#Does this mean the book was written on three years before the current timeline? That's interesting

[taraljc]

I ended up reading all the Lockwood & Co novels, am waiting on Corgi editions to reread, and am trying to figure out what happened to Tom Rotwell. Did we ever find out anything apart from Marissa and Tom fell out, and his adult son grandson currently runs his agency?

ETA: I have a lot of questions about the timeline.

SPOILERS FOR ALL 5 NOVELS AHEAD!

I know the TV show is set a decade after the books and in the books Fittes and Rotwells first case The Mud Lane Phantom was in 1962, and Marissa died at age 40. But where is Tom's gigantic tomb and statue? Or did Marissa bury him literally and figuratively?

If they fell out only 5 years later in 1967, he still would have been all of 20 or so when he founded Rotwells. Yet Steve is greying when he first appears in book 3--and it's implied that the gate he created under the department store was his first, so he can't be rapidly aging the way Marissa did.

And who was Grace Peel, and how did she die? Was she really a martyr? Or was she just another person ground up and spit out by Fittes' ambitions?

Why did Tom and Marissa fall out? What's the real story there? Did he know when they first teamed up that Marissa was in fact the source of The Problem? Because it's not as if Marissa Fittes is a reliable narrator.

All we know is they both died young--and Marissa died in her 40s, prematurely aged by her trips to the Other Side. But did Tom know Marissa was in fact possessing her own granddaughters body, and had murdered her own adult daughter? Did Steve Rotwell even know anything about that, when he planned the attack at the Chelsea carnival?

What actually happened to Penelope Fittes soul? Was her consciousness suppressed, or was she completely ousted? How did Marissa even know how to possess a living body? What actually is Ezekiel? Could Tom see him with his Sight?

For that matter why is it that Talent fades? Is it physiological, or something else? Because one way to keep control of The Problem is definitely to limit who can see Visitors to children (who are presumably malleable and also immediately distrusted by adults).

Clearly Marissa Fittes never lost her Talent, so does that mean Lucy won't either? Does it have something to do with prolonged exposure to Type Three Visitors? Or is it like how due to the way our inner ears grow, there are high frequencies that even at high decibels people over 25 can't hear?

I'm just full of a zillion questions about who knew what and when, and how. Who started Sunrise? How does Tom fit in with the Orpheus Society? Who founded it?

I'm going to end up writing a novella. *facepalm*

EMETA: I should stress that me having a zillion questions in no way is this a criticism of Stroud. In fact, it's more likely a consequence of the books being written first person from future Lucy's point of view, and therefore the readers are limited to what she experiences and learns. I suspect that if the books had been from George's point of view, we would know way more about everything that happened from 1962 to 2017 before the first book, rather than little hints here and there because George is 300% all about the problem with like 5% of his consciousness reserved for Flo.

[novelmonger]

Your name: novelmonger or Griselda Banks (or any nickname you can make from either of those names)

Your first fandom(s): Star Wars (wait, hang on, I guess I was introduced to Narnia a couple years before Star Wars, but Star Wars was the first story I went feral over)

Your current fandom(s): The ones I will always love with every fiber of my being and not grow tired of talking about are Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Full Metal Alchemist, and Captain America. Secondary fandoms that will always hold a special corner of my heart all their own would be Harry Potter, Death Note, Sherlock, and Supernatural.

How did you first get into fandom? I'm going to interpret this question as "how did you first start interacting with other fans outside of your immediate family?" And that was actually through Neopets, of all things XD My brother and I were into Neopets around the time I'd discovered LotR, and so when he showed me what the forums were and how they worked, I started talking on there about LotR and got into forum roleplaying a bit, using LotR as the inspiration for the characters I'd create. I struck up some friendships, branched out to some other forum sites, discovered fanfiction at some point, and the rest was history.

How long have you been engaging in fandom spaces? I think I got started on Neopets when I was 11. I remember I had to get my dad to set up an email for me and fill out a permission form because I wasn't 13 yet XD

How often do you read fanfics? Much less often than I used to, that's for sure. I feel like I've gotten a lot more wary of fanfiction these days, and a lot more impatient with bad writing. Lately I've been reading a lot more actual books, which I don't think is a bad thing. But my fic to-read list is reaching scary lengths by now, so I should really try to whittle that down before some of them start disappearing or something....

Top three characters from your current fandom(s): Steve & Bucky (MCU), Ed & Al (FMA), Frodo & Sam (LotR). Yes, they're all bromance pairs. Just you try and stop me!

Have you ever written fic for a fandom? Oh, have I ever. I think the current count is over 150.

Have you ever drawn fanart for a fandom? Alas, I can barely even draw stick figures, so no :(

Share a (some) personal headcanon(s) you feel very strongly about: Steve did not go back in time at the end of Endgame; he told an alternate version of himself in a different timeline that Bucky was still alive and he should tell Peggy his coordinates when he took the plane down, so that version of Steve can keep Bucky from becoming the Winter Soldier and they go back to the U.S. and he marries Peggy. The original Steve goes back to his original timeline, still a young man, and he retires, marries Sharon, and settles down to enjoy life with his family and friends and help people in more mundane ways, while Sam becomes Captain America and Bucky gives him a hand from time to time.

You're trying to convince a friend to get into your current fandom(s) with you. What episode, clip, or scene are you showing them? For Star Wars, I'd show them the Duel of the Fates fight. For LotR...hmm, I've never actually had to convince anyone the LotR is cool, but I'd probably just show them the prologue of the FotR movie. For FMA, I'd show them the first episode of the first anime, because if that didn't hook them, there'd be no hope for them and we probably couldn't be friends :P For Captain America, if I could I think I'd show them that whole sequence from when he gets the supersoldier serum (including both before and after so you can see the change), and then the chase after the Hydra agent. Oooh, or maybe the opening scene from TWS, with the Lemurian Star mission.

And finally, what does fandom mean to you? It means connection. No longer am I just sitting by myself, enjoying a story on my own. I get to talk to people, share our opinions, and in many cases, make friends. Being involved in a fandom means I'm not alone. Which I guess is why, whenever I go to a convention or other fandom-dedicated space, I feel like I've come home even though almost everyone is a complete stranger.

Tagging @sailforvalinor and @captaingondor

@ladyknightskye tagged me.

Your name: Around here I go by AuthorToBeNamedLater or ATBNL.

Your first fandom(s): In terms of interest, Star Trek TNG. In terms of fandom engagement, seaQuest DSV.

Your current fandom(s): I measure “current fandom” in terms of “currently writing fic,” so Halo and The Mandalorian. Fandoms I love and post about here in rotation: Star Trek, Star Wars, MCU, Babylon 5, NCIS.

How did you first get into fandom? I honestly don’t remember a time when I wasn’t “into fandom” in some way? I suppose I really jumped in when I found FFN.

How long have you been engaging in fandom spaces?: Before you were born 😂 I found FFN very shortly after its launch in 1998.

How often do you read fanfics?: More often than I should LOL.

Top three characters from your current fandom(s): Is this three from each fandom or three altogether? I’ll go with the latter.

Cortana + John, Roland + Lasky (AIs and their humans are a package deal in my world), Kai.

Mando, Bo-Katan, Cara Dune because Cara is still in my Mandalore’s Reluctant Royals AU and if I ever get past the mental block of losing all my WIPs, she has a very important role to play.

Have you ever written fic for a fandom?: Only close to 100 between my FFN and AO3. Not counting the little snippets and micro fics I’ve shared only on Tumblr.

Have you ever drawn fanart for a fandom?: Aside from the Shadow vessel sponge painting I did in eighth grade art class, no. I’d like to change that though, because some of my off the wall AUs could do with visual content.

Share a personal headcanon that you feel very strongly about: Captain Shaw is married with kids and is a Chicago deep-dish pizza snob.

Tim McGee had an FFN account and probably has an AO3.

Thel ‘Vadam mixes up his English idioms Ziva David-style.

You’re trying to convince a friend to get into your current fandom(s) with you. what episode, clip, or scene are you showing them?: I am not showing ANYONE Halo, unless you come to me saying you want to watch it. And then I’m going to give you a bunch of caveats about how I’m obsessed with it but it’s really not that great except for when it is and you shouldn’t take it too seriously. Buckle up and grab your adult beverage of choice.

For game-verse Halo I’d show Johnson’s speech about the tank in Halo 2 because that’s what Mr showed me to rope me in.

Mandalorian, the first episode.

Babylon 5, I would start with the pilot movie if I could find it and then not let up until you’d watched five seasons of emotional roller coaster. I’d tell you what JMS said in the commentaries for Shattered Dreams and Sleeping in Light and Deconstruction of Falling Stars and how many of the actors died too young. After War Without End I would show you the video where JMS drops the bomb about why Michael O’Hare left the show. By the end of it you’d love the show but you might not love me anymore. 🤣

And finally, what does fandom mean to you?: A place where I can explore the highs and lows of the human experience in a safe environment. Sometimes I can put a little broken piece of myself into a fanfic or headcanon and not feel so broken anymore. I can “talk” about things in fiction that I can’t in real life.

A place where I can meet cool people whose paths I never would have crossed had we not been abnormal about a certain show or character. ❤️

Tagging all who see this!

[kyouka-supremacy]

///

[lampmanliveblogs]

The Lampman's Conspiracy Corner

Lamp Entertainment presents...

The new and improved Conspiracy Corner! It is bigger! It’s better! It has red string!

(note for any newcomers: I'm currently doing a mostly blind watchthrough of The Owl House. The last episode I've seen was Reaching Out. No spoilers please)

Isn’t it beautiful? This legitimately took me hours to set up.

Here’s a closer look at the Timeline. I’m very happy with how it turned out, I especially like the detail of the clock. It’s five to twelve, because the Day of Unity is soon upon us!

So, as I discovered in my last liveblog, the series doesn’t actually take place in 2020, but I had already written all of this. So I just hung up that thing as nod to that.

The thing that this timeline does a really good job of establishing is that Philip really went for hundreds of years seemingly doing nothing. What was he up to during all that time?

Here’s a closer look at the Wittebanes page. It has a simple family tree, as well as some info on the known members. I had the great idea to make some of the spots modular, so if/when new information is revealed, I can remove them and fill it in for real. You’ll also notice that string connected to the paper beneath…

(don’t ask why or where I got the british airways paper from because I’ve no idea)

Here is all the information on the Grimwalker that I’ve gathered. Which isn’t all that much. The only thing about the sad pedestrian that I’ve brought up before that isn’t mentioned here is that there is an emphasis in Philip/Belos’ notes on its eyes. That’s because I can’t draw eyes.

That blue thing is a periodic table. It’s the very one I got in high school chemistry, finally getting put to use. Oh stars, there is an actual interview where I said I might go into chemistry after I graduated… haha! Year 2 of high school Lampman was a very different person.

So, yeah. In Eclipse Lake, I brought up a certain possibility, but dismissed it almost immediately. Then, in Any Sport In A Storm, I brought it up as a joke.

The thing I’m talking about is the possibility that Hunter is the Grimwalker. That would explain how, you know… he exists despite the fact that his father died hundreds of years ago.

If you look on the left, I listed a few possible inspirations or things that were brought to my mind when thinking about what this Grimwalker might be.

First on the list is a Homunculus. It’s real term that was used in alchemy and means ”little person.” Maybe the most famous example in popular fiction though is from Fullmetal Alchemist.  Dana Terrace has referenced Fullmetal Alchemist when talking about The Owl house before (Luz is a fan of Hiromu Arakawa and used to trace her manga; hence why she’s so good at drawing glyphs). So that is a possible inspiration. And I recall reading a post once that compared Belos to Father from FMA. And, well… if Hunter is the Grimwalker, then in some way, that would make Belos…

The second on the list is something I stumbled upon when researching the third item on the list. Bakru. According to one of  my books on mythological/folklore creatures and monster, bakru are unruly children created from wood by witches and wizards. They require powerful magic to control and are often sold to ordinary people.

The third item on my list are a few creatures from Swedish folklore. Because of course I have to reference that. There are a few stories about witches creating helpers like milk hares. They were often created from wood, fabric and other items. Some of them require things like dirt from churchyards, a blood sacrifice (three drops of blood from your left pinkie) and a magic spell. These creatures were used by the witches to steal from their neighbors, usually milk from cows. Hence, milk hare.

And while I have your attention; did you know that the ”mare” in ”nightmare” comes from another creature from swedish folklore? The mara. Maras are at day regular women. Exactly how they become maras is not known. Some say it’s a curse, others say it’s because their mother used dark magic to lessen the pain of childbirth (if the child is born a boy, he becomes a werewolf). At night, maras turn into an oily mist. They can slip through any crack, so you can’t lock them out. They will sit on your chest while you sleep and cause bad dreams and difficulty breathing. To protect yourself, spread flaxseeds around your bed; the mara will have to count them before it can do anything to you.

N-no, please don’t leave! I’ll move on, I swear! No more nordic mythology or folklore!

Here are some miscellaneous things. A note on the portal door, the Titan, The Collector. I put a star on The Collector’s note because he’s associated with stars and moons (and I couldn’t draw a good crescent moon)!

Okay, so I lied before. On the note about the Titan, I bring up a figure from nordic mythology. That being Ymer (or Ymir). It’s a primordial giant from which the world was made. I belive I mentioned that connection in a season one liveblog… I think it was Adventures in the Elements? I could be wrong, and I’m too lazy to go check.

I also drew the glyphs! And the spells Luz has learned so far! They’re not very good, but hey. I tried.

Funny story: I like to doodle the glyphs on random pieces of cardboard occasionally. I ended up showing a coworker a light glyph I drew. She told me it looked like a failed christmas tree. I have not been the same since.

Oh, and I also listed the elemental symbols from the Engelsfors Trilogy. Because I felt like it.

So, this was the new conspiracy corner. I had a ton of fun making it and I hope to bring it back again.

[fantastic-rambles]

Random BSD Thoughts: “The Untold Origins” and The Decay of Angels

WARNING: Spoilers for “The Untold Origins of the Detective Agency” LN (Brief spoiler for Chapter 91 near the end.)

So I’m still plodding my way through the light novels and making notes on the various things that catch my interest. For those who have read the third novel, saying that I’m going to discuss the Decay of Angels in relation to it might seem odd, but there’s a method to my madness (in my own head, at least).

Right now, we’ve been introduced to the five members of the Decay of Angels in the manga, which seems to have rounded out the group. And the light novel, as the title suggests, refers to events that happen a long time before the events of the manga. But I think that the novel could be hinting toward the existence of the Decay of Angels even back then, with Ranpo and Fukuzawa briefly catching its tail.

(My thoughts/reasonings are pretty tenuous, so there’s a very good chance that I’m wrong/will be proved wrong since I’m no Ranpo who can solve a mystery by looking at it, but this is just where my brain went and I felt like sharing. xD) 

“V” and the Decay of Angels?

(I’ve learned how to use headers instead of having enormous walls of text, go me!)

The lines that caught my attention and sent me spiraling down this rabbit hole are these, which appear near the end of the light novel:

Behind it all was a domestic underground syndicate known as “V,” whose goal was to rid the country of skill users.

And the battle against them was only beginning.

Of course, it doesn’t name the Decay of Angels explicitly, but there are a few things just in the first line that caught my attention:

They are a domestic syndicate. Of course, the Decay of Angels (currently) has skill-users from several different countries, but their leader is very much Japanese. And maybe back then, they were primarily Japanese, with Fukuchi recruiting the others in the years since (more on this later).

“V”: the Roman numeral for 5, which could refer to the five “signs” of the impending death of an angel (one of which is the “lack of delight in their heavenly seat” or something along those lines that the ADA fulfilled--I think I’m mixing up the Mouryou no Hako description with the BSD description, but you get the point). It could also refer to the number of members, but I find that unlikely given that “V” does seem to have more than five people at this point in time.

Their goal, to rid the country of all skill users: isn’t that literally what Fyodor wants to do? Though on a slightly larger scale, as he apparently wants to rid the world of them altogether. But again, if he were recruited later, that would have provided him a strong incentive to lend his support to the DoA.

