#// Rudy sadly isn't

[wizzdot]

The Patron Saint of One Way Trips

ch1

Description: this is my first fic. Please be nice. It’s an A/B/O verse fic, not sure how it’ll end yet but it’s probs gonna be poly!141 in a pack situation. It’s a reader insert. Y/n will be used. It is going to be multi chapter so please follow / notify yourselves for updates. Happy reading. It’s going to be pretty traumatic. Mdni - there will be everything in this fic. Reader is she/her and omega. Taskforce 141 are all alpha. Alejandro is alpha, Rudy is omega. Others will be mentioned as and when they appear in the fic. Hugs and kisses, Wizz! Xx

"Bring Laika to me" Dr Dimitrov demands.

*Y/N's POV*

It is the middle of a harsh Russian winter. It is now approaching the 6th year, I think, of being held in this facility under the control of the ultranationalist terrorist group led by an Alpha, Vladamir Makarov. I have never actually met Makarov, but have heard stories and segments of information that I could pick up thanks to my very broken knowledge of the Russian intellect.

My room, or cell, to be more precise, is damp and dark.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The sound of water falling from the ceiling sounds like the ticking of a, slightly out of time, clock. I close my eyes and count the ticks inside my own head, as far as I can go, before losing my place in the thousands and starting at one again. A sad metaphor for my life, really. After a few hours, the drips fade into heavy footsteps. I sit up and brace for whatever was about to happen. Like an obedient, albeit unstable, mutt. Hackles raised, but too scared to actually bite.

The door of my cell smashes open, jarring me from my self prescribed detachment from reality. I blink away the sound of dripping and concentrate on the two guards standing in front of me. I bow my head and submit. The guards stand proudly and sneer at my submissive nature.

"Pfft How is she the last one standing Sergei? I had my money on the ex-military Alpha. Not this little mutt... what even is she anyway? I can't scent her.." The guard jeers.

The other, less chatty, guard scents the air and seems to agree, all the while, I stand, offering my wrists for them to cuff in order to move me to wherever it was they were sending me this time.

"Such a good little bitch you are, Laika" the first guard sneers at me. I stay still, staring at my dirty, cracked shoes.

I am escorted by both guards toward a larger room. I have been here many times. It wasn't a nice room.

"Dr Dimitrov.." the guard announces "Laika - as requested" before they both turn and leave me to face the Doctor and his two assistants. The door closes and I am maneuvered to sit on a hard chair with restraints on the legs and arm rests. The assistants glance at the restraints and then to Dr Dimitrov, who is shaking his head. "No, she won't need those. Laika here, is an obedient little mutt. Isn't that right, Laika?" he mocks. I do not respond, continuing to look down, submissively.

"We have a new task for you Laika. Requested by Makarov himself. Now, personally I think its above your skill set, what with you being the weakest of our three original assets, but sadly we have no other choice now the other two are... expired" I glance up at him and scan the creepy, slimy smile on his face, and immediately drop my gaze back to the ground.

Should I be thankful to be the surviving one? I don't feel very thankful. I feel hopeless. I never had much hope, but to now feel completely and utterly devoid of it is really rather terrifying. I can feel heavy globs of tears well up in my lash line, but I refuse to let them fall. I can only pray or..hope.. that I - what was the word..? 'Expire' during this task too.

I snap out of my own thoughts and realise that the Doctor and his assistants had been discussing my mission and I had not been tuned in. I try to follow but they are talking in Russian so I only pick up segments. Something about a task force, 5 - or was it 4 - men. I am roughly uncuffed and I feel a hard hand grip my chin, wrenching my gaze upwards to meet Dr Dimitrov's. "You WILL comply, Laika. You remember what happened last time you acted up? And the time before that?" I weakly nod my head with wide eyes, terrified of the consequences. I didn't think I 'acted up' but when your controllers are as evil as this, any small fault is picked apart.

*3 years earlier*

I had been dropped discreetly, by Dimitrov, on the verge of a small Spanish village where a supposed cartel gang were holed up. My task was to, simply, eliminate the leader and one other assistant. I tailed the group for days and took stock of what they did every day and how they interacted. I'd been told that these men were responsible for bombing an airport and killing innocent civilians and children. The facility had been testing drugs on me for the past 18 months and they'd finally settled on the cocktail that suppressed my designation and kept me fully under their control. I was just a puppet on a string, but I was always reassured that I was on the 'good side' of history.

I had been away from the facility for a few days now, loaded with my weapons, maps and drugs, that I obediently took, three times a day as scheduled. During a scuffle with a small sub-group of the cartel, my bag was damaged and burnt during my escape. I dont realise what that actually meant until the following morning, when my head felt a bit clearer and my senses less foggy. I continue to go through the motions of tailing the man and his second in command. I had learnt that the leader of the Cartel was called Vargas and the other, Perez, or Parras, or something along those lines. The second day without my drugs, I realised that they were a bonded pair, and they actually were kind to those they met. My brain was telling me to follow orders and get back to the facility sharpish, but my heart wanted to observe the pair. It all blew up when another group rolled into the village and I was caught in the middle of a huge battle. I needed to complete my mission. I sneak round a building that I know Vargas is holed up in. I had seen the other man surrounded by armed men so assumed he had been taken care of already. I get to a rooftop and set my sniper rifle up and as I am about to take a shot I feel a sharp tug on my leg. I immediately roll and hold a knife to the neck of whoever had touched me.

I drop the knife, allowing it to clatter to the floor. The tap on my leg was a boy -maybe 4 years old, covered in blood and looked like he had been charred slightly in a fire. I feel some sort of instinct to protect him so I tuck him under my arm, tell him to be quiet and set back up at my rifle, readjusting the sight. I see Vargas through the cross hairs, and then behind him, I see one of the guards who work at the facility. This guard in particular is a brute of a man, always touching and groping me. Something comes over me then and I line up my sights and shoot him down. Vargas glances in the direction of the sniper and I can't be certain if he catches my eye or not, but I run, with the small boy under my arm.

I call in to be collected after the mission had failed. I had done as briefed and walked clear of the village. Three black trucks pull up and heavily armed guards step out alongside Dr Dimitrov. The child is pulled from my grasp and shot between the eyes. "You will learn to obey, Laika" he bellows down at me. I must have collapsed in shock when I saw the boy shot. "LOOK AT ME YOU USELESS MUTT" I hear but cannot collect myself to understand what is happening. I am ripped from the ground, jabbed with a needle, and thrown into a cage in the back of one of the cars. I wake up numb and strapped to the chair in the dreaded room I had come to hate so much but now I couldn't remember why I hated it.

"Dr Dimitrov, you'll be pleased to hear that the asset has been topped up with suppressants. This won't happen again. We are working on a long lasting injection which will enter her blood stream and alter her DNA for up to 8 weeks. This will remove any risk of this happening again. We apologise for any responsibility we may have in the failure of this objective" I hear from behind my chair. My brain is fuzzy, I feel like a spectator trapped in my own body.

"Good, Whatever the timescale on this injection is... Half it" Dr Dimitrov orders.

"Yes Sir" I hear from behind me, before hurried footsteps rush from the room, followed by the sharp slam of the door.

*Present Day*

I am returned to my cell with the instruction that I am to be collected at midnight for drop off at an undisclosed location. For the past 3 years, the facility had been successfully using the injectable suppressor drug, which kept me obedient and free of any symptoms of my designation, whatever it may be. They knew I wasn't an alpha due to my anatomy which left two options - Beta or Omega. They don't want to test as they know I am undesignated and had never experienced a heat when I was captured and still hadn't, possibly thanks to the suppressants but most likely due to the fact I am a Beta like my late mother and father, and two siblings. I try to sleep but thoughts plague my mind which is unusual in itself as my brain is usually in a constant haze due to the chemical alteration it has suffered for the past however many years.

I am tucked up the corner of my cell listening to the ticking of my imaginary clock.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

I smell them before I hear them. And then I hear them before I see them. Or I hear the facility's alarm blaring, anyway. I try to hide in my cell but there is nowhere to go. They always remove my weapons before putting me away. I hear heavy, but fast footsteps splash down the hallway outside my room. I tuck myself immediately next to the door so anyone looking in through the small window wouldn't be able to see round the angle of my hiding spot. I hear the footsteps stop.

"Looks clear in my hallway, over" a strange accented voice speaks roughly, attempting to be quiet. His position from directly outside my door gives him away though but if he doesn't think I am here, then I will stay as quiet as a mouse until he leaves. I hear a radio muffle to life on his shoulder "Clear here too, over" a smooth, recognisably English voice radios back.

I feel my eyebrows furrow as a trace of a scent starts wafting through my door. It smells like rain and grass and...gunpowder. There are other scents too that I cannot place. Scents I haven't smelt before, or, it had been so long since I had, that I no longer knew its name. But I knew rain, grass and gunpowder. I try to chase the scent slightly, seeming to be distracted for a split second. I am broken from my thoughts when the crackly radio crashes to life again.

"Soap! Hostiles coming your way. They are wanting something - fuckin loads of them.. stay sharp" I try to muffle the gasp at the voice. He sounds like he could take on a bear in a fight, and win, just by shouting at it to piss off. I had never heard such a rough, strong voice. That was the voice of their leader. I just knew it.

The man with the strange accent starts buzzing about in the hallway, trying to find somewhere to fight from. He starts whispering to himself. "what the fuck are they lookin' for eh? Thought I'd cleaned the place out for fucks sake. Fuck it.. in here will have to do".

The handle of my cell starts shaking roughly, the rattle gets louder and louder. I am stuck, just out of view, like a deer in the headlights of a fast moving car. I hear him attach a small blast to the door and he blows the locks out, the door swinging open. He catches it before it hits the wall, avoiding the usual crash that occurs when the door swings open like that. He gently turns and shuts the door to make it look as if nothing had moved. I stay frozen. He steps back, and as he takes his first proper glance of the room, our eyes meet.

[justali-anne]

Thought Week: Asgore

Ooh, boy! Asgore, huh? It's really telling that a character with so little screen time compared to the others is much more popular than some of them. Well, better get into it.

(I'm sure you know the drill by now! If you have anything to say about Asgore, please reblog and write it down! I'd love to read them!)

First Impressions

The first time I think I heard of Asgore was in an Undertale playthrough? I can't exactly remember, but I definitely didn't see him in comic dubs because back then THERE WERE BARELY ANY WITH HIM IN IT! Jeebus! At least he's getting some focus now, but good gracious!

At first, I just saw him as a tragedy, but there wasn't really much for him to me. I guess I was busy hyperfixating on Papyrus because my early memories in the fandom with Asgore are just very blurry. He just wasn't really that interesting to me, I suppose. At least now, I figured it out, and now I'm like, "Oh, crap." He's just slightly more interesting to me now. Eh.

My Impressions Now

This poor man, honestly. He just wants his life back. His life got ruined by one stupid plan and one stupid decision that he made in a fit of rage over humans killing his kids. Which is honestly decently reasonable. Obviously, he wasn't reasonable in that moment, but if he could go back and do things differently, he would in a heartbeat. He's a kindhearted softie who put himself in a precarious position because of his grief. And that's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Asgore's woes!

