#what did i even write

[sillygoofyqueer]

Today I had the wild thought of "you know, I could just queue my mad scientist AU posts" but one, that would require far more work in one day than I can be arsed for and two, that would mean you guys don't get my personal notes every day. Like, for instance, I've been reading Faraway Wanderers! Exquisite series. The moment Wei Wuxian and Wen Qionglin are discovered missing, there's a meeting immediately called for the Big Shots to attend. Yu Ziyuan, despite all attempts to keep her out of such meetings, of course is there and has opinions - namely, that Wei Wuxian and Wen Qionglin have gone back to spill all of their secrets to the enemy. She, personally, believes that this has been going on for ages, and that Wen Qing is just covering up for her didis so that they can get away with such things. Of course, it's the first time Lan Xichen has had to physically grab his didi to stop him from climbing over the war table to start a brawl. Wen Qing is about to tell her exactly what she thinks about that take on things, but a calm voice comes out of the left corner - JIN ZIXUAN sliding in with the "Wei Wuxian has messenger crows that could do such things for him." As much as Yu Ziyuan wants to beat the shit out of this boy, this is her sworn sister's son and so all she can do is glare at him from the corner.

Nie Mingjue quickly takes control of the meeting from there, fielding different suggestions on how to proceed - should they send someone after the boys? Should they wait for them to return? Should they...I mean there isn't much else they could do about this, so it is just those two options. Lan Wangji, who is obviously worried about the two, is desperate to go after them so he can make sure they're alright, but there's no way that's happening - they've already lost possibly their wild card and best archer in one swift move, they're not losing another one of their best fighters. Wen Qing volunteers to go, but she's literally like the head medic, they need her, so that's a no-go as well. Plus, they have no idea what the Wen would do if they they found their troops crawling around anywhere near Dafan if nothing has happened to the inhabitants there - it's too much of a risk.

They're just coming to this decision, albeit reluctantly, when there's a loud commotion outside. They all rush outside, because of course they do, and they find Wen Qionglin and Wei Wuxian stumbling their way back into camp. They don't look injured, but there's blood smeared on their robes and Wen Qionglin looks like a mess, tear streaks clear on his face and hands clutched around himself as they approach camp. Wei Wuxian looks only a little better, tears instead replaced by an empty expression on his face and a haunted look in his eyes, with a bundle of blankets clutched firmly against his chest. Wen Qionglin's eyes are fixed on the ground, and Wei Wuxian isn't responding to calls of any of his names, just staring ahead silently. Wen Qing sprints over to ask what's wrong, what's happened, is their family okay- all questions are answered with a single shake of the head from Wen Ning, before he bursts into tears once again, uncaring who's watching him as he buries his face into Wen Qing's shoulder.

Wei Wuxian has stopped beside them, watching the scene listlessly as his grasp tightens on the bundle of blankets, a soft sound escaping the bundle with the movement. His unblinking eyes snap down to it, adjusting his grasp so he can gently brush at what is obviously a child's head, lips moving with indecipherable murmurs and body swaying back and forth the slightest bit. He is holding a baby. When everyone realises this, one of the other onlookers makes the mistake of reaching out to try and take the baby away from him - saying something about relieving him of a burden. He fully jolts away, a wild snarl escaping him and a sudden oppressive sensation appearing in the area as resentful energy curls around his body completely of its own accord. "Don't you fucking touch him!" Is the animalistic response the unfortunate onlooker receives.

Everyone has gone still, sensing the volatile, dangerous state Wei Wuxian is in a little bit too late. It's like something has cracked within him; he won't even let Wen Qing close in his distress, baring his teeth at anyone who tries to approach him. The baby in his arms has a single little hand gripped into the fabric of his bloodstained robes, thankfully remaining rather undisturbed despite the tense situation they're involved in. Lan Wangji desperately wants to help, wants to hold Wei Ying close and comfort him in the midst of what can only be a tragedy that has befallen the Dafan Wen, but he doesn't know if Wei Ying would react any differently to him compared to his literal family. He can only stand there, wishing he could reach out and soothe the distress marring the other boy's features but unable to move his mouth to do more than murmur Wei Ying's name.

Another, more hesitant voice rings out from the crowd, a "gege?" coming from Xue Yang as he takes a casual forwards - he has seen Wei-gege in a state similar to this before, when the resentful energy overwhelmed him in an experiment gone wrong back in the Wen stronghold. He knows that he can be useful, that he is the only one knows how to handle his gege, to push him away from the edge of his sanity. Everyone's holding their breath as this child walks closer as though he isn't quite possibly courting death with this move, forgoing touching the child to instead rest an arm on the teenager's shoulder. "Gege, Xue-di needs reminding how to circulate his qi!" In Wei Ying's mind, all he's seeing is another child that he needs to protect from the danger all around them, another child who he could fail with one stupid move. He carefully adjusts his hold on the baby to free up one of his hands, tugging a willing Xue Yang in close to his side as well, avoiding eye contact with everyone. If his didi needed help with such a thing, he was going to put all of his focus into it.

