#i... have no clue where this is going so i'm just gonna buckle in and see where it takes me i suppose.

[melbatron5000]

The Big Damn Kiss

Buckle up, my fellow Good Omens Ineffable Mystery Puzzlers, Crackpotters, and Assorted Brainrotters, because I learned something HUGE yesterday.

This will be a bit of a long post, because I want to show you exactly how I got where I am. I want you to understand. I want to put all the naysayers to bed (ha! But I'm still gonna try), and settle this once and for all.

I know (almost) exactly what Crowley gave to Aziraphale during the kiss.

DO NOT TAKE ANY OF MY THEORIES TO NEIL! PLEASE!

Okay? Okay. Thanks. Shall we begin?

Ahem.

Firstly, whether you believe me or not, I am 100% certain that Crowley did, indeed, give something to Aziraphale in his mouth during The Kiss. I've covered that in the link previous. Okay? Okay.

I did not know what it was. I've now heard theories that it was a bullet (nope), a ball bearing (nope), hellfire (nope), and no one, NO ONE has suggested what I see. (If you have, hello! Talk to me!)

Here's our first foreshadowing Clue:

And here's our next foreshadowing Clue:

And the next:

And our last Clue:

With me so far? Well, that first GIF is a bit off, I couldn't find one of Crowley actually spitting out the flies. But he does. When Beelzebub first drags him to Hell, he actually goes "Pleaugh!" and spits out four or five flies. Edit: Found it!

Moving right along, we come to Crowley in Heaven with Muriel, looking at the trial. We learn two important things here:

One, Gabriel doesn't have a desk.

Two, Muriel does. Where they keep the records. And it's a bit lonely. Every few hundred years, someone comes and asks for something. Muriel can't access the sensitive ones, you have to be pretty high up. A throne, dominion, or higher. Like, maybe Supreme Archangel?

So if Gabriel doesn't have a desk, whose desk is he at when he's getting ready to leave Heaven? Of course I can't find a damn picture of Gabriel at the desk, but it's Muriel's. Where they keep the RECORDS.

Gabriel puts his memory into the fly, then gets on the elevator to go to Earth.

Now, when Gabriel opens the fly with his memories inside, we find out that it's a container. Bigger on the inside. You can put thing(S) in it. The bit we see of him remembering is shot in two parts, one where he's flying down a red tunnel, one where he's flying down a blue. If you slow this scene down and watch, you can see that he is NOT looking at just his own memories. There is more going on here, more that he was not present for. @embracing-the-ineffable put up a great meta about that here. Go look!

Now I figured Gabriel must have taken something else. Something important. Something useful. Something he meant to give to Aziraphale, except he forgot.

I also figured he must have left whatever it was in the fly when he took his memories out. Crowley must have realized while watching the trial footage that Gabriel also grabbed something else. I don't know when Crowley grabs the fly, but he does. And that is what he gives to Aziraphale in the kiss. Why? Well.

I had no idea what Gabriel took until I started working on the chiastic structure of season 2. I'm not done with that analysis yet, but let me show you one thing that I have found so far:

(The numbers are just to try and help me navigate the story and its events without time stamps)

My note #357 of what happens isn't quite right, but when I saw the only two times Aziraphale says "I forgive you" are towards the beginning of Season 2 and towards the end, I realized I had something.

Rephrase line 357: Crowley's kiss is forgiven IN EXCHANGE FOR RECORDS.

(Not that I think Crowley's kiss needs to be forgiven. It's just what Aziraphale says, and had to say at that moment, because the Metatron was listening in.)

What does Heaven in Good Omens remind us of most of all?

A big corporate entity. And what do powerful people do when they get fired from a big corporate entity? They download all their emails while they're cleaning out their desks. Damning emails. Emails that can be used to black mail or even destroy big corporate entities. Or, ya know, maybe they swipe some sensitive RECORDS?

Oh yes.

Records that Gabriel meant to give to Aziraphale, but he forgot. Records that Crowley realized Gabriel had put in the fly. The fly that Crowley grabbed once Gabriel had his memory out. The fly that he gave to Aziraphale when he kissed him. The fly that no longer held Gabriel's memory, but did still contain those damning records.

Here's Aziraphale reading the records:

Here's Aziraphale being horrified and outraged by what he's reading:

And here's Aziraphale realizing he has got some GOOD DIRT on Heaven. Maybe enough to bring them down:

That's it folks. I have no idea what the records actually say, and maybe we're not meant to know until season 3, but whatever it is, it's GOOD.

That's my story, and by God Herself, I'm sticking to it.

[snorlaxlovesme]

alright everybody, it's time we talked about Hostage. (buckle up because this is going to be long, but it'll be worth it)

season 2 episode 8 of Link Click was one of the most confounding episodes in the entire season while airing. starting with Lu Guang's insane boat crash/martial arts smackdown rescue of Cheng Xiaoshi and ending with Cheng Xiaoshi diving into a photo to possess Lu Guang to get answers for his actions, from start to finish it was a wild ass ride where we, the fandom, AND the characters spent the whole time questioning Lu Guang and his motives

and...puzzlingly... didn't really get an answers by the end of the season

Lu Guang wasn't granted any post-climax time to explain what happened that day from his perspective, and while Cheng Xiaoshi was possessing him he didn't get any answers because he literally WAS Lu Guang, just doing whatever the hell he thought he needed to do.

the thing about Hostage that has always felt extremely off to me, is that we DO get explanations for Lu Guang's actions during the episode, but they're from people wholly unqualified to be giving them.

Captain Xiao finds Lu Guang's phone, hidden in a folded towel, and concludes that Lu Guang had left them clues. Qiao Ling, after seeing that Lu Guang had taken a photo that night, came to the conclusion that Cheng Xiaoshi must have been the one possessing Lu Guang during his deranged rescue plan at the pier, seeing as Lu Guang wasn't an adept fighter at the dojo and he was acting extremely impulsive. She even goes so far to say, later in the episode, that Cheng Xiaoshi HAS to dive into the photo, because it's already happened, and needs to follow Lu Guang's words to not change the timeline.

all of these assumptions, to me, are horseshit

I refuse to listen to ANYTHING Captain Xiao says. one, because he simply does not know these kids and should not be making assumptions about them, and two he is in fact the worst cop in the world. and Qiao Ling, bless her heart, has only found out how their powers work mere DAYS ago and doesn't understand the nuances of them at all

so I'm gonna debunk all that nonsense and explain to you what Lu Guang's REAL actions were that night, and what was up with that cryptic photo he took

now you might be thinking, Kelly, you're not even starting in the right place, because those weren't Lu Guang's actions, they were always Cheng Xiaoshi's, just in Lu Guang's body!

FALSE. on two counts! we have evidence of Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi performing the act of escaping the hospital differently. Lu Guang does not use the kettle to break the window to distract the cops. we're not sure what he uses, but that kettle is still there.

Lu Guang also places his phone face down in the towel

while Cheng Xiaoshi places it faceup

so by the end of the episode we have literal, physical evidence that these two performed this timeline differently, and therefore it was not "Cheng Xiaoshi the whole time" like Qiao Ling tried to misinform us to believe. i also have another Big Brain post [x] that explains why Lu Guang being an impulsive, supposedly "good" fighter during that pier rescue scene are both in-character for him.

(and if we wanna get really nitpicky about how an injured Lu Guang could have raced across town in his condition, i simply believe that Lu Guang was smarter about it that Cheng Xiaoshi, and probably took a bus or cab. Cheng Xiaoshi, pure of heart and dumb of ass, ran because HE physically could while inhabiting Lu Guang's body. our injured catboy did not sprint across town while holding his organs in place)

so if we already have all this cold, hard evidence stating that Lu Guang really is THAT bitch and did all that shit on his own, what the hell is my problem? why can I not let this episode go?

BECAUSE I WANNA KNOW WHY LU GUANG TOOK THAT PHOTO

Captain Useless seems to think that Lu Guang took that photo as some sort of helpful clue left behind for the gang

but what, pray tell, was this photo supposed to tell us without someone with Lu Guang's powers there to interpret it? without Lu Guang to tell him what to do, Cheng Xiaoshi left to his own devices knows just as much as himself as he does possessing Lu Guang

and, the bigger question, is if this was supposed to be some sort of almighty clue for the gang, why did he not text this photo to either Qiao Ling or Cheng Xiaoshi before escaping the hospital? he took the time to text Qiao Ling the location of the boat, did he not? why not the photo too? seems like a crappy way to clue someone in, to take a photo and save it on your password protected phone that you just went out of your way to hide from plain sight

because that's the thing! after the season finale we discover that Lu Guang's password is literally a reminder of his dive, or even more specifically, a reminder of his trauma. we KNOW that he didn't share his password with Cheng Xiaoshi, he just just happened to figure it out on his own

so tell me how Lu Guang expected this trauma-password protected phone, with it's one singular picture, to get in the hands of Cheng Xiaoshi, hmm? riddle me THAT

so we've established by now that 1. Lu Guang's actions in the beginning of episode 8 were indeed his own and 2. that photo was never meant to be seen by Cheng Xiaoshi, who shouldn't have known Lu Guang's passcode

given the trauma-passcode, we have to believe that the only person ever meant to see this photo was Lu Guang. i've made ANOTHER post previously [x] stating that Lu Guang might have used his powers in a way we haven't known possible, by taking a photo and using his Blue Eyes White Dragon powers to see 12 hours into the immediate future

plausible, but not what i'm about to propose now.

because I think Lu Guang took that photo as a contingency plan

listen, the only person who had ANY credentials to theorize what Lu Guang was up to that night was his trusted partner. while Qiao Ling and Captain Xiao spouted their nonsense theories, Cheng Xiaoshi said the only smart thing that entire brainstorming session

and I think Cheng Xiaoshi was right. he wasn't wrong in assuming this photo was a Save Point of sorts, the only thing he was wrong about was who would be using it

the only other person in this show capable of diving into a photo, we find out during the finale, is Lu Guang

we also find out in the finale that powers are transferrable, and it looks like they transfer when the owner of that power dies in someone else's arms

Lu Guang took that photo that night NOT for Cheng Xiaoshi to find and use, but for LU GUANG himself to use. i believe Lu Guang firmly believed that Cheng Xiaoshi was to die that night, and he would do everything in his power to make sure he had a chance to change it again if he needed to.

that meant:

1.taking a photo on his phone as a Save Point.

2. hiding his phone in the hospital bathroom so it could not be taken from him or busted later in the night. and

3. racing to where he knew Cheng Xiaoshi would be, so he could either

4. a.) rescue him, or b.) ensure that during CXS's death, the diving power was transferred back to him so he could do the night over again.

Lu Guang took that photo as contingency plan to save Cheng Xiaoshi's life should he get killed that night.

but that plan was botched when Cheng Xiaoshi used it instead to possess Lu Guang, because each photo can only be used once.

which might also explain why Lu Guang was SO DISTRAUGHT when Cheng Xiaoshi was shot

they had deleted all their photos earlier that week to prevent the twins from possessing them remotely

that was the last photo Lu Guang had taken. the ONLY photo on his phone. if Cheng Xiaoshi died that night, there would have been no Save Point to return to

[venus-is-thinking]

DRDT Chapter 2 Episode 14: Initial Thoughts

What an episode! I can't believe that we're probably starting to near the end of the Trial. But, considering we're almost there, we DEFINITELY have a lot to talk about. It's a longer episode, and there's a LOT to go over, so buckle in!

SPOILER WARNING FOR DRDT CH 2 PART 2!

T/W: Murder, hanging (with depictions)

The Reactions

Hu is literally so pretty.

I wasn't expecting her to get a whole mechanic defending Nico, but it makes sense. Letting other students cut in during the Class Trial is a great way to draw specific attention to a character point, and it's very clear that Hu's over-defense of Nico is going to be important moving forwards.

RIP to my "using the weight rack as the carousel" theory. The fan probably makes more sense. I just still have no idea how the 300-ish pound or whatever weight rack managed to get knocked over in the struggle.

I'm glad they directly pointed this out. Trying to kill everyone in the Class Trial was the EXACT thing Hu was so pressed about David doing. It's a weird double standard to be so forgiving of Nico when they tried to do the same thing.

Insane thing to say if Eden is the culprit and killed Arei because she didn't believe her. Then again, if my explanation for a lot of Eden Trial dialogue is "she's speaking out of regret for killing Arei now that she knows Arei was being legit," maybe she's just calling herself cruel as well.

This is honestly very valid.

Do you think "here" implies Nico trusts someone in the outside world? Based on their secret, it seems like they probably didn't have many friends. Could also be referring to animals? Or Mai Akasaki?

Big psychic damage to Hu though, considering we know she thrives on other people relying on her. She wants Nico to be someone who relies on her sooo bad, but they just... don't.

Like, girl. They literally JUST said that they don't trust anyone. That includes you.

She's clearly projecting in some way, though, which is definitely an oof. I wonder if Hu wishes she had someone who was undeniably on her side in the past...?

(To be clear: I think Hu is a very well written and interesting character. She fits the fucked up vibes of Despair Time, but coming from a more surprising angle of "that really nice and caring person can also be fucked up." She's just clearly in the wrong here, so I get to clown on her as I clown on everyone else.)

Ace is honestly so valid for this. Like, yeah he's kind of a bully and he sucks sometimes, but. Like. He did almost get murdered and people are, like, mad at him for it? Huh???

If Ace does end up being the Chapter 2 killer because he snapped, I honestly think he's so valid for that.

It is my personal agenda to record every instance of J being notably anti-murder. I don't know where it's going but if it does go somewhere I want my credit because it is Apparent.

(The entire fanbase nods in agreement.)

I know some people definitely still think/thought that Hu and/or Nico was responsible for the crime, so we've all DEFINITELY been squinting at that alibi. I fully believe it's true, but that doesn't change the fact that I wouldn't put it past Hu to make a fake alibi to protect Nico. Idk if Nico would go along with it, though.

I got so jumpscared by the Closing Argument-style CG.

I'm so glad we did get a definitive answer on how this thing worked. I was so afraid that we were just gonna solve the Arei murder method and the exact solution of Ace's would be a "left to audience interpretation" kind of thing.

I'm not exactly sure where the blood on Ace's fingertips comes from? Maybe he cut his hand on the wire when he was trying to struggle after he woke up or something.

This makes so much more sense than anything I saw theorized though, lol. The fan falling from drop hanging totally checks out as a way that the murder mechanism could fail.

