#mostly because there's at least a couple of them that are named after like scientists and shit

[arolesbianism]

One thing that makes my life oh so hard is that I don't actually care for most of the popular dupes that much. I don't Not like them to be clear, I do like them, I just also feel like I'm staring at a color blind test whenever I see ppl talk abt their favorite dupes and everyone involved is obsessed with the same like 3 dupes that I just sort of like well enough and nothing more. Sorry women I don't actually care abt Bubbles that much 😔

[harrowharks-iliac-crest]

Alecto

Characters

<< Previous: John | Masterpost

-

Alecto, the most important character who we know the least about.

Here are some theories:

She was an alien of some kind: she's been described as "not human", and a "monster". Monsterhood can take on different forms, so it's fairly nondescript. But she was certainly exceptional in many ways.

She could have been a genetic anomaly, human but not, and it gave her powers.

Was she already this wild, angry, powerful, nonhuman monster before John resurrected her? None of the other Lyctors knew her before John resurrected her, and fused with her via perfect Lyctorhood. At this point, she would have been enormously powerful, and possibly using this power willfully; she wasn't just herself, she was an amalgam of her and John.

Here's how John describes her:

He said, “It stood for a couple of things. A joke, mostly. I often called her Annabel Lee. Annie Laurie. When I first met her I just called her First, One. She had a real name, but I buried it with her, and nobody says it anymore. “She has been dead for nearly ten thousand years, but she keeps her vigil with me, as a memory, if nothing else … Annabel Lee was my—what do I call her? Guide? Friend? I’d hoped so…” You did not know how to respond to this. He did not seem to need a response. God said, “She was the first Resurrection. She was my Adam. As the dust settled and I beheld what was left and what was gone, I was entirely alone. The world had been ended, Harrowhark. One moment I was a man, and then the next moment I was the Necrolord Prime, the first necromancer, and more importantly, a landlord with no tenants.”

No lie, John knowing Alecto as "First", and "One", to me creepily suggests that she was a specimen. That John was some kind of scientist studying her. (Yuck.) Perhaps even a genetically engineered fetus he created and grew himself. I could be misreading this of course. She could be an alien with alien powers. She might not have been human at all, though compatible enough with humans to Lyctor with them and possibly even reproduce.

John says she was his first resurrection. The way he describes the event makes it sound like he needed all the energy in the whole entire universe to do it, and that this was what killed the First House, and all the other Houses that existed at the time, and the planets, and the sun.

Then there's this:

The dead corse of the Locked Tomb—the death of the Emperor—the maiden with the sword and the chains, the girl in the ice, the woman of the cold rock, the being behind the stone that could never be rolled away—said, in half-confused tones she had never taken with you: “I don’t know. I died, once … no, twice,” but then she had said no more.

(Hinting at Alecto the Ninth - the future book - continuing the trend of being told from the perspective of the person who knows least about what's going on.)

But she died twice - once presumably before John resurrected her (allegedly), and the second time - when she got locked away? Or was there another one? (Still convinced Alecto isn't dead currently.)

Was Alecto's resurrection the same incident, or a different one, to John and Alecto's Lyctoral Ascension?

And who was Alecto... before she died the first time?

The Alecto we see in Harrow's "hallucinations" is quiet, protective of Harrow, secretive. She betrays little emotion, but when she does, it's never... vicious, her spirit so different from Wake in this respect. She seems genuinely sweet, far from the monster we've heard described. Her presence is comforting for Harrow.

We've also heard Augustine say:

“My lord,” said Augustine formally, “you told us the truth about Annabel—about Alecto—because she knew the truth about it too, and you never could control her. Even after two centuries, I’m not sure she ever managed to lie. That was what stayed my hand for such a long time. How would you have asked Alecto the First to lie—how would you have persuaded that mad monster into even an unsophisticated con?” God said, “Don’t call her that.” “A monster, John!” Augustine barked. “She was a bloody monster in a human suit! She was a monster the moment you resurrected her, and you went and made her worse!”

So she couldn't lie, but still "a monster" who John managed to "make worse". But also maybe not the brightest? Excepting the Monster part, she sounds like almost more of a himbo than Gideon.

What powers did she have then, to be so frequently called a monster?

It's very difficult to tangle apart what's actually Alecto, which of John's powers are actually her powers, and which of her post-resurrection/Lyctorhood powers are John's.

I think John's tangy type of magic which heals instantly and puts him back together again from atoms after Mercymorn "kills" him, the power which makes people so compelled to talk and tell him the truth, that's actually Alecto's powers - as discussed in the previous post.

Her powers - hers, not John's, or hers being used through John - post-resurrection and pre - are not very defined, at all, but it is safe to say that she must be very powerful. If I'm right and the citrus instant-powers John uses are actually Alecto's, then she is quite close to being a necromancer herself. I don't think her and John correspond neatly to the necro/cav dichotomy.

The whole thing with Ortus and Nonius shows that words are powerful in the River and possibly outside. I think Alecto's powers are as such that even saying her name can invoke her spirit - which is why John doesn't want her name to be said, ever. I think she is still alive - and the ice and tomb and wards are there to keep her out, and keep her spirit from attaching itself to people and things. I think that's what happened with Harrow when she opened the tomb. Alecto doesn't need a connection to something, or someone, to attach herself to them. Or maybe Harrow's instant love for her was enough. Or maybe the love itself is a manifestation of Alecto's powers? Either way, she did not have to be related to Harrow, or attached to Harrow, to hitch a ride with her. An impenetrable ice cave warded to all hell - not even a mouse would have been able to get in. Probably, Alecto would have been able to possess a mouse and get her spirit, at least, out that way. This is why it was important to keep everyone and everything out of the tomb and lock it forever. Alecto's powers are on the same level, if not higher, than God's.

I think Alecto must have figured out first that resurrection and necromancy was an awful, horrible thing to do that would draw the wrath of dead planets and souls.

I think a lot of the plotting against the emperor is by her design, somehow. That when she "went away" from Harrow in the last few weeks of HtN, she was Doing Something, her soul connecting to the Blood of Eden, or the Resurrection Beasts, or something. It's been established by now, quite formly, that just cus someone's dead - or incapacitated - this doesn't keep them from having influence on the plot. At least for the past eight years, Alecto has been with Harrow, and therefore much freer in how her soul would roam.

I'm hella excited to find out what will happen with Alecto.

This concludes the character section; I'm going to briefly attempt to predict some plot and theorise about Nona before actually getting this liveblog back off the ground!

>> Next: Plot Predictions

[0xxsolxx0]

ABOUT SOL

[sometimes he does try at times incorporate what his au characters would wear. so sans or papyrus outfits or even toriel since he does miss them] 

[has eyebags just forgot to add em in]

Name:

Sol [pronounced like soul]

Age:

24-30

Height:

5'4

Sexuality:

Demi sexual and Demi romantic

Panromantic

Gender:

Male

He/They

Occupation:

Before his au got destroyed he was actually and enigeer/mechanic, who worked for anyone[mostly the king] so him and alphys work together a decent amount

Likes:

Tinkering around with random things.

He likes chewing and eating ice cubes as it calms him down[usually helps after a panic attack]

He also liked staying inside a lot.

Sweets and soda [any junk food honestly]

eating new things

Dislikes:

Being alone which is why you can usually him hanging out in an au or with someone.

Sleeping[he does sleep] mostly because he gets nightmares/night terrors each night.

Surprisingly he hates coffee dislikes the bitter taste.

People sneaking up on him he tends to flinch.

Ability:

He can copy other peoples attacks/abilities/powers[he can choose to copy a singular a ability a person or people have or mutilple. Though habing mutilpy cause causes more x's and pain. He also has to have seen it in action at least once]. Though each time he does that it adds more x's to his body also where the x was placed it fills him with pain in that spot for a couples day to a week. He can use telekinesis like sans and papyrus. He also has the ability to travel through different au's[he can summon portals. Though they can become unstable if he doesnt concerate on it and keeps his focus on where he wants to go. Because of that he had many instances of accidentally ending up in the wrong aus or random ones]

He previously before having his au destroyed did not have the copy ability or the ability to travel through au's. he only got them after his au got destroyed. He is not sure how he got them and why they made x's on his body.

Mental illnesses:

PTSD, Dissociative amnesia, Depression, Insomnia

Personality:

He tends to try to stay positive despite his situation. Quite charismatic and gets along with most people. He tries to help out when he can. Otherwise you can find him teasing and being playful in the classical(undertale) au.

Summary:

A amnesiac insomniac traumatized skeleton who hangs around different au's. Also there is obviously something wrong with his soul and scars but he tries to not really think about it. He also has no idea what the x's on his body mean.[he has those x's all around his body]

Info:

He isn't a sans[also isn't related to them]. He can travel through the universes like ink and many other characters. His universe was destroyed but because of his injuries he doesn't remember who or what destroyed his universe.[the au has all the usually characters just more monsters of different types and the areas are more expanded and have more things]

Frisk decided to stay and live in the underground. they have only reached waterfall[havent been to hotland or any other places after waterfall] They are friend with sans and papy. They havent met mettaton, undyne or alphys]

Sans in this universe[before it got destroyed] was still an judge and a scientist assistant expect now he was an assistant of alphys. Papyrus also was able to join the royal guard.

Since Sol's universe got destroyed he tends to hang around different au's though he sticks to undertale more as it reminds him more of how his au was. He isn't with ink or the bad sans he is mostly just a guy who at times helps ink [or any of the other star sans if they need help]

He suffers from nightmares often and has pstd. He can't sleep well since his brain just fills it flashbacks to what happens[though once he wakes up he forgets about what happens in his dreams]

Au's he has been in or met:

He has met most of the undertale,swap tale and underfell people

He is friendly towards most of them

He knows ink as ink found him after his au got destroyed[error didnt destroy his au btw]

ink and him are friends. he also friends with most of the star san's

has met error. He is on more neutral/slightly friendly terms with error[as much as he can be since error isnt a people peron].

He has only met cross[not sure if he counts as a the bad san's but he has met him] He haven't met most of the bad sans but heard of them.

[mysecretlittlelibrary]

Just Let Me Adore You Pt. 3

Pairing: Stucky x Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: ah just men butting heads

Genre: fluff mostly I think

Summary: You’ve been dating your boyfriend, Bruce, for 3 absolutely blissful years. He’s a scientist and professor who is as smart as he is kind and if anyone asked, you were sure you’d spend the rest of your life with him. That is until two mysteriously charming men that Bruce swears are dangerous take an interest in you that threatens to turn your entire life upside down. I mean… what exactly are you supposed to do with two gorgeous men telling you something that suggests that basically everything you think you know is a lie? And why does part of you have enough doubt to wonder if they might be telling the truth?

Series Masterlist

***

The weather today is perfect for a picnic, at least that's what Bruce told you when you rolled out of bed this morning so he packed a basket and now you're relaxing after lunch at the park under a tree.

"This is nice." You hum.

"I'm glad you liked the impromptu picnic." Bruce smiles.

"How often do you plan something I don't like Bruce?" You chuckle.

"Well rarely because I know you well." He kisses your hand.

"And I, you. It's why we work." You kiss his hand too. "Look at clouds with me." You tell him tugging him to lay on the picnic blanket with you. He shifts to lay next to you and you spend a while giggling over the shapes you find in the clouds and talking about random things. Before you know it, you've been at the park for a few hours and you're deciding to head out.

"We should go see a movie or something." Bruce suggests as you walk.

"Not ready to go home?" You tease.

"It's a nice day, and it's nice to do things together." He shrugs.

"Do you think the zoo will be busy? Maybe we should do that. Since the weather is nice."

"We might run into a field trip group or two." He muses.

"Excuse us." A voice behind you says and you move closer to Bruce to let them by only to realize it's the two men from the sandwich shop a couple of weeks ago.

"Hey it's you guys!" You say before you can stop yourself and the pair turn around with confused expressions that quickly turn to smiles when they see you.

"You know these guys?" Bruce frowns and you hold a hand up.

"Hey, it's nice to see you again." The brunette says and you realize something you hadn't noticed before. His voice is a bit rougher than the blonde, a deep rumble that caresses your ears.

"We didn't get to introduce ourselves last time." The blonde says.

"Well that might be because I didn't ask you to." You point out.

"I'm asking. Who are you guys?" Bruce asks with a tight-lipped frown on his face that has you squeezing his hand reassuringly.

"I'm Steve and this is my buddy Bucky." The blonde one chuckles.

"Bruce." Bruce clips, holding his hand out to shake Steve's and then Bucky's.

"Do you have a name or should we just shout sunshine next time we see you?" Steve asks you.

"Sunshine?" You frown. "Oh is this about the radiance thing?"

"Glad to know it stuck with you." He smiles.

"It was an unusual compliment."

"These are the guys from the sandwich shop?" Bruce asks you.

