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phoebepheebsphibs · 3 months

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Double-Mutated Mikey

Chapter 35: Monster

Continued from the short story written by @boots-with-the-fur-club

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Leo readies his twin katanas. Raph raises his sai. Donatello points the end of his bō staff in Chaplin's direction.

"You," Donnie growls. "What. Have you done. With our brother."

Chaplin smiles.

"What haven't I done is a better question," he jokes. "I've improved him. Though, let's be honest... with your kind, improvement isn't enough."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?!" Leo spits at him.

"It means that the Yokai and the mutants are... how shall I put this..."

"What, a disease? A cancer? A deformity? I've seen the movies with the evil villains who want to eradicate a species, I know this bullcrap speech!" Leo snarks at him.

"No no, you misunderstand. Your people are quite talented and impressive!" Chaplin says with a grin. "I've studied your cultures, your biology, your abilities. I've travelled the world and seen many Yokai cities. But you are a threat. And I won't allow any threats to humanity. Alien or otherwise."

"So, then why the mutations?" Raph asks. "Why do so many cruel experiments?? If you hate mutants so much, why make more?"

"Quite simple, really," Chaplin explains, lifting his legs and recrossing them the other way around. "We've been trying to fight fire with fire. To destroy the mutants and the Yokai, we had to make some of our own. Though, our experiments continuously failed us. We were missing some crucial element, the secret ingredient that allows you to function and survive and have incredible supernatural abilities -- until we found your Mikey."

Leo hears Raph growl from behind him.

"He is quite resilient, your brother. So much stronger than we expected! And that was even before we mutated him! His potential is practically unlimited."

"Why would you subject him to this?!" Donnie hisses. "What was the purpose of this room?! Why make him fight?!"

"Three reasons," Chaplin explains calmly. "One: we needed to see his abilities in action, and the extent of those abilities. Two: it was a way to train his problem-solving skills. We knew he was strong and powerful, but we also needed to confirm he had intelligence. None of our other experiments were advanced in the mind. Far from it, they seemed to deteriorate rapidly."

"...What was the third reason?" Donnie asks with hesitance.

"Oh, yes. Waste management."

Leo glares at the scientist.

"What."

"Well, we'd been doing quite a number of experiments, and they were piling up. We were running out of space, supplies, food, etc. And they were all disappointments. True, they had interesting new abilities and enhanced strength, but they were disgusting failures in the end, and we had to free up some space to try again with new vermin. So we had to eradicate the excess mutants, and Mikey was a big help with that."

Raph stomps forward.

"You're... you're a sick, twisted, sadistic MONSTER!"

"I'm a man who is working towards a goal," Dr. Chaplin corrects.

"What does Mikey have to do with it? How does he accomplish your goal?!" Leo shouts. "How does kidnapping my baby brother help you?!"

"Mikey is a weapon," he explains, leaning back nonchalantly. "MY weapon. He is indestructible, powerful, his instincts are impeccable, and he can take orders. He's the perfect living weapon, and he will help me eradicate every threat to humanity."

"You can't turn our brother into a weapon!" Leo shouts.

"Yeah, that was my idea!" Donnie chimes in, though Raph smacks him upside the head in frustration. "Ow! Right, right, not the time..."

Leo saunters up to the mad scientist and presses a katana against his neck.

"Now. WHERE. IS. MIKEY?! What have you done with him?!"

"Oh, of course!" Dr. Chaplin laughs. "Don't worry, he's right here..."

Dr. Chaplin taps a button on the side of the chair, and a panel in the wall opens.

From the darkness, two glowing yellow and red eyes can be seen peering at them. Slowly, Mikey steps out, staring blankly at his brothers.

"Mikey!" Leo gasps, releasing Dr. Chaplin and rushing over to his baby brother. "You're okay! Come on, we're getting out of here and--"

Leo takes Mikey's hand and pulls, but Mikey refuses to move.

".......Mikey...?"

"I'm afraid he can't hear you," Chaplin huffs.

Leo turns to glare at Dr. Chaplin. He suddenly notices the headband crowning him, the bright pink lights that adorn the sides. How had he not seen it before?!

Leo steps away from Mikey, staring in fear as he realizes what's about to happen.

"Mikey... no..."

"Wonderful little gadget, this!" Dr. Chaplin brags. "Can work up to a three mile radius in all directions. It's based on Krang technologies and biologies."

"B-biology...?" Raph whimpers, hand going to his eye once again.

"Oh yes. We learned a lot from the infected zombies. This machine combines a severed part of the brain from that one alien we captured. I'm assuming I have you four to thank for that..."

"Her... brain?" Leo gawks. "You took her brain?"

"Oh, don't act like that is some terrible and horrific thing after all they tried to do!" Dr. Chaplin groans. "You honestly can't say that you're not relieved that 'she' is dead now. And besides, the real person you have to thank for this machine is actually your own brother!"

Leo, Donnie, and Raph simultaneously turn to look at Mikey.

"You see, he showed us something we never expected -- Mikey could control the zombies. That was when we realized, there was a hierarchy to the Krang -- the zombies were the omegas, and Mikey was the beta, hence why they followed his commands. The Krang were the alphas, and as such could control all of them easily. That was what we needed with Mikey. During of our evaluations, some of our staff psychiatrists discovered that Mikey had an alternate persona that activated during moments of intense emotion or physical distress. It was strong, forceful, and wasn't afraid to go for the kill. But he was also stubborn and dangerous, and refused to comply willingly. We needed a way to have Mikey be the monster while also listening to instructions. And so I created a way to mimic the Krang brain waves so as to control him."

"You... you beat him," Donnie heaves. "I saw the video, you tortured him..."

"That was for a reason," Dr. Chaplin insists. "I needed to see if he would follow orders to a tee, even if it meant physical harm."

Donnie heaves again.

"And he did superbly; his compliance was wonderful. A perfect living weapon that will follow orders unto death! Speaking of which --"

"D-don't do it, don't listen to him --" Leo tries, reaching for his baby brother.

"Mikey," Dr. Chaplin orders, "If you would be so kind as to dispatch these intruders for me."

Mikey glares at his brothers. His mouth curls into a snarl, his irises slit into thin lines. He places himself in a ready stance, claws elongated and ready to fight. His tail whips around him, the tip spiking like a mace.

"Mikey, please, I-I don't wanna fight you!" Leo begs. He doesn't want to go through this again... not again...

Mikey rushes forwards.

Raph pulls Leo away and shields him, holding his arms up and activating his ninpo. Large holographic arms cover over him, protecting him from Mikey's onslaught. Mikey lunges and starts biting the hologram, tearing it apart piece by piece with his sharp claws and talons. He sinks his fangs into them; they go so deep they nearly puncture Raph's actual arm.

Donnie's robot arms protrude from his battle-shell, grab Mikey from behind, and yank him off of Raph. Mikey shrieks angrily and turns back to attack Donnie.

"Mikey, snap out of it!" Donnie yells.

Mikey screeches and slashes his claws at him. Donnie reels back, dropping his brother as he guards himself. Mikey slashes his tail and several projectile spines fly at him. Donnie twirls his staff and hastily creates a shield, deflecting them at the last second. Raph wraps his ninpo arms around Mikey, who struggles against him. He howls and yowls. The cries sound desperate, scared --

"M-Mikey?" Raph gasps. "Wait, did I hurt you--"

"Raph, no, don't--!"

Raphael drops Mikey, afraid that he may have held him too tight. Mikey instantly turns on him and attacks, his tail slashing at the ankles and knocking him down. Raph yells in pain as he falls, clutching the wound and trying to stop the bleeding.

"Mikey!" Leo scolds. "Snap out of it!!"

The double-mutant turns and glares at Leo. He's next.

"Dee, keep him distracted, I'm going to take out the controller!" Leo hisses.

Donnie nods, and creates a series of mini missiles to fire at (and purposefully miss) Mikey, as Leo creates a portal and slips through.

The portal reopens and appears right behind Dr. Chaplin. Leo reaches for the headset before being swatted away by the mad scientist. He says nothing, but the string of pink glowing lights around his head indicate he's given another order. Mikey is by his side in an instant, pouncing on Leo and crashing him to the floor. Mikey bares his teeth and tries to bite him, but Leo narrowly blocks with his katana hilt. Mikey chomps down on it, growling as he tries to pull it away.

A mini missile strikes him in the back, and he turns to roar at Donnie.

"Mikey, you have to ignore whatever he's telling you to do! Wake up! It's US!!" Donnie shouts.

Mikey has had enough of their antics. His eyes burn bright, a series of scales on his neck lift up, revealing what almost looks like gills. They vibrate, charging up with a pink and orange glow. Mikey roars loudly, deafening the entire room. Visible sound waves pulse like giant ripples, throwing everyone off balance.

Donatello is knocked back, slamming into Raphael with a thud and a groan as the mystic shockwaves dissolve his hologram weapons, and disintegrate Raph's armour.

Leo watches as the portal he made evaporates, the markings on his arms and legs flicker out before dimming.

N-no... no, not again --!

Mikey jumps to Donnie and starts to attack. Raph shields him again, but Mikey snaps his teeth and bites down hard on his forearm. Raphael screams, shaking and waving his arm as he tries to get his baby brother to release. Donnie grabs Mikey and pulls. Mikey turns to snarl at him before wrapping his tail around his neck, placing him in a chokehold. Mikey grabs his two hands and clasps them together between his talon grip, essentially cuffing him. Donnie gags and gasps, sputtering as he slowly turns blue.

"Mikey!" Raph screams. "L-let him go--"

Mikey whirls around, maneuvering in such a way that he throws Donnie's body at Raph's head. The two crash to the floor. Mikey regains his stranglehold on Donnie as Raph tries to get back up. Mikey doesn't give him the chance, and punches him between the eyes, knocking him unconscious. Donnie slowly goes limp as well, his eyes rolling back in his head as he chokes-out. Mikey releases him once he's certain he also has succumbed.

He turns to face his last adversary.

"Mikey," Leo whimpers. "I-I know you don't want to hurt me. And I don't want to hurt you..."

"Oh, don't worry about that," Dr. Chaplin laughs. "He won't give you the chance."

Mikey rushes him, gaining speed before leaping and kicking Leo in the chest, crashing him into the wall behind him. The tiles and panels leading to hidden rooms crack from the impact, leaving a gaping crater. Leo coughs and holds his side, looking up just in time to see Mikey do a spin kick before the side of his foot collides with his head.

Mikey slips into the vents easily. The EPF should really work on their security, any nutcase could break in!

He crawls around, going deeper and deeper into the ventilation systems, floor after floor after floor. Every once in a while he can hear some animals crying and growling and barking loudly. He shudders at the thought of what they could be doing to these poor guys...

He pushes on.

Mikey hears a snarling sound, eerily familiar. It's animalistic, but not like any animal on Earth. It's alien.

He peeks through the vents to see the EPF men taking the krangified dude he saw from earlier into a lift. It's perfect luck that the angle of the vents lets him see the elevator room, a mirror glass on the back wall reflecting everything. He can see their reflections, he can see the button they pressed -- The very bottom floor.

Mikey goes in pursuit of them. He has to know what they're going to do with that poor man...

Mikey's almost there when his phone buzzes again. Probably Leo or Donnie, they've been calling him a lot. He picks it up and checks the lockscreen. Oh, it's Raph! Mikey guesses he wants to know where he is... He should have left a note or something. He answers.

"Shello?" He whispers.

"Mikey? Where are ya?!" Raph hisses at him. "I thought we said no inside stuff!"

"I saw a weird van pull up," he explains. "They took a krangified person in through the back."

"They what?" Raph sounds terrified. Mikey can't blame him, not after everything that has happened.

"Yeah, I know. I wanted to see what they were gonna do with him."

Because that's what heroes do! Mikey thinks to himself. That's what Raph always says, and that's what he expects him to say. Instead he's met with a panicked and desperate command.

"Mikey, I think you should get outta there."

That's not like Raph, why is he so scared? Sure, the place is creepy, but no creepier than when they broke into Draxum's lab that first time...

"I will in just a sec," Mikey responds, having finally made it to the bottom floor vents. "I think I found the room where..."

Mikey's voice trails off as he sees the entirety of the basement. It's a little dim, but there are a few lights here and there. Mikey flips the vent flaps open just a bit more for a better view. It looks like some kind of secret lab. Why is this lab separate from the rest upstairs? What's different about this one, apart from the colour scheme?

The krangified victim is strapped to a chair, several scientists standing beside him and a few guards with special futuristic-looking weapons pointed at him.

"Huh..."

"Mikey? Mikey, what is it?" Raph's voice hisses nervously through the phone's tinny speakers.

"I'm not sure... hold on a sec, 'kay?" Mikey whispers as he watches. He puts Raph on mute, just to be safe.

The scientists are talking about something as they operate on the guy, pulling pieces of krang flesh off bit by bit. Mikey can't hear much, just the occasional "Hold him still," "Be careful," "Not too much," etc. They're... curing him?

Mikey watches as a doctor takes a vial of the bright blue liquid April found. Guess these guys found it, too. Donnie made sure to release the formula publicly so the police could help save the infected people. The scientist fills a syringe with mixture, then inject it into a part of the krang on the guy's face. The krang screeches in agony, the flesh flailing and wriggling.

"Now!" he hears one of the doctors yell.

The scientists pull the flesh away, ripping it off of his face.

The guy yells, his eyes roll in the back of his head, and he flops over in his chair. One of the guards checks his pulse.

"He's alive."

Mikey sighs with relief.

"Good, now get him out of here before he wakes up," one of the doctors orders.

The man is slowly unbuckled from the chair and carried away by two of the guards, the other two remaining.

"Now, let's get this thing into storage for the next batch of test subjects," the head scientist says, taking the still-alive-but-barely krang parasite away and placing it in a jar.

Mikey crawls a bit more through the vents, trying to follow the scientists to wherever they store the parasite. How many more do they have??

