#and while his tech is waterproof he just…

[budgetslow]

do you think chamber accidentally forgot to put away his tour de force while washing his hands, and it just summons in front of the sink like this:

[internetskiff]

The most powerful ability exclusive to humanity in the Half Life/Portal shared universe is our ability to just throw bullshit at the wall and see what sticks. Aperture "OSHA are the devil" Science have managed to create completely safe interconnected points in space. The same company that turns people's blood into gasoline and shoves lions and humans into the same enclosed space for the vague concept of "Science". Meanwhile Black Mesa still has to use Xen as a crossing and their teleportation device requires an entire reactor with a village's worth of staff constantly maintaining it, just to end up having most of said staff abducted by onion-headed aliens. Even the resistance hasn't managed to create completely stable teleporters with a compressed Xen relay, meanwhile Aperture just went "oh dude let's shove a black hole into a non-waterproof gun" and have just created a teleportation method that just removes Xen from the equation entirely. Doesn't change the fact they bullshat so bad they basically got themselves gassed to death, but still.

The Resistance are a good example of this too. The Combine seem to have a complete set-in-stone thought process and understanding of science which meant they didn't even begin to explore local teleportation via Xen, meanwhile a group of random human mechanics and scientists have managed to cobble together at least two semi-functional local teleporters out of scrap metal and stolen Combine tech, to the point the All-Consuming Interdimensional Empire had to straight up copy their homework. And that isn't even the only time they seem to be taking human shit to just copy the blueprints.

They 100% just yoinked the entire damn car out of that garage just to take a crack at reverse-engineering the Tau Cannon attached to it. Even Resistance weaponry somehow manages to rival or at least stand equal to Combine tech - and we're talking improvised crossbows that shoot superheated rods of rebar at the target compared to high-tech rifles that can discharge orbs of pure dark energy. The collapse of the entire Citadel is basically set into motion as a result of a cobbled together Rebel device placed into extremely capable hands.

The events of the Portal games are a case of extremely elaborate machinelike planning versus pure human improvisation, with Chell's entire escape in the first game involving her simply weaseling her way through small cracks that GLaDOS missed while setting up her ambushes, eventually turning her own rocket turret against her to destroy her.

I suppose you could argue this falls flat in Portal 2 with Wheatley, but it's important to remember he's designed to be an utter idiot, so it's safe to say he wouldn't obsess over the larger picture like GLaDOS to the point where he fails to see the cracks. Yes, he's the one that breaks Chell out of the test chambers again, and yes, he's the one that came up with the sabotage plot - but it's important to note while he knows what to target in the sabotage, when we actually get there he doesn't quite know how to sabotage it, leaving Chell to figure it out on her own. She botches the Turret Quality Control Line with some minor guidance, but it's basically completely up to her to figure out how to cut off the Neurotoxin Supply. It's through her improvisation that Wheatley even manages to get into GLaDOS' chamber, tumbling through her neurotoxin vent and shattering the glass cage she trapped Chell inside of. It's through Chell's improvisation that the Core Transfer even occurs in the first place.

The script is flipped specifically when Wheatley takes charge, because oops - turns out a mind capable of focusing on the bigger picture might be pretty important when it comes to running an entire facility powered by it's own Reactor. Wheatley just completely zeroes in on his own personal pleasure, hacking up test chambers and the objects within them to try and figure out the easiest way to get his solution euphoria as quick as possible.

Still, something that's pretty interesting is that only Wheatley has ever managed to create a trap that's impossible to foresee and avoid, something GLaDOS has repeatedly failed to do to the point she ends up commending him. I believe this is because his way of thinking is a lot closer to Chell's compared to GLaDOS'. He puts up way more of a fight as the two run through the facility trying to get to him, seemingly improvising on the spot just like Chell has been over the course of the two games. Even his lair would be impossible to survive if it weren't for a single Conversion Gel pipe he somehow failed to notice and remove.

Whether in a laboratory deep beneath the soil or an alien tower tall enough to split the clouds, the ingenuity of even a single person is enough to topple a tower or destroy a supercomputer 3 times over.

Marc Laidlaw put what I'm trying to say into a single sentence when writing for the BreenGrub twitter account:

"The superstructure is riddled with cracks."

[kimmie2me]

HEYYY I LUV UR POSTS LIKE HELLO?!?! also im sure u know abt the bakugo hc with him with him having hearing aids and is it ok of u make like a fic with him signing nasty stuff to reader cuz he can and nobody around them fully learned sign language yet? PLS AND THANK U!!! 💕💕💕

first of all, THANK YOU!! ILYSM!! second, i am BACK!!!! exams went well, i guess. i didnt PASS or FAIL, but whatever.. third, I LOVE THIS IDEA HAHAHHA!!! here is, what I think, a great welcoming back gift to give u all ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ (ignore that Kaminari's text is blue..there's no yellow. ALSO, mina is NAWT taking pink. thats OUR color now.)

Of Silence and Secrets

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀𓂅⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Pro Hero!Bakugou x AFAB!Pro Hero!Reader

…..

Bakugou Katsuki hated his hearing aids.

Hated how they fit, hated how they felt, and most of all, hated what they represented. Weakness. A crack in the armor he’d spent his entire life forging. When the ringing in his ears started as a brat in middle school, he didn’t think much of it. Just the fallout from a quirk-boosted explosion, nothing he couldn’t handle.

Years passed. The ringing grew into dull hums, muffled voices, and missed sounds. A villain’s retreating taunt he couldn’t catch. The screech of a car he didn’t hear. Kirishima shouting his name three times before Bakugou finally turned around, snarling, “What the hell do you want!?” while Kirishima just looked… worried.

His hearing aids were a damn nuisance. At least, that’s what he told himself every single day.

They whined if someone got too close, buzzed when he adjusted them wrong, and gods forbid he so much as grazed them during a fight—one hard knock, and they’d go flying. He could hear again, sure, but better hearing came at a price: realizing just how insufferably loud the world actually was. Katsuki had spent months in denial, refusing to accept that his ears, like the rest of his high-octane life, couldn’t keep up with him.

The ringing had started in his late teens, growing louder until it followed him everywhere. He blamed it on the explosions, the debris, the constant yelling—but really, he knew. His mom did too, though she’d spared him the lecture until the day Kirishima cornered him in his agency office with a sheepish grin and her voice on speakerphone.

“Katsuki.” The way she said his name—sharp, biting, and so unlike her usual bark of “Oi, you brat!”—made his stomach drop. “What if somethin’ happens? What if you miss an evac order or—hell—a cry for help? Hah? What then?”

“… Tch.” He had scowled so hard it hurt. “Fine. I’ll get the damn things.”

The intervention was humiliating, but the worst part? She was right. He hated that more than anything.

That was the first night he slept with the hearing aids sitting on the nightstand. He’d finally picked them up after a year of constant badgering—from his mom, Kirishima, hell, even that damn Deku. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to hear better—it was the admission that killed him.

But now? Now the stupid things were glued to him. Mostly.

The tech was incredible, of course. Damn nerds at Hero Support had outdone themselves. The hearing aids didn’t just amplify sound; they filtered it, isolating voices during chaos and syncing with comm units. They were waterproof, explosion-proof—Bakugou-proof. Allegedly.

But they weren’t indestructible. He’d broken five pairs in six months. Kaminari had nicknamed him “Break-aid” after the third replacement. Bakugou threatened to shove them where the sun didn’t shine.

And yet… they worked. Too well.

He could hear the scratch of pens during hero conferences, the obnoxious tapping of Kaminari’s foot against the table, the quiet sigh of his own breath. The worst part? The incessant talking. It was everywhere. Fans, reporters, civilians—people who thought their every word needed an audience.

Thankfully, he’d discovered the mute button.

The first time he used it, Kaminari was midway through a rant about his latest gadget. Bakugou, in a rare moment of self-control, didn’t yell. He just flicked the switch, leaned back in his chair, and smirked as Kaminari kept babbling. No explosions, no shouting, just blissful silence.

But there were downsides.

Combat was a nightmare when they broke. Shouting “HUH!?” every five seconds wasn’t exactly strategic. That’s when he decided to learn sign language. Not because anyone suggested it—hell no. But because he’d be damned if he relied on a gadget to do his job.

The process was… frustrating. Hands clumsy, movements stiff. Kirishima tried to help, but his signs were barely legible. Kaminari? Useless. Sero was too busy laughing to be much better or resorted to typing in the Notes app on his phone when it was pretty serious. Deku? That nerd had picked it up in a week, naturally.

But you? You made it bearable.

“Like this,” you’d said, your fingers forming a perfect sign. “Thumb tucked in.”

Bakugou grumbled, but copied you.

“Good. See? That wasn’t so bad, was it, ’Suki?”

Your patience annoyed him almost as much as it calmed him. And somehow, over weeks of practice, his stiff movements turned fluid. He’d never admit it, but he liked having this… language, this connection, with you.

And then he realized something else.

You understood him. Not just the signs, but him. The sharpness he couldn’t quite soften, the quiet gratitude he couldn’t voice. And better yet? No one else around him could understand a damn thing he was saying.

It started innocently enough—well, innocent by his standards.

“Bored out of my goddamn mind,” he’d signed at you during a hero conference.

You’d smirked and replied, “Same.”

But then, Bakugou being Bakugou, had an epiphany: he could sign anything.

