#Was adding layer after layer of failsafe

[spectral-phases]

Tim Drake as Rook (and Blackbird)

I've seen posts floating around trying to suggest new names and new costumes for him, and I've seen really great designs (u/Hunkerdown_son's Gray Ghost suit) that I like a lot more than what he's gotten. (Poor kid's gone back to Robin and was feuding with Damian about who's the better Robin? Like, boy, you could be in college, you are a whole-ass adult now, god damn, can the writers let you develop). There's Cardinal, Flamebird, Redbird, every red bird there is. And like, I get it, Red Robin was one of his more iconic runs (pre-Flashpoint), his OYL costume was primarily red, he was Red Robin wearing basically a Robin costume for a little while there too.

One of the name's I've seen is Rook. And that fascinates me. I actually had a hazy image of it pop into my mind, like a terrible "got any more pixels?" JPG picture of an artbook all zoomed-in and blown out one, of what that might look like.

(Artist's recreation of the above described image)

So I made it.

(Look, I know. I know. That is not how "Rook" would be stylized for the logo, but listen, listen. Cursive k basically has a mini-R in it and I was having fun with this. Okay? I don't draw much these days and I'm not a comic artist/graphic designer. I do math for a living.) (I spent very little time on the logo for Blackbird, but you get the idea. The "R" gets twisted nicely into a "B" for Blackbird, in my opinion.)

Design choices and everything below. Very stupidly long.

Rook first because I know the color is going to be a sell.

Rook is a bird in the corvid family, with crows, so they're exceptionally smart birds. Rooks are also the name for the chess piece that can perform the trickster maneuver called castling where they trade places with the king (It's not hard to do, necessarily, just like, a 4D move compared to the normal chess moves, and not something the average person knows about). Being that he's been relegated to the "boy genius" role and he is vicious and cunning with his mind more than almost anything else (See Robin #137's "Show your face here again and we'll frame you for the kind of crimes even other hardened kills don't condone or forgive" speech, him blowing up the LoA's computers in Red Robin #8 after somehow creating a program/virus on their systems while under constant supervision, or all of Red Robin's "The Hit List" arc). (I know he's not the only one who can do or has done, things like this, but he does it a lot, is my point).

Rooks, the birds, as a symbol of death are also fascinating to connect to Tim. He's never "died" like the other Robins have, but his mantra in his introduction is basically "Batman needs a Robin." Because Batman/Bruce has been traumatized by losing his son, Jason, and is spiraling, dialing up the violence towards criminals, dialing down his ability to care whether or not he survives, destroying his interpersonal relationships in the process. Death as a symbol can mean the literal figurative death, but it also can mean the end of a phase of life, of letting something go, and moving onto a new chapter.

And that's what Bruce needed to do. He, of course, would always miss Jason, but he needed to move past the pain, move past the agony, become what Batman was supposed to be again. Tim's the one who got him there. He's the one who convinced Bruce to open that new door. Tim's the one who put the "family" in Bat-Family because Bruce sure as shit was not going to do that. Here, this post explains that a bit more eloquently.

https://www.tumblr.com/thattimdrakeguy/190044791065/would-you-consider-tim-the-heart-of-the-batfamily

Rooks, the birds, are also blue/purple in color, which I think is great for Tim. I know, I know, everyone wants him with red. I get. I really, truly, get it. But let's just...take a step back and go outside of the box a little for his color. Now, I know, not everyone keeps the same color consistently (the number of times Nightwing has just bounced between Blue and Red, for example), but there is usually a "main" color strongly associated with each member of the Bat-Family.

Nightwing gets blue, duh (and also bluebird). Red Hood gets red (and also Nightwing when he's having a shit time and also Kate Kane's Batwoman and also Damian's Redwing). Damian's Robin often gets green (though I low-key associate green with Tim's Robin more than Damian's, Tim's no longer going to be Robin here, so Damian can have it). The Signal gets yellow (and so does Cass's Batgirl/Black Bat/Orphan). Stephanie as Spoiler/Batgirl has purple (and so does Huntress and Barbara's Batgirl). And Oracle gets lime green.

We don't need any more red symbols in the family. It's already out of hand without throwing Tim in there. And out of all the siblings, he's the only one without a distinct color.

Anyway. If we dip into tertiary colors, we can fix all of that. I made a mock-up of what I mean drawing the symbols mostly by memory in a few minutes. For Huntress/Helena Bertinelli, I just used her mask.

See how Tim as Rook gets to be wedged in between Nightwing's blue and Stephanie's purple with Violet? Tim Drake is a Dick Grayson fan first, Nightwing fan second, and person a distant third, so going more blue with his scheme is a much better fit. You could come up with a name for him to be teal, but violet is better for Rook, and like he's also close to Stephanie's Spoiler/Batgirl colors and say what you will of his relationship with her, she is important to his character as friend/girlfriend/friendly-ex. And Dick went from "Red/green/yellow" to "Blue/black" so Tim can go from "Red/green/yellow/black" to "violet/black."

Oh, and it lets him get his "R" back. The one from the 90's that's just so iconic that he was literally introduced with as Robin. If we can have a million different bat symbols then we can have two different R's floating around and no one will be confused.

And anyway, with all of that in mind, and that terrible image haunting me, I decided to draw a quick reference sheet for what Rook might look like. I think I spent like 2 hours on the final version, with an hour and a half on sketches I hated/deleted. Anyway.

I had a nice dark green in here instead of sky blue and a dark purple instead of dark blue, but then I was looking at the purple/green and "I'm in dangered" my way out of the Joker color-combo.

Instead I decided, since he's a young person and the violet I chose was sort of blacklight-esque, then why not make him look like some kinda blacklight glowing guy. The youth these days still love that kinda stuff, right? And it ties into the themes of being a light in the dark and crime-scene stuff and all that. The colors came from how lead glass reacts under black light, and while I imagine the violet parts do show up in black light, it's the light blue parts that actually glow in blacklight.

If you want to draw this design or make up your own Rook design or tweak this design go ahead, like, for example if you wanted him to have the sharp pointy cuffs that I couldn't get to look good at all (but please tag me if you do, I wanna see it, unless you're shit-talking me. Then don't tag me.)(Shit talking means "my god, this asshole who cannot draw at all" and not "It was okay, but I thought it might be better like this/with some tweaks/more coherent colors" one I can take and the former will make me cry).

(If the notes are hard to read, they will be in text at the very bottom)

Obviously, I got a little too obsessed with the mask for my own good. I didn't want him to just have a domino mask, I liked the protectiveness of his Red Robin cowl (if not the look), and I wanted more coverage while also having his hair out because he has really good hair. So it goes around the back of his head in a band, protecting his temples and the back of his head, but nothing else for his hair to show. It is supposed to blend with his hair so we get the illusion of the cowl, but drawn by someone better/more time/shading it'd be fairly obvious up front where his hair and mask are, but less so from the back. And Tim has done the mask under a mask gag before and a self-destructing mask, so I feel like him having approximately 30-billion fail-safes to prevent it from just being pulled off of him is in-character.

And then I decided, that since Tim is Nightwing fan second, he can have a red version of the outfit named "Blackbird" for when he's feeling a little moody or feisty the same as Nightwing has the red Nightwing suit for...reasons ("We wear red in new continuities" or whatever. Why have one outfit when you can have several?). This time the colors were inspired by red cadmium glass under blacklight and the red winged blackbird.

Red Winged Blackbird's symbolically are "a sign of change and transformation. They represent the power of love and compassion, as well as the need to take action in order to make positive changes in your life. The red winged blackbird is a symbol for spiritual growth, inner strength, courage, determination and self-awareness." Which. You know. Fits Tim. And there's red. So. I feel like that's an easy sell. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I wanted to reference his OYL, Post-Crisis Red Robin (regular and data alter), and Robin (Post-Crisis/Rebirth) outfits for the design. I didn't care for much of his post-Flashpoint Red Robin outifts, adding Nomura/Kingdom Hearts zippers levels of belts to him or just being Robin with two "R"s for a symbol and bad hair. You can see the OYL in the edges of the cape and the interior of the mask. Robin, Rebirth in particular, with his elbow pads and knee pads, shoulder armor and the shape of his boots. Red Robin in the bandolier harness/belt thing he's got, but every thing on it is one of those hammer space utility belt pouches the Bats are so well known for, so he can have a bajillion of them as the "tool using" Robin. The "V" center and arm-stripe/finger-stripe combo is, obviously, reminiscent of Nightwing, and his Red Robin data alter, which is also reflected in the larger mask (though the nose is not as beak-like).

(OYL References, the dialogue in the second to last panel of the first reference is misattributed, in case you were confused as to why Tim is dissing his outfit and Dick is talking like Tim)

(Red Robin References)

(Robin References)

And obviously, I just put his "R" symbol on a circle and called it a day. Although I was clearly going off of memory instead of a direct reference, but whatever. Whatever. It fits better in a circle the way I did it. And a circle is a better buckle/clip than the oval, which was a deliberate choice. So. Anyway.

Notes (from top left to bottom right, grouped by what they're describing):

Shoulder Shot: "We're bringing back his iconic 'R' from the 90's for 'Rook. (pointing to the R symbol)." "The cape can be rolled back to reveal some light shoulder armor that doesn't change his silhouette when the cape is down (pointing to his shoulder armor and the rolled back cape that is reminiscent of his over the shoulder "black with yellow" capes)." "Feather pattern that emulates Nightwing's arm/fingerstripes (pointing to the side of his arm)." "His elbow pads have the same shape as his kneepads for the skaterboy vibe. (pointing to the pads over his arms and knees)."

Sketch of harness: "Bandolier harness hides under the cape that clips into his insignia (pointing to the symbol in the center)." "Each space is a pouch (pointing to every area between the pointed ridges (which are hollow tubes with screw caps that can also hold things for maximum hammerspace))."

The detailed shot of the mask: "The face mask is partial emotive with white lenses that have thermal and night-vision (next to the white eyes)." "The foil layer of the mask can peel off unless actively held when the mask is lifted, and cling to his skin with a static charge that makes it almost impossible to peel from his skin (pointing to the teal circuit bit that is lifted from the pointy bit of the mask (the circuits are water/sweat proof, don't worry))." "There are dozens of magnetic locks that have to hit in the right on/off pattern to life all layers of the mask. Each finger in his gloves can have an active magnetic charge, so there are over a thousand combinations (pointing to the foil layer and the inside of the mask)."

The sketches of the mask lowered and raised: "The back of the mask is made of interlocking combs that seal together with metal locks to avoid it coming off unintended (pointing to the back of the raised mask)." "Durable, flexible rubber-like material (pointing to the sides of the mask, back, and the expanding fan like section that allows it to raise while still being one-piece and the top of the mask that would roll against his forehead)." "The mask can be lifted up when the locks are undone (pointing to the raised and lowered mask and the expanding accordion like structure)."

The sketch of a side profile of his head with his bangs and face half there: "Where does the mask end and his hair begin? Like Kujo Jotaro's cap, the world may never know (pointing to the back of his head where the black mask and black hair would blend together)." "The back of the mask combs through his hair and the top layers of his hair cover it (providing an actual answer)." "The nose of the mask has padding that protects his nose from breaks and conceals the shape of his nose and cheeks (next to his nose, which is half covered by the mask)."

[sirowsky-stories]

The Flowers Always Know

Chapter 23 - Surprises

Description: Coming back home after your self-imposed isolation was not without difficulty, leading to a few tough conversations. But also to fully reuniting with your man, finally.

**Beware! Author chooses NOT to display warnings on the individual chapters of this story. Read at your own risk!**

Author's Note: This was one of the chapters I was most looking forward to updating, adding so much more depth and a much more accurate characterization to the decisions both Marcus and Hermosa are faced with.

Rating: Mature 18+ONLY Word Count: 9809 (5442 words added) Masterlist (this story)

   It was late afternoon by the time Marcus parked the car outside the house. The sun was sitting low, creating a pink and golden shimmer to the air and it all felt a bit more magical than it probably was. But you were so happy to be home again, your own heart was probably adding a layer of sparkle to the whole scene.    He’d turned the engine off and unhooked his seatbelt before your partner realized that you weren’t moving.

   “Hey, are you okay? You’re not having second thoughts, are you?” he asked, and he sounded almost panicked at the mere thought.

   “Not at all,” you reassured him, still looking at the seemingly otherworldly view outside the front window.

   “Oh, thank goodness. Don’t scare me like that,” he replied with a sharp exhale, as though the fear had made him hold his breath.

   “Sorry. I was just thinking that it’s time I sold my house,” you explained, too lost in your own thoughts to notice how he visibly flinched. “I don’t even know why I haven’t done it sooner, but I guess I just never got around to it. I feel like it’s been one crazy week after the other for so long now.”

   His silence finally broke through your slightly mesmerized gaze, and you turned your head to look at him, surprised to find him staring teary-eyed at you.

   “What is it, honey?”

   “It’s just…” he started, but then had to pause just to breathe for a moment. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear you say that.”

   “That I wanna get rid of the house? Why? I haven’t even set foot in there since our first night together.”

   “Well, at first, I figured you kept it as a failsafe, in case we didn’t… work out. Which made total sense, it was just rational thinking.    But then, after… the prison… I thought maybe you still wanted to keep it because you worried that I might push you away again. And it broke my heart to think I made you feel like you needed a safe place to get away from me.”

   You unbuckled yourself and turned in your seat so you could fully meet his eyes, and took his hands in yours, gripping them tightly to let him have the physical support if he needed it.

   “That whole mess was a stepping-stone. For both of us. But we managed to step over it together, and we’re on the other side now, so we get to walk away and leave it behind us.    I trust you, not because I have to, but because I want to. Okay?” you posed, and he nodded but he was still fighting tears, so you kept going. “These past weeks, where I’ve been the one staying away, those were another stone of ours, and thanks to you, we got past this one too.”

   Realizing the truth behind your words, he finally smiled and leaned forwards, letting go of your hands to hold you instead, and you held him in return with all your strength.

   “I love you, Marcus. So much.”

   “I love you, hermosa.”

   When he loosened his grip, you pulled back and kissed him once. Any more than that and you wouldn’t be leaving the car any time soon. And he knew it too, smiling with recognition as he saw the familiar heat in your eyes before you turned away and reached for the doorhandle.    He waited for you to round the car so he could take your hand for the short walk around the garage, and as you approached the front door, he huffed a small laugh.

   “Oh right, I should probably tell you; Missy doesn’t know you’re coming home today.”

   His mirth made sense then, because she was bound to be overjoyed, and she tended to get a bit hyper in those circumstances.

   “Ah. Good to know,” you smiled back, mentally preparing for lots of screaming and hugging, just in case.

   He walked in first, noting that no one was in the living room, from which the front hall was fully visible, then stepped out of his shoes and approached the kitchen, while you lingered in the hallway, out of sight for a bit longer.    In your fear of hurting her, you’d asked Missy to keep her distance, and not visit you every day or for very long. Circumstances had then led to it being almost two weeks since you’d last seen her, and you felt a little unsure of how she’d take it. If she was angry with you, you’d certainly understand.

   “Hi, dad. Did you talk to her today?” was the first thing she said after hearing her father greet her, and it tore at your chest to hear the mixture of hope and sadness in her voice.

   “I did. That’s why I’m late.”

   “And? When is she coming home?”

   For a few seconds, you were frozen in the shadowy space among the shoes and jackets, because in those few words, you heard the echoes of entire conversations the two of them must’ve had concerning you.    How they must’ve sat together and worried, trying to come up with strategies for how to convince you to come home, and the realization left you struggling to breathe for a while.    They both truly loved you, so much more than you’d ever dared to believe.

   “How about now?” you asked, allowing the gratitude for their affection to give you strength as you quietly emerged from the hallway, and saw her entire face light up before she was already running at you.

   “Hermosa!” she squealed and ran the short distance to jump into your arms, without a hint of fear or anger.

   Ever since she’d found you in the grass at Anita’s place that day, and used her father’s favourite nickname for you, you’d noticed she’d started using it more regularly. You hadn’t questioned it or asked her why, but hearing it now, when she was so reactive, you wondered if it had simply become your name to her.    Her father had certainly used it enough to make it plausible.    She hugged you so tightly and laughed while she cried and tried to tell you how much she’d missed you, all at the same time.

   “Hey, no need to rush, kiddo, I’m sticking around,” you giggled at her chaotic welcome, and she pulled back to look at you.

   “Really?” Her question wasn’t disbelieving, but it was unsure enough that it made you feel terrible about having stayed away from her for so long.

   “Really, really. I missed you too, angel.”

   She stayed close to you while you cooked that evening. You’d asked to have the honour of cooking by yourself on your first day back, because you hadn’t done any cooking for so long, and you still felt like you could taste those disgusting early supplements in the back of your throat, so you wanted to make something you knew would chase those tastes away.    The food provided to you while you’d been locked up hadn’t been bad, but you longed for something spicier, richer in flavour than what you’d been served there.

   “Are you sure those things were actually for consumption? Cause I saw one of them, and it sure didn’t look like it,” Missy asked when you explained your desire to cook while taking out all the pots and pans you’d be needing, and you had to laugh.

   “Oh, trust me, it didn’t taste like it either. But they did manage to come up with one that works, finally. They’re still working on the flavours, but at least it doesn’t taste like cardboard, and does what it’s supposed to.”

   “And what is that, exactly?”

   “Well, if and when I get drained of energy, if I eat one of those bars, it’s the equivalent of eating about three full meals.”

   “That sounds… unhealthy,” she settled on, looking a bit like someone smelling a bad fart.

   “It really does,” you chuckled at her expression, “but it might save my life, so don’t knock it. And don’t ever let me leave the house without at least one.”

   “Make that three,” Marcus chipped in from the dinner table, where he was busy setting the plates and cutlery.

   He shot you a hard look under his brows as he waited to hear you agree, and while you might’ve felt it was a bit over the top, you weren’t gonna argue. Certainly not after just telling his daughter the damned things could save your life.

   “Fine.”

   The three of you had dinner together for the first time in a very long time, and it was so relaxed and comfortable. It seemed almost like you could’ve actually been in prison in comparison to what this felt like.    After the table had been cleared, Missy wanted to play a board-game, so you went to find it in the cabinet in the hallway to the bedrooms, and of course, the one she wanted was on the bottom shelf.    You bent down to get it, and when you stood up again, there was suddenly a figure next to you, and you leapt sideways while you felt your energy react.

   “Anita, for fucks sake!!” you full-on yelled at her. “What is wrong with you?! I could have flung you into the neighbour’s yard! What the hell were you thinking?!”

   You’d only just managed to restrain yourself long enough to realize that it was her. Just.

   “Well, you were worried about blowing up the house. If you can keep from instinctively throwing out a perceived threat, then I think you can rest easy,” she shrugged, completely unbothered by the danger she’d just placed everyone in.

   “Wha-… Are you serious?!” you kept screaming, still trembling with the remnants of fear she’d made your body leap to, making you furious that she’d take such a risk for no reason.

   But she merely smiled and walked past Marcus, who had come to see what you were screaming about, and it pissed you off to no end that she wasn’t even taking the threat you posed seriously enough to acknowledge that what she’d just done was absolutely idiotic.

   “You are completely fucking crazy! Do that again, and I’ll throw you to the other end of the god damned neighbourhood, let’s see if you’re still smiling then!”

   She left without another word, and Marcus came to stand beside you, shoving his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. He didn’t even look worried.    You closed your eyes to try and focus on just breathing to get your heart to slow down, and leaned against the wall, holding a hand up towards him to indicate a tiny measurement in between your fingers.

   “I was this close, babe… My skin is crawling.”

   His current washed over you, helping your body to settle down, but he wasn’t at all concerned about what had just happened, and that truly worried you.

   “Look, I get that you have this unbelievable faith in me and I’m very grateful for it. But how the hell can you stand there so calmly right now? You know what I can do…” you questioned, still fighting the pounding of your own pulse with every breath.

   If it had just been the startle, you would’ve settled down in no time, but because the shock of it had activated your powers, all the fears you had about how destructive you could be, entirely without meaning to, had come along with it. And that was a lot harder to quell.

   “Yes, I do know what you’re capable of, but I also know how far you’ll go for the people you love,” he answered simply, but there was a depth to his eyes which spoke of strong emotions lurking under the surface. “You died to protect us, and however much I hate it… I know you’d rather die than let any harm come to us.”

   He took his hands out of his pockets and came to take your hands instead, and even with the trails of despair you saw in his face, he still looked so calm.

   “Yes, you came close, and no, she shouldn’t have done that, but you have nothing to fear,” he reiterated, letting more of his current roll through you to take the final edges of shock out of your system.

   “How can you be so sure, so confident? When all it takes is one jump-scare for me to devolve.” It really was unfathomable to you that he wasn’t reacting at all to something so serious, but his mind was apparently very clear on this matter.

   “Because you’re here. You took the step to come here, and you can tell yourself it was because you finally believed it was gonna be safe, but I think the truth is much simpler than that. I think it’s because this is where you truly want to be.    Crazy though she may be, even mamá is one of the people you want to be around, to have around you. Because we’re the ones who make you strong, who give you confidence, just like you do for us.    If she had been a burglar, you would’ve dispatched her to the neighbour’s yard, without hesitation. Do you really expect me to be upset about that?”

   “No, but I expect you to react when something dangerous happens in your own home,” you pleaded, feeling your mind sink into a dark and terrible place you never ever wanted to get trapped in fully. But you had to make sure Marcus was aware of its existence. “I need to know that if it comes to it… you’ll protect them from me.”

   He didn’t flinch or look stunned to hear you say it, which told you he already knew about this side of you. Which wasn’t surprising, given your actions in the past.    But there was a difference between being willing to give your life for others, to recognizing that you had the capacity to also take life from them, given the right trigger.    He hadn’t been there when you’d killed the errand boy. And even if he had seen the video, it wouldn’t have been able to show him how easy it had been. How truly insignificant the energy you’d sent at the kid had been.

   Of course, you wanted to believe you could never harm anyone, and especially not your family. But in the core of your being, there was a lot of darkness, none of which Marcus had ever seen.    You’d always used the pain of your past to feed the positive sides of yourself, letting it remind you that your life since then had been good, that the problems you’d faced had been nothing in comparison.    But underneath all that, the hatred and injustice was still alive. And if something ever happened to draw those things up to the surface, there was no telling how much darkness you could inflict upon the world.

   “No,” he finally said, with a slight shake of his head. “I won’t agree to that.”

   “Marcus…”

   “No. Don’t ever ask me that again.” He sounded almost angry suddenly, which made no sense to you, and when he saw the confusion in your eyes, he let go of your hands and turned away from you for a beat. Frustration rocked his frame when he came back, stepping even closer, crowding you against the wall. “I love you, do you understand that?    I love you so much that for the past two months, I haven’t slept more than an hour at a time, because I kept waking up, hoping you’d be there. And every time I reached over to find your side of the bed cold and empty, I cried for hours.”

   Stunned, you couldn’t do anything but stare at him. He had never mentioned any of this in all the time you’d been apart. He’d mentioned having trouble sleeping without you on several occasions, but you had no idea it had been this severe.

   “I abandoned you at the prison. I left you when you needed me, and I will never forgive myself for it.    But you left me too,” he accused, and he was getting increasingly sad now. “You chose to stay away, and I respected that because I knew you were still mine. I could see you and know you were okay.    But I wasn’t. Every day has been torturous to me, and I was never gonna tell you about it, because I knew you only did what you needed to do, and I was fine with it. I would suffer through anything for you.”

   He paused then, closing his eyes and slowly lifting his hands to place them on the wall on either side of your shoulders, as if he suddenly needed the support.

