#Damn I keep forgetting that they're twins

[h0bg0blin-meat]

Agni: An Apple a day keeps the Doctor away! Indra: An Apple a day can keep anyone away if you throw it hard enough.

[antianakin]

No Order 66 AU where Anakin leaves the Order after the war ends and he and Padme end up retiring to Naboo to try to raise the twins together, but neither of them ends up feeling particularly satisfied with life on Naboo (for Anakin it just doesn't give him any purpose the way he desperately needs and for Padme it's always been this perfect rosy dream and reality doesn't measure up), so they end up leaving the twins behind a lot so they can pursue other things and are pretty absentee parents in general. They mostly end up getting raised by Padme's parents instead, and while they're perfectly good guardians for the twins and raise them kindly and love them a lot, there's always an obvious elephant in the room regarding who ISN'T there.

This causes a bit of a rift between Luke and Leia because while Luke is trying to keep the peace and give their parents the benefit of the doubt as he moves on and figures out his own life with what he DOES have, Leia is less willing to just forgive and forget.

Luke ends up becoming a pilot working for the royal palace for a while, but Leia goes into politics (something she'd entered while younger because it's what her mother did and she'd been hoping it would get Padme's attention and bring the two of them closer; it didn't work out that way at all and now Leia's sticking with it at least partly to spite Padme) as an aide for her cousin Pooja who is now Senator of Naboo.

And it's here, once she finally makes it to Coruscant and starts working in the Senate, that Leia meets Bail Organa, still working as Senator of Alderaan. The two of them click IMMEDIATELY and Bail ends up becoming Leia's mentor in politics, as well as the person who actually introduces her to the Jedi themselves. Anakin and Padme had never really bothered to do so, both because they were so rarely around, but also because they had chosen not to give Luke and Leia to the Temple and decided at that point that it would be easier to keep the twins and the Jedi separate. Bail of course has no such compunctions and even if he knew about Anakin and Padme's feelings on the matter, I imagine he'd find ways to allow Leia to accidentally bump into some of the Jedi while she was on Coruscant. If he just so happens to double book himself for lunch with both Leia and Obi-Wan, it's hardly anything malicious and they may as well all eat together!

Leia finally feels like she has a parent who gives a damn about her, someone who acts like a parent to her, the parent she's always wanted. Her grandparents had always been incredibly kind and they obviously had to do a lot of parenting, but they'd always been very strict about making sure the twins saw them as GRANDPARENTS and not their actual parents, which just make the absence of their parents that much more obvious and painful. But with Bail, she's finally got someone who doesn't care that Anakin and Padme aren't there and doesn't feel the need to create a wall between them for Anakin and Padme's sake. Bail takes her under his wing, teaches her everything she knows, allows her to explore things she'd never been allowed to explore before, connects her to even more people who can help her understand herself better than she's ever been able to before. THIS is what a parent was supposed to do for her and she knows it, THIS is what selfless love looks like from a parent and she THRIVES under it for the first time in her life.

She eventually decides not to stay on as Pooja's aide because she has no real desire to become a senator for Naboo at any point, but she IS good at politics and desperately does want to help people any way she can, so she starts up some sort of organization of her own to help people around the galaxy (and connects it to the Jedi because deep down she KNOWS she was supposed to be one of them even though that path is now closed to her). But she doesn't go back to Naboo, she doesn't make her home on her mother's home planet.

She goes to Alderaan instead. And this time, she gets to stay there for the rest of her life.

[thelingodingo]

Haikyuu Characters' Informal & Formal Speech

Something I find interesting about different languages and cultures regarding sociolinguistics is the entire idea of formality. Of course, there are ways to sound more formal/polite in English and ways to sound more informal/rude depending on word choice (synonyms). But with a language such as Japanese, it's the grammatical structure itself (verb endings, vocab) that changes to convey varying levels of formality.

An example would be:

大丈夫? (informal) vs 大丈夫ですか？(formal) = Are you ok?

daijoubu vs daijoubudesuka

これは本だ (informal) vs これは本です (formal) = This is a book.

korewahonda vs korewahondesu

In a school setting, the younger grades (kohai) will use formal speech with the older grades (senpai) as well as teachers: meaning 1st years will be formal to 2nd and 3rd years, 2nd years will be informal to 1st years but formal to 3rd years, and 3rd years can be informal to both 1st and 2nd years.

This is easily shown in basically any anime but this post will focus on Haikyuu since it's the one I'm most familiar with.

Karasuno: Kageyama and Tsukishima definitely hold a very high level of politeness towards their senpai as they always speak formally towards them and also always call them "full surname-san" (Azumane-san instead of Asahi-san, Sugawara-san instead of Suga-san, Sawamura-san instead of Daichi-san, Nishinoya-san instead of Noya-san). It makes sense for them since in general their personalities are quite strict and rigid. Hinata also speaks formally to his senpai but calls them by their more usual names (Daichi-san, Suga-san, etc) and he tends to forget to speak formally out of sheer excitement (not because he's trying to be rude) so he ends up adding on the formal desu copula to quickly change his informal sentence to be formal at the last second. You might think that Tanaka and Nishinoya are pretty relaxed when it comes to formalities due to their crasser personalities but I would actually say it's more the opposite. They're both characters that really like upholding the entire senpai-kohai relationship and it shows in that they are always respectful to the 3rd years and use formal speech (it's also shown in how they both loveee being called senpai and specifically Nishinoya's relationship with Asahi). They still call the 3rd years by their more common names so they aren't as rigid as Tsukki and Kageyama when it comes to names though. The scenes in season 1 when Noya and Asahi were fighting (specifically the storage room fight) were surprising in particular due to Noya changing to informal speech while arguing with Asahi (his senpai).

some other random formalities I've noticed in the other characters: as mentioned in the anime, Kenma doesn't like any of that hierarchy stuff which is why Hinata is able to continue comfortably speaking informally to him even though Kenma is a senpai. The shock and immediate apology of Hinata when he finds out Kenma is older than him is sensible in the cultural context since there are many people who would get quite offended and angry if a kohai were to be speaking informally towards them. Although Kenma is never shown directly talking to any 3rd years (other than Kuroo, which he speaks informally to since they're childhood friends), I assume he would still speak formally since even though he doesn't find formal speech necessary he would still be aware that others would care about it. When it comes to Mad Dog, a small part of me expected him to be completely informal to everyone since those kind of characters are usually like that in anime but he still keeps a pretty formal tone when talking to his senpais which pleasantly surprised me. As far as I remember watching season 4, I don't think the Miya twins use formal speech when talking to Aran. They don't call him Aran-san or anything either, just Aran-kun, which could be another example of childhood friends not needing formalities even with the age gap.

EDIT: i just remembered that Kageyama is so damn polite that he doesn't even differentiate between the Miya twins by their first names, he calls them both "Miya-san"!

If anybody wants a particular character/school to be discussed in detail then just send me an ask and I'll try!

side note: this post isn't proofread so if theres any mistakes or corrections in the info please tell me (✿◠‿◠)

[eccentricgrace]

Once Bitten, Twice Shy || IronDad

summary: in the midst of a very high fever, peter accidentally calls tony instead of may.

tags: fluff, sickfic, fevers, humor, hurt/comfort, tony acting as peter parker's parental figure

wc: 3,749

cross-posted on wattpad under the same name!

He hasn't felt like this since he was thirteen going on fourteen, and his muscles ached and he had cold-shakes and he just kept thinking, shit, May just got her new job, she doesn't have health insurance yet— and, oh, he'd been nursing an infected spider bite. Radioactive, specifically.

Giving May a big ol' smile and convincing her that he felt fine, she could definitely work, he'll be okay— and then going unconscious for twelve hours at a time, kind of thinking he was going to die.

Obviously, he didn't die. Actually it felt like he did kind of the opposite, 'cuz then suddenly he had like, abs, and no asthma, and he could sit on the couch and actually see every pixel of May's cheesy medical dramas without having his (broken, taped) glasses.

And also he could do things like avoid bullets. Or not avoid bullets, bleeding all over Flushing Avenue, and still live to tell the tale. This is how, two-ish years later and at the ripe age of sixteen, he knew he'd live through whatever nasty virus this was, too.

Viruses be damned, though, he'd rather take a bullet.

He felt like shit. Capital S-H-I-T. The Bo Burnham song reincarnated into his sweating, fleshy form. His eyes burned, everything ached, and he was pretty much resigned to lying completely still on his lumpy twin-sized mattress and taking shaky, measured breaths until he fell asleep.

He's pretty sure the fever's gotten worse since May left this morning, and he was only able to convince her to leave to begin with because it had been low. A measly 100. Not great, but not the worst either.

May had given strict instructions before she did finally backtrack out the door: keep down as many fluids as he could, and to check his fever every two hours. Call her if he needed anything. And Peter said, "Okay."

Now, he's been so-so with the first instruction. He had a pitcher— literally, a pitcher. The kind that store a gallon vat of iced tea or lemonade, or god forbid iced tea-lemonade in the summer— and he filled it to the brim with water and had just been sipping at it.

This seemed insane, and kind of was, but he didn't want to keep getting up to fill a puny 12oz water glass when his legs felt like they were about to fall off, and his bed was so warm, and the outside world was so cold, and the pitcher worked, damn it.