It's like the oppressive air is lifted from around them as he mumbles about circulating his qi, almost naturally doing it in demonstration, leaving the more volatile resentful energy to either clear from his system or retreat in its broiling state to avoid the qi rolling through his body. Everyone can only breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that a literal bomb has just been defused right in front of their eyes. Wen Qing, who has been doing a very good job of not breaking down in tears at the implications of this whole situation, takes a deep breath and starts whispering softly to Wei Ying to draw his attention to her, all while Wen Ning is still clinging to her and sobbing softly into her arms. "A-Ying, we need to check on A-Yuan to make sure he's alright." She murmurs, watching as Wei Ying's grasp tightens a little on the baby, who has been snuggling into his arms with no care for the dangerous position he's been in.

The teenager nods a little, but still seems reluctant to move from this position - he can see everyone right now, he knows where all of the potential threats are and can deal with them in the blink of an eye if necessary. Thinking on her feet, Wen Qing is like "Lan Wangji can watch your back while we move to the medbay" because of course he looks up at the mention of Lan Zhan, even in this state, those haunted grey eyes latching onto the other teenager. Of course he can trust Lan Zhan to watch his back, he can trust Lan Zhan with all of his darkest secrets, he knows that Lan Zhan will look after him if he turns his back on him. It's for this reason that he nods a little, watching the boy immediately move to be at his back when the little group begins shuffling to the medbay. Everyone else who has watched this situation unfold is both thanking their lucky stars and is like "what the fuck just happened" - Yu Ziyuan had the Lan Silencing charm cast on her so she couldn't burst out with horrific shit, and she is so fucking pissed off at Lan Xichen for that movement.

[wizardglam]

I am good at describing people, writing down each and every part like they own my dreams. Yet, when someone asks what I say about myself, the pen ceases to write , draws blanks, which cannot be filled. Kafka is a lone soul standing on an island, he enters into a grief with me. "How do you say - 'I love myself' ? I have written enough letters of love to my Milena , but, none for this steady beating companion. The one who shadows whenever I breathe. None for this highly broken doll, I become at the mercy of my emotions, something hurt and something less hurt. When the rain stops pattering, when I understand less of the world , will it then become clearer why I hate this self so much ? I smile , in amusement . " No answer would ever calm the soul, which hates a mininum ounce of thought given to acceptance. Why could it be acceptance, if I relish this cycle of unforgiveness ? Forged on hate and groomed to violence. If you look in the mirror , will you be able to ask "How do I not think of myself as a human being, but like a temperated deceased soul, puppeting through each day ?". - Something I wrote, inspired by when I was hitting my lowest of lows. As Shelley would say " the life can burn in blood, even while the heart may break" .

[coffeecalliope]

*sobbing while signing tear-soaked divorce papers*

Stan, I'm going to miss your butter.

And me right? You're going to miss me too?

What? No, hate you, but that butter that you get after you disappear for a month and come back covered in claw marks? *moans*

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[soranker]

my girlfriend

[ikiprian]

Mr. Fenton is a competent teacher. Almost too competent.

If Mr. Daniel Fenton had any more than a BS (with a minor in education), Tim would’ve flagged his profile as a potential Rogue. That’s the way of most charismatic academics, at least in Gotham. (Got a PhD? Instant watchlist.) Instead, he’s Gotham Academy’s newest celebrity, as a young, passionate, out-of-towner substitute while the chemistry teacher’s on maternity leave.

Tim gets the hype. Fenton seems to genuinely love teaching, and is invested in the welfare of the student body. He hands out bananas during exam week, hosts a “study habits seminar” each month to coach effective learning strategies, and the third time Tim falls asleep in his class, he even pulls Tim aside to ask if he’s doing okay. With all the late work he accepts and the protein bars he sneaks Tim, he’s every teen vigilante’s dream teacher. He could’ve been Tim’s favorite.

In fact, Mr. Fenton was Tim’s favorite. Up until Tim walks into Mr. Fenton’s chemistry classroom for a forgotten textbook, an hour after the final bell.

On the board where tallied scores for today’s review game had been kept, “THE CHEMISTRY BEHIND DR. CRANE’S FEAR GAS: ANXIOGENICS, NERI’S, & YOU,” is now scrawled. A detailed diagram of the human endocrine system projects in front of a small crowd of adoring and attentive students.

Fenton is wrist-deep in the skull cavity of an anatomical model. A short tug, and out pops the brain.

It’s plastic. It’s fake.

Tim identifies the nearest emergency exit.