I have NO fucking clue why Nico opted for this as the murder mechanism, though. I get wanting to use Hu's wire to frame her, but why didn't you just cut Ace's throat with the wire in the first place???

where did their cape go :(

Potentially suspicious line from Ace? I don't know what he's referring to as "go through all this." Like, maybe just reliving the murder attempt, I guess...? Could also be going through the Class Trial, though, if Ace killed as a result of Nico trying to kill him.

*Levi's secret quote looms*

Things that make me think Nico is either a victim or a survivor. Like, are you really gonna say this and then go try to kill someone else? ...Or Ace again, I guess??

Fun fact: this was actually what guided me to my initial killer picks, before I discussed with anyone else or read any theories! I thought the killer was trying to frame Nico, so it had to be Eden or Ace. The tape and everything else was just what locked it in for me. It's fun to see Teruko follow more or less the same path that I did when I was trying to solve the mystery :)

TAPE TIME :D

The use of the Bound Wrists truth bullet actually really confused me at first bc I didn't realize we were just talking about the tape. I was like, were Arei's wrists bound because Ace's were and it was intended to be another similarity???

Maybe Eden's just being nice, but I find it really suspicious that her instinct after all this time is "didn't MonoTV take it" and not "oh I guess Ace is probably the murderer."

Teruko has now outlined two different ways that it makes sense if the killer was in the gym that night. If I were Eden, and I were innocent, I would be realizing that there's a very small suspect pool left, and I know that I'm not the killer, giving me additional information. Instead, she's questioning the validity of the tape argument, which isn't useful for narrowing down the killer-- it's useful for keeping the suspect pool wider and not leaving herself as one of three (but basically two) options.

I kinda get why people are upset with Rose here, but it's also kind of an oof because they're only mad because Rose is really smart. Like, no one's out here like "oh my god Ace you didn't recognize the tape??" Y'know, because they think he's stupid. Rose has a really good memory, which raises the standards really high, which sets Rose up for failure.

In Rose's defense, she also never saw the tape in Nico's gym murder OR on the carousel for Arei's murder. She only saw the pieces in the trash can, which seemed to be inside out. Against Rose's defense, it would probably have been for the best if she'd gone in to look at the crime scene.

Am I tripping, or is "fish misunderstanding" a weird way for David to phrase this? The misunderstanding with Teruko was assuming that the murder happened last night, which was in fact because of the fish-- but the thing Teruko should have noticed, which makes it Teruko's mistake specifically, was the body swinging.

I'm probably reading into things too hard, but it's so hard with David. What do you know!!!

Damn, Teruko is SPEEDRUNNING this character arc. Considering we basically know she's locked in for all 6 chapters, I'm really surprised to see her making this much progress this fast.

I'm guessing that this means that Teruko is probably due for a major setback sometime sooner or later. But, interestingly, this makes me feel like Teruko realizing that working alone doesn't work isn't her character arc's end destination; it's the willingness to open herself up to caring about others even in the face of the consequences of losing someone you love. Teruko is closing herself off from everyone because she knows she's going to lose them. Maybe her end destination is allowing herself to love people, even if she might lose them someday.

This was fruity as hell btw. I'm starting to think Rose may be our replacement support if Charles does die in Chapter 3.

It's so funny that this is basically Teruko claiming in-universe protag privilege. Go off, queen.

I also said something along the lines of "Hu are we really doing this again." Totally forgot that the BDA is still relevant, lol.

I personally find the way Veronika phrased this to be very telling from an author's POV. Veronika doesn't say "she must not have committed the murder," she says "she must not have witnessed the murder." It would be totally reasonable for any of the students to forget that the rule is written in a way where a killer could fail to see the moment of murder, but DRDTdev wanted to draw attention to the rule's exact phrasing again, which is a deviation from the phrasing in the canon games.

To be clear here, I stand by this even if Eden isn't the killer and the BDA group really is Eden/Whit/Teruko. I still think it could be a reminder for a future chapter when it comes up. But, I don't think it makes sense to change the phrasing of a base rule unless there's a specific reason you want it to be different. Whether now or later, this feels like a reminder that it IS possible for the blackened to trigger the BDA.

I don't necessarily "believe David," per se, but I do think it's interesting that we're drawing attention to this. I don't really think it matters, especially because I doubt the characters remember, but I'd place my bets on Eden being the last one because of that, "Teruko, wait!" thing.

It doesn't matter because, if David or anyone else saw the body, no one can confirm which two of Teruko, Whit and Eden set off the BDA, but it's an interesting note.

It's so funny how no one, fanbase or in-universe, can tell if David is lying though. Like, he COULD have seen it, but he also easily could just be making shit up to try to throw the Trial again.

will I EVER understand what the fuck this man is cooking

Why. I thought you wanted to end the killing game to finish what Xander started. I don't know what's happening :( /pos

My guess for now is just that he's still trying to kill Teruko, in keeping with Xander's plans?? Idk how making her more distrustful makes her more likely to die, though.

I do find it very interesting that Eden's approach/reaction has been to be very quiet and freaked out whereas Ace's approach/reaction is to freak out VERY loudly. Ace's is fitting because what does he do other than freak out loudly, but I might have expected Eden to do... idk, something else? It makes enough sense though, considering either the group is right to suspect her, or she's still coping with losing Arei a little bit ago.

...*squints REALLY fucking hard*

The music and voice acting in this section is REALLY fucking good. It's sad/charming/soft enough that it feels like it could be genuine, but there's still a little something that makes you have to question whether or not it's real. You WANT to believe Eden, but it's so hard to do so fully.

Y'all think Eden's crying is reminding Teruko of whatever Arei's crying reminded her of?

i'm out of images :(

I really like Teruko assuming that Eden is innocent first. She's too distrusting and also reasonable (it is life or death after all) to just hard clear Eden based on nothing, but she's offering a bit of a reprieve to Eden. Eden's friendship means that she isn't going to get immediately targeted in her most down moment, and that's it. It's a small way to show Eden she does care.

On another note, the fact that Eden got to hug Teruko and that Teruko said the "let go of me" NOW is honestly one of the main reasons I trust Eden more. I felt like that was obviously going to happen, but I was expecting the post-Trial. Putting it here is wild.

Theory Update/Analysis

Oh boy, it's accusing time! It makes sense that we're going to start with Ace. At this point, I can honestly see it going either way. Major props to DRDTdev either way, but ESPECIALLY if Eden really is the culprit. I was so confident in it, but they're really making me question my assumptions.

I think that both Ace and Eden have good reasons to be the blackened or not to be, and good reasons to die here or to not. I'm going to do my best to make a list of reasons for both characters and give a bit of my thoughts on them. They're roughly ranked in most to least important order imo, but I didn't think too hard about it.

EDEN

Reasons Eden Would Be The Blackened:

THE TAPE: It would be easier for her to take the tape than Ace, as attention was on Ace in the gym. The tape's disappearance from the background also happens to coincide with Ace knocking her over and her standing back up.

THE NOTE: Eden already knows all the info she would need to know to write that note. She could have put the note back together to give herself a defense, to try to disprove herself as the culprit with her handwriting, because Rose was going to do it anyways, and/or to frame Arturo if she didn't know he had an alibi. I think any of these reasons, or a combination of these reasons, are enough to make it possible, and while Ace could've overheard, it's definitely less easy for him.

NOT BELIEVING AREI: Both Arei and Charles have, in this trial, been shown to question whether or not Eden believed Arei wanted to be Eden's friend. If Eden simply did, this plot point goes nowhere.

A GOOD PERSON: Eden has been called a good person, but other than that freaky CG, nothing has really come of it. Is the plot relevance of Eden being a good person really going to resolve by saying "Eden is a good person, she'd never kill her friend!"? If a good person isn't gold, Eden still feels like a missing piece of that puzzle.

INCENTIVE TO FRAME NICO: This one's a bit more of a reach, but I don't really understand the point of framing Nico if you're Ace. Of course Ace is going to insist Nico is the murderer no matter what. If you're Eden, you have a direct audience to setting it up similarly: Ace. If you can get Ace to go all in on Nico, that's one less person who was in the Gym who suspects you. Eden and Teruko feel less likely to say "oh well it looks like Nico's murder so it MUST be Nico."

HEAVY FOCUS IN CH 2: DRDTdev seems to give the chapter death's important content shortly before their deaths. Eden has been one of the most prominent characters this chapter, which could be a bad sign.

Reasons Eden Wouldn't Be the Blackened

HER EMOTIONAL REACTIONS: I think I stand with everyone else when I say that the thing giving me pause with Eden!Culprit is how devastated she truly seems to be. I do still think it could be a combo of guilt and panic over the prospect of dying, but it's hard to justify everything.

HER FRIENDSHIP WITH AREI: Sort of a spinoff of the last one, but Arei was at least offering to Eden to be friends and to protect her. If Eden did believe that, to any extent at all, it's hard to imagine her killing Arei in cold blood.

THE FISH: The biggest question when it comes to evidence as to how Eden could be the killer. If Nico fed the fish and they were all still there last night, and Eden had an alibi until after the Relax Room closed, how would she have gotten the fish to add to the crime scene?

THE BDA: Easy to ignore imo considering we've already called it into question within the series proper, but still worth talking about. For Eden to be the culprit, either someone else saw the body first and isn't claiming to have (or it's David), or we're burning the "Eden didn't witness the crime and thus could still trigger the BDA" card here.

GENDER BALANCE: Possibly an irrelevant point, but it is true that we've had 2 women and 1 man die so far. If a man was the killer, it'd keep it even. Unlikely to be relevant as any disparity could be easily balanced out in Chapter 3 with (presumably) 3 death slots.

Points About Eden That Could Go Either Way

THE FORK CG: I firmly believe that this could be setting up for Eden being a more important character throughout the series or to die after a moment of intrigue, possibly letting us explore/imply more in her post-death bonus episode.

RELATIONSHIP WITH HU: Hu has lost David as a sane ally. Nico is telling her that they don't want her speaking for them and that they don't trust her. Would DRDTdev prefer to fully isolate Hu moving into Chapter 3 by getting rid of Eden, or to leave Hu with one friend who still believes in her.

CHARLES HAVING EDEN'S SECRET: By telling us Eden's secret ahead of time by Charles revealing it to Teruko, extra focus was given to Eden's secret. Was this just the easiest way to get everyone's secrets revealed based on character dynamics, or was it meant to imply that Eden's secret is extra important? Is that because she's the killer? Is it a #ArEden sweep???

ACE

(why are they both orange)

Reasons Ace Would Be The Blackened:

NO EVIDENCE-BASED ISSUES: This is the biggest and strongest point across the whole board imo. There is no tangible, evidence-based reason why Ace COULDN'T have done the crime. Out of all 13 currently surviving students, he's the only one who that's true for. That obviously makes him a viable suspect.

WOULD ABSOLUTELY FUCKING DO IT: Ace has been Freaking The Fuck Out this chapter. I could VERY easily see him deciding to kill here. I don't think anyone is trying to argue that Ace is too emotionally attached to the cast to try to kill all of them, because he clearly isn't.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?: I'm not really sure where Ace's character is going to go from here. I'd be interested in seeing more from him, but, like, where is his character arching to if not a killer? Ace is so disliked and intense that it's hard to imagine him really, fully pivoting and caring about others, but if he can't do that, is he destined to be a killer eventually?

HEAVY FOCUS IN CH 2: DRDTdev seems to give the chapter's death important content shortly before their deaths. Ace has been one of the most prominent characters this chapter, which could be a bad sign.

Reasons Ace Wouldn't Be the Blackened

OBVIOUSNESS & POINT OF CHARACTER: Of course Ace would be willing to kill Arei or whoever and the rest of the students. This is kind of the inverse of my "would absolutely fucking do it" point-- I don't know exactly how much surprise it would carry if Ace were to be the culprit. And, more than that, I feel like the point of Ace is that he is a victim here, but he's so unlikable that no one wants to acknowledge that or believe in him. I think it'd be an interesting comparison, if everyone really wants Ace to be the killer, but he just isn't. To everyone's dismay, Ace is still here. Now what?

SECRET LARGELY UNRESOLVED: Ace's secret hasn't really had any plot relevance yet. It seems like most people's do. I'm like lowkey expecting them to bring back the starvation motive from SDR2 in Chapter 4 and have SOMETHING happen with Ace there. Either way, while it could be reserved for his bonus episode (a la Min and Xander), I'd expect that his secret would have more main-story impact before he dies.

EXISTENCE OF SCRUM DEBATE: We're suspecting Ace first, but we still haven't done the scrum debate for this trial. Unless the scrum debate is "do we just vote for Ace without ever really pursuing Eden" and the answer is "yes," I don't see how we get out of this suspecting Ace period with a scrum debate without at least entertaining the idea of Ace's innocence.

STRONG CONNECTIONS TO OTHER CAST MEMBERS: Ace is very relevant to the Levi, Nico and Hu plotlines right now. Are they really going to just... get rid of him, when that's what both Nico and Hu would want?

ABILITY TO FIGURE OUT THE CONTRAPTION: Ace would not only have to recognize the way in which Nico was trying to kill him (which, to be fair is easier if he did wake up partway through), he would also have to conceptualize and figure out how to make the playground contraption successfully. I think Eden's clockmaking skills and... generally higher intelligence imo would be better suited to that.

COWARDICE: Ace is so fucking scared of everything. Would he want to put himself into harm's way by becoming the killer and having a do or die moment in the Trial? But, is he more scared of dying as a victim in the killing game, after seeing how close Nico came to killing him?

Points About Ace That Could Go Either Way

TAYLOR LORE DROP: Ace's friend, named Taylor per a Q&A with the dev, got vagued about in this Trial. Is that something to be pursued in a later Ace free time (following the one with Levi), or is that something that's going to be explained further in Ace's bonus episode (which could VERY easily be about friendship, considering it's Mai fucking Akasaki as the other person in the convo).

ACE'S BREAKDOWN @ LEVI: When Ace said he didn't fall for Levi caring about him at all, was that him affirming himself that it was the correct decision to try to kill, even if it'd put Levi's life at stake, who he previously kinda liked? Or was he lying to himself, and, at least previously, he wouldn't have wanted to kill Levi, no matter how harsh he seemed on the surface?

Well, that's all I got! Please let me know if you can come up with any more points for any of the 6 categories, because I'm very very curious to hear them! I'm thinking I might try to do an expansion on this in a separate post before next episode if I have time, exploring the ins and outs of each point with more textual evidence to back it up. I'd love to discuss any reader-suggested points too, if y'all have some in mind!

For now, I'm still personally leaning towards Eden as the culprit over Ace, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it be either of them. Well, other than the fact that my reaction to the killer being revealed is going to be :O no matter what.

