#that grace panel made me watch this movie

[fl4kf4n]

Another old post... this is a badly formatted comic but I wanted to finish it so it wouldn't stay a coloured sketch anymore :0

[ofoceansandtombsanew]

What are some of your favorite manga of all time?

Oh this will be one of the easiest asks I've ever received! You've got me all hype, anon!

Fruits Basket

Wanna get me to talk for hours? Mention Fruits Basket. This was the first manga I ever read back when I was still in elementary school and I've never grown out of my love for the series. I will always have a spot for this manga but it's honestly perfection to me.

I love the characters, the messages, the themes and the emotional depth this manga has made me feel over the years? I honestly wish I could experience Fruits Basket all over again. This is without a doubt my favorite shoujo manga of all time. I love all the characters, I love all the ships. Some of my favorite characters off rip have to be Tohru, Shigure, Hatsuharu and Arisa and Saki. But make no mistake I adore Yuki and Kyo and so on and so forth.

This series does such a great job in such a complicated subject matter concerning neglect and abuse in a way that humanizes the abuser without using said humanization to justify their shitty actions. You leave those moments understanding how that person became how they are but can still completely acknowledge how terrible they are. How you don't have to forgive that person for what they did. And that, if you do forgive that person, that doesn't mean you're just letting bygones be bygones and being kumbaya with them. You can forgive and forget or you can forgive and never forget and that's okay. Your forgiving and moving forward for yourself, not them. And that's one of the things I really liked in the series.

Fullmetal Alchemist

Another series you can get me talking for hours about. You will catch me watching video essay after video essay analyzing this story. I was so into FMA during middle school, one of my moms even bought me the games and made it habit to occasionally buy me the volumes! This is without a doubt, the best shounen has to offer. Quality female characters? Amazing action scenes? Stunning romance? Banger after banger with so many panels I can still recall perfectly.

My favorite volume is definitely volume 15! Because of the manga, Brotherhood is my preference when it comes to the anime adaptations. It has all the homies in it. Another series I wish I could just start from the beginning again with no memory of the source material. These brothers and their friends have altered the chemistry of my brain.

NANA

Still believe that one day Yozawa will grace us with her beautiful art and storytelling all over again. NANA was my first ever jousei read and my dive into jousei as a whole. Until that point all I had consumed were shounen and shoujo so the maturity of the series was one I wasn't expecting. I consumed this series when I was about in early to late middle school and it was so much fun to read.

Now that I'm in my late 20s, holy hell is this hard to binge the way I used to because the themes, the struggles of the character and the realism of those struggles are hitting a little too close to home now. So I can only do NANA in small doses now haha. I even got both of my moms into NANA. Which isn't too impressive when one of my moms has watched the anime of every manga I've mentioned on this ask, but my other mom is NOT an anime fan and she loves NANA so much.

Children of the Sea

Oh my goodness, you definitely oh it to yourself to read this manga. It's not a long a read by any means with only 5 volumes and 43 chapters but it was such a pleasure to read. Maybe this bias comes from someone obsessed with the ocean (which my url definitely implies) and the life teeming underneath the surface but wow this was truly an experience. I watched the movie first and then read the manga, and I'm not sure if that'll shape anyone's viewing experience differently but I do wish I had read the manga first. But both are truly great to check out.

If you want a story about a girl meeting two boys raised by dugongs, this is the story for you. One of my favorite aspects of this read were the side stories labeled Testimony of the Sea. It adds so much to the story without even directly influencing the plot as you see all the strange phenomena that take place in the sea leading up to this mysterious event drawing in our protagonists and what will continue well after its conclusion.

Skip & Loafer

Currently ongoing and a series I was not expecting to like as much as I did. I'm one of the people who got into sukirofa after the anime dropped. 2 episodes in and seeing the absolute beauty and grace of how the staff handled the protagonist's transgender aunt, I had to give this a read and I do not regret in the slightest. This is such a great series and a perfect example how one utilizes 'don't judge a book by its cover'.

Characters you meet at first glance? It only takes a chapter or two before their layers are peeled back and you see how much went in to crafting them and making them more complex than meets the eye. A perfect example of this is the character Mika.

But my favorite chapter has to be ch 29 where you learn what made Nao decide to come out and transition. If you haven't read this series, I won't spoil it, you have to read it for yourself. Prepare for a monthly update schedule, because once that day of the month pops up, it's amazing to see how the sukirofa fandom comes together to scream on twitter and tumblr.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

The series that gave birth to the greatest hater in anime history. Araki truly drinks and leaves no molecules every time a part comes out. Another ongoing series I didn't expect to like as much as I did. But it's become a series close to my heart since diving into it after I got over my initial hesitance with the art style. Honestly JJBA's art style really grows on you, especially as you see Araki's art and writing develop so spectacularly.

You get equal parts continuous story and standalone adventure. You do need other pieces of the pie, but each part still feels so rich and in-depth and bright and colorful. You don't feel like the new JoJo and characters introduced are extensions of previous existing ones or usurpers that have stolen the panels away from other characters. It's like watching a torch be passed down from JoJo to JoJo, generation to generation (which it technically is since this story follows the descendants of the JoJo that started it all, Jonathan Joestar).

Araki's biggest source of writing inspiration came from how he felt watching Prince concerts. How the story of the concert would suddenly flip and give you a whole new experience. I feel he truly has that down with JJBA.

Concubine Walkthrough

Can't believe I even forgot to add Concubine Walkthrough, so take this quick addendum. This is one of the best manhwa I've ever read in my life and not enough people talk about it. I'm working on a post right now all about why I recommend it.

If you're a fan of sci-fi, romance and want to read an otome isekai romp that subverts your expectations? Please read this manhwa. It's The Matrix mixed with historical Korean fiction (and of course, otome isekai at its finest).

I loved loved LOVED the philosophy behind the story, the themes. The discussion of what reality is and choosing what reality means/is to you. Just because your entire life is a simulation, does that make your entire life up until that point irrelevant? Simulated it may be, your joy, your pain, your love, all of that still felt real, right? There were so many things I never considered about that very topic until I read this series and I feel like more people should give it a go. It's not that long a read (only 128 chapters for the main story with some extra bonus content on the side), please please PLEASE read Concubine Walkthrough if you haven't already.

[trollol360]

396, 397, 398

399

Sorry, I meant to make this way earlier, I just got distracted and busy with other projects.

This was originally written 9/1/23:

MHA 399 dropped and it literally made me cry. I have much to say because oh my god.

"These should boost my speed and mobility for tighter turns! He must be getting bored of the one-sided struggle." The way Toshi has to rely on the support gear because it's all he has left. He has no quirk.

"Tentacole, plus... Froppy Suction Pads!" Eleventh and Twelfth; Shoji and Tsuyu

"Tail-Man. Shoto" Thirteenth and Fourteenth; Ojiro and Shoto

"And then... I'll set the trap." Originally, I was using a fan translation when I wrote this, and it said: "Now... I'm on the hunt." And I said: "Well, well, well, how the turn tables." Not much to say that I haven't already said, lol

"Assuming repeated, massive damage to that body shortens his life span... I know just the quirk to get the job done all at once..." The way he thinks and he's quick on his feet. Toshinori has always been smart (much to Endeavor's "All flash and no brains" comment about him)

"The problem is the power source! Playing this by the book won't be all too effective. Lend me a hand, Anima?" Fifteenth; Kouda. Toshinori specifically states that doing it the regular way won't be enough. All Might knows that All for One can tank hits, so (my assumption at least), he needs to wear him down first to be effective. [Which, now knowing what happens, is incorrect. He needs to give it enough time to power up before he uses it]

"Cackling like a mad fool one minute and scampering and hiding the next?" He's back to being an asshole, but he's still chasing after All Might. Seems like he forgot what he's doing.

"Here he comes!" Uh oh, smile's gone. Didn't expect himself to be found so easily/followed quickly

"Your goal here is no mystery to me. And I don't need to waste excess strength... To twist that grin into an agonized grimace. Power-saver mode is plenty enough for killing you." Jesus fucking Christ, All for One is scary. The people who've said they'd kill All Might during Kamino, but he didn't kill Toshi (nor did he kill his drive). Despite it seeming like All for One captured All Might for one panel, he breaks free. He can just kill him, but either he won't (and wants to drag it out), or he can't (All Might's just too good).

"Rise!! Liar!! Descend!!" (Despite this being a serious battle, Toshi looks really silly, but that might just be me, lol) He's not smiling anymore, something closer to a grimace. Both in the way that All for One said he'd do, but also in the way during the USJ incident (and others). (I.e: "All Might's here... And he's not smiling."

"Hmm? No, I really am conserving my power." All for One says he's going to kill Toshinori with low effort, but it seems like he's trying his all (or something close to it) [He's trying to act like he can kill All Might really easily? Or just bluffing about it]

"Now where'd that lovely smile go? You're nothing but a bag of bones missing half his guts! An old fool providing hospice care for himself... With shoddy simulacrums of the children's powers!" All for one notices that All Might's smile is gone. We're shown that Class 1-A's quirks do and have protected Toshinori. During USJ, the first movie, etc. Deku, Todoroki, and Balugou are the students who are closest to All Might's power (Deku being a given). But All for One hasn't seen how well they are [or at least refuses to believe that they've improved]

"Smile, you're still on camera!! The whole world's watching, remember?! They'll see the Symbol of Peace falling to his doom... As the Symbol of Impotence!" 'Impotence -- Inability to take effective action; helplessness'. All Might has already fallen from grace by society's standards because he's not really there anymore (I.e: Stain saying that he's a failure). Toshinori couldn't use his Mech Suit trying to help society anyway, because he knew he'd have to fight All for One eventually. It's not that he's abandoned them. Far from it. Toshinori is a man who wants to help people when he can, that's why he's so god damn depressed in S6. He's seeing Deku abandon him to go out on his own and he couldn't do anything to help. Society fell back to how it was when he was a child. In all his 40 years, society fell back to how it was with just one attack that he couldn't do anything against. When he lost his quirk, it was basically him being quirkless all over again. Being ignored, attempted to be killed, and unhelpful. That's why he's so fulfilled helping again. Because while it's his fight (One for All) with All for One, he's still saving hundreds of thousands of lives again.

"Their guiding light is about to be snuffed out." The way All for One no longer looks human. He fucking slams Toshinori to the ground on his left side.

The ashes of the snuffed-out flame. He doesn't have an ounce of One for All left in him.

"You still don't get it... Good buddy!!" All Might is not done (even when All for One hits him straight on). He puts the Shoto canon in All for One's mouth and fires. He plans on killing him. He wants to kill him.

"Lights tend to flicker on and off! So while my light might be snuffed out... Someone's sure to pick up my torch and shine on!" This isn't a death flag. He's not talking about his life, he's talking about his legacy. Deku, Bakugou, and Todoroki will carry All Might's legacy, while Class 1-A as a whole will carry Toshinori's legacy (at least that's the way I see it).

I don't have much to say about Aoyama's part in this chapter, sorry (but I do love his character). The heroes are downed and Aoyama's one of the only heroes left to fight. Roses coming out of him feels like symbolism. "Hence why I said "merci"... Reminding myself of how shamefully I've lived... Is what spurred me on to follow in the wake of the light they bring! It's given me the desire to shine... From deep down within my core!!" These lines of dialog show Aoyama's character growth from being found out as the traitor.

"Let there be light in the darkness!" The way Aoyama smiles/grits his teeth just like All Might is so... *Chefs kiss*

"So that I might twinkle as well!!" Toshinori doesn't need One for All to keep going, but the lights of his students and people who believe in him. The flame doesn't have to return.

"So no, I'm not here to lose, All for One!!" All Might restates it yet again, cementing it in. He'll kill All for One if he has to.

"Know this name... As you burn away!!" HIS SMILE IS FUCKING BACK!! He looks so tired, beaten, and bruised, but he's still smiling. (The way his face is drawn makes me want him carnally... But that's my simp for him speaking)

"CAN'T STOP TWINKLING! ★" Sixteenth; Aoyama. The parallels of them both attacking with the laser, GOD. This chapter made me so fucking ill. I literally cried and felt like screaming.

[apopcornkernel]

funnily enough im pretty sure i did read the actual comics before wfa. i vaguely remember reading utrh first? and then i either watched the movie next or read batman's whole robinjay run + aditf + alpod. and then wfa. i only read detective comics' robinjay after i finished wfa i think. i know i also spedran all of the post-crisis jason's death aftermath/appearances according to the reading list by dailyjasontodd. spedran his stuff post-resurrection too, minus countdown, 52, brothers in blood; i only realized I'd already read outsiders before when i reread it just now, though. which is really funny like the reason i remembered was because anissa and grace got together. that's how i knew I'd read the comic before. i was like oh i remember these gay bitches. i know there was a time after comics where i then dove into fandom and just immersed myself with art, fic, and posts. it was a little weird at first but i hadn't read enough for the other characters to know, and it's very easy to get drawn into fanon bc its satisfying to an extent, you know. ooh, i know i read three jokers early on. i was in love with that artist's jason and i found that one panel really funny (babs "he literally killed a man" bruce "you don't understand... jason's suffering"). i dont remember much about my first batman period. i do know it was all batman tho.

this is getting long.

my second batman period (more accurately termed batman/dc) was mostly me revisiting fics and remembering canon things that made me upset again. oh and also other robinjay stories that i hadn't read before like the cult, etc. but after some time i, and i dont know how this happened, got interested in hal jordan. i genuinely think it was just a fanart i saw of him with white temples. i thought it was hot and imagine my delight when i found out it was canon. and then i found out he turned villain and i was like WOAH I NEED TO GET ON THIS and tada, speedran parallax arc all the way to the spectre. tried reading rebirth and hated it so bad. stopped reading hal after that. somewhere along the way i found myself reading superman. then i dont know how this happened but i got interested in matrix/mae kent specifically and read up on her origin. afterwards i went to death of superman all the way to his resurrection and mae/lex breakup arc. i think this period fizzled out shortly after that. ooh, im checking my gallery rn, apparently i also read death metal and the return of bruce wayne. i dont remember anything about the latter. i remember being pissed at the former. i also read the damian resurrection arc and got really mad at an interview in one of the comics bc it was more of those "bruce feels more strongly for damian than his other kids bc damian is his Real Son" like bitch. No.

OH!! i also read the long halloween & dark victory during this time! this must have been when the batman came out. ALSO READ CONNOR!! i started at the time ollie died and went on until the time ollie came back but connor was now comatose (?). i remember a lot of screenshotting panels bc of how appalling the coloring was, connor's skin color was disrespected so much in this few issues 😭

ooh, interesting. after connor panels there's no more until this year, which would be my 3rd dc period. i reread the long halloween and dark victory, and then finished the last few chapters of the spectre. after that i started young justice but never finished. i reread utrh, and then funnily enough went straight to reading all about steph up to war games. after steph i read some other robin tim issues at random and then i finally read brothers in blood. quick break for batman year 100 and then right into batgirl (this was right after lee and i became mutuals). ooh, spirit world. and then ram v's the vigil. then i read rhato special? special? idk if that's the name but it was like a oneshot for rhato? or was it rhato #0? idk. i laughed the entire time. it was so bad. then i read gotham war, hated it. read some issues of black and white. three jokers again. finally read robins by seeley. robin year one. some pre-crisis jason esp the nocturna arc. tt #29. issues of gotham knights #43 something? + the interview about jason issue. actually i think that's all in the same arc. batman prodigal. pre-crisis talia. mandatory reread of batman #496. tried to start countdown, failed. the cult reread. BIRDS OF PREY!! cry of blood, and then a vichelena binge. the huntress cavalieri! the question o'neil! read a lot of huntress. tripped abruptly into hawk and dove, read a lot of cameos after their solos ended. read identity crisis after seeing the bruce tim panel. read jade (nguyen) in preparation for my comm critical essay. read superman again for the invisible mafia. started both superwoman 2016 and steelworks but never finished. read talia lexcorp arc and Never Recovered. tower of babel. redemption lost (ASS). rucka's wonder woman & the hiketeia. some titans bc of jade. more jade stuff. more huntress stuff (specifically nightwing cameos). read tom fucking taylor nightwing. started but did not finish dixon nightwing after that. started a reread of the spectre. started reading azrael + knightfall stuff but am not finished. was hit with the jli disease (lethal). then went back into superman comics but specifically the start of the lex luthor 2 arc + mae :). and now retracing post-rez pre-morrison jason comics

[nev3rfound]

blame it on the neighbours : b.b

having recently moved in next door, you and bucky become fast friends. however, there's something looming between the two of you and it comes to light when it's revealed you're in the hospital. (1.7k)

masterlist / permanent taglist / etsy shop - requests open!

requested: yes! by the very sweet @didsomeonesaybucky warnings: bucky freaking out if that counts? descriptions of hospitals

(everything on my blog is my own writing. if it is shared on another page or website without being credited, it has not been approved to be shared by me. all rights reserved.)