Mikey gasps when he sees the centerpiece of the labs -- a giant cylinder tube housing the Krang Sister, her eye still melted from where April attacked her. She looks thin, wrinkly and emaciated. Her left eye is still intact and open, but unfocused. He can almost see her breathing if he watches hard enough. But there are parts of her missing, torn off, cut off, melted off, take your pick.

There's a cryogenic freezer cabinet or something housing her organs and severed limbs, along with so many other krang parasites. Bits of pink and pale purple flesh, teeth and fangs, claws and talons and nails... He sees a jar of just eyeballs, krang eyeballs... he recognizes a few from the traincar that attacked him and Donnie!

"Ohmigosh," he whimpers, unmuting Raphael. "Okay, that's enough for me, I'm coming out now!"

"Mikey?! What did you see, what's going on?" Raph asks, his voice high and shaking.

Mikey doesn't respond at first, he's trying to crawl away as fast as possible. He lifts up his phone to try and tell Raph what he saw, but his fingers slip and it falls. Mikey's heart stops as the device clangs and clatters against the metal with a hideous echo. He can hear the scientists start yelling.

"What was that?!"

"Something's in the vents!"

"Call security, we have a breach!"

Mikey quickly scrambles to get his phone, he starts crawling with lightning speed, not trying to be quiet anymore as his kneepads smack loudly against the panels. He knows Raph heard what just happened.

"I dropped my phone," Mikey whimpers into the device. "I think they heard me."

"GET OUT NOW!" Raph yells at him.

"I am! I AM!" Mikey whines, terrified.

He should never have come in here, what was he thinking?! If they find him --

There's a clicking sound from his phone as another voice joins the call.

"Raph? What's going --"

"Mikey's been made," Raph says in a hurry.

"Get out of there, now!" the voice shouts.

"Leo?" Mikey whispers nervously. "Is that you?"

"Mikey, we're on our way now," Leo informs him. His voice is stern, but smooth, feigning frenzied calmness as he tells Mikey what to do. "Just get out as fast as you can! Don't worry about whether or not you're seen, just get out!"

"I'm trying!" Mikey yells back, desperate not to let the sound of his tears come through the speaker. He turns a corner in the ducts, coming to a small fork in the road. Wait, which way did he come from? Which way gets him out of here?!

"I'm stuck in the vents!!" he realizes out loud, hoping somehow his brothers will help him -- maybe Donnie can look up the building plans and use that subdermal tracker to guide him, or Leo can make a portal, or --

Something pushes against Mikey's chest, slamming him into the top of the vent. One of the guards shoved the barrel of their weird gun thing into him and is trying to knock him down! The panels underneath him start to shake, the duct comes loose from Mikey's weight and the jabbing of the guards.

Mikey screams as the section he's trapped in falls to the floor. His phone hits the ground and bounces just out of his reach.

He looks up in terror and sees that he is surrounded by six or so people.

"There he is!"

"Get him!"

"Come'ere, kid!"

Mikey shrieks, trying to scramble away. His legs are grabbed by a scientist on the end as the guards rush and nearly tackle him, trying to secure his arms.

"Let me go! Stop! Leave me alone!" he begs, trying to wrench himself free.

Mikey kicks, shoving the scientist back and forcing himself up, lifting the security guards who have practically dogpiled him.

Mikey struggles under their weight, and reaches for his nunchucks. He's kneed in the gut by one of the guards, knocking the wind out of him and he falls, face mashing into the floor.

He can hear the cell phone, he can hear Raph and Leo shouting for him, yelling instructions or pleas for him to get to safety.

"Raph! Leo!" He screams, reaching frantically for his phone.

He just catches them shouting back to him before one of the scientists can smash his heel into the device, breaking it into pieces.

"NO!" Mikey yells, struggling against the men who hold him down.

"Keep it still," one of the lab coats say, grabbing a syringe with clear liquid in it.

Mikey growls as he pries an arm out from under their weight, shoving and pushing as best he can. His hand is grabbed by one of the scientists, the one who broke his phone.

"Let me go!" he yells. "Let me go! I wanna go home!"

"You should have thought of that before you trespassed on government property," says the scientist.

"What?! Who are you people?! What is this place?!" Mikey demands.

"A better question is, what are you?"

The doctor with the needle kneels down beside Mikey's head.

"Hold him still," he orders the others.

A hand is pressed against Mikey's head, shoving him down into the linoleum floor as hard as he can. Mikey shouts and screams in protest as the needle is stabbed into his neck.

It stings, the sharp pain masking over the feeling of the instant anesthetic being injected into his veins. He leans his head as far away as he can, trying to keep away... k-keep away fr-from... the... ttthhhhhe.......

Mikey is flooded with the oddest sensation of panicked anxiety meddled with forced calm as the anesthetic takes effect. It ends up giving him the biggest feeling of butterflies in his stomach, fluttering up into his head and through his limbs, making them light as a feather yet heavier than lead. His thoughts swirl messily, trying to stay tethered to reality...

A countdown starts in him. Mikey's limbs slow, relax, fall limp against the cold linoleum tiles. The tears in his eyes slip loose and drip down his cheeks. His breathing is deep and sluggish, he clicks his tongue and whimpers as he tries to make some kind of last attempt or argument to save himself. Mikey's eyes flutter closed... he vaguely registers the men climbing off of him and lifting him up, a doctor giving orders to carry him somewhere... Mikey mumbles a sleepy protest before his tongue and vocal chords seem to disappear... Everything disappears... Everything goes dark...

Where did Mikey go...?

Where are his brothers...?

Where is the world now... where... where are his dreams...?

It's all inky black void. It's all deep and mindless sleep.

Mikey has vanished.

Mikey's head rolls groggily as he comes back to reality.

Feeling seeps back into him, though his head is numb and still exhausted from the drug.

He can't move. His limbs are tired. And there's something cold and heavy against his wrists and ankles. Leathery straps tie him down by the waist and thighs and across the shoulders.

He slowly starts to register sight and sound, as a painfully blinding light is shined in his face.

"Ah, it's awake," a voice says. Mikey recognizes it as one of the doctors from the secret basement...

Mikey grumbles softly, squinting his eyes shut tightly and turning away from the light.

"Mmnngh... too bright," he mumbles in discomfort.

"Since you can speak, that means you can answer a few questions for me," the voice says.

Mikey can't see anything apart from the blinding light being shined in his face. He peeks one eye open and immediately regrets it; the light burns his retina and leaves spots in his vision.

"First off, what are you?" the scientist demands.

Mikey groans again.

"C-could you maybe turn the light off? I can't think straight with the full force of the sun in my eyes," Mikey half-jokes. Somebody has to fill in for Leo.

There is a huff of a dry laugh, followed by the dimming of the light. Mikey opens his eyes slowly, adjusting to the new level of brightness. There are a group of scientists in the room, each one staring and glaring at Mikey.

"Uh, hi, guys," he chuckles nervously. "What's the happs?"

"The 'happs' is that you broke into a government sanctioned facility for genetic studies," says an elderly doctor with frazzled white hair. "That's... well, that's illegal."

"And kidnapping isn't?" Mikey challenges. "I saw that guy you took. I saw what you did to him."

"We saved him," one of the doctors growls. "We were able to take the alien infection away from him --"

"You stabbed him with a needle and harvested the krang parasite!" Mikey argues. "And then you just took his body away!"

"He's alive," the elderly doctor says. "He's alive and well and back in his right mind!"

"Professor Honeycutt, if you wouldn't mind?" one of the other doctors grumbles. "We're in the middle of an interrogation..."

"O-oh, yes, right..." the elderly professor says meekly, cowering away.

"Now, how do you know about the -- what did you call it? Kang?"

"The Krang?" Mikey answers, confused. "That's... that's what they are. Didn't you know that? You've got the Krang Sister downstairs in your creepy cellar dungeon thing!"

"So, you DID see it," the younger doctor says. "Well then. That means you can't leave."

"What?!" Mikey gasps. "W-wait a sec --"

"Dr. Chaplin will be arriving soon, and what will we tell him when he discovers that there was a breach in security?! There have been setbacks after setbacks, and we have yet to provide a successful mutation --"

The doctor turns to contemplate Mikey. Mikey swallows nervously.

Uh oh.

"...I say we try it out on this one," the young doctor snickers before turning to the rest. "Prep him."

"Prep?" Mikey echoes. "P-prep for what...?"

"Do you realize what you're saying?!" the man called Honeycutt asks, pulling the younger man's arm away. "No, that's -- that's a horrid suggestion, Timothy! We can't just operate on -- he's a kid!"

"He's a freak of nature, look at him!" 'Timothy' shouts at the frail old man. "He's probably one of those mutant monsters that's been running feral on the streets these past two years. I don't see why we shouldn't."

"He's a sentient being! He has a higher intelligence than one of the rats or rabbits -- it would be inhumane!"

"Does he look human to you?" Timothy asks.

Mikey's heart is pounding in his chest.

"W-wait, please, I-I -- please, don't do this," Mikey begs. "I'm not a monster!"

"Maybe not now," Timothy says with a wicked smile. "But you will be."

The doctors place masks on their faces and gloves on their hands as they get ready. Mikey's head is strapped down and the light turned back on to its fullest extent, blinding him again.

"Wait!" Mikey screams. "Wait! I-I've got lots of other interesting things to talk about! I can tell you where the Krang came from, how we defeated them -- Please! You can't do this! Don't do this!!"

"I wash my hands of this," the older doctor says. "I won't have any part of this ridiculous madness.... I'm staying out of it."

"If you don't like it, then you can go back to working on your little robot pet 'Sal' of yours, or that android 'Ms. Campbell'," Dr. Timothy replies drably.

Mikey sobs in terror as the chair he's strapped to is lowered even further so the doctors can operate on him. Odd circular metallic suctions are pressed against his temples and cranium.

"Please! No! No!"

"You know, most of the mutations don't take very well, but considering you're already a mutie, that may mean you could survive this," Dr. Timothy teases. "I'm excited to see how your biology will react..."

"NO!!!" Mikey shrieks.

Mikey's ninpo starts to activate, the marks on his arms glowing as he struggles to pull himself free. One hand shatters a cuff.

"Hold him down!!" Dr. Timothy yells.

As Mikey is shouting and shrieking, one of the scientists lunges at him and holds his arm down.

A second doctor takes advantage of the fact that Mikey's mouth is open and starts shoving a tube down his throat. Mikey almost chokes on it as he struggles.

Mystic chains start to fill the room, a golden glow builds.

"Start it!! NOW!" Timothy shouts.

The doctor who shoved the tube down Mikey's throat pulls a lever connected to a big metal container. Pink and green glowing ooze starts flowing through, filtering into Mikey's mouth.

Mikey watches in terror, screaming muffled cries as he waits for the vile slime to pour through his throat and infiltrate his body.

It's cold and slick and slimy. As soon as it enters into him, Mikey's body starts convulsing. He howls, shrill and high and blood-curdling and despairing and pained. His body jerks every which way as it tries to reject the profane concoction.

The glow on his arms flickers out.

The golden chains in the room shatter and crumble away to dust.

Mikey is sobbing, tears streaming down his face as he tries to get free, tries to spit the tube out, tries to vomit up the ooze he's being force-fed. He doesn't notice the doctors preparing injection-devices by his neck, filling several vials and test tubes with different colored liquids and DNA samples. A soft mechanical whirring sounds, and cold metal clamps are pressed against his throat.

"Now!" Dr. Timothy shouts above the noise.

Mikey's world turns into a hurricane of static and unbearable pain as electrical charges course through him via the suctions pressed on his forehead. Needles pierce his skin and fill his veins with sludge and poison.

Mikey screams like he's never screamed before.

His body becomes a living x-ray, glowing bright blue from how much voltage he's taking. His skeleton is showing through the lights against a black silhouette. His body snaps and breaks and reforms. He can feel himself dying and coming back to life over and over again as he is morphed into something horrid, terrible, cruel.

Mikey blacks out. One last mercy his body bestows upon him, thankfully.

Mikey wakes up in agonizing pain. His limbs are a tangled, sloppy mess underneath him.

He can't move yet.

He can barely think.

All he can do is breathe and cry. The tears burn against his cheeks.

The position he's lying in gives his tortured limbs a numb buzz of pins and needles. Mikey tries to sit up, but trips over his arms and legs.

He doesn't know how to move them anymore.

They hurt too much. He can't feel them, but every movement he makes sends a rippling effect of horrid pain throughout his body.

There's something in here with him. A snake... a serpent... it slithers away from him. The slithering hurts... it... is it part of him...?

Mikey's eyes flutter open and closed as he fights to stay awake... and then fights to fall back asleep, be put out of his misery and just be unconscious. He doesn't want to hurt anymore.

His throat feels like it was mangled, burned, crushed.

His eyes sting like acid was poured into the tear ducts.

His hands ache, the palms are cut from where he dug his sharp nails and claws into them.

His feet must be disfigured, as far as he can tell.

His back is broken, the shell is shattered and cracked; he can feel air filtrating inside it.

But his head hurts the most. It is heavy and impossible to lift up. It aches and stings and pounds in a hundred different ways. His ears are stuffed up and ringing loudly. He's dizzy and disoriented. He's... so confused and lost... he doesn’t know how he got here. He doesn’t know what happened to him, or why he's hurting, or what he did to deserve this...

He doesn't know why he's longing for someone to hold him.

Someone that is blue. Or red. Or purple.

He's... he's unsure what those shadows dancing in his mind are, who those silhouettes belong to. But they mean something. They'll be coming for him, soon.

How he knows this, he isn't sure.

But he's a little scared for when they do find him...

Because, while he doesn’t know much...

...He knows he isn't 'Mikey' anymore.

He tries to sit up again. He somehow manages to do it, for two full seconds, before almost passing out again and falling to the floor of the cage, hitting his head against the metal.

Don't try to get up, Instinct whispers. Don't move yet. Rest. No moving, just rest. I will protect us now.

Mikey doesn't need to be told that twice...

His eyes slip shut.

Prev || Next

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sharp-silver4795 · 2 months

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Liu Woods Headcannons

The people have spoken! On a poll that I made, I asked if yall wanted me to post my own stuff and…. Oh god- I set it for a week cuz I thought no one would see it- 40 FUCKING PEOPLE RESPONDED-

So, I hear you! I’m gonna start with just random head cannons cuz… yeah…

TW!!!

