#rip to the victims of all of the awful people mentioned

[coreytaylorslefteyespupil]

why clowns aren’t scary + how society makes serial killers and mass murderers pop culture

i’m first going to put a massive trigger warning here. the full list will be in the tags

in this day and age when you think of a clown, you don’t think of a sad circus clown or juggling; you think of clowns like pennywise from “it” or jojo the klownzilla from “killer klowns from outer space”, among other, similar things. or you think of juggalos like insane clown posse or twiztid. either way, clowns in modern pop culture are creepy or edgy or in a “gang”(by the way, juggalos are not in a gang). but this is a recent thing and clowns were never supposed to be scary.

clowns have been around since 2400 bc during the fifth dynasty of egypt, and since then they have become a staple of comedy and entertainment. the first clowns as we know them, though, were created during 1800s with characters like joey the clown and others became popular. from then on, clown characters like bozo the clown were non threatening and fairly funny. yes, some of the face paint was a little odd but there were no bad intentions. until the 1980s.

john wayne gacey was caught and put in prison for the murders and sexual assaults of 33+ young boys and men in 1978, and the media went wild. this was one of america’s biggest serial killer cases to date, so every news station, paper, and radio was covering the case and trial. one detail that stuck with people had nothing to do with the crime itself, though. it was the fact that, in his free time, gacey dressed up as circus clown named pogo the clown, or sometimes patches the clown, for children’s hospitals and charity events. this allowed the media to call him the “killer clown”.

this obviously went on to inspire many movies and books such as “killer klowns from outer space”, “31”, “terrifier”, “it”,” wrinkles the clown”, “stitches”, among others. on top of that, a whole season of “american horror stories” was based off of killer clowns. wether intentionally or subconsciously, all of these films and movies and books were, in some capacity, inspired by gacey. in fact, in modern media, we hardly see any content about clowns showing them in a good light, aside from the big comfy couch.

this is a prime example of the way that society takes crime cases, particularly serial killers and mass murderers, reports them to hell, then ends up placing them into popular culture. we should not see a pair of specific glasses and immediately think of jeffrey dahmer. we shouldn’t see a clown and think of john wayne gacey. we shouldn’t see a volkswagen beetle and think of ted bundy. i could go on. the way society chooses to report on certain incidents is important and they tend to go about it the wrong way. for example, the only reason we had the sandyhook massacre and the uvalde massacre is because the killers were inspired by columbine, and the way mass media reported on it definitely influenced those killers. another example would be russian serial killer alexander pichushkin, who was inspired by fellow russian serial killer andrei chikatilo. the list goes on. i’m not saying media shouldn’t cover crime cases, especially mass murders. they absolutely should. bringing awareness to a situation is extremely important. but what shouldn’t be done is capitalizing off of tragedy and reporting it constantly.

another thing i wanted to bring up here, which i mentioned briefly, is capitalizing off of tragedy and trauma. for example, netflix recently released “dahmer”, their second docuseries about jeffrey dahmer. for some background, the families of dahmer’s victims, as well as the families of other killer’s victims, have repeatedly asked for media to stop making movies and documentaries about the tragedy, as it re-traumatizes them. which is 100% valid and i 100% agree with that. but netflix disagrees, goes against their wishes, and pumps out highly produced documentary after highly produced documentary. then each of these documentaries hits the top ten things on the platform, so everyone watches it, talks about, allows netflix to make millions off of it, and re-traumatizes hundreds of families who have lost loved ones to the depraved people we choose to use as entertainment. it disgusts me and angers me so much and i can’t help but feel horrible for the families.

i am aware i went all over the place in this essay, and i am aware of how dark this is. but it’s something that i want to talk about even if only a few people see it. it is important to discuss these topics and the awful way media and people in general discuss these atrocities.

[multi-fandomsfreak]

Maybe ya could do Xenophanes with a reader who can't feel pain

Xenophanes with a reader who can’t feel pain

Not going to lie I think this is one of my favourite requests that I’ve gotten so far. Besides the Amy one. I felt like I had so much to write about our favourite crystallised hedgehog. Also, correct me if I’m wrong but I think this is an actual condition not sure what it’s called though. Anyways let’s get on with this. ~ J/Blaze

Pronouns: Not Mentioned

Warning: ⚠️Torture/Mentions Of Being Torture + Violence + Harm Done To Reader + Xeno Being Sadistic⚠️️

Requested: Yes/No

Characters: Xenophane

Proofread: ❌

Credits: Art by ash011037 on Pinterest + Banner by triviastar on Pinterest

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- Not going to lie knowing how xeno is he’s probably going to be a combination of pissed, excited and intrigued all at the same time. Obviously he’s intrigued. He's never had a victim who can’t feel pain like sure on the rare occasion he had some that have high pain tolerance but overall were still able to feel some sort of pain but you're very different compared to them. On the other hand he’s also kind of pissed off because no matter what harm he does to you whether it’s tearing your body apart, ripping your skin off of you or something as simple as breaking one or multiple bones you won’t feel it but at the same time he’s sort of excited because he can do whatever he wants to you. He could let out his anger onto you because he’ll know you won’t feel it. However, despite knowing this he will try his best to find out what will cause you to feel pain much to his annoyance that he couldn't. He's not going to give up easily.

- As mentioned before despite his annoyance that he’ll have to find other ways to torture you mostly mentally/emotionally since pain doesn’t effect you he is generally curious on how you discovered it. I mean who knows what might have happened to you for someone to recognise that you can’t feel pain. You could be in some seriously dangerous situation and you would’ve been fine mentally of course definitely not physically. If he has to be honest that actually excites him in a way as he thought about the million different situations you’ve possibly been in. It doesn’t excite him in a sexual way of course but still with xeno being a sadistic person of course he couldn’t help but be slightly giddy to himself. If he is feeling curious and maybe generous enough he may take a break from hurting you to ask how you discovered what he considers a ‘phenomenal’ feature. He considers you to be very special and one of his most interesting victims.

- I can imagine xeno being very goddamn surprised when he first discovered that you react very differently to pain compared to other people who were screaming bloody murder from the harm being done to them but when he was finally able to catch you like all the other pathetic mortals he was getting ready for the best part the one he always looks forward to:

+ “aw what a shame it looks like you’ve lost” xenophane said in his usual cocky attitude as he pulled you towards him forcibly grabbing you by the neck as tight he was able to get it. Although you couldn’t feel the tightness of xenophanes grip, just having his hand around his throat combined with his cocky attitude made you just as uncomfortable and scared as if you were feeling the pain. “I wonder what I could do to make you scream.” A smirk then appeared on Xenophane's face as he dragged his claws over your stomach, scraping you before immediately digging it into you causing a small wound to appear. However, he noticed a lack of reaction to it with the only sign of emotion being the fear radiating off of you as you shut your eyes from anticipation. He then thought that you must have a high pain tolerance, however even if you had that you would’ve noticed the slight pain to which he tried to try it again but unfortunately for him it didn’t work.

+ There was some silence between you and xeno before he spoke up, very confused yet slightly irritated, thinking you're trying to make fun of him “why aren’t you screaming?” He asked as you opened your eyes confused on what he was talking about “huh…what do you mean?” That was the only thing you were able to say “don’t play dumb [USER]!” He raised his voice getting angered at your lack of awareness “I am literally damaging your body and you're not reacting” you still had a look of confusion before looking down to see the wounds “oh you did?” Your response only confused yet angered the hedgehog more “what kind of response is that?” You stayed silent for a moment as you saw your tormentor getting angrier before you decided to speak up about how you couldn’t feel pain.

- Now that Xeno has met you I have a feeling he’s going to have a lot of pride over you. He’s never had a victim like you and although he may treat you like a test dummy trying everything and anything to know what can break you, at the same time he treats you like your some rare item that everyone is trying to get their hands on. He’s not going to let any other mortal take you away from him. He found you fair and square and if they have a problem with it then too bad for them. Oddly enough despite his murderous thing he’s really protective of you. Not in a way that he cares about you. As I said he’s a murderous thing his whole thing is to torture and murder anyone he pleases but if anyone but him dares try to do the same to you he’ll murder them no doubt about that and he’ll make it as painful as he could. You're his most prized possession, he’s the only one that’s allowed to do anything to you. No matter how many times you or someone else denies it.

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[chocoshrooms]

dark link hcs again cause the last ones were so good

:: Dark Link Realistic! Headcanons ::

TW: lots of gore but not super detailed, kidnapping mentions, rude behavior, kidnapping mentions

_____________________

:; dark is a very angry person, if you even slightly tick him off, he’s gutting you. if you’re a creep of course he can’t just go about killing you, but he definitely will make your life a living hell. stalking you in the shadows, injuring you until you’re unable to do daily activities, scaring you into even coming out of your own room. you purchased a lot more light bulbs, lights, and lamps for your room to try and avoid having any shadows nearby he can jump out of

:; the mist that erupts around dark when he appears and disappears is very toxic if you breathe it in long enough. it creates bubbles in your skin that pop and ooze if your skin is exposed to it

:; dark drags his victims into the darkness with him, but loves to lure them in first. he uses many mimicking tactics to draw people closer to the darkness

:; he’s very blunt, speaks his mind about everything. he thinks you look awful? “You look disgusting, do me and everyone else a favor and stay out of our sight.” he doesn’t like you? “Speak again and i’ll put my sword to use, I cannot stand the sound of your annoying voice blabbering away.”

:; if dark ends up liking someone, his obsession is most definitely yandere. you will never see the outside world again after he kidnaps you.

:; he has sharp teeth and nails that he uses to rip people open. i hc him as a demon so he has demon tendencies kind of like eyeless jack

:; if he wants something, he gets it. no questions asked. he doesn’t even care if it’s a person

:; steals almost anything, including people. he can pickpocket you without you knowing and snatch up your child right under your nose

:; very convincing which gets him what he wants and lures people into believing him. something about his eyes? if you stare into them almost anything that comes out of his mouth falls on deaf ears. don’t stare into his eyes

:; the most manipulative demon. he can and will force you into doing anything he wants

:; he would murder an entire family in front of you, he doesn’t care at all. nothing bothers him in the slightest

_____________________

HAD to get some realistic hc’s in on him! crazy sadistic man… thanks for reading all 🫶 i have lots of asks to get to, thanks for the requests, too!

[shimmeringweeds]

Link Click Episode 10 part 2 (part 1)

On the Twin Question

Alright, so I still cannot get away from the verifiably insane theory that both twins visited Lu Guang the night Chen Bin died. And since we have points for both Li Tianxi and Li Tianchen being THE twin, I want to put this down as a third option to cover all bases. I hope this can guide people towards their own, individual, answers as to who did what that night.

Starting with the security footage. This is damning. There's only one twin..... Xiao Li never mentioned more than one person. But did he have to? Xiao Li was sent this image and it's not even live footage. Since Lu Guang is obviously okay, he may have thought it was good enough to just show the one photo and ask him about it. Why would Lu Guang lie? He's the victim here. (and Lu Guang doesn't lie. He thinks very carefully before giving a truth.)

Also, this twin in the surveillance image is standing right in the doorway. We can't see Lu Guang. The same applies to anyone else who might be standing inside the room. And you know what, if Episode 10 can reveal a hidden Li Tianxi in the back of the car, then episode 11 can reveal a hidden twin in this room.

The Incident, in Pictures

The first time we are shown a scene of a twin visiting Lu Guang is at the end of episode 2. I'm going to post screenshots in the order that they appear: This gets image heavy, so under the cut it goes.