Ever since you moved in and became Bucky's next-door neighbour, he could tell things were going to be different. In the first instance, he could hear you in the corridor, chatting away happily to your other neighbours, offering baked goods. He watched cautiously through the peephole, still having to yet meet you, he merely observed from afar.

When he finally met you, it wasn't the interaction he quite hoped for.

Standing in front of his door with a tray of cookies in hand, you release a shaky breath having heard from your other neighbours that the occupant in apartment 4F wasn't the friendliest. But you would simply have to judge that for yourself, you told them.

"He's a bit of a strange one, dear." Your neighbour, Clarissa in 2F warned you as she accepted the container of muffins you had made that morning. "Doesn't really leave or go out much, I think I've only ever heard him say morning once in the six months he's been here!" Her words echo in the back of your mind as you lift your hand up, knuckles lightly tapping the door.

With wide eyes, Bucky hesitantly walks toward the door and stares straight through the peephole. His breath halters, watching as you stare down at your feet.

Taking a deep breath, Bucky glides his fingers over the several locks across his door and slides through the small gap in the doorway with an attempted smile gracing his lips.

"Hi," You start, now lifting your eyes up toward this mysterious neighbour who is definitely not what you anticipated. "I, I'm Y/n, I moved in next door a week ago," Motioning to your apartment, Bucky forces his eyes to glance across down the hall before averting them back to you, taking in your features up close as you rub your lips together.

"Yeah, I heard you moving in." Bucky comments, internally cringing at his choice of wording. "I mean, I," His words falter at the sound of you chuckling softly to yourself. "can I start again? Is that alright?" He asks, grateful that you nod. "It's nice to meet you, Y/n. I'm James."

"Well, it's lovely to know my other neighbour, James. I, these are for you." Thrusting the tray forward, Bucky pushes his door open further with his foot to accept the tray, forgetting he didn't have his glove on.

Your eyes wander down to see his left arm is entirely metal. "Thanks." He mutters, feeling your eyes burning into his arm.

"I'm sorry," You quickly say, looking up at his face. "it's rude to stare, my Mom would scold me if she were here right now."

Bucky shakes his head, moving his leg to catch the back of the door. "Don't worry 'bout it." He brushes it off, but he notices your eyes wandering around the bland corridor and your lips parting.

"You don't happen to know any good places for dinner 'round here?" You move the conversation on, causing Bucky to raise a brow in response. "I'm kinda new to the area and I was wondering if you knew any good spots." You shrug your shoulders, hoping he couldn't read your mind and know that sentence was a complete lie.

"Erm, yeah." He sheepishly tells you, hearing Doctor Raynor droning in the back of his mind about putting himself out there, and not on those godforsaken dating apps again. "There's a great sushi place I know of."

Your smile brightens at his suggestion, and Bucky can't ignore how his lips rise at the sight. "Great, wanna join me then since you know it so well?" You suggest nonchalantly. "And you can always enjoy those as a dessert afterwards."

Looking down at the tray of warm cookies, Bucky tries to hide the sound of his stomach grumbling against the tray.

"Sure," He reaches into his apartment, grabbing his things including his gloves before following you out. "so, what brings you to Brooklyn?"

*

It's been several months since you moved in next door, and Bucky couldn't be happier that you plucked up the courage to knock that day.

Every week you two hang out, sometimes you join him and Yori for lunch who spends most of the time trying to convince Bucky to ask you out (only to be scolded when you're absent.) Sometimes you'll cook dinner, dance around your apartment and watch movies or wander around the city whilst Bucky tells you old stories; just like normal friends do, right?

It was truly blissful, but there was still so much about each other you had yet to learn.

Running his fingers through his combed hair, Bucky tugs on his blue henley before heading out.

As he locks his front door, he carries out dinner that he promised to make for you tonight.

"Oh, James." Your neighbour in 2F, Clarissa, stands in front of her door with her handbag and walking stick.

"Hi, Clarissa." Bucky forces a small smile, having heard her conversations regarding his past, muttering about having a murderer in the building shouldn't be allowed.

"Heading into Y/n's I take it." She hums, eyeing him carefully as he nods in response. "She should be back later, told me she had to go to the hospital." Waving herself off, Clarissa turns the lock in her doors.

"The hospital?" Bucky speaks up as the containers in his hands begin to slip, his mind going a hundred miles an hour. "Y/n's in the hospital?" Trying not to yell, Bucky steps closer, causing Clarissa to clutch her handbag tightly in front of her chest.

"Yes," Clarissa states calmly, but Bucky notices the keys in her right hand begin to shake.

"Thanks." Bucky mutters, stepping away as he darts back into his own apartment and grabs his coat, barely able to process his thoughts before rushing down the stairwell with nothing but you on his mind.

Reaching the entrance to the hospital, Bucky hands the driver some money without any words being exchanged. Bucky knew he looked like hell; he couldn't focus properly on anything. He had only seen you last night, the two of you in his apartment painting his living room walls, laughing together as you accidentally flicked paint across his cheek.

The reception area was crowded, voices bounced from wall to wall as Bucky strode toward the desk where a woman sat, staring blankly at a screen.

"How can I help?" She asks, briefly glancing up at Bucky before focusing on her screen once more.

Suddenly lost for words, Bucky homes in on a man crying in the waiting area, loudly sobbing into his hands as a nurse stands over him.

"Y/n Y/l/n, I'm looking for Y/n." Bucky forces the words out as the Nurse simply nods whilst typing away, humming a tune to herself.

"Oh okay," The Nurse pauses as her eyes scan over the monitor.

Clutching the edge of the desk, Bucky can hear the plates in his metal arm whirring as his grip tightens, nearly tearing the panel off as the silence becomes insufferable.

"So Y/n is currently in the operating theatre." The nurse tells Bucky nonchalantly, glancing up to see something change in his expression.

"No," Shaking his head, Bucky steps back. "she, I, I we were going to have dinner." It sounds pathetic to him, saying it aloud. But seeing you, having any moment with you made him feel human again, almost normal.

"Yeah, crazy how schedules fall." A heavy sigh leaves the nurses lips, unaware of the cool gaze that is locking in on her.

"Do you know when she'll be-" Before Bucky can finish his sentence, he's caught off guard by someone calling his name from the corridor.

"James?" You chuckle, walking toward him wearing your uniform adorned with your badge.

"Doll?" Bucky stutters, stepping closer as he tries to stop the tears in his eyes from forming. "You, you're okay?" He mumbles, looking you over, keeping his hands on your arms.

"Why wouldn't I be?" You ask, evidently surprised. "Everything okay, James?" Lowering your voice, you peer down to look him in the eyes whilst his head hangs low.

"Clarissa said you were in the hospital." Bucky huffs in annoyance to himself. "I, I didn't put it together," He mumbles. "I forgot that you,"

"That I'm a Doctor?" Holding back the laugh in your throat, you sigh before tugging Bucky closer into your embrace. "I'm okay, James. I'm only sorry you came all this way."

Keeping you in his arms, Bucky doesn't want to let go. Whilst your face rests in the crook of his neck, he allows a few stray tears to fall in relief. "I, I made us dinner." He eventually says, feeling you pull back to look at him, your eyes softening at the trails left on his cheeks.

"Oh, James." Raising your hand, you cup his cheek. "I'll be off work in an hour. I'm so sorry I should've said something or let you know sooner."

Shaking his head, Bucky takes your hand from his cheek and runs his fingers over your knuckles. "Don't worry 'bout it, Y/n. I'm just glad you're safe." He tells you, wishing he could say something else, but for now, that was enough.

"Did you make,- Your eyes light up in excitement, but Bucky cuts you off before you can finish your sentence.

"Yep." Bucky chuckles as you do a little dance. "You're such a dork sometimes, doll."

"Yeah," You admit, slipping your hand from his as you bury them in your pockets. "but would you have me any other way, neighbour?" Raising a brow to him, Bucky shakes his head. "Thought as much."

"I'll keep dinner warm for you." He smiles, hearing the word neighbour circle his thoughts. Yet, for once, Bucky forces his intrusive thoughts aside as his lips brush across your forehead. "Be good, Doc." He can't help but laugh to himself at the sound of your heart beating rapidly whilst externally, you remain cool.

"I'll try my best, Barnes." You salute him, watching as he walks back out of the hospital, knowing he's one step closer to calling you his girl.

t a g l i s t (thank you for the support!) link in my bio and at the top of this piece to add yourself☺️(if your user isn’t tagged, it’s because nothing comes up sorry!)

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[starvine]

first date headcanons

attack on titan (modern au)

summary: some first date headcanons with some of the attack on titan characters. 

warnings: none, just fluff :)

eren jaeger: movie 

a little basic but it’s all eren could come up with

besides, it was between a movie and dinner and dinner felt too formal so y’all decided on a movie

he’d let you pick the movie tho

he might argue with you if it’s something stupid and claim that it’s horribly written (as if he knows a thing) but that’s it

eren would make sure to get the BEST snacks. spicy food? check. candy? check. popcorn? check. fruits? check.

he just wants to impress you (even if he did have to confide in his friends for some advice)

he just really likes you

during the movie, you guys would start shifting closer to each other, both a little too timid to move all the way all at once

but you guys would make commentary throughout the movie, laughing when things seem too cliché or when a character says something funny

half way throughout the movie, you guys aren’t even really paying attention it it

you’re too busy throwing popcorn at each other and trying to catch it in your mouths, feeding each other candy, and giggling at each other

it’s intimate in its own relaxed way, which makes eren realize how perfect you are

you both could make the most out of a pretty average first date situation and make it into a beyond amazing first date

and that was all he needed to ask you on a second date before he dropped you off at your car, walking with you to make sure you got there safely

and ngl you’d be a bit of a fool to say no to eren

armin arlert: aquarium 

sweetheart is so nervous 

before he came to your apartment to pick you up for your date, he was a little nervous wreck 

he was fidgeting with his fingers, playing with the buttons on his shirt--he probably accidentally opened one by accident 

but once he saw you, he felt fine 

it was as if he physically melted, you just make everything okay 

once you guys got to the aquarium, he would NOT shut up

he was probably pointing things out, telling you fun facts, asking you what is your favorite marine life 

“oh, you like pufferfish? that’s cool! i like them too. they’re very... puffy.” 

he’s like a child in a candy store 

but while he’s rambling about how the digestive system of a sea cucumber basically cleans the ocean, he’s wondering how he should make a move 

he doesn’t want to scare you off or anything, but he doesn’t want you to be disappointed 

but while you guys are looking at one of those large fish tanks, the ones where you walk through a tunnel, you guys just sort of stand there and watch in awe

or rather armin watches in awe while you look at him, a soft smile gracing his pink lips as his eyes dart across the illustriously blue colored glass

and when he feels your pinky latch onto his, he’s a little shocked that you had made the first move

he didn’t not expect it per say, he just thought that he would be the one to make the first move 

but his overthinking got in the way

and when he turns to look down at your intertwined pinkies, he caught you sending him a delicate smile that made his heart squeeze until he felt as if every part of him was on fire

but it was him who finally held your hand fully 

he just needed you to give him the extra push

mikasa ackerman: book store 

it’s a very calming atmosphere, which is something you’d both need for this first date

mikasa is probably pretty anxious for the first date, and wants to make sure you’re okay and enjoying yourself while also making sure she’s okay and enjoying herself

so the calming scent of the book store and the quietness is perfect for her to multitask between mediating the two

you’d both be tasked with picking each other books and then buying them for each other

so initially mikasa was nervous because she wasn’t sure what to get you but then you asked what she liked to read and so that allowed her to ask the same, making the situation less stressful

and all while you two are walking from isle to isle, eyes scanning the various book titles and covers, she sneaks glances at you and how pretty you look

and the fact that you seem very deep in thought, heavily concentrated on getting her the right book, makes her feel less concerned on whether or not you’d rather be with her or not

the answer is obviously a yes but mikasa has a hard time understanding that sometimes

so when you give her the book you bought for her, making sure to lightly touch her fingers while you hand it to her, she already knows that another date is what she wants you both to have or else she’ll probably explode

and based off of how flushed she looks, the possibility of her exploding is not highly unlikely

you guys will sit at this little table in the corner of the store, reading your books

i can picture mikasa annotating certain lines that remind her of you, making mental notes to show you later

overall, the date is pretty lowkey and very sweet

connie springer: dave + busters/bowling

ok there’s not much of an explanation for this one besides the point that if feels right

like connie is pretty energetic and i feel like you can learn a lot about a person based off of the games they’re drawn to 

hence the arcade

i think connie really likes those racing games or the zombie shooting games

he also claims he’s really good at ski ball (he’s not, he’s trash)

so a good portion of the date consists of you just laughing at him the whole time cuz in all honestly he’s not the best at games but he enjoys them for the fun of them

he’d definitely cheer you on when you were playing or try to mess you up if it was you two against each other

but either way he’d give you a hug or a pat on the head after every game

even if u beat him

he’d probably try to sneak a kiss when you guys were in one of those shooting games that requires a booth and the curtains drawn (does that make sense?)

it’s not really romantic like at all, especially since it smells like a million different people in there, but it’s very low stress so in all honesty that’s what makes the kiss nice

and after you guys had used up all your tokens, you’d combine your tickets and pick something together

your prizes would mostly consist of candy and him insisting he get you a plastic gem ring so you can always remember your first date together

it was also his little, strange way of asking you for a second date

levi ackerman: art museum 

unlike connie, he’s not super energetic

so a museum is right up his alley

levi’s a bit awkward, he doesn’t really know how to talk to you

and especially since you’re lovely, his words jumble together and he gets all flustered

so a nice, quiet museum exhibit is perfect for him

it’s a nice balance between casual and formal, so you both dress nice but aren’t restricted by the need to be super polite and stuff

he’d probably like it when you try to imitate the poses that are shown in the paintings or sculptures

just imagine the soft chuckle he’d be unable to prevent from escaping his lips which then melts into a soft smirk

beautiful, beautiful lad

he probably wouldn’t join you though, he doesn’t want to embarrass himself

he just smiles at you and stares at the art, reading the background info they give on those little plates near them

but he would notice when you stare at him

he could be looking at some art made during the dutch golden age, but as soon as your head slightly tilted in his direction, his cheeks would HEAT up

you almost asked him if he was feeling alright he was so red

but as the date went on, levi really just thought about how much he enjoyed your presence

and he’s not a wicked talkative guy so being able to feel comfortable with someone even if you aren’t talking or doing much is pretty important to him

as the date concludes, levi finally works up the courage to place his hand on your shoulder, asking if there was anything else you wanted to see before the museum closes for the day

his face might be bright red, but the smile you give him makes him feel a little less embarrassed

what can you say, you’ve got charm 💅

hange: the fucking zoo

ok i won’t lie when i got the idea of hange taking you to the zoo for your first date i thought it was so funny and idk why

like they’d be so excited that they’d nearly forget that they’re on a date with you

they’d drag you around from exhibit to exhibit, pointing out the exact breed of tortoise or some really strange fact about the zebras without looking at the little description panel in front of the exhibit

it’s pretty comical

but then randomly, when you guys are sitting down and eating some fries from one of the concession stands, they start going on a rant about animal cruelty and how a lot of zoos don’t treat the animals properly

and you’re just sitting there like “what 🧍‍♀️” cuz they’re mood changed so quickly LMAO

and as soon as their rant started, it finishes and they’re rushing you to the reptile exhibit

they’d probably try to figure out if they could hold one of the snakes

you’d have to drag them out of there before they start harassing one of the workers into letting them hold a snake

they’d also give all of the animals names only to forget them in 2 seconds

“hey, robert, it’s good to see you again!” “hange, i thought you named them dante?” “oh... did i? 😁”

however there’s probably like one animal they absolutely despise and idk why but i feel like it’s parrots

y’all would be walking through this rainforest exhibit, birds flying from tree to tree and the whole time they’re cursing the birds under their breath for no reason at all

just an angry person walking through a rainforest exhibit, cursing out birds

pretty normal if you ask me

however, the date itself is pretty casual and almost feels like you guys are just hanging out

or it would if they didn’t ask you out on another date before dropping you off at home, kissing your cheek as their farewell

pieck finger: café

very simple and quaint

i feel like pieck has a coffee addiction and always puts her in a better mood

so what better place to go on a date then a café?

