#so she's still got some interesting weight to her shapes

[silverpsychedelic]

One of the Arctic royal family members and a younger sister of Siluk! This is Qaiyaani (Yani for short) and is the smallest of the Arctic siblings. She was born fairly small and sickly and never grew nearly as much as her siblings, so the cold was always rough on her. Because of her stunted growth she never developed the darker pigment that most Arctic Zora have, so she's far more brightly coloured than her siblings!

Being that the extreme cold is still rough on her body, she tends to stick to the mainland Hyrule area and works as a mercenary for hire (though she doesnt particularly like to flaunt her royal status). Even though she is small in comparison to other Arctic Zora, she is still very tall and towers over most Zora in the Hyrule Domain. She's based off a Minke whale 🐳

[luveline]

Helllloooo :) if at all possible, could I request a fic for when stripper!reader realizes that Spencer actually like-likes her? Maybe he finally makes a real move or plans a “fancy” date to show her how much she means to him? She definitely wouldn’t believe him at first/think she deserves it, but if it could be a happy ending, I’d appreciate it so much. 🥺🥺

🐈‍⬛ thank youuuu

ty for requesting <3 fem

He smells like coffee. 

"Hi!" you say, bending under the weight of his hug. 

"What are you," —he drags his face against your cheek— "doing here, I thought you were," —his hand cups your neck as he pulls away— "going to Moira's for the weekend?" 

"You sound so happy," you say, nonplussed. 

"Yeah I'm happy. Do you wanna stay over? We can go to the movies, or we can get takeout, we can do both." Spencer beams at you. "Sorry, I'm– I'm rushing. I'm just happy. Is everything okay? What happened to house sitting?" 

"Oh, nothing, she missed her flight," you say. "Can I come in?" 

Spencer ushers you inside. His apartment is cleaner than usual. He's actually had time to clean, it seems, the faint scent of disinfectant alive in the kitchen and fresh laundry folded on the table behind the couch. He follows your eyes. "I did the stuff you left, last time. But I ended up with like, three pairs of your socks? How did that happen?" 

"You didn't have to." 

"Why wouldn't I?" He goes to walk off but stops, twisting around to give you another hug from the side. "Tea?" 

Your face feels hot. "Yes, please." 

Spencer takes to the kitchen to make tea, one of your shared routines. He grabs the kettle from the cabinet, two mugs, and two teabags. You don't know why you stay in the living room as he fills the kettle. He's putting it on the stove when he says, "Oh, hey, I got you, uh– you liked my soap, right? The chamomile? So I got you some. It's in my room, and I got you some of your chocolates from Leaven." 

"You did?" 

You fail to hide your excitement. Spencer waves you away without looking. "They're with the soap."  

You laugh to yourself, leaning down to pull your sneakers off of your heels. You leave them by the couch and slip over the hardwood into his room, where your promised soap and chocolate sit on one of his desks. He calls them your chocolates, but you only ever tried them because he saw you looking at them one time and bought them as a surprise. You've been hooked on them ever since. 

You're thinking about what joke you can make to hear him laugh. Something on the nose about him ruining your future career aspirations or a flirty nothing, maybe. You just want me to fall out of shape so I can't work. 

The suitcase on the bed distracts you. Open, half packed. 

"Are you going somewhere?" you ask him, chocolates and soap held loosely to your stomach. 

Spencer takes the kettle off of the heat, bringing it to the two mugs to top them one at a time. "What?" 

"Your suitcase?" 

His shoulders tighten just so. "Well, there's this convention happening but I hate driving in the dark, so I figured I'd stay up there." 

"When, tonight?" 

"Yeah." He picks up the mugs and shoots you a smile. "But obviously I'm not going now." 

Obviously? Spencer rounds the side of the couch to sit down, murmuring for you to come and sit with him. You follow his order without question, setting yourself on the couch cushion beside him, and find there's little resistance in you to leave space between your thighs. He leans into you as soon as he's able and hands you your mug. 

There's something in his eyes. A warmth. A real affection. "I'd definitely rather be with you here than without you there. Even if there's a guest speaker who's actually managed to split shared arteries between conjoined twins while they're still in the womb." 

"You're interested in that stuff?" 

"Just for fun." He doesn't drink his tea. He probably didn't want any, a coffee mug already on the table, but he always makes two cups. You think it might be so you don't feel like you're an imposition. He's that special brand of thoughtful. 

"Can I ask you something?" you ask, your heartbeat a tangible thump under your skin. It's a silly question guided by a stupid thought, but you have to ask. You've always wanted to see other people's hands, so to speak, uncomfortable with the unknown. 

"Anything." 

You've exposed the most private parts of you and still it's hard to be vulnerable. It's easier knowing you're with Spencer, but not easy. "Do you like me?" 

Spencer doesn't do either of you the disservice of pretending he doesn't know what you mean. His voice is measured but shyness creeps in, an almost questioning lilt to his words as he says, "Well, yeah. I thought you already knew that." 

"I thought you… appreciated the aesthetic of me." 

"I do." He looks at your forehead rather than your eyes. "You know you're pretty, and your dancing, it's– it's pretty too. I think you're beautiful, but that's really not the only thing about you. You've been remarkably easy to fall for." 

His cheeks are suddenly red. A blotchy staining under his cheekbones and up over the bridge of his nose. He wouldn't lie, but the blush cements that he's telling the truth. Spencer really, truly likes you, enough to buy you the gifts that sit in your lap and to cancel trips. He'd rather stay home with you and drink tea on the couch than be anywhere else. 

"Spence, if you think it was easy for you, you have no idea what it's been like for me," you say quietly. That draws his eyeline back to your face. You smile at him gently. "No idea." 

He puts his mug down on the table to hug you. "Careful of your tea," he says, his smile audible.

You hug his arm to your chest with one hand. When he kisses the side of your head, you're pleasantly shocked. 

"I didn't realise," you say. "Sorry, Spence, I never–" Never thought you'd like me like that. "I didn't know." 

"I was just waiting for you to catch up." 

[kozachenko]

Don't really have much to post again aside from some more sketching that I've done recently, this time of Reimu and Marisa, mainly because I just need a starting point as to how I would go about drawing them in my style (which is why the poses are so boring lol).

Artist's Notes;

So I mentioned in the last post how I've been wanting to experiment with how I wanted to draw Reimu, and I then got an idea for Marisa. So I wanted to try and contrast the two of them with each other via their shape language and body types. For scale I also put some numbers on the side just as a visualizing aid so I can imagine them easier. I wanted to make Reimu very tall and lanky and Marisa to be short and rounder. Also, this provides some interesting contrast in their shape language, and Marisa ends up being more round and Reimu ends up feeling more sharp.

I think what I'm most worried about is mainly that I don't 100% know if these two drawings still...feel like Reimu and Marisa. MMaybe because I made so many changes to both of them, but I feel like it's mostly in their faces. I kept the little personal touches that would add when I would draw them in the past (i.e. Reimu's tiny eyebrows and Marisa's freckles) but I dunno, maybe it's in the eyes? Like, Marisa's bigger eyes and eyebrows are definitley ideas that I want to play with in the future, but Reimu.... I dunno, I like the idea of her face shape in this drawing specifically, and I defnitely feel like I got closer to the monilid eye look I was trying to achieve in my previous attempt at drawing her eyes, but something still feels off with her.

When I drew Marisa, I really wanted to explore some other ideas for her body type, mainly in contrast to Reimu, so I wanted to give her a fuller figure and make her shorter than Reimu. I do feel like her eyes could be a bit sharper as eyes look maybe a little too innocent for Marisa, but I do still want to use these eyes I drew for her as a springboard for later attempts. I made some adjustments to her dress so that they would look good on the body type I gave her. I also need to draw shoes more because those boots....I just, I don't even know, I probably just need to draw that specific body type more wearing those types of boots or find references because I am not happy with how they turned out. Out of the two of them, Marisa was definitely my favourite to draw. I really enjoying drawing different body types when I get the chance to, and I feel like it's important to try your best to expand your variety when it comes to drawing the human body, I'm glad that I'm comfortable with drawing different body types. I do still have a long ways to go with this as I just need to do it more often and still need to do this but with different body shapes and weights and how to combine those two aspects to create unique body types and silhouettes. Also, please feel free to give me any critiques to how these two designs turned out, I remember that I drew Reimu when it was late at night and spent the entire day on Marisa so I defnitely feel like there's some things to critque here.

I'll be honest... I don't really like how Reimu turned out too much. Not to say it's a bad drawing, but I dunno. I think I just need to draw Reimu more, but she's honestly the hardest character to translate into my style. The thing is, I have an idea for her in my head but I just have a hard time putting it to paper. It's not like I've never drawn her before, in fact, aside from the height I really like how she looked in this piece of fanart (why tf did I make her so short in that piece) I did a while back despite the fact that I've imrpoved on my faces a lot since then (again, I do want to try my lineless style again, I just need to find the chance to do so), maybe because that was the drawing that provided me with some of my ideas on how to draw Reimu in my style? I do think I'm definitely in the rut of the "not knowing how to draw a character's face in your style" phase that I'm sure many fan-artists go through, so with enough drawings I'll get through it eventually, just gotta suffer through several more hours of trial and error though so yipeeeeeeee... As for things I do like, Reimu's hair turned out nicely. I did my usual technique for drawing Reimu's hair and then pasted the lineart layer underneath the main lineart layer and changed the colour to give it some extra pizzaz, and I do like how Reimu and Marisa contrast each other a lot. I just need to find a way to make them feel more like themselves while still taking liberties with their designs in my style.

Even if these are just sketches and me laying the groundwork for how I want to draw these two in the future, I still want to improve how I draw them a lot (also I don't like how much these two look like teenagers, I see both of them as being in their late 20s-early 30s and it just doesn't read like that and I definitely need to do more studies in the future to get them right in my style).

[cottonlemonade]

How You Met

word count: 950 || avg. reading time: 4 mins.

pairing: post time-skip Akaashi x chubby!Reader

genre: fluff

warnings: one person being casually rude about your weight (it’s quick tho)

The taiyaki were still hot in the white paper bag, the smell reminding you it was almost lunch time.

Looking the street up and down for a bus stop or a waiting taxi you turned on the spot. A little ways up the pathway you could make out the typical black boxy shape of a Tokyo taxi and readjusting your handbag you headed towards it, only for a busy looking person in a suit to snatch it up before you could reach it, muttering something about how you would be better off walking for some exercise.

In disbelief about such rudeness you shook your head, pulling your coat a little closer around your chubby form.

You were sure another taxi would take its place soon enough and got on tiptoes to examine the traffic, on the lookout for one.

A mischievous breeze blew up your coat collar, making you wish you would have worn a scarf after all. Although April was right around the corner, the weather today was icy cold.

Giving up for the time being you headed towards a little flower shop you had passed just a few meters back to warm yourself.

A bell chimed when you opened the door. Pots with regular and more exotic house plants stacked on shelves along the wall, one display case behind the counter held the fresh cut flowers while another showed already bound bouquets in varying sizes and color schemes.

The woman standing behind the cash register called a friendly greeting and held the beginnings of a new arrangement at arm's length to check for possible improvements.

"What can I do for you?", she asked, putting the flowers down and folding her hands over a small pregnant belly.

"I would like a bouquet with peonies and… some eucalyptus, please."

The woman smiled and got to work, asking here and there for specifics in color or fullness.

She was about to come to an end with the simple coral and cream bouquet when the doorbell rang again and a young man looking remarkably like a substitute literature teacher entered the shop, a phone to his ear.

"Yes, father, I am getting flowers. I’ll be there soon. Oh, actually, I might be a while, there are quite a lot of people waiting."

You heard an angry voice yelling something unintelligible from the phone, when he simply hung up and sighed. He reached to tug at his collar like it was too tight and closed his eyes for a second, then, remembering he was in public, gave a bow to you and the saleswoman and apologized.

"Please take as long as you want.", he said, almost pleadingly.

He looked like he had a headache, grabbing his collar again.

"O-on second thought,", you began, turning to the owner that was just about to add the last eucalyptus branch, "I forgot I wanted more. Silly me. Uhm, could you make one with… hmm, those blue ones, some of the small greens, those white tulips, and lots of those light blues there, please? And then another one… with those yellow ones there, there and those, too, please." Your best friends would be delighted.

"Oh", the owner caught on immediately, "that was quite a lot. I don’t think I could memorize which ones you wanted all at once."

"No problem. I can tell you one by one."

The young man gave a small grateful smile at the stage-play-like interaction, letting out a “Thank you very much” under his breath.

As the shop owner wrapped up the first bundle of flowers at snail speed, you turned to the young man, wanting to cheer him up.

"So, where do you not want to go?"

Seemingly too exasperated to care about talking to a perfect stranger he said, "A blind date. Which, by the way, isn't actually blind but with a woman I have absolutely no interest in talking to about anything."

"Oh fun.", you said and trying to lighten the mood added, "Why not bring some flowers that say Thanks for coming, I don’t wanna be here?"

Everyone laughed, but the guy stopped after a second or two, looking at you for the first time, then turned to the florist.

"Can I do that?"

She thought for a moment, then slowly nodded, "I can add some candytuft, for sure and… hm, something really neutral for… and then… maybe I still have some butterweed. Yeah, I think I can do that."

You stayed even after your third bouquet was done, keeping the conversation going, joking around and glad when the young man gave a genuine laugh.

"Let me.", he said, sounding tired, when you drew out your wallet to pay for your flowers.

You shook your head, smiled and handed your card to the owner. Then you reached into the paper bag.

The buns in the meantime had turned lukewarm, but still smelled heavenly when you fished one out in a napkin and handed it to the woman - the other still in the bag you placed on the counter for a moment, grabbing a pen from your pocket. You quickly jotted down your name and number on the paper and handed it to him.

“And here. If you need rescuing from your blind date, send me a text and I’ll call you right away with some made-up emergency.”

Then you raised your free hand that wasn’t busy balancing the flowers with a “You got this.” and after a final wave you left.

Akaashi was still staring at the door for a few long moments after you had gone.

“You’d make a cute couple.”, the saleswoman mused and grinned when the young man blushed profusely, holding tighter to the paper bag.

[061306]

␥ list of things i’ve successfully manifested !

i discovered manifestation and the law around early 2022 and here's what i have manifested since then! this might not be much but this is to remind me that i am capable of anything and everything!

𖥻 1. clearer skin

i used to have a terrible breakout on the right side of my face + oily skin. now my skin is much better and less oily! i do not have acne anymore.

𖥻 2. weight loss ( 14 kgs )

i went from 69 kgs to 55 kgs in around two months with minimal exercise ( walking ) & a simple diet.

