#Ralph definitely comes around though

[nottabee]

my cringe asf lotf post-island au

Just a little journal entry from Ralph, in my au

TW: brief casual racism

23rd July 1955

Jack took off again after Dad and Rose left for a night out, leaving me alone in my room with my books. I spent the evening engrossed in reading, waiting for them to return.

When he finally did come back, he appeared unusually happy. I don't think I've ever seen him so cheerful. Naturally, I couldn't resist asking him why he was in such high spirits. At first, he tried to brush me off, but it was clear that his excitement was too overwhelming to keep to himself.

He then revealed the source of his newfound joy: he had gone to the fair with his friends from the rougher side of town. That, in itself, was no surprise. But the real bombshell was yet to come.

Jack informed me that Carmen had kissed him.

He described it as a quick peck, but the fact that a girl had kissed him for the first time had him practically bursting with excitement. I tried to downplay the significance of the kiss, telling him to calm down – it wasn't like it was a real kiss, just a quick one. I also mentioned that she was a negro.

To my surprise, Jack's response to my well-intentioned words was to call me a "racist conformist." It seems that his new circle of friends had introduced him to that kind of language. I must emphasize that I am not a racist, and I find it disheartening that Jack would label me as such. I can't help but feel that these kids from the streets are exerting a negative influence on him, leading him down a path that worries me greatly.

I would attempt to confide in Rose about my concerns, but I fear that, for some inexplicable reason, those children from the streets are the only tether keeping Jack from running away again or inflicting harm upon himself.

What am I to do?

[hoodielord]

Grim and Hood

Nightwing 

Gotham Bay Monday 9pm

 Dick didn't know  about Jason's gang or much about his crime lord work in general. But now is a better time than later to learn. Jason had been watching a shipment of chemicals that scarecrow had supposedly ordered. But another issue had come up where Jason was needed. So Jason sent some members of his gang to help with the shipment.This just so happened to include Jason's second in command. 

Dick wasn't expecting this. Jason's second in command was around Jason’s age. He’s a head shorter than Jason.They are lanky though and pale. They wore a skelton mask that covered the lower half of his face. They moved like Cass or Duke; clung to the shadows and moved silently most of the time. It was surprising given their white hair. When it was time to move into fighting they were brutal, not deadly, but enough to break a few bones and incapacitate men twice as built as they were. Everything about them screamed meta.

 This skeleton was definitely a meta of some sort. Quickly they climbed into the rafters of the warehouse. Green eyes glowed as they swept through the warehouse. They were hunting for something. Skeleton’s eyes snapped to a man running for the exit. 

Like a whip they zipped through the rafters and descended on the man. The man shrieked in surprise and swung. But his arm never hit them. No, their arm went through them like he wasn't there. The man freaked blindly and swung at him screaming.

“What are you?!”

The skeleton mask’s fist slammed into the man’s face and the man crumbled. Skeleton dug through the man’s pockets and pulled out a glowing green vial.   

After the fighting was done and the shipment was secured Hood arrived. 

“ Hey Wing.”

“Hey Hood. So who's that?” pointing to them as they worked on helping the injured and tieing up the goons.

“That’s Grim, he does most of the work when I'm not around.”

“ Hey boss, everything's secure!” One of the gang members calls.

“ Good. Okay Sam and Ralph will make sure the shipment is handed off. Bill makes sure these idiots are hauled away by the cops. The rest of you can pack it in for tonight.”

The rest of the gang moves out or to their posts. Except Grim who walks up to Hood.

 “ Hey Grim, you good?”

Grin nods and hands Hood the vial.

“This is probably the new prototype the demented sock puppet was working on.” Their voice had an echo but maybe more like many different voices were speaking as one. 

Hood let out a chuckle at Grim’s remark.

“I’ve never heard that one before.”

Despite, the mask you could tell Grim was smiling but his expression faltered and he wavered.

He mumbles something about overtime and then proceeds to face plant right into Hood's chest.

“Is he alright?”

Hood sighs “ Yeah, he should be alright. He just fell asleep.” Hood mumbles something about bribes and revenge.

“Do I wanna know what you’re planning?”

“Not unless you want the same thing to happen to you,” Hood says as he picks Grim up and throws him over his shoulder.

“See you later, Wing,” Hood said before calling the gang for a car.

----

After a few rings, she picked up.

“Hey, Spoiler.”

“What’s up Hood?”

“If I make you waffles tomorrow would you help me get revenge on RR?”

“Hell yeah! Wait. What kind of revenge?”

“I am thinking more of your kind of revenge.” 

“Deal!”

“Awesome, so here is the plan.” 

----

Tuesday 1am, Jason’s apartment

“Hey, your coworkers said you have the rest of the week off,” Jason said from the kitchen.

“Cool…your brother needed to chill with the overtime. I feel like I did in high school dealing with ghosts.” Danny mumbled from the couch in the living room.

“Yeah, I already have that covered.”

“What do you mean?” 

Jason didn’t answer.

“Jason, what are you going to do to your brother?”

“Nothing too bad.”

“Jason.”

“It’s fine, get some more sleep.”

A few seconds pass and then there is a crash in the living room.

“Get back here, intruder!”

“You're literally the one that crawled through the window!”

Jason recognizes that voice and rushes to the living room.“If you don’t stop right now I am not helping clean the barn this weekend!”

Danny was standing on the couch with a crystal blue sword in hand  as Damian looked ready to strike but stopped midswing.

“You promised to help! You dare break your promise! And explain, who is this harlot?”

“Who is this kid and why does he speak like he’s from a period drama?....The fuck is a harlot?” Danny said, still holding tight to his sword ready to block the swing.

Jason sighs,”Demon brat, this is Danny. Danny, this is Demon brat.”

“tt.That explains nothing.”

“Zero net gain of info there, Jay.”

Both of them ease slightly in their stances.

“Demon Brat, why are you here? B do something stupid again?”

“Oh. this is your other little brother.”

Danny released his grip on his sword and it began to dissolve into nothing. At this Damian tightened his grip on his sword.

“ Damian, he’s my friend.”

“Fine…It was Grayson. He was too stifling after tonight." Damian put his short sword away. Jason and Daiman walk into the kitchen as Danny slumps back into the couch.

“Let me guess you got injured?”

“I only required three stitches. He is overreacting.”

“Fine. I got tea. You can only stay for an hour though. Don’t need all the bats to show up on my balcony.”

“That is acceptable ... .You're expecting someone else?”

“Steph is helping me with something…. You’ll see later.” Jason said with a grin.

-----

Noon, Wayne Manor. Dick

Dick was at the manor because he was preparing to cover for Bruce as Batman when he was off-world dealing with a Justice League issue.  

The door into the dining room swung open violently followed by Tim marching in covered in neon green glitter. There was so much glitter that it trailed behind him. 

“ You look like you’re trying to cosplay the riddler. Did Steph do that?” 

Tim just grumbled and held up a light purple sticky note. 

‘Yep, definitely Steph.’ Dick thought, grabbing the note.

 The note read: ‘Jason said you gave your R&D department too harsh a deadline for a project and they had to work double overtime on it. So you get a glitter bomb! 😛 P.S. No, I am not helping you clean it. Yes I got bribed. No, I am not helping you get him back.’

“Why would Jason care about your R&D department? Also double overtime? That's harsh.”

“One of his friends is a part of it.  And I wouldn’t have had to do that if the client wasn’t a total ass about it…Maybe I should send them a glitter bomb….. Anyway, I gave the department the rest of the week off.” Tim mumbles as he rests his head in his arms on the table. 

“First of all , I think the glitter bomb is a bad idea. Secondly, Jason has a friend working at W.E.?”

“Yeah, one of the top engineers. His name is Danny ... .Never introduce him to Steph. I will never see the end of the glitter or worse.”

“That bad, huh?”

“Yeah. He found out someone was stealing his pens. He replaced the ink in them so that the thief was writing in glitter gel ink on official forms. Then there was the time he set up a code on another engineer's computer that would randomly call him an idiot.”

“ What did he do to deserve that?”

“Used and misplaced Danny’s socket set.”

Dick laughed. “Well it’s nice that Jason has another friend.” Dick paused after a moment and said, “We should never introduce him to Roy either.” 

“Oh God, no.”

Thinking about it now Danny was probably Grim. But Tim didn’t need to know that now but knowing him he probably already did.

“You should probably go change.Alfred not going to be happy to see all the glitter too.”

“He should make Jason and Steph clean it.” Tim groaned.

At this time Damian walked into the dining hall and stopped to state at Tim with a knowing grin.

“Gremlin, did you help Steph and Jason with this?”

“No, I would not stoop to that level. Todd had mentioned he and Brown were working on something together.”

Noon same day, Jason’s apartment, Steph

Steph was always up to pranking Tim, well anyone in the Batfamily except Alfred really, but she wanted to know why Jason was defending the R&D department with this revenge thing. So after the prank was pulled she swung by Jason’s apartment.

She climbed into the living room through the fire escape window.

“Hey, I was promised waffles!”

Someone sat up on the couch with wide blue eyes staring at Steph. A mess of black hair flopped in different directions. They have an iron grip on the back of the couch. They're lanky and thin, practically swimming in a 3xl t-shirt. That’s not Jason.

“Nobody I know uses the goddamn door!” Jason yells stomping into the living room. 

Danny and Steph point at each other and turn to Jason.

“Steph, this is my friend Danny. Danny this Steph. Who I am going to personally show the definition of defenestration.”

“Hey you’re the one that promised waffles. And here I helped you with your revenge.” Steph  defended herself.

“Revenge? Waffles? Waffles sound good. Revenge is best cold though or something like that. Waffles not so much. ” Danny said half asleep and then promptly fell back asleep.

“Is he alright?” Steph said, leaning over the couch to see if he was.

Jason sighs “He hasn’t had enough sleep in this past week. Come on, I'll make you your waffles.”

In the kitchen Jason gets to work making Steph her waffles. After a few moments she asks “soooo…is he the reason that you had me glitter bomb Tim’s office?”

“Yep. Last week Danny was helping me with tracking the shipment of Scarecrow's fear toxin that we took care of last night.”

“Danny knows you’re Hood?”

“Yeah, I met him as Jason first then as Hood, he works with the gang.”

“Does Tim know?”

“I mean its a matter of time. Anyway, this week Tim had the R&D department, where Danny works, do more overtime to finish this project hence the glitter bomb.”

“You are the only nerd I know that would use the word hence…. I would never call Alfred a nerd.”

“Understandable but if you call me a nerd again I am burning your waffles.”

“Nooo!”

“Hey how come Danny looked like he was about to run when I yelled?”

“That’s because the gremlin decided to stop by earlier and then proceed to try and hunt Danny for sport.” Jason said, placing the first plate of waffles in front of her.

“Ha, yeah that explains it.” Steph said, taking a bite of her well earned waffles. 

“Soooo want to tell me why he's wearing your t-shirt?”

“No”

Two days later, Gotham bay, Roy

Jason had asked for some help with some experimental tech he was working with. He wasn't expecting to find a new buddy to talk shop with.

Arriving at the warehouse he spots Hood waiting for him by the door.

“Hey Roy.”

“Hey Jaybird, so what’s the tech you wanted to show me?”

“It’s inside, a member of the gang is looking...” 

Hood was cut off by a small explosion from inside the warehouse. Hood and Roy burst into the warehouse. Smoke curls through the air as they rush in.

“Grim! Where are you? Grim!” Hood calls as he moves through the crates and boxes.

“Damn it! Where are you? Danny!” Hood was panicking; it wasn't like him. Who was this Danny person?

There’s a fire up ahead with smoke curling up to the roof. A few shouts from different gang members rush to find the fire extinguishers. Like a bullet, one of the members with snow white hair dressed in all black, rushed forward. They seemed to blast the fire with a wave of ice as other members came in with fire extinguishers. 

“Grim!”  Hood yelled as the one dressed in black seemed to stagger after the fire was out.

