#and carry the failsafe

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

catra: why do you have to sacrifice yourself? it doesn't have to be you!

also catra, like 5 minutes earlier:

(don't forget who fostered this hero complex)

[sidesteppostinghours]

🟠+🟡 for an OC of your choice? c:

evening gabe :D! im answering both of these for ceci because shes been itching the back of my brain lately and i really wanna sort out her deal.

🟠 Orange- What is a trait your OC hides about themself from others? Do they refuse to acknowledge it or begrudgingly accept it?

shes calculating, apparently. i say "apparently" because its something i only discovered recently. its not something she actively hides, per se, its more that it just... doesnt come up? shes proactive, arrogant, and takes a lot of risks, so most people think shes gunning through life by the seat of her pants. thats really not the case, its just that she does her best thinking on the fly. as for how she feels about it, its sort of a "meh" thing to her. its useful, but she doesnt need to think her way out of problems– shes a fighterstep, after all. shes good enough to get out of anything if she really wants to.

🟡 Yellow- What is something your OC wants but knows they can never have? How does it feel to never get this specific desire?

ho. hohoho. so like. recently cecilia went from an argent rival to a herald rival. couple that with the hunger scar and you know shes got Thoughts on this. shes not mad about not being able to Have anything, shes mad that she cant keep it. i guess the closest thing i could describe it with is stability. everything always seems to slip through her fingers no matter what she does. compare that to herald, the asshole, who gets to have everything he wants and more and doesnt even seem like he has to work for it. oh boo hoo, he has to bat his pretty little eyelashes for the cameras once in a while, ok???? do you want a hankie for your heroic sacrifice. she is. Bitter about this. she does try to give herself some stability, or failproofs, where possible. its a little hard to tell since she wreaks so much havoc, but to her that havoc is peace, the smallest bit of power she can excercise with her situation being what it is.

questions from here!

[mumblesplash]

part 2!!!! [read part one here]

transcript below the cut arranged into stanzas to help show where the rhymes are:

“that’s why they brought gem in? as a failsafe?” as a pawn. we were told to point her at whoever we need gone

“gem won’t hurt her allies. …yet.” the curse she carries will it’s had its eye on her since she lost the other eye she was specially selected for her hunting skill it’s quite the high honor. “wow. how generous.” we try

think about it: why does almost no one fight the curse? “given how fast scott killed skizz last season, i can guess.” [“any pain you spare your friends, you’ll have to suffer worse”?] it’s designed to shut down higher reasoning with stress

[mollysunder]

You know as funny as it was to see Ekko give Jayce a hard time about the hexgates's failsafe being built into Zaun, it was a bit jarring for Heimerdinger to be there and Ekko not say anything to him. Yes, Jayce built the hexgates, but Heimerdinger made it clear that he would oversee and advise on all developments. This design was approved by him, and Ekko has nothing to say?

I can see an argument be made that Ekko's more critical of Jayce because Jayce is still on the Council, but Heimerdinger was still there for the construction. Jayce is also leaving the council, he hasn't been to any of the recent war council meetings, he's practically in the same position politically as Heimerdinger. Yet Ekko's ire is reserved for Jayce.

Slightly unrelated, but the reveal also implies that Viktor knew about this as well, and was a part of it. Maybe any concerns Viktor voiced carried little weight because he was a Zaunite, but that implies Heimerdinger didn't take zviktor seriously. And that also means Viktor didn't warn any communities in Zaun that might be affected, since the failsafe connected to air and water filtration.

[mayasaura]

You know that story with like, Evil Chancellor Traytor, who carried a poisoned dagger called Kingslayer, and went around cackling and being the textbook evil advisor? And in the end, it turned out the dagger had been entrusted to him as a failsafe against corruption, and all his muttering and scheming had been about expanding handicap accessibile low-income housing or whatever?

That's Kabru. Manipulative, controlling, with the training of an assassin, ruthlessly persuing his own agenda, which turns out to be .... to save as many lives as possible from the coming catastrophe. He spends half the story sounding like a power-hungry narcissist with good spin, but no. Turns out his "for the public good" bit was entirely sincere. It's a fucking delight. Top ten plot twists straight from a children's action figure political drama

[lundenloves]

{✧} 500 wc | no warnings

taglist | masterlist | dad!simon masterlist | request info

Simon Riley who swore to never have kids, then was surrounded by three. Two oldest fighting and waking up the baby in his arms, earning a wild cry and two sheepish apologies. 

Simon Riley who was unable to bond with his children, not until after they had approached him for their missed love. An unsure hand pushed hair from their faces and a kiss to their temples, soft touch forever being a weakness. 

Simon Riley who had to leave for deployment and his youngest couldn’t understand just why he was leaving. She cried and whined, stuck to his camo clad leg at the door. “Dad has to go.” Was his attempt at consolation, picking her up and pressing his forehead to hers. “I’ll be back lovie, before you know it.” He couldn’t stop his leg from anxiously bouncing for a week after that. 