𖥻 3. height increase ( 11cm )

i used to be 150cm but not anymore lol. i got better proportions too!

𖥻 4. text messages & instant replies from people.

i also manifested message from a friend i was no longer in contact with.

𖥻 5. passing exams i thought i was going to fail

accountancy was my weakest subject but i manifested passing several tests and exams. i also manifested getting better in it!

𖥻 6. getting above average % board exams

board examinations are a big deal in my country and i, unfortunately, ended in a stream i was not interested in. i manifested getting ~80% in them despite getting way lesser in school examinations.

𖥻 7. food

one single thought turned into an assumption and i am having whatever i want for dinner!

𖥻 8. storage of my phone increasing

i only have 32gb of storage in my phone lol. so sometimes i have to clear app caches to make space, but not anymore.

𖥻 9. love confession

i simply wanted a love confession and i got it. as easy as it gets.

𖥻 10. an increament in my mom’s salary & money for myself

my mom really wanted an increament and i manifested it! she got increament of 5.5k! also manifested a bonus for her. + got gift money from my parents and relatives!

𖥻 11. letting go of & detaching from several people

i used to be attached some people that hurt me but not anymore. i have let go of them and it feels so much better.

𖥻 12. books & manga ( jjk )

my mom is not the type to let me spend money on buying books ( for leisure reading ), much less a comic book. but i manifested her allowing me to buy 4 books + 1 manga volume! she even paid for them.

𖥻 13. delaying the start of my college, teachers & professors taking leaves, not getting scolded for submitting assignments late

my college was supposed to start from early june but i manifested a delay and it started from mid-july. i have manifested both school teachers and college professors taking leaves on my desired days.

𖥻 14. nice aura + compliments

i have a magnetic aura, people feel comfort around me and i get so many compliments about literally everything i do!

𖥻 15. quick deliveries of my orders

🤭🤭🤭

𖥻 16. winning an elocution competition

i was really worried because i only found about it a day before and some other contestants had been trained by their professors. i was full of nerves but still won the first rank! the judges said my content was unique and everything i did was perfect.

𖥻 17. kitten type beauty

manifested myself big upturned eyes with pretty lashes & a v-shaped face with smooth skin!

𖥻 18. cats loving me

call me a cat whisperer the way cats love me! i can easily befriend any cat!!! ˃ᴗ˂

𖥻 19. desired skincare products for cheap

i really wanted vitamin c serum and face cleanser and sometime later i saw an ad with an offer to get both for 1 rupee! crazy right?

𖥻 20. entering the void on several occasions.

i have entered the void several times albeit unaware. recently i've started becoming aware before snapping out of it!

masterlist. | notes – i've also manifested getting a merch of my bias. i got it from my best friend as gift but i didn't add it on the list because i didn't want break the perfect 20. also this list is as on 04 DEC 2023.

[concook20]

Wild Kratts Headcannon! (2)

Martin/Chris/Aviva/Koki/Jimmy Z

Crew: 2/5

Chris Fredrick James Kratt

Age: 22

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Bisexual

Birthday: July 19th

Zodiac Sign: Cancer

Height: 5' 8"

Weight: 150 lbs

Body Shape: Fit, as if he goes to the gym

Favorite Color: Green and black

Verts: Ambivert, mostly extrovert though

Phobia: Nyctophobia (Fear Of Darkness)

Hobbies: Singing, rock or tree climbing, and reading books (books like Amulet, Bones, and classic books).

Family and Relationship

He was a daddy boy before, he used to try to be perfect for his dad, so he could make him proud, until he came out as bisexual, which made his dad angry and upset. He still hopes he could be proud in the future

He loves his mother, in fact, he learned how to cook when he was interested, where he isn't the best, but he still makes good meals, too. He loves spending time with her, whenever he take a break

He hates Christine, due to most of the time, she takes credit for stuff like cleaning, making coffee for their dad, and/or do her work, whenever Chris was the one who did those things, and even then, the two still hate each other

Susan and Chris are close, but they don't spend time with each other much, since Susan and Martin bond, and they hang out sometimes, but not all the time

He dated someone once in high school, a popular guy, until he dumped Chris for not liking a 'weirdo, who loves animals', which made Chris, somewhat, closed off on love

Chris and Aviva met around middle school, where they were science partners, until they hung out more, becoming best friends

The reason why Chris crawled to Martin instead of his parents, was because he actually loved Martin more than them, since he feels happier and safe around him, even wanted to be just like him when he was older, to the point the two began their dreams of saving animals

Facts For Chris

Chris wears glasses most of the time, even when he mostly doesn't need it.

Chris listens to Melanie Martinez, NF, or Billie Eilish songs, since most of the time, he relates to them deeply and other times, they're catchy.

I don't care how anyone wouldn't believe this, but this dude cheats in any games, like Uno or Mario Kart, no matter how hard or easy it is!

Chris has a teddy bear in order to sleep in the dark.

Chris used to be a nerd when he was a freshman, until he began to work out and wear different outfits, which got some attention.

Chris sings whenever he is alone, since he's still nervous about his singing voice, but even if he does, he is a very good singer.

Chris has ✨Autism✨!

Chris is a BIG fan of MatPats videos, even doing his own theories on movies, shows, or books.

That's all for now! If you have any questions, please comment down!

[jihyoruri]

What's the story behind Karina and Paranoia!yn. How'd they meet? how long did they fool around? Would any of them be up to a 2nd chance?

The answers may or may not dictate whether I start campaigning for paranoia!yn x Karina🫣

well first let me explain paranoia’s origin story for the people that don’t know.

they’re childhood friends who loved music, especially making it so they were constantly playing their instruments together and singing, then when they were like 16/17 they auditioned to sm as a joke but actually got in, sm quickly realized that they definitely can’t shape these three into idols LOL ( asked them to dance once and it was a disaster) but they knew that couldn’t let these music prodigy’s go SO they kept the three in their dungeon to make music for other sm artists while also training them to perfect their vocals, rap and stage presence skills so while also making songs for sm artists they three would make their own little projects and covers so they can get evaluated and after one of their projects sm as a whole was so amazed by the three that they decided to debut for first REAL BAND.

now with THAT karina and yn obviously know each other because of them both being under sm entertainment and yn making some songs for aespa.

karina always thought yn was a cool girl, very rebellious and creative but it wasn’t until spicy era that she actually felt attracted to yn, yn had made multiple songs for aespa in the past but ig this era yn just had something different about her to her, she was still technically a trainee (paranoia didn’t debut until like six months after) but there was just something about the way she held herself that was really catching karina’s attention.

yn always thought karina was pretty but she felt like she would never have a chance she’s like 2-3 years younger than her so she felt like even trying to talk up to her like she has done to other people that she found an interest in was never gonna happen (and she honestly had a lot of respect for karina and felt like having a fling with someone like her would be beyond disrespectful in her mind she felt like karina deserved a real relationship.

but BOOM after working with the girls for unhappy karina reached out to her asking if she wanted to hang out, yn was hesitant but she did, and once she realized that karina might mean this romantically she told her that she’s a person who gets pretty uncomfortable when it comes to relationships and karina said and I quote “that’s perfect I’m an idol I don’t need the weight of a relationship either.” and that’s how it happened.

and this went on alllllll the way until paranoia officially debuted so they had a fling for about five months because sadly karina was catching the feels like some realllll feels but she knew what yn told her and decided to not take the chance of telling her to ruin their relationship because even if they couldn’t have their fling or date she still wanted to be friends with yn so she ended the fling.

what’s so tragic about this is the fact that yn was lowkey catching feels too but not as much as jimin so as soon as jimin ended it her feelings went away very quickly.

jimin would definitely be up to a second chance because there are times when she completely regrets not telling yn when they hang out as friends.

yn on the other hand would have to put a lot of thinking into it.

[thanksjro]

More Than Meets the Eye #50 — The Midlife Crisis Cruise Comes to an End

Our issue begins on Earth— not Swearth, but honest-to-god Earth— where Optimus Prime and Jetfire are watching a broadcast. It’s not syndicated television like I Love Lucy or The Transformers (1984), however. No, this broadcast is coming from some of our favorite Lost Lighters, detailing their last will and testament.

Nautica wants to be buried on her home planet, and doesn’t give a hot gay fuck what they engrave on her sparkcase. Also she’s missing a good chunk of her face, but don’t worry about that too much.

Chromedome’s just happy that he’s dying WITH his husband this go around. I’m sure Brainstorm’s also thrilled to not have the “please please please stop stabbing yourself in the brain to avoid the pain of being a widower Jesus Christ we can’t keep doing this”.

Rewind takes the opportunity to poke Chromedome in the inferiority complex one last time, making his message out to Dominus Ambus. Our resident lovebirds want to “enter the after spark simultaneously”, though that seems more like something to address with whoever’s killing them.

Over on Cybertron, in Metroplex’s titties, it would seem this broadcast is VERY wideband, as Starscream and Scoop (we’ll go over whatever the fuck’s going on there in another post) witness Nightbeat’s will and testament, though considering Nightbeat’s technically undead, I’m not sure how much legal weight it holds. Having done the whole “dying” thing before, I’m sure he’s spent many a long, sleepless night thinking about how it would happen next time. Ikea Johnson wants a “Neoprimalist” funeral, where they preserve only the head. Interesting that Nightbeat's religious sect is the same as Flywheels, the Scavenger who only existed to be a stand-in for the word "fuck".

Over on Luna 1, Red Alert is convinced that Megatron is using his gun mode to threaten Nightbeat. Fort Max isn’t so sure.

Minimus shows off the most recent trick he’s learned, saying the word “fun” with only stuttering twice. He wants to be buried on the moon, next to all of Rodimus’s failed pregnancies, and wearing the skin of a man who’s been dead for thousands of years.

Whirl doesn’t want a funeral, though you’d think he’d at least want his corpse thrown in the general direction of the Wreckers’ base, where every member gets a slot in the Zone of Remembrance as part of the onboarding. I know he got kicked out, but being shot out of a rail gun at Debris sounds roughly his speed.

Rung only requests that, should he die in his vape pen form, that he be dismantled. He’s so committed to preventing underage smoking, and for that I commend him.

Rung’s request greatly disturbs the Scavengers, who seem to have forgone fixing the Krok-shaped hole in the wall and buying a couch more than two of them can sit on at a time, in order to afford a replacement TV, after Krok fastball-specialed a golden disc through the last one.

On another part of Cybertron, Windblade and Wheeljack watch Velocity state that she doesn’t regret a single thing that’s happened while she’s been a part of the Lost Light. To recap, in the few months Velocity’s been aboard: Thunderclash almost died of being too perfect, Velocity’s first boss ran off to go bang a billionaire with a sword collection, Swerve almost died from too much television, her second boss ran off to get roped into the Polycule Wars, Tailgate exploded, Rung was revealed to be practicing without a license by way of a weird gibbon with a ball gag and his serial killer boyfriend, and she became the only practicing medical professional aboard a ship of over 200, after failing to pass her medical exams ten times. Oh, and she wants to be recycled.

Optimus wants to go save them, thinking that there’s still time. However, the Lost Light isn’t responding, and it doesn’t actually matter anyhow— these recording were sent out weeks ago.

Looks like that’s a series wrap on Nautica, Chromedome, Rewind, Nightbeat, Minimus, Whirl, Rung, and Velocity! Let’s give ‘em a hand, folks!

Three weeks prior, on the planet of Miliarium, action is happening:

Being on your headset in the middle of a battle seems rather rude, but I suppose sacrifices to politeness have to be made, when one of your co-captains is effectively forbidden from stepping foot on any planet that’s aware of Cybertron’s existence, given that he, y’know, is the face of a cause that slaughtered billions over the course of millions of years.

(No, don’t ask Optimus how relations with Earth are going.)

Megatron, continuing to command from orbit, tells Whirl to go help Cyclonus and Crossblades with the Rust Giants’ longship, asking for no casualties. Which is sort of like asking a horse on cocaine to not freak out and kick someone in the head, if that horse also had guns tied to 30% of its body.

Rodimus asks Megatron if he’s enjoying himself, playing a pacifist run of a wartime strategy game with their lives, and Megatron says that he’s “rumbled”; which I’m not sure if I’m search-engining wrong, but I don’t know that even the British are saying that to mean they’re right chuffed or tallywackered about a situation, or whatever. Rodimus is suddenly faced with a Rust Giant that he doesn’t even come up to the knee of, but luckily we have a new superhero to save the day, by way of incredible violence.

Looks like we’re still workshopping the battle-cries.

Tailgate punched this guy so hard it cause a jump-cut to the post-battle celebration, where Rodimus shows off his multi-typefacial abilities, Megatron perpetrates his bigotry towards organics, the Cybertronians make galactic news for a not-awful reason for once, and Swerve is also here! For some reason! It looks like it’s gonna be all peaches and cream from here on, so long as we ignore the first three pages of this issue!

Hey, Cyclonus, you have to wait for him to call you, you're not an Autobot. Just because the little white guy you're Sufjan Stevens-level attached to is going, doesn't mean— Cyclonus, hey. Hey, Cyclonus. Cyclonus. Cycl—

Later, back on the Lost Light, class is in session. We finally get a look at those course Megatron’s been teaching, only briefly mentioned by Riptide in issue #29. The current course track is on the Knights of Cybertron, Megatron having assigned those in attendance to write essays tackling “pre-Functionist folklore and contested heritage”.

Today’s class consists of:

Minimus (old as balls, former high society)

Skids (the best at everything)

Brainstorm (literal genius)

Perceptor (slightly-less-literal genius)

Nautica (jack-of-all-trades brainiac and bibliophile)

Crosscut (former senator, current playwright, therefore probably has at least some sort of degree)

Nightbeat (nosy as fuck, loves to figure shit out)

Hound (former Primal Vanguard)

Thunderclash (perfect student, researcher, friend, confidante, and maybe even lover)

Grapple (not much to say here, other than he’s fucking jacked in IDW)

Xaaron (chief legal advisor for the Autobots)

And Riptide (created during the war and therefore has the least connection to Cybertron's folklore, canonically not a good test-taker)

Poor Riptide's grades don’t stand a snowball's chance in hell against his peers', but good on him for sticking with the classes regardless.

This essay was assigned to help students establish context for the Knights within a world where they have not existed for millions of years, having disappeared since they embarked on their quest to Cyberutopia; a world where information creep, the slow degradation of memory as time passes, has made them into mythological figures. Megatron posits that the only thing we really know about the Knights is that they failed to do what they set out to do, as the universe is not a peaceful place, himself arguably being exhibit A of that failure. Still, he intends to use this course to help the Lost Light’s crew understand the Knights to the best of their current, modernity-biased ability, prior to potentially meeting them. Considering that the Knights will be deciding Megatron’s fate, perhaps this is also for him to grapple with understanding his own end.