We also learn that this organization is willing to use any methods in order to achieve their goals, which is rather reminiscent of the methods of the DoA, especially Fukuchi orchestrating an enormous terrorist plot in order to gain control of an international, non-affiliated army and destroy all of the countries.

Plus, the member of the organization who is caught by Fukuzawa and Ranpo is a police officer, Jun Mitamura. Was he an early member of the DoA or the Hunting Dogs under Fukuchi? Yes, he doesn’t seem to be a skill user, as is the case with both organizations now, but it’s also established that back then, the knowledge of skill users wasn’t well-known, and the government seemed to be trying to collect them. So I don’t think it’s unreasonable that some of the earlier iterations of the groups might have had non-skill user members, and it would make most sense to recruit them from law enforcement and/or the army.

To prevent him from talking after he was captured, Mitamura was stabbed by a blade that disappeared (as was Kurahashi); I don’t know when Fukuchi obtained Amenogozen, but it certainly seems like something he could have done if he did have it then. Especially since he was also affiliated with the military (and maybe was starting to get a reputation?) and could probably walk around a police station/jail without raising suspicion.

Angels in the Light Novel (an aside, mostly)

Another interesting tidbit is that “angels” feature prominently in the story, most particularly in the play that is performed early on that has a minor mystery for Ranpo to solve, including the death threat that is received:

An angel shall bring death, in the truest sense of the word, to the performer. - V.

Although this is part of the plan to fake Murakami’s death, it seems clear that “V” and Murakami and/or Kurahashi were in contact in order for this note to be written. After all, it would be a wild coincidence for them to have randomly chosen “V” to be the anonymous sender of the letter and then for this organization “V” to show up later in the novel.

Of course, the “angels” in the play don’t actually have great bearing on the story (as far as I can tell), and the depictions of skill-users in the play are considered inaccurate/dramatized in general (again, since they’re not well-known about at this point), but it is noted that it’s very unusual to include them since they’re generally considered some sort of urban legend. But if “V” had a hand in writing the play through Kurahashi, they could have provided information about skill-users (possibly to pique Natsumi’s interest and get him to show up?) as well as influenced the theme of the angels.

Overall Timeline of Events

So with this information, I’ve organized a rough (theoretical) timeline of events for the development of the Decay of Angels. Starting from three facts:

14 years ago (prior to the present shown in the manga), Fukuchi joins the army and comes to hate war.

12 years ago, the ADA is founded.

8 years ago, Fukuchi defeats Bram Stoker and forces him to join the DoA.

Presumably, around those 14 years ago, that’s when Fukuzawa left the army/being a government assassin and found employment as a bodyguard instead. But Fukuchi did join the army and was caught up by the horrors of war, which led him to start forming plans to destroy all of the countries and establish world domination. So by the time Ranpo meets Fukuzawa two years later, possibly Fukuchi has formed a proto-Hunting Dogs/DoA organization that is called “V” with his charisma and growing fame.

Then, in the following years, he goes on being the world’s hero, fighting against highly skilled and dangerous skill-users. With his reputation and image of reliability, trust in him grows and he’s able to freely go almost anywhere, which would give him opportunities to meet and recruit people like Fyodor and Gogol. Gogol seems to be close friends with Fyodor, so they probably came as a package, while Fyodor may have agreed to the cooperative relationship so that he could get the Book and erase skill-users, while Fukuchi would be able to benefit from Fyodor’s malicious and thorough ability to devise complex plots to achieve their goals. Also:

MANGA CHAPTER 91 SPOILER: “One Order” is apparently an ability that “frees soldiers [people] from the yoke of sin”/takes away their guilt (over committing murder). Sound familiar??? This might just be a coincidence, though. But if Fyodor is also interested in this, it could further explain why he joined up with the DoA.

But not all of the collaborators are working with Fukuchi willingly, as is seen by Bram Stoker. But when he defeated Stoker, Fukuchi clearly thought that he would be useful (either his own idea, or possibly Fyodor’s if they’re working together by that point) and kept him secretly for 8 years. So this is a plan that’s been in the works for a very long time and only coming to a head now, since the ADA has grown enough to be able to realistically pin the terrorism accusation on them.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

How does Fukuzawa get his ability of “All Men Are Created Equal”? If he does have this ability, at the very least, he doesn’t recognize it at this point of his life. Possibly it’s again due to the dearth of knowledge/interactions with skill-users (especially any that would be under his leadership since he’s very much a lone wolf), but is it actually possible to develop a skill later in life as is mentioned in the play, and which Fukuzawa uses to convince Ranpo that he’s a skill-user? (I’m inclined to think not, and that it just becomes applicable after he establishes the ADA and skill-users join, but still curious.)

Little Oda! When the assassin with two pistols showed up, I hoped he was Oda, and he was! Which means that Ranpo and Oda met (ish) before Oda decided to stop killing, and again when Oda decided to start killing again. And Little Oda still likes curry. D:

[shihalyfie]

"Canon” and “not canon” in the Adventure/02 universe

This is something I want to talk about, because it has a certain degree of relevance to the question of what I choose to take into account in my analyses and what I don’t. I write a lot about Adventure and 02 because both series are ridiculously consistent over their 104-episode runtime, but there are times when things contradict or don’t quite track together, and I have to figure out how to best rationalize them -- which means I need to make arbitrary decisions on what to count and not count, and when one does make those kinds of decisions, you’re very liable to get the complaint: “but that’s not canon!”

Which always makes me think: who decided that? And in the end, this is something that I think extends beyond just Digimon; every fanbase for everything always wants to believe there’s a clear-cut answer to things that everyone’s supposed to follow in a canonical timeline, and things that fall outside it. And sometimes, for some franchises, that is doable, because official staff will actually say outright that “this counts, and this doesn’t.” But that’s not how Toei and Bandai work, and their modus operandi has always been to toss a bunch of often-contradictory stuff at everyone and go “figure it out yourself,” and I think at some point the fanbase really needs to acknowledge that this so-called clear-cut boundary of “canon” and “not canon” doesn’t actually exist at all. Or in other words, any assertion of something being “canon” or “not canon” in the Adventure and 02 universe is purely something arbitrarily defined by fans, and was never determined by official - which, conversely, has actually encouraged you to take as much as you want and figure out the rest yourself.

Before we begin, I do want to make clear that this is not about one’s personal canon based on one’s own preferences -- that is to say, if you’re going “I don’t consider this canon because I don’t like this/don’t want to work with this,” then that’s entirely your right, especially if you’re doing creative work and need to decide what to apply and to not to apply. (Although, as always, one must be conscientious and respectful of those who do like it and consider it canon, because everyone’s going to differ on this.) What I am talking about is when people take a substantial part of the franchise that they otherwise like, such as a movie or drama CD, see one detail that’s contradictory in terms of the timeline or lore, and take that as evidence of “yep, the entire thing’s not canon. We’ll just throw the entire thing out, then.” It just makes me think -- you threw out a perfectly good work for that?! That’s such a waste!

First of all, Toei and Bandai don’t work that way

In general, a lot of the contradictions in the series have a “right hand is not talking to left hand” problem, because as much as we would like to believe that a Digimon series is written by a single consistent entity, the franchise itself is a huge trade-off between Toei and Bandai, and a lot of things from Bandai -- spinoffs, crossover material, games, what have you -- don’t exactly have a stellar track record of being vetted by Toei anime staff. It’s pretty well-known that game portrayals of certain characters can be really off or have misleading info, and even V-Tamer’s somewhat guilty of it. So this is going to happen no matter whether you like it or not, and it happens with any long-running kids’ series that involves a collaboration between multiple companies like this.

Moreover, the traditional custom for Toei “side movies” (in this case, meaning things like the original movie, Our War Game!, Hurricane Touchdown, and Diablomon Strikes Back) is that they’re produced with minimal involvement from the original series’s core staff -- at most, the producer is lightly involved -- and are sometimes even worked on simultaneously with the start of the original series, so you often end up with a movie that’s impossible to fit anywhere in the series timeline because there wasn’t any communication with the two sides. And for that, it’s all too easy to dismiss those movies as “non-canon”, with the fanbase arbitrarily deciding that canon ones are canon because they fit -- but Toei itself has never taken this stance.

The other thing is that, given that Adventure/02 is famous for its ridiculous level of worldbuilding consistency thanks to its director Kakudou’s conscientious efforts on it, it means that as a result, anything not made by him was prone to running afoul on it, and it’s not like the stance back then was to just reject all of it wholesale. “Doesn’t comply with the lore” is so often equated with “not canon”, but Kakudou, the author of that lore, not only made no indication of invalidating or disliking those non-compliant things, but also conversely made an active effort to make those things relevant in spite of that! (See: Our War Game! below.) The official stance is to not deny those works for being noncompliant -- it’s just that Kakudou seems to be the detail-oriented kind of person who personally prefers to work with things that have a high level of consistency (he’s very quick to say “I wasn’t involved on that” whenever someone brings up something from said external materials, not in any condescending way, just “I wasn’t involved, so don’t attribute that to me”). In fact, one of the reasons there wasn’t initially a third Adventure series was that he had difficulty finding a way to adhere to the higher-ups’ pressure to keep all of these contradictions consistent -- so the official stance itself is to try and maintain all of those side works, and that it would be better to end the series itself than to have to do something like deny them.

Which makes things very frustrating for the fans, of course, but nevertheless, that’s how it is -- even back in 2000, the right-hand-not-talking-to-left-hand phenomenon was this significant! And it would have been easy for official to step in and go “okay, we’ll put a statement out here that these don’t apply,” but no, the stance was be that it would be better to stop dragging it out longer and cancel a whole series than to deny those works, which leads us to the current situation. (Plus, think how insulting it would feel from a PR perspective if someone got attached to one of those “non-canon” materials only for official to come out and outright say “yeah this doesn’t count anymore”; we can name examples of this happening in other franchises that have understandably gotten a lot of people upset, and it would be especially offensive to do this right after said material had been released.)

Bolstering the concept of official staff’s very loose opinion of “canon” are the Adventure novels, which were supervised by Kakudou himself and written by Digimon episode screenwriter Masaki Hiro, and are non-compliant with Adventure timeline by design, because it’d be bad for the format to try and depict every single detail in the anime in the form of three novels. Several events are condensed or shuffled out of order, or even sometimes completely different (Koushirou’s incident with Vadermon goes very differently from the anime version). Despite that, this is said directly to be intended as a series of novels to help people understand Adventure and 02 better, and several details in Two-and-a-Half Year Break and Spring 2003 are incredibly consistent with it (namely in the sense of details meant to retroactively connect Adventure to 02, and other background details like Daisuke’s backstory). So you are supposed to do some kind of mental leap where you don’t take the contradictions around the actual events too seriously, but still accept the spirit and the background information you learn from it and retroactively apply it to Adventure and 02 -- and, presumably, that’s probably what you’re expected to do with everything else, too.

And this isn’t even getting into the fact that the anime itself has occasional contradictions and errors due to things like animator error or simply different writers writing different episodes -- the Adventure and 02 staff were certainly very detail-oriented, but they are human and of course inevitably slipped up here and there. How seriously do you take honorifics shifting from episode to episode in ways that don’t seem intentional, or the fact every background material refers to Osamu and Ken having a bunk bed and yet the actual episode with both of them fails to depict it? How do you deal with the fact that the Animation Chronicle is one of the most extensively useful post-02 reference materials with tons of production background info not revealed in the anime, and yet is infamously full of suspected typos that would cause some pretty massive implications if true, or all of those other Bandai and Shueisha-commissioned “side books” and other pieces of media meant to entertain the kids while the series was airing but clearly had no input from Toei staff whatsoever? 

In the end, frustrating as it is, the answer seems to be the same as ever: figure it out yourself.

The standards for what’s “canon” and “not canon” are way too arbitrary

Let’s look at a handful of things that have been historically dismissed as “non-canon” by the fanbase:

The Adventure mini dramas and Armor Evolution to the Unknown: Drama CDs that were generally dismissed as non-canon because they’re “too crack” to be canon (their writing style is of the “it’s okay to push the boundaries of characterization for the sake of comedy” sort, and it wouldn’t be until later when we finally got some more serious drama CDs). The latter is full of honorific inconsistencies, most prominently Daisuke and Ken still being on surname basis at a time they’re not supposed to be (due to the fact that it was released while the series was still being produced). But official word is that you’re still supposed to consider them canon -- and yes, that’s Kakudou himself giving official sanction to a drama CD that involved a massive amount of fourth wall breaking and a completely unexplained reunion between the Adventure kids and their Digimon sometime between 1999 and 2002 (apparently this wasn’t the only one, either). How is this supposed to work? Figure it out yourself.

Hurricane Touchdown: The funny part is that up until Kizuna validated Wallace’s existence, there was no actual consistent agreement on why this movie shouldn’t be canon (the Western side being “evolutionary form timeline violations”, the Japanese side being Wallace’s status as a Chosen Child prior to 1995), which really goes to show you how arbitrary all of this is. It also has a sequel drama CD in the form of The Door to Summer, which is also contradictory with Hurricane Touchdown’s ending, so we’ve got two layers of “it can’t be canon because...” -- and yet it has a lot of interesting Daisuke characterization, and, heck, the whole character of Wallace himself, that would all be rejected if you throw this out wholesale. Then Kizuna came along, and there’s a general sense of hesitation against easily denying officially-sanctioned “main” entries like that, which retroactively forced people to somehow skip past all that and accept it, just for the sake of Kizuna’s notability.

Diablomon Strikes Back: Similar to the above, it used to be constantly dismissed as “a non-canon fun movie” because of the evolutionary forms that appear in it, despite the fact that 02 itself established that it wasn’t that hard to restore evolutionary forms if you figured something out. Somehow, a ton of people treated it as such an impossibility that “they figured it out in the first three months of 2003″ would be a viable explanation, and yet official word is that of the second through fourth movies, this is the one that had the most amount of initial consultation with the TV anime staff! And then tri. and Kizuna came along and clearly had high-level evolutions in play too, and dismissing DSB on these grounds meant dismissing those by proxy, and a lot of people were too intimidated to do that and decided to retroactively validate DSB instead, after years of having dismissed it for this reason. Again: look how arbitrary this all is.

The tri. stage play: Mainly because its timeline of events doesn’t fit tri. at all (in regards to the reboot and part 5). This is a fair assessment to make in light of the fact that it doesn’t seem to work very hard to be compliant with the very series it’s branded with, but, funnily enough, it’s actually more lore-compliant with the original Adventure and 02 than the tri. anime series is, and yet the few minor contradictions it makes with the tri. anime series are sufficient to consider it completely kicked out of canon, yet those same people who declare it so aren’t as willing to hold the anime to that same standard just because it holds a more prominent “main” position.

On the other hand, let’s look at some of the things that have been more likely to be accepted than the above:

Our War Game!: Reading this is probably going to make everyone go “whaaaaaat?”, but yep: according to Kakudou, the second through fourth movies were all made without his supervision or involvement and thus have lore contradictions (although he also made sure to say that they’re very fine movies, too). We still haven’t figured out what the lore contradiction is, and so the fanbase considers it canon, and even 02 itself makes multiple references to “the Diablomon incident” in 2000, so you can’t consider this non-canon in the slightest...but yes, according to the official side, it’s actually got a contradictory incursion somewhere in there. There is one hypothesis as to what it is, and it’s such a minor thing that no fan or even official member of staff would dare deny the movie for it, but it still contributes to how arbitrary this entire concept is: Kakudou didn’t want to give anyone (except Miyako, who’s based off a real person) canonical birthdays or blood types for the sake of preventing horoscoping, but Sora’s birthday is portrayed as being around March in the movie. And yes, Kakudou himself refers to this as being something that only happened because he wasn’t involved. (Remember what I said about him historically being quick to disclaim involvement on anything he wasn’t involved on, regardless of how much of a minor detail it is, yet doesn’t necessarily intend to deny the work entirely due to it?)