Hood rushed forward grabbing them by the shoulders and steadying them.

“Hey Grim. You there?” 

“Hood?” his voice was quiet.

“Yeah it’s me. You okay?”

“Yeah I'm okay.” he still didn’t sound all there.

“Why don't you sit for a bit.”

“Yeah..”

“Okay I’ll be checking everyone else okay?”

Hood helped Grim to one of the crates to sit. Hood and Roy walk away as Grim calms down.

“Jaybird, is he alright?”

Hood sighs “He will be… explosions at close distance send him off sometimes.”

“Bill!”

“Yeah, Boss?” 

“What happened?”

“Grim was working on the device when he just froze suddenly and freaked out, getting everyone away from it. Then it exploded. Nobody’s hurt. How’s he?”

“ He’s calming down now.”

-----

Hood and Roy looked over the wreckage.

“Well I don’t think we are going to get anything from this Jaybird.”

“The device had a secondary trigger.” a voice came from behind Roy.

“Jesus fuck!”

Grim jumped back a little at Roy’s outburst. Hood just laughed at them both.

“Are you sure you’re not a new Bat or something?”

“No. Why would I dress as a bat furry?” Even with the skeleton mask you could tell he had a smirk across his face.

Hood started laughing harder and Roy laughed too.

“I’m Arsenal.” Roy stuck his hand out to Grim.

“Grim.” They said, shaking his hand.

“Grim works as the gang’s second in command. He’s also the tech expert on hand. And this is Arsenal who’s okay with tech.”

“Jaybird I am better than okay.”

“I once saw you jam an arrow into a computer that you couldn’t hack.”

“I didn't have enough time! Plus it worked didn’t it?” Arsenal 

“I mean whatever works.” Grim shrugged.

“See Jaybird he gets it,” Roy turns to Grim “Hey wanna hear about the high powered flamethrower I made?”

“Hell yeah. I made a laser gun out of a microwave once.”

“I am now regretting letting you two meet.”

“Too late!” Grim and Roy exclaimed. Grim’s eyes lit up, literally they were glowing green. 

Hood sighs “Okay but let’s work on the problem at hand first.” he then turns back to Grim, “Also if you ever work together on something I’m telling your sister.”

“Spoilsport.” Grim huffed.

They went to work on the remains of the bomb looking over the components.

“Are you doing okay Grim?”

Grim hummed at his question. “Yeah… this is just my luck huh? I got a week of overtime and almost blew up…”

“But you didn’t. You saved them before it could hurt you or anybody.”

------

[sugar-crash]

🏎️Turbo (Wreck-It Ralph) x (gn) Reader🏁

(Physically Affectionate Reader Edition!)

(Picture’s not mine!)

(Request here! Ran out of canon photos of this punk so I’ve finally officially🔑 resorted to fanart, Bone Apple Teeth.)

- I think it’d overwhelm him at first for sure, not being used to being touched so tenderly and so frequently, but I don’t see him full-on flipping out on you— He’s crazy but not that crazy you know?

- Honestly, I’d wait to be more physical with him, nothing personal or anything but I think he needs time to get it through his head that you guys are a thing now.

- That and his steadily growing trust issues go hand in hand, the lingering feelings that you’re just there for some means to an end and you’ll leave him when he isn’t the best anymore… Something he would never admit, never.

- The first time you place your hand on his arm, he was probably blabbing about some prank he was able to go through with before it promptly shut him up for a good moment before he started back up, adamantly denying it happened later on when you try to tell someone about it.

- Though when he does get used to it, comments about it smugly, saying stupid shit like “You can’t keep your hands off of me can’t you??”

- He’s shameless, not much of a surprise there as he feels himself getting an ego boost as he’s getting his face peppered in kisses, a shit-eating grin on his lips.

- The definition of warding it off for a while before becoming addicted to this more personal attention.

- Again he would try to be commanding when it comes to your affection, taking your offer up on him and telling you whenever he wants affection… But again like he probably marches up to your door expecting love from you.

- Of course, he learns that you get more flies with honey than with vinegar, and promptly changes his tune, not wanting your cuddle time to suffer because of his stupidity.

- Still tends to assert himself in your life, walking in and plopping himself down into your embrace when things don’t exactly go his way and vents to you.

- Your touch anchors him enough to the point where he doesn’t go off the rails too much— Slumping into himself when you kiss him on the forehead after he ranted and raved about one of his game mates that made a fool out of him.

- Expects your attention, that’s just a given with him— Almost always trying to deny what you’re feeling till you explicitly tell him it’s terrible and that needs to stop.

- Will give you some physical affection as well, but far more covert than how you do it, like a hand on top of your own or an arm around your shoulders when you’re on the couch watching TV together (Dunno if that’s even a thing in the arcade but I digress, this is all hypothetical after all).

- If you’re taller than him, holding him puts it in perspective to him that he’s a small ass guy, and that in it itself makes him a little butt hurt— Like he’s the “man” of the relationship he should be the strong one in his eyes.

- Of course, he eventually gets over it after a while, becoming more pliable with the notion that he doesn’t have to be the physically stronger one in the relationship— That and he’s strong in different ways, like in conversations for example.

- I think he enjoys the kisses the most, specifically the ones on the lips, I dunno why but I just think getting a nice smooch or two after a miserable game day is something he strives for.

- Sure sometimes your attention isn’t enough, but those times are very rare, as much as he denies he’s a simple soul in that aspect, wanting to be worthy of that attention you give him in a misguided manner like it’d be so easy for him to realize the healthier way of thinking but that’s the thing— He doesn’t.

- He equates your physical love for him as something conditional, which who knows if is or if it isn’t, but he automatically assumes that the second he thinks he’s not up to par, you will think so as well.

- Turbo has a habit of projecting feelings on you, mostly because you love him, and if you love him you have to some of his own emotions, a very backward mindset that fuels his anxiety and spite-riddled mindset.

- So, keep that in mind when you kiss him on the forehead I guess.

(Dr auaqxmka qaocx lmq bohhmvaak??? d gkmv d oj :])

[whosscruffylooking]

The Purest Things: Found Family

Aaron Hotchner x Fem! Reader Word Count: 1k Warnings: Alcohol usage. The Purest Things Masterlist

au! february 2009

Bookend: “Give me wine to wash me clean of the weather-stains of cares” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

The invitation comes out of nowhere, but no one is shocked. Rossi’s sprawling Virginia estate is practically made for hosting, and when he decides to put it to good use, there’s no refusing. A casual evening at his place, he promises, with plenty of wine and food. After the last few exhausting cases, the team jumps at the chance to unwind in a more intimate setting than the usual bar or office.

You arrive a little later than planned, juggling a bottle of wine you’ve brought as a gesture and a pie you picked up on the way over. The laughter and hum of conversation reach you even before you knock on the heavy wooden door.

Rossi greets you with his signature grin. “There you are! Thought you’d gotten lost.”

“Traffic,” you say, holding up the pie. “But I brought reinforcements.”

“Good. We’re running low on dessert already,” he remarks, taking it from you and gesturing for you to follow him into the house.

The rest of the team is scattered around Rossi’s open living room. Emily and JJ perch on the couch, deep in conversation, while Spencer animatedly explains something to Morgan, who looks half-interested at best. And then there’s Hotch, standing near the large bay window, a glass of red wine in his hand. He seems more at ease than usual, though still slightly out of place in his button-up shirt and slacks.

“Look who finally decided to show up,” Rossi announces as you enter, and all eyes turn toward you.

“You made it!” JJ says, waving you over.

“Fashionably late,” Emily teases, raising her glass.

You grin, but your gaze lingers on Hotch, who meets your eyes with a small, subtle smile.

“Here,” Rossi says, handing you a glass of wine. “You’ll need this if you’re going to survive these people.”

You laugh, taking the glass and making your way over to Hotch. “I see you’ve been roped into this circus,” you say lightly as you join him.

“It didn’t take much convincing,” he admits, “Rossi can be persuasive.”

“You look like you’re settling in just fine,” you remark, nodding toward his half-empty glass.

He glances down at it and then back at you. “It’s good wine.”

“Of course it is. It’s Rossi’s,” you giggle, clinking your glass against his. “I’m impressed, though. This is the most relaxed I’ve seen you in… ever.”

He gives a faint laugh, and the sound is so rare and warm that it makes your chest tighten.

“See? I told you he can relax,” you call out, drawing the attention of the room.

Derek raises an eyebrow. “Hotch? Relaxed? I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“He’s drinking wine, isn’t he?” you say, motioning toward Aaron.

“Drinking wine doesn’t count,” Emily says, smirking.

“It’s a start,” you argue, glancing at Hotch.

He shakes his head, but there’s a faint smile on his face.

“You two really have been spending too much time together,” Derek says, leaning back in his chair. “I can’t tell which one of you is rubbing off on the other.”

“Probably me,” you say with a grin.

“Definitely her,” Hotch adds, and the room erupts in laughter.

As the evening wears on, the atmosphere grows even more relaxed. Plates of food are passed around, and Rossi opens another bottle of wine, insisting everyone have at least one more glass. The conversation flows easily, and even Spencer manages to keep the group entertained with a surprisingly hilarious story about a misfiled library book.

You often find yourself next to Hotch; the two of you naturally gravitate toward each other as the night goes on. At one point, you catch Rossi watching you both with a knowing smile, but he says nothing, simply pouring himself another glass of wine.

“Do you ever just stop and enjoy this?” you ask Hotch quietly as the others debate over what movie to watch next.

“Enjoy what?” he questions, his brow furrowing slightly.

“This. Being here, with all of us. Not thinking about work or cases or anything else.”

He looks at you for a long moment, as if considering your words. “I don’t do it often enough,” he admits.

“Well, you should,” you say, nudging him lightly with your elbow. “You deserve it.”

He doesn’t respond right away, but the way his gaze eases tells you he appreciates the sentiment.

“You two are like an old married couple,” Emily teases from across the room, pulling your attention away from Hotch.

“Excuse me?” you say, laughing.

“You heard me. Look at you, all cozy and secluded over there,” she says, motioning toward you and Hotch.

“Just good friends,” you say, though your cheeks feel warm under her scrutiny.

Hotch, to your surprise, doesn’t seem fazed by the comment. Instead, he sips his wine and says, “You’re not the first person to say that.” His eyes darting over to Rossi.

The room erupts in laughter, and you stare at him, wide-eyed. “Are you serious?”

He gives you a faint smile, but the glint in his eyes suggests he’s enjoying your reaction.

The night eventually winds down, and one by one, the team begins to leave. JJ and Emily are the first to go, followed by Spencer, who claims he has an early morning. Derek lingers for a while, but even he eventually calls it a night, leaving you, Hotch, and Rossi.

“I’ll start cleaning up,” you offer, standing and gathering a few empty glasses.

“I’ve got it,” Rossi says, waving you off. “You two go relax. I’ll handle this.”

“Are you sure?” you ask.

“Positive. Go,” he insists.

You glance at Hotch, who nods toward the back patio. “Come on. The fresh air will do us good.”

The two of you step outside, the refreshing air of the chilly night is a welcome change from the warmth of the house. The patio overlooks Rossi’s sprawling backyard, the faint sound of crickets filling the silence.

“This was nice,” you say after a while, breaking the quiet.

“It was,” Hotch agrees, his voice tranquil.

“You really should do this more often,” you state, turning to look at him.

“Host team gatherings?” he asks, a hint of amusement in his tone.

“No,” you giggle. “Let yourself relax. Be part of the team, not just the boss.”

He gives you a slight smile, and for a moment, neither of you says anything.

“Thank you,” he says eventually, his voice barely above a whisper.

“For what?”

“For always convincing me to step outside my comfort zone,” he expresses, his gaze meeting yours.

“That’s what friends are for,” you assure him, though your heart skips a beat at the intensity in his eyes.

He doesn’t respond, but the way he looks at you—like you’re the one thing grounding him in that moment—says more than words ever could.