Suicide, Murder (duh), abusive families, definitely not the Liu most ppl know.

I will put a warning before each group of bullets.

Least Sensitive >> Mildly Sensitive >> Most Sensitive

The first two aren’t head cannons-

I pronounce it like “Lee-oh” (Leo). I made a post about it earlier. However, I’ve said it like “Loo” for a long time- I’m tryna break that habit

He is my favorite. I remember seeing a post that was judging ppl based on their fav creepypasta…. No I won’t shut up about him.

HEAD CANNON TIME

General

He’s Chinese. Jeff is his half brother on their mom’s end. There is no fucking way an American kid would have a Chinese name.

So, Liu moved from China when he was 5 and his mom married Peter. Jeff was born when he was 7.

When Liu was young he didn’t have many friends cuz his English sucked and his little brother wasn’t even a year old.

He likes brownies and cinnamon rolls like their made of gold

Man can cook 🧑‍🍳 🤌

Has a bunch of plants that he forgets exist and cries when they die

Boy is tough. A lot of ppl see him as a teeny bean, hell nah!

Wears combat boots, skinny jeans, and sweaters consistently.

The scarf is to cover scars.

He’s about 6’5 (nearly 200cm).

Murder, Gore, Blood

Mainly uses a crowbar to beat his victims to death.

Remember how I said he wears combat boots? Well those things have heels and he tends to “stun” kill people by jumping up and stomping down on the side of the person’s head. 240lbs in a surface area the size of a US quarter is definitely gonna break your skull.

In the mansion his job doesn’t really revolve around murder as much as it’s about torture. He’s fucking good at it too.

Sexuality, Gender, and Such

He’s gay. You can’t change my mind.

I see him as being Agender and not caring about the pronouns you use for him. (Note: I usually switch up the pronouns but since this is the first HC post I’m making for them, I wanted this to be said first)

Married to EJ. If you don’t like the ship, I’m sorry!

⚠️ SA, CSA, Abuse, Suicide, SH, Grooming ⚠️

DID usually forms before 9yo and I can’t believe him getting DID at 19.

So, he hung himself when he was 19. This is what set Jeff off, because he was the one who found Liu’s body.

So, Keith is about 11 years older than Liu, and, when he was looking for friends, Keith took advantage of them. This lead to Liu basically being groomed until he was 12. I HC that Randy had a lil “crush” on Jeff and Keith kept Liu “out of the way” by consistently r—ping him.

Things at home weren’t great for him either. Peter was under the impression that his mom was a virgin with no kids (incell vibes), and when he found out Liu existed Peter decided to take it out on him. He would be locked in a dark closet of the basement for days on end. If he “misbehaved” too much, Peter would put him in the clothes dryer (also in the basement) for however long he deemed necessary.

Eventually Liu couldn’t take it and he hung himself.

Liu’s Alters and System

⚠️ similar themes from before, drugs/alcohol abuse, religious trauma ⚠️

Hannah: gatekeeper, what Liu “would have been” like if nothing happened.

Jinx: Sexual protector, the response to Keith’s abuse

Sully: Physical protector, response to Peter’s abuse

Jessie: Mental persecutor, encouraged Liu to kill himself.

Leviathan: Trauma holder, response to constant guilt from religious trauma

Vex: persecutor, response to alcohol and drug addiction.

Nigh: Trauma holder, response to all those lonely years

So, about Jeff…

Liu has zero issues with Jeff.

Jeff didn’t kill him, he had to make his way back to life (I will post more abt this another day).

Jeff mispronounced his name, but Liu was too nervous to correct him (bc trauma)

He is about 6yrs older than Jeff.

I probably have other HCs that i forgot, but anyway- that’s all the energy I have rn….

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mischiefnevermanaged89-blog · 6 months

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Love Me Like You Do~ Part 5

Juice Ortiz X Reader

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Okay everyone! Listen up!” I yelled as I gathered the crew around the bar. “I appreciate all of you being here tonight. It’s going to take all hands on deck if we’re going to be as busy as I hope we are. Now, my wonderful kitchen guys, have you made the decision on who’s doing what tonight?”

Leo, Remi, Paulo and Joe all nodded. “Yes ma’am, boss. I’ll take the lead and Joe and Remi will be working on helping cook the orders and Paulo will be getting them ready to head out the door.” Leo explained.

“Great.” I turned to the girls. “Amelia, Serena and Cypress, you three know what sections you will be?”

“Yes ma’am. I’ll be the balcony. Serena will be mid section tables 5 through 10 and Cypress will be all the booths.” Amelia responded.

“Awesome. Now, Donna and I will be helping out Talia and Willow at the bar. I’ll occasionally make my rounds. If I come across a table needing drinks and you haven’t made it back to them yet I will help out. That’s why we have the walkie system. If any of you get overwhelmed out on the floor or at the bar, just press the button on the belt walkie and let me know. Same goes for you guys in the kitchen. Ding the bell four times to let me or Donna know you need help. I don’t want anyone struggling tonight, okay? We’re a team. A family.”

Everyone nodded. I gave them the okay to get everything in order and they went their own ways.

“Hey, Donna? Can you come with me to the apartment? I need help finding something to wear.”

She nodded. “Of course!” She linked her arm with mine and we walked out the back.

When we got inside she started digging in my closet. She dug way back to the back and pulled out some skintight black jeans.

“Now these are nice!” She held them up. “Here, put these on.”

I took them from her and put them on while she dug around some more. I was surprised they still fit after all those years of carrying them around. I went to look at myself in the mirror but Donna stopped me.

“Nope! Not yet. I want to complete the whole look before you do.” She smiled that devilish smile at me.

I playfully rolled my eyes. “Fine.”

She then gave me a pair of knee high boots with a shirt heel and a Sons of Anarchy shirt that I had made my own before I left. I cut the sleeves off and put purple rhinestones around the sleeve edges and had cut a V into the neckline, stitching it with silver thread.

Once I had it all on, she sat me down at the table and began fixing my hair and makeup. After half an hour she was done.

“Okay, go look!”

I went to my stand up mirror and gasped at the sight. Donna had done my makeup natural and my hair was pulled back with a rhinestone clip with a few strands pulled out to frame my face. I stared myself down. I almost didn’t recognize myself.

“He’s going to fall head over heels for you in this.” Donna said, leaning her chin on my shoulder.

“Who?”

“Who else?”

“Juice?” I shook my head. “I doubt it. Sure he said he likes me but I don’t know if he feels anything different.”

“I beg to differ. The way he looks at you is the way I catch your brother staring at me sometimes. Like I’ve hung the moon and the stars are my halo. I think it’s just more than like.” She smiled.

“I never got to tell him how I felt. He got the call for club business. Then I was busy preparing for the dinner and tonight. I haven’t got to talk to him much.”

“How do you feel about him?”

I sighed. “Likes he’s everything I didn’t know I needed. Like the missing puzzle piece my heart needs to be complete. He sees past the extra weight and accepts it, even if I don’t.” I whispered the last part.

Donna smiled. “I think I have an idea of how you can finally tell him. Come on. I’ll tell you on the walk back. It’s almost time to open this place up.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Guys! Let’s go! Amethyst Edge opens in less than an hour! I want all of us to be there when (Y/N) opens the doors!” Clay yelled across the clubhouse.

Whoops and hollers were heard all around. The guys filed out the Clubhouse doors and onto their bikes.

“Where’s Piney?” Clay asked.

“He already left for the bar. Wanted to be sis’s first costumer.” Opie replied.

Clay just nodded. “Let’s go!”

It took all of 15 minutes for the guys to make it to the bar. The parking lot was already filling up. Opie patted Jax and pointed. He smirked and tapped Clay to show him, too. (Y/N) had made a section just for them in the front, a reserved parking sign for each of them and all. They made their way to the front and parked.

Juice found his spot and smiled. He couldn’t wait to see you tonight. He hadn’t been able to talk to you in a couple weeks properly and it was driving him crazy. Him and the others walked in the bar.

“Holy shit. Little Winston pulled it off. This place is amazing!” Tig said.

Music was already playing through the speakers and people were gathering in different sections. They made their way to the bar. Opie spotting Donna first.

“Hey babe. Where’s (Y/N)?”

“Hey guys. She’s giving herself a pep talk before she addresses everyone to get the night started. Give me a sec.” Donna put her earpiece in. “(Y/N), they’re here.”

“What’s that about?” Juice asked, pointing at her ear.

“It’s out means of communication. She told me to let her know when y’all got here. She didn’t want to start anything before.” She nodded her head to the stage. “Speaking of.”

The music stopped and everyone turned towards the stage area.

“Holy shit.” Juice whispered under his breath, or so he thought.

“She’s beautiful, right?” Donna asked.

“Yeah. She is.”

Donna gave Opie a wink before turning her attention to her sister in law.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I took a deep breath and walked out of my office and onto the stage. The lights brightened and the music stopped. I looked out through the crowd and couldn’t help my smile. I spotted the guys in the back and instantly my eyes found Juice.

“Hi everyone! My name is (Y/N) Winston and I’d like to welcome you to my place, Amethyst Edge!” Hollers went around. “A few things before we officially open this place. We have food, drinks of any kind, pool tables and karaoke. If you hit on any of my girls, and they reject you and you keep pestering them, you will be out. I want this to be a atmosphere everyone can enjoy. If you want to show us the vocal talents, the karaoke list is to the left, pick and let us hear you. If you see Son with a kutte, don’t be afraid. They are my family and Amethyst Edge unofficial bouncers.”

I looked at my watch. “It is now 7pm, Amethyst Edge is open for business!”

Whoops and hollers went around. I started the music back up and hit the button for the lights to strobe. I made my way down to the bar.

“Welcome boys! It’s officially opening night and remember, two rounds on me then you got to pay up. The girls know to start the tab and I’ll leave it amongst you to figure out who pays.” I gave each of them a hug.

I finally made it to Juice. The smile I adored so much plastered to his face. “You look beautiful.”

“Thanks. Donna helped. Now.” I went around the bar. “You’ll be my very first customer, what can I get you?”

“Surprise me.”

I gave him a smirk. “Coming right up.”

I made him an Old Fashioned and passed it to him. He took a sip and his eyes got wide.

“Oh shit this is good.”

I gave him a wink. “You’re welcome. Need anything else, you know what to do.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Juice sat at the bar and watched (Y/N). She was a natural at bartending, even better being out and interacting with the customers. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her all night.

“Juice? You good?”

He turned to see Opie sitting there, watching over his wife and sister.

He nodded. “Yeah. I’m good. Just enjoying this.” He raised his glass.

Opie smirked. “I know what your enjoying; and it’s not just the drink.” He nodded his head towards his sister. “Have you told her yet?”

“Yeah, sort of. The night we left for the run. I didn’t get to hear what she was going to say. We haven’t been able to talk much since.”

“Give her time. She’s just enjoying this high of her business doin so well tonight. She’s been a busy woman. I promise you, if I know my sister well, I’d say she likes you, too.”

Opie patted his friend’s back and walked to the table with the other guys. Juice really hoped Opie was right.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Karaoke had started and I was having a blast. The songs people had chosen really made the people in the bar more excited. I kept watching the guys every now and then, making sure they were being taken care of.

“(Y/N), it’s almost time. Come on.” Donna pulled me away and towards the back.

When the last person finished their song, Donna cut the lights. She put me on the stage and chose a song and a light strobe. I took a deep breath and relaxed. This was the perfect way for me to tell Juice how I felt.

The song started and the lights started blinking with the music. I took a breath and started singing.

You're the light, you're the night

You're the colour of my blood

You're the cure, you're the pain

You're the only thing I wanna touch

Never knew that it could mean so much, so much

The lights got brighter and when the guys seen it was me the started hollering.

You're the fear, I don't care

'Cause I've never been so high

Follow me through the dark

Let me take you past our satellites

You can see the world you brought to life, to life

So love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do

Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

Juice couldn’t believe it. (Y/N) was on the stage singing, and could she sing. He felt his heart start to race and pound out of his chest. He couldn’t stop watching the way she moved with the words.

Fading in, fading out

On the edge of paradise

Every inch of your skin is a Holy Grail I've got to find

Only you can set my heart on fire, on fire

I found Juice in the crowd, watching. I knew it was now that he had to know how I felt. I caught his eyes and sang with everything in me, hoping he would know.

Yeah, I'll let you set the pace

'Cause I'm not thinking straight

My head's spinning around, I can't see clear no more

I let me heart sing through and took a deep breath.

What are you waiting for?

Suddenly my girls started belting out with me.

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do

Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

The guys started whooping and hollering. Juice could feel his heart swell with love. She was actually singing to him. Her words and emotion had him on the edge of his seat.

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)

Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

I'll let you set the pace

'Cause I'm not thinking straight

My head's spinning around, I can't see clear no more

I pointed in Juice’s direction, watching how he was watching me.

What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (ye-yeah)

Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do

What are you waiting for?

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (like you do)

Love me like you do, la-la-love me like you do (whoa)

Touch me like you do, ta-ta-touch me like you do (ah)

What are you waiting for?

I finished the song as everyone erupted in applause and yells. I gave them a smile. That’s when I seen him come running to me.

Juice was out of his seat and on the stage before he knew it. He grabbed (Y/N)’s face in his hands and look led in her eyes. That adorable smile creeping in when her eyes met his.

“Is that really how you feel?” He asked.

I nodded. “Yeah. It is.”

Suddenly his lips met mine. My heart exploded with the way he kissed me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. Everything around us faded away. After needing air we laid out foreheads together.

“I love you, (Y/N).”

I smiled. “I love you, too, Juice.”

He gave me that heart melting smile and took me off the stage. Once back with everyone cheers went up all around.

“Treat her right, or I’ll be the one you have to worry about.” Opie said.

“Don’t worry, baby. He’s going to treat her good.” Donna said kissing Opie’s cheek.