Anyway, let’s look at a plot device.

The last time we saw this symbol was during issue #46, both drawn by Grimlock on his walls, paired with the words “prepare confront repel”, and then on some mysterious fellows who were working with Krok’s nasty little friend Demus and someone called "The Grand Architect". However, the first time we saw it was with Skids in #21, after he went through Tyrest’s space bridge and talked to a giant technicolor ball of light.

Seeing this image kickstarts Skids’s memory, enough so that he interrupts class over it. Nautica has also seen this symbol, at an exhibit on Troja Major (a planet that Roberts will use as a dumping ground for many plot points in the sequel series to MTMTE) where it was claimed to be some sort of coat of arms. Thunderclash also knows this symbol, having seen it with his beautiful mind and kind heart in his visions, the same visions that were leading him to the Knights and allowing him to create a map to Cyberutopia. Nautica asks Skids to write out the symbol that he “heard” phonetically into her space phone, in a move that will prove HIGHLY useful later on. Perceptor adds in his two cents, showing off that he’s wearing the “feminine” nose-type today, stating that he had talked to one of the Circle of Light members back in Season 1, who had theorized that the Knights of Cybertron was either originally made up of OR broke down into clans, and that the symbol/map Rodimus and Thunderclash were drawing is merely connected to part of the Knights, and that there could be others floating around.

Nightbeat thinks that all this brainstorming (which hasn’t involved Brainstorm, oddly enough) is super cool and great, showing off his anime thumb in approval. When Minimus tries to give Megatron props for bringing everyone together to figure this out, he finds that Megatron is having some troubles, hunched over his podium as far as his fucked up old man toy articulation will allow. When Minimus approaches to see what’s wrong, he gets punched clear across the room for his troubles. Then this happens:

Look, I don’t care if 99.9% of the Cybertronian population can reclaim, you shouldn’t just limp your wrist at your first officer in the middle of class.

No, what Megatron is actually doing is pointing the fusion cannon he doesn’t have anymore, but had attached to his arm for roughly 4 million years, directly at Minimus’s tiny little skull. Quickly coming back to himself, Megatron is both horrified and mortified by what he’s done, offering nothing more but a quick apology before he dismisses the class and bolts, not even helping Minimus off of the floor.

The following day, Velocity’s paying a visit to Megatron’s room, which is STILL as barren as the most dire of single male living spaces. Velocity’s here because Megatron missed his appointment yesterday, after whatever happened in the classroom. Megatron reminds her that the weekly appointment is for him receiving his ration of “fool’s energon” which is meant to keep him in a weakened state, which arguably shouldn’t make it medicine in the traditional sense. Velocity reminds him that he nearly knocked Minimus Ambus’s (yeah, she uses his full name, guess she’s not been around long enough to get “just Minimus” privileges) block off, and that if Megatron had been at full strength, we might be dealing with a murder situation instead.

Though Minimus IS a load bearer, who regularly slings around a body three times his size, on top of weapons, so maybe not. Also, there’s an even smaller guy inside the first mustached guy, so honestly it’d probably be fine.

Does Velocity even know about the irreducible Minimus? Is that in his medical history? Does she even know that Ultra Magnus and Minimus Ambus are the same person? Because Megatron didn’t even know until they found that corpse on the quantum duplicate Lost Light, and Magnus was his lawyer for the trial as well as being his SIC. Really, what are the legal ramifications of Minimus having assumed the identity of a dead man, now that Tyrest isn’t there to keep up the charade and the secret is a bit more open? Does Minimus have legal claim to Magnus’s identity, or at least ownership of the armor? Can Minimus lay claim to any property he purchased as Magnus, or that the previous Magnuses had purchased prior to their deaths? Was Minimus legally declared dead prior to undertaking the role of Enforcer of the Tyrest Accord, if only to make things easier in terms of paperwork? Can Minimus sign off on things, and if so, does he use his own signature, or Magnus’s? If he signed something as Magnus, would any contract bearing it be rendered temporarily void whenever he’s not wearing his work pants? How much of Minimus’s existence makes him cry late into the night with how legally dubious it is? Does Delta Magnus know about Ultra Magnus being a skin suit? I feel like we don’t focus on how fucked up this whole situation is nearly enough.

Anyway, Velocity asks after Megatron’s medicine, probably because First Aid’s medical note-taking skills often get usurped by his need to write SpringerxReader fanfiction. She mentions that what they’ve been feeding Megatron over the last year have some side effects, which Megatron seems surprised by. Considering he’s felt sickly and crampy this whole time, the side effects are likely meant to be the intent of the medication.

Velocity then takes a gander at the dents Megatron put into his head when he had his little freakout, stating that “chemo-sedatives” can change one’s whole personality in extreme cases, as well as increased stress levels, as Megatron admits that the reason he crushed his head with his hands is that he heard voices screaming. However, Megatron doesn’t think stress caused such a thing.

To recap how the last year has gone for Megatron: he was forced to renounce the cause he had led for the last 4 million years, became co-captain of a fucking Carnival cruise ship, had 95% of his crew disappear from reality, found a bunch of corpses, got slapped in the face by Soundwave’s dad, had to lie to Rewind’s face to make him okay with killing himself so that everyone else might live, got shot as an infant, gaining anywhere from three-to-five fathers as a result, visited the most passive-aggressive garden in the galaxy, got stabbed in the chest and brained with a flat-screen television and then had to apologize for it, and was non-consensually hugged by a swarm of flesh-eating insects parading around in his SIC’s skin suit.

Velocity gets a call on her smart watch, Swerve on the other end demanding her presence at the medibay, seeing as she’s the only doctor on the ship now, and there are multiple people having a crisis.

Smash cut to Swerve, Cyclonus, Tailgate, Chromedome, Rewind, Rung, and Megatron standing on the bridge, their colors looking super fucked up and light bloomed out, because this is a 40-page issue with a shit-ton of detail and characters, so we’ve got three colorists, two artists, and an extra inker on for this one. They’re meeting with Rodimus, whose fingers have shrunk down to the size of shoestring potato fries, because Swerve, Tailgate, Rewind, Rung, and Megatron heard some sort of awful noise in their brains at the exact same time. Chromedome is here to support his husband, because he loves him so, so much, kissy-noise kissy-noise. Cyclonus is here mainly to clarify that he’s a badass who no one has ever heard cry, because emotional vulnerability and expressing pain are for pussies, unless you’re doing it by way of self-harming directly onto your face meat.

Only Tailgate and Rewind actually admit to what they heard, Tailgate hearing Cyclonus berate him for falling for Getaway’s tricks and Rewind hearing Dominus berate him for not doing enough to find him. I’d imagine both Rung and Swerve were hearing things relating to their professionalism, given that Rung fucking sucks at his job, and Swerve’s gonna fry the moment Ten gets a union sorted out. Megatron, is well, Megatron, so there’s a litany of awful things that he could have heard.

Rodimus has Blaster reveal that the ship received a signal at the exact same time that these people had their little brain event. Brainstorm hypothesizes that what happened was some sort of psychological assault, perhaps of Galactic Council origin, as a means of testing a new brain weapon. Magnus, who has been up on an upper level with a clipboard up to this point, notes that they could trace the signal. Mainframe informs him that they have, but the origin doesn’t seem to correspond to any known location in the navigation, and they’d have to physically go there to see what’s up. Which isn’t sketchy in the slightest.

Rodimus wants to load up on his big, beautiful Rodpod with everyone, so they can find who did this and make them stop. When Magnus questions if this is a wise course of action, Rodimus uses American grammar to trip up Magnus’s British-based spellcheck, so he gets to do whatever he wants. This is a trick he’s picked up since Drift left, as the old game of “pitting my people-pleaser hippy dippy boytoy and my no-nonsense stick-up-the-ass sentient rulebook against one another, so whatever I wanted to do from the start can seem like a pleasantly centralized option” doesn’t work very well when you replace the boytoy with a grumpy old man who tried to murder everything with a heartbeat.

Velocity wants to join the trip alongside Team Rodimus, but Mainframe has his reservations. I don’t blame him, considering she is, again, the only medical doctor currently on board this ship. He suggests she take along some personal protection, just in case.

…I mean, he’ll definitely make sure any bad guys who come her way will die horribly, if nothing else. Also, apparently the Rodpod's artificial gravity goes all the way around.

Nautica’s spent the last few weeks tricking out the Rodpod with a fancy schmancy new teleport drive, because Rodimus was annoying her to the point where if she didn’t give him what he was moaning about she might have had to kill him. Megatron is hesitant to use the drive, but after being informed that there are safety perimeters in place that’ll keep the ol’ Rodimus Podimus from teleporting inside a asteroid or whatever, he pulls the level and they end up in the dark.

No, not space dark, don’t be funny. That’s my job, and they don’t pay me for it, which should tell you how dire the situation is. This is a special sort of dark. The sort of dark that leads to panic and lethal levels of quipping. Rodimus cuts the lights on, but it does very little to offset the absolutely suffocating darkness outside. Rewind notes that there aren’t any stars, and Tailgate admits that he doesn’t know how space works. That’s alright Tailgate, neither do any of the people who draw or color this comic. You’re amongst (created by?) friends here.

The scanners reveal that there’s something 3000 miles in front of them. And behind them. And to the left, to the right, 12 o'clock, three o'clock, six o'clock, nine o'clock, rock around the clock tonight— that is to say, they’re surrounded by something the size of a planet. After disabling the safety protocols on the Rodimus Podimus, the gang find themselves on the surface of Necroworld, where the Necrobot Censere lives and operates his many plinths to the living and dead. Megatron isn’t exactly thrilled to be back here. Nightbeat on the other hand, is overdose on mystery, and he couldn’t be happier. Nobody’s sure what the fuck is going on. There’s no time to theorize, however, as half the gang just got blown sky high.

Everyone books it back to the Rodpod to escape the dozen attack craft coming after them, but there’s more trouble here— the teleport drive is dead. Which is weird, because they should have had enough juice to get to and from their little trip. When Rodimus tries to contact the Lost Light, there’s no response. They’re not responding. Megatron tells him that those are two different things, mirroring the same thing Optimus said about trying to contact the Lost Light after he and Jetfire viewed the will tapes. Everyone else is busy trying to figure out who the hell could be firing on them, all of them roughly coming to the same conclusion that Cybertronians as a whole aren’t terribly well liked, and the Lost Lighters have made a bit of a name (derogatory) for themselves, since they insulted the Galactic Council, caused the end of the 16-million year Stentarian war, and have ruined at least one bar with physical violence over home movies.

Rodimus tells Megatron to park the Rodpod at the Necrobot’s citadel, just in time for a missile to hit the ass-end of the shuttle, blowing off Magnus’s arm, shredding off roughly half of Nautica’s face, and giving Cyclonus an excuse to hold Tailgate in his arms. Everyone bolts to get inside, Nautica being carried by Skids so we can further solidify the straightest pairing in the series. Once they’re all inside, their attackers retreat, and we see where Censere’s gotten to in all this.

Let’s give him a hand, folks!

While Velocity looks over the body, Nightbeat deals with his personal Santa Claus being dead by way of trying to figure out what happened. Megatron, meanwhile, noticed that the craft that attacked them were of Decepticon design, and he tells Ravage to go check it out. Honestly, I doubt he was the only one to notice, given that all but three of the people on this trip were dealing with the Decepticons in some form or fashion all throughout the war, and could therefore identify the make of the crafts, if not the model, so I’m not sure what the deal is with this secrecy.

Brainstorm is brought over to Nightbeat to help solve this mystery, and he promptly identifies that some of Censere’s equipment is very similar to the stuff Tyrest used for the Aequitas trials, likely used to figure out what sparkflowers to plant where. Rewind, having popped on his sparkliest nipple pasties on, because he hates Censere and wants to get glitter all over his house, asks the boys to scootch on over so he can try to call the Lost Light. Nightbeat thinks that Censere tried to sabotage a signal someone else had sent in an attempt to lure Team Rodimus (and friends) to the planet, and that resulted in the brain attack that had happened earlier in the day. Unfortunately, Censere didn’t spend any time with Rodimus the last time the Lost Light visited, so he didn’t get a taste of the ridiculous way Rodimus likes to live his life, and why the psychic attack wouldn’t work.

Rewind gets the phone working, calling Rodimus over to get on the horn. Magnus stands in the background, showing off his grievous amputation. After a bit of fiddling with the settings on their end, the Lost Light makes official contact with Team Rodimus.

Getaway, last we saw him, was very much in prison, but Rodimus isn’t going to focus on that niggling little detail right now, as he asks for the Lost Light to swing by to pick up the team so they don’t all die. Getaway sort of DOES want to focus on that detail, however, as he very much didn’t appreciate being fetish fuel throughout the holiday season, and, despite his name, didn’t actually escape that setup. No, Getaway had help.

Man, guess Megatron should’ve reconsidered failing Riptide on his essay.

Speaking of Megatron, he walks up about now to see what all the hubbub’s about. Rodimus, looking like he’s about to cry, realizes that Mainframe lied to them about not being able to track the signal. Getaway gives him points for getting that right, but really, he wants to drive home the point that the entirety of the crew wanted Megatron’s little pals off the ship. And that’s what it’s really about, at the end of the day. Getaway hates that high command gave Megatron a party cruise to live out his last days on, last days that might not even happen, with the track record of this goddamned quest. He’s sick of Rodimus and pals acting like this whole arrangement isn’t an affront to every single life that’s been snuffed out because of Megatron’s actions.

Everyone other than Whirl seems pretty bummed out by these accusations. Swerve pipes up, enraged that he’s been doomed to die alongside everyone else— he doesn’t even LIKE Megatron. Getaway reveals that at some point or another, he and Atomizer (the interior designer turned bowman, you’ll recall) approached every single crew member and asked if they thought Megatron deserved to have a second chance and also, completely unrelated, but what would you do in the event of a coup? Anyone who didn’t provide a desirable answer got visited by the nudge gun fairy— that gun that can fire thought into your brain, or just erase memories if fired dry. The collection of headaches main cast have been experiencing over the last several issues? The side effect of being shot. Skids especially does not like this reveal.

Of course, Getaway isn’t just upset with Megatron’s leadership— he’s also mad as hell what’s supposed to be a trip to find their ancestors, who will guide them back onto the straight and narrow, has, in actuality, been Rodimus’s midlife crisis road trip. Getaway wasn’t even here for Rodimus and Drift’s ass-slapping contests and insulting galactic officials who want the Cybertronians dead, but he didn’t need to be. He took one look at the Rodpod and decided he needed to kill Rodimus right then and there.