The first time he tried it, you were sitting across from him at a formal hero banquet. The room was filled with pro heroes, reporters, and politicians. Everyone was dressed to the nines, sipping champagne and pretending the world wasn’t on fire outside.

Bakugou caught your eye and, with the most deadpan expression, signed: Wanna fuck?

Your head snapped up so fast you nearly knocked your glass over. You choked, coughing into your hand, and when someone asked if you were okay, you waved them off, avoiding his gaze.

He smirked, sipping his water like he hadn’t just propositioned you in a room full of Japan’s elite.

…..

It got worse.

During a meeting with the Hero Public Safety Commission, while a bureaucrat droned on about policy changes, Bakugou’s hands moved under the table. He made sure you were looking before signing: I’d rather have you ride me than sit here with these extras.

You froze mid-note, the pen slipping from your fingers. Your face burned as you ducked your head, pretending to scribble something in your notebook. Across the room, Kirishima noticed your sudden movement.

“Hey, you good?” he whispered.

“Fine!” you squeaked, glaring at Bakugou.

He tilted his head, feigning confusion, then casually leaned back in his chair. He looked so smug you wanted to scream.

At a press conference, surrounded by the press corps, TV cameras, and the elite of the hero world, Bakugou stood stiffly at the podium, bored out of his skull. Beside him, you shuffled the note cards you’d prepared, doing your best to stay focused on Midoriya’s answer to a question about villain reform strategies.

Bakugou glanced at you out of the corner of his eye, smirking at how focused you looked. That only made the idea pop into his head faster. He adjusted his stance, one hand casually coming up to rub his neck as the other signed with precision:

I’d fuck you so hard over this podium, the microphones would short out.

Your brain stalled like a computer blue-screening. The cards slipped from your hands, scattering onto the stage floor. You froze in horror as a sea of reporters looked up from their notebooks.

Midoriya, ever the anxious public speaker, stopped mid-sentence. “Uh, are you okay?” he asked.

“Y-yeah! Just... clumsy!” you stammered, dropping to your knees to collect the cards. You didn’t dare look at Bakugou, whose hand came up to his mouth as though stifling a yawn—but you knew he was hiding a smirk.

To make things worse, while you scrambled on the floor, he signed again, deliberately slower so you couldn’t miss it:

Would’ve pulled your hair too, just to hear you scream.

Your face burned so hot you were sure you’d melt through the stage.

It didn’t stop there.

At the next agency-wide meeting, Bakugou sat across from you in the conference room, arms crossed as a pro-hero you couldn't bother to listen to went on and on about new combat protocols. The room was packed with pro heroes, all seated shoulder-to-shoulder.

Bakugou, who’d already tuned out after the first ten minutes, caught your gaze and raised an eyebrow. Before you could react, his hands moved subtly under the table:

I’d eat you out on this table, right in front of everyone, and make sure you couldn’t stay quiet.

The coffee cup in your hand slipped, splashing onto your notes. You cursed under your breath, grabbing napkins to clean the mess.

Kirishima, sitting beside you, leaned over. “Whoa, you okay? You’ve been jumpy lately.”

You forced a smile, not daring to look at Bakugou, whose expression remained infuriatingly neutral. “I’m fine. Just tired.”

It became a game to him.

While Kirishima nodded and went back to his notes, Bakugou adjusted in his chair and signed again:

Bet you’d cry if I used my mouth the way I’m thinking. Probably beg me to stop—but you wouldn’t really mean it.

You slammed your pen down so hard it startled Kaminari, who glanced over with a confused look.

“You good?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” you snapped, refusing to look up.

Across the table, Bakugou leaned back, feigning boredom, but his eyes glinted with amusement.

It escalated during a casual outing with the crew.

Everyone had gathered at a bustling ramen joint after a long patrol, crowding into a booth that was way too small for so many people. Bakugou sat to your right, thigh pressed against yours under the table. As the conversation flowed around him, he picked up a pair of chopsticks and casually started eating.

Then, as Mina told a story about her latest villain takedown, he turned his head slightly toward you and signed with one hand:

The things I’d do to you under this table would make you scream so loud they’d kick us out.

You froze, chopsticks hovering mid-air. He didn’t even blink, slurping his noodles like he hadn’t just dropped a verbal nuke into your lap.

“What’s wrong?” Mina asked, noticing your deer-in-headlights expression.

“Uh… spicy broth,” you choked out, grabbing your water and gulping it down.

Bakugou, still chewing, glanced at you out of the corner of his eye and added another one for good measure:

Bet I could make you cum without anyone noticing. Wanna test that theory?

You almost choked on your drink, coughing so hard Kirishima patted your back in concern.

At a charity event, he raised the bar again.

The ballroom was filled with reporters, politicians, and wealthy donors, all eager to mingle with Japan’s most famous heroes. Bakugou hated these events with a burning passion, but at least you were there to make it tolerable.

You stood beside him, chatting politely with a group of businessmen, when you felt his gaze on you. Slowly, you turned your head, already dreading what was coming.

He didn’t disappoint. With the straightest face you’d ever seen, he signed:

You’d look so much better on your knees, with my cock down your throat, than in that dress.

Your hand shot out, nearly spilling your champagne as you fumbled to keep your composure. The Pro Hero you were speaking to paused mid-sentence, giving you a concerned look.

“Are you alright, ma’am?”

“I—I’m fine,” you stuttered, setting the glass down before you could break it.

Bakugou tilted his head innocently, signing again:

Bet you’d love it if I bent you over that balcony upstairs. Bet you’d be dripping by the time I was done.

Your jaw dropped, and you 'accidentally' kicked his shin under the table. He didn’t even flinch.

It wasn’t just formal settings, either. Bakugou would strike anywhere.

During a team training session, you were sparring with Kaminari while Bakugou watched from the sidelines. When you finally landed a clean hit, knocking Kaminari flat on his ass, Bakugou clapped slowly, catching your attention.

Wanna know what else you could knock flat? Me. On my back. With you riding me till I forget my own goddamn name.

Your sparring stance faltered, and Kaminari took the opportunity to trip you.

“Hey, you alright?” he asked, offering a hand to help you up.

“I’m fine!” you snapped, shooting a glare at Bakugou, who was grinning like he’d just won the lottery.

The worst of all came during a live broadcast.

The Hero Public Safety Commission had organized a televised Q&A with Japan’s top heroes. You sat between Bakugou and Midoriya, fielding questions from both the moderator and the live audience. Bakugou had been unusually quiet for most of the event, arms crossed, eyes half-lidded.

But then, while the moderator addressed Midoriya, Bakugou caught your attention.

His hands moved lazily, almost imperceptibly, as he signed:

After this, I’m gonna pin you to the wall in the dressing room and fuck you so hard you won’t be able to walk out of here straight.

Your eyes widened, and you immediately looked away, heart hammering in your chest.

“And what about you?” the moderator asked, pulling your attention back to the present.

“I—I’m sorry, could you repeat the question?” you stammered, cheeks flaming.

Beside you, Bakugou leaned back in his chair, smirking as the moderator repeated the question. His hands shifted again, just enough for you to catch his next message:

If you blush any harder, they’re gonna think you’re into this.

You resisted the urge to scream.

Because, for Bakugou, nothing was funnier than watching you squirm. And knowing you were the only one who could decode his filthy little secrets? That was just the icing on the cake.

…..

Over time, the signing became a secret game. A language only the two of you shared, even if it was insanely one sided. In battle, it was strategic—efficient, silent communication when words couldn’t cut through the noise. Off the field? It was something else entirely.

After a particularly grueling patrol, Bakugou flopped onto the couch beside you, tugging his hearing aids out and tossing them onto the table.

“Another shitty day,” he muttered.

You hummed in agreement, leaning against him.

Without thinking, he signed: You’re the only thing that doesn’t piss me off.

You blinked, caught off guard. “What?”

He smirked, shaking his head. “Nothin’, Cupcake. Just watch the TV..”

And for once, you didn’t press.

Because sometimes, silence said enough.

[reyesstrand]

Hi Maddie!! I wish you would write a fic where TK never ends up in Austin, he goes to California instead after hearing about his namesake from Owen. He becomes a surf instructor after leaving firefighting. He and Carlos meet while Carlos is on vacation after a less than amicable breakup. Carlos learns what TK does for a living and takes surf lessons from him. They fall madly in love and live happily ever after. If youre still taking requests. I love your fics! Thank you!

thank you so so much, and thank you for your patience with this <3 this is my last one, i appreciate all the prompts and everyone who read <3

The sunrise shimmers in pinks and oranges over the calm water, his face warmed by the early light as he dangles his legs in the Pacific. For whatever reason, it always makes him think of home—of the sharp contrast to everything he knew New York to be. There, it was cool breezes and the thrum of traffic when he stepped out into the street, the noises of a bustling city never ceasing, even before the sun broke over the horizon. Here, there’s serenity; the salty sea breeze and the lapping of the tide against the shore. There’s always been a tug in his gut, sure—something like loneliness looming over his shoulders. Even still, though, he wouldn’t change any of it.

Like he does every morning before a long day of classes, he murmurs quietly to the ocean. He thinks of his father’s brother, the first Tyler, the one who never made it to his teens, the one who inspired TK to live every day to the fullest. He thinks of his mother, and her gentle pride. They’re with him always, and he trusts them to watch over him as he brings newbies to the beach and guides them into learning the sport he’s grown to love.

Today, though, he asks for a little more guidance.

