#sb writes

[purplecatghostposts]

Did anyone order a little Wyll being captured and rescued?

Here is 4K words of Wyll realizing he has friends who will save him should he need it and general Hurt/Comfort goods!!

[starry-blue-echoes]

I found this old snippet 90% finished in my drafts so W O E, 2k words of Tonio being my favorite character and Mr.Giovanna slowly understanding that he is not in fact Giogio's father anymore <333

(also tw for implied/referenced child abuse since Giorno)

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

Tonio noticed the second the man approached Giorno’s table.

His customers knew better than to do so. They knew the boy was under his personal protection and it was best to steer clear. A greeting hello when the boy arrived, a brief exchange of conversation, an offered treat or trinket was of course allowed, but approaching his booth while Tonio was not present?

That was not common.

In fact, by the time Tonio made it out of the kitchen and to the dining area, the man had gathered quite a bit of attention from the other customers if the glances being cast his way were anything to go by.

The man was practically looming over Giorno’s booth, all but boxing the boy into his seat and talking in a low voice so as to not be overheard. Tonio couldn’t even see Giorno from his spot.

Tonio did not like this.

He did not like this one bit.

So plastering on his best Customer Service Smile, he approached.

“Excuse me sir,” he spoke up, keeping his voice light and pleasant. “My apologies, but at this establishment you must wait to be seated.”

The man turned to face him, not moving away from the booth and instead attempting to slide a softer, kinder mask over his features.

Hm.

It was sloppy, Tonio couldn't help but note. Sure the facial expressions were… passable, he supposed, but his body language was all wrong. Maybe spending so much time amongst the real dangers in Italy had made him a bit of a snob, but honestly this was laughable.

“Ah, you misunderstand sir, I’m not here to eat, though I have heard good things about this restaurant.” the man waved him off with what was supposed to be a lighthearted chuckle that only succeeded in feeling patronizing. “I’m here to pick up my son.”

“Oh?” Tonio responded with a slit tilt of the head, and a cold, cold feeling slipped into his gut. “You’re this boy’s father then? I wouldn’t have guessed.”

“Step father, technically.” Mr.Giovanna explained, the veiled insult sailing clear over his head. “His mother already had him when I stepped into the picture, but I see and love him as my own.”

His smile got tighter when he saw Giorno, kind, smart, shy Giorno who loved frogs and ladybugs and the color pink and listening to Tonio talk about recipes, flinch.

“I see.” was all he offered.

Tonio knew so little. So, so little. Part of him knew it was purposeful. That he was giving himself plausible deniability. An empty comfort.

But he knew enough. He’d always known enough. More than enough really.

And now it was looking him dead in the eyes and spitting in his face, daring him to lie down and take it.

“Well, it’s getting late. We’d best be getting back to the house before your mother starts dinner. Come along, Giorno, you’ve taken up enough of this man’s time.” 

How long has he been standing idly by as he’d seen Giorno hurt? 

How many times has he knowingly allowed Giorno to return to that sorry excuse of a family? 

How many times has he merely nursed his injuries instead of doing anything to stop them from happening in the first place?

Well no longer.

“Actually, sir.” he interrupted. “I have some…. concerns I’d like to speak with you about.”

The man froze before slowly turning toward him.

There was a dangerous glint in his eyes and he not very subtly squared his shoulders to make himself look bigger.

“Oh?”

How funny. The man thought he was intimidating.

Tonio had done a bit of asking around about Giorno’s family when the boy hadn't been present. Nothing too nosey of course, just the standard gossip that was floating around which he generally got quite a lot of. 

And the results of his findings were quite fruitful.

Mr.Giovanna had a temper and was somewhat quick to anger, and he’d had a few dealings with the underworld, but that was as all. The man wasn't anyone important nor did he have any connections whatsoever.

He was just a simple, ordinary, powerless man.

A man who in the long run wouldn’t be able to do a thing to Tonio.

Tonio did not normally like taking advantage of his position, of the power he had at his fingertips. The near crippling fear of entrenching himself further and further into this world always had held him at bay, but in this moment he was more than willing to make an exception for this.

“Yes.” he made a slight show of stepping slightly closer to Mr.Giovanna and the booth seat, closer than was socially acceptable and a clear challenge to the man’s current proximity to Giorno. “And in all honesty, I’m not quite certain I feel comfortable allowing you to leave with this boy.”

“And for what reasons would that be?” Mr.Giovanna was openly glaring at him now, trying and failing to loom over a man who had a few centimeters on him.

