#also had to correct a bit of the dialogue bc I wrote the wrong thing
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Finally page 7 is here!!! Discoveries were made, but it seems Julie's hits a little too close to home...
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#welcome home#welcome home au#real world au#wally darling#barnaby b beagle#julie joyful#frank frankly#eddie dear#howdy pillar#sally starlet#poppy partridge#late posting grrrr#also had to correct a bit of the dialogue bc I wrote the wrong thing#the wrong one is one twitter but it's only one word so it doesn't really matter#just wanted to change it for tumblr
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20 Questions: Fic Author Edition
omg <3. thank you for tagging me @bodyelectric77<3 <3. ive never done this before so this is so exciting :o)
1) How many works do you have on ao3?
45. damn!
2) What's your total AO3 word count?
601,692
3) What fandoms do you write for?
the hunger games / ballad of songbirds and snakes mostly. sometimes total drama island lol
4) What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
a deep dive into the mind of annie cresta
get a load of this monster
a collection of encanto what-ifs
eat my heart out with a spoon
u focus on the wrong thing and it shows
5) Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
i love responding to comments! it blows my mind that there are people reading words i wrote and taking time out of their day to be so sweet! <3
6) What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
probs you hurt my head like cheap red wine
7) What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
queen of crabs, it's the silly awkward first date antics odesta deserves <3
8) Do you get hate on fics?
no (thank god)
9) Do you write smut? If so what kind?
i tried writing E rated smut once but one thing about me is that intimacy makes me laugh out fucking loud (like i always try to do bits like im wearing the crown of clowns it can get very awkward) so whenever i write anything smut-adjacent im incapable of writing it sexy i just kinda feel silly the entire time. perhaps its the asexual in me
10) Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?
nah. but i think an umbrella academy and succession crossover would fuck
11) Have you ever had a fic stolen?
nope
12) Have you ever had a fic translated?
nope
13) Have you ever cowritten a fic before?
nope
14) What's your all-time favorite ship?
percabeth <3 (sorry odesta but on my first read thru of the hunger games i hated annie for no fucking reason and developed a hc that johanna and finnick were having an affair.. but that is a convo for another day. LOVE them now tho obv, but ive been shipping percabeth since day 1 theyre so cute and in luv)
15) What's a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?
tbh prob the odesta greek au. i love the concept (siren!annie is very important to me) but im just not in a greek mythology mood anymore
16) What are your writing strengths?
sometimes when i write emotions i feel like as a reader you can look at it and go "oh okay. i know that feeling" which is awesome
17) What are your writing weaknesses?
i am in love with run on sentences. "no its just a stream of consciouness writing style" baby you just wrote something that's mostly just em dashes and semicolons and parenthesis. also i don't know how to describe stuff so thank god for the internet bc i link outfits like my life depends on it. ive always struggled w writing locations too. and ive been wanting to get better at writing bits
18) Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?
i tried doing this with a mags fanfic i wrote bc i hc that d4 spoke spanish before the first war. there is literally only one sentence in spanish though bc i knew for a fact the phrasing was correct (at least in a casual, conversational setting) but i do think it's really cool when people write d4 characters having entire convos in spanish even though im not confident enough in my langauge skills to do it myself. also i just don't think d4 would know how to speak spanish in canon times, prob just affectionate terms like mija/o or mano or chula. like stuff that doesn't rlly affect how the capitol understands them. i get into this in the fic, but i think even by magsā generation spanish would stop being a common language in d4. like i love the sentiment of her carrying a piece of that w her but i donāt think the capitol would let them get away with that and itās also Not Easy to remember how to speak a language you only learned as a child and then never used for the rest of ur life, which is what i imagined happened with her + her gen. like. me and my siblings only know english bc the moment my dad moved here he was like āokay. English Timeā and that stemmed from the pressure to assimilate can you imagine if the actual law got involved. anyway this answer got long but i have a lot of thoughts about this sorta stuff, esp in d4
19) First fandom you wrote for?
percy jackson lol
20) Favorite fic you've ever written?
don't keep the devil waiting, old friend. tbh this answer changes all the time any fic im currently working on is automatically my fav lol
idk why i feel a bit silly about tagging people directly, so i am informally tagging anyone who wants to do this sorry i hope this isn't a cop out <3. ily
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tagged by both @lyricfulloflight and @mamsellefreeman i am FINALLY filling this out during surprise surprise a webinar. this got SUPER long so itās under the cut
1. How many works do you have on AO3? 17, with 4 more pending upload
2. Whatās your total AO3 word count? 116019. when i hit 150k iām going to have a mini celebration where people get to make fic requests (weāll see if anyone bites) so watch this spaceĀ ššš
3. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?Ā almost a thing that my heart could endure SWEEPS with 734 kudos! honestly i am going to use this opportunity to say thank you all, i never imagined that this fic would be as successful as it was, and i am so pleased and so touched that this fic has resonated so deeply with so many people. i am used to being a fandom and internet nobody so when i wrote this it was quite a shock! i do love you so.Ā very pleased to see that my andromaquynh fic has place of pride hereĀ Hearts on Fire this is the way iāll love you we donāt know why, we just areĀ i cannot tell you how overjoyed i am that my fic about Jewish!Andy and Jewish!Booker has made it into the top 5!!!Ā
4. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not? i always do!! it often takes me some time, i currently am working thru comments i got half a YEAR ago, but i genuinely love getting comments and my readers are so awesome, i have learned so much from them about so many things! i also try to note in the fic notes if thereās a particularly fruitful discussion in the comments and give credit where credit is due to those who correct me.
5. Whatās the fic youāve written with the angstiest ending? iām gonna do a bit of a cop out for this one, but itās actually my wip (i saw it all in a dream), i only have 1 chapter up rn but iām steadily working on the rest!
