#also no one asked but they’re playing rocket league and they’re…. not good

[sharpbutsoft]

Eddie and Tommy hanging out for @daddy-kinard as part of @911actions Gotcha4Gaza event

Though the fundraiser is now closed, you can still check out their page for resources and ways to help donate to and support the people of Palestine!!

[dragon-queen21]

i come once again bringing pokemon and one piece agere headcanons (sorry if this bothers you, i like making up random agere stuff it’s fun)

pokemon first: (going off of indigo league)

i wholeheartedly agree with the idea of ash and misty bickering while little. the idea of them regressing together and fighting like two toddlers is so funny and in character, and i can only imagine what kind of trouble they’d get into

Brock being the best caregiver because he grew up taking care of his little siblings—he’d be so understanding and would probably not even ask questions, he’s just like “well guess they’re kiddos now, I’ll treat them as such”

but also Brock as a regressor? i could see that. him cuddling with onix and it being very gentle despite being made of stone. also him and vulpix playing because it’s one of the cuddlier pokemon he has, just having a good time

i could see the main three stopping by parks, playgrounds and toystores because ash and misty immediately revert to baby brain when they see one

and i haven’t forgotten about team rocket—you’re so right about them being caregivers, and meowth would be a good playmate

They find ash regressed and are confused, he’d probably be all “ehhh give the kid a break, he’s got a lot on his shoulders” all nonchalant, and team rocket is ⁉️ why is he behaving like this? but gentle nonetheless

now a few one piece ones becaue i love silly pirates bro:

sanji would be a great caregiver to Nami in my opinion. he’s always spoiling her rotten, making her special candy or little sandwiches and sweet treats in the shapes of bunnies or whales or other cute things, never bashing her when she sucks her thumb or does something childish. to him he finds it so endearing she trusts him enough to be this vulnerable around him

never leaving her side while regressed; always taking the oppurtunity to take her hand and lead her around the ship or display his special cooking skills in the kitchen while she watches excitedly

on the flip side i think nami would also be a great caregiver to sanji. despite how much he annoys her when he’s big, i think she’d understand that when he’s little he’s quite literally just a kid, so she’d probably be a little more understanding

I’ve never seen any baby chopper headcanons before but i think it’d fit! him as a pet regressor also fits. i think maybe he’d be an age dreamer and robin could care for him, seeing how much she already adores him

I also raise you this: chopper being a caregiver to Zoro. he’s already a little bit easier on the reindeer than the other members of his crew, and choppers a certified doctor! who better to take care of their best mate then their caring doctor?

also CG franky. he’s so cool dude, i think he’d let you ride on his shoulders and do corny stuff to make you laugh.

ok sorry this got super long, just needed to share this THANKS!!’ have a great day dude ⚡️⚡️‼️

~This doesn’t bother me at all! In actuality this really brightened my day up :D

~As I am watching through Indigo right now I can say that Brock has seen stranger things than his two friends acting younger than they actually are. He would just shrug to himself and go along with it.

~Currently on episode 20 or something while re-watching(It takes me forever to watch shows I’m really bad at finding the time to just sit 😅) , the one where the haunter transforms as the ghost of a girl from hundreds of years ago. Anyways, while Brock is so distracted by her, Misty and Ash trying to drag him back just gave me the vibes of two fussy kids not getting enough attention.

~Adding on, regressor Brock not telling the two that he regresses and rather just stick it out on his own/ with his pokemon. Probably feels bad about being their caregiver while also being little too. When they do find out Ash would proclaim himself the best caregiver and probably start fighting with Misty over it.

~I don’t know why but my brain instantly went to angst. It would be really sad going to toy stores, knowing that you can’t take anything with you, they are always traveling after all so asides from maybe a stuffed animal that could fit in a bag or something small they couldn’t get anything. Or just- not having the money for things like paci’s a little gear and trying to save up but there is always that decision of comfort items, vs having a decent place to stay and food to eat (yes I know they stay a lit of times at poke centers I believe for free and stuff but shh we are ignoring that for a moment)

~I love team rocket so much. You have no idea.

