#❝ jem park » all ❞

[maximura]

[boyplushie]

instantly recognizable at the therapist's office due to my shitty parking swag

[swallows-are-for-hope]

Go watch Will & Harper. It's an honest, lovely documentary. I hope so many people see it.

[illustratinghan]

“There is never any need to worry, Mina mine,” said Jem. “Silly melon.”

jem took mina for a picnic in the park, but of course they got distracted by a book tessa had packed for them in the basket and forgot all about the jam sandwiches mina insisted on🙈

characters by @cassandraclare 🤍

[callmebrycelee]

9-1-1 REACTION

First of all, the this has to be the shadiest episode title ever. Second of all, did a little kid fly a plane in this episode? Sure did! Let’s get into it! This reaction is for the season 8, second episode “When the Boeing Gets Tough…” which originally aired October 3, 2024. This episode was written by Ted Griffin and Tim Minear (All hail the King!) and directed by Bradley Buecker. 

Wow! I don’t think I’ve been this riveted by 42 minutes of primetime television is a very long time. The second part of our 3-part season opener had more thrills than a Six Flags theme park. Last episode, hundreds of thousands of killer bees were unleashed on the city of Los Angeles. We then saw those bees form a bee-nado which caused a small plane to collide into a passenger jet carrying our beloved Athena. In this week’s episode, we pick up where we left off.  

Holding true to my promise in the last reaction, instead of doing a beat-by-beat recap, I will be highlighting what I bee-lieve (Sorry, couldn’t resist) to be the best plot, best emergency sequence, and episode MVP. We will also check in with the show’s hot new pairing in the BuckTommy Corner. So, without further ado, let’s chat about the episode. 

Best plot?

Okay, so there’s only one main plot this episode and that plot involves Athena Grant saving the day. We do have a mini plot involving the fallout from Gerrard’s almost getting taken out by a rogue saw blade, but the episode doesn’t spend too much time on that plot. I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of Captain Vincent Gerrard. Anywho, let’s talk about Athena.

Athena has been charged with escorting Dennis Jenkins (Glenn Plummer) back to Los Angeles. After avoiding some assassins in the previous episode, the two board a flight. It doesn’t take long for thing to go tits up and the plane immediately falls apart upon impact. Thus lies the shade. Now unless you’ve been living under a rock, the aerospace manufacturer has come under scrutiny recently due to two separate crashes that killed over 300 people. For Athena’s sake and all the other passengers, let’s hope that the only instance of Boeing in this episode is the title.

So, why is this particular plot the best of the episode? It’s because Angela Bassett gets to do what she does best. With both pilots out of commission – RIP Captain Dominguez (Cindy Chavez) – Athena has to fly the plane because of course she does. I love this show’s continuity when it comes to its side characters. We get to see the air traffic controllers from season 5’s “Panic”.  Athena is given instruction via phone on how to keep the plane in the air but thankfully she has some help from a kid named Jem (played by Carter Young). 

I was on the edge of my seat the entire episode. There was so much going on both in the air and on the ground. I really liked how the 118 were coaching the passengers on how to treat the wounded. I thought it was a nice way to bring Hen, Chimney, and Eddie into the episode. I also thought Athena was the funniest she’s ever been this episode albeit unintentionally so. As unbelievable as the whole mid-air collision is, I thought Angela Bassett did a great job of keeping things (pun intended) grounded. Her acting really sells some of the mor wackier moments of the episode.

We don’t get a resolution to this plot which isn’t entirely surprisingly considering this is part two of a 3-part episode event. I do wonder how Athena is going to land the plane. There’s only so much fuel left and there’s two giant holes in the plane. We are told that at any moment the plane could come apart. I feel very confident that the writers will stick the landing (pun intended) but I reckon I’ll have to wait until Thursday to find out.

Best emergency sequence?

As mentioned previously, we have quite a few injured people aboard the flight. The one that made me squirm the most was the girl who broke her leg. Dennis making a shiv out of a toothbrush was pretty funny. My favorite emergency is the one involving the passenger named Jordan (played by James Coker). During the initial crash, the oxygen masks drop down like they always do in the movies, however, Jordan’s mask broke which means he wasn’t able to use it. The woman sitting next to him, Tia (played by Bayley Corman) speaks to Hen on the ground who tells her Jordan is most likely suffering from high altitude pulmonary edema aka fluid in the lungs. 

Poor Tia has to crush up erectile dysfunction meds and mix them with water to create a makeshift nebulizer. Thankfully this works and Jordan starts to regain consciousness and gets a boner in the process. Shout out to Henrietta Wilson who is my runner-up for episode MVP. She is hands down the handiest and most intelligent character on the show. Presumably Jordan and Tia will get together because they have bonded over trauma and boners. Perhaps we’ll get a conclusion to their story in the next episode.

Episode MVP?

Athena, without a doubt, is this episode’s MVP which means she’s earned the title twice in two episodes. This episode was tailor-made for her. Athena is the person you want around in a crisis; however, I do worry about all of the trauma she’s collecting like Pokémon over the series. We see her deliver the eulogy at Emmett’s funeral. We also see her jump into the cockpit of a commercial jet without little to no regard for her own well-being. I’m honestly afraid that after this ordeal, Athena will be afraid to fly or get on a boat. We literally saw her face her worst nightmare last season and now a plane crash. Much like with Buck and Chimney, I need the writers to leave Athena alone for a while. Give her some easy work to do like write traffic tickets or something. The poor woman has been through it! Even badasses need a break.

BuckTommy Corner

We only got one half of our pairing this episode but that’s fine with me. I know Tommy will be back at some point. With that said, I imagine Tommy would’ve handled the situation with Buck and Gerrard a lot better than Eddie did this episode. Now look, I like Eddie. He’s a compelling character without a doubt. I love his backstory, and I enjoy any time we see him interacting with his family. However, after last season, I’m a bit frustrated with the guy and how he is going about things. I’m just gonna put it out there and I know the diehard Eddie and B*ddie fans will crucify me for saying this. Buck is a far better friend to Eddie than Eddie is to him and this episode proves my point. Much like Athena, Buck, too, was a bit traumatized this episode. He almost watched his interim captain get sliced in half and thankfully he was there to stop it from happening. At the end of the day, Vincent Gerrard is a villain, one of the best we’ve gotten on this series, but he’s also a human and Buck seems to be the only one who recognizes his humanity. Buck was clearly distraught by what happened, and he was really looking for his friend to provide some sort of comfort. The only response he got form Eddie was some tired old dance moves. 

As much grief as a very vocal part of the 9-1-1 fandom likes to give Tommy, I do think he would’ve handled the situation a lot better than Eddie did. Tommy has proven himself to be highly emotionally intelligent. In fact, one could argue that he is one of the most emotionally intelligent characters we’ve gotten on the show with Bobby edging him out for first place. We’ve seen Tommy ask Buck how he is feeling on many occasions. When they shared their first kiss last season, Tommy immediately checked in on Buck to see how he felt about the whole situation. He also recognized that Buck wasn’t in the emotional headspace to entertain a relationship with him and gave him space to figure things out. Tommy is a thoughtful human being, and I imagine that when all is said and done, he (or Bobby) will be the person Buck runs to for the comfort he is so clearly needing post Gerrard almost getting killed. 

Well, that’s my reaction! This episode was awesome. I think it’ll be regarded as one of the series’ best disaster episodes. I don’t think anything could ever top the tsunami saga, but this episode will be up there. Next week we get the conclusion to our three-part season 8 opener. Will we get to see the bees again? Will Athena be able to land the plane? Will Bobby become captain again. I reckon we’ll have to wait to see. Until next time …

[earlycuntsets]

pt. 3 (parts 1, 2, 4)

earlycuntsets.org sourced - where I got all my mcr pictures

first of a series. due to tumblr limits on how many links you can post. this full idea will be continued on future posts. here is 2007-2010. this is pictures. will make a separate post for youtube/recordings.

been needing to fully source my website so here we go! wanted to share with other kool mcr fans.

old fansites/website appearances:

12/17/2010 the night 87x stole christmas detroit mi - ken settle & schwegweb.com (ken settle)

12/18/2020 the edge jingle bell rock toronto ca - popmatters (mcrmy ecuador) & aux.tv

02/13/2011 birmingham uk -blackvelvetmagazine

03/05/2011 barcelona spain - in headphones (mcrmy ecuador)

04/09/2011 denver co - reverb (mcrmy ecuador)

04/12/2011 minneapolis mn - citypages (mcrmy ecuador)

04/15/2011 chicago il - chicago now (mcrmy ecuador) & j.l. hopper

04/17/2011 cleveland oh - radio 92.3 (mcrmy ecuador)

