#I have to include so many things to give even a full enough picture to make sense in a way I want it to

[vaguely-concerned]

do you ever think about how, when we get lucanis' ossuary mind note on what he was thinking during the fireplace scene at the end of his recruitment mission... what's implied to be his instinctive internal reaction as he's saying "you'd have to kill me" out loud sure isn't 'and I don't want to die'. it's '(and spite would die)'. do you think spite's gremlin-y candle-hungering give-me-FIRE! >:D presence has maybe saved that guy's life even more times and in more ways than are immediately obvious at a glance. do you ever. cry.

it's also very. him that the thing that would stay his hand on killing himself partially might be that he just isn't willing to visit the same cruelty or harm on spite as zara, even when accepting his passenger spirit as collateral damage would at least offer a chance to put an end to his own pain, which at that point he seems unable to see any other way of truly escaping or find real relief from than to die. there's so much resentment and fear and other understandable fraught emotions in spite and lucanis' relationship early on, but it's just as clear that deep down lucanis conceptualizes spite as fundamentally innocent in what's happened here -- perhaps, indeed, more innocent than he manages to conceptualize himself until someone else can help him get in there and start to untangle it with him. he's protective of spite in some subtle ways right from the start, taking pains to point out several times on the jog through the ossuary that the spirits here were just as much victims in what was done to them as anyone else. when spite acts out during the fireplace scene... how much of lucanis brushing it off the way he does is about the '*actively bleeding from the eyes* don't worry about me' avoidant side of it all, and how much is him trying to shelter spite from the eyes of people he does not know well enough yet to predict how they’ll react in response — towards himself or spite. (additional idea to really bring on the heartache: do you think he has maybe intervened in pretty much the same way between illario and caterina over the years and that’s how he does it so smoothly and automatically; it’s basically psychological muscle memory. Haha. ow.) 

Between that and the pretty consistent language he uses that frames spite as child-like, even when he means that in frustration/enfant terrible flavoured terms lol, you get the sense that regardless of how much Lucanis is aware of this on the surface, there is a deep instinctive protectiveness in him for spite. I think that even comes across in the scene where lucanis tells you he’ll continue to pursue a way to separate him and spite on the minrathous route. So I was kind of picking up on/working with that already subconsciously, but when I found that note it hit me like a sledgehammer that clearly in some part at least, the reason lucanis is still here is that he knows now that spite would die with him and doesn’t find that price acceptable. Spite thinks that lucanis mentally locking himself in his (torture :() room and refusing to speak to him is an act of rejection or trickery, but to my eyes taken with everything else we know about how lucanis’ brain tends to work… as much as it’s an expression of avoidance and fear and overwhelm and trying to get away from the voice pushing him towards action when the mere prospect of action fills you with despair to even contemplate (“There’s nowhere to go”), I think it’s also a mark of lucanis’ affection and protectiveness of spite. The guards along the way make it very clear that more so than to keep the outside world from coming in, this place is for protecting people from what might break out. 

And that’s why I think this is also such a good case study to look at lucanis' internal freeze logic and why it has been so adaptive for him up until now when faced with completely impossible emotional situations to which there are no good answers or causes of actions available, even though it's inherently and unavoidably one of those 'what's worse, the medicine or the disease' solutions a brain cooks up. lucanis by the point of inner demons is facing this conundrum: 1) I can't live like this, it hurts too much. I've been in pain so long I’ve got screams where my blood should be and it just keeps getting louder, and nothing really touches or helps that. 2) I can't die to escape this, because that would also kill spite (and also I've got a job to do I guess *working 9-5 slowed with reverb and with underwater sound distortion effects is playing in the background*). those are of course not actually his only options, but in the state he's in they are the only options he can conceive of. (that's not infrequently how it works, when the suffering is that intense and unrelenting. Nothing gives you tunnel sight quite like ‘I just need this to stop’ agony that has gone on long enough to add sheer soul exhaustion to the mix)

so what happens in the end? his freeze brain -- honed, I'm sure, through many long years of attachment trauma and abuse and loss for exactly this kind of 'uh-oh. Incoming FUBAR situation alert let’s go' -- kicks into action and makes him do nothing except what's externally required of him, so he can stay just functional and momentarily distracted by a plethora of avoidance behaviours enough to get through his daily life, if like not particularly happily so... and otherwise, as it were, locking himself in his room deep inside where nothing can touch him, where nothing gets in and nothing gets out, no harm allowed to either escape from within nor allowed to pierce through and get inside. numbness isn't actually a cure for that kind of suffering, but it's the closest thing you're likely to get with any immediacy and if you’re desperate enough by god you take those. It’s how he survived his upbringing, and it’s how he survived the ossuary — as he tells Davrin straight out, the trick to just shut down every part of his soul he can to get through intolerable pain, loss or helplessness. I don’t think that mechanism came to him in the ossuary the first time, I think that blueprint was deeply embedded in his neurons and went ‘ah. My time again. Not to worry I’m a bit of an expert at this I’ll get us through this yet (though you may not thank me for it by the end of it all)’. 

In that state he's unable to himself reach out and meaningfully ask for help (and also like... why would his inner world have any framework for that as even being on the table? this has never been an option before in his life, not in any safe or consistent way; he's fucked up the way he is because the same things/people that should have been and partially, comparatively, were the sources of help and relief and safety growing up are also the sources of pain and abuse, that eternal irreconcilable ambivalence, the double edged sword of unpredictable insecure attachment), but it also keeps him from doing anything uh drastic the other way too, on acting impulsively in ways that can’t be taken back. (that seems to be more illario’s role/dubious privilege in the family lol.) at many points in his life and especially growing up, freezing and going numb around the pain is as close to having control of anything as there was any hope of. 'harm will be inflicted on me unpredictably, but fuck you I don't have to truly feel it as long as I shut all this other stuff down as well, that's what I can control' nervous system logic. (it'll get you every time.) for what it’s worth I’m not so sure his nervous system judged that one incorrectly, I think that is the kind of rebellion you would have to cling to while being raised by someone like caterina, because look at illario if you want to know how much she respects and rewards anything more overt or active. (I mean, if you don’t succeed, at least. swing at Grandma Dellamorte you’d better not miss or you’ll meet that cane swinging at you the other way and she will not miss)

I say all this because I think it's as easy to demonize the freeze response as it is to demonize anger, to conceptualize it only as an obstructive force that, as bellara puts it, is one of the purest forms of a heart not seeming to want to let you be happy, or a mindless byproduct of trauma. But in my experience, the brain doesn’t generally come up with ‘stupid’ defense mechanisms. Even in the most maladaptive of coping mechanisms, there is at the core of it some part of you that once meant to save your life, no matter what trouble it is wreaking for you today. when you look at the setup of Lucanis’ soul, as it were, you can see the dual and in some ways genuinely noble and even tender qualities this response has in him, however misguided: it does imprison, but it also protects, and it means to protect; for all the pain along the way it has sheltered all the parts of his soul that are most precious and breakable, the most vulnerable parts that want to live and so so importantly love completely and freely. Lucanis thinks he’s protecting not even primarily himself but everyone he loves by staying where he is. (“It would be better for me to stay here than to risk losing you”) A child’s logic, to be sure, but logic of a kind and clearly one that caterina has encouraged in him because that’s a conception of love it’s been very useful for her for him to have. Freeze looks like utter hopelessness on the surface, but in some ways I think it’s the utmost triumph of hope — a spare and unrelenting winter that exists because it thinks one day spring might still come, and the things too precious and fragile to thrive in your life as it is now might bloom then. 

He is an adult now, and Caterina no longer controls his entire world, physically and emotionally. There’s finally room for other things, other people, himself, in his life, without everything having to defer to the gravitational force of what Caterina wants from him at the end of the day. And while I think her jumpscaring him with the First Talon position is partly her attempt to wrangle him back into the status quo of control she once had, I’m not sure it’s going to work quite the way she might hope — at least in the Treviso saved route, there are just too many fresh spring shoots in his life at that point that could grow into something new, it’s too late to trample all the saplings growing up through the cracks in time (and indeed some of them might also fight back). (The outlook on the Minrathous saved route is um. Perhaps less convincingly immediately hopeful to me and the prospect of actually getting around to healing further down the road, but I refuse to give up on him that’s my little guy and he’s above all incredibly smart and stubborn and not a quitter and all the rest of this still remains true beneath it all, just like. Give him a moment here.) His hopes and dreams have diversified while she had her back turned lmao he suddenly keeps them with so many more people than just her and Iillario now. She doesn’t hold the monopoly of meaning and connection in his life the way she used to. And whether out of love (you know. Hope is every man’s prerogative I suppose) at seeing him really happy for perhaps the first time or sheer pragmatism, I think she’s going to have to accept that and adapt her ways of doing things with him accordingly, or else have him drift even further away from her.

Spite is the urgent impatient voice that starts to break through to go ‘that moment is now it HAS to be now. We need to shake off the shackles and illusions and face what’s actually here so we can learn to properly live now, or this winter will starve us to death as surely as anything Zara could do to us’. And he is right! As crucial as this soul-starvation landscape has been in survival, it has clearly reached the end of its sustainability, you can’t survive permanently on frost alone. I just also want to recognize the credit Lucanis (and his fucked up but valiant nervous system <3 pour one out for a real one) also deserves for stubbornly holding on in any way he had to until Spite’s true escape project is even an option for either of them. Especially since Lucanis seems to harbour a lot of self-loathing and frustration over his own propensity for freeze — “You know him. You can open the door, but he won’t walk through it”  (still one of the saddest most painful things I’ve ever heard. In case you were wondering. He knows. He knows what he’s like, and he despairs of it, he thinks it means it’s his own fault he still feels like this. Augh.) The real point at the end of the day is not that spite saved lucanis or vice versa, but that as traumatic as it was to get there and against all cultural expectations, it is ultimately their enmeshed condition, their togetherness, that saved them both. (which, again, when you consider the cultural narrative of possession and spirits most andrastian nations are working with…what a radical conclusion to come away with haha. Not unprecedented at all, if you look at Wynne and her spirit, but on a deeper and more psychological plane than ever and even more impactful for it, to me.)

[misc-obeyme]

cc. your tags on the boudoir post. MAMMON recieving an album of those photos. i'd love to hear your thoughts on his reaction (and everyone else's, if you're feeling particularly inspired?)

Ah, Daisy, my dear, thank you for asking!

I apologize for this late response, but I knew I was gonna be getting wordy with this one. Because I looove the boudoir photos idea in general and OH MAN just thinking about all their reactions is making me crazy lol. I was going to just do my regular sort of response, but this turned into full on headcanons oops.

So just in case anyone missed it, here is the original post!

My thoughts change a little bit depending on whether MC is present when the characters receive the pictures, so I included both! I only did the bros but I might be willing to do the rest upon request!

the brothers react to MC giving them an album of boudoir photos

NSFW MDNI

Warnings: suggestive but that's about it, nothing explicit

Lucifer

When you're with him, Lucifer is calm and courteous, but with a flare of arrogance. Of course you would give him such a special gift. It's only natural that you would trust such intimacies to him.

He asks you if you're trying to tell him something. Has he perhaps been neglecting you, MC? Did you give him this so that he wouldn't be able to help himself? He's onto you.