——————————————

Taglist: @minkyungseokie

[multi-fandomedfreak]

Hi, may I request headcanons for Connor, Nines and Ralph (separately)? How would they react if reader took them to buy clothes for themselves for the first time?

<3

Authors note: This is so stinkin cuteee

Characters: Connor, Nines, and Ralph

⚠️ Warnings ⚠️ : Ralph is a little insecure about his scar lol, very fluffy

🪙 Connor 🪙

-He would be so grateful for you to buy him clothes

-He doesn’t wanna walk around in that Cyberlife uniform all the time lol

-Even though he’s Deviant he’s still not used to doing things for himself a lot

-So when he hears that he gets to pick out his own clothes

-He just awkwardly sifts through the clothes at the store

-You find it pretty cute how he has no idea what he’s even looking for poor boy

-Eventually he asks you for help and you both get swept into a shopping spree

-If you asked him to, he’d definitely give you a little fashion show as he tries on clothes

-He may or may not get addicted to shopping with you

-I also feel like once he gets a sense of what kind of clothes he wants

-He’ll pick out so. many. suits.

-And of course many ties to match

-Idk why but yeah he just loves lookin dapper

-Although he would be very considerate of your budget and would try not to buy too many things

-Just keep a close eye on him tho

-Bc he will get lost in the store (poor boy gets too curious)

💙 Nines 💙

-He is so confused on why you want to buy him clothes

-He’s all like: “But I already have clothes.”

-And you gotta convince him that one suit just isn’t enough

-Literally takes forever to convince him to let you buy him some clothes

-And he’s even more confused-for some reason- that he has to go with you to buy them

-If you could give a question mark a face, it’d be the face that Nines is making

-He just didn’t think he would actually be picking out the clothes himself

-So you make it a goal for him to start making decisions for himself

-When you both get to mall, a little like Connor, he has no clue on where to start picking out clothes

-So you both take a while to first discuss what kind of clothes he wants

-And then you finally start picking out clothes

-I feel like Nines would def get a bunch of suits too

-But not like Connor, Connor at least knows he can’t have just suits

-But no, Nines wants ONLY SUITS

-Takes more time to explain how he can’t just have suits

-Literally took almost the whole day to just buy him clothes

-But it was worth it because he was grateful for it in the end

🌿 Ralph 🌿

-He’s ecstatic about getting new clothes!!

-He wants to look more presentable and is beyond grateful you would offer to buy him clothes

-Like I’m pretty sure the amount of time he said “thank you” that day

-Was the amount of times someone says “thank you” in a lifetime

-Buuut he gets a little hesitant when you ask him to come with you to buy his clothes

-He hatesss the idea of going out in public

-Especially with his scar, he’s super insecure about it

-So tons of reassuring later, you and Ralph are in the store picking out his clothes

-The entire time he’s practically glued to your side

-Like literally. He has not let go of your hand the moment you both let the house

-But it’s not as bad as he first thought

-He actually starts having fun picking out his clothes and trying them on

-Definitely a flustered mess when you compliment the clothes he tries on

-He’s confused but happy that no one has said anything about his scar

-Totally not having to do with you giving anyone The Death Stare™️ if they even breath at Ralph the wrong way

-Over all it was a very fun experience for the both of you

[exoskeleton-polisher]

So far, Ralph thought, this trip was working out pretty well.

Sure they'd gotten stranded on an island, but everyone knows islands are full of mystery and adventure, two things the initial trip was definitely lacking.

Besides, by the time they'd explored the whole island, a trustworthy adult would surely be there to whisk them away back to the suffocatingly dreary comfort of regular life. No, this was temporary, he was sure of it.

While they were here, though, Ralph supposed he might as well take advantage of both the situation and his newly elected leader status in order to explore the terrain of their island.

Naturally, he chose Jack and Simon to come along, a fact that seemed to upset Piggy, despite the fact he assumed it was obvious why he hadn't chosen the “ass-martic” (what did that even mean, anyway?) fat boy for this particular task.

Penchant for making up words aside, it was clear to Ralph that Piggy just wasn't cut out for that sort of task, and he told him as much.

After a sharp comment from Jack, Ralph assumed that that was the end of it and promptly began theorising about the vastness of the island the boys had been marooned on, and growing increasingly excited about the prospect of exploring it. It was just like in the books!

However, when he turned around, Piggy was still staring at him, in a way which forced Ralph to draw mental parallels to a wilted flower, or some sort of sad animal left out in the rain.

He tried a softer tone.

“Look,” Ralph said, “You can't come.”

Piggy's cheeks flushed and his voice wavered slightly when he next spoke.

“You told ‘em. After what I said.”

It took a bit of back and forth for Ralph to grasp what Piggy meant, and each second he was painfully aware of the expanse of new sights and experiences waiting for him on the other side of this conversation, a feeling not helped by the fact he could clearly hear Jack’s impatient sighing and Simon’s rocking back and forth on his feet.

Eventually, Piggy clarified, “About being called Piggy. I said I didn't care as long as they didn't call me Piggy an’ I said not to tell and then you went an’ said straight out–”

Both silence and realisation dawned on the scene. Ralph could hardly tell whether the other boys were watching, and he hardly cared. At that very moment, the world had shrunk to approximately three feet in front of him.

He stared at Piggy's eyes, partially obscured by the light reflecting off of his glasses. He felt as if he was seeing Piggy in a whole new light, which he supposed was a silly thing to feel about a boy he'd just met, but he couldn't help it.

It felt as if before he'd been seeing Piggy simply as a flat image, like the pictures in one of those kids books he was far too old for, but now he looked at the other boy and truly saw him.

The way the ocean breeze had tousled his thin, mousy hair into a truly unflattering thatch, the glint of the reddish light refracting off his glasses, the spattering of freckles across his cheeks and chin, the slight curve of his nose, unfortunately reminiscent of his namesake.

Ralph swallowed decisively and mentally shook himself before his wandering mind could continue tracing down to the other boy’s lips. Not relevant at all, get back on track, Ralph.

Even in this situation, Ralph could see past the muddled state of his thoughts enough to realise that he had two options. Apologise, or laugh it off.

Sure, the former would probably be the kindest thing to do, and likely the more morally just one if that whole “Forgive seventy-seven times” thing was to be believed. Ralph had never fully understood that Bible story, he supposed it was a metal-for? But now was hardly the time to decipher what it meant, or what a metal-for was, for that matter.

Laughing it off seemed far more appealing. What was the point of choosing the option that would lead him closer to friendship with the boy already picked out as a social outcast, over the choice that would put him in the favour of the rest of the boys there, the ones who had eagerly elected him their Chief, a position he was all too eager to keep?

No, the choice was clear, he'd laugh it off. Maybe make a quip about Jack's earlier “Fatty” comment, yeah, that'd do it. He had the strange feeling that this was important, so he should probably choose his words very carefu–

“I'm sorry.”

Ralph recoiled, as if the unwanted phrase had propelled him backwards. He touched a hand to his mouth in bewilderment.

Across from him, Piggy was making a face that perfectly conveyed how Ralph was feeling. Completely baffled.

“You what?” Piggy asked, dazed.

“Sorry,” Ralph repeated, making the executive decision to double down, “About telling the others your nickname.”

Piggy nodded slowly.

“Right. Ta? …Thanks, yeah!”

Piggy smiled at him and Ralph glowed with pride. He inwardly thanked his subconscious for forcing him into the right decision.

“You could come with us if you want?” Ralph said, ignoring Jack's audible scoff from behind him.

Piggy shook his head, the remnants of a smile still visible on his face.

“No,” he said, good-naturedly, “No, that's fine. You were right, it's not my type o’ work.”

Ralph was about to protest, but a particularly loud cough from Jack brought him to his senses, and he was suddenly aware of the dozens of beady little eyes watching him from the raised platform.

He grinned up at them, nodded at Piggy and turned around, chalking the squirming in his stomach up to anticipation for their quest.

It was only after he had turned away that Ralph realised he still hadn't asked Piggy his real name. He pushed the thought aside, trying to smother it with a thin blanket of excitement. There was always next time.

Note:

17/9/24

Yeah, I'm not putting this in my fanfiction doc lmao. I'm actually kinda proud of it, though, it's a concept I've wanted to write since literally the first lesson and I think it came out pretty well. Hopefully it wasn't too OOC, I basically give Piggy my accent in my head, but I've never really had to transcribe it before, so it might be a little off. Anyway, it's technically not explicitly stated, but this is preslash Raliggy obviously.

[king-candybug-backup]

Hi you seem rlly cool 🙏 (that’s unrelated but whatver EHEM) Everyone knows the sequel to Wreck it Ralph could’ve been better, but what do you think of the “King Candy/Turbo is hiding on the internet” theory???

And Optional: How would have written for him in the sequel??

(Hopefully this isn’t too much eheueueueue)

(ˊᗜˋ*)

AW THANKS 😭 I'm actually an awkward little turd though, I just scream a lot lmfao /lh

I DO LIKE THAT THEORY AND THINK IT WOULD'VE MADE FOR A BETTER SEQUEL (them remembering Turbo exists AT ALL or any sense of logic in the first place would have made for a better sequel GSFDXDHCVJBJN LIKE THE ENDING OF RBTI BASICALLY CONFIRMS BY THEIR OWN LOGIC THAT TURBO DIDN'T DIE AND NOBODY BATS AN EYE???? LOL. LMAO, EVEN.)

Tbh, I don't really know how I'd write him in the context of the sequel specifically, I'm kind of one-track-mind with my writing, so I'd probably just write him similarly to how I'm already writing him in my own fic, just, like... being his typical opportunistic slimeball self and trying to get one over on everybody around him. 😂 (Just, like... on the internet....... And probably a bit sneakier/less-outwardly-aggressive since he probably wouldn't be in Cy-bug form and would need to be more careful due to his lack of brute force to back himself up GFHJFDCHVJHBJ) I could definitely see him trying to tamper around with coding again since it worked pretty well for him last time. Maybe dabble around in viruses and stuff for funsies and figuring out good ways to wreak havoc on his enemies lol. IDK THOUGH I'M JUST RAMBLING AT RANDOM HERE GHFDCHGFVH (I'm pretty sure there's pictures of Turbo's graffiti face or something in some of the RBTI concept art, I vaguely remember some discussion around that and him potentially being, like, some dark-web-virus kind of thing, but yeah idk 😂)

Tbh this comic and also @cannedbabs's RBTI rewrite posts are GREAT fun when it comes to content about Turbo on the internet fghddsdfhcg SO WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND CHECKING THOSE OUT IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY!

[shadowyone]

Give me the full King Candy x your OC lore

Buckle up! This one's a long one-- I apologize in advance

(This is the regular Wreck It Ralph AU where she's there! So it isn't my Royal Family AU or other AU versions of Scarlet! I can always drop the lore on those ones too!)

Scarlet's game, Forest Heroes was made in 1982. The same time around TurboTime and Fix It Felix Jr. Scarlet's game was introduced about four or so months, because her game was all about the environment and people just weren't into those kinds of games. So, her cabinet was constantly going from storage to storage and arcade to arcade until she finally arrived at Litwak's. She's the queen of her game and only appears if the players make it to the end to have her congratulate them. Due to no one playing her game towards the end or just in general, she was stuck in her castle, watching players walk by.

She was right across from Turbo Time, so every day, she saw him race and be loved by all in the earlier days. Scarlet already struggles with connecting with people a lot, due to how many times her game has been moved about and unplugged, it has definitely fucked her up just a bit. Not to mention all the isolation.

Their first meet-up was in Tappers when he welcomed her for being a newbie and he charmed her. Scarlet has no idea he only invited her over for a win, as he had few losses that day, so he needed someone to boost his ego and she was kind enough. So, what does he do? Take her for a spin and talk all about how great he is.

