#gen 3 gen 5 and gen 6. they're all tied for me in gen 7

[puppys-rhythm-heaven]

me n my moms went to the thrift store cuz i barely have any hoodies n i got a friend. :3

i forgot how big the pokemon build-a-bears are but i love this silly very much. <3

[sergeantsporks]

Gilded Family

Rating: Teen and Up, Gen

Ch 28/?: Rotted Memories

Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6 , Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch 10, Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Ch 14, Ch 15, Ch 16, Ch 17,  Ch 18, Ch 19, Ch 20, Ch 21, Ch 22, Ch 23, Ch 24, Ch 25, Ch 26, Ch 27

In which none of the previous golden guards or wittebro died, actually, they're all fine and living happily together as one big dysfunctional family

Ao3

Phoenix lurked outside of Sam’s lab, debating whether or not to go in. Was Sam even inside? Or would it just be Petro? He shuddered at the thought of sitting inside waiting for Sam with no one in there with him but his predecessor. Maybe he could just stay out here and catch Sam as he went in.

“Sooooooooooo,” Petro’s voice drawled, “You’re a smart guy, glasses.”

Phoenix jumped at the sound. We need to invest in soundproof doors.

“Thanks,” Sam answered shortly, “Glad you noticed.”

“You’ve got to know you can’t keep me tied up forever. Sooner or later someone’s going to slip, and I will take advantage of it.”

Sam heaved a sigh so loud that Phoenix could easily hear it through the door. “Make the pitch or don’t waste my time, Petro.”

“Alright, straight to the point; you’ve got a handle on magic, and you’re clearly logistically minded. You don’t have to hang around here. Those two idiots always dancing around in here causing havoc, having to use your skills for everyone else… you’re wasted here.”

“Are you going to tell me what you want, or not?”

“Let me out, and we can both leave. Whatever protection they’re providing here, I can match it. You and I can survive on our own out there, probably better than we can here. We could make our own base, and work on restoring the Isles to what it was.”

“To what it was?” Sam answered sharply, “Would that be with all the citizens dying from their coven sigils? Or perhaps the glorious empire you set up on the bones of Uncle Pip’s enemies?”

“Or something better,” Petro replied smoothly, “We could perfect the Empire. You could make it into something more to your liking. Get rid of the… issues. Between my combat prowess, and your brains—”

Sam chuckled. “Oh, okay. Okay. I think I’m picking up on your vision. Let me know if this sounds right; I let you out under the promise of an empire with my name in shining lights, and you immediately knock me out and run off to try killing Phoenix again. Is that right? Have I got it?”

“No. I’ve been doing some thinking, and you people were right. He’s not worth my time.”

“That is not what we said.”

“Still—”

“No.”

“What?”

“No. I’m not letting you out. I’m not running off. I stay here because I like it. I don’t need an empire, and I don’t want it.”

“But—”

“I’m intelligent, not arrogant. I don’t harbor any notion that I could control you if I did let you out, nor am I delusional enough to think you’ve changed your mind about killing Phoenix over the course of a day. Oh, and if you’re going to come up with a nickname, at least try to come up with something more creative than glasses. ‘Those two idiots’ Lake and Locke could sneeze out a more creative alias. Keep quiet and let me work. Or tell me where Belos makes his grimwalkers. Whichever you feel inclined towards.”

“If you let me out, I’ll tell—”

“Nope.”

Phoenix let out a long sigh. At least there was one person Petro couldn’t get to. Or at least, he hadn’t found an opening yet.

Phoenix raised his hand, knocking on the door.

It swung open almost immediately. “What?” Sam snapped. “Oh. Hey, Phoenix.”

In the lab behind Sam, Petro craned his head upwards to see. “Hiiiiiiiiiiii,” he called, “How’s that post-fight treating you, little bird? Having trouble moving yet?”

Phoenix’s muscles were, in fact, sore, and his scalp was still tender where his hair had been yanked, but he wasn’t going to let Petro know that if he could help it.

Sam shifted in the doorway so that Petro’s line of sight to Phoenix was blocked. “What’s up? Oh, in case you thought it was worth a shot, don’t try talking to Petro, he’s being obstinate.”

“Awwwwwwwwwww, thanks!”

“Quiet time,” Sam ordered, “or I’m not taking you on a walk!” He shook his head. “Anyway, whatcha need?”

“You take him on walks?”

“Yeah, we’re not monsters. And he’s got to go bathroom sometime. Don’t worry about it, what’re you after?”

“You said I could read Uncle Belos’ journal?”

“Oh. Sure. Yeah.” Sam stepped out of the doorway. “Go ahead. Just ignore Petro.”

That won’t work. He’d never let me just rip out pages in front of him.

Phoenix shifted back and forth on his feet. “It can take me a while to read,” he said sheepishly, “Is there any chance I could take it with me and bring it back when I’m done?”

Petro snorted.

“Qui-et,” Sam sing-songed. He retrieved the journal, turning it over in his hands. “…I don’t know. It’s really old, and a bit delicate. I’d like to keep an eye on it.”

“I’ll be careful,” Phoenix lied.

Maybe he won’t notice the missing pages?

Maybe I can say they shook loose of the binding?

“Hm.”

“Read it here,” Petro called, “Let’s have a story time. Read it out loud, I want to hear what he said about you and your failures.”

Sam shot Petro an irritated glance and shoved the book at Phoenix. “Take it. Just… don’t read anyone’s entry but your own? I mean, you can read mine, I don’t care, but some of us don’t really like talking about the past and… just don’t be nosy.”

“Did you read everyone’s entries?”

“Of course,” Sam replied matter-of-factly, “I had to, so I could check for any clues on how to reverse the draining spell, or how to unpetrify someone.” He coughed, shooting Petro a pointed look. “Which turned out to be a waste of time. Anyway. Respect their privacy okay?”

“Okay.” Phoenix tucked the book under one arm. “Oh, Sam?”

“Yep.”

“Do you know if anyone… has a problem with heights? Maybe Belos got rid of them by, I don’t know, tossing them off of a building or a bridge or something?”

Very smooth.

Sam squinted at him. “Why do you ask?”