But he'd finished that an indeterminate amount of time ago, somewhere after 'the-neighbors-are-still-watching-Curb-Your-Enthusiasm' timebut before 'my-eyes-feel-like-they're-not-real' time. Either way, his neighbors have moved on to watching Scrubs, so clearly it's been a while.

As for the second one, the thermometer is on his bedside table, and he thinks he checked his temp a few times, maybe, but he keeps forgetting the results. And he keeps forgetting if he actually checked his temp or if he just thought really hard about checking his temp and his brain decided to keep those thoughts as the word of God. (Also, he really likes the word 'temp.')

He should probably check his fever again. He doesn't really know what time it is— he's been using Scrubs episodes as a clock, and he's may be hallucinating but he's pretty sure he's slept through at least half a season. Or there were a lot more Christmas plotlines than he remembered.

Unfortunately, all the evidence points to the fact that Peter must resort to step three. Call May. So makes a half-hearted series of motions, all shivering violently as the blanket lifts up to expose his skin to the air, and grabs his phone off the charger.

His hand is fumbling blearily through his phone through his contacts, the starred ones, because he can't focus at all and he's pretty sure May is at the top of the list— makes it all easier for him in emergencies.

The phone is ringing and his ears are ringing and his head is ringing and J.D. is monologuing to Dr. Cox about a Super Bowl party he wasn't invited to, and then the line clicks.

"May," Peter greets with as much cheer as he can muster. He can't tell if he's speaking very loudly or very quietly but his throat rasps and it hurts and he wants to go back to sleep. "Hi, May."

"Peter? You sound like you just got hit by a bus," a voice answers, and it sounds muffled, like it's talking through water. But Peter's chest eases at the sound, like he's hearing home, so he smiles and his dry lips crack open a little bit. "Kid? Please tell me you didn't get hit by a bus."

"Haha," Peter says, and yeah, he literally says the word 'haha.' He doesn't have the energy to actually laugh. "I wish!"

He's been hit by a bus before. He's been punched through a bus before. Way more of an enjoyable experience.

"You've what?" The voice slices, a sharpness cutting through on deaf ears. "What the hell? Peter, where are you? Isn't it a Tuesday?"

"Home sick," Peter mumbles, his eyes slipping shut as the sunlight moves just enough to stream in through his blinds.

"You're—" a pause. "You're homesick? For what, kiddo? I— alright, back up a moment. Are you safe?"

Peter groans, shutting his eyes tighter as sunlight continues to infect his little cave. The light stings at his head. "Owww. May, 'm so sorry."

"Hey, talk to me," the voice says, so strong, so parental that Peter can't help but feel equal parts soothed and scolded. "Why're you sorry? Are you hurt? FRI, bring up schematics, vitals—"

"Today was such a big day," Peter says, his tongue feeling numb as he stumbles along each word, going slower than molasses at the speed of which his mind supplies them. "You had to do the thing and then the other... and I told you I'd be okay, but 'm not feeling okay anymore. I need you. 'M sorry."

"Okay," the phone says. "Peter, it's okay. I'm on my way, alright? Are you bleeding?"

"Mm," Peter mumbles a faint disagreement, feeling absolutely miserable. "Jus' tired. I drank all the water already and I can't get up. An' I think they're watching it out of order."

"Who's watching what out of order?"

And Peter can't find the proper words to explain that it's the apartment across from them, who's definitely watching Scrubs out of order, because now J.D. is being locked on the roof of Memorial Hospital, and that's definitely a season one episode.

"Right," Phone says, befuddled. "You're sick, aren't you? Caught the spider-flu?"

Peter groans again. Loudly, to emphasize the misery.

"Okay. I can handle sick. Listen, thank you for calling me, I know that's often difficult for you," Phone seems to laugh, like he's poking fun of Peter about something.

Peter's not amused, as much as he really, really would like to be. Phone seems like a funny guy. Phone seems like he tells really funny jokes, and Peter would love to be laughing at them right now.

"It is," Peter sulks instead, because it's true, andit's not funny, and he wants his aunt.He sniffles. "It is really hard. I don't wanna 'nother spider powers. Ugh, my head hurts so bad..."

"Aw, Pete," Phone chuckles, and sighs. "I know, buddy. Alright, hang in there. I'm gonna send a call to your aunt, quick. Stay there, capiche?"

This is a silly request, because Peter can't go anywhere even if he wanted to— which he resolutely does not. His limbs are so stiff, and heavy, and he's so tired that even twitching a finger is a Herculean effort.

His phone drops lamely from his hand as he waits for something, but he forgot exactly what he was waiting for. He thinks May. May is supposed to come back, right? And take care of him?

He ick-shivers and cold-shivers and listens to the distant muddy voice of Zach Braff and someone singing about Superman to a banjo, and then everything goes blissfully fuzzy.

For the next whenever, he can't genuinely tell what is a dream and what isn't.

A hand soothes over his forehead, and when he flutters his eyes open it's all blurry— someone tells him to go back to sleep. It sounds like Ben. Peter didn't realize he got home from work so early.

"Oh, kid..."

Peter listens to Ben, and dreams again.

The hand returns, this time to take his blankets. A cold shiver racks through his entire body, every notch of his spine. He can feel the sweat gathered at his neck, the crooks of his elbows. He grunts his disproval and grips his fingers onto the fabric, pulling it back towards him.

"I know, but we have to bring your temperature down. Let go of the blanket, Spidey."

"That's a secret," Peter croaks. "'M not Spider-Man. I'm Peter Parker."

"Yeah, well, I'm Iron Man. So you have to listen to me. Let go of the blanket, Peter Parker." Someone tugs again at the duvet.

Peter peaks an eye open again, to verify the identity of his assailant. He blinks a few times, feeling dizzy even with his head pressed back firmly against his pillows.

Iron Man was not in his bedroom.

Tony Stark, however, was.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter furrows his eyebrows, shifting around on the bed. He wants to sit up, even if the thought alone makes him sort of crosseyed. His muscles don't budge more than a few inches before aching again. "Is'ere a mission?"

Tony quickly leans forward, gently guiding Peter back down. "Easy, killer. No mission."

Peter's brain short-circuits momentarily, and then starts the slow process of reboot. He blinks. Then sniffles.

Tony looks amused, his head tilted in a funny way. His mouth quirks up on one side, dimpling at his cheek. He clears his throat, and gestures to the blanket again. "You willing to work with me here?"

Peter starts, and looks back down at the blanket forlornly. "But..."

"I'll trade you. Why don't you go take a shower, and I'm going to change these sheets for you, something I have done maybe once in my life," Tony rattles off. "See? We're good for eachother. Can you stand?"

Peter sluggishly twitches his hand under the blankets. He thinks of all the ways he could say no. (Negatory. No-siree. Nopers. Thumbs-down. Absolutely not. Not gonna happen.)

He squints, and slowly gives Tony an affirmative nod.

Tony's eyes focus very intensely. Peter kind of feels like he's about to explode from the sheer power of his gaze, or like, be blown to bits with lasers.

Peter slowly shakes his head.

"Maybe a bath, then." Tony finalizes. He pulls the blankets off, ignoring Peter's whines, and helps him up. Used tissues fall to the floor, and Tony's nose curls up. "Alright, kiddo. Let's get you to the bathroom."

He lets himself be led into the bathroom, wincing as the lights are flicked on. Tony starts running the bath's faucet, one arm still outstretched like he's ready to catch Peter if he falters. It's kind of humiliating, but as it stands— Peter can hardly stand, and they both know it.

His cheeks burn red.

"I'm not a baby," Peter points out, just so they both remain aware of this fact. He's shivering so hard that his teeth clack against each other.

"I know. That's why I'm not staying in here," Tony says offhandedly. He runs his hand under the water and shakes it off once he's seemingly satisfied with its temperature. "Don't prove me wrong by drowning, will you?"

"I'm cold," Peter complains, trying not to shift from one foot to another. Every movement makes him lightheaded, which really wouldn't prove... whatever point he was starting out with.

"I know, buddy." Tony pulls back from the bath. "You able to get in there on your own? The water's not cold. Rapid cooling is a no-no these days, I got the rundown from FRIDAY on the drive here."

"I'll say thank you to her later," Peter shuffles over to the bathtub and sits down at the edge. He takes a moment to breathe and then nods. "I'll be okay, I think."

"Alright. Yell if you need anything. I'll be just across the hall," Tony says, backing up. "Do you want me to leave the door closed, or open a crack?"

"Does your old ears need it open a crack to hear me if I yell?" Peter asks unthinkingly. A moment of silence passes. Then his mouth opens, and he stares blankly, like a fish. "...Uh..."

Tony's scrubbing at his face, and his eyes are covered but it almost looks like there's a smile pulling at his lips. "I'm going to close the door. You little shit. Don't drown."

Peter smiles weakly and gives a thumbs up. Tony retreats, the door shutting softly behind him, so Peter starts peeling off his sweat-soaked pyjamas. He grimaces, and tosses them to the floor with as much effort as he can (they land about a foot away from him).

The water is not warm. Peter's still shivering when he slides into the tub. It's not as cold as the air, though, so he soaks into it and relishes as the water starts to soothe the ache in his joints. It's nice not to stink like a middle school locker room, too.

