#sharing a cupcake

[yacinthemorning]

Siren's Song

Summary: Tango and Jimmy have been pining after one another for years at this point. Tango's been acting on incomplete information, and Jimmy's siblings are tired of his silence.

Ships: Jimmy/Tango (Romantic), Grian & Jimmy & Lizzie & Pearl (Familial)

Warnings: Misunderstandings, awkward conversations

[AO3 Link]

“You should tell him.”

Jimmy hummed, not paying attention as he cracked an egg on the side of a sizzling pan. “Tell who? And what?”

“Tango.”

The whole kitchen operation ground to a halt. Even the bacon seemed to sizzle a bit quieter. Dreading it, Jimmy turned around to face his guest. Grian was slumped across the table, getting the pungent stench of sea brine locked in his sweater and long whiskers all over Jimmy’s nice tablecloth. At least he left his boots and rod by the door.

Within his hand was a golden feather. Quite literally. A gift forged just for Jimmy in the absence of Tango possessing his own wings. Given Jimmy knew for a fact he’d last placed it in his jewellery box, his brother was most certainly snooping through his things for it. Had Tango told him about it? Or was it Pearl betraying him?

Lizzie sat beside him, her teacup held still at her lips as her wide eyes darted between the two brothers. There was a look in her eyes when they landed on Jimmy, though. When were you going to tell me about this? Only Pearl’s chair sat empty still, her snores echoing down the corridor.

Taking a deep breath as to not shout or scream or anything else that might give him away, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Jimmy, you’ve been dancing around it for two years.”

“Yes, and?”

“Haven’t you thought of how to tell him at all?”

“Of course I have!” Jimmy snapped, throwing his hands in the air. “I’ve been trying, but it’s... Tango’s just so...” He turned on his heels, abandoning his work all together, and held up his comm for his siblings to see. “Look! Look at this!”

Both leaned in. It was a photo, one in a set sent from his beloved rancher from Hermitcraft of his new base. Tango was in the foreground, big goofy grin on his face as he held up a peace sign. In the background was the beginnings of the airship he’d recently launched above his factory. And at the centre of it all...

Lizzie gasped, turning into a squeal halfway through. “Oooh, Jimmyyy!”

“Tim...” Grian said, pity and schadenfreude in equal parts. Jimmy groaned.

It was a mess, but it was unmistakable. A nest, made of over-stuffed pillows and encompassed by a weave like a large basket. A nest, for when Jimmy came to visit. To make the avian feel comfortable...

“Mate, I’m absolutely screwed.” He lamented, shushing Grian before he could make a comment on his wording. “He’s out here making nests! For me!”

“Do you think he’s done his research?” Asked Lizzie, even while her shining gaze remained on the picture.

“Oh gosh, I hope not!” The only thing worse than Tango building him a nest would be Tango telling any of the hermit avians what he was doing. He slumped across the table. “What do I do...”

“Tell. Him.” Grian hissed, waving the golden feather in front of Jimmy. “Honestly, I don’t know why you haven’t yet. It’s like you just let every chance pass you by as far back as double life itself. Honestly, I know things are different in the games-”

“You have that right! I didn’t even know if I’d see him again!” Jimmy pointed out, even as his face heated. He needed to go jump in the sea.

And it was all so very true. When he awoke back on Empires he hadn’t known what to do with himself or his feelings. It’s not as if he and Tango had overlapping lives outside the games, and the games were never a guarantee to happen unless his brother thought of one. As far as they were concerned, they could have never crossed paths again, the feelings Jimmy stupidly let grow left adrift. He probably would have left it that way, too, if his brother hadn’t made that portal. But now it was two years later and they messaged almost every day, and Tango was doing all sorts of silly things he’d only half-heard second-hand about avians, and like a coward Jimmy still hadn’t told him...

“Just come back with me for a visit and talk to him.” Grian said, handing over the feather.

Easier said than done.

But he could tell looking at his siblings they wouldn’t take no for an answer. Jimmy had a sinking suspicion, with where Pearl and Grian lived this season, Tango might find out on accident even if Jimmy didn’t tell him himself. Nothing could be worse than Grian telling him. “Alright.” He muttered, every appendage drooping.

“Excellent, we’ll leave tomorrow.”

“What’s this? Is Jimothy coming with us?” Croaked Pearl, stumbling into the kitchen. There was already mischief in her eyes.

Jimmy turned to Lizzie with the biggest, most pleading eyes he could muster. She only smiled and waved, “Go get em, tiger!”

He was doomed.

Jimmy stumbled out into Hermitcraft on a well-kept lawn, and yelped as the cold air hit him. “Wait, wait! My glamour!”

“Come on, Tim. Fix it later, Tango’s waiting!”

His siblings giggled as they ran off, leaving Jimmy to deal with himself. With a grumble he turned to his comm. Mods were not something Jimmy was good with navigating, and despite how they played Hermitcraft had so very many. The last time he was on the server he’d been glamoured for the charity event they’d put on, and never changed before he left.

Enraptured by the settings, he’d only just navigated to the right tab when hot breath brushed his ear, “Hey there, cowboy!”

Jimmy shrieked, accidentally slamming down on his comm. In a puff enormous wings erupted from his back and flared out, only slightly hindered as they slammed into something- someone- else. Tango let out a cry, followed by a hard thunk.

Jimmy spun around, eyes wide and feathers puffed. “Oh my gosh, you scared the life out of me! Are you okay?”

Splayed out on the ground, face contorted in pain but held up a shaky thumbs-up. “I probably deserved that.” He wheezed. Jimmy leaned down and heaved the poor blazeborn back up onto his feet. Both winced as his back cracked. “Ugh, you been working those out?”

“They’re wings, Tango, they can lift me into the sky.” He teased back while he brushed the dust off Tango. That sunshine grin was already back on Tango’s face, making it hard not to melt. Instead, Jimmy booped his nose, getting a whine, before pulling him into a hug. “Hey, my rancher.”