Phoenix looked somewhere near Sam’s left ear to avoid actually looking him in the eyes. “I just figured… if we ever launch a rescue mission to the head, well, the archive house is floating, and if I’m picking someone to go…”

“You’d want someone with a good head for heights,” Sam finished. He still eyed Phoenix suspiciously, but nodded. “You might want to avoid Alex. Not sure if you could get them on a rescue mission anyway, but they’re not fond of heights. Or falling in general.”

“Thanks, Sam.” Phoenix turned to go, only to be stopped by a cleared throat.

“Phoenix? How’re your arms? Any problems?”

Phoenix froze.

He knows.

That was ridiculous. Sam couldn’t know, unless he’d been lurking around, and he wasn’t stealthy enough to get past Phoenix and Cherry’s radars. Unless…

Phoenix reached up to check his wounds, but they were normal. No dripping, nothing that Sam could pick up on. “No. Nope. No problems. They’re fine.”

“Mmm. Okay. I’d say have fun with the book, but it isn’t exactly a pleasant read.”

Sam closed the lab door, and Phoenix let out a sigh of relief. Step one complete. Now he just needed to get the diary to Cherry, track down Alex, get them to share the most traumatic experience of their life, go on a rescue mission, then get rid of this titan-forsaken curse before he got stuck in Belos’ memories forever. Sure. Fine. No problem.

Cherry was back in his room when Phoenix opened the door. The other grimwalker pored over a couple of sheets of paper and barely looked up when Phoenix approached. Phoenix glanced at the paperwork, but was met by a mess of lines and names on one paper and a chart on the other, both of them with text too small for him to read.

He held the diary out. “I got it.”

Cherry’s spine stiffened, and he jumped up. “You-! Wait, how?”

“I asked for it. Nicely. Don’t worry, this way, if pages go missing, no one will suspect you.” Phoenix chewed his bottom lip then burst out, “Sam’s already read your entry.”

Cherry’s hand faltered just shy of taking the book. “What?” he whispered.

“Sam’s already read it,” Phoenix repeated, “But Cherry, he hasn’t treated you differently—whatever it is you’ve done, whatever you think they’ll hate you for, Sam’s already proved that it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to destroy the evidence.”

Cherry stared at him, but didn’t respond, his hand still hovering near the book without taking it.

“I’m not saying you have to shout your past from the rooftops,” Phoenix said gently, “I’m just saying that you don’t need to worry over what people think. Everyone here has done something they’re ashamed of. They’ll understand.”

Phoenix set the diary in front of Cherry, and quietly exited the room, leaving the other grimwalker still frozen. He set off in search of Alex, reviewing what he knew of the grimwalker. It wasn’t much. He’d seen them at mealtimes, of course, but rarely at any other time. Jason had said once that they suffered from nightmares. What if they weren’t willing to talk about their death?

And where could he find them, anyway?

Phoenix studied the chart he’d snuck away out from under Cherry’s stack of paper when he’d set down the diary. Cherry’s handwriting was small, but at least it was neat.

Alex… Alex… wait, there’s an A… no, that’s not right.

Are they even on this?

“Hi, Phoenix!”

Clara sped down the hallway towards him, Ram in tow. She waved her arm, free of her cast.

“It’s all better now. Your signature helped with the magic!”

Phoenix smiled at that, crouching down next to her. “Yeah? What are you going to do with that brand new arm of yours?”

“Well. This is my good hand for drawing circles. My other hand? It’s okay at spells, but they can be a little wobbly. My good spell hand was stuck in the cast, but now that it is out, maybe I can help with the shields or the illusions.” She hummed. “Or I can help Frank make toast.”

“That’s a good idea. He’s not allowed to use the toaster on his own.” An idea struck Phoenix, and he held the chart up. “Hey, do you think you could help me with something? Can you find Alex’s name on here and tell me what they’re supposed to be doing?”

“Sure.” Clara disentangled her other hand from Ram’s, scanning the paper. “Okay, there it is! They aaaaaaaaareeeeeeee… helping feed the griffins. Oh, that sounds fun. Right, Ram?”

Ram eyed her skeptically, tugging her down to their level and whispering something to her.

“No, they don’t eat little witches. I think. Probably?”

Clara looked to Phoenix, who shook his head.

“Yeah, they don’t eat witches. C’mon, Phoenix, we’ll take you.”

Clara took his hand, and some reflex seemed to jerk Phoenix’s muscles without him thinking about it, yanking his hand out of hers. A tide of fear and something approaching the guilty anxiety that had come with failing a mission swept over him, tightening his chest.

“Who-oa,” Clara yipped, “Is your hand hurt?”

“Um.” Phoenix shook his head to clear the emotions away, tamping them down just as he always had in the coven. “I’m sorry. I just got startled.”

Still, he didn’t hold her hand, just followed her out of the house and to the griffin coop. Even though he knew where it was, he let the two kids take the lead, sweeping his eyes across the yard for potential threats as he followed up behind them.

His vigilance was ridiculous. He knew that. The house was protected from the Collector by its shield and invisibility spells. Still, traces of fear and anxiety stuck in the corners of his mind, and his eyes still darted everywhere, looking for hidden threats in the (now empty of Mole) garden, or around the corners of the house.

Not that he saw any.

Clara opened the griffin coop door, and immediately, four young griffins made a break for it, dashing around her legs and squealing.

“Get back here, you hooligans!”

Joseph ran down the ramp, jogging in place next to Phoenix. “Hi! Griffin chicks now rowdy griffin gradeschoolers! Careful with the door next time, I’m going to go round them up, bye!”

He dashed off after the chicks, calling their names. Lucy (or at least, Phoenix was pretty sure it was Lucy) waddled out the door, clucking and herding chicks closer together and towards Joseph. Phoenix shook his head, crouching down next to Clara and Ram.

“I need to talk to Alex alone. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Clara said brightly, and then promptly joined in the griffin-chasing fun, waving her arms and shouting and generally driving griffin cubs further away from Joseph and Lucy. Ram chased after her, eying Lucy warily. Phoenix watched them for a moment, unsure if they were trying to help him by keeping Joseph out of the coop for later, or if they were just very, very bad a griffin herding.