I couldn’t be happier than I was in that moment. Everything had fallen into place. I had my family, my business and a wonderful guy. Who could ask for more?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A/N: Well, that’s it folks!!! You all have been so amazing reblogging and liking this story!! It went bigger than I though!! Any comments or thoughts on this are welcomed!

#jax teller #juice ortiz x reader #opie winston #plus size reader #sons of anarchy #soa fanfiction #soa fandom #juice ortiz fanfiction #juice ortiz

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britt-kageryuu · 5 months

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Leo has been attempting to find a set of quest items for a good while in Skyrim. His model is dressed in a dark blue-gold trimmed tunic, dark gray loose pants, boots, his mask with long tails and a pair of sword charms hanging on the side of his head like earrings. A sign reading 'River is still in maintenance' is propped up next to him.

He's playing modded Skyrim with a humanoid turtle race added. His character looks very similar to his model on purpose, though in the Glass Armor, modified to fit the turtles race.

A poof of smoke goes off and clears to reveal a cartoon Leo in a ninja costume along with a Thanks for the $20 SamuraiSlider.

Leo leans to read the message, "Thanks SamuraiSlider, and 'I heard about the tea that makes to high, how do you know what that feels like?'. Okay first, no updates on the tea yet, just still testing." He moves his character to a hiding spot in the mine that he hasn't cleared yet. His Sneak went up a level.

"Now, as for how we know how that feels... A couple years ago we were celebrating April getting into her choice of College/University, and a cousin of ours, Cass, who owns a bakery that specializes in brownies had brought like 20 dozen different kinds of brownies." He pauses with a sligh smug look, "You can kinda see were this is going right?" He lets out a laugh before continuing. "Cass claims she didn't mean to have those mixed in, but hey honest mistake, right." It was clear he didn't believe that, but joked anyway.

He moves his character to take out a were monsters before hiding again.

"It's not very clear who had them first, but I do remember Red ended up eating like 20 brownies before he felt the effects. Personally I believe I had like 8 before feeling any effects. Yes, we are big eaters with very fast metabolisms, plus we were very athletic teenagers." Leo says like he needs to justify the amount of food they ate. "We only learned about the 'mix up' with the brownies after DAD made a comment about the effects. Something about not having something like it in years."

He had a slightly shocked look before just letting out a sigh. "Don't know why I'm surprised, Dad was in the film industry, and they apparently had some very wild parties back then. Anyway after things we checked everyone over, and found that Weed in smaller amounts doesn't have as strong, if any, effect on us. So the fact that Tea made us feel high means it's very strong, probably stronger if we let it steep." He thinks about this for a minute before looking to the side at something in the studio.

"That would explain why it had a stronger effect on them. Well that's why we need to test this more, and figure what would be an appropriate dose to put into the tea bags." He side eyes the camera, "You guys would follow the instructions, right? You wouldn't purposefully ignore the instructions just to feel a stronger effect, Right?" Chat is spamming various answers, both yes, and no. "I don't believe you guys what so ever."

He moves to finish off the last of the monsters, and grab the loot. Thankfully there was one of the quest items he was looking for.

"Anywizzle, let's move onto the next move on, and check the next area that I might find these items!" Leo announces while fast traveling to another point near White Run that's close to where he needs to go. Praying a dragon doesn't spawn, and mess up his timing.

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

Masterpost

#VTurtles!#vtuber au #rottmnt au #tmnt au #rottmnt leonardo #rottmnt leo #rise leonardo #rise leo #rottmnt fanfiction #tmnt fanfiction #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt 2018 #rise of the tmnt #rise tmnt #tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt rise

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avvail-whumps · 1 year

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‘guns for hire’ — twenty minutes #29

previous · masterlist · next

content warnings: multiple whumpers, punishments, gags, past whipping wounds/scars, broken bones (fingers), graphic violence, mention of slurs, blood, strangulation, passing out, stockholm syndrome

Twenty minutes.

That’s how long he was going to have with each mercenary. Bran, Joey and Beard, whatever his real name was. They were allowed to do whatever they wanted, Roy had told him. He assumed those sordid rules of his would be in place, most likely of the “no killing” sort.

He was tucked in the corner of the room, trying to ignore the pulsing pain from his fingers. Now that he was by himself again, it wasn’t as easy to push it to the back of his mind. Roy had left after the kiss, leaving him alone and miserable again. He couldn’t stop thinking about exactly what had happened, how much of a mistake he might have made. This twisted part of him was yearning for it, though — everything Roy was willing to give him, every little affectionate gesture and words. He hadn’t felt so strongly about the man since he came back from his contract, the echoing words of “wait for me” heavy on his mind.

It was horrible waiting. He didn’t know when to expect them to appear, who was going to be first, or what horror they would inflict upon him when they had their chance. He sniffled softly, immedietly wanting Roy to come back. He needed someone to tell him it was going to be okay.

The door clunked open. His eyes darted upwards, breath hitching in anticipation as to who it would be. His stomach sank to his feet when he realised it was Beard. The man looked grim as he entered, eyes flicking instantly towards Leo, before glancing around the rest of the basement.

He tried not to let his breathing pick up. Being the basement was bad in of itself, but now that he was trapped in such a tiny space with nowhere to go? It was so much worse. Much more daunting.

Beard shuffled on his feet, taking a look at the chair, and then the tools on the wall.

He didn’t look too happy.

Beard had only ever liked hurting him when the others were watching. He would have to endure their taunts and heckling laughter, all while taking the torturous pain he’d inflict on him. Some part of Leo hoped that whatever pleasure he got from hurting people with an audience, might put him off from doing too much damage. From the irriated look in his eyes, he wasn’t sure if that was the case, or if Beard was going to take this frustration out on him mercilessly.

He swallowed uneasily, head filled with cotton. He just wanted this to be over already.

The man tapped his foot impatiently, reaching for his own pocket instead. He pulled out a cigerrate and lighter, pressing it between his lips with a drawn out sigh, and flicking it on. Leo feverishly counted the seconds, praying that by some miracle, the twenty minutes would be over by the time he decided to make use of him. Obviously, there was no such luck. The man plucked up a long cloth, before finally making his way over to him.

His boots thumped against the ground, matching the racing of Leo’s own heart. He attempted to press himself closer to the wall, but Beard’s hand shot out to grab his shirt before he could make any kind of feeble escape.

He suppressed a quiet whimper as he was dragged forward, and shoved roughly into the ground. His eyes burned with tears as he landed on his hands, biting down so hard on his lip that it drew blood. The copper taste lingered on his tongue, squirming when a hand fisted into his hair, yanking his head back. A pained cry tore from his throat, but it was cut off when the rag was stuffed roughly into his mouth. He choked, vision splitting when his head was released, thumping against the concrete.

Beard tutted. “Just shut up. I want to get it over and done with.”

Leo squirmed, but the sweltering pain in his fingers was making his stomach heave, threatening to empty itself across the floor. He felt the heavy man on top of him, flicking the lighter on with a quiet scowl. The back of his shirt was yanked up, and Leo tried to resist the urge to press his hands into the ground to steady himself. He considered kicking and squirming his way out from under him, but those thoughts were swiftly squashed.

There was nothing he could do but endure this. When it did, it would all be over. It was his fault this was happening in the first place. If he hadn’t ran away, then Roy wouldn’t have been so mad, and he wouldn’t be in this position right now. He ground his teeth against the gag, feeling the lick of the lighter against his shoulder blades. He tensed, a clammy sweat beading across his forehead. His mind drifted to the whip.

He didn’t even want to imagine what his back looked like with so many terrible scars and wounds. He was suddenly frightened the flame would brush against the sensitive skin, and it made his whole body shiver in anticpation. A sharp, bright pain seared against his skin, and he jerked, a muffled whine echoing through the basement. Beard scoffed, his weight pressing uncomfortably in his ribs.

“Stop squirming,” he snapped, voice low. He could smell the putrid tobacco from his cigarette invading his senses and stinging his eyes. Leo scrunched them shut, and even though the lighter only covered a fraction of his skin, it still burned wildfire. It felt like the flames were digging under his skin, setting the nerves alight with agony. His body jerked and squirmed under each flame, no matter how much Beard threatened him to stay still. The gag dried his mouth out uncomfortably, making it difficult to even suck in a single, needed breath to relieve his aching lungs. Hot tears tracked down his face, though they felt icy compared to the sting of the lighter.

Beard seemed to grow bored by the time Leo was sweating and panting, choked sobs muffled by the uncomfortable gag. It seemed that without an audience, he didn’t find much purpose in what he was doing. He finally stepped off of him, but not without sending a sharp kick to his stomach as he went. Leo’s eyes bulged, a strained wheeze catching in his throat as he desperately curled in on himself to push the pain away. He couldn’t even reach up to pull the gag out of his mouth.

He desperately wanted to sooth the painful itch spreading along his back, his shaking breaths puffing against the disgusting rag stuffed between his teeth. A crippling pain was still gripping his stomach by the time Beard lazily tossed his cigarette on the ground, and left the room.

The loud bang of the metal door forced Leo’s eyes open, a miserable groan tearing from his lips.

The silence returned, and Leo could barely even find the strength to move from his curled up position. He pressed his head into the ground, fighting the cotton returning back to his head, bloating against the back of his eyes. He tried not to look at the door. He tried not to let the panic of another mercenary wandering inside cloud his judgement, otherwise he would start hyperventilating against the gag. It was hard enough to breathe through his nose at the moment.

Another horrible wait stretched by.

His mind tossed the last two in his mind. Bran or Joey. Joey or Bran.

God, Bran was going to be so pissed. He already seemed to blame him for Finger’s, or Rafi’s, death, and no doubt he was going to make him pay for the bad mouthing and vase cracking against his head. He remembered the flash of red blood he’d seen under his hair and—

Leo bit down hard on the gag.

He was shaking.

His fingers were throbbing and his head was swimming with nausea. His thoughts were chanting in his mind, too loud in the all-too quiet room, rocking through his skull like alarm bells. He wanted to slam his hands over his ears to block it out, but he couldn’t. He just wanted to come out of the basement, and he just wanted Roy back.

The familiar screeching of metal ripped him from his mind. Panic instantly set in when he squinted at the familiar figure, who was probably the last person he wanted to see right now. Bran was staring at him with this narrowed, furious look in his beady eyes, but his lip was twisted into a sadistic grin.

Leo let out a terrified whine, waiting for the inevitable twenty minutes of torture he was going to inflict on him. Bran didn’t waste a second tucking in.

His meaty fingers yanked him up by the front of his shirt, jarring his neck uncomfortably from the sheer force. His fist smacked into the side of his face, and before Leo could even register the explosion of pain, he drove his knuckles back down into his jaw for a second time.

Then a third.

And then a fourth.

Leo’s ragged screams were muffled by the gag, feeling the skin tear from the impact, birthing a new set of dark bruises along his pale skin. The man shoved him back down onto the ground, the back of his skull bouncing against the concrete. He couldn’t even move to protect himself before a kick swung into his stomach, and Leo was gagging.

Bran was relentless, somehow worse than he had ever been. His beating didn’t let up for even a second, only pausing to spit derogatory slurs or mock him for crying and snivveling. The blood in Leo’s head was swimming, the pain bright and crippling along his body. It was hard to blink back the spots on his vision, and so his mind eventually shut itself off halfway inbetween. It was only when the man was done with him, cursing under his breath, that he let what was happening barrel back into him.

“Twenty minutes ain’t enough with your sorry ass,” the man hissed under his breath, giving Leo one final parting kick that cracked against his nose. A broken whimper tore from his throat, lying in a panting, tangled heap of blood, splattered across the ground. His left eye was already swelling, feeling it ache uncomfortably every time he blinked.

The harsh slamming made him twitch, but it was all he could manage. Everything was going fuzzy and dark, the gag discarded and his dry mouth wheezing for air. A numbness throbbed across his face, briefly fearing the stitches would have become ruined from his never-ending assault.

It wasn’t long before Joey came in next.

Leo couldn’t even move, his body wracked with aching pains and exhaustion, even as he approached him with a somewhat grim expression on his face. He just seemed to observe him for a long while.

Leo didn’t really care. He needed a moment. He just needed a second to breathe, to collect himself before he inevitably crumbled again. He was so tired of all of this.

“I’m not interested in hurting you, Leo,” he murmured under his breath, causing Leo to pry his stinging eyes open. There was a subtle change in his breathing, but if Joey noticed, he didn’t say anything. He instead slowly reached for the gag, uncaring for the blood on it, and unravelled it. It was a long piece like that. “But I have to. So I’ll make it as easy as possible.”

Leo didn’t really understand what he meant by that, but an arm was suddenly around his shoulder, helping him sit up. It pressed uncomfortably against the lighter burns on his back, causing him to suck in a sharp hiss. It rattled his ribs as he went, and Joey seemed to adjust his grasp on the cloth.

It was suddenly being looped around his neck, and Leo choked on a delayed gasp as it cut off the air from his lungs. Joey twisted his wrist, the material wrapping around the joint, jerking him back forcefully. His mind was suddenly kicked into overdrive, instinctively reaching up to pry the sharp cloth from his neck, but Joey seized his wrists, pulling him closer.

“You’ll just make them worse,” he murmured under his breath, and Leo frantically struggled against his hold. The spots were consuming his vision now, cotton building in his brain, no matter how much he kicked and thrashed through the crippling pain. A small, choked wheeze was the last thing he heard from himself, before his eyes were rolling to the back of his head, and he slumped still.

tag list – @unorganisedalienrubbish @d-cs @rabidrabidme @sordayciega @burningkittypoet @whumpawink @mannerofwhump @suspicious-whumping-egg @welcome-to-the-whumpfest @whatwasmyprevioususername @crilex29 @firefly017 @dutifullykrispyland @wibbly-wobbly-whump @there-will-always-be-blood @anonintrovert @justawhumpjunkie @whumptastic-world @ha-ha-one @whatwhumpcomments @whumpterful-beeeeee @anonymous1235 @sonder35 @unforgiven235 @whumpasaurus101 @mj-or-say10 @professional-idiocy @seaweed-is-cool @theelvishcowgirl @atomicsandwichprince @sunshiline-writes @peasandpotatos

#guns for hire #whump #whump writing #whumpblr #whump scenario #whump series #whump fic #whump tropes #whump community #whumper #whumpee #leo and roy #my writing #writing #avvail whumps #i couldn't get into writing this one #so i don't really like it #oh well #🤭

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paytato435 · 9 months

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Snapper and Stinkpot Character Ref: Casey Junior!