   “But not this,” he tremblingly continued, opening his eyes to reveal the absolute horror which filled them at the mere thought of what he was saying. “You don’t get to ask me to fight you. To stand between the people that I can’t live without and keep them apart. To look at you and see an enemy… I can never do that.    I’d rather die.”

   The final sentence was little more than a whisper, strangled by the unbearable truth behind them, and you finally understood.    Life had taught you everything about fear and survival, about despair and desperation. But things like friendship, joy, security and trust, respect and emotional intelligence, you’d had to figure out on your own, much later in life.

   Which was why, you’d never contemplated on the potential existence of a person who could love you so completely that even the risk you posed to his child would never be enough to tear him from you.    Those were the plotlines of impossibly romantic fantasies. You’d never seen any proof, at any stage of your life, to suggest it could ever be real.

   And yet, it was staring you in the face, right now. As real and devastating as every harsh word you’d been made to endure, as if the universe was trying to show you that everything truly does have an equal counterpart. That if such catastrophic and destructive things as your mother existed, then so too must her opposite.    For a long moment, you just stared at the man before you, still resisting the notion that such a creature could’ve stepped out of the pages of books and movies, much less that he could ever fall for you.

   “How… How are you real?” you heard yourself ask, and his features softened but he kept meeting your gaze with unchanged intensity, and after a few seconds, he seemed to realize why you’d asked such a thing.

   “You’ve never known someone could love a person this much… have you?”

   Shaking your head, you never broke away from his eyes, still barely able to fathom that this was the real world and not some dream you’d made up for yourself.    He leaned closer, until his face was mere inches from yours.

   “Well, I do. And even if you don’t know it yet, you’re exactly the same.    Remember, hermosa, I know you. So, when I say that I know Missy’s always gonna be safe with you, it’s not wishful thinking.    I’ve told you before, you have good instincts, so trust yourself. Your body knows when you’re really in danger, so trust it.”

   He held your focus until he saw you give in, so attuned to your every expression that he noticed the moment your resolve began to falter, and you started to allow yourself to believe that this man and his unbelievably enormous heart, was indeed real.    Leaning back, he let his hands slide off the wall and rubbed them over his face, as if trying to scrub the intensity of the conversation you’d just had, out of his frame.

   “I’ll try,” you replied, which seemed like a hopelessly inadequate response, and much too delayed to even relate to what he’d said, but it was all you could think of.

   He sighed into a slight smile, letting his hands fall to his sides.

   “Do. Or do not. There is no try.”

   Gaping like a damned fish for a beat, you pushed off the wall while your brain scrambled to get out of the incredulous haze he’d put it in.

   “Wow… Now? This felt like a Yoda-moment to you?” you questioned, unable to keep from grinning slightly at the sheer ridiculousness of the quote in this setting.

   “Hey, it made you smile.”

   Huffing lightly, you let your head fall forwards and saw the game you’d dropped on the floor when Anita had startled you.

   “Right. Well, I guess it’s playtime.”

   You walked past him to pick it up, but when you bent over, he grabbed your hips and pulled your ass back against his groin. The unexpected action caused you to abruptly right yourself again with a loud gasp, clutching the box to your abdomen as he leaned into your back and kissed your neck, quickly but passionately, before whispering in your ear.

   “Oh no, that comes later, sexy. And I promise to keep Yoda out of it,” he whispered, low and gravelly, knowing that voice would move through you like the vibrations of a drum.

   He deliberately bucked into your ass just a little, before letting you go, because the fucker knew it would make you soil your panties. It seemed he was intent on not only keeping you distracted tonight, but on making good use of the fact that he’d finally have you back in his bed tonight, and you couldn’t really blame him.    Grabbing the game, he sauntered off to the living room while you grunted and went to the bedroom to change underwear. Which was when you remembered something from months back, when you’d been on a shopping spree with the twins.

   When you re-joined the family in the living room, shooting Anita a harsh glare, they’d already set the game up and were playing rock-paper-scissors to determine who’d get to start, so you took your seat and fell into the comfortable familiarity of just being with these people.    It didn’t take long before you’d let go of the tense minutes in the hallway earlier, letting the light-hearted energy at the table infect you until you couldn’t even remember what you’d been so upset about.

   You’d put on a knitted dress, which you’d used to wear a lot while you’d lived alone but had never worn in front of Marcus.    It wasn’t really anything special. Light grey and snugly fitting, with a big open neck that naturally fell off both shoulders. It had long sleeves, and came down to about mid-thigh, which meant your legs were mostly bare, since you’d opted not to wear any leggings underneath.

   But there was something about the softness of the wool, and the way it hugged your form. It made you look really cute and sweet for some reason, while it also unapologetically showed off your curves, which was why you’d never worn it in front of anyone else before. The strange contradiction of the garment had always made you a bit self-conscious.    Although, you’d had the satisfaction of watching Marcus’ eyes widen for a second, as he’d taken you in, before clearing his throat and returning to battling for starting positions, which had boosted your confidence immensely.

   While you all played, you decided to test yourself on the accuracy of your abilities, since the only way you’d ever get comfortable using your powers around the family, was by practicing, and the game offered a perfect distraction.    During your training, you’d learned how to use your energy for very specific tasks, such as threading a needle through a small opening, or lifting a feather past a table fan, so you’d gotten good at shifting the flow of energy very precisely. Your trainers had also made sure there was always a distraction present, to force you to learn how to focus even when your mind was drawn elsewhere.

   So, as the game progressed, you amused yourself with trying to move things around the room without letting on that you were doing it. Not within the game, that would’ve been cheating, but at one point, you made a fairly large candle holder move from one side of a shelf behind Marcus, to the other, without anyone noticing.    Emboldened, you moved on to the people, shifting a few strands of hair, or lifting a corner of a shirt. Just enough to make them turn and look, wondering if they’d imagined it.

   About halfway through the game, you decided to up the ante, and bumped Anita’s foot under the table, just as she took the lead. And because of how you were all positioned around the table, the only one that could’ve physically reached her was Missy.

   “Hey, it’s rude to kick the elderly.”

   “Which is why I don’t,” the girl immediately shot back, unaware what her grandmother was talking about, but always ready to defend herself. “I might steal your lucky earring, though.”

   “You wouldn’t dare.”

   “Just you wait, Abuela.”

   Ten minutes later, Missy smugly reclaimed the lead, and keeping up with their banter, Anita reached towards her right ear, just to make sure her luck hadn’t been stolen.

   “Well, I’ll be damned. How’d you do that, you little rascal?” she smiled, but the girl was of course only confused.

   “Do what?”

   “Give me back my lucky earring, you thief. What are they teaching you at that super’s school?”

   “What?! I didn’t actually take it, that was just a joke.”

   “Mhm. I’ll get it back, don’t you worry.”

   Missy just shrugged and kept playing, and the two of them were locked in a battle for first position all the way towards the end, which was why no one noticed you racing up behind them, taking the lead at the last second and winning the game.    Predictably, your partner was a good loser, his daughter was disappointed she’d been too distracted to see you coming, while Anita was the sore loser.    So, when she glowered at you, you lifted your left hand from the table and dangled her earring between your fingers.

   “Hm. Guess it really is lucky,” you grinned, watching all three of them stare at the piece of jewellery with comically stunned expressions.

   “How did you…?” Marcus was the one who tried to ask, but you just winked at him.

   “Trade-secret.”

   You shot him a bright smile, before leaning over the table to hand Anita her earring back. And he seemed to realize that your happiness wasn’t at all about winning the game, but that something about stealing the earring had to do with you trusting your powers, and although he didn’t know what exactly, you could tell he shared the joy of your triumph.    The four of you played another game after that, but without interference from you, as you were reserving your strength for the promised adult playtime.    Anita left around nine, and while Marcus cleaned up the living room, you tucked Missy in for the night.

   “How’d you do it? The earring?” she wondered after you’d pulled the covers up to her waist, and instead of answering her, you picked up her headphones from the bedside table and handed them to her, without moving your hands. “Wow! Do you have telekinesis too?”

   “No. I’ve just learned how to use my energy to manipulate things.”

   “How does that work? I thought your energy was like a shield.”

   “It can be. That’s sort of the thing, I can make it into pretty much anything I need. From a huge shield to a tiny speck, just enough to hold a grain of sand in the air.    But the really mindboggling thing is how I can do these things without anyone being able to detect the energy, even when it touches them, and I can chose if I want the energy to be solid and heavy, or let objects pass through it completely unaffected.”

   “That’s so cool, though! It’s like the ultimate sneak attack weapon.”

   “Yeah, I guess it is. Although, I’m hoping I won’t have to use it as a weapon at all.”

   “HQ hasn’t asked you to join the Heroics?” she wondered, and she looked a bit confused, which was understandable since she couldn’t wait to be part of the team herself.

   “They have, but I don’t really feel like that’s my place.”

   “Because your powers didn’t come naturally?”

   “Partly. But also, just because I’ve never been a part of that world.    You might not have any powers, but you were still raised within this atmosphere, connected to it through your father, so it’s always been part of your everyday life in some way. Whereas for me, the first time I encountered this world was when I met Marcus, so I just don’t feel like it’s my path.    Does that make sense?”

   “Kinda. But you should do whatever makes you happy, anyway.”

   “Thank you, sweetie. It means a lot to me that you care about my happiness,” you smiled at her, and she smiled back but there was something deeper behind her expression.

   “I’m so glad you’re home,” she said, and even though she tried to hide it, you heard the slight tremor in her voice, telling you how scared she’d been that you wouldn’t come back.

   “Where else would I be? This is my family,” you assured her, and felt a bit of wetness bother your eyes when you leaned down to give her a hug, so immeasurably grateful to feel her arms hold you so tightly in return. “You put those headphones on now, okay?”

   She smiled even wider as you let each other go, and grabbed the device, preparing to put it in place over her head.

   “Go easy on him.”

   “Never,” you winked, to which she huffed a laugh, shook her head at you and then turned the music on as you stepped out and closed the door.

   You walked back out into the living room, and found your partner sweeping popcorn off the floor, so you plopped down on the sofa to watch him work, enjoying the play of muscles in his arms.

   “So, you’ve learned more than I thought in your training,” he quietly stated while reaching the broom underneath the dinner table.

   “I assume you’re referring to my borrowing a certain earring?”

   “I didn’t know you could do things that detailed. You never gave me access to your records during your training,” he reminded you, and some of your good mood faded a bit, because you knew he struggled to understand why you’d kept him at a distance concerning your abilities.

   “One of things that helped the most in my training was when I realized I could decide how much energy I want to bring into this dimension, how to control where it goes and how to manipulate it so that it actually becomes useful to me.    The thing that took the longest to learn was how to use it to move really small or light things around, and I figured tonight was a good chance to practice and maybe get more comfortable using my powers around the family.”

   “Okay,” was all he said, turning his back to you while he emptied the dustpan into a trashcan.

   “Honey,” you sighed, realizing he hadn’t brought it up because he was looking for clarification on the extent of your capabilities, but rather because he was still disappointed you’d kept him out of the loop. “If there’s something you wanna air out, please do.”

<><><><><> 

   He put the broom away and came over to the couch, taking a seat on the coffee table, opposite you.

   “I just thought that…” he started, but then paused, looking for the right way to phrase this so it wouldn’t sound like he was angry with you. “I’ve been with you every step of the way. You’ve allowed me to help you heal, to be your crutch and your soundboard, talked to me about everything you’ve struggled with.    So, I just don’t understand why you won’t let me help you with your powers.”

   “It has nothing to do with what I want, Marcus,” you surprised him by saying, but he stayed quiet to let you explain. “If there was a way for me to get what I want, I wouldn’t have these powers at all.    I chose not to keep leaning on you with this because I realized that at some point, I was gonna have to stand on my own two feet. That so long as I kept you as my crutch, I was never gonna trust myself to be strong enough to handle it without you.”

   Your logic was sound, he couldn’t argue against it. But somewhere in his chest, it was a bit painful to accept that he wasn’t needed as much anymore.    It was a good thing for you to want to be strong on your own, to not be reliant on anyone else, but throughout your relationship, he had been the one you’d always turned to for help, and he just wasn’t sure how to accept that he might not have that role in your life anymore.

   “So, does this mean I’m permanently excluded from your records?”

   “Why does it matter so much to you that I didn’t give you spousal privileges to my files with Research? What do you think you could learn from reading them?”

   “It’s not that I wanna read them, really… it just feels like you don’t trust me.”

   “Oh, my god,” you sighed, shaking your head in what appeared to be disbelief before you fixed him with your piercing eyes. “You are literally the only person in the world I trust, and if you don’t know that by now, then I don’t know what else to do.”

   “Then why?” he persisted, truly perplexed as to your reasoning for letting him have access to literally everything about you, except for this. “You lied to me about the healing.”

   He hadn’t meant to say that last part, but it slipped out anyway, revealing the real reason why this mattered so much to him. But he regretted it the moment he saw your expression, because you looked so hurt.

   “So, this has nothing to do with me trusting you, after all. This is about you not trusting me.”

   “No, it’s about me being terrified of the fact that your own abilities can kill you. Do you know how rare that is? No other super is capable of that,” he tried to argue, but even he could hear how poor of an excuse it was.

   “Which isn’t that surprising, since technically, I’m not a super. I’m a compilation of fifty different ones, so when you think about it, it’s actually kinda miraculous that I don’t have dozens of different abilities, which considering how much I’ve struggled just to manage the two I do have, would probably have been wholly disastrous.    Now, stop sidestepping the issue and tell me the truth. Do you think I’m keeping something from you?”

   You didn’t sound angry at all, only disappointed, which was so much harder to hear.

   “No,” he truthfully admitted. “But I’m not sure you’d tell me if something else came up, regarding your powers. I feel like you’re keeping me out so that if something happens, you’ll have the freedom to decide how much to tell me, even if it’s something that might affect me negatively.”

   “You mean like you’re keeping your past away from me?”

   The question took him completely off guard, and he found himself just staring dumbly at you.

   “I haven’t pried, even though there have been plenty of opportunities, but your mother, Amaire, doctor Kane and even you yourself have hinted at something you did in your youth that you’re carrying with you to this day. But you’ve chosen not to share that with me even though it’s clearly something important, and maybe even defining to your character.    So, maybe you should take a hard look at yourself before you start talking about keeping people out.”

   Mildly stunned, he just kept looking into your eyes, wondering how he could’ve been stupid enough to think you hadn’t pieced together what little clues he’d inadvertently let slip in conversation.    You were a survivor. A hyper independent woman. Of course, you noticed and remembered everything.

   “I’m sorry,” he offered, but he wasn’t ready to talk about this yet. “You’re right, and I’m sorry.”

   “Are you ever gonna tell me about it?” you asked, correctly deducing that his apology was also a deflection.

   “Yes. I promise I will, but it’s… It’s something I spent a long time overcoming, and I couldn’t have done it without… Sarah.”

   He ducked his head at the mention of his wife, not because he thought you wouldn’t wanna hear about her, but because it pained him to remember.    You leaned forwards in the sofa and put your hands on his clasped ones, urging him to look at you, so he did.

   “Okay,” you said, nodding softly. “Then I promise I will tell you if anything happens with my powers.”

   As comforting as that was to hear, he didn’t miss the fact that you still hadn’t agreed to let him have access to your records, meaning you still wanted the freedom of getting to choose how much he knew.    On the other hand, you had no access at all to anything regarding him, medical or otherwise, so perhaps he was being overly intrusive.

   “Thank you, hermosa.”

   You stood up then, and since he was sitting right across from you, that meant your hips were at his eye-level, just inches from his face, when you rose to your full length and stretched, causing your knitted dress to rise up just high enough for him to see what underwear you were wearing.    Sucking in a sharp breath, he let his hands slide up your thighs, moving the knitted hem further out of the way so he could see more of it.

   “You’ve been wearing that underneath this dress all evening?” he breathlessly wondered, having already forgotten all about difficult conversations and past mistakes.

   “Call it a welcome home gift,” you smiled looking down on him, while letting your hands drop to his shoulders and gently massage them.

   “I’m the one that’s supposed to give you a welcome home gift,” he objected, but half-heartedly at best, since he was already dreaming up things to do with this unexpected turn of events.

   “Oh, I fully expect you to. So much so, that I told Missy to put her headphones on,” you heatedly grinned, and he had to take a moment to remind himself that this was even really happening, because you’d been so unsure about being with him in the cell earlier that day.

   But it seemed you’d made the decision to not let your fears control you. Maybe coming home and being around your favourite people again had given you the final push of motivation you needed, to make sure you’d be able to stay with them.    The thought pleased him greatly, and he swallowed hard while letting his grip tighten on your hips, before he ducked his head and kissed your mound on top of the underwear. Then he got up, hoisted you up onto his hips and carried you to the bedroom.

   He set you down on the floor at the foot of the bed and noticed that his hands were actually trembling as he reached up to hold your face while he kissed you slowly. He wanted this to last, because even though you’d made love only hours earlier, this was different.    You were home, finally. After so long he finally got to have you for a whole night, in a soft bed with no visitation hours or monitoring equipment to consider.    It was just the two of you, together, exactly as you both wanted.

   You reached for the hem of his t-shirt and pulled it off, but not heatedly, having picked up on his lack of a rush. Once it was on the floor, you let your hands caress the curves of his arms and shoulders, trace the edges of his collarbones and the dip between them.    He sighed contentedly at your touch, and then kissed you again before he reached down to pull your dress over your head.

   You were wearing a dark violet strapless balconette teddy in lace, with the bra and panties connected only by two strips of lace crossing each other over your abdomen on the front, and by thin golden chains in a diamond pattern over your back.    Both parts of it was transparent, since the lace was of the less densely embroidered kind, and it was somehow more enticing that he could see what was underneath it, since it meant he could enjoy your body without having to remove the seductive garment.

   “When did you get this?” he asked, letting his voice drop to that husky whisper you loved, while he spun you around so he could admire every angle of it.

   “During one of my shopping-days with the twins a while back. We had a lot of fun that day, trying on all kinds of bustiers and corsets, giving comments and critiquing each other based on what we thought our partners would like.”

   “Hmmm… And who suggested I would like this?” he wondered, letting his hands trace the path of one of the chains over your back.  

   “Both of them,” you replied with heavy breaths, letting him know how much you enjoyed his scrutiny. “Claire’s husband loves anything on her, so long as it’s red, but Amanda’s wife is very specific. Only silk, no lace at all, and nothing black or too strappy.    But they both agreed that this one was perfect for you the moment they saw it on me.”

   You’d turned so that your front was to his again by the time you fell silent, so he pulled you forwards by the hips, pressing his groin into yours and moving his hands to squeeze your ass.

   “Well, they were absolutely right. For the first time since I met you, I’ve come across an article of clothing that I really don’t wanna rip off you.”

   “In that case, I should have gone for the crotchless one,” you purred, and he smiled.

   “Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure I can modify this to my satisfaction.”

   He had his eyes on your breasts, their roundness perfectly hugged by the soft lace, but when you moaned in anticipation, he kissed you again, more heatedly this time, pulling you closer against him so he could feel your tits against his chest.

   “Honey… you can do whatever you want with this teddy, as long as I get to feel you stretch and fill me the way only you can,” you whispered in his ear after breaking the kiss, and he couldn’t help but growl in response.

   To keep his desires from overtaking his senses, he dropped his forehead against yours and just stood there breathing calmly for a moment, moving his hands to hold you around the waist instead.    You mirrored him, holding him to you while you patiently waited for him to be ready to keep going.

   Slowly, he moved against you, pushing you backwards towards the bed, but he didn’t ask you to climb onto it yet. Instead, he took a step back and started removing the remainder of his clothes, before coming back to you.    He saw your gaze drop to his cock, hard and thick and so ready for you, and suddenly a whimper escaped you, which utterly stunned him.    You never whimpered. Moaned, yes, but never whimpered.

   Spurred by your apparently almost unbearable need for him in that moment, he stepped closer again and reached down to stroke you through the lace of your panties, only to find them absolutely drenched in your juices.

   “Oh, god… Don’t worry, my love, I’m gonna take such good care of you,” he huskily promised, before kissing your neck and then continuing to kiss his way down your chest, over your abdomen, until he was kneeling in front of you.

   Carefully pulling the crotch of your panties away from your flesh, he ripped a hole in the fabric, large enough that he’d fit through it when he entered you later. But for now, his aim was simply to ease the pressure within you.    You were so overcharged with arousal that just his fingers gently caressing your folds was enough to bring you over, and unsurprisingly, the overload made your power flare, shaking the whole room while you unravelled over his hand.

   But it didn’t worry him. He’d always known you wouldn’t let anything happen to him, no matter how lost in ecstasy you might be, so he just watched you, utterly amazed at your sensitivity and how unashamedly you got lost in your pleasure.    It wasn’t until you started to lose balance that he helped you lay down on the bed, before settling himself on top of you.

   You sighed happily at the feel of his weight on you. You’d told him so many times how you loved it, and as much as he enjoyed watching you ride him now and then, your pleasure was always greater when he had you underneath him, and he wouldn’t argue against that.    Lowering himself just enough that he could kiss your breasts and let his hands play with the exposed skin along your sides, pretty soon he had you panting again.

   “Please…” he heard you mutter in between strained breaths, and he looked up at you in stunned silence.

   You never begged. If there was something you needed from him, you asked for it, or just took it, knowing he would never stop you. But this was a nearly desperate plea, and it almost made him worried.

   “Hermosa?”

   “Please, babe… I need you inside me.” You actually strained to get the words out, and he wondered if you could be capable of such amounts of arousal that it reached a point of nearly getting painful for you.

   He moved himself up again, settling in his usual position over you, cradling you into him so that as much as possible of your bodies was touching one another.    And when he began pushing into you, it looked as though you actually felt a sense of relief. As though the friction of his cock against your walls somehow satisfied you even without the need for a climax.    He felt it when your powers activated again, and for a moment you tensed up, until you felt his current respond.

   “Don’t be afraid, mi amor. Let it flow with you, with me. Trust your body,” he whispered, driving into you a little harder to make sure your focus remained on the pleasure, drawing you further away from fear, and it worked.

   He could tell how you gradually relaxed into it, and suddenly surges of pleasure were moving through you both, melding your powers so seamlessly that there was no telling what was your pleasure and what was his own.    Like that time in the med-chamber, your skin started to shine slightly when you connected to each other like this, and when he glanced at his own arm, he noticed that the same thing was going on with him.

   Surprisingly, the energies you were creating together somehow seemed to prolong everything. Not by holding you back, but by levelling you both out before you started sprinting towards the peak. Usually, you just leapt to that edge, almost immediately, unable to stop yourselves, but when the energies combined like this, entirely without restraint, they seemed to create a kind of temporary lull, before the inevitable storm hit you.    But when it did, it was even stronger than usual.

   You got there a few seconds before him this time, and the veritable explosion of sensations was indescribable. He could feel everything you felt, which extended and deepened the act, as you shared in his peak as well, the satisfaction you both experienced well beyond the simple physicality of sex.    As the climax slowly settled in your bodies, he thought about how he wanted to tell you so many things. How proud he was of you, how much he loved you, how amazing you were.

   But he was too tired to say a word, and before he drifted off into deep sleep, he thought how it was good he hadn’t said any of it out loud. Because those words wouldn’t make much difference to you, you already knew how he felt and what he thought about you.    And he realized that the reason he wanted to keep telling you these things, was to make sure you knew that he was serious. That there would be no doubt in your mind of where the question came from or why he asked it, when he did.

