thought out. Luffy is pure instinct and feeling driven.

I dont think you guys realize that Zoro would've killed the lot of them excluding Luffy a long time ago. Especially Nami, Robin, and Franky. When he found out they betrayed Luffy.

Zoro has made it very clear that there is NOTHING that he is not prepared to do. BUT he always leaves decisions like these up to Luffy and Luffy never gives Zoro an answer. He always says "I want to find out for myself. I want them to tell me this to my face."

As for Luffy?

I do believe there is a possibility of Luffy asking Zoro to kill a straw hat.

Because it's like I said earlier. Luffy is completely instinct driven. He does what he wants, when he wants, wherever he wants.

Luffy woke up one day and decided to become the king of the pirates and come to find out thats only a requirement of his real dream.

So what the hell is stopping him from waking up one day and deciding you know what? I want you all dead.

The only ones I feel like Luffy wouldn't kill is obviously Zoro, Robin, and Chopper. And maybe Jinbei. And MAYBE brook since he's been wanting a musician since day one.

But the rest of them? DEAD.

What's stopping him from changing his definition of freedom and wiping the world of one-piece CLEAN?

Especially since Zoro would still follow him?

Get real. Everyone would be cooked. Those two have always been a dangerous duo even before their awakening and haki. They'd be unstoppable now of all times.

Well... That's my thoughts on the matter anyways..

[youkaiyume]

Alright, I have finally gotten through the rest of Bridgerton Season 3 Part 2 (twice) now, and I do have some thoughts. I am going to be splitting what I liked and what I didn't into different posts.

This one will be all the things I did not love.

Spoilers below.

--

Overally I'm not quite sure how to feel? While I'm happy with where they ended, I thought how they got there was extremely rough. And it's not as if I don't like a bit of drama, but the amount of stress and heartbreak in between was too much. Perhaps I should have kept away from the Bridgerton interviews because they really set my expectations high, for certain things.

From the delirious high of Episode 5 that really gave us everything, to the lows of the Whistledown reveal hanging over us in the rest of the season, I truly was befuddled on my couch at 2 AM. I expected Colin to be angry with Pen about Whistledown, but I truly did not expect for them to go into their wedding and then well into their marriage not having hashed out these wounds or accepting one another fully.

When Colin accused her of entrapment it was truly crushing, especially when he had so passionately denied to her mother before of this very accusation. Only now to throw it in her face and confirm all of her deepest fears and regrets. Even if he could not have reconciled her alter ego with Penelope I had hoped that he would assure her that he still loved her so that she could go into the chapel the next morning without feeling that he was only there out of obligation. When he said these things I was surprised that Penelope did not offer to withdraw from the engagement. Not only if he was so clearly unhappy but also I couldn't believe that she would marry him knowing this is what he thought of her. This would have been great for the official reveal when she is up on stage making her speech to the ton, where he was standing by her side to speak. Not literally, I understand the importance of wanting her to step into her power by herself in the spotlight, but it would have been nice to see her doing it knowing she had the full support and love of her husband.

Instead, she went up there believing that he would want to annul the marriage, and that she had done this in a way to secure her and her family's future without him--because she--and WE have been told this entire season that a woman has to look out for herself. How wonderful it would have been to be proven wrong--that she is not alone.

Don't get me wrong, I did feel in the way he looked at her during the wedding and when they danced that there is a clear longing and love for her despite their rift. And when he said their vows I genuinely felt that he meant them and wanted nothing more to be hers. It's clear despite everything, deep down he still wants that happy ending with her, but the show sure spent the entire time having them not talk about their feelings.

Again, I had fully thought that by the time they were married he accepted her, and the the entire plot revolving Cressida's blackmail would be him fully trying to protect and support his wife because he loved all of her and feared for her safety. Instead, it came off like he was protecting Penelope because she was a Bridgerton now and he didn't want this to sully their good name. Not even the line about him being mad about someone blackmailing his wife was enough for me. I will temper this once again with it was clear that of course he still loved and was beginning to understand her, especially when he made his plea to Cressida to spare Penelope.

Don't get me wrong, I love angst but I did not think it would drag on until the last moments of the series. And it's the kind of marriage that I also did not like for Season 1, where Daphne and Simon spent most of their time married apart. My stomach really dropped when I realized 'oh, we're doing this again...' And yes we did get a brief "honeymoon" period tho this is misleading when the actors promoted it because it took place during their engagement before the reveal. But even then we could not fully enjoy the moments when they were blissfully happy because Penelope's secret hung so heavily over them.

It is certainly complex all of the feels he's having--loving her, angry and betrayed by her, feeling deep sympathy for her while also envying her success. Penelope feeling like he can't love all these parts of her even if they're not perfect, her constant regret, not wanting to give up her voice--it's all too much for them and it was clear they did not have time to unpack all of this in the time they had. I feel like we needed at least one extra episode or two.