Fenton turns to the door, and in the dark classroom with the projector illuminating half his face, his eyes almost seem to flash red. “What’s up, Tim?” he asks. His friendly grin is too big for his face. “I didn’t know you wanted to join the Just Science League!”

[OR: Danny’s a science teacher at Tim’s school. Gotham’s a pretty wild place, even for someone who grew up a superhero in a ghost-infested town, so he takes it upon himself to start a club teaching kids how to manage themselves in the event of a crisis. These Gothamites are pretty hardy, but a little extra training never hurt anybody! And he suspects one of his students might be a teen vigilante, like he’d been, back in the day. As a senior super, it's Danny’s duty look out for him! Surely, this is the subtlest and most appropriate way to give the kid pointers.]

[Tim immediately assumes supervillain.]

[raynbow-shimmer]

The fuck is this?!

Pros of re-reading your own fic

a good time;

Has exactly the tropes you like and the characterization you want to read;

Gratification: yes you did finish a thing and yes you did do good;

just a very fun time all around.

Cons of re-reading your own fic:

Is that another TYpO

[tommygotwrittenoff]

i literally do not care about big emergencies on abc's 911. i want to see my characters talk to each other and have stories that are parallels to small, everyday (everyday for first responders) emergencies

[kettlefire]

Maybe a Bit High (DpxDC)

Edit: A part 2, Bruce's side of things, is in the reblogs

Really, Danny shouldn't have been there. He had so many other things he should be doing. He wasn't even supposed to in Gotham!

Danny wished he could be safely tucked in bed right now. Or having another fight with his mom. Or dealing with another one of Sam and Tucker's squabbles.

Truly, anything was better than this. Then, being on the run, in a completely different state. Not recognizing anything anywhere and having to somehow find his dad somewhere in this city.

So yes, with Danny's luck, he had assumed the commotion by the docks had something to do with his search.

And of course, with Danny's luck, it had absolutely nothing to do with him.

Maybe things got a little out of hand. Really, Danny wasn't equipped to deal with a drug bust. His experience with crime tends to be of the ghostly nature.

Really, how do people even do these without getting a little bit high?

Was he even high? Could halfas get high? Was the powder he accidentally ingested the drugs? The one he got a giant mouthful of? Or was it the strange purplish liquid that coated like half his body?

Really, Danny wasn't in the frame of mind to try and figure all that out. It sounded more like a Jazz and Sam question.

God, Sam was going to be so bummed out for missing out on Danny's first trip. Not that Danny could even tell her what drugs these were...

Maybe he should go to a hospital?

Or maybe he should mess with this crane. Like, it looks fun! Wait, but people aren't supposed to use heavy machinery when high...

It's fine... probably. It's not like Danny was that high. Right?

Yea, he's fine. Besides, he's a halfa! He's like ninety percent sure he couldn't even get high. And Tucker would be so on board with his idea.

Hold on, the storage units look more fun. Danny couldn't help wanting to find out what was hiding behind all those walls.

Oh, but the sky looks so pretty from here! Even with the city lights and the light smog, Danny could make out the twinkling stars.

Maybe he should go for a fly. Even if he was high, technically, that would be fine, right? Flying is like walking for him. And it's not illegal to walk high! Just to be high...

Okay, okay, a flight it is. It'll atleast keep him away from civilians, and then he'll find his dad. Yes, Danny still needed to do that.

He couldn't lose his objective. He just needed to take a breather, and then track down his dad. Track him down somewhere in this large, bustling city.

It'll be fine, totally fine. Danny was totally not panicking. His current trip was truly not going downhill.

Was he forgetting to breathe? Wait, no, Danny was still Phantom. He didn't need to breathe, he's fine. It's fine...

Unless it wasn't. What if it was all in Danny's head? What if all this halfa stuff was all just a part of his really weird trip? What if he tries to fly and just ends up drowning in the river?

Okay, okay. Focus Danny, focus. He just needed to find his dad. That's it. His dad would know what to do. His dad could fix this.

Oh, and there he is! It was a little hard for Danny to focus his vision, but he knew the silhouette anywhere! It had to be his dad! Jack has such a distinct shadow!

Danny wasn't sure if he called out Dad or not. He also wasn't sure when he had decided to move. Did he fly or did he run?

It didn't matter. His dad knew, anyways. All Danny was focused on was the feeling of hugging his dad again...

And the strange armor his dad was wearing? It must have been something Jack rigged up to protect himself during these dire times...

But god, Danny couldn't tear his focus away from the texture of it under his fingers. Zeroing in on that alone.

It's fine. Even if he was high, Danny could just explain it to Jack. His dad would understand! Danny was just trying to be a good hero. It's not like he was doing drugs for fun!