Rodimus, at this point, remembers the list Atomizer had offered him back during the trial. Magnus, biting his lip at the idea of a list existing, asks what that’s all about, and Rodimus explains. Getaway really was hoping that Rodimus would take the bait, so he could’ve blackmailed Rodimus into stepping down and letting literally anyone else take over. Probably Magnus, at that point in the timeline, given that he hadn’t gotten buddy-buddy with Megatron yet at that point. Unless Getaway considers acting as someone’s lawyer under order of the space pope as being too close to an individual.

Getaway decides that this conversation has reached its natural conclusion, as he’s got questing to get done, and it should be moving at a pretty even clip now, since he’s excised all the distractions. Rodimus swears to come after him, but Getaway doubts it’ll happen, given what’s happening next.

While this debacle has been happening, Ravage has been busy searching a crash site, trying to uncover the identity of who the hell’s decided to attack them. Tarn commits a microagression at him, before firing his twin fusion cannons.

The call ends, Getaway cutting off the comm to all contact.

Ravage shows back up at this point, to give everyone the bad news.

Nightbeat, honey, the tragedy is in the opposite direction.

Now, that’s technically the finale of the main story, but there’s a little bonus comic attached to the end, acting as a sort of sideways epilogue to hint at what Getaway and his merry band of mutineers will be getting up to, since we aren’t seeing them again for a bit.

Our little backup strip begins right before the original launch of the Lost Light, where we see some guys we haven’t seen the 2012 Annual issue. Shock and Ore wander around what will one day become Swerve’s, Shock convinced that this ship is actually the ship they lost 5 million years prior, the Unitrex-1. Ore isn’t so sure, but as the readers, we saw the exact moment that Unitrex-1 disappeared in issue #38, after Rodimus forgot to wash his hands while putting the quantum engine together. Shock, wanting to prove that he’s right, fumbles around in the dark, looking for the graffiti he carved into the underside of a table. Ore gets a call on his space Blackberry while he’s doing this, and we finally get the other half of that call Prowl made in issue #1, after he failed to get Chromedome to stay on Cybertron. The Duobots have 20 minutes to get Overlord’s massive, lippy ass on the ship. Knowing that that isn’t a ton of time, the two quickly book it out of the bar, leaving the spectral form of Skids to look really bummed out.

Later, at Swerve’s grand (secret) opening, we see some more old faces.

Whoa now, Drift, you’re not supposed to be back until next issue!

Pipes thinks he’s been cursed to not have friends, since Hubcap is still at his dead-end job with the Wreckers, and Riptide was too busy being in a coma to come say goodbye. How rude!

Drift doesn’t seem to particularly want Pipes around more than necessary, pushing him to be friends with Rewind, who he describes as having kind eyes. Whether Drift is doing this to keep Pipes safe from overhearing any Overlord-related secrets, keeping his ass-slapping and sexually-tense sword training time with Rodimus safe, or just because he finds Pipes to be mildly annoying isn’t clear. Pipes, however, is looking for more than friendship— he’s looking to bone down.

Pipes’s ideal partner is wide as they are tall, with tits to match and at least one alt-mode that he can use as a yacht. Drift tells him he can introduce him to Tailgate, though something tells me Pipes isn’t really Tailgate’s type, given that he can actually say what he means and doesn’t have some fucked-up facial situation.

It’s really too bad that Pipes died, because I bet he would have loved Nautica, and he would have REALLY loved Nickel.

Later still, we see all of our doctors together— even Ambulon is there! In one piece, even! Ambulon wants to tell First Aid something, and First Aid automatically tries to make it a cosmetic thing, because of COURSE Ambulon would be insecure about his bad skin, and what he really needs is a better cleanser. What Ambulon actually wants to talk about, though, is his alt mode, and the fact that the puns involved with being part of a Combiner make him want to die. First Aid understands, but Swerve, known menace to society, might not be so compassionate, as he throws a grenade into the back of Ambulon’s head, triggering his transformation. Ambulon is mortified, and Swerve does the thing that Ambulon literally just said he hates. First Aid continues to rip flakes of paint off of Ambulon, as the specter of Velocity watches, looking pretty bummed about the fact that she never got to be part of banter like this.

Later on than that, Rewind and a wheelchair-bound Rung are in the currently-empty Swerve’s, as Rewind calls Chromedome to gather up one of the groups for those storytelling circles Rewind organized to try to fix Rung’s brain. He hangs up, then tells Rung that once his brain works again, they’re going to have a goddamned chat about Dominus Ambus, which is only mildly hampered in its threat by the fact that Rewind standing is barely the same height as Rung sitting down.

Rewind then gets to work writing out the story map for when the “Shadowplay” group gets there, as the specter of Chromedome reaches out longingly for the dead version of his husband. He laments that this Rewind died without closure, but the ghostly specter of Rung reminds him that there are rules to this, and they have to leave now. Not sure why Rung’s here to watch himself be threatened by Pipsqueak McGee. Is he actually doing his job for once, helping guide someone through their grief? I doubt it, since Chromedome isn’t a hottie bo-body like Skids, and his problems haven’t (directly, at least) caused the sort of trouble that make entire star systems hate you like Megatron.

Later, during the Overlord disaster, Perceptor sprints into Swerve’s, shouting for a medic, as the rest of the battered and beaten watch. Hoist, himself hooked up to the wall by some sort of cable, while wearing his extra-special Rodimus Star, offers to help, though he’s technically an engineer, and whatever he’s gonna do probably won’t have any consideration for the soul or ability to feel pain. Perceptor was using Tripodeca— sweet, beloved, friend to all, who was the star of the post-Overlord mass funeral Tripodeca— as a, uh, tripod for his rifle, when Overlord probably noticed that the ol’ science sniper looked sort of familiar and did a lil’ grabbing with his big nasty hands. Hoist asks if Perceptor is going to stop Overlord, and considering how things went the last time Overlord was the star of the show, I doubt Perceptor thought he was gonna get lucky twice in terms of survival, especially when Overlord is riGHT BEHIND HIM OH GOD LORDY JESUS MARY AND JOSEPH

How Perceptor survived this isn't clear, but we know he did, as he continued to show up in the story past issue #15 in a decidedly alive, non-paste form. His specter watches this scene unfold, expression unreadable.

Post-Luna 1, Swerve stands in his ruined bar dejectedly, when he realizes that quite a few people have shown up to help him clean up the mess, as long as he promises to reward their hard work with reopening once it’s done. As everyone works to get things back in order, Swerve tells them to keep an eye out for a non-trashed Legislator that he could use as a bouncer, once he fucks around with its head enough to make it do what he wants. Ten’s specter watches as his shitty boss and arguable father is gifted the body that would become him, making a note to get his union going with a bit more urgency.

Later, on the day of the “Fuck Off Megatron 2-for-1 Drink Deal”, Crosscut lead Riptide, Mirage, and Nautica on a tour of the ship. Mirage notes that Swerve’s is a bit of a dive, not suited to his refined tastes in the slightest. In a booth, Getaway and Atomizer have boxed Mainframe in on either side to have a little chat. Swerve and Bluestreak talk television, Bluestreak making a little jab at MTMTE’s second season not being quite as well-received by fans as the first. Over at the bar, Highbrow and Perceptor talk about Quark, while Brainstorm watches while having his briefcase, which he is NOT supposed to have in here.

Crosscut goes on about this bar being where all things happen and where bittersweet is the most often-felt emotion, then calls Trailcutter/blazer an alcoholic as he dances on the ceiling. The specters of just about everyone on the ship watch their fallen friend, enjoying the moment and missing him terribly, as Perceptor brings them back to the here and now of the story, which turns out to be just after the holiday special, judging by the Christmas lights.

Minimus asks if this is safe, and Perceptor says that it is, as nobody can actually interact with the past, because Brainstorm is the only one who’s ever actually perfected that tech, not that this isn’t his fault either. It turns out that when you try to fly against the stream of time as it naturally occurs, you tear a few thousand itty bitty holes on the way to perfecting the process. Perceptor’s found a way to let others view the past, at least for a little while. Minimus is fine with it, as long as everyone continues to behave, and it seems like they are, as everyone mingles in Swerve’s.

The two of them sit down, Megatron handing Minimus what I’m sure is a mocktail, and Perceptor explains that while the window into the past is closing for now, it may open back up in the future. When Rodimus asks when that might be, he then immediately decides that he doesn’t want to know, instead wanting to have a fun little surprise for later. They don’t get very many of those, fun surprises.

As everyone toasts to the dead and to future adventures, the specter of Getaway watches on, smug as hell.

That’s the end of “No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases” but that is STILL not the end of the issue! It never ends, this thing! Because the number 50 is very big and impressive, obviously this is a double-sized spectacular, and has to cap off with a note from the man himself— James Roberts.

And then after that we get a new notes from fans, but this is already obscenely long and I think I can show you the crux of what they’re all saying right here: MTMTE (2012) is fucking good. It’s a good series. Make your goddamn family, friends, coworkers, librarians, and goldfish read it. Share it with people you’ve never met. Get a long-term personal project out of it. Get long-term friends out of it. Get a long-term romantic partner out of it. If I can do it, so can you!

[kommandonuovidiavoli]

Obviously don't answer if it's a spoiler but...

In the show we saw how badly Kuki dealt with things she loved being taken from her / kept out of her reach. Like when her rainbow monkeys were stolen or when Bradley was hurt. So all this to say, how did she take it when Wally (presumably her best friend and the person she loves most in the world) was...taken from them?

I love that these came one after the other because one is the answer to the other.

Long story short, she didn't take it well.

[TW: eating disorder, depression, bad family relationships]

Things were actually going on since the teen AU. I wanted to do a comic or something but due to the nature of it, I don't think I'll ever actually do it, so here's the explanation.

When she turned 13, Kuki started having some hormone problems that made her gain weight (not too much, but she had to be careful about what she ate). Her family noticed immediately, and they started to rudely point out how she was getting fat and using not so nice words to express their discontent. It arrived at a point (in the teen AU) where she wouldn't eat anything during the day, especially in front of other people, feeling ashamed and fearing they would point it out, especially Wally. This only resulted in an uncontrollable hunger in the nighttime, where she would eat whatever was in the fridge and start to hide snacks she bought under the bed when her parents found out what was going on.

Wally was the first to find out what was going on and tried to help her as much as he could, but he really ended up using the wrong words and making her feel worse (not on purpose, but if you don't know how to tackle certain things, you end up worsening the process).

Things seemed to stabilize when she found out she was pregnant, and her hunger somehow was reduced. She passed those months mostly at Wally's place (because it was hell at her own) and the two planned on getting decommissioned, buying a house, and finding stability. Nigel suggested buying the house in front of his own since it was vacant, and with some help from everyone, they managed to secure it and pay it slowly. Their new life looked promising.

Then Wally disappeared.

She tried all she could to keep a happy demeanor, especially for the baby, but as days passed and Wally was nowhere to be found, she felt that hunger return, and found some comfort... too much comfort in food.

Luckily Nigel got to her before it got too out of hand, and for some months lived at her place to make sure she and the baby were ok.

Abby and Hoagie visited whenever they could to help as well, and when finally even the Beetles had sorted their problems out (because yeah, THEY LOST A SON!) they were more than happy to help her with the house, the baby, and more. Especially Lou, for some reason. He was the one Kuki let out about her problem with food, and he suggested getting some help, at least for the sake of the baby.

She did, and in a few months, she also managed to get a job and "move on" as much as she could.

After the Nightmare War (which she didn't know about because of decommission, she just knew there was a huge accident at the Villa down the lane and Nigel was involved), she helped Nigel get back in shape and took care of Penny. Keeping herself busy was her way to not think about problems, and she made sure to always smile to make herself believe it was ok.

She also managed to find a new love interest (not sure if it's going to be OC or canon, still working on this part), so when the Beetles moved back to Australia, she had help and support for herself and Sami.

She had some ups and downs, but overall she held up pretty well on her own, she always managed to find a good side on everything!

Eventually, she and the new partner would break up, and he slowly disappeared from her life, leaving another hole. Again, she found relief in food but in an unhealthy way, this time it got her to the hospital.

She got back up on her feet, just in time for Wally's return. The two didn't get back together immediately, Wally also stayed at Nigel's for a few months so as not to push himself on her and Sami, but they eventually let feelings win.

At this point of the Adutl AU, she has her memories back, is working a job as a daycare teacher, and is still fighting eating problems, where she might not eat for some time.

Luckily, this time Wally is prepared and knows how to help, support, and make her feel loved and special ❤️❤️❤️

[skaldish]

re: science and spiritual/supernatural, you might want to look up author Corine Sombrun - she took part in some scientific collabs researching trance. I can't be sure yet how good these are, since I've been made aware of her recently (my friend worked on polish edition of one of her books, which I'm also yet to read), but it seems super interesting and I love that it's being looked into. I see on her website that most of her books aren't available in english so far, but some articles are, so there's a start!

Noted! I'll see if there's any weight to it. I think with recent advances of biopsychology there's now the potential to actually rule out probable causes. The issue is that not all of science is on the verge of all the latest advancements, and some scientists are still treating yesterday's developments as novel concepts.

If I may ramble for a second too, since you got me thinking about this topic: I think the main issue we've been facing with science and the supernatural, is that all our technology is designed to interface and measure the natural, and we can't use tools that measure the universe's hardware to read its software anymore than we can read a Wikipedia article by watching electricity move through the server it's hosted on. Crude analogy, but that's the basic concept.

Like...if we were to put me in an MRI, and I were to hold a conversation with Loki while my brain is getting scanned, what would inevitably happen is that my brain will light up in ways that probably correspond with my auditory and language processing, as well as some visual processing and wherever the hell "thinking" lives. And at the same time this is going on, we can have all those ghost-hunting gadgets set up in the room to try to pinpoint where Loki is.

And the inevitable outcome of all this is that the results will be inconclusive...because all of these things are trying to measure matter, rather than a function.

It seems when it comes to anything supernatural, science has a habit of clinging fast to a really outdated false predicate—that anything that's "real" must have a material existence. So of course we're only going to come up with *non-committal wiggly hand gesture* if we keep trying to measure it like this.

No one will say that a Wikipedia article isn't real, despite the fact it has a digital existence. It's not made of matter-based atoms, but energy-based 1's and 0's. Sure, the article may be hosted on something that's made of atoms, but that doesn't give the article itself a material existence—the material thing is just the container it exists in, the same way our universe is the container we exist in.

The only reason why we see Wikipedia articles as words on a screen is because our displays give them the appearance of documents. But this is just a facsimile for our sake only—it's not what the article actually "looks" like.

