#I hope he'll be fully recovered soon

[i-heart-hxh]

December 14th Togashi tweet!!

Togashi says, "The storyboard for one more chapter is done.

I lost 5 kg while I was bedridden. The banana I had on the 3rd day of fasting was so delicious I almost cried."

[edenesth]

The Way to His Heart [19]

Pairing: general!Seonghwa x wife!reader

AU: arranged marriage au (Joseon era)

Word Count: 3.9k

Summary: Life has been hell ever since your mother's passing many years ago. Despite being from a prominent family, you've never received the privileges associated with it. It only got worse with the arrival of your stepmother and her daughters. When the intimidating General Park was in search of a wife, your father seized the opportunity to dispose of you, simultaneously securing a connection with the powerful general—killing two birds with one stone.

Part 18 | Fic Masterlist | Part 20

"What do you mean it will take weeks for me to fully recover? I don't have that kind of time, Yunho. This war isn't over yet." Your husband frowned, his gaze fixed on the physician from his position on the bed.

You sighed, stepping closer to the doctor, your concern evident, "Seonghwa, Physician Jung is doing his best. How can you return to battle if you're not physically strong enough? What good will that do, hm? And remember, you've acknowledged Officer Song's strategic prowess. Perhaps it's time to have a little faith in him for now."

Like magic, your words softened the general's hardened expression as he nodded in defeat, "Fine, I suppose you're right," He offered you a smile before turning back to Yunho, "I trust you've at least written back to Mingi to assure him I'm fine, right?"

"It's done, my lord."

"That's good; things should be stable for now. We dealt a significant blow to the Ruhon forces in our last battle. It's unlikely they'll launch any new attacks soon, considering their diminished numbers. If things continue to go well, this war might conclude sooner than expected." Seonghwa remarked, feeling optimistic.

"I certainly hope so, for everyone's sake. I made sure to inform Officer Song that you'll need a few weeks to recover. If they need you urgently, I'm sure he'll write back promptly," The physician assured, relieved to see your husband immediately agree with him, calming down so quickly with your presence, "Yes, I'm sure he will." Yunho knew for certain that without you there, he would have had a much harder time attempting to soothe the older man's frustration.

Sensing the general's longing gaze toward you, the doctor suppressed a knowing grin. Understanding that he was interrupting your much-needed private moment, he decided it was time to leave you both alone. With a final bow, he excused himself, "Well, that's all from me for now. I'll return tomorrow for your bandage change and medication. Good day, General Park and Lady Park."

After the physician left the room, you approached Seonghwa to ensure his comfort, tucking the comforters snugly around him and adjusting the pillow behind his back. His eyes remained fixed on your face, which he had missed dearly, as you fussed over him, "Is the temperature alright? Let me know if it's too hot or cold," You inquired. He nodded, and you continued, "Are you hungry? You must be. I'll ask the kitchen staff to prepare something for you—"

Before you could step away from his bedside, he grasped your wrist, his expression displaying a small pout, "Stop, my love. I just want you to stay with me, please."

You softened, placing your hand over his and giving it a reassuring squeeze before brushing some of his hair away from his face, "I'm sorry, I was just worried about you. You've been away at war for so long. I wanted to make sure you have everything you need now that you're home before you eventually return to the battlefield."

He smiled, his hold on your wrist tightening slightly, "All I need is you." He murmured, gently pulling you closer into his arms.

Feeling your heart melt at his words, you relaxed into his embrace on the bed as he pulled the comforter over both of you. Nuzzling your head into the crook of his neck, you sighed contentedly as he kissed your temple. He felt complete with you so close again, "God, I missed you so much," He confessed, "Out of all the wars I've fought, this has to be the most dreadful one. Not because it was tough, but because I couldn't stop thinking about you throughout it all."

"I missed you too, Seonghwa," You confessed, drawing in a deep breath to savour his familiar scent, "I never thought I could yearn to be near someone this badly."

His eyes instinctively fluttered shut as you nestled closer to him, pressing his nose against your hair, wishing for this moment to last forever. After a moment of comfortable silence, he couldn't resist asking, "I've heard a lot has happened while I was gone. I'm sorry I wasn't here to help you through it. Tell me everything, my wife."

Taking a deep breath, you started from the beginning, recounting the events that unfolded after the general had departed for war. You described encountering Jinjoo during your visit to the fabric factory with Hongjoong, the surprise visit from the prince to the estate, and his unexpected invitation to the birthday banquet. You explained how he lied about you representing Seonghwa at the event and your gratitude for Wooyoung and San's help in preparing for it.

As you narrated every little detail that occurred at the supposed royal birthday celebration, your husband's heart swelled with pride and admiration. He listened intently, feeling his love for you grow with each word. Your courage in standing up for yourself and defending him in front of Prince Yeosang filled him with immense gratitude. He realised how fortunate he was to have you by his side.

"I'm so proud of you, my darling Lady Park."

With a light scoff, you teasingly pushed him in the chest, "Are you now, my dearest General Park? I still can't believe the first thing you chose to do after coming back was hurt me and push me away."

Guilt immediately clouded his expression as he drew closer to you, emitting a small whine, "I'm sorry, my love. Truly, I am. Speaking those cruel words hurt me more than this damn wound. I promise I didn't mean any of it. You're not troublesome at all, and I do want you with me for the rest of my days. If anything, you're all I need from now until the end of time."

At that, you could no longer bear to continue making him feel bad. Turning serious, you gently caressed the bandaged area on his abdomen before speaking, "I understand, Hwa. I really do. But I swear, if you ever pull something like that again, I won't hesitate to let Hongjoong loose on you."

His heart skipped a beat at the nickname you used for him, one you had never used before, "What did you just call me? Say it again."

Embarrassed, you blinked rapidly and cleared your throat before repeating softly, "I called you Hwa. It's your name, isn't it?"

He nodded with a cheeky grin, covering your hand with his, "Indeed it is. I love how bold you've become, my love. Now, along with that nickname, tell me you love me again."

You blushed at his request, feeling he deserved to hear it as many times as he wanted now that he'd returned to your side safely. Relenting, you bit your lip and murmured, "I love you, Hwa."

"Again." He demanded, resting his forehead gently against yours.

"I love you, Hwa."

"Again, my love." He whispered, leaning in closer with hooded eyes.

"I love you, Hwa."

"Say it for me just one more time."

"I love you so much, Park Seonghwa."

Intoxicated by your presence, he could no longer resist cupping your face and pressing his lips firmly against yours. You kissed him back fervently, eyes fluttering shut as you relished the sensation of his lips on yours. Both your hearts raced as you made up for lost time, pressing close to one another under the sheets. Your cheeks burned up, realising this was the most intimate moment you'd shared with your husband so far.

Gently pushing him away by the chest, you looked up at him, worry evident in your eyes, "That's enough, Hwa. You're still injured—"

But before you could finish your sentence, he leaned in, capturing your lips in another loving kiss. You gasped in surprise, but your resistance crumbled quickly as he deepened the kiss. Maybe just for a little longer, you thought to yourself, giving in to the moment.

As he savoured the feeling of having you so close, Seonghwa's emotions swirled within him like a tempest. He needed this closeness desperately, especially after the fear he'd felt earlier, thinking he might be close to death. The regret for hurting you with his words gnawed endlessly at him, and he despised the idea of being separated from you again. How could he have ever entertained the thought of you being with another man? The mere thought of Prince Yeosang in his place, holding you, touching you, kissing you, filled him with an uncontrollable jealousy that bordered on madness.

These thoughts fueled a surge of aggression within him as he flipped you around on the bed, trapping you beneath him. He loomed over you, his gaze intense as he whispered, "Mine. You're all mine."

As much as the sudden action flustered you and caused your heart to skip a beat, you frowned at his stubbornness, realising he wouldn't know when to stop unless sternly told off, "Are you out of your mind, Park Seonghwa? Such big movements could affect the wound, you idiot." You scolded, disrupting the intimate moment.

He blinked, momentarily speechless at the abrupt change in tone, protesting, "I'm fine, my wife—"

Before he could continue, the dressmaker barged in with raised brows, "Oh, we're all fine now, aren't we? I guess you're well enough to take a beating then."

The general panicked, hastily laying back in his spot, "Hongjoong, please, it's rude to enter without knocking." He chided.

You snickered when his friend rolled his eyes, "Well, it's also rude to disrespect your wife, but here we are."

"Oh my god, stop reminding me—"

"I'll stop when you learn to grow the hell up."

"Says you?!"

With a deep sigh, you stood up from your husband's bed, "You two fight to your heart's content; I'm going to prepare something to eat for this one." You said, gesturing to Seonghwa, ignoring his silent pleas not to leave him alone with his friend.

Hongjoong grinned at you, "Don't you worry, I'll take good care of him in the meantime."

Oh, I know you will.

"Have we heard from Physician Jung yet?" Mingi inquired as he was being suited up in preparation for the impending attack by the approaching Ruhon men.

"No, sir. It appears we're facing this battle on our own. But with your exceptional strategies, we should manage well even without General Park." One of the soldiers replied, striving to maintain optimism despite the military commander's absence.

"Let us hope so." The strategist muttered, unable to bring himself to reveal that his strategies had been devised with the assumption of having the best warrior in all of Joseon leading the army. Officer Song hadn't seen battlefield action since his promotion, and his combat skills were far from polished. Just why did this have to happen in the general's absence? Mingi feared the responsibility; if they failed in this battle, it would fall on him. The prospect of leading these men to their deaths was enough to make him feel nauseous.

He still couldn't grasp how Ruhon had made such a swift comeback. It seemed implausible given the significant losses they had suffered in the last battle. After all, the enemy nation wasn't known for its strategic prowess; they were often predictable in their actions. Unless... they were intentionally misleading Joseon into underestimating them? If so, the strategist might have played right into their hands as part of their plan.

Oh god, what do I do?

As General Officer Song meticulously went through his preparations for the impending battle, a sense of unease settled over him like a heavy cloak. Even with his efforts to focus solely on the task at hand, his thoughts kept drifting back to Seonghwa. The absence of their commander, his superior, and one of his closest friends weighed heavily on his mind.

With each passing moment, his worry for the general intensified. He couldn't shake the feeling of dread that enveloped him, wondering if his friend was safe and well. Had the older man managed to make it home? Had Yunho received his letter, informing him of General Park's condition?

These questions nagged endlessly at him, gnawing at his insides as he grappled with the uncertainty of the situation. Despite his attempts to maintain a facade of confidence for the sake of his fellow soldiers, Mingi couldn't shake the underlying fear that something terrible might have happened to Seonghwa. All he could do now was hope and pray for his friend's safety, even as the spectre of war loomed ever closer.

A sudden wave of fear washed over him, unlike anything he had experienced in a long time. The general's absence felt more profound and impactful than ever before. It was as if the very foundation of his confidence had been shaken, revealing the stark reality that his sense of assurance had always been rooted in the presence and trust of his commanding officer.

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, the strategist found himself questioning his own abilities and worthiness. Without General Park by his side, his confidence wavered, leaving him feeling unsteady and uncertain. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt such panic in war.

With a heavy heart, he squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, attempting to steady his nerves. Doing his best to ignore the doubts that plagued him, he knew he had a duty to fulfil. With trembling hands, he reviewed his strategies once more, desperately seeking reassurance in the plans he had meticulously crafted.

As he waited for the cue to head out and face the enemy, Officer Song resolved to push aside his fears and doubts. He may not have Seonghwa's guidance and leadership at this moment, but he knew he had to stand firm and lead the troops to the best of his abilities. With determination set in his heart, Mingi braced himself, ready to face whatever may come in the battle that awaited him.

Just as he was hoping to receive any updates about the general or word from Physician Jung, a soldier burst into the main tent, his breaths coming in ragged gasps. The strategist's heart skipped a beat, looking forward to some semblance of reassurance amid his mounting anxiety. However, instead of providing the updates he had been desperately seeking, the soldier stammered out his words.

"S-sir, I'm afraid it's time we head out and be on standby," The soldier managed to say between breaths, "The Ruhon army should be arriving anytime soon."

Mingi's hands clenched involuntarily, his mind racing with a mix of apprehension and determination. Despite the lack of information about Seonghwa's condition, he knew that duty called and he had to lead his troops into battle. With a firm nod, he suppressed the trembling in his hands and resolved to face the conflict head-on.

"Let's go out and make General Park proud." He declared, his voice steady despite the turmoil within him. With resolve burning in his eyes, he led his men out of the tent.

Moments later, Officer Song found himself mounted on a horse, the weight of his armour pressing against his shoulders as he surveyed the Joseon army lined up behind him. They stood at attention, ready for his orders, their anticipation palpable in the air.

As he gazed out at the empty land ahead, where the enemy forces would soon emerge, Mingi could hear nothing but the thundering of his own heart in his ears. His hands tightened around the hilt of his sword, a familiar weight that offered some measure of comfort in the face of uncertainty.

With a deep breath, he forced himself to focus, pushing aside the uncertainties that threatened to overwhelm him. He may not be Park Seonghwa, but he had undergone rigorous training and was a capable fighter in his own right. Reminding himself of his own combat skills, he squared his shoulders and steeled his resolve.

"We stand ready." He declared, his voice carrying across the ranks of soldiers behind him. Despite the nerves gnawing at his insides, he projected an air of confidence, determined to lead his troops with strength and determination.

I hope you're proud of me, hyung-nim.

His breath hitched in his throat as he finally spotted a tiny speck on the horizon, growing larger and more distinct with each passing moment. His heart raced as he realised that these were the enemy soldiers they had been waiting for. With a loud voice, he yelled the order for all soldiers to get into position.

Tensions were high as everyone readied themselves, their nerves stretched taut with fear at the absence of their strongest warrior to lead them. But as the figures drew closer, Officer Song's brow furrowed in confusion.

Something was not right.

Instead of a formidable army, only a few Ruhon soldiers were riding toward them, their arms raised in what appeared to be a gesture of surrender. Mingi's eyes widened in disbelief as he heard their cries.

"Soldiers of Joseon! Please don't attack! We have come to surrender!"

A sense of astonishment rippled through the ranks of the Joseon army as they processed the unexpected turn of events. One of the Ruhon men even went so far as to pull out a white flag, waving it frantically to signal their willingness to concede defeat.

