#wrote this on the train

[tiredafel]

The boy wakes up exactly 16 hours later. He doesn't panic upon waking, or start questioning where he is. He stares up at the ceiling with unseeing eyes, then slowly turns to look at Bruce. He doesn't try to get up once he sees the sight of Batman sitting by the corner of the medbay room he's in.

The boy slowly turns his head on the pillow and blinks slowly. He opens his mouth, then closes again with a grimace. He swallows and coughs exactly once to clear his throat. "So—" he coughs again. "So even the heroes have joined the GIW's efforts," he says with a hoarse voice that is just above a whisper. His tone isn't even disappointed. He seems as if he had been hoping otherwise, but isn't surprised that it wasn't.

Bruce doesn't even know what the GIW is. He hears Barbara signal that she's looking it up, so he puts it out of his mind. He indecisively stays on his seat; he feels as if the slightest movement from him will break the morose mode the teen is in.

He wants to reassure the teen who they tortured with their ignorance, but he doesn't know how. If he had woken up in a panic he would have known how to calm him down, but this listless monologue? The dead eyes? He doesn't know if his words will make it worse.

Bruce feels oddly frozen.

"Hah," the teen lets out a sardonic laugh and closes his blue, blue eyes. Tears roll from his eyes as he does. The teen tries to clench his hands once, then twice. He seems to give up on it when he can't due to the tremors on them. He tilts his head back on the pillow and lets out a shaky breath. "On my Crown," he sighs out. "If you don't get me out of here, I will End myself."

Bruce rises to his feet. He doesn't know what the teen means, but end sounds too much like kill for him to continue to stay frozen.

The teen opens his eyes a sliver just as Bruce stops by the gurney and looks up at him with blank eyes.

Bruce opens his mouth say something. To reassure the teen, to say that there was a misunderstanding, to say that he's safe; Bruce doesn't know which.

But before he can, before he can reach out, the teen disappears right in front of his eyes.

Bruce freezes once again.

————

Clockwork watches on with sadness as his future King gets tortured.

He cannot do anything, not with the Observants watching him so closely, not without being called upon.

He watches as the heroes of Daniel's Dimension as they struggle to find what's wrong, as Lady Gotham's Knight and Bird finally comes forward, as they finally find out what's wrong, as the Dark Knight stands vigil over the tired form of Daniel. He watches.

He watches as Daniel finally wakes up, and calls for him.

Clockwork reaches a hand out across Time to Space, and gently scoops him out.

Aheem... prompt from @regonold

16 Hours

Danny remembers the first time something shorted out his powers. Vlad with his stupid Plasmius Maximus thing. Well, 'remembers'. Mostly he remembers the aftermath.

Apparently Vlad hadn't known at the time exactly how Danny ended up half ghost. He thought it had been a slower progression like his own development. It hadn't occurred to him that Danny's original death had been much quicker.

Danny remembers a short, light shock. Really, the spector deflector was worse. But this shock... suddenly his muscles were seizing, his heart stuttering, his Lichtenbergs burning. And then, nothing. A blank space in Danny's head that apparently spanned 3 hours.

Next thing he knows, they're in some kind of vehicle. There are sirens outside (a police escort, Danny would later learn). His mom is driving like her life depends on it. And Vlad is giving him chest compressions, looking grieved and panic striken. He's crying. They both are.

"Please tell me you didn't have to kiss me." His voice comes out pained and raspy. Mom almost crashes the vehicle.

"No, Little Badger. Thankfully, you kept breathing. Just your heart that was struggling." Vlad chuckled, guilty yet relieved.

It was another hour before they made it to the nearest hospital from the stupid hunting cabin. 6 more for all the stupid medical tests. "An accident," Vlad told them. "Small shock, but with an already weak heart..."

Any other time, Danny might have argued. Tried to make Vlad admit more guilt. But the whole ordeal had exhausted him to much to care then.

The second time was marginally better. At least with the Fenton Crammer, it was a steady loss. And Danny managed to fix it before his healing factor fully failed. It still hadn't been pleasant, fighting Skulker and dealing with Dash while phantom echoes of his death arced across his body. But he'd managed.

This. This is so much worse. Danny thought it would be like the Crammer again. A steady decline. But it isn't.

And it isn't like the Maximus either, a one then done, pain then nothing, dying then dead, moment.

No. This is more like the blood blossoms. This is torture. This is hell.

The suppression cuffs let just enough of his power bleed through, just enough healing factor, to keep him alive. Alive and in agony for... hours? Days? Weeks? Minutes? Danny couldn't really tell. His thoughts had long since turned to nothing but static and pain. All he knew was that time was passing around him while he was here, suffering on the absolute brink of death yet unable to embrace it.

Oh god he wanted to die. Please just let him die already! It's too much. A death that should only last a few seconds drug out into an eternity. His muscles ached with the strain of being locked up. His insides were broiling from the electric heat. His heart stuttered and stopped and started and stuttered. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts!

He might have been screaming. He might have been Wailing. Or he might he been choking on weak uneven breaths. Danny didn't know. Didn't care to know. Didn't care if he ever found out the details of his time in chains. He just wanted, no needed, it to end. But it just dragged on and on and on. And Danny was lost in it.

Too far gone to even realize when it ended.

.

Batman hadn't been there when the new meta appeared, quite literally materializing from nowhere in the conference room mid-meeting. He had been dealing with a mass Arkham breakout at the time. So he wasn't there. An unfortunate fact which will haunt him for the rest of his life and possibly beyond.

He should have been there. If he had only been there...

He didn't blame his team mates. They didn't know. Who would have guessed that simple power suppression cuffs could ever be an instrument of torture. He'd never considered it possible.

He didn't blame his team mates. How could he blame them? Batman wasn't even the one to connect the dots. Red Robin figured it out. He always was good at stringing together thoughts know one else would think to connect.

Red Robin asked the right questions. He figured out in 5 minutes what the rest of the league and the best doctors -not technically- on earth had been agonizing over for 16 hours.

16 hours too long.

He should have been here. Should have come sooner.

"Don't know, B!" Flash had met him at the Zetas, already rambling at top speed before he could reorient himself after teleportation. Everyone else had gone home, unable to help and needing to tend to their own cities and responsibilities.

"He just- He appeared out of nowhere while we were in meeting. Didn't trip any alarms or nothing. Just popped up. We figured it had to be teleportation, but he'd have to know where the Watchtower was to do that.

So we figured, you know, random kid teleporting into the Watchtower during a Justice League meeting. Not good. Big threat. Bats would tell us to detain. So we did.

But before we could get him to a holding cell, there was this flash of light and he changed or something. He had white hair and green eyes and some sort of jumpsuit on when he appeared.

But after the light he had black hair and a t-shirt and jeans and I actually didn't see his eyes cause he just collapsed on the spot.

Started convulsing or seizing or something. And screaming. God, B, the screaming... So we took him to medbay and...

He's dying B. He has to be. He's got a fever that keeps spiking and dropping, his muscles keep spasming, and his heart keeps giving out...

He looks 14. He looks like..."

Flash had trailed off there, as they reached medbay. Bruce understood his reluctance to complete that sentence as soon as he saw the boy.

He looks like a Robin.

Like all 4 of his sons combined.

Like someone mixed Dick's and Jason's faces and put it on Tim's body at Damian's age.

It can't even be a trick. The suppression cuffs are nullifying his abilities. This is what he truly looks like.

His sons.