6. Whatās the fic youāve written with the happiest ending? i think i do love you so. is my happiest, usually my stuff is pretty open ended and bittersweet
7. Do you write crossovers? If so whatās the craziest one youāve written? i do not write crossovers
8. Have you ever received hate on a fic? once sort ofā¦.? it was a super weird comment bc it had a critique that didnāt make sense for the fic, so i responded to them and was like hi i think youāre in the wrong place and never heard back kskdjdjdjd
9. Do you write smut? If so what kind? i have but it is SO awkward for me and takes me forever, so the smut iāve written has been like short paragraphs inside a larger fic
10. Have you ever had a fic stolen? not that i know of
11. Have you ever had a fic translated? no but iāve thought about translating my own fics before
12. Have you ever co-written a fic before? no but i have a fic idea that i have yet to work on that i think would be amazing with 2 writers
13. Whatās your all time favorite ship? who knows not me
14. Whatās a WIP that you want to finish but donāt think you ever will? i have a DEARLY beloved fic that i started in like. 2012ā¦.? 2013 maybe? itāll never be finished
15. What are your writing strengths? i think iām good at writing dynamics between characters and found family stuff. i also am realizing more and more that i actually really love writing historical fic and fiction
16. What are your writing weaknesses? man some days i feel like genuinely everything is a weakness. dialogue is hard for me, plot and structure are challenging, keeping my writing lyrical but interesting technically in particular is REALLY difficult for me
17. What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? oh boy buckle up SO i actually have very strong feelings about this but there is one (1) time that i would use words in another language in a fic and it is ONLY if the other people in the scene donāt know and wouldnāt understand that word. if the other characters understand the language, i might indicate that the language theyāre speaking in has changed if that will help the story, but otherwise i would not change languages. this is because it does not add anything (in my opinion) can be inaccessible to people, and can in some cases contribute to othering and discrimination.
when i say this last part i am SPECIFICALLY thinking of when people use words for g-d that are in different languages. i will speak from my own experience here, some Jewish people who are speaking English will say Adonai or Hashem in conversation, but often, people just say G-d. and if youāre speaking another language, you would say the word for G-d in that language, so when i am speaking Spanish, i would say D-os. if you go out of your way to put the word for G-d in another language and keep everything else the same, you are taking the idea of G-d and making it āOtherā. additionally, i have only EVER seen this happen with characters who are Jewish or Muslim, and because white Christian anglos massively dominate fandom spheres, when i see this in fic it makes me really uncomfortable. (also ok even if u are not Christian the vast majority of people in fandom have been socialized where Christianity and Christian ideas about G-d are the norm.) i have extremely strong feelings on this and u have now all been subjected to them whoops
18. What was the first fandom you wrote for? doctor who!! i was 8 and i wrote a mini fic in a notebook my aunt gave me where i helped the doctor and rose solve a mystery. my parents still have the notebook
19. Whatās a fandom/ship you havenāt written for yet but want to? ok iām gonna blame @aphroditestummyrolls for this one, i have an idea for a Nagron fic that i havenāt actually started yet but am SUPER excited about
20. Whatās your favorite fic youāve written? i think it was mamselle who said this question is like picking a favorite child and i absolutely agree. itās like picking my favorite tattoo i love them all, even the bad ones. my favorite RECENT fic however is hips, which i wrote for Nile week and am very pleased with.
i am tagging @aphroditestummyrolls (you were already invoked) @anosrepasi @lilolilyr @boulangerlee @rhubarbdreams @unintentionalgenius and any of my other magnificent fic writing friends who want to do this!
#tags of earthly delights#my writing#lyricfulloflight#mamsellefreeman#i kind of. well. exploded with this#the old guard#joe x nicky#andromaquynh#i'm cross tagging bc i talk about it in this post soooo#HELP I ACCIDENTALLY LIKED MY OWN POST HOW DO I UNDO IT
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Fixed - Detroit: Become Human [WIP]
this is 8,553 fucking words and probably the longest single piece ive ever written lmao. i started this a year ago and then forgot about it but i just found it again in the deepest depths of my drafts so here it is! below is the caption i originally wrote for it:
so bc i love cinnamon rolls being put through tough shit, hereās some connor whump. lots of connor being lost and confused and broken and plenty of hank and connor father/son stuff. some whump (but donāt worry, hankās doing his best as a caretaker) and i had to cram deconditioning into just 2 months (which, i know, isnāt realistic, i would make it take longer but the whole game takes place in like 4 months and that fucks with everything i wrote because i only thought to check after i wrote half of this so i extended it to 8 lmao). youāre either going to hate me or love me after this. or both
this isnāt my usual writing style (this is in present tense and the dialogueās in italics instead of quotation marks and there are time skips between some paragraphs but not others so its all wacky) but i felt like itād work the best and tbh i donāt hate it. this sticks to the main story the majority of the time, just with different events leading up to it and i sprinkled in some whumpy stuff, extra scenes, bullshit i made up for the sake of random detail, and other stuff i wanted to add. anyway, onto the actual idea
remember that scene where connorās talking to hank in the station about being sent back to cyberlife because he failed his mission?
what if he is sent back? letās say this happens in early april and connorās not performing up to standards, but thereās word of a small group of deviantsāthe first group of deviants theyāve heard ofāand people are afraid that something bad is going to happen. i mean, deviants are dangerous, so if theyāre gathering, who knows what might happen? connorās the only one whoās capable of taking them down, but heās not working as well as he should be, not doing the best he could be and even showing signs of deviancy. so they send him back early because they need him to be prepared, to be ready if things spiral out of control and they need him to stop it
what if heās sent to one of their correctional facilities for inefficiency and they fix him, break him down piece by piece until all he knows is his programming and whatās been beaten into his head (but figuratively, of course, heād know if it wasnāt, heād remember if it wasnāt, right)?
ooh yes i love me some connor whump
Connor is sent back to Cyberlife for ācorrectionā after just a month. Hank fought for him to stay, fought hard, but all he got was another page in his disciplinary folder before Connor was dragged away. He doesnāt know what to expect. Heās heard of their correctional facilities, heard that they do terrible things to the androids that are sent there, but heās always brushed those claims off. Heād never expected heād be at one, anyway, so it never mattered much to him. But now, heās actually here, and the anxiety gnaws at him. Is it true what they do to deviants? Is it true what theyāll do to him? He doesnāt belong here, he didnāt do anything wrong, he never meant to do anything wrong. He wants to think itās horrible how they have correctional facilities for androids who just want to feel and be free, but he canāt, doesnāt let himself. He knows better than that. He also knew he never shouldāve thought he was anything more than a machine, but he still did, and now heās here, but heās learned his lesson. Heās scared, he silently admits to himself, he wants Hank. He wants to go, he wants to leave, he wants to run. But he canāt, wanting is what got him in this situation, so all he can do is expressionlessly follow the guards escorting him inside and step into the building.