Simon Riley who secretly hoped to never make it back home after the scarring of previous deployments. He’d hoped to be shot square in the chest, with no chance of resuscitation. Because sometimes, just sometimes, the weight of his own emotional burden was too much to carry. 

Simon Riley who often dreaded coming home and having to take off the mask. The riddance of his failsafe ‘Ghost’ was like having the sheet pulled, entirely accountable for his actions (or lack thereof) and it was hard to hack. 

Simon Riley who couldn’t speak to his family for a day after being home. The urge to isolate so overcoming that he would either leave the house entirely or lie in bed for days. ‘Dad isn’t well’ was what the kids were told nearly every time, until they were old enough to see through it. 

Simon Riley whose jaw tightened at his daughter's fluoxetine on the counter. A mental spiral he had sent himself down, assuming it was entirely his fault she had been prescribed such medicine with his failings as a father. 

Simon Riley who was called upstairs to deal with spiders and such. Picking them up and taking them outside with ease, providing the largest amount of relief to his kids that he never did quite understand although reveled in. 

Simon Riley who had formed a bond with his middle child by collecting a note of cash from whichever country his deployment saw him in. She had hit most middle eastern countries, all strung up on a pinboard above her desk with a skull sticker beside. It was one of the few times a genuine smile stretched his balaclava, tucking the note gently into his tac vest with practice. 

Simon Riley who would never admit it but felt a pang in his chest on the night of his eldest daughter's first breakup. The faint stubble on his cheek dashed with few grey hairs, skin scarred, back sore and giving unwanted but secretly appreciated advice. 

this wasn’t supposed to be depressing but i know nothing else apparently. it’s bittersweet. leave me alone. it’s unedited and chucked out, sigh.

simon ‘ghost’ riley taglist: @vamppxncess @crowbird @misshoneypaper @tallrock35 @fluffmonster @islanderr @blueoorchid @lea3773 @coldflapjack @rayhawk05 @han11dh @liishook @melovetitties @fallonx @rvjaa @fuckmelifesucks @bhayatsara @takeomisbitch @local-spidey @konigsblog @penutjuice @babychoi03 @sheluvzeren @sparklingtragedy @maviee @wiserebelpartypie @daddylorianisastateofmind @bhayatsara @mistydeyes @writingmysanity @johfaam0 @idkjoequinn @gressseyy @fwibblefwobble @shibble @maladaptivedaydreamingbum @airghostlyfox @hotgirlsshareaccounts @simpxinnie @dilfdotgov

as always, comments are reblogs are hugely appreciated! i’ll sit in a hole if no one pats me on the head every now and then.

[molinaskies]

Shadow must be very conflicted about his feelings for Gerald Robotnik.

On the one hand, Shadow Gens made it abundantly clear that Shadow cares for him deeply. I feel like a lot of iterations of this story focus on Shadow’s love for Maria, but this time we get to see that for Gerald as well, which is nice. Gerald gave Shadow life and compassion. Shadow also evidently respects his knowledge, intellect, and authority.

On the other hand, Gerald (in a grief-induced rage) manipulated Shadow’s mind to carry out his revenge plan, corrupting his autonomy and (technically unknowingly) denying Maria her wish. Gerald also created the Biolizard, a being Shadow regards the existence of as very, very cruel, and kept it around long enough to use it for his final plan as a last resort failsafe. Not to mention the Black Arms, as a concept.

I think this is part of why Shadow was so attached to them in Shadow Gens. It wasn’t just Gerald, the man the world came to know as a monster. It was Gerald, the keen and benevolent, if somewhat misguided, scientist. It was a chance for Shadow to relive and reassess Gerald in a light untainted by his future mistakes.

And that was probably very therapeutic for him.

[gffa]

JESUS CHRIST, THIS IS THE OPENING ISSUE OF FAILSAFE, like how the hell am I going to survive a storyline that starts out with Tim getting shot in the neck, a terrified Bruce carrying him to the hospital, all while thinking of how he's had to do this before with Jason, how in his worst moment he still had to think of the damned mission, that Tim asked him to do this, another son getting hurt on this mission of theirs, another son throwing himself headlong into a life that Bruce no longer believes can ever allow for happiness, that he truly believes he's damned because of it, that he doesn't want that for his kids, but Tim is bleeding out in the Batmobile and still demands that Bruce not give away their identities, and Bruce can't help thinking of Jason, of how he did die that night, that the world lost a hero and didn't even know it, now it might lose another one--Bruce might lose another one, another hero, another brilliant light in the world, another son--that he has to pull the Robin costume off another of his children, not knowing if he's going to be in time to save this one or if Tim will die tonight, too, all while reliving the night his second son died. Christ alive, this is rough.