How about Toriel? This guy lost his only support system besides Gerson and when he finally sees her again, he just gets outright rejected, like DUDE! I'll cover my thoughts on her on Sunday, so I won't go into it right now, but poor Asgore, man! Having his wife around and helping each other through their grief would've been VERY beneficial to them! Could you imagine two vilomahs helping each other out and working together on human policies that could have benefitted everyone and helped them accept their loss? But then again, if it weren't for that, parts of the Undertale story wouldn't have happened, so I guess we're stuck with this timeline! Sorry, Flowey! You couldn't reset this one.

Oh, and it just keeps going! Remember Rudy? Asgore's "best friend" from a long time ago? I'm not talking about the Deltarune version, I'm talking about the Undertale version of Rudy that sadly passed away. At least from what I could tell, he lived a long and happy life, but it still hurts. Imagine being a boss monster. An IMMORTAL boss monster that stays the same age until you have a child. So for all that time Asgore didn't have a child, he had to watch as his "best friend" grew old and fell down.

GODDAMN IT, TOBY, COULD YOU GIVE THIS POOR MAN A BREAK??? Thank you.

The thing is, Asgore is by far the strongest monster in the Underground... besides Toriel (she was holding back). He's killed six humans and we all know how strong they are compared to monsters. Like no human soul was ever taken in the war, and he singlehandedly killed SIX of them. And we don't even know if all of them were actually kids or not, or if they were fighting back, or... Wait, the WAR!!! He was in the intro, wasn't he?!

Look, there he is! Unless that's his dad or something, which isn't actually a bad theory when you think about it.

GIVE. THIS MAN. A BREAK.

He can't even keep a marriage in Deltarune. Just make something go right for him, please.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah! The strongest monster in the underground! And by the time he fights you, he's spent. He doesn't want to go through with the war. That's why he's hiding. That's why he's holding back. I think we all know that by now. Dude was just waiting to take himself out of the picture, so to speak. It's understandable to be depressed when your life is nothing but tragedy after tragedy after tragedy. But let's move on to his actual personality.

Because Asgore... is a dork. He's just as dorky as the rest of the cast, and it's adorable! This big guy stumbles through life with the charming unawareness of modern things, like anime, ("What is an... anime?") and he's so clumsy he fell in a fishing hole during a game of ice hockey!

(Here is the original video)

He gives you tight hugs. He's a botany nerd. He dresses up as Santa for the locals. He is the QUINTESSENTIAL Gentle Giant. He just deserves better, that's all.

A King, Not A Deity

Conclusion

It's intriguing to me how literally the entirety of monsterkind treats him like he's gonna bring salvation to them like some god. As if it was a guarantee. Well, apart from Toriel, of course, but she knew him on a very deep level, so of course she's not gonna see him as some sort of "chosen one." And that's not even covering her disdain for him.

I get that Asgore is the monsters' only hope, though. That's a huge contributing factor in their deitification of him. And in turn, it just pressures Asgore to kill the humans even more, which sends him into an even bigger depression, but also, he doesn't want to call off the war so the monsters could still have hope. It's a vicious cycle!

No hate towards him, but I wish Asgore would grow a backbone sometimes. Just saying. You're the KING, man! Not a god! A KING. And the monsters are expecting you to become their god, but you don't want to! And... Gah, monster politics are complicated!

The Narrative

Despite his very little screen time, Asgore is one of the most important characters in the story. A kind king driven to despair after losing the thing he loves the most - his family. The reason the policy exists. The monster you're gonna have to kill in order to escape the underground.

It sort of sucks that he dies in every route besides the best one. Like, I get why that has to happen, but come on, man. He deserves better.

Honestly, Asgore? He's not the most remarkable character in the game to me. I wish he got more screen time, at least. The poor guy needs a freaking break from everything. It doesn't make him a bad character, in fact, he's a really well-written, intriguing one. He's just not my favourite.

But if there's anyone out there whose favourite character IS Asgore, please give a shout in the notes and tell me what you think of him! Is there anything I missed?

[robotnik-mun]

Once again, it is time for that rare moment where I talk about Deltarune instead of Sonic stuff. And today, I've decided to talk about one of the many mysteries of the setting.

Namely... what did Asgore DO?

One of the constants kept over from Undertale in Deltarune was the sad reality that Asgore is still divorced from Toriel, and their post-divorce relationship is... less than ideal, with Asgore desperately trying to get back into Toriel's good graces and Toriel being none-too-thrilled about it. And its pretty clear that whatever happened in the divorce, it's taken a pretty bad toll on Asgore. It's implied he doesn't have visitation rights, and no longer lives in the same house as Tori, instead living in his flower shop. And his present state of living is just... almost too depressing for words.

So yeah, things are not looking great for ol' Asgore. But that does beg the question- what happened THIS time? Recall that in Undertale, Toriel's hostility to Asgore was predicated on both him murdering six children as well as basically getting everyone's hopes up for who-knows-how-long rather than taking one soul and going straight to business after escaping the Underground. How justified she is is going to be the subject of endless debate, now and forever, but at the core of things in Undertale its pretty clear that this hostility comes from some VERY grim circumstances.

Given the more comparatively mundane nature of Hometown and the Light World, its pretty clear that whatever circumstances led to Toriel and Asgore divorcing couldn't be anywhere near as horrible as what happened in Undertale. There's no fantastic circumstance here- Monsters live on the surface as humans do (that we know of), and while Asgore is not exactly held in high regard by Hometown these days, he none the less leads a free, if somewhat depressing life.

So again, what happened here? Why is it that Asgore is still divorced?

As it stands, with everything else, we only got two chapters to go by, and as such we need to work with a LOT of contextual clues to try and piece together even a vague idea of how things reached this point.

And believe it or not, one the key bits of insight we have? Is none other than Rudy Holiday.

Rudy is established as having been friends with Toriel and Asgore in college, and is all but stated to have been Asgore's best man at their wedding, and even in the present is still close to the both of them even though they are no longer together. Out of all the people we talk to in Hometown, Rudy is the one with the most positive stuff to say about Asgore, and Asgore recipricates this by visiting Rudy in the hospital daily, with new flowers for each visit. And while we don't witness it for ourselves, it is revealed that Toriel ALSO visits Rudy and is implicitly close to him as well, with Rudy even suspecting that Kris' visit was done at Toriel's prompting (and sadly probably WOULD be if we weren't using them as a meat-puppet).

This might not seem like such a big deal, but I feel it reveals something very crucial about what might have happened, if only in the abstract. It tells me that whatever happened? While it was serious enough to prompt the divorce and cause Toriel to no longer love Asgore, it WASN'T bad enough that Rudy doesn't think ill of Asgore, or enough to cause Toriel to no longer wish to associate with Asgore or Rudy with her. He bears no malice to anyone in the Dreemurr family, and this is an important detail, because it would seem extremely improbable that things between the three of them would be this hunky-dory if Asgore really did do something legitimately terrible.

Which, admittedly, isn't impossible... but it does feel unlikely, under the circumstances we presently see.

Given the way Dark Worlds reflect something of Lightners, some have suggested that maybe the Card Kingdom just as easily reflects something of Kris as it does Susie. While King mirrors Susie's earlier statements, one cannot help but notice that King is an enormous, pseudo-mammalian king with a hefty build, almost like a warped mirror of Asgore. And that comparison becomes all the more concerning when you consider how, as we go on, its revealed that Kris was once a very mischievous little kid... one can imagine that, perhaps, Kris was very much like Lancer, once upon a time. And if that's the case, then maybe it’s not a coincidence that King threatened both Lancer AND Kris directly.

It's a tempting thought... and oh, the warped implications it would carry, given that in Chapter Two its revealed that King wasn't going to go through with his threat and actually CARES about Lancer, despite earlier evidence to the contrary? Now THAT would imply some ugly-ass things about Kris' thoughts and feelings about their father. Or Susie's, if you believe the Card Kingdom is primarily 'meant' for her. It does make an eerie amount of sense, does it not?

Only... not quite. It’s tempting to think Asgore might have done something to Kris in a moment of weakness, but honestly? I really, really doubt it. Because let's face it, if Asgore had hurt or done something out line with Kris? It's incredibly doubtful that Toriel would ever allow Kris to get anywhere NEAR Asgore, and Rudy likewise would probably have little to do with Asgore over something like that. Oh, sure, friends will stick with friends, but that feels like something not even Rudy could overlook. And then there's the whole 'Eggs-Husband' incident...

... God that was painful. Like, kudos to Toby Fox, I don't think I've EVER felt that kind of secondhand embarrassment from a piece of media ever. It really was just a masterpiece of utter and complete failure. Still, it's important in helping to frame where everyone stands in this divorce, because while Toriel does try to get away from Asgore as fast as possible after his disastrous attempt at punnery (and who could blame her?), she none the less is willing to hear him out when he wants to talk about Asriel's return (possibly about the divorce itself).

It's important to note that, again, context is key here. Earlier in Chapter 1 its established that Asgore keeps sending Toriel flowers, which inevitably wind up in the trash, and likewise she rebuffs his deeply ill-conceived attempt to re-connect with her at Sans' store. But from what we see so far, it may not necessarily be that Toriel hates Asgore, so much that he refuses to get a clue about where they stand and persists in these self-sabotaging attempts to curry her favor. While the problem might be rooted in whatever happened in the past, it’s pretty clear that a BIG part of that is due to Asgore's present behavior. How do we know this? Because she still hears him out when he ISN'T trying to get into her good graces.

I feel that if Asgore had done something to Kris, or done something REALLY bad? Then he wouldn't even get that much. As it stands we don't know enough to say for sure, and all we can do is look at how people act and try and come up with some idea of things, but I'm willing to bet that while Asgore made some kind of serious misstep? He didn't do something unforgivable... just something severe enough that it would justify Toriel leaving him, with his refusal to let go simply making things that much worse over time given that its clear Tori CAN be civil with him. He just makes it difficult due to his overbearing and embarassing behavior... again, we can only infer things, but I do feel like a large part of Toriel's hostility stems from Asgore's inability to back off more than anything else, even the events that caused the divorce.

I can of course, be wrong, about all of this. We have only two chapters and nothing else to go by. But there is one last piece of this puzzle that I think offers an even better insight into why things happened as they happened- the reveal that Asgore used to be the chief of Homedown's police department, and that he was made to step down under unknown circumstances, hence why Undyne, a rookie, is now Hometown's police chief. We don't know what happened yet, but whatever did happen? Kris doesn't like to read about it, keeping Us from seeing what happened. It could be because they don't want us prying into their family's business just in general, but there's also a really good chance that it may be simple guilt that keeps them from reading the rest of that article.

