#OK UMM ... LONG TERM LIFE PLANS........

[twilightarcade]

OC-tober day 11 - hot cocoa palette!

[randomkposts]

How would an all-female take force be?

Umm wow! Either Death Note now takes place in Barbie- Land or L is getting a lot more shade for hiring only female officers for his task force. As regardless of how skilled they are, there's always going to be questions about the task force, and now there's going to be questions about if it really is the most skilled force for the job. 

Because unfortunately as a girl, people have this barrier of you first needing to prove you can do the job before they let you go do the job. Social progress has been made in the 20 years since Death Note was first written, but in Japan has different values then western, a big one being valuing the collective over the individual. 

For the collectivest to work, everyone has to value group cohesion and stick to the natural order of things over the individual needs the west favors. 

Anyone who is outside of that norm, is labeled troublesome, which leads to isolation and bullying, a problem which people of mixed heritage have enough of a problem with in Japan.  

So this many ladies becoming prominent figures in the police force and being born in the 1950'-70's is going to stand out. And they are probably a lot more cynical about their jobs, to say the least, and likely not as highly placed. 

If we are going for realism on this Soichiro is probably not Chief in this AU to say the least. And L is losing a lot of social credit for this decision, as this Kira case is not going anywhere fast to say the least. 

Here's a video from Lady Virgilla that talks (amongst other things) about Japanese culture and female leadership in the workforce (part 4 has statistics about females in the workforce)

At the same time, being on the task force is also a choice that all of them made in Canon, and I don't know if they would be willing to risk their jobs in the same way as females, given how much work it took them to get where they already are. The cost-sunk benefit would weigh a lot heavier here. 

I don't even know if all of them would want to stay on the task force if they were all female as I would imagine it would not do positive things to their jobs long term, particularly after the funding was discontinued, I imagine leaving would be a thing more of them took him up on. 

That said you guys are probably here for funner headcanons, and I plan to expand on this in the other Anon ask. May be yours, may not be, so stay tuned, and lets start.

So Mogi is kind of a Stoic, though he seems to get a kick out of messing with Yotsuba Kira.

E:-He probably regretting this after a week.

Mogi really is the best jk. 

K:-Hes also a good actor, and does a good job as Misas manager. 

E:-He needed a raise.

K:-What if we flip it for Female Mogi. 

Acts cheary and friendly around people she doesn't know, but get to know her and you find that she actually doesn't like talking all that much, preferring to spend her downtime quietly. 

Can fade in and out of a scene, stealing the spotlight and leaving like a ninja exiting stage right. 

Secretly likes quietly appearing behind people and startling them. 

I think Mrs. Ukita in this one is a little more cautious, which means Misa doesn't kill her as easily, having the investigation last longer.

E:-Not as hot headed. Still is reckless but instincts much higher.

Do Mello or Matt know how to cook?

I need to know how they even start off their business. Does Whammy prepare them for adult home ec life?

K:-I have no idea? I suppose that depends on what Whammies considers necessary orphan skills. Most in Japan don't, though that's more mostly there's more children than caretakers. 

I doubt L learned.

E:-"Cake is a nutrient. It has all the food groups necessary to function properly--"

"That's bullshit and you know it."

Lmao ok I have an idea. But also the idea of Matt and Mello having to do small gigs but influential enough to get their mafia gang appeals to me. 

K:-I don't know. I feel that Mello more got the job in part because A Kira had killed off the old boss and they needed someone less high profile. So they made a deal.

Honestly I don't even begin to pretend to have the background knowledge of crime to try to map out how Mello became a crime boss in 4-5 years, so I'm chalking it up to Kira, rule of cool, and Mello being good at psychology in spite of being impulsive as hell.

E:-Nah its fine. My brain wants to fill in the gaps. But also thinking about the fem versions of them. While I can see the same recklessness of a fem Mello, I can see some precautions she takes and more tough around the edges she has to be running a mafia group. 

Ohhh. MELLO AT HOT TOPIC!

K:- Eclipse, I think Mello would tell you true punks make it themselves not shop for it

E:-Very true. He has taste lets be real here

K:-I'm thinking about Honne and tatemae, and how the task force probably tried to take L out for work drinking so they could give honest opinions and show face with drinking as the reason for letting social barriers down to give him honest criticism, and L just said Nah, so they went and complained about L drunk. 

E:-Bwhwhahahha. Okay okay thats hilarious. Eyo flavor shots!!

I want them having fun for a bit since this is such a stressful case. 

K:-Maybe it would be fun, but actually it serves a social purpose l, such as maybe telling your boss that maybe his ideas are not working so well, or to tell people things you don't like about them, as expressing it publicly/at work would be a social faux pass, but expressing it "drunk" has an excuse, and as its a different setting you can all go back to work and put your "face" back on.

Well sort of. The article I read explains it better.

Emotional honesty. Terrible for the liver.

E:-True very true. Sometimes its an imbalance and most would rather have gone home than attend a mandatory drinking session. 

Hey new article popped up. Apparently Japanese citizens are having a lawsuit against Japanese police due to their racial profiling. 

So apparently due to the rise of foreign workers and those with obvious mixed race they do get stopped more and checked 'randomly'.

I still remember the podcast of Trash Tase about how when a officer came over checking their 'noise complaint' Conner and Joey didn't need to be checked too much when they answered the door.

But they mentioned Garnt as a Thai man and instantly the officer voice changed

Very little info but here is an article

Also I forgot until someone reminded me Light swallowed a piece of the death note paper he used. 

Or he played fucking mario kart with Ryuk.

K:- I forgot that too

E:-Light and video games give me a whiplash. Most time I feel like Light cane out of the womb with a sneer and a pocket protector. 

K:-He might have a god complex but he knows how to blend. Video games are blending. Besides, could you see Light having friends over and pulling out a deck of cards or something?

E:-I mean I can see him being decent at poker. Delinquents jk. 

K:-But gambling. From the top honors student *shocked gasp*

E:-Lmao top student my ass. He needs a bit of thrill once in a while. 

I mean surely making bombs doesn't come out of nowhere. 

K:- Who taught him that. I just want to talk. I need to ask. WHY! Why in the world would you teach Light Yagami how to make a bomb!

E:- Me thinking bruh he totally had some bad influence friends. I mean 'classmates"

I doubt his dad would let him see things. 

But Soichiro also seems to be the dad to go over safety things with his kids of what not to mix

You be surprised how many people die by mixing bleach and ammonia (spelled it wrong) together accidentally making homemade mustard gas. Or that tiktok trend of mixing cleaning supplies in a batch. 

And kids are curious. Light is smart enough on what chemicals can make a home made bomb. But I'm more concerned how he figured the trap. Or his lie about a diary.

That makes it even more suspicious Light. Makes me think u did illegal shit.

K:- Youtube wasn't exactly big those days. 

Seeing as how death note takes place in 2003. And youtube was 2005.

E:- Time travel jk. Then again chatrooms were a thing. 

K:- "hey all, how do I best trap my desk to keep people out of it. I need to know for reasons. Lol.

Aside from the Yagamis, Aizawa is probably the closest to Matsuda in the task force. 

Aizawa is kind of Sochiro's successor. In both Job and team dad energy, and I doubt that would change with gender.

In contrast to Sochiro whose family is used to her being away, Aizawa is in more conflict with her spouse then canon, and feels guilty about it. 

She's cooly polite to L, as L drives her absolutely nuts. And has a kind of tranquil furry building up towards her. An increasing air of "I'm done with your bullshit"

E:-Aizawa can be the voice of reason. And its amplified during times when the team needs to be grounded even if she doesn't like what L does. However Aizawa does show sympathy at times to L. 

Aizawa has that scary outburst when she has had enough and those types who are consistent about the details of why she's at this point. A strong duty of justice but also loyalty to Soichiro. 

K:-Do you think she should leave at the same point of when L pulls the money stunt. Or sooner, in part to be at least a better more present mother she feels her child needs her to be, while returning to a more scheduled time at the police force. 

Family means a lot to her, after all.

E:- really? Yes. Yes she would especially seeing she would still be the bread winner. 

Soichiro has just as much to stake one

K:-Yah, at one point Aizawa is having Martial troubles with his wife and comes in with a bruise. 

E:-However Light is with him. Sayu is almost an adult, and his household is a lot more solid as to Aizawa's newborn child and his wife. Where they have a less stable financial status in case he ever died. Or as L had said no longer funded.

Aizawa want to do good and to do justice. Regardless of their gender its something so Aizawa. But duty and family is what makes him head to the door but breakdown leaving his team behind. 

Oooh I forgot about that. Also Aizawa wanted to avenge his friends death too right.

K:- Yes. Though I think we averted or delayed that .

Wait doesn't he have a daughter too? Yumi?

E:-Wait what! Eyo i feel like we don't see much of their family. Did Matsuda have a dog or was I imagining that. I feel like fem Matsuda has a cat or some plants.

K:-I don't know if he would have time for a dog.But maybe he has an old dog he got from his friend. Can see a cat and some plants though. Does the cat get on with cat Misa?

E:-Matsuda does give rescue dog vibes. 

Ah yes the cat named Misa. Have made a cameo. I honestly thought of Matsuda genuinely contemplating getting a mask for her dog......in case Kira can kill dogs

"Why would Kira do that?"

"I dunno feels like they can."

K:- Bringing his cat to the office would mean he got to spend more time with said cat.And the plants would have a better watering schedule there too. 

In a nod to Australian Matsuda (KTPS4tv) i'm naming one of the pets Bikkie, (Biscuit)

E:-Hehehe. Matsuda moves her cat in and some plants in.

"Matsuda please remove your cat off of me."

"Awww thats sweet. She must really like you L."

"And I wanted to use the restroom for the past two hours."

Fem Matsuda gets a cat. She be lonely since she is single and has a very stressful job.

K:- name?

E:- Lets stay with Biscuit that sounds super cute.

K:-Does human Misa make an anti sugar comment?

E:-Lmao.  Probably hahaha

[santigarcia]

Bot 🤖

Human Touch Part One

a nathan bateman x f!reader fic~

word count: 3.3k

rating: T - nudity (non sexual), mentions of masturbation

summary: After a wrong turn on a hike, you find yourself on Nathan’s property and joining him for dinner. 

a/n: ahhh this is part 1 of 10 of this series! i cannot wait to share it all with you!! remember these will be posted at 9 CST. check here for the schedule so you won’t miss one!! thank you to @punkpascal for encouraging this and listening to me yell nonstop! and thank you to @sergeantkane for your support and for making the moodboards for this series!! 

You only agree to this because of the view. Not for any other reasons. No. No. Certainly not.

Your cousin owns a timeshare in Norway for her work. And she invites you to come up for a few weeks. You’re in desperate need to get out. She won’t even be there half the time, which is even better. You love your cousin but you’re ready for some quiet. Some space. The fresh air. And you’ve seen photographs, the mountains outside her door look beautiful.

Those are enough reasons for anyone to go.

But it’s when you find out who her ‘neighbor’ is that has you chomping at the bit to go.

The term neighbor is a loose term, the neighbor in question lives two hours in a different direction. It’s a secluded private area. But it still gives you some strange hope you might see him.

“I’ve only seen him once,” you remember your cousin telling you. She wasn’t that impressed, but you – you’re dying to see him.

Nathan Bateman, the multi-billionaire CEO, and creator of Bluebook. He’s a celebrity crush of yours. Half the reason you have a Bluebook phone in your pocket is because of him.

There’s something about him. You’ve followed his career quietly, but more than anything you think he’s handsome. Gorgeous even.

He’s a hot topic for gossip since he remains in seclusion, working on his mysterious projects. To be that close to him sends a thrill down your spine. And he’s all you can think about on the plane ride over.

Your cousin picks you up at the airport and you spend the next few days hanging out with her and relaxing. She leaves on the third day and you spend most of it reading that book you’ve been meaning to finish.

As you sit near the window, you can’t help but admire the mountains. The lush greens of the field at the foot of it, the rich white snow. The crisp air feels good to you, even if it gives you chills.

You decide that you want to go hiking. Your cousin mentioned there are several easy trails and you think you can figure them out.

You get to packing that night. You shove your backpack with things you think you’ll need. You don’t plan on being gone long, so just some essentials for the hike.

The next morning is a lovely one, that mountain air is crisp, and it fills your lungs. You feel rejuvenated. The trails are easy to follow and you walk for hours. You stop to rest every so often and keep hydrated and eat.

You have every intention of turning back when it begins to rain. Hard. Within minutes you’re soaked to the bone. It’s freezing and if you don’t get warm you worry you’ll get sick. You try not to panic, but the rain is coming down so hard you can’t see the trail.

Somehow you take a turn and find yourself going down a decline. Maybe you’re near the trails edge.

The rain continues to pour, but through it you see lights of what looks like a house. Shivering, you make the long walk to this place. It’s your port in the storm.

It’s not your cousin’s house, and you don’t remember seeing this one on the way in. You bang loudly on the front door, hoping someone will hear you over the rain. The house looks huge.

“Hello?” you bang on the door; you feel tears welling up in your eyes. You’re so cold. “Is anyone home?”

After a few moments, the door is opened. And you’re not sure who is more surprised. You or the one and only Nathan Bateman standing across from you.

“It’s you,” you gasp, shivering violently from the cold. “Nathan!”

He blinks, his eyebrow ticks up in bewilderment.

“How the hell did you even get out here? Are you okay? Yeah, come in. Shit, you’re freezing. Umm… yeah. That’s me.”

He opens the door wider so you can come inside. The warmth hits you like a wave, and it almost hurts. You haven’t stopped shaking. And now you’re trembling for any entirely different reason.

“I was hiking, and it started raining and I got lost and…” your teeth are chattering. And Nathan looks confused but concerned.

“This is a hell of a way to get introduced, but-“ he pauses for a beat. “We need to get you out of those clothes. You’re gonna get sick.”

You follow him in this maze of a house, and he takes you to a large open bathroom. He turns on the shower and you take a step towards it, but he stops you.

“This is for the steam, you need to get warm slower, you’ll go into shock.”

You’ve heard about this, and you know he’s right. One of the best ways to prevent hypothermia is warming the body through skin to skin contact and body heat.

“Look, shit, I know this isn’t ideal,” he snorts, “but you need to get naked. I won’t look.” He smiles softly and you feel sick. Maybe it’s the hypothermia.

You turn your back to him and begin to awkwardly peel off your clothes. You’ve never felt so embarrassed in your life. He’s turned the opposite direction and isn’t saying anything. You almost wish he would.

“Ok,” you tell him. You’ve turned back around with your arms covering your chest. He’s taken off his shirt, and he’s quick to wrap you up tight in his arms before you can think too much.

His bare chest is warm. His arms squeeze you tight and he rubs your back. His beard tickles your ear, and you feel all of him all at once. It’s making your head spin. Is this? Is this how you’re meeting him?

“I’m Nathan,” he chuckles softly, “but it seems you already knew that.”

You tell him your name, and he chuckles again. “Interesting meeting huh? Story to tell the grandkids.”

That gets a soft laugh from you, and you can feel him physically relax. The awkward tension has been cut.

“You’re feeling warmer now, less shivering.” He states this as if you don’t know, but it’s impossible not to shudder while naked in his arms. He seems to pick up on this, because of the look he gives you when your bodies pull apart. “You okay?” he looks at you, his eyebrow up again.

Tears well up in your eyes and you can see a look of slight panic cross his face.

“No,” he whispers, “No, hey sweetheart, it’s ok. No need to be embarrassed ok? Do you need me to call someone for you?”

“There’s no one to call,” you sniffle out. “I’m staying with my cousin at her place, but she’s out of town.”

“Do you- you wanna stay here tonight? Get warm? We can figure out shit tomorrow.”

“I’m not an inconvenience, am I?”

“Not even a little. You’re the first person I’ve seen in… months. And… it’s way too cold out there. You’re safer here. Just as long as you’re not a serial killer or somethin’… you can stay.” He gives you a little smile, and hands you a towel to wrap yourself in.

”Definitely not a serial killer. I killed a spider last week and I screamed.”

He chuckles while he dries off his chest and pulls his Henley back on.

“Is it just you in this house?” you ask trying to keep the subject off your nudity.

“Yeah, just me. It’s… yeah, it’s a little lonely. But it’s the ideal working environment. No distractions. No noise. But sometimes, it’s too quiet. Listen, hey we can talk later. You should get in the shower, get warmed up ok? Don’t turn the water up too hot alright? I’ll have my housekeeper set aside some dry clothes for you.”

He exits quietly closing the door behind you with a soft click. Once he’s gone, you drop the towel and step into the warm spray of the nicest shower you’ve ever seen.

You try to process what just happened, and you decide this must be a sign or a dream.

At one point there’s a soft knock on the door and you briefly see a woman set a stack of clothes on the counter. She exits as quickly as she arrived.

You wonder why he’d said he’d not seen another person in months when there she was.

After you dry off, you reach for the stack of dry clothes which you assume are his. There’s a soft pair of sweatpants and a warm Henley that looks like the one he was wearing. They smell fresh and clean, and you pull them on eager to not be naked in this house anymore.

You step out of the bathroom and no sooner do you step foot into the hall do you see his face.

“You don’t have any kind of electronic device on you, do you? Like your phone? Just until you leave, for security purposes. It’s just a precaution.”

“You scared me!” you laugh and touch your chest. “And I do, in my backpack. Which I don’t remember where-“

“It’s in the dining room, I’ll show you.”

Once again you follow Nathan through this maze. Your backpack is sitting on the table just as he said. The fabric is soaked, and you have little hope anything is dry on the inside. There’s a neatly folded towel next to the backpack and you spread it out to take out the contents of said pack.

Your phone is in there, and it looks dead. Soaked from the water.

“I can fix that,” he tells you and extends his hand for the phone. You hand it to him, and he pockets it.

After your phone is out, you dump the backpack onto the towel and all your stuff spills out. A clean shirt, a small first aid kit, a phone charger (just in case), and to your horror – a forgotten vibrator that had been stuffed in the bottom of your pack.

You look up at him with fear in your eyes, but he’s got that eyebrow up again.

“Carrying the essentials huh?”

“I-“

“I have so many questions about why you’re hiking with a vibrator, but you look way too embarrassed to answer them honestly. You can keep that for yourself.”

You quickly shove it and the rest of your things back into your soaked backpack.

“So, you’re just… in the middle of the wilderness, alone, with a phone and a vibrator. And no one to call. And you’re sure you’re not a serial killer?” he winks playfully.

“I swear I forgot that was in there!”

“Hey, sorry. I am the last person who’s gonna judge you for somethin’ like that. And you’re not the only person here with a vibrator,” he winks again.

“You sure you’re not a serial killer?” you flush.

“Would it make a difference if I said no?” he can’t help the grin on his face. “Kyoko, my housekeeper, is done with dinner. Would you like to eat with me?” He picks up the damp towel from the table.

“That would be nice, thank you. You’re a good host.”

