#who woulda thought that it would take a lot of processing power

[mebediel]

I work hard (at booping) but my laptop fans work harder

[sacredsorceress]

Gone || Peter Parker

pairing: peter parker x avenger!reader

request: blurb idea? maybe one where peter and reader were together before the snap and then instead of nat, it’s reader who died to get the soul stone? honestly either peter or bucky bc i love them both

word count: 1.2k

warnings: tw: reader’s death, mentions of death, angst, just sad,

masterlist || taglist

"Hey!” Peter exclaimed, helping Tony up from where he had been knocked onto the ground. “Holy cow! You would not believe what’s been going on. Remember when we were in space-”

As Tony stared at the young superhero in front of him, he felt his heart fall to his stomach and guilt course through his veins. What was supposed to be a heartwarming moment of reuniting for Tony was now plagued with the knowledge that he would soon have to tell Peter the truth and even worse- that this would be the last moment he would ever see his mentee so happy.

He tried to take in every second of it- to allow Peter to be as much of a happy-go-lucky teenager as he could be given the circumstances.

Every second would count.

As Peter rambled on about everything Tony had already known, analyzed and lived through, he could barely process anything Peter was saying, instead opening his arms for the boy, and pulling Peter into his chest.

“Oh.” Peter said, wrapping his arms around Tony. “This is… nice-”

“I’m so sorry, kid.”

At the sound of his mentor’s voice cracking as he held onto him tighter, Peter’s own heart began to race in his chest.

“Mr. Stark what’s wrong?” Peter asked, pulling away from him.

Tony continued to hold Peter at an arm’s length as Peter studied Tony’s expression- the inability for him to focus his bloodshot eyes on Peter’s, his trembling hands that squeezed his shoulders- Peter grew even more worried by the moment.

“It... it took a lot to bring everyone back, Parker.” Tony said. “It cost more than we thought.”

Suddenly it hit Peter what had been wrong- what he had been feeling so off about ever since he stepped through that portal.

The two of you had been inseparable before the blip- both off the field and on it. You both had saved each other’s lives more times than you could count, but what mattered most was that you made it out the other side every single time.

What mattered the most about anything in a life as dangerous and unpredictable as yours and Peter’s was making it out and he made sure you did so no matter what.

The two of you were interconnected in a way even you didn’t understand. His spider senses allowed him to save you from a mile away and your magical prowess kept him safe even when you couldn’t see him.

Now he realized... he didn’t feel you. Why wouldn’t he feel your sense of danger in a battle as vicious as this? Why wouldn’t you call out for him to make sure he was okay?

“Wait, Mr Stark,” Peter stopped him, shaking his head. “Where’s Y/n?”

That’s when Tony swore his heart had stopped beating and F.R.I.D.A.Y would be giving him an analysis any second now.

“She um...” Tony said biting his lip as he glanced from Peter’s worried face to the horizon. “She got better... a lot better... at her powers while you were gone. She just... she was too fast for Nat.”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter said, searching his mentor’s face as his lip trembled. “What are you saying?”

After Peter disappeared and the team came to him with the possibility of bringing everybody back, Tony had imagined what it would be like when he finally brought Peter home. That Tony would right his wrongs and finally give that poor kid a hug. That his neighborhood would cheer at Spider-Man’s return. And that...

And that you would finally get to hold the person you cared about most in the world in your arms once more.

Tony wasn’t usually a sucker for young love, but having to come home and tell you that Peter was dusted on his watch was one of the hardest things he ever had to do and he told himself that if he ever had the chance to make it right he would. He wanted so badly to make it right. He wanted so badly for good to triumph at the end of the day without you having to sacrifice yourself and your opportunity to ever see Peter again.

This time when Tony faced Peter, he met his eyes.

“She’s gone, kid.”

Despite the chaos, Peter felt as though the world had stopped around him.

He had just seen you a few hours ago... how could you be gone? How could... how could he never see you again?

"She can’t be gone.” Peter said, shaking his head adamantly. “You brought everyone else back! You brought me back, Mr. Stark! Just- just bring her back!”

Tony knew that Peter knew better. He knew that deep down the kid knew that it was truly the end but he couldn’t blame him for trying.

Tony felt sick. Peter was a kid. You were a kid. All of the bullshit- the fighting, the loss- the two of you didn’t deserve any of it and he couldn’t help but feel absolutely sick to his stomach knowing that he had been along for the ride.

“That’s not how it works, Peter.” Tony said somberly. “She’s gone... but she died so everyone else could come back. She did it to save the world. Now you, kid? You’ve gotta avenge her. You have to protect it.”

Despite the explosions setting off around him and the cries of those fallen, Peter listened to every single word that Tony said and took every syllable to heart.

When the time came to do what it took to protect the universe- to make your death worth it- every single word Tony had told him had come to mind and the answer was clearer than the memories of you replaying on a loop inside of his head.

Just when Thanos was about to snap his fingers, Peter shot a web at the titan’s gauntlet, tricking him into believing it was a play for the golden glove itself. When he pulled the web back to reveal the six infinity stones stuck inside, his breath caught in his throat.

Was he really ready to do this? Was he really ready to go?

As he looked at everything around him, the battle ensuing on every side, he thought about you- how you sacrificed yourself to save the universe, how you sacrificed yourself so that they would have a chance to win this thing.

He had to make it worth it.

No matter what.

Spinning a web around his hand, he looked up at Thanos and Mr. Stark one last time before taking a deep breath and slotting the infinity stones into the web on the back of his hand.

That pain shooting down his arm and throughout his body made tears prickle at his eyes and a shout escape his throat but Peter almost welcomed it.

Hearing the sound of his screams, Tony whipped around and by the time he had realized what was going on, it was too late.

“Wait, wait, wait-” Tony shouted, running towards him. “Don’t-”

Trying his hardest to put on a brave face, Peter lifted his hand and shrugged.

“Who woulda thought it’d be me saving the world, huh, Mr. Stark?”

And without a second thought, Peter snapped his fingers.

[immortalonus]

Where You Belong: Chapter 3

A/N: I hate this chapter so, so much. Unfortunately, I also couldn't find any way around it. If I got anything wrong, chances are I just missed it, so feel free to let me know.

Read on AO3 here.

“...Humans with ghost powers!? Crazy, right?” Valerie snorted, then paused.

“Or humans that turn into ghosts, or ghosts that—stay human when they die or whatever. The important thing is that there was a part of Ellie that was real. And if it hadn't been for Phantom, I'd have just left her there with Plasmius, to do whatever—to hurt—to—”

Valerie took a moment, struggling to admit out loud what she had already begun suspect for herself.

“—kill her. he was gonna murder a little girl, mama, and if Phantom hadn't convinced me she still had some human in her, if I hadn't listened to a ghost, I woulda let him.”

Phantom, if she hadn't listened to Phantom, specifically. It was a detail that still irritated her every time it came up.

The ghost boy had been so persistent, for so long in his charade of being a “good guy,” that most days, she simply tuned him out.

And truly, was that so wrong?

Up to that point, Everything Phantom had said in his own defense had been nothing more than talk. Oh, he said sorry, he said he felt bad about it, but at the end of the day, what had he done?

Ruined her fathers job and her life, then fled the scene like the criminal he was.

Stole for the hell of it and couldn't even be bothered to take the blame when he got caught.

(Valerie still had no idea why the ghost thought an “evil mind controlling clown guy,” was a reasonable excuse, at all, for anything.)

Who was always ready to fight, but never to help.

Never, not once, in all the wretched aftermath of the Grey's financial dissolutionment, had Phantom come to their aid. Not in the immediate events that came after, nor during the process of her father's dismissal, when he could well have stayed his expulsion simply by appearing, proving Damian Grey's assertions of spectral interference months before he would have been otherwise believed.

Not during the move from her childhood home to her current residence down in Elmerton. Too strapped to hire assistance, it had been down to Valerie, her father, and Fenton, who had taken his weekend off to help her move instead.

No haunting the creditors who dogged their every step, even now.

Hell, he couldn't even be bothered to tell the public that it was his fault her life was ruined! In private, yes, where he knew no one could hear. But never where it mattered, to whom it mattered, since that would require Phantom to actually give something up for once and admit what he did was wrong. Which he would never do, because Phantom, like all ghosts, was a fundamentally egotistical creature, right down to his very core.

No, Valerie had good reason to believe that she had Phantom all figured out: A showboating prig, full of hot air and false excuses, distinct from other ghosts only in his capacity to fool the masses into believing he was ever anything more.

Then Elle happened.

The ghost girl's mere existence had managed to throw Valerie's world into a whole new tailspin, leaving her reeling even as events conspired to yank more and more of her footing out from under her, teetering on the edge of her own understanding as all her convictions suffered blow after blow.

Living ghosts.

Ghostly humans.

Friends acting as enemies.

While enemies acted as friends.

“I woulda let him kill her.” She repeated, “Just like I let him kill—end—All those other ghosts I gave him, just handed 'em over for whatever freak experiments he had cooked up.”

Just like she had snuffed out who knew how many other specters during her own patrols.

How many of them were still alive in there, she wondered, underneath the ghost?

Her mother's brows seemed to furrow in response, worried, no doubt, over what exactly her daughter had done.

“I didn't mean it mama, it wasn't my fault! It was all Plasmius, you know Plasmius? That knockoff Nosferatu all the time picking fights with Phantom. He used me and he lied, and—“ Valerie licked her lips futilely seeking moisture from a mouth gone dry.

“He played human to do it.”

Valerie felt a flush of rage and shame wash over her at the words. She had been used all over again, played for a fool and manipulated just like her so-called “friends” had used her before, dangling control and importance in exchange for the very essence of her soul.

To learn that she had struck the same deal with a different kind of devil, that all her power was a tool in someone else's hands had curdled into an ache that rivaled the raw burn of a whole new betrayal.

Because unlike the A-listers she'd run with not too long ago, or even Phantom, who she'd always hated, Vlad Masters had been a man she'd seen fit to trust.

“Plasmius was Masters, and—God, they even share the same first name—My sponsor, the guy who gave me my first suit, trained me up, even kept me and daddy off the streets when things were at their worst. And me stupid enough to think it was 'cause he cared.”

A hard exclamation escaped her throat at the thought, to forceful for a scoff, too sharp for laughter.

No such thing indeed.

“Everyone's out for something. Masters—Plasmius, he was out for Phantom, and I was just the pawn that was supposed to get take him out.”

That's part of what scares me too. Why was Plasmius so dead set on Phantom? Why'd he sink so much money into taking him out? Why does Phantom hate him back?”

And it was peculiar, how much Phantom seemed to hate Plasmius. Valerie had thought for a long time that it was some kind of territory dispute, a conflict over a rare and valuable thin spot between realities. After years of chasing after Phantom, however, it became more and more clear that the ghost boy's resentment of Plasmius went beyond that of simple competition.

The mere mention of the vampiric specter was enough to turn Phantom tense and snippy, as though the mere thought of the other ghost irritated him, somehow. After witnessing the two up close, Valerie's suspicions had cemented into certainty: Phantom hated Plasmius, and he hated him personally.

“There's so much I don't know, and no one to tell me. Plasmius doesn't know that I know, and until I get out from under him, that's how it's gotta stay.”

How Valerie was supposed to get out from under Plasmius was another question entirely. Plasmius, in Vlad Master's guise, was the sole reason the Grey family had managed to keep on top of its debts for as long as they had. To make matters worse, he also provided most of the materials Valerie's suit consumed for its more elaborate systems and weaponry.

Even so, the temptation to throw it all away and smash Plasmius' smug face against her boot was a strong one, stayed only by the fear of what would happen to her father if she tried.

“Phantom went squirrelly on me too,” she said. “I thought maybe I could get something from him, since we never ended that truce. But in the end, he was still just a ghost.”

She hadn't wanted to go to Phantom, in those days between Elle's escape and her decision to plunge into the Zone, had felt too much like would be admitting something, somehow, to do so. Had it not been for the fact that Phantom was her sole and only choice, she was sure she would never have asked at all.

Once she'd made the decision to do it, he'd been easy enough to track down. She found him—where else?—but In the middle of a fight, duking it out at altitude with one of the countless animal ghosts that regularly made their way across the paltry excuse for a veil stretched across Amity Park.

The fight had been easy, the conversation that came after it, much less so.

How could someone be alive and dead at the same time? Were they alive and dead at once? all the time? Did they alternate at will? Were they born? Were they made? How many were there? A lot? How did she spot a human-ghost if she saw it? Was there a way to tell? Or did you have to guess?

Phantom had been the one to tell her that these human-ghost, ghost-human things could exist in the first place, which had lead her to expect, rather despite herself, that perhaps he could explain them, too.

So it was only natural, really, that in that moment precisely, he had chosen to clam up. He knew nothing of these miraculous hybrids, could find out nothing concerning them, and as to finding them, he had no clue at all. Nevermind that it had been he who had first told her such beings were possible in the first place, the ghost was a veritable well of ignorance, utterly unable to aid in her pursuits.

“Ghosts are narrow minded and selfish, they go round everywhere like they've got blinkers on both sides of their head. You stick an idea in front of their nose, and they grab it if they like it, and shove it away if they don't. They don't consider where you got the idea from, they don't think about why its there, they don't even goddamn care why you picked it up in the first place. All that matters is somethings blocking their little slice of the world, theirs, specifically, 'cause they wouldn't never consider any other kind.

That was Phantom's problem, he wanted a truce yeah, but his way, not mine. A truce for beating things up, not a truce for trusting and talking or or anything that might give trouble to him. That wasn't how he wanted it to work.

He was even worse with Elle. She's the only other one I could talk to—not counting you, ma—who could tell me anything about anything about what was going on!

And Elle, I couldn't track her down. When she said she had places to be, I thought she meant like Phantom when there wasn't anything fun for him to hit, not just gone! I tried tracking her, I did, but it didn't work. Either staying human hides her, or she's run too far to track.

Stupid Phantom wouldn't help me with that, neither. It was just 'oh she's fine,' this and 'why do you care' that, like I can't worry about a human girl wondering on her own without nobody to make sure she's even fed!”

Not only had he been absurdly reluctant to answer her questions, but even had the audacity to wonder if they were at all related to her continued association with Plasmius. It was an insult, beyond all doubt, as though he didn't know how little choice she had.

As though he wasn't the one who forced her into making it.

“I guess so far as he figured, if Elle wasn't being kidnapped, then she was fine. It didn't matter that she's a kid, or alone, or was stealing apples just to eat. She was strong enough to survive on her own and not melt, and that was good enough for him. He just sat there when she left, too, watching her scat like any other ghost."

Did he know how far she intended to run, or simply fail to understand why he should care?

"No matter how well he thinks he means, Phantom can't help the human parts of her. Just because she could beat any man that tried to take doesn't mean that she doesn't get—scared, or lonely, or—“ Valerie wriggled uncomfortably in her pallet of dust. “—Or that she doesn't need people. Phantom can't give that, and Plasmius is a sick piece of shit, so that left me. Just me. If I let that go, then Elle'd be alone for real.”

The worry in her mother's gaze didn't lighten, exactly, but it did shift, consternation giving way to curiosity mixed with a hearty topping of concern. It was easy to imagine the question she would have asked, if she could but speak.

“Then what is it do you think you're doing all the way out here, hm?”

Valerie sighed. This, at least, she had a clear answer for.

“I'm on a mission. There's this thing called the infini-map. Don't have all the details, but with a name like that?” She scoffed, “don't need 'em. Whatever it is, its good enough to send Plasmius into a fit just at the idea of laying claws on it.

If I could get something like that, imagine, I could find Elle in a heartbeat. No more lookin', no more running blind and hoping for luck. And when I find her, I could use it get out from under Masters thumb for good. Use it, sell it, whatever, with that thing, it would be easy. Me and daddy could be set for life.”

At the time, the idea had seemed brilliant. With her search for Elle stymied, and rental payments approaching their inevitable due, she had latched onto the idea of a Ghost Zone mission the instant her so-called benefactor had brought it up. It was a chance to bleed “Mister Masters” of a little more of his money, without actually having to tolerate his presence for any length of time. Even better, it presented an opportunity to do right by her father while staying far away from the quiet anger, the soft, dispirited sense of regret that had seemed to overtake him as jobs remained scarce, and Valerie continued to hunt.

Perhaps most selfishly, it was the opportunity for the Red Huntress to become what Valerie had had always wanted her to be: A free agent, no puppet masters, no expectations, just the world, and herself within in it.

It was one thing she truly did not regret, even now, lying in the dirt looking up at the memory of a memory ripped to tatters in her hands. Whatever else happened in this strange, wild place, it was her decision, her choice. She was finally in control.

Thinking of control, there was another reason why she wanted to speed up her search for the ghost girl.

“Elle's a good kid, but she <i>is</i> a kid, with a ghost in her she don't even know to fear. I'm not sure how long she can fight it like that without anyone to tell her what's going on. She needs someone who knows about ghosts,who can show her how to fight back, 'cause if she doesn't, I'm not sure how long she'll last until she ends up Plasmius."

“Or Phantom.”

It was an ugly theory, but explained a great deal. The identical looks, the raw antipathy towards Vlad, in particular, or how a full ghost could see himself as related, somehow, to a being that was something so much more.

All ghosts came from somewhere, and Valerie rather doubted Elle was truly Plasmius' only attempt at capturing a hybrid of his own.

“'Cause I think they're the same kinda thing. It explains why Plasmius wanted her so bad, and they change the same way, too. They go from being a ghost, ectosignitures and all, to being alive. Not some fake, but breathing, heartbeats, everything. There's something in them that's really, truly alive.

Plasmius and Elle, they're both alive," she whispered, "but only Elle's human, and I don't know how long that's gonna last.

I can't stay stupid about all this ghost shit, neither. There's so much they won't tell me, and Elle's my ticket to figuring it out. If I can find her in time, I could fix it. Bring her to the Fentons, maybe, take out the ghost before it gets too big, make cash, move out me and daddy and Elle all together. Either way, this is how I do it, right here, right now. This is my chance.”

No more being lead around like a particularly witless donkey for his carrot wielding master, no more suppressing every violent impulse that threatened to take her over any time she chanced to look “Mister Masters” in his insufferable face, no more long, interminable periods of her nose against a grindstone day after day, scraping her fingers bloody against poverty's wall in the way her father seemed convinced was better, somehow, for all the pain it so obviously caused him.

“I know it's risky, but it's worth it, it's gotta be. If I can get the infinimap, then I can fix everything, all at once. I won't owe nobody nothing, and I can start fixing things again, for everyone.”

And perhaps her mother agreed, as the shadow that had gathered against her brow seemed to ease, relaxing back into something more serene.

Valerie smiled, running her thumb over the place where her face once was, pointedly ignoring the sensation of absence in favor of the smiling visage still shining across her display.

“See, I knew you'd see it my way.” Valerie was pretty sure she'd had to have gotten her sense of adventure from somewhere, after all. “It's hard, but I'm fine. And when this is all done, it'll be more than fine, it'll be better.

Just you wait.”

Overlay image: Session end.

The memory of Theresa Grey vanished slowly, victim of her daughter's own reluctance to see her go. But vanish she did, sunshine grew pale and laughter faded, memory crushed into data and erased of meaning, and Valerie was once again alone.

She sighed, finally allowing herself to lower the photograph as she reached over for her other parcels, which she began collecting into a small bundle atop her chest.

Technically, she could reach over to put her mother with her boots and rations instead of the other way around, but found herself suddenly disinclined to do so. Without the stress of the day to keep her going, she found exhaustion pushing down at her very bones, keeping her pressed against the meager comfort of her body warmed hollow of dirt.

No, lifting herself up as little as possible seemed a very enticing proposition indeed.

She grabbed both her boots, then her gloves, peeled off to reveal the same skintight leather which coated the rest of her, the remains of her wallet, and a single, battered bag, too smooth for leather, too thick for silk: All supplies from her earlier run in with the thieving insect from before, pared down to those goods and supplies she could actually use.

She chose not to dwell on how few of them there were.

Her mother came last, placed gently at the head of the pile, where she could look it over one last time.

She should have done this sooner, she knew, perhaps even the moment she entered the Zone. Keeping the photograph on her physical person was too much of a risk, one born of foolish sentiment and thoughtless desire. She had just wanted so badly to keep one good thing with her, somewhere tangible and real, she'd disregarded the threat she put it in.