[easy-there-leftovers]

I See You, Darling (4)

[Astarion x reader] A little longer than usual, I hope that’s fine for all of you :,DDD I didn't want to cram too much into the post though, so the segment at the end might be continued in full detail, or maybe not! Let's see.|Word count: 2.9k.|

Content Warnings: Mentions of cooking, handling knives, blood, allusions to sex, a few ooc characters, reader being a dumbass and wahtnot.

Part 3 here!!

Masterlist here!!

A party is being held at the camp in the heroes’ honor, which greets you with a lively crowd that you’ll hopefully meet again soon. And with a gathering this large, you’re bound to garner attention. But with a constitution as poor as yours from the night before, a round of drinks is the last thing you want. 

Alternatively: A bloodless human tries to balance respectfully participating in a drinking party, while also not drinking at all. 

————━─━────༺༻────━─━————

The sun rises, the warmth of its rays gently waking you in the absence of the campfire’s flames. The soft chirping of the birds greet you a good morning as your eyes slowly open, ready to greet the day as a new opportunity arises.

Is what would have happened in a more idyllic scenario. Instead, you bolt awake with a pounding headache, worse than any hangover could possibly feel like, and quickly rush to get up. By the sheer brightness of the light that burns your newly opened corneas, it is far later than when you usually wake. And breakfast still hasn’t been made. 

“Well, good morning sleepy head.” One of your companions, Gale, says as he fixes his belongings. Readying himself for the skirmish that was about to take hold later on in the day.

“I’m very  sorry for waking up late. It won’t happen again.” You bow your head low for a moment before he waves you off.

“Oh come now, we all have our off days. Besides, I think the rest would agree with me when I say what you made for us last night was more than enough to last us ‘til morning.” His statement is punctuated by the lively sounds of the others training. Ready and well rested for whatever may come.

You look around. None have seemed to mind your temporary absence, so you endeavor to double check with everyone leaving and ensure that they had a sound strategy with the necessary materials and weapons should there be a need for failsafes. You remind them of certain notes that some of them have informed you about but failed to share with the rest of the group. 

‘While goblins typically go down faster than other opponents, they have no sense of honor nor pride which gives way for them the opportunity to use more underhanded tactics. But they also aren’t very bright, so you can convince the others to let them infiltrate the camp and eradicate them from the inside out.’

As the rest disperse, finalize their plans and check their supplies, your favorite character approaches you much like he usually does every morning. Only this time, you see that he looks very pleased. A more vibrant spark in his eyes as he opens his mouth to speak.

“Thank goodness you’ve finally woken up.” He looks at you, in the same way an old friend of yours would when they’re seconds away from telling a joke. 

The look fades soon enough though as he breathes out. You wonder if it’s because the joke isn't funny anymore, or if he never had a punchline to begin with.

“You looked a little ill last night, but you’ve certainly recovered.” Recovered isn’t the word you would use to describe your current state of feeling almost half dead, but you don’t bother correcting the details.

“And you look particularly vibrant today, Astarion.” The itch of your neck intensifies as you return a pointed look at him as he frowns.

“Oh, of course! Now, don’t be so upset. I will admit that I got a little carried away, I apologize.” He pauses. The frown remains on his face for a while before it is erased with his usual expression of confidence. 

“But let’s not fall out over this.” He moves to stand closer to you, taking your hand to his as he nears it to his lips as he continues. 

“We need each other.” 

And whether its done purposefully or not, you see his fangs peek out from his mouth and a shiver courses through your body.

You slip your hand out of his own in a panic and interject. 

“I know that much already, and I trust you not to let what happened last night happen again. I also apologize for not noticing sooner and dealing with the situation better.” You hold your head down a bit to apologize but quickly meet his gaze gain. “But I do need to know what we’ll have to feed you from now on.”

The look of confusion, and perhaps even shock that was once swimming in his eyes dissipates before you can notice them when he swears upon his resolve. “No innocents, you have my word. After all, you know what I am now. I can fight with all my weapons–” He grins, allowing you a clearer view than what you had earlier. “Teeth included.”

“And if I happen to drain the occasional bandit during a fight, what's the harm? They’re just as dead.” He makes a very compelling argument, at least to your standards.

You sigh, satisfied for now. You’re confident that none of your party members would end up at the mercy of his fangs, and you’re more than sure they would be able to overpower him more than your attempts did. But the same sentiment cannot be shared for possibly important, plot driving, characters that you might meet later on.

So you propose something to strengthen your trust that the unlikely will stay the unlikely.

“Look, I’m–” You breathe in, almost as if you're trying to suck back whatever courage washed over you back in as you steeled yourself for what you were about to say next.

“I’m not against you feeding from me, but!” You punctuate the last syllable as you see his grin growing wider. “We need to discuss things beforehand. No prowling over me while waiting for me to wake up or to sink your teeth into.”

The proposal greatly delights him, as is evident in his response. “Of course! That sounds eminently reasonable. I shall wait patiently until you suggest we… dine together. But until then: no more late-night surprises. You have my word on that.” 