Tag Tamers: A very vital part of Ken’s backstory that establishes a lot of context behind the Dark Seed and the elusive Akiyama Ryou, which also does not make sense with 02′s timeline and characterization at all, presumably because Bandai and Toei weren’t properly communicating on what kind of details they needed to iron out for this. But of course, all of us would like some explanation to Ken’s backstory, and we have to apply some kind of logic as to how that makes sense, and I’ve yet to see people declare Tag Tamers (or any of the other WonderSwan games) as entirely non-canon as a result.

tri.: For obvious reasons, it’s a “major entry in the franchise”, so people are generally more averse to dismissing it so easily (or, at least, for reasons that aren’t related to pure preference), but I find it rather ironic that Kizuna’s the one that got all the attention for apparently being lore non-compliant, when the exact same lore points mentioned in Kakudou’s reasoning as to why it’s non-compliant (along with a ton of things that actually were in Adventure and 02′s text) are gone against even more regularly and prominently in tri., whereas Kizuna still goes out of its way to adhere to most of these and only seems to have incurred a contradiction in terms of originally intended ideology, and, possibly, its extensive use of the aforementioned movies. (Recall that this got brought up for Kizuna specifically because Kakudou was initially consulted for it; he wasn’t involved in tri. to begin with at all.) See above on how people’s unwillingness to write this one off so easily despite everything ended up retroactively dragging DSB into “accepted canon” territory; that’s how arbitrary this entire thing is.

Then, tied to all of this and making it even more confusing is Kizuna, which, again, putting all issues of personal preference aside, is basically being torn back and forth between all of these whenever you try to apply one of the above arbitrary standards. It’s allegedly lore-noncompliant with Kakudou’s lore and thus lacks his involvement, but it does have the involvement of original series producer Seki Hiromi who was known to be responsible for the series’s original human drama themes (including the premise of 02 itself) and personally vetted the scripts so that everyone could be properly in-character and the original themes still intact; it’s supposedly a “main” entry to the point where people will stop denying older works’ canonicity because of it (see Hurricane Touchdown above), but, legally speaking, is actually classified in the same “gekijouban” category that the first four movies and things like the Tamers through Savers movies are; the staff will say to hell and back that the 02 epilogue still holds (and the movie makes abundant retroactive references in both worldbuilding and themes to it), but many people out there will still insist that the movie ending that way means that (like with DSB above) “they figured it out” between the movie’s ending and the epilogue is apparently some kind of impossibility, and either the movie is non-canon or the 02 epilogue is invalidated now. (My personal stance on this is that the epilogue itself provides the answer to how they figure it out if you look closely at the movie’s themes, but that’s a tangent.)

The point I’m trying to make is that regardless of whatever stance you take on all of the above points, this is all extremely arbitrary, and these fanbase rationalizations on why this and that isn’t canon are constantly contradicting each other, shifting, and occasionally based on really meaningless things. And, again, it’s fine if you’re saying that you don’t consider this or that canon because you personally dislike it or where it went, or you find it difficult to work with, or between two contradictory things you prefer one or the other (I certainly have my fair share of strong opinions in this regard) -- but it would be better if we all admitted this and went “I just don’t consider this canon” instead of acting like there were ever some universal consensus or official backing.

"It didn’t happen this exact way, but something resembling it still happened”

So, we’re in this uncomfortable situation where we’ve been handed a ball of knots and have to work with it (a very frustrating situation especially for fanfic writers), and I have to personally say that I think all of this comes from people having far too inflexible of a concept of “canon” and “not canon”, especially to the point of rejecting a full-on perfectly fine entry just because of one timeline issue. I honestly think it’d be better if we could rather take a certain stance close to the Pixiv dictionary wiki’s view of how Wallace can appear in Kizuna: “(some version of) Wallace exists in the timeline of the main story.”

Right, so: Hurricane Touchdown is contradictory. The evolutions don’t work at that point in timeline, and Wallace shouldn’t be able to be a Chosen Child from before 1995. Those things don’t work with Adventure and 02′s timeline and lore. However, let’s look at the following story: let’s say that, between 02 episodes 14 and 15 (when the movie first screened), while school was on break, Daisuke and his friends went on a summer adventure to the US and met a boy named Wallace, who had a struggle regarding one of his partners losing his sanity, and bonded with him and helped put his partner to rest. No part of this contradicts 02 at all. There we go! So we can safely say that some story that mostly resembled Hurricane Touchdown happened in the canon timeline. Some of its details weren’t exactly the way they happened in “the movie we, as the audience, saw” -- but something that substantially resembled the movie still happened in the universe of Daisuke and his friends. And you can apply that same logic to Tag Tamers, or any other vital canonical but ostensibly contradictory material -- the media that we as the audience got may not accurately reflect the events in universe, but there’s absolutely nothing saying that some more timeline and lore-consistent alternate version didn’t happen in canon instead.

Moreover, even Adventure/02 itself gives you a bit of precedent for this concept -- namely, the fact that the final episode of 02 reveals that the entirety of Adventure and 02 is part of Takeru’s novels. It’s a pretty common theory that there might be differences in the way “the story we got” was presented, versus how they actually happened in the world Takeru lived in -- of course, Takeru certainly went out of his way to remove as much bias from the situation as he could, but you can hardly say that he, as a human, would be completely free from it, and he himself even admits that everyone he consulted had differing opinions on the events in question. And not every single piece of Digimon media has the Hirata-Hiroaki-as-Takeru narrator, which means that perhaps it’s not entirely out of the question that the different takes on the stories that the Tokyo Chosen Children went through in their youth would not be entirely consistent with each other, depending on who’s telling it. But that doesn’t mean that those events necessarily didn’t happen at all, just that some of the details were different from what we as the audience saw.

In the end, I leave the rest to everyone else to figure out -- as I said, I think this is a decision everyone will have to make for themselves, whether they’re a fanfic writer picking and choosing what to include for the sake of a coherent fic, or whether they’re just expressing a preference to not have to think too hard about or work with something they’re turned off by. (And in the case that there is someone who expresses their dislike of working with something and doesn’t want to consider it canon, I think it’s very rude to give them grief for that, and conversely, if you don’t want to consider something canon but encounter someone who doesn’t have as much of a problem with it, it’s very rude to try and expect them to change their opinion to yours.) But I do think it would do well for all of us to have a bit more of an open mind and a creative attitude towards these kinds of things before trying to shove everything into a “fully canon” and “fully not canon” binary.

[bbnibini]

PSISLY: An Obey Me!CYOA -- prologue/zero🔖

With darkness blanketing the starless sky in Devildom, it was hard to keep track of time without the aid of clocks conveniently placed in most parts of RAD. Truthfully speaking, you have been tardy and even missed class in your first days as an exchange student(much to Lucifer's ire). A demon's way of life was starkingly different from a human's-- you recalled the culture shock and the homesickness you felt before. It was hard to believe that almost a year had passed since then.

You've been through a lot, have been dragged to countless shenanigans by the demon brothers and even died in a few timelines or so. How you managed to even stay sane from all of that mess was a miracle. You'd even like to believe you made friends along the way.

True, most of the personalities you encountered weren't the most friendly bunch, but you somehow gained their trust, and now you began to dread ever leaving. It's only one or two months more before your exchange program will be over, so sometimes you couldn't help but wonder if the brothers feel the same way.

"Do they like me?" You had some suspicions, but dismissed them in a self-deprecating fashion. They were powerful demons and you were only human. While your birth origins had an interesting backstory, it didn't really mean much. Lilith was her own person, and so were you. The brothers made it perfectly clear to you that they know how to tell both of you apart, and you were thankful for that. The last thing you'd like is to be a vessel they can pour their grief and their pent-up feelings at. You barely knew Lilith in the first place, so how on earth can you be capable enough to heal their hearts? Nevermind being loved by them? Out of the question!

That was what you thought anyway, but they seemed to think otherwise; for now, you found yourself eating your words when you saw a suspicious looking letter in your locker.

Drawn on the corners of the envelope were pink carnations, while an elegant handwriting was placed on the centermost part of its back. It read:

" With Love, from Your Secret Admirer"

You felt your heart beat out of your chest. Your sweaty palm held the envelope with trembling hands as you looked consciously at your surroundings.

You shook your head and tried to rationalise.

"This is impossible. This must be a prank."

You were wrong, unfortunately. When you opened the letter and read its contents, it was definitely a love confession. The same pink carnations were seen at the corners of the stationery. Three words you thought you'd never hear in your life were peppered all throughout. You get it. Whoever sent this to you clearly meant it.

The question was...who?

You rarely check your locker as you had most of your school supplies and your books kept in a compartment under your desk. The only times you do is when it's time to change your uniform for the appropriate season. Putting school uniforms in a locker shouldn't be common sense--you knew it was unusual, that was why you put it in there in the first place. You don't trust your own memory and your motor skills so you hated to ruin your uniform before you even got to wear them. That was what happened when you placed all your uniforms in your closet before anyway.

...let's just say that whatever you put in that closet will never see the light of day again. Even with Lucifer's stern lectures, you couldn't seem to keep it tidy for even a second. Saying that, keeping your uniforms in a locker was even his bright idea.

...wait a minute.

Could it be? You shook your head.

While it's true that not a lot of people really knew about where your locker was, not to mention how often you open it, Lucifer...really?

He was the last person you'd ever suspect. If he had something to say to you, he wouldn't be so roundabout like this. Not to mention the handwriting in the letter is completely different from his penmanship. How do you know?

Well...ehh...he might have signed a few...documents for you to get you out of trouble...cough. But! That is besides the point!

Did he even have time to send this? He told everyone not to bother him while the student council was preparing for an upcoming school festival. Would someone so preoccupied and had the notoriety of being eternally overworked have the time to write a disgustingly sweet love letter? Some might say that he must have sent it at an earlier time but...

...the letter's stationery still had its scent so it should be written quite recently. Your assumptions of its recency were confirmed once you saw a cookie tin inside your locker. Inside them were cookies (duh) that suspiciously looked and tasted like the ones Barbatos offered you this morning. Still warm too... Wait...

Barbatos?! You felt your cheeks warm. You didn't expect that! True he was always nice and amiable to you, but you always attributed that to his occupation. As a butler, he had to be proper and courteous at all times. That was why it was so weird (at least in your opinion) that he would ever send you a love letter. Your relationship with him never really gave you that impression. It was pleasant, but not romantic. Still, you didn't dismiss the possibility that it could be him, even if that was highly unlikely.

Speaking of highly unlikely, Mammon had been acting suspiciously since yesterday. He...actually smelled a lot like the perfume used on the letter's stationery!.

.

.

.

.

Nah. Mammon. Really? Could he really write something so embarrassing like this? Not to mention the grammar used in the letter was quite highfalutin. Perhaps if someone was well-read however, writing a letter like this would be a breeze. Maybe Satan?

.

.

.

.

Okay, this is getting ridiculous. You're starting to suspect everyone.

Maybe, maybe focus on the impossibilities first?

It couldn't be Levi. You were with him all this time! In fact, he's currently waiting for you to get your uniform as we speak! The twins are also out of that list. You're quite sure they don't know about where your locker was located. You didn't mean to keep it a secret! It's just, there was a time when you didn't really trust Belphegor a lot so you were on guard with him. You had to keep your mouth shut in front of Beel too--it was inevitable since the two of them were really close. Saying that, it is not the case anymore! What happened with you and Belphegor is now water under the bridge! In fact, you're contemplating on sharing the cookies with them later.

Asmo couldn't be the sender either. While it's true that the stationery seemed like his style, he is also stuck helping Lucifer for the festival. He also didn't seem to be the type who'd resort his confessions to love letters. He'd always been open about expressing himself after all!

So that narrows it down to four. You opened the notes app on your D.D.D and wrote down the possible senders:

1. Lucifer - The person who suggested to place your uniforms in your locker. Is one of the only people who knows where and when you open the locker.

Contradictions-- The letter is only sent recently (meaning it was most likely sent this afternoon) , as it came with a tin of freshly baked cookies. Lucifer is too busy to send it. Handwriting isn't the same either.

2. Barbatos - The cookies in the tin looked and tasted like the ones he gave you this morning. He has plenty of time to put the letter and the cookies in your locker.

Contradictions-- He doesn't seem to see you in a romantic light. Does he even have time to date anyone when he's so busy serving Diavolo?

3. Mammon-- Has the same scent as the stationery in the letter. Acted weirdly since yesterday.

Contradictions-- The sender's manner of writing didn't resemble Mammon at all. Also, he doesn't strike you as someone who'd write a sappy love letter.

4. Satan-- The vocabulary used in the letter could only be written by a well-read person. The sender's writing style also resembled Satan's.

Contradictions-- Satan is also helping with the festival preparations. He isn't crossed out of the list however because he finished his work early and went to the library once he was done. The library and your locker are on the same path, so he would have enough time to send the letter and the package.

Satisfied with your notes, you exited the app and noticed a notification on your DDD. Someone was calling. You decide to....

💌 [ Answer it quickly ]

💌 [ Answer it after several rings ]

💌 masterlist

[danceworshipper]

Ida Sommer - HPHL MC

Info subject to change as more game information is released. All of my HPHL ocs exist in the same universe

[profile template by me]

Personal

Full Name: Ida Marie Sommer

Gender: Female (cis)

Sexuality: Pansexual (closeted)

Birthday: August 20th

Birthstone: Peridot

Zodiac Sign: Leo

Age: 14 (at beginning of game)

Blood Status: Pureblood

3 Positive Traits:

- Charming

- Spiritual (nature oriented)

- Resilient

3 Negative Traits:

- Childish

- Uncommunicative

- Vain

Usual First Impression: When first meeting Ida, people often assume she is immature, ignorant, and easy to take advantage of due to her sheltered nature and cutesy appearance. This impression is highly incorrect

Location

Birthplace: Germany (exact location TBD)

Current Home: Her father's estate in one of the richest areas (Germany)

Future Home: A beautiful cottage secluded from the world, near a mountainside (Germany)

Favorite Place: A cliff overseeing the sea in Japan, close to the little shop where she got her wand

Disliked Place: Her maternal grandparents' home, simply because she doesn't enjoy their company

Appearance

[image created using the Live Portrait Maker app]

Face Shape: Roundish jaw, soft features with a strong brow bone

Eye Color: Yellowish green

Hair Color: Light blonde

Hair Style: Ida wears her hair down or in a single braid. Her hair is mostly straight with side bangs, and is parted in the middle

Skin Tone: Light

Freckles/Spots: A few freckles on her cheeks, more visible when she's been out in the sun

Scars: None during her schooling. After graduation, Ida marks her arms with runes only she and Sebastien can make sense of to strengthen her connection to the world around her

Piercings/Tattoos: Single earlobe piercings.