He can hear Tony outside the bathroom, rummaging around through a closet, shedding the sheets off his bed, all rustling sounds of fabric— and then the beeping of the washing machine being turned on. His footsteps creak back and forth on the old wooden floors of the Parker apartment.

The realization of his circumstances suddenly seems very, very funny. He accidentally called Iron Man instead of his aunt, and now Iron Man is doing his laundry. Iron Man is probably cleaning up his disgusting snot-tissues. This really is the timeline he's living in.

Anyway, the longer he's in the water, the better he feels. His thoughts are coming back to him a little clearer now, for better or worse, so he scrubs himself head to toe with soap and then lets the bathtub drain.

Tony, apparently, had grabbed a pair of fresh clothes for him before they'd even left his room, which Peter now clocks on the bathroom counter. He tries not to cringe as he pulls on a very old, very faded Stark Expo shirt that Ben bought when he was eight. (Peter begged for an extra extra large adult size, so he would never grow out of it, because "it's limited edition, Ben!")

To add insult to injury, it seemed Tony also picked out the cursed Hello Kitty pajama pants. At least they were warm, but Peter knows that wasn't why they were picked.

He drudges out of the bathroom and pushes open his door. The window's been cracked open, the whole room being filtered with New York's closest approximation to fresh air. Peter's sheets were in-fact changed, and all of the popsicle sticks, tissues, and miscellaneous pill bottles have all been cleared out.

Tony's crouched over, filling a laundry basket with the sporadic mess of clothes strewn across the floor. His head turns up at the door. "There he is. You feeling better?"

Peter answers by crawling into his bed and sighing with all the breath his lungs could hold.

Tony makes an amused noise and sets the laundry basket down. He takes the thermometer from Peter's newly cleared bedside table, and Peter shuts his eyes as the cold plastic smooths over his forehead gently, down the side of his face, stopping at the back of his ear.

It beeps twice in quick succession, which could be worse. Last time Peter remembered it beeping a lot more, and the light was red, which is notoriously not a good colour for a light to be.

"Well, your fever didn't break, but it is significantly lower," Tony clicks his tongue. "Congrats. You're no longer cooking your brain."

"Yippee," Peter says dryly.

"I'm making you tea," Tony decides, putting the thermometer down. "Are you hungry? You want soup? You a chicken noodle guy?"

Peter blinks open an eye, feeling a youthful hope spark up in his chest. "...I think we have cans of minestrone in the pantry?" He says quietly.

"Minestrone? Sure. I'll look for minestrone." Tony clears his throat. "I filled you an actual water bottle. It has ice in it. Drink that, I'll be back."

"Please don't burn down May's kitchen," Peter calls after him, sinking into his pillows. "It's seen enough!"

"We'll see about that!" Tony calls back.

Peter decides to sip at the water for no other reason than he knows he should, and checks his phone while Tony is suspiciously rummaging through cabinets.

Ned has been messaging him all day, talking about things he's missing: a broad spectrum ranging from Spanish quizzes to that squirrel who apparently found its way in the cafeteria again. Peter sends him back a text that (to reiterate) Iron Man is making him soup, because if anybody could understand how bizarre this was, it would be his best friend who had personally seen him in his fanboy phase.

May has been sending him texts, too. Ones that he apparently had already replied to, although he doesn't even remember getting them. He decides not to let her know about that particular detail and goes right on to updating her.

tony came over he's making me soup against my will

LOL. I know, baby. Tony called me.

How are you feeling? You sure you don't need to me come home?

feeling better now

i'm okay, promise

they need you over there! you're too special and important and amazing to leave

😋Alright, that's enough out of you

Drink lots of water. I'll be home soon ❤️‍🩹

i will, larb you!

Larb you too ❤️

He looks at his phone blankly for a measly few seconds before he once again realizes how exhausted his eyelids are from staying open. He sighs and falls backwards onto the pillows, and lets himself drift.

It seems like it's only a few seconds before he's gently shaken awake again, just a hand sweeping over his knees. He makes a grumbly noise and peeks an eye open, and Tony is there again, a mug—(a mug?)—of soup in his hand, and a bottle of pills in the other.

"Take these," Tony says, handing him the bottle. "Take three. Drink your soup so you've got something in your stomach to help digest it." 

"How do you know this stuff?" Peter mumbles, but does so anyways. He pops the pills in his mouth and swallows them down with some water. "Thought only parents knew that."

Like May, his mind suggests.

"May told me," Tony confirms his thoughts as if he had spoken them out loud. Peter nods in understanding. 

He sips at the minestrone, wincing as the liquid passes over his scratchy throat. It's bland from how congested he is, and the steam makes his nose start to run again, but the warmth feels good in his stomach. 

"Why're you here?" He rasps out finally, because his brain is finally catching up now and while Tony being here certainly wasn't unwelcome, he also cannot remember when or how or why he got here. There's definitely some pieces of the story he totally missed due to being only quarter of a functional human.

Tony raises an eyebrow, sitting down on Peter's bed. He kicks his feet up so they're resting on his spinny desk chair. "Why? You waiting to kick me out already?"

"No," Peter rolls his eyes, smiling. "Although you may wanna get out of here while you can. You might catch whatever super-flu knocked me out, and then where would we be? No Spider-Man and no Iron Man? That's like, half the Avengers right there."

"Very funny, kid," Tony says, trying valiantly and in vain to bite back a grin. "You'll be back on your feet in no time. Until then, I don't mind staying around to make sure you don't brain yourself on the windowsill or something."

"I wouldn't do that. The bathtub, maybe. But the windowsill, doubtful."

"Great, well, at least you know your limits." Tony clears his throat. "You should take a nap. Let those meds kick in."

"I've been sleeping all day," Peter complains— and he's not entirely sure why he does it, because yes, he has been sleeping all day, but he really wouldn't mind sleeping for another week. Maybe two weeks. He's really, dreadfully tired, and if a literal coma is what is gonna get him up and swinging around the city again, then it is what it is. 

But Tony is right here, and something about that makes him want to stay awake a little longer. Maybe it's because this situation as a whole is so bizarre and rare that he kind of wants to fiddle with the buttons, mess with some switches, see how far he can take it before Tony calls him out on it. 

"Alright, well you're certainly not gonna be running laps, so," Tony lifts his arms in a 'what'll-you-do' motion, a half-assed cocky shrug that he's really perfected over the years. "You can stay up long enough to drink more water, but then I'm knocking your ass out."

"You'll stay with me?" Peter blurts. Then he feels an immediate wave of regret and embarrassment, and makes the rapid fire decision to just power through. He puts on his best smile, tries not to think of how he probably looks miserable anyways. "We can watch stuff together on my laptop, it'll be fun. I'm just about to start the second season of Scrubs."

Tony scratches at his chin for a moment, and then sighs. "Yeah, alright. Punch it, Chewie."

So Peter drinks the rest of his soup and lets the fever reducers finally settle in his system. His eyes grow heavy with every line the Janitor says— and he's not entirely sure, but before he drifts off, he thinks he feels Tony run a hand through his hair, smoothing down his unruly curls, tucking them behind his ear.

"Thanks for calling me, kid," he thinks he hears Tony murmur.

Peter responds back with two spots of drool on his shoulder. Thank you for answering and I love you.

He thinks Tony will understand what it means.

[actual-changeling]

late-night, not entirely series meta thoughts, but i'm wondering why exactly the metatron wanted to keep muriel on earth.

the obvious answer is to have someone take over aziraphale's bookshop, knowing damn well he would have a hard time simply abandoning it, and i think it's definitely part of it. then again, he could have called on any angel to take aziraphale's place, why choose muriel, who has already proven to be easily swayed into disobeying heaven?

they quite literally opened the doors for crowley, a demon, to infiltrate heaven, and then summoned confidential files about the sacking of the archangel gabriel, which only THREE others angels had previously known about. two of them archangels, one of them most likely the metatron's assistant/right hand/whatever saraqael is.

surely it's easier to keep someone like that close and in heaven, away from any outside influence instead of letting them run wild on earth, aware that they'll go native to a certain degree. it's already started! they're reading! and enjoying it!

so why does the metatron encourage that? why put them on earth? hell, WHY did they send MURIEL to verify the miracle in the first place? i didn't question it while watching, i doubt most people did, but if you actually think about it and put yourself in michael's and uriel's position, it makes absolutely no sense.

it's like sending the intern who's been making coffee since they started a week ago to substitute the CEO in a business meeting. something will happen and maybe something will go right, sure, but there are better people for the job. people who actually know what they're doing - we see how badly muriel fails at their job, michael and uriel look like they're getting twin migraines.

(someone get them a cup of coffee and some ibuprofen. and maybe a stress ball for michael before they break something.)

my first thought was that muriel is important for the second coming. i know there are speculations/thoughts about muriel having been an archangel/angel of a higher position who, like gabriel, got demoted and their memory erased. maybe, maybe not, but it once again opens the question of why send them to earth?

maybe to keep an eye on crowley or be a walking security cam for heaven to see what's going on on earth since aziraphale was a complete failure in that regard.

then again, if i were the metatron in that situation, i'd put them in a cupboard and forget about them, and that's quite literally what they did (just without the cupboard, they took the "as far out of the was as heavenly possible" approach instead) - however i would make sure they don't *leave* wherever i put them. it's a risk not worth taking.

i don't have any definitive conclusions or thoughts, mostly just observations, so if anyone wants to chime in, please do!

