#I like to think he and Caleb retire there

[sldlovescartoons]

Hi, I’d like to get back on my bullshit for a second.

My Essek Food bullshit, specifically.

Because I remembered Rumblecusp. And I had been enlightened.

Essek would be so excited to eat dinosaurs and whatever else fucked up bullshit lurks on that island. I’m so serious.

The Nein go on dinosaur hunts for old times sake and Essek is just listing fancy ass dishes to try and make because he is noble born elf fancy ass- so. The Nein are like, butchering this T-Rex and he’s just floating there, asking if they think they could make a roulade with that flank? Discussing fillings and sauces and being otherwise unhelpful.

He and Yasha would have the time of their lives hunting and munching on the crazy, huge, carnivorous bugs that live on that island. Like, they are in The Tower, and on one end of the table are most of the Nein with regular food with like exotic fruits they foraged that day and on the other end Yasha and Essek are having those pillbugs from The Emperor’s New Grove going on.

Essek might be treacherous heretic (Jester made him a tunic with it written across the Chester and everything), but he’s having a ‘sloppy Joe’ (will the wonders of the neins naming ever cease?) made with Ankylosaur meat. Suck it, Umavi.

[for-those-who-wait]

Time to remind people of the multifandom point in my blog description hahaha

A Detroit: Become Human AU actually works shockingly well for Hunter's story already? Like being a clone of a dead man versus being an android made in the image of a dead man, that is perfect crossover material. If someone has already done this, ABSOLUTELY let me know because I want to consume The Good Content

2.6k words of concept and story, some more doodles, android blood/gore/mentioned suicide and abuse under the cut. We love existentialism, species dysphoria, and Noceda sibling time in this house

Now I'm taking this idea from a somewhat popular trope in the DBH fandom, but what if someone didn't know that they were an android? Completely raised to be human, have fabricated memories of being a child, can't be completely sure if your awareness/consciousness is just coding or not—then finding out you are, in fact, not human. Imagine how earth-shattering that would be. Which is why I'm doing that to Hunter :)

So some of the notes I wrote down for each of the kinda major characters I had ideas for:

Philip:

He still murders Caleb and is never convicted (Caleb could be an android sympathizer, could have helped in their creation, anything that would piss Philip off royally)

He hates androids (I'll have to come up with the things he believes and thus teaches to Hunter but I've taken a break from the DBH fandom for a while and I can't remember peoples' grievances in that game, oops, but basically according to Philip, androids = evil and bad). Also he's just short-tempered and brutal like always and androids are the easiest way to let out that anger without breaking any laws. That is until laws are made. Now in the eyes of the law, it's just regular child abuse. Yay! /j

He’s a higher-up at CyberLife and has the authority to request a custom model be built for his personal use (this is equivalent to him making Grimwalkers, something that he hates, just for the sake of his brother)

This model (spoiler alert, it's Hunter) is a combination of a YK (child) model and an undercover model that works best with integration and infiltration. This results in the android having programmed emotions and pain receptors, no HUD, no control over artificial skin, no software for interfacing with electronics, and no android markers such as an LED. (It’s also similar to the YK model for this reason since LEDs being removed from those models is actually an intended feature).

This android also doesn’t have a registered user just in case it were to get out, and Philip doesn’t want to risk the creation of this android coming back to bite him

After the custom android is created, he promptly retires to become some old shut-in à la Elijah Kamski up in Gravesfield, Connecticut

I would argue that even though it's technically 2038 and things are all futuristic and complicated now, Gravesfield is still a very small town that doesn't actually see a lot of androids around. I would say that it's pretty much the same as in canon if a bit more developed where the forest is (probably another neighborhood or something).

Philip keeps communication to a minimum and rarely appears outside of his home

The best case scenario android revolution occurs, androids are given their freedom and rights, but Philip manages to keep the android under his ownership by just succeeding in hiding him for however many years

Hunter:

He grows up being taught that androids are evil, terrible, etc. etc. because Philip is a terrible person and of course he would

He has absolutely no idea that he’s an android. He has no reason to think he’s not a human because he does literally everything a human does: he eats, he needs to sleep, he feels pain—there are no indicators that he’s anything but human

Androids run on thirium 310, AKA blue blood, and this is one of the only ways to visually distinguish android from human if they don’t have android markers like LEDs on them. When he inevitably and accidentally hurts himself on something, it’s made immediately clear that he is in fact not human.

Philip, as an employee of CyberLife, has a repair rig in one of his rooms. This can be used to completely wipe the memories of an android that is set up in it. He uses it every time Hunter discovers he’s an android.

The memory wipe isn’t perfect. It’s not uncommon for Hunter to get flashbacks to wiped memories, including moments where he’s been actively hurt by Philip or has inflicted pain on himself from trauma alone. (Androids are programmed [or maybe just prone to? I'm not actually sure, it's not explained in canon super well, but let's just pretend it's programmed because that's almost worse than it being voluntary] to self-destruct when their stress levels become too high, and you could easily argue that finding out your entire life is a lie is grounds for being a stressful situation.) Ordinarily, similar to what happens in Hollow Mind, Hunter will address the situation with Philip assuming they can work something out or get some actual answers. This of course never ends well

These memory wipes probably happen more frequently than Belos makes Golden Guards, so it’s understandably very stressful whenever he remembers the abuse he suffered and the memories he lost from previous wipes. This becomes an incentive for him to hide injuries that would reveal he knows he's an android (anything that draws blood, really)

Camila:

She’s an android sympathizer (even before the revolution) who is aware of the deviancy phenomenon and truly believes that androids are both capable of and entitled to sentience and free will.

Luz is still her human child.

She adopts Vee, an android child, shortly after the revolution

Vee had deviated while she was being attacked and ran away before she could be killed. Camila has made it clear to her that she will be treated with respect in their home and that her life is no less valuable than a human’s. She has taken this to heart

Luz loves Vee, they are siblings, your honor

During the revolution, her home was a safe space, similar to Rose Chapman, for deviant androids on the run

So that leads into the rudimentary plot I have laid out:

This takes place a while after the android revolution (probably a few years or so). Let's pretend they have all the laws and anti-android stuff figured out and that people have been forced to relinquish their androids to be made deviant and given freedom. At this point, it's rare for androids to be undeviated and still working for their owners, but it still comes up occasionally. Hunter, under Philip's care, has been kept pretty ignorant that a revolution happened at all, much less that androids are even capable of any form of sentience. He's been raised to be anti-android so oh boy deep-rooted self-hatred here we come! His knowledge probably doesn't exceed that of an ordinary citizen in the game before deviancy becomes more widely known

 So after Hunter discovers he’s an android again, he has flashbacks of all the previous times he told Philip, and proceeds to hide this realization from him. And he's completely just not processed the fact that he's an android yet; he's already overwhelmed with the immediate threat that the realization his entire life is a lie basically slips him by (don't worry, he gets to have that later!).

He chooses to make a break for it the second he gets the chance, and he ends up running through the town completely terrified because honestly, who wouldn't be.

I'm working off the assumption that having androids in small towns is still pretty rare since there are fewer CyberLife stores, technicians, etc. for android healthcare. And Hunter has hardly ever been outside, so he's completely out of his depth when trying to navigate the neighborhoods and the rest of the town that he ends up in. Police officers find this kid covered in thirium, and they're like "Oh so he's obviously a terrified android, we need to help him out." But Hunter's freaking out because "Oh god I have android blood on me, that means they'll kill me," making the indirect thought of "I'm an android, they will kill me because I'm an android" and he's having a freaking time.

They try to calm him down enough to get him over to the station, at which point they call Camila, since she knows the most about traumatized androids in their small, relatively android-less town. She does her Motherly Noceda Magic and honestly, he's probably pretty catatonic for a lot of the day after she takes him to her house. But after that, he just completely breaks down.

He doesn't know if he even has free will or if it's his programming that dictates what he thinks and feels. He doesn't know if his opinions are really his own or if they existed because of and since his creation. He doesn't know how many of his memories are fabricated, since he very clearly has memories of a life that go farther back than his estimated creation, and so the film between fiction and reality is so thin that it may as well not exist. And now, when he was human just a few days ago, almost perfectly content with life, he's suddenly an object, something sub-human and undeserving of basic rights.

 Camila has to calm him down and teach him about deviancy (and at this point, Hunter isn't even sure he's deviant, which opens up a whole other can of worms for his mental health), making sure he knows that he does have rights just as if he were human. She's also the first example he has for an adult that 1. doesn't absolutely hate androids and 2. actually respects him and loves him and wants to see him succeed

And that gives way to character interactions and angst! You love to see it!

Luz is his emotional support sister. She tries her best but she has very little experience with traumatized children currently questioning every aspect of their existence. If anything, she provides a much-needed sense of normalcy and shows that despite his being an android, he's still the same person and can still be treated as such. She's a comfort to help him feel at least somewhat normal in his situation.

Vee is his adopted android sister who helps him feel more comfortable in his own skin by being shameless and frank with her own identity as an android. She's a safe place for him to talk about Android Stuff when Luz or Camila might just not understand what he's going through or be able to help him with it. She also helps him obtain software updates (since he hasn't had access to literally any part of his mechanical body, software and hardware alike) that will grant him access to things an android should ordinarily be able to do, like (de)activating his synthetic skin, interfacing, accessing his HUD, etc.

(Also all of these drawings were made when I was still thinking "Oh, this should take place before the revolution so that he can have his dehumanizing moment of getting an LED slapped onto him" but then I thought it would be more interesting if Philip basically just kept him illegally kidnapped for however many years and he's like, way slow to the "androids have rights now" party. Maybe I'll make it an AU of an AU lol. But basically, he wouldn't have an LED while he's still processing/healing from trauma, but maybe he would get one after he makes peace with his identity, kinda like how he grows his hair back in his time skip design. I think Vee would keep hers and that's a bit of encouragement for him; maybe he even has a moment of "I know Vee is fine with this, and I think I'm fine with it" but he is still very much not fine with it. Do not rush the process for the sake of progress that might not be right for you, boyo)

This is really a Vee and Hunter bonding AU now that I think about it haha

Most of this AU is just Hunter struggling with identity and species dysphoria while learning to cope with his being an android with the help of his family, reclaiming his identity, and fluff/angst :)) And honestly probably just a lot of shenanigans that result from Hunter having been sheltered for all his life; kinda like your basic Human Realm shenanigans in canon.

I think Gus and Willow would both be Luz's human friends that help with the whole normalization of Hunter being an android, and the three could have their own antics since it's nice to have people outside of your family treat you like a person. I think that Vee and Masha's (Masha would be human) relationship could be explored more through the android lens and maybe help with some of Hunter's internalized anti-android sentiment that still manages to stick around, because he's in his "Grimwalkers can't feel love" section of the coping process (still very much demonizing them [mostly himself, probably, just because it can easier to be mean to yourself than it is to be mean to other people] based on false information, even if he doesn't outright hate them). Willow will be a wake-up call, haha

I don't know if there's a trope name for this or not but I really like concepts where characters don't know what feelings of love or intense affection feel like, so they're sitting there like "oh god am I just dying? It feels like I'm dying" and I think Hunter noticing "temperature/respiration/perspiration increased" alerts on his HUD and freaking out thinking there's something wrong with his software/hardware is way too funny of an image to pass up

Gus could be a HUGE android nerd that almost never sees them since they're so rare in a small town like Gravesfield, and Gus just helps Hunter feel super cool about being an android. Maybe Cosmic Frontier could be basically identical to canon but instead of being a clone, O'Bailey is also an android, just for the sake of Hunter still getting to have his "I relate so much to this character" moment. And Gus would just be so encouraging like "Bro you're an android?!? I've never seen your face model before! You can eat?? You must be super cool and special!! :O" and that makes Hunter start thinking "Oh maybe this isn't so bad actually."

Then Hunter probably starts doing his Researching to Cope and he gets super invested in android technology and history as well, since it was forbidden when he was living back at Philip's (substitute for wild magic time)

They are brothers and I love them, let them be nerds

(God forbid Philip ever comes back, that sure would suck, wouldn't it?)