And to add insult to injury, we took up so much time panning back to Benedict's sexcapades. And look, don't get me wrong I was giggling like a schoolgirl when we got confirmed bi-benedict. But also I felt like the times we flashed back to him in the bedroom was too much. In fact I was slightly confused because the way it was shot/the same location made me think they were just returning to the same sex scene over and over again. As if the entire plot was happening over days and Ben hasn't been able to take off his shirt yet! Trapped forever in an endless night instead of it reading like 'this is several trysts that he's had.' I don't need these many scenes to understand that he's enjoying his newfound sexuality. Especially by comparison we got so little of Polin in their own season--both as a couple and promised spicy moments--they spent so much of it apart!

And then!! There is Eloise!! There's a lot I can say about Eloise, but the main one for right now is just how much her self absorption continues to shine through. The way she just treats her supposed friends like convenient audiences to talk to, and immediately ignores them when they have problems of their own. They way she cannot be bothered to truly learn or care about a single thing about them unless it affects her in some way.

Truly my flabber was gasted when she told Pen it was a good thing Cressida should take the fall, only to turn around and deny Cressida any help in her fake Whistledown paper when it would have solved all of their problems. Like, you know Cress is lying! Just help her out, you know she's desperate to save herself and it would also save Pen! Even if Cress took the mantle briefly and then retired by saying she quit because she is now unmasked that would have been ideal.

Instead she walked away and is now shocked when Cressida decides to talk shit about everyone including the Bridgerton family. Prompting Pen to come out of hiding (at your behest!!!) to save your ass AGAIN with Whistledown--which by the way Eloise was so very pleased and grateful for the next morning. And then truly said thanks for that sis, sorry that blew up your engagement tho lol sorry I won't try to help out with that or support you at all. Like. WTF. I could write essays on how Eloise continues to disappoint me despite my best hopes for her but you can tell I get a little ranty about her.

A little minor thing I am not sure how to feel now also is how Polin's son is now the Featherington heir. Like I know that's overall a good thing and I am pleased she won the baby race--it means Pen and Colin can now move into Featherington house and just live across the square and she's saved her mother and family. but also Pen knows that is a fortune she is claiming to be from her Whistledown earnings is actually stolen money--A crime that her now husband tried in Season 2 to return to the rightful members of the ton. I can't imagine he'd feel completely okay with that... unless this is another secret she is keeping from him? I dunno, it's very messy. But also! I would have liked for Colin and Pen to have spent some time actually traveling child free together on an actual honeymoon. (Did they even get to honeymoon????) But Colin immediately knocked her up their first time together he's too powerful I guess.

Anyway, I have good things to say too, I'll probably post about them later.

[neteyamssyulang]

Make up sex/Hair pulling

Day 14 & 15 combined

Pairing: Neteyam aged up x Fem tawtute reader

Warnings: Dom Neteyam, Sub reader, slightly upset reader, P in V, Belly buldge, Creampie, Small praise, I think that’s all?🥲

Word count: 815

Translation(s): Syulang -> Flower, Nalor -> Beautiful, a'txe oe -> forgive me, Tsakrr syor yawntutsyìp -> then relax darling, Te knalu -> oh fuck, Yawne -> beloved.

A/N: I’m sorry I haven’t been posting a lot of the event, I haven’t had much motivation really :/ this might be shit so I’m also sorry for that 😭

Tagging @ikeyniofthetayrangi @itchaboi-itchyboy @aria-tempest @kia-wolfie @loaksulluyswife @anemonelovesfiction @sinful-tawtute @bambithewriter @tallulah477

Things had been heated for awhile between you and your mate, one could say you were overreacting while others could say you were in the right.

Well in this cause it was most likely overreacting but did you care? No, not one bit. You know what you saw.

You were weaving a new armband for Lo’ak since he wanted one to give to Tsireya when Neteyam walked into the shack, eyes roaming till they locked onto you.

With only a few strides while hunched over, he made his way over to you, moving to sit on your bed criss crossed.

Giving only a small glance his way, you went back to work on the armband making him sigh.

“Syulang..” he started, reaching forwards to place his hand on your thigh “I’m sorry, whatever I did I apologize.”

When you said nothing, instead choosing to keep your focus on the task in hand Neteyam couldn’t take anymore.

He grabbed the half finished armband, throwing it somewhere off to the side before pushing you onto your back while climbing ontop of you.

“Neteyam what the fu-” you tried to speak but was cut off by him placing his hand ontop your mouth, “No, I do not want to hear anything come out of that mouth unless it’s an apology for being a brat to me when I did not even do anything!” he hissed.