And from here, we can paint a pretty compelling picture of what may have happened. As we know, Dess Holiday, Rudy's oldest daughter and Asriel's childhood best friend, went missing under mysterious circumstances. Dess' mother is mayor of Hometown, and its strongly hinted that whatever happened, DEss is now trapped somewhere in the Dark World (or worse), and other hints seem to indicate that Kris might in fact be aware of this, and its hinted that this event may have occurred near the mysterious bunker in the forest that Kris is explicitly afraid of. More interestingly, schoolmates Snowy and Monster Kid seem to be aware of this fact as well, which brings some interesting implications of itself.

Either way, with these details we can imagine a very probable chain of events for how things went down- Kris and Dess did something or the other at the Bunker, which led to Dess possibly being whisked away to the Dark World. Asgore, as police chief, is tasked with finding Dess. His inability to find Dess leads to him being fired by her mother, the mayor, and this would probably lead to the personal troubles at home that would lead to him eventually being divorced from Toriel and living on his own. This seems to be the general consensus among fan-interpretations, and  honestly? It seems pretty probable that this, or something like this, is how the divorce went down... and maybe why Kris is the way Kris is, in the present.

There is however an interesting little wrinkle in this formula, though out of everything I mentioned, this one is possibly the longest shot. Earlier in the game when we explore Asgore's store, we find a very terse note from his landlord telling him point blank that he has a month to pay the rent, even suggesting he start selling the flowers rather than giving them away. All that we know about this landlord is that their first initial is "C". So, where does the long shot come in? There is a possibility that "C" is none other than Mayor Holiday, Rudy's wife and Dess' mother, and previously Asgore's boss. What evidence do we have to suggest this? Mayor Holiday is described as being very good at her job while also not being great with people, and is evidently very driven and intimidating, so much so that Noelle is actively afraid of her. The way the note is written is not very formal, nor is it very sociable either... and there are more than a few Christmas related terms that start with "C". A lot of the fandom seems to have settled on "Carol".

Again, this could be a long shot, one built entirely by conjecture. But if this "C" is indeed mayor holiday? That's where the wrinkle comes in. Because if Mayor Holiday is willing to give Asgore a business and overlook past failures to pay the rent, then it may be that his leaving the force wasn't JUST because of his failing to find Dess... or rather, if Mayor Holiday had any part of it, it actually wasn't out of personal anger at him failing to find her daughter. If "C" is Mayor Holiday, then in this context it means that whatever (probably negative) feelings she has towards Asgore, they're not enough to stop her from trying to help him get back on his feet. You might argue that if she IS involved in his flower shop venture it might be more due to Rudy than her, but then if Rudy has this much sway over her, she wouldn't have fired Asgore for not being able to find Dess.

Granted, there's always the 'Dying Wish' factor, though we don't know how long Rudy's been sick...

But still- firing someone for a personal reason would be a VERY bad breach of ethics, and from what we've seen (or haven't) of the mayor so far is that whatever her personality flaws, she isn't actually corrupt or anything. Hometown is so peaceful and orderly that the police force isn't really regarded as necessary! Quite the accomplishment... and firing Asgore for personally failing her would be the kind of conflict of interest that could jeopardize those accomplishments, understandable as it might be in this instance.

So, what would this imply for Asgore and his leaving the force? I believe that while Dess vanishing was the catalyst for everything, it wasn't the direct cause of Asgore losing everything. I imagine that failing to find Dess for an undetermined amount of time weighed heavily on Asgore, given that this is his best friend's daughter, a daughter who is the best friend of Asriel at that.

My hypothesis, as such? Is that Asgore's failing to find Dess slowly ate away at him, and that this caused things at home to get tense, before his eventual desperation led him to do something he shouldn't have, thus leading to him being removed from the force, and leading to further troubles at home, culminating in him saying or doing SOMETHING that led Toriel to divorce him.

I don't have any authority to definitively suggest what it might have been. But I DO feel confident that if Dess' disappearance had anything to do with Asgore's dismissal from the force? It wasn't as simple as the mayor being angry with him and removing him due to that anger, but because of something Asgore himself did in reaction to his own failure at finding Dess, and that this in turn led to whatever would happen to cause his divorce from Toriel. I believe this, because while Asgore has fallen on very hard times, the worst of what he's going through is due to his own poor choices that we can see, and however pitiful his current state, he isn't alienated/exiled from the people in his life. And if he had done something REALLY bad? I don't think that would be the case.

Of course, I can be wrong. Heck, I probably am. We only got two games to go by, and as such virtually everything I say is ultimately just conjecture, some a bit more supported by game text, and some less. But whatever the reality is? I'm VERY confident that Asgore didn't do anything evil... but it was still enough to cost him everything. Given the themes going on in the light world, it'd make sense that rather than anything big or dramatic, the truth just turned out to be something simple, unglamorous, and quietly sad.

Just like in real life, a lot of the time.

[kooki914]

What do you think will Toriel's relationship with Mrs. Holiday be like? A foil situation maybe? It's kind of strange that for a family so closely tied to the Dreemurr Toriel never has talked about any of them. Wonder what she actually thinks about Noelle?

All good questions, honestly! I believe Toriel isn't really the type to seek out super close friendships with people to begin with (her friendship with Sans seems to almost be an accident in both worlds), and Rudy mentions how their families have drifted apart over the years. I feel like part of this can be attributed to her and Asgore's divorce (as him and Rudy are close, breaking up with Asgore probably made stuff awkward between Toriel and Rudy), but another part is also Dess' disappearance I think (her and Asriel were close, and it's been hinted that after she disappeared, Kris stopped hanging out with Noelle too, and it might've given the parents less incentive to stay in touch with each other overall).

On the question on mayor Holiday and Toriel specifically, I DO kind of see them as foils already? Toriel is a smothering and loving parent while mayor Holiday is strict and cold. The one thing they have in common is they're both reactionary (Noelle being afraid her mother would take away her console if she saw her crying over a game, contrasted to Toriel taking Asriel to church every day for a week because of a first kiss), and they both seem to have a need for control over nearly everything. With mayor Holiday it's not even subtle, while with Toriel it's less overtly "control freak" vibes and more specifically someone who's so used to having all responsibility on her shoulders alone, that she doesn't even notice she's doing it to herself most of the time.

If they were to be proper foils, I'd like if it were an extension of the themes around freedom and control, honestly, and not even in the parental sense. Deltarune seems like it has a lot to say on free will vs predeterminism, and I think marriage - holy matrimony - is an interesting vessel to explore that through. Toriel as someone who ended her marriage for personal reasons, which can be misconstrued as selfish if you don't take into account her feelings and needs as a person, contrasted to mayor Holiday who seems to have an iron grip on her family's dynamic, which can be misconstrued as people-oriented if we fail to take into account the effects that has on Noelle and Rudy (and possibly even Dess when she was around). The Holiday household seems pretty toxic, with Rudy constantly in the role of mediator, Noelle in the (psychological) role of "adaptive child" (see The Entire Snowgrave Route for why that's horrendous), and mayor Holiday seemingly in the role of judge, jury and executioner.

Basically, Toriel as someone who liberated herself and mayor Holiday as someone who refuses to let others be liberated, sort of. A hint of it can even be seen in how they treat someone like Asgore. Toriel privately shittalks him but isn't really cruel to him to his face (which gives him the wrong idea, sadly), while mayor Holiday is "lenient" with his rent payment while being clearly cold and cruel about his personal plights. Toriel is someone who wants to move on and make as little of a mess as she does so, while mayor Holiday could be someone who prioritises a "safe" stasis over any kind of change to the detriment of everyone around her. Toriel is "mean" but empathetic, mayor Holiday is "giving" but cruel - possibly another commentary about how being "nice" isn't always a good thing, how some people do it out of necessity (Toriel) while others do it as a manipulative tactic (mayor Holiday), and how overall issues are always more complicated than they seem. More complicated than someone who, say, just tells you to "sell more flowers" would think they are, based on her limited willingness to see from anyone else's point of view.

(This is offtopic but this is really interesting symbolism to me: if we look at Asgore giving people flowers as a metaphor for giving people love and attention, *selling* more flowers wouldn't even directly help him, in a narrative sense. He's giving Toriel flowers and she keeps throwing them away, EVERYONE does, because they fundamentally don't need or want them. Asgore is someone the community doesn't need anymore, and the mayor's solution to that is "put a price on it", because to her (I speculate) ALL relationships are transactional. She thinks his problem is that he's TOO loving, that he's TOO giving, rather than that hes throwing his love into an endless black hole that will never return the gesture. Anyway, that's enough rambling about Asgore on a Toriel post, sorry!)

Oh, and I nearly forgot to answer: I don't think Toriel would have particularly strong feelings towards Noelle? Toriel's nice to every kid she knows, but I think the inverse, what Noelle thinks of Toriel, is a more interesting question. Knowing Noelle's issues with mother figures, does she see Toriel as aspirational, or does she think Toriel is faking it and using kindness as manipulation (like mayor Holiday may be prone to doing)? Is Noelle weary of Kris' mom, hence not coming over to their house often, or is she nostalgic about the bond their families had and remembers Toriel more like an aunt than a mother? Since we know she's scared of her mom, is she vaguely hoping her own parents will separate, or did Toriel set a "bad precedent" in her eyes and she dreads her family being pulled apart further? All very very interesting questions, in my opinion, and I hope we see more of the Holiday/Dreemurr dynamics as the story goes on.

[cod-dump]

HEY!!! So, I just want to you are an inspiration to writing everywhere and I love your stuff? And if it isn't too much I would like to know, can you rank all the best 141 Ships in one massive list? Personally SoapGhost at top, but I want to see what you think

Ranking the ships? Oh boy--

This is a good opportunity for me to show how I feel about some ships.

Keep in mind I ranked them by how I feel about them personally (also I put down as many as I could think of and if I missed one then I'll happily add on)

Has been edited, ships added

___

Soap/Ghost: Good ship, absolutely love it. Height diverse, canon banter that I can go over all day and not get bored, angst potential-- Have written so much for this ship and I'm not tired of it yet. Good ship, 10/10.

Alejandro/Rudy: Fucking LOVE this. They give off 'married for ten plus years and happily in love'. I want to write more for them because I fucking love them so much. 10/10, good ass ship.

Konig/Horangi: I admit I don't look into this ship as much but I do like what I see people write for them. I like them, good potential for fics, would like to write for at some point. 8/10.

Price/Nik: Yes, married for several years, knows each other better than themselves. I want/need to write more for them because I do like this ship. 10/10.

Price/Graves: Yes, fucking love it. So much potential of what you can do with it. I have written somethings for it and definitely plan on writing so much more. 10/10, fuck yes.

Price/Ghost: Not my favorite. 4/10

Price/Gaz: Not my favorite but I don’t have any problems with it. 5/10

Price/Soap: Not bad but I don’t have any ideas for it. 5/10.

Soap/Konig: Oh yes, I like this. 'Enemies to lovers'. I have so many ideas for this ship but I haven't written any fics on them yet. Definitely on my to do list. 10/10.

Ghost/Konig: Yes, big boy on big boy violence affection. 'Enemies to lovers'. Have a lot of ideas for them but I haven't written anything down yet. 8/10.

