#and Cody’s like he killed the guy!!

[tennessoui]

I just wanted you to know that pbatmb lives inin my head rentfree so often I randomly just think about it. Either the main fic or the Aus (like Amnesiewan) on tumblr. It's so good and whenever I reread it I get so obsessed about it again

omg you’re so brave I don’t even venture into the pbatmb tab cause so much goes on there there’s too many lil pbatmb aus housed under the same tag lmao (anakin gets amnesia, obi-wan gets amnesia, what if it was a/b/o - which turned into a fish hook an open eye of course)

but I was thinking about pbatmb today and I have to add like…what if obi-wan gets busy with politics (something pretty bird anakin is known to dislike) so anakin starts going to fighting rings again without permission (something mobi-wan is known to dislike)

And then during a fight some brash young non corrupted cop leads a team to bust up the ring anakin’s at and anakin gets arrested and he’s like wait I’m pretty sure this isn’t supposed to happen? and the cop gives him a long impassioned speech about being new to the city and touch on crime and how a new day is dawning on coruscant and anakins like huh. ok. can I have my phone call

And he of course calls Ahsoka because he doesn’t want to be the one to tell mobi-wan that he’s been arrested

so mobi-wan swans down and asks politely to meet with New Cop and his husband in the chief’s office which is a request that’s immediately granted and then he asks New Cop all friendly about the charges against his husband and hey, were there any witnesses?

and New Cop was like yes there were many witnesses

and obi-wan (pacing behind a sitting anakin) strokes anakin’s hair and is like ‘and do these witnesses understand that they’re accusing my anakin? Anakin kenobi?’)

and anakin preens and New Cop is like it doesn’t matter the name of the person they saw. it just matters what they saw

and obi-wan is like (pushing his fingers into anakin’s neck to the point of pain) how very cute. you must be new here.

and anakin is like you should ask the witnesses again what they saw 🥰🥰 I don’t think anyone will say they saw anakin kenobi 🥰🔪

[therealmilfdennys]

I need a protective pope . I just watched the episode where amy got yelled at by her brother, and he slammed him into the car

Imagine if what happened to dana happened to Sunshine and a newbie is like, "Should we call your boyfriend/husband?" and other people in the staff and sunshine say "hell no" cause they know how he is 😂

the gasp i gusped

youre so right....oh your brain...

he would be there with a gun in literally five minutes. doesn't matter what he was doing beforehand At All. somebody hit his girlfriend? his Sunny?

most of the time i think you could talk him down if it was just somebody yelling at you or being creepy, but if somebody HIT you? physically laid hands on you at any point???? all bets are off and he's skipping dinner plans because he has to go bury another body in the desert rq sorry babe.

this is going in my to be written IMMEDIATELY

(p.s. he's kissing you bloody mouthed and you can't stop him. he's a freak like that 🥰)

[eternallovers65]

I just watched that interview Cody did on his Wheatley show with Randy and dude I understand the candy agenda now because wow this was a couple's interview like it was so cute

Cody and Randy crying about how wrestlemania was a full-circle moment for Cody, how it wouldn’t have happened without Randy, and how Randy took it upon himself to look after Cody, even tho he didn’t know what he was doing, but also how Cody was kinda looking after Randy too.

Before Cody can even say it, Randy humbly lowers his head, saying Cody doesn’t have to. But Cody insists he needs to say it. And as they’re both crying, Cody reaches out, squeezes Randy’s arm, and says the photo he has of them is the greatest thing ever. How at the end of the day, Cody made Randy proud. He did right by him.

Like dude wtf!!!! this is some wrestling soul mate type of shit

[autisticrosewilson]

here to ask about Spencer and Mae

pls may I have some knowledge on them 👀

YES!!! Okay so Mae'rot is my character, she's a part of a team of characters that came from me thinking about if there was a Lantern team that was full of magical girls! Spencer was made by @andi-dromeda and he's technically a part of the flash fam, but he spends most of his time with the Lanterns.

CW for Death, bugs, body horror, ect. My characters are freaks guys

Mae is a part of a made up species of fungus people and she's the black lantern! I did rewrite the lantern lore a little because I thought what they did with the Pink and Black Lantern's specifically were stupid and boring.

The Pulchra Putredo are a people that worship death, although they themselves cannot die in the traditional sense. See they inhabit the land of Pulput, a floating island that was all that's left of an older, long forgotten planet, home to a piece of the Black Lantern's reactor core. No one knows where the Pulchra originated from but the first recorded records were of them turning the dry barren soil into a bustling hub of foliage, this is because though their bodies breakdown they become a part of the land. Which makes Pulput a living planet crawling with the overgrown bodies of everything that's ever died there.

It's easy to see why they grew to revere the concept of death, as this beautiful unattainable thing that they all reach for with open arms. Despite how much they all love death because they have no true concept of mortality none of them can wield it.

Until Mae. See she was originally Kryptonian but when the Pulchra came to collect what was left of the planet, they found a lone baby girl. And this was exciting, because she was born from death, and while she would live a long time she could die. She WOULD die, eventually. They take her to their planet, very far from any sun at all, and make her one of them. They do this basically allowing their roots and mold and whatnot to spread to her, inside and out she is overtaken by moss and spores. She's raised by a family of Ink Caps, which are the first mushrooms to begin growing from her skin which is weakened by the lack of sunlight.

The Pulchra are also a hive mind species! They all have something of a mental link to each other and Mae is included in this, although she's born only linked to her family instead of the entire species. She has to manually collect the others by becoming infected by their spores, and she can give this link to others by giving them hers!

Because she's so far from any kind of sun she's very sickly and weak with almost none of her Kryptonian powers and very little connection to her roots, and she has no desire to explore it. Because she's always on death's door with her health the lantern core reacts to her but she can't control it, mostly it just overwhelms her with the voices of the dead when she's near it. She's almost like a prophet to the Pulchra as the spirits come from past, present, and future and they can give her messages that she passes on.

It's only when she's older that she gets her ring, she dies on an excavation into a planet's ruins and is reanimated by the ring after rot and decay has had time to set in. She's stronger now ironically, no longer shambling about half unconscious, although now she's being consumed by multiple insects from her planet (a great honor, if death is their holy spirit, the land is their father, and the insects are the son) and she needs to feed on dead things to survive.

Her hobbies include gardening, rock collecting, learning dead languages, and grave robbing! She's close with my Yellow and Pink lanterns, she has a crush on the Indigo, and she's got a homoerotic rivalry with the White lantern (of which I also changed the lore for because these are magical girls and I have a theme here).

She now has a lesser version of the core's powers, so while she can control ghosts it's only ones that have died recently. She can reanimate things but they'd just be mindless puppets, not truly alive. She can cause people to age/decay rapidly (usually this acts like a bad sickness) and she can manipulate shadows instead of light. Along with the flight, strength, and durability the rings give all their users. While near gamma radiation she can access her Kryptonian powers but doesn't really like them so she uses Kryptonite to weaken herself.

Is she a horrific mass of maggots and rot? Yes. Does this exclude her from a magical girl transformation or sparkly outfit? Of course not!! I'm actually so mad that all the lantern suits are so boring like you can literally make them look however you want and you all look the same. I know the meta reason is because who wants to draw that many different suits but I don't care, all my girls are slaying.