“I’ll admit, I don’t get a lot of visitors. Or… any visitors, really. But against my better judgement, I’m not gonna let you freeze to death outside. And you seem… relatively harmless,” he smiles again fiddling with the towel in his hands.

The woman you saw earlier sets plates of food down on the table, and Nathan hands her the towel.

“This looks amazing, I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling better. You kinda looked like a wet cat when you got here. No offense,” he bites his lip and glances over at you.

“None taken,” you laugh.

“Do you drink?” he glances at you when he sees you reach for an empty glass.

“I’m not much of a drinker, but I like the occasional wine!”

He chuckles fondly, “We can definitely do wine. I have a Chateau Lafite 1787 and a Cheval Blanc 1947 that are begging to be opened. And… from the look on your face, you have no clue what that means. Kyoko, grab the Cheval.”

“I admit I don’t know! But I can tell you do. You seem to know a lot about a lot of things. Including saving someone from hypothermia,” you almost grimace at the memory.

”That’s why they pay me the big bucks,” he chuckles taking a generous sip of his freshly poured wine. “Damn… this is the good shit.”

You watch him drink and it’s beginning to hit you. This is really him; this is the Nathan that you have his social media accounts on notifications. This is the Nathan that you’ve watched random tech videos you have no interest in but wanted to hear his voice. And now you’re sitting across from him, at his table, watching him drink wine.

“You definitely seem to enjoy the finer things in life, don’t you? And yes, this is good, especially with the meal. I’m not used to this much luxury. I feel like I don’t belong here,” you bite your lip. He’s a genius. Famous and sexy as hell and you’re just-

“Well, you get used to a certain way of living when you’re… me,” he chuckles.

“This wine probably costs more than I make in a month,” you laugh taking another sip. “I don’t know what I’d do if I even had a million dollars.”

“Done.”

“Pardon?”

“I can wire your bank tomorrow.”

“Wait, you can’t be serious.”

“As a heart attack,” he shrugs. “Pocket change. Consider it a get well soon present. So, what’s home like for you?” He changes the subject so abruptly, but you go along with it, but it’s hard to keep up.

Suddenly you feel like spilling your whole life out to this man. That you’re stuck. You live at home because you can’t make ends meet and nothing seems to stick. You’re looking for something, but you don’t know what it is.

“I live in a small town. It’s cozy. Simple. But sometimes it feels too small. That’s why I wanted to get away. See something new. I realize how I’ve not experienced much in my life. I want excitement. I want- well I want to move away. That’s what I want.”

He takes another sip of his wine and you can’t help but stare at his delicious beard.

“I specialize in exciting, honey. You stumbled into the right place,” he grins, another soft chuckle escapes his lips.

“I think I did, though it sounds like you know something I don’t know.”

His brow raises as he smirks devilishly, “there’s a lot you don’t know, kitten. There’s a lot I can show you. I didn’t come out here just to be alone.”

Your stomach drops and you feel your face heat. He’s called you two pet names back-to-back. His eyes are fixed on you, watching every move on your face. He’s calculating, tucking everything away into his memory.

“K-kitten?” you find your words, but you sputter on your wine. “Did you just call me kitten?”

His smirk only seems to grow. The confidence is oozing out of him and it’s thick in the air.

“You liked that, didn’t you? Your pupils are dilated.” He causally sips his wine as if he didn’t just ruin your whole life with a short sentence.

He’s rendered you speechless, the very air in your lungs is gone. And there’s a feeling low in your belly. A pang of arousal and need and thrill hits you all at once.

“I-“ your words are lost again, but he speaks up for you.

“Look, kitten,” he punctuates the word, he’s teasing you now. “You obviously did. Can we just skip to the part where we have the conversation?”

“The conversation?”

“Y’know. The one where I tell you I’m not just interested in you because you’re the first person that’s come around here, like… ever, but because you’re beautiful and interesting and genuinely fun to be around. And that you need to make the first move if you want this as much as I do because I’m not some rich asshole who’s trying to take advantage of the fact that you’re completely vulnerable right now. That conversation.” He sips his wine again, and you feel like you might pass out or jump across the table into his lap. You’re too frozen to do either.

“You think I’m beautiful?”

“Honey,” he sighs setting down his wine glass and folding his hands together resting his elbows on the table. “I don’t mince words. And let me put it to you clearly. You’re exactly my fuckin’ type.”

“Is this really happening?”

“Only if you want it to baby. But I’m as real as it gets. And I couldn’t have made a more perfect woman if I tried, and I have.” He mumbles the last part into his wine glass, it’s so quiet you almost don’t hear it.

“Look Nathan, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m in love with you.”

Both his eyebrows raise in question and a smile grin spreads across his face.

“No, I mean,” you bury your face in your hands, “I mean I have a crush on you, you’re kind of… my celebrity crush,” you wince a little and peek out from behind your hands. “My cousin really does own a timeshare and I really did want to get away, but I came because I thought you would be nearby. I didn’t actually think I’d be having dinner with you after you saw me naked.”

“So, that explains the vibrator then,” he scratches his chin, pretending he’s lost in thought. He’s messing with you but when he sees your obvious distress he leans back in his chair. You think he’s about to apologize when you get up and walk down the hall and pick a random room that’s open.

You sit down on a couch and look up to see a Jackson Pollack painting on the wall. Lights are angled at it, it’s the focal point of the room.

A few moments later you hear a soft knock on the doorframe.

Nathan walks in and leans against the desk under the painting, he’s facing you. His arms are crossed, but he doesn’t look angry.

“Look, I wanna talk to you about earlier. I know I come on….strong. And it’s a shitty excuse but you’re the first real woman I’ve seen in months that isn’t my housekeeper and what I said before about you being my type? Shit. I scared you, didn’t I?”

“It’s just overwhelming,” you flush. “My celeb crush saw me naked today and wants to have sex with me. Not to mention you offered me a MILLION dollars without batting an eye!”

“Okay, okay. How can I put you at ease about this? We obviously have a connection. And you might as well stay until I can fix your phone.”

“What about the money?”

“I could put you to work. I’m writing a thesis. And I need to make sure it’s readable to someone who may not understand all this,” he moves his hands around in the air.

“Is that worth a million dollars?”

“It would be to me; I need help on this.”

“Okay,” you nod. “I’ll do it.”

“Really?” he smiles, he seems so excited. “Great. I’ll take you to a room you can stay in. Let me give you a tour of the place.”

Your tour ends with the bedroom. He tells you goodnight and disappears down the hall. You shimmy out of the sweatpants but leave on the Henley and slide into the bed. The sheets are soft, silky. There’s a thick warm blanket on top and you snuggle deep under the covers.

You’re thinking about your day, what a crazy day it’s been. You try not to linger on the naked part, but you think more about his skin. The warmth. The touch of his beard. His obvious desire for you at dinner. You wonder what he’s doing right now. You wonder if he’s thinking about you as much as you are thinking about him. Maybe you have some charge left in the vibrator….

// 

if this looks familiar....it’s because w/ permission from @sergeantkane, i wrote a fic based on my thread w/ her on @thatortheschlong!! 

// 

next part will come on thursday feb 18th!

// 

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[obeyme-kaidii-writes]

Remember

Mammon x gn!MC

Words - 3238

Content warnings - lots of angst, MAJOR SPOILER WARNING, post Lesson 16, platonic relationships

Prompt/Inspiration - none 

Summary - After the situation with Belphegor is resolved, you struggle to come to terms with your changing relationships with the brothers.

AO3

Things rarely turn out as you plan them.

And this time was no exception. As soon as Belphegor offered you that hug, you knew something was wrong. That smile just didn’t look...right. Perhaps you should have tried to run, but judging by what happened with your body in the alternate reality, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference.

When you had finally left the attic, after being revived by the last of Lilith’s power, the sight that greeted you was like something out of a horror movie. So much blood everywhere. And in the middle of it all sat Mammon, clutching your body to himself, begging you not to leave. Even though you knew Barbatos had told you that you must not interfere, you couldn’t just stand by and watch Mammon fall to pieces when you were right there, just a few yards away.

So you took a step forward.

Levi was the first to notice you, and everyone else turned to face you soon after. There was so much confusion in their eyes, but also hope. Hope that maybe you were in fact alive. Just as you were about to run to Mammon, Belphegor moved to attack you again. But after a few moments of panic, you were finally able to explain what happened to their sister and why there appeared to be two of you.

You were so happy to be reunited with everyone, to be alive, you didn’t think much of your new relationship to them at first. It hadn’t entered your mind that anything would actually change. As you talked with Belphegor, you relaxed even more, learning that he did in fact value your companionship and what you had done for him. Which is also, as he explained, part of why he reacted as he had - he knew just how enamored everyone was with you, and blamed you for leading them down the same path as Lilith. But once he had learned that Lilith was still able to live a happy life, he was able to begin to deal with his grief, and could finally fully appreciate you.

As the evening wore on however, you started to become uncomfortable. Not with Belphie though, his behavior you at least understood, in a sense. But with the attention and doting that everyone else was lavishing on you. Everyone had always been nice to you before, but this was beyond that. And when Lord Diavolo made some comment in passing about how everyone must be happy about getting to do all the things with you that they had wanted to do with Lilith, a sick feeling crept into your stomach, making it churn. You tried to convince yourself you were overreacting. They loved you. You loved them. They were just glad you weren’t dead. But the feeling of unease wouldn’t go away.

————

The following morning, you woke up drenched in sweat. You had a nightmare. And not just any nightmare. A very vivid nightmare about how Belphegor had killed you. And not only did you remember the first time in the attic, but for reasons you did not understand, you also remembered the death you had suffered in the alternate reality. You could feel his claws around your throat. How your ribs stabbed further into your lungs every time you tried to take a breath. The blood pouring from the wound in your abdomen. Everything. Every little thing, in excruciating detail.

Your first thought was to run right to Mammon. He was your closest friend, after all. And you frequently helped him out when he had nightmares of his own. But something made you hesitate and you decided instead to just take a quick bath, and head down to breakfast. Maybe you could talk to him after school, you thought. That would also give you an opportunity to check on him too, since you hadn’t had a chance yet to speak to him about the events of the previous evening.

After classes ended, you quickly headed to your meeting spot to wait for Mammon. He was all smiles when he saw you, and you beamed at him in return. The walk back to the House of Lamentation was a peaceful one, as the two of you chatted about your day. You were surprised at just how normal it all felt. Like yesterday had never happened. But it did happen, and every time you closed your eyes all you could see was the blood coated hall, and you knew you needed to talk about it.

“So Mammon...how are you doing?”

“Good, why?”

“Oh, I was just...well...I was worried about you. After yesterday, I mean…”

“Oh. Well, I’m good. You’re here, so it doesn’t matter ya know? Everything worked out,” he answered, flashing you a brilliant smile.

“Umm, yeah, right. That makes sense.”

It didn’t really make sense to you though. Not after that nightmare you had. But it seemed Mammon wasn’t having any nightmares at least, so that was good wasn’t it?

However, you couldn’t help but feel a little...rejected? One of the reasons you had wanted to talk to him about how you were feeling, was because you had assumed he would be struggling in a similar way. He was the one you were closest with, and he was the one you had seen holding your body, after all. Was what happened just not that big of a deal to him? Or maybe things like this just weren’t something demons got upset over?

“Whattabout you?”

“Hmm? Oh. Good, no problems here,” you smiled back at him. It was all you could do really. It just didn’t feel right bringing up those things when he was doing well. Especially since you knew how happy he was to find out the truth about Lilith and your bloodline. You couldn’t bring yourself to taint that happiness. He had suffered for long enough already, he deserved a little peace.

————

And so your days continued to pass in a similar way - go to school, walk home, go to bed, have a nightmare - until it had been a week already.

And by the end of the week, you were exhausted.

As you had spent time with each of the brothers, helping them get over their awkwardness with Belphegor, one thing had become abundantly clear to you: none of them seemed at all upset by what he had done to you.

You couldn’t really say why that bothered you so much. You had already forgiven Belphie, and had spent most of the week in his company. So it shouldn’t be a big deal if his brothers also forgave him, right?

Still, you found yourself flinching every time someone hugged you, or tried to hold your hand. When they’d offer you a snack or invite you somewhere, you just instinctually wanted to run away. To yell at them for ever thinking that you would be interested. And every time you had to fight back those urges you felt more and more guilty. They just wanted to show you they cared, didn’t they? Why couldn’t you just be happy?

When you got home from school that day, you immediately collapsed on your bed. Ever since the first nightmare, you had been having trouble falling asleep. And even after you managed to go to sleep, once you woke up from your nightmares, regardless of the time it was, you couldn’t go back to sleep. Sometimes you would think of going to climb into Mammon’s bed or see what Levi was up to, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to do it. You didn’t want to have to explain why you were up at weird hours of the night.

But now that you were laying in bed once again, it didn’t take long before exhaustion claimed you and pulled you into a deep sleep.

————

You were at the dining room table, eating breakfast when Beel entered.

“Good morning, Lilith.”

“It’s me Beel. I’m not Lilith.”

He looked at you, slightly puzzled.

“Um, ok? If you say so.”

And then he continued to his seat, and began eating his breakfast.

Lucifer entered next. He walked right over to you, and kissed you on the top of your head.

“Good morning, Lilith.”

“I’m not Lilith.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Lucifer smirked at you. It was like he thought you were playing a game.

Mammon was the next to join you.

“‘Morning Lilith!”

He walked right up to you and hugged you in your seat.

“I’m not Lilith!”

“Of course ya are. I know my sister.”

He then ruffled your hair and took a seat next to you.

“But I’m not Lilith. I’m MC.”

“Huh?”

“MC! Your best friend!”

“Oh is this a new game you and Belphie are playin’?”

“No!!”

Mammon laughed at your reaction.

No, not your reaction. The reaction of his cute little sister.

‘You’ weren’t there. ‘You’ didn’t exist. It was just Lilith. And no one missed you. No one remembered you. Only Lilith.

————

“AHHHHHH!”

You woke up in a cold sweat, screaming, though you couldn’t remember why. You had been having breakfast. And then…

And then…

Lilith.

Suddenly everything made sense to you. Why you flinched when someone touched you. Why you wanted to slap their hands away when they offered you food. Why you wanted to scream at them when they invited you somewhere.

They weren’t inviting you, they were inviting Lilith.  

Or Lilith’s descendant. Though you supposed it didn’t really matter. All that mattered was that you were not part of the equation. You had died, and no one mourned your death. As soon as your identity had been revealed, it was like nothing else had ever happened. No one cared that Belphegor killed you. It was all okay...because they got Lilith back.

As the realization hit you, so did the flood of tears, and the uncontrollable sobs. Or maybe calling it wailing would be more accurate? Whatever it was, it brought Mammon to your room, in a panic.

“What the hell?! Are you okay?!”

Mammon was at your side in an instant, but seeing him there only made you cry harder. A reminder that you were gone. That he didn’t miss you. That your death was an acceptable thing, because he got Lilith back.

Not knowing what else to do, Mammon sat beside you in your bed, wrapping his arms around you as he cradled you to his chest. You wanted to resist. You wanted to push him away. But you were just too weak. Too exhausted to fight back. So you let him hold you, and comb his fingers through your hair, as he rocked you gently and tried to comfort you.

Eventually you were able to sit up on your own, even though your tears were still streaming down your face. Your chest was still unbearably tight, but at least you could breathe now. And even though your throat still ached, you could once again talk.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled, wiping at your eyes, trying to clean off whatever tears you could.

“It’s nothin’...but what happened?” Mammon loosened his grip on you a little, allowing you to sit up some more and put some space between you.

“Just a nightmare. No big deal,” you tried to laugh it off. But he wasn’t buying it.

“Ya know, you’ve been actin’ kinda weird all week. Are ya sure you’re ok?”

“Yep. Just fine. Probably could use some sleep, but that’s it,” you smiled at him.

“C’mon you can’t expect me to believe that. You can’t even get ya-self to stop cryin’!”

“Oh…”

He was right. The fact that even now your tears wouldn’t stop was a pretty clear indicator that something was wrong. But you couldn’t tell him. You couldn’t tell anyone.

“It’s fine. I’ll be ok. Just need a minute,” you said, trying to deflect.

“It ain’t fine. C’mon, talk to me, please. You’re…”

“...I’m not Lilith…”

“Huh?” Mammon looked at you, as you sat next to him, keeping your head down. His arm was still wrapped around you, so he squeezed your shoulder in what he hoped would be a gesture of reassurance.

“...I’m not...not her...I’m not Lilith…”

“Well yeah, I know that.”

“...but do you? Really?”

“Look you really ain’t makin’ a lot of sense right now. I want to help...but I don’t know what ya want me to do,” Mammon was grasping at straws here, desperate to figure out what had you so upset, and why you were saying these things.

“I remember….”

“Remember?”

“When I died. I remembered. Not just in the attic. But…”

“Wh…? How?”

“I dunno...I just do. I see it in my dreams. I can’t sleep.”

Mammon had started rubbing your arm now, gently, encouraging you to keep going.

“I remember. But no one else does. I died. But no one cared. They got Lilith back. And what about me? What about where I belong? It’s all gone. I’m still dead. And you have Lilith. And no one...no one cares…”

Your tears had started to fall heavily again, the pain in your chest worsening. You tried to rub it away with your hand, but it didn’t bring you any relief. Why couldn’t the pain just stop? It seemed like you had been in pain from the moment you finally opened the attic door. And it felt like nothing would ever make it end.

Suddenly you felt Mammon’s arms around you, and you were wrapped in a near bone crushing hug. You gasped in surprise, but he didn’t let go. He just buried his face further into the crook of your neck. As you sat there, stunned, you started to feel dampness on your shirt and skin.

Was he...crying? Why would he be crying? Did you do this? You had been so careful not to mention any of this, and then suddenly it had just come rushing out all at once and you couldn’t stop it. And now Mammon was hurt.

“... I remember...I remember…” he choked out in between sobs. He was trying hard to keep himself together, but it was a losing battle. Every time he tried to speak, another memory would replay in his mind. And every time he closed his eyes, he could see your lifeless body. All he could do now to stop from coming undone completely was to hold you close and feel your warmth against him.

“You...remember? But...I...you said…”

“No. Listen. Listen to me,” Mammon said, letting you go and sitting up, taking your face gently in his hands, “I remember. I could never forget. I didn’t want ya to worry. So I didn’t say. But I...I remember.”

“You..remember?”

“I remember.”

Without any further hesitation, you wrapped your arms around Mammon’s neck as he pulled you into his lap and hugged you tightly to himself. It was impossible to tell who was crying more at this point. In between sobs, the only other sound that could be heard was Mammon repeating “I remember” over and over again.

You had been feeling so incredibly lonely. And in one single moment, Mammon had managed to change all that. Even if no one else grieved for you. Even if no one else missed you. He did. You couldn’t put into words how much that meant to you, all you could do was hold him tighter and tighter. Trying with all your might to make sure he would never leave you again.