He can still feel fingerprints low on his hips, where eager hands tucked under the board shorts he prefers when he doesn’t need to be in his wetsuit. He can still feel the tingle of lips against his, and curls under his palms. Carlos. He’s from Texas and he’s only here for a week with his sisters and the scariest thing about him is that he could absolutely ruin TK. He probably already has, given the fact that TK can’t stop thinking about the man passed out in the hotel suite he’d invited TK back to, one with a beautiful view of the pier. The one TK crept out of this morning, six days into…whatever they’re doing, his head spinning and heart racing. The last time he got close to someone, they broke his heart. He doesn’t know if can handle it again.

With a sigh, TK glances down at his waterproof watch. He’s scheduled with an early class today, a work retreat for some tech company, and he can’t afford to be late. Even if his love life just took a dramatic spin from painfully dry to a little reckless, he can’t let his work suffer for it. And so he paddles back to the shore, thumbing over the little T branded into the top of his board, and stares in confusion at the familiar body waiting in the sand.

“Carlos?”

“I figured I’d find you out here somewhere,” Carlos says, slowly getting up and dusting sand off his swim trunks, the soft golden glow of the morning dancing across his features. His eyes had been filled with such sorrow when TK met him, a sort of pain that TK recognized immediately, and now they’re clear and bright and beautiful. He’s beautiful, in one of TK’s t-shirts from Pacific Park that sits a little tight across his shoulders and curls fluffy from sleep and the breeze. “I thought we would talk this morning, but then you weren’t there when I woke up, so…”

“I’m sorry,” TK bites the inside of his cheek, as he feels saltwater drip down his body. The facade they’ve built around their days of fun is clearly crumbling around them—quickly. It makes his head spin.

“I can’t do this, TK,” Carlos says, his voice quieter than before. A seagull caws in the distance. “I leave tomorrow night, so if we—if this is done, can we call it done? Because I can’t get any closer to you without falling even harder.”

“You shouldn’t,” TK says, the sand clumping under his wet feet. “You shouldn’t fall for me.”

Carlos frowns. “Well, it’s a little late for that.”

In a flash, TK thinks back on the past few days, and how they’ve been the happiest he’s had in a long time. The lights of the pier at night reflected in Carlos’ eyes; the look of pride on his face when he mastered his balance and stayed upright on his board for the first time; the way he tasted of cotton candy and lime when they’d kissed for the first time. The way he’d been so vulnerable with TK, trusting him to listen about his breakup, about his sisters planning a last-minute excursion to distract him even though he hated being away from home.

‘s funny, though, Carlos had murmured, his breath warm against TK’s neck as they sat together on the beach, curled in each other’s arms. Because as soon as I met you it’s like..it’s like my body knew I didn’t have to be homesick anymore.

When TK doesn’t answer, Carlos moves to walk away, hurt dancing in his irises. He panics and steps closer, resting a hand on Carlos’ shoulder.

“I don’t wanna call it done,” TK admits, his heart racing. “It’s crazy, but I think I’ve been homesick, too. Just waiting for you to come here and make it right ever since dad went to Texas and I came here.”

There’s a beat, before he continues on, still speaking to Carlos’ back.

“I want to keep knowing you, Carlos. I want to get to love you.”

It’s probably the most reckless thing he’s ever done. He’s known Carlos for six days. He’s known him as someone on vacation. He’s known him as someone recently heartbroken, someone who’s probably not thinking straight, someone who will run when TK ruins—

Carlos whirls around, and they’re close enough for their noses to bump.

“I want that, too,” Carlos is saying, and TK can’t not kiss him. He cups his face and pulls him in, and the kiss tastes of the salt of the sea and the warmth of the sun and maybe, under it all, a lot like coming home.

[rubra-wav]

Vox HCs #4: Theories about how he works like biologically

Cw: Sfw - but discussion about non-sexual anatomy type stuff

A/N because I've thought way too much about the logistics of him and robotic/tech demons and how they work/could work way too much. 💀 These are just some of the things I've thought about

- The main thing I see people wondering about is his face and how he drinks stuff, kisses people, etc.

- I think that the screen of his face is a full screen in its resting state, but he can influence the way it kind of functions/presents. ie. Manipulating the area around his mouth so he actually does have a mouth and its not just a projection on his screen.

- I don't think his mouth is a constant actual 3 dimensional thing though and is rather something he can change at will whenever he sees fit.

- If you were to touch it just in casual day to do life, his mouth would just be the screen / 2d.

- Also, I don't think his mouth feels like a normal mouth. If you were to kiss him I feel like his lips would not feel exactly like normal lips, and that his lips and tongue would kind of have that kind of static electricity sensation to them.

- Like if he were to lick you, I feel like you'd get that kind of static electricity sensation that makes your hair stand on its end.

- I'm not too sure about the rest of his face though. Maybe he can manipulate the rest of his face to become more 3 dimensional, but I don't think he would do it often as it's not necessary.

- Due to him being seen drinking during season 1, I think it's safe to assume that the way his internal functions are designed are relatively similar to normal humans.

- I believe he'd also have a somewhat similar body system as well. However, it just would be like metal parts, wires and artificial stuff underneath his skin rather than actual muscle, veins, ligaments, organs, bodily fluids, etc. Etc. That mirror those bodily systems.

- Having said that though, I do think parts of him are sensitive to being damaged by water. He may be just fine drinking water and liquids, but if they got in his ports (like on the back of his head), that would be bad.

- Because he prides himself on being up to date tech wise, he'd likely be waterproofed to a degree, but it still wouldn't be good. I can imagine him being damaged by it and bluescreening and forcefully shutting down to prevent any further damage to his less human reminiscent systems. (Do you think he lays down in rice when that happens? 💀)

- Also, I do not think he technically needs to eat or drink stuff. Judging by the fact he can plug into things (like how in the Stayed Gone video he plugs into all the computers and stuff), I think his main energy source would actually be charging using electrical wires and stuff.

- I think that him eating and drinking is just a preference of his, and that other demons who are similar to him wouldn't need to eat or drink. He can still get energy that way, but it's less efficient and more of just a preference/reminiscent of his past life as a human that he's held onto all this time.

- I also don't think he really 'sleeps' in the traditional sense or needs to sleep? He can likely regain power that way, but he wouldn't really need to sleep and could just stay awake all day and night if he's connected to a suitable charging source every couple of hours.

- I do think he would like powering down/switching off for a bit to rest though - just to not go crazy. Even if you wont die from lack of sleep, it's still nice to not have to think about things for a couple of hours.

Now I'm thinking about him laying down in rice after trying to go swimming without water proofing himself properly while bitching lmao.

[gumnut-logic]

“Alan! Don’t let go!”

“Virg, I’m slipping!”

To Virgil’s horror, Alan did slip. He clamped down with every muscle in his arm and gut, desperate to hold onto his littlest brother.

But he could still feel those small gloved fingers sliding ever so slowly through his grip.

God, please, no.

He struggled, throwing idea after idea out of his mind, desperate to find a way to get Alan up and secured…to his belt, to the grapple line, to anything but his failing hold.

Virgil’s other arm had a gouge across his bicep, interfering with his ability to move it at all. It was screaming at him at the strain, but his heart was shouting louder as his brain could not supply a solution other than physically pulling his brother up and close with his one good arm.

Heavy lifting was his speciality, after all.

They were hanging off the side of a half-constructed skyscraper. It was raining and the wind was howling. Everything was wet including Virgil’s gloves.

Gecko gloves would have solved the majority of the problem. He automatically threw the tech onto his to-do list, to add to his everyday gloves, even triggering the initial design need to make the gecko grip appear at will.

But it didn’t help him or Alan right now.

“Virgil!”

Rain dripped down both their helmets, but he could still see his little brother’s face.

This was Virgil’s fault. He should have seen the structural vulnerability before the floor caved in, throwing both operatives over the edge. Virgil had grabbed his brother as they fell, firing his grapple gun just like he had done in so many training situations, but his uniform had been caught, followed by skin and his grip faltered.

And Alan fell from his arms.

It only took him a split second to recover and grab at his little brother, ever thankful to feel his hand wrapping around Alan’s, but now they were stuck, hands slipping, with a lethal drop below, hidden in the darkness.

He had to pull his brother up.

Heavy lifting.

He’s not heavy…

He’s my brother.

Hysterical thought for a terrifying whiteout as he pulled Alan up with every fibre he had.

Voice hoarse. “Alan climb!”

The wind pushed at them and they swung, spinning.

Virgil groaned, body screaming.

While Virgil contracted his arm, Alan was obviously struggling to get a second grip, his body twisting in an attempt to reach up but not lose what little grip he had. Rain poured down on them and waterproof suits shed the water in rivulets.

Virgil found he could not lift his brother up.

God, please.

“Alan!”

Fingers slipped further.

Virgil squeezed Alan’s hand tighter. Broken fingers could be fixed later.

Again he tried to pull his little brother up, even a little, enough for Alan to grab onto Virgil’s body and save himself.

Something cracked in his injured arm and Virgil screamed.

Scott was yelling into his ear.

Scott? “Scott, I can’t!” Tears ran down his cheeks.

Lightning flickered in the remains of the storm, and thunder rolled across the earth.

Alan’s fingers were slipping and…

…then they were gone.

“NO!!” The denial was ripped from his throat as his brother screamed his name.

And fell.

His little brother!

His little brother!