[aliypop]

Good Time Charlie’s Got The Blues

Word count: 1,584

Prompt: Elvis needs help and Cecelia can't stand to see him hurting himself and suffering

Warning: Mentions of drugs and Rehab

Note: I'm back from Graceland Y'all, this one is a bit Angtsy and Fluffy

Taglist:

@darkmoviesquotespizza

@sissylittlefeather

@richardslady121

@thegettingbyp2

@presleyenterprise

@dkayfixates

@rjmartin11

@thetaoofzoe

@your-nanas-house

@zayurir

@60svintage

@sillybookmarks

@leapresley

@everythingelvispresley

@dreamondina94

@elvismylove04

@pocketfulofpresley

@elvispresley1956

@poeandmoonknightgirl

1976

"So which is it this time... The uppers or downers...." Cecelia sighed, watching him as he popped another pill into his mouth,

"Aw hell, don't you ever knock anymore, Cece..." Elvis asked, his hands shaky. He looked weak and pale, almost as if the shell of the man she once loved stood before her as a ghost. "Not since Jesse..." She mumbled as Elvis sighed, "Baby, I need these..." He looked at her as she stepped closer, "You need help..." Her hands cupped the sides of his face, "I'm in the best Goddamn shape of my life, and you-" Elvis got dizzy as he stood up from the chair by the vanity."You need help, and you-"

"I DO NOT NEED HELP!" He shouted as he began to sweat and shiver,

"DO YOU WANT ME TO LOSE YOU, DO YOU WANT THE KIDS TO LOSE YOU! HUH!" Cecelia said, stepping up to him, her brown eyes firm and strict, "We almost lost Jesse... I can't sit here and watch you nearly kill yourself too!" Cecelia said, tearing up, "Every morning, I look at you and-"

"And you what..."

"I wonder what happened to you... To us..." Tears pooled in her eyes, making it hard for him to look at her."You used to be so confident, so sure of yourself..." her voice going hoarse, "Now you look in the mirror and wonder if the fans would notice if you gained weight..." Elvis turned away from her. He knew she was right. He needed help, "There's a place in California where they're discreet." Cecelia grabbed his hands,

"So you're sending me away, and then what..."

"Either you get clean, or I throw 17 years of marriage down the drain."Her voice was dry and loveless. She meant business,

"You wouldn't..."

"Divorce papers are on the table..."

"Cece..."

"El..." She held his hands, "Please, if not for me, for the twins..." Elvis kissed her forehead as he nodded, "If anyone asks, I'll say you're on a private vacation to Hawaii..."

"Thank you..."

"No, Thank you." Cecelia kissed his cheek,

"Jesse, Elaine, We'll be gone for a day, so behave..." Cecelia said to the two teenagers as they nodded. Both Elvis and Cecelia knew that they knew what was going on. After all, they weren't dumb,

"Daddy, please get better." Elaine charged into his fuller arms as he hugged her tightly, " I promise I will..." He smiled as Jesse hugged him,

"You know Rehab ain't bad. The nurses are hot, and they give you puddin." Jesse smirked as Elvis laughed,

"I'll keep that in mind, son."

Later that night, they flew on a private jet to California and took a getaway car, a black 74 Cadillac. The car ride was silent, but everything between them had been said just by their eyes alone. Driving towards the rehab center, Cecelia began to feel tears prick at her eyes,

"I don't know what's worse, this or when you left in 58.." His larger hands cradled her hands, "Well, I did marry you in 59, so it wasn't that bad." He laughed as she giggled, "I'll miss that." He sighed,

"Mr. Presley... I'm your nurse, Terry. We're ready for you." A woman said, approaching them as Jerry and Charlie grabbed his bags,

"Don't forget to call!"

"I won't!"

"Or write!"

"I won't!"

"One more thing." Cecelia ran to him as he faced her and kissed him. Elvis let the kiss linger on his lips as he turned bright red,

"What's that..."

"Don't forget me." Her hands were on his cheeks as she began to pet his sideburns,

"I don't think I ever could." He squeezed her hand,

2 Months Later...

"Cece, they ain't got a damn thing in here I wanna eat," Elvis groaned on the phone. Cecelia laughed, "Your doctor has you on a diet." She smirked, and he could practically imagine her with her hands on her hips. "You did this, didn't you?" he asked as she snickered, "It's for your own good. I know you love lard, but lard doesn't love you." She responded as he was eating what he called rabbit food. "Well, how are the kids doing?" He smiled as he looked at a picture she sent him. "Jesse's picked up a summer job at the family recording studio." "Is he any good?" "At not doing his job and playing the guitar, yes..." She laughed as he shook his head.

"My boy, my boy... And what about my little biscuit?"

"Elaine... Well, she broke up with Estella. She's back with Nat and Jerry's boy."

"You mean Jericho?"

"Mmm... " Cecelia rolled her eyes, "Apparently, and I quote, he doesn't put ranch on his greens..." She laughed as Elvis shook his head. "Well, how are you holding up, darlin'?"

"I should be asking you that..." Cecelia said as Elvis sighed, "I miss you like crazy." He sighed, "But I'm doing better... Getting cleaned up." Cecelia could hear it in his voice that he was lonely; she was too. "Well, I'm glad... The press keeps hounding me and the kids, and the label ain't too happy with my new album, let alone my new ideas for the company..." Cecelia groaned as Elvis heard the pain in her voice, "I just need you to get better, so I can hold you again." Elvis laughed as her spirit lit up; she hadn't heard him do that in so long. "I promise I will..."

4 Months Later...

Elvis, the legendary musician, sat in the lobby of the hotel, strumming his guitar as he awaited his visitors. Soon, Jerry and Natalia entered his view, and he greeted them with a warm smile. Elvis appeared healthier now, sporting a tan and no longer looking as sickly as before. Despite his improved appearance, there was still a hint of vulnerability in his gaze.

“How's she?" Elvis inquired as Natalia began to express her concerns. "Not doing good, she's depressed without you, won't eat, can't sleep," Natalia lamented. "It's as if she can't physically survive without you." Jerry, showing solidarity, also conveyed his emotional struggles. "I can't either," he shared, although his laughter held a hollow ring.

Elvis had only two months left before he would be declared clean and on the path to recovery. As Natalia asked, "Do you think you feel better?" Elvis hesitated, shaking his head as he spoke. "Although it's enough to support my family, I'm not sure if it's enough to go on tour again," he admitted with a hint of insecurity. "I'm not convinced that the fans would want to see me perform in this state. Leave it to the king to know what's best," Natalia injected humorously, well aware of the phrase's effect on Elvis.

6 Months Later...

As Jesse reluctantly stepped into the jet, he lamented, "But Mama, I hate traveling..." Elaine placed her bag carefully in the overhead compartment, and Cecelia responded, "It's for your daddy. He gets out today." Her reassuring smile provided some comfort. "Do you think he'll relapse?" Elaine inquired, searching Jesse's face for a response. "You know, I pray he doesn't," she said with a smile. Nervously anticipating his return, it felt like 1960 all over again, except instead of him returning from the service, this time it was from rehab. And instead of hiding a secret wedding, she'd be concealing his concealed addiction.

Jesse gently held his mother's hand, feeling his own nerves getting the best of him. "Mama," he said softly. She looked over at him, her eyes filled with concern. "Yes?" she replied, her voice tender. "Thank you," Jesse said, his voice filled with gratitude. "For what, honey?" she asked, her gaze unwavering. "For caring so much about us," he said with a warm smile, and then he winked at her, conveying his love and appreciation.

After a few hours of flight, their private jet touched down in California. The entourage made their way to the center in a sleek black Cadillac, turning heads as they arrived. Elvis took his time saying heartfelt goodbyes to everyone, making sure to sign a few autographs for eager fans. As he stood by the entrance, he soaked in the moment, surrounded by adoring supporters, before finally leaving the building.

"Daddy!" Was all he heard as two teenagers charged into his arms, "If it ain't trouble and my little biscuit." He chuckled kissing their foreheads,

"We missed you."Elaine cried,

"But Mama missed you more," Jesse added gesturing towards Cecelia. Elvis watched her walk over and it was almost as if she were floating toward him like an angel,

"Elvis," Cecelia said softly, reaching out to brush a loose hair from his face. As their eyes met, she couldn't help but notice the fatigue in his expression. "You look tired," he remarked, prompting a weary laugh from her. "Haven't gotten good sleep in 6 months," she admitted with a wry smile.

"Neither have I," he chuckled softly, his eyes sparkling with amusement as Cecelia caught a subtle change in his demeanor. "What's wrong, baby?" he asked, concern coloring his voice.

After a long period of dullness, she noticed a glimmer returning to his eyes and couldn't help but fix her gaze on him. With a soft, compassionate tone, she expressed, "Your eyes are sparkling again. I've missed seeing that sparkle so much." As their lips met, she leaned in and felt his arms gently wrap around her waist, pulling her closer. After the kiss, Elvis responded in soft, breathless tones, "I've missed it too..."

[cyanide-latte]

5 6 7 FOR Cooper, Rin, Xi and the twins are PULLING on my hair demanding Talesin as well

OHOHOHOHOHOHOOOOOOOO EXCELLENT

This is going to get a bit lengthy so my apologies in advance, I'm going to be putting this under a read more cut.