~Been thinking about Ash somehow getting separated from his friends, (maybe pikachu as well) and stumbling into team rocket. And they can’t exact steal pikachu if pikachu isn’t there, and helping Ash look for him is just… beneficial to both groups, yup, that’s the only reason. James just picking the young trainer up onto his shoulders to carry him. Jessie complaining that “oh great, now I have two children to look after” and I don’t know just them-

~~~

~Nami being soft around Sanji is just the sweetest. Probably because Sanji is shy while small and any compliment given to her from the regressed cook is usually mumbled and said with a genuine small smile and him half hiding away. Like if she makes food for him, or he thinks the outfit she is wearing s pretty or something

~Regarding regressor Chopper, you had me at mama Robin :D

~If anyone on the crew I would headcanon as age dreamers, it would be him and Usopp tbh.

~Mkay but the first thing I could think of is Chopper doing his absolute best to be a good caregiver. Probably has a bunch of games and activities set up. Meanwhile Zoro being super grumpy and sleepy and just cuddles Chopper as though he’s a stuffed animal and refuses to let go by threat of tears.

This was 95% me rambling about pokemon and I thank you for giving me the excuse too :3

[ynscrazylife]

hi there! so i saw that you write about the mcu and dceu which is super cool bc i have this amazing idea of a story between me, the avengers, the guardians and the justice league (platonic ofc!) i was thinking about the three teams were preparing my birthday in a yard and while they are preparing everything, bruce banner is picking me up and him and i could get closer in a romantic way (mostly because he's my fav), and when i arrive everyone is suprising me and then we have a lot of fun 1/2

The Surprise Party | avengers, guardians, justice league fluff fic

Summary: Ignoring how they’re from different universes, the superheroes throw their friend an amazing surprise birthday party.

Authors Note: Thanks for requesting & happy birthday!

Request to be on a taglist (or multiple) here! (Taglists are at the end of the fic)

MCU Masterlist #1 | MCU Masterlist #2 | DCEU Masterlist |  Main Masterlist

PSA: Do NOT copy, steal, translate, plagiarize, republish, etc any of my works on Tumblr or any other platform. Also, do NOT claim any of my works as your own. All of these works are either requests I’ve gotten that people have wanted me to write or original ideas I’ve had for works. If you happen to take inspiration from anything I’ve written and want to write something inspired by that, please a) ask me first and b) IF I say yes, credit me as inspo in your post by tagging me and link whatever work of mine that inspired you. Thanks.

header c @/gagalacrax on twitter

There was a reason why the Avengers, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the Justice League didn’t all get together: with that many superheroes, in one space, chaos was bound to break out. That chaos could be, quite literally, anything. From Iron Man challenging the Flash to an arm wrestling contest to Aquaman attacking Groot when he thought he was an enemy. Long story short, it just wasn’t a good idea . . . Until they found out that besides saving the world, all three teams had one thing in common: Y/N Y/LN.

Y/N had, to everyone’s astonishment, been on all three teams. Born as a Metahuman, she had started out on the Justice League team. Then, on a solo mission, she accidentally entered a black hole and bam! she found herself in another universe, and quickly bonded with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Eventually, it was determined that the Guardians couldn’t help her return to her home world - or universe - so she bid them goodbye and sought out the Avengers.

Y/N was the reason they had met. The reason that they knew of each other's universes. Now, seeing as her birthday was rapidly approaching, she was the reason they were coming together once more. Each superhero had their own connection with Y/N and adored her. Batman and Captain America were like father figures while Black Widow, Mera, and Wonder Woman were her mother figures, Furthermore, Aquaman and Thor were her mentors, Starlord, Iron Man, and Superman were like her big brothers, Gamora and Scarlet Witch were like her sisters, and Falcon, Rocket, Groot, Hawkeye, and Drax were her best friends.

There was someone else who fit into Y/N’s life in an entirely different way, though. That was the Hulk, aka Bruce Banner, who Y/N had a growing crush on. Coincidentally, his role in their birthday surprise was to be the distractor. He’d take Y/N out and about, staying as far away as possible from the Avengers Tower, while the other superheroes set up.

As expected, the planning hardly went smoothly.

Tony and Barry got into another confrontation, this time over Y/N’s choice of music (which went on until Mera and Wanda butted in with the music Y/N actually enjoyed), Arthur began to get on Natasha’s last nerves, and Rocket almost started eating her cake . . . and that was only a bit of what happened in the first half of the day.

Meanwhile, Bruce kept Y/N occupied. He took her out to her favorite breakfast place and breakfast was on him and then they filled the day at a carnival park. Bruce happily accompanied her on all the rides she wanted to go on (despite almost Hulking out multiple times) and even won Y/N some stuffed animals by throwing rings. He even got her lots and lots of cotton candy and then let her ride on his back when she got a stomach ache. All in all, though, it was a fun time. So fun that Bruce almost forgot that they had a party to get to!

Which is exactly why he frantically texted the groupchat that they were on their way and had to practically drag Y/N away from wanting to go on the ferris wheel for the third time. When confronted with questions, the lie that there was an emergency mission slipped off the brunette’s tongue -- probably not the smartest lie because Y/N had declared weeks before that if there were any missions on the week of her birthday, she wasn’t going -- but it worked long enough to keep her distracted, even if she was too busy with pouting and grumbling.

As they got closer and closer, Bruce could barely contain his excitement. Not only had he had a fantastic game, he was about to spend the night partying with the woman he had a crush on and celebrating her birthday. Who knows - maybe he’d even ask her out?!

When they got there, Y/N was ready to march inside and suit up, but Bruce tugging on her arm made her stop. Ignoring her endless questions and cries of frustration, he took his time leading her through the tower and into the backyard so the superheroes would have time to hide. Bruce let Y/N go before him and the moment she opened the doors, everyone jumped out wearing party hats and yelled: “SURPRISE!”

To say she was surprised would be a total understatement. In fact, she was so surprised that she stumbled back, directly into the scientist, and with his quick reflexes he steadied her and lightly nudged her forward and out of her shocked state. She had let out the biggest gasp that any of them had ever heard, her eyes went wide, and her hands flew over her mouth.

Slowly, she walked forward, overwhelmed by the sight before her. Not only were all her teammates - her friends, even family - together, but the place looked amazing. There were streamers, a big sign saying HAPPY BIRTHDAY, balloons, even a fake throne that Tony and Bruce had constructed earlier that week!

“Oh-oh my god, you guys . . . Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She cried out, jumping up and down.

Everyone smiled. “Of course, sweetheart,” Arthur said.

“Go sit on your throne - presents are up first!” Tony added.

Y/N immediately ran and jumped onto the big throne.

“Aren’t presents supposed to be last or something?” Clint muttered to Steve as they walked over.

“Yeah, but Tony keeps boasting on how good his present is,” Steve replied.

Everyone mingled on over there and Tony presented his birthday present, which was definitely over-wrapped, first. After the squeals she emitted, the others were next. Everyone had gotten her their own birthday present, but Arthur and Mera went over the top when they joined together with their powers to make Y/N something super special.

Afterwards, they spent the rest of the time absolutely PARTYING! They had a dance contest which JARVIS was the judge of and Y/N won, but the next round Y/N co-judged with JARVIS and they determined that Rocket and Barry were tied for first place, Peter and Clint tied for second place, and Bruce got third place. Then, they moved onto playing games (Y/N and Bruce teamed up and they CRUSHED everyone else, because they already had experience working together at the carnival that day) and finally, it was time for cake. Y/N got the biggest piece and, of course, Rocket and Arthur fought over the cake (Groot smacked them).

They partied until the sun came up, where everyone either fell asleep or had someone fall asleep on them. In the morning, everyone awoke, only to see Y/N still asleep, her head resting on Bruce’s shoulder and a blanket wrapped around them both. It was the most adorable sight they had ever witnessed and Bruce carried her to bed while Natasha took her shoes off. The superheroes left her to sleep in and she came downstairs a couple hours later, a breakfast full of waffles, pancakes, anything you could imagine waiting for her.

Permanent Taglist: @natasharomanoffismywife @hehehehannahthings @paulawand @blackbat2020 @cerberus-spectre @marrymemcgrath @celestialbarnes @kathryndimitrescu @snipyloulou @big-galaxy-chaos @cc13723things

MCU Taglist: @stephanieromanoff @summerlovingbaby @ineffablebean @okkulta @procrastinatingsapphictrash @prettysbliss @caseyfish @sarahp-stan @thewidowsghost @basiclesbianbitch @mycosmicparadise @kidswhofightmonsters @xtraordinaryfangrl @peggycarter-steverogers @username23345 @ima-gi--na-tion @yori-nakajima @hi-i-1 @mmmmokdok @xxxtwilightaxelxxx @mads-weasley @tenaciousperfectionunknown @afraid-to-be-me @lilclownx @acertainredhead @natromanoffxox @lilymurphy03 @thanossexual @avengersz-biotch @kozumekoi  @mjaudrey

[tojismaiden]

SNK Male Characters as Yandere's (Modern AU)

WARNING: will contain dark themes.

Eren the Violent

It's a known fact that Eren doesn't have the best temper in the world.

But for you, he'd try his best to be patient. Key word: Try.

When Eren saw you, you were like the light at the end of the tunnel. The rainbow after the rain. The finish line. The trophy. The angel that every devil sought after.

You were kind to almost everybody but you were also fearless when you need to be. You helped everyone that you could and that included Eren. He got into another fight? You'd patch him up. He's lashing out on someone again? You'd calm him down. Everytime he needed someone, you were there.

So who could possibly blame him for falling for you? For wanting you?

At first, it was just an innocent crush he had on you. But days passed and he found himself growing more agitated. You were just too good, too pure. Eren knew that deep down, he had to have you. He's lost so much in his life, he can't lose you too.

So when the time came that he confessed, imagine his surprised and embarrassment when you told him you were with someone else. Of course, Eren being Eren, he'd pretend it's nothing and carry on with his day.

You thought none of it of course and kept treating Eren as how you saw him as; a friend.

Eren isn't the most patient man in the world, and neither is he the most calm one.

So please don't be surprised if you find your s/o brutally murdered.

"Oh, Y/N. I'm so sorry about your partner. I heard what happened. Such a shame, really."

"It's okay, Eren... I just— I just don't understand. Who would do something like this?"

"I don't know. But whoever it was, the person may not have liked your partner at all. In fact, that person might have hated them."

Your partner's death saddened you immensely but you were thankful that Eren was with you as you grieved. However, the more you spent time with Eren, the more concerned your friends got. They had bad vibes with him.

And Eren felt they don't particularly like him.

So the next time you see a news about an unknown killer going around?

Ignore it.

Your friends falling as victims of the said killer? Ignore it.

After all, Eren did it for you. So you could be together.

Forever.

Armin the Manipulative

There's no denying that Armin is smart. Way too fucking smart.

He would top in his classes and everyone came to him whenever they needed help with their homework.

But what exactly did Armin like about you? Simple. It's your sincerity.

Sure, he has friends and sure, his classmates would thank him whenever he helped them but with you, Armin could really feel like you learned something from him. It wasn't like the usual where the other would get the answers to their questions but obtained nothing from his explanation.

With you, you really applied what he taught you.

And Armin felt... appreciated. Like he wasn't being used to people's advantages.

So ever since then, Armin would willingly help you. Even offering to tutor you privately, free of charge! And each time you two spent time together, Armin's feelings for you grew stronger. The stronger they got, the more he got slightly too infatuated with you.

Weekly tutors turned into everyday tutors to the point where Armin would even tutor you during the weekend!

But who were you to say no? You were so thankful. If it weren't for Armin, you might have backloaded a subject or worse, repeated a grade!

You barely had time for your friends anymore but Armin assured you that it's better this way. That it's better if you prioritized your study sessions with him because your friends would just distract you.

And hey, come to think of it. Weren't they the reason you slept so late the last few weeks and almost made you miss an exam?

However, as busy as you are, you somehow found yourself in a situation where you got into a date with someone. An upperclassmen one of your friends introduced you to back then.

And when Armin found out, he was livid. But he loves you so much that he couldn't possibly bear to hurt you, no. Instead, he saved you from the inevitable torment.

"Y/N, you did this portion wrong, do it again." "Y/N! Didn't I tell you to replace this number with this? Do it again." "We're not stopping until you get it right."

Sure, Armin can be strict, but it's for your own good.

"Y/N, I apologize if I was harsh today. I just want to see you do good. And I'm so proud of you. I really believe you'll ace this test this week."

"I-It's okay, Armin. And thank you for helping me again. I promise I'll—"

"Say, Y/N, you should really stop seeing that person. I heard you were going out on a date with (Your crush's name). I suggest you don't. I heard they're going out with a friend of yours. (You friend's name) is their name, I think?"

"W-What? Where did you heard that?"

"Everyone's been talking about it. Plus, I think the reason you're doing pretty bad today is because of them. So please, Y/N, we worked really hard for you to get such good scores. Wouldn't you wanna make your senpai proud?"

You're so thankful for Armin. And you really don't want to disappoint him after all of what he's done for you.

So what better way to repay him than be obedient?

Jean the Stalker

It's not rocket science that Jean is a handsome young man.

But when he saw you? Oh, boy. He felt as if everything in the world felt right. You were just so fucking beautiful. The first time he saw you, he just couldn't look away. It felt as if his breath got knocked out of him.

He was sure you were a God/Goddess walking on Earth. Never had he seen someone so ethereal.

But the thing is, you were just so out of his league. While everyone kept talking to you, made friends with you, flirted with you, Jean stood from afar and watched you from the distance.

Sure, he follows your social media accounts. But he couldn't help but make dummy accounts and followed your accounts as well. He didn't want to take the risk of accidentally liking a picture of yours from years back with his personal account.

He didn't want you to think of him as a weird stalker or something because Jean is definitely not a stalker, no. Just no chance of him being that.

What Jean didn't know, is that you never noticed him at all. It's not your fault though, he was usually quiet and blended in the background. If you ever did see him around, you'd forget about him soon after. A shame, really.

But don't let Jean know that.

What started as him following your social media accounts turned into him just simply following you around.

He took note of you always stopping by at this convenient store right after class to buy your favorite drink and favorite sandwich almost everyday before you go home.

It happened so frequently, him walking with his hoodie on, head hung low as he walked a few steps behind you and somehow watching you buy the exact same thing everyday.

But everytime, Jean would only stop by at the convenient store. Once you were done, he would walk home. He didn't want to follow you home. Well, it's not that he didn't want to, it's just that he doesn't have the courage yet.

However, curiosity got the best of him and at night, when you were going home late, he followed you on your way home and you swore you could feel as if someone was follow you.

"Who's there?" Nothing.

When Jean successfully followed you home, it was like something inside him flicked open. And every night, he would stop by outside your home for an hour or so and every night he would see your silhouette as you took off your clothes and changed into comfier ones, and Jean had thoughts where he'd imagine just how you looked underneath them.

With each passing day, you felt as if you were continuously being watched. Being followed.

Maybe next time, you should really learn how to close your window.

Say, do you remember where your favorite underwear went?

Erwin the Blackmailer

You could never really ask for a better boyfriend. Erwin has it all.

At least, that's what you thought in the first few years of your relationship.

Erwin was everything you wanted and more. And he loved you so much... way too much.

And truthfully, you loved Erwin too. But there's no denying he's gotten so unbearable.

Back then, you would have done everything for Erwin. But every bit of love that you had for this man was now replaced with fear.

When Erwin began to openly express his obsession with you and his primary goal of making you all to himself, you had run away from him, far too scared of the lengths he'd go through just to satisfy this... obsession of his.

You noticed it little by little. But never had you thought it would come to this.

It started small at first. He would stop you from spending time with your friends little by little until you could no longer see them.

He would say something about them being bad influences. Going as far as to make up convincing lies that you, stupidly fell for.

After that, he stopped you from seeing your own family. Cut ties with those who are important to you. Deprived you your freedom. For he thought that you, going outside meant that you would meet someone else other than him.

And the thought of someone even merely looking at you made his blood boil.

But everytime you ran away from him, he would find you. Doesn't matter if you hid from him for weeks, months. He would end up finding you each and everytime.

At first, Erwin liked the cat and mouse game that you played. He thought it was thrilling. But then he slowly realized you were gaining this new profound strength. As if you thought that he wouldn't do anything except to find you and drag you back with him.

"I'm not going with you anymore, Erwin! I'm sick of this shit. You're all bark but no bite. Well, guess what? I'm done. And I'm not coming back!"

"Bark but no bite, eh? I wish you hadn't said that, Y/N. Say, your best friend doesn't live too far from here. You wouldn't mind if I pay them a visit, right? I'm sure they're worried about you, doll."

Ever since then, Erwin would blackmail you by threatening to hurt your loved ones if you didn't do as you were told.

This made your fear for him to go back and one time where you did disobey him despite his threats, you received a news where your bestfriend was found badly beaten in a dark alley and the perpetrator was nowhere to be found. Your bestfriend almost died if the suspect hadn't stopped.

And deep down, you knew this was Erwin's doing. It served as a warning that he wasn't afraid to kill for you so long as you stayed with him.

"I'm doing this for us, doll. Why can't you see how much I love you?"

"They don't deserve you, Y/N. They aren't willing to go for miles for you. But me, I would do anything to keep you by my side. Isn't that what you wanted? You said you didn't want to lose me, right?"

Erwin loved you so much. He wouldn't want to risk losing you ever again.

Maybe he should try going after your family this time the next time you try and run away from him.

Levi the Possessive

Levi had lost more people than he could count. So the moment he saw you?

He didn't want to let go.

What's scary about Levi is that you don't know what he's thinking of. He would never let you know what it is that runs through his mind.

He knows, however, that you're just like him. You lost your family and you barely had any friends. And you worked as a waiter/waitresss at this local diner to earn money for your tuition fee.

Levi understands. He's been through that struggle and he could see it on your face. He took note of everything you did. And he made a habit of coming in for tea even though the tea in the diner tasted like shit. But if you made it, he would make sure to leave an extra tip.

Levi made sure that it was you who would serve him everytime. If it were someone else, he would request for you immediately.

You never really noticed Levi, in all honesty. It wasn't his fault. It's not that he's not attractive. It's just that you were too far in your head to even look or strike a conversation with him.

You were quiet and obedient and somehow Levi liked that about you. It just means you would put up a less of a fight. Means it would be easier to convince you. Means that you would always say yes.

Though Levi hoped that underneath that submissive nature to you, you would somehow have a backbone there. Being too compliant would bore him to death.

And he witnessed that when you suddenly snapped at a customer for being perverted. You were almost fired on the spot if it weren't for the fact that Levi testified for you.

That was the first time you truly noticed him.

Ever since then, you made sure that you would be the one to serve Levi everytime he came by. And you made his tea extra special, which he appreciated. It was the least you could do after he helped you out the other day.

Days passed and Levi had successfully scored a date with you. The first time he saw your apartment, he was really glad to see it clean and organized despite its dinginess and small size. It was all you could afford.

Levi suggested a stay-in date at your place, just so he could see if you were fit to live with him. Once he saw how great of a cook you are, how tidy you are and everything, he knew it was time to eventually convince you.

Sex with Levi meant that he would top you. All of the fucking time. And everytime it happened, he would always mutter the same thing to you:

"You're mine. All fucking mine."

Of course, you treated it as simple dirty talk. Men say that all the time, right?

Eventually, Levi brought up the idea of you living with him. At first, you declined. You couldn't possibly do that. But Levi having a silver-tongue meant he eventually convinced you.

Living with Levi was a walk in a park. You'd help him clean and would tell him that you would help out with the bills but you were surprised when he told you that you didn't have to worry about that.

"Just sit down and look pretty for me, brat. That's all you need to do. You don't have to worry about the money."

You didn't like that Levi didn't want you to help with the bills but you couldn't possibly retort something back. He let you live in a nice home with a nice bathroom. Who were you to have a say in things?

Days passed, and Levi somehow brought up the topic of you quitting your job.

"What? But I like—"

"Like being a waiter/waitress? Come on, Y/N. Your colleagues are absolute assholes and don't get me started on your manager. I see how he looks at you."

"I'm sure that's not true, Levi..."

"Are you doubting me?"

"W-What? N-No, I—"

"That's a good girl. You know I'd hate it if those dingy dickwads were to look at what's mine, right?"

You quit your job.

Levi knew you'd be bored inside the house so in return, he let you sign up in one of those online courses to keep you busy.

It was all coming into plan. Finally, he got the partner for life he always dreamed of. The one that would cook him dinner everytime he came home from work. Would pleasure him in bed when he's stressed. Would clean without him having to ask you.

You were so perfect.

People hadn't heard from you for months. But Levi convinced you that there's no need if people heard from you or not. Eventually, they would forget about you. You had no family, you had no friends, all you had was Levi.

And if you found out that Levi would lock you inside the house everytime he left for work, you would choose to stay silent.

And if he were to ask you to wear a chain around your ankle, who were you to say No?

After all, Levi gave you everything.

Levi was your everything.

And you were everything to Levi.

How could he ever share something so precious to the world?

[skellebonez]

Could you write 22 “Oh, you’re just grumpy” with Monkie King and a deage MK?

OOOOH coming back to this? Yeah, I am totally up for giving this another go! MK is having a not so great time, nothing warning worthy but I do HC him not being the healthiest kid. Mild spoilers for season 2 episodes 1 and 2.

Oh, you're just grumpy.

"Noooooooo!" MK shouted, stomping his foot on the ground in anger. "I'm not grumpy, I'm mad! You can't let them leave me behind! Take me back! I'm the Monkie Kid! I have to do this myself! I-"

"You are currently physically 4 years old with all the control over your powers of that age," Sun Wukong rebutted with a soft sigh, frowning and wincing at the high pitched angered scream in reaction he received at that. That was... not the best way to go about this... He needed a different tactic.

He knelt down to be at eye level with his now even younger protégé, holding out his hand. When MK stared at it he chanced putting it on his shoulder and continued when MK didn’t shrug it off or start yelling again. “Bud, MK, it’s ok. I know you’re frustrated. You have every right to be! But we just want to make sure you’re safe until we can get you back to normal.”