There was no slow motion. Alan was just gone. Taken by height and rain.

Lightning flickered again.

Oh, god.

Oh, god.

Oh, god.

Oh, god.

Oh, god.

His brain froze, unwilling to believe, but forced to focus on fact.

The rain still whipped against his faceplate, his now empty hand flailing in the air. The world kept moving…

But…

“Virgil!”

Scott was suddenly in his face, his arms wrapping around him, hauling him upwards, his fingers prodding Virgil’s injured arm loose from the now lax grapple line.

Virgil hung limp in his grasp.

How could he face Scott?

How could he…?

Alan.

Alan.

“Virgil, talk to me.”

Scott was in his face again. Virgil was on solid ground, his arm still screaming.

He didn’t have a voice. His throat was so tight, he could barely breathe.

A couple of clicks and Scott was removing his helmet. He was in his beloved ‘bird. Her well-lit module protected them from the storm outside.

Scott threw off his helmet. “Virgil?”

His brother needed an answer. “…Alan.” The name scraped across his larynx, his tongue.

His heart.

“Virgil?”

It was his name, but Scott hadn’t spoken.

Alan appeared behind Scott, worry on his face.

Virgil’s brain locked up.

“Alan?!” He threw himself at his little brother.

“Whoa!” Unfortunately, Virgil discovered he wasn’t stable enough to keep his own feet under him, and Alan wasn’t the heavy lifting brother, falling under Virgil, unable to support his weight.

Again, Scott caught him, grunting as he took his weight.

“I’m okay, Virg! I’m okay!”

But Virgil refused to let him go, hugging him to his chest as Scott haphazardly lowered the both of them to the floor.

Virgil buried his face in his little brother’s hair. “Allie, oh, god, Allie.”

“I’m okay, Virg. Need to breathe.”

“Virgil, you’re bleeding.” Scott tugged gently on his arm. The arm that was screaming even more now he was using it to hug the brother he thought he had lost.

“I’m sorry, Alan, so sorry.”

“Hey, I’m okay, big guy. See…” He brought his forehead down to touch Virgil’s. “Scott caught me.”

“Thank you, thank you.” Yes, he was beside himself. There were tears, tears of relief.

“Virgil, sit back, you’re bleeding all over your ‘bird.” Again, Scott was attempting to move him, his voice commanding yet all worried big brother.

“C’mon, big bro, sit back, and let us fix you up, okay?”

Virgil followed Alan with his eyes, but he obeyed, sitting back against something that was suddenly behind him on the floor as Scott pulled out a laser cutter and began slicing up his uniform to get to the injury.

Virgil settled for grabbing Alan’s hand and holding on to it ever so tight.

And this time, he wouldn’t let go.

-o-o-o-

[blackcherryvelvet0909]

Beach Body (Idia x GN!Reader)

Content Warning: Body insecurity, mild angst, self-esteem issues, self-deprecation (Idia)

A single speck of black was visible on the sandy beach. It sat alone, highlighted by wisps of fiery blue hair that peeked out from under its hood. The legs that curled up before the speck, tucked under its chin, were paler than the sand, as white as a sand dollar. The umbrella high above the speck was the only thing to shade it from the harsh, hot rays of the sun. It cowered away from them, as if it wished to disappear from the scene altogether. That assumption was correct - Idia would rather be elsewhere. 

The only reason the man was not back in the safety of his hotel room was the robot boy that played among the waves. Idia had made that waterproof body of his for the trip, so he could play with his peers like any other kid. Idia thought that would be enough; he could simply watch Ortho play from the balcony of their condo. Ortho had other plans, however. There was nothing the boy wanted more than to have his beloved brother with him out on the beach. He said it would be fun to make such memories with him. Though Idia silently disagreed, there was no way he could refuse those pleading eyes. 

So, here he was, sat alone on the beach while Ortho had fun. The boy would come check on him once in a while, try to coax him out into the sea to play with him, or to play in the sand. The only successful attempt had occurred two days ago, when the sandcastle building contest took place. To think Idia thought they actually had a chance at winning - laughable. It was bad enough that they weren't allowed to use magic; when Idia was asked to hand over his tech, and Ortho was told he couldn’t use any tricks of his own, Idia knew they were goners. They came in dead last that day. Ortho had fun, but never again would Idia expose himself to such humiliation. 

The black hoodie that covered his torso sweltered in the heat, but it was the best Idia had to cover up with. You won’t catch him frolicking about like some oblivious loser in a beach episode. That sunny spotlight was for the main characters, the hot NPCs - Idia was neither. He hated this so much…he let out a long sigh as he draped his arms over his knees and rested his chin atop them as he continued to watch Ortho. He cracked a little smile as he heard Ortho squealed in delight when Epel splashed him with water. Well, at least one thing he did was worth something. 

“Idia?” 

Idia flinched at the sudden sound of his name. He whipped his head around to look up at the person addressing him: [Y/n]. “W-What?” 

You pointed to his hoodie. “Aren’t you burning up in that thing?” 

Idia glanced to the side as he lied, “No.” 

“I can clearly see the sweat dripping off your face.” You tugged on his sleeve. “C’mon, you’ll burn up if you don’t!” 

“No!” Idia tugged the hoodie closer to his body. He glared down at the towel he sat on as he grumbled. “Geez, can’t a guy get some peace?” 

You furrowed your eyebrows at his sour attitude. “Are you still upset about the sandcastle contest?” 

“I’m not upset,” he mumbled. Another obvious lie. 

“Don’t be mad - ignore Leona and his bullshit.” You knelt down to look Idia in the eye. “He was just trying to get a rise out of you. You did a lot better than I would have.” 

Idia clicked his tongue as he scoffed. “You can make something worse than a pile of sand?” 

“It wasn’t a pile of sand,” you chuckled. “It was a cute little house! Ortho told me you came up with it; it’s the one from ‘Miko Doesn’t Talk’, right?” 

Idia’s eyebrows lifted, surprised you knew of the show. “Y-You like it?” 

“The anime? Yeah, I think it’s cute! I’ve only just started watching it though, so I can’t say much about it.” 

Idia let out a quiet giggle, “Noob - haven’t even seen a show that beginner grade.” 

It was your turn to scoff, though a smirk accompanied yours. “Well, if someone would come out of their room and talk to me more often, maybe I wouldn’t be such a noob.” 

Idia had nothing to say to that - he just rolled his eyes and looked back out at the sea. Ortho had come closer to shore, he and Deuce now looking for seashells. Baby games…but Idia thought it was cute how Ortho wanted to make them matching shell bracelets. He then saw you move out of the corner of his eye, a water bottle slowly coming into his line of sight. He looked back in your direction with a confused expression. 

“Here,” you said as you lifted the bottle closer to him. “I came to give you this. If you really have to keep on the hoodie, you need to drink more water.” 

“Water’s for normies,” he mused. 

“And heat stroke via stubbornness is for losers,” you retorted. 

Well, you had a point. Idia hated plain water, but he was thirsty. So, with an overdramatically annoyed sound, he took the plastic bottle from you. His fingers brushed against yours as he grasped the bottle; he quickly pulled away and looked down before you could see the pink of his cheeks. “Thanks…” 

“No problem.” Your smile was as bright as the sparkles that came with an SSR card pull. The swimsuit you wore made you look like the love interest in an otome game…why did Idia have to be like this? Before his thoughts could get too carried away, you broke Idia out as you spoke again. “Why are you wearing that anyway? It’s not even that windy today, and it’s not going to rain either. You don’t need it.” 

“You don’t need it,” Idia mocked in a voice that exaggerated yours. He scoffed again as he continued, “What do you want me to do, huh? Take it off and get laughed at by everyone?” He sipped his water sharply before he mumbled under his breath, “It’s not like I’m a protagonist with abs.” 

You furrowed your brow, “Epel doesn’t have abs, neither do Deuce or Ace, and they’re out without a shirt.” 

“They don’t look like a dweeb,” Idia grumbled as he took another swig of his water. 

“You do not look like a dweeb,” you said as you gently elbowed his side. 

Idia smirked again as he chuckled. “What do you have, x-ray vision? How do you know?” 

“I don’t,” you admitted, “but you’re not bad looking, Idia.” Idia glanced back your way as you finished your thought. “I’ve always thought you looked pretty cute.” 

Cute cute you called him cute aaaaahhh!!! 

‘Calm down Idia,’ Idia told himself. ‘You’re fine, you’re fine, you’re cool, you’re fine. Be cool, be…be cool.’ 

Idia managed a grin as he leaned a little closer. “C-Cute, huh?” He mentally called himself dumb for the stammer. “Like what, a puppy?” 

“No, not a puppy,” you laughed. “That’s more of Jack than anything.” Idia held back a laugh of his own as he saw Jack’s ears perk up in the distance. It nearly slipped when the beastman looked in your direction with a look between surprise and puzzled on his face. “I think…hmm…” You thought it over for a bit; honestly, Idia was afraid of what you might say. When you finally did speak, he was nowhere near prepared for what you said. 

“You remind me of the cute loner best friend the main character ends up with in a romantic comedy.”

Idia’s mind ran a mile a minute as he processed your words. Him, cute guy? Love interest in a romantic comedy? What? Good thing his hoodie hid his face when he looked down, or you’d see just how blushy he was. He barely registered the words that came out of his mouth in his flustered state. “Are you the main character?” he mumbled. 

“Huh?” you asked. “What did you say?” 