Because if there was one thing death was guaranteed to do, it was steal everything and everyone it thought was yours.

Valerie placed her hands over the small collection, reaching once again into the inorganic hum prickling ever at the edges of her mind.

Unit_1 selected (Gen_Storage:)

Report

Status: Stable (20% full)

Contents (See details)

Intake request:

Intake selected? (Y/N)

>Yes

Processing…

A flick of her mental fingers, and it was done. Boots, bag, and all turned into their own kind of mist, dissolving into the small pocket dimension that followed her always, shadows diffusing into the surrounding light, the weight of them dissipating until nothing but the memory of their pressure remained.

Valerie brushed her fingers over the space they left behind, a half smile tugged at the corners of her trembling lips.

“Goodnight, Ma,” She whispered. A grief like seaglass hung heavy on her heart, smoothed over edges cut no longer, though the heft of its sorrow lay leaden even yet.

“Sleep good now, you hear?”

No voice answered in response.

Valerie no longer expected it to.

Deep in the realm of the dead, a figure turned on its side, curled against itself on its small outcropping of stone. Legs up to its chest, arms clenched tight around its shoulders as it heaved, breath by mortal breath, seeking some moment of repose.

[sid471]

An OBJECTIVE look at James Ironwood

A much needed TL;DR: Ironwood’s story is sad. But it doesn’t excuse his actions just cause we’ve known him longer.

So I’ve made it.... abundantly clear on many many posts that ever since the end of volume 7 and into volume 8, I’ve hated General James Ironwood. I’ve made SOME posts “throwing him a bone” but I usually end up still emphasizing his flaws. So... Here’s a post where I DON’T focus solely on his flaws. Here’s a look at Ironwood’s actions from his introduction in volume 2, to now. And I’ll try to be as, well, objective as possible.

So James’ first appearance is in episode 2 of Volume 2 where he talks to Ozpin and, briefly, Glynda. He clearly has some history with Glynda, maybe a romantic relationship that I personally support 😗... Well I mean not NOW but I did. So Ironwood seems to be a bit of a 3rd wheel to Oz and Glynda, Glynda dismissing him and his compliment and Oz not being PARTICULARLY happy with him and his army’s presence in Vale and after a bit of arguing, James says the infamous line, that’s even quoted in his theme track, “Do you honestly believe your children can win a war?” James bringing his army to Vale, and then later going behind Oz’s back to the Vale counsel to get permission to protect the kingdom, and also get Ozpin in the Counsel’s bad graces? He... meant well. But it was still a betrayal of Ozpin’s trust. Which is ironic considering trust is Ironwood’s whole... thing.

And it also tells us something interesting. He UNDERESTIMATES the capabilities and potential of humans. I know that may sound a bit like I’m reaching but think about it, Atlas mostly sends soldier bots to take care of Grimm attacks instead of humans. And even when he DOES send human soldiers, they rely on surprise attacks to get the job done, like the Ace Ops arresting RWBY and friends at the beginning of Volume 7. And when they DON’T have surprise attacks, Atlas’ huntsman lose. The Ace Ops lost to RWBY, they basically lost to Penny in a 1v4 fight, which Harriet admits in saying “Good work would’ve been capturing Penny.” So yeah they lost, Clover lost to Tyrian and Qrow, which I know is a different scenario but still if he were among the best of the best he would’ve either recognized the bigger threat in Tyrian, or would’ve been able to hold them both off, or, 3rd option, would’ve retreated and let Qrow and Tyrian have it out then come back to arrest them both, or the remaining one considering Qrow vs Tyrian, when we get it again, is GONNA end in a death. Fair Game bias aside, everyone blames Qrow but Clover also could’ve been smarter in his final moments. 

In fact EVERY major Atlesian we’ve seen has lost a fight at least once. Winter lost to Qrow in Volume 3, if you count that AS a fight, and Cinder in Volume 7, Ace Ops lost to RWBY and Penny, Clover, as mentioned, lost to Tyrian and Qrow, Watts lost to Ironwood, and Weiss has, notoriously, lost a lot of fights but among the first was against Banesaw, the White fang lieutenant in Volume 2, and most recently, Rhodes lost to Cinder, if you count him. Whyyyy? I’m personally of the belief that it’s because of Atlas’ over reliance on its tech, and I know I’m not the only who thinks this 😗. Atlas has the best Tech on remnant and can easily create robosoldiers or mechs to protect the pilot while also allowing the pilot to still fight. What use is training humans to fight when they have mechs and robots to do it for them? 

Phew. That was a little off topic. I’m sorry, anyway, so in volume 3, James brings Penny to Vale to participate in the Vytal festival which, speaking of trust, he didn’t tell anyone about. I understand not making it public knowledge. Soldier bots are one thing but a robot that looks like a little girl? I don’t think that woulda sat right with people. So, yeah not making it general knowledge, makes sense. But not trusting your 3 closest allies, and FRIENDS, in Oz, Glynda, and Qrow? Like Glynda said, it’s time to stop talking about trust and start showing it. That aside, things go decently well. No DIRECT signs of any conflict *looks at Cinder* and the festival goes well until the one on one finals. Yang attacking a “defenseless” student, in James’ mind, is horrible yes, but people’ll move past it, especially cause he disqualified her. But then shortly after that, Pyrrha, Ozpin’s chosen one for the Fall Maiden’s power, dismembers Penny on national TV. That is a huge blow for both the festival and him personally.

Continuing with Volume 3, while he’s calling for reinforcements, the robosoldiers that’re in his plane with him are hacked and cause him to crash land. Also a hit to him personally, HE ordered these be created and the fact that they were so easily turned against him and the people he swore to protect? Yeah... Kinda get it. Although, something else interesting in Volume 3, when he DOES rendezvous with Qrow and Glynda, Qrow immediately turns his sword into Scythe form for the first time in the show. And James’ immediate reaction? “Qrow! This wasn’t my doing!” and preparing his gun for a fight, before turning around and realizing that Qrow actually just saved him from a Griffon. This is........ interesting. Why would he assume a colleague he’s worked with for so long would suddenly be turning on him? I dunno. Just seems a little... paranoid wouldn’t ya say?

Volume 4, we see a new side of James. We see that he cares for Weiss, at least somewhat. More than Jacques, but granted a squirrel cares more about the Schneeblings than Jacques. But yeah, James has some pretty sweet moments with Weiss in volume 4, standing up for her at Jacques’ party, offering her a place at Atlas academy, he’s a pretty stand up guy to Weiss. But, big picture? This volume shows the signs of his paranoia being something serious. He completely shuts down Atlas. In his own words, “No one in. No one out. Not without the Counsel’s permission.” now, he knows about Salem. But he doesn’t know what she’s CAPABLE of, as implied by Qrow last volume. So, from James’ perspective, this DOES seem like the safest course of action. But this is exactly what Salem wants. Separation. Anxiety. Paranoia. FUEL for the Grimm. And this is the first sign of a common theme of James inadvertently playing into Salem’s hands.

Jumping to Volume 7, we don’t see him in 5 or 6 😗, James is still hella, HELLA paranoid, but he’s still happy to see Qrow and happy to have new allies. Now this is where we get a little dicey because volume 7 is a.......... divisive volume 😓. I’m gonna talk about JAMES’ perspective of events. Not necessarily my thoughts because... well... I’ve done that already lol. Many times 😓. So JAMES’ perspective on Volume 7. James sent the Ace Ops to investigate a stolen air ship and arrest the ones responsible for... ya know... stealing the air ship. So the Ace Ops do. And then they go back and take them to James’ office, and it’s the general’s old friend Qrow and his niece’s team and her friends, and a mysterious young man. We can see that James is happy to see Qrow, especially cause of the hug :3, and he’s especially happy to see Oscar, the new Ozpin. He trains Ruby and her friends with his Ace Ops, and allows Winter to help Weiss. And he DOES start to relax more. He starts to, dare I say it, let loose. He allows some lenience, he lets RWBY have the night off. Ruby going to Robyn’s celebration, Yang and Blake going on a double date with Flynt and Neon, and let’s the boys and Weiss have a movie night. He even gives RWBY and their friends their huntsman licenses. These are really great things to do :3

But where things start to crumble is after he announces that Amity is ready, which is a whole speech full of half truths, that he didn’t tell any of his allies about once again, to lure out Watts. It works, they fight, he wins, and we see THIS face.

This is a man who is completely CONTENT. He is happy in this moment. He’s arrested a man who’s always, by his own admission, been a pain in the ass, he has Clover, Qrow, and Robyn on the way back with Tyrian Callows, everything is great right now. He KNOWS that Ruby and her friends lied to him because Oscar told him, but he can sort that out with an honest conversation right? In my opinion, THIS screenshot is Ironwood’s last GOOD moment in the series. That thought process of everything is great goes to shit when he sees the Black Queen piece that Cinder left expressly to fuck with his head. And THEN he gets irrational and, once again, plays into Salem’s hands. He directly ORDERS the divide of the people. He plans to abandon Mantle, leaving them to die in the process, and he plans to completely sever Atlas from all of Remnant basically by launching it into the atmosphere to keep the Vault safe. That only ACTUALLY accomplishes one thing, being keeping the vault, which IS important. But it isn’t more important than keeping the people, ALL of the people, calm and prepared to face this threat, like he did at Beacon. He should have remained calm, like an experienced military official should, and made an announcement to all of Atlas and Mantle saying kind of what he did in Volume 3. “Grimm are all over the kingdom. You can either stay and protect your kingdom, or save yourself. No one will fault you if you leave.” 

Ironwood has a thing with fear. He doesn’t want to admit he’s afraid of Salem. As evidenced both times he’s shot someone....... interesting 😓. In the last episode of Volume 7, The Enemy of Trust, this exchange happens. Ironwood: You still think I'm afraid? Oscar: We all are. It's what we do in our fear that reveals--Ironwood: That's easy for you to say!

And then later, in the first episode of Volume 8 Divide, he shoots and kills Sleet once he says... Well... His last words “And what’s this about martial law? Have you lost your damn mind?! Are you that scared of what-- “ And notice, Ironwood shoots after Sleet goes to say “Are you that scared of what might happen?” And he IS right about one thing. It IS easy for Oscar to say “It’s what we do in our fear.” Because Oscar is child who can AFFORD to be afraid. James doesn’t have the luxury. He’s denying his fear because he’s the general. He’s James Ironwood. He can’t AFFORD to be afraid. If he’s afraid, everyone is going to be afraid. And, well, he can’t have that. That would attract the Grimm. He thinks he HAS to have a level head at all times for the sake of the kingdom. But James even generals in the military have feelings.... and sometimes need therapy to talk through some shit 😶. But... well... Maybe too late for that 😶😓.

In conclusion: James Ironwood is indeed a tragic character. A character who has taken A LOT of blows. A character who has always been paranoid. ALWAYS been ready for an attack. But even though he’s always been ready, he still wasn’t PREPARED. He wasn’t prepared for the sheer strength and AMOUNT of Salem’s forces. If he was more calm and more rational, he could have prepared better. He could have had Mantle and Atlas united against Salem, and that’s what can beat Salem, like Ruby said. James Ironwood is a tragic character, he has had it rough. But that doesn’t mean we should overlook his OBJECTIVELY horrible actions through out these last 2 volumes. Like ya know... Murder.

Phew .-. This is DEFINITELY my longest post. This better get attention I didn’t do all this for nothing >_>

[realm-sweet-realm]

A Worthwhile Investment, chapter 2

Please enjoy this Shawn x Grant story. It is a part of my canon.

Thankfully, Shawn and Grant were able to sneak out undetected. Shawn knew the warehouse Norman had told them to meet at- the one Lacie worked in, roughly two blocks from the studio and not visible from it. From there, they called a cab to take them to a bar (as Norman had promised and Shawn had reminded him) and declared themselves safe.

“Uh, sorry the raid was a bust,” Shawn said.

“It wasn’t.” Norman held up a set of keys. “I can go anywhere I want in the studio now, whenever. And I saw Sammy Lawrence wearing a Bendy mask. I knew it. I knew he was a part of this. I’m gonna crack this if it kills me.”

“Sure you will,” Lacie drawled. “Mind telling us why this is your choice of hobby? Like, why are you like this?” Shawn could tell that she was using her friendly cold, judgmental tone, which was different from her genuinely cold, judgmental tone. He hoped Norman could, too.

“Like I’d tell you. What, you think I’d ask for your life story just like that?”

“I’ll tell it. I ain’t got nothing to hide. I was born to two crack-addicted pieces of shit, so I learned to rely on the parents of neighbourhood kids on days they decided not to care for me. It was like that basically my entire life before my sister sorted herself out and I moved in with her. But it taught me I could take care of myself, so I didn’t mind moving with Bertrum wherever he went, and I didn’t cry when he retired.”

“And it’s a good thing he retired, or I might not’ve met Lacie when ah did. Bein’ an immigrant, away from home for the first time an’ barely speaking teh language- it woulda been real lonely otherwise. Of course, Ah make friends easy, but I’m still glad she was one'a them.”

Lacie’s sharp eyes landed on Grant. They’d only met once before and neither had been too comfortable with the other. “And what about you, Grant? Anything interesting in your past?”

“Oh, no. Normal upbringing. Parents who loved me. Nothing special.” It was lame, but it was the truth.

The four of them kept chatting for about an hour.

How did I end up surrounded by the three strongest people I know? Grant wondered. Most of his friends growing up had been cousins or kids of family friends, and his social circle hadn’t diversified much since, until he met Shawn and Norman. Comparatively, these three were freaks. But they were all so respectable, and honestly, Shawn and Norman were some of the best friends he’d ever had.

Life in general had given Grant a lot to be thankful for as of late. The early thirties had been hard on him- after the stock market crashed, he’d gone through a job loss, the collapse of his marriage, some domestic abuse, his divorce, and losing custody of his children. But now? Things were alright. He had a new job, and the studio was, generally speaking at least, holding steady financially. Against all odds, his daughters seemed to be fine living with their mother- maybe she had been serious about working on herself for them. Grant cherished the time he did have with them, and though he hated to admit it, he was much happier divorced. And of course, now he had these two. It was while he was there, listening to the three of them talk, that he realized that he was currently the most content he’d been in years.

Shawn had had a few drinks by that point, and leaned on Grant as though he intended to fall asleep on him.

“I think I should take Shawn home. Norman, can we talk about something tomorrow? In the projector booth.”

“Of course,” Norman said. Something in the way he said it told Grant that he already knew what it would be about.

---

“So, what did you want to talk to me about?” Norman asked, as if he didn’t already know.

“It’s about Shawn,” Grant started. How much to say? He figured that Norman knew he was gay- very little escaped Norman’s notice, after all- but maybe Norman was only okay with that because he didn’t act on it.

“You know Sammy Lawrence?” Norman mused, looking through the window into the music room. “For a long time, he was dating his- very much male, I should mention- lyricist. I saw them making out once- this gorgeous pretty boy and this middle-aged marshmallow- I guess love is blind and all that. I’ve got no damning evidence of it, but I’d bet anything that Joey Drew is gay as well. And I could go on! This studio has more queer people than you would believe, and my powers tell me about more than just existential dreads.” There was a pause. Norman turned back to look at Grant. “So. As a living lie-detector, one of the best gaydars you’ll ever see on a straight man, and your best friend of over half a decade who would never betray you... you can tell me anything about what’s going on with him.”

Grant gave a sigh of relief. “I’m so glad you’re okay with this. And yes, I’m considering dating Shawn.”

“Great. He likes you- I could tell.”

“Thanks. But I already knew- he kissed me suddenly about ten days ago. I didn’t know how to react, and I kind of froze up, and I told him that I liked him, but I needed to think about whether we could be together. Up until last night, I thought I’d tell him ‘no-’ I just hadn’t had the willpower to yet. And then I had an epiphany.”

“What was the epiphany?”

“I realized that I respect a bunch of very unconventional people- yourself included- so it’s okay that I’m not perfectly conventional. But... even if it’s not inherently wrong, the idea of acting on it still scares me. If my mother ever found out, it would break her heart. My father would be humiliated if anyone else knew about it, and he might not want to speak to me again. And if it got to my ex-wife, she’d do anything she could to keep me away from my kids- she might even report me. I don’t have to worry about any of that if I don’t act on it. I don’t know... is it even responsible to risk it? These are people I have obligations to. Is it worth it?”

“Well, only you can choose that. But don’t you want a chance at actual love? I mean, I sure like having a loving partner. Why give that up over the risk that someone else might find out?”

“I guess you’re right. Shawn could be my only opportunity for a while. I really don’t know if I want to get involved in whatever culture gay men have going on. If the stereotypes are true, I’d be walking into a group of dangerous people looking to take advantage of a naïve outsider. Of course, they might not be true, but I don’t want to just walk in without knowing. And anyhow, I wouldn’t know how to find anything like that if I tried.”

Norman nodded, taking some time to process everything he’d said. “Alright. Look- you’re overcomplicating a bunch of simple problems by rolling them together into one big problem. Just take it one issue at a time. You want your family to be happy? Make them happy, and don’t worry about something that won’t hurt them. Any partner you might have will know that this kind of thing has to be kept secret, and New York is a big city- you can hide it. You want to date Shawn? Date Shawn. I can tell he makes you happy. You don’t want to get into gay culture without knowing what it’s like? Then don’t. I don’t know anything about their culture, but you have no idea how many gay men are here at Joey Drew Studios. Plenty of people you can ask about it to decide if it’s your thing.”

“Wow. Thank you. You really made that all sound so simple.” Norman had a way of cutting straight to the point.

“Yeah. You’re gonna be okay. Heck, even if you decide not to have a love life after Shawn, I’m glad you’ll be doing it because you’re risk-adverse and not because you’re still ashamed.”

“Thanks again. Now I need to go find Shawn.”

In the end, Grant couldn’t find Shawn before it was time to get back to work, so the next day he left a note in his locker with some flowers. Like a schoolboy. Ridiculous. But that was how Shawn made him feel.

Over the next few years, their relationship went on, and off, and on again. They fought, probably more than the average couple. But overall, they were glad to have each other. It was worth it.    

[cadomoisspokenfor]

Legion Rewatch Notes,

Chapter 7:

The King In Yellow

Walter’s really putting his all into that whistling.

Kerry ended up losing Walter eventually. But I guess she was chased out of her hiding place by the zombies.

Theory: Much like how David feels most stable and confident when Syd’s around, Kerry feels most stable and confident when Cary’s around. She’s much less likely to lose a fight or get scared if Cary is in the vicinity. This would also explain why she feels so betrayed that Cary left her in Mental Clockworks. She works best when he’s around (power of love and all that) so when he’s not around she constantly feels like she’s on the ropes. Maybe only subconsciously though.

Lenny says “Hey” a lot.

So Farouk... actually seems distressed here. This is him at his least chill. He’s just shoved a person he actually cares about into a corner of their mind cause he just couldn’t understand them, the dream he’s created is collapsing and he has no plan on how to deal with it (rare for Farouk), and the location of his own body (his temple) is still lost to him after all this time.

Also, there’s apparently no specific place it could be. Farouk’s body could be anywhere on the globe. I guess he and everyone who knows about is aware that he could come back to his body if he knows where it is?

Even though it’s pointed out a lot I’ll also note that Charles is in his wheelchair in Amy’s flashback. And given future/past events (confusing, I know) this either means Farouk is the one who put him in a wheelchair, or whatever caused it happened between defeating Farouk and giving away baby David. And there’s... really not a lot of time in between those 2 events.

As we’ve seen before, while Farouk can probably see into Oliver’s ice cube residents, he can’t actually go inside or do anything to Oliver (or his guest) while he’s in there.

Farouk doesn’t want the dream to end until he’s located his body.

Cary is used to finishing Oliver’s sentences.

Cary and Oliver think very alike. The biggest difference between them I suppose is Oliver’s reality bending powers.

David never agreed to the barbershop quartet but Oliver put his name down anyways.

I never caught this before, but the thing that makes it obvious to Cary is the fact that the parasite called itself “King”. Before when watching this I thought “it’s just a name,” but I guess the point is... what other villain would be so hubris filled as to advertise who they are so openly. It speaks to the brazenness of Farouk. If Charles had ever checked back and found out David was talking to some invisible friend named “King” Farouk woulda been discovered then and there. I can only assume this means the name “King” was taunt of sorts. A joke only Farouk was in on. Not to mention, Farouk probably would never have settled for a name any less dignifying.