No matter your reason, he can't look through too many of the pictures before wanting the real thing that's sitting right next to him. Tell him you still have some of that lingerie in your possession. Especially if you happen to have some in his colors.

If you aren't with him, he's going to be a lot less arrogant in general. He will find you later, make no mistake. But he's honestly so touched by your gift that he spends a lot of time looking through the album, simply admiring you.

Mammon

Mammon is freaking out no matter where you are the time. If you're with him, it's definitely a lot worse. Blushing profusely. Opens the album then slams it shut because he can't handle looking at it for very long.

You can't help but giggle at his reaction and then it's all stop laughin' at him MC!! You'll need to take his hands or maybe kiss his cheek, let him know that you genuinely just wanted to give him a nice gift, you aren't trying to tease him or anything.

Ask him if he likes it. You'll get a serious response. Calms down enough to say 'course he likes it. Likes it so much, he suddenly can't keep his hands off you.

If you aren't with him at the time, he buries it under his pillow or otherwise hides it because this is now one of his treasures and nobody gets to see it but him!

Leviathan

Levi is another one who'd be a blushing mess no matter what, but if you're there at the time, he might retreat to his room and not let you in. He needs that barrier between you because if he sees you right now, his heart will explode.

He'll let you back in eventually, but it might be a minute. He needs to calm down. Are you trying to kill him, MC?! Even when he does let you in, he can't look at you directly. He's probably covering his face with his hands.

Reassure him that you gave these photos to him because you trust him with them. They're personal, intimate, and you want him to be close to you. He's going to calm down the more you talk to him. Pull his hands away from his face and when he sees the sincerity in your eyes, it flips a switch. Might even slip into demon form just to wrap his tail around you possessively.

If you're not with him at the time, he's going to need to take care of that raging boner of his right away. He won't be able to focus on anything else until he does. He's so embarrassed, he has to watch several episodes of Ruri Hana to recalibrate.

Satan

He will try to keep his expression unreadable. He's not having any over the top reactions, but as he flips through the photos, he keeps getting redder and redder. You're sitting right next to him, how can he not react? At some point, he has to close the album because he feels like he's looking at something he shouldn't.

Satan is quiet about how flustered he is, but he's having a hard time looking at you. He tries to say something and incomprehensible lines about how beautiful you are fall from his lips. He sounds like a broken record of spoken word poetry or perhaps a very drunk beat poet.

Recovers himself after a minute. As soon as he's composed, you're in his arms. You knew what this would do to him, didn't you, MC? You'll find yourself pressed up against the nearest wall in moments.

If you're not with him, Satan will tuck your album into a stack of his other books. He thinks it's well hidden there - in plain sight. But he's hyper aware of it. Keeps coming back to look at it. Ends up having to put it on the bottom of a stack behind a different stack to make it more difficult to get to.

Asmodeus

Thrilled. Absolutely thrilled in every way. Oh, wow, MC, you look amazing. He's breathless. He's entranced. He's even blushing because he knows what it means that you've given these to him. He's so in love with you, he can't stand it.

Asks you about everything you may be wearing. Comments on the skill of the photographer. Tells you that next time, you should do one together. He has so many ideas. He wants to do one where all you're wearing is jewelry - bright and sparkling, just like your soul.

Covers you in kisses. He's not shy about how this is making him feel, how much he wants you. He just wants to see your beautiful figure here and now in real life, MC! Won't you let him worship you?

If you're not with him, he will find you immediately so he can say all of the things he needs to say in that moment. You can't leave him alone with all these feelings, both physical and emotional. He brings them all to you without hesitating.

Beelzebub

It might take him a minute to understand exactly what he's looking at, mostly because he's never even heard of this. He doesn't know what a boudoir photo shoot is, so you might have to explain it to him. Once he understands, he starts lightly blushing as he looks through them. His expression is serious because he's beginning to see just how special this is.

Honestly surprised that you would give him something so intimate. He's touched. He's going to hug it to himself and look at you with tears in his eyes because he can't believe how lucky he is.

Give him another couple minutes to look through them and then he's having different feelings. He's not sure if he can hold back, MC. Tell him it's okay, that you don't want him to, and you'll find yourself on your back on his bed in zero seconds flat. You're quickly reminded why he's the Avatar of Gluttony.

If you're not with him at the time, he will figure things out on his own, though he'll have a plethora of questions for you later. He keeps it close to him at all times until you answer them because he knows one thing for sure - he doesn't want anyone else seeing these.

Belphegor

Oh, he sees what you're playing at. Trying to fluster him, are you, MC? Trying to rile him up? Are you sure you can handle him when you do that? He's so wound up by the gift he can't act normal about it. He's actually very touched by it, but he's not sure how to deal with the feelings, so he comes on too strong.

You laugh because to you, this is expected. You understand that this is Belphie's way of dealing with his own shyness. You respond by meeting him with just as much intensity. It's all kisses and touching and fumbling in the dark.

It's only later, when both of you are calm, when you're nestled in his arms, that he admits to you how much it means to him. That he tells you how he'll cherish the album you gave him. That he says he's stunned by how gorgeous you are, even more brilliant that the stars in the sky.

If you aren't with him at the time, you'll be dealing with a petulant but horny demon later on. He's going to be annoyed at you for leaving it for him and then not being there when it inevitably turns him on. Just as possessive as his brothers, he hides it in the attic where no one is likely to find it.

masterlist | Thank you for reading!

[starkitxxz]

I wrote this at 1am

Nightly visit☁

!!non-consensual touching, implied SOMNOPHILIA!!

The starry night sky wrapped the whole place like a blanket, small white dots appeared as the moon glowed in the midst of the void. Street lights flickered every minute, the warm light bulb it had given out. But it was enough to guide Sol Brugmansia to your lovely abode.

Every step he took, it was silent. Emptiness filled him – but he longed to see you. His heart ached, he yearned to have a minute of your time. A minute of your smile on your face because of him.

Or perhaps your lingering touch, brushing against his bandaged hand

He recognized everything about you, including where you place your furniture in your home. He hated seeing that slug in a photo frame. He wished it was him, beside you, in that printed paper.

He wished to be with you, to hold you and know you're his. He could not bear the thought of you being with Crowe. Ugh, the mere mention of his name makes him ill.

What does he have that Sol doesn’t?

He stood in front of his soulmate’s door, a silver key in his palm – inserted into the keyhole. And he knew, You fail to ignore such necessities missing from your ID.

Upon entering, his heart skipped a beat.

"Fuck, you’re so beautiful…"

He muttered under his breath. The glimmering moonlight highlighted your face. Displaying your beauty in front of the beast before you.

Sol approached you, his reddish orange orbs focused on you. He never fully focused on anything but you. You are on his walls. His phone gallery. His mind. Everything possible.

He lifted your arm and dropped it, a chuckle escaped his mouth. A heavy sleeper you are.

Or maybe you took something that made you so sleepy

He better thank Hyugo for this

A grin appeared on his face, it’s funny how easy you trusted him. How easy it took you to take it. So naive, Sol preferred it that way.

The last thing he wanted for you to find out was how awfully obsessed he is.

Heck, the word obsessed isn’t enough to describe what he is

He kneeled beside the bed frame, tucking a strand behind your ear. Taking in your pretty, sleeping face that he adores so much.

Gazing at your lips, he wanted it to meet his – so you will be his, like what he envisioned to happen.

He nuzzled on your neck, taking a whiff of your scent. You smell so fucking good. Like a dangerously addictive drug. It drove him nuts.

He began to nibble and bite a spot on your neck, earning a whimper from you. It sent shivers down his spine, as a mark started to form.

"Oh darling, you have no idea what you’re doing to me," He whispered, sucking the mark. A mark that will surely be visible on your neck, to the eyes of many – especially him, knowing he created that mark.

Another whimper escaped your lips. His breath hitched, kissing the small hickey he created.

"You’re so ticklish, pumpkin – even the sounds you make, it makes me want to fuck you"

Not long after that, he places his thumb on your bottom lip. Caressing it. He craved to kiss you so badly – to feel your lips, to know you’re his.

After all, YOU belong to him.

You’re his soulmate, his beloved, his maiden by the name of Annabel Lee

He pressed his lips against yours, warmth surrounded him. Claiming you as his, not Crowe. He was dying for this, he desired to be with you alone in this room – kissing you.

"I love you so much…"

He mumbled as he leaned back. Looking at you like a valuable possession – too valuable and pretty to be shared with. Admiring your perfect features, ignoring your flaws. To him, you don’t have flaws.

You’re everything he could love about you

Staring at the figure before him, he smiled and took a picture of you. Adding it to his phone album full of photos of you.

He stood up and walked to the door, giving you one last look. Holding his phone in his hand. He hoped that it would be your hand that only he would hold soon.

"See you tomorrow, pumpkin," He said, before twisting the door knob.

And with that, he left.

[heck-theo]

ROTTMNT Pride Flag Icons

The response to my last post about these was very encouraging so I finished them! Here are some examples using popular headcanons and/or headcanons that I like (so hard to pick cause there are so many great ones).

Below these examples are some rules for use and then below that are the blanks with the green flags for you!

Rules: First I wanna acknowledge that there's nothing I can really do to stop people using these however they want, and while I would disapprove, I'm not going to get mad and fight you about it. I won't give you the attention.

If you have any good faith/genuine questions or criticisms about these rules please let me know.

TLDR:Keep it respectful and PG.

Who can use these? I don't mind anyone using these if it follows the rules. Please credit me in some way if you use (even if it's just a text post), and don't claim that they are your own. If you would like to use it in a way that isn't specified here or with a flag not mentioned, feel free to ask.

Editing? I don't mind if you want to add small details, adjust colours etc, but I'd rather you didn't make large adjustments that could really change the overall picture.

How do I use these? I actually have no clue how to mask over a colour in a flat image, these are all clipped over the flag colour layer. If you do know please feel free to leave a comment. If you would like to request a specific flag go ahead and ask. If I only get a few requests I probably won't mind doing them for you. This is not a guarantee though, and it just depends on what I have going on and how I feel at the time.

What flags can I use? This is intended for flags that represent or support LGBTQIA identities. To be clear this does NOT include anything like TERF, MAP or Zoo flags. Also please don't use any flags representing kink and stuff.

Country flags? That is not the intended use and I'd really rather you didn't, however in the end as long as the flag isn't being used in a way that supports war, genocide or bigotry I'm not toooo fussed.

I really hope I'm being paranoid and this won't be an issue but I feel the need to say it cause I've been on the internet long enough to know it's full of trolls, grifters and creeps. If you see anyone being problematic, bigoted or disrespectful with these feel free to let me know. Free block list.

One last thing: There is a more "fem" leaning/alt version and a more "masc" presenting version. I tried not to get too carried away with changing their designs in the alt version. Also I'm still trying to figure out this style so it's not perfect but I was flattered that you guys were interested so I wanted to finish them off. Also they were designed to read well on a small scale so a lot of choices were made specifically to try and increase readability when they're itty bitty and some things might look slightly odd on full scale? Anyway.