And Mammon? He had been feeling much the same as you. When he saw you trying so hard to act normal, he didn’t have the heart to burden you with his troubles. Why should he be the one to stir up bad memories for you? It was bad enough he had to deal with these things, that his sleep was a restless one, plagued with nightmares, you didn’t need to suffer too. If you were strong enough to get through this, then he should be able to manage it easily.

But now, he could see just how foolish that was. You hadn’t been alright at all. In fact, you were the furthest thing from alright. As far as you knew, no one missed you and only saw you as some sort of sister replacement. And if he had just told you, even a little, just said “I’m glad you’re ok,” all of this could have been avoided. You wouldn’t be crying so hard in his arms. You wouldn’t be struggling to breathe. No, you would be happy. You would be smiling. But because he didn’t want to appear weak , he had brought you so much unnecessary suffering.

————

Neither of you knew when you had fallen asleep exactly, but by the time you had woken up, it was late into the night. Not wanting to disturb Mammon, you opted to continue laying curled up next to his side, with your head resting on his chest. The sound of his breathing was so soothing to you. You had missed this.

It occurred to you as you snuggled closer to him, that you had woken up naturally. For the first time in a week, your dreams had been peaceful ones. And you attributed this change to the fact that Mammon was now by your side and you no longer felt alone and forgotten. You were safe here, with him.

“You ok?” he asked.

“Oh sorry. Did I wake you?”

“Nah, just checkin’ on ya.”

“I’m good actually. No nightmares,” you replied, looking up, smiling at him the first genuine smile you had had in days.

“Me too,” he pulled you closer with the arm that was around your shoulders so that he could kiss your forehead, making you smile even more.

“Guess we just aren’t any good on our own, huh?”

“Yeah, maybe,” he laughed.

After a moment of silence, he continued, “Umm. There’s somethin’ I feel like I gotta say,” you tried to sit up so you could look at him, but he held you in place and pulled you closer instead, “Nah, just stay like that. I don’t wantcha lookin’ at me.

So...umm...I feel like you should know that you aren’t a replacement ta me. I mean, I loved my sister. And losin’ her was hard. But...when I thought I lost you? That was...that was the most painful experience of my life. Worse than the Fall. Worse than all of it,” Mammon’s grip tightened around you, pulling you even closer than before, “I can’t lose ya again.”

You listened carefully as Mammon opened up to you. With each word he whispered to you, another knot of anxiety untangled itself from within your chest. The two of you had misunderstood each other so badly. And in trying to protect the other, had only caused one another more pain.

“I don’t want to lose you either,” you said, giving him a squeeze with the arm around his chest. Just spending a week without him was bad enough, you didn’t want to think about what things would be like if he was ever truly gone .

Mammon smiled as he felt you cling to him. He loved that feeling. Of being wanted, needed . He always felt that way around you, you made sure of it. And he didn’t think he could live without it at this point.

“Don’t worry. I ain’t goin’ anywhere.”

[five-rivers]

Adoption (part 2)

A gift for @a-flower-lover!  This wound up being more along the lines of vignettes...  Little snapshots into Danny’s life after being adopted by Clockwork.  I hope that’s ok!  (PART 1)

.

Mr. Lancer had met Charles Worth before, albeit briefly. The man had fostered a number of Casper High students and with that responsibility came parent-teacher conferences. He had struck Mr. Lancer as being steady and reliable, if, perhaps, impersonal, despite his predilection for clocks and ominous announcements. A decent foster parent, if not... ideal.

Mr. Worth just didn't seem to connect with his fosters, although he certainly didn't neglect them. Then, too, were the persistent rumors that his home was haunted.

Alright. So, Mr. Lancer didn't think Charles Worth was really a children person. Oh, he was a good person! It took one to do well as a foster parent, but... yeah.

Which was why the scene in front of him surprised him so much. Not the who of it, but the what.

The who was Daniel Fenton and Charles Worth waiting outside the office. The what was smiling and having a conversation. True, Mr. Fenton's smile looked like it was pasted on over several layers of anxiety, but it was genuine.

"Mr. Worth, Mr. Fenton?" he said, tamping down his surprise. "Come on in."

"Hi," said Mr. Fenton, his voice hoarse.

Mr. Worth smiled and nodded, pushing him up with his cane.

But Mr. Fenton must have noticed the curious look Mr. Lancer was giving him. "I knew Cl- Uh. Mr. Worth before this." He winced and smiled widely to cover it up. "So, uh, make up work? Since I missed the past week?"

"Yes, well, circumstances being what they are," aka his parents trying to murder him in public, in broad daylight (and didn't that give Mr. Lancer a chill?), "your teachers have put together a few packets for you to look over this weekend. They should get you more or less up to speed with where your classes are. I'm also willing to stay after school, to help you with anything you've missed in my classes."

.

Jazz knocked on the door of the Worth house. She had been made aware, via various supernatural (she did not particularly appreciate writing suddenly appearing on her fogged-up bathroom mirror) and mundane (Danny did have her phone number) means, that the man known as Charles Worth was actually the ghost known as Clockwork.

How this had occurred was not entirely clear to her. She assumed ghost powers, specifically time travel, were involved somehow.

But, to be honest, that didn't really matter to her. It was secondary, less than.

What was important here was that she hadn't been legally allowed to see her little brother in over a month. To keep her parents from contacting him. To keep her from letting her parents near him. Because they were legally barred from seeing him.

Because they had tried to kill him.

Jazz planned on never seeing her parents again, as soon as she got all of her and Danny's things from their house.

But now that prohibition had been lifted, because Clockwork had forced through what had to be the speediest adoption in the history of adoptions, and Danny was now legally his son. In the eyes of both humans and ghosts. Which was... Well. Danny seemed to be excited about it, anyway. He'd looked up to Clockwork for a while, from what he told Jazz.

Internally, Jazz had more than a bit of trepidation. She didn't know what adoption meant to ghosts, didn't have any context for it. And ghosts, even the good ones, even Danny, tended to be... obsessive. Extreme. She wasn't sure how that would translate when it came to interpersonal relationships.

The door creaked open, ever so slowly, the squeak it made grating on her eardrums. At first, it appeared to have opened on its own, then a hand gripped the edge of the door, and Clockwork, in human guise, leaned out from behind it.

Jazz raised an eyebrow.

Clockwork raised one right back. "This house is haunted, you know," he said.

Okay, never mind. The only thing she had to worry about was the fact that her brother and his mentor both had terrible senses of humor.

"Hi, Jazz!"

Being used to having a half-ghost brother, Jazz only yelped a little bit at his unexpected appearance behind her. Then she sighed and ruffled his hair. He hugged her and then bounced over the lintel into the house.

"Come on! I want to show you my room! It's so cool!" His voice became fainter as he went farther into the house, until his last exclamation was an eerie whisper.

Jazz looked at Clockwork as she stepped inside. "Is he doing that on purpose?"

Clockwork smiled blandly. "I am very fond of the acoustics in this house."

She looked at her surroundings with a skeptical eye. "It seems... dark in here."

"We are ghosts," said Clockwork. "Daniel is very excited to show you his room, by the way."

"He's human, too, don't forget," said Jazz.

"I won't."

.

The house was creepy.

Really creepy.

This was coming from someone who had spent most of her life living under the same roof as two ghost-obsessed mad scientists.

But Danny seemed to enjoy it, and he was the one living here. It wasn't like there was anything wrong with the house. Or anything in the house. It was just... off.

Danny was half-ghost, however, so maybe this was something he needed. Perhaps not all of his peppiness could be attributed to being the heck away from his murderous former parents.

Even so. Jazz had a duty, both as a big sister and an aspiring psychologist.

"I already read it," said Clockwork, setting a cup of tea down in front of her.

"What?"

"The book you were about to give me. I've already read it. And a number of others. I am not the kind of person who goes into things unprepared."

Danny rolled into the kitchen on the ceiling. This was easy to ignore. After her life, an Exorcist reference made by her over-excited younger brother, was, well. Underwhelming.

(Okay, she was a little distracted, but only by his glee.)

"Well," she said. "That's good."

.

"I know this house is out of the way," said Clockwork, craning his neck to look up at his coworker, "but you are rather conspicuous."

"Hm. Am I?" asked Pandora, craning her neck down to look at her comparatively tiny colleague.

"Yes. At that size, humans with average eyesight will be able to see you from town."

Pandora looked out over the trees. "Interesting," she said, mildly. "Do you think the ghost hunters will come?"

"You've spoken to Daniel."

"Yes. He stopped by earlier today, on his way to visit Mattingly. Although, I suppose you knew that already."

"Indeed I did. May I ask, is it your intention to lure the ghost hunters here, fight them, defeat them, and then leave them just close enough to here to constitute a breach of their terms of bail and the restraining order against them?"

"I am not terribly well-versed in human law," said Pandora, "but, why, yes. That is exactly what I'm doing. Best to get it done while Daniel is visiting friends, isn't it?"

"Yes. If you had done this while he was here, I would be significantly more annoyed." Clockwork smiled the sanguine smile of a parental figure who would commit murder if their child was upset.

Pandora returned a matching grin, one that promised retribution against persons who had harmed said child in the past. "Please, Clockwork. You know me better than that. I wouldn't subject him to being in the presence of those fools."

"Good," said Clockwork, eyes glinting.

.

"Hey, Clockwork? Do you know why there were police cars driving down the- Oh. Hello?" He stopped at the sight of an unfamiliar woman sitting at the dinning room table, next to Clockwork. He blinked and tilted his head to the side. "Wait. Pandora?"

"Perceptive," said the superficially human olive-skinned woman. "You seemed so happy when you stopped by, earlier. I thought I would come check in on you."

"You didn't have to," said Danny, beaming.

"Pandora has been trying to convince me to set her up as one of my relatives," said Clockwork, rolling his eyes. "Would you care for a cup of tea, Daniel?"

"Umm," said Danny, dubiously. "I'll try one, I guess. Does that mean you'll be my aunt?"

Pandora smiled. "Why, yes, it does."

Clockwork groaned theatrically.

.

"Ah," said Mr. Lancer, at the next parent-teacher conference. "Are you Mr. Worth's wife?"

"No," said Pandora, grinning. "I'm his sister."

Mr. Lancer looked back and forth between the two very different-looking entities. "I... see."

"We're adopted," said Clockwork.

"Oh! Alright then. Now, about Daniel..."

.

It was a bit strange to see Danny with so much energy, Sam reflected. Strange, but good.

It just went to show how drained he had become over time, how much the constant ghost attacks and worry, all the lies and stress and impossible expectations had worn away at him over time. She hadn't seen her friend this happy since freshman year. If that.

On the other hand...

"Dude," said Tucker. "Your house is spooky. And this is coming from someone who's been inside a literal mad science lab."

Danny rolled his eyes. "Mad science labs are campy, not spooky. Besides, you knew coming in that this house was haunted." He draped himself over the back of the couch, rolling until he was 'sitting' upside-down. "Anyway, what kind of movie do you want to watch? We've got a bunch, because Clockwork apparently collects media from doomed timelines."

"He's got a hobby?" asked Sam.

"Yeah, three," said Danny. "Gardening- you should talk to him about that, by the way, I think he'd like it- baking, and alternate timeline movies. And some books, too, I think. He's got a huge library back in Long Now. I've read like. Two books from it."

Clockwork's voice floated in from the other room. "You've read significantly more than that, Daniel."

"I guess," said Danny, doubtfully. He flopped off the couch, picked himself up, and started prodding at a shelf of movies. "This is from a timeline where the Earth got beaned by a massive asteroid. It's, like, a romcom, but it was made when everyone knew the asteroid was coming. This one is, uh, this is actually a dramatization of real events, apparently, but their timeline split from ours in like the fifties, so the events are pretty wild." He waved the DVD at them. "It's surreal?"

"How'd they die?" asked Tucker.

"Wacky superscience. No, really. Irradiated the entire planet."

"How do you know?" asked Sam.

"Oh, Clockwork puts notes on the boxes. He thinks it's interesting. And there does seem to be some correlation between how cursed the movies are and how bad the timeline was. Which maybe shouldn't surprise me? I mean, if they were bad timelines..." He shrugged. "Oh, this is a CGI Lion King. I can tell you: very cursed. Absolutely soulless. And this is from a timeline where copyright laws weren't changed, so Mickey Mouse and a bunch of other stuff was in the public domain."

"Isn't that a good timeline?" joked Sam.

"You'd think so," agreed Danny. "But apartheid in South Africa apparently never stopped, and they got a nuclear bomb, and, well... World War Three."

"Is that like, a domino effect, or...?"

"I'm not sure... Anyway. Uh. Genre?" He clapped his hands together.

Tucker leaned forward. "I want the wildest version of the Matrix you have."

"Ooh, good choice. There are, like, six with Will Smith. I haven't watched them all yet, but I think the one where they've got another sequel and Zion is also a- Wait, I shouldn't spoil it."

"After that, can you see if there's a non-crappy version of Dracula?" asked Sam.

"Sure. I haven't seen one yet, but I will look."

"I have popcorn," said Clockwork, entering the room, "and various baked goods. No dairy."

"You're the best."

.

Clockwork selected a thick blanket from the chest, then teleported himself to the living room to drape it over the three teenagers passed out on the couch. Overall, he found pretending to be human oddly enjoyable, but it could be trying at times. Tedious. All the finicky little motions humans had to go through to do the simplest of things added up over the day.

So, Clockwork tended to ease off of them when no one was watching. It made life easier.

Heh. Life.

(He would say that Daniel's puns were rubbing off on him, but in truth Clockwork's sense of humor had been like that for, well. Eons.)

He put the kitchen in order with an absent wave of his hand, and double-checked the stove out of habit. It wasn't nearly as good as his actual oven, back in Long Now, but it was serviceable.

One of Daniel's friends mumbled in their sleep, and Clockwork looked in on them. Still peaceful. It was good for Daniel to have them here. Beneficial for both his human and ghost halves.

He hummed to himself and patted Daniel's head as he thought about their plans for the weekend. He had arranged for some truly aggravating evangelical missionaries to darken their doorstep. It would do Daniel good to inspire a touch of terror. In an entirely controlled and risk-free way, of course. No matter how unpleasant the people coming were, Clockwork had no intention of harming them, or suggesting anything of the sort.

But, well. They were ghosts. Being feared was soothing.

(Clockwork knew this wasn't what Jasmine meant when she suggested Clockwork engage in family bonding activities with Daniel. But what she didn't know...)

.

"I think my teeth are getting sharper," said Danny, pulling a face at the mirror. "Is that normal?" The last was shouted, to get Clockwork's attention. Intellectually, Danny knew he didn't need to do that, but a lifetime of habit was hard to shake.

"It is difficult to say what is normal for someone like you, but many ghosts do have fangs," said Clockwork. "Including myself."

"Hm," said Danny. "This isn't, like, a ghost puberty thing, is it? Because I already used up most of my evil puberty jokes."

"Oh, only most?" Clockwork slid behind him and started rubbing the tension out of his shoulders.

Danny shrugged. "Eh, give or take. But, seriously."

"No, it isn't a ghost puberty thing."

"Oh, good. Because dealing with one puberty is more than enough."

Clockwork was silent. Danny looked up and met troubled eyes in the mirror.

"Clockwork?"

"Daniel," started Clockwork, before giving Danny an uneasy smile. "Speaking of puberty..."

Danny blanched. "No."

"What?"

"No. Nope. Not doing the talk today, no sir. I got that at school."

"Daniel, as strange as Casper High may be at times, I highly doubt they taught you anything about immortality."

"What."

.

"It's why ghosts put so much forethought into relationships like this," explained Clockwork, careful not to look directly at Daniel's hiding place. "They might last forever. I certainly hope this one does."

"But I don't want to be a teenager forever!" wailed Danny. He had mastered the art of making his voice sound like it was coming from a completely different direction than it actually was.

Clockwork was older than human civilization and had been worshiped as a god by several civilizations. He did not wince at the heartbreak in his child's voice.

"Your shapeshifting abilities should come in after a few years," said Clockwork. "You'll be able to pass as older."

Daniel answered with a moan.

"I must confess, I'm not sure why you are so upset about this. I can see that you are, but could you explain why for me?"

"I don't knoooooowww..."

.

"I don't want everyone to die and leave me alone," admitted Danny, hunched over a carton of ice cream. "I don't want to see my- my people die." He sniffled.

"We don't have to stay in Amity Park if you don't want to," said Clockwork.

Danny shook his head. "No! That's worse," he said, hating how his voice tilted into a whine. "That's- I can't abandon them! I can't- can't miss their time. I just..." He let out a huff of air. "It's hard."

Clockwork wrapped an arm around Daniel's shoulders. "It may not help much," he said, "but people in Amity Park have a much higher chance of becoming ghosts. It's the ectoplasm in the air."

"Promise?" asked Danny.

"Promise. Although, who, exactly, becomes a ghost is outside of my control. All I can tell you is that the people here have a better chance."

Danny leaned against Clockwork. "Thanks," he mumbled. "Clockwork?"

"Yes?"

"You don't think I'm a freak, do you?"

"Of course not."

.

Mr. Lancer squinted down at Daniel Fenton's latest assignment with a mix of appreciation, disbelief, and shame. This was easily the best work he had ever received from Daniel. In fact, it rivaled papers he had received from Jasmine.

It made him wonder- How long had Daniel been suffering? What had Daniel been suffering? He was no expert when it came to abuse, but all teachers had some training, and he knew that abusers tended to escalate, starting with something relatively innocuous and ending with a travesty. For things to progress to attempted murder... What had it started as? When had it begun?

(Could Mr. Lancer have stopped it?)

(That question would haunt him more than any ghost.)

Well, there was a silver lining to this, Mr. Lancer supposed. He had rarely seen two people who got along as well as Daniel and Charles Worth. It was good, he thought, for the man to have someone in his life on a more permanent basis, rather than the revolving door of temporary foster children.

How rapidly the adoption went through was a little odd, but... Mr. Lancer shrugged. Undoubtedly, Mr. Worth had taken the time over his years as a foster parent to familiarize himself with the system, and with Daniel's former parents unfit to be anywhere near children...

He shrugged again and stamped Daniel's paper with an A+.

[rebellconquerer]

I don’t know if this counts as headcanon, cause I’m still trying to understand what the term means 😅, but it would be cool to see how you handle a scene where Bucky meets an ex of Sarah. Not her husband obviously, but perhaps someone she briefly dated or had a thing with after during the blip or after.

Here, have a story. This is how I kinda see him moving.

"Oh shit!" Sarah whispers under her breath as she sees him.

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit." Her voice gets progressively more high pitched as she mutters.

"You ok?" Maribel asks, eyebrows raising, voice ungodly loud.

Sarah grabs her best friend, ducking her head down as she moves to a more secluded spot further down the aisle.

"What are you doing?!" Mari grumbles.

"It's Derek!" Sarah mutters, peeking around around the large bach of flowers currently hiding her.

