#Gordo’s going through it

[pistachi0art]

The drawings I did for the Joshua segment for @hlvrai-twh ^^ nothing bad happens I swear

[bigassbowlingballhead]

powell's please email me my books shipped. please please please. i need ravensong in my hands rn. RIGHT. FUCKIN. NOW.

[casual-praxis]

Rivers in the Desert [Rainbow Ranch AU]

Summary: Panicking is not an option, but man--Shadow kinda wishes it was. With only a vague location, a distress signal, and the dawning realization that time is waning; what do you even do when the resident desert expert goes missing in said desert?

Warnings: Swearing (thanks Blue), blood and injury (though not to a graphic extent), and depictions of what may be a panic attack. Please let me know if I missed anything!

Word Count: 4,301

--Start--

Today is the day, he's sure of it. Chat may be doubting him, but he's never felt more confident as he dances around the edges of the corrals, swinging his phone around precariously on a makeshift selfie stick.

The sound of mini-small-scale nukes, out-of-tune music boxes, and unbridled cheer is quick to bombard his microphone, but a quick adjustment of his audio puts an end to the horrid peaking issues. Or at least, he thinks it does. He really can't tell.

Oh well. It's probably fine.

"Alright y'all, listen up!" Shadow grins into the camera, holding it steady as his eyes subtly dart over his other equipment. "Today we're goin' hikin' through the Moss Blanket. There's a Gordo there who owes me money and it's had it too good for too long. So I'm gonna go poke it with a stick and see what it do."

Behind him, a pair of Red's Boom Rad Slimes leap with delight over his theatrics, despite not knowing what 'owing money' meant. He quickly covers his ear closest to the corral as the slimes, true to their nature, promptly explode.

Chat reacts accordingly, and he watches the small monitor on his wrist flood ten times over with multicolored words of all varieties. Some were encouraging, some near deaf, and some were thirsting over Blue, but that was neither here nor there. Par for the course, honestly.

He shakes it off easily.

That is, until his monitor beeps a cheerful, "da-da-da-daaaa" and promptly spits out a lovingly rude message about his navigation skills in its smug robotic voice.

Jostling the stick around for a new angle, nearly whacking it into the side of a corral post, he glares into the camera while walking backward.

"Hey now, bitch, I will turn this hike right back 'round if you don't ditch that cringe take," he says flippantly, raising a clawed, glove-bound finger to his viewers. "For serious--I know where you live."

More messages flood in, most of which are buried under waves of emote spamming and text-to-speech chatter, all the while Shadow slowly zooms the camera in on his face. Just to annoy them. No cute slime content for the traitors.

They had to earn that privilege back.

Preferably through donations, and lots of begging.

Maybe he'd even film the ground the whole way just to really drive the point home...

Either way, things were already off to a well-rehearsed start. A few more minutes of banter and they'd be on their way. This was expected. This was normal.

So you can probably forgive him for not immediately noticing when his communicator went off. The vibrating is faint, barely noticeable among the jittery movement he was already prone to. It took him a moment of nearly walking into roaming hen-hens and tripping on stray plorts before it finally registered.

He holds up a hand to the camera as if to say 'just a moment,' before digging around in his hoodie pocket for said source of intrigue. Out comes a phone-sized device most of his chat had never seen before, bright in color and pinging a soft chime.

"Huh. Well, that ain't good," Shadow mumbles, more so to himself than anyone else. His gaze flickers back up, almost nervously, and he laughs a half-hearted excuse. "Sorry y'all, we're gonna have to rain check this."

His chat isn't able to sway him for any further details as he speeds through his usual farewell spiel, hurrying through the motions of shutting down his broadcast and rushing back to the house. His normally relaxed and bouncy gait is swapped out right alongside his stream gear, left at the front door as he leaps down the steps back into the ranch. He can worry about it later.

Green is right where Shadow had last seen him, still standing off to the left side of the ranch, staring at their coop with mild exasperation and a defeated slump to his posture. His ear twitches at Shadow's approach, head tilting ever so slightly in his direction.

"Change of plans?" Green asks.

Shadow skids to a stop, kicking up dirt as he slides, prompting Green to sidestep to avoid it. That gets his full attention. Observant emerald irises pin him immediately, radiating concern (along with trace amounts of actual radiation, but that wasn't important).

"Problem?" Green not so subtly gives him a cursory once over, frowning when it didn't reveal the issue right away. Shadow would have made a joke about it, but now really wasn't the time.

Lifting his communicator up, he waves it obnoxiously--as if Green needed any prompting. "Distress ping from Vio."

Green's posture changes at that.

"Any details?" He asks, keeping his jaw set; standing a little straighter.

"Nah." Shadow turns the communicator back to himself, staring at it almost forlornly. "Just the ping."

Green's hand finds Shadow's shoulder, startling him from his worries before they could spiral. His eyes reflect back the same concern, but a small, reassuring smile is beginning to work its way onto Green's face, and he squeezes lightly.

"No worries, Vio knows how to handle himself." Green's eyes flicker off to one side briefly, and he raises his unoccupied hand to make the nearly universal 'come here' gesture, before returning his attention to Shadow. "We know his location, and our Firefly should be somewhere around the Ancient Ruins right about now. I'll shoot him a message and get him moving in that direction, kay?"

Shadow can only nod as another arm winds around his shoulders from behind, pulling him back against a much firmer chest. Green huffs out a laugh as Blue rests his chin against the top of Shadow's head, paying no mind to Shadow's near squawk of outrage and futile struggle.

"Sup?" Blue raises an eyebrow, tightening his grip on Shadow even as he begins trying to gnaw his arm. He covers Shadow's mouth with his free hand and a hissed, "fuckin' stop that."

Green lifts a finger as he pulls out his communicator, leaving Blue in the dark a little longer. The sound of flurried typing echoes over the bawks of the hen-hens, and Blue sticks his own fingers into Shadow's mouth in response to having his hand licked.

"We have--don't gag him--a situation," Green finally illuminates, clipping the device back to his belt.

"Good situation, bad situation? Blue asks, finally relinquishing Shadow's freedom to wipe the spit off his fingers.

Green's expression does something complicated. "A not good one."

"VeVe S.O.S'd," Shadow coughs.

"Seriously?"

"Red's en route, I'm going to meet him at our Desert teleporter. We should be able to find Vio within the hour, assuming he stayed within his intended radius." Green nods to himself, starting off towards the lab.

"And if he didn't?" Blue calls after. Shadow looks at him sharply.

Green pauses in his stride, inclining his head up in thought, before continuing at a slower pace. "In that case, it may take a little longer."

"Even with Red's help?" Shadow questions.

"He doesn't know the Desert like V does," Blue points out, moving to follow Green. "He told me he's been there like, maybe three times total. And one of those times he just sucked faces with V instead of exploring."

Shadow titters, jogging to catch up. The other's longer legs made for an unfair advantage, but the hurried march made sense. Blue glances between the pile of tech in front of the house and Shadow as they go by, but keeps his mouth shut and allows it to pass without comment.

By the time they make it to Vio's lab, Shadow's nerves are starting to fray once more. The yellow teleporter ("It's butterscotch!" Red would insist), loomed just outside the open doors to the building, allowing the fluorescent lighting to spill out onto the dry ground. It looks oddly empty, without their resident scientist mulling around inside.

Something about that thought made Shadow's insides twist.

"Are you guys coming too?" Green asks, a bit redundantly, given he already knew the answer. Shadow nods without hesitation, stepping up alongside him to face the teleporter.

"I need to grab something first." Blue doesn't wait for any responses. Ducking into the lab, shuffling boxes and metal dragging on metal faintly fills the otherwise still air.

Once he reemerges, Shadow briefly catches sight of something small being slipped into Blue's belt pouch, but he's quickly distracted again by Green stepping onto the teleporter. In a flash of brilliant gold, Green disappears, and Shadow isn't slow to follow.

The sun immediately begins to glare down on him from the other side, and he yelps, ducking behind Green in a fruitless attempt at shelter. Green chuckles despite the situation, and wordlessly readjusts to properly shield Shadow from the worst of the rays.

Blue appears shortly thereafter, raising one hand to block the light from his vision as he looks out across the shifting sand. He gives it a good once over, before dropping his hand and turning to Green. "The fuck are we?"

"North of the Warp Station, silly!" The three jostle slightly, turning just in time to see Red come bounding across the uneven terrain like it was nothing. His shoes barely even seem to sink in the sand as he draws closer, hopping onto a fallen pillar of some sort before kicking off with his hands outstretched in Green's direction.

To his credit, Green didn't stumble as he caught Red in his arms, spinning them both with the momentum as Red's infectious laughter began to spread. He places Red down--only for him to dart over to Blue, hugging him tightly and nuzzling his shoulder.

Shadow blinks, and Red materializes in front of him next, lacing their fingers together as he leans forward to peck him on the lips. It was chaste, barely enough to even feel, but the warmth behind it was enough to chase away the twisting anxiety that had wedged itself between his ribs, if only for a moment.

He tugs Red back to him as he tries to slip away, pressing their lips more firmly together and smothering Red's laughter between them. It's hardly enough; the warmth much too addicting, but he knows better than to push for any more.

Green's amused ahem backs up that decision.

Shadow pulls away, noting with smug satisfaction that Red tries to follow. And that smug energy only shifts to humor once Blue snags Red around the waist, dragging him into their own barely contained kiss. Making eye contact with Green, Shadow smirks playfully, and Green can only sigh.

"If we're all done making out with Red now," Green starts, clapping his hands to get their attention, "we do kinda have a reason for being out here if you'll recall."

Red pushes at Blue's shoulders, leaning backward in his arms to stare at Green from upside down. "I don't recall, actually. What're we doin' again?

"You didn't fill him in?" Blue intoned, letting go of Red completely and dropping him into the sand. Shadow only felt a little bad snickering at Red's exaggerated 'oof'.

"Hey, I didn't exactly have time to explain in detail," Green defends, though he does concede to Blue's glare, lowering his head slightly. "I figured I could explain as we go. It'll be faster that way."

Red jumps to his feet, brushing the sand from the folds of his pants with a tilt of his head. "If that's the case, then let's go! Where to?"

"West of the center point. Know where that is?"

Red hums, bounding past Green and towards an arch in the landscape's natural mountains. He stops before he gets too far, turning back to stare at them expectantly.

"If we're just heading in a direction, then I can probably lead us," Red explains, "but landmarks are finicky. I don't think anythin' actually has a name out here. Vi said no to all my suggestions."

"Right, well that's better than nothing." Green shares a look between Blue and Shadow, stepping forward and nearly stumbling as his boot takes on sand. "Let's--ah, talk while we walk. We still don't have a full scope of the situation, but we're hoping..."

Shadow stares after them as they begin to drift away, bumping shoulders with Blue as he moves past. It's clear from the proximity that Blue intends to stay close, likely as a preventative measure to keep him from wandering off. And he can appreciate that. After all, the last thing they need right now is two missing people.

He hopes Green has finished explaining by the time they catch up. Shadow's own anxiety about the situation had reached a tolerable simmer thanks to Red's bubbly aura, but he wasn't sure what would happen should that aura pop.

Thankfully, Red was the kind of guy to take everything in stride.

Everything would be fine.

They'd explain things to Red, he'd lead them to Vio, and Vio would be fine. Maybe it was just a misclick. Maybe they'd find him wandering about and he'd have no idea they were even concerned in the first place.

Vio would be fine.

Everything would be fine.

----

Everything was not fine.

Everything was so not fine.

They'd reached the area Vio was meant to be in without issue. Fairly straightforward. They had a vague idea of what to be looking out for, and the landmark was indeed very obvious, and just as Vio had described to Red the night before.

The actual problem was Vio not being there.

Sure, there were signs all around the isolated plateau that Vio had been up to something nearby. But none of it pointed to where he had gone, and to make matters infinitely worse, they had a brand new issue to contend with.

Apparently, the Glass Desert was named that for a very specific reason—one that, according to Red, was fast approaching and signaled by the dramatic uptick in heat.

So, yeah. By this point Shadow could safely say he hasn't been so stressed in literal years.

The plateau and its immediate surroundings were busts. Branching off was their only option, and that's how they found themselves in the stupid situation they are now: racing through unfamiliar territory in a frantic search for their missing link.

A lot of it's a blur.

Blue may have stayed back to check the sea (and Goddesses, he hopes Vio hadn't drowned), while Green had gone...somewhere else. And Red, well.

The speeds at which Red moves are difficult enough to keep up with even on more stable terrain, but with Shadow's shoes constantly sinking and sliding in the loose grains, he has no hope of keeping up.

He can only fall further and further behind as the impending fallout ticks closer and closer.

Firestorms were no joke.

Even the slimes, fearless as they may be in their element, tended to cower at the might of a solar anomaly, hiding away in crumbling ruins and under towering crystalline structures; existing testaments to the sheer intensity of the Desert.

And Vio was out here somewhere.

Lost, despite claiming this as his element.

Shadow couldn't help but wonder what had gone wrong. Did he really misclick after all? Had a slime caught him unaware?

...was he safe?

Shadow's foot caught in the sand, sending him tumbling to the rough ground below as if to spite him. Hot tears jostle to the corners of his eyes, barely comparable to the arid heat wafting around him, and he balls his fists into the grains with a frustrated growl.

He pushes himself to his knees, scrubbing at his face with his jacket sleeves. Goddesses, he hates crying. He was going to kill Vio himself for worrying him so bad. The stupid...smart bastard better still be alive for him to follow through on that delirious vow, or so help him...

Climbing to his feet, Shadow made it another few steps forward before a shrill scream tore through his very core like lightning. Distressed, unintelligible; less a coherent word, never mind a name, but Shadow knew it all the same.

It carried on the wind, reverberating in his skull. He was moving before he even had time to fully process it. The high cliff walls around him blurred together as he stumbled through a winding, weathered path, fighting the drag of his own weight through the unforgiving sands.

When the sheer cliff faces began to subside, pulling away to let him breathe, he was met with a sharp drop down into a clearing. His heart was hammering in his chest as he wobbled forward, vertigo kicking in hard as he'd already pieced together what likely lay below.

Red's stuttering sobs bounced off the rocks, piercing through Shadow like jagged glass, tearing at his fragile composure. He staggers, dropping to his knees at the edge of the drop, unable to keep his balance.