This was not the kind of trouble the Monkey King expected to happen immediately before... well, put a cork on that for now. But this wasn't the kind of trouble be expected to happen regardless of time frame. How in the world anyone managed to not only curse an object in this way but find a way to slip it on his student was anyone's guess. But the fact of the matter was that MK, the Monkie Kid himself, was now physically 4 years old. Mentally, he was still the same age he was before the curse, personality and memories still completely intact... for the most part, it became clear to them very quickly that being physically a kid again came with more than just a smaller body. It came with the mood swings and heightened emotions of “kid brain” as Mei called it, when MK immediately burst into tears at just the mention of being left behind so Mei and the others could go after the demon. And then he couldn’t figure out why he was crying, whether from frustration or worry or both or why he even started, which lead to more crying out of sheer confusion, which made everyone feel very bad.

They’d managed to calm him down long enough for the Monkey King get him on his cloud and bring him to Flower Fruit Mountain in case the demon attempted to go after him like this, but that was short lived once they actually made landfall.

"But I can do this!" MK continued, pouting and tears of frustration starting to peak at the corners of his eyes once again, albeit calmer frustration. "I-I beat the Spider Queen! I can handle one demon who had to slap a bracelet on me to make me a kid to beat me, even if I'm tiny! I can kick his butt!"

"I know you can, Bud," Wukong said evenly, offering him an understanding smile. "And normally I'd let you go in guns blazing and know you could handle everything no problem now! You've more than proven you can handle stuff even I couldn't. If you were just shrunk I wouldn’t dare think you couldn’t handle this." He reached out a hand, ruffling his hair far more gently that he normally would. But still rough, rough enough to let him know he wasn't going to just treat him like glass now. "But this is a bit different. Remember what I said when Macaque was having you use your full power?” MK scowled for a second before nodding. “Using your powers like this? Could hurt you. And I don’t want to see you get hurt like that. Heck, even I would have trouble controlling my powers and probably get hurt if I was turned into a little kid monkey man, and if this happened to me I would trust you if you told me to stay safe."

"... you would?" MK asked softly, and Wukong nodded. Maybe it was a... bit of a stretch of the truth. Sun Wukong would probably need some convincing too (Great Sage title leading to Great Misjudgement sometimes, the previously mentioned Spider Queen fight a key example), but that's just one more thing he and MK had in common.

"Course I would,” Wukong said, and given said convincing that was the truth. “I trust you, MK, and-AGH!" He may be the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, but nothing prepared him for the barreling rocket that was a 4 year old launching themselves at him to hug him with all the strength of... well, himself!

"I trust you too!" MK yelled right in his ear and oh if he thought his student had a loud yell before. But that only lasted for a second before he pulled back from the hug, body limp and head rested on his shoulder as the energy seemed to sap a bit from him as Wukong stood back up and he held him on his hip instead of setting him down when he saw the bright red rings around his eyes and how tired he seemed already... Tang had mentioned that he knew MK wasn’t exactly the healthiest as a child... "But... I feel bad not doing anything..."

"Then we can do something, that's an easy fix!" Wukong laughed, and his chest warmed as he was reminded of the few children he had helped take care of or play with while on the long journey centuries ago. He was a softie, really. "No training though, I am not going to body slam you when you come up to my knees."

This apparently was the magic joke to make, making MK devolve into a fit of giggles. A testament to how this cursed object affected him, he never would have giggled at that without it. Probably... MK had an odd sense of humor sometimes. But then again, so did he!

"Actually... I think I have just the thing for us to try."

~

All things considered, Wukong probably should have expected something like this. He did tell MK that he probably didn’t have much control over his powers. And that using his powers was a bad idea. And Tang did warn him he wasn’t a healthy child. The three together were a bad combo when his powers activated with MK’s unconscious reactions to certain things...

“How you feeling, Bud?” Wukong whispered softly, rubbing his back as he laid face down on his couch. He’d barely used his powers at all, just activated his true sight to find ingredients when they were cooking without even thinking about it, but that was enough to make the kid’s head feel like it was splitting open (in symptoms that sounded like a migraine, which... yeah, he felt really bad for him, and the jolt of worry and fear that shot through him surprised him less than he felt it should). “Still bad?”

There were a few of Wukong’s monkeys hanging out on the couch, one in particular was curled up next to MK’s head. Perhaps they were keeping him company while he wasn’t feeling well and nodded off in the process.

“I think I’m ok now,” MK answered, sitting back up and leaning into the Monkey King’s side (he seemed to seek out contact a lot more like this, letting Wukong carry him to the house, leaning on his shoulder when he showed him how to prepare the snacks they were making, now this... it made him wonder just how much physical affection he got as a kid). He looked leagues better than he had just 40 minutes ago, thankfully not nearly as exhausted as he had looked before he laid down. “Headache went away... I dunno, a while ago. But I didn’t wanna get up.”

“Completely understandable,” Wukong nodded in approval, glad that he’d gotten some form of rest. He needed it after everything he had been through. “You feel like getting up now, though? I made us some lunch... dinner... not desert food! Just like I promised.”

“Yeah!” MK exclaimed, immediately jumping off the couch and making his way to the kitchen like a rocket. “How about our snacks, how much longer do they have? Do you think we did ok? Do you think the others are gonna like em!?”

“They still have well over an hour of sitting in the fridge,” Wukong laughed, following him and watching him scramble to sit on one of the chairs at the table. “But I think we did a pretty good job of making annin tofu for the first time. They already look pretty darn delicious.” The almond jelly dish wasn’t as hard as he believed it would be, and using agar even he would be able to enjoy it... once he added some peaches on top, of course! “But that’s for later, for now what do you think of your meal?” MK looked up from his bowl, a spoonful of rice and vegetables already in his mouth. Wukong couldn’t help but laugh. “I think I’ll take that as a job well done.”

The two ate their respective lunches, rice and steamed vegetables for MK and rice and fruits for Wukong, talking about what dishes they could try making together in the future. Being a monkey Wukong had a very limited pallet for what he could (and would, given other circumstances) actually eat, so brainstorming workaround for that was a great way to pass the time before moving back to the couch. They played some, shockingly not Sun Wukong related, games that he had stashed away (and he was very offended by MK’s disbelief that he had media not related to himself in his house, totally offended). The game was one of those ones with a motion controller that you had to move around to play, and MK was having a blast with it.

The monkeys also seemed to be enjoying the show quite a lot.

Before the two knew it the sun had begun to set, MK’s grip on his controller starting to weaken as he sat down on the couch and attempted to keep his eyes open. Even with his rest earlier he was exhausted.

“Did anyone... tell you anything yet?” He asked softly, once again leaning into Wukong’s side with a yawn.

“Not yet,” Wukong admitted, looking at MK’s phone for the fourth time in he hour. “Not since they told me they found out where the demon went. But that probably means they’re focused on catching him! They’re gonna get the guy, I have a good feeling about it.”

“If you say so...” MK mumbled out, the controller slipping from his grasp as he closed his eyes.

“UH.. Bud? MK?” Wukong gently nudged his student, smiling softly when he realized that he’d just fallen asleep. “OK, that game clearly did it’s job a little too well.” He made to stand up, stopping short when something tugged on his clothing. MK had an iron grip on him, holding tight to his side and not looking like he was going to be letting go any time soon.

Well... Wukong didn’t have the heart to make him let go or chance waking him up to move him... so instead he took a hair and poofed up a blanket to lay over top of MK as he made himself comfortable on the side of the couch. It didn’t take long, and it took even less time for the monkeys around the house to curl up around and on top of the duo.

It was nice... Wukong didn’t want to admit it, but he was going to miss this. Not just when MK was changed back to his normal age, but when he had to... “go on vacation”.

He felt bad, lying to his student. His kid, now that he realized he couldn’t keep from admitting that to himself. But he trusted MK, genuinely trusted him in this regard, to keep everyone in the city safe while he was gone and he didn’t want the extra stress of knowing just what Wukong was really doing to weigh him down. He knew how much MK worried, seen how much anxiety he had after Macaque and the fight with the Spider Queen, how hard it would be to keep him from following him into places that were too dangerous for him to traverse without training they hadn’t completed yet.

He... really regretted not training him more in the beginning. Regretted it more than most things he had lately. Maybe if he had he could have explained things to him better. Known that if he did sneakily follow him he would at least be in much less danger.

He couldn’t let himself be too close after this. He’d have to go back to normal, aloof, jokey, “ah you’re fine cool beans good luck bud I believe in you!” Monkey King. For MK’s sake.

As he looked down at the sleeping child curled into his side he had to make himself believe it was for MK’s sake.

Why did that feel like it was a lie?

[aerialflight]

Fic Rec (it's been too long and I read a whole lot of fics)

I've read so many fics these past couple of months and my need to share them to the world has seized me by the throat. Please enjoy and support these fanfic writers! They are the best. XD

-

[Naruto]

Nine-Tailed Foxes are Dead by RowlettLesbian

Ship: Shikamaru/Naruto

For Konoha, it's been one month since the preliminary Chunin exams. For Naruto, it's been six. And he wasn't in Konoha.

At the end of his ordeal, Naruto walks into the Chunin Exam finals without his left arm.

Shikamaru is very concerned. And, eventually, very precious to Naruto as they work together to solve the mysteries of Konoha and bring kindness to the Shinobi world, one adventure at a time.

(I would die for this fic. I know the summary sounds doom and gloom but IT'S NOT. This fic made me fucking cry, I don't think I've ever read a fic that characterized Naruto so right. He's so full of hope and love and develops into the best version of himself and I'm so HERE FOR IT. And it's not just Naruto, Shikamaru is absolutely amazing here along with Kakashi and surprise surprise Ino, I can't BELIEVE it took me this long to stumble across this fic. Also THE WORLDBUILDING IS TO DIE FOR!!! And the plot! Is! So! Interesting! Just, everything about this fic is just amazing so please PLEASE read this!!!)

The End of the Uchiha by RowlettLesbian

Ship: Naruto/Sasuke

“I promise, little electric spirit of this shrine,” he whispered into the soft dirt and fallen leaves, “I will never gain the eyes. I will never pass them on. And I will make sure the eyes end in my brother, so that they can’t hurt anybody anymore. I will be the last Uchiha, and see to the end of the Copy-Wheel Clan. Then all of the hatred here can stop, and my family can rest peacefully. I promise, little shrine.”

Sasuke is more than his brother thinks he is. He's more than any Uchiha has ever been. He will kill his brother, but it will not be vengeance.

It will be mercy.

(Same author as the one above, they are the gift that keeps on giving. Seriously, HOW did I NEVER FIND THESE FICS before now??? One of life's greatest mysteries. The author's sense of humor is so on point here along with the atmospheric writing that's so vivid in the mind. Their writing style is so recognizable to me now and makes me fall into the world they're creating, it's stunning. Sasuke here makes me want to hug him and the idea of him living like a feral ghibli character has me LIVING. Check the tags of the fic, all of it is true, hand to god. Please give all of the author's fics a shot, it's a rabbit hole I'm thankful I fell into!)

mil fantasmas (gritan en calma) by LegaciesandMemories

Post-Tsukuyomi, something in Uchiha Sasuke's mind shatters. The same night, Yamanaka Ino falls asleep and doesn't wake up for 15 days.

---

In which Ino and Sasuke both wake from the aftermath of the Uchiha Massacre with the ability to see ghosts, and no one is prepared for the fallout.

(This fic has arrested my curiosity and eagerness to know what will happen next. These poor kids need so many hugs and Ino is getting the spotlight she deserves. I am so excited for this fic and what it has in store! Please read! XD)

Lichtenberg Figures by Asteroid_Duck (JustThatOneGirl1815)

Name: Kakashi Hatake Rank: Jounin Status: Missing Nin Missing Since: June 15th, 271 AD Note: Flee on Sight . . . Haburashi looked his team in the eyes— three, fresh out of the Academy genin— and resolved to teach them as best as he could. And right now, his lesson was simple: “Stay. Away. From. Kakashi. Hatake.”

(Dimension travel fic with a slice of Kakashi being an absolute troll and dealing with the shitty hand he's been dealt with. Seriously, the man has the worst luck in all of Konoha. Also, the mystery of the other Kakashi's history has me leaning by the edge of my seat, I need to know.)

The Governess by Ysmirel

Ship: Kakashi/OFC

"“What,” he finally asked, “is so funny?”

Ibara bit her lower lip to keep the chuckles in, still smiling and making absolutely no effort to get more space between them, seemingly perfectly at ease within reach of a trained shinobi. Her self-control wasn't all that good, as she ended up snorting and was overcame once again by another fit of laughter. “I just- It's just-” She struggled to speak, trying to catch her breath and wiping away tears of mirth with the hand that wasn't still holding onto his vest. Finally, she looked him in the eye and said, with a smile that was all teeth and without a hint of her previous drunken stupor, “and who's going to believe you?”

As he stood there, stunned by her words and change in demeanor, he realized with dawning horror that she was right."

In which Kakashi finds himself at the other end of the troll shtick, and he doesn't appreciate it all that much.

(It's so hard to find self-insert fics with a fresh concept these days, especially in the naruto fandom. Not that I don't enjoy and devour a lot of self insert fics like it's going out of style, but it's just so nice to find something new and shiny and really damn good. I'm so pumped for this fic and how it's going to develop so please join me in rooting for this fic!)

half a league (until the valley of death) by SpectersShadow117

Kakashi can think of no reason for Sasuke's inexplicable and drastic change in behavior. He doesn't like the desperate, haunted gleam in his student's eyes, and he also doesn't like the nagging feeling that he's missing something very important. Aka: Future Sasuke goes to Past Sasuke and gives him a reality check with Specific Intentions, but as with most Uchiha, his methods leave much to be desired. (Featuring: Childhood trauma FTW, Konoha's shitty care of orphans, and absolutely no one having a fun time.)

(Sasuke wanting to change the future out of complete and utter spite has me LIVING. Sasuke is such a Mess here and the twist on the time travel premise is so good and the kid is so Traumatized and Desperate and Not Having A Good Time. Naruto and Sakura developing as better ninjas and Kakashi trying his best makes me want to scream. Also, how Sasuke thinks about Itachi makes me want to cackle. I am 100% down for this. I am rooting for this kid, go get them! XD)

-

[Harry Potter]

fruit loops in time (circle around me) by justprompts

Ships: Harry/Draco, Remus/Sirius

"This is Crabbe, and Goyle," the blonde boy says, pointing at the two boys next to him. "And I'm Malfoy, Draco Ma - "

Ron laughs, and Malfoy immediately bristles.

"Think my name's funny, do you?" Malfoy says, angrily. "No need to ask yours - "

"You're honestly so cute," Ron interrupts, yet again, shaking his head. "So tiny. And so angry, all the time. It's adorable."

Alternatively Ron Weasley, Time Traveller Extraordinaire, is stuck in the same seven year Hogwarts Loop, repeating the same thing over and over again. Naturally, he's so done with everything.

(This is the greatest hp fic I've ever read. I LOVE RON WEASLEY and by the time you read this fic SO WILL YOU!! This is the fic I WISH I have the ability to write. I read this entire fic aloud to my brother and we spent literal hours howling and talking about how utterly insane and incredible this fic is, it's amazing. This is hands down my favorite Ron Weasley. You Can Pry This Fic From My Cold Dead Fingers.)

-

[Boku no Hero Academia]

Kacchan's Cult by Ourliazo

Pro Hero Ground Zero is attacked, originally meant to be de-aged out of existence by a desperate villain but is instead launched into his 14-year-old self.

But Katsuki is a fucking pro so whatever, time to fuck up someone's day. And sure, maybe he's only one man, but that's why he conscripts the entirety of the UA student body into tearing down some criminal empires.

(It's time travel, crack, and Bakugou being his usual explody, competent self. What more in life do you want? Seriously though, please read. I'm obsessed with this fic and having a Good Time!)

Cleaning Crew; Teaching Kids to Value their Safety, for Fun and Profit by Reavv

Takenaka Hideo is a thirty-two year old, in mild desperation for money, who has just been hired as a new janitor for UA's support staff. He has a quirk that lets him find lost objects, a liaison with the police because of it, and desperate desire for competent co-workers.

Oh, and he's already lived a previous life, in a world where quirks and heroes didn't even exist.

Not a big deal, though. It's not like you ever see the janitor playing a big part in action movies. He's here to get paid, and that's it.

On the opposite side of the equation, class 1-A has to wonder at the new UA cryptid that always seems to show up when things are on fire, and who keeps trying to convince them to let the adults handle the fire extinguisher.

(A great deal of fun packed into one fic. That is how I title this fic and nothing will change my mind! Hideo just wants to quietly do his job and not get in the way. I Relate. Please read!)

Poltergeist by WriterGreenReads

Class 1-A is haunted.

Well, not really.

I AM dead, though.

World's friendliest poltergeist, at your service.

(I don't know how I got so sucked into OC fics, but I found some fantastic fics along the way so I have no regrets. The author really tries to push the premise and I just love all the interactions and dynamics that form as the fic gets further in. And the OC character and all the hijinks they get up to cracks me up! At the same time, it's pretty heartwarming and it's practically a friendships galore fic! Definitely recommend it!)

invincible by supercrunch for Engrin

Ship: Bakugou/Midoriya

This is the way the world works: the sun rises in the east. The strong come out on top. Bakugou Katsuki rockets through life like a comet and Midoriya Izuku stumbles after. If he believed in such things Katsuki would say it was written in the stars. That some god of war had looked at him and said this one. That he’d been passed along a line to get his blessings – genius, willpower, fearless ambition – and dropped off on earth.

Then, of course, there is the question of Deku. The spitfire runt. Deku, no matter what the world does to him, never stops hoping.

Until, of course, he eventually does.

(Katsuki broke him. Snapped him in half like a twig and now has to scramble to put Deku back together. “We can do this, Deku," he says slowly. "There are so many mysteries that never got put to bed. Criminals roaming around looking to hurt people and you and me, we can fix that.”

There’s a long pause. The comforter slips a little off Deku’s skinny shoulders and drowns him. “You mean like a team?”

In that split second, Katsuki makes a decision he’s never even considered. He swallows his pride. “Yeah, Deku. We’d be a team.”)

(If there was any other way canon could've gone, this is the story I would've wanted. It's perfect.)

Inadvertent Wilderness Therapy by Cacid

Following an unfortunate encounter with a teleporter on the last day of internships, Bakugou Katsuki and Hakamata Tsunagu spend some quality time in northern Canada.

In no particular order they will: build ugly survival shelters, stalk rabbits, run from polar bears, reflect on the chemical composition of trees, insult each other, and complain about krumholtz.

(THESE TWO. TOGETHER. IN THE WILDERNESS. IN FUCKING CANADA OF ALL PLACES. I still can't believe this fic actually exists and just how INVESTED I became in their relationship. Blue Jeanist instantly became my favorite ranked hero with this fic alone. HIS SENSE OF HUMOR IS TERRIBLE, I LOVE HIM SO MUCH FNIEWOPAF. BAKUGOU DOES TOO. IT'S FUCKING INCREDIBLE. *incoherent screeching into the wild*)

-

[Stranger Things]

Baci D'aria by RabbitDarling

“Love is worth the sum of itself, and nothing more.” ― Alice Hoffman, Practical Magic

Steve learned a lot at his Aunt's side before she passed but his favourite thing she taught him was baci d'aria; special little spells that you created from the heart and put into the food you shared.

In opening his heart and gifts to those around him Steve slowly finds himself a family in a way he never thought he'd get to experience. One by One he collects pre-teens to trail in his wake like ducklings and Steve can't even refute it by the time he realizes what has happened.

(This fic is so soft and Steve is just collecting people and winning them over with his magical food (literally). I am always a sucker for heartwarming, good for the soul fics so if you want to make yourself hungry and feel all warm and gooey inside, read this!)

(Don't Fear) The Reaper by TeaFourTwo

Ship: Steve/Billy

He looks down at the blood on his hands and on the floor and wonders why the memory hasn’t broken yet, why he isn’t back in Starcourt mall with control of his body again, wonders if he's even still alive at all. Is this hell then? Or perhaps purgatory? It certainly isn’t heaven, that’s for sure. None of this makes any sense…but then what's new—nothing in Billy’s life makes sense anymore.

Billy laughs then, loud and long and unhinged. It's the only sound in the whole house, and it bounces off the walls like a fucked up echo, like the world is laughing with him.

“Jesus christ you’re insane…” It’s Max’s voice and it’s shaking. It only makes Billy laugh harder, because Max has it all wrong. Billy isn’t crazy, it’s the rest of the world that’s insane.

--

Billy dies a hero of sorts. He wakes up back in his bed on Saturday morning, the third of November, 1984...nearly nine months earlier.

(Billy is stuck in a time loop and it's slowly driving him crazy. And the fic shows just how much influence Billy did have in the plot and how doomed the world is without him in it. Great character exploration with Billy's character and all the ways he's so messy and human. Definitely recommend it!)

-

[Knives Out]

The Road Less Traveled By by UisceOneLove

Ship: Marta/Ransom

If Harlan wants to leave Ransom to be on his own, fine. He'll show him just what Ransom Drysdale is capable of.

or, where Ransom chooses to prove his abilities through means of the non-homicidal variety and finds himself becoming exactly what Harlan was hoping he would.

(I found this fic out of sheer chance and god, Ransom is just, so fascinating to me as a character. Marta of course is the Best here and I will forever stan her. Seriously, this is such a good fic! Please read!)

-

[Haikyuu!!]

Sky Full of Stars by grilledsquids

The Hinatas are twins. They're practically identical.

But while Shouyou seeks out Karasuno's volleyball team to become the next Little Giant, Natsu is scouted to to play soccer for Shiratorizawa. While Shouyou sets his eyes on playing volleyball at the highest level possible, his sister wonders how much longer she can play soccer... and if it's worth it to keep going.

A Natsu-centric story featuring: Shiratorizawa VBC shenanigans, too many soccer OCs, mild teenage drama, a little bit of plot, and Semi Eita not knowing what a period is.

(It's just!! So cute and wholesome!!! The Shiratorizawa volleyball team is so fleshed out along with the OC characters for the girl's soccer team and I swear, it's been a long while since I've laughed this much at the sheer shenanigans that happen in a fic. It's surprisingly hard to find good gen fics in this fandom so finding this gem made me so happy! If you want a fic that brings a smile to your face, read this!!)

like water by speakingincode

Ship: Oikawa/Kageyama

“Oikawa,” Iwaizumi says, and when Tooru looks at him, he can read My best friend’s an idiot off the crease of his eyebrows. “Are you telling me you spent the last three years weirdly obsessed with Kageyama – I still remember the time you made us play him on a dumb whim, you know – and now you’re at his beck and call? Are you okay? What the hell is wrong with you?”

“I’m— I’m not at his beck and call! I said no last week. It’s… It’s like you said. I get bored easily. I saw him at the park a couple weeks after they played Nationals and called him a perfect little tyrant, and he pestered me into spending time with him after,” Tooru says. “I’m not a monster, Iwa-chan. If he wants the company of his cool, handsome ex-upperclassman that badly, who am I to begrudge him?”

Or: Oikawa doesn't know why Kageyama keeps asking to meet him on Saturdays. He also doesn't know why he keeps saying yes.

(The fact this fic is canon-compliant and covers post-canon too makes me want to shout to the heavens. Fucking incredible! One of the best Oikakage fics ever and it's a crime how it's not at the top of the ship tag. Please please read!!)

twist into your shape by kakkoweeb

Ship: Oikawa/Kageyama

The only thing better than sweets were sweets containing paper that told you whether your future would be good or bad--or in Kageyama and Oikawa's case, paper that somehow caused you to live inside each other's bodies.

