#and is angus complaining? no he's having fun

[tartrazeen]

NO OKAY BUT ACTUALLY

I'm rewatching the show, and in the Warrior of Temra episode, they all get hit by Lugad's blast-things from his axe and Angus says, "Those thunderbolts pack a punch."

Now according to the toys, Liam was supposed have like... a bow, I guess? But those toys weren't totally accurate, and the bigger thing was that - again - Liam was supposed to be the Mystic Knight of Storm. And Rohan's sword transformed into a different sword, so maybe Lugad's battleaxe transforms into Liam's bow, BUT MOSTLY!!

Thunderbolts?? Storm?? Lugad?? Liam??

omg omg omg detective tartra crackin the case

Btw this actually worked. I am full-force rotating this around in my head. VARIETY ACHIEVED.

-

Edit like a month later: 😭 omg

Lugad was supposedly gonna be the Mystic Knight of LIGHT.

Liam was gonna be the Mystic Knight of STORM.

Which has LIGHTNING.

LIGHT.

LIGHTNING.

This is kindergarten calculus and I'm still at the bottom of the class 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Omggggg I am obseeeessed with this idea that Lugad's human-self might've been Liam 😭

That's the new spice to throw into this.

Look - I am TRAPPED with this in my head right now. It's been MONTHS. If my brain's gonna keep wildly ping-ponging between - like, two scenarios every hour of the day, I RESERVE THE RIGHT TO ADD A THIRD ONE FOR VARIETY.

So I'm gonna see if the hyperfixation extends to *this* idea if I ask my brain very nicely and actively tie it to one of the other two daydreams as a way of piggybacking it into the rotation 🫠 Segués, I guess.

YAY HUMAN LUGAD-NAMED-LIAM-MYSTIC-KNIGHT-OF-STORM/LIGHT? THAT'LL BE COOL TO FIGURE OUT AN ANSWER FOR YAAAAAAAAAY

Gonna tie it to that idea I had about Rohan trying to get Lugad and Angus to be friends 🤔 Maybe that'll work.

[anyarose011]

Too Late To Turn Back Now {Angus Tully x Reader}

Summary: A dislocated shoulder, an insult to end all men, a few lies, going out to eat, and an unwanted revelation about Angus Tully. What a perfect way to celebrate Christmas Eve-Eve.

Part 4 of ?? (Masterlist)

Warnings: Swearing, descriptions of arm injury, mentions of underage drinking, minor harassment, and discussion of cancer.

This was one of the more lighthearted and fun as hell chapters to write, so I hope you all enjoy it!

Word Count: 5.0k

Apparently, Angus Tully had gone on another adventure without you. One probably shouldn’t call it an adventure if he went to the chapel, and merely stared at the photo of your dead friend for hours on end.

“Do you think he was praying?” You asked Mary after she told you that while you were helping her make lunch.

“I think he’s just as religious as you.”

You scoffed. “He’d never become a priest.”

“You’d make a lousy nun.”

“I’d be a fun one.”

Once the four of you sat down to eat, your father tried to give you cookies you knew for a fact were given to you by Miss Crane. You also knew they were a week old at this point. Still, to spare your father’s feelings, you broke off a piece. You then put it in your mouth, nodding with a smile before bringing your napkin to your lips as if to clean them, when really you just spat the cookie into it.

Immediately, Angus asked to go to the bathroom, and you knew he wasn’t doing that, but you couldn’t blame him.

“I’m trying.” Your father shrugged, and all you and Mary could do was laugh.

You helped her was the dishes after that, and went back out to the dining hall, still seeing your dad sitting at the same table, alone.

“Everything alright?” You asked.

“Yes, just waiting on Mr. Tully.”

“You honestly can’t force him to learn today.” You scoffed, leaning against one of the chairs. “It’s Christmas Eve-Eve.”

“You always had lessons on Christmas Eve-Eve, and you didn’t complain.”

“I did.” You laughed, rolling your eyes. “Several times.”

He sighed. “I’ll let him out early by an hour; if you attend as well.”

“Never mind, let him rot.”

“I thought so.” He got up from his chair. “Where on God’s green earth is that boy?”

You watched him leave through the doors Angus took ten minutes ago, and as you were about to go into the kitchen to (lovingly) bother Mary some more, you heard shouting. Now of course, you were (and still are) a nosey bitch, so you had no choice but to also go through the doors leading out into the hallway. You heard Angus first.

“There’s nobody here, okay? Just us two losers, a grieving mom, and your-.”

His face and words fell once he saw you enter, and your father turned to see you standing in the doorframe, looking as if you wandered into something you shouldn’t have. Then, you threw on the attitude.

“What am I now?”

He looked away. “Nothing.”

“Oh, wow!” You began with fake enthusiasm.

“I didn’t mean-.”

“-No, no of course you didn’t.”

Your father stepped in. “That’s enough from the both of you. Mr. Tully, I can forgive you for using the phone without permission if-.”

“-If what?” He interrupted. “No, let’s cut the shit: You stay out of my way, and I stay out of yours.”

Of course, your father had detention slips in his back pocket, and of course he threw one up. “That’s a detention.”

Angus pushed past him, groaning and walking fast down the hall. You pursed your lips. “You really showed him.”

“Stuff it, Lady Macbeth.” He scolded, then called Angus. “You just earned yourself a detention, sir. Now, get back here!”

Angus looked back. “Being here with you is already one big fucking detention!”

“Son of a bitch, that’s another detention!”

In response, Angus knocked over a trash can, which caused your father to run like you’d never seen him run before. You should be ashamed that your first instinct was to laugh, but you weren’t and you still aren’t.

You should also have felt like a fool for deciding to run after them as if it were a game. Again, you didn’t feel like one then, and if you were to do it again as an old woman, you would in a heartbeat.

You saw as Angus tore off posters from the wall and would stop at corners just to taunt your father. Then, after running around more than half the school (you had no idea how much honestly, but it was enough for you), you stopped outside of the gym with the both of them. Even with Angus’s back turned, you knew he was contemplating the unthinkable.

“Don’t you even think about it, Mr. Tully.” Your father warned, panting from running. “You are a hair’s breadth from suspension. I’ll wash my hands of you, you hear me? Wash my hands.” Angus ignored him, stepping into the gym.

You followed your father as he kept going. “Stop right there, you know the gym is strictly off limits. This is your Rubicon. Do not cross the Rubicon.”

Angus took one look at the gym equipment, then back to the two of you. “Alea jacta est.”

He winked at you before springing towards the trampoline, bouncing off of it and over the balance beam. When his body landed with a hard ‘thud!’, you and your father were stricken with tense silence.

Which was then broken when an inhuman scream ripped from Angus’ throat.

Still, as your father looked on in horror, you said (being completely unbothered). “He’s faking it.”

When his screams didn’t subside, and you only heard them grow louder and he threw in more explicate language, your smile fell. It was when he got to his knees did you see how mangled his left arm looked, and you felt like you were going to throw up.

Angus Tully was one step ahead of you in that department, and that’s all we should say about that (not that he nearly puked on you; if anyone ever says that, they’re lying and should be shot on sight).

So, that was how, on the afternoon of Christmas Eve-Eve, you came to be standing outside of your father’s shitty 1964 Nova. You and Angus, who was crying while wearing half of his jacket, were shivering violently, waiting for your father to scrape off the car.

“Hurry up!” Both you and him would beg.

“I am hurrying!” Would be your father’s only response, and you saw his face grow redder every time either of you would yell.

Luckily, he managed to (somehow) scrape it all off and you three piled into the car. Even though you were going to anyway, you father insisted you sit in the front (more than likely because he knew you and Angus would probably try to kill each other in a high tense situation, and who would’ve figured he was right).

“I was on thin ice already.” Your father panicked at you as he stepped on the gas to the hospital. “If Woodrup finds out, the facts won’t matter, he’ll make it my fault.”

“It is your fault!” Angus cried from the back of the car, trying to hold his mangled arm up. “You were supposed to be looking after me!”

“I told you to stop!”

“You said you washed your hands of me!”

“No, I meant it metaphorically!”

“Of course you meant it metaphorically. What were you gonna do, actually go and wash your hands?!”

Your father turned back to the road. “Unbelievable. Unbelievable, I said I will wash my hands, never once did I say it in the present tense!”

“I don’t know, Pontius Pilate.” You shrugged. “This Jesus guy makes a good point.”

When he hissed your real name, you nearly shrank into your seat. “I don’t need any more of this from you. You were the one to tell me he was faking it anyway!”

“You said that?!” Angus yelled. “Jesus, I knew you hated all men.”

“Not true.” You turned around to look at him. “I would’ve said the exact same thing about a woman, especially if I heard her screaming from your room!”

Out of all the times you made a man cry and left him speechless, this one was and forever will be your favorite (obviously he was crying from his arm, but you liked to think your comment also did that). Your father scolded you for your foul mouth, but it was 100% worth it.