she’s definitely an iced coffee drinker, and will occasionally go for a hot drink but usually iced coffee is her go-to

and if you get a coffee or tea that she also happens to like, you’re already practically golden in her eyes

since pieck has a very soothing and lowkey nature, i can see the date being much more just like a conversation with someone you’ve known for forever instead of interview-y which is something i’ve found coffee/lunch/dinner dates to be a bit like

but pieck knows how to keep things interesting and she’s a pretty calming person to be around so all is well

i also can’t see her getting super nervous before the date

she seems pretty calm unless in high-stress situations, but even then, she’s pretty level-headed

but since she’s so calm, it makes you wonder if she really cares for the date

and of COURSE she does, she’s so excited about it

it’s just the way pieck is

but as the date continues, she’d probably start to tease you by playing footsies under the table

you gotta keep the date interesting, you know?

you guys would talk about your interests, family, friends, shows you’re watching

literally just anything and everything that’ll allow you guys to get a feel for each other

and if all goes well she’ll definitely suggest another date ;)

also don’t expect to leave without her either writing something cute on your cup, pressing a lip-stick stained kiss to your cheek that matches the one surrounding the rim of her cup, or a promise that your game of footsies will continue next time you see each other

[zaffrenotes]

[TRR: WD106] Avoiding A Blunder

Summary: Prince Liam has to fill in for Crown Prince Leo, and Murphy’s Law is put into motion at the end of his trip. Chaos ensues, condensed Wacky Drabble style. Fic Rating/Warning: M; alcohol consumption, minor health/medical emergency, anxiety/angst Author’s Note: All main characters belong to Pixelberry/The Royal Romance, I’m just borrowing them * Fictional versions of IRL individuals are included with affection; any other characters mentioned in this piece are my creation * This is my submission for @wackydrabbles Prompt 106: You’re gonna get us busted! * You have @the-soot-sprite and @ao719 to thank for this ridiculousness, lol - Soot reblogged a photo, Betsy sent me this request

and...this is what my brain came up with (PS - thank you both for the movie discussion) * For the purposes of this story, Triydalia is a fictional country that shares a border with Thailand * Word Count: 1999 😅 (7 minutes reading time)

Taglist (if your name is crossed out, I'll tag you in the comments): @/ao719 @burnsoslow @gkittylove99 @neotericthemis @ofpixelsandscribbles @rainbowsinthestorm @superharriet @/the-soot-sprite @choiceskatie @jaqren @aestheticartsx @bbrandy2002 @dcbbw @gnatbrain @jared2612 @kingliam2019 @ladyangel70 @lovingchoices14 @nestledonthaveone @princessleac1 @queenjilian @sfb123 @texaskitten30 @theroyalheirshadowhunter @yourmajesty09

Liam was used to filling in for Leo at a moment’s notice; participating in conference calls with ambassadors for early morning updates when Leo overslept, and attending meetings with ministers when Leo went AWOL. He’d grown accustomed to his brother’s antics, but he wondered how Bastien managed to keep his position, when he’d lost track of Leo’s whereabouts countless times.

While Leo spent more time avoiding his duties as Crown Prince of Cordonia, Liam dutifully took on the extra responsibilities in stride. It often meant partitioning his already packed schedule to sit in on vital cabinet meetings or dining with visiting dignitaries, but sometimes Leo’s vanishing acts gave Liam the opportunity to travel.

Though their ambassadors handled the majority of day-to-day relations with other countries for trade, Constantine preferred to meet face-to-face when he could. One such time, a lingering cough turned to walking pneumonia, restricting Constantine to as much bed rest as possible. It also meant sending Leo to Japan for a meeting with the Prime Minister in his stead.

It would have been fine, if Leo hadn’t pulled another one of his disappearing acts.

--

A week later, Liam was seated on the royal jet on his way back from Tokyo, navy attache with espresso brown leather trim in the chair next to him. Across from him, Maxwell chatted with Anya over various Thai dishes. On the other side of the plane, Drake was in a heated discussion with leggy blonde Anitah while the ladies’ petite friend Donna observed in silence, fighting back a grin. “You’re an imbecile if that’s your opinion,” Anitah declared, raising her hands up in the air. “Are you sure that’s the hill you wanna die on?”

Drake smugly sipped from the crystal tumbler in his hand. “I’m right and you know it.”

“What are you two talking about?” Liam asked, relieved to think about anything other than what was in the bag and why it was so important he hand deliver it to his father.

“Fight Club being a better cinematic masterpiece than The Princess Bride,” Drake replied. “You guys agree, right? If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, you’d want to watch Tyler Durden fight the system instead of some…” he paused to sneer at Anitah, who crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue at him, “...story about a swashbuckler rescuing a princess? She’s not even a real princess!”

“Fight Club is such a guy movie though,” Anya argued, turning in her seat to face Drake. “Princess Bride appeals to men and women, with a much larger audience.”

“Okay, that’s two for Buttercup,” Drake sighed. “Maxwell? Li?” He looked at his friends expectantly.

“Fight Club, definitely,” Maxwell said, nodding his head. He’d spent the better part of the trip doing everything to get into Drake’s good graces after the octopus incident on the first night in Tokyo.

Before Liam could respond, a commotion from the front of the plane made everyone’s heads turn, where a pair of Kings Guards and two flight attendants were seated near the galley. One of the guards slipped into the cockpit, rushing out a moment later in Liam’s direction, as the jet slowly tilted to the right. “Apologies, Your Highness. Do you or any of your guests happen to speak Triydalian?”

Anya slowly raised her hand. “I knew a bit when I was a kid, but I haven’t used it in years.”

The guard motioned for her to join him. “Please come with us, miss. The pilots need a translator.”

“Is everything alright, Remy?” Liam peered past the guard, eyes widening at the sight of the other guard and one attendant hovering in front of the other attendant in a chair.

“We need to land the plane, Sir,” Remy answered, ushering Anya up from her seat. “Ramona passed out. She’s breathing but unresponsive.”

--

Twenty minutes later and after a jarring landing, they’d arrived at a small airport in the Republic of Triydalia, at the edge of one of the country’s many jungle forests. Calling it an airport was generous - it was more of a cleared dirt path in the middle of the jungle with a shack for an airport tower, and a man that looked like more of a hunter than an air traffic controller. After a choppy conversation that required pantomiming and hand signals, Anya left with Remy and the man from the tower to fetch a tribal doctor, while Anitah and Donna assisted the other member of the cabin crew to look after Ramona. They were warned to remain as quiet as possible and to stay inside the jet.

Minutes passed by in tense observation; Anitah and Drake continued their debate in low whispers, growing louder as they defended their choices. Liam could see the pilots discussing something pointedly as they checked readings on the instrument panel and worked on calculations. One of them stepped out, claiming that he needed to stretch his legs, and walked cautiously down the runway. When he returned, the other pilot joined him outside, despite the original warning to stay inside. Liam peered out the windows and checked his watch, worrying about Anya and Remy, along with his father’s instructions to avoid delaying their return.

While the remaining guard headed towards the back of the plane to pace back and forth for the eighth time, Liam took it upon himself to speak with the pilots. The air was thick and stifling the moment he stepped outside. Around them, there was nothing but green, green, and more green from the wilderness that surrounded them, abuzz with tropical birds and insects. At his side he carried the blue attache, remembering the promise to his father that the bag wouldn’t leave his sight. He spoke in a hushed tone when he approached the pilots. “You’re doing more than just stretching your legs, aren’t you, Captain?”

Both men grimaced slightly. “Yes, Your Highness. Even if we pulled back to one end of the runway, we’re still at least five hundred feet short of clearing takeoff.”

“What if we worked to try and clear the brush on either end?” Liam offered, looking off into the distance.

“There’s no way to clear out the trees, even the young ones,” the co-captain answered. “We might be able to take off if we could drop some weight, but the larger concern is the longer we wait, we increase the risk of encountering someone who doesn’t want us here.”

Liam nodded gravely; months of civil unrest in Triydalia meant rebel groups assembled faster than the government could contain them. There was no guarantee of anyone’s safety, stranded on a remote runway. There was no telling what was wrong with Ramona while she was unconscious, and therefore no way to treat her without the aid of a doctor. Ensuring the safety of the crew and his friends could have been avoided altogether if Leo didn’t constantly opt out of handling the duties of his station. In that moment, Liam abhorred the never-ending list of responsibilities thrust at him as a result of having to pick up the slack for his brother, knowing if their roles were reversed, Leo would manage to find a way to leave Liam to solve problems on his own.

“Could you excuse me for a moment?”

He’d barely finished asking the question before walking into the tall grass by the edge of the runway. Ignoring the pilots’ calls to return, Liam sprinted into the dense greenery, dodging between vines and scanning the ground for tripwires until he could no longer see the plane over his shoulder. When he finally stopped running, he bent over, hands on his knees as he gulped in air. Liam looked down at the blue bag in his hand, wondering what on earth was so precious to reduce him to a courier.

Shaking the bag did nothing; it felt practically empty, though he could tell something was inside. He couldn’t open the bag to check, since Prime Minister Abe and his father were the only ones with keys, and PM Abe handed him the sealed bag when they parted ways. Liam wanted to throw the infernal “murse” the ladies had good-naturedly teased him for into the bushes. Perspiration dotted his hairline, and he let out a primal scream, before taking slow, deep breaths to quiet the worrisome thoughts racing in his head and bring his heartbeat down to normal.

Cursed courier bag in his right hand, Liam braced his arm against his torso, pinning it in place with his elbow when he bent his other arm up towards his face. Curling his fingers into a relaxed fist, he pressed his lips against his thumb, thick brows furrowing in thought. All around him, wild birds called to one another amidst the chittering clamor of insects hidden in the foliage. He was so busy running through scenarios in his head that he didn’t hear the quiet click of a camera, turning to look up only when he heard a branch snap in the distance.

“Watch it! You’re gonna get us busted!” Donna hissed to Drake. She pocketed her phone, elbowing Drake in the ribs as they crouched behind large leaves. She ticked her head in Liam’s direction. “Go get your boy, none of us are safe out here.”

After some coaxing, Liam headed back to the plane with Donna and Drake, walking briskly through the jungle, eyes trained to look for anything out of the ordinary. Liam was alarmed when he heard and then saw the engines running, until Drake explained the pilots were burning off fuel to lighten the plane. They’d begun to walk up the steps, when Maxwell popped out above them. “Whoo!” Maxwell exclaimed, digging for another snack from the container he cradled in his arm. “Feels like a sauna out here!”

“Lower your voice, Maxwell! Please!” Liam seethed. His features pinched together in disbelief. “Are you...eating? Now?”

“You know I stress snack,” Maxwell replied, shrugging his shoulders. He shoved another cookie into his mouth.

Liam’s eyes lit up and he took the stairs two by two, knocking on the cockpit door before swinging it open. “What if we unloaded whatever’s not bolted down? The decor, dinnerware, the food and drink?”

“That...would certainly help,” the captain replied, looking back over his shoulder. He turned to his co-pilot. “It could be enough to get in the air after burning off the excess fuel.”

“You heard the man, Maxwell,” Liam said, offering his friend a nervous grin. “Get Drake to help you start unloading the plane. Has Ramona’s status changed?”

“Donna found the first aid kit just before she took off with Drake to go after you. Anitah found some smelling salts that gave her a rude wakeup call. Turns out her insulin pump shorted and she just needed some juice.”

Several more minutes passed as the group removed whatever they could from the plane, leaving piles of cookware, food, throw pillows, and even seat cushions to lighten the load. Drake whined when they gathered up the liquor, but he stuffed a bottle of whiskey in a cabinet by his seat. They’d nearly finished when Anya and Remy returned, running on foot. “That thing better be ready to take off!” Anya hollered, motioning for everyone to board. “Rebels on our tail! Time to go!”

Everyone scrambled back onto the plane; Liam relayed the urgency to depart to the pilots, who rapidly went through their flight checklist. Remy pulled Anya up onto the steps and they all clamored to buckle into their seats, the sound of gunfire in the air as the jet rolled forward and lurched up into the air, barely clearing the canopy.

Adrenaline pumping and breaths shallow, Liam looked around at his friends and the crew, thankful they were safely in the air again.

--

Liam thought he was having a stroke at twenty-four when he saw the contents of the bag. Constantine smiled with glee at the small gold cat, one paw raised.

[thanksjro]

More Than Meets the Eye #33: In Which I Write the Word ‘Quantum‘ 19 Times

Dang, I forgot what happened at the end of the last issue. It was pretty important, too, but I don’t have time to reread. Maybe the establishing shot can help me out?

Oh, that’s right, Rewind happened!

Everyone’s pretty jazzed that Rewind is here, non-exploded, and supposedly alive. Megatron carries this ridiculously small man over to a table, while Skids is busy admonishing Nightbeat for trying to put the pieces of this mystery together.

That’s one of the two first canonically, openly gay Transformers, Megatron. You bet your ass he’s important.

Nightbeat’s dragged Nautica over to look at that poster for Crosscut’s play they saw last issue. Together, they discover something interesting, and it’s not that Nightbeat’s chin has elongated to the point of absurdity. On this future ship, the play was completed and produced a mere few weeks after the initial launch of the Lost Light.

While this is going on, Rewind wakes up and asks Skids what the hell is going on. Skids, likely not wanting to poke at farm-fresh trauma, glosses over the fact that everyone on this ship was violently murdered, and that they found Rewind blacked out inside the hollowed torso of his brother-in-law.

…This is a dark story line.

You see, the joke here is that “Dark Cybertron” sucked major chrome.

Megatron reminds everyone that they’re still in grave danger every moment they stay aboard this ship, but Skids is more concerned with Rewind’s mental health. Which is sweet, but maybe not the thing to prioritize in such a precarious situation.

Rewind takes the fact that Megatron is an Autobot now pretty friggin’ well, as well as the introduction of gender into his species. That is, until Nightbeat, the king of social graces, saunters up to the scene to ask Rewind what the hell happened to the ship. He does get his answers, despite Rewind being horrified to the point of speechlessness.

Over at the hole in the wall, Nautica and Riptide are taking a gander at the quantum drums, which house the quantum foam for the quantum engines so quantum jumps can happen.

As Nautica explains the process by which quantum travel works, she realizes that the answer to what happened to everyone who disappeared was right in front of them this whole time.

Quantum, quantum, quantum- doesn’t even sound like a word anymore, does it?

The data slug Rewind made corroborates this theory, showing a series of events that definitely didn’t happen to the Lost Light we’ve been following throughout this story so far. The data slug contains this Rewind’s version of dead Rewind’s “Little Victories”, the travelogue that was never completed, where the question “are you happy?” revealed just how emotionally unhealthy most of the crew is. I’d like to imagine this Rewind’s film is called “Small Achievements”, or perhaps “Dear Fucking Lord, We’ve Been on this Trip for Three Hours and the Captain Has Been Killed by a Goddamned Soul-Vampire”, or maybe even “Where the FUCK is Our Therapist”.

The DJD came into the equation by way of someone having led them to the Lost Light. We get a flashback panel of the gorefest, in which Tarn appears to have learned how to fly, given the angle he’s coming from.

Because Rewind’s big thing in this series is being the guy who records stuff, the DJD take the opportunity to make some movies of their visit to the space yacht.