<><><><><> 

   You couldn’t remember Marcus climbing off you or pulling the covers over you, but when you woke up, you were on your side, snuggly cuddled up to his chest, with a bright sun coming in through the window, making his golden skin almost appear to shimmer.    Your last thought before you’d succumbed to subconsciousness had been how relieved you were to be back home, and to have made love to your man without breaking anything, which had to have been some kind of record or milepost for the two of you.

   Raising your head a bit, you found your partner watching you, also lying on his side but with a peculiar little smile on his face.    Pulling back just a tad, so you could lie comfortably while you met his gaze, you settled yourself opposite him, mirroring his posture, and just looked at him. Drank in his features while wondering how you could have ever been lucky enough to have this in your life.    You saw something change in his expression, and even though you couldn’t tell what it was, you could see the moment that he decided to speak his mind.

   “Marry me.”

   Having expected something more along the lines of “Good morning” or “I love you”, it took you a solid moment to realize what he’d actually said, and then even longer to absorb it.

   “W-what…?” you eventually croaked, and while his expression remained largely unreadable, you could see a smidgeon of fear creep into the corners of his eyes.

   “Will you marry me?” he asked in full.

   His voice was low and soft, but there was no hesitation or self-doubt in him. He was sure about this. Which meant he’d thought about it, thoroughly and probably repeatedly.    But you hadn’t.    Sure, you’d envisioned being with him long term, but only in an abstract sort of way. You hadn’t been daydreaming about what your wedding would look like or practiced writing your married name in the backs of your notebooks.

   Yesterday had been a strange and emotional day, revealing not only the true depths of your boyfriend’s love for you, in his utter refusal to ever let any barriers exist between you, but also just how completely he knew you, in how expertly he’d managed to keep you balanced, despite the emotional turmoil you’d suffered.    And while all that was comforting to know, what truly settled your mind on the question, was the realization that he wouldn’t have been able to become this person to you, if you hadn’t let him. If you hadn’t wanted him to.

   “Yes.”

   You’d barely gotten through the little word before you were already throwing yourself at him, kissing him like it was your first time all over again, a full-on assault on his face. But he just laughed heartily into the kiss and pulled you in close.    The teddy unfortunately didn’t survive his morning hunger, but you promised him you’d go shopping for a few new ones at your earliest convenience.

   You bounced into the kitchen half an hour later, humming and dancing to your own tune in a pair of worn old sleep shorts and an oversized t-shirt with a picture of Lightning McQueen over the chest.    Missy had just dug into a bowl of cereal, and she eyed you suspiciously after you’d startled her with your energetic entry.

   “Who are you, and what have you done with grumpy morning-hermosa? I rely on her for my daily dose of reality-check.”

   “I’m just happy,” you chirped, grabbing the kettle before pirouetting over to the tap to fill it up.

   “Yeah, I can tell, and frankly, it’s unnerving.”

   “Oh, come on, live a little,” you giggled, before sending a little flicker of energy to ruffle her hair, making her flinch so hard she dropped her spoon on the floor.

   “Okay, seriously, what is going on with you?” she grumbled while retrieving it, but before you could answer, Marcus walked into the kitchen.

   “Morning, sweetheart. How’d you sleep?” he also chirped, but that was normal for him in the mornings, so she didn’t react to it.

   “Like a rock, I suspect thanks to someone’s warning about the headphones,” she deadpanned, but then seemed to think of something. “Is that what this is about?”

   “What what’s about?” her father wondered, having heard nothing about her suspicion towards your joyous disposition.

   She gestured to you, where you now stood by the toaster, humming Proud Mary and rolling your hips to the rhythm.

   “It’s 7am and she’s singing and dancing. Is that a sex-thing?”

   Profoundly stunned by hearing his daughter even utter that word, Marcus missed the button on the coffeemaker and hit his thumb against the wall next to it instead, so hard that he cracked one of the tiles.    You decided to rescue him from having to answer, since this was clearly a topic he had no idea how to even approach. Also, the question did concern you more than him.

   “No, sweetie, it’s just a happiness thing. Although the sex does help with that, when it’s good.”

   His coffee-cup hit the floor when he apparently missed the counter as he turned sharply to stare at you with shock and disbelief, obviously not at all comfortable with how openly you talked about this.    You ignored his embarrassment, however, since you believed his daughter’s questions should be answered rather than dismissed. And Missy just kept going.

   “And what about when it’s not good?” she wondered, at which point, Marcus just gave up and slowly bent down to pick up the pieces of his broken cup, looking about as flustered as you imagined him capable of.

   “Then it just makes you tired and disappointed,” you happily shared, entirely unaffected by your partner’s embarrassment.

   “Okay… But wait, I’m confused,” Missy pondered, and you were kinda proud to see her approach the subject so relaxed and openly curious. “So, the sex was good, but that’s not why you’re happy?    Then why?”

   You were about to say something generic but truthful, like it had just been a generally wonderful morning, and you were just so happy to be back home. But right then, Marcus popped back up like a human-sized jack in the box.

   “I asked her to marry me this morning!” he all but screamed, so desperate to change the subject that he blurted it out without the two of you having had a chance to discuss how to approach her with it.

   You and Missy both just stared at him, momentarily frozen in your respective spots.

   “Sorry. That came out a little forced,” he sheepishly admitted, nervously scratching his neck when neither of you moved.

   “Are you serious?” his daughter eventually questioned, suddenly sounding terribly unsure. “Cause you can’t joke about something like that, dad.”

   “I’m completely serious,” he assured her, at which point she turned her firm eyes at you.

   “Please tell me you said yes?”

   For the smallest moment, you were stunned into silence, because there was real fear in her eyes while she waited for your reply, as if she truly believed there was a chance you wouldn’t wanna be with them for the rest of your life.

   “Oh, sweetie… Of course I did, why do you think I’m so happy?” you grinned at her, and when she scrambled out of her seat, you went to meet her, pulling her into a tight hug while you both cried with joy.

   The three of you had breakfast together and caught each other up on everything you’d missed while you’d been locked away at HQ, while you constantly had to get up to refill your plate with eggs, bacon, toast and muffins. Until you eventually just gave up and rummaged through the fridge for some left-over pizza.    You’d forgone the energy bar that morning, because it was just so nice to sit and eat with your family again, in comfortable familiarity and leisure.

   Once you were full, and the conversations began to ebb out, Marcus set about cleaning up and you went outside to pick up the paper. While you were out there, you stood for a moment just basking in the warmth of the sun, enjoying how it felt on your skin.    But just as you turned and started walking back towards the front door, a voice spoke behind you. A voice you hadn’t heard in a very long time, but one that turned your blood to ice in an instant.

   “Hey, sis. You look good.”

   You had to force your body to actually turn towards him, as it threatened to shut down at the traumatic memories of everything he’d done to you.    But the moment you laid eyes on him, it woke up with a fury which had the entire neighbourhood shaking under the pressure of the massive amounts of energy which poured from you in your instinct to shield yourself and everyone you cared about.

   You heard your partner call out your name from inside the house when he realized the tremors he felt weren’t caused by an earthquake, but you didn’t answer, because your full focus was on the man in front of you.    The brother who became the monster. The family that became the enemy.    And only one thought existed in your mind: He was not going to touch your family. Ever.

   “Danny. I’m gonna give you one chance to save yourself.”

   You could only just hold yourself together enough to even speak to him, as each time you opened your mouth, all you wanted was to scream.    Clenching your hands into fists in a feeble attempt to control how much energy was still pouring from you, only resulted in the driveway cracking like a biscuit underneath him, and you caught yourself thinking that you probably wouldn’t even regret it, if the ground split and swallowed him whole.

   “Leave…” you growled, with pure hatred saturating every syllable. “And never come back.”

[ussuri-tiger]

I'd be tempted to shift the focus to a realization going from 'I need someone I can trust to watch my back' to 'Adora also needs someone she can trust to watch her back' . Catra certainly expresses these underlying needs as you say, 'Adora always has to be the hero' but part of the subtext to that is at the cost of abandoning me and leaving me without someone to watch my back.

By Corridors Catra has recognized the pattern that Adora's not just threatened by external forces but by her own habit of diving in headfirst and hoping she can punch her way out. Always has to be the hero turns out to have a cost for Adora too. By this point Catra's more or less given up on finding safety for herself but hopes to shield Adora by removing the obligation to dive into danger on Prime's ship.

By Failsafe there's another level of understanding added, not only does Adora need someone to watch her back but Catra is uniquely capable of doing this, in some way Catra is special to Adora. I think that's part of why she's so heartbroken at the end of Failsafe.

I'm of the opinion that Catra ends up expressing herself in a somewhat misleading way at the end of Failsafe, not exactly unusual for her. She starts by focusing on her bitterness about Shadow Weaver's words and Adora's lack of pushback, but a connected thread here is Catra can't help Adora. She circles back to Adora's self-sacrificing nature though with 'when do you get to choose, what do you want Adora' .

This is the core of CatrAdora's problem at the end of Failsafe, Adora's going to sacrifice herself and there's nothing Catra can do about it, she's played every card, made every argument and Adora made her choice. With the facts available to both of them Catra tagging along will only make things worse.

Her conversation with Melog is a whole lot of her trying to build a plausible fiction for herself that's a bit less painful then the truth. Loving Adora but only being a friend to Adora would be painful, yes. Loving Adora and being loved by her only to have that realization on the literal eve of her demise? Worse by far. Makes all the what-ifs of their past all the more painful.

On top of Catra's departure putting some distance between herself and what would be an excruciating situation for her it also helps Adora. Adora usually just denies her way out of the downside of her self-sacrificing nature but Catra brings that issue back into focus during their conversation and underscores the seriousness of it with her departure.

This helps Adora get to the point of standing up to Shadow Weaver and washes away that thick layer of denial that she uses to shield herself from danger in her head. Mara helps further drive home the point that right or wrong it's a tragedy that Adora's walking to her doom and she at least has the right to mourn all the things she hasn't done, which is precisely what Catra is doing with Melog. Mourning the passing of her fondest wish.

What alters things is Catra being presented with an actual material thing she can do to help ( Prime going after the Heart ), Adora may still die but Catra will be damned if she's going to see all her hopes and dreams burn in magical fire and not save Etheria from Prime. So she goes back to help Adora and in the process they both discover that Catra can save Adora even from the Heart and so Adora lives and She-Ra can save the universe.

another old-account exhumation, for those who missed it the first time.

[howtouseavpnonaniphone]

does vpn unlimited have a kill switch

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does vpn unlimited have a kill switch

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Title: Ensuring Reliability: VPN Unlimited's Kill Switch Feature

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[acciowoozi]

Trading Cheap Pit Bikes

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[rebuiltbionicle]

Zakaz

An island in the north of the central dome, in a region that’s almost a dome itself. Zakaz is a tragic island now synonymous with violence, despite once being the crown jewel of the central dome. Once a lush and fertile land populated by benevolent people loyal to the Great Spirit, now a desolate series of forts and trenches that can’t see a single hour without death.

Zakaz’s foundations were laid by the Great Beings like all other islands, and constructed by the Matoran. Zakaz had an important role among all the others: underneath it a massive pipeline of energy funneled from Karda Nui to Metru Nui, inaccessable across the rest of its flow up but necessarily coming near the surface where Zakaz was built. The Great Beings had difficultly deciding how to protect it. Firstly they constructed an island, thinking of layering as much rock as possible atop of it. Others commented this would encourage mining and that the region should have been left sea, so they added a lake in the centre. The rest of the island was toned down into a tropical paradise to discourage mining that would destroy the natural beauty. Some Great Beings suggested the GSR needed to be redesigned if the maintenance machines could destroy their own universe so easily, but the project was pressed for time.

No Matoran were allowed to inhabit Zakaz in case they decided to mine. It was left as an uninhabited island as Mata Nui launched. The Makuta populated it with a striking array of Rahi, including the great Tahtorak, to help dissuade colonists. This didn’t work. As a few colonies began being set up across Zakaz’s coastline, Mata Nui created the Skakdi to quickly populate the island, and sent messages via Ko-Metru ordaining Zakaz as the exclusive abode of the Skakdi. The Skakdi, by Mata Nui’s design, were a tranquil and nature loving people. They traded with neighbouring lands to build their modest cities, so they never mined for resources. Their exports were largely produce from the flora of Zakaz, and culture was a vibrant Skakdi society.

In the waters around Zakaz, Mata Nui created another species: the Pagaka. These were an exclusively aquatic people, and ordained to be one of Mata Nui’s prime peoples. Unlike the Skakdi, the Pagaka rapidly spread out across the Matoran Universe, intent on being Mata Nui’s people of the seas. The largest Pagaka settlement remained their original city off the coast of Zakaz. They interacted frequently with the Skakdi, despite the barrier of what they breathed, and two settlements seemed inseparable.

When Mata Nui ordained six kings from the prime species would rule the universe, the Mayor of the Pagaka of Zakaz stepped up to start reunifying Pagaka settlements as a great federation. This didn’t last long. A former Hand of Artakha named Ehlek, who had turned to crime with the organisation’s disbanding, came to the undersea city with a mob of loyal thugs. He seized control and declared himself King of the Pagaka. From there he trained his people as soldiers for the conquest of the universe. Under the League of Six Kingdoms, Zakaz was Ehlek’s capital. It remained prosperous, though there was less contact between the Pagaka and Skakdi as Ehlek pressed his people into military service.

When the League fell, Zakaz was spared the ravages of the lesser barraki’s squabbles. It was peaceful before the League, during the League, and after the League. After the far of Matoran Civil War, the Brotherhood of Makuta assigned its members as supervisors of the universe. Zakaz was assigned to Makuta Spiriah, given what was considered an easy assignment. Spiriah mostly used the island as a holiday residence away from the other Makuta.

Zakaz’s nature would soon change irreparably as its people were placed under unethical experiments. The Brotherhood of Makuta, seeking to expand its armys; and the Order of Mata Nui, seeking an anti-Makuta failsafe, concurrently (without each other’s awareness) began experiments on the people of Zakaz. Makuta Spiriah released several viruses into Skakdi food supply to gradually mutate them according to his design. He intended to amplify their strength, grant them new powers, and remove that pesky empathy that makes people poor soldiers. Under the water, Order agents enforced a travel ban on the Pagaka city (on the basis of disease outbreak) and began manually modifying the Pagaka into razor clawed assassins.

As Spiriah return to Destral awaiting the viruses to take their effect, the Skakdi mutated in almost precisely the ways Spiriah had intended. Unfortunately, they developed an embedded anger which when coupled with their new lack of empathy quickly caused the downfall of their civilisation. Riots engulfed the island, and eventually warring sects began to coalesce in an endless civil war. Under the sea, the Pagaka managed to retain their composure despite their mutations and indignity at their treatment. The Order whisked a few they believed they could trust away to be assassins but left the rest there. The Pagaka never knew who mutated them.

The Brotherhood was not so fortunate. It wasn’t hard to put two and two together and figure out it was Spiriah who had modified the Skakdi. To save public face, the Brotherhood accused Spiriah of being a rogue and put out an order for his arrest. Spiriah had to go into hiding, knowing that despite operating under orders, Teridax would severely punish him for making his actions so obviously traced back to him. The region was reassigned to Makuta Krika, who imposed a ban on travel to the island. He did very little to enforce the ban but publicise the conditions on Zakaz, which effectively prevented anyone from trying to land there. The Vortixx were not so dissuaded and saw an opportunity for arms dealing.

The Skakdi did not remain limited to the island. Many left the endless civil war to spread discord in the universe beyond, becoming thieves, pirates, and bandits. Skakdi criminals outside of Zakaz were called “Piraka” which was just the Skakdi word for pirate. They became quite infamous, and were employed by multiple nefarious organisations such as the Dark Hunters and various other aspiring conquerors.

It seemed no intervention could end the wars between the Skakdi, and they had discovered a means to reproduce quicker than they were dying. The Brotherhood of Makuta considered launching the Visorak Horde against Zakaz after they moved on from Tace, but they firstly didn’t want to lose so many Visorak in what would have been a brutal battle and secondly feared what the Hordika venom might make of them.

The war was very suddenly put to an end by the Order of Mata Nui, when two of their agents attempted the unify the Skakdi against the Brotherhood of Makuta. Through the use of bribery, threats, and feigned peer pressure, the Order was able to foster a piece between the Skakdi, if only for the purpose of fighting other foes. They were the backbone of Order efforts against the Brotherhood, serving as an effective counter to the Rahkshi.

When Makuta seized control of the universe, the Skakdi fractured once again. Nektann, once the strongest of the warlords, betrayed the Order and declared allegiance to Makuta. His army served alongside the Rahkshi as enforcers, and Makuta rewarded his loyalty by placing him at the radically reformed Brotherhood of Makuta. The other Skakdi Warlords returned to Zakaz and fortified. Makuta realised the nature of Zakaz protecting the GSR’s “jugular vein” and left it well enough alone.

Ignorance towards Zakaz would serve Makuta no good, as one of the Skakdi sects began occult experiments with energised protodermis, and from their experiments was birthed a golden creature with psionic powers beyond anything that had ever graced the universe before. This being waited on Zakaz, slowly amassing power from its Skakdi subjects without Makuta’s knowledge. When it came time to evacuate the Matoran Universe, Zakaz was found already abandoned. The golden being knew ahead of time and teleported itself and its followers to safety. Zakaz would later be dismantled along with the rest of the Matoran Universe.

...

Zakaz was a ring shaped island, originally dominated by a magnificent Bo-Wahi. Originally only a few species planted there by the Great Beings, the Makuta added to Zakaz’s landscape as a botanical sandbox until it held more variety than any other island. Rahi species were added too to regulate the plantlife. In the seas around Zakaz were great kelp forests and coral reefs; the beauty did not stop at the shore. The lake was home to many grasses and species of docile, edible fish. With the mutation of the Skakdi, the landscape rapidly changed. Battles ripped the landscape apart. Trees were torn down for the timber. Trenches dug to fortify positions. A once beautiful city burned to the ground, and stone fortresses were built and torn down constantly. The wreckage of the earth carried mud through the rivers and darkened the seas around Zakaz, killing much of the kelp forests and reefs surrounding it. Zakaz was reduced to wasteland, with only the hardiest of plants and Rahi surviving.

The primary inhabitants of the island were the Skakdi. As originally designed, they stood the size of a Turaga, with toothy smiles and spines growing down their backs. They had limited elemental power over plantlife. Their culture was much like the Bo and Le-Matoran; in touch with nature and laid back, enjoying life and culture. After their mutation, they grew to over the size of the Toa, and their spines were greatly exaggerated. Their peaceful nature was overidden by a pre-programmed hostility and lack of empathy. The Skakdi’s powers were greatly increased an added upon. Their strength was that of a Toa, and there elemental powers were likewise strengthened and broadened to all 18 standard elements as well as shadow. They could channel these elements through a tool, though to use them properly, they had to work together with another Skakdi. This was to force cooperation between them despite their lack of empathy. Each Skakdi had an additional power, wildly varying between individuals; and a vision power, ranging from infrared to laser beams.

The forceful change in the Skakdi personality rapidly destroyed their civilisation. Though initially mindless chaos, the Skakdi were still a social people and banded together in their warfare, forming several sects. The number of sects changed daily but averaged at seven. The largest and longest lasting were the Skakdi Nespa, led by the warlord Nektann. Nektann rose to prominence by making trade deals with Xia for fighting robots which allowed his sect to expand significantly. Despite the constant fighting, the Skakdi never warred themselves into extinction. This was another quirk that Spiriah left them with: instead of having to manually build more Skakdi, the species were given their own dedicated synthesisers based on Rahi synthesisers to build armies of them quickly. Though intended for the Brotherhood’s private use, the Skakdi sects took control of them for themselves.

The other species of Zakaz, living beneath the waters, was the Pagaka. Created by Mata Nui as one of his prime governing species and the only one of them to be an aquatic species. They were humanoids with reptilian faces like their Satorni cousins. They spread far and wide, and so split into many cultures. The city beneath Zakaz retained a high culture, a pride from their status as the Pagaka origin point and a former capital of the League of Six Kingdoms. After their modification by the Order of Mata Nui, the Zakaz Pagaka ended up with protosteel talons and increased senses and reflexes. The trauma of experimentation turned these Pagaka from sociable types and a centre of trade to an isolationist barracks.

[ladarhatorilichozo]

I think Samus is not inherently fused to the suit, but my alternative interpretation is essentially moot in how much it actually changes, ie not a lot.

Short answer: Samus has had her suit destroyed and replaced before, and I have no reason to believe that the surgery in Fusion, or the events leading up to it, resulted in the entirety of Samus's suit being stuck on her forever.

Long answer: So Zero Mission did something weird and added an extra stealth mission chapter to the original Metroid, which finished off with Samus getting an entire new Power Suit after she did the Prove Yourself as a Warrior boss. This is the suit she wears through basically the rest of the series, and would presumably be able to survive things that the original suit could not, the explicit example being... crashing her space ship, the way she lost the first one. The exact same thing that happens in Fusion.

I think Samus's suit isn't necessarily fully fused to her, I think that she was just knocked out from both a parasitic infection and crashing her ship, and the failsafe of the new suit is to lock up and withstand heavy impacts, but not necessarily surgical tools. The aforementioned organic components are demonstrated in Fusion, since the Fusion Suit has no massive armor plating, but clearly there is a layer of material above the Zero Suit/Samus's body that's more organic in nature. There was enough wonky stuff going on with Fusion's translation that I don't necessarily take Samus's narration at face value, but it isn't worth dismissing outright. I think the Fusion Suit is comprised only of the "organic components" and the helmet, but they can still be dismissed or removed, if needed.

And before I stop talking about Fusion and get into more rambling about how I interpret the suit's functions, I want to mention that I don't think Samus's suit is the part of her with Metroid DNA, because Dread makes a big deal about how her various Chozo genes are interacting with the Metroid ones, inside of Samus.

But what her suit does prove to be able to do, multiple times through almost every game, is adapt.

With the exception of Chozo Statue abilities, which are almost definitely Chozo technology and should theoretically be mostly compatible with anything Samus has, Samus picking up various abilities and weapons is her suit adapting to random technology or energy she encounters on any given adventure. The biggest examples I can think of for both is Prime: Just about everything on Tallon IV is a Chozo thing, but the Phazon Suit is an emergency adaptation caused by extreme Phazon exposure from a giant radioactive dude falling on her.

We also see in Prime that the layers of adaptation can be separated from the suit, in a similar emergency situation - Metroid Prime is exploding and trying to take Samus with it, so she disengages only the Phazon suit layer and evacuates.

Where was I going with this? Uh, Samus's suit has been seen to be able to remove parts of itself (adaptations) in emergency situations where Samus makes a snap judgment, or removes the components herself. That does unfortunately seem to mean that Samus has to be awake. The suit is shown to be biomechanical in nature as of Fusion and Dread. I think this all comes together to mean it is integrated with but not fused to Samus's body, and can be removed. Samus was raised by birds who do wacky spiritual projection and energy conversion stuff, which explains where the suit "goes" when she takes it off.

And that's kinda where the difference becomes moot, because "not wearing the suit" means "putting it in hammerspace" for my interpretation, which means she always has the suit accessible, anyway, whether or not she can take it off.

Metroid Fusion

Regarding the lore in the video game, how do you understand her fusion?

Samus: It then came to light that the organic components of my Power Suit had become so integrated with my system that it could not be removed while I was unconscious.

ETA: Samus' suit is already a part of her. She has the ability to materialize the suit at will. I'm specifically asking whether you think, during the events of Fusion, she LOSES this ability, and is physically fused to her suit, helmet and all, unable to remove herself from it.

