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brosencrantz · 2 years

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Ukraine War thoughts 12/09/22

What just happened?

In the last month, Ukraine has launched two offensives. The first, in the south (which was trailed by a protracted campaign of announcements, expectation-building and blowing up bridges and supply depots with HIMARS) is a slow, relatively low-intensity push at the Russian troops bottled up around Kherson on the right bank of the Dnieper. The offensive proper started in the last week of August and is continuing. The second, in the north (which had very little prelude) was a faster combined arms attack which achieved operational surprise. It started last week and has already essentially succeeded. The Kharkiv attack itself didn't surprise me but the results, I think, shocked everyone: huge numbers of Russian soldiers basically gave up and ran away without much of a fight. Ukraine is now in the process of retaking the whole Kharkiv region. This is a massive upset which brings Ukrainian victory much closer.

Why did this happen?

Ukraine has (re-)developed a capacity to launch combined arms offensives, which use tanks, artillery, and mobile infantry in armoured vehicles, working very closely together, to rapidly overwhelm static lines. They identified a plausible and strategically valuable objective (Izyum, the headquarters of the Russian effort in the northern Donbas, and Kupyansk, a key logistical hub supporting it), carefully set up the most positive conditions for their offensive, and struck at a very weak point in the Russian lines, which unravelled. Russia has a chronic manpower problem and its soldiers are spread too thin across the entire frontier. Units have been sent south to deal with the long-telegraphed Kherson offensive, leaving the north undermanned. Putin is terrified of the political consequences of Russian mobilisation, so even with a genocidal forced mass mobilisation of all fighting-age men in Donetsk and Luhansk "people's republics" and a desperate mix of bribes, bullying and blandishments, as well as recruiting from prisons (this sounds like a parody, but it's genuinely happening) Russia doesn't have enough people to control the space it's fighting in. The bloodbaths around Severodonetsk and Lysychansk in early summer, and continued pointless Russian offensives, made this problem much worse.

Ukraine was under the same pressures in early summer; we heard lots of horror stories of barely trained TDF being sent to the line for the same reasons of hard military necessity: if they pulled men out of the line to train and recuperate the line would collapse. But the moment that pressure let up, Ukraine rotated men out to rest and train, and we're seeing the results in Kharkiv. That pressure never let up for Russia. They can't rotate anyone out because they don't have enough men to hold the front in the first place, and their training is suffering because they're desperate for men everywhere and they can't withdraw people to act as training cadres. This means that the soldiers they do have generally aren't properly trained and can't do their jobs.

We are seeing the results both of Ukraine having a much deeper reserve of politically deployable manpower, and a different approach to how they treat their men. The Russian army is at every level defined by absolute contempt for the welfare of their men and dishonesty about how bad things can get. The Ukrainian army isn't.

What happens next?

Kherson will almost certainly fall by the end of the year. I think Ukraine has very carefully managed expectations with that front, and the fact that their spokespeople are describing the push as a "feint" (it's not, it's a serious assault) indicates it's not going perfectly. But the Russian position, of too large a force on too thin supply lines, is unsustainable and the longer they put off the collapse the worse it will ultimately be. Ukraine doesn't want to fight for the city, they want to pressure the Russians into withdrawal without a fight. I think they will succeed.

Melitopol is a very obvious priority target, a short distance from the front line (about the same distance as Izyum/Kupyansk were. It's possible that Ukraine can rush the supplies and groundwork in order to put in another serious attack before autumn; the way Kharkiv folded so quickly and cheaply means Ukraine's mobile formations, while tired, are in much better shape to be withdrawn and used for another attack than they might be. If Ukraine can put in a credible combined arms attack south ASAP (in the next few weeks, probably) while Russia is still scrambling around, they could potentially cause another massive upset at little cost. Melitopol is hugely operationally significant: cutting the entire Russian occupation into two mutually non-supporting fronts would potentially be a game ender in itself, plus it means Russian forces in Kherson would be in an appalling position, plus it gives Ukraine a firing position less than 200km from the Kerch bridge, plus an assault in this direction would be well placed to retake the Zaphorizhzhia nuclear power plant (which is a big international worry). Any serious push on Melitopol would itself create a Russian panic and possibly force more goodwill gestures in Kherson to redeploy troops from there, even if the attack itself fails and bogs down before reaching Melitopol (sadly I suspect no attack for the rest of the war is going to go quite as easily as last week's did).

What does this mean for the end of the war?

It is hopefully now becoming clear to everyone that Ukraine is going to win militarily, and the best way to end this quickly is to supply Ukraine with everything it wants and then some. Russia has experienced an absolutely shocking reverse both militarily and psychologically and will struggle badly to hold its positions, let alone mount any offensives, for the immediately foreseeable future. In the best case, a few more successful attacks like this will end the war and allow Ukraine to dictate terms. The worst case is that the next Ukrainian push is seriously opposed and a lot more people have to die before this is over.

The political repercussions in Russia aren't yet clear but may be messy. Russia may end up having another civil war in the next few years. That's potentially bad news for everyone, but if it happens will happen anyway and there is no argument - or, I think, political will, outside of far-right morons who can't even do nationalism properly - for making more Ukrainians die first. No, not even in Germany. Russia is losing, and Russia NEEDS to lose, otherwise we'll do all this nonsense again in a generation. That Putin's regime is inextricably tied with over-the-top lies of military supremacy and strategic infallibility is, frankly, his problem.

We're coming to the end of summer. Autumn rains will slow things down in parts of Ukraine and will likely affect both sides equally. But winter is, I think, going to be vastly worse for the Russians. In intercepted calls throughout the war Russians have described their shock and envy at how much better Ukrainian uniforms, boots and socks are, how much better supplied their enemies seem to be. Frozen soil is easy to attack over and hard to dig defences into. Frozen rivers are no longer obstacles to competent mechanised offensives, for the army capable of developing them. I wouldn't be surprised if we see further serious attacks in winter.

Some other thoughts, no real organisation.

Some of the ways Russia has tried to deal with its manpower problems are the use of very well-paid Wagner PMCs, gigantic (promised, if not delivered) bonuses and salaries for contract soldiers, and "volunteer" battalions based on specific areas with geographical ties. These are all very short-term approaches and will create huge problems for the Russian government when large groups of armed men with loyalties to their region or each other rather than to Moscow suddenly aren't getting the money they have become accustomed to.

Ukraine has, through a combination of drones, satellites, precision ground-based fires, and well-networked last gen AA to achieve the sort of artillery observation, ISR, long-range strikes and air defence to achieve results which, in previous wars, would require a large, capable, locally superior air force. Much cheaper than an air force, too.

Analysis of capabilities, and mainstream understanding of war, has since WW2 been focused hugely on weapons and physical capabilities rather than the morale element of war (which absolutely dominated arguments before the Great War.) In my degree, where we looked at morale and motivation we mostly did so from the "long view" perspective of insurgencies and national struggles, not so much the modern battlefield. And fiction is even worse for this: nobody whose understanding of combat stems from films or games will have any idea how morale works. But this massive victory around Izyum was absolutely won in the minds of soldiers rather than with tanks, and I think we'll see more of this (especially with the further Russian collapses I think and hope will happen). Food for study.

Image is Our Lady of Mariupol, by Maksym Palenko.

#russo-ukrainian war #war 2022 #ukraine #russia #war

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theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin · 4 years

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re: the Romanians, why the fuck did Carlisle even let them in? He's gathering witnesses, not amassing an army, and these clowns are the least credible witnesses I can imagine. How can Carlisle even abide their presence in his house, considering what they've done? And Bella's character was pretty much dead to me before this point (I barely think of BD as canon), but her starry-eyed admiration of the Romanians really comes across as her being too dumb to live. It's definitely funny, but...yikes.

First, I firmly believe that Renesmee has a very powerful gift that, among other things, ensures her own survival.

I imagine that, had Renesmee not had this gift and miraculously not been eaten out of Bella’s womb by Edward or else murdered by Jacob, after Irina fled to Volterra with what seems like irreputable proof of an immortal child, Carlisle would have packed up Renesmee (abducting her if he had to), and taken her directly to Volterra, hoping that they could live under observation for a few decades.

If they died, then it would be only they who died, the coven itself would survive and his many friends would not be put in peril for something whose outcome they don’t really know. More, for all that happened in Eclipse, given Carlisle’s reaction to Aro’s wedding gift in Breaking Dawn, I do think he has enough faith at this point to think that Aro, no matter his ulterior motives, would at the very least keep Renesmee under observation. If assigning Aro more devious motives, it gives him a very precious hostage to use against Bella and Edward. Further, there’s precedent in the centuries’ long observation of the Immortal Children in the Volterra catacombs. It’s not in Aro’s nature nor in his interests to kill Renesmee of quickly without reason.

However, this would be putting Renesmee in direct peril, and could very well end in her death. Per Renesmee’s gift, this is not an acceptable outcome, and so Carlisle cannot go down this route.

And so, we have Carlisle desperately gathering as many witnesses as he can. Unfortunately, this has consequences. I imagine Carlisle, being as eccentric and well-traveled as he is, is a constant source of vampire gossip. We know at least the Vampire rumor mill in Europe is set ablaze, and at some point “gathering witnesses” becomes a euphemism Carlisle never intended for “building an army”.

I think, by the time the Romanians show up on his doorstep, Carlisle realizes it’s already too late. He can’t turn them away because they are a symptom, not the disease itself, and it’s far outside of his hands.

Carlisle Cullen has built an army for an insurrection against the Volturi.

Carlisle has been desperately hoping, literally asking Siobhan to pray for him, for a peaceful outcome to all of this. However, this hope is growing dimmer and dimmer.

If Carlisle starts sending away his own witnesses, it makes their cause look very weak. Carlisle’s been stating he wants as many witnesses as possible, even better if they’re not his friends, as they can be seen as unbiased. If he sends the Romanians away, he’s sending away one of the few vampires there he has never personally met who are not invested in the Cullen coven whatsoever. In that sense, despite being the goddamn Romanians, their word holds the most weight.

They say, “Yeah, this isn’t an immortal child,” you can probably trust it, because they ltierally do not care.

Sending them away means Carlisle is only keeping those who might be tempted to lie on his behalf. Doesn’t look so good.

Next, there’s very likely going to be a fight and he needs all the manpower he can get. Now, they might very well be massacred thanks to Jane and Alec, but if Carlisle sends the Romanians away he pretty much has to send everyone away because he’s acknowledging that these people are risking their lives over something they have no business in.

Then, finally, not really Carlisle’s decision. Oh, he gathered his friends from across the globe, but Edward and Bella are the ones in charge of this operation, and Bella thinks the Romanians are grand and Edward thinks the Volturi are such horrific tyrants that anyone who opposes them is enlightened. Carlisle tells Edward, “Please, Edward, you must send these people away now!” Edward’s going to get not only very huffy but very accusatory about how Carlisle’s been taken in by the enemy (i.e. the Volturi) and only getting rid of these guys because they’re ancient enemies of Volterra.

Finally, if Carlisle’s going to have hang ups over vampires treatment of humans he has to send everybody home. Carlisle has met them all, desperately tried to convince them to please not eat humans, and all but the Denali said no. The Denali only said yes because they want to have sex with the same cute men twice. This is the best Carlisle’s got.

From there you have varying levels of awful but, to the grand majority of vampires, they genuinely could not care less about human life. The Romanians go off talking about the glory days, sure they’re has beens, but eh who cares about the humans. Eating whatever you want sounds kind of nice.

Those who tell tales in Breaking Dawn about the corruption of the Volturi did tend to egregiously break the law. They either made immortal children and fed them entire townships, massacred their way through Europe, or were the Romanians and presumably did all of the above for a thousand years. There stories are, “The Volturi are brutes and tyrants!” “Did you eat all the humans?” “Well, yes, but their actions were uncalled for.”

So, if Carlisle has to explain why he’s sending these guys away he has to explain to vampires why a) slavery of humans is bad b) eating humans is bad c) why does he have to explain this? Everyone will just think he’s being weird and huffy and an ass for sending away desperately needed support.

That he really has no say in sending away as it’s Bella and Edward’s child and they’re the ones who say who comes and who goes. EDIT:

I forgot to talk about Bella.

I’m a little more forgiving of Bella as Bella’s in an extremely horrific place as of the end of Breaking Dawn.

She’s been through crippling depression, just exited Rosemary’s Baby and literally died, she wakes up finally a vampire and the world is beautiful and she’s finally worthy of it and Edward, she has unheard of control that allows her to have her father in her life too, she’s suddenly a mother of what looks like a five-year-old, and now the Volturi are coming to kill her baby.

In other words, Bella’s world is a surreal haze that I’d think anyone would have trouble dealing with. She’s left the planet, she is off somewhere in space, having tepid sex in a cabin with Edward.

So, to me, her thinking the Romanians are great is just further proof that at the end of Breaking Dawn, Bella’s not home anymore.

#ask #twilight

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fakesurprise · 2 years

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THE ORGS

The Organisations that run the world have many names, but few of them are common knowledge in the city below, which is how the Orgs like it. Quite a few have rebranded, amalgamated and so forth over the centuries, often to discard - or embrace - certain images about them.

The difference between an Org and a company is one of size, and also legal protections. Orgs are quite literally too big to fail and designed to survive no matter what some component parts of them do. Companies can be split off from orgs and connected to more than one, but have far much more liability and worries if they fail.Org and Company are used interchangeably in the cities below, but not those above.