"Who?" Mari asks, peeking as well.

"Umm… he was a parent in Cass's 1st grade class." She replies simply.

Mari raises an eyebrow. "Uhuh, I know that face. That is the face you get when someone has seen you naked."

"Mari!" Sarah screeches. Her friend just laughs. God, this is awful. She grabs her hand and starts making her way back out of the store.

The restaurant had had a good couple of months and Sarah had decided to celebrate by getting a little bit of landscaping done. It was Mari's side gig and she was very good at it. She'd recruited James to come do most of the heavy lifting while she and Mari picked out the plants. Running into her ex was not part of the day's plans, thank you very much.

"Regardless, it's none of your business. Let's go!"

"Oh but we aren't finished shopping, Sarah" Mari whines, her eyes glinting mischievously as she comes to a complete stop.

Seriously?! Sarah needed new friends.

She huffs. "He asked me out. We went on a couple dates… Yes, we slept together, you fiend, but he was a little… I dunno, too much? Wanted too much, too soon."

"So you broke up with him? Why are we hiding? You are both adults."

Sarah groans. It was right around when Sam was becoming Captain America and she was a little distracted and busy… she isn't proud of it.

"I didn't ok? I never formally broke up with him but in my defense we were never officially a thing." She mutters. Mari's eyes absolutely sparkle with glee.

New. Friends.

"Sarah, I don't think anything else is gonna hold in that truck. I can get Sam's if there's more but that's gonna be a trip." James says, walking into the back of the store. He's wearing faded jeans and a white t, with his jacket, gloves and sunglasses on. It's a little odd in the Louisiana heat, but it really just makes him look like a movie star.

She glances around and sees the moment Derek spots her.

Sarah would like to apologize to the universe for whatever she has done to upset it.

James frowns looking at them. "What is going on?"

"Sarah's ex is here. The one who she never officially broke up with. We were trying to hide." Maribel says happily. If Sarah had known Mari and James would have hit it off when they met she would have never allowed it.

James gives her a slow, devious grin. She hates that it's attractive. "Sarah! Did you hit it and quit it?" James asks with faux shock.

Sarah glares at him. "Who is teaching you these things?!" She whispers harshly.

James just shrugs, looking up at the approaching man. "The internet exists."

"Sarah, what a pleasant surprise." Derek says, lazy smile on his face. Accepting that the ground will not in fact swallow her whole, Sarah smiles at him, glad for the fact that she had gone with a bright yellow sundress that compliments her skin.

"Hi Derek. It's been a long time." He leans in to hug her and she returns it a little half heartedly.

"This is my friend Maribel and… um.. Bucky...my other friend" she stumbles, a little over what to call James. He still introduces himself as Bucky and she seems to be the only one allowed to call him James. She is also uncertain how to identify him… they haven't had the conversation about what exactly they are yet and… well… maybe an earthquake will actually come to swallow her whole.

She watches Derek take in Maribel with a small hand shake then switch to Bucky, clearly sizing him up.

Bucky, for his part, removes his shades with a charming grin and she's close enough to see that cocksure swagger he sometimes gets loosening his shoulders.

" Nice to meet you, man." Bucky says, shaking his hand. Derek frowns. Sarah hopes for a moment it's because he recognizes Bucky with the shades down, but she isn't that lucky.

"Yeah. I don't think I've seen you around before… I've known Sarah for a while and she never mentioned you." Derek starts. She glares. This was why she ghosted him.

Bucky just shrugs, cocky little smile staying on his face. "Yeah. I'm visiting from out of town. Sarah wrangled me into helping."

Derek nods, eyes squinting a little as he tries to make heads or tails of James.

"Well this was lovely. But we really should be going." Sarah says into the marginally uncomfortable silence.

Maribel holds in her snicker, for which Sarah will forever be grateful, and James just nods, strolling over to collect the last bit of mulch they had paid for.

Derek holds on to her hand as she goes to turn away. "You know I've missed you, Sarah. I thought we were going well. I'd still love to see you again." He whispers for only her hearing.

Bucky lets out a small cough and Sarah turns to glare. She knows he can hear them, supersoldier hearing and all, and he still has that cocky smirk on his face.

"Yeah, it was a good time. But things got really busy you know, what with Sam and the press and all." She hems. "I just don't think this is the right time."

Derek smiles sadly, trying to give her a pouty look.

"Sarah, this is it, right?" Bucky yells across the room, holding two bags of mulch on his shoulder just high enough that you can see the band of his boxers and just a hint of his abs in the little gap between his shirt and his jeans.

Sarah isn't sure she can glare harder, but she tries. "Yes, James. That's it." She says with an edge that she knows he can hear. He nods, turning to head out the door.

Sarah turns back to Derek. "I'm sorry, I have to head out, you know." She states, pointing in the direction that James just walked.

"Ok, at least let me walk you out." Derek insists. She doesn't roll her eyes but it's a close thing.

James has finished loading the truck when she gets out and is leaning against the rear door, talking to Mari. It's a bad sign.

She finishes with Derek, finally making her way back to the truck and to James who is smirking at her with a head tilt.

"Don't say a word " she threatens playfully. He just shrugs, offering a hand to help her into the truck. She takes it, stepping up and he trails a hand lightly across her waist, knowing Derek is watching.

She turns to glare at him again as Maribel laughs.

His smirk gets more cocky if possible as he slips his glasses back on his face and strolls around to the driver's side.

She can do nothing but huff.

God, she hates her life.

[theroguequeenaniki]

Questions 2009 -> 2021

This is from my Facebook. It popped up on my memories page thing. I originally answered this in 2009 when I was 15, it’s now 2021 & and I am 27, so I’m gonna do it again. Leaving the original answers. Original answers will be italicized. Commentary on the original answers in parentheses & crossed out? Lol. (I’m not gonna tag anyone, but, like, I guess if you want to answer these random questions from Facebook 12 years ago, go ahead lol) 

Questions

Can you fill this out without lying? You've been tagged, so now you need to answer all the questions HONESTLY. At the end, choose people to tag. Don't forget to tag me so I can see your answers! To do this, copy this entire message, then go to “notes” under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, delete my answers, and type yours. Easy! Next, tag people that you think may enjoy this (in the right hand corner of the app). Click publish (at the bottom). Have fun! :) 1.What was the last thing you put in your mouth? My cup with my Big Red in it The straw to my Kate Spade tumbler to drink my HEB Cola Lol.

2.Where was your profile picture taken? I got it off the internet. it's a random anime girl. My bedroom. 3.Can you play Guitar Hero? Never played it. Probably wouldn't be good at it. Not to good at video games. But I am good at Mario Cart, both 64 and the Wii. plus I'm good at some Sonic games. Still never played it. Idk if I’m any good at Mario Cart or the Sonic games anymore, I haven’t played either in years lol

4.Name someone who made you laugh today? Doctor Who TikTok. My cats.

5.How late did you stay up last night and why? Umm, probably about 10:00 cause it took me forevor to get into bed. Uh..Past 4am. Lol. B/c my sleep schedule is fucked. I was in bed by 3am though, but I was playing games & watching TikToks on my phone. Lol.

6.If you could move somewhere else, would you? Yes. I'd move to either New York or Sweden. I don’t know. Part of me says yes. But part of me says no..b/c even though Texas has it’s faults (a LOT of them), I cannot imagine living anywhere else long-term..

7. Ever been kissed under fireworks? HAHA. Yeah right. I've never even been kissed! Still nope. I have been kissed though. He just didn’t kiss me under the fireworks the one NYE we spent together...

8. Which of your friends lives closest to you? Um, I think R, but D might also. D is accross Stasney from me and R is a couple blocks down (I don’t talk to these people much anymore & I’m not going to share their names on Tumblr) Uh. I think Maybe Raven? B/c they’re the only one who lives in the same city still. But, Sarah might technically be closer distance wise? Hold on. Ok, yeah, Sarah’s closer, even though she doesn’t live in this city anymore.

9. Do you believe exes can be friends? It all depends on the situation.(I totally stold M's answer but it's true) (I don’t talk to this person anymore & I’m not gonna share their name on Tumblr) I mean, yeah. Two of my best friends are each others exes and they’re still friends. I haven’t stayed friend with my ex, but, uh, he ghosted me so? Lol.

10. How do you feel about Dr. Pepper? I love it. I still love it. Lol.

11. When was the last time you cried really hard? I can't remember. I don't think it was that long ago, I had a light cry on Saturday, but I don't remember the last time I cried really hard. When we got back from our trip in July. Had a full on breakdown that night. Overheated all weekend. Overwhelmed. Anxiety. It was not a very good vacation..I cry a lot though.

12. Who took your profile picture? I got it off of google. I did. 

13. Who was the last person you took a picture of? Umm, either myself, or one of my family members. Aside from myself. I think my dad, on his phone, b/c there was a cicada on his shoulder and he wanted to ask the family group chat if he could keep it. Lol. I take a LOT of pictures of cats though. Lol.

14. Was yesterday better than today? Hail yes! To much drama today! And I couldn't avoid it cause I was in the middle of it! (Oof, what drama was 15 yo Linda dealing with that she couldn’t avoid? Lol. I mean, I guess, Sophomore year was a bit full of drama lol) Anyway, I mean, they were pretty much the same. One wasn’t better than the other. One wasn’t worse than the other.

15. Can you live a day without TV? yeah. Now Music there is something I can't live without! Yep, Do it almost everyday. Sentiments about music remain the same. Lol.

16. Are you upset about anything? Yes. I'm annoyed about something and it's making me upset. (I assume this has something to do with the the drama mentioned earlier lol) Always. Anxiety & depression are a bitch. My rooms a mess & I can’t get myself to clean it. My shelves are still a mess.

17. Do you think relationships are ever really worth it? yeah. though i havent really had one yet. I mean, yeah. Even though I haven’t had one last, aside from friendships, but they’re worth it. 

18. Are you a bad influence? I hope not. If so, let me know.(again I took M's answer but it's true) Probably. Idk. Lol.

19. Night out or night in? Depends on what's going on and how I feel about it. Night in usually. I do like going out sometimes, but, like, to dinner. Maybe a movie or a show. But, you know, we’ve been in a panini press, the only thing I’ve been comfortable doing is going to dinner (fully vaxxed & masked). But I also prefer staying home anyway. (Like I usually just go to dinner with my family lol)

20. What items could you not go without during the day? my computer. my book. my journal and a pen. My phone. My journal (b/c I write in it every night, as a diary, 14yo Linda wrote stories). Uh. I didn’t take food or drinks into account in the og, so I won’t in those. But, yeah. My phone & journal. I can go a day without my laptop if I need to. (Went the whole trip in July without pulling it out, though maybe that’s not a good example since my anxiety on that trip was so high..) I want to say a book, but I’ve been in a massive reading slump so...I wish I read as much as 15yo Linda did..

21. Who was the last person you visited in the hospital? I don't remember. I think it was myself.(if you want to know, ask me in person) I honestly don’t know. I don’t remember the last time I was in a hospital. 

22. What does the last text message in your inbox say? "Mrbobbybones:  wish ted would finally meet their mother already. geez. get to it. However, I see myself in that character more and more each episode." yeah. That's what it says. It's from Twitter. (Huh? and I can’t even go check b/c my inbox doesn’t go back to 2009 on Twitter?? (I haven’t had my account that long) Wait wait wait just remembered I used to get tweets to my phone as text messages lol)

Facebook messenger: “ Cool” From our group chat. Lol.

From actual text messages on my phone: “ heeey! Just put up the Tuesday PDS just for you  it’s a big one.” From Phillip Defranco’s text line Lol.

23. How do you feel about your life right now? I'm loving and hating it. but hey nobody gets out alive right? Uh..I mean. I’m alive. I have WiFi. Food. Family. I haven’t seen my friends in 2 years. (Minus Alex, b/c they were here in July to cat/house sit, but I saw them for like, one night..) There’s a lot that could be better. A lot that could be worse. 

24. Do you hate anyone? yes!!! Oof. I mean, kinda.

25. If we were to look in your Facebook Inbox, what would we find? some random conversations. most of my convos on her though have been in chat or through comments. Facebook Inbox is now Facebook Messenger. So you’ll find all my Facebook Messenger convos. Mostly our group chat. And side group chats for secret planning (birthdays & stuff). Plus other chats? Lol.

26. Say you were given a drug test right now, would you pass? I better! (excuse me miss 15yo Linda you absolutely could have passed a drug test you ALSO didn’t drink or smoke or take any drugs lol) Yeah. Absolutely. I don’t drink or smoke or take any drugs so, yeah? Lol.

27. Has anyone ever called you perfect before? 

Yes. But I can't remember when... Yeah. Pretty sure. 

28. What song is stuck in your head? Gee by SNSD(Girls Generation) They're Korean. A few My Chemical Romance songs

29. Someone knocks on your window at 2:00 a.m., who do you want it to be? EDWARD CULLEN! Joke! lol. No I don't know. If it was Edward, I'd call the cops. whoever it is though better have an explaination or they are gonna get hit in the head with my Book of Shadows. (Maybe I wouldn’t mind Edward at my window though? Lol.) Uh. My friends? Lol. Idk if I want anyone knocking on my window at 2am.

30.Wanna have grandkids before you’re 50? I don't know....... Uh. No? Idk. Most likely not gonna happen. 

31. Name something you have to do tomorrow? I can't think of anything right now... Eat. Should probably clean my room.

32. Do you think too much or too little? Way to much! lol. Way way way too much

33. Do you smile a lot? i try to. I think I do. I get told that alot in Theater...

I think so

[diyunho]

The Joker x Reader - “ What Death Tastes Like” Part 5

Scarecrow’s daughter might be only 22, yet the terminal lung cancer she was diagnosed with six months ago didn’t discriminate against her age; the young woman didn’t show worrisome symptoms until it was too late. Y/N always had a fascination for the much older King of Gotham and despite the consequences, maybe it’s finally time to do something about it.

Part 1    Part 2   Part 3     Part 4

The Joker feels his face covered in soft kisses and although generally speaking he loves being pampered, this particular instance awakens his self-defense mechanism.

“What time is it?” J mutters.

“Let me see,” you stretch for your phone. “12:03 am.”

“I should go,” he lifts his head up from the pillow and you pull him back in your arms, yawning.

“Stay for a little bit longer, ok?”

“Why?”

“I wish to hold on to my birthday present for a few more minutes,” Y/N pleads with the man she senses doesn’t want to be there anymore. “Don’t worry, I’m aware it was a casual affair,” your sad smile prompts a completely out of context answer:

“If you noticed I fell asleep, you should have woken me up!” The King of Gotham complains.

“I fell asleep also,” you snuggle to him and since J is suddenly quiet you whisper. “It was amazing.”

He keeps staring which makes you wonder what the hell is going on in his mind right now.

“At least for me,” you underline after you grasp he won’t comment on the subject; you didn’t have a clue he’ll convert the night you spent together into awkwardness for no reason. “Get out of my tent!” you snap at his behavior, irritated. “Get out!” you shove him and The Clown Prince of Crime doesn’t budge.

“Why are you mad?” he finally addresses the annoyed Y/N.

“Because you’re a jerk!”

“Come again?!” The Joker frowns and Scarecrow’s daughter has a clever response; she doesn’t share his genes for nothing.

“I would but I guess you’re not a big fan of us having sex a second time!!!”

“Wow!” J bitterly scoffs. “You sure can twist a guy’s words, huh? If you really must pry into my personal life, I’ll have you know that I’m not used with small talk afterwards, understand?”

While you wonder if he’s bluffing, you can’t help offer the benefit of doubt served with a side of insolence.

“Well, maybe if you would give it a try with someone that actually cares, you’d have stuff to discuss.”

“Miss Crane, what makes you think Mara doesn’t like me?”

The Joker expects a feisty reply to his audacious remark yet he receives a piece of sturdy logic instead:

“If she was crazy in love, she wouldn’t agree and with this on and off relationship you two have.”

J is obviously displeased at your statement thus Y/N has to unleash her creativity in order to push him comprehend what she’s aiming at.

“The problem is you don’t approach anything important, you only shut down everyone. Even Emma believes she’s not yours.”

The King of Gotham was preparing to lash out but your latest sentence totally catches him off guard.

“What do you mean?!”

“You never talk about her mother granted she keeps asking so Emma presumes you probably stole her from an individual you consider your enemy and raised her as revenge.”

“Huh?!” The Joker gets on his elbow, appalled. “She is my daughter!”

“I say that to her when she panics, unfortunately random people do look similar…,” you twirl a strand of his green hair around your fingers. “Steering clear from issues we’re uncomfortable with doesn’t necessarily result in a positive outcome,” Y/N concludes and her partner is not excited at all.

“Are you psychoanalyzing me?!”

“I’m a Crane,” you peck his lips. “It’s in our blood.”

A lot of thoughts rushing behind those blue eyes and you’re confident his patience is running low; add a short fuse to the combo and according to your flawless instinct J will bite soon.

“Take me for example,” you attempt to cram in the main point of your dialogue before it happens. “I don’t care you’re older, I fancy your company nevertheless: you’re super handsome plus emotionally unattractive…”

“I’m what?!” The Joker interrupts.

“Umm… emotionally unattractive?” you hesitantly repeat while watching him jump off the pillows and start to collect his clothes in the semi darkness.

“Serves me right for sleeping with somebody half my age!” he growls at the young woman realizing she upset him with her rant.

“So you’re 46?” you struggle to joke at his affirmation.

“Listen here, Miss Crane!” J dresses in a hurry, angry at your stunt. “If you imagine you figured me out, you didn’t!! Nobody fucks with me!” he violently kicks the mattress and you can’t avoid it:

“I think I just did. Literally.”

The hate in his demeanor makes you regret opening up; your goal was to imply you like him no matter what yet the aftermath is way off what you intended.

“I apologize, OK?” you sigh and reach your hand for his.

“I hope you perish!” he strikes your fingers with such brutality it stings. “You’re dying anyway but hopefully the Cromyxillium kills you faster!” The Joker unzips the tent and leaves a shocked Y/N breathless at his hurtful tirade.

“That’s all you got? Stupid old man…” you whimper and cuddle under the thin blanket with his cushion.

Grief is not the correct term to describe what you experience for the moment: a perfect birthday turned into exactly the opposite in a blink of an eye simply because The Joker proved once more he has no concept on how to handle dynamite; fire suits him better.

***************

Next morning, 10:14am

“Are you hot or cold?” your father inquires since your intravenous therapy commenced 10 minutes ago.

“No,” you gaze at the IV bag and Jonathan lingers by your bed, reminding his offspring about their plan.

“We’ll do 3 hours on, 3 hours off; I’ll monitor your vitals and if you feel strange alert me immediately, deal?”

You nod a yes and his perseverance in aiding you with your terminal cancer evokes a sincere confession:

“Daddy…Thank you for trying to save me…I’m sorry I’m a burden…”

“A burden?!” Scarecrow mumbles.