Additionally! If some of you are looking at the name "Talesin" and wondering which of my OCs that is, I've not talked about them on here yet but Talesin is a nextgen OC for Kalim and my boy Copper. The biggest reason I've been mum about him on here is because, quite frankly, @blithesharem is the only person who can apparently coax Talesin into talking. He refuses to offer me anything to work with otherwise, and I only just recently figured out some things about him, again because Blithe and I had been chatting in DMs and it knocked something loose. (I did find out at least one other thing about him today thanks to a prompt from @inmateofthemind but that actually came from Copper, Talesin didn't tell me himself.) He's an elusive little scamp and I love him but boy is he hard to pin down.

5) Any animals you most associate with your OC?

Copper Benoit- ignoring the low-hanging fruit of Copper's unusual animal companions, I associate him with dogs. While you could say it's because Floyd's nickname for him is "Sea Dog", it's also due to the fact a lot of other people have said he's got the energy of a sad, lonely puppy. And I would say that's fairly accurate, especially at the start of his story. (And he probably grows up into the kind of dog that you'd love to have around but definitely don't want to get on the wrong side of.)

Wei Renqiao- Perhaps this is cheating but I associate him with phoenixes. His Signature Spell/Unique Magic, "Revenant Warlord", allows Ren to revive after he's died or been killed somehow. There are certain circumstances in which he can be perma-killed, sure, the magic has its limitations, but typically speaking it would be near-impossible to permanently kill him. And his body heals rapidly when he revives, so I've always seen him as a phoenix since I was first conceptualizing him.

Wei Xinyi- This one might seem a little odd, since Xinyi is an extrovert at heart, but I tend to see them as a tiger. Because we do tend to see more and more videos of tigers being playful or fun, and there are absolutely some endearing moments of tigers that are brothers being silly, but they're still tigers. And I think that's a fairly good rule of thumb for Xinyi: they come across as extremely playful, lighthearted, and affectionate with those close to them, but don't think for a second that's all there is to them.

Talesin- a ring-tailed lemur, apparently. It just fits.

6) Any flowers you associate with your OC?

BITCH FLOWER SYMBOLISM IS MY DAMN LIFEBLOOD

Copper- Blue iris. They symbolize hope and faith, both integral parts of where Copper's story begins, and they also symbolize mystery, which is appropriate to his heritage going unknown for so long (as well as how well he keeps his unique magic hidden.) The color fitting so well with him eventually ending up in Pomefiore is a nice little bonus!

Ren- Lotus, for its meanings of rebirth and regeneration. Emilia, for creativity. Periwinkle, for intellect and mental capability. And forget-me-nots, for fidelity, faithful love, resilience and memory.

Xinyi- it feels fitting that, as a Mulan expy, at least one of the flowers I associate with them the most is pink magnolias, for innocence, youth, joy, femininity and romance. Also sweet William for masculinity, gallantry and courage.

Talesin- Anthurium, for hospitality, and freesia, for joy and friendship. And rhododendron, for danger and a need for caution.

7) Does your OC have a favorite and least favorite food?

Copper- I don't know if he has a least favorite food, but his favorite foods are all fairly spicy. He's not the pickiest eater and I don't think he has a single favorite.

Ren- "Ants climbing a tree", if we're going for food from his culture. It's mung bean vermicelli noodles stir fried with minced meat and sprinkled with scallions. It's been his favorite since childhood and nobody makes it like his mother does! He's also extremely fond of red bean bread and he often bakes it himself! Not sure what his favorite dish is from other cultures, but I can tell you his least favorite food is anything with duck in it. Don't ask why, I don't know, he just doesn't like duck.

Xinyi- This one is interesting, because Xinyi loves cross-cultural exchange and a big, big part of that for them is other foods! They have a running list and their fave foods are subject to change, but (presently based on what they tell me) they love chocolate-covered strawberries, chili-cheese fries, and cheesy potato soup served in bread bowls. (A-Xin, did you go to a festival or something and not tell me.) Atm they don't have a least favorite food.

Talesin- His dad got him hooked on gumbo and cornbread, his baba got him hooked on lamb and rice, and Uncle Jamil got him hooked on beef curry. He also REALLY loves waffles. He immensely dislikes any dishes made with shellfish but he'll tolerate them (with a lot of dramatics) if he absolutely has to.

—————

Taglist: @ramshacklerumble @simons-twsted-children @tixdixl @elenauaurs @rainesol @distant-velleity @theleechyskrunkly @thehollowwriter (let me know if you want to be added to the taglist for my TWST OCs!)

[m34gs]

Saw AU Ask Time!

You know the drill: victim chosen, trap meticulously planned and set up, and victim has been properly "escorted" to the trap. However, they are knocked out and thus nothing has started yet.

Please tell me what the housewardens (or dorms if you want to add in the others) are doing in the time between as they wait for the victim to wake up and the "game" to start.

(Please note "triple checking the trap and continue working excessively" is not a viable answer as at LEAST half of the cast would do this.)

Thanks for the ask, friend! Alright, you set the rules for me, so I will answer! (for anyone who doesn't know about our Saw AU for Twisted Wonderland, please check the pinned post here and our AO3 series here)

Alright, let's get into it. I will just be doing Housewardens for this ask, to keep it from getting too much away from me, lol!

Riddle - Riddle packs himself a tart, made by Trey of course. He eats that as a snack with a bit of tea while he waits. He would not dare risk leaving behind any trace of his court cases at the scene, as that would immediately damn him, so bringing work is out of the question. It's not like he really can play croquet there, and he's in the workforce now so he doesn't have tests to study for. So, he decides to make it his leisure time and enjoy a little treat. He is also trying to get better at treating himself kindly, and giving himself a little reward for getting the trap set up feels like a good step in learning how to congratulate the "smaller" acheivements (vs the "big" acheivement of having the trap finish and destroying the evidence in its entirety before the court case can occur...Ace would like to point out that Riddle is the Only One who thinks setting up a Saw Trap is a "small" acheivement).

Leona - Leona can't nap for this one, unfortunately. He's gotta keep himself somewhat alert. I don't think he'd be the type to really scroll on his phone, and he wouldn't dare take any classified royal family work to the trap. So, I think he would just read a book for a while. He checks in every few pages to see if they're awake yet.

Azul - While most times I think he would have the twins there to talk with, I think there will be times he would be alone watching the trap. During those times, while waiting for the game to start, I think Azul would check work emails, review notes for staff meetings, and edit notes for presentations. On his phone. Jade caught him sneaking a laptop out once, so now both the eels make sure he has nothing more than his phone on him when he leaves work, unless he is travelling for business.

Kalim - Kalim is chatting with Jamil. Non-stop. He doesn't even let Jamil get a breath in. It's about everything and also nothing at the same time. He can't let himself think too hard about what's about to happen or he will back out. Jamil has learned at this point to just let Kalim chatter away and just provide the occasional hum or nod and everything will go smoothly.

Vil - Vil takes his work very seriously. I feel like he tries to split his focus as little as possible so that he can give his effort entirely to what's in front of him. That being said, even in the busy world of modelling and show-biz, there are lulls. When he's busy, he's busy as hell, so he knows to make every moment of downtime count. I think for Vil, while he's waiting for the victim to wake, he would rehearse lines and review scripts for whatever upcoming film or show he's in. Naturally, Rook would help him and gets very into it and they probably almost forget they're doing a trap until the victim wakes. But, if he's stuck with Epel to help with rehearsing lines, he's counting down the seconds until their victim wakes up.

Idia - Idia's pretty straight-forward. The majority, if not all, of his traps he can supervise remotely. While he waits for the victim to wake, he is either gaming or watching an episode of his favourite anime (something he's seen many times so he doesn't feel annoyed if he has to stop watching partway through).

Malleus - Malleus is planning his next date with Yuu. Let's be real, that's on his mind almost 24/7. He takes the time while the victim is still stirring to jot notes on things he noticed through the day that made him think of them. He thinks about places he would like to take them, places where the light and surroundings would suit their beauty, places that have the best tea, places that have delightful little snacks. If he's made a new gargoyle friend, he will plan a walk specifically to show Yuu. He can easily plan out at least two dates within the time his victims are asleep. :D

[annaofaza]

Sometimes Vash dreams.

He dreams of a picnic, damp grass, a faded white t-shirt. He dreams of flares falling from the sky, plumes of smoke like storm clouds, shattering of glass and ice. He dreams of squeezing himself onto a piano bench, onto a white couch.

They're more memories than dreams, he admits. His mind always tracked backwards, examining it from every angle. As he gets older, the past begins to fade, so he values what he could hold onto.

It's strange what he does keep, what he cannot. He remembers Meryl's earrings, the thin notepad she carried around even after she changed careers, but not what songs she hummed under her breath during the long stretch across No Man's Land. He remembers the brand of Roberto's cigarettes, his halfway-untucked shirt, but not if he had a mustache or that and a beard. He remembers the heavy flap of Milly's cloak, her brilliant smile, but not her favorite dessert. He remembers the high, clear voice Rem had, her gentle touch, but not where on Earth she was born.

He remembers their names. He remembers the essence of them. But they're becoming less clear each... century, he thinks?