He peers forward over the side.

He stops breathing.

There, splattered along the side of the dry rock, popping against the craggy orange stone...dotting Red's hands...as he cradles Vio's still form to himself.

Blood.

So much.

He couldn't breathe.

...was Vio breathing?

Numb, almost unresponsive fingers move to his communicator, unhelpfully mashing down the distress button over and over, and over, and over...

Where were the others? Red was crying, couldn't they hear him? They need help.

They need help. They need help.

Vio needs help.

"S--!"

Help.

"--dow!"

Help.

"Sh-dow!"

Help, someone-!

"Shadow!"

Fingers dig into his shoulder, tearing his gaze away from the scene and hiding his vision away in the crook of someone's neck. His breathing was ragged, choppy. So loud in his own ears. What...

"It's okay." Green's voice. Shaky, wet. "It's okay."

A hand found it's way into his hair, carding through it with unwavering care. Green. Green was here.

"Is-" Shadow's voice shook. "...Vio..."

Green lowers his chin onto Shadow's head, resting it on his hand for a moment. And for once, Shadow can't find it in himself to hate it.

"He's...okay," Green murmurs. "He'll be okay."

...okay.

"We need to go."

He doesn't wait for a reply. Shadow closes his eyes tightly against the harsh, red light of the Desert around them, burying his face further into Green's neck as he's lifted. The world shifts, the sound of a jetpack goes off, and Shadow's just lucid enough to wonder if Green had his vacpack this whole time.

The feeling of burning hot heat lasts for only a few minutes more, before the drone of a teleporter hums loudly in his ear, and his consciousnesss fades.

----

He should be dead right now.

Vio is aware enough to admit that.

Miscalculations are common enough in his particular field of study to be expected. Accidents happen, no matter how experienced you are, so it wasn't too surprising.

He knew the moment his foot missed the ledge and gravity took over that he was dead. The fall was survivable, sure, but all those collisions he had with the cliff-side on the way down? Astronomically less so. He was dead. So, so so dead.

The others were going to find his half-charred, slime-eaten body at the bottom of some random cliff and conclude he was actually a fucking dumbass. Goddesses, he hopes they skip the mourning process and just chuck his body into the sea.

At least then he'd still be attributing to science. He's still morbidly curious after all; do corpses float in the slime sea?

Questions for another time, he supposes. The fact he could even think at all was pointing toward a conclusion much more curious all its own.

He's still alive.

He really shouldn't be, and yet...hm.

His body feels numb. Moving is proving to be difficult, but that's never stopped him before and won't stop him now. Scrunching up his face, he forces his eyelids open with some effort, wincing at the glaringly familiar white ceiling above him. The blurriness slowly recedes as he blinks back to steady consciousness.

More and more of his surroundings come into focus. A soft weight on his left side, shifting gently out of sync with him; another person. Then, a different, more noticeable weight against the right side of his body, blowing light, warm air onto his neck; no doubt, yet another person.

His eyes slip closed again as he allows himself to just breathe.

Breathe.

He really should not be able to do that right now. Or ever again, actually. Not that he's complaining. Though it probably sounds as if he is. Still fairly curious about the slime sea, after all...

But no, he's...hm. Having trouble thinking.

"You done defragging yet, Windows Vista?"

Oh, he knows that voice.

"...luuue..." he slurs, tilting his head towards the source.

There's an irritated clicking noise, before a chair squeaks, and one of Vio's eyes is pried open. He instinctively squints against the feeling, a whole three seconds late.

"Fucking hell...you are concussed, damn it." Blue's blurry face twists into a scowl before he leans away again, momentarily revealing Shadow as the person lying on his right side, and then he's dropped back into darkness.

"Mmm n-n-naah," Vio glitches.

Blue scoffs again. "Mhm, yeah, no. Try again when you can say actual words."

"Sh--hn tr..ee," Vio tries again.

"That one didn't even make sense."

Dull pain blooms behind Vio's eyelids, and he whines low in his throat.

Hurts. It hurts. His muscles are fighting him, he can't lift his arms. He needs...he needs to...hm...?

"...we're gonna need to talk about this."

Pain--

Painpainpain--!

Vio's eyes shoot open, and he gasps, instinctively clenching his jaw as the pressure around his wrist registers. Shortly after, Blue's face comes into view, twisted into a grimace. He has one hand wrapped loosely over the deep purple bruise of skin Vio calls his right wrist, the other keeping him propped up over the side of the bed.

"Fuck," Vio mumbles, forcing his body to relax. It's the first coherent thing he's said in days, and Blue's not exactly happy about that. "Let go."

Blue doesn't have to be told twice.

"You aren't phasing anymore."

"So it would seem." Vio shuts his eyes once more. "Are the others asleep?"

"Have been for a few hours now." Blue leans back, causing the mattress to spring slightly once his weight is off it. "Green's out working through his stress, the idiot. These two just don't wanna leave you be."

Ah, so the other person is Red. That makes sense.

"Sorry," Vio says automatically, "I didn't mean to worry everyone."

Blue emanates the aura of someone rolling their eyes, and it's a little impressive he's able to communicate that so well to someone with their own eyes closed.

"Shut the fuck up. You have a lot more to apologize for than just that."

Vio reopens his eyes to level a blank stare at Blue.

"Don't look at me like that."

Vio squints.

"Or like that!"

A soft chuckle escapes Vio, only to be immediately chased down by a wince as his ribs protest loudly. He curses his low pain tolerance silently in his head as Blue sighs.

"You're injured, dumbass. Fell off a damn cliff apparently." Huh. That does sound familiar. "You really scared the hell out of these two when they found you."

Ah. No wonder they were clinging.

"Green's coming up with a whole lecture on group safety as we speak. No more Desert trips alone."

Vio raises an eyebrow at that. Or at least attempts to. "There's no way he can enforce that."

"Yeah, well, he won't be the only one." Blue crosses his arms and nods towards the two cuddled up to Vio's sides. "Good luck going anywhere without at least one attached to you."

Fair point. It wouldn't be the first time he's had them nipping at his heels wherever he went, though it has been a few years. Maybe that wouldn't be so bad. He didn't remember minding it back then.

Then again, his research efforts might drop dramatically in productivity. Both could be distracting on their own, but together? He'd never get anything done.

He's lured from that particular conundrum as Blue abruptly stands, stretching his arms over his head with a groan. Vio would probably appreciate the sight more if he weren't concussed and struggling with complex thoughts.

"M'kay, well, I'm gonna go let Green know you're kinda lucid right now. Don't think you're getting out of that conversation later." Blue does a few more stretches to fully wake up his joints (just how long had he been sitting there?) before heading over to the door. Oh, this is his room; no wonder the ceiling looks familiar.

Blue pauses in the doorway, seeming to think something over, then turns back with a smug grin and a flippant wave. "Oh, and by the way, one of your teleporters is in the middle of fuckin' nowhere now. Sorry not sorry."

"Wait, what--?"

Blue cackles to himself as he leaves, completely aware of how Vio's attempt to sit up was barred by Shadow and Red 'conveniently' choosing that moment to wake up and tighten their holds on him.

And it was about at that point, where he was being smothered by his two more affectionate boyfriends, that Vio decided, yeah, actually, slime sea theory can wait a few more years.

Or ten.

Maybe thirty.

That conversation could be a future non-concussed Vio's problem, too.

This is nice.

He should fall off cliffs more often.

Or maybe not. He really should be dead right now.

He wonders how many realities in which he did die there. He wonders which reality is he. Is there a true Vio out there? What quantifies as a "Vio", anyway.

...he wonders where they put his bracelet.

He's starting to slip again.

--End--

Please feel free to tell me what y'all thought! I haven't written anything to completion in years so I'm still a bit rusty.

I intended to address Vio's bracelet more, and there was a whole extra plot thread I ended up cutting, but hopefully I'll get to those some other time. This was getting a bit long and I didn't want to lose motivation before I finished it. I'm placing this in dubiously au canon for now. We'll see if it still fits in as I expand the au.

Thanks so much for reading this far! Hopefully y'all liked it!

Here’s a bonus: the in-game map with some of my notes on it. In blue, the area where Vio was supposed to be. In purple, the area they actually found him.

I like to think in this AU, one of the others put that cartoony danger sign next to the cliff.

As requested: @zeldathusiast

It’s done! :D

[princesssmars]

in love with the thought of you and jordan playing video games with marie.

like. i imagine in the group home the only way they got to play any games were physical ones and if they could sneak in a few minutes on cool math games during computer time. and as much as i think marie would kick ass at life and chutes and ladders, she'd constantly miss the game consoles she had at home.

so she meets you and jordan and college, and jordan takes gaming serious but not so seriously. they'll dick around in online games and scarily become a master manipulator when they can be convinced to play among us once in a blue moon, and once marie tells you she hasnt player a real video game since middle school you both make it your personal missions to help her play any game she wants.

and i feel like she would kick ass at nearly everything! and annoyed as she gets at randoms screaming in her ears she can enjoy a game of cs:go or call of duty, and had a week long obsession with slime rancher, constantly coming over to your dorm to play the game on your pc while you give her tips in the background.

yes her favorite is the honey slime. yes she made too many gordos and stopped playing for a month because the tar killed them all.

and dont even get me started on mobile games...jordan probably begs her no to play them because :

1. they're corny as hell

2. you play them religiously, and everytime a game says 'share to get an extra _' you send them the link. she goes through their messages and there are probably 200 shared links from you.

but its inevitable. once she gets a phone you send her a link for choices/episode and its all over. but once she has her first diamond choice where she has to tell her love interest (definitely modeled after you or jordan) she hates their guts she gets pissed off. if you give her money to buy some diamonds she'll be unstoppable.

but my favorite headcanon would be her playing games while high. just on weed, but it was when jordan told you they were going to try to teach marie how to play fortnite, and you had a really bad but really funny idea to do it while high.

it was supposed to be just you, but marie joined in which landed the two of you cackling after you both fell off a tower and died, jordan with their head in their hands as the 'you ranked #80!' lit up the screen.

[xxtommycoolattasboobs420xx]

Darnold talking about Gordon's gun hand is beginning to fuck with me. Bc. He emphasizes "Oh everything's fine its just like your old arm it's ok my potion totally worked." It's just like his old arm. Its like his old arm. Darnold isn't even AWARE of the sheer amount of killing Gordon has been forced to do but somehow convinces Gordon it shouldn't feel any different from his old arm. Gordon didn't want to kill in the first place but he's been forced to murder like hundreds of people because of the shit he's going through, and when he gets to the point of getting the minigun arm he's accepted the fact he's a murderer. His hand literally became a gun because he's accepted to go fuck it guns blazing kill everything because he got just so tired of trying. Look at me dead in the eyes. Gordo Feetmans development is so much to me.

Not to even MENTION the SOLUTION for his whole "dead weight" situation after losing a hand was to just have his hand become a gun. Look at me. Gordon wanted literally anything else than to just be useless and if that meant mystery potion and minigun arm he was going to do whatever it took to be useful and survive. I'm going crazy insane. I'm crying.

Man is not even slightly offended by the "just like ur old arm" comments but I AM and im choosing to beleive this has way more meaning than was probably intended.

[xavigab]

Make Oliver a country kid with a southern accent, but like he knows Spanish. (He lived in el laredo so like right next to Mexico) he also went to public school with a lot of Mexicans so he picked it up when he was younger

Oliver opens his mouth and Felix is just enthralled by his accent and mannerisms. Oliver cussing out farleigh in Spanish because he can’t say it fast enough in English. (Nmms a mí me pasa muchísimo me cae gordo jajaja) he was ready to throw hands with him too

Oliver trying to get a pigeon or squirrel from campus as a pet, because he’s missing his farm animals :(

Anyways Ollie was technically rich, he takes care of the farm and went to public schools for most of his life (maybe he was in cross country, I’ve noticed that a lot of Hispanics join it (I joined it lol) OH! and he has spa days with the cows like in TikTok)

(I love going through Zillow and seeing all the houses I can never afford, this one cost 5,800,000 ＿|￣|○)

Also this whole thing doesn’t make sense, I should’ve just made some oc’s or sum lmao

[graysbullshit]

Summarizing the Brazillian's lore for the gringos that dont understand portuguese but are curious anyway:

Pac & Mike: Starting with the dynamic duo because they have the least amount of lore. Basically, they are best friends and like to do everything together! Like good best friends, they argue all. the. time. Both of them really llve their egg, however, after Mike accidently lead Richarlyson to his death he has been avoiding the egg. He is very scared of fucking up and would rather be an absent father with a living kid than a present father with a dead kid. Pac is more hopefull and likes interecting with the egg.

Also, they are more interested in the minecraft aspects of the server and not the lore aspects, so they don't really tend to go out of their way to interact with people. Besides, they stream earlier, so most people only log on when they are already getting ready to leave. They have created the bar "Buteco do Boi Gordo" which seems to be a huge success on the server and are in good terms with most people! They joined the Ordo Theoritas by accidently walking into Cellbit's hide out and are currently a bit scared of Cucurucho and of being watched.

Felps: He is a very laid back guy (minecraft-wise). He is a very close friends of Cellbit and constantly jokes about either of them going insane and talking to voices. He was also canonically driving the boat when they crashed.

He loves hanging out with Richarlyson and is one of the more present dads. He also hangs out with the other players a lot and likes talking with them, for exemple: he had a very long conversation with Foolish while Leo and Richas played! He seems to talk more to the english speakers because he understands english better than spanish, although he is very sociable in general.

He was invited to the Ordo Theoritas by Cellbit, since they were such close friends. But after talking to Cucurucho he started to suspect Cellbit was actually going insane. He hang out with Cucurucho more and ended up quite liking the little guy. Later, he told Cucurucho his "biggest secret" (that he would give his life away for Richarlyson) and in turn was shown the Heaven Room, in there he was stuck in a another room and disappeared.