Idia quickly regained himself, though clumsily. “I, I, u-uh, nothing!” For the first time since he’d gotten to the beach, Idia scrambled up from his spot on the ground. “I-I just remembered I forgot, um…O-Ortho’s bag! Need that if he’s going to collect shells.” He was sweating more now than he ever had before. “I-I’ll see you later!” 

Never did anyone know that Idia Shroud could run that fast. Idia felt ridiculous, honestly - like some anime school girl that just got rejected by her crush. You hadn’t rejected him, but you surely would have laughed if you heard what he said. C’mon, you? With him? Laughable. You’d likely end up with one of the main guys, like Malleus, or Vil, or Leona.

It’d never be with him…never. Idia felt a lump form in his stomach as he slowed down. As his shoes clumped along the wooden walkway that led to and from the beach’s entrance, he tugged his hood further over his head. He could see his once blue hair was now a flaming bright pink. He groaned as he rolled his eyes to the sky, so very frustrated with himself. He told himself to be cool…when was he ever. 

“Get an actual beach body and maybe you could have a shot with the main character,” Idia grumbled to himself as he walked along. 

Hopefully you didn’t notice Ortho’s bag on the beach towel where he’d left it. 

[lazywriter-artist]

Shrimp themed Biologis and Crayfish techpreist apprentice anyone? (You guys get a fun lore dump with these doodles so strap in—)

Crunch—

Lore below the cut 🫶

So basically

Shimp-Biologis is silly and cool bc he’s technically not SOLELY tech, he’s mutated flesh and shit that’s melded with his tech exoskeleton (hence why he gets the gift of functional mouth) but this is very strenuous on his fleshy form. This is why the Biologis’s body is shaped around and themed after a shrimp (also why he doesn’t wear traditional robes, gets in the way of swimming)

Within his lab is this large tank (think of an inground pool situation in the middle of this lab which has stairs to a second level like some kind of aquarium) which he spends most of his time in due to the strain it is on his body to be out the water. He is able to traverse dry land but it gets very exhausting and he has to scurry back to the tank for a much needed old man nap. With a strong interest in humans he is definitely much more sympathetic to their plights then most of the Admechs but with a double edged sword he also finds a morbid curiosity in how their innards work— so— keep an eye on him cause his scalpels normally aren’t far from him—

But that’s also where the crayfish based techpreist comes in! Being a more traditional rejected the human flesh Mechanicus they are appropriately made for out of water travel so to aid their mentor (sh rimp) and to provide aid in whatever means necessary. This is also why they have them big honking claws, it is much easier to lift you Magos back into the water with big claws then tiny frail leg hands! Behind those beady red eyes they are a bit more interested in warfare then their mentor’s study but they’re one of the only other techpreist with waterproofing and the other one is a crab Logis whom is always by the Archmagos’s side so perhaps they’re better suited here anyway, the Omnissiah’s wish.

Also a bit of nerd stuff about designing these bastards is—

[Insert sobbing and crying image]

The crayfish themed character was easy enough as their defining features are

> big claw

> big antenna

> big carapace

And with some other inspiration aka Crush crawfish—

The design was not that hard to whammy outta my brain— HOWEVER Shrimp for some reason just WONT come out of my brain just as easily?!

As really the defining feature of shrimps are

> pi nk

> shrimp C posture

>funny legs

So it was a big struggle to sketch out The Biologis’s design while his crayfish friend was not so hard to get on paper 🙄 (and yes this is also also why he doesn’t wear robes is bc A I didn’t work all your dumbass body out to cover it up and B I can’t figure out how your dumbass robes would fall anyway so hah)

All and all mostly happy with them!! (Also also ALSO do expect more lore dumps since I’m further fleshing out my other AdMech’s stories 😈😈😈)

[redrydersrequiem]

Reunited Chapter 9

Hey guys im back sorry this is short an it took so long I haven’t been inspired fora bit plus ive been moving and alot of stuff in my life is going crazy but im back at it love everyone who’s reading this i thank you.

Its been two days since the soul transfer. Right after the ceremony Spider was whisked away to the labs, much to his dismay, the boy only complying once he saw how worried I still was. A handful of checkups a bunch of drills and a night of observation spider was released with a clean bill of health. It’s not till the next morning that the ceremony would be complete, and I couldn't say I was looking forward to it.

Saying goodbye to his human body

The ceremony is just as beautiful as the one before it. Spider's former body lays in the same position it was yesterday, simply looking as though he's asleep, but now glowing flowers are placed gently beside him. I can't help but gently cry as I clutch spiders hand in mine the entire time. Needing the reassurance he's still here with me and his father. Everyone silently sets up, taking turns saying their goodbyes and laying down flowers. Atokirina grace us with their calming presence as they gently float around us to the sound of everyone gently singing. Neytiri explains to miles and i that the Navi believe all energy is borrowed, and eventually it must be returned.

“Eywa has guided you all to this point, and will now accept Spiders human form back into her loving embrace, watching as he now walks the path of the clans.”

Her words soothe me as I approach and lay my flower down. Miles beside me before we return and bask in our son's presence. Happy to start the next chapter of our family's life.

The rest of the day is filled with merriment. The clan celebrates Spiders rebirth as well as the return of their former clan chief and his family, even if they are only visiting. Spider goes around still testing out his new body and saying hello to the people he used to know, accepting the small trinkets they give him. Miles and I simply watch on happily.

After the morning and an afternoon of celebration we all decided to have a more intimate dinner. All the people close to Spider now take up residency in the Sullys old home. Norm, Max and Abby sit beside Jake and Neytiri, Miles and I on the other side of them, all of us gently talking,eating and drinking, while the kids all take residence on the other side of the fire giggling and goofing off as they do. It’s not till tuk insists Spider has to open her present that we move and put everything off to the side.

Spider now sits in the middle as tuk tuk goes first, presenting a small pouch, a leather armband inside. It’s simple in its design but thoughtful and lovingly crafted but eh younger girl. Decorated with sea rocks from the Metikiyana and a feather from the Omaticaya,

“so you can wear it at both places.” She says gleefully.

Kiri was next, gifting spider some beautiful beads of all colors she had been saving

“Here I carved these myself. They'll bring you luck, monkey boy.”

“Thank you kiri” The duo sport similar blushes, but no one says anything, all just simply filling the information away for later.

Neteyam and Lo’ak gift him a new knife sheath and a new ikran saddle. Telling him by the end of the week they’ll all be able to race around. Norm and the others gifted him a waterproof camera hoping he’ll send them some photos of the ocean and its environment, to which he readily agrees, just as curious as they are. They also gifted him a new halo pad now, Navi sized, all so he could keep in contact with everyone. The kids all cooed over the tech while Jake and Neytiri step forward to give their gift.

“This might not be as cool as your new tech but it is to commemorate your new life.”

They hand him a long cord, a new Navi sized songcord to be exact. Miles and I had agreed to giving the honor to them, having been there his whole life. A new dark leather and twine band sits with all the previous gems and trinkets. The only difference is that at the end a beautiful blue bead sits proudly. Symbolizing his transfer.

“Thank you.” Spider says gratefully, taking the cord and retying it to his hip.

“Your welcome kid. We’ve seen you work hard your whole life, learning the navis ways and respecting the world around you, we’re honored to do this for to watch how much you continue to grow.”

Spider goes and hugs the sully matriarchs, his eyes slightly watery.

“It’s our turn now sully” Miles states with a teasing smile on his face.

Miles moves over to spider a large long bundle in hand neatly tied at both ends. Spider takes it untying the top knot to reveal the end of a new bow. His face lights up at it, it's a beautiful dark wood that miles had been carving the better part of the month. Ever since he was told about spider's avatar. The bow is expertly carved, the man having spent the better part of his life carving little trinkets as a stress outlet. After getting jakes expertise (really neytiris) the bow was ready to accompany spider the rest of his days

“Wow this is incredible, thanks dad”

“Your welcome kid”

“Hey, maybe now I can teach you how to actually use one.” Spider jokes causing miles to put the boy in a head lock both now wrestling around as everyone laughs.

“Ok boys settle down its my turn.”

Spider and miles separate as I bring forward my small present and place it in spider's lap. Opening it a necklace sits, a true warriors necklace beaded and braided, the only difference is that the focal point of spiders sits shining metal dog tags. His full name, nickname and d.o.b, engraved on them, matching the ones miles, I and the rest of the blue team all sport.

“I wanted you to have something to remind you of both sides of your family.”

“Mom it's perfect thank you,” he quickly placed the sack it was in down before coming over to me gesturing for me to help him put it on.

I do so and he turns smiling at me before enveloping me in a giant hug.

“I'll never take it off sa’nu.” I just hugged my baby back just a tight happy that he's here with me now.

*Think this. But instead of th bigger tooth its dog tags *

The party continued well into the night. Norm and the others calling it an evening and returning to the labs while they still could, light conversation flowing between the sullys and us until light snores catch our attention. All the kids now asleep piled together, I took a quick photo on spiders camera and we tuck the kids all in, putting the fire out into light embers that will keep the tent nice and warm. Good nights are said as I curl up in miles arms burying my head in his chest as he squeezes me closer, a gentle smile on his face as he kiss my forehead

“How you doing now darlin?”

“Im good love, i'm so happy, i don't even have word’s”

“Me to darlin me to.

We sit in silence listening to the quiet snores around us as we drift of into sleep. But a dread lies just beneath the surface of this happiness, waiting just beyond the horizon to try and cripple our new lives.