[greendragonette]

My lady (Kili fanfic)

For @princess-of-erebor1992, in hopes I can make her feel better at least by writing, bc real-time conversation sure as hell surpasses me :( Pls forgive me, hun.

Word count: 790 (pretty short, but it insisted)

Warnings: angst, comfort

______

Kili sighed heavily, opening door to the bedroom. The day was long and unreasonably dull, and he was anxious to be with his princess. He didn’t have a pleasure of seeing her at supper today; one of royal runners notified them earlier her feet were acting up again, so the meal was to be delivered to their chambers.

Young prince, seeing how dark was inside, made sure to not let the door rattle against the frame; he also pulled the boots from his feet and barefoot made his way to the hearth, where logs were well on the way of turning to ash. Might as well make use of sinfully plush carpets his lady enjoyed so much.

Fire taken care of, he straighten up and turned to the bed. A small smile turned his lips up; she was asleep and her beautiful hair fanned out, flames giving it even more shine.

The dwarf started taking off his outer layers, when a gleam of metal caught his attention. A tray was still on a table, food looking barely touched.

Kili frowned and made his way to the offending object, carefully assessing the spread. Scratch that, the food was entirely untouched, and the sole evidence someone had taken any interest was an empty mug on the side, devoid of pain-numbing tea sent by Oin.

A small sniff from the side made him rush to the bed, climbing onto mattress and kneeling next to the woman lying under furs. His fingers on their own found their way into her long locks, aiming to sooth.

“My lady?” he whispered, deeply worried. Another sob felt like a whiplash to his heart. “Love, please talk to me!” he urged in a strained voice.

“It hurts” she mumbled, tears turning her eyes into diamonds in the low light.

“I’m calling Oin.” he tried to stand, but she clutched at his sleeve.

“No” she whined.

“I won’t stand just sitting here and letting you suffer!” he scowled, gently trying to detach her fingers from the fabric.

“Oin can’t help” was a pained answer.

“He can damn well sure try!” dwarf raised his voice, suddenly realized what she meant and deflated. “Oh, love, no.” He scooped her and cuddled to his wide chest, trying to comfort her while she let out her grieves.

“I’m useless! I can’t even walk, let alone help you! Going to the market is a big deal! Our friends always have to visit us, or I have to be carried! Every day is a struggle! I just can’t! Why did you choose me?!” cried his Little Flower, face hidden in his neck.

“My heart.” he stated calmly, though tears were steadily flowing down his face, echoing his soulmate’s. “Your ailments do make some days challenging, but they don’t make you any less beautiful, hardy or loveable than you would be without them. You being my wife is so much more than I believed I could have. You don’t need to be able to physically yeet Dwalin to be perfect.” A kiss to her crown. “Besides, if you’d done it as hard as you usually do using just your wit, old fool wouldn’t survive it.” He added, smirking.

An adorable snort was all the reward he needed. Beaming Kili sat his princess on the bed, still cocooned in furs, and cradled her head in his hands so she would look at him, wiping her tears with his thumbs.

“My family loves you, Sunbeam, even Thorin, who hates everything not dwarf’; and you make me want to be better every single day so you could be proud of me. I love you, and will continue to do so for eternity. Don’t doubt that, please.” The dwarf kissed her; she seemed unsure, but after a while he felt her nod. He deepened a caress for a moment and broke it off right after, pride swelling within him at the sight of her pout.

Kili caught both her hands in his, turned them and touched the soft skin on the inside of each with his lips. It was a failsafe way of making his lady blush.

“So” he smiled in his trademark roguish smile she once told him she fell for; well, that and his puppy eyes. “What would you say for a long, relaxing bath, and perhaps later I could show you just how much I adore you?” he suggested slyly.

She huffed again. “Maybe tomorrow, Kili.” Exhaustion, previously kept at bay by her anguish, returned with a vengeance. Even now her eyelids were drooping.

They laid down, he a big spoon, holding the lithe frame of his world in his arms. All wasn’t perfect in their life, but in his opinion, it was still a damn paradise.

[artnerd1123]

Roo’s Character Sheet

I started this a good long while ago, but finally finished it!!! Here’s all the deets on everyone’s favorite lil paint kitty :D (and apologies to those the cut doesn’t work for lskdjfs)

Character Chart Character’s full name: Roo Pingere Reason or meaning of name: “Roo” is what happens when you mash “red” and “hue” together; aiden’s not the best at names, and named the lil guy after a red paint splotch the kitten took an interest in. Fitting, seeing as Roo himself was made out of spilled paint. Pingere is latin for paint. Character’s nickname: Roodle, Roodle doodle, paint spot, honey bun, bud/buddy, doughball  Reason for nickname: Roodle/Roodle doodle are Aiden’s nicknames for Roo, on account of him looking like a doodle of a cat. Also, rhymes. Aiden also calls him bud/buddy sometimes jus bc it’s an affectionate nickname for a son. Journal will occasionally call Roo “paint spot” as a kinda older-brother giving younger-brother that he likes a nickname type deal. Honey bun is a term of endearment seraph uses for him, as is doughball Birth date: October 13th Sexuality: biromantic  Gender/pronouns: ???, he/him

Physical appearance Age: 10 (note: familiars are “mature” at 3yrs of age) How old do they appear: depends how mature he’s acting. some people would say he’s baby, but he normally acts around 17-19 tbh Weight: he’s made of paint. Maybe somewhere around 50-60 pounds tho? Height: 2’9’’ Body build: he is a Literal Bean™ with noodly arms n legs Shape of face: cat Eye color: black scleras, his irises are white with a black ring inside it, but his iris turns orange w/black slit in feral form Glasses or contacts: none Skin tone: pale indigo with darker indigo fur, and lavender cheeks Distinguishing marks: his cheeks each have two horizontal purple lines on them, and he also has freckles *shrugs* Predominant features: his big ol ears n fluffy tail, as well as dripping paint Hair color: technically fur, but indigo Type of hair: fur :V Hairstyle: none Voice: his vc is over here! Overall attractiveness: jus an adorkable lil bean Physical disabilities: none (unless not being able to touch water is one :V) Usual fashion of dress: doesn’t tend to wear anything but cloaks Favorite outfit: his classic brown cloak w/ many layered patches added over the years, held together with his indigo gem/silver cloak clasp Jewelry or accessories: has a silver cloak clasp with a circular indigo gem inlaid

Personality Good personality traits: good natured, wants to help, good listener, gives good advice, easy to make himself and others laugh, loyal, bubbly once you get to know him, dedicated, supportive, extremely loving/affectionate, does his best, very slow to anger, good secret keeper, will let loved ones know how he feels regardless of the emotion Bad personality traits: frightfully shy, indecisive in times of stress, easily scared, easily stressed, social and regular anxiety, very emotional, has a tendency to beat himself up over mistakes/things he did wrong, scares himself sometimes, if you actually somehow manage to make him mad he gets vicious, needs gentle handling if he’s overwhelmed or he’ll have a meltdown Mood character is most often in: a toss up between anxious and content Sense of humor: wordplay and making stupid faces are his go to. Puns are his favorite! These, likewise, will pretty much never fail to make him smile or laugh. Corny jokes are another failsafe that’ll cheer him up/make him laugh easily Character’s greatest joy in life: being able to paint on just about anything with his tail, and sitting in the sun/other warm places near people he loves Character’s greatest fear: being separated from Aiden unwillingly (aka getting lost) and blood Why: blood just… freaks him out. It always has. Whether it’s the implication of violence or just the sight of the bodily fluid, it will never fail to distress him. Aiden is also his originator, and the one person he relies on most. Without him, Roo wouldn’t know what to do with himself   What single event would most throw this character’s life into complete turmoil? Losing Aiden. Character is most at ease when: with aiden, especially in places that they stop to rest in towns. If aiden’s not around, he’s most at ease with good friends or staying in the place they’ve found to live in. If there’s a windowsill or armchair to curl up in, then that’s even better! He’s almost always calm when he’s curled up somewhere comfy, with people he knows well close by. Most ill at ease when: aiden’s away, he’s on his own, during thunderstorms, or they’re right in the middle of somewhere really dangerous. Foggy/dark forests, old abandoned ruins, and anywhere wet/damp are all fair game. But he has to be alone to be truly ill at ease. He really doesn’t like being all alone. Enraged when: you manage to push all his buttons and break through his anxiety to tick him off. This barely ever happens, but it can if you continuously harass his friends/family. The moment he stops being scared of you, he’ll fight you himself. Angery Kitty™ Depressed or sad when: he messes up, he feels like he’s failed, he’s been anxious too long, [redacted] happens, they’re out of his favorite food/paint/etc at home, it’s been raining for awhile Priorities: helping/hanging out with aiden, tryna keep him safe, doing the same for all his friends, trying to do his best in any situation, and taking time to himself to recuperate if he needs it Life philosophy: treat others how you want to be treated, always be kind and respectful, and give plenty of chances. But when it comes down to it, know when to put your foot down, and know when things are out of your hands. Just do what you can while you can. Do the best you can do. If granted one wish, it would be: to have a safe home where he and aiden can settle down… (particularly with a partner of his own~) Why? As much as Roo likes exploring new places with Aiden, he misses the days when they were happily settled in a questor village, with friends and familiar surroundings that never changed. He wants to find a place in the world and settle there, away from danger and scary things where they can jus hang out together. He’s also always been a bit of a romantic, and he’d really like a partner one day. Jus someone to lov on and to lov him back, y’kno? Character’s soft spot: shiny/colorful things, friends, and scritches behind his ears Is this soft spot obvious to others? Yep. Completely. Spend a little time around him and present one of these things to him, and you’ll def be able to see him light up :D Greatest strength: he’s really observant of others/his surroundings, and thus very introspective. This allows him to offer good advice and insight on any given situation that he’s a part of. Also, his feral form def packs a punch >:V Greatest vulnerability or weakness: he’s scared of a lotta things, and his anxiety also super sucks. if he’s in a stressful situation, these tend to lock him into a state of horrible indecision. Not to mention his feral form is kinda out of control. He gets really anxious/self conscious about it. Biggest regret: not being able to control himself in his feral form Minor regret: being so shy around new people Biggest accomplishment: he doesn’t quite have a crowning achievement, but he’s helped aiden outta plenty of dangerous situations while questing. Minor accomplishment: he’s found a way to sleep on literally any windowsill, no matter how small. Magic kitty :D Past failures they would be embarrassed to have people know about: back when he was still learning how to clean up properly, he used to get the places objects went confused. Clothes would end up in the kitchen, paints in aiden’s dresser, and pots n pans would end up wedged in with the art supplies. It was a fun time. Why? Roo likes to think he’s helpful n organized… this is certainly a big spot on his record XD Character’s darkest secret: he’s actually terrified of himself/his feral form. Like. Pure, unbridled fear. He gets really bad nightmares about it hurting people he cares about sometimes.   Does anyone else know? Ye, aiden does. Aiden tries to help Roo get past this fear.

Goals Drives and motivations: maintaining safety during quests is a big one, as well as finding time to himself/to rest from being around people. If he can avoid crowds in general, he’ll do jus about anything to make sure it happens. He also wants to help his friends n family stay happy, or at least give them good support. He’s driven by a sense of responsibility, as well as knowing how bad it is to feel horrid, and jus wantin to stop people from feelin that way. Immediate goals: make sure the house stays relatively clean/organized, help where needed, find a warm place to nap, find some sort of scrap/etc to play with, try and get into the cookies (again) or jus get his paws on som sort of sweets. Long term goals: help out on any and all quests, protect aiden, and find somewhere they can properly put down some roots How the character plans to accomplish these goals: attentiveness, working through his fear/anxiety, and trying his best How other characters will be affected: positively! He jus wanna have a safe place with his originator n friends ;w;

Past Hometown: the town aiden had settled in before taking up his questor career Type of childhood: happy and untroubled! He had a few major run ins with fear, but aiden was always there for him. It was pretty perfect as far as a familiar’s “childhood” can get. Pets: none First memory: seeing aiden in his living room Most important childhood memory: his first thunderstorm; namely, what happened during it. Why: It was the first time Aiden had left the house without him, and he wasn’t able to follow. The fear he felt from all the thunderous crashing and rain ended up pushing him far enough to turn into his feral form-- also a first. However, Aiden came home as soon as he’d found out about his familiar’s troubles, and spent the whole rest of the night with him. It taught him that Aiden was a constant, and would always be there to comfort and take care of him. It was also his introduction to his feral form-- something that definitely still impacts him to this day. Childhood hero: aiden!!! Dream job: he’d like to go into design tbh. He enjoys drawing patterns, and likes decorating things. If he could do that for a living, he’d be gold! Education: plenty of book knowledge, taught by aiden, and plenty of world experience too. He’s pretty well rounded in all aspects (tho he’s skewed in the direction of observation/working out solutions to actual situations rather than anythin else) Religion: n/a Finances: aiden takes care of that

Present (for all intents and purposes, present counts as mid-story. Makes things easier to answer.) Current location: an apartment in a bustling town surrounded by forests. (town still needs a name) Currently living with: Aiden and Journal Pets: none Religion: n/a Occupation: familiar (doesn’t really have a job, but cleans around the house and such) Finances: aiden still takes care of this

Family Mother: Relationship with her: Father: Aiden Relationship with him: loving and caring, lossa respect and trust! There’s nothing Aiden wouldn’t do for em, and the reverse is true. Siblings: Relationship with them: Spouse:  Relationship with them:  Children: Relationship with them: Other important family members: Journal, ruffy (in the future), seraph (also in the future, becomes spouse)

Favorites Color: dark blue! Least favorite color: that kinda pukey looking brownish green color. When it gets later in the story, he absolutely hates the color of blood (both dried and still wet) Music: anything kinda jaunty and upbeat! Pop and carnival music are some he likes a lot. He’s also got a soft spot for lullabies and anything played by a music box. Food: biscuits!!!!!!!!!! Literature: loves fairytales, particularly ones with cute romance plots. He’s a sucker for mushy gushy cute stuff, happy endings, and magical expeditions. Form of entertainment: fireside storytelling!!! Or regular storytelling. That’s fine too. The more hand motions, voices, and possible magic visual aids, the better. Expressions: that shouty, loud, bubbly excitement that happens when you put someone in front of their favorite things. Mode of transportation: riding on someone’s shoulders, or otherwise being carried Most prized possession: his cloak. It’s patched up and well loved, since he’s had it so long!

Habits Hobbies: painting, watching birds, dancing, reading, climbing on things, finding out new ways to get into the cookie jar Plays a musical instrument? nope Plays a sport? If parkour across the apartment at 3am counts, then yep How they would spend a rainy day: inside, curled up somewhere warm. Preferably as far from windows as possible, with a cup of hot cocoa and a ball of yarn to paw at. Spending habits: doesn’t tend to buy much of anything. He buys hot cocoa packets, biscuit mix, paper, and new patches for his cloak every so often tho Smokes: no Drinks: the only thing he consistently drinks is hot cocoa Other drugs: nooooooope What do they do too much of? Worrying about things and what strangers he’s interacted with are thinking of him What do they do too little of? Letting go of situations that went horribly wrong in the past. Extremely skilled at: organizing, picking apart a situation or how people are feeling to give good feedback/advice, sleeping on windowsills Extremely unskilled at: tasks that require you to do a whole lotta things at once, interacting with a lot of people at once, coping on his own in a really stressful situation Nervous tics: fidgeting with paws, quiet meowing, constant glancing around, flicking his ears back and tucking his tail between his legs Usual body posture: kinda slouched, ears perked, and tail either resting on the ground or up in a loose “S” shape Mannerisms: around strangers he’s very soft spoken and timid, hides behind things a lot, and sticks close to places/people he knows. If you manage to get him out of his shell, he’s easily excitable and very bubbly. Likes to ask questions, play with scraps and trash, and clean things up so it looks nice. He’s kindhearted and sweet to everyone, and will occasionally rub up against things or people he really likes. Easily startled. Avoids water/damp things. Doesn’t tend to spend much time in crowded areas, or enjoy it at all. Peculiarities: if he gets too overwhelmed by negative emotions (mostly fear), he can only meow instead of speak. He’ll also drip paint at different rates depending on his mood (the faster it drips, the more distressed and/or angry he is)

Traits Optimist or pessimist? Tries his best to be optimistic, but can sometimes break down and turn into a kinda paranoid pessimist (thank u anxiety) Introvert or extrovert? Biiiiig introvert, but needs close friends somewhere he can reach to feel secure. Daredevil or cautious? Def errs on the side of caution! He can be reckless if distressed tho Logical or emotional? V emotional. Trusts his gut on things. Disorderly and messy or methodical and neat? Methodical ftw! He likes his space at least mostly clean! Prefers working or relaxing? He’s alright as long as he’s enjoying himself, but relaxing wins out. Confident or unsure of themself? Yes. (depends on the situation lol) Animal lover? Yea!!! Dogs and other canines make him nervous, and bugs kinda freak him out, but he likes jus about everything else :0

Self-perception How they feel about themself: he thinks he’s timid, a little too anxious, and a little too easily scared, but a good, kind familiar who’s doing his best to improve himself n live a good life!!! He’s absolutely terrified of his feral form.  One word the character would use to describe self: sheepish One paragraph description of how the character would describe self: “My name’s Roo, an’ I’m a twelve yeah old cat familieh. I’m kind of a nervous mess sometimes, b-but I’m doin my best to fix that! Or at least teh cope! I’ve been told I’m a sweetheart, and that i’m really easy to excite ‘n make laugh. I’m always tryna be kind an’ understandin! I’ll lend yeh my ear, if yeh need someone to listen, an’ I’m really good at giving advice.” “Um… about my hobbies… I like to organize things, paint, an’ dance! Oh, and watch birds!!! They’re really really cool… Just like my friends! I love them a whole lot, and there’s nothin I wouldn’t do for em!!!” “... One last thing…? Mnn… um… I’m… I’m not all too fond of my feral form. And I see it a lot more ‘n i’d like to. I-I’m way more emotional ‘n easily stressed than I’d like s-sometimes…” What does the character consider their best personality trait? His excited nature and/or ability to give quiet support What does the character consider their worst personality trait? His fear/anxiety What does the character consider their best physical characteristic? His freckles!!! He likes his lil spattering of spots across his snoot. His fluffy fur is another good contender. What does the character consider their worst physical characteristic? How he drips paint, tbh. It can make quite a mess if it gets out of hand. How does the character think others perceive them: helpful, kind and sweet, but a little childish (that last part kinda bugs him sometimes) What would the character most like to change about themself: his anxiety and feral form. Anxiety has always been something he struggles with, and he’d really like to downsize it to at least a more manageable level. As for feral form, he absolutely hates that he turns into a giant violent panther when he gets too stressed-- especially since it’s hurt people before.

Relationships with others Opinion of other people in general: people are mostly good, even with the few rotten apples that pop up from time to time. Large amounts of em are exhausting to be around a lot tho. Does the character hide their true opinions and emotions from others? Not often. Roo’s pretty much an open book. If he does hide something, he’s got a good reason for it, or you’re someone he doesn’t know well at all. Person character most hates: nobody, really. (this does change as the story goes on tho. Ho boi) Best friend(s): Aiden, Journal, Ruffy and Seraph (both in the future) Love interest(s): Seraph~ Person character goes to for advice: Aiden Person character feels responsible for or takes care of: also Aiden, Journal sometimes, and Seraph/ruffy in the future Person character feels shy or awkward around: any new person ever. Feels awkward around Seraph until crushes are admitted. Person character openly admires: all his friends!!! Person character secretly admires: Seraph (for a bit, anyway ;3) Most important person in character’s life before story starts: Aiden After story starts: Seraph, Journal, Ruffy, and still Aiden

[daringyounggrayson]

(Not) Enough

Summary: After the training simulation goes wrong, Bruce takes his kid home. A Failsafe aftermath fic. AO3

He’s just sitting there, intentionally keeping his distance from the others and staring off into space. He’s unusually still. Quiet. His forehead glistens with sweat, his breathing still faster than normal. “Robin,” Bruce calls, hoping it will be enough to catch the boy’s attention. Dick’s head whirls towards him, eyes surely wide behind the sunglasses. He’s startling too easily. “Time to go.”

Dick nods and wipes his palms on his jeans before shakily sliding off of the table. Bruce puts a hand on his back without hesitation to help guide him towards the zeta tubes. He parked the Batmobile in Gotham near the zeta entrance, not wanting to make the drive to Happy Harbor for what was already planned to be a long day. He’s even more grateful for that decision now.

Bruce goes through first, not wanting Dick to be alone. The computer recognizes him and he steps forward, only to be met with a Gotham alley. It’s evening now, the sun already beginning to set, just barely peeking out. It felt later in the Cave, still does.

Dick materializes behind him as Bruce calls the Batmobile. He hops in when it pulls up—Dick following his lead unprompted—and waits for Dick to get settled before driving off. When Bruce glances at him through his peripheral, he’s fidgeting and biting at his lip, (hopefully) accidentally drawing blood. He needs to say something.

He clears his throat, and Dick practically jumps. “What happened today never should have happened. I apologize for our error.” Too mechanical. He holds back a sigh. “Dick, I am so sorry you went through that.”

“I,” Dick stammers, but the beginning of his sentence never goes anywhere.

“Dick,” Bruce says again, switching the Batmobile to autopilot so he can give Dick his full attention. He grabs the boy’s hand, preventing it from twisting the skin on his opposite arm. “I’m not taking this . . . situation lightly. What happened in there was horrific, what you experienced,” Bruce trails off. His son just experienced his friends’ deaths, his own death even. Something he thought—felt, believed—to be completely real. The mere idea makes him feel sick, and he can only imagine its toll on Dick. He’s thirteen. His baby. “The League’s carelessness was unacceptable, and I can assure you that precautions will be taken in the future. But more importantly, its effects on you need to be managed.”

“Managed?” Dick repeats, voice uncharacteristically empty as if he had heard the word for the first time and was just testing it out himself.

“Yes. Before we left, the League talked about setting up a few counseling sessions for each of you,” Bruce explains. “I think it’s a good idea.”

Dick doesn’t say anything, but he does nod slowly. Whether that’s an agreement to talk about his experience or an agreement that of course Bruce thought it would be a good idea, he’s not sure. He doesn’t want to know.

“But we won’t force you into it. Not until you’re ready,” Bruce assures, receiving another slow nod in return. “And I’m . . . here, if you ever want—need—to talk.”

“Yeah.” His voice still sounds so wrong, distant almost. Bruce lets go of Dick’s hand which immediately goes back to its previous job of twisting the boy’s skin. Bruce clenches his jaw and focuses on the road ahead of him as he takes over the Batmobile’s controls once more.

Not a minute later, Dick finally says something: “Bruce?”

“Yes, chum?” He’s all calm tones, soft voices.

“I’m going to puke.”

Bruce swerves the car to the side of the road and parks it, helping Dick out and away from the car. He pukes in the city’s bushes on and off for two minutes. It leaves him shaking and covered in a new layer of sweat and what Bruce finally recognizes as being on the verge of a panic attack. He wonders how long ago the thought spirals started, or whether this was induced by a flashback, or maybe it’s a delayed reaction to the exercise. Possibility after possibility pops into his head, but he pushes them back to focus on Dick and what he needs.

He bends down on his knees and holds Dick’s face in his hands. “Grounding exercise.” Dick doesn’t have panic attacks often, but they tend to be a side effect of fear toxin, so he’s familiar enough with them. Grounding exercises tend to work efficiently on Dick, something that has more sporadic benefits on Bruce himself. “Tell me five things you see right here, right now.”