Besides, being curled up on his dad's shoulders feels too good right now. Whatever that pointy thing on Jack's head was wasn't a big deal. It was something a little intangiblity could fix!

[rosedproblems]

Tumblr please for the love of god, find étoile. I just know you’ll all be swooning over Tobias and loving Cheyanne just like I have. Please, I’m not a content creator and I need content. Help a girl out

[jmr-observingfromafar]

ngl Matangi in Moana 2 was kinda gay. like just a little gay. i mean my girl is a "crazy cat bat lady", calls Moana "babe" twice in her song (the way i audibly gasped in the theater when i heard it lol), and is like sooooo queer coded i love it sm. she just gives off the vibes of sapphic-coded older woman who's played as suave and confident and makes the mc just go "haguphuk" and we all know if this was old disney they would've leaned so hard into that. but i could not have been the only one to keep catching Matangi poking her buttons, the hand on her chin in one scene, just being a total fucking vibe like please i know what you are. that whole scene felt real gay and don't think im leaving Moana out of this one. she is gay, i don't make the rules. i'm stickin with this hc no one can stop me from making Matangi the cool lesbian aunt and NO ONE will stop me from turning Moana gay (Auli'i Cravalho knows what she's doing)

ok im gonna be so real for a second i was simping HARD over Moana's character design in this movie.... like even more than baby me was dying during the first one... like this girl is just- oh my gosh. baby-gay me from 8 years ago would have actually DIED if she'd seen this Moana. it's almost embarrassing how down bad i was during that movie like she's so fucking pretty i wasn't ready for her design. like girls are just too much sometimes, i cant cope .

also side tangent but the lazy ass rewrite of Moana 2 from its planned version as a Disney+ series into a freaking MOVIE was just- so painfully obvious. like they didn't even try reworking it. the structure of the whole movie is painfully episodic and it was just so blatantly shoved into movie format without any care for the integrity of basic movie versus tv structure, so the char dev and pacing was just so rough. like what were the writers even thinkingggg. pretty disappointing but that's ok i have the fandom to make me feel better (moana fan art save me....)

[bunnieswithknives]

Thanks.

Prev

[bakedbeanchan]

AU where Zuko doesn't practice helmet safety

[stump-not-found]

hrgh rambled on vc about theraprism bill for hours and i woulda kept doing it . will tuck it safely under the read more

institutes are banal in their cruelty . agency is a complicated subject . bill is a cornered rat who's always been a cornered rat . what does he look like in a scenario where he's back at square one ?

i think he'd lock tf in honestly . tbob wasn't a bad attempt . like the book was a mess of him oversharing, but he managed to get something out the door that wasn't meant to . high security facility for tyrants and he still slipped something thru the cracks -- that's interesting ! i wanna play in that space which takes into account bill cipher is competent and more than willing to rip his fate out of the jaws of whatever sick punchline the universe is setting up for him

i think bill cipher can have his moments of patheticness . he's fun to put in the blender for a lil bit i also enjoy a bill cipher jamba juice from time to time

i just also think he got where he was in life for a reason . he's charismatic . he's funny . people genuinely like him, a natural born cult leader . he's extremely smart, and knowledgeable . he's willing to do a lotta shit most people wouldn't which already puts him ahead of the game

i think the thing that's the most fun about bill being in the theraprism is when you acknowledge he's a person . he's been put in a place where he no longer has any agency . his entire life has been chasing any scrap of agency he can get, and never feeling like he's got it . i love that thread, because this wouldn't be anything new for him -- bill's never had agency as far as he's concerned . always clawing his way for the right to exist

he's a cornered rat, he's always been a cornered rat, and he's gotten pretty god damn good at clawing his way back to the top . i think it's fun being able to explore what that looks like, how that power struggle would function in a place where he is pretty well and truly powerless

then if you throw ford into the mix, now he's got a wedge . and it's fun playing with bill trying to reconcile the ways he wants to use ford as leverage, with the reality that ford is his weakness . that doesn't change just because bill beefed it big time . the fact he won't acknowledge that just about dooms him to it, and that's awesome . i love cycles man. keep pretending that love did not undo you in a mind-bogglingly brief amount of time, i'm clapping and cheering about it yippeeeeee

ohhh it's just so fun . take my man and have him lock tf in . i wanna see him clawing at those walls and being a genuine threat to the system, while coming to terms with the fact that reincarnation is just about inevitable

it's such a weird fucking situation . you can talk so much about personhood, and agency, and how he took those things from others, but like . dude you still deserve to be a person . you still deserve to be treated well . so did all the people you hurt . theraprism presents such a good pressure chamber to have a narrative exploring how someone like bill reconciles those facts, if ever

rooting for you man . i think your success is more narratively interesting than failure

oh goddd and don't get me started on the meta implications of reincarnation as a narrative representation of how so frequently "character redemption" equals the death of the original character, replacing them with someone completely different, usually "good" and "domestic" hhhhhhh

turn him into a moth . turn him into a human . at the end of the day his personality has been so twisted and warped it's not even the same person anyways

my tuoyyyyys

[saltynsassy31]

Full disclaimer, I have to read any of the fics written for Shockwave and the kids yet as I've been busy and off Tumblr for a bit for my own mental health lol

But I recently saw a photo of an abandoned carousel in some underground area filled with puddles and it reminded me of that one deleted scene from Detroit: Become Human where the Jerry's make a broken carousel work again for Alice and they all just watched her happily play on it as the world around them crumbled.