“I notice things, Mr.Giovanna.” Tonio spoke, keeping his words clipped and flat lest his rage bubble over. “Giorno has been a patron in my restaurant for well over a year now, and I am not nearly as blind or stupid as you appear to think of me. I may be a chef, but I am also very familiar with the practices of medicine and the healing processes of the human body.”

Sometimes Tonio loathed this skill of his. Of seeing the way people moved and being able to pinpoint exactly what was wrong, of seeing the lethargy and careful movements and stiffness and knowing of the presence of bruises or cigarette burns or broken skin.

(In a bitterly comforting way, Giorno had always liked that part of him. Of their shared skill. He said it made him feel less alone and less strange)

Mr.Giovanna simply sneered at him. “And why exactly are you paying so much attention to little boys?”

His rage surged at the accusation, howling and throwing itself against the cage he’d locked it inside, only made worse by the man’s smugness as though he’d just won and Tonio would back down.

Oh how he longed for his butcher’s knives. They cut through skin and muscle like warm butter and would so easily make short work of the man before him.

“You know very well that is not what I’m talking about.” much to his dismay, his calm mask had begun to crack at the edges, his voice growing more tense and taught with every prolonged moment. This man was managing to slide through every crack of his carefully constructed walls in ways the most vile, loathsome mafioso couldn’t, and all with hardly more than a few words.

This needed to end soon. Before Tonio did something he would regret. For Giorno’s sake.

“I am not going to allow you to leave this establishment with this child unless you can offer me a reasonable explanation for why he comes here with bruises every single week, and that is final.” 

A lie of course, he wasn’t letting Giorno go anywhere with this pathetic excuse of a father, no matter what excuses he scrounged up.

“Well I don’t owe you shit.” he snapped back, forgoing excuses and even denial of the accusations completely. At the very least, it seemed Tonio was getting under Mr.Giovanna’s skin just as badly. “I am going to be taking my son and we are going to leave. Giorno, come here right n-” but as the man tried to move Tonio out of the way and make a grab for the boy, Tonio grabbed his arm in an ironclad grip.

The man froze, surprised either by the strength or by the audacity.

Tonio’s expression didn’t falter.

“I think it would be best for you to leave, sir.”

For a second all was calm.

And in the next, pure fury overtook the man’s face.

The punch was quick and powerful, and Tonio barely had a moment to realize what was happening before he had both hands on the booth table to support his weight with a blooming pain in his jaw. With one of his hands he hesitantly brought it up to test the area, but while it would undoubtedly bruise and was rather tender, nothing felt broken or severely damaged.

Tonio should have seen the punch coming, but alas, hindsight is 20/20. He partially expected a second blow…. but it never came.

In fact, Mr.Giovanna was being awfully quiet.

His grin which had temporarily been chased from his face found itself sliding back into place once more.

It seemed the man finally noticed. Now that their conversation had reached a small pausing point, it was likely that much more obvious, but Tonio still couldn’t help but internally chuckle at the man’s horrendous observation skills.

It was dead silent in the restaurant.

The clicking of silverware, the murmur of conversation, the footsteps of the waitstaff, all of it had vanished into thin air.

And as Tonio stood back up to his full height, one merely needed to glance around the room to see why.

Every single customer and staff member was staring at them.

And not one was happy.

Expressions ranged from murderous fury to offended disgust to cold disapproval. Weapons of all types were in hand: knives, firearms, utensils, even a few Stands had joined the fray.

Sometimes being neutral felt like a curse, but in this moment? In this moment Tonio had never felt freer.

Because everyone respected the rules inside Trattoria Trussardi.

And those who didn’t……

“You’ve broken the rules, Mr.Giovanna.” Tonio spoke, a grin still on his face. Only now he let the pleasantries fade away. Now, he let his grin stretch wide and manic, filled with teeth and not quite reaching his eyes.

To an outsider, it was downright predatory.

And Mr.Giovanna, finally realizing the lion’s den he had stumbled headfirst into, froze.

But Tonio did not care.

Not one bit.

He nudged the man to the side with the back of his hand, and didn’t even resist the urge to wipe it on his apron afterwards. He’d need to wash his hands later, wouldn’t want the food suffering from whatever filth that man possessed.

“Giorno,” he asked quietly, his body relaxing and growing soft at the bright, vibrant hope sparkling in the boy’s eyes. “Would you like to join me for dinner?”

Giorno’s eyes widened, growing glossy and shiny yet not a single tear spilt.

“I would.” he said in a hushed whisper, as though the words would break if he was too rough with them, and in Tonio’s heart the only regret he felt was that he hadn’t done this sooner.