Well if he didn’t let some no good bitch touch him you wouldn’t be acting like this. Nevertheless, you decided to apologize about it.

Tapping his hand, you waited till he removed it before speaking “You’re right..I’m sorry Teyam. But if you didn’t let that girl touch you I wouldn’t be like this, you know how I feel about her!”

Neteyam sighed “Ma’nalor y/n, if you had stayed longer you would have seen that I kept removing her hands from me. I would never do that to you.”

Eyes softening you lifted a hand, placing it on his cheek “I’m sorry Ma’teyam.. I never should have acted that way towards you, a'txe oe”

You see a mischievous glint flash across his eyes at your words, “Tsakrr syor yawntutsyìp” he purred.

Leaning back on his heels, he used one of his sharp claws to slice through your clothing careful to not cut you in the process.

Once all your tattered clothing was off you, he took a second to admire your body before removing his loincloth and situating himself between your legs.

Placing his right hand by your head to hold himself up, he used his left to rub the head of his cock against your clit gathering your slickness onto it.

A soft moan left your lips as your hands wandered up his broad chest, eventually resting on his shoulders.

Notching himself with your entrance, Neteyam began to slowly push inside. His tail lashing behind him while his teeth grit together, it didn’t matter how many times you two fucked, you still felt so tight each time which drove him crazy.

You groaned feeling yourself being stretched and filled to the brim with his cock, the ridges dragging perfectly against your gummy walls and creating a noticeable buldge to form in your tummy.

Once bottoming out, Neteyam stayed still allowing you to adjust to him. His ears twitching slightly at your small groans, leaning down he pressed a soft kiss against your lips then began trailing kisses down your jaw, to your neck where he sucked and nipped at the flesh.

Tapping his shoulder to give the ok, you mewled as he pulled out little ways before shoving himself back in, starting a rough pace.

The bed creaked and banged against the wall profoundly while the space filled up with your moans in addition to his groans. His tail moved to subconsciously wrap around your ankle as he closed his eyes letting the pleasure course through him.

You moaned and whined, it never took long for the knot to start forming inside you making your eyes roll back.

“Te knalu..” Neteyam moaned, feeling your walls tighten around him as you neared your climax. Quickly he opened his eyes, pulled out and flipped you over onto all fours before pushing back inside.

His left hand now held onto your hip while his right trailed up your back, leaving goosebumps in its wake until grabbing a fistful of your hair pulling your head back.

You whimpered, your back being forced to arch slightly against him. “Cum for me yawne” he murmured, needing you to finish before him.

As if on cue your climax washed over you like a tidal wave, your body shaking as your walls pulsated around his cock. Neteyam hissed as he reached his own climax, spilling his seed deep inside your warmth.

“Good girl.. such a good girl you are for me” he praised, still breathless from what just happened.

[fandomfucker]

Hey bestie

I’ve loved you stuff for ages so I thought you would be a good writer for a lil idea I had!

Poly! Judgement Day x reader (or just Rhea Ripley ) where bubbly (but smart and snarky) reader gets moved to smackdown during the draft and only sees the rest of her partners one or two days a week.

She acts independently like it doesn’t bother her that she has to travel alone, and doesn’t tell her partners that she’s had trouble making friends at smackdown. But it’s taking a toll on her.

When she starts seeing them post more photos without her and all text her less she finally loses it.

After a long day of losing a championship match reader goes home to find out that her partners didn’t even know that she had a match that night and barely acknowledge her homecoming. Reader cries herself to sleep alone in their kingside bed.

Hurt/comfort ensues

- I hope this wasn’t too long 💕,

🟧Anon

Thank you so much for all your support!!🫶

Definitely get toxic relationship vibes with this so i kinda played into it a little. Also, this doesnt actually follow anything because I dont actually really watch Smackdown, pls dont kill me🙏

Some of the dialogue and resulting reactions/scenarios are from this list by @judgementdaysunshine and @romanthereigns

Word count: 4,473

Reader’s POV

It felt like my heart had been ripped in two and then thrown in a woodchipper.

Without any kind of warning or anything, I had just been removed from my partnership with the Judgment Day and put on Smackdown instead of Raw.

Backstage in our shared dressing room it was quiet enough to hear a pin drop as the five of us all stood around in stunned silence.

Dominik was the first to break it as he launched himself at me, cradling my head to his chest as the news began to sink in.

Tears began to well up in my eyes as I stared off over his shoulder at nothing. Our hug was jolted when Damian, Finn, and Rhea joined us, surrounding and enveloping us whole.

I blinked until the tears receded, refusing to cry over an unfortunate situation such as this.

I felt tears on my shoulder from one of my partners and heard the shaking sobs of the others, making it just that much harder to not cry myself.

Reluctantly, I pulled away from our group hug, wiping away any remaining strays.

