#i imagine him going to a game eventually once hes a bit older and it finally hits him

[polymatthews]

I think Cory's real gay awakening would've been having a huge crush on one of his favorite baseball players

[sorceresssundries]

Gale sketches by @orangekittyenergy <3

CHAPTER 1 (of 2)

LINK TO CHAPTER 2 - NSFW

Pairing: Gale x Fem Tav

Summary: Set post-game where Tav did not feature in Gale's troubles in Baldur's Gate. A whip-cracking, fedora wearing, Indiana Jones inspired mini-adventure - where Professor Dekarios is tempted out of the classroom, and on yet another perilous quest. (Chapter 2 out soon)

Warnings: Chapter 1 is SFW, Chapter 2... less so.

Word Count: 3.3k

A/N: Just a bit of a fun based on the Gale as Indiana comparisons. Also, he looks like a young Harrison Ford, how could I not? This is not the stuff I'm used to writing! But it's been enjoyable and nice to try something new.

Her forest was dying. Thaes’yána, a sacred patch of overgrowth within Elltavia’s home, had been under protection for so long that the Rangers of the forest no longer knew the reason why. Its guardianship had been passed down from mother to daughter for generations, and all Elltavia had known since being a girl was that entry was forbidden, and it was to be protected from outsiders. 

But now, an arcane rot had settled deep within, and was infecting further and further outside of its bounds. Animals, once serene, were being driven to madness if they got too close for too long. Among the forest-dwellers, whispers of unrest travelled, tales of violence and theft staining the once peaceful community. The responsibility had fallen to her to find help, and she had travelled far to ensure she got it. Just like her beloved forest, if the end was near, she would not be going gently. 

Her quest had led her somewhere unexpected, to the shadowy recesses of a sprawling lecture hall. She was nestled in the farthest corner, seeking refuge from the professor's unrelenting enthusiasm. From her observations, his class appeared to cleave into two distinct factions: the diligent scribes, feverishly scribbling down every word that spilled from his lips, struggling to keep pace with his monologuing, and the other group, who seemed utterly disinterested in the lecture material. Their pens lay dormant as they indulged in a different kind of attention; lingering onto his every subtle gesture and every inflection in his voice with wide-eyed fascination. There were a number of Tieflings in the class whose tails were swishing with telling enthusiasm. She imagined if she looked into their notepads, they would be laden with love hearts and romantic doodles.

She knew who Gale Dekarios was, of course. Word travelled, especially when one had command over birds to receive and deliver news from across the realm. Even as far away as she had been from the chaos and fire of Baldur’s Gate - she had taken up moonlit vigil to pray to Mielekki that the heroes' aim be true and their hope evergreen. And now she was sitting here, staring impatiently at one of the very people who had pervaded her prayers. He was more… academic that she’d expected, in his tweed blazer and bow tie. Rounded glasses perched on his nose, occasionally slipping down during moments of particular ardour, prompting him to deftly push them back up with his finger. 

His talking seemed to go on for an extraordinary amount of time, but maybe it just seemed that way because she could feel each precious second slip through her fingers like burning sand. Eventually, the class poured out with a mixture of yawns and giggles and she approached his desk as he scribbled frantically on the blackboard.

“Your dates are wrong.” she said. He flinched slightly, making the chalk jump.He sighed and wiped away his slip, having lost his train of thought. 

“Excuse me?” He turned to face her, his scholarly face frowning and making the lines between his eyes more pronounced. He looked much older when he was frustrated, she thought with amusement. 

She pointed at his scribbles; “The fighting ended in 1421 sure, but the peace treaty wasn’t finalised until the following year.” Her eyes met his, and she was struck by the depth of them. “You may want to correct your students' next lecture. Well… the ones who were actually taking notes.” 

She briefly cast her eyes over the picture frames on his desk. There was one of a formal looking woman with his tanned skin and warm eyes sitting on a sunlit balcony by the sea, and another of an unimpressed looking Tressym perched atop a pile of books.

It was the larger group photo that caught her attention, frozen in a moment of chaos.

In the centre of the frame, a flame-red Tiefling woman was mid-laughter, proudly displaying a crudely drawn portrait of a white-haired elf, the illustration nestling within an odd-shaped gap amongst the group. Behind her, a slight woman with a silver braid, was in the midst of being lifted by a huge, tattooed wood-elf, their collaborative efforts evident in their attempt to fit her into the picture. Next to them, an older woman in druid armour gestured animatedly, seemingly scolding a large, bald man who was earnestly attempting to position what appeared to be a hamster at the forefront of the group. Meanwhile, Gale, with his finger poised mid-sentence, was engaged in conversation with a handsome, horned man who stood with arms folded, seemingly annoyed. Amidst the chaos, only a Githyanki woman remained composed, her unsmiling gaze fixed directly on the camera, unaffected by the surrounding mayhem.

They were the heroes she had seen in the papers, but here they looked less like champions of the Gate and more like a dysfunctional, loving family. She much preferred this version of them. 

“I was not aware I was being monitored today.” He took in her appearance, her dark braided hair was pulled up and away from her face, and she wore travelling robes and a worn cloak. She definitely wasn’t an academic, he thought. Though she certainly seemed knowledgeable on history. Her eyes looked much older than she did - They were the colour of summer leaves slipping into autumn and sparkled when she spoke. With her being an elf, it made sense that she was probably a lot older than she appeared. 

“How can I help you, miss…” 

“Elltavia Kidd’Alka.” Her tone was brusk, efficient. “I won’t waste time with small-talk. I’m here to request some assistance on an urgent matter.” 

He sighed and rubbed his forehead, as though this was a regular interruption to his workday. “Ah, well you can tell the guild..

“I’m not with the guild.”

His frown deepened, “Fine, the harpers…”

“Nope, not them either.” 

“Then please Miss Kidd… 

“I’m a ranger stationed in the High Forest. My home is being infected by a blight which threatens the lives of many who live there.  It is believed the cause is of arcane origin. I need your help to fix it.” She dumped a heavy, jangling pouch on his desk. “I think you’ll find this should be adequate payment.”

This woman did not mess around, he thought. She was refreshing, although he would probably like her more if she actually let him speak.

“I am a professor, not a hireling. I’m afraid I cannot help.”

“Completely understandable, Professor.” She offered warmly “After everything you’ve been through I can understand why you would prefer a quieter, more relaxed lifestyle. Besides…” She said with an exaggerated, compassionate sigh. “You’re not getting any younger.”

This appeared to have touched a nerve. “Listen, Miss Kidd’Alka - I'm sorry for your troubles, but my answer is no. Now if you’d excuse me, I have much to do before my next class. Apparently my dates need amending” He gestured with his arm for her to leave, and she tilted her head with curiosity. She was enjoying him flustered, and she did not move.

“You must feel very lucky to have such a comfortable position here at the academy. Especially with the influx of ancient artefacts that have been added to its custodianship since your arrival.” Her lips tilted at the sudden stiffening of his posture.

He remained silent, eyes narrowing as she sat down in his chair and put her muddy boots up on his desk. She removed a knife from a strap at her thigh, flashing her toned, supple skin and began to peel an apple which had been left for him by a particularly devoted student. He felt a familiar, but dusty feeling stir within him at the flash of her leg. His hand automatically flew to his chest, before remembering that was no longer necessary. Old scars run deep.

“It’s so strange how the discovery of these artefacts always seems to coincide with your sabbatical leave.” Her tone was playful, innocent, but her eyes were mischievous. She slowly let the peel fall away, her blade so sharp she barely had to stroke the fruit with the edge of it. She wasn’t even looking at what she was doing, her gaze was fixed fiercely on him. 

“Your implication is wasted here, I can assure you.”

“My apologies, Professor Dekarios. I meant no disrespect.” She took a sharp bite of the piece of apple speared at the end of her knife, and he watched with fascination and derision as she swallowed, the juice trickling down to her chin. “I just thought the rumoured artefact causing the problem may be of interest to you and your academy. But, never mind. I hear there’s a ex-Sharran cleric who is fond of adventuring, maybe she can help me out.” She could practically hear the thoughts bouncing around in his head as she stood up to leave. 

She was almost at the door when he gave a loud sigh. 

“Wait. Take a seat. I’ll see if I can get my lectures covered.”

She turned to grin at him, and threw the rest of the apple across the room and into a bin with alarming accuracy.

“Leave some milk out for your cat, professor. You may be gone a while.”

The journey back to her forest had been arduous, mainly down to the fact Gale could not get the elvish pronunciation of her name right and so had resorted to calling her ‘Kidd.’ Frustrating for a woman who was one hundred and forty years older than him. Luckily, his useful knack for teleportation meant that at least the journey was shorter than expected. 

They made it to the forest by the following morning, and Elltavia finally relaxed as the sound of songbirds and swishing trees soothed her tired feet and weary soul. She was home again. The plush canopy above them provided respite from the sun, but not the heat, and it wasn’t long into their journey before Gale had switched his slightly faded wizard’s robes into something more appropriate. 

He now wore a loose, tan coloured shirt, unbuttoned enough to display a smattering of chest hair and what looked like a faded, circular scar. His tight brown trousers were tucked into leather boots held up by a belt laden with supplies and potions, and he had a satchel slung over his shoulders. Atop his head was a weather beaten fedora. Typically, she was not a fan of men in fedoras, but the way it kept his hair back off his face and shaded his handsome features was an unexpected and pleasant contradiction to the professor she had first met. But, it was the sinuous coil of a whip holstered at his side, its braided leather worn smooth by countless flicks and flourishes, that caught Tav’s attention the most. 

“A whip?” She asked curiously, trying not to let any of the thoughts it inspired creep into her voice.

“An enchanted whip.” He replied smugly. “Much more useful than a staff, comes in handy from time to time.” To make his point, he unhooked it from his belt, swished it around his head once and then cracked it at a low hanging branch ahead of them. The tail of it curled around tight and sparked with electricity, zapping the dry wood into flame. It fell to the ground with a burning crash. He looked very pleased with himself as he extinguished the fire with a quick blast of conjured water. 

“Well…” She said in the smoky silence. “That was completely unnecessary” 

The mood shifted as they got deeper into the humid, overgrown forest. Leaves and foliage that was lush green and danced in the breeze suddenly became duller, the air stagnant and unbending. Birdsong had hushed, and the once vibrant heartbeat of the forest had suddenly stuttered and stopped.

They reached the centre of the blight, hidden amidst the greenery, to find an ancient temple almost completely swallowed by forest. Its crumbling skeleton had merged with creeping moss. Vines twisted round it like the lithe bodies of a hundred snakes, gripping and squeezing out any remaining life, pushing their way through the stone work until it was prised apart to fall to the forest floor. It once would have been grand, but now looked hollow and haunted. Elltavia grabbed Gale’s arm before he got any closer.

“Wait.” she murmured, crouching slightly. She drew out the sinuous bow from her back and notched an arrow. Her ears flicked like that of a cat surrounded by too much silence. There was something stirring, she could almost hear motes of threatening magic slinking together through the blighted air. Like heat gathering to form a storm. She could practically taste the thunder that had yet to crack.

“Expecting trouble?” Gale asked, hand now hovering over the whip at his belt. 

She did not have time to answer before a skeletal figure, clad in tattered monks robes lunged at them from the shadows. His hollowed out eye sockets glowed with an eerie blue light, and his bony fingers clutched an ancient staff, carved with runes that pulsed faintly with dark energy. As it moved, the sound of creaking bones and whispers of necromantic incantation surrounded it like diseased air. 

With a raise of its staff, a surge of necrotic magic crackled towards them. Gale dove to the side, rolling behind a fallen log, while Elltavia nimbly leaped into a nearby tree, her bow in hand.

She released an arrow in one swift motion. It whistled through the air and struck the skeleton in the chest. For a moment, the blue light in its eyes flickered, but it remained standing -  unbroken and unfazed.

The guardian turned its hollow gaze towards her and began chanting in an ancient, guttural language. The ground beneath the tree where she perched started to rot and decay. With cat-like agility, she jumped to another tree just as the first began to crumble.

Gale seized the moment, sprinting forward and pulling his whip from his belt. With a flick of his wrist, the whip wrapped around the monk's legs, pulling it off balance. The skeleton crashed to the ground, the blue light in its eyes dimming as it struggled to free itself.

The ranger leaped into action, her bow discarded in favour of a pair of daggers. With feline grace, she landed above the guardian and plunged her daggers into its eye sockets, and the dimming light was finally extinguished. 

“Nice whip work.  You get much practice with that thing?” Elltavia approached him, breathless and sweating, and blew away some dust which had settled against his neck. 

“Not as much as i’d like, Kidd.” He said, brushing away some blood from her lip with his thumb. “I’m just making this up as I go along.” There was a moment where their ragged breaths mingled, and their eyes held each other before she turned with a smirk, and headed towards the entrance the skeleton had been guarding. Gale realised, watching her sheath her daggers and count her arrows, that he was in more trouble than anticipated. His heart was hammering in his chest, and he wasn’t sure the fight was the cause of it.

They made their way down ancient, crumbling stairs flooded by spectral light from an imperceptible source, and Gale started to feel queasy and breathless. It was as though something beneath his skin, in his bones, was being sapped from him. It was a feeling he recognised. 