The strategist's grip tightened on his sword as he studied the Ruhon soldiers before him, their faces worn with exhaustion and defeat. Despite their assurances, he couldn't afford to let his guard down yet, not after the treacherous tactics they had previously employed against Seonghwa.

"Hold it right there! How can we believe you're telling the truth?" He demanded, his voice firm and unwavering.

The Ruhon soldiers let out heavy sighs, their arms still raised in a gesture of surrender, "Please, we're telling the truth. Most of our troops have been depleted from the last battle," One of them explained, his voice tinged with desperation, "Our ruler has sent word just this morning to put this war to an immediate stop. A messenger is on the way to your royal palace to convey the message to your King as we speak. We come in peace to relay this message, and that is all. All remaining Ruhon troops will be retreating from our camp after this."

Mingi remained silent for a moment, weighing their words carefully. Finally, he lowered his sword, signalling for his own troops to stand down, "Very well," He said, his voice tinged with caution, "But know that we will be watching closely. Any sign of treachery from you, and we will not hesitate to defend ourselves."

The Ruhon soldiers visibly relaxed at his words, nodding quickly, "You have my word." One of them assured before they turned around and began riding away. The tension dissolved as they disappeared from sight, leaving Officer Song and his men standing in disbelief. Relief washed over them, dispelling the earlier fears. The strategist's expression mirrored the collective sentiment of his troops—a mix of relief and disbelief.

"Well, I guess we should head back to camp and await confirmation then," Mingi said, his voice filled with a hint of exhaustion. His soldiers nodded eagerly, grateful that the tense situation had been resolved peacefully. They began to disperse, their spirits lifted by the unexpected turn of events.

Now, everything fell into place, and the pieces of the puzzle aligned once again. His earlier suspicions about Ruhon's swift recruitment of soldiers now made perfect sense. It was clear that they no longer possessed enough manpower to continue fighting this war.

Returning to the main tent, Mingi was relieved to find a messenger waiting for him, "Officer Song, there you are! You have a letter from Physician Jung Yunho," The messenger announced eagerly. He hurried over to receive the paper, unfolding it with urgency. His eyes scanned the neatly written words at lightning speed, absorbing the contents. Once finished, he released the breath he had been holding, sinking into the seat behind him, "Oh, thank heavens the general is alright." He breathed out, a weight lifted from his shoulders.

The messenger's face immediately brightened at his words, and he quickly left to share the good news with the others. Mingi couldn't help but smile; everything was finally falling into place.

Peace, at last.

But his moment of relief was short-lived as a commotion erupted outside. The strategist frowned and left the tent to see what was happening. He found his soldiers blocking the entry of a woman, which puzzled him. Women weren't allowed in this area.

"Forgive us, ma'am. Women are not permitted here," One of the soldiers explained. Mingi pushed through to hear her response, "Yes, I know that, but you don't understand. I'm here on His Majesty's orders. We received word that General Park has been poisoned, and I've been sent specifically to treat him."

As he caught sight of her petite figure, his eyes widened in recognition. Not because of her uniform, which indicated she was a female royal physician, renowned for their medical expertise, but because she was the one he had been searching for all this time.

I finally found you, my one.

« Preview of Part 20 »

"The audacity of those Ruhon bastards, attempting to poison my strongest warrior. That's nothing short of treachery, isn't it, my Queen?" The King grumbled, his concern for Seonghwa evident in his furrowed brow. He had even dispatched their most skilled female royal physician to the war zone, trusting her to heal him.

Anxiety filled his being as his wife sighed beside him, offering a comforting hand on his back. She had yet to muster any courage to mention the trouble caused by their fourth son during the general's absence, not wanting to add to her husband's worries, "I wish I had an answer for that, Your Majesty." She murmured sympathetically.

Before the royal couple could further drown in their pool of misery, the royal secretary rushed in with a few letters. He hastily performed the formal bow, only to have the King wave it away.

"Forget the formalities, Secretary Choi! Tell us what updates you have this instant!" His Majesty's voice was urgent.

San nodded, swiftly unfolding the papers and reading each one aloud. With each letter, a weight seemed to lift from the room.

"The first letter is from General Park," He began, "He reports he's safely home and receiving treatment from his own doctor."

Relief washed over the King's face.

"And the second?" Her Majesty pressed, her tone hopeful.

San's voice steadied as he continued, "The second is from the ruler of Ruhon. He acknowledges defeat and officially surrenders. He is also requesting an audience to discuss a peace treaty. It would seem the war is over, Your Majesties."

"Oh, thank goodness it's over."

After a moment of everyone digesting the news, His Majesty furrowed his brows in slight confusion, "Wait, General Park is home already, you say?" His voice carried a note of incredulity, "How odd. That would mean he began travelling back before there was even news of the enemy's surrender. Why would he return home all of a sudden? Did something else happen?"

The Queen's heart sank at that. For weeks, she had harboured the hope of shielding Yeosang from his father's potential wrath, but now it seemed fate had other plans.

I'm sorry, my son.

Woohoo, only the final part is left, and we're done with the main story! Psst, try going over to the Spinoff Masterlist to see if you can spot anything new HEHE🙈

As always, thank you so much for reading, and please let me know your thoughts! <3

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[mya-valentine]

Can I have some headcanons with Yuji, Megumi, Nanami, Nobera, and Gojo taking care of a weakened S/O who had fainted from a mix of dehydration and a heavy period?

(Because the above happened to me once.)

(P.S: Drink plenty of water and get rest!.. because I know college is hard. :))

Headcanon: Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, Kento Nanami, Nobara Kugisaki, and Satoru Gojo Taking Care of S/O on Their Period

A/N: I hope you're feeling better 😕 and trust me, I understand your pain. On my first day, I'm out of commission the entire day

Yuji Itadori

As soon as you faint, Yuji is immediately panicking. He may not understand all the details, but he knows it’s serious. He quickly scoops you up in his arms, shouting for help while asking if you're okay—even though you're unconscious.

Once he knows what's going on (dehydration and your period), he rushes around like a whirlwind, grabbing water, pain meds, snacks, and even blankets to make you comfortable. He’ll ask everyone around if you need anything else, going above and beyond.

Yuji doesn’t leave your side. Even when you’re resting, he’ll be sitting beside you, worriedly asking if you need anything every few minutes. He’ll keep offering water or fruit, trying to make sure you're hydrated.

While you're recovering, Yuji tries to keep the atmosphere light. He’ll tell you funny stories or try to distract you with silly comments to take your mind off the discomfort. His optimism helps lift your spirits, even when you’re feeling your worst.

Megumi Fushiguro

When you faint, Megumi is quick to act but doesn’t make a scene about it. He’s calm, lifting you carefully and making sure you’re somewhere comfortable. His quiet concern shows in how focused he is on getting you the help you need.

Megumi isn’t as experienced with this kind of situation, so he might do a quick search on what helps with dehydration and heavy periods. He’ll make sure you have electrolyte drinks and anything that can soothe your discomfort.

He’ll bring you a cool towel for your forehead, make sure the room is at a comfortable temperature, and silently place everything you might need (like water and pain meds) within easy reach.

Megumi doesn’t want to overwhelm you, but he’s close by in case you need anything. He’ll sit quietly reading a book or handling tasks, always keeping an ear out for you to call his name. He’s not the type to smother, but his silent presence is reassuring.

Kento Nanami

Nanami handles the situation with a level head. As soon as you faint, he assesses the situation calmly, lifting you and ensuring you're in a comfortable position. He'll softly encourage you to stay hydrated and rest once you're awake.

Nanami seems to always have everything in his bag—water, painkillers, a small snack. He’s practical and immediately provides whatever will help alleviate your symptoms. He knows exactly how to handle your dehydration and gives you water in small sips.

Despite his usual serious demeanor, Nanami is incredibly gentle when you're vulnerable. He speaks softly, making sure you don’t feel embarrassed or pressured. He reassures you that everything is under control and to just focus on feeling better.

Nanami will make sure you’re hydrated and have everything you need before he thinks about leaving your side. He’ll remind you to rest and won’t let you move around until you’re feeling stronger. His priority is making sure you’re fully recovered before anything else.

Nobara is instantly in action mode when you faint. She may not have much experience with dehydration and periods mixed, but she’s not one to sit idly by. She’s rushing to get water, something to snack on, and heating pads without hesitation.

Nobara Kugisaki

Nobara will give you tough love. “I know it sucks, but you’ve got to hydrate and rest!” She’s firm but caring, making sure you do what’s necessary to feel better. She'll also make sure you’re comfortable and not feeling too hot or cold.

She might recruit help from others if she feels it's necessary. She’s not shy about calling Megumi or Gojo to help carry you or asking Nanami for advice on what to do. Nobara has no problem making sure you’re surrounded by people who can assist.

While you're resting, Nobara will try to cheer you up with some banter. She’ll tease you lightly, trying to get your mind off how you’re feeling. She may also give you some beauty tips or chat about anything girly to keep you entertained and not focused on the pain.

Satoru Gojo

Gojo may seem carefree about everything, but when you faint, you’ll see a flash of genuine concern. He'll try to play it cool, cracking jokes like, “Wow, fainting for me already?” but it’s clear he’s worried.

Gojo is likely to pamper you to the extreme. He’ll bring you whatever you ask for and then some—fresh fruits, fancy electrolyte drinks, fluffy pillows, maybe even a ridiculous eye mask for “maximum relaxation.” His way of showing care is always a bit extra.

Gojo will probably hover a lot, acting like a bit of a nurse but in his chaotic way. “How’s my patient doing? Need more water? Maybe a foot massage?” He’ll offer exaggerated solutions, just to make you smile. But behind the humor, he’s genuinely trying to help.

Gojo won’t let you leave the bed or do anything strenuous. If you try to push yourself too early, he’ll flash that mischievous smile and say, “You’re not getting up until you’re 100%!” He’ll enforce your recovery with playful stubbornness, but always with your well-being in mind.

.

.

.

Masterlist

[wordy-little-witch]

Ya know what occurs to me?

Karai Bari is in the New World.

Crocodile and Mihawk only showed up after the establishment of the delivery service.

Buggy was in Paradise. Marineford would have been in Paradise, I think, or at least Buggy's crew still was.

He doesn't have conquerors to cross the calm belt.

So... to get to the New World and set up shop, he'd have to have gone through Fishman Island, wouldn't he? So he'd had to have gotten the ship coated.

He'd likely have had to face Rayleigh or at least he'd have anticipated it - maybe Shanks even mentions Rayleigh hanging around there, maybe even mentioning him having NEVER missed Shanks passing through....

So when Buggy goes when Buggy expects to be found and claims to be dreading it and is but is also so hopeful so scared so broken so hesitant he's got a few different courses figured for how this will go down.

Only.... Rayleigh isn't there. Shakky is. She just directs them to another coater. Buggy fights himself, wants to ask, doesn't want to beg, and-

Shakky answers the question he couldn'tdislodge from his throat. "Sorry, baby blue, Ray's just working on something real important. You know how it is."

He does. He does know how it is. Important, huh? That's fine. It's probably a job. It's probably not that big of a deal that dad master Rayleigh is preoccupied. Buggy shouldn't have expected the man to drop everything and come running why did he think that, Rayleigh never did it before, not even Shanks' assurance he'd leave a message for Rayleigh would change much, and fuck he can't afford to cry so-

So Buggy gets the ship coated. It's not as pricy as he'd worried. He navigates them down, can even bring himself to smile at the wide eyed wonder from the rest. It's nice. He's fine here - these are his people. He's okay, really, and he'll be able to let this go or shove it into that nameless box in his head and heart soon enough. He just has to ride the wave, you know-?

Only no. Not really. Because a newspaper lands in his hands. And his brain is racing.

Because Rayleigh wasn't at Sabaody at all. He was with Strawhat. He was training Strawhat. He showed up, after the war, so close to the conflict, to train the kid. Rayleigh is fast, but not that fast. He'd have to have left around a week before Buggy even arrived. Shanks had assured him Rayleigh was there when he dropped by ((two weeks ago)). He knew because his brother had wrapped him in his arm and tears were shed, voices were raised and hearts were broken, wounds torn open to drain the festering rot and the healing hurt, it hurt then, it hurts now, it will hurt and hurt and hurt, because Buggy had pushed the Big Top to her near limits just to reach the archipelago that his former guardian ex-father previous family that Rayleigh called home. Shanks had called him, said he'd dropped the message and Rayleigh had chuckled and nodded and Buggy wanted to see his dad because there were still so many scars that had to be seen and acknowledged and Buggy himself wasn't even fully recovered physically but emotionally he had to do it, had to take the step and try because vulnerability brought the best and worst of him out, because he lost a brother and gained him back and he wanted for his father, at least one of them.

But Strawhat was on that front page. And Rayleigh was behind him, smiling, warm, proud, happy, and - Buggy aches. He's angry. He's livid. A week or so, by his estimate, for Rayleigh to find him and get there to the war ground. A week or so because Rayleigh was old but he was still painfully fast. In a week or so, the older man hunted down a boy he'd possibly met once or twice in passing. A week or so and The Dark King showed up to bring another strawhat wearing monster of epic proportions under his wing, had made impressive time in finding the kid, making the plan, getting to the navy hq, getting out, and that's accounting for the article writing, printing, and distribution.

A week or so to find a bright little sunshine boy he barely knew when one he raised rotted in a cell for months on end.

Busy with something real important, he recalled Shakky saying.

His chest burned for a moment, hot and wild and unyielding - and just as suddenly, the fire was gone. He was tired. He was so fucking tired. His injuries throbbed, his head hurt, his scars itched. He sighed, set the paper aside and curled impossibly small into his chaise lounge with a teary chuckle as he gripped his hair and tried to silence the keen building in his chest. He cursed himself for it, bitter and angry.

After all, he should be used to being outshined, out classed and out loved by energetic boys with bright smiles in little wicker crowns.

Story of his life

He is unaware of the many eyes on him, of the people Plotting and Arranging things on their own time. Their captain is the best - uncommon, unexpected, temperamental though he is, he is everything everyone needs him to be because it's the only thing he knows how to do. They see the seams in his mask and performance, and they ache to pay back the pain left on their captain, their boss, their leader and friend. Buggy pirates stick together, freaks and weirdos united - and nobody is allowed to hurt their captain without some serious followup.

[the-starry-seas]

New time travel AU where Leia is On Sight with Vader who is just genuinely unable to be prepared for a rage-filled teenager with two lightsabers And Also These Fists

Vader goes down in a heap of sparking circuitry and the Corries are just Staring because wtf kid!

