#james ironwoof verse

[askrossiel]

hc + 🎥 & hc + 🎡; from the meme, for wooftales verse ^^

🎥- a film/TV headcanon: Rossiel finds plenty of interesting things to watch on evenings when she's home alone, especially with access to either James's or her own Duckflix account. Adult!Siel has latched onto Joefur's Odd Journey, and Rossiel Ironwoof is currently making her way through Yu Yu Duckusho.

🎡- a hobby headcanon: When she's not making music or getting taken on adventures by Webby, Rossiel Ironwoof likes to draw, as well as to cook while supervised by James or Mr. Qrow. Adult!Siel visits museums with Honker and plays some of the games he recommends during their computer tutoring sessions, as well as going out for karaoke with Goldie.

[hardheadedbighearted]

@babyboydbaby

In the grand scheme of things, three months is not a long time to take to adopt. Adoption is a lengthy process, but it’s amazing how many problems go away if you throw enough money at them. Some people could take years to adopt, but with James Ironwoof, and more importantly his bank account, acting as a factor, it was only a few weeks before they’d been approved for adoption and were at that point just shopping around.

James hated it when Qrow called it that, but Qrow maintained that’s what they were doing. James insisted they were trying to find the child who was best suited for them, who they were best suited for.

They spent time at the orphanage, hanging out with the kids, getting to know them, and it wasn’t long before they knew that the little girl was meant for them.

She’d lost her parents in the Moonlander invasion; she’d had no other family to take her, and she was unsure of how she felt about being adopted by a new family, but something about the way she was holding herself reminded Qrow so much of James that when he saw her he just... knew.

When James met her, he agreed. She was theirs, she belonged with them, and soon enough they were courting her and she wanted to be a part of their family and they were in the paperwork process-

That part took the bulk of their time. There were processes that could only be rushed so much. In the meantime, they took their little girl out to dinner, out to lunch, out to museums, to the zoo, to the arcade- they spent time together, just the three of them, forming their family, and now, finally, finally, the process was done. The papers had been signed.

She was theirs. Their daughter. Their little girl.

And today was the day. Today they were bringing their little girl home.

Well, of course they had to have a party.

[rudechickenboy]

Just now occurred to me that I have five versions of Mercury on this blog so here's a quick index:

1. Chicken Fam: Default Mercury. This one is fifteen, and was found by Gyro after murdering his old man. He lives with Gyro at the bin, and is probably the friendliest Mercury I've got thanks to having a stable environment to heal from the horrors Marcus inflicted on him- at least the surface level ones, anyway. When I have more muse for plottier stuff, it's going to be time to actually start delving into the real heavy stuff and let Gyro find out the extend of what those horrors truly are- and help him move forward from them. This Mercury is the one I'm most likely to turn to for new partners.

2. DTLS: The OG. This one is (currently in universe) twenty, and thanks to going to Salem after murdering the old man, he's a lot harder and twistier. However, he's growing and learning to be a person. Since DTLS is a closed verse, he's only able to be interacted with behind the fourth wall.

3. Adult Mercury: Technically DTLS Mercury is also an adult, but this guy is in his thirties by default. In this au, Mercury is a stay-at-home dad to his two little guys (Scooter and Dizzy), though he teaches music history at the community college two days a week and moonlights as an mma fighter on the weekend. By default he's coupled to Jaune and the pair live and coparent with Pyrrha, however, this verse is the one I'm most likely to shake up to suit other partners ideas for verses, so that doesn't have to be set in stone. Mercury's post-murdering-the-old-man backstory isn't properly fleshed out yet, and will likely be altered to suit my needs as well.

4. Mercury Ironwoof: This one is also barely fleshed out and is both my newest and youngest Mercury. At twelve, this version is small, terrified, homeless, and ready to fight anything he sees as a threat, which is everything. Thanks to Rossiel he's found a few champions, though, and eventually will end up with James. He's just gotta take a detour first. This one is open for interaction, but in a very limited scope, since he's fitting into an existing linear plot instead of a loosey goosey wibbly wobbly blob of 'this is vaguely what we're planning'.

5. Mercury Gearloose This one is the youngest Mercury and also newest au, in which Gyro ends up with custody of Mercury right after he gets out of the hospital. Currently in-universe Mercury is still female, and going by Die. This one isn’t open yet, but may be eventually.