Oliver doesn’t remember any of his past friends, but he does remember Farouk. I wonder, did him and Cary hear about Farouk before or after Charles defeated him? Farouk hasn’t been publicly doing things for 30 years, and the only event that could reasonably be linked to him is Meiser Sunday. If they knew about him before Charles defeated him then that would just speak to his prolificness as a villain, I guess. “The Shadow King”, an unstoppable force for years until a random prodigy mutant gets him on his first try... or so they thought. I believe that’s how it happened in the comics too.

I’ll also note, Charles is an important figure in the mutant community, but it shouldn’t be discounted that the mutant community still existed and had a whole rich history before Charles even stepped on the scene. It seems like either Xaviers School doesn’t exist in this timeline, or they just don’t know about it. And given that, Summerland seemingly founded itself off the same general ideas of the Xavier School, but completely independently. Like 2 people coming up with the same idea on different sides of the planet.

Farouk’s weakness as Oliver puts it is, “He puts all of his energy into tricking David. Didn’t think to watch his six.” I wonder... is this a consistent weakness of Farouk’s? Could this be what Oliver means when he says he found his weakness in s2?

Oliver admits Farouk is too powerful for him. It’s not like he’s one to have a power complex, but it is interesting how shameless he is about it. He doesn’t really philosophize about that kind of thing, he’s matter of fact about it. Farouk’s got more measurable power than me, we need to find another way around him. He also notes though that *David* could defeat Farouk if need be. Everyone recognizes David as the top of the food chain.

Small note: I guess this is how it works between omega lvls. Always thinking of ways around each others raw abilities. Farouk knows David is too strong for him in s2, so he finds away around it. David knows he might not be able to hold out against Farouk’s built up experience, so he finds away around it. Brains over brawn every time, it would seem.

Cary feels really really bad for David. Seeing him screaming his brains out in a locked box knowing full well how much David hates small space. It’s very sweet. But also, 2 episodes Cary seemed a bit more standoffish about David. Knowing what he knows now recontextualized all those past events. David is a victim of something incomprehensibly terrible. He sees that now.

My boi Dan’s gonna need a lozenge after this one.

“We’re gonna need everybody.” They never get Ptonomy :/

I didn’t pick up on any of the other times, but Syd’s job here is to be a distraction. Sure, she has to protect the others in the process, but freeing them from the dream is the job of Cary, Oliver, and Melanie.

Still though, David is the victim who needs help here. He’s not the hero who saves them, he’s the one in need of saving. And Syd takes charge in the plan to do so and is tasked with protecting the others, making her once again closer to the hero archetype than David is. In the moment at least.

Syd’s talking fast cause they don’t exactly have all the time in the world here.

The zombies vanish but the architecture remains. There are “degrees” of real in the astral plane.

“Just thought it’d be interesting.” She’s over the whole “jumpscare haunted house” thing by now.

Silly me, the Melanie scene took place after Cary went to gather people. So it’s definitely Cary in the suit.

Melanie’s glad to see he’s back but she’s not completely love struck. Probably both cause he doesn’t remember her, and cause lovestruck Melanie was a result of her mind being altered to fit the delusion. Cary is guiding them out of the delusion so she’s back to her old self basically. Rational, and concerned with the mission.

This isn’t important, I just like how Melanie wakes him up here. It’s sweet, and bitter, cause it’s too late for him anyways.

Why does Farouk simulate this whole process for Rudy? What’s the use in tricking him if he already can barely do anything? We know Rudy gets him eventually, but it’s just surprising that Farouk recognizes him as being a potential threat.

Cary neglected to inform Syd who else he was personally waking.

Is Walter seeing the zombies too? Unclear. But he’s less chill about his tormenting now.

David starts using humor to cope. From what we’ve seen he’s been non-stop screaming for a while. It seems like he stops panicking as much specifically because his mind is fracturing to help him cope.

His first alter (that we see). Rational Mind.

RM says the coffin is just an “idea.” Very specific word choice there.

Rm tells him to forget all the “lies” he learned in memory work and the MRI. That was all Summerland stuff, though. “It’s your mind.” Essentially, trust yourself. You know who you are, don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise. Not even your new friends. Very reminiscent of, “You decide what is real and what is not.”

David doesn’t want to call his adoptive parents his parents anymore.

David’s happy to finally contextualize Farouk as a mutant and not a mental illness. It all starts making since to him, his whole life.

RM’s the first one to say “boohoo,” and it’s in response to David’s sadness over his bio-parents giving him away.

“I am pretty, I am loved.” “Good, keep going.” This mindset David’s falling into is specifically encouraged by his alters. In fact, it’s RM that pushes him down this path in the first place. David (non-Shadow King possessed David) has been avoiding this thought all season.

David’s a bit wrong here, and I think the difference tells us something important. David assumes Farouk possessed him after he was already living in the Haller’s house. But, we know it seemingly happened before Charles even got back from Morocco. So, given that Gabrielle’s mental health was already bad from post-partum depression (alternatively, it’s just the depression she already had) and Charles leaving her alone to go to Morocco, Farouk coming in and haunting the house probably sent things over the edge. David was most likely given away because Gabrielle wasn’t well enough to care for him like he needed, and Charles... 🤷🏾‍♀️ tbh. Might just’ve not wanted to raise David without Gabrielle. They both said they didn’t ant him to turn out like them. In s3 it’s made to seem like the house haunting was a combination of David and Farouk. David’s haunting time travelly presence probably made things worse, but Farouk would’ve gotten to the baby much sooner if not for him, and without David in the way Farouk probably would’ve upped his own intentional torments. The goal was revenge after all.

David assumes Farouk’s goal is revenge upon the whole world. Makes sense since that’s what Farouk’d been encouraging David to all season. And what he’ll continue to encourage him towards throughout s2 & 3.

Syd “woke him up.” She makes him more stable and sane. She grounds him in reality.

“I was sick, but I’m not sick anymore.” A moment of quiet deliberation with his alter and then he awakens with newfound confidence and a plan. This will repeat in a very tragic way later on.

Kerry, Syd, and a damaged comrade in a wheelchair. If I had nickel for every time this happens I’d have 2 nickels. Very weird it happens twice. Unless... mental clockworks and the end of s3 are supposed to parallel each other.

I assume the astral-plane diving suit protects whoever’s wearing it from psychic threats, much like the ice cube. At the moment, no one’s wearing it.

Sometimes psychics powers require a bit of miming to manifest. Oliver can’t just wave his hand and make a shield, not a strong enough one at least. Similarly, Farouk can’t just expand his mind into the future, he needs to go through a whole time machine building process in the astral plane.

Cary and Melanie seeing Walter get killed must hit hard for them considering he used to be a student of theirs. Sure, he turned against them, but still...

They juxtapose Walter dying with Rudy fully waking up. I wonder if that means it was his powers that were keeping Rudy docile and not necessarily the stab wound.

David is the one that wakes them all up, destroys the dream, and puts them back in their real bodies. And just in time for Cary to place the halo on his head. This is I think the first time David does a real act of super-heroism. The only potential one previously is saving Amy and he wasn’t really the one in control there. This is his first win against Farouk.

David’s not only got control of his powers, but control of himself for the first time, too. And it’s to the point where he’s perceiving things at lightning speeds and moving fast enough to catch bullets. Along with whatever power he’s using to halt the bullets momentum too. For now at least, this is our hero.

They play sinister music whenever he does the bright white light teleport. He does it again at the end of s2. Is it a specific kind of teleport, or is he just adding flair?

David didn’t teleport them directly to the base.

Kerry sadly looks at Rudy’s body.

Melanie looked around for Oliver but in doing so missed him meeting up with the others.

Everyone’s relaxing after their long fought for victory. David and Syd seem really happy. They find Oliver funny/charming.

When Cary’s talking to Kerry, in the background I can barely make out everyone else talking about potatoes.

David’s fine with Amy apologizing, just not in front of the others.

Instead of “The Poor Woodcutter and His Wife” Oliver calls it the “The story of The Lady and the Crane.”

Farouk doesn’t like small spaces either. Ha.

[the-insomniac-emporium]

So what of Hancock took a random drug that made him human for a day.. And a few months later his gf shows signs of being pregnant

{Focused more on the pregnancy/Hancock’s thought process, rather than on the miracle drug. This ended up about four times longer than I had intended.}{-J}

HANCOCK- POSSIBLE PARENT:

“Oh shit.”

He’s absolutely stunned. Confused. Scared, even. Panicking is his first response, followed by getting even higher than usual. This wasn’t the sort of thing he wanted to deal with sober.

After all, he had abandoned the idea of having children years ago, when he first took the drug that turned him into a ghoul. Of course, he hadn’t really been interested in having kids before that anyway.

It takes him a couple days to realize that there’s the possibility he’s been cheated on. Or, well, it takes a couple of days for Fahrenheit to slap him upside his head and tell him to quit freaking out, since “it’s probably not yours anyway”. That makes him pause.

More than that, it’s the push he needs to actually bring it up with his girlfriend. He trusts her, and is confident that she wasn’t the type to lead him on.

If the kid is his: Oh boy. He’s back to panicking, though he keeps it (mostly) on the inside for the sake of his girlfriend. There are a thousand thoughts running through his head. What if him being a ghoul fucks up the kid? Even if that miracle drug made him seem human again, was it only skin-deep? Did he just give his girlfriend and child a death sentence?

Pregnancy in the Commonwealth can be dangerous enough on its own. With the father being a sort of ghoul sort of human, there were likely far more risks than either of them could even begin to imagine. Hancock doesn’t want to think about what he’d do if he lost his girlfriend. But he does, out of fear, and then he gets high again. That brings him to another fear: Is he even fit to be a father?

Goodneighbor is not the best place to raise a kid. As much as he loves the place, he can’t imagine a kid growing up there; or at least not without the child ending up traumatized. But he wasn’t keen on completely giving up his position as mayor, despite his occasional vacations. So he could risk raising the kid in a dangerous environment, or stay in town while the child was raised elsewhere, or he could put Fahrenheit in charge and live somewhere safer… assuming there was a place that was both safer and ghoul-friendly.

At some point, Hancock starts wondering if maybe they should, ahem, get rid of the kid. Adoption was an option, but that still meant going through a risky pregnancy. Of course, post apocalypse medicine didn’t give them many “safe” options.

On top of that… Hancock knew that this was likely his one and only chance of ever having a kid. He didn’t know if he’d be a good father, or if he even had the right to try, but he figured the miracle drug was a one of a kind sort of deal. If he didn’t have this kid, then he’d never have a kid that was biologically his. Now, he could adopt a kid in the future, yes, but would that be the same? Hancock wasn’t the kind of man who felt comfortable answering that sort of question, instead opting to put down his bottle of beer and go to some friends for advice.

Fahrenheit almost smacks him again. She reminds him that, at the end of the day, it’s his girlfriend’s decision whether or not to keep the child, and then again whether or not to let him co-parent. With a little persistence, Hancock is able to get her opinion on him being a father: He’d suck ass. At first. Maybe he’d get better, or maybe he’d get high and give the baby vodka instead of milk. Or he’d forget to feed it. Or someday someone who wants him dead will find out about his child, and put a bullet in the poor thing. But Hancock did have some reliable friends, powerful ones at that. If he asked her to, Fahrenheit would keep things in Goodneighbor stable for him, or keep an eye out for trouble, or even babysit for a night or two. He wasn’t a father figure… but he could be, if the right people helped him.

Daisy is a little more optimistic. She knows that parenting is difficult, and has seen her share of shitty fathers roll through town, dragging their poor children with them. But she’s been around long enough to have a good grasp on what kind of person Hancock is. She knows that he’s a good man at heart, and believes that he’s fully capable of making changes to his behavior for the sake of his kid. More than that, she knows that his girlfriend is amazing, caring, and absolutely badass. If she wanted to keep the kid, then she could do a wonderful job taking care of it. Daisy did, however, warn Hancock to monitor her health as best as he could. She even offered to ask her caravan contacts to keep an eye out for any books that might be helpful.

Between those two conversations, Hancock ends up feeling a lot better about the whole situation, and finally stays sober long enough to have a real conversation with his girlfriend. Whatever she decides, he’s ready to support her… but if she asks for his opinion, he knows what he’d prefer: to make sure that his kid grows up happy, healthy, and with a loving father.

If he’s not the father: Oh. Oh. He’s… hurt? He knows that it wasn’t likely that being “human” again for a day would result in a pregnancy, and that there wasn’t much he could do if his girlfriend wanted a baby, but he would have liked to be part of that conversation! Hell, if she wanted to pursue an open relationship, he probably woulda been fine with that!

There’s a good chance he won’t end the relationship, but this is definitely a strike. If his girlfriend wants him to act as the father, he’ll go through a similar series of conversations with his friends about parenthood, though with both Fahrenheit and Daisy being surprised by his girlfriend’s actions. In the end he’ll probably support the idea of keeping the child, though he’ll always feel a little bit weird about how he ended up in that position.

But if the real father forced the girlfriend into this? The man’s dead, no questions asked. Hancock and Fahrenheit make sure of that. No other way it could end.

[someplace-that-is-else]

“Shaking It Off...?’: Is the Magicians Surviving Post-Quentin in Season Five?

 Editor’s Note: Spoilers for the current season of The Magicians lie ahead. Read at your own risk.

 I still can’t listen to it.

 Every time I was at work, the radio loved to drop in Taylor Swift. I admit it. I love Taylor Swift. It was earned respect so I won’t knocked it. However, when I heard ‘Shake It Off,’ I changed the station. Why? Because I was reminded every time.

 The Magicians Episode 4, Season 1…Quentin Coldwater in the mind asylum. Him singing it. It was a turn left moment in a somewhat serious scene that was hilarious.

 But I was always reminded when I heard the song. Now…

 Quentin Coldwater was dead.

 In case you missed it, the fourth season of The Magicians went out with a bang. In order to save the world and his friends, Quentin Coldwater sacrificed himself. It was a heartbreaking moment and yes, there were tears at the gang’s tribute to him with a cover of ‘Take on Me.’ It was also shocking because who would have thought a show would kill off their main character, the character that viewers are brought into the show by. Even ballsier? Leaving the main character dead, confirmed immediately after the episode aired that night by way of internet interviews from the producers.

 That was the world viewers were coming into walking into Season Five.  Unlike Supergirl which I dropped in Season Four due to the on-the-nose political writing, I was curious to see how the writers would play the death of their main character.

 So how was it?

 Did Someone Order an Apocalypse?: Raising the Stakes in Season Five

 After a season where magic was rationed out, this season was different. Now there was too much magic. How much? So much that people were exploding for crying out loud.

 As a result, there were plot threads being introduced. You had Penny being made a professor at Brakebills and dealing with the presence of a signal that one of his Traveler students was hearing. You had Kady struggling with being the leader of the hedgewitches while being in the middle of a mystery involving the disappearance of a book depository. Most importantly, there was a Pig running around, encountering Julia and saying an apocalypse was coming.

 Hm…the end of everything. While the Magicians has had moments that were life and death, I do not think it has actually dealt with an apocalypse. It sounded so Buffy the Vampire Slayer. And it was during one of these moments of too much magic that the apocalypse was supposed to happen.

 And this was all in light of the fact that Quentin was only dead a month. Alice, Julia, and Elliot were the ones who were hit the hardest by his passing. Julia was Quentin’s best friend. Alice was Quentin’s girlfriend. Elliot was his woulda, coulda, shoulda. But as usual, the world as they knew it needed saving.

 And there were casualties on the way to the apocalypse. Penny lost his ability to control his Traveler abilities so much so that he could accidentally kill himself now. Dean Fogg was lost to a whole dimension in Kady’s pursuit of the book depository. In the gang’s attempt to stop the apocalypse, they succeeded. But there was a BUT.

 WRONG apocalypse.

 All that struggle. Encountering goddesses with agendas. The return of evil hedge witch Marina who was behind the depository mystery. Kady almost was killed by an assassin. Elliot and Margo got stuck in a time loop.

 It was all for the wrong apocalypse. You see the Pig was talking about a whole other apocalypse that was coming. One that appeared to be tied into another plot thread from last season involving Elliot and Margo being trapped at one point in the Narniasque land of Fillory 300 years in the future and its future ruler the Dark King.

 Oops.

 The Power of Three: Character Development in Season Five

 Magic comes from pain.

 Eliot said that to Quentin in the first season. Over the course of the seasons, that has truly held up quite well. Going into Season Five, there was still plenty of it. And that brought me to the character development for Julia, Alice, and Eliot specifically. Their pain. Their grief over Quentin’s death.

 I loved Julia’s Season Four arc. The ‘is she or isn’t she still a goddess?’ arc. She had been practically redeemed in Season Three. She had sacrificed her being on a higher plane for her friends. And where did she go from here? From here led to a new relationship with Penny, getting to get close with her best friend Quentin again, and have a chance to be a full goddess again. However, that was snatched away from her by the Monster and so was Quentin. She was human again with no magic…until her pain over Quentin’s death, bringing her magic back to the surface.

 And that miracle was what was driving Julia this season. She was determined to not have Quentin’s death be in vain. She was going to stop those apocalypses. She was so determined that it was revealing cracks in her relationship with Penny. In fact, they broke up…just in time to find out that Julia was pregnant. So would Julia keep focusing on stopping apocalypses to honor Quentin’s memory, or would she focus on herself and her future which may or may not include Penny?  Oh, the dilemma…

 And then we had Alice…

 Honestly, I haven’t liked Alice since Season 2. She was cute. She was brainy. She wore glasses. And Niffin experience, while a great plot twist for those of us who hadn’t read the books, really tainted her. And any sympathy she got for her pain was destroyed by betraying the gang by helping the Library at the end of Season Three. I enjoyed everyone giving her the business in Season Four. 

So I was saddened to see Quentin take her back. Especially with someone better hanging in the wings.  

That said…the pain that Alice felt for Quentin dying. The staying in her room. Her wearing his clothes. Her trying to resurrect him. That felt real. And for the first time, Alice felt like a person again. She felt like Alice. And as the current season has progressed, a new persona has taken over: old Alice. The last few episodes had brought back the brainy, the problem solving, and dare I say it the cute Alice from the early seasons. From the darkness, she had come back into the light.

 And finally, there was Eliot. Eliot spent the majority of Season Four possessed by an ancient Monster. A Monster who was on a mission to resurrect his even more dangerous sister. In the process of Eliot trying to find a way to contact Quentin, Margo, and the gang, it was revealed that there was a scene not revealed to the audience. Back during the Season 3, Episode 5 episode “A Day in the Life,” Quentin and Eliot were trapped in a time loop of sorts and lived a whole life together. Fell in love. Had a child together. Died. In the end, quick thinking brought them back. And it was over…right?

 Wrong.

 It turned out that Quentin and Eliot had had a talk. Proof of concept. Most people took a chance when they got into a relationship. Here they had a whole lifetime and saw they worked together. So…Quentin wanted to make it real. The debatably straight character wanted to give it a go…but Eliot pulled away. Being trapped in a Monster gave Eliot that push. The push he needed to get free and tell Quentin that he was ready to give it a go.

  So of course…Quentin died.

 And just like that…they became Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Tara and Willow. They became like The 100’s Clarke and Lexa. What did I mean? I meant that the ‘Bury Your Gays’ trope struck again. You know, the trope in literature and tv where two people of the same sex cannot be happy and if they found happiness it usually ended in tragedy. And the fact that Quentin got some form of closure with Alice in terms of their relationship while he did not with Eliot was quite the tragedy for fans.

 While I personally would have liked to see some closure for those two (called Queliot by their fans) due to the relatability of their situation (which happened more in real life than people thought), I was pleased to see that in the latest season that Eliot was definitely dealing with his unsolved feelings about Quentin. Not only did he find some closure to it, he even got to some closure with Alice as well since they had quite a bit to deal with between each other. Bonus, Eliot had been bantering with the Dark King, this season’s potential Big Bad who happened to be flirting with Eliot.

 A happy ending for our resident gay man? This is The Magicians. So…iffy. LOL!!! Especially after that reveal in Episode 9.  So time would tell how the relationship between Eliot and Sebastian the Dark King would resolve itself.