In pain.

In agony for 16 hours because Batman prioritized Gotham over an emergency on the Watchtower.

"When exactly did you say he collapsed."

"When we were moving him to a holding cell after we caught him. He was a trick to catch too. He-"

Red Robin cut him off. "Yeah, sure. But when exactly did this start. What happened immediately before?"

Flash was less then pleased about being interrupted, but acquiesced after a look from Batman. Tim had an idea. Tim was on to something. "Like I said, just after we caught him and got the cuffs on so he'd stop slipping away again."

Bruce couldn't keep the growl out of his voice one he realized what Tim was suggesting. Of course he knows it wasn't their fault. He's told all of them as much since. But in the moment...

"Take them off!"

"What?"

"It's the cuffs! Take the damn cuffs off! They're killing him!"

Flash wasted no more time, bolting out of the room to fetch the disabler. Tim didn't bother waiting for the fastest man alive. He had the cuffs disabled before Flash would have been able to swipe his access card into the detainment center storage room. Bruce practically threw the cuffs out of the room in his haste to get them away.

The change had been... not nearly as quick as Bruce would have liked. The heartrate settled out almost instantly, although into something a bit too slow for comfort. But it was steady and Bruce knew nothing about this kid's normal physiology so he counted it a win.

The screaming, of course, had long since choked off. According to Flash's report, his vocal cords failed after about an hour. But his facial expressions still indicated consciousness, though not awareness.

The muscles stopped spasming and unlocked slowly over the course of several minutes. Flash was back by then, looking a bit put out to have lost a race against Red Robin. Batman could not give a single flying fuck about Flash's ego right then.

Shortly after his muscles unlocking was when he finally passed out. Once more, Batman thought about 16 hours. 16 hours and he hadn't even been able to slip into unconsciousness for relief. He should have been here.

The fever was the slowest to break. In that it still hadn't broken almost 2 hours later. Batman had sent Tim and Flash home after Red Robin finished squeezing all the details he could out of Barry. Tim had given him a look before leaving, some mixture of worry and mischief. "Should I tell Agent A to prepare a room?" Bruce just rolled his eyes and shooed him off. Hopefully to bed. Knowing his son, probably not. Tim was most likely still up doing research. Bruce wanted to call Alfred to wrangle Tim to sleep.

But calling Alfred would mean leaving the room so the still potentially a threat meta couldn't hear if he woke up. And Bruce couldn't leave him. Not until the fever broke. Not until he woke up. Not until he knew the boy that looked like his sons would be okay.

Not until he could apologize for being late.

16 hours.

16 hours too late.

[dcxdpdabbles]

8 year old Bruce: Alfred, can I tell you the story of the Wayne Blood Curse?

Alfred: No. That's how curses get spread. I don't want a blood curse on my house.

Bruce: But its really important I tell all new staff members or they are open to-

Alfred: No. Shush.

Bruce: But-

Alfred: I have dusting to do. Good day, Young Master.

Danny dusting in the room Alfred ran into: Hiya, you new?

Alfred: Yes. Just started last week. Are you a butler, too?

Danny: Not really, I'm more of a floater. I cover whatever work needs to be done if we're short staff. I'm Danny Phantom, by the way. Nice to meet you. You are?

Alfred: It's lovely to meet you, I'm Alfred Pennyworth. I-

Bruce: ALFRED NO! YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE TOLD IT YOUR NAME! WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTEN TO ME!?

Alfred: What?

Danny suddenly glowing and flouting: HeLlO ALfrEd PeNNyWoRtH. ThE conTrACt hAs bEeN SeALeD.

Bruce: No!

Danny: Yes!

Bruce: NO!

Danny: YES!

Bruce: Alfred belongs to my parents! Its why Dad hired him- he's supposed to be my other Dad after a ten year plan of them romancing him!

Danny: Its too late. He's mine now. I have the soul binding ring! SEE! *Waves hand* I'M THE HUSBAND AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT CHILD, MAH HA HA HA!

Bruce: Nooooooooooo!

Alfred frog blink: Whats happening?

Bruce: That's man-stealing ghost took another one! Why is he always after the men, we Waynes want!? Its been 500 years Phantom, leave us alone!

Danny: Ha! You sound just like your father did at your age when I seduced his nanny.

Bruce: I shall have my revenge!

Danny: He said that too!

Alfred: Can someone please explain what the hell is going on!?

[talaok]

Sunbathing

Pairing: Joel Miller x f!reader

Summary: you’ve decided to sunbathe topless, or as your husband Joel would put it, you’ve decided to torture him.

Warnings: needy Joel, kind of sub!joel, unprotected p in v, premature ejaculation, creampie, oral sex (f receiving), come play.

a/n: i sunbathed topless for the first time and well this wrote itself

"You've seen my boobs before babe" A soft laugh bubbled up your throat as you turned your head left.

He wasn't even pretending not to be staring.

"Not like this"

You smiled, "what does that even mean?"

"not out... here"

You lowered your sunglasses to see him better, tilting your head to ask for further explanation

Yes you were outside, by the pool of the beautiful summer house you'd rented, but you didn't get how that made any difference, they were the same boobs he'd seen hours prior in your bed.

"I'm not used to not doing anything about them"

"ah" you hummed "is it that hard?"

You didn't even need to look at the smirk painting his face to regret your choice of words.

"yeah babydoll, it's real hard"

You only needed to lower your gaze a little to asses his statement.

"You're incorrigible"

"And you're torturin' me darlin'"

"How am I torturing you?" you laughed "I'm just taking advantage of the privacy we have to get a good tan"  

"and besides, I seem to remember how hard it is for you to see me with the whole bikini on too"

He sat up, the sunbed squeaking as he faced you.

"It ain't my fault if my wife's so pretty it hurts"

"you get so dramatic when you're horny" you chuckled, rolling your eyes.

He smiled, letting his gaze wander all over your body for a good minute, before getting back at your face

"nothin's gonna happen is it?" his tone was full of hope nonetheless

"no baby" you shook your head

He sighed, dramatically letting his head fall to his chest

"I'll have a swim then"

"have fun honey"

__ __ __

"darlin'?"

Not even ten minutes had passed, and that scene from the Barbie movie with the "Ken! Go for a walk or something" line couldn't not pop into your head.

"yes?"

He was standing right next to your sunbed, dripping wet and blocking out the sun.

"don't ya need sunscreen?"

A soft smile pulled at your lips.

Ten minutes, that's how long it took for him to come up with that.

"I put it on already"

He wasn't gonna give up, not on the first try.

"how long ago?"

"an hour, I think"

"the sun's real strong now doll," he said, drying his hair with a towel before throwing it on his bed "I think it's best if you put some more on… I can do it for you if you don't feel like it"

You chuckled, looking up at him, but he stayed in character, continuing to look oh-so worried about your safety.

"Somehow I knew that offer was coming"

"'m just worried about my wife, 's all"

he'd crouched down, taking your hand in his

"mh-mh" you hummed, sarcasm tracing your tone

"can't have you get sunburt now, can we?"

"no, we can't" you played along, smiling at him

"'f course" he murmured, leaning down to leave a soft kiss on your lips as he grabbed the sunscreen.

"I'm so lucky to have such a caring husband"

"I'm the only lucky one babydoll"

He gave you one more kiss, before he leaned away and got to work.

He squeezed some cream into his hand, but to your surprise, his hands didn't land where you'd expected them to-

Only his eyes were betraying him. They were only on one, or actually two things even when it was your legs he was massaging.