He gently grabbed Giorno’s hand to tug him away from the booth seat with as much gentleness as he could, leading him toward the back door that led to the stairs up to his apartment. Giorno’s hand was so small, yet it clung to Tonio’s like a lifeline.

He would call Doppio later tonight to help with the paperwork, of course after Giorno had eaten and gone to sleep. He had more than enough spare funds for the shopping trip that would be required tomorrow, but it would also likely be best to ask if there was anything Giorno wanted from his now-ex-parents house. He’d likely have to rearrange some furniture upstairs, Giorno would need his own room obviously, maybe cash in a favor or two to help, and of course possibly transferring schools which meant even more paperwork-

But that was tomorrow. Tonight, he got to look forward to a nice, calm dinner that for the first time since inviting Doppio in wouldn’t be alone. 

And just as he nudged Giorno through the door…

“Marco.”

“Yeah Boss?”

Tonio liked Marco. A good head on his shoulders, a competent host and waiter, had potential for a manager position, always called in ahead of time if gang work interfered with his schedule, and on the rare occasion things got out of hand he was good at regaining order.

“I’m temporarily waiving the ‘no violence’ rule.” Tonio said. “Make sure nobody breaks anything important and if things get too noisy, see to it that it’s moved elsewhere.”

Marco’s eyes lit up with an emotion he didn’t dare to place, but his face remained stoic. “‘Course, Boss.”

Tonio looked back to the restaurant, his eyes soft and smile warm in a way that did not match the manic and horrifying implication of his words in the slightest.

“You have 30 minutes. Try to keep the mess to a minimum.”

The future looked bright and Tonio felt happy.

[stonebricks-mcytstuff]

The Canary

(A Secret Life poem inspired by The Tiger by Nael, age 6)

The canary

He destroyed his cage

Yes

YES

...

The canary is out

[sbwrites]

Pretty girl - Eddie Munson

Warnings: mirror sex, praise, slight degradation

Sunday nights always ended up like this, you sat on the bathroom counter with Eddie standing between your legs as you put moisture on your faces. It was so domestic and you both loved every second of it.

“you’re pretty” he says leaning down to kiss you bust as he does he gets distracted by something. “what is it babe?” you ask as his gaze moves fully to the mirror behind you. “its nothing can just see everything in this mirror” he explains his voice dropping a few octives. “well yeah that’s what mirrors are for babe” you laugh cupping his face in your hands. “oh no i know that look what are you thinking eds?” you smirk looking into his eyes. “that i wanna fuck you in front of this mirror” he says before leaning down to kiss you. “oh...im not opposed to it” you laugh as he pulls away. 

“yeah?” he smirks pulling you off the counter, “bend over the counter for me then”. and you do turning around and bending over as you do you realise what he was talking about, the mirror was huge you could see everything including eddie basically fucking you with his eyes as he pulled down your pyjama shorts. “see what i mean sweetheart?” he asks pulling your hips to his so you can feel how hard he is. “y-yeah” you stutter making eye contact with him in the mirror. he laughs at your flustered state and moves to take of your underwear trying to stifle a giggle when he sees how wet you are.

“i think you want this more than i do” he whispers in your ear as his finger ghosts over your clit. “maybe” you gasp his trying to chase his finger. “no you definitely do pretty girl” he whispers again as his fingers start rubbing slow circles on your clit. Your whimpers and moans spur him on as he picks up the pace, “eddie I’m gonna cum!” You moan grabbing onto the counter.

“Nu uh baby you’re gonna cum on my cock” he whispers in your ear ripping his fingers away from you.

[shinji-brown]

An Analysis of Imperial Japanese Navy Names as Used in Neon Genesis Evangelion

by @the-many-children-of-the-void

I have autism. I have a special interest in naval history, specifically the period between the launch of HMS Dreadnought in 1906 and the end of the Second World War. I know a lot of stuff, like the orders of battle for a bunch of actions in the Pacific. My favorite navy during this time period is that of Imperial Japan (mostly cause their ship names are the most fun). This basically makes me a member of the prime target demographic for understanding that particular bit of nuance.

As a side note: I'm going to try to refrain from using too much naval terminology in this essay but it's something I'm very close to and it's entirely possible that I end up like that one xkcd.

We're going to start with the Japanese aircraft carriers Akagi and Katsuragi and how their positions in the progression of Japanese carrier development lend themselves to their namesakes. Then we're going to discuss the Fubuki-class destroyer Ayanami and we're going to finish with a comparison of Soryu and Shikinami. I will not be discussing minor characters with ship names because, for the purposes of this discussion, they aren't relevant. Maya and Ibuki are both cruisers, for example, but there isn't really any special significance to those choices that I'm able to detect.