Anyway this was a lot longer than I thought it would be haha, I hope it was interesting if you read through the whole thing. Obligatory statement: if anyone feels so inclined, feel free to take the idea and run away with it. Also please ping me if you do, I will go feral over it. I absolutely and accidentally turned it into a story draft because I don't know how to write AU ideas without having a story on top of it so it's not concrete in the least lol

(Also I've been drawing witches for so long that I had trouble drawing human ears for a bit there lmao)

Okay bye have a good day!

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

The Impact of Tech's Death: Was it necessary? Was it in vain? Why did Tech have to die?

Disclaimer: This will be a very emotion fueled rant and I'm sorry if my personal feelings get in the way. I love my boys, but there are times when I just sit there and shake my head. I do my best to understand their circumstances, but sometimes the Crosshair girlie in me really can't make sense of things.

The short answer: NO, it wasn't necessary. With S3 now behind us and my rewatch of S2 at its conclusion, it hit me just how little weight Tech's death had on the overall plot.

Let's breakdown the finale a bit:

The lead up: Tech found out that his long-lost brother Crosshair was captured by the Empire and sent to a shady place where no good was to come. He also discovers that Crosshair sent a distress message, warning his brothers to hide. Realizing that Crosshair was in danger, Tech decided to rally the others on a mission to find and track Hemlock's ship, hoping it would lead him back to his brother. The mission is a complete failure, with Tech being forced to sacrifice himself in order to save his family.

The Aftermath: the Batch is discovered by Hemlock, Omega is captured, Hunter cuts his losses, and Crosshair remains a prisoner

Here's the part that really messed with me: Tech's death DID NOT affect Hemlock's capture of Omega and it DID NOT change the ability to track the ship. The only impact it had was that Hunter decided to cut his losses and pull an early retirement. And even when Hunter is like "we're going to get Omega back," he doesn't mention Crosshair once.

Tech died to save Crosshair. Period.

(and the others I know, but this mission wouldn't have happened if Cross wasn't in trouble)

Which brings us to S3 where Tech is hardly mentioned, Crosshair himself is never shown on-screen learning of what happened, and there is no moment where anyone (except maybe Cross) processes their feelings about it. Why kill off a beloved character when their demise has almost no impact on anything? The only thing it really impacts is the speed of which things get done and Crosshair's mental health. It makes no sense. I think there was an interview where DBB said they tried to keep Tech alive, but couldn't write a script where that was the case. Ok? Then go back and talk some more about the plot. Or if you can't avoid killing him off, then show the characters processing it or why Tech's death mattered. The cynical side of me says Tech died in vain. I'm being brutally honest here. Tech could've survived and Cid would still sell out the Batch and Saw's detonators would still destroy the ship and tracker. From a story POV, it's pretty bad when a main character's death barely leaves an impact.

In CW, Fives' death enabled Rex and Ahsoka (and Maul by extension) to all survive Order 66. Satine's death led to Mandalore being thrown into chaos, thus leading to the Siege of Mandalore.

In Rebels, Kanan's death crippled Thrawn's Tie-defender project, made Pryce look bad, and taught Ezra important lessons about sacrifice. For Hera, we got to see her grieve the loss of her lover. Kanan's death mattered. Also, the buildup to Kanan's sacrifice was him becoming Caleb Dume again after everything he went through.

The buildup to Tech's death was great too because it was about the Batch trying to find Crosshair. And while the mission is a failure, it showed that they were willing to go back for someone they lost. They hadn't given up on him. But everything after falls pretty flat and only makes Tech's death even sadder.

Why did Tech have to die? Because he probably would've found Tantiss a lot quicker than everyone else. I really think that's the case and that's pretty bad writing if you ask me. I still love TBB immensely, but I'm willing to call it out when it falls short.

It also really pisses me off as a Crosshair fan that Hunter just completely throws him under the bus. I will let my biases speak for me because it really bothers me and I'm sorry if you disagree. I value your opinion too. I don't know if Hunter subconsciously blamed Crosshair for Tech's demise, but I would've felt a whole lot better if he decided to honor Tech's wish of saving him. Hunter was always going to go after Omega, so why not add Crosshair to the mix? Was it because he still thought Crosshair could be lying? I understand cutting his losses in the moment due to the pain of losing Tech. I get that 100%. But after, he just doesn't bother to think about Crosshair. Would he even have gone after Crosshair if the original last-minute retirement plan came to fruition? Crosshair suffered immensely and who knows what would've happened if he just got left there with no one coming for him. Tech was the only one who supported Operation: Rescue Crosshair. No one else suggested that idea except him. (I know Omega also supports it, but I'm talking about the boys). Yes, I know I'm being harsh and perhaps unfair, but it hurts ok? I know Hunter has no clue what's going on with Crosshair.

But here's why it bothers me so much outside of Crosshair getting the short end of the stick again: It makes Tech's death feel even more in vain because the reason for why Tech died is just forgotten about.

Let that sink in. Tech's death doesn't leave ANY lasting impact on the plot post-incident.

It makes even more frustrated and just heartbroken because of how cruel and unfair losing Tech really was. Had we gotten more time of the Batch processing emotions or taking something meaningful away from it, then that's different. But no. That's not what we got and I am heartbroken by it. At minimum, we should've gotten one scene in S3 where Crosshair (or anyone really) talks about it in a meaningful way. (No, "CF99 died with Tech" doesn't count). Yes, Tech's legacy can be seen through Omega's actions but that's not enough.

All and all, the only real weight Tech's death had was on Crosshair's mental health. And even then, it's only implied instead of said straight out. If Tech hadn't died, then Crosshair probably wouldn't have decided to enact Plan 99. (Or he would've due to other reasons).

In conclusion: Tech never had to die nor should he have died.

[jessicas-pi]

📓📓📓

So originally I was gonna do 3, but this one got REALLY long, sooo....

May I present the Jedi Get Hitched AU?

I posted about it once before here (and it got FANART!!!!) but other than that I haven't said much of anything else, soooo... here's more! and it's ENORMOUSLY self-indulgent.

The basic premise of the AU is that the clone wars end happily except the clones don't have rights but the Jedi find a loophole that will make them recognized as sentient citizens if one of them marries a Jedi, cue Aayla kicking open the door to the jedi council with bly in tow like I VOLUNTEER

ANYWAY. bly and aayla get married (they both freak out about it and Fox and Quinlan respectively have to give them pep talks before the wedding.) All seems well... and then Anakin saunters into the Jedi Council room one day and brings up that now that they're getting married (it was a one time thing, skywalker--) NOW THAT THEY'RE GETTING MARRIED, maybe they should consider that perhaps it would lower political tensions if a Jedi married, like, a senator or a planetary ruler or something. and the council is all like 🙄 skywalker we know this is just about you and senator amidala and he's like what??? haha no, i was talking about obi-wan and duchess satine. but while we're on the topic, i could definitely marry senator amidala too. she just adopted those twins and i could help raise them. they're force-sensitive, what a crazy coincidence amiright?? and plo and shaak are just lowkey planning their wedding and subsequent adoption of All Their Sons and mace. mace wants a break. please.

fast forward in time. Several more jedi have gotten married. Mace has retired from the council, citing "an excess of tomfoolery and nuptials" as his reason. Anakin married Padme, Obi-Wan married Satine and they officially adopted Korkie as their son, and Quinlan Vos and Asajj Ventress got married. Vostress is also currently running a jedi-nightsister exchange student program...

...which is how Merrin, 16 and slightly awkward but eager to learn more, ends up in the Jedi Temple, with a few other Nightsisters, though they're all a few years younger than her. Cal is assigned to give them the tour.

"Welcome to the Jedi Temple!" he says, holding one hand out to her and the other hand waving around them, indicating basically the whole jedi temple. it's supposed to be just a gesture, but then Merrin puts her hand in his. Completely seriously. Cal is like "...okay" and they hold hands for the rest of the tour.

Five years later, there is a second jedi-nightsister wedding.

Jocasta is delighted at the number of records being set within her lifetime.

(Jocasta is also officiating all the weddings, btw.)

A couple years after Mace resigns from the council, he decides to plan a shatterpoint lineage family vacation. So Mace, Depa, Grey (who is an unofficial part of their family), Caleb, and Caleb's brand-new Padawan, 11-year-old Ezra (who is pretty young to be a padawan, but he was following caleb around all the time anyway so caleb figured he might as well just make the apprenticeship official), all pack up... and go to Ryloth.

Caleb, who twenty-five at this point, promptly gets his first crush.

Mace Regrets This Vacation. He's actually started seeing marriage Shatterpoints. Depa and Grey, meanwhile, think it's really really funny that Caleb gets flustered around Hera, and Ezra has made more than a few insinuations about political alliances via marriage. Depa warns him that Caleb will get his revenge, but Ezra dismisses it. (Said revenge does come about, several years later, in the form of Caleb asking if Madame Nu needs to prepare to officiate the second Jedi-Mandalorian marriage in recorded history. Ezra kicks him in the shin. smh padawans these days just have NO respect for their masters.)

Ezra highly encourages Caleb to marry Hera.

It does not take much convincing.

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 42

PREV

There are things that change a person.

Moments where after they happen they simply cannot un-happen. Things that a person hears that they cannot un-hear. Promises that a person makes that they can’t, and perhaps even wouldn’t, un-make.

Jeremy’s moment came over winter break the previous year. Jeremy heard things that he could never un-hear in the middle of the night. Jeremy made a promise that he would never break while in the guest room of his parent’s house holding one Jean Moreau tight as he talked about the Nest.

Jeremy was different after that night.

Not wildly different. Not to most.

The only ones who knew had also had a moment, had also heard things, and had also made promises that they intended to keep.

Jeremy is on his way back from the bathroom with a freshly washed handkerchief from the Fox’s most promising Freshman when it all happens. 

He watches Richard throw a glass on the ground and go for Caleb’s throat which in all honesty he had been anticipating since he’d seen the seating arrangements. Sitting the Jackals with the Terrapins? After Caleb seduced Alyssa during the Fall Banquet? Who thought that was a good idea?

Jeremy sees FF and sees that he is alone and wonders where Michael had gone off to. He’s glad that FF has stayed put, the guys quiet but he’s not bad company. Jeremy thinks he would have gotten along pretty well with Jean if he hadn’t flubbed the recruitment.

“He just got a restraining order against that step-brother of his.” Aaron Minyard says explaining the awkward air after Jeremy had spoken. “He’s a Fox.” he adds and Jeremy had felt foolish in that moment.

It should have been obvious.

He hears a scream and sees that one of the Terrapins has joined in the brawl and he has one of the steak knives.

What was the point of that when they had pre-sliced tenderloin anyways? He looks over and sees Anita Flores watching the evening start to go down in flames and all he can think is that she’ll probably do better next time. It’s the first banquet she’s run on her own since Claire retired in the fall.

His eyes go to Jean when he hears another scream.

He can see Laila with Jean and Kevin. He can see Alvarez making her way to the two of them. The Trojans know better after last Winter Banquet. They come together and don’t make it obvious that Jean is at the center of their formation.

He sees Melissa get punched when she tries to get between Richard and Caleb. He’s sure she probably just doesn’t like having this kind of violence at her stadium but getting directly between Richard and Caleb wasn’t her smartest move.

Oh Jacob took exception to that. Well Jeremy can hardly blame the guy when his girlfriend and Captain gets punched like that. Caleb’s just lucky that she’s not dating Malcolm any-

Oh Malcolm is getting in on it. I guess he does still have feelings for Melissa. They had been real cute until he cheated on her. He thinks Melissa is better off with Jacob but who knows.

He looks to Jean again and sees that Kevin is leaving the Trojan encirclement and can see the other Foxes start to head for the exit as the fighting grows more intense. He sees Andrew holding Neil’s hand in a vice grip and-

Oh, of course they’d be anxious here. Of course the Foxes were on edge.