All of the girls have three core motifs and a mix of different aesthetics that I'd draw from if I had artistic skill. Mae's are plague doctors, ink, and fungus and she prefers looser baggier clothes to make room for all of the creatures and plants growing out of her skin. She would prefer not wearing shoes at all, but because she's one big contaminant she has to wear very thick gloves and boots when interacting with people of Earth, and she usually wears her mask too because her appearance is generally pretty off-putting.

The other Kryptonians...well let's just say they're not super fond of her, and she really doesn't like them. They're insistent that she's an abomination, something that needs to be fixed, mostly they just feel bad for her, for her whole existence. Mae doesn't take kindly to their pity, this is everything she's ever aspired to be. She feels equally bad for them! It must be terribly lonely, isolated within their own flesh and mind, islands onto themselves, unfathomable even to each other. It's her worst nightmare and she tries to avoid them where possible.

Her people are pacifists so she only uses her abilities defensively and honestly isn't much for combat anyway, she believes that death is a gift that should come to people through natural means only, but this changes the longer she's on the team. As her character progresses she gradually decides some people should have to earn their death, and she's the person who should make them. This is the only time she uses her rapid decay powers. She rarely uses the ghost powers as she doesn't like disturbing their rest but she can be convinced by people she's close to, so she usually relies on shadow manipulation during battles.

Growing up with a species that only communicates through a mental link means she never learned how to talk! Her ring usually speaks for her, although she eventually learns some ASL the longer she's on earth. It has the default AI voice at first but when she learns how to change it I think she'd sound like Drusilla from Buffy the Vampire Slayer!

I won't say too much about Spencer but he's one of the people she's closest to, and the only person on earth who shares the link with her and her family. They have an obsessive kind of queer platonic relationship, where although they love each other it's not explicitly romantic and there's definitely nothing sexual about it. Not in human terms at least, the Pulchra have sex and relationship dynamics the likes of which we couldn't comprehend. They're the definition of soulmates and unfortunately I am obsessed with them.

[heytherecentaurs]

I think Izzy on Adventuring Academy is correct that “chaotic” is an adjective disproportionately attributed to women players. Aside from Ally Beardsley, but that’s a whole other discussion regarding queerness and women in nerdy gaming spaces.

That being said here are some examples of men who are chaotic players:

Lou Wilson - Besides the Fabian almost dying example mentioned in the Adventuring Academy episode, we have Pinocchio’s whole hotdog bit, the pole dancing on his own nose, and his entire presence in the first episode. (“I’m the prince of Shoeberg, motherfucker”) Then there’s Squak who loves starting chaotic shit. Even Gunnie has to get in on the chaos.

Caldwell Tanner - If you’re not listening to Naddpod you’re missing out. He is incredibly chaotic. The shenanigans Beverly gets into is peak chaos. (Also Emily Axford is there to egg him on.). Early examples include a bullywug mating call and goofing a god. Even as a DM he’s chaotic. Look at Trinyvale, which is designed through pure chaos. (He, as video game character Gex, said the immortal words “I’m young, hung and full of tongue” which will live etched into my soul forever.) The world isn’t flat, it’s a cube!! Then there’s Hungry Dave in Hot Boy Summer who flings Frisbees and eats a spell. (Zac, Murph and Jake are also very chaotic in this too.)

Freddie Wong - D20 fans know him from Mentopolis in which he killed a police captain and has super hard testicles. But if you listen to Dungeons and Daddies you know he’s pure chaos. He takes huge cartoony swings and they are usually chaotic. Truly one of the most uncontrollable players out there. I’m more shocked when Freddie makes a grounded decision than a chaotic one.

Brian Murphy - I know what you’re thinking. “But but but he’s the rules guy. He’s a plot hound.” True but he’s also very chaotic. He makes the choice to eat the dragon that ate his dad. (Delicious in Dungeon style) Also Barry 6 has unhinged chaos moments equal to anything Emily does. What about Cody Walsh? Everything he does. He sold his soul in .25 seconds and smashed his face with a brick. Then there’s Jens Lyndelle, quite possibly the most wretched and chaotic piece of shit ever invented. Murph is sneaky chaotic. Yes he loves being a plot hound but so does Emily. The story and the game mechanics are vehicles for both of them to behave chaotically.

In a lot of these examples these guys are playing with Emily Axford and bringing a very similar energy. Yet she’s the one labelled chaotic. Lou is the more chaotic of the duo in ACOFAF. Caldwell and Murph match her freak on Naddpod. So, I do think there’s a disparity here and it does seem sexist. When Ally started playing they were a more female-presenting queer person. Or as they’ve phrased it, they “come from lesbianism”. So, I think you can certainly view it as a sexist label that stuck. But also let’s not overlook how queerness is viewed through the patriarchy as a feminine trait. Like misogyny and homophobia are spidermen pointing at each other. So it comes as no surprise the very openly queer person whom we watched transition on D20 is also labelled chaotic.

[joejhang]

tgr spoilers !!!

ive JUST finished it it is 2am where i am rn these r my very incoherent and chaotic first thoughts:

canon jeandrew interaction SAVE ME the way they talk about neil makes me sick god GOD

the interview...everything surrounding it...hannah bailey when i catch u...

FUCKBOY JEREMY KNOX YOU OWN ME GOD HE'S ACTUALLY HHHHHHH

jeremy i'm sorry i was truly TRULY unfamiliar with your game

reading this like: oh jeremy gets BITCHES (leo, faser, elias, the sheldon guy???, mystery guy with the shirt and cologne, dexter...this is getting out of hand)

NEIL...get UP my baby bunny GET UP GIRL

sorry but the image of neil getting his ribs bashed in and curling up on the floor of the court in a ball...like that's my shayla...that's my bunny rabbit what the fuck ru doing to him....

grayson's dead WHO ELSE CHEERED

kevjean...oh they make me sick they make me SO SO SICK the way they interact with each other...there's so much flavour oh god

kevin being like "did u actually read any of the trojans' articles or where u too busy staring at jeremy's photos-" and jean elbowing him to shut him up KEVJEAN YOU ARE SO DEAR TO ME

kevin defending jean to the press YEP YEP I KNEW IT WHAT DID I FUCKING SAYYYYY

wow jer's backstory is even MORE fucked up and messy than i thought

that MESSY AHH ravens v foxes game...andrew's broken CLAVICLE god i was shaking

INSANE jerejean scene when they were getting ready for the banquet absolutely INSANE

jeremy lore goes CRAZY

andrew and his insanely acute gaydar...how i love you

andrew asking jean if grayson touched neil...andreil you make me so sick so insanely unwell about them

kevin and andrew not knowing abt neil's little visit to jean is SO funny to me

NEIL STILL BEING A LOUDMOUTHED LITTLE SHIT TO THE PRESS UGH I LOVE YOU SO

"fuck what i deserve. what about what i want?" modern poetry. to me.

jean beating bryson's ass...laila was SO real for being like that was so sexy...as a lesbian too...real asf

more of jeremy being a piece of shit please i love it so much jean was right it makes him SO much more interesting

kandrew and kevneil still going strong

jerejean is absolutely insane in this book like...it would be less obvious if they kissed tbh

"give me a name. i will kill him." GO FERAL JEAN GO FERAL GOD HE IS. SO FINE.