[grifalinas]

Ironqrow works I'm going to reimagine as original romance novels:

1. Royals. Obvs. I've been talking about this for a few days, and because the entire first draft is finished, it's going to be my priority, at least barring the shorts that I have less work to do for. Rewrite will feature much more tiny hellion Winter.

2. Billionaire's Bridegroom. Fake married with ludicrously rich James and the boys rediscovering their affection for their best friend as a result of their marriage. Was also my first time writing Ciel!

3. Heart of the Beech. Nanny au about James hiring Qrow to be Penny's nanny and Qrow injuring himself on James' good looks. This is the one where James' standin might be reimagined as trans :D Also featuring tiny hellion Winter.

4. Oh Fuck Oh No. Fake married take two! James and Qrow are college age and poor and get married for financial benefits. There was only one bed and oh no, they were roommates! Also featuring tiny hellion Winter.

5. Summertime In the Land of the Dead. Hades/Persephone reimagined to make it a gay romantic comedy of errors. The one where Raven declares war on death, but doesn't get her wife, the goddess of war, to help, because she's busy. Featuring chaos entity Roman Torchwick.

6. Legato Clouds. Western au about James coming out to a western town to investigate the Branwen bandits and getting caught up in a much bigger set of issues. This one had a plot about Pyrrha being James and Glynda's illegitimate daughter for some reason.

7. One Thousand Butterflies. Another arranged marriage au, this one an attempt to accomplish what Royals was originally meant to be, hence the engagement between James and Tai. Set to the Mamma Mia soundtracks. Also featuring tiny hellion Winter.

8. Look For Me By The Moonlight. Originally intended to be a tragic romance where Qrow ends up giving up his chance at having his curse broken rather than give up his love for James, it sort of... became something else.

9. I Saw Uncle Kissing Santa Clause. James is Santa Clause, I murdered Tai for this one to make up for all the dead Summer verses, and the North Pole is populated by gossips. Weirdly, doesn't feature tiny hellion Winter, even though she's just the right age for it. Was also the first fic I wrote with Ciel as James' daughter!

1o. The three (3) different attempts I made at writing a werewolf fic, because all three of those were really good and I was reading one of them this morning like "whoah! this fucks!" In hindsight, Ironwoof was not a huge plot twist. I've been trying to make this man a wolf for years.

11. Bodyguard of My Heart. Bodyguard au I made a spoof script for last year. The idea behind it is actually really fun and I think it would make a good full length work. However, because of the nature of its existence, it is the lowest priority, alongside the three (3) werewolf fics.

Works that I will not be revamping:

1. Hallmarks (probably). I still intend to finish it, don't worry! I've poured too much of my soul into this work to leave it unfinished. I'm just not sure about making it an original work, given that it really is tied together with the source content in my heart, in a way that a lot of the other pieces aren't.

2. All in the Batter. This was the first Ironqrow fic ever written and was hugely responsible for the ship being launched after the Moment happened, and so it needs to stay up. It's a mess, but it's a mess that means a lot to me as what it is.

3. Circle Time. Less for the work itself and more because it borrows so heavily from Discworld that I would have to revamp so much that it wouldn't be worth it.

[hardheadedbighearted]

Anyone order a Qrow?

[hardheadedbighearted]

Now that she’s here, it’s Ciel! Featuring the new fam too

[hardheadedbighearted]

Now that Penny is in her body, I can reveal it to y’all

[hardheadedbighearted]

Ozma never leaves his tower; Ozpin always has some scheme in play; and Oscar? Who knows what Oscar could be.

The Ozes are somewhat the local cryptids in the twin cities, as everyone who meets Ozma is in agreement that he is a fairy and the children are convinced Ozpin is an immortal wizard, and Oscar is developing rumors that he may be a long-lost prince of some kind.

[hardheadedbighearted]

“Look out there, young man. You see that city? Every single person in that city has hurt people. Some small hurts, immediately forgotten, lost to the minutiae of life. Other hurts larger, hurts that will scar and maim.” A sigh, a frown. “And some hurts that will never heal in all the lifetimes of humanity.”

He fell silent at that, and his frown deepened, and for just that breath of time he was a very old rooster indeed-

-and then just as quickly it passed and he gave Boyd a bright smile. “But that is the price we pay for our humanity. 

We are not meant to be alone.”

Volume One of the DTLS thread is now ended! It’s been a wild two weeks for us and a wild two months for the boys. What adventures are in store for Boyd and the Amity crew next? Which npcs will I introduce in the coming threads? How many times will I give in and thirst describe James? Only time will tell!