So what in the service histories of these ships leads me to suggest that their names have more specific significance than simply being names that go with their character's first names? That's the million dollar question and, by the time I'm done, I hope you'll at least understand where I'm coming from. So, buckle your seatbelts everyone and get ready for my hyperfixation fueled naval history infodump extravaganza.

We start with Akagi. She was built as the first full-size aircraft carrier in Japan, but she wasn't designed that. Prior to an international agreement to limit the size and number of ships in a number of navies, she was under construction as a battlecruiser (you don't have to know what that means), the second of the Amagi-class (a class is a set of ships that are all designed the same way). After that agreement was signed, though, Japan elected to convert her to an aircraft carrier instead of scrapping her hull. She served as a test bed for various aircraft carrier technologies during the 1930s and was modernized later in the decade. She served in the Kido Butai, Japan's strike force that attacked Pearl Harbor with another ship we'll see in a bit and was sunk at the Battle of Midway in 1942. For this comparison though, we need to meet another ship too.

Katsuragi was Akagi's opposite in a number of ways. She was designed as an aircraft carrier. She was completed in October of 1944. She was the second to last big aircraft carrier built by the Imperial Japanese Navy during the war. She was started to help replace the carriers lost at Midway. She never left port although, if she had, it would almost certainly have been to ferry kamikaze aircraft. Sound familiar?

Misato's role is the same. Bringing the sacrifice to the altar, in the same way an aircraft carrier bringing kamikaze aircraft does. It's reductive, though, to reduce Misato Katsuragi to just her relationship to Shinji, so let's look at her relationship to the character named for the other ship we've talked about: Ritsuko Akagi and, more specifically, how Akagi and Katsuragi apply to their characterizations and their relationship.

Katsuragi was young and fiery. She never saw action but her crew would have been young, mostly former students. She was indicative of an "ends justify the means" mindset in the latter half of the war. In contrast, Akagi was more cautious and experienced, a comparison reflected in any comparison of their namesake characters.

So the operational histories of Akagi and Katsuragi are reflected in their characters, but those are just two. Next, let's take a look at Ayanami, the lead ship of her subclass of Fubuki-class destroyers and why the choice of a destroyer from the middle of a class is relevant to Rei.

As we've established, a class of ships is a group of them that are all built to the same design. Japan built 24 Fubuki-class destroyers. By having so many, destroyers can be easily replaced with other ones. Not many destroyers attain fame equal to that of a bigger ship, such as a battleship or an aircraft carrier and they're not supposed to. They escort merchant ships, hunt submarines and serve as the screen for the bigger ships. Any fleet will have between a few and a bunch of destroyers. They're easy to replace. If one is sunk, another one can take its place.

This is the piss on the poor website, but I hope the point I'm building to is already obvious. For those to whom it isn't, let me make it clearer: Japan built 24 Fubuki-class destroyers. Destroyers are small ships and are easy to replace. Ayanami was the eleventh of those ships. Not the first Fubuki and not the last. The use of a destroyer name reflects that implication.

There's one more advantage to the choice to use Ayanami instead of another Fubuki-class ship that's going to become more relevant in the final part of this essay but I think it's important to mention before that point: Ayanami was the 11th, and the first of her subclass. The first child.

Now we're going to talk about how the meaning of Asuka's name changes depending on Soryu and Shikinami. It's all based on the orders of their construction in relation to the ships around them. We're going to start with Soryu.

Soryu was the third fleet aircraft carrier built in Japan, after Akagi and Kaga. She was the first purpose built fleet aircraft carrier after two prototypes. As Asuka says in Episode 8: Asuka Arrives in Japan:

After all, Units 00 and 01 were created as part of a development process, prototype and test type. The fact that it synchronized with an untrained pilot like you is proof of that. But Unit 02 is different. Created for actual combat conditions, this is the world's first true Evangelion.

Hmm. That sounds like how someone would describe Soryu, in relation to Akagi and Kaga, doesn't it? Soryu represents, in an obscure way, that Asuka is the pilot of Unit 02. But what about Shikinami? It's not an aircraft carrier. In fact, it's a destroyer, like Ayanami. It's a destroyer exactly like Ayanami. Ayanami is the 11th Fubuki-class destroyer and the first of the Ayanami subclass. Shikinami is the 12th Fubuki-class destroyer and the second of the Ayanami subclass. If Ayanami is the first child and the first of the Ayanami subclass, then Shikinami is the second child and the second of the Ayanami subclass.

