#not crazy just creative

[wanderinginksplot]

Clone Trooper Rambles

As the header says, Rambles are a clone trooper-augmented journal-style writing exercise. The events are true, the clone troopers are only visible to me.

Warnings: bad mood, me not being a very good roommate or friend.

---

Bad Mood

“Okay, consider this your first and only warning,” I announced, drawing the attention of my roommates and all the troopers hanging out in my apartment that day. “I’m in a terrible mood and it’s not getting better. I’m going to keep to myself, but there’s a strong chance I’m going to end up yelling at someone today. I'm sorry and I’ll apologize again afterward, but I wanted to get this conversation out of the way.”

With that said, I turned around and went back into my room. Being in a bad mood already sucked, but I especially hated it when I couldn’t figure out why I was upset. 

Feelings don’t have to make sense, I told myself. It didn’t help. 

I had always been very aware of my own feelings and actions. There was a reason for most moods I experienced, especially as someone who was logical to a fault. But this mood had come out of nowhere and didn’t have an obvious cause. I hated those - they almost always boiled down to something existential that took a lot of effort to fix. 

After a few minutes trying to find something I wanted to do, I resigned myself to it. I was well and truly irritated. I could either stay in my room and sulk or I could pick one thing and force myself to do it. 

At last, I decided to go on a walk. If nothing else, it would get me out of the apartment and away from my roommates. They hadn’t done anything wrong, and I wanted to avoid being awful to them if I could help it.

“Going for a walk,” I explained shortly as I pulled on my shoes, grabbed my keys and left before anyone could say anything. 

When I had covered a pretty solid distance, I finally paid attention to who was around me. Rex, Boss, Alpha, and Wolffe were trailing a bit behind, but definitely walking with me. 

“I was serious,” I warned them. “I’m in a shitty mood.”

“We noticed,” Wolffe replied dryly. 

“Then why are you here?” 

“Because no one else wanted to be.” Alpha’s blunt answer, delivered in a completely flat tone, was still harsh nonetheless.

Boss cleared his throat softly. “The four of us have seen worse. If you yell, you yell. We know we can handle whatever you end up saying or doing.”

That somehow managed to make me feel worse. I started to jog, trying to clear my mind of everything but the rhythm of my muscles working as I propelled myself along.

But, of course, that was the description of running I had read in a book. In reality, jogging sucked and I was immediately out of breath. Still, I pushed through it because the burning in my lungs almost felt good in my current state of mind. 

The troopers easily kept pace with me as I ran. When I finally slowed into a walk, they slowed as well, none of them breathing nearly as hard as I was by that point. 

“I thought you said jogging was the most socially acceptable form of self-hatred?” Rex checked. 

I chuckled - partially at my own wit, but mostly at the judgmental looks of Boss and Alpha. Wolffe, who had heard me say that before, just ignored all of us. 

“I still stand by that,” I told him. “But I just needed to.”

“And now?” Boss asked. 

“Well, I’m not ready to go back home,” I mused. “I’m going to walk a little longer, try to figure out what’s wrong.”

They didn't argue, so I kept walking. I didn't bother making conversation and I left my phone in my pocket. I didn’t want any distractions. In the nebulousness of walking and not thinking, a profound dread fell over me. I had taken an extra day off, but my long weekend was ending and I had to go back to work tomorrow. 

“I need a new job,” I realized, my surprise prompting me to say it aloud. 

“What?” Rex asked when I didn’t follow the statement with anything else.

“I think that’s why I’m irritated,” I explained. “I dread going back to work. I’m bored with it and don’t want to go. That’s not the way I want to live my life.”

“I thought you loved that job,” Boss countered. 

“No, I do,” I agreed. “I don’t want to leave it, but I thrive on a challenge. It was fine when I was working and going to school at the same time, but now that I’ve graduated, I need something more. I love what I do, but it’s just… it’s not enough anymore.”

“Maybe you’re angry because you’re angry,” Alpha suggested. “Doesn’t have to be anything more than that.”

I started shaking my head even before he had finished making his point. As soon as I said it out loud, I knew this was the cause of my bad mood. If this was something my subconscious was telling me I should do, I needed to get it done.

Before I could tell them some variation of that, Wolffe spoke up. “No, she’s been this way for a while. She said something about it months ago.” He gave a sidelong glance at me. “If that’s what you need to do, what are you waiting for?”

“Just to get back home,” I answered, feeling suddenly determined.

---

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Author's Note - This marks Alpha's debut in these Rambles! Figures he'd appear when I'm feeling the most grumpy.

Thanks for reading! You can find other works on my masterlist or sign up for my taglist here. (Remember, you can ask to be removed from the taglist at any time, just message me!)