If you want to read the thread from the beginning, head over here!

[hardheadedbighearted]

Long legs, daisy dukes, makes a wolf go awoo awoo

[hardheadedbighearted]

James husband, protege, best friend, and sister in law: Always fighting, consider each other public enemy number one, may have tried to kill each other on at least one occasion

James: Not my business. I am looking away.

Gyro: Was bitchy to Pietro that one time

James: Gyro Gearloose is public enemy number one

[hardheadedbighearted]

Clover: -singing along to High School Musical in his underwear-

Winter: I’m moving out

[hardheadedbighearted]

Interstitial

“So,” James said, once Boyd had gone and James had watched until the Drakes’ car disappeared from the drive. He looped an arm around Qrow’s middle and nuzzled his neck, as much affection as a need for closeness. “What did you want to talk to me about?”

“Uh. Can it wait till after we eat?” Qrow asked, and James had wanted to say no, please, tell me now, just get it over with, but Qrow looked nervous so he said yes, and they ate-

(Deep fried pork chops, James’ favorite, but only the way Qrow made them-)

-and when they were done eating James said again, “What did you want to talk to me about?”

Qrow froze, and stared down at his empty plate, at his fork twirling nervously in his grasp, and shrugged.

“So um- uh- I’ve been uh. Talking with my therapist about something. And she agrees with me, so I’m not- uh- I’m not just pulling this out of my ass or anything, I’m- I’ve given it thought.”

James frowned, and reached over to lay a hand over Qrow’s. “Qrow, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, I’m just...” He took a deep breath, and another. “All this time, we’ve been trying to get me to the point of being ready to be a parent. But I don’t... think I’m... ever going to be ready. N-not the way I want to be. I’m always going to be one bad day from a relapse, I’m always going to want you to myself, I’m always- I’m always going to be broken.”

James stared at Qrow, his heart sinking in his chest- I’d rather be childless with Qrow than Qrowless with a child, he’d always said, but- but to have his greatest fears made real- to be faced with the reality that Qrow would never be ready, that they would never be parents-

“So- but- but I’ve been talking it over with my therapist a-and, I think... I think that’s not the point. I think I’ve been... going about this wrong.” He stared down at their joined hands, folding his other one around them and tracing little shapes on James’ paw with his thumb. “I got a lot of trauma. I got a lot of shit in my past that I’m still healing from, and it’s- it’s scary to think th-that I could be the thing my kid has to heal from. That twenty, thirty years from now my kid could be sitting in their therapist’s office saying my dad was a hard case, I always felt on the wrong foot around him and that’s been holding me back bu-but...”

He trailed off. James reached out his own free hand and joined it with the three already together on the table.

“Qrow...” He took a deep breath. “It’s- it’s okay if you’re never ready. We don’t have to be parents if- if that’s not what feels right for you.”

Qrow chuckled. “I knew you’d say that. But I’m not... that’s not what I’m saying. I’m saying, I think- I think I been going about this wrong. Looking at it from the wrong angle. I don’t think I need to be focusing on fixing me, making me some- some perfect parent who never messes up. I think it’s enough that I- I know how to repair the damage when I do mess up. And knowing where to draw the line, a-and...”

He finally looked up, meeting James’ eyes and bringing one of James’ paws up to rest on his cheek, leaning into the touch with his eyes closed.

“I love you,” he said quietly. “I want to be a parent with you, I want to share that with you, and I don’t... let’s face it, Jim, we’re not exactly a couple of spring chickens. I’m getting close to fifty and you’re not far behind me. And I don’t wanna turn around and realize I’m in my sixties and I’m still not ready.”

“What are you saying...?”

“I’m saying... I’ll never be as ready as I want to be. But I think... I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

[hardheadedbighearted]

Interstitial

Qrow tended to bring James his lunch most days now. It was a nice chance to get a little time for themselves now that they had Ciel- they loved her, yes, gods, they loved her so much, more than Qrow had ever realized he would, had realized was possible, but given how much trouble they had keeping their eyes and hands off of each other and given that Ciel still had trouble being alone, they had to grab what time they could.

So Qrow brought James his lunch most days, and they got to spend a little time before James had to get back to work and Qrow had to get back to... well, whatever he did during the day. He had several projects on the go right now, and of course there was always training. The shadow creatures that terrorized the cities had become more common these days, and the Ace Ops and that new Hunts-Man kid would not be enough to keep them at bay alone.