“Sussur” he murmured, and he noticed vein-like ridges running along the walls, thin and faintly pulsing with a moonlight-blue glow. He ran the pads of his fingers over them, and felt a dull burning sensation on his fingertips.

“it’s in the walls. Incredible. It is no ordinary magic emanating from this place.” He held his hand out flat and attempted to conjure a small flame in his palm. There was a crackle, but nothing more. “My magic won’t work here.” For the first time since meeting Elltavia, he felt unsure of himself. It had taken time, patience, an orb of devastation and a mind flayer tadpole for him to even consider that he was of any use to anyone with his spellcasting ability. It had taken his friends to talk him down from martyrdom, and then Godhood. They had  prised his own destruction away from him and cast it into the Chionthar. They had saved him, but some damage is irreparable, and some wounds will always scar.

“I didn’t come to you for your magic.” Elltavia offered behind him. “I sought you out for your knowledge, and bravery. I wanted the professor, not the wizard.”

He didn’t turn to meet her eyes, but his heart fluttered slightly at her words. He steeled himself, thought of the bravery of the Ranger who was fighting for her home, and pushed open the stone door at the foot of the staircase to reveal a giant, circular chamber. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and aged stone. The walls were smooth, carved with meticulous precision by hands long gone. Covering every inch of the surface were runes and writing, each symbol etched deeply and filled with a faint pulsing luminescence that danced over their skin. 

“Amazing”

As Gale worked his way around the room, he took out a pair of glasses to help study the variety of texts carved about the place. "I’ve read about this before. A long time ago. An order of ancient monks, secretive and nomadic in nature," he mused, and Elltavia observed the delicate dance of his fingers tracing the inscriptions, as though seeking enlightenment through tactile communion. Beads of sweat glistened on his brow, causing his spectacles to slip, and the subtle readjustment sent a shiver down her spine.

“Like the one outside?” She tried to draw on what little knowledge she had. She had limited experience with monks in her many years. Certainly she had never come across any in the forest before. 

“Not like that one.” He said frowning in concentration. “That one was dead. Re-animated, as a trap.”

He explored the ruins with an elegance befitting a sage, a paradox of scholar and adventurer, warrior and pacifist, man and mage. She found him fascinating. Turning, he caught her in the act of studying him, her curiosity laid bare.

“Something caught your attention?” His gaze was burning, and his mouth was a cocky smile.

She did not blush, Elltavia never blushed, but she did pause long enough for him to move on without hearing her sharp answer.

"They are custodians, seekers of wisdom, guardians of ancient lore, and protector of magic" His voice was low with reverent contemplation. “There are very few of them, and legend has it the ones left are immortals. Chosen by the Gods to protect and serve the precious arcane knowledge which so often gets corrupted or destroyed.” 

For a brief second, his hand instinctively moves to his chest, to rest on the faded scar. He suddenly felt like a heretic defiling a sacred temple.

“You seem to know a lot about it.” She folded her arms with suspicion.

“Well.. I didn’t get tenure for nothing, Kidd.” His eyes flash at her with confident assurance. “These texts imply that they dedicated themselves so completely to their cause, to their life of protection, that they completely cast out all other distractions. They undergo a Rite, to prove their single-minded dedication. Apparently very few passed it.” He tried not to let creeping agitation wrap itself into his voice, if there was a test or a challenge to be taken for proving worth - he felt as though he was the wrong man for the job. He had cast aside the most luring and precious of temptations mortals could ever dream of. It was a test he’d taken twice, and only passed once. He didn’t want his weaknesses laid bare in front of him again. 

“What happens if they failed?”

 His answer was simple, but he feared what would come next would be less so.

“They died.”

[elvenbeard]

90 fuckin' Years

HHHHHH I went straight to taking screenshots for this the day Kerry's birthday was confrimed on the 7th XD But cause life is chaotic and I have too many projects all at once it took me a while to finish it. But here we are now!! ;__; And I'm so happy with how it turned out and uuugghhh my feels I cry looking at some of these frames.

So like, the thing is, Kerry is obviously super happy with Vince, despite all the hardships and battles and whatnot. But also, he's still battling with depression, even the most harmonic, loving relationship and love can't fix that (even if it makes things easier sometimes). And the way I interpret Kerry from how he's depicted in game, I imagine especially around anniversaries of any sorts he probably always gets a bit more gloomy.

But the same way Vince is physically recovering here, Kerry is beginning to as well I'd like to imagine! pushing away the bad thoughts and being like "yeah, you know what, it's been a turbulent but a good life and I'm glad I'm still around to have this now". And they're both healing together and yeah ;___;

Making his eyes brown was a spontaneous decision, they're just Photoshopped real quick. But with his whole theme of embracing himself more again (and I also don't think the blue eyes were necessarily his first choice, but probably more a nice brand deal the label pushed on him and he was just like "whatever" in his depressed state of mind) I think he would eventually go back to his natural eye color.

Vince's scars are also photoshopped, although I hope one day when I have him as NPV I can make him a 2078 appearance that has them properly on the model uwu I really like how they turned out though, especially the one at the base of his skull!

But yeh ;__; happy belated birthday old man (who would only be 36 now, and just 5 years older than me shhh). To many more bad decisions that lead to good things in the long run!

[roseghoul26]

Chapter 7: My House of Stone...

Synopsis: A fic based off the song “ivy” by Taylor Swift. After a startling introduction to the man, Arthur Morgan became the most important part of your life. Married at a young age to an older, wealthy man to help your family, you were trapped in a loveless marriage, your only sense of escape with the rugged cowboy. Will you be able to keep your affair hidden, or will your husband find out, and destroy the last thing that made you happy? Tags: Fluff, Angst, Smut, Strangers To Lovers, Infidelity, Fem!Reader, She/Her Pronouns Used For Reader, Period Typical Misogyny, Emotional Manipulative Relationship (not with Arthur), Mostly Follows Timeline of Game, High Honor Arthur Morgan, Not Beta Read, Slow Burn, First Kiss, Arthur Is Bad At Emotions, Confessions, Tags Updated Per Chapter Author's Note: sorry this took so long i got such bad writers block Taglist: @lokiofasgard12 @ultraporcelainpig @that-one-beannnn @morethantheycansay Chapter List

When Arthur didn’t show up after a few days, you tried to not let it get to you. He was a busy man, no doubt even more busy because of the job involving your husband. You ignored the fact that he proved that he would fight everything to come and see you, consequences be damned. It was almost out of character that he hadn’t come to see you, or had reached out to you in some way.

When a few more days passed with no sign of the outlaw, you found yourself going back over your last encounter, when he had taken you out on Bear. You don’t recall any hesitancy or doubt in his eyes when he was with you, or maybe you were too blind with your own desire to see it. That thought made you reel, panicking that you made him uncomfortable and scared him off. 

But you didn’t let that thought fester for too long. You spent your days doing menial tasks with no real passion, trying to just pass the time. It worked, mostly, but you were getting antsy. How you wished you had an easy way to leave the prison that had become the house. 

Even more days passed, each day becoming more and more anxiety ridden. Instead of worrying that you’d scared him off now, you were worried that he was dead, or in shackles, about to be hung up in the town square. Your nights were becoming restless, images of his dead body haunting you when you closed your eyes. You’d wake with bloodshot eyes, even more tired than you were when you went to bed. 

You eventually stopped counting the days, not wanting to know how long he’d been gone for. You tried to spend more and more time outside of the house, bringing blankets and books from Hans’ office to your garden, waiting to escape the confinement of the walls around you. It helped, for a bit, yet you still found your mind wandering, constantly worrying about Arthur. 

But no matter how hard you tried, you found that you couldn’t hate the man. Upset, sure, angry, definitely, but not hateful. No, your heart wouldn’t allow it. You were still in love with him, and the lack of contact from him was hurting you, both physically and mentally. It was hard to eat, hard to sleep, hard to find it in yourself to take care of your body. You knew it was ridiculous, but you couldn’t help it. He had wormed his way into your very being, and left a hole that couldn’t be fixed. You just hoped that he’d return soon and make you feel whole again. 

It was during this time that you decided to draft a letter to your family, hoping that it would alleviate the loneliness that was once removed by Arthur. You sat in Hans’ office, pen shaking in your hand as you stared at the blank piece of paper in front of you, the task proving to be more difficult than you imagined. It had been two years since you’d last spoken to them, and you had no idea what to say. How much was too much? How honest was too honest?

You decided to keep it simple, and you began to write. It took a few tries, but you eventually produced a letter that you were satisfied with. 

My dear family, 

I have missed you all, incredibly so. Words don’t even begin to do it justice. I apologize for not reaching out earlier, but my circumstances wouldn’t allow it. I do so hope to hear back from you, and perhaps have the pleasure of seeing each other in the flesh soon. 

Your daughter,

You finished it with your name, but just your first name. Tucking it into an envelope, you addressed it with the address Arthur had provided you, and you swallowed the lump in your throat when you saw Arthur’s handwriting, rereading the note he left you.

Making sure to leave the office as you found it, you made your way downstairs, setting the letter on the kitchen table, ready to grab for whenever you decided to go into town. You spent a few days at home after writing the letter, hoping that one night you’d hear the familiar hoofbeats of Bear, but were left disappointed each night. 

Eventually, though, you needed to leave, if just for a short bit of time. It had been roughly three weeks since you’d last left the house, and if you had to look at the same things again you were going to snap, leaving the house as a pile of ash. So, with a small purse with some cash, you took the letter and yourself and left. 

If it weren't for your current mindset, the walk to the main road would’ve been relaxing, enjoying the noises of animals and the cool breeze against your skin. But everything is annoying you now. The wind was causing your hair to blow in your face, and if you had to hear that birdsong one more time, you were going to lose it. Or maybe you’d already lost it. 

The sun blinded you as you left the shade of the thick forest, stepping out onto the main road. You always hated doing this, but you were desperate. Slowly, you began to walk towards Rhodes, keeping a close ear for any riders. 

It took a few minutes, but you eventually heard someone approaching from behind, and you perked up, putting on your friendliest face as you stopped and turned. It was a carriage, and you began to wave them down, but they ignored you, not even bothering to glance in your direction. Rude.

Still, you kept on, not letting one bad interaction deter you. A few more carriages and wagons passed, with similar responses. Everyone looked grim, you noticed, stone-faced and somber expressions. Now you were starting to feel dejected, and you debated just heading back to the house; you weren’t that far anyway. 

Before you could come to a decision, a single rider passed you, glancing at you even though you didn’t wave him down. Something like recognition flashed across his face, even though you’d never seen this man in your life. He had longer, black-brown hair that was tied into a small ponytail, with a mustache and goatee, and a bowler hat protecting his tanned skin. He had a blue denim jacket on, with a red handkerchief around his neck, and you noted that he was surprisingly well dressed for being an alone traveler on the road. 

“Mrs. Kerrigan?” He asked, almost in disbelief, like you were a creature from folklore, pulling his gray and white horse to a halt beside you. 

You braced yourself, ready to bolt as you stared at the man. “Yes?” You asked, suspicious. It wasn’t uncommon for people to recognize who you were, but they’d never acted like they knew you personally. You dove into the deep recess of your brain trying to remember who he was, but drawing a blank; he was a stranger to you.

“What’re you doin’ out here?” He asked, sounding genuinely concerned, which was a tad bit off putting from a complete stranger. Still, you couldn't detect any malicious intent in his words.

Sighing, you answered truthfully. “I’m tryin’ to get to Rhodes. You… you don’t happen to be goin’ there, do you?”

“Unfortunately, no,” he answered, truly sounding regretful, but then his face turned thoughtful. 

“Ah. No worries then. Have a good day.” 

You tried to continue moving, but his smooth voice made you halt again. “But it’s close enough. I can only bring you to the outskirts, though.”

“You’d do that?” You smiled when he nodded. “I can pay, too. Thank you, Mr…?”

“Escuella. But you can call me Javier.” He extended a hand to you, helping you on to the back of his horse. You sat sidesaddle, keeping an appropriate amount of distance between your bodies, your hands resting on his sides.

Javier. You remember Arthur telling you about someone with the same name, and although you highly doubted that this was the same Javier, you wished that he had a drawing of him. “Thank you, Javier.”

“Of course, Mrs. Kerrigan.” Javier gestured his horse forward, setting an easygoing pace; not too fast, not too slow. A small pang hit your heart as you remembered the last time you were on a horse, your body pressed up to Arthur’s, his rough voice in your ears, the playful glint in his eye. God, you missed him. 

“I’ll pay you when we get to town,” you repeated after a few minutes of riding, and you felt Javier chuckle. 

“I appreciate it, but I think Arthur would kill me.” Your blood ran cold, and your heart began to race just at the mention of him. So this was Javier, the one Arthur traveled with in the mountains to rescue John. It makes sense then, why he seemed to recognize you.

“Well, it’s nice to put a face to a name,” you commented. 

“He’s talked about me, then?”

“All good things,” you reassured, and he just shook his head, not believing you. You desperately wanted to ask him about Arthur, if he was alive or not, but you weren’t sure if any answer he gave you would hurt less. “Does… does he talk about me?”

Javier snorted. “Yes and no. He’ll talk about you, sometimes so much that we want to kill him, but then refuses to answer any of our questions. Some of us even doubted your existence,” he laughed, “but I’m glad to see that we’re wrong. You’ve made him real happy. I haven’t seen him this… optimistic in a long time.”

