#clinttbartton

[curator-on-ao3]

hello, i’m immensely enjoying Decidedly Motley Stories! if i may, i’d like to request “how long have i been asleep?” with hugh borg & seven or hugh & soji

Oh! 🥹 Thank you so, so much, @clinttbartton! 💕 I’m enjoying getting prompts — and this is a great one! I went with Hugh Borg & Seven, and I hope you like it.

For those who prefer to read on AO3:

For those who prefer to read here:

And When We Awaken, Eyes Open to Possibility, We Find Our Voice in the Night

The doctors at Starfleet Medical marvel over the increased acuity in her artificial eye, the nanoprobes in her bloodstream, the cortical node that replaced the cortical node that regulates the implants that forced their way in where her childhood should have been.

The doctors don’t ask if she likes music. Or Kadis-kot.

But they seem pleased to inform her that the eighteen percent of her that is Borg hardware within her skin, her bone, her very marrow, has been sufficiently cataloged and studied to allow her a choice.

A proportionate amount of humanity, perhaps.

So they ask as if offering a prize, would she like to sleep instead of regenerate? A procedure can tie the electromagnetic activity in her brain to her Borg systems, a one-time algorithmic upgrade — a ticket to dreamland, one doctor says as a joke and she does not laugh.

It’s tempting to agree, to sever her need for the regeneration alcove moved into her hospital room from Voyager’s cargo bay 2, a monolith to her onetime monoculture that subsumed even her slumber.

But more change is frightening.

So she tells the doctors that she needs to think about it.

She’s never had trouble with a decision before.

Crew from Voyager visit her, query as to her thoughts and feelings.

She talks with them, but not about this, this opportunity to rewrite her most basic of functions, this potential deepening of her supposed humanity at the very time she’s both surrounded by more humanity than ever and acutely aware that the ideals she was made to believe pertained to humanity may be lacking in practice.

And not just medical practice.

But a knock taps against her door — not a chime, an actual knock — in a sequence of bursts. Borg alphabet. The letters “x” and “b.”

Curiosity triumphs over wariness and she calls out for the person to enter.

The door opens and he steps in, fluid movements, almost graceful, the metal fragments that pierce his skin evidence of experience akin to her own.

“I’m Hugh.” He doesn’t ask to sit the way most people do, seemingly preferring to stand the way she does. “Formerly Third of Five. I heard you were here and came as quickly as I could. I wanted you to know … you’re not alone.”

She’s been told this before, mostly by members of the Voyager crew.

But she believes it now.

He teaches her the word “xB,” an identity, a resource, a decentralized community of individuals who are happy, angry, hurt, healing, afraid, brave — and ready to help those like them.

Her ocular implant is not malfunctioning, though her fingers brush the tears away as if there is something wrong when, in fact, this is finally something right.

She asks questions.

He answers.

And when she wants to know if xBs regenerate or if they sleep, he seems to understand that she’s not just inquiring about rest cycles, she’s seeking information to help her get closer to leaving Starfleet Medical so she can meet those among whom she can be understood, not former drones who still use identifiers forced upon them, but xBs who created their own terminology, their own comfort with each other, their own — individual — place within what they were, what they were before that, who they are, and who they wish to be.

“Some regenerate. Some sleep. It’s not an easy decision for anyone, Seven.” The vestiges of an implant on Hugh’s cheek shift upwards as he smiles — a supportive smile, empathy. “But if you choose sleep and want someone here when you wake up — and that first time can be disorienting, it’s true — then I can promise that I’ll stay with you.”

She accepts Hugh’s promise, regenerates one last time, her back straight, the familiar before yet another everyday aspect of her life changes. And there’s the upgrade, a doctor tapping at a console, no change, she feels no change, but it worked, the regeneration alcove rejects her attempt to interface, and how will she do this? How will she know if her rest cycle is complete if the computer doesn’t tell her so?

“You,” Hugh speaks softly, carefully, “will adapt.”

She attempts it. A pillow under her head, a blanket tucked around her shoulders, the bed soft under her as she … is the human phrase “tosses and turns”?