Orgs are, also, not Evil Corporations. (The Reach is closer to this, but the Reach is also trying to fight wars and defend humanity from threats people know nothing about, without either the budget or manpower to do this.) Work for an Org, and you are treated well. Screw them over, and they end you. This doesn’t mean they are perfect: Orgs test each other, and some dissolve and are remade every century or so but that is more ‘this was getting stagnant’ more than ‘they did Evil Things’ and there is a lot of overlap and trade between them. Orgs have their secrets but don’t fight each other as no one benefits from that.

(Orgs want to run the world: a world that’s ruined isn’t one they can run. So their overall goals are pro-humanity, more people and more options makes for a better world. It’s established policy that the ‘VR age’ as the current age is being called, is transitory as the word is fixed from the Faceless Wars and enough deals made with aliens to keep the world safe enough from threats.)

The Archive: a future library. The Archive is the only Org most people see as ‘good’ but they believe all knowledge should be free and accessed by anyone, the latter a position no other Org takes. Members of the Archive will do anything to ‘free’ information, and not give a damn about who is injured or ruined in the crossfire. They are holy warriors for Truth.

Church of the Future Son: this is a company, not an Org, and exists to prolong the lifespan of humanity and create the ‘perfect’ human. They try to avoid using non-human traits at all, at least publicly and employ no cybernetics at all.

INH {Insert Name Here :)} is a terrestrial-only Org that metes out laws and justice on earth and helps keep the cities - above and below - running. They have large security forces that other orgs and companies employ. They supply many mercenaries to those who need them and have perfected various means of extraction and have contacts and alliances with most every other org to this end.

The only prominent one in the novel.

The Reach: This isn’t an org per se, but more the alliance of 4-5 other major Orgs that deals with space, jumps, aliens and the ‘wars’ going on that most of humanity knows nothing about. The Reach is the wealthiest org, but also the one spread thinnest as humanity doesn’t have the resources to fight against the many alien species we can Jump to, nor prevent incursions. The Reach exists to make us seem more threatening than we are, and works to that goal.

It also exists so that none of the orgs that make it up can be blamed for what the Reach does. Even by the standards of the Orgs that run the world, this is a major concern for worry. Which says a lot even among their numbers of the kind of terrible things they’ve done to safeguard and protect humanity.

(EX: Cloned troops, cyborgs with almost nothing human left to them, automatons designed solely for murder and mendal soldiers whose only purpose is to die and take out as many non-humans as posssible. There are ‘human’ soldiers with six minds in their brains to protect them from the Ooel, cyborgs who are running virtual programs and kept in the dark of their true actions, artificial life forms who only exist to murder sentient life on other worlds and are very aware of this fact. And as resources are limited, almost all of these are regrown in vats and sent out again and again in an effort to destroy the FTL wormholes on some worlds and ‘save’ earth from an invasion that could not be stopped.

The failure rate of the Handlers who run these missions is staggering in itself, and the volume of suicides may, when the dust settles in some future century, speak to something good in even the worst of this time. Perhaps.)

Siren: a small company that creates and runs virtual shows and environments; it does nothing else, and is generally considered ‘good’ to work for compared to a lot of other Orgs.

Virtuosity: The Org that runs the VR system and vitafood systems for earth. This is arguably the most important Og and unique among orgs has open books - at least to other Orgs. who can examine successes, problems, future plans and so forth.

XenoCorp: One of the few orgs that is still a corporation, XenoCorp made mendals like Xin for very wealthy clients and is generally involved in all human/alien spicing and traits on some level. XenoCorp does have many branches and much deniability if things go wrong, but are also very good at making certain things actually go right.

Zerg: an Org-in-waiting, Zerg is based around security and exists to test and stress other Orgs for fatal flaws or vulnerabilities, seeking out means of industrial espionage and the like. If an org fails, Zerg replaces/repairs them and then a new version fo Zerg comes into existence to test other orgs. This failsafe is based around being able to hide secrets and not be taken out by other orgs; morality is not a factor. Polis: The taxation/police/medical/fire etc. system that is the closest thing to a government the world has. Polis operates independent of the Orgs and has taken down Orgs in the past, but with all ducks in a row and allies on its side. Generally, the Polis is seen as useful though the police aspect makes many nervous. At least with private security you know how to bribe your way free or problems: with the Polis, that is far less certain.

#writing #prose #the ghost outside the machine #worldbuilding

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thatsadbietch · 3 years

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A War Hero’s Cry (Persona 5/Royal)

Warning for some possible spoilers. Nothing super important to the main plot but still, here’s the warning!

A/N: This is my very first P5 piece, I’m excited to share it! I love writing and want to get better at it, so I’m very open to suggestions or comments!

Warning for mild cursing.

Ships: None

Word count: 2,455

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These were the types of mornings that kept him going. The mornings where he didn’t have to shuttle into a cramped subway, only to arrive at his destination and listen to lectures about various topics on which he’d studied before. It was also a time between targets, to play it safe and just wait for another shitty adult to show their true colors so their Palace and Treasure can be claimed by the Phantom Thieves.

These mornings, where Ren could enjoy the peace and tranquility that came with a skillfully made cup of coffee, the smell of curry preparation for the day’s customers, and the sound of Sojiro humming while he worked. These mornings are where he draws that cool and collected mentality required to be the leader of such a talented group of thieves.

He inhaled, taking in all the sensations around him, but was slightly startled by the sound of the bell’s chime, signaling a customer. Perplexed, as the store hadn’t opened yet, he turned to find Futaba wondering into the café. He exhaled and grinned, able to tell right away she’d just woken up: her amber-orange hair was still disheveled from sleep and her eyes were still drowsy looking. Not to mention she strolled in with her slippers and a pair of plush-looking pajama pants, black with green stars printed on them. They suited her.

She slumped up on the stool next to Ren and yawned in place of her usual loud and energetic “Good Morning!” while she rested her head on the bar.

“Well,” Sojiro started, not bothering to hold back a chuckle at the scene, “Look who’s decided to join us among the living.” Though teasing, there was a type of sincerity there that gave away the warmness he felt for his adopted daughter. She groaned groggily in response, pulling her hood up over her head and face.

“Long night?” Ren asked casually. He enjoyed Futaba’s company regardless; he’d grown fond of her quirks and eccentric nature, and became something of an older brother figure to her. But he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t grateful that she was still calm and quiet at the moment.

“Mmmhmm…” she groaned in response. Ren nodded and took a sip of his coffee, counting down mentally, “Three…two…one…” Sure enough, on “one” Futaba lifted her head, hood still lazily hanging onto the top, and she began to explain.

“Well last night I got bored, so I started browsing the Phan-site and looking around for potential targets and was trying to find out more about the mental shutdowns, but then I got a Discuss app notification from my Herd of Heroes team asking if I wanted to help them in a tournament. Of course, I couldn’t just leave them, my strategy and expertise are the backbone of the team! So…”

Ren and Sojiro shared a knowing smirk. Classic Futaba. Sojiro shook his head in mock exasperation.

“Staying up all night isn’t healthy, you know,” Ren began, “You ought to think about fixing your sleep schedule. For your sake and for your teammates, both on and offline. Are you listening?” He asked, poking her side to make sure he had her attention. But now she had his and Sojiro’s, as neither expected the high-pitched squeak she made.

Ren chuckled and raised an eyebrow. “What was that?”

Futaba looked a lot more awake, now that her eyes were widened, almost panicked. “N-Nothing! You just startled me, that’s all. Don’t you know its rude to pick on people, especially when they’ve just conquered ten different Herds of Heroes? I’m a war hero!”

“You’re also a pain sometimes,” Ren teased, poking at her again and eliciting the same sound.

“Ren, quit it!” Futaba whined, wrapping her arms around her sides for protection. But she was so preoccupied dealing with Ren’s antics, she didn’t notice Sojiro make his way around the bar and behind her stool, placing his hands threateningly on her sides. She was already trying to hold back the titters that began bubbling up.

“Futaba, you’ve been kept up in your room so long, I forgot you were ticklish,” Sojiro started, swiftly willing his wiggling fingers up and down her sides. She couldn’t offer much resistance as she immediately burst out in giggles and tried to grab for his wrists.

“NOOHOHO, SOHOHJIROOHOHO!” Futaba whined, not being able to say much else. She helplessly cackled and tried to push his hands away, doing an awful lot of squirming in the process.

“I remember your mom telling me she’d chase you around the house sometimes,” he recalled. While telling his story he wrapped his arms around her middle and held her back against is chest, both to better trap her in his ticklish hold and to ensure she didn’t fall off the stool. Using this new leverage, he scurried lightly over her small belly and belly button, causing a shriek, another noise neither had heard from her. Ren figured his peaceful morning was over at this point and just embraced the silly nature the room had adopted.

“SOHOOHOJIEHEROOHOO DOOHOHON’T!! BWAHAHA!” She continued to cackle and writhe while he nonchalantly continued his story. Ren could tell Sojiro was rather enjoying his position right now.

“You’d ask her to play so many times in a day, and when you wouldn’t let up she’d run around the house with you until she finally caught you. Then… she’d get you!” he finished, adopting a slightly more sinister tone for emphasis as he quickly shot his fingers up to the poor child’s underarms, switching rapidly from fluttering teasingly and vibrating his fingertips there. She jumped and squealed, but was unable to do much else in his hold.

“NOHAHAT THEERAAHEHEHAA! SOJIEHEEHAHA!” Futaba couldn’t even beg properly anymore as she threw her head back onto his shoulder, trying desperately to squirm her way out of his grip. “D’you have a strategy for getting out of this one, war hero?” Sojiro teased, causing a deeper blush on Futaba’s already reddened face.

“SOOOHOHOJEEEOROO, I CAHAHN’T!!” Not long after that did Sojiro let up, but held her still for a beat or two. Again, to make sure she didn’t fall. Futaba breathed rapidly and leaned back on Sojiro, who will never admit how much his heart swelled at the act. He chuckled again and released the child, ruffling her already messy hair.

Ren wasn’t quite sure what to do besides sit on the sidelines and watch the commotion unfold. His own parents, while supportive and caring, were never really physically affectionate toward him. He couldn’t recall if he even was ticklish. But he chuckled contently. “So, about being a war hero…”

“YOU! Don’t even say anything! YOU started it and DIDN’T BOTHER TO HELP ME! Some leader you are!” Futaba exclaimed, clearly regaining her energy as she stood quickly and drilled quick and relentless pokes to his sides. She’d only expected to get her point across but was so much more pleased when Ren sharply inhaled and flailed to keep her hands away from him. Well, that answered his question.

“Mwehehehe… Perfect!” She snickered evilly. Ren jumped back from his stool and realized he was cornered: Futaba stood between him and the front door, and the increasingly mischievous glare from Sojiro wasn’t at all comforting—it was clear he had no intention of helping Ren out of this.

Suddenly, the Phantom Thief leader did the unexpected: turned and fled up the stairs.

“HEY! Get back here, coward!” Futaba called after him, but wasn’t as fast, especially since Ren could easily climb two stairs at a time.

“I might be able to maneuver my way back down the stairs and out the door,” he thought, being sure to give himself some space as Futaba reached his room. Though he had the upper hand in skill, Futaba looked determined, almost as much as when she’s in a Palace.

“I’ll show you a war hero!” she declared, and lunged for the teen, who dodged her with relative ease. But it happened quickly: one minute he had a clear path to the stairs, and the next he was turned around with his arms pinned to his back. Sojiro chuckled.

“I didn’t think the leader would be so predictable, but Futaba read you like a book. I bet her team would be lost without her,” he commented. “And don’t look so surprised. I used to be with the Feds, remember? Catching runners just comes with the territory.” Ren swore there was some giddiness in Sojiro’s voice, he must be having fun with this. But the boy didn’t struggle against him. In wit and leadership, Ren might have the upper hand. And he was strong, too, from all the training with Ryuji and previous missions. But in pure manpower, and given the position we was in, he hadn’t a chance against Sojiro.

“Hey, you’re being awful quiet for someone who just got captured,” Futaba remarked, getting Ren out of his head and back to the moment; the moment Sojiro lightheartedly pushed the boy onto his couch so Futaba could pounce and begin her ticklish assault, starting strong by pushing up the hem of his shirt and scurrying her fingers on his bare stomach. Ren gritted his teeth, trying not to let out the giggles that were bubbling up. He went to grab at her wrists, only for Sojiro to grab his first and pin them over his head, allowing the redheaded tech-wiz full access to his torso.

“Damnhihit!” Ren muttered, trying to break Sojiro’s grip.

“Was that a laugh, mighty leader?” Futaba teased, sticking one wiggling finger in his belly button. Ren inhaled sharply again and arched his back reflexively, ironically giving Futaba better access to the sensitive area. But he shook his head violently and groaned to cover any indication of escaped giggles.

“Yeah, THAT’S convincing,” Futaba said with an eye roll, changing tactics by pinching along his sides until she reached his ribs. The moment her fingers swiped along his bottom ribs, he twisted and struggled, trying desperately to throw her off of him. But with her straddling his thighs and Sojiro holding his arms, that was not going to be an easy feat.

“Well? Was it a laugh? Is the feared leader of the Phantom Thieves ticklish?”

“Doohoohn’t Futaba!” He muttered, unable to keep his giggling completely at bay anymore while he felt his face heat up in forming a blush.

“Now I think that was a laugh,” Sojiro teased, encouraging Futaba to go in for the kill.

“Dahahamit, let mehehe go, old maahan!” Ren said. Out loud. He did not mean to say that out loud. He was trying so hard not to laugh that he didn’t (or rather, couldn’t) think, and the words just fell out. Futaba stopped tickling and both children looked to Sojiro. He just looked blankly at Ren, and took both his wrists into one hand.