We decided to stay with the omatikaya for two weeks. Give the sullys time to be with their old clan and loved ones, give spider time to acclimate to being Navi and be able to pass all the challenges a young warrior his age would have completed by now. He makes amazing progress, a true natural according to neytiri, much better than Jake when he first entered into the clan she says all the time, But it's not all fun and games while we were here.

Under the cover of dusk before the sun rises Jake, miles and i along with some other scouts wait in the trees watching the hustle and bustle of Bridgehead.

“It doesn’t look like they are up to anything huge but they could easily Hide any new gear with how much the base has grown”

“Yeah if anything. It would be in those hangers If they were building a new battlecraft, but they have tightened security,”

“Or At least doubled it by the look of all the skeletal suits walking around the perimeter there.”

“We’ll have to keep an eye on them, help the forest clans come up with back up plans, I don't trust Ardmore to just sit patiently.

“Agreed

“If anything we need to take the RDA out in the ocean. While they do have crafts they can’t fight everyone in those. Heavy suits like they use would be at a disadvantage there.”

“Your Right Dove as always.”

“Thank you, love.”

“Ok ok, i'll ask Tarsem to set up some patrols, report anything they see, for now let's get back, the sun should be rising soon and the kids are ready for spiders iknimaya.

The better part of the week the kids spent training Spider. The boy already knew everything already, having been training since he could walk, but was more than happy to redone everything now that's he's able to fully experience it. We painted him up in the traditional paints like the other warriors and created a group to go up the sacred mountains once more.

“Bro lets do this” Lo’ak says excitedly, reaching the top of the cliff face a second before spider, Neteyam and kiri not far behind them. Miles and I sat next to our ikrans having just landed after watching the teens finish climbing up

“Thank god we don't have to climb that again.”

“Oh hush you big baby”, i say playfully smacking miles chuckling form. Now that the kids are all up and in one piece jake steps forward.

“Ok kids, let's get this done.” Jake says gesturing for spider to step up, he and miles not far behind (both being the over protective dads they are)

“You can do this Spider” kiri tells him gently all of us watching, our breaths held as Spider steps into the clearing. Despite our worries the young man steps into the clearing with confidence, challenging the ikrans like he was taught, waiting for one to challenge back. Eventually a darker blue one does, not quite the color of his fathers or the sully families, but somewhere in between.

With incredible speed, and grace, Spider was on the back of the banshee before we knew it. We all watched with joy miles calling cupcake and quickly climbing on, ready to follow his son over the cliff edge for his first flight.Everyone flies together, whooping and hollering being heard as the kids all race, miles and Jake joining as well as neytiri and I just watch with smiles on our faces. A rare peaceful moment for our families before the war comes back into focus.

The time with the omaticaya comes to a close, and back to the rest of our family.

The ocean is as beautiful as always, even more so looking at it from above the clouds. We see the clan coming towards us on the sand a couple of dark blue bodies blending in with the see of turquoise waiting for us to land, cheers being heard throughoutWe all quickly hop off letting the ikrans rest a moment before unpacking. Eager to reintroduce spider to the metkayina

“About time you all returned we were thinking of coming to rescue you by the end of the week” wainfleet says joyfully.

“Well we had a lot happen Lyle it all took time beside. Come see your godson's new look miles says pushing spider out from behind him towards the group”

They all look at him in awe,

“Hey uncle Lyle.”

“Wow kid is that really you”

“Yeah it's me. Im finally blue

“You look good kid”, z says next to him checking out his new necklace, and ruffling his braided hair. The rest of the team comes up saying their hellos, welcome backs and congrats to spider while miles and i unload the ikrans. Ronal and Tonowari step up from the crowd, all of us turning to them as he appraises our group once more but I can see in his eyes the differences he’s seeing from us before and the us now.

“I see you’ve all returned to us” Tonowari asks

“Yes sir” miles responds for us all

“And I see you have brought back another forest clan member”

“Yes and no sir” I speak up quickly, placing my hand on spider's upper upper back and motioning him forward.

“This is actually our son spider”

I say presenting my son to the clan heads once more, except this time he has his head held high shoulders squared back and jaw set, no longer trying to hide behind his father and I. He greets the olo’ekytan formally. Tonowari responds, a smirk on his face at the boy's cheekiness, he goes to speak but Ronal however beats him in saying anything.

“Eywa has transferred his soul?”

“Yes ma’am I passed through her eye and returned to be with my family”.

Ronal eyes circling. Him and taking in his new form, her keen eyes assessing him.

“Eywa has trully blessed your family, to not only allow you both a second life but to also allow your child to pass through her eye and return a member of the clan, it will be interesting to watch the journey the great mother has planned for you all.” With that she walks back beside her mate the couple sharing a look before Tonowari smiles back at us

“Welcome back to our clan, Spiders, may you walk in the ways of water.”

Everyone cheers as the heads walk away, the clan welcoming us all back. Some of the kids spider. Meet before running up to him all saying hellos including Aunong, Tsireya and Roxto. All tracing him with their eyes in shock to see the boy they knew now a young Navi man all i can do is smile knowing my boy now can have a better life.miles placing his arm around me as we both stare determination to keep this peace running through our bodies.

Tag list

@headsincloud9 @dyingofcookies @totesnothere04 @ratchetprime211 @myh3artttt @ducks118 @navs-bhat @im-in-a-pansexual-panik

S

[dekulakization]

Countryhumans nation hello headcanons time

Ok. So far I've got three robots. NATO, Warsaw pact and NAM

Warsaw's ass has been discarded at some dumpster like a while ago however for my sake and wellbeing I pretend this didn't happen

NATO. Bastard. I fucking hate him. Not affectionately I'm just biased. Here's him ↓

He's pretty high-tech. Waterproof, has to charge every month and the charging takes a few days. You plug him in like an iPhone (joke)

He's sentient!! Can feel surface level emotion (happy/sad) and pain. Needed to establish this before I said the next thing, which is that he's built so that he struggles to frown or change the position of his mouth. Like, it physically hurts him to do that. Mostly because Belgium and America (the two people that collabed on making NATO) wanted to likeee...glorify him? If you get what I'm trying to say. Make him seem perfect. He has internet access and everything that he sees is recorded

My boy Warsaw....the left drawing is more recent and more accurate to my current design of him

My boy runs on coal. Was built in a garage with spare thank parts and wood. Could survive a nuclear blast I'll be so fr. Not waterproof in the slightest. He can survive -50°C but overheats at 20°. Falling apart, nobody knows how he's still walking. Sentient. How? I do not know. Soviet built him so that he can't smile or move the position of his mouth at all also.

NAM....erm I don't have a proper design for him yet but he's??? He's so weird. Sk weird.

Built by Yugo and he's??? Surprisingly high-tech for the time he was built in? And GUESS WHAT HE HAS A FULL RANGE OF EMOTIONS AND HE CAN EXPRESS THEM!!!! HE CAN MOVE HIS MOUTH WITHOUT EXTREME DISCOMFORT ISN'T RJAT CRAZY?!?!

He's so silly. Used to constantly lean over now deceased Yugo while he was writing. Half of the convos they had were "What are you doing? (⁠•⁠‿⁠•⁠)" "Bureaucracy...Non-Aligned you're raising my blood pressure. Don't do that."

Semi-waterproof? He has some gaps where water can get in, usually his joints (knees, elbows, wrists, ankles...). He needs to charge every week and the charging usually takes a bit less than a day. Sentient (do not know how!), can vaguely feel the full range of emotions but he's disconnected from them. He doesn't show it though, he's very empathetic and knows how to make it seem like he's not as disconnected from emotion as he is

[ouroboros-hideout]

Congratulations ouroboros-hideout! A balance of €$130000 is available for your account. This transaction may only appear in your bank after your validate your info. To do so, send short stories with "24. tender // Vlad" or "6. illusion // Aon"!

Considering for a moment if this could be spam mail from Russia. Already happend once to me where someone from that country tried to sell me a weird graphic tablet that was complete trash. Could it be the same person? But 130000 € sound too tempting. Here are the short storys kind stranger. If you need my credit card number too, let me know! <3

24. tender

He touched her face once more, knowing it would be the last time. Her skin was so tender it felt like silk under his fingertips, though the warm blood he unavoidably smeared all over her cheek somehow destroyed the sensation. He knew he should feel remorse, be ashamed or upset about what he just did. Or at least be worried he couldn't feel any of this while looking into her beautiful eyes, that where staring lifeless to the ceiling. "Oh, my sweet Gazelle...", he whispered before he stood up and left the room without another word, still trying to understand what just happened, what caused that quiet humming sound in his head and why it made him feel so powerful.

6. Illusion

A: "It won't change anything if you keep stomping and barking around like an angry little boy. Yes, it sucks they screwed you over but what's done is done. You can't control everything Kurt, no matter how hard you wish you could."

K: "I HAD EVERYTHING under control. We worked weeks for that and the fucking plan was waterproof."

A: "And yet it went to shit. There is no thing like full control, that's just a lie we like to tell ourselves, an illusion to make us feel better. In the end everything you do is just a reaction to an action. Plans are a nice warm blanket you put around your shoulders to feel save but when the winds get too cold you'll still freeze your ass off if you don't react to that and make a fire instead."

K: "Yea. Great. Thank you for the metaphor, exactly what I need right now."