The coldness of the cream and his hands felt good against your warm body, so much you couldn't help but hum appreciatively.

"feels good?"

"yeah baby" you breathed as his hands made their way to your thighs.

It always amazed you how hands so big, rough, and strong were able to be so gentle and soft on you.

You couldn't deny the shivers running up your body when his fingers reached your inner thighs, getting close to your core.

"what's that?" your husband was smirking like a cat, as he dedicated himself much too long on that spot.

"I didn't say anything"

If he thought this was gonna work, he was wrong. It was too hot, and you were too relaxed to do what he so obviously wanted to do... although you both knew how much you liked seeing him desperate...

He still didn't touch your boobs, no, next were your shoulders, then your arms, and then... when he felt on the brink of exploding, when he couldn't stop himself anymore, he squeezed a generous amount of sunscreen in his hands, and oh so gently started massaging your tits.

He couldn't stop a soft groan from fleeing his lips.

It felt amazing- of course it felt amazing, but you didn't wanna give him the satisfaction, and this was mostly for him, not for you, so your eyes remained closed as you pretended like it was nothing.

But that only lasted so long, because Joel could endure just about 30 seconds of that before he was bending down, and his mouth was sucking your nipple.

"Joel!" you gasped, your eyes snapping open just in time to see him climb onto you to straddle your waist, and then go right back to groping and licking and sucking your nipples like it was his life long duty.

"baby you're all wet" you tried complaining, but the smile on your lips was everlasting.

He looked so damingly cute like this, looking up at you with those big doe eyes as he worshipped your tits.

"so are you"

And yeah so what if you were- there's only so much a woman can do in front of this.

A soft laugh spilled from your lips as your hand went to find a place in his hair, your back arching to offer more of yourself to him.

"I don't even know how good it is for you to be licking sunscreen"

The look he gave you made it very clear he didn't give one single fuck.

And just when you were about to protest again, his teeth had gently bit your nipple, and a moan had spilled from your lips.

he took that as an incentive to go further, his hand slowly sliding down your belly, between your bodies, until it was seeping underneath your bikini bottoms.

"babe-" you stopped him, your voice breathless

His hand stopped on your mound as he groaned in frustration.

You could feel his rock-hard cock on you since the moment he straddled you- the man was desperate.

"please doll" he murmured against the soft skin of your chest in between kisses "Gimmie something-anything” he pleaded “Have mercy on your poor husband"

Your response was mixed between a laugh and a moan

"I can take care of you if you want"

He shook his head, his teeth grazing your nipple "Need to feel you darlin’"

Again, a soft giggle rumbled from your chest

"’S too hot to have sex here baby"

His hand had gotten out of your bikini to reach the other on your waist.

"the pool- the ground? fuck- anywhere you want sugar, just tell me where"

His clothed hard-on was rubbing against your core now, and fuck but once again you’d succumbed to Joel and his goddamn irresistible neediness.

"bring me back into the house"

It was like he’d been waiting his whole life to hear those words.

In a haze of kisses and lust, he’d picked you up, letting you hold onto him by wrapping your arms and legs around his body as he hurriedly walked into the house.

He didn’t make it far enough to encounter a single surface- and perhaps that was because he’d stopped looking and placed you against the wall the moment he’d passed the threshold.

His mouth was on your tits again, his cock was out, and his fingers had pulled your bikini to the side.

He said nothing as he slowly began entering you, the only sounds in the room being your moan as you threw your head back, and the groan he emitted, muffled by your skin.

“Oh fuck” you cried once he bottomed out.

Your husband was a very gifted man.

"'m not gonna last"

He sounded like the mere act of talking was taking all of his energy, and yet he was thrusting up into you like it was a matter of life or death.

"'s ok"

"I've been hard since you took your top off" he murmured, his breath fanning over your chest “you-you-jesus”

Your left hand passed through his hair, softly soothing him.

“‘S alright baby, don’t wait for me”

“You’re too fuckin’-” he tried to speak, but he was interrupted by yet another groan

“What?” you taunted him, a smirk pulling at your lips “what is it baby?”

His eyes were wide with desperation as he looked up at you, as his mouth stole languid kisses from your tits.

“Too hot- too goddamn perfect”

You bit down a grin at that, still stroking his hair

“I love you baby” you breathed, his cock reaching the deepest, most fucking amazing spot inside you in the meantime.

The moment those words left your lips your husband was fucked- the only words he was able to mutter were a series of -fuckshitgoddamn- before he inevitably reached his peak, filling you up with rope after rope of come that never seemed to end.

He remained like that for a little while, buried inside you, eyes closed, mouth still connected with your boob, until you left a gentle kiss on the crown of his head, and he woke up from his heavenly trance.

He let out a soft groan as he slipped out of you, and took his time letting you down.

You were smiling at him with that soft smile that melted his insides right up, and he couldn’t help but lean in and kiss it, kiss you like you were a soft delicate thing that he was scared of breaking.

“I love you more” he promised, kissing you again, even if you were smiling.

“Feel better now?”

You said it like he was a kid with a stomach bug, and he couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“Yeah darlin’” he murmured against your mouth “thank you”

“You don’t have to thank me” you laughed, but he was already shaking his head

“Yes I do”

And without further explanation, he’d dropped to his knees.

He slid your bikini to the side once again, looking up at you with only adoration in his eyes.

“Baby you don’t have to” you tried to reason with him, but his mouth was already latched to your clit, and your hand had already flown to his hair.

He remained on your bud long enough to make you desperate, and then he started focusing on your whole core, his tongue lapping between your folds with what could only be described as feral hunger.

His come was everywhere, and yet he didn’t care, he was happy tasting the mix of your fluids, because that’s how Joel was- a nasty nasty man- only for you.

So much so that you felt his tongue enter your hole, simulating what he was doing just minutes before with his cock.

“Fuck-babe-”

Your moans were breathless, more like whines, like prayers.

You were looking at him as he was looking at you and Jesus... He looked fucking heavenly.

His hair all tussled from your fingers, his blown-out pupils, his never-stopping tongue-

“Joel” you cried, but he didn’t dare speak a word as he went back to your clit.

“Shit-baby- god!”

You had to tighten your hold on his hair as your orgasm crept up your body- and it was as you heard him groan with pleasure, as he sucked your clit into his mouth like a man starved, that it all came crumbling down, and you felt your body light on fire as your climax took over.

You were moaning and crying into the air for a good minute before you were sane again.

Only Joel hadn’t stopped eating you out for a single second, and even then, he looked like he had no intention of doing so

“Baby-baby” you whimpered, having to literally pull him away from your core.

He was smiling like a kid, and you couldn’t help but follow suit.

He put your bikini back in place, and then stood up, his hands lingering on your waist

“You’re crazy”

He couldn’t help but kiss you before answering,

“You make me”

[spyderschaos]

Oh to have a dragon best friend

[anna-scribbles]

if the agrestes weren't rich i think that gabriel would be the normal one. like gabe's problem is that he stopped running into natural limits due to absurd wealth and his obsessive nature led him to develop some kind of god complex where he won't accept that anything is out of his control. I think that if gabe was broke again and just simply couldn't afford to go on an international goose chase for ancient magic artifacts of untold power, if he had to work a 9-5 to live and couldn't just disappear into his basement lair to commit domestic terrorism and say evil monologues to himself, then he would be way more normal. he'd just be some guy. he might even let himself have a mowhawk again. but I think that emilie would be way LESS normal if they weren't rich. like emilie needs so many people to be obsessed with her so much all the time in order for her to function. and gabe would still have his toxic codependent obsession with her, sure, but that wouldn't be nearly enough. emilie has to be at the center of the world's spotlight at all times because she doesn't know how to exist if she's not performing. anyway all this to say I am so certain that if the agrestes were not disgustingly wealthy, emilie agreste would one million percent be running a massive family vlogger youtube channel

[thevoidstaredback]

Enough Caffeine to Kill an Elephant

Listen. It was an accident. He didn't mean to! It just kinda happened.