“Oh ho, you’re about to get wrecked!” Futaba exclaimed giddily, waiting for Sojiro’s move.

“Sir, I didn’t mean that, I’m sorrEHEHEEHHEE! NOOHOHHOHAAHAHA!!” With his free hand, Sojiro curled and wriggled his fingers into the teen’s rib cage, and the dam holding back Ren’s giggles burst into a loud, unhindered belly laugh. Neither Futaba nor Sojiro had ever heard their quiet and composed LeBlanc tenant laugh, not like this, and they both chuckled: it seemed it was contagious.

“S-STOOHOHOP LAHAHUGHING AT M-MMEEEHEHE! AHH! HAHAHA!” He begged, and screeched in surprise when he felt Futaba pinch and scratch his bottommost ribs on the side that Sojiro wasn’t absolutely tormenting.

Sojiro switched up his methods a bit, now vibrating his fingertips in the space between Ren’s ribs and underarms, earning another shriek. “I can’t believe this guy is the one everyone’s fussing over. He looks pretty harmless to me!” The caregiver taunted. Ren shook his head, as if fighting the ever-darkening redness from appearing on his cheeks.

“So our fearless leader can be taken down with a couple good tickles, I see. Mwehehe, wait until I tell the others~” Futaba teased, and raked her nails from his ribs down his sides, and scurried them haphazardly all over his bare belly. Ren threw his head back in renewed cackles, his heels digging into the couch behind the sadistic girl.

“NOOHOO, DOHOHOHON’T T-TELL TH-THEEHEHEM! AHAHACK! SOJIHEHERO, I CAAHAHN’T AHAHA!” Ren begged as his guardian released his wrists, only to quickly attack the hollows of his underarms, kneading and vibrating in the region, and making the raven-haired boy go into hysterics, if he wasn’t already. He clamped his arms down quickly, trapping Sojiro’s hands.

“Well now my hands are stuck here. I guess I’d better make the most of it,” he taunted further, snickering at the continuous stream of boyish laugher he was eliciting from the usually stoic kid.

“DOHOHN’T TEHEHEASE MEEHEEHE, PLEEHEEASE, NOOHOHOHO!”

“Oh, now he’s learned some manners!” Sojiro responded spiritedly. Futaba relented finally, figuring her request for revenge had been satisfied. Plus, Ren looked like he could use a little mercy right now.

“Ya know, you look kinda cute like this! Maybe if I can get a picture, or a video!-”

“DOHON’T YOU DAHAHARE!”

“I know they would enjoy this dirt I’ve got on you!”

“IHEHE’LL EHEHEND YOOHOHOU!”

“Ya know,” Sojiro started, “you aren’t in any place to be making threats. Or to be calling me old, only I can do that.”

“I SAIHEHED I’M SORRYEHEHE!” Ren spat out, his laughter starting to go silent. Sojiro chuckled again and finally released the teen from his grip. They watched as Ren greedily gasped for air and rubbed his eyes to find he’d been crying mirthful tears.

“I guess I’m sorry too, I think I got carried away there. You all right?” Sojiro asked, motioning for Futaba to get off of his legs. He nodded, still breathing heavily, but starting steadying.

“Futaba was right, you are kinda cute like that,” Sojiro teased, and the teen covered his faced and groaned, followed by a muffled “I am NOT.”

“Don’t go pouting, you’re still in a pretty vulnerable position,” Sojiro replied, offering a quick poke to his side, causing a jolt and a lighter giggle. The guardian looked at his watch and sighed.

“Great, Ren, you made me late for opening up shop,” he muttered, but there was no malice behind it.

“Oh yeah, gotta open the doors for your daily swarm of customers,” Futaba commented half-heartedly.

“Hey! I have my morning regulars, young lady.” Sojiro retorted. “You need to watch your tone. You saw what happened to the last guy that had something smart to say.” Ren groaned, and finally sat up, looking at the other two people occupying his room. He watched them continue their argument as he shook his head in exasperation with a grin.

#persona 5 #ren amamiya #akira kusuru #futaba sakura #tickle fic #fluff #sojiro sakura #sojiro is best dad #lee!amamiya #phantom thieves #tickling

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trulyhumblenarcissist · 4 years

Text

About bnha 303... Such a mess?

This chapter of mha feels so... WEIRD. I don't really know how to explain it, but the whole atmosphere is somehow off-putting.

First of all, I don't like the premise of these "top 3 heroes" teaming up to fight Touya. I do get the point of gathering every last bit of manpower they have to make a move against the league (not that they can do anything more than regroup and collect themselves right now), but on a narrative standpoint I can only see a missed opportunity. I'd have much more appreciated for Hawks to take his own path in chasing after Dabi, because these two characters are foils and their development is a game of mirroring. If from now on Hawks works alongside the Todorokis, I fear his personal confrontation with Dabi might get lost, meddled with all the family affairs that have to be dealt with. We got Touya, the son and brother, who definitely needs to be faced by his own relatives, and we got Dabi, the villain product of a messed up childhood, who has way too much in common with Hawks, another neglected kid who's also a "hero" standing on the other side. Both parts of Touya's self, his past and his present, have different characteristics and can be reconciled with different approaches, by different people. Or at least this is how I see it.

I guess in this chapter Hawks is the main "wrong" element to me. He just doesn't seem right. He looks almost unbothered, uninterested. As if everything happened didn't really get to him. Yes, he does think about his parents and he shows some kind of emotion, mainly guilt, which is not to be really expected from him since they f*ed him up real bad and they deserved to be pushed away, however he's comparing himself with Shoto... He sees Shoto as someone "cooler than him" because the boy tries really hard to acknowledge his past and he's dealing with it head-on. While I can appreciate Hawks having a little bit of self loathing (very much needed at this point) I think his guilt is definitely misplaced. He clearly still sees himself as above everyone else, especially Dabi. Why isn't he comparing himself with Touya? Why isn't he empathizing with Touya, who's arguably way more similar to him than Shoto? I don't know why Horikoshi's framing things like this to be honest. Hawks needs to understand he's not always in the right just because he's a hero. Why doesn't he show a bit more disappointment towards Enji? Apparently he is even preparing Endeavor's public speech in order to soothe people's complaints! He's acting like he doesn't really care about anything he has come to discover and his behavior, all touchy and space invading, shows a completely lack of boundaries (much like his tongue, sharper than ever). The guy literally asks if Endeavor burned Shoto like it is some kind of very light and trivial inquiry... What if Shoto said yes? Would have even mattered to Hawks at this point? He is acting just like an agent of power doing damage control to keep the status quo. And yes, I know he has been raised to be exactly that, but what about his experiences with the league, with Twice? What about Dabi's horrible past? This things really didn't make him rethink even once about his moral compass?

I don't know what I'm even saying at this point. Maybe I completely misunderstood Horikoshi's plans for this character.

Considering the other elements of the chapter, I feel very uneasy about all the attention around One For All too. I don't know if having all these supposed heroes know about such a powerful weapon is something desirable, especially for Deku. He's already been devoided of agency by inserting the element of the vestiges inside himself. He risks to end up like a tool for the strongest pursuer and nothing more...

The only sweet element of this confusing set-up is Bakugou actually showing in front of everyone his concern for Deku, to the point his friends need to restrain him. He definitely grew up a lot... And I really appreciate the type of person he's becoming, especially since it wasn't easy for him to come to terms with his complexes (and he still has work to do obviously)

So well, that's all. Maybe after the official release I'll say something more if I the translation provides other nuances. I'd really like to know what other people think about this... So feel free to comment and reach out if you want!

#mha #bnha spoilers #bnha 303 #my hero academy #hawks #keigo takami #todoroki family #best jeanist

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levisnackajack · 4 years

Text

The Wrath of War

Chapter Seventeen

“We’ll get through this,” Eren had said, pulling his friends into a tight, group hug. Eden nodded, the muffled voices around her slowly slowly becoming sharper and clearer.

Where was she?

“You, Mikasa, Eden and I. We’ll join the Scout Regiment and fight for the sea. We’ll fight for the taste of freedom. And then when that day comes, we’ll sit together and reminisce about all the tough times we’ve gone through just to get to that moment,” Armin replied softly as they pulled away.

Each child had a flame in their eyes. Two pairs of crystal blue eyes, a duo of onyx jewels as well as another pair of honey-colored eyes that glinted with a shade of emerald. After the horrors they had witnessed that day in Shiganshina; the deaths that had cracked through each crevice of their bones; they had vowed to fight until death grabbed their hand.

Eden felt drowsy as the world around her slowed down and the faces of her friends grew blurry. She looked around to see the atmosphere change, those distant voices that rang at the back of her mind growing more realistic.

“Hey, Eden, I brought you an apple. Well, honestly, Connie made me give it up. I actually really wanted to eat that apple...-”

Slap

“Ouch, sorry. Scratch that, I didn’t mean it like that. I was just joking, hehe,” Sasha rambled on, rubbing her arm as she rolled her eyes at Connie’s irked stare.

Velveteen lashes fluttered opened gradually; the immediate light burning her pupils. Eden hissed, shutting her eyes once more as she came to her senses at a dreadfully slow pace. She caught sight of the familiar layout vividly resembling the medical quarters situated at their base.

Two light gasps bounced through the air. Her bed shifted under moving weight and once she took a deep breath; Eden managed to open one eye.

Sasha and Connie stared at her through comically wide eyes. The girl blinked slowly at them, raising a weak hand to touch her pounding temple.

“What...happened?”

The duo exchanged glances and Sasha swallowed thickly. Connie bounced on his heels before clearing his throat and rubbing the back of his neck.

“You got severely injured on the battlefield. Safe to say, you were this close to being squeezed to death,” Connie pinched his fingers together, indicating the lack of space between his index and his thumb finger. “You’ve been out cold for the past couple of days, on IV’s and stuff, I don’t know.”

Eden tried sitting up, but the weight of her tattered body pleaded her to remain still. “What do you mean I’ve been ‘out cold for the past couple of days’? What about Armin? He was with me, is he okay? And the rest, where are they?” The words trickled out through her lips like a mellow waterfall.

Sasha sent her a wary smile, placing her hand over hers against the warm blanket. “Everyone from our team is healthy and safe. Unfortunately, we can’t say the same about Hange’s squad. She lost a couple of her comrades during the battle.” She lowered her eyes as she spoke, bottom lip quivering.

Eden let go of a slow sigh, the movement causing her lungs to burn up and swell against her heart. She palmed the fabric of her blanket in between her fingers. “Shit. Was the mission a failure then? Did we manage to secure the sighting hotspot?”

Both of her comrade-friends shook their heads glumly. Connie spoke up.

“We came back to help Hange’s team after seeing that separation would only make things worse. Captain Levi shot the final flare at the sight of literally a dozen titans heading our way. We just didn’t have enough manpower to push through all of them; especially since your team was already completely ambushed. No one expected it to be that bad...”

Eden stayed silent as she tried to process his words. Her brain racked against her skull as she thought about all the pain and suffering her fallen comrades had experienced right before their lives were ripped out of their bodies by the vile, humanoid creatures. It made her blood boil and her lip quiver.

“How did you manage to pull me out of the titan’s grasp? I can’t remember much except how peaceful I began feeling when I finally closed my eyes...I thought I was dead...”

“We’re so happy you’re not, Eden. What happened was...-”

“Excuse me, leave the poor girl to rest,” the familiar voice of the assigned nurse made her two friends jump out of their skin. She ushered them both out in an irritated voice before walking back to Eden.

“Can you please tell me what’s wrong with me? When can I join my team back on the field...-”

“Not anytime soon, dear. You should be grateful you’re not currently six-feet under. Your lungs collapsed due to the pressure, so you’ll be sticking to bedrest for the time being until it gets better. Don’t look at me like that, I told you, it could’ve been worse. There was some internal bleeding that we stopped once you arrived, what else...ah yes, you’re lucky...this time, you managed to fracture just two ribs!” The nurse told her, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she spoke.

Eden refrained from the need to roll her eyes at her and involuntarily winced instead at the sudden pains in her chest. The medic assured her that this would happen often until her internal organs heal with the help of medication, rest and the will to live.

Deep down, through all the trauma her body underwent that day; Eden’s mind was fixed on one tiny thought that seemed to devour her entire soul; would Captain Levi come and visit her?

The day’s hours quickly trickled by as Eden spent it dealing with constant visits, naps and by sulking and glaring at the ceiling. She begged the nurse to give her something to numb the pain; but the older woman had assured her that she will do so after dinner.

Eden didn’t even have enough energy to snap back at her.

The sun began settling, bringing in a warm, orange shade into the infirmary. The rays grazed against Eden’s blanket, caressing her skin softly as her body began to ache. Mikasa had just left, bidding her a good night after helping Eden bathe.

The injured girl felt like such a nuisance and begged her friend multiple times to leave, stating she could manage on her own. But Mikasa being Mikasa; never left her side. Her nurse finally injected her with a large dose of painkillers, assuring her that they would stop the pain for at least a couple of long hours. She had also told her that they would make her feel sleepy and droopy. Eden merely nodded and thanked her for the medication.

Now, tightly wrapped up in her warm duvet, the charcoal-haired girl counted the each clock tick; completely bored out of her mind. She didn’t feel like the medicine had kicked in yet; but the nurse had reassured her that it could take some time for them to kick in and knock her out. Her eye twitched at the sound of the door gently opening.

A tender smile crept up on her face as he made his way towards her bed.

