#Will probably be a while before we officially see anything at that level

[aflawedfashion]

If papadakis and cizeron aren't coming back to competition, then I hope she and Madi will skate together again. Might be a while since she just had a baby, but I'd love to see more from them

[thelostconsultant]

You got me worried

pairing: Max Verstappen x reader

summary: You get into a car accident when you're on the phone with Max, who immediately leaves to see you. Charles finds out what's wrong and offers to go with him. Those few days in the hospital change a few of his personal relationships.

warning: accident, serious injuries. (no death.)

note: My Lestappen heart wanted me to write this.

word count: almost 5.3k

“You’re stalling,” you said on the other end of the line, and Max could tell you had that adorable smirk on your face that he loved so much.

But he wasn’t stalling, at least not intentionally. He wanted to answer your question, but he honestly didn’t know what to say, so he decided to take his time to figure out what to tell you. Your mother wasn’t very fond of him, she believed that you made a mistake by dating someone whose job was so dangerous, and she always had this bad feeling about him. When he asked you what it meant, you just shrugged as said not to look for logic in this. So he put his own bad feelings aside and played nice every time they were together somewhere. 

And now? Now you wanted to take her on a trip to New Zealand and asked him to tag along if he didn’t have anything else to do. Well, it was clearly a trap. One, he had no official obligations around New Year’s Eve which you knew perfectly well, and two, he wanted to enter the new year on your side, he wanted to kiss you at midnight, so he had no choice but to follow wherever you were heading. 

Letting out a sigh as he leaned back on his bed in the driver’s room, Max decided to yield, something he was only willing to do because of you. “Fine, I’ll go with you,” he told you, trying to keep his annoyance out of his voice. “But why don’t we invite a friend of hers? This way she would be entertained while we spend some time alone. Come on, you owe me this much.”

It was your turn to remain silent, but it only lasted for a few seconds. “I mean, she’s dating this guy now–”

“Someone’s willing to date her?” Shit, this sentence wasn’t meant to slip out. Clearing his throat, he pinched the bridge of his nose and went, “Sorry, I mean, she didn’t seem like she was ready to date just yet.”

“I get what you mean. I don’t know much about him, maybe this could be the perfect chance to get to know him a little better. And you’re right, he could keep her company while we’re having fun on our own,” you said with a laugh. 

Despite the idea being presented for the first time a few minutes ago, Max was already thinking about this trip as the perfect chance to put his plan into motion. Because he’d been planning to take your relationship to the next level, to start a family with you. And what would be better than a proposal in another country and maybe his not so secret attempt to get you pregnant? It would be great, he knew you would be happy. 

But before he could say anything, he heard scream and a loud noise, one that sounded eerily like cars crashing and glass breaking. “What happened?” There was no answer, and he couldn’t help but sit up with his heart ready to jump out of his ribcage. “Baby, please, say something,” he begged, but there was still no response. 

Then he heard people buzzing in the background, talking loudly, screaming for help, telling someone to call the emergency number. One person who was probably close to your car told someone you weren’t moving, but they also said they couldn’t tell if you were dead. Dead. He wanted to shout, he wanted to cry, he felt like throwing up, but somehow he managed to keep his cool. Panicking wouldn’t solve anything, he had to listen for now. But your car’s multimedia system gave in and ended the call, leaving him there with his fears and thoughts. 

Max tried to call you, but no one answered, so he quickly made a few calls to ensure his jet was available the moment he got to the airport. Because the race was over, he only had one or two interviews left, but he couldn’t care less about those. After throwing his things into his backpack, he hurriedly left his room and looked for the press officer to tell her he was leaving right now. She tried to ask him what was wrong, but he just shook his head and waved goodbye, his eyes fixed on the screen as he typed in the address where your phone was at this moment. 

He found a few posts about a crash there, and one of them had a photo as well. It was your car, he knew that right away, but the sight made his heart clench. The other car t-boned yours on the left side, right where you were sitting, which made him afraid there was no way you could survive that crash. But then he found a post about the drivers being taken to the hospital, so maybe it wasn’t so bad, maybe it was just looking bad. 

Suddenly he bumped into someone, which finally made him look up from the screen of his phone. “Sorry,” he said automatically. 

Charles gave him an unimpressed look, motioning towards his phone. “What’s so interesting?”

“An accident,” he replied, having no idea why he answered the question instead of just leaving him there. This caught the other driver’s interest, because he quickly said goodbye to the person he’d been talking to and moved to his side to look at the screen of the device. “That’s my girlfriend’s car on the right.”

“This looks bad. How is she?” he asked, sounding genuinely worried despite only meeting you once. 

Max gulped and shrugged. “I don’t know. I–I was on the phone with her, then I heard a loud crash and a scream. The call ended and no one’s picking up her phone. I don’t know what’s going on, so I’ll just pack my suitcases and head to the airport to get home as soon as possible,” he said without stopping to take a breath. 

Yes, he was panicking, he was losing his cool, but that was the least of his problems right now. All he could think about was the worst case scenario, the possibility of the doctor not being able to save your life. What would he do then? How could he move on from losing you? How could he live his life without hearing your scream all the time? It was all too much, especially after a frustrating race like the one today.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when Charles put a hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes with a serious expression on his face. “Okay, take a deep breath. Are you sure you can drive like this?” For the very first time, he actually considered what he was planning to do, and after a few seconds of thinking, he came to the conclusion that he was definitely not in the right state of mind to drive, so he shook his head. “All right,” the Monegasque began slowly, looking over his shoulder for a moment, “we’ll find someone who can take care of your car, then I’ll give you a ride to the airport. How does that sound?”

It was a long day, Charles had to fight his own battles during the race, mostly with his own team, but there he was, offering to chauffeur him around so he would stay safe. A small, thankful smile crept on his lips as he nodded eventually. Maybe this was for the best, the last thing he wanted was doing something stupid because he was distracted by his fears. 

“Okay. You should get someone to pick you up when you get to Monaco, you shouldn’t drive there either,” Charles told him as they headed back to the Red Bull motorhome.

A desperate laugh left him at this. “Well, she wasn’t there, she was visiting her family, so she’s in a country where the only ones I know are her relatives, and they’re in the hospital with her. But I’ll call a taxi, it’s not a problem,” he explained with a sigh. 

A thoughtful hum from Charles caught his attention as he looked over at him. “Well, in this case I’ll have to drive you around there too,” the other man declared with a kind smile. When Max opened his mouth to tell him it was unnecessary, he just raised his hand to stop him. “I don’t take no for an answer. She’s nice. Hell, it’s easy to tell she has a good influence on you. Now I want to make sure she’s okay too.”

Max could hardly wrap his head around why he offered to help. He surely had better things to do than traveling to a country other than his home, meeting strangers who were the closest to someone he only met once, and providing emotional support to someone he’d been battling with since they were kids. This was beyond him, but he was too afraid to ask for the reason. A little voice in the back of his mind said he was planning something, but then he looked into Charles’s bright eyes and realized he was just being nice. 

They were sitting in the car on the way to the airport when his phone began to ring, and the screen lit up with the name of your mother. Gulping, he swiped his finger and raised the device to his ear. “Hi, Laura, do you know anything about her? Ho–how is she?” he asked, eagerly waiting for the older woman’s reply. 

“I guess you know about the accident then. I’m at the hospital with her. She’s still in surgery and they said it will take a few more hours before they can take her to the ICU. Do you want to come here?”

Did she really ask him if he wanted to be there? After all that time they spent together, after everything they had gone through, she dared to ask him if he wanted to be by her side? Outrageous. “I’m already on my way to the airport, I just need to know which hospital she’s in,” he replied, forcing himself to stay relatively calm. He didn’t want a fight with her, not when they were both in a very fragile state of mind. 

The woman on the other end of the line remained silent for a few seconds, then he heard muffled voices, which was followed by the sound of her clearing her throat. “I’ll send you everything you need to know.”

“Thank you. And if you hear anything, call me. Please.”

“Of course. See you later, Max.”

Once the call ended, he glanced down at his phone and waited until it buzzed again, the notification of a new message showing up. He had a location, although funnily enough, it was sent by your cousin, not your mother. It was a smaller miracle that she called him herself, a part of him expected her to make someone else do this. But at least her dislike for him became obvious once again. 

Charles glanced over at him with a questioning look on his face. “How is she?” he asked, the tone of his voice making it clear that he was walking on eggshells around him.

Max leaned his head against the seat and looked out the window. “Still in surgery, and she will probably be in there for another few hours. Even though she's probably in good hands, I'm not… It's hard to stay positive,” he admitted with a gulp.

“Maybe it will take a while, but she's gonna get better. You need to believe this, otherwise you'll go insane,” the other driver tried, his voice quiet, but confident. 

He was trying to help, and he was right, but his mind was full of thoughts about the worst case scenarios. What if you end up in a coma you don't wake up from? What if there's serious brain damage? What if you can't live the same active life you used to? He knew you would be devastated, and it's not like he would leave you for that, he just didn't know how he could handle it emotionally.

So yeah, he was already going insane. 

“Why are you doing this?” Max asked, voicing the question that had been in the back of his mind for a while now. 

Charles responded with a questioning hum, and despite the pair of sunglasses he wore, it was easy to tell he was watching him with a raised eyebrow. “Why wouldn't I? Look, maybe we're not friends outside the track, but I can imagine how hard this situation must be for you. Just accept the help for once, okay?”

After taking a deep breath, Max nodded. “Thank you.” 

The Monegasque had a smirk on his face when he returned his attention to the road. According to the sat nav, the airport was only five minutes away, so Max unlocked his phone and saw a message from Lando that told him to check X’s trending topics. When he opened the app, he saw his name at the front, and the posts were about some anonymous source leaking information about you being in the hospital. 

“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath as he scrolled through the flood of posts. 

“What?”

Looking over at him, Max let out an annoyed groan. “Her accident made it to social media. From what I’ve seen so far was based on a post from someone who either works at the hospital or is a first responder. And someone kept digging until they put the pieces together, so now there’s a photo of the car wreck circling around,” he explained. 

“It’s not that bad. Unless they’re celebrating. Please, tell me they’re not celebrating.”

Max shook his head. “No, it’s not that, but whoever wrote the original post made it clear her life is hanging on a thread. So people are now getting ready for the worst case scenario.”

“Her not surviving this?” Charles guessed as he glanced over at him. When there was a quiet nod in response, he gulped and looked back at the road. “She won’t die. Don’t even think about it. She’s young and strong, and I’m sure she’s a fighter. Okay, we’re here.”

For the first time in a while Max looked up and noticed they had indeed arrived. After getting their suitcases, they got on the jet and sat down to wait for the takeoff. During the flight Charles tried to avert his thoughts by talking about the race and bringing up old memories from their carting days, and Max realized that he had absolutely no idea how he would say thank you for his help. 

For years he assumed their long history of rivalry meant they could never be friends, and their conversations would be nothing but casual chats based on mutual respect. But now he was here, providing the kind of emotional support he so desperately needed. 

Two hours later they entered the hospital building through a big crowd of paparazzi, reporters and fans, trying to navigate through the maze to find where your family was waiting. It took some time, but eventually they found them. Your cousin was the only one who jumped up and ran over to him, her arms sneaking around his body to pull him into a hug as she cried. The poor girl was only sixteen, and despite the age difference you two were the closest, as if you were siblings. His eyes fell on your mother, but she was simply staring ahead with a neutral look in her eyes. 

Charles decided to sit down not far from them, sending a message to his girlfriend so she would know where he was, but Max knew he was paying attention. “Any news?” he asked Sophie, your cousin.

“Yeah, she’s in the ICU, just until they know she’s really stable. She has a badly broken leg, a few broken ribs, one even punctured her lung, and… Yeah, severe concussion, and I think there’s a fracture in her cheek.”

Max gulped as his fingers ran through his hair. “That’s a lot,” he noted, earning a nod. “But she’s relatively okay, right?”

“You can say that,” your mother suddenly spoke up, finally acknowledging him. 

For a few moments they were just staring at each other, and Max was beginning to think she would start blaming him for the accident. Even if she didn’t know about the call they were in at the time, she would sure as hell find a reason to put the blame on him. She always did, whenever you had a bad day, it was surely his fault, even when you weren’t even in the same country.

But to his surprise, that’s not what happened, because she suddenly walked over to him and pulled him into a tight hug. He didn’t even know what to do at first, his eyes were moving back and forth between Sophie and Charles, but they both shrugged to tell him they had no clue what he should do. So he wrapped his arms around her too, soon hearing her crying into his shoulder. 

“I’m glad you’re here, Max,” she said when she took a step back and looked up at him. “I had my doubts, but… Knowing you rushed here after finding out what happened means a lot to me.”

With a sad smile, he nodded. “Where else would I be? I–I don’t know if you knew, but I was on the phone with her when the accident happened. She told me about the trip to New Zealand you’re planning, she was trying to convince me to go with you, and… Would you mind if I tagged along?” he asked, as if he needed her permission. 

But maybe he did. Maybe this hug was the olive branch he’d been hoping to receive one day, the least he could do was make sure she was okay with the plan. And maybe him going with you wasn’t the only thing he should talk to her about, maybe he should mention the most obvious decision he had made during that call. When she said she wouldn’t mind if she joined them, Max took a deep breath, then cleared his throat. 

“There’s something else. I’m planning to propose on New Year’s Eve. A few hours ago I thought your opinion was irrelevant and it’s her decision, but… now I’d like to hear what you have to say. Would you be okay with it?” he asked hesitantly, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to another.

Your mother’s lips curled into a smile all of a sudden, then he reached out to take his hand in hers. “I’m sure that would make her really happy. And if she’s happy, I’m happy. You know what? My idiotic ex-husband used our family heirloom, a beautiful engagement ring, to propose. How about giving that to her?”

“Are you sure?” She nodded without hesitation. “Thank you, that would be great.”

