#going to commit crimes in kindergarten

[magonumberfive]

Happy anniversary to Shigehide escaping Ransei to avoid execution!

[redphlox]

Are you feeling about Touya? I can't imagine Horikoshi it would be way too cruel, especially since him and Shouto need to eat soba together.

Feeling hopeful. I know the general consensus in the Dabi fandom right now is fear and despondency but when I look at the overall picture of the story, Touya dying doesn't make any sense and there's a lot of setup for him to survive.

The random guard/whoever saying Touya is heading toward a slow death means nothing to me. Not when Ujiko, the brilliant (but evil) doctor who saved Touya from certain death on Sekoto Peak, was wrong about Dabi's body not surviving a month after he woke up from the coma. The core of Touya's character is literally about survival and determination, going above and beyond to exceed expectations to live and be seen. I also feel that there might be something within Touya that allows him to survive, which is how he has any fire resistance at all. He was crying actual real tears this chapter instead of blood, which hints that his body is healing. I've seen other people theorize that Shouto's Phosphor has healing properties, which is promising and more in line with the stories' themes and messages than Touya dying again.

Overall, the tone of the Todoroki family arc is positive and hopeful. Yes, Fuyumi quit her teaching position, but one of the students' parents helped her find another one. This means that not only does this one parent believe in her, but so does this new employer. And those kindergarteners that Shouto connected with during the remedial license Arc have been supporting him this entire time. These instances show that society is changing their attitude towards the relatives of those who commit crimes and are willing to accept the Todorokis back into society and are literally cheering for them. This doesn't change the fact that some people will definitely hate them, but it's not all doom and gloom. And the soba thing - what a way to connect to someone who was born to replace you! That's a deep connection right there, and that's good. The story has focused a lot on connections and how life-saving and important those can be. Dying would rip that connection and go against the themes

Also, I feel like the Todoroki family would be much more worried and emotionally wrecked if they thought Touya was actually dying. Endeavor keeps talking to Touya about the future and visiting him. Unless all of them are in denial about what is happening, then why would they torture themselves talking about something that can't happen? All these conversations they want to have etc etc. It would be cruel, and Horikoshi is a sensitive guy. I don't think he could write something like that, and it doesn't fit what he's written so far.

To go further than Touya, I wouldn't be surprised if we see Toga and Spinner also on their deathbeds currently too, tbh. I'm thinking that mysterious new character (who is Tenko, no doubt), saved by his regeneration quirk, may help them. There's set up for it via Kurogiri telling Shigaraki his friends are waiting for him, and not to mention Shigaraki's always been the hero of the lov. He might not have saved them emotionally like the hero kids did, but he can save them physically. I'm not sure how exactly it'll all happen but I think they will all be okay in the end.

I know some readers have a different, more critical/negative opinion than I do, and that's fine. Ever since Shigiraki died, I've been saying that it's going to get worse before it gets better and that we're not going to see a resolution to that soon, and that's all been happening. I hate this saying, but, it's not over till the fat lady sings. I'm just going to keep on reading. I keep telling my friends this over and over again but it's kind of like reading the last Harry Potter (author is dead to me) book and stopping/rage quitting when Harry is killed by Voldemort in the forest. Keep reading. The story is not over yet, and a lot can change for the better. Let Horikoshi tell his story.

[rea-can-yeet]

I’m not reallyy confident with this oneeee lmao. Probably should have not wrote this during a burn out. I wonder if I could draw my barbie series this week

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REMINDER: This is gender neutral for all readers. Sagau stands for Self Aware Genshin Alternative Universe, but this is leaning much towards the God/Creator AU where the characters are aware that they’re being controlled but not aware enough to know that they’re in a game. This story is set in God/Creator AU, imposter AU, and lastly villain AU. This contains religious and cult themes, graphic violence, and probably some suggestive scenes (not this chapter yet, but the series will show some) so viewer’s discretion is advised.

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🔻

🔻

♦️

𝕄𝕌𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔼𝔼ℝ

Y/n was known as someone... normal to most. But if you have taken the time to get to know them, going so far as saying that you've known them for their whole life, you'd know Y/n as someone who'd be willing to commit a crime if the need arises. Such a thing has not happened so far (or at least one that gets the authorities’ attention), because Y/n's tenacity to thrive with their own hard work and resources has carried them away from resorting to such actions.

Y/n was clever.

Not a genius, but clever enough to survive in this generation's fast pace and harsh waters veiled under surface media's insistent idea of a calm country.

That's what Y/n's friend believes. This girl was fortunate enough to have been born wealthy, in contrast to her friend, Y/n, who was not poor but not well-off enough. She thinks Y/n was heaven-sent. No one was as loyal as them. Most approached her for their own selfishness, for their own benefit. Honestly, the world has less and less dependable and honest folks these days, she thought. Y/n was the only person to not try to exploit her ever since kindergarten and genuinely was a true friend to her to this day.

But like the wise once said; no one is perfect.

Y/n is nice… but is not harmless.

Y/n is clever, and parents who have no wealth enough to protect their child, have honed Y/n to survive any worst-case scenario. Be it how to manage money and tax, how to find a job, how to fix house materials, how to survive in the wild, how to defend against assailants that are twice their size, and other skills beneficial for Y/n.

Their parents almost thought that most of the knowledge they've bestowed on Y/n would prove to be useless in this current generation, but one could never be too careful.

They're happy for their child, how reliable they are, how Y/n used their parent's teachings as the foundation to hone their own weapon and armor, using the resources from this generation accompanied by old techniques to thrive. And they’re glad to see how Y/n is still capable of being kind despite having the child see the world without the rose-tinted glasses.

But for Y/n's friend, it's different. But it is normal for parents not to know every aspect of their child, right? The parents are correct when they believe that Y/n is nice yet strong, but the side of Y/n that is capable of being unhinged is something Y/n would keep to themselves to save their parents from a heart attack. But as Y/n's friend, she had the privilege to know this side of them.

The one who gets to see the Y/n that doesn't have the goody-two-shoes on to save them from any inconvenience.

The one who gets to see the Y/n that would use their cleverness to seek vengeance against others.

"Did you hear? I heard that the teacher from the other department got a suspension. Maybe getting fired."

"Right? The same person that accused a student from the Engineering department of stealing."

"A friend of mine who had a friend from that department said that the student was innocent."

"How did they prove it?"

"I heard that they still had the receipt from when they last shopped at a store. The time the teacher claimed that the student had stolen from her classroom was around the time that the student was shopping. The receipt contained the purchases as well as the date and time the transaction happened in there, serving as their alibi."

"How lucky that the student hasn't thrown away any receipts that day, huh?"

"Right? I'd throw away the receipt after shopping if it were me. I'm still trying to wrap my head around that teacher possibly getting fired. She's been suspected of drug use. The superiors and the police are still looking into it."

"I heard someone had given evidence to the police. A CCTV footage or something. This week has been full of things to distract me from mid-terms. And it doesn't help that the jock Steph has been admiring got kicked out from the basketball team."

"Yeah, not that I'm surprised after what he did. The captain must have been so livid to find his girlfriend's panties inside that guy's locker."

"Don't you think it's possibly the girlfriend's fault though? Like how did her panties get inside his locker? Sus..."

"No, the girl was with the captain the whole time... Oh and..."

The two students that were walking in front of her had finally swerved into a new topic while taking a left towards their classroom. She can only sigh, seriously, who knew criminology students can be this nosy? Then again, she could see how this characteristic could be useful for them.

She too, enters her classroom upon arriving. She spots her h/c friend playing with their phone, and she approaches. She sits down on the chair beside them, greeting them a good morning to which Y/n reciprocates before proceeding to finish their game.

“Hey, the prof. is coming.”

“Haha, I won’t fall for that again.” Y/n laughs lightly, eyes still on their screen.

“I know, but I want to talk with you about something.” And with this, Y/n turns off their phone to face her.

“Y’know, I heard people talking about the incident with that Karen teacher… and also the jock.”

Y/n hums, a smile on their face. “Hmm is that so?”

She watches Y/n place a hand under her chin with the elbow propped on their table, finger tapping on their cheek as Y/n wears a wider smile, eyes crinkling in faux innocence. “I guess it can’t be helped. I too would do the same.”

The girl can only sigh at her friend who was still holding that innocent look in their e/c eyes. She stops beating around the bush and gets to the point, curiosity eating at her as she is dying to know what Y/n had done this time. “Good thing that you still carried around that receipt Y/n. You wouldn’t have proved that you’re not a thief. But please bless your friend with the tea cuz I’m dying to know. Like, everything. From the teacher to the jock, everything bestie babes.”

She watch Y/n who only giggled, as if they have not just ruined someone. “Easy peasy, I followed my parent’s tips about keeping receipts. And used a good data recovery app to get the deleted CCTV footage.”

“I’ll hit you y’know.” She said annoyed as Y/n laughs. They then decide that they’re already done messing around and explain to their dear friend everything that happened. Not that it’s anything amazing in Y/n’s eyes. To them, it wasn’t that hard or anything incredible, just actions that they needed to take, but who were they to deny their friend to satiate their curiosity? Someone’s gotta entertain a rich girl’s dull life, and Y/n happens to provide enough exciting exploits.

.

.

.

.

.

You wonder how Bennett is taking this whole thing. He knows you, he knows that you know him. If someone knows someone’s name when they just met should garner suspicion. But he didn’t even think twice to help you. This doesn’t make sense to you.

And despite this being a game in your world, you have expected that there’s a system procedure that should have been followed, and bringing you to Jean immediately is something weird. Why is a stranger suddenly being brought to the acting grandmaster? Shouldn’t you be brought to someone of low rank for help or investigation till your situation was deemed appropriate to be handled by someone higher? After all, you’re not an immediate priority, so why bring you to Jean?

You both are walking down towards the city you assume. And so far Bennett was such a kind young man, the same from the game. Helping you out when you almost tripped (intentionally), gave you something to eat, and even showed a bright smile every time you show appreciation towards him. You decided to even shower some small compliments towards the poor boy, to which he gets shy, rubbing his head while bashfully looking away.

After walking for some time you realize the exact location you have arrived. It turns out that you woke up on the edge of the Snow-Covered Path. And now the two of you are walking on a path that leads to Daduapa Gorge. Following this (long) path, it will lead you to Windrise and then eventually to Mondstadt. If you were still in control of the game, you would have resorted to either just using the waypoints or scaling the mountains for shortcuts rather than using the current path. But Bennett insisted that following the path was much safer.