So maybe he brought a drink with enough caffeine in it to kill an elephant within a few minutes, and maybe he forgot to put the sleeve on his cup so he could tell it apart from the others, but it's not his fault! He didn't think anyone else was going to have the exact same Yeti cup as him! It's not like he'd seen any of the others carry one before. Besides, he worked with superheros. They should be smart enough to check before drinking someone else's drink.

Danny had been summoned by the Justice League Dark a few years back in order to help with a world ending crisis and he just didn't leave. It's not like he could go anywhere anyway. His ghost half hadn't grown past fourteen and his human half had stopped visibly aging at eighteen. He'd had to leave town as Danny Fenton, but he'd stayed in Amity Park as Danny Phantom. When his parents died of old age, thank god, he'd closed down the portal, stuck around for a few more years, before traveling the world as Danny Fenton.

Anyway, he'd taken up residence in the House of Mysteries after the JLD had summoned him. Constantine, at first, had been wary, but he and the rest of the JLD had grown to accept him. He was an honorary member of the team.

At some point, just after Robin had become Red Robin, Danny had been introduced to the Justice League. He liked those guys, too, and worked with them sometimes. Though, he usually only went to bug them.

Red Robin had been very interested in the fact that his was fourteen and working with grown heros, like he was one to talk, but Danny hadn't explained anything other than saying that he had died and come back. The following conversation was an interesting one that lead to Danny knowing that Nightwing was the Batman he'd met and that Batman was lost somewhere. He'd confirmed that the man was not dead, but he hadn't offered to help look for him. He probably should have, in retrospect.

Back on topic! Everyone in the JLD knew not to touch Danny's drink. They'd all seen him make it before and had been horrified on varying degrees. It's not like it could kill him. He's already half dead! So long as he only drank this specific brew as Phantom, he'd be fine.

The Justice League, apparently, didn't get the memo. He blames Constantine because Zatanna and Raven can do no wrong. No, John, he's not biased.

The point is, Red Robin just had a sip of Danny's drink. The horror he now felt was akin to the fear he held when he'd told his parents he was Phantom. (An interaction that had gone very well, thank you very much.)

Danny knew the exact moment that the vigilante realized he grabbed the wrong drink. His eyes widened to an astonishing degree, and, if he'd been able to seen his eyes behind the mask, Danny knew that the man's pupils would've completely overtaken the irises. His hands started shaking, too. Oh, no. The man's already addicted to hellish amounts of coffee. This is only going to make it worse!

Quickly, and without drawing any attention, thank the Ancients, Danny rushed over. "You, um, you okay, man?" Obviously not, but he tends to talk when he's anxious and he was certainly anxious right now. He could've possibly just killed a man via poison!

"What the fuck is in this coffee?" Red Robin asked, going to take another sip.

Danny pulled the Yeti from his hand and gave him the proper one. "Enough caffeine to kill an elephant."

"Obviously not, seeing as I'm still alive."

"Yeah, I can't tell if that's a good thing or not."

"Excuse me?"

"I-I mean-! I didn't-! You know what I mean." Caffeine is poisonous in excess, and his drink was way beyond excess, but it's the only thing that works for him as a ghost! Superpowered metabolism and all that.

"Do I?" The laugh in his voice answered for him. He took a sip from his drink and frowned at it. "I don't think any coffee will ever be enough again."

"And that's my cue to get my drink very far away from you." Danny turned, fully intent on moving to the other side of the room. Besides, the meeting was going to start as soon as the Flash and Kid Flash arrived, which would be soon. Something about one of their Rouges getting out?

"What?" Red Robin asked, "Why?" If he was a little desperate to get another sip of that coffee, he'd rather not acknowledge it.

"Because you don't need anymore lethal coffee," he muttered, "The sip you took will already keep you awake for three days at least, and it probably jump started an addiction. Best to stop it now. Besides, I need to go have my crisis on how the hell you're still alive after even a sip of this stuff."

"Again, rude." The bird themed vigilante crossed his arms as best he could while holding his cup. "If it's so dangerous, why do you drink it?"

Danny took a deliberate sip as he locked eyes with the technically younger man. "I'm dead. I don't need to worry about my heart stopping or having a seizure."

"Excuses."

"No, it's not 'excuses'. I'm saving your life."

"You're a kid. If I can't have that coffee, then you shouldn't be having it."

"First, I'm older than you. Second, I already told you: I'm dead. This isn't going to hurt me. Third, you can't tell me what to do."

"There's no way you're older than me. You're like, ten."

"I'm thirty-eight!" He balked, "I only look fourteen because I died when I was fourteen. We've been over this."

Neither noticed the entire Justice League looking at them. The two they were waiting on had arrived a few minutes ago and everyone was ready to start the meeting, but they'd been distracted by the two's conversation. Was that true? Had Phantom really died so young? They'd all been made aware he was not living, but they didn't think he'd died so young! Though, that was probably the denial speaking.

The Justice League Dark had been fully aware of this and didn't really bat an eye. Though, someone should probably get this meeting started. A potentially world ending threat was the topic, and that was a pretty important thing to discuss.

Captain Marvel was the first to pull himself together, though that was only after Atlas and Zeus had mentally slapped him out of his stupur. "As, ah, riveting as this conversation is," he stepped between the two boys- er, boy and man? "we really need to start this meeting."

Batman did not clear his throat because he'd not lost his voice in the first place. "He's right. Everyone take your seats."

Storyboard Part 2

[faynthearted]

maybe I'm overthinking things, but whenever I see people talking about significant/transformative moments in tianshan's relationship (barring their fight, the kiss, the ear piercing, etc.), I'm always a little disappointed no one points out the scene where the boys are going through the cardboard boxes of random things from he tian's childhood and he tian says something to the effect of, "the entire world is out there but everything I've ever owned only fits in these two boxes" and then he discreetly places his hand palm-up between him and guan shan. and guan shan pauses for a moment before placing his glass in his hand. and then the chapter ends.