 Speaking of…

 Pieces of a Puzzle: Using Plot Threads that Work Well in Season Five

 While a lot of the seasonal plot arc had to do with the gang dealing with apocalypses, there was also the arc having to do with the Dark King who usurped Margo’s rule of Fillory. Fans got to meet him in a clever introduction during Alice’s and Eliot’s quest to give closure to Quentin. Thus, the tension between Sebastian the Dark King and Eliot began.

 In another blog I did ( https://someplace-that-is-else.tumblr.com/post/183733192088/well-fuck-how-i-fell-into-syfys-the ), I mentioned that protagonists were only as good as their antagonists. The more complex the antagonist, the better. And if the Dark King was to be the main villain this season, the writers did him right. On one hand, there was the burgeoning relationship between him and Eliot and the fact that Fillory worshipped him for his ability to push back the invading Takers. On the other hand, it was revealed HE was behind the Takers being in Fillory in the first place and was immortal to being killed. Add on to that the reveal in Episode 9:  Sebastian was one of the Chatwin siblings, brother to the Beast…

...still the best villain in this series. His goal:  to resurrect his lost love. Given the gang was dealing with the aftermath of Quentin’s death, how could they not relate? How could we? Things were more murky.

 Meanwhile, there was the mystery of the signal. As mentioned earlier, the increase in magic meant there were a lot of new traveler magicians coming into their abilities with no one to guide/teach them. Enter Penny the only Traveler alive to tell the tale. At first Penny was reluctant, but he attempted to. That was how he met Plum, one of his students who was hearing the mysterious signal. In the process of hearing the signal, Penny lost his abilities. And to add on to the mystery…Plum...

... was ALSO a Chatwin. Whom daughter…Jane, the Beast aka Martin or Sebastian…remained to be seem.

 And then there were two.

 Finally, there was the world seed. I had greatly enjoyed seeing Alice morph back into her brainy persona that I remembered from the first two seasons. At the same time, she had started a bantering friendship with another magician who was some expert in possibilities. And from some notes left around by Quentin, Alice and this student had been creating a world seed. The belief…that it could create a whole new world. Leave it to Quentin to be gone, but NOT forgotten.

 How that would come into play with Plum, the Dark King’s plans, and the Fillory apocalypse was too early to know. It was recently announced by the SyFy Channel that they had cancelled The Magicians. Insert eyeroll here given my colorful history with SyFy. However, the producers of The Magicians have always mentioned that they wanted to adapted the last book in the series The Magicians’s Land for one of their seasons. And all signs of what I knew to happen in the book revealed this current season was loosely based on that book (in the book Quentin was still alive for example). So it would be interesting to see how it all ended for everyone.

 With a bang…or a whimper?

  #themagicians #syfychannel #syfy #whoorderedanapocalypse #buffythevampireslayer #buffyreference #glory #seasonfive #taylorswift #quentincoldwater #shakeitoff #aha #takeonme #apocalypse #supergirl #raisingthestakes #plotthreads #characterdevelopment #grief #queliot #writing #narnia #darkking #magic #buryyourgays #powerofthree #puzzlepieces #signal #seed #withabang #withawhimper

[atdelilah]

as per request: HEY THERE DELILAH WHAT’S IT LIKE IN ASHMONT CITY anyways what’s poppin y’all, it’s ya girl jalynn, back at it again with ya new girl delilah whom i based off of a mixture of the gotham city siren gang (aka catwoman, harley quinn, and poison ivy)!! i’m very excited to throw her at yall

i guess the easiest way to dive in is to just explain her backstory so here goes:

she is the youngest of two girls, and her parents own/run the biggest catholic megachurch in the state so. she’s rich, she has an image to live up to

as expected, that plan flops

her older sister, abigail, very much fits the “good christian daughter” mold, but delilah is just way too curious, and asks “why?” in the middle of church service way too often to even get close to fitting that image

yes, our girl has had problems with authority and being told what to do from a very young age

naturally, her parents were hating this very, very much and this is how the seed of a very bad relationship with your parents is born

but on the bright side! delilah and her sister were close as could be, two peas in a pod when they were kids!! they were basically polar opposites in terms of personality (delilah being the kid who will ask “why?” every time you speak vs abigail just respecting authority because what else was she supposed to believe?)

that was basically how her early childhood went. her parents wanting her to be more like abigail, delilah being like “okay anyways”, and abigail being angel girl that her parents loved the most

so then comes middle school (a tough time for everyone), and stuff in delilah’s life is either hitting the fan, or taking root so it can hit the fan later

the first thing to hit the fan: her relationship with her parents. at this point, delilah figured out that no matter what she did to be her own, her parents would never stop wanting her to be a clone of abigail, so honestly? she just stopped caring about their opinion altogether

they already were set in their belief that she was disappointing, and annoying, and just too much, so why not just do what you want anyway? that’s delilah’s thought process

she just blatantly started ignoring their rules, really. she started questioning her faith in more targeted ways, she started finding ways to sneak out of the house, and went out of her way to break her parents’ “no dating” rule

also it’s important to note that delilah went to an all-girls’ k-12 catholic school and she HATED it. she snuck out because she just wanted to hang out and go to normal schools like all her rich, non-catholic neighbors. plus her mother worked at the school, and delilah took any opportunity to just do the exact opposite of whatever her mom asked of her

basically, delilah liked finding ways of reclaiming her autonomy and personal identity because her parents’ worked so hard to try to take it away from her! it’s at this point where we see her begin to do things simply because they make her feel powerful and independent! middle school, am i right

the biggest downside to this is that it starts causing problems between her and her sister. with delilah being in middle school, and abigail being in high school at the time, it’s already obvious that problems would arise just due to the differences in age. but the differences between the two only became more evident as they got older; abigail was constantly ready to go tell on delilah, and delilah was always taking jabs and saying abigail didn’t have a mind of her own. arguing was a regular occurrence. the sisters still 100% loved each other, for sure, but it’s a tough age phase they’re going through, plus there’s just no such things as siblings that don’t argue.

now we’re in high school, another horrible and weird time for teenagers across the nation, but especially for our girl delilah

her parents are so beyond sick of her at this point, really. the only reason they haven’t completely cut her out is because it wouldn’t look good if they did r.i.p

delilah stopped going to church altogether, she’d gotten busted on her escapades multiple times (not that she cared, really), and the “no dating” rule was just.....so beyond ignored

the seed had been planted when she was in middle school, but when she got into high school, delilah just completely embraced how pretty she is. boyfriends, girlfriends, flings, sexual partners; you name it, she was doing it. she didn’t really know she was gaining a lil’ heartbreaker reputation because honestly? outside of the whole power trip it gave her, she was really just having fun ahdgashdgsdj

( small disruption to say drug tw here )

big downside to high school: in the midst of her constant sneaking out and rule-breaking, she fell into some things and people that she shouldn’t have, and by her senior year (17/18 years old) she’d developed an addiction to a small variety of drugs

like any addiction, it did have big effects on a lot of aspects of her life. her grades (which she generally took pride in) were slipping massively, and all of her relationships (friends, romantic, familial aka with her sister) were falling to points that were nearly beyond repair

abigail, being the big sister she is, was extremely upset about the whole situation and basically convinced their parents to check delilah into rehab and they were on board with the plan, not because they cared about delilah’s wellbeing, but because the way she was spiraling was a liability to their image in their eyes

so now delilah is 18, she’s graduated from that k-12 all-girls school (no longer at the top of her class), and is promptly checked into rehab, we love this for her! but she absolutely hates the whole thing, so .

she didn’t hate the literal getting off of drugs, but what she hated the most was that she felt like she’d proven her parents right. to her, it was one thing to let them just assume the worst about her; it was a whole different feeling to actually give them something as big as this to root their assumptions in.

but that (plus the underlying desire to not worry her sister) was enough for her to take being rehabilitated very seriously. she did what she had to do and was out by the beginning of the next school year! probably one of the first times in her life she actually followed instructions from authority figures, honestly. but she told herself she was doing all of it because she wanted to, not because she had to.

also just something to add, it was in rehab where delilah got super into poetry and reading and classics!! it’s not like she had an abundance of things to do at her disposal, so she picked reading as a hobby to pass time but ended up being really into it. it was one of the first times where she felt like she had a purpose in life outside of living to fuck with her parents asjdhaskdjha

fast forward, we now have senior year college girl delilah!! she’s 3 (going on 4) years clean off everything she was addicted to!! we love this for her determined queen

she’s also worked really hard to rebuild her relationship with her sister and they’re back on very, very good terms. she’d do anything for her sister, period

but delilah is still delilah, she’s still a lil heartbreaker, she’s still hard-headed as ever, and she’s still got a variety of other things to learn about and grow through but i don’t wanna talk all about it here and make this longer than it already is asjdhakjsh onto the next part!

personality!

+ independent, dedicated, passionate, sensitive but lowkey she’d rather die than admit it or show it

- stubborn, prone to isolating herself mentally/emotionally, self-sabotaging, good liar but she considers this more of a skill to use here and there

100% will do anything for the people she loves......now that list isn’t necessarily long but. once you’re on that list, you’re On that list

the investigation.....

okay so basically delilah is 100% anti-daisey

she didn’t really know daisey too well growing up and didn’t really care to asdjkhasdkjh but they were both in rehab at the same time so they officially met then

but daisey enjoyed picking at delilah’s little insecurities and also talking shit about her sister, and like the picking on her was like "eh i don’t like you" but talking shit about abigail? l m a o

basically if delilah hadn’t been so determined to be on her p’s and q’s in that rehab center, she woulda beat daisey’s ass, and that’s point blank period

plus delilah just didn’t like daisey’s attitude or anything even aside from how daisey treated her specifically, like just the way she treated others turned delilah off of her

so yeah when daisey turned up missing delilah was just like that....is not my problem 😗

when daisey turned up dead delilah was like damn 😗 sucks to suck r.i.p though

i’m not saying delilah killed her or anything but i’m just saying. delilah’s got a short temper and probably had to be held back anytime daisey said anything funny about abigail (which was all the time bc like. it’s daisey)

and the whole killer on the loose sending messages thing creeps her out but like. she’s very much a go with the flow, look at the big picture kind of girl so she’s just. trying not to let it phase her too much

connections!

y’all already know i’m not picky about anything just throw an idea at me and we can make something shake

and i think that’s about it? like this, or hmu or anything if u wanna plot i’m really excited for all of ur characters to talk to the kid!! also can u guys guess which gotham city siren i pulled the most inspo from (admins not allowed to guess bc u guys already read my app)

[keelywolfe]

FIC: Bonding Over Idiocy (baon)

Summary:   Stretch really hated hospitals, so you'd think he would try harder to stay out of them.

Tags: Spicyhoney, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Hints of Kustard, Mentions of Therapy

part of the ‘by any other name’ series.

Read it on AO3

or

Read it here!

~~*~~

It wasn’t just the poking and prodding, the nurses coming in at all hours and the doctors coming in to talk to him with serious eyes, trying to find delicate ways to tell him the newest way his low HP had betrayed him that made Stretch hate hospitals.

The sheer boredom was so much worse. No matter how interesting a book or how tempting a cooking show was, there was no escaping that he was doing it from a hospital bed. That in and of itself was too distracting for anything else to hold his attention. His cellphone was still in the lab, probably blowing up with messages that he couldn’t answer. That left Stretch with the option of sleeping, napping, and trying to keep his complaining to a minimum.

For once, this shit was entirely on him, so he was going to swallow back his irritation and take his medicine. Literally.

At least he’d managed to push Edge into going to work for a few hours. With Janice off, he was already behind and the last thing he needed was to make it worse because of Stretch’s dumbfuckery. It also meant he didn’t have to spend the day with Edge looking at him with that tired, pinched expression. He was still pissed off, that much was obvious, probably trying to keep himself from taking it out on Stretch since he was, you know, in the fucking hospital hooked up to his own personal fuel line.

He would have taken that look, taken whatever Edge had wanted to throw at him, if he were being brutally honest with himself. It had been hard enough to stifle the desperate urge to beg Edge to stay and fuck his job, stay with him until that aching, lingering panic faded enough for him to believe that they were…well, not okay, maybe, but that Edge wasn’t going to pack up his shit for him and leave it on the porch. That Stretch hadn’t finally managed to stumble across the line of unforgivable.

Not that Stretch didn’t believe Edge when he said he would never leave him, he did…mostly.

It wasn’t like he’d been rubbing the ring on his finger, fidgeting with it until the bone beneath it was chafed and sore, nope, not at all.

Blue had lingered a bit longer and he’d only left when Stretch had pleaded exhaustion, rolling over and feigning sleep until his bro quietly left. No telling where he’d gone, maybe back home for a shower and a nap, maybe he was only downstairs in the cafeteria, but Stretch was pretty sure he’d be back soon enough.

Yeah, that was tiring to think about, his brother that he loved so much hanging around, bullying him into eating a little more and tucking the blankets in too tightly, alternating between scolding and cajoling.

Fuck, he’d never wanted a cigarette so much in his life and he’d never been less inclined to whine for one.

From behind the curtain, he heard the door open, almost silent footsteps walking towards him. Familiar footsteps, not someone he was expecting, but not a surprise, either, not really.

Sans stopped at the edge of the curtain, peering around it. He managed a half-hearted smile when he saw Stretch was awake, tucking his hands in his pockets, offering a weary, “hey.”

“hey,” Stretch grabbed the remote and muted the television. “come in, will ya, stop looking like i’m gonna push you down and steal your lunch money.”

That got him a head shake, but Sans did take a couple steps closer. “you should’ve told him, you know. he might have laid off a little.”

Stretch shrugged. “why? then he’d be pissed off at you, too. besides, you didn’t make me keep working by myself.”

He’d come up with that bit of stupidity on his own. Everything had been set up for yet another test run by the time Sans texted him that he wasn’t going to make it to the lab. By now they’d gone through this a dozen times; the problem wasn’t with the distiller, it was the formulation that kept breaking down after only a few days. Preserving the solution was the issue they were having, not extracting the magic to make it. Or so Stretch had thought.

“nah, i just didn’t give you another option.” He hopped up on the foot of the bed, sitting with his legs dangling. “for what its worth, i’m sorry i ditched out on you.”

“working with me isn’t your only job, bud, i get it.”

“no, it’s not. and we’ve been busting double time down at the embassy,” Sans agreed, wearily, “but what sucks about this whole thing is i was right upstairs with your bro the whole time. i didn’t lie when i begged off, you know, i was tired, but i knew i wasn’t gonna be able to fall asleep. blue asked me if i wanted to stop by for a little television and…eh, i know he gets a little lonely sometimes since you moved out.” He slanted Stretch a knowing look. “that’s not a knock on you, by the way, blue’s gonna have to figure that out on his own. figured it wouldn’t kill me to sit with him, though, and fall asleep on his sofa for a change.”

Sans laughed sourly. “i almost ran downstairs when i first got there, to check in and maybe come up with another day to run the tests.”

“coulda, shoulda, woulda,” Stretch nudged Sans with his toes. “i’m not mad at you, if you’re not mad at me.”

“deal,” Sans agreed. “wanna tell me exactly what happened? pretty much all i had a chance to figure out was that the test was an epic fail, but i could use a few lab notes.”

“yeah, well. after you texted me to let me know you weren’t coming, i thought i’d run a basic distillation. we’ve done that a few times, haven’t had a problem before.” Stretch looked away from Sans’s keen gaze, picking lint off the blanket. “i’m not really sure what happened, power surge, maybe? the process is supposed to shut down after a certain time frame, we put in a failsafe for that. what we didn’t figure on was it getting caught in a feedback loop. for whatever reason, every time it hit the time frame, it reset and started over.”

He shivered a little, not really wanting to remember it. It had been painless, mostly, but the terror of realizing he couldn’t shut it down, the feeling of his magic draining away, dwindling to nothing. The pain hadn’t hit until it started on his HP and before he’d lost consciousness, all he’d been able to think about was Edge. If Edge thought Stretch didn’t care if he hurt him, well, Stretch wasn’t about to prove him wrong by telling him his last thoughts were of Edge finding his dust. He still wasn’t sure why he hadn’t dusted, but he sure as fuck wasn’t about to complain about it.

Stretch smiled, bitterly. “we’re supposed to be so smart, but the one thing we didn’t put on the thing was a fucking off switch and i couldn’t reach the plug. Stupid.”

“welp, if nothing else we know how to do the redesign. maybe next time we can figure that out with a little less drama. riding in a car with your bro and edge while you were trying to croak in the back seat?” Sans shuddered visibly. “let’s keep that as a once in a lifetime experience for the scrapbook.”

“yeah, kinda glad i was unconscious for that,” Stretch considered what he was about to say next, then shrugged mentally. Sans wasn’t going to like this, but he had to ask. “hey, i need you to do something for me. the distiller pulled all my magic, which ain’t no small thing. that means it’s still sitting in the machine, waiting.”

San’s expression was wary. “yeah?”

“it won’t last forever, it’ll start degrading in a couple days. i need you to try the infusion.”

He looked a little horrified, his normal easy calm shaken. “stretch, dude…”

“after all this, i’m not about to let it go to waste,” he snapped. “ask andy to come hang with you while you set it up if we’re going to tighten up protocol. he offered before and that way you won’t be alone. i didn’t almost die for nothing.”

As disturbing as Sans seemed to find experimenting with the magic he’d almost died losing, the scientist in him didn’t seem to be able to come up with an argument against it. “yeah, okay. i’ll call him. this is my fault, too. i’ve been bailing on you in the lab an awful lot lately.”

“stop that, will ya?” Stretch gave him a harder shove with his foot, “you begged off, you didn’t tell me to go on without you, it’s not on you.”

“hey, let me say my piece, okay?” He lay down on the bed next to Stretch's legs, looking up at the ceiling. The top of his head was level with the bottom of Stretch’s rib cage, his sneakered feet hanging off the end of the mattress. “i’m still seeing that therapist, you know.”

“me too. got it down to once a week, at least.”

“yeah. it gets better but shit doesn’t disappear because you want it to. probably do red some good to go, too. he’s pretty pretty fucked up,” Sans said, softly. He flinched a little when Stretch reached down and rested his fingertips on the top of his skull, but he didn’t pull away. “don’t think he’s about to make an appointment anytime soon.”

“no, i bet he wouldn’t,” Stretch said, “not exactly his style, is it.”

“no,” Sans agreed, sighing. “so, i ask you. how do i get past that? i’m not sure. i’m really not interested in your version of happily ever after. doesn’t mean i don’t want a version, though.”

That wasn’t anything Stretch had expected to hear. “sans…”

Sans shifted so that he was pressed tighter against Stretch’s legs. Taking a little comfort in his presence without asking for it, Stretch knew, because he tended to do it himself. “i mean, i’m pretty head over heels for that bastard.”

“that bad?”

“yeah. hey, you’re the lucky one,” Sans said with a bitter chuckle, “you got version 2.0, he’s pretty much housebroken. on a bad day, i think red would shiv someone who accidentally shorted him a curly fry at the local arby’s.”

“pretty sure you’re right. does knowing that change how you feel?”

“not even a little.” Sans tipped his head back, looking up at Stretch, upside down. “whatcha think?”

“i think you’re fucked.”

His grinned widened, sour and amused. “sounds about right.

A soft knock on the door made them both startled, and Sans leaned up on his elbows as the door opened, boots too loud on the tile floor as footsteps approached. Speak of the devil and he’ll show up for a chat of his own, it seemed.

“well, hey, a honey bun and a ketchup packet,” Red’s grin was sharp, and Stretch didn’t think he imagined the veil of careful disinterest that fell across Sans’s face. “how’s things, sweethearts?” His eye lights settled on Stretch, his grin widening. “nice to see you with both feet out of a dust pan. do my bro a favor, and try to stay like that for a day or two, yeah?”

“i’ll do my best. what are you doing here?” Stretch asked warily. Manners were usually wasted on Red, anyway.

“now, that ain’t nice,” Red shook his head sadly. “i’m here to do you a favor and everything.”

Yeah, that didn’t make him feel any better. “what favor?”

“brought you this.” Red reached into his inside jacket pocket and brought out what looked almost like a pen, only it was flat and there was a brightly colored cap on one end. He held it up triumphantly before offering it to Stretch.

Like he was going to take anything from Red without knowing what it was. “what is it?”

Red took his wariness in stride, coolly amused, “this is a juul, precious.”