Scarlet took this as affection and wanted to get closer. Turbo doesn't do affection or relationships, so he began to distance himself from her but would come around if he needed another ego boost or some random ass compliments thrown his way. RoadBlasters happened and she heard/saw the whole thing. She believes his whole going Turbo moment was a testament. She believes this whole stunt was due to him being angry and hating his game and the endless cycle it was, rather than him doing it out of jealousy. Scarlet quite literally believes that he's just like her and stuck in a horrible loop of their games, but Turbo just doesn't want to be vocal about it.

For years she mourned him and kept to her endless cycle. Visiting Tappers every now and then. One day, She saw King Candy walk in. She was certain it was him, due to his height, his voice, and the way he acted. Stalker Scarlet moment. She watches him from afar and during the movie events, she comes into Sugar Rush to confirm her suspicions. This annoys King Candy of course, constantly trying to get rid of her, because he believes she's annoying and also a huge threat to his cover.

(This is where she wears her disguises. Like X-celerate and Jester Sweetens) For the most part, she sticks around in his castle, not caring about her game anymore, practically forgetting about it, because all she wants to do is be by his side. He likes the ego-boosting and the cheering, but he still doesn't entirely like her. Deep down he likes her a little, but he's not going to admit that and he's far too busy for any kind of relationship (Like racing and killing Vanellope) Scarlet does show a bit of her darker side though, begins to make torture suggestions or even cheering him on to kill someone via racing or just in general. (I still want to make her a bit deranged and evil)

Boom, King Candy becomes Cybrid and tosses her down the peppermint pit for being annoying and she crawls out as a giant cybrid who's a bit feral, but loyal to him. In the end when the Diet Cola Mountain erupts, Scarlet wants nothing more than to die, because she believes she's ugly, In a constant battle with her bug brain, And there's just nothing for her to go back to. Without him and her game, her life is kind of pointless now. She grabs King Candy by the arm and yanks them both towards the boiling cola and then they die together.

I want to keep working on her and the regular AU of her just being there. There's so many fun ideas I can do and I don't exactly want her to be a goody two-shoes, because yeah she's selfish and a bit evil herself. Nobody respects her or her game. She's constantly mistaken for a princess and she truly has no kingdom or subjects to rule over. So, I think there's a ton of jealousy she has towards Turbo that morphed into this obsession of being with him and being understood by someone. She does love him though. And Turbo loves her in his own odd way (Even though he struggles to show it) She's a bit complicated in my eyes and I just love what she's become. Instead of this kind woman trying to get the love of Turbo, she's got more to her going on under the surface. Thank you for coming to my TedTalk- God this is so long-

[were--ralph]

ralph: buys $200 dollar commissions every week

also ralph: why do i have no money

(not a dig at you but maybe consider saving up your money for old man pussy art when you’re in a better fiscal position)

I don't buy them every week though i get like one every few weeks and they generally come in around the same time because i usually ask to be moved down in the queue so they all get worked on at the same time lol. generally they're like 100 at most. I don't go all in unless its an artist or idea i really like

Commissions are literally the only form of brain chemicals i get now because every other aspect of my life sucks right now so i kind of do like almost actually do need them because without them im definitely hopping on the unironic kms posting train

[kitkatt0430]

Hollywood comes to Central City, interviewing meta humans to try and make the powers for a super hero movie more realistic.

Barry arguing over how his powers work because everything they want to do with their speedy character is not how being a speedster works, it is wrong and bad, especially if they're just going to pretend there's no such thing as the Speed Force because then what the hell is protecting their speedster from the consequences of friction????

Cisco trolling his interviewer over how his powers work for the fun of it, when he isn't being distracted explaining how other meta powers work.

Mark Mardon wants to know if he could get a work release from prison to make the weather for the outdoor scenes more authentic. Who needs fake rain when their weather guy can make a real storm, right????

Frost keeps freezing their cameras and running away.

Leonard Snart convinces six different interviewers that he is six different types of meta. He's still not a meta.

Mick sets someone on fire. He somehow gets a date out of it because she's a stunt woman.

Lisa keeps stealing things from her interviewer and insisting it's very definitely her (non-existent) meta power and not her picking his pockets because he's a super easy mark.

Hartley keeps asking about how the studio treats it's minority workers and encouraging unionization of the non-unionized workers. They're listening.

Ralph attempts to get a job as a stunt man but can't seem to find the right person to talk to about auditioning. Teaches someone how to make balloon animals with his arm. Somehow no one realizes he's a meta despite this.

Top somehow gets cast and fired as the lead actress all in one day. Doesn't want to talk about it, just wants to ice her hand because breaking someone else's nose really hurts. No charges filed, everyone is suspicious.

Mirror Master leaves someone with a suspiciously broken nose trapped in a mirror. Team Flash unusually reticent about removing this guy from the mirror.

Eobard somehow manages to show up for an interview. Throws a fit when asked if the homoerotic undertones to his rivalry with the Flash are mutual or something he's bringing to the table alone.

Rainbow Raider offers to help actors be more authentic with their emotions. At least one actor takes him up on the offer, gives best performance of career.

Shawna takes her interviewer on a teleportation trip around Central City. Ends in a bar where they commiserate about shitty ex boyfriends.

Jitters sends Jaco to run a coffee booth for the interviews. Somehow he winds up with a bio-pic movie deal. No one knows how this happened, least of all him.

Goldface's interview devolves when his interviewer asks his second in command how long he's been in love with Keith. Though stunned, Goldface is receptive to the romantic possibilities, leaves his third in command in charge of the operation to whisk the second in command of to Coast City for the weekend. Interviewer possibly taking notes for a fanfic later on.

Amunet gets arrested for human trafficking after her interviewer turns out to be an undercover police officer that she 'spontaneously' confessed to.

[tiddiewitch]

Second Chances - CH. 10

Description: Agathrio AU / Wagatha - Agatha and Rio go on their dinner date and end up back at Rio's

Warnings: None - yet, I promise it's coming

Wordcount: 7,500

Notes: This is when I wish I could draw so much better than I do. I know exactly what Rio's apartment looks like in my head and I wish I could just show everyone.

Chapter 10 - Sixteen

True to her word Rio had called her the next day to make dinner plans. They agreed to meet the following weekend as she was working or on call throughout the next week. This gave Agatha time to think. After everything that happened with Wanda and trying to have kids she had never considered another relationship, at least a serious one. She thought sure maybe a fling here or there far into the future but she didn’t expect someone like Rio to enter her life. Sure they’d only been on one date, but the way just the thought of this woman made her stomach flutter and she knew her feelings were more than just physical attraction. According to Rio it was fate, though she wasn’t sure she quite believed that, there was definitely something there that she was being pulled into. 

On top of the swirl of emotions she felt over Rio, her body was once again betraying her. Each morning she would wake up in a cold sweat, heart racing, as images of the woman faded from her dreamy state. She would move to get up and ready for the day only to find her joints stiff and swollen and her back aching. She could see a tired puffiness in her face and chalked it up to water retention and stress as she had not been sleeping well. Nothing a morning run and a cold shower couldn’t fix. The week itself seems to drag on and on and she found herself more exhausted than ever. More than once Sharon caught her taking a nap on the couch in her office. The only thing that got her through were the random flirty texts from Rio. Each notification filled her with excitement and anticipation for their date on Friday. She felt like she was in her 20s again. 

By the time Friday rolled around though she was running on fumes. She managed to make it out of the office early enough to try and take a nap after work before she had to get ready. She hadn’t even managed to make it to her room and found herself being awoken by Ralph a couple hours later from the couch. 

“You gonna make it to dinner?” He laughed as he shook her awake. 

“Ugh, what time is it?”

“6:00”

“Shit, I’ve got to get ready.” She sat up stretching and shaking herself awake. “I feel like I got hit by a bus.” She said in a sleepy stupor. 

“I’m not going to lie, you look like it.”

“Great! I do not have time to fix this. I’m just gonna cancel.”

“No! We can work with this. I’ve already got your outfit picked out, just go wash your face and pull your hair back. You’ll be fine!” 

She groaned as she forced herself off the couch and down the hallway to get ready. As soon as she caught sight of herself in the mirror she decided this needed more than a freshen up at the sink and hopped in the shower. The steaming hot water felt good on her joints and helped to wash off the stress of the day. By the time she made it out she only had 30 mins to finish getting ready. She threw her hair up quickly clipping it into a big loose bun, a few pieces falling in waves by her face. She hurriedly applied some mascara and one of the lipsticks Jen had given her before heading into the bedroom to take a look at what Ralph picked out. On the bed was a black strapless jumpsuit with a gold belt. Something she had worn before at one of her galas, but hadn’t picked out in a while. She remembered it being a bit snug but as she went to pull it on found it nearly impossible to zip. She wandered out into the hallway knocking on Ralph’s door for assistance. 

“I can’t get this zipped and I have like 5 minutes.”

“Turn around…suck it in…lift them up” she was able to comply just enough for him to zip it leaving no room to breathe. She turned around to face him with a look of discomfort. 

“I don’t know if this is going to work.” 

“You do kind of look stuffed into it like a sausage but hey your tits look amazing” 

“I can’t breathe let alone sit or eat.”

“Fine we’ll go with plan b.” He sauntered off to her closet to pull out a strapless dress that featured watercolor shades of purple swirls. “More room to breathe but it’ll still show off what the good lord gave you.” 

“Great, now get me out of this!” She quickly shed the jumpsuit and had Ralph help squeeze her into the dress. “This will have to work.”

“Again, may be a little tight but the tits look great. I think she’ll really appreciate it.” 

“Fantastic! Don’t wait up!” She shouted as she rushed out the door. 

The ride to the restaurant seemed to take forever as she hit nearly every red light. Cursing herself for not having set an alarm to leave earlier she rushed into the restaurant 10 minutes late. A little out of breath, she caught sight of Rio seated across the room. As she made her way over the woman rose to greet her. If Agatha thought she had been attracted to her before the mere sight of her now left her drooling. Tonight she had opted for a dark green fitted dress with spaghetti straps and a plunging neckline. Her dark hair curled into waves like an old movie star and those honey amber eyes gleaming from behind a swoop of hair. 

“Well if you aren’t absolutely stunning!” Rio gleamed as she helped Agatha into her chair. 

“You’re not half bad yourself! I never would have expected this.” 

“Well it’s our first dinner together, I figured I’d pull out all the stops.” She winked. “Oh, and here you are my dear.” Rio handed over a single stemmed rose.  

“How lovely” Agatha fumbled with the flower, not really knowing where to put it until finally opting to hold it in her lap. She looked back at Rio suddenly puzzled. “So, you drove here on your motorcycle, in that?” This produced a roaring laugh from Rio. 

“Absolutely not! It took way too much time to get ready for that!” She giggled “I took an Uber. What about you, any trouble getting here?” 

“Just running later than I planned. It’s been a long week.” 

“Tell me about it! Today couldn’t come soon enough! I’ve been looking forward to seeing you again since our last date. Have you had a chance to read any of your book?”

“A bit. I’ve not read a lot of fantasy but so far it’s piqued my interest. Excited to see how it turns out. What about you? How’s your adventure going?”

“Better than expected for me. Worst than expected for them. But that’s what you get when you’re arrogant about exploring the arctic. Really enjoying the firsthand perspective, you can really see where they went off the rails. So tell me about these friends of yours!”

“Oh Jen and Ralph I’ve known since college. Alice is Jen’s new girlfriend. Ralph is currently staying with me while he’s in town. He’s usually on the road or on some cruise ship or something. Jen, well Jen actually works at your hospital.”

“Oh no way! What department?”

“She’s a nurse midwife in labor and delivery. To be honest I’d be surprised if she hasn’t happened to introduce herself to you already. She’s particularly nosey.” 

“No, I don’t think I’ve met a Jen. But then again, I’ve met a lot of people recently and don’t remember half of them unless I see them on a daily basis.” 

“How’s your aunt doing?” 

“She’s doing well. I told her about you, ya know.” She flashed Agatha her signature smirk

“Oh, and what did she have to say?”

“I should be on my best behavior, so as not to scare you off.” 