Ok without further ado here are the blanks (I hope you can get some use out of them and enjoy ^^):

[minniethemoocherda]

Connect This Space Between

Summary: "PRIME! YOUR SPARKLING IS CURRENTLY OVERCHARGED ON HIGHGRADE IN MY MEDBAY!"

A/N: This takes place a few weeks before the start of my fic Iridescent. But you shouldn't have to read that for this to make sense. In my head Bumblebee is around the equivalent of seventeen here whilst the twins are about nineteen. Also sorry! I am on a hype right now! So I couldn't wait until Sunday to post this! What did you guys think of the new Transformers One trailer? Anyway hope you enjoy! Xxxxxxx

Ao3

FF.net

"PRIME!"

Optimus jerked awake at the sound Ratchet's voice shouting over his internal comms, accidently knocking to the floor a pile of datapads that he must've fallen asleep on top of.

"Yes Ratchet?" Optimus said, bending down to place the fallen datapads back onto his desk.

"You're sparkling is currently overcharged on highgrade in my medbay."

Optimus nearly dropped the datapads again in shock.

"Is Bumblebee okay?" He asked, concern for his ward over riding the many questions that statement posed.

"He's as fine as one can be after drinking an entire bottle of the twins' moonshine." Ratchet answered, the familiar cranky tone, reassuring Optimus that the damage was not too serious.

"I am on my way."

As Optimus marched towards the medbay, the questions previously overridden, now sprung to the forefront of his mind.

Why would Bumblebee be drinking? How did he gets his servos on the twin's secret stash? And what would possess him to drink enough of it to end up in Ratchet's medbay?

It didn't make sense to Optimus that the newspark that he had found in the ruins of The Well could be drinking.

Although he guessed that he shouldn't be too surprised considering that Bumblebee was due to get his final upgrades in a couple of weeks. Optimus supposed that it was only natural that Bumblebee would get curios about such things.

Outside the medbay, Prowl was currently reading Sideswipe and Sunstreaker the riot act, listing off all of their current offences which included but not limited too; indecent behaviour, production of moonshine and serving said moonshine to an underage mechling. The twins faces paled under the scrutiny, whether that was from their own over indulgent high grade consumption or from their dawning realisation of how much trouble they were in, Optimus was unsure. He suspected that most likely, it was a mixture of both.

Inside, Bumblebee appeared the picture of misery. He was hunched over the edge of a berth with his doorwings drooped and his head in a bucket.

His eyes widened in panic when he spotted Optimus standing the doorway.

He opened his mouth, probably to protest that he hadn't been caught drinking when he was cut off by his own spew, regurgitating into the bucket.

Optimus hurried across the medbay to his side. No matter the circumstances, the Prime hated seeing his sparkling in pain.

He rubbed the space between Bumblebee doorwings like he had when he was little until eventually the young bot had finished emptying his energon tank.

Ratchet switched the now full bucket for an empty one.

"Am I dying?" Bumblebee slurred.

Ratchet snorted.

"You're going to wish you are when you're sober enough for me to give you my dangers of underage drinking lecture!"

Optimus thought that was a bit ironic coming from the mech who's nickname growing up had been The Party Ambulance. But since Optimus preferred not having a wrench thrown at his head, he tactfully decided not to mention that.

"I'm sorry." Bumblebee mumbled, sounding so dejected that regardless of the splashes of energon now staining the bot's front Optimus couldn't help but put his arm around him.

For the first time in months Bumblebee didn't shrug him off, instead leaning into his touch. Over the past few years as his sparkling came ever closer to adulthood, Bumblebee had sought comfort from his guardian less and less. Even if the only reason Bumblebee was permitting it was due to his lessoned inhibitions, Optimus felt his spark warm.

"I should hope that this experience has been enough of a lesson for you to learn from without the lecture." Optimus said.

Bumblebee nodded, nuzzling against his shoulder.

Growing up in a war, Bumblebee's childhood had been anything but traditional. He'd never had the chance to go to just school or the cinema or the park. Until recently he'd never even met any cybertronians his own age before.

No, instead Bumblebee's childhood had been a serious of safe houses and self defence lessons.

In a strange way, Optimus was glad that Bumblebee was getting in trouble for normal mechling things for once. Not that he was going to tell Bumblebee that.

At least Bumblebee's first fore into high grade hadn't ended with him throwing up on Alpha Trion's prized organic scroll collection.

"Drink this." Ratchet ordered, interrupting Optimus's thoughts as he thrust a glowing purple liquid under Bumblebee's nose.

Bumblebee looked nauseous again at the idea of anything more to drink, but under Ratchet's glare reluctantly took a sip.

"Good now you shouldn't have to waste any more of my time again tomorrow morning because of a hangover."

Optimus fought the urge not to show his smile. As despite Ratchet's gruff words, he knew that the medic's actions showed the not so secret soft spot Ratchet had for the sparking. Because if it had been anyone else in this position, they would've been thrown straight to the brig to sober up the hard way.

"Now, Prime can walk you back to your room so you don't end up in any more trouble." Ratchet stated as he started to clean up.

"I'm okay." Bumblebee protested.

"Oh really?" Ratchet drawled. "Walk in a straight line for me."

Bumblebee pushed the bucket aside as he stood up on his unsteady feet. He didn't even make it one step before nearly faceplanting the floor. Luckily, Optimus managed to catch him by his scruff bar before he could do any more damage to himself.

Even in his drunken state, Bumblebee must've known that resistance would he futile as he didn't put up anymore fight when Optimus scooped him up.

Gone were the days when Optimus could lift Bumblebee with only the palm of his hand. But even on the edge of adulthood, Bumblebee was still a small bot. Optimus cradled him close, arms securing the bot's legs and back, allowing Bumblebee to rest his against his shoulder. Optimus easily carried the mech to his quarters.

Once there, he gently placed Bumblebee down on the berth, tucking the blanket of tarp under the mechling's chin.

As Ratchet's potion kicked in and Bumblebee drifted off, Optimus glanced around the room that was the closest place the young bot had ever had to a home. On shelves sat scavenged action figures from shows he'd never watched, attached upon the painted walls that showed sights he would never see. And by his bed, a set of twins knives that Optimus had tried to talk Jazz out of giving to him.

Because as much as Optimus wished that he could, he would not be able to protect the former sparkling from the horrors of the world. Something that even without a war, would still ring true. One way or another, Bumblebee was always going to grow up.

With a new sense of acceptance, Optimus was about to leave he heard a quiet voice mumble;

"Love you sire."

Optimus smiled, walked back across the room to place a kiss on the helm of his sleeping sparkling.

"I love you too."

[bykshre]

STILL WITH YOU ll JJK - 001

CHAPTER 001 ll 2.05K words (song - I Feel It Coming, The Weeknd)

Pairing - CEO Jungkook x Head Of Department Y/N

Synopsis - 7 years ago, you and jungkook broke up after a long-term relationship in high school and college. Never have you ever thought that one day, you would reunite with your ex-lover or the guy you once believed was the love of your life. What does fate hold for the both of you?

Genre/tropes - exes to lovers, angst, slow burn, grumpyxsunshine, a second chance.

Rating - M

Warnings- panic attacks, crying, flirty prologue, alcohol, break up mentions, insomnia. All are mild mentions. Not too severe.

Masterpost | Next

prologue

21st August

I had no classes today, and Y/N did. I took the opportunity to decorate the living room with balloons and many of our pictures together. And when I say many, I mean all of them. Be it selfies, cuddle pictures, date pictures or the randomest pictures Y/N and I took of each other in weird situations. I managed to include every single one of them. I live and breathe to see her happy. She matters a lot to me.

After pouring my heart into the house adornments, I plopped myself on the couch and reflected on the pictures I hung on the walls. One of the pictures caught my attention, the first picture Y/N and I took on our date. We were so young and full of love. Nothing changed anyway.

I permanently kept that picture of us in my wallet. It was so special to me. Our very first date. A cliche photo booth picture. It was so unadorned, but it was unforgettable at the same time. Who wouldn't want to relive that?

.......

4.20 p.m.

I stood in front of our apartment door. Holding a bouquet of roses in my hands.

Shock was graced on Y/Ns face. She looked so happy. I could even see tears welling up in her eyes. Y/N was never a fussy lady or a spoilt brat. She was simple. She never sought for extravagance. She loved the most diminutive things I did. That's what I cherished about her - her unwavering simplicity. She's a gem, rare to find.

"I love you!" I saw Y/N running towards me and hugging me. Lone gone was the flower bouquet. Our kisses and giggles filled the room's ambience. "Happy 5th Anniversary, love." She peppered tender kisses onto my neck, sending shivers down my spine.

"Y/Niee, that's enough of the kisses. I chucked. "Y/N, how about we start getting ready? We have a date tonight. Plus, I bought a dress for you, which I think you'll adore. You'll be looking like a diva in it." Y/N frowned for a moment. I giggled at her state. She gets upset often when I spoil her with luxurious items. "Just for tonight, love, you deserve it today." I leaned into her and gave her a tender yet aggressive kiss on her ravishingly tempting reddish lips.

......

"What do you think?" Y/N said while leaning on the kitchen counter. I scanned her from head to toe. She looked gorgeous in that red dress accompanied by the long slit at her legs. The crimson fabric drapes softly over her form, embracing her contours with a tailored precision that accentuates her every curve. The richness of the red hue not only complements her skin's natural glow but also exudes an air of confidence and charisma. She looked like a goddess.

"I could have you as main course, mi amour," I said in a flirty tone. She blushed. I saw her cheeks turning crimson red. I love how only I could make her a blushing mess. She was always mine.

"Jungkook!!" She said in a flustered manner. "We're getting late!"

"Don't say that love. I know you enjoyed it." I winked at her. She was a blushing mess.

"Love, you are looking like a Greek god yourself! You are so handsome!" She said while checking me out, not giving an absolute fuck that I noticed she was drooling over my attire and looks tonight. "Your tux perfectly addresses your body shape." She said while pulling me into a hungry, aggressive kiss. Glad to know we're on the same page.

"Are you ready? Let's go." We interlocked our hands, creating a connection that felt unbreakable. "Ready!" I chuckled at her behaviour. She's carefree and happy. She drives me insane but in the most enchanting manner.

"You better be love. We have the whole night awaiting. You'll see stars tonight." I winked again, igniting a spark of intimacy between us.

We laughed, savouring each moment of the day. That's something I treasured about our relationship. We love hard.

"Love you". "I love you too".

Present

JK pov.

"I love you, Y/N, I always will. That's a promise I'll never leave you. Ever."

"I love you too, Jungkook. You will forever be the love of my life. Nothing will be able to make us apart."

One. Two. Three. My eyes opened. I felt a salty bead of water slipping from my eyes. Trailing down my cheeks. I was crying. Again. At this point, it had just become a routine for me. Ever since that day, I have never been able to sleep properly. And even if I would, it was because of the help of alcohol. I miss her and crave her touch. But what she has done has created a massive hatred for her. All those promises and words were false.

I opened my phone to check the time. It was 4.32 a.m. I definitely won't be able to sleep after this. But I needed it desperately. After mulling for a few minutes, I opened my Spotify playlist and clicked 'play' on a playlist she made for us. It was titled "Midnight Love". It would always help me to calm down. These are the traces of items she left with me. And I would never let them go.