James, why do you keep getting Rewind involved with snuff films? I’m starting to get concerned.

Now, the thing about Rewind is that he’s almost always accompanied by his other half. Where is Chromedome, anyway?

He’s dead, that’s where.

Turns out, when you tell the DJD that you won’t do the thing they want you to do, they have a habit of doing nasty things in retaliation. Chromedome got stabbed in the friggin’ visor with his own finger needles, because Vos enjoys ironic deaths, I suppose. There’s some other stuff that’s implied to have happened, but we’ll get to that once we learn a little more about the DJD themselves.

While Rewind recounts the grisly tale of his husband’s demise, Riptide notes that the quantum foam has begun to spread at a remarkable rate. This is a bad thing, because that shit can and will explode, given half the chance, and this wreck is floating right above a potentially-inhabited planet.

Though I could have sworn we established that this planet was a Smartplanet, and therefore very much populated by students and staff. I don’t know. Maybe we conveniently forgot that, so we could make this a learning moment for Megatron.

Jiminy Christmas, Megs, do you even listen to yourself?

Skids, who has had a very long day of finding corpses and learning about quantum theory, snaps at Megatron, telling him that in order to actually be an Autobot, you have to have a little frickin’ compassion for those outside of your peer group.

Which is sort of contradictory to the Aequitas trials, the Killswitch debacle, the POW situation back on Cybertron, and whatever the fuck Prowl’s whole deal is, but maybe Skids is speaking about his own, personal relationship with being an Autobot. Hopefully so, otherwise he needs a class on critical thinking, STAT.

Never mind all of that though, because the problem just got a lot worse- the quantum foam has expanded to a point where any holes in the stuff are too small for the Rod Pod to get through. We’re going to have to get creative if we want to save the day.

Luckily, we’ve got a quantum duplicate of just about the tiniest little dude in the franchise here to do the job. Now we just need another, equally tiny little man, so the quantum drums can be shut off at the same time. Nautica commits more microaggressions, and this gives Getaway inspiration for a witty quip, which in turn gives Skids a brilliant idea.

The gang heads down to Brainstorm’s lab, to look for the mass displacement gun that was used for treating Ultra Magnus’s nanocon infestation back in the 2012 Annual. While they search, Nautica explains just why the hell the Lost Light disappeared in the first place. You see, quantum duplication acts on the Cain Instinct— it’s fine, as long as the duplicates don’t perceive each other. However, the moment contact is made, it says “oh man, guess I’m gonna have to end you” to one of the duplicates. The contact in this case happened when the Coffin Rodimus was brought aboard the ship.

Anything that wasn’t aboard the Lost Light at the point of the takeoff/explosion was never duplicated, and thus wasn’t erased from reality once shit started going to hell. This is why the Rod Pod is still around, and why the remaining cast are— well, the remaining cast.

While this conversation is going on, Nautica and Nightbeat uncover yet another dead body; it’s Brainstorm, and he’s a little underdressed.

…Someone run a paternity test, I think Cyclonus might be the father.

Also, Brainstorm’s a double agent.

Fucked up.

Getaway is furious that a Decepticon has been living on the same ship as him for the last six months, right under his proverbial nose. Even Megatron’s surprised, stating that Brainstorm isn’t usually who the recruiters aim for.

So, no mass displacement gun, and now they’re aware of the fact that there’s a traitor on the ship who’s had access to a LOT of weapon tech. It’s at this point that Megatron decides to stop lying by omission and tells everyone that he can mass-displace, since he used to turn into a handgun.

Smashcut to Megatron and Rewind floating out in space, the former now not much taller than the latter, as they traverse the web of quantum foam to get to the drums. Nautica instructs them from the Rod Pod. If this works, anything produced or connected to the quantum engine will be neutralized, and maybe we’ll even get the other Lost Light back! YAAAAAY!!!

Y’all really let this man go out there to fuckin’ kill himself for the greater good, didn’t you?

Rewind is honestly pretty chill with ceasing to be, seeing as he watched 200/+ people die today, including his long-time spouse.

Jesus. I’d say get him a therapist, but in order to do that, we’re going to have to wipe him off the map anyway.

Rewind asks Megatron if the Chromedome that isn’t his and his duplicate are still together. And I mean…

Luckily, Megatron has the good sense to lie.

With that, they flip the switches, and deactivate the drums.

And that’s a series wrap on Rewind! Congrats to Mr. James Roberts for the esteemed honor of burying the same gay twice!

Later on, everyone is back inside the Rod Pod, as their disappeared shipmates return from being nonexistent. Chromedome pops back in, and Skids is on him like a shark, telling him to go on the roof. Skids doesn’t even try to explain why. Which, fair. How the hell do you explain to someone that their dead husband’s quantum duplicate survived both a terrorist splinter cell attack, and the laws of quantum sci-fi bullshit crashing down on his tiny, tiny body, and that he’s right there on the roof waiting for them?

Welp, there goes the Chromedome/Dominus endgame. Shame, that.

Looks like Chromedome finally hit the threshold for having earned Roberts’ pity, and won’t be directly targeted by the plot for a little while. This isn’t something you see very often, so let’s really soak this in.

…Someone had to have told Rewind what happened to the other Rewind, right? I wonder what that conversation was like.

Back inside the ship, Blaster gets word that the Lost Light has reappeared. As they navigate towards it, Megatron requests that an encrypted call be made to Rodimus, to discuss the Brainstorm problem.

In the interim, Ravage is offered the opportunity to be a part of the crew, so he doesn’t have to keep skulking around in the shadows. We don’t get an answer from him, as our focus shifts over to Nightbeat and Nautica.

Nightbeaaaaaaaaaat, stop stating the themes of the comic verbatim! People are going to start thinking you’re a shonen anime protagonist!

Nightbeat’s somehow managed to keep ahold of the briefcase that they found on the other Lost Light. Unless Brainstorm’s boyfriend is in there, I don’t think this one was the work of Huey Lewis and the News’ hit single from the Back to the Future soundtrack.

Over on the Lost Light, specifically in Swerve’s, Brainstorm’s making his way through the crowd, briefcase held gentle like hamburger as he goes. He makes it to the bar, where Atomizer tells him he can’t have his briefcase in here. Brainstorm has what most would accept to be a healthy response to being told “no.”

It’s what I would do.

[seeksstaronmewni]

The Bear Roots of Burbank Cartoons: A Lookback at Boo Boo Runs Wild

5 years ago, [adult swim] aired the greatest of all Yogi Bear / Ranger Smith episodes, “Boo Boo Runs Wild” (1999), on August 13th, 2016 A.D. at 4 AM.

Look and see, kids, how America’s not-so-average bear connects in the wide world of animation that produces many of the cartoons that you love in Burbank, Canada and more!

As and after I saw it, I knew that I found the greatest band of cartoonists out there, and that greatest band of cartoonists out there was none other than...

Spümcø, whose many creatives would end up working at Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Cartoon Network Studios, and many other popular Burbank and Canadian studios that made the cartoons I grew up and beyond watching.

Obviously, the character design is rather different, but they still look like the right characters, even with the slight color changes...

and with their items of human attire out. Ranger Smith, on the other hand...

Ranger Smith is wildly off model, and probably on purpose, throughout the picture.

Only in one scene appears he with a more familiar face.

Now, I didn’t have to watch Wild Kratts (which, by the way, features 6 Spümcø Canada creatives) to learn that “there’s only one thing a bear likes more than raiding a pic-a-nic basket.”

As the title suggests, Boo Boo loses his temper when Ranger Smith restricts him from tearing bark and decides to go primal in returning to his bear roots: “From this day forth, I’ll not dress in the man’s attire, and I’ll not speak in the man’s tongue. From now on, it’s going on all fours and grunting for me!”

Boo Boo wreaks havoc for the trees with his natural bear roots.

Unlike past episodes, however, the artists went far wilder than the usual Hanna-Barbera cartoon, making the trees alive and screaming in pain! OH, WHAT TOURTUE! Not to mention how I love Boo Boo’s goofy/manical laugh, a beautiful product of John Kricfalusi’s voice (Yes; I know that he was a formerly abusive megalomaniac who still has ADHD, but God knows what cartoons would be like today—at least those produced in Burbank and Canada—if it wasn’t for the many layout artists that he led).

Also unnatural to a Hanna-Barbera cartoon is the extreme levels of slapstick, wackiness and graphic nature of cartoons since such shows as Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures, Beany and Cecil’s DiC reboot, and The Ren & Stimpy Show. Boo Boo and now Cindy Bear are licking away at all of the honey... and bees... with insanely long tongues (may be that they’re sloth bears?). This left Yogi Bear practically speechless.

The mere sequence of dialogue between Yogi and Ranger Smith, discussing what to do about Boo Boo, involved HEAVY work in the storyboards by Vincent Waller. So many expressions that they couldn’t fit in each of Spümcø’s 3-panel storyboard pages!

As you see, in addition to Vincent Waller’s storyboards, John K. added extra poses (storyboard revisions more or less, but definitely layout poses) under the respective scenes. That way, Vincent could focus on telling and writing the story in rough pictures. (source of storyboards)

I also love the sound design. While it’s definitely true to a Hanna-Barbera cartoon, John K. and the late Henry Porch were very creative with some weird, dated and out-of-context sound effects, similar to what they and Horta Editorial did on The Ren & Stimpy Show in the first two seasons. The production music (probably APM and Capitol Records) also gave it a vintage, nostalgic feel.

Ultimately, with the aforementioned abusive megalomaniac aside, Spümcø undoubtedly harbored some of the finest animators and artists ever. Such names as Bob Jaques (Spongebob Squarepants, Buy One, Get One Free*, The Baby Huey Show), Ben Jones (DC Super Hero Girls, Cats Don’t Dance, Teen Titans GO!), Vincent Waller (Spongebob Squarepants, Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog), Albert Lozano (Inside Out, A Kitty Bobo Show), Todd White (Spongebob Squarepants), Eric Koenig (Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Madagascar, Cats Don’t Dance, The Simpsons, and The Tigger Movie), and Erik Wiese (Samurai Jack, The Mighty B!) are among the hundreds of creatives who ended up almost everywhere working in Burbank and Canadian animation.

Other names on the Spümcø team that one might recognize include Gabe Swarr (Dexter’s Laboratory, The Buzz on Maggie, Foe Paws, El Tigre), and even background artists such as Richard Daskas ( @rdaskas​ - Samurai Jack, Time Squad, Sym-Bionic Titan, Batman Beyond), Richard Ziehler-Martin (Tiny Toon Adventures, The Wacky World of Tex Avery), Hector Martinez (Tom and Jerry: Robin Hood and His Merry Mouse, Timone and Pumba, Captain N, Evil Con Carne, Dora the Explorer), and Tony Mora (MAD, Teen Titans GO! to the Movies, Pickle and Peanut). I mean: in short, these artists worked for Warner Bros. Animation, Disney Television Animation and Walt Disney Feature Animation, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network Studios!

Spümcø’s production assistants on Boo Boo Runs Wild feature Matt Danner —a fantastic character designer, storyboard artists, director and producer, whose credits range from (Johnny Test and The Legend of the Three Caballeros to Team Hot Wheels and The Looney Tunes Show—and Cartoon Brew editor Amid Amidi. Brian A. Miller was an executive in charge of production, not for but probably in association with Cartoon Network.

Spümcø’s creatives, as I said, are all over the place in Burbank animation. Other shows that still air on @adultswim​ have ex-Spümcø creatives. For example: today’s re-run of Samurai Jack EPISODE XVI features Chris Reccardi (The Powerpuff Girls, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy)...

Scott Wills (Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal, The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat)...

Lynne Naylor-Reccardi (The Shnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show, Wander Over Yonder) and Jim Smith (YooHoo and Friends, Tom and Jerry Tales, McGee and Me)...

and Leticia Lacy (TRON: Uprising, Sym-Bionic Titan, Wander Over Yonder, Korgoth of Barbaria).

Even outside of Cartoon Network Studios, where most ex-Spümcø artists end up, @cartoonnetwork​’s The Amazing World of Gumball, from Cartoon Network Studios Europe (AKA Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe), features ex-Spümcø artist Charlie Bean (The Powerpuff Girls, Robotboy, Batman: The Animated Series, Timone and Pumba, Creature Crunch) on The Cartoon Network Europe Development Team.

One of Cartoon Network’s biggest and craziest hits, Teen Titans GO!, also features such ex-Spümcø artists as storyboard artist, director and producer Luke Cormican (The Buzz on Maggie, Brandy and Mr. Whiskers, Brickleberry, The Replacements, El Tigre)...

Gerald de Jesus (The Book of Life, The Ricky Gervais Show, TMNT)...

and Eric J. Pringle (Fosters’ Home for Imaginary Friends, The Problem Solverz). What wacky cartoon filled with live-action images, unpredictable visual gags and extreme slapstick humor wouldn’t?

Relatively, you could even tune in to Nickelodeon, the original home of Spümcø’s ground-breaking hit, The Ren & Stimpy Show, and see names of creatives associated with Spümcø and Ren & Stimpy, such as Zeus Cervas (Star vs. the Forces of Evil, Spongebob Squarepants, Clarence) on today’s episode of The Patrick Star Show...

or even Gabe Del Valle (Mighty Magiswords, Spongebob Squarepants) on today’s episode of Middlemost Post!

Overall, Boo Boo Runs Wild introduced me to the cartoon studio whose works I took for granted and on which I was missing out all of my life, and I strongly encourage this generation to support this Yogi Bear / Ranger Smith episode, which you can watch RIGHT NOW on [adult swim]’s site. It was officially on their YouTube channel, but it was removed for unknown reasons. This short never even got a DVD or VHS release!

The last televised airing of Boo Boo Runs Wild on [adult swim] so far was January 6th, 2019 A.D., but Spümcø also produced “A Day in the Life of Ranger Smith” and “Boo Boo and the Man” (based on true events in the life of John Kricfalsui) for Cartoon Network.

As I come to a close, it’s worth noting that layout Ed Benedict, an animator and artist whose credits go all of the way back to the 1930s with Disney and continued with MGM and Hanna-Barbera/Cartoon Network Studios, originally worked on Yogi Bear episode “Yogi’s Birthday Party” as a layout artist, and reprised that very role for “Boo Boo Runs Wild”. What a legacy the animators and artists of this episode leave!

Always will I remember how Spümcø, whose legacy connects to my Cartoon Network-infused childhood, blessed me and graced me that fateful day, August 13th, 2016 A.D., with the ultimate example of the fine art of cartooning that is the Yogi Bear / Ranger Smith episode “Boo Boo Runs Wild”. I was living in the moment, and I thank God for it.

“For years they have [been] asking me to make new Yogi cartoons, but I can’t even get a half a million [dollars] to make one, probably because I actually like the characters, but 60-70 million $ to make walking corpses is economical.” - John Kricfalsui on Yogi Bear (2010)

Another Ranger Smith, Boo Boo or Yogi Bear cartoon from the people behind The Ren & Stimpy Show is highly unlikely today, due to the abuse and harassment of John K. angering the world to the point of hating and condemning the man who helped to shape not only Cartoon Network but also television animation—and animation as a whole—with an undeniable legacy of artists and animators who deserve way more credit and respect than we perhaps thought of giving as kids.

Tweet version of this post here.

[boldlyanxious]

None the Wiser 3

Masterlist

All fic masterlist

Bio-dad Bruce prompt-siblings

Marinette spent the next few days pushing the idea of alternative parentage out of her mind. Instead she focused back on school. During their afternoon off, much of the class was going to the movies but Marinette decided she would use the time to work on her entry for a fashion contest for lycée students as a joint project among the top 3 fashion schools in Paris.

Marinette had drawn several ideas but hadn't decided which design she wanted to create. For the contest, she would need to submit 4 designs and create one garment to be judged. The panel from the 3 schools would judge then and the top 12 would be featured at a fashion the show along with recent graduates and would be offered a slot at a summer course put on by the fashion schools.

She had several ideas drawn and now she was trying to decide which design she would use. Maybe she could enlist her friends to help her decide but there was always a risk that if she brought her designs to school one of the other students would steal them. She was pretty happy with her inspiration. Slightly inspired by an akuma but could be more universal. The colors of the storm and lightning from Stormy Weather had shown her bright pinks, purples and greens contrasting with greys and blues.