There are a million facts you should evoke, yet the predominant one keeps hunting you.

“You buried yourself in the lab because of me…and Evelyn left…”

“Evelyn and I broke up for various motives,” your parent grumbles. “Saying I immersed myself into working because of you hints that I was forced into it against my will which is not true. I did everything out of love… I can’t bear the idea of losing you,” he kisses your temple; you wrap your free arm around his neck, squeezing him tight.

“You’re the best dad; I’m lucky you’re my father. If I die… you think mom is waiting for me?...”

Jonathan Crane has the weird sensation he’s choking; his wife died after you were born due to leukemia, now their daughter is fighting for survival: she’s plainly the last fortress separating him from utter madness.

“I couldn’t save your mother, but I’ll be damned if I let you die kid,” he caresses your cheek. “She can wait; I bet she’s not eager to take you with her,” Scarecrow reassures his daughter. “Rest honey.”

“I will…” you consent and Emma barging in the bedroom with her duffle bag switches your attention.

“I’m here, I’m here!” she exclaims. “Traffic was horrible, bad accident on the freeway!”

**************

11 am

“Are you comfortable?” Emma checks with her friend, not entirely certain how to bring up a very delicate topic clouding her usually bubbly disposition.

“Of course,” you smile and she wiggles in her recliner. “Are you?” you wink at her visible restlessness as you attempt to lighten the atmosphere.

“Y/N…,” she taps the fluffy carpet with her feet. “Mmmm… last night after we returned from the river I dropped by to see how you’re doing and… I came to your tent…,” Emma pauses seeing the stupefied expression on your face. “I…I found my father sleeping in there with you…”

You lick your lips and strain to keep your calm even if your heart is pounding out of your chest.

“Did my dad take advantage of you?” she lowers her voice and you can tell she’s torn apart by the horrible notion.

“He didn’t,” you shake your head.

“Dumb girl…” Emma admonishes without any trace of resentment; what else can she articulate in these circumstances regardless?  

“I can’t believe I’m inquiring… Did you use protection?”

“No…It just happened…”

“Oh my God!” the concerned judgement pressures you to continue:

“It didn’t end well so it’s fair to assume we’re not in any danger of me becoming your stepmom,” your tone diminishes and she leans over to scold when The Joker passes by the opened door without bothering to peek inside your bedroom; you didn’t spot him but Emma did.

“I’ll be back!” she hisses and you’re confused at her desire to leave you.

“Hey, where are you going?”

She ignores your question and races after The King of Gotham, catching up with him at the end of the long corridor.

“Dad!” Emma shouts and he turns around.

“Yeah?”

“What are you doing?!” she interrogates the clueless Joker.

“I’m meeting Crane. Is he downstairs?”

“In his lab compounding the next batch of Cromyxillium for Y/N,” she fumes at J’s impertinence. “Didn’t you forget something?”

He seems puzzled and Emma is not tricked by his deceiving performance.

“My best friend is in her quarters, uncertain if she’ll survive the cancer treatment. Are you pretending she doesn’t exist?”

“Meaning?” The Joker sneers.

“I know you slept with her!” the accusation follows instantly. “Don’t deny it! How could you take advantage of her?!”

The Clown Prince of Crime straightens his shoulders, aware he can’t negotiate his innocence out of this complicated riddle.

“I did not take advantage of her! How dare you accuse me of such low move?”

“You didn’t?” Emma closes the gap between them. “You know she has a crush on you and she’s vulnerable; what type of man would prey on that?!”

J is not thrilled with the innuendos and cuts her off:

“She basically begged for some and I obliged out of pity!”

Emma slaps him and The Joker gasps, enraged she had the audacity:

“Do that again and I’ll neglect you’re my daughter!” he growls and the serious threat doesn’t faze her.

“Hurt her more and I’ll forget you’re my father! If you are indeed my father,” she emphasizes while stomping away towards the kitchen.

“I am your father!” J simmers at her impeccable strategy: Emma is retreating to a different corner of the house giving him the opportunity to choose.

Who the heck knows if she’s actually his?

One thing is undeniable though: they share the same despicable temper.

****************

You discern The Joker in the doorway and your body stiffens; you stare at the TV screen wishing he’ll disappear.

“Where’s Crane?” J analyzes Y/N’s IV pole.

You don’t engage so his crankiness emerges.

“I suppose you didn’t flatlined yet!”

“Nope,” you grunt at the provocative declaration that served its goal: you did reply to The Clown’s rubbish.

“Where’s Crane?”

“I heard you the first time and I’m not sure why you focus your energy on a useless interrogation. You know where my father is!”

“Where?” The Joker’s vile attitude can’t compromise for less than instigating his fling.

“Please take your stuff that’s firm now but will get saggy in maximum 20 years and vanish!” the poisonous remark makes him groan.

“What stuff?!”

You check him out glaring at his mid-section before dismissing his presence.

“That’s the rudest fucking criticism ever!” The Joker barks and Y/N crabbily indicates:

“It’s not criticism, it’s reality! Gravity’s a bitch! Mara won’t mind, won’t she? After all, you two share a very special bond: on today, off tomorrow, hookup next week, take a break next month. Such dreamy relationship!”

“Do you have more derogatory references to my private life?!” J grinds his teeth ready to unleash several atrocities your way.

“No, too busy dying…” you show him the needle in your arm. “I don’t feel the pain from the medication burning my veins; I’m used with my sickness, with the ups and downs. What I do feel is the pain of being taken for granted.”

The Joker is not a fan of the insinuated context.  

“You said no strings attached!” he stresses the lack of commitment consented the previous evening.

“You’re the one that came to me; I thought it meant you were accepting to be the center of my universe.”

J ogles the ceiling of Y/N’s bedroom and assembles a couple of harsh disclosures in his brain when her entitled smirk halts the project.

“You’re buying it, aren’t you?” you chuckle at his astonishment. “I’m just messing with you Mister Joker; who in their right mind would make you the center of their universe?! You have 10 seconds to leave, otherwise I’ll scream and security will come!” you shelter your head with the quilt so you don’t have to see his mug anymore.

No outpour of vexation from his part which is cool: means he bailed.

The blanket is slowly pulled until your eyes emerge; J hovers your face, pissed at the unwelcomed clash.

“I’m checking if you kicked the bucket; corpses are usually covered thus my dilemma.”

“Go away!” you advise. “Or I’ll scream!”

You inhale preparing to yell: The Joker didn’t predict you’d defy him and he swiftly kisses you in order to stop the sounds.

The door is cracked and Emma witnesses the scene, reckoning bizarre elements:

Her father holds grudges and was mad at Y/N earlier due to whatever happened yesterday; nevertheless he still kissed her.

On the other hand, you were definitely miserable after your escapade, yet you didn’t reject him.

Emma may not be informed about the entire story, but one detail is crystal clear: the future is far from being simple.

 Also read: MASTERLIST

[physcoticfrog]

(idk what to call this, pretend it's a good title)

Description: From birth, your quirk had always been different, coming with black bat-like wings, but what happens when they get ripped from you during childhood? (Your quirk is a bat, coming with echolocation, and the whole package. You even have big ol ears).

Pairing: Keigo Takami (Hawks) x reader

Warnings: Mentions of abuse and depression, swearing

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

Past

"Honey where are your parents?" You heard a sickly sweet but soft voice ask you.

"I don't know". That was your only answer. You knew what was going to happen. You were just scared.

"Honey we should probably go down to the police station, they'll help you." How come people are so ignorant? All you can do is wait now, and not say anything more.

"Hi ma'am, this is my little sister, we'll be on our way now" you heard a man say. You knew this. So why were you so scared?

Moments turned to minutes, minutes turned to hours, to days. You ended up being their puppet. After all, you could do pretty much everything they needed. There was just a small problem. You couldn't leave.

All you could hear were your screams bouncing off of the walls of the room as your wings were ripped from your back. Searing pain seized down your back, causing you to cry out in pain.

Soon enough, it was over. A man wrapped your wings, or what was left of them, in order to not cause infection. You had now come to terms with the fact that you will never out live this. This is your family, this is a part of you. You can never leave.

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

Present

"Wait what!? Really! Thank you dad!" You hugged him, because he had just told you you could leave if you wanted, and there would be hell to pay if you didn't come back, but you could leave nonetheless.

"Awee I wanna come with too Shig" You heard Toga complain. Toga was younger than you, about the age of a high-schooler. Not that you were much older, just older still.

"Dad please can you let her? We won't be long, I promise" Dad. Shigaraki. The one who raised you, even though he was your age. Some people might say he would be more like a big brother, but he was kind to you. More so than the others. He fed you, let you be a kid sometimes. He was like a father figure of a sorts, so, you've come to respect him.

"No, y/n, you know this. You can't go out there with her, they know who she is. They don't know you. Just don't pull any dumb shit". You could settle for that. That actually sounded really good. You were just really happy to see sunlight for the first time in your life, without having to be in the confines of a fence.

"Alright. Well, I'm gonna find a coffee shop, I wanna know what it tastes like. How about I'll be back by, say, umm, 4:30? Latest 5:00?" You asked. How could he say no to that? It was a win-win, because it's already around 2:45, and you don't know your way around the streets.

"Ok, fine go. Make sure you call me immediately if anything goes wrong. Be home safe, ok?" See? That's full out dad mode right there.

"Yes dad, I know the drill." You were almost bouncing out of the door when you were ready to go.

You were wearing your newest pair of clothes, of course, slightly stained but that's because Dabi, who is more like a brother to you, decided to steal them from a corner store. It was a black crop top, with two little holes cut in the back for the small nubs poking from your back. You had to convince Dabi to cut them for you, since you can't place where that at.

You also wore high-rise black jeans, and a belt that cinched your waist. Dabi knew you all too well, and knew that you've been wanting an outfit like that for a while. No rips in the jeans either, which was a surprise. You of course wore socks, but they had a lot of holes in them. But your shoes covered them perfectly. They were white and the went up past your ankle. You thought you looked perfect, especially for your first day out.

When, you stepped out, you quickly felt a breeze brush past your face, and it felt amazing. It was a true fresh breath of air. You walked around for a bit, and then saw it. There were people going in and out of it, but not as many as you thought.

When you walked in, you smelled something that almost smelled bitter, but sweet. Is it chocolate? Coffee maybe? You couldn't tell, since you never had either. When it was your turn to order, you picked the first thing that caught your eye. A chocolate drizzled frappuchino.

"U-um hi, can I get a chocolate drizzled f-frappuchino?" You said shyly, you're voice coming out more squeeky than you had thought. She was very kind, and said, well you don't really know what she said. It got drowned out by your thoughts.

Something caught your eye, it was a glance of red, almost like blood. Too much, like blood.

"Would you like a small, medium or large?". What? You had to choose? There's a difference? Oh no. Oh no oh nOoO. What do you say?

The lady must've noticed, and immediately said "Would you like a medium, it's perfect for if you want to stay but not for too long". You felt thankful that she said that, and you immediately nodded your head, heading over to the small waiting line.

You catch another glance of red, looking up immediately. You were stunned. He looked so familiar, your pretty sure you've seen him in the pictures from Shigaraki's plans. Then it clicked. All the information he told you about him.

Hero name: Hawks. Actual name : Keigo Takami. Quirk: Fierce wings, he can fly, and telepathically control the feathers that he uses. Number two fucking hero. Great. Now Dad definitely will want you back home. But for now you leave it alone, and don't pay much mind to it. You want to enjoy your first day out.

When a different lady calls your name from the counter, you walk over and take the cup and the straw. There is a fluffy substance on top, along with what you think is chocolate drizzled into the cup. You put the straw in the cup and felt at peace. You then took a sip. It's absolutely divine.

You look away for a second, and then you notice Keigo walking towards you, but you pretend to not see him and make your way towards a table.

"Hi there, you must be new around this place." You freeze. He's talking to you. Right here. Right now.

"Um, yeah I- I don't really come around this city much." You lie. You've been around plenty of times. Just not as many outside as in.

"Oh, well this place has the best coffee, anywhere in Japan, so I think you're in luck. You should come around here more often. By the way, I'm Hawks. But you can call me Takami." He said, a smile on his face. Not smug or anything, just content. Something you're not used to doing.

"U- uh okay. My dad normally doesn't let me out of the house much. I guess you can call me y/l/n." You say, not lying, but not giving the entire truth.

And then you remember it. You're wings. His wings. The way he glanced at your back when you turned away. Shit, why do you let yourself get so carried away.

"O-oh well I should get going then, I have a bad habit of over sharing." You say, that odd feeling of over sharing. But before you can leave he says,

"I'm all ears if you've got time". This time it was a familiar smile. It was a smug one almost cocky. You debated it, hit decided it would be fine, as long as you don't mention the League.

Once you start rambling he is interested, watching intently as you talk. Him asking the occasional question. And then there it was, that question. "Hey, I know it's odd but I noticed your back. It looks like there were wings there, because it looks similar to when I use all my feathers in a fight. If you don't want to explain you don't have to." He said. You started shaking. Do I want to? I'd this ok? You thought.

"Well, it's a really long story. But when I was younger, my uh... Uncles, ripped off my wings. They were afraid I would leave them. I would fly away. I wanted to become a hero, by that was torn away with my wings." You say.

"Oh wow. You know, it's ok, right? That you might now have them. Who knows, they might even grow back!" He said cheerfully.

"actually..." He stopped once you started talking, "the doctor said if they don't grow back in ten years they will never show up again. It's been 15 years. But it's ok. Who knows I may just sprout some wings soon." You say trying to be sarcastic. Because in all reality, you don't know.

"Well, I hope to see you around. Ask your dad if we can meet up again soon." Hold on. How did the number two pro hero just ask you to hangout again?

"Maybe. My- my Dad is actually pretty strict, and he doesn't really like the idea.." You take a deep breath. "..of Heroes." You say, almost quietly. You really wanted to hang out, but just couldn't. Probably. "Wait! Hold up- I could just say I'm going out for coffee instead of meeting up with you!" You decided to say. A little more enthusiastic than you wanted.

"That works!" He said, matching your energy.

You guys continued to talk, about anything and everything. By the time 4:00 rolled around, you had decided on two days from today. At the same time. About 3:15.

When you headed back, it was 4:30 on the spot. The only issue: He was there. Hawks.

"What are you doing here?!" You whispered. This was no place for a hero. Especially Hawks. He couldn't take everyone on without dying.

"Same question to you." He whispered back.

"I'll explain at the café" you told him. What else were you supposed to do? Talk to him freely now?

"Dad, what's he doing here?" You said, talking about Hawks. You could tell that he knew who you were talking about.

"He's just here... For business." You weren't buying it, but what choice did you have?

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

Two days later

"Hey.." You start. You know he knows. And he knows you know. You were just hoping you two could explain it all today.

"Hi." He said. He had no expression in his face. He normally wore a smile or a light hearted expression. But this was different. There was no smile. It was blank. Unreadable.

"So, I'm going to get straight to the point. I live there. That is my home. I don't have a choice. I didn't get to 'join' them. When I was about 4 or 5 years old, and my parents had died. They died because of a car crash. Apparently, they worked with the villains. A man, who might have been in his thirties took me to the hideout. After about a year, I went out through the door to see what the sun was like. They didn't like that." You continued. "Then they ripped off my wings. I still have all of my abilities, but nothing more. That's why I stay. If I leave, they will hunt me down. I want to leave, but I can't. Shigaraki- he's like my dad. He is only a few months older than me, but he still cared for me when no one else did. He helped me. And I won't judge you for being there either since I don't know your story. I just want to know why you, of all people, the number two fucking hero, was there." That's all you said. You stopped. And waited for him to say something.

Soon enough, his voice came out smooth, and soft. Not judging. But still serious, and him. "I'm working there- shit I'm really not supposed to tell anyone this." He took a deep breath. "I'm a spy. I'm not truly working for them, but I have to make it seem like it. Im only surprised, because I have never seen you there. Not once until yesterday. I truly am dedicated to being a hero, which is why I'm working with the league. I don't truly want to, but it helps the hero cause. Where have you been? How come I haven't ever seen you?" He asked. You answered.

"Dad doesn't like me being around for the meetings. He makes me go upstairs, and I stay there until he tells Toga or Dabi to come get me. I'm not part of the front line team. I'm the brains behind it. I have no choice but to plan it all out. The only reason I continue, is because I don't know how to stop."

That's how your 45 minute "date" went. Back and forth you two had questions and answers. You decided on meeting up every two days. Same time, same place.

Again, here you two are. Talking. And even laughing. Which you hadn't done since you were a teenager. "Yeah, I don't know where he thinks he'll get keeping me in my room, I can still hear everything. Just faintly. Can't make out individual voices."

He looked playfully dramatic shocked. "Now my quirk looks weak compared to yours." What? He really thought that? You felt a blush creep on to your cheeks.

"R- Really?"

"Yeah. I mean, in the best of ways, you literally are a bat. Everything about you. Except for, well, you."

"But how is my quirk better than yours?"

"Sweetheart, I literally can only fly and use my feathers. Even then, the more feathers I use the more difficult it is for me to fly." Really? There was more to it, you were sure. Wait- did he just call you sweetheart? The blush that crept on to your cheeks was a dark shade of pink.

"There's gotta be at least s-some speed boost o-or something, right?" The conversation continued, up until it was time for you to leave.

"Oh, and y/l/n, your wings are growing again." He said with a happy smile.

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

A/n: this might become a series, so stay tuned I guess. Bye for now 🙃

[deathbymeow]

For You, I’d Die. Chapter: 7. New Beginning

The first thing Marinette was aware of was the warm body next to hers. Her face was nuzzled up against Adrien’s bare chest and her head rested on his shoulder. Their legs were tangled together, and her arm was over his muscular torso. She felt his heartbeat against her cheek, and she let it calm her nerves. There was nothing wrong with what happened last night. Yes, the alcohol had helped her to spill her feelings, but it hadn’t made her forget herself. She’d meant every word she’d said, and everything that came after it.

Marinette wriggled under Adrien’s arm until she was almost on his chest so she could study his sleeping face. He was so handsome; he always had been. He’d kept his boyish good looks but there was an edge to it now. Maybe it was his shadowed jawline or the confidence he’d gained over the years. His body was still slim but muscular in all the right places. His blonde hair was a tousled mess and stuck up in the cutest way.

Something nagged at the back of her mind, she couldn’t for the life of her piece it together. Adrien’s eyes fluttered open and he stretched his arms then rubbed his eyes. When his sleepy eyes fell on Marinette’s face his lips curled and he gave her a goofy grin.

Oh my god he really does look like Chat, Marinette thought. No way. It’s just a coincidence. Could he be Chat? He couldn’t be, that would mean he’s been right in front of me this whole time. Adrien is just Adrien and Chat is just… Who is Chat? It was like an internal back and forth with the two sides of her brain. The logical side and the dreamer and at the moment no one was winning.