He doesn't talk about this with Knives, even though his brother is the only one who can know this. Knives... doesn't exactly forget, but he's not a reminiscing man, and who can blame him? Vash wonders if his long-ago intention was to curse his brother, as God cursed Cain, to wander, to remember. As revenge for allowing him to go this long. To be. Even now, so much floats between them. So many unspoken visions. So much anger and grief and resentment, tinged with the habit of love.

Humans do try, Knives at least acknowledges. But life is so short that it's either a race to the end or an unsuccessfully long delay.

Vash wonders that must be like, to have that.

When he makes promises, they linger forever, a stone dropped into water, rippling to the shore, rings multiplying in tiny waves. Vash has had a long life; he's made many. Some have squirmed out of his reach, been crushed beneath a heel, been released like a flock of doves. (He recalls how Rem described them. Pearly white wings, bright orange beaks, clinging together, soaring upwards. He now knows some are spotted and speckled and not even white, but it's Rem's words that are his reference.)

And while he remembers, he dreams. He dreams of a clear blue sky. White confetti tumbling on the dust. A bloody smile.

Vash remembers Wolfwood. He can at least say that. But this is from an old dream, after an apple tree bloomed, when he thought he'd be alone again. With perfect clarity, Vash recalls Wolfwood, lying beside him in a meadow, looking up at the sky. He sees himself stretching out a hand, Wolfwood allowing their fingers to touch. He smells cigarette smoke, feels the burn of alcohol sting his stomach.

And he hears:

"I will love you, for as long as I live. When the sea washes the deserts away. When the geraniums bloom again. When the canyons are rubble, when the the suns go dark, when no bullet is fired ever again on this land."

Wolfwood turns to him. His lips move, blood trickling over his teeth. "You don't have to promise that," Wolfwood replies, too calmly. "You can't promise that."

"But I do," Vash says. "I will!"

And he wakes up. (Woke up.)

He's cold in this new climate of rain and snow and storms. His legs ache; his hair is dimming silver. Vash the Stampede carries less of a poignant song.

I don't know how long I will go on. But I know it is too long without you.

Vash remembers now: he did not promise to love. He didn't need to. He never needed the reminder.

Instead, he had said: I'll see you again. When the sea washes the deserts away. When the geraniums bloom again. When the canyons are rubble, when the twin suns go dark, when no bullet is fired ever again on this land.

He had damned himself.

Vash looks towards the horizon. It's too far away.

[lovejosephquinn]

joe helping reader out throughout the birth of their first kid (and if you can make them twins, please do!!)

Your fiancé had been by your side from the moment your water broke and the contractions began and of course, he wasn't chilled about it.

"Oh, fuck it's happening. Oh shit, I wasn't prepared for this." Joe shouted, his hands on his head as he paced along the bathroom floor.

You lent over the sink, clutching at your pregnant belly, as the words fell out of his mouth you couldn't help the dead eye you shot him. Leaning up, holding your other hand onto your back you let a sigh of relief out once the pain subsided. "You think I was?"

"No, I- I mean we." Joe corrected himself quickly, good save.

“It's the first time we've been through this Joe, I didn't expect us to be prepared for what to do."

"But it's early, do you think they're ok?" He slapped his hand across his mouth and pointed down to your stomach.

"It's only a couple of weeks, I had my last check up a week ago, they're fine, calm down." The contractions started again, and you keeled over grimacing at the pain, it was unlike anything you'd ever experienced in your life.

"Yes, good calm, that's right." Joe turned back round to you finally realising that maybe you just needed that bit extra support, he rushed over, holding you upwards to take you the car. Once he'd managed to hobble you over and strapped you in the best he possibly could given your weight gain, he ran back in to get your bag you'd packed a couple of weeks ago for when the time came.

You'd been in labour for over 12 hours when the nurse finally announced that you were fully dilated and ready to begin pushing. The whole circus act Joe had put on was award worthy, every twinge of pain, every sudden whimper you made, every sudden unusual breathing pattern, he'd be on you in an instant.

The particular things that grated on you most were:

"Breathe Y/N, my hearts going 100 miles an hour watching you do this."

You bit your tongue.

"The nurse said to do it this way, move baby, move this way."

It's incredibly difficult to move a certain way with two fully grown new-borns about to come out of you and the pain increasing every time.

You were ready to knock his light outs if you were honest with yourself, his coping mechanism in the time of your labour was both irritable and hysterical to say the least. It really is a damn good job you love this man.

You pulled the gas and air mask over your mouth breathing in it like your life depended on it, you were squeezing the blood flow out Joe's hand and you were giving the pushes everything you had in you.

"I see the head." The doctor announced. "Keep doing Y/N, you're doing great."

"Baby, listen to the doctor." That was when you squeezed your eyes shut for what felt the millionth time, not to push but to simply hold your annoyance in from the love of your life's melodramatic behaviour.

"Another push on three."

The doctor counted agonizingly slow, and you felt your hand tighten around Joe's once more, you let out a deafening scream as you heard the sound of crying, your first baby had made it safely into the world.

Joe sobbed the moment he saw it, tears ejected from his eyes and streamed down his cheeks, and he looked down on you like he couldn't have loved you more in that second.

"Right, are we ready to go again Y/N?"

You shook your head slightly but regained yourself, nodding even slower, no you were not bloody ready for round two.

You readjusted yourself, your hand not letting go of his.

You pushed and pushed and pushed. Screamed a few profanities after forgetting your gas and air the second time round, but quite frankly who wouldn't if their privates were being torn apart by not only one but two babies.

Then came baby number two, no cries, just a few noisy sounds came out. Sweat dripped from your head, your hair mangled all around the pillow and over your face, Joe swept it back for you, planting a kiss onto your forehead, his hand still gripping tight to yours, it didn't matter if his bones felt bruised the feeling of happiness took over that.

Your babies were being weighed and cleaned up and getting ready for you to hold.

The pain of childbirth and your moment of hatred for your man had disappeared in an instant as soon as you caught sight of Joe, the way his eyes sparkled with love and adoration, both for you and the new loves of his life, he shook his head, his smile beamed down at you, a mental image you would store in your head forever.

The nurse wandered over with the twins, "Congratulations on two beautiful, healthy boys you two." That was the moment it hit you, you were finally a mother, as you took them into each of your arms, the tears joined Joe's.

"I'm so proud of you baby, I love you so much." Joe snaked his hand onto the back of your head, peppering kisses on your cheek and you turned to him, gazing into his eyes.

"I love you more, say hi to our boys, daddy."

Throughout the whole pregnancy, you'd referred to each other as mummy and daddy when you spoke to them inside your tummy. Joe hesitated for a moment before stroking the top of their heads, "Hi." the look he'd gave them was unfathomable, he loved them more than they'd ever know. His awkward hello was so him.

Joe leaned down for a quick peck on your lips before his eyes escaped back to watch them. "I have to go call everyone; will you be ok for a minute?"

You nodded, terrified of being alone with them for a moment, the nurse came over pretty soon after to take them from you to put them in their joint travel cot so you could be cleaned and stitched. Joe gave you a wave knowing that you'd be kept busy a little while and ran out into the hallway, you heard the crash from his phone hitting the floor and sniggered a little bit.

Your chaotic Joseph and their chaotic daddy, there wouldn't be a better man to raise your boys with.

[burninghorizon]

Hello hello! I'm Nexus, I'm an adult(26) and I use any pronouns. You've found my spiritual blog focused on astral projection and alterhumanity. I follow from @birdwizardofficial.

I'm often hanging out in the astral in the Astral Harbour! Here's the discord:

I'll get the important stuff out of the way first:

Although some posts here have a humorous tone, all of this is serious metaphysical work. None of this is LARPing or imaginary.

Reality shifters DNI if you don't want to have a bad time.

Minors DNI please, I talk about adult stuff here.

Godkins/Deitykins who demand they be worshipped will be blocked.

Alterhumans who think all of humanity is bad or evil will be blocked.

Spiritual bigots(eg: people who hate demons) will be blocked.

If all of that is cool with you, please feel free to ask about or comment on what I do. I don't bite.

I talk a lot about my soul family here, I'll introduce them!

Mother: Hekate

The Goddess Hekate had a hand in creating my soul, and she's married to my father. She's stern, but gentle, and most of the magic I do was learned from her.

Father: Dante

My father is a demon whose recorded name won't be shared here, he goes by the name and face of Dante from DMC for privacy reasons, and their personalities are practically the same. I am so happy to be reunited with him, he makes me feel so happy and loved. He's the best dad ever. He has a blog now! @redhotandready

Uncle: Vergil

My uncle is my father's twin, he's also a recorded demon but we're calling him Vergil. He used to scare the crap out of me due to his resting bitch face but he's actually nice. An archivist who's very good at his job. Has an excellent sense of fashion and a good taste for teas.

Cousin: Lian

My cousin through paternal bonds, Lian is the best chaos homie anyone could ask for. They're responsible for reuniting me with the family so I'll always be grateful. Damn, don't cry now.... Anyway, they're incarnated like me, and you can find them at @ascending-sun-descendant .

Brother in law: Kagemi

Sometimes I forget there's a stereotype of hating your in laws because of this man. Kagemi is just so sweet and supportive, truly a man my cousin deserves, and one of my biggest enablers supporters. He can be found at @redclothedghost .

Sister in law: Hikari

My wonderful sister in law whom I respect very much. She scares the shit out of me and if you're wise you'll be a little scared of her too. She's at @poisondancer .