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

“Oh really?”

“You may have had me flustered last time but I don’t scare easily. Even with your reckless driving.” she smiled slyly at Rio 

“So you admit it, I made you nervous?”

“You, the situation, all foreign territory for me. You’re very… intense.” 

“I’m going to take that as a compliment. You mentioned that last time… it’s been..a while. So, who was she?” 

Agatha choked on her wine, her eyes going wide with panic. She hadn’t planned on discussing Wanda for as long as possible, but of course Rio knew exactly what question she didn’t want to answer. She took another sip of her wine as Rio sat there patiently waiting for a response. 

“I…um…well she was.” She began to stutter.

“It’s fine, take your time. I expect this isn’t an easy subject for you.” 

“Well, you don’t go 7 years without dating if it wasn’t at least a little traumatic.” she chuckled, getting a smile out of Rio. This brief joy settled quickly into an uncomfortable silence as they sat there once again, the hum of anticipation between them.

“Her name was Wanda.” Agatha managed to whisper through a shy smile, a twinge of pain in her eyes.

“Wanda.” Rio echoed softly. “How did you two meet?” Again she waited patiently for a reply. Agatha could feel her chest start to tighten as those memories began to rush back. She took a few breaths to settle the tears beginning to form and cleared her throat. 

“We..uh…we met in school.”

“Tell me about her. What was she like?” Agatha let out a breathy chuckle. 

“Do you really want to talk about this?” She deflected. Rio shot back a caring smile

“I do.” She sat back in her chair savoring her wine. 

“She was definitely a bit of a risk taker. Always kept me on my toes.”

“You seem to have a type!” 

“What can I say, I like the bad boys.” She shrugged before taking another drink “but she was unnervingly kind and thoughtful. She cared deeply about the people she loved. She was overwhelmingly curious, one might say to a fault, and she was nearly unstoppable.” Agatha trailed off with a wistful sigh, a distant gaze clouding her eyes. 

“She sounds amazing. How long were you together?” 

“Well we dated for 5 years and were married for about the same.”

“I see…How did you lose her.” Agatha’s breath caught in her throat. She knew the question was inevitable, given Rio’s directness, but it still caught her off guard and tears began to fill the corners of her eyes. She attempted a smile, blinking them away. 

“Well…she was…overcome by curiosity and adventure. I’m sure much like the explorers in your novel, only a little less polar.” She danced around the severity of the tragedy hoping not to step on any unhealed wounds within her. She did not need to come apart on this date. 

“It was…unexpected.” 

“Death often is. I’m sorry for your loss.” 

Rio reached across the table to hold Agatha’s hand. The soft warmth of her touch and the caring look of understanding created a small crack in the facade Agatha was trying desperately to uphold, allowing for a few tears to break free. She quickly pulled back and wiped them from her face as their food arrived. Thankful for the distraction, she took the opportunity to gather herself and nudge the conversation in a different direction. 

“So enough about me, part of this deal is I get to know you. For all I know you could be a serial killer.”

“I could be! You’ll have to find out.” She winked, “What do you want to know?” 

“Have you ever been in a committed relationship?” 

“A few.”

“And by a few you mean?”

“I’d say 3 of them were pretty serious, a couple of them lasted longer than they should have. The rest were just convenient dalliances.”

“How many overall?” Agatha raised her eyebrows. 

“30? 40? Probably more, I lost count.” Agatha’s eyes bulged as she took a bite of her food. Rio chuckled

“I take it your love life hasn’t been as prolific. Even before Wanda?” 

“There may have been a few others but no not nearly that many.” 

“Well luckily for you it’s equipped me with a breadth of knowledge and experience I’m sure you’ll want to take advantage of… at some point.” 

Her cheeky smile was beaming again. Agatha was grateful for how quickly the levity had returned. Rio somehow had the ability to pull from her some of her darkest moments and still end up making her feel as if she was glowing from the inside out. 

“When was your last serious relationship?”

“About 4 years ago. I thought I was going to marry this woman but found out she had been cheating on me. For a while.”

“Oh my gods. I’m so sorry, that’s awful!”

“It was for the best, really dodged a bullet there. So how many dates before I get to hear you sing?” Agatha rolled her eyes. 

“Something tells me you're not going to let that go anytime soon.” 

“Not until I get that concert you promised.”

“I promised nothing!” She said in mock defiance. 

“It was implied when you bragged about your karaoke skills. Come on! I bet you’re amazing.” 

“I am very good.” She taunted “We’ll have to see, when you’ve earned that privilege.” 

“I’ll beg if I have to! You’re not getting out of this so easily!” She wagged a frustrated finger at Agatha. As they took a moment to eat Agatha let her mind wander at that last comment. I’ll beg if I have to. Images of Rio danced across her mind, on her knees before her. The dress she was wearing ripped from her body, her big doe eyes looking up at her. 

“What are you thinking about?” The question startled her from her daydream. She cleared her throat as she composed herself. 

“Well…um… why? Why did you choose this field of medicine? Neonatal surgeon, it seems pretty specialized.” Rio grinned in response, knowing full well that was not what Agatha had been thinking about. 

“Sure.” She chuckled “I kind of fell into it to be honest. I knew I wanted to be a surgeon. I was lucky enough to have a brilliant mentor who was a pediatric surgeon and I enjoyed working with the kids. There was one case I sat in on though that made me realize this is what I wanted to do.” 

“Oh, do tell.”

“Are you squeamish?”

“I don’t think so.” She said cautiously 

“I won’t get into anything too graphic but, I was able to observe a spina bifida repair on a fetus. It was quite successful and the baby was born with minimal complications a few months later. It completely changed the trajectory of that child’s life before it was even born.” Agatha sat there stunned for a moment. 

“That’s incredible.” She finally uttered “Is that…do you do a lot of those now?” 

“In-utero isn’t as common, we avoid it if possible. Much of the work is done right after birth, which makes it hard to plan for.” 

“How so?”

“Babies run on their own schedule and it’s best to let them cook as long as possible unless it’s an emergency. The good thing is most of the time we know what to expect and prepare for when the time comes.”

“How do you deal with that kind of stress? I can’t imagine working under that kind of pressure!” 

“It’s not easy, that’s for sure! Outside of the work that needs to be done, you can’t think about it too much. Live in the moment, surround yourself with good company, find ways to stay physically active.” She ended with a wink. Agatha looked down at her plate of food, chewing over the question she wanted to ask. 

“Have…have you ever… lost a patient?” There was silence as their eyes met once again. Rio, seeing the glimpse of sorrow and worry in Agatha’s eyes, cautiously responded. 

“Yes.” Agatha’s breath caught in her throat as she was once again fighting back the tears threatening to spill over. 

“How?” She whispered. Rio looked down, picking at her plate, searching for how she wanted to reply. 

“Sometimes… it’s just not meant to be. Life is eternally fragile, especially at the very start. You can do everything in your power and it won’t be enough.” Agatha could feel every bit of weight in what Rio had shared threatening to crush her. “I’m just lucky enough to be in position to try. Besides, I am quite good at what I do so those cases are few and far between.” At that Agatha let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and took a drink of her wine. 

“We can talk about something else if you prefer, this isn’t exactly light dinner conversation.” Agatha nodded silently “So when did you know you liked women?” Rio asked

“Probably since I was 13?”

“Tell me more” Agatha laughed at the memory. 

“There was this girl in my class. I wanted to be her friend so bad but she never gave me the time of day. I even tried dating her brother to get close to her but that didn’t end well. I ended up breaking his nose when he tried to make out with me on their couch. At the time I didn’t realize I was attracted to her like that but looking back it was pretty obvious. What about you?”

“I’ve always kind of known. My first kiss was with the neighbor girl in Puerto Rico.”

“How old were you?”

“Maybe 6? We were playing pretend wedding and there was no groom so I happily volunteered.” 

“What did your parents think?”

“I never really got to have that conversation with my father. I think my mother had her suspicions. My aunt got the brunt of it when I hit puberty. I did not let that woman rest!” She laughed 

“But she was ok with it? With you being gay?”

“More or less, she was more upset with how many of my female classmates I convinced to play doctor.” 

“How old were you then?”

“14? 15? When did you kiss your first girl?” 

Agatha grimaced “16. It was simultaneously the best and worst moment of my life.”

“Oh, how so?”

“Well, everything I had been feeling finally clicked, and it finally felt right. But my mother quickly found out and you know the rest. Conversion camp, boarding school.”

“So is she super religious or something?”

“Southern Baptist actually. Lots of fire and brimstone.”

“Ah, are you religious?” At that Agatha let out a bursting laugh. 

“Absolutely not! Growing up in that environment really beat it out of me. Are you?”

“Not particularly, I’d say I’m more spiritual.”

“What does that mean? Tarot and crystals and stuff?”

“Yeah along those lines. My aunt is basically a witch and I tend to take after her.”

“You’re a witch?” Agatha questioned, eyebrows raised. 

“Eh, more or less. I certainly manifested you!” 

“Oh really?” 

“Maybe I had a little help from my aunt. She anticipated you about a month before I actually met you.”

“What?”

“She read it in my cards. Have you ever had your tarot read?”

“No, can’t say that I have.” 

“Well we definitely have to change that!” By this point the waiter had brought their bill. Rio didn’t give Agatha a chance to even try and pay before handing the bill back to the waiter with her card. “So, any chance you’d like to continue the night?” She said as she signed the check. 

“What did you have in mind?”

“Well someone at work told me about this speakeasy type bar not far from here. Apparently they have live jazz on the weekends. We could have a few drinks, get dessert?” Agatha paused for a moment, contemplating with her face scrunched up to one side. 

“How far is it?”

“A few blocks.”

“Am I driving or are we walking?”

“We can take a Lyft if you’d like?” Agatha bit her lip. Exhaustion was pulling at her once again, but she was having such a good time and didn’t want to let the date end. 

“Alright lets do it!” 

As they rose from the table she suddenly realized how badly she needed to pee. “I’ll meet you out front, I have to go to the bathroom.” She rushed through the restaurant, nearly knocking over a waiter as she barreled into the restroom. She breezed past the few women waiting as a stall opened and she forced her way in. She barely made it to the seat before she expelled the contents of her bladder. She couldn’t remember ever having to pee so bad before in her life. Feeling lighter she exited the stall to glares from the many women still waiting. She calmly washed her hands and touched herself up in the mirror before heading out to meet Rio. 

“Did you make it?” She laughed

“Barely” 

“Good, you’re just in time. Here’s our car.” As they settled into the car Rio reached out and grabbed Agatha’s hand, planting a kiss on her knuckles, before returning both their hands to her lap. The ride was only a few minutes as Agatha sat back and observed Rio glancing out the window watching the streetlights go by. She was probably the most intelligent, grounded woman she had ever met, yet she had such childlike awe for the world around her. She was definitely the most beautiful she had ever met. At that thought she felt a pang of guilt ring in her chest. Wanda. She loved Wanda, and Wanda had been beautiful, though in a more classic sense. Elegant, soft, delicate. She had loved Wanda, and Wanda was gone. Her feelings now for Rio did not negate all she had felt for Wanda but the pang of guilt was still ever present. She started to pull her hand away when Rio turned to look at her, that signature smirk on her face, those burning amber eyes. She could feel the heat from Rio’s gaze engulfing the guilt hovering in her chest and replacing that with desire. Without saying a word she repositioned her hand on Agatha’s and pulled it in closer then resumed looking out the window. Moments later they pulled up to a simple wooden door, a green light casting the only glow on that part of the street. Rio excitedly opened the door and pulled Agatha through. 

“You sure this is it?” She asked

“Definitely! It looks just like the pictures they showed me.” Rio walked up and knocked on the door. A little window slid open and a man popped out. 

“Do you have a reservation?”

“Yes, under Vidal.” Rio replied, turning to bashfully shrug at Agatha. “So I may have had this planned the whole time, I’m glad you agreed to go.”

“Would you still have come here if I had said no?”