The scene keeps getting cut. And the angle of perspective changes each time.

---

In episode three, there are two separate times where Lu Guang thinks back on the encounter.

The first time is right after a phone call with CXS/QL. It appears they had to go to the police station, and were not able to check back in with Lu Guang that night (they're telling him about the fight, and CXS notes that LG is acting strange). - pin that for later.

The memory goes like this:

Here, there's an overlap. Not a smooth transition.

Okay, that's just called reusing animation, yeah, yeah.... How convenient for the animators. Bet they breathed a sigh of relief to not have to reanimate this sequence for fluidity. There are multiple "animation inconsistencies" in this show that I'm not convinced are just so. That's another post.

At the end of episode three, we finally get a full scene (or at least, we get one scene.) Cheng Xiaoshi is presumably still inside Chen Bin's photo and Lu Guang gets lost in thought. (He is so stressed by this incident, save him) It follows like this:

We neither see hide nor hair of the "red eyes", and the point of view is consistent.

So what happened? Which twin is this?

We see Li Tianxi run away in a uniform. She shows up later in the same uniform. Similar problem with Li Tianchen, he still has the same hoodie jacket combo In ep 10. (and it could just be character design, but in this particular case I find it unlikely.) The twins run away and then someone, wearing Li Tianchen's coat, shows up at the hospital.

Huge shout out to mimicha-arts (I'm in awe) who noticed that Xiao Ma might have gone back to kill Chen Bin, thereby giving the twins time to move. There's still the matter of Li Tianxi "seeing" Chen Bin apologizing, but I'll accept this small blessing for now because I was ripping my hair out.

So either twin had time to make it up the elevator and retrieve the phone from Xiao Ma. From there, the visit to Lu Guang can be taken at a leisurely pace. In the meantime, they have a multitude of empty rooms to hide in, and the "security" is otherwise occupied.

(For reference, I think the top room is LG. Floor 5 or 6? We don't know about the other occupant, the nurse maybe.)

This part is all untold, a dark space with no light. We do not know what happened that night. We can only guess. So let's weave a story. (there's a huge chance this is wrong, okay, don't take it seriously.)

(EDIT: you can even swap the roles out if you like. I just picked LTC as default. There are no rules.)

Li Tianxi runs to the hospital. Maybe she wants to stop what is happening, maybe she wants to turn herself in. She's distressed and guilty. Li Tianchen catches up before the elevator doors close. He apologizes to Tianxi and quickly hides her in one of the empty rooms, let's say on floor 6 where the elevator stops. He never lets her reach the roof.

Li Tianchen doesn't make it to save Chen Bin. He never planned to. He stays in a blind spot on floor 7, where he collects the phone from Xiao Ma. Xiao Ma walks down the stairs, and takes the elevator on floor 6 down. Li Tianchen returns to Li Tianxi.

Side note about security cams. Xiao Ma wasn't wearing a mask. He doesn't care if his identity is spotted and Qian Jin doesn't care to enforce it, even though he very much cares later. So I don't think anyone was too concered about the surveillance footage.

---

Li Tianchen knows that Lu Guang is alive thanks to possessing Chen Bin. He was privy to that entire conversation. They can use that.

When did the twins possess Lu Guang? (assuming LTX's drawing here is accurate and she isn't just choosing to not to draw a possessed QL in front of QL.) That night is the only window of opportunity the twins would have to play this out.

When they block the door, Lu Guang's hand is right there. Possession easy-peasy if this is Li Tianchen alone. But that's not what's shown in Li Tianxi's drawing.

I haven't yet figured out how a potential coat swap works in this. There wasn't anything else besides the plushy left in Chen Bin's bag, right?

I don't want to suspect him anymore, unless Li Tianchen specifically requested the help. Li Tianxi doesn't have the coat later. So it is a one coat operation, in my opinion. And if this is a two twin operation, then one twin is always being hidden out of sight. Tricky, tricky.

Lu Guang is very occupied throughout this scene. He's tracking a whole hospital (but not everyone in it) He stops moving towards the door in order to focus solely on directions. By the end of the fight, his stab wound is bleeding but he's barely moved (it is a serious injury). He doesn't seem to have lost awareness at any point, but how easy would it have been for a twin to slip in at this time?

When Chen Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling speak with Lu Guang (on face call after the fight) Lu Guang hangs up right after Cheng Xiaoshi suggests he handcuff himself to the bed in case of possession. Cheng Xiaoshi notes that Lu Guang was acting weird. We joke and say Lu Guang just wasn't in the mood for teasing, but maybe he's worried those words are the truth.

When did either twin escape?

Remember, Cheng Xiaoshi and Qiao Ling don't return that night, though the police would have checked in on Lu Guang promptly. How much time passed before Xiao Li was conscious and giving orders?

The only exits known to us on are on the ground floor, and that was swarmed.

The twin's timeline stays tricky. Li Tianxi runs away at some point that night, not wearing her brother's coat. A few days later, she is found in the grocery story and taken into custody as an unidentified person.

Li Tianchen has some convenient timing showing up at the police station while Cheng Xiaoshi is still in their photograph. We don't know how many days have passed. What we do know: when a man hunt is declared for Li Tianxi later that evening, she's already been in police custody for two days. Meaning she isn't in contact with her brother.

Is anyone else getting the feeling there's more to Li Tianxi's powers than we know? Or am I just crazy (I feel crazy.)

I do feel that Li Tianchen is walking on a tightrope around Qian Jin. He wasn't asked if he wanted to kill Chen Bin, just told to do it. This play only works if Li Tianxi understands that, and still trusts her brother despite the horrors.

[selfproclaimedunicorn]

If my OC was Canon what God Awful Fandom Hot Takes would their be for them?

Ohhh what do you think they would perceive Aldreda/Alicent?

Not the ask I expected, & I'll be honest I've thought about this more with the Roycegaryens, so it took a minute but I think I've got a good thought process going here. I'm gonna tackle it first with Aldreda herself, because I think that's a lot of important context, & then I'll talk about Aldricent. [Also, content warnings for below the cut: mentions of sexual abuse, discussions of violence, mentions of emotona abuse, general unhinged fandom bs]

Aldreda would be fucking divisive. There's no way around it, I know she would be. Because she's only Gender Weird & not a man, she'd get viewed more negatively than someone like Daemon or Aemond, who are also divisive in their own ways but get more positive attention. She has all the makings of getting seen like a girlboss (she fights & raids, all her hobbies are masculine, she's “sexually liberated”), but she has way too much grit to get boiled down to that unless you want to be really fucking delusional (& trust, I know a lot of fans of HOTD are/can be because of how young a lot of them skew). She's mean & petty, early on in her arc she pretty obviously objectifies other women (regardless of how nice & respectful by comparison she is), she revels in violence if she's the cause of it, & she really quickly turncloaks in The Dance because wrong place/wrong time & getting captured & offered the position of Aegon’s Master of Ships in exchange for her & her remaining men's lives (nevermind she personally was determined to be neutral/wasn't really engaging with the war before getting conscripted by Team Green). Because she's not easily sanitizable & on the less popular side of the war, she wouldn't be getting any favors from a lot of fandom. And that's not even touching on how, like, way hard-core Team Green stans would feel about her, I cannot even fathom if it would be positive or negative (if anyone has thoughts there lmk, I'm curious).

So, just in general Aldreda would be getting hot takes about how she's not really one of the Ironborn & making up all kind of shit about honor & doing a disservice to her whole House & culture (like Sansa got/gets about Not Really Being Northern), & about how she should have either let herself get killed or have somehow murdered her way out of being surrounded by trained soldiers who'd disarmed her & were literally only leaving her unharmed/unacosted because they watched her rip a man's ear off with her teeth. Really vindictive Aldreda antis would come out with hot takes about her deserving all the emotional neglect & emotional incest & sexual abuse from her backstory & how it should have been worse, or that she should have “shut up & married her cousin instead of getting involved in the war & sticking her nose where it doesn't belong/betraying Rhaenyra [whom she has never fucking met].” There'd probably be a pretty vocal minority that ships her with her abuser/cousin just because he's “hot & possessive,” & that is a very rancid hot take. People would victim blame her & also claim she was the direct reason her murdered/not dead by happenstance brothers got murdered.

Aldricent, I don't think, would be super popular outside of tumblr. Like, Aldricent just is for the tumblrinas because it's “becoming less toxic yuri marriage arc,” & that would speak to the tumblr-flavor-chronically-online girlies (gender neutral).

I approach this next bit as a Rhaenicent Enjoyer, but a lot of hate for Aldricent would come from there, imo. Aldreda would get called “bargain bin Rhaenyra” due to the places their stories kinda overlap, & depending on which bias you approached the ship from would determine your hot take from there. It'd either be “Alicent is replacing Rhaenyra with Aldreda who's a lesser model, & she'd probably leave her in a heartbeat if she came to her senses & started supporting her girlboss one true love” or “Aldreda is sexually manipulating Alicent & is literally only one step above Larys or Viserys due to her issues/trauma surrounding female sexuality that she's obviously never going to grow from/improve upon. Criston should kill her.” Before the growth arc, there'd probably be hot takes/jokes about Alicent being a pillow princess & finally getting to nut, & some of them would probably come from a good place, but it's still a Bad Hot Take to me because Alicent's lack of active participation the first time they fuck is an Aldreda choice.

There'd probably also be hot takes about which one of them is fixing the other with their magic, problem solving pussy or w/e, because that's how relationships work 🙄 (whoever you think is fixing the other is determined by who you like more &/or whoever you think is worse, I suppose. Pick your poison/bad take).

[thelukesalvez]

Mass Shootings in Lewiston, ME

Hi all, I just wanted to pop on & say a few things about the recent tragedies unfolding in Maine. This post was not made with the intent of polarization. But as many of you know, I'm a writer. And as I remain locked down, helpless while businesses and schools close, helicopters fly over my apartment and cop cars surround my community, writing this felt like the only reasonable outlet for me. Normally, I would keep something like this private. But coming together right now felt important, and this blog has historically been a place where I have been able to receive some engagement. I realize that this is not my usual content, but I write this with hopes that it will reach at least a few of you grappling with the same grief and loss that I feel and elicit some sort of connection in such dark times.

*Trigger warning for mentions of gun violence, mass shootings, and death*

I've lived in Maine my entire life. This state, it's people, & everything associated with it has been my home & heart for nearly 27 years. The entire state has a population of 1.3 million people. That's 1.4 less than the city of Chicago, 2.5 million less than Los Angeles, and 7.2 million less than New York City. Lewiston is the second largest city in Maine with a population of 35,000 people. For some perspective, Gillette stadium in Foxborough, MA can hold nearly 66,000 people, and SoFi stadium in Los Angeles can hold about 70,000.

My point with all the statistics is that Maine is small. Our communities are tight knit, and I truly mean it when I say that everybody knows everybody.

And last night, a man walked into Schemengees Bar and Grille and the Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley in Lewiston, Maine and opened fire with an automatic rifle, killing 18 people and injuring 13 others. The impact of this tragedy will extend across the state- and probably all of New England.

And as the manhunt for the mass shooting suspect unfolds around me, I have many emotions flowing through my body. I am terrified, I am angry, I am grieving. I am frustrated, confused, and sad. I am disgusted, I am stressed, I am worried. But mostly, I am heartbroken; heartbroken for the community I love. Heartbroken for the victims and lives that were lost last night. Heartbroken for humanity.