Me: Nexus

I'm unsure of where my journey is taking me, all I know is that I live for being on the horizon.

Fiancee: Blake

My first love and soon-to-be addition to our family via marriage, he's a sincere man of unimpeachable character, and the reason the rose is my favorite flower. A fae royal who is proficient in swordplay and poetry. He comes from a culture which despises humans, making him one of the odd ones for interacting with us at all.

Boyfriend: Vadim

One of the Vanir who, for some reason, has decided I am worth his time. He works with humans and aids in matters requiring fertility. He likes elk and hollyhocks, and annoying me.

Girlfriend: Lady

A fascinating woman who is a thousand times cooler than me. Knows more about and owns more guns than me, which is really saying something. She prefers to keep to herself.

[kursedmayo]

Story time. I think Donnie would also hate most lipbalm. They're so fucking greasy on the lips and good lord, I would rather feel the pain of dry ass lips than have it plump and moisturized but feeling like I just put cooking oil on, so with the power of headcanon on my side I'm inflicting this annoyance to him too.

I bet he takes like an obscene amount of time researching on lip products before realizing that there's no guarantee that they'll help all too much because he's half-turtle, his skin is different than a human's, which eventually compels him to go on a sort of lip care pilgrimage trying out all sorts of lip balm, like a lot of them. A LOT of them. He jots down the results in a fun little spreadsheet before he manages to narrow down to one brand which happens to be from a smaller, more ethical company than the rest. Even if that brand was much more expensive than others, its not as if he didn't have money that he stole to spend on quality products, so he managed to put his cracked lip woes to rest.

Unfortunately for him however, his brothers keep stealing from him so he barely even get to use the stuff he buys.

Mikey's the biggest culprit of this of course, he's one hell of a yapster (/pos ofc I love Mikey) his lips dry out easily, and he doesn't usually carry a lip balm with him (because he forgets to/keep losing them/keep eating them) so sometimes he just swipes on those bad boys off Donnie's pouch and he doesn't even notice and well, its not as if Donnie wants to take it back anyways. Its already got his lil bro's cooties all over it.

Meanwhile, Leo mostly just steals for funsies. He doesn't even use the ones he steals from Donnie, He's got like, a whole stash of flavored lip balms because he's the face man, he doesn't want chapped lips it'll ruin his gorgeous face! Anyways he gets a whole different bunch in case he loses one (which he never does) and keep buying some until he amassed a whole ass collection (which Mikey also steals from, not that Leo minds). He doesn't need to steal Donnie's, but its REAL fun to figure out how to. He'd literally figure out a whole ass 8 step plan in his head and even learn new tricks with his portals because Donnie literally had to resort to locking his lip balms up in a multi-password protected vault, only to end up not even using the damn stolen things because like Donnie, ew his twin's cooties.

Donnie's extra offended because of that cuz like, at least use the damn thing like Mikey does you heathen he paid 15 dollars for a tube!!

Anyways, since Donnie's no pushover he schemed to get revenge on Leo and begun to steal his chapsticks too, much to Leo's (hypocrital) annoyance and amusement, so now there's an unspoken war that's happening in the Hamato household at the moment which they both refuse to back down on.

Meanwhile, Raph's at the corner just shaking his head in exhasperation. He doesn't really care much about lip balms in the first place because he didn't really use those, but Donnie got disturbed seeing him walking around with El Niño on his lips one winter and begrudgingly gave him one to use, which Raph does use but only sparingly so he doesn't run out, though it's not like he doesn't have money to buy his own cuz he does off jobs in the hidden city then and again. Also he kinda gave up trying to stop the disaster twins from fighting over lip balm because they're gonna keep doing it anyways, so he kinda just kinda tune them out when something inevitably explodes in Donnies lab and Leo comes out running holding a lil tube. Mikey gets let off the hook though, lil bro priveledges you know?

So yeah.

Even if there's a huge L in Leonardo there's still two Ls in Donatello. He's gonna be having PTSD flashbacks whenever someone mentions chapsticks near him for sure.

[krikeymate]

Got any angsty carpenter sisters hcs? Break my heart destroy me i need to feel things.

Damn son, the angst I already give you isn't enough? *Cracks knuckles* alrighty then.

It doesn't feel real, Sam finally leaving for good. Tara would sit in Sam's old room at every available moment, just waiting. She waited and waited for months. Then one day, 6 months later, she comes home to find Sam's room gutted and empty. Sam's remaining belongings were shoved into the numerous trash bags scattered across the front lawn. Her mother has a... friend, coming to stay for a while she says. She just had to clear out the trash so he would have space in his room, she said. Tara spent hours frantically trying to collect and organise Sam's belongings. She was out there late into the night, crying, as she tried to save them. Her mother didn't even look at her once.

This friend is a creep. He's always staring at her, hovering by her door. She keeps it locked now, all the time. She never used to do that, in case Sam wanted to come in. But Sam's gone now, and she's scared of who might come through the door.

Sometimes her mother is a good mother. The time some classmates cornered her at lunch and attacked her, she came down to the school to scream at the parents. She held Tara close and helped her wash the blood from her face. She even slept in her bed with her, held her. It felt a bit like having Sam back for a moment. Then she heard her mother call out for Sam in her sleep, and the illusion was shattered. In the morning her mother would wake up sober and realise where she was and who she was with, and everything would come crashing down once again.

Their parents would always forget Tara's birthday. Sam was always so careful to find some things of her own to wrap to give to Tara, to pretend were from their parents. She had a whole locked drawer full of toys that Tara's never seen, specially chosen to give as gifts.

Sam's doesn't realise how hard it is to sleep until she leaves, until she doesn't have Tara in her arms or in the room next door anymore. Her brain never rests, it just gives her endless scenarios where Tara needs her and she isn't there. Suddenly being drunk or high isn't enough, she needs to take more, she needs enough to pass out. When Sam gets sober, she takes sleep medication. After they move to New York, Sam will lie awake for hours, waiting. Waiting for her sister to come home. The twins promise they're with her, they promise they'll bring her home safe. She'll hold the pill bottle in her hand. Tara will be fine, Sam has to be up for work in 4 hours. She drops the bottle, Tara will be home soon, it'll be fine, she can wait up a little longer.

Sometimes Sam will look at Tara and wonder who she is. She doesn't know this girl. She doesn't know who her little girl is anymore. She wonders who she would have been if Sam stayed. She wonders if leaving made her a better person or a worse one. She wishes she didn't have these doubts. Sometimes Tara will look at her with so much love in her eyes, and others it will be so hard, so cold. She'll look so much like their mother. It makes her think they're destined to be just like their parents after all.

[elvisabutler]

1K gala prompt request with number 22 fluff based on your last update where Professor Presley finally takes Belle to Hawaii? Can they have their babes with them?

soak up the sun

fandom: elvis presley | elvis ( 2022 ) rating: t for some implications but again pretty tame pairing: elvis presley ( professor big daddy ) x female reader ( nicknamed belle ) word count: 1071 warnings: no use of y/n. student/professor relationship ( former ). talk of babies. talk of pregnancy. talk of overworking. minor sexual implications. think that might be everything? author’s note: thank you for this anon! this was adorable and considering around this i also got an angst prompt for them that has crushed my soul it was a perfect thing for me to write. this is done for my 1k gala, based on fluff line “this vacation was a wonderful idea.” y'all know the drill, real elvis or austin elvis works fine for this despite the moodboard. also part of the professor presley universe that keeps growing by the day.

What they don't tell you about having full time jobs- or in Elvis's case, you suppose a part time job- and having more than one child is that things get hectic rather quickly. You forget to do dishes, houses tend to have toys strewn about and you can't really breathe from the second one child wakes up until the last child goes down at night. It is a constant chase and one that you and Elvis have actually handled with remarkable ease all things considered. Sitting in on classes with babies bouncing in laps, learning how to balance a baby on a hip while holding the hands of the toddlers, teaching your twins to not be idiots- Elvis's and your words- and run into traffic. You've- You've made it work better than you thought was possible. Honestly, if someone were to ask you now that your youngest was almost old enough to go to school, you kind of wouldn't mind one final baby to make it a nice even four.

You haven't mentioned this to Elvis, too busy playing with the ones you have in between grading papers and keeping in touch with friends while he's stuck running the department and getting into an argument or five about how his department is important and he'll keep his wife on tenure since the half of them have their damn kids on tenure. Still, the thought is there, hidden in the back of your mind when Elvis surprises you with a question one night in bed.

"Ya 'member when I said I'd take ya to Hawaiʻi?" His hand stills against your back, waiting for your answer as you look up at him from your comfy perch on his chest. You take a moment to nuzzle into his slightly greying chest hair and nod.

"I do. Mentioned before the twins, after the twins, and after Jesse but we've always been too busy. Why?"

"Might've gotten the school to let us roam free for a few weeks, if ya wanted t'go still." His answer's a little bashful, almost like he's prepared for you to tell him there isn't time and the twins can't miss school but instead you end up launching yourself at his lips and peppering his face with kisses all while laughing in agreement.

The flight had been a disaster as had getting to the hotel but after that, you have to admit this was the best idea in the history of ideas that Elvis had ever had. It's as if any tension that had been stored just was washed away in the sea water and the warm sun. Your twins and Jesse are busy playing in the sand near you and Elvis as you both let the sun soak into your skin, bringing life you didn't know you needed back into it. One week in and Elvis- Elvis almost looks like a different person if you're being honest, a healthy sort of tan coating his skin that has you wanting to jump on him every second of the day. Of course, those activities are confined to the later parts of the day but from the looks you give him, he knows they're there.