Stretch made a face at both the nickname and the offering. “you brought me a vape?”

“yep, full of nicotiney goodness, only it won’t set off the smoke alarm.” When he still hesitated, Red waggled it in his fingers teasingly. “this one is honey-flavored.”

“okay, you’ve got my interest,” Stretch muttered. Edge would be more than a little annoyed if Red poisoned him. That meant it was probably safe enough. Probably.

Still, he couldn’t help but hesitate at Red’s encouraging look. Welp, he’d already been stupid once this week, may as well go for broke. He held it up to his mouth and took an uncertain puff. The flavor wasn’t overpowering, only a mild sweetness. Not at all like a cigarette, but he could already feel the nicotine settling into his magic and the cloud of vapor vanished quickly as he exhaled.

Stretch closed his sockets and took another puff. “okay, yeah, i owe you one. that ain’t bad.”

“pay me back by not letting either of our bros catch you with it,” Red licked his teeth and Stretch knew he didn’t imagine the way his eye lights flicked to Sans, brief as it was. “and take it easy, the battery only lasts so long. welp, i’ve got shit to do and you’re fucking boring. need a ride home, sansy?”

“not if you’re calling me that.”

“i can probably think of something else to call you,” Red said agreeably.

“maybe i’ll take my chances,” Sans said. His tone was bored laziness. His eye lights were definitely telling another story. “an uber driver would probably call me sir. don’t think i can expect that from you.”

From the way Red’s eye lights flared, Stretch wasn’t sure that offer was off the table.

Ugh, was this how everyone felt around him and Edge? No wonder the others were always rolling their eyes and groaning in disgust. Even Papyrus, whose patience for displays of affection was legendary, would occasionally let out an exasperated sigh when they were particularly revolting. Hell, that was part of the fun, in Stretch’s opinion, and Edge tolerated it with dry amusement. Must be killing Red to be so subtle, or at least his version of it.

Why the hell did he not want Edge to know?

“nice as it was to have you guys stop by for tea and crumpets, i don’t give it a shit if you call him daddy. i’m tired, so you can hit bricks now,” Stretch said. His yawn wasn’t entirely forced.

“no need to bring up your kinks with the edgelord,” Sans grinned slyly, hopping down before Stretch could give him a real kick. “get some sleep, kiddo, i’ll stop by again tomorrow if they haven’t cut you loose.”

“i’m the same age as you, asshole,” Stretch grumbled.

“don’t take it personal, honey bun, sansy here is only pissed he didn’t age as well as you.” Red barely flinched as Sans stepped rudely on his foot as he walked past. “don’t get caught with that and i’ll bring you a new cartridge tomorrow.”

The door closed behind them and Stretch turned the volume back up on the television. At least it was useful for a little background noise to help him sleep. A nap sounded pretty damn good and if he took one, maybe he wouldn’t fall asleep when Edge came back tonight.

He really wanted Edge to come back tonight.

Carefully, he tucked the e-cigarette into the pillow, then pulled the blankets up as best he could around the tubes of his IV’s before closing his sockets. Before he drifted off, he sent a brief, silent prayer to an angel he didn’t really believe in that he wouldn’t dream of dying, again.

His nightmares Greatest Hits album really didn’t need another track.

-finis-

[crusnikroxas]

Restraint (18+)

**Author Note**

Underfell Sans x Reader

Word count: 3993

So this is for the lovely @malenchka! Who thought some angsty/fluffy/smut would be fun. Which it is (at least, I think so).

ALSO MASSIVE SIZE DIFFERENCE. *wink wonk*

 **End Note**

You sighed, allowing your head to hit the surface of the steering wheel with a dull thump as you stared up at the house.

You were late. Really late.

Of course, you hadn’t intended to be – far from it. But just as you were ending your shift at the usual time, a massive party of 12 had rolled in, demanding to be served; and your boss couldn’t possibly turn away the business. She’d been going through a really tough time recently – her young son was just coming out of hospital, and she’d been saddled with the bills; she didn’t have a choice in the matter. And you, being the sap that you were, couldn’t bring yourself to just leave her to deal with all that work – no, you stayed, and you were happy that you did.

But you knew that Sans wouldn’t be.

You grumbled, thumping your head again. Your relationship with the skeleton monster was still in the early stages, but you had to admit you’d moved a little faster than you usually would, considering you were already living with the guy. But you were happy – and you loved him, even though you hadn’t dared to admit that to him as of yet. You were still a little…intimidated. He was, like other monsters, pretty freakin’ huge – not just tall, but wide as well. Which was great, you know, if you wanted a hug. But when the guy got angry, you could see why other people got freaked out.

But you knew that deep down he was just an edgy marshmallow.

No, you were more intimidated by his flighty nature, more than anything else – it had taken him a long time to actually admit that he had feelings for you, after all; before that point, you’d actually assumed that he’d hated you (what an emotional roller-coaster that was, considering your more than obvious attempts at seducing him at the time). And you worried that, if you did gather up the gall to tell him that you loved him, he’d simply run away – he was a complicated guy, and just as emotionally constipated as his brother at times.

You sighed, looking over to the passenger seat which held the massive bag of Fellby’s that you’d picked up on the way home – you sincerely hoped that that, and the industrial sized bottle of mustard you’d also picked up, would be enough to suffice as an apology.

It was one of the things he was a stickler for – always freaked out if you were late to something, or if your routine changed just a touch, and you could understand why, even if it was annoying at times. Life in the Underground had been tough for all the monsters, some more than others; and as such, Sans had a few….trust issues. But you were working on it, and he was trying.

Gathering your courage, you grabbed the straining bag of food, stepping out of the car and power-walked up to the house, not wanting to waste yet more time.  

Stepping into the house instantly set your nerves on edge; it was pitch black, save for the singular lamp that happened to still be on your coffee table. Gulping, you walked in, quietly closing the door behind you – perhaps he’d gone to bed?

Though you knew in your gut that was a pretty stupid assumption to make.

Letting out an anxious puff of air, you set the bag down on the coffee table, straining your eyes as you looked around you.

“….Sans? I’m….I’m home. I’m really sorry, I-”

You suddenly shriek as the main light turns on, revealing Sans lounging on the couch near-by, his eye-lights angry embers as he glared in your direction, baring his teeth. It was times like this that it struck you how big the guy was – you only just made it up to his vague stomach area, for heaven’s sake. And at the moment, he was taking full advantage of that size as he stretched across the couch, digging his clawed phalanges into your precious couch cushions.

All in all, he was like most monsters in regards to his fashion sense – he favoured wearing black and red, and nothing could be done to persuade him otherwise. He more or less lived in his usual clothing; not that you minded too much, as frankly, he looked damn good in it. He wore a thick-knit read sweater and black jacket, which had a heavy amount of faux fur on the collar (you’d once compared him to a startled cat because of it, which he took instant offence to). On the bottom half, he wore a long pair of basketball shorts (and you weren’t kidding when you said they were long – you once wore them as a dress amuse him; he’d laughed for hours), and a pair of worn to death red and black sneakers, which he refused to get rid of (apparently they were lucky). But what always caught your attention was his spiked, black leather collar and chain; he’d never quite explained why he wore it, but you couldn’t help the tightening in your loins whenever you happened to look at it a touch too long.

However, at this moment you instantly felt irked under his accusing stare – you’d stopped being intimidated by his size a long time ago. Besides, he was a midget compared to his brother.

“What? Were you just going to sit there in the darkness and stare at me?”

He growled, sitting up a little more as he glared at you.

“yer’ late.”

“Yeah. That was why I was apolo-”

“why are ya late?”

“….I was working. We had a huge party of people who suddenly-”

“ya got proof of that, doll?”

You scowled at his condescending tone.

“Yeah. You can ask my fucking boss if you don’t believe me – but honestly? I thought that you’d have some faith in me by now.”

He scoffed, pulling himself up to standing and lumbering over to look down at you while you held your ground, still glaring up at him.

“i don’t think ya quite get it, sweetheart.”

“No, I get it completely – you’re being a paranoid arsehole, and I’ve got to admit, I’m pretty sick of it.”

“….then why don’t ya jus’ leave.”

Now it was your turn to scoff – you’d seen this behaviour from him before, and you certainly weren’t buying it.

“You already know that I don’t want to.”

“do i?”

You narrowed your eyes, stepping closer to his gargantuan form to jab him hard in the stomach.

“Yes, you do. Why else are we standing here talking if I didn’t want to stay? Why would I have bothered to come home at all, hmm? I mean, hell, I even bought you Fellby’s. And a fuck ton of mustard. You’re welcome, by the way.”

He growled under his breath, leaning down a little more to your level.

“imma monster, sweetheart-”

“Yeah, I can see that.”

His mouth twitched as if he wanted to smile at your sass, but he was still too angry to cave quite yet.

“tha point is, why woulda wanna stay with a monster when ya could be off being normal with some other human, right?”

“I don’t want to be normal.”

He grumbled again, but froze up when you reached up and grabbed him hard by the collar, tugging him closer.

“….if being normal means I don’t get to be with you, I don’t ever want to be normal. You big idiot, when are you going to get that? For fuck sake, I lo-”

You cut yourself off, luckily. Could have made a bad situation a lot worse there, phew.

But he didn’t seem satisfied but that, narrowing his sockets as he suddenly picked you up by the thighs, standing up as he stared you hard in the face.

“...what were ya gonna say, kitten?”

“….not the point. The point is, you’re being a big paranoid dumb-ass, and there’s no point. Look, you know my boss is going through a tough time, and she couldn’t just turn them down-”

Sans groaned, pressing his forehead to yours, effectively silencing you.

“m’sorry. i know, i’m being stupid. you didn’t deserve me bein’ like that. but i jus’ -”

“I know. But I’m not like those other monsters and humans – I’m not here to use you. I’m here because I….I really care about you, you know? And I’m not going anywhere – even if you do look like an oversized Halloween decoration who shops at Hot Topic.”

He paused, before letting out a deep laugh that reverberated up through your thighs, finally allowing his face to fall into that smile that you’d fallen in love with.

“heh. sweetheart, i’ve got far more style than that.”

You instantly purred, leaning up to gently kiss the corner of his mouth.

“You certainly do. Now, are you going to stop being silly and eat some Fellby’s with me?”

He gulped, instantly freezing up at your contact – it was another problem you’d encountered with him. He was constantly terrified that he was going to break you; it’d taken him a good month to even hug you. And due to that, your sex life with him, well….hadn’t happened. The closest you’d come to kissing him was your little kisses to the corners of his mouth.

“Hey, look at me.”

He does, his flaming eye-lights boring into you with rapt attention, his claws digging sweetly into your thighs.

“You’re not going to break me. Look, you’re holding me up at the moment without crushing me, right? I’m fine, Sans – more than fine, in fact...”

You lean up once more, kissing a little more deliberately, allowing your tongue to come out just a touch to gently trace the edge of his mouth; he shuddered, his groan igniting a fire deep within you.

“k-kitten, ya d-don’t know what yer’ doin’-”

“Oh, but I do. Sans….please.”

He looked into your face, processing your begging expression, and gulping, his face instantly flaring up with a fiery blush.

“s-sweetheart...”

With a desperate groan, his mouth finally descends down upon yours, his claws palming your thighs as you sighed happily in return, reaching up to gently trace along his neck as he kissed you.

And you were shocked by gentle he was being, considering his incredibly sharp teeth – in fact, thinking about it, that was probably why he was being gentle. All the same, it made you shudder; he was being so slow, so gentle, so sweet….it made you squirm in place as he kissed you, as you ached to be closer – until you felt him start to draw away.

You couldn’t have that.

You deliberate licked him, long and hard; you felt his hands instantly still, going rigid. You smirked, repeating your lick; but you didn’t expect for him to lick back. Before you knew it, his tongue was wrapping around yours as he let out an animalistic groan, deepening the kiss as he explored your mouth. Your body reflexively arched at the sensations as you let out a quiet moan, spurning him on as he hesitantly nibbled on your bottom lip; you groaned, digging your fingernails into the surface of his neck, making him shudder and groan back, his kisses becoming more desperate as he allowed himself to finally succumb to his needs.

You’re not sure who broke the kiss, but eventually you found yourself panting, staring up at him as he stared down at you, his eye-lights burning as his chest heaved with clear restraint.

“fuck….kitten, y-ya so...”

“Perfect? Awesome in every way?”

He snorted, his grin widening.

“heh. nah, that kinda pales in comparison to ya – words can’t describe whatcha do to me.”

You blush – it wasn’t often that he’d have the confidence to break out the mushy lines, and you certainly didn’t complain when he did; they made your soul soar.

“Well, I-I….I’d like to….find out what I do to you. If you know what I mean.”

His smile fades as he stares down at you, his eye-lights smouldering.

“sweetheart, ya don’t know whatcha askin’.”

“Believe me, I do.”

“no, ya really don’t. doll, listen….i’m pretty….rough. and i don’t wanna-”

You growled, tugging hard on his collar as you glared up at him.

“I like it rough.”

He growled back at you, his expression desperate – but you knew you had to push harder.

“Sans. I want you to fuck me – and I want you to do it rough. Fuck, ever since I saw this stupid thing-”

You tugged his collar hard again for emphasis, drawing a gasp from him.

“-it’s all I’ve wanted. Please. I want you. I want you so bad-”

He groaned, his claws travelling up to your ass as he descended on your neck, kissing and nibbling, teeth scraping against your skin; you knew that he was testing your limits – you tugged on his collar harshly, body arching as you revelled in the attention.

“Harder.”

He moaned, biting into the flesh of your shoulder, leaving you gasping, clawing at his chest desperately at the sensation of pain and pleasure mixing together oh so sweetly. You sighed in ecstasy as he withdrew, watching your expressions hungrily, drinking in every last drop of your lust for him.  

“...ya good?”

“More than.”

“….ya wanna continue this?”

You simply groaned, tugging hard at his collar in need, fingers scraping against the surface of his neck; he shuddered, receiving your answer loud and clear. Before you were even aware of what was happening, he’d teleported the two of you to your bedroom, and promptly ripped the clothes you were wearing off your body, throwing the rags over his shoulder as he looked down at you, burning eye-lights travelling every inch of your skin, leaving you to squirm under his gaze.

“….yer fuckin’ perfect.”

You blushed, starting to look away before your face is turned hard back to him, his gaze burning you with its intensity.

“no. ya only gonna look at me tonight, and me alone.”

You gulped, nodding your head as your body twitched, your wetness beginning to trickle down your thighs at his sudden dominance. He purred, smile stretching as he brought your body up to his, tongue tracing the bite mark he’d left earlier, making you shudder delicately in response.

“….everyone’s gonna see this, and know ya mine.”

You sighed needily, clutching at his shoulder as the rest of your body squirmed, desperate for contact.

“don’t worry kitten, i gotcha – you’ll get whatcha want.”

You groaned in impatience, twitching as he licked at your wound again, purring in the back of his throat.

“jus’ one thing, doll – i wanna know what ya were gonna say.”

You froze at that, kicking yourself for forgetting your slip-up; you knew Sans, knew that he didn’t forget details like that.

“...I don’t know what you mean.”

He chuckled low against the surface of your neck, exhale tickling across your skin.

“sure ya do. ‘sides, think i know what ya were gonna say.”

“….no, you don’t.”

“sure i do. ‘cause i was gonna say it first.”

You froze, eyes going wide as he withdrew from your neck, fixing you in place with his intense stare.

“….sweetheart, i know that i’m an ass sometimes, but….i love ya. i love ya more that i thought i’d be capable of lovin’ anyone. m’sorry i’m such a shit when it comes ta stuff, but i….i jus’ don’t wanna lose ya.”

“….I get that. But I….I need my freedom, y’know?”

“’course ya do, and i’d never give ya anythin’ less. sweetheart, i love ya so much. is...is that whatcha wanted to say?”

You gulped, biting your lip as you stared up at him.

“...yeah. That’s what I-”

You’re cut off by his happy whoop as he swooped back down on your lips, leaving you to giggle in response.

“fuck, i’m so fucking lucky to have you-”

“I love you, Sans.”

He froze, looking at you with such sudden adoration, you worried that your heart might explode; you’d never seen him act so….assured before.

“So...now that you know I love you, and I have a huge bite mark on my neck….are you going to get so worried when I run a little late?”

He growled, his grin stretching.

“sweetheart, i’m always gonna worry – big bad world out there, after all.”

“I’m big and bad myself, thank you.”

He snorted, lifting up one of your hands pointedly to emphasise how small it was in comparison to his.

“you’re ma sweet delicate kitten. i ain’t about to let cha get hurt.”

“Just because you’re big bad monster, doesn’t mean that I don’t have my own tricks up my sleeves.”

He grinned wider, teeth glinting in the muted light of the bedroom as his body loomed over yours.

“oh yeah? how d’you mean, doll?”

You grinned back, happy he’d given you the answer that you wanted – as you reached up, yanking his head down by the collar while simultaneously lifting up the rest of your body to quickly wrap your legs around him, grinding your body against his as you practically purred against his teeth.

“...you forget, even kittens have claws, Sans.”

He growled, deep and low, his grin growing dangerous as his eye-lights seemed to flare.

“well, how mean i’ve been neglecting ya like i have. ya sure showed me.”

His hands quickly grabbed your hips, forcing your body back down to the bed with ease as he licked his teeth, leering down at you; before heading straight back to your neck and biting down without warning over his original wound. You mouth opens in a silent scream as your body attempts to arch and squirm; but he holds you tight, claws digging into your skin as he chuckles, licking lazily at the bite as you shudder, gnawing your lip as you restrained yourself from begging for more. And it seemed he knew of your wishes as he gently traced his teeth down your body, lapping with that same almost lazy speed at your nipples – but there was nothing lazy about the harshness of his claws as he pinned you to the bed. You groaned as he steadily worked his way down your stomach, seemingly intent on tasting every inch of your skin, all while he stared up at you intensely, watching every reaction his ministrations had on you.  

Suddenly, his lazy attitude went out the window as he all but yanked you legs apart, his tongue spreading the lips of your pussy apart with ease as he tasted you.

“Oh fuuuck….Sans...”

He smirked, switching back to his exaggerated slowness as he ate you out, seeming to revel in the way you squirmed and whined, your orgasm building inside you as if your insides had been replaced with embers.

“Sans...please...”

He chuckled, the sound reverberating against your pussy, making you let out yet another groan. But he didn’t make you beg any more – for in the next moment, your eyes shot wide open as his tongue started to worm it’s way inside you.

“Oh...oh fuuck!...”

And as simple as that, you came undone; he’d been teasing you for so long, you’d been wound so tight, and just the feeling of him filling you up…

“good girl. fuck sweetheart, yer’ so tight – heh, ready for the main course?”

He receives a wanton moan as a reply, his grin stretching wider as he started to pull off his clothes while you watched him hazily on the bed, your legs still twitching with the force of your previous orgasm.

But you couldn’t help your eyes widening at the size of him – if you’d thought his tongue was big….

“don’t cha worry, kitten. i’m gonna make ya feel so good.”

He leant down, gently kissing the side of your neck as he brushed your hair out of your face, burning eye-lights gazing down at you with such affection you felt yourself flushing almost instantly.

“...I know you will.”

He smirks, dipping his head and kissing you deeply – ensuring that you were completely relaxed and wanting as he lined himself up with your entrance; before gently starting to slide in.

You gasped, eyes wide as you felt yourself being filled far more that you’d ever experienced while he shushed you gently, kissing your neck so softly you shivered.

“yer’ doin’ so well, sweetheart….fuuuck, yer’ takin’ me so well...”

You moaned, your hips bucking in reflex to his words; which only shoved him in deeper. You both groaned at that; and before you could begin to recover, Sans grasped your hips and promptly hilted hard, grunting in ecstasy as he did so. But the expected pain never came – instead you were filled with such an insane amount of pleasure it brought a sob to your lips; you were so full, you were so full…

“shh, kitten, shh. yer’ so perfect, feel so good...”

You simply bucked your hips again, mewling in desperation.

“Please, please move, god, please, fuck me Sans!”

He snarled, his teeth bared as his claws dug into your hips, drawing himself almost out – before slamming back in hard. Doing it again. Then he was ramming into you with abandon, his eye-lights burning as he huffed, his gaze demanding that you only look at him.