♫ You don't need a lonely night

So, baby, I can make it right

You just got to let me try

To give you what you want. ♫

I mentally laughed at the lyrics. Remembering the sight of us back in the day. Sure, we were very horny. But we did have a fair share of emotional rollercoasters. The most important part was that we were there for each other. I do wonder how she's doing. Without me...

Is there someone who can actually love her? Before I could react or think anything else. My eyelids fell heavy with the weight of drowsiness. I eventually drifted off to sleep, welcoming a set of dreams.

"Y/N, you drive me insane."

Y/N pov.

4.32 a.m.

I laughed. Danced. Sang my heart out to "I Feel It Coming". Jimin and I decided to host a party at our apartment with our close friends, Taehyung, Mina and Namjoon. I was absolutely drunk. A mess, broken mess. All thanks to alcohol. We couldn't give an absolute fuck that we had work tomorrow. Emotions were uprising. We were immersed in our feelings. I rarely consented to these parties and would usually be sleeping or watching Netflix. Despite that, a part of my heart said, "Y/N, you deserve this fun, be yourself, express your emotions."

♫ You've been scared of love

And what it did to you

You don't have to run

I know what you've been through

Just a simple touch

And it can set you free

We don't have to rush

When you're alone with me ♫

Although I was super drunk and giggling the whole time, a tiny part of my heart clenched at the lyrics. It held some truth to it. I kinda miss him. No, I miss him... a lot. Whatever. The past is the past. I must move on.

"Hey! Y/N, let's dance, just us," Jimin asked. Everyone else had already left. I was so submerged in my feelings I didn't notice it. Busy reminiscing the beautiful past. "Oh yeah, Jiminiee sureee. Would your girlfriend slash whatever be fine with that?" I said while giggling because I knew that Jimin wasn't the guy who pursued relationships. Whatever interactions he had with women were just to please his sexual desires. Nothing else.

Jimin took me into his arms while I slid my hands around his waist.

The song playing at the back had turned into a faint sound playing at the back. I couldn't hear anything anymore.

♫ You've been scared of love

And what it did to you

You don't have to run

I know what you've been through♫

Oh no... my emotions are controlling me.

The alcohol is starting to get to me. I couldn't hold it back. Jimin noticed me acting weird. My head spun. I couldn't maintain my balance anymore. Jimin's grip on me tightened. I sank my head into his chest. There was it. I started crying. I rarely had meltdowns. But if something triggered them, I would easily have a breakdown. I started blabbing.

"Jiminie, do you know how much I miss him? I would run back to him in seconds? I would cuddle him at night to comfort him and keep his insomnia away? I still remember him vividly." I said shakily. "I wish I could have changed what happened that day. But I couldn't. I wish all of those things were fake. Apparently, it isn't. I should hate him. But my heart never brought me to that feeling. What is wrong with me?"

My breathing became shallow. I knew I would pass out soon.

"Y/N, Are you there with me?" I definitely passed out by the looks of it.

I could feel my back pressed on a soft, comfy mattress. The duvet, a cocoon of warmth and solace, draped over me like a protective shield, its weight a soothing embrace that banished the remnants of weariness. Jimin must have carried me to my room. He placed a glass of water, a bucket, and a strip of pills on my bedstand for tomorrow. "Goodnight, Y/N, sweet dreams.

I mumbled, "Jungkookie, I love you." I went to my dreamland.

Jimin laughed at that. He knew how you still miss him. He whispered to himself. "Your Jungkookie must be missing you too, Y/Nie."

"Just hang in there."

The universe has a silly way of reminding you of certain people. Two ex-lovers were reminded of the same memory. Was it a coincidence or fate?

Taglist : @lovingkoalaface @jk97bam @slapmy4head @vinuhsha

Thank you lovely people ❤️

This is only a beginning chap so it will take time to develop the characters and don't worry yn and jungkook will meet... Soon.

Till then. #Stillwithyoubykshre

[blackcherryvelvet0909]

A Birthday Letter From Lilia

Lil Lilia birthday letter I wrote about two years ago. Because I have a borderline unhealthy obsession with the man (haha), I've decided to expose y'all to him again! Happy Birthday to all the ones I've missed in my absence.

Note: Pronouns of the reader/recipient are not specified. Reader/recipient implied to be Yuu/Ramshackle Prefect

My dear one, 

Happy Birthday! Another year has gone by for you, and yet another awaits. I am sure you are in for the most fond of memories. For someone with such a short lifespan, I can understand why such a day is important. Ah, the throes of youth - surely you will live this day to the fullest. What might you have planned, I wonder? I certainly hope you will include me in the festivities! 

I am sure you have already opened the gift I sent with this little missive. Isn’t it the most adorable little thing? I saw it whilst out in town with the boys and knew you simply must have it! I could not help but get one myself - we’ll match! Perhaps you and I might see about getting our little bears some outfits? It is unbecoming for someone my age, but what is one without indulgences? I hope you will consider the offer. 

As you can see, the stuffed bear is not the only thing I have procured for you. Now, do be careful with that one. The book is in prime condition but, as you might be able to tell, it is quite the antique. I thought you might find some use for it, as you are in charge of both yourself and Grim. Little ones need good nutritious meals to grow strong and healthy, and that cookbook lists many such dishes. Certainly you have cooked before? If not, look no further! 

I will happily take you under my wing; I’ll make a chef out of you yet! Why, I have already taken the liberty of cooking a meal detailed within the very cookbook you now hold in your hands. You will find it on page twenty-three - the one with a picture of a chocolate cake. Now now, don’t fret. It gives me great joy to provide you with such a treat, even though it could rot your teeth. Quite the bad influence, aren’t I? Well, I’ll certainly make up for that once we’re busy in the kitchen. 

I must admit I have never followed most of those recipes. Yes, I do take into account the ingredients, but I have always kept the youngsters’ best interests in mind. In my opinion, you can never have enough fiber, protein, and other such things that make you grow big and strong. Why, just look at Silver! If I had followed all those recipes to the very detail, he would have never grown so tall! I only wish he would let me spoil him like I used to. Ah, but that is what I have you and the other youths for! 

Rejoice, dear one! We will have such fun cooking together - I just know it! Let me know the moment you would like to begin. Oh, but don’t worry about that today. After all, it is a day to celebrate! There is no need to worry about calories or nutrition. Stuff your face full of goodies, take in all your gifts, and bask in the endless attention; you certainly deserve it! 

I hope to see you soon, dear one. I can hardly wait to see the look on your face when you take a bite out of the cake I’ve prepared for you! 

- Lilia Vanrouge

[meowmeowmeowmeow4x]

Dark Blue Moon and the Suffering Sun Chapter 32

MASTAPOST

Samson S. Skulker. Wealthy real estate owner, noted trophy hunter.  Been on safaris in Botswana, Indonesia, India, and other countries taking big game. Guy hunted just about everything. Elephants, rhinos, tigers, elk, only to come to Elmerton Bay, just an hour away by boat from Amity Island.

It didn’t take two brain cells to figure out why. The better question was why Phantom tried to point webbed fingers at him as to the whereabouts of Danny Fenton, a move that was transparently (goddammit Dick and your puns) a lie, according to Bruce. Tim Drake slipped into the man’s more private records without even trying.

Of course, getting the data out and parsing what it meant were two very different things. But he wasn’t trained by Batman for nothing. Skulker did make cursory attempts at hiding his electronic paper trail, but cursory was absolutely not enough to keep 13-year-old Tim out, let alone his current self.

Firstly, the man absolutely hunted more exotic, more illegal creatures. That much was clear. Borrowing some of Barbara’s programmes, Tim found the man travelling to much more remote countries. His little vacations coincided with missing persons reports around the same time.

Missing metas, to be exact. Each person with a power set dangerous to themselves and others. Each person having disappeared without a trace and then never to be found again. The picture Tim was building was getting grimmer.

Secondly, the man was buying parts. Robotics parts, to be exact. Engines, weapons systems, hydraulics. Many of them sourced from Vladco, the company founded by Vlad Masters, an old college friend of Jack and Maddie Fenton, who were the parents to the missing teenager of Tim’s current case.

But Danny Fenton did not have the meta-gene, a fact Tim confirmed after yet another concerning breach of privacy. He filed that detail away for later investigating.

Tim pressed a key, letting his programmes run while he got a coffee. Oh sweet delicious coffee. He had once distilled almost pure caffeine into a syrup. It was the most horrible thing he’d tasted in his life, but the buzz kept him up all night, that was until his heart started giving out. That was less enjoyable.

What was also less enjoyable was the revving motorcycle heading into the Batcave. Two motorcycles, in fact. Just as Tim’s afternoon was looking to be peaceful and quiet.

“Don’t fucking give me that, Dickwing!” Jason called out.

“I’m fine, Jay, maybe you need to stop hovering over me like some mama bear.” Dick put down his helmet with maybe a little too much force.

Jason hopped off his own bike. “That’s bullshit and even Timbit knows it.”

Tim shrunk into the Batcomputer’s chair. He so did not want to be a part of this. He just waited for his older brothers to carry their argument out of earshot, like they had been doing regularly now. The men traded strong words with every footstep across the cave.

“Maybe I’m just a little high strung. It’s honestly nothing.”

“You literally cannot fucking say that when I saw you going full-ass Punisher five minutes ago. Like the traffickers yesterday were one thing. Those guys suck. This dude was literally just a mugger. Are you going out of your fucking mind?”

“Jason, I thought you were supposed to be the one who’s all for going full Punisher style?”

Jason groaned loudly, and then transitioned into a frustrated scream. “Do you even hear yourself?!”

The changing room door slammed shut.

That was the second argument in the last two days. If you told Tim that Mr Heads-in-a-Duffle would be lecturing the Golden Child over excessive force, he’d start working on a machine to send you back to the topsy-turvy alternate dimension you’d come from, but apparently his dimension was the topsy-turvy one the whole time. And he hated it.

Turns out Dick inherited more from Bruce than he liked to admit, including his awful coping mechanisms. And to be honest, he was way too tired to even begin to breach this subject.

He should be happy that his literal attempted murderer was going to be out of his hair for a good while, maybe even forever. But even entertaining the thought made him sick enough to avoid the topic in his head for hours, only to think about it again, and get himself sick again.

So back to Skulker it was. Joy.

It turned out his new friend Skulker had made himself a fucking Iron Man rip-off suit, capable of flight, diving, and packed to the gills with fuck-you bazookas, machine guns, and hydroplasm weapons. Hydroplasm guns that he’d sourced from the Fentons themselves, through a long and complicated chain of buyoffs.

And happy day, the man was kind enough to install cameras and microphones, and kept logs from both.

In a surprising twist, it was fiendishly difficult to hack into those logs. Tim was honestly beginning to sweat. He suspected Skulker’s friends at Vladco (namely Vlad Masters, the sleezeball. Tim never liked him at galas and this only cemented his low opinion) had some secrets that they didn’t want out.

No matter, it was only a matter of time. Tim continued typing.

And typing.

And typing.

What the hell was this firewall?! Tim pinched his arm just to make sure this wasn’t a sleep-deprivation hallucination. He could’ve sworn he’d gotten through that layer of security. It was like it was shifting itself to cover up his progress and force him to start over. Almost like it was alive.