So, Akagi and Katsuragi are indicative of their characters, based on their histories. Ayanami was a destroyer, something easily replaceable. Soryu and Shikinami are representative of Asuka's position, although the former is more subtle than the latter.

But Allie, I hear you say, how can you assign meaning to this? You've been in this fandom for four total days and you spent the first two of those watching it. How do you ascribe any intention here? The truth is, I can't. I can't say for certain any of this was intentional. The only reason I can think of to suggest it could have been was that it happens a lot. Hyuga doubling as a pilot, for example. Can I claim to know exactly what was going on in Anno's mind in the decade before I was born? Clearly not. Is it interesting and thought provoking to think about? Absolutely.

Thank you for taking the time to read this crap.

[skizabaa]

"It's a lovely night in Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizza-Plex, and you are a horrible goose."

One of the most unique, silly and joyful fics ive read, it's been an instant favorite! Fanart of the lovely Untitled Goose Fic by the wonderful @eyndr-stories!

[mitathemita]

the shining sun!! ☀️

[clownmcgown]

"If you get rid of 1 of us, where do you think that virus will go?"

I wrote this in Wingdings because I can almost fluently write in them and I need people to know <3

[bamsara]

concept/possible maybe/maybe not doots for a scene much later in SL

bonus memery from stream:

[nighternex]

Something lurks in the dark...

This was originally just supposed to be lethal company art until my funky little brain told me the bracken would look pretty if it had leaves/ferns on its head.

Then mid-way through sketching another bit of my brain whispered that it looked kinda like Sun from fnaf don't he?

Well one thing spiraled into another and now the hoarder bug is a mini-music man and the bracken is the daycare attendant. 👍

Good night everyone.

[kamuucab]

If you blow a kiss at Sun he’s gonna grab it, press a hand to his chest and gasp like he’s touched by the gesture, then throw it over his shoulder and walk away.

If you blow a kiss at Moon they’re gonna grab it, pause for a second, and then pretend to ravenously eat it (chewing sounds included).

[purplecatghostposts]

Might I offer a Sleeping Beauty Wyllstarion AU?

Having lots of fun with this one, enjoy Swarmkeeper Ranger Wyll and Astarion meeting!!

[starry-blue-echoes]

So guess who wrote a silly little snippet for the Star Swap AU >:3

I started this with the intention of writing the “Joseph Runs On Water” aspect of the au but then I began writing the rest of the boat scene and the next thing I knew it was over 2k words long and I hadn’t even encountered Zucchero so there might be a Part 2 to this later on rjvbjdfbe

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

Abbaccio felt like he was going to punch something.

He hated being backed into corners like this. Especially when he didn’t know what they were up against.

However, he hadn’t been expecting to be literally backed into a corner….. in a certain sense. Sure there weren’t any walls, but he, Bucciarati and Jojo were more or less trapped. They had no idea where the enemy was, if there were multiple, or where the hell the rest of the team was.

Jojo seemed to share his frustration, if the uncharacteristic glare on his face and the way he kept constantly shifting his weight was any indicator.

And of course, Bucciarati’s words were far from comforting.

“You think Narancia and the others are dead?” Abbaccio found himself questioning aloud. That was…. surprisingly bleak for Bucciarati. Sure the man wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, but usually he tried to stay on the brighter side of things.

“I didn’t say that.” Bucciarati side eyed him, but Abbaccio could see his calm mask begin to crack a bit around the edges. “But this is 10 billion we’re talking about.”

It wasn’t a pretty possibility, but it was still possible. They had no idea who they were up against, and Abbaccio could name several members of Passione who wouldn’t mind getting their hands dirty with the blood of fellow members, and that was before throwing in the monetary incentive.

But still, this was half their team getting taken out in a single fell swoop, and it would’ve been over half had Jojo not joined them today. Abbaccio wanted to hope it wasn’t permanent but-

“They’re alive.” Jojo suddenly spoke up. “I don’t know where they are, but if our attacker was able to make them disappear like this, it’s most likely they’re still alive.”

Abbaccio looked at him with a small glare. “And how are you so sure about that?”

“Bucciarati, you care about your team, right?”

……what?

“Of course I do.” Bucciarati answered without hesitation, his voice firm and leaving absolutely no room for argument.

That wasn’t any surprise. It was no secret that the man was fiercely protective of the team, and any who doubted that very quickly(and sometimes very violently) learned otherwise. It was part of the reason why the kids loved him so much. Their care for him was reciprocated.