Like, idk. With how our own digital tech is shaping up, I figure it's only a matter of time before we go, "Maybe there's a thing here that's interfacing with our material world. I bet we can pinpoint what it is, and develop a technology on our end that can interface back."

[zentriii]

Keiji lightly runs her fingers across smooth skin, lingering on the not-so-smooth parts with equal parts love and longing. Hitoka’s fast asleep, oblivious to the world around her. She snores softly and has drool leaking to a puddle on her pillow and Keiji can’t help but kiss her cheek, heart bursting full with her girlfriend sleeping peacefully beside her.

She’s so lucky, she thinks as Hitoka shuffles towards her, to find love like this.

“Keiji?” Osamu mumbles blearily, lifting his head from the other side of their bed.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up,” she apologizes softly, mindful that their partner is still asleep between them. She thought she got to bed earlier than this. Osamu works early, she shouldn’t be ruining the little sleep he gets to have because she forgot the time while working. Keiji doesn’t know what the exact time it is right now, but she can tell it’s far later than it should be.

She’s used to pulling long hours, but today she only closed her laptop when her room started spinning around her. Keiji barely managed to stumble into their bedroom and toss her clothes off before getting into bed.

“Nah you’re fine, it’s about time for me to get up anyways.”

Keiji watches a dark Osamu-shaped blob toss the covers off, turn off his phone alarm, and head to shower with a towel grabbed from their closet.

Her gaze shifts towards their alarm clock, it reads 3:18 in bold and unforgiving red. Shame rushes up Keiji’s chest, crushing her lungs under their weight.

She can’t turn her mind off. Osamu’s been sleeping less and now she’s taken even more time from him. Sleep evades her fitful attempts to grasp it in her hands.

She closes her eyes and shoves everything to the side but all she sees are lines of SFX running through her sight, labelled incorrectly. Keiji's helpless to do anything but fix one but as soon as she moves onto the second, the original turns into something else entirely. It’s maddening and her heart goes out Sisyphus.

Keiji rolls away from Hitoka and shoves her face into her pillow. It would be unfair to disturb Hitoka's sleep too.

The alarm clock reads 3:31.

She isn’t sure if she’s going to be able to sleep tonight.

A door clicks open and Keiji peeks over towards to sound. Osamu walks out of their bathroom, freshly showered and carefully padding around their room, pulling on his work clothes. Keiji quickly pretends to be asleep when he looks over, absolutely not interested in being caught. She already woke Osamu up earlier than usual, she doesn’t have any interest in worrying him about her sleep even further.

She hears a soft kiss and gentle words whispered beside her and Keiji can’t stop her lips from curling with satisfaction as her heart flutters waiting for her own turn.

A rough and gentle hand brushes her bangs back followed closely by warm lips pressed gently on her forehead. “If you're still up in a few, I wouldn’t mind some company with my pancakes. Love you.”

Keiji blinks and gives her rouse up before she realizes. She squints at Osamu’s small satisfied smile. “How did you–”

“You're not slick babe,” he chuckles. “You gonna come eat with me or?”

Face flushing, Keiji doesn’t have anything better to do than accept. She’s hungry and she loves eating with him. “Okay okay, aren’t we out of whipped cream though?”

Osamu’s face twists in exaggerated disgust and she carefully memorizes every line of it. “You're a heathen for disrespectin’ pancakes with that wad of fluffed up sugar but whatever. I think we still have a little left but you're adding it to the list if ya want me to grab s’more.”

“Thanks, Samu.” Keiji knows Osamu would remember to grab some for her anyways.

“It’s nothin’.” He leans down for another kiss and Keiji meets him halfway. She watches him head off for the kitchen in silence. She hasn’t got her internal balance back quite yet, there’s still a whirlpool of emotions under her skin, but for now, this is enough.

Keiji crawls out from under her blankets and as the cool air hits her skin, she still feels warm inside. She follows Osamu to their kitchen, looking forward to sleeping better with a full stomach.

[sucrows]

Crow you interested me in ur femstars body headcanons now..... I would love to hear abt everyone but that might be too much work LMAO i invite u to share misc headcanons tho.... i love women

hope you know ive thought about this ask daily for the last 2 months, so its time to free it from its chambers and release the femstars body headcanons

gonna go wild and write as much or as little as i feel like for every character and ignore any i don't have any thoughts on. warning for talk about bodies and weight amongst other stuff

adonis: mostly muscular build but not in like... an instagram fitness influencer way in that she hyper focuses in on glutes. She works out upper body and lower body equally. she keeps her hair incredibly long but always has it up in some way. idk how accurate this is to canon but in MY eyes she used to be heavier before she got into being an idol but since she's moved to japan she's gotten more muscular. She still has the stretchmarks and loose skin in places to show for it. not particularly busty, probably a b or maybe c cup at most

chiaki: bangs and a high ponytail. her hair isn't all that long (just past soulder length) but it's enough that she can pull it up. really sickly as a child so she works out a lot and is decently muscular now.

himeru: if "willowy" were a person. Hair is long and straight and sleek. It falls in her face often. she and fem!adonis know each other well from working on shampoo commercials. Gives the impression of a "mean girl" until you chat with her

izumi: pixie cut. do you know how strict the ballet and modeling scene are on young girls? her self image is rough and she's still definitely struggling with the fact that bodies change as you age. She used to be really thin and was a late bloomer. She's still thin now and has a decent amount of muscle but fem!izumi is even more sensitive about her weight than regular izumi

kanata: short hair. what is up with everyone giving her long hair? if anything, the symbolism of kanata not having long hair anymore means even more if we're talking about fem!kanata.

keito: dresses reallllllyyyy conservatively until its for a job and then she flashes everyone with eyefulls of arm muscles and tits. Genuinely gorgeous and stunning. Bob with a small undercut for hair.

koga: ok i cannot picture her with one specific hairstyle so im going to just say she's always changing it up. She'll go "im growing it out!" and then the next day she's shaved her sides.

leo: her hair has not changed at all, she just plays with it a bit more often. Short and bony. basically the same as regular leo but even shorter.

mayoi: same hair as regular mayoi. very thin and not very shapely. She's not completely flat chested but her breasts are small enough that she can often get away with not wearing a bra. when she's not really anxious but not smiling she has a case of rbf and it's funny

niki: hair is same as regular niki. busty and bottom heavy. really reslly struggled to gain weight as a child and early teenage years due to her health issues but has gained weight as of becoming an idol due to having enough money to actually feed herself what she needs! yippee!

rinne: wolf cut! used to be long but one day after she got to the city she cut it and never looked back. does not work out often but somehow maintains a muscular physique.

ritsu: longer hair as a kid, same as regular ritsu now. permanently wears oversized clothing.

souma: almost identical to regular souma except shorter and with b cups

tatsumi: i am a short hair tatsumi truther. It was really long during reimei but it was such a hassle while she was hospitalized that she decided to go for the big chop. wants to grow it out again but has a bob as of canon time. anyways back to what everyone wants to hear: yeah she has a massive chest but she's kinda insecure about it. she's another one who grew up fat and still isn't quite used to everyone praising her now for having fat in the "right" areas. frequent practice has her a bit thinner than she used to be but do not get me wrong she is still fat (especially on her stomach and arms). oh yeah and also molessssss

Ok getting off my soapbox now i love women ❤️

[foxintheferns]

Wild Heart

Chapter Three

A Twilight - Paul Lahote Fanfiction

PREVIOUS CHAPTER

*Short summary for my antsy gals: this absolute babe with childhood trauma, no real family and a passion for animals goes to live in the woods outside of La Push beach for her job that’s she’s deemed is necessary to find her way in life, and guess who’s not happy she’s there because now they have to worry about this human who’s put herself smack in the middle of bloodsucker city, where they have an instinctual obligation to protect her. And guess who’s even more angry that he suddenly feels an undying and relentless, fiery need to be with her all the time? Angst, tension, passion, anger, love, jealousy, perhaps even some betrayal? This story’s got it all babes (yes, even the smut) - it’s just one of those slow burn, then-suddenly-everything-is-fuckin-crazy-and-the-angst-is-unreal fics, you know? stay tuned ;)

A/N: awww shit we got the Jacob POV with this one! Sorry this took a while! I’m feeling super excited about the story and antsy to get into it. Hope you enjoy!!! PS, tagging all the wonderful lil babies that liked chapter one and two! You guys motivated me to get this one done :’) more to come shortly

CHAPTER THREE

Jacob Black’s POV:

“I don’t know, dude, but she’s out there,” I muttered under my breath, whittling away vigorously at the piece of wood I was working on with my knife. Jared scoffed, lounging on Emily and Sam’s couch across the room, gnawing on some chicken wings that Embry had brought over.

“Yeah, okay, I’m sure she was just a hiker, Jake. Teenagers from the Rez go out there all the time lookin’ for trouble, you know that,” he responded, not seeming to be truly allowing his full attention to fall on the conversation. I raised my eyes from my wood carving to glare at him from where I sat on the wooden steps.

“I do know that, Jared,” My voice came out as a sneer now, “That’s exactly why I’m saying this is different.”

Jared didn’t notice my eyes on him, and shrugged casually as he continued to pull chicken off a thigh bone with his teeth, his eyes more focused on the hockey game playing on the television than on my concerns. His face was looking extra punchable today, and I knew I’d have to reel in my annoyance for him if I wanted to be taken seriously by the pack with this one. Seth strode in from the back porch now, the screen door into the living room having allowed him to hear our bickering. He slid the screen closed behind him and shot me an interested look.

“I believe you, Jake. We just all gotta go out there and see what’s goin on.”

Ugh. Seth was always backing me up, and it made me even more irritable. Even though he was 22 now, he still felt a lot like a little brother to me, although I’d started to really respect him as a member of the pack; he did really pull his weight. I shrugged now, turning my attention back to the wood in my hand that was starting to slowly take the shape of a full-bodied wolf. I knew I’d have to wait until Sam and Paul came back from their trip to Canada before the issue would be addressed seriously. Even my own father wasn’t showing the concern I thought was necessary.

A week before, a twenty-something, obviously totally clueless girl had moved into the old lookout shelter smack in the middle of the Olympic Forest. Right where the pack had full territory protection orders, conveniently enough. The shelter hadn’t been used in over 5 years, and now suddenly the State of Washington has deemed it necessary for this girl to be out there doing, what exactly - birdwatching? It was ridiculous. On my patrol a few days before, I’d decided to stay quiet and watch her from afar for a while, as I’d been keeping an eye on her since I noticed her arrive days before. I seriously watched that girl walk around the forest for hours, looking through her binoculars and scribbling in her little notebook. I got so bored I almost fell asleep, my head resting on the ground between my paws and the occasional sound of the girl’s whispered ‘wow’s and ‘look at you, you are a beauty!’s lulling my tired brain. She often stayed in one area of the woods for hours, and I didn’t have to move around much to avoid her detecting my massive form behind the tall ferns and felled trees.

I just didn’t understand why anyone would do that to themselves. I mean, if anyone understood the beauty of the forests around La Push, it was me, but subjecting yourself to living in that little cabin for who knows how long? This girl must be certifiably insane - or at least very weird and antisocial, I thought. The boys and I had seen the empty cabin loads of times, it being pretty much smack in the middle of the pack’s territory. It was every so often that young, drunk teenagers stumbled across the chained-off shelter late at night and warranted us to do a little intervening, scaring them off by growling or shuffling deep from the darkness. It worked like a charm, every damn time. We couldn’t have people, nonetheless some random kids, partying out in the middle of the woods like a buffet for the bloodsuckers. It was our job to make sure anyone on our land was safe. And that’s exactly why this girl was putting a bit of a kink in our system.

I remembered the night I first saw her. The lights had been on, smoke escaping from the cabin’s chimney for the first time in years, and I had practically sprinted home to tell the rest of the pack. I had been the only one out doing patrol recently; Sam and Paul had gone as the pack ambassadors to Northern Canada, in their human forms, to visit another group that had reached out in efforts to understand more about our kind. It seemed the Quileutes weren’t the only shifters around. It was great and all, sure, but it left me as the stand-in Alpha while they were away, and the boys didn’t necessarily fear me as much as they did Sam, what with them being my best friends.

“Ah, right, that girl… the one with the Bronco, from the grocery store,” my dad Billy had said casually a week before, when I had brought up to him the severity of my concerns after first seeing her and having my worries be promptly brushed off by Embry and Jared pretty quickly. There hadn’t been a bloodsucker around these parts in quite a while. The Cullens were away, somewhere in Europe, for the past few months, and the pack had seemed to get a bit too comfortable with the lack of constant vampire threats.

I stared up at my dad in confusion, my mouth slightly open in surprise that he seemed to immediately know who I was talking about. All I’d said was that I saw someone was in the lookout shelter, lights on and wood burning stove cranking, and that we needed to figure out who the hell was trespassing and kick them out.

Billy looked up briefly from his newspaper and coffee to meet my eyes nonchalantly.

“Who?” I asked incredulously.

He chuckled lightly, shaking his head and straightening his newspaper out to read it again. “Jacob, the lookout is State property. Sometimes they send in a scientist or two to do some research on endangered species and whatnot for a year or so. They’ve done it lots of times. She’s not the first,” He said casually while eyeing the newspaper. My mouth gaped at him now. How was he taking this so lightly? “Wh-first of all, how do you even know about this girl? Second- she’ll be out there a year?!” My voice was louder, his nonchalance starting to irk me. Billy had sighed then, setting the newspaper down on the table. “I saw her when we got groceries earlier today. She dropped something from her wallet and I yelled out to let her know. I asked her what she was doing in these parts, and she told me she moved here for her job. Wildlife biologist. Tell me, son, you see any other places that a wildlife biologist would work in La Push? I figured that’s where she’d be going, right when she told me. Now, obviously it’s not ideal that she’s out there but, well… I mean, she’s doing it for a good cause.” I stared at him in disbelief, shaking my head and my eyes bugging. His careless demeanor towards the issue was making me feel like I was about to implode, my temperature rising and the wolf inside me eager as ever to let my anger take hold. “Yeah, not ideal is a bit of an understatement. Ha! She’s bloodsucker bait out there. She won’t even last a month, just watch. Either we’ll scare her off, or the leeches will come for her,” I seethed, crossing my arms and putting my feet up on the coffee table in front of the couch. I stared across the room at the wall. Billy’s eyes burned into me from my peripheral, and I heard him grumble under his breath before he curtly responded, ”Jacob. It’s your job to keep her safe now. That is not an option. That is the responsibility and obligation that runs through your veins,” he hesitated briefly, “And I won’t hear about you trying to scare her. I won’t.”