[souldagger]

can you talk about how you made the costume please 🙏🙏🙏

:D sure!!! putting it under cut bc it's a lot lol

when i got the idea i had absolutely No clue as to how people even go abt cosplays like this, so step 0 was obviously One Billion Youtube Tutorials (this one - it's in polish but has eng subtitles - was my best friend <3 but there's really sooo many for every little aspect of making armor cosplay i owe them my life)

anyway. proceeding. assume every step takes a fuckton of trial and error and at least 3 failed attempts

REFERENCES:

collected all the covers where u can see mb's suit well, some fanarts that interpreted it in ways i liked, the 2 previous mb cosplays i found

PLANNING:

little to no planning (bad idea. btw.)

MATERIALS:

regular long-sleeved shirt+pants+cycling gloves+fanny pack. (sorry murderbot. but the armor piece over its crotch literally looks like a fanny pack)

the armor's made out of smth called EVA foam (similar to yoga mat in terms of texture/stiffness), had to order it from a cosplay-specific online shop

heat gun (i was lucky bc my dad's an amateur handyman and turned out to already have one) bc EVA foam's much easier to form+less absorbent when heated

contact glue (also known as contact cement) for glueing the armor pieces whole, superglue for details here and there

straps (the kind u use in backpacks etc)+plastic buckles+velcro. so much velcro. i'm never hand-sewing thru velcro again

wood glue+smth called glossy universal lacquer (p sure it's just car paint.) for painting

transparent plastic mask + rit dye for dyeing it (bc i couldn't find one that was already dark 😔)

tape+cling wrap for patterns

MAKING PATTERNS FOR ARMOR:

okay so. you wrap [Given Body Part] in cling wrap (yeah just regular kitchen cling wrap). put tape (i used duct tape at first but switched to masking tape bc it's cheaper) all over. draw, roughly, the shape you want the armor piece to be. cut urself out, cut away the excess edges, bam! pattern. like these:

(the chest piece was the tough part. i wanted the characteristic rounded shape so i didn't use cling wrap there, it was a lot of trial-and-error with cutting shapes out of paper, putting them against my chest, adjusting things, rinse&repeat.)

(also, the helmet - for the face shield i got these v cheap plastic masks that were advertised as lawn mowing masks (???), then tried to dye them black with Rit Dye for synthetics. that was a Whole Ordeal & my best try still turned out too see-through & more orange-tinted than i liked, but i was out of time so (shrug emoji). & for the pattern, i put on the mask + a beanie before wrapping my head in cling wrap dkjfgn)

i cut the patterns into shapes that could be flattened & copied them onto paper (to be able to transfer them onto foam more easily):

ACTUALLY MAKING THE PIECES:

the annoying part: outlining all patterns on the foam and cutting them out with a box cutter. This Sucks. then, shaping them with the heat gun. This Doesn't Work As Well As It's Supposed To. then, glueing the pieces together with contact glue. This Takes Ages.

(& it's like. near-impossible glueing them so the seams don't look terribly obvious 😭 i'm sure there's a way to cover it up well, but the method i tried (foam clay) worked Eh at best)

oh right also the. thingy around the neck. that's just a tube made out of some leggings i was gonna throw out. filled with a bunch of cotton i stole from a pillow. improvise adapt overcome

ATTACHING IT ALL:

That's Velcro, Baby 👍 it's either glued onto the foam or sewed onto the straps Everywhere. it's how the forearm & thigh & lower leg pieces close, how the chest & back pieces connect, how the face shield's made removable. Velcro All The Way Down.

the 2 exceptions: the thigh pieces are attached to a belt with some straps bc they kept sliding off; & the tiny armor pieces on my feet have a loop of string glued on the inside that i just pulled my shoelaces through

PAINTING:

the issue with EVA foam is that it absorbs stuff v easily, so before painting it i had to prime it (aka cover it in 2-4 protective layers of wood glue). then for actual painting, i sprayed all the pieces with 2 layers of universal lacquer (outside on some cardboard ofc). here it is all drying in the garage (bc it stank 💀):

and that's it!!!! done!!!! a bit over a month of work in total :]

[barry-j-blupjeans]

TAZ NC Day 2: Fake Dating

@taznovembercelebration

"It's bad, Taako," Lup said as soon as the car door was shut. "It's real bad."

Taako had to be honest— he had no fuckin' clue what was happening anymore. He and Lup had never gone to different schools before and it was weird being out of her direct ring of things-that-are-happening. It was for the best, 'cus there was no way he could have survived trying to get a science degree. And he knew Lup loved cooking, but culinary arts was not for her. Ever. Keep her away from the building, thank you very much. Yeah, sure, she'd kill this degree, but it was the principle of the thing.

So he had only been getting outside reports of whatever was happening over at Neverwinter University. But apparently, it was a lot. While Taako was over here, blissed out on weed brownies, Lup was doin'… something. Again, he didn't really understand what was happening anymore. But Lup didn't even wait for an answer before continuing.

"I asked him on a date," Lup said, buckling herself in with more force than necessary. Taako took the car out of park (look at him! He could drive! Take that, driving instructor one through five.) and attempted to maneuver his way out of the parking lot.

"That sounds like a good thing?" Taako said.

"It's not," Lup said. "It's not a real date."

"A- and that means??"

"It's not a real date," Lup said again. "I fuckin— well, first off, Greg fucking Grimaldis—"

"Fuck him," Taako said.

"Yeah, fuck him— but he was very loudly promoting his fuckin'… casino or whatever that he's inheriting. And he so graciously invited us to an event that's being hosted there about— god, I'm too angry to remember what the stupid event is for. But he was like, oh, don't bother showing up without a date though, it's a couple's event, like I fuckin' know whatever that means—"

"It just sounds like bait," Taako said. How the hell did he leave this parking lot again? He felt like he had been turning left for like, three entire minutes.

"And then I was like, "of course, I have a date". And he was like, "oh yeah? Who?". And Barry was right there, so—"

Ah, Barry Bluejeans. Taako had heard way too fuckin' much about Barry Bluejeans. Lup kept trying to deny any romantic feelings she felt towards him, but Taako knew better. Or, well, Taako had eyes and ears and the way Lup spoke about Barry Bluejeans left nothing up to the imagination. Normally Taako would have liked to meet the man that his sister had fallen in love with but honestly, he's in a place in his life where he gets assignments about spaghetti so it's not like anything makes sense anymore.

"So it was less like you asked him and more like you are going to force him—"

"I asked!" Lup said, sitting up in her car seat. If she had noticed the several loops Taako had taken around the parking lot, she hadn't said. "After, I mean. I asked after. And y'know how Barry's like, he's gonna say yes to everything 'cus he feels bad about saying no. So I had to clarify that we weren't actually dating to, y'know, make it seem better— I don't wanna seem like I'm using him, Taako, I just— babe, if you had seen Grimaldis's face when I said that. And Barry fuckin' backed me up, too!"

Taako slammed on the brakes as someone tumbled into his car. And then onto the ground. Lup froze. Taako froze, too. And then started slowly backing up.

"Taako, we gotta— we gotta check—"

"Yeah, yeah," Taako said, pulling the car back a few inches. He shifted back into park and undid his seat belt. Lup was out of the car before him and when he opened the door, he caught the end of

"-arry!"

Aw, fuck.

"Oh, uh." Taako rounded the car, coming face to face with the new voice. It was a short man with concerningly thick glasses. He was wearing an honest-to-god sweater vest and bluejeans of all things. Lup was holding his hand, looking at the scruffed up flesh on his palm. He didn't look super injured or concussed. Taako had been going to stupid five miles and hour that this parking lot demanded of him. "It's— it's fine, Lup, really—"

"My guy, you just got hit with a car—"

"It was five miles an hour," Taako said, leaning against the driver's side door. "Nice to meet'cha, Barold."

"Uhm." Barry blinked a few times, looking between him and Lup.

"You're not concussed," Taako said. "We're twins."

"Uh," Barry said, eloquently. Man, this is the guy Lup was planning to fake-date? Good lord.

"You might be concussed, though," Lup said, turning Barry toward her. "Did you hit your head?"

"No, uh, no I'm good," Barry said. "Just, uhm— surprised! Haha."

This was awful. The worst part is that if Barry wasn't concussed, this was just his regular way of talking. Taako felt himself getting a headache. But Lup gave a smile that was all goopy and warm and, ugh. Taako kinda wished he had been going faster. He got back into the car, watching with a scrutinizing gaze as Barry and Lup talked.

And talked.

And talked.

Taako got out his phone, pulling up the group chat he shared with Magnus and Merle.

Gonna be late to game night, boys. I've got Lup and Barry Bluejeans existing in the same place.

Magnus sent back a saluting emoji.

[strangeshoepatrolbandit]

Sunshine follows with Sunfall pt.5

Warnings: Grudges(well deserved)

Series Masterlist

The next few chapters will be posted at random, no longer every Friday. I'm going to take some time to focus on some other wip's of mine.

~☆~

When Jason left your apartment that night, he had left you with his phone number, an address, a key, and a promise to see you again. You shouldn't trust his promises, you know this.

It took three whole days of fighting with yourself to finally call him, ask him if he wanted Judith back in his life. The two of you talked about her for hours that night, you telling him about all of the things he's missed, not just in the past year but also things he missed throughout her whole life.

She likes pink glittery Pancakes, her favorite color is yellow, she likes going to the park because she gets to silently judge people, she loves school(especially her class turtle), she likes being around her family, but only for short period (they can get on her nerves quickly), she's obsessed with Blues clues, but only the older version with Steve (which is why she named the cat Damian had gifted her "Periwinkle"), onetime she had the flu and genuinely thought she was dying, she likes watching her uncles play video games, but she doesn't like playing them.

A lot of things have come up in her transition from four to five.

You didn't end the call without telling him what's on your mind. "I don't want her to love you, just for you to leave again when you can't handle the pressure. I don't want you to leave her heartbroken."

×

"Hey, Jude!"

"Hi, Mommy!"

Judith ran up to you, hugging your legs. An action she does every single time you pick her up from school. "How was your day, baby?"

"Awsome!" She yelled, looking down at a flower in her hand. "I got a present!"

"Aw, that's cute." You wouldn't tell her that her 'flower' was, in fact, a weed. The two of you started walking to your car, hand in hand.

"Momma, help, please.." She smiled as she tried to climb into the back seat. You let out a small chuckle at her behavior. You watched as she buckled her seat belt, waiting to see if she was fully okay before getting into the front seat.

"Now when we get home you're gonna have to take a bath, I have a suprise." You told her, watching as her expression brightened up at your words.

"What kind of suprise?" She pried.

"If I tell you, then it won't be a surprise anymore."

×

Judith excitedly ran through the apartment as soon as you got the door open. Her logic was that the sooner she got ready, the sooner her suprise would happen.

"Sweetheart, the suprise isn't until tonight!" You yelled from the living room.

"I have to plan!" She yelled back. You let out another chuckle and made your way to the bathroom, turning the knobs on the tub so that it's the perfect temperature. "Let's just get you into some pajamas for now!"

×

Let's just say the night came sooner than expected. Judith sat on your bed watching as you did your makeup. "Can I have some Momma?"

You turned to look at her, wide smile on your lips. "Judy, baby, you don't need any."

Despite your words, you still turned to dab a little bit of lip gloss on her lips. It's one that she left on your vanity, blue tube with Cinderella plastered on it. "Thank you, Mommy."

"You're welcome, baby." You turned to look at yourself one last time, letting out a sigh as you deemed yourself okay. "You ready?"

"Yes!"

×

Judith watched wide-eyed out of the window. Jason's apartment wasn't on the side of Gotham that the two of you grew up in and lived together in. It was in between that and near where the Manor and your very own apartment layed.

You parked your car in the garage, letting out another sigh as you finally realized what you were doing.

"Are you okay, Mommy?" Judith asked, concerned look on her small face.

You turned to offer her a smile. "I'm okay."

The two of you hopped out of the car, well, Judith got out with the help of you. And then made your way into the lobby. If you remember correctly, Jason had said that the elevator just started running again. Thankfully, you did remember correctly.

You pushed the button that you needed and let yet another sigh fall from your lips. Judith's hand carefully grasped yours, brung you out of the daze you didn't even know you were in. "It's okay, I don't need a suprise."

Her head turned to look up at you, and you mustered up the best smile you could. "Oh, but you're going to love this."

The elevator finally reached the floor you needed to be on. You and Judith walked down the hallway hand in hand. Hesitantly, you reached in your pocket for the key that Jason had left you, his apartment key. You looked down at Judith's face one more time before you lined up the key and twisted the lock open. As the door opened, Judith peered inside, trying to see what was so special about some apartment. A body coming around the corner made her look up, a lamp casted light on a familiar face.

"Daddy!" Judith screamed. Her little legs ran as fast at they could, just to reach Jason.

"Hey, Sunshine." He smiled, reaching down to engulf her in a hug. One of his hands held her to him, and the other cradled the back of her head, keeping her in place as he pressed kisses to it. The corner of his eyes prickled, preparing for the tears that were rising. Jason stood up with Judith still in his arms, causing a small squeal to escape her, before he took an arm off of her and reached it out for you, welcoming you into their embrace.

"God, I've missed you." He whispered to her, still pressing his face into her hair. "I've missed you so much."

His arms hugged the both of you tighter, trying to lock you into place forever.

Eventually, you pulled your head away to look at both Judith and Jason. Watching as they too slowly pulled away so that they could look at each other.

"Are you hungry?" He asked, voice breaking from the emotions he's experiencing.

"Yeah!" Judith's eyes lit up. Jason let a wet laugh fall from his lips before he carried her into his kitchen. Holding her on a hip as he stirred something in a pot. You followed after them and smiled to yourself, unknowingly to the both of them you also happened to have your phone on you.

A picture of this would be nice.

"Are you hungry, baby?" Jason asked, staring down at the girl in his arms.

"Mhm.." She mumbled, laying her head against his collarbones. Jason gave you a quick glance before walking over to a room that was connected to the kitchen.

His apartment was far different than the one you shared on the "bad" side of Gotham. That apartment was dingy with one bedroom and no space for a kitchen table, leading to many nights of eating on the couch. Most of your furniture there had been hand me downs from Jason's many siblings, but it was your home. When you and Jason split ways, he had moved out and stayed with Roy for a bit before he eventually got himself another apartment where he got even more hand me down furniture.