Leia then proceeds to deactivate the sabers, greet the Corries very politely by name, and equally politely introduce herself as Leia Organa.

Fox is groaning internally because there's no way he can pretend that didn't happen, but she's doubtlessly related to Bail, she introduced herself with the same little flair that Bail always did. It's not like Fox thinks that Bail will take it out on him, but it does seem like the kind of thing that will strain their romance.

And then Leia says, quite seriously, "Commander Fox, I'm afraid the dipshit was going to kill you tomorrow. My parents never fully recovered from the murder of their darling mirdala. I travelled through time to save you."

She approaches him with her hands outstretched and he's so stunned that he takes them. Bail and Breha only ever called him that in private. Not even his own shiny had known the name.

"I'm so very pleased to meet you," Leia says earnestly. "I hope someday you can consider me your friend."

She's wearing Bail's ring on a cord around her neck, and her mother's perfume, and the jacket of an Alderaanian palace guard, and she looks so much like home that Fox pulls her into a hug.

"I already consider you my daughter," he assures her.

Which does leave the problem of 'twenty other Corries just saw her murder their commanding officer'. Given the circumstances of her being Fox's daughter - the clones take adoption vows very seriously - and of her having saved Fox's life, they're willing to pretend that they didn't see a thing.

The dipshit gets dumped on a lower level. By the time the mask is found, there's no hope of recovering any clues about who killed him.

There's no mention in the news of the commander's helmet found nearby. Good thing, they think.

Leia returns to her own time. Fox nearly cries to see her go, but she kisses his cheek and assures him that he'll know a much happier version of her, very soon.

He goes to Alderaan. Rubs his thumb over the ring on Bail's hand. Breathes in Breha's perfume. And cries in a way he can't explain, when he's introduced to a baby he's already loved.

[nerdyjournals]

Flowers have sad meanings too

Florist!Y/N

Many believe that working in a flower shop is all gumdrops and rainbows, but it's not. It's stories of heartbreak and sadness. I wish I could remember their names, but I can't grieve every one of them. No matter how hard I try.

Author's Note: 3/8 of these mini tales are based on encounters I have had while working in my field. They are INSPIRED and not exact.

DISCLAIMER: ANY SIMILARITIES THESE ENTRIES HAVE TO A PERSON, PLACE, EVENT, OR SITUATION IS COINCIDENTAL AND NOT INTENDED TO MIMIC ANYONE.

WARNING: THIS PIECE TOUCHES ON DEATH AND ITS AFFECTS, SUBJECTS OF DEPRESSION, AND ASSUMED SU1C1D3. IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO SUBJECTS LIKE THESE, PLEASE SKIP THIS POST.

Boy #1

He was a boy with his whole life ahead of him. His mother said that he was very protective of his siblings, so protective that it's what took him.

She said it was a break in, one that happened in the dead of night. She never heard it. All she heard was the sound of her daughter screaming for help as her husband tackled the man to the floor. She didn't even hear the gun go off.

He was on his way to college in the fall, full ride. He was very talented. They hope to release his works down the road, but for now, some things stay locked away. Not because they're bad or sad, but because the grief was too fresh.

Boy #2

He was an interesting story. A quiet kid that everyone thought was mean, but was a very sweet guy and an only child. He loved animals.

His flowers were ordered by his friends because his parents were too shattered by the news. One of them couldn't keep it together, ended up telling about him. He was off volunteering to help build houses when one of them collapsed on top of him and a few others. They came out with minor injuries, but he wasn't so lucky. They spew out so many things about his kind heart but stone-like demeanor. It hurt to see that it was also his undoing.

Other families came and ordered, many of them being young kids in the dance classes he taught. Many of the kids still not understanding why their favorite teacher wasn't coming back. His parents finally arrived to order, but my heart was too fragile to be there.

Boy #3

His sister wouldn't stop talking about how he had wanted to do a lot with his life. She said that he was going to the gym everyday to get stronger. He was a gentle soul, a loving gentleman. Sickness took him far too soon.

It started off with a bad cough and a fever, she said. Then it just kept getting worse. By the time he was eighteen, he was fully living in his hospital room. It broke her heart to see how he dwindled away until he was almost nothing but skin and bones. She was thankful that he went in his sleep, going painlessly.

She couldn't stop repeating that she felt like a bad sister, that she should've done more to help him recover. It broke me a little more on the inside when I couldn't tell her that it wasn't up to her to fix him. I could only stay silent.

Boy #4

Only one person ordered him flowers, but it was a lot of flowers. Other than his parents, this boy received flowers from dozens of people. Friends, teachers, acquaintances - you name it. They all ordered through one person as they were the only one in town.

The pieces were extravagant, ranging from small vases to large sprays. They said that they wanted to reflect him; an artist surrounded by colors. No one knows what took him; whether self or sickness. They just found him in his studio one cold winter morning, slumped over an unfinished painting.

They said he'll have a gallery set up after the service, show off the wonders he created. I might go. If not just to see a fellow tortured soul. One day, his name will be known alongside the greats. For now, he'll be known to me.

Boy #5

His flowers were ordered over the phone by his mother, said something about it becoming too final if she stepped into the store.

I heard about this boy on the news. They found him in his car, just off the highway. He was so young, but the demons got to him before anyone else could.

I could only sit silent as she cried in my ear, blaming herself for not helping him. Little does she know the demons live in everyone. Including mine.

Boy #6

This boy was proof that the brightest smiles hide the darkest demons. His sisters couldn't hold themselves together as I flipped through the binder. The older one said that she blamed herself, saying that she should've seen the signs.

He went as he slept, passing in silence. She said that he had been bullied for years, but since he stopped talking about it, they assumed it stopped. They found him gone in the morning. I can never understand how some people find it acceptable to be so harsh to another.

They showed me his photo. He had a bright smile, one that was even wider with his family. It almost breaks my very soul that he suffered alone.

Boy #7

This was my first family order. The poor family was lost due to a faulty monoxide detector. The remaining members were in the middle of suing the landlord on top of mourning the family.

They didn't know until the son failed to show up for school for three days, unlike him they said. Same for the parents.

The boy was said to start high school next year. They were all excited since he would be attending the private school near the edge of town, one that was hard to get into without good grades. Now, the world could never see what he would amount to.

Boy #8

He was a child.

No mother should ever be allowed to outlive her baby. He was innocent, a victim of medical circumstance. They never said what he had, but they ordered him a beautiful urn display.

His younger brother, one still so small, would almost never know about the brother who left too early. His older brother was deployed, but is in an emergency flight back over to give his good byes.

A child...goodness.

[theggning]

Luis as Don Quixote

Luis' affection for/continuing references to Don Quixote are one of my favorite little details in RE4make. We find several files that mention it was his favorite book as a child, and of course he brings it up in chapter 11, casting himself as Don Quixote (the "dashing" hero), Leon as Sancho Panza (the goofy sidekick), and Ashley as Dulcinea (the beautiful, kidnapped princess.)

For the uninitiated, Don Quixote is an early 17th century Spanish novel by Miguel de Cervantes about a middle aged nobleman whose obsession with books leads him to become a "knight," setting out to live the romantic ideals of chivalry and make the world a better place. However, out of delusion or idealism bordering on delusion, he makes foolish mistakes and causes a lot of trouble (for instance, the famous "tilting at windmills" incident.) The novel is a parody of the chivalric stories popular at the time, and interpretations over the years vary on whether Don Quixote is a comedic or a tragic figure, whether we are meant to feel pity for him or view him as a fool and a menace to society.

RE4make shows us that a young Luis was inspired to become a scientist by the plaga infection and death of his grandfather, and set out on his career in the outside world with good intentions. But just like Don Quixote, his obsession and idealism led him to making mistakes, both in his work for Umbrella and his affiliation with Los Illuminados. Though it's implied Luis kept some kind of moral compass intact (he quit Umbrella even before everything went to hell, and he was working to undermine and counter Saddler for some time,) he feels responsible for the collateral damage wrought by his work and blames himself for not seeing his mistakes before it was too late to prevent them.

I just find the whole thing really poignant. Luis holds lifelong enthusiasm for a story about a man who wants to make the world a better place, but who screws up over and over again. Regardless, Don Quixote keeps trying, hoping he'll be able to live up to the hero he's always wanted to be. The "Man of La Mancha" Quixote himself never succeeds at this, eventually returning to his ordinary life and regretful of the harm he has caused.

Luis, on the other hand, really does become a hero. No matter his past actions and no matter how sketchy he acts, by the time he announces his partnership with Leon, Luis is fully committed to a cause greater than saving his own skin. He makes an ACTIVE CHOICE to help Leon and Ashley when it is completely at odds with his own survival, and when he has the means of his own rescue in hand. If he left with Ada as soon as he recovered the Amber, Luis would have lived longer-- but more than likely fallen right back into his same old mistakes and handed over a bioweapon to Wesker. Choosing to help Leon and Ashley seals his fate, but it unquestionably saves both of their lives-- not to mention leads to the chain of events that end Saddler and Los Illuminados, potentially saving the world.

Unlike Don Quixote, Luis does manage to become a hero in the end. And unlike the original game, RE4make acknowledges and remembers it long after he's already gone. Dr. Luis Serra Navarro really was a fine knight, and he really did save the day.

[imtrashraccoon]

I know this is being sent before the rules, but I wanted to say this.

Don't Imagion: Donovan

The first request! This is kind of a continuation of The Dark Fortress so I hope that's alright. (⁠✿⁠^⁠‿⁠^⁠)

Don't imagine returning to the fortress after a mission and having to be held up by one of your teammates. Your teeth grit tightly from the pain and clutching your wounds.

Don't imagine Donovan, coming to greet the team, only to cut off his own monologue as soon as he spots you. How he falls deathly silent and how you can almost hear all the questions going through his skull. He stays composed, for your sake, and simply asks what happened, although he isn't fully listening to your teammates explanations and instead pulls you away from them, being ever so careful of course.

Don't imagine being all but swept off your feet and whisked away to his personal quarters, where you are set on a luxurious couch. How he seems unbothered that you could be actively bleeding or dusting.

Don't imagine how he helps you out of your armour and sets it aside with care. While weapons can be replaced and armour mended, he knows that your health is more important.

Don't imagine how gently he runs his phalanges across your skin, being mindful of his claws so as to not injure you further, but needing to know if there are other injuries that need tending to. Definitely don't imagine how pained his expression is as he cleans and bandages your wounds, before tucking you into his own bed so you can recover.

Don't imagine him making a health elixir, specifically for you so you'll heal even faster. Of course he'll check in on his team at some point, but for now, you are the only one who matters. He can find more minions but he can never replace his soulmate.

Don't imagine him laying down next to you, stroking your fur or hair, and wrapping his tendrils as tightly as he can around your body without hurting you further. How he holds you against his ribcage and reassures you that he'll keep you safe. Next time you go out, expect your gear to have been enhanced somehow so that you won't be injured the same way again.

Next Request

[return-of-a-space-cowboy]

Ungrateful Hearts pt2

“Is it true miss?” The boy asked about the story you'd told the children. Hansel and Gretal

“I'm not quite sure, hopefully not… I haven't seen any candy houses from all my time gathering as a kid” you replied. One of the other carers rolled her eyes at your response.

‘Don't wind up the children’ you were constantly told but you didn't listen. These poor children were constantly hauled up in the orphanage. They needed a little magic in their lives.

“Do you think Santa will come this year?” One of the others asked. You felt your stomach drop. Last year not a single toy had been donated and you had to explain that Santa's sleigh had broken down.

“Yes, and I'm sure he'll make it up to us for not being able to come last year” you told them.

🎁🎁🎁

“Hello, the time of giving is near! I came to ask if you'd be charitable and donate any old toys to those who have no family this Christmas” you spoke with a smile from house to house. Either being told no or having the door slammed in your face.

Maybe they were busy or sick? Surely knowing now they would take the time to go through their things.

You huffed as you walked home, you'd most likely have to buy the toys this year… you'd have to tightly budget as the orphanage had its funding cut again. Hopefully there should be food donations coming in soon.

Through a crystal ball he watched you almost everyday. You slaved away constantly trying to make other lives better, alway having hope in those who were too far gone. Humans who could care less about those in need. He wondered why you still even offered them such kindness when it was clearly unwarranted.

He would have raided the town by now if it weren't for you. You still desperately clung onto the memories of those who helped others in their time of need, those who had were now either gone or dead.

“So how is your love doing?” He could hear a familiar voice behind him. What he was doing wasn't a well kept secret with the group. The moment he'd found the thing he'd locked himself in his quarters. Melone and Prosciutto were the only two that knew exactly why he always did so. Melone actually recognized you as he had previously been at the orphanage himself before he'd ran away. Occasionally seeing you in town grabbing supplies.

Risotto didn't respond to the question however.

“Why don't we just raid the town and pick her up?” Melone suggested as he rested his doll like prosthetic arm around his shoulder, Risotto still remembers the day they found him out in the snow bleeding out after a vicious attack. Both his arms and a leg were far too injured to fully recover. So Prosciutto had used his knowledge on black magic to replace them with wooden prosthetics that he would be able to use as if they were his real ones. Everyone here were outcasts, others like him who had seen the wickedness of the world firsthand and fled. You were blind, deluding yourself into believing all had goodness in them.

Risotto considered the idea before but he didn't want to scare you. He was not the same as the child you'd saved and he feared you would react like everyone else, flee in his presence.

“As long as she still has hope in that town I refuse to destroy it” he replied.

🎁🎁🎁

As Christmas approached you spent your nights tightly budgeting for Christmas day. Making sure each child had at least one gift all rounding the same price each. Eventually you had gotten everything with money to spare to get two hams the night beforehand you felt proud of yourself for doing all of it. You were determined to make Christmas the best for the kids.

Risotto was proud of your work, even if he thought it would be in vain. He knew eventually something would happen.

Every time he saw you sleep his heart ached. Seeing you sleep so peacefully, he wanted to be beside you once more. Embrace you and feel the warmth of your presence. He wanted you to no longer worry. For your kindness to be his and his alone.

🎁🎁🎁

“Did you hear about the town up north?” One of the other ladies asked you in the tea room.

“No” you replied.

“the town was burnt to the ground, they claim that Krampus was behind it” she told you.

“That's horrible but who's Krampus?” You gasped.