“Probably but only to drink my sorrows away at your absence.” Agatha rolled her eyes yet an undeniable smirk grew across her face. Eventually the door opened and they entered a long hallway. 

“Walk down to the elevator at the end and you’ll head down to the fourth floor.” The man instructed. 

“Down?” Agatha looked at Rio concerned

“Down!” She replied eagerly as she led her down the hallway. 

They pushed the button and waited for what felt like ages before the elevator arrived. They entered and pushed the only other available button, 4th floor. The doors creaked closed and the elevator slowly descended. Agatha leaned her back against the wall, taking some pressure off her aching feet. Rio sidled up to her and swung an arm around her waist pulling her into her side. Agatha looked over at her aching to rest her head on her shoulder but she didn’t want to appear as tired as she really was. Before they knew it the elevator landed and the doors glided back revealing an arched brick hallway lined with gas lamps, another door at the end. They glanced at each other concerningly as they slowly made their way toward the door. As they got closer they could hear muffled voices and the hum of the band. 

“Do we knock again?” Agatha asked

“I don’t think so.” 

As Rio reached for the handle the door burst open and they jumped back as another couple headed out. When they peered in they were taken aback by a large dome shaped room, much like a small theatre. There were tiered rows of round covered tables, each lit with a small lantern, leading down to a dance floor in front of a modest stage where the band was situated. Around the back of the room where they stood was an intricate wood and golden bar that wrapped around the whole level. Each of the waitstaff was dressed in some sort of 1920s attire. The big swing band playing added to the vintage atmosphere. 

“Do you want to grab a drink and walk around a bit or go find our table?”

“I would love to sit for a bit.” They wandered over to the host stand where they were led to a table right above the dance floor. Once seated Agatha let out a big sigh. 

“You alright?” 

“Oh, yes. Just a long day.”

“I won’t keep you out too late! Maybe we just get one drink and head out.”

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

“ I just wanted to check it out for a bit. I’m just glad to be here with you.” Rio reached out, grabbing her hand once again and planting another kiss. 

“Can I get you anything to drink or eat?” The server had popped up out of nowhere. 

“I’ll take a manhattan.” Rio replied then motioned to Agatha

“I’ll just take a water. But what desserts do you have?” The server rattled off a few, in the end she opted for a molten chocolate cake. She turned to Rio. “I’m so glad they have dessert. If I don’t eat something chocolate in the next 5 minutes I might combust!” 

“You have a sweet tooth?”

“Occasionally, but when I do it’s pretty severe.”

“Is it primarily chocolate or are there other sweets you indulge in?”

“Chocolate for sure but only as like a pastry. And really any pastry or baked good. I do really like tart or sour gummy candies as well. What about you?”

“I love a good red hot. Malted milk balls are also amazing. And those hard strawberry candies.”

“You have the palate of an octogenarian.” She laughed. 

“What can I say, I like what I like. That’s what Lilia usually keeps around her house.”

“Lilia? Oh, your aunt?” 

“Yeah, she’s usually got a bag of something stashed somewhere.” At that moment her dessert and their drinks arrived. She was practically salivating as they placed the plate in front of her with two spoons. 

“Oh, do you want some?” 

“No, I’m good you go ahead.” Agatha was two bites in before Rio had finished the sentence. In the blink of an eye the cake was gone. 

“WOW! You really put that away.” 

“I needed that!” She huffed, a little breathless. 

“You certainly did!” Rio chuckled. Agatha leaned back against the chair, a hand on her chest,

“You ok?” 

“Fine, just a little bit of heartburn. Maybe I should have gone slower on the cake.” She took a gulp of water as Rio stood up from her seat. “Where are you off to?” 

“I’m going to run to the restroom, I’ll be right back.” 

Agatha relaxed there for a moment, taking in the atmosphere. She never would have come here on her own. If it wasn’t for Rio she never would have known this place existed. The hum in the air as mumbled conversations flowed under the music. The vibrancy of the people dancing to the music. That cake. All things she would never have experienced without having met this woman. She took the time to soak it in, giving herself permission to enjoy it. Before she knew it there was a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to find Rio holding out her hand.

“My lady, may I have this dance?” 

“I don’t dance like this!” She snorted

“I don’t either!” She patiently held out her hand before giving Agatha a judgmental look. “Come on, it’ll be fun!” 

“Alright.” 

She cautiously took her hand as Rio led her down to the dance floor. The music was a bit up beat and the people around them were spinning and twirling together. Agatha looked around nervously as they settled into a space. Rio took her right hand and guided Agatha’s left to her shoulder before placing it around her waist. Her left hand picked up Agatha’s other hand and held it out to their side. 

“Hey,” Rio hummed, pulling Agatha’s eyes to her. “Just look at me ok? I got you.” Agatha’s gaze locked on to Rio as she led them around the floor. Despite Agatha’s two left feet, Rio managed to guide them gracefully around the other couples. 

“I think you lied to me!” She said cheekily

“Oh really?” Rio replied, feigning shock

“You are quite light on your feet!” 

“You caught me! I’ll admit, I’m a pretty good dancer. So is Lilia so you better pick up quick!” 

“Is that who you learned it from?” 

“Oh yes! She took me to all her dance classes.” 

The upbeat song ended and the band picked back up with a slower tune. Rio pulled her in closer, letting their hands rest on her shoulder, their faces just inches apart. They danced there quietly for a while staring into each other's eyes. Rio’s scent enveloped her once again causing her heart to quicken. Eventually Rio leaned forward, resting the side of her head against Agatha’s. In the soft press of their cheeks Agatha felt herself relax. She reveled in the embrace that cradled her, feeling the heat of their bodies pressing together. The hand wrapped around her waist slowly drifted to her lower back sending sparks through her body along the way. She drew back a bit, her gaze drifting between Rio’s eyes and her pillowy lips. She could feel the tension tingling between them as the song came to an end. 

“You ready to get out of here?” Rio muttered, her eyes twinkling. 

“Yeah” Agatha smiled. 

Rio led them off the dance floor, down the hallway and back to the elevator where they waited with a few other couples. They stood there waiting with their fingers entwined, chancing quick looks at one another. As they entered Agatha wished they had the journey up all to themselves like on the way down. The heat now growing inside her was becoming impatient and she wanted nothing more than to feel Rio’s soft lips against hers. For now that would have to wait. As soon as they were outside Rio leaned over. 

“So, care to share a ride back to your car?”

“I’d like that.” 

They didn’t wait long before a Lyft picked them up. The journey back somehow seemed longer than before. Rio’s attention was no longer on the world outside but on Agatha, taking in every bit of her. She caressed her hand, turning it over and gently glided along each finger. The delicate touches further feeding the hunger burning inside her now. At last they arrived back at the restaurant and to Agatha’s car where they both got out. 

“Hold on a sec, I’ll be right back.” Rio shouted to the driver following Agatha to her car.  Agatha felt a pit rise in her stomach. Though she knew the night was ending she didn’t want to let Rio go. 

“So any chance I’ve earned another date?” Rio said somewhat sheepishly. 

“Oh, most definitely” Agatha beamed, her back resting against her car. Rio moved in closer, once again gathering Agatha’s hands. 

“I had an amazing time tonight.” She looked up into Agatha's eyes,  her gaze flitting between them and her mouth. The heat building inside Agatha was reaching a boiling point, the space between them growing ever closer. 

“Me too” she hummed. 

Before she knew it Rio’s lips were pressed against hers. Their silky softness tinged with the smoky bitterness of the manhattan that still lingered. As their lips gently caressed one another the hunger between them began to build. Agatha dove deeper reaching up to grab Rio’s face pulling it further into her, her fingers entwining in her hair. Rio snaked her arms around Agatha’s waist pushing her back against the car as she devoured the woman before her. 

Honk Honk - the driver, growing impatient, laid on his horn breaking their intimacy. 

Annoyed, Rio broke the kiss. “Give me a second! Can’t you see we’re having a moment here!” She shouted 

“You know I could just drive you home.” Agatha huffed breathlessly. “If you want.” Rio spun around raising an eyebrow. 

“You sure?” 

“Uh-huh” Agatha panted biting her lip. 

“On second thought,” Rio shouted as she walked over to the driver, tipped him handsomely, and sent him on his way. Agatha made her way over to the passenger door opening it for Rio. As she leaned into the car Rio planted another quick kiss on Agatha’s lips. 

“Thanks doll!” She winked and pulled the door closed. By the time she started the car Rio had the directions set to her place. A short, 15 minute drive to the other side of the city. As they pulled out of the parking lot Rio began fumbling with her audio controls. 

“What do you normally listen to?” She asked as she skipped through different radio stations. 

“Oh, I don’t really.”

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t listen to anything.”

“How?”

“My mind is usually racing so I use driving time to sort out my thoughts. Also, I don’t really spend that much time in my car to worry about it.”

“Huh.” Rio huffed amused as she turned on a 70s playlist. 

The rest of the short journey was silent except for the music, both of them feeling the weight of the late hour upon them. Rio sleepily gazed at Agatha as she drove, eventually letting her hand wander to rest on Agatha’s thigh. As soon as she felt the light touch a heat began to rise from that point crawling up her body to rest in her core. She could feel her heartbeat quicken and chanced a look at the woman beside her. Rio’s eyes were soft and heavy yet her usual fire still burned deep within them. That sultry gaze only intensified the heat building in her, rising to her chest. Moments later they pulled up to what appeared to be a schoolhouse taking up the entire block. 

“Am I at the right place?”

“Yeah” Rio giggled. 

“You live in a school?”

“Well it’s not a school anymore, they converted it into apartments.” Agatha looked puzzled. “Do you want to come see?” Rio asked as she tried to hide her smirk. She looked at the clock, almost 11. She could go up for a few minutes just to see what it was like then head home. 

“Alright.” Rio exited the vehicle and came around to open Agatha’s door. 

“Just don’t judge me, I haven’t had a chance to clean up.” She smiled as she held out her hand for Agatha. When she stood to get out her legs wobbled as a pain shot through her feet. “Woah! You good?”

“Yeah” she winced. “My feet are killing me!” 

“Well let’s get you inside and off your feet.” 

She wrapped an arm around Agatha’s waist supporting her as they went inside. The building itself was old, from around the 1910s and still featured much of the original ornate architecture. The main lobby still felt much like a school. Off to the right was a glass encased room which at one point must have served as administrative offices. The walls featured intricate portraits of former principals dating back to the inception of the school. Straight ahead was an imperial wooden staircase leading to a landing hosting arched stained glass windows that rose to the ceiling of the second floor. Between the stairs on the first floor was a long hallway lined with lockers and drinking fountains halfway down. 

“Are you sure we didn’t just break into a school?”

“Yeah!” She laughed again “They left the entry like this as part of the aesthetic. This way!” She followed Rio to the right just before the stairs to the elevator and pressed the button. Almost immediately the doors opened to a person holding a basket of laundry. “Hey Kris!” Rio said as they entered the elevator. 

“Hey” said a bleary eyed Kris who leaned back against the wall closing their eyes. 

They rode up in silence letting Kris exit before making their way down the hallway to the right. The floors were restored original hardwood matching the grand staircase below. The walls were split by wainscoting matching the original wood on the bottom and featuring dark green floral wallpaper on top. They passed a few wooden doors before reaching the end of the hallway where Rio stopped. Apt. 4 was etched in gold and black lettering on the glass of the frosted window pane that hung in the doorframe. She dug around in her bag for a moment before pulling out an antique iron key. 

“I thought you said this place was renovated!” She teased

“It is, they preserved as much of the original structure as they could, but most everything inside is updated and reconfigured.” 

At last she unlocked the door, swinging it open to a small entryway. Immediately to the left were a set of 3 large wooden cubbies built in. Each with a place to sit and hooks for what must have been backpacks at some point. Rio motioned for Agatha to sit and remove her shoes as she closed the door behind them. She took a moment to glance around the space. Directly in front of the cubbies they had built out a small half bathroom enclosing the entryway a bit. Past that the room opened up to a large kitchen with an island to the right and an open living room area across from that. The brick walls were punctuated by large black mullioned windows each surrounded by a hoard of various plants. 