the way jean staring at annalise left a bad taste in MY mouth asw, jer real asf for getting jealous

jabberwocky moreau you are MINE

"why can't you fuck someone who respects you?" wow. what do i even say to that. wow.

teenage dirtbag jeremy is real and dear to me. sneaking into his ex-situationship's house through the window??? jumping down and stealing his mother's roses??? he's so sexy i'm sorry

JEAN you are HEALING how i love this man

"he's handsome. the dog is cute, too." AHHH RENEE I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU

i like how the "spicy scenes" in this book were literally all just jer's hookups with random guys every five chapters or so

service top jeremy...he's like...always on my mind

jeremy CLOCKING kevjean so fast was crazy to me and kevin clocking jerejean asw...the trio we didn't know we needed

cody noticing the way jean says jeremy's name had me CRYING they were so real for that

cody and jean the best duo ever methinks

i like how every time jean thinks of jeremy in a romantic way he immediately backtracks and is like "let's not think about this"

"emotional procrastination" is one of the funniest terms i've ever heard

jean kissing cat's temple...he makes me violently, violently ill

jeanneil save me...i will always come back to you...

will not be recovering any time soon do not attempt to contact me

[blackkatmagic]

Sometimes it just hits me all over again how fucking insane Cody is. Like, Grievous is an enemy general who regularly kills Jedi, is armed with four (4!!!!!) lightsabers, and has in canon wiped out entire battalions full of clones when Jedi try to confront him. And Cody just. balls to the wall goes for it and full-on tackles the bastard. Dog-piles the guy who's killed more Jedi than probably any one single person. And he punches Grievous in his (metal!!!) face while he's at it.

And! His men follow his lead.

What the hell kind of charisma and pure brass balls do you have to have for that. Honestly.

[thediaryofaurora]

General HCs

Ticci Toby/Tobias Rogers

Sorry this took so long!! I’ve been contemplating writing one shots, but I feel like I should get the head canons out first. If any of you have any ideas for one shots (x readers, char x char, nsfw), my request box is open! I’ll get around to them as soon as possible. :)

- 5’11! Sleeper build and scrawny, but extremely strong upper arms. He’s not as fast as Kate and Brian, but he makes up for it with how long he can run. He never gets tired and can chase victims for hours. Lots of freckles, too!

- White with mostly German heritage. He doesn’t know very much German, just baseline stuff he learned from his mom. (Connie grew up in Germany until she was 15.)

- Medium brown hair and dark brown eyes. He’s pretty pale, but being outside most of the time he does have a slight tan, lots of freckles too.

- His dad was extremely abusive and would beat him, his mom, and his sister, it was rare for him to not be drunk. Toby killed him only a few hours after his father beat his mom to the point she was unconscious. He’d rather his mom lose both of her children and her abusive husband than endure so much pain, he cared about her more than anything. He didn’t want to sit idly by as he loses his sister and mother.

- His fingers are TORN up. Bites and picks at his nails, cuticles, dry knuckles, all of it. His fingertips and palms are also super calloused.

- Hangs out with Jeff and Ben most of the time. He’s closer to Ben and thinks Jeff’s a douche, but he puts up with him since sometimes the three of them have fun.

- He can be a jerk, but if you’re able to break past his shell he’s super sweet. He’s still sarcastic and snarky, but not necessarily mean. VERY smug.

- Had Jeff do a tattoo of Lyra’s birthday on his shoulder. It turned out surprisingly good. He was originally going to do her death date, but he felt like it was better to honor the time she was alive.

- Halloween junkie. He has a massive sweet tooth and loves autumn, so it’s the perfect day ever in his eyes.

- This guy DESTROYS in poker and blackjack. The few times his dad would spend time with him they’d play together. Even though he hated him, it meant a lot to him when he was little. Has the teeny tiniest gambling addiction, makes a bunch of bets with other residents of the mansion and usually wins.

- MIDWESTERN EMO BOY!!!! I will die on this hill. Music taste, clothing, all of it.

- His tics are pretty rare now that he’s older, but when he’s anxious they get bad.

- Exclusively wears comfortable clothes. Not because he gets uncomfortable, he could (and does) sleep in jeans and not be bothered. When he was younger he would always be forced to wear slacks, dress shoes, button ups, and ties for church or family gatherings. He HATED it.

- Him, Tim, and Brian are usually put on missions together. They’re all pretty compatible, and it’s nice to talk to just some regular ass dudes. Sometimes all three of them will go to run down diner’s if they finished their mission early, it’s the most normality any of them have in their lives.

- He and Tim bicker a LOT, but he secretly find comfort in it. He sees Tim as a protective older brother, rather than someone who just hates him. With how his dad treated him growing up, he thought all arguing was yelling and being aggressive, but Tim’s is more disagreement or annoyance.

- Almost knows how to play the acoustic guitar. He’s a quick learner, but he doesn’t have a crazy strong desire to get better at it.

- Pretty much always wears a big bandaid over his cheek gash. He’s not necessarily insecure about it unless he has a crush on someone, but it’s hard to eat or drink when it’s just open.

- He’s actually not to bad at soccer! Sometimes when it’s nice out him and Cody find a ball and play.

- Anywho, I’m in love with him.

Feedback and requests are welcome! Thank you for reading. :)

✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩☆✩

[therealmilfdennys]

NEED somebody to gif popes anxious little finger wiggle/stim thing he does in ep9 of season 2. it happens in the kitchen right before he and amy have sex and it is SO silly i cant stop thinking about it actually i will literally do anything 🙏

[uncannydevotion]

a/n: i've been thinking abt this request a lot lately so i've decided to finally write it. only took me two million years <3

includes: ticci toby, the bloody painter, x-virus, and homicidal liu.

warnings: not proofread i am writing this all in one sitting let's hope it's good, attempted murder against the reader in toby's part, angst! :jazz hands:, injuries, blood, panic attack in toby's part?? kinda?? you could call it that or you could say slender was doin some weird shit to his head, mentions of murder, mentions of past bullying, stalking, helen's kinda obsessed, unhealthy relationships, dead parents, needles, whatever the fuck cody injects into people, very morally ambiguous reader in cody's part, brief but slightly descriptive murder, randy is a warning i guess, mentions of fire, mentions of near death experiences, cigarettes, a gun, sully points a gun at reader but there's no real attempt of murder, a test to see how much i remember jeff's story cause i am Not rereading it it's 3am as im writing this.

TICCI TOBY

You really don't know what had compelled you to go into the forest so late at night. No... no, that's a lie. You do know. You knew exactly what had brought you to this forest.

Maybe you were crazy but you could've sworn you had seen your childhood friend at the edge of the forest near the cemetery the other night. It's so stupid, you knew that.

He's been missing for years now, classified as on the run after brutally killing his father, but you just... you had to know.

That's why you had entered the forest that night. No one else would be around, but... you really should've thought ahead, honestly. You should've brought a pocket knife, or some mace, or anything.

But how were you supposed to know that you would end up getting chased through the woods by a fucking crazy guy with hatchets? You don't even know where he came from, he just threw one of the hatchets at you and narrowly missed!

Consider yourself lucky, or whatever, but he seemed fairly determined to kill you.