(Everyone probably already read this fic but it needs to be said, you need to read this fic. How these two try and manage each other's lives and slowly start to care about one another is so beautiful and sincere and I am ready to wrestle anyone to the floor and comply them into reading this fic. Doesn't matter if you like the ship, you will become a fan if you read it, I promise. Please please read!!)

Take the Long Road Home by pepperfield

Ship: Kuroo/Sawamura

When Azumane Asahi goes missing before his engagement meeting with Kozume Kenma, what other option is there but for Daichi to impersonate his brother and fake his way through a first date with Asahi's fiance?

Okay, let's be realistic - there were probably at least four other options.

Unfortunately, Tetsurou couldn't come up with any of them either, so now he's here flirting with Kenma's future husband while trying to keep his web of deceit from collapsing.

It's going to be an eventful day.

(I got obsessed with this ship alongside Oikakage and SO WILL YOU. THE POTENTIAL. THE BANTER. THE FACT THEY'RE BOTH DORKS AND THE FIC HAS IDENTITY SHENANIGANS DANCING ALL OVER IT!! I had so much fun reading this and these two are MEANT TO BE FENIWPAF. If you don't see the potential of this ship, you will now.)

a misunderstanding a day keeps the boyfriend away by bartallen for betuls

Ship: Kuroo/Sawamura

Kuroo doesn’t fall in love hard and fast like many others do – he falls slowly, and very very softly. Most of the times he doesn’t even realise he’s in love with someone until it’s too late.

(Kuroo is the dumbest man alive and I've never related to someone so hard in my life. God help me.)

You like me. by roseknight

Ship: Daishou/Kuroo

Kuroo nearly lived a Daishou-free life, and sometimes he looked back and wondered how much better and how much worse that would've been.

(I didn't even know who Daishou was until I read this fic and now I can't unsee the potential this ship has. I'm a ruined woman and I regret NOTHING.)

Kings of the Road, Kings of the Universe by EzzyDean

Eight magical captains, one bus, an entire summer (and country) waiting for them.

What could possibly go wrong?

(The magic of friendship meets the magic of a summer road trip meets pure magic.)

(CAPTAIN SQUAD IS THE BEST SQUAD SOMEBODY PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD SEND ME SOME CAPTAIN SQUAD FICS I AM SO IN LOVE WITH THIS SQUAD IT'S A PROBLEM AAAAHHHHHH!)

宿縁 : See You Soon by MissKiraBlue

Ship: Oikawa/Kageyama

Upon arriving at the train station of death, an impure soul is granted a second chance at life against his will. Reincarnating into the body of Kageyama Tobio, a 15-year-old boy who recently committed suicide. Tobio's soul will depart at death and the soul needs to slip in to replace it. If the soul's reformation succeeds, he’ll reenter the cycle of rebirth and regain the right to be reborn. He will have three months to accomplish this task.

“Even though you had enough of life,” the soul whispered into the void of the room, “you were still afraid to hurt your hands, Tobio.”

Afraid of giving himself a scar, if he survived.

He touched his pulse and grasped life and couldn’t help but pity Kageyama Tobio.

"You wanted to die and now I’m here making you live again," he whispered into the night.

(I'm not even exaggerating when I say out of all the fics in this entire goddamn, too long list, this is the fic I'm anticipating and heart eyeing the most. It's only starting, but I already cried on chapter fucking 2, the power of this fic, holy shit. The author also wrote the hq time loop Every Tomorrows series, which I have an undying love for and am full on praying for the day it updates, so you KNOW this fic will be just as good. (Anybody who hasn't read this series, where the hell have you been?? Read it!!) Just, everything about this fic hurts me and something in my chest just aches when I read this fic. Go into it blind with an open heart and I swear to you, it's going to change your life. I'm already calling it. Seriously though, please please read!)

-

[Crossover]

Learning to Fly by Asteroid_Duck (JustThatOneGirl1815)

Fandoms: Boku no Hero Academia, Naruto

The number three hero is a walking (well, flying) contradiction in every sense of the word. This includes his teaching skills. Why had Tokoyami agreed to this internship again? Oh right. He’d thought he was actually going to learn something. …….remind him to never be so optimistic again. . . . OR, Kakashi Hatake is reincarnated as the pro hero, Hawks. Tokoyami Fumikage suffers as a result.

(The reincarnation fic I never thought I needed and it's so good!! I've never really paid attention to Tokoyami and this fic sent me headfirst into loving him. Their dynamic is so interesting and I just love how their relationship develops. Also, Kakashi trolling the poor kid made me cackle, it's great! Definitely recommend it!)

Si Vis Pacem by athenoot

Fandoms: Boku no Hero Academia, John Wick

Everything has a price. That's what John has always known and will forever remember, even in death.

Which is pretty ironic considering his current circumstance.

Instead of a grown, scarred, weary body belonging to a man as cruel and broken as him, he's inhabiting a younger, smaller, unblemished one belonging to a child with strangely colored hair, and is living in what seems to be a superhuman society.

Well. May it never be said that John isn't a strategist. He can live with this. Maybe.

(Somewhere out there in the universe, he's certain he could hear the laughter of his enemies from beyond the grave.)

-

Or: John Wick is reincarnated as Midoriya Izuku. The world should probably watch its back.

(This should be one of the crackiest fics I've read in a while, but it's taken so seriously and I'm so HERE FOR THIS. John Wick being John Wick in a world of quirks and heroes is the GREATEST, honestly, he's so badass. Bakugou, I feel for you, you must be so fucking confused lol. Bakugou trying his best to be a good friend is one of the best things about this fic. Trust me, this fic will make your day, promise!)

A Girl's Mind is a Dangerous Place by clenastia

Fandoms: Naruto, Fairy Tail

Natsu wakes up in Sakura's body. It only gets worse from there. Also known as: In Which Natsu has No Idea what to do with Boobs.

(I binged this in two fucking days, I couldn't put it down. This fic reminded me why I liked fairy tail when I was younger and why Natsu is honestly such a great protagonist, god. And the fic does that thing, you know, the Thing where when two worlds collide, the characters struggle to acclimate and adapt to a completely another world with different rules and mindsets against their own. This fic is seriously one of the best when it comes to that aspect, it's incredible. I am going absolutely feral over here for this fic to update, I'm waiting in the wings, ready to pounce like a tiger, all the metaphors man. For the love of god, read this fic.)

Give me a landscape made of obstacles by Melise

Fandoms: Naruto, Natsume's Book of Friends

Kakashi Hatake isn’t who he says he is.

Because the truth is that he’s actually a youkai in disguise, a wolf spirit named Madara who stumbled across the Hatake clan during the Warring States Period. Intrigued by the shinobi he saw, he’d proposed a temporary alliance in which he would offer the clan protection in exchange for their teachings.

Decades later, Madara is surprised to find himself inadvertently summoned to Konoha by the last living member of the Hatake clan. Sakumo Hatake, who is mourning the recent deaths of his wife and stillborn child, doesn’t want to be alone anymore. So with his permission, Madara takes the place of Sakumo’s deceased son in order to watch over the last Hatake.

(Fusion in which the youkai of Natsume’s Book of Friends all exist in the Naruto world. No knowledge of Natsume’s Book of Friends required).

(Before this fic, I only had a very vague idea of what Natsume's Book of Friends was, and honestly, I still don't know much about it. But I didn't really need to know to get into this fic. I love the worldbuilding and the relationships Kakashi forms, both supernatural and mortal. I love how Kakashi's inhumane ways affect others around him, whether to stress them out or become used to the strange. You can go straight into this fic without knowing anything and absolutely still have a fantastic time. I definitely recommend this so please read!)

[voltimer]

'The Magic of Johto's Level Curve'

(or, 'a leisurely analysis of the singleplayer balance of Pokemon GSC and HGSS')

The Johto games - especially HeartGold and SoulSilver - seem to have a very good reputation. Some often put the aforementioned HGSS into their top 3 or describe it as the core Pokemon experience. I personally agree with this sentiment and HGSS is either #2 or #1 depending on my mood (it usually competes with Black 2 and White 2).

Despite all its praise though, there seems to be an incredibly consistent point raised against it: the level curve. I see it described as unbalanced, janky, and generally bad.

There are two main problems people tend to cite. First is the level progression in Johto itself, with Gyms 5, 6, and 7 not exactly being a smooth progression upwards and then Team Rocket's Archer and the 8th Gym having a notable level spike compared to those last three. Wild Pokemon levels are also usually a lot lower than the major boss fights they are ahead of, making raising new 'mons harder and grinding for boss fights longer. The other problem is Kanto, whose problems can essentially be said to take Johto's levelling issues and ramp them up. The jump from fighting Blue to the Elite Four rematches and Red is also very significant.

What I'm not going to do here is refute that the above isn't true - these level scaling inconsistencies are certainly present. It's also very different to the vast majority of main series entries, whose level curves are more linear and gradual. Gens 5 and 7 even have a feature which multiplies exp gain based on how much lower or higher you are than the Pokemon you defeat which in a way acts like a rubber band around each game's level curve, ensuring you can catch up easily but not go too overlevelled either. Playing GSC and HGSS when the rest of those entries are like that is a bit jarring. Pokemon is so well-known for having quite a formulaic design across its main series and when compared to that formula with regards to level progression and the like, the Johto games do seem a bit off-colour.

What I am going to do though is try to explain why this so-called bad level curve is at the very least not actually that bad, or, if I can convince you well enough, that the Johto games actually have a unique and (what I call) magical singleplayer game design not properly replicated in any other entry. It goes to the core essence of Pokemon's theming, and it fits with the fact that Johto's narrative also happens to put the most focus on those themes than the rest of the series.

When I say the core essence of theming, I mean the very basics of every Pokemon adventure: you, the player, leave home to go on a journey around your region, meeting various people and overcoming various challenges along the way together with your partner Pokemon. Challenges you overcome are all thanks to the bonds you share with your partners and how you raise them with love and care. As you get older, this is the sort of thing in Pokemon that you probably end up taking for granted. It's typical "power of friendship" stuff, and most people will tend to come to conclude through learning about the game mechanics that this sort of thing is superficial and that stats are all that matter in the end. The more modern Pokemon games also have such a big focus on larger-than-life stories with big climaxes featuring the box Legendaries that it's easy to lose this basic level, down-to-earth narrative theming.

Johto is significant for not having any larger-than-life aspects overshadowing its core. Instead, the core takes centre stage. There is no real overarching story besides your adventure. Team Rocket's antics take a sub-plot role but in the end act as a foil to your story, being one of the more major obstacles you overcome. Catching Ho-oh or Lugia is no cataclysm either, but rather a reward for your achievements throughout the game and thanks to your good and pure heart - recognised by the Legendary in question. Moments throughout the game like how you deal with the situation at the Lake of Rage, or the Dragon's Den trial where you're asked questions to test your ideals as a trainer (which, of course, you pass with flying colours) all contribute to this core as well.

The way Professor Oak congratulates you after defeating Lance ties the knot perfectly on the main campaign:

"Ah, <player>! It's been a long while. You certainly look more impressive. Your conquest of the League is just fantastic! Your dedication, love, and trust for your Pokémon made this happen. Your Pokémon were outstanding, too. Because they believed in you as a Trainer, they persevered. Congratulations, <player>!"

These are just examples of the main story events, though,and Johto has a lot more than that. The region is filled with things to do beside the main campaign - Berries/Apricorns, Pokegear calls, the Ruins of Alph and other optional caves, the Bug Catching Contest, and (in HGSS) the Pokeathlon and Safari Zone, just to name a few of the more notable ones. Tama Hero's review of Pokemon GSC talks a lot about this and it's well-worth a watch even beyond the section describing the games' breadth of side content.

Tama Hero also touches upon the supposed level scaling issue, and her response to the complaints is that there is a "sprinkling" of opportunities for small bits of exp gain throughout the game which should help you stay on track in most cases, and where you can't match levels, you can outplay your opponent.

I certainly agree with the latter. It always feels entirely possible to beat bosses at a level deficit throughout Johto. The Johto League is one of the key cases where you'll probably end up at level disadvantage, but I've consistently been able to defeat it with a team of lv 40s on average (so nearly 10 levels behind Lance's peak), and I'm pretty certain that my not-even-10-year-old self did so as well, even though it took me many, many attempts. From various people I've talked to and bits of let's plays I've seen over the years, this seems to be the common experience too. I think only a minority of people have had to grind to match Lance's levels in order to beat him at all. Granted, it might take you a couple of tries at that level disadvantage (or a great couple of tries more, like little ol' me), but that's surely not an unreasonable expectation. The concept of getting stuck at a difficult stage in a game could be called a universal one, and I think most people agree that it's always pretty satisfying to finally surmount a challenge like that. This can even be said about other Pokemon games - Kanto, Hoenn and Sinnoh also all have large level spikes at the end. In fact, at least when it comes to the end of the maingame, I'd argue Hoenn and Sinnoh have a larger level spike than Johto, but they're not considered impossible or anything

Regardless, though: it's certainly possible to win difficult battles in Pokemon at a level disadvantage. Tama Hero argues that the strategy required to do so isn't something the game teaches you very well, but I think this is a tad pessimistic. In the end I think that most wins will just come down to understanding of more fundamental skills that you've probably learned through the course of the game naturally - using type matchups (gyms are all type themed), using moves with stat changes (the earlygame is full of moves like Growl and Tail Whip), using status moves (no doubt you're going to see the effects of Paralysis and Burns throughout the game at least), and apt use of items (bosses always use potions and often use held items). Players also have more control over the battle than the enemy, with the default Switch mode and a huge amount more items available. It's true that the games don't teach you the deeper, untold mechanics very well, but learning about those only unlock even more ways to succeed for the numbers-minded veterans.

On the topic of those deeper, untold mechanics I also want to talk about something which Tama Hero doesn't mention at all - Effort Values, or EVs. Most of you reading will probably know about these by now, but for those who don't, EVs are hidden values which can increase a Pokemon's raw stats by a certain amount based on the other Pokemon they defeat. They were present in a slightly different form in Gens 1 and 2 in the form of "stat exp" but the premise was the same: your Pokemon grow twofold when you defeat Pokemon, by gaining visible exp for levelling up and visibly gaining stats every time that exp bar fills, but also by gaining stats little by little every time they defeat any Pokemon. Your Pokemon's EVs weren't visible to you in-game until Gen 6 with the Super Training graphic, and numerically weren't until Gen 7 where you can press X on the Pokemon's stat screen to show what are called "base stats".

EV optimisation is crucial to competitive play because the stat boosts they give are quite significant. Competitive players will "min-max" spreads, putting as much as possible into 2 stats to maximise strengths and not wasting any on stats they aren't making use of. In maingame playthroughs, though, EVs will usually end up being a balanced spread because you'll invetivably be facing a variety of Pokemon with different EV yields throughout the game. EVs can also be increased with the Vitamin items (Protein, Calcium, etc.) which you find a handful of throughout the game (and can buy at a premium) and can be used to manually raise EVs, though only to a certain point.

In Gens 3 and onward, a Pokemon can have up to 252 EVs in 1 stat, and 510 in total. At Lv 100, 4 EVs in a stat grant 1 point extra to it. For the singleplayer campaign the conditions are a bit different, but if we assume as a standard that by the Elite Four your EV total is maxed out and you have an even spread, your stats will all be up to 10 points higher than they would be without EVs. In Gens 1 and 2, you can actually max out all of a Pokemon's stat exp values but you're unlikely to cap them all for a good while beyond the maingame so we can consider them about the same as in the later gens for this.

But why is this important?

Firstly, the difference EVs make in the above scenario account for what is usually about 5 levels' worth of stats. Depending on your exact distribution, it could be a couple more or less levels' worth in each stat but the bottom line is that they make your Pokemon's strength higher than it may seem based on level alone.

This means that the wild Pokemon grinding that is criticised for being too tedious in Johto as a result of low levels is also better than it seems because even when you don't level up, you're gaining EVs for every one of those you defeat. The stagnant levels in the midgame of Johto also contribute more to your Pokemon's growth than it may seem from the slow level gain. The Pokegear rematches which you gain access to after defeating Team Rocket before Gym 8 may also be a little infrequent, but they also very often give you Vitamins afterwards to add to all of this.

Secondly is what seems to be a fairly unknown fact: in-game trainers do not have any EV spreads. Thanks to the work of speedrunners, we have exact data of enemy trainers' Pokemon to show this. Trainers do have IV spreads based on their "AI level" (more 'advanced' AI levels will have up to 30 IVs across the board) but the difference near-perfect IVs will have on their Pokemon is not as great as the combination of random IV spreads and relatively balanced EV spreads yours.

That 10 level deficit vs Lance is suddenly more like 5 in practice. Some of his Pokemon also happen to have pretty high stats naturally in Gyarados and the Dragonites, and the level deficit will still be slightly present, but once we factor in strategy again, you can abuse their type weaknesses and make good use of items, status and whatever else have you to swing the odds in your favour.

The only way you can find out anything about EVs in Johto is from a NPC in Blackthorn City who gives your Pokemon the Effort Ribbon if they have reached their total of 510, and the only practical way for a player without the technical knowledge to have achieved this is to have spent time throughout the game doing lots of little bits of training - in other words, putting in the effort - to have incidentally capped their Pokemon's EV total. It's only fitting that you find this NPC towards the end of the Johto campaign because it's likely that by this point a couple of your team members will be eligible for the ribbon.

This finally ties back to the point of core theming. EVs are an invisible stat giving your Pokemon an extra edge over their in-game opponents, or, at worst, one closing a gap in strength between them, as a result of all of the time you've spent raising those Pokemon throughout the game. In other words, EVs are essentially the statistical representation of the "dedication, love, and trust" you have for your Pokemon which gets you through seemingly difficult challenges. Levels, then, are only a surface representation of your Pokemon's strength: they create the feeling of an uphill battle, but you can win against the odds by believing in yourself and your partners. It's probably exactly what you thought as the naive and uncynical child playing through a Pokemon game for the first time, and probably one of the ways you made such fond memories of it. In hindsight, this is definitely how it was for me. It is a sort of magic, really.

There is still a big Red elephant in the room, and I do think that the level gap between the end of the Kanto Gyms and Red is maybe too hard to go and beat immediately after even with the power of EVs and such, but Red is by all means a superboss and final challenge of the Johto games, and I don't think it's unreasonable to have to grind for a while to build up for and to finally be able to take his team of Lv 80s on. The same can be said about the Elite Four Rematches in this game and others, Steven in Emerald, or that one Barry fight in Platinum if you do decide to beat the E4 rematches 20 times to make his levels nearly match Red's. If you're setting out to fight a superboss like this, the grind is part of the prerequesites. It's definitely still possible to beat someone like Red with a 10 or even 20 level deficit if you play well, though. I admit, I haven't beaten Red in a long time, but I have beaten Emerald Steven with a ~15 level gap before. Tama Hero also said she has beaten Red with a team of level 50s in Crystal in the review.

I said before that the other games in the series haven't replicated this sort of thing as well. Gen 5 was the beginning of a marked shift away from this design, with its overarching story-driven style and a change to exp gain which would honestly be incompatible with the level curve in Johto. Gen 6, whilst returning to the exp system without level deficit multipliers, saw different means of statistical representations of the 'dedication, love and trust' trio in Pokemon Amie, which can break the game almost as much as the Exp Share when enough Affection is built up. Gen 7 brings back Gen 5's exp system whilst retaining the Exp Share and Affection systems, and actually ends up even diverging from the EV design which went before by having in-game trainers and Totem Pokemon with competitive, min-maxed EV spreads from as early as the Trainer's School. Whilst I am yet to play Let's Go and Sword and Shield, their Exp system with a 'permanent Exp Share' of sorts makes it a huge amount different and from what I've seen and heard, overlevelling is quite easy despite the game being designed around the feature. I really hope that Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl at least return to Gen 6's exp mechanics, or better, reunite us with the held-item version of the Exp Share which doesn't make me feel like I'm cheating whenever I use it.

Before I go too off-topic, though, I should probably return to the original thread of this post to make some concluding remarks. What can't be denied that the way GSC and HGSS are designed may not be for everyone. I know for sure that a lot of people prefer to be able to breeze through a Pokemon game at a brisk pace without many roadblocks, but as someone who in recent years has come to appreciate much slower-paced and immersive singleplayer Pokemon playthroughs, I can't help but love the way GSC and HGSS are designed in the way I've explained, or appreciate their unique identity amongst the rest of the series. Coming to think about this has also shed light on why I adored HeartGold as much as I did when I first played it way back 11 years ago. I poured hours and hours into the game, and as a result, its magical design put me under its spell.

_____________________________________________________________

Though I linked to the references I did use when they appeared, here they are again. Do check them out if they're of interest to you!

Tama Hero's GSC review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgtMVKP2T6Y

speedrun.com trainer data for HGSS: https://www.speedrun.com/pkmnhgss/guide/k2zij

speedrun.com trainer data for SuMo: https://www.speedrun.com/pkmnsunmoon/guide/d2683

Tama Hero (YT) is one of the few people I know who actually makes longer-form Pokemon analysis content besides Aleczandxr (also YT), who whilst not being a 'PokeTuber' has made some brilliant analyses of storytelling through setting in Sinnoh, Hoenn, Johto, and just recently, Unova. I did not refer to them here but I can highly recommend their content, at least.

Thank you very much for reading to the very bottom here. This is my first time writing something like this and I appreciate it.

[undercityrezident]

My pleas were answered! Three episodes for the battle between Ash and Cynthia! Thank goodness, because if any match deserved three episodes, it was this one.

This is definitely a good thing, because if the pokemon had gone down any faster, I would’ve been a bit disappointed. And even at the end of the second episode, we have a fair bit of battle to go yet!

I have a question to ask before the actual reflection on the battle, namely why we’re getting all these random and seemingly pointless cutaways to Team Rocket... and in particular, Morpeko chowing down? If we’re not going to devote that screen time to the battle, I’d much rather more to see more cameos from Ash’s friends, or his pokemon back at the ranch more than seeing Morpeko stuffing their face. At least we got a quirky cut of Infernape nearly decking Professor Oak a few times when they saw Lucario using bullet punch. I’d love to see more of that sort of thing with Ash’s other mons emulating those they’re watching fight! At the very least, we got a bit more of Goh commentating on Ash. As a nice bonus, we even got an appearance of Cinderace to support their BF, Lucario, when they finally came out. I actually really do love those two and how supportive they are of each other, and I’m glad that was reflected in this battle.