You were glad he was facing forward, so he couldn’t see the way those words broke you. Biting back tears, you kept your voice steady. “How is Arthur?”

“He’s fine?” He responded, very clearly confused as to why you didn’t know. “He’s been, well, ‘helping’ your husband.”

Oh. “So the names he got led to somethin’?” 

“Sure did. We were able to track down suppliers, and disrupt his business there. He’s yet to reach out for help, but Dutch doesn’t think it’ll be long now.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” You weren’t lying. “But he’s well?” You couldn’t help but ask about him again. 

“Yes. It’s been a crazy couple of days, but we’re pulling through.”

Only a couple of days. You refrained from asking what he’d gotten up to earlier, not wanting to appear desperate, even if you were. “I’m glad. And don’t make me regret saying this, but if anyone ever needs a place to lie low for a bit, point ‘em towards my house. At least when my husband isn’t there.” Even though you’d barely met any of the members, you couldn’t help but feel protective over the gang because of how deeply Arthur cared about them. If there was anything you could do to help them, you would.

“I’ll be sure to let them know. Thank you.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “Arthur was right about you; you’re too kind for this world.”

You murmured a small thanks, and the two of you fell into an easy silence for the rest of the ride. When the familiar outskirts of Rhodes appeared, you felt Javier begin to grow nervous, his head moving back and forth, like he was on the lookout for something. “We can stop here,” you said once you reached a long abandoned house, the yellow paint chipping and peeling. 

Red dust kicked up when your feet hit the ground, and you quickly took out a few bills, handing them to Javier. “Again, I can’t take this,” he held up a hand, a small smile on his face.

“I ain’t payin’ you for the ride, though. I payin’ you to deliver a message to Arthur,” you countered, but he didn’t relent. Sighing, you tucked them into the saddlebags before facing him with your hands on your hips. “Tell him to come see me. Please.”

“I’ll be sure to let him know. Do you have a ride back home?”

“I can arrange something’. Now go; you look uncomfortable just being here.”

He chuckled, not disagreeing with you. “Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Kerrigan.”

“You too, Javier. Stay safe.”

He nodded, smiling kindly at you before turning, taking off back down the road you’d just been on. Turning toward the town, you began to make your way to the center of town, right to the post office in the railroad station.

It was eerily quiet, more like a ghost town than anything. There wasn’t a single soul lingering on the porches or the street, and the shutters of most of the buildings were shut, which was extremely unusual for the middle of the day on a weekday. There weren’t even any animals out; it was just you and the dust. 

After a few tense minutes of walking, you eventually climbed the stairs of the railroad station, the creak of the old wood almost making you jump. It was just as empty on the inside as it was outside, the other person in the building, the person behind the counter, who smiled tensely as you entered. 

“Good afternoon, missus,” he exclaimed, the chip in his voice far too forced. “Say, can’t say I’ve seen you ‘round here before.”

“You’ve probably met my husband, Mr. Kerrigan,” you responded, making your way to the counter, pulling the letter from your bag. 

“Ah yes. Well, how can I help you, Mrs. Kerrigan?”

You slid the letter across to him. “I’d like to send this, please.”

“Not a problem at all. That’ll be five cents.”

Sliding him a nickel from your bag, you looked around as he stamped the letter, putting it in the appropriate mailbox. “Is there anythin’ else I can help you with?”

“Why is it so… dead?” You glanced back at the man, who had visibly paled at your question. 

“Interesting choice of words, ma’am. Let’s just say we had an… incident yesterday. Nothing befitting a proper lady like yourself.” He explained, clearly not wanting to talk about it.

Ominous. Realizing you weren’t going to get far with him, you wished him a good day before leaving. You made your way to the general store; Mr. Banks would let you know. 

The bell chimed as you entered, and you called out for the older gentleman, and you heard the sound of crashing from the back room, clearly scaring the poor man. A disheveled Mr. Banks peeked around the corner, visibly relaxing when he saw it was just you. You opened your mouth to try and apologize, but he cut you off. “You didn't bring that ‘deputy’ with ya, did you?” He asked, growing tense again.

“Arthur? No, he’s not with me.”

“Good. I’ll kill him on sight if he even dares to step foot in Rhodes again. He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

Physically, no. “Mr. Banks, what in the world-”

“Him and his buddies shot up the town yesterday. Killed the good Leigh Gray, Lord bless his soul,” he shuddered, and you halted in your tracks, your somewhat amused smile at his ramblings falling. 

“What?”

He pointed to a newspaper on the counter, and you cautiously stepped toward it. Bloodthirsty Gang Kills Dozens was the headline, a few paragraphs of text following below it. Your head spun at the new information, blocking out the words of Mr. Banks. You couldn’t gauge what you were feeling; you weren’t disgusted, or revolted, even though you knew you should be. You weren’t surprised; you knew that Arthur had done things, unspeakable things, and would continue to do so. You weren’t angry at what he did, but you were angry at him for putting himself in harm’s way like that. 

“I’ll take the paper,” you cut Mr. Banks off, sliding him a few bills, and he slid the paper to you. You barely mumbled out a ‘good day’ before you left, nose deep in the paper as you headed back to the railroad station, sitting on the bench waiting for the carriage services, and you read as you waited. 

You read all about the way the gang played both families, something you had no idea was happening. You weren’t hurt that he didn’t tell you; you knew that some things had to remain secrets. But you didn’t care much about the detail, eyes scanning for any telling of death or injury to the Van Der Linde gang. You knew that Javier probably didn’t lie to you, but you still needed to be sure. 

Your heart dropped when you saw that there was indeed one confirmed killing of a member of the Van Der Linde gang, but you didn’t recognize the description they provided. The others, it seemed, were still at large, and unhurt. Knowing how deeply Arthur cared about each member of the gang, you knew that this death was probably weighing heavily on him. If only he would come and see you, just so you could help him.

The sound of a carriage approaching had you standing, tucking the paper under your arm. Getting in, you directed the driver to your house, and you quickie got lulled into the rocking rhythm of the vehicle. You ignored the paper under your arm, even though it felt like a million pounds.

The ride felt like forever, but eventually you pulled into the familiar forested area of Ringneck Creek. The driver helped you out, and after you paid him you headed inside, feeling like you were just going through the motions. Despite everything you’d learned, there was one thing that really bothered you. The shootout had only been yesterday; what had stopped him from seeing you during the previous three weeks?

Even though it wasn’t late, you found yourself getting ready for bed anyway, keeping the paper on the table downstairs and grabbing a book from Hans' office before curling beneath the sheets. Your eyes skimmed the words, not processing them, your brain too distracted by today’s events.

You weren’t quite sure how you “read” for, but you must’ve fallen asleep at some point. A loud noise, like a door being slammed, had you bolting upright, pulled out of your uneasy slumber, the book luckily not hitting the ground. When you didn’t hear anything for a few moments, you thought you had just imagined it, and you went to try and go back to bed. 

That was until you heard the sound of heavy footfalls. Shit. Tearing off the covers, you padded lightly across the wooden floor, wishing that Hans wasn’t so opposed to keeping guns in the house. You had nothing to defend yourself with, so kept to the shadows as you left the room. 

Reaching the top of the stairs, you flinched when you saw the shadow of a man making its way toward the stairs. You began to back away, back into the safety of your room, until you recognized the familiar silhouette of the man. Don’t tell me…

Cautiously, you made your way downstairs, barely making a noise. You had to stifle a gasp once you reached the bottom, your suspicions confirmed when you saw Arthur standing in your dining room, back to you, glancing over the newspaper you’d set on the table. His hair was longer, his clothing unkempt, but it was still the same man you had fallen for.

Too many emotions ran through you, from anger to longing to desire to sadness. You couldn’t tell if you wanted to kiss him or punch him in the face, and so you just stood at the bottom of the stairs, shocked. 

Eventually, Arthur turned, the only sign of him being startled was his eyes widening. Those beautiful blue eyes that had haunted your thoughts, that you longed to see again. You let out a small gasp then, audible only to you. It was really hard to remain still, every fiber of your being craving to be in his arms again, to feel his lips on yours. 

Neither of you knew what to say, just staring at each other. Even in the low light, you could see that Arthur looked exhausted, bags under his eyes and his shoulders sagging. Being on the run would do that to a man. “So Javier wasn’t kiddin’. You’re alive.” You didn’t care that your voice was scathing. 

Javier must’ve said something to him, because Arthur didn’t seem surprised that you mentioned the other man. If you ever met him again, you’d have to thank him for sticking to his word about delivering a message. “I…” he rubbed at the back of his neck, “I’ll leave.” Oh, how you missed his rugged voice. 

Arthur turned to head back out the front door. “Stay. Please.” You called out, making your voice softer, stopping him in his tracks. Don’t leave me again. 

He took a deep breath before turning back around, somethin like guilt on his features. “It’s been three weeks, Arthur.” You sighed out.

“I know, darlin’.” You nearly broke then, his name for you crumbling your resolve. Yet you held, fingers gripping the railing with a death grip. “There was an… incident-”

“The shootout in town,” you cut him off. “Don’t sugarcoat things. I know what you get up to. I know the things you’ve done.”

Arthur didn’t bother to try to disagree, and you were thankful for that. “After the shootout in Rhodes, I couldn’t risk comin’ over to see ya’.”

“I understand, but that was only a few days ago. Arthur, it's been three weeks.” You didn’t bother to hide the pain in your voice. “I’ve missed you.”

“Me too.”

“Then where’ve you been?” He didn’t respond, and you laughed bitterly. “I thought you were dead, Arthur. Or you were about to be strung up in the gallows. Or you… I was worried sick, and the only reason I knew you weren’t dead was because Javier told me.”

“I’m sorry-”

“I don’t want your apology, I want an explanation.” You let go of the railing. “Why?” Arthur hung his head, and you began to step towards him. 

“You deserve somethin’ better, darlin’.”

“And you thought the best thing for me was to leave me alone and heartbroken. And who is this ‘someone better’ I deserve? Hans? No, I don’t think so.”

“I ain’t much better! You said it yourself, you know the things I’ve done. I’ve killed people, so many I’ve lost track. Hell, I was the one who killed Sheriff Gray. My whole life I’ve tricked and duped and betrayed people; I ain’t a good man’. You’re too sweet, too kind. You deserve somethin’ better than that, than me.”

“You think I didn’t know that you’ve hurt people, Arthur? You didn’t think when you said you were an outlaw that I wouldn’t, I don’t know, realize you’ve done some unlawful things? I know what kind of man you are, and who you claim to be, yet when I think of you I think of a man that is also good, generous, sweet.” You continued to move towards him, even as he shook his head. 

“A man that would come check up on a sad woman in the woods just ‘cause she asked, that would find her family’s address so she could write to them.” You were close enough to him that you could reach out and touch him.

“A man that’s made my miserable existence feel worthwhile, that has become the best goddamn part of my life.” His hands were shaking, you found when you took one of them in both of yours. Those familiar calloused fingers were oh so comforting, and you brought them close to your heart.

You took a deep breath. “A man that I’ve completely fallen in love with.”

His hands stopped shaking, or maybe yours were. You couldn’t tell. 

Arthur was speechless, but you could tell that he didn’t oppose your confession, because he pulled you closer. His free hand cupped the side of your face, thumb brushing your cheek. “You shouldn’t…”

“Too late now, Arthur.” You breathed out. “I… I love you.”

“You shouldn’t.” He repeated again with more edge, but you could see how conflicted he was. “Nothin’ good is gonna come from it.”

“How can you be so certain?” 

“Because every damn good thing in my life gets ruined. Every person I lo- care ‘bout, I make their lives worse, and they regret ever openin’ their hearts to me. Did ya know I almost married a girl, then I ruined that. I- I had a kid,” his voice grew thick with emotion, “and he’s no longer with us. All because of me, and the life I lead. All because wherever I go, someone’ll be huntin’ down the people I care about, no matter how innocent they are. I couldn’t live with myself if somethin’ happened to you ‘cause of me.”

Oh. You were speechless now, and your heart ached for the man in front of you. “Arthur… I can’t guarantee that somethin’ won’t happen to me, but do you really wanna live your life in fear, pushing away those who care about you?”

“I can’t lose you, darlin’. I can’t.” 

“But you almost did, pushin’ me away like that. What then?”

“I…” he took a shaky breath, his hand sliding down to hold the side of your neck gently. “I don’t know.”

“So don’t push me away. Yes, it’s terrifying, caring about someone like this. You don’t think I worry ‘bout you every time you’re not here? That I don’t worry that we’ll be found out, and this whole thing will come burning down around us? But isn’t it worth it? ”

He sighed, before resting his head against yours, his hat sliding back a bit. “It is.”

“Then mean it. To yourself. To me.” His lips were so close now, and you wanted nothing more than to close the space between them. You let go of his hand, choosing to rest your hands on his chest instead. You could feel his heart beating rapidly under your fingers, just as fast as yours was. “I love you, Arthur, and there isn’t a damn thing you can say that’ll change that.”

Arthur exhaled shakily, and even in the dim light you could see a small smile on his lips. “And I’m grateful for your stubbornness.” You chuckled lightly at his words. “I’ve been a fool-”

“None of that. You ain’t a fool, Arthur.”