this moment is one of the few panels I've saved over the years:

like... it's short but there's so much emotion behind this scene, it's hard for me to put it into words succinctly. and it stands out to me because it's not particularly intense or climatic like their other big moments. it happens soon after she li assaulted guan shan on the riverbank — which was heavy on the drama and ultimately the catalyst for tianshan's relationship. he tian had also just been financially cut off from his family and guan shan had been physically and emotionally vulnerable/exhausted for some time. basically, things were still raw and hectic for both of them in different ways

so this quiet, subdued, and wordless interaction between them on the balcony was very interesting. I honestly think it's one of the first instances in which tianshan have a personal/intimate mutual understanding of one another without an outside force influencing it or the moment being interrupted. and somehow, it's both abnormal and very fitting that he tian didn't make a grand gesture in this moment. like, if you think about it, he simply turned his hand on the cushion and looked at guan shan. it wasn't obvious; he wasn't making a scene. but of course guan shan, hyperaware of him, noticed

and the fact that the chapter ends after that also stands out to me. again, if he tian was being his normal self, he probably would've said/complained outright that he obviously wanted guan shan to give him his hand, not his glass, or he probably would've grabbed guan shan's hand as he was placing the glass down because he tian always just takes what he wants and tames guan shan's defiance or embarrassment after the fact

but instead, the chapter ends. and it doesn't even feel abrupt, really. it feels complete. and it makes me assume that he tian accepted the glass as guan shan's response and didn't press the issue. he might've just held onto the glass in his lap (or drank from it while maintaining eye contact) and then moved his attention back to the group at large. and, again, that's both abnormal and fitting for him in this scene

and I know I just said "guan shan's response" but what's frustrating — and fascinating! — is that I've yet to come to a definitive conclusion about what the (unspoken) question/response between them was to begin with. of course, he tian had just finished talking about the paradoxical state of his life — about how he could have everything and yet he has next to nothing — so maybe his "question" for guan shan was as simple as: "even if I don't have/want anything else, can I at least have you?"

but I also think it's interesting to consider that jian yi immediately laughed at he tian after he finished talking, accusing him of being dramatic (and in jian yi's defense, he'd never really seen an honest version of he tian like guan shan had at that point, so I don't blame him for thinking he tian was just being melodramatic for attention as per usual). anyway, jian yi and zheng xi got a good chuckle out of it, but guan shan didn't. iirc, he actually looked a bit lost in thought before he noticed he tian looking at him, and then his hand between them

with that small detail, it makes me think he tian's question leaned more toward: "do you believe me?" or maybe "do you understand me in the ways I want you to?"

I'd like to think he tian wouldn't have offered his hand if guan shan had also rolled his eyes with zhanyi — poor little rich boy — and dismissed what he'd said. but then again, with the state of their situation/relationship at that point, I don't think there was a chance in hell that guan shan would've dismissed him. I'm sure we can all agree that he tian's intense emotional response to finding guan shan injured and subsequently taking care of him without expecting anything in return drastically changed guan shan's perspective of him. guan shan had a lot to process at that point in the manhua, and a lot of hard truths to start acknowledging. it was clear that he tian had a lot on his mind during that time, too

so guan shan placing the glass in he tian's palm might've been him saying, "I'm still figuring this (us) out... but my answer isn't no" (hence the reason why he tian presumably didn't push the issue further bc he was more cognizant of guan shan's boundaries by this point) or it might've been him saying, "yeah, I'm starting to understand you, and you're not what I thought you were but that's not scaring me away" (therefore affirming he tian's question so he didn't feel the need to pursue the moment or make a bigger scene)

in any case, although there's no continuation after that scene, I think they were both satisfied by the end of the evening. I don't think he tian was disappointed by guan shan's response, and guan shan would've known that too. in fact, I'd argue that guan shan wanted to reaffirm he tian's emotions in that moment. the worst (yet easiest) thing guan shan could've done is look at him, look at his hand, and then look away and ignore him — literally leaving him empty-handed. that would've left he tian in a sour fucking mood... or at least a bit wounded

but instead, guan shan chose the more honest/reciprocal route even if he wasn't 100% sure yet. and... I don't know. it really stands out to me and I think a lot more was happening in that interaction than what could've been expressed in words. and yet I've literally never seen anyone talk about that scene since it was posted — which, fair enough. it's only a couple of panels. but I think about it constantly!

[gluttonous--beast]

kinda.... sleeper build hiccup?

[likeawildflower]

June 10, 2025 - Namjoon’s Weverse live - Talking about his diaries

[hanafubukki]

Thinking about heartbeats, how fae have sensitive ears to hear such sounds. Lilia would pause at times and listen.

Badum Badum

And he would sigh, it’s one of the ways he knew his boys are okay.

He listened in on Malleus’s heartbeat when he was in an egg, it was one of the few signs that, yes, this baby was still alive. When he wasn’t allowed to visit Malleus as a child, he would sneak close by the side of the tower of his room and listen in, making sure he was okay. And even long after he had grown, it was another way to detect him when he visited the cottage in the woods.

Thinking of Lilia listening to Silver’s heartbeat, it was a way to keep track of him while he was out and about around the cottage and in the forest. It was also his way of checking that Silver was alive during his sleep spells and to soothe his worries.

Sebek, Lilia didn’t always have to listen in on, his voice loud even at a young age. But during those times the boy would be quiet? He would listen and look for him. A little surprise visit and a prep talk would have the boy back to his loud self.

Thinking about the events after Lilia’s death, now this habit of his are seen in his boys.

Malleus who’s young and his ears sharp, maybe even sharper than Lilia’s, who after loosing him would stand by his door, neither going in nor leaving.

Listening.

There.

His heartbeat.

He’s alive.

Lilia is most likely sleeping given how late it is after Malleus’s walk. But a part of Malleus settles, tears in the corner of his eyes.

Everything is alright.

I love you.

Thinking about Silver who can’t rid of the ghostly feel of his father passing away.

Silver who would log onto the online servers his father plays to check if he’s still playing his video games late into the night

Who would sign in relief once he notices his father playing with his gaming friend of many years.

Thinking about Sebek, the one who wished for all their happiness and who loves a happy ending.

Hesitant and wondering if everything that occurred were true to reality.

He, who would stand by Lilia’s door, not moving for a couple of hours as if he were guarding everyone’s happiness himself.

Thinking about all three meeting by accident at Lilia’s door, no words exchanged, they know the look in the others’ eyes.

The feel of despair still haunts them in the coldness of night.

Thinking how Lilia chooses that moment to open the door, as if he knew, as if he always known they were checking up on him.

He gives them a smile, asking them if they want to have a sleepover. They all agree a bit too quickly that gives away their anxiety but none of them care.

All four end up falling asleep on Lilia’s floor in a tangle of limbs, pillows, blankets, and smiles with him at the center of all and they the center of his world.

They can hear his heartbeat as he can hear theirs.

The road to recovery is a long one filled with tribulations and uncertainties.

But despite the challenges they face, they will always have each other.

That alone will always lead to their Happy Ending.

[juuuulez]

thinking about lip + carmy threesome…

you’re leaning back against lip, both arms kept clasped behind with one of his hands. his other hand paws at your tits as carmy eats you out, his strong nose rubbing into your clit, tongue deep inside.

and you’ll gasp and squirm and it only makes lip yank you back into him, his grip almost bruising.

“stay still,” he grunts into your ear. “or are y’that desperate for it?”

it’s been an hour now.

you can’t even form a coherent response as carmy licks and sucks and finally lets his fingers prod your entrance. his thick digits press deep and cause you to cum around them, hips lifting up off the bed, head thrown back onto lip’s shoulder.

they flip you around, carmy laying on the bed, you straddling his hips. with some help, you ease down onto his cock, already slick and messy from the previous orgasm. the slide is fluid and has him nestled to the hilt, letting him groan into your neck as you lay on his chest.

you’re so lost in the feeling that you don’t notice when lip stops touching you, or when his hands return on your ass. they’re big and warm, spreading the globes and watching how your cunt swallows carmy’s cock, up and down, a gentle grind.

his thumb swipes at the stretch of your cunt, which makes you whine into carmy’s shoulder, feeling lip hook his thumb inside.