Taglist: @rexs-wife @sugarpuffsstuff @just-some-girl-92 @kimageddon @ladysongmaster @carodealmeida @nomercyforthewarrior @bitchylittleredhead @lackofhonor @buddee @salaminus @hikime @808tsuika @ladykatakuri @bikerlorian @torchbearerkyle @frietiemeloen @justanothersadperson93 @leotatombs @rain-on-kamino @itsagrimm @dancingwiththeplanets @theclonesdeservebetter @murder-of-crows-1 @rosmariner @staycalmandhugaclone @marennial @eyecandyeoz @fordo-kixed-rex @lucyysthings @quietplaceinthestars @dinsverdika @xxxcertifiednerdxxx @coruscanticoffee @archangelsunited @kashasenpai @beverlybeav @wolffegirlsunite @pb-jellybeans @jennamelinda12

[wanderinginksplot-writes]

Clone Trooper Rambles

Probably closer to maladaptive daydream than imaginary friends at this point, but we'll overlook it.

Warnings: Nerves, self-doubt, mentions of job dissatisfaction.

---

Interview

I took a very necessary moment to fix my hair, arranging it in a manner that I hoped would look casual yet professional. One last smile in the mirror to check that there was nothing in my teeth. (My recent brushing should have made that a ‘no’, but it was better to be sure.) When everything was as perfect as I could make it, I stepped out of the bathroom. 

My laptop was already set up on Travis’s desk, perfectly framed by the bookshelf and plant behind it. I had plugged in the laptop’s charger in case things took longer than expected, and the meeting invitation was on the screen, waiting to be clicked. 

“So, you’re really doing this,” Rex commented as I sat down in Travis’s chair and smoothed my button-down shirt. 

“There was doubt?” I asked archly. 

He shrugged. “Just seems a little sudden.” 

“I realize you’ve been around for a while and you already know how things work,” I conceded. “But here’s something I’ve realized about the way I make decisions: I agonize over the choice for so long that, when I’ve made it, I’m all in.” 

“You have been talking about this for a while,” Cody pointed out. “It’s not arbitrary.” 

I nodded gratefully at him. The decision to find a new job hadn’t been one I took lightly. I had considered every option - Do I actually want a new job, or a different one in the same company? What happens if I regret it? Is this new company worth working for? How would getting this job impact my life? Would I be able to handle it? Is this something I want long term? - discussed it with my roommates and trusted family members, then finally applied. 

Even after I had applied, there were other requirements to fulfill: a barrage of personality tests, logic tests, tests to see whether I would be able to learn the intricacies of the company’s software, tests to find out whether I would fit in with the company’s culture… Somehow, I had passed them all. Well, I assumed I had, since I had finally gotten an interview. Then another.

This was to be my final interview, one with the manager and supervisor who I would be working with directly. 

“You nervous?” Alpha asked. 

I shrugged. “Not especially. I actually won an award in school for interviewing.”

“Interviewing?” Rex asked, frowning deeply. “There was a contest for that?” 

“Yeah, it was weird,” I admitted. “They pulled judges from local businesses. One of them said some pretty horrible things to me, trying to get me flustered or make me break down. It didn’t work.”

Cody crossed his arms. “How old were you?”

“I don’t really remember. Fifteen or so?” 

No one seemed happy about that, complete with uncharitable mutterings about the business owners in question. 

I fiddled with my computer, wiping the camera lens and adjusting the googly eyes I had stuck on either side of it. They had helped me hold ‘eye contact’ instead of staring at my screen during virtual presentations in college, and I hoped they would do the same for job interviews. 

“You can still back out,” Rex reminded me. 

I thought about it, I really did. This was something new, something unknown. Not only was it a new job, it was a new industry. It was a little scary, but what was the alternative? Going back to my current job for another week? Another month? Another year? I shuddered. 

“You can try for a different job with the same company,” Rex added, unaware of my internal monologue. “You like working for them. They’ve been good to you.” 

“I tried that, remember?” I pointed out. “I applied for seven jobs with them. Seven. And I was perfectly qualified for all of ‘em.” Alpha opened his mouth and I nodded. “Except that one. Yeah, I remember. But my point stands. I didn’t even get to the first round of interviews. If I’m not what they’re looking for, that’s fine. But I have a degree and I want to use it. More importantly, I need something new. Does that… make sense?” 

I hated how hesitant I sounded. Hated how hesitant I felt. But no matter how much I had thought it all over, I was worried this was a stupid decision. Maybe Rex was seeing something I had missed.

“It does make sense,” he assured me. “If you’re really set on this… Then get to it. You’ve got this.” 

When I glanced down, I found that it was indeed time for my interview to start. I flashed a quick smile at Rex, Cody, and Alpha, then started the video call.

---

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Author's Note - It's a busy time of year over on my other side-blog, so I've been neglecting things here. Sorry about that! I'm going to try to start posting more regularly now than February is finally wrapping up.

Thanks for reading! Quick reminder: I no longer offer a taglist. Everything I post on this account will be a piece of my own writing, tagged with whatever story it belongs to. Feel free to follow a tag or this account to see my works!