“Oh you never heard about Krampus? Its an old folk tale, they would say that Krampus, a demon with large goat horns would steal away naughty children away on Christmas… but nothing was ever mentioned of burning down towns” she explained

“Do you think it's true?” You asked.

“Of course not, nothing but a folk tale. people just being hysteric” she sneered.

“Ladies, we have a problem” one of the other carers entered with an empty donation box. Yesterday it had a few cans.

“Daliah, did you bring it in last night?” she asked.

“Oh no I completely forgot” she gasped.

“Then rodents must have taken them,” one lady said.

“No it couldn't have been, someone must have stolen them” another lady said.

You felt your stomach drop, how could someone do this.

“We shouldn't worry, more should come as Christmas draws closer” she said, she was probably right more would come.

But no more came, you hated taking advantage of people's emotions but the only way you could see the orphanage getting more donations was to try and pull on the townsfolk's heartstrings.

So you took the children out into town caroling. Yet everyone seemed too busy to give the children any attention. You could see the disappointment that the kids had.

“Let's wrap it up for today” you told the kids before an unfamiliar, finely dressed blonde man approached you.

“Excuse me ma'am” he said to get your attention and you turned to him.

“Yes sir?” You asked, he held out a closed hand and you held out yours. He gave you a satchel of coins.

“Oh thank you so much” you thanked him.

“Don't thank me, I'm merely the deliverer” he told you before leaving. Odd you thought but it was a kind gesture. You wondered who on earth was behind it.

Once you got back to the orphanage you opened the satchel to count the coins until you found a small note.

‘the people of this town do not deserve your kindness (y/n)

-R’

R? You raked your brain. No it couldn't be him after all these years. What had he done after all this time? If he was affiliated with the man from earlier you could only speculate that he was in a better situation.

🎁🎁🎁

It was Christmas eve and you had spent the day shopping for tomorrow's lunch. Now you were stuck in line waiting at the butchers to get the two legs of ham you needed. You Patiently waited until it was your turn.

“hello could I please get two legs of ham please you asked as you stood in front of the counter.

“That'll be twenty pounds” he told you, causing your heart to sink. They were eighteen pounds the other day, that was all you had left.

“I only have eighteen” you told him but he quickly cut you off.

“Then one leg it is” he told you. That wouldn't be enough for all the children.

“Sir, could I please get both now? I promise you I'll pay you back when I can but right now I have to grab enough for the children” you explained but he shook his head.

“No can do, it's a high demand item” he told you with little care. You felt your blood boil, was this man really going to tell you no over two pounds? Let children starve?

“Sir, I don't think you understand-”

“If you aren't going to buy then get out, you're holding up the line” he said. You gritted your teeth, you'd never felt this angry before. No you were not going to let It get the better of you so you stormed out.

“Really? Over two pounds” you muttered to yourself as you looked at the snow blanketed ground.

You stomped around until you came across a rock, fairly good size to throw. A horrible thought played out in your head. You wouldn't usually act upon such an impulse but you were still seething. How could someone do such a thing and no one in the line even offered to help you, despite knowing the reason.

Maybe that letter was true, people like that didn't deserve your kindness. People that couldn't even offer you kindness in return for all you had done.

So you did as you thought and hurled the rock at the butcher's window, causing it to smash.

“Merry Christmas you greedy bastards!” You yelled before running home. Guilt soon sinking in about what you did.

For Risotto it was all he needed to hear to finally target the town. Prosciutto within earshot, ready to finally explain the truth to the others.

[brandwhorestarscream]

Hey! I'm from KOBDSS' ask

It was "KOBDSS, but breakdown is the carrier of jettwins and wildbreak"

Ok I've been sitting on this for awhile and ngl kinda struggling, cuz. I'm not too great at puzzling out three way relationships 😅 but I think I'm finally getting there

First and foremost! Unlike previous iterations, I think the three of them will be triplets here. They come as a huge shock to everyone, and Knockout is the first to know whilst diagnosing his mate's sudden restlessness and inability to keep fuel down. Knockout is stunned to see a grand total of 5 infant sparks orbiting around Breakdown's. Seekers are always born in threes, but one of them split in two so there were 4. Add Wildbreak for a clean 5

They know the chances of Starscream being the sire of at least one is inarguable. They have... a weird relationship with their commander. Knockout and Breakdown have been conjunxed since long before the war, back when Veloctiron was still online and still the hottest, fastest place in the universe. They've always known of Starscream, he's infamous among the decepticons. But they'd never actually met the guy or been under his jurisdiction until earth, snd though their relationship is certainly a bit looser and involved now, there's still... a sort of wall there. Starscream is a massively distrustful and paranoid individual, and it took months of coaxing and careful flirtation to get him to even consider their propositions. Even when their sexual rendezvous' became semi-regular, and friendly(ish) visits even moreso, it's clear he doesn't trust them and is guarding his spark closely. He doesn't love them, doesn't think they love him, and has been beaten down and torn apart too many times to even entertain the idea. KOBD are fully content and emotionally fulfilled between each other, and while they do care for Starscream to a degree, it's more friendly than the deep and romantic love they hold for each other.

Which... somehow, makes it more awkward. If they were all a big happy united threeway sparkbond, it would be easy to tell him. They'd better be able to gage how he might react. But with him holding them at arms length and vice versa, and the seeker being so volatile, they can't even begin to guess what he'll do. What he'll think.

Knockout knows they ought to disclose it as soon as possible. After all, it's an important medical condition. But... he's worried. They both are. Breakdown has made it clear, right from the moment he found out about them, he can't stand the idea of a termination. He knows they should. They both do. An active battlefield is no place for a bitty let alone several, and they're not in a position to guarantee their safety and shelter from the war's ever evolving fallout. But the idea of snuffing them is too cruel, even for the two of them. But if they tell the wrong person or things escalate negatively, there's the risk Lord Megatron or Starscream might order their termination anyway. And while the two of them have already resolved to fight for their litter if they have to... they both know it's a fight they'll lose.

Soundwave is the next one privy to their situation. He's the calmest and most reasonable commanding force on the ship, and realistically, if anyone could get them greenlit for parenthood while also not being ejected from the warship, it's probably Soundwave. They're hoping he'll smooth things over with their big boss, because everyone knows Soundwave can do no wrong in Megatron's eyes. If the news comes from him it'll seem less bad, right?

Right!

...except Soundwave does little more than acknowledge their situation and quietly file it away into the logs. Informs them to act at their discretion: if they want maternity leave or to be excused from battle, that is Lord Megatron's will alone.

These two idiots take the "act at your discretion" and run with it. They're just....... waiting for the right time to tell Starscream. Maybe once he's recovered from his last beatdown from Megatron a bit, or comes to loiter around the medbay when he's in a particularly good mood and looking to gossip. Yeah, they'll spring it on him then, and gently ease it in with a cup of some hot energon and some embarrassing story plucked from one of the hapless vehicons. They're bracing for impact and trying to dodge the inevitable. The idiots

Their stupidity unfortunately does eventually lend itself to tragedy. Thankfully they've avoided any altercations with the autobots recently, and Breakdown has been listening to Knockout about not exerting himself. The carrying cycle is progressing nicely and Soundwave has been approving theor extra energon intake without question. Everything is great.

And then everything goes to shit because of MECH

Everything plays out just as it does in canon. A clash with Bulkhead, taking hits and plunging in head first like he really shouldn't, dragged away by the humans and put under the knife. Having his optic ripped out of his head, having pieces of him removed and cut away. It's a traumatic, horrifying experience, and by the time Bulkhead arrives to free him he's bleeding from a very inconvenient place. Breakdown doesn't know if his greatest rival truly didn't notice or if he was refusing to acknowledge it, but he's glad for it either way. Starscream shows up to get him back, and Breakdown manages to hold himself together until he gets to the medbay

Knockout is waiting for him, and already knows the grim reality: Breakdown had never experienced such a spark-deep, lacerating pain than when one of their sparklings reabsorbed into him, premature bond shattering and leaving him a howling, roaring mess strapped to that concrete slab. Even now it persists, as his internals constrict and twist trying purge what would have been one of their bodies.

He looks like a mess stumbling into Knockout's arms, face still torn open, a gaping hole of wires and energon where his eye once was, chassis soaked in blood from their experiments and thighs just as wet, leaking a trail of blood behind him. The second the door whooshes shut behind them Breakdown collapses, crumbling to his knees and starting to scream even as his bondmate rushes throw his arms around him. It's so much, it's too much, everything is visceral pain, everywhere, from the farest reaches of his limbs to the cold void growing in his spark. It's agony, pure agony, as he desperately clings onto Knockout hard enough to dent and scratch and scrape, bawling and screaming in ire so loudly it surely echoes out into the halls. It's all just too much.

And then, to make matters worse, Starscream arrives. Bulkhead may not have noticed but he did. He can think of several reasons a mech might be voiding internal energon from his interface array, and none of them are positive. One look at the two of them immediately confirms his suspicions, and the only thing he can ask is, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Why, indeed. Breakdown immediately starts hysterically rambling, that he's sorry he knows they should've said something sooner but he's sorry this is all his fault and he's so sorry-

Explanations can wait, evidently. They need to get him taken care of, first.

Thankfully, a quick look with the mirror and a medical scan reveal that three of them are still there. Obviously stressed, vibrating at a higher than usual frequency, but still anchored safely to him. Not immediately in danger of reabsorption, and it's a huge, bittersweet relief. Three of them survived, might still survive all the way to emergence. The happiness is of course overshadowed by the loss, but this discovery feels like a glimmer of hope nonetheless. Knockout gets to work patching him up as seamlessly as he can, precise, loving hands eradicating wound by microscopic wound. Breakdown gets a tiny bit of carrier-safe sedative, to relax his body enough to safely operate while keeping him semi-coherent. They talk the whole time, all three of them. About... what to do next, about what the future may look like with three sparklings soon to be born. Starscream agrees that, if any of them have wings, he'll willingly care for them and be their parent. If they're all grounders, then... he'll of course be civil and be more forgiving about time off for the two of them, but he won't be involved. It's a fair arrangement they can all agree on.

Of course, that all goes out the window when the three of them are born. Starscream himself didn't even realize how excited he was for their birth until Knockout announces the first one is a grounder, and his spark leaps because he doesn't care. He doesn't care if they're a grounder or a flyer, his spark lurches in a joyful way it hasn't done since before Vos fell, and all at once he realizes that he wants to be involved in these bitties' lives whether they're actually his or not. They'll need all the help, all the love they can get, and he wants to be there with them regardless of what frame they are.

Then the next two come out as jets and he's somehow even happier, because this means he'll have someone to teach about the sky and all it's wonders, and it's somehow an even greater happiness. The three of them are beautiful sparklings, each somehow with Knockout's unnaturally pretty, elegant face. The little grounder looks just like his carrier as far as his colors go, mimicking him near perfectly, but his alt mode is achingly different but so familiar. "He's just like Wildrider..." Breakdown murmurs, optics faraway as he remembers his family from so long ago. They name the eldest Wildbreak, at Knockout's insisting that Breakdown be included too. The split spark twins inherit names from the sky, from long dead relatives they'll never meet: Jetfire and Jetstorm. Neither Knockout nor Breakdown has any complaints, so their names are settled on swiftly. With that out of the way their exhausted parents can all settle in on and around the bed, bonding with their newborns and whispering back and forth to each other about just how wonderful their precious sparklings are 💖

[beevean]

I noticed a stark difference between the endings of LoI and CoD, and how the fandom has received them.

LoI doesn't shy away from how tragic its ending is. Sure, Leon survived his encounter with Death, but how does he end the game? Utterly alone. He didn't save Sara in time, and was forced to kill her to spare her the curse of vampirism. His best friend Mathias used him as a pawn (and planned Sara's death to boot) for the sake of becoming a vampire, and he fled with only a broken heart. He doesn't have a title anymore, he doesn't work for the Church anymore, the only thing he has left is his vow of revenge (and, I suppose, he could keep in touch with Rinaldo).

The last we see of Leon is him walking away from the castle with a dead eyed look on his face. And I have seen fans trying to imagine how broken Leon would be for the rest of his life, finding a new woman to have children with but still grieving Sara, pushing his children and descendants to become vampire hunters to carry his vow. It's unambiguous.

By contrast, CoD's ending is happy... on the surface. After all his losses and traumatic experiences, Hector was saved by his suicide attempt by Julia, and the two end the game living together.

But as much as I'm glad Hector is finally smiling, he really has no reason to, considering every major character should by all means be as miserable as Leon.

Hector hasn't even begun to properly mourn Rosaly, because all he could think was killing Isaac, but now he's dead and he didn't even die by his own hands and if he did Hector would have become Dracula and anyway Isaac can't be fully blamed for Rosaly's death. That's a lot to take in, that is a lot of time and energy wasted for nothing, on top of the humiliation of being used as a pawn. And I think everyone and their mother has discussed about how unhealthy it is to grow attracted to Julia only because she looks identical to Rosaly: in-universe, it looks like he's nowhere near ready to heal. And let's not forget that he attempted to let himself die out of guilt and despair twice in the span of three years.

Julia has lost her brother, her pleads to save him all in vain while the man who wanted to kill him so badly simply willed himself to not be Cursed anymore - what kind of injustice is that? And she seems to be coping with that... badly:

Julia: Those hearts are yet filled with darkness. The cursed has reached deep inside of them. Its mark will not easily vanish. For my brother, only death could erase it. (saddened) Hector: Julia... Julia: (hopeful) All the same, people are not such fools. Their hope lies in one another. They shall realize that in time. Scars will fade and be lost to memory... Let us have faith in the morrow.

yeah right "hopeful" she's repressing so hard, the very second Hector starts to show concern for her she launches into a speech that boils down to "eh it will get better soon <3". girl is going to have the mother of breakdowns off screen.

And nice of her to also remind us that Wallachia isn't suddenly a paradise! The Curse had three years to seep deep into everyone. People will probably still steal, hurt and kill each other for a while.

And what about poor Trevor? The story unceremoniously kicks him out of the plot, but he has survived the events! And what's he gonna do once he heals (and assuming he'll recover perfectly from being stabbed from back to chest)? He'll return home with his tail between his legs, his mission a complete failure due to his own recklessness, he too was used as a pawn but didn't even get the cathartic moment of kicking the shit of Isaac and Death, and... you know, we meme on the stabbing scene a lot because it's. well. it's very CoD. but if you put yourself in Trevor's boots, being not only nearly killed and mocked but essentially molested, by being forcibly hugged from behind and kissed on the neck, it must have felt so gross and humiliating.