I have been absolutely appalled to watch the act of violence committed in Lewiston last night unfold in front of me for the last 24 hours. I grew up in Turner, a small town neighboring Lewiston/Auburn and have many friends and family members still living in the area. I struggle stating this because my intent is not to make this tragedy about me. Because it is certainly not. But I'm writing this from my perspective as someone who was indirectly impacted, and I feel like it's important to remind everyone that gun violence and hate does not discriminate.

For the entire year of 2022, Maine had 29 reported homicides. It is statistically one of the (if not the) safest states in the country (to the point where I don't even lock my door most nights). Maine has always had this aura of innocence. Despite the state of the world and the way gun violence has been steadily increasing for my entire life, I have always found some solace and comfort in the fact that I live in Maine. Because despite the sorrow and grief I felt when I learned of Sandy Hook, Route 91, Virginia Tech, Pulse night club, Uvalde, Sutherland Springs, El Paso (you get the point), I could move forward and live my life. Because as awful as those shootings were, things like that didn't happen in Maine.

Until, of course, they do.

In a single evening, in a span of 24 hours, one man has completely ripped away that layer of safety from me and everyone else I know and love. Because a mass shooting did happen here. And it can happen anywhere.

I could write about how it's easier to buy a gun than Sudafed in Maine. I could write about how I feel about politicians who support the NRA with corrupt intentions despite how many lives have been lost to gun violence in America. I could also write about how Maine has high gun ownership, but extremely low firearm death rates, which makes me wonder if maybe our focus to blame is a bit off. I could write about how no matter what the crime rates in a state are, no one should have access to an AR.

But the truth is, I'm tired. I'm tired of pretending like these are new conversations. I'm tired of having the same debates every time this happens. Liberals vs. Conservatives, Republicans vs. Democrats, the second amendment vs. gun control. I'm tired of conversations about the mental health crisis- about politicians blaming gun violence on symptoms of mental health but then proceeding to vote against policies that would increase access and funding to mental health programing. I'm tired, tired, tired.

And 18 people are dead.

18 people whose lives mattered and deserved to be lived.

18 people who were parents and siblings and children.

18 people who were friends and coworkers.

18 people who were human beings.

And in addition to those 18 lives lost, there are even more injured. Some physically- even more emotionally. A little girl grazed by a bullet was brave enough to go on national TV and ask why? Why do people do this?

Why, indeed? In times of tragedy, our brains crave answers. Why did this happen? Who let this happen? Were there warning signs? The answer is almost always yes. And in this case, based on current reports, it sounds like in addition to active mental health symptoms, direct threats had been made by the suspect in the past about intent to harm. That makes it easy to point fingers. How did his family miss this? Why didn't mental health professionals act? Why was he released from the hospital if he was thought to be dangerous?

But the tragic truth is that this is so much deeper than those questions pose. And as much as our brains and hearts crave answers, playing the blame game will do nothing for us.

Stricter gun laws and removing access to AR-15s is a good start that I fully support. So go ahead and sign the petitions, write to your representatives. I certainly have, and will continue to do so. But don't be surprised if that only places a band-aid over the gaping, hemorrhaging wound that is humanity in America right now.

The truth is, I don't know what the answers are. Is it eliminating access to AR-15s? Monitoring who can buy and own weapons based on stricter background checks? Is it increasing access to mental health services? Increasing incentives for people to become mental health providers? Is this all just the unfolding, unstoppable result of human suffering and toxic stress in America?

What I do know is that my community, my home, has experienced the nation's tenth worst mass shooting in modern history. Lewiston, Maine and the lives lost last night are more than just another tragic story of gun violence in America. It's more than the 565th mass shooting in America this year, to be followed by a 566th and 567th. It's more than just a statistic. Right now the news is buzzing. People are talking, stories are being shared. But a few weeks from now, that will inevitably die down.

Lives will go on, because it didn't happen to you. It will never happen to you.

Until, of course, it does.

So please take care of yourselves, take care of your loved ones, take care of your friends and neighbors and acquaintances. And most importantly, have empathy and compassion for all.

[imtooscaredforthis]

Entrapment

Chapter Twenty Seven: Peace & Love

Mentions of: Blackmailing, Manipulation (not from readers pov but still), alcohol, scars and mature themes

A/N: So sorry for the late update, but y’all can have a cute chapter as a reward <3

Tags: @elentiyaiswriting @dead-bxxxtch-walking @mama-miya @vandeaad @the-fandoms-georgie

You didn’t want to go to work today. You felt awful after what happened with Jed. One of your biggest pet peeves was when people took their anger out on you, making you miserable just because they’re having a bad day. And that’s exactly what you did. None of this was his fault. He knew you were having a hard time and he wanted you to have fun and you yelled at him and accused him. God, you felt awful.

It would be best if you apologized sooner rather than later. The longer you wait, the worse it’ll get. So you have to rip it off like a bandaid.

With a shaky breath, you messed with the string of your purse nervously. You watched as the number rose on the elevator, waiting for them to reach your floor and the doors to pull open.

When they did, you found yourself making a beeline straight for Jed’s desk. He was typing something on his monitor, hardly noticing your presence. You took a deep breath. “Hey.”

He looked up, locking eyes with you. He opened his mouth to speak, but you were already halfway through apologizing before he could even say anything.

“I’m really sorry about what happened on Friday. I was just stressed and I was saying things I didn’t mean, not that it’s a valid excuse or anything, and I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, and-”

He got to his feet, pressing a comforting hand on your shoulder. Your mouth snapped shut. He smiled at you warmly. “There’s something I want to show you.”

You followed Jed to his car. He opened his glove compartment, pulling out an envelope. Inside were photos of all of Ghostface’s past victims.

“He sends me these, after every time he’s killed. No matter what I do, the next morning there’s a photo in my mailbox, with the same request. Write about this, or you’ll be next. Or worse…it’ll be someone I care about. There are nights when I can hardly sleep or eat, when I hate myself for what I have to do. I don’t enjoy writing about this ______, but I have no other choice. The only thing I can do is sit and wait for the police to catch him.”

You felt guilt and sympathy twist through your stomach. You knew exactly what he was going through, how dould you think anything less? How could you be so selfish? “Jed, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t know. I haven’t told anyone this, and I can’t go to the police, or else he’ll…please ____, promise me you won’t tell anyone. If anything happened to you, I’d never be able to forgive myself.” He reached over, caressing your hands and giving them a soft squeeze.

“I promise.” You murmured. He slipped his hand from yours, touching your cheek softly, before leaning in and kissing you. You kissed him back, letting yourself melt into him. Letting his lips mold with yours.

It had been far too long since someone had touched you softly, since someone had touched you with so much care. It numbed all the pain, cleansed you from the dirtiness of Ghostface’s touch. It made your mind go blank, and for once, you forgot about everything.

He pulled away, smiling at you softly. “Would you like to get out of here? Just for today?”

“...Okay.”

–

“I didn’t expect you to be such a romantic.” You remarked as he laid the blanket out on the grass. He shrugged at you with a grin. “What can I say? I’m full of surprises.”

You pulled out a bottle of cheap wine and sandwiches you had bought from the store, pouring a glass for yourself and for Jed. You gazed over at the river, admiring the view. It was beautiful.

“How did you find this spot?” You couldn’t help but ask.

“When the Ghostface murders started up, I needed space to clear my head and to write. And it’s so peaceful out here, beautiful too. It helps me think.” You watched him, studying the sincere expression on his face. There was a dark look in his eyes, one from the pain of knowing, the pain of being tortured. The pain you had felt almost every day.

You took a long couple of sips from your wine, turning to refill your glass. “You know, this is the first time you’ve ever really told me anything about yourself.”

“Oh, really?” He mumbled, seeming slightly embarrassed at the realization.

“Yeah, but it’s not a bad thing. I mean, all we talked about was work, or about me. I kinda thought the whole mysterious guy thing was pretty hot, but having you open up and be vulnerable with me feels a lot better. I really appreciate it.” You admitted.

“Honestly, I don’t like to talk about myself much. My mother taught me that it was more important to listen. Most people never do, but I’m all ears. Also, I don’t think there’s a lot for me to say about myself. I mean..I’m pretty boring.”

You frowned at that. “Jed, I don’t think you’re boring at all. In fact, I think you’re one of the most interesting people in Roseville. I mean, you’re very charming, kind, and smart, and you’re an amazing writer. And to be honest, without you, I probably would be so lost.”

And that was too much. God, how much did you drink? Feeling your cheeks get all hot, you glanced down at the glass in your hand.

“I appreciate that. I really do.” He leaned in and kissed you again, after a few minutes he pulled away, reaching down and caressing your waist gently. His hand went to move under your shirt, and you found yourself stopping him yet again.

“I’m sorry.” You whispered against his lips. “I just- I need some time.”

Your scars were only starting to fade, and you weren’t in the right mindset at the moment. You felt guilt curl in your stomach, preparing him to be disappointed by you spurning his advances once again. But he wasn’t. Instead, he smiled softly, pressing a small peck to your lips. “There’s nothing you have to be sorry for. You take all the time you need, alright?”

“Thanks, Jed.”

The two of you lied back against the blanket, gazing up at the clear blue sky above. For once, you let yourself live in the moment and forget about all the pain and fear. For once, you felt at peace.

[apollodarling-writes]

Can we have a killing Worshipper Levi fic? Like maybe we had the chance to because he left a knife out or something and when he noticed we had it he was shocked but before he could do anything we stabbed it into him right in the stomach and then we pulled out and stabbed him in the heart. How would that end and play out?

KILLING YAN! WORSHIPPER LEVI

tws: murder, gore, angst, brief noncon implications, depression, trauma mentions, kidnapping, violence, CHARACTER DEATH, gaslighting, mentions of stalking, LOW EFFORT!!!, body mutilation, victim blaming, vomit, its prolly shitty ngl

How long has it been since Levi had taken you? You weren't sure. You could feel yourself leaning into his affections the longer you stayed and the thought was enough for you to be disgusted with yourself. How had things gone this way?

You were ripped away from your career and stayed locked in his home, a chain around your ankle that allowed you to get to where you needed to go, but didn't give you enough slack to get to his office. You were almost certain the key was in there. Or maybe it was on his person. You weren't sure.

You learned to behave, becoming docile and obedient, almost like he'd taken in a stray dog. You cleaned his cabin, made sure his clothes were clean and folded the way he liked, and made sure there was a hot meal ready for him when he returned home. It's not as if he was truly awful to you... he was just a little creepy.

The excessive staring and the way he looked at you like you hung the stars in the sky, or like you were God herself, was a little off-putting... but it was tolerable. You didn't mind how he'd coddle you or take care of all your needs. You don't have to work anymore and you never have to worry about bills ever again. So, maybe it was alright to stay here...

No, you firmly tell yourself. He's killed so many people.

If I don't escape for myself, then I have to escape for Erwin, Armin, Jean, and all the others he's killed...

You glance around the kitchen. Surely, there's something you can use. You'd behaved since your last...

"[Name]. Put it down. I'm only going to tell you once."

"Or what? Or you'll hurt me? Kill me?" You'd scoffed at him, disbelieving that he'd lay a finger on you. Oh, how wrong you were.

Levi was quick to disarm you, twisting your arm and snapping it at the elbow. You remember the shrill scream that erupted from your throat, guttural and utterly pained. He'd dropped you to your ass, mounting you and snapping your other arm.