Against the thunderous backdrop of his brothers’ clashing voices, Tim set himself on overdrive. If he could just act faster than it could correct itself, then maybe, maybe.

A plain error message informed him of the results long after he’d already seen them. Tim kicked the table for good measure. The only thing he could extract was two frames of video footage. They showed, respectively, a T-shirt and pair of sneakers that matched what one of the missing metas was wearing when they were last seen.

Was it damning evidence? Absolutely. But it also proved to him absolutely nothing that he wasn’t already suspecting, nothing that could point him in a new direction. Still, it made his stomach churn. He hoped those people would get a better second chance beyond the grave.

Maybe the fact that the data was this well-hidden at all proved something.

The locker room door swung open, his brothers in civvies and glaring at each other, trying to appear civil in front of (right behind) Tim, even though they’d literally just been shouting at each other ten minutes ago.

“Timmy!” Dick called out. “How long have you been awake?”

Tim gestured offhanded to his pile of only two used mugs. “Not long enough. I’m still working. Can you take it upstairs please?”

Jason huffed, and stalked off upstairs without a word, probably too disgusted to be in his and Dick’s presence much longer.

Dick clasped his hands. “It’s fine, Tim. Honestly. Jason and I are just having a little, err, disagreement, is all.”

“Hm.” Tim inputted another set of commands. He was starting to see why Bruce liked to say that now. Avoiding painful emotions felt so good. Dick made a pained noise.

“Well, ok. I’m just gonna head back to Bludhaven now. Say hi to Alfred for me! And contact me if you need anything!” And then he sped off.

Tim shook off the awkwardness like old clothes. Thank goodness for some peace and quiet again. Maybe that was why he was working so hard to help Bruce get the demon child back, so he could return to the status quo, and not this. This hell reality where Dick was as emotionally constipated as Bruce and Jason was the one acting as the voice of reason.

The first night when Bruce called home, the entire family was in an uproar. Dick got a pale look on his face, and was halfway about to take the Batplane and go searching for Damian himself, only for Bruce to remind him that they were all still needed in Gotham and Bludhaven, and whatever few leads there were, Bruce would pursue. It was effortlessly logical, but it was clear Dick hated it. He stormed off in a rage that Tim had only seen when Ethiopia was fresh, when he and Bruce were at their lowest.

And Jason? He got this look on his face that he’d never, ever seen before. Tim had laid awake one night just contemplating it for ages.

Actually, no. He had seen it once before. It was Tim caught Jason looking into what Bruce was doing in the months after Ethiopia. Tim had subtly hacked the phone camera, and the look Jason had then was the same as how he looked when Damian was declared missing.

Tim shook his head. It was a gruesome image, what Bruce had sent them. Damian’s clothes ripped to shreds. The ground stained with his blood. No body in sight.

A little brother who may or may not be dead, something he may or may not be glad or sick to his stomach about. Brothers who were acting like completely different people, and a monster of a man who had to be connected somehow.

A ping appeared in the corner of the screen. The government siren hunting branch appearing in Panama?

Sam Manson sat up in her bed, her body finding some way to release the dread and tension. She looked on at her phone in horror and macabre fascination in equal parts.

This had Danny written all over it. She didn’t even need to hear the anchor confirming it to know.

On the one hand, she really wanted to applaud him for fucking them up this bad. The comment section was ripping into the GiW for their actions in Panama, treating the country like it was some vassal state they could romp around in. She personally screenshotted the fucking beautiful mass car crash the GiW had gotten into trying to catch him, and saved it into her favourites folder.

On the other hand, she really wanted to slap him for fucking up this bad. This could’ve easily gone wrong. Danny what were you thinking?! They could’ve got him that time!

And finally, she wanted to yell in frustration, because they had a radio communicator there. Goddammit! If only Tucker had known, they he could’ve hacked in and they could’ve talked to their best friend and actually got an update on what the fuck was going on.

And finally, finally for real, she was so glad, because the GiW would’ve announced it on every news channel if they’d actually managed to catch him. Thank fucking goodness.

Ugh, this headache. She really needed to lie down again.

Knock, knock knock knock knock, knock knock.

Dread pooled in her stomach. “Come in,” she said, resigned to her fate.

Grandma Ida, the person she least wanted to see right now, opened the door. She was the kind of woman who never carried herself very seriously, except for in matters of sorcery, and especially when warning Sam on the dangers of her craft. Dangers that Sam had ignored in order to go all out. Now she marched into Sam’s bedroom like an executioner.

Grandma stood at the foot of Sam’s bed, scanning her closely. “I knew I smelled tinged blood.” She went up to the side, and palmed Sam’s forehead. Her hand was freezing cold to the touch. “You should’ve called me immediately.”

Sam averted her eyes. She should’ve, but she didn’t.

Her parents never failed to get a rise out of her; she rejected their notions of female beauty and social etiquette in every way, their attempts to hook her up with Tim Drake-Wayne, then Damian Wayne, and she hadn’t cowed to them or submitted since she was ten. But with Grandma’s withering disapproval, she couldn’t feel more like a child if she tried.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered.

“I warned you many times of the risks, Sammy. You’re lucky to be here, and not in the hospital or worse.”

“I know.”

Sam moved to lie on her side, facing away from Granny. Granny had questioned her decision to fight alongside Danny, but allowed it under the condition that she did so safely, and turning your body into a popping water balloon, but with blood, was so not the definition of safe.

And Danny’s fate was still in question regardless. He wasn’t able to cross Panama, and who knows what Damian was doing. What if it was all for naught?

A hand was put on her shoulder. “Did you accomplish what you were set out to do?”

Sam nodded. “Yeah.”

“And was it worth it?” Yes. Absolutely yes. Danny bled every day for this god-forsaken town of ingrates. He’d bled for her mistake six months ago.

Granny seemed to understand her feelings. She nodded, and ruffled Sam’s hair, and the tension in Sam’s body drained away.

“Then I trust your judgement. Can you sit up? I’ve brought some more medicine for you.”

Sam pushed herself against the bunched-up pillows at the headboard. Her head spun from the motion, but she was never one to let her body’s limits confine her. “Thank you, Bubbe. I love you.”

Granny passed her a brew of herbal medicine, dozens of dried spices and mushrooms brewed together into a blackened sludge that felt like knives into your tongue, but which never failed to get her feeling better. It was a leg up from what big pharma tried to pedal for ten-fold the price.

Sam lifted up the mug to her face. And, oh yeah. Nothing like bitter liquid pain to help with a migraine. She let the hot tea flow over her taste buds, pathing them in cinnamon, star anise and a million other things.

She finished her tea in one satisfying gulp, running her tongue over her teeth and scratching out the lingering aftertaste. As she put the mug down, it revealed Grandma’s face hovering right in front of her. Sam yelped in shock. “Bubbe! You gave me a heart attack!”

Bubbe smiled devilishly. “So what did you do?”

Sam’s mouth gaped open. Leave it to her Grandma to almost kill her from emotional whiplash.

“Now come on, this is a monumental moment for a budding young sorceress like yourself. Why, when I was twenty-two, I used to run with some heroic types myself. We had all sorts of hijinks together.” Bubbe cackled and clasped her hands, eyes going wispy. “My friends got a heart attack when I pulled off my own hare-brained scheme to topple the evil overlord of the week’s central command. Hah!”

“What?!” Then Sam coughed, and lowered her volume. “What do you mean ‘heroic types.’ You just told me you went to some stuffy academy and eloped.”

Bubbe shrugged. “I did do that. Must have forgotten the extra stuff.”

Sam blinked.

She moved to sit beside Sam on the bed. “We got up to a lot of fun back in the day, and a lot of pain too. I did what I did to protect those I cared for. Did you, bubbeleh?”

She held Sam’s hand with a look that reminded her just how many years Grandma had lived, and how many adventures or stories she had yet to tell, how much heartache she’d had to endure to become the woman she was now. “I projected an illusion all the way off the coast of Panama. It hurt like nothing else in my entire life, but…” She paused. “We got Phantom out. He’s safe now, I think.”

Grandma Ida nodded solemnly, the kind of understanding that Sam craved from her parents every waking moment of her teenage career.

“I don’t want this to be a regular occurrence, ok?”

“Yes, I promise. This was an extreme circumstance.”

“Good. Now, are you well enough for some meditation? It would do well to keep your soul energy flowing.”

Ok, but you have to tell me what you got up to back in the day.”

Granny chuckled, and agreed to it. Sam kicked off her covers, letting her legs get some fresh air. She was probably pushing it, but she needed to recover as quickly as possible. Who knew when she would be needed again?

Maddie Fenton kneeled in the sand. Her hands clamped down on her gun. Her knees shook. Tears prickled in her goggles.

Her baby was right there. He was so close. So fucking close. She could almost touch him, even now.

And he ran away from her. And at first her heart shattered into a million pieces, just like it had when he’d come home after his first disappearance and flinched when she hugged him.

Then she realised. He was protecting her. Some metal menace was shooting at her defenseless son like it was some kind of sick game. The monster of a man had laid fucking landmines on a public beach.

It should’ve been her protecting him.

Bruce Wayne returned to her side, empty handed. They’d scoured this entire beach. Danny couldn’t have gone far, she had thought, only for their search to turn up with nothing.

That left only one option. That her enemy doubled back after fleeing, and snatched Danny up without either her or Bruce noticing. Maddie’s heart sank. She should’ve aimed for the head.

A name pinged in her mind. Phantom had whispered it to her. Skulker.

With nary but nod, she and Bruce mounted their jet skis again.

[wordy-little-witch]

Is it bad to want to see more of Ghost Roger shenanigans? Because now that the man knows he can talk to the living world... The conversations, Perona is getting so many stories about Buggy and Shanks as children. Poor Buggy

OUGH yes absolutely give me an excuse to write about this bc it's so silly and it's arguably one of my most favorite things ever aaaaaa

Roger is just SO excited, and while he does have HUGE Girl Dad energy, he's hitting all the Dad Points. He's a Capital D Dad. The D in Gol D Roger stands for DAD and I cannot articulate this enough. It's hilarious. He's an idiot. He made so many mistakes but he always always ALWAYS did his best to do right by his kids and he loved them with every cell in his body. He was the type of parent who would have a wallet solely for the opportunity to flip it open dramatically and unroll a mile long strip of baby photos.

Even being dead won't stop him from gushing about his sons and embarrassing them.

Perona ultimately becomes his main focus because Fresh Meat, and she's just gobbling this up. They're mutually trying desperately to figure out how to get ghost pictures into the physical world. She has all the tea.

Up to and including walking up to Buggy one day during a cross guild meeting, no regard whatsoever for the "uncute and stuffy vibe" to instead redirect focus onto the Important Stuff.

"Hey Buggy, did you really once dress in drag ad a child to get free food at Fishman island"

Crocodile chokes on his cigar. Mihawk damn near does a spit take. Buggy just sighs.

"Yeah."

"Are there pictures"

"Somewhere probably"

"Can I h-"

"No"

"Booo you're mean! Grandpa Roger said I could"

Buggy then manages to somehow snort and gasp, coughing harshly as his whiskey drips from his nose. "GRANDPA WHO?!?!?!"