“Can’t breathe,” Dick gasps. He thinks it’s funny in an odd sort of way; people having panic attacks often say they can’t breathe, and yet they’re breathing so much so fast. Too much, too fast.

“Yes, you can. Focus. Five things you can see. Tell me.”

“I-I see bu-bushes,” Dick says, eyes moving from side to side to look around. “I see-see you.”

“Good, keep going. Three more.”

“I see my-my vo-mit,” Dick stumbles over his words a little as his attention shifts.

Bruce pushes his head away from the bushes. “Two more, buddy.”

“I see the sidewalk, and-and I see my sneakers.”

“Good.” His breathing’s still fast, eyes jutting around, and his body is vibrating with how fast he’s shaking. The shaking is one of the things Bruce hates the most. “Now four things you can feel.”

“I feel my face going numb,” Dick gasps out. Damn it.

“Try not to name symptoms of the panic attack,” Bruce reminds him.

“I feel your ha-hands on my face, I feel my jacket, I feel my shades,” Dick lists off quickly, almost as if he’s being timed. “Um, I—”

“That was four,” Bruce tells him. “Three things you can hear.”

Dick closes his eyes, breathing slowing a little. “I hear the swings and I hear my voice.” Dick’s body jerks once, something Bruce hopes to be the shaking’s final hurrah. “And I-I hear traffic.”

“Almost done. Two things you can smell.”

Dick’s breathing is almost back to normal, and Bruce feels relief for the first time since Dick woke up. “I smell my sweat.”

“Dick,” Bruce warns.

“And-and I smell garbage,” he half smirks.

“Last one: one thing you can taste,” Bruce tells him, smiling himself. The shaking seems to be tapering off, almost gone completely.

“I taste my bl—” Dick stops himself from saying what Bruce guesses was going to be “blood.” “Something salty.”

“Good kid,” Bruce smiles, wiping away tear tracks. “Better?”

Dick nods. “A little.”

“Should we go home? Or do you need a minute?”

“I wanna go home,” Dick says, and he sounds so painfully desperate.

Bruce takes his kid home.

When they get home, Alfred is there waiting. He had sent him a message detailing the general situation what must have been an hour ago, shortly after the League themselves realized something was wrong. He sent him another update when they got to the Batmobile, too, but even so, the old butler must be wracked with worry by now.

And to combat that worry, it smells like he had been cooking. Soup and fresh bread, Bruce suspects as he and Dick finally enter the house.

Bruce’s hands are still on Dick’s shoulders, guiding him out of the study. He’s still a little unsteady as he recovers from the panic attack, so Bruce keeps his hands on the boy to prevent him from falling almost as much as he does it to keep him grounded. And if it helps Bruce too, well, that’s just an added bonus.

“Ah, Master Dick, Master Bruce, I’m so relieved to see you,” Alfred says with relief as he intercepts them in the hall, still in the middle of wiping his hands on a towel as he does. “I’ve made bread and soup if anyone’s hungry.”

“That sounds great Alfred,” Bruce says. “Think you can manage some food, kiddo?”

Dick pales and shakes his head. “Not hungry.”

“That’s quite all right, lad,” Alfred is quick to say. “I’ll come check on you in an hour or so. Perhaps then, hmm?”

“Sure,” Dick mumbles.

Bruce squeezes Dick’s shoulder; he doesn’t jump, just turns his head to look at Bruce. “I think a shower and a nap would be a good idea.”

Dick has this look of fear in his eyes.

“Sleeping won’t make you go back there, Dick,” Bruce says, guessing where Dick’s fear is coming from. “There aren’t any psychics that could link up with you accidentally; it’s impossible.”

“I know.”

Bruce suspects that was the wrong the to say. Or maybe not wrong, just not right. “If you can’t sleep, at least try lying down. It will still help your body relax, and I’m sure you must be exhausted after everything.”

“Yeah,” Dick murmurs. “Yeah, maybe.”

Alfred looks at Bruce; he has a lot of explaining to do.

“I’m going to,” Dick cuts himself off and swallows. “I’m going to take a shower.”

Bruce let’s go of Dick’s shoulders. “Let me know if you need anything.”

“Right,” Dick says quietly to confirm that he had heard Bruce, and walks past them and in the direction of his bedroom.

Bruce wants to follow, make sure that he’s all right and to be close by if he’s not. But Alfred needs an explanation, and Bruce needs Alfred.

oOo

He eats soup and tells Alfred about the day’s initial plan—a train-for-failure exercise taking place in an artificial psychic reality—and how it went horribly, horribly wrong. He tells him that Dick fell into a coma, he tells him that he was terrified he wouldn’t wake up. But then he did, and he’s relieved, but still so worried about what his actions have led to and the damage they’ve caused. Alfred offers words of comfort, potential solutions, an agreement that therapy will be beneficial—and they help, they do, but today it’s not enough.

When he's finished, he goes upstairs to check on Dick. He’s out of the shower and sitting on his bed wearing sweats, hair still wet and dripping onto his shirt.

“Can I come in?”

Dick startles and sits up straighter. “Y-yeah, sure. Course.”

Bruce sits on the bed next to him. “Shower help?”

“A little. Good to get that stuff off me, you know?”

“Hn,” Bruce agrees. He isn’t sure if Dick means the sweat or the physical feeling his psychological state assigned to his body to match his internal feelings of trauma. Probably both.

Dick rests his head on Bruce’s shoulder, and Bruce wraps his arm around Dick like a protective shield. “I can’t get it out of my head,” he whispers, a haunting undertone to his voice. “They just keep dying.”

Bruce squeezes him tighter. “That’s not an unexpected response.” Bruce closes his eyes. “But it’s over now Dick. It wasn’t real.”

“I know. But it felt real, and it kind of still does.” Then Dick admits, “I keep going to text them, just to make sure they’re really alive.”

“They are Dick.”

“I keep checking my pulse,” he says, voice barely above a whisper as if he were admitting his darkest secret.

Bruce rests his chin on the wet hair, heart aching. “I’m so sorry, Dicky. But you’re here, here with me, and nothing is going to happen to you. I promise.”

“How long do you think this training thingy will take?” Dick had asked as they drove through Gotham in broad daylight. He had wanted to go to the movies with some school friends that night, he just needed a general time frame to give them.

“It won’t be long,” he had almost laughed at Dick’s eagerness for a movie. “I promise.”

Dick reaches his hand up to grab at Bruce’s shirt, pulling him back to this moment and reminding him of a similar position they were in when Dick’s family died. Even though no one has actually died this time and Dick is now consciously aware that his friends are alive—that he is alive—he’s still in mourning. He’s been through a traumatic experience that resulted in death, a death that Dick felt and believed full-heartedly. This won’t be an easy recovery, no matter how hard Bruce wills it to be.

Dick’s body shivers, and then hot tears soak through Bruce’s shirt and onto his chest. “It was all my fault,” Dick chokes out as a crying fit takes over his body. “I’m sorry, I-I—”

“Whoa,” Bruce says and shushes him, pulling him into his lap to rock him back and forth. “None of this is your fault, understand? The simulation was designed to get worse the further it went on. But none of it was real; you are not responsible for anything that happened in there.”

“But we-we thought it was real. I made calls that I would’ve made if it was real. And I-I got them killed, I killed them.” The words are a little difficult to make out through Dick’s sobs, and his little body is shaking so hard. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m—”

“Dicky,” Bruce says through a lump in his throat. “Baby, no. Shh, shh, you need to calm down. Deep breaths, okay? Deep breaths.”

Dick tries like the good soldier he is, but he won’t stop saying “I’m sorry.” Bruce isn’t sure what specifically he’s apologizing for because he doesn’t have all of the details about what transpired yet. He does know that if he wants to fix this, he needs to find out.

But until then, Bruce holds his kid and runs his hand through his hair and rocks him back and forth. He grounds him, he tries to make him see that he’s not in some fucked up simulation that his careless so-called adopted father intentionally put him in. He reminds him that he’s safe and alive and home with him.

Today, he doesn’t think it’s enough.

[nyxwordsmith]

The sides team up in pairs and all get in a fight and its up to thomas to find out why (dogs vs. cats)

 Full Disclosure: I’m writing this one after being awake for 24 hours, so uh, it’s a little silly. And um, to be fair, I’m probably going to re-use this one for an angstier version later on. I just felt like using this for something silly at first.Warnings: A little swearing, Insulting another character

Taglist: @red-the-ruler (If you would like to be added, please let me know)

It’s just a silly fic I wanted to write. I’m not proud of it XD

 It had been a long, painful week. Thomas had no idea what he had done to deservethis, but he was pretty sick of it. For a wholeweek Logan and Roman had been at each other’s throats. And poor Thomas,being the host, had to literally take a week off. Because his mind felt like itwas literally being torn apart.

 His dreams were interrupted by slamming doors.His breakfast was filled with screaming. His television shows were punctured bybreaking plates.

 On the seventh day of this, tired from beingpulled in four different directions he could hardly decipher, Thomas sat on thecouch in his living room and rubbed his temples.

 For over a week the shouting was absolutelyimpossible to decipher. It was like white noise, crackling and ear-splittingly loud,ever-present and about to send Thomas to the pit of insanity.

 Finally, with a frustrated grunt, he summonedall of them at once. The sight was…well, disarming.

 Roman loomed over Logan, as he tended to dowhen he was angry, looking more like an angry dog than human. He even bared histeeth, glowering down at the trait who was hardly a few inches shorter. Hishair was a mess, his coat rumpled and uneven as though Thomas had interrupted aphysical fight.

 Logan was glaring up at Roman, looking only thetiniest bit calmer. His eyes burned with the same intensity, his smaller framepractically shaking with barely restrained rage. His glasses were crooked,muscles in his jaw tense, hands curled into fists by his sides.

 Patton looked terrified. The shortest of theSides, his hands were pressed to his mouth, arms tucked protectively close tohis chest, eyes darting between the fighting pair, wide and filled with tears.That nearly broke Thomas’ heart right there. It probably would have sent Pattonover the edge too.

 Remarkably, Virgil looked calm and…amused? He was slouching as usual, hiseyes sparkling as he hid behind his hair, his lip quirked into a smirk. Eventhough he appeared calm, Thomas could feel that he was watching them bothcarefully, prepared to move at a moment’s notice.

 In fact, Virgil was the one who realised they’dmoved at all. His eyes slid to Thomas, that quirk on his lips twitched, “Ohhey, Thomas.” In unison, the other three Sides turned to Virgil, then toThomas, “I told you so.”

 Logan turned to glower at Virgil, beforetaking a deliberate step back from Roman. The prince noticed, but when theireyes met again the burning animosity returned.

 At least they’d separated a little.

 “What the heckis going on?!” Thomas threw his hands in the air, exasperated, eyes wild asthey slid from one Side to the other. Patton made a tiny whimpering noise,hunching a little, and Virgil protectively moved toward him.

  A glare from Logan stopped him with a frustratedsigh, so Virgil threw Patton an encouraging smirk instead.

 Logan and Roman were too busy glaring at eachother to realise Thomas had asked a question, and Patton was too afraid to sayanything. Virgil rolled his eyes with another frustrated sigh, “Your logic isfighting with creativity. Again.”

 Thomas narrowed his eyes at Virgil, “Thatdoesn’t explain why it’s been going on for a week.” His tone was tense, a verythin layer of rock over a slow-moving flow of magma.

 Virgil really wasn’t deterred, reacting onlyby arching a single eyebrow, “Oh, that’s not the best bit.”

 Virgil’s cool, calm voice was soothingsomething in Thomas, which he found odd, considering the other Sides were all onedge. Or maybe that was fatigue. That was probably a near week of no sleep.

 “Dude, I know.” Thomas expected somethingsardonic and mocking in his smile, but instead it was gentle and understanding.Maybe his fatigue was coming fromVirgil. He did look way too loose to be involved in…whatever this was.

 Thomas groaned, “Before I lose my mind completely someone explain what is goingon.”

 Virgil turned to Logan, his eyes glitteringwith amusement, “Care to explain?”

 Logan swiftly spun to Thomas, arms wrappingtightly around his chest, his back straight. That furious glint remained in hiseyes, burning, “Roman is a degenerate animal-“

 “Hey!”

 “-who has no understanding of perfection.”

 Thomas blinked. And blinked again. “That doesn’t answer the question.”

 “What he means,Thomas,” Roman started, also facing his host, “Is that Logan is atraditionalist so blinded by-“ Thomas zoned out long enough to spot Virgilquickly slipping to Patton’s side and whispering something, rubbing the smallof his back and easing him sit at the base of the stairs.

 Thomas chose not to zone back in, shaking hishead, “Enough!” He didn’t like theparallel to the Heart vs Mind video. That had given him a headache too, “Callingeach other names is not explaining what this fight is about!”

 With Patton safely on the steps, Virgil glidedbetween the pair toward Thomas, “Crofters.” He said simply, hands sliding intohis hoodies pockets.

 “Pardon?”

 Virgil’s amused smirk returned, “They’refighting about Crofters.”

 For a moment, Thomas was absolutely certain he’dgone completely mad. His Creativity and Logic was fighting over a spread? Thatwas absurd!

 Almostas absurd as having Sides in the first place.

 As intrusive as the thought was, it was right. He pinched the bridge of hisnose, letting his head tilt back a little, “Crofters.” He practicallywhispered.

 “Yup. Patton and I got dragged into it.” Virgilcontinued, hyper-aware of the glaring match that had continued over his head.He shrank a little, “Logan prefers his on toast. Roman prefers to eat it fromthe jar.” Virgil sighed, “That is the whole point.” 

 Thomas blinked a total of six times before itsank in. And he fell back onto the couch. His head fell into his hands, “I’velost it. I’ve completely lost it.”

 The tired defeat in his voice almost seemed toecho in the room, “Not yet.” Virgil answered, “But if this isn’t resolved,yeah.”

 “Virgil.” The anxious Side jerked a little,but he kept his full attention on Thomas, “Have they done this in the past?”

 “Fought over stupid shit?” he laughed, “Yeah.”

 Thomas was surprised that Patton didn’t chastisehim for the curse, but it was likely that he was still frozen on the stairs. “Whathappened to…resolve it?”

 Virgil arched an eyebrow, his smirk growing alittle, “You…want to know?” the amusement in his eyes was darker now, andThomas squirmed under his gaze.

 “I’m losing my mind, Virgil.” Thomaspractically pleaded, “Over a spread.”Virgil snorted, “Please.”

 Virgil grinned, taking a step back andpositioned himself right between them. Patton was squirming on the stairs, bitinghis lip and shrinking into himself.

 Thomas couldn’t tear his eyes away as Virgilvery quickly turned to Logan, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, andyanked him down for a particularly heated kiss. It was brief, but Logan’sexpression had changed. Like Virgil had hit a reset button. Instead ofglowering at Roman, he was staring into space.

 Before Thomas could protest, Virgil wasturning toward Roman. Who was staring at Virgil and backing away a little.Virgil grinned, leaping for Roman and the pair ended up on the floor, fightingplayfully until Virgil won.

 Virgil pulled himself off Roman as he toostared silently at the ceiling. He brushed himself off, glancing sidelong atThomas before he went to Patton and gave him a far gentler, chaste kiss.

 “Okay…” rubbed at his eyes, “What-“

 “You know we’ve been together for a while,Thomas.” Virgil’s fatigue was now catching up to him as Logan’s eyelidsfluttered.

 “But they like…reset.”

 Virgil snickered, “Just a little adrenalineand common sense.” Virgil shrugged, starting to waver dangerously on his feet, “Didn’tknow I coul-“ he rocked forward, barely catching himself. Thomas didn’t riskhim falling, already moving to his side and guiding him to the couch, “-Didn’tknow I could do that until we got together.”

 “Uh, how many fights have you broken up likethis?” Thomas asked, glancing nervously between the Sides as they slowly brokeout of their stupors.

 “One. Before this.” Virgil yawned, sinkingback into the couch cushions, “About…dragon-witches?” he shook his head tiredly,“It was dumb too.”

 Logan was the first to return, looking aroundthe room confused before looking down at his clothes. Almost immediately, shameand embarrassment twisted his features, “That’s…”

 “Dangerous. Yup.” Virgil pulled his feet uponto the couch, curling himself up but not tightly, “It’s only works sometimes.Doesn’t work all the time.” He yawned, pulling his hood up over his head asRoman stirred on the floor, “Like a failsafe when they get…like this…” he wavedvaguely at the rest of the room.

 Thomas smirked as Patton snapped up, comingtoo much faster than the other two. Patton’s worried eyes fell on Virgil as hecurled up beside Thomas on the couch, who was slumped forward on his thighsagain.

 Thomas knew he didn’t need to speak anymore.Patton would do enough lecturing for them. In fact, Thomas was certain he didn’twant to be awake for this.

 Much like Virgil had, Thomas sank back intothe couch, and let himself drift to sleep.

 Crofters…hethought to himself with a dry laugh, It is pretty good…

[kentonramsey]

5 Days, 5 Ways: Vintage Sleep Shorts You Can Do *Checks Notes* Everything In

A pair of vintage blue plaid Bill Blass sleep shorts from Etsy has become a staple in my outfit rotation since entering quarantine, steadily rising in the ranks of the small faction of my closet I still wear routinely. I am now fully convinced that the ease of wearing cozy, stretchy pajama shorts is undeniable when occupying the space in limbo between my apartment and the great outdoors.

I’m not immune to craving some variety, though, which is why I’ve been challenging myself to style them in different ways that broaden my understanding of contemporary comfort in the quarantine era. It may or may not be an excuse to simply keep some portion of my pajamas on all day (because yes, I actually sleep in the sleep shorts), but I’ll let you be the judge. Below are five different styling approaches to this unconventional wardrobe hero.

See All 5

WFH

For a day of WFH, I typically don’t give a fruit whatever ensemble manifests; prioritizing comfort has been an invigorating daily self-care practice. My approach when greeted with my options involves a pair of sleep shorts, a semi-legit long sleeve top and exactly one piece of jewelry for added flair. Rolling my sleep shorts twice at both the waist and hem felt cheeky, so it stuck. The look was completed with a beachy Gimaguas necklace and two hair accessories, the jaw clip serving as an emergency backup.

See All 5

Pup Walk

Walks through Brooklyn Heights Philo have become a great excuse to briefly sport a favorite item or accessory when seeking the thrill of human validation. For this particular outing, I paired my sleep shorts (rolled once) with a favorite vintage terry top and fancy socks-plus-sneaks combo. This is a formula I’d wear a million times over. With a functional hat and my pup in tow, I was out the door.

See All 5

Date Night

Hello, Friday night, let’s up the ante for a living room date night with my partner. I’ve never had the right opportunity to wear these vintage Moschino mules outdoors, so I’ve enjoyed reaching for them at home when the desire to put on nice shoes overtakes my physical being. Staying inside for the evening ironically lends itself to wearing impractical shoes. I remained in my semi-legit WFH top but added an artfully placed colorful vintage scarf for failsafe summertime accessory elevation. It’s allegedly now the weekend, so I transitioned the look to evening wear with a pearl-necklace-as-anklet and sneaky crimson lip to demarcate the end of the work week.

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To the Grocery, and Beyond

These days, my local Trader Joe’s is my primary opportunity to see and be seen by other people, so when I’m there, I try to pull out the quote unquote outfit goods, but it’s also a risky environment in regards to close contact, so I stop short of anything I can’t launder soon after. My trusty sleep shorts were up to the task, along with a vintage T-shirt and, critically, a mask. You can count on me to roll up with my own reusable tote for bagging groceries; in this case, it’s a formerly identified airplane carry-on. My favorite part of this look are the recycled rubber boots, my only purchase of quarantine. Wearing boots out-of-step with the sunny forecast creates a friction that feels just right.

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Outdoor Adventure

Seeking any excuse to test-drive my partner’s recent button-down buy, I snuck it on and layered it with a scarf-as-top. Behold the saucy inward waistband tuck of the sleep shorts–perfectly suited to a socially-distant outdoor adventure strolling in my local park. I love sunglasses and treasure my small collection; this vibrant oversized pair makes me feel instantly empowered.

See All 5

Styling sleep shorts for a range of indoor and outdoor pursuits presented a new challenge to dressing that felt invigorating to tackle. By the end of the week, my dressing perspective felt thoroughly refreshed; I was pleased to uncover a summer wardrobe hero item moonlighting as a pair of sleep shorts that made me feel comfortable and confident with each wear. I’ll be sticking with Sleepleisure for the foreseeable future and look forward to adding sleep capris and camisoles to the rotation.

The post 5 Days, 5 Ways: Vintage Sleep Shorts You Can Do *Checks Notes* Everything In appeared first on Man Repeller.

5 Days, 5 Ways: Vintage Sleep Shorts You Can Do *Checks Notes* Everything In published first on https://normaltimepiecesshop.tumblr.com/ 5 Days, 5 Ways: Vintage Sleep Shorts You Can Do *Checks Notes* Everything In published first on https://mariakistler.tumblr.com/

[flowing-paint]

Hobby List 3 - Paints

Here we are with the last post in the Hobby List series: all about paints! If you followed the previous installments, at this point you should have all your hobby tools ready for your painting station, brushes and palette are ready to go and the miniatures you are going to paint are already divided into properly sized chunks (to paint in subassemblies) thanks to the January tutorial. You only miss the appropriate paints. Today I will try to list up all the essentials and the “secrets” behind some smart painting that you usually grab only after years of practice. This is a really long post: read on only if you need to get started with paints and the likes!

First of all, I am not sure I will be able to properly write an easy to understand post: this topic is quite intricated with thousands of different paints, technical paints, thinners, varnishes you can go on for hours. Let’s say that I will try to focus on the paints I use and maybe make some brief incursion into the realms of Citadel colors (mainly for technicals) and P3. Let’s see what kind of mess I will come out with!

Primers

Rattle can primers, brush-on primers or airbrush primers, all you need to know is here. That and the fact that you need to buy at least one. Look what works best for you but please, just don’t skip the priming phase.

Paints

I will spend a lot of space here for obvious reasons. Which paints should I use? If you’re a beginner this is probably your first big problem. There are so many paint manufacturers that specialize in miniature acrylic or enamel paints that, if I write them down, the list will not be exhaustive or complete. There are also some fine arts paints that can be used for miniatures, only adding to the confusion. Luckily, the quick answer to the above question is: you’re going to use all of them sooner or later. Some paints are good base colors others are good because they finish mat other are good to highlight so you can easily understand that the perfect paint station includes many different paints from different manufacturers. What I can tell you based on my present experience is that:

Citadel colors: very good for beginners thanks to the high coverage and the dark to light color gradations. They are insanely expensive and come in stupid difficult-to-use pots that dry on you super fast.

Vallejo colors: very good from beginners to advanced painters thanks to the wide variety of colors and formulations. They have normal and airbrush paints in dropper bottles so they are easy to use and store. Some colors like reds and yellows have a wonderful ultra-vibrant look after you paint them... but they are so transparent that it may take you one day to layer them down. Colors are so many that you may need to combine different series.

P3: My experience is very limited but what I see on youtube tells me they are quite thick, so high coverage, and provide you a vast array of interactive colors so you can create your gradations easily by using P3 colors only. Think of them as the high quality / low price version of Citadel colors.

Reaper: I am planning on expanding my collection of Reaper colors as they provide you with some fancy color that is (almost) never translated to any other paint manufacturer. They have their niche and it looks like they fit perfectly in there.