You hid behind a thick tree, taking a moment to catch your breath. You're not sure how deep in the forest you had gone, but the area was starting to look familiar, so you assumed that you were getting close to the cemetery connected to the town.

But he was catching up to you, and fast. It's not like you could just fight him off, he had the advantage with, y'know, the hatchets.

Quick thinking is what leads to you grabbing a fairly sturdy branch from the ground. It was heavy, but you didn't have the luxury of caring about that right now as you pressed your back against the tree, forcing yourself to steady your breathing.

The sound of tongue clicking was familiar, and it grew closer and closer. You could hear leaves and twigs being stepped on. Cautiously, you took a glance around the tree. The man's back was turned towards you, but he was looking around.

Looking for you.

You knew this was the one chance you had, so you tried to be extra quiet as you approached him, raising the branch up high and using all your strength to knock him over the head with it.

The man falls to his knees, and as soon as he dropped his hatchets, you dropped the branch and snatched the weapons away, throwing them somewhere deeper in the forest just so he wouldn't be able to use them to hurt you.

Now, you knew you should've ran. He was no longer a threat, but... the tics, the way he didn't react to the pain of getting hit over the head like you thought he would've... he seemed dizzy, sure, but he was bleeding. He wasn't clutching his head, he wasn't hissing in pain.

It was all familiar, and it reminded you of...

"Toby?" You sounded breathless, chest heaving as you stared down at him.

His head shot up at the sound of his name, and behind his cracked goggles, you can see the way his eyes widened. Even though most of his face was concealed, you could see the...

Fear? Confusion? You're not sure what emotion it was, but it was so evident in the way he recoils from you when you reach out to him.

"Toby... what-" You couldn't even get another word out before he was interrupting you.

"No! No. No. I don't kn–click–know you." His voice cracked as he spoke, and he sounded pained. Not from the injury you had given him, but... as if there were something else.

You really don't know what's happening, all you knew was that the man you had considered to be your best friend when you were younger had just tried killing you, and is acting as if he doesn't know you.

No... not acting. His confusion, the lack of recognition, it was all real.

You couldn't get another word in before he was breaking down, clutching his head as if something was screaming inside it, "I don't know you! I don't know you!"

The pure agony in his voice had you stumbling back. Clearly, your presence wasn't helping him. Guilt clawed at your insides, and even though you didn't want to leave him like this, even though you wanted to figure out what had happened all those years ago, you knew you had no choice.

You stumbled out of the forest, the sound of Toby screaming echoing around you.

And though it was faint, you swore you heard static as well.

THE BLOODY PAINTER

Being friends with Helen had been hard, even before he killed almost the entirety of his class. He rarely ever spoke to you, and half of the time you wondered if he even thought of you as his friend.

You stood up for him against people like Judy and Ban, but there was only so much you could do.

There was one memory that you always thought of, even after you had grown up. It was the night before the school's Halloween party, and you had dropped by Helen's house to get his help on picking out a costume.

He had seemed... really distracted, that night. He wasn't fully there. When you asked him if he was okay, he just...

"Promise me that you'll stay my friend, no matter what happens."

It had caught you off guard, but you had made the promise. The next night, he killed his classmates before your parents dropped you off at the school. You didn't see him after that, because your parents refused to let you associate with him.

And now, years later, something was wrong.

You had heard from Helen's mother, months ago, that he had been released from the institution he had been in, apparently no longer a danger to himself or others, but he just...

Disappeared. Cut all contact.

And shortly after his release, you heard from an old friend that Judy and Maggie, two of the few classmates that had survived the massacre, had gone missing, along with the other three survivors.

Something deep down in your gut told you that it was Helen. When the bodies of the missing had been found inside of Helen's childhood home, you just knew.

You should've gone to the police, really, but it's not like they didn't already know. There was a manhunt out for Helen the moment the bodies were found, but he was long gone.

It's not like you had to be worried or anything, right? You were in a completely different state, living in a large city. You haven't spoken to him since you were kids, and it's not like he knew where you were at, right?

Well, you were wrong, apparently.

When the stalking started, you didn't want to believe it was Helen. I mean, seriously, why would he want anything to do with you? Unless...

You didn't want to think about it, but... he had gone back and killed all the survivors of his original massacre. And... you were technically a survivor, if only because you were late to the party. He didn't plan on killing you, did he?

Though, that fear was quickly squashed when he started leaving you gifts. They were nothing major, mostly sketches of you. They weren't signed, but you knew who they were from.

The feeling of eyes on you was something you just couldn't get used to, and you swear you started seeing him when you were out in the city.

You wanted to go to a bookstore? Helen was across the street. Taking a walk in the park? You swear you saw him sitting on a bench, sketching.

It felt as if you were going insane, honestly.

You... you really should have gone to the police, you think, when you got home one night to find your roommate hanging from the ceiling, their neck slit and their blood painted all over the walls.

In your roommates blood, on your wall, a heart was painted, followed by a question mark. Was this... a love confession? Was he asking if you loved him?

When you took a step back, towards the front door, you had bumped right into him. He was on you in an instant, and his hand covered your mouth to prevent your scream from being heard by anyone.

"Shh... I'm not going to hurt you. We made a promise, remember?"

X-VIRUS

Living at an orphanage had never been easy. You still remember the day you first arrived. Your parents had both died, and you had pretty much closed yourself away from everyone, refusing to interact with any of the other kids.

The caretakers had been concerned, especially when the other kids had started picking on you for being quiet and 'weird'.

In comes Cody, a kid your age with absolutely no filter and no regard for what was considered right or wrong. To this day, you still don't know what it was about you that made him hang around, but the moment he got to the orphanage, he was by your side almost all the time.

Whenever one of the other kids messed with you, they'd always end up getting injured in some way because of Cody.

Cody was the only person you were willing to speak to, other than the caretakers. He brought you out of your shell, and made you laugh with his stupid, poor-timed jokes. You even became his nurse, essentially, patching up his wounds whenever he got into fights over you.

The day he was adopted was the worst day of your life, you think. It's the first time you cried since your parents died, and you remember clinging onto him, begging him not to leave you.

It was a pretty embarrassing memory, to be honest.

You weren't as lucky as Cody had been. No family was interested in adopting you, and you ended up aging out of the orphanage. Life never got better for you, even after you left the orphanage.

You didn't have many friends, and your coworkers all tended to avoid you because of how apathetic you were. Truth be told, you didn't have any interest in anything.

Every single day, from the moment Cody had been taken from you, was literal hell in your mind. The loneliness, the constant doubts, the self-loathing, everything. It was so much. Almost too much, at times.

But that all changed when you were walking back to your dingy apartment one night after a late shift. You lived in a fairly unsafe area, but the rent was cheap, so you couldn't complain.

Walking by an alleyway, something caught your attention.

It was cliché, honestly. You didn't care if anyone might have been in trouble, but a morbid curiosity got the better of you when you heard someone crying for help.

Taking a stroll down the alleyway, you reached the end and saw something you truly weren't expecting. A man was laying on the ground, a headwound visible while another man stood over him, fiddling with a needle and some sort of liquid you didn't recognize.

"Would you shut up? There's nobody around to hear you,"

That... that voice...

Your eyes widened, but not because you just witnessed some poor guy get injected with a suspicious liquid.

The injured man starts gasping, and foaming at the mouth. Your eyes meet, and he reaches out to you, croaking for help. You just stand there, watching as the man died.