Farah/Alex: I like them, I think they're cute. I also think Alex is whipped and does whatever Farah wants to make her happy. Awesome malewife/girlboss relationship. 10/10.

Valeria/Graves: You know she tops. God, I can imagine them being the bitchiest couple on the face of the planet. They're so toxic yet it works for them. Would write for, have some ideas for them. 6/10.

Valeria/Alejandro: I mean, I love scornful ex-lovers just like anybody else. Maybe they were once pretty healthy in the past but they're definitely pretty toxic, too. Would write for if given a prompt (or if I get inspired all the sudden). 7/10.

Valeria/Rudy: GOD-- so many ideas involving past lovers, Valeria aiming to use Rudy to hurt Alejandro, just plan toxic ideas. Would write if requested or if I get randomly inspired. 8/10

Ghost/Rudy: Have written this before, I think it's cute. I haven't seen much for them, sadly. Might write this again (on my own or prompted). 8/10

Soap/Alejandro: Like the ship above, I think it's cute. I would write stuff for it. Bromance turned romance. 8/10

Price/Graves/Nik: FUCK YES. God, the brainrot is strong with this one. Love them so much, have so many ideas for them. Probably will never tire of them, OT3. 10/10.

Nik/Graves: God I have ideas for this one. Fuck yea new ideas to plague me in the middle of the night. 10/10.

Soap/Gaz: Yes, gimme. 'Friends to Lovers', good shit. Lots of fluff, silly shenanigans, all the good stuff. 10/10.

Gaz/Alex: Yes, love this. Cute as fuck. I can see a adorable slow burn romance, bromance to romance, didn't know they were dating-- I got ideas for it. Would love to write for it. 10/10.

Ghost/Gaz: Yes, I actually really like this one. Again, I see no content for it and it makes me sad. Love to write for it and put this ship out there. Some good, angsty slow burn. 10/10.

Farah/Gaz/Alex: I find adorable. I love this so much. Would write for happily. I haven't seen much content for them sadly (maybe it's because I don't look hard enough). Good ship, 10/10.

Alejandro/Valeria/Rudy: Got some pretty good ship ideas for this. Good ass angst with some fluff. The good stuff right here. Definitely could see this being a past relationship that ended badly, leaving two of them (or maybe all three) heartbroken. 8/10

Soap/Gaz/Ghost: Absol-fucking-lutely. Love this shit right here so much. I need to write more for it because it's a shame there's not more content for it. 10/10.

Price/Gaz/Soap/Ghost: I do like this oddly enough. I like them all together for some reason. 7/10

Ghost/Roach: Yes, I love this shit. Good angst potential, good past lovers potential. 'Lovers to friends to lovers' shit right here. 10/10

Soap/Roach: The chaos, the trouble they could get into-- Yes, absolutely. Good shit right there. Love to see it and would definitely write for it. 10/10.

Soap/Roach/Ghost: Yes, god yes. So many ways do make this happen. Angst, fluff, smut-- all that you possibly need in a ship. Fucking beautiful, love to see it, definitely would love to write it at some point. 10/10,

Soap/Gaz/Roach: Yes, yes, and yes. Good shit right here, cute and fluffy (though I could make it angsty if I tried). Silly shenanigans, chaos, all the good stuff. 10/10.

Soap/Gaz/Roach/Ghost: I haven't seen anything for this but I think it's cute and works. 8/10.

Soap/Graves: Good angst potential here, 'friends to lovers to enemies'. Would write for, been thinking of writing for it. 7/10.

Ghost/Graves: Much like the one above, very good. Angst is perfect, many ideas for this ship. Would love to write more for it. 7/10.

Soap/Ghost/Konig: Yes, I like this. Have several spicy ideas for it, a lot of drama. Haven't written anything for it yet but I would like to. 9/10.

Farah/Valeria: Toxic lesbian enemy to lovers? Mhmm yes. 7/10

Makarov/Yuri: Toxic ex lovers. Bad, manipulative situation that Yuri could fall back into because Makarov can read him like an open book. 6/10

Shepherd/Death: 10/10, OTP.

___

Used 10/10 rating because I couldn't even think of how I would rank them. If I missed any you would like to see tell me and I'll rate them.

(no particular order because I rated them as I thought of them)

[deeptrashwitch]

And once again, a little one-shot inspired from @raresvtm prompts (I love you M 💕 you always give great prompts ^^)

"(name), if today’s our last mission, I need you to know that I’ve loved you every step of the way."

Alicia was preparing for a mission with Alejandro, taking their gear in silence. It was an elimination one, while Rudy and Luke commanded the teams to raid the place, they will hunt the head of the cartel they are going against. The silence was heavy because they both knew the risk it meant go on their own to that part of the mission. Alicia sighed softly as she put the rifle next to her bulletproof vest.

"Hey, ¿amor?" Alejandro called without looking at her.

"Yes?"

"This will be a difficult one, right?"

Alicia just looked away with a sigh. "Yeah, I think so. They're ruthless, way more than us."

"And if it's an ambush?"

"...Let's hope it isn't." She murmured a bit nervous.

The silence came again, only with the sound of the movement of the gear breaking it. They didn't look at each other until they had the bags and gear ready. In silence they faced each other, dressed with their uniforms and with the patches of their respective teams embroided in black over their chest.

"You seem nervous." Alicia said softly.

Alejandro didn't answer for a second before scoffing tiredly and smiling sadly. "Alicia, if today it's our last mission, I need you to know that I've loved you every step of the way. I really love you, amor."

"Don't make it sound like a goodbye." Alicia said, closing her eyes. "For God's sake, Alejo, don't make this sound like a goodbye...please."

"I just want to make sure-"

"No, I don't wanna hear it. I don't wanna think the possibility of you..." She murmured just to shake her head. "Just no."

Alejandro just hugged her in silence, while Alicia rested her head over his chest with a soft sigh. For a minute they didn't say anything until she took off her dogtags and gave them to him. He understood a second later and did the same.

"Swear to me, Alejandro, that you won't die." Alicia asked softly as she put on his dogtags.

He nodded and kissed her head as he put her dogtags on. "I'll try, but you take care too."

"Deal. I'll take care too." She said before smile softly.

"What is it?" Alejandro asked.

She just smiled and squeezed his hand for a second. "I love you too, cariño, since the first time we became a couple and I never stopped...not even for a day."

"Hey, I'm supposed to be the cheeky one." He joked, kissing her head.

They took their gear and walked out of the weaponry room towards the helicopter. While they walked, Alicia scoffed and smiled slightly.

[itsscromp]

What about Rudy who feels overshadowed by Alejandro sometimes. Like, he's quiet yeah, but in a private setting sometimes he feels like Alejandro talks so much he isn't considered sometimes. And y/n notices it??

Seen and heard

Dawww, Rudy is highly underrated in my opinion. He’s just as badass as the others.

While he is loud when he’s training recruits and if someone stuffs up slightly, you’ve come to notice Rudy is actually a very quiet person.

But it makes him feel very overshadowed by Alejandro sometimes.

Alejandro does know this but he doesn’t know how to bring it up.

He was everything Rudy aspired to be. Cool, calm and confident.

But this only makes the feeling worse for him…

Until you came along.

You were tasked by price to help the Los vanqueros with their latest mission.

During their downtime, you noticed Rudy was very quiet.

“Rudy, is everything ok ??” You asked him as you and Alejandro were talking.

“Yeah… I’m fine amigo…” he looked away a little sadly.

You and Alejandro were a little sad. “Are you sure hermano ??” Alejandro spoke up.

“I just… don’t have any input to the conversation”

You could see there was more than meets the eye.

After that, you and Alejandro were left alone.

“He… feels a little bit overshadowed by me I think, I just… I don’t know how to bring it up or help him feel better”

But you did.

One day, you found in him the mess hall reading a book peacefully.

You joined in, flopping on the couch. “Whatcha doing 😄😄”

“Oh…. Hello y/n… just reading a book”

“Oh nice, what’s it about ??”

“It’s… it’s a recount of a popular Mexican soldier who fought during the world war.”

“Wow, that sounds cool” you took great interest in it, much to his shock.

“Yeah… it’s pretty small, not as big as this one” he picks up another book and shows you it. “This one is about the Mexican American war. It’s a great read so far, recounts really well” he began to open up his thoughts a little more.

You nodded and listened contently.

He lightened up, enjoying how interested you were.

Once then you helped, you passed Alejandro your tips. So soon after he did his part too, making sure he was part of the conversation.

When they were talking about a new movie, Alejandro made a point that sparked an idea, and Rudy wanted to speak up.

Getting a tad sound out before stopping.

You looked over at Rudy and smiled, softly nodding.

Rudy was quiet for a bit before he began to speak up. “I was just going to say that I really enjoyed the fourth movie. And people who were complaining it didn’t give the same nostalgia as the first John wick movie are completely wrong 😤😤”

He’s passionate about his movies.

Rudy felt involved and listened too, and he always will be

[flock-from-the-void]

IM SORRY I KNOW YOU DON'T ACCEPT ENGLISH AFTER 6 PM

so here's a question about Polish diminutive naming:

i know that in Russian, every name has a pet name. For instance Dmitri being Mitya.

Is this true for Polish names too?

If so, what is the diminutive form for the name "Maxim" or "Maksim"?

after some searching I'm pretty sure it's "Maksymka" but I want to make sure okiii?

Oho, that's interesting! So the short answer is yes, every name has a pet name. A couple of pet names, actually. (Btw the Polish version of Maxim is Maksym).

For male names, the most typical endings are -uś (-yś, -eś and all the variations depend on the name, so it's good to google it. you know, just put "maksymuś" in google and check out if anything shows up) and -sio (which both are usually more... loving? you'd usually use them for children and people you love. using them for friends isn't technically wrong but some people may not like that) and -ek (which is usually a bit more serious but that depends on the name. for example pet name of Krzysztof (Christopher) - Krzysiek is a bit hard on the tongue and makes it sound like a bit older person, maybe a teenager but pet name of Maksym - Maksymek is smooth and makes it sound like a child).

So your options for Maksym are: Maksymuś, Maksymek (both sound pretty child-like), Maks (which, I believe, came from English Max but is very popular nowadays) and from Maks you can create Maksio (which is again a bit child-like) or Maksyś.

Personally, I would use them like that: parents call them Maksymek, friends call him Maks and sometimes Maksio/Maksyś, their partner call them Maksio/Maksyś.

Now I'm not sure if you want to read about female names but oh well, I'm doing it anyway.

So, for female names the most typical endings are -sia, -nia (more childish) and -śka, -cha (more... adult??? they're also a bit offensive. for example, if your mother calls you Zofia (Sofia) you know you fucked up, but if she calls you Zocha it's time to move out. though some people prefer those pet names because they're not infantile (me for example lol)) and -sieńka (it's mostly used by lovers and sometimes parents) and there's also -yś. I'm gonna talk about -yś at the end because it's interesting.

Female version of Maksym - Maksyma - is a pretty rare name and I could mess this up so I'm gonna use one of the most popular names in Poland - Maria (Mary).