(The reason for this specific lore is because he is currently traveling to Japan and didn't want to leave the Qsmp so soon without giving some reason for his character to disappear)

Forever: Arguably the brazillian with the biggest lore Lol. He is an extrovert and tries to talk to everyone, despite the language barriers, and is very good at making friends. He is DEFINITELY the best dad out of all of them. He is also DEFINITELY the best minecraft player from all of the brazillians and absolutely loves exploring the new aspects of the game Although he is more intrested in the game aspect of the sever, he is very invested in the eggs. He loves hanging out with Richas, and enjoy the company of all the eggs too (he even remembered that Tallulah needed to complete her missions and asked Richas to "talk to her" and "see if she can come online, even if she is speaking portugues, if you get what I mean")

In his past he had a best friend/romantic interest that coincidently also uses the Urahara skin, so when he saw Philza he was immediately interested in becoming his friend. Because of his values, he only became truly interested in Philza when he first saw his backpack and just how rich he was. He tried to flirt with Philza mutiple times and tried to convince him to love him mutiple times, not taking rejection very well. Although he has made many plans to conquer Philza's love, he hasn't followed through with any of it. The worst he has done is annoy Philza everytime he comes on the server Lol. (Not-canonically, he is very nice and was worried Philza would be genuinely upset with the storyline, even asking if he wanted him to stop)

Canonically, he was scared to death by a Grim Reapper that asked him to drink water, he suspected it might be BBH and is currently very uneasy around him for this same reason. He was invited to the Ordo by Cellbit, after being deemed trustworthy, he has said many times that he does not like "scary things" and does not consider himself good with this type of puzzles. Therefore, he reports everything he find directly to Cellbit and also seems to trust Cellbit blindly. He somehow managed to find the "Heaven room" in which Felps disappeared and realized the weakness of the reinforced blocks right away, guiding Cellbit and BBH over there.

He is also planing on terraforming an entire desert bioma into an ocean so he can recreate the very famous Copacabana Beach. It might seem HUMANLY IMPOSSIBLE but, considering all the absurd stuff he has done in his channel, I consider this quite tame actually.

Cellbit: He remembers Felps from his past, he also remembers Pac and Mike (who didn't remember him) from his attempt to escape prison (Non-canonically: they did a video together called Prision Break, if you guys wanna watch it). Not only is his character clinically insane, he is also an ex-convict and an alleged murderer. He loves solving charades and puzzles, loves mistery, ARGS and thrillers. Although, he doesnt really care about the minecraft aspect of the server.

He became very good friends with Maximus, bonding over the mysteries of the island. He is also very good friends with BBH, though I am not sure if they remember each other cannonically. He also befriended Roier and they have been flirting non stop ever since, Richas is totally trying to get them together lol (fun fact: his girlfriend also ships Q!roier and Q!cellbit lol). Although he originally seemed to deslike Bobby, later he explained it was all in good fun and he did not genuinely hated the egg. He is very suspicious of Quackity (for obvious reasons) and has decided to befriend him in order to keep him close and where he can be watched.

Cellbit really loves Richarlyson, but he loves solving mysteries more lol, so he is an absent father. He doesnt really expends a lot of time with the other eggs and doesn't really seem to have strong emotions towards them. He believes they were made by the federation to manipulate them and keep them in the island no matter what, so he is also suspicious of them.

He hates the Cucurucho so so so so much, its hilarious. After breaking the rules on purpose to see what would happen, he was teleported to an underground tunnel where the Cucurucho appeared behind him holding a chainsaw. He was terrifiend and ran in the oposite direction, falling in a whole fuelled with iron stakes. After that, he was taken to an "interogation room" where they expend the next minutes conversing through books. Later, he was released and developed a paranoia and a insane amout of hatred for the federation. Therefore, when he saw his best friend talking to the Cucurucho he was enraged, which lead him to follow them only to witness his best friend being taken away.

He is probably the person who logs on the most on the server, but most of the time he only logs on to say that canonically his character is also solving the QSMP puzzle in his computer. He was with Forever when they found the room where Felps was taken too and decided it was too risky to try and break in at that time.

I believe this is it! Maybe, if you guys want, i could summarize the CANNONICAL theories Cellbit has and the evidences he has found, but I wont do that for the ARG because that's too much information.

[shay-the-writer]

October Writing Prompts

After the repeated fails of the last several months, what possesses me to make this month's prompt thing ... fuck if I know. But, let's go with it. It's a long one.

The prompts are both Halloween and Autumn-themed.

Playing a game of Trick or Treat. It's a bit like Truth or Dare with the Trick being like Dare. The type of story rating is up to you.

Trick-or-Treating with the kid(s). Nice, wholesome content.

Costume Party.

Going to a haunted house (a real one or a set up). <> Person A says haunted houses don't scare them but they end up freaking out at every turn and Person B holds onto them.

Raking up leaves and having fun in them.

A trip to the cider mill/apple orchard, pumpkin patch, Fall Festival. Apple-picking, cider and donuts, hay bale rides, hay bale/cornstalk mazes.

Hay bale/cornstalk maze adventure. (family event / Horror-themed and set at night / a couple getting lost [intentional or not] and taking advantage of a dead end or secluded spot).

Carving/painting pumpkins.

Pumpkin Spice food/beverage items. Person A loves it. Person B hates it with a passion.

Taking a walk through the park where the air is crisp but not too cold, it's cloudy but a bit of sun peeks out and makes the color of the leaves stand out. Leaves are falling around them, and the ones on the ground make a rustling/crunching sound when they walk over them.

The smell of cinnamon. This is usually a Christmas thing for me, but some places I've been to recently have had cinnamon-scented things in their fall decor, so I guess it works here, too.

Halloween night always seems to bring out the crazies. This one is probably crime show-specific.

Person A decided to take a walk with Person B, thinking it wasn't too cold outside to wear a coat, but Person B notices A is looking cold and gives them their coat because B planned ahead with their wardrobe.

INSPIRED-THE-PLOT: Adaptation of Washington Irving's Legend of Sleepy Hollow. (this story freaks me out, even a kids book I once had, with innocent kid-friendly illustrations, scared the crap out of me.)

INSPIRED-THE-PLOT: Surviving scary moments/disasters together. Alien invasions/attacks (Independence Day), natural disasters like tornadoes/volcanoes/earthquakes/etc. (Twister/Dante's Peak/etc.), dinosaurs run amok (Jurassic Park/World), or something supernatural (ghosts, demons, vampires), or psycho maniac serial killers.

Relationships between a human and a: Alien, Monster, Warlock, Witch, Sorcerer/Sorceress, Vampire, Ghost, Werewolf (or any animal-specific shapeshifter), Demon, Devil/Satan, Dark Creature (Fae, Imp, etc.).

Relationships between: Aliens, Monsters, Warlocks, Witches, Sorcerers/Sorceresses, Vampires, Ghosts, Werewolves/Animal Shapeshifters, Demons, Dark Creatures, a demon/devil/Satan with an angel/a God or Goddess.

MOVIE QUOTES

These are random and not necessarily Halloween-themed, but when put into a Halloween context, gives them a whole new meaning.

Rapunzel: Do you have magic hair? / Vanellope: No. (Ralph Breaks the Internet)

Principal Carol Newman: I want you to look into my eyes. What do you see? / Student: It's dark ... and it's cold. (The Santa Clause 2)

Lilly: Satan has finally left my body. (Pitch Perfect 3)

Billy Butcherson: Go to Hell! / Winifred Sanderson: Oh! I've been there, thank you. I found it quite lovely. (Hocus Pocus)

Gordo: Wow, evil and smart. / Kate: Embrace it. Fear it. (The Lizzie McGuire Movie)

Dorothy Gale: How can you talk if you haven't got a brain? (The Wizard of Oz)

Patty Tolan: Okay, room full of nightmares. (Ghostbusters [2016])

A.J. MacInerney: I feel a nightmare coming on. (The American President)

Sophie Piper: It's the bad thing. (Halloweentown)

Olaf: Hands down, this is the best day of my life, [he begins to melt] and, quite possibly, the last. (Frozen)

Olaf: Oh, look at that. I've been impaled. (Frozen)

TV QUOTES

Like the movie quotes, these ones change meaning when put in a Halloween-context.

Regina Mills: She got sucked up by a vortex of evil. (Once Upon a Time)

Chilli Heeler: (after Bluey and Bingo's fight led to a broken gnome) This is what happens when you're unhappy with what you've got. Someone's husband [the gnome] eventually gets it! [killed] (Bluey)

Gnome: Hee-hee-hee. I'm flammable! (Big City Greens)

Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold: To the end of the world. (Once Upon a Time)

Spike: If you tell anyone we had this conversation, I'll bite you. (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

John Munch: (while playing a video game) Damn it, I died. (Law & Order: SVU)

Princess Anna: What a funny-looking world. / Queen Elsa: Right?! (Once Upon a Time)

Lorelai Gilmore: That's the last time I buy anything just because it's furry. (Gilmore Girls)

Cyber Knight: Respawn, you fool! Respawn! (Big City Greens)

Bluey Heeler: He was not a funny clown. (Bluey)

Olivia Benson: It could use a splash of color. [Elliot Stabler points to a painting with blood on it] Blood red wasn't what I had in mind. (Law & Order: SVU)

Alice Green: Oh, an ominous message written in red liquid. (Big City Greens)

Vicki Nelson: Well, unless you have a demon GPS around here somewhere, this is all we have. (Blood Ties)

Vicki Nelson: You actually have a demon GPS? (Blood Ties)

Tilly Green: I have seen danger. And, I love it. (Big City Greens)

Casey Novak: I've had this nightmare before, only I was naked. (Law & Order: SVU)

Melinda Warner: If you bite me, I'll hurt you. (Law & Order: SVU)

Oz: (about a zombie cat) It looks dead. It smells dead. Yet, it's moving around ... That's interesting. (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

Angela Montenegro: Things in a toilet bowl should not move. (Bones)

Raymond Ettinger [guest character]: I can't find my head. (Law & Order: SVU)

Fin Tutuola: Your heart's bleeding all over my shoes. (Law & Order: SVU)

Fin Tutuola: I don't see a cat. / John Munch: They're freaky little creatures. They lurk. (Law & Order: SVU)

Rafael Barba: Cue the apocalypse. (Law & Order: SVU)

Weezy: Cryptids give me the creep-tids. (Big City Greens)

C.C. Babcock: Good God, it's multiplying. (The Nanny)

Alice Green: Go back from whence you came, Prince of Darkness! The girl's soul is mine! (Big City Greens)

Karen Walker: I'm not good or real. I'm evil and imaginary. (Will & Grace)

John Munch: Oh, there you are, you demonic little furball. (Law & Order: SVU)

Kate O'Brien: Well, that takes care of the heebies, but I still got the jeebies. (The Drew Carey Show)

Peter Griffin: (during a Brit cut-away) Oh, dear ... I've spontaneously combusted. (Family Guy)

Dorothy Zbornak: (to Sophia) You're a furry little gnome and we feed you too much. (The Golden Girls)

Yakko Warner: Wait, you're forgetting something. / Umlatt: What? / Yakko Warrner: Well, being an evil villain, you are contractually required to explain your plan before you get rid of us. (Animaniacs)

[astranite]

CH1 Coming Home Loudly

John isn't okay because it sure is lonely up in space. Scott follows through on his promises; he's here for his brothers and nothing, not even the distance between Earth and Thunderbird Five could stop him. Gordon is also Making Sure This Happens. --After suffering in silence, John comes home.

This fic follows @janetm74 's Suffering In Silence which I love. So much. This is about the emotions and the hugs and coming home.

Also thank you to the amazing art and inspiration of @lenle-g !!!

---

Scott powered down Thunderbird Three’s engines as he docked with Five and the clamps engaged, anchoring the two Thunderbirds together. John's voice was calm over the radio when he granted them permission to dock. It was so perfectly calm, without even a tremble to break the illusion that he had everything together, to the point it came out flat. Scott winced. Beneath it all John sounded completely exhausted. 

Gordon had been quiet most of the flight but for terse navigational directions, focused to point of singularity on why they were here. Around them, the metal hull of the rocket ticked and snapped as it cooled, adjusting to the lack of engines firing as they were left floating in the cold, unforgiving, lonely void of space. Scott shuddered, averting his gaze from the viewports to the stars. Nope, give him his blue skies any day of the week.

He jiggled his foot beneath the dash in a rapid tempo, hand bouncing on his knee in time. The anger that had flared up at his father while defending John had fled, leaving him with only restless worry. It filled him to the brim where thoughts about their father and their discussion turned argument, about Alan, and most importantly in this moment of John intermixed with flight plans and overflowed into movement.

Gordon shifted in his seat, picking up on Scott's emotions, ever in tune with everyone else. His mission focus snapped as he twisted around in his seat.

Hey Scotty, are you gonna explode?" he burst out. "'Cause you seem like you're about to."

The tap tap tap of Scott's leg shaking sounded too loud in the rocket's cabin. He was probably driving Gordon mad with it like it did their father when Scott got impatient in a meeting. Scott pressed his foot to the floor, forcing himself to go still. 

"Sorry Gordo, I'm all good," Scott muttered as the airlocks clunked together and begun to pressurise achingly slowly.

At least picking at the outer leg seam of his uniform with his fingers was less disruptive and obvious when he couldn't help the need to move. 

Gordon rolled his eyes. "I didn't say you had to stop, I just want to know how you're going. Y'know with everything."

"So now you ask me about my day?" Scott snarked back as he resumed bouncing his leg. 

He wouldn't say it was a relief Gordon didn't care, but it was. His brother was now mimicking his jittering but bigger and louder because this was Gordon he was talking about. He was probably also doing it to show Scott that it was okay.

"You seemed pretty wound up after your chat with dear old dad even by the time I came in,” Gordon said.

"How did you—? I didn't tell you we spoke."

Gordon counted off on his fingers. "One, we're going to get John down from Five even though Alan has very conveniently extended his rota. Two, the back of your neck gets red when you're mad."

Scott rubbed at it self consciously. "No it doesn't."

"Ya, it does bro. How do think I get the message of when to steer clear with the pranking? It's the same with Virge but don't tell him I told you that."

Scott blinked in silence in light of Gordon's astute observations.

And three," Gordon continued, "You can't sit still anyway but it's like ten times worse when you're worried about a brother. That brother isn't Alan when he's tucked up snug as a bug in a rug in the sick room probably watching racing vids by now, it's John."

Scott put his head in his hands as Gordon gestured expansively. "Ergo, you and Dad fought because as usual he thought everything was peachy when John's been practically radio silent lately, so if it ain't broke no need to fix it. Plus you're pissed about the whole thing with Alan."

Gordon kept talking as Scott tried to process exactly how much his little brother picked up on because Gordon’s anxious tell was the inability to shut up. 