Once she chose which designs to submit she headed to the fabric store to play around with materials and colors before making her final drawings with details of how they would be made. Looking at the materials would also help her decide which of her 2 favorites would be the one she would construct. She was careful heading there. She has seen a boy a little older than her and he left at the same time as her and was moving in the same direction.

She went around the corner and ducked into the store quickly. She was getting nervous. She moved between several rows, back and forth repeatedly checking the door. Eventually she decided the boy must have been walking in the same direction and focused back on her task. She spent quite a bit of time there carefully going through all the color combinations before narrowing her choices down. She purchased small amounts of several options so she could see how they would look in different lighting before she made her final choice.

With that done she was ready to head home. Her parents wouldn't expect her home for awhile but she wanted to finish her assignments so she could keep working on this without interruption. Unfortunately as she headed back down the block she thought she saw a shadow. Most likely she was just jumpy because of the boy from earlier.

She aimed herself directly towards a busier area. It would make her take the long way gone but she would be more likely to encounter other people. When he caught up to her she was almost in view of the back of the Grand Paris hotel. She tried to make a quick double turn down 2 streets but his longer legs and bold attitude had him catch up to her. Rather than attempting to run as he caught up to her, she turned to face him.

"What is it you want?" she asked venomously.

"Precisely what I was planning to ask you." he replied.

"Well you are the one following me around. See something you like?"

"I see nothing. You are nothing. I was brought up a prince and you could never compare."

"Well your majesty you shouldn't have to walk the same ground as me. Stop. Following. Me "

Marinette turned to leave but his arm reached out to block her, She turned her eyes on him, shining bright with rage. He curled his lips and narrowed his green eyes back at her.

"You think this sweet, innocent act will fool anyone? I have exceeded all the expectations put on me and you will never measure up."

He pushed her until her back was against the wall and leaned in close at the end of his statement. Marinette steeled herself for what she knew would probably injure both of them. She masked her face with fear, making her eyes wide. When his eyes showed victory she acted. She threw her head forward hitting his chin with her forehead. She suspected it would bruise but hopefully it would be hidden by her hairline. Grabbing his collar with both hands before either of them could pull back from the blow she pushed him one direction into the wall and ran the other direction.

Running down the street and turning down the next one put her right by the Grand Paris. She saw Chloe and Sabrina sitting at a table near there and without explaining she turned a chair to their table and sat down. She took Sabrina's sweater and put it on. She pulled her hair out and left it down with a piece of fabric from her trip she wrapped it around her head like a headband. Then she snatched Chloe's glasses off her head and put them on herself. This all happened quickly but she knew it would not be without protest.

"Just what do you think you are doing, Dupain-Cheng?" Chloe asked haughtily.

"Shh. Just for a moment and I will be gone. Also I will owe you." Marinette pleaded.

Whatever response Chloe has was paused as the dark hair boy ran out from the same place she had just come from. Chloe watched him knowingly as he looked around swiftly before walking on. They both looked at her as he walked past then and then out of sight.

"Should I call my dad?" Sabrina asked.

"I don't know anything about him. Chances are I won't see him again." Marinette replied.

She pulled off the stolen articles and stood to leave. As she walked away she could hear Chloe direct Sabrina to follow her home and so she could repay them with macarons. She was fairly certain that they did this specifically so she would not be walking home alone and she was grateful.

---

Marinette made it to her first class with a few minutes to spare. She had actually gotten pretty good at showing up a few minutes early during her time in lycée. She usually had her breakfast with her but it worked pretty well.

Somehow she managed to have no classes with both Chloe and Lila. She wondered if the administration had intentionally separated the girls. Her first class had only had Chloe, Adrien, and Kim from her collège class. Still those in the class were slightly surprised when Chloe stopped by Marinette before heading to her seat.

"Was everything okay after you got home?" Chloe asked.

"Oh, yeah. I was fine. I don't think I was seen after." Marinette said, trying to be vague since everyone was listening.

"Seen by who?" Kim said.

"It wasn't that man from the park was it? He looked sketchy to me," Adrien said.

"No, nothing like that. Just had a strange interaction with someone while I was shopping yesterday." Marinette said.

Chloe scoffed, "I'm sure you also just decided to do something decent with your hair today and you weren't just trying to cover that bruise."

"Are you saying I look cute?" Marinette said.

Marinette knew Chloe saying she looked decent was far closer to a compliment than she ever would admit to. Chloe tried to deny it while other voices had more questions. Adrien skipped asking and walked right up to her and started moving her hair looking for a bruise.

"What bruise?" Kim said.

"I think you're cute," said Noah.

That caused Marinette to blush even more than Adrien touching her face and hair. She pulled away and brushed him off. The teacher came in and the conversations slowed as people started pulling out books. Marinette was happy to no longer be the focus of everyone and set about getting her supplies ready.

Classes changed and the day went on. Marinette made the motions of going to her classes and taking notes. She was on her way to lunch when Luka approached her to find out how she was dealing with the revelation she had gotten over the last weekend.

"I don't even know what to think. He wants me to meet his kids. I met one Tim but his oldest and his biological child are supposed to arrive at some point."

"Are you going to meet them?"

"Yeah. We are going to that cafe with the really nice patio Saturday. Then they are headed back home Sunday evening."

"Would it be better if someone went with you?" he asked.

"I'm not sure yet. But you are the only person who knows."

"Well, my schedule is open that day. I'll leave it open just in case."

---

Marinette managed to arrive first on Saturday. She sat outside and waited. She still made sure she was close to the exit and her phone had the gps on. Her parents were still very nervous about the whole situation but they were allowing Marinette to engage as she felt comfortable, as long as she would follow all their rules.

So far Bruce had done nothing but make an attempt to know her more. He was allowing her to guide their interactions when it was clear he wanted more. He has mentioned her visiting him but as soon as she looked uncomfortable he shut it down and suggested he would keep visiting. The only thing Marinette really knew about him was that he was a businessman in America. Clearly he had enough money that he was able to fly to Paris without a thought. He was heading back tomorrow but he was already planning to return soon.

Marinette looked up at the sound of the door opening. Tim walked in with another man and she could see Bruce behind them but he paused before coming out to the patio. He seemed to be fighting with the other member of the party but Marinette couldn't see him. Tim greeted her with a big smile and introduced Dick, who had an even bigger smile and seemed to be vibrating with excitement. He used both hands when he shook her hand. Marinette thought if she had stood he probably would have pulled her into a tight hug.

They all turned back as Bruce walked out. She gave a small smile until Bruce stepped aside when presenting his son Damian. He was scowling and when Marinette saw him she was immediately wearing a matching scowl and crossed her arms. She had no interest in sitting and eating with him after he followed her around Paris just to insult her. She stood and made a mock curtsy.

"Oh, your royal highness, you grace us with your presence," Marinette said while bowing.

Damian clicked his tongue against his teeth. Bruce's face fell.

"Have you two met before?" Tim asked.

"It was nice to meet you all. We should definitely not do this again," Marinette said before she walked out the gate to exit the patio.

She could hear the voices arguing as she walked away and then the sound of footsteps behind her.

"Marinette, wait please," Bruce said.

"What?" she asked sharply.

She stopped and turned to him waiting but when he caught up to her he still didn't know what to say.

"I don't know. But I have to know that whatever Damian did won't cause you to never speak to me again."

"What makes you think he did something?"

"It's his M.O. You are upset and he is smug."

"I always thought it would be nice to have a brother. The reality does not live up to the hype."

"Perhaps I rushed things. We will all be heading home tomorrow. But I want to see you before then. Please."

"I'll let you know."

Next

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[slashersins]

saving grace .

part two .

( part one )  ( part three )  ( part four )   ( part five )

this can also be seen as happening a few weeks after ‘ i hope you dance ’ or a few months after part one .

things had been going well . the bumps in the road and frequency of brahms’ tantrums few and far between . you thought it had something to do with brahms having two nanny’s attention on him . but greta had a feeling it was you . 

you’d always been so motherly and fussy with her and your other friends . taking care of someone just came naturally , and your gentle nature helped . she was so thankful to have you here. she would have broke down completely if she was faced with this herself . after all , greta knew she was spending less and less time in the heelshire mansion and less and less time taking care of brahms , and more time with malcolm . 

so it was no surprise when you helped greta get ready for another date , leaving you alone in the house with the spirit of the little boy you were coming to adore . you held brahms close as you waved goodbye and fussed over greta from afar to be safe and call if she needed anything . and not to stay out too late . 

“ i don’t think she’s gonna come back before ten brahmsy . even you’re better at following your bed time . ” you smiled down , a goofy grin on your face at the joke you made before whisking brahms off to make dinner . you’d promised him he could stay up a little later tonight , so some things on the list were pushed forward . 

once again greta had left to be with the deilvery boy . brahms had asked himself so many times how he could have ever thought that greta would of been a good partner for him . she didn’t follow the rules at all until he scared her . unlike you , who followed them from the start . and even know she broke the rules , leaving the house and ignoring him . if it hadn’t been for you here , he might have been throwing more tantrums out of anger . but he pushed those thoughts to the side . because with greta out of the house , it meant he could spend more time with you . more time with the person he adored . with the person that took care of him . 

brahms stayed close in the walls as you made dinner , choosing to play some of brahms favorite music as you hummed and swayed along . he wanted to come out of the walls and sway with you . what would it be like to hold you while you cooked ? to set his chin on your head and steal bites of food ? god , he wanted to touch you again . to be close . his finger’s twitched against the thin paneling of the wall . oh , y/n . . . don’t you know how much i love you ? 

like always , you closed your eyes and allowed brahms enough time to come out and eat his food and return his empty plate to the sink , something you’d asked him to start doing to help . because good boys helped out , and it also meant that good boys could sometimes get an extra bed time story or kiss . and brahms wanted to be good for you . 

“ thank you for putting your plate in sink , brahmsy ! alright , so , how do you want to spend the rest of the evening ? we can go listen to music , or i can read to you ? we can cuddle and talk ? watch a movie ? it’s your choice tonight since you get to stay up . ” 

“ the library , please . can we talk ? will you read to me ? ” anything to feel like he was closer to you . anything to just listen to your voice . to learn more about you that he didn’t know already from his constant watching and exploring of your things .

“ that sounds great . but first . . . we have to get into our sleep over pajamas . so let’s go get changed ! ” you’re smile and laughter warmed him in these cold walls . yes , y/n . anything you want . just keep smiling , just keep laughing . even if you put my doll in some silly pajama set . 

now clad in a semi-matching pair of plaid pajamas with the doll brahms , you sat on the couch in the library and cuddled him close . “ what are you wanting to talk about sweetling ? something on your mind ? ”

taking a deep breath from within his hide away , brahms started , questions that had been spinning in his head . irrational thoughts and fears he wanted to talk to you about . he felt as if he could tell you anything , and now was the time . pressed to the wall , half jealous of how you brushed the doll’s hair out of his face and smiled down at it , he spoke softly , curiously . 

“ will you stay with me forever ? ”

the question catches you off guard . normally when brahms wanted to talk it was to know more about you , about where you came from , about stories you knew and well . . . simple things .

“ oh brahms . . . ” you sighed as you gave the doll a hug , “ i’ll stay with you as long as i can , okay ? i’m one of your nanny’s , aren’t i ? ” the smile you give him is soft and caring . brahms was lonely . you knew that much . the poor boy always wanting attention , practically clinging . you couldn't imagine being so lonely .  

“ i want you to stay with me forever . i don’t want you to leave like greta does . please stay with me ? forever ? ” there’s a slight whine , a hint of desperation in his voice , he leans further into the wall , putting most of his body weight against it . please , y/n . i love you so much . please , stay .

“ brahms . . .” you close your eyes and press your forehead to the doll , the coolness making your heart break for him . “ when your parents come home they might not need us to watch over you anymore . and i don’t think you should be so upset with greta . she’s happy . she still takes care of you , just like i do . but she should be allowed to go out and have fun with someone she cares for . and malcolm makes her happy . please don’t think so bad of her . ”

his breath hitches at the mention of his parents . the letter they left behind . the fact they had left him . truly and utterly . they weren’t coming back , y/n . they weren’t ! and greta - greta was supposed to be his . his ! his parents left her for him , and she ended up constantly running off with malcolm . not even caring about the fact she was supposed to be his nanny . yes , he had you now , and you were his everything . but that didn’t make the abandonment hurt any less .

desperation filled him , he needed you to stay . you couldn’t leave him . what if . . . what if you ended up finding a malcolm ? what if you ended up leaving like greta ? what if you forgot him . no - no . he had to make you understand . ignoring anything spoken about greta , he pressed against the wall , nails almost digging into the wood .

“ you can’t leave . i don’t want you to . i - i want you to be mine . forever . please , please , y/n . i want you to be mine . just you and me . forever . ”

“brahms - i - ” he knew that tone , and he let out a soft sound , pained and hurt . “ brahmsy , sweetling . . . what’s wrong ? why are you asking me all these things ? are you scared that - ”

“i love you . i love you , y/n . ” it’s whimpered out , and you hold the doll close , kissing it’s temple as you rub soothing circles into it’s back . 

“ i love you too , brahmsy . i - ”

“ then why won't you be mine ? why won’t you stay with me forever ? i'm being so good . i'll be so good . please ! i love you. you love me too - ” 

“ brahms . . . you're just a little boy . oh sweetling . . . ” 

“ no ! no , no , no , no , no ! i love you ! you have to be mine . you love me too , you said so ! you’re supposed to stay with me forever if you love me . you’re supposed to be mine ! ” his voice is still childlike , but filled with anguish and fury . his hands balled into fists as he bangs so harshly on the walls that he doesn’t notice the way you jump and go wide eyed , looking so frightened . 

“ brahms - ”

“ NO ! i love you . I LOVE YOU , Y/N . YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME . YOU HAVE TO STAY . I LOVE YOU . I LOVE YOU . NO , NO , NO , NO , NO ! ”

he’s never had a tantrum this bad . and you’d be lying if you said you weren’t scared . desperately you try to sooth the boy , petting over his hair , holding him close , trying to calm him down . but the thumping of the walls get worse and worse . it starts circling the room , hitting against the book shelves and sending them falling from their places . each loud thud has you gasping , tears falling from your eyes as genuine fear fills you . 

“ brahms please ! brahms stop , please . please just take a deep breathe , please - ” you’re words are broken through sobs . brahms child like screams of anger , the brutal near wood breaking sound of the walls being hit , every book that hits the floor . it’s too much . you’re sobbing in fear , holding the doll close and shaking , eyes screwed shut as you bed brahms to calm down . 

“ y/n ? ! ” you don’t hear greta’s voice over the sound of brahm’s wrath in the room , but brahms does and he stops , seething as he presses his face against the wall to see greta coming in . to see how you shake . the fear in your eyes as you look up , red and swollen and puffy . he sees the mess he made and how you desperately try to even your breathing . 

he did this to you . he hurt you . he scared you . what if you hated him now ? terrible thoughts swam through his head and he took off to his room . he couldn’t bring himself to look at you . he couldn’t bring himself to see what he’d done . 

the next few days are quiet in the house . greta takes over all of the duties that come with watching and taking care of brahms . she makes you rest . seeing you so shaken up , so scared . it worried her . god , it worried her . she took to sleeping in your room , cuddling you and petting your hair as you came down from the sheer shock of your experience . part of you was hurt , devastated that your sweet little brahms would get so violent . part aching for the little boy who was terrified of being alone . you spent most of your time crying , trying to move past the incident , and then crying again . 

one night greta offered to send you back home . maybe this was too much . maybe it was too much for both of you . somehow you’d have to find a way to apologize to the heelshires and wait for them to come home or send someone else - but you never let her finish . your heart ached so deeply for brahms . so you only shook your head . “ he needs us , greta . we can’t just leave him . ”

she blamed your motherly attachment , your gentle heart , your willingness to help others . it only had her holding you while you slept , forcing you to let her do all the worrying for once . 

brahms spent the days alone . not coming out of his room even to eat . he kept replaying the scene over in his head . guilt eating at him . he’d frightened you . the person he cared for most in the world . he’d only wanted to tell you his feelings . to ask you to stay . he only wanted for you to accept his love and love him back . 

after those few days , when hunger was too much , and he finally found the courage to seek out food , he stumbled upon greta receiving groceries from the deliver boy . he stayed quiet , frowning to himself as he didn’t see you in the kitchen . and annoyed that he’d have to wait till greta left before he could raid the fridge . 

