#amity's there like. 'oh. hm. well. about that.'

[cannibalisticskittles]

amity enjoys feeling useful and helpful -- deeply, pathologically so -- but she's... not actually all that susceptible to praise because she doubts it, as a rule

you try plying her with compliments and she thinks 'aww, that's not true at all, but you are sweet to say so :)'

she recognizes when people are trying to butter her up/otherwise manipulate her into doing something, but there's no negative feelings attached to it -- she's still gonna help you. would be nice if you didn't feel like you had to go through a whole song and dance to get her help, but she knows that's how these things tend to go and that this sort of preamble tends to be expected first. and if you really want or need something done for you, it's only natural to try to get people to help you, right? can't fault you for manipulation attempts.

you don't have to genuinely believe she's beautiful or clever to deserve her help, and if you say you think she is, well. it's not true, obviously. but it's clearly born out of your better nature to say so. you are choosing to say something kind, even if you don't really think so.

amity very much believes that who you are is much more what you do than what you think.

this is also why she'll forge ahead in situations that are probably, almost certainly, going to lead to danger or harm -- yes, they are probably just asking her to go on ahead so they can dip and leave her behind. yes, she sees the flash of the knife behind their back. yes, there is very little reason to be acting this way if they do not intend to do her harm.

but it's possible. and she won't crush that possibility.

she will react -- she'll ready a light spell in anticipation of that door slamming behind her and trapping her, she'll tense up and be prepared to dodge. but she doesn't strike first.

it's the scorpion and the frog again -- yes, she sees the inherent danger. but perhaps you will choose to go against those violent impulses. and if not, well, she's pretty good at swimming and she carries around antivenin for just such an occasion, so that she can afford the risk.

this is also why everything with astarion is truly so funny. he comes on so strong with his compliments that amity does not believe a single word of it for even a second. she decides to trust him, but in spite of it, not because of it.

"'beautiful'?? wow he must really be desperate to earn my trust. poor thing. wish he didn't feel the need to lie so egregiously." and the whole thing about 'waiting to have you since the moment i saw you?' no way. there's no truth to it. but that's okay; the purpose of those sort of flowery words is to make the person on the receiving end feel good, so even if she knows it's a baldfaced lie, there's no harm in it, right?

[long-live-astronerd-ghost-king]

DPxDC prompt: Hobby

"Think I'm getting butterflies, but it's really Something telling me to run away" Sub Urban & Bella Poarch

The years go by, and the Anti-ecto Laws that don’t recognize ghosts even animals are still there. And Danny is so tired of it. Even worse, ghost studies are becoming popular. And Danny’s getting sick of it. And he really needs a break. In general, the castle of good old Pariah Dark is potentially a good place to exist, right?

Well, Danny ends up in a perfectly normal civilian family ('cause of СPS or else) in Gotham.

The city is filled with fear, death, and also ectoplasm, which is fine, because it allows Danny not to run into the Ghost Zone for energy for his core. In fact, it’s really strange why so few ghosts are formed in such a comfortable place.

So, a new family. Although the head of family is a billionaire, Danny really wants to give them a chance. Even if he break out in a cold sweat when Bruce looks at him. Well, Fenton blames his past experience. Fuck you, Vlad. Waynes are really nice. And thanks to this adoption he'll be far away from Amity Park, safe from GIW, maybe finally feel like a human being. even if he's not.

So, Danny wants to know about them a little bit more. He has already noticed that Damian collects katanas, Tim is all about hacking, and Jason is obsessed with guns, and Bruce..hm, maybe he need to ask to find out:

Oh, that's explains a lot. Of course highly intelligent ghosts are afraid to settle in a city where one of the wealthiest people is a ghostbuster. That’s why there are so few ghosts in Gotham. Danny is such an idiot that he didn’t realize it before. Gothamites are odd. What if it's especially popular among local rich people? Even if it's not, according to rumors that Bruce’s a Batman's sponsor, Danny sure as hell screwed up. Hm, perhaps he should try to escape to the Infinite Realms through one of the Al Ghul's Pits if this guy Constantine will not answer to his call in a few more minutes.

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 203

Another Hydra prompt! Because I am enjoying the designs I’ve made lol. And perhaps it’s a bit inspired by @radiance1 ‘s different dragon prompts too. 

So they’ve succeeded! They’ve managed to combine their powers- with a bit of shapeshifting helped along by so many ghost allies- and become a giant duck-you dragon! Well, originally they were going to do something else, but they couldn’t agree on an animal, so dragon it was! 

And how mighty they are! They’re giant, absolutely massive- dwarfing the couple of skyscrapers still in Amity. Damages via ghost attacks and general sparring made it where people really didn’t want to rebuild those types of buildings. 

But anyway, dragon! Them! They’re absolutely stunning! And did they mention powerful? Because boy oh boy, are they powerful. The GIW’s guns do practically nothing against their combined might, and barriers shatter before them! 

The uh, issue is that they erm… can’t turn back. Which is fine, they’ve all sort of outlived most of their generation- thank you possessions and ecto-contamination, it’s just a tiny bit of an adjustment. But really it’s not too bad, and someone needs to stop the GIW from trying to poke their heads into Amity. Like it’s been a solid couple of generations, it’s time to stop, thanks. 

Actually they’ve been a bit quiet. Meh, that surely isn’t a problem. Probably. Honestly they’re all going to use the opportunity to sprawl out where the school yard once was, their favorite place to sun their scales. Huh. Usually more people are around now that they think about it- or really, as Paulina points out, sharpening her fangs on one of the rocks. 

…

How long had they been sleeping, because it couldn’t have been that long. One of them was always awake, they slept in shifts after all! Yet there are things missing now as they patrol the skies, both Wes and Tucker pointing out specific buildings that the others didn’t particularly notice usually that now lay empty. 

Hm. 

Oh. That is a… strong barrier there. A really strong barrier actually. Pfft, they can take it! They’ve shredded every barrier together before- Ow. 

…

Okay this might be a bit of a problem. Shit. 

You want a general size reference? :P

[radiance1]

Damian landed with a small thud in the alleyway, standing up and walking forward while unsheathing his blade. It drew an elegant arc in the air, before it tips was placed at another's throat, forcing them to tilt their head upwards to avoid injury. "What do you think you are doing here?"

Eyes were peeled open slowly, and the wheezy that filled the alleyway took on a more amused edge. "I don't know, why do you think I'm here," Danny tried to tilt his head, before stopping with a wince and a sharp intake. "Can't I just visit my big bro, from time to time?"

Damian tilted his head slightly, eyes roaming over the various wounds over his brother's body and the amount of ectoplasm on the ground around him, before leaving Danny with the most unimpressed look he could make. Danny chuckled wetly, before devolving into a coughing fit, then smiling wryly. "Heh, ya got me I guess."

"Tt." Damian lowered his blade, enough for Danny to no longer have to strain his head upwards. "What brought you to this state, Daniel? Those inventors you keep around are certainly brilliant, but incompetent." Damian's eyes narrowed. "So who."

"Yea, wasn't them. Can't really do that when you're blown to smitheries, right?" Danny chuckled humorlessly, before falling silent with a pained wheeze. His head threatened to fall downwards, and his eyelids drooped. A slight press against his neck snapped him back into the waking world. "Right, right. Okay so, would you believe me if I said that a," Danny swallowed. "A government branch is currently chasing me after they found out about my half-dead status?"

Damian stared silently, then sighed. "I'm not surprised, you always were an idiot." Danny puffed up his cheeks indignantly. "Hey! It wasn't my fault this time!"

"Whatever you say, Daniel." Damian pressed the tip of his sword further against Danny's throat. "That still does not explain why you came here, of all places."

"Amity Park's compromised for me, and well." Danny gave a half shrug, or at least tried too before wincing. "This is one of the last places they would look, and I'm too," Danny gesture to himself. "You know, to go for another fly."

Damian nodded. "I can see that." Damian dissected Danny with his eyes, taking in his injuries, his ruined outfit, the blood running down his face over one of his eyes.

Hm.

Damian let out an annoyed sigh, before twirling his sword away from Danny's neck and putting it back into its sheathe. He lifted the edge of his cape. "Get in before I regret this."

Danny blinked in surprised confusion. "What?"

Damian scowled. "Get. In." He flapped the edge of his cape for emphasis, and Danny blinked again, before suddenly being hit with a wave of understanding. "Oh, oh! Really?"

"I will not be repeating myself for a third time."

"Aw! I knew you cared about me!" Danny flew into Damian's cape, leaving a trail of ectoplasm behind in his flight that was quickly taken hold of by gravity and splattered against the ground.

Damian pulled a face, because he already felt like he regretted doing this.

"Robin, where are you?" His father's voice coming from his comm snapped him from his regret. He jumped onto a nearby pipe and flipped himself up onto one of the buildings, gritting his teeth in annoyance as Danny clapped with his cape. He glanced back at the alleyway, before turning.

"On my way, father." And just like that, he was out into the night with one extra (annoying) passenger.

[laxxarian]

Bruce Wayne and his kids went to visit the Fentons as they had weapons that could counter ghosts. As ridiculous as believing that ghosts exist, Bruce had to prepare just in case and besides, this 'ectoplasm' could be useful if he researched more about it.

But when they truly saw and encountered a ghost in Amity Park, Richard joked about it by saying something along the lines of "let's help them fulfill their business!" as a way to kill time cuz the Fentons seem too stubborn to give them any info nor let them get anywhere near their weapons.

And thus, the kids started with those green little blobs while Bruce would talk with the Fentons but for some reason, the parents would sometimes dodge the topic of how to trap ghosts. Cuz like, the Fentons had already accepted and changed their views on ghosts and they wouldn't want their weapons to get in the wrong hands. Especially when their own son is a ghost himself.

Something that goes like....

One day, Danny just suddenly got surrounded by Bruce's kids while he and his friends were out patrolling. And of course, Danny is in his human form since there wasn't any ghosts around yet and the three hopefully stays that way since it would be hard explaining things to the kids or even getting away from the kids.

They tried and failed, it's like the three were somehow chipped a tracker in each one of them each time they make a run and split so now the trio had to stop their patrolling and focus on the kids who wouldn't stop bugging them.

"So you guys are here to find out about the ghost's unfinished business???" Tucker asked.

"Yes and no, well, at first it was just for the ectoplasm thing but then...." Richard drawled.

"...Then you encountered a ghost." Sam finished, "So you all are just curious?" Sam asked and the kids nodded, "Well, that's going to be hard... Oh! Wait!" Sam tapped Danny's shoulder, gaining his attention, "There were those blob ghosts weren't there? You know, the weak ones?" Sam said.

Danny hummed and thought about it when he had an idea what Sam was getting at, "Ah! You mean them? Well, they do have simple unfinished business." Danny replied, turning to Wayne's kids, "You guys wanna help, right? We can go over there and help out those little guys." Danny said.

At first the kids were confused on how Danny would find the said ghosts but as it turns out, it was easier than expected. Most of those blobs of ghosts would hang around the cemetery.

And one thing they learned, the ghosts were quite friendly, albeit shy but friendly. And one by one, the ghosts get to rest in peace from the help of Wayne's kids.

"Well... This is one way to kill off your workload." Sam started.

Tucker hummed in delight, "Mhm-hm! We can finally hang out without any distractions!" Tucker said.

"You bet!" Danny chuckled, "Just hope that no big ghosts would come tho... Those kids might really wanna go straight up and ask because of how friendly these guys are." Danny said, his worries slowly creeping in his heart as he said it, "....let's... Let's keep an eye out for their safety..."

The other two nodded in agreement when Damian suddenly went up to the trio with a blob floating on his hand, seemingly fading. Damian stretched his hand out to Danny, "There's something wrong with this guy." Damian said.

When Sam took a look, her face contorted with immense worry while Tucker frowned. Damian noticed the change, "What's wrong? What is happening to it?" Damian asked, his voice was gaining volume that it alarmed the others.

"That's..." Danny spoke, his hand reaching out to the weak ghost, "Well... They're fine..." Danny croaked, the ghost left Damian's hand to Danny's.

Damian narrowed his eyes at the weak ghost, "It doesn't seem fine to me." he said but Danny ruffled the kid's hair to redirect his stare to somewhere else.

"Don't worry about it." Danny smiled, "For now, I'll have this little guy with me." Danny said, discreetly giving the ghost a bit of his ectoplasm, though, he knew that it won't last long.

Damian grumbled but let it go and searched for other ghosts and so did the others. Though, Jason stopped in his tracks and went up to Danny, "Hey..." he started, "What exactly... Is wrong with it?" Jason asked, his voice low as for Damian not to hear.

Danny faced Jason with a weak smile.

"This ghost... Had an unfinished business but it had a deadline." Danny started, "Couldn't complete it in the end. And now they're starting to fade." Danny said.

"But couldn't it just live forever since it's business was never finished???" Richard suddenly popped in on the conversation, "Why would they fade???" he asked.

Danny sighed, "They fade because there's nothing here for them anymore. Besides, their unfinished business is like their heart, their life, so when it's gone then, they'll just have to fade away forever... Who knows where they go though..." Danny replied.