If something didn’t give soon, there would be a new hero joining the ranks in the cities, though Qrow drew the line at a stupid costume.

Still, none of that was important right now. The important thing was that it was almost James’ lunchtime, and Qrow had timed it so he would get there just in time to make him put his work down so he could eat it.

Qrow hummed a sea shanty to himself as he rode the elevator up to James’ office, and then froze in place one step out at the sight in front of him.

Part of him melted. The part of him that ached for an easy domesticity that he had robbed them of the day he walked away from the mangled mess that was his boyfriend, the soft, gooey, marshmallowy center of him that wished for things that could not have happened for the people they once were, that part was threatening to burst from how cute it was.

The other half was just... very deeply confused.

James was at his desk, for once not working diligently- instead he had a sleeping wolf pup on his chest; he’d leaned his chair back and was petting the pup gently while he hummed to it.

Judging by the way the pup was nearly engulfed by just one of James’ paws, Qrow suspected it was newborn. Probably hadn’t even opened its eyes yet.

“Where did you get that?” he asked- demanded, baffled. “Did you steal it? You can’t just steal babies, Ironwoof, give it back.”

James just chuckled, rocking forward and transferring the pup to his arms, settling it carefully into his hold. He made a shhhhh noise, partly to the pup and partly to Qrow.

“I didn’t steal him,” he said quietly, once Qrow was close enough to hear. Qrow perched himself on the edge of the desk, eyes drawn to the little pup in his husband’s arms. Gods, they could have had that. Why did he have to be so stupid?

“So where’d you get him, then?”

“He’s Minerva’s. I’m only borrowing him.”

“Isn’t she on maternity leave?”

“Yes. She came by to show off her son to her coworkers.”

“Makes sense.” Qrow nodded. “But that does not explain why you are here, with her son, and she is not.”

“She needed to take care of something in her lab while she was here. She asked me to watch him for a few minutes.”

Which was a pretty solid explanation, and no doubt James had jumped at the chance to hold and cuddle the sweet little thing for as long as possible. And no doubt Minerva knew she could take the time she needed, as long as James Ironwoof had her son.

Qrow frowned, and reached out to tickle the pup’s muzzle, pleased when he made a whiny noise and sought out the finger tickling him. Qrow booped his nose and withdrew his hand.

“Y-y’know... we don’t have to stop at just Ciel... if you want more kids...”

“Maybe,” James murmured, absently nuzzling the infant in his arms when he began to fuss, making soft crooning noises until he’d settled again. “I’m very content with ‘just’ Ciel, though. I think more than one child would make it harder to give her the attention and love she deserves.”

“You sure? Cause... not gonna lie, big man, you look awful right holding that baby.”

James chuckled again. “Qrow? I do not have time to raise an infant.”

“No?”

“Even if we did decide- later- that we wanted more children- both of us, not just me- we would do better to adopt older children. I love holding babies, but in an hour I have to get back to work, and this tiny man would need more of my attention than I could spare. As it is, within about ten minutes his mother will be back to collect him, and I can eat my lunch and pay attention to my husband while his mother takes him home and pays attention to him.”

“I guess.” Qrow looked a little disgruntled; James shifted the pup to one arm extremely carefully so he could take his hand and lace their fingers together.

“I love you,” he murmured.

Qrow’s face softened into a smile. “Yeah. Love you too.”

[hardheadedbighearted]

Onscreen npc’s thus far (just for my own organizational purposes)

💕 Winter Schneebird: (Black-legged kittiwake gull) James’ niece, heir, and protege. Disowned in her late teens, she turned to the only family she had left, her then-estranged uncle, who took her in. They have a very emotionally dependent relationship that runs in both directions, but they love each other devotedly and are very good for each other in the long run. She lives with Clover, and they have a very love-hate relationship.

A secret about her: Winter kinda sorta doesn’t want James to have kids because she’s afraid he’ll stop caring about her once he no longer has a need to project onto her. Oh, Winter.

💕 Pietro Polendina: (Louisianna black bear) One of James’ oldest friends and one of the people responsible for his change in character in his youth. Widely considered one of the most brilliant minds in the world and regarded as the kindest man you’ll ever meet. Knows James better than anyone, including Qrow, and can usually talk him into things others would never be able to. Unable to have children naturally himself, he shares James’ frustration with his lack of parenthood, and this is one reason he’s poured himself into developing Penny. Qrow sometimes refers to him as James’ boyfriend.