And, with that thought, it also reminded me of Shockwave and the kids and I simply HAD to write a small drabble fic of it. Sorry if it isn't accurate for the characters or the story already made, but I hope it's enjoyed regardless :3

And, I hope, with all the angst going on, this fluffy story will satisfy yall a bit XD

[This is the post I saw that inspired me to write this, if anyone wants a visual of the place: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DGog_W_vDiR/?igsh=b3FsYm50enJhM3ln ]

AU belongs to @keferon

Carousel

~☆~

As the days went by, the situation they all found themselves in was slowly starting to get far too real. It was fun, at first, running around abandoned buildings and scavenging for whatever they could find, spending time with their newly acquired aquatic dad friend who kept them safe and well fed.

But then things started to show up and it scared them. Shockwave tried to avoid the areas with the most floating bodies, the children having seen enough of that (and he hoped they hadn't seen any they would recognise), but every now and then something would float up and startle them. Other times they'd run into bigger problems while scavenging and they had far too many close calls for Shockwave's liking.

They tend to keep themselves entertained, for the most part. Shockwave only occasionally indulged. But, usually, he could simply gently float on the surface of the water and let the kids tire themselves out. However, they've become more quiet lately.

It was hard to tell what caused it. Could be a myriad of things, as listed before, maybe it was finally starting to dawn on them how the situation was far from ideal. Maybe it was the conversation they had with that Orca - Jazz, was it? Shockwave couldn't tell, and it bothered him.

He missed their lively chatter (it still happened, but few and far between). A part of him was starting to wonder if the humans who called him out on the fact that this wasn't normal behaviour for human children were right, a small pang of regret reaching the back of his mind.

But he shook those thoughts away. Now wasn't the time. Nothing about their situation was normal anyway, he was already providing more than enough for them to survive this cruel world.

Shockwave was aggressively pulled out of his drifting thoughts by an ear piercing screech that immediately put him on high alert.

“Guys! Guys! Look!” He heard Skids say. Turning to look at him, he followed where the boy was pointing at.

It looked to be some kind of fair or theme part, it was a little hard to tell. Half of it was submerged, but there were some areas in which the water had receded. Shockwave relaxed once he deemed the situation safe, but still gave a small scrutinising glare at Skids for causing unnecessary concern - which went, of course, completely ignored.

“Oh wow, it looks pretty banged up, huh?” Tc noted, crawling closer to the edge of Shockwave's back to get a better look.

“But there might still be some things left over. You know how much they tend to sell in these places? And now we can just snag them!” Warp argued, already getting excited at the thought.

“Do we really need more useless things to carry around?” Trailbreaker argued, the bag he carried strangely heavier on his back.

“There are other things we could do there.” Skids quickly chimed in. “We could check out some of the games they have.”

“Would there be any still working?”

“Carnival games easy to fix, Soundwave up to the task.”

They all turned to look at Soundwave, seemingly to silently fall into an agreement.

Warp turned to face Shockwave, clasping his hands together as he pleaded. “Can we go there? Pretty pleaaaase?” Before he could even answer, the others had joined them.

He wasn't going to say no. This was the exact type of fun distraction they needed, maybe it would help them go back to their usual, energetic selves. So the theatrics were unnecessary. Still, he couldn't help the small amusement it brought him. He pretended to think it over, as if he didn't already have their answer.

“Hmm, I don't know…”

Those simple words were enough to make them all Start to plead harder, making their eyes as big as possible, throwing promises he knew they'd never actually follow through.

That broke the façade he was trying to play up, causing him to laugh. “Alright, alright. We can go.” The kids erupted into celebratory cheers, hugging each other and jumping on Shockwave's back. “But don't stray so far where I can't reach you, okay?”

They all nodded, but he only had trust in some of them to actually obey his orders.

Regardless, he swam over to the abandoned park and waited until they had slid off of him before crawling over onto land. The ground was still pretty wet, so it made it easier for him to slide around and follow them, keeping himself to the more deeper puddles when possible.

He watched as they all went to different directions with their own, small group. Tc and Warp, always tied to the hip, ran over to some of the stands that still had some prizes hanging. Windcharger and Trailbreaker followed Damus as he ran to play some of the games that didn't require power to work. And Skids and Soundwave went…

Where did they go?