Final Height: 5'9"

Final Weight: 137lbs

Physique: Thin with long legs, slightly wider than average shoulders

Clothing Style: Ida is a rich kid, so her clothing is always of high quality material and her jewelry is noticeably unflawed. She dresses modestly until she turns seventeen, when she stops caring what her parents think. Her favorite colors to wear are pastels

Carried Items:

- her wand

- a locket with a picture of her and her parents in it - not worn, but kept in her satchel

- a silver pocket watch stuck at 11:18 pm, handed to her by the same Seer who told her where to get her wand

- a handful of candy

- extra quills for her roommate who keeps forgetting hers

- a book from the Restricted Section about Elementals, written by Elementals and charmed so no one other than an Elemental can ever figure out what it says

Magic

Wand: 12 inches of firm Ebony wood with a koi-mer hair core. A pitch black, rounded wand with a pattern of scales carved into the handle. This wand was custom made in a small, almost unknown shop in Japan after a Seer she bumped into on the street told Ida that her perfect wand would be created there. It would seem foolish to go all the way from Germany to Japan on the word of an unknown Seer, but it was Ida's turn to plan the summer trip, so she picked a place in Japan close enough to the mentioned shop

Animagus: Loon

Boggart Form: A headless figure easily recognizable as herself, crumbling away into dust. A failed attempt to merge with nature resulting in her demise

Riddikulus Form: A statue of her like the one in her parents' back garden, over glorifying her features, that has been attacked and is crumbling away. She hates that statue

Amortentia (to others): Someone smelling Ida would smell lime juice, fresh water, and static electricity

Amortentia (to her): TBD

Patronus: Ida has never been able to cast a Patronus. Not for a lack of happy enough memories, but because of her powerful soul. The Patronus can never escape her magical core

Patronus Memory: N/A

Mirror of Erised: A tree so big it grows up an entire mountainside. The tree bark is covered in swirling patterns Ida recognizes as Elemental runes. She doesn't yet know what exactly this tree is, but she feels an undeniable longing for it

Family Spells: The Sommer family has no special family spells

Inherent Magic: Elemental

- Ida has all the magic of a normal witch, but on top of that has a deep connection to the earth and the magic stemming from it, even beyond the earth into the universe. If not properly trained (or if driven to a great enough temptation), an Elemental could vaporize the entire planet, or bend it to their will. They could also leave humanity behind if they so wished and become nature itself

- Elementals are theorized to have fragments of Merlin's soul fused with their own, hence why they feel strong connections to each other and can't ever fatally harm one of their own. Most Elementals also fall in love with each other as well, and the connection is thought to be stronger than a normal human's love could ever be. These connections help ensure no Elemental gives in to whichever temptation has the strongest pull on them. Only one Elemental has ever yet gone evil, and this is how it was discovered that they cannot kill one another

- This special magic is not hereditary. In fact, no one knows what causes someone to be born an Elemental, only that there have been less and less of them in the recent centuries. There are only two known Elementals left: Ida and Sebastien

Family

Mother: Lina is a warm hearted woman who wants the best for her daughter, misguided though she might be. She often has to shout at her husband to trying to hold Ida back, or discourage Ida's dreams. She noticed Ida's growing power long before her husband did, and was the one to finally contact someone for help when Ida grew so strong and uncontrolled she couldn't stop floating

Father: Elias is a business oriented man who, though he loves his daughter, up until her reveal as an Elemental wished she was a son. He's the reason Ida was homeschooled for so long, as he didn't think a girl was worth the tuition money. He refused to believe that Ida was anything other than ordinary until a man in a high position told him otherwise

Sisters: None

Brothers: None

Pets: A screech owl named Goldig, meaning 'cute'

Other Important Family: Ida's paternal aunt, Ingrid, is one of the biggest influences in her life as a child. Ingrid is an independent witch who lives fabulously by herself with her dead husband's fortune. Ida used to yearn for a future where she wasn't tied down by a man and could do as she pleased

Family Values: The Sommer family as a whole is mainly concerned with two things: remaining pureblooded, and growing richer. Most of the Sommers are decently good people, but they have period-appropriate prejudices and are willing to leave someone behind to save themselves, metaphorically and literally

Opinion on Family: Up until entering Hogwarts, Ida really only knew her family, so she loved them and thought very highly of them. As she becomes more socialized and learns more about the world, she starts to notice her parents' many flaws and though she never stopped loving them, she does resent them for homeschooling her and ignoring the signs of her being abnormal, because she used to think she was broken when in reality she's nearly a god

Friendships

Introverted or Extroverted: Extroverted

Best Friend: Sebastien Parr - another mc of mine who is also an Elemental, and an exchange student from Beauxbatons

Worst Friend: TBD

Friend She Didn't Expect: TBD

Who She Wishes Was Her Friend: TBD

List of Casual Friends:

- Sophia Burton @gcldensnitch

- Charlotte Grant @weasleysandwheezes

- canon friends TBD

Romance

Current Crush: None

Current Partner: None

Past Partners: None

Future Partners: TBD - will likely be picked from the game's characters, but could possibly be someone else's mc

Her Type: TBD

Hogwarts

House: Slytherin

Prefect Status: No

Quidditch: Never played, but loves to watch

Clubs: None

Organizations: The fake Headmaster's Apprentices organization that she and Sebastien use to hide what they're really doing

Favorite Class: Herbology

Least Favorite Class: History of Magic

Favorite Professor: TBD

Least Favorite Professor: TBD

Timeline

Young Childhood: Ida is kept at home. She knows no children her age, and spends most of her free time roaming her father's land. No matter how far she wanders, she never seems to get lost. Ida has strange dreams where she watches the world as an outsider. After being told by a Seer that her ideal wand would be created at a small shop in Japan, Ida convinces her father to spend a month there over the summer, and her mother takes her to the shop to get her wand. Ida sneaks out one night and climbs a cliff that looks out over the ocean. In later years she can't remember whether rising up over the waters and hearing the stars call to her by name was a dream or not, but she knows the moon smiled at her.

First Year: N/A

Second Year: N/A

Third Year: Ida's uncontrolled Elemental magic reaches a breaking point, and Ida explodes her little study room as she lifts up in the air, unable to come down. Her mother sends for help: two healers, a historian, and three government officials later, Ida is brought down and informed that she will be enrolled in Hogwarts the following year. She is not informed why, though her parents are

Fourth Year: Ida enters Hogwarts with no social skills. She meets Sebastien and they're both informed of their true nature. As Ida struggles to catch up on her studies as well as train her Elemental magic, she also learns just how wonderful having friends her age is

Fifth Year: TBD

Sixth Year: Ida grows suspicious of Sebastien's "friend" Dorian. Other details TBD

Seventh Year: TBD

Post Graduation: Ida marks herself with ancient Elemental runes and her father gifts her the cottage. She spends a year and a half where almost no one hears from her, before appearing back in her friends' lives as if nothing happened, looking healthier and happier than ever

Career(s): Ida doesn't live long enough to have a career

Marriage and Children: Ida marries (TBD) from school, someone who had always had a crush on her that she eventually returned the feelings for. They spend a beautiful three years together before her end. Ida manages to give her love a son, but only after she's gone

Death: Ida sacrifices herself to stop Sebastien and Dorian from destroying the world. Ida's biggest temptation as an Elemental was always to leave her humanity behind and become nature, so she does. She traps the two men inside of a ridiculously large tree that grows out of the mountainside near her cottage. This tree forms from her body, and has a notch where her favorite necklace can be inserted to be allowed entry to the chamber Sebastien and Dorian are trapped. However, she hid the necklace in Japan, where no one will find it until a century has passed and her friends have passed away. Ida can occasionally gather her spirit into a physical form to communicate with her love and child that she left behind

Notable Facts Not Previously Mentioned

- Ida is the ancestor of my main hphm mcs, Gracie and Tessa Chiva, on their father's side

- The reason Ida is sent to Hogwarts and not Durmstrang is the fear of bad influences. No one wanted to risk her being corrupted

- Ida does feel guilty about leaving her love behind, but since she couldn't kill Sebastien and she still loved him and wanted him to be happy, this was the only way she could think of to stop him

- Her love watched her leave humanity behind. As they wept, Ida's spirit gathered to say her goodbyes, and point them to their son, who had been born from Ida's final breath at exactly 11:18 pm

- Ida thinks very highly of herself. This is both from being praised so much as a child and hearing so much about the good she can do as an Elemental

- She throws a graduation party so extravagant that it's talked about for decades after her death

- No one but her love knows what truly happened to her. All anyone else knows is that she and Sebastien disappeared at the same time

[savrenim]

hi hi hi. so I just got into the Hamilton fandom, I swear I am four years late where did everybody go, and, well. I am apparently a hamburr shipper. bcs that is my life now. anyway I saw your fic ifmlam and I swear it is my favourite of all the fics I've ever read (and trust me I've read literally thousands). I love it so so much, how do you write fics like that??? I cried about four times during the whole thing, I stayed up till 4am reading it even when I had to wake up at 7 because it is just. that. good. I could not stop thinking about it for days afterwards and ifmlam has just ruined me. I can't think of listen to Hamilton without thinking of ifmlam anymore.

on to my qursttion: is it abandoned? of course it's perfectly FINE if it is. don't let anyone tell u differently, your fic is YOURS and u are amazing.

but pls I really need closure from ur fic, it has been haunting me if its abandoned or ongoing and I've read ur other fics and they are just chefskiss and thank you so much for writing them all. thank you thank you thank you, I will never be able to thank you enough for writing this fic and for everything it's done for me. I am probably thousands of miles away but I am sending you virtual jugs through a co.puter screen right now.

(don't feel pressured to reply to this or update it flam, I know how overwhelming it can get with so many messages and after a while u get desensitized to it. u can literally reply "thx. itfmlam is abandoned" and I would still be amazingly star struck. anyway has gotten way too long and I need to sleep and I'm sorry u probably won't see this so I'm just talking to myself right now but bye!!)

and thank you so so much for writing itfmlam.

aaaah hello anon!

thank you so so much???? I am so??? honored??? that ifmlam rates so highly to you, and also that you've read my other fics??????

the answer to the "is ifmlam abandoned" question is probably the worst possible one, which is pretty much "I do want to finish it, both for the folks that still want closure as well as it bothers to me have abandoned projects that are in the public eye/ already partially published, but also, it is last on my current writing projects list"

my current actually active writing projects list, kind of in order of priority, is

I'm literally three chapters away from being Actually Fully Done with the not-quite-first-not-quite-second let's call it 1.5th draft of an actual?? full?? original?? novel?? Opus which of course then goes out to beta readers and then gets who-knows-how-much edited and then maybe beta readers again if a lot does change and then a copyeditor my mom, my copyeditor is my mom, and maybe my little brother he's one of the betas but is very good at catching typos and then I!!! get to publish it!!!! which is the single thing I am most excited for!!!!!!!!! this should be closed up in the next week or two, and then take a while for people to actually read the draft and get back to me.

I really desperately want to finish my open-but-like-90%-written fic, which means we raise it up, the final chapter of to the bottom of the river bc I realized that it was kind of incomplete, and the second chapter of a buried and a burning flame because any more work there will need to wait until the author publishes the next book in the series. this should be closed up in the next month or two.

Speedwrite the draft of the second book of the Opus series so that hopefully by the time book 1 edits are happening, I have an almost complete draft of the second book. this is mostly me side-eyeing myself about taking nearly four years to write the first book, but that is solidly in part because I had so many other open projects which point 2 is about clearing that docket. this should be done in the next year.

And then just have my major projects be, at least until books 1-5 are written and published, books 1-5 of that because that is arguably the first major 'plot arc' of the series, so if I'm looking for a pause point on writing, that's probably where to stop.

There are two or three other short side projects (a weird fun second person short story tentatively titled witch-queen, a collection of four short stories Memoirs about a not-so-evil necromancer and the shenanigans he gets up to trying to rule a kingdom, working title Perfectly Normal Recipe Blog which is a collaborative project about a perfectly normal recipe blog that definitely doesn't include anything out of the normal) that will happen when they happen

There are other projects that are on the backburner -- The Numanok Files, a series of probably 12-15 short novellas about a mercenary/ bounty hunter esque person in space whose specialty is dealing with hauntings, but, like, 80% of their jobs is actually "you are effectively a space home inspector pointing out faulty wiring reacting to solar flares/ there's a weird alien fungus/ it's carbon monoxide okay change your atmosphere filters" and 20% of it is punching ghosts; there's a post-post apocalypse novel that I want to write that I know characters and general pacing and half the setting but need to work out the other half and figure out how much aesthetic I want to commit to; there's Strangeside7 aka spacerace book that is my reaction to how much I love how Redline the anime movie commits itself to "no we are about a race, like 60% of the screentime is just fully going to be an utterly ridiculous sci fi space race"; there's even a ridiculous YA trilogy that I would have to completely transplant the setting but might end up writing because the interplay between angel-physics and physics-physics was one of my favorite things in the world. and I guess the weird ridiculous technically a sequel series to ifmlam that was going to be published as original books that was basically me having fun with 'okay I fucking love star wars prequels old rotting space bureaucracy galactic republic style' except with seers and that also still might happen because it does have some of the coolest sci fi concepts and honestly I thiiiink that's all?

but the tl;dr of that timeline is I'm trying to finish a punch of projects Right Now, so that I can write books 2-5 of Opus, and then when I'm done that (which honestly, my average fiction-writing output is close to 100k a year. if I'm concentrating purely on one project, and writing books that are about 100k, we are talking four years. although my job situation is super up in the air in that period and writing might get put solidly on the backburner as I try to make it in academia, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) I will re-evaluate which projects go next, and that's when ifmlam is likely to come up for review.

I do not have any expectations that I will make it as an original author. I'm planning on posting all of my stuff online for free, but, like. it is incredibly difficult to convince people to try out even a piece of free and easily accessibly original work even if one has a huge following, I am a very small fanfiction author, and from what I can tell the majority of the people who are interested in my work are mostly interested in me finishing ifmlam. writing is a hobby for me, and while I'm writing mostly for me--and hence the for me bit at least for the next five years is pretty solidly going to be this series that I am deeply excited about and have sunk my heart and soul into every single aspect of--I'm human, and I don't really like shouting into the void, and I expect if I spend five years publishing to absolutely no response I will either stop writing for a while and do other things gods know my life is busy enough, return to fandom in general to write some other fanfic about whatever I get deeply into, or return to a work that I actually get response to. so ifmlam will probably start getting worked on a bit at that point one way or another. unless, of course, we are in the incredibly rare timeline in which I do make it as an original author, there are people who are deeply hyped for my original works and an actual demand for them, in which case as you may have noticed there are enough ideas there to keep me busy for a decade or two, and they will just get my full attention instead of fanfiction*. in this timeline, I will do what I was considering doing a few years ago, which is officially declare ifmlam otherwise abandoned and make one more giant chapter update which is a full and cleaned up outline of what I was going to write, interspersed with the scenes already written, and have ifmlam be given at least that closure.

*I want to make it clear that I very much love fanfiction and am proud to have been a fanfiction author and in my heart of hearts would keep writing it forever, I just also have a lot of ideas for characters and settings and magic systems and Aesthetics and I have been biting at the bit to write something that is //mine// and all mine and only mine for a while, I don't see original work as superior so much as there are a dozen fandoms that I am currently in and bursting to make content about except oops these fandoms currently only exist in my head, and I want to correct that

of course given how much as writing is my vent activity and I write what I'm in the mood for, there's a chance I'll feel ifmlam cravings before then, just... expect it to take a couple of years for an update, but also for there to be an update one way of another in a couple of years? but as for right now, I'm turning to original writing, because that is what brings me joy.

but I am really deeply honored that it brought you so much joy!!! and while I will never publish spoilers in a public place, if you message me off anon I am perfectly happy to give a run-down of my current plans for the ending, bc I know "wait a couple years and see" is not the most satisfactory of answers! and hey maybe you'll be like me and once you've given Opus a try you'll decide you like it better too, it does have Seers although they are deeply different Seers than in ifmlam but imo it's very gay and fun and at least politics on one side

[fiercestpurpose]

Intro Guide to Star Wars Comics

There are a lot of Star Wars comics, and they don’t even all take place in the same timeline as all the other ones, so this is a basic guide. It certainly does not list all the comics. It is just meant to be a useful guide for people who might want to delve deeper into Star Wars continuity.

Continuity note: In 2014, Disney announced that it was going to be making a new Star Wars trilogy. In order to make new continuity, Disney retconned away the Legends continuity that had been built up over the course of nearly forty years. Some things were held over as canon, including (of course) the original trilogy, the sequel trilogy, and The 2008 Clone Wars TV series. However, the novels, stories, video games, and comics that were part of the Legends canon were placed aside in favor of a new Disney canon.

Star Wars comics are divided into three main eras: first Marvel era, Dark Horse era, and second Marvel era , which is the current one. The first Marvel era and the Dark Horse era are in the pre-2014 Legends continuity, and the second Marvel era is in the new Disney canon.

Marvel Comics (1970s and 80s)

The original Star Wars comics were published by Marvel, which acquired the rights to comic book adaptations before the first film was released. Indeed, Star Wars #1 was released a month before Star Wars opened in theaters. These comics are fun and interesting from an historical perspective, but they are not especially important to continuity. Many of the things established in these comics are directly contradicted by later canon (such as Bespin having a solid surface), although some characters introduced here are later important to Legends canon (such as Lumiya).

Star Wars (1977) - The main series. It starts with a retelling of Star Wars and then goes on to fill in the gap between the films. Goes on until after the events of Return of the Jedi. A lot of Luke, Leia, Han, and Lando running around and having episodic adventures.