"Yes." You nod.

"Sunshine?" Bucky grabs your attention this time.

"I don't think we'll make a habit of running into each other but if you do see me again my name is Y/n. Please don't call me sunshine." You tell them flatly.

"Anything you want, y/n." Bucky nods with a smirk.

"If you'll excuse us, my girl and I have a busy evening planned and have to get going." Bruce places his hand on your back and leads you away before either of them can say anything. "I'm not in the mood for the movies anymore." Bruce says grimly once Steve and Bucky are out of earshot.

"Okay, we'll just go home." You say quietly with a comforting pat on his chest. You walk home in silence but once you're in your apartment you decide to say something to him. "Bruce? Don't get all bent out of shape over this darling. They're just strangers." You frown.

"What are the chances?" Bruce asks.

"What?"

"In a state with a few million people, what are the chances you run into the same person twice two weeks apart?" Bruce asks.

"Well, I- don't know what the statistical probability of that is but I mean if you live in the same area you're gonna see the same people Bruce and we were like 10 minutes from the sandwich shop I saw them in the first time." You say.

"Something odd is going on here."

"I dunno about that Bruce I know you worry but I think they just live around there."

"I don't know who is on top of this wolf mob but-"

"How did we get to the wolf mob, you think those men are werewolves?"

"I don't know our list isn't complete, we found out very little about the leaders, but I was pretty sure their initials are S and B."

"So you think it's Steve and Bucky, two men you've met today? As though S and B are not pretty common first name letters? I mean your name starts with a B and Sam starts with an S, he could be the S you think you're looking for."

"Sam is not running this."

"You don't know that. You aren't part of it so all you can do is guess. Besides, if those guys meant me harm, why have they only ever approached me when I'm with other people? Would it not be easier to wait til I'm alone? I do lots of stuff alone."

"I don't have all the answers y/n I just know that interaction made me... apprehensive."

"Maybe because you think they were flirting with me."

"They were, and that made me angry, but outside of the anger there was apprehension."

"Alright short of completely avoiding the park and that sandwich shop there's not really much I can do about this. I don't know them and they don't know me it's not like I'm meeting with them on purpose." You shrug. You watch Bruce's jaw tick as he contemplates his response and you use the pause in the conversation to take him into your arms. "I'm not saying you're wrong to worry, but this isn't like having a friend you don't trust, these guys are strangers. I can't exactly cut contact with people I'm not intentionally in contact with." You tell him.

"I know. I just- I wish there was more I could do to protect you." He sighs, wrapping his arms around you.

"I think you're doing all you can short of locking me in here like Rapunzel." You chuckle.

"That's an idea." He jokes kissing your nose.

"You lock me in here and Wanda will have your head long before the wolf mob even finds you." You poke his side.

"Yeah she probably will." He laughs. The way Bruce worries is, a little concerning- that level of anxiousness can't be good but you appreciate how much he cares and do what you can to ease his trepidations.

~*~*~

You flip through TV channels as you sit on Wanda's couch while she attempts a new recipe she wants you to try.

"Oh I saw those guys again by the way Wanda." You tell her.

"What guys?" She asks.

"The guys from the sandwich shop a few weeks ago. I saw them the other day but this time with Bruce." You say.

"Aw boo I missed a chance to see the Greek statues? What unfortunate luck." She sighs.

"Girl aren't you still seeing that Wes guy?"

"Eh probably not for long." She shrugs.

"What? Why? I thought you liked him!"

"I do but- he's a theoretical physicist and it's like, his primary personality trait. It's all he wants to talk about."

"A theoretical physicist?" You frown walking into the kitchen for a soda.

"Yes! And it's so unfortunate because he's really sweet and he's funny when I can get him to talk about other stuff but it's so hard to keep him from reverting back to theoretical physics!"

"Well, at least he's passionate about something?" You offer.

"I think it's great that he's passionate. I even think it's cute that he has a special interest I just wish his special interest wasn't pretty much his only interest." Wanda says.

"Well it's not his only interest, he's interested in you!" You joke and she shoves you lightly. "Sorry sorry, I had to. I'm sure it's not the funnest situation to be in. If you really feel incompatible with him cut the guy loose and do it quick. You've been seeing him for like two months already if you know you don't wanna see him anymore it's not fair to him."

"That's the thing I do like him. I just wish he talked about stuff other than his work."

"Personally, I think that's enough reason to cut him loose but if you want to keep seeing him you have a couple options." You say tossing yourself back onto the couch.

"And those options are?" She asks.

"Well, it could be a nervous trait maybe he's trying to avoid looking like an idiot by sticking to something he's comfortable with. You could always try to connect other conversation topics to astrophysics-"

"Theoretical physics."

"Right that. Try to make connections to make him more comfortable branching out. Or you can be honest with him. Tell him you don't understand theoretical physics and you'd rather talk about other things, or he has to explain it to you like you're stupid." You tell her.

"Do you think that'll work?"

"Well if he likes you as much as you like him and you want this to go anywhere I think honesty is the best course of action. How he reacts is out of your hands but ya know, tell the truth, walk away without regrets." You say. Wanda hums in agreement.

"Oh what happened with the Greek statues?" She asks.

"They introduced themselves, and maybe flirted with me? It was painfully awkward honestly."

"Maybe flirted with you?"

"Yeah they told me their names and suggested they should call me 'sunshine' when asking my name, because of the radiance comment from before."

"Sunshine! That's actually so cute. Wait what are their names?"

"Steve and Bucky."

"Well I do hope we run into them again. I don't want to date them they're just nice to look at."

"They make Bruce paranoid so I'd rather not." You sigh.

"Why? Does he think they're a threat?"

"Not a romantic one-" You mutter.

"What does that mean?"

"Bruce is worried some research he did might be coming back to bite him in the ass and he worries that I will get caught in the crossfire so anything even slightly out of the ordinary, like meeting two large strangers on more than one occasion, has him on edge lately."

"That must be annoying."

"I worry about him. It can't be good for him to be this agitated so often."

"You've got that right." Wanda chuckles.

~*~*~

"Sunshine!" The nickname grabs your attention when you're walking with Bruce and your first thought is 'not again'.

"Y/n, Buck, she said to call her y/n." Steve smacks his friend on the back of the head.

"Sorry y/n, sunshine just suits you so well." Bucky says sheepishly.

"Are you guys always together?" You frown.

"Most of the time. We're life partners." Steve tells you.

"Is that a romantic thing?" You ask.

"Not really. We have a business together but it means most of our decisions have to be made together."

"Including nonbusiness decisions?"

"Especially those ones."

"Look whatever it is you want with me,  leave her out of it." Bruce warns stepping closer to Steve and Bucky.

"You? We don't want anything with you. We're only concerned with her." Bucky scoffs.

"Me? What could you possibly want with me?" You blink at them.

"To give you the world. It's what you deserve." Bucky says with a gentle look.

"Okay, that's a bit dramatic. I can't imagine what would lead you to believe that." You shake your head.

"Y/n, you're not like this guy." Steve offers.

"What the hell man!" Bruce grabs you suddenly and puts you behind him.

"Bruce. Don't pick a fight. Let's just leave." You place a hand on his arm. Bruce cannot take both of them.

"Bruce- why does that name sound so familiar?" Steve mutters, primarily to himself. "Buck, call the scouts and-"

"On it." Bucky says pulling out his phone before Steve even finishes his request. "Yo, do we have anything on anyone named Bruce anywhere?" Bucky asks the person on the phone. You concentrate on hearing the other voice, it sounds vaguely familiar but you can't pinpoint it. That aside, you manage to catch the person mentioning 'Banner' and that he's a scientist, and offering to send a photo to Bucky, the last part making you bristle. You need a way out of this, and quickly.

"Look I'm- flattered that you both seem- infatuated with me but I am in a relationship and you need to respect that." You say grabbing Bruce to try and pull him down the street. "They know." You whisper to him.

"The fucking scientist!" Steve exclaims making your pace falter. Bruce turns around in time for Steve to get very in his face.

"You know, don't you? You know and you lie to her, you keep her in the dark." Steve grits out and you force yourself between them, pushing Steve away from Bruce.

"Stop it. Holy shit." You keep a hand in front of you, assuming, rather foolishly if you think about it too much, that Steve won't try to go through you to hurt Bruce.

"You know your boyfriend studies us like wild animals?" Steve glares over your head at Bruce.

"You're supernaturals?" You ask quietly.

"Yeah and your boyfriend here treats us like lab rats. You know that?" Steve's eyes snap to you.

"I know he studies supernaturals, but he doesn't do anything to harm anyone." You say.

"You believe that?" Bucky snorts.

"I do. Because I trust him."

"Y/n, men like him will only seek to control you or hurt you. Hurt us." Steve tells you.

"Us?"

"You're like me, like Bucky, you're a werewolf."

"No, no I'm not." You shake your head.

"You are. And I'm sure Bruce knows it too." Steve says.

"Steve, that doesn't make any sense."

"No? You're telling me you can't hear things miles away? Smell things even further? You don't ever question why things others would struggle with are easy for you?" Steve asks, crouching to be at eye level with you. Each question sows a seed of doubt in your mind and you can only hope he can't see it in your gaze.

"You guys are fucking insane." Bruce steps in gabbing your hand and pulling you away from Steve. "Stay away from us." He throws as he practically drags you away from them. Bruce stalks home silently while you mull over Steve's words. He can't be telling the truth. You'd know if you were a werewolf right? Your parents would have told you. There'd be some kind of indication other than kinda better than normal hearing or a weird level of strength. How could they know and not you?

***

Part 3/???

Tagged Users: @cjand10 @vicmc624

[theamityelf]

Uh, I remember you have an AU where Makoto became Hope Tutor for Izuru. Can I asked more detail about it?

Gah, this is my first time doing this I don't know how to ask properly

That's totally fine; you're doing great!

Boy, "hope tutor AU" is definitely what I should have tagged this as, lol. Well, let's see.

First thing is, the AU isn't anime-compliant and might not be compliant with most other supplemental materials, since most of my Danganronpa fan works are based mostly on game canon.

In order for Makoto to have been identified as someone suited to the task of making Izuru come across as more personable and inspiring, he must have earned the faculty's notice in that regard. Which means this could cross over with the debate club AU (seeing as that's a good way for them to have seen him flourish in public speaking), but also it's not all that important to go into when exactly he earned their notice.

I'm thinking Makoto just walks into homeroom one morning and his teacher tells him that the headmaster has asked for him in some other room. He goes to that other room, and a couple of guys in suits are like "Makoto Naegi, the Academy has an important task for you. Should any details of this conversation be told to anyone outside this room, you will face consequences far more severe than expulsion."

Makoto is just like "U-Uh, okay. Are you sure you have the right person for whatever this is?"

They say something like, "Believe me, we're as surprised as you are."

Maybe they have Jin Kirigiri come in to cut the tension, like, "Hey, these guys are pretty intimidating, but really we just need you to help out with this great project we're working on."

And Makoto goes, "Oh, sure, I'd love to help."

And they take him down to the labs- not quite to Kamukura's room, but to a secondary room where Kamukura has also been taken. (Maybe Makoto's blindfolded on the way there.)

He's just left in an almost featureless room to sit across a table from Izuru, who's just Kubrick Staring him through his hair.

"Hi, I'm Makoto Naegi," he says nervously.

Eyes like rubies stare him down.

"They, uh...The guys who brought me here didn't really tell me what I was supposed to be doing. Just that I should come and meet you, and that you would take care of the rest. What's your name? I don't think I've seen you around here, but you look like you're around my age. I wasn't expecting that."

The person seated across from him straightens, raising his chin in a way that almost reminds him of Byakuya, but devoid of any of the fire or ice that usually sits behind Byakuya's eyes. And the stranger still doesn't say anything. (Probably. It would be kind of funny if Izuru went, "What else about my appearance didn't you expect?" and just generally probed at Makoto's words to make him flounder.)

Makoto waits for at least a minute before breaking the silence again, "Sorry, if there's something I'm supposed to be saying or doing, I don't know what it is."

Eventually (either right then or after more false starts), Izuru says, "Makoto Naegi, Ultimate Lucky Student from Hope's Peak's 78th class. You're here so that I can learn you."

"Learn me?"

"Yes. The faculty has assessed that, in terms of general likability and ability to sway people, you're the student who has the most to teach me. Unfortunately, I haven't found anything in your disposition worth emulating in the past few minutes." And actually, I am going to cross this over with the debate club AU, just because I like the idea of Izuru having already been shown footage of Makoto's debate wins before they met. "I've seen the footage of you in debate club. Is this how you are normally?"

"Well, yes. Pretty much."

"That explains why everyone looks surprised when they see you in debate club."

Makoto laughs nervously. "Looks like you've learned me already." Am I allowed to leave now?