Your hands clawed desperately against his ribs as he rutted into you, legs twitching as you felt that all too familiar coil begin to tighten inside you – which he seemed to notice as well.

“yer’...not allowed to cum…until i say, sweetheart.”

You whined, squirming your body against his in desperation, drawing a hiss from him as he fucked you ruthlessly – he growled at you for your lack of control.

“you want me ta stop?”

“No! No, please!”

“then ya gotta….fuckin’ wait.”

You bit your lip, brow furrowing as you desperately concentrated, which seemed to please him as he smirked down at you, ducking his head to lick at your wounds as he angled your hips upward – making you almost scream at how intense the new angle was.

“almost kitten…..almost...”

He grunted, his thrusts growing impossibly faster than before as dug his claws harshly into your hips, pulling your body hard down on his cock; your vision started to blur as you mewled, fighting your body’s urges as much as you were able – but you knew that he could feel you getting tighter around him as your muscles threatened to spasm.

“….cum for me, sweetheart.”

You screamed as your body exploded around you in the harshest pleasure you’d ever known, Sans swearing loudly above as he came at the same time, hot ropes of cum filling you to the point of spilling out around him as he spasmed inside you, hips jerking against your own to the point you knew you were going to have bruises to match your claw marks.

You both gasped for breath for a long time, locked together as you came off from your highs.

“….gods, yer’ so fuckin’ perfect.”

You giggled, still a little dazed as you looked into his eye-lights.

“See? Told you I like it rough.”

He snorted, kissing the top of your head as his body shook with laughter.

“...i love ya so much, sweetheart.”

You smiled warmly, before shuddering a little as he slowly pulled himself out of you, your body feeling horrifically empty in his absence.

“...heh, whoops. looks like we might need ta invest in new sheets.”

You groaned, mock glaring up at him.

“If I wasn’t so weak right now, I’d totally slap you.”

“nah, ya wouldn’t. know why?”

“...why?”

He chuckled, before carefully scooping you up and holding you to his chest, softly making his way out of the bedroom.

“’cause i’m tha guy that’s gonna run ya a bath, and feed ya fellby’s before tucking ya up in fresh sheets and sleepin’ with ya for tha week.”

“….I love you.”

He sniggered, pressing a kiss to the top of your head as he kicked open the door to the bathroom.

“love ya too, kitten.”

[crayonverse]

OKAY NEW GUY HAS BEEN THOUGHT OF

Jian Hex, (or Matched Odds/Odds) he/them, around ehhhh mid 20s? hes on the younger side. they are Chinese, he's a cis guy n pansexual. [ more under cut ] cw religious trauma

Jian works for Razor Claw! they are one of his more trusted individuals.

they have chance altering powers, which they use a lot in casinos and gambling rings, to make sure he wins instead. his chance altering takes effect in a sort of bubble around him, so he can't do something over the internet or TV, it has to be within a range to him. around like a meter out of his touch.

an unfortunate process of having powers that literally change the world around you, Jian has gained a godlike complex. he believes that what he does affects the entire world, and he portrays himself as extremely self-centered. He finds it hard to take criticism and doesn't like to listen to authority (not even his own boss) despite this flaw, Razor Claw doesn't fire him, because even he's not sure if it would even work against Jian.

he also has a lot of . childhood issues! (who woulda guessed). a lot of it is a string of catholic guilt, stemming for the ripe ol' age of 5. his superpowers made the people in his district regard him as unnatural and a demon, and he forced himself to hide this part of him away, until he moved to America. while the treatment wasnt exactly. better. Jian wasnt constantly tormented with thoughts of hell and demons, and he was recruited by Razor Claw after Jian altered the odds of a match he had with another superhero.

he and Kalos knew each other, both from their early days in the comic world. They both actually dated for a little while, but Kalos broke up with him because he recognized him in one of Razor Claw's comic runs, and Kalos wanted to keep Atlas safe. Jian didn't have the heart in him to alter Kalos's mind.

the thing i want to say that the pictures dont is that JIAN HAS LONG HAIR he has a mullet .its jsut there wasnt any cool pictures i liked that showed that. his hair also has red streaks but again. no cool pictures i liked

pinterest board

[thenixkat]

Animorphs notes 1

Book 1

Narrated by Jake, my least fav main from back in the day

Books are for people to learn the truth. Implies that Jake considered publishing this shit was a viable option

All this shit started on a Friday night

Marco’s good at analysing shit

Tobias just fucking latched onto the first person to stand up for him

There are ways to describe that yer cousin is good looking and well dressed that dont sound like that

Also this fuckin white boy doesnt capitalize Black in relation to the descriptor of a person

Just described this girl as mystical…

Sexism, but like Cassie will use that shit to her advantage

Marco is the responsible friend

The Andalite space ship is ‘cute’

Tobias is fuckin ready for aliens

Andalite description number 1 puts them as more humanoid upper part and smol ungulate lower bit,3 slits where a mouth should be on a human face, horn-like eyestalks, glittery eyes, blue and tan fur, scorpion tail-thick ends in sharp horn or stinger

Elfangor is set on the whole dying thing, these nice kids are tyring to help save him

An invasion force of maybe hundreds or more. That’s fucking pitifully small.

If I weren’t freaked out by snails I’d say the yeerks sound like good pet material for the folks who like slimey boneless pets. Grey-green as big as a rat

Elfangor thinks an invasion force of maybe more than a hundred could take over the Earth in about a year.

Elfangor is real dead set on dying, meanwhile Rachel throwing out ideas to maybe save him

Damn Cassie just fucking telling Jake he aint scared to have him volunteer to go into the alien spaceship

Andalite ships are Apple products

Why didn’t Jake take the picture too? Let Elfangor look at it one last time before he dies.

Marco is skeptical of superpowers while talking to a fucking alien

Tobi, then Rachel, then Cas all agreed to join the fight first

Cas keeps singling out Jake and pushing him into decisions

Elfangor just letting these kids feel all his feelings

Rachel still trying to save this man who’s dead set of dying

Cas is the first to fuckin cave under Visser 3’s aura and nearly gets them all killed

Elfangor is racist as fuck to taxxons

Elf projects a courage aura for the kids. They should try and learn that power

That hork-controller by the wall can definitely hear these fucking kids.

Visser 3 wastes a perfectly good infestible body. Get a yeerk in that bitch and make him morph and bam, another andalite controller.

Yeah no, the hork-controller by that wall def noticed Jake’s little stunt

Everyone is like wtf Jake are you trying to get us killed?

Vore count is 1

Visser 3 makes vore/bad office jokes

Marco throws up and thats what gets the attention of the nearest hor-controller, not Jake fucking jumping up and grabbing a pipe. Or the kids talking to eachother

Panic and run, and split up. Rachel and Jake independently come to the plan of distracting the controllers away from the slower members of the herd

Hork-controllers bounding like devil kangeroos? These bitches fuckin hoppin after yall?

Yeerks fuckin wasting perfictly infestible bodies

Jake got a person killed

Death count of like what 2?

Tobi is fuckin jazzed at his new furry powers

Tobi got scratched by his cat and it didn’t heal when he morphed. Interesting

Jake is trying not to have a nervous breakdown over this shit

Tobias can hear Jake’s thoughts. Interesting

Tobias has decided that Jake is the leader

Jake forshadows that something is gonna happen to Tobi

Knees reversing direction.

Jake has access to his morph’s memories. Interesting

Jake morphed into a neutered dog. Interesting, so they don’t morph into an exact dna duplicate but an actual copy of the creature

Dog!Jake can smell the yeerk or smells associated with yeerk. Interesting

Kids learn that they cant trust the police.

Marco has no intrest in getting killed to save the world

Ya know I’m wondering why child services never got involved with Marco’s family case. Cause a kid should not be taking care of his parent

The girls have already figured out the whole having clothes and morphing thing

Marco is very perceptive and a better fighter than Jake from the looks of it

I highly doubt that dna is much involved in morphing other than a blueprint of what should be the final result

Tobias morphed a healthy hawk from an injured hawk while Jake morphed a neutered dog from a neutered dog, and that’s very inconsistent for dna being important to the morphing process.

Tobias is one of those weak binches that overly anthropomorphize animals

So the yeerks are photosynthetic?

Tobi wants to blow up the yeerk pool and everyone in it

Tom, ‘Hey kids, wanna join a cult?’

Tom maneges to get something out to Jake

The girls are very good at people reading

Like some cult, it is a cult

Tobias would really rather be an animal with his furry ass

Jake’s gonna turn into Homer. At a party where his brother’s body is. Brilliant

Weak dog eyes that can’t see too well in darkness? Bullshit, dogs have much better night vision than humans.

Dogs dont know despair, bullshit.

There’s a lot of spelling and grammer errors in this pdf

Why is lizard Cas’s best guess for spying on someone who spends a lot of time inside buildings? Lizards are more noticeable than bugs.

Anoles are in the iguana suborder, not family

Jake is too big to fit in a locker well

Jake is a weak ass bitch who doesnt think lizards are cool

Jake doesnt practice shit before entering a life and death situation of his own volition

That … would also be smell. smell/taste, that’s what?

A spider with compound eyes…. What the fuck. That’s not a spider

Vore count at 2

Funky purple lighting in the yeerk pool

Cassie that’s some half assed animism yer going on about. Did you just make this some kinda holy mission?

Team gets a name

Tobi is a fucking idiot. The fuck are you gonna do with a medium sized predatory bird?

So why are they sneaking around durring business hours? Why not wait some hours?

Rachel likes dolphins

Marco is not good at driving

Marco is good at figuring out things.

Jake should pay more attention to his surroundings

Marco is a dark boy

So people saw Jake and Marco in the tiger exhibit

Jake is a weak ass bitch who doesnt like broccoli

Cassie’s missing

Huh, its a good thing that the kids decided to go in for a mission with no real plan and bad starting conditions. Elsewise Cassie woulda been made a controller and their asses woulda been forfeit.

Yeerks fucking zooming around in the pool

Tobias said that there were voluntary hork-bajir hosts and I know that’s bullshit.

The yeerk pool has very purple lighting

These kids better pray that the dude who was them is ded

This tiger feeling description is hilarious. Big cats are cowards who’d rather run that take on challenges.

Tobi manages to miss all of a hork-controller’s head blades in that swoop

Cas, like Tobias was a fucking idiot who chose not to get a battle morph. Also this chick owns horses, horses and stairs are not a great combination

Visser 3’s andalite eyes have vertical slits/eyes oriented in a way that the eyelids close verticly

Visser 3 morphed into a fire breathing 8 headed dragon

Tom decided to go out fist fighting taxxons

And Rachel should be having a terrible time with those stairs, oh she demorphed. Where people could see.

Tom fucking tries to fight Visser 3 the fire breathing dragon with his fists

So the animorphs managed to save one woman, that they know of

Cassie killed that police officer

Tobias got himself trapped in morph

[coulscns]

— ✧ KELSEY CHOW ?? no, that’s just EUDORA MAY COULSON !! she’s the TWENTY year old adoptive daughter of PHIL COULSON & MELINDA MAY ( DAISY JOHNSON & LINCOLN CAMPBELL ), and an UNDERGRAD at paragon. i hear she’s PASSIONATE & ADAPTIVE, but tends to be DECEITFUL & SHORT-TEMPERED. her file says that her power is ELECTROMAGNETISM MANIPULATION.

   tell me who’s going to save me from myself                when this LIFE is all i’ve known.

SECTION ONE OF THREE: BULLET POINT HISTORY trigger warnings for death, arson, injury, murder ( ? )

what would prove to be the most defining moment of dora’s life would actually happen BEFORE she was born. before her mother, daisy johnson, even knew that she was pregnant with his child, her father, lincoln campbell, sacrificed himself to save the world - and he did do just that, but he never knew what it cost him

and, what it cost daisy

had he lived, then there was no question ; he and daisy would have raised their baby, together, creating for themselves the families neither had ever had. they wouldn’t have been ready, not even a little bit, but it would’ve been ok so long as they were in it, together. but he didn’t live, and when daisy found out how her life was going to change in such a huge way a few weeks later.. she panicked

she wasn’t ready. the people that say that all a kid needs is love are only right some of the time - she could love her unborn child with everything in her, but that didn’t mean she’d feel any more confident about what was to come. it didn’t stop the voice at the back of her head, telling her how all of her family, all the people she cared for, ended up hurt or worse because of her. it didn’t stop her from realizing that she couldn’t do it - so she decided that she wouldn’t. but she had been in and out of foster homes for her entire life. she knew how hard and unforgiving the system was, and she couldn’t do that to her kid - 

enter phil coulson and melinda may, daisy’s pseudo parents, everything she had ever dreamed that she would have in a family. how it came about involved far too many late night and emotional discussions - all that matters is that on february 21st, a baby girl was born, and on her birth cert she was named eudora may coulson

daisy remained in her daughter’s life, but never as a mother. if anything, she was a hip older sister figure, able to watch her child grow up happy and loved while said child knew nothing of the truth. they bonded over computer programming and video games playing, but dora was never any the wiser. it was just easier, that way. daisy knew that if she ever changed her mind, phil and melinda would allow the truth to be revealed - but even if she’d started to second guess herself as dora grew older, she couldn’t have ever ruined the family unit that they created for her

everyone else in phil and melinda’s shield family were her family too, of course, just as they would’ve been if she’d been raised by her mother. i imagine all the oldest people knew - but it wasn’t the kind of secret that everyone wanted to be the first to tell. it was one that was RESPECTED, if anything, and it wasn’t as if who raised her changed much. eudora was surrounded by an overwhelming amount of love and loyalty, and was a happy child, surrounded by strong people who she was able to look up to and learn from. the only complaint that people had with her was that she was obsessed  with shield

it was understandable, of course. her parents being so involved, all of the people she knew being the same, eudora grew up thinking that working with the organization was as normal as working for the post office. she loved the idea of joining up and becoming a hero - so much so that around the time she turned thirteen, she REALLY started to pressure phil and melinda

she wanted to know when she could join, and get her security clearance, and go on top secret missions with them. they’d taught her some self defense, enough to make sure she could take care of herself if needed, but she wanted MORE, now - she wanted to be an agent, and do whatever it took. and of course, they tried to keep her away from that life, for as long as they could. they tried to keep her SAFE

and they kind of became stifling, over protective parents, in the process

and everyone knows what happens, when a young teen feels stifled by their parents. they rebel - and for dora, that took the form of many after school detentions and low tier vandalism and delinquency, until finally, not long after her fifteenth birthday, they got the call that she hadn’t turned up to school that day. they naturally thought she was skipping a couple classes, and would turn up again eventually -

except, she didn’t

when they actually searched her room, they realized that she had took all of her money and things

her dream ? become a vigilante hero. yes, she was one of THOSE teens, who couldn’t just choose one. she thought if she proved herself as capable, she’d somehow prove herself as more than capable to be an agent - and at the time, hitting the streets seemed like the best of ideas. when she was six states away, however, lacking money and a roof over her head, she realized she’d kinda hecked up

but she was stubborn as all hell. she was gonna MAKE IT - or at least, she was gonna do her best to make a name for herself, before they tracked her down. she was good at covering her tracks, but dora knew that eventually, she’d get found. it was a question of when, but for the time being, she tried to do as many heroic things as she could

as in. she walked a lot of old ladies across the road and saved some cats ( and one parrot! ) from some trees. as it turned out, there wasn’t a lot of hero deeds out there for a homeless kid to do

a few more heroics, and a lot of near misses from her shield fam in tracking her down ( listen - they’re the best at their jobs, but the unexpected side effect of dora trailing them for YEARS was that she’d picked up on all the best ways to go on the run ), and we’re gonna fast forward to the second of dora’s defining moments

terrigenesis. i bet y’all thought i was gonna ignore this lil home slice being an inhuman. guess AGAIN !

it had taken an age, but dora had reached san diego - and at the diner she worked at ( shoutout to the people who had no issues in hiring an underage girl w no papers ), she overheard something that led her to what she thought would put her name into the young heroes hall of fame for life. it seemed like an arms deal. that was what it SOUNDED like, anyway. lots of “we meet at midnight”’s and “make sure to bring the gear”’s and blah blah blah, she kinda tuned out for the most part, but her sweet lil innocent mind had gone straight to GUNS instead of drugs, which probably woulda made more sense

she tailed the guy when he left the diner, managed to sneak her way into the warehouse after him, and watched as he met with just two other guys- two? two! that made THREE altogether, and any vigilante hero can handle three assailants 

they didn’t have any guns with them, though. or bags of drugs. just a small wooden box, which they were, she assumed, trading for the briefcase full of cold hard cash. she wasn’t about to tell the guy she’d tailed he wasn’t getting his moneys worth, though. she didn’t question it - as they held out the little wooden box she had appeared, taking out the guy she’d followed with a sweeping move, and then- yikes

one of the others had reached for his gun. he was raising it towards her, when they all realized at the exact same time that the little wooden box had toppled from the third guys hands in the commotion. it was sailing towards the floor, they looked like if they weren’t already destined to being too slow they’d have shouted, or tried save it, but they were all stuck and she was wondering if it was a bomb and then-

the wood splintered. the crystal inside shattered. the explosion of what seemed like dust enveloped all four of them, and the last thing that eudora thought was - dying thanks to asbestos fucking SUCKED

she doesn’t recall what happened next. she was too young, to go thru terrigenesis - and it’s been long since proven that anyone unprepared, or too young, or BOTH, will suffer consequences. for eudora, it was coming to exactly three days later getting wheeled out of a back alley on a gurney, the noise of the ambulance going right through her skull, the flashing lights killing her eyes. some lady had seen the passed out teen and panicked thinking that she was dead, and honestly, eudora wasn’t ruling it out as an option

she couldn’t remember anything that happened, after she had gotten to the warehouse. zilch. nada. nothing. which was kinda good, i suppose, considering the last thing she’d seen before terrigenesis took her was the petty criminals before her crumbling to dust. and also kind of bad, because when an EMT tried to lean over and check her eyes with another annoying torch, she, uh... 

electrocuted him

it was p bad

the other EMT’s screamed smth about her being a freak or whatever, and she was DEFINITELY freaking out, and it was a good job they hadn’t thought she’d be much of a threat and hadn’t strapped her to that gurney because she was fucking outta there like a flash, even though when they came to their senses, they tried to stop her

things were uh . how you say... not good ! 

she was alone, she was scared, she was going through changes that she didn’t understand - now would be such a good time to ruin her some more, but finally, something went right. a bystander from the whole ‘maybe killing an EMT and injuring three others’ thing followed her ( it’s not as creepy as it sounds ), and just.. well. happened to be a member of a very special group i can’t wait to namedrop

enter: a teeny tiny san diego based branch of the brotherhood of mutants, left mostly to their own devices. their scout brought in what she thought was another newly displaying mutant - and in her humble defense, after a display of their powers, eudora didn’t have any real. reason. to DOUBT she was a mutant 

it wasn’t like she knew she was an inhuman. because.. she didn’t. and she couldn’t remember what she’d gone through to get her powers, because, plot convenience. and really. it was a case of mistaken identity on like. both their sides

things looked up, immediately. the mutants she ran with for the next while were more than helpful at showing her how to use her powers, and under their leaders wing, eudora learned more about mutants and their struggles and .. more about herself, or at least, that’s what she thought. she was a mutant ( haha ). she was a part of the unfairly treated minority, now, and eudora had always been a passionate, strong willed, and STUBBORN girl. she fell RIGHT into their ideals, accepting them wholeheartedly, and 

well

remember when i said things would go right

i meant they’d go right for like a few months, tops, and then i’d ruin it again 

she was pretty powerful. especially in the tiny group that she ran with. and once they realized that, and realized that she was on board with them - hook, line, sinker - it got easier and easier to wind her up and watch her go. she started carrying out jobs for them. sometimes it was getting money, when it was low and they needed the cash to get by. sometimes it was help in burning down a warehouse containing weapons that they’d been tipped would be used at the next pro-mutant rally. sometimes, it was hurting people. twice, it was a lot more serious than that.

but eudora was among who she thought were her friends and allies - and in a way, she was, but that didn’t negate the fact that she was young and impressionable and wholly in over her head, and they took advantage of that fact

she was starting to do more and more questionable things, and it was bad

REALLY bad, in fact

there was an anti-mutant rally planned to happen the summer after she had turned eighteen, and eudora was their main event. from the sidelines of the huge stage those against her kind spoke from, she focused all of her power on the electricity lines. the microphone, the speakers, the lights - everything exploded. the wires went up in flames. the wood of the stage caught, the people on top were heading towards fiery deaths if they hadn’t dove in time -

thankfully, shield turned up.

a camera had caught eudora and some of her friends scouting the area in the early hours of the morning. facial recognition tipped off the team, and they had rushed to get there as soon as they could. if it hadn’t been for their presence, everyone on the stand that day would have died - thanks to eudora. not that they realized that, at first

her friends scattered and she was too stunned at the sight of her mom and dad striding towards her to do the same. the family was reunited in the chaos, but she had always been told that honesty was the best policy - and she told them then and there her involvement in what had happened that day. they didn’t take her back on the bus as their kid.

well. they did.

but she was also under arrest

#yikes

in a story full of yikes’ i really hate to end, but here is where i must. it goes without saying that they were able to have her freed and her record wiped, after a few call ins of favors. and with her back, they got some time together before they decided that maybe sending her to the academy would benefit her - she’d picked up a lot of extreme ideas while she had been away, it seemed, and they wanted their daughter back

but much as they wanted her back, she couldn’t just reappear from nowhere. and eudora HAD changed. she was different. she was a mutant - and yes, they foolishly allowed her to keep on believing that because she had already been through so much, adding in that her almost sister slash aunt was actually her mother would have been too much, full stop. and she knew what it was like, for mutants

she still wanted to help the brotherhood 

so once at the academy and away from her prying parents eyes, she reached back out to her friends-

and that’s where we’re at w eudora coulson! she’s an inside man that aint nobody suspecting! 