“Hi, Jeanie-boy,” she greeted him softly, tilting her head towards him against the pillow.

His expression was strained and that remained intact when he sent her a smile, pulling her hand into his. “Hi, darling. How are you feeling?”

“I’ve been better, but I’ll manage. Can’t get rid of me that quickly now, can you?”

He let go of a gentle huff, his thumb rubbing circles against her soft skin. Eden bit her lip, brows lacing together slightly. He remained silent, staring down at their interlinked fingers.

“Something is wrong. Talk to me,” she urged him gently, squeezing his hand with her palm.

Jean pursed his lips tightly; clenching his jaw tightly as contemplation painted against his tense face. “Do you remember what happened...that day?”

Eden’s own expression grew more rigid as she tried her best to call back any memories she had. She released an exasperated sigh, sinking deeper into the pillow.

“I’m sorry Jean. I really can’t remember much. My horse threw me off the saddle; Armin came back for me...we ran towards the horses and then a titan just grabbed me. That’s all I recall.”

Jean bit his lip before running a hand across his face; shifting against her mattress. She watched him silently, afraid that if she pushed him; he’d snap at her. And she wanted Jean to open up on his own terms.

“I feel like I can’t really do this anymore, Eden.”

Her almond eyes grew larger, lips parting in wonder. “Can’t do what, Jean? What’s going on?”

The boy only shook his head in response, eyes betraying how deep in thought he was. Eden’s heart clenched uneasily.

“I can’t just share you. It’s not right and I don’t feel good knowing I can’t have you all to myself.”

His confession hung in the air heavily. Jean watched her carefully as she tried understanding his words. But, to no avail.

“I-I don’t understand. What are you talking about?”

Jean pinched the bridge of his nose before saying, “You’ll understand what I’m telling you on your own terms. I’m sorry it has to go down this way. You mean so much to me, Chiasa. And I can fully understand the situation you’re in right now. The confusion and all. I’ve been in that position. Which is why I’m trying to help you make things easier- even if nothing makes sense to you right now.”

Eden placed her other hand over his, grazing the skin on the back of his palm reassuringly. She listened intently to each word; feeling her heart crack just a little bit.

“I don’t want to lose you, Jean.”

The boy made a face, leaning in closer towards the resting girl. “Psh, who said anything about losing anyone? There’s no way in hell you’ll lose me, Eden; you can trust me on that. Otherwise, you can write a letter to my mother and tell her how embarrassed I was when she sent me that stuffed plush bear and you were the one who caught me with it.”

The memory made Eden laugh, her eyes crinkling at the edges as Jean’s own brown eyes twinkled down at her.

“That’s a deal.”

Jean leaned in closer, pressing his warm, plush lips against Eden’s forehead. She closed her eyes, taking in his scent that seemingly overwhelmed her entirely. Everything with him was so cozy, definite and practically perfect. It was such a stark juxtaposition to the feelings the man with steely, blank eyes sparked within her.

“But, just because I’ve decided to let you go now, does not mean I will not keep trying,” he muttered when pulling away. Eden sent him a toothy grin that was masked with a layer of grimness once her question slammed against her brain.

“Can you tell me what happened after I blacked out?”

Jean’s eyes darkened as he looked down at their hands. He gritted his teeth, craning his neck to the side before meeting her curious gaze.

“I...I was the one who saved you.” He hesitated for a moment, but continued nevertheless. “When all went to shit and the Captain shot the terminated mission flare; I made my way back to you. I don’t know what it was, but I just knew that something was wrong. I found Armin charging at the bastard that had grabbed you, aiming for its wrist tendon but...I managed to slice its nape seconds before you were going to land in its mouth. It was a miracle, really. If I was even a millisecond late; you would have...died.”

Eden felt like the air was knocked out of her bruised lungs. She looked away, realization creeping down her spine as she thought back to how close she was to death. Only to be saved and gifted with another chance at life. She suppressed a yawn, her lids growing heavier.

Jean released an empty, humorless laugh; shaking his head at the memories that flashed before his eyes. “And then, when I got to you...you said his name.” He stood abruptly, gently laying Eden’s hand back against the softness of the duvet as she watched him sleepily; her mind overpowered by the drug previously injected into her bloodstream to tend to the pains.

She was drowning in so many questions, but felt like she didn’t have enough time to answer them for herself. She called for Jean gently; earning a sweet, supple smile from the boy as he gazed down at her. His head snapped towards the entrance and immediately, his expression contorted into one filled with deep-rooted vexation.

“Out of everyone within the walls; why him?” Jean muttered under his breath- a question devoted more to himself rather than the dazed girl on the brink of slumber. He bid her a good night and went his separate way.

Eden groaned in response, her lids completely slipping shut by the time the sound of approaching boots had reached her ears.

Tags: @idiot-juice-enthusiast @hadassackerman

Thank you for all the support!! xx

Link to the story in AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28919136/chapters/70952145

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unrationalthinking · 3 years

Text

To The Past Part 1

For this story take places after endgame, wandavision, loki, and the falcon and the winter soldier except because i love the characters tony was able to receive medical attention after he snapped surviving it rogers did return the stones except the soul stone is a soul for a soul so when he returned he had Natasha with him spiderman far from home still happened sort of.

Everyone has obviously made up from civil war Bucky has given Tony his space he needs though he is trying to seek his forgiveness Tony still finds it hard but has come around on the fact he can't blame Bucky for what happened When an old enemy reappears Hydra. Realizing that they if they could change the past they could finally stop them once and for all so the head back to the 1940’s directly after shield was created and after captain crashed the plane to save the world steve also never shaved because he looks much better with the beard bucky did cut his hair steve enjoys his on the run gear more so he still wears his darker colored uniform sam never became the captain and redwing survived

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

As the team geared up in there uniforms the head back in time the blue prints laid out for camp Lehigh after shield took it over deciding where to enter the building via the time loop they decided they need all the help they could get in this time so they decided that peggy and howard would be first on the list they found a room the was on a lower more secure level near Howards office that would be easiest to get into for the mission. Those going on the mission were Steve, Bucky, Sam, Tony, Thor, Rocket, Groot, Natasha, Clint, Bruce, Wanada, Rhodey, and Shuri. As they geared up the team didn't speak much; they all had a common enemy and a lot of pent up feelings in the past, mostly tony steve and bucky. They all made their way to the center area for time travel hank pym and his family standing work on the computers around Scott and Hope would both be joining them in the past. Hank was proud of Tony he didn't care for Howard but Tony seemed like a good kid alot like Howard but so different at the same time. After hugs where given the all went throw the machine to the 1940’s landing in the abandoned room the choose it had worked they quietly made their way to the door peeking out they didn't see anyone the clock read 11pm but there he Was in his office Howard Stark working with a open bottle of whiskey, Tony and Steve shared a look the tension rising as the watched him work for a few minutes until there was some yelling down the hall and Peggy made her way down the hall with two men, one Tony remembered very well as Edwin Jarvis but the other he had assumed to be Daniel Sousa he had never met him but the limp and the stories he heard he assumed they all sat quietly as the made there way to Howard's office peggy ranting more like yelling at them “I don’t care if he thinks his work is to busy for this he needs to be told something has to be done besides creating a new project or finding steve's body!” as she made her way into Howards office the duct a bit not being seen she had a tear running down her cheek “HOWARD STARK” he looked up fear in his eyes as she rarely said his name like that she crossed her arms as Steve and Tony shared a knowing look about her tone everyone else had to hid there laughs though Daniel seemed to notice a strange noise they duct to stop him from seeing them and he brushed it off a bit peggy continued at howard though “Where were you today?” he Answered in a stutter “i.. I Was here working, why?” She rolled her eyes and said “ And where were you supposed to be today?” Howard took a moment and realized the date being the third year that Steve had died. He made a promise to Peggy to spend the day with her “ah… Peg im so sorry i forgot im such an idiot i should have been there.” she sniffles crying “But you weren't there three years Howard Three years since he died and you couldn't even be there for anyone you hide here working on what?” Howard lowered his head, a tear rolling down his face “I was working on a time machine to go back and stop him from crashing the plane Peg.” Rhodey let a laugh slip thinking about how much Tony was Like His dad only to realize Daniel heard it. Tony and Steve shared a grin realizing he messed up and they could hold it over him. Daniel had pulled his gun sushing everyone but Howard didn't get the hint and asked “Daniel what are you doing?” Daniel responded in a whisper “there is someone in that room right there.” as he pointed. “No there is not. I would have known I'd been here all day.” Howard responded.The avengers realizing Daniel would not let it go decided to pretend they didn't know what was happening when the door opened they were all staring in random directions while some where even whistling. Peggy Jarvis Daniel And Howard opened the door with full surprise as 15 people stood there acting like they didn't see them but Daniel raised his gun Saying “you guys are trespassing on private property hands up!” but the first to respond was Steve taking the time to joke he had recently become quite the jokester spending too much time around Tony, he looked down from

looking at the ceiling and walked to the front of the group “Hey guys so uhm, come here often?” Peggy pulled her gun on Steve “whoever you are, this is a real sick joke showing up as Captain Rodgers on his 3 year mark of his death.” It was Tony who stepped in this time “ alright let's put the guns down and let us explain who and why we are here and captain nice joke I see I'm rubbing off on you.” They all stared in shock for a minute until they decided they were out numbers and dropped their weapons “Start Explaining” Peggy said with her hands on her hips. Thor piped in with “I see why you loved her, Rogers the sas fits you perfectly.” making steve Blush and look at the ground Tony made a vomit action and started to speak “We are the Avengers we are from the future and we came back to deal with Hydra once and for all because they grow to large in the future and almost destroy the world multiple times and end up tainting Shield forcing us to remove Shield.” With that they started not believing it so Toni pulled out his holographic phone and played videos from some of their encounters and they realized they were telling the truth. Peggy looks at Steve once more “are you… are you really here?” staring in shock “yeah sorry i missed our dance, but you found yourself a better partner then me.” As he sends a knowing look at Sousa, making them both blush and Sousa become intimidated, Steve continues “Don’t worry I'm happy for you guys.”

At that Peggy ran to Steve hugging him as an old friend was crying. “We have to get to work, we need to attack Hydra now we know where they are located already, we just need the manpower.” Tony said Breaking the silence and with that Howard spoke “Can we atleast get your names? If we are working together.” Tony nods and introduces everyone pointing as he speaks about people “I am Tony Stark also known as Iron Man your son, Captain Rogers known as Captain America, Thor King of Asgard a different plant God of Thunder, Shuri princess of Wakanda more intelligent than me and you combined, Bruce Banner known as The Hulk or Professor hulk now, Rhody known as war machine also my best friend, Hope Van Dyne known as the Wasp Hank Pym's daughter, Scott long known as Ant-man dating hope pym doesn't like that, Sam Wilson The Falcon Caps Best Friend #2, Rockett he a raccoon that was a test subject in a different galaxy, Groot hes a tree, Wanda also know as scarlett Witch dont fuck with her she hates hydra more then anyone, Natasha Romanoff Known as the Black Widow russian spy likes betting up the super soldiers.” With that there was a pause to take everything in and for Tony to catch a breath as Clint from the venting shaft jumps down and says “I'm Clint Barton American Spy also known as Hawkeye though you will need to speak up sometimes I have a hard time hearing.” as there was another pause as Howard asked “you said sam is the captain's 2nd best friend? I assume I'm the First right?” chuckling a bit Tony responds “no Bucky Barnes is his 1 bestfriend.” Howard pales a bit “ Bucky died though.” at that bucky landed behind but in between Tony and Steve making the 4 people jump not expecting it as he stood a blank stare he always wore on his faces not smiling showed. Tony spoke “And Bucky Barnes also known as caps bestfriend, the now ex winter soldier know known as the white wolf of Wakanda dont fuck with him he could kill all of us in this room currently.” with that bucky smirking at Tony and Howard just looking at him paler than before anyone could respond Howard asked “The winter soldier is you? How did you survive?” bucky froze and then responded “when the 107 was taken i was tested on it helped me survive the fall Hydra found me removed my arm and gave me the super soldier serum.” there was a pause as Shuri walked up to comfort Bucky “after i had healed the scrambled my brain making me forget everything i was and trained to be a cold killer i have the memories but i wasn't in control i remember all the faces of those i killed the innocents and and the murderers i regret it but i had no control over it.” a single tear rolled down his and Tony's check as Tony hugged him finally gave his full forgiveness.

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froggycatvest · 4 years

Text

Title: Family means no one gets left behind Word Count: 2000 Ship: None Warnings: None Characters: Gordon, Benrey, Bubby, Dr. Coomer, Tommy

Gordon couldn’t believe he was doing this. Every other time Benrey had died, the group left him behind. Carrying around dead weight--literal dead weight--maybe wasn’t the best idea.

“Hey, maybe this wasn’t the best idea,” he said, a forced cheerfulness in his voice as he stopped his stride when he felt Benrey’s dead body sliding off his back to one side. Gordon huffed and adjusted his grip to keep him on.

“But Gordon,” Dr. Coomer replied, running in front of him to face him, “It’s for science, you said.”

In exasperation, Gordon immediately groaned out, “I know I said it was for science.”

Maybe he sounded like he was whining, but it had been the only way he could convince them to let him bring Benrey along. Not saying it didn’t become funny after a while hearing Dr. Coomer and Bubby be so flippant about the man dying after so many times, but...wasn’t anyone curious?

Sometimes, Benrey came back immediately, running after them around a corner. Sometimes, they didn’t see him for hours. Asking him how or why wouldn’t net a straight answer, so he had to see for himself. So the next time Benrey had keeled over like a ragdoll, Gordon hauled him with them.