But for the actual battle, we got to see Ash’s bite-y, mish-mashed fossil dragon put some good work in this battle. It is sometimes hard to take Dracovish seriously, but credit to them this time around as it really did get serious, taking on the poison from Roserade, in addition to the other pummelling offered by the grass-type as well as a quick exchange with Garchomp.

As a note, regarding Roserade, it’s great to see that Cynthia really does have a powerful grasp on how to use her pokemon in battle. And it’s not just in how she consistently swaps in and out, uses moves effectively and deceptively, and plays all sorts of mind-games with Ash, but also subverts our expectations with how we expected will-o-the-wisp’s burn effect to come in handy later.

Turns out Roserade’s ability, natural cure, nullified that inconvenience, putting another thorn in Ash’s side. It’s yet another way she knows how to use her pokemon to put Ash off-balance yet again, mentally and on the battlefield.

We do get a bit of an interesting moment with Ash letting Dracovish battle on, even though he intended to recall it. And to add to that, I really like how Cynthia acknowledged that action, and perhaps even admires it, while admitting that this is still an opportunity for her in the battle. She isn’t going to let Ash get away with it as we see in the following battle between Dracovish and Milotic (whose ability is marvel scale, based on that shimmer it had on its body once in a while? Nice little touch animators, if that was the intention).

I’m glad we got a bit of a callback to Cynthia’s previous battle with Iris in how she was planning to try and take out Dracovish in the same manner as she took out Iris’ Dragonite. Ash must’ve been watching pretty closely back then, as he wasn’t about to let Cynthia get away with that trick again unscathed. While it was surely the end of Dracovish, he didn’t go down without a fight, leaving Ash a chance to try and make up some ground. That goofy mismatched fossil definitely deserves a salute, because they definitely took this match seriously.

Then we get to Sirfetch’d, a contender who had a lot of ups and downs in this battle. We get a fierce reminder that Stealth Rock, set up by Garchomp earlier, is still a hazard for Ash.

Now, Ash is no stranger to eradicating these sorts of issues. Recall that Ash basically blew up the battlefield to destroy a set of toxic spikes Paul set up in their match in the Sinnoh League.

But the application of brutal swing in this match was a bit odd... at least in my opinion.

Hear me out: the idea behind stealth rock is that they’re all invisible, and thus, hard to get rid of in any way other than a massive area-of-effect move. I would’ve actually very much welcomed a callback to Ash’s maneuver with Infernape to upturn the field and fizzle out the toxic spikes. I can most certainly see Sirfetch’d doing something outrageous to propel itself high into the air, and then turning a Meteor Assault down to the earth itself to break the field and have the resulting sundered battlefield propel pieces of itself upwards en masse to eradicate all the stealth rocks and deal damage to Milotic to boot.

To me, that’s far more impressive and has much more precedent in the anime than throwing your shield out Captain America style to somehow knock out all the Stealth Rocks blind. I will admit transferring a move into the shield is an idea that I do like, and I hope it can be applied in another creative way in the future, but this one felt a bit... off. I think they were trying to emulate the concept of Rapid Spin clearing hazards, but it didn’t really resonate with me that much.

Ah... maybe I’m just biased to Ash blowing up the battlefield once in a while. And maybe because I loved the paralleled idea of him doing it to not just one Sinnoan opponent, but two.

But I had to admit, I had to stifle a laugh when Sirfetch’d did that cheeky little “assuming his default stance” pose after defeating Milotic. If nothing else, Ash’s pokemon have a lot of great character, and that’s why I can’t help but love them.

Then on top of that, we got treated to a pretty neat clash between Sirfetch’d and Garchomp. However, we’re quickly reminded why... Garchomp... is... fucking... terrifying.

Even with that little stagger Garchomp took after the clash between Draco Meteor and Meteor Assault (oh hey... dual meteor moves... nice...), it was pretty hardcore to see that, even knocked out, that damn “paragon of chivalry” that is Sirfetch’d managed to stay on their feet. I’m glad to see Ash’s mons are getting some good rep in the second half of this battle, even against the imposing mountain that is Cynthia and her powerful team.

Then we come to the setup for the conclusion to this trio of battle episodes. Lucario versus Togekiss. All battle, Ash has been dreading the arrival of Mega Garchomp, and even in the waiting room, they’re all quietly anticipating how Cynthia is going to mega evolution into play yet again.

But after some touch and go battling between the pair, Cynthia acknowledges Ash’s strength of will, and decides she needs to shock Ash yet again, another blow to his mental preparedness, by unveiling a dynamax band.

Admittedly, I did not see this coming, but it would make sense for Cynthia, a prolific and versatile champion, to master more than just one of the major pokemon enhancing trio of abilities. I can faintly imagine a z-ring hiding under that other sleeve too, perhaps.

Regardless, Ash now has to endure the wrath of Dynamax Togekiss, backed up by the ever powerful, ever vigilant Garchomp, with only his Lucario to withstand them.

I have to say, this battle has left me wanting more. Though I’m not absolutely frothing at the mouth for how amazing this battle is, I’m still generally impressed, barring a few “huh” moments. The character of Ash’s mons is shining through in this battle, but Cynthia is really putting the nails to him. I’m just hoping that, in the next episode, this battle comes to a satisfying conclusion.

We all can probably guess that Ash will win, given the hype train leading up to Ash versus Leon that’s been brewing all season, but I really want Cynthia to make him earn it in a way that does take me by surprise, as Ash usually does, but not in a way that leaves me saying “really?” like I did with that brutal swing shield maneuver.

Let’s see if we can stick the landing...

[askagamedev]

With how expensive mmorpgs are to make, whats the drive behind making them? Has there been new innovations/shortcuts that has been found since the mmo heydays?

The main benefit to MMOGs is that the successful ones continue to earn money for years after they launch. Companies absolutely love steady, predictable income earners like MMOGs which is one reason we’ve seen such a huge push towards the Games as a Service model. The lifestyle games people play every day like Fortnite, Hearthstone, League of Legends, Rocket League, Destiny, and World of Warcraft are games that players will regularly buy additional content for like skins, characters, maps, emotes, expansions, and so on. Players keep playing and buying stuff, so we can keep developing more content and systems for those games in a (mostly) virtuous cycle where both devs and players continue to get what they want.

There have certainly been innovations in the games-as-a-service space. Most MMOGs have exchanged the old hardware server blade farm back end for cloud back ends now, and we’ve gotten a lot better at things like latency compensation and asset streaming. We’ve also greatly improved our data collection and analysis so that we can better track trends among players - what they like, what they don’t like, whether they’re tired of this or that, all of which helps provide context to make future decisions. These kind of solutions tend to be broad and far-reaching in their application, able to be leveraged for use across multiple games.

Player-facing systems like housing, player trade and commerce, in-game mail, chat, customer service/game master tools, player organizations like guilds or clubs, items, etc. tend to be more specific to each game and require custom implementations and solutions. One might think that a system like chat could easily be game-agnostic, but there’s much more to chat than just people sharing typed text. Much of chat organization in online games is constrained in some way - you might not want all players online connected to the same global chat room. Instead players generally expect to be grouped in specific channels in meaningful ways like “in this zone”, “within X distance in game”, “in same guild”, “in same party”, “in same raid”, “in same faction”, “private message to individual”, etc. These kind of restrictions on who can read the chat generally require custom solutions built on a game-specific basis because the constraints will vary with the game.

Overall, MMOGs were the first major step towards the games as a service model that has widely been adopted in the game industry at large. Players have responded overwhelmingly positively to games as a service in general. It is a business model that keeps food on the table for us devs in a way that is much more stable long-term than the old days. It is also a way for players who enjoy a game to continue playing it and get more of what they enjoy. It is good for business, good for developers, and good for players. Things have evolved since then as we took the MMOG monolith and broke it apart into components that have each been adopted into games where they make sense, and you can see the various piecemeal incorporation of such features and technology in all sorts of lifestyle games today.

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[occidentaltourist]

The Unbearable Whiteness of (Comics) Beings

An excellent thread by Gene Demby, correspondent and co-host of NPR’s Code Switch podcast, on the deeply embedded whiteness of Marvel and DC comics characters.

From Droll Embiid.@GeeDee215:

A quick thing about Isaiah on The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

About a decade ago, I interviewed Robert Morales, who invented that character for Marvel in 2001. The result was "Truth: Red, White, And Black" which recast the story of Captain America's origins as part of a Tuskegee Syphillis Study-like plot.

In Robert's story, the US rounded up hundreds of Black GIs in a segregated battalion during WWII to use as guinea pigs. The US is trying to re-create the procedure used to turn Steve Rogers into Cap.

They get it wrong — a lot. Almost all of the Black men they round up die.

Only five of the 300 Black men subjected to the super-soldier experiments survive the process; of that five, Isaiah is the only Black super-soldier who survives the war, and he is thrown in prison for decades.

"It was so depressing I didn't think they would approve it," Robert told me. ""But it was depressingly realistic. And *likely.*

"Robert died in 2013. But his revision of the Cap story was part of a wider on-page reckoning w/ the whiteness of the stories in the mainline MCU/DCU.

The Kents of Smallville, as one example, were reimagined as radical abolitionists — Free-Staters who settled in Kansas to oppose the state from becoming a slave state. Clark Kent, then, would be directly downstream from the principles of his forebears.

It's a very liberal inclination — positioning the Kents on the side of justice for a century-plus before the space-ship landed on their farm.

but it skips over some bigger, more important question about race and power: like how is it that whiteness was literally so universal that both a Kansan *and* a Kryptonian might possess it?

Much more under the cut.

Black mainline comics writers kept playing with these premises. The legendary Dwayne McDuffie, wrote his Black superman analogue Icon as having become Black upon imprinting on the enslaved Black woman in the American south who found and adopted it.*

*why this character was still -male- is...yeah.

anyway, a lot of mainstream superheroes, in their reimaginings, have to nod to the oppression in this country. (There was an aside in one of the Nolan Batman jawns that positioned the Batcave as originally a hideout the Waynes used for fugitives on the Underground Railroad.)

And i think that speaks to how deeply embedded the whiteness of these characters is.

The Green Lantern's power ring had to scan the earth for the bravest person in a world of billions of people and...decided that its rightful bearer was a white fighter pilot from the Midwest?

anyway, more later!

okay, so young Kal-El rocketed across the cosmos as a baby in a spaceship before crash-landing in a field in Kansas. He was Kryptonian but also, somehow, a white boy. Which brings us back to this question upthread: whiteness could literally span the cosmos?

in those Silver Age days, that's literally how they explained it: he could be a white American because there were white Kryptonians.

This was underscored by the fact that they created distinctly *Black* Kryptonians — who lived in a place called Vathlo Island.

Vathlo Island "retained its independence throughout history and did not join the planetary federation, though good relations were maintained."

Kryptonian Wakanda, I guess.(Yes, I know i'm mixing universes to make that metaphor work. calm down, nerds.)

Not long after that first (and one of the only) references to Vathlo Island in 1971, Neal Adams, a white artist at DC, asked his editor a q: what happens if Hal Jordan — the Green Lantern —  dies? The editor told him that there would then be a backup Lantern.

The backup Green Lantern they had in mind was a white gym teacher who used to play Big 10 football.

Again: the bravest person in the world was a white USian dude.

Adams eventually pushed back, and along w/ Dennis O'Neil, created a Black character to take over the GL mantle: an ex-Marine named John Stewart.

(Adams told me his editor originally wanted to name the character Lincoln Washington, but he talked him out of it. Phew.)

Again, y'all see the problems here — the bravest person in the world is still a male, a USian and a member of the US, military? — but as representation went, Stewart was better than a lot of the other Black superheroes that DC tried their hands at.

In the 70s, DC created Black Lightning (who was black and electrical), Black Goliath (black and a giant), and Nubia ( black...and Wonder Woman). And at Marvel there was Luke Cage, who, in his earliest pre-dab incarnations, was a jive-talking powerhouse in butterfly collars.

Anyway, the upshot here is that John Stewart taking over the Green Lantern mantle...stuck with Dwayne McDuffie, who created the Milestone comics imprint under DC in the 1990s, featuring all characters of color.

(Milestone's Superman analogue, Icon, mentioned upthread, became a way to embody and critique a certain kind of ascendent respectability politics; he was, after all, essentially a Black cop. Milestone was already playing with chewier ideas around race than mainline DC.)

McDuffie would eventually become a the principal player in the DC Animated Universe. When they were creating the Justice League animated series, underlined that there way that the show could have a team in which everyone — even the aliens Kal-El and Hawkgirl! — were white.so instead of Hal Jordan, the original Green Lantern, taking his traditional place as at the Justice League table , the animated series launched with John Stewart in that role.

The show debuted in 2001 and became a huge hit. McDuffie often pointed out that, as a result, a generation of younger fans who were introduced to the character through the animated series had only ever known a Black Green Lantern.

(There were a lot of reasons the 2011 Ryan Reynolds Green Lantern movie failed, and the "who tf is THIS guy?" factor probably played some role in it.)

There's a lot more, obviously. But some of these IPs — Batman and Superman and Captain America, in particular — are 80+ years old. They're holdovers from a pre-Civil Rights Act America, a pre-Stonewall America, etc. They represent a bunch of stuff that is ever harder to update.

And it will be interesting to watch how that chafes against the the fact that they are more valuable and popular than they've ever been. Could a critique of the premises of the Cap origin story, like Robert Morales', even happen today?

[peppersonironi]

Code Orange (Batfam/Young Justice Crossover)

{Read on Ao3)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences (For language - Jason)

Category: Gen

Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types, Young Justice (Cartoon)

Relationships: Garfield Logan & M'gann M'orzz, Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson & Jason Todd, Tim Drake & Jason Todd, The Team (Young Justice) & Jason Todd

Characters: Jason Todd, M'gann M'orzz, Garfield Logan, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Kon-El | Conner Kent, Members of the Team (Young Justice), Stephanie Brown

Additional Tags: Humor, Crossover, Jason Todd Swears, Jason Todd Being a Little Shit, Good Older Sibling Dick Grayson, Meet the Batfamily (DCU), Post-Season/Series 02, Bruce Wayne Has Too Many Kids, Banter, Mild Language

Summary: Garfield was cut off by M'gann grabbing his wrist and flying out of the room as fast as she could. “Code Orange. Code Orange,” M'gann sent out to everyone on the Watchtower. “There is an intruder on the Watchtower! An ‘A’ level Villain. Armed. Repeat, there is an armed villain on the Watchtower.”

AKA: Red Hood decides he wants to see the Team, breaks in, and causes havoc. The bats are strangely friendly with someone who was supposed to be their villain.

A/N: Yo, I've had this sitting in my docs since … March? Well, i decided to put it out, seeing as I'm FINALLY seeing Season Three! Although this fic doesn't include it. Think of this as post-season two, and just ignoring season three. Full batfam are just never introduced to the Team.

WORK-

It was a slow weekend on the Watchtower, with no missions, catastrophes, or alien invasions. So most of the Team and League were either at home, or chilling in the space station.

The latter was exactly what Garfield and M'gann were doing. They had been on the Watchtower for the entirety of the morning, playing various types of board games. Every so often someone would pop in on them, but for the most part they were enjoying some sibling bonding time.

“You know what we need?” Garfield asked in the middle of Candy Land.

“No, I thought we were doing just fine the way we were,” M'gann replied, confused.

Garfield scoffed. “Food, obviously! I'm starving! Let's head to the cafeteria and see if Bart left any ice cream.”

*****

They didn't find any ice cream. Though, what was there was alarming.

M'gann and Garfield had strode into the cafeteria finding it almost empty. The single occupant was a man in cargo pants, a leather jacket, and a red helmet. He also wore a gray armored shirt, which had some sort of red symbol. The symbol was obscured, however, by the ginormous gun he was cleaning.

M'gann recognized him immediately as the Red Hood, a top-tier crime lord from Gotham.

“Why Hello, Miss Martian. Beast Boy.” Red Hood didn’t even look up.

“Hey sis, did someone new join the team or -”

Garfield was cut off by M'gann grabbing his wrist and flying out of the room as fast as she could. “Code Orange. Code Orange,” M'gann sent out to everyone on the Watchtower. “There is an intruder on the Watchtower! An ‘A’ level Villain. Armed. Repeat, there is an armed villain on the Watchtower.”

“That was a villain?!” Garfield asked in a surprised voice as he raced along with M’gann.

“Yes, Garfield. Red Hood. I have no idea how he got here though. We need to gather everyone. Make sure they're ready for a fight. Especially Nightwing and Robin, he's a Gotham villain, so they should know what to do.”

Garfield nodded, changed into a hawk, and flew off.

Soon almost everyone was gathered outside the cafeteria's doors. Garfield had yet to bring Nightwing, but Robin was present, and at the front of the group. The only adult leaguer present was Captain Marvel, who had been on monitor duty at the time. The major leaguers - including the big three - were on some sort of low threat level assignment.

“M'gann, report,” Aqualad spoke when he made his way to the front of the group where M'gann stood, blocking Conner from jumping the gun and attacking without a plan.

“Garfield and I were on our way to get some food, when we walked in on The Red Hood cleaning a large gun threateningly. I pulled Gar out as fast as possible and alerted everyone.”

Robin groaned loudly. “Hood? Of all the days to infiltrate the Watchtower, he chose today?”

Aqualad frowned. “You do not seem that alarmed. Is he not as dangerous as we have been told?”

Robin snorted. “Oh, he’s dangerous alright. Tried to kill me multiple times, almost succeeded too. But right now I’m just annoyed.”

Superboy grunted. “That doesn’t matter right now! There is a villain in our lunch room! We need to do something!”

Robin shrugged. “Do what you want. B is gonna kill me either way.”

No one understood what Robin meant, so they decided to follow Kon’s advice. Aqualad took charge.

“We enter on three. Blue Beetle, Rocket, Kid Flash, and Wondergirl go right. Superboy, Lagoon Boy, Miss Martian, and Captain Marvel go left. Zatanna and Robin, follow me. Try to encircle him. Get him talking, and see if we can figure out what he wants. M’gann, link us up.”

Robin grumbled, but nodded along with everyone else. M’gann activated the mind link. Once everyone had given the affirmative, Aqualad began the count.

“One. Two. Three. Go!”

Everyone burst through the doors and assumed their positions. The Red Hood was still sitting where M’gann had said. He was still cleaning his gun, though he paused when the Team entered.

“Took you long enough. I was getting bored.”

Robin glared at Red Hood. “What are you doing here, Hood?”

The intruder seemed to smile under his helmet. “Why’re you so grumpy today, babybird? I was getting bored in Gotham. Figured I’d stop by and say hello to the Team.” Hood turned to look at the rest of the Team and waved. “Hey Team. Captain Marvel. How’re you doing?”

No one replied. Red Hood sighed and shook his head. “No one cares about me.”

“Dude, there is a full attack force ready to beat the crap out of you,” Blue Beetle said. “I’m pretty sure there are people who care that you’re here.”

Red Hood chuckled. “You couldn’t beat me if you tried. Tell ‘em, Replacement.”

Robin smirked. “Not after what I saw last week. You were taken down by two low level thugs.”

Red Hood groaned. “Dude, I was drunk.”

No one had the chance to question this as it was at that exact moment that Beast Boy burst into the room followed closely by Nightwing. He had his escrima sticks out, and looked ferocious.

“Hey ‘wing! Nice of you to join us.” Red Hood sounded positively gleeful.

Nightwing, instead of attacking, groaned and put his weapons away. “This is what you called me for? It's just Hood.”

Aqualad frowned. “Is not the Red Hood a security level A enemy? Shouldn’t you be worried?”

Red Hood shook his head. “Level A? I’m flattered! Maybe you and B do care!”

Nightwing sighed, walked over to Hood, and collapsed on the sofa beside him. The Team was shocked to say the least.

“ ‘Course we care, Hood.” Nightwing said, causing many gasps.

“Nightwing,” Aqualad said, “What are you talking about? Is not this man one of your Rogues? Robin said that he tried to kill him multiple times!”

Nightwing just shrugged. “So? He’s tried to kill me too.”

Red Hood tilted his head as he looked at Robin. “You still go by Robin, here? Boy, Demon-spawn is going to kill you!”

Robin crossed his arms and glared. “It was easier. Do you know how long it takes to change your Zeta Settings?”

Red Hood nodded sagely. “So you were too lazy.”

Robin spluttered, but didn’t deny the accusations.

“Are we forgetting,” Conner said, “That there is a villain in the Watchtower? How did he get in?!”

“Hey Red,” Nightwing asked, grinning, “How’d you get up here, anyway?”

Red Hood seemed to smirk under his helmet. “Blackmail is a glorious thing.”

There was an uproar in the mind link. Accusations flew. Who had Red Hood blackmailed? What did he know about them that could possibly warrant an unauthorized visit to the Watchtower? What was almost as scary was how nonchalant Nightwing seemed. Robin also didn’t seem that worried. In fact he looked … sheepish?

Nightwing laughed. “Whatever he has on you, Robin, must be good!”

“Robin!” M’gann exclaimed. He was the last person anyone expected to be Blackmailed. The bats were so secretive, no one really knew anything about them. This situation with Red Hood being a prime example.

“Hermano,” Blue Beetle said, clearly distressed, “How could you do this?”

Robin just shrugged. “He knew something bad, guys. It couldn’t get out.”

Nightwing looked positively gleeful, the exact opposite of what everyone else was feeling. “Come on, Hood. What did he do?”

Red Hood was shaking with laughter. “He brewed his coffee with a mix of Red Bull and Monster, then topped it off with four Five Hour Energy’s, and three double shots of espresso. When he was on strict orders to sleep.”

“Timothy Jackson Drake!” Nightwing exclaimed, sitting up. He seemed more exasperated than angry. “We’ve talked about this! You are going to get yourself killed if you keep going on like this!”

Robin did not look the least bit apologetic. “Hood! You said you wouldn’t tell!”

Red Hood shrugged. “I said I wouldn’t tell Agent A or Bats. You didn’t say anything about Nightwing or the Team.”

Robin collapsed on the nearest chair. “I’m dead, aren’t I?”

Nightwing nodded. “You are so grounded after this. I’m telling Agent A, and we’re changing all your coffee to decaf!”

Robin groaned. The rest of the Team was confused. For one thing, that wasn’t necessarily that bad of a thing to hide? Sure it was disgusting, but it's not like Robin killed anyone. For another, who did that to their coffee?! But the most worrisome was how did Red Hood know about that? He must have been close to the bird. And how did he know Agent A? Not even the OG Team members had met the mysterious Agent A, who coordinated and cared for the Bats.

“That still doesn’t answer why there is a villain in our cafeteria!” Rocket exclaimed. There were several agreeing nods.

Red Hood sighed. “I told you, I’m here to say hi!” He turned to Robin, “I haven’t seen you in ages.” Though he spoke toward Robin, the Team couldn’t help but feel like he was talking to everyone in the room.

Just then, Kid Flash flew into the room. The lightning trailing from his wake crackled quietly as he stopped next to Aqualad.

“I heard that we had an infiltration and - woah! It's the Red Hood! Why didn’t you tell me it was him! Awesome!” There was a flash, and Kid Flash was standing over Red Hood with a notebook and pen in hand. “Can I have your autograph?”

Nightwing looked like he was trying not to laugh, Robin looked slightly peeved, and everyone else was just confused.

Red Hood’s face wasn’t visible, but his body language clearly showed how pleased he was. “Now this is how you should be treating me!” Hood spoke and he signed the page that Kid Flash helpfully pointed out. “How does ‘Red Hood, to the only decent speedster I’ve ever met’ sound?”