[lavender-rroses]

team bonding

extra i forgot to add lol

[texasflowers]

Someones probably done this before. Oh well

[ghostly-cabbage]

We need to talk about the worst thing about making AUs....

The fact that then when you inevitably think about crossovers you don't want the crossover with the canon you want it with your specific AU. Your brain worms, your circus, but THEN WHAT?

Oh, yeah, to understand this crossover you need to go read this entirely different fic/series? Girl help 😭 you can't do that

[trans-pilled]

which financial consultant told watcher they’re popular enough to completely pull out of youtube and onto a paid streaming site lmao

[fukcnoplease]

Things Always Go Wrong Pt3

Pt1 Pt2 Pt4

Gotham was truly testing her abilities. Usually she could vibe check the building and be good but the vibes of Gotham were rancid everywhere she went. Every building and street had some varying level of unsafe and she could feel Danny slowing behind her. He wasn't going to stay on his feet for much longer. Thankfully there were plenty of alleys they could probably hide in and even though it was already midmorning the thick smog on the city made it look like the dawn had only just broken. The alleys were still dark and as soon as she paused at the back of the alley she felt Danny collapse into her. His breathing was ragged and he was slick with sweat. She tried vibrating her core at him and the response she got was uncoordinated and harsh. It was as if two things were trying to respond to her, attempting to drown each other out.

“Shit.” she said. Jazz would be mad for her language, you know, if she didn't kill her for killing her brother. 

“Found you, wretch.” A voice said and Dani shot up into a fighting stance. The entrance of the alley was blocked by five people, all dress head to toe in white and aiming several weapons at them. They were all men and significantly bigger than her. That would be fine in her ghost form but transforming in front of them was risky.

Danny groaned from the cold alley floor and Dani grimaced. She growled, inhumane and low, and punched her palm as she went ghost. Showing her transformation was a small price to pay to protect Danny and they probably had her, or Danny’s, ecto-signature if they had managed to follow them cross state lines so accurately. 

Their weapons hummed as they charged and Dani caught a glimpse of color above them. Praying she had seen right she took in a breath and shouted her words.

“I am the princess of the Infinite Realms. Any harm that comes to me is a direct attack on the entire dimension of the Infinite Realms and cause for a war between our worlds!” Internally she cringed at her words but she prayed they had the right effect. 

“Ha! Like you could fool us, you manipulative ecto-sum! You’re coming with us. If you're lucky you might even make it in one piece” The leader, she assumed as he was standing at the front of the group, said. She tensed in case her gamble went south and prepared for something to hit her. 

Thankfully she didn't feel anything and a yellow hero came crashing down on the agents with a ferocity she wasn't expecting. He used what she thought were escrima sticks but they were connected together with a long wire and looked modified. He downed the panicked agents in seconds and turned to Dani. Unconscious agents littered around him.

His sudden movements made her drop into a defensive stance and he froze. Gently putting away his weapons as he raised his hands to show he meant no harm.

“Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just trying to help.” The man paused as he looked over the two disheveled siblings. The white haired girl was glaring at him but looked more wary than aggressive and the dark haired boy on the floor looked incredibly ill. “Would it be ok if I helped you? I can call some friends and we can get you to a safe space.”

Dani stared the man down. He could fight, and right now she wasn't confident she could take him. Not while protecting a very incapacitated Danny. He had a black bat symbol on his chest which was good but also bad. Good because Batman was a hero and helped those in need. Bad because Batman was famous for not liking metas and while she and Danny weren’t metas she doubted Batman would care enough to make the distinction. Hopefully if she played up the royalty bit she could get maybe some leeway.

“Ok, bumblebee, but I want you to promise you wont hurt me or my… ambassador,” Danny was going to be so mad when he woke up, “or I will bring the entire Infinite Realms down on this world.” She did her best to sound threatening and maybe using some energy to make herself scarier but she wouldn't admit it.

“Of course, your… highness?” Bumblebee asked. Dani frowned, she didn't like ‘your highness’ but she couldn't give her actual name…

“You can call me… Elle.” She felt her insides crumple up at how cringey that name felt and she was very glad Danny was out cold for this conversation. The bumblebee hero nodded and said something into what she assumed was an earpiece. After a few minutes of discussion he went quiet and began watching the roofs. Dani floated off the ground slightly, trying to see what he was looking for. She didn't notice the surprise that flitted across his face at her show of power or the silent black hero who landed gracefully beside Bumblebee. 

“Hey Black Bat. Can you help me gather these guys up? Batman should be en route but might take a minute to get here.” Bumblebee said. Dani whipped around to see the new hero, black bat apparently, silently working her way through the knocked out GIW.

“Batman is coming?” Dani asked, anxiety making her fidget with her hands. That wasn't good. She couldn't pretend to be a princess around him, he could practically smell lies, or fear, and maybe she could be the princess of the Infinite Realms but she wasn't officially! Not yet at least. And Danny definitely wasn't her ambassador. Shit, maybe if she played up with the sad little girl image? Batman was known to take pity on kids… or was that one of his allies. She should’ve listened in on the conversation the bumblebee had had earlier, maybe she would have had something to work with then.