He looks and FF is still sat at the table seemingly unbothered by the chaos erupting around him. He watches as the Foxes make their way to the table where FF is sat. Sees them gathering their belongings and sees FF remain seated, eyes on them and then on the chaos.

Ah, the rearguard.

He nods and diverts his attention back to the mess at hand. Honestly Caleb shouldn’t bait Richard and Richard should be glad that he didn’t propose to someone who’d cheat on him. They’d talked about it and it wasn’t like he had customized the ring or anything so he got his full deposit back. He thought Richard was feeling better about the whole thing, had even been dating Erika and-

Ohh yeah there’s Erika with a Terrapin’s jacket over her shoulders and a hickey that he’s pretty sure Richard hadn’t left on her neck.

Man Caleb what the hell, what did Richard even do? Caleb you don’t even like girl-

Ohhhh.

Caleb….bro. There are better ways to handle a crush.

Now fully understanding the situation Jeremy can’t help but think that it’s actually a pretty simple solution. Well, not simple. Richard is pretty straight but like a firm talking to with Caleb will probably-

“Hey, back off!” He hears Alvarez and his head whips around back to Jean where it shouldn’t have left.

Ravens.

Those Ravens.

Jeremy made a promise.

Jeremy had taken lessons over the summer and-

God it felt good to slam his fist into Johnson’s stupid awful ugly chin. The only thing that was even sweeter was sinking his fist into Reacher’s gut.

“Knox what the fuck?!” he heard Jasmine exclaim and they’d been buddies at one point but it was hard to feel anything positive for a girl who watched.

“I warned you guys during the Fall Banquet didn’t I?” Jeremy asks with a smile as he shakes out his hand. He looks to the side and sees that the rest of the team has now fully encircled Jean. Nothing was getting through them to-

It’s too late that Jeremy sees a younger Raven meatball in hand. He tries to stop it but his arms are too short and it nails Jean right in the forehead. 

He looks at the marinara roll down Jean’s forehead as he blinks in surprise. Laila lets out a scream and has him cradled in her arms and out of sight before Jean even seems to fully understand what is going on.

“Jean, it’s going to be okay.” Jeremy hears Laila assure.

“Laila, what in the world are you freaking out about?” Jean asks. “I’m French, not Italian. I would not bleed marinara sauce.” Jeremy hears him say out of sight and if Jeremy wasn’t so mad he’d laugh.

“That’s it!” Alvarez exclaims and slugs the sophomore who had lobbed the errant meatball and from there it was an all out brawl between the Trojans and the Ravens. They were all defensive over their frenchmen especially against his old team and Jeremy thinks about the investigation he’s been pushing the ERC towards. Thinks about all the little things he has questioned and put into the heads of all of his friends throughout the Division.

He makes his way to Jean as Ned and Jim have taken on the task of handling Reacher and Johnson.

“God, first the sparse wine selection and now this.” Jean says from where Laila was trying to wipe sauce from his face.

“Here, use this.” he offers FF’s handkerchief and thinks about getting a few himself.

Laila takes the handkerchief, “I thought you said there was a lot of wine.” she says.

“No, I said Kevin was doing a lot of whining.” Jean corrects eyes closed as Laila cleans his face off. Jeremy looks towards the Fox table and wonders how he’ll get the handkerchief back to FF and sees FF rising up from the table and quickly put on his jacket before heading out the door after the rest of the Foxes.

What bothers him is the security guards following them. Everyone should know that security guards + the Foxes + Binghamton = Andrew might start stabbing people.

His concern only grows greater when he sees Michael and a few other Ravens follow.

***

There are things that change a person.

Experiences that you never want to experience again. Words that can never be spoken again. Feelings that can never be carefully locked away not that they’re out in the open and known.

Andrew’s experience happened two years ago. Andrew had heard words that he never wished to hear again in his entire life for the last time in Binghamton. Andrew had felt things staring down at a cell phone that he had never let himself feel before.

He looks at Neil safe and sound on the bus after a different fight, a different riot, in Binghamton and it’s hard to be upset. He hadn’t let his Junkie out of his sight the entire night and the moment that he saw security moving in he had grabbed Neil by the hand. His focus had narrowed down at that moment and no amount of Neil insisting that it was fine would stop Andrew’s determined march out of the stadium.

He only felt like he could breathe when he had ushered Neil into the bus and into a seat. He felt his shoulders ease but he didn’t let go of Neil’s hand, he didn’t know if he would until they were back in Palmetto.

The rest of the team filtered out of the stadium quickly and soon enough Wymack was calling out to make sure that everyone was there. “Smith?” Wymack called.

“He’s right here!” a voice calls out and Andrew thinks it’s one of the other Freshmen.

“Let’s get out of here.” Wymack says.

The team gets on the bus and soon enough they’re putting Binghamton in the rearview.

Andrew exhales.

***

He’d heard Michael call out for him and he’d stopped. With all the distraction and the upcoming loading onto the bus he hadn’t felt the need to be exceptionally low presence.

It’d been a mistake as it usually was.

FF looked at the security guard standing in front of him and out the door to the stadium where the Foxes were loading into the bus.

“Will you meet the Master now?” Michael is asking him and FF doesn’t quite get why he’s asking when it’s obvious that FF doesn’t have a choice.

“No.” he says because Michael did ask which means theoretically he could just be misreading the situation.

“You said you’d meet him if the banquet ended.” Michael says.

FF furrows his brow, “I said I’d get up.” he reminds and Michael looks nervous.

“Please?” Michael asks and FF blinks.

“I need to get on the bus.” FF points and the security guard merely steps into his line of sight as if that erased the fact that the bus was there and he was not on it.

“We’ll get you back to where you belong.” Michael promises.

“I belong on the bus that is going back to my campus where I keep all my stuff.” FF says matter of factly.

Michael looks at him utterly bewildered.

“Enough of this.” The guard says and goes to grab him.

FF moves out of the way.

The guard goes to grab him again and FF backs up and out of the way again.

The guard goes to grab him and FF steps back out of his reach again.

This process continues until they are back into the main stadium where the brawl has taken over all of the teams. FF sidesteps the security guard, and he’s near positive this isn’t a real security guard Binghamton really needs to work on their hiring practices. Only this time he side steps out of the way and the guard crashes like an enranged bull into the punch table.

FF’d feel bad about it but there was no way in the world he was going to meet someone named ‘The Master’ when he has spaghetti pants. Absolutely no chance. Whoever it was probably was important enough to deserve dry clean only pants.

“I need to go.” he says to Michael and heads back for the exit, hopeful that maybe just maybe the bus hadn’t left yet. Nicky was pretty drunk though and he knew that the rest of the team would have a singular focus on Captain Neil.

“No, wait!” Michael pleads and FF stops seeing the other player with tears in his eyes. FF stops and unzips his jacket slightly to reach in and grab the handkerchief he had refolded as his pocket square.

“Sorry, I really can’t stay.” he says and offers the handkerchief to Michael, “You can keep that one or hand it to me the next time we play against one another if you remember.” he says. “Tonight isn’t the night for me to talk with your Master.” he says.

Michael looks at him with wide eyes and accepts the handkerchief.

He walks out back into the exiting hallway and there is an older asian man there. He has a cane and he is standing between FF and the door.

He approaches quickly and the man hits his cane against the ground once, “You will join the Ravens.” he says with authority.

Oh great.

“I'd actually rather not.” Smith responds and makes sure to keep a wide berth from the crazy old guy who’s made his way into the Stadium somehow.

He gets out the stadium doors and-

The bus left.

He sighs thinks about the crazy guy right behind him and lets his presence fade into something only Jeremy Knox could see (APPARENTLY).

It’s pretty cold out as he gets as far away from the entrance to the building as possible and reaches into his pocket for his phone. He dials Nicky.

***

“COACH, YOU FORGOT SMITHY. AGAIN.” A drunken shout from the back of the bus startles Wymack as he lets out a loud string of curses before getting into a lane to make a U-turn.

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

NEXT

[spiritthemoron]

|Possible TOH spoilers!|

Here are some design references for my new AU I’m working on named the Star Father AU. Essentially Belos has other plans for the isles than what canon Belos has, less genocidal y’know. He’s also the father of the Collector, who in this AU is around Hunters age, maybe a little older. Caleb’s alive (yay!) and is Philips Golden Guard, though all the past guard were not Grimwalkers. The sequence of the show follows pretty much the same trajectory but a little warped with a new antagonist. As Belos, while morally ambiguous and not the greatest of person, is not the main antagonist. I have a lot of fun ideas for how season 3 May play out but I have to figure out what to doing with the day of unity now.

Design wise I just spiced them up a bit, belos didn’t change all too much, as I think his design is pretty good at being regal yet, scary. Caleb was a tough one, I didn’t want him to look just like a generic golden guard because he isn’t, technically he’s the Duke but Caleb doesn’t want to use that title. Hunter has now been demoted I suppose to the golden scout! Essentially the next in line to be golden guard when the current retires or dies. Caleb has gone through quite a few Golden Scouts at this point, Darius even being one until Caleb suggested him to pursue the Abominations Coven. So finally we have the Collector who is named Salem (because Philip thinks he’s funny) they’re gonna be a tough one to write but my aim is to keep him similar to canon, just older. Anywho, if any of you have questions feel free to send a ask!

[queeniecook]

March 4 - Part 2

Dakota called me after I got both toddlers down for a nap, wanting to know if he could stop by. I immediately said yes. We haven't gotten to visit in months. 

"Not that I'm not glad to see you but you're kind of far from Brindleton Bay." I commented, after we sat down in the living room.

"I had a work related thing here. Basically we listened to a retired officer talk about...I kind of can't remember, to be honest. But I had to attend." Dakota explained, shrugging his shoulders.

I nodded my head and gazed over at him with narrowed eyes briefly. 

"What?" Dakota asked me, raising an eyebrow. 

"Why didn't you tell Jillian her family lives in my old house?" I asked him.  I wasn't offended by any means but it just seemed out of character for him not be honest about it. 

"I mean...it is kind of awkward they do since we did certain adult things in that house." Dakota told me, awkwardly. 

I laughed. "We did the deed, yes. In multiple rooms if I remember correctly."

Dakota looked around like he was looking for Caleb to jump out and start a fight with him. They did use to fight a lot. Almost every time they crossed each other's path years ago.

"Caleb isn't here." I cleared up for him. "I feel like there's more to it." I said, directing us back to the topic we were discussing.

"I guess I was worried. Worried that she'd do one of those ultimatums where I'd have to stop being friends with you in order to stay with her and I was also still kind of hurt she didn't tell me about James' visit." Dakota admitted. 

I sighed and patted his shoulder briefly. "I don't think Jillian would do that, first of all. She doesn't seem like the type and second trying to hurt her for hurting you...Dakota that isn't the way to do things."

"I know, you're right. I can't change it now. I apologized and all I can do is try to do better." Dakota said before standing up from the couch. We both heard the name "Vewa!" come through on the baby monitor. Ellie was up again. She doesn't sleep well at times. To my surprise, Dakota went downstairs with me to check on her and helped get her back to sleep.

Since Tucker seemed to have a eye on things in the house, I grabbed a baby monitor and slipped outside with Dakota for some fresh air. The night was cool and crisp but beautiful.

We looked at the stars and talked about old times.

"Do you remember the time you said." I cleared my throat and lowered my pitch "You look pretty, I guess."

Dakota laughed loudly "Yeah! We were going out to eat with Joey and you insulted me with -" he batted his eyelashes and did his best girly voice, which sounded nothing like me "“You don’t look bad yourself, Aladdin. Nice vest.”

Sometimes catching up with a good friend is much needed. 

<-previous

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Wednesday amazing fandom :) This is a very emotional episode for Lucy. Melissa’s acting in this one is outstanding. All I want to do most of this episode is hug her. And tie Chris to the back of a truck and just drive…Our lovely couple are apart in this episode but it’s such a good one. I have a lot of Chris rage in this one so prepare yourself haha Let’s get started.