Meanwhile Roger is floating in the upper corner in full gremlin pose as he cackle like the menace he is. ((And no he does not flinch when Buggy side eyes him aggressively while cleaning his face.... he just..... decided suddenly and with no particular reason to avoid his clown child's room for the next three to five business weeks. Pranks can be played elsewhere. No, he isn't scared of his most unhinged child.... of course not............ ((the old scar from a tiny mouth clamping on his ankle aches a little, but he's very good at ignoring things))))

All of this is, ofc, not even touching on the hijinks the kids got up to together. Perona has SO much blackmail!!!

[dreamylyfe-x]

Hi, I am pretty new to the Shameless/gallavich Fandom but first I LOVE YOUR FICS

Second, I've read some of your meta and I don't know about soaps but novelas and kdramas under my belt, I agree the come and go of Noel probably saved them from drama in later seasons, they probably have had them broke at one point also, they refused to make Mickey a principal, but one of my fav parts of s4 is that he finally gets his own arc (pimp and all that apart) and I'd have loved to see him explored outside his relationship with Ian

Hey! What an amazing surprise this is!

First of all, thank you.

Second: Novelas, kdramas (I have watched my share of t-dramas -- Devil Besides Me and Meteor Garden forever), Shondaland -- they will all give you the gist of that soap experience. My feeling is that we'd get a season six where both Mickey and Ian sort of struggle to figure out their adult lives -- and that's probably a decent enough story. They likely marry them in season seven. And then they spent seasons 8-11 (or however many seasons they get to keep them) messing them up. Not because Shameless burns plot the way soaps and novelas do, but because 11 seasons is a lot. And at some point they will decide they need conflict for Gallavich and that conflict will be in the era of Gay Jesus-type writing and I'm confident we'd have been very upset by it.

I will say I don't think they so much refused to make Mickey a principle as they didn't know for sure what they wanted to do with American Mickey or where he fit into their pretty full roster. Like, there was always a chance for him, since I believe his British counterpart sticks around, but he's not filling the same role that US Shameless Mickey does. Also, shows has a budget and I can completely see how they might not have had the money for him until season three.

In season five, Cam and Noel did an interview with Buzzfeed where the EP, Etan Frankel, talks about how Mickey turned into the character he'd become at that stage, and it's clear that they don't quite know where they're going with him, and then once they shoot 1x7 they know they've got something interesting to pursue. There are a lot of moving factors in making use of that, though, including Cam's age and how ian's character balances out with his siblings in terms of storyline. Gallavich get one of the most dramatic moments of the entire series in season three and I think that's really when they shift into being primaries on the show. More and more, they start to drive fan engagement online and that sets up season four where, absolutely, Mickey vaults ahead in terms of how much the show is paying to his inner life.

Part of that is because Cam is off filming The Giver, so he's not around for half the season, but I think the other part is what Etan is talking about in the Buzzfeed article -- they just know Noel can deliver. I particularly always think about this quote, in regards to both Noel and Cam as individual performers, but also when I think about their creative partnership:

As a writer, you feel secure writing a scene knowing they're going to knock it out of the park and they'll find things you didn't necessarily intend, so you find beautiful moments. It's exciting to see those dailies come back and saying, Oh wow, that wasn't even a moment in the script, but they've made it become a moment.

I know this is why we get so much Mickey in the first half of season 4. Not just that he needs to carry the torch for Gallavich by himself but because the writer's room knows they can give him that scene with the picture in the bathroom and the performance will convey how much Mickey misses Ian. This is also clearly when he essentially becomes a point-of-view character -- and he continues to be until he leaves the show in season six. So many key moments in those two seasons, particularly around Ian's illness, rely on the audience seeing Mickey's reactions and moments of realization. His confusion in 4x12. His reaction to the suitcases. His meltdown after Ian is hospitalized, where virtually his entire reaction is silent across two episodes. It's really great that they trusted him to do that. It's one of the reasons I think the story works so well.

Anyway. I find it a little jarring, when Mickey comes back, that he isn't quite the POV character he was. It improves in season 11 and we get more Mickey-centred storylines. But I feel consistently (particularly in the late seasons when I'm really not that invested in the rest of the story) that there was a lot more room to use Mickey the way they used to. But by then, it's a different kind of show.

[in-hav3n]

Ok so hear me out. Would you please write me this fantasy:

This one is kinda more fluffy but I have that stupid PHOBIA of insects and spiders and moths. I need him to either get rid of the bug for me or kill it for me or something. Makes me feel so single imagining a cute little domestic scenario like that, and him laughing at you screaming and the way you stand so far back from the quarantined area watch from behind a door and he smiles at you acting like a little girl (not in a weird way btw, like he imagines briefly what you were like as a child in a cute way) and how you initially scream BLOODY MURDER, probably knocking shit down and then plundering down the stairs aggressively shaking down your clothes saying “IT FEELS LIKE ITS ON ME” and he is in the garage or something and hears the commotion and comes in looking ALL KINDS OF FUCKING FOINE. Then he just effortlessly gets rid of it, but pretends to throw it on you maybe or if not that he pretends to be afraid of it like you before just getting rid of it. The era I’m picturing… um, like 2003. Gimme some beef😏

THANK YOU FOR EVEN CONSIDERING THIS AND YED. If you create this, good things will happen to you, thags just how it works tbh.

𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄

WARNINGS : horrible spider lol

It was a rainy Sunday in San Fransisco. Winter was slowly coming, bringing a smooth and fresh atmosphere to the city. After sharing delicious breakfast with your boyfriend, you both decided to go back to your own businesses of the day. James went to his garage to do some handy work on this new old car he recently bought while you decided to spend more time in the kitchen, enjoying this morning peacefulness.

You grabbed a coffee mug and sat down at the table to read some local newspaper brought by the postman yesterday. You weren't really in a hurry this morning and it felt good. You just wanted to enjoy this tranquility you couldn't have during the week. But someone else asked for your attention first. A slight bark and a head bump reminded you that it was time to feed your dog Disco.

"Oh I'm sorry buddy, you were outside and we forgot you", you said to him, quickly getting up to put some food into his plate. "What horrible owners are we, uh?", you scratched his ears and he completely forgot your mistake as soon as he started to devour his meal.

You gave him one last little smile before going back to your reading. You took a sip of your hot beverage and let out a sigh of satisfaction. Being at home was the best feeling in the world. James would be there for at least a month and you already planned many things to do. Including best cuddling sessions after weeks of separation. What you did last night actually and the thought of it is enough to make you smile.

Twenty minutes later, you were still reading, humming a song you had in mine for a while as you were turning the pages. You could also heard James' electric devices from the garage but you didn't mind. You liked when he was busy and when he was at home. You always missed his presence so much.

But suddenly, your smile faded, as soon as you felt something on your bare leg. You froze for a short time, wondering what it was. Probably Disco moving around but...then you realized he was sleeping peacefully near the dishwasher, belly full.

You froze more. If it wasn't Disco, then what could it be? You didn't dare to check and let your mind giving you a picture of the thing that probably was on you. Maybe just a envy to scratch your skin, after all you shaved two days ago...but then, your mind brought you less funny pictures. What if it was a bee? A fly ? A moth ? Or something worse like...a spider ?

You gulped and didn't move. You wanted to see if this feeling was your imagination or if something was really on you so you leaned a bit on your chair but you couldn't see what was under the table. You was kinda reassured when you didn't feel anything for a while when brusquely it moved again. And now you started to panic...

Your breath just increased and you looked around, searching for a solution. You closed your eyes when you felt this "thing" literally walking on your skin...You couldn't take this anymore. With a gasp of fear, you quickly pushed this horrible thing from you, shaking your leg the best you could as you back your chair away in a full speed.

"Oh my god, oh my god!", you mumbled as moving around, searching for a safe place somewhere, far from the monster and landed standing on the couch. Disco looked at you with curious eyes and tilted his head on his side, asking you what was going on. You panted hard, waiting for a sign of the beast. Until it finally showed up, walking peacefully before stopping near your chair.

When your eyes landed on it, you felt another rush of fear. It was a big black spider, with horrible long legs. It could have had the size of a tarantula cause it was absolutely big. No way you were going to kill it by yourself.

"JAMES!", you shouted as loud as you can, when you heard a silence coming from the garage. He wouldn't have heard you with his machines. You heard some other noises and screamed for his name again, adding a little "QUICK ! HELP ME". With that you were sure he'd come in a hurry. And two minutes later indeed, heavy footsteps were heard and then the door was opened.

He looked around, thinking he'd find you in the kitchen but then noticed the chair on the floor and your presence in the living room. "What are you doing there ? Is there a problem, I heard you screaming", he explained with a frown, wondering what you were doing on the couch.

"Oh James please help me!", you begged, almost shaking of fear. "You have to kill it, please!".

"What should I kill ?", he asked again, still curious about the situation.

"This horrible monster near the kitchen table! Please, please do something, it's a big tarantula, an horrible giant tarantula", you explained as pointing out the place where it was. James frowned and walked in the direction, searching for the "monster" you were talking about. He stopped near the beast and suddenly cracked a laughter.

"This monster?", he knelt down to observe it closer.

"James, are you mad ?! Go away from that thing and smash it please!", you begged when you saw him. Was he crazy? Intrigued too, Disco woke up to check what James was doing. "Ha! Wait, Disco is too close baby, please push him away and do something!".

"Sweetheart, calm down...it's only a little spider...", he said softly as he got up, searching for something to smash it while Disco was sniffing it.

"Little spider? Are you kidding me? This monster was on my leg, I can tell you this isn't little AT ALL!", you replied, scratching your legs like if you could still feel it on you. James giggled more and finally found something to smash it with. He kneeled again and you looked at him, hoping this horrible beast would be out of this world very soon.

When James tried to smash it the first time with one of his shoe, he missed it. And you saw the spider walking faster in your direction. Without thinking twice, you screamed loud and high as you can as you jumped faster over the couch to run till the stairs where you finally stayed, feeling safer.

"James please, you can kill a beast with a fucking gun from afar, don't tell me you can't kill this fucking spider !", you begged again, scanning every movement of it to see if it wouldn't come in your direction.

'Hey I do my best!", he replied as he walked to the spider, Disco following him as well. He focused on his target and let his shoe falling down on to, finally smashing it down. "Got it!".

You sighed of relief when you see the horrible beast wasn't on your floor but stuck on the back of his shoe. What a luck James was at home, you wouldn't have been able to do that on your own. You'd have probably stayed outside till he'd have come back home...

"Nothing to worry about baby. It was just a little spider. You know this couldn't have killed you, right ?".

"Oh no, she could have! Believe me! I know this horrible...AAAH!", you screamed louder, jumping from the stairs when James came closer to tease you. He ran after you with his shoe exposed.

"Are you sure?", he said, giggling like a goofy.

"James! C'mon stop this!", you begged, almost like a little girl but it was stronger than you. Insects, and spiders actually, were your biggest fear. "I really ask you to stop, please!"

"Oh c'mon", he chuckled and put the shoe away, near the main door. He'd get rid of the spider later. Instead he came closer to wrap his big arms around you.

"I warn you, if you have this damn fucking spider with you, I'll kill you", you warned him, already preparing yourself to run away again. But James wrapped his arms around you, reassuring you.