Alex peered out the door, their long hair swinging down around them and exposing one long scar going up their neck. “Um… Joseph? Okay. He’s gone. Alright. Cool. Right.”

“Hi,” Phoenix started.

“Hi.” Alex watched him for a second. “Oh. Welcome back. Glad you’re not dead.” They rubbed their arms. “Dad sort of thought you might be. Don’t tell him I said that.”

“Oh.”

What if I got it wrong?

What if it wasn’t Alex who had been in his dream? Or what if he wasn’t really seeing Belos’ memories, and he was just delusional after spending so long with the Collector and their reality warping powers?

Alex cleared their throat. “Um. Sorry. Did you need something? If not, I’m just gonna…” they gestured to the ramp and strode past Phoenix. Phoenix started to call after them, but couldn’t quite make his voice work to do it.

You’re wrong

You’re wrong again, you always are

Let someone else figure this out, you’ll only mess it up.

A small griffin streaked up the ramp, tangling up Alex’s legs. The grimwalker yelped, arms flailing.

Phoenix jumped forward, catching Alex’s collar before they could tumble over the edge of the ramp. His fingers curled in the fabric just like they had in the dream, and Alex looked up at him with the same wide, terrified eyes, the little scars from nicks and scratches that marked their face gleaming silver instead of the gold of a mask.

And then Phoenix pulled them upright and let go, and the moment was over.

“Hah—” Alex put one hand over their heart, sinking down to their knees. “Uh—sorry—thanks—I’m just going to… sit here for a bit.”

The fall from the ramp wasn’t a large one. At worst, Alex would have bruised their backside. But they looked like they’d narrowly avoided a fall from the tip of the titan’s horn. “Are you okay?”

“Yes. That is… yes. Thank you. I, uh.” Alex chuckled breathlessly, and a bit hysterically. “I don’t know why, I felt like… never mind.” They stood up brushing themselves off. “Bit of panic. I’m fine.”

“Reminded you of something?” Phoenix suggested.

“Maybe.” Alex fiddled with the end of their hair, twisting the ends around their fingers. “Thanks. Again. Sorry, I didn’t really wait to hear the answer, did you need something?”

“I was actually going to ask about…” Phoenix waved a hand at the ramp and the ground and Alex. “…that. Sorry, I don’t know how to ease into asking this, did you happen to get hurt falling off of a bridge?”

Alex’s shoulders hunched, and they combed their fingers through their hair frantically. “I didn’t fall,” they said sharply, “I was thrown. And I don’t want to talk about it. Did Cherry send you out to talk to me? Dad? Mom? It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s been years, it’s fine. I’m fine. Tell them I’m fine.”

“No, that’s not why I asked, I—”

Phoenix fumbled for his words. Did everyone know about the other grimwalker? Or was it supposed to be secret for now? Caleb hadn’t told him, and if it was supposed to be a secret…

His hesitation was apparently all Alex needed.

“Thanks for catching me. Bye.”

Alex bolted for the house, leaving Phoenix behind on the ramp.

That went well.

At least this confirmed that Alex was the grimwalker he needed. Not that it would help if he couldn’t get them to talk to him. Phoenix sighed. That weary, heavy feeling was starting to settle in his bones again, making him want to curl up right here. Let the infection take over and just… sleep.

Joseph paused next to him on the ramp, his arms wrapped around two wriggling griffin chicks. “What’s eating them? Everything alright?”

“No.”

“Do you need Luc—”

“I do not need Lucy to sit on me.”

Joseph eyed him skeptically. “Okay. If you say so.”

Clara and Ram carried the last writhing griffin chick between them, the creature growling and clucking playfully. “What do we do with it?”

“Take her inside,” Joseph told them. “Hey, kids, have you ever checked a griffin for parasites? Do you want to learn how?”

Phoenix shook his head, going back to the house after Alex. They weren’t in the kitchen—where Frank now threw water over the toaster while a wall of flame flickered dangerously close to the ceiling—and they weren’t in the hallways, either. Phoenix lingered near the front door, quickly dismissing the possibility that they’d left the house entirely. Had they gone to their room? Which one was even theirs?

He started down the hallway, but only made it a couple of doors down before stopping again, attention caught by an open door and Caleb behind it. The ortet shook a crystal ball furiously.

“Work, you wretched thing! It’s just a little cross-dimensional viewing, you can manage it!”

Phoenix knocked on the door. “Everything alright?”

Caleb jumped, dropping the crystal ball, which made a dull thunk as it hit the ground. “Fine!” He squeezed his eyes shut, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Okay. No. Wait. Not fine. I’m…” he sighed, picking up the crystal ball. “I’m trying to check in on the kids. Just to make sure they’re safe. But this stupid crystal ball is giving me nothing but static.” He spun the ball in his hands. “Before I thought it couldn’t find you because you…” He shook himself. “But now that I know you’re alive, and the kids are in the human realm, it should work, right? I know the location, the crystal ball should be attuned to Hunter anyway, so… so…”

Caleb sighed again, putting the crystal ball up on a shelf. “Who am I kidding? If communicating across dimensions was that easy, we wouldn’t have half our problems.”

“They’re safe,” Phoenix assured them, “They made it through.”

“That’s what I’m worried about.” Caleb shook his head. “I know it was the best option at the time, but the human realm is… it’s not a kind place. Not to people who are different, especially not Gravesfield. It can take even the kindest kid, and it’ll chew them up and spit them back out a monster. If it doesn’t just kill them immediately. I’m worried about them. Especially Jason.”

Phoenix felt sick. He’d assumed the human realm would be safer, and the human Luz had seemed nice enough, but he’d forgotten there must have been a reason Caleb and Luz had come here in the first place.

Maybe he had made the wrong decision sending Jason and Hunter and the rest of the kids through.

Maybe they should have stayed.

Maybe he’d gotten them out of immediate danger, but had sent them somewhere far worse.

“Maybe it’s changed,” he suggested, trying to convince himself as much as Caleb, “Maybe it’s different now.”