04/23/2011 nyc ny - QRO magazine

05/07/2011 sayreville nj - thenjunderground

05/15/2011 bbc r1 big weekend carlisle uk - country grind slideshow

05/18/2011 orlando fl - ishotyourband.com & jencray.com

05/21/2011 & 05/22/2011 dallas tx - blackvelvetmagazine

05/28/2011 la ca - theaudioperv & sarah dope (deviantart)

07/10/2011 live at t in the park balado uk - thisfakediy

09/01/2011 auburn wa - suzi pratt

flickrs:

12/12/2010 101 rex the halls san diego ca - natalie, brittney denaux,

12/14/2010 st louis mo - todd owyoung, kingdead, todd morgan, jane bush,

12/15/2010 chicago il - ashley osborn, famousliving.dead, liz kannenburg, danigio,

12/18/2010 the edge jingle bell rock toronto ca- megan shauna

12/31/2010 carson daley nye - alexis siracusano

02/12/2011 london uk - lucy roth & emma webb

02/16/2011 dublin ireland - ian keegan

02/18/2011 manchester uk - michelle heighway, kay elliot, frankie cooksie, helena hurricane

02/19/2011 nottingham uk - simplificity

2/21/2011 cardiff uk - holly jenkins

02/22/2011 newcastle uk - sinead granger

02/24/2011 london uk - lucy roth (planetary go mv show)

02/26/2011 tilberg netherlands - rene sebastian

03/01/2011 paris france - jem & dianthallr

03/05/2011 barcelona spain - ruben navarro, elsa nieto, javier bragado domingo

03/07/2011 milano italy - rodolfo sassano, emanuela silm rillo,

03/12/2011 mtv winter valencia spain - laura s.c., ana barettino, grace dirnt, jose fernandez,

03/18/2011 stockholm sweden - victor lundmark

03/31/2011 oakland ca - scernea

04/02/2011 vancouver ca - ashley tanasiychuk, anil sharma,

04/03/2011 seattle wa - ciera walters

04/08/2011 salt lake city ut - sparkk&fade & alex young

04/09/2011 denver co - michael fajardo

04/11/2011 toronta ca - tony felgueiras

04/13/2011 milwaukee wi - echolalia

04/15/2011 chicago il - amelia l, danigio

04/16/2011 grand rapids me - stephanie weier

4/22/2011 nyc nc - brittany vero

04/23/2011 nyc ny - brittany vero, amy winkler, ludovica ciccarelli, tyler olson, robert polanco

05/07/2011 sayreville nj - future daydream

05/15/2011 holmdel nj - michael dubin

05/10/2011 washington dc - specimenlife, kell

05/15/2011 bbc r1 big weekend carlisle uk - chealsea cochrane, sabrina lr,

05/17/2011 ft lauderdale fl - maysa askar & marc schiller

05/21/2011 dallas tx - thunderkiss

06/24/2011 dcode festival madrid spain - juan rodriguez talavera, juan perez- fajardo, patygelduck

06/26/2011 imola italy - giacomo astorri,

06/27/2011 vienna austria - jeremy kruezmayr & steph fiorese

06/29/2011 volt festival sonpron hungary - zalaihirlap (mcrmy ecuador)

07/07/2011 oeiras portugal - palco principal

07/27/2011 vienna austria - inkbotkowalski

08/13/2011 hershey pa - alicia brown

instagram:

05/05/2011 boston ma - rich g

looks like there will be a part four to complete the timeline. damn the link limits

part 4 here

[fabseg-creator]

This is a Lilanette/Cerisette wip.

I planify this draft for the @mlbfemslashfebruary event. I will color that in next weeks.

In this draft, Lila/Cerise and Marinette play rock music together. Lila/Cerise plays electric guitar and Marinette plays keyboard. And they make an illegal concert. In this AU, the Supreme from the Re-Verse has forbidden the music. The latter's logo gets vandalized.

About their fashion styles, I am based on Heavy Metal. The two girls remind me of JEM, A Star Is Born, Lady Gaga and some Rock Bands (Europe, The Who, Guns N'Roses, Aerosmith, AC/DC, Nirvana, Twisted Sister).

Lila/Cerise's hair is a wig with a sky-blue dye. Marinette is just Emonette-Shadybug.

Marinette is the Ladybug and Cerise is the new Hesperia for this concept.

In this AU, there is a band called Kitty Resistance (the Kitty Section counterpart). The two girls collaborate with this band.

Bonus (Cerise breaks her guitar):

Bonus/The Cerisette playlist be like:

Extended list:

AC/DC - Highway To Hell

Guns N'Roses - You Could Be Mine

Evanescence - Bring Me To Life

Zedd ft. Ariana Grande - Break Free

Bon Jovi - It's My Life

Linkin Park - Numb

Pink Floyd - Another Brick In The Wall

Bella Ciao

Motley Crue - Kickstart My Heart

Queen - I Want It All; The Show Must Go On; I Want To Break Free

The Police - So Lonely; Every Breath You Take

Coldplay - A Sky Full Of Stars; My Universe (ft. BTS)

Van Halen - Panama

Kiss - I was Made For Loving You

[blueboyluca]

Some updates:

We are house/dog sitting for the next 10 weeks. Topaz has adjusted to the new place surprisingly well. Luca has lived here before so he's doing OK. Marceline is feeling a bit anxious, barking a lot and very needy. Hopefully she will get more comfortable as time goes on.

Topaz started her new Life Skills class last weekend with four other dogs. She did really well, was in a great mood and happy to wander around and sniff. She only spooked at one of the other dogs once, and was able to re-engage with me quickly. She has four more classes to go, I'm hoping as the Prozac starts working she will improve even more.

Topaz also started remedial socialisation with children yesterday. She walked with my niece in the stroller and had no reactions at all. To be fair, I don't think she really paid any attention to my niece at all since she was contained in the stroller, but still a good first walk. Next week we will try with my niece on the ground (from a distance).

Marceline went to agility training this week after being in season. She ran four times for me, which was nice. We practiced a threadle, which I don't usually do. I'm hoping she will be keen for the Games trial in a couple of weeks. I will sign her up for Gamblers and Snooker.

The dogs all get on very well together and I can walk Topaz with either Marcie or Jem. Luca also does well with Jem, so we have more combination options for walks. Marcie and Jem basically get on with everyone.

I took Scout and Topaz to the park just the two of them the other morning, but Scout completely ignored us. She is only interested in sniffing and rolling around, and does not listen or recall anymore, you just have to catch her. Privileges of being the oldest dog, she'll be 13 in July. (She's also the oldest dog in the family so far, I think. Jessie died at about 12, Ruby at 11, Stella disappeared at 10, Bicky died prematurely at 7, and Jinx made it to 12.)

[cetaitlaverite]

Why All This Music?

Masters of the Air - Rosie Rosenthal x OC

please read chapter 41 before this!!! i've posted two updates today and this is the second. i repeat, please read chapter 41 first!! masterlist is linked here <3

42. Epilogue

The evening was chilly, the laughter was warm, and Freddie was laughing just as much because she was amused as because she was happy.

Millie and Brady had had a beautiful wedding day. The late September sun had held out for them and the rain had stayed in the clouds. Millie had only been running a little bit late to the ceremony after she had had a mental breakdown over her makeup - Freddie, with her years of experience doing makeup on Millie during their war years, had been right there to fix it at the first sign of tears.

Jem and Paddy just hadn’t been able to afford making the trip over, not with how the British economy was still suffering in the wake of the war, but Freddie had read aloud their letter to Millie before they’d started getting ready. They were there in spirit.

Many of Brady’s fellow airmen had made it in person, however - Rosie, for starters, since his wife was the maid of honour, along with Benny, who had been delighted to see Meatball dressed up in a bowtie for the occasion, and Croz, Bucky, Buck, Blakely, and Douglass to name but a few.

Millie and Brady both could not have been more made up about it.

They held the wedding reception in a hotel close to the church, so that everyone who had made the journey didn’t have to travel far to get to bed after a night of revelry. As such, there had been no excuse not to get blindingly drunk.

Freddie had her chin resting on Rosie’s shoulder as they danced slowly to the love song playing on the gramophone. She was giggling as she watched Bucky fight with Buck about whether or not he should sing over the top of the next song. Every so often Rosie would press a gentle kiss to her temple and that made her giggle, too.

After a while, when Buck had used a firm hand on Bucky’s chest to push him into a chair and prevent him from singing, Freddie lifted her head and pecked Rosie’s cheek softly. She waited for him to look down at her and smiled, gazing up into his eyes. “I never thought I’d say it, but I’ll miss America while we’re gone.”