Since the doctor said they would tell them when they could go and see you, Max sat down next to Charles and waited there in silence. The other driver glanced up from his phone every now and then, but eventually he had enough of the silence and decided to pay full attention to him. 

“You okay?” 

He honestly didn’t know the answer to this simple question. You were alive, your mother gave him her blessing, what else would he need? Still, he couldn’t get himself to say yes. “I don’t know,” he admitted quietly. 

Charles nodded as he supportively patted his back. “I’m sure you’ll be better once you see her,” he noted with a small smile. “You heard her mother, the worst part is over, now all she needs is time to recover.”

And that was a problem he had to solve. He knew your mother would be more than happy to help you, he could hire a live-in nurse to take care of you, he could send you to the best rehabilitation facility in Europe, but nothing would make him feel good enough if he couldn’t be there by your side. Because he still had half a season left, he was expected to travel around the world, away from you, and the thought was killing him. 

“Without me,” he eventually said, so quietly that he hoped Charles didn’t catch it.

But he did, and he clearly understood what was bothering him. “I know it’s hard, but she will understand that you can’t be by her side all the time. Once the season’s over, she won’t get rid of you,” he said with a laugh, nudging his side with his elbow. “Come on, let’s get some coffee. We could all use it.”

Max nodded, and as Charles took the orders, he asked Sophie if she would like to come help them. He knew she was a traitor who supported his rival, but she was young and nice, so he chalked it up to teenage stupidity for now. While they waited for the coffees, Charles and Sophie got lost in a conversation that was conveniently in French “so she could practice.” They seemed to get along, and he was glad your cousin had a reason to smile for a while.

This is why he spent this time checking his phone and found a bunch of messages from friends and family, all telling him that they were there if he needed help. Knowing so many people cared about them warmed his heart. It was mostly you, he knew that, your charming personality had everyone wrapped around your finger. This gave him the idea to send a message to his mother and sister, telling them he would propose the moment you were feeling well enough to make a decision. 

A few hours later Charles said goodbye and promised to be back the next day, and soon your family left as well. Your mother wanted to stay, but Max promised to call her if there was anything to know. So he slept on the couch in the waiting room, ignoring the weird look some people gave him the whole evening. A nurse was nice enough to bring him a pillow that made it a bit more bearable, but he wished you could be transferred to a regular room where he could ask for a bed to sleep in next to you. 

In the morning a doctor gently squeezed his shoulder to wake him up, and he groggily rubbed his eyes as he sat up. “Morning, Doctor,” he said, trying hard to fight back a yawn. “Did something happen?”

The man sat down next to him and turned to him with a small smile. “She’s ready to be taken to a normal hospital room. You mentioned to our staff yesterday that you want her to be placed in the VIP section, preferably with an extra bed for you, so we took care of everything. I can walk you there if you’d like,” he offered. 

“Sure, sure, thank you. How is she?”

“A little better. She’s strong, she’s breathing on her own, so I’m confident she’ll pull through. Just be patient,” the doctor replied. 

Once he was in the new room you were being taken to, he sent a text to everyone about your new location, then impatiently waited for your bed to be wheeled in. His foot was tapping fast on the linoleum floor, not stopping until the door opened and a young man stood there with a shocked look on his face. Max raised his hand to say hi, to which the poor man only reacted by going out to continue his work to get you inside. 

A nurse walked in behind him with a kind smile on her lips, then moved her attention back to you as she got you settled in the room. He wanted to go there and take your hand, but he knew he had to wait. He would have time, there was no need to rush, they had to do their job first. You were hooked on machines, your body bandaged all over, and the sight brought tears to his eyes. If he didn’t know you were through the worst part, he would assume you were still between life and death. 

Soon everybody left and he sat on a chair next to your bed, gently taking your hand in his. He had no idea if you could hear him, but he talked to you nonetheless, telling you about him making peace with your mother, about Charles being here with him, about your whole family being here, and about how much he loved you. He even begged you to wake up, to come back to him. 

“Good morning,” came Charles’ voice about an hour later as he walked inside with two cups of coffee, from which he handed one over. “Here, I guess you could use it.”

With a thankful smile, Max took it, then leaned back in the chair and watched as the other man looked down at you with a sigh. “The doctor said she’ll pull through, she just needs to rest,” he told him.

The fellow driver looked up with a smile. “See? I told you.” He sat down on the edge of the other bed and took a sip of his coffee. “Your suitcase is in the back of the car. I didn’t know which hotel you wanted to stay in,” he added.

“Neither. I’m staying with her,” Max was quick to clarify. 

“Yeah, but you need to take a shower, you need to sleep.”

“There’s a bathroom and you’re sitting on my bed. I’ll be fine.”

Charles followed his gaze and let out a tired groan. “She wouldn’t mind if you left for a few hours. Look, why don’t you talk to her mother to take shifts by her side? I’m sure she would understand that you need proper sleep,” he explained, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. 

Silence followed his words, mostly because Max didn’t feel like arguing about this. He was here to stay, by your side, right until he had no choice but to leave for the next race. “If it was Alex, would you leave her side?” he eventually asked. 

“No,” came the response right away. “I probably wouldn’t.” After sipping their drinks in silence, the Monegasque stood up at one point and threw his now empty cup into the trash can, and turned to him. “Okay, I’ll go get your suitcase so you can freshen up before her family arrives. And Laura is bringing us breakfast, so you’d better look presentable by the time she gets here.”

“Laura? Since when are you on first name terms with her?”

The other man laughed and shrugged. “Since I took the time to have a chat with her yesterday. All right, let’s get you cleaned up.”

For the next few days, this is how things went. Charles was always the first to arrive, then he left to get lunch, and stayed until four or five in the afternoon. Max had told him to go home, that he would be fine now, but he didn’t care about this. He said he wanted to be there, at least until you finally woke up so he could tell you that almost dying just to get an emotional reaction out of your boyfriend was an overkill. And maybe he mentioned one day that Alex would stop talking to him for a few days if he left him alone, so he decided to be a good boy. 

One night he was woken by a strange sound coming from you, as if you were trying to speak up. Ever since you were brought in, he became a light sleeper, so he immediately picked up on the change in the atmosphere of the room. He turned on the light above his bed and moved over to you, his hand falling on your face right away, thumb gently brushing your cheek.

“Hey, baby,” he said as he leaned down to kiss your forehead. “I’m here. What do you need?”

Your eyes turned to him, immediately locking with his blue ones, as you registered that it was truly him. Your fingers squeezed his hand, the feeling of you being awake making him smile. “Can I… get some… water?” you asked hoarsely. 

He immediately reached out for the glass and filled it from the bottle next to it. He helped to put the end of the straw in your mouth and held the glass for you. “I’m so glad you’re finally awake. You almost got me worried,” he explained. 

“How long…?”

“Five days. How are you? Does anything hurt? Should I get a doctor? I should get a doctor, right? Yeah, you just–” 

He only stopped talking because you gave him a tired look and laced your fingers with his. “Max, relax... It’s fine,” you said weakly. “I need a minute… before you call them.”

You didn’t want to talk, you just wanted to be there with him, holding hands while your brain caught up. But eventually he apologized and left to find a nurse, because he was too afraid that something would go wrong if he waited too long. He needed confirmation that you were okay, that it was safe to let you talk, to touch you, to kiss you. He wanted to know when and what you could eat, when he could bring you your favorite coffee. His brain was in overdrive, but he didn’t mind. 

Not when he finally had you back. 

The next morning he was sitting by your side, having a conversation with you about something trivial. Speaking went well now, the soreness in your throat quickly faded with practice. Sure, you still weren’t a hundred percent, but it was much better than what he heard in the middle of the night. He told you what happened, he told you everything he had mentioned while you were unconscious, and your conversation went so well that he didn’t even notice Charles coming in. 

“You’re awake!” the Monegasque said with a bright smile as he handed the usual cup to Max. “How are you feeling?”

You returned his smile, but when you tried to take a deep breath, you couldn’t help but wince. “My ribs hurt like hell when I breathe or talk too much,” you replied. “Thank you for staying with him.”

Charles looked over at Max, then his eyes returned to you. “I’m staying by his side because I don’t want my girlfriend to kick me out.”

After all those days it was hard to tell if he was serious, or if he was just saying this to hide the fact their relationship did change lately. Max surprised himself, because he wanted to believe it was the latter. His gaze returned to you, choosing to stay out of your conversation for now. 

“Still,” you began, but fell silent when you looked over at your boyfriend. “Why can’t you be like Charles?” He gave you a confused look, and out of the corner of his eye he noticed the other driver’s evergrowing smile. “He gets proper sleep. He shaves. He doesn’t live in a hospital room,” you added with a stern look. 

Shaking his head, Max placed a kiss on your temple. “I’m not leaving you. Don’t even think about it.”

“But she’s right,” Charles told him with a shit-eating grin. 

“Go to hell,” Max told him with a roll of his eyes.

[thewertsearch]

He asks if you have a good winter hat. You nearly drop the radio in excitement.

Dave’s on his way too, so they can all play in the snow together.

Plus, Jade'll get to reunite with her 'grandson's' bunny, and we might finally get some movement on that plotline.

You wonder if it will always be like this. What sort of future does a new god have to look forward to? Will this malaise follow you for eternity? Will you be perpetually tempted to destroy everything you see, knowing that in just a few moments of recklessness, you will be left with nothing else to destroy forever? What will eternity feel like when a single moment of boredom feels like an eternity unto itself?

Some introspection here from the Sovereign Slayer, as Noir seems dimly aware that he’s under some sort of compulsion. He was created to be a violent murderer, and he's programmed to play that role in every session – which is fine by him.

But he was never meant to be a superboss. For hours now, he’s been operating entirely outside his normal parameters. He's wielding a power transcending this and every session, but he's stuck with the programming of a mid-level NPC. He's built to kill, as usual - but his destructive potential is too great, and he's killing too much, too fast.

There’s a mismatch here, and he can feel it.

You wish you could consult the clouds for answers. But they never show you anything.

More evidence that only Prospit-aligned beings can use Skaia's clouds.

Sorry, Jack. They're not for you.

You are now future Jack Noir. Presently, you are trapped in a single moment, which increasingly feels like an eternity. Your boredom is surpassed only by your all consuming rage and contempt for existence itself.

There's that bloody arm again, and it might be time to talk about it.

Now, technically, it could have come from almost anyone in the kids' session. The Carapacians all have red blood - but the thing is, all the notable Carapacians will escape the session safely. I think it's a pretty safe bet that the blood belongs to to one of the four kids - so who's our most likely target?

Well...

John was unharmed immediately before the Scratch, but that doesn’t preclude Jack from attacking him during its activation. It feels narratively climactic for the kids' semi-official leader to be mortally wounded while saving the session, and I think there's a decent chance that something like this will go down in the Act 5 finale.

Rose, of course, is soon to fall into the Blackout. I've been speculating that it could potentially hide her from Jack, but it's also possible that he could cause it himself. If he does attack her, she might be compelled to use more of the Horrorterrors’ power than she can control - and I can see that going south fast.

Dave's tied up in several days' worth of time loops, and it'd be hard to take him by surprise. We've probably heard from versions of Future Dave who know what caused the blood, and I think if he was about to be maimed, he'd be a lot more on-edge. Dave tries to hide his nerves, but he's not actually that good at it.

Jade can’t be harmed by Jack, which makes her the most interesting choice of all. I don't know how Jack could conquer the remnants of Becsprite in his heart - but if he does, we'll have lost the biggest advantage we have.

I'm honestly not sure. Right now, I think John's the most likely target - but not by much. Really, it could really be anyone.

[starzgaze]

MECH GENIUS!reader w/ jinwoo and hae-in

reader who's an engineer and started studying mana even if it's dangerous to be around if you're not awakened. they're aware about the fact they're more at risk of catching the illness of the eternal slumber but they don't really care since they have one goal in mind.

and if it's they can achieve their dream of creating mech weapons with the help of mana.

it started as a small project while they were pursuing their higher education and they wanted to see if there's anything they can do with mana. the concept of tinkering around with mana wasn't new but the idea of having mana related weapons was new since it was frowned upon and we have hunters around anyway, what's the point of having useless junk around?

but reader didn't care, it was a personal project anyway and they have extra time to splurge (nerd activities ahh) so they would be in their room tinkering with metals and sometimes will be found in the laboratories researching how they can tweak mana that could be concentrated to a point that they can use as bullets and if they can make different kinds.

so after a year or so they got carried away and got themselves into a rabbit hole of creating impressive mechanical war weapons that are deadly if an average person uses it. fortunately it looked complicated enough that intimidated people that would walk by it in the labs where reader would hang around so no one went near the contraptions. soon enough reader would have a variety of weapons and machines that could rival an A-rank hunter or maybe an S-rank if they tried hard enough...

of course this doesn't go unnoticed but not a lot of people snitched on them or their higher ups tried to tell them to stop whatever they were doing since first: reader is a engineering genius and helps them with whatever they need with such ease it scares them, second: reader has now less time on their studies because of their personal projects which means the other engineers can snag this opportunity to shine.

but two particular hunters would set their eyes on reader who finally used one of their creations when a dungeon break would occur dead in the night right outside of the laboratory of the university.

at this time, jinwoo and hae-in would be in the dating stage and was passing by a university since the two went on a convenience store run to have some snacks and to spend time together until they felt the familiar buzz of a dungeon break around the area.

on instinct, the two immediately head over to the area of the break. they didn't bother waiting for any permission or news that there was a break but they were greeted with a surprise that it was over??

monster blood and guts was everywhere, it looked so gruesome but all in the middle of the disgusting scene was a person with little to no mana but the contraptions in their hands was filled to the brim with it. the two hunters was surprised that there was a person out in this hour but then again it's normal for people who are studying to be awake at this hour...

it was hae-in who approached reader first and asked them if they all of this, snapping the engineer out of an adrenaline rush. the s-rank hunter was really impressed that reader did all of this for someone who probably doesn't have fighting experience.

reader confirms and probably twirls the weapon in their hand which again caught the attention of the two hunters. mainly jinwoo since the weapon in reader's hand reminded him of the weapons he would earn in dungeons and quests he finished whenever he gets those dungeon keys. but instead of shitty leveled weapons he would often see, jinwoo saw the contraption in reader's hand was far more high quality than his own.

the interaction between the two went on into the night as the gate behind reader closed on its own since the moment it went out jinwoo mutilated into pieces before reader could even shoot it down with their mech gear. after this moment, the two hunters officially wanted to know more about reader.

reader would suddenly meet hae-in or jinwoo on the street more often and get asked how's their research was going or if they wanted to be referred to either the korea's hunter association to be an engineer or be an engineer for ahjin guilde (this sorta sparked a small competition between the couple) which you quickly declined since you weren't sure if the projects you made was ready for other people to use since they were all just personal projects.

okay i give up making this coherent but jinwoo visiting reader and asking them if they can make a mech weapon for him to see how far their skill can take them and gets surprised how well reader is at their job and gave him a good weapon with shitty materials and a bit of mana. this now made reader his designated weapon's smith even if they're an engineer at heart.