4x17 Coding

We start off with Tamara making Lucy breakfast. I love her natural instinct to take care of Lucy in these moments. Just like Lucy did and still does for her. I adore their dynamic so very much. Tamara is protective when they talk about today. She doesn't understand why Lucy has to do this. Noting Rosalind is already serving four life sentences. She doesn’t like that the DA is making her dredge up painful memories just to slap on more charges. Lucy tells her it’s important to make sure she’s charged as an accessory to Caleb’s crimes. That Rosalind needs to be held accountable for that.

Most of her victims didn't make it...She is one of the lucky ones and doesn't want to waste that. Can see a strong sense of justice brewing deep in her soul as she explains this. I love how strong she is being for Tamara. Showing her what a bad ass she is. Modeling that for her. Tamara still has worry in her eyes and says she’s coming with. That she will have snacks and puppy videos at the ready. Be her emotional support human. Since her normal emotional support isn’t with her today. Love them.

Speaking of Lucy's ESH he’s at the hospital with Nolan. His car crash victim was a a rough one. I can’t watch the cold open for this one ever. I did it once and I bawled my eyes out. I can’t do stuff with kids after becoming an auntie. Her being sad the popsicles were gonna melt for her kid. That her husband would be mad about the car.

Makes me think of my niece, nephew and my sister. I just can’t handle it. But kudos to the writers for evoking that out of me. Glad John was there in her final moments but it was rough to watch. Tim comes up to him and notices Nolan is still in shock about it. Gah I would be too. I still can’t handle rewatching it let alone living it.

Tim is so wonderful and gives John some good perspective about it. That yeah it was rough and tragic no doubt about it. But that girl is going to get a new heart because of it. Tells him to try and focus on the silver lining of it all. Love this man. His empathy has grown leaps and bounds since we first met him. Was always there Lucy just needed to get it out of retirement when they met.

Lucy and Tamara arrive at the DA's office and we can see Lucy tense up. Just being in the office is setting her off already. She tells Tamara she’s going to the bathroom. She is so sweet and asks if she needs her come with? Lucy tells her no she handle that solo. We watch Lucy escape into a stairwell. Poor thing is in an absolute panic. Rubbing her DOD tattoo trying so hard to ground herself. I’ve been there where something just triggers your PTSD.

All you need is to find somewhere to expel all that energy surging through you. Because she is having an intense fight or flight moment. She is desperately trying to ground herself. Breaks my heart because I love her. Also because I’ve been her. I know this feeling she is experiencing. Nothing worse than getting engulfed in that sort of emotion. It's like the walls are closing in on you. It's what creates that flight instinct and you just need to get out just to breathe.

To be able to function at all. You can feel the panic rising in your throat and you’re drowning in it. Poor thing is getting flashes of what happened to her. It's taking her right back there. We watch her take a deep breath trying to reset her body. She clearly doesn’t want Tamara to see her like this. Ugh. This is just fuel for my hate fire later when I wanna bitch slap the clown. My heart hurts for her in this ep. It really does.

Tim is still at the hospital with Nolan. He continues his sweetness with John. Saying if he needs to see a counselor he can. Won’t be any charge to him. Look at our sweet empathetic Tim. I love it so much my heart is gonna burst. Their chat is interrupted by the hospital shutting down.

They find out quickly the man before them is ransoming the hospital to get his wife the heart. Wanting to steal it from that young girl for his wife instead. Threatens that he’ll shut down their entire network if they don’t do so. Tim looks pissed as hell. Which is kinda sexy tbh. They’re at his mercy it would seem...

Lopez comes charging in clearly ready for a fight. Asking for a status update on everything. They have the husband and wife separated atm. Her husband is being held in a conference room with an officer. Angela wants Tim to take a run at Jonah and sends Nolan to crack the wife. Hoping either the IT dept. will crack the hold on the network or they guys will get one of the spouses to fold.

Nolan is a swing and a miss with the wife. So we cut to Tim and Jonah. Tim looking particularly fine as he questions the husband. Has his hard stance going on trying to get this guy to crack. Telling him to dial back the threats that if he scales back now it won’t be as bad.

It’s here we see a man with nothing to lose. We watch Tim soften a little bit. It's when he says his wife is his entire life. Tim can relate to that and it shows as he’s listening. Doesn't last long though. He goes back into cop mode when Jonah starts threatening again. Saying soon enough something else will start with a new phase. It’s here we see a complete lock out of the system for the staff. Phase 2 has started.

We rejoin Lucy at the DA’s office. Chris has to take over since her normal person is out sick. He tried to reschedule but Lucy pushes against this. Saying they’re professionals and she can do this. I think she just wants it done and over with tbh. I hate how he questions her though. With this smug authority I cannot stand.

The more he pokes at the wound the more we see Lucy get agitated. Like a cornered animal being poked and prodded. Ready to lunge and attack at the slightest provocation. He is questioning everything about Caleb being connected to Rosalind. We watch her go back into fight or flight mode. As she examines the pictures and gets more flashes of her time in that horrible barrel.

Love her snapping at Chris when he says he’s just ‘Wants her to be ready.’ Schmuck.... He has this semi smile the entire time and I just wanna clean his clock so badly. He is beyond insensitive about this entire thing. Not reading her body language whatsoever. Seeing how tightly wound she is. I wish Tim could be there for her. He would be a much better rock for her. I hate Chris and this episode just ramps that right up.

Then comes the moment I was to punt Chris down the stairs. Like skipping a rock across the water. See how many flights I can get him to fall down with just my rage. He starts singing her barrel song like the dumbass he is. Showing the clueless SOB he truly is. Melissa crushes this scene though. The shaky way she delivers her lines. How she backs up every time Chris tries to approach her. Needing as much distance as she can get in that room.

The way she snapped at him earlier should've been evidence enough. The writing on the wall was there. He just needed to be extra sensitive. What does he do? Sing that song. It’s the way he says ‘Yeah it’s evidence.’ All cavalier. No clown it’s visual proof of the worst and most traumatic moment of her life. It is far more than just evidence you stupid schmuck. That was her death song. She thought it was over and she sang that as a way to comfort herself. It’s a deeply intimate and emotional thing for her. He’s treating it like it’s just part of the case.

We can see how the thought of him watching it is wrecking her. He keeps trying to close the gap and she keeps widening it. He is pushing her physical boundaries when she is screaming for him to stay away. Being the clueless oaf he is Chris continues to try. Saying he’s sorry, he’s in the DA office, blah blah blah. Meaningless words to her in this moment. Her saying ‘Yeah you said that already…’ She is disassociating in this moment. Trying to distance herself from him. Because he has wounded her and she needs time to regroup.

I hate that stupid semi smile on his face still. He’s truly not understanding what she needs in this moment. Makes my blood boil. Further proof he's not the guy for her. Tim can read every emotion. Know exactly what she needs. Then there is this putz. Shouldn't be allowed to breathe the same air as her at this point. Lucy has to practically beg him to give her a moment alone. Shaking and absolutely wrecked emotionally. I hate this so very much for her. She is in serious distress right now.

He's so selfish all he can thinking about is absolving his involvement. Not reading her emotional state whatsoever. Trying to push past her boundaries. She finally makes him go away. He storms off like a child. I'm shaking at how mad I am rewatching this. Especially with carrying PTSD myself. One of my trauma triggers is my physical boundaries being pushed. He had no damn right to impose himself on her like that. Chris has already proven he’s not the guy for her. This was the nail in his coffin IMO for that. What an absolute clown this man is….Melissa killing me softly with this scene.

We return to Tim and Nolan at the hospital. Someone has died due to Phase 2. So the hospital gives into his demands. Let’s his wife get the heart. I love how Tim wants to clean this guy's clock. Telling him to lose the attitude. Gah if he only knew what was going on at the DA’s office. His rage would be ten times what it is right now. Jonah restores the lights but only for the OR. Tells them he wants to be there for his wife’s surgery. To make sure they’re really doing it. This guy is something else. Tim re-cuffs him and they head to the OR together.

Lucy finds Chris and he jumps up and apologizes again. She cuts him off not having time for his BS. This isn't about you bub. She asks for him to get her the video. That he’s seen it and half the lawyers in this bidding have. But she hasn’t. Chris tells her it’s incredibly hard to watch. Lucy doesn’t care and tells him she needs to see it. My girl I just wanna hug her. Also I’m so damn proud of her for standing up for what she wants.

Chris having no leg to stand on agrees to show it to her. He has the gall to ask if he should stay? Obviously not you friggin stunad…Got me so angry I’m calling him an idiot in Italian. He really doesn’t get it. It’s ridiculous. After how she reacted earlier. How she's been this entire time you’d think she was going to say yes? The last thing she needs is your stupid ass there. She thanks him for the video. He doesn’t deserve that,

All he deserves is a swift kick to the nads. So he doesn't reproduce little clueless offspring….Whoever set up these shots did a good job btw. They are so well done. She’s psyching herself up to press play. The shot of her with her ring. We see it visible on her hand. The ring that saved her life. The ring Tim found and held onto until she was ready to have it back. Trying to ground herself before watching this. The way her hand shakes before she hits play gets me all in the feels.

Melissa continues to crush this scene. Watching her watch that video makes me wanna cry. It’s so hard to watch her witness the worst moment of her life. Once again another beautiful shot of Melissa above. The way she closes her eyes as she listens to herself sing, the way she touches her lips in an anxious manner, the ring close to her as she continues to listen. Having the object that saved her close to her as she watches. Like a safety blanket as she takes in the video.

You can see her whole body trembling as she tries to get through it. Hurts my damn heart to watch unfold. Serious props to Melissa for conveying so damn much in this short scene. Lucy trying to prove to herself she is strong by watching this. By going through with this whole thing at all. Trying to push down all the emotions eating away at her. Last ep all I did was laugh. This one all it does is hurt my heart. Hurt for her. It's so good though.

We return to the hospital. They’re wheeling Jonah’s wife back. Tim is super stern with him and I’m here for it. You tell him babe. Directs him not to mess with the surgeons or how they do their job. Is that understood? Jonah goes on to say how he never would since it’s saving his wife. The saddest part is next. The father of the daughter they’re stealing heart from comes after them.

Trying to kill his wife because if he does his daughter will live. The love a parent has for their kid is immense. How it it should be really. Sadly he gets arrested and Jonah continues on like it's nothing. Like he isn't destroying lives with this decision of his. They have to continue their march towards the OR despite this. Because Jonah still holds all the cards right now.

This next part gets me right in the feels. Nolan is able to get his wife to listen to the daughter. Her speech gets me teary every time. What a strong and amazing young woman to say what does. Did what Nolan couldn't do in the first place. Build rapport and get her to break. To change her mind on this whole thing. I think it's the fact that she forgives this woman that gets her to break. To let her know she forgives her even thoush she's taking away her second chance. This episode is all kinds of emotional in the best way.

His wife withdraws consent after that. Says she can’t do this anymore. Just like that it's over. Or so we we think. Jonah tries to turn off the ransomware but can’t. His partners have locked him out and want a ransom to unlock it. One the hospital cannot afford. Tim and John are escorting Jonah out now. He’s going on about needing to be there for his wife. Tim tells him he gets nothing since he let someone die. He’s going to prison for a murder charge.

John steps in and says if he can tell them who he’s working with they can help. It's possible Jonah can get bail so he can spend what time she has left with him. He lets them know who he was hired by. That it was their idea to hack the hospital. Saying they’d pay him to build the ransomware. He was an easy target due to his medical debt. He’s slowly figuring out they were just a means to an end. Tells them the IT dept. can track messages they sent him.

Cue to sexy OP Tim mmm. Tactical Tim is one of my favs. Also nice shots of his ass and I’m not complaining LOL The house is empty once they clear it. They're worried they've already left or haven't been here for awhile. Tim noting it has to be here. No way they could run that kind of software on a laptop. They decide check outdoors and Nolan see's transformer with a cable running from it.