After that, he makes a joke about feeling ‘peckish already,’ and quickly gathers the rest of the party to leave on their adventure.

You promise them a feast when they came back as the victors that they are. What you forgot, after what felt like weeks in the real world, was the crowd that would come filtering in to celebrate their heroes’ achievements as well.

————————————

When you saw the tieflings from the grove traveling alongside your companions, you knew they had come to celebrate. And you blanched at the thought of the provisions they’d be seeking to pair with their drinking. It’s been so long since you went through this event, and you no longer recall if they even ate anything during the party.

You look at your bubbling cauldron–– a bigger one as you had anticipated a few acquaintances accompanying them–– but you wager that at least a little extra things to nibble on won’t hurt to have. You still have quite the amount of camp supplies in the trunk, but you keep it reserved for the camp’s use only. So you smile at your returning comrades and alert the others that stayed behind for your reason to leave and that they can begin eating dinner. 

While others told you it wasn’t necessary, the rest just nodded with a smile and yelled that they’d wait for you to return. You return quite too quickly though, all the while informing them why you’re keeping the communal chest in your tent as you spy the child that tried to steal and swindle the group a few days prior approaching with the rest.

They have a laugh and you quickly proceed with your plan to find at least a few consumable berries and nuts or seeds to accompany the drinks later on. 

But foraging for said consumables near dark is a choice not for the faint-hearted. You came to realize this when you heard the low grumble of a large animal, thankfully far from your form. You turn to look behind you, taking great care to do so as slowly as possible so as to not alert the mysterious creature.

In the clearing, you spot a rather dark looking bear and you feel a cold sweat begin to form on your temple. Hands, growing wet in the dangerous situation you’ve placed yourself in. This wasn’t the same as being drained to death by a vampire, that, you could at least reason with. But a wild animal? With your lack of magical prowess and lesser knowledge of connecting with nature and the wild, you would be finished if it were to follow you.

The small pouch of nuts and wild berries stayed holstered on your waist, but the bear’s eyes that were previously low on the ground are now trained on you. Almost as if it were caught doing something it wasn’t supposed to be. 

You freeze. You forgot what the basic policy was around brown or black bears and therefore couldn’t do much about your current predicament. There shouldn’t be a bear around this area, not unless they had traveled from far away, or that this bear was one of your future companions.

And while the latter isn’t impossible, you most certainly did not want to gamble your life on a possibility. So you tried to compose yourself, returned the gaze of the bear with a shaky and careful nod, and turned back to return to camp. Figuring that the amount of tidbits you gathered would have to suffice.

 When you return, the company you shared seems to be in high spirits. Some more than others. But conversation was plentiful and you smiled as the tieflings cheered for your comrades. You quickly got to work and began to chop the nuts into thinner pieces. Something you learned to make the appearance of something look more abundant than it really is.

While you were chopping away unfortunately, you nick your finger along the way and silently curse. Unfortunate, but not an unforeseeable outcome given the booming drums of the bard that plays oh so nicely with your bloodless state. You quickly, but neatly, arrange the provisions on two small platters, and position them near the larger gatherings. 

“Flitting around like a hummingbird as always, I see.” A familiar, but not immediately recognizable voice greets you as you pass them. You turn and you see an unexpected acquaintance with a bottle in their hand and an incredibly charming grin.

“Dammon! How lucky of me to run into you.” You genuinely were elated to see him. You didn’t see much of him later on in the game, and being able to interact with him beyond the opportunities given to you was certainly nice.

“I could say the same. Though you’re as lively as you usually are.” There’s no malice in his tone, only an innocent observation, yet you feel embarrassed to have been seen scuttling about like a bug.

“I– promise I’m more organized. I just didn’t expect us to be having any guests.” He takes notice of how you push your fingers into your palms repetitively, a small action that soothes you.

“I think you’ve done more than a fine job already. The celebration is for you all, and it was us who planned to come and might’ve put your friends on the spot.” He later takes notice of the cut on your finger as well.

“Speaking of,” He gingerly grasps your hand, looking to you for permission, but you’re too confused to respond with anything he can understand. “Shouldn’t you be taking it easy for the night? You’ve done enough. And if what happened at the grove tells me anything about you, I’m sure they’ll survive even if you settle. Just for a bit.” 

He leads you nearer to the water and produces a small washcloth to clean a bit of your finger as you respond. “The grove? They did that on their own. I just um, take notes.” You sit on a fallen tree, your head still fuzzy, as you observe his crouched form. Inspecting the cut as he cleans it. 

A curious interaction. Not one that you’d expect from an non-romanceable NPC, but an interesting one nonetheless. And it would seem that someone had found it equally as interesting, if the way he scrutinizes you had anything to do about it.

He chuckles in turn. “If modesty is how you like to live, then I won’t impose.” He smiles and gets up as you continue your conversation. You don’t recall if the tiefling has ever had this much screen time, but his voice is rather lovely so you don’t complain about it.