Black bat and bumblebee worked together to tie up the GIW and leave them in an easily accessible spot for when the police came around. Black bat touched bumblebees bicep and he looked up to see the scary shadow of Batman looming over the alley. Dani notices him too and landed in front of Danny, spreading her arms to block him from Batman's view as he landed beside the other heroes.

“Report.” Was all he said as he looked over the scene. His gaze lingered on the unconscious boy and Dani had to resist growling at him, in case that ruined her case for receiving help. Bumblebee took a breath and nodded.

“I found these two as they were about to be attacked by a group of people,” he gestured to the tied up men in white, “it looked like meta trafficking and I stepped in. Elle,” he gave a smile to Dani who cringed internally, “gave the men fair warning about their attack being against royalty and at risk of ruining dimensional relations, they refused to back off.”

Batman responded with a noncommittal ‘hn’ and narrowed his eyes at Dani who prickled under the gaze.

“For the record,” Bumblebee added, a little hesitant, “I believe her.”

Batman nodded and took a step closer to Dani and this time she did growl. The man stopped and regarded her. She glared back. He wasnt coming near her or Danny. Not in his state.

“Would you like to come with us?” Was all batman said. Stern and quiet. Dani didn't move, she looked over Batman’s unmoving face and then back at the bumblebee and black bat. The bumblebee hero looked worried but more for Batman than Dani and the black bat seemed relaxed as she watched.

“Where are you going to take us?” Dani asked. Batman frowned slightly and Dani worried he would just try and grab them. 

“A place where we can keep you safe and confirm your royal status,” he said. Dani didn't really like the sound of that but she could feel Danny getting worse and she was running out of time to make a decision. When he chose that exact moment to let out a pained groan Dani almost smacked him. Batman’s frown deepened and Dani felt her throat bob.

“We might even be able to help your friend.” He offered.

“My ambassador,” She corrected, if she was gonna sell this she had to go all out, “And I don't want you to lay a hand on him.”

Batman gave her the slightest, stiffest nod she had ever seen and she relaxed. Batman nodded to the other heroes and black bat vanished, bumblebee paused before leaving himself. Dani felt her anxiety come back threefold at being left alone with the big bad bat but in a few seconds a fancy black bat shaped car skidded to a halt outside the alley. In the passenger seat was the familiar bumblebee, he grinned and waved at them. Batman stared at him in what Dani thought could be disapproval but said nothing. The doors to the suped up car popped open and bumblebee stepped out.

“You can get in the back seat. Do you need help with your ambassador?” He said as he stepped back into the alley. Dani shook her head and Batman made a grumbling sound.

“Signal.” he said. Bumblebee, signal apparently, shrugged and continued towards Dani until she stiffened.

“I just wanted them to have a familiar face so the journey wasn't too stressful. Black bat and Spoiler are covering me while I stick with them.” He said, smiling at Batman and then turning back to Dani. He moved to help her pick Danny up but she shook her head at him and he stepped back. Batman made another ‘hn’ sound before retreating to the driver seat of the car. 

Dani moved Danny around and picked him up by throwing him over her shoulder. He wasn't heavy but he was bigger than her and it made him difficult to carry. Signal, she preferred bumblebee, hovered around her but was careful not to touch Danny as she carried him to the car. They managed to get Danny securely in the back seat of the batcar and Dani slid in next to him. He looked worse. Maybe moving him wasn't the smartest idea but Dani didn't know what else to do. If the GIW had their ecto-signature there wasn't a safe place to hide. Maybe Batman would be able to protect them but it would only last so long. She pushed aside her fears and gripped Danny’s too warm hand. The scenery went passed too quickly for her to see and the drive was silent. She was starting to hate road trips.

~~

This is short but the next one is gonna be LONG I got distracted anyway I love that people are enjoying this, i like writing it :)

[bloodmoonblitz]

the heart || (i kinda winged it when rendering the armor, so dont ask me how i did it)

[peachcitt]

from: thirteen by @anna-scribbles

art by me :)

start from the beginning // read the november chapter // read the most recent chapter (january)

hey listen. look me in my eyes. have you read thirteen by anna scribbles. i think you need to read thirteen by anna scribbles. i think if you want your life to be forever changed you need to read thirteen by anna scribbles. i think if you are a person who is breathing and alive you need to read thirteen by anna scribbles. thank you

[neopuppy]

I still can’t believe this happened

[kingofmyborrowedheart]

The fact that Taylor has released the same amount of albums under Universal/Republic in less than half the time when she was with Big Machine, really makes me wonder about all of the potential things she could’ve done if instead of having to fight tooth and nail for everything, they had granted her more creative freedom and trusted her.