And when you look up, you meet the gaze of the man who killed him. But you weren't scared. You should be, you knew that, but you weren't.

Cody pulls down the mask he was wearing. He doesn't seem at all surprised to see you, almost as if he knew you had been watching.

"Miss me?" He asks. He was smiling, as if he hadn't just killed someone. So many questions were swirling in your mind, but the only thing you could really focus on was the fact that Cody was here, in front of you.

For the first time in years, you smile.

"Yeah."

HOMICIDAL LIU

When a new family moved in next door with two boys close to your age, your parents had practically forced you to go over and introduce yourself to them, trying to get you to make friends.

You weren't at all interested, but you also didn't want to get in trouble, so once they had settled in, you went with them to be neighborly.

Liu and Jeff were the names of the kids. Liu was the older one, only a few months younger than you, and as mean as it was, you were definitely more interested in hanging out with Liu more than his little brother.

It's not that you hated him or anything like that, but... you were a kid, y'know? The thought of hanging out with someone younger than you, even if only by three years, was weird. It's something you felt guilty about now, as an adult, but it's not like you could change the past.

Besides, you and Liu weren't even friends. Not when you two had first met, at least.

You walked to school with him, and you had a few classes together at school, but you already had your own group of friends, and you just weren't interested in making any new ones.

It wasn't until his brother started to get bullied that you two started to develop a bond. You were one of the few people who didn't tolerate Randy's bullshit, so you never hesitated to stand up for Jeff when you were around.

Liu liked that about you.

When he had gotten arrested after falsely confessing to beating up Randy and his goons, you did your best to protect Jeff while he was gone.

To this day, you can't help but blame yourself for everything that happened. The day Jeff had been lit on fire, you had been stuck at home because of the flu. You still remember the scream of pure agony you heard from his mother next door when she got the call.

There were many things you wish you had done differently back then, but alas. Time marched forward.

As far as you knew, Liu died that night Jeff brutally killed his entire family, and you made sure to visit his grave whenever you had time to spare.

Today was one of those days. The sky was filled with clouds, and you had bought some flowers.

Everyone in town viewed the Woods family in a negative light because of the terror Jeff had caused, and still continues to cause to this day, so their graves don't get taken care of.

You do the best you can, but it's hard to prevent neighborhood kids from vandalizing the grave every other week.

But you were pleasantly surprised to find someone sitting behind Liu's tombstone, smoking a cigarette. You had thought that maybe it was an estranged family member, maybe, but as you approached, you couldn't help but notice that the scarf around their neck was eerily similar to the one Liu had gotten a few weeks before his death.

"Uhm, hello?" You call out, curious as to who this visitor could possibly be.

You did not expect for a gun to be pointed at you.

You blink, staring at the gun for a moment, too bewildered to register the fact that you should probably be scared. Hell, you didn't even have much of a chance to register the gun before you found yourself more distracted by the person holding it.

He looked... eerily familiar.

The scarf. The scars littered across his face, on his neck. They reminded you of the reports you read about the wounds Liu had sustained before dying in the hospital.

It was stupid. There's no way it's actually him. No way. He didn't even seem to recognize you. He had a fucking gun pointing at you, for crying out loud!

This was not Liu.

So why did he feel like him?

"...Liu?"

Your voice caused his gaze to change. The gun lowered slightly, his brows pinching together. And in a split second, it's as if he was a different person entirely, the way his eyes widened in recognition.

His gaze dropped to the gun that he had been pointing at you, and he looked absolutely mortified, dropping it and the cigarette he had been smoking.

"I can explain." He says, but he honestly seemed just as lost as you were.

...It was going to be a long night.

[seawitchkaraoke]

Murph's characters ranked by how immune to Murph rolls they are

Theo: 10/10 won't land a hit but he doesn't need to, his job is to sit there and not take any damage while literal armies are trying to kill him and to jump in front of his friends. Also knock doesn't require a roll.

Riz (junior year): 9/10 reliable talent is a game changer, the nat 1 turns into a 10, becomes a 21, no mystery this guy can't crack. Can still fail in fights which is not great when you're the only one who isn't stunned.

Kugrash 5/10 does a lot of support work, like the cockroach aura and summoning a bunch of alligator friends which doesn't need Murph to roll. Sadly he does roll for the attacks the alligators make so that takes away from it a bit

Gerard: 4/10 what do you do when you can't roll well yourself? Make Zac roll instead. Commanding strike is amazing. Other than though Murph's rolls make Gerard a pretty pathetic frog - which is of course exactly what he is.

Barry 3/10 he's a barbarian so part of his job is to absorb damage which doesn't require dice and he does a fantastic job of it. Sadly both attacking and playing at casinos however does require dice

Riz (before junior year): 1/10 he'll get there but right now? He is at the mercy of the dice and Adaine's portent rolls can't save him every time

Cody -10/10 this guy is designed to be as affected by Murph rolls as possible, Murph really said let's make a character that is just so bad at what he does. Stabs himself with his own sword, he's perfect, no notes.

[cc1010fox]

Cody: Oh no... Rex: Cody...You killed that natborn... Cody: I-I didn't mean to! It was one punch! One! Wolffe: He hit his head on the corner of the building... Cody: They're going to decommission me... Fox: ...Heh... Rex: What the kriff, Fox!? Cody is in serious trouble! He's a murderer! Wolffe, after Fox bursts into open laughter: Are you out of your karking mind!? Cody: Give him a break, guys...He's been through a lot already. Having to turn one of his best friends in for murder probably broke him... Fox: Ka'ra, you guys are so cute! Rex: Seriously, what is wrong with you!? Fox, over his comms: We need an extra set of armor down here. I'll ping my location. Wolffe: What are you doing? Fox: Hiding the body in clone armor so we can get it to the incinerators without raising suspicion. Cody: ...You're a kriffing genius. Fox, laughing: And you're adorable. You should have seen your face! You were so scared! Rex: Why does it feel like this isn't your first time getting rid of a body? Wolffe: Or covering up a murder... Fox: Welcome to Coruscant, boys.

[tarre-was-right]

ROUND ONE: MATCH-UP EIGHT

Remember, this is NOT about who would win in a fight. This is about who makes the best leader for Mandalore as a whole.

Explanation post

Seeding

Propaganda below the cut! You can submit more on this post and I will reblog it back to here!

ALPHA-17

@ihuntmonsters: He’s uhhh super badass and sexy and kicks ass and is really awesome and I’m in love with him Perfect propaganda yes. He shall lead Mandalore

Anon: He's pretty good with training children! He is very good at inspiring loyalty! He is very willing to go after sith lords with just his teeth if he has to!

Anon: Vote for Alpha he’s got Cody’s thighs, Fox’s tits and Wolffe’s ass. He’s also a DILF, if you consider the shebse squad/command batch headcanons. And who wouldn’t want a Mand'alor like that?

Anon: Alpha-17 would be a great mandolorian leader I mean look at those Pecs! What else do u need in a leader?

Anon: HERES WHY ALPHA-17 FOR THE WIN: HE WILL ASSASSINATE ALL OF THE OTHER POLITICAL FIGURES WHICH MEANS DEAD SKEVY SHEEVY PALPATINE AND WHO DOESNT WANT THAT?