So we have: Marysia, Marynia, Maryśka, Marycha, Marysieńka.

Now about -yś. So, you can see that -yś doesn't end with "a" like most of the Polish female names (seriously, there are maybe like 5 or 6 that don't end with "a") which makes it basically... a gender neutral ending. Sadly, it doesn't work with every name. But it works with Maria and Marian (male version of Mary)! "Maryś" can be a pet name for both. And it works for Maksym and Maksyma too! Mentioned earlier Maksyś works for both!

Lastly, giving nicknames is also extremely common in Poland. The most popular ways of giving them are: from the surname (Kowalski -> Kowal, cutting out the surname ending), from a visual trait (Rudy (Ginger), Wysoki (Tall)), just straight up another name for whatever reason (it doesn't even need to sound similar, often people just call others by... a different name...) and ofc pop culture references.

If you have any further questions, hit me up! (or the @another-white-hole if I don't respond in a day)

[writer-of-various]

ɪ'ʟʟ ꜰɪɴᴅ ʏᴏᴜ, ʀᴜᴅʏ

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪ : ʀᴜᴅʏ, ᴍʏ ᴅᴇᴀʀ, ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴅɪꜱᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀ

"The human mind has needs to survive that correspond to the needs of the body. The human mind needs interaction, it needs to be stimulated by entertainment of another living thing, without it, the human mind cannot function properly. The subject has been confined in its cell without light, energy, or human interaction. The subject is showing signs of anxiety, fear, anger, anticipation, and early symptoms of anxiety. The method is working."

– Park, H.

Rodolfo Parra stared at the map with narrowed eyes, his gaze switching from the topography to the little symbols and objects he and the team used to estimate their moves and where the location of enemies could be. The intel they had was solid, too solid and self-reassuring, it gave him a reason to doubt it all. His boys didn't seem to be too worried, but he worries about everything, he goes over the "what if's" and the possible mistakes they can make, and have they underestimated the enemy? The mission just felt easy, too easy to plan and execute, and it is causing his nerves to spike up in anxiety.

"Looking at that map won't make the mission come by faster" a deep voice startles Rodolfo out of his trance. He turns around and forces a smile at his best friend, Alejandro Varags, hoping the older man didn't look through his facade.

"I know that, Ale. I just have...doubts." His gaze turns to look at the map and Alejandro sighs, something heavy and sad and it makes Rodolfo freeze and look back at him.

"We have a lead, Rudy, that's all that matters now. If Price trusts this lead, we can too." Alejandro says softly and Rudy can't help but feel irritated. He trusts his teammates, he trusts 141, but this isn't about trust. It's about his gut churning and his mind and body screaming danger and even though he isn't a parent, he has these stupid maternal instincts to protect his family, which is Alejandro and 141.

"This isn't about that, Alejandro! I know something is wrong, something bad is going to happen, I just don't know what. We can't go on this mission, I'm sorry, but I won't let you guys get hurt." Rudy exclaims at first before softening his tone completely, his big sad eyes triggering something in Alejandro, but the colonel knew this was important. They had a lead on Makarov, they needed to go and risk everything if it meant Makarov's head on the pavement.

"And I'm sorry too, Rudy. You don't have to go, but our hermanos and I will be leaving tomorrow. It's up to you." Alejandro murmurs almost sadly but Rudy rolls his eyes, angrily walking out of the planning room. He shoulders past Ghost when he walks out, not sparing a single glance at his friends as he retreats to his quarters. He's going on that mission, and will make sure he dies before his boys. It's the least he can do now.

February 09, 2024

0545

141 Safehouse, London

141 stands around a table, the map Rudy was glaring at almost 12 hours earlier still laying on it, and Captain John Price is giving out the brief. Rudy listens idly, as a certified medic and the sergeant major, Price usually comes to him when it comes to practicing and writing out briefs, so he knows what his captain is going to say. He can feel the excitement radiating off of Johnny MacTavish, or Soap as they fondly call him, but Kyle Garrick, or Gaz, seemed to be hesitant and nervous, his fingers fidgeting with one another and he seems to pulling at soon-to-be loose strings that Rudy would have to clip to make their equipment neat and perfect.

"Any questions?" Price concludes, looking at his boys and Rudy shakes his head to put his input. Ghost, Alejandro, and Gaz also shake their heads or murmur a quiet "no", but Soap, the ball of energy he is, raises his hand. Price nods at him and the Scot grins widely that it makes Ghost sigh with anticipated stress and anger.

"Once we get Makarov, can I blow him up?" It's innocently said, something honest despite the wild grin stretching his lips, and Price sighs.

"No, Soap, we need the bastard alive. I admire your enthusiasm to kill the bastard, though." Price says and Soap deflates the slightest for a second before becoming his boisterous self again. "Alright, if that's all, we're leaving in 10, make sure you have all your equipment and be by the transportation when you're done."

Rudy is the first to leave the room, he had everything packed and accounted for because he couldn't really sleep last night. He tossed and turned, his stomach churned and his mind screamed at him to not go, to let those idiots learn on their own, but he couldn't abandon them, he just couldn't. He packed his things, made sure his uniform was pressed and had no loose strings, he used the moonlight to clean his weapons and polish his boots, he made sure the bullet proof vest hanging by the weapon lockers with his tabs on the velcro was fitted and also had no loose strings. Loose ends. And after that thought, he began his internal turmoil of guilt and fear and anger all over again.

Rudy walked to the kitchen they had, a decent size set up that no one really used unless they made themselves a late night snack or made coffee or tea, the boys were always considerate to not wake him in the pitch black darkness of three in the morning for a cup of tea or an omelet. They fed themselves when needed, but they would always choose his cooking over crappy rations. Rudy worked to clean the rest of the dishes in the sink, scrubbing hard with the sponge, taking out his frustrations on the plastic that held their food. The water scorched his hands, steam rising as the temperature increased but he felt numb as the clock ticked and the seconds flew by, each minute a minute closer to death. The what ifs, the mistakes, the facts and doubts and questions and the ultimate vow to ensure he dies before his boys do. Alejandro liked to tease him, liked to tell him he was like a mother hen, and now he can see it, he can feel those instincts and wondered if his mother ever felt this way before she turned into a drunk, sad person.

"Rudy, you alright?" Gaz's voice breaks his thoughts and he looks over at the slightly younger male. He nods, opening his mouth to talk but he couldn't, because he couldn't worry Gaz about the mission. It wasn't his duty, his place, to spread the panic and the facts of the mission. He's just their sergeant major, he isn't an officer, that was Price, Alejandro, and Ghost's jobs.

He turns off the sink and forces a small smile, wiping his hands off on a small kitchen towel and trying to shake away the numbness in his hands.

"Yes, I'm fine." He almost whispers, and Gaz obviously doesn't believe him but he still nods, walking away after a moment and Rudy lets out a sigh he didn't know he was holding. He follows after the other man, grabbing his supplies and putting on his vest, nodding at Soap and Ghost before stepping out of the house and into the crisp, winter air of London. Alejandro and Price were standing by the military jeep, sparing glances at him that he ignores, getting inside the driver's seat and mentally preparing himself for what is to come. He doesn't know what to expect, really, anything is possible in war, all he knows is that death feels so close.

He turns on the car and waits patiently for the boys to get in, Soap and Gaz riding on the back, while Price and Ghost sit in the backseat. Alejandro sat in the passenger seat by him, and Rudy prays– he isn't a religious man but he prays– that Alejandro doesn't speak or say something about their disagreement. He wouldn't be able to handle it, he would spill everything and he would inflict fear in 141. He couldn't. He too was too scared for the mission lying ahead.

It's a small drive to the nearest Royal Air Force base, the team getting out of their jeep and letting some random soldier come over and drive their jeep to the parking garage. Price gets the transportation and evac brief and gives it to them when they board the helicopter. Rudy watches as land grows farther and farther away as the helicopter rises in the air steadily, the scenery passing by when it points forward and heads off south. The gun in his hands feels wrong, his heart is beating fast like a hummingbird's wings, his mouth suddenly feels dry and his stomach turns and it feels like he's about to throw up. But he stays silent, unmoving, and continues to hopelessly pray.

They barely manage to get through the compound's main entrance before a RPG sends a rocket a few feet away from them, their bodies flying back from the explosion and Rudy can feel something warm trickling down the side of his head. He stands up, gun aimed as chaos ensues, the shouts of the enemies as they rush closer to shoot at them and he curses under his breath, crouching over to Alejandro and pulling him against a concrete barrier. 141 is up and hiding, Price shoots over the barrier and Soap is shakingly trying to take out his explosives from his equipment belt. Rudy grabs the gun lying in the ground and shoves it into Alejandro's hands before shooting at the enemies.

"Fuck!" Ghost shouts in alarm, and Rudy looks over to see an armored vehicle driving over from down the road.

"RPG!" Soap warns, and Rudy ducks back behind the barrier and the ground shakes as another rocket flies out and lands close to them, rubble flying up in the air and dust clouding around them. Rudy coughs as it feels his lungs, Alejandro immediately runs his hands all over his body, his mouth moving but everything sounds muffled and Rudy's pupils blow wide as fear eats at him. Alejandro is shouting, and he's pressing his hands against his body, but he can't feel the touches, he just knows his best friend is grabbing him as his eyes flicker back and forth, taking in the scene around him. He's thrown over Alejandro's shoulder, his grip on his gun tightening as he aims at the enemies that were closing in around him and shoots. 141 watches their back, Price's mouth is also moving but there's just a ringing in Rudy's ears that scares him.

He's put in the back of the military rover they were issued to use to travel to the location, Alejandro kneeling over him and suddenly he feels excruciating pain and a shrill scream leaves him.

"I'm sorry, amor, I'm sorry." Alejandro's voice comes clearer and Rudy almost cries in relief, the pain in his side going numb and he puts a hand there, but Alejandro moves it away and shakes his head, a shaky smile making his handsome features look solemn. "Don't touch, Rudy, you're going to be okay. Ghost, drive!"

The car starts moving and he hears Gaz, Soap, and Price talking fast, anger and panic in their voices and Rudy whines, wanting them to stop arguing. They do, turning in their seats and frowning at the sight of Rudy, immediately blaming themselves for his injury.

"Stay awake, Rudy" Price orders and Rudy nods, but his eyelids felt so heavy and the need to just take a small nap was overwhelming that he let it conquer him, but the peace didn't last for long. His body is jolted, thrown across dirt and mud and everything burns and starts aching again. He whimpers, a loud explosion ringing his ears once more and he tries holding his head up, his heart beating fast when he sees the military jeep upside down a small distance from him. He hears footsteps and muffled voices and forces himself on his back, trying to breathe but it's getting harder to.

A shadow envelopes him as black dots dance around his vision, the corners of his eyes going dark and all he could remember seeing are two, bright blue orbs staring down at him as he goes unconscious.

And the final thought of why his boys didn't listen to him.