Oh look, the main character appeared! Info dump about Casey under the cut!

Casey Jones Junior - 16, he/him

Birthday: November 23rd (Sagittarius)

Casey is trying his best to adjust to his new life after stopping the Krang invasion, but he has a few wrinkles to iron out before he can sleep soundly at night. Most notably, he hasn’t told his family that he’s also a mutant turtle, and now he’s been blackmailed. Yikes! Wait why would he hide that, that’s so cool?

Some head canons I have about Casey for this au: Knows sign language! Donnie is the only other turtle proficient with it in the family, but maybe it will be useful somehow? Casey also has a bad habit of confusing the younger turtles with their future counterparts, and is often disappointed by the way they act or their lack of experience in dangerous situations.

Despite all his troubles, Casey puts his family before everything else, and would do anything to keep them safe and happy.

Songs that remind me of Casey: Tomorrow Comes Today by Gorillaz (I’m very funny), Break Stuff by Limp Bizkit, and Cover of Me by SUGR?

Casey’s design: Imma be honest, his apocalypse outfit in the movie is trash, I only kept the parts I really liked; his knee pads, hockey stick chainsaw, and face mask. Coming from such a dangerous upbringing, I figured he probably has the scars to show for it, and pretty early in the story it’s established he has a hard time looking at the scars on his legs. So unless it’s otherwise stated, this boy wears leggings under his shorts, lmao. Of course he rocks the man bun occasionally, and even a ponytail in my sidewalk comic. He’s a practical boy. <3

The jersey is a reference to Leo, who also has his own #1 jersey. Gave it longer sleeves to be more hockey/ football shaped over the basketball cut tho. I had an earlier design with him in a tank top and I just don’t vibe with it that much now. His number is 6 because 4 turtles + April + Casey jr. = 6. Finally, we have his red boots. I stole them from Deku in MHA, and they look fucking good on his turtle form, which I will be posting very soon!

And uhh, just in case the totally normal jpeg above isn’t working for you, here’s the picture again. I don’t know why it would be broken but like, idk… I just feel like things haven’t been appearing the way I thought they should lately 🤷‍♀️

P.S. if anyone knows if there are any references for human feet in Rise please let me know or send me some because I totally just threw those piggies out there and had no intention of looking for something so suspiciously specific. 😳

Masterpost Turtle Casey? Angel’s Reference sheet! Sunshine's reference sheet!

#rottmnt #casey sas au #snapper and stinkpot #rottmnt casey jr #casey jones #my art #character ref sheet

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kyogre-blue · 3 days

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In a big rush, I've caught up to RDCH manhwa, up to chapter 92.

There's a lot that happened. As always, the pace is breakneck, haha. Anyway, there's a few points I wanted to note.

First, I appreciate the respect for just punching someone in the face. This is why I respect SQH the most as Lostbelt King, because at the end of LB3, they go to punch it out with Chaldea. Here, in chapter 85, Hugo punches it out with Taurus and it's great. And then, Libra also eventually resorts to just directly punching Lee Geon, which is hilarious.

Speaking of Libra, she's done a bang up job as a villain. Very funny that she stripped at the end to the same level as Lee Geon. Even her top! In general, I feel like... this manhwa really has a foot fetish. The guys always lose their shirts, sure, but they also lose everything below the knee too, only keeping their hulk modesty shorts. But you also get Yooha losing her boots, while her jeans are otherwise fine, so it feels like they just really wanted to get her barefoot lol (Speaking of Yooha, I wonder if they're going to circle back to the evil god in her arms, or if this is it and it'll be considered that she's gotten control of it.)

Speaking of Hugo, the first couple chapters after the manhwa restarted were quite rough, since it was more flashbacks of Suffering(tm). Hugo really lives a different genre than everyone else sometimes, rip. I do like how he goes wild against Taurus. He and Lee Geon are very similar sometimes. They can have a similar mean sense of humor, and occasionally Hugo enjoys battle in a similar way.

There were also some moments for Yooha, Steven, Kevin... feels like a fairly okay support cast, which I like. Though of course, Lee Geon is the only useful one, haha

That said, the big ending for the Libra arc felt pretty cohesive. I can't really complain about the direction.

There are several interesting points that were elucidated. First, Lee Geon's moral compass is sometimes a bit hard to pin down, but he pretty directly states what he is opposed to: disregarding "the safety of others." Everything else is whatever, but people shouldn't be put in danger meaninglessly.

(In my fanfic concept development, this would mean... you can tell he loses it if he puts innocent people in danger. But for additional consideration, Lee Geon is not at all shy about going to down on anyone who crosses him and directly threatens murder in the novel. So you could say him losing it would come from the direction of starting to see innocent people as having wronged him. Hehehe)

Second, there's an interesting... hm, undercurrent? that is introduced here. Steven says that he is willing to sacrifice "everything Leo has accumulated" because otherwise humanity will lose "everything they've accumulated" in bold text. At the same time, Libra tries to claim that this world belongs to the divine gods, while "Baron Helmet" said the same for the unknown civilization when they invaded. There's this concept of accumulating resources or taking them by force.

Third, they also bring up several times that "the weak don't even get the right to choose" and "only the strong get to ask questions," which... is certainly in line with a battle series, but... yeah. Yooha does angle Leo's ideal of the strong survive as "the strong have a duty to protect the weak," and in a sense, all the weak people "choose" Lee Geon, which you can interpret as flashback Steven being wrong. But still... it's all good to say that Ophiuchus respects those who are willing to put everything on the line to become stronger, but most people simply do not have the necessary potential or opportunity. All they can do is choose who to pray to, but this assumes that there is a good choice to begin with. It's all a kind of concept that I don't really like, though I won't say that it's incoherent or anything.

Anyway, all that said, the last chapter for now is really something. Ah, Lee Geon making that face, damn... We finally see him get a bit stripped down emotionally. Yes, give me that backstory to add to my Lee Geon microwave spinning.

#reading disaster class hero

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fryingpan1234567 · 2 years

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Riordanverse outfit headcanons because I said so and I may have accidentally fallen down a rabbit hole

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alex Fierro does not own a single “bad” piece of clothing. Things that clash? Absolutely. But they don’t make bad outfits; not once.

Jason Grace cuts off the sleeves (and sometimes bottoms) of at least half his hoodies. So they’re all muscle shirts/ cropped muscle shirts because Leo says he’s hot they’re “easier to move in”.

The first time Percy Jackson dyed his hair, it was because he lost a bet. But he kind of fell in love with those blue streaks, and from then on, he redyed it every few weeks when the color stared to fade, even reaching out to other colors. Eventually he asked the Aphrodite and Hecate cabins to come up with a formula for a hair dye that shifts colors every few weeks and doesn’t come out by anything but magic.

Sadie Kane is slowly evolving into a blue and pink version of Alex. Her hair is choppy and blue, her fashion sense is becoming some kind of bubblegum E-girl Frankenstein. Carter is half scarred and half impressed.

Hazel Levesque is the most cottagecore bitch you’ll ever meet- sweaters, button ups, skirts, soft colors and patterns. She sometimes carries around a basket with like snacks and random wildflowers she’s picked. She’s the only Roman demigod anyone’s witnessed fighting in a poofy dress atop a horse, kicking ass like normal.

Magnus Chase wears too much brown. Hearth thinks it’s hilarious, Blitz calls him hopeless. Once Hotel Valhalla Green is added to the mix, the Floor 19 group start jokingly calling him a patch of moss.

Eventually, Alex convinces Thomas Jefferson Jr. to start dressing more modern, but he always finds a way to put his own twist on it. Navy blue jacket over the top of his outfit. Worn brown combat boots are a common sight. Sometimes he just outright wears his infantry hat around the mortal world.

Leo Valdez has pretty standard engineer-type clothes- stained T-shirts, jeans, Converse and Vans. But on Día de los Muertos, he completely full sends. Skull makeup, lots of colors, whether or not it’s a steampunk lookin sombrero or flower crown atop his curls depends on the day. He manages to drag the rest of the camp into it, which the other Hispanic campers appreciate, and each cabin has their own ofrenda honoring family and past campers.

Halfborn Gunderson manages to wear zero shirts in public and no one has ever denied him service. He’s too powerful. Enough said.

Piper McLean has learned to absolutely weaponize her good looks. She dresses almost male gaze-y, but she’s about as far from that as you can get. It’s for the feminism. It’s because she knows she can kick anyone’s ass who fucks with her or anyone else she sees. Pink is a power color, and she’ll fight you over that.

Carter Kane dresses like an archaeologist. Whether that’s Laura Dern or a musty museum curator depends on the day, but this chaotic bi dumbass always looks like the smartest person in the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~ sorry y’all that’s gotta be it lmao

I’ll do a part 2 if you send in a list of characters to do!!

#Riordanverse #Alex Fierro #Jason Grace #Percy Jackson #Sadie Kane #Hazel Levesque #Magnus Chase #Thomas Jefferson Jr.#Leo Valdez #Halfborn Gunderson #Piper McLean #Carter Kane #headcanons

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distinctlywhumpthing · 1 year

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Unintentional 28

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CW: BBU-adjacent, institutionalized slavery, dehumanization. Ongoing raid, fear of recapture, clinical/hospital setting, side-effects/consequences of medwhump (cerebrovascular). Beta-read by @alittlewhump <3 Second ask is from this list

Leo told him to stay still and pretend to sleep, no matter what. One of so few direct orders, Aiden could count them on his hand. The very same Leo had just been holding, fingers warming his, giving him one last reassuring squeeze before he’d let go.

He couldn’t fail Leo.

Aiden pressed his hands into the bedspread to hide their shaking, to make them still. Starched-not-soft fabric in an orderly, woven grid under his fingertips. Hundreds of washes keeping it uniform for every new patient. Knuckles wrapped in the soft fabric of Leo’s sweatshirt. Left hand throbbing, forearms aching. Betadine and antiseptic sharp in his nose. The sounds in the hallway—the agents in the hallway. He knew those boots, those footfalls. He’d been here before.

He was there.

Beside the pool, clothes still damp from diving in, from sweating through what had to be hours of CPR. Dragged to his knees, slapped around, put in a van. The End.

He wouldn’t be able to give them his number this time, even if he wanted to. Except instead of taking a stand, he was simply too damaged. The idea of being beaten in front of Leo made his stomach twist and his throat tighten.

He couldn’t shake his head, squeeze his fist, find something, anything, to anchor him to where he was, who he was. The simplest task impossible. He used to be more than a passenger, an observer, recognizing less and less with each visit. Especially when it was like this, when he fell beneath the surface, into things that were muddy and murky and meant to stay that way.

He wanted to look, to confirm what he kept telling himself was true, but he had to keep his eyes closed.

Leo wouldn’t leave him. Leo had promised.

But the very foundation of the conditioning was doubt.

With Archer it pushed him toward an impossible perfection. Empty responsiveness that only left him aching to do more, to be better.

It nagged him constantly with Harrison but there was little to be done. Harrison took what he wanted, didn’t care what kind of vessel it came from. All of his memories returned were not enough to erase the conditioning, relieve the doubt. The ache to be deserving.

He was certain it was worse to have both: what once was housed in the ruins of what he was now.

Leo had no idea what he was taking on. Had no idea Aiden was falling to pieces in his own head when all he had to do was stay still and be quiet.

He wasn’t meant to open his eyes but Harrison was peeling them open for him. Shining his penlight into one and then the other.

“I know you’re awake.” His tone was terse. Frustrated? There was a complication? A delay? It was hard to follow, his mind slow to process. He tried to turn his head but he couldn’t. Of course he couldn’t, he was strapped down like always.

Leo had told him not to move.

Harrison snapped his fingers in front of his face. “I asked you a fucking question.”

He blinked a fraction of a second after he thought of it. He couldn’t remember hearing a question. There weren’t any quips surfacing and he wasn’t sure he had the energy to speak anyway.

He hadn’t felt this drugged before.

He wasn’t.

Leo—was Leo still there?

“For fuck’s sake.” Harrison demanded all of his attention by undoing the straps. “You’re lucky we need to do this or you’d be kissing a taste of freedom goodbye thanks to your attitude.”

Too slow to snipe back again.

He cried out when his arms fell to his sides, so heavy now that he had to hold them, fingers tingling as the blood rushed down to his fingers.

He had to stay still.

“I don't have patience for your bullshit today. Do not test me.”

He swallowed the next whimper, the reprimand curdling in his empty stomach. Unaware that Harrison had released all of the other restraints until he folded forward. Harrison caught him unceremoniously, wrapping his arms around him in a parody of an embrace that still made his heart race and his cheeks flush as if it were earned attention, a reward. Sometimes, he’d wriggle closer, moan in Harrison’s ear or whisper a few lurid suggestions. (Anything was better than being a lab rat.) Once even licked his neck but after that, Harrison had kept him unconscious for so long.

As much as he had nothing to lose, would push every button he could find in a fruitless attempt to force Harrison’s hand, his nerve was riddled with holes. Whenever Harrison was gone too long, he’d wonder if he’d ever come back. Doubt warping fearful anticipation into longing. He’d miss Harrison. Miss the attention, even of his scalpel, when there was a question of it never returning. He was nothing if not what they’d conditioned him to be.

“Alright, up you go.” Harrison’s voice still had an edge. They were in the other room across the hall but he didn’t remember getting there. Harrison pulled him to his feet, placed both of his hands on the rail bordering the room. “Let’s go, I don’t have all day.”

He gasped when Harrison let go, overwhelmed by all of his muscles working together for a purpose. But there was something else too, something beneath whatever drugs Harrison always gave him before these bouts of “exercise” to make sure he wasn’t too much trouble.