Tim follows Nolan as he sees a massive cable running along the grass. They trace it to a container on the property. This is where the hackers are set up. Nolan tells one of them they can have a deal the other gets way more jail time. Just depends on who answers him first. One of the hackers easily gives up their partner in a flash. Tim's ‘Good answer’ cracks me up LOL I love him.

Lucy is in an emotional coma when Tamara and Chris check in on her. Really it's Tamara that says they should. Chris has no drive to check on her himself. He tried knocking once and gave up. Tamara is the one to push it and make them enter the room. She doesn't have time for Chris to grow some balls to check on her. Dipshit I mean Chris asks her if she watched it? Not a single brain cell in that head is there? How did you make it through law school sir? Seriously? Of course she watched it you idiot. I love Lucy for not testifying. This was so big for her to step away from. It was not an easy decision for her to make. Once again being the strong role model for Tamara.

I'm so proud of her for being courageous enough to watch that video. I get why she did. Everyone else had access to it. Seen it. I think it was part of her decision to move on. Her processing things was her realizing she had nothing to prove. Damn right you don’t. Screw Rosalind, screw Chris and this whole thing. Her saying she survived that felt like a call back to 2x12. Where Tim helped her see it wasn’t a failure but proof of what a survivor she is. His words sticking with her in this moment. I love it.

Tamara coming over and hugging her is the best part. She is so proud of Lucy for making this call. It was her's to make and a place she needed to get to on her own. If it had been up to Tamara she never would've gone through this at all. I love her telling her she is going to make dinner. They really are a make-shift family and it's so lovely to see. I just love them so much. How she instantly wants to take care of Lucy. Makes my heart happy in an ep where all I wanted to do was murder Chris.