So yeah. In a way, all of this can be summarized as "the ending of CoD is tonally dissonant and kind of rushed, creating uncomfortable implications". But I believe the consequences could be eviscerated and deconstructed before being fixed with headcanons.

I wrote a fic about Hector "breaking up" with Julia after realizing that living together was only making them miserable. Or maybe they could have stayed together longer, but it would be clear that, as much as they genuinely like each other and can support each other in their shared grief, they are only clinging onto each other as poor substitutes of what they've lost. Or maybe Julia could grow to resent Hector for being alive in Isaac's stead (or, even worse, being constantly called the name of a dead woman :P)

And I wouldn't be opposed to reading a fic about Trevor readjusting again to his home life, but while three years prior he had come back as a hero, now he's ashamed and angry and jumpy, who knows for how long.

Of course this is all eventully fixable, they're not doomed to be depressed for all life. It's just interesting to think about, and I noticed few people seem willing to think about the post-CoD effects, unless it's to criticize the Helia romance from a writing standpoint.

anyway they needed to invent therapy in the 10th century

[randomly--accessed--memories]

Suddenly thinking of Vox in the immediate aftermath of Alastor torturing him. The first few weeks after the Vees recovered him.

I think he was probably more or less catatonic and unresponsive and when he wasn’t he was incoherent and terrified.

Before they realized something was still terribly wrong again they both both so relieved when they finally got an understandable sentence out of him.

It took weeks just to repair his body. Weeks of Valentino and Velvette waiting for him to wake up. Weeks of single-mindedly trying to locate Alastor whenever they weren't stuck in the repair room, monitoring their employees to make sure none of them made even the smallest mistake. They thought (they hoped) that Alastor had simply made a mistake, not noticing that Vox wasn't dead yet when he ended the broadcast, but as time ticks by, thoughts creep in, unbidden– why didn't he finish him off? They try to ignore that question. Vox's body is nearly fixed and once he's back online they'll all have a good laugh about how arrogant Alastor was to think he could slay The Media Demon. Video killed the radio star, not the other way around.

Eager, anxious tension hangs in the air when the day finally comes to turn Vox back on. He's alive, he's fully repaired, everything's fine. It's going to be fine. The head engineer pushes the button and the VoxTek logo blooms across his face, blue and red and just as it should be. And then, suddenly, it flickers. Vox's face appears on his screen, but the display is black and white. He doesn't respond, doesn’t move, even as Val tries nervously to greet him. The repair team exchange concerned looks (Why isn't he reacting? All his diagnostics came back fine). And then Vox opens his mouth. And pure, ear-splitting, static-filled noise comes blasting out his speakers at maximum volume.

For the next month, Vox cannot speak. All that's coming out of him is static and incomprehensibly distorted clips from a hundred different broadcasts. He doesn't seem like he can see or hear either. The repair team try to fix him, assuming they must have missed something, but they can't find anything wrong with him. Val and Velvette are at a loss. Val can't stand to remain in the tower any longer and goes out to hunt for Alastor personally, leaving Velvette to try to manage the whole situation by herself. Valentino never finds Alastor.

Eventually, the noise coming out of Vox starts improving– they can at least make out what the clips he's playing say. There's no rhyme or reason to them though. He's not trying to communicate (or at least, they don't think he is), it's just randomly spliced-together gibberish. He seems like he's regaining his sensory capabilities though, since he’s actually reacting to stimuli again, even if the reactions are erratic and obviously fearful. It's an improvement, but the Vees are starting to worry that something might be truly, genuinely wrong.

At last, the day comes when Vox can speak with his own voice. What comes out is pure nonsense— unrelated words with no grammatical structure or pauses for "breath." It's scary to hear, but Val and Vel push those feelings down. He's recovering. He’s been slowly getting better every day for the past few months. It might take a while, but soon he'll be back to normal.

Vox eventually starts speaking in actual sentences again. They're rambly and frantic and don't make much sense, but at least they're legible as sentences. He can see and hear and walk again, even if he doesn't seem to recognize anyone or know where he is. It's painful to see him like this, but Valentino and Velvette wait patiently for the next step in his recovery.

It never comes.

[huffle-dork]

Swap into the CrystalVerse Chapter 23: Horror Septics

Co-written with @crystalninjaphoenix 

Read Swapboys | Read Horror Septics | AO3 Link

Prologue | Switch | Stitched | PNPT | Septicheroes | Fantasy Masks | Horror

Taglist: @brokentimewatch @di-diwata  

What follows is about an hour of frenzied activity while the doctors take Alt to the emergency room and examine him. True to their word they let Chase stay in the room, though Mag and Jack have to wait nearby and observe through a window. After all this, the doctors conclude that Alt is very injured and lost a lot of blood, but will recover from it all eventually. The highest priority is the cocktail of unidentifiable drugs in his system. He'll need at least one night for his system to detox--not to mention get some good rest. So they take him to a room in the recovery ward and hand Chase some paperwork to fill out.

When he asks about the fee, one of the doctors from earlier takes him aside and quietly tells him not to worry about that. "We get some of you... sometimes," he says softly, and then hurries away before Chase can ask for elaboration.

After what feels like forever, the whole group is squeezed into a private hospital room with a wide window and a small TV in the wall.

Alt is finally sleeping somewhat peacefully, bandaged up and hooked up to IVs and monitors. Chase hates seeing him like this.

Mag has turned into his cat form and is hiding in the corner of the room, watching the shadows for any movement.

Jack has not said a word since they left Notarzt's home.

Chase looks to Jack and smiles at him tiredly. "Hey... Jack? Uh... t-thank you so much for helping us... but um... are you okay? you.. you don't have to stay here anymore... if you don't want to. We'll... we'll be out of here... soon hopefully."

Jack stares at Chase wordlessly for a second. Then, suddenly, the TV turns on, showing nothing but static.

Chase jumps at the TV turning on. Alt seems to curl up, holding a hand against his ear to stop the noise.

Jack quickly jumps up and rushes over to turn it off.

He breathes a sigh of relief and walks back over. “I want to stay,” he says quietly. “But I don’t know if I can. I…” He pauses. “Do you remember what Alt said about not being able to glitch? Maybe… that’s my fault. I-I told you that the thing hunting me uses technology. I-I don’t know much about Alt’s powers but… they seem… similar. Maybe… it blocked his powers. But maybe… if I go, it won’t be able to.”

The hero leans in close to listen, his eyes widening. "...Why... Why would it be messing with Alt's powers? Just because they're similar...? ...I dunno if you going would do anything though... it sounded like this happened while that freaky doctor bitch had him. ... what if this is just to lure you back out? I can't have that thing dragging you away!"

"Heh." Jack smiles. "It... means a lot to hear that. But you guys have to leave eventually. And I think we know we can't fully defeat them, even if we may be able to... work around them. For a while. As for why it would happen in the first place... I have no idea. Maybe it's just jealous of there being someone else out there who can mess with tech." He shrugs. "If... you don't want me to leave... I won't." There's hope in his voice, but also trepidation.

Chase looks at him with soft eyes, "...I don't want you to go. You... you really helped me here... even though you didn't have to. ... I can at least repay the favor for as long as we're still here."

Jack takes a shaky breath. "...thanks," he whispers. Are there tears in his single visible eye? He looks away quickly so Chase can't really see. "I really hope you guys don't come back here, but on the off chance you do, I... I hope you remember me."

Chase looks concerned, "...why wouldn't we remember you? ... i mean Mag might not care but he's an asshole so don't count him." Chase tries to laugh, "But... of course I'll remember you."

Jack smiles sadly. "Think of it like... a curse. It's hard for me to stick in people's minds." He leans back in the chair and sighs. "But... anyway. You should rest. I think your seat reclines."

Chase looks more worried at this. But, Jack has a point. He is really tired. He looks for the recliner part and then laughs when he finds it. "Oh hell yeah! Fancy~!" He smiles at Jack and then gives him a softer, more concerned look. "...try to rest too Jack... okay?"

Jack nods. "I will." To demonstrate, he closes his eyes. But he doesn't like to sleep. He doesn't like to risk having dreams. So he stays awake for longer than he should.

The night passes peacefully, and soon the sun is rising again. Jack wakes up around this time, but everyone else takes a couple more hours.

Alt wakes up a bit before Chase does. And, he notices the medical equipment around him and immediately starts having a panic attack. The monitors beeping- the iv in his arm. Even if he's not strapped down- the bandages feel like how the straps felt- and that's more than enough to send him further into panicking. He starts to hiccup and gasps for breath, sure that Notarzt is right around the corner, about to inject him again.

"Whoa, hey!" Jack immediately stops pretending to be asleep. "Hey hey hey. Alt, right?" He stands up and walks a bit closer--though not too close, in case that would make all this worse.

Alt snaps his head over to Jack at the voice. And for a second- he almost thinks... It's his friend Jack from home. But... it couldn't be. Now that he's looking- there's no way.

"You're safe now. Look." Jack points to the window. There were no windows in that... maze of hallways and operating rooms. "Outside. This is a normal hospital, not that thing's fucked up pocket dimension."

Alt does listen though and looks towards the window- and seems to relax, breathing a little less rapidly. He shudders and then really tries to look at this guy. "... w-who... who are you?" He whispers, as if afraid to raise his voice too loud.

Jack sighs. "Uh, well... I'm ħĨ¦¶Ÿ, but your brother's been calling me... I-it's funny, I wonder if he thought I was your friend Jackie, so he called me, you know, a shortened version of that." He pauses. "That was probably a long explanation, uh... a-anyway. I know you guys are from some other world. I'm from here. I've... I can relate to what you're going through right now..." he says softly.

"Shortened... Jackie...?" Alt asks, brain feeling scrambled. "...Jack... ha... I.. for a second... y-you kinda reminded me of my f-friend Jack... back home...." Alt smiles shakily at him.

Jack smiles sadly at the mention of a friend back home named Jack. could it be...? Well, he doesn't have time to dwell on it.

Then. Alt blinks and seems to remember, "oh...! You... you helped me- back in... in that place... You helped Chase and- ... and Mag was there too." He furrows his eyebrows at this and makes a face. "...why was Mag there...? and... w-where's Chase?" As he asks this slight panic raises in his voice.

"Yeah, I was there. I-I said I'd help Chase find you. As for, uh, Mag... that's a longer story..." He doesn't get to tell the story himself, though.

A hand comes to hold Alt's and even though he startles slightly he relaxes as Chase smiles at him. "H-Hey hey... I'm here- I'm awake...!"

Magnificent rises from his slumber too, but stays lurking in the shadows, watching the others carefully.

As Chase appears Jack decides to let the two of them have that moment. The TV flickers on for a moment. Not long enough for anyone to notice.

Alt blinks and then smiles at Chase and almost immediately starts to cry. "C-Chase-"

Chase is scooping him up into a hug, IV and equipment be damned. He buries his face against Alt's shoulder and tries to hide the way his shoulders are shaking and his voice is cracked with emotion. "I'm so sorry we took so long Alt- I tried to find you as soon as we could! I'm... I'm so sorry I left you- I'm so sorry that thing got you...! I'm sorry... I'm sorry...!"

Alt blinks and then goes to wrap his arms lightly around Chase, letting his own tears fall quietly. He wants to tell Chase it's okay... but he'd be lying. ...none of this was okay. But, he doesn't want Chase to blame himself. "... you found me in the end... that's what matters, okay...?"

Bro nods and then slowly lets Alt go, quickly wiping at his face. "Yeah... yeah... h-how are you feeling?"

Alt laughs a bit, "Like complete shit... I... don't know how else to describe it.... like- like a cut up sausage I guess-"

Chase finds himself chuckling at that.

"Hah..." Jack smiles a little. He can't help it--there's something so absurdly accurate about that comparison, from what he knows about Notarzt. "Well... I'm pretty sure that it won't be coming after you. It... let us get to you, so I-I think it's done with you. Don't worry. You won't have to deal with that again." Doesn't mean they won't have to deal with other stuff while they're still in this world, but he's not going to say that.

Alt looks relived at this, nodding to Jack with a small smile.

Again, the TV flickers, the speakers letting out a hint of white noise.

Once the tender moment is over, Magnificent slinks from the shadows and turns back into his human form, baring his teeth slightly. Mist clings to his feet. "Alright- enough of this frivolity. We need to leave this place now. Alt- can you feel your powers-"

He doesn't get to finish his question before the tv speakers let out noise. And Alt immediately tenses and covers his ears, curling in on himself.

Jack spins over to the TV with wide eyes. He hurries over and makes sure the TV is off again. It is. But that's not good enough. He finds the plug and pulls it out, letting out a sigh of relief. "A-anyway. Apparently Mag is an asshole, from what I've heard, but he's right. If... you can go... you guys should. A-any universe would be safer than this. Probably. How'd you get here anyway...?"

Alt lowers his hands and then panics slightly patting his pockets to see if he still has the TRVLR.

He does. When he sees if he has enough power to turn it on, he does--though the jump button is grayed out. He must not have given it enough power for that yet. The red warning bubble in the middle is still there. Tapping it reveals the same message that he saw when he first arrived here:

WARNING

Lethal ALTRs detected in Current Location: (!)UA-1031019HS. Please jump as soon as possible.

Alt seems to relax as he finds it and powers it up- but not nearly enough it seems. He curses. Then goes to answer Jack, “We… we used this thing. I can supply it with enough energy with my magic- but.. I guess I’m still kinda drained…”

Chase narrows his eyes and tilts the screen to read the warning. He pales. “Ah Jesus… t-that would have been nice to know!”

“I… I didn’t know- I think we picked this one by mistake,” Alt comments quietly, “I tried to call you to warn you right away but then that’s when… when it-“

Chase’s face softens and he pats Alt on the shoulder. “…it’s okay Alt.” He then narrows his eyes at Mag. “you heard him, cat bitch. Not enough magic to jump yet-“

“I’ll give him some of my magic!” Mag argues.

“Oh hell no! I’m not letting your freaky magic touch Alt anytime soon bitch!” Chase snaps back.

"You know, I did just say you should leave, but I don't think it's uh... a good idea to introduce any... foreign power to Alt's systems... right now?" Jack says carefully. "Look, uh, le-let's give it a little bit longer, okay?"