A: "Okay, whatever. Cry your eyes out about your lost tech or shoot at the sky if it makes you feel better. Or get a grip - think that would look like a man who is in control of everything."

[picklefics]

Benefits of Camping, or How to (not) Hunt Bigfoot With Your Parents

This was originally posted on Ao3, but I decided I'd see what posting on Tumblr was like for fanfiction :) (https://archiveofourown.org/works/47138986/chapters/118767895)

I already have chapters 1-5, just not gonna put em all up right now as I'm at a coffee shop and need to work on heading home.

Summary:

It could've been a great vacation. Probably. Except there's one tiny issue: Danny's parents have decided to take a break from hunting ghosts, instead supporting their fellow cryptobiologists in hunting Bigfoot. The big problem? They do find Bigfoot. And Bigfoot can talk. (...and has a PhD?)

Chapter 1: Benefit 1-New Cooking Skills

Danny’s folks are usually ghost hunters, but that doesn’t mean they don’t branch out. After all, they’d spent almost 20 years of their life studying a science practically everyone thought of as a paper house in a rainstorm. Surely one of those droplets of evidence would disprove the science as a whole.

Really? Entire beings made of one substance? Supernatural entities?

Absurd .

Maddie and Jack have a great deal of sympathy for cryptobiologists. They also have a tendency to suspect that ghosts are involved every time someone spots Bigfoot or some other being. But really, they’d be happy with either the discovery of a ghost or a new animal to dissect.

Danny, on the other hand, is not in love with either of those two discovery options. He is having a great deal of fun tormenting Jazz, who’d been forced to come along on a trip to the red cedar forests of California. He’d tried to bribe Sam and Tucker into coming along. Sam, with the lure of a new animal (maybe) to check out, and Tucker with peer pressure and lots of grilled meat. Unfortunately, after the reality check that was another fight with a new ghost named Fortuna (self-proclaimed follower of Fortuna, Goddess of Fortune and Misfortune, and with luck-related powers), they’d been forced to concede that having people at home who could fight ghosts was too important to have all three of them on a camping trip.

Thank fuck that Val wasn’t in school right now and that she’d gotten less extreme about ghosts since meeting Danielle. One day Danny might even consider telling her about him, if she doesn’t figure it out first. As a result, there are three competent ghost hunters in Amity Park who don’t actively hate ghosts while Danny is on vacation.

At any rate, Danny is trapped with a bunch of adults who are way too enthusiastic about hunting down rare animals and (in at least one case) killing and taxidermy-ing them. The guy in question keeps tracking new hunters down and showing off pictures of his living room and business, covered in eerie deer, bear, and alligator heads, among other things. There’s even a snake wrapped around a driftwood piece on the table. It reminds Danny of Skulker, and makes him consider yet again whether ghosts might be more likely to form out of these kinds of people. He’s pretty sure his parents were obsessive before they started regularly working with ectoplasm, and after?

They grew much more extreme.

And who knows? It could be due to exposure to ectoplasm, or maybe the obsessiveness causes ectoplasm to accumulate near them. He’s heard theories going both ways.

This guy, Danny could easily imagine dying and becoming a ghost.

At least he helps with setup. The camp takes a while to go up, yellow and beige tents popping up like gophers among the trees. His parents’ tent is a green dome, one of a few splashes of color in the group. Another guy sets up a big grill and a solar panel in a little clearing, one of the few places with sunlight. His incredibly buff partner totes a bag of backup coal to the grill like Mom would carry a sack of flour.

All around the area, people bring up folding chairs and situate equipment. In a big, waterproof, black container, they all put their tech away. The container is anchored with thick ropes to be absolutely certain that nothing can drag it away. It’s flash-flooding season in the area and there’s a river nearby, so they’re concerned that the container could float away, but they had wanted to make the equipment available to everyone, so they aren’t keeping it in anyone’s vehicle. 

A cage goes up towards the far west corner of the camp, away from the fire pit, because they’re worried anything they capture might be unduly frightened by said fire.

With that, a few people sign up in rotation to monitor the grill, planning to bake some potatoes and apples in the fire pit and grill weenies. It’ll be about three hours before supper, but the planning, and a snack, are needed. As the only kids present (apparently many of the others’ kids are nonexistent or at summer camps), Danny and Jazz are put on apple coring and potato poking duty involuntarily. 

Matthew Kapp is their instructor. He practically drags them to the fire pit and tells them how to make the food like he thinks they have infinite memory space for commands, no matter how long the list is.

He explains that potatoes explode when in the ashes without holes, then shows them the basic steps to prepare the food. Essentially, they’re supposed to stab the potatoes with a fork “until it feels right”, wrap them in tin foil, and then yeet them into the fire. Then they have to be surrounded by the ashes and dug out later. Jazz and Danny both work on this, quietly chattering.

Danny grins and with particular emphasis stabs a potato old enough to have green sprouts studded all over its surface. He has to use his right thumb to put enough pressure on the sides of the sprouts that they fall off. He jokes, “If I were Skulker and this potato was me, I’d be so happy right now…”

Jazz raises her eyebrows at him. “Sometimes I worry about the normalization of violence you’ve experienced, Danny.”

Danny is like 90% sure she’s saying that mostly to get on his nerves, but he’s not 100% sure. Ah, the delights of a sister who adores psychology and tormenting her little brother. He rolls his eyes. “Literally everybody in town probably has that. The school has at least one attack every week.”

Jazz retorts, “That’s really not normal.”

“Well it’s normal for me.” 

At that, Jazz changes topics. “Did you remember to bring our tent?”

Danny gives her a thumbs up.

“Great. We don’t have to listen to their snoring!” She cheers. Granted part of the reason they have the tent is because of Danny’s nightmares and occasional power use. Particularly, he’s prone to leaping out of bed and turning intangible the second he gets startled awake because of the sheer number of times ghosts have woken him up.

“Thanks for suggesting it,” Danny offers. Then he adds, “Stabbing the potatoes until it feels right is so…imprecise. How do we know when it feels right?”

Jazz groans sympathetically. “I know, right? I get it for people who’ve baked campfire potatoes before, but we’ve never done this. Mr. Kapp is a scientist, isn’t he supposed to know to be exact for beginners?”

Danny tosses his potato back and forth. “This potato better be good. It’s very hole-y now.” He sets it in the metal bowl to his right and adds, “It’s starting a cult.”

Jazz raises her eyebrows at him. “...why?”

“Holy? Y’know, like saints or whatever?”

Jazz snorts and grabs the tin foil roll. She starts unwrapping it to the familiar crumbly crackle of ripping metal, tearing off pieces big enough for each of the potatoes they’ve prepared. Danny snitches some of the squares and starts wrapping them around each potato as fast as he can. For this part, they don’t talk. The aluminum is too loud anyways. It covers speech pretty well.

After all 14 potatoes are wrapped, they toss them into the fire. Sparks flash into the sky and drift away, and one of the logs collapses into the pit with a soft thud. The white ashes have increased in number, but there aren’t many yet, so they wait to bury the potatoes in the ashes. While they wait, they move on to the apples.

Danny mixes the cinnamon and other spices together and Jazz cores the apples while grumbling about how hard it will be to work on her paper out here. She brought paper so she could handwrite some of it, but out here there isn’t any internet so the most she can do is type on her phone. She isn’t doing that because she’s worried about running out of power and not being able to call if there’s an emergency.

They both stuff the apples with the mixture and then wrap them and toss them in the fire in the same way as the potatoes but to the side. About 15 minutes later, they use sticks to roll the apples out of the fire. The potatoes are saved for later since it will be a few hours before they’re done, while the apples are served as a snack/dessert immediately. 

Having had a long drive and therefore possessing a strong craving for sweets (or any sort of snackage really), everyone swarms the apple pile and as a result only gets one each. Danny plots to sneak another apple into the fire later so he can have seconds, and Jazz wholly supports him. He forgets to eat, and she has to remind him far more often than she’d like.

After the apples are all eaten, some of the people sit down to rest (those who weren’t already asleep) and some of the others begin prowling the area, including Taxidermy Guy (Oscar Polson) and his wife Paloma.

When the two of them come back, they have a map of the area filled with markings denoting where they want to put various kinds of traps. The Polsons are the experts on trap-setting and location, and they’re responsible for deciding which places to put the traps each person brought. With the locations for each trap decided, everyone fixes the last few supper items and sits down for supper as the sun sets, mostly because there’s not enough time to set up the traps that evening.

Next Chapter:

https://www.tumblr.com/picklefics/730299785376104448/boc-chapter-2?source=share

[nonverbalturtlepower]

TMNT Headcanon time (2012) ☺️

Parts might or might not be projection lol.

Mikey: Autistic and ADHD. Stims constantly. Always moving. Rocking, flapping, wiggling his fingers and toes, chewing on things, food. Hoards thing he loves and nests. Trans, genderqueer trans boy, (oriented?) aroace, complicated relationship with gender and orientation. Part time mobility aid user (I have seen this boy hit so many walls and I'm only ten episodes in. He has to have chronic pain 😅 also what kind of effects could the mutagen have? Getting turned from a turtle to a turtle person has to have lasting effects lol. He sometimes uses his forearm crutches on patrol and always wears afos but his other mobility aids are mostly for at home use. CVI (this is projection but I am blind and i'm rubbing my grubby disabled paws all over this character lol. And I always see blind Leo. So my headcanon is blind Mikey. Because mutagen). He has trouble with his brain processing what he is looking at. He has trouble with depth perception, identifying objects (especially unfamiliar ones), takes him time to id objects, clumsy because his lower visual field isn't great, trips over things on the floor and runs into walls because he can't see them, but he's really good at compensating for it so sometimes he even forgets he's blind. Uses a white cane sometimes, mostly in new places (it's a super cool folding one Donnie made him in his favorite colors). Mikey loves bright colors because they are easier for him to see. (he's not totally blind. And his vision fluctuates depending on a number of factors).