Anon: What a guy. I love him so much. He's such an asshole. Alpha-17 was part of the second test batch of clones of Jango Fett, one of a group of 100, and as such he was trained directly by Jango Fett in the art of war; these early batches who had more contact with their Mandalorian trainers are commonly considered to have a stronger claim to 'Mandalorian-ness' because of this exposure and learning experience than clones from the later, larger batches

Anon: Propaganda for Alpha 17: tall

Anon: Alpha-17 should rule Mandalore because a good king doesn’t want the power of the throne and he does not want that at all. also he’s the funniest choice. might have the skills to not get killed by maul

JANGO FETT

Anon: Jango became Mand'alor (according to Legends) at the tender age of 15 immediately after the death of his adopted father Jaster Mereel. While another of Mereel's men (Montross) made a grab for the position Jango brought up the betrayal Montross had done to Mereel causing the older man's death. The other Haat Mando'ade fell in behind Jango as he had become Jaster's Legacy. He led the Haat Mando'ade for 8 years and seemed prosperous. - And then Galidraan happened, between poisoned information and tensions being high between the Jedi and Mandalorians it only took a spark for it all to be blown to hell.

Anon: Jango was trained to be Jaster's successor to the title of Mand'alor from the time he was adopted at about 8 years of age, following the death of his blood family - when Jaster was killed, Jango was chosen by their people to step into the role despite being a young teenager at the time, suggesting that he was already known to be a good leader, and one who had earned their loyalty and trust over even Jaster's formerly-trusted second-in-command - while his time in the position was short, he did seem to command great loyalty and respect from his followers, although his focus seemed to have been more on their faction's mercenary work than on serving as a ruler or even cultural figurehead for the people of Mandalore at large - regardless, Tor Vizsla saw him as enough of a threat to his own claim to the throne to seek his swift removal from the political field - even after having disappeared from the field of politics for years following the incident at Galidraan, many Mandalorians still answered his call to come and serve as trainers for the GAR, suggesting that they took his claim seriously as well

Anon: Jango Fett, while a man of many mistakes, inherited the role of Mando'alor from Jaster and tried to do the same as he did: honour their past, move forward and provide for their people - He took care of Montross and tried his best to protect the people who followed him, to make sure they had a future and didn't fall apart and get scattered to the winds again.

@lightsaberwieldingdalek: I mean. Jango’s got the best brand recognition? Absolutely everyone for centuries with recognise the Jango Fett look, and that army that Jango was kinda sort of responsible for did conquer at least half the galaxy, just…. Not in the name of mandalore

[rebel-hunk-enjoyer]

I think Rex 🤝 Kallus friendship is neat for a lot of reasons. Firstly, I think Kallus needs a role model for deprogramming imperial behavior and would not, as former ISB, be very easily trusted amongst other defectors. Meanwhile, Rex has a lot of experience with separating what's him from what's "programming" and would probably understand more about quitting the thought police than he's truly comfortable with. Lots of uncomfy realizations abound for both of them when they compare notes, you know?

But also I think Kallus would be the guy who appreciates the boring stories from the Clone Wars, the stories about Rex and Cody doing the admin work that became the framework for imperial codes later on, the guy who really just gets it when Rex tells the story about him and Kanan sneaking around disguised as troopers. "The commissary" is like the joke they end up sharing or something and that's a fun little way for them to get through after Kanan is gone because it kills Rex to lose another Jedi friend and Kallus has zero experience healthily mourning and I think that would be nice for them to have a shared thing that's bonding but also healthy grief.

[luvjunie]

— when the dam breaks

contains: third person pov (42!miles’), no reader, feelings of anxiety, some harsh language, use of the n-word once, a one-sided fight, angst, mentions of grief, brief comfort at the end

summary: miles was holding himself together just fine, until he wasn’t. wc: 2,748

a/n: this fic is based on one of my headcanons from this post,(the 12th one). handling the grief of losing a parent is one of the hardest, most painful things to navigate, especially when you’re a teen and in school. i can directly relate to miles!42 because of this, which is probably why i’m able to go so in depth with his character. i’m really proud of how this turned out so i hope you guys enjoy reading <3

The back of Ms. Bellam’s history class was Miles’ favorite spot to sit in. The seat by the window, specifically. Where he could gaze out with the fantasy of being anywhere else but stuck listening to the lecture in his fifth block; forced to hear his teacher rave on about some old expedition he couldn’t bring himself to give a shit about.

But today, Miles was not in the back of the class.

He had a bad feeling the moment the bell rung and the projector powered on to display the newest assignment the tall, stocky woman had on the agenda; a partnered project. Which, unfortunately, meant a new seating chart was on the horizon.

Miles must’ve spaced out during the introduction of the assignment, but his teacher’s assertive voice brought him back to the very moment he was dreading.

“Cody, you’re paired with—“ Ms. Bellam pulled a small slip of paper out from a little bucket of randomized names on her desk. “—Lauren.”

She ignored the quiet groan she got after unknowingly pairing two exes together and drew two more names. “Bailey, you’re with Lucas.”

“Sarah, you’re with… Faith. And Miles,” The brunette-haired teacher stuck her hand into the bucket once more to pull out the very last slip of paper, and read it with finality. “You’re with Gabby.”

Miles lifted his head and did a quick scan of the faces around, until he met the eyes of his new partner, Gabby, who gave him a small wave from the front of the class. His jaw clenched at the realization that he’d have to give up his safe corner, since the seats around him were filled, while the one next to her was open.

“Alright everyone, if you’re not already next to your partner, go find them.”

With an inaudible grumble and something along the lines of ‘i hate this fucking class’ and a mix of ‘kill me now’— Miles rose from his chair, snatched his backpack up with a little too much force, and crossed the classroom to plop down defeatedly next to the girl he was paired with.

Chin tucked in his hand and eyes glued to the ticking clock above the white board, he didn’t know how long he sat like that, or how much valuable information he’d missed while he ignored the overly peppy, thirty-year old’s directions to the class. But he did know that the minute hand on that damn analog device wasn’t moving fast enough for his liking. The droning of voices overlapping and the bouncing of ideas filled the once silent air after instructions had been given, but Miles was far from focused on the task at hand.

The incessant tapping of his pencil against the hard plastic of his desk, matched with the clearly agitated bounce of his leg had his partner stealing experimental glances in his direction— her lips having been licked ample times from the stress of debating on whether to make the difficult decision of speaking to the boy who was clearly not interested in conversation— or even being here at all.

She spoke up anyway. “Um… So most of the other groups have pretty much chosen already. That means we’re left with James Cook, Vasco de Gama, Ferdinand Magellan, or—“

“You can pick for us. I don’t really care which one.” Miles interrupted.

“Oh—“ Gabby blinked. His response was curt, but at least she got one. “Okay then, Ferdinand Magellan.” Flipping through the rubric that had been passed out at some point, she referred to the second page with her index finger. “It says our presentation has to be between six to eight slides, which includes the works cited for our research. So we could do one introduction slide, and maybe about,” she paused to think. “Four?— information slides? And then we could add some fun facts and trivia questions at the end so we can get our class participation points in without too much effort. That cool with you?”