A secret about him: He sometimes worries that James and Qrow’s relationship is one-sided and will ultimately end with James getting his heart broken.

💕 Qrow Branwen: (common Raven) James’ husband and emotional anchor. Recovering alcoholic. After dating James in their youth, they broke up because {redacted}, and got together again a few years ago. This time their relationship panned out and they eventually got married. For all his outward behavior, Qrow is actually very devoted, often quietly shouldering some of the many burdens James insists on carrying for everyone else. He wants children as much as James does, but feels that he would be detrimental to them in his current state, so they have put off parenthood for awhile.

A secret about him: He regrets how badly he messed up with Winter, because he feels James would have adopted her officially by now if it weren’t for Qrow, and knows she moved out because of him.

💕 Clover Ebi: (golden retriever) Head of security at Amity Labs and one of James’ proteges. Secret identity of Ace, the leader of the Ace Operatives, the Twin Cities’ mahou sentai team. Clover is earnest and sincere and completely loyal to James, who he regards as having given him everything. Despite some rather apparently tunnel vision, he likes to help people, and is always happy to escort the kids if they’re at the lab for the day. He lives with Winter and is also close to Qrow, and both like him more than they’re willing to admit; both are also sure that they’re going to put him in the ground one of these days.

A secret about him: He has a girlfriend who works for SALEM, and is worried James will consider him a security breach if he finds out.

💕 Ruby: (red-hooded tanager) James and Qrow’s niece on Qrow’s side of the family. Thirteen and very excitable. Ruby wants to grow up to study robotics one day, and often hangs around at the lab trying to soak up information. While most of the staff at the lab know her and are somewhat okay with letting her observe their work, she spends most of her time in Pietro’s lab, where she is most comfortable and feels most welcome. Overall a positive force and a friendly girl, she was deemed a perfect first friend for Penny when they got her working.

A secret about her: She has a crush on a girl way too old for her. She knows it can’t be (for that and other reasons) but that isn’t going to stop her daydreaming anyway.

💕 Ozma: (red bantam rooster) A fairy. A troll. A cryptic bastard. James met Ozma in his teen years, and has always found his brand extremely frustrating, especially as so many people take things as evidence of magic at face value instead of looking at the logical explanation. Ozma rarely leaves the tower these days, to the point that most people don’t even know he exists. Those that do are agreed that he’s a fairy, though. Though he won’t give details about himself, he will sometimes drop hints to a sad, despair-filled past.

💕 Ozpin: (red bantam chicken) Probably an immortal wizard and Ozma’s counterpart. Met James when James was a teenager, and is one of the other people responsible for James’ change of tune in his youth. James once considered him a father figure; while he still has confusing feelings about him in regards to this, recent actions have led him to feel betrayed by this, so their relationship is messy and complicated as a result.

💕 Arthur Watts: (saddle-billed stork) James’ ex. Hacker for SALEM. Bastard man. Ninety percent leg, even by stork standards. He and James met through Pietro when James was recovering from his accident, and there followed a very toxic couple of years that James would spend far longer recovering from. After James started dating Qrow, Arthur did a tabloid interview about their (up to this point unknown) relationship, both outing James when he’d preferred to keep his sexuality private, as well as casting aspersions on his character (the implications being that James cheated on him, among other things). He is James’ main link when doing his work with SALEM, and never fails to use his visits to remind James he still has a measure of power over him.

A secret about him: He’s still in love with James

💕 SALEM: Not so much a person as a company. On the surface, SALEM is just a regular old r&d company (and a much smaller one that Amity). What’s known is they do medical and robotics testing, do contract work for the military, and develop prosthetics. What’s rumoured is that they engage in shady, unethical practices, experiment on humans, and may have done the sort of genetic experimentation that horror movies start with. The company’s ceo’s identity is unknown, even down to pronouns, so the company is usually referred to interchangeably with whoever is in charge (so “SALEM” could refer to the company and its practices, or the person in charge). James has business with them through some inherited contracts he can’t get out of, but he’s working on that- in the meantime, it’s hinted that he knows more about the inner workings of the company than he lets on.

[hardheadedbighearted]

Me: Would Ruby really have that many stuffed animals?

My brain: She’s an easily excitable thirteen-year-old girl with a devoted and childless uncle who could and would buy her a country if it would make her happy

My brain: She probably has a whole room full of them