Panic immediately followed the realisation. Shockwave stood up straighter and began to spin his head around in search of the two missing kids. The others didn't seem to have noticed their absence, too enthralled in their own activity.

He was about to start calling when he heard a familiar boisterous voice call from not too far. “Guys! Over here! Come see what me and Soundwave just discovered!”

Immediately, all of the attention was on Skids who had a smile so wide Shockwave was worried he'd hurt himself with it. The others looked at each other briefly before making their way over, Damus hesitating a bit before putting down the fishing rod he held and following the rest.

Shockwave did so as well, to the best of his abilities anyway. The further they went, the tighter the space became and less water reached the surface for him to easily slide around. He wanted to voice his complaint of them going too far, like he had explicitly told them not to before coming here (and really, he thought Warp would have disobeyed first before Soundwave. Skids made sense, but him?) But before he could even think of what to say, Skids noticed his struggle and seemed to remember something.

“Oh, right! Almost forgot.” He jogged over to the mer shark and gently grabbed at one of his fingers to guide him elsewhere. “There's an opening that takes you directly to the area we found. You have to swim underneath some rubble, but it should fit you.”

The boy took him to some dilapidated attraction of the park, it was too broken to tell what it used to be, but it did create an opening that allowed Shockwave to fit through perfectly fine. “Just swim straight ahead and it should take you to the area, we'll meet you there.”

Immediately, Shockwave didn't like that idea, and he didn't need to voice his thoughts for the teen to catch on, his glare doing the job just fine. “It'll be fine, don't worry! It's not that far. Less than a minute, probably less than a second for you since you're so big you'll just have to slide in and out. Besides, there's nothing here, the place is completely barren.”

Shockwave was still unconvinced.

Skids took to pleading. “Please! It'll be quick, I promise you. And worth it too! It's the exact thing we've been needing, and Soundwave put a lot of work on it. I know you don't like leaving us alone for even a second, but give it a chance?”

They stared at each other for a moment, Skids making his eyes as wide and innocent as possible and Shockwave hoping the stubborn teen would dispel this idea with his glare alone.

In the end, Skids guppy eyes were far too powerful even for a great shak such as Shockwave. And the kid was right, wasn't this what he wanted for them to begin with?

He let out a heavy sigh of defeat and reluctantly agreed to it. “Fine. I trust you, but if anything shows up–”

“We don't engage with it and call for you, yes, I know. Now go! Soundwave is waiting!” Skids ushered Shockwave to submerge himself into the large opening with the wave of his hands and only joined back with the others once he could no longer see the large mer.

One relief Shockwave had was that the tunnel formed was large enough that he could easily turn around and pop back out if he heard any of the kids in danger, though it also lacked any proper escape for him as it only had one direction for him to go. Straight ahead or backwards. 

But Skids was right in saying the trip was short, he could already hear the muffled voices of his children. Soon enough, he found himself resurfacing, the lively chatter being the first thing his senses picked up on.

When the children heard the splash of water, they all turned to look towards the source of the noise, their excitement almost blindingly radiat in contrast to the dark, murky room they found themselves in.

The place was closed off by fallen buildings that created a sort of cave around them, plenty of fauna already making its home here. It was fairly empty as well, save for the large, round attraction in the middle of the room. It had horses stuck to poles inside it, a dim pink and gold decorating the whole thing, the paintings that littered it had long since faded and it was hard to tell what it once was.

“Okay, you're here, good.” Skids turned to Soundwave, who was standing next to what looked to be a control panel. “Soundwave, would you do us the honours?”

The other teen nodded, bending down to start pulling at some wires in place of pressing the buttons offered. Warp scoffed, crossing his arms and looking skeptically at his friend. “There's no power here, how in the world are you going to get it to work? I swear, if you brought us all the way here for nothing I–”

Before he could finish his sentence, a blast of music and light echoed loudly around the empty space, causing everyone to flinch back and cover their ears. Shockwave nervously looked around, worried that the loud noise might have attracted some unwanted attention. Once the shock faded, Skids ran up to Soundwave and gestured proudly at the now working carousel.

“Ta-da!”

“Wh…how is this possible!?” Warp questioned, looking at Soundwave for answers, to not only be ignored, but shoved around by the other kids who ran towards the attraction. “Seriously?! Is no one else even a little bit concerned on how this is possible?”

Tc placed a hand over his shoulder, bringing his attention to him. “Warp, just enjoy the miracle. When are we going to get another chance like this?”

Warp could only grumble. Tc was right, they wouldn't, not for a long time. That didn't mean he had to accept it though.