Levi was quick to shove his fingers into your mouth, a dark look in his eyes that made you think twice about biting his fingers. He made haste, pulling down your undergarments and throwing your legs over his shoulder, whispering apologies and sweet nothings.

"If you'd just listen... I-I'd take such good care of you, pretty- nnggh!-"

You hadn't realized that you were crying until the fog in your mind had cleared, a throbbing phantom pain in each arm. You shuddered, feeling bile rise to the back of your throat, and rushed to the bathroom. You rinsed the inside of your mouth with cool water after you'd hurled your guts up, and rushed back to the kitchen.

There, sitting practically gifted wrapped in the knife block, were several kitchen knives. You glanced at the clock- there was about an hour before Levi returned home. If you thought hard enough, planned appropriately, you'd be able to make it out. So, you continued making dinner so as to not raise suspicion, making a dish he'd made quite often when you were locked in the cage in the farthest corner of his cellar.

You'd set the table, the soup steaming, and placed a cup of tea beside his meal, waiting patiently for him to return. It seemed luck was on your side tonight, as the moment you'd sat down, Levi had walked through the front door.

"I'm home, darling." The short man says, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips when he notices what you'd prepared for dinner. You stand, removing his coat and placing it on the hook as he removes his shoes.

"How was work?" You ask. As you were trained to.

Levi takes his seat, placing a napkin in the collar of his shirt, and searches for the salt and pepper.

"Ah, I-I'm sorry. I forgot to bring the salt and pepper." You stand, making your way to the kitchen and discreetly look back at Levi.

Good. He's not looking...

You quickly and quietly take the smallest knife from the block, shoving it in the back of your sweatpants as you turn and grab the salt and pepper. Rushing back to the dining room, you place both in front of him and take your seat once more. The two of you eat, Levi yapping on and on about things that you had no interest in, but for the sake of maintaining your cover, you pretended you cared.

"-and then Eren stormed off. Can you believe that? After all I do for you, he has the gall to tell me that the way I love you isn't healthy... What concerns me most is how he managed to find out."

"Well, for what it's worth, Levi... I think..." You swallow thickly, the words stuck at the back of your throat as you keep your gaze on the bowl in front of you. "I think I'm starting to understand why you did it."

Levi's eyes widen a fraction, relief softening his features. It was almost enough to make your heart skip a beat. Almost. "You- You do?"

You nod, covering up a smirk with a shy glance in his direction. Levi liked obedience- you'd learned that much- but what he loved even more was sugar coated words.

"It's obvious you love me... Maybe not in the way the next person would, but you take care of me." Your eyes meet his, a small smile tugging at your lips. "And I'm coming around to it. I think... I think I'm slowly starting to reciprocate your affections."

Your hand reaches over, shaking ever so slightly, but just before you place your hand atop his own, you pull away.

"It's true that you've done things to me that'll stay with me for life, and even now they still haunt me... but, it was just because you love me, right? You just wanted me to understand that you know what's best for me." You sniffle, tears burning your eyes, and hastily wipe them away. Levi's face drops as he notices your tears, hurriedly making his way over to you and pulls you into his arms.

"I'm sorry. You know I never liked hurting you... I just- I just wanted you to understand. A-And now that you do, I won't have to do it anymore, right?" You nod against his chest, pulling away slightly.

"Can I... Can I try something Levi?" You bite your lip, eyes trailing to his own. “If it's okay with you… I’d like to try kissing you myself.”

Levi’s eyes light up, eagerly nodding his head. You hesitantly lean forward, pressing your lips to his, the man’s breath catching in his throat. His fingers shakily reach to cup your cheeks, giving you room to place one hand on his chest as the other snakes behind your back and pulls the knife from the hem of your sweatpants. 

With a quick snap of the wrist, you lodge the knife in his jugular, warm blood rushing from the gash as you hastily remove your lips from his and repeat the action twice. You watch as his hands fumble to cover the wound, and as heartbreak and betrayal flash through his eyes. 

“[N-Name-]” He gurgles, stumbling back into the dining table. Crimson spurts down his pristine button-up as he desperately tries to get air in his lungs, hands reaching out to you as he falls to his knees. You’re quick to back away, senses on high-alert.

“You didn’t really think I’d ever come to love you, did you?” You scoff. “After everything you put me through, everything you forced on me, everyone you killed… I’d be a damn idiot to fall in love with you.”

He tears up, the crystalline droplets quick to carve trails down his cheeks, mixing with the blood staining his hands and throat. You watch as his eyes struggle to stay open, a sick sense of glee and pride filling your chest.

“I-I-” Levi gurgles, blood dribbling down his lips. You grimace at the sight. “I really did love you. May-Maybe in our next lives I can…love you properly.”

With that, his body falls to the floor, head bouncing against the wood as a pool of blood begins to form around him.

You gaze at him for a moment. 

“...Maybe.”

[placeinthisworld]

I think swifties in a very weird and gross way want joe to have been an absolute ass and emotionally abusive because then they’ll feel that all of Taylor’s friends behaving like that and even Taylor behaving in a very petty and just overtly mean way right after the breakup announcement would be justified. They believe that Taylor isn’t truly fully petty like that so she can’t possibly be doing that just because there just has to be a huge reason for everybody’s behaviour at the time cuz otherwise it makes her look immature. I also think because Taylor presented this image of him being so perfect that now fans that formed a very evident attachment to him feel betrayed so he has to have been horrible and awful all along. I truly don’t understand the she became voiceless part because honestly I know we don’t know alot right now but the info before us makes me feel like sometimes she’s pissed that she was forced to slightly face her morals head on in part because of him. on a side note I honestly don’t believe he’s some poor victim and I know that he might’ve been crappy to her and she might’ve been an ass but right now I just find it weird and icky that so what you’re presenting to us is that he couldn’t handle your fame and after the breakup you’re choosing to literally name your album after a group chat he had so it’s like you’ve kind of sentenced him to being in the headlines perpetually whenever the name of your album is mentioned and it’s like this isn’t just her discussing her feelings in a song which I don’t know others might not feel this way and it’s perfectly fine but like the song stuff sure can make the situation difficult for the other person slightly but I feel like that’s alright ya know you knew she’s a songwriter when you started dating her but this is the actual name of her album. Like she might put a spin on it and now she’s made that title her own which is perfecting fine but you can’t convince that miss marketing queen wasn’t aware that this wouldn’t happen especially because the way she and her friends have acted after the break up really fuelled the feud narrative. This part isn’t a huge offence on her part and I understand isn’t a big deal but it’s just icky to me

yuuuup i agree!!! i feel like joe and taylor had their issues but fully intended to make things work. but life happens, people change. i feel like ive seen a shift in taylor’s personality over the past few years. the thing i liked about joe/ taylor were how private they were, like we didn’t hear every single thought or action they did like we are seeing now. it felt like taylor had her own life and i was so content with that. we obviously don’t know anything more than what *taylor* has written about them in her music. joe doesn’t really say shit about her (and yeah ik that article went around about how he was feeling slighted by the album announcement but like be so fr anyone could have made that statement up- i feel slighted FOR him for gods sake) and he’s been pretty respectful of her their entire relationship publicly at least. he’s always known she’s a storyteller and writer so im sure it wasn’t exactly shocking information to hear about her writing about him, but yeah i do have to say after being so close and private with someone for years and then having them release an entire album less than a year after the breakup, filled with vague LDR rip off song titles that reference you in the slightest bit, therefore triggering millions of Defensive swiffers to openly bully and harass you online for…..ending a relationship you probably were grieving over too- just so fucking petty.

like sure we’re used to hear how taylor feels about her exes/ past relationships, but this was when she was still vague about what songs were about who, and we had at least 2+ years between the. breakups to learn about it. it feels like she rushed to put together another album to just shit on joe specifically…..like it just feels so wrong. imo.

i was sent this reddit thread and it actually made me think A Lot about how taylor works

[outoutdamnspark]

Human

Inspired by the Robo!Submas x Reader au by @nc-eikin​ - because this bitch (affectionate) has a death grip on my soul. I’m such a robophiliac, you have no idea.

(Was listening to Matsudappoiyo’s cover of Talk of the Past while writing.)

*cracks knuckles*

AIGHT. Robo-romance, here we go!

(Cw: Panic attacks and mentions of dissociation, brief themes of ableism(???) Tenderness, non-sexual body [hand] worship, pining. Robots in love. Shifting narration focus. Reader is called “lady” but is left genderless. Submas x Reader.)

soa have mercy this got so out of hand. no pun intended.

===

The entire day has been awful from the start.

You’ve suffered through bad days before - many times - but no matter how many, you’ll never quite get used to the extra long shift, or the endless slew of technical issues that all seem to spontaneously appear back to back to back, or the people being rude as hell when you're just trying to send in a report or a request for replacement parts. (And you’ll never, never, get used to how, on top of all of that, the miserable weather, dreary, wet, and cold, is causing your phantom limbs to ache.)

You’re exhausted by the time your shift is at its blessed end, fed up, in pain, and nearly ready to break down in frustrated tears as you quicken your pace towards what you desperately hope is safety in the ‘Employees Only’ corridors.

But it is not to be.

You'd always been so careful of your gloves, making sure they were as well-maintained as the delicate mechanisms your grandfather taught you to build and repair. Any loose thread, any thinning seam, and you were quick to repair or replace the fabric barrier between your prosthetic limbs and the judgemental world around you, and this meticulousness had served you well for oh so long.

But even the most vigilant of individuals can fall victim to blind chance, and blind chance is exactly what puts the snagging ends of a frayed wire in just the right place inside your pocket. It catches on the side of your glove as you pause in your walking to reach in and search for your employee pass. The tiny copper fingers seize your glove, hold it, tear it, find a weak spot in the seam and break it open. You pull your hand back out of your pocket to the soundtrack of shredding fabric.

It’s bad; the way the thread had pulled had ripped the seam in both directions, leaving the entire side of your glove split apart and the metal of your prosthetic beneath it to shine in the overhead lighting of the subway platform. You grimace. Not wanting to endanger the remaining material any further, you peel it off.

You hope no one notices.

(You hope in vain.)

“Wow, cool!!”

A small child - maybe seven or eight years old - dashes in front of you with sparkling, excited eyes trained directly on your exposed metal arm, blocking your path to the employee door just as you start to try and move.

“I didn’t know they had a lady robot here, too!”

A lance of ice and clawing shame plunges itself between your ribs and straight into your lungs, knocking the breath from your lips. Suddenly you’re shaking, too aware of how loudly the exuberant child is being, of how crowded the platform actually is.

Heart rattling, you say nothing to the child as you attempt to step around him, to cross the last few yards to the employee door and the eyeless hallway beyond. Unperturbed, the child simply moves along with you, keeping pace, darting erratically from your side to practically under your feet and then back - and all the while his incessant questioning gets louder and louder, like he thinks you can’t hear him.

“Hey! Hey lady! You’re a robot, too, right? What kind are you? How come you don’t have fake skin like the other robots? Are you broken? Can I see your hand?” He nearly trips you when he gasps and stops close enough to your foot that he’s practically standing on your shoe. “Can I have cool robot parts, too?!”

You don’t mean to almost knock him down, you really don’t.

You don’t mean to slap his grasping fingers away as he reaches for your metal limbs, nor do you mean to bolt like a wild animal towards the employee door, abrupt enough to earn you the child’s (loud, loud, so loud!) cry of surprise and his nearby mother’s angry reprimand.