Gabby was a nice girl. She never bothered him, never looked at him weird when he’d come into class late sometimes, and had actually ran through the hallway to return the notebook that fell out of his open backpack just last week. He wasn’t aggravated at her, but more so at the fact that everybody could stare at the back of his head now instead of the other way around, like it was before. It made him self conscious about everything, even down to the way he was sitting in his chair. He could feel a few beams on his back right about now, and adjusted his position slightly.

Miles sighed and reminded himself to respond to her politely. “Uh-huh. Sounds good.”

A voice to his left behind him caught his attention, the voice in question belonging to one of the most obnoxious boys he’d ever had the displeasure of knowing— Ethan Thompson. Someone who always had too much to say and nothing productive or appropriate to add— it usually being something creepy or gross about a girl he wanted to ‘get to know’.

Miles would’ve tuned him out, like he always did, but this time it was impossible. Probably because out of all the conversations regarding the explorers meant to be researched, this one had absolutely nothing to do with history, or even school for that matter.

“Bro, did you hear about what happened to…”

Miles strained to hear as best as he could without moving from his seat, though it was a struggle since Gabby was still talking his ear off to the right of him about who would do what when it came to their workload.

“Miles?”

He ignored her as another voice chimed in, and his back stiffened.

“I know dude, my sister told me about it. Said he was killed in action or somethin’ like that… I just know his mom is crushed. I feel really bad.”

Miles knew people talked about this, he wasn’t dumb. But damn, did they have to do it when he was right there?

Then, there was a laugh.

Miles was confused. He didn’t find anything regarding the topic of their conversation even remotely comical.

“Fuck that,” Ethan quieted his voice, though not quiet enough. “That just means Mrs. Morales is single and up for grabs now.”

It took less than a second for Miles’ blood to simmer to a scalding boil. He held a subtle finger up and quieted Gabby, who was currently asking him about what they should research first.

“Can you give me just… one second?” he asked gently.

Gabby’s words died on her tongue and she gave a muddled nod.

Miles threw his elbow over the back of his chair when his torso whipped around, his eyes glazed with enmity and immediately catching Ethan’s.

“The fuck you just say?”

Ethan froze.

Miles’ tone was lethal, rage lifting the volume above the blurred chattering around, venom spitting from his tongue like he intended to kill the boy with words alone. The speed in which the class fell silent would’ve been humorous had there not been such hostility within the air.

“Miles, language!” Ms. Bellam’s eyes snapped up from her computer screen, her face a picture of disbelief at his unusual vitriol. He was always quiet as a mouse in her class, well behaved above all.

Jaws hung slack, the gazes of the students around darted back and forth between the two boys continuously, the tension in the room palpable.

Miles sat up straighter in his seat, jaw clenched and his patience dwindling. To say he was seething would be a dangerous understatement.

“Nah, nah Ms. B,” His head cocked, and his eyes narrowed at Ethan, ruinously. “I wanna know what this nigga just said ‘bout my fuckin’ mom.”

“Oh shit…” Gabby gulped. Today was the most she’d heard Miles speak in class almost the entire semester.

“It was a joke, bro.” Ethan huffed a chuckle, a nervous thing that his friend easily picked up on. Miles was not one to bluff, and Ethan was notorious for taking things too far.

“Don’t bro me, repeat that dumb shit you just said and watch how fast I knock your ass out.” Miles gritted through his teeth, hot air puffing through his nostrils like a bull who’d just seen red.

“Boys, enough!” Ms. Bellman was standing now, hands planted to her desk as she watched with bated breath, just like the rest of the class-now-turned-audience.

Ethan shrugged, and Miles swore he felt his eye twitch.

Strike one.

Then, the boy playfully nudged his friend’s arm with a cocky smirk, as if he thought the threat he’d just received wasn’t one that would be carried out.

Strike two.

“He’s baiting you, Miles…” Gabby whispered dejectedly, in warning, only so Miles could hear. But his tunnel vision had already set in.

“Go ‘head. Repeat yourself.” Miles demanded.

Nails digging into the skin of his palms hard enough to leave crescents in their wake, there was a voice in the back of his mind, reminding him that he could get into serious trouble if he didn’t get his emotions in check, fast. He’d progressed so quickly in his after school M.M.A classes, that now, even getting into a simple fist fight could land him a serious assault charge. A judge would take one look at the history of his intense training, and the option to deem his hands as deadly weapons in the case would immediately be presented, and most likely acted upon.

Knocking the teeth out of a rich white boy would never be the smart decision here, especially not for someone who looked the way he did.

He’d be sent straight to juvie.

“I mean, all I was sayin’ is, technically—“ Ethan threw his hands up in a careless manner. “If I play my cards right, I could be your future step-daddy.”

Strike three.

Ms. Bellam was yelling now. “Ethan, principal’s office, now!”

And that probably would’ve been the better option, had he actually had a choice.

Miles’ movements were swift when he shot out of his seat, and the students in his way followed suit with yelps and gasps as they quickly removed themselves from the area. The desks blocking his pathway to pummeling the shit out of this kid loudly screeched against the school’s tile when they were shoved out of the way, and the one he’d mindlessly flipped over in his stampede proceeded to erupt the room into pure pandemonium.

One punch would’ve been good enough, Miles knew that. But in this moment, thinking rationally was so far out of his reach he would’ve missed it even if he’d jumped for it. He’d swung a closed fist to Ethan’s jaw and knocked him to the floor with ease, then followed him down, sat on his chest and had the boy’s arms pinned under his knees so he couldn’t protect his snobby-ass face. One punch would’ve been good enough, but just two vehement blows later, the satisfying crack of a bone that wasn’t his under Miles’ knuckles had him sending a few more into the reddened face of the boy beneath him, just to really get his point across.

“Jesus Christ— Miles!” Ms. Bellman scrambled from her seat in a panic and rushed to fling the classroom’s door open, her desperate yells directed to anyone who might’ve been strolling the hallways. “We need security in here! You-!” She pointed to a student with a bathroom pass. “Go get security, and tell them to come to room 205, now! Go!”

Everyone was yelling at once, but Miles couldn’t hear anything other than the ringing of rage in his ears. Anger is only grief turned sour— a terribly perilous thing to leave untreated.

Some of his classmates were frozen with shock, or fear, maybe— hands clasped over their gaped mouths while others had their phones out with the camera app open—vampires for some good drama while they hooted and hollered at the most exciting thing they’d seen this entire year.

“That’s enough!”

Strong arms suddenly hooked under Miles’ armpits and prevented his fist from worsening the damage already done. Two male teachers from neighboring classrooms had rushed in and yanked him up and off Ethan, his hips bucking as he kicked his way up onto his feet. Miles’ chest expanded and collapsed with the weight of his heaving breaths, face flushed with the remnants of his lost temper as he directed his attention to Ethan’s friend, who looked like a deer in headlights.

“When your boy wake up, tell him watch his mouth next time!”

Miles didn’t know why he was yelling. It was common knowledge that it’s pretty rare for someone who’s unconscious to understand what you’re saying to them.

He didn’t struggle when the two teachers dragged him away, but when they shoved him out the door and into the hall with more force than he thought necessary, he snatched his arms away from their grasp with a rolled shrug, and huffed a frustrated grunt about how he knew how to walk on his own.

—

The drive home was eerily silent. The radio hadn’t been touched, and neither had Miles by his mother’s gaze the moment they’d left the principal’s office after he received his verdict.