Rosie smiled. “It’s got something to it, huh?”

“Yes,” Freddie agreed with a quiet laugh, “I see now why you were so keen.”

They’d spent such a beautiful few months in New York, going for late night strolls to get ice cream and seeing as many films in the cinema as they could be bothered to, taking Meatball for walks in the city’s many different parks and going to watch Broadway shows. They hadn’t ever managed to find a home to settle in permanently, not before they’d decided they still had unfinished business back in Europe, but Rosie’s apartment had suited them just fine up to now.

“I’m going to find it so impossibly difficult to be away from you,” Freddie confessed softly, sadly. “Ever since we first met we’ve never been apart for more than a month.”

Rosie nodded, his eyes similarly sad. “I know. But we’ll visit often.”

“And we’ll call everyday,” she added.

“Right,” Rosie confirmed. “And then there’s the honeymoon to look forward to…”

Freddie’s eyes glinted. “Paris and then Vienna, if I recall correctly.”

Rosie laughed, rolling his eyes affectionately. “Whatever my princess wants.”

Freddie pushed up onto her toes to kiss him firmly on the lips. “You’ll love Vienna,” she promised him.

Rosie grinned. “I got no doubts about that.”

“And isn’t Paris the city of lovers?”

“City of lights, I heard.”

Freddie shrugged. “Well, Paris is romantic, anyway. Since we’ll both be in Europe it would be rude of us not to visit on our honeymoon.”

“Exactly,” Rosie agreed, just to appease her.

Millie stole Freddie away a little while later to help her go to the bathroom in her wedding dress, and the two of them giggled the entire time because they just could not get the hang of holding the long skirt and train of Millie’s dress out of the way in spite of the fact they’d been doing it all day.

Once Millie was finished and they were both washing their hands in the sink, still giggling, Millie turned to Freddie with a bright smile. “Oh, Fred,” she said, turning off her tap and reaching for a paper towel, “do you have to go back to Oxford?”

“Only for two years,” Freddie reminded Millie.

“That is such a long time!” Millie complained.

Freddie laughed, shutting off her own tap and reaching past Millie for a paper towel to dry her hands with. “There’s nothing here for me while Rosie’s in Germany, Mils. He’ll be over there for a year, so it only makes sense that I go and make good use of his time away to finish my degree. By the time he’s finished - October next year, his company predicts - I’ll only have seven months left of my degree. It just makes sense for me to finish my degree where I started it and whilst Rosie’s over there, because we want to start having babies when we come back to New York and I don’t want to be juggling motherhood around university.”

Millie sighed loudly, with a big heave of her shoulders. She had no choice but to accept that it made sense.

“But what if John and I start having babies while you’re over there,” she said with a pouty bottom lip. “I don’t want my kids being born not knowing their Auntie Fred.”

“Then hold off for a little while,” Freddie replied with a laugh. “Then your babies and my babies can be best friends just like we are.”

Millie rolled her eyes, giggles spilling from her lips, and wrapped Freddie up in a hug. “Say hi to Jem for me, won’t you?” she asked softly, holding on tight. “Send her my love and tell her I miss listening to her whiny little voice everyday.”

Freddie laughed and squeezed her. “I will. You know I will.”

“And take lots of pictures,” Millie added. “I want one of you and Rosie in front of the Eiffel Tower.”

Freddie grinned, pulling out of the hug to smooth some loose hairs away from Millie’s face. “Done. Anything else you’d like me to bring back?”

“Some sort of souvenir,” Millie decided. “I don’t care what, just something Parisian.”

Freddie laughed. “Okay, I promise to bring you back a Parisian souvenir and a photograph of me and Rosie with the Eiffel Tower.”

“Good,” Millie declared. She tossed her paper towel and Freddie’s into the bin and linked their elbows together. “Now, I have a husband to dance with and a wedding night to enjoy. What time do you leave in the morning?”

“Ten,” Freddie said. “I’ll find you before we go to bed tonight to say goodbye, since I don’t imagine you and Brady will be awake before then.”

Millie shot her a giddy smile. “Well, you’ve had two wedding nights of your own by now, Fred, you know how it goes.”

It was so incredibly strange to be back in Oxford, and without Rosie by her side at that, but Freddie couldn’t have been more pleased to be reunited with her parents and her dogs. She spent days which felt strikingly, hauntingly similar to those before the war in playing with her dogs and helping her mother with dinner and practising her piano, all in between her classes at university. She made the trip to meet Rosie in Nuremberg as soon as the Christmas holidays arrived and he came back to Oxford with her, remaining until the Trials picked back up again in January.

They visited each other as often as they could, splitting their lives as evenly as possible between Oxford and Nuremberg, until the Nuremberg Trials ended. The Nazi higher ups prosecuted and condemned, Rosie and Freddie moved into a flat together with Meatball in Oxford while Freddie finished her degree.

And then, the evening of Freddie’s university graduation, he whisked the both of them off to Paris and then Vienna where, more in love than ever, they finally got their honeymoon.

Freddie, Rosie, and Meatball returned to New York City in the August of 1947. Freddie was seven months pregnant. Rosie’s mother had already found a house for them, complete with a garden full of flowers, and Rosie laid down the deposit as soon as they saw it for the first time. He filled their living room with a beautiful grand piano and their bedroom with a king size bed, and they welcomed their first baby girl into the world a month and a half later.

As Freddie sat in the hospital bed, wet with sweat, red in the face, breathing deeply and in pain, Rosie couldn’t stop kissing her. Her face, her hair, her hands and arms, he pressed kiss after kiss to every inch of her he could reach, whispering to her all the while about how proud he was of her and how grateful, and how beautiful their daughter was.

The tiny little creature perched in Freddie’s arms had her father’s bright blue eyes and her mother’s dimples. As Rosie held out his pointer finger and she wrapped her entire tiny hand around it, Freddie and Rosie exchanged infatuated smiles.

Little Ophelia Rosenthal was, to her parents, the brightest star in the sky. They spent many an hour sitting together on the rocking chair they pulled up beside her crib, watching her sleep. There were many nights when she would cry and Rosie would take her into the living room and play jazz music on a low volume, dancing with her until she settled. There were many days when he would come home from work to find mother and daughter sound asleep on the sofa, Ophelia still latched on after feeding.

And when little Ophelia was two years old she was joined by a little sister, and Freddie and Rosie were no less infatuated by her. A less boisterous and calmer personality than her older sister, Vienna Rosenthal bore the name of the city which had raised her mother and fell in love with the music her mother loved, too. She started piano lessons as soon as she was old enough and her parents couldn’t have been prouder.

Their final little girl was born when Vienna was three and Ophelia was five. Delilah Rosenthal was given a Hebrew name in homage to her Jewish heritage and, fittingly, she was obsessed with her father. While Ophelia was a free spirit and Vienna had always been attached to Freddie, Rosie found his companion in his youngest daughter and revelled in teaching her to love the music he did.

Freddie and Rosie decided to stop at three. They had their hands full, especially when the girls were young. Between piano lessons and dance classes, fights over princess costumes and insistence that one sister had more ice cream in her bowl than the others, it didn’t seem like such a good idea to bring any more little Rosenthals into the world.

“I can’t believe how fast they’re growing up,” Rosie said as he stood by the garden fence, watching his eldest daughter celebrate her thirteenth birthday with her friends. His arms were wrapped around Freddie, his chin on her shoulder as he leaned down to speak into her ear. “Seems like only a week ago you were refusing to dance with me.”

Freddie barked a laugh, turning her head to press a kiss to Rosie’s temple and then resting her head against his. “Seems like only a week ago we were sneaking into the back of your plane to mess around,” she countered quietly.

Rosie grinned. “I love the life we’ve created, but I miss those days sometimes.”

Freddie smiled, shutting her eyes as she recalled life at RAF Thorpe Abbotts during the war, when she’d been a wireless operator and Rosie had been a pilot and life had never been more difficult. “Me too,” she whispered back. “Though I do love not having to worry someone’s going to come and find me to tell me you’re dead every time you leave the house.”

Rosie rolled his eyes affectionately and turned to nuzzle his nose into Freddie’s. “You’re never letting that one go, huh?”

Freddie grinned, scrunching her nose where it was tucked up beside his. “Not a chance.”

Late that night, when the festivities were over and everyone had gone home and the remaining Rosenthals had all eaten enough birthday cake to make up for the entirety of the sugar rationing in England during the war, Freddie and Rosie sat snuggled up together in bed. Rosie had his back leaning against the headboard while Freddie had her back leaning against Rosie’s chest, sitting between his legs so she could read the book he was holding up in her head at the same time as he read it softly aloud to her.