She’d come to realise over the years she loved Chat Noir deeply. Confused was an understatement when it came to her love for him, but she’d always hidden her feelings. It wasn’t safe or smart to ever go there. So, she’d always kept Chat at a safe distance, even though he was one of her best friends. Would she be happy if Adrien was Chat? Hell yes! It would be like two for the price of one, but life didn’t work that way. She wasn’t living a fairy tale and it wasn’t fair to wish for things like that.

She loved Adrien. She was finally in his arms and had a real chance at having a relationship with him, why would she even risk that with thoughts of Chat?

“Mmm, you’re still here. I’m glad it wasn’t just a dream.” Adrien said sleepily as he kissed her forehead.

Ignoring her internal turmoil, she brought her lips to his and kissed him softly. “Mmm hmm… me too.”

She brushed her nose against his before lifting her head again. “Can we just stay here and never leave?”

“Sounds like a perfect plan princess. I have everything I need right here.” He said shifting her body so they were lying on their side face to face. Marinette nuzzled her head under his chin and hugged him tight so he couldn’t see the confused look on her face.

It was just a coincidence. Princess was a term of endearment that lots of people used. Including Chat, her mind screamed.

Marinette you need to stop, she internally told herself. She inhaled and her nose was filled with the scent of Adrian. He smelt of coconut shower gel. His body was warm against hers and responding in ways that made her want him. She brought her face back up to his and kissed him passionately pushing her body firmly against his. He moaned into her mouth and moved on top of her. With his legs between hers she could feel just how much he wanted her. Marinette’s hands ran down his back as she wrapped her legs around him and pulled him against her. He responded by moaning against her ear sending a tingle down her spine and between her legs.

“You don’t need to run off and have a shower now do you?” She whispered into his ear.

“Not unless you’re coming with me.” He breathed, emphasising the word coming.

She giggled and playfully bit his lower lip. His hand slipped under the t-shirt she wore and cupped her breast, his thumb softly brushed over her nipple. Her back arched in response and he smiled against her lips. Her hands pulled at his pants, she wanted to feel all of him against her. She could feel his hesitation. Adrien had good morals, but she didn’t want to wait, they could talk later but right now she wanted him. She needed him.

There was a loud knock on the door. “Adrien, we need to talk.”

“You have to be kidding me.” He growled as he flopped face first onto the pillow next to Marinette’s head.

“Is that your father?” Marinette squeaked. “I thought he was out of town.”

“Yeah, he’s meant to be.” Adrien rolled of Marinette and covered his eyes with his hands.

“I’m so sorry, Marinette.” Taking his hands away he turned his head to look into her blue eyes.

“It’s OK, we’ve waited this long, right?” She kissed his nose. As frustrated as she was, it wasn’t his fault. “Umm, do you want me to hide?” She asked looking around his large loft apartment.

Adrien’s bed was on the upper level but due to the open floor plan there was only glass panels that did nothing other than stopping someone falling to the lower level. In fact, there really wasn’t anywhere to hide other than the bathroom.

*

Adrien kissed her lips and brushed her hair out of her face. “You Marinette Dupain-Cheng, are someone I never want to hide. I know we haven’t really done much talking yet.” As if to prove a point he kissed her passionately. “But I want this. I want you.”

It was her turn to kiss him this time and they didn’t break apart until there was another loud knock at the door.

“Adrien, I know you are home.”

Adrien groaned. “To be continued.” He kissed her nose and sat up, swinging his legs off the bed, frustrated at the situation. And this was why he’d brought his own place. There was never any privacy at the mansion and his father knew nothing of boundaries. Over the last few years Gabriel had tried to be a better father, if you could call it that. But Adrien didn’t want anything to do with it. He was always polite to his father and they worked together but he didn’t crave his attention or praise like he’d done as a child.

He grabbed a hoodie off the floor and pulled it over his head, then lent down and kissed Marinette again before heading downstairs to open the door as his father knocked again.

“You could have called first.” Adrien snapped, opening the heavy wooden door.

“And you wouldn’t have answered Adrien.” Gabriel said walking around Adrien. Gabriel’s bodyguard, Angus nodded at Adrien but stayed in the hallway.

“It’s early and a Saturday, so yeah probably not but I don’t see what could be so important.” Adrian followed his father into the kitchen located under the upper level. He sat at the table and watched his father start to prepare the coffee machine. Gabriel pulled three cups out of the cupboard. Of course, he knew, he knew everything Adrien did.

“Yes, it is Saturday, but it’s 11:30am Adrien. Now how does Mlle Dupain-Cheng take her coffee?”

“Cut the crap Gabriel, why are you here? Aren’t you meant to be in New York?” Adrien was in no mood for pleasantries.

“Adrien, I understand we have had our differences, but I am still your father. I have not come here to argue. I am here to advice yourself and Mlle Dupain-Cheng.” He stopped what he was doing and took his glasses off to rub the bridge of his nose before replacing them and staring at Adrien.

“I don’t understand what you’re on about.” Adrien was confused and frustrated. How had his morning gone from kissing Marinette to this?

“Good morning, Monsieur Agreste.”

Adrien felt his anger ease as his eyes fell on Marinette. She was wearing one of his shirts as a dress with a belt around her waist accentuating her figure. The blue of the materiel matched her blue eyes. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun and her feet were bare.

“I wish I could say it was a good morning Mlle Dupain-Cheng. We have a media issue. Have either of you seen the news this morning?”  

Adrien turned to Marinette as she sat down next to him. He took her hand in his ignoring his fathers raised eyebrows.

“No, and I don’t see how it affects us.” Adrien said taking the coffee from his father.

“Let me start by saying you’re a grown man now Adrien. What you do in privacy is your business. What you do in public is unfortunately not. It becomes the company’s business and as long as you are representing the Agreste name I expect you to behave in a certain way.” He raised his hand to cut Adrien off. “Let me finish Adrien. I have no problem with this pairing. I think Mlle Dupain-Cheng will be good for you, but that said.” He reached inside his coat and pulled out several newspapers. As he put it on the bench in front of the pair Marinette gasped as she read the headline. Adrien picked it up to get a better look.

Luka Couffaine long-term girlfriend’s wild night with

model and bachelor of the year Adrien Agreste.

Did the night end with an engagement?

Adrien Agreste breaks DJ’s nose defending his lover.

Distraught Couffaine seen at airport this morning.

How will the rock heart throb react when he confronts the

love of his life Marinette Dupain-Cheng?

Were just a few of the headlines. Adrien threw the paper back onto the bench. Pictures from the nightclub were plastered all over the front pages.  In the pictures the two were dancing looking very much like a couple. Marinette licking his hand while doing shots. Marinette trying on Alix ring and Adrien looking at her hand smiling. The sleazy reporters had flipped the picture to look like it was her wedding finger. Adrien punching the DJ and getting dragged off the stage and the pair leaving in a taxi together. Last was a picture of Luka looking miserable at an airport somewhere in Europe.

Marinette sat frozen next to him. He wanted to hold her and tell her it would all workout, but something told him that she needed a moment.

“This is bullshit.” He pointed at the paper standing up and walking towards the over sized windows that looked out over Paris.

“Adrien, you should be careful not to stand to close to the windows. There are reporters on the street waiting for you both.” He turned to Marinette. “How do you take your coffee Mlle Dupain-Cheng?”

“Umm… two sugars and cream please.” Marinette answered looking distant.

“So, what now father?” He asked looking back to Marinette. He was furious. Marinette didn’t deserve any of this.

Luka wasn’t famous when he’d started to date Marinette, but over the years as his band got more successful, the closer the press had watched Marinette. Adrien realized he was only going to make it worse for her now that she would be linked to the Agreste name. He sat back down and wrapped her in his arms. She buried her head under his chin, and he could feel her small body shake.

“We need to give the press a statement. Nothing too personal. But we need to put these rumours to rest. Luka Couffaine holds a lot of followers and has modelled for Agreste, we don’t need him giving us a bad name. Mlle Dupain-Cheng works under you Adrien, we need to address that as well.”

“This is ridicules, I’ve known Marinette since I was thirteen. It’s not like I used my position at Agreste to my advantage.” He hated the media. It was one thing to write crap about him, he’d become adapt to it over the years. But it was entirely another thing to bring Marinette into it.

“Yes, I understand Adrien, but the media will run with it.” Gabriel said as he sat across from them.

Marinette let go of Adrien and turned to Gabriel. “This is my fault Monsieur, I apologize, I… I didn’t think about any of this. I broke up with Luka two weeks ago. I never thought it needed to be made public news.”

“Marinette, it’s not your fault. You haven’t asked for any of this. It’s because of who Luka and I are. You shouldn’t have to put up with any of this.” Adrien was having trouble controlling his anger.

“Adrien your emotions will not help the situation. I see Mille Dupain-Cheng. That does help the situation some.”

“Marinette… Please call me Marinette.” She wasn’t Gabriel Agreste’s biggest fan when it came to parenting. In fact, she hated the way he’d treated Adrien. She still had a feeling he had something to do with Hawkmoth or worse was Hawkmoth but since Hawkmoth hadn’t been active for years, she had been forced to let it go.

“Marinette. Do not be to hard on you’re self. You are both young adults and it is normal to want to do normal things. Unfortunately, the media thrive on events such as this.” He turned to Adrien. “And violent altercations does not help the matter either Adrien.” He eyed Adrien’s bruised hand.

“Yeah well that asshole deserved it.” Adrien snapped.

“All the same, my lawyer has contacted him with a settlement figure to make it go away. That is the kind of media we can avoid Adrien.”

“So, the guy gets away with being an asshole and you throw money at him? Great.”

“Adrien to keep a public façade, you have to learn to let things go. Sometime life isn’t fair, but you’re not a child anymore Adrien.”  With that Gabriel stood. “Our publicist will prepare a statement and email it to you before it is release to the press. In the meantime, I suggest you both stay here until the media dies down. I will have some clothes sent over for you Marinette.”

“Thank you, Monsieur.” Marinette said, feeling suddenly very aware that she was wearing Adrien’s shirt and how it must look.

“One more thing before I leave. I know it is none of my business but how do you want our publicist to address this relationship? Is it a one off or…?”

Both Adrien and Marinette said “No.” at the same time. Gabriel looked at both of them and nodded. “Very well, shall we simply call it a… new beginning?”

Adrien looked at Marinette, her cheeks were slightly pink, but she held his gaze and nodded.

“Yes.” Adrien answered not taking his eyes off Marinette.

Gabriel nodded. “Very well then. I’ll let myself out. Good day.” He turned and left.

“I’m so sorry Marinette.” Adrien said once the door closed. He wrapped his arms around her again.

She leant against him and closed her eyes. “Don’t be. It’s not your fault. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have gone out last night.”

“Don’t. If you hadn’t of been there you wouldn’t have ended up here.” Adrien lifted her up and carried her over to the lounge.

He flopped down onto the lounge still cradling Marinette in his arms. “Are you hungry? I’ll cook us breakfast and we can talk about you know, stuff.” He looked at her with questioning eyes.

Marinette pulled his face to hers and kissed him. “Don’t you mean lunch?” She breathed into his ear.

“Same, same.” He moved her off his lap and leaned over her covering her face and neck with butterfly kisses.

Marinette giggled as his lips brushed against her neck. It was like music to his ears as he rubbed his nose against her soft hair. “I could get use to this, Purrincess.”

Chapter: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

[robinrunsfiction]

Can I request literally anything fluffy with ray? There is such a lack of Ray fics and that makes me sad.

Boy Next Door

Pairing: Ray Toro x Gender Neutral ReaderRating: GeneralRequested By: AnonWord Count: ~2,200Author’s Note: I had been working on this one for a few days now, and since today seems to be a bit of a Ray Toro appreciation day over on my main, I got this finished and I’m posting it today! Yay for more Ray! In this house we love and respect adorable musical geniuses! Also I think I managed to keep it pretty gender neutral, I hope everyone enjoys!

You pulled the last box out of the back of your car andhauled it inside with frustrated sigh. You had just moved out of your apartmentthat you had shared with your ex, and back into your parents’ home. To say youwere frustrated and disappointed with the turn your life took was andunderstatement.

When you moved in with your significant other, you hoped itwould help your relationship because you had trouble communicating. Sadly,things turned from not great to insufferable quickly and you moved out as soonas the lease was up. Adding insult to injury, the only place you could go was back toyour parents house for the first place in years.

“I still think its too bad you couldn’t have just bought thehouse next door,” your mom said as you sat the box on the table. “But I’ll haveto introduce you to the young man who did purchase it, he’s verynice.”

“Mom, moving back in at my age is bad enough, buying thehouse next door would not have been much better.”

“Don’t worry sweetie, we’ll get your life back on track soonenough,” your mom said rubbing your arms.

“I didn’t realize I was that far off track,” you mutteredbefore retreating to your room.

~

A few weeks later you had settled into a routine thatquickly felt like a combination of who you were since moving out and being anadult, and who you were years before when you were a teenager. For the mostpart living with your parents again wasn’t too bad since you never had to cook,and your laundry was done before you even realized that it needed washing. Thedownside was you couldn’t stay out late without it being an issue, but youweren’t going out much, having sworn off dating for a while.

On a particularly sunny and warm Saturday, you were sittingout in your bathing suit when you heard your mom talking to someone.

“(YN), come here a moment,” she called. You rolled your eyesand slid on your sandals before joining her at the fence. “Ray, this is (YN), (YN), this is our new neighbor Ray.”

“Nice to meet you (YN),” he said as he extended his handover the fence in greeting. He was so cute and your parents hadn’t told you!You pushed your sunglasses back to the top of your head and smiled as you shookhis hand.

‘No, no, you’re notdating for three months, besides you don’t even know his deal,’ you scoldedyourself. “Nice to meet you too,” you replied.

“(YN) just moved back in after a breakup,” your momexplained rather unnecessarily.

“Thanks mom,” you said rolling your eyes. She smiled andwalked away. “Well that was awkward,” you said with a laugh.

“That’s moms for ya,” he laughed. “So, what do you do?”

You chatted about your job for a little bit before askingabout his work.

“Oh, I’m a musician, I play guitar.”

You tried not to gasp audibly as your eyes went wide. Eitheryour parents didn’t know, or they were holding out that knowledge from you. They knew your type included musicians.

“Oh wow,” you murmured.‘What part of three months of you not understand?!’ your brain screamed.

“Yea, it’s what I’ve always loved to do. Actually I gottaget going, I have a rehearsal soon, but I’ll see you around.”

“Yea, nice to meet you.”

Ray turned to leave, but then turned back. “Hey, (YN), sorryif this is really forward, but would you like to go out sometime?”

“Three months.” The words tumbled out of your mouth beforeyou could even stop to think.

“What?” he asked, confused.

“Sorry,” you said shaking your head. “I swore I wouldn’tdate for 3 months from the day I moved back here. Just to make sure I wasn’tjust jumping into something too soon.”

“Oh, ok, I understand,” he smiled.

“Thanks,” you replied. He waved and headed back into hishouse.

~

From then on, you spent as much time as you could outside inhopes of running into Ray, which you did quite a bit. You found you weregetting to know him and you were really starting to like him for more thanbeing cute and a guitarist. The next thing you knew, it was the end of summer and youwere enjoying some of the last warm weather while reading outside.

“Hey, (YN),” Ray waved as he headed out his back door,guitar in hand.

You set down your book and went over to the fence. “Hey,where you off to today?”

“We got a gig tonight,” he said with a smile.

“Oh cool,” you smiled.

“Hey, I was, umm, I hope you don’t think this is weird, butit’s been three months and one day, and I was wondering if you’d maybe like togo out some time?”

You grinned. You could hardly believe that he actually kepttrack of the time since you moved in and knew you were off your dating hiatus. “Yea,I think I’m ready now,” you nodded.

“Wanna grab a drink tonight?”

“Sure, text me and I’ll meet up with you,” you replied.

“I don’t have your number,” he replied shyly.

“Oh duh,” you laughed as he pulled out his phone and youtyped in your number.

“Ok, I’ll see ya tonight,” he smiled.

“Can’t wait,” you replied.

~

That night you had gotten ready and were hoping your parentswouldn’t notice you slipping out of the house.

“Where are you headed (YN)?” Your dad asked just before youmade it out the front door.

You groaned internally. “Meeting up with a friend for adrink, I won’t be late,” you replied quickly.

“Make good choices, be safe,” he called as you hurried outthe door.

You got to the bar and from outside you could hear livemusic. When you got inside you found it was Ray playing with a band. Yougrabbed a stool at the bar and ordered your drink. The band played one more song before packing up and Rayspotted you.

“Hey, you guys are awesome. I didn’t realize you wereplaying here, or I would have come over sooner!”

“I didn’t know if you’d be into our music and I didn’t want youto feel like you had to check us out,” he replied sitting down.

“I’d love to check out a whole show sometime,” you replied.

“Really? I’ll let you know when we have our next one comingup.”

You and Ray chatted for quite a while. You really felt likeyou were clicking with him and almost regretting giving yourself that three-monthbreak from dating. You decided to make a move, putting your hand on his as yousmiled back at him.

“Thanks for waiting for me and asking me out again. I justdidn’t want to get into a rebound situation, ya know?”

“I understand,” he replied with a smile. “I’m just glad itwasn’t a long-term plan to blow me off.”

You laughed. “No, I would have said yes right then, but,”you shrugged. “I’d like to go out again if you would too?”

Ray turned his hand over, so he was holding yours. “Yea I’dreally like that.”

He picked up his guitar with his free hand and you both walkedout the door hand in hand to your car. “So I guess, I’ll see you around then,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to it,” you replied. Ray pulled yourhand to his lips and gently placed a kiss. You had to keep from audibly gasping,a shiver running up and down your spine as a smile grew even larger on yourface.

“Goodnight (YN),” he said as he walked back toward his car.You slipped into the driver seat and squealed.

~

The following weekend you again met Ray for a date, thistime for dinner and a movie. As you sat in the darkness of the theater, Ray tentativelyput his arm around your shoulder, and you settled against him. You smiled andthought about how glad you were to be here, but then a thought dawned on you. Yourealized that your parents would likely catch on soon to the fact that you andRay were seeing each other. How many times would you be able to both arrivehome at the same time before they put it together? Wouldn’t Ray want to hang out at his house some time too,and its not like they wouldn’t notice you just walking next door. You didn’teven notice when the movie ended, completely lost in your thoughts.

“Did you like the movie?” You heard Ray ask, snapping youback to reality.

“Oh, yea, sorry I kinda spaced out a little.”

“Oh, ok,” he seemed dejected and a pang of guilt struckthrough you.

“No, I was just thinking about how my parents are going to notice us going outsoon. They’re nosey to say the least,” you explained as the credits of the movieplayed behind you.

“Yea, I noticed from the line of questioning they’d give meevery time they saw me when I first moved in,” he laughed.

“I just don’t want you to get scared off by them,” you saidearnestly, looking him in the eye.