From a cot in her room set up for his own rest, Hugh talks to her, asks if her parents ever told her a bedtime story, requests that she tell the story to him — the tale of the brave ballerina who flew a starship to the science conference to share her hypothesis.

Her words slur and there’s darkness.

Not scary.

Gentle. Like a hug from inside.

The hug slips away.

“How …” she speaks into the dim light of her hospital room, “how long have I been asleep?”

From his cot, Hugh answers, “About four hours.”

It’s as if she’s been pushed into cold water.

She didn’t complete her first attempt at a rest cycle.

It’s the middle of the night.

She failed.

“Remember, Seven,” it’s as if Hugh knows — and he probably does, “you can choose how to feel about this. Standards of Borg perfection don’t apply.”

Her first attempt at a rest cycle.

And she made it more than halfway to human sleep requirements.

She … succeeded?

“Thank you, Hugh.” Seven adjusts her blanket, curls onto her side. “I will resume this rest cycle and … see you in the morning.”

“Sleep well, Seven.”

“Sleep well, Hugh.”

And she does.

———

Send me an ask with character(s) and a prompt and I’ll do my best to write up a gentle hug for your people. ❤️

✨ All prompted Picard ficlets are also available on AO3 as Decidedly Motley Stories. ✨

[zaraevee]

Zara watches Trek: TOS Episode 1:

The Man Trap

I’m going to do a new thing!

I originally wrote this down for my Trek-obsessed bestie @clinttbartton and didn’t intend to post it but I saw @noitsbecky127 do a similar thing and realized I could share it with everyone here even tho i’ve never done something like this before (and even if no one else cares, its a cool record for me)

To preface this let me say: before starting this I had a vague idea of who Kirk & Spock were because of pop culture and knew the names of some of the other main bridge crew. I knew almost nothing about the format of the show. I grew up watching Doctor Who (including some of the older stuff when my Dad persuaded me) so a lot of the obvious “60’s” stuff wasn’t completely alien to me (pun intended) but a lot of the Trek stuff was completely foreign as you will see

This is pretty long but here we go!

Point 1? What kind of date is that?

Spock’s in charge? Huh that’s unexpected

Ah Kirk narration~

Do all of them start with exposition? That’s a tried-and-true plot device and its kinda cool

Damn ok Kirk the ladies man

Who’s the third guy? (I was referring to the red-shirt)

I hate the shirt uniforms they look so flimsy and ugly

The music is definitely giving weird vibes to everything lol

Wait tf the lady looks different? For all of them?? Or just him?

Well the third guy’s probably going to die

Yess the iconic intro!

Ah so it is all 3 of them seeing a different one (edit after finishing the episode: this is a weird misleading thing because it implies its in their minds instead of a physical change that the others would also see… maybe its both? I could give it the benefit of the doubt)

Well he’s salty! (edit: LMAO perfect word choice)

He’s hiding something…

She definitely killed him

Lmao she’s (Uhura’s) flirting? with Spock? or just teasing him

Wow he just shut that right down

I wonder how long the crew’s been together

Is McCoy southern? I thought I heard a little bit of accent

They needed SALLLT!!

Bones is his nickname right?

Yes he CAN “just beam down” that’s his job

Was that prop supposed to be bread? Lol looked very fake

Oop he disappeared quick

“I’ve got salt” wtf

Its like he’s calling a wild animal

Oh shit more dead starfleet people

Oh fuck its *their* men

Why bring more people down?? Why would you do that??

SHAPESHIFTER???

Well answer them, you’re gonna get caught if you don’t act the part!

The little smirk that was actually good, I could see the female actress making that face

Well now its on the ship good job Kirk

Welp everyone in the elevator’s dead

Oh guess not

That poor blonde lady (Yeoman Rand) these guys are all creeps!

Ooh this room is fun

Its Sulu!!

I like this pink plant lol

Nooo Sulu be careful don’t let it get you!

Oh it just wants the salt lmao

Pink plant to the rescue? Or just scared?

“Gone Space happy”?? Lol

I like her she’s just got a powerful presence (referring to Uhura)

Ah creepy changed again!