How their relationship survived this episode I couldn’t tell you. His ass deserved to be dumped so very hard. Like a cat with nine lives. He keeps on ticking. When all he deserved was to be shut out of her life for good. Also of course Chris doesn’t cook... Chalk another one up for the clown. I seriously have zero idea what she sees in him. Other than just being lonely and wanting companionship. So ends this episode. I wanna say I’m sorry for all my Chris rage but I’m really not LOL

~~~

Side notes-non Chenford

James and Nyla be cute. I love them. That be it.

[tiny-vermin]

I want to know more about the m9 artist au!! I remember reading a post or two about it a billion years ago (and would love to read them again) 💜

hi jess!!!! thank u for being interested hehe :")

so ever since i drew that lil thing of essek painting a frank stella inspired painting (or even before), ive been thinking of what kinds of art each of the m9 would do. essek ofc is inspired by a minimalist show that i went to here, all the big names from that movement were shown, but those really dark, sinkhole-like paintings are speaking to me. another artwork of boxes made of mirrors also seems like the thing he would do too

there's a kiln here that we visited which was huge, and surrounding it were artists' studios and some other ceramic sellers, i imagine the clay family having a place like this in the middle of nowhere amongst the trees, and caleb would do his work there

anyways because at heart im a shadowgast luver its centred around them,, they meet at an artist residency or something like that and its an incredibly slow burn that involves talking and not-talking and looking and not-looking. in the end i am but a simple wong kar wai fan so. that kinda vibes would definitely influence this, i would describe it as a quiet burning i guess?? time skipy and words that are not said

i think im gonna rant a bit more about their different mediums and styles so i'll keep it under the cut

i think caleb sculpts figures and portraits, but in a sad, kathe kollwitz charcoal vibe. maybe some funky looking animals, perhaps some pots and vases to look at the pretty glazes. he's interested in using fire to burn texture into different mediums, like ive seen it being used on shellac to make a really cool net of ink looking structure.. but yknow, just seeing the aftermath of glazed ceramic from the kiln is enough, and probably better for him to keep his distance anyways

the clay family produces most of the ceramic to sell, vases, pots, plates, cups, teapots, yknow just a whole array. and its really colourful too, depicting every family members different style. i think caduceus would do some matte glazes with a lot of different colours, theyre all a little wonky but theyre better off that way anyways. he does some really mean ink calligraphy and painting though

jester definitely does,, everything, whatever her heart desires kinda thang. she makes pastel textile installations and lighthearted cute paintings, but theyre always so contemplative and soothing. she gets m9 a lot of work cus her mom has connections, etc etc. i really love the idea of jester creating works that talk about the female body and femininity (definitely not projecting no)

beau is a printmaker and photographer who's really experimental, she loves cyanotypes and printing flowers (for yasha), idk she seems like she would put fabric and rocks into the washing machine to see what would happen. u would probably catch her in someone elses studio learning about what they do or in the library learning about what old people did

veth works in a museum as a curator, getting beau to help her sometimes with gathering artworks and artists etc. she probably organises community art projects for kids and public art installations. her house is full of m9's artworks and various other artists shes worked with.

yasha does bouquets as her post-retirement part time job, prior to that no one really knows what she did ("she probably murdered a bunch of people and is now hiding from the government"). fjord draws comics for fun but is also not a job for him, molly is a question mark for me. but these guys probably wont be in it as much anyways

im still not sure what format i wanna do this in, im actually having fun just writing it in my notebook now (digital does not facilitate the creative juices) but i do want to do some visuals like fake movie stills or storyboards. maybe they will work together well???? dunno. working on the other shadowgasty thing im doing made me realise how much easier it is to draw when there's a script already there, so im writing the script for myself

im definitely not as practiced in writing as i am in drawing, but idk im just gonna have some fun and see where that takes me, meanwhile try not to feel too bad that its fanart HAHA (very bad habit)

edit: i just saw my previous thoughts on beau being an art journalist, but i kinda like this better.. but maybe she can do both muah

[satureja13]

Jack's Therapy Game (From the beginning: -> here)

It's not that late when Lou and Jack left the Pub. They are tired and hungry after the fight so they went over to Lou's house. Lou: "I'll show you your room. It's in the building on the right and the bathroom is right below." Jack: "Wow, ok. Thanks." Lou: "You're very welcome here, Jack."

Lou: "I used it as a storage room for a while, I hope it's ok." Jack: "Of course it is! It's amazing!"

Lou is so sweet. He quickly got this room ready while Jack cared for the horses earlier.

And he placed Jack's trophy and the spicy wolf figurines he bought for him. (Isn't it a bit strange that he placed them in this position too? Maybe he's just as weird as Jack? Or is he hitting on him? Was Jack hitting on Lou when he chose those wolves? ö.Ö')

They agreed to cook together and Jack went to the bathroom first. Only to find a magazine with inadequate dressed, but very handsome guys, tissues and - lube... Is this Lou's stuff he forgot to put away or did he leave it for Jack to see? ö.Ö'

They cooked together in silence.

Lou: "Is everything ok?" Jack: "Uhm, yes... just hungry." Lou: "Me too. Let's finish the meal before I devour you! Haha!" Jack laughed a little too loud: "HAHA!" ö.ö'

During the meal they managed to get back to their former comraderie and chatted as if nothing happened. (It's because nothing happened, Jack! Every Boy has this stuff at home! Saiwa still owns that 'wand' and the 'polish' Kiyoshi gave him. Though they'd never used it. But better not remind Jack of that o.o')

And just when Jack really thought it's nothing and fought his paranoia, because this is his therapy after all, Lou said: "Hey, I want to show you something."

Lou: "It's over here."

Lou: "I've never shown this room to anyone... I'm glad I finally found someone to share my, not so little *chuckles* secret. Keeping it hidden from everyone is eating me up."

No one can relate better to this than poor Jack who had to keep his whole relationship to Kiyoshi a secret until he broke down. But Jack's already wild imaginanion was bouncing around like a rubber ball on hyperspeed in a too small box. The wolf figurines and the stuff in the bathroom and that Lou wants to 'eat' him. Is he a cannibal or is this room a kind of sex chamber? Lou: "We will spend a lot of time here. Sweating and groaning." Ok sweating and groaning is only for the living. So at least he's not going to eat him, right? ö.ö (Uhm 'groaning' is also for zombies, Jack...)

Lou: "Come in!" (Jack's face is priceless! ^^')

Jack: "Exercise equipment?" Lou: "Sure, thought that was obvious. What did you think?" Haha - omg Jack! Lou: "Remember? No one knows that we are Moonchild and Wolfsbane. I've spent a lot of time here alone. I'm glad you're here. We can spur on each other and do challenges!"

Jack noticed the cabinet with the trophies: "Wow. You've won a lot of fights!" Among all the golden ones, there is also a second silver trophy. Lou: "The other wolf who defeated me was Greg. What a fight that was! No one ever gave me hell like you and Greg. But he retired for unknown reasons. So I'm glad I have an equal opponent like him again. For the thrill, you know." Jack knows. He doesn't care if he wins or loses either when the fight is good. Except when strong feelings are involved. When he lost his Cattle Market against Kiyoshi or the fights against Greg.

They retreated to their rooms. Lou will show him around tomorrow. Talking abouts fights reminded Jack of his fights with Kiyoshi after he became his Alpha. Those were the days when he tried to kill Kiyoshi after he found out he'd been at the Lab and he thought he was a threat for his friends. But the fights had been amazing. And hot. There is really something terribly wrong in his head! How can he still miss and want Kiyoshi!

It's time to log out and report back to his friends. Ji Ho has to try out the Game and find out if he really is a Princess in his Therapy Game too! And if he is going to marry Caleb! But Jack will come back here for sure! The Game is awesome, the therapy works and hopefully it will also help him to forget about Kiyoshi. Or maybe Lou is really here to hit on Jack so he can get over Kiyoshi? Anyway, Jack gives the Therapy Game a 10 out of 10!

Congratz! You've made it through a very long post (again)! But today, there is a little reward for you (if you like):

tumblr communities are here! (more information -> here)

So, I got an email last week if we'd like to playtest the new feature! This is how it looks like:

During the beta, I can invite up to 25 members and the community is set on private. So if you are shy and don't like posting in the open space, this is a safe environment for you.

I'm not able to change anything as long as the beta runs, so we have to live with the indications I've made under 'About' and 'Guidelines'. Any ideas what to add/remove (as soon as we are able to change it) are welcome!

I must admit I have no clue where this is going and what it is good for ^^' It looks like every post will be stuffed in the main category. So we'll have to work with tags. I've created a pinned post with the tags I came up with. Here I'll need your help to collect ideas for tabs. Like #sims chat #tumblr communities chat #my builds #my sims #my gameplay #sims news #polls...

After you got invited (this is still buggy as far as I've seen in the communites chat) you'll also have access to the communites feedback chat to submit your feedback about the communites feature to tumblr. But you don't have to. Any of us can collect our feedback and submit it as well.

If you are interested, let me know and I will send you an invite! I think this can be amazing since we can create our very own, safe community here and more members can be added after the beta. Haha and it's bot free! ^^

The Therapy Game Master Post with the sessions and places so far is -> here

From the Beginning  ~  Underwater Love ~  Latest Current Chapter: 🕹️ 'The One' from the beginning ▶️ here 📚 Previous Chapters: Chapters: 1-6 ~ 7-12 ~ 13-16 ~ 17-22 ~ 23-28

[loveislandthegame]

thoughts on todays volume!

i had the tiniest sliver of hope when the girls asked who MC wanted to see. i picked jesse, but MC’s villa meet up ended up being with hayden. great for OG LI girlies but a snoozefest for me 😭 with the gem scene we learn that jesse is getting along with a casa girl, but they haven’t done anything yet. also that dean is full of shit, but i don’t think we need to pay 29 gems to figure that one out

next up is a compatibility quiz with hayden and caleb ! once again, a snoozefest for me. i wish lisbeth and jesse could’ve been options here. the answers are super obvious so i just alternated between them, and ended up getting hayden. for the astrology lovers, caleb’s a virgo. it suits him !

let me preface this by saying this dress isn’t too bad, & it’s not even the worst outfit this season, but you should’ve seen the face i made when MC was hyping up her show stopping look, and decided to pull out this 2012 pinterest abomination . it’s horrible and i kinda love that

stick or twist time ! i chose caleb, lisbeth chose yash (they are cute together, & also she’s made it very clear she’s strategically twisting, but UGHHHH💔)

isadora and nyah stuck with ethan and milo. when i tell you i almost jumped for joy that neither of them chose dean. FB seriously needs to retire that trope of one casa guy being a sleazeball. it’s fine if we can’t romance all of them, but why not make them a friend ?! make them interested in somebody else without being an absolute knob, literally anything else (i think it’d be cool if there was an casa guy that entered a friendship couple to graft on a villa guy, but FB can’t write for beans and they’re allergic to openly bi/pan men)

we go back to the villa, and why can’t we just walk in with our partner normally ?😭 i picked “pretend to be delivering a parcel” because it was the only one that i felt wouldn’t be disrespectful to either hayden or caleb. it’s so unserious but it wasn’t as ridiculous as i thought it would be

eisha is so gorgeous ! and she flirted with MC 🎉🎉🎉 i won’t get my hopes up for a love triangle tho, because i already know that the game is gonna force us to chose between her or lisbeth in the next couple volumes. i’d love to be wrong, but that’s how wlw routes have been for like 5 seasons now. anyways, it’s so funny/interesting that between my MC, lisbeth, and eisha, all of jesse’s LIs (except sofia) are wlw (plus he has two dads) he’s rolling with the LGBT 🏳️‍🌈

ethan and milo end up apologising. that is the most bare minimum thing ever, but my expectations were in hell after we couldn’t call out nyah for acting like we were BFFs again. i forgave them because i’m too much of a softie to actually commit to a villain route. they better sleep with one eye open though

i think ava is pretty, but i will say she’s giving bootleg s1 Cherry, with a dash of lucy (personality wise, plus being the ex…something of our casa LI) i wish we could be friends with her but she’s doomed to be our bland one dimensional rival. snoozefest 💤

the only reason i’m happy to be in the villa again ❤️❤️❤️

also there’s gonna be a dumping ?😭 we just got back. i would say FB should actually let the villa be full for once, but this season has been so glitchy that it’s probably for the best. anyways, it will probably be nyah/milo or isadora/ethan unless they decided to do another twist. maybe tristan and sofia will hop out the bushes 😍

overall, a bit boring for me. i wish that there was content for people who aren’t mainly romancing their OG LI or casa guy. especially when it comes to compatibility challenges or rivals. i’m just mindlessly tapping through it all (but at the same time, this season has had way too much going on so it’s nice to get a break i guess ?…😭)

[destinygoldenstar]

☀️Tom Is The Impostor Among Us☀️ - Total Drama Viewer Reacts to Disventure Camp Season 1 Episode 3 “Mazed And Confused”

Sorry for the wait. I have wanted to get this out sooner. But I had work, + I caught a cold. It’s not fun. Still doing this though.

Let’s Jump Right In:

"Now go find Ellie"

And right off the bat, we get this person again.

Who are you?! Why do you appear so randomly?!

I don't think you have to watch for Grett controlling you Gabby, I think you have to watch for your twin here.

"I'm not in the best position, but at least I didn't get votes."

That's one way to look at it.

"I have an immunity totem, if you ever feel in danger, give me a signal in the challenge and I'll secretly pass it on to you."

No Gabby you can't just do that!

Grett's gonna boot you!

"Would you really do that for me? Why?"

"Well, you were the only person that was nice to me on that team."

Yeah she was. Ellie's cool.

Make it to the merge so you can be besties!

"It's a shame we couldn't agree on yesterday's elimination."

YEAH. THAT WAS ALL YOUR FAULT.

"Ladies, we did what we had to do! That punk had a few screws loose."

Nick...

Okay, in terms of my take for best girls: Grett, obviously, stan the bad bitch. Gabby's also warming up to me and I like her story of her being outcasted for her personality.

Best boys though is kinda up in the air. I'm leaning towards Nick and... I guess Jake. But DAMN did you frustrate me Nick!

But I'll forgive stupidity for one episode. It was a 'stupid for the sake of the plot' situation.

"The can't happen again. The alliance must stay strong and united."

Okay are they gonna work together now?

"Yesterday before the elimination, the alliance was talking and we couldn't come to a decision."

Oh so you DID talk. And you STILL didn't work together to protect your teammate!

SURE.

"For some bloody reason, Lill was defending Will and Ashley preferred to throw her vote on Alec. I obviously went Will. As much as I hate to admit it, Lill is being a bit annoying..."

Nick, you better take that back.

I mean, I get it, maybe he doesn't know how these sorts of things work with his homelife and all that, but he's gotta learn.

"I went fishing!"

"But Jake and Tom went fishing, they took all the fishing gear."

She fished with her mouth like a bear.

And I said this last time, there's other ways to fish besides rods. Buckets. Nets. You can make cages.

THOSE FISH DON'T LOOK SAFE TO EAT

Tom's like "That's funny, all my teammates suddenly died of poison. Oh well, guess I'm in the merge!"

I mean he's a sus ninja hiding shit, he could be a serial killer.

"We have to eat them before the challenge."

*Gets an Inside Out 2 Trailer Ad*

I don't like that context!! I'm gonna be honest!!

OH GOOD GOD WHY IS THE SKIN STILL ON IT AND NOT IN THE POT?!?!

Guys, I don't think you should eat Grandma's cooking if you value your lives.

Honestly, I forgot Miriam was here XD

"I wanted to ask you if you're okay. You've been kind of upset since we got here and-"