This apartment was cleaner and more barren, almost like he never spent any time here. But he had the necessities to make it a starter home, a couch, TV, kitchen supplies, and a dining room set.

Despite your dislike for the man you used to love, you are happy for him. He seems healthier, physically and mentally.

"Where do you wanna sit?" He asked, pointing to the four chairs in the dining room.

"Next to you!" Judith yelled, pointing up at her father.

Jason noted that you had followed them into the room and rested upon the door frame. He looked back at you, silently asking if she could. You nodded your head, giving Jason the chance to set her down next to where he was about to sit. He rounded the table and pulled out a chair for you, motioning for you to sit down.

After he scooted you I to place, he retreated back to the kitchen, coming back a second later with a plate for you and Judith. As you looked down, you noticed what it was. The one thing you constantly craved when you were pregnant, and what just so happened to be Judith's favorite food.

"Chicken Alfred!" Judith yelled. No matter how many times you told her the correct pronunciation, she still called it 'Alfred'. It was a miracle that she liked it, no matter how many other pastas you get her to try. This is the one she loves.

Jason smiled down at Judith then walked back to the kitchen, returning with his own plate.

×

After dinner, you helped Jason clean up while Judith sat in the living room watching TV. The two or you worked side by side to do the dishes.

You noticed the glances that Jason would throw at you. After the fifth one, you sighed and put down the plate you were holding.

"What?" You asked, annoyed by his actions.

Jason, too, set down what he was holding. "I just didn't expect you to let her see me." He whispered.

You pursed your lips and thought of what to say. "Just because I have a problem with you doesn't mean she should too." You picked up the plate again and continued to wipe it with a sponge. "This doesn't mean I want you to be in our lives, I just want her to be happy."

~☆~

My mom makes this bomb homemade chicken Alfredo on my older brothers birthday (sometimes mine as well) and it's so fucking good. We call it "Birthday Alfredo".

Taglist: @keira324 @dakotali @22nranjan @skepvids @harpy-space @godknows-shetried @mirrorball-6 @macncheese69420666 @parkjammys @yyxy27 @burningkidanchor @elleclairez @amecchii @chickennugghon @marvelworldlover @oakexists @p0tterhead934 @makhaia @cassini-among-the-stars @tsukishimarawr @flowestallen @attackonnat @90s-belladonna @sucker4seresin

[starseneyes]

Chenford - Lucy Chen / Tim Bradford - The Rookie - Season 5 - Ep 22

"Under Siege" AKA "Who in the Writer's Room Likes Horror?"

It's a bizarre day. If you love Chenford, then you need to know what's going on with the WGA - Writers Guild of America. They are striking for a fair wage and basic protections.

WGA members craft this ship and show we love so much, so please show solidarity for them as they fight for not only their future, but for future generations of writers.

SPOILER ALERT: If you want to remain spoiler free, I have no bloody clue why you're here. I can only assume a friend told you to check this out as a cruel joke. First off, dump that friend. Second, buckle up. It's about to get spoilery!

All good? Great! I can't wait to dive in.

Arrest Me... but make it SCARY

A bit of a different vibe for our opening tonight. No, this isn't Chenford-direct. But, it's important to know the vibe of this episode going in.

If any of you are Avengers: Infinity War fans, you might recall the Wanda / Vision relationship, and their whole sequence where they were ambushed. Originally, it was a lot longer, and had more of a horror movie vibe.

I loved that they went outside the box on that to play with genre throughout the movie.

I feel like The Rookie is playing with that a bit. It's been a while since my heart pounded during an episode.

In all honesty, it was probably Day of Death that last had me on the edge of my seat... and I watched that after I started Season 5 with near-canon Chenford.

Yes, I'm spoiled. Yes, I think OG Chenford fans deserve medals for their patience.

Speaking of which, your patience with me is likely wearing thin... let's get to the Chenford.

"Hey I heard it was Thornson."

Tim and Lucy show up together, and I'm having flashbacks to the two of them bailing out her UC buddy in the dead of night. These two know how to get moving when it matters.

Tim and Lucy immediately separate on their separate missions. That didn't work out too well for Celina and Aaron, but it looks like Chenford survive the night.

Look, I have a lot of ship trauma. "Leaf on the wind" anyone? Yeah, I've got ship trauma.

"A blood drive has been set up at the hospital. If you can do so, please volunteer at the end of shift."

I'm reminded of the fact that Tim Bradford regularly gives blood, so I'm heart-warmed that he's the one who gets to deliver the news to the team.

"Those are not store-bought Halloween masks."

It struck me immediately that Lucy is sitting front row like a Rookie.

Yes, I know that they are packed in there, so somebody has to sit up front... but it's Lucy, so it feels symbolic. As though she is sitting in the Rookie spot in Celina's honor.

"Hey. We heard the good news about Aaron. Unfortunately, none of our CIs have heard anything about a gang targeting the cops."

I know it's a little detail, but I love Tim and Lucy showing up together everywhere.

Of course, someone on Twitter called out the 4x01 parallel to them showing up at Wesley's together after I initially watched the episode. And they're so right. It's another parallel among many in this episode tonight!

"I hate to say it, but this is not gonna break tonight."

This one I spotted immediately the first time through—it's another night where he's sending everyone home because there's nothing more to be done... just like when they lost Jackson.

And I have to wonder if the intentionality of these parallels is to confirm or subvert expectation.

Like, are we supposed to see this similar sequence of events as an omen of doom? Or are we drawing these parallels with the intent of intensifying the torture before the cathartic release of Aaron's survival?

I guess we'll find out together in Season 6.

"I can't lose another."

Oh, Grey. Poor Grey. I guess I wasn't the only one having flashbacks.

Tim and Lucy Embrace

Tim knows Lucy is having that same flashback. There are too many similarities, too many things tying them all back to Jackson and the loss they all endured.

Angela about to give birth. Someone targeting them. An ambush and a shooting.

Yes, Aaron has a chance at making it. But the weight of this moment is not lost on this team who has suffered too much loss before.

Lucy and Tim step into the apartment, and they barely make it past the door before they're in one another's arms.

It's wordless. Tim motions to Lucy, and it reminds me of the hand motions when he offered to carry the War Bags after their last ride together.

Tim and Lucy no longer need a shorthand... they don't even need words.

He knows what she needs without her asking, and she knows what he's offering without a word spoken.

Back in Season 4 Episode 1, Tim asked what she needed. She asked for the hug. Now he knows what she needs in this moment as easily as he knows his own—some semblance of comfort in the horror of history repeating.

QUICK EDIT: Upon rewatch, I find I didn't imagine his "Come here" the first time (another call back), so technically he did use words... but they weren't needed.

Tim holds Lucy in his arms—so similar to their positioning in 4x01—but that's where the similarities end. Because Tim and Lucy of Season 4 no longer exist.

Everything has deepened between them since then. And while, yes, the hanky panky is fun... the trust is what they both need here.

They can't trust that everything will be okay. But they trust that with one another they are truly safe. And right now, they both need that comfort.

"It's okay," he whispers as he holds her, wishing it were true.

Tim kisses Lucy's forehead as he holds her, rubs her arms, and tries to offer some comfort as she leans against him, sobs overtaking her... like the first time he held her in Day of Death.

I know that we're going for the 4x01 parallels with how this is shot and staged, but I see the DOD ones, too. This is where they are safe when nowhere else feels safe.

Tim's hand cradles her head as he holds her. And much as this hurts like hell, this moment is important.

Tim and Lucy are one another's safe place. With each other, there are no pretenses or pretending, anymore. They no longer hide from one another or themselves.

They've embraced the beauty of who they are together, and while there will be many moments of joy... the sorrow is a part of the journey.

Tim and Lucy have had their share of it, true. But this is the first time they've traversed it as boyfriend and girlfriend. And the impact of enduring possibly losing another officer and friend to an ambush is too much.

Does being together make it easier? Hell, no. Is there a slight comfort in knowing you're not enduring it alone? Oh, yes.

"No we know. We ran your prints ... you don't get out of bed for less than 20K a day. Who hired you?"

Tim and Lucy are very good at what they do, and I love how they are supporting one another and building upon each other.

I miss them riding together, but we see what makes them great—they both think on their feet and they are sensational at the "yes, and".

I love getting to see the professional side still fires so beautifully between them. It's a feat I feared fumbled, but I'm freakin' psyched it fared fine.

Oh my goodness, that's way too much alliteration. But, I'm leaving it. It's ridiculous and it makes me smile!

The Trip Wire

Another commonality with Season 4 Episode 1. Gee wiz, we're going for lots of references with this one, and that leaves me curious about the intention... and whether there's a common thread that we're somehow missing that leads all the way back.

Or, I'm reading too much into it because I'm weird. I can roll with that, too.

Tim joins up with Lucy outside the house where she asks him for clarity that none of them have. What the hell is going on!?

"We should move on." "What? No."

Love that Lucy still stands up to Tim at work.

Look, even when he was her TO and then her supervisor, Lucy never shied away from speaking her mind. In this case, she sees something they're missing. And she's not going to let them miss out on an important piece of the puzzle.

"You think it's personal?" "I mean, look, if I was gonna go to the extreme of targeting police officers, why not take out some of my enemies along the way?"

And with that, Lucy BadAss Chen cracks the case. No, I don't know if that's her legal middle name. But it should be.

My brain immediately goes back to Tim accusing her of a social media obsession that happened to crack a case back during one of the Documentary episodes.

There's no skirting around this one—it was all Chen.

"I'll take Moran." "You're not going by yourself." "I'll go with her."

Alright, Fierce Protector. You do you.

"You should be out kicking doors with Metro." "I'm good." "I don't need you protecting me."

Well, damn, I thought it was just me! I thought I was gonna be the only one in this Meta calling out Tim in the Protector role, but I guess my on-screen bestie had to chime in, too.

Also, bringing back "Good" in this scene, which truly feels like their word, and I love it.

Tim will always have Lucy's back. He knows that she is capable and strong, but he's also her boyfriend and spent a lot of time as her TO and then Supervisor. Worrying about her was a part of his job, and now it's an ingrained part of his life.

He's not trying to undermine her independence or capability. He simply wants to be close because then he knows she is safe and doesn't have to hold his breath wondering.

"So, clearly what you're saying is you need me protecting you." "Clearly. You know me so well."

It was pinging my brain, and I couldn't figure out why until someone pulled out the DOD GIF on Twitter and I started slow-clapping like a sports movie.

Yes, of course! When Lucy woke up in the hospital to find Tim by her side... as he is, now.

I kept seeing DOD parallels in this episode, and I'm strangely comforted that others did, too.

Plus, a return of "Clearly", which has been another of Tim and Lucy's words. "Clearly, Ashley's gotta go." "Clearly this isn't working out."

"I'm happy it's you at my six." "Back at you."

Major "We protect each other" vibes, and I bloody approve. Look, we know that Tim is a Fierce Protector. But he also knows that his girlfriend is a kick-ass bad-ass.

Now, we enter into a fight scene that is a bloody masterpiece.

Yes, I wondered why they emptied their clips at the Riot Shields, but I'm not a cop, so I don't know if there's some logic behind it I don't possess. Other than that... this fucking rocked.

Like, literally. I couldn't have been the only Xennial rocking out when Janes Addiction started playing! Someone go hug the Music Supervisor, Music Coordinator, Screenwriter, Director, or whoever threw that track out there, because it's bloody brilliant.

Tim and Lucy are working together, talking it out as they go. And we see all that time they've put into building their communication is really on display, even in a bloody battle.

"We stand a chance, but only together."

Hell, yeah, Lucy! I've been saying that all season. No, not in terms of having the high ground (rest in pieces, Anikan Skywalker's limbs), but in terms of getting through this thing called life.

Tim and Lucy stand a chance of surviving as Chenford through end of show only if they work together.

And on-the-screen in this particular moment, the same holds true.

"Pull not push, copy that."

Love. Them. Look at Tim taking the word of his capable wife and putting it into practice.

Tim and Lucy are literally fighting for their lives, here, and they are fighting together. When one's on the brink of being overwhelmed, the other is there.

Lucy delivers a strike to free up Tim. He takes on several at once, and she goes for the shield. I was screaming, "Hell, yeah, baby girl!" like the big sister I am to my on-screen bestie because she was crushing.

Tim is the master of pepper spray, I swear. He's used it in many creative ways, but super smart to go straight for the eye-holes on the masks to try to penetrate.

Lucy's close to losing consciousness when Tim rips the guy off of her, repaying the earlier favor of her freeing him up. It's a literal give-and-take... in a fight for their lives. This is bloody brilliant.

Nolan finally makes it up there, and Tim helps Lucy through the door to the stairwell, literally shielding her with his body.

Once inside, Tim has his hand on one of his favorite places—Lucy's leg. But this isn't a sexy-time touch. This is the, "Thank God you're alive" touch. If they hadn't worked together, that could have ended very differently.

"I have Bradford and Chen secured upstairs."

Chen and Bradford, sir. It's Chenford. Not Braden.

"You should be on your way to the hospital." "We'll go after."

At least Tim is saying he'll go. Like, seriously, this guy is the king of avoiding medical attention. And too often when he's gone in, he did so knowing nobody was waiting for him on the other side.

Now, not only is he willingly going to go in with his girlfriend, he knows that they'll leave together. Look how far our boy has come.

A Glance

Our last moment of Tim and Lucy is just a glance... a subtle glance between the two of them where that wordless communication comes in.

They've always have this layer to their relationship—communicating without a word. But it's so much deeper, now.

And as we reflect on the end of a season, I have to say it's been incredible to witness their growth alongside y'all in real-time.

This season has been an absolute roller coaster, and my first with all y'all! I started with 5x01, had to catch up, and have loved this whole journey.

Thank you all for being so welcoming to a late-comer like me. And thank you for reading!

Remember, love one another. Give yourself grace. Don't worry about "perfect" because it doesn't bloody exist. Go after your dreams. Fuck Fear. And believe in yourself, always.

And if you're not ready to believe in yourself... know that I believe in you. And I'm always rooting for good things to come your way. You've got this.

[lover-i-lover]

Little Spencer

You know something is wrong when Spencer calls you from a damn payphone. Your first thought is obvious, did he shoot op? And if so, where in all of hell is he. "Can you come get me?" his voice is shaky, with a small hint of desperation "Are you high Spence?" you blurt out, sticking a hand on your hip for stability. "What? no, no I'm not high" you expected him to sound offended, not sad and small. He doesn't ask the question again. "Where are you?" you ask, grabbing your keys off the counter. "Main, down on Ashely, by Reliy's cafe" He gulp's. "I'll come get you, but you better tell me what's going on right know" You demand, slipping on your shoes.