“Care for the grand tour?” Rio called out as she threw her bag on the counter and kicked off her shoes. 

“Sure.” Agatha said as she made her way further in. 

“So each apartment is made up of 2 former classrooms and my bathroom was definitely the boys bathroom at some point. If you look to your left you’ll see the living room which is essentially where the first classroom was.” The room was fitted with a large oriental rug covering much of the wooden floors. A dark brown leather u-shaped sectional was at the center of the room surrounding a wood and glass coffee table. Along the left and back wall were floor to ceiling built-in bookcases with a sliding ladder. Some books peppered the shelves but there were several unopened moving boxes scattered about. 

“The bookcases were originally in the library which they converted into two story condos. Do you wanna see what I’ve found carved into some of the shelves?” Agatha nodded and followed her over to the first shelf as she knelt down. 

“Right here…” 

Math is a tempestuous lover

“Huh, not what I was expecting.” Agatha chuckled

“Then there’s this one over here…” she walked over and pointed out another mark. This one was a crescent moon with three shooting stars behind it. 

“How charming!” She remarked.

“But this one is my favorite…” She pushed the ladder to the end, “You'll want to look to the right on the top shelf.” Rio held the ladder steady as Agatha ascended a few steps. She leaned in looking to the right finding what looked like a carving of a butt and the words 

Mrs. Martin is a buttface

Agatha let out a laugh, “This is more what I was expecting!” She turned to look down at Rio. She held the ladder steady with both arms, her big doe eyes studying her, with a large smile plastered on her face. Agatha couldn’t help it, but at that angle she also saw right down the front of her dress. She blushed before quickly turning around and heading down the ladder. 

“This way to the kitchen. This is where the second classroom started, you can see where they took down this part of the dividing wall. Can I get you anything to drink?” She headed over to the fridge where she grabbed a soda water. 

“One of those would be great.” Rio handed over the beverage before heading down the short hallway. They stopped as they got to a wooden door with a frosted glass pane on the left. Rio swung the door open and flicked on the light revealing a large walk-in pantry with built-in wooden shelving. 

“This is the largest pantry I’ve seen, let alone one for an apartment.” 

“Yeah, it’s bigger than that hall bathroom. There is a hookup for a washer dryer which I need to get at some point. I’m already tired of going to the basement to do my laundry.” She led them out and closed the door. “Now, the bedroom!” She led them to the doorway at the end and stopped as she was about to open it. “Again, don’t judge. I only moved in like 2 weeks ago.” 

She slowly opened the door revealing the room filled with boxes, and clothes, half hung up and half in piles around the room. Along the right wall were more bookshelves but they had been converted into an open closet. The queen sized bed was fitted with black silk sheets and a green comforter that was held aloft on a wooden frame that you had to step on to get to the bed like a platform. On the wall behind the bed remained a large chalkboard. 

“This really was a classroom!” She said as she cautiously entered. 

“Hehe yeah, I am definitely going to get some chalk and use that. It’s too cool not to!” 

“Wouldn’t that get messy?” 

“Probably.” She shrugged. “ Come on, you've got to see the bathroom!” She waved her over to the doorway at the back of the room. As she flipped on the light Agatha took in the tile covered room. The whole left side of the room was sectioned off as an enormous walk-in shower with multiple shower heads. Straight ahead was a large double vanity and mirror. To the right was a toilet and a urinal? 

“Oh! The boys bathroom.” 

“Hehe, yeah” Rio beamed. “Home sweet home! So you want to hang out for a bit? Or, I know it’s getting late.” For the first time Rio seemed sheepish. 

“It is getting late.” At that Rio looked down pondering her feet, seemingly disappointed. “But I can stay at least until I finish this drink.” Rio looked back at Agatha beaming. 

“Come on, I promised I’d get you off your feet.” She led her back to the living room, settling down in the middle of the couch. Agatha settled in the corner letting out a sigh as soon as she sat. 

“Is it the shoes?” 

“Huh?” 

“Were the shoes making your feet hurt?”

“Oh, yeah, they weren’t the most comfortable but also my ankles and joints have just been sore lately.” 

“Maybe I can help?” 

“How so?” She let out an amused huff

“If you want I could rub your feet?” 

“You want to rub my feet?”

“If it’ll help.” Agatha mulled it over for a moment. The idea of it seemed intimate and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. But her feet were aching at this point. 

“Alright.” She decided and stretched her legs out to rest her feet in Rio's lap. Her nimble fingers wrapped themselves around her foot and began to knead at the sore spots. Almost immediately Agatha could feel her whole body relaxing into the sensation. She let her eyes flutter closed and leaned her head against her hand propped up on the couch. Minutes passed in peaceful silence before Rio looked up catching Agatha dozing. 

“Hey! You gonna be ok to drive home?” She chuckled as she attempted to shake her awake. Agatha let out a sleepy grumble before settling down further into the couch. “I’ll take that as a no then.” She slowly removed herself from beneath Agatha’s legs and went in search of a blanket. She rifled through a few boxes, coming up empty handed. In the end she grabbed her comforter from her bed, brought it over and wrapped it around Agatha before heading to bed herself.

[piratefishmama]

Crossing the Line | Part 12

Using the word ‘Conflicted’ for what Eddie was currently feeling was… an understatement. On the one hand, good lord he’d almost came in his jeans from just a tongue down his throat, a very very talented tongue belonging to a very very attractive man. On the other, that man had basically just pretended to like his music to get into his pants.

Eddie had never had that happen before. He didn’t know whether to be flattered or insulted.

He did, however, know that he was ignoring the DM on Insta from that very same attractive man, the message full of blushy emojis and how he’d ‘forgotten’ to leave his number, dropping the digits right there in plain view.

He had Steve Harrington’s personal phone number. Holy shit.

He was ignoring it. Left it on read. Didn’t know what to do with it. If push came to shove and he made a decision in Steve’s favour then he’d just claim he was busy with the band at the shitty diner after the show. He stuffed a handful of lukewarm fries in his mouth, ketchup smearing the corners of his lips. If he decided against Steve then… he’d block him and forget all about him, and hope he wouldn’t show up at the coffee shop.

“I mean, if they were earplugs, then they were pretty shit earplugs, Eds” Gareth was the only one supplying a sound argument, he had ulterior motives though, he had bias to stick up for Steve! He was aiming to get the hell out of retail, and it showed.

“What?” Frank cut in with that expression on his face that blatantly said are you hearing this shit?

“I mean, he answered us all pretty easily, he had a full conversation with us! Didn’t even seem like he was struggling to hear us. Earplugs would have made it difficult to hear, right? Maybe they were something else!” All very valid points. Or… a very valid singular point.

“No he didn’t, dude, he vaguely responded to Jeff’s babbling, that he definitely could have vaguely heard through the earplugs, then left. I dunno about you but sometimes, I can definitely hear around earplugs, they’re probably just the cheap ones you get at the airport or something.”

“Dude what is your deal?”

“What’s my deal? Why are you so pro Steve Harrington?”

“He’s sick of Paul.” Jeff supplied helpfully around the straw of his chocolate milkshake.

“It’s Ralph, Paul quit last month remember?”

“Whaaatt Paul quit? Man what about him and Rhonda?"

“That’s why he quit! She got a promotion, and they couldn’t work toge—what am I even, this isn’t about Paul and Rhonda!”

“Shut up!!” Eddie’s outburst silenced the others, and also gained the attention of the drunk teens across the diner, they didn’t move though, stared for a second, before going back to their terrible ‘night out’ food. “What should I do?” He couldn’t make a decision on his own. There were too many what ifs, too many how dare he’s, too many thoughts and they were all so very loud. His friends talking over each other really wasn’t helping. “Should I… confront him? Should I just ask him about it, should I ignore him completely and hope he just goes away?”

“I think, you should talk to him.” Eddie looked up, the returning figure of the angel of Corroded Coffin, his original best friend, honorary band member. Chrissy. The girl carrying two shakes, followed closely by Nancy. “Listen, ignoring Gareth’s need to get away from retail, sorry Gare”

“It’s cool, I’ve accepted my fate.”

“Ignoring Jeff’s blatant hero worship.”

“He’s known worldwide, he did modelling in Japan, Chris! He’s a massive star!”

“And ignoring Frank’s scepticism.”

“The only sane person here you mean. Nobody recognised him tonight, Jeff, worldwide my ass.”

“Ignoring, them.” Chrissy sighed, placing hers and Nancy’s shakes down before climbing into the booth beside Eddie, Nancy following suit forcing him up against the wall. “I think you should give him a chance. He’s come all this way, he paid for tickets to see you even though he obviously didn’t have to. Did you talk to him while the others were out of the room?”

“Mhm”

“And did he talk back without any issue?”

“…Yeah.”

“Okay, so, these earplugs might not even be earplugs. There’s plenty of things that they could be! Hell, he could have issues with his eardrums for all we know! That’s pretty common in the music industry” loud instruments, huge speakers around you, he could have just been born with it for all they knew “—and there’s earplug looking things that help with eardrum issues, they could even be those sneaky 'invisible' hearing aids! You should talk to him, it’s the only way you’re gonna know for sure.”

“You just wanna flirt with his friend some more.”

“Frank I swear to god.”

“She’s right” Nancy sighed “try conjuring an ulterior motive for me you little shit.” Nancy levelled Frank with a sharp glare, he wisely chose to stay silent. She looked back to Eddie with a small smile “He spoke with me too, even over the music near the bar so I don’t think they were earplugs either. And you like him, right?”

“…I really do.” He hadn’t at first, he’d made assumptions, he’d jumped to conclusions, he’d let his music snobbery get the best of him, but then he did his research. Then he looked the guy up, his accomplishments, his skills, his general personality that shined like sunlight around the right people, he took what’d happened at the coffee shop into consideration, and then the kiss… his lips still tingled, his neck still tingled! His body still craved what’d been abruptly cut short. “He’s… he’s really nice, Nance…”

“Yeah, he seems really nice, and if he’s not? I have a revolver in my glove box.” Eddie let out a soft breath of a laugh, which lit Nancy’s face up as if she’d taken that as a personal victory. “Reply to the text, or DM, or whatever he’s sent you, I saw you looking at it on the way over here. Set something up and ask him when you get there, you’ll only regret it if you don’t.”

“…We’re supposed to be having dinner tomorrow night where he’s staying, just me and him.” And he was… so nervous didn’t seem quite the right word for how nervous he actually was. What would happen if he went? That kiss had turned filthy so quickly and he’d wanted it. He’d wanted it so badly, would tomorrow be the night? Should he prepare or—

“Great! Set up a time and find out the address.” Nancy didn’t even give him time to step onto the spiral. “It’ll be okay, we’re a call away if something goes wrong, or if he turns out to be an asshole, alright?”

“…Alright. Now let me dip my fries in your shake.”

“Ew, no!”

Part 14

[misc-muses]

Some miscellaneous headcanons:

Ralph

- can't see out of his damaged eye. It wasn't damaged beyond repair, but his visual processing just stopped because it was constantly bringing up errors. He hasn't noticed/doesn't care, though

- He reacted so poorly to his mistreatment partially because of simply being an older model (and one who was designed to perform simple, monotonous tasks) who wasn't equipped to deal with it

-Ralph is the name he picked for himself :-) he speaks in third person to remind himself that he is Ralph and they can't take that away from him

Harvey:

- He has absence seizures, which also contributes to his inability to ever be a pilot (fear of heights is easier to explain and understand, though) or drive a car. He likes taking the train instead

- His parents were always very encouraging when it came to schooling and said that no matter what, they'd be proud of him. After originally finding out he couldn't be a pilot, he didn't pursue an education for several years and is definitely a little embarrassed about finishing school in his thirties ( which there is nothing wrong with, go at your own pace )

- He worries a lot about his significant other. He doesn't like to have to find them passed out on the farm/in the mines. They're giving him premature grey hairs

- He is more than happy to help around the farm with watering, picking, planting, and feeding the animals

- His favorite thing to do in the morning is stand on the porch with a cup of coffee and watching the sunrise with his significant other

Luigi:

- He was quite sensitive and cried easily as a kid, which made him a target for bullying. Mario never let the kids say too much when he was around, though

- Luigi absolutely looks up to/admires Mario. Any perceived jealousy is simply Luigi wishing he could have come along on the adventure with his brother

- Of course, there is a sibling rivalry that causes minor issues sometimes ( Mario annoys Luigi more than the other way around ). They have only actually fought once, but their bond has never been broken

[mmufanatic]

Ghosts/MMU headcanons

Anna is Alison in this au and Zosia is Mike because I don't think Zosia would put up with them.