You end up discussing quite a bit, but you focus on what can be done about your party. Specifically Karlach as you worry for the future and you’d like to have answers for her when he isn’t around during your journey. He doesn’t have much idea of what else can be done, but he does mention that he should have something by the time you meet him again in Baldur’s Gate.

You do remember that you might meet him a lot sooner, but you don’t mention it explicitly. You do, however, advise him to be extra careful around the oxen as they can be rather unpredictable this time of year.

As you continue, you notice his eyes flit up every now and then. Like something was catching his attention ever so often. You ask him about it and he actually laughs at your genuine inquiry. “It looks like I was wrong. Your friend there looks like he’d like his turn for your company.”

You turn around and you don’t immediately eye anyone looking in your direction. You were never the subtle type, so you looked around, blatantly searching for someone. It was a bit odd to see.

Your eyes do eventually train on his, but he doesn’t necessarily look like he wants to talk to you. Sure, he’s scowling away, though that’s not out of the ordinary at all. Besides, he has a bottle of something that you hope is helping him relax.

Still, perhaps Dammon saw something you didn’t so you politely thank him for his company and excuse yourself.

You greet the others that regard you as you walk past them. Declining the offers to drink and excusing yourself politely when you were asked to stay a bit. 

As you approach him, a tiefling tries to strike up a conversation with him. With a bored look, he dismisses them and turns to look at you. He takes a sip, sneers, and begins his rant now that you’re situated in front of him.

“I hate it. This is awful.” 

“The…wine?” He looks at you as if he should be mad, but a hint of amusement surfaces past the expression anyway. 

“There’s that, but I’m talking about the tieflings. We killed some goblins to save the others. The tally of lives didn’t change much. But what do I get for my hard work? A pat on the head, and vinegar for wine.” He looks down the neck of the bottle, swirling its contents before handing it out for you to take.

You look at the bottle, then him, warily. Modern alcohol is already a wonder to you, and this medieval mead could only do so much worse. Still, you take the bottle, and take a very small sip.

It’s a heavy, rich, red. Dry and sharp. You make a small sound of shock as you keep the liquid in your mouth. Offering him an awkward smile and a nod as you do.

“Ugh, see what I mean? Awful.” 

“All I want is a little fun. Is that so much to ask?” You would think that after an entire day of fighting whatever was out there he’d be tired. Apparently not. 

You sigh, ready to reprimand him and that he should just enjoy the night, but you stop when you feel his unburdened hand reach out to you. Eyes, boring into your own as he propositions you.

You’re here. Face in the grasp of a character you’ve longed to romance with what little time you’ve had away from your scholarly pursuits. Yet meeting him in strange, yet not all too unfamiliar, territory stirs uncertainty within you. Because while he doesn't have a knife at your throat like he did when your character first met him, it certainly does evoke the same sentiment.

‘To, “make me his”, is that right?’ While the idea is tempting, that statement alone can have various interpretations. And you didn’t want to hedge your bets on the one that made your heart race for all the wrong reasons.

Thankfully, he releases his hold on your visage. Only the gods know how much his touch alone can influence you, and you struggle to stand upright.

“I’m– very,-- truly, sorry, but don’t you think you have the wrong person? I mean,” You gesture to yourself with both hands, a cut visible from the labor in the few hours prior to the large festivities going on.. “Uh…in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly in a position to make any um, lucrative offers.” 

 He looks at you, a familiar expression graces his face. He leans his weight on one leg, and you struggle to recognize what his body language is conveying. This is one of those instances you wished you had the dice roll mechanic of the game at your disposal. 

“Why, that hardly matters, darling. What matters is that you’re here.” He takes a sip from his bottle, the very same that he allowed you to partake from moments prior. Only this time, without the sneer at the aftertaste as he continues.

“But then again, what’s a sinner to do when faced with the very embodiment of chastity?” A smile graces his face, but it’s one that is all too perfect. As if he’s rehearsed the same song and dance enough to save him lifetimes.

“Let’s wait until things quieten down. Once the others are asleep we’ll find each other.” 

You have no idea what to expect. Well, you do, but you’re not very sure if this is necessary. You’ll just have to find a way to continue the story without having to go through with this. For now, at least. 

“We’ll see about that, Astarion.” 

————━─━────༺༻────━─━————

Thank you to @rey26, @shyminnie07, @lynnloveshobi, @iggee-rose, @automnepoet, @tiannamortis, @aoirohi, @sarkara211, @jane-3043, @h3110-dar1in9, @h3ll0k1ttyl0ver333, @mimziethealien, @squichymochi, @sharabay, @furblrwurblr, @dork-of-the-universe, @thedevilssinner, @fuckalrighty, @queenofthespacesquids, @perseny, @goldenplutus, @h4nluv, @awkward-d3rs3-dr3amer, @auszimbo, @maruichio, @iamsexytrash, @craig-mywifeisdead-boone, @grimissleepy, @fandomsfanman, @bitchyzombienacho, @r1kk, @ancuninstar, @izuoyarmin, @gracemisconduct, @kiinokochii, @marina-and-the-memes, and @life-is-hard-m8 for asking to be tagged!!