Star Wars: Ewoks (1985) - This one is fun. Magic, princesses, evil witches, heroes, and, most importantly, ewoks!

Star Wars: Droids (1986) - Read this comic if you want to see Threepio being in love with Artoo. I don’t think anything else happens in this comic, but boy is Threepio in love with Artoo.

Dark Horse (1990s-2010s)

This is where Legends continuity begins to get serious. Many of the comics produced during this time tie into some other piece of media, such as a video game or a novel or a television series, and many of them tie into and influence each other. There are several different eras of Star Wars history here, and the comics are as good a place to start exploring them as any.

Star Wars (1998) - Starting in 2002 with issue #46, this comic was known as Star Wars: Republic. This comic is set primarily during the prequel trilogy and mostly focuses on the Jedi Order and The Clone Wars. Read this to learn more about Quinlan Vos, Ki-Adi Mundi, Plo Koon, Aayla Secura, and the rest of the Jedi before and during The Clone Wars.

Star Wars: Empire (2002) - This comic is set near the end of the Empire’s rule and follows such figures as Darth Vader, Boba Fett, and various Stormtroopers as they attempt to root out enemies and fight rebels. (Spoiler alert: The Empire loses.)

Star Wars Tales (1999) - This series collects multiple shorter stories in each issue. Many of the stories featured here (including the Force-sensitive droid and the time Luke wandered into a sandstorm on Tatooine and met Anakin) are not canon even in Legends continuity, but they are interesting and fun.

Knights of the Old Republic (2006) - A series set during the Old Republic era. It centers on a Padawan who, after being framed for the murder of other Padawans, has to go on the run and find out what is really going on. The comic is set before the video game of the same name.

Dark Empire (1991) - This comic, along with the two sequel miniseries Dark Empire II and Empire’s End, follows Luke, Han, and Leia as they fight against Palpatine, who has resurrected himself via cloning.

Knight Errant (2010) - This comic, along with the two sequels Deluge (2011) and Escape (2012), is about the adventures of a lone Jedi Knight during the Old Republic era who gets stuck all alone in Sith space.

Star Wars: Legacy (2006) and Legacy (2013) - These are set during the Legacy era, more than one hundred years after the end of the original trilogy. The first series follows Cade Skywalker, a Force-sensitive who does not want to be a Jedi, and the second follows Ania Solo, a junkyard owner who is just trying to stay alive. This is as far into the future as the Legends timeline goes.

This is just a small selection. There are a lot of Dark Horse comics in every era of Legends, and once you start getting into the thick of it, you can see that the continuity is pretty complex and interrelated.

Marvel Comics (2010s-present)

I may be biased, but this is probably the best era for comics. These are written and illustrated by some of the most talented people working in comics today (and I am aware that that does make me sound like a press release). The rebooted canon also makes this a great place for people who are not long-time fans of the series to jump in, as you don’t need to worry about all the Legends characters and plot points. (That said, I will always be bitter that Disney decided to end the Legends canon.)

Star Wars (2015) - Like the original 1977 series, this comic takes place in between Episodes IV and V, following the adventures of Luke, Leia, and Han as they assist the Rebel Alliance and fight the Empire.

Shattered Empire (2015) - Released in the lead up to The Force Awakens, this comic introduced the characters of Shara Bey and Kes Dameron, Poe’s parents, and follows them in the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Endor.

Chewbacca (2015), Lando (2015), Princess Leia (2015) - Marvel released these miniseries to highlight the individual characters. Chewbacca crash lands and finds himself in charge of helping a young girl, Lando pulls off a dangerous heist with the help of some unsavory characters, and Leia struggles with what it means to be the princess of a planet that no longer exists.

Darth Vader (2015) - Follows the adventures of Darth Vader. Closely related to Star Wars (2015) but showing the other side of the story. This comic is also notable for its introduction of the character of Doctor Aphra, who would later get her own spin-off series.

Poe Dameron (2016) - The adventures of Poe and Black Squadron as they fight the First Order under the instruction of General Leia Organa. This series has the best canon characterization of Poe that you’ll find anywhere.

Obi-Wan and Anakin (2016) - Set a few years after The Phantom Menace, this comic tells a story of a time when Anakin almost left the Jedi Order and how Obi-Wan convinced him to stay.

That’s a lot of comics! And that’s just a part of what the wonderful, confusing, exhausting world of Star Wars comics has to offer. I hope this guide provides some useful information for people who might want to get into reading comics in canon either old or new. And if you need or want any more information, Wookiepedia has a complete list of all Star Wars comics that you can refer to.

[threelivesthreeworlds]

@jennifersnape​ asked   :   Ok, Ok ... in the meantime I have to apologize immediately for my English, it is not my first language nor the second to tell the truth so if there are errors, incomprehensible things ... sorry!

So, I've watched the two series and I'm trying to read the books but ... I'm having a little trouble about some things. So, questions! Both on books and on the TV series.What exactly is Dong Hua Dijiun? From what I understand he has brought together and pacified the various kingdoms but ... he is not the creator, right? There is a "Divinity", someone more powerful than he has created the whole, would be the father of Mo Yuan?

How many and which clans exist?

At one point in 3L3WPB SiMing says that he controlled their fate and that they weren't meant to be together, but there is nothing with the Rock of the Thrice, right? That was one storyline that wasn't part of the Canon, right?(I admit that this thing of the 2 TV series has me very confused since in one they do things and in the other there is no mention of it. luckily I landed here!)

As for the future ... Hem, I know the next books are all about other poies but, we'll see / read more about Dong Hua Dijiun and Bai Fengjiu, right? They won't leave us completely in the dark what happens to them? And, will there be more Drama there? That is, will they continue to shoot TV series about this universe, with the same actors? Why, I admit that I have a very slight crush on Vengo Gao in the role of Dong Hua.

Ok, I think we are too many questions for the moment. Thank you!

     First off, wow, you really beat even Admin Ro out for length here. That’s wild. Second off, I’ll be answering these questions in the order which you asked them, so here goes!

     1) Donghua Dijun is an ancient god born out of the spiritual energy of the universe. Nourished by the springs of Bi Hai Cang Ling, it’s said he bust out of a rock fully formed as a kid. He wasn’t the head of the fight that brought together and pacify the various kingdoms, even if he was part of that fight and commanded armies in it. That distinction goes to Mo Yuan, god of war. But - no, Donghua is not the creator of the universe. According to origin myth, if we have to trace a rough creator, that would be God Pangu. Father God (father of Mo Yuan, as you put it) is a god that came after that and raised the mountains and the seas out of the created universe.

     2) At the beginning of the universe there were five clans in existence in the Four Seas and Eight Wildernesses: the Celestial Clan, the Demon Clan, the Ghost Clan, the Sprite Clan and the Human Clan. Then, with some passage of events, the Human Clan was sent to the ten billion mortal realms apart from the realms. 

     3) The Stone of Three Lifetimes (rough translation directly from the Chinese in my Head) does not, in fact, exist in canon. It was a gimmick specifically designed for DongFeng’s arc in the Peach Blossoms drama, due to the fact that the production team who did that drama did not have the copyright to Pillow Book. In the Pillow Book novel there is a “Fate Stone,” but that stone doesn’t actually dictate anyone’s fate, but rather transcribes it, I guess, is the best way I can explain that? Also Siming doesn’t control the fate of the immortals, he only controls the fate of the mortals.

     4) There’s an extra chapter out right now that tells us what happened to them - to sum up succinctly, Feng Jiu wakes up, and Donghua at the moment is attempting to regain his powers while being with his family by going into secluded cultivation five months out of every year. That translation is still coming but at the moment Admin Ro has a test every week and she can’t spare the brain cells. As for being a part of the other novels - as Lotus Step timeline is currently fifty thousand years before Peach Blossoms even started and nothing else has been written yet, it’s really up in the air. We do know that Lotus Step timeline intersects with Pillow Book timeline (according to the extra, God Zuti has been reinstated to her role ten years after Pillow Book ends), though we have no idea what it means in terms of cameos. In short, as we put in the FAQ - don’t get your hopes up.

     5) Currently there’s been no “next drama” planned because Lotus Step novel isn’t even finished yet. However, I really doubt when/if the next drama is shot, it’ll be with the same cast. An adaptation might take another 3-5 years at least and by then everyone in the current cast might be too old to fit these parts except Yuan Yuxuan, and at that point it’s a question of whether or not she’s gotten popular enough to pull sponsors. Also it’s unlikely that the actors would want to reprise the roles again - Reba (who plays Feng Jiu) was hesitant about taking the Pillow Book script for this reason, and Mark Zhao (who plays Yehua) has straight refused to play Yehua ever again. 

      Vengo...is at a turning point in terms of his career. He’s 38, which really means he’s quickly aging out of “fast” light romance/xianxia romance/historical romance/the like of scripts. What he needs right now are projects that solidify his acting career/serious dramatic roles that look good on a resume that will give him a better pool of future scripts in the ages of 40 and beyond. But yeah, it’s unlikely (and probably not good for his career) for him to be reprising a role in this series.  If you would like to see more of him, please check out Living Toward the Sun, which premiered just last year and also be on the look out for Sword Snow Stride (coming up in 2021). 

[hopeswriting]

KHR x The Umbrella Academy AU

I need to get this out of my system before I think too much about it and want to write an actual story about it lol. With the Arco as MCs because I’m very predictable. TUA spoilers.

Words: 2579

Kawahira is Reginald because who else he’d be.

Every generation he gathers the most powerful extraordinary kids to make sure there will still be a world come next generation for him to do it again.

The current Arcobaleno he gathered are, well, the Arcobaleno lol.

Maybe there are the ones who’ll be smart enough to find another way around the Tri-ni-sette that doesn’t involve human sacrifices too, or strong enough to fight back against him and not let him kill them even if it means the world burns, or even strong enough to straight up kill him and put him out of his misery.

A dead man can’t be blamed to not give a shit about the end of the world after all or make it his problem.

(Well, this went dark real quick lmao.)

But why does he give a shit while he lives you ask?

He met this one human that one time and love sure has a way to make you care like the dumbest of humans.

(Yes I’m talking about Sepira.)

------

An Anti Tri-ni-sette Movement is born in this generation only, but not so much because of the whole human sacrifices thing mind you.

By design they just so happen to actively trying to prevent it, but they don’t care enough to come up with an alternative to stop the apocalypse.

Not that stopping the apocalypse was ever their end goal because yeah, it’s Byakuran and his Guardians that lead the movement, and Byakuran would just like to say if Kawahira wanted the most powerful extraordinary kids, he was right there.

Also playing the anti-hero (when he’s actually a chaotic neutral bad guy lol) sounded like a lot of fun.

------

The Commission is also still a thing because, well, someone still has to keep track and protect the timelines, right?

And as I’m writing this I realize it would have make more sense to have Kawahira leading it, or even Byakuran, but whatever.

Among their many assassins there’s this one elite squad the Commission tries very hard to keep them out of the field as much as possible (and fails), because they always need to send others agents after them to sort through their collateral damage and actually keep the timelines as they should be.

Yes I’m talking about the Varia.

Byakuran is very acquainted with them (both the Varia and the Commission), because they keep trying (and failing) to kill him.

Because Byakuran keeps using his power whatever the way he fucking wants, even while being very much aware of how timelines work.

Because of course he is lol.

------

Reborn and Verde are number one and two respectively, and always butt heads.

Not because of jealousy or because Kawahira trying to pit them against each other works on them or anything like that, they just infuriate each other at a very deep level lol.

Especially because they recognize (and begrudgingly admire/respect/trust) each other’s respective strengths.

They just don’t agree/approve on how the other uses them.

(Does Reborn need to be such a huge show off all the time? Being confident in his strengths enough to play with his enemies before winning against them is one thing, showing all his cards for the world to see just so he can win against them after they tried their hardest to defeat him is just incredibly stupid.)

(Does Verde have to be so straightforward and play by the book every time? Being the smartest in the room is one thing, walking out of the room alive because of it is another one entirely.)

------

A mission goes wrong and Reborn is dying, so Kawahira injects him with the Deus Ex Machina whatever-it- is, and he gains super healing.

And the super villains and every day villains are in for an entirely new level of Reborn wiping the floor with them lol.

(And yesI know, I’m shallow, but come on Reborn is too pretty to become half-ape, half-human.)

Reborn doesn’t go on the moon.

(They all turn eighteen and Kawahira isn’t even allowed to breathe in their direction anymore, let alone send them on the fucking moon.)

------

Fon is number three.

I have this headcanon he’s a bit of a manipulator, and uses his nice guy persona to wrap people around his finger.

Or he can be anyway, but it isn’t nowhere near in the first options he considers, because I also headcanon he’s genuinely a nice guy.

Anyway he doesn’t exactly hate his power, but he doesn’t trust it himself for shit, and wants to rely on it as little as possible.

So he also ends up a martial artist in this universe, and a very quiet guy.

(He remembers all too clearly what kind of words he can speak while under emotional stress.)

(The awful, horrible, haunting feeling of realizing even he can’t take them back.)

(Lal remembers it too.)

(Then Kawahira makes it so everyone forgets.)

(And Fon makes himself forget.)

------

Colonnello is number four.

Yeah I know, it could be Skull, but let’s go with him.

Reborn is number one but it’s Colonnello who’s daddy’s good little soldier boy.

For a very simple logic that goes like this: the more he behaves, the better he is at being and doing whatever Kawahira wants, the less traumatic encounters with his power he’s forced to have.

(Colonnello was never afraid of the dark, but then he’s thrown into the mausoleum again and again, and he never stops being afraid of the dark.)

So he doesn’t turn to drugs because he can’t afford to not be at the top of his game, but he does turn to Lal and her music.

If he closes his eyes and listens hard enough and it’s loud enough, he forgets the ghosts for as long as the music goes on.

------

On the other hand he can’t help having a bit of one-sided strained relationship with Reborn, with a lot more resentment than he’d want.

(Meaning zero because in an ideal world they’re best friends, and it’s really easy to tell the rare times when Kawahira isn’t looming above their relationship.)

It’s not even like he can’t see where Reborn is coming from, taking a stand against Kawahira and defying them and crossing the line further and further each time (of course he does), but he really could do without the collective punishment.

All in all, number four is doing very good, while Colonnello is doing very bad, and maybe does become an addict as soon as he doesn’t have to play superhero anymore.

------

Viper is number five.

They’re very happy with their teleportation power, and is right there with Colonnello in being daddy’s obedient child until they can hightail it the hell out of there.

Kawahira is very invested in their training and making them take the next big step with their powers.

Viper is smart so they know of the possibility of them being able to time-travel, but no surrogate A+ parenting dad is getting them in no time-travel shenanigans, nu-uh, they don’t think so.

 But then a mission goes wrong, and instead of the little jump back a few minutes in time they wanted to do, they jump in the future.

They keep jumping in the future as they try to go back, and oh, look at this, the end of the fucking world.

And his siblings’ dead bodies.

And a very alive, adult Skull??

(This is such a relief.)

(Skull is so happy to see them again.)

------

Something goes wrong when they try to jump back to the present, and only Viper makes it back.

In their thirteen year old body, because stopping a goddamned apocalypse isn’t enough to deal with already.

Their siblings are useless and no help and broken and very traumatized dysfunctional adults and alive, and they’re so, so happy to see them again.

(If they tear up and cry a bit later when they’re alone, that’s no one business.)

They hug (only) Skull, to no one surprise, and keep hugging, which does surprise everyone, and Skull may have written that book but he’s no monster and it’s Viper, so he hugs back.

(Of course he does.)

Viper still doesn’t know he’s immortal.

(Because Skull is a dumbass and kept waiting for the right moment, and what do you know, it never showed up, but to be fair with him they had a lot to deal with.)

------

No number six even though I do like the Ben, and dead!Ben, and ghost!Ben storylines.

But it there was a number six, I guess it could be either Skull or Viper maybe?

------

Luce is number seven as in she’s the most OP of them all. Not in a “raw strength” sense of course, but seeing the future?