“Maybe not. But I’m a fool for you.” You rolled your eyes at his cheesy comment, knees growing weak at the now grin on his face. That dazzling, beautiful grin. But his expression sobered, and you temporarily feared the worst. “You should know that I do feel the same, darlin’. I really do. It��s just, I can’t…”

“You can’t say it back,” you refrained from sounding too crestfallen. You could be content with the fact that he agreed he felt the same. For now. He shook his head, looking ashamed, and you forced his gaze back up to yours when he tried to look away. “Then show me. Show me that you love me.”

“I could spend every last minute of my life showin’ you, and it still wouldn’t be enough time,” he chuckled, his thumb brushing just below your bottom lip. His eyes followed the movement, and something darkened in them. “But I can certainly try.”

He leaned in, finally closing the distance, and you felt like you could cry with relief. His lips felt even better than you remembered, more desperate than you’d ever felt them. You dropped his hand, arms wrapping around his neck as he continued to kiss you, his hat falling to the ground as you tangled your fingers in his hair. He pulled away far too soon for your liking, the hand still holding your face brushing your cheek. “Darlin’, you’re cryin’,” he murmured, his brow creasing with concern. 

“Good tears,” you laughed, a genuine smile gracing your lips. “I just missed you, so much.”

Another flash of guilt appeared on his face. “You promise?”

“Promise.” He regarded you for a few moments, and you nearly pulled him back down yourself, desperate to feel his lips again. Luckily, you didn’t have to wait too long, because he was kissing you again, weeks of pent up longing, fear, and love being poured into it. It made you dizzy, and your fingers tangled further into his hair, eliciting a groan from the man. 

Arthur’s free hand gripped your waist, fingers digging into the soft flesh as he kissed you. They gripped even harder when you ran your tongue against his lips, not expecting you to take control of the kiss. He willingly let his lips part, letting you explore him with ease. 

You hadn’t even realized Arthur had moved until you felt your back hit a wall, the back of your head cradled by his hand. It made you groan, breaking away from the kiss, and Arthur wasted no time trialing his lips down your neck. Your head rolled back, letting out pleased sighs and light moans as he littered kisses across your neck, his facial hair ticking the sensitive skin.

“Arthur,” you groaned, hands still in his hair, and you felt him hum in response. 

“My beautiful girl,” you heard him mutter, more to himself than anything, and you were grateful for the stability the wall provided. The hand on your waist moved down, securing under your thigh and lifting it so that your leg wrapped around him. You inadvertently began to rock your hips, eliciting another delicious groan from Arthur.

“God, Arthur, I need you.” You didn’t care if you were pleading. You’d been plenty patient; you were allowed to be greedy. 

“I’m takin’ my time with ya. We’ve got all night.”

Another groan tore from your throat. All night. “You promise?” You asked, echoing his previous words. If he was promising all night, then you could be patient for a little while longer.

You felt him grin against your skin, nipping lightly at the junction of your neck and shoulder. “Promise.”

Author's Note: surprise javier appearance bam!

[lazypapers]

do you have any HCs about how Arthur reacted to John being distant to Abigail when Jack was born? /how Arthur reacted when John showed up after a year

Oh definitely, my HC is similar to Roger Clark (the actor for Arthur). I think Arthur resented John for being distant and leaving her and his baby for a year. I imagine a couple years before Jack was born that's when he lost Isaac and that tragedy never left him and deeply effected him. He hated John for running away and taking things for granted from the very thing Arthur always sought and wanted. So when John returns, Arthur is just livid and their relationship is broken.

Arthur seemed like a character who wanted to be loved and belong in a family. He tried that with Mary, but I felt like Mary toyed with his feelings in the most wishy washy way (I get it. Like what future would you have with an outlaw). Obviously Eliza was a rebound from him breaking up with Mary. And that one night stand led to the conception of Isaac. He still chose to stay with Dutch's gang cause that was his family and he wasn't gonna stay with a girl he barely knew and didn't love. He probably tried to bring her along but she most likely didn't want to. I have this headcanon that their relationship was getting better and had potential to work. Arthur would have wanted to stay with them more often as his son got older with each visit. I would say maybe his son was like 4-5 years old the last time he saw him (since it's hinted in the game he taught a little boy fishing during the Jack fishing mission). However, this is when Dutch would manipulate Arthur severely.

He likely pressured Arthur to choose his loyalty to him and the gang over Arthur's son and Eliza. Think about it. When Hosea left to make a life with Bessie, Dutch got really messed up about it. Which explains his disgruntlement with John's loyalty and Abigail. For a bit he lost his family unit and control. He wasn't going to lose Arthur through the same thing. So he starts tightening that leash around Arthur through his low self-esteem and self-worth. He didn't want to lose his best dog. Definitely a red flag, that a lot of the gang members felt obligated that they owed Dutch just because he saved their asses (weird savior complex going on there 😬🙄).

As for why, he didn't seem all that bothered that John left. Maybe he kind of learned from his mistake with Arthur. Under his manipulation, Arthur completely broke when Isaac died (I feel like Arthur never fully recovered from that and Dutch noticed that he wasn't the "same" anymore). So not wanting to break his 2nd Golden Boy he loosened the leash. I'm pretty sure Dutch cared deeply about Arthur and John, and he isn't this evil selfish guy the way I'm describing him. That would be later in RDR1 😆, Dutch is complete bonkers in 1911. He is just incredibly flawed and super weird and a messed up way of showing he cares in 1899 prior.

Anyways I want to draw a storyline focused on the year John left and returned in the Golden Hour. Since the Golden Hour comics are basically about the close bond and eventual collapse of the gang. It would be fun to explore that part of the era of the gang. But once my wrist stops hurting and I have more time. All I can do is talk about it instead of drawing it.

[matan4il]

911 ep 705 first watch reactions

Of course 911 would "punish" the "You are the boss of you!" guy with an alien hand that attacks him, and does what it wants. Pooor Buck and Eddie paying the price for that...

Okay, love the storyline with Hen and Karen possibly eventually adopting an older girl. Too many shows just find easy, unrealistic ways to give their same sex couples kids, and I am really glad that 911 shows the reality of it, and that it is a more complex struggle for many, that it's an act of continuously choosing to be parents. That's actually an amazing, difficult thing, and it should be faithfully depicted and respected, for all of its heartache, and the little moments of triumph.

Buck and Tommy on a date, and Eddie comes along with Marisol? Love how Buck's bisexual awakening and coming out continues to involve Eddie so much. Tell me they're end game, even if they're not gonna get together right now, without telling me they're...

I did not need to learn Marisol is moving in with Eddie like this, with any build up, or even any sort of insight into the relationship, and nope, that does not bode well for them. IDK how 911 managed to do it, but they have somehow managed to give Eddie a love interest the show is even less invested in than Ana.

And the funniest bit, is that Marisol and Eddie's big development is only there to further Buck's journey anyway.

"You can never have too much closet space" LMAO the way 911 both made me laugh, and feel sorry for poor, baby bi Buck. XD

Hmmm. Were parts of this scene cut out? We don't get to see Eddie on his own date with Marisol, but constantly looking over at Tommy and Buck? Boo. I'm glad we at least got the BTS photos, then. But seriously, why!? That was gonna be so delicious.

Oh, Tommy's breaking up with Buck. I mean, good for him, and he ain't wrong after Buck's "after this, we're gonna go out looking for chicks" reaction, but man do I feel sorry for Buck. Him and Tommy might not be my end game (Buddie forever will be), but I do think this relationship could be good for our baby bi. Tommy being in the same profession, knowing what it's like to have this gap between who you are and the image of guys in your line of work, plus he's got more experience than Buck, is sure of himself, can help our boy figure himself out, and also Buck obviously does like his vibe. He deserves to be with someone he actually likes, not just the first woman willing to be with him that the plot pushed in his way.

Oh, baby Buck. :( You didn't even tell Maddie about Tommy. You really aren't ready it. But also (and as a Buddie shipper, more importantly), Tommy broke things off with Buck, but what is eating him up, is that he lied to Eddie. XD Yeah, this gonna end with wedding bells, sooner or later. On screen, off screen after the show ends with canon Buddie, or only in my head if 911 never dares make Buddie canon, I don't care. That kind of emotional devotion is not something that my hopelessly romantic heart can ignore.

OMG, this is how Buck comes out to Maddie? XD Via random pronoun mention, and as a by product of trying to figure out how to tell Eddie the truth? This is hilarious. lol It really makes it clear that, after all, the issue for Buck really isn't people knowing he is also dating guys (or checking their asses), even when it's the other closest person in the world for him, it's Eddie. Specifically. Buck's ready, even if he doesn't have the exact clear words yet, he's just not ready to tell Eddie. Can't imagine why. XDDD

What was that awkward post-sex scene with Eddie and Marisol? And the issues with her moving in are popping up a second after she has. But yeah, we have no idea who this woman is as a person, she's been a cardboard cut out so far, and then one of the first things we do learn about her, is that she would call her stuff better than Eddie's? Once again, this is not the stuff great romance is made of. Or... even just the stuff any kind of romance is made of.

Wait, Marisol was a nun, and Eddie didn't even know!? This whole ep is telegraphing in the news of how weird and awkward and underdeveloped this r/s is, not just for us as viewers who know nothing about Marisol, but apparently for Eddie as well.

And of course his Catholic guilt is gonna kick in now. I'd care, except 911 has given me absolutely no reason to. Seriously, I care more about Buck and Tommy after just 2 eps, than Eddie and Marisol, even though this is technically her 2nd season on the show.

Of course Buck went to find Eddie, and spotted him at the gym. Forever 201 vibes, with Eddie being the focus of Buck's attention. ^u^

I couldn't care less about Eddie's Catholic guilt crisis, and how it's actually a projection of what his real issues are with Marisol, but it's nice to see that as always, Buck's the one who can tell when something's off, and offer Eddie exactly what he needs (even when that's to talk to someone else, but Buck figures out immediately who the right person to address is), and then they just very naturally switch, because Eddie can also tell when something's off with Buck, and he wants to tell him something. Soulmates. THAT is the stuff that great romance IS made of.

:/ The imagery of Catholic nuns has not been around for over 2,000 years, please stop being ignorant about your own religion, and the very different way it looked in its early days.

Bobby is forgiven, he does give good advice, and his "her ex, the Lord" bit, which prompted that reaction from Eddie, is hilarious. XD

So... when Eddie is having issues with Marisol, he already knows he has to figure out how he feels about her, but instead of doing so, he goes to his safe place... Buck's loft.

Man, Eddie being into Tommy's choice of avoidning relationships with women, and hanging out with boys, after in the past, Eddie had dealt with his Shannon issues by running away from her, and re-enlisting in the army, where he gets to hang out with boys, when we all (Buck included) know why Tommy's "hanging out with boys"... I do like that if they want to (and hopefully they do), this further lays the groundwork for Eddie's own queer realization.

Buck and Eddie helping each other with their respective romantic problems, without realizing they are each other's respective romantic solution is gonna make me chew on my own fists. Again. But I'm not even a little bit surprised that Eddie was totally fine and accepting of Buck being bi, or that the first thing he thought of is how this reflects on them. Because their friendship IS way deeper and closer than normal for platonic friends, and Eddie's little reassurance is also an admission of that.

Man, for a second I was worried they also cut out Eddie in the loft, once more putting his thumb on Buck's pulse point possessively, in a perfect parallel to 303. I would have sued for emotional damages. But yeah, it says so much that the peak of emotional meaningfulness for Buck when coming out is in relation to Eddie, and that the scene itself peaks with Eddie, instead of finishing rushing out to take care of his own romantic business, hurries back to Buck first, to hug him, place his hand on Buck and give him orders. "Sure, you're gonna be dating this guy, but I'm still your real husband."

Well, at least Eddie amitted to himself and Marisol that he doesn't actually know her. But... I have never seen two people being both being so happy about not moving in together, and I'm supposed to think this r/s has a chance? Okay. Suuuure.

The scene with Buck going to Tommy to set things straight ready for something was lovely, it was nice seeing him excited, and get to choose, and hear he's wanted. But since the note Tommy and Buck's storyline in this ep should have ended on, is Buck showing Tommy he's ready enough to let others know he's dating a guy by inviting Tommy to come with Buck to Madney's wedding, then why is the very next scene playing the romantic switch again, making us think Buck's car just arrived at the wedding with him and Tommy, only for Buck and Eddie to walk in together? I see what you did there, 911.

Thank you for reading! If you're looking for more, you can find my s7 reactions tag here, and more of my Buddie meta and content in my pinned post. xoxox

[fruity-phrog]

Okay, fuck it, Fleming sisters headcanons. You knew this was coming, I knew this was coming, let's go. (takes place in a same universe)

It's canonically a seventeen/eighteen year age gap, but I imagine their relationship to be different from Ted and Pete's

Eighteen year old Charlotte wasn't much different from canon Charlotte, but she was a bit frustrated at having to look after her baby sister - especially as Sam would get annoyed when she had to turn down dates to babysit.

Their parents were often busy, so Charlotte had to babysit Ruth a lot.