Jason and Richard glanced at each other before one of them asked, "What was it's business anyway?"

"...who knows..." Was all Danny could answer.

Before long, everyone had to go back home. Home of Danny though, he's still stuck with the Wayne's and when he arrived, it turns out Maddie and Jack decided to let the Wayne family stay for the night. The parents somehow built extra rooms for the guests.

And when Danny looked at his parents with his eyes filled with shockness, the parents shrugged. Their smiles were more of, 'We panicked' kind of telling and, 'Welp, we tried....'

Well, what can they say, keep your friends close and your (possible) enemies closer.

But anyway, whatever, I'm still new to Gotham fandom so I'm not sure with the names and personalities lelellelel

[maxattax]

Look Away - Chapter 1

I wrote a fic for EctoImplosion (@ecto-implosion)! @darnwafflessideblog made an animatic and I wrote this fic based on that. You can find his animatic here! I'll be posting one chapter a day for 6 days. :)

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Epilogue

---

Wes Weston peered at Danny Fenton’s locker through the lens of his Viewfinder Deluxe, waiting for the perfect opportunity to take a picture. The hallway was silent, save for the low buzz of the fluorescent lights. Class had ended ten minutes ago, and Danny was nowhere to be seen. Wes leaned on the wall and let out an impatient groan.

Danny always came to his locker after school, so there was no way he’d skip it the one day Wes was waiting for him, right? No, definitely not. He just had to be patient and then he’d be rewarded for his efforts. Today he might just be writing an article for the school newspaper, but one day he’d be a real investigative journalist, so he would have to get used to doing stakeouts like this.

Footsteps echoed down the hall, and Wes saw three figures heading in his direction. He strained to hear their faint voices.

“I’m just saying, the remaster of Doomed needs to change something significant, or it’s not gonna be worth playing. If they’re just upscaling the graphics, I’m not gonna bother buying it. Why split the userbase?”

They got close enough for Wes to recognize them. Danny clapped Tucker on the back. “Oh come on, Tuck, it’ll be fun. You know I’m saving my allowance to get it, whether it has new features or not. What about you, Sam?”

  “It’s pretty important to know how it’s going to play. If nothing changes besides the graphics, it’s basically the same game. But… I preordered it anyway.” Sam shrugged. “New game means new players, which means more people to crush.” She laughed and stopped walking to lean back against one of the lockers.

Danny and Tucker stopped as well. “Yeah, I guess. Maybe I’ll get it,” he said, drawing out the maybe, “but we’ll see what pre-release reviewers think.”

Danny turned to face his locker. His head swiveled side to side, presumably looking to see if anyone was around. Wes was some distance away, but he ducked behind the corner anyway, just to be safe. He peeked back out and saw Danny reaching towards the locker with a book in his hand. Just as his wrist started to sink through the metal door, Wes pressed down on the shutter button. Click!

Danny’s head jerked in Wes’s direction. Wes spun back behind the corner.

“Did you guys hear something?” Danny asked.

“Nope,” his two friends said together.

“Hm. Okay.” Danny pulled his arm out of his locker, hand now empty. “Let’s get out of here and get something to eat.”

Wes waited for the sound of their chatter to fade before peering back around the corner. Nobody was in sight. Good. He relaxed against the wall and clicked through the viewfinder slides to find the newest picture. It was a perfectly framed photo of Danny with his arm phased through his locker. Fantastic.

He walked over to Danny’s locker and rapped his knuckles on the door. It was clearly solid metal. He knew he wasn’t crazy! Danny Fenton really did have ghost powers! But this wouldn’t be enough for the ignorant masses of Amity Park. He’d need more evidence.

—

A couple days later, Wes was no closer to finding concrete proof that Fenton was Phantom. He sat at the lunch table, food forgotten, tapping his pen against his open notebook. He had drawn a table with three columns, labeled “Fenton”, “Phantom”, and “Both”. In Fenton’s column he had written traits such as, “appears scared of ghosts”, “physically weak”, “soft spoken”, and “poor school performance.” Under Phantom, there was “physically strong”, “good at fighting”, “confident”, and “protective of humans”. And in the Both column he had “same appearance”, “access to Fenton tech”, “often seen at Casper High”, and “loves puns”.

He had to admit that his list of similarities was a bit lacking. It must have been some kind of act Fenton was putting on, pretending to be weak so nobody would know he had superpowers. He’d just need to get more photos. Maybe he could get a picture of him changing into his alter-ego, although he wasn’t entirely sure how that worked. Just another mystery to add to the pile.

Wes stole a glance at Danny’s table, hoping to see something suspicious. Danny turned his head and Wes quickly looked away, hoping he hadn’t noticed him staring. When he looked back, Danny was no longer there.

“Boo,” said a voice from behind Wes.

“Aah!” Wes nearly fell out of his seat. He slammed his notebook closed and turned around. “Oh. Hi. Danny, right?”

Danny laughed mirthlessly. “You know damn well who I am. Look, I’m gonna need you to stop following me around. It’s kinda creepy.”

Wes’s face blanched. “Uh, I’m not... I’m just taking pictures for the school newspaper.”

Danny put his hands on his hips. “Uh huh. Then why are you sneaking around?”

“Um. They want candid pictures?” Wes didn’t intend for it to come out as a question. Whoops.

Danny sighed. “Fine, whatever. Just stop taking pictures of me, okay?”

“Yeah, sure. I won’t take any more,” Wes lied. Shit, he was gonna have to be more careful. How do you hide from a guy with superpowers?

“Good.” Danny walked back to his table and started speaking animatedly to his friends. Wes wished he could be a fly on the wall to hear that conversation, but he knew better than to say that aloud. Everyone at school remembered when that genie ghost twisted people’s wishes, and he didn’t want to end up turning into a fly or something.

He was getting off track. Danny knew something was up. Wes had thought he was being subtle, but apparently not. He’d have to find sneakier ways to get pictures. A hidden camera would be easier, but for some reason, every camera Wes owned turned out blurry when taking pictures of ghosts. So he’d have to stick with the viewfinder. He wasn’t sure why it worked; maybe it was something about physical film strips? Regardless, subtle or not, this would have to do.

Wes would get his proof. Then he’d get the respect he deserved.

[bumblebbyxx]

Hello! 😊

Can I request a long fluffy oneshot/songfic with prompts: "Anything happening yet?" from Eda, "Nope! It looks like they're both too shy to try anything." from Luz, "Don't worry! I'll take care of this shyness by erupting their courageous hrough SONG!" from Hooty, "What? Wait no please!" from King, "I think I should take over the singing on this." from Luz, "Um, Y/n? Do you hear singing?" from Hunter, "Hm…Looks like I'm going to need your some help on this one, Gus and Eda!" from Luz, [Hunter wasn't exactly sure what he was supposed to do. Some of the fireflies that surrounded the boat suddenly flew around Y/n showing off some of her angelic facial features causing a red blush to cross his face.] & [they starting with a kiss meant to be gentle, ending up in passion] about Hunter (TOH) and his shy!fem!human!reader are going to the blue lagoon for romantic rowboat? Like Luz, Gus, Willow, Amity, King, Hooty and Eda secretly followed to spy on Hunter and his shy!female!human!reader's first date? 😂 Like Luz and her friends has matchmaking plan about they sets a romantic mood in order to inspire Hunter to kiss his shy!female!human!reader? 🤭 Hint#1: This song is "Kiss The Girl" from The Little Mermaid Disney film. This blue lagoon scene from The Little Mermaid Disney film. Hint#2: Hooty is so terrible singer like Scuttle. 🤣 Luz uses her mobile phone for setup a Kiss the Girl song for them. Gus and Eda uses their illusion spells to create the singing frogs and fireflies like The Little Mermaid Disney film. I love to see Hunter's blushing reaction to it! 😆 I live for flustered Hunter! 💘 Please??

Thank you for your suggestion! Here it is~

TW: passionate kissing

Contains: Hooty singing, kisses, awkward tension, fluff

The night sky twinkled with stars and lights, highlighting the lake in silver. King stuffs his face in popcorn as Luz asks Eda, “Has anything happened yet?”

The woman removes the binoculars, “Nope. Looks like they’re too scared to try anything.”

“I’m surprised Y/N’s going out with the golden guard,” Willow says as Gus places down a card in the pile, “She always seemed too timid. And the golden guard….is certainly her complete opposite.”

“Yeah,” Gus agrees. He pulls out a chart with a wave of his hand, “I’ve made a board listing their differences and similarities.”

Y/N                                 Hunter

-kind                               -mean

-sweet                            -grumpy

-nice                               -HE'S PART OF THE EMPEROR’S COVEN

“...needless to say, this was a shock to all of us.” 

“Well, I’ve seen how Blondie looks at our old Y/N. Not a malicious thought about her in those eyes,” Eda sighs, “They’re head over heels for each other. Actually, I’m more surprised it took them this long to start dating.”

“Well, I think they’re a great couple!” Hooty hollers, causing King and Luz to shush him. He adds, with making no effort to quiet his voice at all, “They’re my OTP! Number one Hunty/n shipper right here!”

When Hunter turns his head, everyone ducks. 

Y/N AND HUNTER’S POV

“Did you hear anything, Hunter?” Asks Y/N curiously. Hunter thinks for a second, scanning the greenery, 

“...no. Must have been my imagination.” he shrugs it off. Turning to Y/N, he feels his cheeks redden. The lights of the fireflies lighten her already angelic features, (h/c) hair waving in the breeze. 

“Oh, okay.” she replies. 

It’s silent, only the sounds of the sloshing waves underneath the boat covering the quiet. Hunter gulps, glancing back at Y/N, purple-red pupils dilating a little. 

‘She’s so pretty’, he thinks with a sigh. ‘How could I be so lucky?’

Hunter never thought he would date the human apprentice of the Owl Lady. Sixteen years old, glimmering eyes that he could get lost in for hours. And him, the golden guard, eyebags and tooth gap and all. How could such a perfect person want to date his scumbag self?

“It’s, u-um, really pretty out here.” he stumbles on his words. 

“It really is.” She smiles at the scenery. Y/N looks back to him, just to see he was already staring at her. Red flushes her cheeks, blinking. 

“H-Hunter, you’re s-staring.”

“Oh!” he’s out of his trance, scooting farther in his seat until his back touches the wooden boat, “I didn’t k-know…”

He wanted to kiss her so bad. 

HEXSQUAD’S POV

“They really are intent on dragging this out, aren’t they?” Eda sighs, shaking her head. 

“Give them time,” Luz encourages, “Maybe by the end of the night, they’ll hug! Or even kiss!”

“We don’t have all night to wait for that!” King says before thinking, “Well, we do, but I’m too impatient for that!”

Hooty watches everyone’s frowns and clears his throat. 

“Don't worry! I'll take care of this shyness and give them their courage through SONG!"

“WHAT.” Willow. 

“Wait, no, please—” King. 

“That might be interesting, actually,” Gus. 

“Well, I’ve never heard Owlboy sing.” Eda.

“Hey, Hooty, maybe we shouldn’t rush them—” Luz.

“Never fear! Your uncle Hooty’s here!” Hooty trills, before turning to Eda and Gus, “Goops, Owl Lady! Get those illusion magic rolling!”

“Why am I agreeing to this,” Gus groans, drawing a blue spell circle in the air. 

“Well, Goops, are you ready to perform a show of a lifetime?” Eda winks. Gus nods. 

“Let’s do it, Eda!”

Y/N AND HUNTER’S POV

It was awkwardly quiet again. Hunter clears his throat, “So, um, Y/N, I—”

Then, a smooth and savvy voice sings, 

“There, you see her. Sitting there across the way. She don’t got a lot to say but there’s something about her~”

Y/N catches Hooty’s grin before he retracts into the ocean. She begins to hear music, quiet and soft. When Hunter glances to Hooty’s direction, Hooty splashes back to sing in his ear, 

“And you don’t know why but you’re dying to try you wanna, kiss the girl!”

“D-did you hear something?” Hunter asks, turning over to Y/N. She only shrugs, giving him a sheepish smile. 

Ducks begin to emerge from the water, acting like instrumentals as Hooty sings, 

“Yes, you want her. Look at you you know it’s true!”

Hunter reddens, “Is it just me or is someone singing..”

“Possible she wants you too, there’s one way to ask her!”

“I-I…” Y/N’s face also erupts in pink.

“It don’t take a word, not a single word, go on and kiss the girl!”

Y/N leans closely, and Hunter does, and she can feel his breath on her lips until–

He leans back, rowing them again as he avoids her eyes, still red in the face. 

When he brings an oar up, frogs rest on the head, 

“Sha-la-la-la! My, oh my, look at the boy too shy he ain’t gonna kiss the girl!”

“Sha-la-la-la-la! Ain’t that sad, ain’t that a shame, too bad, he gonna miss the girl~”

“You know, I feel kinda horrible. My coven’s going after your friend, the Owl Lady?” he tries to strike up a conversation. “I wish I could just tell them to stop.”