"Bonus lucky number four, John's been in space far too long and it's getting to him, and damn it to all hell but Dad was wrong and I'm really glad we're here."

They both let out a long breath after that, looking to each other. The airlock safety dinged.

Scott leapt out of the pilot's chair as fast as he could, pausing only when Gordon didn't follow.

Brown eyes watched him, as soft and sharp as the tangle of contradictions that forged Gordon. 

"Johnny will just want you. You're our big brother, he'll be a mess and you know he hates anyone seeing him like that. He’ll take it better from you."

Scott leant over the back of Gordon's chair to wrap him in a hug. "Thanks, Squid."

"Anytime. Now you bring our space-case home." That ridiculous nickname was said with all the affection in the world.

Scott saluted him, getting a casual two fingers flicked from a brow back as he pressed the door release.

The doors shifted open with their customary hiss-clunk, allowing Scott entry into Thunderbird Five. His brother's Thunderbird, just as clearly as One was his own. Maybe even more so when it came to it. It wasn't like Scott lived on his twenty-four seven without pause, even if after long rescue shifts sometimes he felt like he did.

John was waiting for him on the other side in his customary blue uniform and lilac baldric, looking smaller than Scott thought someone so tall and lanky could possibly make themselves. His arms were wrapped tightly around his chest. Hugging himself, Scott realised.

A step closer showed exactly how crumpled his clothes were, as if he'd pulled them off the laundry floor pile. Or slept in them. Or, if Scott was going to bet on it, spent a good amount of time crying his heart out while hiding in his bed, like Scott had found John too many times in their lives after he retreated. Their father would never allow anyone under his command and certainly not his sons to be seen with their uniforms in such disarray in any other circumstances.

Another couple of steps until he was standing right in John's space had him meeting his brother's over-bright eyes. It was impossible to miss how red and puffy the skin around them was. John glanced away down to their feet, blinking quickly.

His hair stuck out like a set of radio antennae, his fringe bent in no less than three different directions.

Scott had been right. Gordon had been right. John wasn't coping up here alone. 

"Hey, John," Scott said softly.

"Scott." 

Only now John's voice sounded utterly wrecked, like he had in fact spent the last hours sobbing.

Scott was ready to kick himself for not doing anything earlier. This would've kept on going, leaving John suffering in silence when he couldn't make himself say anything to their father for even longer, if Scott hadn't stepped in. 

Twelve weeks. John had been stuck up here alone, no one to keep him company, the time stretching out longer and longer as Alan put off or cut short his own rota whenever he could get away with it. It was a pattern, going back far longer than this round. 

Scott would've gone mad in about a day over his allotted month without room to run in the fresh air beneath the sky and more importantly, have his family by his side. John had had none of that for far longer.

This was why Scott didn't take rosters on Five very often without good reason. But if he was up here, he was damn well going to stick it out and do his job properly. He'd be having a long talk with Alan about taking responsibility for his own actions after he got John home and gave him a chance to settle before tempers blew up the house. The kid would take it hard being told that he'd hurt John, but this couldn't go on.

The reason why stood right in front of him.

John wobbled on his feet, rocking forward before hesitating as he reached out towards Scott. 

" Oh, Jay," Scott murmured near silently, just between him and John.

Scott opened up his arms and John fell into them. 

John didn't hug back; his arms remained pinned around himself, crossed protectively over his chest, but he leaned his body into Scott's before tucking his face into the crook of his big brother's neck.

Ever so carefully, Scott folded him close as John trembled. 

His brother felt far too... Scott refused to use the word fragile, his John was as strong as the rest of them, no matter what anyone said, and yet he also wasn’t the collected Thunderbird Five they usually knew. All Scott wanted to do was hold him, to keep the weight of the world off his brother’s narrower shoulders and stand between him and the storm. Right now that was what John needed; it didn’t make him any less of a Thunderbird though.

John would step out again from that shelter, quicker and cleverer than anyone or simply however John was in the moment, but that was his choice, not Scott’s to keep him. It was about whenever John felt ready to do so, Scott swore to himself: he would be there for as long as that took and be still there to come back to, yet when the time came he’d let go and cheer John on from the sidelines.

It had been the same with Gordon when after the accident the world had been screaming that he was fragile. In the early days Scott had been... overprotective too. He'd treated his brother like glass and stopped him from doing what he wanted to do out of fear, for his own sake, not Gordon's. They had a deal now: Gordon would tell him upfront what he could and couldn't do, and Scott would believe him. He’d call dad out when he refused to listen to Gordon too, backing his brother up when he wanted it.

Even when hard rescues turned recoveries had Scott wondering why the hell he was letting any of his baby brothers do this, he'd never take away being a Thunderbird from Gordon against his will. Nor from John. He’d fight the whole world kicking and screaming if it tried to, because being different didn't make any of his brothers broken. 

He held John, a hand resting on the nape of his neck to gently tangle in soft, blonde hair while John’s uneven breaths were warm against Scott’s collar bone, where his eldest little brother hid his face. 

Sometimes after nightmares Scott was left lying awake, staring at the blurry ceiling in the dark. The majority of his service held no happy memories; none of the promised glory was found in the senseless bloodshed of a violent conflict there had been no reason for but greed. When he was so shaken, so sick to the pit of his stomach that the tears he’d woken up with wet on his face flowed freely, Scott thought he wasn't as strong as Dad wanted them all to be either.

John was far too like him when you got down to it. So was Gordon. Alan was barely not a kid and still figuring out a lot of how things worked. He hadn’t had the easiest time of it growing up without Mum holding his hand like she had been there for the rest of them, not matter how they all had tried to compensate for the youngest. Scott had tried, he’d stepped up as the man of the house even when Dad checked out. He hadn’t known what to do with five motherless boys either.

Scott’s Virgil too had a sensitive artist’s soul, he always had. He was a bit of a hopeless romantic and an easy crier, but Scott couldn’t truly tease him for it. Virgil made the choice over and over to continue to be soft and to be kind no matter how many times he was knocked to the ground. He was the one Scott looked to when he felt he was forgetting how to believe in the good in people. 

Right now, John had forgotten how to take up room in the world. In Scott’s arms, it was as if he would shatter if he was dropped suddenly or grow smaller until he faded away invisibly. Even when Scott knew he wouldn’t , deep down he was still scared that his brother would disappear into space, becoming another part of the stardust and the big, empty void instead of being his John . He saw it in the silence that settled over him after so long away, where his usual quiet gaped like an open wound. He couldn’t bear to lose John to it.

But Scott would never let it happen, not while he still breathed. He would hold John up until he could stand on own his feet again and never leave him alone and forgotten. That’s why he shouted down their father, the echo of his palms slamming into the desk thrumming through his fingers in synch with his heartbeat. Proper meals, rest, sunshine and time with their brothers would do John good, then they would all hear John’s laughter ringing out across the pool decks once again. 

John let Scott take his weight. His brother was truly here, real and solid in his arms, Scott needed this to remember how it felt, that this was John not just the staticky waves of a voice down a radio channel or flattened 2D image from far away. Those weren’t warm and human, it wasn’t the same.

Scott froze when John wriggled after a minute, immediately loosening his grip to give John room to breathe, but John only let his arms drop to his sides so he could squish himself closer to Scott.

Using the few extra inches of height he had on his brother from how John slumped small, Scott wrapped himself around John more. He shifted so he could rest his jaw against John’s hair, taking a deep breath in. 

Oh Jay, dammit . Scott had missed him so much.

He smelt so familiar; he was space and John and home. Scott’s brothers were his home, beyond the island, beyond Kansas, or Earth or space or whatever the hell else the universe was made up of.

Home, home, home, home, home. Scott mouthed the words near silently, a reminder, a promise .

Scott swallowed hard as John nuzzled into his shoulder. Like he knew exactly what Scott was thinking at any point, like he saw straight through him clearer than windshield glass of a Thunderbird, no matter he was trembling, John got him. 

Scott tried not to cry over all of that either.

His brother shouldn't be a shaky mess from just getting a cuddle, he should be demanding them off of Scott whenever he wanted to without care that they were busy, and fighting over who got to sit next to him on movie night like the others. 

Scott rubbed a hand up and down his back, promising himself first and foremost that they were all going to do better by John. Stars knew John would never say anything when he was hurting until he drowned beneath the gravity of it, alone on Five.

[prin-does-art]

Hi again, so the second chapter! I hope y'all like this fluff. I gave my best on this chapter, however this is my first fic and english is not my first language, so apologies if anything sounds confusing, and please let me know in the comments. Again, any spanish spoken will be translated in the end, so don't worry ;)

Title: One And The Opposite

Rating: Teens and Up (swearing, mentions of sex)

Summary: After filling the shoes of his alternate self in a parallel universe, Miguel O'Hara swiftly discovers that embodying a different version of himself is far more challenging than he initially anticipated. As he juggles with the complexities of family dynamics, with a wife and daughter who both expect him to be the man they remember, he tries to stay afloat, grappling with the pros and cons of navigating two lives simultaneously.

OR

A domestic Miguel trying his best.

Chapter 2: Sweet reunion

"Gordo, eres tú? Ya llegué!" he hears a voice shout from down the hallway, as the door slams shut, followed by the loud noise of keys rattling and plastic bags crinkling.

Miguel turns around to look at her for the first time, and it's nothing like he thought it would be, to say the least. He imagines it’s like if he were living life immersed in tiger illustrations, and then got to see the real thing for the very first time. It feels like he’s standing in the presence of a real tiger, with its raw power, the rhythmic pulse of its fur, and the untamed wilderness echoing in its eyes. His breath catches as he steps back to really look at her in awe.

Moving through the kitchen in a busy sway, she goes about putting the groceries away, all the while speaking almost too fast to understand like every Spanish speaker ever. It’s as if she hasn't even spotted him there yet — so comfortable with his presence. 

"... Tu hermano no deja de llamarme, deberías ver qué quiere. Ah, y el 'forecast' del tiempo dice que el aire será irrespirable por unas horas, así que recuerda cuando te dirijas a... estas bien?" She asks, getting on the tips of her toes to give him a kiss.

As much as he tries not to, Miguel is startled by the sudden contact, and it must show on his face because she notices too.

"Que te pasa, mi amor?" She asks, a look of confusion in her face that makes her look even more beautiful.

"I uh... I... Just got robbed." He blurts out. 

Even after a day of practicing his Spanish accent, English still instinctively surfaces as his immediate response — it's become much more natural than his native language at this point. The perplexity in her eyes immediately turns into worry as she puts a hand on his face and examines him up and down.

"Are you ok? Did they hurt you!?" She thankfully also speaks English, although with a slight accent that Miguel can’t quite figure out where it’s from. 

"No, no, yo estoy bien. I'm fine just... A little shaken. He had a gun." He answers, gently holding her hand back.

She stares at him, a twinge of shock coloring her features, then looks down at his hand. He gets worried for a second that even though his talons are concealed, something else might be giving him away. Something he doesn’t know about. He can't help the way his heart must be beating a mile a minute, threatening to jump out of his chest.

"Well, you're safe now, okay? Don't worry about it too much." The way she casually utters it confirms for him that this sort of thing happens frequently here. She only smiles sympathetically at him, not even asking what they took — if anything.

He sighs in relief as she says that, and smiles back, taking the chance to get a good look at her face. 

Brown eyes like his, a few moles here and there. Worry lines between her brows that paint a picture of a woman who hasn't had everything handed to her, or the easiest life. He can't help but think he chose well. 

"Listen, I can go pick up Briella, you stay here and I'll-" she says, swiftly turning around to grab her keys.

"No, no, it's okay, I can do it. It's fine." He quickly insists, knowing he has to use every opportunity to get to know his family, and his alternate version better. 

"Okay. Pero ten cuidado mi amor." She warns, placing another kiss on his lips.

*

He gets there early, watching from his car as some parents start making their way towards the entrance. While he contemplates waiting inside the front office — an idea that might be a bit excessive, though it would allow him to catch an earlier glimpse of Gabriella — staying in the car seems neglectful at best. So he settles on waiting near the front of the school until the bell rings.

When it finally does, a crowd of kids emerges from the building, and with them a cacophony of screams and voices as he nervously shifts his weight around, willing himself to stay calm while trying to spot his daughter in the crowd.

“¿Apá?” She asks, right next to him . Miguel looks down at her, startled. 

He must have been so distracted looking through hundreds of faces, that he didn’t even notice her coming up to him. It doesn’t help that she’s tiny, barely reaching past his hips, and the school uniform makes her blend right in with the navy blue crowd.

“Oh hi there! You scared me!” He tells her with a laugh, trying to play it off.

Gabriella blinks at him. “You didn’t wait in the car this time.” 

Uh oh. Is that bad? Maybe she was embarrassed of leaving with her father, maybe the kids would make fun of her for it now. He quickly scans the surroundings, seeing not that many kids leaving with their parents.

“Uh… Right. Well, I wanted to walk with you, if that’s ok…” He explains, fighting the urge to lean down so she doesn’t feel as small to him.

Thankfully she just shrugs, and turns to leave after he offers to carry her backpack for her. They start walking in silence, with Miguel more afraid of being found out than he was earlier, with her mother.

It’s silly, really: She’s a child, barely nine years old. However, his mind keeps racing trying to figure out what to say, what to ask that’s not going to give him away immediately, while at the same time reassuring himself that it’s okay, that she doesn’t know yet.

“So… How was school?” He asks, putting his hands in the pockets of his pants.

“It was alright.” She answers dryly, staring at the floor as she walks.

“Soo was it alright as in boring, or…?” He risks the question, wanting to know more about her day.

She seems pensive for a moment, considering him. “It’s just that the boys keep making fun of me and Isa again. Even Sam joined in, and he doesn't even play soccer!” She frowns, continuing. “They keep saying we’re never gonna play like Messi Jr because we’re girls.” 

He can feel his fists closing into tight balls when she says that. He knows first hand just how insufferable boys her age could get, especially dealing with Kron and all the hell he’d put him through at school, but he also knows that when it comes to girls they act ten times worse. 

So even though he has no idea who ‘Messi Jr’ is, he figures instead of speaking out of anger and cursing the hell out of these boys, he should at least try and help her with her insecurities instead. 

“Why are you worried about being exactly like Messi Jr when you can be so much better than him?” He asks, raising an eyebrow at her.