When he got to the end of the chapter he yawned and shut the book, replacing the bookmark in it and setting it on the bedside table. But Freddie, contrary to their routine, didn’t climb out of his lap to lie down beside him just yet. Instead, she turned to face him.

“I’ve got something to tell you,” she informed him with a shy smile on her lips.

Rosie’s eyes got caught, for a moment, on the dimples in her cheeks, the glint in her eyes. He’d fallen in love with that smile of hers every day since he’d met her, but right now he was thrust back into the moment he’d first properly laid eyes on her, when she’d turned to him as he’d stood behind her, holding out a glass of lemonade in offering like an idiot. He couldn’t understand how he’d gotten so lucky. The life she’d given him was more than anything he had been able to imagine for himself before he’d met her. She was the reason behind all the best parts of his life. He’d known almost as soon as he’d seen her that she was the one for him and he knew it now with so much certainty his heart all but beat out of his chest, as though it wanted to land in its rightful place in her hands.

“What is it?” Rosie asked softly. He lifted a hand to cup her cheek and smiled when she nuzzled into it, shifting closer to him between his legs.

“I’m pregnant,” she confessed, her eyes flitting all over his face as she studied his reaction.

Rosie wasn’t sure what his face was showing, but his heart lurched. “Again?” he asked.

Freddie nodded.

Slowly, warily, a wide smile began to spread across his lips. “You serious?”

Again, she nodded. She was smiling back at him now. “I’ve been feeling sick the last few days but just wrote it off as a bug. But this is the second period I’ve missed now. Usually, I'm as regular as clockwork.”

Rosie’s eyes lit up. His smile was only getting wider. “You’re pregnant?”

“I am,” Freddie agreed, giggling softly at the look on his face.

“We’re having another baby?”

“We are!” Freddie exclaimed as quietly as she was able. “I realised this morning but I didn’t want to ruin Phelia’s birthday. Thought I’d wait to get you alone.”

“My beautiful, beautiful wife,” Rosie breathed, reaching up to cup her other cheek in his hand and pressing his lips first to her forehead, then to her nose, and finally to her lips. “You’re the most magical thing that ever happened to me, you know that?”

Freddie smiled softly, fondly, and leaned forward to kiss his lips right back. “I know it.”

Rosie was grinning. “What’re the chances we have another daughter?” he asked.

“High, I’d say,” Freddie replied with a laugh. “But I’d really love a little boy.”

Nine months later, Laurence Rosenthal, or Laurie, as his family called him, entered the world with fists clenched, wide eyes taking in everything around him before coming to settle on his parents.

So Freddie and Rosie fell in love one final time and filled their home with one more person. With four children, two adults, and a dog, they were content that their work was now well and truly finished.

With days filled with laughter and music and hugs, kisses pressed to all available patches of skin and friends constantly making the trek to visit, Freddie could find nothing at all to regret about her life. It had been hard at times, and she often looked back on her younger years and resented the sorrow of her early twenties, but how could she ever have set a foot wrong when she had ended up here?

No, Freddie Rosenthal would not have changed a single thing about her life. The war had taken a lot of things from her but not nearly as many as it had given her. But as old as she got, as many children as she had or dogs she loved and lost, she always remained that wireless operator at Thorpe Abbotts airfield at heart, who had asked for lemonade instead of beer and stumbled into a man who would give her everything in the process. Because love didn’t have to be painful, as it had been in her experience. Sometimes, it could be kind. Sometimes it could be all-encompassing and still end in joy instead of tragedy. Sometimes it could end with a garden filled with flowers and a piano in the living room, a king size bed in the bedroom and a fresh bouquet of flowers everyday, evenings spent dancing and mornings spent wrapped up in sheets. Smiles and love and laughter.

Yes, sometimes, it could end like this.

[djarins-cyare]

Hi, Jem! Sending you a Secret Springs postcard from beneath the stars! It's beautiful, but my time with this caravan is almost up and I must pass it along to a friend to take on a new adventure... my gut tells me the next lucky recipient is you!

Something exciting to know about this camper: it can teleport! You can take it anywhere on Earth, no worries about fuel, landing permits, which side of the road you'll have to drive on, whether it will fit into a parking space in a city, etc. — we're talking about a magic vehicle here!

Assuming our lovely Mayor El is able to find a replacement childminder for all those summer campers (I'll ready up the brib—I mean, I'll speak to her very respectfully and offer to help out in his stead), where do you think you might like to take Din to see and why?

🌸 M @toomanytookas

Hi M! Thanks for the postcard , and sorry it’s taken me — holy crap — almost 3 weeks to respond 😭 But my tardy reply is because I’ve been spending a wonderful few weeks with Din in the magical teleporting caravan!

Since Din isn’t from Earth, and since our camper could actually teleport, he asked me to take him to places unique to Earth so he could experience the best of the planet. It was a tall order given we’re a planet of diverse cultures and climes, but after much discussion, we took the magical teleporting caravan to see the Seven Wonders of the World!

We started with Petra in Jordan, and after I told him it was in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, we ended up watching it that evening.

Then we visited the Great Wall of China, but Din didn’t get my jokes about Pero Tovar, so that night’s movie was The Great Wall (he liked the character!).

On to the Colosseum in Italy we went, and we watched Gladiator that evening (I showed him the trailer for the second movie and he’s keen to see it!).

Next was Chichén Itzá in Mexico, and we had a romantic night in watching Against All Odds (abandoned it halfway through following a *ahem* particular scene, as we had other things on our minds 😏).

We then followed that up with a trip to Machu Picchu in Peru, and later experienced some cinematic history by watching The Secret of the Incas. The llama did not join us.

After that, we went to the Taj Mahal in India, and Din was fascinated why someone would build such a lavish mausoleum, so we watched Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story, and held hands all the way through 🥹.

Our last stop was the most modern Wonder, Christ the Redeemer in Brazil, and by this point I was running out of films featuring the Wonders, so we ended our trip with some Disney watching Rio, which features the famous monument but is also a fitting tribute to the urge to discover the world 💖

All in all, we had a fantastic time! Thanks for sending the magical camper our way, and I hope you had an equally amazing vacation in it! ✨

[airandangels]

My nieces are watching my Jem DVDs, they’re up to “The Rock Fashion Book,” and I still LOVE “Off and Runnin’” so much.

Reasons:

The Misfits’ total confidence that they can match or excel a professionally designed and shot photobook by taking photos themselves, at an amusement park full of people who don’t know what they’re doing, and I know this is most likely a practical limitation of what could be asked of the animators but they each have only one outfit.

That this is happening because Pizzazz found the professional photographer they’d hired annoying and threw him off her private beach

That Stormer wants to kiss the teddy bear and Pizzazz snatches it off her out of sheer meanness (but also Stormer why)

The whole SONG, absolutely one of their best - I always love the Misfits’ songs that are simply about brazen self-confidence (like “Universal Appeal” and “I Am a Giant”)

“We may have our ups and downs, but we’re still better than the rest of the clowns” - the Misfits acknowledge being clowns, but superior clowns

The rollercoaster track shots! The movement and complexity! It’s so cool!

(My nephew is now doing the Robot to “Who Is She Anyway?”)

I mean it scarcely needs to be said but they all look really hot

The spent “hahhh” sigh at the end

[bookishjules]

🎱 ⇢ post your AO3 total stats 

🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

🥐 ⇢ name one internet reference that will always make you laugh 

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

<3

🎱 ⇢ post your AO3 total stats 

🛼 ⇢ describe your latest wip with five emojis

hmm 🤴🏻🔃⛺🤫💕

🥑 ⇢ you accidentally killed somebody, which mutual(s) do you text for help?

lena @ann-perkins4 . does she count as a mutual? idk she'd definitely be the first and possibly only call. second .. might actually be nero @potato-jem bc ik they can keep a secret and keep a cool enough head in the situation. also idk.. i feel like they'd have some good instincts. also australia is very far from the us, which has benefits. okay actually i'm adding marissa @dontdoitfrancis bc she can get to me in an hour and also idk her favorite book literally starts with covering up a death so... i'm trusting my scorpio bestie here.

🧃 ⇢ share some personal lore you never posted about before

have i talked before about the trauma nurse that came to our school in 6th grade (age 11) and the assembly we had where she showed us videos of what could happen if you don't wear your helmet, or if even one person is unbuckled in a car? yeah turns out everyone dies. needless to say the bus ride home was torture. i cried the whole time and then immediately put a helmet on when i got home and refused to take it off the rest of the night. and still to this day i refuse to put my car out of park unless everyone in it is firmly buckled in. and every time an uber driver tries to be efficient and starts driving away before i've even found the seatbelt, my anxiety starts spiking so high. forever thankful that my mom did not make me go to school when the same assembly came around the next year.