There you three sat in the emergency room, waiting for over an hour for a nurse to let you in, when your father started monologuing to himself.

“This is the end. They’ll inform the school, who will inform your parents, and then it’s curtains. You’re gonna get me fired; you.” He looked at Angus, then you. “I hope you like sleeping in the snow, Josephine.”

“I love it more than life itself.” You rolled your eyes.

Angus grumbled. “I’m the one about to lose an arm and all you can think about is yourself.”

“Hey, he was worried about me.” You pointed out.

He turned and glared at you, and you actually felt bad for the first time that day.

A nurse soon approached you, handing your father a clipboard and pen. “If you could just fill this out, please. Admissions and insurance.”

Your father, hesitantly, begins to fill it out. It sounded like a joke at first, having to sleep somewhere else, but honestly what were you going to do? You and your father lived in the faculty housing ever since-.

“-Excuse me?” Angus asked the nurse as she was walking away. “Is there any way we could skip this whole insurance thing?”

“It’s just standard procedure.”

“I understand. But look, we were over at Squantz pond playing hockey, and I slipped on the ice.”

Your father whispered. “Angus, what are you doing?”

But he kept going, glancing at you for a moment. “Our mom told him not to take us, but I made him. Our folks are divorced, and we don’t get to see each other very often. She’ll be mad as a hornet if she finds out.”

The nurse still didn’t let up. “Okay, that’s your business. But we just have certain protocols.”

“Yeah, protocols.” Your father tried to warn.

Angus didn’t listen to either. “Please, we ever get to see my dad. It was my fault, all mine. I don’t want to get him in trouble.” He looked at you. “We can’t have her dragging him to court again.”

You shook your head, swallowing a pretend lump in your throat. “No. Last time was…oh god.”

He looked back at the nurse.  “Can we skip the whole insurance thing? We can pay cash. Right, Dad?”

What a sucker; it took you and Angus to do ‘Kicked Puppy” eyes for a minute, and she was brining the three of you in to the see the doctor in three.

When they were removing his shirt, they told him first look away from the arm, but they didn’t inform you.

“Is it that bad?” He asked upon hearing your audible disgust.

“Not the worst thing I’ve seen in a hospital.”

Your father slugged you, but not hard enough for it to hurt. Still, the whole thing was a blur as they popped Angus’ arm back into its socket. It was dislocated, not broken, and a part of you selfishly wish that it had been just to spare you from the disgusting noises. That and also Angus’s screaming, as if you hadn’t been objectified to that enough.

The three of you were leaving after Angus' arm was tied in a sling, when your father spoke up.

“Barton men don’t do that.”

“Do what?” Angus asked, readjusting his sling.

"Lie."

“Well, I had momentum.”

“Mhm,” he looked at you. “what’s your excuse?”

You shrugged. “I don’t go to Barton, and I’m not a man. Thank God, by the way, considering I hate all of them.”

Even though you said that sarcastically, neither of the men said you were wrong.

When you three made it to the pharmacy, and your father handed over the prescription, the pharmacist went to search for it. Angus lowered his voice, saying to your dad.

“You said that if Woodrup finds out, you and her screwed. So now he won’t find out.”

“What if your parents ask?” You questioned.

“Never going to happen. Trust me.”

Your father raised his brows. “Okay, then. This all remains entre nous. Got it? You know what entre nous means?”

“Oui, monsieur.” He smirked “Now you owe me.”

“Owe you?” Your father gasped. “Do not try to leverage me, Mr. Tully.”

“All I’m looking for is little thank you that I did something nice for you. That’s all.”

You shrugged, deciding you wanted a treat too. “It is Christmas Eve-Eve.”

Your father took you all out to ‘The Winning Ticket’; the classiest tavern within 50 miles. Classy being the less dingy, place in Barton. As your father and ‘Friend of Some Sort’ had a minor debate on underage drinking, you saw the last waitress you wanted approach.

“Miss Crane, as I live and breathe.” Your father sounded amazed as if he saw Aphrodite herself. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, hi guys!” She laughed “Yeah, I always pick up a little extra work over Thanksgiving and Christmas.”

“Well uh,” he gestured to Angus. “This is Mr. Tully.” Then to you beside him. “And this is-you already know my daughter.”

“Yes,” she nodded. “quite well. My niece knows her too if you can believe that.”

He laughed a little louder than he should have, and you wanted to crawl under the table and bang your head against the metal support until you split your skull open.

“Oh, and sure, I know you.” Miss Crane nodded to Angus.

“Angus Tully,” he smiled. “we met outside of Dr. Woodrup’s office. I was wrongly accused of blowing up a toilet.”

“Well, I didn’t know about the ‘wrongly’ part. I just know that miss Hunham talks a lot about you when she visits.”

Aaand now you wanted to just take any of the silverware off the table (even the spoon would work) and stab yourself.

“Does she?” He teased.

You were quick with a comeback. “About how ridiculously annoying you are. I was baking cookies and Elise nearly crawled into the oven because the things I said about you were just too horrible for her to hear.”

“Now be nice.” Your father said.

“When have I never?”

The three of you ordered (after another discussion about alcohol and underage drinking with Miss Crane this time), and it did not escape you or Angus how your father’s eyes were still on her even after she left.

“Ouch,” Angus smiled. “you two have chemistry.”

“That’s the Percodan talking.” Your father pointed out.

“I don’t know, seeing her like this, I think she’s pretty attractive.”

You gagged, not even having the will to come up with a good comeback, you were so disgusted. Thankfully, your father had one.

“Listen, you hormonal vulgarian, that woman deserves your respect, not your erotic speculation.”

You never gave it much thought; your father dating women after your mother died. He just never truly seemed that interested in anyone, and he said it himself, he never goes out. Still…while you do want him to be happy, the woman of interest is your best friend’s aunt-.

Angus pursed his lips. “May I at least go to the bathroom? Sir? “

“You mean the payphone?” Even when he saw Angus’ eyes darken, your father still was not stirred. “Jo March, accompany him, please.”

You sighed. “Why do I have to be his keeper?”

“Because I, Pontius Pilate, washed my hands of him, remember?”

With that being said, you walked with Angus over to the bathrooms, and waited outside with your arms crossed like a child being punished. After a few minutes, he came back out, and the first thing you asked was.

“How’d you lie so easily?”

He gave you a look. “When?”

“The hospital.” You clarified. “You came up with a whole story on the spot that was so convincing, you had a nurse wrapped around your finger within a minute.”

Angus shrugged, beginning to walk away. “You were honestly the icing on the cake.”

“Oh, thank you.” You spoke with sarcasm, following him. “But honestly, you-.”

“-Are you any good at pinball?”

Okay mister ‘Trying to Change the Subject’, you’d play this game (literally and figuratively). “Yeah, I think so.”

He grabbed two dimes from his pocket. “Wanna bet?”

“I guarantee you that’s all the money you have, so there’s nothing to bet.”

“Not exactly.” You both wandered over to the machines. “If I win, you owe me something, and vice versa.”

“And if I wanted you to get out of my life?”

“Done and done, but only If you win, which you won’t.” He put the dimes on top of the machine a guy was playing on.

“Sorry, kid. Next game’s taken.” The many said.

Angus furrowed his brow. “But I just put some dimes down.”

“Don’t care. My buddy’s up next.”

“That’s not how it works.”

“That’s how it works in here. Why don’t you go shoot the other fuckin’ machine?”

“Because I don’t want to shoot the other fuckin’ machine.”

You put your hand on his non-injured arm. “Angus, it’s fine.”

Before he could retaliate, the man lost the game, sighing. “Thanks for fuckin’ up my mojo. Kenny! You’re up.”

“Bullshit.” Angus shook his head. “I put my dimes down, so we’re up next.”

“What was that?” You both looked and saw ‘Kenny’, a drunk man with a hook for his right hand. Shit… “Hey, kiddies,” he snapped his fingers at the both of you. “my eyes are up here.”

His friend snorted. “Look at these fucking kids; spoiled little Barton boy and his prissy girlfriend.”

Not the first nor the last time you were a smartass to a man where it will almost get you killed. “I’ll have you know, gentlemen, he is not my boyfriend; he is the reason I hope every day I become an only child.”

“You know what?” Angus stepped in before Kenny could respond. “You can just take my dime.”

“Take it?” He taunted. “You want me to take your dime? Like it’s charity?”

“No, what I mean is, we could play together.” and let this be known that Angus Tully was not always great at thinking on his feet. “Yeah, you could be my left arm.”

“The fuck did you just say to me?!”

Flinching at his tone, you decided to actually use your brain, for once. “Oh my gosh, I think I hear Dad calling us.” You took Angus’ hand without thinking. “Come on Fitzwilliam, you fucked everything up as always.”