“shiiitt— lip, c’mon, can’t do that t’me.” you protest, squirming against the added digit.

carmy holds you still, pulling you back down onto his cock, as lip retreats his thumb. you give a noise of relief until it’s prodding again, smearing slick over your other hole.

“no, hey!” you pipe up again, lifting your head from carmy’s chest to glare back at lip.

“y’don’t get to call all the shots, sweetheart,” lip purrs, his free hand pressing down on the small of your back, forcing you down again.

you arch away from him, using the motion to sink further onto carmy’s cock, who’s barely paying attention. his teeth scrape your shoulder, leaving little bites in his wake, both to mark his claim and to silence the little noises that threaten to escape.

when lip tries again, going back to his original plan of pressing a finger into your cunt, alongside carmy’s cock, you don’t protest. the stretch makes you whine, walls instinctively tensing, squeezing rhythmically.

making the slide easier, carmy reaches a hand between you to circle your clit, a firm pressure that makes you grind back into lip’s fingers, unable to escape the stimulation.

“i know, baby,” carmy coos, kissing and mouthing at your neck, “it’s okay, pretty girl. we’ve got you.”

the peak is blinding, mind-numbing as you wet them both, slick dripping down lip’s wrist and carmy’s balls.

“shit, shit— i’m gonna cum,” carmy grunts next to your ear, “fuck, baby. ‘s squeezin’ me so tight.”

you grind back down against him, purposefully trying to milk whatever carmy has to give. lip protests, squeezing your ass and holding your hips still.

“stay still,” he commands, before glaring down at carmy. “and we’re not done yet. hold it.”

despite the low whine carmy gives, frustrated and needing release, he somehow obeys. his eyes are squeezed shut, teeth piercing the skin of your shoulder, trying to find some sort of relief from the pressure in his balls.

with a new sense of urgency, lip removes his fingers, only to replace them with the thick head of his cock. you feel practically boneless at his point, instinctively squeezing around the intrusion, which pulls another groan from carmy.

“just relax..” lip soothes, his thumbs rubbing circles against your back as he pushes in.

it’s a tight fit, his cock sliding in besides carmy’s, your cunt restricting the both of them. you don’t even need to move anymore, body hitching upwards slightly each time lip gently pulls back only to bury in deeper, creating a friction between your clit pressing into carmy’s stomach.

it only takes a few strokes before you’re cumming again, completely overwhelmed by the new sensation. the gush of warmth pushes carmy over the edge, face buried in your shoulder as he releases deep inside, pumping you impossibly fuller.

“i’m sorry, ‘m sorry— fuck.” carmy practically whimpers into your skin, arms wrapped tight around your torso to pull you closer.

“jesus, bear.” lip complains, the snark evident in his voice.

he pulls out, your hole twitching with the sudden emptiness, again as lip lifts you up and off carmy’s spent cock. he lays you back down on the bed, your body limp and sweaty, but that doesn’t stop lip from pushing back inside.

you moan at the feeling, squirming on the sheets as lip fucks the mixture of cum and slick deeper inside, a lewd squelching sound filling the room.

carmy cuddles into your side, an arm circling around your waist, pressing little kisses onto your arms and shoulders as lip fucks himself to release. it adds to the wet mess that’s now pooling under your ass, the bedsheets sticking to your skin.

the bed dips as lip falls back onto the mattress with a spent huff. you’re panting and barely coherent, unable to form a single thought or let alone sentence. everything feels tingly in the best way, and yet carmy’s arm slung across your waist, his body pressed close, helps ground you.

a lighter sparks as lip lights a cigarette, passing it over to carmen. a second time, that he keeps for himself, and a final one that he balances on your lower lip.

[orchidsarchives]

I love you and your writing. It makes me so happy to read your works!

Imagine Jason having his s/o move in with him. Imagine all the possibilities.

Like arranging the furniture together, showering together, taking turns cooking.

Or taking power naps together. I love me some soft Jason.

Omg stop!!! You’re literally so kind! Thank you for sending all these little scenarios, I always have so much fun writing them. Also, my apologies for getting back to you so late, I hope this little blurb makes up for it, enjoy reading!

Jason stares at the small key in his large calloused hands and then at charcoal door in front of him. This is it, he thinks to himself. He runs his hands through his hair and then shifts his gaze to your face, it’s beaming with excitement. Jason tries to hold back his smile, but finds himself unable to do so. He reaches over to your hand and gives it a gentle squeeze.

He’s waited for this moment for a long time. He’s dreamt of owning a place with you, of days where the both of you will go to sleep together and you’ll still be there in the morning. He’s dreamt of making you breakfast and kissing your forehead before you go to work or school and then have you come right back home… to him.

Jason’s emotional honestly, there’s something so tender and domestic about the idea of building a life together in this apartment.

The apartment, it’s not very big and the walls are an awful shade of grey. The paint is chipping in some places and there’s some obvious water damage. But none of that matters because it’s yours. It’s your home and that thought alone is enough for you and Jason to be happy.

You’re both sitting in the empty kitchen, unpacking your boxes and Jason can imagine spending the rest of his life here with you.

He takes a mental picture of the moment, tucking it deep in his mind and engraving it in his heart. He hasn’t been able to stop smiling since he walked in through the door, he feels content, at peace.

You and Jason spent weeks scavenging through different vintage shops to find the perfect decor and furniture. There were countless trips to Ikea and multiple trips to the mall.

All of it was coming together now.

The thought of saying “our home” instead of “my house” made Jason feel giddy. He finally had a place to call his own with a person who felt like serenity.

Hours go by and you’re still working on getting your new place sorted.

You’re both sprawled out on the living room floor, putting together your new coffee table. There’s screws scattered across the floor and bubble wrap on the couch. There’s music playing on one of your phones as the speaker is still packed away in one of the boxes.

“This is so much fun! It’s like building life size legos,” Jason suddenly exclaims and you stare at him unamused, the hours of working finally catching up to you.

“Shut up Jay! You’re talking too much, I lost my page again,” you reply looking back at the paper manual in your hands, trying to find your page again. Jason looks up at you with a small pout.

“Don’t be mean, you know I’m sensitive,” he tries to say seriously, but the little smile on his face says otherwise. you shuffle over to his side on the floor and ruffle his hair.

“Aw I’m sorry baby, I’ll be nicer,” you say, realizing it might be time to take a break. “Should we postpone building furniture for a bit, I’m starving.” His face lights up and before you know it, he’s already in the kitchen gathering ingredients to make you soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. There’s not much in the fridge, but he’ll make do with what’s there.

You stare at him from across the room and this time, it’s your turn to click a mental photograph of the moment. He looks beautiful in your new kitchen, his hair’s messy, it’s in his eyes and he takes a second to push away the bangs. Then, he continues working away near the stove, humming along to the song playing on your phone. You can’t help, but admire him. You look forward to seeing him like this forever.

You make your way over to the kitchen and take a seat on the island counter, opposite to the stove. Jason tosses the final bit of ingredients in the pot and lets everything simmer. He looks over at you, leaning against the counter. He crosses his large arms against his body, his face soft and relaxed.

“I’m really happy, you know,” he says, grinning, and you scrunch your face into a big smile.

“I know Jay, I’m so happy too.”

[charleston-yappa]

I'm just gonna put this here as my first official post lol

[magicalrocketships]

Rivers of Light || part 9 ||

(reminder that this in its entirety contains mpreg, reference to giving birth, Max Verstappen's bad dad, past abuse, and on-track accidents.) I also know nothing about Cyril's personal life so I've gifted him a hot French wife and a fancy house, as he deserves.