Apraxic. Situationally mute. Mostly nonverbal, makes a lot of noises but doesn't really have understandable self generated speech anymore. Can repeat things he's heard before but it's not 100% under his control. Every so often he can ramble like he used to, but he has to be not stressed and comfortable. Aphasia. Sometimes wrong words come out if he can talk or they come out wrong (wrong order, slurred, gibberish). Closest thing to words that come out of his mouth are sounds that sound like words to people who know him.

Multimodel communicator. He has a speech generating device that Donnie built him and it sounds like his body voice or he can choose what it sounds like. Has a fuck ton of different apps and vocabularies. He really likes PODD and LAMP because of how they are arranged. He also has low tech AAC (his favorite is his custom one page opening PODD book that Donnie somehow made bullet proof??? and totally waterproof. Mikey doesn't get how it works but he's glad it does because he has dropped it in some gross stuff 😅 but he can just rinse it off and go about his day. Fucker has literally used it as a shield against the Kraang's blaster fire, not a dent to be seen. All the turtles know the signals Leo uses during patrols but they also use a ASL modified for their three fingers. And he loves picture cards. He'll be hanging out with his brothers and just hand one of them a no card to be obstinant. His fuck you (playful) card is his second favorite. His picture cards stay at home because they are easy to lose because small and hard to transport because it's several thousand 1.5 in square cards with velcro on the backs. He does have a small binder with a few in it for patrols, just in case.

Dyslexic and has a hard time reading print between that and his vision. Needs enlarged print, a magnifier, or braille for reading.

He has some sort of hearing impairment /might be deaf but he doesn't know what's going on exactly. He just knows he has a hard time understanding speech especially if there is a lot of background noise. And he can't hear well while he is actively focused on seeing (CVI).

More about gender. He's a trans boy bu he's also a demigirl. He's bigender. But he prefers masc pronouns. Or neopronouns.

He loves food. And he's also kind of a walking hazard to himself (clumsy much) so his brothers prefer he be supervised while cooking.

He's 5" even and the shortest of all of them.

He sticker bombs everything he can get his chronically grubby little hands on.

Chronic migraines and photosensitivity. He has a special mask ge keeps on him that doesn't have eye holes and is made out of light blocking materials so if he gets overwhelmed by the light he can just put it on and rely on his other senses. His ability to fight without thinking really comes in handy for this.

He is really fast with his forearm crutches because they make him more stable.

Oops all Mikey 😅

I'll make another post for Donnie I guess.

[platonically-loving-alastor]

Vox and Waterproofing

So to me it's clear that, with his advanced tech and the confirmation he does replace the tech on his own body, Vox is most likely waterproof. However, I don't think this was always the case. When he first got to Hell, it was early in technological advancement, therefore his head was absolutely susceptible to electrocution if he wasn't careful around water. Since he was new to the whole 'having a TV for a head' thing, I imagine there were quite a few mishaps where he'd forget about it and nearly kill himself by doing something that would be completely safe if he was fully organic. Such scenarios include taking a shower (without precaution), Going out in the rain w/out at least an umbrella, etc. He was still able to drink stuff somehow, so long as he was careful not to spill, but it took a while to get over the reluctance whenever he had a drink.

Oh and important detail: He made his sharks before he self-waterproofed, purely because the idea of him risking his life by having giant fish tanks around him every day, just to fulfill his shark obsession, is very funny to me. I will be making future posts about Vox and his interest in sharks, it's one of my favorite random canon character details :)

[goodpupsinc]

Spidersins AU-2

Sea Spider

•Leviathan lives with his Uncle(by marriage), Barbatos!

•Earth 1.1508(or 1.15 since that's shorter to say) has unfortunately been the subject of extreme flooding. Causing Levi's home of Portland, Maine to more closely resemble our Earth's Italy. Most transport is via waterways or walking.

After having lost his father and uncle in a fishing accident and his mother being unable to care for him.

•Leviathan was bitten during a school trip to a science lab, more akin to Spider-Man(2017)

•He created his own web-shooters and webbing! Designing it to be more rigid so it works just aswell underwater as it does on land

•His suit and tech has been more adapted for aquatics aswell, most of them being waterproof if not entirely hydrophobic. Though this is more to the adaptions of his Earth's technology more than anything Levi himself has done

•Levi's knowledge of comics and video games allows him to make us of hammerspace that some of the other Sins cannot! (Namely Asmo, Belphie and Satan) while the others can make use of it is to a far less ridiculous extent than Levi.

His silly swimshorts are a Mary Poppins bag of web reloads, first aid supplies, tools to repair his things and general teenage needs(cell phone, house keys etc)

•His suit has more of wetsuit material than a traditional heroes costume, as well having "grip" pads on the palms and fingers

•Suit Appearance:

[winterpinetrees]

Last night I had a literal dream, of a Dragon Prince AU, set centuries after a nuclear apocalypse.

So in this world, the exile of humans from Xadia is more or less replaced by somone nuking the continent. Fun! There was some sort of magic/dark magic incident, or maybe there’s no magic and it’s all high tech. Either way, something went wrong, and whoops nuclear war.

The ancestors of humans remained out in the wasteland, while the rich and powerful ancestors of elves safely hid in bunkers. Six different types of bunker that would lead to the six types of elf. Either the mild radiation exposure combined with the environment gives them magic, or there’s still no magic and it’s all high tech. Dark magic either works the same way as in canon or is the act of salvaging elf tech and building it into something new.

The dragons are the rulers of the elf bunkers. They’re giant robots I think. To explain their longevity and power. Either way, Harrow, the king of one of the largest human settlements, goes on an insane quest to the Sky bunker zone and kills Avizandium out of revenge. Viran steals a power cell and brings it back, as it’s a power cell and also contains the code of Avizandum’s son. Later on, cue the two sons of King Harrow and a young Moonshadow raider retrieving the ‘egg’ and going on a quest to deliver it to Zubeia.

Characters

Callum: The 16 year old son of King Harrow. He lives in Katolis Base, among the most powerful humans. He looks about the same as he does in the series, but his big notebook has been replaced by a ‘laptop’ of about the same size and shape. It’s the most advanced tech the humans have, runs on salvaged elf power, and it’s a gift from Viren! That’s how it’s waterproof. Viren wanted him as an apprentice, but he has just no skill with tech, so he can’t be an artificer.

Ezran: The 12 year old heir of King Harrow. Also a resident of Katolis Base. Literally the same guy as in canon just aged up slightly. Bait is a radioactive mutant frog.

Rayla: A 17 year old Moonshadow raider. She’s a nomad, living among humans with her band while they scheme and sabotage. Very confident with the sabotage, less so with the direct murder. She looks pretty different. Braided white hair, five fingers on each hand (maybe she lost one pinky in an accident. We can compromise), smaller Moonshadow markings. Her outfit is more high tech looking.

Soren: The 19 year old son of Artificer Viren. He’s training to join the army, and is about the same as in the series. His outfit looks more modern. It isn’t plate armor anymore.

Claudia: The 18 year old daughter of Artificer Viren. She’s in training to be the next Artificer, so she’s great at making and repairing technology. As Artifcers “go mad with power”, they gradually transform themselves into cyborgs. It’s just what they do! Maybe they’re the sane ones and human bodies stink. So thats the equivalent of the white hair.

Locations

Katolis Base: It has mostly the same medival appearance. The world has mostly healed from the apocalypse, but human tech has not recovered to its previous level. There’s streetlights but no cell phones. Led by King Harrow and his High Artificer Viren. I can’t really draw but Harrow looks about the same. Viren is more machine than human at this point, and covers everything with clothing to hide it. Also Katolis is the name of a single city, which is the defacto capital of a large region, to clear up the scale issues of canon. Humans hate elves for being safe in bunkers all these years and not letting them in. Elven raiders also regularly show up and ruin their stuff, which adds to the hatred.

Silvergrove: The current main settlement of Moonshadow Elves. Moonshadow elves are the exception. They remained on the surface when everything blew up, and in the modern day fill all roles interacting with humans. They are traders and diplomats, but mostly raiders. Rayla is a raider. She’s spent probably half of her life in secret among humans, but still looks too uncanny to disguise as one. Runan is a raider. Ethari is a mechanic. Her parents were Sky King Avizandum’s personal guards. When a Moonshadow elf is ‘ghosted’, there’s no magic. It’s just banishment. There’s several thousand Moonshadow elves, but millions of all the other varieties.

Moonshadow: no bunkers. They stayed on the surface “under the moon’s shadow” with high tech to aid them.

Sunfire: underground bunkers in geothermal regions.

Skywing: bunkers in the remote mountains

Earthblood: bunkers like a mile underground

Tidebound: bunkers on the seafloor

Startouch: They all said “Nope!” and went into space. Aaravos is the only one to ever return. They’re probably settled on Mars by now.

I’ll probably never touch this again unless someone is interested. Thank you for reading!