"Not yet. Your contradictions are...almost interesting."

I like the idea of the scientists and teachers allotting Izuru an hour or so with Makoto pretty much anytime he wants it, because it means that when his (for lack of a better word) "use" for Makoto goes from pragmatic interest to subjective fascination to just enjoyment of being around him, he'll have people going "Are you sure you still need to talk to Naegi?" And he'll still be saying, "Yes. Bring him here."

And I like the idea that he can do this at pretty much any time, so he can pull Makoto out of any class, lunch, whatever. Maybe one day he's looking at the school's security cameras and sees that Makoto is having a good time alone with Sayaka and he sends for him then, just to separate them. And he wonders why he felt the need to do that, and that's when he realizes that he likes Makoto.

And then it's like, Oh, they were right. Even I like him.

[dreamerdoesthewritething]

More Leon S. Kennedy headcanons. This time I think they’re mostly going to do with relationships of the romantic and/or intimate variety. But these things get away from me, so we’ll see.

Think about original RE4 Leon, or I guess original timeline Leon since I might reference events outside of that game, when you read these.

(Also Ada is an outlier for lots of things lmao. Maybe. Woman is a mystery wrapped in an enigma.)

---------

Leon Relationship Headcanons:

He values honesty and stability. Too many people in his life lie or obscure the truth. He doesn’t want his partner to do the same. As for the stable part, it’s about having someone to come home to. Something normal. Something that remains when everything else is so messy, so chaotic, so unstable.

That said, there's stable and then there's boring. His partner can't be too boring.

Appearances don't mean much to him. He doesn't fall for people solely for their physique. Personality matters much more.

Prefers commitment over one-night stands. Doesn't mean he never has them. Just means he'd rather have a solid relationship than a meaningless fling.

If given the chance to actually show it, he is very physically affectionate. Likes touching just about anyone he cares about, but especially his partner. (Get your head outta the gutter; these are platonic touches.)

Shameless flirt, as we all know. Ramps up when he's smitten, because he loves watching his partner's reaction. Always finds it so cute when they're flustered and/or blushing.

Likes to think he doesn't get jealous easily. Reality doesn't always agree with this thought.

More under the cut, particularly the ~spicy~stuff. If you're a minor, you know better than to venture further. Even though I don't get too explicit. You've been warned.

Unless it's a one-night stand, he won't have sex with his partner until at least the third date. Would rather get to know the person before sticking his dick in 'em, you know?

Is open to experimenting in the bedroom. Roleplay, however, cannot relate to police work, the government, secret agents, or doctors/ scientists. Also not huge on inflicting pain or being hurt during sex, but can do so if he and his partner are comfortable with it.

No choking the poor man! Tyrants and other B.O.W.s do that to him too much for it to be anything but traumatizing. He won't choke his partner, either.

He's fairly average as far as size/length and girth are concerned. But it's not the size that matters; it's how he uses it ;P

Has some serious stamina.

Makes sure his partner cums first. He's definitely not a selfish lover.

Won't tell his partner any of his kinks unless they're a serious couple and if asked directly. He thinks his are kind of embarrassing, even if they're not that weird. Can't have someone knowing how to manipulate him in any way, you know? lmao

Sex in public and/or a place where the risk of being caught is high is definitely one of them. As is his partner being loud because he's fucking them so well. As is his partner being just loud enough that only he can hear them. Paradox? Maybe. That happens with these things sometimes.

Couldn't care less if his partner screams his name or if they don't. As long as they're making noise and seem to be enjoying themselves, then he's golden.

If there's time, he absolutely enjoys foreplay. Good opportunity to tease his partner for as long as possible, edging them and bringing them closer and closer to the climax only to hold them there. Begging for more. Begging for him.

Aftercare is a necessity in his opinion, even with quickies. The rougher he is with his partner, the more time he'll spend on it. If he gets too overbearing, his partner will have to call him on it. He just wants to be sure they're really okay after what just happened.

I mentioned this on my other headcanon post, but Leon needs to sleep alone. It's because of his trouble sleeping. He doesn't want to disturb their rest with his issues. Doesn't just get up after sex and go to the couch and fall asleep, though. Will stay and cuddle until they're asleep and then he slips away to the living room. Sometimes he'll sneak back in before they wake up to give the illusion that he was there the whole time. If the relationship is solid enough, he might try to stay in the bed and may learn to actually sleep with another person beside him, but it'll take time, patience and understanding.

[iveneverbeenmorestressedinmylife]

Citra emulator: Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney trilogy

A hopefully comprehensive guide on all the malfunctions ive run into so far. Because honestly, ive recommended aa on citra to so many people, the least i can do is give yall a guide for when you run into problems.

Spoilers under the cut for aa1 (rise from the ashes mostly).

1. Ema's aluminum finger print powder (Rise from the ashes)

In the final case of the first game you meet the Skye sisters. Lana is the Chief Prosecutor and Ema is a high school student who wants to become a forensics scientist. In her guest to prove her sisters innocence Ema will employ a couple of tools like Luminol blood splatter detecting spray and finger print detecting powder.

How does the aluminum powder work? You click on a suspicious surface. Make sure to cover all of the fingerprint with white powder/pixels!

And then what? This is an emulation of a Nintendo game. You are prompted to blow in your mic to blow off the powder and reveal the fingerprint. But well. You can't exactly do that now can you?

How can you get around this?

Maybe if you have a mic you could connect it to your laptop/pc and blow there but i don't know if that would actually work since i don't have a mic and therefore can't give it a try. But theres a way to get around this obstacle! A way that took me like an hour and a lot of research in ace attorney and emulation related forums to find 😭.

You will have to go on the top left corner of your screen and open the configuration option. I think.

Now as you can see my program is in greek which is not exactly making this easier to understand for the rest of you. But nonetheless we will persevere!

What you have to do is go Configuration -> sound -> microphone -> real device ??? It must say something like that. It might take you a little bit of trial and error but you can find it. Try a few of these choices and see which one works. This will make your laptop/pc pick up on the games music and use it to "blow away" the powder by itself. Problem solved <3

2. Playing connect the dots with Ema's name (Rise from the ashes again)

In the final day of the trial we have a piece of evidence that almost everyone hates: that goddamn jar. Aside from its ridiculous resemblance to that monstrosity the blue badger when you rotate it in a highly specific way, this jar holds yet another secret. And that secret is a name written in blood that seems to have been wiped off. We are asked to "connect the dots" to prove whose name is written there. Normally connecting the dots would make red lines appear on the jar that make up Ema's name but well. If this worked as intended i wouldn't be making this post now would i.

When playing in Citra the lines won't show up. Nevertheless, you can still beat this new obstacle: just connect the dots anyway. Be extra careful: you don't want to forget one of the smaller ones. If you connect them all and present the evidence in court the game will progress as it should. Personally, when i was playing i kept forgetting to connect the top right dot in M and got penalised a few times too many over it. I suggest starting from the bottom of E and progressing carefully from there.

Ema's name wiped off the jar's surface.

Ema's name after you've connected the dots or how it would look if citra hadn't messed that one little detail up.

Aaaand those are all the malfunctions i stumbled upon on aa1. Honestly, could be worse. And they were both on the same case too, so maybe there won't be any more trouble in the rest of the trilogy games. But if i find any more i will come back and update this post. It will probably take a while tho, im very slow when it comes to video games.

[surveillance-0011]

I am over here cracking up over Mux and Giblets and whatever their deal is... I'd love to hear more if u wanna share

ah thank you... it is a very tentative undeveloped idea so i don't have too much but here's what i have + brainstorming in real time

I think it's funny bc it's like. There's the musk-grimes similarities of weird dysfunctional silicon valley romance just without the music making but there's also kind of a jessica-roger rabbit component. Kind of. ever so slightly, probably the closest you can get with the most esoteric of space biology.

Idk where this happens on the timeline. Certainly before HOL but it has to be after Giblets starts to do the Sort of Stuff He Does but before it gets to its worst + he starts getting as paranoid as he is when we see him.

Also I am assuming Giblets had a wife before hand? Something something timeline I think Giblets had Krimothy before Mux but maybe not?? And idk where the Krubis incident fits in w/ this either.

Unless they met + dated way way back as a little fling at the start of their careers or in college or something. but then it's not as funny. There'd be the awkward ex situation then but what really intrigues me is the G3 and every Muxxalon employee looking on in horror as these two start holdin hands and being mushy as all hell

totally infatuated with each other the sort of couple that's sickeningly sweet they give off the vibes of high school sweethearts who have to be held back from making out in the hallways.

Mux is attracted to the mystique of it all. A super genius scientist AND a gang member? She is living the booktok plot of her dreams!

Meanwhile Giblets appreciates her power/status but is also just very infatuated like in general. And he loves how much she loves him. Pretty woman... thinks he's handsome... and he gets to show off how smart he is yay!!

So he shows off and waxes poetic and she swoons and meanwhile she goes and Girlbosses and dotes on him and he's over the moon about it. They love coming up with awful "genius" ideas together and dreaming of the day they rule the galaxy together

And they like seeing the other obliterate merks/muxxalon employees

And... yeah that's the positives, mostly just the novelty and the wow factor.

Between the both of them being... the sort of people they are... corrupt controlling selfish cruel and out of touch... etc etc etc... they do clash a lot. A lot of fighting then kiss and make up sort of situations...

Im just imagining that "pronouns suck" "nooo baby this isn't your heart!!" tweet but Mux is complaining about translator microbes or something and Gibs starts crytyping abt it

Gibs was totally ok with her screwing Gurgula's packages over tho

Far enough into their relationship there's another major fallout on twitter every other week because Mux and Giblets are at it again everyone!!! Grab yer popcorn!!!

The logic these two run on is almost on the same level but everyone else is fucking flabbergasted.

Everyone watching is like. Please break up. divorce. now. Or maybe it is better if you stay and keep each other in this situation.

Krubis has GOT to be their biggest fucking hater or maybe he is just. Trying to not acknowledge that this is happening bc it rises his blood pressure to concerning levels. Or so that he wouldn't say something dumb and end up in Gurgula's situation. Assuming this is before the whole. Sleeping with his wife convincing her to divorce him marrying her then killing her in an experiment thing.

Douglas thinks the whole thing is funny as fuck totally reading twitter over like the morning paper laughing his ass off.

Totally had a kid or pet or robot/lab grown creation with a stupid fucking name. I mean if Krimothy is their kid then maybe Krimothy is a stupid alien name but I love the idea of him being like. A kid and already aware of how fucked this whole situation is

Actually that's sad. That's not funny I don't love that at all. Krim honey I'm so sorry. His mom probably got custody so at least he's watching from afar.

And I think even in their worst moments they do actually. Get each other. In the end I think they understand each other's way of thinking more than others do. In their better moments they might be able to reel each other in...

Like to get a bit serious both seem like the sort of people who Cannot Help But Fuck Up. Mostly bc they don't care about most others but themselves and their pride. But while Mux is very enthralled by the glamor of living wealthily and all her nice ideas Giblets obsesses over science and how he can maintain safety and some semblance of happiness by sabotaging that of others... and I feel there'd have some moment where it. Clicks that they have this in common.

And they do appreciate each others lil quirks! He likes her Elden Ring builds... she likes the way he talks...

I'm assuming the breaking point would be Mux trying to take credit for something Giblets did or Giblets overstepping in his... Gibletness. Somehow. And then she'd feel disrespected by it. Or maybe their horoscopes said they'd break up.

Giblets is a whole can of worms. Because he's smart academically but near socially incapable and prone to spiraling into these. Fucked up self serving actions that ruin lives and shit. He has the mentality of a fucking Fargo character. So I feel it'd probably be his fault the most in the end

ig if there's anything heartwarming about this it would be that since Giblets doesn't mention Mux during that little speech they ended on good enough terms or were able to reconcile down the line to some extent? At the very least he felt sure she would not try to kill him.

I think it was messy for a while though. Custody over Goimpy Schoimpy Peanut Rendezvous 2000 was a bitch. Everyone was relieved when they actually started being cool w/ each other again or at least decided to leave each other alone.

I should make a little list of every like. Mux-Giblets situation but I will have to brainstorm all the new lows they'd be able 2 reach...

oh my god remember the whole thing with azealia banks. what was that. there's totally like. some adjacent shebang that went down with mux gib and. idk someone else.

[f4t4l3rr0r404]

Back w the analog alphys trio!!

(made on ibispaint lmaoo)

Gemini Alphys's personality is mostly untouched since my last post, she's still the same badass cop as before, except that now she's a bit more hostile towards mimics and harvesters

There's not much about her Undyne right now, but she is allergic to the Host of influence's spores and has been affected by them twice, causing Alphys to also get some extra hate for that species of carnis.

Oh, also, remember that pet mimic I said she has? His name is Vendetta.