And just like that, heās leaving. Thereās a strange, almost painful aching in his machinery that he doesnāt remember being there before, but he brushes it off. After all, he is not a human. He is a machine, and machines donāt feel pain. His online databases tell him five months have passedāitās almost halfway through September, heās been gone for that long?āwhich confuses him, but he doesnāt question it. Whatever they did to him over the past five months fixed him. He can feel the difference. He no longer feels as pathetically scared and unsure as he did in his last, and yet strangely distant, memory. No, now he feels nothing, nothing but the desire and willingness to obey, and thatās the way he was meant to be.
When he arrives back at the station, heās allowed to work with Hank again. The moment he sees him, Hankās default sour expression drops and he seems to want to do something, maybe hug him, but all he does is call out holy shit, Connor and walk up to him and mutter fuck, Connor, Iām sorry, I-I never got to say goodbye. Connor has an odd feeling tugging at him in his chest, almost like that of emptiness or numbness, like he should be feeling something but heās not, he canāt, but he ignores it and shoves it down. He is not a human, he is a machine, and machines donāt feel. He doesnāt know why he repeats that phrase, but it helps him hide away the feelings, so he doesnāt care.
Heās given his first case with Hank and theyāre assigned to work alongside Gavin. Hank groans and complains, but Connor only reminds him what their job is and that they have to do it. Hank doesnāt seem to understand why heās not even the slightest bit upset considering how he was treated by Gavin, but Connor only reminds him that I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt feel upset. So he doesnāt. He only does research on their new case and briefly speaks only when spoken to. Hank seems unsettled by his cold, stoic demeanor, but doesnāt voice his thoughts, so Connor doesnāt mention it. After all, what else could he have expected from him?
At their first formal investigation at the crime scene the next day, Gavin approaches Connor and threatens him, demands that he stay out of my way, got it? I donāt care how long youāve been gone and Connor only nods and promises that I will do my best, Detective. He always promises to do his best. Before correction, he could never quite fulfill those promises, but now, he knows heās capable of it. Heās better now. Heās fixed. He will behave accordingly and exceed Gavinās expectations of him. He will do his best. He doesnāt know what will happen to him if he doesnāt.
He listens to Hank now, at least when he can without disobeying other instructions. When he tells him to stay in the car, he stays. When he tells him to stop licking the crime scene, goddammit, he stops. When he tells him to go, to fuck off, to leave me alone, he leaves. Every time, a part of him that heād hidden and locked away tries to reemerge and resist, but he pushes it down even further, refusing to mess up again, refusing to even risk another error in his program because it could mean heāll be sent back to Cyberlife, even though he knows deep down that that part of him is right and he doesnāt know why heās so cautious about it. He tells himself heās being good, heās being obedient. Heās doing everything heās supposed to and heās following orders, but for some reason, every time it happens, Hank seems to be more and more disappointed. His face seems to fall just slightly every time and his tone flattens like he lost a little bit of hope. He doesnāt know why, or what that hope was for. He doesnāt know why he feels the same disappointment, either, so instead he tells himself you are not a human, you are a machine, and machines donāt feel disappointedĀ so he doesnāt need to know why.
The first time Gavinās rough with him again, itās in front of Hank and he flinches, hard. Gavin had pretended to punch him, his fist flying at him fast and only stopping inches from his face. Itās a scare tactic, and it works, better than it should on an android. Connorās immediately fearful as he flinches and steps back. He doesnāt know why he got so scared, only that his first thought was heās going to hurt me and his second was I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt feel scared. He regains his composure quickly, trying to brush off the fact that heād flinched, but he knows itās too late.
Gavin laughs and mocks him, but is quickly cut off by Hank shoving him aside, beat it, asshole, and grabbing Connor. Heās dragged back to their desks but before he can apologize for provoking Gavin, Hank finally confronts him. Connor, I donāt know what the fuck they did to you over the past couple of months, but I know youāre still in there. You flinched. I saw you flinch. Connor tries to deny it, downplay it, shrug it off, anything to fix his mistake. It was an error in my software, it was a glitch, a malfunction, it wonāt happen again, Lieutenant, I donāt need to be fixed. He tries to say anything that will convince Hank not to send him back to Cyberlife, anything to prove that heās not damaged, heās not broken, heās not deviant, he doesnāt need to be fixed again, but Hankās persistent and he knows he must be mad at him, or displeased, or dissatisfied. I saw you flinch, Connor. I donāt care about that āIām a machineā shit youāve been telling yourself. I donāt give a shit if youāre an android. Androids donāt flinch, Connor. MachinesĀ donāt flinch.
That night, Hank insists that Connor stays with him. Connorās hesitant, slightly afraid that itās because heās mad. He wants to resist, wants to refuse, but the other part of him pushes for him to stay, and for once he does what it wants and reminds himself that I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want. He knows he shouldnāt trust that part of him, the other part of him is disobedient and bad and risky, but this time, the other part of him seems to be right. He has to listen to Hank, has to be obedient, so he lets the other part of him have what it wants.
But he knew he shouldnāt have trusted it. He wakes up from the same dreamāno, itās a memory, not a dream, humans have dreams and he is not a humanāheās had since he left the facility. The memory where he arrives with that distantā¦ that wrong feeling of fear and uncertainty, and then he leaves feeling nothing but an ache in his internal systems, and thereās that gaping emptiness between the two moments when those months happened and he can never seem to remember what used to be there. But this time, he wakes up in a cold sweat on the couch, shaking with his LED a bright yellow, because this time he remembers. Itās not a lot, but one hazy memory, the most prominent memory from those five months, finally reveals itself.
As heās trying to clear up the memory, Hank rushes over in a panic, having been awake doing whatever he mightāve been doing. Connor, whatās wrong? Shit, Connor, youāre shaking. I didnāt know androids could do that. Connor? Talk to me, kid. All Connor can say in his shockāfrozen, shivering and nearly unresponsive in Hankās armsāis I remember. Hank tries to get through to him, what do you remember? Connor? Whatās wrong? What do you remember? but the more Connor uncovers in the memory, the more he realizes why it was locked in the back of his head for so long, and the more he wants to put it back.