All previous parts can be found in the masterpost here.

Max had almost forgotten about Cyril's invitation to dinner. About Bastiaan's invitation too. Bastiaan's never been invited anywhere. This is his first time. So many firsts. Such a little baby and such a lot left to experience.

Part 9

Daniel suggests they walk to Cyril's for dinner. It's only five minutes away, he explains. It's why he booked this hotel instead of one closer to the Renault offices. "Cyril always has the good wine." Daniel looks hopefully in Max's direction.

Max had almost forgotten about Cyril's invitation to dinner. About Bastiaan's invitation too. Bastiaan's never been invited anywhere. This is his first time. So many firsts. Such a little baby and such a lot left to experience.

"We could test out the new carrycot," Daniel says.

Max is changing Bastiaan's nappy on the changing mat laid out on the floor. Bastiaan never particularly likes nappy changes but for once he's not complaining too much. Daniel's kneeling down next to them, booping Bastiaan on the nose with his new pink rabbit, and Bastiaan is too confused to be concerned about having his nappy changed. He doesn't even pee on Max, which has been his little trick the past few days and one Max grew tired of after the first time.

"Okay," Max says. Walking is good, because it means he can leave and bring Bastiaan back if it turns out he doesn't like dinner invitations. "I haven't got anything to give them." He knows the rules of dinners. You take a gift. Wine. Flowers. He wants Cyril to work with him. He wants a contract. A way back into racing.

"Cyril won't mind," Daniel says, shifting from booping Bastiaan on the nose to stroking the rabbit's soft nose over Bastiaan's cheek. Bastiaan likes that. His mouth curves up at the edges. He kicks his little feet. "But I just picked up some wine and chocolates for Sephine. They can be from both of us."

"I'll give you some money for them," Max says stoutly. He leans in and kisses Bastiaan's little knees before putting him in a clean babygro. He has a little blue cardigan with flowers on for Bastiaan to wear over the top. One of the ladies in Celine's book club gave Celine a bag of baby clothes for him, hand-me-downs from her grandchildren. Max thinks the baby was probably a girl, but flowers are nice and it doesn't matter. Bastiaan deserves nice things like flowers. Max had bought a newborn baby starter kit of six little stretch suits and six vests and two cardigans like his leaflet about preparing for his baby had said to. He doesn't have a washing machine at home so he has to walk to the communal ones, and Bastiaan isn't very good at staying clean and dry all day long, so the bag of clothes has been very helpful. They're for different ages too so Max doesn't have to worry so much about finding the money for new clothes when Bastiaan grows out of these.

"Sure," Daniel says easily. "We can sort it out later."

Max nods. He concentrates on getting Bastiaan ready to go out. It might be cold outside, but his little suit has mittens that fold down over his hands, and Max has a little stretchy hat for him too. The new giraffe sleeping bag doesn't have sleeves, so it's good about the cardigan and the mittens. He can put Bastiaan in it and then into the carrycot pram. He puts Bastiaan's three toys into his backpack, and the new pack of wipes into his changing bag. His baby blanket is already in the backpack. All Max has to do is go to the toilet and brush his teeth and put his shoes on and he's ready to go.

"Will you look after him?" he asks Daniel, once Bastiaan is installed in his brand new carrycot. "I'll only be a minute."

"Uncle Daniel to the rescue," Daniel grins. He leans over the pram. "Hi baby. What chaos are we going to cause while your dad's away?"

"Don't cause chaos," Max says. "I won't be long."

"Take as long as you need," Daniel says airily. He's put a corduroy tote bag in the tray under the pram with Bastiaan's changing bag. Max heard the clink of wine bottles as he put it there.

He hears Bastiaan start to cry as he's sitting on the toilet.

"Don't hurry up," Daniel calls. "Me and Bastiaan are hanging out."

"He's crying," Max calls back. "Of course I will hurry."

"We're good," Daniel reiterates. "We're just getting used to each other. See, no more crying already."

Max hurries up anyway. He speed brushes his teeth. Splashes water on his face. But when he comes out, Daniel's holding a bemused Bastiaan. He's not crying.

"Look who's back," Daniel says. "Is it your daddy? Is your daddy back?"

Bastiaan's little mouth curves up into a smile.

Max thinks: You are lovely. He holds his hands out for his baby, and kisses both Bastiaan's cheeks as he takes him from Daniel and tucks him into his chest. "I was only a little way away," he says. "Was it strange being in your new carrycot? We all have to get used to new things sometimes, but you're being very brave." Bastiaan curls his hand into Max's t-shirt. Daniel's folded back his little mittens. Max lets Bastiaan hold on to his finger instead. "Is Daniel your new friend? Is it nice? Having a friend?"

When Max looks up, Daniel's expression is strange again. Almost sad. Max doesn't understand that.

"Let's try again, little baby," Max says, not looking at Daniel anymore. He tucks the mittens over Bastiaan's hands. Pulls the sleeves of his cardigan down. Straightens his little hat. He puts Bastiaan down into the carrycot, and reattaches the cover. Bastiaan scrunches his face up, thinking, then decides not to cry, which Max appreciates. He puts his hoodie on, then grabs his jacket. Laces up his shoes. "We can go now."

"Okay," Daniel says. He's got a hoodie and a coat on too. He sounds a little weird. Max is very tired. He's too tired to understand. Everything's been strange for a long time now anyway, like Max has been underwater and everything's muffled and a long way away.

He can hear Bastiaan, though, and that's all he needs.

&&&

Cyril's house really is less than five minutes away, and it's not too cold out. Bastiaan stays awake the whole time they're walking, his bottom lip jutting out, his eyes wide. He blinks up at Max, even though it's mostly dark out and Daniel has to keep checking the way on his phone. Max's phone doesn't have much data on it. He can't afford it. He's probably still paying for his old contract, for a destroyed sim card, from a bank account he doesn't have access to anymore. But it's okay. It doesn't matter. He's got Bastiaan and Bastiaan is safe, so this is better than the alternative. Nobody is trying to hurt either of them anymore.

"Cyril's wife is Josephine," Daniel says as Max pushes the pram up Cyril's driveway. "Sephine. She's cool. Very French."

"She's French," Max says. "That will be why."

"Well, yes," Daniel says, ringing the doorbell. "Look, tell me if you want to go back to the hotel, and I'll come with you."

"I can walk by myself," Max says, but then the door opens, and it's both Cyril and his lovely, beautiful, dark haired wife. They kiss Max on both cheeks as they help him inside with Bastiaan's pram. Bastiaan is still awake, so Max gets him out of the carrycot and out of his little hat and baby sleeping bag as Daniel presents the tote bag of wine and chocolates as gifts from them both.

"We're having steak," Cyril tells him. "Daniel said you liked steak?"

"Yes," Max says. Sephine wants to hold his baby. Max also wants to hold his baby but he holds Bastiaan all the time, and Bastiaan deserves more friends. He's also a very lovely little baby, so it is of course very normal that Sephine and Cyril both want to hold him. Sephine cradles Bastiaan in her arms. She tells Max that her and Cyril have never had children, but they have nephews and nieces and they love having babies visit.

Bastiaan won't know if he has cousins. He doesn't have another daddy, and Max's family is somewhere else. It's okay. Max will be enough for him. He's promised.

Cyril takes Daniel off to get drinks, leaving Sephine with Max.