SECTION TWO OF THREE: EXTRA DETAILS

her quick stats page, which includes personality tidbits, can be found HERE

eudora isn’t bad. i feel like after all my talk of her brotherhood dealings, i needa clarify that. she ISN’T bad. or evil. or whatever else you’d apply to a typical ‘villain’. she’s misguided - especially given that she thinks of herself as one of their own. her first experience with mutant kind after her change was a very extreme mutant kind, and she’s adopted their ideals as her own, and wants to work with them, to help them. but that’s because she thinks she’s doing the right thing. all she’s ever wanted to be is a hero. she still thinks that in a way, she’s being one

she has a single, self done tattoo, on the inside of her left wrist ; roman numerals that she typically covers up with a very large bracelet, which make absolutely NO sense to anyone who doesn’t know what they’re looking for. they’re coded coordinates for the exact whereabouts of the san diego branches safe house - and an identification mark, for if she runs into anyone affiliated with them.

she used a codename while running with the brotherhood group that she ran with, which was HYADES - not just a cluster of stars, but also the name of the sisterhood daughters of atlas in greek mythology, of which one is named eudora. when she was little, she used to have a mythology obsession that everyone actively encouraged, because knowledge is power and all that jazz - it was the very first name to come to mind, and she ran with it for as long as she ran with them

she wasn’t always rly short tempered. that is .. tragically .. another terrigenesis side effect, on top of the whole ‘losing all the time immediately during and after the change’ thing. there’s just.. so much going on in her head, now. a lot of extra power flowing in her veins, etc, etc - all her emotions are heightened but its mostly when she gets mad that people realize, because eudora goes straight to RAGE.

SECTION THREE OF THREE: WANTED CONNECTIONS

one connection i REALLY want, and will probably put a wanted ad in for, is one that’s ,, a bit much to explain, but makes sense in my head. i want eudora, a self called HERO, to have her own ARCH-NEMESIS - and everyone knows that the best of those are the ones that the hero created, themselves. i’d love if one of the people doing the terrigenesis trade had ALSO been a dormant inhuman, and i’d love if they had gone through the change with her. i imagine that they’ve been out there not too far from her all this time, and are p angry about the whole ‘she kinda had a part in their friends deaths’ thing - n also maybe the whole ‘definitely having a part in them gaining powers that they mightn’t have wanted’ thing. i’d LOVE that kind of hero/villain dynamic, so if ur interested. pls. hmu

FRIENDS ! literally any and all kind. she dropped off the face of the earth for about 3 years, but before that she probably had plenty of all types of friends, and since then, she’s probably made more. i just want her to hav some connections, ya know?

looks to the shooting stars n wishes for a daisy johnson

 i dont kno ive been typing for two hours im so tired

ill come up w more

i swear

for now

pls lov

n plot w me

thank u for coming to my ted talk

[theatricalplacenta]

First of all, to you, as someone who presumably does not ship KatsuDeku, I’d like to thank you for coming to my ask box with a calm and respectful question rather than wagging fingers and yelling about how the pairing is disgusting and anyone that ships it is filth; or saying things that people who hate Katsuki and Izuku paired together usually use as an example as to why Katsuki is a pretty terrible person and why they should never be together. So, before I answer your question, i really need to say thank you. 

Without any more delay, let’s delve into this! And please, just bare with me, I have a point to all this. Their relationship was indeed abusive growing up, and anyone that can’t see it is either blind, or chooses to be blissfully ignorant. It was a textbook case of bullying, and first I want to say, that by “shipping” the two of them, that I in no way condone treating another human being like absolute dirt. With that being said, Katsuki is a strange character. Too many see him as nothing but blind rage, anger, and (in my opinion) his most dangerous personality trait, pride. Izuku was a very young boy when Katsuki began bullying him, and our small green son said himself that once Katsuki had gotten his quirk he began to change. I’m not excusing his behaviour, but Katsuki, as an impressionable child (as most are), with his drive and determination to be the best, was encouraged by absolutely everyone, and denied by no one. They didn’t just whisper that he was meant for greatness, they loudly exclaimed it, shouted it, and ingrained it into his head. He was told that he would be simply amazing because of his quirk, and then izuku, who didn't have one, matched his fiery spirit all the way, despite HIM being the best. A childs psyche is easily fucked with. This kid sat there with heavy expectations, and hopes and dreams on his shoulders. He was told he was amazing by everyone, so it must be true right? He treated Izuku badly all because he was quirkless, but no one stopped him from behaving in such a way, despite it being quite obvious as to what he was doing (Katsuki isn’t known for being quiet), so he couldn’t have been doing anything too bad right? All that pressure, self doubt, fear of failure, insecurity, and self loathing when he couldn’t reach the top comes with those societal expectations and borderline demands. It all builds up inside and it’s been showing in the recent chapters. His treatment of Izuku... I don’t think Katsuki is as apathetic to Izuku’s suffering as he lets on. Katsuki’s anxiety about his own abilities was never Izuku’s fault, but he saw him as a hurdle to climb over, simply because he unknowingly regarded him as someone who was on par with him, quirk or no. Izuku always met him every step of the way in exuberance, dedication, perseverance despite not being as “amazing” as he is, and infuriatingly enough, beat him when it came to bravery. If Izuku really was no more than a pebble to him, Katsuki wouldn’t have cared so much about building himself up in comparison, and would have simply dismissed him as another side character, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Izuku endured years of bullying, both emotional and physical mistreatment from Katsuki, yet this blindingly upbeat, and downright Heroic boy has this amazing gift to see the good there is in a person. He can read a person, and see their pain, and tries to obliterate it with his words. As an example, for Shouto, Izuku saw that he was suffering, and used the only power he had from the start to try and save him; the power of speech and his belief in peoples inner strength (or something equally as MC protag-ish). I think that's what he's been trying to do with Katsuki from the start. I personally believe that Katsuki perhaps knows that, and sees Izuku pointing out these things to him, or admiring them, as him dragging out and mocking what he sees as weakness in himself. Not that ‘being amazing’ is a weakness, but the fact that Izuku sees him, like his front of fury is so transparent that he could stick his hand through his chest, is like he’s being made out to be a fool. Heros are supposed to be strong, show no fear, and unquestionably courageous. Izuku has beat him in every respect as Katsuki sees it now, yet Izuku’s still there, praising him, and ‘making fun of him’. Katsuki has never needed any real encouragement, as he’s always been at the top. It was just expected respects and due praise to him. He probably has no idea what it means to have someone really believe in him. He was supposed to be the one to make it big, yet there’s “Deku”, crushing not just his dreams, but making the voices of everyone around him, and the whispers of the adults of his past louder and louder, reiterating that he is meant to be something. SO, ENOUGH ABOUT KATSUKI--- I just had to explain where I was coming from to make my point here, forgive me. So Katsuki, as fucked up, and down right foul as he can be, isn’t completely to blame for becoming what he is. Again, I’m not excusing him, but I’m saying that Izuku can see that. Izuku isn’t blind to it, at least not completely, because if I was that kid I woulda’ changed schools a long time ago, but this strong green bean has thought about it- said it to himself- and even said it to atsuki’s face (kind of) that he’s a fucking asshole. Izuku has even gone so far as to think about how he hates the guy. I completely understand where you’re coming from anon. I really, really do. I was also bullied really bad by a few people, but two of them, who were incidentally two of the worst by a long shot, are now some very good friends to me. The only thing I can say about that is... people change. They just... grew up. I’m not saying that everyone needs to go out there and confront their bullies, or people who harassed them, because not all people can make peace with who they were in the past, or perhaps never learned to function a different way, but it happens. You don’t need to gain any closure with a past tormentor, and you are allowed to live your life without sparing them another thought. That is 100000% a-okay. But so is forgiving people, and helping them down a better road to becoming a significantly kinder person. People are allowed to forgive as well as cast away, and this is something I have become very intimate with given my “family” situation. I completely understand that some just can not be forgiven, not ever… but in light of those who are undeserving, I've learned and become aware of who is forgivable. Katsuki wasn’t so bad as to not be forgiven and perhaps be given a chance.

We always forget that children can be so cruel. They can be kind, but they don't even know who they are yet. They can't make executive decisions concerning some basic life choices. We can't expect them to understand what they’re doing wrong all the time. Hell, even as adults, humans are constantly learning and shaping themselves to their environment and the people around them. One of my bullies, they were especially crude and mean to me because they “liked me”. Now they’ve admitted that it was not the way to approach things, and they’re deeply sorry for the ways they acted in high school. They made my life hell for the few months of grade eight all those years ago. I was on the rugby team with him as well, and he and his friends, who i had to play with, would be especially rough with me. It was fine, I thought. I was capable of handling it. We’ve talked about how the stigma and influence of his father and “friends” drove him to act in those ways. How the “boys will be boys” and “Boys pick on girls if they like them” thing was ingrained in his head. It was so influential and potent in his thought process that he thought that me fighting back only meant I liked him too- and drove him to do it even more. The second of one of my worst bullies was a girl who also went along with the crowd, but now knows that she was a tyrannical queen bee. She had a lot of insecurities, as most bullies often do, and her mother was always on her about being a perfect woman, which now we’ve bonded over due to our similar circumstances. She knows what she did was wrong, and despises what she was in the past. We found eachother again when we volunteered as sort of ‘big sisters’ to teen girls, and did occasional groups with them as well. She knows she did a lot of bad, but hopes to make up for it now that she’s realized her grave mistakes. She’s since broken up with a lot of the “friends” who were just as toxic in high school, and surrounds herself with body-positive, loving people, and i couldn’t be happier to talk to her, and be friends with who she is today, and accept all her past faults and misconducts. Now, i’m not trying to project my own circumstances here, because I definitely don’t want to see a few bullies I had in school, but I also broke one of their noses, and drop kicked another, so I feel like i got a bit of payback. What I’m trying to say here,bottom line, with out all the gabbing, is that people can change. I’m not telling you, or talking down to you like I don’t think you know that, but I’m saying it as a generalization for my conclusion here (and for those who are very adamant that a bad person is permanently a douche canoe).

I don’t believe people are inherently bad. Although a person's experiences and environment can shape the way they see the world, and how they put themselves forth in it, they can improve themselves. As adults, young adults, and perhaps growing teens who are beyond their years, we can look back and take into consideration that everyone’s issues are at play, and acknowledge that it isn’t always a black and white situation. No one is perfect, but we can strive for it as best as we can. The majority of KatsuDeku shippers focus on Katsuki making amends, and growing past whatever beastly guise he buried “who he really is” under. I think I speak for most of the KatsuDeku shippers when I say we only want Izuku to get through to him, and for Katsuki to recognize himself, his wrongdoings, and fucking apologize. Most fics are all about redemption, or placed in a setting where it’s already happened. I mean, yes, there’s darker fics, every pairing has those, and it may just seem a little more intense given their past with each other, but really, with KatsuDeku…. I get the feeling a lot of us just really want that witty romcom pairing where they kind of piss each other off, but come together to save the world in the end kinda deal. If it was 2005 or something, we could be having this conversation about Naruto and Sasuke or something, who beat the ever loving shit out of each other, yet still had this deep rooted connected between them (that usually translated to each other through fists and screams, like jesus christ LOL).

Katsuki is also filled with passion and drive, and I think he's more than a little above average on the attractive meter, so there are those fics where it's purely them, realizing they can rock each other's world…

BUT- I think we all see Katsuki’s insecurity, and want Izuku to continue to try and ease it- but we also don’t want him to be walked all over. We know Katsuki is a nugget of dickcheese. But this kid has also been publicly humiliated in the sports festival, beaten at every aspect of who he is- or what he was suppose to be, taunted and berated by his teachers and peers (which has never been happened before), captured and made to feel helpless, denied of even getting a hero's training license (so failing at the bare minimum of what he should be doing), and Izuku can understand those feelings more than anyone else i’m sure. Izuku is a fucking VIP in those departments, or at least he was in the past. Katsuki is experiencing what Izuku has gone through, though in different aspects and situations, and Izuku could probably relate on eleven personal levels. Katsuki and Izuku have history, and share a lot more in common than either of them would like to admit. They arguably have one of the deepest and most complex relationships in the series, and there’s so much more to them than “the bully and the victim.” They share pain and experiences, and though Izuku’s was majorly inflicted by Katsuki, he’s a big enough person to work past that, and be there if Katsuki so happens to work past his own issues. Izuku’s a strong willed motherfucker, and he’s the only thing that Katsuki Bakugou has never truly broken. If Katsuki could see that, and how despite himself, he’s used Izuku as his strength and drive to keep going, they could be unstoppable side by side. I’d like to see what they could possibly be if Katsuki can manage grow as a person, which he is slowly, but steadily accomplishing. We just want Katsuki to say he’s fucking sorry, and listen to Izuku instead of getting his programmed prejudices, persistent, and intrusive, selfish desires, his need to excel, and pride in the way.

Izuku is strong, and more than capable of taking care of himself now. He's made it clear he's done being bullied, and is more than happy to go head to head with Katsuki to be his equal, though it's kind of clear Katsuki may have seen him as such from the beginning. Still, he’s always reaching out to Katsuki, trying to raise him up despite his aversion to receiving support, and his determination to be on his own- and be number one. That's the kind of strength one can only muster if they really care about someone I think.

With all that being said, you also asked me why i saw this relationship as healthy. Their current relationship... is not exactly healthy, but more dysfunctional than anything. There isn't anything “healthy” about their past relationship at all, but now, I think Izuku is capable of pulling his weight. Some good rivalry never hurt anyone in these sorts of animes. This is also fiction. What I see as alright in fictional relationships does not reflect what I think is alright for a real relationship. There needs to be a firm line between fictional relationships and real relationships. Some are easier to establish than others, and it varies in difficulty from person to person.

If I saw two people interacting as Izuku and Katsuki do now, while knowing about their strength and how they butt heads on fairly equal grounds, I probably wouldn't interfere. People are allowed to fight. People are allowed to argue, but hey, they're pretty much on equal fighting terms.

If I saw them interacting like they did in middle school, I would be on that so fast, their heads would spin.

Perhaps I'm a bit desensitized or jaded when it comes to subjects like these simply because I've experienced some pretty extreme forms of abuse… but when I think of KatsuDeku, I can only hope for the best. KatsuDeku is easy for me to establish as fictional, and even if it wasn’t, where both the boys are now, I think they can handle each other. Their relationship isn’t so abusive currently that red flags start to fly.

Ever heard of Killing Stalking? Red flags there for me personally. Now, that shit straight up (and I don't use this word lightly because some people just over use it to the point of giving it no meaning and now it's just a joke to me) triggered me, because before I knew it, I was crying all over myself and having a panic attack, and flash backs, and all that lovely stuff. But it's fiction. I recognized it as such, and acknowledged that people are allowed to like it, and read it it, draw it, ship it, w/e they want, because chances are they're aware that this isn’t how a regular couple should function. This isn’t me saying “It’s not bad enough abuse for me to dislike it, because look what it COULD BE” when it comes to our aspiring heros, it’s just.... Izuku isn’t some helpless little kid, and I very much want him to prove that. He’s not a victim anymore.

KatsuDeku isn’t the best of relationships right now, but it’s certainly not the worst, and has a lot of potential to grow and shape into something. Canonly; more than likely they’ll just become friends, because everything is very hetero-normative in japan, though there’s room for a lot more than friendship. They’ve exposed themselves on so many levels that I think they would be even closer because of their past. Concerning fan works; a shit ton of material to play off of here. A pretty interesting date or two lies in store there, lol. I’m sorry if I didn’t correctly answer your question, or if I made no sense, or rambled, or left things out that were in my thoughts and didn’t quite make it into my… lengthy response here. If I ever came off rude up there, that was not my intention, and was just trying to explain!

Thank you for your question! My sympathies to your past bullying experience, and i'm glad you no longer have to deal with that ;A;

If i wasn’t clear on anything, or should clarify, don’t hesitate to ask!

Have a lovely day!

[dragonandtiger]

Digimon 00 - Fragments - 20

“It’s been quite some time since we’ve had a gathering of this magnitude.”

The elderly-sounding voice echoed through the massive stairwell, with its golden staircase spiraling downwards deep underground. Leading the way was an equally elderly looking man, the same man that had appeared on the computer screen before Ken and Wormmon. He bore a fuzzy gray mustache and matching top-knot ponytail, otherwise completely bald, and wore a thick dark purple coat with red trim and shoulder pads complete with matching gloves and boots.

The human-looking Digimon led the way down the stairwell, with Jijimon and Babamon following after him. After them came the three human children - Keiko, Ryo, and Ken - and their Digimon entourage of Wormmon, Nyamon, and Leomon. Bringing up the back, showing decidedly less wonder and awe than the children and partners, were FlaWizarmon and Witchmon.

“You got that right,” Jijimon said with a sniff. “Those stuffed shirts don’t usually drop by the Temple of Miracles, unless they gotta vote on somethin’.”

“Stuffed shirts?” Ryo repeated, perplexed. “But aren’t Narakumon and Tenraimon in charge? Why is there a vote for anything?”

Babamon lightly rapped her broom on the floor. “The gods have enough to keep them busy supporting all of existence without having to micromanage every last detail about our world and yours. That’s why they have subordinates and a hierarchy of important Digimon to handle specific aspects.”

“I reckon you could say they’re the bureaucrat to your emperor or president or king, or however that works in yer world,” FlaWizarmon said as he laced his fingers behind his head.

Ryo blinked slowly as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess that’s true.”

“An’ like true bureaucrats, they can’t even agree on how to wipe their own asses, let alone how to take care of the Digital World,” Jijimon said. “So if there’s somethin’ that affects more than just their appointed area, the Holy Beasts hold a vote - majority rules.”

“Keeps it nice and fair, y’see,” FlaWizarmon said, with a wink.

“But what are they voting on?” Ken asked as he turned to look at FlaWizarmon.

“What else?” FlaWizarmon said with an easygoing smile and a shrug. “What to do about Chimeramon.”

“As I explained before,” Gennai said, with a shake of his head. “Chimeramon has returned in full force, going far beyond just a petty small-time thug in his single fortress with a few scattered minions. His might now threatens the entire Digital World.”

“But… how did it happen so fast?” Ken asked, somewhat mystified. “We just defeated him several hours ago!”

“It may have seemed like several hours to you, but months have passed in the Digital World,” Keiko said, her expression grim. “More than enough time for him to rebuild his forces.”

Ryo grimaced. “Oh, that’s right. The time difference. One minute in our world is one day here. We were gone, what, about five hours? So that means at least 300 days… or close to a year.”

“He is a very determined foe, I will give him that,” Leomon said, with a grunt. “To recover so quickly and rebuild his army after detonating himself…”

“That wasn’t really him,” Nyamon said, her ears canted back. “It was a decoy. He never went to the Dark World.”