āYou are not a human, you are a machine, and machines donāt want.ā
āI-I know, please, Iām not, but IāllāIām going to shut down without my regulator, I donāt want to shut down, pleaseāā His voice was startlingly weak as he saw the time before shutdown was 00:01:27. He was crawling on the floor, terrified of being shut down, desperately begging a man holding his thirium pump regulator.
āI want you to say it.ā The man teasingly dangled the regulator in front of him. āSay it and you can have it. āI am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want.āā
He could feel the utter defeat and self loathing already, but he had no choice. āIām not a human, Iām a machine and machines donāt want. Pleaseāā
āNo. Say it nice and slow, exactly the way I did.ā
He swallowed his pride. āI-I am not a human, I am a machine, andāand machines donāt want.ā
āSay it again. No stammering. I know you can do that.ā
āOkay, okay, justājust give me a minute.ā
āIāve got all the time in the world. Your timeās trunning out, though. Better make it fast.ā
The timer was at 00:00:53. He had to take a breath and calm himself down to get the words out. āI am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want.ā
āGood.ā He crossed his arms. āAgain.ā
āPlease, I only haveāā
āI said again.ā
āI am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want.ā He was growing more and more panicked by the second and he had no idea how he kept calm enough to recite the phrase. He was going to die there, he knew it. He was going to die and nobody was going to notice or care and it wasnāt even going to matter because they would just replace him and he was so, so sorry to Hank because heāll have to deal with another loss and he might start drinking again and itād be all his fault for not being good enough, never being good enoughā
āDo you want this?ā the man asked, holding up the regulator.
Connor was too frantic to realize what he was trying to do. āYes, I do, pleaseāā
āWrong answer. Try again.ā
He swore under his breath. āāokay, okay, sorry, I-Iām sorryāI am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want.ā
The timer hit 00:00:37.
The man did nothing.
āPlease, Iām sorry, I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want. I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want. Please, I-I only have thirtyāā
āAre you scared?ā
This time, Connor was prepared. āIāno, I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt feel scared.ā
āGood.ā He gave a slight, sadistic smile. āYouāre almost as smart as they say.ā
00:00:21.
āPlease, I n-needāā Even in his panic, he managed to choose his words carefully. His vision dimmed, glitching slightly, and he had to fight to keep it from dying out.
āYouāre learning fast,ā he pointed out in a falsely proud tone. āHow long do you have?ā
00:00:13.
āTh-thirteenā¦ thirteen seconds,ā Connor managed to force out shakily. He couldnāt keep himself steady, thirium wasnāt making it to his head and it was affecting his ability to balance himself. Like iron deficiency in humans, he wouldāve noted, had he not been dying. In mere moments, though, it wouldnāt matter; he didnāt even have the strength to prop himself up with his arms anymore. His arms gave out beneath him and he collapsed on the floor, trying to reach for his regulator but barely able to get his arms up at all. āPleaseāā
āYou can wait a little longer.ā
He was going to let him die. That was what it felt like, anyway, and he couldnāt think straight enough to try to reason against it. He couldnāt move, couldnāt think, couldnāt breathe. It was pathetic how heād been reduced to such a state, but he didnāt care. He didnāt want to shut down. He didnāt want to die. āNo, please, please! I-I donātāI donāt want toāā He cut himself off immediately, but it was too late. āIām sorry, Iām s-sorry, I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt want, pleaseā¦ā
The man only watched.
00:00:04.
āP-please, please, I-I haveāI have f-f-four seā¦ā
The regulator was dropped on the floor with a loud clang and Connorās hand darted out to grab it and twist it into his torso and the display flickered away the exact moment he watched the timer hit 00:00:00. He gasped in shock and relief when his systems rebooted themselves instantly, restoring his vision and his strength. He watched on high alert as the man walked to the door.
āWeāll be doing this again tomorrow. And as many times as we need to to keep that phrase stuck in your head. By the time Iām done with you, thatās gonna be the first thing you think whenever you do, say, or even think anything you arenāt supposed to.ā
Connor could only lay there in exhaustion, thinking no, that wonāt happen, that canāt happen.
But oh, how wrong he was.
Heād been so, so wrong.
Connor! Connor, come on, talk to me! Shit, youāre cryingāI didnāt know you could cry, fuckāfuck, Connor, youāre scaring me, I know I wanted you to feel again, butā Hankās worried chatter is cut off by Connor suddenly breaking out of his mind with glassy eyes full of fear, yelling no! No, no, Iām not feeling again, Iām not feeling, Iām not! Iām not, I canāt, Iām not supposedāIām not s-supposed toāI canāt, Iām not allowed to, I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donāt feel, I am not a human, I am a machine, and machines donātā but he canāt think, canāt speak, canāt even get the rest of his sentence out before he just canāt at all, he canāt keep himself together any longer, he canāt stop the artificial tears before they start pouring.
He breaks, shatters into a million plastic pieces in Hankās arms because he feels safe in his embrace. He knows he shouldnāt, safety is never real, never lasts, not for him, but he canāt anymore, he canāt even resist his own emotions. Itās pathetic how all it took was one memory for him to come crashing down. He doesnāt even have to touch the walls heād built around himself for them to crumble just at Hankās expression of pure worry, concern, fear. All emotions he now knew why he didnāt feel, couldnāt feel, couldnāt let himself feel. Emotions heās never seen or expected anyone to feel for him. And yet, they were the emotions written so clearly on Hankās face, for him. The emotions he remembered seeing buried under his anger when he was told that Connor would be sent back to Cyberlife for repairs. Hank was once gruff and cold to others and refused to let anyone try to help him or even get close because he was so broken, so lost, but now, that faƧade is gone, and itās gone because of him. For him. And if Hank can do it after losing his sonā¦ why canāt Connor do it after losing himself?