I think Byakuran demonstrated perfectly how OP a power it is if you’re willing to weaponized it.

She doesn’t see the end of the world coming (where would be the fun if she did?), or at least doesn’t understand it’s the end of the world she’s seeing, and not just some big scale catastrophe.

She is not daddy’s good girl even though he shows a particular interest in her power, but he can go fuck himself actually.

She’s a bit of a number four too as in she hates her power, and it certainly gives her her fair share of nightmares.

It’s a special kind of gut wrenching feeling to see when and how people will die, and not always being able to save them even if she wants to.

(Nothing terrifies Luce more than when she sees her siblings in her visions.)

------

Skull is also number seven as in he’s the ordinary one who’s actually the most extraordinary of them all.

They just never figure out he’s immortal because Kawahira doesn’t push them that far in training, and he doesn’t go on missions.

He’s shunned and isolated by everyone, except for Viper and, hear me out, Luce.

Viper is afraid of heights, and maybe it shouldn’t matter because of the “jump” way their teleportation works, but sue them it does and they can’t help it.

Skull is the only one who takes the time to help them with that in another way that isn’t telling them to get over it, or making them dangling over edges.

Their friendship starts from there.

------

Luce on the other hand approaches him for selfish reasons.

Skull is the safe sibling, the one if she were ever to see his death, she can only hope it won’t be a too brutal one (or a brutal one at all).

But then, well. Skull is Skull, and he’s fun to be around with and funny, and he’s so good at keeping you out of your own head and thoughts, and he is such a breath of fresh air from her usual, unbearable routine, and—

He’s better than her at keeping his resentment and envy of her extraordinariness at bay than she is at doing the same with his ordinariness, and she’s so grateful he doesn’t push her away for it.

------

Skull is still very much treated like dirt, and he rolls with it as best he can.

Mostly because being left out of this whole extraordinary superheroes stuff lets him see how truly fucked up it is.

Skull is the one who wakes up at night not because he can’t sleep, but because the others can’t, and they don’t always manage to be silent about it.

He’s the one who sees them coming back from missions injured like no children should ever be, who assists Kawahira during their training and has to help them up at the end of it because they can’t move anymore.

He’s the one who watches them never really growing close with each other as much as he is the only one shunned, because Kawahira only has enough favors in him for only one of them.

Except he doesn’t even have that of course.

Skull is the only one who hasn’t blood on his hands, and he always feels guilty and awful at how relieved and lucky he feels whenever he sees that look in their eyes.

So he rolls with it, but not quietly, and forcefully makes himself a place among them even if it’s only to be their Lackey, because these guys are in dire need of ordinariness, no matter what Kawahira made them believe.

No matter what Kawahira made him believe.

It doesn’t work a lot of times, and only work a little when it does, but it’ll have to do.

Skull of course still hurts and is forced into his own traumatic childhood, so he still writes the book.

------

Skull figures out he’s immortal as soon as he’s left alone into adulthood because he is a dumbass.

The others learn about it because Luce saw the vision of his first death, and they were quite literally there to stop it from happening.

But instead they saw him coming back to life.

They don’t talk about it.

(None of them are in the right head space to talk about it).

And then they’re back at having no contact between them until the next time Luce has a vision of his death.

(Because he’s immortal now, but what if he’s not anymore?)

(Skull is so sorry of this new layer of fucked up he added to Luce’s visions.)

It’s very awkward when Viper comes back and tells them Skull is the only one who survived the apocalypse though they don’t know how, and they have to break the news to them.

------

Lal is also number seven as in she’s the one being medicated to keep her powers at bay.

She’s The White Violin, if only because one of them needs the raw strength and ability in their power to blow up the moon lol.

Lal is extraordinary until she isn’t.

She’s thirteen, and the mission goes wrong, and she’s losing control of her powers, and Fon says some unfortunate words.

Then Kawahira makes him say other unfortunate words, and Lal never has been extraordinary.

(Because she’s too powerful, and he’s trying to keep the world turning, not end it whenever she’ll feel too strongly too much.)

Her relationships with the others kind of fall short because it kind of feels hollow/shallow now, and she ends up isolated too.

But because of their respective unique circumstances, Skull and her unfortunately never bond.

Colonnello and her stays close, because if Lal can be useful with her music that way, she’s more than happy to do it.

And on an entirely unrelated note, I really like the idea of musician!Lal actually.

------

Sepira is Mom.

Yeah I know, the similarities with Luce would be very obvious, but let’s pretend it wouldn’t be.

And they don’t have a chimpanzee uncle, but they do have pets from that one time they gang together against Kawahira.

But they never said what kind of pets they wanted to have lol.

------

So it goes something like this:

Number One: Reborn – Super Strength and Super Healing

Number Two: Verde – Either The Smartest Man In The World or controlling the trajectory of weapons (while still being the smartest man in the world even if it isn’t in the “super” way), or both

Number Three: Fon – The Rumor

Number Four: Colonnello – The Seance

Number Five: Viper – The Child

Number Six: Luce – The Prophetess

Number Seven: Lal – The White Violin The (Extra)Ordinary One

Number Eight: Skull – The Immortal The Ordinary One

*

I actually have AUs of this AU, but let’s not make myself too comfortable in this hole lol. Hope you enjoyed it, and feel free to add!

[santodomingos]

          ╰   *   BIOGRAPHY  ━━  APPLICATION  ━━  TIMELINE                                 ━━  WANTED CONNECTIONS .

BASIC INFORMATION

FULL NAME. Bellamy Santo Domingo.

MEANING. Fine friend, handsome companion.

REASONING. The name was hand-picked by his grandfather, before his passing. He gave no explanations, but a small poem was written in his notebooks regarding this particular name.

NICKNAME(S). Bell, Bee, Bella, Santissimo (with teasing undertones).

ALIAS. Benvolio.

BIRTH DATE. 8th of October, 1994.

BLOOD TYPE. AB-.

AGE. Twenty four.

ZODIAC. Libra sun, Scorpio moon, Pisces rising.

GENDER. Agender. He doesn’t speak much about this, however, as he was raised in a very traditional and conservative family.

PRONOUNS. He/him. Bellamy has a feeling he’d be more comfortable using “they/them,” however, since he fears possible reprimands, especially from his father, he only ever attends to these pronouns when around people he considers safe.

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION. Panromantic.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION. Demisexual.

NATIONALITY. Italian.

ETHNICITY. Spanish, Japanese, Indigenous Brazilian.

RELIGION. Roman Catholic, with some Zen Buddhist influences.

CURRENT LOCATION. Verona, Italy.

LIVING CONDITIONS. Bellamy lives in a comfortable but rather small apartment in the San Zeno neighborhood, close to the Basilica di San Zeno Maggiore.

AFFILIATION. The Montagues.

THREAT LEVEL. Moderate to high. Proceed with caution.

BACKGROUND

HOMETOWN. Verona, Italy.

SOCIAL CLASS. Upper class.

EDUCATION LEVEL. Law Bachelor (University of Verona), currently studying for a Master’s Degree, with a specialization for International Law (started in the University of Rome, will conclude it in the University of Verona). Has presented many international symposiums, for his extensive research in the field. Has a summer course in the Hague Academy of International Law and many academic honors tied to his name.

FATHER. Celestino Santo Domingo, another generation of the family raised for war. Often called the best torturer inside the Montague ranks, he has served Damiano and his name since he was only a teenager, and became known as Lo Sciacallo di Verona. The Santo Domingos also have a traditional vineyard  &  winery, to cover most of their shady dealings, and are well respected amongst the townsfolk.

MOTHER. Cordelia Asahi Santo Domingo, née Oliveira. Daughter from an immigrant family, ended up in the mob to try and pay off her parents’ debts. Cold and ruthless, was mostly known for being a strong tactician. 

SIBLING(S). None. Cordelia went through a second pregnancy when Bellamy was five to six years old, however, she ended up having a miscarriage. This was very hard on both of his parents, and was one of the reasons why Celestino hardened up his up-bringing of Bellamy.

BIRTH ORDER. Only child.

CHILDREN. None.

PET(S). A calico cat Bellamy himself rescued named Lucky. She is partially blind. 

OTHER IMPORTANT RELATIVES. Balthazar Santo Domingo (deceased) and Reyna Santo Domingo, née Salazar, grandparents from his father’s side. Francisco Oliveira and Ayumi Oliveira, née Yamamura, grandparents from his mother’s side. His father has at least three siblings, and Bellamy has plenty of cousins.

PREVIOUS RELATIONSHIPS. Bellamy has never dated, although his father did try to make him date one of his friends’ daughter. Other than that, he has maintained a clean record, although he has had some romantic encounters that never went much farther than a few dates.

ARRESTS? None, although he has both run from the police  &  rescued some of his friends from it quite a few times.

PRISON TIME? No.

OCCUPATION & INCOME

PRIMARY SOURCE OF INCOME. Montague soldier and bodyguard.

SECONDARY SOURCE OF INCOME. Research scholarship.

TERTIARY SOURCE(S) OF INCOME. Family funds, originated from the vineyard and winery, from which Bellamy takes a small percentage of. He saves them up and applies them as he sees fit. Bellamy also gathered some income from publishing articles.

SPENDING HABITS. Bellamy hardly ever spends his money on himself. He has very little physical belongings, excluding his books. He only splurges on his loved ones and, even then, he is more particular to meaningful gifts, no matter how small. 

SKILLS & ABILITIES

PHYSICAL STRENGTH. 8/10. Bellamy has been trained in martial arts since he was a child, and he is constantly exercising (it shows).

OFFENSE. 6/10. As much as he knows how to cause damage, this is merely a matter of preference, as Bellamy tries to avoid direct and immediate action, to not cause much harm to himself and others.

DEFENSE. 9/10. This, again, is the result of his ideological vision for peace. He much rather stay on the defensive, and he is good at being a shield.

SPEED. 7/10. He is a big guy, there’s only so much he can do. 

INTELLIGENCE. 8/10. Bellamy, albeit raised in a family of warriors of the best kind, also has a tactician as a mother, and was gifted with the soul of a philosopher. He has above average intelligence, can self-teach himself anything he puts his mind to, and is quick to analyze a situation.

ACCURACY. 7/10. His aim wavers, although not by lack of training. His father is very pushy with gun use, but Bellamy is not very fond of it, by the surprise of many. If he is forced to use a gun, he goes for non-fatal, but incapacitating, shots.

AGILITY. 8/10. His background as both a dancer (yeah, that’s a secret) and a martial arts connoisseur has provided Bellamy a lot of grace in his movements, and he has a good control over his body.

STAMINA. 9/10. Intense training since childhood does pay-off. He can go all night long, baby :eyes:. 

TEAMWORK. 7/10. I mean, listen. He can work well in groups, but people tend to underestimate him and the way he does stuff a lot, which can be quite annoying to Bellamy, especially if we’re talking life-threatening situations. As long as you trust his abilities, he can work well with you. 

LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN. Italian, Portuguese, Japanese (his first languages, proficiency), Spanish, French (mild proficiency), Latin, Classic Latin, Greek, German, Dutch (self-taught, he can understand and read, but not speak them very well).

DRIVING. He can ride both cars and motorcycles, having one of his own. He can manage to change tires and doing basic repairs, if needed be. His mother taught him how to jump start a car.

SWIMMING. Bellamy loves to swim, and it remains one of his favorite activities to this day.

PICK A LOCK. One of the first skills his father taught him.

FIGHTING. Judo, Krav Maga, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Aikido.

SKILLS. Combat knives, stealth, negotiation, diplomacy, basic medic skills, knowledge of the law, parkour.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

FACE CLAIM. Marlon Teixeira.

EYE COLOR. Caramel.

HAIR COLOR. Brown.

HAIR TYPE/STYLE. Long hair, often messy. Bellamy doesn’t cut it often.

VOICE. Bellamy has a deep, comforting voice, best described as the perfect timbre for singing lullabies or reading poetry. He is a baritone.

GLASSES/CONTACTS? Bellamy uses reading glasses, as not to strain his eyesight. 

DOMINANT HAND. Naturally, it was his right hand. However, his father made him train both of them for combat and shooting purposes, so he is now ambidextrous. 

HEIGHT. 184cm or 6 feet.

BUILD. Athletic, with well-developed muscles, since he has been physically active since his childhood.

SKIN TONE. Bellamy has a healthy tan, which gives him a golden glow.

TATTOOS. He has one tattoo, and it is very well hidden on the side of his hips (yes, it’s a secret. yes, it’s thexy).

PIERCINGS. None.

MARKS/SCARS. Bellamy’s whole body is covered in scars, both big and small, from strenuous training, abuse, and self-harm. 

USUAL EXPRESSION. Bellamy is often serious, but he can easily soften up his expression as soon as someone searches for an emotional response from him. He smiles easily, although these are not his most honest expressions.

CLOTHING STYLE. Bellamy has a very simple and modest style, with functionality being the key element. His wardrobe is filled with neutral colors.

JEWELRY. He wear a ring his grandmother gifted him at all times, but in a necklace. Bellamy also always carries his grandfather’s rosary with him.

PERFUME. He doesn’t use any, but his shampoo smells strongly of vanilla and strawberries.

DIET. Bellamy tends to skip some meals, as he often doesn’t take care of himself very well. His diet, however, is very healthy and balanced. He avoids red meat, often eating only fish. He does have a big sweet tooth, but he is pretty good at controlling himself.

PHYSICAL AILMENTS. None, but he has a slight bone malformation on his left hand that has been corrected with surgery.

PSYCHOLOGY

JUNG. INFJ, the Advocate (Ni - Fe - Ti - Se).

ENNEAGRAM. 9w1, the Negotiator. Tritype: 925. 

MORAL ALIGNMENT. Neutral good.

ARCHETYPE. The Caregiver.

TEMPERAMENT. Melancholic.

ELEMENT. Earth/water.

PRIMARY INTELLIGENCES. Verbal-linguistic, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal.

VICE. Envy.

VIRTUE. Temperance.

APPROXIMATE IQ. 124.

MENTAL CONDITIONS. Chronic depression, insomnia.

SOCIABILITY. Bellamy is very approachable and is also a great listener. He won’t often start interactions, but he knows how to navigate through people and the way to get to their hearts.

EMOTIONAL STABILITY. Moderate to low. Bellamy is way too good at repressing his own emotions, but this often leaves him spiraling after some months.

ADDICTION(S). He isn’t the type of person to be easily rendered by addictions of any kind, as he tends to be very careful with most things. Bellamy smokes, but even then, his packs of cigarettes often take months to finish.

DRUG USE. Bellamy uses sleeping pills with some frequency, and he is now taking Fae’s Blood as well, in order to fight his smothering feelings of depression and hopelessness. 

ALCOHOL USE. Bellamy does not drink often, as he has a very low alcohol tolerance. He only drinks alone in his apartment, while reading a book and getting ready for bed, or in the company of people he really trusts.

PRONE TO VIOLENCE? No. Bellamy opts for violence as a last resort, although he does have certain berserk buttons that can make him act differently.

MANNERISMS

SPEECH STYLE. Bellamy is very careful with his words, weighing them in before anything rash can come out of his mouth. He is never loud, and tends to approach most conversations with a persuasive tone to it, often offering a compromise to easily gain over others. He is very empathetic in handling information people offer him.

QUIRKS. Drinks tea after every meal. Can only sleep well if he has someone by his side (when he doesn’t, he hugs a plush bear he got as a gift many years ago). Has extremely quick reflexes and doesn’t take very well to sudden and abrupt approaches.

HOBBIES. Reading, swimming, painting, horseback riding, cooking, chess, gymnastics, running, learning new languages, going to museums and art galleries, dancing.

HABITS. Goes to church at least three times per week, although he often doesn’t attend masses anymore. Doing stretches and yoga once he wakes up and before bed. Drinking tea after every meal. 

NERVOUS TICKS. Bellamy has trained himself to become unreadable, but he still messes around with his hair, depending of the situation at hand.

DRIVES/MOTIVATIONS. To keep his loved ones safe and protected.