"Belle." He warns as you scoot your chair closer to him. "You keep lookin' at me like that 'n 'm gonna hafta get Jerry over here to watch the kids."

"And that's a problem, because?" You giggle as you reach for his hand adjusting a towel over your lap as if you're going to do something that requires hiding your lap. He glares before you drop his hand. "I can't help it, you look-"

"Like a new man?" He chuckles. "Darlin' ya know- still the same ol' man ya married. Just got a lil more color on me."

"I know, but it's- It suits you, Elvis." You bite your lower lip and sigh, looking out at your kids. "This vacation was a genius idea. I didn't- Figured we didn't need one because we're such workaholics but-"

Elvis cuts you off with a kiss, his tongue slipping past your lips and allowing you both to enjoy a kiss that's both chaste and arousing all at once. "But you and I needed some time away from Memphis. They needed to see somethin' other than Memphis and we- we got 'nough money to do it."

A hum of agreement and a bit of pleasure leaves your mouth before you kiss him again, placing your hand on your stomach. "We should make this a yearly thing- if we can, it's- it's a nice place to recharge, Elvis. A nice place to make fresh starts. "

Elvis's raises an eyebrow as his eyes drift down and follow where your hand is sitting. He knows your body almost like the back of his own hand so he knows- he knows there's nothing in there, knows you're not about to tell him he's about to be a father for the fourth time but he spies the glint in your eye as your three children move to tackle him unexpectedly, giving him sandy hugs that have you laughing and grabbing a camera you have nearby to snap a photo or five before Wendy's climbing on top you with wet little kisses to your face.

The kids start to doze off after what you think is about 15 minutes, the efforts of building sandcastles and playing in the sand and the sea dragging them into naps they desperately needed. It's an adventure getting the five of you back to the care but once the kids are inside and you're about to get into the car Elvis crowds you against the door, his hand moving to rub at your stomach, nuzzling your nose before a kiss. "You wanna try again?"

"Mmhmm." An answer that's a bit of an avoidance but one that also betrays how much you do want to try again, how you've been a little worried to bring it up given how much stress you've both been under. "One last little one? Try for another little girl?"

Your eyes are hopeful when you meet his only to see a desire you haven't seen in quite a while coloring his eyes as he answers you. "One last little one. That- I think we ought to start tryin' for the second these ones are in bed proper. Can't waste this vacation, can we? Wanna bring them along next year."

[doodle-do-wop]

KOTLC AND PJO

@valentinerose529 passed on the brain rot so now I'm dragging y'all down with me

Please buckle up your non-existent seatbelts and keep all hands, wings, feet, tails, and horns inside the vehicle. This is gonna be a long post

So

As I've previously stated else where I firmly stick my foot in the hill that the Aphrodite Cabin (10) has so much more under the surface of pink and glitter (not that there's anything wrong with pink and glitter)

Aphrodite is quite literally the Goddess of Love if you're a PJO fan and don't know Greek mythology or you're a fan but completely forgot.

She has an ever changing form to each individual as well as an ever changing personality (in the PJO universe) due to beauty standards and the culture of the place she's in.

Love is complicated and messy, it's not the same for everyone or every situation.

Thus why I put Keefe in good old 10. What a better place for an empath than the Aphrodite Cabin?

Now moving onto the ever messy Vackers

I love Fitz and Biana. I do............but I got an entire skeleton of bones to pick with Alden Vacker and of he can meet me outside the Denny's parking lot please-

While not actually smart Alden did manage to become emissary in KOTLC and Athena seems to like mildly smart guys who end up being very mid dad's. Girls got a type and I can only say hopes and prayers she gets better.

Athena is a strategist and occasionally thinks only in the form of a game (I will be using chess). Athena knows when it's time to get sharp and wet the blade and move people to where they have to go. She may be immortal but time is still against her so chop chop guys, we've got a magical meguiffin to snatch and bring back.

Athena is the goddess of wisdom, war strategy, handicraft.

What better godly parent to leave an ever lasting shadow on the eldest son Alvar. And the bitterness that stems from being out shined by perfect child Fitz who developed a far more impressive power than his older brother.

"but Biana feels so Aphrodite coded!" You cry and I hear you but Biana is a fighter at heart. She likes winning Quest Hunt and tackling the shit out of people in Tackle Bramble (she would love rugby). She's competitive and clever though it's not clear where on earth that gene came from, clearly not Alden.

And let's not forget it was Biana's idea to turn shirt ruffles into weapon hiding spots. Girls got strategy and style. Athena would be proud.

(plus the absolute sandal that would be blowing up the Camp's gossip train of Biana potentially being Aphrodite's daughter dispite having two Athena brothers would be scalding hot)

Onto everyone's favorite technopath

"oh Hephaestus, we all know" well you're wrong bucko

Worm, germs, plotted plant I named Timmy. What has Dex Dizznee built so far? Bombs, multiple bracelets for punching, many devices used just to heck the government's most top secret files, a panic button/tracker, more devices that hack into the government's files, a circuit that shall not be discussed.

These are all pretty crazy cool shit and Hephaestus would be damn proud to have Dex as his son.

But Dex isn't his son.

Dex's dad is the father of thieves, travelers, and roads. Hermes

"WHAT?" Yeah I know I know. But think about it. Dex is smart, he's so damn smart but he's tricky too. He knows the chemicals needed to dye an imp pink with glittery nails to match, he can whip up a batch up balding blam to get revenge, he can also be easily lost in the background of things.

So what a major disappointment it must be, to be waiting any day now for the sign of the hammer in a blazing forge and get a stupid winged sandal instead.

The Song Twins

Tam and Linh really gave me a run for my money because they're twins but Linh is an obvious Poseidon kid while Tam isn't and however powerful and weird the gods may be, two gods can't have kids with the same woman at the same time. It just ain't possible.

Linh's water powers are important to her character but so are Tam's. But Tam can still have spooky powers just not in the same flavor. Linh is the pretty side of Poseidon's rule over the seas. The water that heals and the funny animal shapes she makes. But the deeper into the ocean you get the darker it becomes. Tam's powers are the less pleasant things in life.

Now for everyone's second favorite arsonist (not Sophie)

Marella Redek has Pyrokenisis and you're saying "oh this one's eazy, Leo, come pick up your sibling" but you're wrong yet again my friend.

While Marella would probably be super frustrated with getting the tinker cabin over something that could help her mom (y'all remember how helping her mom was her main motivation?) at least with the STEM geeks she could hammer out some kind of magic mood ring to help her mom or make a bracelet with charmed gemstones capable of alerting her mom or herself when danger is near or just something

But no

Instead Marella is stuck in the only cabin that couldn't have been a worst match up for her. Hecate. (I know I previously said Ares but I changed my mind)

Marella, instead of having a knack for magic like almost every other child of Hecate instead got the flaming torch part of the deal. Literally. Marella can also see strings of magic and she doesn't like it one bit.

And finally Sophie (because this is getting too long)

Sophie was a tricky one since she has all these powers and it was nearly impossible to put her in a cabin that really fit with her

What finally got me to decide was actually her teleporting powers and inflicting. They have a sort of lightning and thunder styled description so who better than lord thunderbutt himself, Zeus.

[acourtofthought]

The mating bond itself is the bridge between souls. Mating bonds cannot be broken and ever vanish until one of these souls die, even if the mating bond is rejected. They also can't be "fake", not when fate has created that. (Rowan and Lyria did not have a fake bond because they were never mates to begin with). You could only fool someone and make them believe they have a mate and I doubt anyone would care enough to fool Lucien, not when that plan doesn't work. Elucien barely talk so what was the point of the plan to have them thinking they're mates?

So Elucien's mating bond is the bridge between them. They can ignore it all they want or reject it, but it's still there and will always be.

TT is the only bridge between Azriel and Elain. The same knife that Elain had immediatly returned without looking back and Feyre made a whole comment and gave Mor a look about that.

TT can break, it can be lost and it might have to leave Azriel as well (Bryce needs it). TT is Gwydion's twin and it only answers to that sword, not Azriel and most definitely not Elain or anyone else. It belongs to Gwydion. The bridge might as well fell as soon as Elain gave it back and didn't look back. Sure, she wasn't expected to keep it, but the whole scene and the way Feyre spoke of it tells much.

So yes. El/riel have no bridge to keep them together and it certainly doesn't connect their souls. But Elucien has.

Well damn but didn't you just make such a good point!?!

“The mating bond. It is a bridge between souls.” - Elucien

Light and dark, the space between their bodies a blend of the two. The only bridge of connection … that knife. (E/riel)

It's funny that no matter how many times I saw those lines I never put them together quite like you did, well done! I realized Elain and Az didn't have much connecting them but I never put together the use of the specific word "bridge" and how it's used for both pairings.

And yes again! We have no idea what the future of TT will be and whether it really belonged to Az in the first place. It was an object between Elain and Az, not a true connection. The second she gave it back, it was meaningless to her.

The Mating Bond will always be a powerful thing that exists between Elain and Lucien. It's not something either will ever forget about, regardless of what they do with it.