"Don't worry baby", he gently said, amused by your attitude. "I have nothing with me, I just want to protect you against a tiny spider". You snuggled into his beefy arms and hid your face against his comforting chest.

"That's not funny at all, you know how much I fear those monsters", you mumbled, asking for some comfort he gave you soon. He rubbed your back, whispering some "hush" near your ear.

"I know baby and you're so cute when you're afraid like this", he smiled and kept doing his gestures to comfort you. You blushed a little but he couldn't see. At least, he thought your childish's reaction was cute. "And you know I'd protect you from any threat...big and little threats", he said.

"This is my man!", you answered, feeling safe in his arms...

A/N : Thank you sweet anon for your ask! I'm sorry for the delay, I needed some time to feel the inspiration coming back :( Hope you'll enjoy it, I had fun writing this!

[matan4il]

Hi!

Ah, how do you argue with a rabid antisemite who won't even consider for a second that they're wrong? 🙃

Someone I followed posted something about Israel being a "settle colonialist project", so I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they're just ignorant and don't know the history of the land and/or Judaism. I sent them a message basically saying that considering Israel a settler colony is super problematic and antisemitic as it entirely erased the deep link between Jewish people and their ancestral homeland.

Well this person then went OFF the rails, spouting some of the most awful rhetoric I've ever read. You know, like 95% of Israelis are just white Americans playing dress up as middle easterners and have no historic claim to the land, Jews aren't the only Semites so she couldn't possibly be antisemitic (🙄🙄), Jews and Israel are the new Nazis and white supremacists, evil murderous baby killers etc.

She insisted that she was incredibly educated on the subject (!!!) and that I was the ignorant one, and I just don't understand how we're supposed to handle people like this, who are so full of hate that they can't be reasoned with. I guarantee that if any other minority told them that they were doing something offensive or racist they'd stop immediately and be incredibly apologetic. What makes us Jewish people so different?

😔

I just really needed to vent and for someone to confirm that I'm not the crazy one.

Thank you! 💞

Hi, lovely!

Let me start by assuring you that you are absolutely NOT crazy. And I am so sorry that you, and so many of us, have had to go through this experience, of encountering someone being that awful. I'm sending you lots of hugs, I know it's not much of a comfort, but you are not crazy, and you are NOT alone.

"She insisted that she was incredibly educated"

I've seen that happening so much. I wish they'd realize this is so false and condescending. No, reading lots of anti-Israel propaganda does NOT make them educated on this. No, using the propaganda to de-legitimize and silence the people most affected by the conflict, way more than these people are, is not okay, it is NOT the sign of an educated person (those truly educated can carry a debate about it, they don't need to silence others. In fact, many times they want to have a debate, because they're secure enough in their knowledge and information, that it does not threaten them. They don't need to block out challenges in order to be sure that their narrative won't fall apart) and it is INCREDIBLY patronizing. It's like a straight person lecturing me on what it's like to be gay, except only presenting the most homophobic idea one can picture of it. It's condescending on top of being hateful.

And I say this as someone who has lived this conflict her entire life, but also works at a Holocaust museum, which researches the Holocaust in particular, genocide in general, and Jewish history, including this specific chapter. You think any of these Israel haters care that they're lecturing someone with way more knowledge and experiences of this conflict than them? With more real life Israeli AND Palestinian friends than they have? Who has probably done more in her line of work to combat hate and the path to genocide than their keyboard fighting ever will? Do they stop and listen when we talk about the actual definition of Zionism, genocide, or even just some basic facts about the current war, like how many Palestinian terrorist organizations Israel is fighting? Nothing gets through.

So the most important thing I wanna tell you is to PLEASE not feel bad if you don't get through to this person. I think it is noble and brave to try. I have with some people who I mistakenly thought there was a chance they'd listen. And I never do it from a place of hate for Palestinians, because I do not hate them. I know enough of them who are great people, and I sincerely want the good people on both sides to have a better life. I always speak from a place of looking at the facts, current and historic. I believe it matters. We can't solve a conflict that we don't understand, and we aren't promoting any understanding (we're not helping in solving it) by spreading intentional lies about the essence of the cnflict. I've been translating the docu about Amin al-Husseini, because he's someone who infused the conflict with religious hate and antisemitic thinking. If we don't understand that, if we pretend this is just about land and liberation, we will never be able to address the true core issues of the conflict, and we won't be able to solve it, and provide the good people on both sides with this better life they deserve.

That's what I can offer to you, to speak about your experiences, the experiences of those you know or have heard of, who are affected, to speak from a place of care, and to insist on truth and facts.

That said, as you can understand, it doesn't always work. Some people I've tried with, they were just not willing to listen. When they stated something wrong, and I gave them a correction linked to a fact checked source, and they still ignored it and repeated their ignorant claims, that means they don't want to listen.

Which means that this false narrative serves some sort of need they have. Otherwise, if the facts that someone is presented with undermine their narrative, that should make them stop and question it. Stop and reevaluate why, if their narrative is true, do they get so many facts wrong? I'm not talking here about something like was this specific tweet or that particular vid true. I'm talking about basic facts, like denying that Jews are from Israel, are native here, and therefore have native rights here, that can't be erased with it being antisemitic.

What's the need that it serves? There are different motivations, one person can have more than one reason to choose to ignore the suffering of Israelis and Jews, but at the end of the day, what they all have in common, is that they're enabled by a certain degree of either antisemitism, or ignorance, or both. Antisemitism can be a sense of indifference regarding Jews, our well being, our safety, our rights, and it can also be based in a certain distorted view of Jews. And I just have to say that a certain lack of knowledge can lead to the latter even among Jewish people, even when it doesn't lead to antisemitism and hatefulness. It's just... Jews are so misrepresented, so... under-discussed. You will not believe how many times I've asked American Jewish visitors to our Holocaust museum how many Jews there are in the world, and they greatly overestimated the number. It doesn't point to anything bad about them, but it does reflect that they're a product of American society, where Jews are (even culturally) misrepresented as being far more omnipresent than we are (while also barely giving us our own voice).

Sorry, I know this got long. I guess because my answer to your first question, regarding arguing with a rabid antisemite is... you try you best, with care, and with facts. But you also mustn't feel bad if it doesn't work. If people have a vested interest in not listening to you, they won't. And it is not your fault. And also, you have to take care of yourself, too. So it's okay to stop and ask yourself every once in a while, whether a specific fight is one worth fighting. If it's someone that matters to you, and that you wanna stay in touch with, it may be even when things don't look hopeful. If it's a public argument, and there's a chance that this person won't listen to you, but a third party might read your replies and get something from them, then it may also be worth keeping up the debate then. But there are also times when, if you tried, and the person is insistent on not listening, and the odds of anything positive coming out of it are slim to none, it's also okay to take care of yourself, to disengage, and stay the hell away from someone that antisemitic.

IDK if this helps, but I really hope so, and I am sending you a lot of hugs, love, support and encouragement! And if you ever wanna ask me anything in order to have that as help in confronting antisemites, I will do my best for you. Take good care, lovely! xoxox

(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)

[pain-is-too-tired]

Honestly,I think one of the reasons I hate how quickly the writing in TLO onward dropped mentioning Michael so fast is, not only cause I think he's a really interesting character and I love the Lil guy, but-

It's very likely that without his quick thinking, Kronos mightve won.

That, theoretically he dies before he can point out the fault in the bridge to Percy, maybe he's one of the demigods that Kronos knocks off earlier in the battle or something.

Percy is too focused on his fight with Kronos to notice the fault of have the same plan that Michael had, even more so with Annabeth being hurt and Michael being dead his fighting with a lot of grief and rage at that point (I mean, if he screams so loud it carried off into the air after he can't find Michael in canon, I imagine seeing him knocked off by Kronos along side Annabeth being hurt as well is gonna have him pretty upset.)

But at that point he's fighting mostly on his own, even if the living members of the Apollo cabin jump back in to help they're still highly outnumbered.

Percy might be mostly invincible with the Achilles curse, but it doesn't give him infinite energy. And not only is he fighting Kronos, but if Kronos told his army to back him up again they very much will. And 1 on gods know how many monsters and demigods ain't gonna do good

Especially since I'm sure Kronos is fully aware that Percy is gonna to avoid killing demigods as much as possible. And Kronos is willing to kill his own demigods so he's not holding anything back.

Maybe Percy's grief and rage might get him to be a tiny more reckless, but it's just a very bad situation if he doesn't notice the fault or manage to break the bridge in time.

Now if Kronos manages to wear Percy down enough to overwhelm him or whatever, idk exactly what he do after that? Find a way to keep him contained or attack every spot until he finds his weak point(like tigerclaw telling bluestar he'd keep killing her until all 9 lives were gone.) And we already know he had some close idea of where his weak spot was after Annabeth jumped in front of the knife sooo-

Anyway, yeah- so if both Michael and Percy are taken out the picture in the first battle, and Kronos marches on, there's multiple things that's gonna probably ensure his win.

1. He's likely gonna wipe out the rest of the Apollo cabin once he deals with Percy, which includes Will, and 11-12 year old Kayla and Austin(I'm mentioning their age mainly cause MY GODS THEY WERE BABIES)

2.Without an Apollo kid to heal Annabeth, I'm pretty sure it's heavily implied she wouldn't have made it. Like the Hunter's healing would not been enough. So they're out Annabeth too

3. The party ponies don't come until after Hyperion and all that iirc(like the end of the second night i think?) So there's no saving from them unless Chiron manages to convince them earlier but I'm running on the idea that it happens about the same as in canon with the Party Ponies.

4. Ares cabin doesn't come until the final day in canon. Now with this maybe Silena is able to report that Percy, Annabeth (if she dies before Silena goes to get the Ares cabin, at least she able to say Annabeth not looking good.),Michael, and the whole Apollo cabin been wiped out, and that might knock some sense into Clarisse to get her going earlier. But even then if Clarisse doesn't manage to get blessing of Ares somehow or whatever, they still might be cooked on that end in some form.

5. Hades, Persephone and Demeter probably wouldn't have made it in time either, maybe if Nico gets even more pushy after sensing Percy's death they might, but it's really up in the air how that'll work out and what would happen if they did get there earlier.

6. Poseidon is still focused on his fight in Atlantis, and without Percy he probably would jump in to take out Typhon. Maybe he might somehow go full rage of he manages to sense/ learn of Percy's death, but that's up in the air and, Like with 5, no telling how exactly that'll play out.

7. Gods likely will keep fighting Typhon. Which if the demigods and nature spirits are wiped out then Kronos going really have more freedom to tear down the thrones and wreck Olympus.

8. Rachel is a wild card, like maybe if she senses Percy might die at the bridge she might try to get to Manhattan before the battle even starts. But there's a lot of uncertainty if she could get there in time and everything. So that's up in the air at least

Over all, the BoM was 3 days of very close calls. The fact that the managed to push through each time by the hair of their chin is incredible and was built on a lot of lucky events.

Like a tower of cards. Remove one card the whole tower goes down.