A rumble rippled through Tango into Jimmy as his clawed hands wrapped around Jimmy’s torso. “So, what do we owe the pleasure of your visit, songbird?”

“I came to see you, actually.” Murmured Jimmy through a wince. Now began the hard part.

Tango cooed, tail wrapping around Jimmy’s ankle. “Aw, little old me? Miss my losing personality and uncharming bad looks?”

“Stop that!” He huffed, reaching up to mess with Tango’s warm, fiery locks. The playfulness slowly died, though. It was happening today, he promised. “I, um, actually...”

“Hm?” Tango leaned back to look at him.

“There’s... There was something I wanted to talk to you about. Something important. And also something I wanted to give to you.”

Lips pursed for a moment, before Tango seemed to catch on. “Oh! Uh, yeah, yeah. Here, c’mon, I got just the place we can talk!”

Like that he took off on his elytra, Jimmy following only a bit behind. The server had changed so much since he was last here, it felt like he’d never been on to begin with. There were certain builds he recognized, however. As soon as Tango’s airship came into view Jimmy figured exactly where they were going. He only hoped the wind cooled his face before they landed.

Just as suspected, Tango stumbled onto the ship deck and gestured for his rancher to follow him down into its belly. At the very back, in its own little special room, was the nest. It was even bigger in person, and Tango had clearly tried to work on it a bit more since he sent Jimmy that picture. There were now even flowers and trinkets woven in, and at some point Tango had thrown a familiar red sweater and less familiar orange blanket into it all.

“I, um, I heard from False that you’re supposed to use stuff from family and such to help make it, and I didn’t really wanna be presumptuous about anyone so I only got something from Grian and Pearl. I don’t... I don’t really know much about other origins, so...” Tango rambled, rubbing the back of his neck and looking anywhere but Jimmy. He seemed to debate, pacing towards and away once more from the nest, unsure if he should make himself comfortable. So, he had spoken to avians. Knew exactly what he was doing.

Jimmy let out a sigh and smiled. He reached out, snatching Tango’s wrist as he walked by once more, stopping him only for a second before pulling him over to sit in the nest. A funny little squeak left the blazeborn, his flames jumping about. “Tango, can I give you something I made?” He nearly whispered, trying to stamp out his nerves to hold Tango’s hands between his own.

The blazeborn nodded with another noise. Jimmy reached into his inventory. With a final deep breath he held it up. Tango sucked in a breath. His hands held out for the little necklace of small, multicoloured pearls and sea glass to fall into it. The centrepiece, carved out of driftwood and prismarine crystals, dangled off the side, fracturing the light emitting from Tango’s tail into a kaleidoscope across the blazeborn’s lap. It was Jimmy’s best work, if he could brag just a bit. Tango deserved far better, but it was Jimmy’s best.

“Bu- Blazeborn forge gifts, right?” He tried to explain, fiddling with the golden feather around his own neck. “For the people they care about. I wanted to make you something, too. I don’t know if there’s any rules of anything, I hope this is okay-”

“It’s amazing, Jim.” Tango breathed out. “You’re amazing.”

Jimmy’s face burned.

There was a silence, in which Tango carefully hooked the necklace around his neck, and stared in awe at it. Jimmy’s heart pounded in his chest at the sight. He never thought someone might look at something he made like that. Temptation pulled Jimmy forward ever so slowly, until Tango also looked up. They stayed there, faces inches apart soft breath ghosting one another’s skin.

Then Tango’s eyes, for only the smallest moment, darted. Nervous, perhaps, but it was curiosity that flitted through his gaze as it went over Jimmy’s shoulder. Towards...

The nest’s weave brushed roughly against Jimmy’s leg.

Jimmy’s swallowed hard, and licked his lips. “Tango, I have something to tell you.” He said, nearly croaked. Tango hummed, leaning in ever closer with half-lidded eyes. Jimmy took a deep breath.

“I’m... I’m not an avian.”

For a moment, nothing happened. And for a second moment, and a third. Until the cogs in Tango’s mind visible began spinning once more, and his first words were, “What?”

Both backed away, out of shock, out of shame. Jimmy stuttered, “I’m not an avian, I wasn’t born...” He lost his words, letting out a small, helpless whine as he gestured vaguely towards the nest. “This isn’t... how I do things...”

Tango’s gaze darted about with his mind, expression twisting between bewilderment and growing embarrassment. “When we were in double life-”

“It’s part of my curse.” He ran a hand through his hair, his wings beating behind him. “It turns me into this when we play the games. I wasn’t one before, or even during third life. I just use it sometimes as a glamour cause that’s how some people know me...”

“But Grian- your siblings-”

“They aren’t either. Grian made an avian glamour cause he liked flying so much. And Pearl and Lizzie just like dressing up for the games. When they joined they thought it’d be cute to match. I don’t think moth and butterfly hybrids are even avians, technically. They all- us all like using origin glamours a lot, I guess. We’ve all been quite a few things for various servers.”

Tango went quiet, and Jimmy whimpered. Guilt began to gnaw at his innards. A hand flicked up towards the nest, “So, all this is...” Jimmy just shook his head. A noise like a deflating balloon escaped the blazeborn, and Jimmy couldn’t take it anymore. He looked away.

“Tango, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to lie, I promise. It’s just... It didn’t seem so important back then. I didn’t think we’d ever speak outside the games so it didn’t even cross my mind to explain. Until you gave me that feather I’d not thought about it at all, I’m really sorry. You put so much-”

“What are you, then?”

It wasn’t unkind, his tone, but Jimmy’s fists curled into the cloth of his pants as if being scolded nevertheless. With a brush against his comm the glamour dissipated. Wings washed away into mush smaller and frailer fins, muddy brown tail stretching out across the blankets. His gills stuttered for a moment, expecting water to wash through them and only receiving air. Jimmy shifted uncomfortably, feeling himself drying out from the stress of it all. It shouldn’t feel like such a big deal to show his real face, should it?