Leomon jerked and turned to stare at the smaller feline Digimon. “What?”

“Narakumon had been specifically waiting for him in the Dark World,” Nyamon said. “He never arrived.”

“He musta been usin’ somethin’ or someone like a puppet,” FlaWizarmon said, with a grunt. “So of course he didn’t care about blowin’ it up.”

Leomon stared at Nyamon in silence before anger twisted his face. “So that coward was never in harm’s way.”

“Yet,” Keiko growled.

Ryo and Ken both stared at Keiko before they turned to look at each other, wordlessly.

Leomon let out a low growl himself. “It must have been like when I was controlled by Devimon… but how?”

Ken gave a start at that and turned to Leomon. “Devimon?!”

“Wait, what!?” Ryo echoed his own shock, nearly stumbling on the stairs.

“It has to be related,” Nyamon said. “It was fairly coincidental that Devimon showed up when he did. He must have a connection to ‘Chimeramon’, who granted him the power to possess you.”

“That bastard,” Leomon grunted.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Ken yelped as he turned to face Leomon, coming to an abrupt stop. “What does that mean!?”

“Back up a second!” Ryo said as he joined Ken, hurrying in front of the tall lion to stop his descent. “What’s this about you and Devimon?!”

Leomon paused before his expression grew grave, and rather shame-faced. “A lot has happened while you were gone.”

“Which the time distortion acting up again didn’t help,” Nyamon said as she flicked her ear.

Ken glanced between Nyamon and Leomon, helplessly. “S-so Devimon… came back?”

“It’s the nature of the beast, Ken-chan,” FlaWizarmon said, with a shrug. “Don’t worry about it none. He’s already been dealt with, an’ sent right back to where he came from. It’ll be a little while more before he can start sniffin’ around again.”

Ken felt a chill at that, which prompted him to hug Wormmon tightly to his chest. “So you… were you the one to beat him?”

“No,” Leomon said, gravely. “He put me under some form of mind control… and had me attack the Chosen Children that had just arrived in our world. They are the ones who defeated him.”

Ryo perked up at that. “More Chosen Children?!”

“Yup!” FlaWizarmon said as he flashed Ryo a grin. “Quite a shock, huh? Turns out that seven of the kidnapped eggs had wound up on File Island of all places, and called their Chosen to ‘em! Who’d a thought?”

Ryo felt a rush of hope at that and he tentatively glanced towards FlaWizarmon and Witchmon. However, as quickly as the hope had been born, logic came in to dash it. “...And my partner wasn’t…?” While he didn’t want to dismiss it entirely, he knew that if his partner had been among the seven, they would have brought him. And with the only new Digimon among the group being the elderly Gennai, Ryo knew his hope was dead before he had even voiced the thought.

FlaWizarmon paused before he grimaced and pulled the brim of his hat down. “‘m sorry.”

“I-it’s fine,” Ryo said, with a weak smile. “I mean, the fact that they were able to find their partners means it’s only a matter of time before I find mine, right? I just… have to be patient.”

Witchmon smiled sadly at the Chosen of Miracles. “That’s right, dearie. And we’ll help you every step of the way.”

The rest of the trip downward was somber, the mood thoroughly diminished. The group continued in silence until they finally reached the bottom floor, the stairwell immediately opened in to a massive hallway that completely dwarfed anything the children had seen up until that point. While one end stretched outward before cutting off abruptly in to a gaping hole overlooking the steep mountain tops and valleys beyond, the other end of the hallway connected to an equally massive set of golden doors, with the crest of Miracles front and center, with Light to the right of it and Darkness to the left.

“I-it’s so huge,” Ken whispered as he gaped upwards at the door.

“‘Course it is,” FlaWizarmon said, with a grin. “There ain’t no way he woulda been able to fit through it, otherwise!”

“He? He who?” Ryo asked.

“Lord Huanglongmon,” Jijimon said, his voice solemn.

Babamon agreed as she lowered her head. “You stand before the throne room of Lord Huanglongmon himself… dearly departed.”

“Lord Huanglongmon?” Ryo repeated, somewhat tentative.

“One of the three DigiGods that govern - or used ta govern - our world,” FlaWizarmon said, with a flick of his hand. “Narakumon, Tenraimon, an’ Huanglongmon. Case ya didn’t get the implication, Huanglongmon ain’t around no more - an’ he ain’t comin’ back.”

“His duties have been split between Narakumon, Tenraimon, and the Holy Beasts,” Witchmon said with a nod.

“But he’s a Digimon, isn’t he?” Ken asked, with wide eyes. “Can’t he just be reborn?”

“Unlike most Digimon, who are either vaccines, viruses, or data types, the DigiGods are programs,” Gennai said as he glanced back at the human children. “They weren’t designed to die.”

“Programs?” Ryo repeated, slowly.

“To put it in terms you humans are probably more familiar with, imagine the Digital World as a computer system,” Gennai said as he turned to face the children, gesturing a circular motion with with his hands. “Narakumon is the delete key and recycle bin, as he allows you to purge or uninstall files off the system. Tenraimon would be the installation process and restore function, as she has the ability to create new files, retrieve previously deleted files, and install new programs. Huanglongmon… was the computer itself.”

“The computer… itself?” Ken repeated.

Ryo’s eyebrows shot straight up. “You mean the operating system!?”

Gennai nodded. “Yes. While other smaller programs such as myself can die with only minor consequences, the three Digi-Gods are vital for our world to continue functioning properly.”

“So… what happened when Huanglongmon…?” Ryo asked tentatively, trailing off as he couldn’t bring himself to say the words. Thanks to having a computer programmer for a father, he was able to follow the conversation far better than most children his age. Unfortunately, what his experience told him made him very anxious about what the answer to his question would be.

“Bad crap, kid,” Jijimon said. “Very bad crap.” The elder Digimon then tapped his staff against the ground. “But that ain’t neither here nor there nor anywhere! Narakumon and Tenraimon did what they hadda to, an’ are gonna keep doin’ what they gotta do to make sure our world keeps goin’ strong. So why don’t you all stop worryin’ about the past and instead focus on the present, like kicking Chimeramon’s ass for real this time?”

“I agree,” Gennai said, cheerfully. The elderly Digimon clapped his hands together before throwing them forward, palms outstretched, towards the massive door.

The doors gave a thunderous rumble before they began to open seemingly by themselves, slowly creeping open. As the doors moved, they gradually gave the human children a view of the gaudiest, most decadent throne room any of them had ever seen. Gold trimmed every inch of the white room, glistening blindingly in the light. Draconian statues made of the precious metal, covered in jewels, lined the walls as they lead the eye to an enormous golden throne that took up most of the room, a monument of authority and excess.

The throne was pointedly empty, it’s purple and golden studded upholstery completely unused. Four large Digimon stood beside the throne, watching the human children and their entourage as they entered the throne room like ants walking through a canyon.

The Digimon in question were unfamiliar to Ryo and Ken, though that was to be expected. One was a serpentine blue dragon that seemed to be made out of clouds held together by chains, who looked at the chosen children with genuine curiosity. The second was a white tiger with a piercing stare and armaments befitting a general, his expression completely neutral without even a hint of his innermost thoughts. The third was a tan dual-headed turtle with dark brown face markings and shell, a tree growing straight out of his back. While he appeared somewhat jovial, the turtle could not hide his anxious fidgets, turning his attention from the humans, to the children, and back as he shifted weight between his feet like an uneasy child. The final Digimon was a multi-winged bird colored like blazing flames, red with yellow trim. His coloring matched the fierceness in his eyes as he looked at each of the Chosen in turn before focusing the majority of his intensity on the unflinching Keiko.

“Welcome, Chosen Children. It is good of you to come,” the serpentine Digimon said. “I am Qinglongmon, Holy Beast of the East.”

“I am Baihumon, Holy Beast of the West,” the tiger Digimon said. “I see you wasted no time in answering our summons. I approve.”

“Hello, hello, good to see you!” the turtle Digimon said, with surprising cheer. “I am Xuanwumon, Holy Beast of the North! I see you’ve even brought Lady Keiko! How nice!”

“I noticed as well,” the bird said, narrowing his four eyes at once. “I do not recall inviting you in to our lord’s sacred throne room.”

Keiko picked some dirt out from underneath her fingernails rather than bother meeting the murder in Zhuqiaomon’s gaze.

“Now, now, Zhuqiaomon,” Qinglongmon said, chidingly. “There is no reason to exclude Lady Keiko, or her entourage. They are, after all, servants of Lord Narakumon.”

“Which should be reason enough,” Zhuqiaomon said, his two left eyes glancing to the serpent while the others remained focused on Keiko.

Keiko glanced over at Ken and cupped her hand around his ear, as though she was going to whisper to him even though her voice didn’t lower in the slightest. “Darkness overpowers Miracles, so Zhuqiaomon is terrified of upsetting Narakumon.”

Zhuqiaomon’s eyes glowed as his feathers rustled with flames. “Don’t you mock me by pretending your power rivals mine in the slightest!”

“Enough,” Baihumon said with a snort. “Rejecting valuable allies out of pettiness leads only to failure - and death. If you wish to engage in such foolishness, you are welcome to it, but do it in your own lands - and on your own time.”

“...As you say,” Zhuqiaomon said, looking away.

“Um,” Ken murmured softly, his eyes wide. “What was that about?”

“Politics,” FlaWizarmon said, in a whisper that didn’t try too hard to be one. “Like I said, bureaucrats.”

“Also,” Keiko whispered, “he’s still sore from when I punched him in the beak.”

Ryo gawked at Keiko after taking a quick glance at the Holy Beasts, who all were as big as buildings. “You what?”

Keiko shrugged, her expression innocent. “He hates humans, and I don’t take kindly to being threatened.”

“And he didn’t take kindly to being reminded that Keiko can and will stand up to him,” Nyamon said, with a sly smirk. “Sore beak, sore loser.”

Witchmon gave a sharp-toothed smile towards the Chosen of Darkness. “Of course Lady Keiko knows better than to provoke him when there’s work to be done. Isn’t that right, dearie?”

“I haven’t said a word to Zhuqiaomon yet,” Keiko said sweetly as she pressed her fingertips together.

“Not - a - word,” Nyamon agreed, just as sweetly.

“True ‘nuff!” FlaWizarmon said, with a chuckle.

“We have called you here with regards to Chimeramon,” Qinglongmon said as he turned to face the Chosen Children. “And we ask for your help in defeating him, as you have done so in the past.”

“As temporary as it was,” Zhuqiaomon said, with a hint of snideness in his voice.

“All Digimon deaths are temporary,” Baihumon said, blandly. “In this case, he simply didn’t learn the error of his ways and now seeks to challenge us… and appears capable of gaining equal footing, if left alone to his own devices.”

“Which is pretty alarming, in and of itself!” Xuanwumon said as he shook both of his heads. “The fact that he can grow so strong, so quickly… he’s a rather talented little Digimon!”

“Talented or not, he must be dealt with,” Baihumon said. “And you seem to be in the best position to do so.”

“I agree,” Keiko said as she raised her hand, clenching it into a fist

“He may think he’s impressin’ everyone with his lil’ dog and pony show,” FlaWizarmon said as he pulled down the brim of his hat. “But all he’s doin’ is advertisin’ his serious need of an ass whoopin’.”

Ryo looked from the giant Digimon before him to his friends, especially little Ken. He barely managed to stifle his grimace until he turned away. “I know we fought Chimeramon before, but how’re we supposed to defeat him for real if we can’t even find out who he really is?”

“What do you mean?” Qinglongmon asked, curiously.

“Chimeramon was a puppet,” Keiko said as she cocked her head slightly. “What was in that castle wasn’t a real Digimon, but something similar being controlled by the real Chimeramon, if that’s even what he really is called.”

Qinglongmon’s brow shot up before he turned to look at Baihumon, whose own brow creased in thought. “Is that so…”

“Powers such as that…,” Baihumon said, slowly. “Until this moment, I would have considered it impossible - unthinkable.”

“Too bad it isn’t,” Keiko said as she held her hands out in an incomplete shrug.

“Well!” Xuanwumon said. “That’s certainly… interesting news!”

Zhuqiaomon narrowed his eyes as he stared at Keiko, then turned his attention to the rest of the Holy Beasts. “It could be a lie.”

“Lies that can easily be disproven are pointless,” Baihumon said with a flick of his ear. He then turned his attention down to Keiko and the other humans. “If what you say is true, Chosen Children, then we will be able to assist you,” The tiger turned to Gennai. “Gennai.”

“I will look in to it right away,” Gennai said, with a nod. “And see if I can come up with a way that’ll allow us to sever his connection - or, better yet, use it to track him and discover his current location and identity.”

“In the meantime, please continue as you normally would,” Qinglongmon said. “Containing his expanding empire will be the first priority while we wait for Gennai to find a way to neutralize this strange ability of his.”

Ryo rubbed the back of his neck as he rubbed the back of his leg with the top of his foot, wondering why they were there for this meeting at all. “I guess we’ll… keep beating up Chimeramon’s goons?”

“Sounds good to me,” Nyamon said as she crossed her arms.

“Yep, business as usual!” FlaWizarmon said with great cheer. He then glanced towards Keiko, his expression thoughtful. “An’ if that’s the case, we may wanna add a bit more to Ken-chan’s arsenal… besides Mister Sparky, I mean.”

“Huh?” Ken looked up at that, blinking. “Do you mean more training?”

“Nooot quite, dearie,” Witchmon said, clapping her hands together.

Keiko inclined her head towards FlaWizarmon and Witchmon, an excited gleam sparking like flame in her eyes. “Are we going to get Ken and Ryo’s Digimentals?”

“Yep~!” FlaWizarmon said, cheerfully. “If this is gonna be a longer fight than before, it wouldn’t hurt to have an extra boost, dontcha know~! We can pick up Miracles on our way out, then hit ol’ Xuanwumon’s temple to get Kindness~!”

Xuanwumon paused at that, his eyes widening. “Ah, well… I don’t think that’ll be necessary.”

Keiko snapped her head around, her blazing red eyes fixed on Xuanwumon as her mouth pursed in a displeased curve. “We think it’s necessary to get one of our Digimentals, and we are the ones who’ll be fighting Chimeramon.”

Xuanwumon paused at that before he began to perspire. His eyes began to shift about the room, focusing on the other Holy Beasts rather than on Keiko. “Er, well, I mean… it’s a rather long trip to my temple, and I’m really not set up for visitors… quite a mess, you see… leaves everywhere...”

Keiko took a menacing step towards Xuanwumon, back rigid and fists clenched, unflinching at the fact that the Holy Beast was easily ten times her size. “You think some leaves would stop us from getting something that belongs to Ken?”

“I-it’s alright,” Ken said, his voice soft. “I… I don’t want to be a bother-”

“No, hon, it’s not alright,” Witchmon said, with a smile.

“It’s your Digimental, an’ you have a right to it.” FlaWizarmon agreed.

“Well, it’s just…,” Xuanwumon trailed off for a moment. “He’s a Chosen aligned with Light, and they’re naturally weak anyway, so it’s not like it’ll do him much good-”

The word ‘weak’ had a dual reaction - at the same time it made Ken wince as if physically struck, it twisted Keiko’s expression from displeased and suspicious to fury. In a streak of black she closed the distance between her and Xuanwumon, launching a fist upward to the underside of one of his turtle heads. Although it was too high for her to reach, her aura of pure Darkness went further than the limitations of her body and silenced the Holy Beast as it struck the underside of his jaw.

To the stunned amazement of onlookers, Xuanwumon was sent flying into the air end over end until he hit the ridiculously high ceiling of the temple and came crashing back onto the floor upside-down with the sound of crunching branches and leaves.

Ken wordlessly gaped at the uprooted Holy Beast, shock quickly replacing the pain on his face. It was an expression mirrored on not only Ryo’s face but Leomon’s as well.

“S-she just…” Leomon murmured.

“W-wow…” Wormmon said, softly.

“He asked for it,” Jijimon said with a sniff. “Don’t talk trash, don’t get trashed. That’s what I’m talkin’ about!”

Baihumon blandly watched Xuanwumon struggle to right himself, feet flailing in the air while suspended by his own tree. “Light is not weak - it simply must work harder to reach its full potential. They are just as capable of incredible strength as Darkness or Miracles. The fact that they must work order to achieve what comes more easily to the others is not a failing in and of itself.”

Qinglongmon stared with wide eyes at his fellow Holy Beast’s plight for a moment, until Xuanwumon flopped over onto his side to regain enough purchase to wobbily squat on the ground, before the dragon Digimon addressed Keiko as she walked back to her friends. “Chosen Child, was that truly necessary?”

Keiko glanced back over her shoulder at the massive dragon, her lip still curled in a displeased frown. “No one insults Ken-chan.”

Zhuqiaomon looked about ready to explode, rage blazing in his eyes. However, despite the intense emotion causing his entire body to quake, he managed to keep his voice even. “Well. If you’re done, leave. We have our own business to attend to, and so do you.”

Keiko didn’t so much as glance in Zhuqiaomon’s direction, instead focused solely on Ken as she approached him, placing the hand she just used to punch such a massive Digimon gently on her friend’s shoulder. “Ready to get your Digimental, Ken-chan?” she asked brightly with a sweet smile.

“I…” Ken hesitated before he gave a small, tentative nod. “O-okay.”

“Don’t worry, Ken-chan,” FlaWizarmon said. “It’s all good~!”

Witchmon winked with a friendly razor-tipped smile. “Digimentals are pretty fun when you’ve got a bunch of them.”

“Well, then,” Gennai said as he turned to the Chosen Children. “Shall we go? We have our work cut out for us.”

Keiko nodded at that before she turned her backs to the Holy Beasts, with the others following suit as they made their way towards the massive doorway that awaited them.

Baihumon watched as the Chosen Children and their entourage left, his expression as unreadable as always. It wasn’t until the mighty doors closed that he finally lowered his gaze, letting out a low rumble. “A puppet, you say…”

“As I said, it could be a lie,” Zhuqiaomon said, narrowing his eyes. “One spun by her wretched master, to try and make himself seem necessary.”

“He is necessary,” Qinglongmon said, with a shake of his head. “He’d have no reason to lie about this.”

“Unless he’s the reason for this threat in the first place!” Zhuqiaomon said, with a growl. “And he’s trying to clean up his mess! You can’t deny that’s a possibility! Especially when the powers this ‘Chimeramon’ sound like that of a god!”

“Yes, they do,” Baihumon agreed, slowly. “And it is entirely possible that Narakumon is at fault for our current situation.”

“You see!?” Zhuqiaomon practically crowed. “We should stop engaging in such foolishness and focus more on neutralizing his influence in this world, starting with-”

“But not directly,” Baihumon interrupted, his ears canting back. “He might not be at fault for our current issues - merely the architect of them.”

“What?” Xuanwumon asked, blinking both heads. “What do you mean?”

“Those powers… while clearly divine, they do not fit the sort that either Narakumon or Tenraimon are capable of,” Baihumon growled.

“But if not them, then who-” Xuanwumon began before he stopped as all his eyes widened in realization. “-Oh. Oh. Oh my.”

All of the Holy Beasts were at attention now, as a single Digimon held their attention down to their very data. None of them could forget their true master.

“...What did that bastard do.” Zhuqiaomon said, with a low growl.

“There’s no proof that he has done anything,” Qinglongmon said. “Only theories.”

“Then what if this is their doing?” Zhuqiaomon spat, his wings slashing at the air around him, leaving behind streaks of fire. “Those selfish, cruel humans coveting the power of gods for their own, blindly meddling in things they don’t understand and damning our world and even theirs! If it wasn’t for them, our world wouldn’t be tainted by their presence!”

“If only those damn humans never came here,” Xuanwumon muttered, the very land vibrating around him with his words. “Then we would have no Dark Ocean, no Chosen Children, and our lord… then Lord Huanglongmon…”

The name alone awakened a pain carved so deep that not even centuries could heal, silencing even the most vocal of the Holy Beast for a moment that stretched on far too long.

“We don’t know,” Baihumon finally said, breaking the dark silence with a solemn voice. “And I doubt that he would admit to anything, if asked.”

“Which is why we should focus more on handling the situation at hand,” Qinglongmon said. “Once that’s been taken care of, then… we can focus on other issues.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.” Zhuqiaomon said, his voice low and menacing.