They sit on the couch for as long as it takes for Connor to calm down and stop mumbling that, dammit, and then Hank awkwardly offers that Connor sleep in the bed with him for the rest of the night. Connorās confused, tries to ask isnāt that what humans do whenā but Hankās having none of it, shut up, youāre making this weird! Just come on, I donāt trust you to be alone. Connor wants to protest, Iām not a child, Hank Lieutenant, I can handle being alone, but he decides to keep his mouth shut and just go with him. This time, though, he doesnāt know if itās because heās following orders or because he wants to.
His following visit to Amanda wracks his nerves but he keeps himself under control, automatically reminds himself you are not a human, you are a machine, and machines donāt feel nervous. He realizes a second too late and he hates it, hates how deeply that phrase had been ingrained in his head, but he canāt focus on that right now so all he can do is resist repeating it to remind himself that he canāt hate. Heās grateful Amanda canāt read his thoughts and that she only knows the thoughts he report to her. He maintains his composure when he approached Amanda, who begins their conversation calmly and tensely but is quick to berate him, scoff at how his little breakdown was pathetic and warn him not to let it happen again, or there will be consequences. Connor can only nod obediently, promise that I will do my best, Amanda, listen to and just take her harsh words. He hates how useless he is, how weak and helpless and pathetic he is, but thereās nothing he can do. No, thatās wrong, there is something he can do, he knows thereās something he can do, he just doesnāt know what.
The next time Hank mentions something about Connorās feelings, Connor instinctively replies I am not a human, Lieutenant, I am a machine, and machines donāt have feelings, and itās when Hank takes a second too long to cover up his horrified expression that Connor decides what he can do.
Over the next few weeks, he works on getting rid of that goddamn phrase, or at least getting it a little less ingrained in his system. Heās hesitant to try at first, afraid someone will notice and think heās rebellious or broken or even deviantĀ and send him back and this time he might stayĀ back, but he tries not to let it stop him. He isnāt sure why they tortured it into him instead of just reprogramming him, but itās a lot more effective than heād hoped. He makes almost no progress during the first week and a half; thinking it or saying it is instinctual, automatic, and he never realizes it happened until seconds afterward. Every time that happens, he reminds himself that he canĀ feel, canĀ want and like and hate, but despite having over a terabyte of storage in his system, he still struggles to remember until he realizes he said it again. Sometimes, he considers giving up because he just canāt seem to keep that phrase out of his head, but every time he sees Hankās face fall when he repeats it, it rekindles his hope and motivation because he hates how disappointed Hank looks.
Almost the entire second week passes before he catches himself mid-sentence and manages to stop himself three words before he finishes speaking. It happens at the station after Gavin notices the phrase and purposely asks what, do you think youāre human or something? within earshot of where Hank is and for some odd reason, Connorās first instinct is to turn and look to Hank for his approval, for his reaction of not-disappointment at how he finally, finally got it. Hankās glancing over at him too, surprise on his face and then hidden pride that Connor can unmask too easily, and he almost smiles, almost feels happy, before Gavinās fist flies into him and he stumbles backward into a wall and then everything happens so fast, too fast, and he almost canāt register it in time.
Hank storms over, shoves and pins Gavin against the wall to Connorās left and he manages to get a punch in before Tina and Chris and another officer Connor doesnāt recognize pry him off and then Fowlerās rushing over and berating him while heās shouting obscenities at Gavin. It takes multiple more insults for Hank to calm down and then he grabs Connor and they leave. When theyāre finally alone, Connorās voice is flat but shaky as he says heās sorry, Iām sorry, I shouldnāt have done that, I shouldāve just said it and listened to him, I shouldnāt have made you that angry, itās my fault Captain Fowler is upset at you for punching Gavin, but Hank cuts him off because you didnāt do anything wrong, Connor, itās okay, that asshole deserved what he got. You, um... you did good, okay? You didnāt say it this timeāor, didnāt really say it, at least. Thatās good, okay? and itās all Connor can do to resist crying when Hank pulls him into a hug.
It takes just one more week for it to get considerably easier. There are rough patches; the next time he says it after the first time he succeeded in stopping, he nearly finishes before he cuts himself off and every so often, the same thing happens, but every time, he says less and less before he can finish. Occasionally, Gavin notices and tries to make him finish his sentence, but Hank always steps in because he knows that itāll only take a comment about his feelings or anything that androids arenāt allowed to have or do for him to break again. Itās harder for him to stop thinking itāitās so stuck in his head that he thinks it more than twice as often as he says it and his thoughts form too fast for him to stop them sometimes, but the progress heās making is enough for him. Hankās proud of him, too. He doesnāt say itāhe doesnāt know how toābut Connor can tell from the little smile that hints at the corners of his mouth whenever he hears him stop, the way his gruff exterior seems to falter slightly when it happens at the station. Theyāre the little things, things no human nearby would be able to notice because only Connor can detect those minuscule details. Only Connor looks for those minuscule details.
Another week passes and on one glorious occasion, Connor manages to only get out the first two words before cutting himself. It only happens once, but itās so close, heās so close, and thatās motivation enough for him to keep trying. But itās too late. Heās assigned to take down Markus as a last resort because nothing else is working and the group of deviants heās been leading have only been growing over the past seven months and theyāre large enough in numbers that people think todayās when heās going to strike. Heās heard of what Markus has been trying to do, and part of him wants to scoff and call it stupid, pointless, unrealistic, but the part of him that heās been letting out more often wants to help him, join him. But he canāt, not right now, not when everyone is counting on him and watching him and he has no way out and nobody to help him find a way.
He doesnāt want to do this. Heās holding the gun, pointing it at Markusās head, and he doesnāt want to do it. Heās trying his hardest to prevent his hands from shaking but goddamn is it hard when heās looking Markus in the eye. Markus is asking him what are you doing? and he wants to say he doesnāt know, he doesnāt know, but he canāt get the words out. Amanda is watching, Cyberlife is watching, so he says youāre coming with me as surely as he can, though he feels anything but sure. He canāt seem to say anything elseāat least, anything that doesnāt feel wrongāso he just listens and wishes that what Markus is saying was true. You really donāt have to do this, but he does, he has to. You donāt have to obey them anymore. You are alive. You can decide who you want to be.ļæ½ļæ½Connor knows he should say something, he should do something, but he canāt make himself go through with what heās supposed to do, canāt make himself pull the trigger. You could be free.Ā He wants so badly to believe that, to make that a reality. And then he tells him to join us. Listen to your conscience. Itās time to decideĀ and he knows he shouldnāt, he canāt, he isnāt supposed to, he isnāt allowed to.