They couldn’t understand. No one ever has.

Because while it may have seemed like an innocent enough encounter on the surface, just like always, you can feel the eyes of everyone within earshot turning towards you, burning along your skin. Just like before. Just like always.

(You're so, so tired of being stared at, of being bombarded with questions, of being the focus of pity and fear and morbid curiosity.)

Without slowing down, you smack the pad beside the door with your ID, barely waiting for the latch to click and the light to flash green before yanking the door open with more force than flesh-and-blood limbs would ever have allowed.

You nearly sprint down the corridor, taking the turns through sheer muscle memory as your vision blackens at the edges, until a familiar (safe-safe-safe!) door comes into view just up ahead.

It’s empty when you enter, but that’s okay. You don’t think you want your friends to see you like this - you don’t want to tell them why.

You reach the far corner of the little room the Station Masters call their own and brace yourself against the wall. Shaking, you slide to the floor and try to get your breathing under control.

-

They’re ashamed that it takes them almost an hour to find you.

There hadn’t been cause for concern at first - they’d simply realized you’d never clocked out, which meant there might still be a chance to see you again before you left for the day. It had been a happy thought, one that had them eagerly sneaking away to go and look for you.

But you were nowhere to be found.

They’d checked everywhere they knew you’d had work to do that day, thinking that maybe a task had run longer than expected. Then, they’d checked the live camera feed to see if they could spot you that way. Still nothing. Thinking perhaps you’d simply forgotten to clock out and had already left for the evening - which would have been horribly unlike you - they’d resigned themselves to waiting until the morning to be graced with your presence.

And then they’d gone back to their storage room.

There, in the corner, tucked away where the camera’s eye didn’t quite reach, was you.

The Station Masters hover nearby, processors overloading with concern as they watch you, unresponsive, sitting hunched against the wall and staring at nothing with the remains of tear tracks still drying on your cheeks. Your gloves are clenched so tightly between your fists that the fabric looks on the verge of tearing as you hold it, twisted taught between your metal fingers. Dissociation, their automatic index tells them; trace indicators of sweat and adrenaline, their cursory scans conclude.

A quick bluetooth conversation is had between them, and they determine that no, they've never seen you like this before, this isn't normal.

They approach. You don't react.

(The twins wonder if this is what it feels like to wish they could cry.)

‘Should we contact medical assistance?’

‘I... don’t know.’

They look to one another, silently hoping their brother will have the answers they do not.

(Now that they know where you’ve gone, they search back through the security logs and follow your path in reverse, tailing you backwards until they see...

Oh.)

“Oh.”

-

You’re peripherally aware of the twins as they step in perfect unison to flank you, slowly kneeling at your sides until they no longer tower over your crumpled form. You want to move, want to respond when they call your name, let them know you can almost hear them - but your body refuses to cooperate.

Instead, you stare at the empty space between the far wall and the floor and try to collect enough pieces of yourself to find your way back towards their light.

“Darling?” one of them calls - it doesn’t matter which.

“Can you hear us?”

Barely, but yes. You can make out their words as though from some far-away shore, muffled and weak. It’s a comfort, regardless.

(You trust them, you think. More than you ever have another human being.)

Through foggy ears, you listen to them speak. They murmur, coax, gently plead, come back now, please, you're scaring us, are you alright? They tell you they saw what happened, how they’re sorry they weren’t there - but that’s silly, you want to tell them. It wasn’t their fault; there was nothing they could have done to circumvent what always, always happens.

(It doesn’t stop a tiny piece of your heart from wishing they had been there beside you, with kind words and protective stances.

Maybe then they wouldn’t have to see you as you are right now.)

There is movement.

Gently, so gently, the brothers lean into you. You can feel them pressing their arms against your own, the contact oddly warm from their internal functions. Your skin prickles at the touch - but pleasantly so, instead of the crawling bad that physical contact usually brings.

With deliberate, worshipful slowness, they each take one of your mechanical hands in their own, weaving their fingers together with yours, loosening your grip on your gloves until they can be safely pried from your grasp. One of them, maybe 3MM-ET, carefully lifts your hand and brings it to his lips, resting it there reverently. The other, probably 1NG0, lifts your other hand and gingerly uncurls your fingers so he can press your palm against his cheek.

Neither one of them speaks for a time. 3MM-ET brushes his lips over your prosthetic fingers repeatedly, ghosts of kisses he isn't wholly brave enough to properly give; 1NG0 closes his eyes and holds your hand to his face with both of his. He nuzzles into your touch, lips gliding across the heel of your palm but never pressing down.

"Beautiful," one of them whispers.

"Verrry beautiful," the other agrees.

You don’t know how long you all stay like that, with your heart gradually thawing with each and every word that spills from the speakers hidden in their throats. Their warmth and the weight of them grounds you, little by little pulling you back towards that distant shore. Your lungs work without you to fill with fresh air, replacing the stagnation that’s settled deep inside while you’d been lost to the void inside your own head.

The twins continue to murmur praises, reassurance, fondness, steadily growing into whispers of devotion in between the spaces of their spoken words. They adore you, they say, you're wonderful, so human and so alive and so very, verrry lovely; you don’t realize at first that they're talking about you.

It’s like a riptide when you do.

You gasp as you slam back into your body from that foggy mire inside your mind, the burn of a sharp inhale rivaling the way it feels like something’s finally been released inside your ribs. Freed, lanced like an ill-healed wound.

Out pours the blood and pain of years of bottled emotions, of facial expressions you trained yourself not to make, of the shards of at least one barrier you’ve held tall and strong for an age. And with it all there comes the pent-up toxins of the day, spilling out over your eyelashes in a new wave of tears, tracing down the paths left behind from before. It hurts. You’re glad it does.

You don't just sit there silently as you blink the saltwater from your eyes this time; instead, they pour like a swelling river over its banks, and you lean forward with the weight of them. A low, pitiful sound pools inside your mouth and slips past your teeth before you can stop it - a quiet, keening whine that breaks and stutters into a single sob.

Then another.

And then a third.

Your shoulders jerk as you start to drop, but before your body can fold itself in half, there are arms around you, gentle and firm, holding you steady.

Your hands are relinquished and the arms cross one another over your chest like a brace, their own hands coming to rest on your shoulders opposite where they each kneel. A second pair of arms wraps around your back just above your waist. The duo hold you upright, keep you from falling, pull you close in perfect equidistance between them; one rests his cheek on the crown of your bowed head, the other rests his chin in the dip of your shoulder.

You shake as you cry, letting out the long stretch of the day, your hitching breath the only sound you make through clenched teeth, and through it all they hold you. Even as five minutes turn to thirty and the tears finally ebb, and you can feel yourself slot back into place within reality, the arms encircling you stay, the murmurs continue, their presence remains.

They ask you if you're alright.

You simply nod your head.

With a glance at one another that holds another private conversation, you’re sure, the androids slowly shift, slowly stand. Their arms do not move, and you find yourself pulled along with them as they lift you from your spot on the floor and guide you to a battered old loveseat along the wall - something your grandfather must have brought in years and years ago.

In perfect unison they sit, bringing you to rest between them so close that their sides, their thighs, their shoulder all press against your own once more with comforting pressure.

"I should...go. Let you recharge," you say at last. You make no move to get up.

3MM-ET hums, thoughtful. He lets his arm slide from where it crosses your chest like a seatbelt and gingerly takes your hand. Warm, gloved fingers slip in alongside yours, soft leather against sleek and shining chrome, and 3MM-ET runs the sides of his fingers back and forth between your own like gently rolling waves. With each pass he gives a light squeeze so that you can feel the hidden ball joints of his knuckles. He delicately pinches your ring finger next, your middle, your index, twisting them ever-so-slightly as if examining them from different angles. Despite the strength you know his artificial body contains, his touch is never anything but kind.

(From anyone else, you might find it uncomfortable, invasive. But not from him. Not from them.)

"...You are gorgeous, you know?" he says in his usual soft monotone. His quietude belays the strange, awed tint to his words, the softening of his synthetic smile in a way you've never seen before.

From your other side, you can see 1NG0 slowly nodding from the corner of your eye. Like his brother, he, too, finally shifts his hand from your opposite shoulder and brings it down to cover your free one. He curls his fingers around the metal plates that make up your knuckles, cradling them like something invaluable. The pad of his thumb brushes over the hinge of your own, back and forth, back and forth.

"Gorgeous," he says in agreement, uncharacteristically quiet. "And perfect."

You scoff, wet and choked. "I'm not--"

But 1NG0 raises faintly glowing optics to meet your gaze and your protest dies behind your tongue at the sight of something raw behind his eyes.

"You are human," 3MM-ET says beside you. "Something we will never be."

You turn away from 1NG0 then, and twist your neck to look at his brother with furrowed brows. But 3MM-ET’s smile is achingly fond and he shakes his head before you can speak. "It is the truth," he states simply. "We are not human." He shrugs - and it's such a distinctly human gesture, one that you know can be programmed or learned through behavioral study, but usually never properly applied in subtle ways. Here, it is subtle, and for a moment you forget which of you three is made of wires and which is made of flesh.

But 3MM-ET isn’t done. He turns your hand over in his grasp and runs his thumb down the inorganic lines of your palm. His gaze lowers to watch it, as though he’s unable to meet your eyes. “...But you treat us as though we are.”

1NG0 shifts, leans forward to study you in profile. “We are flawed in mechanical ways,” he says, voice still soft and tender and warm. “You are flawed in human ways. We can be programmed to emulate human flaws, but it’s nothing more than an illusion, a lie of perfection. Or of imperfection. Whatever the one writing our code wants us to be.”

The arms still curled around your waist squeeze you in gentle, almost nervous tandem as both the androids hug you close.

3MM-ET’s thumb changes direction on your palm, circling counter clockwise. “We are aware of this.” His fingers tighten almost imperceptibly, but it’s still enough for the sensors in your metal hand to detect. “Of our artificiality. Sometimes we forget, but not for very long.”

Your mouth twitches at his admission, not a frown but almost; he just shakes his head.

“You do not get it; you make us feel human. You. With you it is not forgetting, it is like we always were.”

On your other side, 1NG0 hums. “You have never indicated that you see us as things; you do not treat us as lesser in any way, when by nature of our inhumanity someone else might. Where another might see our personalities as faults, and our faults as something to be rectified, you treat them as though they are normal.”

3MM-ET nods. “As though we are human.”

1NG0 nods as well. His hand on yours twists, aligning his palm with the back of your hand. He threads his fingers together with yours. “Your humanity is what makes you perfect,” he explains. “You simply exist as you are, flaws and all.”

The arms encircling you slowly slide from your waist, gloved hands brushing along your back and sides until they fall away. 1NG0 brings a hand up to trace the back of a knuckle just under your eyes; when he pulls back again, there is a single droplet of moisture left on his glove.

(You didn’t know you still had tears left to shed.)

3MM-ET’s hand alights on your shoulder. He trials his fingertips reverently downward, tracing the seam where your skin meets metal - and even further down. He stops at your elbow, gently cupping it, and lifts your arm until it straightens out. The thumb that once drew patterns across your palm now carefully uncurls your fingers, and he adjusts his hold until your forearm rests across his own. Slowly, like he’s terrified you’ll pull away, 3MM-ET lowers his head and lifts your arm higher to meet in the middle.

Soft and whisper-light, he touches silicone lips to the ball joint of your wrist.