"I, I need you" "What?" You struggle to put your coat on with one arm. He needs you, what does that mean "I, need. I'm feel sm-tired. I just need to be home right now" He stammers. Small, he almost said small. Oh god it's really happening. He's regressing. Just like the therapist suggested he should try to. "Small? Are you feeling small honey?" you ask, trying to hide a smile. "Yes, a little. Will you please come get me?" It's the closest he can get to begging in public without getting some damn sassy side eye. You close the door and slide the key in. "I will, one little thing first. Why are you calling from a payphone and not your cellphone?" You ask, enjoying your own word play. You hurry down the stairs. There's a small noise over the line. A whimper. "It's dead" he admits. "Okay, is the team with you?" You ask, unlocking the car and switching the call to your ear piece and tossing your phone in the glove compartment. "Yes" "I need you to stay with them, i don't want you wandering off and getting hurt. Can you find Morgan?"

"Mogan's not here, he's with Rossi" He says. "Who is there? Who can keep an eye on you until i get there?" You ask, turning out from your housing block. It's a short drive, luckly. Only 6 minutes to get to Ashely down on main. You hope Specer is okay "I don't need a babysitter" He grumbles, most likely crossig his arms. "If you need me to get you, then you might need a babysitter. Now tell me who's there" You demand, turning down the street. "Garcia, and JJ" He says, mostly certainly pouting slightly at this point. "Then go ask Garcia for a hug. Tell her you don't feel well and that I've asked her to keep an eye on you until i get there. Tell her I'm worried sick about you and I'm breaking every traffic law to come get you" You instructs, turning down the last street, only 3 minutes now. There's a giggly excitement in your stomach. Spencer's doing what the therapist told him too, he's finally letting the therapy have effect. "Okay, she's in the store I'm gonna go" Spencer mumbles. "Good, I'll be there in 3 , stay with Pen" You say right before the line cuts out. You heave a sigh of happiness, stepping firmly on the gas.

You park right by the payphone, finding Spencer and Penelope sitting on a bench outside. Spencer's dressed the same way he was yesterday, purple button op with a dark grey vest over it and dark blue jeans. Penelope is of course, fussing over him, asking why he didn't say something sooner. You open your arms for him and he melts into your hold. You give Penelope a thank you, nod before taking Spencer to the car. While you knew he wasn't going to be publicly showing off the fact that he's feeling small, you thougt, or hoped he at least looked a little off. No pun intented. Spencer settles into the passager seat, something you've gotten use to. You squeeze his hand, trying to find some clue to his headspace. He doesn't say a word, only gently squeezing back. You smile, either he's too embarrsed to talk, or he can't. You lean over and buckle him in. "I'm gonna take you home now, okay?" You ask, letting your hand run over his knee for a breif second. "Okay..." he mumbles, voice light and bittle as he lays his folded hands in his lap. "Hey.." you coo, laying a hand over his. "It's okay, tell me what's going on" You ask, letting him pull one hand out from under yours. He curls his hand op his chest. "Are you cold Baby?" You ask. He shakes his head lightly, starting to pout. "What's wrong then?" you coax, powering op the car. Spencer whimpers and you chuckle. "I don't speak whimper code Baby boy" you tease. He whimpers again, wiggling his feet. You glance over, what's he really saying? "What? Baby the only thing i think you might want right now, is to suck your thumb, but i know you don't want that because you find it unsanity" You say, trying not to chuckle. He nods, and you let yourself chuckle as he blushes. "There's baby wipes in the glovebox, clean your fingers, carefully under your nails, then go ahead" You instruct, pulling your hand to yourself. You focus on the road as you hear Spencer open the glovebox and grabbing the packet of wipes. He picks out one and begins to clean his hands. Then he takes another one and cleans under his fingers nails. "Aw, look at you. So smart" You praise, rounding the corner. Spencer puts the wipes back, bitting his lower lip. You catch his look of hesitation. You take a moment to decide if you should press or let him comfort himself about it. "It's okay, no one's gonna see you. It's just you and me" You say, laying a hand on his knee. You hear him whine quietly as he slips his thumb into his mouth. You think it might be a good idea to get a pacifier. It's more satiny, easier to keep clean. And you'd have control of it, you can't take his thumb away, but a pacifier you could. You can force a pacifier into his mouth, his thumb? not so much.

Woah woah woah! you are way too far into undiscussed territory. Dial it back for a second. Pacifiers, undiscussed, no consent given. You're gonna have to ask about that. Forced headspace, undiscussed, no consent given yet. You're gonna have to ask about that too. Any forcing a pacifier or anything into his mouth, not discussed! You finally pull op in front of your appartment block. You glance over to find Spencer half asleep with his thumb firmly in his mouth. You hate to do it, but you reach over and gently take his thumb out from his mouth. He whines a bit but let's you pull it out. "You can continue when we're inside, okay? Because right now, we gotta get you home" You wipe his wet thumb on you shirt and unbuckle his seatbelt. He nods and you get out from the car. He follows you closely op to the appartment, mostly because he can't stray far from you cause you've got an arm around his waist. Which is not something you usualy do, but, you wanted to. You get into the appartment and the second the door is closed, Spencer's sucking his thumb again. You focus, very hard to not chuckle. Because that's wildly insensitive. But maybe that pacifier is a good idea. You brush a hand over his hair. "You doing okay there baby?" You ask sweetly, as you guide him to the couch. He nods and you pet his back gently. He lays down on the couch without much proment, his eyes only half open. It's strange sight, Dr. Spencer Reid laying on your shared couch while sucking his thumb.

For one, you never dreamed you would share a home. Never dreamed you'd get Spencer into therapy. Never dreamed of this. You lay a blanket over him, leaning down to kiss his forehead. "Hey, you okay there baby boy?" You knell down in front of him. He's not really reacting to you, so you stoke hos cheek. He leans into your touch. Maybe you should get him into some more comfortble clothes. He shakes his head a bit. "Should i get you into some comfy clothes? Would that help?" You ask, continuing to stoke his cheek. He nods slightly, slipping his thumb out from his mouth. You want to tell him to keep it in his mouth, but you don't wanna push. He wipes his thumb dry on his shirt. "Yeah? okay. What do you say to.......sweats and a hoodie?" You ask, moving your hand to stoke his hair instead. His eyes are still only half open as he shakes his head. "No, okay. What about sweats and a sweatshirt?" You coo, hoping you've struck right with the clothes. He nods, and looks down to his thumb. You smile. "I'll get that for you baby, you just relax and suck your thumb if you want" You encourage. He slips it back in his mouth and wiggles a bit to settle comfortable on the couch. You smile even wider and hurry off to find the promised clothes. Oh, he's relaxing, and he's actually letting you take care of him. This is good. Really good. You find dark grey sweatpants, a black tanktop, and a light grey sweatshirt.

You find Spencer asleep, so you rouse him a bit before helping him sit op. He's still sucking his thumb as you pull the vest off him. It makes it a bit more difficult, but you don't mind. The soft cotton of the vest is a bit worn out and thin in some places. He's wearing it to death. You pull his shirt op from his pants and get to work unbuttoning it. You hear the pop of Spencer pulling his thumb from his mouth. "Mama?" He mutters. "Yeah baby?" You manage to get out in a reasonably coherent voice, or so you hope. Mama. Oh god, you were not expecting that. In any way. This morning he didn't even wanna talk about anything relating to therapy. Now he's calling you Mama. You slide the shirt off his shoulders and down off his arms. "I'm thirsty" he confesses. "Okay" You almost choke. Thirsty. He's thirsty. "I'll get you drink in a minute, what do you want sweetie?" You ask, picking op the tank top and he raises his arms and helps you along with getting it on. You slip the sweatshirt over his head. He shrugs, he's never been good at remreber what's in the fridge. You almost say coffee, but that doesn't feel right. "Apple juice?" You suggest, unbuttoning his pants. He blushes and pulls your hands away. This throws you for a loop. He's okay with you taking your shirt off, but not his pants. You hold out the pants, raising an eyebrow. "Do you wanna you try do it yourself Baby?" You ask, wondering just why it's okay to see him without a shirt, but not okay to see him his boxers. It's not like it'd be the first time.

He takes them from you, nodding. "Okay, you can absolutely do it yourself. Did you want some apple juice?" You ask again, chancing the topic to drinks. He nods and you head to the kitchen. Both to get him that damn juice, and to let yourself have a mini break down. You draw in a deep breath, bracing yourself on the kitchen counter. Juice. Apple juice. You find an old plastic cup you used when you'd broken your wrist and weren't trusted with actual glass glasses. You listen for any rustling. Has he finished changing yet? You draw in another deep breath. Okay, give Spence some juice, then what? What do you do then? it's midday, it's not even close to dinner time. Is it just cuddle time with some Tv? Would that take him out of the headspace? Or would it help? Okay, breathe. Breathe. Give your baby the juice, and let him deicde what he wants to do. You go back to the living room. Surprised that Spencer's not there. "Spence? Baby boo?" You call, setting the juice down on the coffee table. You hear a giggle from under the couch. Oh my. "Oh no!" You cry. "Where's my baby?" You bend down and pick op his clothes and start to fold them. "Oh no, I've lost my little Spencer where could he be?" You lay his folded vest down on the couch. Spencer's clearly hiddning under there, but maybe it's fun. It's gotta be fun. You lay a folded shirt aside, then his folded op jeans. You huff, hands on your hips. "Oh my, where's Mama's baby?" You falsely cry out. Then, Spencer sticks his head out from under the couch, smiling. "Here Mama!" "Oh my, there you are, you scared me" You lean down and pinch his cheek gently. You want to pick him op. But you're not sure you can, or that you'd be allowed to. He looks os cute, so sweet. You reach down and decide to try. If you fail, it'll be a fun mistake.

Spence giggles and laches onto your neck. You get an arm op under his legs, and he wiggles his feet. You smile to yourself, you can total carry him. Even if it's the last thing you do. You lift him op and dump him on the couch. He laughs as he bounces on the couch and your heart melts. You hand him the juice and he grabs it. You settle next to Spencer, watching closely as he finishes the drink in seconds. "Thank you" He sets the empty glass aside. "Your welcome baby" You say. He doesn't say anything for a few minutes, and you just wait. Hoping he'd eventually talk. When you realize he won't, you really wish there was someone there to help you with this. "Do you wanna watch some Tv?" You ask, in a hopefully tone. Spencer begins to pout and shakes his head. "What do you wanna do Baby?" You ask, trying desperately to make him feel happy again. You just want him to feel safe. Spencer shrugs, and quite frankly, you panic. You want to be a good caregiver for him, a good Mama but you've got no clue what you're doing right now. "D-Do you wanna play?" You ask, shifting closer and laying an arm around his shoulders. He pouts properly, violently shaking his head. "Okay, I'm kinda lost here Baby boy, what do you want?" You ask again, gently tugging on him. He turns to you, pouting and almost in tears. Oh no, no no no. No tears. He climbs ono your lap and wraps his arms around your neck. "Hi, hi Baby" You try to not franticly rub his back and give yourself away but you kinda fail. "You're okay Baby" You coax, letting him wrap his legs around you. Spencer rests his head on in the crook of your neck. Is he tired? is that it? "Are you sleepy?" You ask, shifting him slightly.

He nods, and you sigh in relief, petting his back soothingly. "Okay" you say, trying to keep yourself from asking a million questions. Does he want to sleep in your lap? Does he want to lay in bed? Does he need you to cuddle him to sleep? Does he need to lay down on the couch? You're about half way through every posble question when you hear Spencer snorring on your shoulder. Oh, oh. Sleep. He's sleeping. You grab his phone, okay power nap. How long is a normal power nap. What did Spencer say? 10 to 20 minutes, right? Okay, um, 20 minutes. You set a timer. What can do in 20 minutes? Better yet, what can you do with a sleeping Spencer in your lap? You can't do much with a sleeping baby in your lap. Wil the alram wake you too? Yeah, yeah it wil. You close your eyes, you deseve a nap too. You close your eyes.

You wake to a slight tugging, there's no alram blarring. Did you sleep through it? "Mama?" It's Spencer. You blink a few times, trying to open your eyes. "Yeah?" You anwser, shifting and feeling the heavy weigt on you. He leans into your neck, snuggling close the way a cat would. You wrap your arms around him. "Wake op Mama" "I'm awake" You say, pulling his face from your neck and kissing him. "I'm awake Baby" You repeat, squzzing him. He squeals. "Did you have a good nap?" You ask, setting your feet firmly on the floor. He nods, smiling wildly. "Good, good. You hungry?" You get to your feet with Spencer in your arms. "Mama!" He squeals, wrappinng his legs irmly around you. "Mhmm, you hugry Baby?" you ask again, ignoing his squealing. "Ah, mhmm" he half bites into his lower lip. "Yeah, that makes sense it's almost dinner time. And i know exactly what do to make" You say, and you mean it. "I don't get a say?" Spencer half whines, wiggling n your hold. "No, a baby shouldn't have to worry about food. Mama's got it" You coo, setting him down on the kitchen island. Something about his eyes seem different. Maybe it's just the warm kitchen light but you swear his eyes seem more dark. Like you're said something you weren't suppose to. Or that you've said something you should have said hours ago. Which remains unknown as you grab the bag that's been waiting in the fridge since your last therapy appointment. Well, bags. There are 4 in the fridge. Chicken nuggets, fries, and a small mix of veggies. The whole thing can fit in your biggest pan. Oh shoot, what are you gonna eat? Mhmmm.