George

-I can see him as Julian (mostly because of the politics), the captain or as Robin, purely because he'd love turning the lights on and off all the time because he's a chaotic little shit. Mostly as the captain though.

-He makes Anna download Duolingo for him but she has to actually do it everyday while he tells her what to put. (Think the captain with his run every morning but Duolingo).

-This can take hours as he is very competitive and wants to complete all the daily quests

- actually he's so melodramatic I can kind of see him as Thomas if Ralph lived there. He goes all 'Romeo and Juliet', 'kill yourself and marry me' when Ralph comes over.

Daisy

-I can see Daisy as Fanny as they're both bossy and Daisy is canonically good at Deportment

-(only her husband didn't need to kill her as she was having an affair with the housekeeper anyway)

-she tells off Alexander, rather than Anna like Fanny does to Alison because she likes Anna but she can find a lot of fault with Alexander

-she is quite disapproving of anything after her own time ('Oh let's just do away with books and telephones then! Let's all become addicted to these new mobile phone things!') but was pleased about how women's rights have got better and was interested when she saw something about Pride on TV.

-(she now makes Anna play a lot of Girl in Red for her).

Hazel

-I can see her as Pat because he keeps the peace with everyone and Hazel is responsible but I can also see her as Mary

- She would definitely follow people around chanting 'Get out, get out, get out...'

- I can also see her having all the superstitions that Mary has

- so kind of like Pat from Mary's time (she died how Mary did).

- she loves puzzle games online so Anna has to play a lot of them with Hazel telling her what to do

- Hazel is the only one (apart from Eric and Nuala) who doesn't burst through bedroom/ bathroom walls unexpectedly (Alexander and Beanie forget and everyone else just doesn't care).

Beanie

- She would definitely be Kitty but quieter

- she just follows Anna or the others about to be included

- she does always get Anna to put the cartoons on for her in the morning though (Alexander watches them with her).

-Anna has definitely ended up buying way more Christmas/ Halloween/ Easter decorations than she needed because Beanie was so enthusiastic and no one can say no to her

-she found beanies very funny because it's the same name so Anna knitted her one even though she can't wear it. She just likes to look at it.

Kitty

- I think Kitty would be Thomas since they both always have a crush

-(I can also see her as Julian just because of all the parties and the dirty jokes)

-she has a crush on pretty much every man who walks into the house

- (Imagine 'Free Pass' but its Kitty and George arguing over whether the actor is hot).

Lavinia

- definitely Julian.

- it's her who pushes Anna out the window, like in the show

- sometimes changes the channel or finds something a bit inappropriate online. She is in big trouble if Alexander or especially Beanie sees it ( then Kitty and George have to deal with it).

Alexander

-I can see him as Kitty but maybe dying in a different way.

- maybe hypothermia from falling in the lake or poisoned by his step brother?

- he's very enthusiastic about pretty much everything (will watch anything on TV, loves every song on the radio, always wants to be involved in what's going on)

- he's the most trouble because he never stops talking. Ever.

- He follows Anna around talking and gets offended if she ignores him ( even if she's on the phone).

May

- she is Robin because she would love messing with the lights

- also I can imagine May going down a conspiracy theory rabbit hole

Eric

- Humphrey (because I'm not sure who else he would be).

Nuala

-Jemima because she would love the dramatic entrance and freaking everyone out

Amina

- Annie because they're both so outspoken

- in this au she stayed long enough to meet Daisy. Daisy mourned for her when she got sucked off.

[telltaleangelina]

TC tag game Thank you for the questions and for tagging me @renaultphile Rules: Answer the questions and tag other TC fans

"He would not fucking say that" only they did and it's canon. When/who?

I don’t think I’ve read it enough to have a sense of something like this. I really disliked Laurie’s scenes with Adrian though. So it’s not so much ‘he wouldn’t say that’ as ‘I would prefer to ignore the fact that he said/did that.'

2. Did they kiss in the study? Yes/no + why you are 100% correct about this.

I think they did. The first time I read it, I didn't really wonder if something had happened, only what had happened: I didn’t know if they’d only kissed or done anything more. Later, it seemed to be confirmed by Ralph’s letter that they’d not done ‘anything more,’ I just assumed it was a kiss, and I don’t really think the dialogue following the ellipses makes much sense without anything having happened. “Now you see what I mean, Spud. It would never have done, would it? Well, goodbye.” What could Laurie have seen if there was nothing besides a hug or handshake or something? What would never have done? Why ask him to ‘come here’ at all?

3. Mandatory question about Ralph's alleged tattoos.

I really don’t think he’d have any, but if he did I think it'd probably be something nautical.

4. 53 vs 59 edition: quote a line or paragraph that is better in the edition you like the least.

I don’t know which of them I read and I definitely haven’t read another addition, so I can’t answer this. Apparently, the earlier one had more detail and dialogue, so if I haven’t I’d love to read it

5. Which TC character would feel right at home here on tumblr dot com?

Sandy, I think he'd be great on here.

6. Tag yourself at Alec's birthday party.

Laurie reading a book or Laurie just at the beginning, sitting around awkwardly, listening to people’s conversations and wondering how on earth he ended up there.

7. Post a TC meme

The first I ever saw (on the Mary Renault tag) and still the funniest to me, I think because I understand it perfectly

8. Easy to talk about who deserved better. Who deserved worse?

Straike, I hate him with a fiery passion. The man had a dog put down, not because he was sick or anything but simply because he couldn’t be bothered to care for him. Vicar? Ridiculous.

9. You can break the fourth wall (at any point in the novel) and say a single sentence to our protagonist, Laurie Odell. What do you say?

'This is not Ancient Greece, stop being weird,' at the exact moment Andrew is telling him his traumatic life-story and Laurie is preoccupied worrying about Dave. Also related to the question, but not really asked for: if I could I’d also tell Andrew he doesn’t have to feel ashamed of how he feels about Laurie. Well, more accurately, I’d give him a modern copy of ‘Quaker Faith & Practice’ and have the relevant passages highlighted, so I know he won’t miss them. It makes me very sad for both Andrew and Dave that their whole lives could've been very different (and much happier) if they were born four or five generations later.

9. What's a question you have about TC? One you haven't found an answer for yet.

I can't think of any, besides wondering how Mary Renault could've written it because it's so good. I love the use of subtext, the way she describes emotions you've felt before but never would've been able to put into words on your own. In terms of characters and story, I do have a random question about Bunny: was it supposed to be implied that he was a perpetrator of sexual assault? I got that idea when I was reading the car scene between him and Laurie but I was unsure.

I don't know who to tag! I think all of the Charioteer accounts I know have already been tagged, but if anyone hasn't and wants to, I'd love to read your response!

[polygonal-trees]

There's something about EarthSpark that's been on my mind for a while.

Anyone who's experienced any amount of children's fiction has probably noticed that parents tend to be conveniently absent.

Either they're dead, missing, always at work, outright neglectful or just otherwise inexplicably missing. And even when the parents are present, they very rarely have an active role. This applies mostly to adventure stories but occurs in all genres.

There is a reason for this! Sometimes it's to drive the plot (like maybe the children have made a vow their mother will be found or smth) but the most common reason, in almost all stories, is that good, attentive parents are boring. They are boring, sensible, rule-setting, ruiners of fun. Ash Ketchum and his mouse can't fight a primordial demigod if his mother is around to tell him it's too dangerous. It just doesn't work.

One of the first things I was told in the first children's writing class I took was, to paraphrase: "do not have an adult show up and fix everything. It's boring and children hate it." Children love to believe that they are much more capable than they actually are, they want to feel brave and independent, and a good parent actively ruins that.

Usually, even if there is a guardian, it's a Fun Guardian - someone like an aunt, an older brother or a teacher who lets the kids get away with things a parent wouldn't. Them not being the characters' actual parent lowers the amount of responsibility the audience expects them to have.

And when there are 'fun parents' who allow their children to do dangerous things... well, except for a few very specific circumstances, it just comes off as willful neglect and endangerment. I'm actually struggling to think of any examples that are played straight, though, because it's so rare.

Obviously there are some stories where the parents are both good and present, but those stories are usually very low stakes. The Berenstain Bears never entered any illegal off-road races, for example.

Transformers has had relatively active parent characters in the past, e.g. June Darby and Charlie Burns, but the children's adventures still usually hinge on them not being around. They definitely care about their kids, but they still kind of toe the line of negligence imo. And of course Ralph's and Miko's parents barely exist at all.

But then there's EarthSpark.

Obviously I haven't read every children's book or seen every children's show, but right from the start Alex's and Dot's roles struck me as very unusual.

They're involved in everything! And they know about almost everything too. There are what, three or four episodes where they don't know what their kids are up to? And in another break from tradition, they get to be actual characters as well, with their own personalities, interests and relationships.

I really Alex and Dot. I think they're fun, fitting, and I like seeing a fresh take on the role of parents in children's fiction.

But I also think their portrayal has created a rather awkward situation for EarthSpark.

EarthSpark wants Alex and Dot to be good parents, who are involved in their children's lives and care about their safety... and it also wants the kids to have high stakes adventures, with explosions and sword fights. And these two things aren't really compatible.

Because Alex and Dot are good parents who are actively trying to protect their kids, they show genuine worry and distress, and it ends up really highlighting how dangerous the children's adventures actually are. It really alters the tone of the show.

Miss Frizzle can take her elementary class inside an active volcano and say, "it's fine!" because she is a Fun Guardian - she's not like the other teachers! She doesn't care about risk assessments! - and that's a large part of what sets the tone. We aren't worried because she isn't worried. The magma isn't dangerous because she says it isn't dangerous. We can suspend our disbelief.

Mo using a magic sword to fight a villain in the astral plane is just as fanciful (in my opinion). But when Dot starts calling out in fear while watching helplessly from the sidelines, we the viewers think - oh shit. This isn't a fun adventure at all. Mo is in real, physical danger. That's bad. And our suspended disbelief comes crashing down.

In my opinion, nothing that's happened so far in EarthSpark is more extreme than anything that's happened in children's fiction before. It doesn't even hold a candle to stuff like Goosebumps. But I think Alex and Dot's roles plays a huge part in making us realise how dangerous the events and how high the stakes actually are. There are other factors of course - like EarthSpark doesn't really do cartoon violence, everything has fairly realistic consequences that you don't often see in cartoons - but Alex and Dot play a significant part.

I think EarthSpark goes to show why parents are so often absent from children's fiction - they are almost completely antithetical to the adventure stories children want. I think this is best displayed during the big seeker battle, where Alex and Dot have to carry Mo and Robbie to safety. In another show, the kids would save themselves. In EarthSpark, the fact that they don't and can't, and need their parents to save them, removes the independence and agency that's such a staple of children's adventure.

This isn't really a critique, it's more of an observation. I've enjoyed EarthSpark so far - I like that's it's trying something new, I like that the high stakes actually feel high, I like that the parents are actual characters, I like that it has a more realistic and grounded tone - but I am curious to see how Alex and Dot will be handled going forward. There's a very difficult balance needed here and I don't think EarthSpark has struck it yet.