Kid Flash was grinning. “Perfect! Thanks so much! All the info surrounding you was pretty vague in the timelines, so I wasn’t sure if you were even back yet! Or working with the bats again. But boy am I glad you are! You’ve always been my favorite! Do you know how cool you are, dude?!”

Red Hood tilted his head. “Of course I do, kid. Glad someone else sees it though.” He seemed to glare at Nightwing as he said the last part, who only shook his head.

Kid Flash got his notebook back and positively bounced over to Blue Beetle. “Dude did you see this? He actually signed it!”

Blue Beetle frowned. “Why did you want his autograph in the first place?”

Red Hood spluttered, clearly annoyed. “Why wouldn’t he?”

“Yeah,” Kid Flash said, “Why wouldn’t I want the autograph of clearly the best Outlaw?” He paused to think. “Are you with the Outlaws yet?”

Red Hood shrugged. “I haven’t seen either of them in a few months, but we are meeting next week for an … outing.”

Nightwing snorted and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like “mercenaries and drugs. What could go wrong.”

Red Hood glared at Nightwing. “Like nothing you ever do goes wrong.”

Nightwing snorted. “Yeah, but I never leave a trail of bodies.”

“Okay, one, the bodies were on purpose,” Hood said, “And two, I stopped! No more killing people for widdle ol’ me.”

“Mostly.” Robin said.

“Mostly,” Red Hood agreed.

“Why is their bickering so familiar?” M’gann asked.

“It’s like they’re siblings,” Captain Marvel replied.

“Oh Gosh,” Kid Flash said, “You guys really don’t -”

Suddenly Nightwing, Robin and Red Hood stiffened in unison. The air seemed to drop several degrees. Then Batman strode into the room flanked by Superman and Wonder Woman.

“Thank the gods,” Wondergirl said. “This guy just showed up, he said he blackmailed Robin into letting him up, and Nightwing isn’t doing anything about it! Please tell us you -”

“Uncle Clark! Aunt Diana!” Red Hood seemed strangely happy to see the most powerful people in the League. He even knew their civilian names! There were several gasps.

Wonder Woman strode forward, and Red Hood sprang up to meet her. “ Red Hood! So good to see you. How has your life been my little warrior?” They hugged briefly, and Beast Boy almost fainted.

“Pretty good, Aunt Diana. You know, a little dark, a little gloomy. And, as always, hey, full of dead people. What are you gonna do?”

Robin snorted. “Did you just quote Hercules at Wonder Woman? An Amazon?”

Wonder smiled - quite motherly, Kaldur thought in the mind link - at Red Hood. “It's been too long my dear. Next time you have a day off, come find me in Paris. We should spend more time together.”

“I’ll be sure to!”

Wonder Woman stepped to the side to allow Superman forward. “Really, how have you been kiddo?”

“I’m not a kid anymore, supes. Haven’t been since I was fifteen and you know it.” Superman seemed to flinch, which in and of itself was a shock. Red Hood shrugged. “But I’ve been good. Had to deal with these idiots a lot,” he gestured to Nightwing and Robin, both of whom looked indignant, “but … I’ve been good.”

Superman smiled. “Great. You should come to the farm sometime, Ma misses you.”

“He can - he’s gone to the farm?!” Superboy couldn’t hold back his shock. He had only just been allowed to go, and meet Ma Kent.

Red Hood nodded as Superman stepped aside to join Wonder Woman. “Of course, I’ve been coming for years.”

Superboy was slack jawed at this revelation, and, despite much cajoling from his teammates, was unable to close his mouth.

“Hood.” Batman said. He spoke tiredly, in a way no one in the Team had ever heard him use before. “Do you have to traumatize everyone you meet?”

“Oh, you wanna talk about trauma?” Red Hood’s voice was filled with a maliciously gleeful tone. “ ‘Cause you should hear about this one time, I was hanging out with the Joker - just chilling, y’know - and then -”

Red Hood was cut off by a grimacing Nightwing punching him in the shoulder. “Not now, okay?”

“Come on, I’m sure the gang would love to hear all the gruesome details …”

“Hood,” Batman repeated slightly more urgently. “What are you doing on the Watchtower?”

Red Hood sighed. “For the last time, I wanted to say hi to the Team. I haven’t seen these guys in ages.”

“We have never met before,” Aqualad said, confused.

Red Hood shook his head. “They don’t remember me.” He seems thoughtful for a moment. “Maybe there weren’t enough explosions.”

“Hood,” Batman continued. “You know you aren’t allowed up here without permission. Which you just had to ask for. I would have set up a time to let you see everyone.”

This time when the Team was surprised, Nightwing and Robin joined in; Their faces twin depictions of shock.

Red Hood didn’t seem to care, though. “Since when have I ever asked you for anything, old man. Besides, this way is more fun. Drama, and all that sh*t.” He sat back on the sofa. “You should have seen their faces! Best fun I’ve had since Nightwing and I got drunk in Blüdhaven a few weeks back!”

Batman whirled to Nightwing, who was looking quite sheepish. “You did what?”

Nightwing shrugged. “It had been a long night, and I was getting over a bad break up. Hood was being an outstanding citizen by aiding me in my hour of need!”

“F*** yeah, Big-Wing!”

Batman shook his head. “Hood, you aren’t of legal drinking age, there is no way you were being an outstanding citizen.”

The Team could barely keep up. Nightwing and Red Hood were close enough to get drunk together? Hood was under twenty one? Batman seemed close enough to Hood to know he was under twenty one. Well, that last one could be easily explained: he was Batman after all.

Red Hood grumbled his assent before perking up. “Hey bats, is that why you still have me down as a villain on the official League files?”

Batman seemed at a loss for words. He just employed his signature BatGlare™  on the intruder. Red Hood didn’t seem affected at all, which could easily be taken as the most surprising thing about the whole encounter. Even Superman flinched at the BatGlare™.

“Do you understand the mixed signals you’re sending me?” Hood Continued. “I mean, I’m allowed to Sunday dinner, but I’m also classified as one of the most dangerous criminals on earth?”

“Sunday dinner?” Several people asked in unison.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m flattered that you think so high of me, but I changed to f***ing rubber bullets for you! Doesn’t that give me some credit? Or were you just too lazy to change it. Like Replacement over here, who still goes by Robin.”

“Yes, of course you deserve to be taken off the list. You’ve made so much progress. I’ll change your file as soon as I can.” He frowned. “And for the love of god, please call Tim by his name, or hero moniker.”

“Yeah, call me by my name, Hood!” Robin seemed to be rolling his eyes under his domino mask. “There’s a first time for everything.”

Red Hood looked appeased. “Good.” He collapsed back on the couch and continued to clean his gun.

Batman sighed. “Do you want something else?”

“Well, now that you’re asking …” Red Hood seemed exceptionally sly. “It is getting a bit boring in here.” he paused as if to think. “Hey! We should throw a party! "

Batman glowered. "No. The last time I let you have a party, the Bat cave was covered in glitter for three days straight!"

“You’ve held parties in the Batcave?” Aqualad asked.

Red Good sighed and shook his head. "Good times, good times. But you forget that that glitter was purple. I wasn’t completely to blame!”

Batman sighed once more, while Robin sat up straight.

“Is that why Spoiler didn’t come to the house for a week?”

Nightwing nodded. “Yup. She was too scared to see Agent A. Though she wouldn’t mind yelling at B.”

“And flip him off while doing so.” Red Hood sighed contentedly. “I taught her well.”

“You didn’t teach her anything!” Nightwing contradicted. “She’s been flipping people off since before you returned to Gotham! She gave the single-fingered salute B when they first met - with a smile on her face!”

The Team wondered who could be so brave, none of them were.

Red Hood seemed overjoyed. “Really? Why haven’t I heard about this before! How did Batsy react?”

“Like a deer in headlights,” Robin replied, smirking.

Red Hood began to clap. “She makes the Robin legacy proud, doesn’t she?”

“Does that mean this girl was a Robin?” Rocket asked.

“Batman reacted like a deer in headlights?” Captain Marvel added.

Nightwing nodded sardonically. “Yes, because pissing off Batman is exactly what I had in mind when I started Robin.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised, Golden Boy,” Red Hood snorted, “You’ve swung off of and broken enough chandeliers for it to be coincidance.”

Nightwing grimaced. “So there have been some casualties.”

Batman shook his head. “Casualties?”

Robin nodded quite seriously. “Of course, B. How else would you know to get gymnastic equipment?”

“He could have asked. Instead I had to spend thousands of dollars every time Nightwing decided he wanted to try some new trapeze routine.” Batman shook his head. “Why do all of you decide it's your job to vandalize my home?”

Robin raised his hands. “Hey, I didn’t destroy anything important!”

“No, you just randomly got rid of my computers when you decided we needed an upgrade.”

“Well we did!”

“Hah! I’ve never done any permanent damage to your house!” Red Hood seemed very self satisfied.

Batman, Nightwing, and Robin paused for a moment, thinking.

“That,” Robin said, “Is truly depressing.”

“Hn,” Batman replied.

“Good job Hood,” Nightwing said, “You have managed not to disappoint B in one field.”

Red Hood seemed to roll his eyes. “Don’t worry, I make up for it in all the other ways!”

“Can someone PLEASE explain to me what’s going on?” Garfield asked, bouncing in place.

All the bats turned to look at him in unison, causing the kid to shrink back and hide behind M’gann. A moment later, though, Red Hood sighed audibly. He reached up and felt for some hidden latches in his hamlet. There was a click and he pulled it off. Underneath was a red domino mask. He reached up and pulled that off next.

There were several gasps from the OG Team. The man before them was older, his jaw-line matured, scars littering his face. He had a white streak in his hair and blue eyes rimmed with a pulsing poisonous green. But they still recognized him.

“What?” Zattanna whispered, her eyes wide.

“You’re …” Conner began,shocked, “You’re alive?”

“How?”  Rocket asked. “You were dead.”

In unison, the five people who knew the stranger turned to Nightwing.

“You said you wouldn’t fake any more deaths!” M’gann announced, anger flowing through her.

“How could you, Dick?” Kaldur asked, frowning insteansly. “No more secrets, you promised.”

Nightwing sighed. “I had no part in this, let me tell you. It was the Al Ghuls. We didn’t find out till a year ago.”

“That’s still a year you took to tell us!” Conner glared.

Nightwing shrugged. “It was extenuating circumstances, alright? Not completely my choice.”

Seeing that questioning Dick would be fruitless, Zatanna turned back to the Red Hood. “how are you alive?”

He grinned. “The Lazarus Pit does wonders for the skin, let me tell you.”

This brought a stir throughout the room. Everyone had heard of the legendary substance that granted Ra’s Al Ghul immortality.

“Someone still needs to tell me who this is,” Cassie said, her hands on her hips.

Batman sighed. “Everyone, this is Jason Peter Todd, my son, and the second Robin.”

Everyone who didn’t already know blinked several times.

“The hologram in the park?” Jaime asked. “The one who was killed by the Joker?”

“The very one!” Jason grinned. “Nice to know some people know me.”

“I thought there were only two Robins?” La'gaan stated more than asked with a frown.

In unison, Nightwing, Red Hood, Robin, and even Superman started to laugh.

“Oh kid,” Jason said, grabbing his sides, “you’re adorable!”

“Only two Robins,” Superman said, grinning, “Batman wishes.”

Nightwing was choking with laughter, but once he’d calmed down, he looked at La’gaan again, and proceeded to break down again.

“Two Robins?!” Robin looked in awe, “Wow, now that’s a thought.”

“I’m sorry?” La'gaan asked. He didn’t look sorry.

“There have been five Robins,” Red Hood explained after a moment, “Six if you count that new kid. But that whole thing was kinda weird.”

“Six?!” several people announced, and looked at Batman, who nodded.

“How come we’ve never met them?” M’gann asked, “Nightwing, how could you not have told us?”

“You haven’t met them ‘cause most of the bats stick to Gotham,” Robin answered, “there hasn’t a need to drag everyone up here. Let alone the Robins.”

“Wait,” Zattanna said, “There are more bats?”

NIghtwing laughed again. “Oh boy, you guys really know nothing? Do any of you pay attention to Gotham?” There were several sheepish smirks, and Nightwing sighed. “Artemis is the only one who actually gets this, isn’t she?”

Jason frowned. “I wish she was here today, I wanted to say high.” he then looked at the still confused faces of the hero community. He stood up dramatically, as if about to start a grand speech.“Okay, rundown. You know Batman, obviously. Dicky-bird over there was the first Robin. I was the second. Then you have Timbo who was the third-”

“Was?” several people asked.

“I still go by Robin up here ‘cause it's easier-”

“He’s too lazy to change his codes, we already established this,” Jason interrupted, glaring, “After him you have Robin four, that was for the time that Tim’s dad banned him from the roll. Then he died, and she died, so Tim was back to being Robin.” he ignored the several open mouthed faces and persevered, “then you have the little gremlin who’s currently Robin. He’s the ‘bloodson’ which he takes very seriously, so don’t tell him that just because daddybats over there and Talia Al Ghul hooked up means that he’s the F***ing savior.” Everyone turned to stare at Batman.

“Talia Al Ghul?” Jaime asked, “Isn’t she an assassin?”

“Yup!” Nightwing announced, drawing attention onto him. “And the kid’s a cutie!”

Tim scoffed. “That’s not half the bats though,” he pointed out. “You have Batwoman, Batwing … hey, Azrael counts, right?”

“I mean,” Dick said, “He was Batman at one point, and lives in Gotham so yeah. He’d probably not want to be called that though.”

Jason laughed. “He and Leslie think we’re all crazy. I mean, they’re right, but still.”

Tim laughed. “Yup! Then you have the batgirls, number one, you guys know her. She’s Oracle now, a behind the scenes tech support goddess. Then Batgirl number two, she goes by Black Bat now, takes care of Hong Kong when she’s not visiting home and being the favorite child.”

Batman frowned. “I don’t have favor-”

“You do.” All three former Robins said in unison.

“So yeah,” Dick continued, “She’s awesome. Easily kicks our butts - including B! But after her you have Spoiler, the third Batgirl, and fourth Robin. After her there’s Catwoman -” there were several gasps. “Oh yeah, she and Bats are totally a thing - have been for years. You wouldn’t be surprised if you saw their flirting! There was this one time when I was Robin, I was supposed to case a building while B went after Cat, right? Well when i got there, they were already half-”

“That’s enough.” Batman growled, and Nightwing grinned.

“Moving on!” Jason announced, “since we all have horrible memories of batcat freaky roof time, you have Huntress, and Blue Bird. Then The Signal - he was kinda a half Robin, in a gang war sort of way. But that’s not important. He’s the only meta protege of batsy’s, and if that doesn’t scream second favorite child, I don’t know what does!”

“You allow metas in Gotham now?!” Garfield asked.

“No.” all the bats announced in unison.

“Signal is the exception, and if you met him, you’d understand. Easily the sanest out of all of us.” Jason explained with a wink.

“Relatively the sanest!” Tim announced. “He literally jumped out of a police car, of a bridge, into the Gotham river, while saying ‘I am Robin. Plus, he handled the demon spawn on a rampage. He’s just as crazy as the rest of us.”

“None of this explains why we haven’t met these people!” Connor said.

Batman sighed heavily. “Fine. I’ll set up a meeting, check out who’s in town and such. Not today though, there’s a drug bust going down and no one’s available. Besides, they don’t even know what’s going on up here.”

Jason let out an awkward cough, and sat gingerly down on the couch. He seemed … guilty?

“Jason.” Batman growled in warning.

“I’m sorry, B!” Jason said, despite looking more along the lines of gleeful. “Blondie asked what I was doing today, and you know how hard it is to lie to her!”

Batman groaned - honest to gosh groaned! - and pinched the bridge of his nose. “She’s on her way right now, isn’t she?”

Jason shrugged. “She said something about grabbing snacks.”

Tim groaned. “We’re all dead.”

“What’s going on?” M’gann asked, “Why would this be bad?”

Dick sighed. “Spoiler is just … special.”

As if on cue, the door to the room crashed open dramatically, smoke seeping in. A purple clad figure stood dramatically in its wake, her cape swirling and arms raised over her head. She held two boxes of Munchkins in each fist.

“What’s up B*tches?” She asked. “I brought donuts!”

[alanm00ch]

How do you celebrate?

How do you celebrate 10 years of making content?

I’ve been asking myself this since it dawned on me that I started my adventure back on September 24th, 2011. But I didn’t make and upload my first video until 6 days later on September 30th. Back when I started? I was very limited in what I could do and it showed in the poor quality of everything.

I call 2011-2014 my starting point. Those first 3 years were just me trying to find my footing and figure stuff out. I had to teach myself how to edit. And my edits weren’t perfect. In that time frame, I got my 2nd channel (thanks to the defunct Google+) and I was able to have a home for all my content that wasn’t Sonic related. 2015 was a transition year as I started to run my own Twitch streams. On January 9th, 2015, I ran my first ever stream. All I had was Minecraft. And that was the game that kick started my streaming path. But streams were halted in May of 2015. (I blame my dad.) But Sonic content kept going. Which was good. In July of that year, I put out my first ever 1,000 view video as I made a music video to “Good News” by Manic Drive. In December of that year, I posted some of my biggest hit videos : Sonic music videos to “Nothing Can Stop Me Now” from the Disney movie Planes, and “Real Gone” from the Disney/Pixar movie Cars.  Those are my top 2 videos and I think they’re gonna stand at the top for a long while.

2016-2017 was mostly Sonic music videos on my Sonic channel, but my other channel was cranking out all kinds of videos from NASCAR ‘14 to Need For Speed Rivals to NBA 2K13 to NHL 08 to Southern 500 throwback reviews to NASCAR stop motion races. 2016 was also a big year for me as I had hit the 5 year mark of making videos over on Sonicfan1750. I always say the 24th is where I got my start as that was the day I made my channel. 2018 was where I got my Sonic channel back to gaming roots with the start of my Sonic Next Gen let’s play. I haven’t finished it and I haven’t resumed it. Been meaning to do that. 2018 was also a milestone on twitch as I had gotten the invite to be a Twitch affiliate on April 13th, 2018.

1 year, 5 days later on April 18th, 2019, I officially became an affiliate and that was a milestone all of it’s own. And then i got a windows laptop, an HP laptop with a touchscreen. and it opened the door to even more Steam games for me to play.

2020 was yet another milestone year as I celebrated 5 years of streaming on Twitch. 2020 was also the year I played Sonic Adventure and Sonic Mania for my Sonic Channel.

2021 has been me... just reflecting on that long road it took me to get to where I am now. it also saw me add new stuff to my resume.

I look back... and it makes me hope. Makes me hope I put a smile on someone’s face. I hope I brightened up someone’s day. that I made someone laugh. To me, a smile is *way* more of a reward than money ever will be.

I’m no longer that 16 year old kid that didn’t have a lot to work with. I’m a seasoned 26 year old who just wants to show I got nothing to lose, and I can work with what I’ve got. That I still got a lot of fight left in me.

How do you celebrate? How do you celebrate when it seems like at every turn you’ve taken in a year where it seems nothing’s gone right and it’s all gone wrong for you? When you have to fake a smile? When you have to bottle how you really feel inside because you don’t want to burn bridges? Me, personally? I just hold my head up and say “brighter days are ahead.” I don’t even need to deep dive into how my year’s gone. It’s been one disaster after another and it’s just been a massive pile of scraps (full year review coming in December). There were some positive moments for me this year where I honestly did smile. June 23rd was Sonic’s 30th anniversary, I smiled that day. June 26th, I did a Sonic anniversary stream, I had a smile on my face, July 10th, I started a stream with Rocket League and did some of the Beach Ball LTM, I had a big ole’ smile on my face. And then September 23rd... my 26th birthday. It didn’t start with a smile, but it sure did end with a smile... and me blowing out a candle after making a wish that night.

but for every day I’ve smiled? It always seems like there were 30 days where I just wanted the year to end.

Well... cheers to 10 years of making content. And here’s to my next 10 of making content.

[quickspinner]

Killer Combo - Ch 2 Pinch Hitter

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 Epilogue | Bonus Tidbits | ART inspired by this story! | AO3 | Fiction Master Post

She lost. Again. Marinette kind of wanted to scream, but she just put her controller down as calmly as she could and stepped out of her pyrapod, giving herself a little mental pep talk about how she was doing better against him. Not well enough to beat him in the finals, but she’d get there.. This event was a huge con hosting multiple competitions in different leagues, so the pyrapods were all in a row and gated off from the general public. Luka, it turned out, was only a couple down from hers and she nearly ran into him as he emerged. 

“Hey,” he said, flashing a grin. Marinette felt the flush beginning as her heart raced. Damn the man, why did he have to be so cute? “You’re still amazing,” Luka commented, shaking his head as he offered his hand to shake as always. “I can always count on you to give me a real fight.” 

Marinette’s lips twisted as she shook his hand. “Do you compliment your male opponents this much?”

“I would if they were as good as you,” Luka replied easily, seeming unbothered by her tone. “Not many are.” 

“I’m not going to date you,” Marinette blurted, and almost bit her tongue off in horror, but Luka just laughed.

“I didn’t ask you to,” Luka grinned, gesturing for her to go ahead of him down the walkway. “Do you get asked out a lot in competitions?”

Marinette huffed. “Propositioned is more like it. And that’s putting it politely.” 

Luka went quiet for a moment, his face suddenly serious. “I’m sorry that’s happened to you. That’s not right.” 

Marinette was silent for a moment, struck by his sincere tone. Luka looked like he was struggling with whether or not to say more, but he didn’t. “Thank you,” she said finally.

He gave her a rueful smile. “Please don’t thank me for being a decent human being, it erodes my faith in humanity.”

Marinette snorted. “Try being me for a day.”

Luka nudged her shoulder with his arm as they both moved towards the exit gate. “No thanks. I don’t think I could handle it. You must be tougher than your mech to put up with the amount of crap you get.” 

Marinette’s lips twisted as she tried not to smile. He was too sweet, too genuine, and she was horrifyingly close to admitting to herself that she was moving well beyond like and into massive crush territory. 

She hated that territory. The last guy had been nice too and it turned out that rejection sucked no matter how nice someone was about it.

“Not from everybody,” she shrugged, avoiding his eyes. “The nice people make the jerks easier to put up with. And the league is cracking down on the nastier trash talk, so that helps.” She was pretty sure he had something to do with that. He’d continued to complain loudly in his interviews about enforcement of the sportsmanship guidelines, and several of the magazines were starting to smell the kind of exposé that made sponsorship committees nervous. Marinette herself had gotten voicemails from media people wanting to talk to her about what it was like to be a girl in the league. Ergo he was at least partially responsible for the current crackdown—and was probably, it occurred to her suddenly, taking some flack for it. She should ask around. Not that she could really do much about it, even if people would talk to her.

On the one hand, she wondered why he cared so much. It certainly didn’t affect him the way it affected people like Marinette and Max. But then, thinking that way felt like a disservice to him. Luka just seemed like the kind of person who didn’t let unfairness and injustice slide. 

That might be the crush talking though. 

“Good, it’s about time they finally did something,” Luka snorted, snapping her back to reality. “Well, good luck in the two-on-two.” He held open the gate for her as they both exited the player arena.

Marinette’s face fell. “Oh. I’m not playing.”

Luka turned to look at her, eyes wide. “What? Why not, you guys have been rocketing up the ladder, why would you stop?”

“Not by choice,” Marinette shrugged. “Max is sick. Really sick. I can’t play without a partner.” She wrinkled her nose. “I’d be tempted to try honestly but those are the rules.” And without her partner, they would forfeit all the matches scheduled in this event. At the level they were at, that was bad. Very bad. 

“Is he going to be okay?” Luka asked, concern furrowing his brow. 

Stop being so nice! she thought at him irritably. “He’ll be fine eventually, but he’s pretty miserable right now,” she replied, trying to keep her tone light despite her frustration with the whole situation. “He actually doesn’t get sick very often but when he does it takes him down hard, and we don’t have an alternate. Our friend Adrien used to fill in but he went to school abroad and we didn’t think to find a replacement.”

“Man, that really sucks,” Luka sighed. “I mean I’m sorry he’s feeling so bad, but also for you guys to go down like that after all that work this close to the playoffs. I know how passionate you are about…” He paused, and chewed his lip for a moment. Marinette looked at him curiously as Luka’s eyes flicked to the tournament screen, and back to Marinette. “Let’s do it,” he said.

“What?” Marinette asked, eyes widening slightly. 

“You need a partner, I’ll be your partner,” Luka shrugged. “I don’t know how good I’ll be, you know I don’t usually play two-on-two, but I’ll follow your lead and do my best. Even if we only win a couple, that’s better than having to forfeit them all, right?” 

“Y-you’d do that for me?” Marinette stared at him blankly. “Why?”