- Colors choice

So, let’s say you decided to stick to Vallejo colors because of their flexibility or availability or whatever. The next step is going to your favorite (web)shop, stare at the color ranges for a while and start buying the paints you really need. Problem is that staring down the barrel of 300+ colors the selection process becomes daunting. I will tell you the secret: do your homework before starting buying stuff. Think about what you’re going to paint, look for a nice color scheme you want to try your hand at and write down a list of colors that are 100% necessary. Only after you have a detailed list of the colors (not their brand name) you can pull the trigger. Remember my friend that wanted to start painting? Well, we did this step together with his Smurfs: he found a tutorial on Youtube where citadel colors were used then we discussed any additional accessory color that may be needed and only then he bought all the stuff. Granted. he can only paint smurfs now... but he was able to start batch painting cause he had all the colors he needed thanks to accurate preparation. Once you start you will always have colors to add to your palette but that’s a long process that goes on for years. I may have around 200+ paints now but I started with 20 or so.

Now, once you have the list of all the colors you may need I urge you to think about that color scheme as a three-dimensional thing: even if you are painting a purple miniature the miniature has three dimensions with dark colors in the recesses and light colors on the top of the ridges. For this reason, for each color you think you will need, you will probably have to buy three or four.To have an idea of what I’m telling you, have a look at this page: Warmonger Miniatures original paint set. I have never tried these colors but the image offers a clear visualization of what I mean: for each color they give you exactly three shades (it looks like that’s their system) so you can build up more realistic colors. It looks like the focus of this paint set is more on historical and fantasy figures but the principle applies everywhere. It’s the color theory baby... As we were saying, you decided to buy Vallejo so let’s see some examples using real colors. I will give you a couple of the combinations I’m using on my Death Guard models.

Purple

To give purple that pop it deserves, you can select these colors:

Base: Game Color Royal purple (72016)

Middle: Model Color Violet (70960)

Highlight: Model Color Blue Violet (70811)

Hyper highlight: mix highlight with your favorite white in (really) small amounts

Green

My Death Guard green must be toxic, not rotting so I want to go with a super highlighted glow-in-the-dark kind of color transition. Here is how I do it:

Base: Model Color Green Grey (70886) the closest I found to the GW one

Middle: Game Air Goblin Green (72730) works even if not “air”

Highlight: Model Color Golden Olive (70857)

Hyperhighlight: Game Air Light Livery Green (72733)

You can have a look at these color schemes in action by looking for my Death Guard related posts here.

I also have progressions for blues, reds etc but I will skip them as you probably got the point. You have to decide the final colors the figure will have and look for the proper colors to produce them. It’s that easy, especially when you have so many colors spread across many manufacturers. When deciding and taking inspiration from other people’s work you may need a paint conversion chart. I usually have a look here but keep in mind the correspondence is not always possible and you will have to mix your colors to achieve a good match.

- Must have colors

This is a really personal point for each painter but if you’re starting and you just want a fast failsafe setup I think you will appreciate this list. I worked it out throughout the years. The list does not include the above triads/quartets of colors, that’s up to you but if you have a goal in mind and the three or more colors to obtain it then, adding the following paints to your rack will set you up for good. Below, I will also tackle the other auxiliary products you need to be all set up.

Whites: I never use white but almost always all sorts of off-white. If you have the first three you are all set.

Model Color Ivory (70918). My to go choice when painting white.

Model Color Silvergrey (70883). Don’t let the name fool you. It’s a silverish white

Model Air Aged White (71132). This is white with a yellowish tint. You can paint skulls with it pretty easily.

Amsterdam Acrylics Titanium white: I never use pure white but I have it of course. Sometimes I highlight the Ivory or Deck Tan so I use this.  Look for the white that best fits your needs. They are all pretty chalky so spread your horizons across different brands and good luck!

Blacks: You need black even if you don’t really use black when painting. I use it mainly for base borders. But what about those parts of the miniatures that should look black? I use german grey.

Game color Black (72051): Solid black to paint directly on.

Model Air Black (71057): Pre-diluted black to use sparingly when mixing colors.

German Grey (70995): This is how black should look on miniatures. No more dull minis for you. You’re welcome.

Yellow: Grab Citadel Flash Gitz Yellow. It is pretty thick so it has proper coverage and it also goes well over greens as a subtle highlight. You cannot go wrong with this.

Metallics: if you only have access to Vallejo then you’re pretty lucky ‘couse Vallejo have some of the usebest metallics you will ever find.

Model Color Oily Steel (70865): I used to stick to Chainmail Silver (72753) but this one yields a better result in the metallic middle/dark tones. If you wash it properly it also gets a sort of dark reflection that really looks like real stainless steel. As it is quite reflective so you can also tint it to meet your needs. Two words: get this.

Model Color Air Chrome (71064): This is another magic metallic from Vallejo. It goes on super well even in its diluted state and has an astounding coverage.

Bronze (70998): I don’t use a lot of golds. When I do I generally go NMM. I emulate gold with this color and some underpainting. This one also works great by itself. It is just one of the best metallics around.

Citadel Leadbelcher (the old Boltgun Metal): don't use this directly on your miniature because it’s thick like, say, concrete. This is a very good drybrushing metal though.

Washes: washing is a technique more than a color but this is how they call them so let me use this term. Many people say that Army Painter washes are the best on the market but I don’t have easy access to them thus I cannot help you in that regard. The last point: I use Vallejo washes because that’s what I have but I don’t really like how murky they are. Avoid them if you can.

Citadel Agrax Earthshade: the very first wash you must buy when basing the miniatures it is really nice and flexible. It darkens the look of the miniature quite a bit so it should not be abused.

Vallejo Mecha Petrol Spills (69817): This is technically not a wash but a weathering paint. I simply don’t care and use it as a black wash for my metallics. The results when using this paint are amazing! The wash is basically pre-diluted to the proper concentration so you only have to slab it on. In addition, it does not leave that haze normal washes leave behind as this is not even pigmented at all. It is so diluted you may need to apply it two times but this doesn’t bother me as it means it is hard to overdo it. Again: get this.

I think we are more or less done with the paints. If you use the bits of advice above you have everything you really need to start painting immediately. If you want to bring the game to a different level you can keep reading for some additional stuff you may (or may not) want to add to the initial investment.

Thinning agents

The first advice you usually get when you start painting is “thin your paints”. You have many ways to do it so let me tell you what you need. You can choose to use a drop of plain water when the paint is already thin but that’s less than ideal in most situations and really wrong in all the others so plan in investing a small amount of money in the following products.

- Thinner medium

This is the same acrylic medium you have in the paint but without the pigments in it. You don’t really need to go after a fancy medium: the generic ones you find in the art & crafts stores will perfectly work. Use this to thin your paint when you need more than a single drop but bear in mind that using the thinner medium will speed up the drying time and sometimes this is not desirable.

- Floor wax

I know it sounds crazy but floor waxes are acrylic resins diluted with water (?) and that makes this another type of thinner medium. As strange as it sounds this is really usable in miniature painting. Paint thinned this way does tend to dry a little bit glossy but you are going to coat the miniature with a mat varnish anyway so it’s not a problem.

- Airbrush Flow Improver

This sounds like an Airbrush-only thinner but, believe me, this is probably the most important tool in your paint rack. Paint diluted with this medium will dry slower (it acts as a retarder) and will gain a sort of viscosity that greatly changes the flow properties of the original paints. This is a magical power that should not be underestimated. Let me give you a concrete example. When I first bought the Vallejo Grey primer I was trying to brush it on my miniatures exactly the same way I do with the German Grey one without success. The primer was too runny and was not sticking to the plastic. I was forced to paint at least 4 layers per miniature wasting a lot of time on the priming step only. I thought that was because the primer was too thin but one day I decided to try a different approach so I actually diluted this particular primer with Vallejo Flow Improver. Despite being diluted 1:1 the primer covered the mini in one pass because of the new “stickiness” the flow improver added to it. You can also have the same effect with those airbrush paints that are too thin to be painted directly on: you add a drop of VFI and you’re good to go.

Another interesting use is for mixing washes or glazes. Washes are really really sensitive to water but sometimes need to be diluted: in those cases, VFI is the way to go. Again, glazes need to be super diluted but “sticky” and that’s exactly why this additive is so good: it has so many uses! Just do yourself a favor are buy a dropper bottle to try it out. I will probably need a full tutorial to explain how I use it so stay tuned.

Varnishes

You need a varnish to finish your paintwork. It is so damn important that you coat your miniature when you are done that you should read very carefully. You are probably going to play with these miniatures so they will get transported around, they will get touched thousands of times, dropped scratched and so on. The varnish is a thick and rigid final coat you put on the miniature to avoid damage so plan on buying one eventually.

- Mat varnish

This is what I suggest you use as a sealing coat. It makes the model look less like a toy and more like a miniature living being. I don’t have any specific suggestions for products but many people say “Testors Dullcote” is the best one. You can also use Vallejo Matt Varnish... I think it will work just fine. Personally, I use a brush-on varnish I found here in Japan. I don’t even know the name of the manufacturer but it’s so good if I will ever leave this country I will need to bring with me a big stock of it!

- Gloss Varnish

You can also substitute this with your floor wax if you do so desire and save yourself a bottle and some money. Even though you can use this as a protecting layer (many board gamers do so) I do not advise you to do it: if too shiny, the final result ends up looking cheap and toy-like. I use this as an intermediate protecting layer while painting delicate multi-layer color schemes or as a preparation before washes.

I think I will end this post here even if there are so many other paints and accessories to showcase! The aim of this series was, however, to help beginners with the bare minimum requirements to start the hobby so we may say I went a little too far. Please feel free to ask me everything you want regarding this matter and thank you for reading through all this!

I will be traveling back to my home country for the next two weekends but I will try my best to keep the content coming. Rest assured that if I have an internet connection I will post on the blog. In the meantime...

.... game on!

[nicoletindall]

Some Known Details About 5 Reasons For Erp, Crm And Cad Integration For Business

Table of Contents

Integrating The Cad/pdm/plm System Into The Usa Business - The Facts

Unknown Facts About Plm Vs Erp - Design Rule

Rumored Buzz on Plm Vs Erp - Design Rule

What Is Erp And Cad? Enterprise Resource Planning Explained Here for Beginners

How Does Erp/cad Integration Help Custom Manufacturers? for Dummies

Not known Incorrect Statements About Erp And Cad Integration In 2020

The Ultimate Guide To Best Systems In 2020: Cad To Erp Performance Review

The Buzz on Cad, Pdm & Plm Applications - Link With Erp

Nevertheless, their offering is limited to a simple export-import procedure that is hardly better than manual data transcription, generally since it lacks the real-time, bidirectional technique that is the only practical way to achieve a failsafe CAD ERP integration whenever. The export/import method leaves the door wide open to data rejection by the target system, partly completed transfers, incorrectly validated data, disparities, and so on.

Effective CAD/PDM/PLM-ERP combinations necessarily require real-time information exchange. It is shown that any other way is destined to failure. Why real-time? Due to the fact that you require a layer of defense, a temporary information object that you will utilize to occupy and verify information prior to the final transfer to the ERP system - ERP CAD integration.

Until then, item data must be frozen till final user verification, thus guaranteeing the quality of the information to be passed to the downstream organisation processes. That is the only method to make sure the accuracy of your files accuracy. For instance, you wish to make sure that everyone will working on the existing version/revision.

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One combination being asked for more regularly by making business is the combination of CAD software with ERP systems. This connects an organisation's engineering with its production, helping to improve these processes. stands for computer-aided style, and describes software application that engineers use when developing an item in the design phases prior to it is built.

After an item is designed in CAD, engineers need to send the expense of materials (BOM) to making so they can buy the elements of production and after that develop the product. If a business does not have a CAD-ERP connection, engineers will have to by hand input this data. There are 2 primary difficulties with this.

Your engineers will have to get whatever data they require from CAD, load up ERP, and insert it in the appropriate type. For many companies, this will be a major discomfort point, since engineers are losing a substantial amount of their time. Possibly even worse, nevertheless, engineers can make errors during this process.

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At worst, the company might simply have to scrap them, leading to squandered money. Meanwhile, purchasing too few systems implies that production is postponed. The business has to put in a late order, time is lost, and the consumer will be dissatisfied that his products are not arriving as scheduled.

In the first method, CAD files can be published directly onto your ERP system. For instance, Odoo, an open-source ERP software, allows users to submit CAD files directly to its PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) module. After this, staff members can quickly make BOM modifications. In the second method, the CAD software can be directly integrated with the ERP, permitting your organisation to completely automate the procedure from development to production.

First of all, this accelerate work. Secondly, engineers spend more of their important time doing engineering rather than clerical work. And lastly, your service is far less likely to make errors, saving you time and money, and likewise causing a greater rate of customer fulfillment. Bista Solutions can integrate different CAD software application with Odoo, allowing a service to end up being even more effective.

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We're already doing this for a number of clients. If you desire your business to be next, let us know! You can reach us at 404-631-6219 or leave us a message using our contact type.

CADTalk increases the worth of your SOLIDWORKS investment by allowing you to integrate your engineering information with your ERP (Business Resource Planning) system. We have actually partnered closely with leading ERP suppliers in order to offer complete included, off the shelf combinations. Our combinations are totally supported for future versions of both SOLIDWORKS and your ERP bundle (CAD ERP).

Aptean deals a variety of consulting, assistance, and service programs to assist you with the execution and use of your Encompix ERP service. Our experienced experts can assist your company through the execution process to minimize danger and attain faster return on investment. Ongoing services consist of technical assistance for customization, data conversion, integration, education, and training.

The Best Strategy To Use For Cad Erp Integration : What To Expect

Decision365 is a commerce efficiency tool that leverages the application most makers already use: Microsoft Outlook. Decision365 permits users to manage orders straight in Outlook with automated integration to your ERP systems. Decision365 connects to more than a lots EDI and e-commerce systems, including SPS Commerce, Conexiom, Shopify, Magento, Volusion, TrueCommerce, B2BGateway, and others.

Among the greatest obstacles for businesses is to connect all of their multi-discipline dispersed systems to one central place. A PLM system should incorporate with other systems, consisting of Business Resource Planning (ERP) systems, Authoring and documents tools, such as CAD, and existing Product Data Management (PDM) systems.

How 10 Ways Machine Learning Can Close Legacy Erp Cad Gaps can Save You Time, Stress, and Money.

Although that might appear like a herculean effort, there's no factor to fret. Bespoke integration doesn't need to be a concern, and furthermore, effective PLM combination can result in greater service success. As Derek Neidling of Razorleaf, a leading PLM combination service company, put it, "In many cases, PLM isn't being thought of on the very first day of incorporation." And that makes sense.

You're drowning in decisions that you may or may not have experience making. PLM isn't on the top of your list. So, by the time your very first couple of items have removed, and you're worrying about staying up to date with supply, you have actually got mountains of information and possibly numerous proprietary design files that you require managed.

What Does Best Systems In 2020: Cad To Erp Performance Review Do?

As soon as PLM has gone into the photo and it's been tied into your CAD system, organisation choices become much easier to make. Your team sees an improvement in process effectiveness, and offered your success, you have actually expanded and even added an ERP system to your company. The issue is, your ERP system and your PLM setup aren't communicating with one another.

The Only Guide to Why Erp-based Plm - Cad Inside Agnilinks

( Image courtesy of Razorleaf.) Although it's totally obvious that having 2 crucial facilities tools that don't talk to one another is less than perfect, integrating PLM with ERP hasn't constantly been the most convenient endeavor. Whether a company feels that it doesn't have the technical knowledge to incorporate, thinks the combination process will take too long or thinks it's too costly, the truth remains that integration has a number of benefits.

Combination can also remove lost effort by keeping everyone on a team appraised of the current status of a project throughout its advancement - ERP CAD. Strong PLM integration can likewise lead to much better business practices that can simplify product advancement and decision-making processes. But, the concern remains, how does a business make what can be a complex combination procedure workable? As it ends up, there are business out there with the expertise to make integration a smooth procedure.

[arkus-rhapsode]

My Black Vox arc

So this is another original arc that I thought up and thought “hey I’ll write it and see how it goes”. This arc would take place between Avatar and Alvarez, also if you were unaware, this is Black Vox

After the events of Avatar, there are a lot of Avatar branch guilds getting rounded up by legal guilds and Rune Knights. But due to the massive influx of prisoners, the Rune Knights have issued a request to all legal guilds in the continent

The job is to help oversee a massive transfer of prisoners. Gray and Natsu sign up for the job after seeing how much it pays because after being gone for a year, Natsu spent all his savings

The two then actually make Warren come with them because Warren’s telepathy would be really useful

When they get to Era they find that it is packed with a lot of legal mages, one of which is Millianna from Mermaid Heel. Warren ntes big name legal mages like Bomb Sentence from Gramlush a guild in Iceberg, Reisha Whiteday from Hound Holy a guild in Minstrel, even Chrisack from Dullahan Head, natsu saying he remembers that guy from the games. They then are addressed by Doranbolt.

Doranbolt says that all the of them will be overseeing a transfer, but like many low-level rune knights, they will be riding in the same window-less transport vehicle due to needing to hide the exact location of Black Vox

But before any of that, they must go through a screening process to determine if they have any malicious intent

If they do, they will be held in questioning and likely punished with jail time. Everyone seems pretty okay with that.

They will also be assisted by a Rune Knight division lead by division commander, Katja and one of her squad leaders is Kageyama

For added security they also include councilman and wizard saint Baum Sancti

Natsu is shocked to see he and Kageyama are working together. But Kageyama just tells Natsu to can it

It then cuts away to a strange vehicle being controlled by a group called the Five Bridge Familia, their leader named Shake is currently torturing a man

(^Guy is Shake, he’s from FT ice trail, but wasn’t given a name) Along with Shake is Dyst

The man that is being tortured is revealed to be Torch Endeavor, warden of the Black Vox prison

It cuts to the transport of criminals with Millianna trying to make small talk with Gray, Natsu, and Warren. She says she took this job because she though her magic would come in handy if any prisoners escaped. She also says she wants to impress Mermaid Heel.

Gray just says he wants cash for the job so he can start financing some money to find the book of END

But Natsu points out that Zeref has it, but they both agree that since both their paths cross they’ll work together in destroying the book and zeref

Warren is cowering, unable to understand how these two are so calm especially when talking about Zeref.

When they are let off the transport they are surprised at how big the prison is. Upon entering the prison, they meet the Head Jailer, Grog Foto

Grog walks up to Katja and whispers to her that Warden Torch hasn’tt arrived

The Wizard Saint will take the back, waiting at the entrance and watching it with two guards to make sure no one makes it to the doorway

Grog explains the layout of the prison to the Rune Knights and Mages. What they are standing in is the “first layer” of Black Vox. This is known as the entrance layer, it’s thin and mainly exists as the last layer of the prison. The second layer is known as the facility layer. In the facility layer they keep all the necessary’s for the staff including things like filing room, cafeteria, and, most importantly, weapons storage room. The third layer is the guard layer. This is where all the guards stand to watch viewing the “core”. The core is where all the prison cells are kept.

Grog says that they are on the Central pathway which goes through all the layers directly to the core. Their job as mages for hire is to watch them while they are in the second layer

When the central pathway goes through the second layer it goes right through the check in facility where all checking in prisoners are given a black seal on their thumb. This seal is made from the same material used to make guild marks however, it’s capable of tracking and knowing if a prisoner is inside black vox.

When a prisoner is released then they get the mark removed.

The transportation goes as you would expect. All the prisoners waiting in line and not much happening. Warren picks up on one guy in line and Warren alerts people that The prisoner thinks they can make a break for it here. So Gray just moves into position to scare him.

Some of the already captured prisoners are seen, including Kain Hikaru, Ivan Dreyar, Erigor, and Bora

Bora is in his cell mopping about how he doesn’t deserve a 25 year sentence. Sure he dealt in human trafficking, but he do anything bad to the girls physically. He gave them food and water.

While this is going on, the Five Bridge Familia vehicle arrives blasting through the rock face and towards black vox and homing in on it.

The prisoners are all about to be put into their cells, but when Grog hears about this he tells all the Rune Knights to start to fall back into the guard layer, Natsu curious how they found this place.

Grog and a few jailers remain and speak to Shake over the loudspeaker. They are here to pick up their Master Drum Bee. Shake also reveals he has the warden captured.

Grog freaks out slightly, but then opens the door saying if he gives them Drum Bee then they return the warden. When Five Bridge Familia enters, they return Torch, but after Drum is released.

(^ Drum Bee)

When Drum is freed, Natsu and Gray are shocked to see Drum is a giant like the ones from Sun Village. Drum then blasts away Grog telekinetically and recaptures Torch.

Drum says that he’ll take the whole prison as compensation for imprisoning him. Dyst uses the control panel to open up all the prisons. Grog however, flees and activates a lockdown.

While in the core, Drum laughs and makes a giant offer to the prisoners, who wants to be one of his “sons”. Five Bridge Familia refers to Drum as father.

Many prisoners are confused and Drum states that he can now go off and take over the underworld, even overthrow the entire Magic Council.

While he monologues, Arlock yells at Drum, stating it is blasphemy to say he should lead the world. The only true lord is Zeref. Drum then uses his telekinesis to hurl Arlock into a wall.

Drum states that Zeref doesn’t matter to him, a true ruler is one who rules actively, one with a firm hand, like a father. Zeref is just a relic who never led his followers. And from what he remembers from Tartaros when the Seis were released, his demons have fallen.

Shake says Drum is right. Things have changed since Drum’s imprisonment, but now they can conquer like they should’ve, instead of Balam.

Ivan laughs, saying that they must all be fools. If they had the power, why didn’t they take charge when Balam was around? Well as Ivan puts it, they’re strong enough to compare to Balam, but with the fall of Avatar and now the gapping power vacuum Five Bridge Familia can rule the underworld.

Drum asks how Ivan could help with that and Ivan says he knows much and especially about a great magic power. Drum agrees to let Ivan join him saying he can be of use.

Listening to this, Torch tries to flee, but Drum restricts his movements. He orders Torch to tell him where his ultimate weapon, the Collect Beam 999’s, is. Torch refuses, but Drum uses his telekinesis to shatter Torch’s leg. Torch reveals where specifically the weapon storage is and Five Bridge Familia begins to break through the wall

Cut to, Natsu asks what the heck is wrong with Grog and Grog says that this is something he expected. Drum wouldn’t leave without pulling a stunt like this. Gray and Katja are curious why then would he do this.

Grog explains that the lockdown seals off the core from the other layers, but the dark mages will likely break through it in a hour.

But there is a failsafe installed. At the very bottom of the guard layer is a magic device called “The Blackout”, when activated, anyone in the core with the Black Vox mark on their thumb while he targeted and zapped with a magic that will knock them out. Problem is it is on the bottom floor of the layer where no one is stationed.

He also states the staves they carry are binding magic staves, able to catch the prisoners, but there’s a lot of prisoners who can shatter the binding. Katja suggests this, her Rune Knights and mages will work with the jailers, but a small squad will go with Grog to activate the Blackout.

The squad is Kageyama’s squad, but Natsu volunteers to go with them because he knows that he can act as extra muscle to the group. Kageyama calls that BS, but Natsu points out that he beat the winners of the GMG so he can take a few criminals.

Gray interjects, saying if Natsu is strong then why won’t he back them up fighting the prisoners, Natsu says if no one protects the squad and they get ambushed then it’s likely all the Knights, Jailers, and Mages could needlessly die.

Natsu does end it by saying it’s in good hands if Gray is up there. But Natsu stops when he smells something and they all look up at Karacka from Eisenwald, who listened to a lot of this and retreats back into the core before people can attack him.

Ivan saw this and asks Karacka what he saw and threatens to blow up Karacka with his Shikigami bomb if he doesn’t capitulate.