I cleared my throat, "This isn't going to change anything, okay? We all still love each other and at the end of the day, we all go back to the same home. We'll be okay."

Dominik nodded, keeping a hand on my waist as he wiped away his own tears. Catching Damian also wiping away his tears I sent him a small smile, hugging into his waist.

"You're right, dove. It might be hard, but we'll make it work just like we always do." Rhea smiled as she cradled my face in her hands.

I nodded my head, smiling at her in return before removing myself from the boys' holds on me and crushing her body into mine, holding onto her waist tightly.

Finn stood to the side of her and took one of my hands in his, "Lass, this isn't goodbye, and it never will be. You're going to do great by yourself, really get the chance to show everyone just what all you're capable of."

Nodding my head again against Rhea's chest, I squeezed his hand in acknowledgment and comfort as I took in all my partners in the group locker room for what was possibly the last time.

"I'll make you guys proud."

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

Two smackdowns later and I still had yet to make any of them even remotely proud.

Turns out, even if you leave a group, people still hold grudges against you for being in that group.

Rhea and I had obliterated the entire women's division both individually and as the occasional tag team so no one liked me or even so much as acknowledged I was there.

The ignoring was worse than any bullying or ambushes I could have anticipated.

The only woman in the locker room that would even look at me was the new girl from NXT, Blair Davenport but the others had warned her about me, so she too stayed away.

All the men wouldn't talk to me either more than a 'hello' in passing because my boys had swept through them too.

Apparently creating grudges left and right isn't as fun as I thought, once those I made the grudges with are no longer with me. I had burned all the bridges I now needed to keep from drowning.

We managed to work our schedules out enough so that we'd all be able to see each other once or twice a week, unless there was a PLE in which we'd be together that whole week.

I was given a newer design along with new beefs. Instead of my usual black and dark purple I wore more pastel colors. Baby blue, lilac, light yellows, etc. I was given extensions and my makeup was much less dramatic. My shorts were traded for skirts and my hand symbols for hearts.

I was told they were wanting to take some more creative liberties for me and I could either get on board with it or leave.

My first match on Smackdown was against the new girl, Blair Davenport who wanted to "show the world what she's made of" and decided to try and make me her example.

Long story short; I won. And that really didn't do me any favors, except to get me a match against Chelsea Green. The winner of which would be getting a shot at the Women's Championship title against Bayley.

Sitting in the locker room after winning my match against Chelsea I sat in the corner with my knees to my chest as I texted the Judgment Day group-chat.

Y/N: Guys!! I got a match against Bayley for the title next week!! We're about to have two womens champs in the JD!😁😁💪💪

With the different time zones I wasn't expecting an immediate reply so I just went ahead and began scrolling through Instagram until it was time for my promo.

Rhea's post came up first. It was just a picture of her dinner, at a fancy restaurant, and you could see Dominik's shirt and hands in the background.

Some of us go on dates with each other by ourselves all the time so I thought nothing of it, just liked it and kept scrolling.

Until I saw that Damian had uploaded a friends-only story. Clicking on it, it was a mirror selfie of him and Finn wearing tuxes, a peak of a flowy red dress just out of frame. The next slide was a full picture of Rhea in her dress. Her dress that I had given her.

My eyes stung a bit that my partners had all gone out on a really nice date without me, but I blinked it away because it didn't matter. It was one date and I'm on the other side of the country right now, they can go on one date without me. It's fine.

When it was time to do my promo, someone came and escorted me to the specific area where my favorite unbiased interviewer, Cathy Kelley, was waiting for me. Her face lit up when she saw me as I barreled towards her.

Crushing her into a hug, we both squealed with delight at finally seeing each other for the first time in forever.

We caught up and did my promo and decided to go out for a really late dinner together after the show. I told her about my struggles with the women on the roster while she spilled about her own personal problems.

"Oh! Let's take a cute little dinner date picture for Insta!" Cathy exclaimed pulling out her phone. I agreed and joked that we should hold hands across the table like a real date and she agreed.

She posted the photo and we watched as the comments rolled in from the fans. Some were loving it while others thought she might be dating both Rhea and me now. We laughed at some of the comments before going back to our conversation.

Wrapping up dinner, Cathy revealed to me that while she would be on Smackdown more often than before, she still wouldn't be there every week.

"It's okay, its not your fault," I forced a smile before we made our way to our separate hotel rooms. "I'll see you tomorrow though?" I asked hopefully.

"Of course! Sweet dreams, Y/N," She replied before we went our separate ways.

Two hours later, now laid in my hotel bed about to go to sleep, and the only response I'd gotten was a thumbs-up reaction from Finn. Secretly, I hoped my partners were just too busy planning something special for me when I got home and didn't want to accidentally ruin the surprise.