He's an elder mimic which she found in the woods thinking it was a trimming but she somehow tamed it even after it grew up to that killing machine. He actually helps a lot with some investigations and is a good partner to keep people or other carnis away from the house.

Gemini Alphys is also untouched..sorta of.

I've been thinking of maybe uniting both her and vita alphys together, since, well, I think it would be impossible for Gemini to survive on her original timeline, so she's probably somehow living with Vita Alphys and Vita Undyne by now.

She's not very friendly too, she's just really scared most of the time and as said before, she can't look up at the stars or even at the moon without being terrified, she also doesn't like staring much at Vita Undyne because, well, her undyne is gone.

Gemini Alphys overall is just a nervous wreck that needs lots of love and care or she might break down and do something bad to herself.

Still, she can be kind from time to time..when she isn't terrified of breathing.

And last but not least, Mandela Alphys!

I made up my mind, she's totally an alternate.

She's been caught by some alternates before her Undyne since she was an easy target, especially since before dying, Alphys was engaged onto dealing with alternates and wanted to know about them.

But, well, curiosity killed the scientist.

She actually isn't as aggressive as most alternates, she likes toying with her pray before striking down but honestly she could probably be tamed somehow.

Vita Alphys has encountered her a couple of times, she's somehow lurking around her house and hides herself behind furniture. Undyne tried shooting her once but the bullet kinda of bounced back so they just gave up and now they have an intruder which does nothing.

(cropped img)

Isn't she charming? <3

That's it for now, goodbye <3

[noisyballofvoidmuffin]

I finally started reading Good Omens (NO SPOILERS! I've already spoiled myself enough.) and this is so far (59 pages) one of the best things I've read. It's so clever and fun, and I must have left a dozen "hehe" notes on the sides of my book (in pencil. I only just started writing in books and I would die before I used any sort of ink that could seep into or smudge on the pages.).

What I can't stop thinking about though, is that one woman who named her sons, I think twins?, Crowley and Aziraphale. Because, alright, my opinions may be a tad skewed bc I started being interested bc Tumblr and tiktok have bombarded me with details about these two from the show (Tumblr also some book stuff) that gave me some preconceptions but,,,,

Lady, how did you not notice that this could be interpreted as like, romantic? They have the most 'married couple' vibes on multiple occasions.

Spoilers under the cut! I go on a gush.

They are hilarious.

"Well I'll be damned"/"It's not too bad when you get used to it"

The start of this book, ugh, and yes, I'm back to the book now, this is my book rant and I'll take it to whatever direction my brain wants to, the fucking, the song choice for the Bentley to play!! It's so clever!!

"It wasn't a dark and stormy night. / It should have been, but that's the weather for you. For every mad scientist who's had a convenient thunderstorm just on the night his Great Work is finished and lying on the slab, there have been dozens who've sat around aimlessly under the peaceful stars while Igor clocks overtime."

And later on fucking BOHEMIAN PHAPSODY PLAYS- excellent music choice btw- AND IT'S SO GOOD

They it should've been a stormy night and just the EXACT PASSAGE OF THE SONG TALKING OF THUNDERBOLT AND LIGHTNING PLAYS OUT RIGHT AFTER STAN GETS OFF THE RADIO-

The pacing and detail work is just phenomenal in this book, PHENOMENAL

"For Americans and other aliens" (paraphrasing) had me chuckling out loud. Been identified an alien.

There's at least 3 doodles of snake Crowley I've drawn in the book so far.

Also the bit about this being the most repaired book? I would've died of that was any of my books, grieving, but I admire all of these people so much. The sheer DEDICATION!!

Really hoping I get this book signed at some point, even if I just about die of anxiety and embarrassment if I ever get the chance.

Also, it took me, honestly, way too long to recognize David Tennant played Crowley in the series/ the bits of the series I've been force-fed by tiktok and Tumblr. Not because I'm blind to faces (partially, maybe) but because it took a whole fucking slideshow with both Crowley and The Doctor from doctor who for me to realise it's the same DAMN ACTOR!! LIEK, I KNEW I NO GOOD AT RECOGNIZING ACTORS BETWEEN ROLES IF I HAVEN'T SEEN MULTIPLE THINGS THEY'VE BEEN ON AND REMEMBERED THEM AS THE CHARACTER THEY'VE PLAYED TO THEN MAYBE UPGRADE ONTO KNOWING THEIR NAMES LIKE CHRIS EVANS AND HUGH JACKMAN BUT COME ON! My brother was laughing at me for that. How do people just, recognize others without the set context they were in at the time?

Anyhow. Back to this BRILLIANT BOOK!!!

Crowley is like, so me coded.

Wasn't feeling Crawly, changed it to Crowley. Only man-shaped, not man.

I too, wasn't feeling my og name and changed it slightly while it's still based on the first one, and am only human-shaped.

There's too much going on in my brain and I forget my vessel is a human being at some points, purely because I don't see the vessel as who I am.

Anywho,

I have in fact just noted 'Transphobe' next to the bit where Crowley is handed the Antichrist and has to sign a damn thing like it's a post package and told "Not [Name you literally chose for yourself, A. J. Crowley], your real name." mostly for myself because I'm funny like that, and bc it's my book copy, not because I don't understand the significance of "true names" or whatever. Sigil names, now those are cool. I'd make me one if I didn't feel like it'd be more intricately connected to me and in turn more vulnerable.

This book. This book I swear-

I've had such a hard time reading printed books after so long reading only fanfics online and this? This is perfect. It reads like the most fun fanfic I've ever read.

Like that one dp x DC fic where Danny wanted a grimace shake and it was spilt on the road or sth even if he said it was mediocre.

The brilliance of Crowley's sinventions (hehe) are so good.

I have doodled 👀 over Hastur saying he tempted a priest. Because I somehow didn't expect it.

This is comedy to me. I adore it.

The footnotes too. The one about the added verses where God asks Aziraphale where his sword is 😭 and that literally everyone recognized his handwriting as the one who added them in 😭😭😭😭

This is gold, man. Exactly what I needed to get back into physical reading. My eyes could for sure use a break from my phone.

Also, the little tongue my book has as a built in bookmark? Bring that back. Bring books with that feature back. I love this thing so much. Even my school books had it when I was younger, WHERE IS IT NOW?? HAVING MY OWN BOOKMARK IS ALL FINE AND DANDY BUT THIS IS ELEGANT, AND PRETTY, AND PRACTICAL, COME ON!

End rant uwu <3 I must sleep

[rakumel]

Today in more Xenoverse 2 news no one asked for:

I finally, FINALLY got an Ultimate Finish on PQ 122. By myself. As in, not co-op. Been struggling with that one for weeks, if not months.

I won't bore everyone with what a parallel quest in this game is, a search engine can take care of that. But after that, if you're curious, type in "XV2 PQ 122" and you'll get things like "PQ 122 is impossible", "PQ 122 is absolutely crazy" - and they're right. (Though I was glad to see I wasn't the only one having trouble with it - automatically felt better.)

That's it, really. Though if you're curious, I do go into a little more detail under yon cut:

So this was one of the parallel quests that came with some other DLC I bought some time ago. But even the quests that come with the vanilla game get pretty brutal by this point. (At least they do for an amateur like yours truly.) Not only do they become more of a test on how well you know the controls, but also how long you can endure against multiple opponents, and how well you can keep you and your partners up and running.

If you can meet certain conditions - usually like finishing quickly, or defeating opponents in a particular order - the quest goes into a sort of bonus overtime, and you get a chance to take down a much stronger opponent (or sometimes more than one). If you can defeat these opponents, that's considered an Ultimate Finish.

It's actually not too hard to beat PQ 122 normally, once you know what to expect. What makes it hard to Ultimate Finish is both the number and difficulty of the bonus opponents. That, and it pulls a really nasty trick on you the first time you get to this point.

I can't tell you the feeling that came over me when I thought I'd finally beat PQ 122, only for Fu to waltz in with Jiren and Ultra Instinct Goku. Poor Aloe and her partners were more than half dead by this point, I'd used up all my healing items, and I made the stupid mistake of trying to fight UI Goku at close range. Never do this. He will tear. your. shit. UP. I don't know about other languages, but Fu's appropriately named in English, because I was thinking those letters the entire time I was fighting him.

Side note: I want to like Fu, I really do. He's a demon scientist who acts like a massive fanboy, which in theory sounds fucking amazing. And he does have his moments, to be fair. But some of the shit he pulls in game just makes me want to slap him even harder than that Batman and Robin meme.

Anyway, once I knew that lovely little surprise was coming, it was a matter of stretching out all the healing I could - I had to keep telling myself this quest was a marathon, not a sprint - focusing on one enemy at a time, taking advantage of every spare moment to charge up ki or heal my guys, spamming my favorite Supers (Bending Kamehameha, my beloved), some well-timed Super Ki Explosions, and honestly - probably some luck.

Even then, it still took many tries due to the massive health bars on each of them, and the longer the fight drags on, the worse it is for your side.

I don't expect anyone to ask me exactly how I beat PQ 122, like a game plan or anything. But on the off chance someone does, I don't mind sharing. Mostly though, I just wanted to brag a bit, haha. Because I finally beat the thing! Although I'm going to have to do it again someday, since the RNG completely stiffed me. Didn't get either of the new special moves that you can win from this.

But hey, at least I know now it can be done. And yeah, I guess I could give in and try completing the quest online in co-op, but...eh...I don't want to, really. It's a broad generalization, I admit it, and so it's not going to be accurate, but...fighting games tend to attract certain types of gamers. The type who would probably rather be set on fire than play alongside someone who sucks at the game. I'd rather have fun than worry about how I look to a couple of randos, thanks!

[pumpkincanoes]

Pottery Makes Nothing Happen: Kaebedo Modern AU

Inspiration: The poem "In memory of W.B. Yeats" by W. H. Auden, the vlog "Maybe Art Only Needs to Be" by John Green, and the broken vase I found in my aunt's house. Setting: Modern AU Kaebedo. Romance-adjacent, homoerotic life advice cosplaying as a birthday ficlet. potter and artist Albedo x office worker Kaeya

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There's a very distinct smell of Cecilia when he entered his office building that Friday. He'd arrived fashionably late, only wanting to finish up what little work he had left before he leaves town. It was almost mid-day, and his office had a visitor that day. A scientist by the name of Albedo Kreideprinz, who he knows mostly casually, while conversing with others.

He wouldn't necessarily say that they're on bad terms, Albedo's sister Klee is a regular visitor of the office, and she has spent her time with Kaeya on many occasions. It wasn't that he isn't close to Albedo specifically, Kaeya is just bad at making close connections with anyone in his life.

So he greets Albedo, notices the vase in his hand that wasn't there before; pale white with gold accents holding a pair of Cecilia flowers, and asks him, "Is that for here?". Albedo answers, politely, "Ah, yes. Huffman had requested me to bring some after seeing them in the upper floor. The flowers are from my sister."

Kaeya wonders why Huffman would request the scientist for a piece of decoration that seemed so expensive, but he didn't want to pry and instead discussed about Klee's next visit. He left the office that day without the smell of Cecilia, but the sight of the added decoration is nice, he thinks in passing, and made a mental note to thank Albedo next time they see each other.

It's the first year he really celebrated his father's death anniversary; the first year he does after speaking to his brother again, at least, and Kaeya took the week off. Despite his reputation to slack off, he doesn't actually take that many leaves, and he had more than enough paid vacations to cover it. So, he took the week off, because he needed to, because he found that he needed a place to face himself without facing others.

He went to the mountains, as one casually does in the middle of September. He drove along the countryside, mind drifting somewhere between a bright summer day where he played hide and seek in the vineyards of his mansion and a gloomy winter rain where he finally left his home leaving his brother behind. As he drives to the outskirts of the forest, he comes across a path leading up to a cabin with a sign on it:

He ponders a little bit about what this means. Albedo, the chief scientist at a government office in the heart of a bustling metropolitan, shares the same common first name and, as far as Kaeya is concerned, utterly unique last name, as the apparent owner of a secluded pottery studio more than 2,000 meters above sea level. Just as he was ready to drive away and move on, because well, he wasn't too keen on making conversation that day, he saw what seem to be Albedo himself, walking around the side of the studio carrying a box of supplies.

It was not the snowy backdrop coupled with pine forest that drew him in; it was not the fact that Albedo's hair and complexion looked as pale as death itself in a way that was mildly concerning; it was not the idea of how some people, like Albedo, can get away from the same mundane job that he has, to a place of serenity and an art form as sophisticated as pottery; it was not, really, any of those, but somehow all of them combined made him stop and gaze at the figure busying himself with cleaning tools.

He was preoccupied enough, Kaeya notes, that it took him cleaning half the contents of his box to notice the car sitting just by the road; Kaeya also notes that he himself hadn't really done anything but watch Albedo clean half the contents of his box. He briefly wonders if that was creepy. He briefly considers why he was so enraptured by the image that he didn't think about driving away.