She keeps silent for a moment, seeming hesitant. “Really? You think so?” 

“Of course I do! You’re great!” He answers honestly. 

Miguel remembers watching her play a little fútbol prior to coming here. He had been surprised to find out how good she played for her age before…  

Suddenly, he’s almost overwhelmed by the thought of what would have happened to her had he not been here. He has a vision of this lovely little girl he just met being thrusted into a childhood filled with grief. 

No paternal figure there for her. A perpetual sadness that got particularly worse on every father’s day, an endless list of things he would never get to teach her. A constant wondering of what it could have been, what would have been like to have him there. 

He can’t help but feel glad that he could take his place. That he could be there for her in this way and fill this void. It’s an impossible responsibility, yet one he’s happy to take nonetheless. 

Shaking his thoughts away, he continues. “And besides, it’s like you said, right? What does Sam know about soccer, he doesn’t even play! Also, there are some great women players around the world too.” He smiles with a sudden enjoyment, excited to play this role the best way he knew how to.

Gabriella looks like she notices his thrilled state, eyeing him sideways with a curious look. “I know, I know. It’s just that it annoys me, you know?” she says, back to looking pensive. 

“Yeah, that’s… True. And the more it annoys you, the more they do it…” He admits, more to himself than her.

Miguel didn’t want to be a walking cliché. He didn’t have much advice to give her, besides things he really wanted to say but couldn’t. Like: She’s a lovely little girl, that he’s glad to be here for her and she’s actually so much more than he ever imagined, that she could be anything she put her mind to, and already he couldn't think of a single thing he wouldn’t do if she asked him to. No, that would be too much in too little time. Instead, he had to go with what was appropriate.

“You know, you’re gonna find people like that everywhere you go. I have people I don’t like at work, too. The thing is how you deal with them. But don't worry, you’ll learn that with time. it’s not like there’s a recipe for it, you know?” He tells her.

She keeps quiet for a moment, listening to him. Was that also too much?

But then she just nods in understanding as he opens the door of the car for her to get in.

*

“Not again, Gabriella. Again!?”

“¿Qué?” Gabriella asks, rubbing her feet on a rug by the entrance of the apartment when the both of them come in.

“¿Cuántas veces te he dicho para no jugar fútbol con el uniforme? ¡Mírate! ¡Estás cubierta de pasto!” María raises her voice, pointing to her daughter's legs.

“But mooom! It was just a quick cascarita! And I’m not even that dirty!” Gabriella insists, gesturing towards her white socks, which funny enough are covered in green and brown spots, especially by the knees.

“¿A quién estás llamando 'mooom'? Anda, take it off and give it here.” She orders after letting out a breath. 

“Sí mamá.” Says Briella, pouting and dragging her feet to her room, looking annoyed.

Miguel also drags his feet by the threshold, setting his keys on a hook next to the door. He takes off his boots, eyeing the three pairs of slippers nearby. Hesitantly, he puts one of them on, the irony in the mundane gesture settling heavy in his chest, the weight of deception tugging annoyingly at his conscience.

Since he’s already taken a quick look around the place before she arrived from work, he gets to inspect things a little closer this time around.

The entryway is adorned with sleek porcelain tiles that extend seamlessly into the living space. A smart home system panel mounted on the wall offers control over lighting, temperature, and security, right next to the hook where he hung his keys. To the side, there’s a wall-mounted shelf holding a curated display of art and what looks to be some personal mementos. 

A water bill sits on top of it, the sight striking an odd chord — in a time where holographic displays and digital transactions were the norm, a paper bill practically seems like a relic from another time — but also allowing him to find out her full name, which he immediately commits to memory.

“I think she thinks the socks make her look more like a professional player.” María tells him a while later, while slicing some meat by the sink. “We should buy her a pair of those so she stops ruining her uniform.” 

He nods in agreement, putting a plate down as he lets the reality sink in, that this is really happening. This is his life now. 

He’s married, he has a beautiful wife, and he’s also father to a beautiful little girl. And he couldn't be happier. Couldn’t have asked for anything else in life. 

It’s like he just woke up from a bad dream, straight into the life he’s always wanted to live.

Like he’s exactly where he belongs. 

So he helps María with the food. Luckily, he must be incompetent at the kitchen in every universe, because her instructions are extremely detailed, as they prepare carne a la tampiqueña for three.

María yells for Gabriella to come, and they all eat in silence after joining hands around the table for a quick, silent prayer. 

*

Later, María is washing the socks while he cleans the table, and Maná plays in the background. She grooves with the rhythm, singing and humming now and then, completely oblivious to it all.

Objectively, he knows that he’s hiding a lot from her, but his heart can’t help but ache a little at how she’s not intimidated at all by his presence, in fact, she’s used to it. For once, he doesn’t feel like a freak or a monster the way he inadvertently does among the other spiders. 

She spots him there, lost in thought as he finishes up, and says “I heard they’re reconstructing his larynx.” 

“What?” He’s pulled from his thoughts by the weird phrase.

“Maná. The vocalist, I heard they’re reconstructing his larynx to help the A.I replicate his voice better. Can you believe that!?” She explains “That’s why I’m listening to their original songs, I heard it on the news today.”

He blinks slowly, trying to figure out if he’s supposed to be used to things like these. “That’s… Crazy, honestly.”

“Right? I mean, the fact that we aren’t able to tell the difference for most artists nowadays is already pretty insane to me, and now they’re reconstructing the larynx of a dead guy to make a robot replicate his voice better? Come on now!” She remarks, turning back to look at him.

“I know, it’s so wild to think about.” He says, taking the chance to look around the room. 

Sleek countertops adorned in marble, bearing the scars of a few culinary adventures that her and his alternate self probably didn’t have the time to clean yet; Rectangular windows above the kitchen sink, lined with cheap plastic containers labeled “basil”, “rosemary” and a few other herbs, bringing a nice green contrast to the brushed metal accents; A smart fridge on the corner, adorned with Gabriella’s drawings held by magnets all throughout it. Some things never change.

He approaches the fridge, taking one of the drawings to inspect it closer. It’s a crudely drawn version of him… His alternate self, with exaggerated triangular shoulders and, most tellingly, what looks like a phone buzzing in his hand.

María seems to notice his curiosity, approaching to look at the drawing too.

“Listen I know, you must be still a little shaken from… Before,” She tells him carefully “Just… Try not to think too much about it, okay? You’re here, you’re safe. That’s all that matters.”

He puts the drawing back as she places a cold hand on his face again, gently willing him to meet her eyes. 

“I know, I know. It’s just… I was afraid for a second, that’s all.” He says, sincere in his words but not the real meaning behind them.

“And that’s okay. I’m here.” She assures him, pulling him by the arm gently.

The low hum of the city outside is a distant lullaby as they settle into the living room.

She takes a bottle from on top of a cabinet, wordlessly pouring two cups. He takes a sip, letting the burning soothe his nerves.

"I didn’t think I'd make it back." He lies, gaze lingering on the symmetrical floor panels.

Her hand finds his, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You did, and you're here now."

“Yeah… I am.” An inward glow softing his expression, the sensation of a smile blooming from deep within as he stares into her eyes.

As the night unfolds, the room is filled with shared glances and unspoken understanding. María lays her head on his shoulder, caressing him. 

And he can’t help but think that this could work. 

This could really work.

*

When they go to bed, after making sure Briella did her homework and wishing her goodnight of course, María takes off her bra in front of him, and slips on a loose nightgown.

He hates that for so many things that he had considered before coming here, this hadn’t even crossed his mind at all. Hesitantly, he pulls off his own clothes, not able to help how flushed red his face must be. 

Thankfully, María doesn’t seem to notice this, as she’s busy settling into bed and pulling the sheets towards herself. He sits besides her underneath them, awkwardly stiff, and she pulls him into a sideways hug, humming quietly. 

"You seem so different today." She observes, fingers lightly tracing circles on the sheets next to him.

He freezes, eyes widening but trying not to look at her.

"Yeah… It's been a long day.” He says, clearing his throat. “I'm just tired, that’s all. Besides, I gotta wake up early tomorrow. You know how it is, work.” He explains, thinking it’s a good enough excuse.

She turns to fully look at him, blinking in amusement. “It’s friday. Did you forget?” 

He closes his eyes. Fuck.

“Yeah, yeah, right. I meant workout, you know? Gym? I just need some rest.” He corrects, pulling away from her a little and cursing himself inwardly for talking so much.

She seems to get the message, recoiling as well.

“You and your Gym. Should at least try eating those packed proteins just like everyone else.” She tells him, turning her back to him, reaching for the light switch on her side of the bed and then finally lying back down.

"Well, you know how I am," He says, turning off his side of the bed lamp as well but still remaining upright. She hums in agreement.

“Goodnight?” He asks, reluctantly.

“Goodnight.” She replies, sounding already half asleep.

*

"Gordo, eres tú? Ya llegué!” = Fatty is that you? I’ve arrived! 

(Keep in mind that ‘gordo’ is a wholesome way to call someone in spanish, and doesn’t mean she actually thinks he’s fat nor that she is body shaming Miguel).

"... Tu hermano no deja de llamarme, deberías ver qué quiere. Ah, y el 'forecast' del tiempo dice que el aire será irrespirable por unas horas, así que recuerda cuando te dirijas a… estas bien?”

=

“... Your brother won’t stop calling me, you should see what he wants. Ah, and the weather forecast says the air will be unbreathable for a few hours, so remember that when you’re heading to… Are you ok?”

"Que te pasa, mi amor?” = “What’s up with you, my love?”

“Estoy bien” = “I’m fine”

"Okay. Pero ten cuidado mi amor.” = “Okay, but be careful my love.”

“¿Apá?” = “Dad?”

“¿Qué?” = “What?”

“¿Cuántas veces te he dicho para no jugar fútbol con el uniforme? ¡Mírate! ¡Estás cubierta de pasto!” = “How many times have I told you to not play soccer with your uniform? Look at you! You’re covered in grass!”

Cascarita = an informal, purely friendly soccer match in Mexico. The equivalent for a ‘pelada’ in Brazilian Portuguese, although if you search for the term, make sure to include the word ‘futebol’ after it, as ‘pelada’ on its own simply means ‘naked’ haha

“¿A quién estás llamando 'mooom'? Anda [...]” = “Who are you calling ‘mooom’? Come on [...]”

“Sí mamá.” = “yes mom.” 

Carne a la tampiqueña = a traditional mexican meat dish

Lyla, play Mi religión by Maná :) Also you can read it on ao3

[survivalist-anon]

Log 28: All Hell Breaks Loose: part 1

Pinky and Bilhard we're still heading it on hard at each other. However unbeknownst to the two fighters, there had been a change of plans.

El Nino was silently furious, he wanted the chance to fight Bilhard at his best and fittest to truly measure if it was worth Señor Mateo's purchase. Instead, Sleen put a wrench in his personal plans, "I will get that miniature junk yard...". He quickly snuck back stage, towards where Señor Mateo had been seated with the rest of the more sorted patrons.

He stomps his way through the room, but gently head towards Mateo, "That bastardo gordo had El Toro fight that slimy l-", Mateo had causally turned his head to his Astartes.

"I believe we have much more bigger problems amigo.", he points to the arena, within the five minutes it took El Nino to head up to seats, EVERYTHING was going to shit. "But, it is, how do they say? 'Good for Business?'...", he glances at the patrons who were not SCRAMBLING to get their earnings before any more sudden changes, all cursing Sleen as they argue amongst themselves.

Mr.Green, was happily smoking in the corner with Miss.Blu and Miss.Yellow. "Oi, zounds like, Sleen's ina scrap, aight e?", he grinned mischievously.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"COME ON BIG BOY! Is that all you G-", just as soon as Pinky was about to finish, a platform lifted his leg up throwing him off balance again, it was a separate miniature fighting pit. Likely for multiple fights at once.

Thinking fast, and seizing a chance to even the odds, Cahrilo enters the ring with Bilhard with a makeshift shield and morningstar. Toke, Sten and Joe head straight to the Chaos marine side to find a means of escaping.

The Chaos marines had other ideas.

"Hey! This wasn't part of the program!", a word bearer growled enthusiasticly. "SsssUCH excitement!". His teeth chattered.

"Perhaps we must make our escape! We can have our way with the mortals later!", a Black Legion Marine growled.

Just as soon as they were able to make a quick getaway, Sten and the others head towards the Chaos marines confronting them.

A black Legionare makes the first move roaring, lifting his claws up to strike Joe.

Joe, armed with a javelin, he makes a quick strike to the chaos marine's neck, spilling and spraying his blackened blood all over the place. Toke taking up a makeshift spear, rammed it through an open maw on his chest, erupting a gnarled spear head from the marine's back.

At first, the chaos chuckled, than.... sensations he had never once felt in his whole life....had begun to occur. First, he felt a surprising amount of burning pain, more so than he usually felt. Suddenly, where the javelin had pierced his neck, the blood was not stopping like it usually does. Looking down, he saw the open maw on his chest, it hurt looking at it. His hearts began to beat slower and slower, one heart had stopped...the other was slowly ready to cease.

Roaring in pain, something very strange was happening, he wasn't healing like he usually does.... something was off. "BROTHERS! HELP *cough cough* Meee...", he went down faster than expected, landing with a heavy thud.

Both groups stared at each other, the chaos marines had suddenly came to a rather upsetting realization.

They have been winning against other Astartes for so long because Sleen had handicapped most of them prior to every fight, they had no armor, physically exhausted them to make the fight easy and worst of all.....

None of them were going to get help from their respective chaos gods....they were stranded on a planet they all hadn't ever been on....a planet the chaos gods somehow could not reach.

The others however, found their luck to be equally surprising....but not enough to spare them. "GET 'EM LADS!" Toke shouted.