And Michael's sacrifice was one of the cards that definitely kept Kronos from winning. And the fact that Rick doesn't even bother to finish his arc (We don't see Clarisse reaction to his death nor do we learn if his body was found or not, not even a burial shroud described, the chariot situation was solved off screen and then completely destroyed the next book. Like Rick did not give a care in the world about Michael after the bridge dhdyd)

It's very much a frustrating thing to me because how much Michael's death could've been something that really drove Percy in battle at least in one of the battles after Williamsburg Bridge. Heck, not only him connecting Ethan to Annabeth getting hurt but with Michael's death because he was there(even if he had nothing to do with it, Percy's at least gonna be frustrated with grief.)

The scene after Percy breaks the bridge is one of my favorites, because the small details. Kronos still looking a bit smug when he retreats. Percy's frantic search when he sees Michael's missing, HES SCREAM CARRYING INTO THE MORNING.

THE FACT MICHAEL DIES AS THE SUNS COMES UP,THAT HIS FINAL MOMENTS HE STILL GETS TO BE UNDER HIS FATHER'S LIGHT. THAT WILL RISES TO HIS POSITION AT DAWN-

And just. Michael Yew my beloved.

[spot-the-antisemitism]

All right. This isn't exactly antisemitism, but it's adjacent. I'm sorry for disturbing you, I'm just trying to make a closing comment to my anon asks.

Hello. I am a person who prefers to remain anonymous because I don't want my blog to be associated with political discourse. So far, I sent exactly three anons where I use my self description as an Israeli Orthodox Zionist Jew as the only signature (though another thing two of them have in common is length). I have sent some time ago an ask to Feygaleh, asking her to hear me out in an attempt to de-escalate the situation between her and most of Jumblr with full awareness that it's not very likely to succeed. I tried (among other reasons) because she was relatively new to Tumblr, so I thought she couldn't be too deep. I was not aware of everything she posted on the topic of antizionism and antisemitism.

So, when she said she was willing to hear me out I sent her another ask, detailing a certain outlook at some things - it was relatively tame and was more about tolerance and two theoretical extremes on the scale of Zionism - both with the fundamental flaw of excluding everyone who disagrees with them and not accepting Judaism that isn't Just Like Them. A link will be supplied in the end.

Feygaleh published my ask without saying much on it. That would've been the end of it. But because I've asked on anon and thus wouldn't have been notified of the answer, I was visiting Feygaleh's page regularly to see if she answered. And that led me directly to Mossadspypidgeon's reply on Feygaleh's post about Shabbat.

What I did next was pretty foolish, and a result of me possibly perceiving Feygaleh's willingness to listen as more significant than it probably was. And I didn't really enjoy seeing someone harassing someone else on a post that has nothing to do with antizionism. So, I sent Mossadspypidgeon an ask explaining why I think she's been acting in hypocrisy (one if her reblogs of the aforementioned Shabbat post talked about harassing people on unrelated posts. That... Didn't end up well. She insinuated I was defending an antisemite, sending pictures of myriads of posts by Feygaleh - including one when she reblogged Black September, which I was not aware of. In addition, she insinuated that Feygaleh wasn't Jewish at all and obviously enough doubted my self identifications - which, fair, I really can't give receipts for those, not yo speak of anon. I didn't intend to use it as a way to legitimize my criticism, I just really needed a recognizable signature because I didn't want to be mixed up with other anons. And one of the reblogs apparently suggested that I'm STA? Which, I can't really refute all things considered (still anon), but I'm pretty sure my writing style is distinctive enough from theirs, even though I was a little too cynical and sarcastic in the latter ask.

I'm sending this to you because you seemed to be slightly closer to my views on Feygaleh and this affair - the view that she's probably a Jewish antizionist, and that harassing her on unrelated posts isn't good.

I'm sending this as closure - I don't intend to write any more anon asks on the topic, not to speak of talking about it in my blog. Mossadspypidgeon gave me a stark reminder of why I don't do that - my blog can't have any more credentials than an anon ask regarding my identity.

On that topic, I would say I was trying to develop a way to identify people it's safe to talk to about Israel - based on how many times and in what contexts they mention Judaism or the Jewish people. People who have zero posts mentioning those or just ones about Queer Jews are probably fine, ones where Jews are only mentioned in relation to I/P as tokenization are worrying and probably problematic. And the easiest (though not necessarily certain) meter for if someone is really Jewish is how many posts simply talking about Jewish life they have. With blogs like yours - blogs that focus on talking about antisemitism for the most part - it doesn't really work, though.

Feel free to not answer this ask, as it technically doesn't have much to do with you. Here's the link to my second ask to Feygaleh: https://www.tumblr.com/feygaleh/768809808901128192

I would prefer to not supply a link to my ask to Mossadspypidgeon, but in the spirit of full honesty: https://www.tumblr.com/mossadspypigeon/768960817988288512

That sums up what I've done here, I'm not sure I added any good to the world if I'm being honest, which is another reason for me to stop. So, thank you for answering my ask*, and goodbye. Oh, and sorry for dumping it on you.

---

*no one will see it if you don't answer, so it's sensible to say this!

here's my own reply to it like Feygaleh and Mossadspypigeon have had their little nemesis spat but really the idea that if someone is faking Jewish they deserve harm and harasment is terrible and why she blocked me AFTER unblocking me solely to get screenshots from me so yeah she's definantly using me but I feel like Feygaleh is tokenizing you instead of having a real convo with an Israeli, the fact that you are anonymous and don't have posts Faygeleh could disagree with or be upset by makes you the perfect token Jew

"With blogs like yours - blogs that focus on talking about antisemitism for the most part - it doesn't really work, though." No actaully the way a Jew and a gentile talk about antisemitism is completely different, I think you can tell I experience it first hand when I talk about it so no. I disagree

and the reason she blocked me? I defended her instead of staying silent and let her get abuse!

Be free of drama and go have closure anon,

Cecil

[wolfsbanesparks]

Bouncing in here like a madman again

Do you think Captain Marvel (seperate from Billy) considers the Wizard SHAZAM as their father as a sort of creator and creation relationship? Giving room for Billy and grandpa wizard relationship kinda?

I've had a lot of sugar today, so I'm not sure how that sounds, but I kept thinking about your fic, "Split", and how if things took a different turn and Captain Marvel revealed he existed because of the Wizard, would the JL come to the assumption that the wizard was his father/Billy's grandfather?

Or if things took an angstier turn, if Captain Marvel let slip accidentally that he didn't believe that the death of Billy's mother (and actual father) was a genuine accident/had suspicions about it, how would they react? Would they suspect the wizard bc of all the suspicions they're having? Also, I'm not sure if I remember, but did the JL get to have a conversation with the wizard?

Kinda factors into that one ask I sent before, where the gods killed the parents of the champions of magic to challenge and prepare them without them knowing, which might include the wizard, too. (Sorry, I re watched the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 recently and it's been doing numbers on my little mind)

In all seriousness you could write an AU for your fics and we'd eat it all up and ask for seconds because your writing creates a universe of wonder for us.

That was a lot, wow :0

Okay first of all you are so sweet! It's driving me crazy (in a good way) that I can discuss AUs of my fics!

I think that the Wizard already plays a sort of wise grandfather figure to Billy (in my preferred version of him) regardless of Captain Marvel's feelings towards the Wizard.

But I think it's totally logical for Captain Marvel to think of the Wizard as a creator figure, especially in his current incarnation since it was just Shazam who made him instead of a full Wizard's Council. There's respect between them, but Marvel also wants to make Shazam proud, wants to prove he's a good Champion. And I think that can translate to a father-son type dynamic even if it's a lot more complicated than that.

If we're talking Split in particular, the JL "met" the Wizard but Shazam didn't bother talking to any of them so their many confusions and suspicions didn't get brought up to him directly.

But if they had reason to believe Shazam was Marvel’s father, Flash in particular would have been having a freak out because the Wizard would have gone from possibly sketchy mentor to controlling and possibly abusive father/grandfather. He might have even had more people on his side if that was the case (especially if we add in the idea that the Batsons were killed as some kind of test of Billy’s pure heart).

There would still be those who insist that they shouldn't get in the middle of their complicated and potentially messy family situation. But there would also be those who wonder if Marvel had a choice in becoming a hero if his father was the one who imbued him with his powers because it was his "destiny". I can definitely picture Marvel bluescreening if someone asked him if he'd had a choice in being a hero (he didn't, and Billy didn't either) or if he'd ever wanted something else for himself (it had never occurred to him that he could be anything else because he was created to fight evil). His answer would definitely send up some red flags to whoever he's talking to.

There are so many cool ways having people think Shazam is Marvel’s father could play out and it would be so fun to explore that.

And since you mentioned it, while I don’t currently have plans to write an AU of my fics, I AM completely open to other people writing AUs of my fics if they are inspired enough to do it! So long as you credit me as the original author/check the Inspired By box when you post, I encourage you to go for it!

[bismuthburnsblue]

YOU SELECTED: WING COLLAR

and thats the collar! it was pretty close in the end, but wing collar just pulled through- ill be real with you guys, i have NO idea how im going to go about making this part of the pattern, but i hope you'll find some entertainment in listening to me figure it out!

I think that makes pretty much all out major decisions on this project! i could definitely run several more polls about the details on this dress, but it, at the very least, feels too far out on the making to really be thinking about the fine tuning, for me! maybe ill put up a couple more a few months down the line, huh?

but before we go, right at the beginning of this, i mentioned the chance of doing an overlay to tone down this fabric, and now im offering you the choice! ive pulled two fabrics from my stash for you to vote on!

As usual, images and personal thoughts under the readmore :)

heres the options! above is it laid out over the full length, below is them laid out with each other- i think below is a far better example of the reality (the chiffon REALLY washed out in the picture, but i wanted to include both to give you as many visuals as possible

(below: top=dot, middle=none, bottom=chiffon)

my main interest in doing an overlay is that i worry that the fabric is too vibrant for me to get a reasonable amount of wear out of this garment- i am very much an all black bitch, and this fabric actually has quite a lot going on. i think if its toned down a bit i would reach for it more.

However. any overlay is going to instantly make the sewing process a good deal harder. chiffons and mesh are much more finnicky fabrics to work with than the plain cotton, and even with flat lining it, its going to be a bit of a challenge to make sure the layers stay nicely together and the top fabric isnt bubbled over or tucked anywhere. im also concerned flat lining simply wouldnt be enough for the skirt panels, being as big as they are, and that a top layer will gape away and hide the design completely

On top of that, the chiffon blocks out a lot more of the design than i was really going for, honestly. its very covered in person. you can get sheer-er chiffons, but i wasnt planning on buying anything new for this. counter to that, i also feel maybe the mesh doesnt block out enough? in person i had to flip it back and forth to really see the way it affects the colours.

i also also feel like. it immediately makes it feel more formal to me? takes it from a plain cotton dress, to something Fancy- im not sure that makes sense, but thats the way it feels to me. this isnt really pro/con, just. a thing to consider.

(i guess on that note- i worry it may make it less washable? a more delicate garment? i have an overlocker but its still stress on a potentially delicate fabric)

i think the tldr of all of that is. i have many concerns about doing an overlay. but if it goes well, it may make the dress significantly more wearable to my style, which is always an important factor to consider. i really am trying to make more things i will truly Wear, so its a thing i have to consider.