“Oh, Hunter, it’s not your fault that they hate wild magic,” she gently places a hand onto his, and when he feels her featherlight touch he jolts, but he doesn’t pull away, only squeezing it tighter. Y/N’s face brightens, pink settling in her cheeks. 

“Now’s your moment,” Hooty sings as they float into a crystal cave, “Floating in a blue lagoon. Boy you better do it soon, no time will be better..”

“Can I just say how p-oretty you look, in that dress?” he stutters. Her eyes widen, 

“W-well, thank you, Hunter…I really like that t-tie on you, you know..”

“I picked it in your favorite color,” he replies softly. 

A ring of fireflies suddenly appear, flying in a circle around the boat. Slowly, the boat swims to a stop. 

“H-Hunter, I..”

“C-Can I kiss you, Y/N?” he asks abruptly, then reddens as he realizes how quick he had said it. “O-only if you want to, of course.”

“Sha-la-la-la don’t be scared, you’ve got the mood prepared!”

The song softens as Y/N takes his hand, gently resting it on her face, 

“I would l-love to kiss you, Hunter.”

And they move closer, breaths hitching as they both glance at each other’s lips. Then they lock lips, both sighing against their skin. It was gentle, soft, quiet. 

Until it wasn’t. Y/N feels her face heat up as he kisses harder, full of passion. She reciprocates, smelling his breath of mint and lavender.

They both fall over, with Y/N on top of Hunter and him under her, still kissing intensely. 

“Sha-la-la-la, float along! And listen to the song! The song says, kiss the girl.”

They break apart, out of breath. Hunter’s ears are red as he blushes, until Y/N giggles quietly. He chuckles, then the two laugh, giddy and excited at their newfound love. 

“We should, uh, do this more often.” Hunter. 

“You think?” Y/N. 

“I do.” Hunter.

She smiles before giving him another kiss, 

“I’d love to.”

HEXSQUAD’S POV

Cheers erupt as everyone high-fives, 

“We did it! We actually did it!” Willow whoops. Gus grins, “Remind me to listen to Hooty’s suggestions more next time.”

“Good job, Hoots!” Eda smiles as Hooty appears, rubbing his head affectionately, “I doubted you, not going to lie, but you did it in the end!”

“I’m such a good singer, aren’t I!” Hooty says happily. 

Then—

“Y/N! I FOUND THEM! THEY WERE SPYING ON US!”

[morhido]

Wait hang on i have a concept. Hunter going to lilith about his crush on willow.

Not for advice, mind you. All the adults in his life have this awfully nuanced view on romance and quite frankly they don't UNDERSTAND how fucking feral his hormones are going right now. Do grimwalkers even have hormones? He doesn't know but it sure feels like it!!!

And even steve, the youngest of the adults, is annoyingly cheesy about the whole thing, speaking as an experienced older brother. "Just be yourself"?? When the FUCK has that ever helped anyone????

Okay so. Lilith. She's 1) not too close to the situation, 2) far from likely to give him any sort of cheesy advice, and 3) GUARANTEED not to judge him for it (because there is no way in the nine circles of hell he is talking about it with gus, and while he loves luz and amity, their little fantasy romace brains mixed in with the fact that they're willow's best friends would almost certainly cloud their judgement, at least a little).

So it ends up with him and lilith at a table or smthn, hunter screaming about his stupid little teenage boy feelings and lilith sort of just humming and nodding along as she flips through a book. She's not there to help him in his inspiring coming of age story wherein he learns to be his best self and pursue his dreams in the form of a pretty girl. She's just there because she honestly thinks the poor kid might explode if he keeps it tucked away for any longer.

So he's sat opposite her and he's just like "TITAN. TITAN SHE'S SO COOL. And pretty. Did i mention she's pretty?? The prettiest. Hooooly fuck."

"Hm yes yes, eyes the colour of eucalyptus leaves and whatnot."

"RIGHT and like. Have i mentioned that i like her voice? Also so pretty. So cute."

"Ah yes, children are always just sooo adorable."

"NOT LIKE THAT CUTE. Like. Okay gus is cute in the same way flapjack is cute. Right. Like you wanna just. Ahh. Y'know. But THE CAPTAIN. CUTE LIKE. CUTE-CUTE."

"Wow."

"Y E AH"

"Okay. So your captain is... cute-cute. Go on."

"But she's also like INSANELY strong?? Like it should be ILLEGAL to be that pretty and also that strong. Not actually illegal though bc then i would have had to arrest her a long time ago. And that would have been sad."

"Mh, and we don't want that, do we?"

"I've gone my whole life without a SINGLE crush and now!! She has killed me. She has singlehandedly killed me. I'm dead, lilith. If you even care."

"Okay."

"And FL Y ER DER BY?? MAN i can't believe she managed to get me hooked on that sport. Like it's seriously so fun. Ha. I went from wanting almost nothing to do with her or that sport to talking about girls with my old colleague. ....well, singular girl. You're kinda just There. (Thank you for being here btw i /gen appreciate it)"

"Oh girls? I can talk about girls. Did you know edalyn once broke a wall of the house playing grudgby? Like. Not even just a window. The entire wall."

"I AM ABOUT TO BREAK!! LOVE HAS GIVEN ME VIOLENT TENDENCIES!!!!"

"One time to cope with her crush on raine eda sicced a griffon on them. Ah, young love. I assume."

"wh A t"

[nenilein]

Drama CD #7-3: Yu and Rei’s Lingering Regrets? (ENG)

[DISCLAIMER: This translation was made by me! Feel free to repost parts of it or the entire text wherever you want as long as you credit the translator correctly!]

Happy Birthday, Yu and Rei! To celebrate the occasion, I decided to finally post this translation here! (It was previously only available as a Google Doc)

_________________

INTRO

Yu: Yu and Rei’s… dwindling outlets!

Rei: …Lingering regrets.

-

STORY

Yu: Hey there, I’m Yu! And I’m here… to haunt the pants off of you!

Amitie: EEEK! Don’t just jump out and scare me like that, geez!

Yu: Hey, young lady over there! Won’t you come and join us on our skyward vacation as a whole new ghost!?

Raffina: No thank you! As if I would ever lower myself to becoming something that can’t have these beautiful legs! 

Yu: Heyo, nice girl over there! Sorry to just pop in but here comes a POP QUIZ!

Lidelle: Eek! W…W-W…What is it about…?

Yu: What never eats and never sleeps, and yet always stays full of energy and healthy!?

Lidelle: Um… well… That’s, uh…

Yu: The answer is: A ghost! So it’s time for you to become a ghost too! 

Lidelle: N…Nooooo! Please, stop it! 

Yu: Oho, young man over there! 

Sig: GOODBYE.

-

Yu: Whoa, today sure was fun again! Right, Rei?

Rei: Yeah. Sure was.

Yu: Right! So, so, so! Let’s keep at it! Today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow! As long as I’m with you, Rei, life as a ghost will never be boring! 

Rei: Hm…

Yu: Huuuuh? Rei, what’s wrong…? You look like you’re thinking about something.

Rei: Yeah, I guess I’ve been thinking… a bit lately…

Yu: Well if that’s how it is! Never fear! For Yu is here! Doesn’t matter what it is that you’re wondering about! I’ll have it figured out in a jiffy! 

Rei: So, why… Why are we ghosts…? Is what I’ve been wondering…

Yu: Huuuuh? What’cha mean? 

Rei: I’ve been a ghost as long as I can think… But, why? Why am I like this…? I just can’t remember anything from before… 

Yu: Hmmmmm….! Wow, you came up with some trivia even I can’t give an answer to!

Rei: Yu…

Yu: Alrighty, let’s go and ask someone who looks like they might know! 

Rei: Huh…?

Yu: Let’s go! Go! Ghost step ahead! 

Rei: Step… without legs…?

-

Yu: And that’s why we’re here! Hi there, Mr. Bespectacled Knows-it-All!

Klug: My name is KLUG! Gh… What are you here for!? Another pop quiz, perhaps? Or… You aren’t trying to make me into a ghost again are y-!?”

Yu: BZZZZZZZ! Sorry, wrong answer! Today we’re haunting you for consultation! 

Rei: …We’re consulting you.

Klug: A… About what…?

Yu: We’re asking: How and why did the two of us become ghosts?!

Rei: How and why…?

Klug: Huh? Why you two became ghosts? Hm… Let’s see… To my knowledge… It is generally believed that a soul is likely to become a ghost if it has strong lingering regrets and attachments left in the living world… 

Yu: Oh, I see! So maybe we just left some bread in the oven!

Klug: Regrets, not baguettes! 

Yu: Or maybe we never finished sewing all the sequins on that dress…!

Klug: Regrets, not paillettes!

Yu: Or maybe we had a favorite newspaper we never finished reading…!

Klug: REGRETS, not GAZETTES!

Yu: Just a few more of those twilit evenings…!

Klug: REGRETS, NOT SUNSETS!

Yu: Those powerful emotions left by an unfinished business, that tie us to this world!!

Klug: ONCE AGAIN! REGRETS, NOT REGRE– uh. Huh?

Yu: Ahahahahaha! You nailed that punchline, thank you very much!

Rei: Many thanks.

Klug: Argh…! You are driving me insane! I shall excuse myself now, goodbye!

Yu: And thus Klug left, trying to look as smart as possible! 

Rei: Because you did a number on him, Yu…

-

Yu: And thus we are now here, with that very certain girl, who probably knows a thing or two about all things occult, and another three or four about how to be just the slightest tad terrifying!!

Rei: Here we are…

Feli: The twin ghosts… What are you plotting? Did you come to let me exorcise you off this mortal coil once and for all? 

Yu: Aaaaaaahhh! She’s just as scary as e-ever! But, but! That’s not what we’re here for! 

Rei: Yeah. We’re not.

Yu: We come to you on this fine day because we’ve got a question to ask!

Rei: An important question.

Feli: Hm… That’s unusual of you. Very well. I shall let you speak.

Yu: You see! The two of us have no idea why we ended up becoming ghosts! 

Feli: And why in the world would I know that?

Yu: Whoa!! Talk about being rebuffed! Um, UM…! Oh! Then, then! Why don’t you try to read our pasts? You’re so good at fortune telling, I’m sure you can make it work somehow! 

Rei: …somehow.

Feli: I • Don’t • Want • To.  It is most likely for the better if you don’t know it, anyway.

Yu: HUUUUUH? Why, why? 

Feli: Well, let’s suppose you did find out. What would you do with that knowledge? 

Yu: Um, well… It’s just that Rei…

Rei: I want to know. It’s… always been bothering me.

Feli: Whatever. Go home. Don’t keep  thinking about these things.

Yu. HUUUUUH? Ah! I get it! You just can’t do it! 

Feli: …Heh?

Yu: I’m right, right? You don’t know the truth, AND you don’t have any faith in your ability to divine it, either! That’s why you don’t wanna tell us!

Feli: What did you just say?! …Well, if you are going to insult me, very well! Just watch me! I shall peer into the fate that befell you • In • The • Past… 

[magic noises]

Feli: KiiiiiiAAAAAAAHHHH!!!

[magic noises]

Yu: AAAAHH! She’s doing something!!

Rei: She is.

-

Rei: Hey, Yu! Yu! What’s wrong? Aw, why are you holed up back here all on your own again? 

Yu: R-Rei… I was just reading a book…

Rei: Oh, c’mon Yu, the weather is so nice outside! Let’s go out and play together! What else do we have so many friends for?

Yu: Um… I… uh… I am more comfortable… back here… where it’s quiet.

Rei: Huh? Really? 

Yu: And… uh… The others might just call me… ‘depressing’ again…

Rei: I’m sure they won’t! And if they do, I’ll protect you! I’ll always be by your side, Yu, so don’cha ever worry! 

Yu: You’ll… always be with me…? Really?

Rei: Sure! We’re twins! As long as we’re together, there’s nothing we have to be scared of!

Yu: Y…Yeah. You’re right. As long as I’m with you, Rei…

[magic noises. There is a scene transition.]

-

Rei: Huh? Why does my body feel so light all of a sudden? Yu…? Yu, where are you?

Yu: I’m here…

Rei: Yu! You’re floating! 

Yu: Ahahah… You’re floating too, Rei.

Rei: Yu… What’s going on…?

Yu: What’s happened to us…? …Well, I don’t mind. Looks like we can still stay together, and that’s all that matters. And… I feel so light now… all that weight has fallen off my heart, too! 

Rei: We’re… together…?

Yu: I’m sure as long as we’re together, every day will be fun, no matter what becomes of us! Forever and ever! We’ll be HAPPY foreeeeever now!

-

[magic noises. There is a scene transition.]

Lemres: Feli… FELI!

Feli: Ah!

Lemres: Feli…

Feli (trembling voice): L…L-L-L-LEMRES!! W-Why are you… here…?

Lemres: I was just passing through, that’s all. I think you should stop this reading while you’re ahead. Okay? 

Feli: Y…Y-Y-Yeah… E-E-E-Excuse me…

Yu: HUUUH?! So, so! How was it?! What did you see? Tell us, tell us!