“Any of you want to take a turn?” he asked jokingly. The suit helped give him the strength to trudge around with extra weight, but there were aliens and radiation and obstacles, and, really, he just wanted to rest. It probably hadn’t even been twenty minutes, but Gordon was ready to order a sit down with everyone to wait this out with Benrey.

Dr. Coomer broke through his thoughts with a hum. “A man resting on my back?” He crouched and began to shuffle away, lost in thought. “Oh, that takes me back.” he said with nostalgia. He had gotten too far for Gordon to respond to with more than a confused noise in his throat.

Then he felt Benrey breathe.

The chest against his back moved, and the air against his shoulder was warm.

Oh. So he did just come back in the same body. It wasn’t like leaving a trail of dead ones behind like some sort of messed up breadcrumb guide. Gordon was happy, though. Even if Benrey was the worst--antagonistic and able to press his buttons like no one else--more manpower was always a plus, and sometimes the man was amusing, his dumb comments cutting through tense moments and making him laugh.

Gordon tilted his head in an attempt to speak directly at him. “Are you good?”

His answer was an immediate groan.

He grinned. “Yeah, that sounds about right. If I let you go, can you stand?”

The groans continued on into a lower guttural rumble like he was dying all over again.

“...All right, someone get him off.”

Bubby rushed in, weapon drawn, and Gordon sputtered out at him, “Would you put your gun away?”

“You said off him.”

“I said--” Gordon stopped and sighed. Why bother? They were always twisting his words and refusing to listen to him correctly. “And if the bullet went through to me, too?”

“You’d be offed,” Bubby said matter-of-fact, running away.

Gordon watched him go, a blank expression on his face. It was really the way the other man made it sound like he was an idiot for not knowing the obvious when he was actually being sarcastic--which Gordon knew was on purpose since Bubby was the most sarcastic of the bunch.

He couldn’t help but point that out. “You’re a...you’re kind of a smartass, aren’t you?”

Bubby ran up to him again with his gun outward. “What was that?”

...Yeah, all right. Maybe he was a bit of an idiot to insult Bubby, of all people. And the way he was just so nonchalant about having his finger on the trigger at all times didn’t help.

Gordon gave him a placating smile. “You’re…so smart, Dr. Bubby.”

Bubby nodded, his gun disappearing. “Dang right.” He moved to grip one of Benrey’s arms, Tommy rushing in to his other side.

“Careful. Legs don’t work well when you’re dead.”

Bubby raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? They don’t work at all when you’re dead.”

“Guys, guys. He’s not dead.” Gordon slowly let go of Benrey’s legs one at a time in case he was still waking up. It was strange that he hadn’t moved yet, but it was probably for the best. Hearing his mocking words was grating enough, but if he had to hear it right in his ear, he would absolutely lose his temper and drop him.

“He’s fine now. Aren’t you, Benrey?”

The weight abruptly left his back with the sound of someone stumbling, and Gordon whipped around in case he needed to help catch him, but the other two held him up.

“See?” Tommy said with a smile and a knowing look towards Bubby. “They don’t work well.”

“Shut up, Tommy.”

“Hey, hey.” Gordon waved his hand at Bubby. “Be nice.”

It seemed to take a moment for Benrey to realize what was going on and to stand fully on his own. When he did, Bubby bounded away, muttering something about being nice. Gordon sighed. “Thank you, Tommy.” When the other man ran off on his own as well, Gordon glanced over Benrey. “Just like new then?”

Benrey stared like he always did, before his eyes narrowed, palm coming up to rub against where his face had been pressed into Gordon’s shoulder.

“Oh what happened?”

At least he sounded the same as he always did. Gordon nodded, satisfied.

“Just a little detour. We’re ready to move on.”

But Benrey didn’t move, didn’t stop staring, didn’t take his hand away from his face. “Yeah what happened?”

The unbreaking eye contact usually got to him, making Gordon shift on the spot. “It’s nothing.” Hey, if Benrey didn’t realize he had been piggybacked around for a bit, then he didn’t need to be told. “You’re imagining things.”

Dr. Coomer sprinted into the conversation. “That’s because we carried you around like a sleeping princess.” He began to crouch-walk away again, lost in thought. “Oh, that takes me back,” he said with nostalgia.

Gordon opened his mouth, but wasn’t able to decide whether to quickly deny the true claim or address whatever the heck Dr.Coomer was talking about concerning his...whatever the hell it was. Bubby helped to make the decision when he spoke, voice raised from down the hallway.

“It was Gordon’s idea. Wouldn’t let us continue on without you. I don’t understand why.”

“Bubby,” Gordon whined. They were ganging up on him. This wasn’t fair. “I told you before. It was for--” He broke off when Benrey pushed his words into the conversation.

“You were doing bad?”

Gordon felt the air sucked in through his teeth and tightening up his chest. Benrey sounded so innocent there, as if he were genuinely confused and asking if it were truly true. But Gordon had heard it so many times before that he was on the defensive immediately, full attention on the other man, and his voice coming out in a rush.

“Why do you always think I’m doing bad?” he demanded, and then pointed at him, shoulders raising. “When are you going to get over your neverending suspicions of me? Out of all of us, I have nothing to hide!”

Benrey stared at the hand in front of him. “Huh?”

“You know what?” Gordon breathed out, waving him off, already drained and stance falling. “I was just doing something good, something nice. Keeping you safe. Bubby was right. I don’t know why I would do that.”

Bubby apparently agreed. “I’m always right.”

Gordon called out to him. “And I will listen to you from now on, because--”

He stopped when Benrey began to step here and there, strafing into his vision at his side while muttering something. Gordon could get mad easily, but he could also calm down just as quickly, whether something distracted him or something confused him or someone was moving around near him.

He held a hand up to motion him to stand still. “What?”

Benrey faced him. “You’re always.”

“I’m always what?”

“You hide things.”

Gordon was going to walk away. He had turned to address the others, ready to say they were heading out right this moment, but Benrey spoke over him quickly.

“You didn’t answer me earlier. That’s hiding things.”

...Well...Dang it. That was true. All right, all right. He was man enough to admit that.

“Maybe you’re right,” Gordon said, his arms crossing before he shrugged his shoulders. “But it’s not a big deal. I was just going to say we carried you around for observation.”

The change in Benrey was immediate.

Benrey’s stride brought him unnervingly close. “Observing? You’re observing me?” And Gordon had to take a step back, his hands up and protesting at the sudden accusing tone.

“You make it sound bad,” he complained. It always caught him off guard the way he did that, the way he apparently didn’t understand personal space, the way he followed and just would not stop.

“Oh, yes,” Bubby called out to Benrey. “Like a little microscope specimen.”

“That makes it sound worse!” Gordon cried out, using the opportunity to round on the scientist, stalking up to him and putting some distance between himself and Benrey. “Should we have left him dead and alone instead?”

“That’s what we said to do,” Bubby quipped as he sat down and stared up at him. “But you don’t listen.”

Gordon made a noise of amusement. “I don’t listen?” That was a good one. Did anyone listen to anyone else around here? He gestured around him. “Every single one of you--I mean, god, he’s right there.” His hand swept towards Benrey. “You’re just going to say we should have abandoned him right in front of him?”

“I died?”

Benrey hadn’t moved, but Gordon was thrilled that maybe they would get somewhere in this conversation. “Yes. Yes, you died. You die many times. Shot at, blown up, electrocuted. I’ve lost count after a while. ”

When the silence in the area stretched for more than the usual time it would take to get a response, Gordon frowned and asked carefully, “Did you not know?”

Benrey broke eye contact, looking around at the walls, the floor, anywhere but at him. Normally, he’d have something to say, even if it didn’t make sense. Or he’d walk away and run around to get away from him. But the way he stood so still...Was he actually thinking about this? Was this an existential crisis? Would Gordon finally not be the only one to have a breakdown in this godforsaken place?

When Benrey started mumbling something out, it was a bit of a relief. “Is that why it hurts?”

Gordon looked him over. “Where?”

“Everywhere.”

“Uhh, probably.”

Seeing as he never mentioned being in pain after coming back to life before, it actually might have been because Gordon had chucked his dead body to the ground a few times in a fit of desperation to defend himself when aliens targeted him in a scuffle. But he wasn’t about to mention that.

...Tommy, though. Tommy, though…

“No, that was when Mr. Freeman dropped you,” Tommy said helpfully, before his tone lowered, sounding a little sad for some reason. “He did that a lot.”

“Tommy.”

And Benrey was back to normal, getting all up in Gordon’s face. “Why did you do that?” He stepped in even closer. “Why would you do that?”

“Oh my god.” Gordon leaned away, exasperated. “Everyone else was right. I should have just left you dead on the floor back there.”

Tommy was the first to protest, “But that’s mean,” he said, as Dr. Coomer came up to admonish him.

“Now, Gordon. We’re a team. And we don’t leave team members behind.”

“What is wrong with you?” Bubby joined in sounding scandalized, and Gordon slipped past all of them, already used to...everything. All of this. Whatever all of this was.

“We really need to make up for lost time, guys,” he said, leading the way and already putting all of this behind him. “Let’s go.”

#hlvrai #benrey is ded at first but then he lives #mine

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kiarcheo · 4 years

Text

Golden Crown and the Pink Menace - What was supposed to happen next (but won’t get written)

For PikaPals16, who wanted to know a bit more. This was the plan…

These are just the notes I wrote down when I thought I would write more of this story. That is not going to happen anymore but in case you’re also curious…

Also on Ao3

Catherine would round up four other women. Telling them that they have in common one person…and she thought they might want to help taking him down.

Catherine is a lawyer. She had dated Henry since she was a teenager and then married him, only to be divorced with no real reason (well, he cheated but he tried to make the divorce her fault).

Anne is also a lawyer, an environmental one. She had dated Henry, without knowing he was married. She got pregnant and he wanted her to get an abortion. She disappeared to make sure the baby would be safe. Yes, Henry is that powerful.

Jane works in PR. Through work she met Henry. They dated but he broke up with her when she told him she was pregnant. Told her he loved her, but she wasn’t ‘good enough’ to marry. He offered to make Edward his heir but Jane would have had to sign away her rights and she refused. Their affair had not been public and since he actually had some feelings for her, he let her go and let her be as long as she keeps her mouth shut.

Henry had pursued Anna looking for a business merger, wanting her money and stuff, but apparently she wasn’t pretty enough for him [first of all, bullshit. Second, Henry might have been handsome when he was young and dating Catherine, but years, alcohol and food didn’t make him any favours] and told everyone about it.

Cathy is a writer/journalist and Henry destroyed her life. She was supposed to marry Thomas but Henry had his eyes on her and paid off Thomas with a job overseas…good riddance, since anyone who would give up on his fiancée for a job clearly doesn’t deserve her, but still. Cathy had plans and Henry ruined them.

Katherine arrives, talking about school. Didn’t know you had a daughter. Catherine is sort of a public figure so that should be known…right? Catherine offhandedly tells them it’s a recent acquisition.

Catherine makes them sign a NDA before starting to talk. Bloody lawyers, Anne complains, ignoring the fact that she is a lawyer herself (also she is impressed by the contract, not that she’d ever admit it)

To convince them Catherine mentions details that are not known to public.

‘How do you-?’

Kat: ‘Oh, we know everything.’

‘Sound creepy, but I’ll bite.’

They get a file…on themselves (like each file just has info of that person, they are not going to tell other people’s secrets. Like that Anne was Green Phantom and she has a daughter. It’s just to show they do know stuff)

They are unsettled. Questions about how they got the info.

‘I can find more. Easily. I could destroy your life with a click if you wanted.’

‘What did we discuss about villainry?’ Catherine sounds like they had that discussion multiple times already.

‘That the line between villain and criminal is arbitrary. You steal and kill and you’re criminal. But as soon as you steal from Henry, you’re suddenly public enemy number one.’ Kat recites.

‘That too.’

[Anne agrees]

They find out that the next in line on Catherine’s ‘hit list’ are the Howards and their associates. Curious about what they did to deserve it. Anne doesn’t know but agrees that they deserve everything they got (bad blood with family too).

Reveal of Kat being a Howard and consequently Anne’s cousin. (Catherine and Kat already know since they started putting the dossiers together. They had never been close but Kat knew her name. Didn’t seem relevant to tell Anne from the start since they never really met.)

[Maybe something about how they are all connected in some way, beyond Henry? Like Catherine adopting Anne’s cousin. Jane being their second cousin. Cathy’s Thomas being Jane’s estranged brother. Catherine having known Cathy’s mom. Kat and Anna having met while Kat was interning at Henry’s firm.]

They put together everything they have on Henry. Most come from Kat, but everyone chips in with inside knowledge.

Green Phantom will reappear and cause a big commotion / distraction, drawing all attention and manpower.

Pink Menace will come out of retirement too and break into a facility. Only to get caught at the very last minute by Golden Crown and abandoning all she got (most of which she brought from home).

Golden Crown will see how incriminating those files are and deliver them to police….someone she trusts and knows isn’t corrupt thanks to her real-life job. Police gets a warning that someone else also has the files (apparently Pink Menace had the time to do that) and will publish them if they don’t act correctly and try to bury the matter.

Cathy has ready an exposé, whether the police goes public or not. Jane and Catherine are ready to deal with anything that happens after that thanks to their jobs (for example repercussions for Cathy or in the unlikely case someone starts to suspect their involvement). Anna’s involvement is mainly a financial one. She provides some funds, but also she will be the one who will profit the most from Henry’s fall, her business taking over the space he left.