Out of school suspension. One week.

It was the best the administrative staff could do after Rio swallowed her pride and went as low as begging them not to expel her boy.

Slumped in the passenger seat with his hands in his lap, Miles didn’t bother to look at the bruises he knew were forming on his knuckles. It was a familiar feeling, and at the moment he was more concerned with why it felt like his throat had been stuffed with cotton when he tried to talk.

“Mamá, I—“

“Do not. Speak.” Rio’s breath wavered, her hands clutching the wheel so hard she thought she’d crush it. She tried not to let her voice break. “Not one word.”

Silence.

—

It all settled in as they climbed the stairwell, the images of what just happened flashing back in his mind every time he blinked; what he’d done playing over and over again in a continuous loop. The wooden railings creaked under the weight of his mother’s hand, and as she knowingly skipped the one that had weakened over the years, he knew the home that held every single emotion he tried to leave behind when he went to school was now just a few steps up.

Rio’s key twisted in the lock before she opened the door, and Miles followed behind her, shoulders slouched dispiritedly. He resembled something of a stray puppy; desperate for attention, but acceptant and grateful that it, as much of a nuisance as it may be, was being tolerated enough to stay on it’s finder’s heels.

He thought being scolded by his mother was bad, but the lack thereof was even worse. Her brows were clenched, and her conflicted yet somehow blank expression told him that she truly did not have any words for him as she leaned on the kitchen counter, hands clasped firmly around the edge so tightly her knuckles paled. She didn’t even know where to start, and Miles didn’t blame her. He refused to explain why he’d snapped when it was asked of him. When his mother’s widened eyes had pleaded with him to tell the principal what happened in that classroom that set him off in such a way, he didn’t. He had no reason not to, at least one he could think of right now, but his voice just wouldn’t allow it. Both in that office, and now in their kitchen, dimly lit by the warm light above the stove, the weight of his mother’s disappointment clung to the suffocating silence, like a fish to a hook and he just couldn’t take it anymore.

“Mamá, I’m sorry.” He whispered in a quick breath, the lump in his throat painful when he swallowed it.

“Good money, Miles.” Rio shook her head, a hand coming up to rest over the rise and fall of her chest. “Good money! We paid good money to get you into that school, your dad and I. I work hard to keep you there and you just—“

Dad.

And the dam broke. Though its foundation wasn’t very strong to begin with— Miles’ shoulders crumbled under the weight of his actions and his tears flooded past his waterline with choked sobs that left no room for air.

Whatever Rio was going to say had been forgotten. The sight of her son sobbing in a way she hadn’t seen since the night they’d received the news immediately put a stop to her reprimanding. Now, she was truly worried.

“Oh Miles, come come come,” She hastily tugged him into a hug and wrapped him firmly in her arms, her hands repeatedly rubbing up and down the expanse of his back. “¿Qué es Mijo? (what is it, son?) Talk to me. No te lo guardes, ¿recuerda?” (no holding it in, remember?)

Miles could barely catch his breath, and somehow talking about it was just as painful as the ache that resided deep in his chest.

“I—It was Dad, it was about—“ a quick breath in split his sentence in half. “About Dad. He was—talking about what ha—happened and I—“ Miles tried for another, but it caught in his throat, ragged and choppy and had his ribcage stuttering from the lousy attempt to cease his hyperventilating. The fact that he couldn’t get his words out uninterrupted only frustrated him more; only made him cry harder. He scrubbed at his tears with the back of his hand, but it was no use. He couldn’t stop crying. Why couldn’t he stop crying?

“He said—“ Another wilted inhale, and a hiccup. “It was abo—about you, and it was terrible and I— I just, I got so angry, and I tried Mamá, I did. But I couldn’t and—and then I was on him and I’m sorry—“

“Shh, shh. It’s okay, it’s okay.” Rio used a hand to bring his head into her shoulder, his cries muffled and his tears wetting the sleeve of her blouse as his rambling came to a halt. Miles clutched onto her tightly, arms round her waist as he fell apart in front of the woman who’d tried her best to piece him back together.

“Respira, Mijo, respira… (breathe).” Rio whispered. “Please.” Seeing her son so distraught had brought on tears of her own, but she shut her eyes, and tucked away her own feelings so she could focus on his. “It’s okay. It’s alright.”

“But you’re mad at me, I don’t want you to be mad at me—“

Rio shook her head and tutted at him. “I’m not mad at you, papa. I understand. Okay? I’m not angry. No.” She couldn’t be upset with him for something like this, not when he could barely shelter himself from his own guilt.

“It’s okay. You’re okay, baby. I’ve got you.” Miles was inconsolable as Rio continued rubbing his back, and her voice shook when she spoke, but she kept the uncertainty she held within her heart concealed from her promise to him.

“We’re going to be okay.”

[erwinsvow]

i 100% saw a post from someone weeks ago about pope in a romeo and juliet type situation and i started thinking thoughts about it while studying so whoever that was or if anyone's seen it please tell me so i can credit it properly. but if you had a bunch of brothers and cousins maybe not in oceanside but in san diego or chula vista or something (IDK!) and it seems that somehow they're always competing for the same jobs as the codys. like they hear about a job that got pulled and of course your brothers had been planning something just like that and now they can't do anything because it'll arouse suspicion and there's a lot of tension. maybe one of your brothers is friends with deran or craig or something and so they're around even though your families don't like each other. used to be that when you were younger things were better and you've even been to their house during one of their big parties, celebrating something you don't really know anything about it. your family is invited because smurf wants to rub it in or something but things weren't that bad yet so you went and maybe that's when you first met andrew?? sitting quietly inside with him, people watching and then maybe you start talking about how you don't like parties but your brothers do and the conversation kinda goes on from there because he agrees with you. and though you don't know much about him besides that he's the quiet, weird one—words from your brother's mouth, ones that you really find yourself disagreeing with the more you talk to him on the couch—you guys get along just fine. he doesn't drink and neither do you, though he gets you a soda and you smile at him and tell him thank you very politely and he kind of never forgets about it. you two run into each other occasionally, and though you've never been brave enough to ask him if he wants to go on a date or a walk or whatever, there's something there, you think. fast forward a few years and you knew andrew went off to prison and your brothers had laughed about it but you had excused yourself to go cry in your room about it even though you didn't know him that well. maybe you wrote him a couple of letters because you felt bad. and of course all of this has to be done without anyone's knowledge because your brothers—even the one that's friends with deran—would kill you if they found out you were writing letters and harboring feelings for a cody brother. (especially the one they call the quiet, weird one, though they know what he's capable of and he's also the one they're the most scared of. not that you know much about any of that.) well i just think he'd get released and you don't have a ton of freedom but have enough to sneak away for a few hours after one of their ragers. but you'd get a text from a burner number asking you to come see him and you don't need to work that hard to figure out who it is. you spend a couple days elated that he even remembers you (as if he didn't read the letters you sent him a million times over three years.) and you go meet andrew and finally get that cup of coffee you should have gotten a few years ago. and the two of you do the dance, sneaking around and being worried about getting caught (andrew thinks you are very sweet for worrying about him if anyone finds out, because he knows you should be worried for your brothers, if anything.) and then i am thinking of the hell that breaks loose when everyone finds out