12 hours later

When Rudy comes to, the first thing he feels is the sharp pain in his side and on his temple. He feels groggy, his movements slow and as he blinks the blurriness away from his eyes, he realizes he's sitting on a cold metal floor and the space around him is pitch black. He tries to stand but the clinking of something hitting against something else had him freezing up, his blood running cold and as he feels around his wrists, he finds them shackled. They're snug on him, no way of him sliding out or trying to force his hands out.

"Fuck" He mumbles, squinting his eyes and trying to make out anything but it was futile, the room was too dark and the pain of his wounds had him sitting back down and panicking. Were the boys okay? What the fuck happened? All he remembered was feeling like shit in the back of their transportation and the next thing he was flying, and lastly he saw something blue. A familiar blue color but he can't figure out why it felt and looked so familiar.

He felt around his body, his equipment was missing and he had no boots, and he had a matching pair of shackles wrapped around his ankles. His anxiety peaks and he tries calming himself down but he is blind and oblivious of the whereabouts of his men. Were they even alive? Yes, they had to be, if they weren't alive, then nothing is stopping him from killing himself.

Rudy is stuck with his atrocious thoughts for what felt like forever, in reality was only an hour, until a bright light blinded him briefly and the sound of metal hitting a wall echoing what he now can see is a small room. He looks up after shielding his eyes, grunting when four men storm over to him and force him to stand. He winces, pain shooting up in his right ankle and one of the men holding him lets go immediately, and Rudy barely blinks in time when a loud gun shot rang out and warm blood splattered across his face. He gasps, turning his head and his eyes widening when he sees him.

"G-graves" He chokes out, a shiver running down his spine when the supposedly dead man smirks.

"Rudy, I missed you." Phillip Graves says lovingly, a big grin on his face and Rudy growls, lurching forward but the men hold him back, their grasps gentler this time which confuses him.

"Fuck you, cabrón!" He hisses and Graves chuckles, as if he was being cute, and it made his stomach twist with so many emotions he couldn't count or even acknowledge without feeling like crying.

"I see hanging around those monarchs has really changed you, Rudy. But I know you, I know you inside and out, literally." Graves mocks and Rudy huffs out a laugh, shaking his head and staring at the man in disbelief.

"It was only a few nights, gringo. And what makes you think I would ever crawl back to your sorry ass after you betrayed me? You took my base, my men, you're stupid idiots injured me and my guests, and you locked up my colonel. A blue on blue attack isn't pretty, Graves." Rudy growls out and the American huffs, shaking his head but that smile never falters. It's unnerving.

"Don't act like that, baby. Yes, I'm here now and want you to be mine, but you're missing the bigger picture, Rodolfo. You could be on my team, you get the respect and recognition you deserve." Graves says, and he makes it sound like it was obvious, as if he was talking to some dumb teenager. It makes his blood boil.

"Fuck you! Go back to your boss, because he won't be alive the next time you plan a visit."

"General Shepherd sends his regards, and he wishes for prayers for his...untimely death." Graves' voice lowers, and Rudy's eyes widen as the words hit him. Did he really kill Shepherd?

"How the fuck are you alive?" He asks, and Graves chuckles.

"I wasn't on that tank, babe." He shakes his head, a hand placed over his heart and he sighs dramatically, his tone mocking with the next words. "I lost a loyal dog that day, though."

The men let Rudy go, stepping back and Graves walks over, his hand gripping his chin and forcing him to meet his stupid blue eyes. "It'll be so much easier if you just surrender now, Rudy. I really don't want to hurt you."

Rudy spits on his face, his features settled in a fierce glare as he pulls his face away and points his chin out defiantly.

"Vete al infierno, pendejo."

Graves wipes the spit away and sighs, stepping back and nodding at his men.

"You're making me do this Rudy. You will be mine, I found you now. You will never leave me, you can fucking change your name or mind, but you will never leave me." Graves snarls before walking away. The door shuts behind him and his Shadows, and the lights turn back off.

Rudy curls into a ball, hugging himself tightly as he sobs quietly. The darkness closes around him, suffocating him, and he suffers panic attacks throughout the night and the days following, his mind playing sick tricks as he feels the presence of something, he can hear the whispers of someone– but there was no one.

And he refused to go insane.

[headcanon-territory]

Words I got for Ejen Ali season 3<from a guy who isn't not a good critic and everything he says is absolutely insane!!> [SPOILERS!!!!]

.

.

*we got many good Mika/Roza moments. Like a great amount of screen time of those two to consume

*what is even the relationship between Rizwan and [CUATRO] or the relationship between the Ali and the tekno pillar leader [I forgor her name ]

*Ending and Jenny's death is,, fine??? When Kim said that Ali knows IRIS better but like,, thats override mode!Jenny?? It's weird to think about but i guess we can think about the 3rd mainframe being up again is what gained Ali's plot armor

*OK I know we got many kid shows with traumatising scenes but Jenny's death is literally traumatising for both Kim and the viewer [may she, Ali, and Rudy get therapy, the end]

*I'm ticked off that Kim's younger model has make up--

*I still love Rizwan and he is still at it with his bad decisions

*dude funking beat up Trez like that

*DOS HAS A SOFT SPOT FOR TREZ HELLO??

*POOR DATU HISHAM HES SUCH A SWEETHEART 😭😭😭

*I like how Goofy Zass is this time around [Also Moon, her weird side is so prominent here]

*can yall not?? Make fun of Jet?? Let him be yall

*Aaron's season 3 english VA is Kyle Mccarley and he's at it with his Red Son and Wizard Cookie voice BRO ITS SCREWING MY BRAIN UP

*I'll never expect Alicia and ENA having the same VAs,, its probably because Ejen Ali's fandom saturation is a coughing baby compared to ENA's which is a detonating bomb

*also I love Sam I hate him at first but I love the pathetic twink now

*Bakar is sad thinking about Rizwan when he and Ali were talking how he[ALi] was sorry for what happened in the ARENA as he was thinking about what happened in that Science Park [Romantic]

*I thought Bakar let go of his flirting stich

*Alicia def deserved the IRIS like seriously

*ALSO WE LACK GENERAL RAMA SCREEN TIME THIS IS MADNESS

*Karya karya karya karya karya

*I just realised Tang from LMK looks like Khai

*Rudy,, ehhh they should do something with Rudy like explore his character abit

*but I did notice Rudy looked away, sadly annoyed when they ask how they got into MATA In the camping ep, ue Rudy

*I REALLY WANTED JUST ONE MOMENT BETWEEN RUDY AND RIZWAN TALKING ABOUT DJINN LIKE BRO

*LET THEM BE BROTHERS!!

*BUT NO WHAT WE GOT FOR A RUDY AND RIZWAN INTERACTION IS HIM BEATING RUDY UP

*[Also like a Rizwan and Kim interaction on how the people who they looked up to people who are sadly gone from their minds]

*still hate how MATA is not that good at all cause again [kids getting beat up]

*and the international agents even?? Underage??

*ight it ends here

*WAIT HELP WHILE AARON AND SAM IS RED SON RIZWAN IS FUCKING NEZHA

[zombvibes]

Now I know I said multiple times that I wasn't going to talk about teammateswap's weird route until the au account was done but...SCREW IT CAN'T KEEP THIS INFO IN MY BRAIN ANYMORE.

Before I start, I'm not good at explaining myself nor my ideas so if nothing make sense...well that's half the reason. The other half is because the weird route is half baked and not completely thought out yet. (Just like everything else in this god forsaken au!!! YIPPEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!)

Ok I'll start rambling now!

(WARNING THIS IS LONG.....)

SIIIIIIKE I'm giving you some context first so you can understand some things (hopefully...fingers crossed) :

Noelle isn't that trusting of a person and mostly keeps to herself. Despite how personable she seems, she never really had any friends aside from Kris and Berdly. Even then, she wouldn't really consider them friends. More like close acquaintances. (Yes Catti, and Jockington aren't friends with Noelle in this au. She knows them on an acquaintance level however this applies to the other classmates too.) The only people she could (mostly) trust are her family and Kris (and...kind of Berdly but barely). Kris and Noelle weren't close AT ALL when they were kids due to her being even MORE untrusting and aloof than she is currently. She eventually warmed up to Kris and the rest of the Dreemurrs because of Dess and Rudy getting her out of her shell (though not by much). Kris and Noelle have gotten to know each other recently (most likely after Dess disappeared) so they don't know a lot about each other but are currently friendly with each other.

Now unlike Kris, Berdly DID actually knew Noelle from childhood. This is mostly because Berdly just...kinda followed her around everywhere she went. (Which if you couldn't tell is still the case in present day.) He cared about being seen as intelligent but had terrible grades. Sooo why not attach yourself to the smartest girl in class and get help from her? I'll stop here since uh...I mean.....their dynamic is the same. And I don't have anything else to add that's relevant SOOO. ANYWAYS.

When I was referring to tms!Noelle being personable this is about pre-chapter 2 Noelle. She's a dickhead we know this by now c'mon...She used to put on this "goody-two-shoes A+ student Teacher's pet" act to please everyone. Which...I sadly will have to talk about another time. Just keep the "Everyone's expectations for ME are so high now...What am I going to do once I go somewhere without her?" quote from Berdly's monologue in mind for now. It's semi-important.

OK COOL GOT IT? GOT THAT? COOL. I'LL START FOR REAL THIS TIME :

I'd think that tms!weird route will pretty much play out similarly to the original weird route. So I won't be talking about that all too much? Especially since I'm not sure how it'll go currently.

I, however, will talk about Noelle's powers instead! I already talked about her powers a little bit in this post but I'll just say it again. So you know how in the original weird route Noelle freezes the enemies? In teammateswap, Noelle...turns them into, uh, icicle kebabs. Icicles pop up from the ground and stabs the enemy from below. I was thinking about making the enemy TIRED or SLEEPY before doing that but I'm not sure how that would work. I *think* if you're in a fight with an enemy for long enough they become TIRED but I'm not entirely sure rn. When you get the thorn ring equivalent of Noelle's spear (which will be called the thorn spear and the freeze ring equivalent will be called freeze spear for simplicity), icicles with rain from the sky and pierce whoever is below the storm.

So...after hearing that some of you may be thinking "Hey. So. If you said that enemies get stabbed by icicles, does that mean.....Berdly.........." Yes. Berdly becomes swiss cheese. Anyways this is a great time to talk about Berdly's fight since it's the thing I've thought about the most!

Berdly's fight starts as normal (at least normal for weird route) : Kris and Noelle finds Berdly, Berdly gets worried for Noelle, Berdly pulls out weapon to protect Noelle, en garde, fight starts. So for the fight, you have to wait until he gets tired from using his magic and weapon (remember it's large and heavy). When that happens, he'll fall to the ground. And, uh, he then becomes swiss cheese.

OR. Does he?

If you cast the ice spell (which I will call icegrave, again for simplicity) before Berdly gets tired, he'll survive. He'll be scared shitless, but he'll survive. After icegrave wears off, Noelle falls to the ground and Berdly runs to her to see if she's ok. He shields her from Kris to make sure they don't hurt her. Noelle suddenly gets up, grabs Berdly's arm and drags hime to Queen's castle (her room). And Kris just stands there...in silence.