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

i made a friend at my new job. i'm going to oregon and seeing my whole family next weekend. bc of my new job i have a free gym membership and i'm finally starting to try and get back in shape <3

🔪 ⇢ what's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

genuinely i would not remember. i am constantly googling anyway, so nothing really feels weird to me to look up, and i kinda tend to avoid writing anything that would require heavy research tbh 🙈

🥐 ⇢ name one internet reference that will always make you laugh 

just one? look at all those chickens!! (used to refer to literally anything)

🐝 ⇢ tag your biggest supporter(s) and say one nice thing about them

okay i could tag so many people but i really want to shout out @thephonyqueenofengland who i think has read and commented on more of my fics than probably anyone outside of my close mutuals. every time i see a notif from them i smile, and their sweet comments during my 12 days of christmas thing were so encouraging and really made the whole thing feel like it was worth it. <33 (i've been wanting to say something to you awhile. to thank you. but i didn't know how, so here is an official thank you for being you <3)

writing truth & dare ask game >:)

[khaleesiofalicante]

“It’s my dad!” Max grins widely, still hanging upside down. “And some other guy.”

Don’t cry.

Don’t cry.

Don’t cry.

“Of course. Of course. We don’t want the good people of New York thinking you are a negligent father,” Max nods seriously and then side-eyes Magnus. “But then again, next to this one, you look like the father of the year.

He sees Rafael’s bike parked outside.

No. No.

Magnus runs inside.

“That’s right!” he hears Max yell after him. “Run to your precious golden boy!”

“You don’t get to fucking tell me what to do,” Max shakes his head. “You are not my father.”

“Max. Please,” Rafael says softly. “You don’t want bapak to get hurt again, right? Please. Please. Stop. Bapak doesn’t deserve this. I know it hurts. But stop. Please.”

“You sure you’re straight, Rafe?” Max snorts. “You’re sucking his dick pretty hard right now.”

“Max!” Alec yells. “Stop it. Magnus has-”

"The two of you are fucking pathetic," Max snorts. "Magnus this. Bapak that. Have some fucking self-esteem."

Rafael moves forward. But Alec pulls him back by the arm.

"Don't," Alec tells their oldest and then looks at Max. "One more word out of you and-"

"And what?" Max crosses his arms.

"Max," Magnus intervenes. "If you are mad at me, just be mad at me. Don't take it out on Alec and Rafael."

"You can't help it, can you?" Max asks with a grin. "You always have to tell people what to do. Because you think you're better than the rest of you. Guess what, bapak? You are the weak link in this family."

“That’s what I thought,” Max laughs out loud. “Leave. That’s all you know. Leave. You fucking coward.”

“And what you did today?” Magnus shakes his head. “I’ve never been disappointed in you.”

He thinks of the billboard again.

His face.

The words ‘Go Kill Yourself’ written across his eyes.

Magnus swallows.

“Do you have no idea what could have happened if the wrong person had seen the message at the wrong time?” Magnus asks hoarsely. “Do you have no idea how much it hurt me to see my son act like this?”

“Yeah. Maybe it’s just you,” Max chuckles. “Maybe it’s a good thing. Because now dad can be with someone who actually fucking loves him.”

Rafael slips into the couch and buries his face in his hands.

Okay. I'm done. I've been with Rafe since the first time I read this fic. Max is very selfish.

And I really tried (both times I read this fic), but I just can't take it anymore. I tried to ignore all your horrible and unfortunate comments in both timelines but I have again reached my limit in the same chapter in which I reached my limit last time.

Reminds me of my little brother. They live in their own world and with their own pain. And people have to be able to live through their pain and that is their right, but that doesn't mean they have the right to everything. He closes himself in his pain and doesn't care how bad others have it. You could be suffering and not make it harder for others.

I really try to be understanding with Max but he pokes and pokes and pokes until he makes you explode. What he does is not right. And they spoil him for it, and so he will never learn

It reminds me of that scene with Tessa and Jem where they are talking about Will and she wonders what good they are doing to Will if they always forgive him for everything he says or does.

I'm glad that Magnus was able to set his limit to stop Max from continuing to advance, because we don't know if he would have stopped. Sometimes children also behave toxically towards their parents.

I don't think Max is the devil por being selfish, i want to be clear. I don't hate him, i dont have 15 years old. I understand this is complicated. But we have to admit that he has a selfishness problem that he must learn to deal with. That doesn’t make him a bad person, but hus selfishness makes him doing bad things and he should know where is the line, not waiting to others to draw it

And Magnus was absolutely right to make him think about what would have happened if someone read that sign at the wrong time. How he doesn't think about how things affect others. How Max doesn't think. It's a horrible thing to say, regardless of whether he went against his bapak. Someone else could have read it, and seen it as a sign

Also, poor Rafael. I get it so much, the more Max talked, the more Rafe became afraid that Max would end up triggering Magnus. And as a person who ends up imagining the worst in stressful situations, I know what must have been going through Rafe's head at that moment

I think it's spot on and this was the whole point.

This was Max's struggle in tlnd. His arc, if you will. Everyone had their own kind of 'toxic' habit to overcome whether it was Magnus letting people walk all over him and keep sacrificing himself for love, whether it was Alec's stubbornness to fix things and just keep trying even if it makes things worse, Rafael's inability to set boundaries and Max's selfishness.

The story wouldn't work, let's say, if Max had Arthur's personality. He had to be who he is for the story to move. But I had to be careful because this version of Max can't only exist in tlnd. So, you do see this reckleness and selfishness in other fics, but manifesting in different ways and impacting him and others around him in different ways.

It's very hard to read, especially if you relate to Rafael a lot, but it was incredible to write :)

[crystalninjaphoenix]

A Stranger of Yourself

Switch AU

A JSE Fanfic

A shorter chapter this week, and posted one day early so it won't conflict with the special October event I'm starting tomorrow (hope to see you guys there for that by the way! ^w^). I'll keep the summary short too. Schneep contacts the others and says he has stuff he wants to tell them about. After everyone meets up, he returns to his room and finds an unexpected visitor there. Hmmm...

More of This AU | | First Chapter | Previous Chapter

Breakfast in the house was silent. Marvin and JJ ate quietly, both of them still thinking about what happened at the hospital yesterday. The only sound was Mr. Fluffington occasionally meowing for attention. That was, until Marvin’s phone started ringing. “Ah, damn it,” he muttered, taking it out of his pocket. “Who could be callin’ at—oh.”

JJ put his cereal spoon down. Who is it?

“It’s Henrik.” Marvin hesitated. “Do I... pick it up?”

Of course you do! JJ said. We’ve been waiting for a call from him!

“I know, but—ah, I don’ know what I’m sayin’,” Marvin answered the call right before it went to voicemail. “Hey, Henrik. You’re on speakerphone so Jems can hear you. Is... is everyt’ing alrigh’?”

“More or less.” Schneep’s voice was quiet. “Ah, Jack called me yesterday. He told me what happened at the hospital.”

“...ah.” Marvin looked at JJ, whose expression was grim. “Yes. T’at. It was... a bit upsetting.”

“Upsetting?” Schneep asked. “But did you not figure out how we might—might revive Anti?”

“Don’ use t’at word, it sounds like he’s dead,” Marvin muttered. “But if you’re referring to how Distorter was distracted, yes, t’ere was t’at, but... ah... I-I wasn’ in the room, but Jems’ says Will’s reaction was... a lot.” JJ nodded silently.

“Oh. O-of course. Yes, that would be... emotional.” Schneep cleared his throat. “But, ah, I-I think we should try a meeting again. So we can discuss information.”

“Really?” Marvin noticed JJ lean forward, closer to the phone. “Do you want it to be jus’ me and Jems, or everyone?”

“Everyone who can come. E-everyone who is involved now. We can do it at the same park where we tried last time. What time would work?”

Marvin looked at JJ. “Do you have any plans for the next couple days?”

JJ shook his head. I’m in between shows. Some of my people are actually asking when we can start up again but I can’t right now. Not with everything.

“T’at’s understandable. I don’ t’ink Jack has anything, so we jus’ need to ask Rama and Stacy.”

Rama will have to get a babysitter so it’ll be up to them.

“Hmm. True. Volt, we’re goin’ t’call everyone and get things in order. T’en we’ll call you back with the time, okay?”