You didn’t care that two, pissed off men were following and yelling at you, you didn’t even care that you were holding Angus’ Tully’s hand and having him trip over his own feet as you pulled him back to your table, you just needed to get out of there.

“Papa,” you call out to your father. “can we go please?”

He hummed at your arrival (and the term of endearment, which you only use if something has gone array).  “Why?”

“Our favorite asshole got us in trouble.”

“Hey!” Kenny shouted at you and Angus. “Why’d you run off? We were just talking to you. Do they teach you manners at that school?”

Hook for hand be damned, your fight or flight instincts kicked in when he put his hand on Angus and you were about to be the reason he’d lose it. Then, Miss Crane stepped in.

“Kenneth, leave them alone, they just came in for some food.”

Still, he looked like he was about to charge the both of you.

Your father stepped in next. “Kenneth, is that right? I don’t doubt that he did something to offend you. It’s his specialty. Perhaps I could purchase you gentlemen something to imbibe, and we could let whatever this unfortunate incident is go the way of the dodo.”

“The what?” The first guy playing pinball asked.

“The dodo,” Angus said. “it’s an extinct bird.”

“What he’s trying to say is,” Miss Crane translated. “he wants to buy you guys a beer.”

It didn’t take long for the two men to consider it. Kenny nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

“Same here.” His friend agreed. “I’ll have a Miller.”

“The champagne of beers.” Angus smiled, nodding.

It was when everything final cooled down, and as the two men and Miss Crane left to get their drinks, did you notice you were still holding Angus’ hand. Which you let go of as if you were holding fire in the palm of your hand.

He went back to his moody self after that, as you were walking back to the car after finishing dinner (no connection of course).

“Why’d you buy those guys beer? They’re assholes.”

Your father shrugged. “That’s one way to look at it. Here, catch.”

He tossed him the keys, which he caught. Your father continued his lecture, walking ahead of both of you.  “How many boys do you know who have had their hands blown off? Barton boys don’t go to Vietnam. They go to Yale or Dartmouth or Cornell, whether they deserve to or not.”

Angus glanced at you. “Except for Curtis Lamb.”

“Except for Curtis Lamb.” Your father repeated his words when they stood outside the car.

“Were you ever in the military?”

“Yes, I tried to enlist in ‘41, but was rejected-I have to get in over there.” He said after failing to open the door on the driver’s side. He walked over to the passenger’s (which you begrudgingly allowed Angus to have this time) side that Angus unlocked. “They made me an air raid warden. Gave me a whistle and everything. Helmet. Arm band.”

You opened the back door and slid into the seats, but Angus stayed outside, asking. “Before we get going, can I be candid with you?”

Your father already was used to that question from you, so he didn’t even look scared when he hummed his approval.

“You smell.” He got into the car. “And it’s really noticeable toward the end of the day. I even smell it on your coat. Mind if I crack the window?”

He didn’t even wait for his response before rolling the window down anyway. Before you could say something snarky to defend your father, he spoke first. “Trimethylaminuria.”

Angus furrowed his brow. “Huh?”

“Trimethylaminuria.” He repeated. “Means my body can’t break down trimethylamine. That’s the smell. And uh, yes, more toward the end of the day.”

“Wow…your whole life?”

Your father nodded.

“No wonder you’re afraid of women.” Angus said your name, glancing back at you. “How did he marry your mom?”

Your jaw dropped, and only inaudible noises came out at first before you settled on. “I’m too sober for that conversation.”

“For the record,” Your dad interrupted, stunned. “I am not afraid of women, and you shouldn’t be asking a girl personal questions after insulting her father. Jesus.”

Angus nodded. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. Dr. Getler says I should give more consideration to my audience.”

“Who’s Dr. Getler?” You asked.

“My shrink.”

Your father decided to jump in. “Has Dr. Gertler ever tried a good swift kick in the ass?

He scoffed. “Okay, now your turn. Go ahead, tell me something about me. Something negative.”

“Something negative about you?”

“Sure, just one thing.”

“Just one?” You and your father questioned.

He nodded, preparing for the absolute worst, but it never came. Your father merely turned back to the front, started the car, and began to make the long drive back to Barton. You weren’t even out of the neighborhood when Angus then asked.

“Fitzwilliam?” He looked at you. “What kind of name is that?”

Your father snickered. “That’s what you called him?”

You shrugged. “The guys thought he was a stuck-up rich boy, but he’s really awkward and looks like he wants to kill himself every time someone looks at him, I had to.”

“He strikes me more as a Hamlet.”

To anyone who didn’t know anything about Shakespeare, that would be a compliment. To you and your father specifically, it made you laugh. Of course Angus Tully would be one of the most overdramatic characters in theatre.

“Seriously,” the boy in question said tiredly. “who the hell is Fitzwilliam?”

Your father shook his head. “My advice, Mr. Tully? Brush up on the classics; Pride and Prejudice would be a good place to start.”

None of you had the strength to do much more that night besides spending time in your rooms before bed. It was as you were a few chapters into Little Women, did you wonder.

“Why were you and my dad yelling at each other this afternoon?”

Angus looked up from his copy of Popular Mechanics to see you in the doorway once you asked that question. You both were both just wearing your pajamas and socks; outfits you had only seen each other in for either a short number of times, in dimmed lighting, or with jackets over.

It felt different this time…stranger, even.

“Hello to you too.” He greeted, setting the magazine down.

“Well?”

Pursing his lips, he didn’t look at you at first before saying. “I was calling a hotel.”

“Your mom’s?”

“No, one in Boston.”

“Why would you…?” The look on his face said it all. That look of regret and pity that you didn’t understand what he meant right away. “Oh…”

You wanted nothing more than to have said it with disgust, but it was disappointment that laced the word. Then, with a mix of anger and even hurt.

“Am I that insufferable to be around?”

He shot his head up. “What? No.”

“Seems like it.” You scoffed, beginning to pace around the room. “What happened to ‘Friends of some sort’? I asked you if we were fine because I felt like you’d gone quiet, and you said we were. I get it; you asked me to tell you the craziest thing that happened to me, and I should’ve just said ‘I got slightly drunk at a party’, not everything. You barely tell me anything about yourself, and then I just go and throw out the shittiest things that have happened to me. It’s not fair, and I’m sorry-.”

“-My father’s dead.”

Nothing could’ve gotten you to shut up faster.

It caused you such a shock, that you sat down on the bed beside him, staring at him. His gaze changed in a matter of seconds; when he first told you and you looked at him, you’d never seen anyone surer. Then, as shock settled into you, discomfort did for him. You let the quietness between you linger for a moment, terrified of your own response.

“I…I had a feeling.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

You were expecting him to immediately respond, but he didn’t. You debated on just sitting in the silence, or crawling back into your room and pretending this didn’t happen, when Angus finally spoke up.

“I was thirteen, he was…really, really sick for some time but then it just happened so fast and…I don’t really like talking about it, I’m sorry-.”

“-No, I shouldn’t have pressured you-.” You relented first, and ff the circumstances weren’t bleak, it would be funny how you both spoke over each other.

“-You weren’t, you told me something about yourself and I should’ve-.”

“-You aren’t in debt or some bullshit to share anything with me-.”

“-I just haven’t really told people that before-.”

“-Your arm wasn’t the worst thing I saw in a hospital.” You decided to break the loop, and it was successful. “My mother was sick too and…” You chuckled, but felt tears prick your eyes all of a sudden at the thought. “God, she’ll haunt me for this, but she was so skinny the last time I saw her…Cancer. She and my dad were debating on if I should see her like that before she goes, and I won the argument in the end that, yes, I needed to say goodbye. I’m glad I did, no, that’s not what I think of when I think of her but…it scared me. I was eleven.”

He nodded, listening without interruption; a skill that seemed he only acquired during these small moments of vulnerability. Well, you wouldn’t necessarily call yourself vulnerable; you were merely answering his questions truthfully based on your experiences (of course; no vulnerability whatsoever. You didn’t open yourself up to others outside of your father and Mary, why would you to Angus Tully?)

“I went to the chapel before anyone else woke up and I just couldn’t stop staring at the picture of Curtis Lamb…I can’t even say it got me thinking about death or anything like that I just…I don’t know.” He shook his head. “I felt weird and wanted to run away.”

“I get that.”

“I’m sorry for trying to get a hotel by the way,” he apologized again. “if that matters.”

You gave him a smile. “It does.”

For the first time in a while, you thought you saw him smile too; a genuine one, mind you, not the shit-eating grin he often gave you and everyone else. It was then you decided to get up and head to bed, bidding him goodnight. Then, again, you stopped in the doorway from another thought.

“What were you going to call me?”

“Huh?” He perked his head up.

“When you were crying about being stuck over here for Christmas?” You alluded. “You and my father are losers, Mary’s a grieving mom, but what am I?”

His eyes drifted in thought, then back to you. “‘Your know-it-all daughter.’ That’s what I was gonna say.”