Luka shrugged, flashing that easy smile that made her heart flutter. “It’s not a hardship, I’m hanging around anyway, and I like to play. I can pinch hit for a couple of weeks if you need it, or at least today.”

“But you have your own matches to worry about,” Marinette protested, but Luka just laughed.

“If you can handle both, then so can I,” he told her. “And if I start losing because I’m playing in both, then maybe I’m not as good as I thought I was, since you play both in every event. Come on, let me help,” he added as he saw the undecided look on her face. “I don’t want you to lose rank over something you couldn’t control.” He grinned as he saw her give in. “Where do I sign up?”

“This way,” Marinette said, grabbing his hand without thinking and pulling him through the crowd. Her face heated when she realized what she had done, but he wasn’t pulling away and had even closed his hand over hers. His hands were so big compared to hers. 

They didn’t get very far before the sudden crush of the con crowd halted their progress. 

“This crowd is insane,” he muttered, nearly knocking into her from behind. “Sorry.” 

“It’s okay,” panted Marinette, too focused on her goal to freak out about him being pressed against her. “But we’ve got to get through here before they close the registration.”

She felt his hum of agreement against her back, and then felt him stiffen. “Cover your ears,” he said, and as soon as she’d done so, he bellowed over the crowd. “Hey, Ivan! I need a way through, can you help me out?” 

Marinette looked up at him, and he grinned down at her. “Hang on to your spots and get ready to move, Ladybug, the cavalry's coming,” he said, wrapping his arm around her waist. 

“Luka, what—”

“No time, just follow my lead,” Luka said, watching something that she was too short to see. “Okay, here he comes. Let’s go.” 

Suddenly there was room to breathe around them again, but Marinette didn’t have time to, because Luka practically hauled her off her feet and dragged her through the suddenly much thinner crowd. 

“You’re the best, man, I owe you one,” she heard Luka call. “Can you get us to registration?” 

She didn’t hear the answer but they started moving forward again. 

“They don’t call him the Bull for nothing,” Luka chuckled breathlessly. “Sorry for the manhandling, I didn’t want to lose you. We’re almost there.” Marinette got a glimpse of a broad back in a black t-shirt plowing the way ahead of them. Luka followed, pulling her along beside him in the big man’s wake. He was strong under that ratty hoodie, she realized, trying to keep up and on her feet.

Then suddenly they were standing at the registration desk, and Luka let her go, making sure she was steady before he took his hands off her completely. “You okay?” he asked. “That was kind of rough, I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No, I’m fine,” Marinette said, “Just a little ruffled.” She reached for the hem of her tank top, which had ridden up and twisted as Luka dragged her. Luka’s eyes darted to her exposed stomach and away again quickly. 

“Sorry,” he said, though she wasn’t sure for what exactly, and turned away from her to the big man, exchanging a handshake and a shoulder bump that made him stagger. “Hey, thanks Ivan, I owe you one.” 

Marinette got her shirt untwisted and pulled it down, resettled her hoodie on her shoulders, and then stepped forward to add her thanks. 

“Hey, no problem, Ladybug,” Ivan grinned. “I’m a big fan. Almost as big a fan as this guy.” He slapped Luka’s back, and Marinette looked at him, eyes widening slightly. Luka stared over her head at the registration lines, but she thought he was maybe blushing a little. Maybe it was just the heat from the crowd, though. Or wishful thinking on her part. 

“Sorry if this is a dumb question,” Luka began, still staring at the signs over the registration table. “But alphabetically are you registered under Ladybug or Lucky Charm?”

“Lucky Charm,” Marinette said, grinning at him. “But it doesn’t matter, they’re the same line.” 

The pink on his cheeks got darker. “Oh. Right.” 

“You better sharpen up before game time,” Marinette teased, slapping his arm.

“Don’t worry, Ladybug, I won’t let you down,” he grinned, with a wink that made her knees weak. 

It took some time, a little diplomacy, and a little bit of bluster to get Viperion added as an alternate for Team Lucky Charm and then to get them back on the roster for the day. Fortunately, their matches hadn’t been registered as forfeits yet and his individual rank was close enough to Marinette’s that the registrars couldn’t refuse. Marinette silently thanked Max for all of those boring lectures on the rules that she’d only half-listened to at the time, but which had been repeated so often that she was able to quote the appropriate rules back any time they questioned her.

“Team Lucky Charm,” the guy at the computer muttered, shaking his head. “You guys are lucky, it’s been so busy this morning we haven’t had a chance to cancel out your matches. Now that we’ve got him registered as an alternate, I’ll just swap Viperion in for Pegasus...there. And you’re good to go.”

“That was impressive,” Luka commented as they walked away from the table.

“Thanks,” Marinette said, grabbing Luka’s arm so they didn’t get separated. “We should talk strategy. We don’t have time to set up a full code.”

“Code?” Luka asked, squeezing along through the crowd with her. 

“All four players are on the same channel, so most players use a code to keep their opponents off guard. But that takes time and practice and we’re not going to have that, but we can come up with a few simple things. Every little advantage we can get is a help. Your ability combo is so unusual and nobody plays like you, so that’s in our favor. Figuring out how we can complement each other, that’s going to be the hard part.” 

Luka pulled his arm free and put it around her shoulders, guiding her in a different direction. “Let’s go to the food court, it’s late enough that it’ll have cleared out. We can grab something to eat and get some breathing room.” 

“Good idea,” Marinette agreed, glancing at his hand on her shoulder. “We can call Max and see if he has any insight. I’m sure he’s watching the livestream no matter how crappy he feels.”

Luka was right; the food court wasn’t exactly empty but it was significantly less crowded than the rest of the con. 

“Why don’t you grab a table?” Marinette suggested. “I can get us some food. My treat, since you’re helping me out.” 

“No need, but I’m not going to turn you down,” he grinned down at her, and then pulled his arm back quickly as he realized it was still around her shoulders. “Ah, sorry,” he said. “I’m a little hands on, I know. I’ll be more careful, but please tell me if I make you uncomfortable.”

Uncomfortable wasn’t the word she would have used. “You’re fine. I mean it’s fine,” she corrected hurriedly, and wanted to smack herself. She didn’t want to be back in this place. She wasn’t going to let it happen again. Just focus on the game, Marinette told herself firmly, adjusting her Ladybug hoodie around her shoulders. Marinette might turn into a blushing, babbling mess in front of guys she liked but Ladybug played to win. 

With that in her mind, she managed to keep it together long enough for them to eat lunch and work out some simple codes for the most important combos.

“Your playing style is so unique,” Marinette fretted, munching on the remains of her fries. “Honestly, it might be best if you just kind of do what you do and let me work around you.” 

Luka nodded thoughtfully as he finished his mouthful. “You’re adaptable,” he agreed. “You’re really good at improvising on the spot. I keep thinking I’ve got you and you pull something crazy out.” He grinned at her. “It’s why playing you is such a blast.” He sighed. “I just hope I don’t slow you down.”

Marinette snorted. “Like you do every time we play?”

Luka laughed. “I promise not to do it on purpose this time.”

“I promise to stay out of your way,” Marinette giggled back. 

“Despite your different approaches,” Max’s thick, scratchy voice came from the phone on the table between them. “The combination of your abilities presents intriguing possibilities. Whatever happens today, we’ll study the results for the next events.” He coughed and both Luka and Marinette winced at the sound. “Do you require my assistance any further?”

“No, we’ve got it, Max,” Marinette told him. “Get some rest and drink that tea Maman sent over.” 

“I’m already on my third cup,” Max replied thickly. “I wish you both best of luck, and Viperion—Luka—I am grateful for your assistance. Please look after my partner.”

“You got it, Max,” Luka said, leaning over the phone slightly. “Glad I could help out. Take it easy and feel better.” 

“Goodbye.” 

Marinette shut the phone off thoughtfully. “Really, this could work out,” she said, talking almost more to herself than Luka. “Our abilities balance pretty well. We’re going to lack some of Max’s high-powered precision strikes but if you can land your status effects then we’ve got more time to hammer at their weak points, and I’ve got enough armor to make up for yours.” She made a face. “That’s how you always get me, your attacks aren’t that powerful but you hit me with that stupid Slow and—” she made a frustrated noise, and Luka laughed again. 

She loved his laugh.

“I can’t really say I’m sorry,” he grinned, pushing the remains of his meal away. “I don’t think you’d believe me if I did.” 

“Not for a moment,” she agreed, and his grin widened, and she had to look away. Luka looked at his phone and started picking up their trash.

“We better get going,” he said, reaching for hers. “Are you done?” 

“Oh, yes,” Marinette leaned back, letting him take it. “Thank you.” 

They cleaned up and made their way through the crowd, and the next few minutes were a familiar whirlwind as they were sorted into their team pyrapods and matched up. Luka and Marinette put on their headsets and picked up their controllers. The match announcers began to read out the rules. Marinette paid very little attention but when she glanced at Luka had a small crinkle between his brows, apparently listening intently. That was good, she supposed. She felt him take a slow, deep breath next to her as the countdown appeared on the screen. 

As they had planned, their mechs both attacked in sync as soon as the countdown was over. 

“Well, well,” one of their opponent’s voices drawled in their ears. “Viperion himself, come down to join the masses in the co-op? I feel honored.” 

“First time for everything,” Viperion murmured back, most of his attention on keeping the damage-dealing mech pinned down while Ladybug’s more powerful attacks slammed into the defender. The taunting and jabs continued, escalating as Viperion and Ladybug held their own. It wasn’t as easy as it was with Pegasus. Pegasus’ weakness as a player was his formulaic approach and rigid strategy; it was part of why he didn’t play one on one. Individually, he was too easy to predict, but Ladybug’s flexibility and creative thinking combined with Pegasus’ precision strikes made them a powerful team.

Viperion was less predictable than Pegasus, and more than once they found themselves in each other’s way despite their hurried planning. They recovered quickly each time, though it was costing them little by little.

It was a close fight and Ladybug was beginning to resign herself to a loss when a flash of inspiration hit her.

“Hey Viperion,” she said suddenly. “You remember our third match?”

“Yeah,” he said. 

“Can you do that again?

She actually heard the grin in his voice. “Just tell me when, Bug.”

When she’d wondered after that match why he didn’t use that attack more often, Max had theorized that the ability’s short duration required extremely precise timing and that most of Viperion’s other attacks weren’t fast enough to capitalize on the follow up. When he’d used it on Ladybug, the recurring damage from his Venom Strike hit just at the critical moment, and had been enough to finish her off in the short moment before the ability wore off. 

The thing was, Viperion might not have a good follow up attack, but Ladybug did.

Marinette concentrated on getting their opponents set up, and then triggered her own attack as she snapped, “Now!”

Viperion triggered his stun attack right on cue. Their opponents tried to counter just as Ladybug had months ago, and it didn’t work any better for them than it did for her. The targeted mecha was frozen in place just long enough for the Bug Bomb Ladybug had triggered to soar in and take the enemy down in a series of dramatic explosions. The other mecha tried to finish them off, but slowed and crippled by the Venom Strike that had been chipping away at it since the first engagement, it couldn’t move fast enough to do the damage needed, nor avoid a repeat of that killer combo once Viperion’s stun ability had recharged. 

Luka whooped and threw up his arms next to her. Marinette winced; he was loud when he wanted to be. 

“That was amazing! You were amazing. Man, what a rush.”

“Easy Viperion,” Marinette murmured. “That was only the first round.”

“Right, sorry,” he said, bouncing slightly on his toes. “Right. I’m ready.” 

Marinette gave him an amused side glance as their mics went dead. “What happened to that chill guy who kept kicking my ass?” 

Luka snorted. “I’ve never manage to deliver anything remotely like an ass-kicking when I play you. I always just edge you out, at best. I seem to recall getting beat more than a few times over the last couple months.” He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and admitted, “And there was never anywhere near this much pressure. If I lose, I lose; but I definitely don’t want to be the reason you lose.”

“Hey,” Marinette looked up at him, catching his arm and tugging him until he was looking back at her. “No matter what happens,” she said firmly, looking into his eyes as best she could in the dim light, “You can’t possibly be the reason I lose. You’re the reason I got to play. So thank you for that. Now, I know you play your best when you’re relaxed so do whatever you need to do to get rid of the nerves because we’ve got five minutes until we’re up again.” 

“Right,” Luka said, setting his controller down on the counter. “Can you give me a warning when we’ve got about a minute left?”

“Yeah,” Marinette blinked. “Sure.”

Luka’s eyes flicked sideways at her. “Don’t laugh,” he said, “I swear it helps.” He faced forward and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. His fingers closed in front of him in what she recognized as a meditation pose. 

Marinette raised her eyebrows. Huh. Well, whatever works for him. 

Marinette bounced lightly on her toes, trying not to distract her partner, and thought over the match, trying to think of ways she could compensate for their issues. At the one minute mark, she tapped Luka’s elbow lightly, and when he came out of his meditation or breathing exercise or whatever it was, she spoke quickly. He nodded at her suggestions, and then they picked up their controllers as the countdown began.

***

“Well,” Luka sighed, holding his phone between them so that they could both see the rankings after the day’s matches. “It’s...better than a bunch of forfeits right?”

“It’s pretty good, actually,” Marinette agreed, nodding. It wasn’t the kind of jump they usually made, but they had actually climbed just a little bit, though they’d lost the match that would have given them the biggest jump. What mattered most was that they had won the matches that would have knocked them down if they lost. “We held our own. At least we still stand a chance. Hey,” she said, turning to Luka and looking up at him. “Thanks for playing with me today. I really appreciate it and it was incredibly nice of you. I hate to ask for more, but...would you be interested in being our alternate for the next event? Max might be better by then, but honestly I’m not counting on it. Whatever he got just hit him a day or so ago.”

“Sure, you can count me in for whatever you need until Max is better,” he shrugged, that easy-going smile on his face. “I’m assuming you’d rather meet up ahead of time for the next one, though?” He pulled out his phone, unlocked it, and handed it to her. “I don’t want Max to have a relapse, or worse, at the thought of us winging it again.” 

“True,” Marinette giggled, handing him her own phone. They each programmed in their own numbers, and traded back again. 

“Cool,” Luka said as he put his things in his pocket. “Pressure aside, that was really a lot of fun. Thanks for—” 

“Don’t you dare,” Marinette interrupted him, raising a warning finger. “I’m the only one doing the thanking today. You did me a favor, big time, and I really appreciate it.” 

“Well,” Luka looked down for a moment, and then back into her face with a smile. “I was glad to do it. I had just as much fun playing with you as against you, so. I’m looking forward to doing it again. Not that I hope Max stays sick, but…” He grinned and winked as he turned to go. “Call me if you need me.” 

At least, Marinette reflected as she watched him go, Max wasn’t there to tease her about her red face this time.

[queennicoleinboots]

A Special PBC Royalty News Report by Stan Doe and Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles

"PRINCE BANANA ICE SHUT UP! WE'RE ABOUT TO BE LIVE!" King Bruce Ice shouted as he wore a huge silver crown on his head. He was staring at Prince Banana Ice.

Prince Banana Ice still couldn't stop giggling. He had a gold crown over his more ridiculous mohawk.

"You already are, King Bruce Ice," Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles spoke.

"OH SHIT!" King Bruce Ice said with a loud growl.

Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles started laughing. "I love this job."

Squire Blinky was wearing a blue sash over his shoulders with his light teal long-sleeved button-down shirt and blinking the news.

Count Vanilla wore a black cape with his white polo shirt with the pocket on the left breast. He was growling the news.

Prince Banana Ice was giggling as he translated what they were saying, "Hahaha. I'm sorry. This is definitely going on Youfail.cahm. But yes, Jaybird, a goat who is literally a GIANT FLOATING HEAD HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA." He was snort-laughing and failing miserably to contain himself.

"I'm sorry, PBC viewers. My son uncontrollably laughs literally when he sees a floating head. He gets that condition from his father. Jaybird, the giant floating goat head, will tell us the significance of AI script writing and its reflections on the living beings' condition as soon as my son stops hysterically laughing... I'm surprised his larynx still works," Queen Gloria spoke as she wore a bright gold intricate crown on her head.

Prince Banana Ice was covering his mouth and had his head on the desk as he was heaving and laughing.

"Thank you, Queen Gloria," Jaybird said as his head took up the entire screen.

Prince Banana Ice lost it and literally fell out of his chair laughing. The other members of the royalty news family stared at him with concern. Count Vanilla suppressed a giggle.

"Seriously. What the hell is so funny about my floating head?" Jaybird asked. "Is he good?"

"No, he's fucked up," King Bruce Ice said as a matter-of-factly as Prince Banana Ice was laughing hysterically and flying around the studio with his rocket shoes yet again. Blinky and Count Vanilla were now laughing hysterically.

"CLEARLY!" Jaybird's voice boomed as he, too, started laughing uncontrollably. "Chrissy, submissive queen of laughter tolerance and nomenclature, can you please close-caption my broadcast. Hahahahahaha! I can't do this. This is the second time that RIDICULOUS bear has started flying around the studio while laughing hysterically for no... HAHAHAHAHAHA apparent HAHUEHA reason!" The flying goathead was now laughing, crying, and shaking.

The news crew that were off-camera were also laughing.

Chrissy, comedian who also was breaking down with laughter, was putting closed captions on Jaybird's floating head. They read:

"In my opinion, the most interesting part of Bouregard [the AI playwright] has been his way of teaching us patterns in science fiction storytelling. Bouregard's writing sounds original and crazy, but it's still based on what living beings actually write. Oscar the Grouch calls these results the 'average' of everything Bouregard looked at. Certain phrases kept coming up again and again. There's an interesting recurring pattern in Moonfall where characters say, 'WHAT IS THAT?!,' 'NO, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS?!,' and 'DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT IS, BECAUSE I SURE DON'T.' They're questioning the environment and questioning what’s in front of them. There's a pattern in sci-fi movies of characters trying to understand the environment. Interestingly, Oscar the Grouch has developed a writing pattern similar to Bouregard. He just regurgitates on the paper and hopes the audience likes that written vomit flavor of the week. Xara's writing has become more and more like that. It shows how much of a joke the writing community has become in 2021. When the writing becomes degenerate, the whole society becomes degenerate. I'm actually trying to write a REAL memoir with Sci-Fi tropes. I'm not regurgitating, but if I did, who the hell would care, ya know? Does anyone really know what's going on in the writing community anymore?"

"Frankly, I'm not sure. Your report seems to sum it up, though. Thank you for your report, Jaybird," Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles said while trying to be serious again.

"You're welcome, Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles. I'm in pain from laughter. Thank you," Jaybird said as he was trying to breathe.

"You're welcome, Jaybird. I've been trying to write, but between having to file five weeks of paperwork to even get on the Green Planet in the first place, getting everyone off of the ship, feeding 46 very hungry pups, and having back to back broadcasts, I just don't have the time. The public doesn't know what secretaries GO THROUGH," Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles said.

"PREACH! Being a secretary is a nightmare. I had to file two weeks of paperwork to merely deliver goods to... Prince Banana Ice... I can't get over that name. And that was horrid. Aye. I couldn't imagine the paperwork for permanent residence on this planet," Queen Gloria said.

Prince Banana Ice's rocket shoes were tied together and hanging like Christmas lights on a clothesline over the entire royal newscast. Prince Banana Ice was wiping his eyes and trying to compose himself.

"It was drrrrrreeeeeaaaadful. Speaking of secretarial work, where the hell is Xara? And more importantly, where is PRINCE PETER WALLACE PARKER!? I haven't even so much seen her or HIM in the break room lately! What is going on?! They are scheduled to do reports! Especially Prince Peter," Chrissy, submissive queen of nomenclature with many titles said strongly.

"I have no idea, but Xara's writing is definitely funny at least. As for Prince Peter, he has mastered the disappearing act. No one ever knows where he is," Pastor Penn said as he wore a gold sash over his gray polo shirt. He changed shirts in the commercial break.

"I quite agree. It's sensational in the most unsensational of ways. It says a lot and says nothing. It's the most untalented talent I have ever had the guilty pleasure of reading," Prince Oliver: Werewolf of the United Planets spoke as he wore a small silver crown on his head.

"I share your sentiment, Prince Oliver: Werewolf of the United Planets," Pastor Penn said.

"Admittedly me, too. Ummm... Xara's writing... ummm... is so bad that it's good.... uggghhhh.... I'm good with her NOT doing her broadcast right now," Prince Banana Ice stammered as he nervously looked around the room and tapped his fingers together. "And-and-and I'm definitely not ready for Prince Peter. Not even a little. Nope Nope Nope nope."

Count Vanilla growled eighteen times.

"I know it's not technically my choice of when their broadcasts are due, but ummmm..." Prince Banana Ice spoke softly as he looked down at the desk and blushed.

"Why does it matter when they are broadcasting?" King Bruce Ice asked.

"I believe I know the answer," a tall black goat with a melodic deep voice answered. His fur was brushed perfectly, and his soft brown eyes glowed in the lights.

"Please enlighten us, Stan Doe. We have to do something while Xara and Peter are making us wait!" Chrissy, sub with many titles said with a loud sigh.

The camera showed Stan Doe wearing a gray suit, white shirt, and a red tie. "Yes. I am Stan Doe, a brother reporter of Chrissy and her unlimited titles. Prince Banana Ice is not ready for Xara's or Prince Peter's broadcast because they are XARA's and PRINCE PETER'S broadcasts. It's not the content. It's the people reporting them. Also, pronouns are important," he spoke in a deep voice. He was more intelligent than most other goats.

"Correct! Wow! Someone who understands me!" Prince Banana Ice shouted with glee.

"Okay," King Bruce Ice said with his eyebrow raised. "Why are you not ready for XARA or PRINCE PETER to report?"

"OH COME ON! DO I REALLY NEED TO EXPLAIN THAT ON INTERGALACTIC NEWS?!" Prince Banana Ice shouted as the blush deepened on his face as he untied his shoes from the clothesline quickly.

"Probably not," Pastor Penn stated.

"Thank you," Prince Banana Ice said as he put his shoes back on. He was probably ready to use them at any minute.

"But I will," Steve Doe said as the camera went back to him. "Prince Banana Ice is nervous around most females and males he thinks are more attractive than he is. When in company of several females or very attractive men, you will find him hiding on the ceiling or under a desk. Why? Even *I* have no idea."

Prince Banana left his crown on the desk in front of his chair and was off-camera.

King Bruce Ice chuckled. "So... when are Xara and Prince Peter getting here?"

King Joebear intercepted the transmission with his naked black bear body and a gold crown on his head. "GQ?"

"National Geographic," King Bruce Ice said. "By the way, I guess every bear in the League of Extraordinary Bears is now in the Royal Court of Royal Bears. More news will be reported on the Royal Court of Royal Bears when we figure out who is doing what role in the Royal Court of Bears. But luckily, we have ironed out most of the members in the Royal Court of Royal Bears. Again, more of the story will come."

"Yes, Bruce... King Bruce Ice. I noted the crown. I've been busy playing Magic The Gathering. It's degenerate, so it isn't newsworthy," King Joebear said.

"You play MTG, too?!" Prince Banana Ice asked as he leaned into the camera and looked at King Joebear.

"Yes. Do you?" King Joebear asked.

"Yes. I'm only *the* Master Deck Builder on this side of Glorgia," Prince Banana Ice said with a smug smile.

"No, dude. That title belongs to me," King Joebear spoke.

"...Doubt it," Prince Banana Ice said with a smirk.

King Bruce Ice growled to stop that conversation. "Where is your wife, King Joebear?"

"Queen Xara is actually taking a dump. She apologizes for being late to the broadcast," King Joebear said.