A moment passed in silence. “Yes,” Schneep said quietly. “Yes, but... but please try to get a solid time soon. I-I don’t want to... start being worried.” Before he could explain that, he hung up.

“Start bein’ worried?” Marvin repeated, confused.

He’s probably nervous to be calling a meeting, JJ guessed. After all, the last one left us with a lot of questions. He rolled his shoulder—the one that Schneep had shocked with his bare hands just a couple days ago.

“T’at’s probably my fault,” Marvin mumbled. “I was too eager to try out the invisibility. M-maybe I shoul’ leave the cards at home altogether.”

JJ shook his head. You don’t seem too happy about that idea, he said, a small, amused smile on his face.

“I’m not. I—T’is probably makes no sense, but I don’ want t’lose them again.” Even now, his hand drifted down to his pocket where he kept the deck of cards.

No, that makes perfect sense. And if you’re not happy about leaving them at home, there’s no reason you should do that. The smile faded from JJ’s face. And if something happens, it’s always good to have more magick on our side.

“Right.” Marvin nodded. He took a deep breath. “Well. Looks like we can’ finish breakfast yet. We have calls to make and messages to send.”

———————

Coordinating proved harder than expected, but eventually they decided on that evening as the best time. Five o’clock, about an hour before sunset so that there would still be plenty of daylight in the park. Everyone could make it except for Stacy, who said she had to buckle down and get some work done. “I do have to pay rent on this place somehow,” she pointed out. “Tell me everything afterwards.”

JJ and Marvin arrived a bit early, but they waited in the car until Rama and Jack showed up as well. Then they all went down to the lake, by that same bench they met at last time.

Schneep was already there. He sat on the bench, hands tightly clasped together, wearing that same black mask that hid the bottom half of his face. He tensed up the moment he saw the group coming, then started to stand but decided not to. Instead, he just waited for the others to all gather around the bench.

“Henrik,” Marvin said, nodding. “I-I’m really truly sorry abou’ the invisibility las’ time. I-I was tryin’ to not freak you out, I-I didn’—”

“I understand, Marvin,” Schneep said quietly. “It’s not a problem. Really.”

“Do you mind if we sit, Schneep?” Rama asked.

“A-ah... no,” Schneep said hesitantly.

“Well, you’re clearly not comfortable, so we’re okay standing,” Jack said. He looked at the other three. “Right?”

Right, JJ confirmed. Why’d you call this meeting, Schneep? Did you want to finish what we started last time, or is there something else?

“There is... both.” Schneep looked down at his clasped hands. He took a deep breath. “I owe you all... an explanation. But I-I am not sure if I can give one. Jameson, I... I am so sorry for the shock.”

JJ nodded. In your own words, I understand. It’s not a problem.

“Hah.” Schneep gave a little chuckle. 

“You know you don’t have to push yourself,” Jack said gently.

“No, no, you need to know.” Schneep shook his head. “I... Jack called me yesterday. H-he told me about everything that happened at the hospital. I already said this on my phone call this morning, but... he also... told me a theory he had.” He glanced over at Jack, not fully lifting up his head. “About me.”

Jack nodded slowly. “You really don’t have to talk about it. I-I said that when we—”

“You did, you did, and I appreciate that. But you all need to know.” Schneep closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and lifted his head up. “You all know I had some experience with IRIS, yes? In the time since I left?”

“That’s what they said you said,” Rama said, gesturing at JJ and Marvin.

“Yes, it was.” Schneep laughed again. “W-well, I... I did. I did some investigating into their activity in the next city over, and they... caught me. I was not prepared for their security, it is... much more advanced than it should be.” Another deep breath. He clasped his hands tighter. “They... Like Anti, I was... caught. Unlike Anti, I did not get out after three days.”

Silence. Marvin instinctively glanced around the park, making sure no one was listening. No one was. There was a small family passing by, but they were well out of earshot on the other side of the pond.

I think we understand what happened, JJ said.

“No, you really do not,” Schneep said darkly.

“Did they do the same thing to you as they did to Anti?” Rama asked. “Though we do not even know what that is, anyway.”

“I would be surprised if you did. I saw what happened, because I took some of IRIS’s security footage. But I do not think this is the time to show you. Or if you would even want to see. In any case, no, it was not the same thing.” Schneep shook his head. “IRIS did not know I was related to their case on Distorter. I showed no signs of contact with him. He has never been as involved with me as with... others... of our group.”

Marvin nodded. “He only really showed up to fuck with you.”

“Yes, exactly. Unlike Anti, who he was actively involving himself with. I think he may even be why IRIS found Anti—a-anyway, this is not the point.”

“You don’t have to keep going,” Jack said softly.

“I do. You all need to know about... this.” Schneep unclasped his hands. He turned one over, tracing a scar that ran down the length from his pinky to his wrist. “This is why I shocked you, Jameson.”

JJ leaned forward, visibly confused. What happened?

“I... am not sure... of the details,” Schneep said haltingly. “I was... asleep... when it happened. But... somehow, IRIS...” He trailed off.

“They... gave you the ability to shock people,” Rama summed up.

“Yes.” Schneep was relieved that he didn’t have to say it. “A-and that is not all. I am still... I am still learning it all myself.”

“Holy shit,” Marvin whispered. “You’re sayin’ IRIS does... experimentation? T’at’s fucked.”

“It is so fucked!” Schneep’s hands curled into fists.

JJ inhaled sharply. Is that what they were doing to Anti?

“They were getting to it. I think Distorter interfered before they could go through with it.”

Rama shook their head. “That is... that is... E-eso es lo peor que he oído jamás—oh!” They went suddenly pale. “Does Jackie know about this?!”

Marvin’s eyes widened. “Wait, yes, you said t’at Jackie’s on their staff. He has to—”

“No.” Schneep’s voice was firm. “Even though Jackie was desperate to protect us from Distorter, he was not desperate enough to forgo his morals.”

Rama nodded slowly, agreeing. “He would not stand for it. But... how can he be unaware?”

“IRIS has three different sections.” Schneep held up three fingers. “There is one that builds and sells their technology.” One finger went down. “There is one that looks for and captures strange things in the world. Anomalies, they call them. Many are given an ALTR number, though I am still not sure what ALTR is an acronym for.” Another finger down. “The last is their experimentation.” He grabbed the last finger and curled it down. “The other two sections both feed into that one. I am not sure why IRIS is willing to experiment on their... s-subjects...” He paled a little. “But... they are. And they do.”

So you’re saying Jackie can be in one section without knowing about the other two, JJ concluded.

“Exactly. I think he is involved with their technology, from what I found.”

“There’s also probably different clearance levels,” Jack added. “No secret organization is gonna tell the new hires about their secret human experiments.”

“Hold on a moment.” Rama raised a hand. “You said earlier that they did not realize you were involved with Distorter. Something about showing no signs? What about Jackie? If anyone would show signs of contact, it is him.”

Schneep’s silence was telling.

“No.” Marvin gripped the arms of his wheelchair. “No, no, no, we are not goin’ t’et IRIS turn a third one of our friends into a fucking guinea pig!”

“Damn right,” Rama added. “They do not get to touch my husband. We need to get him out of there!”

How?! JJ asked. We were making plans to break into the facility where Anti was, but we never got into it.

“We repurpose those plans, of course!”

Well, the facility might also be hidden from us. Remember what I said? I had to get help from the Magic Circle.

“Can you do that again?” Jack asked.

I... yes, I think so, JJ signed slowly. As in, I think they’d be willing to help again. But I wonder if they are capable of it.

“Jameson,” Schneep said quietly. “If you take the time to ask them, it will give me time to sort through the files I stole from IRIS. I can find out more about the facility where Jackie is stationed. And... maybe... find out their plans for him. If they know about him and Distorter.”

JJ looked at him. His expression hardened as he grit his teeth in determination, and he nodded. I can message them as soon as possible. But I doubt they’ll be able to get anything done today. There are a lot of people that need to work together.

“That is fine. Jackie has been fine this long, I doubt they will move suddenly.”

“Alright, I-I guess we focus on this now, then?” Jack asked. “None of us know what to do about Anti?”

In unison, Schneep, JJ, and Marvin all wince. “We... jus’... don’ know how to proceed,” Marvin said slowly.

I can maybe ask the Circle about that, too, JJ suggested. Perhaps they have some insight on breaking people out of trances.

“Maybe... maybe once we get Jackie back to us, he will have some ideas,” Rama added weakly.

“At least Anti isn’ bein’ hurt,” Marvin whispered. “...physically. And he’s not bein’... moved around...” His words quickly fell quiet. JJ put a hand on his shoulder.