You think you have cozied him enough.

“So I want to ask you something, Bennett.” You asked, eyes staring at a sunsettia, pushing down the urge to ‘farm’ it. He looks at you, his attention bare for your question. “You seem to know me. May I ask? How do you know me?”

“What do you mean, your grace?” Asked Bennett, confused. At least Bennett is comfortable enough that he does not hesitate to answer without worrying about his words.

“Why do you call me ‘Your Grace’ Bennett?”

He pauses his steps and so do you. “You… You don’t know who you are?

“Well, I know my name is Y/n. Grew up in C/n, an Aerospace Engineer student, e/c eyes and h/c hair, home address is XXXXXXX, and still waiting for TBHK season two. I know myself completely, from childhood, my emo era, to my current state now. What I’m confused about is why I’m called the way you’re calling me now.”

“Do you at least know about Teyvat? Me? Your chosen blessed vessels? The Grand Plan?” He asks, every question turning him even more worried.

“I mean, I can’t lie. I know you, I know about Teyvat. Not much about chosen blessed vessels or the Grand Plan trademark.” It looks like it’s not just Bennett who got comfortable.

Bennett’s eyes shined at the prospect of you getting closer to understanding what he meant, although slightly. “Yes, Your Grace! Me and Teyvat!”

“However, that does not answer my question. Why do you call me that?”

“I…” His smile falters, “You don’t know what you are?”

You chuckle, “How am I supposed to know if you don’t tell me.”

“You’re supposed to be our creator!” He said worriedly, eyes expectant.

“You’re what now?” You said almost immediately.

“Our divine Creator! The one who breathes life into Teyvat! Who makes anything move according to your will! Weaving fate towards the ultimate Grand Plan. You who…” His voice lowers, eyes cast down, “You who made me feel like I was not worthless…”

“Benny… You are never worthless.” You reassured, hand on his shoulder.

Bennett suppressed the feeling of melting right there on the spot, your touch was comforting, it made him drop any guard he had and the urge to just lean onto you was so immense but he refrains. ‘You really are the creator… I can feel it.’

“But still, me? Creator? How? I don’t think I’m this omnipotent being you’re talking about. I don’t have memories of making Teyvat.” You said after letting go of his shoulder and stepping back a bit.

‘For all we know, this could just be the regular Teyvat. Then again, this Teyvat may as well be the Teyvat in my account too. We’ll confirm that when we find what point of the story Aether is in now. If it’s the same as in my account, then this is Teyvat from my account. If he’s on his way to leave Sumeru to look for the Hydro Archon, then it’s the cannon Teyvat of Mihoyo.’

She internally sighs, ‘But will that be enough to tell? Even if Aether is at the point of the story where I have last left him, I don’t think it’s enough to prove that this is my account. I need more concrete evidence. Knowing what state Teyvat is in right now will help me in getting back home... I hope.’

“Is there proof that I’m this… Creator? I don’t even know what you mean about this blessed vessel thing.”

“You know me but you don��t know the other vessels? And the Grand Plan?” He asked, “The last person your divine gaze has been on was the Traveler.”

You register what he meant about blessed vessels. It took some time to connect the dots but you get it now. The last character you used to farm was Aether, the Traveler. So these ‘blessed’ vessels are the characters that you control. And ‘divine gaze’ is probably you using them. Now how odd… divine gaze? Why does it sound familiar to you?

Ah right. Isn’t that what Blueberry- correction, Il Dottore, said during the Harbinger’s trailer? About Scaramouche conquering the divine gaze and shit? Well, you don’t really have time to contemplate that yet. Especially when you notice Bennett getting worried about your silence. You give him a smile.

“Ah, right. I didn’t really understand at first, but by vessels, do you mean the people I have controlled? Like Ae- the Traveller, Mona, Klee, you, Kaeya, and the others from here and the other nations?”

Bennett’s eyes brighten when the two of you have somehow landed on the same idea now, finally making an understanding with each other. “Yes! See? I knew you’d remember!”

“Hold your horses, little guy,” you let out a laugh, “I control some of you, so what? That does not answer my true identity.”

“But what powerful being could make us feel like we’re in a dream? Being controlled and making us stronger? No one in Teyvat could do that, at least control a lot of people without brainwashing or any dark magic according to Miss Lisa. You control us with divine powers that are strong yet warm at the same time. You gave us gifts, strength, and unforgettable adventures.”

You’re eyes widened. Of course, why didn’t you think of that?

“Okay, million dollar question-” Bennett’s confused but still listens, “-did you receive a Skyward Blade? Like around recently?”

Bennett gasps before nodding vigorously. “Yes! Yes, I did!” A bounce on his step as he gets a bit closer, “I heard you whisper that you’d test it out on a few Hilichurls! We took down at least 4 camps the other day!”

‘He’s right.’

“Then, did you also go around and collected a bunch of Sweet Flowers after?”

“Yes! We collected some Sweet Flowers and a few Sunsettias.”

‘Okay, holy crap this is my account.’ You thought while holding your head a bit. That’s one mystery closed, but didn’t mean that you have your questions answered.

“So everyone in Teyvat just collectively agreed that whoever is controlling you all are… your god?”

Seems impossible for you. Who in their right mind would just automatically say that you’re god? You know some well-brained characters in the game, those who are also politically influential and prodigies in certain fields, would find it concerning to suddenly lose their own control and start running around.

“Could you explain this Creator thing? I first used- I first had Amber as a vessel aside from the Traveler, it should have been worrying for Amber to suddenly lose control of herself. But looking at it, you act as if it’s not a huge concern. How are you confident that the one who is controlling her is your so-called Creator?”

Bennett nods, digesting his Creator’s question. He doesn’t understand why his creator is not sure, but he’ll try to help explain however he could.

“When Amber first got ‘pulled’ towards the divine light, she went to acting grand master Jean, I was there when I was getting treated by Barbara with Jean visiting the church for an inspection. At first, it was concerning but after some investigation with Jean and Miss Lisa, it was confirmed that it was the Creator. Then everyone was happy to have you showing yourself after going missing for centuries. According to Miss Lisa, you have a Grand Plan to guide the people, saying that salvation will come in a form of a person, with you guiding them.”

“Lisa said that? How do you think she knows that? And what is this Grand Plan?”

“Miss Lisa has read all the information regarding the Creator during her time in Sumeru and even from the books here in Mondstadt, she said. I don’t know about this Grand Plan too, no one does. Some have theories, but the only one who knows is the Creator. We thought only Mondstadters got the opportunity to be blessed as vessels, but it turns out others from different nations got the same treatment. Everyone has now believed that you’re starting to let your presence known.”

‘Huh, I guess I have a somewhat established title here for such a long time? And with religious power to boot? This is already starting to get even more confusing. Answers are only bringing in more questions.’

“You don’t remember the Grand Plan?” Asked Bennett worriedly, you could only smile.

“I’m sorry, I don’t.”

Bennett can only shake his head. “It’s just… you’re suddenly showing signs of activity and with your actions so far that matches with the scriptures and the bible, we knew that you were our Creator! So what if you forget about the Grand Plan? You’re already showing signs of being our Creator! You know about our adventure, it showed that you have been with us with your divine presence. You’ve made me stronger, you gifted me this amazing sword. To me, you’re the Creator I’ve been praying to.”

‘Is he trying to encourage me? How sweet.’ You smile gently and pat his head. He wears that shy face again and stands up straight after you prop your hand back to your side, his face getting back to its cheerful look.

“And besides! I read in the bible a long time ago that you needed a reminder or something! So you probably just need something to help you remember!”

You hum. Now that’s interesting. So far everything felt like a fever dream, ridiculous yet… amusing. You guess it won’t hurt entertaining the idea of you being god for a while (even though you doubt it) “What else have you learned from the bible, Bennett?”

“Um, about how you look! You’re hair, your face, oh! And your name!”

“Uhuh, then?” You smiled. You find yourself doing this for your own enjoyment rather than for your own investigation to find home. But it won’t hurt to be unserious for a bit, right?

“Yeah, you’re name. Though, not many used it because they didn't want to use your name in vain. Your name is Y/n, Y/n L/n. And what else…” Bennett started to act bashful, realizing that he did not read his bible much. Oh Celestia, what would you think of him ditching the bible to play? Hopefully, you wouldn’t mind.

“I’m sorry, that’s all I could remember so far-” Bennett stops. His eyes went wide with worry as he sees your shocked face, the silence unnerved him as he stares back at your unreadable face.

Why were you looking at him like that?

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End of chapter 3: Purple Carnations

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[galaxii-star]

you guys remember this

A lot of you really love it. Like now the post got 470 notes, which I consider A LOT. I have read the tags some of you wrote, so thank you for the lovely comments. It was really a silly mini-comic I did while I was practicing watercolor.

I actually want to expand the wacky universe the gang live in. It won't be any serious lore. Just a bunch of dumbos hanging around and probably committing crimes.

I don't know how much I can do since I've been very busy with school. But I will at least say the basics.

The gang still works in a kindergarten, but they are not locked up like before. They live and go on their daily lives like any humans.

Nabnab doesn't work there though. He worked as a bartender. Nabnaleena is, instead, his sister.

Banban wears party hats to avoid the extremely religious people's attention to his horns. Was kicked out of a christian preschool on first day.

Banban and Stinger Flynn had met each other in high school. Hated each other's ass, but somehow kept running into each other. They went to the same college, lived in the same apartment and worked in the same kindergarten. Had gay panic at some point.

Opila Bird is a wanted criminal. Criminal record : Attempt assassination, selling drugs, robbing banks.

That's it for now. Thanks for listening to my ted talk.

[ppg-villains-defense-lawyer]

What are your opinions on each Gangreen Gang episode (Buttercrush, Telephonies, Schoolhouse Rocked, Slave the Day, Power Lunch, Bang For Your Buck, Aspirations)?

Honestly, I enjoyed all of them! There's not a single bad Gangreen Gang episode. But to break it down further:

Buttercrush: Ah yes, the episode that basically created the Ace X Buttercup ship (and led to many childhood crushes on our favorite green gangster).

A good episode overall. It really shows off Ace's manipulative side, perceptiveness, and charisma. Yes there are Unfortunate Implications TM if you want to read into it, but I always just saw it as Ace seeing an opportunity to both get the PPG to stop beating up him and his friends, and seeing a chance to have a superhuman on his side. Though I could see a future where he and Buttercup could genuinely get along and become friends, when they're both adults and he's not actively committing crimes.