“ how’re they holding up ? ”

“ they’re better . still a bit shaken up , but better . but god , they keeps worrying about how the doll is . ”

“ yeah ? i’d figured they would of left by now . ”

“ they wouldn’t do that . not the me and not to brahms . i asked them and they shut me down each time . ”

“ i’m sorry , greta . ”

“ don’t be . it’s not your fault . it’s brahms . the brat . they won’t even tell me what set him off . and it was probably nothing . ”

brahms stayed there , listening as he felt the guilt rise in him , suffocating him like smoke . he didn’t mean to scare you . he’d just been angry . he cried behind his mask , soft whimpers going unheard as malcolm and greta said their good buys and greta left to go do whatever it was she’d been doing before hand . 

the hunger he’d been feeling was gone , a heavy pit taking it’s place in his stomach . he didn’t want to step out from the walls , what was the point in eating ? he’d hurt you so badly . . . but as he turned something caught his eyes . flowers . a bouquet left on the table . so many of his books had apologies with flowers , even his own father brought them in for his mother on occasion . would you forgive him if he asked for it ? could you ? he hoped so . 

stealing back the doll brahms had been easy . arranging and placing the doll out side your bedroom door with the flowers ha been tasking . it took many minutes and fiddling to make sure the doll didn’t fall over . and he had to hurry after knocking on your door to go back into the walls .

you hadn’t been doing much . just reading while haphazardly draped in pillows and covers when you heard the knock . thinking it was greta , you opened the door , only to find brahms looking up at you . flowers in his hand . there’s a flash of fear that last for a second before it melt into concern and curious and realization . tears welled in your eyes as you knelt down , touching at the delicate petals of the flowers . 

“ i’m sorry . i’m so so sorry , y/n . ”

you don’t waste time in hugging the doll to your chest . “ please brahms . you can’t do that again . i was so scared . i know you were upset but you can’t throw a tantrum like that . ” you were crushing and ruining the flowers that he’d brought you , but how could you are . through the fear and slight trauma of experiencing such a paranormal activity you’d been so concerned for brahms . “ promise me you won’t do that again brahms . promise me that you’ll talk to me , that you’ll let me explain and listen . please ? ”

“ i promise . i’m sorry . ”

“ i know . i know . thank you from apologizing . i - i forgive you , okay ? i know you were just very upset . i forgive you . but . . . but where did you - ” you pause as you pull back and you can’t help the slight smile that tugs your lips . “ brahms , these flowers were from malcolm to greta . you little trouble maker , you stole them . that’s not a good thing to do brahms . ”

the sound of your playful tone , even if it’s broken through slight hiccups and sniffles is a relief . he feels so much lighter , so much better . and he presses against the wall , wishing he could hold you and wipe away your tears . to comfort you . 

“ you needed them more . ” there’s no shame in his voice . open honest where he values you . and part of you agrees . you did need this . 

“ thank you , sweetling . ”

“ i love you , y/n . ”

the words are spoken so soft , so gentle that it’s almost a whimper . you cup the doll’s face in your hands , leaning forward to rest your forehead against his . 

“ i know . i know brahmsy , i know . i love you too . ”

[marveloussupernerd]

It’s Good Luck - Jumin Han

This is the last part (maybe? Idk) of my Jumin wedding series bc all of a sudden I have baby fever and want to write a pregnant series oop. In fact, I had to FORCE myself to write this ceremony. I might write a reception chapter later, who knows. Reminder: this is part of a mini-series but everything can be read and interpreted as one shots if you’re like me and dislike series haha also idk if this even makes sense but I hope you maybe like it?

Summary: they say rain on your wedding day is good luck. Jumin takes that to a new level and proposes you go outside in the rain before you’re due at the reception.

You had returned to your dressing room, watching as the men in the sharp suits carried your flowers and chairs from the tent outside to the building. Why did it have to rain? Sure, they said it was good luck, and you didn’t truly care so long as you were marrying Jumin, but you had looked forward to the outdoor wedding. You had planned for an outdoor wedding, not one inside.

“Don’t worry about it,” your wedding planner comforted you, noticing your mournful expression as you looked at the heavy raindrops running down the window, “We’re going to do everything in our power to bring the outdoors in. Do you want to give it a look-over before we start everything?”

Honestly? It would make you feel better. You nodded, standing up and straightening out your wedding dress. You followed behind her, taking the back way to avoid any guests, and made your way into their indoor venue.

They did a really good job for such a short amount of time. The wall of flowers was up behind the altar, large flower arrangements were set by each row of seats, and gigantic mounds of flowers lined each side of the aisle. It was pretty. Yes, outside would have been ideal, but whatever. This was lovely as well!

“Is it to your liking?” The wedding planner asked, nervously toying with her watch.

You nodded. “It’s very nice. Would it be possible, maybe, to get a different color table cover for the altar? The cream worked well for the outdoors but now it’s a little too... casual.” You had learned a thing or two from planning the RFA parties after all.

“Would you prefer white then?”

“How about an antique white? You cringed internally; you sounded so uptight. But you knew antique white would look best with the color tones of the room. “Oh! If you don’t have it just normal white will do as well.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it set up right now. Any other changes you’d like to make?”

“Is there any way to dim the lights? They’re a little bright... it’s giving me a hospital feel.” You added awkwardly. Your wedding planner walked over to a panel and immediately dimmed the lights. “Perfect. It’s lovely. Thank you for doing all this,” you turned to her, smiling.

“If that’s all you need, I’ll get somebody to switch out the cloth and then we can start seating guests,” she offered. You smiled and nodded.

When you arrived at your room you were greeted with even more surprises: this time there was a masseuse, table set up and everything. “Hi, are you MC? Mr. Han called for me,” she greeted, holding out a hand for you to shake, which you took.

“Oh! What a nice surprise.”

“Yes, he said it was quite urgent. I understand this all must be pretty stressful. My wedding got rained out too, but the good thing is my husband and I have been married for over thirty years now.” The lady seemed very warm; her presence was comforting. You allowed yourself to sit down on the edge of her table.

“I’m not sure how much time we have, but would you mind doing my shoulders and back? I’ve got a lot of tension in there from everything going on.” You still felt awkward being accomadated so well, but it was something you had to get used to, especially because you were marrying Jumin.

“Of course,” you felt her push your veil to the side, fingers gently working around your upper back. “You weren’t kidding: you are tense. Did you have trouble sleeping last night?”

You let out a laugh. “That tradition that the groom can’t see the bride on the wedding day. I’ve been sleeping next to my fiancée for months now. It was hard not to, and the pre-wedding jitters didn’t help.”

“Well,” she commented, her hands hitting a knot by your shoulders and gently trying to work it out. “I can tell it’ll all be worth it. He seems like a very nice man, and he definitely cares about you.”

“Yes, I’m not sure how many other brides get masseuses in minutes before their wedding,” you joked, a fond smile on your face. A knock at the door. The wedding planner peeked in. “You’ve got about five minutes until it’s go time.”

You thanked the lady and went to take your spot, waiting for your entrance. As you heard the bridal march start playing, you anxiously stepped into the room, heavy bouquet in hand. The antique white looked quite nice, you thought to yourself. It was a good choice. In front of the tablecloth though.

How could he possibly be even more handsome than usual? Maybe it was the light gray suit, a stark contrast to his typical black attire. Maybe it was the glisten in his eyes as they watered with tears. Maybe it was the smile that he couldn’t hide- no, he didn’t want to hide. Walking to him felt like running a marathon; it took forever.

Finally your hands were in his. Him mouthing how beautiful you looked, wiping away a stray tear that leaked down his cheek. You didn’t realize you had such a death grip on his hands until he started gently running his thumb over your hands, easing the tension.

“You and me only, remember?” He whispered softly. You wanted to hug him. No, that would be weird. The priest was quite literally in the middle of his speech. You but your lip and looked down at your shoes.

A hand on your cheek brought your attention up. Was this allowed? Why did you never go through this wedding etiquette?

The words spoken were a blur. Jumin recited his vows perfectly, not straying from the traditional vows. The two of you had agreed that you would rather share those thoughts, those emotions, in private. You stumbled over the words when it was your turn. For richer or for poorer? Not only was the statement comical considering the Hans’ wealth, but why was it so hard to say? Jumin’s lips quirked into a smile upon hearing you fumble, and it made you feel better to see him smile like that.

Finally, finally the moment had come. “You may now kiss the bride.” Swept up in the moment, Jumin pulled you close in one swift motion for a kiss. You had agreed to keep it chaste and sweet, but he hadn’t seemed to remember that part of it!!!!! You pulled away before it got too PG-13, planting a kiss on his cheek and promising him more later.

“How soon is later?” He asked, pouting for what was likely one of the first times in his life. “I just want to embrace my wife. We still have a reception after this?” He groaned.

“You’re so needy today Honey,” you teased, the two of you sharing your own moment at the front of the room while the guests filed out.

“We don’t have to do anything. It’s just... I had trouble sleeping last night without you. You can’t blame a man for wanting to hold his wife in his arms and never let go.” He flushed, rubbing the back of his neck.

The guests had finally filed out and it was your turn to leave, greeting them at the exit. “I’ve noticed you saying wife a lot,” you teased, holding his hand tight, your cathedral-length veil wrapped around his free arm so that you wouldn’t trip or get caught up by it.

“Well, I like it.” It was such a simple statement, but it made your heart race. The two of you finished thanking your guests, and it was time for the cocktail hour to start. You and Jumin had planned about ten minutes together without a photographer or anything just so you could take in the events of the day and reflect together. You had been looking forward to it for hours.

“You know all those things you vowed to me?” You asked, staring out the window as he helped you remove your veil. The rain hadn’t slowed; it was wise of you to move it inside.

“Sickness and health, better or worse, rich or poor, those things?” He listed them off as if they were so simple. It made you laugh.

“How about in grace and in stupidity?”

He plopped your veil down on a bench. “What? My love you’re not stu-“

“You wanna go out into the rain with me? It’ll be fun... and we have about eight minutes after to dry off before pictures,” you proposed. It was an AWFUL idea. It was pouring. You had your hair and makeup done. This dress was designer.

“Truly?” He asked, looking skeptically.

“Yeah in retrospect it’s a bad idea. I don’t know, I thought it was good luck or something.”

Out of nowhere, he swept you into his arms, barreling towards the exit to the building. “Jumin!” You shrieked. “I take it back! I said it was a bad idea!”

“But it’s good luck,” he shouted as he swung open the door, trying to be heard over the rain. He looked cautiously at the puddles forming on the sidewalks, then took a deep breath. “In grace and in stupidity?”

“Of course, my husband.”

It was out of a movie. The dramatic kiss in the rain. All the passion Jumin had wanted to put into your kiss when you were standing in front of all your family and friends. The rain dribbling down your back. It made you squeal. He couldn’t stop laughing. He held his hand above your head, attempting to shield your makeup from the rain. It didn’t help.

What felt like eons later, he carried you back inside, setting you on a bench. He tried to keep a serious face, but burst out laughing. You had never heard him laugh so hard.

“Honey? Why are you laughing? Is it my makeup? Jumin!” Nothing could get his attention.

“We may need more than just eight minutes to dry off,” he chuckled, pushing back soaked strands of hair that were hanging on his face. “I’ll call Assistant Kang and let her know.”

“Was it worth it though?” You asked, trying to wipe your face (and failing).

“Oh absolutely,” he pulled you close to him. “I feel luckier already.”

[iflostreturntosteverogers]

I Promise

Characters: Reader, Dean, Sam, John, Azazel, Bobby (Mentioned), Callum (OMC Mentioned), Grace (OFC Mentioned)

Warnings: Weechesters, John’s an ass, Fluff, Angst, Character Death

A/N: Sam is about 3-4 years old and Dean around 7-8 years old in this. This is the longest fic I’ve ever written with 2,454 words. 

Header by: @sorenmarie87​

Beta’d by: @cloverhighfive and @mariekoukie6661

      No one raised your blood pressure like John Winchester. He was always such an arrogant prick when he dropped his boys off at your house. You kept Dean and Sam as a favor to Bobby, so he could keep John from doing something stupid and because you loved them. They needed some normalcy and love in their chaotic lives.

You had been mentally preparing yourself to deal with him after Bobby had called to tell you the boys were coming your way and just be ready because John was already in a mood. “A mood,” You snorted. “When isn’t he in a mood?” You made one last pass through the house, double-checking you had removed anything the boys could get in. You’d have to go to the store for food, but you didn’t mind taking them with you. They were good kids. 

John’s Impala rumbled down your street, making you groan. Here we go. You give him a moment to park before you open the door in and lean on the frame. “Hi, boys!” You smile and wave at Sam and Dean, climbing out of the car. Sam grins, and all but tackles your legs. “Hi, Ms. Y/N.” Dean smiles as he walks up with his bag over his shoulder. He grabs Sam’s hand and goes inside. You watch them race up the stairs to your bedroom. Probably to jump on your bed. You think to yourself. The trunk of the impala slams, startling you. 

“Princess.” John nods at you, a smirk on his lips. 

“Winchester.” 

“What? I don’t get a smile and peppy hello like my boys do?” He tosses Sam’s bag at you, chuckling as you almost miss it. 

“I like your children, you not so much,” you quip, pulling the strap over your shoulder. 

“I’m hurt, princess,” he says, placing his hand over his heart. “And here I thought you loved me. You’re always so warm and friendly.” You roll your eyes and flip him off. 

“Not your princess, Winchester.” 

“You sure do act like one.” John crosses his arms and leans against the impala, a smug look on his face.

“Excuse me?! What is that supposed to mean?” 

“It means you sit here in your cushy little house, living off your dead husband’s money and letting Bobby do all the dirty work in finding who killed him and your kid.” You push off the doorframe and stomp down the porch stairs to be face to face with the man. Without thinking, you slap him as hard as you can, the sound echoing. 

“First off, get your fucking facts straight! I never asked Bobby to do that. Second, I work my ass off to pay for my shit. I don’t need to forge credit cards or have aliases. Third, don’t you ever mention Callum and Grace. Ever. At least I learned to cope and live a normal life instead of dragging two young boys into the hunting business on a revenge mission. Get the hell off my property.” You don’t look at him as you turn and walk back into your house. Closing the door, you sink to the floor.

      “Having fun?” You grin as Sam and Dean freeze, pillows poised to hit each other. 

“We’re playing pirates,” Dean tells you, climbing down from your bed. “These are our swords!” His eyes are bright as he explains their game. The boys giggle when you tell them you’ll be the beautiful princess they’re fighting over. 

“You need a cwown, Pwincess Y/N,” Sam tells you. 

“You’re absolutely right, Captain Smelly Feet, and I think I have just the thing!” You walk over to your dresser, opening the locked jewelry box on top and revealing a sparkling tiara. You place it on your head and turn towards the boys. “What do you think?” Dean’s mouth drops open in shock. 

“Where did you get that?” 

“I got to be a princess for a day a long time ago, and they let me keep my crown.” 

“Cool!” Dean jumps back up on the bed. “The princess is mine, Smelly Feet! You can’t have her!” Sam screwed his face up into something that was probably supposed to be mean and scary but just looked adorable to you.

“Noooo! I’ll save you from Captain Gween Toes, Pwincess!” Sam wails Dean with a pillow. Dean pretends to fall on the mattress, holding his side.

“You’ve won this time, Smelly Feet. Remember me, Princess. Bleh.” You giggle at his fake death sound and turn to the 4-year-old standing proudly above his brother.

“You did it, Captain Smelly Feet. You defeated Green Toes and saved me. However, will I repay you?” Sam grins as you pick him up and swing him around. “Oh, I know! How about a kiss?” He squeals when you blow a raspberry against his cheek.

“‘Top! ‘Top!” Sam pushes your face away from his, giggling. 