“Yeah,” you nodded, smiling as you backed out into your room. “I do know all, Angus Tully.”

You couldn’t see his face anymore when you went to your bed, but you heard his sarcastic ‘Goodnight’ with him saying your full name, and your chest felt lighter than it did the night prior to talking with him.

…What the hell was happening to you?

You were giddy, you giggled to yourself about nothing and had to hide your mouth under the blanket so Angus wouldn’t hear you in the other room. For a moment, when asking him what he would’ve called you, you wanted him to say ‘pretty’. So much shit happened that day, but the one thing, the one thing that your mind goes back to is taking his hand, and not letting go until you realized-…

…No…

No…

Oh, what the fuck?!

Oh god!

Once you were happy about having a newfound crush on Angus Tully, and now you were in absolute agony.

What a wonderful way to spend Christmas Eve-Eve.

[brownbearwrites]

a quiet I keep on keeping

A fluffy scenario that I haven’t been able to get out of my head these past few days. Can be read as either romantic or platonic!

An empty laundry basket clatters to the floor as you swing your leg through the ground-floor window, the sound of plastic on tile impossibly loud in the stifling quiet of Barton after midnight. The sound makes you wince, Angus' wide, panicked eyes meeting yours as you both freeze into place — the toes of your left foot just barely meeting the solid floor while your right leg is still hanging out in the cold. A minute passes. Then two. When your clamorous entrance appears not to have woken anyone up, Angus visibly relaxes — shoulders dropping from where they'd been pulled up to his ears. You move to fully step indoors, Angus' warm hands steadying you as you do.

“Sorry about that,” you whisper sheepishly once you're safely inside.

Angus shrugs, “It should be fine, there's only three of us in the building, anyway. Well, four, now. It's pretty unlikely that they heard all of that”.

“This place must get pretty lonely, huh? No wonder you've been dropping by my work so often”.

Angus pointedly moves to shut the window, making sure to keep it open just a smidge, so that the two of you will be able to pry it open when you have to climb out again come morning. He leans against the window frame, pointedly ignoring your question.

“Aw, come on, Angus,” you tease, “It's not like I don't like having you around. You're good company. Leagues more fun than all the grumpy old folks who drop by every day to complain about the speed at which I scan groceries”.

You manage to make him crack a smile, his mussed up curls falling over his brow bone as he ducks your gaze. He huffs out a laugh, clearly attempting to dismiss you.

“It's true! I wouldn't be breaking into an all-boys private school in the middle of winter break if I didn't think so,” you defend yourself.

“I don't think it's really breaking in if you're climbing through a window that's already open. It's more trespassing, I'd say,” he cheekily remarks.

You swat at him with the long sleeves of your sweater — Angus' sweater, really — making him bark out a laugh before he manages to snatch your hands in his larger ones. Both of you pausing again when you notice how loud you're being. You smile up at him bashfully, taking in the way he always just looks softer like this — sleepy at the end of another long day. The crinkle around his eyes, the soft white shirt hugging his shoulders, the ways his lips curve up in the gentlest of smiles.

Angus leans toward you, pressing a tender kiss to your forehead, his hand coming up to cradle the back of your head as he does. He pulls you towards him, your hands naturally reaching out to wind around his frame.

“I'm guessing you've had quite the day, huh?” you whisper.

You feel him nod above you, his cheek resting atop your head. You breathe in the warm, laundry detergent and cigarettes smell of him, already feeling drowsy on your feet.

“Wanna tell me about it while we cuddle?” you mumble into his shirt.

“Sure,” Angus says, “C'mon, but no more kicking over laundry baskets on the way there, okay?”

You halfheartedly slap at his chest, “I'll sincerely try my hardest”.

[eulaliasims]

Round 2, Midwife 5 / 5

Helenet: Did you have fun today?

Angus: Yup. I like playing in the water when it's so hot, and Kinet told me a story about ogres! You spent a lot of time with Elmet.

Helenet: Sorry, love, I thought you were having fun on your own.

Angus: That's okay, but you might get cooties from kissing him. Just so you know.

Helenet: Oh! Uh, in my professional opinion, cooties aren't real.

Angus: Uh-huh.

does no one in this neighborhood move slowly

When Elmet passes by her house that night, Helenet gives into the urge to grab him by the hand and drag him to her bed. Elmet is pretty amenable to it.

Elmet: Not that I'm complaining, but... doesn't the fur bother you?

Helenet: Not really, no. Does it bother you?

Elmet: Not when I'm with you.

This is definitely better than running around the forest at night. But they agree that Elmet should slip out after Helenet falls asleep, rather than Angus finding him there when he runs in to wake Helenet in the morning.

And then the fricking burglar shows up! Before I finished collecting my NPC defaults!!

He stole Helenet's herbalist bench AND the chicken coop. >:(

I hate all of you, why couldn't you wait for me to finish my defaults.

Helenet is disturbed by the whole thing, even if a strangely dressed warrior took away the thief and told her something called an 'insurance payout' would replace her stolen goods. Her dreams are unsettled, and in the morning she can't help but think that if only Elmet had still been there, he surely would've scared the thief off.

Meanwhile, another random wolf is trying to scare Angus into the well.

Helenet: Shoo! Out of here! Eisu, tell your brother to keep these dogs out of my garden, please.

Eisu: He doesn't have any dogs, but okay?

Not sure what Angus was drawing, but it's cute so it gets posted up on the wall.

Luckily the only late night visitor after sunset today is Arturo, wandering out of his grove again.

Helenet: Oh, good, it's just you. Can you teach me how to make wards like you have around your home?

Arturo: That is very advanced magic, little mortal. Why do you want to learn that?

Helenet: Someone broke into my home to steal. Xiang and Norweni are only a shout away, but I worry about what could happen if no one hears...

Arturo: I see. Don't worry, Helenet, I will take care of it. Do you have some chalk? We will get started now.

[panelshowsource]

who do you think is an underrated panel show guest? like someone who doesn’t appear on them very often but should

ohh fun question... y'know the thing about panel shows these days is they're sooo so so comedian-centric and really a lot of the same people again and again — which i'm not complaining about! i think they're the funniest people in the room and understand the dynamic of a panel show better than anyone else 99% of the time! but when it comes to people i find underrated in the most exciting way it's usually the semi-rare non-comedian who just...gets it. like, back in the day it was people like john barrowman, martin freeman, josh groban, mark ronson, chris o'dowd, christopher biggins, professor green, a couple of the spice girls (they actually run in comedian circles, interestingly)... they just fit into these shows and dynamics so well!

most of the people who have really surprised me in this regard in the last 5 or so years (bc i don't wanna reach back to, like, 2012 for this hahaha) have been on celeb juice or something like graham norton, the last leg, etc. for example, i had no idea will mellor could really hang, take jokes, dish out jokes, and do physical comedy until i saw him on juice. i think that kind of discovery is so fun!

100000% the uk drag girls (the viv being the one we see the most, love her to death and GET HER ON TM!!) NEED to be on more panel shows, jordan north (and get william hanson on SOMETHING this MINUTE), shirley ballas, ronan keating is actually a laugh, a lot of the reality show people (MIC, TOWIE, etc) who do what they do because they don't take themselves too seriously really do Get The Vibe (this is how we got rylan hellooooo), maggie aderin-pocock is an angel, ore oduba, jordan stephens, judge rinder hmm

comedians-wise (ik the drag girls often are comedians, but otherwise), people we've seen a little bit who we should be seeing more of in the name of comedy — alasdair beckett-king, kiri pritchard-mclean, paul foot, larry dean (whoever has the ‘X days since panelshowsource has mention larry dean’ sorry but you gotta reset), glenn moore, amy gledhill, morgana robinson

+ they're not underrated per say but just people i'd like to see again/continue seeing more often include ivo graham, guz khan, chris addison, holly walsh, robert webb, elis james, catherine tate, jess hynes, josie long, peter serafinowicz, humphrey kerr (we haven't seen him in a minute but i always thought he could have developed more of a place in panel show culture), and ffs can we bring back angus? should we? but could we? can we? just for one episode idk? also graham norton get your ass on tm this INSTANT new years

these types of asks always drive me crazy for the rest of the week bc i'm like "ahh i forgot ____!!!" hahahah but lmk what you think too!

[noodyl-blasstal]

Fake Dating - TAZNC Day 1

It's @taznovembercelebration time again!!! My first card pull was "Fake Dating" (delicious, also, we're already off the rails). Want to take part too? Find to post here. You can write, draw, share thoughts, anything. It's just a fun time to talk about taz!

Anyway, have some Taakitz! Read below or on Ao3:

--

“Krav, Kraverooni, Kravino, please? Taako’s asking you from the bottom of his tiny shrivelled up husk of a heart.” 

Kravitz rolls his eyes. “You hand reared a litter of kittens you found in a bin bag.”