"...hunter sun— i mean jinwoo uh.. you know I'm an engineer right and not a blacksmith, right?" you voiced out as you looked down at the raw and expensive rare monster loot at your table that jinwoo brought for you. he wanted you to make a weapon for him since he really liked the way you make and design daggers (definitely not to visit you more than hae-in who can casually drop by because you two are best friends)

jinwoo hummed as he crossed his arms, looking down at you. "are you saying you can't do it?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. this of course ticked you off, he knew this. jinwoo wanted to rile you up.

"no i don't mean that.. it's just- agh okay whatever I'll do it"

you stubbornly accepted the loot, muttering a thankyou. though you will never admit it but you were sort of excited to work with these rare material and maybe cut off a chunk to conduct some personal research on what type of material it is and how you can weld it. jinwoo noticed this but didn't comment on it, he was just happy you accepted it.

now hae-in who's always adorned with high quality armors and suits will also start coming to reader when it comes to designing and creating her armor. she didn't fail how much better in quality and effective reader's creations were compared to the extremely expensive and difficult to make armors she owns so she stopped going to those companies and instead went to reader for her armors.

this of course made the blonde hunter visit reader more than her boyfriend since reader told her they would need updates on her body and check frequently if the suit they made is safe for her body. reader told hae-in before that they never made suits before but hae-in pointed out they made mecha gear for themselves and continued to sorta beg for reader to make one for her which made reader reluctantly agree (they were just scared they might make a fuck up and cause a springlock scenario.)

hae-in rubbed this in her lover's face that she meets reader more often which resulted the other being jealous, making hae-in apologize and promising that the two will share.

when the hunter saw the finished product of the creatiok you made, she immediately noted how more mechanical it looks. it looked more military-like in terms of design which is a motif you consistently made with your creations. but it didn't hinder it's quality when hae-in wore it to check the quality

she was surprised on how light weight and comfortable it was. the material on her skin didn't itched like how her old suits would since it would be made from lab-made materials or monster loot but the one reader made was extremely comfortable it's like something hae-in would wear on a day to day basis.

you adjusted the straps and locks on hae-in's armor as you went through over her body again, checking if everything went on properly while ticking off the boxes om your clipboard.

"straps are correctly buckled.... it seems there's no overlaps and the joints are not hindering eachother.... hmm" hae-in heard you mumble as she observes how focused you were, her eyes softening. she admired how dedicated you were to your work.

and the way you were concerned over her being gave her butterflies in her stomach

you finally took a step back, your eyes scanning over the armor you created. a proud smile cracked on your lips as huffed out. "everything seems to be fine! hoo~ i really went through so much making this design aha"

hae-in turned and moved her arms around. she never felt so free in an armor, usually she would feel constricted in these type of suits. the way you designed it also made sure there's no vital organs exposed unlike some of her armor where they would need some spots exposed for the sake of mobility. hae-in was impressed.

"you really know what you're doing huh"

you heard her comment as she admired your work. a pink blush crept up to your cheeks as you sheepishly chuckled at her compliment.

"nah, i just do thorough research that's it.."

after these frequent meetings with the two, you would spend more time with the world renowned hunters and the more they would be enamored with the way you carry yourself in your workfield and studies, even your silly ramblings and little niches captured their hearts.

of course the two of them discussed about their feelings and how this would affect your relationship but soon realized the two shared the same feelings for you and decided to share you as promised.

now okay I'm going crazy I'm gonna work now on the other stuff i have it's ending here unless i write something for this concept errr.... maybe with zhigang and other characters too hahahha.... 😁 so yeah have fun with this conceppttt

[bennysblabbering]

The Confessional

Kinktober: "Priest Kink" || Suguru Geto x reader

contents: cult/JJK0 Geto, sorcerer!reader, male oral, deepthroating, swallowing cum, praise, religious rituals i guess? not sure what to call it

words: 2k

g/n reader, reader's genitals are not specified

↓ Fic below the cut ↓

“Welcome.”

On a slightly elevated platform, you’re greeted by a soothing voice from a man sitting cross-legged adorned in a long elegant robe- the same man you’d heard so many speak about in hushed whispers and nervous glances. You turn slightly to slide the door shut before making your way to him, stopping at a respectful distance; making a good impression was imperative if you wanted to be accepted. Placing your arms at your sides and your eyes facing the floor, you bow at the waist with a small smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Geto-sama.”

“Likewise,” he responds, mirroring your expression. For someone rumored to be so violent, his tone and demeanor seemed uncharacteristically gentle. It was almost off-putting, the way his aura made your body feel at ease and loosen the tension in your nervous muscles. That was probably purposeful, though, to lure in non-sorcerers for his victims. You scowl slightly at the reminder, bending your body back upward as the thought of his message remains in your mind. Your gaze moves to him, though avoiding eye-contact so as not to be too intimate. 

He’s arguably the most gorgeous man you’ve ever seen. His long, silky black hair cascades down his shoulders like a midnight waterfall, and his angular and narrow features make him look as if he were a sculpted work of art. The color of his plugs, a deep navy blue, matched that of his robes and brought his whole look together. It was almost difficult to speak while in the presence of such an ethereal man, your voice initially cracking before you clear your throat and blush in embarrassment. 

“I have requested to join your…organization, sir, because my ideals align with yours. I’ve been a sorcerer for many years now, and I’ve become tired of the repeated trauma that comes from protecting a class of people who don’t even know we exist. And even if they did, I doubt they would be grateful. We make unending sacrifices throughout our lives and it amounts to nothing in the end. If we could eliminate the reason for our troubles altogether, we could create a peaceful world for our people.” 

His subtle smile grows wider, the corners of his lips turning up into a satisfied grin. “You’re intelligent and well-spoken. I like you already. I think you’d be a wonderful addition to our family.” 

Your eyes light up excitedly. You hadn’t expected him to be so accepting right away. It can’t be that simple, right? There’s no way there isn’t more before an official acceptance. Cautious but nonetheless looking forward to this new experience, you give him a small nod with a giddy smile. “Thank you, Geto-sama. You will not regret this.”

He chuckles, standing up before stepping down onto the same level as you, his hands hidden beneath his sleeves as they’re placed together in front of his waist. “There are a few things you must do in order to become one of us. One cannot bring their sins from their old life into this one; they must be purified and begin anew. Do you understand?”

You nod, ready for whatever he might ask of you. If commanded to, you would kill a non-sorcerer, exorcize a curse, or anything else he might want to see from a potential newcomer. You’d spent a long time considering following him, and you knew this was the right decision. You’d go to the ends of the earth for such a god-like man. 

“There is a particular extra ritual that I have those I take a liking to partake in. Not many have such a privilege, but I will bestow it upon you.” 

Your heart races in anticipation. You felt incredibly flattered that he not only liked you, but liked you enough to do something only a few get to experience. But what that was, you have not even an inkling of a clue. “Thank you, sir. I’m grateful that I’ve fallen under your favor. Whatever you ask of me, I will obey.”

“Glad to hear it. Like I said, in order to be officially associated with us, you need to be purified; cleansed of your old ways and forgiven for your misdeeds. Now…on your knees.”

You do as you’re told, swallowing hard as you feel your pulse quicken further. You place your hands nervously on the tops of your thighs, waiting for instruction. 

“It’s impossible you’ve had these ideals your whole life. There must have been a time when you were complicit in the current state of jujutsu society. Tell me about that.”

You hang your head in shame as you nod, recalling your younger years of naivete and believing that the ultimate purpose of a sorcerer was to protect those unlike you. “You’re right. I used to think my purpose in life was to help the weak. I often befriended non-sorcerers, and I even dated a few. I still can’t believe I let that filthy scum touch me. I’ve since seen the error of my ways and want to make up for what I’ve done.”

Keeping your face parallel to the floor, you hear him sigh softly. “I see. I was once the same way. It’s a shame so few people come to their senses.” He bends over slightly, placing a long pointer finger under your chin, lifting it up to look deep into his amber eyes as he stands up straight. “Luckily, you seem to be of the enlightened ones. We believe in the worship and love of the strong here. To be truly pure and forgiven, you will need to satisfy me and ingest my essence.”

Though hidden by the long sleeves, you can tell his hands have lowered. They move some fabric out of the way, rustling and pulling layers until finally reaching to pull the waistband of his pants down just a bit. Suddenly, you understand what he meant by his last sentence as his cock is freed, bouncing slightly from the release of its confines. “Luckily, I’m willing to give you mercy if you’re willing to accept it.”

You blink a few times as you start to tremble, your heart beating so hard you could feel it in your throat. His cock boasted an impressive size, both in length and girth. The tantalizing foreskin covered just past the bottom of the head, letting the reddened tip peek out as evidence of the generous blood flow to the area. “Yes, sir, I’m willing to please you in the name of cleansing my sins.”

“Good, good. I look forward to giving you this honor.” He slowly strokes himself, silently inviting you to place your mouth on where he clearly wanted. You lick your lips before straightening your back, wrapping your fingers around his hard length and moving your hand back and forth in meaningful motions. He lets out a content exhale, making your heart flutter.

Leaning forward, you give the slit a kitten lick before your hand moves back towards you along his cock, pulling the velvety foreskin along with it and past the head. You hum as you slip your tongue underneath the soft flesh, hearing him gasp as you circle the tip with your tongue. The wet muscle makes its way around it repeatedly, worshiping it and reveling in the soft and smooth texture. Your tongue makes its way snugly in a little further, before you stroke the skin back to where it was and finally wrap your lips around his cock. 

Suguru lets out a low groan, closing his eyes and weaving his fingers into your hair. “That’s it…”

You slowly start to make your way back and forth with your head, sucking eagerly on the manhood of the man who you wanted to impress with every bone in your body. You wanted nothing more than to make sure he felt satisfied; pleasing him would cleanse both your body and soul. You lean forward a bit more, taking him further into your throat with a gag. You stop for a moment, but don’t pull off. He looks down at you with an encouraging gaze and gently strokes his fingers through your hair. “You’re doing great. Just keep going a little further. Take as much of me as you possibly can.”

You nod slightly, squeezing your eyes shut as you place your hands on each of his clothed thighs. The fabric of his robes was incredibly soft, and it helped somewhat serve as a distraction to the burning in your throat. You pull back a little to get one last breath through your nose as you push your mouth further onto his length. His cock slides past your uvula, making you gag once again, but you’re determined to keep going. You slowly continue to sink his erection down your throat, not stopping until your nose brushes against silk. He strokes the back of your head affectionately as he moans, looking back down at you with pride in his gaze. “That’s a good follower. Let my entire cock penetrate you and purify your body.”

You stay there for as long as you can, sucking until your cheeks are hollowed and your face is a dark red from being unable to breathe. Feeling a dizziness start to set in, you pull all the way off in one quick motion before taking in a dramatic inhale. Your saliva starts to drip down your chin and you wipe it away with the back of your hand. Looking up at him, your eyes were glazed over from pure arousal, looking incredibly fucked out without even being pleasured yourself. “Geto-sama…you have such a beautiful cock, I can’t help but worship it.”

He chuckles, amused at your state as he softly strokes a thumb over your cheek. “Thank you. You’ve been doing very well. Keep going, make me cum. I want to watch you swallow it all as my seed purifies you.”

“Yes sir.” You place your lips back onto the reddened and swollen tip, wrapping your fingers around the shaft and stroking as you pick up a rhythm with your mouth. Your other hand shifts from his thigh over to massage his balls, heavy and full with a thick load ready to be released. You continue to work him with both hands, one stroking his cock and one lovingly caressing his balls, as your mouth makes its way back and forth along his eager erection. Suguru moans, louder than any of the ones before, clearly close to the edge and anticipating an orgasm. He lovingly places a hand on the back of your head, pushing ever so slightly but not enough to hurt you. 

“Oh, I’m close…don’t stop, don’t stop-”

A choked whine escapes his mouth as he finally releases his hot seed down your throat, multiple ropes of savory cum squirting from his cock, and you swallow each one with a fervor. You continue to suck lightly, intensifying his pleasure, reveling in the liberating feeling of being cleansed by the fluid of the strong. Not a single drop is wasted as you consume his essence, welcoming his acceptance of your submission and obedience. Every moment of his climax was just as euphoric for you as it was for him.

As his breathing stabilizes, you pull off of him slowly, a string of your saliva connecting to his tip and you wipe it away with a thumb. Both of you catch your breath for a minute as you silently gaze at each other, the afterglow present on both of your faces. As sore as your throat was, you needed to thank him for granting you his mercy; clearing your throat, you smile up at him with an adoration in your eyes.

“Thank you, Geto-sama. I’m eternally grateful you were so humble to grant me this opportunity to follow you.”

He smiles softly with that same gentle smile that greeted you when you arrived. “Stand.”

Without hesitation, you follow his command, arising to your feet. “Yes sir.”