Very presumptuous kick his ass girl!

Ooh speaking in a different language I like that

Gurl you in danger get awayyyyy!!

What’s her name? Ohura? Ahura?

These actors for the shapeshifter are doing a great job tho

Lol he snacking (my first thought was it looked like a sour patch kid lol)

Ooh what’s that uniform? Very spacey

Be carefulllll guys

Nooo leave Bones alone!

Oh yeah smart just let her in

Yeah because putting the doctor to sleep in the middle of a crisis where people are dying is a great idea!!

Referring to yourself in third person- very alien entity

Is she going to pretend to be him???

Ahhhh she didd

That’s actually really smart because as the doctor you can explain any death and make it not your fault!!

Kirk and Spock on a mission together here we go~

The professor’s just letting them find out??

Oh shit he shot at them… that was a lot

“Phasers on stun” is from Star Trek??!

Yep the ship is secured … EXCEPT ITS IN THE CONTROL ROOM NOW

Kirk belly crawling lmao

Ok Spock IS kind of attractive I guess I get it

Oh YES boys good job!

He just let the creature who killed his wife stay with him and protected it because it was the last one?? What the actual fuck

Kirk’s got that smart face on

I feel like he knows Bones well enough to know something’s up

Ooh Kirk’s intimidating I like it! He’s an angrier boi than I expected

Yes Spock is smart- don’t leave them alone!

But ofc now its him against two yikes

Yep that’s what I thought

Aww he ran there

Green blood! that’s right!

Oh wow it killed him too

Welp that’s that its just the creature now

Yay for Spock not being human

Kirk vs Bones oooh

“Oh shit!” (I actually said this out loud when they started fighting physically, I didn’t expect Star Trek to have physical violence for some reason)

Yeah she isn’t done CLEARLY

Jeez second instance of grabbing someone’s hand that has a gun in it that’s so DANGEROUS guys come on

Protective Spock!!

Oh SHIT he’s actually using violence! I didn’t expect that!

I know its a genderless creature but smacking a woman like that is giving me some Yikes vibes

I think you’re traumatizing Bones

Ooh she smacked him back!

But.. you proved your point

Ooooh real monster revealeddd

AUGH its ugly and fake looking

Oh jeez you ok Kirk?? That was quite a scream!

Aww poor Bones :(

I wonder what the different colored shirts mean?

Fondly comparing a killer alien to buffalo is just weird. Are buffalo extinct in present day? I should know this.. I hope they’re not

Do their windows look out the back?? That would be trippy af to ride backwards at Warp

End thoughts:

Yeah ok that wasn’t a fantastic episode but it was tolerable and i’ve seen worse

Introduced the gang!

tho had a few quite questionable scenes with the ladies (almost all of them now that I think about it) except with Uhura and even she was hit on creepily)

Is Spock the only man on this ship who respects women?? Come on! But he just seems respectful in general

Relatively simple plot, but drawn out like old Who always was

Script was ok, not noticeable either way (bad or good)