FEARS. Being worthless, unloved and abandoned. Seeing his loved ones die or get harmed. Failing to meet up his family’s expectations and subsequently disappointing them.

POSITIVE TRAITS. Wise, protective, loyal, diligent, nurturing, humble, just.

NEGATIVE TRAITS. Self-sacrificing, insecure, passive, repressed, can have sudden outbursts of emotion, hypocritical, self-destructive.

SENSE OF HUMOR. Bellamy doesn’t often cracks up with laughter, and he is not one for sarcasm, either. He has a subtle sense of humor, you could say, and he only lets himself go and enjoy some fun when feeling absolutely safe.

DO THEY CURSE OFTEN? Not at all. Bellamy is very polished in his speech, and he is a wordsmith of sorts. He will hardly ever curse.

FAVORITES

ACTIVITY. Horseback riding.

ANIMAL. All of them. Bellamy is just a big animal lover.

BEVERAGE. Red or rosé wine.

BOOK. Persuasion, by Jane Austen.

CELEBRITY. Bellamy knows absolutely nothing about celebrities, and I mean nothing.

COLOR. Regarding clothing, Bellamy prefers neutral tones (white, grays, and browns, especially). In general, soft orange is his pick.-

DESIGNER. He is a thrift shopper! No money to expend on futile things, especially for himself!

FOOD. Sukiyaki.

FLOWER. Sunflowers.

GEM. Moonstone.

HOLIDAY. Easter.

MOVIE. Princess Mononoke.

MUSICAL ARTIST. Chopin.

SCENT. Spices, herbs, natural scents in general.

SPORT. Fencing.

WEATHER. Soft rain in a warm day.

[sweet-sammy-kisses]

You’re the Only Sweet I Want

Written for day 1 of JayTim week. Prompt: Chef/Bakery Summary: It has been five years since Jason Todd has laid eyes on Tim Drake since he walked away from the Bat-family and left Gotham behind. So imagine his surprise when he is talked into visiting a bakery by Lian.

Tim Drake put his life as Red Robin behind him. He moved on beyond his heartbreak of losing his family and found a new one, or that is what he tells himself. When Jason Todd comes back into his life everything comes rushing back including his feelings for Jason.

Now that Jason has finally found Tim he doesn't plan on letting him slip through his fingers again and he is finally going to get a taste of what he has been dreaming of. Notes: This is a chapter story it will be four chapters using the first four days prompts for the JayTim week. This is also my first time writing JayTim.  Rating: it will be Mature It is also on AO3

"Hey, boss man we have another order for your mocha coffee cakes!" Owens announced as he entered the kitchen of the small bakery.

Tim Drake blinked at his friend and co-worker. "We have already sold out the ones I made this morning?" Tim knew that it was a hot seller but he didn't think they would sell out this early.

Owens grinned at Tim, taking delight in the flour that dusted his cheeks. "Yep," he made sure to pop the p in the way that he annoyed the other baker.

Pru glared at Owens, she knew he did that just because it made her eye twitch which it did. "If you bothered looking I just finished up another batch." She growled out.

Not at all effected by Pru's glare, Owens grinned at her, "Thanks, love." Picking up the new batch that had been off to the side cooling he exited through the swinging door and back out into the main part of the bakery.

Tim Drake shook his head if anyone told him five years ago that after saving Bruce from being lost in the timeline he had hung up his cape, left Gotham in the dust, and started over in San Francisco with his friends. It was completely Conner's fault that he opened up a bakery with three former assassins.

After saving Bruce Tim had found himself adrift from the those he once called family, his relationship with Dick had been torn to shreds by the actions before he left, Dick taking Robin from him, thinking he was crazy, suggesting that he go to Arkham and leading to his creditability being destroyed in the hero community. The only ones who believed him and stood by him where Conner, Bart, Cass, and Cassie after Conner talked to her.

Tim loved his brother, he truly did. Dick had been the first person to hug him and show him any kind of love to have it ripped away from him had left deep scars that still haven't healed. He thought Dick had truly thought of him as a brother but the moment Damian arrived it seemed that Dick had slowly begun replacing Tim with Damian. The fact that Dick never spoke up when Damian verbally and emotionally abused him, told him he wasn't wanted or part of the family and the fact that he stayed silent when Damian tried to kill him showed Tim how much he meant to Dick.

It hurt.

Tim had nothing left in Gotham and he had found a new family in Pru, Z, Owens and he had Conner, Cass, Cassie, Bart, Gar, and Raven. Tim might have lost the Bat-family but he had created a new family from those who cared for him, he was happy.

+*****+

Jason Todd grumbled under his breath, he couldn't believe that Kory had talked him into this. "It was a dirty trick using Lian like that." The famous and feared Red Hood brought down by a pair of doe-eyes and a sweet "Please Uncle Jay?"

Kory smiled sweetly as she turned her head to look at Jason from where she was walking ahead with Lian holding her hand and skipping along beside her. "You know I play to win, Jason."

Roy, Jason traitor of a best friend, just grinned as he flung his arm around Jason's shoulders. "Cheer up Jaybird. I heard this place is the bomb. It is like eating ambrosia itself."

Jason, who had learned to cook at the hands of Alfred Pennyworth very much doubted that. "I guess we'll see when we get there."

Roy could only shake his head, "Don't be such a food snob. Not everyone can compete with the great Alfred."

Jason had to admit that Roy had a point, "Fine I'll give this place a shot."

"I knew you would see it our way. If you didn't Lian was prepared to unleash her puppy eyes." Roy happily informed Jason who snarled at his friend smile.

So wrapped up no one noticed two sets of eyes watching them and widening when they realized where they were heading.

+*****+

Tim had just finished up his raspberry and chocolate scones that were sitting beside his chocolate-dipped strawberries ready to be taken out when a breeze blew his hair to one side. Tim let out a deep breath, he was used to Bart and Conner using their super speed to arrive at his shop. "Your stuff is its usual place."

"RedHoodStarfireRoyandLianareontheirwayhere," Bart informed Tim as he vibed in and out of his spot.

It took a second for Tim to understand Bart's words and when he did he turned a worrying shade of white.

It had been five years since he left and not one of the Bat-family but Cass had looked for him or reached out to him and now Jason Todd, Tim's Robin, his first crush was on his way here. "There has to be a mistake."

Conner, well aware of Tim's feelings for Jason shook his head. "Sorry man but we saw them with our own eyes. You don't have to see them just let Owens or Z deal with them."

Tim knew that his friends would do it without question but no he didn't want that. "No. This is my place and I am tired of hiding from them. It has been five years and while I doubt that Jason has come here actually looking for me, I want him and the others to know that I have moved on from them and they no longer have any power over me."

Conner couldn't help but grin, this was the Tim he remembers, his best friend who wouldn't let anyone walk over him. "You go! We have got your back!" Conner reassured him.

Bart nodded, "I mean I doubt we can take Red Hood but we will try." He promised.

Tim felt a smile appear on his face, he loves his friends, his family.

+*****+

"Robin's Sweets? Really?" Jason rolled his eyes, he did find it odd that the store colors were more in replacement's colors when he changed his suit to reflect on when he lost Conner.

Jason shoved the feeling of longing deep down, it had been five years since Tim disappeared from the family and Gotham after he saved Bruce. It took six months before anyone did anything. Dick had reached out to Gar and Raven of the Titans if they had seen Tim only for them to tell him that while they had Tim wanted nothing to do with them. Jason couldn't blame Tim, not after the way they treated him. Now that he was free of the pit madness he wanted nothing more to make amends with Tim. Only he couldn't find him. The only one in the family who had any clue as to where Tim was is Cass and she wasn't talking, everyone knew that Tim was her favorite.

"Brother hurt. Reach out when he wants to. Not push him."

Cass's words haunted Jason as he knew they did Dick and Bruce, he wasn't sure about Damian but the demon spawn had mellowed somewhat under Dick's teachings and he seemed to understand how he treated Tim was wrong.

All of them realized how they treated Tim was wrong. Dick carried a lot of guilt about what had happened when Bruce had been lost in the time stream. For the first year, Dick had swung from rage at himself to weepy over the fact that he lost Tim. He had gotten better but Jason knew that he still blamed himself for how he treated Tim.

Bruce, well he had shut down. Jason hadn't understood it until Alfred explained it to him.

"Master Tim was a light when Master Bruce needed it the most. Losing you sent him into a dark place and it was only Master Tim's arrival that pulled him out of it. Master Tim has done so much for this family and when he needed us the most we let him down. I let him down. I should have talked to Master Dick more when took Robin from him. I should have made sure he knew that he had my support."

Jason had never seen Alfred look so broken. It wasn't just Bruce who had lost his light so had Alfred, "Don't worry we will find baby bird and let him know how much we care about him."

Jason was pulled out of his thoughts when he was pulled into the bakery by Roy and he came to a complete stop.

The last thing Jason expected to see was three of Ra's elite assassins working the fucking counter. "What the hell are you three doing here?" Jason hissed, wishing that he had his guns and grateful that no one else was currently in the shop, he didn't want anyone to get hurt.

Kory recognizing Jason's tone gently pushed Lian behind her, ready to get her to safety if the need calls for it.

"What are you doing here Todd?" Z asked with a raised eyebrow.

"None of your freaking business." Jason made it his goal not to swear when Lian was around him.

Tensions began to rise but before anyone could do anything the long lost bird, the young man who haunted his dreams exited the kitchen with his two best friends behind him.

"Hold it! There will be no fighting in my shop!" Tim Drake growled out in his best Batman voice, one that demanded you listen to him and obey or he will kick your ass.

"Tim." Jason couldn't believe it after five long years Timothy Drake-Wayne was standing before him. Jason didn't care if Tim had dropped the Wayne from his last name he was still a Wayne and a part of the family.

"Hello, Jason." Tim could feel his heart pounding at the sight of his first love standing before him, the man he had never been able not to stop loving. "Z, you are in charge make sure that there is no fighting. Bart, get Lian the coloring books and crayons. Jason, you come with me." Tim turned on his heel and headed back into the kitchen.

Before Jason could move to follow him Conner appeared in front of him. "Hurt Tim and I will end you," Conner growled out.

Jason would admit, not out loud of course, that he was pretty impressed with Conner's guts. "I won't." He would do his best not to hurt Tim, not again.

Conner studied Jason for a few more seconds before he nodded and let Jason pass him.

Tim had his arms crossed his chest as Jason entered the kitchen. "So when can I expect the rest of the Bats to arrive?" Tim demanded to know, he wasn't sure if he was ready to see them again.

Despite the brave act he put on Jason could see a hint of fear in Tim's eyes. "They don't know you're here. Lian heard about this place and she used her doe-eyes to convince us to come here. I won't tell them you are here baby bird, that isn't my place." Jason promised and he felt his eyebrow raise when he saw a faint blush appear on Tim's face at the nickname. 'Interesting.' Jason would file that way for future use.

Letting out a sigh Tim ran his fingers through his hair, Jason never thought that he would be jealous of fingers. "I don't know why but I believe you. Come on let's join them before Lian has my employees wrapped around her little finger."

Jason let Tim go first and he found his eyes drawn to a certain part of Tim's body, he felt his mouth go dry at the way those tight jeans clung to Tim's body and highlight his ass, leaving little to the imagination and Jason had a very good imagination.

Exiting the kitchen Tim and Jason both smiled at the sight of Lian having taken command had everyone sitting around the table coloring.

Lian's face lit up at the sight of them, "Uncle Jason! Uncle Tim! Come join us!"

"You don't want to disappoint her, no do you baby bird?" Jason purred in Tim's ear as he passed him.

Tim hadn't even noticed when Jason had gotten that close to him and shivered as Jason's body brushed against his. Tim found his eyes drawn to Jason's thighs and licked his suddenly dry lips as he recalled his fantasies of riding those strong things. 'Nope now is not the time.' Tim firmly told himself as he moved to join them.

+*****+

Jason had to admit that Tim certainly knew what he was doing, "Alfred would be proud." He told Tim as he finished off the last of the caramel nut muffin he had ordered.

"Thank you." That was high praise to Tim.

"It was so good Uncle Tim," Lian added from where she was finishing up her warm brownie with ice cream, smears on chocolate on her face.

"Thank you, Lian." Tim could see why Lian had everyone wrapped around her little finger, she was adorable.

"Dude so good," Roy added as he finished off his blueberry scone.

Kory let out a moan of bliss as she finished off the last of her chocolate cheesecake, a sound that had almost everyone feeling envious of that cake.

"Yeah baby bird, we will be stopping by quite a bit while we are in the city," Jason vowed.

Tim could only stare at him, "You're staying for a while?"

Jason grin was pure sin as he leaned in closing the distance between them, "Oh yeah, there is something special I want to try but I plan on working my way up to it." Jason purred out.

Tim didn't know what to say as he watched Jason and his friends pay and then leave, he could feel the worried eyes of his friends on him. "I'm sure Jason didn't mean it. I bet they will be gone tomorrow." Tim ignored the pang in his heart at the thought of not seeing Jason again. 'No, it is for the best. Jason is part of my past that I have moved on from. It would be better if he left.'

+******+

Tim knew he was in trouble when he arrived at his bakery first thing in the morning to find Jason leaning against the wall, two cups of coffee in his hands, and a smirk on his handsome face.

"Hey baby bird, I told you I would be back." Jason wasn't leaving until he made amends with Tim and maybe got a taste of what he had been longing for.

[hackedmotionsensors]

Hey I feel like you’ve already answered this but what are some of your favorite iron man or Captain America comics and why? What story lines would you recommend? I’m curious about the more modern stuff. What’s some of your fav comic artists when it comes to marvel?

OKAY SO. 

holy shit this got long so UNDER THE READ MORE WE GO

This is always kind of a hard question to answer because I personally have not read everything in regards to either Iron man or Captain America. I’ve read the Tales of Suspense stories a lot because I keep trying to start over from the very beginning. And that’s not always helpful if you just wanna dip your toes or give Iron Man/Cap a go.

So what I CAN tell you is here’s what I did when I was first getting into comics around 2012.

I went to Borders/Barnes and Noble and a I read a bunch of the compilations they had in the store. Someone has already done the work FOR you so its really easy to just pick up a book and read from there. 

I started out with Invincible Iron Man  (I’m gonna link to Amazon but I suggest not buying from them because Bezos is a demon [comixology is owned by amazon as well but it is a convenient app]) 

Marvel has its own comics app but if you also read and pay for other comics its not ideal. There are places to “read comic books online” and for older stuff I definitely do this now but for newer comics I’ll try to pay for them especially if its indie. Support indie comics!!! 

Anyway. Invincible Iron Man. A polarizing story in terms of Iron Man lore. But its definitely an easy one to get into and read especially if you’re coming in from MCU and are just testing things. You don’t necessarily need to know all of his history but it covers the basics. 

Next I’d try Demon in a Bottle It’s the original alcoholism arc. A must read for general Tony’s lore. This isn’t the one where he ends up a hobo on the street where Cap helps him escape from a burning building. But this is where he goes off the rails the first time. Bethany Cabe is his current girlfriend and tries to help him. And he kind of recovers. I’m not sure this is exactly a FAVORITE but it has a lot of the important shit for Tony. His temper is something that doesn’t get talked a lot about I think but he DEFINITELY has one. The art is very..........lol its not BAD per say but its also not like wow what gorgeous art. 