[wanderinginksplot]

Clone Trooper Rambles

Part fiction, part writing exercise, part journal.

Warnings: mentions of rollercoasters and other theme park attractions, mentions of nausea, mentions of overheating, brief mentions of vomiting.

---

Theme Park

“That was disgusting,” Rex decreed, nose wrinkling at the apparent offense.

“Disgusting?” I echoed. “It’s fine if you don’t like roller-coasters, but disgusting? That seems like you’re taking it a little far.” 

“No, captain’s right,” Tup told me. He was looking a little sickly. “That was worse than landing in a warzone.” 

“That’s not possible.” Maybe it was, how would I know? But it certainly didn’t sound like the truth. 

“It’s very possible.” Rex leaned against a wall, studying me with censure. “Aren’t you even slightly dizzy?” 

“Um, no?” I shrugged. “That corkscrew at the end gets me a little bit, but I’m past all of that now.” 

“You’d fit right in with Skywalker and the 501st,” Cody told me, catching up to us. He had stayed behind to browse the gift shop - his typical excuse when he wanted to scope out the candy selection.

Rex groaned, but narrowed his eyes in the next moment. “Speaking of… Where is everyone?” 

“Well, Tup is there,” I explained, pointing. “Fives and Hardcase stayed back to ride the coaster again-”

“A few more times,” Cody interrupted. “They were going on ride number four when I left.”

“Sounds about right.” I couldn’t help but laugh, both at the idea of the pair of adrenaline junkies and at the horrified look on Rex’s face. “I don’t know where anyone else is. I’m going to get a soft pretzel and a bottle of water if anyone’s hungry?” 

Rex shook his head and Tup only held up a hand, but Boost, Hunter, and Stone stood eagerly. Behind them, Thorn asked, “Do they have ice cream?” 

“It’s a theme park in the summertime,” I told him. “I’m positive they’ll have ice cream.” 

“I’m in,” Thorn agreed, leading the group. I gave a last helpless look at Rex and followed the crowd to the nearest snack booth. 

When I got back, I offered Rex my unopened water bottle. “You really will feel better if you can drink some water. Just drink it slowly and let it settle between sips.” 

Rex accepted the water bottle - as usual, a ghostly afterimage of the one I still held seemed to be in his hand. As I watched, he unscrewed the top and took a sip, then another. Slowly but surely, he drained half of the bottle as I alternated between drinks of water and bites of salty pretzel. 

“How are you feeling now?” I asked, shortly before shoving the rest of the pretzel in my mouth. 

“Not… bad, actually,” Rex admitted. He seemed suspicious about his own lack of nausea, which made me smile. “How did you know that was all it took?” 

I laughed despite myself. “I worked out in this heat for years. If there’s one thing I know, it’s how to recognize the difference between being hot, having heat exhaustion, and having heatstroke. You were somewhere between the first two.”

“I’m used to the climate control systems in the armor,” he admitted. 

“Jealous.” I took another drink of water and thought about it. “If I had armor that would keep me from freezing or overheating, I would never take it off.” 

Beside us, Tup took a deep swig of his own water. Even as he swallowed it, his face took on a sickly look and he clapped a hand over his mouth. Before anyone could ask him about it, he rushed off to vomit on the nearest bush. 

“Yeah, that’s the other possible outcome,” I admitted. “Water will either make you feel better or - if you drink it too fast - will make you throw up.”

Rex gave me a disbelieving look. “Remind me not to take advice from you anymore.” 

“That’s rude!” Rex didn’t seem to care about my offense, so I finished my water and stood. “I’m going to console myself on the spinning teacups.” 

Two steps toward the ride in question, I paused to watch Wrecker, Jesse, and Scorch fly past. They were spinning so quickly that all I could see was the motion blur of the car. Really, the group’s laughter was all that told me who it was. 

“On second thought,” I hedged, changing directions mid-step, “I haven’t been on the swings yet.”

---

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Author's Note - Guess who got to go to a theme park this summer? I love rollercoasters! Others have... mixed opinions. Thanks for reading and happy Friday!

You can sign up for my taglist here. As always, let me know if you want to be removed from the taglist!

Taglist: @rexs-wife @sugarpuffsstuff @just-some-girl-92 @kimageddon @ladysongmaster @carodealmeida @nomercyforthewarrior @bitchylittleredhead @lackofhonor @buddee @salaminus @hikime @808tsuika @ladykatakuri @bikerlorian @torchbearerkyle @frietiemeloen @justanothersadperson93 @leotatombs @rain-on-kamino @itsagrimm @dancingwiththeplanets @theclonesdeservebetter @murder-of-crows-1 @rosmariner @staycalmandhugaclone @marennial @eyecandyeoz @fordo-kixed-rex @lucyysthings @quietplaceinthestars @dinsverdika @xxxcertifiednerdxxx @coruscanticoffee @archangelsunited @kashasenpai @beverlybeav @wolffegirlsunite @pb-jellybeans @jennamelinda12 @thrawnspetgoose @bobaprint @mooncommlink

[lover-of-mine]

I just wanna say that if you're against creative AI you need to be against all creative AI. You cannot go on a rant over chatgpt just to turn around and use an AI to make a painting or to make your favorite singer do an AI cover. They all use stolen content. They are all trained using content that's not theirs. You can't be mad at AI writing just to turn around and use another AI just because this one doesn't affect you directly.