Oh, make Spencer food, get him to eat while you make yourself something. Yeah, that makes. You pour some oil on the pan, then carefully place the food in different spaces on the pan. Knowing that Spencer's not a fan off food all mixed op. "Mommy?" Comes a small, brittle, voice. You turn in under a second. He's still sitting on the island, pouting slightly. "Yeah?" You answer, nodding. Okay, don't freak out. First Mama, now Mommy. Does that mean something? Don't regressors typically stick to one honorific? Is he just trying it out? Oh god calm down, don't let him see you freak out. He reaches out for you with both arms. You giggle a bit. "Okay" You say, leaving the pan for a moment to hoist him op on your hip. it's not easy to hold him with one arm, but you manage. You need to train your arms, you want to be able to hold him like this without issue. He snuggles into your neck. "Better?" You ask. "Mhmm"

So you have dinner, but you spend every second worrying he's gonna hurt himself with the fork. You decide you need child utensils, and a child plate. Oh god, you need a list. Garcia will help, right? she loves to shop. You will need to explain, and that's if Spencer's okay with you talking to her about it. "Mommy?" he asks from you chest. You've settled on the couch with him atop you. "Yeah?" You answer again, brushing a hand over his hair. "Can i....mhmm" he looks down to his hands. Seeming embarrassed again. You giggle lightly and reach for the pack of wet wipes you brought in from the car earlier. "Give me your hand" He does, like a good boy. This time, you clean his hand for him. Turning the wipe over, you carefully clean under the nail. You bend his thumb and stick it in his mouth. "There you go. I need to get you a pacifier, don't i?" You ask, hoping to coax an answer from him. He immediately starts to suck his thumb, blushing a bit. He doesn't answer, and so you bring a hand down and tap his back lightly. "Baby, how do you feel about a pacifier? I'm serious" He burries his face down in your chest. "Baby, I'm serious. Answer me please" You say. Spencer lays his head sideways, thumb tucked firmly in his mouth. You're first instinct is to threaten to take away the thumb sucking. But, you catch yourself, this is for him, not you. "Is it hard to talk?" You ask, rubbing his back. He nods, glancing op at you for a brief moment. "Okay, Pacifier. No?" You ask, he doesn't react. "Pacifier, Yes?" You ask, letting out a breath as he nods. You run a hand over his hair. "Okay, can you hand Mommy that paper pad and that pen?"

You take it from him and lay it on Spencer's shoulder to be able to write. "I'm gonna write some things down, and i need you to cross them out if you're not okay with it. Can you do that Sweetie?" You coax gently. You see him nod from the corner of your eye and you can't help but smile. After a bit more scribbling you hand the pen and paper to Spencer. You coo over him as he reads it. But when he hunches over the list you back off a bit, petting his back instead. it takes him a few minutes, which is how you know he's really thinking about it. He hands it back to you.

Pacifiers

Teethers

Kid plates and utensils

Bottles

onesies

Toys

Colouring books

Talking with Garcia about your regesstion

Talking to Morgan about your regression

Talking with Emliy about your regression

You smile and lay the papper aside. "Baby, you know if Garcia knows, they others might end op knowing at some point? Are you okay with that?" You ask. Spencer nods. "Okay" You say, brushing a hand over his hair again. Spence shifts to lay on top of you, and snuggles close to your chest. You feel like a puddle under him. This is the best day you've had in a while. It doesn't take long for Spence to fall asleep again. This must be tiring for him. You grab your phone off the coffee table. As you flip open your cover your phones lights op with a million different texts from the team. You're happy know the team cares so much. You stoke his hair and neck as he snores. You go on the round of responses, when you get to Garcia. You decide you need a phone call with your girl. She picks op on the first ring.

"Wonder woman at your servise" Penelope says over the line. "Hey Pen, I just wanted to let you know Reid's alright" You say, continuing to pet Spencer's hair. Spencer does this cute little meow kinda noise. "Aww, is that the mini genius?" She gasps. "Yeah. Um, listen. On the topic of mini genius" You drawl. "Oh god, tell me he's not leaving. I'm begging you" She pleads. "No, no" You say, continue to pet his hair. "He's not leaving, but there's something i want you to know. But you can not tell the others yet" You say quietly but firmly. "Oh my goodness, of course please spill Girl" She happily chimes. "It's not really that kinda tea but, have you ever heard of age regression?"

"Umm, yeah I've more then heard of it"

"Well, Spencer is a little. And i need some help with shopping for little things, it's online but I'd like your help, if you comfortable" You blurt out, hoping that if you got it out fast, then the rejection would be easier to handle. "Oh Mama you are on. Any ideas?" "I'll send you a list of things I'm looking for" You smile. And that's how you two weeks later end op with a 'care packet' from Garcia. A box of two pacifiers, a teether, a blue set of child plates and utensils, a light purple kid's sport water bottle with a bite valve, and the thing Spencer grabbed from the box the second he saw it. A white polar bear stuffie. You sent Penelope a handwritten thank you note.

[angel-sweets666]

you wanted more so I'm gonna lurk and give it to you! I chose this particular story because it has a lesson in it that I think every shifter, beginner or not, should keep in mind when shifting and working on their scripts. This is gonna be a long one so buckle up!!

Last year when bnha s6 was airing, I felt extremely motivated to shift so I lied down and got to work! I ended up having a lucid dream where I was in a helicopter over a destroyed city (I had just caught up to the anime and finished the episode where Tomura destroyed Jaku hospital) and I decided it was a good a time as any to shift!! Lucid dreams are an alternate state of consciousness so shifting can be easier! A lot of people suggest making portals to your dr in your dreams but I suggest the "falling through the floor" method because it's simple and worked for me the first time I used it!! Basically you just jump through the floor with the intention of shifting

so I'm in the helicopter in my dream, I jump out and fell to the city below with the intention of shifting when I hit the floor, thinking hard about what I wanted in my dr and what reality I wanted to go to!! As I'm falling I see these white blobs in an infinite, black void, they're blinking and rapidly expanding and shrinking in no particular order (I usually get these when I'm shifting or close to shifting) and then as I'm falling, the blobs transform into different memories from my bnha dr and every single memory was a childhood memory of AFO. I didn't see anything like children's toys or a crib that cued me in on the fact that they were childhood memories, I just kinda knew. It was the same way you'd know the color of your eyes or your name without having to think about it, a fact that you didn't need to double check.

After falling through a few memories of AFO, I "settled" in what I could tell was some sort of core memory. The other ones kinda just flashed by me but this one I felt like I was LIVING IT!!

I, or I guess the child version of me, was outside. The sky was blue, there were a few clouds in the sky. All For One was in front of me, I could see the tree tops above him and around us. He stood in front of me and held his hand out to me as he spoke. He spoke Japanese and he spoke it with this weird, knowing grin on his face. I don't know what he said because I don't speak Japanese in this reality, but judging by the context clues, I know it was something similar to what happened to Tomura. When he was done speaking, he grinned evilly at me and then the memory ended.

Now for a bit of context, back in Dec 2020-Jan 2021 when I was naive and less knowledgeable about shifting, I scripted that my parents were S and A class villains, about on the same level of the Paranormal Liberation Army, and that I was being raised to surpass AFO but was adopted by a member of the hero commission after my parents were arrested and ended up going down a different path, choosing to be a hero. What I HADNT scripted was any past or relationship with All For One so it was really jarring for me. I was under the assumption that my parents didn't know him personally, that maybe they had one sided beef with him. Kinda like Endeavor's goal of using his kids to surpass All Might, but obviously that wasn't the case seeing as AFO had access to me as a child.

I ended up getting a spiritual reading done on it a few weeks later and I learned that my parents in my dr made a deal AFO involving me, that I was their bargaining chip and I was "promised" to him. Apparently he didn't want Tomura anymore because I was the key to everything he had ever wanted, I was his trump card!! I learned that instead of being born to surpass him, I was born to "become him", again I'm guessing he means it in the same way he's using Tomura's body as a vessel for his own consciousness. I don't know what exactly they made a deal about or why, just that I'm a major part of it. AFO actually implied that me getting adopted and taken away wasn't as accident, that my parents tried to hide me from him because they wanted to protect me. I don't have all of the answers yet.

Moral of the story: BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SCRIPT!! Your dr is a reality just like this one, you cannot control 100% of what goes on there and the things you script may have unintended consequences, some good, some bad. Be mindful of what you're scripting because one event and snowball into something catastrophic if you're not careful. I'm not saying don't script connections to villains or certain events, I'm just saying think about what scripting it might entail, how it effects your life in that reality, the people around you, and their feelings about it. Every action has consequences, just like this reality!

I accidentally set myself up because I wanted a cool backstory in my dr. I'm not going to change my script because I want to learn about my past in that reality and because I was told there was a lesson to be learned in my relationship with AFO. I'm gonna see it though, but you don't have to.

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SCRIPT!! I hope this story motivated those interested in reality shifting and deepened their understanding of how real it is, that it's a real life you'll be living!! Happy shifting everyone 💝

omg thank you for this warning, I didn’t actually think of it that way. I was mostly scripting some basic stuff about me, yk like I can’t get pregnant unless I’m like 100% I want to. Yk that sort of stuff but I was just about to get into my backstory, tysm for this I rlly appreciate you

[smolcinnamonchipmunk]

Well, since my computer is currently bricked and I can't draw on my programs, I'm gonna ramble a little about the shit that my brain came up with from the whole Dan Heng naga drawing I still want to eventually finish. And I do mean ramble, so either buckle in or go on GET

So, aside from the whole being mildly sad that my Imoogi to dragon pipeline thought process didn't work out, I wondered if I should make Nova something feathery like a Harpy, and then I wondered what kind of bird to base them off of. And my brain came to the conclusion of a phoenix

Why a Phoenix?

Because in this scenario, Phoenixes are considered bad omens and horrible because in order to fuel their eternal cycle of life they tend to go from ecosystem to ecosystem, effectively passively devouring landscapes with their flames. Even if there's no ill intent, leaving a Phoenix to live is condemning countless to die. Not even dragons, one of the longest living species, require that much energy/magic (I have no clue what kind of au my brain is trying to cook up lmao) that they could be considered destructive by merely existing

Now, Nova is obviously not a normal Phoenix, but I'm so torn on whether or not they're just a runt or if Silver Wolf somehow finds the ashes of a Phoenix and does something to 'em

Regardless, they still kind of have the same issue where, if they don't get enough fuel, they usually end up being bird-sized. So, in the drawing, Dan Heng is going to be holding onto a human-sized Nova after they unintentionally got into some mischief to wait for them to shrink to a more manageable size

[scopop08]

Started vault hunters, and I was inspired by @theminecraftbee to write out some vault logs to keep me playing! (Because I am so lost. I have no idea what to do in the slightest) (if you don't want to be tagged just let me know!)

Buckle in for the back half of completely unexplained oc/persona lore. I'm writing it as if it's an audio log so I'm going to try and style it like auto-generated captions!

The littlest bit of context: This Scopop (5C0) is a robot built to imitate the actual Scopop, who died a couple hundred years prior to this audio log. Due to an accident, 5C0 recently reactivated and found himself server hopping with increasingly large gaps in his memory and a sense of dread about his identity he can't seem to shake

SERVER LOG - ENTRY 0001

-

MODEL 5C0 - REBOOT INITIATED

MODEM CONNECTION SEARCH INITIATED:

| MODEM IS DISCONNECTED. PREPARING TO PROCESS MULTIPLE RESTART ATTEMPTS |

MODEM DISCONNECT - MODEM DISCONNECT - MODEM DISCONNECT - MODEM DISCONNECT - MODEM CONNECTION FOUND. PREPARING TO CONNECT.

deBug.Log("Connection Found! Preparing To Enter Server!");

CONNECTED - PRIMARY MOBILITY=> BEGIN ACTIVATION - SECONDARY MOBILITY=> BEGIN ACTIVATION - OPTICAL UNITS => BEGIN ACTIVATION - INTERNAL TEMPERATURE SELF REGULATION=> BEGIN ACTIVATION - PROCESSING AND MEMORY STORAGE => BEGIN ACTIVATION

CODE REALIGNMENT COMPLETED, ALL ACTIVATION SEQUENCES PROCESSED

-

-

---

SERVER LOG - ENTRY 0002

0002

00:00 ●──────────────── 4:34

⇆ ◁ㅤㅤ❚❚ㅤㅤ▷

( THE FOLLOWING IS TRANSCRIBED FROM AUDIO RECORDING "0002" WITHIN THE PLAYER-SERVER-LOG SYSTEM )

Okay... Uh, do I know how... Yeah... (Shuffling) And there we go! We are recording! Here I am, your wonderful host, and this... Is the server!

Oh.

We aren't recording video. Awesome. Okay. Uh. Remember to edit this part out later. Actually I'm just going to... Yeah I'm gonna stop it and try again. Give me a sec.

...

We're back up! Okay, log entry número uno. Okay. Uh... Sorry, I'm trying to think of what I want to, I don't know, log.

Oh! It seems like before I got access- well, technically- the server was just recording my activation sequences. That was actually número uno. I'll try and wipe it later since there's about a billion pages of shit. You know, new server, code realignment and all that. First time doing it as- first time in a while I've server hopped, but feelings still the same I think. Nothing like the warm welcome of passing out and falling flat on your face at spawn. And, uh, speaking of the server, I have approximately zero idea where I am! That's a good thing to note. Absolutely no clue. Nothing except the book at spawn tells me where I got dumped, and even that's just a server name. 'Vault Hunters'. Or a pack name? It doesn't seem like a server, really. I think I'm completely alone.

Lots of new stuff here. Biomes, animals... Ores mostly. Almost made me have another system shutdown because I couldn't turn it back to manual when it was freaking out. Got pockets full of it now, and a nice little house going. Nothing with the mods. I don't know if I could deal with any of that stuff. (laughter) ... (Sigh) The only thing I'm missing is a roof, because I can't find enough copper. Admin knows you need help when you're getting drenched and the thing you're desperately wishing for is copper.

...This, uh, server seems to have completely rewired- Changed my code from the last one, though, so I do have to find things to eat. Er- yeah. Not so bad, I've already started up a wheat farm, and there's tons of sheep around here. Something about that last bit feels weird, but everything feels weird and if I knew why I would've already fixed it. Not like I know much of anything at this point.

(Sharp exhale) Okay, uh, no more melodramatics. I'm already talking to myself in an empty house, let's not make it any worse. I'm... gonna start digging though my chests. Get a basic inventory of everything I've got, and type it under this if I think anything seems important. Also a goal- Try and download some info about this server so I'm not completely in the dark. Before that, though, I have to fix my interface from when that creeper blew right the fuck up in my face. Respawn didn't want to fix that one. I guess because it's more of a mechanical or aesthetic problem than a functional one. But it still sucks. I had to loot my own corpse, by the way. Which was awesome. Glad this server lets you see your own dead body on the ground and makes you pick up your stuff from it. Not existential crisis inducing at all. But yeah- back on track.

Here's my list of goals. Uno, sort my stuff, find what I think is important. Dos, read the book I got at spawn over a couple more times. Doesn't help because it's more like a glossary than anything but maybe it'll finally get through my thick skull. (Metallic clang) (sharp inhale). Right. Uh. Tres, fix my interface and download the crafting recipes at least. Give me some idea of what's happening here.