Another idea I had was, Berdly abandoning Noelle and running away (or well...TRYING to run away but then Getting Swiss Cheese'd™). Tbh...I may go with this idea. tms!Berdly being brave and protecting Noelle doesn't...seem right to me. If I do go with the first idea, Berdly would still be visible scared of Kris. Stuttering, shivering, crying and all. Berdly is NOT a brave guy.

Though during the fight, he desperately pleads with Noelle to come with him and desperately begs Kris to leave her alone. Nothing happens no matter how loud he gets...

ANOTHER idea I had is if Berdly survives, he still gets injured by an icicle (most likely stabbed in the eye, the one that's covered by hair, or the leg). But..again...not 100% sure.

OK SO BACK TO NOELLE AND KRIS, so tms!Noelle would resist more then the original and sometimes just does whatever she sees fit. She'd resist to the point where Kris would have to grab her by the arm and drag her everywhere they go. Though over time, grabbing by the arm becomes hand holding because Noelle is just now used to "getting dragged around" (but by this point she is just following Kris willingly). Which is...great. We love that. So great. (I'm being sarcastic. If you couldn't tell.) As for getting the freeze spear, Noelle multiple times was like "Hey, we can't afford that. Let's go. NOW." She doesn't kill the addison but instead steals the spear by trapping the addison in ice and running away laughing like a cartoon villian (originally, Noelle froze his legs and then ran away with the spear but...her weapon can't really do that so she just trapped them instead). This will stop after the 2nd/3rd mouse puzzle.

So. I assume some of you are wondering about the scene where Susie goes to Noelle's room. She still goes in by herself. But...they don't really...have a nice time together. (Not gonna be specific here since you, Kris and Ralsei don't know what happens in there.) I'll just say that she comes out of the room a little dejected. (She eventually goes back after the last Queen interaction.)

If Berdly lives, he'll come out of the room before Susie could go in. She jumps and wonders why he's in Noelle's room. Berdly, acting like his normal self, says that it's none of Susie's concern and brushes her off. She asks him if Noelle is ok. He pauses and enthusiastically says yes. He's only looking at Susie and ignores Kris as he leaves but not after glancing at them for a second. Susie and co then move on.

I think...I think that's all I'm going to say for now....there's more (obviously) but that's most of the weird route stuff I have! Hope that suffices for now.

[toomanysweaters]

OKAY BUT SOMETHING IMPORTANT I JUST REMEMBERED AND DOUBLE CHECKED ON!

I know I’ve been talking a lot about Noelle’s older sister, December “Dess” Holiday, recently... and how she was a great big sis (who’s tragic death was the first crack in Noelle’s happy family)... BUT.

I remembered, during Undertale’s 5th Anniversary, there was a bunch of winter-themed dialogue from the Undertale cast taking place after the pacifist route. It was really wholesome and great and w/e.

BUT! BUT!!! BUT!!!!! Specifically about that, Asgore’s dialogue (here!) actually shed some light on the status of the Holidays in Undertale... and, there’s some kickers in there, but looking back on it now.

DECEMBER IS ALIVE!  SHE’S ALIVE IN POST-PACIFIST!

[kooki914]

Just finished your video about the secret bosses. Curious for your take on Catti and Jockington, who a) are the only other students in Kris' class to have dialogue sprites, and b) are partners with each other, seemingly implying Toby has plans for them as a pair in some future chapter, a la Noelle and Berdly. I never see ANYONE mention them, in theories or otherwise, though.

I've seen them explored a lot in fanworks (I've seen a LOT of people make Dark World designs for them and they all seem very fun), and it's definitely a possibility that they'll show up in a future dark world, but I'm not entirely convinced either way. For me, the argument swings in two directions. Either they have talksprites because they'll show up prominently in a future chapter's dark world (which would then imply burgerpants, catty, bratty, sans, alphys, undyne and rudy "are likely candidates" as well, which seems a bit far fetched imo), OR they have talksprites because they're significant people in Kris' life (unlike monster kid who isn't even named and seems at most lukewarm to Kris, Catti and Kris have a shared history, and she's even close with Noelle, while Jockington has One (1) talksprite possibly because he's generally just a popular person around town so Kris would see him as significant, at least to an extent).

It's the problem of looking for concrete patterns when we only have two available chapters at the moment. We don't know Toby's internal rules, or why certain characters are preferred over others, so for me it's too early to guesstimate concretely as we're all working with our own personal biases. Eg. I diehard believe Asgore will be present in the ch3 dark world and if he isn't I will riot. It would definitely be interesting to explore Catti some more (her friendship with Noelle and her connection to the occult contrasted to Deltarune's religious themes has me particularly intrigued), but as of right now I'm not really that invested in her or Jockington. Not for any particular reason, just... I don't see a lot TO them right now. I tend to have a bit of tunnel vision and character bias so it can be hard to make me invested in side characters, sadly. I even struggle to be invested in Rudy's side plot, so, that should tell you plenty about my opinions on most of the NPCs and side cast.

[alyswritings]

Separation Anxiety

Request: hi! could you do a rudy pankow x daughter!reader where is toddler age, she is attached to rudy and gets separation anxiety from him. one day on set they get separated and the reader starts freaking out and no one can calm her down until they find rudy. lots of comforting fluff at the end 🥺

Rudy Pankow x daughter!reader

Summary: Y/N freaks out when she can't find Rudy.

Warnings: separation anxiety, fluff

a/n: thank you for the request! hope you all enjoy!

(gif not mine)

Rudy doesn't know how, when, or why it started. Y/N was fine with being away from him when she was born, but then one day it's like a flip switched and she couldn't stand being away from him.

She'd freak out if he was away for long periods of time and eventually it became that she was too afraid to even leave him for a little bit. He isn't sure if something happened to make her that way or if it was just some sort of phase she was going through. But she's already three and it's been like this since she was one, so it must be a very long phase if it is one.

Rudy is holding Y/N, the girl playing with his shark tooth necklace, perfectly content with being held in her father's arms and the warm sun beaming down on them.

"Okay, baby girl, I gotta go with the crew and Chase for a bit." Rudy says.

"No." Y/N whines, her arms latching around his neck.

"Hey. I'll be in your viewing distance. I'm just going right over there." Rudy points to the small shack nearby. "If you really need me, somebody can walk you over."

"Go wit' you now." Y/N says.

"We gotta film a scene, sweetie. You can't be in my arms." Rudy says.

Y/N frowns, slumping against Rudy's chest, her head nestling below his chin. Rudy rubs her back, kissing her on the head.

"I'll be back before you know it, okay?" Rudy quietly tells her, brushing some stray hairs from her face.

"Otay." Y/N sadly sighs as she lifts her head.

"Otay." Rudy repeats. He kisses her on the nose before putting her on the ground. "I love you." He tells her.

"I wuv you, too." Y/N tells him.

Rudy rushes off to the shack where the others are waiting for him, leaving Y/N with some of the crew members.

After a while, Y/N can still see her father, but not being close to him unsettles her.

Y/N is only staring out at the water for a few minutes and when she turns back, she doesn't see any sign of Rudy.

"Daddy?" She calls, looking around for the familiar face. "Daddy!" She yells, but gets no response. Y/N tries to see him, but still comes up with no Rudy. She lets out a small whimper, feeling the familiar feeling of dread start to fill her.

"Daddy." Y/N whimpers. The girl breaks into sobs, catching everybody's attention. Madison immediately kneels down next to the girl, concern etched across her features.

"Y/N? Hey. What's wrong, sweetheart?" Madison asks the sobbing girl. "It's okay, baby girl. What's going on?"

"Daddy!" Y/N sobs.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. He'll be back in a bit. He probably just had to go see something with the others." Madison says, cupping the toddler's face and wiping at the tears.

"No! Daddy!" Y/N screams, her sobs becoming louder. Both Madison and Madelyn try to calm the girl down, but nothing works.

"No! I want daddy! I want daddy!" Y/N yells.

"Somebody go find Rudy." Madison orders as she brings the toddler into a hug. JD and a producer rush off, on the search for the blonde actor. Madison tries to soothe Y/N, though nothing seems to work.

Eventually, they hear footsteps rushing back over and Madelyn turns to see Rudy running over, JD behind him, having been the one to find him.

"Yo! Hey, hey, hey. What's up?" Rudy skids to a stop.

"I-- she's freaking out." Madison says.

"Hey. Hey, baby girl." Rudy kneels next to them. He places a hand on Y/N's head and the girl manages to look up. "It's okay, baby. I'm right here." Y/N leaves Madison's hold and crashes into her dad. Rudy tightly hugs her, letting her sob into his shoulder.

"I got you. I've got you." Rudy murmurs, doing his best to soothe her. He rubs her back and head, whispering sweet nothings and reassurances to her. Rudy winces as he listens to her sobs. He knew moving further away without her was a risk, but he didn't even know he went that far.

Chase was showing him something and Rudy didn't realize he was out of seeing distance until a few minutes later. He knew Y/N was staring at the water when he left so part of him hoped that she'd just keep her focus on that until he got back.

Unfortunately, it didn't.

Eventually, Y/N manages to reduce to sniffles as she cuddles into her dad's chest. Rudy has by now moved to one of the docks and is sitting on it, one foot swaying in the water. His other foot is tucked under his leg.

Y/N is curled into his chest, one hand tightly gripping onto his shirt. Rudy softly combs his fingers through her hair, rocking them back and forth slightly.

"I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean to leave your eyesight. It was a mistake. Daddy's sorry, he wasn't thinking." Rudy says, kissing her on the head. "I'm sorry. We're together now. I got you."

"Don't weave." Y/N pleads, looking up at him with her watery blue eyes that match his.

"I'm never leaving you." Rudy promises before kissing her forehead. "You and I are stuck together forever." He tells her making her slightly smile.

"What if... after I'm done filming today... you and I... we go get some ice cream?" Rudy asks. He tickles her sides making her giggle which brings a smile to Rudy's face.

"Otay!" Y/N giggles out as she pushes Rudy's hand away. Rudy laughs, making sure he has a good grip on her so she doesn't fall off his lap and into the water.

"I wanna get in water." Y/N says, looking down at the water.

"Here. We'll dip your feet in, okay? We can't go swimming right now." Rudy says. Y/N nods and lets Rudy take her shoes off. "Ready?" He asks.

"Uh-huh." Y/N nods.

Rudy holds her underneath her armpits and dips her into the water until it reaches her knees before pulling her back out of the water. Y/N giggles as she lightly kicks her feet around, splashing some water. Rudy dunks her legs back in, lifting her up again.

Neither notice Madelyn near the dock filming the cute moment, smiling softly at Rudy and his love for his daughter.

"He's a good dad." Chase notes, the other cast members agreeing.

Taglist: @glxwingrxse @venomsvl

[eudevie]

Counter Theory: Asgore is protecting Dess and is why he got thrown off the force.

Edit: 9-18-22: it was good, but in light of the DR event this theory feels debunked, since Dess' page is a 404. I feel it is not something as mundane as this, sadly.