“I don’t feel right…” It came out slurred.

Harrison was busy on his phone and waved him on with his free hand. “You remember. One foot in front of the other.” He used the hard toe of his sneaker to prod against his bare heel until he moved.

Left foot forward. One step at a time.

His head hurt, ears ringing, vision wavering. Harrison would be furious if he passed out.

Right foot forward. His leg almost buckled and he gripped the bar tighter. The room spun.

“Something’s wrong.” The syllables were marbles in his mouth.

Left foot forward.

The fingers of his right hand slipped from the bar.

He couldn’t raise them again, like his whole arm had been numbed. His heart sprinted and stuttered, drilling fear deep into his chest. “Harrison, what did you give me?” The panic in his voice was clearer than the words.

“Whatever game you’re playing, I am really not—”

Right foot forward. The room tipped.

Harrison caught him and let out an exasperated sigh. “I’m fucking serious. Stand up and finish the lap.” He tried to shove him onto his feet again but he couldn’t balance.

He was crying now, tears sliding down his cheek. The ones on the other side lost in the fabric of Harrison’s lab coat. “I—I—can’t—I can’t—” No words came out at all this time, only sounds. “Harrison!” His vision spotted. Harrison lowered him to the floor, let him slump against the wall, listing sideways.

His expression was out of focus but his voice was stern. “This is your last chance. Stop—what—what are you doing?”

Harrison caught him again but he couldn’t feel where, only the other hand opening his left eye for the light. He didn’t feel his fingers on the right before his vision flared.

“Fuck.” Harrison held two fingers to his neck, checking his watch. “Look at me, talk to me.”

“I—I—I’m scared,” he cried. It was nothing, it was moans and slurs. “Harrison, help me, please!”

“No, no, no.” Harrison laid him down. “Squeeze my hand.”

His hand was empty, he couldn’t—

Harrison raised their hands into his line of sight. His right hand limp in Harrison’s grip. “Please, come on, Nothing. It’s nothing, you’re fine. You’re fine.”

He couldn’t feel his hand. “What did you do to me?” Again nothing came out. He whimpered when Harrison rolled him onto his side.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

He must have been high out of his mind to hear those words.

“Talk to me, stay with me.”

How many times he’d wanted to say that himself but now he was the one leaving.

“Beau, come on. Hold my hand.” Harrison wrapped both hands around his left one. He didn’t think he’d ever done that without gloves on. It felt so warm. “Here, see? Stay with me, Beau.”

But Beau didn’t belong here.

He had died when she had, when he’d failed her.

“No, no, no.” Harrison was holding his face now. “Hey, ‘359. Come on, keep your eyes open. Trainee ‘359. That is a direct—” His voice broke. “Fuck. Please—”

‘359 was out of place too.

Fragments and pieces, hollow on the inside, incomplete before he’d been given Beau’s purpose.

A clean slate would always be empty, ‘359 couldn’t exist here.

“Please.” Harrison held him more carefully than he’d ever imagined him capable of. Like he was far from nothing, precious even. “Brandon. Forgive me.”

But he wasn’t Brandon.

Or ‘359.

Or Beau.

He only wanted to be Aiden.

And even though he could still feel Harrison’s fingers entwined with his, he was Aiden. Aiden being careful not to make a sound as memories drowned him. Aiden not moving a muscle or opening his eyes, pulse sprinting in his chest as they waited. He couldn’t feel anything under his fingertips anymore, was growing more and more desperate to check that he was in fact lying in a bed and not waking up on the ground beside Harrison or worse already back on his table. He—

The door opening brought everything in his head screeching to a halt.

It wasn’t Harrison’s warmth still lingering on his hand.

It was Leo’s.

Leo who had found him, sheltered him, been so patient and kind with him. Had risked everything by bringing him here.

He could keep still and quiet, bury his fear of what it would mean to go back, in hopes of selling this lie. To say nothing of what consequences Leo and his sister might face. He could never be the reason someone else was unmade. He owed Leo this, at the very least, as disappointing as he may have been in the rest of their short time together.

Or did he have a different kind of obligation now? Not just to please and obey but one of higher grounds. To earn everything Leo had given him so freely. To repay selflessness with a sacrifice of his own.

One of the agents cleared their throat and Aiden knew this was it. If he went easily, quietly, they might leave Leo alone. As long as he surrendered before Leo had a chance to try and improvise.

And he wouldn’t look at Leo at all. To make sure to implicate him as little as possible.

There were voices in the hallway but he couldn’t catch the words over the way his heart beat so loudly in fear, thudding through his whole body.

He promised himself he would tear the stitches in the van later.

Being manhandled into cuffs might start the job anyway.

He would—Aiden would do this to save Leo.

He sat up and opened his eyes—

In time to see the backs of the agents as the nurse ushered them out, hissing something about “immunocompromised” and “goddamn idiots, don’t they teach you to read?”

And Leo, staring at him in disbelief.

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@octopus-reactivated @maracujatangerine @nicolepascaline @mazeish @whumpy-writings @cracked-porcelain-princess @meetmeinhellcroutons @briars7 @thingsthatgo-whump-inthenight @jo-doe-seeking-inspo @neuro-whump @painsandconfusion @wolfeyedwitch @skyhawkwolf @haro-whumps @onlybadendings @peachy-panic @fillthedarkvoid @rabass @crystalquartzwhump @dont-touch-my-soup @mylifeisonthebookshelf @hold-him-down @guachipongo @creetchure @leyswhumpdump @aseasonwithclarasblog @catawhumpus @magziemakeswhatever @espresso-depresso-system @pigeonwhumps @batfacedliar-yetagain @whumpinthepot @dustypinetree @whump-in-progress @lavbug

#bbu #bbu-adjacent #box boy whump #box boy rescue #bbu whump #sympathetic whumper #carewhumper #pet whump #is it? idk #institutionalized slavery tw #hospital setting tw #CVA tw #stitches mention tw #medical whump #clinical whump #hospital whump #whump #whump writing

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valeriefauxnom · 6 months

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Dev's (C)Leo Biases,

Or,

A Comprehensive History of How Leonidas Became Nearly Everyone's Object of Thirst

So, among the Dragalia Lost team, it was rather well known that they admitted to a strong Cleo bias.

It's pretty easy to see, in anything from Cleo's early spate of alts, like Dragonyule and Summer in quick succession, to the utterly random unique outfits they flaunted in ch.9 that you can just tell they drew for funsies but really liked them and wanted to put them in the game despite it serving no real purpose...

The dev team just really, really loved Cleo and drawing her. But after they apparently used up their Cleo allowance to make Gala Cleo probably the single strongest character in the game at the time, they cooled it down a bit.

However, as much as they were apparently thirsting over Cleo, I would joke that somewhere along the way, some part of the dev team, feeling desperate now that the yearly Cleo Allowance was running dry as they prepared to release Gala Cleo, decided to find a new fixation to quench their addiction.

And since Cleo was off-limits, they turned to the next best thing: crossing out the C in Cleo to find their newest substitute Dev Thirst character.

That's right, we're talking about the one and only Leonidas.

Leonidas had kinda just melded into the background with the rest of the siblings at this point to my observations. Sure, he was a campaign antagonist. People weren't particularly clamoring for him in particular over the other siblings, though. Honestly, I'd wager Emile was more popular at this stage, even in a 'love to hate' sense, just because we'd already seen him so much.

But then, it started. Whether it was art like this being posted on their twitter just a few scant months before G!Cleo's debut...

...They just seemed to have a certain edge in artworks featuring Mr. Curry in a way to make one squint and tilt your head sideways.

For instance:

It's one of those cases where you just kinda get a feeling the artist(s) found x attractive in a way that simultaneously still can give you a moment of self-doubt if that's not just you projecting because there's no blatantly obvious signs, you know? Whether it's something about the posing, or angles, whatever it is, I got this air increasingly whenever they put out any Leonidas art.

Thankfully, they decided to put me out of my misery and just flat out make what's likely the single most suggestive wyrmprint (or honestly art piece in general since Dragalia was thankfully very very very tame) starring none other than, you guessed it, Leonidas.

(Secret Cygames/Nintendo conversation, probably: "As you can see, it's vitally important that we draw this character in a speedo with sparkles around him." Nintendo: "...I'll allow it. This time.")

Even if he puts on some more clothes in the refined version, we're still back to that air I mentioned, as the shot focuses almost entirely on him instead of the wildly popular Chelle or his pet panther (which, yes, seemed to be an actual pet of his):

Even the Ilia-damned funny chibi comics got in on this thirst train as it went on and made quite possibly the raunchiest joke in the entire 400+ comic run featuring Leonidas, even if the exact same joke didn't make the translation overseas, however they tried. You can see a brief breakdown of that in THIS post.

Not content to restrict it to art and comics, Leonidas also dropped this line that is permanently engraved into my mind with just how shocking it was to see anything of this caliber in Dragalia, in his baby brother's story to boot!

At this point, I could no longer deny it: the devs and artists had collectively acquired a new fixation to satiate their once insatiable Cleo appetite in the form of Mr. Currymeister. (Don't worry about Emile there, he's just drowning, he does that all the time in waist-high water)

And this attitude even extends to in-universe, too! People increasingly fawned over the first prince, who very much was filling in the role of 'this prince you know vs. his hotter and more competent elder brother', as virtually represented by my expert skills in Microsoft Paint artistry as such:

Naturally, there was only so much time before the people IRL could succumb to Leonidas Fever (and no, this time we're not talking about all the people who were so devoted to this dude to effectively set themselves into a fatal, firey, steroid-filled death!) at this unrelenting onslaught.

It was hard not to see comments such as these that started pouring in (and yes, all of these were just about Leonidas exclusively):

(I'll attribute the misspelling to being overcome with Leonidas Fever, a grave illness indeed!)

(Another serious symptom: the decline of any self-preservation instinct around Leonidas, who is indeed Very Dangerous and Will Kill You!)

Ahem. You get the picture. Thus concludes the slow, insidious buildup from just another sibling for Euden to probably commit a whoopsie-daisy fratricide in the future to one of the fandom's favorite menaces, all carefully plotted-out by the collective efforts of devs who were the first to succumb to the sickness...Right?

This concludes my professional historical report on this very serious issue that I suspect lingers to this day. The Fever has but been put into remission; it has not faded yet.

Extra:

So a long time ago I commented that some of the royal family seemed to have pointier teeth than normal, which I speculated because they deliberated giving a bit more 'draconic' traits to define dragonblood, and I didn't realize how pervasive this was until I saw Emile's model there. Look at his fang!

...

...How did I forget the weapon skin of Leo's gun is additionally named "Royal Dominator"?

#The royal family truly robbed the bank with their genetics. Magic powers. Sharp-looking as a whole...and they have been for 300 years+!#dragalia lost #dragalia #leonidas #He's strong. He's handsome. He's a fantastic chef. He's had cat ears put on him in a comic.#the People were to put it bluntly Screwed or so I would reckon in my comprehensive study of #'why the heck are you guys thirsting over xyz character NOW?'#...Also a very formal scientific field.#I'm additionally glad in the end that Leo bore the brunt of this #Since at least he's likely 25+. A disappointingly high amount of media can't even manage that!

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maxbegone · 1 year

Text

If you honestly think this is going to be seven sentences, you don’t know me by now! Happy late Sunday/early Monday, I hope the week treats you well ♥️

Alex misses being extroverted, but he knows he can never be too cautious. In this world, it’s all about protecting what you have.

He stands, propping the end of the rifle through the window of the watchtower. Finger on the trigger, safety off, looking through the sight.

“Take another step, and you each get one between your eyes,” he calls out to them warningly.

They stop short, hands raising.

“What do you want?”

“We—we didn’t know this area was occupied,” one of them says. He has a heavy British accent and he’s handsome under the wear and tear of whatever it is they’ve been through. “We’re just trying to find a way through.”

“Yeah, well the only way through is back that way if you don’t want trouble.” Alex gestures with the rifle. “Sorry.”

“Listen, mate, we’ve been walking for three days. We’re just looking for a place to kip that isn’t in the woods.” He smiles a little. “I swear.”

“Alone?”

“Yeah.” The man smiles weakly. “We were with a group, but you know how it is out there.”

Alex’s brow furrows. “Can’t say I do too well anymore. Now what do y’all actually want?” He asks, keeping his aim steady.

Alex could shoot the cap off a glass bottle a hundred paces away and not shatter the damn thing, no questions asked. June could do it almost double.

“A place to sleep,” the same man reiterates. “That’s all. Listen, my name is Percy. My mate here is Henry. We don’t have anything to trade, but we’ve been walking for days and we’re just trying to find some shelter.”

For the first time in a long time, Alex hesitates.

He shouldn’t, but at his core he’s a people person, and even several years into a scarce world hasn’t seemed to fix that. Outside of his core community of himself, June, the three of their parents, Nora, and Raf, he hasn’t seen many people. Who has nowadays? And this excludes Zahra and Shaan who pop in and out every few weeks.

The world went to shit, people either retreated or died, and Alex’s family took the farmland Leo’s uncle left to him back in the early nineties.

They thrive, but they do so with who they have and who they can trust. Everyone else has been turned away at the gate or given what they needed and sent on their way. They have been very lucky not to get ambushed in the years since. Raf believes it’s because no one would be dumb enough to go through that much wilderness and up that steep a hill to do so. Ellen thinks it’s pure luck.

He studies them both from his vantage point: heavy-looking backpacks, mud-covered boots and well-worn clothes, they’re both dirty. There’s something different about them though, and Alex can’t quite put his finger on it. He looks from Percy to the other man, Henry, and finds himself immediately stilling. He has windswept blond hair that looks like it hasn’t been cut in quite a while, a gash on his cheek and some bruising under his eye. Alex catches his gaze, finding it impossible not to hold it for a few long beats at least.

“You can search us! We don’t have any weapons,” Henry pipes up. He’s British, too, and his voice is rich and melodic, despite how it wavers. Alex finds himself wanting to hear more.

Jesus fucking Christ, what is this shit?