My brows furrowed, and I kept my arms crossed in defiance, although I knew I couldn’t argue with him. He was right. But, it was still worth a shot trying to get her to leave.

That was a week ago now, and with Paul and Sam still gone for the next week, I knew I’d have to figure something out myself. I was the Alpha for the time being, after all. I stood up from the step, folding my knife, stuffing it into my back pocket and carefully slipping my incomplete wolf carving into its velvet pouch for safe keeping.

“You guys have fun. I’m going back out there,” I grumbled, taking the extra moment to flick the side of Jared’s head on my way out the back door. He yelped and grimaced, holding his head dramatically and rubbing the place where my middle finger had made contact. Seth stifled a laugh from the recliner in the corner, and Jared shot him a look before flinging a chicken bone at his head, which Seth dodged gracefully. I hid my smile as I strode out across the back porch, bracing myself with my right arm and slinging my legs over the waist high fence to land on the other side with ease. I breathed deeply, feeling the last bit of direct sunshine the day had to offer touch my skin. I had honestly been enjoying this smaller pack experience. With Sam gone, and me calling the shots, I had a lot more solo-shifting time. Being in my wolf, all by myself and without the constant obnoxious chatter of the boys in my head, was truly peaceful. I stood behind the porch and glanced around me once before pulling my pants to the ground. I shook them off and tied them around one of my ankles, my typical way of ensuring I had clothes to put on when I shifted back into my human form later. I let my body begin to tremble and burn and tear as I pushed through my current peace and urged it to become strength. Shifting on command was now something my body had gotten quite used to, and I felt natural doing it. I was grateful that I no longer had to be seething with rage or worry in order for my body to morph, painfully and violently, into its massive canine form. This was much more convenient.

I made a point to check the entirety of the perimeter first, possibly trying to convince myself that this foolish girl wasn’t the only reason I was out there so early. I ran for miles, keeping my senses honed in and my body at a steady pace. I was leaving checking on her for last, the little cabin tucked deep into the woods on our land and about a mile in from our southernmost territorial boundary line. Suddenly, a thought broke through my quite peace.

~Jake, we’re all down by First Beach for a fire, you should swing by and take a break~

Seth’s voice was soft. He knew when I was in the zone, and had been barked at for being a nuisance many times, so I could sense his hesitation with the invite. Surprisingly, I was eager to take a break before checking out the lookout shelter. I hadn’t realized it, or maybe hadn’t even wanted to acknowledge it before, but I was a little nervous. I didn’t know what it was about this girl, but her comfort within the forest threw me off. I wasn’t used to seeing outsiders look so at home in what I felt was my home.

~Sure, sure, I’ll be there~

Seth’s presence quickly disappeared again with my response, and I began my sprint through the forest down to the beach. Within minutes I was gliding through the trees, aiming for the spot where the boys and I typically met up. I stopped when I came to the tree-line, and could see the fuzzy outline of the reservation’s only restaurant, Riverside, through the trees. I felt my body shimmer and shake as I shifted back to my two legged body, bending at the waist and moving from side to side to crack my tired back and neck as I adjusted. I untied my sweatpants from my ankle and pulled them back on, swiping my hand quickly through my hair to make myself presentable and avoid attracting too many unwanted looks from tourists on the beach. Although, being six foot five and usually shirtless typically prevented that from being avoidable. I made my way through the remaining patch of trees until they broke apart and revealed the stretch of dirt road that went from the restaurant down to the beach. Seth, Embry and Quil were standing in a huddle off to the side of the small building. Seth and Embry turned at the sound of my footsteps, a greeting, howl-like hoot coming from Embry’s mouth. I chuckled and returned the sound, coming up to them and returning his waiting fist bump. Quil nudged my arm, narrowing his eyes and lowering his tone to speak in a playful inflection, “Yo, think I saw that girl you’re so hung up on down at the beach, man.”

I felt my cheeks warm, and I immediately felt anger at the odd sensation. I knew Quil was just trying to fuck with me. ‘That girl you’re so hung up on’ as if I gave a crap what she was up to. I just didn’t want to have to deal with the inconvenience of another innocent human to have to protect for no good reason other than she wants to watch some birds. I punched his arm, hard enough for that shitty grin of his to be wiped off of his face.

“Yeah? D’ya tell her to get the hell outta here?” I responded with a sarcastic smile.

Embry rolled his eyes, looking at me straight on. Embry was never intimidated by me, even when Sam appointed me the stand-in alpha, even when I was the only one of us besides Paul that could easily overpower any of the others in the pack.

“Jake, relax. Girl looks like she knows her way around a trail, I don’t think it’s a big deal.” Embry’s voice was steady.

I raised my eyebrows, smirking at his consistently naive kindness.

“Yeah, Embry? You ready to keep watch and make sure she doesn’t become leech bait for the next year?”

Embry’s face faltered, his eyebrows pulling together in confusion, “A year? Why would she be here a whole year?”

I nodded, a grim smile on my face, happy the boys were finally getting it.

“A year. Billy says that’s what the State does, hires biologists or whatever to come down here to study the animals. I guess that’s how long the job is.”

Seth seemed interested now, his own usually neutral position seeming to falter as well.

“Oh damn, that is kinda…not ideal… I wonder if-,” Seth paused mid sentence, his eyes catching something behind me. I waited for him to continue, and when he didn’t, I turned to see what had caught his attention. Walking toward the restaurant -and toward us- a small red backpack strewn over her shoulder and curly brown hair that escaped a long braid in small wispy sections around her face, whipping across her cheeks with the salty breeze, was a girl. The elusive forest bird girl. There she was. The current thorn in my side that was causing more issues than she could even dream of understanding. I hadn’t seen her this close yet. She looked to be around our age, early twenties, and she was a bit taller than a lot of the girls I’d seen around town. She had long, graceful legs that carried her with purposeful and lengthy strides. Her feet were clad in brown hiking boots, dirty and currently blanketed in sand from the beach she seemed to be coming from. In the brief moment we had stopped our conversation to look in her direction, she had glanced down at the ground, seemingly avoiding our intense stares. I turned back slowly to see the boys watching her intently, and rolled my eyes. The silence carried on until she opened the door to the restaurant, stepping inside and closing the door behind her.

Seth’s eyes were still on the door. I snapped my finger in his face, calling his attention back. He blinked, staring at me. Then, he looked down at the ground, shuffling his feet around on the dirt, apparently finding a random rock to be quite interesting.

“I mean, if that’s the girl living in our woods- I think it’s, uh… I think that’s just fine,” Seth mumbled with a light shrug, a playful smirk pulling up onto his lips as he shot a narrow glance at Quil from the corner of his eye. Quil snorted, earning another shoulder punch from me. “Yeah, yeah. Get your skinny asses down to the beach, let’s go,” I instructed, turning my body away from the restaurant and directing the group of us towards the treeline. They obliged, starting a new conversation amongst themselves as I trailed behind. Before we entered the trees to make our way down to the beach, I risked one brief glance over my left shoulder, and regretted it instantly when I made direct eye contact with her through the glass pane of the front window of the restaurant. My eyes shot back forward immediately, but I continued to see her face in my mind for a moment. She had been looking at me. Her expression was… intrigued? No, that wasn’t it, maybe nervous? Good. I didn’t want her getting comfortable here.

Two Hours Later

“All I’m saying is, she’s cute,” Quil had his hands up defensively in front of him, palms facing outward, “sue me, Jake. A hot girl is living in our forest and I’m not mad about it.”

I glared at him from beneath my brows across the large driftwood fire the four of us sat around on First Beach, the sun just starting to come down across the horizon.

“And all I’m saying is, you’re lucky you’re sitting all the way over there, Quil,” I mumbled back, turning my gaze downward to continue to play with a stick in the sand, stabbing it down and feeling the satisfying crunch of the beach beneath it.

“Lighten up, Jake. You’re gonna go prematurely grey with all this worrying you’re doing,” Embry joked, chewing on some Swedish Fish he’d pulled out from his back pocket. My eyes flickered up to his face, and he slowed his chewing when he saw whatever expression was on mine, the humor on his features withering slightly.

“This isn’t something he,” I gestured towards Quil, “or any of us, should be joking about. Just because bloodsuckers haven’t come through in a while doesn’t mean they’re not out there. They’re always out there. And this girl has decided to settle down right smack in the middle of the damn woods. You guys don’t see anything that could go wrong there?”

Seth shrugged halfheartedly, “Honestly?…Not with us around.”

I rolled my eyes, but slumped my shoulders back down in defeat.

“Whatever, I’m going back,” I muttered, throwing the stick I’d been fumbling with down into the flames of the bonfire as I pulled myself to my feet. I heard the mumbles of complaint and opposition come from the three of them, but decided I wasn’t in the mood for more petty arguing and defending of reality, and kept a steady pace over to the tree-line bordering the beach until I was well into the cover of the dark greenery. I walked further, trying to allow the cold air of the forest to bite into my skin and clear my head. The sunlight was almost completely gone now, and I was eager to get back into my wolf form, the idea of not having to communicate with the rest of the pack looking like a luxury at this point. I was always able to sink effortlessly into the instinctual, primal rhythm that came along with shifting. It was a quiet place where my human emotions and worries weren’t as clear and sharp. It allowed escape. As I bent to pull my sweatpants down, a distant light flickered across my vision. I stood up straight, my pants pulling back up onto my hips, and narrowed my eyes to peer through the trees. A bobbing flashlight was moving through the black trees ahead, probably around 40 yards away. My vision was much better than the average human’s, and my senses of smell and hearing were almost as good as they were in my wolf form. I knew almost immediately that it was her. I felt a smirk pull up a corner of my mouth when I realized that she was making it far too easy, now. All I had to do was freak her out a bit, right? What woman wants to stay in the woods by herself when strange shirtless men are out and about? I started striding towards her, not fully knowing what I was doing or bothering to question myself up until the very moment she seemed to hear the crunching of my feet on the ground. She froze, and I could hear the terrified pumping of her heart in the silence. Maybe I wouldn’t even have to do much. Maybe this would be enough to scare her, to get her to pack her things and head back to wherever she came from. I continued to loudly trudge across the forest floor, trying to make myself sound even bigger than I already was. She suddenly reached behind her, grabbing some object from her backpack’s side, and then proceeded to yell. Or, I don’t think I could truly call it a yell. A loud whimper, perhaps.

“Hey, bear! H-hey bear!”

I almost laughed out loud. I stopped walking, stifling my chuckle and keeping my eyes on her trembling frame. I had to make myself known; I couldn’t let the poor girl believe that her pathetic attempt at keeping a bear away would’ve actually worked. I’d practically be doing her a disservice by going away now.

Back to the strange man in the woods approach.

“Well, I’m not a bear, but if I was - don’t know that those sounds would do the trick.”

She reeled, gasping and throwing her flashlight to the ground in her panic. I rolled my eyes in the darkness. If I had been a bear, you’d be a goner by now, I wanted to say.

“Shit!” Her voice filled the silent forest, and I bit my bottom lip hard to keep the unimpressed laugh from escaping. I was right to try and get this girl to leave, she wouldn’t last a second around a vampire. Suddenly, the flashlight was back in her grasp and a blinding light was being pointed directly at my face.

“Jesus, wha-, fuck, can you shine that down?!” I practically yelled, throwing a hand up in front of my face and straining my eyes from the brightness. After a moment, the light was lowered quickly, hovering around my legs, and I let my hand fall back down. We locked eyes, her terrified gaze traveling up and down my body, resting finally on my face.

“H-…wha-who-,” she stammered out, then appeared to take a deep breath and began again, “Why are you following me?”

Now, I couldn’t hide my amusement. I felt a smile prick the corner of my mouth, and I watched as her expression became more filled with terror at the change in my expression. When I saw that, I realized it was possible that I was maybe scaring her a bit too much. I let my gaze soften and stifled back another chuckle, cocking my head towards her and letting my genuine interest in her ridiculous reasoning lead the way.

“Following you? You’re on my land, sweetheart,” I responded, my voice calm and steady, keeping my eyes locked on hers.

➡️NEXT CHAPTER

……………………………………………………………………………………

A/N: eeeeeek! This was basically Chapter Two but from Jake’s POV, so very excited to move it along in the next chapter heheh. Should be up tmrw! To the wonderful readers who followed along with Chp 1 and 2, you guys rock and I hope you still wanna read, but still luv u even if u just stopped in for those first chapters! <3

@hotheadwolf @living-that-best-life @carrrieeexu @plainharmony130th-blog

[queers-gambit]

hi! Absolutely love ur work, you're super talented! Would you mind writing a something about Billy with an insecure reader? Like just concerning her body and stuff :> if you don't want to it's no problem!

i am smooching your forehead, you cutie. i'm sorry it took so long but i'm finally thinning out my requests!!

The Weight of Words

pairing: Billy Hargrove x female!reader

fandom masterlist: Stranger Things

word count: 3.0k+

note: author is projecting!! maturity and caution advised!!

warnings: cursing, angst, shitty family relationships, a mother's hate, talk of birth control, talk of poor self image / self-esteem, author relived some conversations she's buried deep down and poured it into this. talk of diets, illusion to poor-food-relationship, again, proceed with maturity and caution.

The rain seemed to match your mood, beating down on Hawkins, Indiana residents relentlessly until you finally felt like a sopping piece of paper - ready to fall apart the second someone touched you. You tugged Billy's hoodie up higher on your head, tightening your hand in his as you hold the umbrella above you both while rushing for his car.

Moments before, you were hardly paying attention to anything around you as you were sat on the bleachers; trying to focus on your homework but the teachers must've felt the energy shift in the school and actually backed off of piling the work on. The weather seemed to drag everyone down, and perhaps, that was the reason for those harrowing comments you caught in the locker room right before lunch, that still plagued you.

Billy had another detention to serve because he was the "star" of the basketball team, meaning Coach got him out of after school detentions. Didn't mean he didn't get them still, just that he served during the lunch hour; interrupting the limited 'free time' you and Billy have. It left you alone, and while you had friends to sit with at lunch, you were feeling down since the previous evening and your mother made comments about your weight.

"Hmm, you feelin' okay, sweetie?" You mother asked, standing above you with a plate stalled in her hand.

"Yes, Mom, why? Don't I look all right?"

She tisked her tongue and turned to set your plate down on the counter, away from you at the table. "You're looking a little, well," she trailed off, shrugging as she used her hand to talk, "pudgy. Are you keeping up with your diet?"

"Mom," you groaned, sighing sadly.

"Janet," your father growled in warning, sat across from you.

"What, Hector?" She snapped. "It's a mother's job to make sure her baby girl isn't ruining her life!"