Caleb stared bleakly at the crystal ball on its shelf. “Phillip hasn’t changed in all this time. Why would the human realm?”

Phoenix didn’t know what to say to that, uncomfortably reminded of the plain brown journal sitting on Cherry’s bed, heavy with the words it carried. Cherry thought, hoped, really, that people could change. Phoenix would just have to hold onto the hope that the same was true of the human realm.

For the kids’ sake.

Caleb shook his head. “Nothing we can do about it now. They’re smart, hopefully they’ll lie low. Keep out of trouble.” He eyed Phoenix, looking him up and down. “How are you? How are your arms?”

The hairs on the back of Phoenix’s neck tingled. “They’re fine. Why would you ask that? They’re fine.”

One of Caleb’s eyebrows climbed upwards. “Yeah?”

“Yes.”

“And everything else? You got roughed up pretty badly. By the Collector and Petro. Are you doing okay?”

So he had just been generally concerned. Of course, he was probably suspicious about Phoenix’s arms now. Phoenix rubbed the back of his neck, acutely aware of the tiny stings and aches coming from all over his body. “…I’ve been worse.”

“Take it easy,” Caleb said gently, “There’s no shortage of help here; you don’t have to solve everything all on your own. I know you’re worried about the other Grimwalker, but you can’t help anyone if you’re falling apart yourself.”

Phoenix nodded along to the familiar advice. “So… any ideas?”

“The keep would be a likely bet,” Caleb offered, “Maybe the head, where he kept the door—and where the journals were. Unfortunately…”

“Those are both areas controlled by the Collector,” Phoenix finished, “What if they are there? What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know. We can’t just leave them. But going directly into Collector’s territory…” Caleb shook himself. “We’ll figure it out. We don’t know for sure that they’re at either of those places, and even if that’s the case, Evelyn is excellent at breaking into places she shouldn’t be. We’ll think of something. For now, you should see Auric again. The last thing you need is a regular infection on top of a magical one.”

Phoenix nodded.

“And Phoenix? If you need to talk about what happened with the Collector, or what happened with Phillip, or anything else…”

And what was he supposed to tell Caleb?

That he’d lied and connived his way out of the archive house? That he’d left Eda and Lilith and Darius behind, and hadn’t even managed to get King out safely like he’d promised? That he’d planned to go back? That he actually felt bad for the Collector, the one they were all hiding from, who’d torn up their home and turned the population into toys? That he was still lying, this time to them, about his arms, about the memories and dreams, and he’d dragged Cherry into it? That all of this hiding and lying was building up in his chest and if he tried to think about it, he was worried he would fall apart, and somehow, the infection in his arms would spread and he’d turn completely into a shambling monster like Belos, but maybe that was happening anyway with all the lies he’d told?

Caleb looked at him expectantly, but Phoenix just nodded. “I’ll let you know,” he managed. He ducked out of the room, away from Caleb’s watchful eye. Enough stalling. He’d ask Cherry to help him find Alex, and he’d somehow manage to talk Alex into giving him information, and then he could finally, finally tell them about the infection, and he wouldn’t have to lie anymore.

The room was devoid of Cherry when he reached it, and the journal was nowhere to be seen either. Blankets had been dragged from the bed, leaving it a mess of exposed pillows and sheets. Phoenix stood in the center of the room, scanning for a clue as to where Cherry had gone, his heart throbbing in his throat.

Shouldn’t have helped him steal that book

Just making all sorts of good choices today, huh, Phoenix?!

He heard a muffled thump from the closet, and he opened the door. Cherry blinked in the sudden light, burying his face in the blanket he’d wrapped around his shoulders.

“Leave me alone,” he groaned.

His eyepatch lay on the floor next to Belos’ journal.

Phoenix squeezed into the closet, closing the door and sitting next to Cherry. He didn’t say anything. Just sat, waiting.

“Sam knows,” Cherry whispered, lifting his head, “You’re seeing Belos’ memories, so it’s only a matter of time before you find out. Hunter was in Belos’ mindscape, there’s no telling what he’s seen.” He clutched at his head, and for the first time, Phoenix saw under the eyepatch.

He’d expected that Cherry’s eye would be torn up and scarred, and he’d known it was blind. But he’d always sort of assumed it was there. Instead, a dark cavity loomed at him like an endless cave in Cherry’s face.

“It doesn’t matter if I destroy the pages,” Chery continued, his chest heaving, “It doesn’t even matter if all of you promise to keep it secret. There could be other records out there, copies of the journal, accounts from someone who lived through it, some survivor who’s passed down a story through their family—I can’t control it all, and I’ll never know what’s out there, what… what…” His fingers tightened in his hair, tearing at it. “They’ll hate me.”

“Cherry, they—”

“I know we’ve all done something wrong for Belos, I know that we all have regrets, but I was worse, Phoenix. I was like Petro; he’s right about that. I destroyed homes, entire towns! I ruined lives, I ended lives, and I didn’t even question it, because it was what he told me to do. And I—I can’t ever make up for it, because now I’m here. I’m here, and I can’t ever—I can’t—and there isn’t any making up for it, there wouldn’t have been even if I’d never left my time.” Cherry buried his head in his blanket again. “They’re all looking up to me,” he groaned, “They’re all trusting me. And I don’t want to see them hate me, I don’t want… And Jason, titan, Jason, he can’t find out.”

“Jason thinks the world of you,” Phoenix said quietly.

“That’s the problem. I don’t want to let him down, I want to be the person he thinks I am, but I already failed him. He just doesn’t know it yet.”

“Cherry. You’re not that person anymore. You’ve changed.”

“Have I?”

“Yes!”

“Really? A long time ago, you asked if I’d just replaced Uncle with someone else.”

Phoenix stumbled for words. He barely remembered that. It had been months ago! Forget Cherry, he’d changed since then! “That was—Cherry, that was wrong, I was new at this, and I didn’t—”

“No. You were right. I’m still…” Cherry waved a hand around. “Following orders. Doing what someone else tells me to.” He laughed hollowly, pulling his blanket tighter around himself. “If Dad and Mom asked me to kill someone, I probably still would, no questions asked.”