They had a civil, if not close, relationship until Ruth was twelve - that's when she met Richie and Pete. After realizing their siblings (and in Paul's case, nephew) were friends, Ted, Paul and Charlotte began bringing them into CCRP every now and again, occasionally taking them to get milkshakes or something afterwards. This was when Charlotte and Ruth started hanging out a lot more (and is also how Ted and Charlotte became a thing, a few years later).

When Alice was in Hatchetfield, she would also meet up with the Nerds™️. Out of the three of them, Ruth missed her the most when she was in Clivesdale and held a grudge against Bill for it for a while.

They don't have a lot in common, but they still love each other's company.

Even before they started becoming close, Ruth always looked up to Charlotte. As someone with no friends at the time, no siblings her age and parents who were often too busy for her, Charlotte was like a mix of her best friend, older sister and mother.

Every Friday, Charlotte would go to her parents' house and do a games night. Her and Ruth are both far more competitive than people would expect.

When Ruth was younger (around ten to fourteen) she did dancing and she was actually quite good. Ruth would come to every single recital.

Sam was against the idea of Ruth moving in when she left highschool - that was the tipping point for Charlotte to finally sign the divorce papers that Ruth printed out for her years ago. The house was under Charlotte's name, after all.

It took Ruth a while to trust Ted - she'd seen men take advantage of her sister's kind nature before, and Pete only agreed with her caution - but eventually she came around to him.

She took an immediate liking to Paul, however, and when he started bringing Emma to their after-CCRP milkshakes, she developed a crush on her. Once that awkward phase was over, Emma started thinking Ruth was actually pretty cool - her favourite of the nerds, not that she'd ever admit it.

Charlotte has tried a couple of times to drag Ruth to church, to no avail. Ruth protested that she would immediately burst into flames if she set one foot in a place of holy worship and, well, Charlotte couldn't argue with that logic.

[luvingspence]

𝙗𝙤𝙮𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙘’𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙞𝙙

a/n: sorry if this isn’t ur cup of tea <333 also idc if any of this is out of character my little brain says it’s all correct!

♡ i think he’s the secret (not so secret tbh) hopeless romantic of the BAU!! he spent so long alone, none of his relationships have lasted long due to reasons beyond his control, he just longs for love and a love that’s reciprocated fully.

♡ any partner he has would be his everything, especially once it’s become serious and more long term, once that relationship is set in stone he becomes even cuter and a lil bit cheesy <3

♡ weekly date nights!!!! it’s never on a set night because you both know how the BAU can be, but at least once a week, you commit a whole day to spending it with each other

♡ spencer’s a home body so it usually is just staying in, movies, board games, reading, cuddling and talking, although, when you do go out, it’s always to a museum or something of the sort!

♡ oh and imagine those little blind book dates that you can buy at book shops :( that definitely happens at least once or twice!!

♡ constantly whispering little facts in your ears!!!

♡ he’s a guy that likes older things and things that have character! you both definitely go to flea markets, farmers markets, and vintage shops together, even if it’s just for a browse

♡ definitely insecure. he thinks you’ll leave, or that you want to but you feel bad. i imagine he eventually (mostly) gets over this fear once it’s communicated and the relationship blossoms more but he definitely requires reassurance in the early stages :(

♡ but it’s ok he just worries bc he loves you!!!

♡ he finally has someone to spend halloween with :( if you go out with the BAU and they do costumes? you’re 100% matching idc. if you’re staying in?? you probably watch a few movies, a few older ones for spencer, and then your more modern picks!!

♡ and if you celebrate it? christmas too. just wear a matching ugly grandpa christmas sweater with him please.

♡ seeing him in his glasses!! he definitely wears them more at home and you just think he’s such a cutie patootie🥰

♡ teaching him stuff about pop culture!!!! somethings about pop culture, when explained right, i think would really interest spencer! but even if it didn’t, he‘d listen to anything you tell him, like explaining the taylor swift folklore love triangle!

♡ anything you are remotely interested in, he’s learning all about it! he knows what it’s like to feel left out and doesn’t want that for you, so he wants you to be able to talk about the things you enjoy even if it isn’t something he’d typically enjoy :(

♡ also! always! compliments! you!

♡ “you look really pretty😊” “i like that dress!” “well done!!!” “i’m proud of you🙂” “you’re the prettiest ______ in the world”

♡ he’s not great with compliments, giving or receiving, at the start, especially if we’re talking baby spence, but as soon as he realises it’s not overwhelming you or anything, you’ll have to physically shut his mouth to get him to stop

♡ very blushy and easily flustered!!! especially baby spence, older spence becomes smoother and can definitely be the one making you flustered though <3

♡ when it comes to gifts, unless it’s something you have asked for or he knows that you 100% want, he gets you things that are more sentimental or hard to come buy, like a vintage vinyl, engraved jewellery, books, collections of poetry, and anything similar!

♡ affection wise, once he becomes comfortable he’s definitely okay with a kiss on the cheek in public, an arm around your waist or shoulder, a quick hug, sitting close, but everything else is absolutely private (as it should be bc some couples r nasty)

♡ his major flaw i would think is that due to his intelligence, he’s a fixer and thinks he’s right. and when he thinks he’s right, he’s very stubborn. he’d rather fix your issues than listen (until you explicitly communicate that you just want him to listen and nothing else).

♡ i feel that he definitely apologises through cheesy things like flowers! however, if it’s something very serious, poor sensitive spencie definitely cries a little and asks for a hug :(

♡ over big arguments he’s just so scared that you’ll leave him, tell him it’ll be ok and that u still love him :(

♡ all around, he’s the prettiest, nerdiest angel bf ever and i love him

[and-claudia]

Against All Odds (Joel Miller x Fem! Reader) Prologue pt.1

Warnings: Cannon Typical graphicness, no Joel in this part, this one is also in 3rd person (that will change in later parts)

Word Count: 1143

General Warnings for later on: The main story will have an age gap between Joel and the reader (Reader will be 25 once we get to the main storyline), this will also be your warning that it will eventually be an x pregnant reader (if that's not your jam, I'm sorry) there is also going to be more graphic/trigger parts later on so please always to be sure to read the warnings BEFORE reading. This story will also be 18+ and TO BE ON THE TAGLIST YOU CAN NOT BE AN AGELESS BLOG (i do actually check that) also there first hand full of parts are all prologue so Joel won't actually be in it for a bit

(Once I have my TLOU masterlist i will link it here)

Taglist sign-up form

September 26th 2003

Giggles filled the air as Yn ran around the backyard with her older brothers. There were six plus her ranging from 18 to 5 with little Yn being the youngest. Scott was the oldest. He was supposed to be in his first year of college down in Austin at the University of Texas, but he decided to take a gap year to help out with his younger siblings. Their parents tried to insist that he go, that this wasn’t his responsibility but he chose to stay. Roy was a grade A student, a Junior at their local high school. His twin, Zeak, was the quarterback of their high school football team. Everyone was excited to go to the Friday night games this fall, even little Yn. She may not understand the game, or why she gets drug all over North Texas every other Friday night, but she knew she was cheering on her brother and that was all she cared about. Chris was a sophomore, he found his passion in the automotive shop at school. He could take apart just about any car and put it right back together again. Marc was a freshman, he was still trying to decide what he wanted to do with his life, which was reasonable for someone his age. He had a knack for math though and could be found most weeknights helping his two younger siblings with their homework, even if one of them was just beginning addition. Alan was the youngest of the boys, and was originally thought to be the youngest of the family. He had a wild imagination and loved to tell stories to his younger sister. Which brings us to the youngest of the bunch, Yn. She was a wild little girl. Her mother had always wanted a baby girl, but was so grateful and completely over the moon with her boys. After Alan she wasn’t expecting any more babies, so when she fell pregnant again and they found it was a girl she was excited. She tried to get Yn to be a girly girl but with six older brothers, it was tough. 

All seven of them were outside today. It was a beautiful day on September 26th, 2003. The feelings of Autumn were finally just starting to inch their way into North Texas with a light breeze that tickled Yn’s arms when she chased after her brothers. 

“Let’s go grab the fishin’ poles and go down the creek! I bet there will be tons of fish!” Roy hollered getting everyone to stop. 

All the boys agreed and so he and Scott went off to find all the poles. 

“Alan! That’s not fair!” Yn whined. 

“Why not bug?” He asked, using her nickname. 

“Pa said I can’t go down there! Says the water gonna swipe me away!” She pouted, crossing her arms. 

“Hey, let's go ask him. Maybe since we’re all going, and the waters lower he’ll let you go. Come on, let's go ask.” He suggested. 

Yn thought for a moment and nodded before dashing towards the house. She threw open the back screen door and almost smack dab into her father who was just about to start making supper. 

“Whoa, killer where’s the fire?” He asked, grabbing her by her shoulders to stop her. 

“Can- I- go to- creek- with them?” She asked between deep breaths. 

Her father thought for a moment and looked to Alan for more information. 

“We’re getting the fishing poles to head down there for a bit. Figured since we’re all going, and the water is low, maybe she can go this time. She’s never been down there before.” He explained. 

“The drought did dry up that creek some… I guess. You mind your brothers though. And you better not get a speck of mud on the dress, or Ma is going to be mad at you.” He said. 

The little girl nodded vigorously. Then she and her brother ran back out and they all began the trek down to the creek. The seven of them spent the afternoon and early evening playing hide and seek, splashing in the water, climbing trees, fishing and just having fun. 

As the sun set they headed back for the house. Once they got there they all washed up and then ate dinner. Yn took her bath and was off to sleep not too soon after. 

Not even 2 hours later, Yn was jolted awake. 

“Come on, I got you shoes already, some clothes. Grab Teddy come on, we gotta go now!” Her oldest brother Scott was yelling at her. 

Yn was drowsy from just waking up and couldn’t understand what was being said. Scott saw this and just opted to scoop her up, grab her teddy bear, and ran out of the house with her as fast as he could. When he got to the stairs he slowed down and peered around the corner. She was occupied for the moment so he took that as his chance to run. He ran down the stairs and out the door, straight to the minivan his dad was already waiting for him in. He got in the backseat with Yn, who was now crying in fear in his arms. The streets were chaos, even in their small town of Canton, Texas. 

Yn was in shock. What had she just seen in their living room? It looked like Ma. But surely it wasn’t right? Ma was in the front seat where she always is. 

Yn looked to the front seat and was confused to see Chris there instead and Zeak in the seat beside them. 

“Where’s Ma?” She asked. 

“She’ll meet up with us later. Her and the rest of your brothers, don’t worry.” Pa said, though his voice sounded sad. 

‘Maybe he’s just sleepy?’ Yn thought to herself, it was the middle of the night after all. 

Her mind drifted back to the figure in the living room. It was hovering over something… no not something… someone. She would recognize  Alan’s bleached hair anywhere… and beside him… she knew that it was Roy and Marc. She wasn’t sure how but she just knew. And despite what her father had said, despite her age, she knew that Ma and her brothers wouldn’t be meeting back up with them. 

Deep down she knew that what she had seen was her Ma, well what used to be her Ma biting Alan, killing him. And she knew that she had already done the same to Roy and Marc. If it wasn’t for Scott she probably would’ve been one of the next ones to meet that same fate. 

Yn knew that something had happened and it would change a lot, but no one was prepared for the hell that had just been unleashed on the world, nor if they would even survive it. 

Joel Fic Taglist:

@sexyvixen7@joelmillerslays@elliaze@strawbab

@little-lovely-darling

@swimmjacket@watercolorskyy@mserynlarsen@sebby-staan@beelanie@jellybeanxc

@fan-g0rl

[joyfuladorable]

Any headcanons about peni and miles and Gwen.

A few!

I have a fondness for young characters who end up gaining a bunch of surrogate older siblings, so Peni now holds that honor as well!

I think the events that (further) traumatized Peni are the incident with Addy Brock and VE#m and the death of her Aunt May. The comic issue didn’t really have the time to dig into that, but I’d love if Spider-Verse changes it so that Addy and Peni get to be friends before the disaster with VE#m happens. And then after all that, it’d be like the end of that story where she’s talking with her Uncle Ben before Spider-Ham portals to her to invite her into the Society.

At some point she learns about Canon Events and is Devastated. Like, she really Couldn’t have saved her aunt and Addy even if she’d Tried? Her dad was Meant to Die?? She gets comfort from the older Spideys; but I think especially Gwen, who’s absolutely avoiding thinking about her own dad and what him being a Police Captain means. Once things have (hopefully) settled in Beyond, I like to imagine Miles also gaining the older sibling status.

Anyways, headcanons!!

- Peni Canonically Loves Music, even going so far as playing it while she fights crime, so her and Gwen and Miles (and obviously Hobie and Pavitr and Margo) enthusiastically share their musical tastes with each other

- In the same vein, I just want them to hangout as friends so they have like weekly game nights sharing different card and board games and Pavitr keeps trying to convince everyone to let him run a ttrpg he really likes

- Peni and Margo figure out how to make inter-dimensional Wi-Fi so the teens also play MMOs together even when they’re in their respective universes

- Peni watches Hobie and Gwen play a gig and is enamored by the drums so she asks Gwen to teach her and oh Wow what a great outlet she should’ve tried this Sooner (please imagine Spider hanging from a cymbal as Peni plays and doing that cartoon zaggy vibration whenever it’s hit)

- Lots of hopping between each other’s universes cuz I want them to spend even More time together and have like cultural exchanges and stuff

- When Peni eventually divulges how she got her powers and what happened to her dad and the whole Oscorp technically being her employer thing, the protective older siblings instincts come out and one day her Uncle Ben looks up from his work to see his niece flanked by several angry looking teens

- I know this is supposed to be a Peni Gwen Miles friendship dynamic ask but Peni would get along so well with the other teens like if you’ve seen Peni’s room in the comics she’s a big fan of punk rock and would absolutely be besties with Hobie. Then there’s Pavitr and their sunshine personalities would elevate each other! And, as I’ve mentioned before Peni and Margo are Tech Buddies!!!