[shady-tavern]

A Hero’s Return

Continuation of this little short story. No particular warnings, but let me know if I should tag something.

***

'Ready when you are.'

It felt as though the message was burning a hole into your pocket as you stared at your hero costume. Freshly laundered, repaired perfectly after your fight with that telekinetic villain and just as practical and flashy as before. It shouldn’t be scary.

Your hands weren’t trembling when you put it on, but it was a near thing. It helped to know that Silver was waiting on the other side, not a floating terror ready and willing to kill. If you failed, no civilians would get hurt or killed. You would not die knowing you had been utterly useless, or wake up miraculously to find hundreds of people dead because you hadn’t been strong enough.

You had grown stronger, you knew you had. Enough so, in fact, that the hero association had recently bumped you up to Class B. Which was a little frightening, you had never played in the upper leagues before and while you knew you were part of the bottom crowd of Class B, it was still very different to your comfortable, quiet little Class C.

You took a few deep breaths after buckling the last of your gear in place and you stared at the mirror, realizing that the costume didn’t fit like it used to. You had gained muscle and a bit of weight and…it didn’t look right anymore. The colors seemed too bright, the little fluttery accents you had once added to the design on a whim too useless.

You took another deep breath and turned away from the mirror. Now was not the time to get into an existential crisis over your costume. You could always order a new one from the association later. You grabbed your phone, staring at the most recent message for a long moment, your heart pounding nervously.

'Ready when you are.'

You could hear Silver’s voice in your mind as you read those words, could see his reassuring smile, the kindness in his mercury eyes that didn’t quite manage to hide patient anticipation. He was looking forward to this, you knew. He had been there every step of the way, as you had dragged yourself out of the hole your failure and terror had shoved you into.

You didn’t feel ready to be a hero again, but you had decided that it didn’t matter. You would never feel ready. You could run those obstacle courses and simulations Silver built a hundred thousand times and not feel ready.

'Ready' you typed back and hit send before you could stop yourself. 

The hero association already knew you would return to active duty today. The substitute hero had left the city last night, looking relieved. His stay here had been exceptionally boring, since Silver had refused to challenge him in any way. Aside from bugging him a bit for fun, but his pranks were always harmless.

You flexed your hands and for a moment you felt all the scar tissue pull tight, stitched up wounds and surgery scars and broken bones that had taken months to heal. You weren’t ready, but you were sick and tired of sitting around at home.

You were sick and tired of being scared, of worrying. Of thinking about the next Class A villain that could show up with murder on their mind. You wanted to be a hero, still, even now. You wanted to protect people and help them where you could. You straightened your shoulders and walked forward, projecting a confidence you did not feel.

It was showtime.

*.*.*.*

You watched civilians cackle in delight as they were pelted with marshmallow butts the size of half your palm. Silver was bouncing a bit on his toes at your side, grinning so wide it must’ve hurt his cheeks.

"Well?" he said with a grin. "Aren’t you going to try and stop me? Oh no, darling, dashing hero!" He pretended to fall into a faint, hand theatrically pressed against his forehead. 

He tipped over with thoughtless trust, knowing you’d be there to catch him. And you did, hands pressed against his signature leather jacket as he draped himself over your arms with exaggerated drama. He continued, "Whatever shall I do, my evil soul quivers!"

You couldn’t help but laugh, tension you hadn’t been aware of sliding off your shoulders like water off a duck’s back. When you caught your breath again, looking down, Silver had the softest smile on his face, his eyes crinkling at the corners. He looked far too sweet for someone proclaiming he had an evil soul.

He straightened from his pretend fainting after a moment and tugged his jacket properly back into place.

"Good first day back?" he asked quietly, barely audible over the huffing and puffing noise of his Ass Kicker 50, it’s wheel of used but thoroughly cleaned and disinfected boots merrily pelting butts into the growing crowd.

"Yeah," you answered just as quietly. "Glad to see me again?"

"Of course, darling." His soft smile got a mischievous edge as it grew into a smirk. "But you must be losing your edge, you haven’t even disabled my baby yet."

You couldn’t help but smirk back, tapping a piece of plating. "Dead switch is beneath this thing, isn’t it?"

He looked startled, then cursed and grumbled, actually looking like he had no idea if he was frustrated or delighted and instead settled on a weird mix of both. "I was hiding it so well! How the fuck did you know?"