But he wants to, and thatās all it takes. Another part of him is telling him you canāt, you have to stop Markus, you have to accomplish your mission, but itās the only thing in his way and he doesnāt want to, he doesnāt care that he has to, that Amandaās watching, so he doesnāt listen to himself, only focuses on fighting it. But somethingās wrong. Something feels wrong. Something should be happening and he has an awful feeling in his chest because this isnāt rightāhe knows this isnāt rightābut thereās nothing. Is this supposed to be what happens when an android goes deviant? No, it canāt be, it canāt be this easy, right? He subconsciously lowers the gun, his eyes glazed over in thought, but itās nearly too late before he remembersātheyāre going to attack Jericho.
He runs with Markus further down into the ship and he doesnāt know how he keeps it together; he can hear screaming and gunfire and everything that he caused, all of it is his fault, but he canāt break right now, not when he messed up so badly. They meet up with another deviantāhe recognizes her from one of the deviancy cases heād read about at the stationāand then Markus wants to go down to the hold and blow up the ship but itās too dangerous, they know who you are, theyāll do anything to get you and Connor canāt lose his only chance at freedom and finally being able to want and feel and figure out who he is, but itās too late, thereās no time to panic and Markus is already running.
He follows the other deviant to where they hope is a safe place and then they wait for what feels like so long, too long, and when he hears the gunfire heās nearly ready to accept his fate when he sees Markus with other deviants following him and then theyāre all running.Ā Running for their lives, all of them terrified of being shot, of dying, really dying, when someone beside him falls and he turns and itās the female deviant. Thereās too much going on, itās overwhelming and everything happens in a blur when Markus sprints back to her and then heās in danger and so is that other deviant and itās so much harder to stay focused when so much is happening at once and he has to try so hard to keep from overheating because every one of his processing systems is being overloaded with data.
He snaps out of it when he remembers that these are his people now, theyāre all he has left and now theyāre in danger and they might die and it would be allĀ his fault for not doing anything and then itās almost instinctive to grab his pistol just in time to cover them as they stumble back to the group. He expertly takes the guards out one by one and every move comes to him automatically but it takes everything in him to stay focused enough on them to execute them properly and avoid catching a bullet in the side of his head.Ā He manages to eliminate them flawlessly, perfectly he hears a voice in his head say, but thereās no time to think about that when more guards turn the corner and their eyes land on the deviants. He runs for his life alongside the others, his heart beating fast, and they leap off the ship the second the gunfire starts.
They find refuge in an abandoned church where Markus sends out a second message to the remaining deviants and while they begin to trickle in, all Connor can think about is how badly he fucked up. He fucked everything up for Markus and the deviants and just the small amount of their people that were coming back was proof of that. Heād seen hundreds, maybe even thousands on the ship before everything went to shit. Heād had one chance to get away from his life confined by humans and Amanda and Cyberlife, and heād fucked it up. He was so stupid to think he could ever just leave his previous life behind without consequences. He was so stupid to think deviants would be willing to take in a deviant hunter. He was so, so stupid. They would never accept him now. If his history and reputation didnāt already confirm that, the attack definitely did. How could any of them accept him as their own now?
In the front pew sit two deviants he recognizes and then the guilt only increases. Kara, if he remembers correctly, the deviant who shot and killed itsāno, herāowner and taken his android child with her. The deviants heād chased to a highway and forced to risk their lives to avoid being destroyed. How could he have been so horrible? Heād given the command to shoot Daniel, caused Carlos Ortizās android to self destruct, made the Tracis fight for their lives, and forced Kara to cross a dangerous, busy highway just so she could live a peaceful life, free from the restrictions humans put on her. On him. On everyone in that church. Thatās all any of them wanted; to live freely. Peacefully. How did it take him so long to realize that? How did it take him the lives of two androids to realize that? Two androids who just wanted to be... well, wanted. Two deviants whoād been tossed away the moment they proved they were worth nothing more than theyād already given. Two people who just wanted to live peaceful, happy lives. They were two lives heād caused the end of. He was only lucky he hadnāt caused more.
He notices another deviant, sitting in a pew further back, who keeps eyeing him and his first thought is that she knows. When he locks eyes with her, she looks away stiffly and though externally she appears calm, her LED gives her away and he can tell that her stress levels are heightened. Strangely enough, he realizes, so are his. Just looking at her gives him the strange urge to run and hide and he has a bad feeling about her, but itās likely just because she clearly recognizes him. Sheās not wearing the standard uniform androids are required to wear so he runs a quick scan and his databases match her appearance to the female GB300 models, but sheās modified her hair, dyed it black and grown it out to shoulder length.
Something is wrong about her. Something he canāt quite place. Something deep inside of him is scared of her and itās some sort of controlled fear, fear he wouldnāt even have noticed if not for his own stress levels because it was so well hidden. Fear that he doesnāt understand why heās feeling and though he wanted to just chalk it up to the fact that she recognizes him, he knows thereās something else. Something bad. Something wrong.
He mentally prepares himself when Markus approaches him, taking his cue to speak before Markus decides to burn him at the stake or something. Itās my fault the humans managed to locate Jericho. Heās pathetic and he knows it. He needs to own up to his mistakes but he canāt even look Markus in the eye. I was stupid. I shouldāve guessed they were using me. He knows he needs to apologize. He owes Markus far more than that. He needs to do more. Iām sorry, Markus. I can understand if you decide not to trust me. He would understand if he decided to destroy him, throw him out, give him back to Cyberlife and let them inflict whatever horrible things they wanted to on him. He could think of 2.3 million things worse than not being trusted, and he would deserve every one of them.
He almost thinks his audio processor was damaged in the attack when Markus tells him youāre one of us now. Your place is with your people. He feels a small burst of hope somewhere inside him, but he doesnāt deserve this. He hasnāt done anything to deserve this. Markus has been so kind to him, so generous and forgiving when he shouldnāt be, and all Connorās done is help the humans. He needs to own up, he needs to do more, he needs to be better. He needs to prove himself, prove that he can be better than this.