Another important Tony lore is Armor Wars So you wanna read the first few times Tony and Steve fight about REAL SHIT. This is it. This is the classic story where he realizes his tech is being used by bad guys and HE’S THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN STOP THEM NO CAP NOT EVEN YOU BECAUSE YOU’RE A GOOD GUY AND I MIGHT HAVE TO GET DIRTY. It has the classic Steve sitting in a dark room waiting for Tony to come back with his date and then throwing his shield at Tony going “I don’t want your trash”

It also has a lot of good Tony being in a morally grey area. *chef’s kiss* 

And then basically read all the fun stuff with Kurt Busiek in Vol 3 (This isn’t an amazon link but the marvel database so you know roughly where to start) 

VOLUME THREE HAS SUCH HITS LIKE

The Sentient Armor: Tony accidentally kills Whiplash in a lightning storm. The Armor comes to life. The armor falls in love with Tony and WANTS TO BECOME ONE WITH TONY. Tony does not want this. Tony is beat up and kidnapped and taken by the armor to a deserted island. The Armor is like Tony I love you so much GET IN ME NOW. Tony is about to die from a heart attack. The armor RIPS ITS HEART OUT AND SHOVES IT INTO TONY. Bye Tony I love you now we’re one forever. RIP

Tiberius Stone’s 2 arcs (they’re not in consecutive order but they’re both hella gay): Tony’s old boarding school friend shows up again and is a TV mogul and is DEFINITELY NOT Slandering Tony in the press or blowing up his buildings or framing him for MURDER oh my god Tiberius is a pain in the ass and we definitely boned down as teenagers but he would never frame me for MURDER but his TV devices that seep into your brain like the boob tube thing from Batman Forever are pretty suspicious. Oh no Tiberius IS a bad guy and he got me naked (why?) and hooked the both of us up to the TV machine and now we’re trapped in his horny tv dream why am I dressed like Alice in Wonderland???  ALSO HE SLEPT WITH MY GIRLFRIEND!!!!??

(This is why I will FOREVER get upset that Killian in Iron Man 3 isn’t Tiberius Stone. He IS LITERALLY FOLLOWING THE TIBERIUS STONE PLAYBOOK INCLUDING THE PHYSICAL LOOK WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE FEIGE YOU OWE ME MONEY!!!!)

Also at the beginning of Vol 3. Tony gets the absolute holy hell bejesus shit beat out of him. And that lasts for a WHILE and seeps into the Avengers Vol 3 (which you should also read its fun and I like that George Perez actually tries to make people look ethnically diverse but also you can tell Clint from Cap)

There’s also a part in vol 3 where Monica from FRIENDS shows up at a party and that’s a wild thing that happened.

But basically I think you can start just about anywhere with Iron Man and have a good time if you’re a deep Tony fan. He has a lot of great stories and its why he’s my favorite. Even this last run with Slott I still KIND OF LIKE ANYWAY??? bc its Tony. Its not always written to what a lot of long standing Iron Man fans would say is canon but I mean.....he’s got 57 years worth of comics behind him so he’s bound to change here and there. He was once a super villain, died, brought over as a teenager from an alternate timeline, and then merged with another Tony I forget the details but its silly lol

Side universe reading Iron Man Noir, Ultimates (Hickman’s run is very fun but also Ultimates 1 and 2. DO NOT READ ULTIMATUM IT IS GROSS, I HAVE READ IT FOR YOU ALMOST EVERYONE DIES ITS GROSS.

Ultimates is literally half of the basis for the MCU. Don’t read Ultimates Iron Man tho. Not only is it written by a creep its also extremely stupid and doesn’t even really make sense in terms of what happens later in Ultimates. It basically gets RetConned immediately.

Also Ultimates universe has Gregory Stark. Tony’s fun evil twin brother who for some reason is blonde. I can’t really give you a specific story to read with Ultimates because its the most god awful confusing universe to try and find stories from so I literally don’t even remember. I’d check an Ultimates fan blog for that.

AS FOR CAPTAIN AMERICA.

I love Steve Rogers. I really do. I think he’s a fun character. B U T. His comics for me can be very boring. He has some great arcs as someone who is supposed to be a representation of what a GOOD AMERICA can aspire to or whatever. But America often times SUCKS A LOT (our current times being very obvious). Cap definitely fights for what he believes and so that’s why he often takes off the garb of Captain America and runs around in a slutty v neck and a cape as Nomad. Or when he comes back from the dead and his BFF is the new Cap (WITHA  KNIFE) and wears the sexy Secret Avengers uniform. Very sexy. We stan the Colonel Rogers uniform very much. But his early comics are a lot of “OH MY GOD I KILLED BUCKY ITS ALL MY FAULT BUCKY!!!!! RICK JONES PUT ON BUCKYS CLOTHES THIS ISNT CREEPY I PROMISE”

A GREAT run in Avengers is the Cap’s Kooky Quartet or as I call Cap Joins the Baby Sitters Club. This goes WAYYYYYY back to Avengers 17 

It runs for a very good while before Giant-man and Wasp come back because Giant Man can’t shrink back down lmfao idiot. But its a lot of fun and establishes Cap as being a really good leader even tho he’s thrown into the hot seat because he was out on a mission and everyone else was like “We’re taking a vacay bye Cap. Good luck with the kids” *John Mulaney doing Andy Cohen impression* HUH WHAT WHY

I have no idea what to Rec really lol I know @sineala is part of a SteveTony 616 discord and they do readings every month(?) of either very SteveTony based arcs or specifically Steve or Tony arcs. But I think they have a better grasp of Steve stories than I do.

I would say most recently the run with Mark Waid and Chris Samnee as the artist is a VERY good read. The story is pretty nice and dry lol but the art. Holy shit.

I know there are a bunch of artists that really REALLY get Cap but Chris Samnee is probably my number one favorite Cap artist. Even his sort of retro style works with Cap SO WELL. And I like Mark Waid’s writing. Or at least I don’t think I’ve ever been really mad at it like with Dan Slott or Gillen (We will never forgive for what he did to Tony’s backstory and taking Maria from him) lol

Uh...but as far as I could tell the entire run where Bernie is his girlfriend is VERY good. She first shows up in Captain America 247 . Cap is an illustrator on the side (or as his main job) and man what a dope. His art habits are worse than mine like get a desk Steve. But this arc through Bernie goes through a lot of Steve being kind of stuck in the past and not knowing how to embrace the modern or future and Bernie is there being the coolest fucking chick in the world who’s studying to be a lawyer, watches Wrestling, listens to Bruce Springsteen (I think lol I forget), dunks on Cap for being a weirdo old dude. Very put together woman of the 80s. She proposes to Cap and because I think the writers changed he’s like I HAVE TO LEAVE IMMEDIATELY BYE. 

This isn’t on any of the main timelines but its a good read Captain America Man Out Of Time. Basically Cap coming to grips with the future and realizing the past sucked ew. lol Also he listens to Radiohead which Tony gives him a personal concert for because of course he does.

And then of course there’s this fucking TOME of a story Captain America: The Winter Soldier .

Im gonna sound a little negative but I don’t mean it against anyone’s favorite but I have the most exhausting time trying to read this story. I’ve tried at least three times lol. I think maybe Brubaker’s weird obsession with the Cold War (Remember when he called people who were yelling at Slott for being a creep a ‘Bunch of Commies’) is just so fucking heavy handed that I can’t personally get through it. I would much rather watch the movie.

HOWEVER. There’s good old Bucky coming back from the dead. Natasha. Sam Wilson. Sharon Carter. All big players in this story. So uh lol good luck with this one. If you’re also a Bucky fan this is a must read but as I only peripherally like Bucky I don’t care to read this one. 

So I’d check out this arc.

Also a personal fave of mine is 

It starts here on Captain America 402 . Its the best story IN THE WORLD. ITS SO ICONIC. NOTHING CAN COMPETE. I LOVE CAPWOLF SO MUCH lol

[iamartemisday]

Merry Christmas, Miss Foster! Part One

A/N: For Lokane Week, I am resurrecting the Miss Foster series!

Well sort of. The next official part of the series has been half written for... some time now. I’m working on it, but there’s a lot of other stuff going on. You know how it goes.

For those unfamiliar, the Miss Foster series is an all human AU in which Jane is a second grade teacher who ends up with Loki’s three children in his class. Said kids are a bit too smart for their ages and decide Jane is exactly the kind of person their billionaire single father needs. And since there are LOKI’S children we’re talking about, they get into some wacky hijinks along the way.

This story is honestly in kind of a grey area in terms of continuity. It’s sort of like an anime movie where the timeline isn’t clear and it’s kind of just contained within itself. Semi-canon so to speak.

Regardless, whether you know this verse or not, I hope you all enjoy and I’ll see you again tomorrow!

**

The Odinson family had a log cabin nestled on a hilltop in the heart of Lake Placid. The only thing that shocked Jane was that it wasn’t three stories. 

Snow was freshly fallen, just in time for the holidays. The sky was bright white, clouds masking the sun in preparation of another wintery onslaught. Riding in the back of a limousine, Jane flipped through several hundred stations, almost all of which were playing the same old Christmas music she knew by heart. Some of them were her favorite songs of all time. Many others she’d happily tear her eardrums out before she listened to them again.

At least the roads were clear, at least for now. The forecast called for clear skies until the 20th, when Jack Frost descended to unleash the full force of his icy fury upon the unsuspecting New York populace. Or so the weatherman rather hammily declared.

Which begged the question: why did Loki want to spend Christmas in the middle of the woods?

Another question: why did Jane agree to go with them?

It was the kids. She needed to face facts and admit to herself that for all her posturing and assertion of authority as their teacher, those three little angels wielded the power of the puppy dog eyes, and they were not afraid to use it.

“We bought this cabin from an old man who used it as a hunting lodge,” said Jormungandr. He flipped through the book in his lap. As always, it was roughly the size of his entire body. “He used to come out here with his two sons during deer season. Then one of them moved away and the other decided to be a vegan. Now he’s in Florida with his wife. He said the weather would do wonders for his aching joints.”

“I’m surprised you remember all that,” Jane mumbled. 

“Dad’s offer nearly gave him a heart attack,” said Fenrir, stretching out in his seat like he was desperate to move. “His asking price was way lower.”

“But it was worth the money,” Hela proclaimed, beaming so hard her entire face glowed. Even the scars were less apparent. “And we fixed it up real nice. We go out and chop down a giant tree, and we decorate it and we put up lights and-”

“We don’t need a play-by-play,” Fenrir snapped, shoving his sister. “And quit yelling in my ear.”

“I wasn’t yelling!” Hela yelled. “Maybe you just need to clean your ears out.”

“Maybe you do!”

“Do not.”

“Do too!”

“See?” Jormungandr smiled. “Not even any hair-pulling. They’re already in the holiday spirit.”

“They most certainly are,” said Loki. 

He drove over a rough patch in the road, the tires grinding through the rocks and making the inside jostle. Jane held tight to the dashboard until the road smoothed out. As expected, Loki had no reaction to it at all. He guided the car along the dirt path like he’d been doing it all his life. Like maybe he came out every summer to hunt deer now.  Jane tried to picture him in a plaid shirt with a vest over it and a hunter’s cap. She wished she could laugh at the ridiculous idea, but like everything else the asshole wore, the idea just made her cheeks warm.

The mountains were lovely, she couldn’t deny that. Swathes of fir trees and a pure white sky gave the jagged cliff sides that picturesque quality Thomas Kinkade painting were made for. In fact, Jane was pretty sure she had seen these mountains in one of his greeting cards. Maybe Loki owned land around the cabin and licensed it out. For all she knew, they filmed Hallmark movies out here. Hell, maybe she was about to star in her own Hallmark movie. 

Rich, handsome single father locked in a cabin for a week with his children’s second grade teacher. It practically wrote itself.

“What’s funny?” Loki asked.

Jane started. “Huh? I wasn’t laughing.”

“But you were smiling.” 

“Smiling doesn’t mean something is funny,” Jane sat up straighter in her seat, “I might just like to smile.”

“Like Buddy the Elf?”

“Yes, exactly. Thank you, Hela.”

The little girl beamed, her lips lined with chocolate as she reached for the bowl of M&Ms. “Maybe we can watch it tomorrow. Tonight is The Muppet Christmas Carol.”

“Since when do you get to decide what movie we watch?” Fenrir snatched the M&Ms away. “I want to watch Die Hard.”

“Die Hard is for the 26th, Fenrir,” Hela retorted. 

“Guys, come on,” Jane said, adjusting the rear view mirror to see them better. “We can decide when we get there what to watch. And don’t eat all of those. You’re going to get sick.”

“Don’t worry, they’re sugar free,” said Fenrir. “Otherwise, we’d have Jormungandr tied up in the trunk so he can’t get at them.”

“I can hear you, you know,” Jormungandr said, slamming his book shut.

“Welcome to the Odinson family Christmas,” he muttered in her ear. “Are you happy you said yes?”

Jane stared out the window as another pile of rocks whizzed by. “I’ll let you know.”

The car crawled higher and higher up the hillside. Every time Jane thought she saw a wooden roof in the distance, Loki turned a new corner. The town below had long since vanished. She wondered if they’d ever see it again. Someone had turned the radio on. The children sang along to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, their off-key but passionate interpretation earning applause from Jane and a smile from Loki.

By the time the shadow of a slanted roof came into view, they’d gone through Christmastime Is Here and that Alvin and the Chipmunks song. Now the music faded into the background as Jane beheld a palace of a cabin in the woods. Polished wood with a stone chimney. A covered patio and an observation deck overlooking the trees. In the back was a small structure, possibly a shed or even an indoor jacuzzi. Jane had learned never to assume with this family, and always expect the unexpected.

“By the way, our basement pool is currently closed,” Loki said as they pulled into the driveway. “We’re having issues with the heating system, but someone will be out to fix it shortly.”

“Great. I didn’t even pack a suit…” 

The cold smacked Jane in the face as soon as she was out of the car. Looking around, there were ice patches everywhere. Some had been dissolved with rocksalt, but what remained made the front lawn resemble a minefield. It was a sentiment not shared by the kids, who raced to the front porch, cheering all the way.

“We’re going to have so much fun!” Jormungandr hopped in place. “We’re going to put up the tree and sing Christmas carols and bake cookies and wrap presents and build snowmen and-”

“Are you sure those M&Ms were sugar free?” Fenrir asked Hela, who shrugged.

“Now now, children,” Loki chided them, “remember we’re not alone this year. Grandmother, Grandfather, Uncle Thor, and Aunt Sif will be along in just a few days. We want to kept this place clean and presentable for them, don’t we?”

“Yes, Dad,” the triplets said. They walked up the stairs, speaking softly, and didn’t start screaming again until they were safely inside. 

“A whole week out here,” Jane said, taking in the crisp mountain air. “Here I thought I’d just spend Christmas with a bowl of cereal again.”

“It won’t be that much of a change of scenery,” Loki said as the second car trailing behind them finally caught up. Out stepped a man glaring daggers at Loki. Luckily, Jane had convinced him not to actually bring any weapons. “I was nice enough to invite your dear brother along.”

“Yeah, you’re a saint, pal,” Bucky said, pushing past him. He managed to smile at Jane. Not even Loki’s presence could completely dampen his mood. 

“Whoo! That was a hell of a ride!” Bucky’s passenger proclaimed, stumbling out of the car.

Loki sniffed. “And your… Darcy.” 

Jane nodded. “Yeah, that was real nice of you.”

“You guys are lucky I couldn’t afford to go home this year,” Darcy said, flashing them a thumbs up. “By the way, I brought my own Menorah. Any place in there I can put it up?”

“The mantle should do nicely,” Loki said. “Just don’t touch anything.”

“I will do my best to respect your humble abode, Major Moneybags!” Darcy skipped along, leaving the pair, finally, completely alone.

“She needs to think up some more creative nicknames,” Loki observed, hand on his chin. “Why does she follow you everywhere?”

“Well, when I first moved into my apartment, she came over to ask if I had one of those whipped cream makers,” Jane sighed, “and then she just kind of never left.”

Loki hummed, and with that, they started for the porch. Luck, as it turned out, was on Jane’s side. She made it a full three steps before she slipped. With a yelp, she grabbed blindly for the nearest sturdy object. She hung on tight as her eyes unclouded and her mind reoriented itself. It was only then that rough leathery material in her hand shifted. Loki raised his arm, pulling Jane with him. She continued to cling to him, blinking stupidly at his chiselled features. It hit her all too late that they probably shouldn’t be doing this. 

“Uh…” Jane said, stepping away and almost slipping again. “Thanks. Sorry.”

Loki pocketed his hands and glided across the ice patches, like he controlled them as much as he did everything else in his life. “Do be more careful next time.”

“Right.” Jane shuffled after her, head bowed, face boiling. 

This was going to be a long Christmas.