“Easy money, the resell on those.” Taako says all faux nonchalant, flipping his hand as if Kravitz didn’t sit up all night with him so they could take shifts to sleep but both woke up for every single feed alarm anyway.

“You kept three of them and gave the others away for free.” Kravitz says flatly, "... In fact!" He's worked up now, he's remembering "... You did home inspections for every one to check they'd be safe and happy." There’s no chance he’s going to let Taako pretend he doesn’t care. He cares often and passionately in various directions. “Anyway, who was the one who organised the letter writing campaign to Angus’ school when they tried to stop his soccer team’s funding and put it into the football team?”

“Anyone would have done that.”

“Did anyone else?”

“They might have.”

“If you didn’t?”

“If I didn’t.” There’s a long pause. “It’s not because I care though. Taako just didn’t want to see his sad little face.”

“Because you don’t care.”

“Because he takes up more room when he’s sad. It gets everywhere, the child mope. I’d have to scrub it out of the floors.”

“And why would he be moping here?”

“Because… I… It’s court ordered.”

“Uh huh.” Kravitz has him on the ropes.

“And there’s evidence of that, then, is there? If I googled your name I’d see the sentencing?”

“I had Google wiped by data assassins.”

“I assume you have a copy of the paperwork I could review?”

“Cats ate it.”

“Which ones?”

“This one!” Taako indicated Tiny Taco, who’s gnawing at the string of Kravitz’s shoe. Taako’s got him here, it’s plausible, but…

“Cats plural, who were the accomplices?” 

“You don’t know them. Strange cats, a bad crowd that Taco’s been hanging out with. I’ve tried telling him, Taco, son, they’re not worthy of your time, they’re leading you down a bad path, can’t you just play nicely with Garyl and Beans? But no, he worries me sick instead.”

“Taco’s a house cat.”

“He’s been running up massive phone bills.”

“How did they get in the house to eat the documents with him?”

“He pushed it under the door and they lady and the tramped it.”

“You have a porch, the cats aren’t allowed in the porch.”

“The back door.”

“Uh huh. And this flagrant fabrication is easier than admitting you want nice things for Angus?”

“Yes.” 

“Why?”

“You’ll think I care.”

“You do care. I watch you care all the time! Today you cared at least three times before breakfast.”

“Nuh uh.” Taako’s squirming in place now, he can’t run though, it’s his house.

“Yuh huh. Who helped Grant with the papers to set up his juice stand?”

“Well it made sense, I set up Sizzle It Up so I knew what to do. It was a chance for Taako to show off.”

“You helped coach Sloane to ask Hurley out.”

“So she’d stop whinging about it to you. She was taking up my valuable Kravitz time.”

“You care about me then?”

“No.” Taako looks pained when he realises what he said and how quickly he said it. “Just the normal amount. The friends amount.”

Kravitz tries not to let it sting. Of course Taako just wants to be friends. It’s fine. Kravitz is a grown up, he can look after himself. He shouldn’t have let it get this far, shouldn’t have let his feelings get so deep. It’s fine, he can just change the subject, they don’t have to do this now, especially not with the current context. “You didn’t let Magnus pet the bear.” 

“I should have.” Taako says darkly. “Then I wouldn’t have had needed to listen to him complain all the way home.” 

“Also you didn’t want him to die?” Kravitz asks casually, trap closing.

“I’m not a monster.”

“Show off, I can’t believe you’d be so insensitive.” Kravitz flops backwards onto the chair, hand across his eyes.

Taako throws a cushion at him. “Come off it, you love it, wolf boy.”

Kravitz sits up, grins to show off his slightly-sharper-than-they-should-be teeth. “Sounds like I’m not the only one.”

“It’s such a good club, Krav. Lup and Magnus are always saying how fabulous it is there, and who’s more fabulous than Taako?” 

“Good point. I can’t think of many people.” He means it, is the problem, Kravitz can’t think of anyone more fabulous, more funny, more handsome… nope!

“Then you see why Taako’s solution is perfect?”

Ah fuck. They’re back to where they started.

“Why me?”

“Do you know any other single werewolves who’d be down to fake-date Taako into The Starblaster?”

Kravitz growls low and slow, surprises himself just as much as Taako. “Er. That… I… I have to go to the bathroom.” Kravitz flings himself off the sofa, dives towards the toilet, slams the lock home, and tries not to let the panic take hold. Maybe Taako didn’t even notice? How often was he even around werewolves? Did he even know what that was? Like, fine, yes, his sister was married to Barry, and Magnus was married to Julia, and Taako was part of their families and he’d seen the dating process up close, and… fuck. No no, it was fine. He was psyching himself out unnecessarily. Barry told him all the time that he worried too much, ocerthought everything, this was fine, good even, he’d just say that it was a cough if Taako asked.

Kravitz splashes his face with cool water. It doesn't help as much as he hoped, but it was worth a go. "It's fine." He says firmly to his own reflection. "He didn't even notice."

“So I couldn’t help but notice…” Taako says, the second Kravitz re-enters the room. It’s probably too late to go hide again. “... that you might be feeling a bit possessive when it comes to other weres dating yours truly.”

“It was a cough.” Says Kravitz, not even convincing himself.

“Uh huh.” Taako isn’t convinced either. “You know, the only condition of getting into The Starblaster is that you're a were or you’re dating one.”

“I’m aware.” Kravitz cannot believe Taako is still focused on the club while simultaneously tearing away the carefully constructed wall Kravitz has been using to hide his ridiculous unwanted feelings for months. Doesn't he care? He could at least be offended. The indifference hurts.

“Well it doesn’t have to be fake. I didn’t realise you’d be down.”

“Are you offering to sleep with me to get into the stupid club?” Kravitz is angry now, furious. He thought they were friends, he thought Taako wanted some kind of relationship with him - even if it was just friendship, he would have been happy with friendship. He doesn’t want this, it should be special, not just some flippant transactional thing.

“No! I’m offering to sleep with you because I like you, you idiot.”

“Wait, did you just proposition me, confess you have a crush on me, and call me an idiot in the same breath?” Kravitz didn’t know whether to be offended or elated, settles on something in the middle.

“Sounds about right. Wanna kiss about it?” 

Kravitz does, in fact, want to kiss about it, but first he needs to know what is going on. “You like me? Romantically like me?” 

Taako arches an eyebrow and looks peeved about the lack of kissing. “Obviously.”

“For the club?”

“A bit for the club.” Taako’s forehead wrinkles. “It’s really cool. I’m not going to lie to you. But that’s more a perk of the boning, not the reason for it.”

Kravitz sinks down onto the sofa. Taako likes him back, Taako likes him back and not just because he wants to go to the stupid club.

“If anything, the boning will be the biggest perk of the boning.” Taako says cheerfully, pats him on the shoulder.

“Why are you like this?” Kravitz asks through his hands, face buried.

“You love it.” Taako says, plonking himself down next to Kravitz and throwing an arm around him. “Can we skip to the kissing bit now, or do I need to tell you about how I was gonna fake date you so hard you’d forget we weren’t real dating?”

“Can we do both?”

“You want me to talk through the kisses?”

“Between them?”

“Fine, but it’s a talk sandwich, kissing bread.”

“Kissing bread.” Kravitz extracts his face from his hands, sits up, and nods solemnly.

“Here we go!” Taako says, leaning in. 

“No!” Kravitz scoots backwards. “That was terrible, awful. Our first kiss is not going to be prefaced by “here we go!””

“You do better then.” Taako’s arms are crossed and he’s doing the frowny thing and Kraivtz is going to kiss every grumpy furrow out of his brow.

“I’ve wanted to do this for months.” Says Kravitz simply, makes it inches from Taako’s lips before he pulls back.

“That’s not fair! You can’t just be all suave out of nowhere. What am I supposed to say to top that?”

“You don't need to top it, it’s not a competition.”

“It could be. If it was.”

“Well it isn’t.” Kravitz says firmly. He reaches for Taako, trying to draw him back in. They were so close to finally getting it together.

“Buckle up, sweetlips.”

Kravitz stands, horrified. “Taako! What… why would you?”

Taako’s too busy laughing to answer. “Your… your face!” He gasps out.

“Do you want to kiss or not?” Kravitz is trying not to be petulant, he’s trying so hard, he’s failing.

Taako dives forward and crashes their mouths together. Kravitz can’t entirely tell when his mouth opened, or when exactly Taako started to nip at his lip, but it’s good, it’s great, even. Kravitz’s hands pull Taako closer, closer, closer, cradle his face, weave into his hair, help pull him down when he moves to straddle Kravitz’s lap. It’s messy and passionate and perfect, he doesn’t want it to end.

“Wanna kiss or not?” Taako pulls back, then snorts with laughter.

“I would love to do more kisses, why don’t you come back down here?” Kravitz asks, running a hand over Taako’s chest in what he hopes is an alluring manner.