“You’re well known too. Important. Probably very skilled. Enough that a capo trusted you to hide his treasure. If our attacker is part of Passione, they probably know all about that.” Joseph continued. “So, they also probably know how protective you are. They know the best way to get you to crack isn’t to torture you, but to torture them. They’re going to take advantage of that weak spot in order to get the money.”

“Now, I’m not saying caring about them makes you weak. Trust me, I’m very familiar with how much wanting to protect what’s yours can give you an edge in a fight,” the boy continued with a shrug, somehow noticing Bucciarati’s sharpened gaze despite not even looking at the man. “If I had to guess, that’s why the attacker has only hidden them instead of…. I don’t know, flaunting their bodies or giving us dismembered limbs or something. Of course, all of this is assuming our attacker isn’t an absolute moron and got rid of his only leverage. He wouldn't be able to take us all in a fight, that much is obvious.”

And Abbaccio stared.

That…..

That was smart.

That was actually really fucking smart.

He’d assumed that Jojo was an idiot. The kid definitely made it seem like he was, with all his jokes and personality and how he wouldn’t shut the fuck up but-

Not only had he given good reasons that the team would still be alive, but because of the way he phrased it it was basically daring their attacker to do otherwise. He’d practically given their enemy the perfect plan on a silver platter, because as much Abbaccio doubted Bucciarati would crack, he did have to admit if he did it would most likely be because the kids were in danger but-

But Jojo bought them time and said it all with the kind of calm objectiveness that one might say the sky was blue.

…..

Abbaccio felt his gaze narrowing.

The newbie was much more dangerous than he’d first judged. He’d thought Jojo was just another 15 year old stray Bucciarati dragged in who was way in over his head but now….

Now he wasn’t sure.

Could his personality be fake? A mask? Something to get them to lower their guard and deem him a non-threat? Was it the work of a Stand, or was it all natural skill? And speaking of which, Abbaccio hadn’t heard so much as a whisper about the kid's Stand. Bucciarati had mentioned something about golden lighting and a brief flash of purple vines, but for him to only get that much even after personally fighting the kid? A fight in which the kid had beaten him???

Abbaccio wouldn’t say it scared him. He refused to be afraid of a fucking 15 year old who was only a bit taller than his shoulders and barely had an ounce of muscle on him. 

However, it definitely put him on edge.

“We still need to be cautious.” Bucciarati spoke up, being the first to snap out of the shocked stupor. He slowly crouched down to the kid’s level. “We have no idea what kind of ability our opponent has, or where they are.”

Jojo nodded. “Right. By my guess the attacker is somewhere near the cabin. Fugo went missing when he looked inside, and before that Mista jumped to the other side of it and disappeared when he was out of our line of sight. Narancia was sitting by the cabin behind everyone else, and he went missing when our backs were turned.”

Jojo hummed, slightly squinting. “You said that ‘Stands’ could have almost any ability right?”

Abbaccio raised a brow, but wasn’t too surprised. It only made sense after all. Stand Users were never able to stay apart for long, only in a handful of rare cases, so if the kid had gone his whole life without meeting any that leaned more toward the idea of him obtaining his Stand rather recently.

“Within reason, yes.” He answered, side eyeing the kid.

As….. unsettling as it was, he kinda wanted to see where the kid would go with this.

Somewhere reluctantly, he crouched down too.

“So that means there are two possibilities.” Jojo held up his fingers. “One, this Stand can only be active when no one is looking, or two, it’s not very good at drawn out fights and this guy wouldn’t be able to use it in a proper one on one fight.”

“In both cases, learning what their stand is and what it does would be immensely useful.” Bucciarati nodded with a hum, his eyes sliding over to…… Abbaccio.

Oh.

Oh no.

“With your Stand, Abbaccio,” The man began, clearly noticing the beginning of his glare and leaning over to him until his mouth was right by his ear. “You could defeat the enemy.”

“He can?” Jojo looked at him with wide blue-green eyes, and despite the innocence of the gaze Abbaccio could practically feel it picking him apart.

Nope.

No, definitely not, not happening. He was not revealing his ability to this kid, especially after the analysis he’d just witnessed.

“Who knows.” he responded, pointedly avoiding eye contact.

He heard a small growl from Bucciarati. “Abbaccio. Now is not the time.”

“This is putting my safety at risk too.” He slightly turned his head. “I’m not just about to show my abilities to a newbie I can’t trust. I don’t know why you believe in him so easily, but I won’t.”

Not yet at least. Maybe in a few weeks, maybe a few months he could bring himself to put some trust in the kid. But right now? Not on his life.

It was practically the second rule of Stand Users. Don’t give away your abilities to others you don’t trust.