“Well, I hate to stop all the fun, but we have to go to the store or we’re gonna starve to death.” You gently put Sam down and fall to the floor with your hand on your forehead. “So hungry, not gonna make it.” Dean laughs at your dramatics and whispers something to Sam. Sam nods with a mischievous grin on his face. 

“I’ll save you!” Sam yells, before jumping on top of you. 

      Sam tugs at your sleeve from the seat in the shopping cart, pulling you down to his level. “Bean likes bacon and eggs and waffles for bweakfast, but Dad never makes them for us. He just buys ceweal because it doesn’t have to be cooked.” You fight the urge to roll your eyes and say something nasty about their father. 

“You know what? I think eggs, bacon, and waffles are great for breakfast.” You right yourself and smile at the small boy. “What do we want for dinner? Dean, what’s something you want?” Dean looks a little startled at your question. Of course, John never asks what the boys want. It’s always a matter of convenience. 

“Can we do burgers?” His eyes light up when you nod your head, and he hugs your waist. “You’re the best.” 

       Sam sits on the counter, watching you teach Dean how to make burgers. “The first rule of cooking, wash your hands. Did you wash your hands?” 

“Yep, smell.” Dean smiles and holds his hands up to you. You lean in and sniff, the smell of Irish Spring prevalent on his hands. 

“Good job. Sammy, what about you?” Sam smiles and nods his head.

“I helped him,” Dean says proudly. 

“Okay, we’re going to make the sauce before we cook the burgers. I laid everything out for you while you washed your hands. The little cup is mayo and the measuring spoons have sriracha, honey, lemon juice, and garlic in them. Dump all that in and stir it up.” Stepping back, you watch as Dean dumps everything into the glass bowl you had set out before handing Sam the spoon to stir it up. 

“All done!” Sam shouts, tipping the bowl forward for you to inspect their work.

“That’s perfect! You can set that to the side until we finish the rest of it.” You bend down and pull a cast-iron skillet out of the cold oven. “This is your new best friend for cooking, boys. A cast-iron skillet. They’re heavy, and you have to take good care of them, but they will last a long time and give your food good flavor.” 

“And you can hit monsters with it and hurt them!” Dean pipes up, a proud smile on his face. 

“That’s right,” you return his smile, but the fact that he has to know that breaks your heart. Dean hops up onto the counter on your right, and Sam scoots closer on your left to watch. You turn the stove eye on medium-low heat and pour a small amount of oil into the pan. “We have to let the pan and oil heat up before we can start cooking.”  

      Dean’s eyes are huge as he watches you plate burgers. “They’re beautiful,” he mumbles. 

The boys hop off the counter and help you carry the plates to the table. Sam takes small, careful steps, his little tongue poking out as he concentrates. 

“As much as you love food, Dean, you should be a chef when you grow up.” Dean looks up at you curiously, like the thought had never crossed his mind. It probably hadn’t, all the kid knew was hunting. Damn John. 

“Do you really think I could be a chef?” 

“Of course, I do! You can be anything you want. You’re a smart little boy.” Dean blushes and takes a bite of his burger.

“This is so good! You were right; the fried egg and bacon make it even better than regular burgers!” 

“After we eat, do you guys wanna watch a movie? I have Scooby-Doo.” 

“YES!” The boys both yell excitement, making you laugh.

      You walk through the house, checking that everything is turned off and locked up. Sam had fallen asleep during their movie, and Dean hadn’t been far behind. You hadn’t wanted to disturb them when they looked so peaceful, so you let them stay in your bed for the night. 

As you make your way back upstairs, you hear glass shattering. “Shit,” you whisper, hurrying to the boys. They’re both still sound asleep. You shake Dean awake and pick Sam up from the bed. “Dean, listen to me, baby. You gotta come with me and be quiet, okay?” He nods, still rubbing at his eyes and trying to wake up. You can hear loud voices and footsteps coming from downstairs. You have to hurry. 

Leading Dean into the spare bedroom you pull a panel away from the wall of the closet. “Dean, go in there.” He follows your orders and you lay Sam down next to him, stroking his hair before you lean over and kiss Dean on the forehead. “You’ll be safe, I promise.”

“Don’t go, Y/N. Hide with us.” Dean’s eyes shine, his little voice trembling. It breaks your heart. 

“Baby, I can’t, that space is too small. Everything’s going to be okay. I love you, Dean and I love Sammy, too. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Dean watches as you close the panel, leaving him and Sam in darkness. He can hear the voices coming from downstairs and each banging footstep sends a shiver through him. “Please be safe. Please be safe.” He whispers to himself over and over, a silent prayer for you. You hadn’t told him to watch out for Sammy, hadn’t ordered him to be brave. You told him how much you loved him and that everything would be okay. A tear slips down Dean’s cheek as he lays down next to Sam and closes his eyes tightly. 

      “Wanna tell me why you’re in my house?” You swing your arm around the first man you see, holding a knife to his throat. He freezes, calculating his next move. 

He slams all of his weight backward into a wall, knocking the breath out of you but you hang onto the knife. “Stupid bitch,” he spits at you and reaches up to wipe at a trickle of blood on his face. You must have cut him when you hit the wall. You take advantage of him being distracted and launch yourself into him. He stumbles back and falls on his ass, his head bouncing off the floor. You move past him only to be met with a gun to your face. 

“I don’t think so,” a familiar voice says, coming from around the corner. Your stomach drops when yellow eyes meet yours.

“Azazel.” 

“The one and only. It’s been a while, Y/N.” His smile is arrogant, taunting. “Look, I’m sorry about your old man and kid. More so about the kid. I needed her.” You ball your fists at your side, anger rippling through you. “I’m here because a little demon told me you had the Winchester brats.” 

“You’re too late actually. I put them on a bus to Sioux Falls a few hours ago.” You willed yourself to stay calm, to look him in the eyes, and give no indication of a lie. He growls and wraps his hand around your throat. 

“What a pity.” You scream as pain erupts through your body. Blood trickles down the side of your mouth. You defiantly spit in Azazel’s face. 

“Fuck you.”

       Dean hears your scream and slams his hands against his ears. “No, please no.” Sam rouses and mumbles your name. Dean pulls him into his lap. “Shh, we have to be quiet. Okay, Sammy? It’s going to be okay.” Sam whimpers but nods his head. 

They stay that way for a while, waiting for you to come back for them. Dean silently rocks Sam in his lap, occasionally humming a song to him in the dark crawl space. “You stay here. I’m going to look around.”

“No, Bean, don’t go!” Sam grabs onto Dean’s sleeve. 

“Sammy, stay here. I’ll be back. I swear.” Dean moves the heavy panel and crawls out, the light coming from the window making him squint. He listens at the top of the steps for the voice and footsteps from earlier, but all he hears is silence. The silence scares him more. 

He tiptoes down the stairs, peeking around the corner into the kitchen. You’re there on the floor, not moving. “Y/N?!” Dean shouts and races to you. His hands hover over you, unsure of what to do. “Y/N, please. You promised,” he chokes on the last word, a sob bubbling up. 

“Dean?” You rasp out his name and reach a weak hand up to his face. “It’s okay, baby.” 

“It’s not okay!” He shouts. You guide his head down to lay on your stomach and run your fingers through his hair. 

“You’re gonna grow up and do amazing things, Dean. You are so smart and so good. I love you so much.”  You wince as you try to breathe. Dean can hear how faint your pulse is becoming, how shallow your breaths are. 

“Please, don’t leave me, Y/N. Please,” Dean cries.

“Shh, baby, listen to me. Go in the library, the number for your dad’s motel is there. Call him and then take Sammy to my room and watch Scooby-Doo until he comes. I love you both, Dean so very much. Now go.” He crawls up and kisses your cheek. 

“We love you, too.” He does as he’s told, trying his best to get himself together. 

He dials the number you had written down in a notebook on your desk.

“Hello?”

“Dad? Something’s happened.”

Tags: @fictionalabyss, @leave-me-2-rot-among-the-flowers, @hobby27

[olderthannetfic]

I watched Babylon 5 starting with the pilot film and all those goofy actor interviews that accompanied it. I loved the pilot and was sorry the further the show strayed from it. I was so pissed about Michael O'Hare leaving that I quit the show after season 1. Joke’s on me because, for once, it wasn’t executive meddling or even an actor getting too big for their britches and wanting to do film: O’Hare had serious mental health problems he asked be kept private until after his death. Fans finally found out the real story in 2013.

My fondest memories are of Susan Ivanova, who would be serious queer girl bait anyway, but who also turned out to be in a canon relationship with Talia Winters.

Post series, the pairing of rival diplomats Londo and G’Kar also saw some fannish interest. They were bickering rivals at the beginning of the show, but the subjects of epic, galactic tragedy by the end. Also, Londo has six prehensile penises, which he uses to cheat at cards.

I am not making this up.

Six prehensile penises.

Uses dick to cheat at cards.

Xeno fans take note: Babylon 5 really went all out on the worldbuilding, and that includes wacky alien junk--but also religions, philosophy, wonderful costumes, and the kind of arc plots that wouldn’t become the norm until at least a decade later. (Overall, I think the epicness of canon was of more interest to B5 fans than shipping was, much of the time, but these are posts about Escapade and slash, so...)

The show’s fandom was interesting because it was an early one to be hugely active online. This was an era when showrunners were intrigued by the possibilities of online engagement and some made themselves available in a way we wouldn’t see again until the Twitter era. JMS, the creator of B5, was all over the fan spaces, which meant that fanfic was often suppressed due to the then popular belief that to see it risked a lawsuit for the showrunner. I do not regard this as a positive thing myself, but it’s certainly interesting from a fandom history perspective.

I’ve never read any B5 fic myself, not knowing like 90% of the canon it would be based on, but I very much enjoyed the festivid by thingswithwings, available on AO3 here. It follows Londo and G’Kar’s epic arcs. Heavy stuff!

The pilot movie aired a couple of weeks after Escapade 1993, so it wasn’t until the next year that it got a panel. It would continue to be popular for the run of the show:

1994 - New SF/Adventure Shows, Open Discussion: Babylon 5, Viper, The New Knight Rider, Tek Wars, Time Trax, SeaQuest DSV. (Programmers are putting a bunch of new shows out there with a stunning variation in quality. Let's gab, shout, pimp for your favorite show.)

1995 - Resurgence of SF on TV (X-Files, Lois & Clark, Highlander, Babylon 5, TekWar, Earth 2, ST: Deep Space 9 & Voyager and gobs more. Where are they all coming from? Are they giving us what we want?)

1996 - Babylon 5 (With all that's going on, is slash irrelevant?)

1997 - Babylon 5: Spider Queen or Cinderella (Is there more to the Delenn-Sheridan relationship than meets the eye? B5 is one of the best plotted shows on TV and JMS can be very guilty of misdirection. Are there some dark sides to our heroic characters that we haven't thought about? Do some of the dark characters have silver linings?)

1998 - Babylon 5: Narrative Truth and Chances for Slash (B5 gave us slash. But was it the slash we wanted? Or are we still bending a universe that prides itself on its own self-awareness?)

1999 - Homoerotic Subtext in Popular Action Adventure TV Show (This Celluloid Closet style academic paper examines the subtext in Babylon 5, The Sentinel, and Highlander the Series. Shows like Will and Grace think they're blazing a trail, but B5, TS and HL deliver the goodies (if you know what to look for.) Highlights and analysis of some of great slashy moments.)

B5 on Fanlore

Susan/Talia on Fanlore

B5 on Pink Rabbit Consortium

B5 on Passion & Perfection

B5 on AO3

B5 on FFN

[velociraptors-dont-lie]

My Way (Part 2)

Summary: Anita can’t operate doors and she gets to see more of Arvala-7

Warnings: Swearing. Bad writing.

A/N: This is bad. I hate this. i hate it so much. 

Part One Here

Chapter Two 

The Niktos, as Anita came to figure out they were called that, were rude, uncaring, and didn't much like her stubbornness when it came to the child. They provided what she needed and nothing else, this included only one other pair of clothes to change into so she could wash her original ones.

No shoes because the Nikto's deemed her high heels as suitable enough to be her only pair of shoes...ever. the second pair of clothes only included a brown shirt too big for her and a pair of what looked to be trousers...cut at the knee: also brown. Anita almost threw them back in their faces but instead chose to bear them if only for the baby's benefit.

It had been what seemed like months since her first arrival on what she now knew to be Arvala- 7 and had been near enough miserable the entire time. The only saving grace was Scamp, the little green baby she'd hastily decided to become a mother for and he was better off with her around.

He enjoyed what little time she had managed to garner for him outside. Chasing the tiny creatures in the sand before the Nikto's would ruin the fun, taking them back inside the dark and cold room they spend most of their time in.

He seemed to enjoy the endearment name she'd given him as well, responding immediately the first time she'd said it and actively seeming like he always wanted to hear it.

Anita's motherly tendencies had always been her gift, her best friend was a single mother of three triplets and needed all the help she could get with the little terrors. But something about this child had connected with Anita in more than just a motherly manner, she was protective and overly so when it came to just about anything near the child.

The food they brought was disgusting. Scamp ate it just fine but Anita had trouble swallowing it let alone getting her stomach to keep it down and after a while, ended up getting used to it.

It was still disgusting though.

The sun rose and set and on each day Anita wondered if she would ever see more than just the sandy horizon from this encampment. She wanted to find a way home, back to her friends, her family, and a normal... non-captive life.

It was yet another day of boredom inside after the Nikto's had forced her and Scamp back in from playing in the sand. They seemed quite rushed as if another person had come to shoot up the camp.

At this point, there are had been so many fights at this place that Anita wasn't sure if the Nikto's were bad, or the people shooting were bad. The Nikto's had always won though, and always further cemented the fact that they were still bad.

None of them had ever been so on edge and Anita assumed they had something a lot of people wanted. The days outside were spent in less time, Anita was kept in a different building of the encampment most nights to avoid Scamp becoming overly attached to her as if it hadn't already happened.

The gunshots had started early in the day before she had been allowed to see her child. Anita was yelling, banging on the doors for them to let her out and get to Scamp and they were all a bit too busy with something called an 'I.G unit'.

Left all alone in the silence of the room as the gunshots stopped. Anita's worry for Scamp increased as one more lone shot rang out and she started jabbing the buttons on the wall. The Nikto's had never let her seen how to open the doors, always making sure it was hidden in case she ever wanted to risk her and Scamps life on the barren desert of Arvala-7.

Crying out in frustration Anita screamed into her hands, ''How the fuck do you open this fucking thing!'' she slammed her hands against the panel as if it would help more, jumping in surprise when the door actually slid open. She huffed in amusement to herself before running from the building to find Scamp.

Anita cared nothing for the Nikto bodies all around her, looking nowhere else but her destination. Running into the larger building where Scamp was usually kept yielded nothing but a dead Nikto and a damaged robot on the floor. The metal egg and Scamp were gone.

Anita almost burst into tears until she saw the footprints in the sand. Someone had left with Scamp in his egg and she hoped they hadn't gotten far, it hadn't been long between the gunshot and her freedom but if they had a vehicle; then they were gone and she was alone.''

Snatching her bag from the pile of stuff against the wall, Anita turned and followed the footprints. The hot sand hurt her bare feet as usual but she hadn't thought to see if any of the Nikto bodies had a suitable pair of shoes, her mind only on finding Scamp.

Ten minutes is all it took between the gunshot and her freedom and ten minutes is all it took to finally see a figure and the floating Egg pod on the horizon. Slowing her breaths, Anita tried to run as quietly as she could, The sand was silent under her feet, and her controlled breaths wouldn't be heard until she was right on top of him.

Scamp laughed joyfully as he watched Anita appear and jump onto the back of the metal man who had come for him. Clapping his hands together, overjoyed to finally see his so-called mother back with him as he was unable to tell the metal man he even had a caretaker.

She heard the man gasp in surprise under the mask, unable to get any leverage on her before she threw her entire weight backwards into the ground and taking him with her. He took her arm from around his neck and pulled it away easily, rolling away from her and trying to get a good look at the person who attacked him so suddenly.

He barely got a good look before the woman threw her flat left hand towards his neck, throwing her right hand to his stomach when he caught the left. He noted she was quick, she took his armor into account and went for his soft parts; glad she couldn't see the relief on his face when he caught the leg going for his crotch.