Karacka spills the beans and tells them about Blackout and Ivan tells Karacka to use his phasing magic to get to that floor and stop them, but Karacka says he’s seen Natsu’s power so he needs some back from his guild and Ivan says fine just find them.

It cuts to Briar, Jerome, Mary, and D-6. They will gather their Avatar forces and sneak out of Black Vox during the ensuing chaos and after Drum gets his weapon, they’ll blast through the first layer.

As it cuts around to Kain who sees Abel and knocks him out for taking Mr. Kursey, saying he will be the only one to use it and walks off saying he’ll finally do what he should’ve done. While Goumon finds Erigor and tells him to remember he’s loyal to Avatar and Erigor knocks him out saying he’ll be reviving Eisenwald and burns off his Avatar guild mark.

It cuts to Natsu, Grog, and Kageyama’s squad running to Blackout, with Grog saying they have to hurry, but Natsu and Kageyama say they wouldn’t be in this mess if Grog hadn’t let Five Bridge in. Grog says he couldn’t let the warden die and get tortured. Torch isn’t just a warden, he’s like a father to him and he didn’t want to live knowing that Torch would just be tortured.

Natsu says that he gets that. He’s done a lot of the same stupid stuff in the name of his dad, but what matters now is they do right by their dads and fix this problem. Kageyama saying that’s a laugh given how destructive Natsu is and he just yells he’s been working on it.

Grog just has a moment to think about the Knights and mages ready to fight the prisoners.

It cuts to the group of mages all wait in anticipation to fight the prisoners and watching the wall slowly crack. Katja orders some mages to stay here in this layer so that they can make sure no one gets to the weapon storage room.

Warren walks up to Gray and asks if he’s should come with him. Gray says Warren should stay back he probably won’t last against all The commotion and with his Telepathy it’s best if he stayed back and called him if there was a problem

Warren, dejected, agrees

The wall shatters as Mages, Knights, Jailers, and Prisoners do battle.

Gray ends up fighting D-6 and Gray and him have a back and forth while fighting, Gray saying he doesn’t need any slayer power to beat D-6. Briar tries to jump him, but Millianna stops her and is ready to take her on.

Millianna vs Briar is under way with Millianna beating down all of Briar’s clones and stating she’ll fight and arrest any servant of Zeref

Gray defeats D-6, send notices that the group of Five Bridge Familia mages led by Dyst, use their telekinesis to blow through tons of guards and knights to make it to the second layer. Gray tries to stop it but he gets hit with Mary’s black virus.

The mages who were in charge of taking up the rear, including Warren and Chrisack, are easily smashed through and Dyst makes it to the second and more specifically the weapon storage room.

The dark mages raid it, stealing trying to get back there weapons, with Dyst making quick work of any remaining mages. The Familia locates Drum’s Collect Beam 999’s and Dyst sticks around a bit to knock out any remaining mages

It looks like Warren has been beaten, but he is just playing dead as Dyst walks away and dark mages Who followed behind the Familia, are also exiting, getting back into the fray against the jailers

Warren sees Dyst walk away and uses his telepathy to see that Dyst thinks that there is an anyone else there. Warren then thinks he’ll just call Gray and he’ll come and call beat up Dyst.

Warren placing his hand on his starts crying, and asks why he’s so pathetic. We get a flashback showing a 15 year old Warren who beat up a bully around his hometown. The kids around him start praising him and he says it’s all thanks to his telepathy

The kids say that with that kind of magic he could be a mage and with his physical skill he can go on lots of adventures. Warren left town, dropping his education and leaving his family to join FT and always thought that as long as he had is telepathy and make sure to train his body hard he could be a great mage, sure maybe not renowned throughout the kingdom, but that’s what S-Class mages were there for.

But over time, things changed. People he knew since they arrived at the guild like Natsu, Gray, even Lucy started making insane bounds in their skill. They became so strong while he was just left in the dust, But as long as he had his telepathy he was still useful, at least he thought that until FT fell from grace. Seeing how all those great mages were gone there was way more pressure on people to pull their load and he realized everything that he had done up to that point just wasn’t enough.

Eventually many people left and they had to move to that second building constantly being bullied by Twilight Ogre. He didn’t leave the guild even after seeing his effort seemed almost pointless, he stayed because he believed that this guild has been good to him, treated him like family and gave him a place to grow.

But yet he didn’t help it regain its glory, no he sat around while those same guildmates of his who ones left in the dust were now the saviors of FT.

It returns to the present where Warron finishes his thoughts, about how even now he rather play dead and let Gray handle it. If he really was an FT mage he would do stand up and protect his family instead of mooching off them.

Warren stands up, and yells at Dyst there is still one more mage. Dyst stops and says it’s a pain, and sends some debris Warren thinking it hit him but Dyst is surprised to see none the debris hurt him. Eventually Dyst starts knocking back Warren, but Warren using his magic to predict the attacks while using weapons in the storage room to help him.

It doesn’t seem like enough because Dyst is ready to kill Warren, but Kain in his metal form protects Warren. Warren and Dyst asks what the hell, but Kain says he’s here to help and repent for his mistakes

Kain does surprisingly well until Dyst figures out Kain’s magic and blasts the doll away from Kain. Dyst then beats on Kain till Warren grabs the doll and uses Kain to help fight against all Dyst

Warren uses his telepathy to know Dyst’s moves and uses the doll to control Kain’s movements to beat on Dyst. Eventually the two push Dyst back, Warren telepathically tells Kain that they need to get a strand of Dyst’s hair, telling Kain his plan.

Dyst recovers, sick of all this shit and Kain activates doll change to make it a shining doll. Dyst is taken off guard that Kain isn’t the one attacking, but Warren. The glowing Warren steals a strand of hair and Kain then takes control of Dyst

The two knockout Dyst with Kain suggesting they work together.

It cuts to Natsu and Kageyama squad with Kageyama asking what will they have to do to activate the Blackout and Grog says he just needs to access it an enter a code to activate it.

As they run, Karacka sticks his head out from the ceiling and then returns to the surface with Ivan’s Shikigami next to his head and says he hasn’t found anything

Ivan is keeping track of Karacka with his Shikigami and talking to him through it

Erigor shows up with Biyard and tells Karacka to help them bring back Eisenwald. Karacka explains the situation and Ivan offers the Eisenwald mages a deal if they find Blackout

They agree and it cuts to Ivan’s end of the call where Ivan is talking to Drum. Ivan has been sucking up to Drum and earning his trust. He even asks Drum how he got to be the master of Five Bridge Familia.

Drum explains how he was an orphan that was abandoned in the middle of nowhere near the edge of Fiore by an escaped dark mage.

The dark mage nurtured the giant baby Drum on a farm and Drum always called the dark mage “Daddy”. The dark mage intended to mold Drum Bee into a weapon so he could make it big in the underworld. Drum was raised to be loyal always asking his dad what to do and asking for his approval

The dark mage was shocked when Drum exhibited magic especially telekinesis, and thought Drum could be even more powerful. Drum practiced his magic by killing animals on the farm, but one day a group of slavers killed the dark mage and robbed his house

Drum took revenge on the slavers, by finding a trench they were using as a base and not only raised the earth, but murdered all the slavers. Drum freed the slaves and took them as his “sons” and started Five Bridge Familia.

Eventually he reveals that he started destroying towns and forcing them to pay tribute calling them part of his Familia, but he was foiled by Gildarts and was given life imprisonment

Ivan says he loves Drum’s views on fathers and sons saying how his dad was a fool. Drum asks who Ivan’s dad was and when he mentions fairy tail Drum goes ballistic. Saying Gildarts foiled his plans and Ivan mentions that there are FT mages here and maybe they’ll kill them

Torch, who’s still held captive by them understands what Ivan is doing, but is unable to saying anything. The group of mages Who grabbed the Collect Beam 999’s return to Drum, but report Dyst has been defeated.

Drum wants to retaliate, but Shake says he’ll do it himself. Ivan then gets contacted by Karacka saying that the squad has stopped , and Ivan says he’ll join them in their fight. Drum is the lighted that he will soon be free of Black Vox and return to the world. It cuts to Gray who is still in pain from what Mary did to him.

Millianna saves Gray from Mary, but Jerome arrives saying he wants Gray to repent. Gray says he’ll handle all this fight and Millianna should go. Millianna bumps into Kain ready to fight, but Warren tells her to stop and that he’s on their side

But Shake appears and they note he has Torch and uses him as shield for a while. Shake reveals the potential of telekinesis, that it isn’t simply moving objects, but by telekinetically using the wind he can make it’s particles grind against each other, it creates lightning and he calls it “Psychic Storm”

With the lightning and the captive Torch it seems unlikely for the 3 can win. Torch pleads for them to just kill him and take out Shake, but they refuse. Kain gets a hair on Torch and uses his doll to pull Torch away. Warren thinks this is great as they can now get close to Shake and possibly pluck a hair off his head and then beat him like they did with Dyst

Problem is that Kain says the plan out loud and Shake says he’ll just kill them with his magic. Warren gets a full blast of the psychic storm lightning, while trying to figure out how they could possibly beat him. Thinking about his fight with Dyst

Warren then telepathically contacts Kain and Millianna and says he’s figured out the key to his magic and telekinesis. Telekinesis seems almost infinite with the amount of stuff that they can pick up what they’re mine and hurl at other people, but they only do that with stuff like debris and loose weaponry. He also noticed that when they did pick up people with their mind it was usually unconscious individuals. The reason is that telekinesis and the amount of focus that they need to put in to controlling objects is based on the amount of resistance. Stuff like debris will not resist, but  stuff resisting take more focus so that means less of their focus can be spread to other objects .

Warren uses the example of physically stopping someone punching against a mage with telekinesis, they would have to focus specifically on stopping the person’s arm b because that’s resisting against their mental control. So that’s why whenever they got close to a telekinetic they would instead control the wind and use that to blast people away. It’s much easier to manipulate still wind instead of focusing on a punch.

The key is to hit him with attacks with enough force and that he will have to spread his focus out and therefore will create an opening.

Millianna attacked some with multiple tubes, which he bats away, however shake is surprised by the fact that the tubes are pushing against his telepathic push away so he starts focusing on that. Kain uses his goal to turn his body into metal and launches himself straight at Shake which shake will be hit head on and probably lose if Kain’s attack connects.

Shake decides to push back Kain but doing so allows Millianna’s tubes to behind him in a technique called cats cradle. The now magic neutralized shake gets hit by the Kain launch attack that knocks him out.

Torch is impressed, but now hopes Grog can turn the blackout on.

It cuts to Grog’s group who’ve made it to the Blackout, but Eisenwald and Ivan come bursting through. Erigor enters his Storm Mail and goes after Kageyama splitting him up from the group.

Karacka attacks Grog and Biyard attacks Natsu. Natsu KOs Biyard easy while Grog restrains Karacka.

The shikigami appears on Karacka and explodes, catching Grog in the explosion. The same happens with Biyard, but Natsu gets out of the way in time.

Ivan says he’ll be killing Grog now.

It cuts to Kageyama who fights Erigor. They get a little expansion on their past, with Kageyama claiming he’s not a coward anymore, he’ll stand up and defeat Erigor.

Erigor mocks him and his magic stating he knows all of Kage’s tricks and the limitations of his shadow magic, namely Kageyama can only manipulate his shadow as a weapon, but Erigor can manipulate all of wind.

Kageyama looks backed into a corner but Kageyama reveals that 8 years has been a long time and he’s learned more about his magic. By having his own shadow touch another shadow in the room he can also manipulate that shadow. Erigor writes this off not realizing that this dark corridor has many shadows that are connected.

Kageyama uses his shadow to activate a new ability cold Shadow Orochi Pit, which summons snakes from all over the shadows in the room rather than just Kageyama’s. Erigor is overwhelmed and defeated.

Back with Natsu, he takes on Ivan stating he’s not worth is as clenches the fist on his bandaged arm and proceeds to fight. He says Ivan was a horrible son and manages to defeat him. Natsu punching Ivan right through the ceiling into the core.

It cuts to Drum entering the battlefield with the other members of Five Bridge Familia, Kain, Warren, and Millianna noticing that on his sleeves he now has tons of holes in them. Gray sees this but is refocuses on Jerome.

It cuts to Grog making it to the Blackout and activating it. Cutting back to the fighting area, Bora makes into The weapon storage room and says that he is now in the second layer and once he gets passed this he’ll be able to escape. He is then shocked by the same black symbol that he was marked with on his thumb appears behind him.

The entire walls of the core become coated in the same symbol, but only The core as Bora obverses from the second layer and the wall of black symbols blocking anything from entering or exiting.

Drum screams for a wall, as all the inmates are hit by this lightning coming from all the symbols. Jerome getting hit right in front of Gray and it continuing to zap him until he passes out. Gray realizes that no one without the mark on their thumb is getting zapped. He then looks over at Drum and sees the lightning is being held back.

The wall fades as Blackout powers down, but everyone notices that the lightning is not striking Drum, rather it’s trying to but his guild mates are using their telekinesis to push it back. However this exerted so much force on all the Five Bridge mages that they pass out.

Drum is pissed and says that all will pay, blasting Kain, Millianna, Warren, Torch, and several Rune Knights away with a telekinetic airburst. but Gray comes at Drum asking what kind of father just sacrifices his own children for himself. Drum states as their father he Will more than guide his children and it is all for their benefit, for without a parent they’d be lost.

Gray gets flashes of Ur, Makarov, and Silver. Saying that a parent isn’t selfish. They don’t treat children of like tools. They teach kids right from wrong and then make them capable enough to survive in the real world. And if they do want their children to do something they will pass it onto them not use them.

Drum yells Gray doesn’t know a damn thing about being a parent and tries to attack him the spear. Gray grabs the spear and activates his devil slaying magic freezes the spear and shatters proclaiming that this is what the bequeathing a duty to their children looks like.

Drum just reveals his Collect Beam 999’s that come out of the holes in his sleeves and they are spherical and have a circular opening on the surface. These little sweet years are controlled by Drum’s telekinesis and uses them to fire lasers at people. A lot of mages pick themselves up and start fighting back against the Collect Beam.

Gray deals with some of the beams and then has Warren telepathically communicate saying to get everybody to force all the collective beams in one area.

The mages push back and Gray uses Ice-Make: Silver, freezing all the collect beams. Drum tries to move his frozen spheres but they are iced up so much they shatter so Drum just tries to shoot the ice at Gray but his Devil Slaying Magic protected him.

Drum and Gray engage with Gray defeating Drum with the help of Millianna.

The heroes are triumphant with Grog, Natsu, and Kageyama, celebrating. Torch crying that they managed to do it.

It cuts to the first layer where Baum questions what the heck is with all that sound, The two guards with them say that they need to stand watch Just in case if there’s any escapees. They then see a figure running at them and it’s Bora who burned through the last layer so he could get to the first and escape.

Bora thanks that you can make it past the guards but is shocked that Baum is there and the wizard saint just obliterates Bora.

It cuts to them starting to round up all the prisoners and returning them to their cells while Torch who is in the medical bay, saying he feels ashamed. He was captured by the Five Bridge Familia when they threatened to kill every person on a train with an avalanche if he did not surrender himself. Because of his actions Black Vox has suffered more damage than it’s ever seen.

Grog laughs saying that it’s a good thing. Because we learn from our mistakes. Getting a small flash back showing a very young Grog having trouble with his job as a jailer and wants to quit but Torch saying that when you’re not down don’t stay down. Grog could either stay down admitting defeat and wallow in the fact that he didn’t manage to do something or is he going to get up and move past it and be a better person.

Grog says that now it is true for the prison. Sure it’s suffered a lot but now it can be improved better than it has before.

Grog is called t the cell because Warren and Millianna are standing up for Kain saying he doesn’t deserve a life sentence. Natsu recognizes Kain and asks him about how he followed Hades. Kain says he wants to go back to his cell because that is how he’ll repay his debt for the pain he caused

Torch remembers Kain’s bravery and actions and says he’ll shave his sentence down to 5 years and afterwards he must report inmediently for training in the Rune Knights while getting a full background check

Kain is so happy and notices Natsu he reveals that from being in Grimmoire Heart he learned Zeref is from Alvarez

This all ends with commander Katja thanking all the participators in the in this saying they went above and beyond the call of duty.

Gray and Warren meet up with Natsu and say that all that talk of family means they really want to get back home to Fairy Tail.

[thehorde]

Shutdown

AN: Many years ago I promised myself I would never stoop to writing fan fiction about real people. Well. whoops.

Summary: Thomas is stuck in his own head. When Thomas is in a car accident, Virgil has to enact a ‘failsafe’ that shuts everything and everyone down but himself. To his shock, Thomas, who is convinced that his sides are characters he has made up, appears inside the control room. And he... can’t leave.

Pairings: Naw man I am awkward af at that stuff.

Warnings: Uhh, panic in a car accident, I suppose? Some slightly graphic injuries. Oh, profanity.

Chapter One

“You made us oversleep.”

They were going to be late to the party and every single one of them was aware of it. However, Virgil was especially conscientious of this fact and it was driving him mad. They were crowded over the control board eyes, fixed on the massive screen in front of them. Thomas blinked and the screen went black for an instant. They looked through his eyes at the steering wheel and the road ahead. The control board was filled with a multitude of keys and buttons and levers and blinking lights, and the Sides busily scrambled around the board in no particular order. The room around them was metal and clean and multilayered with spiraling stairs and odd colored doors leading into hallways that not even they had fully explored. Warm yellow lights floated through the air and normally would be calming. But not today. In the control room, there was hardly ever order. Everyone wanted to be in charge and thus no one was.

“There’s nothing we could have done,” Logan said. He twisted a key and Thomas flicked on his turn signal. “Thomas needs sleep and someone has been not allowing him any more than four hours a night for more than a week now!”

Virgil shot Logan a dirty look and tried to worm his way back toward the board.  Virgil had a way of standing that made it seem that he was folding in on himself. Slumped and crooked and a little bruised. “Look, if you had done your job and actually created a schedule like usual, then I wouldn’t have to wonder what we still have to do and-”

“We should speed up, kids!” Paton interrupted. He wound his hands under Logan’s and tapped on the keyboard. “We’ll get there sooner if we go faster!” Logan glared at him.

“Well, yes. But we can’t go past the speed limit.”

“The sky's the limit!” Roman roared. He shoved Logan into Virgil with more strength than he probably intended, and the two of them ended up in a heap on the floor.

“Ow!”

“Get off of me!”

Logan pursed his lips, stood up, and tried to get back through. “Honestly,” he muttered.

Meanwhile, Roman patted Patton on the head. “Faster, little guy.”

And Virgil just sat there. On the floor. He huffed and used the railing to stand up, straightening his hoodie. He knew that staying back was what the others wanted him to do. Things were easier when he stayed back.

But come on, this was ridiculous. He had a job to do, and he couldn’t just let them keep him from the control board. Especially since, “Are you sure we looked at the text right? Was the time one thirty or two-thirty?”

Logan glanced back and flicked a button. The text appeared in their mind’s eye on the screen. It starts at 2:30.

Virgil shifted his weight and tugged at his sleeves as he peered at the message. Was it right, though? Had they really seen that or was Logan remembering incorrectly? Logan might be remembering incorrectly. It had happened before. They should make sure. He should make sure it really was going to start at 2:30. Maybe he’d seen 12:30 and not noticed the one or something.

He shouldered up to Logan who cried out in exasperation. “Virgil, please! We need to get there on time and safely.”

Virgil tuned him out. He needed to make sure the text was right. He fumbled and finally got ahold of the correct button. He’d just pick up the phone and check…

Logan knocked his hand away. “We’ve looked at it three times, Virgil!”

“But we may have read it wrong!”

“I didn’t read it wrong!”

“Why do you have to be such a jerk about it?! I just want to look! We’ll seem stupid if we show up hours off of the correct time!” He grabbed the lever, and Thomas snapped up his phone. Clicked on the screen…

“It’s green!” Patton yelped. “The light’s green!”

“Thank you, Patton, I hear you.” Logan took away control, and Virgil threw his hands in the air. They all stumbled back as Thomas shot forward. “Easy on the gas, Patton,” Logan added. He straightened his tie and pinched between his eyes. Aw, the poor thing had a headache. Virgil couldn’t refrain from rolling his eyes.

Not to mention, Virgil still hadn’t seen the screen. “We still don’t know when we’re supposed to be there,” he chimed in.

And that was the last straw.

Logan stilled.

He slowly took his hands from the controls and turned to face him.

Whoops, Virgil thought. Unlike the rest of them, Logan did not become visibly frazzled when he was upset. He did not shout or scream or run in circles. He most certainly did not get the multi-layered (frankly terrifying) voice Anxiety had when he was pissed off.

Instead, Logan was calm. Completely calculating. Any trace of emotion that he had, any at all, was shut down completely.

It was utterly terrifying.

Virgil took a small step back. “L-Logan?”

“Why are you like this?” Logan asked. He gestured at him vaguely. At his clothes and his posture and his hair. “We have looked at the message four times. There is no need for you to continue insisting that we look at it once more.”

“I’m just doing my job,” Virgil spat. He held his ground as Logan came closer. So close his nose nearly touched his. They were the same height, but right then Logan seemed much larger.

“Your job is to keep Thomas safe. Instead,” He cocked his head “you are a mess of a creature.”

Virgil tightened his jaw. It infuriated him because it was true. He pushed Logan out of his face. They could say what they liked in the stupid videos Roman was heading up, but the real Logan and Patton and Roman? They still hated his guts (or in Patton’s case, was kinda scared of him). And that was fine. It was just how things were and no amount of ‘talking’ was going to fix that. Roman had been the one to let Thomas give proper names to the characters Thomas had created subconsciously. The ‘teacher’ character became Logan, as he properly was, Princey became Roman, the Dad became Patton and Virgil… Virgil just sort of happened after Virgil lost a bet with Roman which meant Roman could include him. “Every good story needs an antagonist, Virgil,” he recalled Roman arguing.

Whatever. The videos were interesting and entertaining and people loved it. But… Roman had a way of making things a bit more optimistic than they really were.

Virgil pushed past Logan, making sure to hit him roughly with his shoulder as he left the control board to find his chair in the corner. It was a dark area of the room with a door that let out into his bedroom hidden in the darkness. He had a large teardrop-shaped, black chair that spun in circles and was surrounded by a variety of comic books, CDs he liked and other junk he used to distract himself when he couldn’t sleep at night.

“Finally, an attogram of sense,” Logan snapped. Virgil fell into the chair and spun away from them with a flair for drama that caught Roman’s eye for an instant before he went back to playing with Patton. Virgil sighed and stared up at the ceiling. The metal spiraled in interesting patterns Virgil knew by heart. He has often been in this exact position at night, taking the late shift whether or not he (or any of them) liked it.

Virgil shook his head as the sides continued to argue behind him. What a bunch of dipshi-

“What’s that?” Patton’s voice interrupted.

“They should have stopped. They have a red light.”

Slowly, Virgil put his feet back on the floor. His sneakers scraped his chair to a stop and he frowned, listening.

“T-they aren’t slowing down!” Patton shrieked. Patton turned away from the screen. “Virgil, they’re not slowing down!”

No. W-what?

Virgil stood up and took a step forward. On the screen, a massive truck was racing toward them. Any second...

And suddenly he was standing in front of the control board. Everyone jumped back in shock, “Virg-”

“Shut up, Logan.”  This was his area. He could do this. He slammed his hands on the controls and several alarms went off, jarring his bones. Red lights flashed, the floor shook, the lights flickered.

“WHAT DID YOU DO!” Roman shouted.