“(YN), I really like you. And I met your parents before Imet you, I know what I’m signing up for,” he said with a sweet smile. Yousmiled back and suddenly you were leaning together as the cinematic overture played. Your lips met for the first time as the song reached its climax.His lips were soft and gentle against yours as he reached up and held yourcheek in his large hands. In the moment you didn’t want it to ever end. You wanted the scene to fade to black like a movie, your happily ever after.

~

Over the next few weeks you were careful about sneakingaround with Ray. He didn’t really care if your parents knew you were dating ornot, but you did. You were still struggling with the fact that you were an adultliving back at home and dating the guy next door didn’t help matters any.

In the meantime, you had developed a habit of staying outlate enough that your parents were already in bed by the time you snuck in. It wasautumn now, and you and Ray had been going out for months. You were a little nervous youwere falling too quickly, but he was so much better in every way than anyoneelse you had ever dated. He made you feel safe and cared for, plus he was so cute,you always had so much fun, and his musical talent made you melt.

One Friday night you had met up with Ray right after workand had another great date. When you arrived back at your parents’ house, yousaw all the lights were out, but you didn’t think twice about it.

“Can I walk you home?” Ray said getting out of his car inhis driveway as you got out of yours parked on the street. You grinned at him ashe made his way over to you.

“You just can’t get enough of me, can you?” You grinned.

“You know that’s true,” he said as he wrapped his armsaround your waist, and you draped your arms over his shoulders. He leaned inand kissed you with the passion and warmth that you had grown to love. When youpulled back and looked into his eyes, your breath forming clouds above yourheads. He kept his arm around your waist as you walked up to the front stepswhere you sat down, gazing at what stars you could see above you, the citylights dimming them out.

“I’m so glad you’re mine,” Ray said softly, and you lookedover at him. “(YN), I love you.”

“I love you too,” you replied nodding and smiling. You grabbedhis face and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Suddenly headlights from a car illuminatedyou and you pulled back shocked to see your parents pulling into the garage.You gave Ray a horrified look, but he was laughing.

“Well at least they know now!” he said between laughter.

“Ugh, there’s going to be no living with them now,” youreplied letting you head rest against his shoulder. Then you heard the dooropen behind you. You glanced up at your parents staring down at you both.

“I suspected this for weeks now! I’m so happy for you kids,”she grinned before going back into the house.

“Make good choices,” your dad imparted before following yourmom.

“Welcome to the family,” you said with a shrug.

“I said it before, I know what I was signing up for,” hesmiled before leaning in for another quick kiss. “And I wouldn’t change it forthe world.”

Masterlist

[ganglylimbs]

Geoff’s Very No Good, Bad Day

Fandom: RT/ Fake AH Crew

Summary: Geoff wakes up with a headache. The headache’s name is Trevor. His day does not get better from there. 

Notes: In an effort to ge me to write more, I’m doing the Writer’s month challenge. This is for day 1, the prompt: Annoyance

Warnings: Lots of swearing. Geoff also makes a lot of humoristic comments towards suicide. 

Geoff wakes up with a headache. Whether it’s from sleeping at his desk, bones cracking as he sits up , or because Trevor slams open the door, startling him enough that he jumps back in his seat, he’s unsure. The sudden shift in weight is enough to over tip his chair, sending Geoff to the ground. 

Geoff takes a moment to reconsider his life and the many bad decisions that had led him here. Then he picks up his gun and points it vaguely in the direction of Trevor’s voice. 

“Leave.” 

Trevor, the fucker, doesn’t even blink. “Hey Geoff. Having fun down there?” 

“I will not hesitate.” 

“Cool, cool,” Trevor nods. “I have those reports you need to sign.” 

“The Schnuer ones?” 

“Yeah.” 

“I will put a bullet in you, don’t test me.” 

Trevor has the gall to laugh at him, as if Geoff’s finger isn’t twitching over the trigger. He is not in the fucking mood. “I see someone hasn’t had their coffee yet.” 

“Trevor.” 

“Did you sleep here? That must of been uncomfortable.”

“I’m going to count to three.” 

“I guess that explains it. Do you want me to book you a massage? Want a happy ending?”

“One.” 

“Are you embarrassed that you can’t get up? Do you need Life Alert?”

“Two.” 

Trevor laughs again, setting the papers down. “Ok, ok. I’m leaving.” He grins all the way to the door. Geoff does not relax. 

Halfway out, Trevor turns, eyes twinkling. “By the way, you have a meeting with the Wilson Sisters in an hour. I would get going if you want to make it on time.” 

Trevor manages to close the door before the gun goes off. 

                                                                  ~

The headache stays with him all day and absolutely does not get better. 

Geoff knows he looks like shit when he arrives at the meeting, having fore gone a shower and shave and deciding that yesterday’s clothes will have to be Good Enough, but he does not give a shit. He’s here and he made it on time. 

Still the way Gavin and Ryan chuckle at him when he arrives makes a vein throb in his forehead.  

The Wilson Sisters are just as annoying as ever, with their insistence that Geoff buy his weapons only from them because they are the best around (true but fuck them if Geoff is going to agree to their terms). 

Gavin, because fuck the universe and fuck Geoff’s life, is in a Mood. He wants to play. 

And, because double fuck his life and the universe as a whole, Ryan is indulgent. 

Which means Geoff has to stand there, wishing for death, as Gavin flirts with one of the sisters (Deliah? Danny?), making her squeal with laughter. On the other side, Ryan buts in on Geoff’s conversations with randon facts that range from innocent (“Did you know a group of cats is called a clowder?”) to downright creepy (“Did you know your bones can self-destruct?”). No one besides Geoff seems to be bothered by this, so no matter how many times Geoff tells him to fuck off, Ryan ignores him. 

Geoff takes a long suffering sigh, tells the Sisters that fuck no, they will stick to the original contract, then leaves because he needs a goddamn donut. 

He gets a winky face text from Gavin and consideres, for a full ten seconds, just ramming his car into a building. 

                                                          ~

Geoff gets his donut. He does not get to enjoy his donut. 

Jeremy calls, asking for bail money. Geoff tells him to call Jack and is so close to hanging up on him when Jeremy tells him that Jack needs bail money too. 

Geoff stares mournfully at the Sun. 

The Sun gives no shits. 

It’s a long drive to the police station because the road is full of assholes and by the time he arrives, the headache is well on it’s way to being a full migraine. 

Officer McFuckFace (Geoff maybe knows his name? He sees the fucker enough he should. He just can’t be bothered to remember) sneers at him. 

“Ramsey.”

Geoff, very politely and with much restraint, does not call him Officer McFuckFace out loud. He wants this done and over with. “What did the idiots supposedly do now?” 

McFuckFace snorts at the supposedly. “Started a bar fight.” 

Geoff nods. Suicide is looking great at this point. 

“Then, when police got involved, they lead them into a high speed chase.” 

Scratch that. Murder is the way to go. 

“The mooning was fun to add to the list, I have to admit.” 

Just a full on blood path. 

Geoff starts the long process of trying to get his idiots out. It takes a full 2 hours (even when his lawyers show up) and by then Geoff is begging for death. 

The idiots are not merciful. 

Jack has a black eye. Michael has dried blood under his nose and a ripped shirt. Jeremy is...Jeremy. A fucking disaster. 

Geoff goes to leave them on the sidewalk but they fucking bully him into taking them to the penthouse. Assholes. 

                                                            ~

Geoff has paperwork to do and a list of people he needs to contact. But first, he needs a fucking nap. 

His head hits his pillow and his door opens. He turns and hisses. 

Lindsay just blinks. “Hey, Geoff we need you.” 

“You’re big boys and girls, whatever it is, you can figure out on your own.” 

“Well.” 

Geoff immediately buries his face in his pillow because that tone means that someone is about it die. 

“There is a fire in the kitchen.” 

It’s Geoff. Geoff is going to die. 

He rolls out of bed and stomps into the kitchen before coming to a stop. Yep. That sure is a fire. 

Matt and Fiona look at him. Geoff stares at them desperately. Behind them, the fire reigns. 

“What did you do?” 

“Umm, maybe we should discuss this after we stop the fire?” Fiona says. 

By the time the fire is put out, the kitchen is a mess. The entire thing will have to be replaced. 

Geoff is so close to crying. 

“We just wanted to make some mac n’ cheese.”

“Just,” Geoff puts his head in his hands. “You’re banned. All of you, banned from the kitchen.” 

Matt seems put out but Fiona just nods. “That’s fair.” 

He makes them clean the kitchen and escapes to his office. At least there, he should get some peace. 

                                                             ~

Geoff is a fool. A goddamn fool. There is no peace. There is no rest. There is only hell. 

The entire. Damn. Crew is there. They trickle in ones and twos, grinning like the demons they are. They don’t even look at Geoff slumped in his chair, just continue to talk to each other.

Geoff’s head hits the desk. Someone eventually walks over, massaging his shoulders. As annoying as it is, Geoff finds himself relaxing. 

Someone else places pizza next to him and a drink. They continue to quietly talk to each other, about their day and tomorrow’s plans. There’s a rustle of paper and Geoff opens one eye. Trevor is talking with Fiona and Ryan, filling out the paperwork he had brought this morning. 

Wordlessly, Geoff reaches for his food and slowly eats it. Jack continues to work on his shoulders. 

Ok. Geoff guesses everyone gets to live today.

[kirinda-ondo]

Rant/tell me about Cobalt and why u love him so much??

Ok so this is probably going to get very long, and very, very cheesy, and I hope y’all are ready for this.

Cobalt is a very special character to me and is absolutely my favorite character of all time, from anything in the history of ever. It doesn’t matter what other fandom I’m hyperfixated on or what character I’m saying is my son at the moment, if you bring him up at any time, in any context I will be there.

So you’re probably wondering how I got here.

Once upon a time, it was 2009 and I was a young weeaboo, constantly absorbing everything anime or manga I could. I had just come out from the Astro Boy movie, and I immediately wanted to watch the source material. I’d already seen a bit of it on adult swim when they were running an Astro Boy marathon, but I had to go to bed at 11:30 then so I didn’t get to see much. So this time, I went to youtube and I found all the (dubbed) episodes of the 60s series. (Sadly you can’t find them all there anymore and it’s a crying shame).

I basically marathoned them, but over in the sidebar where the recommendations were, I kept seeing the thumbnail for part 2 or 3 (this was back when youtube only let you post 10 minute videos and you had to watch anime in 3 parts) of the episode “Brother Jetto.” You could plainly see him, and so it was clear this was supposed to be Astro’s brother. I thought it was neat that Astro even had a brother, as I’d only known about Uran before. I wanted to know more, but I promised myself I wouldn’t skip ahead. Though it was very tempting at times, I stuck to my guns and watched all 83 episodes up to that point.

However, it was not actually love at first sight. When I finally got to this episode 84, I wasn’t really impressed. “Wow, he’s kind of annoying, what’s the point?” I had thought like a fool, but I was still willing to accept him as part of the canon, as I figured I’d be seeing a lot more of him now that he had been introduced. After all, that’s what they did with Uran! But then…. that pretty much didn’t happen at all, which I thought was kind of weird. After all, why introduce a new sibling if he’s not going to show up again?

But then I got to the episode “A Deep, Deep Secret” about 6 episodes later, and I found myself a little relieved that he wasn’t completely canned. Upon watching that episode, I’d found that he’d started to grow on me a bit, but he still wasn’t my favorite. However, the trend of him being gone for several episodes only to show up once in a blue moon continued until I’d run out of episodes. I moved on to the 80s series next (and then the 2003 series) having learned that Cobalt had been replaced by Atlas as Astro’s brother. While I enjoyed those series (the 80s one a bit moreso than the 2003 one), I found myself kind of missing Astro’s dingus brother that had barely seemed to get a chance. After marathoning all the series (at the time), I started doing some googling and found out he had a slightly better run in the undubbed Japanese episodes (which was also how I discovered AB-O! Hi fandom!) and I’d learned a lot more about him. But the most important thing I’d learned was that I was in fact very emotionally invested in this character now and I was in deep.

Mind you at this time the undubbed Japanese episodes were nearly impossible to find without purchasing the complete DVD set and a player that could play them (on account of the fact that the set was region locked from western DVD players) so for years I sat wondering more about what those Japanese episodes were like, as the forums only had plot summaries with a handful of screencaps to go off of. Nowadays you can watch all the undubbed (and sadly unsubbed) episodes here but 13 year old me did not have the knowledge to do foreign language googling at the time.

But still, my Cobalt-loving heart wanted more, so I scoured the English speaking internet for whatever I could find, official or fanmade. Official content was virtually nonexistent, and the amount of fanmade content, I could count on one hand. The general fan consensus at the time seemed to be “Who the hell is Cobalt” or “Eh, whatever,” which was a far cry from how it is now. But being horribly deprived back then, I did the only thing I could: I combed through the dub for every episode he was in, coming up with a whopping total of…..four (well technically five but in that one he’s literally only in the last five seconds with no animation or lines), and I watched them religiously. I could pretty much quote Cobalt’s debut episode by heart. (For the record I can no longer do this to the extent I used to, but should the opportunity arise, I can still quote large chunks of it).

As I did this and learned more about him in my desperate googling, I started developing jokes for what would become my first silly comics, for which I am known in this fandom for. The art and writing for these was….. painful, to say the least, so I don’t even like to think about it, but as I’d already had a decently sized following from drawing silly (read: bad) Sonic comics, they caught on decently well, and I’d even managed to drag my friend and son down with me into Cobalt Hell™. Together, we made a group for Cobalt fans on deviantart (which is still up, but I no longer run it, as I deactivated the account that modded it without transferring ownership, so now it’s likely a wild west hellscape that I’m a little scared to look at).

This seemed to help do the trick though, as Cobalt fans were slowly coming out of the woodwork and appreciating this good boy. On and off I’d spread my yelling about Cobalt (and my silly drawings) to different platforms like the Astro Boy forums and tumblr, and even as I got into different things, after awhile, things kinda grew without me. Now I’m not gonna be out here claiming I built this city myself with my own two hands, as a lot of people got dragged into this hell of their own accord, but I do like to think my, umm….passion at least helped generate some interest, and I can’t help but be proud of how far this fandom has come from “Who the hell is Cobalt” to “Look at this good boy, I love him” and literally all the other Cobalt fans I’ve met have been the coolest people (in general, not just because of their good taste).

I think what really changed my life though was when AprilSeven, a mod on the Astro Boy forum and also probably the original Cobalt fan, as she’d seen the 60s version back when it was originally airing, finally got a hold of the undubbed Japanese episodes, and graciously allowed me and a few of the other big-name Cobalt fans get in on that action, and boy howdy, the screenshots and plot summaries really did not do these episodes justice (at least in terms of Cobalt content). My understanding of him as a character expanded like tenfold, and my appreciation of him expanded even more than that.

…Which brings me into a nice segue in which I shift more into just exactly why I like Cobalt so much. Yes, there’s more. I warned y'all, this was gonna be a Pandora’s Box that could not be closed once it was opened.

I honestly just find him a joy to watch. A lot of what made him grow on me was just how funny he is. I’m a sucker for comic relief characters in general, and he has a personality that lends itself to comedy. In the anime version, he’s literally introduced right out the gate as being kind of a dingus. He’s naive, he’s way too trusting of obviously suspicious people, he’s easily confused, he’s easily distracted, he’s a klutz, and he just… regularly destroys the laws of physics and/or the fourth wall just because. Sometimes he also gets weird ideas in his head to do things that could have been done a completely different, easier way and weirdly enough, it actually kind of winds up working? It’s so fun to watch him approach problems because he’s just… so far out there sometimes.

But beyond being absolutely weird and hilarious, he’s just a really sweet kid. He doesn’t like to fight, he wants to make friends with everyone and everything, he will drop literally anything he’s doing, no matter how important it is, to help someone in need, he’s good with babies and small children and puppies (sometimes), he would fight (and sacrifice himself) for his family, and just means well even if he tends to bungle things up and make them worse sometimes. Honestly, and this is gonna sound dumb, but he helped me be a better person. I used to be an absolute asshole when I was younger, but once I’d gotten into Cobalt Hell™, I was like “I wanna be that sweet and good (but with a better sense of stranger danger)” and I made that effort and did that shit.

That being said though, he’s not perfect, and I wouldn’t want him to be. His flaws, though they kind of give him the short end of the stick in life, are a lot of why I find him so endearing. All the naivety and confusion and general lack of coordination I mentioned before aside, he’s honestly just really relatable. He’ll say jokes so bad that Uran wants to punch him, he’ll opt out of the plot because he doesn’t want to get out of bed, he’ll fight with his siblings over silly petty things, he’ll get frustrated if he tries something and it doesn’t go his way, he’ll absolutely partake in his siblings’ mischief (if not start it sometimes), and just so much more. He just feels like a kid you would know (or maybe a kid that you were at one point) and I really appreciate that about him.

Unfortunately, the canon was not kind to Cobalt, and I think a lot of that comes from Osamu Tezuka just… not knowing what to do with him after making him? Like in the manga, he was just kind of created as a really rushed contingency plan because they thought Astro was missing. Sure, he was taken in as part of the family afterward, but not many appearances later, he was killed off in a firey explosion… Until Tezuka decided to change his mind and let him live in the end. His grave’s still there though. He gets to see it. I know it’s a framing device to explain the circumstances of Cobalt’s retconned death but it’s kind of fucked up to let a boy see his own grave..

Even being brought back, Cobalt didn’t get to do very much. He’d get some good scenes with Uran, but a lot of the time, he was sort of just relegated to filling up space in the background, provided he actually survived til the end of the chapter. When he wasn’t getting forgotten by the plot and thusly zapped out of existence, he would wind up sacrificing himself in some way that wouldn’t allow him to continue to take part in the plot anymore (be it parts, energy, etc.) The most painfully egregious example of this is in the chapter “Youth Gas.” Astro and Cobalt are convinced to fight each other to the “death.” They’re not really dead, but Ochanomizu says they are and can’t be repaired. At first, there’s mourning for “two of the world’s greatest robots,” but then we see a funeral service in which only Astro’s body is shown and his parents are only mourning him, completely forgetting Cobalt exists. He’s never seen again for the rest of the chapter. Now I would assume this is just a writing mistake, but it really does make it look like Cobalt’s own parents wouldn’t even bat an eye if he died, so there’s that.

The anime isn’t quite as horrible, and it is kind enough to give Cobalt a more prominent role once he finally shows up (even getting a handful of focus episodes!), but he doesn’t go unscathed either. In this version, he has the misfortune of being created by Dr. Umataro “Father of the Year” Tenma before Astro was made and was scrapped because, to quote dub!Ochan, “his electronic brain wasn’t as perfect as Dr. [Tenma] wanted.” (read: he thought Cobalt was a dumbass). Cobalt is eventually found and brought into the family, but because he still winds up not being relevant to the plot a lot of the time, he is once again zapped out of the existence and looks like a victim of child neglect. As a result, he gets left out of family vacations and holidays, even in favor of Chi-tan, who is usually even higher on the scale of irrelevant Astro Boy characters. Unlike Astro, Cobalt doesn’t have any consistent friends to even remotely justify what he could possibly be doing offscreen by himself, so it just kind of implies a very sad and lonely existence in-universe.