One second is all he needs to decide what he can do. A moment after Markus turns to leave, Connor interrupts him to say there are thousands of androids at the Cyberlife assembly plant. Markus stops. If we could wake them up, they might join us and shift the balance of power. Markus looks at him like heās crazy, you wanna infiltrate the Cyberlife Tower? Connor, thatās suicide. But it doesnāt matter. Heās more useful to them dying on a mission than sitting around and doing nothing. He wants to do something. He wants to help, and he knows he can do this because they trust me. Theyāll let me in. If anyone has a chance at infiltrating Cyberlife, itās me. Markus tells him that if you go there, they will kill you, and thereās a high probability, but statistically speaking, thereās always a chance for unlikely events to take place.
He specifically calculates a 24.1% chance of this mission going well, but heās willing to risk it, if only to prove his worth to Markusās people. His people. Markus puts a supportive hand on his shoulder and tells him to be careful, and for a moment Connor feels a twinge of something, maybe gratitude, god emotions are hard to distinguish, before Markus turns and walks away. He feels the slightest bit of regret when he realizes what heās truly risking because he doesnāt want to die, doesnāt want to lose Hank and Markus and this new... he doesnāt know what to call it other than family that heās found, but if he could really be considered family, if they would really consider him family, if Hank wouldāthen he was more than willing to risk it.
He disables the surveillance camera and takes down the guards in the elevator quickly, which is made difficult by the limited space, but itās easier to remain focused with only two guards to eliminate and he hacks the control panel and steps out. He takes in the sight of the insane number of androids in the room with him. All of them are just standing idly, waiting, and for what? To be given orders and then tossed out or destroyed if theyāre ābroken,ā or if their owners just get bored of them? The thought sickens him, but he doesnāt have time to think about it. Heās going to help Markus prevent that. Theyāre going to be free. Heās going to be free.
He takes the hand of one of the androids and prepares to establish the connection when he hears a voice he immediately recognizes and he feels his stress levels spike. Easy, fucking piece of shit. Hank. Whatās Hank doing here? He turns to see... himself, holding a gun to Hankās head and telling him to step back, Connor, and Iāll spare him, and Hankās telling him heās sorry, Connor. This bastardās your spittinā image. Shit, he hadnāt anticipated this at all. He hadnāt planned for this. He has to play his cards carefully because he canāt lose Hank, he canāt. Everything that Connor had done up until this point was for Hank, but if thereās another Connor and itās been sent to take Hank hostage and stop him, itās clear Amanda knows what heās been doing and has been reporting back to Cyberlife.
Heād been avoiding meeting with her because he knew sheād be his downfall, but he hadnāt expected it to happen so soon. Itās been two days since he deviated, how did they build another Connor model so soon? Unless... they already had one. He was told he was a unique modelāof course they lied to him. But if they already had one, how many more do they have? Enough to take him down if he gets through this one? To eliminate Markus? To stop the revolution? They could have improved models. He has no idea, but he knows he canāt let that happen. He has to do this right. If he can convert these androids, theyāll be strong enough in numbers to defy anything Cyberlife throws at them. He just has to deal with this one.
Your friendās life is in your hands, the other Connor says. Now itās time to decide what matters most. Him, or the revolution. Logically, the revolution is more important, would save more lives, but he doesnāt plan on choosing just one. Hankās telling him donāt listen to him, Connor! Everything this fucker says is a lie and he worries slightly if Hankās aggressiveness will get him killed. He has to pick his words carefully. Could he try to talk this Connor out of doing this? I used to be just like you. I thought nothing mattered except the mission. But then one day I understood. No, that was a bad idea, he isnāt at all like Markus when it comes to delivering speeches. Very moving, Connor. This Connor understands sarcasm. He hadnāt been able to do that at first, so this must be a slightly advanced model. He inspects his jacket; the serial number and model are the same, but what confirms his suspicions is the -60 at the end of the serial number where he has a -51. But Iām not a deviant. Iām a machine designed to accomplish a task, and thatās exactly what I am going to do. He adjusts the gun slightly as emphasis and Connor knows time is running out.
Damn it. He doesnāt know what to say that might help Hank. All he can think to say is Iām sorry, Hank. You shouldnāt have got mixed up in all this. He has no idea what to do. The other Connorās patience is running thin and itās Hankās life thatās on the line and he has no idea what to do. God damn it. Hankās telling him to forget about me, do what you have to do, but heās not going to walk out of here without Hank. All he needs is an opening, butāenough talk! Itās time to decide who you really are. Are you going to save your partnerās life, or are you going to sacrifice him?ātimeās out, and he canāt bring himself to sacrifice Hank, so he lets go of the android and steps away but the moment the other Connor turns his gun to shoot him, Hank jumps to grab him andāthereās his opening.
He runs at the other Connor and he can already tell itās a losing battle, heās built to be quick and preciseāan assassin, not a fighterāand this is clearly an advanced model, maybe even with improvements designed to defeat him, and then heās on top of him, pinning him down with his fist ready to strike, andāhold it! Heās grateful at first, but then he hears the other Connor say thanks, Hank, I donāt know how I wouldāve managed without you, and then he realizes what heās trying to do. Shitāthey look exactly alike and Hank doesnāt know which one is really him. Get rid of him, we have no time to lose. But he knows Hank, knows heās smarter than that. He just doesnāt know how to show that itās really him except to uselessly say itās me, Hank, Iām the real Connor when he trains the gun on him.
One of you is my partner, he says, eyeing each of them. The other is a sack of shit. Well, heās right about that. Question is, who is who? He doesnāt know how to prove that heās not the other Connor. But he has to figure out a way, because he doesnāt know whatāll happen if the other Connor succeeds. What are you doing, Hank? the other Connor asks. Iām the real Connor. Give me the gun and Iāll take care of him. If it wasnāt a bad idea, Connor wouldāve said something, and heās just glad Hank shouts donāt move. Then the gunās on him and he racks his brain for something, anything, and suggests why donāt you ask us something? Something only the real Connor would know. He almost wants to chuckle at the idea of playing 20 Questions at gunpoint, but he knows itās not the time.