He looks at Mag. "I know you're worried about Cait Coill. But it can take years for it to collect sometimes. You pissing it off doesn't guarantee it's going to show up at any moment."

Magnificent bares his teeth at Jack for calling him out. But, he doesn't say anything more.

Jack looks back to the brothers. "Anyway. Alt. I noticed your clothes got, uh... wrecked a little. I noticed an outlet store nearby. One of us could... go get something for you?"

Alt blinks up at Jack and then moves the blankets to see his ripped sweatpants. Bro also holds up his shirt and Alt's face falls. "...oh... uh... y-yeah that'd be... really nice actually..."

"Your jacket is okay though," Bro reassures him, handing it to him. Alt smiles slightly and takes it, holding it in his arms.

"Okay," Jack says quietly. "I could... um, if you gave me your sizes and some cash, I could head over really quick." He glances at the TV nervously. "I won't be long."

Chase blinks and then looks through his bag, pulling out some cash and handing it to Jack. "Here- Alt's a medium."

Mag huffs and goes to sit in one of the chair.

Alt glances at the TV nervously too. "um.. t-thanks Jack..."

The TV is quiet. Of course it is, it's unplugged. What are you expecting?

"Thanks." Jack gives them both a small smile. "I'll be right back. I'll try to get something like your last stuff." And with that, he stands up and heads out.

Alt smiles warily as he watches Jack leave.

Chase sighs and sits back down, but he does hand Alt his phone. "Oh yeah- I found this outside. How the hell does yours still have battery? I swear mine was dead when we got here."

The glitch shrugs with a light laugh, "I dunno- maybe me using my magic to jump charges it."

"Why the hell didn't mine charge then?"

"I dunno man! I can't control that! Maybe you just need a better phone!"

"...isn't yours stolen?"

"nooo- this was from Jackie i think-" Alt comments lightly. He flicks it on- it's very close to dying but not yet.

As soon as he turns it on, he gets a text notification. The banner disappears unusually fast--too fast to even see a preview of the message.

Alt blinks in confusion and opens up the message.

It's from a number simply listed as "Unknown." ÑñŜ§ŬţġöēŴHelloĴŝêśįģųÝåþŦÚń¨«ĩÄìĽãÊij íźĔīĆvisitorIJĭęúÇ£ĥŲıħăËūùÏŋ* ĻŇňÛ¶Őďŗ¼®ėŽņĖYouŕÎõě©żŖóĘőķŊæ ¾»ŷĀĤareŢ¿ŤŨáŁ×ĶŹĝāŪèŶůâ´ÉĊĞŃlikeÐĐʼnü·¤¬meðŭ¥ëř

"The fuck?" Alt mutters under his breath, "How am I still getting spam across dimensions?"

As soon as Alt exits his messages, there's another one. This time the banner lingers for long enough for him to read.

ê¸×üšĝřÖĪŰĊ¥NotĸŷŃŬŊď¨Ă奄ßĈspamŶťġ¹ŵáŝıΪ

And then another soon after that.

Alt

Alt's stomach drops as he sees the message- he... he could see other words amongst the nonsense. Not Spam He gasps slightly as he sees the text with just his name. He drops his phone and scoots back.

Wait- if he noticed something in there then- He checks the first message again.

You're.... like... me

Now Alt really chucks his phone and this causes Bro and Mag to react.

Chase is by his side in an instant, "Alt? What's wrong?"

"M-Message-!" Is all Alt can try to say through his panic.

The TV turns on again.

Alt cries out and covers his ears, curling up and then looking up at the TV in fear.

Bro stands up and looks at it with confusion. "W-what? Didn't Jack unplug that??"

He did. In between the bursts of static everyone--even Alt with his ears covered--hears a voice that sounds like their own, distorted and twisted.

"¢ñŶÅPlayingŘľĬwithïĢŒmyĴÊĠtoys?üÝöĭ ľĬÔŎI ņ®ōdon'tÓŞūlikeĊõ¨Ś¾toğ±´Żshare.ĸÑÌ ĘŖ·SeeÚěìyou¦âðśsoon.ŪĿŽÚ"

And then, abruptly as it turned on, it turns off again.

Alt shakes in the bed, curled up tight into a ball as he chokes on a terrified sob.

Bro backs away from the TV, eyes wide. "W-What the fuck...?"

Magnificent stiffens and then glares at the tv with his teeth bared, power pulsing in his eyes.

Even once the the TV turns off, nobody moves. All they can hear is Alt's panicked breathing.

Minutes pass. Five. Ten. Nothing happens.

Bro and Mag relax after the first few minutes of silence. Bro tries to walk over to Alt to comfort him, but the glitch refuses to uncurl. He just keeps thinking about that message. You're like me.

Magnificent flicks between watching the shadows and glancing at the tv. ...whatever that thing that threatened them... looks like it had nothing more than just scary words.

More time passes. Fifteen minutes total since the message. Twenty. Twenty five.

Then there’s a knock on the door. “Hey guys?” It’s Jack. He slowly pushes open the door and steps inside. He’s carrying a paper bag from the nearby clothing store.

The instant he steps in he realizes something is wrong. “What happened? Did you see something else?”

Chase is still trying to get Alt to calm down but he can't seem to get him to relax. He jumps slightly as Jack comes back and then he sighs, "H-Hey... I... I don't know- Alt was acting weird with his phone- and starting freaking out about a message. And then- the TV turned on- even though we didn't plug it back in! There was a ... a voice- in the static."

"Said something about how it didn't want to share its toys," Mag adds in a flat voice.

Bro nods, "But... nothing since then... but Alt is still pretty spooked." He gently tries to shake Alt's shoulder again. "Hey its okay dude... nothing's comin' to hurt us- look, Jack's back! It's okay..."

Unfortunately Jack's reaction to this news does not help calm Alt down. The paper clothing bag falls out of his loose hand as he immediately goes white as a ghost.

"We're going," he says. "We're going, we're--I know we probably have to check out of the hospital but there's no time, we're going somewhere else to wait for Alt to recover--ow!" His hand flies to his eye-patch, pressing against it.

Alt now looks at Jack with wide terrified eyes, “W..what is this thing? W-why did it say it was Iike me?!”

Bro looks between the two of them in confusion. “wait what? We can’t just-“ Then he starts to connect the dots and he turns pale as well. “that thing- that hunted you. Okay- okay just- grab whatever you can!” He hurries to grab his bag and then starts to see how he can get Alt unplugged from all the monitors.

Jack picks up the paper clothing bag again, trying to take deep breaths. "I-I told you earlier that I understood how you feel--it's because I was stuck with one of those things for a--" He laughs. "--a long, long time." He rubs the bandages covering his neck. "I-it uses technology. M-manipulates it. I-I-I guess it doesn't like having someone else around who can do the same thing."

Alt shudders and looks at Jack with a mix of sympathy and terror.

As soon as Chase has Alt mostly unhooked he hurries over to the window. They're on the first floor and the window opens. That's probably a bad idea, but this is a small hospital. "Come on. When you can."

Chase is quick to help Alt up, slinging his shoulder over his. Alt limps towards the window with Chase’s help.

Alt knows they need to hurry so he grabs Jack and then Mag too and closes his eyes. In a quick burst of static and pixels, Alt glitches them outside. But, then he slumps against Chase, breathing heavily- still having trouble glitching. But at least they’re out of the hospital room.

Magnificent shakes himself off like an offended cat and eyes their surroundings.

“W-Where to now?” Chase frantically asks Jack.

“Somewhere with less tech,” Jack says, frantically looking around. “I-if we can’t make it to the edge of the city we can find a park or something—fuck, I’ve never been here before, I don’t know—aagh!” He stumbles, pressing his had to his eye-patch once again. When he lifts it, blood trickles out from under the patch.

Chase hurries to look over at Jack as he stumbles then looks at him with mounting horror. “J-Jack- your eye is bleeding…!”

“I know, I know, and it’s not a good sign!” Jack shakes his head, pushing past the pain. “Just go! Hurry! Come on!” He starts running down the street, picking a direction at random.

Chase looks back at Alt and then, despite his protests, picks him up and runs after Jack. Magnificent stays close behind.

They run for a few minutes, with Jack constantly looking around for some sign of anything.

There’s nothing.

Until they reach a construction site where the sidewalk and street are all torn up, big empty pipes sitting next to holes clearly meant for them. The site is empty. Unusual. It forces the group to a narrow strip of intact sidewalk, a high wall to one side and a hole to the other.

At once, all the phones the group has let out a squawk of static that sounds like laughter. Up ahead something appears. Glitches into being is probably the most accurate way to describe it, but it’s not like Alt’s glitching. There is something more visceral about the sound and the movement.

The boys all stagger backwards, Mag holding out a hand filled with magic at this thing while Chase holds Alt close. As soon as the sound started Alt had curled up and covered his ears again, shaking like a leaf.

The thing is shaped like a person… in fact, it’s shaped like Jack. But with wide green-sclera eyes. But a second later it shivers and shudders, blasts of static noise filling the air one after another. KRCHT Now it looks like Alt. KRCHT Now it looks like Chase. KRCHT Now it looks like Mag. KRCHT Now there is something of all of them in it, jittering pieces forced together, green eyes and blood in the seams where they meet.

Alt stares at the thing with terrified eyes and then shouts at it, “No no! G-Get the fuck away from us!!”

Its smile splits its face in half. All of a sudden it’s in front of them, without any moving at all—without even the blink of teleportation. It lunges forward, static getting louder.

Jack cries out and instinctively tries to push the others behind him— And then it is gone. Right before it reached them it vanished like it had never been there at all. But the static lingers.

“Keep going keep going keep going!” Jack urges.

Chase staggers back then breaks out into a sprint, holding his trembling brother in a vice grip against him.

Magnificent tries to keep up, split between running and teleporting as he shouts out, “What the hell is that thing?!”

“I don’t know! It’s another one of those things!” Jack shouts. He’s running as fast as he can, but is lagging a bit behind the others with their powers and magic. “It’s strong, though! It can—”

But then, abruptly, he stops talking. Stops running, too, coming to a sudden halt. His visible eye is wide, his muscles are trembling, and more blood leaks from behind the patch. “No,” he breathes. “No, not—” Again, he stops. He relaxes abruptly, head lolling, swaying on his feet.

Chase skids to a stop and whips around. “J-Jack?!”

Magnificent shivers and steps back, eyes wide and magic sparking at his fingertips.

Alt feels like he can’t breathe.

"Ì sińg t̢h̕e ͝body ͡el̡èćt̛r̨ic̕.͞" The voice comes from Jack's throat, but also from their phones, popping and fizzling with white noise. Jack's mouth grins wide and then his body lurches forward, lunging for whoever's closest.

Alt in his panic tried to glitch away- but whether it’s his still messed up powers or the gravity of whatever this thing is- he ends up right in the things path- disoriented.

“NO!” Chase tries to yell-

The hands grab Alt, arms wrapping around him. Jack's body is moving so fast that the two of them go toppling to the ground, on the edge of the hole in the road.

"Bad luck, bad luck," Jack's voice says, his face still grinning. One hand wraps around Alt's throat while the other reaches into Jack's pocket for his swiss army knife. The blade flicks open.

Alt is panicking hardcore, unable to breathe. He tries to kick and fight Jack but he’s still weak and in a lot of pain. “D-Don’t! Please S-Stop…!” Alt croaks out, trying to get himself to glitch but he can’t.

The other react fast- Magnificent yells out and tries to wrap up Jack in strings.

Bro rushes forward to see if he can grab Alt away-

The strings yank Jack's body away just in time for Chase to grab Alt. It shrieks and struggles.

Chase backs away quickly with Alt, afraid both of them will fall in the hole. Alt clings to Bro’s shirt like a lifeline- but he refuses to look away from Jack.

More blood leaks from behind Jack's eye-patch and he stops, clarity for a moment. "I-I can understand it," he whispers. "Neurons and nerves. Guys, it can't--" But then his mouth snaps shut.

Alt’s eyes widen as he hears Jack- “Neurons and nerves- what does that mean?!”

Jack’s hand flips the blade around and cuts through the strings holding that arm. His body presses against the strings, growling, somehow gathering enough force to snaps some of them as the hands reach for Magnificent.

Magnificent growls and whips out another hand and sends a shock of green electricity at the thing before it can grab him.

Jack screams as the electricity hits him, spasming and slumping. But he’s talking as soon as the scream is over. “I-it can’t reach you so it’s stuck with me. Disrupt its con—”

Alt’s eyes widen, his thoughts racing. Break the connection-!

Jack’s warning is broken by laughter. His body jumps forward, breaking the last of the strings, going for Bro with the knife.

As Jack dives at Bro with the knife Alt screams out and then in a quick flurry of glitches disappears into Jack’s body.

Abrupt silence.

Jack’s body drops, completely limp. The knife clatters to the ground.

Alt feels everything that Jack feels, sees everything that he sees as if this is his body. But something is off. Jack’s consciousness is there, battered and tired and worn thin. But there is something else there as well. A parasite, wrapped up in Jack’s nerves, hissing like organic white noise. And yet there is something familiar in its presence. Like your reflection in a funhouse mirror.

{He’s mine,} it says. {Not yours. Get out.} {No!} Jack’s consciousness squirms. {Alt, please! Help!}

Alt panics for a second, trying to understand what is happening. Then he tries to dive into kinks in the nerves, trying to send out his own current to disrupt the flow. {This body isn’t yours! Get out!}

The entity digs its claws into Jack's mind. Alt's current causes it to spasm and stretch but it won't let go yet.

{It is. And so is the mind and soul. Will you take it from me? Make it yours instead?}

{Alt wouldn't do that!} Jack protests.

{Why not? He is like me. I can feel it.}

Alt falters then pushes harder in anger. {No! I’m not like you! I’ll never be like you!}

{But you are,} it says. {We are similar. Your cat is like our cat. Your misery is like our misery. This mind knows. This mind has suspected ever since your misery mentioned a friend with a red hood.}

A memory flashes through Jack's eyes--Chase's freakout in the radio tower when he realized Jackie often wears a red hoodie. But that memory flash brings something to light.

Alt feels himself freeze, slow realization flooding through his body like cold dread. “No! Cuz there’s… t-there’s so way that thing is Jackie! There’s no way that m-monster is my best friend!“ Chase says in the memory.

These things… these horrors- they’re supposed to be them.

As Alt is distracted by the parasite's words, it is sinking deeper into Jack's brain.