- A sign of trust from Peni is if she lets you hold Spider. A high honor! Miles doesn’t get it when she just drops em on his shoulder one day when she goes to do something, so when Gwen tells him he tears up a little bit (a lotta bit)

- okay, and finally, if you’ve read the Spider-Verse Unlimited: Infinity story with Peni, you know she wants to be Normal very Badly and does the usual awkward kid thing of trying to fit in with the Popular Kids’ interests while keeping her secret identity safe during the inevitable calls to hero duty interrupting her time with friends. She doesn’t have to do that with her Spidey buds/siblings!! An alert of trouble while hanging with them means some epic team-up fights!!! Chosen family, My Beloved…

[thegirlwhowrites642]

Hiii :)

Do you have any Harry headcanons ?

In the previous episodes: Headcanons about the Potter kids and Teddy Headcanons about Ginny

Now, some Harry headcanons:

His favourite colour is red but that's basically canon

Called the big black dog he and Ginny adopted "Pad" (in reference to Padfoot of course), literally the only animal he managed to name out of all the zoo they have in the house

Canonically he becomes Head Auror at 27, around the same time Lily was born, so I think it happened for a similar reason to Ginny changing her job. Harry loves being in the action and it definitely wasn't his last opportunity to become Head Auror, but basically never going in the field and generally having way more stable hours meant having way more time for the kids

After the war, he discovers that there's an actual Potter vault at Gringrotts he started having access to at 17. There he finds, besides more money, a lot of family heirlooms, diaries, and things taken from the cottage and so he starts discovering more about the Potter family.

When Ginny goes back to Hogwarts, Harry doesn't exactly have the easiest time dealing with her absence. So once he understands that drinking himself to death might not be a great idea he decides to keep himself extremely busy. Obviously, Auror's training helps, but also he spends a lot of time with Teddy and, inspired by what he finds in the Potter vault, he starts investigating his family, finding distant relatives or simply people who knew his parents and grandparents and maybe even great-grandparents. Not only from the Potter side but the Evans one too. He writes to Ginny about it and it becomes a sort of game where she suggests places to check (especially with her pureblood knowledge of the wizarding world) and many of the people Harry meets become inside jokes between them, like some sort of characters

Lily has him wrapped around her little finger. In his defence, she looks just like her mother, what is he supposed to do??

He is like ridiculously good at his job? Especially when he comes to terms with the fact that he can be very intimidating and starts using that with purpose

He is the one that cooks usually, a sort of reappropriation of the activity after his childhood. Now he does it for the people he loves and that very much love him back.

When the kids are all at Hogwarts, he decides that he needs another hobby besides cooking. I've always imagined gardening because it's an open-air activity and it's very methodical and therefore relaxing. Maybe he starts keeping a vegetable garden.

Robards is absolutely the new addition to his collection of father figures.

When he becomes Head of the DMLE, he gets as secretary a very competent, very grumpy, lady that is old enough to be his mother. Harry adores her because she doesn't give a fuck about him being Harry Potter and when she retires he is grumpy about it for months.

On this note, Harry takes Ron leaving the Aurors as a bit of a personal offence. He gets over it eventually but oh, he definitely complains about it

The Auror partner he has for years is a guy ten years older than him, that already has a wife and very young kids when Harry meets him, so he becomes a bit of an older brother to Harry [I hate when people give Harry no new friends in the Aurors, the man works there for a billion years]. The Potters are all friends with this other family, they have dinners together once in a while, the kids are invited to the others' birthdays, stuff like that

When Ginny plays for the Harpies he is the only guy in the group at parties. The only players with a partner are a couple of older married women that don't usually go to parties, all the younger girls are young and single so they basically adopt Harry as a brother and ask him for advice with the guys (to Ginny's great amusement and Harry's horror) but he actually grows into the role

As much as he hates to admit it, one thing he learns from hanging out with Quidditch players is how easier it is to be friends with other famous people than non-famous ones

He teaches his kids how to duel because he is paranoic and also there's nothing more Harry Potter-like than teaching your kids in borderline illegal ways despite being Head Auror

He has some quirks that come very clearly from being raised by Petunia, like being a bit of a neat freak. In general, he needs some things in the house to be done in a certain way

When he eventually retires, he picks up some cases here and there as a private investigator, mainly because I think it would be hilarious for him to be in competition with a department he led for years

In short, grandpa/great-grandpa/great-great-grandpa Harry has Harry's idea of a perfect life: he spends a lot of time with the grandchildren, he has his vegetable garden, he has fun solving only the more interesting mysteries, he goes to events to support his writer wife, and they have a fun trip once in a while

[bifronse]

The Outsiders social media headcanons except they’re still boomers

Since Pony is writer, he has multiple platforms but primarily uses twitter. Pre-Musk, he’s verified and is relatively active on it. He’s used the internet since the advent of it so he’s the most familiar with internet culture and lingo. He migrates to Bluesky after the Musk takeover

Pony’s fanbase skews young because of his heavily character-driven novels, so he has a hoard of teenagers that always bug him

Darry makes a Twitter to follow Pony. Rarely updates and is the most dad twitter you can think of. Posting pictures of his grills and family, as well as occasional updates about his construction company. A chunk of Pony’s followers found him and jokingly hype up all his tweets, no matter how mundane. He doesn’t know how to feel about that

Two-Bit is on Facebook and follows all sorts of humor groups, and he is blissfully unaware that over half the content farm shit that shows up on his feed is AI. If you tried to tell him about AI, he’d just laugh it off because “I don’t get that stuff”

After Pony leaves twitter Darry vows to stop using socmed entirely because he doesn’t want to bother learning how to use another one, Twitter was bad enough. He fails miserably once Pony sends him a Bluesky invite because he’s still The Worrier and Needs to know what Pony’s up to

Steve has a Facebook and most of what he posts is either just reposts of articles he finds (being a retired drug counselor he’s always keeping tabs on drug-related research), simple life updates, or strong opinions about current day cars

Steve eventually mutes Two-Bit because the reposts of content farm slop became too incessant. He swears up and down that it’s nothing personal

Steve and Pony have a constant tension over politics. They both like and hate the same things but Steve is significantly more apolitical. As an example: Pony hates Musk for being a scumbag billionaire, Steve hates Musk because he hates Teslas. So whenever they talk IRL, afterwards they take to their respective platforms to throw vagues at each other. Thankfully they’re on separate platforms otherwise it’d be a nightmare

The Curtises are, eventually, pushed into making a Facebook so they can all keep up with each other. Pony’s page collects dust but Darry ends up using it more than he ever did Twitter because, well, his posting style was made for Facebook. He’s also able to properly promote his construction company on there

Pony had a tumblr that he had to stop using ~2017 because the asks got too aggressive. Why that happened is up to your imagination

Bonus resurrections:

Johnny is one of those older guys that somehow gets sucked into streaming video games. You know the ones. He’s decently popular despite not actually talking much

I’m a Dally Optimist so he’d be one of those guys that goes around on different platforms to spread awareness about the dangers of gang life and prison conditions

Soda may be in his late 60s/early 70s but that will NOT stop him from fucking it up on Instagram and TikTok!!! He’s handsome so that obviously makes the old man fuckers go crazy

Soda would catch wind of the “hyping up Darry’s boring tweets” and join in on it, so Soda’s crazy thirsty followers would find Darry. It is Darry’s personal hell but he secretly finds it hilarious. Get it grandpa!

[3-2-whump]

Doctor of Nonpersons

<prev next>

A.K.A., the author takes inspiration from their own tonsillectomy! Fortunately, for the author's procedure, the doctors were legitimate and used anesthesia, so a lot of this was extensively researched and imagined instead of being experienced first hand (thankfully!) Special thanks goes out once again to @whumped-by-glitter for beta reading.

Read this chapter before hand, or you will not understand the references made to the Key Game

TW/CW: nsfwhump, medical whump, multiple whumpers, institutionalized slavery, noncon drugging (injection), blood, graphic description of tonsillectomy, restraints

It took Khaled only half the time to find the key nowadays, with Nico’s assistance. Even if they didn’t see each other for lunch anymore, Nico would always text him late at night as soon as he knew who had the key. It was a gesture Khaled deeply appreciated from his friend, and he thanked Nico generously each time, but all Nico wanted in return was the truth, and he had yet to give it to him.

Of course, knowing where the key was didn’t change the fact that Khaled still had to degrade himself to get the key, and now there was the added element of waiting until a reasonable amount of time had passed before presenting the key to his master, lest the man become suspicious. Don Thomas Costa was a smart man, he would find out eventually, and Khaled found himself dreading the day the key game would have to be forcefully put to an end. But it didn’t end the way he had thought it would.

-

“Is your dancer okay? He looks kinda sick.”

Khaled’s head swam as he reluctantly detached himself from his master’s arm and straightened his posture. The boss had dragged him out to one of those parties again, forcing him to wear that same red outfit that revealed everything. He didn’t want to go; he never felt up for being stripped and dolled up and displayed like this, but especially not tonight. His throat was so sore he could barely talk, drink, or eat for the past few days, so he didn’t. The lack of food and water made him weak, his head throbbing with an underlying current of nausea throughout. And it was hot, so hot, and yet he couldn’t stop shivering. Even the simple act of standing hurt. He wanted to go home.

Thomas covered for him. “He’s fine, he’s just a bit tired, right? Go on, boy,” he implored, his tone on the knife-edge of civility. “Tell him you’re fine.”

All that came out of Khaled’s inflamed throat was a pathetic wheeze. Understandably deterred, the guest who checked on him immediately retreated, side-eyeing Thomas all the while. As soon as he could confirm no one was paying attention to them, Thomas grabbed Khaled’s wrist and dragged him to the nearest private place.

He took refuge behind a large potted palm tree. “What’s wrong with you?” he whisper-hissed. He forcefully gripped Khaled’s face in his hand and craned his head up to meet his eyes. “You’re burning up, are you sick or something?”

Khaled tried his best to nod with his head in such an awkward positon.

Thomas huffed. “Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you have to wait until we were in public? Are you trying to make me look bad?”

“I’m sorry, Master…my throat… it…” The words ground abrasively out of Khaled’s sore throat.

His master’s gray eyes widened in realization. He let go of his face and reached into his pocket to retrieve his phone. “Open,” he commanded.

The young man’s jaw dropped with a practiced ease. His master turned on the light to his phone and shone it straight into his mouth. If the silently whispered “oh my god” was anything to go by, then it must have looked as bad in there as it felt. Twisted as it was, he was almost glad Thomas deemed him sick, too, if only to validate his suffering. “Okay, close.”

Khaled reflexively closed his mouth. The older man scrolled through his phone, muttering all the while. “This isn’t some common cold, this is far beyond what I could do treating you at home. I’d really rather not take you to the hospital; I have a fake ID and a convincing backstory for you, but I’d have a tough time explaining away all your disciplinary marks-” Thomas cut himself off with a groan. Then, in a move Khaled had never seen before, the boss heaved a reluctant, almost defeated sigh.

“Master?” he rasped.

“It’s decided then,” he said bitterly, “I’ll have to take you to her.”

Thomas had only heard secretive whispers and unsubstantiated rumors about this clinic, and those whispers and rumors yielded mixed reviews, to put it nicely. However, Khaled was sick enough for him to drive across state lines in the dead of night to find one obscure little shop front in an unfamiliar city, to put his pride aside and ask for the help of someone who might not even help him anyway.

A short, waif-like, collared redhead answered the door. She took one look at him and Khaled with her tired blue eyes before opening the door wider and silently ushering them in. Thomas noticed a neat vertical scar running down the front of her neck. Looks like I’ve found the right place.

The mute slave girl led them past a harshly-lit waiting room, through a maze of narrow corridors decorated with unobjectionable photography, and into a tiny room with two plastic chairs and the typical examination table in the middle. Thomas was impressed that it was almost like any other medical clinic, but perturbed by the distant screams and weak sobbing sounds coming from the neighboring rooms. The redhead closed the door behind her as she left. A faint clicking noise as she left indicated that they were locked inside.

A warm weighted pressure on his right redirected Thomas’ feelings of dread and regret. Khaled was clinging to his arm, looking up at him with terrified eyes. He was trembling, whether it was because of the fear, the fever, or because he was still in that damn dancer outfit, Thomas wasn’t sure. “I’m sorry, boy. I don’t like it either, but this was our only option,” he sighed.

The door unlocked and opened with a faint click as the doctor came in to their room. She was a woman in her early forties, wearing a white lab coat over business casual clothes, who nearly dropped her tablet as she noticed them standing in the exam room. She blinked once, twice, and adjusted the glasses on her face. “I don’t believe this,” she gasped. “Is that you, Thomas?”