Rei: Please tell us.

Feli: Uh…. [she stays quiet for a while] …The divination failed. 

Yu: HUUUUH? 

Rei: Huh?

Feli: Unrelated memories… disturbed the flow of what I was trying to read…

Yu: Oh noooo…! Hmpf! HMPF!

Lemres: I guess even our Feli can have an off day sometimes. Alright, let’s call it a day! I’ll give you all some niiice, sweet chocolate, so let’s all go home, okay?

Yu: Oh sweet! Now I can’t stay mad. That chocolate makes me melt, like it’s melting in my mouth! …Hey, Rei, are you okay with that?

Rei: Um.... Yeah, I guess…

Yu: Alrighty, with that all settled! See ya next scare! Bye-bye! 

Rei: Bye-bye…

[They leave]

Feli: L…Lemres… I saw…

Lemres: Feli. 

Feli: Lemres…

Lemres: I guess you saw something really strange, huh? Maybe you still need to train your power more, so you have better control over it. 

Feli: … Yes… Maybe that is just it…No, I mean… I’m sure you’re right. 

Lemres: Aw, c’mon, don’t make that face. Come with me. I’m taking you out for some dessert. 

Feli: …! I’m coming! 

Lemres: As they say… chocolate makes you melt… hm…

-END

[mango-sp1ce]

Hm….

trying to cross all my fandoms can be a little hard, but let’s think about it for a moment.

So wed definitely have Danny phantom, but not based in amity (or his dimension). Cause I just don’t like having the small town hero be in his small town.

now, to tackle Lmk and Batman. This could go either way. I really like the DCU universe, but the same can be said about the Lmk setting.

So we’d either end up with Mk (and probably a secondary, like Macaque or Wukong) in Gotham. Or the entire Batfam (I feel bad just picking one of em) in the setting of Lego Monkie Kid.

and Danny’s just there as well.

as I said, this can go a lot of ways. Mk vigilanting it out with Danny phantom in Gotham while also trying to not level the city because that’s an actual problem he has to keep proper track of now. And showing his face seems like it might be a no-go which is new cause usually no one really cares that he’s the monkie kid, but now that’s a problem.

Oh, and the batfam gets to deal with the two overwhelming powerful beings.

or

The batfam trying to get used to a world where no one gives a fuck if you’re both Batman and Bruce Wayne. A world with villains who don’t actually seek you out at your own home often, and it’s usually just straight silly if they do. Where normal people who fight bad guys don’t stay normal for long, weither that’s due to gods and sages or something else.

a world where a random delivery guy has the power to level a city, and no one’s even told him not to. They just expect it of him to know not to, and only get slightly annoyed when he accidently does. He’s powerful and reckless and emotional, and just everything that they’re all so used to making an absolute mess of a hero and yet here he still stands, as if this is all stable.

and his mentors, ugh, god don’t get the batfamily started on his mentors.

[omegasmileyface]

Of All the People - Ch. 12

yippeee!! here's the beginning note straight from the ao3 upload: It's done! This is our longest chapter by far at about 7k, so if it's late at night, I'd recommend going to bed before reading this. It's not quite long enough to put a reminder to take a break in it, so make sure you're keeping track of your needs! Alright, carry on, and I hope you enjoy! the end note will also be pasted at the end of this upload.

this concludes the Invisobang fic @attackradish and @ectolemonades and I have been working on this year! Thanks again ti @toasty-ghosti for the art in chapter 1!

whole fic summary: After a stupid dare puts Dash Baxter in the lab at Fentonworks during the middle of a ghost fight, he finds himself a little more spectral than usual. Apparently Danny Fenton’s gone through the same thing (someone has got to call OSHA on these guys eventually), and who could better help Dash than his hero? His lame, stubborn hero?

warnings: Penelope Spectra.

words: 7313

AO3 link

first chapter

previous chapter

===

It was a blessing of a November day. The skies had cleared, the sun warmed the back of Dash’s jacket despite the chilly air, and Danny was right next to him. They were just walking to Fenton Works for some regular training, but something about the weather made it feel almost magical. 

It was only the two of them. Sam and Tucker had disappeared with his friends again, not that he minded. He couldn’t have planned a better day for a walk if he tried. Amity's prized maples hadn’t lost their candy-red leaves yet, the breeze was playing with Danny’s hair, and the air smelled like wood and sugar. He almost didn’t notice when they took a different turn than usual. Probably just taking a scenic route, the long way ‘round in the last good weather of the year. Hey, maybe he'd even caught on to what Dash was thinking and was taking him somewhere a little more romantic.

“So…” Dash fiddled with the bottom of his jacket. “Why are we going this way?”

“Hm?”

“Not that I mind or anything, I’m just… wondering. I mean, Fenton Works is that way.”

“Well,“ said Danny, gliding into a bricked-off alley, “you’ve been getting better at flying, and I think some agility training is in order.” He slung his backpack off his shoulder and dropped it in a corner. 

“Agility training? Here?” He looked around at his surroundings. Some loose trash, a dumpster, a rusty fire escape. Dandelion corpses. 

“Yeah! I mean, you’re gonna be chasing ghosts around someday, and God knows this is where you’ll be chasing them. Might as well get some practice in.” Danny smiled, and then transformed just as easily. 

“Prac… Wait, am I gonna be chasing a real ghost? Is that what you mean?” Dash's chest buzzed with nervous excitement. He’d been looking forward to being officially ready to fight ghosts, but that didn’t stop him from being anxious. 

Danny flashed a devilish grin. “I’m a ghost. Chase me.” With that, he rocketed into the air. Oh of course. That made way more sense. Dash wrestled his backpack off as he went ghost and tried to take off after Danny. His weightlessness wavered for a moment, but with a short burst of concentration he was able to stabilize himself and shoot over the building. 

At a glance, the skies looked empty. A few clouds drifted lazily by, the sea of buildings was stone-still, there weren’t even any pigeons.

There! A flash of movement caught his eye, an inky streak disappearing behind a water tower. Before long, Phantom’s head peeked out the other side. When their eyes locked, Danny stuck his tongue out and rocketed away. The chase was on. 

Needles of chilly air stung Dash's face, and the wind tugged at his jacket in a way that made him feel more alive than ever. He could gain some ground on Danny, but before Dash could tag him, he’d dart away in a completely different direction, leaving Dash careening to follow. The way Danny twisted was almost liquid. It was mesmerizing. So mesmerizing that he nearly flew face first into a plate-glass window. 

Intangibility saved him not a moment too soon. Dash Baxter was interested in being many things, and a pancake was not one of them. 

“Y’know, this would be a lot easier if you used your tail,” Danny teased through the glass.

“Shut up.” He’d only used his tail once and he hated it. It made him feel ghostly, and not in a cool way. In a dead, shouldn’t-be-here kind of way. 

“Suit yourself.” Danny shrugged and flew away with a little loop-de-loop. Dash narrowed his eyes. He had to prove Danny wrong, and he knew exactly how he was going to do it. 

He was able to spot Danny fairly quickly, soaring casually just below roof level. Dash gave chase, and Danny sped up once he noticed. Good. He caught Danny shooting glances back, probably calculating the exact moment to slip away and bother Dash the most. The next time Danny glanced, Dash swerved behind a building the moment his eyes were averted again. He started accelerating, hoping to overtake him before he looked back again and knew something was up. As soon as there was space to turn again, he whipped around as tightly as he could, swinging right in front of Danny. Before his target had time to react, they’d slammed into each other. 

The impact knocked the air right out of him. Dazed, flying was the last thing on his mind as he struggled to catch his breath. He didn’t realize he’d begun falling until he felt Danny’s arms around him. He let himself be guided to the nearest rooftop, where he sank into a sitting position against a wall. 

“Dash? Are you okay?”

Dash grinned victoriously. “Tag,” he wheezed.

“Dash, you’re hurt! Is that…” He sighed, but a smile slipped through. “Of course you’d do something like this. You won! Got me fair and square.” 

“And I… didn’t even have to use my stupid… tail.” 

“Gotta say, I’m really impressed. You’re going to have to use it eventually though.” 

Dash scoffed. He’d see about that. “I don’t know, I think I’ll just keep getting better at this. Invent a new style of flying that’ll keep all the ghosts on their toes.” 

Danny sat down next to him. “If you say so.”

“Y’know, earlier when I thought I’d be chasing Boxy or somethin’, it got me thinking. About finally getting to start ghost fighting officially.”

“Hm?”

“And I didn’t feel totally ready for that, even though I’m really looking forward to it, but that’s not my point. Now, I’ll need a hero name when we start fighting together, right?” 

Danny chuckled. “I guess. What do you have in mind?” 

“Well, you’re Danny Phantom, and—“

“You can’t be Dash Phantom.”  

“What? No! I might be your biggest fan but I’m not that clueless. I was thinking what kind of ghosts sound like Baxter, and maybe Dash Banshee?” 

Danny nodded thoughtfully, but then his face twisted into a smirk. “Nah, I think you should be Inviso-Bill.”

“No! Absolutely not.” 

“I had to deal with that for how long, nine months? I think it’s only fair!” Danny crossed his arms. 

“Hero names? For you?” said a chillingly familiar voice. “I love the ambition, Dash, but let’s be realistic.” Standing there in three-inch heels, a crimson pencil skirt, a blazer to match, and unmistakable hair was Penelope Spectra. 

Danny was at his feet. “What the hell do you want, Spectra?"

“I heard you have a boyfriend now. This him? Hm. I think you could do better.” 

“What? No I don’t.”

There goes that fantasy. 

“Oh, excellent news. I was worried there for a sec! There were some rumors, and I just had to come see who’d won over the Phantom’s heart. And when I saw him…” she paused to look Dash in the eye for the first time, grimacing. “Let’s just say he’s not the one.” 

“Excuse me?“ Dash demanded. His blood burned with anger. 

She turned back to Danny. “Sure, he does rock that varsity jacket skinny jeans combo, but I remember counseling this kid. He’s just some football-star wannabe with a future in minimum wage.”

“Shut up and get around to stealing my DNA or whatever stupid thing you have planned. We don’t have time for this.” 

“No plans! It would just be such a shame to see a hero like you throw away his future for some mediocre parasite.” 

“I said, shut up!” he barked, and Dash felt the sound in his bones. 

Spectra sighed. “If you insist. Before I go, there’s a special guest who’d like to see you.” 

“Hey, Fenwipe. Miss me?” sneered a voice that made Dash’s throat seize. 

Dash- no, something that looked like him appeared behind Danny. When he turned around, not-Dash socked him square in the face. 

“Man, I wish there were lockers up here. Then it would be just like old times!” 

Danny glanced back and searched out Dash's eyes until they met. He didn't see the kidney punch until it sent him curling into himself. A pang of guilt twisted Dash’s stomach. This was because he was here. 

Dash hurried to his feet, and Spectra was standing beside him. “You must think you’re really something. Playing in the big leagues, cooking with gas, Mr. MVP. After all, your boyfriend is a superhero! At that, one who loves you so much he’s willing to take a beating just for the sake of your feelings.” She paused, her patronizing smile widening into a grinchlike sneer. “But deep down you know you don’t really deserve it.”

Dash was sweating. “Can it! I know what you are. You’re just some ghost who lies to people and feeds on their misery.” 

“You’re a ghost too, in case you’ve forgotten. What do you feed on? Attention? Love? Approval?" She stepped forward, and the space between them wasn't enough to breathe in. "What sort of lies have you been telling to get them?”

“None, actually. Because I’m better than you!” That’ll shut her up. He stepped back to reclaim the space, but she took another forward. 

“You can’t really believe that. You’re too smart to fall into such a simple delusion. Unless… you haven’t changed at all.” 

He bit back a reply. She’d just twist his words back at him again. She kept coming. 

“You’re the same bully who sentenced Danny to a locker every morning for the crime of being a loser. Deep down you don’t feel guilty— you just had the wrong target, that’s all. It’s fine as long as the person’s actually uncool, right?” 

It was like the skin on his chest had been pulled back and his insides were left in clear view— but they weren’t his. Everyone was looking at the horrible things he used to be like a clot of hair from a shower drain and it made him feel disgusting. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the ghost wearing his face slam Danny’s head against the edge of the roof. Is that all people saw in him?

“Struck a chord there, didn’t I? Your silence is admirable. Most people would lower themselves to grasping at straws, but not you. You know when you’ve been caught.” 

He grit his teeth. I’m not taking the bait. It doesn’t matter what Spectra thinks, Spectra sucks. 

She left him a moment of quiet, a moment to think about responding. His thoughts got antsy, but they never left his mouth.

She smiled wider, and continued on as if she hadn't stopped. “You’re nothing but a lying brute trying to worm your way into any hearts you can get your hands on. Like that time at the museum. You looked so earnest and interested! You really had Danny tricked. Oscar-worthy performance. And when you’re not lying, you’re hiding the truth. Like when you didn’t tell Danny that your friends found out his secret. Or what you’ve been doing to your poor mother.”