You gave him a small shrug. "It’s the only place that works and from the way the thing’s set up and built, it had to be in this area to avoid messing with the machinery. And it’s the only plating that’s not bolted down. Pressure opens it, right?"

You pressed down experimentally on one side and the plate popped open easily enough, swinging aside to reveal the big red button. Because of course it was a big red button. That was so very Silver.

When you looked up, his mercury eyes were bright and intense and that elated-frustrated look was still on his face. "And you once asked me why I fight you," he said, his quiet voice carrying a particular tone that you couldn’t quite place. It made you feel faintly flustered, though.

You fiddled with the plate for a moment, before closing it again. "Yeah, well, I’m just glad I’m not boring."

Silver drew up to his full height, actually looking affronted. "Boring? How dare you?"

The smile tugging at your face felt far too earnest and touched by half, but it seemed to soothe his insulted affront.

"I’ll have a conversation with whoever put that thought into your head," he said, pointing a finger at you. "And if it was you yourself, we are going to have a long talk."

Hearing a round of loud, delighted noise from the side, both of you looked over to see a group of goth teens cackling as they pocked little holes between the cheeks of their marshmallows butts.

"Ah, I knew I had forgotten something," Silver muttered and you dissolved into helpless laughter, ending up leaning against his shoulder and gasping for air.

By the time you calmed down, you were out of breath, your belly aching in the best of ways and you reached up to wipe some moisture away. Silver looked very content and happy, standing there and watching the machine pelt away, people jumping to catch the butts wrapped in paper to keep things sanitary. So they could be picked up and still eaten if they fell to the floor.

He was always so thoughtful, you thought, still leaning against him and not moving away. You had no idea what he got out of being a villain - well, aside from tax fraud, a bunch of other illegal activities and some very, very strange substances you were not going to touch, ever - but you were happy to see him happy. He deserved it.

"They needed that too," Silver said in this moment, nodding at the crowd. "This city hasn’t quite been the same since that villain attacked. They’re relieved to have you back and seeing us fight harmlessly should put more demons to rest."

You hadn’t even thought about that, too caught up in your own trauma as you had been. You looked back at the people and you saw that he was right. There was a visceral relief on many faces, a giddiness that was born half out of the silliness of the situation and half out of a release of fear-filled tension.

They had been even more helpless than you had been. Civilians with no combat abilities and absolutely no chance to survive the Class A villain. All they had been able to do was run while they had to watch you bleed and break and still stand up again and again.

Oh. 

A quiet realization struck you down to your core. You had wondered why people had been polite but not overly warm with the substitute hero. He had sent you regular updates on villain activity and how his patrols had gone, even if it had taken you a while before you had gotten the guts to read it all instead of only the summary. 

He had mentioned that people didn’t seem all that curious about him and he had sulked about that a bit.

All this time you had thought that you had failed them, these people who grinned and waved when they saw you. Who didn’t hesitate to call you away from the street and ask for help or offer you sweets or lunch when you had been patrolling for hours. People who let you hold their babies or hugged you when you brought their lost pets back.

But they hadn’t seen a failure that day months ago. They had seen you, standing between them and certain death and refusing to give up, no matter what. All because you wanted to protect them with all you had.

"Hey, what’s wrong?" Silver’s worried voice cut into your thoughts and when you glanced at him, his brows were furrowed. "Why are you crying? Do you need me to switch off my baby and back up?"

"I’m fine," you croaked weakly, though you totally were tearing up. "I’m just glad to be back, don’t read too much into it."

Silver’s face softened with a quiet bit of relief and he hummed in understanding. "I’m glad, too, by the way," he said after a moment. "To have you back that is. I may have been a wee bit lonely."

You raised an eyebrow, glad that no tears had spilled over. "You saw me almost every day."

"But not like this," Silver said. "Don’t get me wrong, I love watching you destroy the machines of the obstacle course or absolutely ace the simulations, but I missed going up against you like this."

You rubbed the back of your neck, straightening from your slouch against him. "You always say things like that with a straight face." You both admired him for it and felt envious. Sometimes you wished you could just simply say what was on your mind as well.

Silver smiled, a little lopsided and crooked. "Life’s short, so who cares what others think," he said. "All I care about is living every day the best I can."

You knew what he meant by that. He had told you a bit more about his fight against Terra after modifying some more simulations for you. You had even seen a glimpse of the patchwork of scars that fight had left on him, many of them surgery scars. He had barely survived his debut as a villain. His ever first fight and it had been against Terra.

"You know, I wanted to make the butts bigger," he said before you could say anything, smoothly but obviously changing the topic. "But there was only so much I could fit into Ass Kicker 50 and that just wouldn’t do."

"Are you going to run out of butts soon?" you wondered.

Silver hummed thoughtfully. "I guess there is a minute of pelting left at most."

The two of you waited until the machine stuttered and began to slow, the wheel of boots no longer finding marshmallows to kick into the crowd. Silver gestured grandly for you to go ahead and you pressed the dead switch with a small smile.