Telephonies: Peak "boys will be boys" behavior in a good way... or a funny way, at least. I mean, who else would be stupid enough to prank both Mojo Jojo and HIM but smart enough to actually make it work? I honestly can't think of another villain that could and would pull off those kinds of shenanigans (Also the scene with the Professor... someone please sit this man down and warn him about phone and internet scams. He's the type of guy who would receive an email from a "Nigerian prince" asking for money and believe it. Bless him)

Schoolhouse Rocked: Another hilarious episode that also raises some important questions. Like, before Jack Wednesday, did nobody notice that the Gang didn't go to school? Or, did they just not care? And why were a bunch of teenagers put in a kindergarten class? Was it because they genuinely never been to school before and Jack was making them start at the very beginning, or because Pokey Oaks Kindergarten is the only school in Townsville? And if that's true, then where do all the older kids go who are just regular citizens-

Okay, I'm getting off topic. But yes, it's ridiculous and fun and even a little sad when you read into everything. We get to hear some of Arturo's backstory, we get to see the gang be massive trolls and menaces to everyone around them, it's great.

Slave the Day: Rewatching this episode makes me feel a bit sorry for Big Billy. As funny as the "we thought you were dead" meme is, it's clear that Billy doesn't feel loved or cared about, even within the gang. And... he really isn't, aside from maybe Grubber. He comforted him at least. Like, he was so shocked that the girls did the bare minimum of being superheroes and saved his life that he was ready to leave all his friends behind for good and dedicate his life to serving them.

Though I will say I don't think Ace and the others ever genuinely believed Billy was dead. I don't think they're that careless. Imo it was more of a joke and they just assumed he got scared and ran off or the girls caught him and threw him in jail. But either way, it's clear they weren't that worried and if he ever did get separated from the gang he'd pretty much be on his own.

Also, the girls were definitely in the wrong for beating up Billy at the end of the episode for turning on them. He admitted what he did was wrong, he was sorry, and he changed his mind at the end anyway and saved them. Idk, that part never sat right with me and really shows that the girls have a very rigid view on their roles as crime fighters, seeing violence not simply as a method to defend themselves and others but as a just punishment in of itself. And to a point you can't really blame them; they're only five and encouraged to use violence by pretty much everyone around them, even when it's unnecessary. I hope they gain more of a nuanced perspective as they get older and realize that's not a good way to be a hero.

Power Lunch: I enjoyed seeing which powers each of the gang got! I know it's officially tied to whatever food they were eating when they got hit with the girls' laser vision, but if you want to analyze it as revealing a part of who they are I think you could.

You could say Ace gets ice powers because he tends to act cold and mean, even to those closest to him. Snake gets super elasticity both because he's naturally flexible but also because he's often forced to bend to the will of others, especially Ace. Arturo gets super speed because he's spent years learning to be the fastest as a way to make up for being the smallest, Big Billy is a rock because he's, well, big, but also because he can be quite stubborn when he wants to be (ex. him insisting to "help" constantly in Slave the Day). Grubber gets super sonic burps because he often finds other ways to make his presence be felt and felt loudly despite being mostly voiceless; whether it's through his grossness, his talents with poker and music, even his voice acting skills, etc.

Bang For Your Buck: This is probably the one I rewatch the least, but there's still a lot of great comedy in there. I enjoyed seeing the juxtaposition of the girls trying to find genuine ways to earn the money next to the gang doing what the gang does best (aka robbing little kids and old ladies). The running gag of Ace being oblivious to obvious solutions felt slightly out of character, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Especially watching the rest of the gang notice what he wasn't and being too scared to point it out.

I will say that I think it would've been better if at the end, the gang was able to buy the Destructo-Ray, got all geared up to use it to take over Townsville (or more likely, just blow up random shit for fun) only for them to find out that it was actually a snow cone machine when they tried to use it and they basically wasted all their money. Idk, the ending with the mayor felt a bit random and pointless.

Aspirations: Controversial but this is probably my favorite Gangreen Gang episode if I had to pick. We get to see the boys be both competent thieves and badasses and we get to see a softer, more vulnerable side to them through Sedusa, even if that vulnerable side is only revealed through manipulation. We see that they are capable of being scarily competent under the right conditions, and are desperate for love and basically anyone telling them they aren't worthless. I also headcanon that this was a huge turning point for them and made them decide to turn their lives around, but also fractured their ability to trust any outsiders for years onward, Ace especially.

I also really like the references to Buttercrush because yeah, what Sedusa is doing to the gang isn't that much different from what Ace did to Buttercup. You could argue that Ace's reasons were more defensive while Sedusa was actively seeking out the gang to use and I think there's some truth to that. But the nitty gritty of it is the same: manipulating someone younger and less experienced for the sake of power and personal safety.

[comfort-writing]

Crayons and Cassettes

Chapter 11: Baby Charlie

You are a kindergarten teacher. Eddie’s daughter, Sage, is in your class. You meet baby Charlie Harrington and Eddie dies a little inside.

warnings: this fic is 18+ in previous and future chapters- minors DNI!! no use of y/n. (please let me know if I missed anything)

a/n: a fun little fluffy chapter focusing on your relationship with Robin and Sage. let me know in the comments or my asks if you want to be added to the tag list! requests are open!

word count: 3.5k

Chapter 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 8 || 9 || 10 || 11 || 12 || 13 || 14 (coming soon!)

Eddie received a call a few days later that Steve was having another party at his house now that all the kids were back from school and now that Nancy was finally okay with having people come to visit. He said that anyone was invited, but to just keep everything chill.

That night, on your nightly phone call, Eddie brought it up to you.

“So, Steve is having everyone come to his house in a couple days, if you want to come.”

“I’d love to!” You smiled, sitting in your living room with Pencil plopped down in your lap. “Who all is going to be there?”

“Well, Steve and Nancy, baby Charlie, Robin, Will, Max, Lucas, Mike… I think El is going to be there, Dustin.. and I think I’m going to bring Sage too. The kids love her, and she loves babies so she’ll love seeing Charlie.”

“Ah, nice.” You said, pausing for a moment before speaking up, “Are you okay with me being around Sage?” You asked hesitantly.

He thought for a moment, tapping his fingers on the counter in his kitchen. “I think it’ll be easier on her when it’s in a group setting. She might not be as.. confused, I guess.” He said.

You played with the bracelet on your wrist, letting the phone sit between your ear and your shoulder, “We don’t have to tell her anything. We can keep things casual; just say I’m one of your friends.” You reassured him, “And I am your friend, so like, you wouldn’t have to feel guilty because it’s not like you’re lying to her.”

He sighed, “Yeah… I may not even bring her.”

“No, Eddie. You should bring her- she’ll have fun seeing all her buddies. Don’t worry about me. I’ll keep my distance and just like, hang out with Robin or something. I don’t want to like, disrupt her life just because we’re a thing.” You said, “It’s not fair to her.”

“Yeah, you’re right. She loves Max.” He chuckled.

“And I’ll drive myself, so don’t worry about th-“ your phone started beeping, signaling you were getting another call, “Oh, can I call you right back? Someone else is calling me.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, I’ll be right back.” You said before clicking a button on your phone to hang up the call with Eddie and answer the new call, “Hello?”

“Hey.” Greeted Robin on the other end of the line

“Hey! What’s up?” You asked. She didn’t call often, but you enjoyed talking to her.

“Ah- not much. Hey, are you coming to Steve’s on Wednesday?” She asked, sounding excited.

You laughed, “I was actually just talking to Eddie on the other line about that.”

“Oh nice. So you’re coming with him?” She asked. You’d told her about your first date, and she was over the moon for the two of you.

“I think we’re trying to figure that out right now. He’s going to bring Sage, so it’s.. kinda complicated.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s understandable.” She said, the phone muddled as she sounded like she was doing something on the other end. “Has he, like, officially introduced you as a person of interest?”

“Person of interest? Am I committing a crime?” You giggled.

“Well I don’t know what you two are!” She laughed.

You sighed, “Yeah, I don’t think we do either. We’ve been on two dates, but like, we’ve known each other for a while now. It feels too soon to label it, so I don’t think he’ll want to tell Sage about it until we’re more serious. Which I agree with, of course.”

“Smart move. But oooh, second date? Give me every detail.” She smiled.

“I will later, for sure. But I’ve got to call Eddie back.”

“I can give you a ride there if you want, if you’re coming. We can talk all about it then. Just let me know what you decide.” She smiled.

“For sure. Talk to ya later, Robs.”

“See ya!” She hung up the phone, then you dialed Eddie’s number again.

You listened to it ring a couple times before you heard him pick up. “Hey, sorry about that- Robin called. Where were we?” You asked.

“Sage and distance?” He suggested.

“Oh, yeah… right, well, either way, Eddie, I want to do whatever you’re comfortable with.” You told him.

“You wouldn’t be offended if we weren’t like, affectionate or something?” He asked, a bit worried.

You caught on that he was really worried about your feelings too, not just Sage’s. “Of course not, Eds. I want what’s best for Sage too. And she’s your daughter, so I will do whatever you think will be good for her. I’m just happy to hang out with you guys.” You kicked your legs, “And it’s not like we haven’t kept us a secret before, so we know how to go about it, and all.”

You heard him shift, “Yeah, I just.. don’t want to go back to that. I like that we’re dating now. But at the same time, I want to protect Sage’s feelings while we figure everything out. I guess I’m a bit conflicted is what I’m trying to say.”

You nod, “Yeah, I see why. And it wouldn’t be a big secret again. I think this stuff is normal dating things though; keeping it from your kids until you know a bit more, right? A lot of single parents do that.”

“Well, I guess when you put it like that it makes sense.” He smiled.

“Yeah. So, I’ll make plans to come, but if you feel uncomfortable or hesitant about it, please feel free to let me know and I won’t come. No hard feelings at all, I promise.”

“Thank you for being so understanding about all of this.” He whispered.

“Of course, Eddie.”

The two of you chatted for a while longer about small things before getting off the phone. You sat back in your chair, thinking. You understood Eddie’s hesitations completely. You worked with kids, so you knew how delicate and sensitive they could be, especially with things like this.

Wednesday arrived, and Robin stopped by your house to pick you up. You were still getting ready when she arrived, so you invited her in and she sat on your counter as you finished your makeup.

“So, tell me all about the second date!” She said excitedly as you swiped on some eyeshadow.