[fishsinsareacknowledged]

hellooo!! i just firstly wanted to say i have binged every nikto post you've written and enjoyed them very much. you write that feral dog man very well.

i do have a self indulgent prompt idea that i'd love to see if it appeals to ya! what might a relationship with nikto look like if the reader was a chronically ill person? specifically if they often had dizzy of fainting spells/ joint pain?

Thanks for reading through all my bullshit bae, appreciated really. I'm very easy to amuse so i read every single one of my asks as long as it doesn't look like a bot especially the spam ones. I see you. I know. Ill write another someday.

Anyways Nikto with a chronically ill SO would be honestly better for him in the first stage of the relationship. Getting to know each other, and when he sees how weak you are he's going to relax. Mostly cause then he believes that you are of no threat to him, even moreso when he finds some hospital records of you when he was snooping.

Later stages of the relationship when he actually starts to care about you is when he starts getting worried and actually taking action. Oh you need to grab something from the top of the shelf. No. Just no. He's getting that for you, so sit the fuck down.

Oh you want to take a long shower but you're scared you're going to fall because you have random fainting spells? Yeah he's joining you and watching your every move. Grabbing you by the sides of your chest and pulling you against him, making you lean on him at the first signs of any weakness.

"Better?", he asks after you start to get back on your feet. Or at least trying to.

"Worse", and he's just going to rinse you with water, making sure youre atleast somewhat clean and carrying you back to bed.

"A bit", and he's going to very carefully. Very reluctantly, set you back down. Hands hovering over the sides of your chest as a precaution before letting go of you and finishing up the shower.

A simple "Mhm", and he's just going to hold you there for a few more. Slowly and lightly patting your back as his hand goes higher, gently running through your hair and massaging your scalp.

You know you've got to get out of the shower someday but ah. He'll wait for you, even if his fingers get pruney from the water.

A hand grabbing your elbow as you get out of the shower. A simple reflex by now, almost an instinct to hold you from anything anywhere. A simple measure to make sure you don't fall.

If you have joint pain hes probably going to make you exercise lightly. Mostly there just to accompany him but also look, theres a new machine, do you want to try lyubov'?

Supportive bf nikto who just holds up a thumbs up whenever you do something right is real TO ME OKAY.

Some light walks with him and he's going to hold your arm the whole way through, making sure you're not even an inch from him throughout. Though his now clingy habits backfire on him the first time he gets back on missions after meeting you, finding the loss of presence almost infuriating.

And the first thing he does when hes back is do it all over again. Just a failsafe he says. And is somehow even more clingy, holding you especially when you stand up after a long time of lying around with him.

××××××××××××××××××××××x x××××××××××××××××××××××

Masterlist

[spectral-snippets-and-drabbles]

Lazarus Pact AU

In the last moments of his reign, King of the Inifinite Realms attacked the victor and fled to the mortal plane to prevent the Tyrant known as Pariah Dark from absorbing his core and stealing his powers for himself. Those who couldn't challenge the new king's rule and wanted nothing to do with the barbaric monarch followed soon after.

Notably, the seemingly countless elite warriors who were revered for their expertise at ectoplasmic manipulation who joined the Former King throughout his eons-long time as ruler of the Realms.

However, in an environment with very little to no ambient ectoplasm, they had to use their energy reserves sparingly until they found a new home. The journey nearly resulted in them nearly fading from existence in the void of space, but they had found salvation in the form of beings called 'Guardians' who held similar beliefs to the monarch himself.

So, a pact was made, and conditions had to be met. The most important were the following:

~•~ ~•~ ~•~

1) The Warriors of the Infinite Realms would house themselves in artifacts that were virtually indestructible to any form of harm to keep them safe.

The Guardians would create power rings to keep them safe.

2) Ectoplasm was essential for beings of the Realms. Without it is to perish, so an energy would be needed to replenish their cores.

The Guardians got to work and made ectoplasmic generators that could revitalize a warrior's energy within a matter of seconds to carry on in their duties. These devices were to be called Lanterns.

3) A stealth team would be made to keep an eye on the happenings within the Inifinite Realms, specifically the young king Dark, and reported to the former king.

The Guardians established an elite team of Green Lanterns composed of their best members. These mission reports would be classified and kept secret from the Corps at large for the former king's eyes only.

4) Should Pariah Dark lose his crown, they would be informed by the former king. Should the new monarch be a just soul, the Green Lanterns are to protect this being with their lives and come to his aid in his hour of need.

Failure to do so will result in the forced disbanding of the Green Lanterns Corps via the destruction of the his own core. The Guardians, despite their scientific prowess and failsafes, could not hope to stop this event if it came to pass.