“None? Out there?” They both shake their heads. He’s not sure he fully buys it. “Are y’all insane?”

“It’s stupid,” Percy admits. “Others had them, we were protected. We’ve been scrounging off rations of rations since.”

“Where were you headed?”

“Niagara. There’s a safe haven there.”

Alex huffs an inaudible laugh. “Yeah, lots of rumors about those.”

“Can’t be sure about much,” Henry says in lieu of agreement, and Percy nods.

“But it was our best option. We started off in Manhattan.”

Jesus. Alex sighs. He keeps the rifle pointed on them as he picks up his walkie. It chirps to life. “Gonna need some help at the gate, bug.”

“Roger dodger.”

Alex turns his attention back to the two men. “Don’t move,” he commands. “I’m coming down.”

He slings the rifle onto his back, pockets his walkie and makes the climb down the ladder, keeping them in sight as best he can.

He fixes his hat as he strides over, and the closer he gets, the more he begins to see. Percy looks off, unwell, but he’s standing tall and cooperative, expression affixed in something between friendly and neutral. Henry looks better, by comparison, but not by much. He’s certainly taken a few hits, at least physically.

“We’re gonna wait for backup,” Alex tells them both. He keeps his rifle at ease, but stares at them in a way that keeps them frozen to the spot. “Anything funny happens and that’s it.”

They both nod, and Percy says, “Noted.”

It takes about five minutes or so for June to arrive from her part of the property, hair pulled back into a high ponytail and a hand over the revolver in the holster on her waist. “We got company?”

“Could be friendlies,” Alex tells her, dropping his voice, but June’s mouth pulls to the side, protective nature coming out. “Looking for refuge for the night.”

“Gotta play it safe. Sorry, y’all.” She looks at them both and tilts her head up toward the sky. “Storm’s brewing, too.”

“Let’s hurry this up, then. Drop your bags,” Alex instructs. “Arms out.”

#seven sentence sunday #except I definitely didn’t follow those rules #RWRB #rwrb fic #alex claremont diaz #henry fox mountchristen windsor #percy okonjo #june claremont diaz

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psychdeath · 4 months

Text

cha wontaek. 3d environment artist @ orbit gaming. penned by ares (21+, s/h, gmt)

hey hi hello. it's me again after shamefully changing muses. like if you wanna plot, y'know the drill.

tw family death

NOBODY TO SOMEBODY

what sort of parents sign up for a kid only to abandon him and sign him over to the state? cha daehyun and lee bitna, a celebrity couple. thought that their relationship could stand the test of time and fandom. what the public didn't know was that they had plans to get pregnant, to start a family.

papers were signed and a baby was on its way. only, once news of their marriage broke, daehyun's rating started to plummet and the cowardice began to show. he promptly ditched and like a contagion, bitna's fear of losing her spot in the limelight became all too consuming. so she signed wontaek over to the state, giving him nothing but his life and a name.

life in the orphanage wasn't too bad, for the most part wontaek's needs were met. he didn't have to ask for much. but the sting of not being wanted even after the trouble of applying for him in the first place did not miss him. and where do all those feelings go?

he was a terror to all of those who knew him, volatile in personality with a short fuse to boot. pain has a way as masking itself as anger and wontaek donned his mask at too young of an age.

he's eight when a man comes to the orphanage to claim him. he introduces himself has his grandfather, the one responsible for his worthless son who had abandoned him.

from orphan to future heir, life really hit wontaek FAST. his grandpa being from a long line of simulation tech investors, wontaek was shuttled from the belt to the the gated districts where he would come to call the sprawling cha estate home.

generational wealth wasn't something he could put words to but the magnitude of change was. he became more confident and less angry, more talkative, made more of a presence in the rooms he walked into. it was almost if wontaek came into himself.

as he grew older he fostered a connection to the arts, painting being his preferred medium. he went to art school and came out the other side as a 3d environment artist (don't you just love nepotism?). he's done a lot of jobs, his resume spanning from designing simulation environments for coach to orbit gaming, working currently on the iron fists games.

he's twenty seven when the news of his grandpa's degenerative illness breaks and although he still has a few years on him, there are talks of the inheritance and who the cha assets should be passed on to. wontaek is his grandfather's likely pick but as of recent daehyun has been rearing his ugly head to claim what should be his. risking revealing to the world a near thirty year old misdemeanour, he has come for the cha inheritance and he won't go down without a fight.

terse conversations before family lawyers become a standard routine these days and daehyun's return to the cha estate has seen wontaek having to confront the ugly trauma of his early childhood.

but right now? he's just trying to make good with what he's got and the very little time he has left with grandpa.

PERSONALITY

leo sun, pisces moon and leo rising.

if you thought he was a cocky bastard, then you’re right.

has always been here for a good time not a long time but as of late he's been roped into doing a lot of family stuff and Stepping Up To The Plate now that his gramps is sick.

his upbringing and estranged relo with his parents makes him cerebral and prone to moodiness, and rather than causing trouble nowadays he airs out his shit on the canvas.

when he’s in that place he’s selfish (more than usual), callous, and self critical.

otherwise he’s good vibes on a good day. if you can get past the entitlement.

#╰ ❛ 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰 ❜ — ooc #ts:intro

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localgirlbecomesobsessed · 28 days

Text

Movie Buddy

Part three

Ren x Xena

The awaited the date

“You look ugly in th-“

A loud smack could be heard as Sho harshly slapped Leo in the gut.

“Hey! She does, orange isn’t your colour, put the red one on.”

Xena glared at him as she sighed quickly going into the bathroom to change into the dark red velvet corset top, the straps were made out of the same material and made into loopy bows at the shoulder. She had a long black velvet skirt on with lace around the hem, Leo told her not to wear a jacket that she looks hotter without it but she ignored him wearing her leather jacket much to Leo’s dismay, it was only to hide her tattoos when she’s out in public.”

“Don’t get why you’re even going out with this random…”

She sighed as she sat at her mirror emptying her makeup bag as she hunted down her dark red lip gloss.

“Not a random, one of my closest friends and…”

She finally found it, avoiding having to finish the rest of her sentence as Sho raised a brow at her and leo grinned like the cat that ate the canary.

“And…?don’t tell me you have a crush on the guy.”

She stayed silent applying her lip gloss as she ignored Leo, changing her earrings into tiny xenomorphs to match the date hangout as Leo and Sho cackled.

“Damn Honour Roll you’ve got…an acquired taste.”

She rolled her eyes turning to them.

“Don’t be a fucking dick Leo, He’s-“

Leo cut her off.

“Let me guess he’s got a real great personality-“

Sho snorted.

“He’s not even got th-“

A pillow hit him hard in the face.

“Shut the fuck up, you both are blind if you can’t see how hot he is.” •_•

Sho and Leo stared at her as her deadpan face spewed out those words, she seemed fuming as she turned back to check herself over.

They glanced at eachother before Leo held a phone up and started snapping pictures of Xena, sending them to her so she can post them on the perfectly curated Instagram he made for her.

“So it’s just because he’s hot?”

Sho questioned, annoyance dripping in his words, xena rolled her eyes as looked back at them.

“No.” •_•

They waited as patiently as they could for Xena to answer as she sprayed a setting spray over her face, before turning around to find both men laying on their stomache on her bed, head in their hands as they kicked their feet, pretending to act like teen girls at a slumber party.

•_•

“He’s funny, smart, a total arsehole but in a fun way, he’s shy, he always complains but still ends up helping, he-“

Leo faked gag before Xena could go off on a tangent about all the things she liked about Ren, both him and Sho seeming to get more grumpy as they watched her get ready.

“I can’t believe he even got an R&R for a date…no fair, we never get approved-but he does…”

Leo whined out slumping into Sho who just rolled his eyes.

“It’s not even a date…well he didn’t say it was a date-“

The door knocks and Xena shot up, glaring at the boys as she shoos them off her bed.

“You both need to leave, I don’t wanna come back to you two cuddling in bed.” •_•

Leo shot her a wink and a thumbs up as Sho got up and dragged him with him, they followed her down the stairs as she grabbed her bag from the pew, waving goodbye to the duo as they sneaked out the back door. She put on a pair of chunky black trainers and swung the door quickly, not wanting to seem too eager but failing miserably, as she beamed a huge smile towards Ren who awkwardly stood in the door way.

He was wearing black cargos with thick black boots, a white button up and a slightly oversized dark army green leather bomber jacket.

“You look amazing Ren!” 0_0

A blush quickly spread as he held out his hand for Xena to take as he avoided eye contact.

“You look pretty too…”

Xena took his hand grinning even wider as she lightly giggled. He had styled his hair to be slightly spiked at the end and changed his second earring into a small hoop.

“You look really handsome, I like your hair.”

He flushed bright red as he led her out the doorway.

She locked her door and tried to covertly keep their hands together as they made their way to the train. Ren a step ahead of her as he drooped his hand low, clasping it together as he hoped she wouldn’t bring it up, she didn’t, her hearts in her ears and she quietly chattered to him about reviews she’s seen of the new movie, luckily avoiding spoilers.

Ren was just in a cold sweat hoping his hands hadn’t gone clammy as he tried to keep up with Xena’s nervous chatter.

They finally got on the train, both sitting closely together as they kept their hands clasped together.

“The films not on for another three hours…there’s a place to eat nearby it if you wanna go there…or an arcade.”

He fumbled to check the cinema times as he mumbled out to Xena, he had already checked all the places to hang out and made sure there was a number of options for the two of them.

“Oh! I don’t mind what sort of food places we got…?”

She asked leaning in closer, Ren freezing as she was way too close, he got a waft of her scent a mixture of a fruity perform and leather making him go slightly dizzy, he gulped as he held the phone to show her. He scrolled through the places, xena pointing at a place that was both an arcade and somewhere to eat, it was only ten mins away from the cinema as well.

———————————————————

“How have you beaten me again?” •_•

Xena huffed as she sipped at her beer, they were playing a first person zombie shooter, Ren absolutely annihating her in the game as he took a gulp of his own beer. They were awaiting their food after playing 1v1 games for the past hour, they had ordered fried chicken and chips to share and the loser had to pay the bill, much to Xena’s dismay as she was losing every battle.

“Pffft, a normie can’t beat me.”

He grinned cockily as she rolled her eyes giggling at him as she guided him to another game, Ren happily letting her drag him around as he had the most fun he’s had since entering Darkwick.

“Sure sure but maybe this normie can best you at this.”

She dramatically waved her arms at the Mario kart as she took off her jacket, Ren’s breath hitching as her tattoo got revealed, she looked beautiful in her leather jacket but without it she looked hot, her tattoos, her muscles, the way her top fitted her perfectly accentuating certain features that Ren was having a hard time not focusing on, she looked so pretty it was becoming hard to think just looking at her…she grinned wickedly as she walked over, wrapping herself around his free arm as he went a bright red. She guided him to the chairs helping him sit first before going into her own chair, his brain short circuiting as he tried to rid the feeling of Xena pressed up on his from his brain.

“How about whoever loses this round has to pay for dinner…”

His eyes widened as he saw through her game plan, smiling as he sighed he nodded agreement as determination to win set him straight, he started their battle ambitious in defeating the conniving girl sitting next to him.

…

Xena lost after Ren blue shelled her at the last minute, the food timing its readiness with her moment of rage.

They both finished their drinks before going to get their food, xena wrapping herself around Ren’s arm once again as he smiled in a state of fluster at her, she was pouting and Ren couldn’t help but inwardly think about how adorable she was.

They picked up their food and Xena paid despite Ren trying to pay as he felt kind of bad about it, but she denied it, a bets a bet.

They chowed down as they excitedly chattered about the film, they were planning to leave in half an hour so they could get in early for snacks and trailers.

After they finished eating they cleaned their table and were about to leave before Ren stopped her at a claw machine, xena looking at him confused as he went to put a coin in.

He immediately won her a bright pink bunny, the thing was insanely cute and soft and was the size of a small cat, he handed it over to her as he watched her go a bright red.

“Thank you…”

She tentatively walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him, gently hugging him as she got up onto her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

“Well…uh you paid for food so…”

He rubbed the back of his neck as Xena let go off him (way too soon in his opinion.)

She clutched the bunny close to her, smiling shyly as Ren tugged at her arm, urging her to follow him and they basically skipped out of the place to the cinema, insanely excited as the place came quickly into their view.

Xena whipped out her jacket from her bag as the cold of the late evening got to her, she popped the rabbit into the bag as Ren went to grab her hand again and lead her excitedly into the cinema.

Ren ordered a box of salty popcorn mixed with m&ms and two cokes, Xena grinned as she helped him carry it all to their seats, Ren letting her have the seat closest to the wall. They sat down and Xena leaned her head onto his shoulder as they quietly chattered about what they think will happen.

When the trailers started they ceased their talking as they become immersed into the experience.

———————————————————

“The fact it was mostly practical effects and you can tell but in the best way~ it makes it feel like a proper alien film and made it more intense and scary-“

Ren grinned as he clasped their hands together.

“-and the cast the way they reacted to everything, it wouldn’t of been as scary without their reactions and they all brought such personalities with them…”

Ren added, as they walked slowly over to the train, neither one of them wanting the night to end as Xena swung their arms.

“-Andy as well?! His character was amazing, the way you can see him struggle internally with the dual personality especially in the window scene….”

The two carried an in depth conversation the whole journey home, going through each scene, each callback and Xena explaining about the xenomorphs in great detail…it turns out she was more of a fan than she let on, Ren watched in awe as she talked to him about the comics, videos games and books and how it all tied in with the movie.

He walked her back to the cathedral, the two still holding hands even as they approached her door, Xena seemed reluctant to go in as she spun around to face him, seeming almost nervous as she caressed his hand.

“Erm…was this a um date Ren…?”

She probably should’ve asked before but if she was about to put her mini plan in action she kind of needed to know now.

Ren looked down at their hands as a light blush spread across his face as he tried to think of a response without spewing something weird in his anxious state.

“I wouldn’t put this much effort in for anyone else.”