But there was that little nagging tug in the back of his mind. A traitorous set of thoughts with no foundation for any of them, he knew, but they dug their way in anyways. What if Tango only liked his wings? What if a blazeborn couldn’t find anything to care for in a merman? What if he thought Jimmy deliberately deceived him? What if he lost his trust forever, or though Jimmy never trusted him to begin with?

It was all interrupted by a sudden shriek. Tango flung one arm out, the other against his forehead, eyes wide. “That’s why they’re all fishy fisherman! Oh my god!” He turned to Jimmy, as if he’d just solved the meaning of the universe. “I can’t believe I missed that! That’s why they’re so good at it...”

“Um, I guess so?” Jimmy stammered, entire body too tense to do anything else.

Revelations settling in, Tango finally seemed to take note of his rancher’s tension, and quieted. “Sorry... Just... I’m kinda stupid.”

“You’re not!” Jimmy snapped, grabbing hold of Tango’s hand before it could start digging into his skin. “You’re the smartest guy I know.”

Tango laughed, though why Jimmy didn’t know. His non-existent self-esteem was no laughing matter! There were few things Jimmy loathed more than the lies Tango told himself. But Tango’s expression then turned soft, and Jimmy was reminded this wasn’t about Tango. “Yeah?” He teased as his hands reached out. They cupped Jimmy’s face, pulling it in towards Tango’s own. “Well, you’re the funniest guy I know. And the coolest, and hardest working, and the cutest-”

“Stop.” whined Jimmy, his face unable to get any redder. It didn’t halt him in the slightest, only eliciting a gleeful chuckle.

“And the sweetest.”

He was going to die, his heart was going to burst right out of his chest and kill him. That’s all Jimmy could think in that moment, staring into Tango’s eye, filled to bursting with warmth and fondness. How did he wind up here, with someone looking at him like that? Before Jimmy could stop himself, he leaned forward. Their lips met for only moment, but so eagerly reciprocated. Not even fully separated yet, it slipped out, weak and longing, “I love you.”

Tango’s claws brushed back, combing through the hair behind Jimmy’s fins. “I love you too.” He whispered, as if it were a special secret he couldn’t stop himself from sharing. It’s what it felt like, to Jimmy’s poor heart. He was absolutely going to die right here, and he’d be just fine with that.

It took a while for the two to untangle. In the end, it was prompted by the small clack of prismarine against gold. Tango withdrew first, Jimmy following after him in a daze for a brief moment until he too awoke from their little dreamland. He held up the necklace, claws brushing over the pearls. “So... Is this what merman do? For, uh, for courting?”

Jimmy shook his head. “Oh, no, not usually. I just thought, you know. You’re a blazeborn and all... Unless you’re also not telling me the truth.”

“Born and raised.” He chirped, tail flicking for emphasis. Jimmy laughed.

“I suppose some people trade curiosities they find. It’s more about... spending time together? Doing things together, trying the same things, swimming beside one another, being close...”

“Well,” Tango drawled, wrapping an arm around the taller’s waist and pulling him close. “I can’t really do the swimmy swimmy thing, but I can most certainly get all up in your personal space if close is what you want.”

“You absolute menace!” Jimmy shrieked, though his grin never left. No, Jimmy was more than fine having Tango this close, and closer.

[ladyshinga]

"UM OP DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT THIS INNOCUOUS VIDEO/IMAGE/POST IS ACTUALLY FETISH CONTENT"

might not be true at all and might be puritan panic you bought into but ok

even if it IS true, ok?? and?? based

[cannibalbussyy]

i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass i need to eat his ass oh and btw also i need to eat his ass

[temeyes]

Slip-Up

[hyunpic]

hyunjin on bubble: here’s a gift!

[chocolateteapotsvis]

pat pat

Watercolor and pen with digital cleanup and color correction

[soosheeberry]

back at it again with cherry and painis

[venus-de-mil0-09]

Dear kind-hearted soul,

I write to you with a heart full of pain and hands that tremble with despair.

I am a father of five children in Gaza. We are starving — truly starving.

There is no food, no clean water, and no safety. My children cry themselves to sleep each night, their small bodies weak from hunger. I was injured during an airstrike and can no longer provide for them. Every day, I watch their strength fade, and I can do nothing but weep.

This is not a famine — this is forced starvation.

Aid is blocked. The world is silent. But I know that somewhere, someone like you still cares.

Please, I beg you if you can, donate.

Even a small amount can buy bread or clean water.

If you can’t donate, please share this message.

You may be our only hope.

Please Donate now:👇

🔗 Donation Link

Please Reblog My Post :👇

📌 Post Link

Unfortunately I can't donate as of right now but I need you guys to help as much as possible ❤️ 🙏 ♥️

[yinyangle]

i am so incredibly autistic about them you people have no idea

rambles and stuff under cut

anyways. so heres chat my beloved. brain decided twitch chat was most important character ever. now im stuck like this, with a little purple hivemind as a comfort. wonderful. i even have a roblox avatar of them it looks like this

isnt it awesome. it barely looks like them but it gets the point across. i love it. it makes me so happy. they make me so happy. for no reason. i love how my design of them has evolved over time.

have i ever shown them without robes to tumblr? they have black fur under the robes! entirely black! the white parts only go to their joints! isnt that so awesome? that part of the design is kind of a remnant from their old designs, where i still drew them with a hat. cuz they would hide the black fur and pretend it was all white. to match the mask of course. and of course now the dark fur is on display. because i decided fuck it i love drawing fluff they can be a little fluffy as a treat.

and also, if you look at older drawings, they used to have shoes. why get rid of them? 1. paws too big to fit in the shoes 2. i didnt want to draw shoes 3. i like drawing paws. fight me.

is this the most self indulgent ive ever been publically about them? maybe. but also this is my blog. and if you're as insane about rttopia as me youll take any art you can get, whether it appeals to your views or not. this is what 3 years of a special interest encompassing every single aspect of your life does to a mf. you get a chat design so far removed from the original mii its insane. and i wouldnt have it any other way. i love them like this, with all my headcanons stacked and piled so high the top cannot be seen with the naked eye. i hope in the future it gets even higher, with my designs getting more complex as more lore and love is poured into these characters, until eventually theyre unrecognizable. power of autism.

this ramble has gone on long enough and if you read it all im very thankful, have a lovely day !!! :D

[yacinthemorning]

A Lesson in Listening

Summary: Grian's brother is moving to town and staying with him while he house hunts. While introducing him to his friend, however, Jimmy and Tango seem to make quite a connection. Determined not to suffer through the pining, Grian and Impulse attempt to play matchmaker.