That caught him off guard. My mom? What did he do to his mom? Confusion must have crept onto his face, because Spectra gave him a look that could be confused for a pity smile by anyone who hadn't been her victim.

“You haven’t told her yet, have you? That her son died? That Dash Baxter, the light of her life, met a grisly end in the basement of Fenton Works, and you took his place? I’m sure you only want to protect her from the grief, but isn’t it just a little selfish? You know what’s going to happen if she finds out what you really are. After all, how could she love a life-stealing nobody like you?” 

“Shut the fuck up! And don’t ever let me catch you talking shit about my mom again. She’s the most loving person you’ll ever meet, and she’d never do that to me!” Dash roared. 

“Then why do you keep it secret? Forcing her to sleep in the same house as her son’s corpse every night? You’re worse than I thought, you sadistic freak.” 

Enough was enough. Dash didn’t care that his last ghost fight ended in disaster, or that Spectra could probably deck him. All that mattered was the boiling rage that threatened to burst every vessel in his body, and the searing energy that exploded through his arm and out his fist. 

Spectra stumbled backwards in shock, clutching her stomach. Her shock curdled into fury, and obsidian flames enveloped her body. “You’re going to regret that,” she snarled.

===

“Hey Fenwipe, miss me?” 

Danny turned around, a fist eclipsing his vision before his skull filled with pain. 

It took him a second to process what he was seeing through the stars in his vision. It looked like Dash. Intense blue eyes, apple-red letterman jacket, and a cocky, sadistic smirk that he hadn’t seen since the accident. But behind the face there wasn’t a whiff of human emotion. Bertrand, had to be. 

“Man, I wish there were lockers up here. Then it would be just like old times.” 

Assuming fighting stance, Danny was about to strike when he remembered Dash. What if he takes it the wrong way, like Valerie did when I destroyed her empty suit? He looked over his shoulder, Dash’s expression of slack-jawed horror significantly less enlightening than he’d—

FUCK! His body folded in on itself. Right in the kidneys. That was a terrible idea. 

“Hey! I’m over here, Fengeek.” Sneered the impostor. “Didn’t last time teach you not to care about that deadweight?” 

Bertrand swung again. Danny felt the displaced air graze his suit just after his frantic dodge. 

“C’mon, aren’t you going to fight back? Don’t tell me you care about a guy who treated you like this, huh?” 

Dash probably won’t mind. It’s not like he’s gonna think I thought it was him. Fuck it, we ball. He saw an opening, and jabbed Bertrand right in the solar plexus. 

“There we go. Now we’re getting somewhere!” Bertrand threw another punch, barely missing him. Danny grabbed his wrist, and swiftly twisted it behind his back. Dash’s voice yelped in pain. 

“Bet you’ve been waiting a long time for this,” he said, an octave higher. “Giving that jerk a taste of his own medicine, paying him back for everything he’s done…” Bertrand’s joints popped, then his body went jellylike as it contorted into a new position. They were face to face now. “And best of all, there aren’t any consequences.” 

Bertrand’s free hand grabbed his face, cracking his head against a brick corner. 

“Doesn’t this face just scream 'punch me'?” He flashed a mocking, nearly playful grin. His hair wasn’t even messed up. Danny’s fist was itching. He almost had a point.

The punch landed with a satisfying thwack, and guilt coiled in his stomach for how much he enjoyed it. 

“See? You don’t really want to redeem him. You want to beat the stuffing out of him. No amount of warm fuzzies from seeing him become a decent person will beat the feeling of bones under flesh, and that taste of terror and regret dancing across your tongue.” 

He clenched his fists tighter, holding back an ectoblast that would certainly fry Bertrand’s fl… wait, Bertrand doesn’t have human flesh. He’s a ghost. In a flash of green, Bertrand was sent stumbling back. He seemed stunned, and before he could resist Danny whipped out his thermos and sucked him in. 

Ancients, dealing with him was exhausting. He took a couple deep breaths, and rubbed the back of his head. His hair was matting, and a little sticky.

Crap, he’d left Dash alone with Spectra. Dash was a couple rooftops over, like he’d been trying to get away. Spectra was still talking, her full attention on Dash. Maybe if he caught her off guard, he could thermos her without having to fight. He quietly lifted his feet off the roof and slowly floated towards her. 

Rage choked the air. He tried to make out what Spectra was saying. 

“…every night? You’re worse than I thought, you sadistic freak.” 

There was a flash of gold, and the scream of an ectoblast. Spectra stumbled back. She stood still, clutching her stomach, apprehension stretching the seconds taut. A plume of pitch-black flame roared up her body, and her true form hovered threateningly over Dash. 

Her tail lashed back and forth. She growled. “You’re going to regret that.” She unleashed a volley of ectoblasts, sending Dash scrambling.

“Hey Spectra! Forget about someone?” Danny shouted, lobbing an ectoblast of his own. She dodged and carried through the turn to face him. 

“I see you took care of Bertrand. He couldn’t convince you, it seems. I still can’t wrap my head around how you care so much for this heap of garbage.” 

A shot from Dash grazed her shoulder. She whipped around, and he ducked back behind the AC unit he was using as cover. 

“You little…” she hissed, diving after him. There was a loud thud, and an intangible Dash surfaced next to Danny. 

“Got her with the old ‘hide in the floor’ trick,” he grinned. 

“You okay?” 

Dash looked stunned. “Yeah, sure. Sticks and stones and whatever.” 

Danny doubted him, but now wasn’t the time to pry. Spectra was taking too long to reappear. There’s no way she hit the roof hard enough to knock herself out. He was trying to think where she might have gone when a shadow grew next to his. In an instant, his whole back felt like it was on fire. 

“Two can play at that game,” said Spectra's voice from behind him. Danny spun around. As he fired an ectoblast, Spectra grabbed Dash like a shield. 

The shot hit. 

Dash cried out. 

Danny’s core seized. 

He was supposed to Protect Dash, not… the wound was all he could look at. Singed fabric, the puckered skin of a fresh ecto-burn, the curving lines of an odd scar. Nothing major, but Dash had curled in on himself. It wasn’t until the rings appeared that it clicked.

He’d hit his death mark. 

Spectra returned to her human guise, dropping Dash like a sack of wet garbage. 

“That’s a very interesting scar, I heard it’s your father’s work.” Spectra paused, watching for his reaction. “Is that why you’re doing this? To make up for his mistakes? So noble of you, caring so gently for someone who mistreated you for so long, and with no reward. You’ll never undo what he’s done, scrub his blood from your veins, or even be anything more than the son of a monster.”

She didn't even get it. She didn't seem to understand what he had just done. Danny hadn't even thought of his dad during all this. He'd heard that train of thought from Vlad too many times for it to strike any interest anymore. 

But Spectra being on the wrong thread was a good sign. If he could get her to think she was sending him down some dark path, maybe he could get to his real focus. He might even get the chance to look over Dash and make sure he was alright. Get him somewhere safe, maybe. Somewhere Danny couldn't hurt him anymore.

“You’re right, it’s all I can think about,” Danny said, as defeated and crestfallen as he could muster.

It wasn't hard, with the way Dash was struggling to breathe.

Spectra’s nose wrinkled. “No, that’s not it. There’s something else going on.” She leaned closer to Danny, and her eyes went wide. 

“Ohohoho, you sneaky devil! I can’t believe it. It was you!” Spectra clapped with giddiness. She glanced back at Dash, who hadn’t moved. 

“You did it on purpose,” she whispered. “At first I was wondering why you’d pick him, but he’s perfect. You turned him into a freak, and used that to draw him closer. He feels safe, understood, and he knows that you’re the only person who’ll love him now. He’s yours forever! I’m so proud of you, Phantom. You’re finally becoming a real ghost.” She pulled a handkerchief out of her breast pocket, and dabbed fake tears from her eyes. 

A pang of guilt crept into his chest. What if Dash did feel that way, because of some offhanded remark or something he said while explaining the importance of staying hidden? Is Dash going to have life-long self worth issues because of this? 

Snap out of it, Danny. Spectra was just messing with him. If it felt true to Dash, he could deal with that later. Right now he had a job to do. 

“Alright. You’ve had your fun, now get in.” He raised his thermos. Spectra snatched it. 

“No, I don’t think I will. You may be the apple of my eye, but I’m not going down that easily.”

“Hey! Give that back!” Danny grabbed it, but Spectra held it tight. 

“Why? I’m just going to set Bertrand free, and we’ll be on our merry way.” She tugged, and his fingers slipped to the base of the thermos. 

“That’s not how this works.” 

“I don’t think that’s up to you right now.” She tugged again, and the thermos came free. 

Danny grabbed at it, but Spectra held it out of his reach. Her thumb neared the release button. He wouldn’t get it in time. His outstretched hand glowed. Praying this would work, he shot the thermos. 

It landed with a clang far behind Spectra. Bolting after it, Danny outpaced Spectra by a hair. Clutching the thermos as tightly as he could, he held it close to his chest to keep her from grabbing it. Spectra’s nails tore his suit, and her knee dug into his kidney as she tried to get leverage. 

“Danny! Pass it here!”

Danny’s heart leapt. Dash was okay! He peeked around Spectra’s head. He was standing, at least. Still human, and his face looked ragged. He was waving his hand frantically. 

Passing wasn’t his forte, but it wasn’t like he had any better options. He bucked Spectra off, wound up, and lobbed it as hard as he could. Dash jumped to catch it, and took off running. 

“Dash! What are you doing? Get Spectra!” 

“What?”

Spectra pounced on him, wresting the thermos from his hands. 

“Thank you, Mr. Baxter. I liked you better when you weren’t moving so much.” She aimed a glowing hand at Dash’s chest. Dash shot first, and she fumbled the thermos. Danny snagged it, flying out of reach. Spectra slipped intangibly out of Dash’s attempts to hold her down. 

Damn, she was fast. Before he could even aim at her, she was right up in his face. He soared higher, trying to keep her out of grabbing distance. It wasn’t easy. He didn’t even have enough room to fire an ectoblast without giving her a handhold. It didn’t look like he was going to outrun her anytime soon. 

But maybe he didn’t have to. Dash was still on the ground. Throwing the thermos past Spectra wasn’t going to work, but something else might. 

Danny plunged downwards. Slamming into Spectra, his arms and tail wrapped around her before she could react. By the time she reached her arms behind her he’d already dropped the thermos. It was out of range of her telekinesis before she thought to use it. 

He watched it fall towards Dash as he restrained Spectra as best he could. She burst out of his grip moments before Dash caught it. The base of the thermos glinted silver when Dash pointed it at her. A scream rose up in Danny’s throat. At the last second, he flipped it around and Spectra disappeared into the blue vortex.

Danny came down and met the ground just as Dash fell to his knees. He waited for him to catch his breath.

“We got her. It’s over.”

“You got her. You officially caught your first ghost! I didn’t bring any party poppers, but—”

Dash burst into laughter, which slowly trailed into a cough. 

“Shit! You’re shot, I completely spaced.” 

“Spaced. Ha,” he mumbled. 

“Pull up your shirt, I need to check how bad it is.” Danny crouched down to Dash’s level. 

“NO!” Dash blurted. “I mean, not now. Please. I can’t handle someone looking at that scar. My core or whatever is acting all weird and there’s no way I can handle both.” He took a shaky breath. “I just want an ice pack for my leg, a couch to lie down on, and maybe some painkillers.” 

“It’s okay, I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to do. You’re in control.” He held his hands up placatingly. 

“Okay.”

“I think I can do something about that ice pack. Okay if I touch your leg?” 

Dash nodded. Danny cooled his hands, and laid them on Dash’s thigh. He saw his shoulders relax slightly. 

“That feels better. Thanks. I must’ve strained it when Spectra first shot at me.”

They sat in silence for a while. Dash’s eyes wandered onto Danny’s hand, up the scratches on his arm, and into the eye that had started to swell. 

“What am I doing? Dude, you’re worse off than I am. I should be the one helping you,” Dash said. “Lemme see your back, I know Spectra shot it, and then there’s what Bertrand did…” Danny didn’t protest as Dash shuffled on his knees to get a better look. 

“How’s it look back there?” 

“I mean, um, it could be worse? I’m not saying it’s not bad, but if I straight-up said ‘it’s bad’ you’d get the wrong idea. Like in those cheesy medical dramas, y’know?” 

He gave a slight nod. 

“Head wounds bleed more than normal ones, right? That’s real, not just something I heard someone say?”

“What?”

“It just looks like a lot of blood, is all, and I can’t tell how bad the cut is ‘cause it’s all red. And green. There’s green too.”

“It’s probably fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, just tell me what else is going on.”

“Well there’s the burn. It’s pink with jagged edges. Pretty big too, like if a sheet of printer paper could go splat.” 

He chuckled at the mental image. 

“I wish I had a power I could use to help, like your ice thing, or at least a first aid kit,” Dash murmured dejectedly. 

“You are helping. It’s not like I have eyes on the back of my head.” 

“But that’s not helping helping. I’m always promising something I want to do and then not delivering.”

“You delivered today.” 