“There are a few more things that I need from you before I can call you one of my own, but the signs are already looking to be in your favor. You initially made a good impression on me, and now that you’ve been purified, you’ve proven your loyalty and passion for our beliefs. I look forward to seeing your full potential.”

You beam warmly in response, swelling with pride that you’d passed the initial stages, excited for the steps to come and finally becoming a member of the organization. A brief bow of your head follows.

“Thank you, Geto-sama.”

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 50 (Life in Brindleton Bay)

cw: pet death, trying to explain loss to a two-year-old

Though born and raised in electric San Myshuno, Conrad immediately took to the quieter pace in coastal Brindleton Bay. He spent time with Gord at the dog park across the square, running the obstacle course to prepare him to impress their new captain at Brindleton PD.

As soon as Conrad moved in, Heather said she'd take Gord to be neutered. "I kept meaning to schedule the surgery, but with my work and the recovery time, I just didn't," he admitted sheepishly. Heather smiled.

"You live with a vet now. We'll both make sure he's better in no time. If we're splitting bills, that makes us a team, I think. Officially."

Conrad smiled, pulling her in for a kiss. "We are a team."

As a friendly and happy pup, Gord endured the cone of shame until his stiches healed. But they had only lived in Brindleton Bay a few days when Grim came calling for Heather's elder cat, King Tut.

Heather grieved his loss for weeks. He'd lived over two decades, so Tut's death wasn’t unexpected, but he’d been her companion since she was a child. And though she had her own grief to navigate, she had to help her son come to terms with loss for the first time.

Ash loved spending time with the family cats while Heather worked on her mobile app or studied her vet charts, but now his four-legged friend was gone. "Where Tut go, mommy?"

She knelt down to talk to him at eye level. "Tut lived a really long time, long before you were even born, and he was really old. When kitties get old enough, they go to a really special place with other kitties, but this place is only for them."

"We won't see him?" He sniffled, and Heather pulled him in for a comforting hug.

"We have to say goodbye to him here so he can make his journey to the special place. But it's okay because he'll be happy. Just as happy as he was when he got to be here with us."

Conrad buried Tut in the yard under a tall hemlock tree. His ghost could rest peacefully in the shade, and Heather and Ash could mourn whenever they needed.

And Tut could visit whenever he missed them, too!

Despite the sad start to their life together in Brindleton Bay, Conrad and Heather looked forward to the future. He watched over Ash when she worked long hours at the clinic, and they settled into a new routine as a trio with two cats and a dog.

One morning at the clinic, Everett's dad Bob Pancakes brought in Majora, one of his cats, and Heather learned he and his second wife, Annette, were considering retirement.

"I want to spend more time with my grandsons," he said with a gentle smile, and Heather listened intently while she worked. "Jett looks nothing like Spencer, but he loves her just the same. It's Spencer I worry about. She loves those boys, but I think she feels like something's missing. She can twist herself in knots with stress. My Eliza was like that, so it didn't surprise me when Everett fell in love with her, but I worry she needs adventure my homebody son just isn't built for, and the boys are so young."

Heather soothed Majora on the exam table. "Can I do anything to help?" She didn't want to intrude on their family, remembering her personal rule to keep her distance unless Everett or Spencer asked her themselves. "I don't know if I should get involved."

Bob laughed. "I'm not asking you to act like her therapist, but maybe you could spend some time with her. Plan a trip. The Kim-Lewis' and I will help Everett with the boys."

"I'll talk to her." She changed the subject to Bob's other kids before she cured Majora's lava nose with organic disinfectant spray. The poor kitty sneezed but recovered quickly and she sent them on their way, returning to the lobby to greet her next patient.

It wasn't like she didn't need a vacation, but life was far too busy these days for travel. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

NOTE: Pet aging is probably too long but two decades isn't unheard of! Cats really don't get in the way unless I have infants, so I don't mind having them around this long, and honestly the longer the cats live the easier it is to meet the Gen 2 challenge to always own at least two cats. Dogs don't live as long, so at least that's accurate in my preferred settings!

[bella-rose29]

Deck the Halls (and not your partner) - part 11

Word count: 3.8k

Warnings: making out to the point of hickeys and low level states of undress (don't read if you're not particularly comfortable with it, it's pretty early on and you don't really need it for the rest to make sense 👍), swearing, reader's mother (Emma) is a gem and loves teasing them, lockwood's hands (and ring), I have no idea what came over me to make me write this (I was probably thinking about his hands let's be real)

series masterlist

“I just don’t understand how they never gave themselves away,” Y/n said while she and Anthony got ready for bed. 

He was in the bathroom, so she’d had to raise her voice a little in order to be heard. When he didn’t respond immediately, she frowned at the closed door. “Anthony? You alright?”

“Hmm? Oh, yeah, I’m alright, darling.” She heard shuffling and then the click of the door as it opened, and he stepped out, dressed in his pyjamas. 

“Still can’t believe you have matching sets of grandpa pyjamas,” she snorted, moving over to the bathroom. 

“You love my matching sets of grandpa pyjamas,” he called as she started brushing her teeth. “And as for how they never gave themselves away, I imagine they were all waiting for the moment they could finally breathe again. Your mother especially, did you see how tightly she hugged me earlier? I thought she might crush my ribs.”

“You’re so dramatic, Ant,” Y/n replied after spitting out the toothpaste. She washed her mouth out, flicked the light off in the bathroom, and headed for the bed. Anthony was already sat on his side, the covers pulled back for her to get in, and she curled up next to him. His arm automatically came around her body, fingers burying in the fabric of her (his) top. 

“You love that too,” he said, pressing a kiss to her head. She hummed, burying her face in his chest and swinging her legs over his. The afternoon had been peaceful after Steph and Linda had finally left (although not without a lot of pointing fingers, empty threats, and slammed doors), with Y/n’s family asking questions about their relationship and wanting the real answers this time, and her father had received a call saying that the roads would be clear in the next day or so, and there was a limited train service starting up not too long after that. The storm had blown over faster than people had anticipated, but with the limited technology they had for weather readings, anybody’s guess could be the official report. They had booked tickets on the first train back in four days time, and Y/n knew that both her and Anthony were looking forward to getting back to Portland Row. 

“You know,” she started, feeling her eyes start to close when he started threading his fingers through her hair. His other hand was on her thigh, just above her knee. “We should probably think about what we’re gonna do when we get back. About the whole ‘we don’t hate each other now and we’re actually dating’ thing.”

“Oh, that’s a good point. Maybe we just… don’t say anything, like your family? And see how long it takes for them to bring it up?”

“Ant, why would we do that?”

“Because it’s funny?” It was a rhetorical question, and she could feel him smiling from the way his jaw shifted over her head. His fingers hadn’t left her hair, and the hand on her thigh had edged upwards slightly while they’d been talking. 

“I suppose it would be quite funny, wouldn’t it?” she mused, nudging her leg further into his grip subconsciously. He hadn’t taken off the ring he always wore, and it was cold against her skin. 

“See, I’m winning you over,” he chuckled, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. 

“You missed,” she murmured, sitting up a little and opening her eyes. 

“Missed?”

“Yeah.” She took his face in her hands, nudging her nose against his before kissing him. When she pulled back after a few seconds he automatically followed her, eyes still closed while he searched for her lips again. “Anthony,” she breathed, feeling his breath fan over her face. He surged forward, his grip on her thigh tightening a little while the hand that had been in her hair slid down and cupped her cheek as he kissed her.   She brought her hand to his chest, clutching at the fabric of his pyjama shirt and gasping when he deepened the kiss, and she thought she might pass out from how gentle yet desperate he was. She could feel it, how he was holding back and taking it slow, but the fire that burned in her needed more, making her shift in his lap so she was straddling his hips, and if she could take the sound he made when she did so and bottle it up to keep forever, she would. 

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he whispered between kisses, tilting his head slightly to press his mouth to her cheek, and then her jaw, and then her neck. 

“I hope not,” she replied, burying her hands in his hair when he kissed a spot on her neck that made her feel like she was in heaven. “I quite like having you around, actually.”

“Yeah?” He made his way back up her neck, his hand hot and searing where it sat on her thigh. She met his eyes, the half-closed lids and blown pupils combined with his swollen lips making the fire burn hotter, and kissed him sweetly. 

“Yeah.” His hair was a mess, but he’d never looked more beautiful than in this moment, the golden glow of the bedside lamp highlighting his features and casting long shadows at the same time, and she threaded her fingers through the mop of hair that was starting to stick to his forehead. “Just promise me something?”

“Anything,” he said, not waiting for her to finish. She thought she could live on the way he was looking at her, like she was the only thing he had ever wanted and he needed her to breathe. 

“Stay alive for me? When we get back? You can’t keep- you can’t keep being so reckless with your- your life. Anthony.” He’d trailed the hand that had rested on her cheek down her side, and had gripped her hips with both hands, his fingers curling into the fabric of the shirt she was wearing and bunching it up slightly. 

“Sorry, darling.” She supposed she could forgive him when his voice was so low and hoarse, and his fingers were creeping under the top to stroke her skin. “I promise I’ll live for you.” The next kiss burned, filled with the weight of what he’d just sworn, and it was only when they couldn’t hold their breath for any longer that they finally pulled away for air. “I promise,” he whispered into her skin, dragging her closer by his grip on her waist. “I promise.” His hand was drifting upwards slowly, the cold metal of his ring a stark contrast to the heat of their bodies, and she knew he was waiting for her to tell him it was alright. His lips had barely left hers, and when she took her hands out of his hair to start undoing the buttons on his shirt she felt his breath hitch. 

“This okay?” she asked, smiling when he nodded eagerly, leaning back in for another kiss. He was drunk on her, she was sure, but she wasn’t exactly sober herself. Eventually he decided she was moving too slowly, taking the bottom of his top into his own hands and doing it himself. The next few minutes were frantic, Anthony’s shirt discarded on the floor by the bed and hers on the way to joining it, hands travelling over skin in an attempt to know every inch of each other. When he lifted her up and laid her on her back, settling between her legs while he braced himself on one arm and held her with the other, she knew she was doomed. 

~~~

The next morning, Emma was on tea duty. 

She and Ben took turns making teas for the family in the morning, and as she traipsed upstairs with a full tray of mugs (after depositing two in her parents’ bedroom downstairs) she yawned, hoping that everyone was at least a little bit awake so that she could go back to bed and read her book. John was first, bleary-eyed and scratching his side like a monkey, and he took his tea with a very sleepy “Mornin’ Mum”, the door closing in her face as soon as he had a grip on the handle of the mug. Then was Sam and Will, who were being made to share, and as she had expected Will was the opposite of John, wide awake and already dressed, reading in bed with the small lamp on so that he didn’t wake Sam. “Thanks, Mum,” he’d smiled, planting a kiss on her cheek and kicking the door shut after taking his and Sam’s teas. Tom was in the library with his colouring (she had to stop and put down the plastic mat so that he didn’t accidentally colour the furniture), and he barely acknowledged her presence when she left the mug on the table nearby and told him to be careful. Olivia wasn’t awake, so Emma left the mug on her bedside table and pressed a kiss to her daughter’s forehead before creeping back out and moving on to the last room before her own. 

A soft knock was normally enough to alert Y/n, telling her that the teas were ready, but when after roughly thirty seconds nobody appeared at the door, Emma frowned, balanced the tray on her hip, and gently pushed open the door. “Oh,” she whispered to herself upon seeing her eldest daughter and Anthony curled up in bed together, both sound asleep. 

She’d figured that the two of them weren’t actually dating after they’d first arrived, although at the time she’d thought it was more that they were in a rough patch and were attempting to hide it. They’d argued over who was taking the suitcase in, for crying out loud! But then Anthony had gone and comforted her after Steph had made comments that forced Y/n upstairs, and Emma had been confused again. When Olivia had been helping her get dinner ready that first night, she’d put forward the idea that maybe they weren’t together, and Y/n just felt that she couldn’t turn up without a boyfriend to a huge gathering where everybody thought she was in a relationship. Then things had started making sense, like the way Y/n had looked stiff in his arms for the first few days, or how she would glare at Anthony instead of gazing lovingly at him like Emma knew she herself did with Ben. 

At some point something had changed, though, because now they were apparently actually together. She, along with everyone else, had spent the afternoon yesterday questioning the young couple on pretty much everything, including why the hell they hated each other in the first place. Anthony had gone bright red, apologising profusely for his behaviour, and then Y/n had interrupted and said that she should be the one apologising, and then the pair of them had traded such love-struck looks that it made even Emma want to throw up a little. She was planning on getting the photo albums out today, since she had been so scared of revealing that she knew the truth before that she hadn’t fully settled in to the role of Embarrassing Mother. She’d wanted Y/n to feel that she could come forward in her own time, and the situation was sticky enough as it was with Steph and Linda (she frowned at the memory of how poorly her sister and niece had acted) making comments and embarrassing Y/n that Emma had taken a step back. Now, however, there was no hiding. Anthony would be seeing all of the photos of Y/n as a baby, and that was that. 

She would have a field day at breakfast, too, if her assumptions were correct. 

From what she could tell as she put the cups of tea on the bedside table and had a quick look around the room, neither Anthony nor Y/n were wearing tops, and in the dim light of the room she could tell that there were definitely marks on both of their necks. She smiled to herself, pressing a kiss to Y/n’s shoulder, and tiptoed out of the room. 

~~~

When Anthony woke up, the first thing he thought was how comfortable he was. 

He opened his eyes, rubbing lazily to try and clear away the last remnants of sleep, and he realised that Y/n was lying with her back to him and he had wrapped an arm around her waist in an effort to meld their bodies into one. Their legs were tangled together under the duvet, his pyjama-clad ones mixed with her short-wearing ones, and it was no wonder he hadn’t been able to breath too well when he’d first woken up, because his face had been buried in her neck. 

Her neck. 

His eyes widened as he took in the state of her skin, littered in small marks (and one or two larger ones), and he knew that he would most likely be murdered when she woke up. He couldn’t help but feel a rush of warmth at the memory of last night, though, and all the kisses they had shared. They hadn’t gone much further than that, both deciding it was far too early and far too risky in a house that was shared by most of her immediate family, but Anthony could have died a happy man after that. 