“I don’t think that’s tr—”

“Really? They told me to protect you, and I nearly destroyed Petro’s inner self when he threatened you. I haven’t changed. I’m just following someone more benevolent than Uncle.”

“No.” Phoenix stood up, nearly hitting his head on a shelf. “No. You’re wrong. You’re using what I said as an example? Well, that same day, you let me out, despite Caleb’s orders to keep everyone inside and safe. Right now, you’re not telling Evelyn and Caleb about the infection getting worse, even though you know they’d want you to, because you know it’s how we’re going to find the last Grimwalker. Maybe you are following orders from someone better. But you’re also disobeying them when you think it’s the right thing to do.”

Cherry rested his chin on his knees. “Hm.”

“You help Evelyn and Caleb because you believe what they want is good, really good, not just because they told you to do it and you’re scared of what they’ll do if you don’t. I know we thought we were doing the right thing with Belos, too, but they let you listen to your own conscious in a way he didn’t. And when you think they’re not right, you do something else. You have changed—you wouldn’t have even considered disobeying Belos before, but you’ve made your own decisions here. What does Petro know? He’s been here and awake for what, a day? Two? And all he wants is for one of us to slip up so he can wriggle out and try to kill me. He doesn’t know you.”

Cherry sighed, tugging on his hair. “No one really does. They don’t know the full story. Even with what I just told you, you still don’t have all the details.”

“They know who you are now. And that’s what’s important to them. Do you know every full backstory of every person in the house?”

Cherry opened his mouth, then closed it, and shook his head.

“And do you care about them anyway?”

A nod.

“And if you found out that they’d done something horrible and had been beating themselves up over it for years, what would you tell them?”

“That they can’t change the past,” Cherry grumbled, “And it’s what they do to fix it or to be better now that matters.”

“So why would it be any different for you?”

“I get it, Phoenix. I know. I know it doesn’t make any sense. Just…” Cherry sighed, picking his eyepatch back up. “I know I’m being hard on myself, but that doesn’t help me stop, and that doesn’t mean I think I should stop. And even if I feel that way about others, that doesn’t mean they’ll feel the same way about me. I just… don’t want them to look at me differently. I don’t want them to look at me the way they look at Petro.”

“I know logic doesn’t help,” Phoenix said quietly, slowly turning the door handle, “But they don’t look at Petro like that because of what he did. They look at him that way because he keeps choosing to be that person.”

He slipped out of the closet, shutting the door behind him.

Alex lurked outside of Cherry’s room, watching him. “What were you doing in there?”

“Talking.”

“Reporting to Cherry?”

Phoenix pushed past them, closing the door to the room to give Cherry more privacy, and to give he and Alex privacy from Cherry. “I don’t report to Cherry. He’s not my boss. What are you so worried about him finding out, anyway?”

Alex eyed him, but didn’t respond.

“Come to think of it, why’d you come back? You seemed dead set on getting as far away from me as possible.”

“Wanted to know what you were saying about me. You really aren’t reporting to Cherry? Or Mom or Dad?”

“No. Why? Don’t you trust them?”

Alex fiddled with the ends of their hair, combing it out. “Oh. I do in general. I… they always want to help. And it can get a bit much because sometimes I just want to give it time. See if it goes away on its own. Which it usually does. For a while.”

“What does?”

“You know. The usual. Nightmares and such.”

“And panic attacks when you fall?” Phoenix suggested.

Alex gave him a reappraising look, and started to edge away. “Hm.”

“I’m not interested in trying to help you,” Phoenix blurted out. “Wait—that came out wrong. I mean, if you want to handle it on your own, if you think it just needs time, that’s fine. I don’t want to push you, I won’t try to talk you through it.”

“Then what do you want?”

“It’s just—” Phoenix took a deep breath, organizing his thoughts in a line. Half-truths instead of full lies this time. “I’m trying to find something, and I think… I think you might have accidentally seen where it is. All I need to know is where… it… happened.

“Oh.” Alex tugged on the end of their hair again. “Hm. You might be out of luck finding… whatever it is. At least for now. Belos tried to kill me at the head—you probably saw the bridge while you were there.”

Phoenix’s heart dropped. Of course. Right in the middle of the Collector’s territory. They’d be lucky to get in alive, let alone get out with a new grimwalker in tow. But… maybe if they did go…

The gears in Phoenix’s head started to gently click. If they went up there anyway, for the Grimwalker, he could convince them to go for Darius as well. And Eda, and Lilith. They might even be able to rescue King—if the Collector left his side at all.

A small voice whispered that the Collector would be all alone if they did, with only Terra and Odalia, but he pushed that part down. For now, they needed to focus on the last grimwalker. Then they could go after everyone else. And then… maybe the Collector?

As if isolating him is going to make him hate you less.

“…Phoenix?” Alex ventured, “Are you still with us?”

Phoenix shook himself. “Um. Yes. Thank you. Thank you, yes.”

“Sure. But, uh… after I ran, why didn’t you just ask Dad where I died? He rescued me from there.”

Phoenix hadn’t gone to Caleb because that would have meant telling him HOW he knew that Alex had information, which would mean immediate surgery on his arms. But obviously he couldn’t tell Alex that.

“Didn’t think of it,” he lied. “Thanks, Alex.”

Phoenix started towards where he’d last seen Caleb, but stopped halfway down the hall, weighing his options. Caleb was concerned about the grimwalker, but he was also cautious. And he’d admitted himself that he’d probably ask Evelyn for advice on sneaking into the head anyway. If the way she’d shaken Petro for information was any indication…

Phoenix switched tracks, heading outside instead. Loud ‘ew’s burst from the griffin coop, but he ignored them in favor of the redheaded witch examining the magic on the fence. “Evelyn?”

“Hey. Oh, you—” Evelyn kicked a flickering fencepost. “Work!”

Surprisingly, it flickered two more times, then resumed a steady blue glow. Evelyn drew a circle, and the entire fence shuddered, hummed, and finally faded back to its steady pulse of magic. Evelyn dusted her hands off, and turned to face him.

“Maintenance. Never as sophisticated as people think. What’s up?”

“I know where the last grimwalker is.”