Upon hearing this, the Guardians would anxiously make their weekly scouting parties turn daily and scour the Realms for trouble.

5) From that day onward, the former king would no longer be addressed with his old title. A new one would be made.

The Guardians would address the entity as Ion, the Being of Willpower.

~•~ ~•~ ~•~

When Ion booms across all power rings that the new king is in need of immediate assistance, the Guardians send every available Lantern to intercept the threat.

The question being...who is it?

[avayarising]

Dick in the Murder Machine

(Part of the Batfam Death Project)

Forever Evil 6–7, 2014

In Forever Evil, the main universe was invaded by the Crime Syndicate: Earth-3 villains who are counterparts of Earth-0 heroes. They captured Nightwing and exposed his identity as Dick Grayson on live TV, then kept him captive at the behest of Owlman (Earth-3 Thomas Wayne Jr, in his universe the elder brother of a dead Bruce Wayne), who seemed to be feeling parental/avuncular urges, although The Outsider (Earth-3 Alfred) kept reminding him that Dick was not his own Richard.

Grid, Cyborg’s Earth-3 counterpart, put Dick in an inescapable ‘murder machine’ with a bomb connected to his heart, such that it would only be disabled if Dick’s heart stopped. Grid apparently built the machine from Apokoliptian blueprints he found in S.T.A.R. Labs.

You’d think that this whole arrangement was a trolley problem aimed specifically at Batman, but in fact it seems to have been an actual accident. It looks like Grid intended only to hold Dick securely: Grid didn’t much care if Dick died, but he was following Owlman’s instructions to keep him alive along with Ultraman’s (evil Superman’s) instructions to keep him secure. But when Batman and allies (including Catwoman, Bizarro, and Lex Luthor) invaded in search of Dick, a failsafe was triggered on the device and the bomb started counting down on a five-minute timer.

The only way to disarm the bomb was to kill Dick.

And you’d expect Bruce to come up with the temporary death plan. But Dick’s death is apparently something Bruce can’t handle, and he just kept trying to unplug him. No planning, no solution, just desperation. Being Apokoliptian technology it was semi-sentient and kept working around his attempts.

So Lex Luthor attacked Bruce, with Bizarro holding Bruce off for long enough for Lex to force Dick to swallow a pill to stop his heart. Which, pills and the digestive system being what they are, shouldn’t have worked or at least not worked that quickly, but comics I guess.

(I think Dick could have held the pill under his tongue instead of swallowing it if he’d wanted to, so it’s possible that Dick deliberately swallowed the pill. But his eyes here show pure panic, not acceptance of death.)

Bruce of course attacks Lex and starts beating him up, threatening to kill him, till Lex says he can bring Dick back, whereupon Bruce allows Lex to proceed:

And it works, and Dick is brought back to life, and the bomb doesn’t go off. Good thing Lex Luthor routinely carries around both cardioplegia pills and adrenaline shots!

(Does he often need to temporarily kill people?)

Bonus: here’s Dick making light of his trauma:

Batfam Death Project Masterpost

[qiu-yan]

tbh i feel like i don't understand jiggy very well but here is my reasoning nonetheless:

i see jiggy as someone who wants to be a hero; or rather, someone who wanted to be a hero, before society destroyed his dreams and he was forced to dirty his hands. he had legitimate wishes to improve society and a vision for what society should look like. but jiggy has also spent his entire life getting dunked on by others for being the son of a prostitute. no one ever saw beyond his circumstances.

until lan xichen and nie mingjue, the first people to genuinely believe in him and give him a chance. both also people who are (or appear to be) morally righteous.

that must have meant the world to jiggy. the confirmation, from two deeply admired and socially respected people, that he too--even him the son of a prostitute, him who the rest of society disdained--could be a hero.

jiggy wants to be a hero! jiggy wants to help people!

(wanted? rip)

jiggy saved lan xichen when the latter was on the run from the wen, and jiggy also saved qin su. and both people come to admire him and stand by his side as a result.

personally, i also see jiggy and nie mingjue's falling-out as being based in this. the reason why jiggy kept nie mingjue's head in his secret room wasn't just as a failsafe, but rather because jiggy also carried a grudge.

because through his repudiation of jiggy's reasoning and excuses for his actions, through his refusal to accept that jiggy "had no choice," nie mingjue says (in jiggy's view):

"i take back the dignity i gave you before. you in fact cannot be a hero."

"the fact that you are unable to resolve this situation without causing some moral violation is proof that this path was never open for you. such is intrinsic to your nature. such cannot be separated from your very existence. from the very beginning, there was never any place for you here."

this is not what nie mingjue said, but i think it’s what jin guangyao heard.