"Hello... How can I help... Wait, Kaeya?" Albedo's voice, noticeably softer than usual, broke him from his trance.

"What are you... doing here?"

"Uh. Hey. I was just passing, entirely a coincidence. I promise I'm not a stalker."

"Hm. I see. You mentioned you were going out of town for your leave. I didn't realize you meant to visit Dragonspine."

"Ah, well..." Dragonspine, at least in the city, has an image of being a place to brood and be depressed in instead of a tourist destination-- Considering that Albedo owns property here, he does not point out this fact.

"Since you're here... would you like to come inside?"

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So he follows Albedo inside. He talks a little bit about himself, he listens more to Albedo talk about pottery. About how he was born in the snowy peaks, about how his mother was a scientist and artist at the same time and how he secretly wants to be the same, about the vase of Cecilia flowers that he put in Kaeya's office at Huffman's request. Strangely, they never mention their work. They mention Albedo's sister, Klee, they talk about how Huffman found out about Albedo's side profession, they talk about their shared spaces and the vases that decorate Albedo's work floor, but it was like he was speaking to a different Albedo.

It reminded him that sometimes, he also wants to be a different Kaeya. Not Kaeya Alberich, who has never been and will never be Kaeya Ragnvindr. Not Kaeya Alberich, the government official who has connections all over the city and does his job when no one's looking and slacks off when paid attention to. No, he wants to be just Kaeya.

He thinks about this as they talk, and thinks about it some more over their shared lunch, Albedo insisting that he stays for a while if he has no other matters to attend to. He thinks about it even more when he asks Albedo if he could watch him "do some pottery", which he later learns, is not one singular activity.

As Albedo quietly works his way with the clay, somehow bringing life into what was previously a blob of pale dirt, Kaeya thinks about this enough to say it out loud,

"You're very different here from your... Usual self."

Albedo looks up a bit from his work, almost a glance and half of a smile, before focusing his gaze back down to the throwing wheel. "Is that a bad thing?"

"No." Kaeya says quickly, then after a pause he added, "You look beautiful."

And at the back of his mind he knew it sounded flirty and suggestive, but he didn't mean it that way in the least, and internally curses himself for being unable to escape from his habits, because what he wanted to say was, "I want to be like that too."

"Like what?" Albedo didn't look up this time, but his tone listened.

"Have a side that's different from my usual side. My day job, or whatever."

"Doesn't everyone have that? I'm sure you're not giving business smiles when in private?"

"Well, okay, yes. But my private life is... Kind of ugly."

As the silence is filled with the grind of Albedo's art coming into life, he realizes that he might be oversharing to a co-worker he barely knows. He remembers the reason why he's on leave in the first place.

Albedo gently lowers the speed of the wheel, and even more gently takes his hand off the bowl he's made. He looks up to Kaeya, seemingly deep in thought, and when he opens his mouth it's something wholly out of left field.

"Have you ever tried pottery before, Kaeya?"

"...I'm afraid not." He's not sure what Albedo expected from that question.

"Not many people have. When I started, I wanted to make something I can have for myself. That is to say... this is not something you would find in stores." Albedo cleans his hands in a bucket of water he puts by the sink and walks to the other end of the room, where a dizzying array of glazed and unglazed pottery is kept: vases, bowls, cups, mugs of different shapes and sizes. Yet what Albedo took and handed to Kaeya was a vaguely vertical blob of seemingly hollow clay.

It's shaped almost like a flat-bottomed egg, or if someone made a clay version of a roll-on deodorant. The glossy finish of the dark blue glaze is the only reason Kaeya isn't asking if this is an unfinished work, or a piece of a bigger shape, one that makes more sense. He spins it around on his hand, trying to make sense of it. On the bottom there is a hole, too small for even his pinky finger to go in. He was just about to ask what it was when Albedo explains to him,

"It's exactly what it looks like. A hollow piece of closed form pottery with a hole on the bottom. The shape is... not really critical to the art. My mother was more of a painter, but when I learned pottery with her, our instructor told us to make these things, he called them secret keepers. He told us that we can whisper into it our pain and difficulties, so that the body of the clay can carry it for us, and in exchange, we get our lives back."

Kaeya pondered for a bit the meaning of it. He feels the weight of the clay differently than before, but even as he rests this piece of beautifully glazed clay in his hands, he struggles to understand how such a blatantly white lie can ever help with the heartache that comes with adult life.

"My private life is ugly too." Albedo starts, and Kaeya feels like he fell from a dream, remembering that what prompted this was his accidental trauma dumping.

"I started to make pottery to distract myself from it." He sat down next to Kaeya, eyes looking distantly, as if to a dark place, pained.

"I didn't think that I would be able to escape that part of me."

And then he looks at Kaeya and gave him a bittersweet smile,

"You saw what I did with my pottery, what I put up in my mother's studio: a place both filled with fond memories and inexplicable trauma, and you told me that I looked beautiful in it."

"That's..." Because you are, he wants to say, because it is. But he knows it's different for Albedo.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, they say. And so maybe you should share your private life for another human to see, Kaeya, before you can determine if it's ugly."

"I don't really... have anything to share." He says doubtfully, tentatively. Because he doesn't; he doesn't have a secret pottery studio in the middle of the woods filled with years of tireless work worthy of an art museum; he doesn't have a single hobby, let alone a praiseworthy side profession.

"You can start by sharing tomorrow with me." Albedo states, and offers his hand in a handshake, smile fully gentle and endearing. "It's my birthday tomorrow. Would you give me the gift of making a new friend?"

And as Kaeya shakes his hand, he notices the roughness of his palm, and appreciates Albedo's work just a little more.

"If you'll have me, then I'd be glad." He says, genuinely. And for the first time in years, he's able to imagine spending time with someone else for the sake of itself.

Albedo, he thinks, is an interesting man. Interesting enough to spend his week of paid leave with,

And as it turns out, entire life with, as well.

Though he doesn't find out about that one until later down the road.

[comic-the-adventurer]

( Heads up. This one is pretty long)

Hey! I hope you don't mind me sharing my latest brainworm ( new story concept ) with you&( really, I hope it's okay, given the reblog...)! To keep it short, it revolves around characters somewhat based on a fairytale archetype or character( or both), all in a modern, kinda superhero setting( at least for now. I imagine some of these characters with powers). Anyway, I wanna share some of the characters with you& if you& don't mind( they don't have actual names yet, just titles)

The Princess: The main character,and a slight combination of the princess in the tower trope( like Rapunzel), with a bit of Sleeping Beauty and kinda Cinderella? She was put into a sleep coma ever since she was a kid, having the constant dream of being in a tower- The Tower- and constantly trying and failing to escape it and it's difficult puzzles and monsters. It was when she finally escapes at 18 she finally wakes up( she would be 18 irl too, just to clear). There's more but I don't want this to be super long. Her whole thing is running, agility and observation- it's what helped her escape The Tower in her dreams after all.

The Hunter- He is the master of weapons, known for his skills on battle and survival. However, despite this reputation,he is incredibly shy and quiet, and tends to get flustered easily. I imagine him being bff's with The Princess, as both are very socially akward ( The Princess has been asleep for years and thus has skipped a lot of social development outside of her survival instincts). Oh, and yeah, he's mostly based on the hunter character from Little Red Riding Hood.

The Prince: The least developed because I have no clue what to do with him. I don't really see him being any sort of romantic option for The Princess, rather a sort of rival? I feel he would kinda be the opposite of her, at least personality wise. Less stoic-ish, more social , but also a bit of a slacker ( The Princess is very persistent in gaining back the abilities she had in her dreams, thus a stubborn worker to a fault). I also see The Prince and The Hunter having, ahem, history. But other than that? Nothing for this guy.

The Fairy Godmother: The one who wakes The Princess up. Kept her in captivity so she would die. She's not like the Disney version of her, much more cold and strict. As of now, I don't see her as a good not bad person. I like to believe she calls her large scientist unit M.I.C.E. I don't know what it stands for, but it sounds cool.

The Witch: The "Big Bad"....maybe. Still not sure if I should make her and TFGM separate characters, but if I end up making them separate, I will treat them as a divorced couple. Anyway, as a separate character, she was the one that put The Princess into the dream coma. Why? Still working on that.

The Sleepless/ The Slumber: Same character, I just can't choose a title. This one was purely based on vibes. She based on both the princess and the pea and Snow White. The thing about her is that I see her as almost sickly? She's pretty pale, her hair is a bit greasy and she have heavy eye bags. And yet she always have this eery smile. Maybe affiliated with The Witch, idk. I just like her vibes.

Anyway, that's it! Again, I hope you& don't mind this!!!

\^0^/

[humanwheatleyslefttoenail]

why do you ship chell and glados if glados is basically her mom

Okay this is actually a pretty common misconception in the fandom that unfortunately a lot of people have taken as canon, but I’m feeling nice so I’ll answer your question.

Basically, anon is referencing a theory from around 2012 that Caroline is Chell’s mom. The evidence for the theory is as follows:

- The turret opera calls Chell “bambina”, which means “little girl” in Italian

- Chell’s name can be found on a Bring Your Daughter To Work Day science project

- GLaDOS references the possibility of Chell being adopted multiple times

- GLaDOS is significantly nicer to Chell after discovering she’s Caroline 

And, anon, you’re right, it does sound like a pretty good argument at first glance. The problem is that a lot of these points don’t actually hold up to scrutiny.

For example, although “bambina” literally translates to “little girl,” it’s often used in the same way “baby girl” is used in English - it can mean child, but contextually it’s usually a flirtatious term. (Source: Cambridge Dictionary)

For Chell’s science project, it doesn’t work as evidence for the theory because GLaDOS killed the scientists around 1998-ish, when Caroline had presumably been uploaded several years earlier and Cave was already dead. Also, Chell’s in her 20′s, and since we know from Lab Rat/Portal 2 that people don’t age in stasis, and that Doug put Chell at the top of the test subject list only weeks after the takeover, Chell was 28 at the time of the takeover. The science project is really only an Easter egg and doesn’t actually fit into the canon timeline let alone prove anything about Caroline and Cave. 

GLaDOS talking about Chell being adopted is a pretty strong point, I’ll admit, but also it’s important to remember that maybe half of what GLaDOS says is true. And even if we take what she says at face value, she also says there’s a man and a woman in stasis with Chell’s last name, which could not have been Cave and Caroline because they were already dead at that point. And the official book Final Hours Of Portal 2 confirms Cave and Caroline were not married and could not have shared the same name anyway. It was also the 50′s, an an unmarried couple of two likely famous people having a child would’ve been scandalous, and yet we see no hint of something like this affecting their company. 

Also, although GLaDOS is nicer to Chell after the Caroline reveal, that’s not necessarily indicative of a mother-daughter relationship, and neither is any of their interactions. It’s just. GLaDOS being friendlier. 

Finally, when this theory was made (and let’s be honest - it still is happening) Chell was constantly whitewashed to hell and back. 

Chell is Japanese-Brazilian, and Cave and Caroline are white, so it would be a near impossibility for her to be their biological child (and insisting otherwise is kinda. just. whitewashing). And although people will cry “adoption!”, based on what I’ve previously proven, that’s pretty much impossible. This theory that somehow she’s Cave and Caroline’s daughter erases an important part of her identity. [Disclaimer, I am white, but this is what I’ve heard from around the fandom]

With all that said, the idea that she’s the daughter of Cave and Caroline really doesn’t hold weight when you really analyze the canon. It’s surface level analysis that doesn’t hold up. And honestly? The idea kinda cheapens the story. It’s much more powerful that GLaDOS learns to care about Chell and becomes kinder than just. Oh, she remembered she’s related to Chell. 

But to actually answer your ask. 

Why do I ship them?

Well, they aren’t mother and daughter, I think that’s pretty obvious now. But if you actually look at a lot of subtext in Portal 2, without the lens of the mother theory, it’s actually pretty romantic! 

I know that sounds ridiculous, but bear with me!

Now - it’s totally okay if you don’t ship them. I get it. Their interactions in Portal 1 and the first half of Portal 2 are toxic if not outright well. Y’know. Murderous. I completely understand why that turns people off from shipping them, and ultimately, shipping is a personal thing. To each his own. 

But before you judge me, let me present my case.

Exhibit A: Portal 

Portal is kinda gay. No, really. Chell and GLaDOS are enemies in this game, but the entire focus is on their relationship (good or not) and the power struggle between them. They are opposites, two sides of the same coin, different representations of opposite ideologies. People have analyzed Portal as a relationship metaphor, or as a metaphor about women’s role in society - either way, the heart of Portal is the complicated dynamic between Chell and GLaDOS. 