"I'm not ruining my life, Mom," you tried to interject, but the truth was, you were much closer to your father, and after you and Billy got serious (complete with your first pregnancy scare), you went to your father expressing interest in birth control.

Now, ask anyone else, and it was a 'smart, responsible decision', but ask your conservative mother? And birth control might as well been a death sentence.

The Pill wasn't widely accepted yet, but your father trusted you to be safe and after going to your OB/GYN together, he learned much more about contraceptive, and how condoms only work 99% of the time, before giving you parental consent. It was kept a secret from your mother, who would've surely slut-shamed you, but now you're wondering if keeping her in the dark was right.

It's true, The Pill made you put a few extra pounds on, but you didn't think it was bad. Your hips became shapely, your thighs rounding some, and your belly soon had a layer of "pudge". It wasn't a bad weight gain in your eyes, but if it was enough for your mother to notice, you knew it was enough for others to, as well.

"Well, you're looking heavier than usual!" Your mother snapped at you, making both you and your father shrink in your seats. Janet was a scary woman, and her words were law; her eyes blazing in anger as she look at you two. "And Hector! You let her drop cheerleading! No wonder she's putting weight on!"

"Mom!" You tried.

"No!" She raged, shoving your full plate into the sink and watching it shatter. "No daughter of mine is going to become a lard-ass in my house! We're going back on your diet, and you're going back to cheerleading - and that is the end of it!"

"Mom, I don't like cheer, anymore," you tried. "I was e-even thinking of going for softball in the spring - "

"Softball!?" She repeated with disgust. "So you can work on your manly figure, huh!? No! I will not let my daughter ruin her beautiful, feminine figure! Bad enough I let you get this heavy, but that's all over now! Tomorrow, you bring home a new permission form for cheerleading, or don't bother coming home. Now - here."

She spat her last word as she set a bowl of steamed veggies in front of you, glaring once more, before taking up your toddler brother to move into the living room. Your father caught your eye and mouthed an apology, watching you nod as you forked a stem of broccoli into your mouth. He stood, and within moments, you were heading for your room as Janet and Hector started their nightly yelling match that would only result in him sleeping on the couch - again.

While Billy was serving detention with Mr. Shwartz, you were pacing the length of the bathroom out of sheer anxiety. You eyed your outfit in the mirror, sighing in malcontent as your top showed off more of your figure than you'd realized. Figuring Billy had a hoodie in his locker, you turned for the door, and side-stepped out of the way of four cheerleaders, who were entering. They offered fake smiles, greeting you with sickly-sweetness; making you internally flinch as you remembered being in that particular crowd.

Only a few steps out of the room, you realized you forgot your backpack, and doubled back; only a few feet into the bathroom to grab your bag when the four cheerleaders were heard from their stalls, laughing, "Did you see what she was wearing? I mean! What was that!?"

"I know," another scoffed. "Like, sorry, babe, that top was cute two years ago - it's a little small now!"

"A little?" Another repeated, laughing. "Girl, that top barely covers her tits! Honestly, what does Billy see in her? It's like watching a cow try to fit in a tiny top!"

"Hey! At least her tits and ass actually finally came in, you remember how mis-shaped she was before!"

"Must be relationship weight."

"Doubt Billy's gonna stick around much longer! I mean, she's just letting herself go, and it's embarrassing to witness!"

Their laughter followed you out of the bathroom; your eyes full of tears as you rushed down the hallway. Reaching Billy's locker, you easily punched the combo in before wrenching the door open, snagging his hoodie, and only finding mild comfort when it was finally over your head and his scent invading your sense. Billy was bigger than you due to his incessant working out, leaving his hoodie a little big on you - and God, was it a life-saver now.

You were relieved for the extra material that seemingly still dwarfed you.

During the transition to class after lunch, you saw the four cheerleaders again; pointing at you and snickering to one another, making your anxiety spike once more. For the rest of the day, you couldn't find it in you to care for anything your teachers drowned on about, and when the final bell rang, you made a beeline for the gym to get comfortable until Billy was done practice.

Which brings us to the present, where you were trying to appear as small as possible on the bleachers with Billy's hoodie tugged up your head. You listened to the rain beat on the school's roof, then to the endless squeaking of the boys' basketball team sneakers.

Two hours later, you heard Billy calling your name. "C'mon, pretty girl!" He chuckled, offering his hand as you darted down the stairs.

"Hi, good practice," you whispered, pausing on the last step to reach his lips in a greeting kiss before stepping down in full; leaving you at least a foot smaller than he.

"Hey, thanks, baby," he smirked, tossing his arm around your shoulders. "That my hoodie?"

"Mhm," you nodded, fingering the material lightly. "Want it back?"

"Nah, baby, looks better on you," he nodded, pinning you with a confused look. "Everything all right? You look kinda, I don't know, sad?"

"Yeah, sure..."

"Baby," he sighed.

"It's nothing," you whispered, desperate to keep your emotions in check. Billy sighed and lifted your bag from your grip, tossing it onto his shoulder as you opened your umbrella for you both when you stepped outside.

And here, you were feeling more like a weighted piece of soggy paper that would've torn apart at any intruding touch, but only feeling able to stay together from Billy's grip on your hand. The rain was unbearable and started to sway sideways from the harsh, cold wind of late January; honestly shocking you that it wasn't snow yet.

After jogging to the car, Billy made sure to open your door and make sure you were in safely before shutting the door and rushing for his own. Once he dropped in, Billy sighed heavily and looked at you with concern, "All right, I know it's not nothing, so, don't try that with me. C'mon, baby, tell me what's wrong. Someone say something?"

"Billy," you sighed, reaching for his hand to idly toy with his fingers. He waited, knowing you sometimes need a bit of time to warm up to whatever was on your mind. In an effort to comfort you, he reached out to adjusted the heat setting of the car, letting it blast for a few moments before turning it down to a steady flow.

"We're not leavin' until you tell me what's botherin' you, pretty girl." You sighed at his words, tears springing to your eyes and making Billy tighten his hand in yours. "Who did it? Who hurt you?"

Your shoulder meekly shrugged as you felt his distinct protectiveness swell to fill the entire car; finally admitting, "It's... Kinda two separate things from yesterday and today..."

"Start with the first," he soothed, but you still felt his projected anger. You knew Billy hated your poor self esteem and trust me, he'd done wonders to help build you up - but while it took 1,000 compliments to build you up, it only takes one to knock you into the dirt. "Hey, baby, it's only me," he comforted when he felt your panic swell. "Only me, pretty girl, you're just talking to me, c'mon..."

You nodded, sniffling, "Well... Can I ask if you're... Attracted to me anymore?"

"Why would you ever ask that?" Billy frowned, sounding genuinely put off. "Baby, hey, hey, look at me, please. C'mon, look at me, pretty girl," he coaxed you into turning towards him, hand resting along your jawline to pet his thumb over the apple of your cheek. "What's going on? Who said what to you that would ever make you think I'm not attracted to you anymore? C'mon, you know that couldn't be true even if you tried."

You chuckled lightly at his complement before shrugging a bit, but hanging onto the wrist that was holding your cheek, "You know how I went on The Pill?"

"Mhm."

"Well, one of the side effects is... Is weight gain."

"Okay?"

"And, you know how Daddy was the one who took me to get it?" You pulled his hand down to hold in your lap.

"Yeah, 'cause your mom is batshit crazy," he chuckled, eyeing you wearily as you didn't always like him talking about your mother like that. Most of the time, she was supportive; but she had her own issues and sore spots that were taken out of you unjustly. And Billy worked tirelessly to make you understand that you are not your mother's worst insults.

But for this particular comment, you nodded in agreement, "Right, yeah, so, Daddy approved the medicine and we didn't tell Mom... So, because of that, she doesn't know I'm on it and noticed that I've gain some weight..."

"Oh, no," he sighed.

"Yeah," you whispered. "So, she noticed, right?"

"Okay?"

"She completely lost it on me, saying I was pudgy, saying I was going back on a diet, and all this other really hateful, awful shit. A-And today, I-I don't know, I just got a little overwhelmed. And then, there was the thing with the cheerleaders, again."

"What do you mean? What'd they do now?"

"Bee, take a breath," you whispered, squeezing his hand. "They noticed the change, too... Made a few comments about it when they thought I wasn't around," you sighed, feeling encouraged to continue by the way his thumb swept over the back of your hand. "And Mom wants me back on the cheer squad because it'll help get me back in shape... But how can I be on that team when they talk about me so fucking easily? And so hatefully? L-Like it's not my fault, there's so many medications that cause weight gain, or weight loss, and it's like I need to project that to be understood? That doesn't make sense, and girls are just so mean, and I don't know, I'm just - it's all so much right now!"

The tears got bigger and your breathing became shallow, making Billy sigh and tug you across the center console. "C'mere, c'mere, c'mere, c'mere, c'mere," he repeated until you were out of your seat and on his lap securely. "You listen to me," he sighed in a whisper, petting over your back, "you are the most beautiful woman I've ever known, okay? Extra weight or not, you're gorgeous to me. You're right, there's plenty of shit out there that can cause weight gain and it's not fair that people don't outright understand that. Fuck what everyone else says, you hear me? They only wish for a fraction of this ass," he chuckled, smacking a hand to a cheek before giving a hearty jiggle, "and to have your brains, your wit, your humor..."

"Did you do something?" You asked teasingly, resting against his chest comfortably, manicured hand scratching into his hair for your own comfort. "Kissing my ass pretty well."

"Nah, just want you to understand that I'm obsessed with you and everything about you, and that it doesn't matter to me how much you weigh or what you look like - 'cause I fell in love with much, much more than that," he whispered, pulling back to press his lips to your forehead. "I know it's easier said than done, pretty girl, but don't listen to them. They're just fucking jealous of you, they're unhappy in their lives, 's the only reason anyone talks shit about anyone these days - 's all just pure jealousy."

"And my Mom?"

He sighed, tugging you in closer, "She's just... In her own fucked up, really warped way, she's trying to protect you, I guess. I'm not saying it's the right way, or even the right thing to do, but she's trying in her own way. But you don't need to hear that shit - I know how much it hurts," he sighed. "Just listen to me on this, hey? You're so fucking beautiful, and those bitches are jealous."

"Bee?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"Can you stay with me tonight?" You pouted a little, offering him your best puppy-dog-eyes.

"How can I say no?" He smirked, nodding at you. "I'll stay, baby, yeah. Your mom home?"

"No, she's working late, and you know she comes home and just crashes on Friday nights..."

"All right," he sighed, petting a strand of hair from your forehead. "You want me to say something to her when I see her?"

"No, no, please don't," you begged, sighing after. "I uh... I'm gonna go back to cheer... Maybe placate her with one thing, since I can't really control my weight."

His head cocked, "Thought you were gonna go for softball in the spring? Baby, you lettin' her words get to you?"

"Billy, you know better than anyone in this town how heinous parents can be... So, maybe the easiest thing right now is to go back to cheer to keep her calm."

He sighed, shaking his head, "Nah, you wanted - "

"Billy, I want peace more than anything."

"She doesn't get to bully you into things you don't want to - "

"Neil doesn't get to bully you, Bee, but we both just deal with it - right? We have ticking-time-bombs for parents and you and I have learned to diffuse them instead of letting them blow up."

He sighed, leaning back in his chair. He hated when you used Neil to deflect his anger, but you had a long day, and your emotions were out of control. "All right, truce, truce, truce," he relented. "You wanna go back to cheer, I'll support you, baby. But please do it because you want to, and not because your mother bullied you into it."

You chuckled lowly, "Yeah, I've been in cheer so long, maybe I won't switch up my sport yet. Might wait for college for that."

He cocked his head, asking, "Could you do both?"

"Oh, uh, I'm not sure..."

"I'll ask Coach on Monday," he assured softly, squeezing your thighs. "Wanna go to Joey's?"

"That's in the next town, Bee."

"And you love that chocolate shake they have," he smirked. "C'mon, baby, 's been a long day... Lemme treat you to something that's gonna make you smile."

Sighing gently, you nodded, "Okay, but we're splitting the shake."

He smirked, "You better not order the salad, either. Or I'll take you home, drive to her work, and have a word with your mother."

"Don't," you warned, then sighed. "All right, if I order the burger, what about the sweet potato fries?"

"Deal," he beamed, leaning in to peck your lips. "C'mon," he chuckled, helping you climb back over him to settle in the passenger seat again. "But I'm ordering us regular fries - sweet potatoes in a shake? Nah, that's just gross."

You chuckled, "You order the regular fries, please. I'm craving the cinnamon-butter they have."

"Oh, shit," he remembered, nodding, "all right, yeah, you get the sweet potato fries and butter, I'll get the regular fries, we split them?"

"Yessir," you smiled softly, reaching for his hand to lace together in your lap. "Thank you..."

"For what, baby?"

"Helping... I wasn't having the best day, but you really helped."

"You know I love you," he smiled, "and you know when you're sad, I'm sad, but when you're happy, I'm happy."

You let your head rest on his shoulder; fingers toying together as he drove you out of Hawkins High School, heading out of town for the diner with fancy cinnamon-butter.

[thoughtfullyrainynightmare]

I finally managed to finish this hurt-comfort piece from last month ^^' And it is very much hurt-comfort, so prepare accordingly

Summary: Fuegoleon overhears his wife on a communicator talking to some man he doesn't know, it is followed by said man badmouthing him, suggesting his wife to divorce him, and marry his (the man's) son instead. She then proceeds to give the man a piece of her mind. She and Fue talk afterwards, some comforting, and flirting ensues

Pairing: Fuegoleon x Solara Genre: Hurt-comfort Fanfic type: Oneshot Length: ~2,0k Contains: Feelings of inadequacy, fears and self-doubts, badmouthing, (kinda) strong language in some point I guess, hurt-comfort, happy end, maybe some suggestive themes (?), emotional piece, fluffy end, happy teasing at the end, oh and Fue is implied to be impotent by an idiot in reference to some earlier event (it's one sentence flashback), but I promise a happy end for the happy couple!

“I don’t understand why you are with him?”

The statement caught Fuegoleon off guard. Despite it not being something completely unheard of in the noble circles.

Someone was always jealous of someone, there were conflicting interests of different kind, or then someone was simply wearing rose coloured glasses. The reasons might have differed, but the statement, the sentiment of ‘you could do better’ was nothing new.

And while he wasn’t one to pry, the fact that the statement was spoken… in his own home, the Vermillion estate, he… Something made him stop in his track. Behind the partially open door. And just listen.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

He could feel warmth draining from his face as he could hear the voice of his wife. His beloved, gentle, loving wife.

“You really want to know?” Spoke the voice of a man he did not know.