Shockwave watched as they all walked over and picked their favourite horse, Tc and Skids fighting over the same blue one before Trailbreaker broke their fight up and offered his to Tc, walking up to help Damus up and sit with him instead. Shockwave observed the way Soundwave continued to pick at the control panel and looked up at the other children, waiting for their confirmation that they were ready before clicking something and closing the panel. As soon as he did that, the carousel began to slowly move, the horses bobbing up and down in gentle motions, causing the kids to excitedly cheer.

Soundwave stepped on the moving platform while it was still picking up speed and sat on a random horse near Windcharger. Although not as vocal as the others, he was clearly enjoying it.

Shockwave couldn't quite get what was so entertaining about the thing. It was slow, even after it picked up some speed, and the music was painful to the ears. But that didn't quite matter, did it? They were happy, and they were having fun.

It clearly was something they knew about before the tsunami, before their civilization fell apart. A simple joy of life that they missed.

And, in a world dimmed by tragedy and destruction, where at every corner something threatens their very existence, isn't that all they could ask for?

So, in a small moment of peace, Shockwave let himself relax. He bent forward and rested his chin over his crossed arms and watched as his children sang along with the screechy music, bouncing on their fake horses and pretending they were in some high chase in their little imaginary world.

In this dreary reality, even the artificial light of a broken past could make it all worth it. 

[siri-ike]

A little crime, as a treat

Dpxdc

Part 1 part 2

The fear slowly faded from his eyes. Almost everyone he saw looked proud. Even Walker looked happier than usual. Everyone except Skulker. Could they actually want him as king? What does the king even do?

Danny reached the raised platform and smiled (confidently, not at all like he was about to cry) at Clockwork, who placed a hand on his shoulder and forcibly turned him around to face the crowd.

One of the observers steped to the front of the stage. "If anyone objects to Danny Phantom being the new Ghost King, this is your chance to challenge him for the crown."

He knew it! HE KNEW IT! He was right to be scared! They've just gathered to take him on all at once!

To Danny's surprise, aside from some grumbles, the audience was quiet. No one challenged him.

Another observer opened an old, intricately carved wooden box and pulled out Pariahs crown. "Then it is an honor to crown you, Danny Phantom: Ghost King, Ruler of infinite realms." And placed it on Danny's head.

For a moment, he felt like he was on fire. Then, like he was being electrocuted. Drowning, falling, suffocating, stabbed everywhere at once, but none of it was painful. Finally, it stopped at a familiar feeling. Freezing.

In an instant, he could see. Feel? The whole ghost zone all at once. The Far Frozen, The Clocktower, Walkers Prison, Pariahs Keep, Pandoras Maze. All the places he'd been as well as so many others. Lunch Lady's Kitchen and Box Ghosts Warehouse moving closer together. Embers Big Stage, Youngbloods Ship, The Cheese Kings Castle, Desirees Lounge. It was incredible, but most interesting of all was the new haunt forming itself as he watched. It was as if the zone pulled in on itself, rubble and wrecks of abandoned and destroyed haunts were pulled into a swirling vortex. It got smaller and smaller until it exploded into a whole galaxy.

Phantoms Galaxy.

It was beautiful. Full of stars, each with their own systems. He even recognized some of them. Stars that had collapsed in on themselves. White dwarves now covered in life once more. So long he'd studied and morned the loss of such amazing celestial bodies while celebrating the wonderful new things that would inevitably be born from them. Now they were all there. All his to hold and protect forever.

Danny's mind was thrust back to his body. He looked over the hall, and almost everyone was gone. He looked up at Clockwork starry-eyed. Literally, there were stars in his eyes. He opened his mouth but couldn't put together a thought.

"Welcome back, Danny. I'm afraid you missed the party." Clockwork proudly brushed Danny's hair out of his face. "I foresaw you gaining a keep of your own. One that I look forward to hearing about once you've properly explored it. And im certain even more will accept your invitation in due time."

Danny was still lost for words. How long was he just staring at nothing? And what does he mean by invitation? He opened his mouth to speak, but his vision faded again.

He was shrouded amidst pitch black space that spread as far as he could see. In front of him was the wreckage that once was his parents' portal, now relocated into his hount. Next, he saw Vlads portal, then several naturally occurring ones. The triangle seems to have snatched some people on a yacht. He'd have to deal with that later. The last portal he saw was strange. It felt... angry? Bloodthirsty. And it kept failing to open in different places.

First in some kind of railway station, next in Klempers Icy Path, and last in, NO! Pointdexters school. You can't come in through there!

As if listening to him, the portals swirl slowed and faded from the school, then it reappeared in the darkness. No, not dark, space. It's in Danny's Phantom Galaxy.

Abruptly, he found himself back in his own body. This time, Clockwork was nowhere to be seen. Danny leaped off the stage only for his cape to snag on the wood, causing him to crash to the ground. Since when does he wear a cape?