Outside the mind, his body trembles, eyes rolling back in his head. Alt can feel pain in Jack's right eye.

Chase has crashed down next to Jack’s body and is trying to shake him awake. “J-Jack?! Alt!!” Mag steps back- but pulls Jack’s arms behind his back with his strings. Cant be too careful…

Alt feels himself want to scream- no no no! He’s not this thing! He’s not a torturer- he’s not evil! He gets distracted from his spiral at the flare of pain in Jack’s eye. He feels panic trying to take over him. But- that must be the connection!

Alt tries to act quickly, racing into the nerves by the eye and putting more of his magic in to stop this thing from spreading further.

It's like slowly pulling apart taffy. The parasite wants to stay, clawing and biting into the membrane of Jack's soul. But Alt's power stretches it, pushing it away until-- SNAP!

It's gone.

All that's left is the shadow of a power. Jack's body stops shuddering and he lies there, breathing heavily.

{Thank you...} It's just a thought, but Alt can picture tears of relief.

Alt's being shudders once the connection is snapped but he lingers long enough to hear the thank you- and feel the relief flooding through the both of them. {...anytime.}

Chase shakes Jack's body more, getting worried. "J-Jack?? Alt??"

Jack's body shudders and then- glitches break off his form almost like a copy of him. Then, Alt snaps back to himself right next to Jack, but he can't stay up long. His eyes roll back in his head and he slumps forward- but luckily Chase catches him. "Alt!"

The glitch shudders and shakes in Chase's arms, his eyelids fluttering and electricity sparking bright in his veins. But- not as bad as it was in the last world at least...

Mag watches carefully- but he does release the strings on Jack.

Jack breathes heavily. He sits up slowly and looks around. "I think... I think it's gone." For now. He knows it will keep trying to find him. But Alt seems to have driven it away temporarily. "You guys... are you all okay? I-I didn't hurt any of you, did I? Or... it didn't?"

Chase seems to relax as he sees Jack get up, "W-We're okay... I.. I think..."

Mag relaxes somewhat too but he eyes around them. "... we shouldn't linger here- we should try to find another safe spot..."

Chase nods and gets to his feet, holding Alt against him again. "Uh- first off let's get away from this big hole thing- freaks me out..."

"Yeah..." Jack breathes. He stands to his feet, staggering as he gets used to controlling his own body again. "Maybe... maybe now that it's gone we can go back to the hospital. O-or we could try to find a park or something. That'd be nice. I don't know. What do you guys think?" The group starts to walk away from the construction site.

"Park is good..." Chase mumbles, "I... I don't want to risk drawing that thing again..."

Alt pants slightly and mumbles a bit against Bro, his shoulders starting to glitch and pixelate. Chase seems to perk up at this.

"Alright." Jack nods. "Let's see if we can find one." He doesn't want to walk too much. Just having that thing in his head pushes him to exhaustion. It always uses all his strength at once, unable to feel the effects of such effort.

Luckily, they find a park soon. It's rather small, square in shape and fenced-in. But there are a lot of trees and planted flowers, and a small man-made arm-wide creek cutting across the center. Jack sits down under a large willow tree, liking how its drooping branches give him privacy. "This is good."

Chase looks around and laughs slightly, "Y-Yeah wow... this is really pretty actually." He sits down next to Jack and sets Alt down to lay with his head in his lap.

Mag studies this and then disappears to go sit on one of the branches above them.

Chase looks up and squints, ".... can't you be normal for once?"

Mag grins, "Nope~"

Bro rolls his eyes and then looks over at Jack, "...you okay dude? That was... that was super intense..."

Jack pauses, unsure how to say this. "I've... been through worse," he says slowly. "With that whole... situation, too. What just happened." He looks up into the tree. "You're right. It is pretty." Nice to know there were still beautiful things in the world.

Chase gives him a sad smile.

"Alt. Are... you okay? You were in my head, I-I kinda knew what was happening. There was a moment there... just, are you okay?"

Alt slowly blinks open his eyes and seems to relax a bit more at taking in the fresh air. He winces for a second before glitching to sit upright, giving him and Bro a bit of space- and so he can see Jack properly. He meets Jack's eyes and Jack can see the flicker of fear in them. But, he looks away and tries to say, "Yeah.. i'm..." Then, he pauses and he swallows thickly, tears starting to brim in his eyes. "...no actually- im... i'm not okay..."

Chase looks confused and worried, "W...What happened?"

Jack sighs. "Do you remember... when we first met? After Sangria left, I made some comment about what if you have a friend in a red hood, and you freaked out?" He pauses. "I had the thought back then, but... if you were so sure I didn't think I should question you. But what it said to Alt while they were both in my head... it implies I was right." He pauses. "Wondering about yourselves in this world... is pointless. We've met them."

Chase's eyes widen, "Wait... no that... that can't be-"

"It is," Alt says in a wavering voice, "These... these horror things- they're us. This is another parallel universe... but one where all of us are fucking horror monsters...! I'm that- g-glitchy thing- it called you Misery, Chase. And It said ours cats were the same."

Mag stiffens but then sighs and looks at the lingering fog, "... i guess that makes sense."

Alt laughs a bit through his tears, "... Notarzt... m-must be Schneep right? The accents... and... Sangria is Jackie... but I... I guess I'm the worst of them... t-that's why Notarzt got scared-" He bites his lip as it wavers and he holds his knees close to his chest.

"You are not it, Alt," Jack says fiercely. "You may be parallels, but that doesn't mean you're the same. I know that because you saved me when it... it probably would've been easier to run away and leave me there. I can't believe that someone who'd do that is the same as the thing that... that tormented me for so long." He shakes his head. "If you believe that you're the same, then you have to believe that all of your friends are the same as the creatures here. Do you think that?"

Alt is quiet for a beat, letting his tears fall quietly. Then, he shakes his head. "no... no- I could never... even Mag doesn't seem as bad as these things..."

"Normally I'd be offended by such a statement-" Mag says haughtily. "... but I'm inclined to agree..."

Chase goes to put hand on Alt's shoulder and smiles at him, "I know it sucks... seeing a version of yourself that is just... completely wrong. It makes you doubt a lot of things... but you are you, Alt. You don't act like these things do... you're good, baby bro. I can promise you that..."

Jack nods. This feels like a moment he shouldn't interrupt.

Alt takes a shuddering breath but does his best to nod to the others. He doesn't know what else to say... because even if he felt so disconnected from the other Antis he's met... in some ways- he felt... exactly the same. And that scares him more than anything. What if who he used to be- is just his default? Is he gonna turn into an awful person who hurts others for fun? What if this is something he can't change? Every universe they go to just makes him more and more convinced- even if he wants so desperately for it to be different.

Chase looks at Alt sadly and then sighs, leaning back. "... at least... that is a mystery solved... even if it sucks balls to hear. Hard to imagine that weird house demon thing was- me I guess. Seems far off if you ask me!" He tries to laugh.

Jack shrugs. “If there’s a multiverse, it’s probably infinite. Anything can happen.” He pauses, then gives a small smile. “But out of everything that could be, I’m glad it all came together so I could meet you two.”

Chase and Alt smiles warmly at Jack. Chase beams, "Ditto! You're a neat dude, Jack! I dunno if we would have even made it without you."

The smile disappears again. “How are you feeling… physically? I don’t know how easy or difficult possession is for you.”

Alt takes stock of himself and shrugs, "...m'still kinda weak- achy... but its hard to tell if its different from the wounds or not. I feel like I have some of my energy back though so... i guess those drugs are finally wearing off."

"Should hope they are, you were going through detox all night at the hospital," Jack mutters. "Anyway, glad to hear it. Maybe... maybe you just need a little more rest. Then you guys can get out of here."

"Yeah... possessing stuff does tire me out so... probably need to wait a bit more..." Alt mutters.

Chase looks around, "Hey- maybe we can get you changed into those better clothes now. ...so it doesn't look like we just kidnapped a hospital patient." He laughs.

"Oh shit, yeah." Jack had dropped the bag during the possession at the construction site, but luckily he'd had the presence of mind to grab it again. He passes it over. "Hope it's alright. It might be a bit big, I wanted to err on the side of caution. But I think I chose good options. Maybe a little cheesy." That last comment is directed at the T-shirt, which is black with Out Of written on it, then a picture of the control key on a keyboard.

Alt blinks a bit and takes out the t-shirt to look at it. He laughs, grinning wide. "heh... it's perfect. Thanks, Jack."

Bro laughs, "You nailed his style dude! He has like a million of those kinda shirts at home!"

Alt flushes at this but he does laugh, "Tech pun shirts are just fun, what can I say?"

Alt soon hurries off to find a place to change, eager to get out of the hospital clothes.

Luckily the park is empty. There are no real constructed buildings here, but the trees are clustered close enough together to provide adequate cover.

When he returns, Jack is slumped back against the tree trunk, eyes closed, messing with the eye-patch but not removing it. The drying blood is irritating.

Alt comes back, pulling his jacket on over his new shirt and jeans. He looks a lot more comfortable now, even if he's still limping on his right leg. He glitches to sit back down with everyone and then flops onto his back, sighing a bit in relief. Chase smiles at him. Magnificent is lounging on the branch, watching them all.

Jack opens his eye. "Heh... you look great, Alt. That really does suit you. Well, then... I guess we just sit here and relax, then."

Chase settles to sit against the tree trunk, closing his eyes.

Alt turns his head to smile at Jack, "Thanks dude-" He lays back down and tries to snap his fingers- seeing if he can feel his powers a bit better.

...Yes, in fact. Alt's powers respond quickly. Not quite as quick as usual, but much faster than just a few minutes ago. Maybe pushing away that... that creature... did undo some sort of block. It's worrying that it was able to block his powers in the first place, but they won't be here for much longer, anyway.

Alt sits up in a bit of excitement at feeling more of his magic. He pulls out the TRVLR and tries to see if he has enough to finish powering it up.

It responds instantly. The jump button is no longer grayed out. The warning button is still there, of course, but that's probably going to stay there until they leave this universe.

Where would they go next, anyway? If Alt scrolls through the universe list for a bit, he sees more UA prefixes than U or UF. What did they mean, anyway? UA brought them back to a modern setting, but it also brought them to a place with dangerous monsters. Maybe... maybe play it safe this time. None of the U universes have that little warning exclamation mark next to them. Even if something goes wrong, they wouldn't end up somewhere dangerous if they aimed for there. Here. U-1227118IV. When they're ready to go, that seems like a good place to start.

Mag hears the sound of the TRVLR and appears down next to Alt in a burst of static. "Is it ready?"

Alt jumps and glitches in place, holding the TRVLR up in the air away from Mag, "Jesus Christ!" He glares at Mag and then sighs, "Yeah- it's ready... I think i found one that... wont kill us at least- if it's not home."

Chase blinks open his eyes and smiles before looking back at Jack. His and Alt's face falls as they look back at him.

"...we should probably go," Alt says quietly, "...just in case."

Bro goes to lightly touch Jack's arm, "...are you gonna be okay?"

Jack laughs. "I'll live. By god, I'll live. Fuckers aren't gonna take me down." The laughter fades, but a small smile remains. "I think... meeting you all has helped. Yes, even this guy." He gestures at Mag. "Picturing a world without things out there hunting down people gives me a little bit of hope. That... somewhere out there, people are alright. Even if they have to deal with other shit. You know? And... like I said, I hope you guys don't come back here. But I'll remember you. And that means something."

Chase grins wide and lightly punches Jack in the shoulder, “Hell yeah dude! I’ll remember you- I swear I will.”

Alt smiles softly, “Yeah… I got something that’ll make me think of you now. …never let these fuckers wear you down, Jack. You’re hella strong for getting this far…”

Mag makes a face at Jack but- he doesn’t look like he hated hearing that.

Alt sighs and then grabs Mag and Bro.

Bro makes sure they have everything and then two finger salutes Jack. “Give ‘em hell, Jack!”

Alt smirks and nods. Then he clicks the jump button.

The three of them fall again, and then they are gone.

Jack stares at the spot where they were. He sighs a little. Though it sucks to be on his own again, he'd rather they be safe than with him. And god only knows this world isn't safe. Not for the people in it, much less people from elsewhere who aren't used to it. He'll remember them. Even if they forget him like everyone else, he'll remember them.

He tilts his head back and stares up into the branches of the trees. Sunlight filters through. Everything is green and yellow and blue. There are birds chirping.

That's nice.

[thedawningofthehour]

Ok, that was a very depressing chapter.

Again, because I read the chapters as *insert clip of ratatoille villain* Genuinely thought Leo had recovered. How did the little runt plan to get to Draxum then!!!?

Poor Splinter. You better give him the best therapy when this is over.

I didn't realize Bradford got a claw in his knee! At this point I don't hold out little hope for you, but I really hope Leo manages to fully activate his ninpo and kick some ass, the kid needs it. Otherwise he'll have to wait for Donnie to get his memory back so he can make him a new leg.

Atsuko, I love you, you're the best, but couldn't you teach your grandson the hamato healing technique before he woke up? Or at least about the scroll to keep in touch?

Can you at least tell us in which chapter Bella arrives? Maybe she and Leo can take care of Bishop in the meantime.

He can still limp pretty well. He can get places if you give him some time. He probably would have been in rough shape by the time he got to Draxum's, but he figured getting him fight-worthy would be Draxum's problem to deal with.

The only reason Bella's not back already is because there was too much going on at the end of Book 2 to give her screentime. There's no reason for her to be absent anymore, so we'll be seeing her back soon.

[geddy-leesbian]

migraine pill induced RE2 AU Serrennedy with twins drabble

(you can tell I wasn't fully in my right mind when I wrote it because there's no angst)

note: one twin was named Severa when I first posted this, but after discovering a more appropriate namesake I decided to change her name to Carmen :3

Leon's at work. Sherry's at school. Neither of the babies were crying. Rita was still awake and a bit cranky, but Luis was in the rocking chair holding her, and she'd fall asleep soon. Carmen was already asleep, in her little bassinet that Luis gently rocked with his foot. It's the quiet moments like this one, as few and far between as they are, that make Luis ask himself "How is this my life? What the fuck happened?"

It's not that he dislikes it– He loves it. He wouldn't trade it for anything. He's just baffled at how it happened, how much he changed, and so quickly. 