You smiled, “Well, he took me to Indianapolis.”

“Why that far out?”

“He bought me concert tickets. We had a little road trip. It was all really fun.” You said, grabbing a tube of mascara.

Robin groaned, “Come ooon, I need juicer details than that.”

You chuckled, unscrewing the cap, “Well, I’m not one to really kiss and tell.”

She smirked and pulled her legs up on the counter, sitting crisscrossed, “Oooh, so you two made out again?” You gave her a look, raising an eyebrow, and her jaw dropped, “No you didn’t.” She said, shocked.

You shrugged, a little smug. You opened your mouth slightly as you applied your mascara and watched the gears turn in Robin’s brain.

“Was it, like…good? I mean, boys are gross so I don’t want every detail about that.”

You finished with one eye and looked over at her, “Robin, it was perfect. I have no complaints.” You chuckled.

She wrinkled her nose, “Ew.” She laughed as she shoved your shoulder. “You’re all happy and gross.”

You giggled before applying mascara to your other eye. “To be fair, I waited a long time for this. I get to be all happy and gross.”

She shook her head, “No, be sad and single like me.” She whined. Her girlfriend had recently dumped her, and while Robin took it like a champ, you’d helped her through it.

“Don’t worry. When Eddie and I don’t work out, I’ll just be your wife instead.” You joked, “Just be patient.”

She laughed as you stepped back and looked yourself in the mirror, happy with your makeup.

“Want me to do yours?” You offered.

Robin nodded. She wasn’t normally one to wear makeup, but it was a girl-bonding rite of passage. You smiled and got to work. “Any luck finding any single ladies around here?” You asked as you put a tiny bit of concealer under her eyes.

“Ugh, no. I’ll probably have to travel outside of Hawkins to find anyone who even likes girls. Much less, anyone who is into me.”

You put powder on her face, “You’ll find someone. I’m sure of it. You’re a catch.” You smiled.

“You’re sure you weren’t joking about marrying me?” She teased.

You laughed and dabbed on a tiny amount of blush on her cheeks. “Yeah, sorry. Eddie’s pretty cool, so I think I’ll see where that leads.”

“Yeah, whatever.” She hummed, closing her eyes as you did her eyeliner.

Once you were done, she looked in the mirror and smiled. You hadn’t put much on, just enough to accentuate her features. On the rare occasion she’d worn makeup since you’d met her, she wore about this amount. “Thanks!” She smiled, “I like the eyeliner a lot. You’ll have to teach me how to do it next time.”

“Of course.” You smiled as went into your closet to grab your shoes. “Ready to go?” You asked. She nodded, and the two of you walked out of your house and into her car.

Once you arrived at the Harrington residence, you and Robin walked in to find a packed living room. Everyone was there, including Sage. Steve walked up and hugged Robin, patting her on the back before pulling you into a big hug as well.

“You guys want to meet Charlie?” He asked, nodding over to Nancy who was holding the small baby in her arms.

“Oh my god, yes.” You smiled. Robin nodded and Nancy handed you the baby first. He was so small. You smiled down at him, bouncing him gently. He was awake, so you expected him to cry from being handed off to a stranger, but he just cooed at you.

“Wow, he’s normally pretty fussy.” Nancy mused as you held him.

You smiled, still looking down at the small boy and missing the way Eddie was looking at you from across the room. Charlie smiled and giggled as you stuck your tongue out, making a silly face at him. You then looked over at Robin, “You wanna hold him?” You asked.

She put both hands up, “I don’t do well with babies.” She chuckled.

You watched at Steve nudged her arm, “Yeah. Robin had to babysit one time, and she called me panicking because the baby wouldn’t stop screaming. She didn’t realize it was because the poor thing had a dirty diaper. When I got there, I tried to explain to her how to change it, but she was too busy freaking out and I had to do it.” He laughed.

You chuckled and looked back to Nancy, “Want him back?” You asked.

“Nope.” She said, dusting off her hands. “I am going to go lay in bed and give my arms a break. You two have fun.” She said as she walked off back to her bedroom.

You looked at Steve, confused. “Yeah- he’s been in a bit of a ‘mommy’ phase here- he won’t even let me hold him for that long without crying. I’m surprised he’s cool with you.”

You smiled down at the small baby, letting him grip one of your fingers in his tiny fist, “Well, it’s because I’m so cool, unlike your dad. Huh, Charlie?” You joked, causing him to laugh loudly and walk back to the couch, you and Robin trailing behind him.

Sage looked up from the coloring page that had been occupying her when you entered and saw you as you were sitting down on the couch. She quickly scrambled to stand up and ran over to you, “Hi!” She squealed, very obviously happy to see you. You glanced across the room at Eddie to make sure he was okay with this, and he gave you a small nod, smiling fondly.

You chuckled, “Hi Sage. Whatcha coloring over there?” You asked, nodding to her work.

“Will drew me a dragon and I’m coloring it in!” She smiled, rushing to grab the page and show you. It was a very well drawn dragon covered in purple and blue scribbles.

“Looks great, kiddo.” You smiled. In your class, you’d worked on coloring inside the lines with her, but she liked to do things her own way and you knew that.

She beamed before looking at the baby in your arms, “Do you like baby Charlie?” She asked, “He doesn’t like me. He cried when I holded him.”

“I do like baby Charlie, and I’m sure he likes you too. Sometimes, babies just cry. Since he can’t talk yet, crying is his only way to talk to you.” You informed her gently.

“Well he talked really loud.” She said before going back to her spot on the floor to continue her artwork, Will sitting next to her and drawing more pictures for her to color in as he joked around with Lucas.

Robin looked over at the baby before looking to you, “You’re like, really good with kids.”

“Yeah, we’ll it’s what I get paid to do, so I would hope so.” You giggled.

“Want anything to drink?”

“Sure. Whatever you’re drinking is fine.” You said.

She got up from the couch, but before she walked off, she whispered in your ear. “Dude, Eddie is giving you major goo-goo eyes over there.”

You laughed and watched her go before looking over at Eddie. She was right. He looked totally love struck. He noticed that you’d seen him, and he quickly turned to talk to Steve, trying to cover the blush on his cheeks.

You hummed and looked down at Charlie, who’d slowly started to fall asleep in your arms. You were sat next to Max, so the two of you started talking quietly. You asked her about school, and she’d gone off on a whole rant about how one of her professors lost one of her papers and said she never turned it in, but when they were talking about it in his office, she found it sticking out of the bottom of a stack of papers. And somehow, when she found it, he got mad that she did and gave her a bad grade anyways because ‘she shouldn’t be looking at the papers on his desk’.

Robin came back with a two cans of coke, and you accepted the one she handed you kindly. You were careful not to move too much, as you didn’t want to rouse Charlie. The three of you talked, eventually letting El in on the conversation too, and watched as the boys acted like they were still in high school, laughing at their antics.

You were glad that you seemed to fit right in, the group easily accepting you as one of their own. When you first moved to Hawkins, you wondered if you’d ever find anything like this.

Charlie was drooling on your arm, and Steve got up to take him to his crib once he noticed the baby was fast asleep. You handed him off carefully before getting up to go rinse the baby spit off of yourself. Eddie followed you to the kitchen, knowing Sage was preoccupied with Mike.

You were standing over the sink, rubbing your arm with a wet paper towel when you felt a hand on your waist. The kitchen was out of view from the living room, so he felt comfortable doing so. You looked up at him and smiled, “Hey.” You whispered

“Hey.” He whispered back, leaning down and pecking your lips. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“Me too.” You smiled, setting the paper towel down and turning to face him. “Thanks for inviting me.”

“Anytime.” He gave you one more quick kiss before hearing small footsteps approaching the kitchen. He quickly turned and opened the fridge, acting like he was loony for something as you grabbed the paper towel and moved to throw it away.

Sage walked in and grabbed her dad’s jacket, tugging on it to get his attention, “Can I have a snack?” She asked.

You smiled and walked out of the kitchen, leaving him to it.

More talking, more laughing, more budding friendships. You had a great time getting to know everyone more, hearing stories of what Eddie was like as a new dad and how he was apparently the best dungeon master known to man in D&D.

After a while, Sage pulled Max and Will to the floor, trying to get them to paint her nails. Once they sat down next to her. She got up and stood in front of you, “Can you braid my hair?” She asked sweetly, “I wanna princess braid.”

You looked over at Eddie, who gave you the go ahead, and then turned your attention back to the girl in front of you, “Of course. One or two?” You asked.

“Two!”

“Okay. Go find some ponytail holders for me.” You said, scooting down to the floor with the other two. She ran off, coming back out with Nancy and holding a bottle of pink nail polish and two ponytail holders. You’d asked Max what a princess braid was, and she explained it was just a French braid.

Sage sat between the three of you, holding her hands out for Max and Will to paint as she tipped her head back for you to braid her hair. You smiled softly and carefully parted her hair down the middle, making sure not to tug too hard. You worked on the right one first, braiding her long, curly hair with ease. You tied it off at the end, then worked on the other one, leaving a few pieces out to frame her face.

Eddie watched how you interacted with her, seeing how gentle you were, and it made his chest feel warm and fuzzy.

Once you finished, Max and Will had finished painting her nails. She spread her fingers and squealed, happy with the results. She showed you, and you said she looked like a princess.

She ran to the bathroom to look at her hair and came back, twirling into the room to show it off. Everyone clapped quietly for her, knowing she liked being the center of attention (just like her dad), before she smiled at you and praised your hair-braiding skills.

The night ended with Steve popping a movie into the VCR and everyone smushed together on or around the couch, watching the TV and laughing at the stupid jokes the movie provided.

Robin drove you back home that night, after Eddie gave you a friendly hug goodbye.

“So, are we going to talk about how Eddie was looking at you like he wanted to make you a mother earlier?” She laughed.

“Jesus, Robin, getting right to it, huh?” You chuckled a little nervously.

“Sorry, but he was! It would’ve been weird if you weren’t together.” She smiled.

“I don’t want to make assumptions about any of that.” You sighed, “I don’t want to get ahead of myself. It’s too early on.”

She nodded, “Yeah, sure. But you can’t deny that he couldn’t keep his eyes off of you when you were holding Charlie. He was totally all starry-eyed, dude.”

“Maybe. Or maybe I’m just pretty or something.” You joked.

Robin hummed and turned onto your street, “He wasn’t always like this, you know. Even up to right before he met you. He’s mellowed out a lot here lately. I think after Alice, he was pretty messed up.” She said quietly, “He seems happy again.”