“We need to figure out the enemy’s ability.” Bucciarati hissed. “Otherwise we’re all as good as dead.”

“That’s what I’m saying.” he cut him off. “How do we know he isn’t working with the enemy? Don’t you think it’s strange that we got a new member the very same day Polpo died?”

Jojo looked at him with a childish pout and glare. “I think you’re being paranoid.”

“And I think you’re a suspicious brat who won’t even tell us his real name!”

And for the briefest of moments Abbaccio could’ve sworn he saw him flinch with an emotion he couldn’t place flickering behind his eyes.

Oh? So he was hiding something then….

But before he could press, it was gone without a trace. The boy scoffed with a roll of his eyes. “It’s not like I could see your Stand anyways, so I really don’t get why you’re getting so worried, old man.”

“I am NOT-”

……

Wait, what was that first part?

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he demanded.

“Well you’ve got white hair and-”

Abbaccio was going to strangle him.

“Not that.” he growled. “What do you mean you wouldn’t be able to see my Stand?”

“Ohhhhh.” Jojo drawled at him, eyes widening with realization. “I thought Bucciarati would’ve told you. Guess it never came up then.”

Now it was Bucciarati’s turn to look confused. His brow furrowed and he gave Jojo a questioning glance. “Tell him what?”

“That I don’t have a Stand?”

…………..

He….

He didn’t what?

“What do you mean you don’t have a Stand!?!” Bucciarati whisper shouted.

“You mean you didn’t know either???” Jojo exclaimed. “I thought it was so obvious! Did you not notice how I clearly couldn’t see your Stand when we were fighting!?!”

“I thought you were just inexperienced!” Bucciarati shot back. “And if you don’t have a Stand then what about the gold lightning! Or the purple vines!?!”

“Or how you predicted what we could say back at the restaurant?” Abbaccio added.

Jojo raised a brow. “I have…. no idea what ‘purple vines’ you’re talking about, but the golden sparks are something completely different. As for the predicting thing…. I just notice things? It’s not that hard, you just have to know what to look for. I’ve always been able to and it’s definitely not a Stand ability.”

“What do you mean it’s something-” Bucciarati suddenly cut himself off, closing his eyes while taking a very deep breath. 

And when he opened them, a blank, slightly smiling mask slid into place.

“Jojo.” he began and oh fuck that was his ‘I Am At My Limit And And Ready To Kill Someone But I Need To Be The Responsible One Here’ voice, reserved for only the biggest of fuck ups.

Yep, the kid was dead.

Can’t say Abbaccio was going to mourn him.

It seemed that the kid had at least some self preservation in him because the second he heard his name said in that tone he snapped to attention. In an instant his back straightened, his shoulders went back and he was giving Bucciarati his complete and undivided attention.

“Jojo, I’m going to test something.” Bucciarati continued. If he was surprised by Jojo’s reaction he didn’t let it show.

Jojo simply nodded.

Behind the boy Sticky Finger faded into existence. It was very close, but Abbaccio could tell Bucciarati was taking great care to avoid touching him. Slowly, the Stand’s hand lowered in front of Jojo’s eyes, practically a hair’s breadth away from touching.

Jojo didn’t react to it at all.

Bucciarati held up both hands, three fingers on one and five on the other.

“Can you tell me how many fingers I’m holding up?” the man asked.

“Uhhhhh eight?” the boy answered easily.

……Abbaccio wasn’t sure if this made Jojo less dangerous or much more. On one hand the kid wouldn’t be able to see Stands at all(which long term could become a problem but that was something for later), but on the other that opened the possibility that (depending on what exactly this ‘golden lightning’ thing was) every single thing the kid had done was entirely natural skill.

Bucciarati took another deep breath and Sticky Finger disappeared in an instant.

“We are going to be talking about this extensively when we get out of this, but for now-” he pointedly looked at Abbaccio. “We are going to figure a way out of this and so help me god if you two start arguing then our attacker is going to be the least of your worries.”

……damnit.

A small mischievous grin tugged at Jojo’s face. “So where do we start?”

[stonebricks-mcytstuff]

Prologue (Iron Lady AU)

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False..remembers. 

She remembers an area full of snow, only white to be seen. She feels the chill burning her fingertips and her lungs burn as the ache in her bones worsen with every block she places, just to finish— 

She remembers.. eggs. Dozens upon dozens of decorative eggs, all painted as silly caricatures of its owner. The joy she felt when one similar to herself is placed on— 

She..remembers.. a village? Houses, all varying in shapes and sizes, placed along a riverbank with no rhyme or reason to matching aesthetics. The name of the river was—

She… remembers… stone, a shore full of faces that are blurred but familiar. Green. Red. Blue. A hint of a smile. Roaring laughter. 