He wouldn’t, of course, because he’d promised her last night that he would live. 

He took note then of the two mugs of steaming tea on the bedside table, and realised that someone must have come in and placed them there not too long ago. Then he realised that whoever it had been had probably seen the hickeys on Y/n’s neck. “Shit,” he mumbled, closing his eyes briefly in an attempt to gather strength. It would be fine. Maybe they hadn’t been able to see clearly in the darkness of the room? But then again some of them were pretty large, and there wasn’t much chance of them being missed. Y/n was going to kill him. 

She was waking up now, he could tell from the way her breathing changed and her body shifted, and she stretched out her legs and twisted in his arms to face him. “Good morning, darling.”

“Mornin’ Schmoopie.”

“I thought that name was banned?”

“Banned for you. I can use it.”

“Ah, I see.” He smiled into her forehead, pressing his lips to the skin in tiny kisses. “Did you sleep alright?” She hummed her assent, eyes still closed while she nestled further into him. He wondered if she could feel how fast his heart was beating.

“Did you?”

“Yeah. Best sleep I’ve had for a while.” It had felt like he’d blinked and gone from the after-effects of last night to waking up with her in his arms this morning. 

“That’s good. Can I smell tea?”

“Yes, although I don’t know who it was that brought it in; I was still asleep.”

“Probably Mum,” she said, groaning and sitting up. Anthony watched her for a moment, small smile on his face as he took in her sleepy expression, then followed suit. He went to say something, but the movement of his body sitting up had pulled the duvet away and down the bed, and all thoughts went out of his head. “Shit, it’s cold in here,” Y/n hissed, putting down the mug she’d just picked up in favour of wrapping the blankets back around her torso. She paused when she realised Anthony had frozen and gone red, and frowned at the face he was making. “Are you… alright? You look a bit… I dunno. Weird.”

“What? Oh, I’m…” he swallowed thickly and met her eyes, immediately looking away again and studying the wall opposite the bed. “I’m fine.”

“Okay… I’ll pass your tea over if you want it?”

“Thank you.” He still wasn’t looking at her, although he did remove his gaze from the wall to ensure he held the mug correctly, and a slightly awkward pause followed. 

“You didn’t put your top back on last night.” He heard her choke on her tea and pressed his hand over his eyes. “Sorry, I didn’t mean- I just- you-” he sighed, giving up on coming up with an excuse that would explain his previous statement. 

“Of course I didn’t put it back on, I was way too warm,” she said once she’d recovered. “Wait. Were you staring at my chest?” When he didn’t answer and instead kept his gaze fixed on the tea he held she let out a laugh. “You didn’t seem bothered last night by me not wearing a top.” Now it was his turn to choke, and he had to set down his mug before he spilled the liquid. When he finally turned to look at her she had a smug grin on her face, sipping her tea while she watched him with amusement dancing in her eyes. 

“That- that was different!”

“Different how?”

“I- you- it just was!” He wished the ground would swallow him up. Y/n snorted, taking a larger gulp of tea. 

“I’m teasing, Anthony. You don’t have to look so terrified.” He didn’t think she would ever let him live this down. He had just taken his first drink of tea when he heard her curse softly. “Ant?”

“Yeah?” He looked over at her, brows drawing together. “What is it?” She bit her lip, eyes focused on something below his face. “Y/n?”

“You, uh… you’ve got…” she gestured vaguely to his neck, hesitating a moment before touching a finger to the skin just above his collarbone. It hit him, then, what she was referring to. 

“Y/n?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you leave marks on my neck last night?”

“… yeah?”

“Well we’re in deep shit.”

“… why?”

“I… might have done the same…” he trailed off, his voice growing quieter with every word, and she could only stare at him. 

“Anthony.”

“Hmm?”

“Anthony. Please tell me you’re joking.” He didn’t say anything, instead taking another sip of his tea. “Anthony, if it was Mum that came in and did tea this morning then we are screwed because there is no way she didn’t see. Anthony answer me.”

“I’m not joking, sorry.” He couldn’t help but smile at her exasperated groan that followed, and he opened his mouth to speak again. “Although you didn’t seem bothered by me kissing your neck last night,” he said, using her earlier words against her. This time it was his turn to be smug, and he laughed when she lightly slapped his chest. “What? You rather enjoyed it from what I remember.”

“Your memory is wrong,” she grumbled, finishing off her tea. 

“I don’t think it is, darling, but whatever you say.” 

~~~

“Good morning love birds! Did you two sleep alright?” Emma chirped when Anthony and Y/n walked into the kitchen. She noted the slight flushed look to both of them (particularly Anthony who had gone a wonderful shade of pink that she didn’t think she’d seen before), and then the poor attempts at covering up the marks that decorated their necks. 

“Oh, uh, yeah. Thank you.” Y/n looked like a deer in headlights, sitting down on a bar stool and smiling when her father placed a plate of food in front of her. “Thanks,” she muttered, picking up a fork and digging in. Anthony was apparently dealing with everything a lot better than Y/n, already engaged in conversation with John and Sam about something while he entertained Tom at the same time. Emma was glad that he was here, especially given how stressful Steph and Linda were, and she could tell that her eldest daughter was far better off with him in her life. He really cared about her, most likely better than Emma ever had, and while it stung to think that he was doing the job that she should have done, she was happy that Y/n had someone that she lived with to rely on. 

“Are you sure, dear? You look quite tired, I don’t imagine you did much sleeping.” She did feel a little bit of remorse at her teasing, but it was too funny watching Y/n squirm in embarrassment while she tried to come up with something to say. Even Anthony was blushing now from his place on Y/n’s right. Besides, this was her first experience with being the Embarrassing Mother, and if she needed to she would explain herself to her daughter later. 

“Did you do tea rounds this morning?” Y/n blurted instead, her brow furrowing. 

“I did… where is this going?”

“Oh, no reason. It’s fine,” she said, entirely unconvincingly. 

“Right, well eat up. Anthony, I’m showing you the photo albums after breakfast!”

“Mum, please don’t, I can’t take any more of this,” pleaded Y/n, but Emma just chuckled. 

“I just want him to see some of the previous Christmases we’ve had!”

“Personally,” Anthony chimed in, “I would love to see the photo albums, Emma. It sounds like a wonderful way to spend the morning.” His grin could only be described as shit-eating, and Emma loved it. 

She loved it even more when Y/n groaned and held her head in her hands. 

~~~

“And here- what was happening here? Oh yes, she’d managed to get her head stuck in the railings of the bannister, only three years old!”

“So you took a picture before helping your three year old daughter out of the bannisters?” Y/n asked her mother incredulously, not enjoying the way Anthony was studying every single photo of her as a baby. They had already been here for roughly forty minutes, and they weren’t even a third of the way through the album. 

“Well you don’t look too bothered, darling. In fact, you look like you’re having a whale of a time, look how big that smile is!”

“Shut up,” she mumbled, cuddling closer into his side. His laughter warmed her, and suddenly she didn’t mind so much that he was being promised copies of some of these photos. She knew that her mother knew about the marks on both of their necks, too, her suspicions confirmed after the whole fiasco at breakfast (there had been many more innuendos and exaggerated winks), but she didn’t mind that too much either. How could she, when Anthony was burning brighter than the sun right now, with his smile that lit up every room he walked into (or even walked past) and his easy charm? How could she be upset when he was sat so close to her, holding her to him so gently yet so tightly, as though he were afraid that at any moment she might disappear? 

No, she was happy. Not about the current photo of her with cake smushed all over her face and outfit at her friend’s 4th birthday party, but generally, she was happy. Steph and Linda were gone, Anthony was here, and in a few days they would be back home with Lucy, and George, and Holly too when she came over. 

For the first time in years, she was truly happy. And she could owe it all to Anthony Lockwood. 

part 12 (final part)

Tag list: @ahead-fullofdreams, @aislinrayne, @anathemaloren, @anthgoldenhrry, @augustisintheair, @avdiobliss, @aysha4life, @bobbys-not-that-small, @briar-rose23, @curseofhecate, @dangelnleif, @edible-rat-vomit, @el-de-phi, @ell0ra-br3kk3r, @ettadear, @fearlessmoony, @fudosl, @idkbubs, @imaginebeingmentallystable, @informedimagining, @karensirkobabes, @lady-ashfade, @light-23, @locklyebrainrot, @locklyle1kanij, @locknco, @magicandrosewaters, @mentallyillsodapop, @mischivana, @mitskiswift99, @mrsklockwood, @mrsyixingunicorn10, @newbooksmell777, @no-morning-glories, @novelizt, @phlooper, @ran23sblog, @reggiepeterss, @simrah1012, @somethingrandomwatzit, @star-of-velaris, @superpositvecloudshipper, @t2sh0, @taygrls, @tournesol77, @whistle1whistle, @whenselenefallsinlove, @wordsarelife, @y0urm0m12, @zoom1374, @asyouwish-fromcabin3, @magicandrosewaters, @bobbys-not-that-small, @neewtmas (sticking you on just in case my lovely <3)

I don't think I'm missing anyone but there are so many people that I honestly can't say for sure, so if you want to be added to the tag list for the final part (and maybe... other... special posts... that might be written in the future... 👀), then let me know! <3

[mdzs-fanon-exposed]

MDZS Fanon VS Canon: 2/?

Wen Ning fits Jiang Cheng's list of requirements for a wife

Rating: FANON – NEUTRAL

A lot of ships involving Jiang Cheng will use a list detailing the characteristics of his ideal woman as evidence for one pairing for another, and the character brought to me to evaluate as a suitable match was Wen Ning. Unfortunately, I have to rate this as fanon because Jiang Cheng's wife requirements... aren't canon to the novels.

In terms of the official adaptations, Jiang Cheng's requirements for his perfect wife seem to be Untamed-only canon, as part of the Jiang Cheng/Wen Qing subplot the drama invented. However, the MDZS Fandom Wiki (which, side note, is a horrible source for anything) credits the following list of requirements to a since-deleted Tumblr post:

Naturally beautiful, graceful and obedient, hard-working and thrifty, coming from a respected family, cultivation level not too high, personality not too strong, not too talkative, voice not too loud and must treat Jin Ling nicely. (source)

Using the Wayback Machine, I managed to find the original Tumblr post in question (seen here). According to the user who posted it, this is a translated excerpt from a Weibo post written by MXTX herself, listing 10 supplemental facts about the books – supposedly posted a year before The Untamed was first announced.

I do not have Weibo and cannot verify this claim, but regardless, I do not consider "word of God" to be canon for the purposes of this blog. Whatever MXTX's intentions were when writing this list, Jiang Cheng's requirements are not mentioned anywhere in the actual text, and so I cannot rate this suggestion as anything but fanon. You, the reader, are free to choose whether you think MXTX's supplemental material is canon-accurate.

As for Wen Ning himself: Canonically, Jiang Cheng "could never tolerate" him (Seven Seas Ch. 19, p. 251), and so unfortunately this ship cannot officially sail. Even if Wen Ning does fit every entry on this list, Jiang Cheng would not consider him a prospective match. I do not consider the list canon, and so any attempts to figure out if Wen Ning fits the letter of the list (if not the spirit) can not be anything but subjective.

But, well, this post is about the list itself, not Jiang Cheng's feelings about it. So while I'm here, I might as well have some fun with it.... Feel free to use the notes to debate whether or not you think Wen Ning is secretly right for Jiang Cheng's dubiously-canon standards.

Naturally beautiful: Wen Ning is ADORABLE and I LOVE HIM. You can't look at him and NOT call him cute; even Wei Wuxian thinks his "side profile [is] delicate and refined" (Seven Seas Ch. 12, p. 141). Would Jiang Cheng think this? Um,

Graceful and obedient: He's pretty meek and he's described as a yes-man (Seven Seas Ch. 16, p. 22), and he does what Wei Wuxian says a lot (under magical flute coercion or otherwise), but he can be pretty stubborn when he wants to be. I wouldn't call him falling off a roof "graceful," but I suppose that was after he was zombified.

Hard-working and thrifty: Yes – I can't imagine he got all those Wen subordinates by being completely lazy. And if anything he's kind of the pack horse for the Burial Mounds crew lol.

Coming from a respected family: Technically? Yes. The Wens have historically been a powerful and influential family, and Wen Ning is the younger brother of someone of "a rank on par with Wen Chao" (Seven Seas Ch. 12, p. 148). Functionally? Uhhhh

Cultivation level not too high: This one is debatable, but probably a yes. We don't receive much information about Wen Ning's cultivation level, since his fighting prowess isn't really plot-relevant until he dies, but he is described as "unremarkable" in comparison to Wen Qing. Just like, in general, I guess. (Seven Seas Ch. 12, p. 149)

Personality not too strong: See #2. I would say yes with some caveats. Especially (and ironically) when Jiang Cheng is involved.

Not too talkative/voice not too loud: Also a match! Wen Ning stutters a lot and doesn't really raise his voice unless he's angry, so he's pretty quiet. Remember that time he and wangxian were on that boat and Wei Wuxian straight up didn't notice him for like five minutes? Poor guy. Can you believe this happened to him twice.

Must treat Jin Ling nicely: Do we count murdering his dad? Because if we don't, then Wen Ning treats Jin Ling very nicely. He even saves his life multiple times!

In conclusion: ?????????

[angy-grrr]

idk about translations or anything like that -but the attempt for Ochako explaining her pain after Himiko died feels so... analytical in English. It feels anticlimactic in comparison to the fan translation by Pikahlua, and it kind of makes a reference to her feelings for Izuku? Which doesnt have to be a bad thing, but it is weird to me to change it like that -idk if the official English translator was thinking about "preparing" the audience or something??

Idk if im just looking into things but when I read it it felt bad to me, so I checked the official Spanish translation to see if it also made a reference to past actions:

Fan translation: That's why... I'll put away even this wound that hurts all the time.