The battle was on, and the odds were finally even.

~~~~~~~~~

El Nino and Mateo were watching the chaos.

Sten and his team were holding the line, cutting down each chaos marine one by one, Bilhard and Cahrilo were putting up a fantastic fight with Pinky. Who was simply enjoying himself.

Growling furiously, El Nino looked to Mateo. "I must go down there! No one breaks my rules!", just as he was about to jump right through glass balcony, Mateo had gently placed his hand on his forearm.

"No amigo, go down there with grace. Let the audience believe that this is part of the show for now....if there is any problem....we shall evacuate everyone safety...the assets will have to be reclaimed some other time...", he smiled gently.

El Nino couldn't argue with his old friend, he clearly knew he was right. Grounding his fury to clarity. "Than, I shall go there....and fight them myself....".

"Leave Sleen to me....he will learn to go with the program," Mateo looked to his other hired guns to quickly find Sleen. Likely to kill him.

Leaving the room in a calm huff, El Nino than spots something passing by swiftly in his peripheral. It was the ever familiar shadowy blur of someone's armor.

"hmmm........", he changes tactics and follows into the direction of the blur, taking light but sturdy steps.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Roughly a floor above, Moors and Gus where putting up their own fight. Bashing guards left and right, while Gus goes on having some target practice.

"HAHAHAHA! JEUST LIKE 'NAM, RIGHT MOORS?!", Gus cackled as he was having the time of his life.

"Haha! It is! This is more fun because now I don't have to hold back!", lifting a guard up and tossing him on to a small group.

Suddenly, mechanical steps begin to thunder close by.

"What the?" Moors turns around and sees what looks like a prototype Dreadnought armor... but modified to fit a human operator. The false-armored menace chargers to Moors, almost overpowering him.

The two giants duke it out. Gus takes a pistol and trys to pinpoint a weak spot. "Ha! Right there!", he sneers aiming to a fuel cord in the left arm side feeding into the armor. A direct hit servers the fuel cord, weakening the arm.

Moors lands a direct hit and topples his opponent. "How did they get this model's blueprints?!", Moors exclaimed. He looked down at the now frightened operator, scrambling to get out of the machine.

"Well, musta been some other one of your kind Moors!", reloading his pistol. He feels the unfortunately familiar vibrations of one of his sensors. He takes the little phone like device out of his pocket. "GADZOOKS! MOORS this rescue mission better get goin! They're commin in hot!"

What Gus was referring to....was the Security Containment Procedure Foundation...who had just pinpointed their location. If they do no get out of there on time, all of the Astartes will be in trouble.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wick, gently holding on to Selene, was attempting to find a way out of the underground facility as fast as he could. If he could not simply fly away with her, he could be at least able to find her a way to escape. "Oh mon amour, please forgive me I should have been here sooner.", his remorse for not being more diligent with his rescue was burning him with shame.

Selene, who although bruised, hurt but not broken, was just happy to be out of harms way for now, "mon corbeau, all that matters is you came back for me. Mon amour." She hugged his ceramite chest plate to the best of her abilities.

"What will matter to me more is that I can see you safely out of here to live another day.", he reciprocated by laying his helmet gently as he could on the top of her head. As he looked around for an exit, a vox intercom was coming in, "Moors, what's wrong?".

The crackling of the vox transmission sputtered, "You better find your better half and the others soon, Gus says we only have a few minutes. Maybe less."

"I'll be right there, I just need to get to the garage.", he turned the transmission off. "Selene, you must get out of here, I will find you when all this is done....". He remorsefully coos to her. He looks around for where the valets kept the keys, scoping out several fobs, he picks them all up.

The look of soft worry emanated from her, "But Mon amour, you are coming with me aren't you? We can both escape, have a life together....".

As the both of them find their way to a garage, full of the rich patron's cars, Wick finds one of the speedier sports cars. Looking at it closely, he was just lucky enough to have picked up the right fob. Testing the car, "This should be fast enough.... Selene. You must head back to the Casino, find one of our own, I've contacted them with everything ready to arrive at the airport. He has your documentation. You will be able to find a contact on your way back home.". He placed her down next to car. It was breaking both of his hearts knowing he will have to leave her again.

"But Wick, you just came back a-and what if I-", she felt Wick's hand come closer to hers. She knew he wasn't sure if this was the end. Tears finally rolled down in full strength, she hugged him furiously. "Please.... please come with me...I can't bare to leave without you.".

Unlocking his helmet, he took it off to be able to see her unimpeded. He gently hugged her back, he desperately wished he could. "I will....I just need you to be safe.".

Hiding behind the corner of the door witnessing the scene, El Nino had finally understood what his intruder had come for. "....so....the nina's pajarito.....is a little more than her 'steer'.....hmmm....", he was more than obliged to let her escape now. After all, it was clear she had someone who cared about her deeply...even if by Alejandro's perspective was merely a cold blooded assassin of the corpse emperor. "To hell with Sleen's payment....", he grumbled to himself, killing the girl's Astartes was not worth his time anymore.

Suddenly, the clanking and whirling of mechanical parts broke the silence. "SsssSSSeeeeeeellleeeeeennneee......", the familiar croaking of Sleen emanated from the darkness of the garage. The coughing had not only gotten worse, but something about the way his voice sounded artificial.

Wick quickly pulled out his bolter, pointing at Sleen, "I finally get to use this on your ugly mug...", he growled.

A red light dimly glowed a few cars away. It was taller than Sleen, but something terrible had evolved. "Y-you think you can j-j-j-j-ust walk out o-o-o-o-10110001-on me?". The loud stomp of Sleen's once mechanical leg not had somehow grown more elaborate. What was supposed to be a simple body brace, had become somewhat of a mechanical exoskeleton, not too dissimilar to what Wick had seen when working with members....of the mechanicus adeptus. The telltale signs of corruption were strong. Sleen....was barely the middle aged, sleezehead that Wick had met in Los Vegas...but was now...a much bigger threat...driven by greed and vendetta.

He quickly opened the car door, "get in and hit the gas the second I close the door.", he whispers to Selene.

Looking up at Sleen, she shutters in horror. "Wick, W-what is that?".

"HehehehehHAHAHAHAHA!!!", as Sleen creeps out from the shadows. "You don't recognize m-m--m101010-me? Sweethe-", suddenly, a whole other sportscar flies at Sleen just as he was about to finish his sentence.

Wick and Selene look back to see what the actual fuck just happened.

"DRIVE NINA! THAT AIN'T GOING TO HOLD HIM FOR TOO LONG! YOU PAJARITO, SHOOT HIM WHILE HE'S DOWN FOOL!", El Nino had thrown the vehicle to give Selene a heads start.

Selene gets in the car, "Mon amour, please find me!", as she says this, Wick gives her a final kiss. Their tears synchronize their decents.

"Be safe, mon amour.", Wick let go, looking into her eyes.

Starting the car and revving the engine, the car roared, wheels ready to run.

"NOT SO FAST YOU LITTLE-", Sleen had gotten up and recovered, declawing down at the trunk of the car. Holding Selene in place.

Caught off guard she screamed, Wick took out his bolter to shoot Sleen near his shoulder and head, although the shots landed, the metal didn't seem to even leave a scratch.

"Time for a bull's eye than.", aiming to what flesh was left on Sleen's face, the bolt went off but was parried by his metal claw.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN BEAT ME BIRD BOY! I'LL FUCKING COOK YOUR GOOSE!" turning to Selene, his not long wired tongue slathers the side of his face like a gecko, "and STUFF hers.", his sickening laugh echoed.

Loading more shots, Wick unloaded more blots.

El Nino shouted, "TU PENDEJO! You'll shoot the car! Hit the belly!", turns out El Nino's observation was correct.

Sleen electrically roars, raising his claw to strike down El Nino. He slams his arm down but El Nino blocks his furious blow, the one gift from Khorn that had not left him, he super strength.

Wick looks down at Sleen's stomach, as it turns out, his stomach had become distended with an inflamed infection from the foreign metal attempting to hastily fuse to his flesh. Leaving exposed just enough for a well placed shot.

Aiming his bolter, he pulls the trigger, only for an extra mechanical arm to parry the shot.

Out of bolts, Wick resorts to his combat knife, "making things hard for everyone as always....".

End of part 1

@kit-williams @barn-anon @egrets-not-regrets @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan @walking-natural-disaster @starfrost740 @squishyowl @sleepyfan-blog @lawnchair86

[pistachi0art]

Man, the Science Team must be pretty fucked, huh? It's bad enough that Gordon's probably hunting them, but Benrey hunting them? That's gotta be an absolute nightmare

Gordon’s off in a deeper part of the facility infecting other ppl and Benrey’s doing that too- more sporadicly and much faster 😬 the infection is having a strange effect on his alien body so he’s more intentional with his methods of attack than Gordo, clipping through stuff and going behind ppl- he’s like a tiger :/

it’s a real problem bc how do you defend yourself against someone who can clip through walls and is barely affected by bullets… (Benrey’s the one who gets Forzen infected- Ouch!) but yeah! a real nightmare.

[zaeliaeve]

A/N: not really proof read, sorry for any mistakes. Missed you guys! Let me know what you think.

2009

Surprise, surprise.

The Real Madrid squad had returned again with another victory and it was only smooth sailing from there. The media was eating up absolutely everything they did, and now it was talks about how could anyone stop this sudden new force?

After that night at the bar the dynamics hadn't changed much there was a noticeable difference of lightness, like Catalina wasn't like a deer in headlights at the sight of Sergio anymore, and they were more and a even level.

The entire team was looser now, and now it was growing into a family like dynamic. Inside jokes and horrible nicknames, it was a good time to be apart of Real Madrid.

The team were flying back from yet another game, tired but victorious. Not like they expected anything less.

Catalina had gotten a bit more accustomed to flying now, only really getting anxiety during landing and takeoff, which was a big improvement from her first flight.

She found herself scrolling through the hundreds of pictures she took at the away game as Karim sat to her right loudly grumbling at some game.

She was so focused she didn't notice the footsteps of someone in front of her. "Switch me seats" Sergio tapped Karim on the leg; pillow and blanket stacked in his hands.

Karim looked up from his vintage Gameboy up to the defender with confusion. "Why, Gordo?"

"Because I said so."

The Frenchman tsked at his answer and pulled his head back into the game "Gotta give me a better reason than that, and throw in a please too while you're at it."

Sergio rolled his eyes and clutched his white fuzzy blanket tighter, his knuckles turning white. "You can be petty all you want but Raúl wants to bet you in Escoba so move."

Karim shoulders perked up at the mention of the game and he eagerly switched the off button on his Gameboy. "Fine, I'll go then but I still want to hear you say please."

"Chúpame la verga" Sergio sneered back, earning a laugh from the forward who stood up from the seat.

"Yeah, whatever crybaby."

With that, Sergio slipped into the seat comfortably and spread his blanket across his lap. Catalina looked over at the Spaniard and greeted him with a small hello, eyes brightening up.

Sergio reciprocated the greeting warmly as he settled into his seat, laying the blanket over his legs. Catalina set down the book she was reading into her lap, growing tired of the stillness of being in an airplane. "Let's play a game." Catalina suggested causing Sergio to turn his attention to fully to her.

-

"Sergio are you sitting on my jacket?"

"No, and I'm counting that as one of your questions."

Catalina let out an offended gasp. "That totally doesn't count."

Sergio put his hands up as if it out was out his control. "I don't make the rules, I just follow them. Looks like you only have 6 questions left."

Her ponytail bounced as she shook her head. "You absolutely do not follow the rules, like ever! That's so unfair."

"So is life, sweetheart."

Catalina let out a huff of defeat, avoiding the loud thudding in her chest that seemed to happen whenever the defender was around- much to her dismay. "It's my turn now, since you just went. Hold on, let me think of a good one." Sergio paused for a couple seconds before continuing.

"When is the last time you fought with someone?" Sergio asked seemingly genuinely interested to know the answer.

"With you, like 30 seconds ago." Catalonia easily answered.

Sergio raised an eyebrow. "You call that a fight?"

"Yes I do actually and I'm counting that as another question too by the way." Catalina beamed, proud of herself for being able to get payback.

He let out a small whine before faking applause and a bow. "Okay, okay you got me. Go on then, it's your turn." Sergio conceded easily.

"What's your blood type?" Catalina asked just to get a reaction from him, but he didn't even bat an eyelash .

He didn't have to think about it before answering "White, black, and gold."

Catalina let out a giggle and crinkled her nose. "You're such cornball sometimes. The team definitely payed you to say that."

The words bounced off of him like nothing, his smile never faltering.

"Five questions left."  She reminded him with a smile.

Sergio took another couple seconds to decide what exactly he wanted to ask but grinned like the Cheshire Cat when he came up with one."Who's your favorite on the team?"

"I have no favorites, I like everyone equally" Catalina responds instantaneously, but she knows Sergio won't accept that answer.

He clicks his teeth with disapproval, arms folding together loosely. "We promised to be honest to each other in this game. You should just tell the truth and admit it's Kakà."

Catalina hums as she takes a moment to really consider her options but would feel guilty truly landing on anyone. Of course there are ones she speaks with more than others but at the end of the day this is her job and she's on a good level with them all.

But, after all it was Sergio and he wouldn't be satisfied until she gave an answer, even if it was a cop out one. "I really like shooting Cristiano. He's very photogenic and never turns me down when I ask if I can take pictures of him." Catalina said honestly, purposely avoiding the word favorite.

"He never turns you down for pictures because he'll take any opportunity he can to stare at himself" Sergio quips back teasingly.

Catalina figured it's best to say nothing else and move on. "It's my turn!"

"When's your birthday?" Catalina asks with her head tilted.

Sergio closes the airplane window halfway with one hand as the sun sets, the once bright blue sky now a strong orange color that was so vibrant it was almost blinding to his eyes. "March 30th" he answered, eyes squinted.

She stuck out her lower lip as to say awww. "You were almost a spring baby."

"When's yours?" Sergio asks back.

"September 27th."

Sergio's eyebrows raise. "That's a week away, why didn't you say anything before?"

Catalina shrugs her shoulders. "I don't really do much for it anyways, it's not a big deal."

"It is a big deal, you only get one birthday a year and you should celebrate getting to that age- coming that far and having made it though all. Your family and friends should be there to enjoy a special occasion like that.  It's important that you don't let your youth pass you by and you take the time to enjoy it with those who matter most. " Sergio protested his tone dropping now from lighthearted to serious.

She couldn't help but grin at him, putting both hands above her heart and clutching. "That's very sweet-"

"Cállate y hazme más preguntas."

Typical Sergio. Catalina laughed and moved on as if nothing happened, but it stayed in the back of her mind.

-