"Well then." He clapped his hands together. "I guess I should say hello to my favorite warden. He is ever so happy to see me every time."

You couldn’t help but snort, then you hesitated. "You know, you could just…go."

Silver actually looked a little insulted. "Don’t ruin my date with prison, my dear." He beckoned you closer with a finger, presenting his hands. "I want to see if I can walk out the front door dressed like a futuristic clown."

You blinked, in the middle of pulling out your cuffs. "What would that look like?"

He smirked as you reached out towards him. "I guess you’ll have to find out." He leaned in as your hands closed the cuffs around his wrists, warm skin pressed to warm skin and cold metal between. "I’ll make sure to make the news for you."

"Alright," you said, bemused and curious in equal measure. You noticed how warm he was, this close to you, your hands covering his. His breath smelled faintly of peppermint. "Come on, there are two new officers on the roaster who are eager to prove you can’t slip past them."

His face lit up. "Oooh, fun." He chuckled, low and menacing and for once sounding like the villain he was. "I do love ruining their day. Shattered dreams taste ever so delicious."

You rolled your eyes fondly, waving the waiting police over. They hurriedly hid the marshmallow butts they were snacking on and bustled over, trying to look important and menacing. Even if Silver was a very polite and very wonderful villain, he was still wanted for a number of crimes and the state really wanted to prosecute him.

"Be gentle with Ass Kicker 50," you told the clean-up crew who came in to tow the machine away to a storage facility. "She’s done good service."

When you looked back over to Silver, you caught the warm, unbearably fond smile as he watched you on his way to the police car. He cast you a wink as he got in, mouthing, 'Clown'. You playfully wrinkled your nose at him and saw more than heard him laugh as the door was closed.

"Um." A soft, hesitant voice made you look over and you immediately recognized the girl who had approached you. The teenager who had nearly died at your side months ago. "I’m very happy you’re back and that you made a full recovery." She thrust out a small gift. "Thank you, for saving my life."

"And mine." One of her friends bustled over, holding a little wrapped gift as well. "If not for you, I wouldn’t have made it."

You felt speechless, accepting the gifts hesitantly and that seemed to open the floodgates. You were swiftly surrounded by people thanking you and expressing their concern and relief in equal measure. Your arms soon overflowed with gifts, flowers from the elderly, drawn pictures from children and baked cookies from grateful parents. It nearly made you cry.

You did cry a little when you got home, sniffling as you sat in a pile of gifts, reading letters and smiling at the graceless but enthusiastic scribbles of a five year old. Suzie was curled up in your lap, fast asleep as a small bundle of warmth.

You taped all the pictures to one wall and pinned the letters to an old, large pinboard you had gotten a few years ago. You put the food away and the flowers into a vase and scattered the rest of the gifts across your flat in a smattering of decorations.

It had mattered. Ever single moment you had felt helpless and terrified had mattered. You hadn’t been a footnote on some document, lamenting a too early death. Because of you, so many futures still existed, those bright, burning lives not snuffed out by a cruel hand.

You would continue growing stronger for them all, you vowed to yourself. Even if you needed Silver to end the fight and save you again, you would be there. Standing between evil and everyone else as many times as it took.

For the first time in months, you felt like a hero again, too.

You dozed off with the news channel on and jerked awake sometime in the early morning hours just in time to blearily watch a repeated clip of Silver, dressed as a sparkly, futuristic clown, moonwalk dancing out of prison. There it was, his famous, Class A skill of getting out of trouble in the most ridiculous ways.

You were chuckling softly to yourself, reaching out to fish your phone from your coffee table. You already had a message waiting for you.

'Watch me, darling.'

You were still half asleep when you answered, a golden feeling like honey on warm bread filling your chest, 'Always.'

You hesitated, then tapped out one more message, 'If you have any more inventions, I’m ready.'

He answered immediately. 'Oh, darling.' It read and you could hear the glee in his voice in your mind, could imagine the way he brightened. 'I was hoping you’d say that.'

You loved this ridiculous, wonderful man so much, you thought, still bleary and half asleep. Your heart felt so full with good things it felt as though it was spilling over to the point where you had to squeeze a pillow, hiding a wide grin against it.

[clover-46]

the writers on here making the miguel fics need to remember his fangs inject paralytic venom hes not a real vampire it was just a joke in the movie 😭

oh but i still want him to bite me don’t get me wrong idgaf if they have venom 🤷🏾‍♀️🤷🏾‍♀️

[vesper-the-great]

Today marks the one year anniversary of one of my favorite fics: Like Sand Between your Fingers by @eternalmomentss !!

What’s more romantic than traveling through time and space with your rival? No idea

Here’s a close up of their faces

This fic has rearranged my few brain cells in the best way possible (I want to go crazy over it, but maybe another day..) Anyways, this is a redraw of a drawing I made celebrating its finale!! (Before I actually had a proper blog lol) I hope you can notice improvement-