(Shuffling) (Chair briefly drawing across the floor)

Alright. Goodnight Chicago, thank you for tuning in to the podcast. I'll catch you next episode. And next episode is when anything important happens or I figure something out. And Chicago is me in the future listening to this. Hi me. Anyway. Ending it now. Goodb-

( END OF TRANSCRIPT )

USER INPUT:

List of important things: dimensional crystal (o smth close to that i forgot), 2 dias. Nothing else seems important. Check back later. i keep finding vases in the caves n they might have smth cool

( PLAYER-SERVER-LOG 0002 END )

I'll get into actual vault hunters stuff in the next one, I just wanted to have fun with this one, setting it up and seeing how I would want to write it!

[firefaerie81]

(liveblog tag in chronological order)

*deep breath*

Soooo, yeah. The other shoe has dropped.

The moment I've been simultaneously dreading because it's such a gut punch and looking forward to because I have a LOT to say. Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one.

I played dumb on this instead of analyzing in context and hinting at what was to come because I have biases, and I wanted y'all to understand those biases so you might understand where I'm coming from in how I read this.

That's not to say I lied. I believe the things I've said about her over the course of my liveblog, but there's more to it that we have to get into now.

Now, I won't say there's NO merit to this twist. I see the intended setup and payoff, it raises the stakes for what was supposed to be the next season, and the drama can go places.

But I think it's a misstep because I don't think it's worth as much as what we lost in the process.

I REALLY liked this character and her relationship with Lion-O, and that colors how I respond to this twist and how I want it to go forward. Like I said, I'm biased. So, let's talk about those biases, and how I read Pumyra.

But first, one brief aside:

Mumm-Ra being able to track them was supposed to have been a clue about Pumyra, but like. He was doing that long before they even FOUND Pumyra, so what the hell?

Anyway, I've explained why I like Pumyra. Ever since I got to her introduction in this liveblog I have not shut up about how much I like her. Her spitfire attitude, her strong will, and her unique perspective made her a phenomenal addition to the cast that spiced things up without being a rehash of Lion-O and Tygra's clashes.

She filled a niche that improved the team composition, and she had a really solid arc that showed her as a complex person with multiple sides, able to grow and change. If this twist hadn’t happened, Pumyra would be one of the most well developed characters in the show.

Because this twist completely recontextualizes her and basically undoes all of her development. She's reset right back to where she started, but even more angry and vengeful. But I would prefer to think that her real personality is still more or less what we saw. Like her backstory, we got the gist with the darkest parts hidden.

Her anger at the mistreatment of the cats, helping a baby bird back into its nest, etc. There were these bits of heart to her that don’t scan as just an act to me. And honestly, I don't want to think that this character I liked has suddenly become a blank slate, because she was an AMAZING character.

I think this twist is a misstep because it’s so much LESS interesting than the character development we’ve been watching her go through, which is now being tossed out the window. We already saw her overcome this same general idea, and now you’re saying all that was fake and doesn't count? Thanks, I hate it!

I also haven’t been subtle about how much I like Lion-O and Pumyra’s relationship before this point. I think they had an amazing dynamic of rounding each other out, and they had some great moments together. But, well, this throws all of that out of whack.

We’re meant to assume that she coldly seduced Lion-O, but I don’t find that interesting. And to be frank, that plus the way he accused Cheetara of toying with him and never retracted it onscreen is not a great look for the show.

With Cheetara, it was more interesting for her to not end up with Lion-O because the potential relationship there was superficial and one-sided. But with Pumyra, that potential relationship really felt like a two way street that improved them both, and it felt like they had a real connection.

I don't think it's worth it to just throw all of that away. Again, we’re taking all of this lovingly built character and relationship development and throwing it out the window. And that’s frustrating, so I don’t want that to be how this goes.

Instead, I posit to you the classic mole dilemma: “I was sent to betray these people, but oops, getting to know them made me actually care, and now I have to carry out my mission even though I maybe have doubts.”

Mumm-Ra says he owns her soul now. Depending on how seriously we take that verbage, it implies a level of control that if Pumyra maybe isn't fully on board with something he wants her to do, it doesn’t really matter. And, y'know, it's Mumm-Ra; he doesn't give his underlings a choice. So that gives me some wiggle room to interpret. Please indulge me while I interpret.

She is obviously angry. That anger is real and her reasons are understandable even if it's treading ground we already covered. She's been waiting for this particular catharsis and she's happy to go for it now that she has the chance. But if she DID grow to care for Lion-O, at least on SOME level, that's more interesting to me than it all being a lie

Like I said way back in her first episodes, she met the man she'd assigned all her rage to, and he listened to her, he took responsibility for his negligence, and he was endlessly kind even when she was hostile. You can easily have that genuinely affect her.

Not necessarily “In Love With The Mark”, but not as cut and dried as it looks in this moment, either. Maybe she doesn't even realize it until after this is all said and done. Just a seed of doubt and dissatisfaction. She's angry, but she's also being used.

I also think it’d be really interesting to view it as like a devil’s bargain kind of thing. Yeah, she gets to live and have some revenge on the people she died angry at, but at the cost of helping the monster actually responsible for her death ruin more innocent lives. Is that worth it?

If we assume that the side we saw of her that cares about injustice and the plight of the helpless was real, which I think still fits, then that’s another reason for her to maybe not be okay with where she’s ended up now that she’s here. Careful what you wish for, and all.

If it were up to me, going forward Pumyra would grow torn between anger and conscience, struggling internally, and Lion-O would catch on and save her against all reason yet again. We'd essentially follow through on the arc they already had, but for real and on a grander scale.

Like, remember, what we're finding out now is basically the same as what Pumyra was initially presented with, just moreso. So I think that same trajectory they seemed to be on can still work, as long as you scale it up to match.

And Lion-O CAN help her. He himself went through an all-consuming rage and desire for revenge in Ramlak Rising, which is the exact time Pumyra died. You could tie back to that, how his rage begot her rage, and how he can actually understand her better than she thinks. They both fell into the same trap, but now he can offer her a hand out of it.

I’d also give Pumyra her own character arc reevaluating herself and eventually choosing to join the Thundercats for real. She'd struggle with a complicated tangle of love and hate, and through a personal journey eventually choose love. I think that fits the themes of the show.

Lion-O showed kindness to a lizard, and was repaid with an escape that enabled him to go on this entire journey. He helps those in need wherever he goes, and they in turn help him. Tygra broke the curse on the tiger clan by accepting his bio dad. This is a show about love and compassion and kindness being powerful.

Mumm-Ra's idea in planting Pumyra as a mole was “your emotions will be your undoing” or some such, so I’d find it thematically right to turn that back on him with the power of love winning after all. Like, it would take WORK, but I think it’d be worth it.

And I know none of that was the intent, but this liveblog is about my personal feelings and that’s how I feel. I’m not usually one to advocate for Enemies to Lovers when it’s not actually in the text, but godDAMN, they put in the work.

I don't want to give up on Lion-O/Pumyra or on Pumyra as the character I grew to love, so that’s the biased lens I view this twist through. But hey, one benefit of the show never being finished is that I'm free to write my own storyline and no one can stop me. Which is why that's exactly what I do in my art and my writing.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

[thelastbraincellofthehive]

Well, I'm watching volume 3 and honestly I have so many thoughts about it I'm gonna make a first half and second half post. Buckle up because y'all now this is a wild ride! Also buckle up because this is were I start having some very controversial opinions lol.s

The show was airing the first half of this volume when I first got into it (it was somehow because of some amazing Ever After High fanart lol I still remember) so actually, Yang and Mercury's fight was my first experienced hiatus, you can imagine my distress lol.

Every volume the list of women who could step on me grows. But honestly, Winter is on top of that list. It's like they created her with all my weaknesses in mind...

The vytal festival fights are hilarious lol as the kids said, It was nice to see them all fight in a controlled and friendly enviroment instead of fighting actual murderers.

Yatsu and Coco and that poor team in the chapter 1 flashback did fight actual murderers tho, RIP to them (?

It's brawl in the family will forever be one of my favorite episodes lol Winter and Qrow simply steal the show everytime they're on the screen!

Also, I get other ships with the characters and understand why people doesn't like Snowbird... But I've had many people who don't watch the show watch that fight scene and the general consensus is always that they were flirting. That's the most sexual tension I've seen in this show, and we've had actual romantic partners interacting more than once lol

Anyways I ship Snowbird/Qrowin...

Subject change. Remember that scene when Mercury goes to tell Cinder he saw Qrow? At the end Cinder tells he and Emmerald to 'go to their rooms' ...but arem't they supposedly sharing a room since they're partners? Beacon teams all share a room so I don't get why they wouldn't lol.

I wish we could've seen more of Ciel Soleil, honestly, she was such a cutie lol. Kinda hoping She's brought back someday. If you are a fanfic writer and haven't tried to use Ciel as something like Penny's awkward and superserious bodyward in an AU, you should think about It, girl has potential!

"If you were one of my men I'd have you shot!" "if I were one of your men I'd shot myself" still one of the most iconic and epic moments in the series lol Go Qrow!!

Neon!!! God I loved Neon in this volume lol that girl is insuferable! She's also GayAF, I know It.

I'm the one is such a banger of a song! Top 3 of the volume, easily. Also, that fight is awesome, I adore seeing all the clues for what happened next now that, you know, I know what happened next lol.

Velvet worried about Coco <3 let these two be girlfriends!!

Winter fighting Qrow because he was drunk it's so painful after we learn about her family life. Trauma is a bitch.

Also, can I just say that I miss Willow? I knew I was gonna love her, but it was even more than I was expecting, I hope we get more Willow soon.

That scene in Ozpin's office when Ironwood looks at Oz, Glynda and Qrow before sighing and leaving is so telling of where his story was going. He was part of a team, yet he felt like it was him against the world. It's sad how much the others tried to show him their trust, but he was so into his fear that he couldn't see it.

I know this is a very controversial topic for the whole FNDM and that it was disproved multiple times, but I'll never get why would it be so bad if Ruby was Qrow's daughter. The signs are all there, It would make so much sense, and I don't feel it would've taken anything from the story. Alas, it wasn't meant to be*shrugs*

Penny tackling Ruby to the ground as a greeting is tradition <3 also she's always looking back at Ruby with the biggest smile on her face before leaving <3 God Penny is the most adorable girl I've ever seen. And my Nuts and Dolts shipping heart is so happy<3 and sad

Seeing Weiss and Winter interact always warms and breaks my heart at the same time, it's so obvious there's a lot of love there, but half of the time they don't really know how to show it. Again, trauma is a bitch.

Yang, baby </3 my heart breaks for you everytime I watch chapter 6. Honestly, I never fully forgave Mercury after that lol.

Pyrrha. Deserved. Better. Say it with me Rooster teeth!!!! God the whole vault scene is painful.

Also, Glynda: "We're still the same headmasters and teachers you knew the day you arrived to Beacon" Pyrrha: "This is literally the first time I met half the people here!"

Yes, I'm using dumb humor to deal with trauma

I lowkey ship WeissxFlynt honestly... Flynt's cool, I want more Flynt please.

But my imposible otp for Weiss still hasn't been introduced. If you follow me you know who I'm talking about and I'm willing to die on that hill. RT I'll forgive you for literally everything aside the v8 finally if you make them canon. Literally!!

You only get off the hook for v8 if you give me Nuts and Dolts.

I stan my point that Ironwood was hoping to have Penny eventually become a maiden and that's why she exist in the first place. I'm guessing the whole thing with the virus made him reconsider and that's why he turned to Winter later? Maybe?

Anyways, I still can't believe this is the tame half of the volume. I guess time to keep going and get my heart rip apart again. Good talk guys!

[alyswritings]

Hi!

Can I request tom holland x holland!sister where she got her wisdom tooth removed and them taking care of her. Thank you!♥️

Tom and the twins sit in the waiting room, finding ways to pass the time until Y/N's done getting her wisdom teeth out.

"Boys." The dentist calls, getting the trio's attention, and they look up at Y/N's dentist. "It's done. Follow me."

They follow him back into the office where Y/N is lying on the chair, seemingly half awake. The doctor assures it went well and there were no complications. He explains how to take care of her and gives them the stuff needed before leaving, the dental assistant still cleaning up a bit.

"Tommy!" Y/N cheers.

"Hi." Tom laughs. "How you feeling?"

"I feel... spec- uh... speckmagnificent." Y/N says.

"Not a word, goofy." Sam says.

"How dare you call me goofy?" Y/N gasps.

"You ready to go home?" Tom asks.

"Home! Oh, I want my bed." Y/N says.

"You can have your bed." Tom assures.

Tom helps her sit up and when she starts to fall, the three brothers slightly panic and all reach out to help her stay in a sitting position.

"Ooh. That was almost a roller coaster." Y/N says. Harry keeps an arm around her to prevent her from falling.

"Can you walk?" Sam asks.

"I have no clue." Y/N slurs.

"Okay, get on my back." Tom says, turning so his back is to her.

"Ooh, piggyback." Y/N smiles. She wraps her arms around Tom's neck and he supports her by placing his hands under her knees. Tom holds her up, Y/N letting her head fall onto his shoulder.

The three brothers walk out, getting to the car.

"I want food." Y/N complains as they help her in the car.

"You want a milkshake?" Tom asks, buckling her in since she makes no move to do so herself.

"Yeah! And-And fries." Y/N says.

"You can't have fries. It's not good for your recovery. Sorry." Harry tells her, getting in the passenger seat.

"But I want fries." Y/N whines.

"You can have fries a different day." Sam assures, sitting next to her, gently patting her knee.

"But I want them now." Y/N groans.

"Well, all you're getting now is a milkshake." Tom says.

Y/N huffs, but doesn't say anything else as Tom starts the drive.

- - -

After getting home, Harry helps Y/N to the couch since that's where she now wanted to go. He helps her prop some of the pillows up and she rests against them.

"Who's gonna replace her gauze?" Tom asks the twins.

"Not it." Sam and Tom say, looking to Harry who glares at them.

"I hate you both." Harry grumbles. He grabs more gauze and a paper towel.

"Okay, Y/N, we gotta switch the gauze out." Harry says.

"Why?" Y/N asks, trying to see around him so she can continue watching New Girl.

"Because the other ones are used up." Harry says. "Here, open your mouth." Y/N opens her mouth and Harry grimaces before reluctantly taking one of the blood filled gauzes out, placing it on the paper towel.

"oh, my God! I'm dying!" Y/N yells.

"No, no, no, no. You're not dying." Tom rushes over to comfort her. "You're perfectly fine. It's just a little blood. Like when you used to fall and scrape your knee playing outside."

"It looks like when the tampon comes out." Y/N says.

"Oh, ew!" Harry grimaces, Sam also shivering in disgust.