Your breath catches in your throat; this is all too much. You don’t know what to do with this tenderness, this gentleness, when all you’ve known for years is how to build your walls higher and higher to avoid the leering gaze of others. You cannot fathom, no matter your grandfather’s skill at breathing artificial life into cold copper and warm circuits, how these two (objectively inhuman) beings can show more humanity than members of your own kind.

And how they, technically perfect in their artificiality, can consider you the perfect one - because of and not in spite of, your failings.

Your mechanical fingers curl, unconsciously trying to capture 3MM-ET’s hand once more.

The brush of leather against your face pulls your attention back to 1NG0, back to a luminous silver gaze that meets your own and somehow softens as if you’d hung the moon and stars. He rolls his hand so that his palm cradles your cheek, and with his other he tugs at your fingers until he’s pressed your hand to where his core sits beneath his chest plate, holding it there like he’ll die if he lets go.

There is no need for him to breathe, no real heart that needs to beat, but you can feel the impersonations of them under your hand; the rise and fall of his chest in simulation of breathing, the faint thrum of the pump that forces hydrolic fluid through his internal structure. Even with your prosthetic, you can feel him.

“These are not flaws,” 1NG0 whispers, stroking your mechanical hand with his thumb. “They are simply a part of you.”

You feel the tickle of 3MM-ET’s lips against your wrist as he picks up where his brother leaves off, unwilling to remove his almost-kiss from your arm even as he speaks. “Therefore,” he murmurs, “these are perfect, too.”

You’d thought yourself dam-less, the cracks in your walls now laid bare as the banked-up river of emotions runs dry inside your soul. But as you look from one conductor to the other - one with his lips held to your wrist and his twin with your hand clutched to his core - you feel the tide come in anew.

1NG0 swipes at the trickle of tears gliding freely from your eyes, though his gentle touch does nothing to stem their flow. You shake your head to dislodge his hand.

Before either of them can react, you’re pulling back, tugging your appendages from their respective holds and reaching blindly out to grasp at their shoulders. You manage to find one of them through your blurry vision, 3MM-ET, and yank him to you. He lets you bury your face in the crook of his neck and rests his cheek against your temple.

Your free hand fumbles to find 1NG0 on your other side, but now that he can guess what you want, he puts himself in your path; you fist your fingers into his coat and pull him close until he’s pressed against your side with his forehead alighting just below your ear at the hing of your jaw. He ghosts his lips against the skin of your jawline and wraps both of his arms securely around your waist.

3MM-ET’s arms follow suit, coming to rest above his brother’s, as one of your own slips around his side to cling desperately at the back of his coat. You wriggle your other arm until it’s actually under the one 1NG0 has around your front and reach up to dig your fingers into his sleeve, hanging on like you’re afraid you’ll be washed away without him there to ground you.

The last dregs of overwhelming emotion wring from your exhausted heart as you allow yourself to be held and to hold in return - for once finding a hand extended in the dark behind your walls. You make no noise as you cry this time; there is only the sound of your breathing and the whispered words of two voices in your ear, telling you how glad they are to know you.

You’ve never felt more human.

[adamwatchesmovies]

Renfield (2023)

If those who would most enjoy Renfield go into it with low expectations, they’ll find an imperfect film that (mostly) caters to their tastes. This movie has such a great premise and such a good cast. If only the screenplay and story were better. I liked it more than I didn’t but while watching, I kept wondering “I should love this… why don’t I?”

Like in the novel by Bram Stoker, R. M. Renfield (Nicholas Hoult) is transformed into Dracula’s familiar when he meets the Count (Nicholas Cage) in the early 20th century. Unlike in the novel, Dracula and Renfield survive and defeat Van Helsing, along with every subsequent would-be vampire slayer they encounter. In modern day, Renfield has grown tired of the abuse Dracula throws his way. While searching for fresh victims for his master, Renfield crosses paths with Teddy Lobo (Ben Schwartz), the son of the notoritious Lobo crime family. The bloody aftermath catches the attention of police officer Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina), who holds a grudge against the Lobos and is looking for an ally against them.

Even without doing any research, I could’ve told you from his performance alone, that Nicolas Cage is a massive fan of 1931’s Dracula. It’s pretty clear Robert Kirkman (who pitched the story but did not write the screenplay) and director Chris McKay are too. The film begins by showing us new versions of the most well-known scenes from the 1931 film, with the sets either recreated with immaculate attention to detail or the new actors digitally added in. For anyone who loves the Universal Monsters, it’s a delight to see new performers re-interpret the material. Remember the first time you saw the Spanish version of “Dracula”? It’s that exciting. Cage, in particular, is such a good fill-in for Bela Lugosi. Hoult doesn’t quite look like Dwight Frye and may not bring the same intensity to the role, but he turns out to be a wholly different kind of servant to this prince of darkness anyway, so it won’t bother you at all.

After the dynamite intro, we dig into the story. It’s a fun idea to show Renfield, now 90 years into his servitude, getting fed up with his situation. There are some good laughs as Dracula physically and emotionally abuses Renfield while he slowly builds the courage he needs to face this vampire he could never hope to defeat on his own. This Count doesn’t insta-die when exposed to sunlight, is super strong, immortal, able to fly, can transform into a swarm of bats, hypnotize people, turn into mist and recover from practically any injury given enough time and blood.

The problem with Renfield is that we don’t explore the vampire-familiar dynamic enough. The Lobos and Officer Quincy plot, with Renfield stuck in the middle, eats up about 60% of the film. While the scenes of Quincy and Renfield teaming up against a bunch of Lobos goons means there’s plenty of comedic gore, that's not what you came to see. Then, when we finally get back to Dracula, he announces he’s going to take over the world! With Renfield gaining superhuman strength and agility whenever he eats bugs, this horror-comedy (and I use the word horror in theory here, as none of this picture is even remotely frightening) starts to feel an awful lot like a superhero film. A superhero film that isn’t taking itself seriously but come on. I came here for a vampire movie with a fun anti-romance twist. Give me that!

Since I mentioned the gore, I want to praise the special effects. There are many shots of people get their arms torn off or getting ripped apart, gutted or dispatched in other hideous ways. In any other movie, you might ask “wait, how did they even manage to stand upright if they were that easy to turn to shreds?”. Here, it’s all part of the fun. The most impressive SFX are in the scenes showing Dracula in various states of injury. Be it a scorched skeleton that can talk or a gooey blood sucker with half his skull showing and all sorts of bits barely hanging on, it’s all mega gross and well done. I’m pretty sure most actors hate having to sit in chairs while tons of makeup are applied to them, but I’d wager that after seeing the results, Cage was like “oh yeah, I’m totally willing to do with 4-5 more times.”

In the end, I’m going to rate Renfield right down the middle. More than once, I was loving it. I felt like this movie had been made specifically for me. Far too often, however, it let me down. I know it probably doesn’t make any sense, but it’s a disappointment that I’m nonetheless glad I saw and have some affection for. (September 10, 2023)

[iwanncry]

I just want to go home. ( Madness combat x Child! Reader)

((THIS IS COMPLETELY PLATONIC!! ABSOLUTELY NO P3D0 SHIT))

((The reader is also gender-neutral ^^ ))

((TW/CW: Gorey descriptions, cursing, mentioned cannibalism))

hey ya'll this is like the first thing I have ever written on here so please do enjoy! ^^

______________________________________________________________

walking around Nevada isn't really what you would call fun, especially if you are a defenseless 13-year-old walking around what was once a place people could call home.

keyword, Once.

you missed the smell of home, you missed your family, you missed your friends and even school.

you just wished you were in your bed back in your hometown rather than finding somewhere safe to spend the night while making sure there weren't any man-eating bandits lurking around, waiting till they could get their hands on another poor victim that they could happily devour.

Thinking of them made you cringe, and you decided it would be best just to look around to take your mind off of the dark topic.

Walking around you stumble upon a city..or what was once a city, looking around in both awe and despair at how such a huge area was so...empty, cold, and sad.

but something snapped you out of your trance, from the corner of your eye, you could see a wanted poster attached to one of the many buildings in this 'ghost town' of a city.

you approach the poster and rip it off of the wall it was resting on and gave a look at the details displayed on it.

when reading the list of crimes one caught your eye.

"Distorting reality?... Woah whoever this guy is, he is badass." you chuckled at your own comment. You glanced at the picture that was right above the list of things you shouldn't do in life and saw the man behind it all.

He had menacing red goggles that would pierce through your soul if you even just looked at him, His bottom jaw just wasn't there. The only thing that was still attached to His face was his upper jaw which was missing some flesh around where his mouth would be up to where his nose should be.

You finally tore your eyes from the paper, cringing at the gross man displayed in front of you.

You ripped the poster in half and continued walking till you heard 3 voices approaching, your fight or flight response kicked in and you decided to hide in an alleyway right beside a dumpster that was out of view.

"Gah! my legs are givin' out on me..yo hank, Sanford, let's stop here and rest. my dogs are killin' me!"

Said a masculine voice, you crossed your fingers and hoped that whoever was there didn't stop in the alleyway you were in. but just your luck, you saw three bodies enter the same exact alleyway you were hiding in.

when you peeked to see who at least came in the alleyway, you recognized one of them almost immediately.

It's the man you saw on the damn poster.

he was tall, built, and overall fucking terrifying, you didn't exactly recognize the two other men that were with him.

One of the men had headphones and a visor on, along with the many bandages wrapped around his head. He had on a black sweater, black sweatpants, and a plain white T-shirt that was covered in blood and random yellow stuff, he also rocked a cool mullet.

the other man was slightly taller than the mullet dude but not as tall as the very scary man standing next to him, he had no shirt on which revealed his very well-built torso. he also had a bandana on his head which covered the many bandages that wrapped around his cranium, he also had on camo pants and a pair of combat boots, along with very stylish sun-glasses.

while studying these men, you lost footing and fell on the ground making a loud noise that alerted the men, they quickly turned their bodies and pointed their guns.

right. at. you

"W-WAIT! please d-don't shoot, I'll just leave."

You cried while tears spilled out of your sockets.

"Please don't shoot, I just want to find my mom"

You sobbed pitifully and you hated yourself for it, but yet again you didn't want to die.

the men put their guns down and the shirtless man proceeded to come up to you.

"Hey kid..how old are you?" he asked

You looked up at the man and simply responded with "I'm..I'm thirteen."

The man looked at you, dumbfounded "Thirteen?!"

You look down at the concrete floor.

"I just want to go home."

______________________________________________________________

[holylulusworld]

Fresh Start (4) - FIN

Summary: All or nothing now. Can you and Sam find a way back?

Pairing: Mobster!Sam Winchester x Wife!Reader, Mobster!Dean Winchester x other reader

Characters: John Winchester, Ruby

Warnings: angst, language, blood, mentions of death/torture, violence against Ruby, character's death, John is an ass, a creep, and bad in general, fluff

 << Part 3

Divider by @firefly-graphics​

You grip the door handle to open the door parting you from the woman who tried to kill you. You take a deep breath and close your eyes for a moment, counting to ten to calm your nerves. 

If Sam’s enemies, his allies, and your husband shall respect you, you must walk through that door and prove yourself. This is not easy for you. Not at all. You don’t want to witness torture and violence.

“You can still change your mind, sweetheart,” Dean places his hand on your shoulder. “Y/N this will get ugly. Sam is out for blood. Ruby’s blood. Usually, he wants me to get information out of people.”