Two years ago, he was ambitious and eager to climb the career ladder. Even after he was beginning to feel lukewarm about Umbrella, he still had his sights set on doing something big, even if it was for a different company. As far as his love life went, he had been allergic to commitment, sticking to hookups. He couldn't say he was opposed to having kids, but only because he had literally never even began to think about if he wanted them.

Now he's living with his boyfriend. He has three daughters. Currently, not really any career to speak of. He's a stay at home dad, and completely satisfied with that.

He actually had gotten a job at a lab again for a while. But then they decided to add a baby to their family. Luis had planned to put the baby in daycare so he could keep working, but then they found out they were having twins, and that finding a decent daycare with two open slots was far more difficult than they ever would have expected. (And it certainly didn't help that Luis and Leon both had overprotective streaks, and if a perfect daycare option existed they probably would have found some stupid excuse not to send the twins.) Leon was far more passionate about his own job than Luis was, so as soon as the doctor said Leon was recovered from the c-section enough for him to go back, he did. 

And then Luis was more than happy to quit his job, and take care of the twins. He still had his passion for biology, but ever since Raccoon City, labs tend to make him just a bit uneasy.

Being a stay at home dad to Sherry had been easy, but two really little babies were a very different story. It was truly a full-time job, but taking care of them gave him so much more fulfillment than being in a lab ever could nowadays. (And if someone told him two years ago that he would think that some day, he would have just laughed and thought it was completely insane.)

He had thought about other career options, mostly teaching. That would let him indulge his passion and make use of his degree, while getting to be a good influence for kids, without the uneasiness lab research gave him now. But that was a long ways away, it wouldn't be until the twins were older. 

And just like that, the quiet moment is over. Rita was only getting fussier, not any sleepier or more relaxed. Luis starts to sing to her too, hoping that adding that on top of the rocking will be enough to get her to settle down and sleep. No dice. Luis sighs and gets up to leave the nursery, afraid that Rita will start crying loudly enough to wake up her sister.

Diaper is clean. She's not hungry.

“You just want Daddy, don't you? I know you like him more than me,” He glances at the clock on the oven as he speaks. “He'll be home soon. You know, I don't mind that you like him more. That mean you're going to try to be like him, keep his eyes? I hope you do. He's stupid sometimes, but he has pretty eyes.”

Both babies had been born with blue eyes like Leon's, but Carmen's were already starting to darken, looking more and more like Luis's everyday. Rita's were still blue now, but there was plenty of time left for them to change.

And there's Leon, finally. Luis kind of feels like a 1950's housewife, a baby in his arms, running to the door to greet his "husband" with a kiss. 

“Perfect timing. I can't get her to sleep.”

“Well, of course you can't,” Leon says, taking Rita from Luis. “She doesn't like you because she knows you wanted to name her after a drink.”

“Hey, we've been through this! Margarita is a fine name! Not my fault Americans can only think of alcohol when they hear it.”

“Can't argue with evidence though,” Leon says in a hushed voice, because Rita's eyes are already getting sleepy and starting to close. “She's falling asleep for me just because I took a stand and wouldn't let you name her Margarita.”

Luis gives his best over dramatic eye roll. This was just one of their many joke arguments they liked to repeat. When Luis had brought up the name, Leon had vetoed it, but gently, saying he didn't dislike the name, but that other people would make fun of it. Leon had even been the one to suggest just using a shortened version, rather than ruling out the name completely. But they both had fun bickering and teasing each other, so Leon pretended to despise the name.

And Luis will get his revenge when Carmen inevitably spits up on Leon as soon as he picks her up. She definitely likes Luis more.

[bafflement]

RWBY and the protector god archetype

The one thing we really learned in season 9 was that the god of dark and the god of light have a history of leaving others to do the work they should have done themselves. Just look at the Cat as an example. They left the ever after to become gods to worlds they created, after all... but all they were looking for was the slightest excuse to leave.

The brothers are sort of... flaky. They come, create things, then disappear again as soon as their creations dare to disagree with them. They hold themselves to rules they themselves enforce, as though they see everything as a game. Which considering the tree created them, might not be entirely inaccurate. They, for gods, might be very young and very immature. After all, that was never their original purpose.

But they left Remnant to the Grimm and Salem and didn't do a thing to protect it. They killed off humanity entirely, knowing it would return but not really caring what would happen when they did.

So you have a single, cursed human wandering a very much empty world, learning to control the Grimm to have some sort of friends... and no longer caring what happens to humanity when they make that inevitable re-emergence. All Salem has wanted for countless centuries is to die, after all...

And then they grant her wish. Sort of. They bring Ozma back, charged with uniting - but not protecting - humanity. All they bother telling him is that he wll be bought back in such a way as that he's never alone, so when he finds that Salem is still around, he thinks 'I was meant to go back.' Which, of course, ends in tragedy, she can never be the woman he remembers after all.

But. But he wanders, after Salem kills Ozma 2.0. Sometimes he sinks into despair, sometimes he runs away, but that spark inside never truly dies out. Ozma was, and will always be a warrior, after all.

He gives the maidens their powers, maybe with a failsafe, maybe not. He passes out his own power because he no longer feels worthy of it.

Then he looks out, sees the Faunus and Humanity both struggling against... dying against... the Grimm. They can't protect themselves, they haven't got magic or powers or really any defence. So he grants them that power. Looks deep inside each of them, human and faunus alike and grants them the ability to create auras. 'You gave us magic!" They say, and he can only sigh and tell them they have a semblance of magic, not the real thing. But it's enough, it has to be enough.

Then he rests, hoping his magic will recover and it... does. Sort of, but not fully. It's in too many hands now, after all and no matter how much he wishes his power back, that everybody else is protected is far more important than whether he is. He'll come back, they won't.

Eventually, he wakes up in the body of a prince... and knows he can't hide who and what he is anymore. A prince running away and becoming a hermit isn't actually that plausible, after all. By then, he's asked the questions of the relics... knows he can never defeat Salem. But some evil never dies and as long as the world has hope, that has to be enough.

He tells a few of his advisors the truth of what he is. That he's the infinite man, that that rather embarrassing fairy tale has more than a grain of truth. To watch for the next one, because he never stays dead forever, whether that wait be months or decades. He tries to warn them that whoever he is next could be anyone at all, not even necessarily a warrior. They don't listen.

So he wins his war, knowing it's not truly the one that matters. Knowing it never will be, because if Salem had a hand in this one at all, it was unseen. As invisible as she ever is, like smoke in the wind.

But she is evil, will always be evil. So he founds the hunters academies and prays that those being trained to fight the darkness will realise that Salem is a monster, too.

Then he dies, a few decades after winning the war. Sinking down under the premature weight of the years he's lived and the lifetimes he has not. His advisors start to scan the four kingdoms for his successor. It's a long wait.

Finally a fragile child emerges. Maybe he's a native Vale resident, maybe he isn't. Maybe he's a runaway, a lost boy. Maybe he's a kidnap victim. But whoever and whatever he is, all they see is the fragility. The health issues, the limp, the sheer frailness of the child's shaking limbs. They're... not happy.

Because they expected a warrior and got a child who's probably never even picked up a weapon before. That doesn't know how to fight, to protect himself, much less anyone else. But his soul burns with a light too bright to look at directly. His determination to be more than just 'the next Ozma' pushes him to excel. If only he could remember what that 'more' was... if only he truly knew his own name.

But he persists. The gentle soul, who loves everybody and believes in everybody, whether human or faunus. Who sees the good in every soul and never the evil beneath. Who believes everybody can be saved. Except Salem [and maybe Jaques Schnee, even if he doesn't remember why]. Who is so easily taken and controlled and moulded and manipulated. That sound? Is the first crack in the child. The first sign of the shattering to come.

He grows up too fast, forced to become a Huntsman so young that it would be laughable anywhere else. Is laughable, a twelve year old should be studying at Signal, not out fighting monsters on the whims of the adults in his life. And yet, there he stands and there he fights and nobody ever asks if he wants to. Because of course he does, right? Nobody would give a child that young a licence if he hadn't proven himself?

Then there is one too many close calls. One too many accidents... one too many risks. Much though those in control hate this fragile child, they also know just how long it took to find him. They need another option.

Then they look to their own academy. To a head that's bowing under the weight, that's tired and think 'ah, opportunity.' So they install the small, fragile child as the headmaster, locking him up in the clocktower to remind him of the passage of time. Casual cruelties like that have become their bread and butter, after all.

The child is too beaten down, too weary to protest. Though he wrings a concession out of them, just the one. That Faunus be allowed to attend, too. No more bigotry, no more hatred. This little boy who should loathe them all still loves them far too much for that, even now.

So he stands, at fifteen, as headmaster. They fudge the numbers, add four years to his age and order him to dress older than he actually is. To a fifteen year old boy with millennia worth of experience in the back of his head, mature is a suit. Is changing out the glasses he needs for a medical condition for a set that make him look older. Is makeup to give the shadow of stubble to his jaw, concentrating on making all his words sound painfully polite, standing so straight they might have glued a sword to his back. At first, at least. He carries a mug everywhere, pretends it's coffee, not the cocoa that's comforting and familiar [and he doesn't know why, can't remember, it doesn't matter, right?], smiles and pretends. Most people buy it.

[That first faunus at Beacon, by the way, is a twenty one year old Leonardo Lionheart. He's admitted late because he couldn't have been admitted at all until then. He swears loyalty to the new headmaster, all five foot seven of him. Eventually, they'll all know just what that oath is worth.]

Team STRQ is suspicious. Well, Summer is suspicious and the Branwen twins, jumpy, wary of being discovered, follow her in that. Taiyang sees silver hair and those glasses and assumes he is older. But then, that's Taiyang all over.

Then he slips up. Gets a reference he shouldn't one too many times, moves like the teen he is instead of the adult he pretends to be. Hits a growth spurt and gains a foot in height in the course of eight months. Most people assume it's just a late growth, people have them, after all. Glynda looks at him and wonders. Summer, Raven and Qrow look at him and know. See him for who he is and start to befriend him. Sometimes violently so, they're not taking no for an answer, Tai, confused, is dragged along for the ride.

When he breaks, in the end, and tells them the truth of his age? Tai is the only one to be surprised. There are threats towards the Vale council, though he works hard to convince them not to go through with them. His loyalties may be misplaced, but he has them nonetheless.

Then team STRQ graduates. Team GILD, too, Glynda, Ironwood, Lionheart, Demarco. They go out to fight monsters and leave him all alone in that gilded cage the council placed him in. Glynda comes back, decides teaching is the better option, after her team loses a member and Ironwood decides that a career in the military is more important. Lionheart disappears, for now, but he truly believes he can trust them, his first teams. He is halfway right.

Summer vanishes, out on a mission that Tai and Raven seem to blame him for. He's never certain just what the mission was, knows he never gave her it, but how to you argue against the dead? It's his fault after all, it always is. The cracks grow longer, wider, glowing with a viridian light the same electric green as his aura. He doesn't notice.

He throws himself into running the school, protecting the students. Recommends LIonheart and Ironwood and a friend he's met since called Theodore as heads of the other academies. Hopes that, eventually, Tai and Raven will stop hating him. Tai does, Raven does not. But then, the Branwens know how to hold a grudge.

Then Salem, finally, makes her move. Beacon falls and he falls with it, his life for his students, always. He might return, but they never will.

And, of course, Cinder Fall breaks her word. That, too, is inevitable.

He wakes up in the back of Oscar's head and part of him weeps. Surely this one, at least, should be an adult? Should be mature and able to make their own choice? But no, of course not. He has to work with what he's given, but this one? This one he can try to save, at least?

Then the relics happen. The others ask the one question he never wanted them to and Jinn, as all of the relics do, gives a half answer. Sows division. She's been bound to the relic too long and, just like the others, all she really wants to do is rest.

Qrow, telling him that meeting him was the worst luck of his life. Flying into shards and hiding himself away in the hope that by doing so, he might be able to fade completely. To let Oscar be himself instead of just the next Ozma.

Then Oscar needs him. That protective instinct glues the shards of him back together enough to help. Even as he does so, he knows that the merge is becoming more complete, more real... that he can't stop it happening. He hates himself all over again. He takes most of the torture for Oscar, for all that he lets the boy believe that he hasn't done so. He deserves it, after all. Oscar doesn't.

They blow up the whale, knowing it won't kill Salem, but hoping it might get her annoyed enough not to follow for awhile.

The relics betray them again, team RWBY and Jaune fall into the Ever After. There are things there that they need to know, after all... that he needs to know, too. Hopefully they'll tell him.

Salem has two of the relics. Cinder used the charges for both, she wants to be the one true power on Remnant. Salem is reaping what she sowed.

The remaining group travel to Vacuo. It's hard there, proving they belong, that they deserve to survive. Headmaster Theodore blinks at Oscar, sees both him and the other soul... and wonders, will that be enough. After all, everybody knows about the witch now. But they don't know about the wizard.

The staff is recognised. There's a lot of confusion and the fear that Glynda might slap Oscar for a second or two, but they get over that. He stays quiet, watching those he called his friends. Scared to truly trust them.

Then those they lost return with a tale that he can't quite believe... if the gods were created by the tree, if the tree is the origin... then what does that make his curse? Salem's curse? Ruby and Yang go to find Raven, he's too busy trying to work out how to find the tree. He has so many questions.

The relics are united, the gods return. They want to condemn Remnant but Ruby gets the blacksmith involved. They take one look at Oscar, tut and spilt him back into two.

So now there are two, confused looking teenaged boys. One darker skinned, dark haired, hazel eyed. The other paler, all silver and gold. Neither of them are totally seperate, they'll always be linked, but they're both so very grateful to be themselves again. Then they make a mistake, call each other brother, and the blacksmith's eyes light up.

The tree knows everything Ozma has ever done for humanity and the faunus. And they know just how many mistakes the brothers have made. They elevate him to godhood without listening to his horrified protests, give him his magic back and the ability to deal with Salem and set him loose.

He teaches Salem what death is, slowly, patiently, and thus frees her in the end. He brings back Pyrrha, brings back Penny. Refuses to bring back Lionheart or Ironwood. They're rather confused, staring at the glowing teenager who seems so familiar, yet at the same time so much larger than the rest of the world.

He wanders, again. Doing good where he can, stays in contact with Ruby and Oscar, then their decendants. That's happiness. Of a sort. He never stops looking for Qrow, once old age takes him. Sometimes he finds him, sometimes he doesn't. But then, that's okay, too.