Evelyn’s constant energy stilled, and her golden eyes fixed on him like a fairy that had just spotted a bat. “How?”

“No time to explain, I’ll do it when we get back. Belos kept his grimwalkers growing at the head, at the very bottom of the skull. The whole thing’s probably been shaken up and damaged by the Collector’s remodeling, so we need to get them now.”

Evelyn gave him a short nod, and ran back towards the house. “Come on,” she called over her shoulder, “If we want to get out of this alive, we’ll need a couple of things—and a couple of people.”

Phoenix was about to follow when a chill swept over him, despite the sunlight, and his right hand started to twitch of its own accord. He reached slowly up to check his arms, even though he already knew the infection was oozing out again. Rolling up his sleeves revealed veins of blackish green extending all the way to his wrists, throbbing in time with his heartbeat. Phoenix rolled his sleeves back down, and tucked his hands into his pockets to hide their shaking, following Evelyn inside.

Just a little bit longer.

It’s almost done.

Keep it together for just a little bit longer.

[seedlessmuffins]

tagged by my beloved @divorcecourtdad so thank you jay!

what got you hooked on hockey?

i was born and raised in vancouver so i've been a fan of this loser team since i was born, courtesy of my canucks fan dad and my canucks fan grandfather, and i also played hockey as a kid

2. your first ever fandom friend

in general? probably my dad! i've talked hockey with him my whole life. online probably @swaggypsyduck, but i have been working on converting all my footy friends to hockey friends so now i talk hockey with lots of people here (shout out to han, gen, yi, hala, and ciene who let me convince them into following hockey teams and watching games

3. the jersey you would most like to own

hughes or demko black skate jersey they are sooo sick!! or honestly any of the canucks special event jerseys, the diwali, black history month, pride, and chinese new year jerseys are all so stunning (but sooo expensive

4. your player (you only get one so choose wisely)

elias pettersson my baby i've been following him since 2016 i have his jersey i love him so much

5. a pairing that deserves more fic

pricey & luongo (there was definitely something happening with team canada at the olympics)

quinn & petey (they're sooo couple)

6. your favourite on-ice moment

watched live:

"this could be an interesting start"

"what a game for elias pettersson! 5 points, tied it late, beats the tender in the shootout!"

"miraculous play in the back of the goal crease and a standing ovation at rogers arena!"

watched on tv:

"connor bedard! overtime winner! sends canada to the semis!"

"they slayed the dragon! 5:22 into overtime, and the canucks move on to the second round"

"sidney crosby! the golden goal! and canada has won olympic gold!"

"the shift"

7. link someone else's art/fic/etc that you love & think everyone should check out

i think this is my favourite fic of all time, summer to your heart

8. link something you made & are proud of & want people to see

my quinn hughes webweave i think is pretty cool and my hockey tactico thoughts i was pretty proud of as well!

tagging @swaggyswinub @cryingforcrocodiles and @cherishlaluna to do if you want!

[mangatxt]

hellooo i'm here for the writing asks!! can i geeeet 2 and 17? (and also 50 if u wish because i'm nosy)

2. Go to your AO3 “Works” page, to the sidebar with all the filters, and click the drop-down arrow for “Additional Tags.” What are your top 3-5 most used tags? Do you think they accurately represent your writing habits?

HIIII ROB, you asked me the stats question. bless <3

out of 24 works (18 slash, 6 gen), i got:

Humor (8)

Getting Together (7)

Post-Canon (6) / Canon Compliant (6)

Established Relationship (4) / Mutual Pining (4)

Case Fic (3) / Blow Jobs (3) / Psychic Abilities (3) / Found Family (3)

honestly, this seems pretty accurate if a bit low all-around? i might not have tagged my older fics all that well.

i think the only thing i'm surprised about is that Established Relationship is tied with Mutual Pining. nothing else is rly sticking out to me.

i told you guys i wrote a disproportionate number of bjs this yr

17. What highly specific AU do you want to read or write even though you might be the only person to appreciate it?

android au. i wish that one guy would write it already.

i think i already divulged my reishuuto x 1980s lehman bros au but that's here if anyone else wants to write it for me

for serirei, i've also always wanted to read a 90s blockbuster/video store AU, but i don't think i have the requisite knowledge to write it. same goes for weatherman!reigen and producer!serizawa. i think they'd be really fun reads.

but i think the most Specific thing i'd like to find someday is a heist-movie-esque fic with the S&S office. maybe they're stealing a highly-cursed artifact from a museum b/c the museum curator won't let them interact with it long enough to exorcize it? something like that. whatever the premise -- man, i would love to read that fic sljdklj

50. Answer any question of your choice, or talk about anything you want to talk about!

i'm gonna tell you my favorite incredibly-silly joke from TPC. it's from a voicemail from reigen's mom in chapter 6:

“You have to understand, the neighbors are talking about this. They asked about you at my water aerobics class the other day. They said, is your son really running for president of that creepy organization? “I didn’t know what to say! And you know how rare it is that I’m rendered speechless! I know you take after me. “At the end of the day, you have to think about other people. Think about your father’s job! He doesn’t want to answer questions about this. He has work to do. As you might have heard, the Federal Register for Activities and Urban Designations has been angling to rename Seasoning City Square to Seasoning City Circle for weeks now. As you can imagine, some people are bent out of shape about this, so he’s very stressed. That’s why I’m drawing a line.

gratuitous shape puns aside, my favorite joke is that reigen's dad works for FRAUD.

ask me about my writing!

[pizza-hats-of-the-world-1882]

or Linton Heathcliff

Scrunkly little meow meow

(Oh hey an actual bingo)

1. I like how in wh the physical descriptions are very much tied to the families (Earnshaw eyes, all the lintons being blonde) but its not really connected to individuals personalities. It feels like a good medium of getting the symbolic descriptions without going to far into anthroposcopy

2. I mean probably everyone in wh is but i feel like linton gets really overlooked??? Hes an integral part of the second half of the book! He rarely gets to act on his own without someone trying to influence him, and this sometimes makes it hard to figure out what he actually thinks/wants, but this kinda makes him more interesting bc you're trying to figure him out!