That’s not necessarily enough to code a romance, but a lot of popular (and especially popular queer ones) ships begin with opposite ideologies, symbolic powers colliding. Portal cements their relationship as a toxic one, something on the verge of falling apart and hurting both parties in the end. The ending image, of Chell and GLaDOS side by side after the battle, reinforces the symbolic parallels between the two. 

The companion cube is also pretty symbolically important to this interpretation. It’s literally a representation of someone’s heart, and you are told to protect it and preserve it under GLaDOS’ orders, and then you have to destroy it regardless of how you actually feel about doing that. You are destroying GLaDOS’ heart, so to speak. 

There’s also the ending song, Still Alive. The lyrics speak for themselves.

They hint that GLaDOS’ feelings about Chell are more complicated than they may appear (if she’s not being sarcastic...) and she literally talks about Chell breaking her heart (also, think back to the companion cube. Yeah.). The entire song is structurally similar to many a breakup number, with the laments of “I’m glad it happened, but also leave.” 

At the end, we also see that the long promised cake GLaDOS was supposedly lying about was real the whole time. Before Portal 2 came out, it was mostly interpreted as a stinger ending (along with the nicer lyrics of Still Alive) to make you question GLaDOS’ true motives and intentions.

She actually did have a real cake waiting for you. (Side note - not really evidence, but in Argentina, “torta” means cake in Spanish. It’s also a slang term for lesbians. So. Do with that what you will). The cake is what GLaDOS offers you to lull you into the sense that she cares about you, so discovering that “the cake is a lie” wakes you up to the realization that she doesn’t. Except then the idea is subverted one last time, at the very end, showing that the cake is real and at least some of what she said she meant. 

You also see the companion cube. You know, GLaDOS’ symbolic heart?

Now, okay, you might be thinking I’m extrapolating a bit too much. And you might be right. But Portal is not the only game in the series, and if you’re asking me about Cave and Caroline you obviously know about Portal 2.

Exhibit B: Portal 2

If you thought Portal was gay, Portal 2 turns that up to 11.

Even before GLaDOS wakes up, you’re treated to some visual subtext. A few of Rattmann’s drawings representing the events of Portal 2 focus a lot on the relationship between GLaDOS and Chell, with more of the cake symbolism.

In this, you can see a face layered on top of GLaDOS. This could be foreshadowing about Caroline, and likely is, but also resembles his other drawing of Chell. It insists that Chell is a part of GLaDOS, or reinforces parallels between Chell and Caroline, hinting at something either way. 

In this picture, we also see Chell standing on top of GLaDOS, in the same position where the overlay of the feminine face was, again referencing the parallel. It also presents them as opposites, fundamental parts of the same thing and both connected to the same basis, but on opposing sides. 

When GLaDOS wakes up, she returns to her antagonistic role, but there are more hints to something deeper just like in Portal. 

Here, in her awakening lines, she references Chell not unlike an estranged ex. Also worth noting that GLaDOS is pretty much the personification of testing (in a sense, she is testing since she can control all of Aperture like an extension of her body), and insinuates that Chell loves to test. And that she reciprocates that feeling.

In test chamber 10, she says this:

It’s supposed to be threatening, but it does read as almost... sentimental. 

There’s also another chamber with companion cubes in Portal 2. I already talked about their symbolism in Portal, and the same pretty much applies to them here. However, GLaDOS says something interesting about them during this level:

Once again, meant to be intimidating, ends up coming off as “well, GLaDOS, why were you going to give Chell a heart shaped representation of yourself that says ‘I love you?’” And you might think I’m stretching the GLaDOS’ heart metaphor thing a little far here, and I might agree, if the companion cubes didn’t literally sing Cara Mia for you. 

Cara Mia is the turret opera from the end of the game, which is all about how much GLaDOS cares about Chell. More on that later. But the companion cubes play a song called Love as A Construct, and when you get close to them, they sing a specific part of the song that has the tune of Cara Mia. These things literally exist to sing about GLaDOS’ feelings. 

Which makes this line a lot more. For lack of a better term. Tsundere-ish.

Then, right before the escape, she starts talking about the confetti from her fake surprise. 

I really don’t have to explain this one. What else does GLaDOS consider an inconvenience but might miss anyway? Or, more aptly, who else?

Then, during the escape, she teases a (fake) final test chamber in front of you, and forms the panels in the shape of a heart. No, really. 

Up to this point, a lot of the points I’ve presented are interspersed with a fair amount of antagonization on GLaDOS’ behalf, more Foe Yay than anything actually hinting at something deeper than GLaDOS being conflicted about whether she loves or hates Chell. But things really ramp up after Wheatley’s betrayal, when the two of them are forced to team up. (I should also note here that “enemies to lovers” is a pretty classic queer romance trope.)

Here, GLaDOS is put on an equal level with Chell and they have to rely on each other if they want to survive. For the rest of the singleplayer campaign, GLaDOS becomes a lot nicer and even friendly to Chell. There comes a point where she starts referring to Chell as a teammate, calling them “we.” She begins to consider them one unit, two opposites unified. Here’s what she says after the lemon rant:

You can not only see her using we, but actively talking about how her and Chell are going to fight Wheatley together. There’s also that last line - “let’s explode with some dignity.” GLaDOS has fully accepted the very likely possibility that she and Chell might die together. That she might die on the same level, and the same team as Chell. And she seems... surprisingly okay with that, as long as she and Chell go together. 

It’s during the Old Aperture levels that Chell and GLaDOS also discover that they have a lot in common. This is the part of the game where GLaDOS figures out she’s Caroline, that she’s human. Or, that she’s like Chell. And Chell discovers (from what we can tell anyway) that Caroline is kind, that she’s funny and smart and so many of these things she never noticed about GLaDOS before. Now also with the knowledge she is fighting alongside another human being. 

You can also draw parallels between Chell and Caroline, both intelligent women ultimately betrayed by their seemingly innocuous male friends before being trapped in Aperture and forced to team up with one another in a way that will free both of them. We see that really, GLaDOS isn’t that different from Chell - she too has been imprisoned in this place against her will, but in a completely different way. Once again, the idea of two sides of the same coin applies here. 

I’ve written another meta about this before, but I also think the whole idea of repressing a part of your identity and hating it, before bonding with another woman and then realizing that it’s okay to be like her and to be on her side. It’s okay to be yourself and meeting her is what helps you discover this new part of yourself. Is kinda inherently gay. GLaDOS’ discovery of her own humanity just fits so well into a queer realization narrative, to me at least.

Then, Chell and GLaDOS escape Old Aperture and have to get through Wheatley’s tests. 

Here, GLaDOS isn’t just begrudgingly on Chell’s team. She’s actively helpful. She wants to help Chell solve tests, defends her from Wheatley’s insults, and makes jokes to lighten the mood. Things that can really only be explained by her caring about Chell, especially the part about the insults. See below.

After the two escape Wheatley’s testing track, right before the boss fight GLaDOS has a few other things to say.

GLaDOS is not going to betray Chell, because of some kind of conscience. But she could easily ignore that back in her body, and yet? Here she’s deciding not to, and for no good reason. She didn’t have to say that to Chell, but she did, because she cares and she wants Chell to live.

And then, moments before the fight:

The final lines imply that GLaDOS does not think of Chell as an enemy anymore, and that it doesn’t matter what Chell thinks because they are in this together and they are getting revenge together. It’s pretty heartwarming to be honest, to know that even in a fight that will almost certainly kill you, she is there rooting for you and caring about you, even if you don’t feel the same way about her. It no longer matters to GLaDOS whether you even reciprocate - you staying alive, you making it through is enough for her.

So Chell fights Wheatley and sends him into space, all well and good, and at this point, GLaDOS has the option to kill Chell. But not only does she not, she actively saves Chell, and holds her hand in the process. If you don’t believe me:

And not only that, but when Chell goes unconscious from her injuries, GLaDOS sits and waits for her to wake up. It’s also implied that GLaDOS carries her to the elevator, since it’s where she wakes up but not where she passed out. In the scene where Chell blacks out, you can also hear the part of Love As A Construct that sounds like Cara Mia. Yeah. Yeah.

If you think that this cannot possibly get any gayer, you are wrong again, because then GLaDOS makes her final speech. Which is really just a love confession, let’s be honest.

The “surge of emotion?” Do you mean love, GLaDOS? And the idea of GLaDOS considering Chell her best friend, despite everything these two have done to each other? The idea that GLaDOS, out of all people, forgives someone?

Except this isn’t even Chell’s final send-off. GLaDOS writes her an entire opera of turrets, that sing a literal love song. (Note what I said earlier about the use of the word “bambina”).

It really can’t get any more obvious than that. “My (affectionate romantic term here), my dear, I adore you.” How. Is. That. Heterosexual. In. Any. Way.

So Chell goes to the surface, set free by GLaDOS (think of the saying “if you love something, set it free), and you think that’s the end. Until GLaDOS gives you a companion cube so you aren’t alone on the journey, and from the burn marks, you know it’s your first companion cube. Her original heart, her first gift to you, a piece of her that she wants you to carry with you to remind you that she does care about you after everything. It also gives the lyrics to Still Alive a much more genuine meaning. 

Portal 2 ends, and then the ending song, another GLaDOS number plays. Just like Still Alive, Want You Gone is structurally a break up song and very obviously about GLaDOS missing Chell and “counting on” (read: caring about/loving) Chell’s tendencies and quirks. 

She’s accepted Chell completely, and yet also given Chell the one thing she wants most. Only wanting Chell gone can mean GLaDOS not wanting Chell in her life anymore, but can also mean she wants to give Chell the freedom she’s wanted for so, so long. It’s the best thing she can give.

In the co-op campaign, GLaDOS also references still caring about Chell.

And that’s the end of the Portal series. Except. Brace yourself. Despite the games being over, there is STILL more subtext somehow. It gets. Even gayer.

Exhibit C: Supplemental Evidence

Valve has made a lot of extra/cut content for the Portal series, and I’ll be looking at some of it below.

This official valentine from Valve shows GLaDOS offering a romantic partner cake, which as we’ve established before, is very symbolic of GLaDOS’ feelings about and/or relationship with Chell. 

There’s a lot of other concept art and official art that emphasizes their relationship too. See below.

There’s also some cut GLaDOS lines that are even gayer than the source material and again, sound like confessions or references to a breakup:

The idea of “discovering things about someone”... how much more obvious can it get?

The developers have even confirmed a lot of my commentary on Chell and GLaDOS’ relationship in The Final Hours Of Portal 2. See these quotes from the book/this post:

The devs literally describe it as a romance. They use terms like “cheating,” they wanted to write a romantic duet, JoCo purposefully wrote the endings like love songs. It is literally, blatantly said by the creators of the game that their relationship is interpreted romantically. By the creators of the game. 

And if Word of God confirmation isn’t enough for you, have a song written for a cut alternate ending by GLaDOS’ voice actress, Ellen McClain. The song is literally nothing but GLaDOS talking about caring about Chell, about not wanting her to die/leave GLaDOS alone, about wanting to bake a cake with Chell, about waiting for Chell to wake her up. It’s so genuinely sweet and sad, and really, really romantic in the most heartwrenching way possible. 

JoCo also came back for the Portal levels in Lego Dimensions, writing one final breakup song for GLaDOS to sing about Chell. It comes off as GLaDOS not wanting to admit she misses Chell even though she obviously does, trying to replace their relationship but failing, and even explicitly forgiving Chell/wanting her to come back.

Also, the “finally I understand,” as if only now GLaDOS understands just how deep her feelings for Chell are... What else can I say?

In Lego Dimensions, GLaDOS also outright rejects anyone who isn’t Chell.

In Conclusion:

Why do I ship Chell and GLaDOS? 

Well, ultimately, it doesn’t matter whether I ship them. 

Because I think it’s glaringly obvious Portal does.

[luminnara]

It’s Been A Long, Long Time | ch 4

Summary:  When HYDRA had their prized asset, the Winter Soldier, they did something no one ever thought was possible: they gave super soldier serum to an omega. With the sole purpose of tending to him during his ruts, she spends decades living in HYDRA facilities, denied her humanity and her life. Now, years later, Bucky Barnes has his mind and his own life back...and the last thing he ever expects is to see a familiar omega again. Bucky/OC, a little angsty but mostly smutty/fluffy/romantic!

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five

Taglist:  @kyrah-williams @oceanmermaidwitch @shawnie--jo @super-cape @ferxaniti @namjoonwatcheshentai @fandomsstolemylife00 @youngblood199456 @nightlygiggless @darlingely

Amoretta swam in and out of sleep. Whenever she surfaced, she saw bright lights and strange faces, and, assuming that she was in a HYDRA lab, she decided it was better if she just kept on dreaming. After a while, though, she couldn’t manage it anymore, and she finally woke up enough to actually take in her surroundings.