Deciding to just get over it, I went to bed, dreaming of finally being with all my partners again, going on a date with all of us.

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

The sound of my phone's notifications woke me up early the next morning. I reached out, aiming for the nightstand where I had left my phone to charge the night before. I blindly hit around the area until I felt my phone, bring it up to my half-open eyes, blinking rapidly at the burning brightness of the screen.

The screen was filled with angry texts from my partners.

Finn: What the hell were you doing with Cathy???

Rheas: Were you on a date last night???

Hello???

Y/N!

Damian: Answer us Y/n!!

Dominik: Y/n answer your fucking phone this is insane

My eyes teared up in fear at my partners' reactions. They seemed genuinely upset, especially with the combined 24 missed calls in a 4-hour time period.

I just texted back a simple, "We just went out to dinner and thought the picture would be cute. Nothing more." before getting up and going about my day. With my next flight leaving in just a few hours, I had a lot to do before I could even get to the airport.

After getting out of the shower, I checked my messages only to see no response from any of my partners. Clicking on the chat, I saw that I had been left on read by all four of them. I tried to push aside my feelings but lately it was getting harder and harder to do so.

But, I managed to pull myself together just enough to make it on my flight home just in time.

It was mid-Sunday by the time I made it to our shared house, and I knew I'd be alone for the next couple days since my partners' flight out for Raw had been around the same time as my flight in.

The rest of the day was spent self-loathing in the bathtub as I watched a few of Bayley's old matches, trying to give myself the upper-hand for our match by learning how she fights.

I fell asleep in bed that night, shoveling ice cream into my mouth as I watched old reruns of Full House on the TV.

The next morning was nice because I was finally able to sleep-in after so many early mornings. I was able to make myself a cup of coffee and make french toast (something I hadn't been able to have in forever) as I sat on the back porch watching the birds fly through the trees.

My nice little fantasy, however, was broken when I received an Instagram notification. This one was a picture Rhea had posted; a selfie of the four of them in the car they were driving.

I was too emotionally exhausted for my eye to even begin welling up. So, to save myself from anymore heartbreak and/or grievances, I blocked all four of them on both socials and messages and told myself I'd unblock them later that day.

Later that day turned into fifteen minutes later when I started feeling guilty, so I unblocked their messages and left their socials alone. I'd see the pictures eventually on my feed posted by fans, but hopefully it would take a little bit longer than if they weren't blocked. None of them ever bothered to text me individually or the group chat of all five of us the rest of that week, even after I texted them to congratulate them on their wins form Monday. 

Brushing off the avoidances form them, I just went about my week. A few facetime interviews and a podcast. I answered emails and went to the gym. I cleaned the house and did laundry, wondering when on Earth my partners would get home.

I even called them to ask to no avail. But I saw the posts on Instagram of them a few states away hanging out, going on dates. They had decided to do a road-trip back home instead of a flight. 

The uncomfortable lump in my throat increased with each swipe to the next picture. As I swiped through the pictures, my growing fury and heartache increasing in a swirl of mixed feelings, Dominik texted me, saying they'd be home Thursday night.

Around the same time as my flight out to the next city for Smackdown.

I sent a thumbs up in reply and threw my phone off to the side so I wouldn't have to think about it for the next little while.

I just went ahead and began packing all my stuff for Smackdown Friday night, making sure I had everything I needed for my new ring gear I was about to debut. It was a special occasion, after all. I was about to be the next women's champion.

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

Friday night had arrived and I now stood in the guerilla bouncing around as I shook out my nerves. Onlookers shot me weird looks as I went through my warm-ups as well, they weren't your typical ones as I had learned them in high school doing theatre.

Bayley passed me, giving me a look I couldn't quite decipher as her music hit first and she walked out. 

A minute later my own started playing and I walked out, swaggering my way down the aisle. When I was told to change my look, and my attitude as well, to make myself not apart of the Judgment Day anymore, I was finally given my own theme music, but I missed our group theme more than anything.  My now long hair swung as I made my way up the stairs and into the ring to do my entrance against the ropes.

Stepping into the middle of the ring, I faced Bayley as our title match was announced and the title showcased to the audience. I caught her mouthing something at me, making me grin sadistically. You can take the girl out of the faction but you can't take the faction out of the girl.

"May the best woman win."

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

I didn't win.

It was a long match that wound up being longer than anyone anticipated, ourselves included.

Bayley eventually got the best of me when my head hit the turnbuckle at just the right angle for me to black out for a second, leaving room for Bayley to pin me as I was too disoriented to kick out.

The ref had to help me backstage to the medics after the lights went out, signaling the commercial break. She even had to hand me a towel to catch the blood beginning to flow from the small cut.