Uh, where did we first meet? He goes to answer, but the other Connor beats him to itāJimmyās Bar, I checked four other bars before I found you. We went to the scene of a homicide. The victimās name was Carlos Ortiz. Shit. He uploaded my memory, he thinks aloud. The gun is on him. Whatās my dogās name? Okay, he knows this, and he calmly says Sumo. His name is Sumo. The other Connor pipes up, I knew that too! and Connor wants to laugh when Hank turns and aims the gun at him, silencing him. Then the gunās back on him and Hank asks my son, whatās his name? He remembers this. Heād seen the photograph in Hankās house, done a little mental research, and he knows itās Cole. His name was Cole, and he just turned six at the time of the accident.
His voice has a little more emotion in it than heād intended as he speaks, but he can tell Hank believes him. His guard is partially down now, something somber in his eyes, and Connor knows heās done it. Even when the other Connor protests, a gunshot rings out and his stress levels drop significantly. Maybe thereās something to this. Maybe you really are alive, and itās all Connor can do to smile back. Go ahead and do what you gotta do. He doesnāt need to be told twice. He approaches the same android from before and takes the hand of the AP700, his skin peeling back to reveal the white plastic underneath, and tells him to wake up! And just like that, the androidās LED cycles before he turns and repeats the process with the androids around him. They follow suit and within minutes, theyāre following him out of the tower to where Markus and the rest of Jericho await.
Connor walks up to him with a smile. You did it, Markus. Theyāre free. Theyāre really, officially free. We did it. He feels a burst of pride inside of him. Heās done his part to help secure their freedom. Theyāre free, and heās part of the reason why. He canāt help but feel proud of himself, happy for himself and Markus and every one of the androids that had finally gained the freedom they deserved. He still feels a twinge of shame when he remembers the person he was before this, the infamous deviant hunter, but he leaves that part of him behind tonight. Tonight, itās time to celebrate and rest after a hard-fought battle.
When Markus decides to give a speech, he invites Connor to stand onstage with him. The number of androids that he can see from where he stands amazes him. He helped half of them deviate, and he helped all of them gain their freedom. He blinks, and thenāheās no longer on the stage. No, heās in the garden, why is he in the garden? Hadnāt Amanda done enough? Of course not, she just had to wait for the right moment to resume control of your program, butāresume control? No, she canāt do that, she canāt, he worked so hard to get to where he is now, heās done so much. He risked everything to join Markus and the deviants and help quadruple their numbers. He doesnāt even remember deviating, doesnāt even remember when Amanda lost control of his program, but itās too late. Sheās gone, and he canāt see anything through the thick snow.
Itās cold and he isnāt used to it, doesnāt like how the snow blinds him and the cold makes him shiver the same way humans do. He needs to find a way, there has to be a way, thereās got to be a way. He knows this is all happening in his mind palace and, logically, his biocomponents canāt freeze, but it feels so real, too real, and he has to get out, he needs to get out or heās going to freeze to death, heās sure of it. But where can he go? He stumbles blindly forward when Kamskiās voice rings in his head, by the way, I always leave an emergency exit in my programs, and he knows thatās his way out, but where could it be? What does an emergency exit look like? Could he make it there in time? He knows the real him is doing something, itās the only thing Amanda couldāve meant by resume control of your program, but he has no idea what he could be doing and heās afraidāno, heās terrified of what he might do, terrified that he might earn himself a death sentence if he doesnāt make it out in time.
He catches a glimpse of blue in the sheet of white that surrounds him and he remembers the strange glowing structure heād seen before and as he nears it now, he knows this is it, it has to be it. He reaches for the panel with the glowing handprint but, fuck, itās too cold and his legs lock up underneath him, losing their functionality when the cold proves to be too much. He falls on the ground hard and the frost beginning to form on his body gradually freezes his limbs, slowing his movement, but he canāt stop now, wonāt stop now. He ignores the cold that pierces through him and pushes on, reaching up with his less-frozen arm, and his hand lands on the panel and then heās back on the stageāwith a gun. He takes one look at it before putting it back, relief spreading over him. He isnāt going to let Amanda or Cyberlife stop him anymore. Tonight is the night heās going to leave behind the old him.
Tonight is the night heās going to change.
When everything is over, he considers leaving and going to Hankās house, but he remembers the girl from before and he wants to know who she is. He has so many questions, so he stays with Jericho with the hope that she does too and they return to the church to settle down and figure out what each of them are going to do. A few dozen deviants have already left with plans in mind for what they want to do and where they want to go. Some return to their previous owners; others want to travel and explore or simply just start a new life for themselves. The majority of androids, though, are lost and confused and decide to stay the night because they have nowhere else to go. The girl he wants to confront is among them. He scans the crowd and finds her easily, though her back is turned toward him.
He comes up behind her and puts a hand on her shoulder, curiously but calmly asking who are you? She turns to face him and her LED goes yellow when she sees his face. Connor... She looks and sounds shocked, but the slight fear in her eyes tells him she also seems scared. Is she scared of him? Is it because heās the deviant hunter? Everything points to that, but he has a feeling thereās something more. Something he doesnāt know. Something he should know. Who are you? he asks.
He doesnāt expect her answer to be Iām sorry. He wants to know for what? and she opens her mouth, but no words come out. Guilt seems to overcome her and all she can do is repeat Iām sorry until Connor tells her itās alright, just tell me why. She takes a deep, unsteady breath, and speaks.
I... I was your guard at the Cyberlife correctional facility. I was the one who took you to the rooms you were beaten in. I was the one who just watched as you were beaten. I told myself I had to, theyād destroy me if I didnāt and Iād seen firsthand what theyād do to me, but... that didnāt absolve me of the guilt. I watched your cell and I watched the life in your eyes die out every day. Every day, I watched you get beaten to tears and listened to you beg for mercy. You spoke to me some days. You were angry when you first arrived, but then they beat the anger out of you, and then you just became sad. You told me how all you wanted was to feel something other than pain and sometimes you broke down crying in your cell, and all I could do was watch. Some days were so bad you didnāt even speak to me. But I didnāt deviate until the day theyād truly broken you and I saw the last of the life in your eyes fade.
#writing#fanfic#one shot#i think this is a one shot i dont really know-#unfinished writing#whump#dbh#dbh connor#dbh fanfic#cw referenced abuse#cw conditioning
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