She was in a hospital bed, and...a gown? She couldn’t remember the last time she had been given clothing. When she tried to move, she found that her arms ached, and she had an IV sticking out of her. Okay, so wherever she was, they were trying to take care of her. Maybe. That seemed like a good sign. 

“Oh, good, you’re awake,” a man’s voice said. “How’re you feeling?”

A figure came into view, blurry at first, and as he got closer she was able to get him in focus. Amoretta immediately stiffened, feeling threatened by this stranger, but as the scent of omega wafted in, she relaxed slightly. She couldn’t smell any alphas nearby, and that was good. 

Two good signs so far. 

“Wh-who are you?” She asked, her voice wobbly and hoarse. Her throat was so sore that talking was painful. 

“My name is Dr. Bruce Banner.” The man said, reaching towards a nearby table and grabbing a water bottle off of it. “I’m with the Avengers.”

Amoretta frowned. “The...who?”

He came near her slowly, twisting the cap off the bottle and offering it to her. “You’ve probably got a lot of questions. Mind if I ask a couple, though?”

She gave a little shrug as she raised the bottle to her lips. It felt strange to hold, the water tasting...different from what she was used to.

“Can you tell me your name?”

She thought for a moment, brows knitting together. “Subject 1096.”

It was Bruce’s turn to frown. “Did you ever have a...different name?”

After a moment, she nodded, trying to remember. It felt like it was on the tip of her tongue, just out of reach. Had it really been so long since she had gotten to say it?

“We can come back to that one.” Bruce said gently. “Do you know what year it is?”

She thought for a moment. “19...1986.”

The doctor pulled off his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose and mumbling something along the lines of “Christ, not another one…”

She got the feeling that she was off by a few years. 

“Well, Ten...is it alright if I call you that?”

She shrugged.

“...alright. Ten, it seems like you were cryogenically frozen for a few decades.”

“...decades?”

He nodded. “Your body seems to have handled it well, though.”

“Did I puke?” She asked, wrinkling her nose.

“Not that I saw.” He chuckled. 

Well, that was a little surprising. She had a tendency to vomit after being wrenched out of unnaturally cold naps. “Where am I?”

“You’re in my lab, at Stark Tower.”

“What continent?”

“North America.”

She made a thoughtful noise. “What month is it?”

“June.”

“So Ursa Major is out?”

Bruce paused. “...well, it’s hard to see with all the light pollution in the city, but...yes, I suppose it should be…”

She let out a sigh. “I miss it.”

Her voice was already sounding tired again, and Bruce was quick to take the water bottle back before it slipped from her hand. 

“You should get some more rest, Ten.” He suggested. “We’ve got plenty of time to get you caught up when you’re feeling more energetic.”

“Mhm.” her eyes fluttered closed. “Doctor?”

“Yes?”

“What city am I in?”

“New York.” He said, looking down at her curiously. “Manhattan, more specifically. Why?”

She smiled a little. “I wanna see...Brooklyn…”

As she drifted off to sleep again, Bruce rubbed his face. Well, that certainly was oddly specific of her to say. It was a good sign that she seemed lucid, though. 

“Captain Rogers is outside, Dr. Banner.” FRIDAY’s AI voice said. 

Bruce met him at the door, making his way out as quietly as possible. Steve looked anxious, standing with his hands on his hips as he waited for news. He hadn’t gotten a chance to find Bucky yet, his friend either working out or sleeping, and all he had managed so far was a quick debriefing and a shower. 

“I ran down as soon as FRIDAY called,” he said. “How is she?”

“Sleeping again. Just missed her.” Bruce said wryly. “Walk with me, I’m starving.” 

Steve fell into step beside him, heading towards the elevators. “Did she say anything?”

“She did. She seemed a bit out of it...couldn’t remember her name, hasn’t been awake since 1986.” He hit the UP button and stood back. “Seemed very interested in constellations, though. And Brooklyn.”

Steve stared at him. “Brooklyn?”

“Told her she was in New York, and the last thing she said before she fell asleep was something about Brooklyn.” Bruce shrugged. “Really interesting thing was her blood tests, though.”

“Blood tests?” Steve asked, stepping into the elevator and waiting for Bruce to join him before the doors closed again. 

“Definitely an omega.” Banner said as they headed up several floors. “Her scent is so muted because they pumped her full of enough suppressants to kill a normal person. Pretty sure that’s why she’s so tired...her body is working overtime trying to process such a high dose. I think it was just pooling in her system while she was in cryo, not really going anywhere, so now her kidneys are doing everything they can to—“

“Banner.” Steve interrupted before he had to listen to an entire scientific explanation. 

“Right. Sorry.” The scientist cleared his throat. “There was something else that I found already. She’s, uh…well, at some point, she was given super soldier serum.” 

Steve froze. “HYDRA gave the serum...to an omega?”

“It’s confusing to me, too,” Bruce put his hands up in defeat. “Thanks to that, though, it’s hard to determine how old she is, or who she is, without her telling us. All I know is that she’s an unmarked omega super soldier with a hell of a dose of heat suppressants to work through.”

“Any idea when she’ll be up again?” Steve asked as the elevator dinged to signal their arrival. 

“Hard to say.” Bruce said, following the alpha out towards the shared kitchen near the common area. 

“I need to get to the bottom of this, Banner. FRIDAY, will you find Bucky? I need you to tell him—“

“Tell him what?” A voice asked. 

Steve smiled in relief. Bucky was there, sitting on the couch with a plate of Alfredo balanced in his metal hand, looking mildly curious about whatever his friend was talking about. 

“Oh, good,” Steve said, approaching him, Banner following behind. “You’re already here.”

“What is it, Stevie?” He asked, an eyebrow raised. 

“Well, as you know, I visited an abandoned HYDRA base today.” 

“I’m aware.”

“And I found...something.”

“...something. What kind of something?”

Steve suddenly wasn’t sure how to describe his discovery. “Well, it’s a...not an it, I mean, I found a…”

“Rogers here brought back an omega test subject.” Bruce interrupted. “She’s down in the lab right now sleeping off some nasty meds.”

Bucky’s posture hadn’t changed, despite how awkward and almost nervous Steve had gotten. He leaned back against the cushions, slurping down a few noodles while he regarded his friend with a mild expression. 

“Alright, so?” He asked. 

“So...I was wondering if you had any idea what HYDRA was doing experimenting on an omega.” Steve said, hands on his hips in a stance that was supposed to say I mean business, so listen to me.

Bucky wasn’t bothered by it. He was the biggest, toughest alpha in the tower, aside from the rare occasions Thor was roughing it down on Midgard with the rest of them. The others could puff up and posture all they wanted at him, but it never had any effect. He was always calm and cool, generally disinterested in their displays. He knew he was stronger, and he didn’t need to prove it, especially not when he didn’t have an omega to fight over. 

He shrugged. “I want exactly privy to all their secrets. I know they kept cells full of omegas around for a while.”

“What did they do with them?” Steve asked.

“Whatever they wanted?” Bucky shook his head. “I really don’t know. If they were experimenting on ‘em, that never concerned me.”

“You’ve gotta know something, Buck.” Steve sounded exasperated. 

“Why do you care so much?” He asked. 

“Because something isn’t adding up.” Steve growled. 

“They gave this omega enough heat suppressants to last a lifetime,” Bruce said. “Her system is all kinds of messed up.”

“Makes sense.” Bucky ate another mouthful. “HYDRA wouldn’t want to deal with hormones going crazy or any unplanned pups.”

Steve stared down at his friend. “Did they let you rut?”

“Stevie, at least take me out to dinner before you start asking about my sex life fifty years ago.” Bucky said dryly. 

Steve just raised an eyebrow.

“...yeah. They did. Think they couldn’t stop my ruts.” He relented. 

“So did they...you know…” Steve trailed off awkwardly. 

“Were you ever given omegas to get you through them?” Bruce asked, proving once again how much more capable of having this conversation he was than Steve. 

Bucky finally had to glance away from them in embarrassment. “Well…yeah. But I, uh...the Soldier, he would just kind of...well, they didn’t really last long, if you uh. Catch my drift.”

Steve paled. 

Bruce gulped. 

“...what? Look, I’m better now, I’m way past that. Besides, I never meant to hurt anyone, I wasn’t myself—“

“This omega is a super soldier.” Bruce said quietly.

Bucky’s face dropped, a flicker of something passing over his face. “...what?”

—

“Finally,” Bruce sighed happily, inhaling the smell of leftover pizza. 

“Bucky, does the number 1096 mean anything to you?” Steve asked. He was sitting in a chair across from his friend, Bruce sitting at the kitchen island while he ate his dinner. 

Bucky shook his head. “Don’t remember any numbers like that. They mostly just called ‘em all omega.”

He was trying to seem cool and collected, but his scent had shifted slightly. Steve could catch just the slightest hint of distress in it, and as he did so, he narrowed his eyes. He may have been separated from Bucky for almost 80 years, but he was still his best friend, and he could tell when he was hiding something. 

“Why would they give the serum to an omega?” Steve asked. 

“Branching out?” Bucky shook his head. “Why do they do anything? They’re HYDRA. They can do whatever they want.”

“So you don’t remember anything about an omega super soldier?”

“I don’t know.” Bucky sniffed defensively. 

“Buck, it’s okay if you do.” Steve growled. “We’re not going to judge you for anything you did. We just want to help her and figure out who she is—“

“Well I don’t know,” Bucky snapped, big fangs bared in a warning. 

Steve responded with a low growl. 

“There’s a lot I don’t remember, or did you forget how many times they wiped my memory?” 

“Seems like you’re hiding something, Buck, and I wanna know what it is.”

“Why do you care? You should just drop it,” Bucky snarled. 

Steve regarded him carefully. Oh yeah. He was definitely hiding something. 

“Hey, hey,” Bruce interrupted from the kitchen, intent on stopping their fight before it could start. “Relax, fellas. Don’t make me get the big guy out to shut you both up.”

Steve backed down. The threat of having the Hulk going after him was enough. Bucky didn’t seem to share the sentiment, though, his lips still pulled back in a blatant display of aggression. It was the first time in a while that Steve had seen him acting so defensively about something, and it was concerning, to say the least. 

“Buck,” he said, voice low with warning. “Are you hiding something?”

Bucky’s nostrils flared angrily and the insinuation that he was keeping secrets, but he managed to reign himself back in, stifling another growl with a loud sigh. 

“I dunno, Steve.” He admitted. “There’s...a lot I don’t remember. If I’m bein’ honest with you, I’m not even sure why I’m feelin’ so worked up about this.”

Steve nodded. It was a relief to hear that Bucky wasn’t acting this way entirely on purpose, at least. 

“You feel okay?” Steve asked. “Not rutting soon, are you?”

“I’m fine, Steve.”

“You sure?”

“I’m sure.” Bucky snorted. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. “Is the omega, uh...is she okay?”

“Physically, she doesn’t seem to be too worse for wear,” Bruce said from the kitchen. “The only abnormalities I found in our preliminary blood tests were evidence of the suppressants and the serum. Other than being exhausted and needing to adjust to consciousness again after decades of cryo, she’s fine.”

“Good.” Bucky said, a little too quickly. “I mean...that’s good.”

“She should be awake again by tomorrow. Hopefully, she’ll be up for a longer chat then.” 

“You comfortable talking with her?” Steve asked, looking at Bucky. “It might be good for her to see someone else who used to be connected to HYDRA. Might help her ease into everything.”

Bucky gave a nod, already distracted by thoughts of this omega. Was it possible that the girl he saw in his dreams was real? It was hard for him to know what had actually happened to him and what he had imagined, what with HYDRA wiping his memory whenever they felt like it. Ever since he had gained his mental freedom, though, he had been plagued with nightmares, his sleep always filled with the faces of people he had killed. 

As time went on, they were getting better, but they never really stopped. He just...didn’t always have to deal with the worst ones. Sometimes, he even got to have dreams that were...nice. Sometimes, he dreamt of a familiar scent, one he couldn’t really place and that he could never remember when he woke up. Sometimes, he dreamt of an omega, with long, dark hair, and the prettiest eyes he could ever imagine. He always saw her in flashes, a smile here, a sigh there, and with no idea as to who she was or where she came from, he had chalked it up to his mind trying to give him some relief from the nightmares. It had to be wishful thinking, and nothing more. 

Unless it wasn’t. 

He spent a while chatting with Steve and Bruce before retreating to his apartment. With Tony and Pepper gone for the night, spending it in some fancy hotel so that Stark could give a talk at some expo, and most of the others resting after missions, the tower was quiet. It left Bucky too much time to wander and think, and before he knew it, he was making a detour down to Banner’s lab. 

As soon as the elevator doors opened, he paused. What was he hoping to accomplish, exactly? He didn’t have the kind of clearance that Bruce did. He wouldn’t be able to sneak in, and even if he could, what would he do? Appearing at her bedside would just freak the poor omega out, and that wasn’t the kind of first impression he liked to leave these days. 