Schneep sighed. “As upsetting as it is, we have to focus, and we are just more capable of getting Jackie back than Anti right now. We should keep an eye out for things that could help Anti, of course. Perhaps if we find something, we can switch. But for now... like I said, we must focus.”

JJ nodded. I suppose we go our separate ways, then. He paused. Schneep... if you ever want to talk about things, we’ll be here for you.

“...thank you,” Schneep whispered. “But not yet. I-I am fine with how things are now. And we... we must focus.”

“If you ever need anything,” Jack said. He didn’t continue. He didn’t need to.

“I will contact you all if I need anything,” Schneep promised, “or if I find something very important about Jackie. And JJ, you will tell everyone what the Magic Circle can do?”

Of course, JJ said.

“Great.”

After a few more pleasantries and farewells, the meeting dispersed.

———————

Schneep returned to the motel room a bit later than he wanted. His usual way of taking random turns to avoid being followed had led him right into the midst of a construction-caused traffic jam. And while he could technically have gone around it, motorcycles were not allowed on sidewalks, or in-between cars. He really didn’t want to attract attention by breaking the law, and so he was stuck. Then he had to make a detour to grab some food for dinner. But now he was... ‘home’ again. He unlocked the door with his key and pushed it open.

There was someone sitting on the bed.

Distorter was here.

Schneep froze, the bag of takeout food falling from his hand. “You—!” he gasped.

Distorter turned to look at him, his neck and head twisting in a strange way. The ever-present grin widened. He raised one blackened hand and waved, giggling.

“What are you doing here?” Schneep’s eyes darted around the room. There were no weapons. But he could figure something out if he really had to. Or he could turn and run. The door was still open, only a few steps behind him.

“I’m just checking in on things.” Distorter stood up casually, walking over to the corner of the room. Schneep’s eyes followed him. “It’s been so long since I’ve heard from you, you know. I thought you died. But I guess I wasn’t so lucky.”

“Y-you never just check in on things.” Schneep slowly stepped further inside. He made sure to leave the door open. If he could make it to the desk, he might be able to grab the lamp on top of it and use it as a blunt object. “What? Are you here to fuck with me some more?”

“Am I even really here in the first place?” Distorter moved across the room, always staying directly across from Schneep.

“No, I will not let you do this to me again.” Schneep bit out the words. “Of course you are here. I can see you, and there is no reason for me to be seeing things not there right now.”

Distorter stopped walking. “You can see me?”

Schneep scoffed. “This is not a very effective trick. I will not doubt my eyes again.”

“...you won’t, huh?” Distorter’s head tilted to the side. “What about your ears?”

“My ears are no different,” Schneep said fiercely. “I will not let you—let you manipulate my senses.” He continued stepping to the side, slowly, trying not to attract attention.

Distorter was silent. He kept staring at Schneep with those black empty eyes.

“What? Nothing to say now?” Schneep taunted. “Were you not prepared for this? A me who refuses to let you use my vulnerability?”

“Shut up.” Distorter walked to the left. Schneep’s eyes followed him. He walked back to the right. Schneep’s eyes followed him. He raised a hand, as if in a greeting.

“What are you doing?” Schneep asked, momentarily distracted from his goal by Distorter’s odd behavior.

“Shut up.” The corner of Distorter’s mouth twitched. He walked forward. Schneep tensed up and took a few steps back. He walked backwards. Schneep relaxed slightly. He got down to the ground, joints cracking as he crouched. Schneep’s head tilted down to look at him. A low growl escaped Distorter’s throat.

Whatever Distorter was doing, it made the hair on the back of Schneep’s neck stand up. He instinctively knew that something was wrong with this whole situation. And Distorter wasn’t happy. Schneep glanced towards the desk. He was so close to it, he just had to reach out—

Distorter leapt forward, impossibly moving across the room in just a second. Schneep gasped and lunged to the side, going for the lamp. He managed to grab it just before Distorter tackled him. Schneep’s head hit the wall behind him in a burst of white light. He went limp but managed to keep hold of the lamp. Distorter pinned him to the ground and wrapped his hands around Schneep’s neck, squeezing tightly. Schneep choked and began flailing, managing to strike Distorter with the lamp. But Distorter didn’t even flinch. He squeezed tighter, and Schneep abandoned the lamp, dropping it to instead claw at Distorter’s fingers.

“How?” Distorter hissed, voice simmering with anger as he leaned closer to Schneep’s face. “How are you seeing me when I don’t want you to?”

Schneep couldn’t answer; there was no air for his voice. But even if he could talk, he wouldn’t know what Distorter meant. He pried at Distorter’s blackened fingers but they were steel cords wrapped around his throat. His chest rose and fell rapidly, gasping for breath.

“Why aren’t you seeing any of the things I want you to see?” Distorter demanded. “You’re supposed to be easy to mess with that way! Why?! What did you do?!”

He didn’t do anything!

But...

Ice cold shock splashed over him. So strong that for a few seconds he forgot to struggle. They didn’t... Did they? But that was the only thing that happened to him since he last saw Distorter...

“Tell me!” Distorter shouted. “Tell me or I swear to god I’ll make you watch your friends die.”

Schneep tried to shake his head, but he didn’t have the strength for that. His vision was starting to waver. Despite Distorter’s demands that he explain everything, he didn’t let up on the pressure to let Schneep explain. He probably wanted him dead more than he wanted to know.

His heart was pounding in his chest. He couldn’t die! Not here, not now, not after everything he’d been through! He grabbed Distorter’s hands. This was probably a long shot, but he didn’t know what else to do. Schneep braced himself, and—

Snap! 

Distorter gasped at the shock. Not in pain—just surprise. His muscles spasmed involuntarily. His hands momentarily squeezed Schneep’s throat tighter before abruptly loosening. Schneep finally managed to push him away, rolling off to the side and gasping, sucking in as much air as his bruised throat could handle.

But it wasn’t over. Distorter lunged for him again, grabbing him by the shoulders. Schneep scrambled across the ground, barely escaping his clutches, his nails scratching his skin right through his clothes. Distorter growled again. As Schneep started to stand, he wrapped his arms around his legs and knocked him back down. Schneep cried out and kicked Distorter directly in the face. Distorter’s head snapped back with a sickening crack! but he didn’t let go. Schneep grabbed Distorter’s arms and shocked him again. Like before, Distorter’s muscles spasmed and loosened enough for Schneep to get away.

Schneep climbed to his feet and ran across the room. There was another lamp in here, this one a floor lamp that would provide a lot more reach. Distorter got to his feet right behind him and dashed after him. Schneep barely got to the lamp in time, grabbing it by the stand and swinging it right into the side of Distorter’s head. Another CRACK! rang through the room as Distorter was knocked over. He tried standing up again but Schneep hit him a second time—with enough force that the lampshade flew off. Then he hit him a third time. The lightbulb burst into shattered glass.

He went in for a fourth strike. Distorter raised his hand and grabbed the lamp by its stand. But there was still enough force in Schneep’s attack to make Distorter’s elbow bend back the other way with a SNAP! Schneep gasped, face going pale. Distorter didn’t so much as grit his teeth in pain. He just glared at Schneep, the malice in those black eyes a total contrast with the smile stuck on his face. He kept glaring, head not moving at all as the rest of his body stood, twisting to keep his head in the same place it was. Until his feet were on the ground but his spine was bent over, his neck bent at an unnatural angle.

Schneep’s face turned green and he felt sick just seeing this sight. His grip on the lamp stand tightened and he yanked it free from Distorter’s grip. Distorter didn’t fight back. He kept glaring—until he stood up abruptly in a single, oddly fluid motion. Then he turned and ran for the motel room door. He stopped in the doorway and looked back at Schneep. Not by turning around, but by bending his head backwards. A bit too far backwards. “You’re going to die someday,” he said. “You’re going to die some day, and then I’ll laugh.” Then he snapped back into place and took off in a dead sprint.

For a second, Schneep just stood there. Then he dropped the lamp and ran towards the doorway. He made it just in time to see Distorter disappear around the corner of a building. A minute passed. He stood there, half-expecting Distorter to reappear out of nowhere. But no. He was gone.

The day was quiet. Or, as quiet as it got in the city. There were still distant noises of cars and such, but Schneep wasn’t really hearing them. He looked down at the ground and saw his bag of takeout was still there where he dropped it. In a daze, he reached down and picked it up. Then he pulled the motel room door closed.

It was empty. The room was empty except for him. He put the takeout bag down on the desk and automatically went about putting the lamps back where they should be. There wasn’t much he could do about the broken light bulb. He pushed all the shards into the corner with his shoe. That was about it.