“No, you said… I… it’s perfect. “Wanna kiss or not?” and then we did. That’s how we got together.” He collapses onto Kravitz’s chest, giggling furiously.

“You tricked me!” 

Taako laughs harder.

“We’re going to have to tell people that when they ask.” Kravitz says, aghast. He really doesn't want to have to tell anyone this story.

Taako attempts to sit back, taking a moment to collect himself. “We’re going to <i>get&lt;/i> to tell people when they ask. What a gift!”

“A gift.” Kravitz repeats, quietly, carefully. 

“Hey Krav?”

“Yes Taako?” 

“I think you’re great.”

“I think you’re great too.”

“Wanna kiss about it?”

Kravitz cups Taako’s face, brings it gently, reverently towards him like Taako’s the most precious thing in the world. He might be in this moment. Kravitz kisses each cheek softly, then his nose, his forehead, and finally his lips. It’s gentle, tentative, full of care.

Taako pulls back. “You’re going to tell people this was what happened, aren’t you?”

“Yep!” Kravitz says happily, pressing their lips together again.

“Fine. But I’m telling the real story.” Taako says huffily before kissing a firm line from Kravitz’s collar bone to his jaw. “The people need to know.”

“Uh huh.”  Kravitz is finding it harder to focus on anything but the insistent kisses on his neck and the hands working themselves down his chest. “Gotta give the people the…” He tails off as Taako’s teeth graze his neck. “What… they… it’s science.”

“Uh huh.” Taako replies. “Great point.”

“No more words, just kissing.” Kravitz tugs Taako closer again.

“Are you going to tell people this bit too?” Taako asks. 

“Ssssh.” Kravitz kisses Taako again. “Nothing about other people, just about us.”

“Just us.” Taako nods. “And how much fun we’re going to have at The Starblaster.”

Kravitz sighs.

“Hey Krav?” Taako noses at his cheek.

“Yeah?” 

“I’m glad we figured it out.”

“Me too, Taako. Me too.” 

--

Thank you for reading! You can find the next day here.

[slxsherwriter]

Carry On

Fandom: Minutes to Midnight

Pairing: Gimple x female reader

Word Count: 2,459

Warnings: Weapons made from human bones, art from blood, generalized mentions of violence, mentions of the reader having a prosthetic

Author's Note: Bill's part in this is extremely small, but has that stopped anyone before? Not a chance. This was actually a bit of a fun concept to mess around with in terms of the movie's plot because it was so open. Spoilers for the film ahead, so read with caution. This ended up being just a tad longer than intended. And no, that isn't Otis below, as much as it may appear so 😂

The bag crinkled, the sound seemingly echoing out in the quiet forest that surrounded. Akin to a bomb going off. One that would have anyone else jittery and nervous as they moved through the dark forest. Another sound, this time far closer to paper ripping and you cursed. Ignoring the fact that you were making loud sounds, you were in the middle of a juggling act when a loud sound whizzed by your ear before a thud sounded. A large arrow stuck out of the tree beside your head. Staring at it, you were speechless for several seconds, the things in your hand dropping to the ground. Blood rushing by your ears as your heart pumped furiously as a result.

“The fuck…” Slowly, you turned and started out into the darkness that surrounded. No movement, no one standing there holding a bow. Frowning, you bent down to pick up everything that you had dropped, pausing every few seconds to continue to look around. There weren't any other sounds or any other arrows.

A crunch of twigs.

“Angus, I swear to god!” You straightened up and found yourself staring at a giant of a man in a mask. Bow in hand, he was simply observing you. On closer inspection, it appeared that the bow was made out of human bones. No arrows were loaded, even if the weapon remained in hand. His head was cocked slightly while watching you, as if daring you to make another move. This time, there was a frustrated sound that came from your throat.

“Are you just going to stand there, or can you please help me pick up this mess?” Tone a lot softer this time around; you waited to see if he would do just that. “I did promise I was going to get you a treat. The sooner we get back to the house, the sooner that you can have it.” Shoulders rolled back a little bit, posture straightening a little further. No further delay, Angus was moving forward and helping you get everything picked up. Silent as always, but that had never bothered you.

“Thank you very much.” He was able to hold more in his massive arms than you were able to in your one now that the bag had ripped. “Useless paper bags. I'll have to remember to bring my own next time. Teaches me to forget my prosthesis. All right, I think that is everything. Let’s get back, shall we?” He nodded and followed behind you, steps measured and careful, lighter than they had the right to be for a man so large.

The stone home came into view after several minutes of walking. Angus knew the trails a little better than you did but you had finally gained enough confidence to do it later in the day. Admittedly, it was later than you would have liked but that was what happened when you had to go two towns over to buy any groceries or supplies. Not that it was something that you would complain about. All three of the occupants were living better now than they had been.

“Any ones that I need to know about?” You asked the hulking figure behind you, pausing long enough to glance back at him and give a proper smile this time. He shook his head with a grunt. No. Good, that made things a little easier. “Are Calypso and Gimple home?” A nod was given this time. Equally as good. Then everyone could get the special treats that you had gotten for them. He barged through the door before turning to catch it with his foot to make sure it didn't slam against you.

The musty smell of the small lodgings hit you full in the face. If you hadn't been used to it already, it likely would have caused a few gags. No other sounds drifted through the area.

“Okay,” you offered as you set down what you had in your arm. “I'm going to get everything away and not make you do it. Here, this is for you.” You handed him over an entire pack of chocolate chip muffins. A happy sound left him as he snatched it quickly from your grasp before stepping close and pulling you into a crushing hug.

“You're welcome, big man.” The words came out laughed. “I'll find your sister and your brother after, so no need to go looking and send them in. Just go and enjoy your muffins.” He moved off to wherever it was that he wanted to go, leaving you on your own to start putting the groceries away. Mainly non-perishable since you did not trust the refrigerator that was in the corner. It was good enough for water but anything else? Questionable. Humming lightly to yourself, a habit that had been developed long ago when you found yourself on your own. Cans stacked safely where they wouldn't get crushed, jars tucked away just as carefully. It was always a game of would things get eaten or destroyed first and coming up with new plans to try and negate the latter effects. The presents for the other two were left out since there was little reason to shove them away. The door creeping open signalled the arrival of someone else. Likely, it would be Calypso. Gimple could never keep that quiet long enough to make you think that he was one of his siblings. Turning, you saw that you were right as the woman was creeping forward and eyeing the table.

“I see that you ran into Angus,” you laughed before reaching on top of the counter. Fresh strawberries and some shortcakes were produced. While it lacked whip cream, it was never something that seemed to bother the woman. Sweet, light, and a little fresh. “These are for you.” She took them with glee, an obvious smile present even around the mask. Unlike Angus, there wasn't any delay. She plopped her ass down on one of the beds, carefully positioning herself sideways so you couldn't fully view her face, before removing the mask and happily popping a strawberry into her mouth. The enjoyment from such simple gifts was always a pleasure to see. It wasn't like it was some big grand gesture. But, you had known how the siblings had always been treated and the fact that even such simple gestures had lacked through so much of their lives.

“I take it Gimple is downstairs?” She shook her head before pointing to the small connected building. His room, right. “Thanks, Calypso. Enjoy your treat.” Gathering up the remaining goodies, you headed in the direction that you had been pointed.

There wasn't much sound coming from the room, which itself was a little unusual. Knocking to announce your presence, a few seconds ticked by before the risk of opening the door was taken. Gimple wouldn't harm you, of that you were one hundred percent certain. But catching him off guard still wasn't something that should be done. The room was as quiet as it had been from the outside, Gimple settled on the bed with a sketchbook in his hands. A difference from the usual chaotic nature of his artwork down in the basement. Enough so that it caught you off guard for a few seconds. He didn't bother looking up from where his hand was flying over the page.

“Brought some treats back from the latest trip.” You would have expected him downstairs, prepping for tomorrow night. But, maybe there was some logic to the madness. He paused finally, just long enough to look up and give a small grin.

“Wasn't sure you were coming back.” You rolled your eyes, taking it as an invitation to finally move forward and settle beside him on the bed, though you knew better than to peek at what he was working on before he was ready to show it. Nudging him slightly since the pencil was away from the paper and there wasn't a risk of causing damage to what he was working on, you found yourself laughing.

“Yeah, because a trip to grab some groceries is what is going to do it. With my arm left behind and everything.” He hummed.

“It's still downstairs.” You hadn't brought it down to the basement but that wasn't worth asking about right then. While the current exchange was all a joke, you knew part of it still stemmed from some level of insecurity. By him and by the others. With the way that you had all grown up, they couldn't exactly be blamed. Finally, a low chuckle came from him and the sketchbook was set aside. Evidence that he was ready to receive what you had brought back with you. A new packet of colored pencils and a packet of his favorite spicy pretzels. He wasn't much one for sweets compared to his siblings. A little extra something for him.