“I have to,” you dip your head to look at Dean standing next to you. He offers a cracked smile and sad eyes. “Everyone believes I’m soft and an easy target. Everyone needs to hear that I was part of this. That I stood my ground and-“

“I get it,” swallowing thickly Dean drops his gaze. “My father always gave me the feeling I must prove my worth over and over again. That’s why I turned to Alastair and asked him to become my mentor in…”

Dean is easy to talk to and understands your situation. Dean wanted to run from his family so often, but he knew this would mean leaving Sam behind too.

“Torture,” he nods. Dean barely talks about his time at Alastair’s place. You only know he still has nightmares and hates to be used as a blunt tool to hurt people. “I’ll talk to Sam when this is over, Dean. We can’t keep on running in circles. This includes using you as a torturer. You deserve better.”

“We both do,” he chuckles humorlessly. “Maybe we should run away together.”

“You, me, and that girl from the diner?”

“Exactly.”

“Does she know?”

“I didn’t tell her about my…profession. It’s better this way,” he shrugs. “Let’s be honest. Sooner than later, she’ll have enough and move on to someone else. I can’t marry a nice girl not knowing what she got herself into.”

“Maybe she would understand you didn’t tell her the truth, Dean.”

“We can still run.”

“I can’t…I’m still in love with your brother.”

You stand there in silence next to Dean for what feels like an eternity. Breathing in and out while your heart beats out of your chest.

“I hope he’s worth it,” he watches you open the door. Dean takes a deep breath and forces a cold mask to replace his features. It’s easier to pretend to feel nothing when pain, blood, and death lie ahead. “This is going to be a fucking long night…”

Head held high you step inside the room. Just like Dean, you hide your insecurities and fear behind a stoic face tonight.

“Look what the cat dragged in. I had hoped at least your ugly face got damaged a little more. Like my grandfather used to say. If you want something to get done, do it yourself.”

Another punch hits her face, but she takes it like a champ, you give her that. Her bloody smirk makes you shudder. Ruby spits blood onto the floor. It joins dried blood, spit, and something looking like ripped-out nails on the concrete in the basement. 

This is not a nice place. It’s cold, dark, and filled with the faded screams of the victims of Winchester’s business.

You fight the urge to empty your stomach as Sam gets a knife out. 

“Sam, I-“ you look at Ruby, almost feeling sorry for the broken creature restrained to an old chair. You remember the furniture. It used to stand in John’s kitchen, or at least you think so. 

“Aw, does your little wife want to watch you get your hands dirty Sammy?” Ruby sneers as you look away. “I can’t believe you chose her over me. Look at her. She’s soft and won’t make it for much longer in life like ours. Everyone knows she’s nothing but a burden to you.”

“Watch your tongue, bitch,” you never saw Sam like that before. He slaps Ruby’s face hard enough to split her skin open with his wedding band. “You are talking about my wife and the woman I love. She’s family and you are simply a faded memory. A meaningless one nightstand I forgot about the moment I slipped out of you.”

“You’re a bad liar, Sam,” she coos, batting her eyelashes. Ruby looks like she got under the bus, still, she tries to flirt with Sam. Blood runs down her neck, left arm, and chest. Her nose is bleeding heavily and one of her eyes is swollen, and black. 

“Not me,” Dean whispers as you look at him in horror. “I came here with you, Y/N. I don’t like putting my hands on women that way.”

“It was my honor to avenge you,” John steps out of the shadows. Blood is splattered all over his white shirt, his face and arm, but he doesn’t seem to care. You gasp as he takes off his bloody hand gloves, carelessly dropping them to the ground. “You’ve missed the show, Y/N. We were waiting for you.”

“I told her to wait a little longer,” now you know why Dean distracted you for so long. He didn’t want you to watch the worst part of the show. “This is not for her.”

“She wanted to watch,” you dare not to meet John’s gaze as he steps closer to you to cup your chin with two fingers. “Right? You are one of us, Sammy’s future. You’ll carry his heir soon enough and continue our bloodline.”

“Why don’t you bang her yourself,” Ruby doesn’t shut her mouth. She snickers behind John’s back while trying to wiggle out of the ropes holding her wrists. “I know how you look at your son’s wife. I bet you are creaming your pants imagining having your way with her.”

“Silence,” John twirls around to punch Ruby’s face with full force. You whimper, not wanting him to hurt her even more. “You’ve got no clue what you are talking about. I don’t fuck my son’s girls.”

“Didn’t you stop you from fucking Jess, or Lisa…or me,” she grins up at John. His chest heaves up and down as he stares down at the bloody mess that used to be the woman Sam desired a long time ago.

“Sir, I think Y/N should go now,” Sam protectively steps in front of you to block your view. “She has seen enough.”

“No. She needs to end this the Winchester way,” you feel your legs give in when John pushes his son out of his way to hand you a knife. “Kill that woman. An eye for an eye. A life for a life.”

“I-“ you glance at the knife in your hand. It would be a death sentence to say no to John Winchester, but you are not a killer. “Can I…”

“She’s better with a gun,” Dean steps in. “You remember our training, right?” he takes the knife out of your hand to give it back to his father. “Here, take mine. I’ll help you.”

“I said this is enough,” the room falls silent as Sam rolls his shoulders. “I’m not going to let my wife do such a thing. She wanted to witness Ruby’s punishment, and she did. I’ll end this.”

“Sammy, what?” before Dean can react Sam snatches the gun out of his brother’s hands, unlocks it, and aims at Ruby’s head. “Wait…”

“Goodbye,” Dean presses your face in his chest and tells you to cover your ears as Sam ends Ruby’s life. You are trembling and crying as another pair of hands tugs at your body moments later.

Everything is a haze after the gunshot. You end up in someone’s arms and get carried out of the basement. Too afraid to look at the man carrying you, all you can do is cover your eyes with your hands.

“I’ve got you, baby girl,” it’s Sam softly whispering your name. “I’m sorry. Father can be…” He holds you close to his warm chest, failing to even talk.

“A fucking asshole,” Dean is right behind you and his brother. While John yells your husband’s name, Sam walks upstairs and makes his way inside your bedroom, ignoring his father’s orders. “How can he expect her to stab that bitch? Did he lose his mind?”

“He lost it a long time ago, Dean,” you whimper as Sam places you on the bed. “I told you years ago. When I was fourteen. This will never end.”

“This is all his fault. Ruby got mad as he ended their affair. She wanted to hit him where it hurts. Without an heir, John Winchester will sooner than later lose his empire,” Dean gives his brother a cracked smile. “Charlie dug a little deeper for me. And Ketch knew more than I told all of you.”

“You knew all the time that she wanted to hit him, not me?” Sam shakes his head. “How could you hide this from me?”

“I had to be sure, Sammy. Charlie found everything.”

“So, did he want to touch my wife too?” frowning deeply Sam looks at his brother. “Please tell me she lied, Dean.”

“I wish I could say no. I don’t know, to be honest. Ruby wasn’t wrong, though. He looked at Y/N like he wants to…”

“What will we do now?” you look up at Sam. “I’m scared of John. He didn’t look happy when I couldn’t kill Ruby.”

“We run,” Sam jerks his head toward his brother. “Charlie helped me transfer most of our money to an offshore bank account a few days ago. I knew shit will go down.” He shrugs as his brother gapes at him. “We can take the Impala and get out of this fucking town, Sammy.”

“Better late than never, huh? Lock the door,” Dean hurriedly locks the door while Sam walks inside the walk-in-wardrobe to remove a fake wall. He gets three duffle bags and clothes out, smirking as you look up at him with wide eyes. “One for each of us. New papers, money, clothes, guns, all we will need to get out of town.”

“How…what?” Sam hands you new clothes to wear. Jeans, a t-shirt, a red-checkered flannel, boots, and a leather jacket.

“Dean, I got something for you too. We need to look different. No suits and polished shoes until we got away.”

“I can live with that,” Dean looks at the clothes Sam hands him. “Jeans and plaids. Awesome…”

“I said no detours,” Sam watches a girl run toward the Impala. He huffs in the backseat as she jumps into Dean’s arms. “He found the time to pick up a girl?”

“Get inside, sweetheart,” Dean hurriedly gets back behind the steering wheel. Benny, Castiel, and Gadreel made sure to distract John long enough for you to escape but he doesn’t want to waste another minute.

“Hi,” you watch the waitress Dean met up with for weeks get inside the Impala. She presses a duffle bag to her chest, smiling at Sam and you in the back. “Nice to finally meet you. I’m (*another reader*).”

“Y/N, and this is Sam, my husband,” you watch her buckle up as Dean starts the engine to get out of town. “We glad we finally meet you.”

“So…we are on the run now,” she asks as you watch her watch Dean. She moves her hand to his thigh and softly speaks his name. It’s the first time Dean looks at peace since you know him.

“Not for long, (*another reader*). We will find a place to call home. See it as…”

“A fresh start,” Sam smirks as Dean pushes the car to its limit.

Only a few hours and you are out of John Winchester territory. Castiel, Benny, and Gadreel will make sure your father-in-law looks for you at the wrong end of the world.

“A fresh start,” Dean agrees as you lean your head against Sam’s shoulder. You close your eyes and allow yourself to dream of a better life; away from crimes, pain, and fear.

A life in which you can have a family and a life with the man you love.

Tags in reblog.

[fnaffersblog]

On your latest reaction you said New Moon and Sun are repeating old habits and it's so true. I don't think New Moon means to be keeping things from Sun. I don't know if it's just me but I've always gotten the feeling that New Moon really doesn't like the old Moon like at all. He's seen through the videos and gotten vague clues from the computer's AIs that Moon didn't always treat Sun the best. I know Moon truly did care for Sun, but the way New Moon is receiving this information it really is not putting Moon in a good light. New Moon has stated multiple times that old Moon was awful (can't remember the exact wording but the meaning was similar enough), so of course he's trying to do the exact opposite of what the old Moon would have done and for the most part it's working. He's being more open about his care for Sun, he's talking more about emotions, and he's even accepting help willingly which is great! The only problem is that he's sort of relying on Sun to be just as open and upfront about things and Sun is just not doing that. I mean I get it, Sun's feelings have gotten brushed off a lot in the past so of course he's not going to try if the same thing is going to happen again but by doing that he's leaving New Moon to assume that things must be going somewhat ok. I mean he must see that things aren't great with Sun but surely Sun will come to him if really needed help. So New Moon starts keeping things from Sun to hopefully alleviate his stress unknowingly causing Sun more stress and it just sucks all around.

Oop sorry for going off on a rant I just really liked your analysis. Anyway for the pokemon thing Lunar is legally required to have a stantler named Spigot :)

Oh yeah, no, New Moon dislikes Old Moon for sure for sure.

I think Sun has made, at least, two different references to the trapping episode and Moon both times has gotten REALLY uncomfortable. New Moon is constantly in awe of the absolute horrible level Old Moon would take situations too. I think it was the episode about testing new dimensions where Sun was listed as a test subject and New Moon just asked, in the most baffled way, "Why would I... DO that??" But he's disavowed and commented on the horribleness of Old Moon's actions a lot. 110% agree.

He also gets exasperated with AI1 ALL THE TIME. And the AIs were synthesized from Old Moon's personality to help him with decision making soooooooo. Look at that how you will.