“I barely managed to catch Spectra in a thermos! And before that I was all like ‘pass it here’ and then instead of doing anything useful I just started running like I’d forgotten I wiped out of football.” 

“Dash. It’s okay. Nobody got hurt. This is only your second ghost fight, and I haven’t even finished training you. You did great.” 

“I guess that’s true, but it doesn’t make up for going back on a promise. Maybe Spectra was right.” Dash hung his head. 

Danny had a small heart attack just then. “I don’t know what Spectra said to you, but I know she’s full of shit.”

“But what if she got lucky this time? I didn’t believe her at first, but fuck, man, it’s getting harder not to. Maybe I am just a fraud who’ll say anything for people to think I’m worth having around.”

“Dash. If you were a fraud you’d know for sure. It’s one of those things you have to do on purpose. You’re overenthusiastic and don’t always think things through, but that doesn’t make you a liar.”

“So maybe I’m not a fraud. Yet. But there’s something scary about how crazy I get over feeling… needed. Necessary, helpful, recognized. When I do get it I’m on cloud nine, but when I don’t… When I don’t it’s like my insides are falling apart. What if I’m an evil ghost like her? And it’s only a matter of time before I lose control?”

Ah. “Dash, that’s normal.”

“No, you don’t get it! This isn’t normal at all! There’s nothing normal about these feelings, I never felt anything like this when I was still…” Dash’s voice cracked, and he looked at Danny pleadingly.

Danny tried to make his voice soft. “Hey, it’s okay.” He put his hand across Dash's shoulder, and he flinched from the cold. Whoops. “It sounds like it’s your Obsession. Every ghost has one, it’s what keeps their core together.“

“Obsessed. That’s the word. I’m just like one of those freaks with the newspaper clippings and the red string and the crazy look in their eyes. But for, like, getting people to think a certain way about me. You said it’s a ghost thing, right? So I just have to learn how to be more human there and I’m all set?”

Danny frowned. "I mean, there are parts of you that are fundamental to keeping you running. If your heart stopped beating, your humanness would stop being human, right?"

Dash gave a clipped nod, like he wasn't sure but was willing to go with it.

"Well, if you stopped having an Obsession, your ghostness would stop being a ghost."

"Wouldn't that be easier, then? I'm used to being human!" Dash turned away and started picking at his shirt. "Maybe that would be half of me gone, but maybe it'd be simpler just to be half a human and no halves anything else."

Danny scoffed. "Sorry, but if you're anything like me, and I think you are, you're just one whole. The ghost parts are the only things keeping the human parts from just being straight-up dead. You're one system, in homeostasis."

"So, what? Why does that mean I have to be all obsessive over being something I'm not?

Danny laid down on his back, using his hands to cushion his wounded head from the ground. It was still tacky, but nothing felt newly wet. That was good. "Ghosts only occur when ectoplasm gets stuck together from emotion. It's a very chaotic substance, so it takes a lot to make particles of it work together." The sun wasn't near setting, but it was casting long shadows from the sparse clouds. Days must be getting shorter. "Ectoplasm reacts to emotions. I'm not super sure how yet, but you didn't come here for an ecology lesson. Point is, a core forms when the human emotions in some connected ectoplasm line up to wanting something that it couldn't have without having some power and solid form."

Danny rolled his head back over to see Dash was looking at him. He didn't look enraptured or anything, but Danny was just glad he was willing to hear him out before having a breakdown. "Blobs are made up of connected ectoplasm with the same human emotion holding it together, but they don't have cores, and they just sort of drift around. When they have desires, they only have desires made out of ghost emotions, and they're temporary. But since they don't have cores, they don't have much control over their form, or a sense of self, or any ability to charge their ectoplasm.

"Ghosts with cores want something. The core represents that want. It's the one human emotion a full ghost expresses, the desire that imprinted on their core. Ghosts exist because the emotions that let them form in the first place all said something like 'I need to…' uh… 'walk my dog, even though I'm dead, so I need to have a body and powers to do that.' A ghost that only exists because they need to walk their dog won't be able to get rid of that nag in the back of their head, and if they're kept from walking their dog, they're being denied their entire reason for existing. That's their Obsession."

Dash was quiet. Danny figured he'd been rambling, and let him think.

"So… what happens if they don't want it anymore? Like, if the dog dies and doesn't need to be walked?"

"Well, I guess they'd dissipate. Their core would succumb to entropy and stop holding them together." Dash paled. Shit, he did say that kind of clinically. "I mean, that's pretty rare. Most Obsessions are way more general than that, and there's always something to activate them. It's hard to get a ghost to stop caring about something." He smiled and scooched closer to where Dash was still sitting. "We're creatures of spite!"

"So I just have to keep trying to make people think they need me because some part of me will die if I stop wanting it? I'm not gonna keep fuckin' manipulating people's thoughts to make me healthy, that's dumb. Why can't we both be happy?"

"Hey, having an Obsession doesn't mean everything you do has to fulfill it. Sure, the feeling of fulfilling your purpose is incredible, and it sucks to not fulfill it, but you still make choices as long as you can acknowledge that you want it. You're a jock, have you ever been on a diet? What's it feel like when there's something you really want to eat but it doesn't fit the diet?"

Dash looked thoughtful.

"Exactly! It sucks, but you push through it because you know that desire isn't the only thing at play. I wanted to keep you out of harm's way because of my own Obsession, but you were so set on helping that I weighed my options and decided to risk denying it. If you find yourself supposedly 'manipulating' people to feel like they need you, step back and ask if that's really what you want to do, and if feeling needed is worth feeling guilty and ruining a relationship." 

Danny sat up to better look Dash in the eye. "And hey, that's something you have to do on purpose, just so you know. Wanting to feel known, wanting to feel useful, and then trying to make yourself that way, isn't the same as deciding to lie to someone. We all make mistakes, and we all act in dumb ways because we want people to like us. That's not the same as going 'hey, how about I act dishonestly about myself to trick somebody into thinking I'm somebody I'm not?' Everybody puts on a little of an act all the time. It's high school. Fuck, it's life. And death, I guess."

Dash was quiet for a bit. Danny joined in and watched the clouds get thicker as the air cooled with the low sun.

“Don't let Spectra get in your head. If you keep trying, you can be important to someone without hurting anybody. She can just make crap up and I still fall for it sometimes. Like what she said about—“

“Pfft, you don’t have to do that.” 

Danny paused. “Do what?”

“That thing you do when you’re Fenton. Pretending to be scared and insecure, rubbing your arm, even though you’re the most confident guy around.”

Danny blinked a couple times, like that would somehow change what he’d just heard. “You think I’m just confident and fearless 24/7?”

“I mean yeah, you’re Phantom! You always know what to do, you’re the coolest guy alive, not to mention strong enough to beat every ghost that’s shown its face here. Of course you’re confident and fearless 24/7.”

He struggled to find words. He’s talked to Dash how many times, and he still doesn’t think he has feelings? He’s been helping this guy through his problems, listening to him, getting to know him, even getting a little bit of a crush. Maybe a lot of a crush. And Dash just saw him as little more than a pull-string action figure?

“Am I… human to you? Was I just talking to a brick wall this whole time?”

“No! I mean… yes? Gah! I mean of course you’re human. You nerd out about space and don’t like toast and feel awful when you see people get hurt. But I saw how different you acted after I found out your secret. I know the shy frightened Danny Fenton thing is an act, and faking it to make me feel better feels condescending. 

“It’s not all an act. Sure I crank it up to eleven at school, but that doesn’t mean I don’t get scared or lose confidence in myself!”

Dash looked at him with wide eyes. Like he was processing the implications of this new information, and also waiting for him to say psych. 

“Oh. Shit. I’ve been treating you like garbage. The fight at the football field, when my friends found out your secret, heck, when I died in front of you! I thought you were just mad, but… sorry dude. Do you still need to talk about Spectra?” 

“Maybe in a bit. I’m still wound up from the whole…” he waved his hand vaguely. 

“Yeah,” Dash sighed. 

Traffic was picking up down below. Probably nearing rush hour. His parents might be worrying where he was, if they paid attention to anything other than their research. Which might make him sad if he was up too late and couldn’t sleep, but it was really convenient right now. 

Dash was fiddling with his jacket again. There wasn’t a dark spot on his shirt, so that was promising. 

"You know, you didn't really use any powers in that fight. I mean, other than the basic stuff. And ectoblasts."

Hmm? "Oh, I… guess I didn't. It's easiest just to resort to fisticuffs unless I have to get creative."

"I bet it would have been a quicker fight if you had used a couple other powers at some points."

"I kinda forget about them sometimes. Hey, maybe you can help me out with that! Pros of having a football strategist on your side."

Dash blushed and looked over the edge of the roof to the sidewalks below.

Danny looked around to see if he'd gotten multicolor blood on any surfaces. Nothing noticeable.

“Dash, have I ever made you feel like I was the only person who’d have feelings for you?” 

“What?”

“Like, because you’re a halfa. That nobody else…”

“I mean, like. Why would I be thinking about if you had feelings for me? Who said anything about that?”

Danny could have phrased that better. Just because Dash had a crush didn’t mean he was aware of it. 

“Have I been blushing or something? My doctor said I might do that randomly because of the lung… thing,” Dash stammered. 

Nope. He was aware of it. Letting him off the hook and letting him confess when he was ready was probably the right thing to do, but part of Danny wanted to see how deep a hole Dash could dig himself. Dash seemed unnerved by his silence. Then some kind of realization crossed his face. 

“Who told you?” 

“Told me what?”

“You know what I’m talking about. Was it Star? Lina? Please tell me it wasn’t Kwan.”

“No I don’t. What is it?”

“That I have a crush on you!” he shouted. His face crinkled in a way Danny didn’t expect. This isn’t the face of someone who’s been playfully drawn out of his shell. This is the face of a man betrayed. Well, shit. 

“Hey. It’s okay. Nobody told me.”

“Shut up.” 

“No, I promise. Sorry, I shouldn’t have pushed like that.” 

“Then why were you asking about…” Dash waved his hand dismissively. “The thing. Me, thinking about you. Romantically.” 

“Spectra said something along the lines of ‘you only tolerate Dash because he’s a halfa and you can manipulate him into thinking you’re the only person who’ll ever love him because of that’ and I was worried I’d done it by accident, somehow.”

“I mean, you’re straight, so it’s not like you loving me was much more than a dream. Getting from there all the way to ‘you’re the only person who’ll ever love me’ is a pretty big stretch,” Dash sighed. “So you didn’t know? This was all just hypotheticals?”

“Well… I knew you had a crush. I just didn’t know if you thought of it as one.”

“Oh… What gave me away?”

Danny grimaced. “So, you know how Spectra feeds on misery?”

”I mean yeah? I thought your Obsession was fucking… Protection, not people having crushes on you?” 

“Misery isn’t her Obsession, it’s just her favorite flavor of emotion. Ghosts can… metabolize different human emotions, and they taste different.”

“So Tucker wasn’t joking when he asked if I could taste him being dishonest?”

“He was joking a little. Dishonesty isn’t really an emotion.”

“Ah. Well, um, at least it wasn’t painfully obvious to anyone who wasn’t a ghost. Or Kwan.” 

“Yep. I know this is kinda a weird time to say this, but I forced out your secret, and I think it’s only fair that I tell you one of mine. I’m gay too, and I kinda like you back.” 

===

What? Dash couldn’t believe his ears. The whiplash alone rendered him nearly incapable of thinking, and instead of butterflies in his stomach it felt like a flock of angry geese beating their wings in every inch of his body. 

“For real?” 

“Yeah.”

“Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy fucking shit.” 

Dash needed a breather. Danny liked him. Danny Phantom, the ghost he’d had a crush on for years was gay too and liked him back. The guy who only half-accidentally tricked him into revealing his most mortifying secret a few moments ago also just fulfilled his wildest dreams. He was conflicted, his head was spinning, what the hell was he supposed to do? There was so much he should do, could do, now. Spend more time with him, learn all of the little things that make him tick, be there for him, hold his hand, romantically brush his hair out of his face, take him on dates–

“Dash?”

“…We need to buy some milkshakes.”

“What?” 

“We need to go to the Nasty Burger and get milkshakes. It’s like, the classic first date,” Dash explained. If he was in a romance movie the next move was obviously a milkshake date. So that’s what he was going to do. 

“Dude, I haven’t checked your chest yet.”

Oh right. That thing. 

“Okay. Fine. I think my core’s done freaking out, so I should be able to handle it.” Dash lifted his shirt and averted his eyes. Maybe if he didn’t see Danny looking, it would be easier. 

He heard Danny shuffling closer. Dash‘s core started to constrict, but it was bearable.

“Fortunately, you were ghost at the time. This isn’t nearly as bad as it could be. You’re pretty durable.” Danny's breath fluttered across his skin. God, he was close. 

“So it's not dangerous?”

“Not really. It’s not a cut, so it’s unlikely that your ghost healing will seal anything under your skin. I can get you some burn cream for the pain and to prevent infection, but if you want we can do the milkshakes first.”

Dash let his shirt drop. Looking down, seeing Danny so close to him and processing their revelations of mutual feelings, Dash had to make a move.