Tbh I think the creature looked better than early Who monsters so they get credit for that!

~~~~~~

So there you have it! My first forray into Trek documented! At the time of writing this, i’ve watched a few episodes of DS9 (the first few + Distant Voices because I love Bashir) and TNG (I think i’m in love with Data) and a few more of TOS (2-4 and Piece of the Action) as well as half the episodes of Star Trek Continues (White Irises made me fucking cry so hard and I haven’t even seen the episodes it was based on!)

(I didn’t do this for 2-4 or the others but I could absolutely go back and watch those in a while and i’m sure I’d remember what I was thinking!)

If you read this far you’re crazy and thank you! This is honestly mostly for me :)

[snake-snack-stede]

@clinttbartton the fact that all of this happens in one episode

[suncaptor]

Hi! I'm trying to find more samblogs to follow but it's so hard to find trustworthy ones. do you have any faves who you'd recommend? 😊

Earlier this year I made a rec post here, granted a lot of people have changed over the last year or moved on so here’s a new rec post!

here are some mutuals that I recommend for Sam content <3

@sabatoge @sambrosia @spneveryseason @bloodiermary​ @tripleredeye4sam​ @transamwinchester @alivegirlsam @ambersock @rootsmachine​ @exbloodfreak @adhdsamruby @meadowsweetsam​ @tasteslikemolecules@iheardyourprayer 

@bisexualsam @sambrador @assigned-boyking-at-birth @eucharistsamruby @samsbrownhoodie @housewife-castiel @samsqueerpolycule​ @lawbloodfreak @roadkillsam @wessoncore @songsforskyline 

@trippin-over-my-fandoms @halfchrist-halfcowboy @clinttbartton @youngskywalkersam

shoutout to some really good Sam blogs that might be less active for that content rn but I still totally recommend checking out for their content <3

@scorpiohaq @godtrials (@fascra) @boyhowdyall @arsonsamruby @lifbitch @uglyorangejacket @crobby

1/2 for tumblr’s tagging limit

[mommabird1772]

Don't forget to submit posts, artwork, questions and original thoughts for Samantha and Cas by tonight for Witchcore Samantha Wednesday!

Also, as a general announcement, I will be out of town from December 23rd-28th and will be away from my computer. If you would like my contact information, you may DM me, or you can leave me a message on Tumblr and I will respond on the 29th. For all crisises, seek professional help or go to imalive.org . I wish everyone a happy season of whatever you celebrate, may it be full of love and happiness <3

Tagging for Witchcore Wednesday: @feeling-snipsy @posingasme @poetic-fiasco @the-gray-ghosty @clinttbartton @stuckysdaughter @greetings-fiends @eunoiastarz @sams-love-is-dean @fandom-horder @softyshibu @suffering-trans @meadowsweetsam @bipeanut22 @katherine-ann1 @trippin-over-my-fandoms @fae-and-night @johnazazel @halfchrist-halfcowboy @pointless2theend @christsam @garbledgrumbles

[mommabird1772]

Happy Witchcore Samantha Wednesday! (https://birdgirl1772.tumblr.com/post/663782387574079488)

Today a man who was walking by the restaurant I work in came to have breakfast. He was very nice and polite, and when he finished, he gave me and my coworkers Evil Eye bracelets. I went to a local shop that sells magical items to get mine cleansed of energy (much to the horror of my Catholic parents)

I don't have a set schedule for this week, so feel free to submit posts and art that you think Samantha and Cas would like (check out @feeling-snipsy 's moodboard!)

I'm also willing to answer any questions you have about the verse, the characters, and their lifestyle

Tagging because you showed interest last week: @trans-bennylafitte @posingasme @poetic-fiasco @the-gray-ghosty @clinttbartton @stuckysdaughter @greetings-fiends @eunoiastarz @sams-love-is-dean @fandom-hoarder @softyshibu @suffering-trans @bradycore

[mommabird1772]

Does the witchcore Samantha Wednesday follow with trans Sam and gender fluid castiel or are participants free to do their own gender and sexuality headcanon s for it? I don’t wanna do anything wrong !

Hmm, I hadn't thought of that, anon! Witchcore Samantha Wednesday was developed from the Cottagecore Cas and Trans Femme Witchcore Samantha moodboards I created, but I don't think they'll mind if you headcanon them as something else, as long as the Cottagecore Sastiel dynamic remains the same, and you credit me for the original idea!

Thanks for asking, Anon! Hopefully, this clears up any confusion and hesitancy people have, and I can't wait to see what you come up with! <3

(This should go without saying, but please don't headcanon them as Straight or in a relationship with Dean)

Tagging: @the-gray-ghosty @trippin-over-my-fandoms @fae-and-night @feeling-snipsy @johnazazel @halfchrist-halfcowboy @pointless2theend @christsam @garbledgrumbles @therealitystone @clinttbartton @eunoiastarz @posingasme @thnks-fr-th-samulet @klove0511 @poetic-fiasco @stuckysdaughter @greetings-fiends @sams-love-is-dean @fandom-hoarder @suffering-trans @bipeanut22 @rewrite-the-story @bradycore @lifereallysaidfuckyouhuh