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starr-fall-knight-rise · 5 years

Text

Humans are Space Orcs “Behind Bars”

WARNING: VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

Guys This is the beginning of an interesting new mini series that may deal with some pretty heavy stuff since it takes place in a human prison. If you think there is ANY chance you could be bothered or offended by the topics I might cover, than now is a good time not to read this. I am not going to go through and make a list of all the potential things you may not like, so I deffer to your own judgement of yourself to determine what is good for you.

Also another little side note, the way I portray law enforcement in this is in no way how I feel about them. I have close family member in law enforcement and respect the hell out of them, but the way I did it was done to serve the story, so just keep that in mind.

For those of you who choose to read it, I hope it’s interesting :)

“Gah, this place is a dump.”

“Yeah, just be glad you can’t smell it.”

“Why is that?”

“Urine, lots and lots of urine.”

“Ah, lovely.” Krill muttered making his next movements very tender against the dark clattering metal as if he could avoid stepping in anything unsavory. Beside him, a rather scruffy human appeared from the shadows, “scruffy” with an overgrown haircut, five o-clock shadow, eyepatch and an army jacket that had seen better days.

Commander Vir blended in surprisingly well with the grungy understreets of noctropolis. The city was Less of a city, and more like a series of tunnels bridges and rickety buildings built on and into the side of a cavernous rift in the ground. Once upon a time, the Tesraki had begun serious mining operations on the border moon’s surface causing some serious scars in the landscape which was then filled with the teaming underground life that the most unsavory humans bring with them.

Noctopolis was located on the furthest edge of the Milky Way galaxy, and seeing as the GA was based out of Andromeda, it was a very difficult moon to police. The UNSC had attempted to take over operations on the moon but had found only limited success considering their military had only been operating in space for the past few years. They didn’t have enough manpower to undergo such an operation, so the moon itself was left mostly unpoliced. Since then it had become home to the most unsavory of the Tesraki, the Drev, and the humans having enough economically or emotionally in common that they at least tolerated each other.

What understanding they had of the border moon had begun with the banning of interspecies relationships almost a year past. Since Noctopolis wasn’t particularly well policed, may counter culture groups had made their home here. While many of them were decent people attempting a little privacy away from the eyes of the law, other less savory groups had taken an opportunity to stake their claim.

The streets about them were littered with trash and abandoned cardboard and metal scraps. Their greatest source of light leaked down from the lively redlight district above, not only called that because of what it offered, but because it actually did bost a series of bright neon lights that could be seen across the city.

“Wanna tell me why I’m here again. This is kind of a Sunny and Vir thing.”

Commander Vir propped himself casually up against a wall slouching inside his jacket collar turned up against the sour wind blowing up from the cavern vanishing into darkness below, “Sunny had to finish requisitioning our new weapons system, besides, i thought it was about time you and I hung out. We haven't done anything together as friends in a while.”

“Ah yes, just how I prefer social bonding, Loitering through piss covered streets with an eyeless legless hobo.”

“Rude.” The human muttered glancing quickly around a corner.

Krill let the question drop instead moving onto the next topic of conversation, “Wanna tell me why we aren’t working with local law enforcement?”

The human dodged past a leaking pipe and the resulting black puddle, “Well there are a few reasons. If I plan on getting close to this drug ring, or even the suppliers, I can't have the smell of the feds one me, second is that the policing system here is only partially overseen by the UN, mostly they supply their own officers and their own laws. There are serious rumors about law enforcement corruption, but that can be expected considering the kind of people that hang out here. And then there is the issue of ease of access to fingerprinting and DNA systems. Mine have been temporarily removed from the system for this operation because the dealers tend to check before the sell, but if i was working with local law enforcement my identity might be leaked.”

Together they stepped onto one of the rickety bridges spanning the cavern. Krill tried not to look down into the gaping bottomless chasm spanning downwards into darkness tinted with the red haze cast from the neon reflection of the city.

“Why is this such a big deal anyway. Why waste you on a project like this.”

Commander Vir stepped off the edge of the bridge holding it steady for Krill as he followed.

“Because this guys are linked to the human hormone market.” Krill was a bit surprised. He had heard about the issue months ago. Certain species, the Tesraki and the Drev especially had neurotransmitter systems similar to that of a human, though somewhat dampened and were affected by the use of injected dopamine and adrenaline. On the street they had taken names like Dopie, Daddy, Addie, Joy Juice, and some other strange names. The biggest issue with the use of human chemicals as drugs is that even a single dose of the stuff could fry the circuits for any nonhuman taken in any sort of significant dose. In humans it occasionally meant sickness or even mental illness, but in aliens it could mean permanent flat affect or the inability to feel fear. The other issue was how the dealers got it, usually it involved kidnapping and harvesting the chemicals from humans, since many times the analogue drugs humans made for themselves didn't have an effect on aliens.

Krill shivered at the thought, and stepped through a tight alleyway just ahead of the Commander, who had to turn sideways to fit through the narrow space. He didn’t like fieldwork, at all, but having a human with you was one way to make you feel safe. The only creature that a human might not be able to fight off was a Drev, but even then there was still a possibility.

Together they cut across another street and towards their destination. They had managed to squeeze some information from the only informant still alive on the street, and that had been an address. At the back of the property they found a door padlocked shut though it had recently been cut.

Commander Vir held open the door and shoved inwards leading them into a long, dark hallway lined with debris. Krill stayed behind him as they made their way into the darkness jumping at every sound.

Ahead of him, the commander had removed an energy pistol from the band of his pants. Krill didn’t bother to point out to him, that it was difficult to believe he wasn’t law enforcement when he handled a weapon like that.

He held Krill back and then nudged one of the doors inward clearing the room with a quick sweep from corner to corner even stepping out to check behind the door. Krill peered in as the Commander grunted, “Just what we were looking for.”

Krill peered around his legs and then paused, “Uh….” The room was filled from floor to ceiling with strange glowing tanks of liquid a pale greenish in color. The ambient light gave the room a rather eerie glow. A glow that highlighted the strange instruments and free floating tubes with sinister intent. Nothing was currently in the tanks, but Krill shivered knowing what they would have held if they had been filled.

Human bodies.

The tanks cast much of the room into shadow, and Commander Vir took cover crouching behind one of the tank consoles. Krill followed him taking cover behind the human’s back. He didn't see what the man was so worried about there was one here. The human tilted his head listening intently scanning around the room. Krill was just beginning to speak when the man pushed him back hissing, “RUN!”

But before he could even take a step in another direction, he saw a flicker at the side of the room, and commander vir was lit up with at least ten points of green light all trained on his chest.

“GET ON THE GROUND.”

“PUT YOUR HANDS UP.”

“DROP THE GUN.”

“DON’T MOVE.”

Commander Vir reacted while Krill was still on the floor standing from behind his cover and stepping into the room. The Energy pistol clattered to the floor as he held his hands out to his sides.

“GET ON THE GROUND!”

Lights flashed all around them, and the room was illuminated by a painful burst of light and an eruption of movement. Men appeared from nowhere dressed in black tactical gear, faces and eyes completely obscured. Commander Vir was thrown face first onto the floor with at least three kneeling on his back.

Two came after Krill who squealed, to high pitched to be heard by the humans.

“GIVE US YOUR HAND!”

“GAH! Yes, yes just stop pulling and I will!. Shit…. I’m lying on it, let me up for a- OUCH!” From where he was being pinned to a wall, krill heard the ratcheting of handcuffs momentarily surprised not to hear the initiation of energy restraints.

“Shit, that's really tight…. Ahh… I can’t feel my hands.”

“STOP RESISTING.”

“I'M NOT RESISTING, I HAVE A PROSTHETIC AND YOUR STEPPING ON IT!” That didn’t do him much good as Krill heard the sharp thud, crack of someone being hit over the head. Krill understood what the captain meant about NOT being policed by the UN. Krill had meat peace officers on earth before, and while they could act the same, they generally had reason be reasonable to them and they would probably be polite to you.

Commander Vir was dragged to his feet hands wrenched painfully behind his back and pinned against the wall as they searched him, “Anything on you gonna poke me or stick me.”

“No, no.”

“You got ID?”

Commander Vir paused, “I…. well no.” One of the other officers ran a scanning device over his body, but it beeped negative.

“No implants.” Krill cursed internally…. They should have thought about that when they temporarily cancelled his ID….

“No ID, you know that’s illegal, don’t you.” The one officer said, sticking his hand into another pocket.

“I can explain. I work WITH you guys I-”

“No badge, no ID ... and ah, what is this.” Krill felt his heart sink as he watched the man pull the Adrenaline and dopamine sample from the Commander’s pocket. He held it up in front of the Commander's face, “And what is this.”

“That…. Isn’t mine.” He said lamely

The man pulled down the front of his mask one eyebrow raised, “Ah not yours eh…. Let me guess these are your friends pants, and you’re just borrowing them. You had no idea they were there. Oh oh, I know, you were just delivering them for a friend you don’t know what they actually are.” He reached into another pocket, “Oh and what is this.” Commander Vir groaned and leaned his head against the wall.

The small baggie of white powder was held up before him, “What is this gonna be, Cocaine, Meth, Heroine. You been trading a little Addie for a fix.”

In fact they actually HAD traded the drugs for information, along with a tracking device. Humans can’t use dopamine and adrenaline like other species can, so they traded it for the classic stuff.

“You can test me, I’m not high, I’m not a drug addict, I am also not who you think I am.”

“And who are you?”

“My name is Commander Adam Vir with the UNSC. I was sent here to HELP.”

They did not seem in any way convinced, “You have proof of that “Commander”. Look I saw the guy once, and he wasn’t half as fugly as you, also he was taller.”

Commander Vir yelped in indignation as they began patting him down for the second time, “Who you calling fugly you-” He bit his tongue, “I’m sorry OFFICER but I had my implants discontinued for this operation. Just look at me I’m missing an eye and a leg and im 6,2 just like the man you say I’m not, and I also let my hair grow out. GIve me five minutes on the phone and I’ll call my superiors for you.”

“Uh huh, because they’d have the fleet commander down here crawling through the dirt after narcos and tweakers. This is the army officers sit behind their nice shiny desks and let other men die for them.” Commander Vir was pulled away from the wall, “What are you his junki cousin, a brother?”

“I told you who I am.”

“Someone check the bug, see if he has ID.”

Krill stiffened as a wand was run over him, “Nothing sir. That’s strange, usually don’t see their kind around here.”

“I get my phone call, don’t I.”

“What do you think this is the 2000s. The hormone crisis is a level 5 threat, and we are not obligated to provide you with anything.”

“I'm pretty sure I still get a lawyer.”

Commander Vir was hauled to his feet and marched bodily towards the door, “Yeah but you'll have to get one flown in unless you want a Tesraki, and I wouldn't trust one of those bastards as far as I can throw them…. Uh disgusting little bats.” Commander Vir seemed almost irked at the use of the slur. Humans had a habit of that, they had a slur for each of other species weather it be bug, beetle, bat, dino, or just the general use of the word freak.

They were dragged outside, and around to where the vehicles had been hidden. Commander tripped more than once over the cheap prosthetic he had used to augment his look, and every time he was dragged painfully back to his feet. Krill wasn’t treated much better though he only received one of the human officers. Krill were thrown in the back of a cruiser with bars and energy shields over the windows. Commander Vir was thrown against the front of the vehicle, “As of now, you'll be charged with the possession of illegal substance, intent to sell, failure to identify, unlawful possession of a firearm, and resisting arrest.”

“What! I didn’t resist, and I DID identify myself. It’s not my fault you won’t believe me.”

“Someone get a spit shield on him.”

“What, I.” He was pinned even more forcibly against the hood as a female officer secured, a GA issued muzzle over his face. They had developed those after realizing what human spit could do to certain species, and what the human voice could do to others. Once on, The officer flipped the dial, cutting off the Commander mid protest.

Once done, he was thrown into the back with Krill gagged and restrained. Kril felt as if he was going to pass out, or just go right ahead and die. They had been captured by human authorities that even Commander Vir couldn’t talk down, and the ones that weren’t nearly as understanding as they were on earth.

Things could only get worse.

#humans are insane #HUMANS ARE WEIRD #humans are space orcs #humans are space australians #humans are spaceoddities #earth is a deathworld #Earth is space Ausralia

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kingreywrites · 4 years

Text

Unravelling

Words count: 5978

Eugene Appreciation Week Day Four: AU

AU: The Snap from Avengers: Infinity War (but not a crossover, so no Thanos!)

Summary: At first, Eugene thought that they had won. One second, he was laying on the ground, weak and drained, and the next, he was getting up suddenly, seeing the other Coronans do the same. He tried to find Rapunzel, because surely, she was responsible for the victory, but his eyes landed instead on Zhan Tiri, towering above them all and cackling.

Warnings: Temporary character death

Read on ao3

@fishskiin

At first, Eugene thought that they had won. One second, he was laying on the ground, weak and drained, and the next, he was getting up suddenly, seeing the other Coronans do the same. He tried to find Rapunzel, because surely, she was responsible for the victory, but his eyes landed instead on Zhan Tiri, towering above them all and cackling.

"Don't you see, Rapunzel?" It said, its voice chilling Eugene to his very core even as he scrambled to his feet. "Now that I have the sundrop and the moonstone, I hold the universe in my palm. I can hurt, I can heal, the world is listening to my every whims!"