Official English translation: That's why... just like before, I'm dealing with this lasting pain... by shutting it all away.

Official Spanish translation: That's why... I've been repressing it... this wound and its pain...

Im guessing my problem comes from the over explanation that shifts the focus into, what I think is, the wrong thing: the official EN makes you focus on how she shut down her feelings for Izuku and how she is doing it again, while the fan translation and the SP are more about her repressing/pushing away specifically her pain for Himiko represented by her wound.

EDIT: I know she does have more moments where she cries when she's alone or with her parents only, I know, but lets be real, that paired with the shutting it away + Izuku appearing in the end makes you think more of that scene instead.

We understand then that the stab makes her unable to forget her, and thinks about a crying and smiling Toga during her sacrifice, while the official EN kind of forgets about it? It feels less powerful to me by skipping a mention of the wound, and by adding "just like before" it makes it look like her putting away her feelings for Izuku left a "lasting pain" at the same level of Himiko Toga dying, which. That's just wild to me?? As if her not confessing was causing her a lasting pain???? IN THE SAME LEVEL AS GRIEVING??

Im the only one reading it like that?

Under the cut im going to ramble a little more about the meaning of the stab wound:

When Himiko stabbed her, she fundamentally rejected Ochako.She claimed they were built different, and while ppl like her are able to live blessed lives happily, their rules dont allow ppl like Toga to even be close to that, and just get pitied instead. She did it angered and with flashing images of all the people who rejected her and pitied her existence going thru her mind; in that moment she cant see her caring for her genuinely, or even loving her as she "already" rejected her when she didnt understand her phrase "what do you wanna do to me?",too.

Even tho it was an action to get her away and to push her feelings down -her own love for Ochako, and instead focus on a villain like goal even tho all she has wanted is be herself happily- Ochako doesn't see it that way.

So, Himiko stabs her screaming to not be pitied, and Ochako keeps pushing it, going against what she thinks in order to be honest with her own feelings. Ochako's fear and sadness from before is revealed then to be related to not understanding Himiko's genuinely happiness. She finds inspiration in her and, I argue probably also Izuku, to then declare what she loves with her whole face: her lovely smile, and how much she wishes to be able to be like that too. Free like her.

What is that stab for her, when she sees the sacrificing Himiko? Because in that part she explains about loving someone to the point of giving herself her blood instead of taking it, I believe this is the face of pure reciprocal love. I wondered while reading the leaks why not choosing the "you think im cute?" face instead where she has the biggest smile, so my idea is that it represents something different. That moment was about Himiko being loved by Ochako, and the other about Ochako being loved by Himiko, using each other's languages -Ochako offers her blood not because Himiko needs it to survive literally, but because that's the way she can get closer to the other person; when she tells her she is the cutest in the world Himiko finds for the first time the love she always looked for without even asking for it.

Himiko gives her blood because she can't live in a world without her, but also because for Ochako sacrificing yourself for someone else its what she admires and loves. The best part about this is how they both arent doing it because they "have" to, their hearts already wish this and to do something for the other. It's genuine, it's heartwarming, and so bittersweet.

When Ochako feels that pain, she doesn't see an angry Himiko, or a sad Himiko, she sees Himiko doing an act of love for her. And that just hurts even more.

[robots-are-kinda-hot]

((long post incoming)) hi i havent posted in seven years. have slugcats

@ant1quarian is to blame for this. go look at their rain world utmv au before I implode

Side note I refer to Saint as he but none of my chars care abt gender bc i blasted them with the genderfluid beam

He would be . going thru it LMAO

I’m sure “fallen saint” did not mean a saint who probably deserved to be fallen but fuck it we ball. The problem with my Saint is he will ascend everything. Whether they want it or not. This creates a shit ton of echoes. So him losing his powers (likely due to a certain oc of mine) would actually be a good thing… eventually

At first he’d be pissed as all hell. Stays pissed as all hell when he meets Dust, Killer, and Cross (or whoever else). Getting to know them goes… ehhh. They all travel together, but Saint is trying to stay distant so he can move up karma. He’s also still very angry about losing his powers, but bottling it up bc saints shouldn't have emotions (according to him).

This comes to a head when someone gives the slightest suggestion of liking being alive. He shuts them down so fast it’s almost comical, but any good vibes are killed when Saint mentions how he ascended everything he came across. Cue argument about maybe Not Doing That. Cue Saint’s outburst (“WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT’S WRONG?!”)

Saint storms away from the group and sleeps in a different shelter alone. He… ends up thinking a little too much and has a bit of a breakdown. Begrudgingly goes back to the group once the rain stops, looking for forgiveness, and he FINALLY gets a crumb of character development. THEN the stage is set for eventual shipping shenanigans huehehehe (Saint still needs some more character development before he has anything official though, the bastard)

Design notes (because my saint design is a bit strange if you don’t know the context) + bonus old Artificer art bc she didn’t make it in here </3 dw i still love u arti

So… I’m gonna avoid talking about the main part of his design for funsies but its blaringly obvious. feel free to guess I’m like 80% sure everyone will get it

-My Saint actually has six tentacles/“wings”- three on either side so he’s symmetrical. After he falls, he loses a wing to represent said fall.

-The Saint in the first drawing is different on purpose! That’s him at the start with no echoes :] ironically the more echoes he meets the more echoed he gets

-At least one of his ears are always askew. This has to do with his main design aspect.

-He does have teeth. Kinda. He probably wouldn’t need to eat when fallen though, he’s echoed enough to not need it

-The three thingies on his forehead act like heat sensors. This lets Saint see at lower karma levels without getting snow blindness.

-He has pupils, but they’re the karma 10 symbol… which he no longer has, so he no longer has pupils too

Arti… oh, arti. My beloved. What the fuck did I do to you /pos

I missed you and all your triangular edgy goodness. You’ll get a few modifications but your cool ass face shadow and demon horn ears are staying

A little note about Artificer’s design, too: She does have her scar here! It’s just not visible under her shadow. My Artificer got so swept up in her rampage that she straight up forgot about her pups. Not coincidentally, her scar is vaguely shaped like a slugpup’s head. She’s blocking out the memories of her past in favor of needless bloodshed.

Not pictured is her fire fur that I still adore. Basically sometimes her fur just… isn’t fur, it’s fire, and while it is a more symbolic thing I love the idea of her fur turning to flames when she jumps

[improvised-finish]

FFXIV Write 2024 - Prompt #30 - Two Heads are Better than One

Content Warnings: None

Spoiler Warnings: Spoilers up to the level 96 quests in the Dawntrail MSQ

Summary: Koana comes knocking at the door of Lehon'a Nhavareh's Tuliyollal cabin to deliver a simple offer from his sister, but gets a bit more than he bargained for.

Check it out below or on Ao3:

“Surprised to see me? I suppose it’s only natural…”

Lehon’a countered with a laugh. “Pretty much anyone who isn’t Beau, Shtola, or Raha gets this look, so don’t worry, it’s not just you, Koana. What brings you around?”

“Uh, well… May I come in?”  Koana asked.

“Sure, this place is probably your home more than it is mine,” Lehon’a replied, trying to keep the tone of the conversation light as she swung the door open and the Hhetsarro stepped through. “So, what is it you came to talk about?”

He paused for a moment before offering an answer. “I haven’t properly thanked you.”

“What for?” Lehon’a answered with another question, clearly confused.

“That my sister was able to realize her potential is a testament to the quality of her traveling companions. Particularly you and Beau. For that, you have my heartfelt gratitude.”

“Oh. Well, your expression of gratitude is certainly appreciated, but to be quite honest, I felt more like a bit part this time around. If anything, it’s Beau you should be giving this speech to, but that might be selling the work your sister put in a bit short.” 

“About that… You see, my primary business in calling on you is to deliver a message from Lamaty’i, and since Beau often remains near her in her free time, I was charged with finding you specifically.”

“Ah. Well, I’m all ears, so hit me with that message you’ve got.”

“As you well know, after the ascension ceremony, Lamaty’i will officially take up the mantle of Dawnservant. She has expressed a desire for you to accept a post in her administration… while making no mention of me.”

It took all of Lehon’a’s resolve not to laugh out loud at the proposal. “Well, unfortunately for her, she is far from the first head of state to ask me to join their fledgling government, and how can I put this… bureaucracy is simply not the life for me. I’m much more of an open road kinda gal, and I think if I had to view the world from an office window all day, I’d probably spontaneously combust.” She put a hand to her chin, considering something. “You know, even as enamored with Wuk Lamat as Beau is, I’m really not sure that even she’d accept such an offer. Meetings and paperwork never seemed her style.” Lehon’a paused for a moment, the rest of what Koana said catching up to her. “And really, nothing about you at all? Now that’s a real surprise.”

“It is her wish, I suppose, and I’m not in much position to make demands,” Koana replied, struggling at this point to keep the dejected tone from his voice. “It seems you have become someone irreplaceable to her, and as her brother, I acknowledge that with no little jealousy.”

“See, that’s what’s got me confused! I might as well be a random adventurer from Eorzea; there’s nothing particularly noteworthy I’ve done here that Wuk Lamat and any other adventurer with a decent number of years under their belt wouldn’t also have been able to do. And don’t get me wrong, I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to stand beside her and explore the beauty of Tural and her peoples, but the fact that it’s me and Beau feels… immaterial. She just needed the nudges here and there to go outside her comfort zone– both of you did. And given how things turned out, I would think you’d be a natural fit to stand right by her side. You’ve got the practical and technical knowledge she lacks, and she can balance that with people skills and her oversized heart, almost akin to your father and his two heads: one of Reason, and one of Resolve.” 

She turned her gaze from a random wall object to Koana himself. “We spoke in the middle of the Rite, your father, Beau and I. And we came to the shared conclusion that all four of the claimants had work to do to better themselves as potential rulers and stewards of this great nation. Wuk Lamat might have technically won the contest by the rules, but it’s pretty obvious to see you’ve grown a great deal, Koana. The man I met in the fields of Ok’hanu is not the same man standing before me today, and both you and Tuliyollal are better for it, I reckon.”

Koana remained silent, unable to accept Lehon’a’s praise head on.

“And it’s like that old saying, right? ‘Two heads are better than one.’ I have to imagine in the case of overseeing such a large region as Tuliyollal encompasses, two heads of state would certainly be able to cover more ground, especially when they work as well in tandem as the two of you do. –And don’t try to deny that! I watched you both during the feat in Iq’Braax!” She stepped across the room and put a hand on his shoulder. “Take it from me. I would not have been able to accomplish half as many of the impossible feats under my belt if not for Beau by my side. We lean on each other, amplifying each others’ strengths and shoring up each others’ weaknesses. I know Wuk Lamat cares about you, and I don’t doubt that when the going gets tough and the Scions have ventured elsewhere, you will be the one she turns to to do exactly that.”

“I know not what to say, I… I appreciate your kind words, Lehon’a.” Koana replied, voice wavering just slightly as he walked back towards the door. “I’ll do my best to be the person you speak of. To be someone she feels she can rely on, come whatever may at the ceremony.”

“And that’s all anyone– me, your father, or Wuk Lamat herself– could ask.” Lehon’a smiled softly as she pulled the door ajar once more and watched Koana walk through. “See you soon, Koana,” she said, offering a small two-finger salute.

“See you soon,” he replied, turning and mirroring the greeting before setting off down the dock.

Lehon’a closed the door and immediately began hunting for her linkpearl. I wonder if it’s not too late to have Beau talk to Wuk Lamat about this. It certainly seems worth asking about, at the very least. As she snatched up the device from the side table where she’d finally spotted it, Lehon’a had another thought. You know, knowing Wuk Lamat, maybe she just wanted to surprise him.

[blueikeproductions]

Well it’s official. This time we mean it.

EarthSpark is officially over as the toy listings for the next show are out.

The next thing is Transformers Cyberworld.

Any relation to Cyberverse is unknown atm, but if Hasbro is serious about not revisiting older series, then this is a new continuity either way. Cyberverse came from a toy line used in the films and Prime, so it was probably a trademark slap deal for the cartoon. Cyberverse didn’t refer to anything unique to the show, and no I don’t count the multiverse as they never once referred to it as “the Cyberverse”, and the show was made up on the fly as they went with multiverse stuff coming on much later coincidentally. In no way was Cyberverse/multiverse planned, that takes a level of basic planning the CV writers didn’t know how to do.

To my recollection Cyberworld isn’t in reference to a preexisting thing toyline or otherwise, so hopefully whatever Cyberworld IS is better expressed in the plot and toy gimmicks.

The toy listings don’t have Megs, Screamer & the Waves as previously mentioned, but they also seemingly lack Bee & Optimus.

The named Autobots so far are Mirage, Grimlock and (presumably) Snarl.

Presumably Snarl as most instances are Autobots/Maximals, the most famous being the Dinobot Snarl. More than likely it’s the Dinobot, but we do have an instance of a Snarl being a wolf. I’d be fun seeing the wolf again lol.

The Decepticons meanwhile are Galvatron, Scorponok, Sky-Byte and (presumably) Offroad.

Presumably Offroad is a Decepticon (most TFs with the name are), but the toy is listed as “OP Offroad” so it MAY be an off road truck version of Optimus Prime, similar to his RBA & ROTB toys.

One toy is listed as “Meg Bull”. No idea what this refers to. Theres plenty of bull Transformers, but whether this is any of them isn’t clear. This being a “Megatron Bull” would be hilarious but I don’t really see Hasbro doing this just yet either.

Toy gimmicks and sets similar to what we saw last in Prime appear to be making a return? “Scorponok Strike Battle” sounds like something in that vein like a Hot Wheels play set, though it may just be Scorponok with a tail lashing action. Beast Wars style, Movie style or G1 style remains to be seen.

Galvatron is said to have armor, while the other gimmick line’s called “Cyber Changers”.

These are probably the One Step Changers of the series but hopefully it’s something more involved like the Beast Hunters.