"THE MORE IMPORTANT QUESTION IS, IS SHE ALL RIGHT?! AND DO YOU KNOW WHERE PRINCE PETER IS?! I MUST KNOW IMMEDIATELY!" Chrissy, sub of many titles shouted.

"Yes. She is watching your broadcast and taking a dump. I haven't seen or heard from Prince Peter in weeks, Chrissy... are you royalty?" King Joebear asked.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! I WOULD NEVER INSULT THE WORD 'ROYALTY' BY ASSOCIATING MYSELF WITH IT! KING JOEBEAR, you honor me, but I do not deserve that honor," Chrissy, sub of many titles said dramatically.

Everyone clapped. Chrissy, sub actress of nomenclature, was a great actress. She should have been a Broadway star.

"Thank you, everyone. Does anyone have any pressing news while we wait for Xara, OH MY GOD... NESS! QUEEN XARA! I REPEAT, QUEEN XARA! EXCUSE ME!" Chrissy, Submissive Drama Queen said as her greenish yellowish hazel eyes were about to pop out of her head.

"Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy, you're all right," I said as I showed up on the screen from the neck up.

"Oh heavens, Queen Xara. I missed you! Are you ready to do your broadcast?" Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy asked. "And do you know where Prince Peter is?! Also, a side note. I need that video AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!"

Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy wanted a private video of my audition to be a news anchor should my cleaning business have trouble getting registered with the local government in 2022 due to jab requirements that I will forever refuse to comply with.

Prince Banana Ice screamed and flew up to the ceiling. How the hell does he stick to the ceiling? Is he a spider bear?

"No. I'm not. Hehehe. I'm looking for Prince Peter, too. I assume he is hiding from the world due to another strain of the Plague appearing. I noticed that he was having more difficulty floating than usual. Maybe he is having second thoughts about being jabbed again. I am sorry that I haven't done the video yet. I have been busy with... stuff," I said as I looked at Prince Banana Ice now sprawled out on the ceiling as he tried desperately to hide from the camera. I giggled. "Is Prince Banana Ice good?" I giggled again.

Prince Banana Ice hyperventilated as he stared at me from the ceiling with wide eyes before he gulped. "Yeah. I'm fine up here. REALLY! Quick, can someone else do a broadcast?" Prince Banana Ice asked.

"Yes. I can. And it is very urgent! ....Queen Chrissy, can you provide me with an hour to broadcast? This is very urgent!" Pastor Penn asked.

"Hang on. Xara, dammit Queen Xara. What the hell is wrong with me tonight?!" Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy asked.

"You're nervous, Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy. What do you need?" I asked.

"May I give Pastor Penn 60 minutes of air time?" Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy asked. "I need something to keep my mind off of PRINCE PETER'S ABSENCE!"

"Oh yeah! I love Off Grid Desert Farming with Penn and Alexia. Best news channel ever," I said.

"Thank you, Xara. You're one of my favorite contributors. I'd love to talk more, but I have GOT to get this news out," Pastor Penn said.

"No problem. Pastor Penn. You have the floor," I said.

"Thank you. And we must thank Squire Blinky, Count Vanilla, Prince Banana Ice, Queen Gloria, King Bruce Ice, Jaybird, Stan Doe, Queen Chrissy, and last but not least Prince Oliver: Werewolf of the United Planets for their contributions to today's broadcast," Pastor Penn said.

Everyone thanked Pastor Penn and nodded to him. Prince Banana Ice chuckled one last time before he flew the fuck out of the news studio.

"Thank you. We will be right back with a 60-minute special with Pastor Penn and Off Grid Desert Farming with his wife, Alexia after another 15-minute commercial break and another long period of time before PRINCE PETER ARRIVES! GOOD HEAVENS!," Submissive Drama Queen Chrissy spoke to the camera with a needy look before dramatic elevator music played in the background.

[dragonrajafanfiction]

Dragon Dancer III: Tokyo Love Story

“Fantasy Hotel Room 308A.” That was the text he got from Lu MIngfei, known as Akira to Hydras, when he inquired of Erii’s location. He sighed loudly with annoyance. That was a Lover’s Hotel! And a well-known one at that.

He stilled his temper. It accelerated his breath and pulled against his stitches. That guy was getting bolder and bolder.

He kept to muted colors under his trenchcoat. A ball cap and sunglasses hid his identity on the street. When he arrived at the hotel is was during the day and no one was checking in so the front desk clerk was watching TV and didn’t even notice when he walked in. He took the elevator to the third floor and knocked on the door to the suite.

As Akira opened, he removed his sunglasses to aim the full force of his cold-eyed stare down at his Shatei.

Akira flinched. “It’s not what it looks like! This was the only-”

Chisei shoved his way inside. “Erii?”

She was sitting on the tatami in front of a TV that displayed a paused game of Street Thug, dressed in only a T-shirt and shorts. There were shopping bags everywhere and a variety of outfits strewn about the room. The trash bin was lined with bags from food delivery and filled with empty boxes of fried rice.

She grinned at him. “Big Brother!” She signed at him.

“How are you feeling?” He walked past Akira, giving him a slightly less intimidating glare. 

She gave him a thumbs up and popped up from the floor with the wireless controller which she shoved into his hands.

“I heard about what happened to our headquarters. What are we going to do now?” asked Akira

“Let me worry about that.” He turned back to Erii who had picked up her controller. He looked around at the clothing. There was also some jewelry and toys.

She was scrawling on the notepad and then showed him. “Akira bought me tickets to the six flags! They’re discounted because we go close to closing time! Brother come too? Please.”

He looked into her crimson eyes. He held out his hand and accepted the notepad and pen from her and wrote. “Okay. I’ll come.”

Akira, suddenly mindful of  the mess the room, gathered the clothes in a pile and started putting them away only to have Erii seize his arm and shove the notepad in his face.

“Erii wha... oh... oh! I uh... I guess I need to buy another ticket!” He looked up at Chisei and his face turned a little red. “It’s not what it looks like.”

Chisei’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “Finish cleaning up.”

He returned to the video game. He wasn’t nearly as good as Akira but Akira played for hours at a time. He understood why.

When he first found Lu Mingfei without his memories and assigned him his staff to care for him and explain his presence, he didn’t notice the purchases that staff was making. Only a few days later, Erii had become more obsessed with online Street Thug. Particularly certain times of the day when she HAD to play online.

Usually, she was after him to play all the time, but he was suddenly free of her presence. She confessed to him that there was someone she enjoyed playing with because she actually had to try to win and sometimes she even lost.

Once it was clear that Mingfei was not going to get better any time soon, he brought him into the fold of the Hydras and they met for the first time. It wasn’t long before they realized. The moment she invited him to play as his knew underling, they recognized each other’s user names. They pointed at each other in recognition.

He had no idea all this was going on. They were joined at the hip after that. He took over her Pokemon Go! account, they started playing a larger variety of games, first as competitors, then as coop teammates, dominating Starcraft and League of Legends, and Call of Duty.

As High Patriarch he didn’t have time to monitor this and, at first, he approved of it. After all, he didn’t have time to play with her.

Now, here in the hotel, she beat him handily again and again. He couldn’t help but smile. When was the last time they played like this? He put one arm around her and hugged her close. “When are you going to let me win one, huh?” 

She held her hand in a sign of ‘never’. He glanced behind him and Akira ducked away around the corner where he was sitting next to a window. He took her notebook and wrote down. “Did he do anything inappropriate?”

She tilted her head. 

Chisei pursed his lips. How to explain?

She took the notepad and started writing and writing... and writing.... He blinked and then he waited.

She handed him the notebook.

“Akira took me out of home because he was worried that I might get lost because we were moving. I saw a store and I wanted to shop. He watched me shop. He said I looked pretty. He helped me get jewelry and then he helped me pay for it. I forgot how to cross the street and he told me how to cross the street. And then I got some shoes. I went to the toy store and I played the claw game. He spent all his change and didn’t get anything. It was funny but he got mad so we got more coins until we can win. I got a toy dog.”

“Then I saw the ferris wheel and I thought it was pretty so he got me the tickets.  And then we went to the hotel. He was upset about the fire. He took me to the hotel because he thought the street might be danger. Then we played video games. Then after that we woke up and played more games and I got fried rice.”

“I’m sorry if  any of that was inappropriate. He didn’t mean it. Can we still go to the six flags?”

Chisei gazed at the notebook for several seconds. He handed it back to her and nodded.

Erii wanted to soak before the trip to the amusement park. Chisei spent the time staring out the window of the hotel. The past twenty four hours was nothing but brutality, destruction, death and disillusionment. He saw more darkness on the horizon. And yet...

He glanced at Akira, who was fidgeting in the corner. “Thank you. I’m in your debt.”

“I... didn’t really do anything. She just dragged me around the city...” He laughed nervously.

“Just take it, Akira.”

He stopped chuckling, though he kept that strained smile on his face. “Oh... Alright.” The smile faded. “Did... something happen?”

“Let’s... not talk about it yet.”

The bathroom door opened. 

Erii walked up in a trendy, avant-garde dress with no sleeves or shoulders or back, black and white and red, with an elaborately patterned skirt.

He huffed a laugh at Akira’s stunned expression. She was very, very beautiful. “Alright. Let’s go.”

They got a taxi to the amusement park. Many families were leaving. There was almost no wait on the rides and it was full of young people who had lots of time and energy with little supervision.

He hung back at a slight distance and watched her drag him around. She had the map and didn’t always tell him where she wanted to go. He just followed her. First, was the rollercoaster because of course it was. He shook his head when she invited him. He was nervous about his fresh wounds and made a lame excuse about needing to use the bathroom while they got on board.

Erii was dying. How was he going to tell him? How was he going to tell her? Their relationship was doomed from the very beginning.

Akira was sick after the ride and they had to take a break while he lay on a bench.

The stars were coming out and the lights were coming on. The place would close in about an hour and a half but there was plenty to do... if only Akira could get up...

“Hey! You!” He turned as someone shouted at him. 

A man in clown make up was sitting in a glass box over a pool of water. 

“Oh... its this thing.” Chisei turned back around, ignoring him.

“Yeah you! You think you’re some sort of secret agent? What’s with those sunglasses? Trying to hide your crossed-eyes?” The man cackled like that was the biggest burn ever.

“Who wears sunglasses in the dark! What are you blind? If you’re not, you sure are now! MORON!”

He chuckled until Erii walked forward, arms stiff at her sides. 

“Woah! Heyheyhey!’ He grabbed her arm. “No... Erii...”

“Want a piece of this, little girl!” The clown taunted. “I bet you couldn’t dunk me! What you gonna do? Huh?”

“Erii!” Chisei barked. He pulled her away. “This is ... he’s paid to do this!”

The Clown continued. “Hey! You gonna let that girl stick up for you? Who’s the real pussy here? Eh?!” The clown, smelling blood and money, in the water turned up the heat. 

Chisei tensed. Okay, the guy was pushing his buttons now.

Akira sat bolt upright. He looked at Erii’s furious expression and Chisei’s desperate attempts to keep her from ending this carnival employee’s life.

He got up, still slightly dizzy. “HEY! You can’t talk to her that way!”

The clown got more excited. “What are you gonna do huh! Come here! Bring it! Your skinny arms probably can’t even hit the target! Hahahah!” He cackled as Akira came closer. “Come here and show her who’s the biggest loser tonight!”

Chisei clapped his hand over Erii’s mouth. Her eyes had gone completely yellow and she was furiously fighting him. Chisei was panicking as he saw all these people becoming curious about the spectacle and walking over. They were all in danger!

“Akira... you’d better...” He growled through clenched teeth. He watched as he paid the operator and received a single ball and was led to the to a line where he was to throw it.

The clown leaned forward. “Hey everyone come and watch this chick! Yeah, the only balls you got is the one in your hand!”

Akira tossed the ball up in the air and caught it and then turned and walked away.

“What are you doing? Chickening out already? Come back here!” 

Akira took about seven paces away, turned, lifted one knee and hurled it. The ball zoomed straight like a rocket, hit the target, pushed back the lever and shattered it.

The clown’s screech perfectly cut when he hit the water. 

The crowd that had gathered around whooped and hollered with glee. As Akira turned around, there was a flash of gold in his eyes.

Hot-shot. Just a little bit. He was skinny, a bit of a nervous wreck in normal circumstances. Anime fan, gamer and all around geek.

But now, he was acting like dunking a carnival clown was as much a serious thing as executing a criminal. It was the most ridiculous situation Chisei had been in in a while, but if you looked at Akira now, it was like he had slain a dragon. 

Chisei let out short laugh and looked down at his sister to see if she had the same opinion and his smile vanished.

The gold in her eyes was replaced by her usual color, but her eyes were wide and fixed on him, oblivious of anyone else, including him. Color rose in her cheeks. 

The carnival operator approached Akira with a large bear which he was surprised to accept.

Chisei watched as Akira came to her with the bear. She lifted her arms and accepted it. Not taking her eyes off his face.

Chisei was the last of his clan. His sole responsibility was running the Hydras. He thought he would be able to run away to France and sell sunscreen. Tachibana had promised him that if he defeated the Devil Clan and protected the family secrets, he would take over as High Patriarch and Chisei would be free. 

But now he just found himself on that same treadmill of responsibility. Defeating the Devil Clan, caring for his dying sister, and making sure that Cassell girl didn’t make it off the island.

Akira was from Cassell. Eventually, he would have to return there, by will or by force. This Akira persona was just that... a persona. It wasn’t real any more than her video games were real. He’d be naive to set that aside. That’s why he tried to keep him away from her for so long. But there was no way for him to completely do that so long as he let them play together and he didn’t stop letting them play together. How could he?

Erii would never understand even if he explained but she would obey him. He knew her. She trusted him. If he told her now to walk away from Akira, never talk to him again, she’d comply. She’d say okay and it would be a lie. Just like Akira’s okay at the tattoo parlor had been a lie. It would damage their relationship. Her life would be lonelier and emptier and it would be the last days of her life!

He walked up to Akira. “Good job. Now... I think we need to go to that Ferris Wheel before it closes.”

[pjnuzlockes]

EHED: Chapter 1

Remember when I said I was gonna update on Wednesdays? Me neither

They’d cover more ground if they split up. After asking pokemon along Route 1, Brinley reported that the Rockets had been last seen along Route 22, and Gary decided to push on ahead. 

Anything to distract him from the pain.

Route 1 was a very long path, a meadowy area that separated Pallet Town and Viridian City. It was dotted with tall trees that the Pidgey line nested in. Along the dirt path worn down by years of travel were holes dug out by Rattata. A few insects buzzed along and Pidgey swooped down to catch them. 

No clouds blocked the sun. Light breeze. Perfect weather for Finley to sunbathe. 

Oscar, on the other hand, was already sweating. About an hour into the walk, he needed a moment to rest. “Oh, Arceus, why does it have to be so hot?” he complained, sliding down the tree he leaned against.

“Oh, come on!” Finley said. He laughed. “It’s not that bad! Just get yourself an enormous plant on your back and you’ll feel great!”

“No!”

Finley pulled a vineful of grass and tossed it in Oscar’s general direction. It drifted uselessly in the opposite direction. “Hey, we should look for a teammate. Quit your griping and go catch something.”

“Can’t. Don’t have any pokeballs.”

As though summoned, several pokeballs materialized just above Oscar and bounced off his head. Mew appeared a second later, snickering.

Oscar tried to catch the balls as they rolled away.

Finley stopped one and laughed again. “So, were you just waiting for an opportunity to do that?”

“Yep,” Mew said. “Got these from Viridian. Figured you guys might want to expand your team a little. Also, here’s some potions.” She tossed them to Oscar, who actually managed to catch this time. “Don’t worry about how I got these.”

Finley and Oscar exchanged glances.

“I wasn’t worried until you said that,” Oscar said. “Did you do this to Gary too?”

Mew furrowed her brow. Then she gasped. “Oh, crap, I forgot! Go catch some pokemon, I should probably help Gary out.” And with that, she was gone.

“... ‘Kay.”

Getting bonked on the head by a pokegod that then vanished to go harass his best friend should have bothered Oscar more. Something about it should have, at some point, stopped him and told him “Hey, this whole situation is kind of messed up.” But, whatever Bullshit Alarm Oscar had ever been equipped with had long since been stamped out. Instead, he shoved all the items but one pokeball, did a series of dramatic poses holding it with Finley, and collected himself. 

“Okay,” Finley said. He cleared his throat. “Since you have the active researcher license, you can really catch whatever you want, but you’ll still only get one shot for each line. How do we wanna do this? Planning has never really been our strong suit.” And on top of that, they’d only really be able to catch one pokemon per area because of wildlife conservation laws. There were some exceptions, but Finley doubted they’d ever encounter them.

Like they’d ever run into a shiny with their luck.

“Well, since that is the case. I was thinking, I’ll really only aim for a Pikachu in Viridian Forest, other than that, I’ll just see what happens.”

“Okay, so we’re going to face the Rockets with whoever we happen to run into along the way. Great.”

Oscar shrugged. “You did say we suck at planning.”

“I did.”

“Not as bad as you suck at throwing grass. You’re literally a grass type!” Oscar grabbed some grass and tossed it at Finley. Just like before, it floated away on the wind.

“Oh god, you’re worse than I am.”

Oscar snorted. Some movement above them caught his attention.

A couple Pidgeys. They landed in the grass and pecked at the ground. One stopped, cocked his head at Oscar, then returned to pecking.

“Psst, Finley, go talk to them,” Oscar whispered. There was no telling if they were able to speak Kantonian- though that was relatively common on routes closer to towns. Best to have someone else do the talking, just in case.

Finley crept forward. “Uh, excuse me? Do either of you wanna join our team?” He asked, in perfect Kantonian and completely misunderstanding Oscar’s intentions.

One Pidgey flew away, but the one that had looked at Oscar stayed. He studied Finley for a moment. He looked tired. “What’s the team for?”

“Well, it’s, it’s pretty dangerous. We’re, uh. Going to take on the League and fight the Rockets.” That probably didn’t sound particularly inviting.

“Just the two of you?” The Pidgey gestured back to Oscar, who was watching while rubbing one arm.

“Uh. Hopefully not,” Finley admitted. “We haven’t really thought that hard about it.”

The Pidgey just stared back. He looked even more tired than before.

“We don’t really know what we’re going to do. But that’s why we’re asking. Better to ask then just lob a pokeball at you, right?”

The Pidgey took a deep breath. “I see.” He flew over to Oscar and landed on his shoulder. “Name’s Charlie. I’m joining the team. Someone’s gotta make sure y’all don’t get yourselves killed.”

Oscar tapped the pokeball on his forehead. Charlie didn’t resist.

“Welcome to the team, Charlie!” Oscar smiled. He sent the little bird back out. No use keeping him cooped up in the ball all day. Plus, it was more fun with a crowd. It made it feel less like Brinley and Gary were off somewhere far away.

The rest of the walk to Viridian went by quicker. Keeping up with Finley and Charlie’s well being in battle distracted Oscar enough from the heat that he almost celebrated when what had to have been the twentieth Rattata launched itself at them.

At least the team was getting good experience. Bit by bit.

Viridian City was a small haven before the twisting, winding roads of Viridian Forest. Named for the shade of the flora, the area was absolutely bursting with greenery. Every house had a garden and community buildings were packed with potted and hanging plants inside. Oscar couldn’t help but smile at a particularly vibrant pecha plant as he walked to the Pokemon Center counter.

After a quick rest (and restock at the Mart), Charlie spoke up. “We should head north to Route 2 first. Then come back for scoping out Route 22. We won’t be able to go far, but we should try to recruit as much as possible.”

Oscar nodded, done playing with a fern planted next to the road. “We may be able to meet up with Gary and Brinley soon, too.”

“Let’s not get too far into Route 2. Don’t really wanna run into any Weedles just yet,” Finley added. “We’re not quite ready for that. Even if I’m part poison type, I’m still not resistant to Weedle poison. And you and I both remember what happened last time we had a run in with a Kakuna nest.” He looked pointedly at Oscar.

Oscar laughed. “We were fine.”

“No Weedles for Oscar,” Charlie said. He had the feeling he would have to make a lot of rules like this.

“What about a Rattata?” Oscar pointed ahead where one sat, grooming herself. “Hey! Wanna join our team and help us beat up Team Rocket?” he called.

“Shh! Not so loud! What if a Rocket was nearby?” Charlie hissed, exasperated.

The Rattata ran to them. “You’re fighting Team Rocket?” Hopeful. Eager. “They took my friends. The whole nest hasn’t seen them since. We don’t even know if they’re okay.” She looked Oscar right in the eye. “Catch me. I wanna join your team.”

Oscar obliged, and let her back out. “Well that was easy. What’s your name?”

“Vivi.”

“Vivi, do you wanna help me destroy our best friends in battle?” 

“Absolutely.”

---

Route 22 was rather different than the previous areas. It was more rocky, the grasses scraggly where they once were lush. Not to say that the route was devoid of life, it was simply where the terrain became more mountainous. Plenty of pokemon made the area their home, mostly the more rugged lines that didn’t rely on grasses as much for cover. 

A lake had formed toward the center of the route, making what would have otherwise been a short walk to Victory Road more difficult. Old paved roads were cracked and in need of repair, but hadn’t been made a priority over the repairs needed in cities and towns. It was generally assumed that trainers that went out to Route 22 could handle themselves.

“We’ll go no further than this first patch of grass,” Oscar said. He ducked as a troop of Mankeys jumped from the tall rocks overhead. 

Charlie returned from his quick scouting. “Doesn’t look like Team Rocket’s here. Your friend must’ve chased them off.”

One of the Mankeys stopped. She watched for a moment, then grabbed a rock and launched it at Oscar, nailing him in the head. “HEY TRAINER!!”

Oscar yelped and Finley jumped into a defensive position.

“Leave him alone!” Finley growled.

“DO YOU GUYS NEED A MANKEY?” she shouted.

“Oh my god, we can hear you just fine,” Vivi muttered.

“If I catch you, will you agree not to throw another rock at my face?” Oscar rubbed his forehead. He made a face at the small smear of blood on his hand. 

“YEAH SURE.”

Oscar chucked a pokeball at her, which she promptly burst out of. “Hey!” 

The Mankey laughed. “OKAY, TRY AGAIN.” Another pokeball, which she burst out of again, laughing. “OKAY, OKAY, I’LL STOP. FOR REAL THIS TIME.” To her credit, she actually stayed put and allowed herself to be caught.

“Stop shouting,” Oscar said as he ignored the voice inside him saying to keep her in the ball.

“I do what I want,” she said, quieter now. “The name’s Reggie. What I want is- I wanna tag along.”

“Um, okay.”

“Hey, Oscar. I like the new style!” a familiar voice said.

“Gary!” Finley cheered.

Brinley smiled brightly. “I see you guys are getting quite the team. Did Mew give you supplies too?”

“Yeah, seriously, how’d you catch so many pokemon already?” Gary added. He pointed to the Pidgey on his shoulder. “I was only just able to catch Melody here like an hour ago.”

“She stopped by earlier this afternoon,” Oscar said. “Guess she got sidetracked.”

Vivi, Charlie, and Reggie exchanged confused looks.

“Maybe we just had bad luck. Wanna battle?” Gary asked. “We wanna see how well we’re doing with our training.”

“You’re on!”

The first round was bird versus bird. Charlie was faster and just a smidge stronger. Several well timed gusts later and Melody was defeated. 

Next up was Brinley. Reggie jumped at the opportunity to fight someone who didn’t have the advantage.

“Be careful Reggie. No throwing rocks,” Oscar chided. 

“You got it, boss!” she agreed, kicking Brinley in the legs and knocking her over. 

Brinley retaliated with a scratch across Reggie’s face. It hardly left a mark.

“Sorry, kiddo. We Mankeys have pretty tough skin,” Reggie said, kicking again.

This time, Brinley fell onto her back and held up one hand. “Alright, I give. You kick hard.” No need putting herself and Gary in danger when the outcome was clear.

“Well,” Gary said, tossing some coins to Oscar as though he’d been expecting this. “That was anticlimactic. Looks like you got yourself some pretty tough teammates!” He bent down and helped Brinley up. “We’ll totally get you later.”

“We look forward to it,” Oscar said. He and Gary fist bumped. “Next loser buys lunch?”

“Next loser buys lunch.”