This was the answer he fell on as he watched Xena burst into a ball of red as she nodded flustered, she grabbed onto the collar of his jacket and slowly pulled him in, looking from his lips to his eyes as she silently asked for permission. Ren’s breath hitched as he found himself leaning in, the two meeting halfway as Xena pressed a sweet and chaste kiss to his lips before pulling back.

Ren gaped at her before putting an arm around her pulling her close and tilting her head up as he went in for another kiss, one that Xena gladly leaned in for, the two kissing for a couple of minutes before she heard the front door quietly open.

“So the date went well then?”

Leo snickered taking a photo of the two as Ren quickly pulled back, his arm still around her as he scowled at Leo.

“What time do you call this young lady?”

Sho appeared in the doorway as well hands on his hips as he smirked at the two, xena hiding her face behind her hands in pure embarrassment as Ren sighed.

“Do they live with you?” •_•

He asked sympathetically as he thought about his own experience living with the clown and Towa, she shook her head signalling no as she looked up at him.

“No, they’re just annoying.”

The two cackled as they walked back inside leaving the couple alone again, Ren quickly leaned down giving her a peck before holding her cheek in his hand as he went to kiss her again, he nipped at her lip as she quickly let him in, their tongues twirling around eachother before he pulled himself away, knowing if he continued he wouldn’t be able to bring himself to leave her tonight.

She kissed his cheek as he let go of her, it was currently 1am and he knew the clown would be coming to get him at 6am for work.

“Ren…would you be down to go on another date with me??”

Xena nervously asked, smiling up at him as a small smile crossed his own face.

“I would be more than down.”

He kissed her on the cheek as they exchanged goodbyes, Ren using everything in him to walk away even though he just wanted to stay by Xena’s side, he waved goodbye again and Xena did the same, sighing sadly as she eventually turned to go into the cathedral as Ren walked out of her eyesight.

“Soooo, how did it go?!”

Leo was leaning against the pews, a smug smile on his face as he enjoyed the look of fluster on her face.

“It went really well…”

She grinned to herself as she brought out the pink bunny, smoothing it in her hands as she went upstairs to get ready for bed.

#Xena x ren #tokyo debunker #tokyo debunker oc #xena #tokyo debunkers #shohei haizono #leo kurosagi #ren shiranami

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nepobabyeurydice · 11 months

Text

Rosas Blancas

Summary:

Rosa Valdez is dying and Leo goes to see her one last time with Calypso there to mediate. It goes better and worse than expected.

Read on Ao3

.x.

“Do you know what you’re going to do?” Calypso asks as they approach the ranch. Her cinnamon hair is pulled into two of those bubble braids that the Aphrodite swore by as fashionable and comfortable, and her mouth is set in grim determination as she gazes at the door like she’s about to fight off her own father. Leo is grateful she came with him, Piper and Jason would’ve been too overprotective and jumpy, Calypso at least could keep herself serene and blank unlike his friends.

“Not a fucking clue,” he admits as he climbs the steps, his boots make noise on the porch, and suddenly he feels nostalgic remembering the dances they used to have on this porch when the night grew dark and the only light was that of the porch. His hand hovered over the door, already in a fist to knock it, but Leo couldn’t quite bring himself to do it.

His hand shook, and he put it down slowly, taking one breath, and then another. Calypso lays a supporting hand on his shoulder and knocks on the door for him. He shoots her a grateful look and tries not to tremble as the door opens.

“Esperanzita’s boy,” Tio Concho grunts, reaching out a hand to ruffle Leo’s hair as Leo blinks back tears and Calypso places a hand between them.

“Hello,” Calypso greets serenely, “I’m Leo’s foster sister, Calypso Atlasides, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Tio Concho eyes her, his huge mustache quivers in thought, and even that’s nostalgic to Leo. “You’re whiter than you sounded over the phone.”

Leo doesn’t even twitch, he had heard worse from other kids at school and from his own family after the funeral. He still intervenes before Calypso can get outraged. “Tio, it’s nice to see you. Where’s Elena and Carlos?”

Tio Concho sobers. “Out back with your abuela. Come, I’ll take you.”

He gestures for them to enter, and they follow, Leo doesn’t dare pull out any pipe cleaners or rubber bands to fiddle with. The ranch house was meant for twelve children to each have their own room and play. Out of all of them, Leo’s Abuela Ximena had inherited the ranch in lieu of her brother Kevin and thus, Tia Rosa and his Mama as her only children were meant to inherit the ranch. Now it’d probably fall onto either Elena or Carlos to take care of Visabuelo’s Sammy’s ranch. Leo stops, feeling a smile tug at his lips, at least he finally knows now why Abuela Ximena’s middle name was Hazel. He wonders how she’d react if she met her namesake and decides it’s not best to test it, she’d have a stroke.

Leo and Calypso walk into the backyard deck and his breath hitches at the sight of his family. Elena as is always perfectly put together the same way she had always been since she was ten and lorded her two years over Leo. Her glossy black hair had been cut short sometime between then and now, but she still looked the same. Carlos had a beard now which made Leo feel frozen in time, he was a year and five younger than Carlos, yet Carlos clearly had his life even more put together than Leo had ever even in Camp Half-Blood.

He tries for a winning smile, shoving the little Molotov cocktail of anger into the pit of his stomach. “Primos! Como les va?

Elena smiles and embraces him, she’s as scrawny as he is. “Leonidas,” she says, and cups his face in her hands, she frowns seeing the cut he has on his cheeks from the shrapnel coming off the Argo II. “It’s so good to see you. And who is this?”

“This,” he says, motioning towards Calypso, “is my foster sister, Calypso Atlasides. She came with me since Nyssa wouldn’t let me come alone.”

Nyssa had tried to convince him to stay at the camp until she could tell Jason and Piper who were in Rome and Oklahoma respectively for June, but Leo had argued that Calypso was more than fit to take him and that they'd go to California after for her to speak with Atlas. She had given in although not before sending a message to one of their siblings in Camp Jupiter to be on stand-by to pick Leo up.

He loves Nyssa, he really does, but she feels like his mom sometimes instead of his slightly older sister.

“A pleasure,” Elena says, offering her hand to Calypso, who daintily shakes it. “Where have you been, Leo?”

Leo shrugs, trying to seem affable despite wearing the nicest clothes he had in his closet at Camp which had been a gift for Piper last Christmas. “Texas mostly, last year though they found me a place in New York that’s more my style and that’s my permanent home, apparently. Our foster dad, Chiron, runs this summer camp, so we get to socialize with a ton of people.”

“Summer camp?” Elena asks, curiously. She looks over Leo’s shoulder and gives a small shake of her head, probably to Carlos. “Is it like the movies with canoeing and zip-lining?”

“Yes and no,” Calypso intervened smoothly. “We do canoe races, but we also do metalwork, architecture and have historical projects like building replicas of Greek triremes. A lot of rich people like sending their children away during prime tour season, and they make their way to us.”

Elena’s eyes widen, her smile becomes more real, and Leo feels grateful that he can still read her easily. He glances back to Carlos, who’s speaking with Abuela. Abuela isn’t looking at Leo but instead out into the plains, and Leo’s heart sinks. She still blamed him for his mother’s death then.

Elena follows Leo’s gaze and her excitement dies down. She motions for them to follow and Leo tries not to throw up as they approach his grandmother, somehow he didn’t think that she’d appreciate that.

Leo stops, just in front of Carlos, who shakes his hand but says nothing else. Abuela doesn’t speak, she never makes the first move.

“Abuela Ximena,” Leo says, trying to sound dutiful and respectful instead of sad and resentful. “It’s nice to see you.”

Abuela Ximena sighs, turning to look at Leo, and he’s struck by how much she and he look like Sammy Valdez. The same impish face, eyes and sardonic twist to their lips. Leo’s face was a bit uglier due to his father’s nose and his too big ears, but beyond that he and Abuela shared an uncanny resemblance.

“Leonidas, they said you ran away twenty times, I’m surprised you're still alive.”

“Tia Callida made me tenacious.” Leo replies without missing a beat and to his surprise everyone in the room flinches. Abuela Ximena guiltily adverts her eyes, and Carlos and Elena share a look.

“Callida is dead.” Abuela says she sounds sad.

“I know,” Leo lies, “she had a letter sent to me after her death.” If he never had to see Hera again, it’d be too soon.

Abuela nods, straightens up and Leo unconsciously straightens up with her, ready to steady her like he did when he was a child. He hates himself for it. They had abandoned him, told him he killed his mother and left a nine-year-old to duke it out with the foster care system, and he still wants their approval.

“Calypso, was it? Come here, child.” Abuela says, and Calypso stands in front of his grandmother, probably using her magic to peer into her soul or something. “Tell me, do you know what Leonidas did?”

No, Leo thinks, dread trickling down his spine. No, no, no, it’s been nine years.

“Of course,” Calypso says unflinchingly. “He survived when your daughter did not, I’d think you should be more grateful a piece of your supposedly beloved daughter lived instead of despising it, but then again we’re all entitled to our own opinions.”

The deck goes silent. One beat, then two. Abuela turns red in embarrassment and fury, and Calypso is unmoved. Leo remembers with some amusement that Apollo and Hephaestus had been one of her few regular visitors to her island, and she’d likely thrown even more acidic quips in her direction.

“What do you know about that?” Abuela demands.

“My father tried to kill me, and my siblings locked me in a manor for ten years until Leo finally broke into said manor and helped me escape.” Calypso replies, going with the official ‘rich family with dark secrets’ story she and Chiron had concocted while creating her identity. The sad part was if you replaced the manor with an island and ten years for two millennia she had changed basically nothing, and it was perfectly believable. “In that time I’ve learned one of my sisters is dead, the other two are in jail and my brothers are missing. It has not been an easy adjustment.”

Everyone is silent for a moment. Then, Elena speaks. “Is this why you're a foster kid?”

Calypso nods. More silence.

Leo sighs and decides to be the peacekeeper for once in his life. “What do the doctors say? About Tia Rosa?”

The mood plummets even further.

.x.

Tia Rosa looks old as Leo waits for her to wake up. Calypso sits on the other side of the room towards the windows and stares out of them. But Leo can’t pull his eyes from her pale face.

She looks so much like his mother it hurts.

Leo drums his knees with his fingers and tries to think of what he should say to the woman who ruined his life.

Hey guess what, I didn’t kill Mom and I hunted down her murderer and burned her alive and killed myself in the process? They’d send the cops after him, again. Leo licks his lips and tries not to bolt from the room, instead finally pulling out his pipe cleaners and twisting and twisting and twisting, until they resembled the knot in Leo’s stomach that consumed him whole.

“Esperanza,” Tia Rosa breathes out, and Leo freezes. “Your boy is here, Esperanza, will you forgive me now?”

Leo can’t speak. Tears prickle in his eyes, and he isn’t strong enough to do this. He moves to stand up and feels a weight on his left leg. He stares down and finds that a wind spirit is gripping his leg tightly to the chair. He meets Calypso’s gaze from across the room and begs her with his eyes to let him go. She shakes her head and another wind spirit forces him back down into the chair.

“Tia Rosa,” Leo says, and his heart feels numb. “I’m here.”

“You are. See Esperanza, I brought him back, after all he did I brought him back. Can’t you forgive me now?”

“Tia,” Leo hesitates and takes her hand. He’s overwhelmed for a moment with the urge to burn it, but the moment passes and all he feels is sick. “Tia, do you need something from me?”

Tia Rosa’s eyes focus on Leo, hazel like his mother’s and Leo nearly vomits at the sight of them. She always looked too much like his mother for his memories to be comfortable being blameless.

“The ranch,” she slurs out, she pushes herself up and Leo helps her. Leo always helps her. “It’s yours.”

“Tia, that doesn’t make any sense—”

“It was supposed to be Esperanza’s, now it’s yours. Elena is too in love with the stars to take care of the horses, Carlos is too young to think of such things. You are a practical little boy, Leo, like Esperanza, like Papa, the ranch will be yours like she wanted.” Tia Rosa says. Her eyes are like flint and stern, the same way they were when she described him as his mother’s killer.

Her eyes wander the room and land on Calypso. “You're from my dream.” she mumbles. “Leo on that dragon and you behind him as you wandered lost.”

Leo looks at Calypso hopelessly, and tries to process everything. The ranch, Sammy’s ranch, was going to him? No, Abuela would not have it, Tio Concho would not have it. Leo couldn’t take care of it, not even if—

Esperanza’s Repair Shop and Ranch, a little voice in his head whispers. Hazel could come and pick up horses for Camp Jupiter, Jason could drink out on the porch, Piper could sing the new Cherokee lullabies she was learning from her cousins in Oklahoma. Nyssa and Harley could come help out with the rest of his siblings. Calypso could pop in for special offers of food and drink for the regulars. Festus could live in the four acres of land that they owned instead of the monster infested woods of CHB.

That dream is poison, he reminds himself. That dream is poison, that dream is poison, that dream is poison.

Then why is it so sweet?

Leo swallows the hope rising in his chest and instead lets go of Tia Rosa’s hand. “I hope you get better,” he lies. “Bye, Tia.”

“Hasta el final y hacia delante, Leo.” Tia Rosa says, her gaze focusing on Leo. “May Esperanza forgive both of us.”

Leo swallows the lump in his throat and nods. Calypso lets the wind spirits off him and they both stand. Calypso exits first and Leo bows his head in some semblance of respect to the dying.

“Que Dios te bendiga, Rosa.” Leo says. He takes Calypso’s hand and they exit the room.

They wait outside the door. Leo looks at her, she looks at Leo.

“California?” Leo asks, already pulling out a drachma.

“California.” Calypso agrees, a rainbow forming in front of them.

Leo smiles, giddy and maybe a little freely. He left Elena and Carlos his number for Camp, Abuela Ximena had refused to speak to him and Tio Concho was probably helping on the farm. Leo had finally had the chance to clear the fucking air and nothing, not even the gods themselves would keep him from achieving his dreams now that he had.

They walk out of the hospital, already planning their trip back to New York.

#heroes of olympus #leo valdez #calypso #my writing #🌻.fic #queue for the queue god

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