"We're very happy to have you here," Sephine says. "It must have been very difficult to travel with a baby this little."

"He's a very good baby," Max says. "But everything is of course very new to him which must be very scary."

"Yes," Sephine says. "I'd probably cry too. But you must be very tired after such a big change in your life."

Max has been very tired for a very long time. He doesn't remember not feeling tired. He hasn't felt properly awake since the last time he was in a Formula 1 car. "I can do it," he says. "I can look after Bastiaan."

"I know," Sephine says. She smiles at him. Rocks Max's baby, who is quietly taking it all in. "Cyril's ecstatic you're going to be coming on board. Thinks you're a real talent."

"I won't let him down," Max says. He can't. This is the only chance he has, and he won't fuck it up. He'll have to figure out how to get to racing fitness again with Bastiaan in tow. That's another thing he hasn't thought enough about. He doesn't have to figure it out tonight, but he doesn't know how it's going to happen.

Cyril and Daniel come back in bearing wine glasses and bottles of red wine.

"You're not drinking alcohol, I don't think," Cyril says to Max.

"I don't think the baby will like wine very much," Max says. Daniel's got a bottle of iced water in one hand. He winks at Max.

"There's coconut water too," Daniel says. "I picked some up for you. You used to like that, right? Water first?"

Max did. He nods. "Thank you, Daniel."

"Any time," Daniel says. He pours the water for Max as Cyril pours three glasses of wine for the rest of them. Sephine is still cooing at Bastiaan, and Daniel comes to join her on the sofa. Cyril gets a folder of papers from the bag by the door.

"Your contract," Cyril says. "Get your lawyer to look over it. Your manager. Whoever you need. I think you'll find it's very fair but I know you will have comments. Legal will send a copy to your inbox too now the paper copy's been delivered."

Max holds the papers in his hand. "I don't have a lawyer," he says. "Or a manager. I'll look at it." He can't afford either a new lawyer or a manager and he's not going back to anyone who has contact with his dad. He sees Cyril and Daniel exchange glances, but Max refuses to go red.

"You can use my lawyer," Daniel says. "I've got contracted hours with him I'm not using because this guy's treating me too good." He tips his thumb in Cyril's direction. "Bit of contract negotiation will give him something to do."

Max looks at him.

Daniel shrugs. "Going to waste otherwise. I'll text him now." He looks at Cyril. "Might as well send him the contract direct. He can start looking at it tonight."

Nobody asks why Max doesn't have a lawyer anymore. A manager. A team. Why he's not going back to Red Bull. Why his dad's not here. Why Max is alone. Why Bastiaan has nobody in his life but his daddy.

If anyone knew where to look, they'd find out that Max's pile of secrets is way too fucking high.

"How about a tour first for Max and this little one?" Sephine suggests. "Before we get stuck into talking about racing."

Daniel laughs. "We can talk about something other than racing."

"Can we?" Sephine grins. She lets Max take Bastiaan back, and Max tucks Bastiaan in against his chest. He positions him so that he can still see what's happening and make friends, but he can do it from the comfort of his daddy's arms, which both Bastiaan and Max prefer. "We haven't yet."

"Ehhh," Daniel says. "Come on, Bastiaan, you're going to love what Cyril's done with his office."

"Oh, a wallpaper aficionado," Cyril says, getting to his feet. "I see how it is."

Bastiaan rubs his cheek over Max's hoodie like he's enjoying himself too. Max's lovely little brave baby.

"He's a big wallpaper fan," Max glances at Daniel. He bites his lip, waiting to see if Daniel will laugh with him.

When Daniel does, Max can't help it; he laughs too.

"Tour," Sephine says. She hooks her hand through Max's elbow. She confides, "It really is nice wallpaper."

"Of course," Max agrees. When he looks over, Daniel winks at him.

Max hides his smile in a kiss to Bastiaan's head.

[chronosdawn]

Hi, what would the LIs do in a situation where the reader lives as a middle/lower middle class and cant afford to provide for another person. For example im a student who lives on my scholarship, and its kinda hard to provide for myself, let alone someone else. What would they do? They can't exactly get a legal job since they don't even exist in this world :^, I think that'a fun scenario :)

Anon you're so valid for thinking about this. I'll start by saying upfront that absolutely none of the LIs would let you struggle for money, and would likely get very frustrated at the whole legal side of things.

I think Rafayel has the best skillset for getting around the legal issues of trying to get a job without a valid ID, as while he would be an unknown artist in our world, he is still a very good artist and you can sell his work under your name. If you already have art supplies lying around, he can use those, otherwise the local college's art department might mysteriously find a couple of things go missing. He's initially pretty offended by the idea of taking commissions but if you're desperate he'll eventually cave. Admittedly he will complain the whole time and expect a healthy amount of gratitude from you in the form of your undivided attention.

Zayne is probably in the toughest spot when it comes to the ability to do his actual job in our world, as on top of the usual paperwork, he also doesn't have a valid medical licence here. However, if your willing to loan him your laptop or tablet for a bit, I do think he would be able to set himself up as an online tutor (even if it did require a bit of photoshopping to fake a couple of certificates) and he'd be good at it as well. At least one med student messages him after their lesson telling him's saved their life.

Now Xavier is an interesting case as he's been through this scenario before, just with the LaDS version of Earth rather than our version of Earth. He admittedly doesn't have access to a lot of the resources he had there, but I reckon if any of the LaDS LIs could fake an ID here, it would be him. As for what he uses that ID for, well his priorities for a job are as follows: 1) earning money for you, 2) still being able to spend time with you, 3) sleep. I think if you're a student, he ends up getting a job at your university, likely in the physics department. He still sleeps on the job, but he has a better understanding of the subject than most of the Professors so he somehow gets away with it.

I'll be honest with you, I really struggled with coming up with something for Sylus as while he also had to establish himself in the LaDS Earth, he did so by becoming a crime lord. However here is what I think goes down in this scenario: it starts with you bemoaning your money troubles as you go through your grocery list for the week. Sylus listens to you, a serious expression on his face and then tells you to go to bed, while he goes out for a bit of fresh air. You're woken up by him letting himself back into your room at 4am and dropping a thick wad of cash on your desk. Where did he get it? Well, if you really push him, he'll tell you but it's probably safer for you if you remain ignorant.

And finally we get to Caleb, who is in a similar boat to Zayne in the way that there is no chance of him being able to pilot a plane while lacking any sort of valid documents. I think Caleb has a lot of skills, but the one that it would probably make it the easiest to earn money without getting you in trouble with the law would be his cooking. It's easy enough to set up a baking business under your name, while he does all the actual work. Caleb would rather just cook for you but if this is what it takes to put food on your table then it's what he's going to have to do.

[littlespoonevan]

listen i love every iteration of evan 'buck' buckley soooooo much ok he's my special little guy and i am so proud of all the ways he's grown and become the person he is. but!!!! i would give Anything to get a glimpse of s1 buck in s9 buck's body. please please please just a little hint of that perfect blend of overly-confident charm and earnest innocence. like i'm sorry but boyfriend buck was at his Peak in season 1 and To Be Honest we've never seen him the way same way again. and i knowwwww buck lost confidence after abby ok i know but like. i need him back. i need to see him secure enough in his relationship that he's not afraid to flirt or tease or woo. now.......if only there was someone in buck's life who made him feel secure enough to act like that......a partner of sorts....perhaps a roommate.... :)