The on-sight paramedic gave me some ice for my head as she checked my pupils. "Yeah, I think you got a minor concussion there, hon. I'll let Mr. Aldis know but you should sit down and rest until you can get an uber, you shouldn't be driving." 

She left the room and I immediately started bawling my eyes out, making my headache worse. Not only did I now have a concussion which would cause me to be out for at least a few weeks, but I was lonely, my partners were ignoring me and probably didn't love me anymore, and I lost my one shot at the title that I had earned and fought for entirely by myself.

My cries attracted the attention of a few passerby but only one stopped and came in to check on me.

"Hey, Y/n, I'm really sorry. That was my fault, I totally botched that, I'm so sorry. If you want I can take you back to the hotel so you don't have to pay for an uber? I just have one more promo to do and then I'm all done."

I looked up to see Bayley standing there, her title nowhere in sight, looking so sincerely upset and apologetic it just sent another wave of tears down my already soaked cheeks.

"That'd be great, thank you," I laugh-cried as she helped me down from the table and back to the shared locker room.

All the other girls stared at me as I walked in, my face and eyes puffy and my forehead bandaged, as I continued to hold an ice pack to the top of said bandage. No one else seemed to have any sympathy for me and rightfully so. I hadn't actually done anything in the past 2 years to warrant any.

Bayley brought me over to my locker and began helping me get all my stuff together. "Why are you helping me?" I croaked pitifully.

She avoided eye contact, "Because I know what it's like. To lose your faction--the people who mean the most to you and are always supposed to be there for you, I mean."

A small laugh escaped me as well as another tear. I swiped it away before offering my hand to her. "Truce?"

"Truce," She nodded and shook my hand.

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

Finally getting home late the next day, I was relieved to find all four of my partners already at home. I was nervous to see them after all the ignored communications and their Instagram posts of dates I wasn't invited on, but I was tired and hurt and wanted my partners.

Unlocking the door, I stepped into the entryway, smiling softly as I heard my partners' rambunctious laughter coming from the living room. I left my suitcase by the door and made my way over to them.

They were playing the new WWE2k24 game with the new Xbox Rhea had gotten from being on the cover.

"Hey guys! I'm home!" I announced my presence from behind the couch as I walked in.

I received a chorus of "hey babe"s from all four of them, not one of them turning around to actually acknowledge me. And that stung worse than any failed title match or concussion. 

It was like my heart had been ripped out and stabbed repeatedly with a knife before being set on fire. I tried to tough it out and managed to get all the way to our shared bedroom before I burst into tears again.

My pent up feelings, mixed with the concussion, my heavily drugged brain resulting from said concussion, and the overall exhaustion from everything all at once finally came to a head as I sobbed.

I collapsed to the floor, my knees being too weak to hold me up. Crawling up into the bed, I laid there and cried into my pillow as I cradled another to my chest. I cried so hard I couldn't breathe and snot ran down my face.

Eventually, I fell asleep, having not even bothered to change my clothes or take off the makeup that was now streaked down my face. 

I just hoped that when I woke up it would've all been a dream.

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

3rd Person POV

The four members of the Judgment Day sat around the living room, playing what they agreed would be the last match before they made dinner.

"Alright," Damian spoke as he stood up and began stretching out his sore limbs, "Who wants what?"

"I want chicken tenders!" Dominik shouted excitedly. 

Rhea laughed and ruffled his hair, sliding her fingers through his silky strands. "Okay, well while Dame and I get started on dinner how about you and Finn go pull Y/N out of the shower and she what she wants."

Dominik nodded like a happy little puppy before grabbing Finn's hand and dragging him upstairs to go find their girlfriend.

They went first to the master bathroom, noticing the light was still off and there was no trace of her having taken a shower. They continued on into the bedroom where they saw the curled-up figure of their girlfriend.

Finn went and turned the bedside lamp on, emitting a soft glow about the room. 

The two of them rounded the bed to face Y/N and wake her up. Dominik saw her first and stopped dead in his tracks, the blood draining from his face causing Finn to rush over.

Before he could even ask what was wrong he looked at Y/N and no longer needed to ask. 

Her face was puffy from tears, her makeup smeared and streaked down her face making it even more evident she had been crying. The pillow she held onto with a death grip had a wet stain on the top of it from previously fallen tears.

But the thing they were most concerned about, was the small bandage on the top of her forehead. Dried blood seeped out from underneath the bandage and was crusted around and in her hairline, the whole area swollen and red.

"What the hell happened?" Dominik asked Finn as they watched Y/N sleep. 

"I dunno," Finn replied in the stunned silence. "We need to get Rhea and Damian, though."

Down in the kitchen, Rhea and Damian danced around each other grabbing various ingredients as well as silverware and dishes. They made idle chat and were laughing when Finn and Dominik bounded down the stairs. 