He shook his head, pressing the button for his floor and leaning back against the elevator wall. He needed to be patient. Tomorrow, when she woke up, he would be able to see her for himself and decide if his weird dreams had any truth to them. 

Not that he was getting his hopes up. He shouldn’t, after all. He would just set himself up for disappointment. 

Just before the elevator doors slid shut, though, the tiniest, faintest hint of a scent wafted in, and Bucky’s eyes widened. He knew it. He knew that scent, or at least...he used to know it. Somewhere, in a part of his mind that he tried to forget about, he had memories of a peaceful, starry night sky, a hint of pine, and a touch of cinnamon. 

Then, the doors closed, and it was gone again, leaving him confused as the elevator rushed upwards.

[hermannsthumb]

I have a fun prompt I've been thinking about I hope you have time for one day! When Newt and Hermann meet actually things go really really well and they even get together. It's just they bicker so much and have huge science-based arguments that everyone assumed they must have hated each other on sight.

sure thing! i had fun with this one

----

"So," Newt says. "I was talking to Tendo today."

Across the mess table, Hermann hums in feigned interest. Newt knows it's feigned 'cause Hermann doesn't stop either thing he's doing: using his left hand to wind noodles around a fork, and using his right hand to scribble away a series of lengthy equations on the back of a paper napkin. His full attention has been hopping between both for about ten minutes now—no room for Newt to slip in there. He's testing his limits enough as it. Half of the last equation ended up scratched into the tabletop, and the last time he lifted his fork to his mouth, it was empty. And then he swallowed anyway. Newt kinda loves the guy.

"Yeah," Newt says, deciding to continue like Hermann responded the way he was actually supposed to respond, which would've been something along the lines of what an utterly fascinating story, Newton, do tell me more. I love hearing you talk, Newton. How marvelously smart you are, Newton, and how melodic and breathtaking your voice is. Now watch me bite down on an empty fork again. "Kinda funny. He was asking how we met."

Hermann finally looks up at Newt suspiciously over the rims of his glasses, which are slipping slowly down his nose. He stills them with the tip of his index finger before they land in his dinner. "Why?"

"I don't know, man," Newt says. "He just was. It was like, small talk, you wouldn't get it. He dropped by the lab when you were out this morning to let me know that there was extra space if we wanted it. Like, lab space." Hermann resumes scratching an equation into the table absently. Newt rolls his eyes. "As in, we could have separate labs if we wanted now."

Hermann knits his eyebrows together. "Separate laboratories?"

When Newt and Hermann first started at the Hong Kong Shatterdome, the k-scientist team was pre-existing and significantly bigger, and anyone who joined on later—like, you know, them—basically got shoved in wherever they fit. For Newt and Hermann, that happened to be Laboratory Space D, Basement Level 1 (the only basement level), along with a former marine biologist who was killed on a research excursion a month later when a kaiju made unexpected landfall, like, right on top of their chosen shelter. Bad luck. Anyway, Newt's known about the existence of other Hong Kong Shatterdome lab spaces in the vague and absent sort of way that you would an urban legend, but (similarly so) he never thought he and Hermann would actually ever lay eyes on one. And then Tendo stopped by to dangle it in front of Newt on a stick.

"The other labs were being used as storage for ages after everyone else—" Newt searches for a word tasteful enough to encapsulate got stomped by a kaiju and wised up and decided to live out what are probably our last few days before the world ends with their families instead of alone in a military bunker. "—left. Anyway, Tendo told me they've been going through shit like crazy this month, I think to see if they can salvage any old tech, and that the other labs are basically totally emptied out now. We just have to ask and they're ours."

Hermann sets down both his pen and fork, twisting his mouth contemplatively. He finally loses the battle against gravity with his glasses, and they miss his plate by an inch, swinging back on their chain and bouncing harmlessly against his chest instead. Newt briefly wonders if getting a chain for his own glasses would save them from their frequent fatal falls into kaiju organ cavities and buckets of non-neutralized kaiju blood, but decides not even the money he'd save on replacement pairs would make a fashion faux pas like that worth it. "You know I don't much fancy the basement," Hermann says.

"Your joints," Newt agrees. The damp of the basement sets Hermann's joint pain off frequently, something Hermann talks about just as frequently. Newt's not really a fan of the basement either, though for different reasons—he would kill to get some windows and natural, non-fluorescent light in there. Sun lamps can only do so much. He's pretty sure he'd fucking glow if he stepped outside right now. Also, it's cold down here.

"And it might be nice to be closer to LOCCENT, in case of an emergency," Hermann continues. "And closer to—oh, hang on. What has this got to do with us?"

"Huh?"

"How we met," Hermann says. "You said, that Tendo asked—"

"Oh," Newt says. It's his turn to play coy. He stirs his chopsticks through his own dinner, accidentally flicking a piece of tofu to the table. It lands on top of Hermann's etched equations. Hermann scowls, because that's how their routine goes: Newt gets Hermann's stuff dirty, and Hermann gets mad. "Well. It was just that Tendo was like you can finally be out of each other's hair, how the hell did you guys get stuck together anyway when you obviously can't stand each other, that kind of stuff."

"Ah," Hermann says.

"And I said that it was because we knew each other before," Newt says, "and that we transferred here together. And that's when he asked."

"And what did you say?" Hermann says.

"That we used to correspond professionally," Newt says, "and met at a conference way back in 2017." He adds, with a grin, "Also professionally."

This was technically true. Newt and Hermann did write to each other, professionally, and they did meet at a conference, professionally, but what went down after a long and public shouting match in the events hall of a very nice hotel—in Hermann's room, five floors up in that very nice hotel—was not very professional. The events of the week that followed—spent, intermittently, between Hermann's hotel room, several coffee shops, a bench under a tree in Newt's favorite park, a rotation sushi restaurant, brushing knees shyly on the tram, and, finally, clasping hands on the staircase of Newt's apartment and gazing deeply into each other's eyes—weren't very professional, either, but Newt likes to think that they were very romantic. Rom-com level shit. Newt revealed none of this to Tendo, who referred to the 2017 conference as that Infamous Day for the rest of their conversation. "Well, it was professional," Hermann sniffs.

But he reaches across the table, and, very timidly, crosses his pinkie over top of Newt's. It's the most blatant form of PDA Hermann ever willingly engages Newt in. Newt thinks if he ever tried to touch two fingers at once in anywhere but the lab, or God forbid, hold his whole hand, Hermann's ears might start emitting steam like something out of a cartoon. "It might be nice," he says again.

Laboratory Space D, Basement Level 1, is unique—Newt knows—in that Newt and Hermann's quarters are connected to it directly. None of the other labs have that luxury (and Newt has a feeling it's because Lab Space D wasn't actually intended as a lab space). He remembers being told that when they were shoved into it. Yeah, you have the darkest and tiniest lab space on base, but your rooms are right there! When Newt wants to go to Hermann's room, or if he's in Hermann's room and needs a sweatshirt or something from his own, he just has to step the three feet between their two doors. Moving labs could throw a wrench in that—they might be asked to move quarters, too, and might be shuttled to opposite sides of the Shatterdome, and though they could just bite the bullet and request couple's quarters already, it's nice to have their own spaces when they need it. That would never work. And, well, besides—the lab, their lab, feels like home to them at this point. Newt shrugs.

"On the other hand," Hermann says, and he taps Newt's pinkie lightly, "I quite like how things are. I can live with the damp, really."

"We can get a dehumidifier," Newt offers.

Hermann nods, and he gives Newt the barest hint of a smile.

Their monthly delivery of lab supplies—whatever they can afford with their shoestring budget, which, these days, mostly means chalk, rubber gloves, and nice instant ramen—comes three weeks later. Newt wouldn't exactly call the Shatterdome delivery guy a friend, seeing as he has yet to divulge his name to Newt (and also Newt's pretty sure he has a thing for Hermann, since he always seems to wait until Hermann is in the lab to stroll by with his package trolley and always calls him Dr. Gottlieb with big stupid heart eyes, oh, Dr. Gottlieb, that new sweater looks soooo nice on you!, so anyway, that makes him Newt's rival by default), but he, at least, recognizes and acknowledges Newt at this point. That's more than Newt can say for most people on the base. After his usual greeting to the two of them (hey, Newt, oh, hellllooo, Dr. Gottlieb, did you do something new with your hair?), he starts to unload their packages, also like usual.

"I was surprised to see that you guys are still down here," he tells Newt, not like usual. "Tendo mentioned something about you getting your own labs."

"He did?" Newt says, meaning to frown, but grinning instead. It's kind of fun to be the subject of gossip. He pulls off his gloves and tosses them in the trash to help with their supplies—the dehumidifier he requested should be in there, and it's fancy and definitely on the bigger side.

"Yeah," their delivery guy continues. He hands Newt a fuckin' massive brick of a package. Hermann's stupid chalk. The amount that Hermann tears through in a month really is astounding: Newt has a private theory that Hermann is an undercover space alien from a planet where chalk constitutes all of the primary food groups, and he secretly sneaks out here and eats it in the dead of night when Newt is asleep. "Anyway, sorry I'm late," the delivery guy says, as Newt imagines Hermann crunching on a piece of chalk like a carrot stick, "I went to all the other labs first."

"No worries, dude," Newt says. "Sorry for the confusion."

He lugs the package over to Hermann's desk, and drops it down on the only spot not over-cluttered with papers and books. Hermann complains about Newt's messiness a lot for a guy who is just as bad, if not worse. "Need any now?" Newt asks Hermann.

Hermann, scribbling away at his chalkboard, grunts. Newt decides that's a no.

"Hard at work, Dr. Gottlieb?" the delivery guy says, practically fluttering his eyelashes.

Another grunt. Newt snorts.

"I thought you guys would've moved right away," the delivery guy (obviously disappointed at Hermann's lack of attention) tells Newt. "Tendo mentioned you've been stuck together for a while, ever since some sort of dramatic confrontation at a conference ten years ago." he adds eagerly, "Did you really get thrown out? I don't know how you haven't killed each other yet."

"It's taken a lot of hard work," Newt says. Yeah, the whole being-ejected-from-the-conference-and-barred-from-all-future-ones-forever thing is technically true too, but everyone there was too stuffy and serious for Newt's fun vibes anyway, so he thinks it's their loss. The most important part of the scientific breakthrough process, Newt frequently thinks, was having someone there to challenge you and push back at you. Sometimes loudly. And in public. In the conference hall of a very expensive hotel, in front of all of your scientific peers, some hotel security guards, and a poor graduate student who made the mistake of asking you and your penpal-colleague for your joint opinion on something and got caught in the crosshairs. Besides—out of everyone at that stupid conference, Newt and Hermann were the only ones snapped up by the PPDC, so it's doubly their loss. "And, yeah, we got thrown out. Me and Hermann fight a lot, but we always make up eventually. It's no big deal. It's, like, our thing."

"Make up?"

Newt waggles his eyebrows and doesn't elaborate. The making up part is the best part of arguing with Hermann, honestly, but he's not about to go giving private details about stuff like that to his rival.

By the time Hermann finally descends his ladder, three hours have passed, and Newt is frowning over an email he's just gotten from Shatterdome HR. Hermann will probably see it in a second when he checks his own email—it was sent to both of them, after all—but Newt waves him over to his desk anyway. "Look," he says.

He draws out the spare chair he keeps by his desk (for Hermann), and Hermann drops into it gratefully, propping his cane up against the arm. Then Hermann pushes his glasses up onto his nose and scans the email with a frown of his own. Newt reads it aloud for him anyway. "'Subject: Quarters Reassignment,'" he says. "Dear Drs. Geiszler and Gottlieb: It has recently come to our attention that you will be transferring to Laboratories A&B. Should you wish to transfer quarters as well, you will find the necessary paperwork..."

"By Jove," Hermann groans, and pulls his glasses off again, smudging a bit of chalk on his cheek, "can't they just leave us alone?"

Newt laughs. "I'll tell them we're not interested. Wait, listen to this bit at the end: Congratulations—this must be a relief! Guess they were getting your complaint forms after all, Hermann." Both Newt and Hermann had long-since assumed that any and all official complaint forms stamped with a k-sci lab return address are filed right into the garbage. It's never deterred Hermann from sending them in, though.

"Hmph," Hermann says.

Newt carefully rolls his shirtcuff back down to his wrist and uses it to rub off Hermann's chalk smudge. When it's gone, or at least, mostly gone, he brushes his fingers back through Hermann's short hair. Hermann's eyelids flutter shut, and as he leans into Newt's touch, his creased forehead smooths just a little. "Mm. You're lovely," he murmurs. "We really ought to tell them we're married. It's gone on long enough."

"I guess," Newt says. "But it's kind of funny, isn't it?"