Ships: Grian & Impulse(Platonic), Jimmy/Tango (Romantic), ZITS (Platonic), Grian & Jimmy (Familial)

Warnings: mild acephobia, verbal fight, sibling bullying, misunderstandings, relationship meddling

If Grian was good at one thing, it was connecting people. Not to be a braggart, but he was a sociable sort who was good at reading people, made new friends with ease, and led the pecking order in his circles. It was his great talent, really. One of many.

“Humility not being among them, clearly.”

“Shush.” Grian hissed, whipping his head around to glare daggers into Impulse. The stout man returned it with his trademark innocent smile, as if Grian didn’t know what went on in the head behind it. “You’re distracting me.”

Impulse chuckled. “What’s there to distract from?”

“I’ll have you know mixing friend groups is a very delicate process!” Grian explained, holding his phone to show the opened notepad doc. “Inviting the wrong person could be the difference between success and disaster.”

“I think you’re overthinking things, G. Anyone who’d get along with you will probably get along with your brother.”

Therein lied the problem, though. Jimmy was nothing like Grian. Okay, well, nothing was a bit of a strong word. Jimmy was extroverted and sociable like Grian, and they both had a fondness for mischief and cats. And maybe Jimmy was the first person Grian always invited to karaoke night when he was in town, because no one else was quite as enthusiastic as they were. But other than that they were nothing alike! For one, unlike Grian, Jimmy was a massive loser.

“That’s a bit rude.”

Grian squawked. “Would you please stop reading my mind!”

“You should stop speaking your mind, then.” Impulse shrugged and returned to scrolling through his phone. Grian had assigned him the task of picking out the venue for the night out, being far more familiar with the town than Grian. He paused, “You might as well monologue, I know you want to.”

“I don’t monologue! I’m not Scar.” Another name was struck out on the list. Doc was angry at him right now, anyways. “I just want things to go well, can I not be excited that Tim is moving closer? I’ve barely got to see him more than once every other month for the past several years! By the way, we can’t-“

“Can’t eat red meat so make sure there’s other options, yeah, I know.” A large hand patted down on Grian’s head, ruffling his hair.

He pouted, falling back into the cushions of his couch. “I feel like you do not appreciate the skill needed to coordinate you people. It’s like herding cats, you know.”

“Why do you think we leave it to you?” Impulse leaned over Grian’s shoulder. “Who you got so far, anyways?”

“You, Scar, Gem, and Cleo. Mostly people he’s met before at least.”

A curious hum filled the air and Grian patiently waited for whatever idea was brewing in Impulse’s head. There were a few taps to his screen, then, “You think Tango can come?”

“Tango?” Grian’s eyebrow quirked up. “Isn’t he hauled up in his basement working on some game right now?” While most certainly a good friend, Tango was one Grian went almost just as long without seeing as his brother half a day’s drive away, despite being a street away. Once he had an idea he would dedicate himself to it until it was done.

Impulse sighed. “Yeah. Zed was able to get him outside for an hour last week, and he went on some business trip for a bit, but he also hasn’t eaten in like two days last I checked. It’d be good excuse to drag him out. He’s gonna forget what real people sound like outside his headphones if we don’t.”

“I honestly don’t know how he expects to survive if he moves out from you guys.”

“I already made him promise to give me a set of spare keys when he does.”

Grian tilted his head as he stared at his last message to the man in question. Something about a crazy idea for a remote-controlled cat toy he thought of. In all honesty it wasn’t the worst idea. Not the cat toy- Tango was a strong personality who left a big impression, but he was always polite. Certainly much more introverted than everyone else going, but not nearly as bad as Zed. At least, when he remembered to leave his basement. It couldn’t do them any harm. At the very worst he could sit in the corner and chatter with Impulse. “Yeah, sure, let’s invite him.” He said, already typing. 

Impulse gave a thumbs up. “Tell him we’re gonna go to that barbeque place he loves, that’ll get him.”

“I said-”

“They have plenty of chicken and even vegetarian options, I double checked. It’s right across from the bowling alley, too. And call him, don’t text, or he’ll never see it.”

It was a small miracle Tango agreed to go. It was a small miracle he answered his phone at all. The mention of barbeque worked, though. How much of the rest of the evening they could convince him to stick around for had yet to be seen, but Grian was hopeful he’d stay a little while at least.

Impulse could deal with Tango, though. Right now, Grian had his hands full with Jimmy. They were running ten minutes behind because his poor little brother couldn’t bear going a day without a bubble bath. “C’mon, Tim, get in the car!” He shouted from the window.

Jimmy stumbled in, nearly dropping his phone between the seats in the process. “I’m hurrying, I’m hurrying, I just had to send a text. I thought this was supposed to be fun?” He whined. The second his door was closed Grian began driving, not waiting for him to get his seatbelt in. He was so tall and lanky he’d just smash his head through the glass whether he had one on or not, anyways.

“It’s called punctuality, Timmy. Something the hosts should have!”

“Alright, I get it.” He slumped back into his seat, caving as he always did. It must be hard, having an older brother who was always right. Of course, it was much harder being said brother, as Grian could attest.

The car ride was quiet, only the radio filling the space while Grian worked to remember where he needed to go. Jimmy was the first to break the silence, “So, I’ve scheduled some tours for this week.”

Grian hummed. “Anything promising?”

“Actually yeah.” He chirped, pulling out his phone. Before he could shove it in Grian’s face he put his hand up. It’d only been a month since he rear-ended a Toyota, and he’ll be damned if he hit someone else. The last thing his friends needed was to reignite the jokes about him being too short to see over the dashboard. Jimmy made a whine but didn’t try again. “There’s a place not far out of town in the farmlands. It’s small and old, but it’s an actual house with over half an acre.”