“I should ask if you rigged it up again but I'm not going to and instead give you what I got you.” Eagerly, he took the proffered items. Stretching your legs out, you got yourself comfortable beside him now that he wasn't working. “You guys ready for tomorrow night?” The crumble of the pack told you that it was being opened without having to see it, eyes slipping shut now that you were back in the safety of the old employee lodging and beside him.

“Yeah, we’re ready. Angus has a few new toys he wants to try out.” An artist in his own way, of sorts. The weapons that he was capable of making out of bone were rather impressive. As long as you weren't on the receiving end. Ingenious really. “You're staying in here, right?” The inflection of the question meant that there was only one right answer. You gave his thigh a small squeeze.

“Of course. Wouldn't think of being anywhere else on a night like that. Know it’s the safest place to be. I have a book to read so I'll be able to keep myself plenty busy.” His body slouched a little further against the wall, your head dipping further along with it. “You just make sure that you are careful, please.”

“We'll be fine.” Every year they were. And had been for as long as recent memory went. But, you know that there was always a little risk that someone would end up causing trouble. One day, they would come across the wrong person, someone who was capable of fending for themselves. A thought that you did not relish. Nightmare inducing. Not that you were going to say that to Gimple.

“I know you are all more than capable. I just worry.” He kissed your temple with a laugh.

“Ain't anything you gotta worry about. Long as you stay here and behave.” Like you would dream of going out on New Year's Eve. Not a chance in hell. “You know what to do when Dad shows up.”

“Of course.”

“Then we are all set.” Trust him to think that it was just as simple as that. Every year it often was, then again you were always the only one that ended up planning for the bad and the unforeseen. As much as possible. Leaning into the touch more, you tried your best to let the odd feeling go. Worry was always a little normal before the big day but something just didn't feel right. “Besides, already got the girls. Just missing one. So everything will be nice and easy tomorrow night. That means, stop worrying your head off about it. Eat a fucking pretzel.” He shoved the bag in your direction, causing you to smile. Nodding, it forced you to remove your hand from his thigh to be able to take the offered gift. His hand came to grip the back of your neck, a light squeeze that had come to mean comfort given as you chewed the overly spicy snack. Not your thing but you weren't about to turn down an offering from the man.

Maybe, just maybe, you should have felt a little guilty about the death of strangers. But they weren't innocent. No. If Mr. Walter's had a say in the decision, then it must be true. The ritual had been ongoing for years, though you were never a direct part of it. The siblings took care of leg work while their father helmed the ceremony. He felt that it wasn't something that you needed to be a part of, that your talents were better used elsewhere. Mainly taking care of the three like you had always done. That fact never bothered you. You had all carved out a weird little existence out here in the woods. Perfectly content. The death of strangers was just a necessary once a year product of that life.

“Wanna see it?” Your attention was pulled from the thoughts that threatened to pull you under. Without asking, it meant the sketch that he had been working on. The artistic tastes of the man beside you would be considered in poor taste and odd by the majority of the population. But you always saw the beauty in it, the way that he did.

“Of course!” The response was far more eager. The swirls and patterns that littered the page made up a beautiful piece. Far less frantic than the typical blood soaked scribbles and scrawls that were presented. The same attention to detail just in a different medium with a little more, you faltered. Not precision but something else. Maybe less mania. “It's gorgeous, Gimple.”

“Thinking I'm hanging it right here.” He slapped at the wall above the bed absently. “Angus and Calypso won't want it.”

“I think it will look perfect there. Are you finished?”

“Almost…” He was cut off when the large frame of Angus appeared in the doorway, his boots kicking at the frame to gain attention.

“What's up, big guy?” His hands twitching at his side and his posture rigid. Something was wrong. The sounds of clattering and a loud crash came from above, and that had Gimple jumping out of the bed. Without a word, you slid from the comfortable space and moved towards the hiding space behind the wall as a precaution. That feeling heightened, but you did your best to ignore and settle in for what you hoped wouldn't be a long wait. Flashes before your eyes reminded you of being all but buried alive as a child, robbing you of the air in your lungs. Hating every second of it, you clutched at your pant leg and could do nothing but wait for Gimple to come tell you the coast was clear and the problem had been handled. Sooner rather than later, preferably.

[bi-bard]

The Collection of Failed Date Nights - Angus MacGyver Imagine [MacGyver (2016)]

Title: The Collection of Failed Date Nights

Pairing: Angus MacGyver X Reader

Word Count: 2,067 words

Warning(s): none

Summary: Mac and (Y/n) didn't expect their relationship to be the same as many "normal" people. Still, they were ready to do everything in their power to have some time for just the two of them. They had to learn the hard way that their plan was far easier said than done.

Author's Note: I've been considering one of those "____ Songs That Would Describe a Relationship with ____" for MacGyver, so (besides Taylor Swift because I get the joke) what artist would you like to see featured in that?

Oh, I used late season 1 for reference to the team members.

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Night One: Matty couldn't call at a convenient time to save her life

Dating when you work with the Phoenix Foundation wasn't easy. When both of you work with the Phoenix Foundation, then there were times when you were going to feel like you two were less dating and more trying to work in excuses to hold hands at work.

Mac and I learned that lesson fast.

Regardless of the circumstances, we tried to fit in some of the "normal" things. Movie nights and dinners and dates.

Easier said than done.

We learned that very early on.

I smiled at the little diner that Mac pulled up to.

Mac tried to explain, "I know it's not very fancy, but it was all a bit last-"

I leaned over and pecked his lips. "It's great."

He grinned at me before shutting off the car.

The night went on pretty well. We got seated, got our drinks and food ordered, and were just waiting. It was starting to look like we were going to have a normal night.

Mac was in the middle of some story from filming Bozer's short film when my phone went off. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and groaned.

He chuckled at me. "Who caused that reaction?"

"Matty."

"You're kidding," his face dropped.

I nodded and answered the call, "Hey, Matty."

"Sorry to cut you and Mac's dinner date short, but I need you guys to come in," she said. I sat up a little straighter, looking around for some sign of her or anyone from the foundation. "You two were talking about it in the hall."

"The fact that you knew to explain doesn't comfort me."

"Just hurry up and get here."

She hung up before I could respond.

"We gotta go," I told Mac simply. He groaned. "I know. Come on."

He pulled himself out of the booth and got out his wallet. "We would have much better luck if we just started ordering our food to go."

I just nodded.

Night Two: Jack is a lost puppy (even if he refuses to admit it)

We thought drinks would be easier than most things.

Not as big of a commitment as most things, easier to pay for in a rush, and it allowed Mac and I to actually talk.

We were both leaning on the table while Mac was attempting to show off after I questioned the whole paperclip habit. He was trying to prove that it was incredibly useful.

I leaned on his shoulder, chuckling as he rambled about the paperclip.

"Hey!"

I looked away from Mac when I heard Jack's voice. The small pang of disappointment made me feel guilty because I liked Jack. He's a great guy. But also, I was on a date.

"Hey," Mac greeted him.

"You two mind if I sit?"

Mac nodded, motioning toward the other side of the booth.

"How are the lovebirds doing," Jack asked.

"(Y/n) was making fun of how much I mess around with my paperclips."

"'Making fun' makes me sound mean," I said. "I was more questioning."

"Don't worry, I make fun of him too," Jack replied.

I let out a laugh and leaned back against the booth.

Mac just scoffed, "I'm happy you two find this funny, but I have saved both your asses several times with these paperclips-"

"And a crap ton of other stuff," I shrugged.

"Usually involving my phone," Jack added.

"You are both rude," Mac muttered.

I leaned on his shoulder again and he placed his hand on my knee. It was nice. I wish we had planned for our night to involve more than just the two of us, but this was nice.

I didn't feel right complaining about it.

Night Three: Bozer said he wasn't going to be home

I could barely remember what Mac had been talking about at the time. He was pacing a bit and rambling about something. I was sitting on his bed, occupied with other things. Like the fact that we finally had a night to ourselves.

"You're not listening," he said, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Excuse me? I always listen to you," I made it very clear that I was lying.

"Oh, really," he asked, stepping over to me. "What was I saying then?"

"If you mix hydrogen and a paperclip and... other... stuff..."

"What- woah-"

I pulled on the front of his shirt so I could press my lips to his. He managed to catch himself by placing his hands on either side of me. He chuckled as he kissed me back, making me grin into the kiss.

I started moving back, pulling Mac along with me. I laid down, moving my hand into his hair. He lowered himself onto his elbows. My free hand moved to his shirt buttons, starting to undo them. It was not as easy as I thought it would be.

His lips moved to my neck, moving down from the spot below my ear.

And then... Bozer's voice sounded from the main room.

"Mac! I was thinking and-"

"I'm gonna kill him," I muttered.

Mac laughed at me, hiding his face in the crook of my neck.

"You said he was going to be gone for the night," I groaned.