On the other side of the big doors, Danny only found one ghost. He wore an all white three piece suit, top hat, cape, and monocle, but his face was invisible. "Do you know how to get to Clockworks tower? Or the Far Frozen?" Danny begged, but before the stranger could answer, everything went dark once more.

He was amidst the stars again. Close enough to recognize some of them this time. There was Argo, Daxum, Krypton, and its moons Thalon and Wegthor. This was the Rao system that was destroyed 58 years ago. A lot of research has been done into it because it's where Superman allegedly claims to be from, although Danny hadn't been able to find any first-hand source to confirm that.

The portal bounced around a bit before stopping on Wegthor, where it finally opened fully. And one steel reinforced boot stepped out.

Danny snapped back into his body and found himself clinging onto the drapery. The other ghost was still there.

"Dear boy, you look as though you've taken a knot to the noggin." He offered his hand, and Danny took it. "Jim Craddock, at your service, but now a days most call me Gentleman Ghost. Of course, one of your stature needs no introduction, my king." He took a bow, and, awkwardly, Danny did too.

"There's an intruder in the ghost zone, in my haunt. I don't know who, but they seemed hostile, and I don't know where it is because it just formed a few minutes ago during the coronation -"

"Let me stop you there." Jim cut him off. "The coronation was seven hours ago. And as for getting to your haunt? Why do you not just step through one of your portas? During the ceremony, the drabble was able to use them to get to Embers' so-called after-party." You'd think lacking a face would make it hard to show emotion, but through only tone and body language, the Gentleman Ghost conveyed his utter disgust with a hint of jealousy.

"Did, did you see how I did it?" Danny conveyed only confusion and a lack of authority.

The Gentleman Ghost placed a gloved hand under Danny's chin. "Your gift most likely works as any other. Relax, clear your mind, and focus only on where you want to go."

Danny closed his eyes and felt the hand leave his chin. He took a deep breath and pictured the Rao system, the moon Wegthor, the portal. He saw it clearly in his mind. He then pictured himself standing in front of the portal. He opened his eyes, and it was right there, exactly as he'd imagined.

Except for one thing, between Danny and the portal was, "Jason?"

Red Hood didn't lower his gun at all. His perfectly chiseled forearms twithced, trigger finger remaining off the trigger, ~haah~, he's so diciplined. If anything, he seemed more intent to shoot. His big round biceps nearly ripping the seams on his worn leather jacket. It's too small for him, but he hates change. His legs, undoubtedly sculpted out of whatever Danny's version of Kryptonite is with how weak they made him, took a step back. He could probably tell how hard Danny was mentally undressing him.

"Who are you?" He finally demanded.

"Who am I? I'm Danny. Your, assistant? And anyway, I was invited. You're not supposed to be in the ghost zone. It can be dangerous."

"Careful there," a rough looking guy with a heavy English accent spoke. "E could've possessed ya mates body there, now, yeah?" Mate? If only. "They do that, ya'know. Take ya, loved ones," loved ones, Danny could swoon. "Persenate' em. Messes ya up real proppah'."

"Well, I'm not." Danny: master negotiator.

"Prove it."

"You broke into my home and expect me to prove I'm not dangerous!?!"

Danny caught the slightest hint of his own reflection on Jasons helmet. White hair, green eyes, crown, cape, no wonder he doesn't recognize him.

Danny hasn't gone ghost in 8 years, not since Phantom was declared public enemy #1 and the anti ecto acts were pushed through. He hadn't even gotten to see himself. He looked so much like Dan.

That doesn't mean anything. Looking like Dan doesn't make him like Dan. Right? He tried to turn back human, but it felt like he was squeezing himself into a container he didn't fit in.

"I promise, I am Danny Fenton." Danny gave Red his sincerest look. "But I'm also Danny Phantom, Ghost King, and ruler of infinite realms. I was your assistant for almost 8 years. Partly because I want to hurt the U.S. government in any way I can." Danny took a small step forward. "Partly for my love of numbers and punctuality." Danny closed in so the gun was pressed up to his chest. "But mostly I stayed because of you."

Jason removed his helmet. For the first time, Danny could look Jason in the eye without having to stand on a chair (or a table that one time)

"How could you keep this a secret for so long?"

"I actually only found out I was king 7 hours ago, but with Phantom... I'm wanted... and not considered human. I didn't wanna take the chance that... the crew," Danny exhailed. "That, you might think that too." Danny looked down.

Jason seemed to almost giggle. "I don't care whether you're human or not. Most of my friends are aliens, mutants, and monsters." He lifted Danny's chin. "I didn't follow you to another dimention because I thought a fellow human was in danger. I followed because I thought you were in danger."

Danny moved Jasons hand to his cheek and held it there.