“I dunno why you care so much about land. A condo downtown is way better.”

“It’s nice, isn’t it? I could have a garden.”

“I guess.” The obnoxiously large sign for the barbeque glared high above the trees and buildings around it just up ahead. “Oh, we’re already here. Should be mostly people you met before, by the way.”

“That’s fine.”

Pulling into the parking lot, Grian could already see Impulse’s minivan and Cleo’s beat up old car. He clicked his tongue as he pulled up next to them. “See! I told you we were late, everyone’s already here.”

“Oh, come off it, they probably just got here, it’s fine.”

It was not fine, the host should always be first, but he wouldn’t expect Jimmy to understand. The two squabbled all the way inside, only stopping to tell the waiter their booking. A nice large table on the patio already had most of Grian’s friends sitting around, still having yet to be served even drinks. Everyone but Tango despite his phone, unmistakable with its Guy Fieri case, on the table. Bathroom, maybe? He was always terrible about going before he left. Scar was the first to spot them. “G! Timmy! You’re here!”

“That we are.” Grian mumbled and turned to Impulse. “Where’s-”

“Hey, Grian, just in time!” The scratchy voice of Tango shouted too-loudly behind them. He saw Jimmy jump, and both brothers swivelled on their heels. Tango jolted back a bit, friendly wave shrinking to his side at the reaction. His eyes grew wide, locking with Jimmy’s which mirrored him like two deer caught in headlights. “Oh!” He squeaked unintentionally.

It jogged Jimmy out of his fright enough to look away, though Grian took suspicious note of the redness of his ears. He gave his baby brother a raised eyebrow, but he didn’t seem to see it.

“Right, well, Tango, Cleo, this is my brother, Ti-”

“It’s Jimmy.” Jimmy jumped in at lightning speed, holding his hand out for Tango to shake with a wide smile. “The name’s Jimmy.” Tango hesitated for a second, before tentatively shaking back with an equally tentative smile.

“Tango, of the Tek variety. Nice to finally meet you.”

“I thought you said your brother was Tim?” Cleo asked.

Impulse scratched at his bread. “Honestly, I thought it was.”

“It’s not, my name’s Jimmy. Don’t trust anything this man says, he’s a menace.” Jimmy huffed, which got far too enthusiastic an agreement from nearly the whole table for Grian’s liking. Behind him, Tango snuck around back to the table. In a baffling move, as far as Grian was concerned, he paused at the empty chair across from his own and pulled it out. He nodded towards Jimmy, who muttered a sheepish thanks. Grian narrowed his eyes at the engineer, but he seemed to be pointedly not looking at him. A shared look from Impulse, though, let him know he wasn’t the only one who took notice.

“Well, then, Jimmy, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Cleo reached over the table, offering their hand.

Chatter very quickly picked itself up once they were all sat down. Most was directed towards Jimmy, asking what he did and the places he was looking at and how on earth did he get his hair that perfect. It was a bit awkward with him sitting at the end. Given the middle seat where Grian now sat was also empty, he suspected Tango’s little gentleman’s stunt had messed up the seating arrangement Impulse intentionally left. 

It wasn’t the last. When their drinks came Tango had ordered some crazy bright red fruity slushy monstrosity like he was on vacation or something. For him it might as well be. Something that brightly coloured, with a fruit skewer at that, was basically tempting the gods as far as Jimmy was concerned, who looked more dazzled by it than the already bright blue drink he ordered. Only a sip had been taken before Tango was nudging it towards him, asking, “Wanna try?” Which he wholeheartedly accepted.

Honestly, between that and the conversation somehow always managing to close into a back and forth between the pair, Grian wanted to gag. Did his brother have absolutely no shame? Or maybe Grian was just bitter he had to order something lighter as their driver. It was at least funny to watch Scar also ask for a sip and be completely ignored.

A large platter was ordered over individual meals. It was just easier, when everyone wanted to try this and that. Astonishingly, it was probably the first time Grian had witnessed Tango eat a vegetable, when he tried one of the skewers the brothers ordered on the side. That was the power of good barbeque, he supposed.

They finally called it after Gem won the third round of bowling in a row. Grian tapped against the open door of his car, glaring holes in the back of his brother’s head, who was too busy saying goodbye to Tango to notice. “Come ooon Tim!” He finally shouted after the third obnoxious little giggle they shared. When he turned, Grian narrowed his eyes. You ain’t subtle. The pair finally said goodbye for real, and Jimmy ran to get in the car before Grian decided to drive off without him. He’d barely gotten his seatbelt on before he was furiously typing something on his phone. Really?

“So, how was it?” Grian asked.

“It was fun, your friends seem cool.” Was the distracted response.

“Mhm…” He leaned closer over his shoulder. “And how was Tango?”

If it was possible to jump out of one’s skin then Jimmy had jumped out of his skin, muscles, and bones. “Huh?” He squeaked, face red and eyes bugged. Grian only returned it with an unimpressed eye roll.

“Oh please. You nearly dropped a bowling ball on your foot while swooning.”

“Well… He’s a cool guy, isn’t he?”

And that shut Grian up. More efficiently than he would like to admit. He expected Jimmy to deny it, or be too flustered to say much of anything. When Grian failed to reply Jimmy went back to his phone, tapping away with a smile. There was that obnoxious giggle again.

This was not one of the issues Grian anticipated having when his brother told him he was moving. 

“So, how do we set them up?”

Impulse Hummed, spending far too long reading the contents of a can of cream of mushroom like it wasn’t the same can he always bought. “Who?”

“ Who? ” Grian mocked back. “Tim and Tango!”

“Do we need to?” Three more cans joined the first, before they moved on to the broths. Grian threw the bouillon in the cart before his companion could grab a carton that would languish in the back of his fridge. “They seem to be doing fine on their own.”