A shape appeared behind the demon's head but it grabbed her - it was Cassandra, who had tried and failed to knock Zhan Tiri out and was now hanging upside down in its tentacle, as Eugene had done earlier. He got a glimpse of Rapunzel as she screamed Cassandra's name, and ran toward the stairs, trying desperately to get to her, taking notice of her long but brown hair.

"You know what else I can do?" Zhan Tiri continued gleefully. "I could wipe life off the face of Earth with only a snap of my fingers… But where would be the fun in that, if no one is there to suffer from it?" It laughed just as Eugene was close enough to see the horror mirrored on both Rapunzel's and Cassandra's eyes.

Zhan Tiri raised its arm, letting Cassandra down harshly, an awful smile cutting through its face.

"Let's only do half of it," Zhan Tiri grinned and snapped its fingers, releasing a wave of energy that brought everyone to their knees.

Eugene coughed and, when he opened his eyes, Zhan Tiri wasn't here anymore. He got up again and ran to Rapunzel, who seemed to be frozen in place.

"Sunshine? Are you alright?" he asked frantically, his hands going to her shoulders.

"Eugene," was all she could choke out, her eyes going to the crowd under the balcony.

Despite his worry, Eugene also turned his eyes toward them when he heard worried exclamations - just in time to see Quirin trying desperately to reach Varian as the kid disappeared into dust.

Eugene choked out Varian's name, his heart beating in his head loudly as Zhan Tiri's word echoed in the wind. Let's only do half of it.

Right before their eyes, friends and family were disappearing, but they were both frozen to the spot. Rapunzel was trembling under his hands but Eugene felt too much like he was floating, unable to wrap his head around this horror, to be capable of comfort.

"Eugene," Rapunzel whispered again, something so wrong and fragile in her voice that his eyes automatically went to her. "I- I don't feel so good."

She collapsed against him and, as he lowered her to the ground, Eugene felt like he was being strangled.

"No, no, no, no Sunshine," he pleaded, taking in her pale skin with burning eyes, "don't do that to me, please, Rapunzel-"

"Eugene, I'm sorry," she choked, her hand going to cup his face like he had done to her a long time ago - and, if he thought he was reassuring her at the time, he now knew that it was the opposite. Her hand was cold and weak on his cheek and he hated it, hated the contact, hated the meaning she was putting into this because she couldn't leave, not like that, she couldn't-

Her hand disappeared from his cheek and he watched numbly the dust, realising that he hated it even more. His tears were falling down on her now, inhibited, but he wasn't like her - he didn't have any last minute miracle, any lingering super power, he was just Eugene. Plain old Eugene, who couldn't save her.

"Rapunzel," he begged as she smiled, something sad and resigned in her eyes that he hated.

"You're my dream, Eugene Fitzherbert," she said, present tense, but it still sounded like a goodbye.

"You're mine," he sobbed back, but there was only dust under his tears now.

------

The kingdom was in shambles. Zhan Tiri was on the run, armed with infinite powers and the capacity to hide where time and space didn't exist, making any search pretty difficult.

King Frederick was gone. Princess Rapunzel was gone. Queen Arianna now reigned alone, Eugene acting as Captain of the Guard, right hand man, next in line and a shit ton of other jobs that he focused on as long as he could ignore his emotions on the current situation.

Ah, and he was now King of the Dark Kingdom. (He hadn't even known his father a year, but like everything else, he took that thought and shoved it far away in his mind, right in a little box where he couldn't see it. The box was overflowing.)

"We need the manpower to track down Zhan Tiri," he argued, frustrated as Arianna stayed carefully blank in front of him, seated alone on the throne.

"We need the manpower to rebuild Corona," she answered firmly.

"We can rebuild when we've brought everyone back! Which is why finding Zhan Tiri comes first!"

The problem, when you were constantly faced with global magical threat, was that it was difficult to accept something as final. Turning into dust? Please, they nearly turned into birds and were fine; Eugene just had to find Zhan Tiri, kick its calamari ass and everything will be fine, as it always was! And for that, he needed all the help he could get, if only Arianna would listen to him. Her face was hard and sunken with grief.

"Eugene, our kingdom needs to be protected and our citizens need to have their homes rebuilt. I will not send the few men we have left on a wild goose chase-"

"So that's it?! You've lost faith already?!"

"Captain," Arianna growled, something he never heard her do, "do not question my faith."

Eugene gulped, and closed his eyes. A flash of Rapunzel crumbling into dust before him made him open them again quickly, and he tightened his fists so hard that, without his gloves, his nails would have pierced through his skin. The silence between them was heavy, until Arianna sighed, looking smaller and older on the throne.

"You can have a small team working on it, but the priority is reconstruction, alright?" she proposed and the weary hope in her eyes was enough to make him crumble a little inside.

"Yeah," he breathed, shoulders slumping, "thank you, Arianna."

She smiled, a tiny, fake, entirely unconvincing smile, and he gave her the same in return, both of them not okay but with too much responsibility to truly let it through.

------

"Come on in," Eugene called absently as he poured through old documents concerning anything to do with the moonstone, the sundrop, Zhan Tiri or anything, really, that could matter right now. The moon was high in the sky, and he had been doing this well into the night, but he had too much to do the day and too many nightmares to escape anyway.

The door to this office opened and closed, and he heard an anxious intake of breath but, instead of saying anything, this person waited. Eugene sighed and raised his head, his eyes widening when he met Cassandra's (which were back to normal and, in a way, that was destabilizing).

"I've been told you wanted to see me," she finally said, squaring her shoulders.

"Yeah, tomorrow morning, not at whatever hour this is," he answered without too much heat, closing the useless book he held.

"You're not sleeping."

"Are you?"

She didn't answer. He didn't break the eye contact.

"Why did you want to see me?" she asked, lowering her gaze to watch her feet. She wasn't as confident as he remembered her but, clearly, the situation could excuse some of the differences.

"I'm making a team to chase Zhan Tiri down, and you'll be part of it," he announced, his Captain tone accepting no contradiction. Cassandra stiffened at the order, clearly uncomfortable, and Eugene felt guilty because he knew Rapunzel would be angry at him. After the whole moonstone debacle, his Sunshine would insist on making Cass the most comfortable possible, encouraging her to be herself and follow her dreams or something. And, honestly, when Rapunzel had faith in someone, Eugene never managed to stay angry for long - he had missed Cassandra and, while he couldn't excuse everything, he could move past it if Rapunzel did.

Rapunzel was not here, however. He was, this situation was and he needed Cassandra as the soldier he knew she could be.

"I- I'm not sure… Me?" she mumbled, her right hand going to cradle the other.

"Don't," Eugene warned, sensing immediately where her mind was going. He walked to her, too close for both of their comfort, his face hard as he poked her shoulder. "This guilt you're feeling? Shove it. Or better yet, turn it into anger or whatever fuels you to be stronger. You," he poked again, satisfied to see a dangerous look flash through her eyes, "you are one of Corona's strongest asset right now so, if you want forgiveness, work for it and help me bring everyone back."

She pushed his hand away and nodded, immediately raising herself to her full height to glare at him. He'd have smiled, if he didn't feel like there was a hole in his soul. In some part of his mind, he realised that burying their feelings until they exploded must be unhealthy but, for all their griefs, Cassandra and him were scarily similar when dealing with serious situations. They'd break later.

"Alright, Captain," she nodded, the word foreign on her tongue when it concerned Eugene. She swallowed against the lump in her throat to no avail. "Let's bring everyone back."

She went to sit and opened one of the books in the pile. Eugene wished Rapunzel could see it, could see how Cassandra was willing to listen to him even as it went against every of her instincts, because she wanted to save her - and he realized that Rapunzel would see it once he brought her back. He sat down too, and took another book.

------

It was weird going out into town to see that, as much as everyone wished it didn't, time was still passing. Some families were luckier than other - it was true both of those who lost no one, and those that lost everyone in one go - but all of the Coronans were just that, Coronans. They raised up when life brought them down and, right now, there were collective efforts to rebuild effectively.

Eugene was still surprised to see the genuine concern they held for him, now that Rapunzel was gone and that this whole fiasco happened at the start of his career as Captain of the Guard. They didn't resent him, apparently, when they had every reasons to, and Eugene was incredibly grateful for it.

It had been two weeks since the Snap. They were now used to see him travel into town to help them, Eugene being careful of what he agreed with Arianna - and she was right, he could see. Corona couldn't wait for a still unknown miracle, the subjects needed help now. And, after all, he didn't want to sleep much anyway, so it was a win-win.

Today, he wasn't stopping to help, however; he had a clear destination in mind.

He got down from Maximus, petting him gently because he had been the greatest horse and friend a man could ask for - and Eugene could see how sad he had been, having too lost his closest friends. Pascal was gone, too.

He went to knock and the door opened immediately.

"Hello, Quirin," Eugene smiled feebly, seeing in the shadows under his eyes a mirror of his own grief and exhaustion. "Sorry for not coming earlier."

"Ah, don't worry Captain," Quirin sighed. "We went through a lot of- of Varian's notes, and we found a lot of interesting material to find Zhan Tiri," he announced as Eugene went inside, barely stumbling over his son's name anymore, but not able to hide the deep-seated grief he held.

As awful as the comparison was, father and son had a very different way to deal with loss. Quirin was a quiet and efficient kind of devastated, though his red-rimmed eyes betrayed the way he spent his nights. Varian had been angry and loud, ready to destroy everything if it meant getting his dad back. Though, Eugene saw in Quirin's determination that they were lucky he didn't think Corona was responsible for the situation; something told him that he would stop at nothing to get his son back either.

They walked toward the lab, and Eugene felt a bittersweet kind of ache at seeing Angry pouring so silently over some papers. Catalina was gone, but she wasn't. At the very beginning, when Eugene realised that she was alone, that even Lance was gone - and that was its own can of worm he didn't want to open because Lance had been the only constant in his life since he was a kid and now, he wasn't here anymore - he had proposed that she sleep at the Castle. He wasn't sure it was a good solution, because the castle was huge, empty, and half-destroyed, but Angry needed help and he cared about her too much to let her go somewhere he didn't trust.

Thankfully, Quirin had come forward, tears still in his eyes, and asked if she would prefer to come to his own home.

"You already visited a lot of time," he explained, talking directly with her instead of Eugene which he knew the girl would appreciate, "and you're my son's friend, you're always welcome in our home."

So that was how this arrangement came to be. Angry raised her head at the noise and looked carefully at Eugene - he had been by but he hadn't stopped here in four days, so he understood some of the worry she displayed, especially now that everyone she cared about left her. Unwillingly, but to an orphan with abandonment issues, it was the same devastating feeling anyway - Eugene knew something about it.

"Hey, Angry," he smiled, going to put his hand lightly on her shoulder and she let him. "Quirin tells me you've found useful things?"

She looked up to him, looking so mature now, as if it wasn't two weeks but two years that had gone - and it certainly felt like it. But her little hand brushed against Eugene's for a second, before she launched herself in a explanation, and perhaps they weren't okay, but at least Eugen knew they'll manage. For now.

------

Faced with the doors to Rapunzel's room, Eugene felt sick. It was one thing to convince himself that he could fix this; another to be in front of the reality of her absence. He could practically hear her laugh inside, talking to Pascal about one thing or the other; could practically see her painting inside, with paint she didn't notice on her nose, so beautiful and bright that she made him light up inside each time. His hands hovered above the handles, trembling, and Eugene nearly turned back.

But he was here because he knew he would find her here.

Slowly, he pushed the door open, Rapunzel's bedroom more somber and grey than he had ever seen it. On her bed, her back to him and hunched on herself, was Queen Arianna.

Eugene swallowed harshly at the sight, unsure if confronting her here was the best idea. Her shoulders were shaking and, in her hands, he could see clearly Rapunzel's journal - for a moment, he wanted to cry too, but he didn't allow himself this privilege. He had to fix this, and Arianna was avoiding him, so here he was.

"Hello Eugene," she said quietly, her voice breaking.

"Hello Arianna," he breathed, guilt churning inside his stomach.

"I won't be able to avoid this conversation forever, will I?" Arianna laughed, but it was an empty sound. Still not looking at him, she put Rapunzel's journal carefully on the bed, and brushed her tears. When she met his eyes, the determination in her green one was so much like Rapunzel that Eugene felt like he was choking. He was still standing stiffly, but he had left the Captain uniform for this conversation.

"I- Cassandra found the device we needed in Demanitus' lair and, thanks to Xavier and Varian's notes, we managed to make it work," he reported carefully, before taking a big breath. "We can find Zhan Tiri."

The announcement didn't bring joy, because joy was something they both lacked these days. Arianna was still looking at him, every bit of the Queen she was, but with something of Rapunzel he couldn't face. Eugene closed his eyes tightly, before coming out with it.

"James - the ex-Captain of the Guard - agreed to take charge once again considering the situation. Cassandra will be going with me, and that's all, so Corona will still have all the manpower it needs but-"

"You're leaving," Arianna finished gently, her hand going to fiddle with her necklace. "Well, chasing after this monster, in any case."

"Yes," Eugene croaked, "I am."

She got up and suddenly, Eugene found himself wishing that she would scream at him. Scream that he was abandoning her, abandoning the kingdom he had swore to protect when he became Captain, scream that he should have saved Rapunzel when he had the occasion, not nearly one month later - scream at him all the things he already thought about himself, all the reproaches he wanted someone to throw at him. He wished for someone to blame him at least half as much as he blamed himself, because, then, he wouldn't feel so empty all the time.

It was unfair to expect that from Arianna. Grief was an old friend to her, and anger had never been her refuge.

She walked toward him, the purple sky illuminating her features and Eugene had to force himself not to take a step back when faced with the tangible emotion she exuded.