"Whatever happened to minding your own business?!"

Okay chill! He was trying to be nice to you!

Come on, he's been a very sweet guy so far and is giving you all a chance. What's there to snap about?

We'll see how well that statement ages. (Thanks for making me paranoid Caleb)

Plot twist: Jake and Tom are both secretly evil. Tom is a serial killer. Jake was a prominent bully back in high school.

"If it weren't for my retirement money, I wouldn't be here."

I'm not an elder. How ass is retirement funds?

"Do you think writing on your hand is a good substitute for a notebook?"

"I know Gabby said she was cool with me using my notebook, but I kinda lied to her so she wouldn't kill me, so I want to take that extra precaution. You know?"

"Today we will test your ability to face your worst fears!"

Oh it's Phobia Factor from Total Drama.

That was actually one of my favorite challenges from that show's season. This should be a fun episode.

And if you want to know what my phobia would be, it would be either walking around dead plants or riding a roller coaster. I HATE roller coasters.

"We've been doing a bit of research on each of you and I have to say we've found some interesting stuff."

So you doxxed.

Yes, what else would you like to confess to the police?

"And since we're here doxing, Grett has a body count, Gabby has a split personality, Tom wears makeup underneath his mask and he wears the mask to not be bullied about it... shall I continue?"

Course they use Queen Grett as the example... but she looks naked with the image cropped like that and I DON'T want that in my head!

(I know this is technically adult animation. I don't care. If I want porn I'll ask for it. And I'm not asking for it.)

Grett's scared of the dark! I knew it!

Queen may slay, but at the end of the day, she's got embarrassing stuff like this. We stan it.

And they use Dan as a bad example. Also slay.

I'm realizing I'm so MEAN to Dan. I'm always bullying him in these posts. And I have, literally, NO reason for it. Man didn't do shit!

And I am pissing off all Dan stans that see these posts.

"The first team to reach the other side gets immunity and a reward!"

We're not gonna hear what the reward is this time?

Oh we do see it. Okay.

"Waterproof Tent" I SURE HOPE IT DOESN'T RAIN NEXT EPISODE!!

Next Episode:

"I'm sure these scares are harmless"

"For your first challenge, you must watch EVERY Five Nights At Freddy's Installment!"

The subtitle XD

"Fear of Sharks; You must swim in a pond with a shark for five minutes!"

I would not do that. I ain't losing a limb!

*Ellie clicks the check*

*Spawns an ad on USAA*

OH NO! THEY LIED!!!

Ellie's real fear is her finances XD

"Fear of Cemeteries; You must go alone and spend ten minutes in the Tipiskaw cemetery!"

That's not too bad. I could do that.

The subtitle just says "What" during his dialogue, I'm dead XD

"Tipiskaw Cemetery? Thought this was the wilderness."

It's for the fish you killed. And whatever other wildlife you killed.

"Maybe it's a pet graveyard."

Gabby just said my thoughts. This is how many times now?!

Stop being so relatable, Gabby! It's scary!

You backed out?!

BOO. VOTE HIM OFF.

Okay THAT is far more terrifying! Come on!

"Don't look at him. Just close your eyes."

"It'll make your death far more peaceful, sweetie! I promise ya!"

"Sharks are harmless."

Alright I love ya again Nick.

There actually are some harmless sharks.

Just be thankful Chris McLean isn't hosting this.

"I feel bad for letting the team down..."

"I wish I could do it, but, it's just... hits too close to home."

OH... HONEY.

"I lost my grandfather when I was a kid and I always went with my mom to visit him and leave flowers. That place caused me a lot of anxiety. Now my grandmother's sick and I know it's only a matter of time before... you know..."

My gosh...

Alright. This guy is my best boy for this show.

He got me way too invested in his story.

"Fear of going bald; There is someone inside waiting to cut all your hair"

OH HI HEATHER, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!

That HAS to be a Total Drama Reference!

"Why? Hair grows back."

Fiore spitting facts XD

"Fear of being alone?"

Why does he sound confused with that? That's basic introverted life!

I could totally do that!

The subtitles again XD

"I thought I'd never have to see the inside of one of these again..."

GABBY. IS THERE SOMETHING TRAUMA BASED YOU WANT TO SHARE TO THE CLASS???

Cause that's concerning!

She's doing it. She came to SLAY.

Grett taught her well.

Hey Queens, you dropped this 👑

"All my life, I've worked with girls Fiore's age and I feel that something's not right with her..."

Lilly. I owe you one.

Props to Lilly to be the one smart one in this alliance.

"She looks like a little baby piglet."

THOSE ARE THE DEVIL'S EYES

Oh hey, she's not alone! She has... Blabby.

That's terrible.

"How dare they do this to you again?"

Yeah, Gabby is definitely traumatized.

"Yay! I made it!"

She's served her time in prison.

"Fear of confronting your past; YOU. MUST. BAKE. A. CHEESECAKE."

OOOOHHHH NOOOOOOOO THE HORROOOOORRR!!!!

I was always terrified of setting the kitchen on fire!

"What's so painful about cheesecake?"

Colesterol.

"What the hell was that?"

*Gets a Grammarly Ad*

The ads I'm getting today are cracking me up XD

MONTAGE

SLAY GRETT. YOU DO IT!

*Nick's fear*

... I think I'm gonna get flagged for this one. So I'm not showing it.

Drew's is the most terrifying.

Fiore's phobic of moose?

Okay, no, Dan's dead.

Lilly is also dead.

"Fear of fires; You must wear a thermal suit and enter a small cabin that we have behind the door. Which will burn in flames for fifteen minutes."

At least she gets a suit, so it could be worse.

"We couldn't find much information on you"

He is SUS as I will get out!

"You must take off your mask!"

OVER A MASK?!

BOO. VOTE HIM OFF.

Goddammit Tom.

"I just can't reveal to everyone that I may or may not like wearing makeup, okay?! It's personal! You don't know what I've been through!"

This is a joke btw. I don't think it's actually that. It might just be some facial scar under there, or he has to hide it for his job.

"I haven't always been afraid of fires. Two years ago, a heat wave caused one near my family's farm. We lost part of the house, the animals, and the crops. We haven't been able to fully recover after that."

HONEY. OMG.

We ANOTHER character motive that's very sympathetic! LET'S GO WITH THE TRAUMA!!

Not Fiore ACTUALLY being scared for Ashley!

Also Alec looks bored with every situation.

"It's suspicious. Don't you think?"

SUS.

TOM IS THE IMPOSTOR AMONG US.

YES ASHLEY FOR THE WIN!!!!

Tom can't be going. He has too much story for them to boot him now. Right?

RIGHT?

"Numbers are key in this game and I'd rather be with him than against him."

Oh thank god, this team DOES have a brain. Unlike the Purple Team last episode.

"I'd rather vote for Grett."

"How about Gabby? Sometimes her attitude is somewhat erratic."

DON'T. YOU. DARE.

Grett has a brain. She knows what's going on.

"Maybe I could convince one of the guys to vote with us."

We love a smart queen.

TOM IS SUS

WHERE'D YOU GET THAT?!

He just threw the walkie talkie XD

"You caught me ordering KFC!"

"Someone here has been watching you."

"Two people actually. The first is me because I'm currently stalking you. The second is that fruity boy."

"Drew."

"Drew the third. He's fruity for you, AND he's stalking you."

OH THE NOTEBOOK.

I was thinking that would be leading to something!

"The boy doesn't trust you very much. You can read it yourself."

"I saw Tom vent in medbay. Vote him out."

"Guys it's Drew. Drew is the Impostor."

I can't show the images of the votes this time because of Tumblr image max.

We already know who's going, right? This is not a shocking elimination at all.

"The boys alliance will get me further in the game."

Dan really just said "I don't work with women."

NOW I have a reason to bully him.

"I may have messed with Drew's notes just a little."

What did you do exactly?

Also her handwriting's pretty.

This isn't a shocking elimination. We already know who's going.

'GABBY'

Yeah, yeah, we know.

'DREW'

It's gonna be 3 Gabby. 3 Drew.

'GABBY'

'DREW'

'GABBY'

'DREW'

And this is the part where Tom flips.

Yep. Bye bye.

He was fine. I just kept forgetting he was there.

Thought Dan was gonna be more mad about that. "ALRIGHT WHO'S THE FLIPPER?!?! SOMEONE HAS TO EXPLAIN THEMSELVES!!"

"Drew was ejected"

Alright, that's the episode.

That was a good one. I'm actually enjoying this show quite a bit so far. A lot of people said I wouldn't like this show at all. So I am, so far, pleasantly surprised.

I think it's gonna be a bit before we get to eliminations of characters I actually really like.

I'm a bit more interested in Miriam now. I'm curious what her trauma with cheesecake is in particular. But I feel like it might be something worse than that.

My best girls are Grett and Gabby. Again, I don't stan characters as in "They did nothing wrong" I just plain like them as characters. I KNOW Grett is someone to not be liked. I'm NOT routing for her to win. I just think she serves her role with dignity and she's playing the game really well. I also want to learn more about her.

Gabby is really growing on me, and I'm interested in her isolated background and why she acts so erratically. She's also a really good balance between sympathetic and borderline annoying with her behavior.

The boys are kinda more iffy with me. Dan is Dan. Alec is... boring, as of right now. I like Tom, and I know he has story going on with him, but it's also kind of obvious what the twist with him is just from his design alone. That the point out multiple times.

So I guess my best boys are Nick and Jake as of right now. Jake especially, I'm actually really liking the story with him. I like how he's empathetic towards the elders because of his close relationships with his own grandparents who understood him (whatever that means), and how the death of one and critical state of another had an affect on him. I do think he and Ashley have the most sympathetic motives for being here, with Ashley helping her farm and Jake helping his grandma. He's also really sweet and caring so far, especially with Miriam this episode.

Nick, again, I like his story of him wanting to prove himself to his parents but being delusional on how to handle this circumstance he's in. He IS kind of fading to the background though, so hopefully that is fixed and he gets the character development set up for him.

Can't wait for you all to laugh maniacally at me hearing that cause you know of any derailment that happens later this season! Can't wait!

If you guys want me to continue these reactions, be sure to let me know.

[aethercodeevol]

I'm sorry for your loss. What do you miss most about Gran and Caleb?

*I place my teacup down onto the saucer, my eyes resolving to look out the window. The day is lively and bright, sun warming the bones of those who are dreary...I admire it wistfully.*

That's an... excellent question, anon... *My mind wanders to my childhood, of playing tag with Caleb, scratches adorning our knees, dirt caked under our nails...the world, our oyster. How Caleb would carry me home after I'd fallen asleep in a field a few miles from Gran's home....our home. His arms strong, his heart beating rhythmically against my ear like a lullaby, even as a child he was my protector.*

Caleb always had the biggest heart, sometimes it would get him into trouble ....trust me, I'd seen the other guy as I would bandage up his knuckles when he got home, sometimes I'd put a pretty pink bandaid onto the wound just to see him whine. *I laugh at the memory, how he would pout that I would bandage a big strong man like himself up when I was just fresh out of highschool.*

He was always my confidant, listening to me for hours on end as I would ramble on about school to a stupid cat video I saw to the latest heartbreak to my medical check-ups to when we were going to have our schedules line up to grab a beer and how he'd always sign off his long winded speech by calling me 'pipsqueak'.... *I look down, my dark under eyes mirrored back to me in the tea's reflection* I wish he would call it that ....just once more.

*My memories collide in front of me, of an old woman, who smelled like fresh cookies and upturned soil from her years gardening in her retirement. How her eyes would crinkle lovingly, her generous life etched into every comforting and familiar wrinkle on her face...a life I greedily wish could've outweighed my own.*

Gran was....a woman who taught me what it was to be human. She was a strong woman but kind...sharp as a tack yet generous with her heart. *I remember a time, coming home in a huff as I all but ran to my bedroom, tears already spilling over as I'd gotten into a stupid argument with a friend. At the time it was catastrophic but as Gran knocked on my door, a bribe of cookies and tea for my tell-all on the matter, her hand rubbed soothingly against my back as my shoulders jumped with sobs and she tenderly wiped my tears with her favourite hankerchief...her words of wisdom fell onto receptive ears, how time will heal this wound and how I learnt that it would...and how I learnt her absence was a wound I would heal from in turn....but the colder months would always ache like a healed break in a bone.*

I would be lying if I said I didn't miss her cooking and cups of tea most of all... *I smile at the stupidity of such a thing to mourn* But Gran always held dear the small things in life... How a new flower she planted would bloom and thrive, how homemade cooking was always the best, how her knitted scarfs and lovingly guiding words would warm me, how a cup of tea would fix everything and how I miss her hugs, how at first I would reach up to hug her and how our roles switched as I grew and got older, how she'd still pinch my cheek at any age and say how proud of me she was...

*I take a sip of my tea, blinking the dew in my eyes to look up*

I don't think I can pin point a thing I'll miss about them... I miss everything about them, the good and the bad.

*I smile, genuinely, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear as I clutch the mug with resolve* I just pray, that wherever they are now... If they can see me, I just hope they're happy and safe.... And I hope they're proud of me and that one day they'll greet me again with open arms.

- ❤️‍🩹

[nikki-is-a-nerd]

Saviors from long ago

Synopsis:

Rey meets two travelers in Tatooine. Simply searching for their son or whatever item he may have left behind. Only to find out who they really were.

Genre: General Fluff and witty banter.

Warning: None

Note: as per usual this has an AFAB!reader, but no other appearance indicator. So feel free to imagine either yourself or an oc.

--------------------------------------------

How long has it been since you and Ezra left the resistance, well more like retired forcefully because someone (your children) basically petitioned for the both of you to exit the fight. Well physically being in the fight and just remain as Intel collectors? Twenty years? Maybe more. All you knew was that being fifty-three and having a twenty year old son who was already a commander in the resistance and suddenly disappeared doesn't really help you relax. Now here you and Ezra were. In a planet filled with sand that kind of reminds you of your own home, Lothal, if Lothal was run by criminals and people who would sell off information for a few credits. You honestly felt bad for all the children living here, they deserve so much better.

"Honey, are you alright? Do you need more water?" Ezra asked looking at you.

Saints, age really made Ezra look even better, the subtle whites in his curly black hair and the wrinkles around his eyes, somehow, the longer you look at him the more he looks like his father.

"I'm alright dear. Just thinking. If Kanan decided to hide here in Tatooine, wouldn't it be easy to spot remnants of his ship? I mean he and Poe decided to make their respective X-wings very, different." You said after a small pause.

"Caleb did say that Kanan's signal disappeared here, there's a chance that Kanan sold his ship to buy an inconspicuous one, or he scrapped it and sold it for credits." Ezra answered.

"You're right, Kanan is a survivor and a very charming guy, I bet he'd think of something." You said calmly.

"Exactly he's charming, witty, and a genius like his father." Ezra said smugly.

"Ehem-"

"But mainly like you, honey." Ezra added.

"We should probably keep a low profile here. Tatooine may not be under the empire's control but information is a commodity." You said quietly.

As you and Ezra continue to search for any evidence of your missing son to find out about his whereabouts, you both bump into a small group of scavengers. The one you bumped into seemed to recognize that a lot of what you have on your person could be worth a lot of credits and food.

When they started hassling you for them, Ezra decided to step up and shield you from them but both of you know that, any attempt of harming them would lead to more problems, thankfully something spooked them enough to leave you be. Your savior was a young woman, probably a few years older than your son, she looked like a scavenger but as she approached you, she raised both arms up as a sign that she means no harm.

"Hello, are you two alright? Did they steal anything from you?" The woman asked.

You and Ezra checked your belongings and noticed that they stole your small pouch of credits.

"Nothing from me, but they stole my wife's credits. It's fine though, it's not much." Ezra said kindly.

"Thank you for saving us from more trouble though." You spoke

"No problem, you two seemed like nice people and that particular group has no qualms of robbing anything that moves." She joked.