“No, trust me. I know Tim. He was literally living with his last boyfriend before he realized they were dating and that he liked him. He’s an idiot.”

“And Tango hasn’t exactly been leaving the basement much lately.” Impulse conceded, grabbing a carton of pho broth anyways. Acceptable, Grian supposed.

“So, then, any ideas?”

They paused before entering the next aisle. The larger man’s face twisted in thought. “Well, we could invite him to D&D, run a oneshot, and have their characters drink a love potion until they get the hint.”

“That sounds like a terrible idea, absolutely not.” He wrote it down in his phone for a future session.

“Another dinner?”

“What are the odds of getting Tango out of the house twice?”

“Probably a lot higher than you’d think with how they were acting.”

“What if I gave Timmy a tour of your house and just locked the basement door behind him?”

“You know I’m starting to think we might be bad at this and should leave it to someone else.”

“Nonsense!” Grian grabbed the first bottle of soya sauce he spotted, much to Impulse’s protests. He wasn’t going to sit and wait for him to match the prices to the ounces. “Look, I know Timmy best, and you know Tango best. Logically, there’s no better pair of heads to crack together for this. They’ll thank us at the wedding.”

A jar of pickled bamboo shoots found its way into the cart beside the biggest bag of basmati rice Impulse could pick up. He had to catch his breath before he continued. “Listen, Grian, do you need to… talk, or something?”

“What?” Grian’s head whipped around from the wall of spices he was mulling over. “About what?”

Impulse hunched his shoulders up, cringing slightly. “I dunno, y’know… You’re planning your brother’s wedding to your friend while picking out my groceries for me. I’m not even sure how you found out I was grocery shopping or found me in the store. I don’t think that’s normal, healthy person behaviour.” 

“I am so completely normal and healthy!” He said just a bit too loud.

“You know you can talk to me if you need to.”

This was getting nowhere real fast. “Are you going to help me or not?”

Impulse sighed. “I’ll help.”

“Good. Then, what’s the plan?”

In the end, the plan was little more than ‘wait and see’ with a side sprinkling of putting the pair in as much direct contact as possible. This turned out to be much more work than they anticipated, however. Jimmy had always been a socialite, but he seemed to be gone every other day viewing houses or visiting locations. Meanwhile, Tango did as he does and made himself busy constantly. Every group activity Grian planned was lucky to get even one of them, and he was about to lose his damn mind.

Their big break finally showed itself one evening, when Jimmy dropped in with Grian. Well, it was more like Grian promised to drive him to do some errands and made a left turn away from the mall and directly to the ZITS house instead. A decision Jimmy was not familiar enough with the town yet to notice until it was too late. Just the sound of Jimmy’s voice managed to draw Tango upstairs to see what was going on in his kitchen, where the rest of them were chatting.

Immediately the annoying little giggles started up again. If there was one thing in this world that could make Grian try to keep them apart, it was that giggle.

“By the way, Jimmy,” Skizz piped up from where he leaned against the sink. “You still need a lift tomorrow?”

When had Jimmy found time to befriend Skizz? Who knows. Knowing the two of them they probably bumped into each other on the street and kept talking till the sun went down. Extroverts were so exhausting. (He ignored the little Impulse-ish voice nagging that Grian was also something of an extrovert.)

“Yeah, sorry, I appreciate it.”

“Where you going?” Impulse asked.

“Got another house tour.” Tango of all people replied. Maybe that wasn’t all that surprising, though, given the amount Grian has spotted Jimmy texting the past few days.

“Is that so? Will you be going with them?” Grian teased, but instead got a toothy grin back.

“Yessiree!”

Really? Inviting your crush house hunting? Was that forward or just weird? Either way, it was an opportunity. “You know, Tim, you haven’t invited me to go with you.” He whined, putting on his best puppy dog eyes. 

Unfortunately, while Jimmy’s talents were sparse, this was one area where he outranked Grian by a factor of magnitudes and had unlocked absolute immunity, or something. “Yeah. That was on purpose.” He said bluntly, not even looking away from Tango, who laughed. In fact, everyone laughed. Even Impulse, the traitor.

Grian wouldn’t give up so easily, however. “Well I think you should. So where is it?”

“What? You’ll just embarrass me, I’m not telling you!” He squeaked, finally looking at his kind, sweet, dear older brother.

“Yes, you are!”

“No, I’m not!”

And that was how Jimmy ended up in a headlock on ZITS’s kitchen floor, Impulse reluctantly using Jimmy’s phone to text Grian the address on his calendar. Tango, simp that he was, managed to distract Grian by jokingly calling Jimmy honey, forcing Grian to let go in order to pretend to hurl, during which time Jimmy made his escape back to the car. 

He won though, and the next day when Jimmy pulled up with Skizz and Tango to the house tour, Grian and Impulse were already waiting there with the realtor.

“I can’t believe you.” Jimmy dragged his hands down his face. “Don’t you have to, I don’t know, work?”

“Jokes on you, I’m my own boss.” Grian puffed up his chest.

Tango patted Jimmy on the back and turned the both of them towards the poor, confused realtor. “Let’s just get this over with.” He soothed, to which Jimmy gave him a saccharine smile.

The property was ridiculously nice. It wasn’t especially big, but it was lined by woodlands and already had a garden, albeit in need of some severe TLC. There was even an old chicken coop to the side of the house that only needed new fencing and cleaning. The house itself was a one-story cutesy cottage-like thing. It was older, but whomever had lived in it last had the wiring redone and appliances replaced. The bedroom was big, too, as they tended to be in these older houses, and the bathroom had a proper large tub. There was a spare office room with a nice big window to the garden. The garage was separate, and large enough to be a workshop. All that while being well within the range of good internet and still close enough one could walk to town if they really wanted to. 

It was, essentially, Jimmy’s dream home. The only issue Jimmy seemed to have was the fact that the wall between the living room and kitchen had been knocked out for a more modern open concept design with the largest windows in the house.

“It’d probably be a pain to heat in winter, right?” He asked no one in particular. 