3. Include him (include the second half pls i am begging it is so important to the book) Why would the 2nd gen not be interesting enough for adaptation? The first half doesn't even entirely make sense without the context of the second!! And the marriage scheme is super tense and dramatic! Why would you not want to include that?? Everyone talks ab making stuff dark and gritty but they wont even include heathcliff basically leaving his son to die because hes not worth the money??? Its a gothic novel give me the character who has some of the most horrifying domestic scenes!!!!!

4. I think its interesting that we rarely see/hear ab linton without it being someone else telling us ab him. I mean obviously everything is through nelly and Lockwood, but even excluding their narration, we mostly experience linton through what cathy2, zillah, and heathcliff tell us about him. Which obviously they're all biased or manipulating the truth in some way. It makes you wonder how much each perspective is true, and I wish we had a little more time get to know linton.

5. Free space! I think that he has some interesting parallels with cathy1. At some point I will elaborate.

6. Lets be honest he would call people slurs on fortnite

7. I think I said this in the last one i answered but wuthering heights is such a character interaction driven novel that the dynamics between all the various characters is what really makes them interesting. Especially the 2nd gen, since even though we don't necessarily see them interact with all of the first gen, they have parallels to them that kinda draw your attention in (and also i love how the parallels aren't strictly one to one with their parents, but rather they compare with a lot of different people in different ways)

8. Hes like,, 17!! If we're giving hareton a pass on former conduct bc he was raised wrong then why are some people so harsh on linton? He died real quick its not like he had a lot of time to try and improve.

[floaromaxtowns]

Pairing/Shippy list!

REPOST, DON'T REBLOG

Here's the rules:

1. List your top seven ships 2. Put all of them in order of your love for them; 7 to 1, 1 being your favorite. 3. Name their fandom. 4. Supply photos for said people.

7) Shadow the Hedgehog / Tikal the Echidna - Sonic the Hedgehog

They never met in canon, so no shot of them sharing a scene together lol

Very nostalgic ship for me. This was practically my entrypoint into the world of shipping as a whole TBH. My first contact with it came through the 2006's era of AMVs, and ship tribute videos. I may no longer be into STH, but I still hold this ship very dearly to me.

6) Solid Snake / Samus Aran - Smash Bros.

It's another trip through memory lane. Similarly to Shadikal, I also got introduced to Snakus via those old AMVs. Although, I was a bit older by the time I learned about this ship, than I was with the latter. By the time I had taken my very first step into Deviantart, and I remember spending HOURS scouring the website, for anything and everything related to them. Good times lol

5) Alucard / Richter Belmont - Castlevania

If those ships were my entrypoints into shipping in general. This one was my entrypoint into yaoi/mlm/BL ships. This ship isn't ranked higher because, I have a funky story with it. From my enjoyment of it being quite flaky, from going on and off constantly. At the time I learned about it, it coincided with the peak of the whole Seme/Uke tropes, which practically killed the characters to me. It was bc of that type of character portrayal, that drove me off from reading fanfics altogether.

4) Dawn/Barry - Pokemon

Whenever I say that Shadikal was my introduction into the world of shipping, what I really mean is that... I'm unsure who really takes the cake on that. As seeing how back then I was into both Pokemon AND STH, so I came across ship videos to both Shadikal and Twinleafship at around the same exact time. Anyway, gen 4 as a whole is very nostalgic to me, so ofc these two are also very special to me.

3) Priest Mahad/Priest Seto - Yugioh

It's way too funny how much I fell in love with this ship, at the very end of my interest in YGO. I just think they have a good chemistry....... I promise it is there, somewhere. I'm dead sure, I clinged onto YGO for only a little longer, because of those two. And here we have a proof of my love for small and mostly unknown ships, in most fandoms I land myself in.

2) Plo Koon/Commander Wolffe - Star Wars

Sorry Fandom, I didn't catch the memos on the babyfication of Wolffe and the rest of the 104th clone legion, neither was I interested in seeing people's daddy issues that they are projecting onto Plo Koon. I was really disappointed to see how little romantic content there was of these two, bc ppl decided to do that with them, for some reason lol. I'm in the trenches with these two. Also, these two were the reason I got back into reading fanfics LMAO.

1) Taurus Aldebaran/Aries Mu - Saint Seiya

🎉These two are currently holding my braincells hostage🎉

Head empty there is now only Aldemu. I'm going to indulge myself in over 20 years of fan-made content, about these two, see you all around. I think what really hit the nail in my brain about these two was learning how, even one of the former directors for some of the episodes within the Hades arc, also enjoys these two and has posted some of his drawings of them. To me, that's almost as good as making them canon (and let me clear, regardless of whether or not they're canon, it wouldn't affect my enjoyment of these two).

I'm just happy the Brazilian guy is tied to a popular ship, and is gaining love via it.

Honorable mentions:

Pisces Aphrodite/Cancer Deathmask - Saint Seiya

Commander Cody/Captain Rex - Star wars

Morty/Eusine - Pokemon

Alucard/Maria Renard - Castlevania

Bob Richards/Julia Chang - Tekken

Yugi/Seto Kaiba - YGO

Feel free to steal it!

[redjaybathood]

What people expect batfam or Outlaws do you think Jason would have had an interesting team up?

Ohhh this is a good one.

Tbh I want anyone and everyone in a team-up with Jason. It could be fun to explore how his personality meshes with different type of people. Except maybe Flashes - sorry Flash fans, nothing against Flashfam but it's just hard for me to keep track of basically any storyline with a Flash. I developed an irrational anxiety about them.

But ones interesting for me in particular:

1) Jason and Rose. Canon gave us the lackluster "they're exes" and fuck this. Give me some actual team up.

2) Jason and Rose and Eddie.

I am pretty sure it's shauds' fault I am invested in this. Amazing author, superb ideas, go check out their AO3.

In particular, it's because all three are connected. Jason and Eddie are pen pal buddies (for two issues but still); Jason and Rose are exes (in this case you can not show their relationship starting and crash-and-burning, playing off the unimpressed exes dynamic is good); Rose and Eddie were on NTT both.