“Adrenaline, you idiot!” Virgil spat back. He took a deep breath, feeling suddenly exhausted (he was out of practice) and flicked his hair out of his eyes so he could see the screen. The truck had slowed to a crawl. The sun glinted off the hood. He swallowed and a shock of fear rushed through him. It was going to hit them. What kind of sick luck was that?

Behind him, he could feel Patton trembling, probably clinging onto Logan. “W-what do we do?”

Without further prompting, Logan pushed forward and shoved Virgil away. “The truck is going to hit us. There is no avoiding it. We have approximately three seconds to contact.” He straightened his glasses and started flicking at the keys. “Chances of survival at this angle are a slim twenty percent, which is unacceptable…”

“TWENTY PERCENT!”

“Quiet, Patton!”

“Can we do something to minimize the impact?” Virgil asked quickly. His hands were shaking, but in some ways, he was steadier than he had been in a long time.

Logan chewed his lip. “If we brace our arms on the steering wheel, we may stop from hitting the windshield. Our seatbelt is on. We can turn to the right to try and get the truck to his the back end of the car instead of our door...” Logan’s fingers flew over the board faster than Virgil had ever seen.

And suddenly he stopped.

He stepped back.

His lips were moving, eyes glazed as he calculated. A slow blink and he shook his head.

Virgil already knew what it meant. It wasn’t going to be enough. They weren’t going to be able to get out of the way in time. The truck was still inching closer. Patton sobbed, held up by Roman, who was frozen in shock.

Well, that just wasn’t good enough.

“There has to be something else we can do,”

Logan shook his head. “I-I don’t know. I can’t think of anything else-”

“What about the failsafe?” he interrupted. “We could enact the failsafe.”

The other three turned to him, shocked, but Logan was the only one who seemed to know what Virgil actually meant. His eyes glazed again and this time he nodded in an affirmative. “Yes. The failsafe is our only option.”

Virgil’s stomach dropped into his shoes. This was going to suck so bad.

“That’s nice,” Roman said, “But what the heck is a ‘failsafe’?”

Logan found time to roll his eyes. “If you had read the manual-”

“Everything, like everything, shuts down but one of the sides,” Virgil interrupted. “It preserves energy and that may be enough to keep Thomas alive.”

“Let’s do it then,” Patton answered immediately. Virgil was not accustomed to seeing him serious, but right then, he was very much so. Patton wiped his glasses with trembling hands and nodded. “We dissolve for a bit, and one of us brings us back once it’s safe, r-right?”

That was the idea. Course, it was incredibly risky and very possible that they might never reappear. That is if they didn’t die anyway.

“I will stay, obviously,” Logan said, which made sense to Virgil. Virgil tried to not think about how horrible it was going to feel to dissolve into… nothing. Temporary or not.

Maybe it would be a good thing if I just stayed dissolved. Better for Thomas… He batted the thought away

But Roman was shaking his head. “No, brainiac.”

Logan blinked.

“Explain. I am the safest choice. I am the only one with the manual memorized, not to mention, I know how to work for the entire board by myself.”

Virgil frowned. Why was Roman against it? It made perfect sense. Unless Roman wanted to stay himself?

“You take up too much energy,” Roman continued. “If you want to preserve energy, then obviously, myself and Patton ought to leave. But you also take up just as much, if not more than the two of us.”

Logan cocked his head.

Processed.

Virgil kept his eyes on the screen.

One second…

“Guys…”

“Virgil should stay,” Patton said.

Virgil whirled toward him. That was a horrible idea. “Patton, you want to leave me with the control room. Alone.”

Patton nodded. He wiped his nose. “Y-your job is to keep Thomas safe.”

Oh.

Oh, he supposed it was, he realized in surprise. Logan looked like he’d just eaten a stick. But Logic nodded. “Patton is… correct. You are quite a lot of things, but at your base, you are self-preservation. Which is all that we need right now. You are our best option… unfortunately.”

Thanks for the vote of confidence.

But there was no time for any more conversation. Virgil forced himself to keep breathing. The idea of staying here alone and solely responsible for Thomas’s continued existence was even more terrifying than dissolving. “O-okay,” he stuttered. He and Logan quickly set up the sequence on the board. It was complex, but Virgil had This Thing memorized because he was pretty much constantly terrified that he’d have to use the failsafe someday.

Funny enough, now that he was using it, he wasn’t quite as terrified as he thought he’d be. At least, not in the same way.

Logan stuck his hand out stiffly and Virgil shook it, hating that Logan most definitely could feel his clammy, shaking hand.

“Do not kill us,” Logan said.

“I’ll do my best.”

Logan nodded sharply and with that, Virgil looked up at the screen and the oncoming truck. It was now or never.

He slammed his hand onto the final button. It was red and large and generally horrible looking.

The moment he pressed the button, several things happened at once.

Logan’s hand melted from his own.

Patton and Roman screamed, and Virgil got a gut-wrenching glimpse of their dissolving faces before he was thrown from his feet.

The lights cut out.

And the truck slammed into them.

It was darker than he’d ever seen before. Darker than the time Thomas went on a tour of an underground tunnel, darker than the basement had been when they lost power one night. It wasn’t darkness. It was nothing. Nothing existed in here but Virgil. There was a high pitched whine scratching at his ears

Virgil slammed into the metal railing, the room barely online still.

He gasped but suddenly was thrown into the air again.

The room spun and tumbled and flew. He was like a pebble in a tin can. He crumpled into walls and floors and ceilings until his entire body roared in agony. It was never-ending. An eternity.

We’re dying. It wasn’t enough we’re dying we’re dying you idiot we’re going to die because of a text like one of those commercials we’re going to die oh god ohgodohgod

A bar flew flat against his stomach, and he doubled over the railing before tumbling over it and landing in a crumpled heap on the floor.

wediedwediedwe’redeadwediedIdead.

But…

He was still thinking. And he was still in pain. He’d always thought he’d stop being in pain if he was dead?

Stillness.

And an aching quiet that made him nauseous.

Maybe he was a ghost… Forced to sit in agony for eternity.

But, no, that didn’t make sense. He wasn’t a person. He wasn’t a whole person. He couldn’t be a ghost.

Virgil forced open his eyes.

In for four… hold for seven… out for eight…

He breathed. He could feel ribs creaking inside him, and the forced breaths only sent lasers of pain through him. But he had to stay awake. He had to stay here, or else Thomas would be lost.

For a long time, he didn’t know how long, he just laid here, curled in his jacket and trying to not think too hard (failing at this) about whether or not he could bleed and if he was bleeding out right now.

Maybe not?

Every bone in his body screamed at him, but he sat up slowly. Blinked.

Darkness.

He shivered. It was freezing in here.

We’re dying.

He needed to turn on the backups… He tried standing and settled for a crawl in the direction he hoped the control board was. It took a bit, but he managed to fumble his way toward it. He traced his fingers over the edges and used it to pull himself standing. Hands outstretched, he pressed the button he knew would be the only one available at the moment. The button stuck for a moment, but he grunted and pressed harder, and it clicked.

A pause.

Nothing happened and panic wrapped a tight hand around his throat. Oh god oh god oh god.

Machinery reluctantly whirled to life somewhere in the walls, and Virgil fell to the floor, both in relief and because he couldn’t hold himself up any longer. He dropped his head against the side of the control board and winced when the lights flicked on. Hot air warmed the room.

The backup lights were fluorescent and greenish and dim and they buzzed like a fly caught in a fly trap. But, whatever, it was light and Virgil was grateful.

The shadows were long and deep, but he could see that the control room was completely trashed. The walls were buckled and bent, various books and machinery and pieces of furniture were mashed to pieces on the floor. The stairs were broken, and a bar from the railing was lodged in the ceiling. Virgil gulped dryly. That bar could have impaled him...

Inhale, 1, 2, 3, 4, hold, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, exhale, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8…

What the heck was he supposed to do now? His thoughts were flicking around like bats and he couldn’t- couldn’t think. What was supposed to happen now? What happens when you get in a car crash?

“Someone will help,” he croaked. “Someone might help us.”

That was all he could hope for.

He needed to monitor Thomas’s vitals. Make sure they stayed semi-steady.

Virgil shut his eyes. Come on, loser, get up.

Using the control board for support, Virgil dragged himself to his feet. Where was he hurt?

Definitely, some ribs were broken, maybe his collarbone, a few cuts on his face, bruises basically everywhere. No arms or legs broken, cut in… his hair? He felt in his bangs, and, yup, that was absolutely blood on his fingers now. But that was okay. He could deal with this. As long as he just breathed really shallowly. He had to keep going.

He blinked at the charts on the control board. Everything was red. Basically, completely falling apart. He set to work without hesitation, pumping chemicals, filling Thomas with more adrenaline and anything else he could think of that might help. The charts steadied a bit. Just a bit. But… he wasn’t getting any worse for now.

He was slumped against the control board, arms rigid straight to keep him up as his head dropped to his chest, trembling.

That was how the newcomer must have first seen him. And what a pitiful sight it must have been.

“H-hello?” said a voice.

Virgil’s head jerked up and he growled in pain as the movement sent pulses down his spine. He cursed quietly

“Is anyone here?”

Slowly, Virgil turned. He frowned. Who could possibly be speaking? There was no one in here but him. That was the whole point. It didn’t sound like any of the Sides, and unless there was another side who decided to show up in a crisis, Virgil couldn’t think of anyone else it could be.

So he stayed quiet. Did nightmares survive the shutdown, or did they continue to exist? Was the voice a nightmare’s? His stomach tightened at the thought. Someone came closer. Their footsteps tapped on the metal floor.

And out of the shadows melted a very familiar face.

Virgil’s mouth dropped open and a broken piece of metal he’d been holding semi-consciously slipped from his fingers. It clanged on the floor, jarringly loud, and the stranger glanced up at him.

They both stood there.

The stranger was dressed in the clothes Roman had put Thomas in this morning, a purple t-shirt and jeans, and he didn’t seem to be particularly afraid. Confused maybe, but not afraid. He picked his way around the destroyed furniture of the control room.

“Wow. Was there, like, an earthquake or something?”

Virgil didn’t dare move from his spot in the shadows.

It wasn’t possible. He could not possibly get inside here.

The stranger worked his way through the shadows. “I, um, hi!” He tried a smile. “Do you think you could tell me where I am? I-I don’t know how I got here.” For the first time, this seemed to register with him as not good, and concern flashed across the man’s features. He looked up and took the room in. “What is this place? A plane? A subway? Am I in a subway station?”

Virgil had no idea what to do. This was not supposed to happen. Ever.

“Hey, you! Dude over there!” the stranger continued. He waved a hand in the air. “I’m talking to you!”

Virgil swallowed.

With a grumble, the stranger came closer. He picked his way up the stairs. “Man, this is insane. It’s like someone turned the whole room upside down.”

Really. How observant of him.

He opened his mouth to say something, but the stranger finally was close enough to meet Virgil’s eyes. The stranger froze. He took a small step back.

Oh. Right. This was going to totally freak him out.

“W-what’s- that’s not, who are- you shouldn’t- you’re not-”

“You’re not supposed to be in here,” Virgil interrupted. He forced himself to stand up straight and look the stranger up and down. The stranger did the same to him. He was afraid now. Virgil could see it in his eyes.

“V-Virgil?” the stranger said.

“In the flesh.” Virgil repressed a groan of pain and gave the stranger a smile he hoped was reassuring. “Hey, it’s okay. Thomas, right?”

Thomas nodded, just barely.

“I’m going to get you out of here, Thomas.”

Thomas blinked. “This isn’t happening. This isn’t real.”

How exactly to respond to that… In some ways, he was right. “Well… I mean, if that’s easier for you or whatever. Yeah, this is all in your head.”

Thomas didn’t look reassured. Great.

Man, he didn’t have time for this. He couldn’t play nursemaid. He needed to keep Thomas alive.

The charts behind him dipped. Cursing, Virgil turned back around and scrambled for buttons and keys until it steadied again.

He could feel Thomas just behind him, breathing too shallowly, looking over his shoulder. “What are you doing?”

“Keeping us alive.” He didn’t have the energy to come up with a lie Thomas would buy. “We were in a car accident and we had to shut down everything so that you stayed that way.”

Thomas opened his mouth. Closed it again.

“I-I don’t remember that.”

“Yeah, you’ll probably remember when you wake up.” Virgil wiped his nose, and his sleeve came away bloody. Wonderful. Things were just going peachy today.

Thomas just stared. “You’re not real. You’re a character I made up. You’re n-not, you shouldn’t be…” Thomas shook his head and backed up.

Virgil didn’t blame him for that panic. He’d told him this was a dream, but he knew it wouldn’t feel like a dream. It felt real. Because it was real.

Just… not physically real.

But he couldn’t take any more panic. He was panicking well enough on his own. “Thomas,” he barked.

Thomas froze, hands in his hair as he looked around the room in dismay. “W-what?”

“Calm your ass, I’ve got shit to do.”

Thomas took a deep breath and let it out again. “I’m dreaming. That’s all.”

The room had started a slow spin around Virgil, and he rubbed his eyes to clear his head. Stay awake.

“Yeah. It’s a bit more… intense than a dream obviously because it’s… different. I don’t really have time to explain this to-” He gasped as another lightning bolt went from the top of his head to his feet. He growled in frustration. Alarms went off behind him.

We’re going to die and it’s all your fault, you idiot.

His grip on the board was slipping and the whole room was blurring and-

A hand was on his arm.

Thomas lowered him to the ground and crouched with him. “You’re hurt.”

“No shit, Sherlock,” Virgil spat. He felt guilty a second later. “Sorry,” he mumbled. He felt like a piece of crumpled glass. All sharp edges and broken bits. He breathed in and out and Thomas’s hands fretted around him. he didn’t know what to do. But that was okay because his touch was still calming and warm. Virgil normally hated being touched. It was alright now but he curled inward on impulse.

“What’s wrong?” Thomas asked him.

Virgil forced open his eyes again and instantly his eyes were drawn to the flashing alarms on the board. “I’ve got to-to-” He tried to stand, but Thomas pressed him down firmly.

“Don’t do anything. What the hell…” He peeled back Virgil’s jacket (and there was no way anyone else was ever going to be allowed to do that). Virgil shivered. “You’re chest looks…”

“Broken,” Virgil growled. “I know. I need to get to those alarms.”

Thomas shook his head. His eyes darted around Virgil’s face. “Dude, no. Stop with the alarms.”

If Thomas knew what those alarms meant, he might have reacted differently. Virgil couldn’t push him away, however, and this was going to be a problem. He forced himself to meet Thomas’s eyes. “Thomas, if I don’t stop those alarms, we’re going to die.”

Thomas paled. “Like, in real life.”

“In real life.” Virgil didn’t have any way to prove that to him, and he knew it. He dropped his head to his chest, regretting the movement, but didn’t have the strength to lift his head again. “Damn it, Thomas.” Thomas was right there in front of him. He was sort of blurry now, but Virgil could feel the warmth and light that radiated from him. It was soothing. Calm.

Virgil, stay with me.

Naw. He was tired. Too tired.

Damn it, Virgil, tell me what to do.

Virgil couldn’t open his eyes. “Adrenaline,” he hissed.

Thomas’s light left his side, leaving him cold and empty.

How do I work this thing…

How sad was this? They were going to die because Thomas’s conscious mind had no idea how to work his own brain.

There.

Or…

Not.

A jolt of electricity rushed through Virgil, and he gasped, choking on the air and thrown forward. “Shit, dude! Not so much!” He scrambled to his feet. Adrenaline was not a miracle juice. He felt like he’d been electrocuted repeatedly. But those shocks kept him moving. He ran, fell, stumbled, to the control board and instantly dialed down the adrenaline. “We’re going to have a heart attack if you keep that up.”

Thomas didn’t seem to care. He grinned. “That’s amazing! What’s that button do?” he pointed to a small green one.

“I-I dunno! Logan’s the one with them all memorized. I just know my part.”

“Oh.”

Virgil’s fingers raced across the board, and a few seconds later the alarms faded. The lights returned. Virgil was shaking uncontrollably, but hey, he was alive.

“Wait.” Thomas frowned. “Logan. Logan’s here too?”

Virgil gave him a look. He was burning up in his jacket but knew if he took it off he’d panic. “Of course Logan’s here. Patton and Roman too.”

“That makes sense.” Thomas frowned. “Where are they then? Why aren’t they helping you? Are they hurt to?”

Virgil shook his head. “They’re fine, probably. I had to shut down everything so that we had enough energy to… you know, keep breathing.”

Thomas swallowed thickly. “Right… and h-how long do we have?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? Virgil typed on the keyboard and some numbers flashed across the black screen. Thomas jumped at the sudden glowing light. “We have enough energy to keep going without assistance for… an hour.”

Thomas said nothing. In fact, he was so quiet that Virgil glanced at him to make sure he hadn’t disappeared for some reason. He was still there, staring up at the screen. The green words reflected in his eyes.

“Are you okay?” Virgil asked. He wasn’t really good at the whole ‘comfort’ thing but he’d try for Thomas.

Thomas cleared his throat and looked away from the screen. “Can you take that down?”

Virgil did. He watched Thomas carefully. He was panicking, terrified, but somehow able to keep that under control. They had a goal and panicking was not going to help them stay alive. It was… weird. To be panicked but focused at once.

He seemed to feel much like Virgil, actually. Which made sense since Virgil was the only one awake at the moment.

“S-so,” Thomas said. His hands trailed over the keys idly. “What happens now?”

“We wait and hope paramedics show up. We were in the middle of a city, so it shouldn’t be too long.”

Thomas’s shoulder’s relaxed. He nodded. “Okay.”

Poor guy, Virgil found himself thinking. This could not possibly be easy.

“You know what?”

Virgil raised an eyebrow.

“This is… this whole room… is exactly like Inside Out.”

This observation was so unexpected, Virgil choked on something that was almost a laugh. He managed a smile, still leaning heavily on the control board. “Yeah,” he croaked. “It’s exactly like Inside Out. Roman lost his shit when we first saw that movie and did some redecorating in honor of it.”

Thomas snorted. “I watched that movie like thirty times.”

“I know. He really liked it once he got over how similar it was to… this.”

Thomas nodded, processing. He scrubbed his face with his hands. “This is insane.”

Yeah, it was. But Virgil didn’t volunteer that thought, instead, he focused on the charts. A little here, a little there, balancing a tipping ship. Fifty-five minutes.

“Are you still in pain?”

Virgil grunted. “Yes. But it’s fine.”

“... Why am I not hurt? I mean, if you’re me...”

Yes. Virgil glanced at him and shrugged. “Dude, I dunno. You want schematics, have a talk with Logan when he gets back.”

Thomas huffed and sat back, his arms crossed.

Suddenly, the charts flickered. The lights brightened and dulled and brightened again, and the floor shook. Thomas grabbed for a railing. “What was that?”

Virgil rubbed an eye with the base of his palm and smiled. Something in him eased. “Paramedics.”

The charts bubbled up and down for a bit as they were moved, but then the room stilled and the little red bars edged up into orange and then yellow.

Behind him, Thomas let out a scared sounding laugh. “About time.”

Slowly, Virgil slid to the floor. He rested against the cool metal and basked in the relief of whatever drugs they were giving Thomas.

Time slipped and slid between his fingers, and a second later, Thomas shook him awake.

Virgil hissed.

“Oh, sorry. Forgot.”

Idiot.

“But look,” Thomas was grinning. He scrambled to his feet to look at the charts and crouched down to Virgil again. “You should be feeling better, right? The bars are all a totally solid… yellow. Like, not green, but yellow is still good right? Yellow is good.”

His words clanged like rocks in Virgil’s head. He scrubbed his face and sat up. “Yeah. Yellow is good. Look at the little squiggly thing to the left. Is it green yet?”

Thomas hopped up.

And shot down again. His hair flopped with each movement. Honestly, he was almost as bad as Patton. Was he trying to give him a heart attack?

But then again, they did almost just die there. So maybe some elation was in order.

“It’s green!  I was so freaked out for a bit there, Verge, but I think we’re gonna be okay. I think we’re gonna make it.”

Virgil grunted.

But truly, it was awesome. He’d never felt so relieved in his life.

He tried to stand and Thomas glared at him. “Don’t be stupid. Stay seated. Now… I’ve got to figure out how to… wake… up.” He glanced around the room, and Virgil followed suit.

The lights were brighter now. The little floating orbs of light were back (which was great, he loved those fuzzy things) and Thomas was briefly enraptured by them.

But the light only made it more obvious what the room was missing.

Thomas hopped off the platform near the control board and picked across the broken furniture. “Where're the doors? How do you get out of here without doors…”

Virgil stilled.

That wasn’t right.

There should be doors. Several of them.

And there definitely should be a door that Thomas could use to get out of here.

But he hefted himself up and sure enough, where the doors usually were, there were only walls.

Shit.

“Maybe it’s because of the failsafe.”

Thomas nodded. “Yeah. That’s probably it.”

Virgil had no idea, but it was the only thing he could think of right now. He still didn’t know how Thomas had entered here in the first place. Perhaps when he shut off the failsafe, Thomas would go back to wherever he was supposed to be.

That sounded reasonable.

Right.

And Thomas had said the squiggly thing on the left was green, which meant there was enough energy to turn off the failsafe.

“Alright, Thomas. I’m going to bring everything back online. You should wake up. Hopefully in a hospital with a hot nurse or two.”

Thomas wrinkled his nose. “Eh, there’s only so many dude nurses.”

“One can hope.” Virgil twisted a knob and another and another.

“H-hey Virgil?”

Virgil paused. Thomas was giving him a weird look. A silly sort of half-smile. “Thank you. For keeping me ‘online’.”

Oh. Virgil cleared his throat and turned back toward the board. He wasn’t good with stuff like this. Of course, he’d kept him alive. “Yeah, well, that’s my job.”

“Thanks, anyway.”

“You’re welcome, I guess. And…” He had his hand on the last button and with the other, he rubbed the back of his neck. “You did, uh, you know, you did good too, Thomas. When it counted.”

Thomas grinned.

Virgil pressed the button.

And the room exploded into white light.

Warmth filled his bones and the pain eased. Not completely, but enough. He took his first deep breath since the accident, and only had a twinge of pain. A great hot wind rushed through the room and a smell like a peppermint came with it.

The light faded.

Virgil blinked to clear his vision. There were a few thumps as the various Sides landed in wrinkled piles on the floor around the floor.

“THAT WAS SO SCARY. HE WAS LIKE WOOSH AND THEN IT WAS DARK AND THEN IT WAS LIGHT AND THE FLOOR WENT AWAY AND-”

“Patton, you are shouting in my ear.”

Virgil breathed a sigh of relief. They were alright. They’d made it back.

Patton and Logan helped each other up, looking disheveled, but otherwise no worse for wear. They put on their glasses, frowned, switched glasses, and then looked around the room. Behind them, Roman lay sprawled out on the floor. “Oh dear lords, that trip has wounded me mightily.”

“You are perfectly well, Roman,” Logan answered. He blinked owlishly at Virgil and then gave him a sharp nod. “I see we all made it. Wonderful. Shocking, but wonderful.” The room had not been restored entirely, but some of the furniture had disappeared. It was generally better looking than it had been a moment ago, which was all Virgil could ask for.

Virgil stepped down toward them but froze mid-step.

“Woah,” said a voice. “I mean, woah.”

All of the sides glanced toward the speaker, who gave them a nervous smile. “Uh, so this is so weird to actually see you, but… I’m Thomas. Nice to meet you, I guess?”

Virgil’s stomach dropped.

To be continued...