Grian knew jack all about houses, and only shrugged. It still wasn’t that big, so he imagined not. Impulse and Skizz seemed to mull the idea over a little longer. Tango, though, saw an opportunity, and Grian had to give him credit because the man took it without hesitation. His arm was around Jimmy’s shoulder, toothy grin leaned in a bit too close. “Well, that sounds like a good excuse to cuddle up in bed all winter, hm?”

Jimmy’s cheeks turned pink. He muttered something under his breath that made Tango chuckle. Grian rolled his eyes towards Impulse, who seemed almost too shocked by his friend’s forwardness to notice.

More questions were asked, things Grian was glad he never had to worry about as a condo guy. Owning a home seemed like so much work, but Jimmy had lists upon lists. Of course, it was Jimmy, and even with lists he forgot certain things. But Tango seemed ready to pick up the slack with his own barrage of inquiries. 

“I think,” Jimmy said, looking at the kitchen with a bit of awe. “I think this might be it, guys.”

“Yeah?” Tango’s eyes practically sparkled with excitement. Jimmy nodded.

The realtor stepped up. “There aren’t any other serious inquiries at the moment, I think you have a good chance if you put in the asking price.” Jimmy nodded, and the realtor went off to his car to make a call.

Grian pursed his lips at his brother, though. “Are you sure you can afford that? I know you’ve saved up and all, but it’s still a lot.”

Jimmy beamed though, clearly overwhelmed with excitement. “Of course, you think we would look at houses we can’t afford?”

“I mean if I’m honest kind of, but- wait. We?”

“I’ll have you know, despite the beliefs of certain individuals, my credit score’s top notch.” Tango patted his chest proudly. “And between the two of us we have more than enough savings for the down payment.”

Grian felt the wires in his brain short circuit and reboot. An unholy screech came from his throat. “What!”

Jimmy and Tango both side-eyed each other, their awkward smiles caught between guilty and like they were ready to burst out laughing. “You… Thought I could buy a home on my own?” Jimmy asked, hiccupping in the middle.

Impulse looked just as dumbfounded. “When did you work this out?” His voice came out hoarse.

It was Tango’s turn to be confused, raising an eyebrow. “Um, months ago? I told you, Impy.”

“You said you were thinking about moving out, not buying a house with a stranger!”

“Wait-” Skizz burst out laughing, pointing at Grian and Impulse. “You guys really didn’t know?”

“No, why do you know!”

“Cause I listen to my roommates?”

“Hold on. Months ago?” Grian pushed them out of the way, getting into his brother’s face.

It seemed Tango was no longer able to hold in his laughter, leaning on Jimmy for support while Jimmy rubbed the back of his neck. “I honestly couldn’t tell if you’d actually forgotten or if this was some bit.” He admitted.

“We’ve been together for almost three years.” Tango wheezed out between cackles.

“Excuse me?” Balked Grian. “Since when? You’ve never met!” His head whipped between the two. How on earth-

A finger twirled absently in the air as Jimmy tried to explain. “Do you remember your Halloween party? The one me and Joel attended, where Tango was dressed up as an imposter?”

“Yeah?” It was the biggest party he’d ever held, how could he forget? His brow creased. “But that doesn’t make any sense, I never got to introduce you two cause you both went… home… early.” Grian’s eyes went wide as the puzzle pieces clicked into place.

Tango leaned against Jimmy’s shoulder with a smirk. “There it is.”

“Oh. My god.”

“I told you he doesn’t ever listen to me.” Jimmy groaned.

“You two-”

“Yeah.”

Grian gasp cracked. “Jimmy you slut !”

“ Excuse me? ” Jimmy shouted back in equal amounts of disbelief and anger.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the realtor pause in the entryway, then slowly back out of view once more.

“You heard me!”

“What do you think we did!”

“Well you weren’t enjoying my party, that’s for sure!”

 “Okay, okay, everybody calm down.” Skizz stepped in, pushing Grian towards Impulse, who seemed to hold Grian back on instinct more than anything as he was still lost in shock.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Impulse asked, giving his housemate a look of betrayal. It was returned with concern.

“I did? I swear I did.”

“Dipple Dop, he told us he was busy in call with his partner all the time. He extended his work trips several times.”

“That was Timmy?” He stumbled back, leaning on the counter. “I thought he meant, like, an MMO buddy.”

“Yeah, and you certainly never told me!” Grian huffed, which Jimmy returned.

“I did tell you, but you didn’t listen! Or did you just do that thing like with Scott where you thought I wasn’t aware I was dating the guy I lived with for two months just because I told you we hadn’t-”

“You know what?” Skizz clapped his hands together. “I think we all need to just take a deep breath, okay? Everybody just breathe. In,” He took a deep breath, of which his housemates joined in while the brothers continued to glare at each other. “And out.” They all let out a long sigh.

 A brief silence fell over the group, only interrupted by a nervous knock at the door. The realtor stuck his head in, eyes darting between the group. “Um, Mister Solidarity, Mister Tek, could I speak to you now?”

“Yes, one second.” Jimmy said, voice tight. The pair left to talk outside.

Grian and Impulse went home after that, waiting for the other three to return. They said little, Grian fuming while Impulse stared at his lap like his dog just died. Zed popped in to say he was going out, at which point he was let in on the day’s events and gave them both odd looks. Had they really been the only ones who didn’t know? 

By the time everyone else arrived back at the house they’d pulled themselves together somewhat. Not entirely, but enough to ask questions without shouting.

“So, you’re really leaving?” Impulse asked, voice almost watery. Tango’s posture softened with his smile, and pulled the larger man into a big hug.

“Oh, buddy, I told you I was gonna. I’m a big boy now!”

“Yeah, but… I dunno. We’ve lived together since college. I didn’t think this would actually happen…”

Skizz rubbed his back. “Hey, he ain’t movin’ cross country, he’s just down the road. We’ll see him all the time.”

“Yeah! I promise, Impy, I ain’t going nowhere.”