Also, it could be an iteration of Outlaws!

3) Jason and Gen O but only if he mentors them for real; I don't think it's going to happen but it's a real shame we don't have Jason actually being a good mentor to kids.

Look, he could be a side character in this but I want him to take care of kids in a way that is more than just getting rid of threats that kids face. I think it could be a good development for him as well. Especially in the context of leaving the Batfam and healing. It is easier to let go of certain grudges and genuine hurt inflicted to you by your parents when you're a parent yourself. Just need to make sure you won't do the same or worse mistakes.

4) Onyx, Orpheus, Spoiler and Batgirl versus, and then &, Red Hood.

Ok, this could be an Elseworld story as Orpheus is dead and Onyx... I am not sure about her... But. Okay, imagine an Elseworld story where Jason gets in Gotham during War Games. Of course he will plug himself right into it. And Orpheus kinda did the similar thing that Red Hood was supposed to do? Maybe Jason can go work for him! Butterfly wings, Orpheus doesn't die, nor Spoiler.

Black Mask does, for sure.

5) Talia, Damian, and Jason

We could have it all, imo, if Jason was involved in bringing down Leviathan - who he was accused of being - with them, who also are invested in it.

They all have ties between each other as well, so it's not a random team up either.

6) Jason and any magical users. He has flaming soul swords and slayed interdimensional monsters and ancient evil. He can get on JL Dark or partner with Raven or - I don't actually know a lot about magic users within DC but hey. If this team up ends up existing, I will find out.

I propose them to go against Trigon. I bet Essence could capture him in a sword - so let's add Essence to the team as well.

7) Jason and Lanterns. Give the man a ring. He can be actually any Lantern you want. Rage? He has it. Love? In abundance. Fear? Hope? Will? Yes, yes, yes.

Also, sending Jason in space would be 👨‍🍳👄

And, after BUL, I want Jason Todd, in his civilian outfit, to meet Hal Jordan, who wears exactly the same stuff. Please. Nobody is talking about it. But the shit! The jacket!!! It's very reminiscent of the classic Hal look as I (not a Hal fan so I didn't read much and watched a movie everybody hates) remember it.

8) Huntress, who also started her career with killing gangsters, Manhunter who is another underrated character who isn't a vegetarian. Maybe add Question here. Focus on detective work, mafia organization, police corruption, nitty-gritty of the Gotham's underbelly. No super-villains, just your regular scum of earth.

9) Suicide Squad. They're doing it with Get Joker. They kinda done it but not really, with RHATO (when Biz orchestrated getting captured by Batwoman and being sold into Waller's hands, if I remember it right).

10) Danny Chase and various other NTT rejects nobody wants and thus, some Dick fans (mostly Dick's) think it would make more sense for Jason to partner with than Dick's friends, or his protege, or his whatever. If it was in any way related to Dick, Jason is not allowed to have it! Like, you know, even the electrified crowbars made a controversy. (I am pretty sure Dick's bankrolling Jason si the weapons is his idea for his money and that's why it's what it is? I may be wrong)

But while I do believe this is a ridiculous reason for a team up (especially with Danny who never said a word about Jason except break the news of his death to Dick while, you know, being a 13 yo shithead about it), you can get them - oh, so Nightwing doesn't want you either, huh? And bond other it. If in the process they end up, like, fuck Nightwing, my self-worth can't be dependent on how do I measure up to him or whether he approves of me... That's even better.

11) ALL of Jason's pre-death friends. The ones I remember are his childhood buddy Chris who he watched kung fu flicks together with, in New52, and almost joined the Red Hoods together; Max Dawkins from Truth and Justice, who was his friend before he met Batman and was forced into Ma Gunn's school, and, later, adopted - retcon his death please (I was really uncomfortable with that, I am sure you could see why); Numbers (from the Ma Gunn's school of doom), of course (it's one of the best one-shots of Jason that I read); Dana Harlowe/Strike, from RHATO #51-52 (she is already a vigilante in her own right, trained by a member of the League of Shadows).

Like, Jason renovated the house on the Hills - he gave it away to Tyler and his mom, but. I think, he was considering staying there. In Gotham, in Hills, maybe. Would have been pretty good seeing him reconnecting with childhood friends and fighting for his community in ways that don't involve vigilantism. Which, with Max getting off the streets and starting a promising career - for some reason, I headcanon him as a lawyer; Dana, a very community-minded activist; Numbers, who left the life of crime behind, maybe wanting to do something good with it; Chris, who was scared straight back in the day so maybe he knows dedicates efforts to keep kids in school instead of them joining gangs, especially Joker-related gangs. All of this in the aftermath of Joker's War. Which, I don't actually know how it ended or what it was about? But I hope Joker's dead, Jason found some peace and started rebuilding his life.

12) Jason and all of Slade Wilson's kids. Rose, Joey, and Grant. Idk, some people ship them, I just want them to be friends. Lots in common re: shitty fathers, doing shitty or (self) harmful things because of shitty fathers, dying and coming back to life (for most of them).

[necrothezma]

Top 8 pokemon generations (I personally count remakes as the gen they're in, not what they are remaking, so oras=6, not 3)

I’ve never played any games from gens 1-3, So I don’t really have an opinion on those, I did play a gen 5 game ( white 2 ) but I didn’t finish it so I don’t really have an opinion on that one either

Everything else though:

1. (Gen 7) Ultra Moon, the story could of been better but I really liked the whole Necrozma lore, the whole ultra wormholes and ultra megalopolis stuff, 

2. (Gen 4) Pearl was my first pokemon game , I can’t really remember my feelings when i first played it because of how long it was, but it’s definitely nostalgic to me

3. (Gen 8) Shield, I really enjoyed the game and the story, and I’ll definitely be getting the DLC once it comes out (especially since it releases during my birthday month wahoo)

4. (Gen 6) Omega Ruby and Y are kinda tied? Omega ruby’s plot was good for what I can remember of it, but Y’s plot I didn’t really remember all that much? It’s been a really really long time since I’ve played either, like since they first came out. I really love Kalos’ pokemon designs but I had more fun playing Omega ruby as my copy has like, 400 hours on it