Suddenly, Schneep burst out laughing. There was something strangely funny about Distorter running away like that. They’d only ever seen him suddenly appear and disappear. But it turns out, this whole time, he was just running around and hiding from their sight! Using freaky mind powers! That—apparently—had no effect on Schneep anymore!

The laughter abruptly transitioned into sobs. He didn’t know that. It was a helpful ability to have—but he didn’t know about it. He didn’t ask for it. “Why?” he cried, clutching his hair. “Why?! Isn’t this my body?! Or is it, anymore?!”

His hand brushed against a spot on the left side of his head where the hair was shorter. A perfect square, in fact. The hair had grown back now, but he still remembered waking up and finding that a section of hair the size of his palm had been shaved away, faint scars around the edge of the shape. That had scared him more than the new scars on his hands, arms, or legs. He begged them—anyone he saw—to tell him what they had done, and yet...

At least he had an answer now. 

Probably. 

He couldn’t be sure.

That thought brought him to his knees. He wanted to scream to the heavens, to shout IRIS’s name for everyone to hear. But he couldn’t have everyone hear that. Because he couldn’t have IRIS find him. He didn’t want to go back.

So he swallowed the scream in his throat and shakily stood up again. He walked back to the desk and sat down, staring blankly at the computer screen before reaching for the takeout bag and opening it up.

Jackie.

Jackie was with IRIS.

He was safe for now, as a member of their staff, but Schneep didn’t know when that would change. He didn’t doubt that it would change. IRIS y would find out about Jackie’s experiences with Distorter sooner or later—if they didn’t know already. Which they probably did. And when IRIS made their move... Schneep wasn’t sure which would be worse. If Jackie went through what he did, or if Jackie went through what Anti did.

They had to move soon. They had to do something. Schneep had to do something.

He wouldn’t let this happen to anyone else.

[lovelymaryj-recs]

Welcome!

Hello! This is my fanfiction recommendation blog. The fics in this blog were written by various authors from AO3, Quotev, and Tumblr. If you're looking for fics posted on Wattpad, please go to my Wattpad profile and check out my reading lists.

This blog isn't dedicated to any particular fandom, so don't be fooled by whatever my blog's current theme is. I post what I like. My main criterion to determine whether or not I post a fic here is whether or not I want to reread a fic someday. I'm a simple woman. (This blog is basically my library.)

Most of the fanfictions here are female reader or OC inserts. It's quite rare for me to post character/character fics because it's also rare for me to read character/character fics. Also, most, if not all, ships are straight. If they're supposed to be a gay ship, one of them is probably genderbent. Sorry. If that's not your cup of tea, you're free to click/tap away. Additionally, some fics may include dark content. If you don't know how to define that, maybe you shouldn't be looking at this blog. As always, you're free to leave if you don't like such fics.

Fandoms, characters and ships available (in alphabetical order, mostly):

[Note: To look for fics more efficiently, type the character/ship/fandom name in the search bar. Look for the name you used in the search bar in the tags of the results/posts. Click on the tag.

TLDR: Search by tags instead of just looking up the name using the search bar.]

Assassination Classroom | Anatsu Kyoushitsu (ASSCLASS)

Akabane Karma

Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA)

Zuko

Avatar: The Legend of Korra (LOK)

Mako

Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, The (TBOSAS) | The Hunger Games (THG)

Coriolanus Snow

Black Butler | Kuroshitsuji (BB)

Alois Trancy Ciel Phantomhive Sebastian Michaelis

BTS

Kim Namjoon Kim Seokjin Min Yoongi Jung Hoseok Park Jimin Kim Taehyung Jeon Jungkook

Bungou Stray Dogs (BSD)

Dazai Osamu

DC

Batfamily & Batsis Bruce Wayne Damian Wayne Damian Wayne / Mar'i Grayson (Demonfire) Dick Grayson Dick Grayson / Koriand'r (Robstar | Dickkory) Jason Todd Kaldur'ahm Kyle Rayner Roy Harper

Death is the Only Ending for a Villainess | Villains are Destined to Die

Penelope Eckhart | Cha Siyeon / Callisto Regulus (Calliope)

Folk of the Air, The (TFOTA)

Jude Duarte / Cardan Greenbriar (Jurdan)

Genshin Impact (GI)

Diluc Ragnvindr

Haikyuu!!

Akaashi Keiji Bokuto Koutarou Hinata Shouyou Hoshiumu Kourai Iwaizumi Hajime Kozume Kenma Kuroo Tetsurou Meian Shuugo Miya Atsumu Miya Osamu Oikawa Tooru Sakusa Kiyoomi Sawamura Daichi Sugawara Koushi Suna Rintarou Tsukishima Kei Ushijima Wakatoshi

Harry Potter (HP) | Marauders

Draco Malfoy Draco Malfoy / Hermione Granger (Dramione) Female Harry Potter / Draco Malfoy (Drarry) James Potter James Potter / Female Regulus Black (Jegulus) Regulus Black Remus Lupin Sirius Black

Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (HPMA)

Daniel Page

Hogwarts Legacy (HPHL)

Ominis Gaunt Sebastian Sallow

Honkai: Star Rail (HSR)

Dan Heng / Stelle (Danstelle)

How to Train You Dragon (HTTYD)

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III

Jujutsu Kaisen (JJK)

Fushiguro Megumi Fushiguro Toji Getou Suguru Gojo Satoru Ieiri Shoko Itadori Yuuji Kugisaki Nobara Kamo Chousou Nanami Kento Ryoumen Sukuna

Little Women

Theodore "Laurie" Laurence

Love and Deepspace (LADS)

Sylus Zayne

Marvel | Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)

Bucky Barnes Loki Peter Parker

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir (MLB)

Adrien Agreste

My Hero Academia | Boku no Hero Academia (MHA | BNHA)

Amajiki Tamaki Bakugou Katsuki Shinsou Hitoshi Takami Keigo Todoroki Shouto Todoroki Touya | Dabi

Night Manager, The

Jonathan Pine

Percy Jackson and the Olympians (PJO) | Riordanverse | Heroes of Olympus (HOO)

Apollo / Female Percy Jackson (Perpollo) Female Percy Jackson Percy Jackson

Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (PGSM) | Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (BSSM)

Chiba Mamoru / Tsukino Usagi (Usamamo)

Shadowhunter Chronicles, The (TSC)

Jem Carstairs / Tessa Gray (Jessa) Jem Carstairs / Tessa Gray / Will Herondale (Herongraystairs) Tessa Gray / Will Herondale (Wessa)

SPY x FAMILY (SXF)

Loid Forger | Twilight / Yor Briar Forger | Thorn Princess (Twiyor)

Tears of Themis (TOT)

Artem Wing Luke Pearce Marius von Hagen Vyn Richter

Tokyo Revengers (TOKREV)

Akashi Takeomi Haitani Ran Haitani Rindou Hanemiya Kazutora Kakuchou Kokonoi Hajime Sano "Mikey" Manjirou Sanzu Haruchiyo

TOMORROW X TOGETHER (TXT)

Choi Yeonjun

Twisted Wonderland (TWST)

Ace Trappola Azul Ashengrotto Cater Diamond Deuce Spade Epel Felmier Floyd Leech Idia Shroud Jack Howl Jade Leech Jamil Viper Kalim Al-Asim Leona Kingscholar Lilia Vanrouge Malleus Draconia Riddle Rosehearts Rook Hunt Ruggie Bucchi Sebek Zigvolt Silver Trey Clover Vil Schoenheit

Umbrella Academy, The (TUA)

Five Hargreeves

Wonka

Willy Wonka

There are more fics of certain fandoms and there are more fics of certain characters. Nonetheless, as long as they're listed above, there's at least one (1) fanfiction of them in here somewhere.

Happy reading! <3

[survivingandenduring]

Hi Kyla! List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox of the last 10 people who liked or reblogged something from you! ✨

Hi Jem!

Hmm.

5 random things:

Coffee, all day all night…gimme the coffee; and it’s now warm enough finally for iced coffee season! That’s it, im locked in. 🧊 ☕️

Reading the amazing fics on here. Constantly blows my mind at the talent and creativity im gifted 🥰

My crazy Quinn app discord group; the red room folk are fuuuuuuuuuuuun 😈

Wearing sundresses; finally sundress season arrived; although it’s now about to depart again, so you have to enjoy those days while you can 😂

Listening to music as I walk to and from work. I walk through a park and I can lose myself to just walking and enjoying the music. It’s one of my favourite times (especially the walk home!) 25 minutes each way of 100% me time. Tried listening to Quinn audios; but that’s actually fucking impossible 😂

Have a fabulous Sunday; don’t do anything I wouldn’t do