One week later and on the actual day of Catalina's birthday not much had happened. Her parents had offered to take her up to Barcelona so they could go see their extended family for her big day, but maybe it was her newfound general distaste for Barcelona that was being instilled in her through her job or her plain introverted heart but she decided to stay home while the rest of her family gallivanted up to Catalonia.

She had received short birthday well wishes from them however, for which she was still grateful for. The entire day was spent living her normal routine, shooting for the Madrid team and going home but this time to an empty house.

No one on the team had known, her not mentioning it to anyone and no one saying anything until her uncle had told her " Feliz cumpleaños!"  while she was still setting up her camera. and it ended there.

Catalina tried to keep her mind focused on other things, trying to assure herself that this was like any other day, just a day that she just so happened to be born on, but Sergio's words kept ringing in her head even though a week had passed.

Don't let your youth pass you by.

Is that what she was doing? She was sending herself into a doom spiral of harsh thoughts all centered in her loneliness, all centered on her inner insecurities.

Am I content being alone or am I so used to it that it doesn't even bother me anymore? She had thought.

Luckily, the day was almost over and she could just go to sleep then pretend this day never happened until the next year when the spiral will start once again. That was until she heard loud knocks at her door while she was lying on her couch snuggled up in a heavy blanket.

It had scared Catalina like it would scare anyone else getting an unexpected visitor in the night, but the moment she looked through the glass in her door her worries were relieved.

The first thing out of Sergio's mouth isn't an explanation or even a hello. But then again, Sergio was never one for many pleasantries."Twenty-two now? I'm gonna have to get you a walking cane and reading glasses next year " His lips are upturned in a playful grin.

Catalina's shoulders slumped down and she released a sense of tension that she hadn't realized she was carrying all day. "Did you forget you're a year older than me, abuelo Ramos?" Her smile was now matching his, wide and teasing.

"Right, that means I'm your elder so you have to respect me and do as I say" Sergio chuckled before his eyes dropped down to her pale pink pajamas with cartoon characters plastered all over them from head to toe.

Catalina could practically feel his eyes burning holes right through her, she felt naked and exposed in a way that made her want to hide. "Bugs Bunny, cute. It suits you" He piped with a halfway smirk.

She felt her cheeks heat up and suddenly found it hard to make eye contact, aiming to look closer to the ground now. "Thank you. I obviously wasn't expecting to see you or I would have put on something a bit less..." she struggled to find the right words. "-childish." Is what she finally settled on.

He shook his head like it was nothing. "You can wear whatever you want it's your day, birthday girl." She could practically feel his eyes burning holes through her body.

"Only for another thirty minutes" She reminded him, crossing her arms together in an attempt to hide the cartoon characters plastered all over her torso.

Sergio smiled brightly and held up the white plastic bag that he had been holding in his hand. "Then I came just in time. I have candles, jello, whipped cream, and sprinkles. The only store open didn't have any cake so I had to improvise."

Catalina's eyebrows raised, her lip pouting out with surprise. "For me?"

He scrunched his nose and feigned looking around for another person. "Who else?"

The door creaked as it was pushed open to make room for Sergio, Catalina happily stepped to the side. "Come on in."

Sergio smiled at her and stepped inside, taking his shoes off as he entered the house leaving him in his socks. They gathered at her dining room table, Catalina running into the kitchen to get utensils and plates while Sergio took out each item from the bag.

"I cannot believe you actually came here. That you put in all this effort just for me. Thank you Sergio." Catalina told him as she set the plates down at the table.

He shrugged like it was the easiest thing in the world. "Maybe your uncle will bitch at me a little less when I fuck up if he sees me running around the whole city for his niece" his tone is deadpan and his eyes trail up from the jello to look at her.

Catalina stills for a moment and he watches as her face drops, eyelids wide and lips parting slightly. Sergio brings his knuckles up to her nose and squeezes lightly, a small laugh escaping him. "Relax, kitty Cat. It's a joke. This is our secret so let's just keep it between us, okay?"

Her eyes lighten up and the corners of her lips perk back up. "Okay, deal."

Sergio's gaze drops as he spreads the whipped cream onto the gelatinous dessert. "That's settled then. Now, be a good girl and take a seat in the big chair so I can sing you happy birthday."

-

The jello cake had been better than expected, the both of them managing to scarf down almost all of the pretend cake with just the two of them.

They chatted for a bit about work, both of their yawns becoming more consistent until it became evident that his time there was coming to an end.

This was such a grand gesture, such a nice thoughtful thing to do she didn't know how to address it properly, especially not with someone like Sergio.

He wasn't one for mushy-gushy things but it felt appropriate in a circumstance like this. As they talked about next weeks schedule for the team, she found her mind slipping into what exactly to say to him.

It must have been Catalina's nerves that got to her, because by the time he was getting out of the chair to go to the front door she still couldn't muster up the courage to say what she wanted to, not that she even really knew what that was.

Sergio gave her a quick hug goodbye before he was out the door, Catalina left alone in her thoughts as the door shut behind him

Her thoughts kept getting louder and louder before a big wave of adrenaline it her, and all she could think was run!

" Wait-" Catalina called as she ran out of her house, barely having time to throw on slippers before she chased him down the sidewalk.

Sergio turned around on the heals of his feet, stopping directly in his place as he watched her charge towards him. His eyebrows knitted together with confusion, assuming maybe he forgot his keys of wallet, but she only kept running like it was the most urgent matter in the world.

Once she got half a step away from him, she stuck her arms out and wrapped her arms around him tightly, burying her head in his chest. Sergio froze for a moment out of pure surprise, but Catalina didn't let go.

The hardness of his chest pressed up against her cheek and the warmth of his body melted her soul and made her mind fuzzy.

Overcome with emotion, her vision became blurry and she let out a shaky breath. "This birthday was the most lonely day of my life, and you came when I really needed it. It felt like everyone forgot about me, and I thought I didn't care but now I know I do. I'm so grateful you came, thank you."

It was as if the breath was knocked out of Sergio by her words, his breathing slowing down. "Catalina" Sergio called softly.

His hands laced in her hair as he held her smaller frame, scratching lightly at her scalp in an attempt to soothe her. In all honesty he was unsure of what to say, on what he could possibly say to make the situation better.

He thought carefully before speaking again. "I did it because I wanted to. Because that's what friends are for."

Friends?

The word brought a smile to her face so strong she don't think anything could break it.

"I really don't know what to say, this is just so unbelievably kind-" she started before being pulled into something hard, muffling her voice.

Sergio squeezed her tightly into his chest and kept going until she was squirming in his grip, letting out a quiet whine. His chest heaved as he laughed over her screeches.

Once he got the reaction he was happy with, he squeezed her a bit tighter before letting her go. Catalina let out a gasp of air and pushed his sides lightly. "Why do you like to torture me?" She wasn't annoyed at all, a hint of playfulness in her voice.

"Because I like how you look when you pout."

He even didn't have to look at her to know what her reaction was, her dark round eyes now wide and lips agape and he wasn't wrong.

"Get some rest, Goodnight, birthday girl" Sergio bent down and pressed his soft lips against each of Bianca's cheeks, lingering a beat longer on the last cheek before pulling away nonchalantly, flashing his straight teeth to the girl.

Although it was a common way to say hello or goodbye in their shared native land, it made her chest warm and her breath hitch in all the best ways. "Goodnight, drive safe."

They gave one last small wave before he turned around to go to his car again, this time Bianca not stopping him as he disappeared off into the black night.

-

Catalina showed up to the training grounds like any other day, a special white badge dangling from her neck and a dark black camera bag strapped firmly to her side.

Something seemed to be off though. From the moment she stepped into the building everyone was acting off, gaze lingering a bit too long or not long enough. Even the security guard made her feel out of place, which was something that she hadn't felt in a while with that team.

Not to mention half the players seemed to be gone, suddenly all disappearing off into different rooms or quietly running through the back hallways. "Catalina!" Marcelo exclaimed once she stepped onto the pitch, jogging over to her.

His overexcited tone startled her, causing her to jump a bit before making eye contact with the left-back. "Oh hey, how are you?" She smiled at him before going to open her camera bag to start getting her stuff out.

"I'm great! The real question is how are you? " Marcelo emphasized, his eyebrows knitting together with concern.

Weird. Catalina raised an eyebrow but nonetheless didn't push on the matter further. "I'm feeling okay, just a bit tired from last night."

Marcelo pressed his lips together inquisitively. "What were you doing last night?"

She froze at the question, starkly remember Sergio's direct instructions to not mention their time together the night prior. There was a slight pause as she tried to think of a quick excuse, landing on the first thing that game to mind. "I was folding my laundry."

He didn't seem to buy it, and her tone didn't help much either. "All night?"

She faked a sense of casualness shrugging her shoulders. "I had a lot of laundry."

It was obvious that it was best to change the subject because there was no hope of saving it, not to mention the quietness of the field was so uncharacteristic that it became loud- an eeriness hovering over the pitch."Where is everybody? We're missing so many people it feels like a ghost town."

"Some are getting their physicals. I've already done mine so-" He stopped mid-sentence his eyes following elsewhere behind her, whatever was happening back there clearly throwing him off guard.

Catalina craned her neck to look at the distraction but Marcelo quickly grabbed her shoulders to grab her attention again, shaking her rapidly. "Don't you just love Real Madrid? The best team in all of Laliga, no, the whole world! Hala Madrid! ...y nada más" He practically jumbled out.

She awkwardly laughed, letting herself be shaken. "Hala Madrid but why the sudden team spirit?"

Marcelo stopped shaking her abruptly and his hands fell to his sides. "Not sure, just felt a surge of it run through me all of a sudden."

With that, he went back to practice like nothing happened.

Another fifteen minutes passed but at least these minutes were mostly normal, her snapping a few pictures of Raúl doing a few crossbar shots and him jokingly asking her to delete the ones of him completely missing completely.

At least he wasn't being weird today, she thought.

"Cat!" A voice called, although she didn't have to look up to recognize from the voice that it was Kaká.

She got one last fast snapshot of the players practicing before turning her head to him, He swung his hand implying for her to come to him, a wide smile greeting her kindly. It was hard to ever say no to such kind eyes.

Catalina was there in a flash, pushing her camera into her bag and zipping it shut. "Hi," she said once she was in front of him.

He laughed a bit and his eyes met hers. "Hey."

There was a pause before he asked, "Do you want to get lunch with me? Pretty much everyone is gone and I don't want to eat alone."

Her lips pulled into a downward smile, "Nice to know I'm your first choice."

Kaká ignored her teasing sarcasm and responded genuinely. "Don't be like that, I really do like spending time with you."

"Did I hear about lunch? I'll come too!"

"Me as well."

Suddenly Raúl and Marcelo were trailing behind the pair as they walked down the hallways, Cat not noticing as a few more people joined in as well. Kaká slipped his way behind Catalina at some point, her serving as the head of this randomly formed human snake of people behind her.

She pushed the heavy cafeteria door open and the moment she did multiple loud pops went off, bright rainbow colors flying so much it almost blurred her vision.

"Feliz cumpleaños!"

There awaited Karim, Cristiano, Casillas, Xabi, Pepe, and the other members of the team along with a few of the coaches and staff holding balloons, confetti poppers, and wearing cheesy multi-colored birthday party hats, a big streamer hung above their heads.

They looked happy as can be, screaming her name and using the last of the confetti. It was like they won their first game all over again, pure electricity and good energy filling up the room so much it might explode.

Tucked in the corner was Sergio with a used confetti cannon in hand, grinning proudly as Catalina yelped in shock before screeching with pure joy, throwing her arms around the first person she saw who just happened to be Kaká.

He laughed hardily and wrapped his arms around her, patting the top of her head. "I needed an excuse just to get you in here. Poor Marcelo had to rough you up just to distract you while I was bringing in the cake" He explained into her ear.

It all made sense now.

All the weird whispers, disappearing teammates, loud silences. It wasn't all for nothing. They took the time to do everything for her.

It makes her eyes prickle with tears. This was the sense of community she was searching for her whole life, and it felt like it was finally in her hands.

"Thank you so much for everything, I don't even know how to thank you." Catalina grinned brightly.

Kaká shook his head, his famous caring smile still pulling at his cheeks. "No, don't thank me. It was our fault for not knowing in the first place. I promised I wouldn't tell whose idea it was to have this party, and I am a man of my word."

In the corner of her vision, she could see Sergio watching her with a glint on his eye.

[djs-sideblog-for-pog-trains]

Friends (that we made up for along the way) Chapter 9

Part 1 |  Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | ?

heyyy. so i totally forgor i never posted everything i wrote of this? which is kind of wack? so. i had 2 more chapters in my pocket, ch10 feeling like an ending of sorts, but yeah. the last chapter? gordo has a breakdown. this chapter? eddie and duck gossip. and duck does smth nice.

@mean-scarlet-deceiver tagging u as thanks 4 the encouragement <3 and i cant rly remember who was super into being tagged for this fic

Characters:  this chapter: Gordon (mentioned), Edward, Duck

Relationships: platonic gordon&edward a major focus, some possible allusions to 2x3, this chapter features edward&duck

Genre: Human AU, hurt/comfort

Chapter’s Wordcount: roughly 1800 words [under the cut]

Chapter Warnings: Food/eating food.

Chapter 9/10?

The next day, Gordon was back up and at work without a single word spared to the night before, despite how Edward tried to bring it up.

The new routine Edward had been enjoying recently, now that he didn’t exactly have (or despite his arguments, need) constant care, was that almost everyone had been dropping in on their breaks to check on him. It left Edward with a steady stream of visitors throughout the day until Gordon got home for the night.

Which was good, especially today, because it was going to give him something else to think about instead of sitting there, stewing over the night before like it would make a difference.

Thankfully, his train of thought was derailed by a cheery knock at the open front door.

“Hullo, Edward!”

Ah, yes, Tuesday, 10:30am. That meant it was time for Duck’s weekly visit.

“Hello, Duck,” he called warmly from where he was in the kitchen. “I was about to make tea!”