“Lennie Sal…”

The woman frowned –something she seemed to have done quite often in the intermittent years since he’d seen her. “You know damn well you’ve lost the right to call me that,” she replied, her tone turning frosty.

Thomas groaned. This bitch. He remembered why he’d never kept in touch with her. “Lenore,” he sighed through gritted teeth, “I need to call in a favor.”

The woman squinted at the feverish slave leaning on his shoulder. “That one yours?”

“Who’s else would he be?” Thomas guided Khaled to the raised examination table and lifted him onto it. It took everything in the boy to keep himself in an upright seated position; he started leaning to one side as soon as Thomas took his hands away.

“I’d heard rumors, but never actually thought you would acquire a nonperson,” she shrugged. She gave Khaled a quick once over before going to the sink to wash her hands. “Though, from the looks of him, I can see why you bought him. You certainly did have a type after Afghanistan,” she commented with a wry side-eye.

Thomas deliberately ignored that comment. “He’s got a fever, and a sore throat. When I shone my phone light down his throat, it was all red and irritated. And his tonsils looked, I don’t know, pitted?”

Lenore had just pulled on a new pair of gloves. “That so?” Turning to her patient now, the doctor adopted a completely different demeanor. “Open.” Khaled’s jaw dropped on reflex as he stretched his mouth wide and stuck out his tongue invitingly. “A little further out, like that –yeah, just like that, good boy,” she praised, much like a veterinarian to a pet. Taking out her penlight, she peered down the young man’s throat and confirmed what Thomas had suspected. “Yup, they’re infected. They’re basically nuclear.” She withdrew her instrument and directed Khaled to close his mouth. “I won’t bother asking why you didn’t come to me sooner,” Lenore began, “but the point is you’ve come to me now.” She gently but firmly pushed Khaled down onto the examination table and reached underneath for a set of straps. “Has he taken any of the following meds in the past ten days?” she asked, following up her question with a rapid-fire list of OTCs.

Thomas shook his head. “No, don’t think so,” he replied.

“Has he eaten or drunk anything in the past several hours?” Lenore restrained Khaled’s wrists and upper torso snugly to the table with the straps.

“Nothing we can’t just make him throw up, right?” The flat, unimpressed stare Lenore gave him made Thomas cringe. “No, he hasn’t eaten since lunch, about ten hours ago, and I don’t think he even ate that much.”

She had just finished securing the young man’s legs and ankles. “Hold his head in place,” she directed with an offhanded wave. There was a clatter of a compartment opening under the examination table. “Intimate types seem to do well with the physical contact they get from their masters during procedures. The touch grounds them, I think,” she explained, fishing around the compartment until she found the tool she needed.

Khaled recognized it right away, shaking his head and whispering a hoarse “please, no, Master, please-” Thomas locked both hands on each side of the boy’s head, just as he’d been directed, to keep him from turning away as the doctor worked the open-mouthed gag in between his teeth.

“There, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Lenore asked as she buckled it tight behind the boy’s head. She gave his distended cheeks a condescending pat before addressing the man above him. “So, do you want me to give him something for the pain, or should I just get in there and…” She made crude snipping motions with her index and middle fingers.

Thomas scoffed, unbelieving that such a sweet girl like her could’ve become so cold. “God yes, woman! Of course, I don’t want him to feel it!”

“Hey, hey, doesn’t hurt to ask,” she defended. She lowered her head to address her patient again. “You’ve got such a considerate master, pretty boy. Looks like he ‘doesn’t want you to feel it,’ isn’t that nice?” she said with a smile.

Khaled let out a pitiful whine.

The doctor turned toward a mysterious rack of vials and tinctures as she procured a sterile needle from a drawer under her desk. “You’re going to have the best twenty minutes of your life,” she promised as she siphoned out an esoteric blend of medicines from the bottles.

Thomas frowned skeptically at the rack as his former lover hummed a song they once danced to under her breath. “Wait, what exactly are you giving him?”

“Oh, just a custom cocktail of sedatives and psychotropic drugs,” Lenore explained. She inserted the needle into a vein of one of Khaled’s restrained hands –though not without difficulty, considering how much he squirmed. She emptied the contents of the syringe completely into the boy’s bloodstream. “It won’t knock him out completely, but it should dull the pain, as well as the rest of his senses.” She sat back with a smug smile as she withdrew the needle. “It’s relatively quick too, just like hospital-grade anesthetics. Look at him.”

Thomas looked down. The young man lay motionless on the examination table, his body slack against the restraints. His eyes were hazed over, distant, and half-lidded. Thomas waved a hand over those blank eyes. The only indication he was still in the world of the living was the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. “Wow, out already?” he asked incredulously.

“Not out,” Lenore gently corrected, “just too sluggish to put up a fight. Now hold his head straight for me, please.”

Thomas repositioned Khaled’s head between his hands. He tried not to think of how close in proximity Lenore was to him as she bent over the boy’s mouth. Her hair now had thin threads of silver running through its thick chestnut brown ponytail. He resisted every urge to reach out and touch it. He knew he’d lost that right years ago.

“So…” he began, punctuating the silence, “what have you been up to?”

“Oh cut the crap, and hold his tongue out for me,” she instructed brusquely. Thomas carefully reached into Khaled’s mouth to pinch his tongue between his thumb and index finger and extended it gently. It was hard to get a grip on the slippery little thing, which prompted Lenore to hand him a gauze pad to place between his fingers and Khaled’s tongue, giving him a much better grip.

“What I guess I’m trying to say, Len-Lenore…” It wouldn’t do to piss off the lady holding surgical tools down his slave boy’s throat. “-is do you ever wonder why it didn’t work out between us?” Thomas asked.

“Not really,” his ex-fiancée shrugged.

The motion of her shoulders jiggled the forceps and electrocauterizing pen in a way that made a cold bead of sweat run down Thomas’ back. He blinked, just to give his body something to do while his brain formulated his next words carefully. “Look, if it was because of the family business that made you change your mind, you could’ve just told me-”

“It wasn’t,” Lenore interrupted. She gently pulled away the irritated tissue with her forceps as the pen severed its connection to the wall like butter. “You know, I wouldn’t have even minded –hold his tongue further out,” she instructed, resuming her thoughts as soon as Thomas had done as she asked. “I didn’t mind the killing, the extortion, the cheating, but I just didn’t like that you lied to me about it!”

“Well, what was I supposed to do-”

“Tell me the truth, Tom! That’s all I ever wanted, the truth!” The wet splotchy sound of freshly excised tissue hitting the bottom of a stainless-steel bowl punctuated her argument.

“Wait, is this about you walking in on me blowing the priest?” Thomas guessed.

“No, no, it’s because it was hot that day, and –of course it’s because of you blowing the fucking priest on the day of our fucking wedding!” she screamed. “It’s because of all those times your smile didn’t meet your eyes, those times you’d pull your hand away from mine as soon as we were truly alone, those times when your head would turn as soon as you saw a-” The second tonsil soon joined its twin in the bowl, its own sound no less wet and splotchy. “-without even giving me a second glance! You and your fucking family who saw me as nothing more than a jewel to your crown, so just admit it –you never loved me!”

“Renée Lenore Salvatore!” Thomas hissed, ignoring the bleeding gashes her barbed words left on his heart. She looked up at him in equal mixtures of shock and anger that he dared to use her full name. “Never assume that what I felt for you wasn’t real!” Thomas cried. “Maybe you’re right in that I never loved you like I should have, but never say I never loved you.”

A small moan rose from below him. He glanced down at the examination table, and Khaled’s glassy, unfocused eyes stared back. “At any rate, let’s not argue in front of him, okay? All this shouting is probably stressing him out.” He leaned forward to give Khaled’s forehead a reassuring kiss.

Lenore gently removed her tools from Khaled’s mouth, setting them aside the metal tray with the severed tonsils. “Fortunately, we’re basically done with the procedure now,” she said as she swatted him away. She leaned over Khaled’s head again, unbuckling the gag before pulling it out of his mouth.

Khaled remained slack-jawed. Thomas had to close his mouth for him. “You don’t need to stitch anything up?” he asked curiously.

“No. The pen cauterizes the flesh as it cuts, sealing off any blood vessels along the way,” Lenore explained. She moved on to undoing the straps on the table next. Thomas joined her unprompted as he undid the other side.

“I gotta ask, though,” Lenore piped up, seemingly out of nowhere. “Is his primary role what I think it is?” The devious smirk on her face as she threw away her bloodied gloves filled in the blanks.

Thomas nodded, averting her knowing eyes. She (understandably) didn’t take it too well when she caught him in the act with a priest twice their age. He could only imagine how painful this must be for his ex-fiancée, to see the man she had loved strolling in with a pleasure slave half her age.

Whatever she must have felt was kept perfectly masked behind her ‘good doctor’ act. “And are you sharing him, or is he exclusively yours?”

“Mine, for the most part…” Thomas trailed off, remembering the devious Key Game he’d invented. The woman waited for him to finish. “I mean, at least his ass is all mine,” Thomas explained, though not without going red from embarrassment.

“Ah.” Wordlessly, though not without a heavy air of judgment, she typed something into her tablet. Thomas swallowed down the embarrassment and the morbid curiosity to see what she wrote in the post-op notes.

“The next part involves monitoring him for any complications within the next twelve hours,” Lenore told him. “Now, nobody expects you to stay here for twelve hours, so drive home, get this poor thing some actual clothes, and come back in the morning.”

“But-”

“It’s fine,” she reassured. She flashed him a familiar smile, though far less warm and happy than he remembered. “I know how people get around certain pets, and I can see you’re one of them. Your boy will be fine, I promise.”

With her peace said, she tucked the tablet under her arm and walked toward the door.

“Lenore,” Thomas implored. The woman of his dreams turned around, hand gripping the door knob, resting bitch face back as she stared blankly through him. “I’m sorry I hurt you,” he said truthfully.

A melancholy darkening of her dull brown eyes lasted for only a second as she dropped her gaze to the linoleum floor. “Yeah, well… I’m sorry I let you.” Her white lab coat swished lightly as she walked through the open door. “You may pick your pet up after the twelve-hour observation period, where I will have a detailed post-op care sheet for you to follow to the letter. Bella will see you out now.” And with a final swish of her coat, she was gone.

-

POST-OP CARE SHEET FOR THOMAS J. COSTA

Nonperson: Khaled

Procedure: Tonsillectomy

Stitches: No

General Comfort: Keep him at home for one to two weeks, avoid exposure to sick people during these one to two weeks. He will likely be tired and still have a sore throat for the first week; that is normal. He may also feel pain in the ears, neck or jaw, nausea, and like something is stuck in the back of his throat; that too is normal. Please contact this clinic if Khaled shows any excessive bleeding, a fever exceeding 102° F, difficulty swallowing or breathing, signs of dehydration, and/or if he is not responding to pain medication.

Exercise: No strenuous physical activity for two weeks after surgery.

Feeding: Keep him hydrated, plenty of fluids, nothing too acidic. Soft foods are recommended, nothing too acidic, nor spicy, nor crunchy so as not to irritate the throat.

Medication: Antibiotics and pain medications as directed.

Sexual Activity: falls under strenuous activity, also see note below.

Any Additional Notes: STOP PIMPING HIM OUT TO OTHER PEOPLE, YOU ARE SO LUCKY HE ONLY GOT INFECTED TONSILS THIS TIME!

Khaled may return to his duties when he can eat a normal diet, sleep throughout the night, and no longer need pain medication.

Schedule a post-op assessment: xx/xx/20xx

Le Tag List: @kabie-whump @rainydaywhump @whumped-by-glitter @skittles-the-whumpee @generic-whumperz @bamber344

[sure-i-exist]

Where did the kids live in Fairy Tail?

So back when everyone in Fairy Tail was a kid, they all definitely needed to live somewhere, right? And logically no one's gonna be giving a kid an appartment so does anyone wanna hear my headcanons for their housing situations when they were younger? No? Too bad, here it is!

First of all, before anyone points out Fairy Hills exists: 1. those dorms only exist for the girls, 2. I imagine Fairy Hills was actually fairly recent, it's been around for a few years but wasn't there when, for example, Cana joined the guild. I'm also ignoring most of the Fairy Hills OVA except for the fact those dorms exist at all.

Talking generally here, my headcanon is that for those who had their own appartments at like age 12 (or more specifically, those under 16-or-so, who couldn't own/rent anywhere because of their age), Makarov actually technically owned them, contractually he was the tenant for each and every home the youngest fairy tail members lived in, but those members would give money they earned from jobs directly to Makarov to pay for their rent. However, it was this situation which led to Makarov investing in the creation of a dormitory that members of Fairy Tail could live in, regardless of age, meaning there was a safe place for young members to stay and for the older members there was a place they could turn to if they were struggling to find a home elsewhere in Magnolia.

And thus, Fairy Hills was born. Originally it was going to be unisex but there were some issues trying to set that up so instead Makarov took a vote and found it was mostly women and girls of the guild who'd want the option of this dormitory, so he was just thankful he didn't need to set up another dorm too for men of the guild, because it is very expensive to upkeep Fairy Hills (and it was an expense that got cut during the 7 years, because of the dwindling funds and members). Those who were still teenagers when Fairy Hills was set up and either couldn't or didn't choose to live there (the strauss siblings, gray, possibly Jet/Droy depending on when they joined, etc.) just continued with the previous set-up of Makarov technically owning their place and they paid rent via him til they were old enough to replace his name on the contract with their's.