“Well, since you started already?”

There was sarcasm in her tone, along with annoyance, and anger.

She sounded defiant.

But there was still a sense of creeping dread, of fear and defeat, that seemed to glide over the floor and into his shadow, making him feel the weight of his doubts. The things he had thought would have been left in the dusts of time, or would at least be nearly conquered. But here they were, lifting their ugly heads, making his eyes fall onto his right arm. The extremity that he had created with his mana, his power alone, and which he governed with his mana control, and sheer willpower, at all times. To not burn and scorch when not needed. To maintain shape and poise, despite fire itself wishing to do anything but.

The flames, the fire, the ever-present reminder of… his failures. And with the flickering flames, another memory surfaced. Perhaps one of the most vicious statements that had ever been uttered to him.

Wives in unhappy marriages usually rely in artificial … extremities... to keep them satisfied. But what a sorry excuse is it when the husband needs to do the same.

 It had been a cheap shot.

And one that had barely made sense.

Barely but… it had stricken a nerve in him.

Most things that were thrown at him, he could take, but that… that had been a sore spot. And the sickening taste of that memory seemed to follow him, come back, even if only scarcely, but still… in his moments of self-doubt, of pain and sorrow.

“He’s a workaholic,” the man’s voice stated. “Overly focused on rules and regulations, has no sense of humour, has this sour expression all the time like he’s smelling someone’s sock sweat and … whatever he has going on with that eyeliner has got to go. I thought he’s royalty. Not a jester.”

There was a moment of silence.

A deafening silence.

He didn’t know what to think. What to feel. And he couldn’t see his wife’s expression, so all the had to read, was the silence.

Her mana was there, but he couldn’t read it.

He didn’t know if that was a good thing, or a bad thing. That he couldn’t. He couldn’t tell what she might have been thinking, with the statements made. What path she was travelling. But. One thing he did know, was that she was going to go that path to the end.

Because there was no sway coming from behind the door.

Whatever she had decided, had been decided before the silence.

“And what?” She asked. “You think you could do better?”

“I have a son of marrying age, and I know you have kids and all, but blended families are the-“

“Why?”

There was a pause.

Another silence, another third of an eternity, during which he didn’t know what to think.

“Why what?”

“Why do you think you’d be better?”

The room fell into another silence. His mind failed to comprehend.

But it seemed, that the man’s voice was just as baffled.

“What I hear, is that you have an issue with how responsible he is. That you have a problem with how he’s trying to do the right thing, and do it correctly.” She started. “And I will have you know,” her voice was low, and quiet, but it held gravity to it. “He is responsible. He takes his job seriously and is trying to do everything like it should be done; keep the best interest of his people in mind, keep them safe and listen before placing judgements. But. He still manages to show love and care to his family. Because his loyalty is to his family first and foremost. He is a father, husband, and a knight, in that order. And whatever bullshit followed your opinion after that, is just you, trying to badmouth him.”

His eyes were still down, but he didn’t see whatever was laid before him. His mind was instead engulfed into thoughts, into the swaying sea of his emotions. And… before he realised it, he notices that the corners of his mouths had tugged up ever so slightly.

It was a strange combination of a lot of thoughts and feelings, which were neither particularly heavy nor light. But they were one thing: secure.

There was security in the moment, the things she had stated.

It was a quiet kind of security. The kind that didn’t make conscious thoughts run through his mind; but they weren’t needed. He didn’t need words to it, because he knew.

He knew what he had known for a long time already, but which, it seemed, the world wanted to make him guess again and again. But there was something he had to wonder.

He knew that she loved him. He knew that she’d stay loyal to him. But… the thing he found himself wondering, and the thing he felt that he had to wonder, was-

“Oh.”

He turned his head, realising the door nearly bumped onto his side.

“Sorry honey, I didn’t see you there. I was… umm… I got off from a call and I…” she trailed off, shaking her head. Her eyes were closed, as if she was trying to shut out the topics of the conversation, and focus on what to do now. She swayed her hand lazily in the air, as if to try and assist the thoughts that must’ve been circling in her head, to flow again. “It doesn’t matter.”

Just like that. It didn’t matter. Except that it did.

“Who was it?” He inquired, turning towards her with a gentle motion, as if he was trying to ease into the conversation.

“Some…” she opened her mouth, closed it, opened again and… sighed. “The umm… what was his name? You remember the pretentious man from three months ago who came to visit with the prospect of hoping that you’d give him advice while conducting business in relation to knight grimoire cases.”

“I remember,” he nodded.

“I don’t know what that man is on, but he needs to either lower the dose, or double it.”

A faint smile tugged the corner of his lips.

“Such audacity and, and, rudeness and delusions of grandeur or desperation or,” she blabbered eyes widening with every syllable, her voice growing louder from word to word. “Or just having his head shoved up so [goddamn high up his own ass that he cannot for the life of him see anything besides his own-]”

“Honey, honey…” he took a hold of her hand, stopping the flurry of words that bubbled with rage and discontent from her lungs, spat out in her own language because Cloverian didn’t seem to suffice. “It’s alright, my love,” he stated while taking a step closer to her.

His breathed glided over her forehead, as the syllables of his words, his whispers drizzled down from his lips and into her hair… making her eyes close as she took a deep breath, and tried to let the anger flow down, and down, and down… to the bottoms of her feet. His warmth sought to envelop her into an embrace, as his hands simply continued to hold hers. “It’s alright, my love,” he repeated as his thumb stroked her hand.

“But it’s…” her mouth twisted into a grimace, as if she was in pain, pricked and stung by a thorn from the shadows beneath her feet, from the emotions and thoughts of the conversation that she was trying to stomp to the ground. “It’s really not. I…” she looked at him, opened her eyes for the first time since he took her by the hand, and gazed into his eyes with a flicker. Uncertain if she should tell him or not. If she should speak out what had been dared to say to her and she just…

“I heard you.”

“I… you..”

“I heard you,” he repeated with a nod. “What was said on the other side of the line and… what you replied.”

Her gaze averted, looked to the side as her grimace only grew. “He-“

“There will be audacious, shameless individuals, who will try anything,” he stated. “Say anything, and… I just…”

“But I should’ve told him off, properly, really told him what I thought about whatever bullshit opinion he had and-“

“Honey,” he stated, nearly laughed, “darling, love,” he continued while placing his forehead against hers. “The love of my life…” he whispered, uttered with hushed syllables with closed eyes. “Aren’t I always telling you to behave?”

There was a brief pause, a moment of silence, at the end of which she replied with a whisper of her own. “You are…”

“That is about how much you can behave, while, properly, letting someone have a piece of your mind. And… from what I heard, there was a strong word or two in there,” he mused with the latter sentence, making a single amused huff leave her lungs. “So you made your stance very clear, and we have all the more reason to steer closer to another direction when it comes to grimoire cases.”

“Still, I feel that I didn’t… say enough,” she admitted, while nudging his head with hers.

He pulled away, just enough to place his hand onto her cheek and look her into the eyes.

“Then what would have been enough?” He asked, which was a fair question.

What really would have been enough for her to say? Made the scores even? Not make her feel this burning and pricking sensation in her that still tried to flare up?

She didn’t think there was such a thing. Which is what she admitted. “Nothing…”

“Then it was enough,” he told her while stroking her cheek with his thumb.

“God…” she shook her head with bittersweet amusement. “I’m supposed to be comforting you since you heard it, not this way around.”

“You did,” he told her with a chuckle. “You comforted by standing up for me.”

“Ah, so no kisses and cuddles then?” She teased as the emotions still mixed within her, but the melancholy was beginning to subside.

“Hmm…” he hummed in thought with a smirk. “When did I turn down such an offer?”

“I was just asking,” she grinned while leaning up, so that her lips inched closer to his.

“Were you now?” He mirrored the movement, lips nearly touching, but not quite, as the word dripped from him as if some divine nectar that she could almost taste…

“Mhm~” she hummed back, eyes flickering between his lips and his gaze. “Unless you have other plans.”

“Plans can change.”

“Oh really now?”

“Mhm.”

“Mhm.”

“I see…” she placed her hands onto his chest, and let them slide over his jacket, under his cape, until they settled onto his shoulders, and pressed herself against him. But her face was still hovering against his, eyes tracing every line, every exquisitely crafted feature, as she could feel his warmth flowing to her.

 How was I so lucky…? How did I earn this… you, in my life? He thought before pressing his lips against hers, taking a hold of her upper lip, and drinking in her love and affection.

The world might not always been a kind place, but… with the right people in it, it didn’t matter. Because his world was soft, and gentle, everything he could have hoped for, and more.

[dawn-likes-cigarettes]

{Dawn Wilson Information}

My name is Dawn Wilson. I’m 18 years old and I’ve lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma my whole life. I’m a drug addict, which I wish I could change but I can’t help it… I occasionally drink and I live with my brother with his wife and kid.

OOC: GOT INSPIRATION FROM @s0dap0p-curt1s :3 I made this for fun to have more information lol 🐭1. {Basics} 2. {Appearance} 3. {Personality} 4. {Relationships} 5. {Interests} 6. {Background} 7. {RP information}

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Full name: Dawn Holly Wilson ⁃ {Nicknames} ⁃ Dusk; it’s the opposite of Dawn lol ⁃ Hollandaise sauce; her middle name ⁃ Kid; cause of her height ⁃ Little sis; by Austin ⁃ Pretty little grease; by male socs ⁃ Whore/slut/hoe; by female socs ⁃ Drunk/smoker; by little kids that have terrible parents (cause they don’t pay attention to their kids) ☆Age: 18 years old ⁃ {Birthday}: June 5, 1949 ⁃ {Zodiac}: Gemini ☆Gender: Cis Female ⁃ {Species}: Drug addicted human

☆Sexual Orientation: Lesbian ☆Nationality: American, German background ☆Ethnicity: American German ☆Hometown: Tulsa, Oklahoma: North side

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Occupation: Waitress; does not pay well so her brother gives her money

☆Religion: unreligious; parents are Jewish-Germans ☆Languages: ⁃ English ⁃ Some German, but barely

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Height: 5’4” ☆Weight: 95 lbs ☆Body type: petite, curvy

☆Skin: ⁃ {Texture}: soft, a little dirty ⁃ {Tone}: tan ☆Hair: ⁃ {Color}: golden blond ⁃ {Length}: middle-back length ⁃ {Style}: always down but swept to the side

☆Eyes: ⁃ {Shape}: Doe ⁃ {Color}: light light blue ☆Scars: ⁃ Not a lot of scars ⁃ Practically scratches now ⁃ Cigarette burns on her thighs ☆Piercings: two piercings each on both ears ☆Accessories: ⁃ bracelets ⁃ Rag outside her back pocket ⁃ Usually wears a headband when she’s feeling pretty 😋

☆Clothing style: Dirty (dirt and grease dirty) casual

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆No drugs personality: ⁃ mean, quiet, compulsive liar, a bitch, cranky, hateful, stubborn, isn’t toxic or abusive, dramatic, suicidal ☆With drugs personality: ⁃ nice, loud, childish, still a bitch but a bad bitch, stubborn, happy, positive, dramatic

☆Positive traits: street smart and positive ☆Negative traits: stubborn, forgetful, and cranky, suicidal

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Habits: ⁃ Extremely hard drug user ⁃ Constantly getting hurt physically ⁃ Very addictive smoker ⁃ {tw; self harm} Cutting self ☆Pet Peeves: ⁃ extremely rude ⁃ Toxic relationships ⁃ Ignorance

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Usual first impression: ⁃ nasty drunk but is actually a smoker ⁃ Mean and carefree ⁃ Disrespectful ☆Fears: ⁃ fear of losing family ⁃ fear of boredom ⁃ fear of old men ⁃ fear of dying too young ⁃ fear of being forgotten (OOC: same)

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Mother: Martha A. James ☆Father: Unknown

☆Siblings: ⁃ {Brother}: Austin K. Wilson ⁃ {Sister-in-Law}: Jazzlynn K. Wilson ☆Niece: ⁃ Marygold E. Wilson

☆Grandparents: ⁃ Thomas F. James ⁃ Cleo H. James

☆Friends: ⁃ Ponyboy Curtis (only met once and now Pony thinks they’re best friends. Wtf bruh)

☆Lover: ⁃ no one yet, does have a crush on a girl named Callie Collidge (eh eh, see the reference hehe)

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Likes: ⁃ smoking ⁃ Teasing ⁃ Cookies ⁃ Flowers ⁃ Self control (but she herself cannot do that…) ⁃ Parties ⁃ Compliments ☆Dislikes: ⁃ Quiet rooms ⁃ Leprechauns (Staar…) ⁃ Calming environments ⁃ Reading ⁃ Church (it’s boring to her since she’s not religious)

☆Hobbies: ⁃ {Music}: Rock, Metal, loud, head-banging music ⁃ Shoplifting ⁃ Pretending to be a cowgirl ⁃ Smoking ⁃ Dancing aggressively

☆Talents: ⁃ can surprising make extremely good food ⁃ Being a bad bitch ⁃ Can get high and after 2 hours, is back to normal

☆Skills: ⁃ Fights ⁃ Shoplifting ⁃ Flirting ⁃ Getting burned and not caring; high pain tolerance

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Favorite people: ⁃ Austin Wilson ⁃ Jazzlynn Wilson ⁃ Marygold Wilson ⁃ Jibril Wa’el (thinks of him kinda like a father figure :3) ⁃ Staar (only cause they are a hilarious duo) ☆Least favorite people: ⁃ Launcey Williams (only cause she’s kinda rude) ⁃ Dallas Winston (he’s annoying) ⁃ Curly Shepard (same as Dally) ⁃ Tim Shepard (he’s like an old man)

☆Tolerable people: ⁃ Angela Shepard (she’s okay just judgmental towards EVERYTHING) ⁃ Johnny Cade ⁃ TwoBit Mathews ⁃ Steve Randle

☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆Background: ⁃ {childhood}: ⁃ She was constantly bullied for being fatherless. ⁃ Of course Austin was a butthead as a kid as well, being 16 when she was 6. ⁃ Their mother was a drunk and constantly had panic attacks. ⁃ {most of teenage life} ⁃ Same bullying but their mother went into a coma, leaving Austin as the “parent” of the house. ☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

☆RP Information: ⁃ {is it open?} ⁃ Yes!! It’s always open!! ⁃ {what am I comfortable?} ⁃ I am comfortable with nsfw, sfw, agere, petre, anything as long as it’s not pedo, rape, or anything like that. (I also do angst.)

OOC: Hello it’s @i-like-ratsssss !!!! Hope this give enough information, it definitely did for me so I can go back to this and see what to tell people 😭