You couldn’t fight the smile on your face after hearing that. Once Robin dropped you off, you walked back into your house and got showered and changed. You were about to head to bed when you heard the phone ring in your living room.

You quickly jogged do go answer it, knowing it was Eddie before you even picked up.

“Hey.” You smiled.

“Hey.” You heard him whisper, “You looked really pretty today.” He automatically complimented you, wishing he could’ve said it earlier.

You smiled, sitting down, “Thanks, Eds. Did you have fun tonight?” You asked.

“Yeah. I wish we’d been able to talk more… thank you, by the way.. for being so understanding about Sage, and all. She had fun. She didn’t want to take out her braids before she went to bed.”

You laughed and the two of you filled in the conversation you’d had to hold back earlier that night.

You really liked how you were fitting in to Eddie’s life.

Tag List: @mcueveryday @bebe0701 @emma77645 @edsforehead @manda-panda-monium @nina211544 @wendyfawcett @whisperinthewoods07

[graysutopia]

Little mini ramble because I cant believe we need to legit have a kindergartener class on fucking war crimes and human rights violations, but i guess we have too.

War crimes are bad.

There is not a SINGLE fucking justifcation for committing one! I do not care if your side is somehow proved to be objectively good on a cosmic level and your opponents are the devil, you DO NOT DO WAR CRIMES

"Oh but what if my enemies commit one?" Dont care! Still bad! You should be tried at the Hague for doing it along with them.

The big difference between israel and hamas (which im going to premptively disown because how dare i criticize israel without criticizing hamas amiright) is scale and accountability.

Hamas war crime bad. Israel war crime bad. Hamas is a tiny underfunded group of religious extremists who will absolutely be judged by the entire western world once this is all said and done.

Israel is funded with billions of dollars and is lauded as the most democratic place in the middle east. Committing the same (and worse!) war crimes for decades. Before even hamas existed, let alone the attacks that "started" this.

Israel is backed by the entire western world (save for ireland) and if previous wars have shown, will never feel even the whiff of punishment for committing attrocities.

Lets say for sake of argument that israel is 100% objectively good and gaza is 100% objectively evil. The fact that israel is still committing war crimes and has a blatent disregard for human rights is still horrendous. Their war crimes even in the most rose tented view should not be defended.

"What about hamas?" idk what about hamas? Why does israel keep stooping to their level if the hamas are "objectively evil"?

Israel has a *standing military* with insane amounts of funding and support from the western world. If anything people should be MORE OUTRAGED at them committing war crimes over a tiny unregulated geurilla group. (note: hamas war crimes still bad ok we get that right?)

But who am i kidding. human rights arent ever actually upheld. war crimes are never judged on the winning side.

TL d fucking r;

war crime should never be done. the fact israel is doing war crimes is bad. the fact that the western media and zionists dont give a shit is worse.

rant over. I'll maybe touch this up later.

[straightfacedstrangeness]

If the Dragon Ball wiki isn't going to give me any Puar trivia, then *cracks knuckles* it's Excessively Long Headcanon Time

First, between watching 3 different dubs of 3 different parts of the franchise recently that all referred to Puar as she/her (in Japanese apparently Puar has a female actor but uses a typically masculine "I" pronoun and is addressed with a typically masculine honorific—and has been declared male by Toriyama in an interview—so I dunno if the English translators just assumed gender based on voice or if Puar so rarely speaks about themself / is so rarely directly spoken to that the pronouns and honorific only came up after the translator had already declared them female)...I've been like "Puar as a boy is cute...but Puar as a girl is ALSO cute..." so I'm headcanoning them on the nonbinary spectrum to have the best of both worlds XD [I mean this affectionately and not transphobically, so please let me know if I should rephrase this]

Since all we get of Puar's backstory besides Transformation Kindergarten is "Puar hatched from an egg," headcanon that they grew up in the wild somewhere, separated from their birth parents and constantly fearing for their life because of all the local predators. One day Puar was rescued from danger by a former student of the Transformation Kindergarten who took a liking to Puar and decided to bring them there, so they could at least defend themself by shapeshifting into scary forms to frighten their enemies or into bug forms too tiny to be caught.

There, though, Puar was mercilessly bullied by Oolong, who made everyone's life hell until he was finally kicked out (his parents had sent him there thinking that "Transformation Kindergarten" was a finishing school that would fix his bad behavior). This treatment only increased Puar's resolve to master transformation and have a way to defend themself, and they graduated at the top of their class. They were tempted to live quietly in peace at the school and become an instructor, but wanted revenge against Oolong and went out into the world to find him (correctly assuming that Oolong would still be up to no good) and Bring Him To Justice.

Unfortunately, the world outside the secluded school was still dangerous and Puar's shapeshifting abilities weren't as helpful as they'd been promised. Pretty soon after leaving, they were captured by some anthro animal gangsters who for several weeks forced Puar at gunpoint to use their ability for the gangsters' benefit. Yamcha, who only saw a bunch of big guys kicking around a tiny sorta-cat child, swooped in and came to the rescue with a dashing grin and hair blowing dramatically in the wind, and for Puar it was love at first sight. They swore undying allegiance to Yamcha, who was initially like "Uh...that's a bit much," but agreed to take Puar in after realizing how useful Puar's shapeshifting would be for banditry. (Puar, to his dying day, will never realize the irony of being forced to shapeshift to commit crimes only to be rescued and then excitedly volunteer to shapeshift to commit crimes.)

When they go off to live at Capsule Corp, Puar has a strong affection for Bulma's parents and considers them parent-like (also having parental feelings for the teachers at Transformation Kindergarten), but has latched onto Yamcha so hard that they've mentally adopted Yamcha's (long-dead) parents as their own, and fantasizes so hard about what it would've been like to grow up with Yamcha that sometimes they'll mention a daydream memory in conversation and Yamcha's like "??? I didn't meet you 'til I was 14??" and Puar has to hastily come up with an excuse for what they said.

Again, Puar's been madly in love with Yamcha since the moment they met, but they're asexual and thought romantic love = desire for sex so they didn't understand that it was love until many years later when they not only learned about asexuality, but finally connected the concept to their own experience and specific feelings for Yamcha. (In the meantime, they'd been aggressively pushing for Yamcha and Bulma to get together and stay together, with the idea that that was what would make Yamcha happy and Puar would do ANYTHING to make Yamcha happy.) But the realization just made things worse because then they had to deal with the thoughts that Yamcha only ever dated human women and therefore probably wouldn't see Puar romantically and even if he did he'd probably want to Do Stuff that Puar might not be comfortable with and angst angst angst angst aaaangst. They couldn't talk to Bulma about it cus they didn't want to get between her and Yamcha, and was terrified of talking to Oolong about it since Oolong would surely make fun of them or tell Yamcha out of spite (Oolong having spent the previous years nonstop teasing Puar about having a crush on Yamcha, which was easier to take when Puar sincerely thought it wasn't true).

Eventually they do confide in Oolong, and Oolong DOES make fun of them at first ("You're in love with Yamcha? This is supposed to be NEWS??") and absolutely cannot comprehend the concept of asexuality, but backs off when it's clear that Puar is genuinely upset, partly cus Oolong also understands how hard it is to be obsessively in love with a human who's only attracted to other humanoids (Bulma). He still teases Puar sometimes, but also takes any opportunity to try to wingman Yamcha into dating Puar, to Puar's horror. (Fortunately Yamcha never picks up on the subtext and is just like "Well yeah, sure I'll take Puar to the movie if they want to go? I mean of course Puar's gonna come live with me, they're my little buddy?")

After recovering from the world-ending trauma of the Buu Saga, Puar finally confesses to Yamcha in an extremely shoujo "It's okay if you don't like me back, but I want you to know" way, and Yamcha's surprised and says "I don't like you that way" but is extremely cool with it, Puar is massively relieved, and they continue on as even closer friends.

ALSO: headcanon that the hardest part of learning to shapeshift is the actual act of shapeshifting, of imagining what you want to be in 3D and willing your molecules into that shape. The part that Oolong missed when he was kicked out of school was the ability to increase your endurance and improve your concentration, which is about increasing your body's stamina through exercise (since it's physically taxing to rearrange yourself into and maintain a foreign shape) and controlling your mental state through meditation (so you can calmly and easily maintain the form in the back of your mind while consciously focusing on other things, instead of having to concentrate hard on staying in your chosen shape). Oolong doesn't know about this, just that Puar can maintain a form longer and transform more times in a row than he can. He tried going back to school but had been blacklisted for life, and Puar refused to teach him, knowing he would probably use it for evil (at minimum, to get dates with girls who aren't into pigs).

[joshkiszkasgothgf]

crushcrushcrush - Daniel Wagner (Enemies to Lovers)

What happens when your nemesis becomes the only person you can rely on?

Warnings: 18+, Angst, cursing, mention of assault but someone stands up for you 👀, choking (not in the way you think), talks of a panic attack.

(Please let me know if you know who’s pic this is. Also should I write more to this?)

✨Masterlist✨

Daniel fucking Wagner.

Bane of your existence. A stolen guitar pick in kindergarten turned a lifelong friendship into a different kind of commitment. It was your lucky guitar pick and that curly haired, brown eyed asshole knew it. The last thing you had from your dad and Daniel lost it.

Sam thought the whole deal was over dramatic and above his pay grade. The lanky bassist tunes his acoustic, speaking to his older brothers like the pair of us don’t exist, and if he sees us glaring at each other he hasn’t said anything. Cunt. You huff and move to pour yourself something stronger.

Now, one of the many blessings curses the universe gifted you was a bull like stubbornness. You could mean mug and stare with the best of them and many a man had tucked tail and run in the wake of your anger. It seemed to have one exception though. A 6 foot Adonis of a man with the sweetest heart, yet he’s staring you down like you’re about grow snakes from your head and turn him to stone.

The inner child who yearns for their friend weeps at this cruel twist of fate, but the hardened young adult you’ve become has no problem stuffing the feelings down. Out of sight out of mind, like mother always said you think bitterly.

Now you wouldn’t openly admit how many times you’ve thought of Danny as something other than your mortal nemesis since that fateful day in 2005, but it’s definitely more than 0, which is what it should be. It brings you no end of shame. It’s embarrassing how much time you spend watching him when you know he can’t see.

Not in a creepy way!