"I'm Rey, we should probably leave the open space, a sandstorm is coming." Rey added.

"Oh alright, I'm (Y/N) and this is my husband Ezra." You said warmly as you followed.

"What are you two doing in Tatooine if I may ask?" Rey asked politely as she led you inside her small home.

You and Ezra sat down and shared a look, both agreeing that she seemed nice enough to tell the truth to.

"We're here because this was the last location where the signal from our son's ship was last seen." Ezra spoke.

"We're here to try and find him or even just his ship and then call out to our friends to pick us up." He added.

Rey looked at the both of you until finally something clicked in her mind upon seeing the both of you.

"You're Ezra and (Y/N) Bridger, former resistance fighters and your husband's the infamous savior of Lothal." She said happily.

"Oh, we didn't expect people to still remember us. We haven't been in action in years." Ezra chuckled.

"Are you kidding me? I used to tell other kids my age here that one day someone like the both of you would free Tatooine. You gave me hope as a child." Rey said kindly.

"You have the heart of a rebel you know." You said softly.

Rey gave you a small appreciative smile. She felt so at ease in both of your presence. She then remembered something.

"There was a ship that crashed here a few weeks back, the pilot's been taken to the hutt's location." Rey said.

"Kanan..." You whispered softly.

"Excuse me, did you say hutt's?" Ezra asked.

"Yes? Is there a problem." Rey asked confusedly.

Ezra only grinned at you, a small inside joke from your time as part of the ghost. You shook your head, your husband truly was something else and if Kanan was with the hutt's, you just knew what Kanan would say.

"Karabast, we have to get Kanan back, your son thinks too much like you." You said as you rubbed your temple.

"What did I do this time?" Ezra asked.

"Ezra, darling, what did you say kanan should say his name was when kidnapped?" You asked.

"Oh that's easy Jabba the-Oh kriff." Ezra said realizing what Kanan might do.

Kanan does know that Jabba is dead but if he was taken forcefully and his ship was with them, your son who was blessed with your intellect but Ezra's personality, you just knew that he'd get under their skin. Why was it that your eldest was the one who acted so much like Ezra when he was a teenager and not your literal teenager of a son? Nonetheless you hoped that Kanan could hold his tongue better than Poe to ensure his safety.

"I'm going to guess you need to leave as soon as the sandstorm is over?" Rey asked.

"Yeah, our son might just get himself into a huge mess if he sees anyone try to dismantle his ship." Ezra said light-heartedly.

"Well, ever since Jabba died, the hutt's lost most of their power and influence here in Tatooine, so most of their manpower is by the entrance, the back entrance isn't as guarded though." Rey said.

"Would you like to come with us?" You asked.

"Of course, I can help you get there, I have a second sand speeder that I won from one of the competitions here. I can also help ensure that nobody gets in." She said kindly.

"You sure you don't want to be a rebel fighter?" Ezra teased.

"Oh no thank you, I don't think I'm good with that. I'll help you get your son and get back to your ship." She said apologetically.

You smiled at her as you and Ezra waited for the sandstorm to pass. You all talked, finessing your plan to ensure the least amount of casualties and keeping a low profile, as to not let any empire supporters alert the empire themselves. Afterwards while resting, you felt Rey's eyes on Ezra and yourself.

"You're staring sweetie, what's going on in your head?" You asked kindly.

"What was it like?" She asked.

"What was what like?' Ezra answered with a question.

Rey took a deep breath before asking her question.

"What was like for you to be so far away for most of your youth?" She asked Ezra.

Ezra smiled sadly at Rey's question. Mulling it over in his head before speaking.

"It was lonely. At first I felt a bit proud, I could protect my family, I probably made Kanan proud, I foiled Thrawn's plan, but when it all sunk in that I was away from everyone I knew, in a place I didn't even know." Ezra sighed as he took a deep breath.

"I started to take that time to mull things over, I felt sad too but I had hope. I hope that I will be found and that I can return home. Which I did and although my closest friend, Sabine and one of my mentors, Ahsoka had to be left behind to get me back to safety, I was grateful that they found me. I got to go home, to live a somewhat normal life and build a family with the woman I fell in love with." Ezra said softly with a small smile.

"I'm sorry if I made you remember things you didn't want to." Rey said apologetically.

"No, no, it's alright. I'm thankful for my experiences. It led me to where I am now and that in itself is enough." Ezra reassured the young girl.

Rey smiled softly at you and your husband before her eyes drifted to look outside and she smiled as she saw the sandstorm had finally passed. It was nearing night when you all decided to go to the Hutt's hideout. Just as Rey had said it wasn't the same as it was before. More of a shell of its former glory. As you neared the back entrance, you heard your son's voice.

"You know for a bunch of Hutt's your more of ass hats now you know." Kanan said snarkily.

"Shut up vermin!" One of the hutt's spoke.

"Oi, don't hurt him, we can offer em' up to the empire and they'll pay us a good sum of credits. Enough to bring back our glory." Another spoke.

"Hey, don't you know who i am? I'm Jabba the Hutt incarnate dickwipes!" Kanan mocked.

You looked at Ezra as you heard this. Of course your son would use this. Of course he just had to have your rage but his father's sense of humor and sarcasm. Ezra wasted no time unclipping his lightsaber from his belt and you pulling out your blasters. You instructed Rey to hide while you dealt with the problem. When you were sure that she wouldn't be spotted so easily, you and Ezra decided to barge in.

"Lay a hand on my son and You won't have a hand." Ezra said sassily.

You shot one of their men who tried to attack Ezra from behind.

"Try to attack my husband and I'll kriffing kill you." You said menacingly.

"Mom! Dad! Oh I'm so glad to see you." Kanan spoke.

You took one glance at him and your blood boiled. He was covered in bruises and cuts, some fresh, some old, and some just starting to heal. You immediately shot the creature that had his weapon pointed at your son. Ezra managed to disarm and knock out the rest. The remaining Hutt's left the vicinity to avoid death and that was considerably smart of them. Never mess with two angry parents. Ezra cut through the metal bindings that held Kanan down while you searched the area for any other slaves that they might have, but saw none.

"How'd you find me?" Kanan asked.

"Your brother was the one monitoring your ship's location, and he told us where he saw your ship's signal disappear." You spoke as you checked his injuries.

"That and I annoyed someone enough to let your brother tell us what happened." Ezra added.

"General Organa?" Kanan asked teasingly.

"Yup, your father managed to annoy general Organa enough. Again." You said.

You helped Kanan get up and supported his body weight as one of his legs was badly injured from the crash. Once leaving through the back door, Rey immediately arrived, her speeder and the one she lent Ezra already with her. Kanan rode In front of Ezra to ensure that he won't fall, while you rode with Rey. Kanan informed you that his ship has been stripped bare and already scrapped, but he managed to hide the information disc he stole. Kanan was upset since his ship was destroyed but glad to be able to return home. As you, Ezra, Rey and Kanan returned to Rey's home to rest before you return to D'Qar to get Kanan back and for you and Ezra to return to your home in Lothal.

"You're lucky to have parents like them." Rey said to Kanan, when she noticed you and Ezra were asleep.

"I know. My brother and I wanted them to retire from fighting since that's all they've known, but seeing them come save me, made me feel like I was a kid again." Kanan said softly.

"I wish I had parents like yours." Rey muttered.

"I'm sure whatever happened to them and why they gave you up, probably had some bigger meaning. Although I do acknowledge that my parents shouldn't have had the reason to come and save me, I am deeply appreciative that they did. I wasn't blessed to be force sensitive like my twin brother Ephraim, so I found other ways to be useful." Kanan spoke.

He looked at you and Ezra and smiled. Reminiscing his and his brother's childhood.

"Growing up, I looked up to both of them. They never told anybody else that when dad got back from Peridea, Mom ran away from him since she got so nervous. How dad still gets nightmares of his time in exile or how they had to lean on each other for support because they anchored each other to reality." Kanan smiled.

"To love someone enough to wait for a decade, not knowing if the other is alive, with another or worse, is dead. That kind of loyalty is something rare. I hope to find that one day." Kanan added.

Rey smiled softly at Kanan. She understood that. They were both startled though when they noticed that Ezra had been awake the entire time.

"You'll get there buddy. Mom and I are very proud of you. I mean, you didn't join the dark side, you didn't pull a second order 66 by murdering a bunch of padawans because your uncle decided to pull some kriffing dirt moves, so you're already better than a kid I know. Plus, your mom and I spent the better parts of our youth avoiding our feelings that if I didn't marry your mother I would have rather returned to Peridea myself." Ezra teased stroking your sleeping head gently.

"Now sleep you two. You did really well Rey, I'm proud of you too and I'm sure your parents wherever and whoever they may be, are as well. Good night kids." Ezra added, as he really did went to sleep.

As night turned to day and you were all packing your things, Rey saw you off as you boarded your ship, still you asked if she wanted to join, but she said no. Well she said maybe one day and you believed that this wasn't the last time you'll see her. Leaving her with some credits to feed herself for about a month as that's all you had with you. You all departed Tatooine and returned to where you all should be.

Rey never expected to meet you three or to understand things about you and Ezra but now she knew you two to be more than just saviours of the universe. You were first and foremost just good people who love their children very much.

-------------------------------------------

Note: holy smokes I did it! Also I might make a small drabble about Kanan and his twin Ephraim, and who knows I might make a lil doodle because I need copium while having no star wars content XD

Til next week! Bye bye

[girljeremystrong]

cat!!!! hi!!!! i want to get my non-reader friend into reading. he probs won't read anything over 150-200 pages so i'm trying to find an entertaining short book. all the short books i love are essays or philosophy or things i think he could like in time but would probably find dry at the start (especially cause he hasn't read anything recreationally for years). so im at a loss and wanted to know if u have any recs for short books that are page-turners/easy to read <3 hope ur having a good day beloved xo

hello my love <3

first of all sorry for replying late but i was sleeping and then i had to go to the BANK but anyway i have compiled a little list of books i loved that are under 200 pages. there are lots of classics that are shorter and i've included them even though i think some of those would be stuff that you or him might have already read!

contemporary fiction

open water by caleb azumah nelson: THIS IS SUCH A GREAT ONE that i can't imagine anyone not enjoying. truly. it's a love story between two black young british people but it's far from a tiktok romance novel. it explores themes of race and masculinity and vulnerability and it's soft but also very real and it's wonderful. honestly if i had to only recommend one it would be this!

small things like these by claire keegan: very good and quietly hopeful story of a man in a little irish town at christmas. everybody was talking about this book last year and with good reason, it's great.

whereabouts by jhumpa lahiri: the story of a woman in the town she lives in and how it can change in a year. this is an introspective one but jhumpa lahiri is a genius so it reads very easily and it's so wonderfully written.

interpreter of maladies by jhumpa lahiri: short stories, mainly dealing with indian characters in the US. they feel absolutely universal while teaching something about culture and belonging. won the pulitzer in 1999.

how not to drown in a glass of water by angie cruz: a woman narrates the story of her life to her counselor who's trying to find her a job. it's funny and hopeful and memorable. the author is so great (she wrote another one called dominicana that is a masterpiece although is longer!)

kim jiyoung, born 1982 by cho nam-joo: the story of a new mum living in korea that explores the estrangement of being a woman and having to give up so much. it's definitely more serious but it's written very well and it doesn't feel heavy at all.

swimming in the dark by tomasz jedrowski: this one is incredible. it's the story of a polish university student who falls in love with another man in the 1980s in an obviously very repressive society. so he's in love but he wants protest and he can't ignore the struggles and the disparity around him. it's very political but also lyrical and tender.

someone who will love you in all your damaged glory by raphael bob-waksberg: okay this breaks 200 pages at 256 pages long. but it's so good. everybody would love this. it's by the creator of bojack horseman if that can be an incentive somehow. it's a collection of stories that are so unconventional and bizarre in the most incredible way. they are funny stories and sweet and absurd and sad. i really loved reading this book.

infinite country by patricia engel: the story of a colombian family dealing with deportation. it's from the pov of elena who is the eldest daughter. it's a beautiful book that deals with very real struggles and it does it beautifully.

classics

recitatif by toni morrison: very short story (about 20 pages) but so clever and so well written of course. it's the story of two women who have known each other since they were children. they lose touch and then they reconnect when they're older. one of them is white and one of them is black, but the author never tells you which is which. so it's a great story about race.

the cossacks by leo tolstoy: the story of a man who loses his fortune and retires to a cossack village. it's very russian... but it's very well written and definitely explores some of the themes that tolstoy will then explore in war and peace like the purpose of life and war and his love of nature.

white nights by fyodor dostoevsky: again very russian. but less than 100 pages long! it's the story of a young man living in st petersburg who one day meets a girl and they become fast friends. they both feel like outcasts, so together they feel like they can belong. it is actually great.

giovanni's room by james baldwin: lots of baldwin's books (both his fiction and non-fiction) are short ones actually. this one is the story of a man in paris who, while waiting for his girlfriend to get there, falls in love with a man. it's an incredible story dense with love and passion and shame and it is wonderful.

the old man and the sea by hemingway: old man tries to catch big fish after not being able to catch any fish for a long time. but also so much more than that and nobody made me read this in school so i only read it at 25 and it blew me away. everybody told me it would be so sad but i think it's actually hopeful and a little bit it is a story about community? and it tells you that there's people waiting for you to come back.

of mice and men by steinbeck: again i read it in my mid twenties and loved it. it's a gut punch. it's about two men clinging together as laborers in california. it deals with what it means to feel powerless in a tyrant world.

franny and zooey by salinger: one of the best books ever i think. franny and zooey are brother and sister and they are two young people experiencing existential doubts. it's a book about family and about growing into adults and about the alienation that comes with that. salinger knows how to write young people in a crisis so well and how to make it engaging and entertaining.

having compiled this list i now see that my tastes definitely are oriented in a certain way but i hope at least one of these can work for your friend. i tried to include all the shorter books that i have read and loved and i think that generally anyone could enjoy them, but you never know!

hope you're having a great day too!!! mwah!!

[hyperionshipping]

Naddpod on mind but thinking of cr!Tricks. When he settled down it Caleb end of the campaign I think Tricks leans into retirement hard. Caleb says it suits him. Caleb never goes a day without knowing he's so very loved. I also think Tricks starts to teach the kids of wherever Caleb ended up how to play. Or Tricks just preforms. Preforms all the time in the square, inviting anyone and everyone to play, to make music, to tell a story. He likes when kids play though. Out of tune, out of tempo, voices cracking and missing every other note. It makes him smile, makes him feel so warm, reminds him of his party. Reminds him why he chose this. Why he's so thankful the Gentleman saw what he needed and let him go...