"What'd Y/N say she wants for dinner?" Damian asked the two of them, his back turned to them as he fiddled with a dial on the stove. 

"She's asleep, but you guys need to come see, something happened," Finn told the two of them.

They both looked up from what they were doing, Rhea grabbing a towel to dry her hands. "What's wrong?" She asked as she ran around the counter and up the stairs to their shared room.

"I'm not even sure," Finn replied.

The four of them raced up the stairs and down the hallway to their bedroom, Rhea leading the way.

She slowly rounded the corner to face Y/N and upon seeing her in the same state the other two had, threw her hand to her mouth in horror as she gasped at the sight before her.

Damian, right behind her, made it to her side to see what all the fuss was about and all the blood drained from his face when he did. "Oh my god."

"Should we wake her up?" Dominik asked, like a scared child.

Rhea, ever the caretaker of the group, chimed in. "No, let's just wait until she wakes up. You guys go back downstairs and finish making dinner and I'll stay here till she wakes up."

"If you're staying here then so am I," Finn argued, taking a seat on the small ottoman at the end of the bed. Rhea nodded reluctantly before looking at the other two.

They both nodded, knowing they wouldn't win any fight they picked. They both walked over and gave Y/N a small kiss on the forehead, the opposite side of where the bandage was, before shuffling out of the room and down the stairs. Now, all they had to do was wait.

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

It wasn't until an hour later that Y/N finally began to stir.

Rhea and Finn both shot up, kneeling beside the bed as Fin gently stroked Y/N's cheek as she awoke. 

"What's going on?" Y/N asked groggily, thoroughly confused as hell and not knowing anything. After any normal nap, it takes a minute to even remember your own name, not to mention a nap after that kind of extreme emotional distress.

"We're just worried about you, sweetness," Rhea explained as gently as she could. If Y/N did actually have a concussion and didn't remember anything, she didn't want to freak her out any more than she possibly would already have.

"Why?" Y/N asked, gently pushing the two of them away form her to sit up and rub her eyes. In doing so, she felt the edge of her bandage and remembered everything. From losing the match, to making a truce with Bayley, to coming home and them not acknowledging her.

Rhea and Finn saw the look that overcame their girlfriend's face. Anger, betrayal, sadness.

She pushed them out of the way again, this time harder than any of them were expecting which sent the two flat on their asses as Y/N made a move to get out of bed.

"Woah, woah, woah. Where the hell do you think you're going?" Rhea immediately was on her feet and grabbed Y/N's arm to keep her from going any further. The look she received from Y/N before she pulled her arm out of her grip was scathing. 

"Nowhere that concerns you." She began to move towards the closet, starting to grab new clothes, seemingly to change into before she grabbed a bag and began stuffing the clothes in there.

"Y/N! What the hell is going on? Please, just talk to us!" Finn tried to reason with her. 

By now, the commotion had reached the ears of both Damian and Dominik downstairs and they raced up to the bedroom, just in time to hear their girlfriend's explanation.

"Talk to you? Talk to you?! I have been trying to talk to all four of you for weeks! And all I get in response is a thumbs up! Sometimes, not even every time!" She screamed, stepping out of the closet into full view of her partners. Clothes were left forgotten on the floor, and some half-hanging off their hangers as Y/N finally released all her pent-up emotions.

All four members of the Judgment Day stood in stunned silence as Y/N kept going, now unable to stop herself even if she tried.

"I was forcefully moved away from my partners, surrounded by people who hate me and then you four go out and have date nights without me. Constantly! I had a title match tonight against Bayley, we could've had two champions and you didn't even care! I lost because I hit my head and got a concussion and you don't care!" At this point, Y/N had started to grow emotional. Each word was a fight against the myriad of tears threatening to spill over.

The four of them felt awful, how could they have neglected their girl so badly for so long to get to this point?

"We're so sorry, cariño, we had no idea you even had a match last night-" Damian's attempts at an apology were cut off by Y/N.

"Of course you didn't! You never bother to talk to me anymore!" Her partners began to reach out for her as she started fully crying, the emotions winning this fight.

"I'm barely holding on," Y/N sobbed as she curled in on herself, rejecting any attempts at physical touch from her partners. "It's so bad, that my opponent had to come to my rescue after the match because no one else will even acknowledge me."

"Y/N," Dominik spoke, the sound of his heart breaking evident in his voice.

"No, just...don't," Y/N wrapped her arms around herself as she backed away from the four of them. 

The five partners stood around in silence, each member processing their emotions. 

Once Y/N's tears had slowed down, she wiped any remains off her face before facing her partners, who now surrounded her again. This time, however, they left a spot for her to escape.