This isn’t a ‘YOU’ situation, just a -parish the thought- a crush. Have you stuffed the feelings way down and locked them up with chains and spikes and booby traps along with your heart and your vulnerability? Yes. Would your therapist advise that? Probably not, but it hasn’t backfired yet.

The boys’ manager interrupts your staring contest with Daniel as he announces the boys have 5 minutes to show time. Sam stands from the couch, walking over to clap his partner in crime on the shoulder, wrapping his arm around him.

You look on in envy.

Why couldn’t he have been more careful? I trusted him, your inner child seems to wail. You rub your eyes, forcing away the tears pricking there. You had tried to let it go time and time again, had even tried to apologize for over reacting. It just ended in a fight.

“Hey, kid! Happy birthday,” Jake rasps, wrapping you in a hug. He had already done this earlier, but you assume he could sense your discomfort with Daniel no longer occupying your vision.

“Thanks. 23, I’m a quarter of the way to 30, woo!” You tease, holding your hands up in mock celebration before dropping them around him in a tight hug, pouring your gratitude into it.

Jake laughs, giving you a squeeze as if to say ‘I feel you. You’re not alone.’ He pulls back, his hands holding your biceps at arms length. “Let’s look at you,” he says in his Oliver Reed accent, “Yes, wonderful. Your working out to be a fine human being, darling. We’re grateful to have you.”

The comment makes you misty eyed and the laugh that follows is watery as you muster an “Aw. Thank you,” wiping away a few errant tears.

What you don’t see is how Daniel’s jaw clenches and his shoulders tense. A muscle in his cheek twitches as he watches the scene as discretely as he can manage.

Jake notices, but doesn’t call attention, just pulls you forward to press a brotherly kiss to your forehead. “You’ll always be family and we’re lucky for having met you,” he leans in whispering, “even Daniel,” turns on his heel and marches away to torment his twin.

A hiccup of surprise works it’s way out of you and you almost feel MORE surprised at that than Jake’s brazenness. You mull it over a moment more then file it away for later, deciding it was time to talk to Sam. Taking a couple deep breaths you make your way over. This has been the closest you and Daniel have been since the day.

“Break a leg, guys,” your voice is firm and encouraging much to all three of you’s surprise. You even manage a small smile and an awkward wave at Danny. Without waiting to hear them respond, you breeze off to take your place at the barricade.

The guy’s security guard leads you out to be in front of the barricade and the crowd screams excitedly. You wave and say ‘Hi’ taking pictures of the crowd and capturing their excitement and anticipation.

It’s not long before the guys are running on and the curtain is dropping. You capture some of Josh’s theatrics and Jake’s sweet smiles to people in the crowd, even manage to snag a couple good ones of Sammy interacting with the crowd.

You attempt to snap a couple of Danny from the pit but they never turn out right. All of them are blurry or over saturated. Cursing you snatch up your equipment and run around to the side to climb on stage just in time for the drum solo to begin.

You’d watched Danny do this quite a bit now, but something about tonight was different. Like he has something to say that he can’t formulate in words. He plays like he has something to prove and it’s a mesmerizing sight.

Keeping the camera to your eyes you move around snapping tens if not hundreds of pictures of Daniel in his element, doing what he loves. You don’t worry about checking them now, looking at them could mean missing a good shot.

The entire solo is captured on your SD card and you take a big breath as you realize just how much you’re gonna have to sift through tonight. Laughing you just happen to see the last picture you captured out of the corner of your eye before the preview disappears. Gasping you fumble with your camera, pulling up the gallery and selecting the last one.

You’re convinced you will never capture another photo more beautiful in your life. Daniel is standing after his solo, a proud smile on his face. He looks so overjoyed… and absolutely fucking jacked, holy shit.

Your jaw drops and you pull the camera a little closer to check that it’s actually there when Josh clears his throat, scaring you.

“You’re standing in my spot. Don’t you know the stage is all mine,” he teases, smirking knowingly.

“Shut up,” you mumble, scurrying away to take pictures of Sammy at his piano.

The rest of the set rushes by fast and before you know it the boys are saying goodbye and heading back. You snap some sweet moments between the boys and the fans, dropping your camera to hang around your neck as you follow them back towards the green room.

You’re about to reach the end of the barricade when some guy grabs your camera strap. He’s drunk and belligerent and clearly oblivious to the fact his grip on your camera is choking you. He’s slurring and drawling about how you’re the prettiest person he’s ever seen and he hopes you’re single cause he wants you.

Arms flailing, hands slapping at the man, trying desperately to loosen his grip you feel your head begin to swim and black pricks at your vision, then suddenly gravity takes hold and your gasping and spluttering in the floor.

Shuffling and yelling sounds around you and you curl up a little trying to stay out of the way as you cough and regain your breath. You hear the sound of bone and flesh meeting bone and flesh and a pained grunt followed by angry yells and exclamations of support for the person who threw the punch.

Just as you’re getting your bearings they’re torn away again as you’re lifted up and cradled in someone’s arms. Looking around you gasp when you see a mess of curls. “Daniel, what are-“

“Shut up,” he grunts. Seventeen years he hasn’t spoken to you and the first time he does it something so very…

“Rude,” you grumble, “I almost died. Least you could do is treat me with better bedside manner,”

Daniel snorts, shaking his head. He looks down in a way that causes his hair to obscure his face from where you are in his arms. “You okay?” He asks simply.

Taking a moment to assess your current state you immediately have a panic attack as the adrenaline finally wears off, tears begin to stream down your face as sobs tear through you. Your hands clutch at Daniel like you’re falling and you’re scared.

“There it is,” Danny cradles you tighter, glaring at anyone who tries to get in his way. He finds the first empty room and closes the door pressing his back up against it. He slides down it, maneuvering you so you’re sitting up, face buried in his neck. “Let it out. You’re safe,” he whispers, dropping a kiss to your head. “Breathe.”

His hand rubs your back in soothing circles and he breathes in and out slowly and methodically until you begin mimicking his actions. “Good,” he coos, patting your back.

You realize the room you’re in is a dark closet and you silently thank Daniel for finding the one place you’d feel most comfortable in this situation. Sitting up you take a bigger, deeper breath. It’s shaky and a little sob leaves in the exhale, but it’s stronger.

Danny watches you closely, making sure you’re coming out of it okay. “How are you feeling?”

You shrug, slipping from his lap and to the floor a little bit away from him, picking at your nails, “Like something traumatic just happened and the one person I wanted in that moment was the one person who got to me quickest.” It’s scary to admit, but it feels freeing.

Daniel smiles at you softly for the first time in almost 2 decades, remembering some far off time -a time just like this a million years ago when a curly haired, brown eyed asshole found you hiding from the fireworks and held you much like he had tonight. “I’ve missed you,” he whispers, barely audible and you would have missed it if you weren’t centimeters from him.

Two paths stretch out in front of you. You appraise both choices and choose the one you’ve been passing up for too long now. Fuck it. It’s my birthday, you think. “I’ve missed you too.”

Daniel laughs in relief and you find yourself laughing as the weight lifts off you to. It’s not gone, but it isn’t so hard to bear on two sets of shoulders.

✨Masterlist✨

[girlactionfigure]

ISRAEL REALTIME — war updates 19:45 Oct. 23

— HOSTAGE NEGOTIATION?  An Israeli source confirms: Qatar is working significantly to bring about a hostage deal with Hamas. (Yaron Avraham, N12). The White House spokesman for national security affairs, John Kirby, refused to answer the question about negotiations with Qatar on the release of additional abductees. Kirby said of the abductees: "Hamas should release all the abductees.”

— FOREIGN HOSTAGES TO BE RELEASED? A site “BahaNews” wrote, A number of foreign hostages who have been reportedly held by Hamas since October 7 are expected to be released "within hours," sources told Al Arabiya on Monday. ((I could not find this on the Al Arabiya English web site.))

Earlier today, The New York Times reported, citing information from an unnamed Israeli official, that the Palestinian genocidal group might release an additional 50 hostages with dual citizenship following extensive discussions between the United States and Qatar.

— AN ECONOMIST CORRECTS… a reader who is an economist wrote, “Higher interest rates keep the sheqel strong as you said. BUT that KEEPS PRICES FROM GOING UP! You wrote the opposite.”  Does it lock in the current pricing, keeping it from getting worse? “Yes.  And higher interest also makes borrowing dearer. Economics is a weird thing.”

— TAX AUTHORITY… Some reporting and payments may be delayed until March 31, 2024. The decision was made due to the war.  Contact the authority.

— NORWAY THREATENS… The Norwegian Foreign Minister stated that Norway is "ready to assist in the investigation of war crimes in Israel and Gaza”.

— POLITICS… Chairman of the Labor Party, MK Merav Michaeli: "Netanyahu needs to be replaced immediately. Not tomorrow and not after the campaign - immediately. Not only is it possible - it is necessary"

— KIRYAT GAT, RELATIVELY CLOSE TO GAZA… is gradually bringing back classes in kindergartens and elementary schools in the city. The daycare centers and kindergartens will open on Wednesday in an emergency format and the elementary schools will open tomorrow, also in an emergency format. High schools will continue to operate online only.

— PLANS AND PERMISSION FOR HORROR (gruesome warning)… The IDF published excerpts from an interrogation conducted with a Hamas terrorist who participated in the attack on Kibbutz Alumim and was captured by the security forces. During the investigation, the terrorist revealed that the terrorists received permission to commit atrocities, including religious legal instruction: "The plan was to go from house to house, from room to room, throw grenades and kill everyone, including women and children." The terrorist also confessed that Hamas approved abusing bodies and even dismembering them.  (N12 Nir Debori)

[lilacthebooklover]

Lily Headcanons :]

Lily is one of my favourite Kindergarten characters, and I have so many little hcs around her that I'd like to share!

Even after her mission in K1 and Billy being rescued, she still suffers from some depression and a lot of self-esteem issues as a result of Cindy's bullying. She's working on it, and Billy's always happy to help, but her self-worth is... Not great

Her favourite Monstermon card is the Castle of Sand: "built on the beach during low tide, it refused to die when the water came". She's been dealt a really rough lot in life, but she's kept going all the same. This card isn't particularly rare, or anything overly showy & magnificent, but she likes what it stands for (protection, resilience, hope) [:

Her father is a single parent, often overrun with work and so doesn't have much time to spend with her. He's pretty absent, and Lily believes that she has to be independent and capable all of the time as a result- especially to protect Billy after she found him under the school. She often has an inflated sense of maturity, forgetting that she is, in fact, a child

She really likes watermelon. Watermelon ice pops, watermelon sweets, just plain old watermelon

Lily loves organising midnight feasts. Without her dad at home, she's able to raid the house for snacks as much as she likes, and often enjoys piecing together little selections of candy

Leading on from that, Lily has a big sweet tooth. Cindy's comments about her weight started to get under her skin after a while, but donuts are her guilty pleasure :)

When she gets older, she learns how to play the flute. I just see her as a flutist tbh

She's always wanted to be a detective, Billy acting as her assistant as they solve little mysteries around school. If there's something to be solved, she's the first to know!