''Enough!''

The scene stood still, Scamp still laughing and clapping away. He held Anita's leg between his own just under his knees, both her hands held in his tightly and both their chest heaving for breaths.

''Give him to me.''

''Who are you.'' His voice was deep, modulated a little by the helmet he wore. In her mind, Anita couldn't believe what she had just done, she had only seen videos and movies, and yet when the time came; she managed to pull off at least a few of the moves she had seen.

''Who am I? Who are you?!'' She fired right back, far too engrossed with the moment to be scared. ''You come into camp, you kill everyone, take my child and then have the audacity to demand my name? I don't fucking think so!''

He was silent for a while, his helmet turning to look at Scamp, who had since stop laughing to listen to the conversation. He took the time to look over her as well, noting her blue hair with brown roots, the tight, dirty black skirt, and pink wrinkly shirt. The way the child held his grip on the white coat inside his pod while looking towards her with a smile.

''You're his mother?''

''No I'm his nan - of course, I'm his fucking mother, dipshit. Let me go!'' He only tightened his grip when she tried to pull away and repeated his earlier question. ''Anita D'arcy. Scientist, Mother...fucking universe traveler -let me go, iron man, shit!''

He sighed heavily, dropping all Anita's limbs that he had captive and letting her go to the child. Watching her crouch in front of the pod to get a look over the baby in case he was harmed in some way, witnessing the way the child held his hands out for her and cooing when she picked him up.

''You still haven't told me who you are.''

''A Mandalorian''

''A fucking what now?'' She reeled back at what he said, never expecting the word to be that long. She gently rocked Scamp in her arms as she stared at the Mandalorian with raised eyebrows.

He sighed again, ''A Mandalorian. Just call me Mando.'' He turned around and started walking, the pod following behind him as empty as it usually was during the days. ''Let's go.''

He expected this to be the end. He expected silence in the journey ahead but no, Anita continued to speak, as confused as the day she arrived on the planet.

''But that's not your name? Is that your species? Your job? Title? Elaborate. Where are we going? what are we doing? I'm not following a man in armor to me and my child's death, thank you.''

Once again sighing, he turned and quick as a flash, locked her wrists in a pair of cuffs before continuing on his journey. Anita made a surprised sound, mouth agape at what he had just done.

''fucking rude much. I was only asking questions. This is not gonna shut me up, Manny. The Nikto's didn't speak English and Scamp can't speak at all, so you're my only source of entertainment. You might as well answer my questions.''

''It is not my name. I am human, I was raised as a Mandalorian. We are going to Nevarro. Does that satisfy you?''

Anita's tongue pushed against the roof of her mouth, he sounded annoyed and she thought it best if she didn't annoy the only person within a hundred miles to the point of murdering her. ''Sure.''  

Holding Scamp with the cuffs was difficult but she refused to drop him back into the pod that could be controlled by a man who refused to say more than a few words. Eventually, though, she had to put Scamp back in to rest her arms and it was too hot to keep him close by to her chest.

It was the single most boring journey up until the point where they were in a canyon of sorts. Anita had never felt so unsafe despite the man with the giant gun on his back. She stopped when he did, glad that he had realized something was off, not at all surprised when a person jumped down from above.

He was quick to react, pushing the pod away from the fight and Anita followed it without hesitation. Scamp fell back into the pod, her lab coat's sleeve flinging with the pod's motion and Anita's still cuffed hands took a hold of the sleeve.

Scamp was sitting on it, so it had enough weight to be moved by the sleeve should it need to be.  Two more people arrived and Anita wondered if perhaps she should help, the thought had left her once an enemy made its way in her and Scamp's direction.

As much as she didn't want to be hurt herself, she couldn't let it touch Scamp, so she stood herself in front of the pod, ready to try and block the attack. Surprised and relieved when the person coming to attack them burst into nothing.

She meant to ask him about the gun, but something was making noise and blinking up at her ''What is that?''

''A tracking fob.''

''A track- I thought- what is this exactly?''

''My job. Come on.''

Anita stared at the Mandalorians back, unable to conjure the right words to string together. Not that he would tell her anything anyway, the man was course and barely looked more than two seconds in their direction; but she had to follow as Scamp's pod floated away.

From her bag trapped on her shoulder, Anita managed to pull out the bottled water she'd kept for emergencies and placed it in Scamp's pod. He knew how to drink from it, she'd taught him how to ages ago.

She didn't trust this Mandalorian, her only options being to go with him or die but it didn't mean she had to trust a single hair or...weapon on this man's person. She was going to stay by Scamp's side the entire journey and he would let her whether he liked it or not.

[bssaz97]

After knowing what Jaune (D Arc) did to Ironwood and his men do you think Cinder would try doing the same thing Jaune went through but it goes horribly wrong?

Jaune D’ Arc part 2

Weiss: Let me get this straight. After you were captured, they took you to Salem’s castle.

Jaune: Mm-Hmm.

Weiss: Where it was revealed to you that you are a descendants of one of Salem and Ozma’s once thought to be dead children.

Jaune: Yep.

Weiss: So because of that she tried to convince you to join her side and rule as her heir. But you said she could, and I quote-

Jaune/Weiss: “Go fuck herself and her batshit crazy ass cult!”

Jaune: Yes I did say all of that.

Qrow: But because she didn’t like that answer she had you transferred to Watts’ secured hideout laboratory.

Jaune: Ohhh yeah you should have seen the look on their faces. Especially Cindy, bitch was about to blow a gasket. But anyway, continue.

Qrow: Right...so after you were brought to the lab, where Watts tortured you behind Salem’s back and tried to pry information out of you about the rest of us.

Jaune: Damn. Right.

Ren: When all that failed, Arthur decided to do try another test which involved putting you in the tube that we found you in. Which was filled with...I’m sorry what did you call it?

Jaune: Red shit. But I’m also pretty much it was Grimm essence.

Weiss: And you survived that, how?

Jaune: I’m assuming my semblance.

Weiss/Qrow/Ren: Ah. Right.

Nora: But if you’re semblance saved you, why do you look like a scary boy Salem?

Jaune: Well while my semblance kept me alive. Didn’t really do much else to stop the effects of the red shit changing my body. Eventually my body and semblance was changed to the point where I could barely recognize myself. Also I now need to absorb the aura of others to fuel my own and my current mental health is pretty fucked if I do say so myself, but what else is new am I right?

Everyone: .....

Jaune: Ok joke didn’t work. Got it.

Ruby: Jaune.....Do you know if...this is permanent or not?

Jaune: Well. It’s supposed to be an almost exact same liquid from the pool that changed Salem to what she is now soooooo I’m gonna assume that this is not reversible.

Ruby: Oh...

Jaune: .....does it really bother you?

Ruby: What! No! Jaune, I’m happy to have you back alive! You have no idea how much everyone missed you, how I missed you. I just wanted to know if you are ok with these changes.

Jaune: .....no. But I don’t really have much choice in the matter anymore so I guess I’ll just have to live with it. But anyway that’s my story.

Qrow: Well kid, you’ve been through a helluva experience. Come on, let’s get going before anybody else gets here.

Jaune: That sounds great. How do we do that?

Ruby: We were able to get ahold of a Manta to get here. Now come on let’s get out of here. *Takes his hand but feels him not moving * Huh? Jaune?

Jaune: Actually.....I have a better idea.

He walks over to Ironwood’s unconscious body.

Jaune: Hey Jimmy how’s it going? You look great! Say I was wondering, do you mind if we borrow your ride? No you don’t mind. Great! You’re a pal! *Reaches into Ironwood’s coat and pulled out a keycard.*

Weiss: Jaune! What are you doing?!

Jaune: Getting us a new ride!

Time Skip; Elsewhere....

Salem: WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE’S GONE?!!!

Salem’s faction are all present in the War Room when Arthur had arrived to inform Salem of recent events. So naturally she was very displeased by the news.

Arthur: Uh, well...you see your grace, he didn’t actually escape rather he was.....recovered by the Rose child’s group. *Salem stood right in front of him*

Salem: Really? Very well then, for my next question I want to know as to WHY YOU LET THEM TAKE MY HEIR?!

Arthur: They caught me off guard you see! I was just doing my normal procedures-

Cinder: You mean dancing in your lab?

Arthur: My NORMAL procedures! And then suddenly the little ginger hell spawn bombed my facility.

Salem: And instead of securing my heir, ensuring that OUR ENEMIES do not get a hold of him.....what did you do?

Arthur: Um well.....you see.....I-

Mercury: Hid in his safe room like a bitch!

Emerald: MERC!

Salem: No! That’s quite alright young Sustrai, I believe that perfectly explains the behavior of our dear doctor here. *She stood up as her back faced the outside windows* So tell me Arthur, how are you going to make this up to me?

Arthur: *sweating* I can assure you my grace! I will retrieve the Arc, you see I installed a tracking device on his person after-! *Stops himself*

Salem: .....I’m sorry. What was that last part Arthur? *Side glances him*

Arthur: Well...forgive me your grace but I feel I should confess that.....I may have withheld some information about the Arc boy’s status at my facility.

Salem: Status...

Arthur: *Sweating profusely* He’s Fine! Really he’s just fine!.....for the most part. AH! *Magically pulled towards Salem, where she grabbed his shirt*

Salem: What did you do?

Arthur: N-Nothing life threatening! I think...

Salem: What did you do?

Arthur: I.....may have dabbled a little into..... Grimm Essence Research while he was at my facility.

Salem: .*Her eyes widened* ....what?

Arthur: But he’s fine! He survived the procedure perfectly. Honestly you should have seen the results, now he looks more like your descendant than ev-WAH! *Gets slammed into the front glass panel, causing multiple cracks to form*

Salem: Don’t you think that if I wanted him to be like me. I would have asked you to make so?

Arthur: You know I’m suddenly starting to realize that.

Salem: How much?

Arthur: W-What?

Salem: How much of the Grimm essence did you give him?

Arthur: uuuuuuuuuhhhh.

Salem: Arthur.....

Arthur: I put him in a tank of it.

Salem: YOU FOOL! *Throws him across the room, hitting the opposite wall*

Tyrian: Hehehehehehehe! Oh what fun we’re having today!

Emerald: Cinder, shouldn’t we try to stop her? I mean he is our only tech support.

Cinder: Shh! Not yet. I want to see how far she goes.

The negative aura surrounding the Grimm Queen seemed to emit off her person as she slowly walked towards Arthur. This caused him to scrabbles to steady himself on the wall, fear for his life very much on his mind.

Arthur: W-W-Wait! Your grace, I promise you we get him back!

Salem: It’s far too late for that Arthur. Even if you can track him down, you’ll never be able to recapture him. After all, if he’s anything like me now he’ll most likely try and succeed to kill you and anyone you send after him.

Arthur: Your Grace! I implore you, beg you to give me another chance. Have I ever failed you before!

Salem: .......You make a point. You’ve been faithful up until now, therefore I shall let you keep your life.

Arthur: *Sighs in relief* Thank you my grace...

Salem: But fail me again Arthur.....and I shall fill these very walls with your blood.

Arthur: ...I understand your grace.

Salem: Now go on then, it seems like you have some searching to do.....oh and take Tyrian and Cinder with you. Just to ensure you do not fail me again, right Arthur?

Arthur: Y-Yes your grace, we won’t fail! Come along Tyrian, Cinder.

The three followers and two subordinates of Salem make their way out of the room. Once they make it down the hall. They enter a second room where they can plan their operation.

Arthur: Alright everyone, since we all have our assignment from her Grace. I think it’s best we find out leads as to where the target is going.

Cinder: Before we do anything! Why don’t you show us exactly what you’ve been up to, do you have any record of the breakout?

Arthur: I do. But I must insist that we-

Cinder: You just claimed to have turned Jaune Arc into a replica of Salem, I think I speak for everyone here that I’m curious to know in what regard you meant.

Tyrian: I wouldn’t mind seeing for myself either of how the boy has been blessed by our goddess.~ I say role the tape!

Arthur: ‘Heavy Sigh’ Very well. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you...

Five Minutes Later....

Jaune: *in recording* What’s wrong Jimmy?! You were talking good shit a second ago! Why don’t you have one of your dead men give you a new arm?! I’m sure they gladly do it as they now have plenty to give.

Arthur at this point decided to pause the video as he’s sure everyone got the message. He turns to look at everyone and sees they have a variety of expressions. Cinder and Mercury have a pale expression of shock and fright on their faces, while Emerald had stopped watching halfway through the video to puke in the corner. Tyrian had a sickening gleeful expression as if he was watching a blockbuster movie. But that face dropped when the video ended.

Tyrian: Hey! Why did you stop it? It was getting to the good part!

Cinder: This.....is Jaune Arc?

Arthur: Unfortunately, yes.

Cinder: Watts.....BY THE GODS WHAT IN WORLD POSSESSED YOU TO CREATE THIS MONSTROSITY!!! AND WHY GIVE IT TO HIM OF ALL PEOPLE?!!!

Arthur: Look here! I don’t need anyone else here to tell me when I clearly have made a misjudgment!

Mercury: Doc this isn’t a misjudgment, this is a complete fuckin’ disaster! We already had one Salem on our backs, NOW WE GOT TWO OF EM!

Arthur: Look it’s not that bad!

Emerald: ‘Huff!’ Not that bad?! That.....THING turned a group of Atlesian specialists into burger meat! And you want US to go up against THAT! We’re going die!

Arthur: Don’t you think I’m already aware of that! I’m not even sure if sending a maiden will be enough to stop him! But I obviously cannot do this by myself!

Cinder: .....Then why don’t we even the odds.

Arthur/Mercury/Emerald: What?

Cinder: You were able to accomplish this process once. Couldn’t you do it again?

Emerald: Cinder. You’re not actually-?

Cinder: Power is power. And if I’m right that means if someone else had any similar abilities as him, they would be able to overpower him. Right?

Arthur: .....It’s possible. However I highly recommend that you don’t undergo such a procedure.

Cinder: And why not?! If you’re not confident in your own work than what’s to stop me from-

Arthur: I don’t doubt my work! It’s the person I’m concerned over.

Cinder: What?

Arthur: You see this isn’t the first time I’ve dabbled into this kind of research. It’s only the first success.

Cinder: You’ve done this before?

Arthur: Yes.....it’s been a pet project of mine for sometime. However, I rarely ever had any test subjects survive. Those that do.....well they are far from ever being human again.

Cinder: How?

Arthur: Well most that do undergo the procedure, turn out to be more Grimm-like than desirable. They become mindless beasts that slowly decay into nothing.

Everyone: .....

Mercury: Oum, how long have you been doing this for?!

Arthur: About three to four years give or take.

Cinder: If that’s the case. Why shouldn’t I undergo the procedure?

Arthur: Do you really think Salem would accept or be pleased that I turned her Fall Maiden into a mindless beast?

Cinder: If Someone by the likes of Jaune Arc could survive, then so can I!

Arthur: Absolutely not! I already have her eyes behind my back, do you want me to kill myself!

Cinder: I can take it by force if I have to! I have magic!

Arthur: You wouldn’t survive!

Cinder: AND WHY NOT?!

Arthur: Because you lack a sense of humanity!

Cinder: *confused* What?!

Arthur: This procedure isn’t just about the physical capability of the recipient but the mental as well. You think it’s only a coincidence that someone like Jaune Arc survives solely for his semblance and genealogy to Salem?

Cinder: Oh you’ve got to be kidding? You’re telling me that the reason he survived and became this way is because of his humanity!

Arthur: .....As much as I despise the notion yes. Also they have to be a virgin.

Cinder: Watts, you damn well!

Arthur: Thought but didn’t want to assume. But I’m afraid I can’t allow you to undergo the procedure. You’re too important to the mission and we both know we shouldn’t give it to Tyrian. *Both look at the crazed scorpion licking his blades*

Cinder: Point taken.

Arthur: Yes, for this procedure we require someone who is.....expendable. *Looks at the two others in the room.*

Emerald: .....Why is he looking at us like that?

Mercury: Because we’re fucked.

End of Part 2.

Had fun writing this one and I hope you guys enjoyed!