Vaguely, she recalls a bird, the moments of flying free in the sky. A feeling of panic and guilt and loneliness as she is running away from home— why are you running from home— 

False wakes up and instantly winces. 

The shine from the sun is relentless, and the area that she had woken up in had no immediate shelter. Nothing to protect her from the sun, at least. 

Weird. False remembered going to sleep in a bed. 

Where the heck is she?

[balloonboyismyson]

What would be all the reactions to the sb animatronics if you booped them?

Freddy: Honk! Freddy looks surprised for a moment before chuckling at you, his eyes squinting as if he had a big grin. "I have heard if you manage to boop my nose 3 times in one visit, you get a free photo pass! U-Unfortunately, if you boop it the third time in my room, you do not get another pass. I am... truly sorry."

Roxy: Roxy looks up at you from her chair, completely unamused. She proceeds to sigh and roll her eyes. "I guess it's not every day you're standing this close to Roxanne Wolf," she moves her snout to lightly bonk the hand holding the makeup brush, "tic toc, I need to be on stage in 5."

Chica and Monty: BITES YOU BITES YOU BITES YOU

[shinji-brown]

Fight, Flight, Freeze

By @the-many-children-of-the-void

Humans have a set of innate, instinctive responses to danger, meant to protect us as animals. These are involuntary physiological changes that happen in the body and mind in response to a perceived threat. They kept us alive but they now serve another purpose: they can be trained responses to traumatic events and can alter how people act.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is a study of trauma and responses to it. No major member of the cast is unhurt. It is a show about pain and suffering. Hell, it says that much itself, in The End of Evangelion where Shinji explicitly says that life is meaningless without negative emotions. All three of the pilots have immense trauma and piloting the Evas only worsens it. That's all fairly obvious but, vitally, the pilots all have different responses to it, and that's what I'd like to talk about here.

First, though, let's spend a moment to define what the instinctive responses are. Fight or flight is a fairly commonly understood dichotomy, in which fight involves lashing out at a foe and flight consists of running away. Freeze is the third one and the one less discussed than the other two. It shuts down parts of the body and makes it really hard to move.

So, with that established, let's discuss why the pilots are emblematic of these responses and to do that, we'll start with Asuka Langley Soryu. Asuka's character, for the middle third of the show, confident and very much ready to defend her position as the best pilot. We see that that response is because she has a visceral need to be wanted, that her self-worth is fundamentally tied to how useful she can be to other people, and she is willing to fight for that.

Shinji is Asuka's antithesis in that. That's what makes them effective counterparts. His self-worth has been so thoroughly destroyed that instead of needing to be useful to others in the way that Asuka does, he just seeks to take up as little space as possible. He flees his feelings out of fear that they'll make him take up too much space in other people's hearts. He still needs to be liked, of course, but he achieves it by making himself small, rather than by making himself big, like Asuka does.

Rei is, as usual, the person with the least to say. She's freeze. She's numb. We barely see her react with any emotion at all and when we do, it's heavily muted. She's emotionally frozen.

So Asuka is representative of fight, Shinji is representative of flight and Rei is representative of freeze, but as these characters approach the end of the narrative, the stresses placed upon them by their jobs become too much for them to handle and they break down, and that's what I'd like to finish this discussion talking about.

It's first relevant to note that, by virtue of being pretty constantly numb, Rei's mental state doesn't deteriorate like the other two's do. That said, the difference between Asuka and Shinji, between fight and flight, is obvious. When she feels that she's slipping, Asuka lashes out to try to get back to a position where she's comfortable. She hurts the others and herself because she has to fight something. Her final breakdown comes from her fight failing and her having to come to terms with the fact that "fight" doesn't always work, something we don't really see resolved.

It's here that The End of Evangelion becomes relevant, because that serves as the end of Shinji's arc in a way that "Do you love me?" and "Take care of yourself" are considerably more obtuse about. There are two bits I want to talk about here. The first is when Shinji talks about how the world wouldn't change if he was gone. Of course, that's suicidal talk and, by that point in the story, of course he's suicidal, but it's that segment that cemented Shinji as "flight" for me, because nothing is more flight than that. Hell I've had that mindset in the past. But where Asuka never really matures past "fight," by choosing to remake the world, Shinji matures past "flight". He stops trying to run away from a world that he's afraid of and accepts that that fear is just a part of life.

Thank you for taking the time to read this crap.