Lily's very observant and very, very stubborn. When she sets her mind to something, she is doing it, no matter how much time and effort it takes. She's efficient and intelligent, and while she's unable to read, she's very good at planning

Her morals are... A bit iffy. She has a strong idea of good and bad, not afraid to cross into the middle territory if the outcome remains good overall, and she's been rather desensitised to death over the years thanks to the world that she lives in

She's not very good at handling affection, often pushing people away when they try to reach out. When she's close with someone, she's exceptionally so, and struggles with trusting everyone else. That's why she's only close with Billy throughout and partially why it was so upsetting that Nugget would seemingly betray someone who trusted him so much by withholding info about Billy

She gets a pet hamster and names it Fluffy because she's 5 and deserves a hamster named Fluffy

Hoodies are her favourite thing to wear, but after Billy went missing, she couldn't bear to touch any of her own, switching to dresses while he was gone (partially thanks to Cindy's influence)

Lily is the older twin. She gives off such older sibling vibes and Billy the opposite. She's responsible and chaotic and cares about her bro and is so exasperated by him at the same time

While good at planning, Lily has a tendency to be a bit reckless, not really regarding her own life as very valuable anymore

Her favourite flavour of ice cream is mint choc chip :)

She's really good at sports. Hockey, long-distance running, swimming, etc. Even dodgeball!

Lily finds it much easier to stick up to adults than she does to people her own age. She can certainly hold her own, but her self-worth issues sometimes make it hard to confront people (especially Cindy) head-on

She and Carla would be really good friends. They can commit crime, stand coolly in the background and sigh at what idiots everyone else is together <3

She's very good at keeping secrets. She likes to know everything she can to stay one step ahead of the game, and not all of that is something she can just spill at random

And that's all for now lol. She's an awesome character and I always love writing her- I'd love to see anyone else's headcanons for her! :D

[hearts401]

fatui sleepover

 fatui telling each other secrets

 fatui family

 fatui bullshit

 fatui beachday

 fatui roadtrip

 fatui plays soccer

 fatui goes to the movies

 fatui goes shopping

 fatui goes to the mall

 fatui goes to the pool

 fatui sightseeing

 fatui tourism

 fatui gets arrested together

 fatui locked in a closet together

 fatui caving

 fatui eating dinner

 fatui thanksgiving

 fatui christmas

 fatui halloween

 fatui easter

 fatui mass murder

 fatui conga line

 fatui field day

 fatui kindergarten

 fatui argument :O

 fatui detectives

 fatui explodes

 fatui dies

 fatui kiss and hold hands

 fatui stack

 fatui huddle

 fatui snuggles

 fatui watches a horror movie

fatui watches a sad movie :(

fatui watches a romance movie

fatui compare ages

 fatui pride month

 fatui make fun of childe for being the little brother

 fatui commiting heinous crimes

 fatui watches hatchiko waits :(((

 fatui watches a dogs purpose

 fatui matchmakers

 fatui BATTLE

 fatui apologize

 fatui recieves a noise complaint

 fatui apologize harder

 fatui slip and fall

 fatui hiking

 fatui sneak attack

 fatui spin the bottle

 fatui kiss childe but he rejects a few (but who?)

 fatui yuri

 fatui yaoi

 fatui doomed yuri

 fatui doomed yaoi

 fatui straight people

 fatui zestfest

 fatui FAGGOTS

 fatui apologize and clarify they are allowed to say faggot

 fatui injured :,O

 fatui sleep pile

 fatui stack number two but they put childe on the bottom

 fatui me my collegues and our other collegues 7 foot whale plushie

 fatui exchange plushies

 fatui valentine's day

 fatui consensual workplace relationship

 fatui hatecrime straight people

 fatui pledge allegiance to the tsaritsa

 fatui DRAMA 

 fatui chaos

 fatui sleep

 fatui go on a trip

 fatui split up

 fatui apologize

 fatui hold hands

 fatui kicks dottore out

 fatui dottore comes back anyways

 fatui childe battles a small child

 fatui childe loses

 fatui in fontaine

 fatui in mondstadt

fatui in inazuma

 fatui. is missing someone :(

 fatui grieving

 fatui nobody cares tho bc this is my fatui and signora doesnt actually die

 fatui in sumeru

 fatui sued by dendro archon

 fatui in fontaine

 fatui detained for questioning

 fatui in giant pool

 fatui in natlan

 fatui takes a break

 fatui swim

 fatui. fatui. fatui. i chant. there they are behind me. TGHE FATUI

 i have no more ive used all the fatui ideas i have

 fatui baseball

 fatui football

 fatui childe injures someone got too excited over getting to tackle his coworkers

 fatui childe is benched

 fatui they let him back in bc they get their asses kicked

 fatui sells girlscout cookies

 fatui door to door

 fatui putting up missing posters

 fatui cat is missing

 fatui find their car

 fatui cat in sumeru trying to basically kill himself

 fatui bring their cat back

 fatui lose their minds

 fatui let dottore make dinner

 fatui decides that was a bad idea and ban him from the kitchen

 fatui gets food poisoning

 fatui doesnt know if its intentional or not but theyre not taking chances

 fatui makeout session

fatui gets cockblocked by dottore

fatui tries to matchmake dottore so he’ll leave them tf alone

fatui fails dottore is more interested in tehir relationships than one of his own

fatui tries using some of their own to date dottore

fatui childe refuses

fatui scara refuses

fatui arlecchino refuses

fatui pierro refused

fatui signora refuses

fatui dottore 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 and 10 refuses

fatui childe finds a weasel

fatui childe gets bit

fatui ask each other about their crushes

fatui childe comes out (none of the fatui are surprised except scara and columbina)

fatui scara doesnt come out the closet is glass and the door is wide open

fatui period sync up

fatui period cramps

fatui soaked in blood and making out ooooouaghu

fatui take a bath

fatui clean

fatui make out

fatui make out

fatui make out

fatui make out

fatui make out

fatui make out

fatui covered in blood

fatui and make out

[i-was-told-to-make-a-sideblog]

BBC one Wolf First impressions

I wrote this to my friends the night after finishing it and I'm just copy pasting it here. Might add on to it later.

Just finished watching wolf from BBC one and this show is fun but has some really bizarre morals. I like how the show makes you feel like you're getting there and then turning it in a different direction with more clues and the characters are quite fun. But like it feels like it's written by a guy who doesn't know anything. Like there's a mention of cancel culture and it's like ?? But mostly that it's just got strange morals.

It's similar to other types of cop shows where they try and be like wow the higher ups in the police force are corrupt and they don't want the truth which is true but in the same breath try and cover for this guy who is doing blatantly illegal things at every other step of the investigation. Threatening to expose someone on social media, dislocating a guys arm, breaking a window, 0 permit investigation (though maybe that's an American thing, idk I don't know the law), threatening to drown a guy. And this is all portrayed as part of the process of an investigation without question. Like it's just saying that police brutality is ok.

And then the end of it the conclusion of the show is just we should be able to lock up people without evidence and without them committing a crime. Like they show the guy who got falsely arrested for the murder and he was talking about him having bad thoughts and sitting around a kindergarten and daydreaming about abducting them. And the reaction from the lady who interrogated him first was that people like him should go to jail. Like that's a normal reaction to have but obviously you can't do that. You can make provisions to keep children safe from any individuals but you can't arrest someone without any actual crime. And then in the final sequence of the show they talk about how this could have ended sooner, and they show that guy again to suggest that he should have been preemptively arrested.

And the actual killers are just portrayed as giggly unredeemable people. I mean sure some people are just cruel but let's be realistic they're not born this way. The person is just shown as an evil child who got sent to a mental hospital and became eviler and partnered up with an evil guy and blah blah blah. Like it's set up in a way that's trying to tell you that some people are just naturally evil and there's nothing you can do but arrest them on the slightest amount of suspicion. In the same show where they try and pretend to care about race by calling someone white.

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

Anyway TL;DR BBC one Wolf is copaganda, aside from that it's a fun show. Is gory though, shows intestines.

[hyunverse]

hiiiii moots x skz book tropes pls

AHH THIS ONE’S UNIQUE, I LOVE!! here’s me quite literally writing a whole fanfic plot

1) @hwajin + hyunjin — and there was only one bed. . . trope. they would go on a staycation (platonically) and one of ‘em would mess up the hotel reservations thus leading to only one room aka one bed being available. (hyunjin’s 100% the one to mess up, he’s 1/3 of baboracha for a reason.) i can see them arguing over who gets the bed EVENTHOUGH IT’S LITERALLY KING SIZED ‘N THEY CAN SHARE. would definitely end up sleeping at the edges of the beds, not facing each other 😭 and then fall in love overnight. it got cold so they probably had to get close or some shit. then wound up talking abt their lonely love lives and Boom. they date. slay.

2) @jkefelx + jeongin — classic bumps-into-each-other-in-university trope. we’ve got kana darling rushing to a class and jeongin walking while being on the phone and Tada. . . they Bump into each other then all their books fall so they both scramble to gather them awkwardly but Wait. . . two hands graze each other’s. gasp! the act gets them both shy. shy enough to accidentally swap books. what happens then??? jeongin’s book just happened to have his number in it so wooo, kana calls it and then the rest is history. 🤸‍♀

3) @starlostseungmin + felix — childhood best friends to lovers with a twist. listen. Hear Me Out. i feel like keisy suits the whole pining, slowburn trope. felix as well! they’d be kindergarten friends who got separated once felix moves and then they meet each other in a 💫 fated reunion 💫 therefore all memories rush back or some shit like that 😭 “i’ve never forgotten you” “me neither” (plays the ouran high school host club theme song) 🎶 kiss kiss fall in love yeahh 🎶

4) @zoe8stay + bang chan — blind date trope. look. they’re both busy people. frankly, they’ve got no time to date. . . which leads to jisung practically blackmailing bang chan to go out on a date with this beautiful person he happens to know (you can’t tell me that jisung wouldn’t do this shit.) so chan goes, not expecting much out of it only to end up enjoying the date. idk how but he tolerates zoe’s love for mint choco ice cream (yes i’ll bring this up ‘til the day i die.) one date turns to three turns to five turns to a committed relationship. zoe’s happy, chan’s happy and jisung’s happy!!!