(I imagine it's very difficult looking back on something horrible someone with your face did. Comes with a lot of conflicting emotions. Was this my fault if I don't remember? Did I really do those things or was it someone else? Does the victim of these actions blame me? Should they if that's not me? It's a weird situation to be in all around.

I question at times if New Moon is ever worried now about his old memories coming back too. At this point it seems concrete that Old Moon is GONE gone, but I wonder if he ever gets concerned about it.)

Fundamentally, however, this is the SAME Moon. The reset set Moon's memories back to square one, but all of his specific personality traits are the same. None of the trauma, so he's less jaded. Less of, and excuse my language here, a jackass.

With that came his difficulty with social interactions. I don't remember when this happened, but I distinctly remember an episode with Old Moon where he mentioned he wasn't sure he'd ever get ahold of this social thing. I don't know what he said exactly but it was very close to being that, word for word. I also couldn't find the episode, so it may have been said on another channel. Rip MEEEEEEE.

Anyways, I don't know if he DOES see anything is wrong with Sun, he doesn't seem to be great at picking up on varying emotional ques from others. I know about people saying 'well, people can't read your mind, you have to speak up' kinda thing but, like, at the end of the 'Ruin Sun trapped Moon' episode I could hear Sun's emotions all over the place and at the beginning of 'Moon says Goobye in VrChat' it was the same. It was very noticeable, at least to me.

And Moon just...

didn't seem to notice at all?

So many people have pointed out the positive change in Moon's demeanor, I DOUBT he was just straight up ignoring/ being annoyed by Sun. I think he is a bit stressed out rn, but he wasn't trying to take it out on Sun. (Also wasn't saying you said that! I was reading it and it read to me like I was blaming so I just wanted to clarify, just in case.)

I think maybe Moon literally just... can't tell? At the very least, he's not good at picking up on them and based on his 'solution' of sending Sun on a break, he may just think Sun needs some time off.

I don't know. It's weird to me, but it's kind of the only thing I can think of that makes sense? It does mean Sun HAS to speak up though. If Moon can't read his emotional tells then the only way Moon is ever going to know what the actual issue is is if Sun tells him. Like you said, by not saying anything Sun is leaving Moon to assume things are alright. And I don't think that's going to happen, frankly, Sun speaking up, not without outside influence.

One of Moon's biggest reoccurring problems before the reset was the fact that, while he cared for the people he was trying to help, and BY GOD did he care so deeply for them, he made decisions for them. His penchant for not telling people his plans, which was born from this need to protect the people he loved, because he didn't want them to worry/ didn't think they'd understand/ he believes what he's doing is best for them without actually bringing them in to discuss it/ whatever, has probably pushed Sun into thinking he can't trust Moon.

As you said it "Sun's feelings have gotten brushed off a lot in the past so of course he's not going to try if the same thing is going to happen again", which is a sentiment I've seen from several folks here on Tumblr. Moon has 'stolen' his autonomy in decision making that should have involved both of them, as well as stuff Sun alone should have had final call in a LOT. And now he's fallen back into doing it again.

This may be a "New" Moon but it's also still just... Moon. All his pre coded personality traits and systems for dealing with things came with him. And even if Sun KNOWS it's not his old Moon, with so many similar traits in a person wearing the same exoskeleton, it's going to be near impossible to separate the two.

(which seems weird because a lot of the methods we use individually to navigate problems comes from our childhoods ((Don't quote me on that I am NOT a therapist or doctor or psychologist of any sort, but I do have my own personal experiences and what I've read)), aka all of Moon's trauma while he and Sun were stuck together + literally everything else should have been what influenced his pre-reset decision making and post-reset Moons decision making should jsut be affected by the last two months buuuuuut this is a silly goofy show on the internet about robots and brain resets aren't reeeal so I'm not losing my mind about that. I see what they're going for here and I like it, I'm just being nitpicky.)

I said in a long post, ages back that Sun and Moon have never really known each other the way they think they do. They had never really talked post body split and had ideas of who the other person was. In these past two months I do think they've taken huge steps to mediate that. They are for sure much closer I think than they have been. Every other episode, I feel like one or both of them is pointing something out about the other. Moon's ADHD and stimming, Sun's enjoyment of MLP, little things that I can't remember at the moment but that I know are happening?

But they still don't really know each other, and the only difference now is they LITERALLY don't know each other because they are completely new people to each other for different reasons instead of preconceived ideas of who the other should be. Which is especially true for Moon, Sun is a stranger he met two months ago.

(What if you deconstruct the truths you know about someone and find you don't love them anymore? That's scary.)

I think one of the things Moon is noticing, however, is that Sun WON'T come to him to ask for help. If I'm not mistaken, Earth and Moon have been the ones to instigate Sun taking care of himself these past two months. If not every time, at least most of the times they're the ones to pop up and tell Sun his worth, hype him up. Or make him take breaks when he needs them.

Sun is getting better at doing it alone, of course, it was very noticeable during the recent hallucination episode and along side him Moon is learning as well. "He's being more open about his care for Sun, he's talking more about emotions, and he's even accepting help willingly which is great!" I agree with this 110%, they are both taking great steps forward in becoming more emotionally stable and healthy!

They still have a long way to go. Which is why I'm so happy for Earth and Monty and now Foxy's inclusion. They have their own problems for sure, but they're outside mediators between the two brothers. Because let's be frank here, there is no way that the two of them were ever going to hash out the problems between them on their own. There's just too much to sift through, you know, for just the two of them, many problems which stem from the other! And they're falling back into learned patterns, like Sun pretending everything is okay, or giving up while trying to reason with Moon or Moon insisting he's right when he doesn't have all the information because he wants to help, or keeping information to attempt to alleviate stress without understanding it's actually just causing stress, which he can't know because the person he's stressing out won't admit he's stressed out because that person is afraid of the other persons response which is generally to make decisions for him! They are stuck in, careening back into cycles they need help getting pulled out from and they can't do it alone. You can't hoist someone out of the water from the top of the cliff when you're floating right along side 'em you know?

It does. It sucks all around. I can see a resolution in sight, but it'll take work and outside influences and time. And they have to want it.

Also, you don't have to apologize at all! I was excited to read through what you said! As long as you don't mind a multi paragraph response of my own long winded, disconjointed, meandering ramblings, where I sometimes contradict myself in the post and run out of steam before I've gotten all my thoughts out lol, I LOOOVEE seeing other folks interpretations about stuff. Odds are you'll get a couple hundred words to read through likeeee THISSSSS ONNNNEEEEE lolol. Feel free to go crazy.

Ayyyyeeee GEN 2 less gooooo! Stantler is amazing, truly one of the better overlooked mons from Johto's dex. I LOVE Wyrdeer too. I do have to ask, is there a story behind the name Spigot?

[disco-cola]

you know what I think is crazy? The media and many western politicians were soooo quick about sensationalizing that „Hamas beh€aded 40 Israeli babies“ horror story that turned out to not even be real. But when a few days ago they released two more hostages, 85 yr old yocheved lifshitz and 79 yr nurit cooper they took from a kibbutz, and as shown in the video filmed during the release the older one turned around and said shalom which means goodbye or even peace in hebrew and even shook the hand of one of the Hamas members who turned her over to representatives of the Red Cross and then both got airlifted out of Gaza back to Israel - even tho this is HUGE NEWS i would say it wasn’t in the headlines the way it should’ve been. I looked it up and in the most read German newspaper (which is pure pro Israel propaganda like the fact it is the most read German newspaper makes me rip out all my hair) it doesn’t mention ANYTHING about the handshake or the interview (I’m gonna get to this). It basically says well yeah two more hostages are back but don’t forget Hamas is bad and Gaza deserves this. Not kidding. The video, of course, wasn’t shared but just described and the sentence ended in „Hamas are laughing and acting nice towards the old ladies but don’t fall for it it’s propaganda“. They however printed a photo of Yocheved Lipshitz smiling to a family member which got the caption „first smile in freedom“ 🫠 And then following her release the 85 yr old woman gave a public interview and while she did say she was beaten during the drive (and of course an abduction is an abduction like let’s be real about this it is awful in the first place) she also said that while in captivity, they were treated well and that there were doctors and other medical personnel and women taking care of their health and hygiene and that they were sharing food and this is why she did the handshake. Despite her husband still being held captive over there. I read a lot of Israelis are „furious“ at her for the handshake and the interview. I guess that just doesn’t fit their agenda and imagery they have been trying to create. Then again a lot of people were also mad at the brother of hayim katsman who was killed at the kibbutz on October 7. The brother publicly stated in an interview that this is not what his brother would have wanted since he was a peace activist and his killing shouldnt be used as justification and that I literally have to quote this from the interview „what Israel is doing now is very clearly not for the security of anyone. The real reason is just revenge and killing and distraction from the failure of Israel to protect its citizens.” Where are the sensationalist headlines in the big newspaper articles about this? No instead people are being MAD at Israel’s OWN VICTIMS 🤡 again I feel the need to also state this is not supposed to mean „omg Hamas is so nice 😊“ like no, there’s still like what 200 people in captivity (and I really do hope they all get treated as well as the woman said and also all survive the bombings brought on by their own homeland) and it also doesn’t change anything about the fact that from what i read around 1400 israelis have violently lost their lives since October 7 (just for INFO at this point bc I want to mention both: the latest info I read was that around 6700 palestinians didn’t survive the last 20 days) - but it really does make me wonder why a lot of people supporting israels actions are mad at the woman instead of at least celebrating her getting out alive and as she says apparently rather well on top of that??? and why the brother of the man who got killed said from the start „what I’m gonna say will upset a lot of people“ and he was right like…

[timeisacephalopod]

One time I read an article (I believe on buzzfeed) about this woman who was playing with her dogs in her front yard when they, apparently out of nowhere, straight up ripped her arms off and I will NEVER forget how almost every comment on that article was from dog people claiming she abused the dogs with no evidence of that whatsoever because they could not imagine a dog doing a Bad Thing. And like one of the dogs was a boxer, which is a breed I'm very familiar with- they obviously don't rip owners arms off with their other breed of dog friends normally. But I also think it's absurd to claim someone abused those animals when sometimes dogs do fucked up shit. Doesn't make em evil or bad, sometimes dogs snap like people snap and that's fine no need to moralize which dogs are Bad Dogs but there's also no need to claim someone who went through a horrific tragedy and was victimized by their pets of all things was abusive to said pets with no proof.

Another person in the comments pointed out how weird and cult like everyone else was acting and as a cat person who has been told a number of times how awful and horrible my pets are I gotta agree lmao. Crazy what dog people will do to defend the obviously indefensible rather than being like "damn that's fucked up has anyone done a check on those dogs to see if maybe they've got a health issue that caused them to lash out like that" or otherwise act normal instead of jumping straight to victim blaming someone with no fuckin arms. Like damn dog people will call cats evil for eating you after you die (dogs do that too by the way, do you expect them to STARVE to death because you think your corpse matters more than your pets life? Wtf. Plus not all cats OR dogs will eat you post death so ??? Not to mention if I stick YOU in a room with nothing but dead grandma you will eat her too if I leave you there long enough why vilainize cats for *checks notes* eating food when starving) but then defend dogs doing literally the most fucked up shit I've ever read a pet doing. Of course the dogs were not evil or bad, sometimes shit happens and that says nothing about dogs as a whole but I wish cats got even REMOTELY the same respect from those same people. If you can acknowledge a couple dogs ripping their owners arms off probably doesn't make those dogs in particular evil there's no reason to treat all cats like they're evil incarnate.