“Danny?”

“Yeah?” 

“Um, my jaw is kinda sore. From when Spectra dropped me on it. Could you maybe…” Dash tentatively reached for Danny’s wrist, who got the message and placed his icy hand on Dash’s cheek.

They locked eyes. It didn’t take long for Danny to realize what he was thinking. He let out a small laugh and leaned in with a kiss. Dash could have sworn he felt sparks between them, but maybe that was just leftover adrenaline from everything they’d just been through.

Dash pulled back, breathless again, but now in a good way. “So. Milkshakes?” 

“Milkshakes.” Danny kissed him again on the cheek and they took to the air, hand in hand, for some hard-earned fast food.

===

End note:

And that finishes off our Invisobang 2022 piece, just as the year's ending! Thanks for coming with us on this journey. Thanks to Ghostie for the art in chapter 1, they were great to work with!

I wanted to touch on something a lot of commenters have brought up, that Dash's healing in his leg and chest might just be restricted because he believes it to be. That's great thinking, with the way ghost bodies work, but when we were writing it we intended those wounds to naturally never heal, since they were a part of his death. Sometimes when things happen, like accidents with weaponry, parts of the body are permanently kept from functioning like they did before, and you have to give up activities like normal football. And that's okay! It sucks and makes things harder, for sure, but it happens, and you can live a fulfilling life despite it 😌 thus the "being half ghost is a disability" tag on this fic! I think if somebody dies, that's a big deal, and even if they come out of it mostly fine and a little different, there's probably gotta be some long-term consequences. They wouldn't be like their human peers anymore, due to being a different species and whatnot, but they also wouldn't come out of something so traumatic unscathed. So nice thinking, everyone who commented along those lines, I like how you're looking at ghost health, but this is something Dash is going to learn to live with and work around, and love himself with his injuries included <3

Any one of us might revisit this universe to write a "sequel" sometime, so I'm going to give a briefing on what each of us usually writes in case you're interested in any of our styles and want to subscribe to our accounts, where you might someday see a continuation on this (no promises):

AttackRadish is currently working on a longform angst story which will be published once it's done. He tends toward Fenton Family angst and dissec in his writing, but not without variety.

OmegaSmileyface has a non-angst Ghost Hunger series at the forefront right now. They tend to work Ghost King!Danny and detailed fictional science into most of their writing.

ectolemonades tends to write fics focusing on interpersonal relationships, in all kinds of emotional flavors. Especially Grey Ghost and Teddy Ghost at the moment.

Hope everyone enjoyed!

[fashionablyenigmatic]

The taste of A name.

Alphonse looked at his husband with a twinkle of humor in his eyes. They were lounging on the couch, the soft glow of the evening light casting a warm, intimate ambiance around them. Alphonse had noticed something peculiar about Stan's lovers over the years. In their open marriage, names beginning with the letter A seemed to follow Stan like a pattern, himself included.

Stan caught Alphonse's amused expression and raised an eyebrow. "What's got you smirking?" he asked, leaning closer.

"Oh, nothing sordid...well, not yet anyway," Alphonse teased, his voice soft and affectionate. "But I do wonder, what's with you and people with A names? Surely it can't be a type thing; it's too many for a simple coincidence."

Stan chuckled, The Idea of a blush creeping into his cheeks. "I like the taste of them," he confessed, his tone playful. "They taste good to say."

Alphonse sat up, intrigued, his hand gently brushing against Stan's. "That explains it then!" He giggled, a light, airy sound. "But darling, I do believe you ought to get more unusual names in your diet. Being varied is better."

Stan scoffed lightly, taking Alphonse's hand in his. "Just because they begin with A doesn't mean they aren't unusual. If anything, you have the most usual name."

Alphonse pretended to be offended, a playful glint in his eyes. "How dare you call me 'usual'! But you're right; Alphonse is standard compared to names like Archer or Amity. ...You aren't wrong...but work down the alphabet at least."

"Well, I'm not the only S name in your love life," Stan suggested, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Hm? Do you mean you and Syliph? That's sweet, but I don't think that's the same, dear," Alphonse said, absentmindedly running his fingers through Stan's hair, completely forgetting about Stilio, his ex, for good reason.

Stan gave Alphonse a knowing look but decided against bringing up the exes, not wanting to spoil the moment. "Though, if you want to get technical," he continued, "...I technically have a T name."

Alphonse's eyes sparkled with delight. "Oh, I know, and I love how it rolls off the tongue, Tanmur~." He said the name slowly, savoring the sound.

The way Alphonse said it sent a small shiver down Stan's back. He leaned in, their faces inches apart. "But if we are discussing the flavors of names, I assume out of our kids, you probably enjoy the names Karnus and Cadmus. I imagine to you they might be crunchy?"

"Stan is crunchy, Tanmur and Alphonse are smooth, Cadmus and Karnus have a bit of heat to them...like firecrackers. More poppy than crunchy," Stan explained, his voice a gentle murmur.

"Interesting. What about Bennie and Syliph?" Alphonse questioned, their noses almost touching.

"Umami. Bennie is savory, and Syliph is unctuous."

"Unctuous...that's a word. Flatteringly oily in flavor?" Alphonse asked, his lips brushing against Stan's as he spoke.

Stan tried to think of a better description, lost in the intimacy of the moment. "Full-bodied? I mean oily in the way that it slips off the tongue, not so much in a smooth way but not unpleasant."

Alphonse doubled down, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "So, flatteringly oily."

Stan grimaced slightly, leaning in to kiss Alphonse's forehead. "Hey, I'm doing my best to make comparisons to things I'm not familiar with."

"That's all right, dear. Unctuous is the right word, and that is what it means. I know you aren't calling Syliph oily. Cadmus is more likely to be the oily one... personality-wise, I mean."

Stan gave a sensible chuckle, pulling Alphonse closer, their foreheads touching as they basked in the warmth of their shared laughter.

@violeteyedkiller

[lampmanliveblogs]

The impending disaster is delayed by the rest of the kids going places, doing stuff, beginning by asking around in this quaint little shop. I do like the ”Ghosts will haunt shoplifters” sign. I also spied another Hexas Holdem’ cameo on a table. Just how many of those bloody things did Eda dump in the Human Realm? Or maybe those are unmagical replicas, since the ones Jacob gave away became popular.

Anyways, moving on to this shot, I do notice Gus looking through that barrel of gems. Heh, gems in Gravesfield. I bet that doesn’t happen often. I bet there aren’t a whole lot of teenage criminal masterminds running around there either.

Also, that is a Ness costume to the left there on the wall. Which makes me think the other two ones are references as well, hm… I wanna say the witch costume on the right is from… Little Witch Academia?

I just looked it up, and yup, that’s totally Little Witch Academia. That leaves the middle one, which I have no idea what it could be a reference to. I’m not even sure if that’s a bow, or cat ears. Or maybe this is a Blake Belladonna situation, and it’s actually both.

Oh, and the shop is called The Magic Circle. Insert Engelsfors Trilogy reference here:____________________________.

Oh, now this is a beautiful frame to accidentally pause on. I just had to include it.

That candy that looks like it’s levitating. Willow looking like she’s about to tip backwards. Vee psyching herself up before a boxing match. The librarian experiencing some Grade A secondhand embarrassment. The girl with the Batman logo on her shirt. Amity faceplanting for the second time this episode. Seriously, that can not be good for your face Mittens.

But hey, let’s look on the bright side. Now Hunter and Amity have something else to bond over: facial scar and a broken nose respectively.

And while I’m paused: I also love Willow paying for the costume with a snail, like she’s Pippi Longstocking with her gold coins.

Willow & Gus also both take notice of the statues of the Wittebane brothers. They exchange knowing glances, both of them undoubtedly seeing the resemblance to Hunter… though at this point only Gus has the pieces to begin putting the puzzle together.

And thus one of the shows longest running gags comes to full circle as we finally see one of these demonic giraffes that much fuzz has been made about. Honestly? I don’t see what it was about, the fuzz. This looks fairly normal by Demon Realm standard. Unless the giraffe people were known for being unusually brutal and violent, I’m not sure why the kids are so spooked by this.

I do love this though, because giraffes have obviously been around on Earth long enough to be considered normal animals by humans. And surely someone somewhere at some point would realize that ”Oh shit, these long necked creatures can unfold their faces. That’s weird.”

Even if giraffes don’t do it in front of humans, surely someone dissecting a giraffe would find it. This leads me to believe that yes, it’s weird, but still considered to be an as of yet unexplained quirk in an others normal an unmagical animal.

It was at this point I went on a long tangent about evolution and biology, and I cut that out because this post is long enough as is. Let’s just say that giraffe taxonomy would be a huge pain for scientists in this universe to figure out.

Called it.

I do believe I said so even as far back as Yesterday’s Lie that we would return back to the Gravesfield Historical Society. I also believe I said I dreaded seeing Jacob Hopkins again, for obvious reasons. Though based on the sign, we might be spared that unpleasantness. Good, Philip is already sneaking around, and one crazy person is enough for this episode.

I’m assuming the previous managers of the Gravesfield Historical Society came back from their vacation, found the crazy man who had broken into the building while they were away, and called the police on him.

Even though this is a shot from behind, you can clearly see Vee looking nervous and uncomfortable, and of course she’d be. The last time she stepped foot (eh… tail?) inside this building, all her worst nightmares came true, all at once. She was captured and put back inside a cage. She was going to be cut open and killed by a madman. Her cover was blown to Camila. All in all, it was a rather stressful thirty minutes or so she had in there.

Ey, it’s the fortune teller from Yesterday’s Lie! Based on a comment or two I got, I had a sneaking suspicion they’d appear again, and would you look at that, I was right. It sure feels good.

And not to toot my own horn too much, but the nickanme I gave them back in Yesterday’s Lie was Mira. Which has the same first letter (M), same last letter (a), and the same number of syllables (2) as Masha’s real name. Which might not sound all that impressive, but try guessing the first and last letter, as well as the number of syllables in my (real) name. If any of you are correct, I’ll… be very scared.

So, are you the new new management here, Masha? I’d think not, since, well… you’re what, fourteen? Fifteen, maybe? I know Jacob didn’t set the bar high, but you know it’s a sad state of affairs when an actual child makes for a better manager at a historical society than a grown adult man.

[socks-wizard-money-gang]

Credit to the translation for the drama cd goes to nenilein

She’s on tumblr and twitter and Reddit and Puyo nexus and youtube

————————

INTRO

Yu: Yu and Rei's... dwindling outlets!

Rei: ...Lingering regrets.

STORY

Yu: Hey there, I'm Yu! And I'm here... to haunt the pants off of you!

Amitie: EEEK! Don't just jump out and scare me like that, geez!

Yu: Hey, young lady over there! Won't you come and join us on our skyward vacation as a whole new ghost!?

Raffina: No thank you! As if I would ever lower myself to becoming something that can't have these beautiful legs!

Yu: Heyo, nice girl over there! Sorry to just pop in

but here comes a POP QUIZ!

Lidelle: Eek! W...W-W... What is it about...?

Yu: What never eats and never sleeps, and yet always stays full of energy and healthy!?

Lidelle: Um... well... That's, uh...

Yu: The answer is: A ghost! So it's time for you to become a ghost too!

Lidelle: N...Nooooo! Please, stop it!

Yu: Oho, young man over there!

Sig: GOODBYE.

-

Yu: Whoa, today sure was fun again! Right, Rei?

Rei: Yeah. Sure was.

Yu: Right! So, so, so! Let's keep at it! Today, tomorrow and the day after tomorrow! As long as I'm with you, Rei, life as a ghost will never be boring!

Rei: Hm...

Yu: Huuuuh? Rei, what's wrong...? You look like you're thinking about something.

Rei: Yeah, I guess I've been thinking... a bit lately...

Yu: Well if that's how it is! Never fear! For Yu is here! Doesn't matter what it is that you're wondering about! I'll have it figured out in a jiffy!

Rei: So, why... Why are we ghosts...? Is what I've been wondering...

Yu: Huuuuh? What'cha mean?

Rei: I've been a ghost as long as I can think... But, why? Why am I like this...? I just can't remember anything from before...

Yu: Hmmmmm....! Wow, you came up with some trivia even I can't give an answer to!

Rei: Yu...

Yu: Alrighty, let's go and ask someone who looks like they might know!

Rei: Huh...?

Yu: Let's go! Go! Ghost step ahead!

Rei: Step... without legs...?

-

Yu: And that's why we're here! Hi there, Mr. Bespectacled Knows-it-AIII

Klug: My name is KLUG! Gh... What are you here for!? Another pop quiz, perhaps? Or... You aren't trying to make me into a ghost again are y-!?"

Yu: BZZZZZZZ! Sorry, wrong answer! Today we're haunting you for consultation!

Rei: ...We're consulting you.

Klug: A... About what...?

Yu: We're asking: How and why did the two of us become ghosts?!

Rei: How and why...?

Klug: Huh? Why you two became ghosts? Hm... Let's see... To my knowledge... It is generally believed that a soul is likely to become a ghost if it has strong lingering regrets and attachments left in the living world...