[celestetcetera-art]

more jekyll & hyde alien drawings :)

assorted lore dump below the cut:

Jekylls and Hydes adapted their split forms to fill two important evolutionary niches: community, and survival. Jekylls intentionally have duller, safer appearances, and exist to signal friendliness and create social bonds. Hydes, on the other hand, have weapons built into every aspect of their form, and are adapted for fighting, fleeing, and thriving.

Hydes are shorter because some of their mass goes to creating their wings and tail. As they transform and lose height, this also splits their horns apart.

They do not have a concept of gender, instead assigning pronouns to form in their native languages (usually). 

They do, however, have a subsection of the species that can carry children (~25%) and a subsection that can contribute genetic data to the childbearer (~75%).

Multiple parents can contribute DNA to any given childbearer, similar to earthen cats, except the DNA is considered for the same child instead of a litter.

They also have no concept of sexuality. Individuals may show a preference for pairing with members of the species that can or cannot give birth, but it’s fairly rare.

Their birthing process is pretty similar to humans, with only a single child (usually) incubated within a parent’s womb for a while. There is a failsafe membrane around said womb during pregnancy that ensures form switching is not hard on the fetus.

Jekylls and Hydes do not usually form monogamous partnerships the way humans do. Jekylls, especially those who have birthed children, will usually form a small group of respectable friends who will all help parent the child. Hydes, or at least those who indulge in them enough, may find sexual partners whom they repeatedly meet up with over other, random encounters.

A child is always born in their Jekyll form, developing their Hyde form only in adolescence (human age equivalent of 10-12). Their horns begin growing in around early adolescence. They begin as two harmless nubs that over time, fuse into the full halo. The moment their halo forms coincides with the development of their Hyde side, and only when individuals transform for the first time does their horns sharpen from splitting apart. 

This milestone in one’s life is colloquially referred to as their "split."

Younger members of the species are the least adept at controlling the transformations, as they are often emotion triggered. It takes quite a few years (essentially, after an individual has gone through puberty) for one to fully control it.

Despite not technically being connected to morality, Jekylls are often viewed as the more respectable, civilized side, and Hydes as the evil, animalistic side. Much of society considers swapping into Hyde form an indulgence, if not an outright sin.

Groups of Jekylls will even react in disgust to another’s Hyde, despite all having one themselves.

Part of the reason Jekylls are seen as such is because they are sort of the “default” form of the species, with their Hyde forms only becoming prominent in adolescence (despite the emotions associated with their Hyde mentalities existing within them from birth).

Counterculture that takes pride in embracing their Hyde side exists as well, and you can find Hyde specific bars and clubs in the slummier parts of town.

Particularly for social events, Jekylls will wear elegant gloves, and it's considered impolite or inconsiderate for them to not. This is because the transformation into their Hyde will rip through the gloves as their hands are bigger and clawed, so wearing gloves signals a Jekyll’s intention to remain in their more social form.

One can easily identify whether an individual is currently a Hyde or a Jekyll, due to their vastly different appearances, but it is incredibly hard to connect an individual Jekyll to their Hyde, or vice-versa. This has given Hydes a sense of anonymity that they often choose to abuse.

It is common for Hydes to use pseudonyms while in their form, taking advantage of the anonymity.

If a transformation is to be forced, there is a transformation "potion" that can be administered to an individual to trigger a transformation between forms chemically. These are used in court cases, to treat medical conditions, as a black market drug, or, in extreme scenarios, as a form of torture.

Their bodies will almost always transform into Hyde upon death. This is because of the adrenaline spike and survival instinct that is triggered when dying. Because of this, most funeral rites involve burning the bodies or at the very least covering them up.

[violent138]

As Tim is arguably the top contender for the Robin with the most insane activities, it makes complete sense that the universe built in the most failsafes to take him down: I HC that he gets sick a lot on account of his spleen and sleep habits, he's motion sick, has multiple allergies which is why many Titans from his era still carry an epi pen around, he's an enemy magnet, he's got broken bones that were never the same, and mental health that's hanging on by a thread.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

[moonbaby26]

One Piece stans! Please assist. 😭 I’m recently learning that there is a disagreement in the community (or at least in one very large facebook group that I’m in) on how vivre cards actually function. As far as if you have a piece of someone else’s vivre card, if it only attracts to their remaining part of the paper that they’d assumedly still have to carry on them. Or if it will point to that person regardless if they have any of the donor piece of paper still with them or not.

99% of the people I saw answer in that group said it would always point to the person the card was made from, regardless if they kept any of the remaining paper with them. But then one gentleman posted this panel below referencing pieces being drawn to one another. And a couple other people agreed. Wiki also says it’s more about the paper pointing to itself.

The clarification of a vivre card’s limitations is important to me for DoffyxReader fic reasons, as we damn well know Doflamingo will apple air tag reader at very first opportunity to not lose track of her. But if this failsafe could be messed with at all (if reader’s portion of the paper was taken away by an enemy for example) I want to know. Because that would be way more fun. Thoughts?

*stalking intensifies*