[From here onwards, I'm just taking the opportunity to talk one-by-one about each of the different kids growing up (there's a lot of Cana, but everyone else gets their section too), and their specific house situations.]

Now, all this is well and good, but what about Cana? She joined Fairy Tail when she was 6 years old. Makarov's not gonna put his name down to give her an appartment all on her own, she's too young (and quite a few of that generation of Fairy Tail joined young, but they were at least around 10 at the time).

Cana had the most varied housing situation since she joined so young. The Penalty Game OVA did say Cana stayed at the church before she joined the guild, and I really like that but I also feel like saying "oh she just stayed at the church for years and years before she was old enough" is kinda too easy and a bit boring. Personally my idea is that things slightly changed once she officially joined the guild (which did take surprisingly long, she just kept showing up for months before anyone asked if she actually wanted to join, after a few weeks Makarov had thought she'd already joined and he'd just forgotten when exactly that was). She did continue to stay at the church some nights, but she also began to start sleeping at the guild instead (which isn't exactly good, and is in fact much worse than sleeping at the church, but she felt like after joining she had to be at the guild all the time, in case Gildarts showed up and she missed him).

Eventually, Makarov noticed she was semi-regularly sleeping in the guild and was concerned when he realised she didn't truly have anywhere to properly stay, and while it wasn't much he decided she'd stay with him at least a few days a week, to make sure there was someone specifically looking after her and keeping an eye on her, for her to be safe. Several of Makarov's neighbours thought Cana and Laxus were siblings because of this, despite not looking much alike.

It wasn't just Makarov who took her in, as both Macao and Wakaba would occasionally have her stay the night with either of them (Wakaba was very occasional cause he was not the most responsible fella and half the time he didn't get home at all, while the other half he'd end up going home with someone else. Macao was similar, but to a lesser degree, and particularly in the months before Romeo was born he'd invite Cana to spend a few nights kinda as practise for when he had his son). A couple other guildmembers did the same every so often too, having her stay round for a night or two, resulting in Cana being on good terms with almost every member of the guild before any other kids even joined. She didn't always stay with Makarov, or Macao, or whoever else in the guild, though; she still continued staying at the church once a week or so, and of course would still sleep at the guild from time to time (because everyone does that, especially when there's a party going on). She never had an even slightly stable home, which sucked, and definitely affected her growing up, but there was a lot of love, and that much was good.

Gray also joined the guild a little earlier than others, he was 8 at the time, so he also had a little bit of the Cana experience, though he was never with other guildmembers, instead he only stayed with Makarov or at the guild (and once at the church). This lasted for a few weeks/months before he managed to convince Makarov to help him get some kinda home for himself, which Makarov agreed so long as Cana and Gray lived together for it (the logic being two 8 year olds is safer than one). Cana was fine with this, finally getting some sort of a stable home though she'd still sometimes be offered to stay the night with an older member of the guild (most likely to be Macao) who was kinda looking out for her. Once Gray got the appartment however he was determined to keep it, making sure he and Cana always made enough each month for rent (Makarov would chip in whenever they didn't quite get enough, though they didn't always know he was doing this).

Erza, the 3rd kid to join Fairy Tail, also followed the routine of staying at the guild, then staying with Makarov, and then she actually stayed with Gray and Cana for a few weeks before finally getting her own place. She stayed with Makarov much longer than Gray did, and actually only stayed with him rather than Cana's experience with other members too. Erza stayed at Makarov's home for a little less than a year before she moved out. (This time the neighbours caught on that this was some kid Makarov was sort-of-adopting, not another grandchild. They still didn't realise Laxus was the only real grandchild though, and that Cana was as unrelated to the Dreyars as Erza was.)

Natsu stayed with Makarov for about two days before he left. Natsu didn't often spend much time in Magnolia anyway, at any moment he could he'd be off looking for Igneel, and this was largely true until he became friends with Lisanna, who didn't take long jobs away from the guild and could usually be found at Fairy Tail. He'd still be out looking for Igneel most of the time, but his desperation faded as time went on and he actually built a proper home for himself (or rather, he found an abandoned house in the woods and made it up for himself and Happy). In the time between when he joined the guild and when he found the house, he almost entirely slept in the guild hall or in the woods, he'd not exactly had a conventional house with Igneel so didn't see the point for himself.

By the time the Strauss siblings came to the guild, Makarov was already putting in the plans for a Fairy dormitory. They stayed with him for a few weeks (by this point Laxus was either living alone after Ivan's removal from the guild, or was on a job for a month or so since otherwise he'd be living with Makarov then). Shortly after joining, Makarov helped the siblings find a place to live, they paid rent via him, and that was that until Mirajane turned 16-or-so and could claim tenancy herself.

Levy must've been the next to join, since she wasn't seen when Happy was born but she was there for Lisanna's birthday. When she joined Fairy Hills would've been set up I reckon, Erza and Cana would have moved to live there (as well as various women in Fairy Tail), and Levy would've likely skipped the previous step of living with Makarov as she could immediately find a home in Fairy Hills.

Laxus is the final person I'm gonna discuss, since he's unique in that obviously he's always been part of Fairy Tail. I think it's pretty safe to say that he lived with Ivan when he was a kid, but frequently followed after his grandfather and spent time at the guild. I don't know if it's stated exactly what age Laxus was when Ivan got kicked out, but I assume he was around 16, and from that I like to think he was technically still living with Ivan at the time but both Laxus and Ivan would go on long jobs that lead them far away from Fairy Tail (though Ivan wasn't officially going on jobs every time he left for weeks or months at a time, that's just what Laxus thought he was doing). Because of this lack of closeness, Laxus didn't really see how his dad was so bad that he needed to be removed from the guild (he knew he was far from the best guy around, but he didn't know the worst stuff). Anyway, when Ivan left Fairy Tail that left Laxus living with Makarov for about a week or two before he found a place for himself. It was an uncomfortable week.

[karizard-ao3]

Clueless Teens all grown up headcanons

I guess technically as the author I could declare this all fic canon but I think it's more fun to leave it open-ended so people can imagine their own things. Still, this is what I was picturing for them in the future. (Actually, for some of the couples, the kids I imagined for them got recycled over to my single parents au. Not Eremika's kids, but the other ones for the most part.)

Historia and Ymir have one daughter who they spoil the fuck out of. They also plan elaborate vow renewals approximately whenever they feel like it. When I was considering writing a one shot of them all grown up it was going to be everyone gathered at one of Yumihisu's destination vow renewal ceremonies.

Reibert. Oh gosh. They were going to "no homo" their way right to the altar and be very happy together.

Connie. He does not end up with Mina. I was of two minds with him: Either he is trying to find a milf to settle down with, or he is married to Sasha's cousin and they are struggling with fertility so he's the cool uncle with all the dogs and the secret pain of wishing they could have a child. I don't know why this is the case. It's just what I feel. Connie would be pretty much the ideal stepdad, imo.

Nicosasha. Again, I was of two minds! It's not realistic to have this many high school couples end up together in long term relationships/ marriages, but I also don't want to make anyone break up. Still, I can see Sasha and Nico having some kind of separation for a few years. Maybe getting married and then divorced and then marrying each other again ten years later or some shit. Why? I don't know. They are clearly very much in love, but that doesn't always last. Still, out of everyone I can see Sashe remarrying her first husband, with maybe a second husband in between. Greedy.

Aruani. These two go on their little date after Armin graduates and then proceed to not get together for another four years. Like, they still talk all the time and probably hook up when they see each other but they're like, "Meh, let's not do long distance. Let's keep it casual and if we still want to be together after college, we'll move in together immediately." It works for them and they eventually have a little boy, but Eremika are absolutely scandalized because they could never be so hands off.

Eremika. As you know, they have four kids super close in age. Mikasa makes a living streaming (she's the breadwinner. She's got that Azumabito business sense and Ackerman gaming skill) and Eren does civil rights law. So they have a pretty comfortable life and they spend a lot of time with their families. Eren walks around shirtless a lot, which is very popular on Mikasa's streams and he likes to come up and read the chats while she plays. If anyone tries to hit on her or says something sexual, he immediately loses his shit and starts threatening to find them and kick their asses. Mikasa is very pleased when she finally makes enough money to be able offer to fund Armin's dreams of opening a comics and games shop.

Pokkopiku. I think they also are the type to be parents to an only child. I'm thinking a girl. Pieck is very busy with her journalism career and Porco is living the stay at home dad dream. Maybe he becomes an influencer. He definitely keeps taking photos at every opportunity and he's got a bit of an online following. I think he might manage to book some gallery shows. When their daughter gets older he might get back into doing photojournalism again, and eventually they become a journalistic team once more, kind of like when they were in high school except this time with globe-hopping. I could see Pieck deciding to homeschool their kid so the whole family could go on assignments with her. In single parents au, I gave Porco twins, though (he's only in a couple scenes and we never meet his family, but he mentions them), and so I also kind of like the idea of Clueless Teens Pokkopiku having boy/girl twins. The point is, Pieck is willing to delay her career advancement long enough for one pregnancy and no more than that, so if they're going to have more than one kid, it has to be a multiple birth.

Am I forgetting anyone? I feel like I'm leaving someone out. I don't know! It's getting late and I have a few more things I want to work on before I go to be, so let me know who- Jeanmarco.

8. I don't really know if I think Jean and Marco end up together. I don't think they ever admit they have any kind of romantic feelings for each other because Jean is not totally comfortable with admitting to being bi at this juncture in time. I think they stay friends but Marco eventually moves on with a nice guy and Jean meets a nice woman who didn't know what a skeeze he was in high school and settles down with her and then eventually comes out when he's older and it's less taboo. He also does not revert back to being a creep.

Okay, now I think that's everyone. But let me know if I left anyone important to you out!

(Read Clueless Teens here)

[changeling-fae]

Gave my unicorn Tav, Iluatria (Lua for short), an update. I'm a The Last Unicorn hoe.

Her lore:

Lua was a unicorn who lived on the coast before an old dying wizard made a deal with a sea hag to capture her so he could force her into healing him and giving him more life.

He went to the local sea hag and had her help him capture and transform Lua (wild unicorns are notoriously difficult to capture otherwise). It worked obviously, but he betrayed the hag and killed her (who cursed him to be killed by his own folly soon enough, aka Lua).

He basically had her captured Calliope style in the Sandman, trying to persuade/intimidate/force her to give him power but she refused because it’s not something that can be taken. He gets drunk one night and tries to take it by force (by sawing her horn off which would kill her) and she instead impales him with her horn.

She then returns to where her sisters and brothers are like “hey, help me turn back” but then they said they can’t and that’s when Selûne is like “actually I’m going to need you to investigate Moonrise/the Absolute cult that’s forming and then I can turn you back”, so then Lua is forced to investigate which is then when she gets captured and tadpoled.

Since the gods were already sending their clerics and agents to check out what’s happening, Selûne would be like “actually this works in our favor for a bit” and is taking advantage of the situation.

I imagine Lua got nerfed a bit when she was transformed, then the tadpole nerfed her the rest of the way.

She knows she’s a unicorn (horn makes it obvious) but her memories of her life as a unicorn are starting to fade and the more connections she makes in her new form, the more she loses her old self. I’m using it as a form of meta too, since Tav is such a blank slate and feels like they didn’t exist before the events of the game, this is my meta of her literally being a new person.

She’s old, like older than Raphael old, but since I’m stealing so much from TLU, to quote Prince Lir, “she has a newness”.

She was a unicorn under the service of Selûne specifically, and she helped guide sailors and lost souls home along the coast. Keeping with the sea and navigation themes.

She’s not only trying to remove the tadpole but also trying to return to form before she “loses herself” forever. But of course she makes connections and once she and Astarion fall for each other, it’s when she has to make a decision. His spawn route is him deciding to try living again with his old self dead and buried, and with her it’ll be deciding to let her old self die as well.

She doesn't get on with Gale at first because she thinks wizards are selfish and power hungry but over time they become friends and they have interesting discussions around magic.

Right now her goal is “yes, I want to go back, this form is unnatural and torture” but she’ll start to develop an independent sense of self that starts to overtake her old self.

She’ll always have natural grace and beauty, but that ethereal otherworldliness will disappear over time.

While she's in this form she can feel her immortality and old self fade and it horrifies her but once she falls in love with Astarion she eventually comes to accept her new life. My end goal is at the end of the game, she chooses to use what's left of her powerful unicorn healing magic to cure Astarion of his vampirism. Her horn disappears and she's made fully mortal (as an elf) and they live their new lives together.

It's a cheesy idea but Selûne takes their souls (since Corellon won’t have him), and then they get reincarnated as unicorns. They’re essentially new people again, the way reborn souls are, but they find each other again and mate for life once more. And now he gets to be a unicorn; wild beauty, grace, and never again tamed too.

It’s super romantic and cheesy but sometimes I be a sucker for that.

And I do like the idea that Astarion, (who he himself and most people see as used, dirty, and corrupted), is actually seen as worthy enough and loved by a being in universe as pure as they come. And there’s an innocence in his passion for life that would attract her.