Okay, I’m making this theory as an alternative to the ones that say “Asgore killed Dess” or “Asgore failed to find Dess” so he got kicked off the force because that makes no sense, the rest of the town would hate him along with Rudy. DR Asgore is a dumbass, but means well.

So, what we know of Mayor Holiday so far does not make her out to be a very nice person. Dialogue dump is here for anyone wondering: https://hushbugger.github.io/drdia/#

Quotes and analysis under the cut:

Rudy says this in regards to his wife:

   * (Look, Kris. Can't say much, but...)

   * (Noelle... might look like she has it all.)

   * (But her mother. Her mother, you know?)

   * (Love her, but... she's... tough on her.)

   * (Normally, I balance it all out.)

   * (But...)

   * (I can't... do much. When I'm not there.)

   * (But I'm gonna get better.)

   * (I have to.)  

Noelle when you ask her about the key:

   * ... huh? Why don't I ask my mom for the key?

   * I... I mean, um... I... you know,

   * She doesn't like it when I bother her when she's working.

She seems afraid of the thought of asking her mom.

Dog burglars, if this incident is referring to Mayor Holiday herself:

   * We're the infamous dog-burgulars, The Wet-Nose Bandits.

   * (We were getting ready to sneak into that big house over the holidays...)

   * When we were attacked from the shadows, by something MERCILESS!

   * (Fearing for our lives, we all ran right into Officer Undyne's warm, loving arms...)

   * And she suplexed us all into the snow with our tails hanging in the air.

   * (Now we're in jail, but at least we're alive...)

I mean, holy shit if you consider Undyne not scary in comparison...

Politics bear in regards to Mayor Holiday:

   * The mayor's charisma is about zero.

   * No, it's negative.

   * But she works hard and has a good track record, so she runs unopposed.

   * Thaaaaaat's politics.

   * Rarely.

talk to him again:

   * Not only does she act icy, she always keeps her office's AC on full blast.

   * That chill I feel... is...

   * Is this what politics feels like?  

This got me thinking about something strange Noelle does...

   * Sometimes the hoofed girl comes here,

   * Opens the freezer door...

   * Then stands in front of it, lost in thought.

   * Guess she really likes the cold. Or waffles.

Considering what we know about Mayor Holiday so far, this feels like a negative response, possibly to her mother’s office. Rudy even says this is a fear response for her:

   * She's a sweetheart, isn't she, Kris?

   * Smart, kind, sweet... couldn't ask for a better daughter.

   * I just wish she wasn't so... defenseless.

   * Scary movies, bugs, Santa Claus... everything scares her.

   * And when it happens, she freezes like a deer in headlights.  

Even though seeking out triggers like this seems weird, Noelle will seek things she deems scary out sometimes , like having a crush on Susie, or clicking on stuff like “creepy game glitch compilations!” or “Hot Female Santas In Your Area!”, but she also has linked being scared...to being cared for. Maybe it also reminds her of Dess?

   * Gosh, remember that night we explored the forest behind the graveyard?

   * Ha, I know we never found anything interesting back there...

   * I mostly remember... Crying because I was scared.

   * But for some reason I feel... nostalgic thinking about it.

   * Dess wiping away my tears with Azzy's jacket...

   * With warm sleeves that smelled like cinnamon.

   * I guess I didn't mind being scared if it meant...

   * Someone would comfort me.

And on the Ferris wheel with Susie:

   Noelle:* Well, um, maybe, I'm a little scared, but... I...

   Noelle:* To be honest, I... I actually like... scary things.

   Susie:* ... what do you mean?

   Noelle:* When we were little, me and my sister would stay up...

   Noelle:* And go past our bedtime watching horror movies.

   Noelle:* At first I cried, but now... it's like... watching them...

   Noelle:* Makes me feel... comforted...?

But there is still the fact that she is scared of her mother. After all, it’s people that are scary:

   Noelle:* It's scary, but I can just turn it off, right?

   Noelle:* Now it's mostly... people, that are scary. Haha.

   Susie:* You can just say you mean me.

   Noelle:* Haha... umm... well... I guess y-you too, but...

   Noelle:* But that's... what's... NICE about you, y'know?

   Susie:* Nice!? The hell does that mean???

   Noelle:* You're the... good kind of scary.

   Noelle:* You aren't afraid to... break the rules, y'know?  

Maybe she feels someone scarier then her mother, someone who would not be afraid to stand up to her, can protect her like Dess and her Dad used to?

In regards to the “Queen is a representation of Noelle’s Mother” fantheory, I think it is partially true. I think Queen was a bit of wish fulfillment for Noelle. While Queen is controlling, she genuinely tries to make Noelle happy in her own way, and actually listens when Noelle stands up for herself. Mayor Holiday is described as “Icy”... Although robot-like, Queen is a fun wine mom, and while some stuff she does would be considered evil... “I'm Just A Computer LMAO I Don't Know Everything  “ She’s a computer, she is trying Her Best.

I’d imagine having a controlling parent realize they were wrong, and actually acknowledge it AND MEAN IT, would be very cathartic. I know this bit made me fucking cry:

   * ... Noelle...

   * Perhaps My Computations Were

   * Miscalibrated

   * Noelle

   * Disregard... Me... And...

   * With Your Own Power

   * Choose The World... That Makes You Happy  

(Also, If we’re going off the “King and Queen are Susie and Noelle’s parents” fantheory, then the wish fulfillment of having a friend as a young child (projecting onto Lancer, perhaps?), and someone to kick their dad’s ass, could still fit Susie.)

“Now wait E, How does this relate to Asgore protecting Dess?”

Well... Noelle talks about Dess as if she is still alive. We can infer to this as Dess going missing, not dead.

But what if she isn’t truly missing? If a missing person who ISN’T a minor is found by police, and DOES NOT WANT anyone to know their location, all the police have to do is say they are found and not tell the person who reported the person missing their location. Rudy and Asgore are very good friends, and Rudy has probably told Asgore how his wife is with the kids. I think they are close enough that they consider each other’s kids as their niblings in a way. Rudy even has a nickname for Kris!

With Mayor Holiday being controlling and cold, and Dess isn’t one to take stuff lying down from what Noelle tells of her:

   * Gosh, you're lucky Dess isn't here!

   * Otherwise YOU'D be facedown in a mousepile!

.

   * Wait! You're teasing me, aren't you, Kris?

   * L-like when you told me ICE-E was real and eats kids...

   * So Dess smacked you with a wiffle bat 'til you stopped lying.  

I can see Dess GTFOing as soon as she turned of age. Maybe even working on a way to get Noelle out.

Mayor Holiday may not like that she no longer has control over her eldest daughter. Since she is the mayor, and also very intimidating, she could have contacts harass Dess to “get her back in line.”

So may be none too pleased when Asgore REFUSES to tell her were Dess went, or refuses to search for her. (Maybe Dess even asked him before she left to NOT tell her mom or look for her. Asgore would be like an uncle to her, so would want to protect her.)

The Divorce:

Toriel may have felt that Mayor Holiday and Rudy have a RIGHT to know were their kid is. Asgore may have tried to tell Toriel that Mayor Holiday is not that great of a parent or overly strict and controlling, or Dess does not want to be found, but Toriel is a parent who flipped her shit over Asriel kissing Catty, so may not understand how bad Mayor Holiday actually is in regards to being a strict parent since she may consider herself one.

Toriel and Asgore’s marriage was on the rocks already for some reason (I have a feeling it was due to Asgore being Irresponsible with finances, not through cheating or anything like that. Like I said, Asgore is a well meaning dumbass. see:”No rent received. Again. Stop giving away flowers. Start Selling Them.”) and this would have been the final straw.

Alphys may even be hinting to this:

   * Kris, it's no secret the, er, police in this town are...

   * Err... how do I put this... Just... um...

   * Eye candy, I guess?

   * W-wait, th-that came out wrong!

   * I mean they're s-symbolic! They barely do anything!

   * It's because of the mayor, there... there...

   * There isn't any crime.

   * Makes me wonder if she even needs the police...

   * Or if they're just... g... getting in her way?

   * ... eheh sorry. I'm just saying what you already know.

   * After all, she's...

   * Your neighbor, right?  

Noelle, being likely to bend to her mother’s will if she asked, would have to be kept out of the loop or out of contact in case Mayor Holiday tries to get to Dess through Noelle. So kept googling for her anyway, to see if anything new is happening with her sister.

I know I waffled a bit on this theory, but what are y’alls thoughts?

[just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi]

16 for mason? perhaps brody isn't the only former pet mason trained who got free, and this other one is not nearly as nice and is out for revenge. just wanna see mason get what's coning to him even if it's not canon lol

Is this cannon? You'll never know lol

CW: beating, attack at night, blood mention, mentioned pet whumpees.

Mason locked the shop door behind him and pulled out his phone. Long day, with another long one ahead of him tomorrow. This one chick had come in with her pet to be retrained but it turned out it wasn’t even her pet, so now he had to contact the authorities and get it all straightened out.

He sighed and turned to leave. There wasn’t really anyone around this late, most headed home a couple hours ago. It was easier this way in his opinion, since he would miss most of the rush hour traffic. Sadly it meant that the stores were probably closed already, so he wouldn’t be able to get Rudy that new shampoo he meant to pick up.

Speaking of his pets, he flipped over to his camera app to check up on them. As he did so, he thought he heard a twig snap behind him. He paused and looked back.

No one there.

He shrugged and turned back to his phone, content to walk down the little path to his car. The camera was hooked up to a little treat dispenser that had a speaker in it, so he could talk to them. Rudy looked like he was asleep on the couch while Clyde was messing with one the toys he left out. He tabbed over to a different app, but before he could even open it something struck him from behind.

Mason fell forward, arms barely stopping his fall. His phone clattered a foot away, back panel popping off.

“What the-” a boot slammed into his shoulder blades keeping him pinned to the pavement. He grunted and rolled over. He could fight back, he was a big guy. Whatever this robbery-attack-whatever-it-was was about to go very wrong.

Another kick, this one to his face.

Mason’s head snapped to the side and he cried out. Everything was blurry, hard to focus. He tried to put his hands up to defend himself, but a sneaker heel ground them back.

More kicks to his side, his legs, his stomach. One knocked the wind out of him entirely and he gasped for air. There was a small pause and the man was able to roll onto his stomach again, trying to curl up to protect himself.

“Wait! Wait! I don’t, my, my wallet’s in the car! I don’t have anything! My phone broke!” He tried to sit up, tried to see who was attacking him.

All he saw was a flash of light hair and the sole of a shoe.

~

When the man collapsed down, bloody nosed and unconscious, the attacker stalked back towards the only other car in the parking lot. It was dark, secluded here. No one would see what happened, and Mason would be fine until he woke up. It was a safe neighborhood.

Charlie sat in his car and took a deep breath. Part of him was tempted to kick off his shoes and leave them here, to not track blood around, but he thought against it. Carefully, he pulled them off and put them in an empty plastic shopping back before he drove off.

After all, he really liked those shoes.