Chomp & Stomp Grimlock is probably more than likely another version of this:

Hopefully retooled to better match the new Grimlock though.

The stand outs are Galvatron & Scorponok, as it’s not clear which one is the leader of the Decepticons here. Both have been leaders before, & more than likely it’s Galvatron. Galvatron being used again is the biggest shock, as Hasbro has been dodgy about using him in place of Megatron in recent years. IDW wrote Galvatron as a separate character who predates Megatron, while Prime Wars declares (confusingly) that Megatron used to be Galvatron, implying he somehow de-evolved, which has never been depicted properly. (Japanese G1 stuff adds to the confusion where Galvatron evolves further but goes back to calling himself Megatron… oy…) WFC tries to have it both ways with Galvatron as a separate individual, but that he’s from a dark timeline where both he and Optimus were enslaved by Unicron…

I suppose my point is technically Megatron is still in the series as he’s typically portrayed as evolving into Galvatron, but Hasbro has been so weird about non Optimus and Megatron leaders, that they could easily just have Galvatron be an unrelated villain. Either way, the desire to focus on Galvatron is very welcome, regardless if he’s Megatron or not.

[cakepoppresent]

We'll Be Okay

Everyone heads to Brindleton Bay to enjoy the end-of-summer party hosted by Veronica. A whole summer apart everyone has a lot to catch up on and enjoy their last moments of freedom before their last year of university

Heading to the kitchen to get some more things for the party, Grayson feels a little disappointed that he hasn't seen Gideon yet. It took the whole summer for him to get the courage to finally face Gideon. Not paying attention to his surroundings he hears his name being called

"Grayson"

This is awkward. Very awkward.

"We need to talk Grayson"

They sit together quietly just enjoying each other's company. They left each other on such bad terms now that they are here sitting beside each other none of them know what to say first. "I did get that tattoo. It's a dagger with a snake on my back. I'm sorry for keeping that from you. I did it because I wanted to make sure I could protect you, looking back at it now I did more harm than good. I'd do anything for you Grayson, it was a small price to pay if it meant we could be together"

"I've done things I'm not proud of. I just don't want you to think any less of me"

"I should have trusted you more. I still trust you...I was just being silly"

"My family did some unforgivable things. It was a scary situation but you don't have to worry about them anymore"

Grayson understands the meaning of those words but he wants to hear them loud and clear. Gideon still feels like the same man he grew up with but now there is an edge to him that Grayson wants to understand

"Did you...kill your grandparents?"

"No. Just Alaia..."

It's a hard pill to swallow knowing that Gideon the person he grew up with could do that. He saw Gideon through a rose-coloured lens, his Gideon was sweet, soft and comforting. He knows Gideon is still all those things but this version of Gideon is very attractive. The question at the tip of Grayson's tongue is gonna be hard but he knows this is an important step for them

"Would you hate me if I said I wanted to stay single for a little while longer?"

Those words cut at Gideon's heart. He just wants things to go back to how they were. He wants Grayson back in his life, his home and his bed. Life is empty without him.

"I could never hate you."

"I do want to get back together...eventually. But this past year has been a mess, I stopped feeling like myself with everything going on. I stopped painting, I was stressed and felt this heavy weight on my shoulders. I love you so much but this space would be good...for us"

Gideon doesn't want to take a damn break. He wants to be with Grayson officially, he wants to get married and he wants Grayson in his bed every. single. night.

"You're not allowed to see anyone else!"

"Since when were you so selfish?"

"I don't care! You can't do it! I heard something over the summer did you beat up a kid in high school for wanting to ask me out?"

"Who told you about that?"

"Answer me!"

"Yes. He was a little shit and I'd do it again" Grayson is losing his mind, Gideon has always been hot but this is at a new level and he likes it. A lot

They lay together silently. Once they get up they are stuck in this awkward place, not boyfriends but still friends, not exactly broken up either. Grayson didn't give a timeline for how long he wants their break but it's probably better this way. "Don't worry. We'll be fine"

Previous- Next

[marengogo]

Rambling in INFJese - Part 9: Dear Future Baby Jikooker and Some Jikookers as well…

Listening to album D-DAY - by Agust D  ON REPEAT

[Music is a very big part of my life and I’m MOSTLY INCAPABLE of writing without music, so I just thought I'd share what I am listening to while writing this]

🐺 — 🐺 — 🐺—

Dear Future Baby Jikooker,

Here is a letter from me to you, who have just stepped into this curious neck of the woods, but also for Jikookers, who presently might feel lost, in this neck of the woods. This is going to be a long-ass post, ops 😬. In my defence, it could have been even much longer than it is, but let’s be real, there is only so much you might be willing to read at this stage and, at the same time, only so much I can write before I stray well out of topic. BUT let’s start with a welcome, shall we? A very big welcome to those of you who have decided, for one reason or another and we will touch on that to be “Jikookers”. Welcome and congratulations: you’ve officially picked the most fear-inducing, hate-provoking, blasted-ass ship, perhaps, in history but that is just my perception, admittedly, Cleopatra and Mark Anthony might have been good contenders, by the fandom they belong to and most of all shippers within the fandom as well.

SO YES, welcome welcome welcome to the Tumblr side of Jikook things! Now, before we dive deeper into what awaits in my post, and most importantly, into Jikook-world, it’s best we get one thing straight, right off the bat:

Mmm … you might have already known this, in fact you are probably looking at me like “You ain’t gotta tell me that, bitch, like …” but truuuust me when I tell you that this is not as obvious or as known a fact as it ought to be … chiiiiiile 😩. 

That being said, there are usually two main starting points for people who end up here, and by here, I don’t mean specifically Jikook-Tumblr, but Jikook-world in general:

You have been ARMY / BTS fans / JK and/or JM bias for a while and are thus familiar with all members in BTS at a level that is above avarage.

You have no clue about anything-BTS, but you heard that there is this “couple” in BTS, so the name of the other members is probably as much as you might know. 

As you are ultimately here because of a possible romantic relationship between JK and JM, whether you are 1 or 2 doesn’t make you any better or worse than being 2 or 1. What it does however, is that it will 100% influence and condition the experience you might/will have. That, in addition with the answer to the following question which I highly suggest you ask yourself before you fully step in: 

“Why am I here?”

… Perhaps “I believe Jikook is 100% real”, or “I wonder: is Jikook even real right now?”, or “I have reason to believe that Jikook might be, but actually …”, or “I’m not saying but I’m saying, Jikook?!”, or “IDGAF I just think they look good together”, etc etc etc. Trust me, there is a Jikook blog that aligns with any and all conscious and subconscious states of mind, beliefs and/or opinions. So as you proceed, you will or might not realise that some blogs simply want to find people who are like-minded, some blogs just want to rave, rant and talk about the boys to their heart's content, some blogs want to build a following/clout, and some blogs might be up to no good amongst these, some might not even realise that they are….

I, for one, got into the Jikook-world coming from type 1. BTS found me when I needed them the most and I just ended up loving all 7 of them, in different ways, but all 7 nonetheless AND as you might or might not know, I am indeed OT7. One day, as it happens to all of us, I stumbled on a shipping video on YT, it was a Taejin one: I clicked. To begin I was initially shocked that BTS would still have ships at the point in their career (this was around 2021) and I actually thought Taejin to be real … and then you see SOPE, Namjin, taekook, there were so many and all had their reasons etc. After a while I just found them all very cute and didn’t take them seriously at all. 

Eventually, somehow, a Jikook video by Made in Busan appeared, I watched it and that was it: … I felt something. But even though I did feel something, I tried to ignore it because as a queer person pansexual I mostly walk around with my invisible hope on my sleeves ALL THE TIMES. So it felt that, once again, for the one millionth time, I would end up wanting them to be so real that the disappointment would crush me, making me feel that once again, people like me are undeserving of love, or at the very least, African and Asian countries are never going to accept this. At this very moment a great part of the USA, and certain parts of Europe, are the only places where famous people and not can live being who they are. 

In many other places in this world, particularly African and Asian countries, it is still taboo, dangerous and even life threatening and I am in-between these two types of worlds. So I rejoice everytime a queer couple publically comes out, because even though I know I cannot be them the maximum I can do is go to pride in my pink, yellow and blue outfit it makes me happy to know that had I been born in a different continent, within a different culture, that perhaps, it could have been me. Basically, it feels that happiness for people like me is attainable, even if not for me, if others can safely make it, it would be enough for me for now. 

I started from YT and WHAT A MESS IT TURNED OUT TO BE. I made the very big mistake of thinking that because jikook was so rare in the fandom, then people who believed in them were just like me trying to understand kindred spirits. I thought that we were in this to protect and potentially, if time ever would allow, to support what would have become a very influential gay couple. But as time passed, before I knew it, I found myself within the episode of the most toxic BL where, everyone heard voices, many betrayed each other for affection, all slept with each other to spite all, and some resorted to using fans in order to bully each other. The more accounts with this mentality started to appear, the more normal accounts started to disappear. It got to a point were I, a person whom in the meantime had forgotten was a OT7, started to believe that some members were indeed narcissist and any other non-self diagnosable trait. WHEN I REALISED I had to take a BIG-ASS breath,  slap myself out of fiction and get-out-style-ran myself back into reality: LIKE … WHAT THE FUCK HAD JUST HAPPENED?!

I had completely forgotten about who BTS were, I got entirely lost in the wrong side of the woods for me, basically I completely forgot why I was even there in the first place! When I then myself in the only youtube channel I trusted at the time, who also suggested we should check a certain blog on Tumblr, when I did, I found a kindred spirit and never went back to YT (by that time wonsummernight had left, Made in Busan, like MizGator, were all gone). There was no forced narrative, the logical consideration of events, the unexplainable emotion of others, it was up the alley I had wanted to be. It brought it back to me just supporting real maybe-queer people like me, rather than fighting over fictional characters in a drama that had nothing to do with me at all. 

I regained my rationality, and peacefully lurked, until I got curious about certain topics and decided to send in asks, or just wanted to send words of encouragement to other blogs I began to like and were constantly attacked. Eventually I realised my side of the woods was also thinning out, and because I felt like I had a lot to say as well I began this blog, to just talk, talk and talk. It was fun talking, revisiting Jikook moments with other people who thought alike or people who respectfully didn’t and still kept it at a healthy level. Speaking with other queer folk was also a perk. I literally had no expectations upon coming on Tumblr, I just wanted to keep up with Jikook, while keeping my sanity and rationality. Writing my thoughts about them also helped me lay out my opinions and, through educated speculation, maybe realise things about Jikook hadn’t before and so on and so forth. As things stand in this very moment, within my boundaries, I still believe there is something between them. Chapter 2 is what, surprising, turning out to be as I predicted it would be, to a T except for JK’s weverse, that I couldn’t predict not a single one, for shit it is all very interesting to be honest, and though I can know see things will only get harder from here on, it is okay. 

Even though this place feels like it is about to become another, YT, twitter, etc. It is okay. I never had any expectations to begin with, but the fact that I know where I stand in my Jikook neck of the woods, makes my anger towards some bullshit very well directed towards said bullshit, and never towards jikook, BTS or any unrelated parties. I like that when I log off my life goes on. I love that even though I have times when I miss them a lot, it is just that and I am not going crazy over it. In the same way I love that there is a chance that within this global powerhouse of a band there might be somebody that loves like me. In the queer way I, and many others, do. 

So my dear future Baby Jikooker, find out why you are here. Understand what it is you want. If it is being in delulu-land that is perfectly fine I also go there from time to time, I find it fun, and when things actually happen right from delulu-land it makes it even more fun! Just gotta trade carefully, that's all. If you wanna find friends, if you wanna talk, whatever it is, just be aware of your decisions, and possible consequences, and you will not be disappointed, hurt or disillusioned, in the long run. If you don’t like all the other members, at the very lease please respect them, because Jikook surely do love them.

If you find that this environment is becoming too much for you, protect yourself the best way you can, leave if you need to, you have the right to do so. As you keep exploring make sure to find the blog that is right for you, and if you feel like it is what you want, write your own. If something feels too good to be true, check sources, always, original content is always available. If you are okay for them to be too good to be true, then do you, it is your experience, just be mindful not to ruin it for others and I hope nobody ruins it for you.

So once again, WELCOME TO JIKOOK-WORLD. I hope you don’t get too lost and you find what you were looking for. I hope you come out of it alive, if at some point you decide to run away. And if you survive all the bullshit that might take place between now and their military service (MS), if you are still around, and Jikook just so happen to be who we think they might be; then I’ll see you on the other side, or if you want come holla.

Always respectfully yours,

Marengo.

[cringecompanionapologist]

Turlough Tales 2: Planet of Fire

I've marked this as a sequel to make it clear that there's an original out there for people to seek out if they need context for these.

I realize that this whole thing is a bit weird. Before the internet, fanzines were where fanfic was published, so these stories from a fanzine really should be on the same level as something posted on Ao3, but it feels different. Magazines are published. Stories have to be approved by an editor, and people pay for the magazine. (in theory, anyway. I'm getting these from archive.org). It makes fanzine fanfics feel more "official" than online ones. They went through a "quality control" process my fics don't have to. So, it's tempting to treat these fanzine stories as more like Short Trips, which were published by either the BBC or Big Finish. But, they're not, so I'm analyzing fanworks as if they can be compared to official EU material, because my zillennial brain can't comprehend pre-internet fanfiction. To people who were active in fandom, reading fanzines in 1996, I probably look like a bit of a dumbass.

Anyway...

I probably should've included a cut like this in the last one. Also, this is gonna take a while. I have a lot to talk about here.

Before we start on this next story, there's a quote in the same issue of the magazine that I think is vital to understanding why this exists the way it does. Peter Grimwade, inventor of the Trions, had a take on them different from anything I've seen anywhere else.

So, this story I think is more based on the idea of Trions as a Planet of Lawyers.