"I've lost a lot, Eugene. The world lost a lot. The kingdom, my kingdom is suffering, and I need to be strong for everyone, but I was wrong to think that I could stop you in your endeavour."

She raised her hand when he seemed about to protest, and got closer to him. He was taller than her, but didn't feel like it right now, not when she seemed to hold the universe on her shoulders.

"I've lost my husband. I've lost my daughter, for the second time." Her voice broke and tears gathered in her eyes while Eugene stood helplessly, unsure of the point she was trying to make even as he wished fervently he could do anything to ease her pain. She had done so much for him, and now he was helpless to comfort her. Arianna composed herself, her hand going to cup his cheek gently. "Don't make me lose you too."

Eugene exhaled all the air in his lungs with a "oh", his eyes warm and tingling as he realised that, in the middle of the worst loss of her life, Arianna was worried about him, wanted to protect him - was, to him, the only mother he ever knew. He was trembling, or she was trembling, he wasn't sure, because he abandoned all pretenses and swiped her in a crushing hug that she returned desperately.

For the first time since the Snap, Eugene cried.

------

As much as he wanted to just up and go, it took nearly a week for Eugene to be able to leave. Mostly because he helped the reinstated Captain of the Guard with the strategy the kingdom should adopt given the current situations, and also because they still needed more information before being able to. As surprising as it may sound, the Captain and him worked really well together, and Cassandra's help had too been invaluable.

"Fitzherbert," the Captain had called after him, a few minutes before their departure.

"Yes?"

"This," he gestured to the uniform Eugene had worn not too long ago, "is not permanent. I'm not un-retiring, we clear?"

Eugene could only nod, his throat dry, because he hadn't even thought they would want him back, considering the absolute disasters that happened during his short time. He was grateful, more than they could imagine because he had liked being Captain - he had liked the trust they were giving him and he had liked to be useful. He was glad it wasn't over yet.

As he told Arianna, only Cassandra and him went or, more precisely, both of them plus Max and Fidella. Eugene had worried about taking Maximus with him, considering this horse was the best guard in all Corona, but the same Maximus had decided for them that he would go with, and Eugene had never won a single argument with him.

They took the balloon for the long distances and that was the start of their search for Zhan Tiri.

The Demanitus’ device they managed to activate thanks to Varian's work was a radar that allowed them to get an idea on where Zhan Tiri was hiding thanks to the sheer energy the demon emitted, now that it possessed the powers of both the sundrop and the moonstone - but they soon realised that Zhan Tiri was playing with them. It lured them from places to places, appearing long enough for them to know that it worked, before disappearing - or worse.

"You’ve got to stop doing this," Cassandra muttered, tightening the bandage around his arm painfully. Eugene grunted, but didn’t bother answering, the pain a good distraction from the glare she was throwing him.

He yelped when she hit shin hard with her boot, before scowling at her as he took his arm from her hands. It was bandaged enough, anyway, and he didn’t have to justify his actions when she was the one he protected with this move.

"Eugene," she had said when he mumbled that he would go get something to eat, "you can't save them if you're dead."

He didn't answer, again, but that didn't stop her words from hitting their mark. He knew he had to do better.

Time passed quickly, and too slowly at the same time, until Eugene realised that it had been three months since the Snap and that he was still expecting Rapunzel to appear from time to time. Or Lance, or Catalina, or his Dad, or each and every person that he lost at the same time - his mind couldn't wrap itself over it so he just… didn't. Denial was his middle name, these days.

He had, quite ironically, started a journal, where he detailed precisely moments of their travels so he could tell everything to Rapunzel when he saw her. He knew she would appreciate it. Sometimes, it wasn't so much descriptions as it was letters, to them, the ones he lost - most often to Rapunzel. Sometimes, he only wrote "I'm sorry", because saying anything else would break him and he couldn't be weak - he couldn't let them down again.

Cassandra and him talked, a lot more than he expected. At first, he had asked of her that she recount to him every moment she spent with Zhan Tiri, a desperate attempt to find some kind of clue about what it could want. From there, she was the one who went into more personal territory, telling him about her choices and her regrets. He couldn't find it in himself to extend the same trust, because he couldn't conjure the force to talk about their lost friends except as if they had all went on an unexpected trip.

But he did try, with Cassandra. He told her about the things he had trouble forgiving her. Then, he told her about things he had trouble forgiving himself for. Little things, but that was better than nothing.

On Rapunzel's birthday, he said nothing. Not a word, not a joke, he barely made any noise at all. Thankfully, Cassandra left him relatively alone - something that Rapunzel would have never allowed, but that he wouldn't allow from anyone but her. On her birthday, he wrote about the proposal he had been imagining since his own real birthday - since he found out Rapunzel had a ring for him. He wrote about taking her on a boat, and putting the ring in a cupcake for Pascal to reveal. He wrote about how he imagined she would shut him down, if she still wasn't ready, and he wrote about how he imagined she would accept, if she was. He wrote about how much he loved her, but not how much he missed her, because there were already tears running down his cheeks and he didn't think he could stay silent if he did.

He remembered telling her that they should stop doing their birthday tradition of being put in mortal danger, but now he wished for these moments back because, at least, in the end he knew she was alright.

He shut the journal down.

Thankfully, Rapunzel's birthday only lasted a day. Lance's birthday too. Edmund's too. Catalina's, Frederick's, Varian's… He hated birthdays again, now.

It had been a year, since they went after Zhan Tiri. They had come back to Corona once or twice, the balloon a good mode of transportation and owl a great message carrier, but despite all of their efforts, each time they found Zhan Tiri - nearly once every three days - the demon easily knocked them down and disappeared again. It was playing with them, and Eugene still couldn't see what was the point of it all.

No one in Corona dared to tell Eugene that maybe it was hopeless, but he could see in their eyes that it was what most thought - one of the reason they didn't come back more often. Cassandra understood. They argued, but, in the end, they were made of the same stuff, and they had the same goal.

Eugene still missed Rapunzel so much it felt like a missing limb, but he was clinging to this pain, clinging to his grief as if it was new, because he refused to mourn. Mourning was giving up, and he couldn't. He couldn't understand how Arianna and Frederick lived eighteen years through this, eighteen tears thinking that Rapunzel might be dead but never giving up hope. Each day made him quite aware that he wouldn't last eighteen years - not when only one broke him this much. Soon, there wouldn't be any pieces of him that could be picked up.

Finally, they found the solution in their beginning: the eclipse. Exactly one year after the Snap, some kind of poetic irony Eugene didn't want to think about.

Whatever Zhan Tiri did to get away each time, whatever great power it possessed - the day of the eclipse, Zhan Tiri was weakened. Once that Eugene and Cassandra understood that they needed the sundrop and the moonstone in its arms to touch, it was scarily quick to defeat this demon that took so much from them.

One year. One year of pain and grief, for it to be over in less than an hour. Eugene would have laughed, if his heart wasn't beating so loudly inside his ears as he watched the glowing stone floating in front of them, a beautiful mix of the moon and the sun's powers.

It wasn't over yet.

Maximus neighed worriedly but Eugene ignored him as he got to his feet, ready to take this stone and turn everything back as it should be. It was a hand, however, that stopped him.

"Eugene, this- This could kill you," Cassandra said, a question she couldn't ask between these words.

"We didn't come this far just to turn back now," he answered plainly, no doubts lingering in his mind. "And if I can't bring them back…"

He didn't finish the thought, but Cassandra heard it loud and clear. This was their last chance, their last hope; if this didn't work, then… They had one year of grief to catch up on. She didn't think she could survive it, and she definitely knew he wouldn't. She had seen him unravelling, more than anyone. He had a journal full of stories dedicated to ghosts he couldn't let go of.

"Then, let's do it together," she announced firmly, her own decision taken. Maybe, at least, they wouldn't die - maybe she could save Eugene, even if she couldn't save anyone else. She hoped it wouldn't come to that, but she was tired of losing people because of her mistakes.

He looked about to protest, but nodded in the end. They approached the stone, pushing against the ring of energy encircling it, her hand gripping his sleeve. Eugene wondered what Rapunzel would think, now that both of her favourite people in the world got along - she would be overjoyed, he knew, and he couldn't help but smile at the idea that he would see her soon...

One way or another.

They grabbed the stone, together. They looked at each other but couldn't really see, blinded by the energy coursing through their veins. Eugene was the first one to talk - he sang the healing incantation, and Cassandra followed suit.

Flower, gleam and glow

Let your power shine

Make the clock reverse

Bring back what once was mine

The words were heavy and clumsy on his tongue, nothing of the grace he remembered Rapunzel having. He thought back to this night, at the campfire, when she healed his hand - thought back to this day, this smile, this woman who changed his life forever.

Heal what has been hurt

Change the Fates' design

Save what has been lost

Bring back what once was mine

He was begging at this point. Who, he didn't know, but for the first time since he hugged Arianna, he let himself feel the possibility of a world without his dad, without Lance or Varian or all his other friends - without Rapunzel, and he begged, because the pain in his heart was too great to consider even living in this reality.

What once was mine, they both finished, and the power exploded out of their hands, toward the sky, sending them both flying.

Maximus shook Eugene awake, one more second away from outright licking him - which would have disgusted them both. Eugene gasped, sat back up quickly, his eyes darting to Cassandra - seeing that, thankfully, she was also getting back up. Then, he looked around him.

There were flowers that hadn't been there before. A bird was looking around, apparently a bit dazed, before he took off - but Eugene was sure that all the birds had fled when the showdown with Zhan Tiri began. There was life, when there had only been half of it before.

Eugene flop back down, and laughed so hard he cried.

------

Getting back to Corona was the most stressful journey Eugene had ever been on. He almost started to write in his journal, until he realised that it was his way to talk to Rapunzel when she was not here - but she was now. He would see her soon, it was merely a two days journey in the balloon; he didn't need to write anymore. So he fidgeted, instead, his mind running with the best and the worst scenarios for their return. He also thought about those he had left in Corona - about Arianna, being back with her family; Quirin, finally reunited with his son; Angry, being hugged by both Catalina and Lance after a year apart. Had it been a year for them? He didn't think so, but he'd only know for sure once he was back. He wondered what Rapunzel must think, now that she surely had been briefed on the situation. Was she worried? Nobody knew where they were, exactly, or how they won against Zhan Tiri so, for all she knew, they could be hurt. All the more reason to get back as soon as possible.

Cassandra, for her part, was nervous but also worried. Half of Corona still thought of her as the crazy moonstone lady that put them in the clutch of Zhan Tiri, and she didn't want to know how they would react to her. Eugene threw her a knowing glance, but didn't think he could reassure as well as Rapunzel would surely do once they were back.

Because they would soon be back, and he would soon see her. Was he giddy or queasy? He wasn't sure.

They saw Corona well before the were above it, and Eugene popped his fingers so much Cassandra nearly worried he would break them. Then she was two busy biting her lips to make any kind of comment.

Neither of them were ready for the applause.

As the balloon got closer to the castle, they heard cheers and claps. Eugene peered over the edge of the balloon and saw that a lot of Coronans - a lot more than when he left - were gathering on the streets and cheering them on, some going as far as calling their names. Eugene smiled, and said nothing as he saw Cassandra get more emotional beside him, this acceptance more than she expected - even if it was deserved. Maximus headbutted him and Eugene petted him, a little absently because the were only moments away from landing.

Moments away from seeing them again.

In the yard, they were met by the wide-eyed stares of the guards and Eugene felt something lift in his heart when he saw that Conli, who had been turned into dust, was back. He was even more surprised when they called him Captain, before crowding him and Cassandra. The Captain - James - went to hug his daughter, but Eugene, as touched as he felt, really wanted to run to the throne room, because he felt that was where he'd find her.

He extracted himself and ran toward the stairs leading to the front door, not even having the awareness to excuse himself. They'd understand.

Eugene arrived in front of the door and, as he lifted his hand toward it, the doors were thrown open.

His eyes met Rapunzel's green ones. She hadn't changed a bit, except for her hair that was now short again and- and-

Eugene threw himself at her, bringing them both to their knees as he hugged her as tight as he could. She wasn't light, she wasn't dust, she was a sure weight against him that he knew like the back of his hand. She breathed his name, and he laughed weakly, tears making their way silently to her dress as he buried his head in the crook of her neck.

Rapunzel's right hand was tracing circles on his back as an attempt to sooth him. Eugene briefly opened his eyes and saw, from the corner of his vision, Cassandra standing awkwardly to the side, a shy but genuine smile on her lips. Eugene shifted, raised his hand to her - and she took it, nonplussed.

He pulled her into the hug. Rapunzel beamed, he could feel it on the skin of his neck, and he closed his eyes again.

Which was why he didn't see Lance get closer to them until he was hugging all three of them, his arms massive and familiar and safe. It was like a dam broke open and, suddenly, Catalina, Angry, Varian all jumped on them. Then, there was Edmund's arm settling on Eugene shoulder, and the flowery perfume Arianna always wore appearing to his left, with Frederick's rumbling laugh to accompany it. More people came, and maybe Eugene couldn't breathe, maybe there was still something in his heart that would never be completely fixed, but they would heal because they were home.

They were all home.

#Eugene Appreciation Week #It took me so long omg and I'm not totally satisfied but there it is!#angstier than angst day ahah #I'm sorry alright #but Eugene will receive a lot of hugs from years to come after this #my favourite scene was the one with Arianna so I hope you liked those!#tangled #Eugene Fitzherbert #Rapunzel #Cassandra #Queen Arianna

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