"I'm just saying." Y/N shrugs.

Harry takes the other piece of gauze out of her mouth.

"Okay, now the clean gauze." Harry says, holding one up. "Y/N, open your mouth."

"No." Y/N mumbles, hiding her mouth behind her hands.

"Y/N, come on." Harry complains.

"Nope. I want my mouth empty." Y/N states.

"You can't. You need the gauze in your mouth to help." Harry says.

"Help what?" Y/N asks.

"You get better and recover." Sam says.

"Mm-mm." Y/N shakes her head.

"Y/N, just let him put the gauze in your mouth and then it's all over and you can watch TV all you want." Tom says.

Y/N rolls her eyes and lowers her hand, reluctantly opening her mouth. Harry goes to put the gauze in one side of her cheek, but yells in pain when Y/N bites his finger.

"OW!" Harry retracts his finger, bopping Y/N on the nose.

"Ow!" Y/N whines, holding her nose.

"Dude!" Sam looks at his twin in bewilderment.

"What-- she bit me!" Harry yells.

"So you hit her nose? She's not a fucking dog, mate." Tom says.

"Where is Tessy?" Y/N asks, looking around.

"We'll get her later." Tom promises.

"That's it. I'm done." Harry says, getting up.

"Harry--" Sam tries.

"Nope! I've been bitten. Goodbye." Harry walks out.

The oldest two share a look and Sam rolls his eyes, accepting the responsibility of replacing the gauze.

"Hold her head." Sam tells Tom.

Tom gently puts his hand on Y/N's forehead, keeping her head pinned to his torso and gently prying her mouth open.

"Uh-unh! No!" Y/N tries to fight out of Tom's grip, but he simply tightens it, holding her closer.

"Y/N/N, it'll be done soon. Just cooperate and it'll be over." Tom says.

"Absolutely not." Y/N protests.

"You need this, Y/N." Sam says. He tries to help hold her mouth open and he manages to get the first piece of gauze in. Sam grabs the second piece and it takes a little more struggle and he also gets bit, but soon enough he's able to put the gauze in.

"God, you're violent." Sam says, looking at the teeth marks on his finger.

"And you're mean." Y/N pouts.

Tom lets go of her jaw and forehead, wrapping his arm around her shoulders in a backhug.

"We're sorry, darling." Tom mutters.

"I hate all of you." Y/N declares.

"Right back at you." Sam grumbles, going to the kitchen to throw the used gauze away and wash his hands.

"Love you, too." Tom kisses Y/N on the side of the head before standing up and ruffling her hair, following Sam into the kitchen.

"Wimps can't even take a bite to the finger." Y/N rolls her eyes. "Charlie bit my finger." She quotes, lying back down, focusing on her favorite show.

[allovertheplace-writing]

Hi hello!!! Can I get headcanons or drabble (whichever is more convenient for you) of demon brothers (Obey me) reacting to discovering that exchange student/MC/Reader (gender neutral) is a persona user? What I'm thinking is hurt/comfort style were somehow Reader got themselves into danger again but before the brother could help they pulled out their evoker and managed to summon their persona

Have a nice day and thank you in advance:3

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

Obey Me

Character(s): Mammon, Asmo, Beel, and Belphie

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Type: Headcanon

Description: Them with a Persona User

Warning(s): Guns, Violence, Vague Mentions of S*cide(Characters Thinking You're Going to), Mentions of Lesson 16

Hello, hello, anon!! I hope you're having a good day too <3

Thank you for requesting, I really enjoyed this one- the angst potential is just perfection and sodndk I love these boys but it's fun making them hurt TuT

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

   ➢ Mammon

His throat burned at the yell that left him - and he knew it bordered a scream

Danger was always around the corner for you, his human, but he would never let it get close enough when he's near by

At least he thought so

He was bit too far, thinking you had been right behind him, when it happened

He had no clue what it was, but he knew it was made of magic - least that's what it felt like

Mammon had ran to reach you, and almost did, but froze as you pulled a hand-held gun from your uniforms blazer

He couldn't hear anything until you pulled the trigger; every sound came rushing back in

"Persona!"

Your breath as you spoke and how the items from the stores around you crashed - how the wind roared

And there was an energy that screamed back at him

Then he saw it

An almost corporeal figure

It stood tall above you and he would've thought it was going to hurt you if it wasn't for it's immediate attack on the opposing being

It left as quickly as it came, but he didn't care about that

"(Y/n)!"

He rushed to you once you lowered the evoker, taking you into his arms

"Gosh, don't- ya can't just do that."

"I thought- ah, man.. I thought I was gonna lose you again."

You had just about given him a heart attack with that stunt

Though his tears definitely meant he was happy you were okay

   ➢ Asmo

Asmo was baffled into silence

He hadn't even realized a low ranking demon went to attack you - who would when you had him, his brothers, and Lord Diavolo looking out for you

The lift of your hand was far too quick to register, but he saw the evoker within it

"(Y/n), what are yo-"

There was a sharp pain in his throat from the gasp that tore through it, though he found the force of whatever you summoned to hurt more

It was strong and overwhelming

He had thought you were going to cut the demon down where they stood(but he was glad you hadn't once everything calmed down)

You had slouched forward and stumbled when you pulled the trigger, another thing that sent him into his panicking spiral, but the way you stood was strong - filled with purpose, it seemed

The demon had been hit once before scurrying away; Asmo had guessed you casted something similar to a fear spell when his mind ceased to race

He moved to you as your knees buckled, catching you in his arms just before they slammed against the ground

"(Y/n)? Are you okay? What was- hey, you got a scratch!"

Your face ends up in his hands, his eyes searching for injuries or signs of overexterion

He's careful, delicate fingers tracing the shape of your cheek to the curve of your brow

Asmo is insistent on keeping you as close as possible to him until you both got back to the house of lamination - possibly longer if Lucifer didn't steal you away

He holds your hand, mentioning about carrying you and holding you against him

In all honesty, he would've cried if he had brought you into his arms

He and his brothers had lost you once before and, as much as he refused to think about it, the thought always boiled in the back of his mind

   ➢ Beel

He was aware of the demon that had been eyeing you, trying to pinpoint a moment of weakness

He had been glaring at them since he noticed

Keeping you as close as he could without sending off alarms in your mind

It was suppose to be a nice day of eating new foods and looking at different trinkets vendors sold

Beel felt as though he succeeded in keeping you, and the trip, safe, but the sense of ease that creeped in vanished at your voice and loss of your hand in his

"Ah- hey, let go!"

He was a little surprised at how even your tone was, only a slight shake and higher pitch than normal - the only give away at your fear was your racing heart

The demon had been tense at your voice, a hand was lifted to cover your mouth, too, Beel realized

Though as soon as he made eye contact with them, they ran and pulled you right along with them

"(Y/n)!"

"I said let go!"

You had ripped your hand from theirs, bringing your other to your blazer

"Oh, shut it, human!"

There was a flash of blue, Beel wasn't sure what had caused it until your hand fell back to your side

"Why do you have a gun?"

He didn't care about the incapacitated demon, hell, he wasn't entirely sure what he cared about in that moment - his brain sort of went into overdrive when he tried to understand what had happened

"That was you...?"

A minute of trailing questions came and went and he was quick to move closer to you

"You're okay."

He glanced over you, his eyes slow; languid

"You're okay?"

It was your hum and nod of confirmation that released the tightness in his muscles

More moments passed as you explained, but you both began moving again - grabbing taste testers and bumping shoulders when the crowd would thicken

Beel always knew you were strong, even more so after his twin rejoined the family, but he hadn't suspected you held this power

   ➢ Belphie

Terrified

Belphie was nothing less of it

It wasn't because of the shadowy monster that chased after you and it wasn't because of the fact it attacked

It was because of the hand-held gun you naturally pressed against your head - it was because of your lack of hesitation when you pulled the trigger

He felt sick seeing your body jerk to the side

It reminded him of-

"Not again, no-"

He shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut to rid himself of the memory before finding the strength to look at you again

You stumbled, reeling your balance back in

You stood perfectly fine, your body breathed the way it was suppose to

Your heart still ran

Everything felt wrong - confusing and anger inducing(it wasn't truly anger though, it never was)

He almost couldn't bear it

Belphie heard you speak a simple word, one that even Lucifer had trouble saying without any preparation

Then there was a flash of a figure behind you and a lingering blast of energy that melted the creature into the ground

"(Y/n).."

"Ah, Belphie.. sorry. Everything's okay now."

He wanted nothing more than to hold you close and hug you with all his strength, but he.. felt as though he didn't deserve to

It didn't stop him from doing so anyways

Wrapping you in his arms, he found you tense and slightly shaking - settling ever so slightly at his touch

You were okay and that was all that mattered

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

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

[ilyjohnb]

a/n: sorry this took so long! i think i actually like this one! in case anyone is interested, im posting this on my wattpad now! link on pinned post. **gif credit to @lydiaas**

requester: anon “ “Wiggle your fingers. I need to make sure it’s not broken.” maybe this with john b… but it does turn out to be broken and he needs surgery?”

summary: when Rafe Cameron is bothering you, John B doesn’t hesitate to hurt himself to help you

warnings: fighting and a broken arm, both of which are not graphically detailed

word count: 1138

You loved being a Pogue, except when one specific boy Kook ruined everything. Your parents were Kooks, and everyone expected you, Y/n Y/l/n to be one too. Life simply didn't work that way. You loved hanging with your 3 best friends and your boyfriend. But those 3 dumb kooks always tried to remind you of what you were supposed to be.

This particular instance happened at the annual Bonfire. JJ, Kiara, and Pope all had something better to do, which you didn’t blame them. The bonfire was like any other party that happened all year. John B was right by your side, kissing you and returning the glare Rafe Cameron was sending his way. Everything was going fine, until of course John B had to leave and do something. Rafe made his way over. You backed up as far as you could, but they eventually caught up.

“Hello, Y/n.”

You backed up to the point where you were out of sight from everyone at the bonfire. Which meant that nobody could see Rafe, which means they also couldn't see that you needed help.

“Where's your goons this time?”

“Don’t need them. Not when I have you, the Kook Princess.”

“I’m not a Kook.”

He stepped closer, too close. “I think that the weak-ass excuse of a boyfriend manipulated you into thinking that. You're a Kook. Same as me, same as Sarah, and same as everyone who lives on Figure 8, which you legally do. I think.” He gently smiled over in your direction, lcking his lips. “you need someone to help you remember that.”

“Oh is that right Rafe?” John B asked.

Rafe charged at him, knocking him over. John B got the first punch in by the time you made it over there to help him. Rafe managed to stand up, but you kicked Rafe in the back of his knees making him collapse.

“I think it’s best if you leave now, Rafe.” You seethed.

“You know I'm right, Y/n. Just think about it!” He shouted as he ran over to his car to leave.

You scoffed before running over to John B.

“John B I'm so sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault that some dumbass Kook felt the need to try and mack on you.”

You pouted. “Well, I’m still sorry.”

You leaned in and hugged him, so he leaned down for a kiss, but you felt his hand being held at an awkward angle.

“John B? Stick up your hands.” You saw him, his hand was stiff and his fingers were bent. “Did you mess up something in your hand?”

“Uh, probably.”

“Wiggle your fingers. I need to make sure it’s not broken.”

“Fuck, ow.” He tried, but ultimately couldn’t.

“We need to get you to a hospital bubs.”

“Why?”

“Since you can’t wiggle your fingers, it’s probably a break.”

You took him home first, grabbing him a shirt and an ice pack. You walked back to the car and helped him slip the shirt on, opening the door of the van for him so he could get back in.

“I’m supposed to be opening the door for you.” He pouted.

“You broke your hand for me, I think that’s enough chivalry for the night.”

After waiting for an hour, he was taken back and they x-rayed his hand while I sat and waited in the room. Eventually, he came back.

“How’d it go?”

“Great I think I aced it.”

“That’s not how it works, you know what? Good job babe.”

Right after, a man came in.

“Mr. Routledge?” He asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“Hi I’m Doctor Jones,” He reached over and shook both of our hands.

“So it is indeed a break.”

“Nothing that a cast can’t fix, right doc?” John B tried to laugh but stopped when he saw the doctor didn’t look like he agreed with his statement.

“In most cases, yes. The problem with your arm,” He pulled up the X-ray and showed it to us. “Is that you’ve broken both of the bones. We'll put you in a splint for now, but you’ll need to come back in after your swelling goes down. Just fill in this paperwork and confirm that someone will pick you up, and we’ll get that scheduled for you.”

You helped him with the boring paperwork. He got his splint put on and then he was all set for the next three days when his surgery was.

“I don’t want surgery, y/n! I’m fine.” He grumbled.

“No, you’re not bubs. It’ll be okay. I’m dropping you off and then picking you up too.”

You sat in the waiting room for the last half-hour of the surgery. You had spent the time cleaning up a little so it wouldn’t be hard for John B to get around after he got home.

“Ms. Y/l/n?”

You looked up at the same doctor who went over the x-rays with you.

“Yes, I’m here for John Routledge. He had wrist surgery this morning.”

“Ah yes. The surgery went well and with no complications. If he leaves the splint on, and eventually the cast, and comes to his physical therapy after he’s done healing he should get full use of his arm again.”

“Thank you, Doctor. Am I allowed to see him?”

“Yes, he’s in room 210. It’s down the hall here on the left.” He pointed.

You nodded and took off to see John B. You honestly didn’t know what you were expecting. This was a little different than wisdom teeth removal surgery. You had absolutely no clue how he would be.

Post-surgery John B was tired. He was in the splint again as they waited for the swelling to recede after the surgery.

“Hi, Y/n.” He smiled up at you.

“How are you feeling, bubs?”

“Now that you’re here I feel perfect. Wanna know why?”

“Why?” You smiled, amused.

“Because you’re perfect. Excuse me, ma’am.”

The nurse who was writing something on his chart looked up at him, no sign of being annoyed was present on her face.

“My girlfriend is perfect, isn’t she?”

“John B!” You gently scolded. “You’re gonna embarrass me.”

“But you are and everyone needs to know that you are.” He pouted.

“Wait, shit. Don’t cry bubs. I’m sorry. Wanna go home and have ice cream?”

He nodded and you gently wiped away his tears with your thumbs. You quickly signed the discharge paperwork and then you were all set. You held the hand of his good arm as he was wheeled out of the hospital. You gently put him in the front seat and smiled over at him when you were both buckled in and ready to go.

John B was a keeper, and you were so glad to have someone like him in your life.