Yu: Oh, I see! So maybe we just left some bread in the oven!

Klug: Regrets, not baguettes!

Yu: Or maybe we never finished sewing all the sequins on that dress...!

Klug: Regrets, not paillettes!

Yu: Or maybe we had a favorite newspaper we never finished reading...!

Klug: REGRETS, not GAZETTES!

Yu: Just a few more of those twilit evenings...!

Klug: REGRETS, NOT SUNSETS!

Yu: Those powerful emotions left by an unfinished business, that tie us to this world!!

Klug: ONCE AGAIN! REGRETS, NOT REGRE- uh. Huh?

Yu: Ahahahahaha! You nailed that punchline, thank you very much!

Rei: Many thanks.

Klug: Argh...! You are driving me insane! I shall excuse myself now, goodbye!

Yu: And thus Klug left, trying to look as smart as possible!

Rei: Because you did a number on him, Yu...

-

Yu: And thus we are now here, with that very certain girl, who probably knows a thing or two about all things occult, and another three or four about how to be just the slightest tad terrifying!!

Rei: Here we are...

Feli: The twin ghosts... What are you plotting? Did you come to let me exorcise you off this mortal coil once and for all?

Yu: Aaaaaaahhh! She's just as scary as e-ever! But, but! That's not what we're here for!

Rei: Yeah. We're not.

Yu: We come to you on this fine day because we've got a question to ask!

Rei: An important question.

Feli: Hm... That's unusual of you. Very well. I shall let you speak.

Yu: You see! The two of us have no idea why we ended up becoming ghosts!

Feli: And why in the world would I know that?

Yu: Whoa!! Talk about being rebuffed! Um, UM...! Oh! Then, then! Why don't you try to read our pasts? You're so good at fortune telling, I'm sure you can make it work somehow!

Rei: ...somehow.

Feli: I Don't Want To. It is most likely for the better if you don't know it, anyway.

Yu: HUUUUUH? Why, why?

Feli: Well, let's suppose you did find out. What would you do with that knowledge?

Yu: Um, well... It's just that Rei...

Rei: I want to know. It's... always been bothering me.

Feli: Whatever. Go home. Don't keep thinking about these things.

Yu. HUUUUUH? Ah! I get it! You just can't do it!

Feli: ...Heh?

Yu: I'm right, right? You don't know the truth, AND you don't have any faith in your ability to divine it, either! That's why you don't wanna tell us!

Feli: What did you just say?! ... Well, if you are going to insult me, very well! Just watch me! I shall peer into the fate that befell you In The Past...

[magic noises]

Feli: KiiiiiiAAAAAAAHHHH!!!

[magic noises]

Yu: AAAAHH! She's doing something!!

Rei: She is.

-

Rei: Hey, Yu! Yu! What's wrong? Aw, why are you holed up back here all on your own again?

Yu: R-Rei... I was just reading a book...

Rei: Oh, c'mon Yu, the weather is so nice outside! Let's go out and play together! What else do we have so many friends for?

Yu: Um... I... uh... I am more comfortable... back here... where it's quiet.

Rei: Huh? Really?

Yu: And... uh... The others might just call me... 'depressing' again...

Rei: I'm sure they won't! And if they do, I'll protect you! I'll always be by your side, Yu, so don'cha ever worry!

Yu: You'll... always be with me...? Really?

Rei: Sure! We're twins! As long as we're together, there's nothing we have to be scared of!

Yu: Y...Yeah. You're right. As long as I'm with you, Rei...

[magic noises. There is a scene transition.]

Rei: Huh? Why does my body feel so light all of a sudden? Yu...? Yu, where are you?

Yu: I'm here...

Rei: Yu! You're floating!

Yu: Ahahah... You're floating too, Rei.

Rei: Yu... What's going on...?

Yu: What's happened to us...? ... Well, I don't mind. Looks like we can still stay together, and that's all that matters. And... I feel so light now... all that weight has fallen off my heart, too!

Rei: We're... together...?

Yu: I'm sure as long as we're together, every day will be fun, no matter what becomes of us! Forever and ever! We'll be HAPPY foreeeeever now!

[magic noises. There is a scene transition.]

Lemres: Feli... FELI!

Feli: Ah!

Lemres: Feli...

Feli (trembling voice): L...L-L-L-LEMRES!! W-Why are you... here...?

Lemres: I was just passing through, that's all. I think you should stop this reading while you're ahead. Okay?

Feli: Y...Y-Y-Yeah... E-E-E-Excuse me...

Yu: HUUUH?! So, so! How was it?! What did you see? Tell us, tell us!

Rei: Please tell us.

Feli: Uh.... [she stays quiet for a while] ...The divination failed.

Yu: HUUUUH?

Rei: Huh?

Feli: Unrelated memories... disturbed the flow of what I was trying to read...

Yu: Oh noooo...! Hmpf! HMPF!

Lemres: I guess even our Feli can have an off day sometimes. Alright, let's call it a day! I'll give you all some niiice, sweet chocolate, so let's all go home, okay?

Yu: Oh sweet! Now I can't stay mad. That chocolate makes me melt, like it's melting in my mouth!...Hey, Rei, are you okay with that?

Rei: Um.... Yeah, I guess...

Yu: Alrighty, with that all settled! See ya next scare! Bye-bye!

Rei: Bye-bye...

[They leave]

Feli: L...Lemres... I saw...

Lemres: Feli.

Feli: Lemres...

Lemres: I guess you saw something really strange, huh? Maybe you still need to train your power more, so you have better control over it.

Feli: ... Yes... Maybe that is just it... No, I mean... I'm sure you're right.

Lemres: Aw, c'mon, don't make that face. Come with me. I'm taking you out for some dessert.

Feli: ...! I'm coming!

Lemres: As they say... chocolate makes you melt... hm...

-END

THEYRE SO SILLY I see why theyre your favorite

[rjcopeseethemald]

OC in 15

Many thanks to @elsie-writes for the tag on this one!

Being almost done with Atomancers volume 1, I have so many lines from a few different characters to choose from, but I'll just go with the one who was the most fun to write—the first antagonist, Admiral Sandrine Wright.

“If you’re patronizing me, Lieutenant, it’s not working; and if you’re not, you know full well most of your colleagues– most people in this country– wouldn’t vote for me anyway.”

“Uh… well… I just thought… bec–” [the Lieutenant] stuttered, before cutting his losses: “…never mind. Apologies, ma’am, for my presumption.” “Oh, don’t you worry; I’ll forgive that,” she responded. “…Once.”

“Don’t– start that,” she interceded, putting up a white-gloved hand. “Now, you look here. I may have kept you your old job, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be anything like whatever circus of laxity Admiral Haikeau was running.”

"Military command is and has always been dedicated to remaining a boys’ club. The rules of which confine our choices to either bookkeeping or the sick bay. And yet here I stand; a four-star Admiral. Now how did this happen?”

“Why Molau, by the way?” inquired Patthew ... “If we’re preparing for war, shouldn’t we focus on the big places like Amity Harbor first?” “You were a prodigy; look at the map,” said Sandrine. “You’ll get what my calculus is.”

“Surely you know how things work around here,” Sandrine assured, stepping aside for a few sailors double-timing to the piers. “I tell the Governor what’s going to happen, and he gives the Navy his stamp of approval for the extra land."

“–A bunch of disorganized rabble is all they’ve become,” Tayag reasoned. “If they were anything more, I’d’ve been voted out for one of them by now.” “Oh, our government thought that too, once,” Sandrine counterveiled. “–Tell me, did you ever hear about the Battle of Hillmond Mountain?”

"Of course, I especially shed no tears for the Hillmond Corporation, because honestly, it brought that insurrection upon itself. But that’s not what’s important here. It’s that question of how it happened.” She stopped at a picture on the wall ... Then, she faced about. “If I were this local union, and I’d figured out long ago that strikes didn’t work, I’d retreat into obscurity and build strength that way, waiting for a moment of instability– say, a major war breaking out?... Now tell me, Governor… have you checked on them at all?”

“…Then they should at least be grateful we’re not the other empire.”

“Oh, they had guns, did they?” Sandrine mocked, keeping as much professionalism as she could. “Where were yours?”

“Unbelievable,” said Sandrine, briefly facepalming into both hands before looking at them again. “Go back to your little gang hideout of a station, arm yourselves, and compel them to surrender their own weapons. Take the whole force if you have to. Is that something I’d have to personally pay you for?”

As they neared the end, Sandrine noticed something peculiar. One of the Marines was female, and she even looked like a younger version of herself. She stopped and faced her, finding her insignia and nametape. “Private First Class… Parcque?” Sandrine addressed, cracking a solidaric smile.

“If none of these Marines were on that campaign, then they’re not combat ready.”

“You have a letter, ma’am. From one–” the messenger paused to read the name. “Mallory Norseille? The writer?” Sandrine almost froze upon hearing that name, but did her best to keep her composure. “Hm. I have no idea why she’d write me,” she lied, taking the letter. “Will that be all?”

“You see, things aren’t so simple where I come from. Despite the fact that I had a penchant for military command, I had to flaunt my lineage and ask my father to vouch for me before I was even considered for admission into the Naval Academy.” She began to pace, hands behind her back. “The only thing that got me to graduation alive was my dream to remake the armed forces into a more equal system, and instead I’ve spent my career fighting tooth and nail for every scrap of dignity and respect that the system reluctantly afforded to me. Oh, it’s made me a hardened commander…” she stopped. “But guess where that dream is?”

Gently tagging @kaylinalexanderbooks, @echowritesstuff, @fayeiswriting, @majoringinsarcasm, and anyone else who's interested!

[candyskiez]

for the toh ask game- 2, 12, 20?

2. Already put my first favorite, so let's do second! It's...honestly a tie. I know, I know, cop out. But I can't decide which I like more. The two I'm tied between are Willow and Hunter. They're just SOOO. God. I love them. Okay. I know Hunter is. Basic favorites wise, but I like him okay. He's such realistic abuse rep, realistic religious trauma rep, it's,,, man. Man. It's. God. He's just a guy who's trying so hard to be good and do the right thing that has the odds stacked against him. He's a little unhinged and not like, a perfect victim. He's mean, he drops uncomfortable details about himself not realizing he isn't supposed to, they show the messy parts of depression which is a fucking REFRESHER. Also I just. Have a thing for clones that find themselves. I have a thing for characters that grow beyond their programming. I like how they go "Actually, growing up believing you're the chosen one would, realistically, SUCK." He's also really fucking funny. He's a sad wet cat, he's an extremely complicated character, he's also a basic bitch. I love him. I want to put him in a washing machine. Fucking loser.

Tied with Willow! She's. Man. I didn't like her much at first, I just couldn't get into her. But I love her SO MUCH now. Seeing the "bullied girl gets stronger" trope except it acknowledges being bullied sticks with you for life, actually is so nice. I love how so much of her development and healing is from learning to stop repress her anger and her sadness. In her mind, people start liking her again when she's strong, so if she stops being strong NOBODY will like her. She equates half a witch Willow, being weak or sad or in anyway lacking, with losing Amity. If she isn't cool and confident, people don't want to be around her. If she slips up for a second, everyone hates her (in her mind.) She views her emotions as the remnants of "who she used to be" that ruined everything. Hell, she views Amity treating her like she's weak as treating her as who she used to be. Like half a witch Willow. Like someone who would deserve that treatment. She needs time to get used to her not being that pathetic anymore. It's INTERESTING. She's so interesting. Chews on her like a squeaky toy. She's everything to me. I love her.

12. Honestly? Difficult question. First one that pops into my mind is the "do not underestimate me" azura quoting, because god it is SUCH a Luz thing to quote her special interest as she kills the guy who wants her friends dead, love her. But what else hm. I think also Luz realizing her greatest want. It's so...man. Man. Because it explains so much about her. Why the camp hurt her so badly, why she immediately latched onto someone who seemed similar to her, why she wanted to have some set in stone path made specifically for her. It's also just such a beautiful scene. Camilia apologizing was SO FUCKING cathartic for me. Healed my inner child a little and I'm not joking. Having a parental figure apologize for trying to make their kid normal just. Healed something in me, man. It healed something in me. The egg hatching was animated so beautifully, the color scheme, Luz crying, it's so BEAUTIFUL. It's such a. Good fucking scene. Man. The neurodivergent generational trauma is so real and then breaking that....wah. Man. Hm what else. Honestly? The duet. It genuinely made me realize "oh hey if I'd die it'd probably affect people", and I know that sounds dumb but. In my defense I was really depressed when I saw that scene for the first time. It's so gorgeous visual wise, fantastic visual representation of what's going on, SO well done, the music is beautiful and always gets stuck in my head, it's just. Very memorable for me.

20. Hmmm, difficult. I think probably Willow and Amity and Hunter. Bullied kids, disabled kids, repressed rage and constant anxiety of being in an abusive household. The abandonment issues of losing a friend. It's just. A lot man. It's a lot. Yes I know this is also a cop out shh.