"Hey, we're sorry, okay? But we promise to do better. This is new for all of us and we admittedly didn't handle it well but we're gonna fix that, alright?" Finn explained to her gently, so as not to scare her off.

"He's right, amor. We love you, so much. We'll do anything that you ask of us, please," Damian practically begged her.

Rhea and Dominik both clutched each other, tears streaming down their faces as they were both too choked up to speak, but they nodded in agreement to both of the boys' statements.

"Okay," Y/N broke down again, walking into the shared hug between the partners. They would make it up to her, just like they always did. Everything would be okay. They would be okay.

[try-set-me-on-fire]

wip game: should we talk about the weather 👀

Hehehehehehe big bang fic!!! Hmm I’ll share the pitch I gave to the event artists (hehehe…)

In a world where certain individuals are capable of sharing their own instincts and feelings — and even occasionally physical strength — with their likewise capable partners, Eddie and Buck, and Hen and Chim are what people sometimes call congeneric minds. It comes in handy in a high stakes profession like firefighting to have two people in such synchronization, able to warn each other of danger without ever having to waste time opening their mouths to speak.

Being so in sync with someone doesn’t necessarily mean smooth sailing communication however. Recently back at work after taking time off post-shooting, Eddie worries about Buck and how he’s been dealing with the events of the last year (last several years, really) but doesn’t know how to bring it up when he himself has always kind of encouraged them to move past life changing events with little discussion. While Hen and Chim are getting along just fine, Chimney and Maddie are dancing around each other and their recent breakup, and Hen feels trapped between disappointing her mother or her wife while being roped into backyard wedding planning.

With danger ever present on the job and turmoil seemingly always bubbling outside it, will everyone find the right words before it’s too late?

AKA what if people could be drift compatible in regular life without giant robots, and they’re all disasters at communicating anyway

And here’s a snippet!

Eddie doesn’t get around to talking to Buck till a week later. They’re in Eddie’s house again, but Buck has started to look exhausted everywhere, all the time, nothing special anymore about the way his eyelids droop when he walks in through this specific door. It’s worse than usual today. They had a hell of a long call — a rockslide down on the PCH, outside of their usual range but it was bad enough that the responding station had called for any back up they could possibly get — and Eddie’s wrist and shoulders and whole damn body aches from the hours of grueling work. Buck has to be feeling it, too. Eddie heads right to the bathroom, grabbing the tube of arnica gel that keeps this household running some days.

He doesn’t know how to bring anything up. We need to talk feels as ridiculous as it does dire. That’s a movie script confrontation, as contrived and meaningless as it’s not you, it’s me, or I’m sorry for your loss. Buck is his best friend, and also their fucking hearts beat in rhythm. He can do better.

“My leg hurts sometimes,” is what ends up coming out of his mouth when he gets back to the living room. Your ache is mine. A little poetic, but whatever. It gets the point across. Share it with me, please. We already do, so why are you hiding it?

Buck is sprawled on the floor next to the couch, Eddie isn’t sure why. He looks up at him silently for a few moments, and then rubs at his shoulder. Answer enough. Eddie barely has to look as he tosses him the gel, sure Buck will catch it as Eddie sits on the couch with a sigh. He watches Buck, still prone, hike up his pant leg and start massaging arnica into his calf muscles.

“Are you… doing okay?” It feels stupid to say.

Buck looks at him like it’s stupid to hear, too. His fingers drum a few times over one of the jagged lines still drawn up his shin. “‘M fine, Eds. Just a long day.”

Eddie purses his lips, shaking his head back and forth in a slow roll against the back of the couch. “You know that’s not what I meant.” His hand lifts up to catch the tossed arnica without thinking about it. He looks down at Buck, sprawled out, looking back up at him. “I want to… know that you’re okay. And, Buck, I’m here if you’re not.”

Buck sits up with a sigh that’s more petulant and annoyed than Eddie wishes it was. He rests his chin on his bent knee. “I know. But I’m- I’ll be fine. Stop worrying.”

Eddie snorts at that. “Oh, yeah, that’s something I’m great at.”

Buck’s smile grows so tenderly across his face. “I know.” He twitches his right pointer finger three times and Eddie’s moves involuntarily with he tug. “Come on,” he says, standing up with a groan. “Let’s make the pizza.”

They’d bought the ingredients together — sort of together, Buck on the phone at the grocery store and Eddie and Chris shouting requests down the line — earlier that week, and Chris will be home soon from a friend’s house and likely starving from the hard work of being a twelve year old all day long. He’s old enough that the novelty of making the pizza himself is less appealing than being able to immediately eat it, even if Buck had made sad faces as he’d relayed his instructions to make it in his absence. And this is all a distraction, Eddie knows it is, but Buck is smiling down at him and his finger goes tug, tug, tug, and he lets him get away with it.