5) @comet-falls + minho — enemies to friends to lovers. i feel like they’d despise each other at first over some trivial thing. then they’d find out that they have something in common (which is wreaking chaos) so they become partners in crime. somewhere along the way it’d turn into something romantic. 💏

6) @asters-abditory + changbin — classic seven minutes in heaven trope. . . except it’s nothing sexual. i feel like within those seven minutes, they’d wound up having a wholeass deep talk. changbin would say something that’s funny and somehow it turns into a talk about their life??? but not the type of talk that makes you cry. it’s light-hearted, yet meaningful and sprinkled with jokes in between. both changbin and aster are the chill type, but with some chaos in between u get me? people would leave them in the closet thinking some nasty shit is going on but it’s a deep talk instead 💀

7) @milkybonya + jisung — the-extrovert-adopts-the-introvert trope! i’m aware that han is an introvert, but on the surface, he’s the life of the party. he enjoys talking to new people, and i feel like he’d get intrigued by quiet people. milky’s a very sweet person, someone laid back who i feel like at a party, they’d stay on a sofa and just watch while relaxing. i feel like jisung would get attracted by that! mans would end up trying to impress milky for hours 😟

8) @starseungs + seungmin — academic rivals to lovers. ah, the two excellent students in class gets paired for a project. they’d argue here and there (it’s mostly seungmin provoking for fun) and in return, cielle would accidentally fuel into seungmin’s need to provoke??? cielle’s just making remarks that’s supposed to be funny but seungmin takes it Seriously and ends up roasting cielle 😭 it becomes a roasting battle. (which is basically a ticket to seungmin’s heatt tbh) they’re both your typical chaotic duo, it’s entertaining.

[barnbridges]

If you shared any thoughts you had on the twins as children/their childhood I'd commit unspeakable crimes for you

if you asked....

TW: mentions of sexual assault, mentions of eating disorders, religious trauma ;

Charles' first taste of guilt was that it was for him and him alone that Camilla was brought into the world. His father wanted a son to name after himself and pawn off to his mother, and their mother wanted a ride home on a winter night. Camilla came out first and screaming and left their father angry, to where he missed Charles' birth getting fucked up at the bar. They were named Charles Lycurgus IV and Camilla Róisín by their Pop and Nana, with vague agreements from their parents and maternal aunt.

Senator Charles Lycurgus Macaulay III got sworn into office a couple of days after the birth of his children, and was off to DC more than he was ever at home. Cecelia Macaulay was a girl herself at 17 and read them Oliver Twist to both lull them and sleep herself. She never wanted to go to DC. Her 17th birthday she debated if she wanted to go to Rutgens or Columbia, her 18th birthday had her two children in pretty pink onesies in attendance. The picture of the 3 of them with "Momma, Mille and Lee" neatly scribbled atop it used to rest at Charles' desk at the Childhood Education Center.

Their aunt Minerva was kicked out of the funeral for announcing her pregnancy at the service. It's why she even tried to fight for custody, a bit of spite (a bit of trying to bring her last surviving brother back, the one she lost way before he was dead). Mary Gray Addelson was not there to listen to the Macaulay dramatics of any of it. They sort of got forgotten in a room with cousin Catie and Miss Louvinia from Charlotte, but who could blame someone of sparing such small children the sight of their dead parents. They brought Camilla in to throw a fistful of dirt, Charles was asleep.

They were miss Mille and mister Lee before anyone realized how and why, they just grew into the nicknames and never wondered. "Lala" and "Charlie" never stuck besides on old kindergarten clothes with dirty labels.

Pop tried taking on teaching them to read, but was too blind for Ma's ripped paperbacks of Twain and Fitzgerald that she brought with her from South Carolina when moving in. Ultimately, it was miss Minerva they telegraphed from Roanoke to spend the hours reading to them so they could learn to speak. Camilla's first word was "bear", Charles' was "please". They began speaking with others at age 3.

Birthdays were always spent with aunt Minerva and cousin Jay, usually the most memorable part being the drive from Virginia to South Carolina. Aunt Minnie has never been mean to them, but there has always been a cold air between the pictures of the blonde woman and the three children she's walking around the amusement parks. The neighbor's cats made the children happy, at least.

Charles bit cousin Jay's finger at Christmas when he was 5 and Jay was 4 for trying to climb into bed with Nana, it makes her sad. Aunt Minnie left in a ruckus and Pop took up smoking again. It's called the incident, and they don't discuss it to the day.

The majority of Macaulays are blond with dark blue eyes, it was their mother Cee who had iron grey eyes and mousey brown hair. Charles doesn't want to admit he feels he desecrates her by bleaching his. It's a knot in Charles' throat that Camilla and Jay look too much like aunt Minerva and father at their age that never leaves, no matter how old they are.

Camilla was always Pop's favorite, picking him wildflowers and listening in while he gardened. For their 13th birthday, he gave Camilla Father's signet ring, the C III turned into a CM. Pop taught her to read in French and took her to singing lessons with miss Petunia Bell, the old lady of the town. Charles loved helping grandma in the kitchen when he was small, but eventually was kicked out because it was not a man's job.

Mawmaw stabbed Pawpaw and herself before they were even born, but from Mother's side of the family, they did meet Mary Gray and Ormie, back then a junior at Williams. Ormie was cozy with the uncles and bought Nana chocolates from when he went to Europe for a summer. Miss Catie or Cousin Lalie always snickered behind the back of the awkwardness of Mary Gray's smoking problem, she's always been less about the colors of azaleas and more on the drinking bar.

Charles painted Camilla's nails since grandma's hands began shaking too badly to keep up the perfect glazy pink. They always ended up chipped within the hour, but it became a ritual. Aunt Mary Gray showed up to their confirmation dinner a bit springy but with a tiny box of lacquers and a bigger box of mini bottles, and both ended up in Charles' side of the room.

They spent one summer with Ormie's folks at Cape Cod, some folk endeared by that Charles could butcher Gaelic and sharply calls her Roe if she walks too far ahead of him. He called Minnie to pick them up within three days.

It was aunt Minnie who taught them Greek on a whim, gardening with Camilla on a Saturnday and mumbling lowly about mandrakes and the Greek superstitions. The knowledge of names of pill bottles long expired from the long-since closed cabinet of Dr. Constance Minerva Macaulay herself, bits and pieces on herbs and Latin superstitions. The Last July she even drove Pop from Virginia to spend a couple of weeks with the three of them grandkids in the dirt of the garden in Gable, a stick's throw away from Charleston. He'd die less than 2 weeks after they are back in Virginia, but it was not a surprise for anyone. Charles Macaulay Jr had been a good man, but it was time he joined his son and daughter in law.

Charles took it worst, already a child seemingly without rest or purpose beyond walking behind his sister's skirt or talking up aunties, just rapidly free-fell. He stopped eating at first, and even Camilla couldn't get through to him. He studied his Greek and his Latin and flowers and closed himself off to their prodding eyes. He began sleeping in the attic, leaving the little shared childhood bedroom with only Camilla's bed touched for months. Neither Orman nor Mary Gray, even the cries of Jay scratching at the doors really did much, "he is possessed". They called a priest.

It was about salvation and confession, and things Charles whispered behind the attic door to a face unseen, that made him finally get out and face them once. The Father held his hand as he went down to eat something besides dried flowers and moldy crackers for the first time in weeks and brushed his hair for him. Charles began going to church, dragging Camilla wordlessly with him. He began playing the organ then. The piano came later, with Mrs Carter from church asking if he cared perhaps for her son's confirmation. He never learned to read notes proper, but his hands played fast.

He was a youth pastor at the local church fast, a story to smile at politely when old ladies began clinging to him about it. Camilla never quite understood his comfort in the crowds of them, but it made it easier to forget and live on. He did not go to either Minnie or Mary Gray for the summer, choosing to stay in Virginia with Nana and the church.

By the beginning of July, Nana called Camilla back and paid for her ticket from Boston, Lee was sick again. They never get to why, and Camilla knows better than to ask. He chewed at wallpaper and shaved his head, he tried to sign up for the military, he pulled a gun on another pastor. He began drinking for the first time. While he was calm, it was Minerva who called, face white and hands shaking, that the Institute for Troubled Youth of Something Something take him, no matter the price. Charles was in Nevada, undergoing Christian wilderness therapy for the evils in less than a fortnight. Camilla told their aunt he's never speaking to her again.

Survive the wilderness Charles did, but vacant doesn't begin to describe it. He came back thinner than he left, gaunt and prone to fevers and wild swings. Nana tried taking him to the doctor's but he never listened. He too, never would step foot in South Carolina again.

[Part 2]

[msfbgraves]

gross question but in knights is rape culture a thing? like, was daniel/omegas taught/warned that their mated alphas still could potentially commit marital rape? or alphas, mated or not, could ‘snap’ and attack them in this way? is marital rape considered actual rape in this verse or ‘an alpha’s right?’

As in our world, that depends entirely on whom you ask. I think there are jokes like "That Alpha is so obnoxious, please can someone get them a mate," with other people going: "Forget mate, they need an omega!" And omegas are warned that they "shouldn't neglect their mate, because they can go like, *whistles*, you know," and when omegas ask it's like: "Don't worry, one smile and they'll eat out of your hand." It's accepted that Alphas need omegas around to "keep them right" whatever that means. It's accepted too that Alphas use omegas to "channel their instincts" (calm down or, and no one would ever say this, fuck it out) but it's considered incredibly unnatural for Alphas to hurt their mate, which doesn't make sense, and it's all considered impolite to talk about so that doesn't help matters. And wether or not they see it as a legal crime, Daniel can't go to the police he'd need a new indentity. His whole family is steeped in crime. That point is moot! Given how recent the legislation against marital rape is and how omegas usually stick to the domestic sphere it isn't a legal crime I don't think but certainly seen as a moral one. In the same sense that, in Peaky Blinders, for the Shelbys killing was part of their life but killing your kindergarten teacher is simply wrong, everyone fookin' knows that, Tommy!