You see, in sci-fi, because writing a planet as complex and diverse as Earth, unless it's the only planet depicted in the story, is virtually impossible, alien worlds are often given a single culture that, though it can be explored in more detail, can pretty much be summed up in a single word. The trope that is doing this is called the Planet of Hats. The "hat" being a single concept that defines the culture of the planet that the audience gets to see. Star Trek has done this a fuckton of times, which a Planet of Logic, Planet of Honor Codes, Planet of Capitalism, and Planet of Pure Devotion to the State, to (not) name a few. (This was about Vulcans, Klingons, Ferengi, and Cardassians, if you're a Trekkie but couldn't figure that out lol).

In Doctor Who, with a few exceptions, specific alien worlds aren't often explored for more than one story, so the clear Planet of Hats you see in Star Trek isn't always obvious. Gallifrey can get a certain amount of development, and a few other planets are featured more than once (Skaro, Mondas, and Peladon, to name a few), but you usually don't get full cultures from them, since Daleks and Cybermen are too uniform to really have much of a culture to speak of. Daleks are the "kill everyone" people and Cybermen are the "convert everyone" people. Sontarans are Planet of War though, so that kind of works.

Trion is never even directly visited by the Doctor onscreen, so it gets little development. They had a civil war and Turlough's from there. That's all the show really gives us. This meant EU media could basically do whatever the fuck they wanted with it, as could fan works. However, there were a few more details that popped up early on, and thus became adopted by most people.

A Brief History of Doctor Who EU Nonsense:

Most Doctor Who EU media began during the Wilderness Years, when the show was off the air. There are a few exceptions to this. Doctor Who Magazine started doing comics in around 1980, and the magazine had a semi-official status, so you had proper tie-in comics for the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th Doctors while their episodes were still airing.

Before that, there were annuals, yearly books of comics and short stories. The first one of these was published in 1965 and most of them had virtually nothing to do with the show until the 1980s. In the 1980s, JNT became producer and changed how basically everything worked. One of those changes was taking control of the EU, making sure the people working for more popular magazines and working on annuals and ongoing comic strips had access to enough information to know what was going on in the actual show. The children these things were aimed at earlier were assumed to not care, but Doctor Who in the 80s was marketed less to children and more to people who'd already been watching Doctor Who for at least a decade. The show took on a more serious tone and referenced its continuity more to pander to this new target demographic, and making sure the annuals didn't contradict the show was just a nice little side effect of the change.

This also applies to TV Comic, a comic strip that began in 1964 and was running beside and pretty much completely detached from the show throughout the 60s and 70s. It basically ended when DWM took over Doctor Who comic writing duties.

But, I just wasted your time on a bunch of this that don't matter here, because the only pre-1990 EU relevant to this story are the Target novelizations and a short-lived book series called The Companions of Doctor Who.

Planet of Fire got a novelization, like all classic serials eventually did, but it was one of the lucky ones to get a novelization not long after the episodes aired, written by the same person who wrote said episodes, making the serial and its novelization sort of equally canon to each other, coming from the same brain. The serial aired in 1984 and the novelization came out in 1985.

The novelization added a bit to Turlough's backstory, namely that the civil war was a revolution against the Imperial Clans, a group of families that had ruled the planet before. Turlough's family was one of the Imperial Clans. When the regime was overthrown, surviving members of the clans were either executed or exiled. What the Imperial Clans were beyond "the rulers of Trion" is never elaborated upon.

But, in 1986, someone did. This was the first of a series of spin-off novels called The Companions of Doctor Who, which followed companions after they left the TARDIS. In the end, the series had only three entries, the third of which was a novelization of K9 and Company, a failed spin-off about Sarah Jane and K9. So the only real entries are Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma and Harry Sullivan's War. Harry Sullivan's War had the advantage of being written by Ian Marter, who played Harry and therefore understood the character very well.

Tony Attwood, who wrote Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma, had nothing to do with the show and the both is not well-liked by Turlough fans. As far as I can tell, Attwood did talk to Mark Strickson while writing the novel, but not to Peter Grimwade, which he wasn't happy about. Still, the Imperial Clans from the novelization were included in The Earthlink Dilemma, portrayed as a sort of caste of scientists that ruled Trion for millennia, while mostly allowing the commoners to do their own thing. A lot of work is done to make the Imperial Clans seem good and make the leader of the revolution a terrible person who basically led a Reign of Terror (her name is Thatcher spelled backwards!!!).

This means that when Trion is given a Planet of Hats effect, they're more often a Planet of Scientists than a Planet of Lawyers. Turlough is proud of Trion scientific achievements and, when he returns to Trion, welcomed back as a hero and offered political power in the democratic government, he instead decides to be an astrophysicist. He just wanted to be a scientist this whole time. It's actually a pretty interesting take on the character, which is why it tends to stick around.

But, this story in this fanzine (remember that that's what this post was supposed to be about?) really leans into the Planet of Lawyers aspect and offers an alternate ending.

You can tell it's not canon because Vizlov. Not Vislor, nor Vizlor, but Vizlov. Oops.

Anyway, you can see that this version of Turlough was apparently charged with treason for rebelling against the government, instead of being part of the regime that was rebelled against. Said government is referred to as New Trion though, which muddies the waters.

Turlough's exile has a different purpose here. The Trions are basically trying to gain legal control of Earth and Turlough's exile was intended to have him eventually participate in that plan, as well as training in "primitive systems" as a sort of character-building exercise.

It seems that Turlough was blamed for the destruction of Sarn, because the Trions had no idea about the Master or anything else that was going on there. They thought Turlough, after escaping Earth, deliberately destroyed Sarn for Reasons. The exact charges:

He did escape his exile on Earth.

"Consorting with undesirable aliens" is an interesting one. Since Trions are actively involved on Earth, I don't think this would mean humans. This might mean the Doctor? Other EU works reveal that the Time Lords colonized Trion, so there might be a conflict there.

He's also seen as being involved in overthrowing the religious regime on Sarn, which is apparently protected in some way. Sarn is also considered government property that Turlough destroyed because, once again, the Trions don't know what actually happened and have no interest in listening to Turlough.

The Trions also have no way of knowing about Tegan, since she'd already left by Planet of Fire, but this bit is funny.

Turlough had been lured to Trion under false pretenses, expecting not to be immediately arrested again. There's some Lawyer Speak: You won't be persecuted for his previous crimes, but they will persecute him for new ones. Also Lomand has taken credit for Turlough's heroics. The bastard. Also, apparently political criminals don't exist because the motivation of the crimes do not matter...

Though, this story, like The Earthlink Dilemma, doesn't say what happens to Malkon in all this.

He can't prove the existence of the Guardians. Though, when it comes to his departure from Earth, Turlough is actually being dishonest here. He chose to go with the Doctor and was obviously desperate to escape Earth, so he is actually guilty on that one.

Also, Turlough encountered Tractators, which is enough to justify exile, because existing in the same space as Tractators threatens Trion? Because it's an infection? Maybe they're the "undesirable aliens"...

So, instead of going back to Brendon, he's now basically an intern to the lawyer who'd been handling his case, possibly to once again participate in the legal conquest of Earth they've got going.

We end on a sort of Where Are They Now? where we learn how Turlough's doing in 1996 (present day when the zine was published).

"Doctors have been manipulating him all his life" Ouch...

He definitely has reason to feel abandoned by the Doctor here. The Doctor didn't exactly check to confirm that Turlough was actually going home as a hero and not being lured into a trap. Perhaps the Doctor could've explained things to the other Trions somehow, or just straight up helped him escape.

So Turlough becomes a lawyer in an army of lawyers from the Planet of Lawyers trying to take over Earth. That's hilarious but also sad.

I still prefer "Returns to Trion as a hero but turns down the spotlight to become an astrophysicist" though.

[tacky-optic]

OK so i've been in this fandom for well over a year now (since the end of october, ew) and zenigata is still my favorite. so after all this time, i'm finally slapping down some of my thoughts about the version of the loud angry rectangle that runs around in my brain and this nightmare of a franchise in general. as a new year treat.

most of these have actually been in my notes since february or march, made as semi-sporadic thoughts while i trudged through the series. i wonder if it's obvious what installment i was watching/had in mind for each of these, lol. anyway i found these at the bottom of my lupin notes folder back in october, plopped them here, then forgot about them again, oops.

but they're here now! at the very end of 2023! under the cut! you can even read them, if you want!

zenigata is selfish. there is a genuine drive to help people and do what's right, but pursuing lupin specifically? 100% an ego thing. zenigata pursues lupin (the world's greatest criminal) because he feels like he's obligated to (as the greatest cop (and not that he necessarily thinks this about himself presently, but subconsciously)). it stopped purely being 'the right thing to do' after the amount of chases hit double digits -- probably even earlier than that.

so what does he really want to achieve here? who knows, because he sure as hell doesn't lololol.

but seriously tho. it's probably simple human connection. or acknowledgement. he's always operated on a different level from everyone else, likely to the point of boredom and/or unfulfillment, so once he comes across someone that might operate on a level higher than him, of course he gets obsessed. game recognizes game and it's liberating.

he's most likely used to "it's only a matter of time" and not much else, so i bet the realization that "it's gonna be tough to catch this guy, isn't it?" was exhilarating because he NEVER had to think that before. and honestly, good for him. he seemed to have been a different sort of miserable before, but at least this new version allows for some bouts of genuine enjoyment.

he had to have said "because i'm the only one who can" at LEAST once, right? which is true! he is the only one who can. that's why lupin keeps him around. zenigata is the single legitimate threat that lupin hadn't managed to get rid of/ sway to his side and that amuses him to no end. he really likes that stubborn old man. he's great.

it's obvious that his skills would be far more useful and impactful on literally any other criminal case, yet he ACTIVELY CHOOSES to allocate his time to chasing after someone who simply can't be caught. and what's even worse is that he IS the only person who can catch him, maybe even end it all for good, but it's reached a point where he simply doesn't WANT to, solely because the chase is THAT entertaining/enriching/compelling to him. calling it a compulsion is great, actually. he's obsessed, doomed by the narrative, consumed by his ideals, etc. etc, and he's completely trapped by cartoon logic. i doubt he knows anything else.

the dark infatuation is great and all, don't get me wrong, but i really enjoy those bouts where he kinda just exists. he's living his best life, candidly enjoying what's going on around him or the (comparatively) simpler aspects of his job, and all that stuff up top becomes irrelevant, at least for a little while. i don't think he's wholly doomed, per se, just that we won't be seeing an "after" for him in any official capacity. because again, cartoon logic. he's got a role to fill, even if it's an objectively shit one -- but he makes do, and the fact that he is allowed to do other things is enough for me.

y'know, in hindsight, i think the live-action show impacted how i view this guy the most. i really do believe he doesn't have to be defined by his role in lupin's story. at heart he's a chaser, a dreamer. he keeps trying, over and over, and despite everything, he hopes. if he was none of those things he wouldn't even be after lupin in the first place, or lupin would never recognize him as his true rival.

....maybe i'll actually manage to finish some of the wips i have about all that stuff one of these days, lol.

as far as other media goes: parts 1, 2 and 4, tokyo crisis, ep 0: first contact, g vs r, and fuma are all pretty high up there, too. maybe a smidge of koike if i'm feeling particularly angsty, but until zeni's title movie comes out i wouldn't put too much weight on that one.

i'd be remiss to talk about the guy's most popular pairing, right? i mean, i gotta. it's lowkey kinda wild how luzeni never fascinated me to a point where i'd feel compelled to write or draw much of anything for them. they're like, all the worst aspects of fujilup/jiglup smashed together lmao. THAT'S INSANE, THEY'RE INSANE TOGETHER AND IT'S SO GOOD. but nah, jigzeni. we'll, uh.... we'll leave that for later.

my guess is it's because the fandom satiated any itch for luzeni that would've been there otherwise, like, right off the bat. the fics alone are so incredible to me and have greatly impacted how i see zeni in their own right. i should really re-read some of them. and maybe you should too, so--

LIST JUMPSCARE!! i read all of these (and more!!) this year!! and yes, they all involve zenigata!! i don't half-ass this obsession, just like zeni lmao. just be mindful of ratings and tags, ofc. explicits are red but the rest is reader's discretion. and if by the incredibly slim chance any of the writers of these see this, thank you for sharing your works, they're really friggin cool B)

Knave of Diamonds/Thoughts May Dim/Under Your Hat

In The Margins Of Another Life

Sunrise, Sunset

Judo in the Schwarzwald

unsaid/lucky strike/cold hands

The Language of Flowers

With Enemies Like These/All Along The Watchtower/Fair Game

Friends Don't Let Friends Diss The Chef

Fates Entwined

The Many Deaths of Kōichi Zenigata

mean luzeni series/Secondhand Vanity

Disreputable Company

Smother Your Sorrow

Kintsugi/how to hit on Zenigata and not actually hit him

pour déplacer un autre/My Dear Icarus

Fifty-Two, No Longer Counting

Smoke and Moonlight/Off the Record

this doesn't even scratch the surface, hah. i think i might like to read but i can't be entirely sure.

my favorite part of this fandom is probably how moldable all of the characters are; you can pick and choose from so many different types of media and sculpt the finer details however you want, but at their cores the character's fundamentals still shine through. it's how we get those fics and fanarts and even text posts like these going on about headcanons. this cast feels like people that've taken on lives of their own outside of their (frankly problematic) source material and that's super neat.

so at the end of the day, there really is no definitive version of zenigata, or any of the others for that matter; just a handful of constants. all of those bits and pieces from up top are a part of my zeni, in one way or another -- but i like a dozen other zenigatas too, even ones that might go against those points. he's definitely been my favorite for a straight year for a reason. maybe one of these days i'll figure out how to actually finish a story all on my lonesome and you'll be able to see my version of him in action ;)

so that's that, i guess. here's to another year.... and hopefully more lupin content, lol. i might not trust tms but i trust the fandom. it's a small but strong and good one and i'm glad to be part of it, even if it isn't in the most active capacity.

anyway pls keep drawing zeni like twice the size of everyone else lmao. tms are cowards for giving him stick arms like lupin >:((