And of course, the final, meta blow that literally every fan of Cobalt is still despairing about to this day: basically being yeeted out of the canon. After the 60s series, he disappeared off the face of the earth until 2015 when some lovely soul decided to bring him back for Peeping Life TV: Season 1?? (The question marks are part of the title). He’d be referenced again a couple years later in Atom: The Beginning, and will be here for the game Eshigami no Kizuna sometime in 2019 as a… moe anime girl. That’s a little weird, but I’m hoping these sorts of weird appearances will mean a trend toward putting him back in the canon (and hopefully being treated better).

It just hurts my heart to see such a good character get treated like this by canon. He deserves way better and it just seems really clear to me that Tezuka didn’t really know what to do with him. I feel like he has a lot of potential as a character, though. Regardless of what origin you pick for him, Cobalt is essentially existing as a worse version of Astro. I feel like you could have some good character development regarding how he would feel about himself in relation to Astro in sort of a parallel to how Astro might feel about himself in relation to Tobio, the person he was based off of. You could go some neat places with these sort of questions about identity and expectations, I think. Or if you want to just do something funny because your character arcs are getting too real now, you can just let Cobalt do some silly shit. He’s a versatile character!

I’ve done all this rambling and now I’m not really sure how to wrap all this up, so umm

Cobalt is a good boy and deserves better, please hire me Tezuka Productions, and thank you for coming to my TED Talk

[robinruns]

I was tagged by @warriorduckie to fill this out! 

Name: Robin

Star sign: Virgo

Gender: Female

Height: 5′7″

Sexuality: Bi

Wallpaper: On my phone? A tree-lined street road with the IDKHow lyrics “Feels like we’re having a good time” on it. On my computer, its an anchor with Feminist Killjoy around it

Where do you see yourself in ten years: Bih I don’t even know where I’ll be in 10 minutes. That’s not true, I’ll probably be sitting here. But honestly, I’ve always been kinda afraid of making long term plans like that. I’m kinda scared of setting some long term goal and failing so I just kinda cruise through life without thinking more than a year out.

If you could be anywhere else right now, where: Bakersfield California, with tickets to see Taking Back Sunday and Frank Iero tomorrow

What was your coolest Halloween costume: Umm, all of my Halloween costumes are awesome, but my unicorn costume won me a contest so that’s pretty cool

What’s your favourite 90s tv show: The Nanny

Last kiss: My boyfriend like I don’t even know when because I was sick and now he’s sick so IDK it’s just been too damn long ok?

Have you ever been stood up: No

Have you ever been to Las Vegas: Nope

Favourite pair of shoes: My pink and gold running shoes

Favourite fruit: Blueberries, apples, pomegranates, watermellon

Favourite book: The Essex Witch Museum Mysteries series

Stupidest thing you’ve ever done: God, there are so many... I honestly don’t know how to pick one. I got stories, if you have anything in particular you wanna know about ask

Favourite gif:

[aharris00britney]

ASKS 10

‘less weird hairs,’ pics of me, real life questions, seasons thoughts, kpop stuff, ‘are you a boy’ erhdfnv, tutorial questions, edits, ‘safe’ cc, and umm yeah never go camping in the actual woods ok

Anonymous said: Can you do Less weird hair? I Like how good Mesh You make but all styles look Really Weird I never Would use them. I just want Usual hair? Thanks you            

Firstly, thank you for the meshing compliment, but tbh I think I make pretty simple hair styles? Like I don’t do many crazy things especially recently? Idk, I hope you like some of my hairs and can find something that fits in your liking :/

Anonymous said: Hi I really love you content and I was wondering if you’d ever do a “goddess locs” hairstyle?            

Ok I am gonna be super straight forward about this, making hairstyles like this is really challenging for me. I have tried a ton of times and I just can’t get the meshes to work out the way I like. UV mapping is a pain in the ass, making the hairline match well, and making sure none of the mesh strands are broken is next to impossible for me. Most creators that make hairstyles like this do them from scratch or spend a long time working on them for them to look right. I’m not saying ‘no’ because I am going to try to play around with some seasons meshes (I have hair ideas) but no promises :(

Anonymous said: BLACKPINK COMEBACK

i know omg jennie snapped, I wasn’t planning on buying the physical album but I ended up caving in and getting the pink versions ;-; I hope I get Jennie or Lisa photocards

Anonymous said: i know your theme is by gukthemes, but what is it called?            

PAPILLON by GUKTHEMES

Anonymous said: Are you ever gonna do a face reveal?

I have posted a pic of myself before in one of these ask posts, here are three more from the past few months :P

Anonymous said: Fav kpop group(s)???            

1). LOONA (bias Kim Lip) 2). BLACKPINK (bias Jennie) 3). RED VELVET (bias Joy) 4). CLC (bias Yeeun) 5). DREAMCATCHER (idk their names but the rapper)

Anonymous said: You play pokemon go still?

Yes! I collected cards/figures growing up and watched the show before school every morning. I’m not a ‘game’ fan but the mobile app is fun. Actually I played the Wii U Pokemon tournament game but it was boring so :/

Anonymous said: are you going to buy seasons? do you think it is worth it?

I got it from CDkeys for $25 lmao, so yes :P I can’t run the live mode so I kind of am just getting it for the new CAS assets :/ but I think the pack looks really good. Everyone always says ‘it looks like the best EP so far’ every time something new comes out so I’m not gonna say that but we will see :D

Anonymous said: whats ur skin blend called?            

Fruitpunch! You can get it here

Anonymous said: when are you going to be done camping?

I am back home now lmao I assume you sent this when I posted about not having service there :P but I was camping for 3 days? I know it was 2 nights at least refdbv also omg some camping stories:

► I didn’t have my voice for the entire trip bc I got sick with laryngitis, and now koby (the guy i shared a tent with) has it too erfdbvc

► It was blazing hot like omg I was dying, there werent showers, bathrooms, anything with AC. The tents were boiling hot, the ground fucking hurt, and it was just hell ok this isnt even a story I just need to complain.

► There was a racoon family outside the tents the first night, and we thought it was a bear bc we were literally in the middle of the woods, like it wasn’t a campsite with other people, it was the forest ;-; anyways we were legit so freaked out and up for 2 hours just listening to them walk around the tents and god it was so scary rfbdv

► As I said, I had no service so I missed the larvitar community day in pokemon go -_-

► I suck at cornhole so I was the cheer leader for a team UwU

► A deer jumped out right in front of the fucking car like RIGHT IN FRONT OF IT omg we were so close to hitting it like... it was fucking scary

► We went walking on a trail that was down a mountain and once we got down we discovered that the chairlift up was CLOSED so we had to walk back up and it was a nightmare bc we had all just drove like 30 minutes to shower in crappy no pressure no heat showers and we were all sweaty again by the time we got back to the top ;-;

dont go camping

Anonymous said: Your last edit creeps me out.

LMAO why? It isnt meant to be sexual or scary?  

@achinghearts88 said: I really love Sims 4 cc but I constantly struggle with finding safe sites and have accidentally downloaded a virus trying to get cc before so I'm kinda frightened now. What advice do you have for getting safe cc? Thanks!

Hello! I use an adfly skipper + adblock, and if both of those don’t work then I just don’t download the cc. For some creators (nolan-sims, simduction, isjao, ivo-sims, and others) I will turn them off because I know these creators aren’t ones that use the sketchy adfly stuff, but for others that I don’t know well I leave it on. I use: U Block origin and adfly skipper (both on firefox)

Anonymous said: I couldn't find a "contact me" thing but your AHarris00Britney has a broken mesh I think.            

??? idk what this means im sorry ;-; what hair are you referring to?

Anonymous said: an amazing creator and a loona fan???? i stan            

My mind... your mind... our mind..

@chocooosims said: hey, I love your cc, you are such a good creator! :) I'm not sure if someone already ask you that, but have you ever considered making a tutorial where you show us how you create maxis match hair? I mean, I know that I can already find on Internet  tutorials about frankenmeshing hair. But the thing is that you are one of the only creator who do more than simply merge 2 EA's hair together. So, I would really love to see a tutorial of how you are creating your cc! :) Thx for your time!! 

I am making a BIG tutorial right now of me making a hair from start-finish and it is around 3 hours not speed up. My guardian angel is going to edit it for me tonight and then I will try to have it posted next week sometime

Anonymous said: what university are you going to?

Radford :D it is in Virginia

Anonymous said: Just wanted to let you know you're a king           

thank you lmao I wish it were true, stan loona or be beheaded

Anonymous said: r u a guy or girl or non binary etc. also are you lgbtq+ at all? not to judge, just wondering :)

uuh, I’m a gay guy lmao idk about all the other terms like cis/bianary ;-; i like the anatomy exclusive to the male body

edit: rip so someone messaged me asking what I meant by “anatomy exclusive to the male body” and I was like ?? bc I meant i like d**k, and i explained that i didn't like using cuss words on my blog bc my account got shut down/deleted/reported last year and was completely gone for two days while I emailed my butt off to get it back. Also, I was trying to be funny by sounding proper and using big terms like anatomy/exclusive instead of just saying “i like penis” bc that just isnt as fun to say imo. My anatomy teacher never used words like v*gina/p*nis and would say stuff like that, and I always found it funny and I guess that was another reason I worded it that way. Anyways if you think I was being transphobic, I apologize. I hope you don’t think that I am transphobic bc of that? If you want to message me and talk to me about how I can word stuff better then I am around 24/7 mostly, but I’m not going to fight with anyone who is just looking to argue because that is childish. I am sorry to those that got offended but I got one message about this so if something like this happens, message me like this person and ask what I meant so that it isn’t blown out of proportion. Again, I did not think that it would be taken that way and I am sorry if you felt that I was making fun of a trans person. <3

Anonymous said: What do you see in the corner of your room when you get sleep paralysis  (;            

James Charles with breasts on the beach and im not sharing this photo anymore it is demonic OK

Anonymous said: hi! i installed your non-default eye recolors but i'm having a glitch with them. my female sims lose their face in cas and it's just like an empty spot where the face should be. i have the default eyes installed too so i know it's not an issue with a missing mesh but i'm not sure how to fix it.            

Hello!! I don’t think this is my eyes because I’m not experiencing this glitch? Did you run a S4S batch fix over everything? I think that causes this glitch sometimes but I am unsure. Try repairing your game and if you have the “no EA eyelash” mod then redownload that and replace the old file.

@sephirajo said: I found your sims 4 mods and I love the hairs! They're so amazing and pretty.            

thank you so much!

Anonymous said: In your collab with wildpixel, I F**KING love the Ivy hair; do you have any recolours of it or any of the other hairs in the collab?

all the hairs in that pack are recolored in the anathema and sacharinne palette :) and I reblog all recolors of my cc over on @aharris00britneyrecolors

[scoutshonor56]

Burning Down the House

With a new year upon us, I decided to leave our pouting, petulant, and clueless “president” alone for a while.  I’m at the point where I don’t want this blog to become a regular, though fun and cathartic, critique of this moron’s day to day behavior.  Besides, who can keep up these days?  Certainly I never intended this blog to become solely a political airing of grievances anyways, when started back in November of 2016 - but then, who would have ever envisioned the likes of Donald Trump in the White House?

 So today I’m going to address an issue close to my heart; the wellspring that nourishes my spirit and is essential to the health and well-being of every living thing on our planet – the environment.  You see, I’m a baby boomer who grew up in the 60’s, and was quite the impressionable 14yr old on April 22, 1970, when the first official Earth Day was proclaimed. That year also saw the creation of the EPA, and like most of us from “back then”, I still hold onto many of the ideals of an aged hippie -  

 Those who know me also know I later worked for NASA - another touchstone for my generation - at Johnson Space Center, inside the television/communication contract, for 14 years.  During that time I got to watch the Space Station being built piece by piece, from when the first module, Zarya, went up on a Russian Proton rocket, to the first crew occupation, to its successful completion.

 I still pay attention to our space program as a tax paying enthusiast, although not nearly as much, and thus I watched a fascinating show on NOVA a week or so back, entitled “To Pluto and Beyond”.  It was about the continuing voyage of NASA’s New Horizons exploratory spacecraft, which is now traveling at roughly 37,000mph some 5 billion miles from our planet and still able to send back data and outstanding imagery to its home base here on Earth (taking over 4 hours to do so).

 In a nutshell, when New Horizons was first launched, in January of 2006, scientists and astronomers didn’t even think much existed past what they call the Kuiper Belt (the area in space past the planet Neptune), other than insignificant, floating chunks of minerals and ice of varying size and shape – such as Pluto, now not even an officially termed “planet”.  

 But soon that would change as our telescopes got larger, more sophisticated, and certainly more powerful (such as the Hubble), revealing a wealth of new discoveries and vastly widening out view, and theories, about space past our solar system.    

 In just a little over two years after its successful flyby of Pluto and its moons, sending back stunning and never before seen imagery, project managers were able to plot a new course that would enable the probe to fly past what is now called 2014 MU69, or its more colorful nickname, Ultima Thule (which sounds much more bad-ass!)  

 To go into any detail about the show and this discovery would require a whole different blog, so for my purpose today, let’s just say the level of technology, engineering, and computational math involved in this exploratory endeavor is right up there with just about any other high achievement in man’s history; an incredible display of determination and shear brain power that simply boggles my mind.  Sure, it was just an unmanned flyby, a probe…but successfully plotted over billions of miles, traveling at 37,000mph through orbiting planets, asteroids, and clouds of space debris, where a collision with something the size of a pea could mean instant disaster?  Where the tiniest fraction of miscalculation can put the craft literally millions of miles off course?  In the harshest and most unforgiving environment imaginable?  You may as well try to explain quantum physics to me.

 So what - what’s this got to do with a Talking Heads song... my point is this: excuse me if I don’t buy into this long running campaign of bullshit and misinformation put out by the petrochemical and carbon-based conglomerates, their money-wallowing and soulless lobbyists, and the special interest groups, who for the better part of fifty years have retained a complete stranglehold on our politicians and policy makers.  They continue to control the discussion of our energy sources with fairy tales and scare tactics in support of a technology that is over 200 years old. Let’s dim the lights, roll out the boogyman, and wind him up:

 “It will cost jobs!!  The transition to renewable and clean energy is too expensive, the sources unable to compete in today’s economy!!  The technology and infrastructure have yet to be fully worked out!!  It’s much more difficult and complicated than you can possibly understand!!  It’s simply going to take more time – it will be a long, slow process, and oil and gas will continue to play a dominant role in the meanwhile!!”

 And on, and on, and on…

 Bullshit!  Germany now gets 40% of all its energy generated from renewable, clean sources.  There are other countries in Europe harnessing tides to generate energy.  Our planet is a hotbed for thermal energy potential.  A recent study done here in Houston, at Rice University, claims Texas (who leads the nation in wind generated energy) has enough sun and wind to completely wean itself off coal within the near future.  

 Since when did America become the nation that couldn’t; that shied away from a challenge, technological or otherwise; that chose to follow instead of lead… was I stoned during that period?  Did I miss something?  Fifty-eight years ago, President John F. Kennedy stood at a podium at Rice University Stadium and declared:

 “We choose to go to the Moon!   We choose to go to the Moon...We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard; because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win, and the others, too.”  

 To put this into context, at that time it had been just over a year since America had launched their first man into space: Alan Shepard riding a Redstone rocket 116 miles into suborbital flight, lasting fifteen minutes.  Back then NASA scientists and medical professionals didn’t even know if a human could survive such a trip, or for how long.  Would they retain their vision, their mental capacity?  Would they lose all sense of direction?  Pass out? Would they be able to endure and function during the required long duration flight to the moon and back?  How would we even achieve such a feat?

 OK, some might say, “Well, sure, NASA had a limitless budget - and after all, the space race was strictly for nationalistic reasons anyway, to beat the Russians to the moon…”

All true, but umm, have you looked out your window lately?  Pay attention to any news?  And no, Fox doesn’t count.  According to a recent analysis, published in the Journal Science (see the story in the NY Times), our oceans are warming far more quickly than previously thought; like 40% faster on average than a United Nations panel estimated five years ago.  Researchers now conclude that ocean temperatures have been breaking records for several years straight.  Compounding the effects of our melting polar caps, warm water also takes up more volume than cold water, resulting in sea levels rising at an estimated rate of .13 inches (3.2mm) over the last 20 years.  Satellite measurements tell us that over the past century the Global Mean Sea Level (GMSL) has risen by 4 to 8 inches.

 Right now, over the last decade, we are seeing an increase in the number and severity of hurricanes, monsoons, tornadoes and wildfires.  NEWS FLASH Gomer and Thelma Lu, this isn’t a conspiracy perpetrated by greedy and alarmist eggheads in lab coats, nor is it “fake news” or fuzzy science; and it certainly shouldn’t be considered, or treated as a political issue.  It’s rock-solid, provable science that is accepted by 97% of scientists, climatologists, and geologists all around the world, who continue to ring the emergency bell. It’s happening today, all around us, and the bad news is we’re already too late; at this point, if we were to get serious this year, 2019, it will still be a game of damage control; of mitigating the consequences of our greed, ignorance, and gullibility.  

 In comparison, the goal and challenge of beating the Russians to the moon seems quite miniscule to that of restoring and maintaining the health of our little blue lifeboat called Earth.

 “Whatever, our planet is a dynamic, ever changing thing - Earth has gone through similar climate changes before!”   Yes, true – but over the span of tens of thousands of years, you moron.  Man has achieved the same results in barely two hundred.  

Just curious, but what part of 2.5 million pounds/second of co2 pouring into the relatively thin, fragile layer of atmosphere that protects our planet don’t you get?  Too hard to think about, or conceptualize?  Or is it easier for your lazy, flabby, unexercised brain to simply believe that it all just dissipates into outer space – you know, where the alien abductors that beamed you up into their mothership that weekend reside…

 Make America Great Again?  What a sad, short-changed, and utterly empty joke of a campaign slogan… Here, I’ve got one for you: SAVE OUR PLANET!  For your children’s future and their children’s future.  There simply is no option; no magical, last minute solution.  No plan B.  No spare planet accessible, sorry, this isn’t a movie - its real.  

 I simply don’t understand; why isn’t this the number one issue of concern for everyone?  Could there possibly be a greater threat and more important challenge facing us all today?  

 Ah well, what the hell – we’ll all be fine in a couple thousand years after we evolve with gills and become aquamen and women… Although, good luck finding something to eat, as we’re also killing the entire food chain of life in the oceans, from coral reefs to the dolphins, the sharks, and the whales…I guess we could become aquacannibals – now there’s a surefire idea for a hit movie!    Hmm, I wonder if we could talk Jason Momoa into that hard turn in the movie series plotline…