The three continued to talk among each other, comforting their friend, so Grian left them be. Instead, he turned his attention onto Jimmy, who still looked huffy, with his arms crossed and a glare squarely on Grian.

“I told you.”

“Well, maybe you should have told me better.” Grian turned his nose up as an almost automatic response. Jimmy threw his arms in the air and stomped off to the doorway, and immediately Grian felt the regret. He chased after his little brother. “Wait, Tim. I’m…” A warbled wheeze escaped his throat, straining to get the dreaded word out. “Ssso-…rry... That I didn’t listen.”

The shift was near-instant, disdain laxing into smugness. “There, was that so hard?”

“Immensely.”

“Oh, come off it, you big baby.”

“I just don’t get it.” Grian grabbed his hair. “How did I miss that you two were dating? Why didn’t Tango say something when we invited him to dinner?”

“Well, it probably started with the fact that you introduce me to everyone as Tim and his boyfriend’s name is Jimmy.” He sneered, eyebrow raised.

Well, he had him there. Not that he would ever admit that to his brother’s face. “I still can’t believe you ditched my party to hook up with my friend.”

“Oh my god, we didn’t hook up!” Jimmy threw his head back. “We just went to get Mcdonald’s and watch movies because Tango almost had a panic attack at the number of people you invited and couldn’t breathe.”

“In my defence, I didn’t expect that many people to actually show up.”

“Either way, stop projecting.”

“Wh- excuse me?”

“Tango’s the same as me. I can assure you nothing like that would ever happen.”

Grian pouted. Well, at least they were happy and close by. “Fine, I’ll forgive you if you can get Tango to come to roller derby night.”

“Uh, I don’t have anything I need to be forgiven for, and I’m not going to make Tango do something he doesn’t want to do.”

“But Tim, consider: Tango falling on his butt in the most hideous disco suit.”

That gave Jimmy pause, thinking for a solid moment before a smile stretched behind his hand. “Alright, fine.”

“Yes!” Grian pumped his fist into the air, nearly smacking Impulse in the face as the group joined them.

“What’s going on out here?”

“Nothing.” Both brothers replied, matching smiles immediately getting them suspicious looks. Jimmy pushed past them to grab Tango’s hand and drag him towards the basement. “C’mon, we have to finish planning.”

“Yessir.” Tango saluted with a chuckle. 

As they retreated, Grian shouted after them. “Oh, Tango!”

“Yeah?” Bless his soul, he was too busy giving his partner a doofy look that was wiped away the second he turned to see Grian. He did his best to bore a hole through the man’s skull.

“You better watch your back. I know where you sleep.”

“Well, I’d hope so.” Grian didn’t like that grin. “Be weird if you didn’t know where your brother was.”

And that was how Grian began to plan the death of Tango Tek.

[zarvasace]

Could use a drop of sunshine tonight if anyone has any to share!

[ghost-bxrd]

Hi! I was wondering how Talon! Dick would react to Jason getting hurt during patrol or maybe getting sick and leaving him unable to talk, or when he does it's super raspy and quiet, and he can barely make his own noises too? 🦉

Okidoki let’s go with him being sick! (Cuz, you know, him being hurt and unable to talk… at all, is gonna happen in about… oh! Thirty days!) If it’s the first time it happens, Dick absolutely assumes Jason is dying and panics accordingly.

You know that stupid cold where you wake up one morning after feeling completely fine the day before but suddenly your throat feels like you swallows razors and any sound you try to make is like a crow on crack? Yeah. Like that.

Dick absolutely loses it and starts going straight into hardcore survival mode. Jason gets squirreled away into the most remote place in the manor with dozens of blankets and pillows. Food and water vanishes from the kitchens, along with whatever kind of first aid meds and utensils he can scrounge from the cave before Bruce comes back.

When Alfred and Bruce return from a gala… the manor is quiet. Too quiet. And Bruce immediately heads to Dick and Jason’s rooms only to find them both empty. Cue: Bruce and Alfred start panicking because the place looks like a tornado blew through it. The nests are gone, everything is in disarray, and the boys are nowhere in sight.

Conclusion: a kidnapping must have occurred.

So while Batman inspires the fear of god in every small time criminal and rogue on the streets by being MUCH MORE violent than usual (by the end of the night everyone knows to stay indoors if you’re crooked cuz the Bat’s gone crazy looking for his birds) and some of the more sensible rogues band together to find out who took Talon and Robin (nobody), Dick is still freaking out because he’s sure Jason is dying (he’s not, calm down Dickiebird).

Jason just lays back and allows the smothering (and is very happy when he finally manages to get Dick to bring him a pen and notepad for communication), Dick calms down considerably once they’ve established Jason is just a little sick (“Yes, cuddles actually help. No I’m not shitting you, they do! Btw get me some ibuprofen pls”) and not, in fact, dying. (Dick doesn’t fully believe it but Jason is still snarky so it can’t be too bad quite yet right?)

Alfred ends up finding them while Dick is down in the kitchens searching for the ibuprofen and very nearly starts yelling before thinking better of it (he was very worried okay cut him some slack).

Thirty minutes later Bruce is also back at the manor (after nearly causing several head on collisions) and hovering anxiously, torn between lecturing his kids and just— holding them and never letting go.

[kiliinstinct]

Happy Late Valentine’s y’all.

Here’s a redraw of a Natsu I did a few years back. Just to challenge myself and see how I’ve improved…. With a lil Nalu sprinkled in because I can.

[kedsandtubesocks]

it’s my birthday todaaaay

[kalied0skull]

I'd like to introduce everyone to my new wife, we got wed just this afternoon and she's the love of my life

yeah i dunno how this happened my science teacher turned on an episode about chemical reactions and me and my friend turned to each other and IMMEDIATELY started up saying the most heinous shit about this woman

probably the randomest drawing I've made this whole month if I'm being quite honest

[shadowspirez]

i hope all my fellow squip/jeremy enjoyers have the most swagalicious day ever

we are drinking mtn dew in fancy glasses together and watching twink x toaster yaoi 💙🩵💊🥂🥂🥂