“Oh, lovely,” Duck smiled,  pausing the doorway to take off his cap, a caketin tucked under one arm. “I’m parched.”

Edward laughed at him, and with Duck’s help set some of the nicer china out on the table for the two of them. Duck had revealed tin full of lemon cupcakes that he claimed Oliver barely had to help make (though Edward could tell their cooking apart fairly well by this point, and these had definitely had a very strong guiding hand from Oliver to not be bad).

“So,” Edward settled back in his chair as Duck poured the tea for them. “How’s working on the mainline again been treating you?”

“Well, it’s certainly been a while,” Duck rolled his eyes. “But it hasn’t changed. Same old fusspots bossing you around. Same old frantic, ever-shifting timetabling. It’s a wonder you don’t all fall over all the time.”

“I imagine it’s harder without… a couple of regulars,” Edward picked his words carefully as he accepted the cup and saucer Duck passed over. He took it from his friend just in time, as Duck seemed to flinch at the comment, before covering it up with a quick smile.

“Yeah,” he just said instead. “But we’re managing. Even if they all seem to want to run around like headless chickens instead of, y’know, working.”

Edward smiled, and sipped his tea, nodding his thanks as Duck took out one of the cupcakes and placed in on the little plate in front of him too.

“Tell me,” he finally said as Duck settled back with his own cup of tea. “How’s Gordon doing?”

“Gordon?” Duck echoed, pausing to muse over his teacup. “He… seems alright. A little quiet, I suppose. Looks tired, but he always seems to, nowadays. Why?”

“No reason,” Edward lied through his teeth.

“Eddie.”

Edward had chosen the wrong time to go for a drink. He choked on his tea, quickly setting it down as he cleared his throat, before shooting a look at Duck.

For most people, it got serious when the full names came out. For Edward, it always seemed to be the other way around. Though not many dared to pull the nicknames out on him; Duck was always that bolder sort of friend.

Duck shot him a look over the rip of his teacup in return, one that made Edward smile but also made him sigh tiredly, and his hands moved, needing to fiddle. He started to peel the paper off the cupcake on his plate as he formulated what he was going to say.

Duck watched him, sipped his tea, and waited.

“I’m afraid to say something,” Edward finally started, “because I know Gordon holds his… shall we say, image very dear, and you are most certainly prone to gossip.”

This time, it was Duck’s turn to look abashed.

Edward picked at the cupcake, watching it crumble between his fingers, before seeming to jolt back to himself.

“Sorry,” he shot Duck a hasty smile. “I… I have a lot on my mind.”

“I’ll say,” Duck set down his teacup. “You only go straight for character assassinations when it’s serious.”

And Edward snorted at that, but shook his head. “Can I trust you to keep a secret, Duck?”

Duck swallowed hard. “…I, uh… yes?”

“Oh, how you fill me with confidence,” Edward said lightly, before shaking his head and popping one of the larger chunks of the cupcake he’d incidentally torn off into his mouth, taking a moment to enjoy it before centring himself again. “I’m just… worried.”

“About Henry?”

“Of course. But also… well, about everyone, in that regard, but… in specific about Gordon.”

“Right.”

“Last night I saw the strongest emotional reaction I think I’ve ever seen out of him in years, maybe ever? And he refuses to talk about it.”

“How strong are we talking?”

Edward picked up his teacup again, rolling it carefully between his hands, debating whether he even cross this bridge at all.

One look at Duck’s earnest and serious expression was enough to sell him on it.

“He cried,” he said softly. “I think the stress of everything caught up with him, of the extra work and my accident, and Henry’s accident, and…”

Edward let out a sigh, trying to let the ever-present tension between his shoulders go with the release of breath.

“He cried,” Duck echoed. His eyes were wide.

“…And you know how Gordon is,” Edward reminded him sharply. “So, Duck, please-”

“I won’t tell,” Duck cut him off. “That’s a Great Western promise. I wouldn’t actually… Oh smokeboxes, that is a lot, isn’t it?”

“I’m afraid he might be hurting himself,” Edward said. The one thing about talking with Duck was he always felt he could speak freely, even if it might get repeated, though Duck was usually a fairly good judge of what should and should not be passed on. “…Taking on too much work, not getting enough sleep, not eating, constantly trying to take over from others. I think it must be because he doesn’t want anyone else to get hurt, but…”

Duck’s eyes went unfocussed, like he was quickly thinking back to the last few weeks.

“I’m afraid you might be right,” he agreed, his eyebrows furrowing. “That explains a lot. He’s been fairly short-tempered, too. I just assumed it was him being his usual cheery self, but… Hm.”

“Hm,” Edward echoed.

“I’ll keep a closer eye on him, then,” Duck nodded resolutely, before tapping the side of his nose. “Not a peep from me, though.”

“I appreciate that,” Edward said with a smile, and he took a moment to take another drink of tea. “I must admit it, I’m struck with particularly strong bouts of… well, I have no better word than helplessness at the moment. I can only heal as fast as my body can, but I just want to get back out there and be useful. At least you all can bury your worries in your work. All Ican do is sit here.”

“…Sounds excruciating.”

“Oh, it is,” Edward laughed, and with that sombre comment, it struck Duck just how much older Edward looked now from the first time he’d met him. “It is.”

--- --- ---

Upon returning to work later that day, Duck was crossing the platform with his head down, caketin tucked under his arm once more, mulling over the conversation he’d just had.

He was mulling over it so hard that he didn’t notice his direct collision course with the subject of his mulling. That is, in layman’s terms, he ended up bumping right into Gordon.

In Gordon’s defence, he looked pretty preoccupied as well, and now Duck had half-a-reason of knowing what with. Duck steadied himself on Gordon’s arm without thinking, shouting a little as his hat fell off his head.

“Oh!” Gordon exclaimed. “Apologies, didn’t see you down there.”

Duck would have normally taken that as a mild sort of insult. This time, he took a breath and let it slide off his feathers.

“Quite alright,” he said, as Gordon stooped to fetch his hat for him. “Can’t say I was looking where I was going either.”

Gordon handed it back to him, and Duck firmly reintroduced his cap to his head. Gordon then politely nodded at him and moved to step around him, and Duck was struck with the full-body urge to say something.

But what? He didn’t want to let the cat out of the bag, especially so soon.

“Hey,” he said instead. “Tell you what, you look like you could use a pick-me-up.”

Gordon paused, and shot him a very funny look.

“I, uh,” Duck fumbled. “I have, uh, these. Oliver helped me make ‘em, I made them for Edward for our morning tea today and he insisted I take some home.”

“Sounds like Edward,” Gordon’s lips tweaked up into the ghost of a smile. “How is he?”

“Well enough, all things considered,” Duck said, bobbing his head as he quickly cracked open the caketin again and offered its treasures to the big man before him. “Go on.”

Gordon looked down at the tin, before glancing up at him.

“Are you…?”

“I’m sure. And they do actually taste alright, I promise.”

Gordon almost smiled again, before hesitantly taking one.

“Um, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Duck smiled, putting the lid back on and tucking the thing under his arm again. He graciously didn’t mention he could hear the rumble of Gordon’s stomach from here. “And, um, thank you.”

“…You’re welcome?” Gordon looked confused, cradling the cupcake in his hands like he was half-expecting someone to take it away from him.

“You’ve been doing some of my jobs for me, while I’ve been, uh, preoccupied,” Duck scratched the back of his head and laughed as best he could. “Thanks. But I think I’m well enough to be back on my game. I’ve got it from here. But thank you.”

“…Okay,” Gordon said. “You’re welcome, then. And… um, yes. Okay.”

Duck gave him a salute and a grin that he hoped didn’t look as forced as it felt. “Well,” he said as brightly as he could manage. “I got a train in a few minutes. I better go make sure everything’s, uh,  in order.”

“Of course,” Gordon replied, his eyes drifting to the baked good he’d been gifted. “Safe travels.”

“You too,” Duck nodded back. “Enjoy.”

And before this interaction could possibly get more awkward, Duck promptly turned on his heel and booked it as fast as social conventions allowed, only looking back from the safety of his own engine cab.

Gordon glanced around the platform, and seeing that no one was really watching him, peeled back the paper cup and taken a bite. And it was satisfying to see a ripple of poorly-hidden delight cross his face, before Gordon turned to walk back to his own train, and Duck couldn’t see him anymore.

Baby steps it was, then. He could do that.

[deuterosapiens]

It is one-thirty in the morning, just a normal sort of September night. There's a cat stretched asleep on my bed, a raccoon being annoying outside my window. A clock chimed for the half-hour. I have finished Brothersong.

There's a kind of voice I like to use when I'm writing about these books. I tend to exaggerate my feelings a bit, joke about some of the weirder moments. There's a running vocabulary of stupid in-jokes throughout my posts; things I find amusing that I hope illicit at least an eye roll or a smirk.

I do not think I can maintain that level of self-amusement, right now. I don't want to, not for this one.

I am not exaggerating, playing it up or anything, when I say that I simply could not stop crying throughout the end. Ox's death, Joe's sacrifice, Thomas Bennett at the clearing. This was not fun, this was not pleasant, this was honestly very difficult for me to read.

Let's do a bit of basic addition: Wolfsong (498); Ravensong (496); Heartsong (468); Brothersong (468). One thousand nine-hundred and thirty pages total.

That's one thousand nine hundred thirty pages of love, heartbreak, beauty and death. I nearly dropped the first book halfway through because I was going through a break-up and Joe's decision to leave Ox behind in pursuit of the beast who murdered his father felt like too much at the time. I'm very glad I didn't, but I don't exactly feel glad in the sense that I'm particularly happy right now.

A few days ago, I mentioned how much I was stalling this book, because I knew I wasn't really ready to finish it. There's not exactly more to fall back on, you know?

Not another book, a new villain, a new perspective, or mystery, or awkward gay love to uncover. Just, an ending.

Hell, just finding the right way to talk about how I'm feeling right now, about the book in question, Brothersong, the book I just finished, isn't exactly going well for me.

I've said quite a bit about the late Thomas Bennett. I have been mildly curious about his letter to Joe's future mate, but doubted it would really make an appearance, since, there being no other book, there's no reason to have a viewpoint character read it that isn't Ox. I was wrong.

Ox is. He just is.

Gavin is, as I've said before, the type of man I would fall hopelessly for. Carter has his work cut out for him, but it's a wonderful future nonetheless.

Joe's no longer the Alpha of All, and I'm glad to see this. I'm happy for him. So much could have been avoided if this responsibility had not been given to him.

I'm glad there's exactly no clarity whatsoever on the Chris and Tanner situation. Whatever they've got works for them, and who am I to judge?

Gordo is free of the last of his demons. I hope Mark gets to smile more.

Kelly and Robbie will forever be the definition of "illegally cute couple". Sickening, really, but in a good way.

I just... what's next?

I love these idiots, and I'm glad most of them have a happy ending.

I'm going to leave this here, for personal reasons:

And, this, because it is very true to how these books are sitting with me now:

I think I'm turning in for the night. I've got work in the morning. I'll find another book to read, something that won't depress me as much.

As always, I am lying.

[fatteningmenstories]

At your service

part 2

The smell is what first hit him, it was gorgeous and so sweet it drew him straight in, Mr Gordo simply stepped back and let the jock take it all in, Alex couldn’t believe his eyes the entire room was made out of chocolate, in the centre of the room was an Olympic sized pool made out of chocolate, that flowed all the way through the room and seemingly out to the rest of the factory, where ever his eyes landed on he could see different kinds of chocolate ranging from white to dark to green minty and strawberry cheesecake chocolate in the all these different shapes- some were in the form of statues and others in the form of world famous paintings waiting to be eaten. Then suddenly just when he was about to reach and grab a piece of chocolate from a towering chocolate statue, the whole room started to move and almost seemed as if ti was coming alive , Alex couldn’t comprehend it, until Mr Gordo simply said look up,

As he moved his eyes up, he couldn’t believe it the whole roof was shifting and beeping, it had tubes of chocolate flowing all throughout but it was more than that it was as if it was waking up, that when he saw it long robotic metal arms being sprouted form holes all around the room and coming down to shake Mr Gordo’s hand.

“What you are seeing is probably the largest sentient ai in the factory, possibly the world, meet Unit.2”

“What…. But it massive it must control this whole room”

“Yes it does butit does so much more than just that , what do your thing makes my chocolate so good, Unit of course, it is constantly tasting and adjusting the chocolate that gets pumped around the entire factory”

“What…”

“And the best part about it is that its alive, hooked up the same mega mind that all robots share in this factory, so I would stay on its good side if I were you” chuckled Mr Gordo

“Oh and to forgot Its incredibly smart, what do you think made all these chocolate pieces of art huh kid’

Mr Gordo chuckled as Alex took in the chocolate Mona Lisa, done it incredible detail it was almost a prefect copy expect of course being made entirely out of chocolate

Alex needed a minute to take it all in, he needed to say anything smart yet profound he thought, but he was beaten to it as he felt his stomach rumble, and Mr Gordo gave out another chuckle

“Well excuse me, I promised you desert didn’t I, here lets take a seat and give unit something to work with’

However the moment Alex sat down, he felt himself being scanned and prodded by the numerous arms of Unit.2

“Oh why yes did I forgot to mention, Unit is able to found out what type and kind of desert you desire simply by giving you a quick scan”

Alex still couldn’t process what was happening, but the moment a chocolate sundae was produced with extra chocolate sauce, he knew that Mr Gordo was a true genius.

It was amazing, it was as if the chocolate he ate was produced just for him it was sweet and filling, and it met every deep down fix he needed, it was so good in fact he had to thank Unit for it. This was met with some lights being flashed and robotic parts resolving.

“Oh stop it Alex, you’re making Unit blush “, Mr Gordo said ibeetween bites of his own personalised dish, “Look it’s even giving you a gift”

A tube was quickly emerging from the pool filled in with deep brown chocolate and heading towards Alex, it stoped abruptly at Alex’s face.

“I think it wants you to put your mouth to the tube, and don’t look at me like that , it’s alive remember’

Alex sat there puzzled for a bit, he was behind confused already at units power

“Well hurry up, it doesn’t even let me drink form the river, that chocolate is the finest in the world , it has to be watered done per say for the masses to stop them going crazy”

Well when in an ai controlled chocolate room, Alex thought, as he put his mouth to the tube, which soon become filled with the most richest and delicious chocolate he could ever even comprehend, it only lasted a couple of seconds as the hot chocolate guzzled done Alex, before he couldn’t take it any more, and had to tap out. He was stuffed behind record, now coated in delicious chocolate that he couldn’t stop licking from his fingers.

“Well Alex I believe this is all I have time for today, you are allowed anyway in the factory aside from this room of course - safely protocols and so forth, so until tomorrow’

And as Mr Gordo plodded out, Alex needed a few minutes to digest the orgasmic chocolate he had just devoured, he think he might have cummed a bit.