"I know, I know," he pushed himself off the bed. "I'll go talk-"

The door swung open before he could finish his thought. Bozer froze in the doorway. He looked between me lying on my back and Mac's shirt being half-undone.

"Did I interrupt something," he asked.

"Wanna take a wild guess," I replied, pushing myself up on my elbows.

He just nodded. "Well, I was gonna order some food if you guys..."

I raised an eyebrow at him. He just smiled guiltily before walking out.

I let my head fall back onto the pillow and shut my eyes. I felt a kiss get pressed to my forehead. I looked at Mac for a moment to grin, hoping to show that I was upset with the situation and not with him.

One day, I thought as I reached up to touch the side of his face. One day we'll get a normal date night.

Night Four: Mac needs to check his pockets before going out on a mission

We had honestly gotten lucky the trip was as quick as it was. The two of us had invested in some tickets to a small concert. The idea was that the show was small enough that we wouldn't break the bank if we weren't able to make it.

But here we were, standing in line for a concert. We were going to get a couple of hours together just to enjoy what was going on around us. It was a dream.

When we got to the door, Mac went to pull the tickets out of his pocket. He insisted on keeping a hold of them "just in case". I don't know what he thought would happen if I kept them, but I wasn't going to argue about something that didn't matter.

But as a nervous smile formed on his face, I wonder if I should've argued more.

He reached into his other pocket before starting to frantically check every pocket he had. Small scraps, a paperclip, but no tickets.

The guy at the door finally waved us away. I crossed my arms over my chest and started walking back to the parking garage that we had paid for. Another waste of money.

"(Y/n)," Mac followed close behind me. "I'm sorry."

I tried to blink away the tears of frustration that had formed in my eyes. "It's fine."

"No, it's not," he grabbed my arm so he could turn me around. "I... I screwed up our whole night and I'm sorry."

I closed my eyes for a moment. His hands cupped the sides of my face. I felt him press his lips to my forehead.

"I'll make it up to you," he was basically speaking against my skin. "I promise. I'll figure something out. I am so, so sorry for this."

"I just wanna go home," I mumbled, feeling the tears starting to fall. Mac pulled me forward into his arms, guiding my head to rest on his shoulder.

"Okay," he replied. "That's okay. Maybe... Maybe we can find a good movie or something. And then we can relax and cuddle, yeah?"

"I want to go home alone," I corrected my statement as I stepped back. "I'm sorry."

"No, no, don't apologize," he grabbed my hand, starting to lead me to the car. "That's okay. It's your choice."

I felt bad for being so upset, but I had been looking forward to tonight. It felt like everything in the world had gone right for us to be there only for us to get smacked down right at the end. It hurt.

Mac was understanding when he dropped me off. He kissed me gently, continuing to mumble how sorry he was.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," I replied before getting out of the car.

Mac refused to drive away until he saw me walk inside. I waved at him from the door before stepping inside.

As I locked the door behind me, I leaned my head against the door.

I just wanted one night with no interruption or mishap. I never realized how difficult that would be to achieve.

Night Five: Does it count as escaping an escape room if we never went inside?

The other three hadn't even known about the escape room until Mac and I were getting ready to leave.

And then, Bozer asked if he could join. He was completely oblivious to the idea that Mac and I may have wanted to do something on our own. I looked at Mac, letting him make the decision. He looked back at me for a moment before looking at Bozer and nodding.

And then, Bozer asked to let Jack and Riley tag along, saying that it would be good for the team to see each other outside of a life-or-death situation. Mac nodded to that idea too.

"I'm sorry," he muttered to me as he kissed my head.

"It's okay," I promised despite my disappointment.

The other two met us there.

It all seemed to be going fine until it was actually time to go into the room.

"Wait, gotta tie my shoe," Mac touched my arm as he knelt down. I stopped, scoffing at him for grabbing my arm.

Just as Mac finished tying his shoe, he jumped up and pushed the door shut. He nodded at the workers and grabbed my hand.

"What are you doing," I asked, letting him lead me out. "We can't just abandon them."

Mac stopped outside the building, pulling me abruptly into a kiss. I almost squeaked out of shock as he did. My hands touched his sides as I kissed him back. He leaned back a few moments later.

"What do you say to picking up dinner and going back to my place," he suggested.

"And just leaving them trapped here?"

"It's an escape room. That's the point."

I chuckled as he leaned in and kissed me again.

I hummed and pulled back. "You've got yourself a deal, MacGyver."

He grinned. "Good."

He started pulling me along with him again.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket when it started ringing. Before I could properly look at the name, Mac grabbed it and declined the call.

"Mac!"

"We've earned a night together," he explained as he handed my phone back to me. "No interruptions."

"I didn't realize that it was upsetting you so much."

"I love the team," he replied. "I really do. But there are times when I want to be with you. Only you. I don't want to be a jerk, but... I felt like this was the only option."

I frowned at him. "We should probably sit down and talk with them about that."

He nodded.

"Instead of locking them in an escape room."

He chuckled, looking down for a moment. "That was a little rude, huh?"

"Maybe a bit," I confirmed. After a moment, I pulled on his arm. "Hey... I love you."

"I love you too."

Mac was right. We deserved to have time to ourselves. And we were getting there. It was just a learning curve.

A very complicated learning curve.

--------------------------

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[fernpost]

looking forwards

[link to ao3]

Angus McDonald, boy detective. Greatest detective, if you asked him. And if you asked most of his clients.

He could solve any case, any mystery or murder or missing persons case. He’s always able to find the truth.

He just struggles sometimes, when it comes to himself.

His own emotions are swirling masses of weird bubbly feelings . He does not like how hard it is to decipher his own feelings.

Deciphering people's feelings about him is often just as hard. He knows social cues. He’s studied them thoroughly, and knows why people say what when he’s asking them certain questions and what they’re hiding when they ask him to leave.

Working a case is easy.

He’s solved plenty of murders before. Those are easy. Child’s play! And Angus is not a child anymore. He’s twelve whole years old, and had the first birthday party he’s ever really enjoyed to celebrate with all his friends.

Sure, most of them were adults, but he’s always gotten along really well with adults.

And they’re his family, so it’s fine-

Well. They’re not really his family. He’s not blood related to them. He’s not sure he has any immediate family now that his grandpa is gone. He’s never asked Taako or Magnus or Merle of Kravitz or Killian or- or any of them if they consider him family.

They’re his friends. That’s fine. He’s perfectly content with that (he thinks. Again, his own emotions are confusing).

But that’s okay. Because he’s going to school soon. It’s kind of far away from where most of them live, though. Far from the home Taako, Lup, Barry, and Kravitz have been sharing. Where Angus has been staying.

Very far from where Magnus has been setting up his school. And a whole day's ride away from Killian and Carey’s home.

The school is three hours away from Angus’s ho- from Taako’s house, where Angus is staying.

He hasn't- he hasn’t told Taako he’s going to school yet. He doesn’t know how to tell him he’s going to need to move out because obviously he would never ask Taako to uproot his whole life- all of them to uproot their lives just for Angus to be able to attend school. Not when they finally got settled down.

He really doesn’t even need school, but when his parents passed away and he went to live with his grandpa he dropped out. And if he wants to go on to college (if Lucas is serious about the potential teaching job) he needs to at least graduate high school. He was almost done too, but his grandpa didn’t have a lot of money like his parents did, so he started solving more and more cases to help out.

His parents didn’t give his grandpa any of their money because they didn’t expect him to be around when they passed on- not that they were bad people! He doesn’t mean to make them sound bad. They weren’t bad. They weren’t the best, he guesses. They’re not as fun as Taako, or as warm as Lup, and didn’t give as many hugs and Magnus, and didn’t talk to him about science like Barry, or-

But they were nice. They just weren’t really into parenting. They still left their small fortune to him, he’s just not old enough for it.

He’s thinking of petitioning the banks and saying he’s perfectly independent to get the money so he can move out easier.

He wonders if Kravitz would help, because he’s really good at that type of stuff, and the bank workers would be much more likely to listen to an adult than him.

Being young had its perks when solving cases, but it sucked for his day-to-day life.

It also sucked when his stomach churned for no reason that he could deduce. He’s just sitting in the kitchen, watching Lup cook in her still-slightly-fresh body as she sings a funny folktale song (Barry is sitting next to him, and he’d leaned over when she’s started singing to tell him how she learned this song early on in a world that had no writing system, and the song was about a man who could never remember where he left his pants. Angus didn’t really get it, but Barry kept laughing and smiling like it was the funniest thing in the world. Angus was pretty sure Barry would laugh at anything Lup did as a joke, though. He didn’t need to be a great detective for that).

But despite how good the food smells, his stomach hurts really bad. He’s barely eaten today, so it can't be food poisoning. Not that he’s had that since moving in- the Taaco’s are wonderful cooks and he trusts anything they feed him implicitly.

He tunes out Lup as he thinks.

The stomach pains are probably anxiety. Kravitz was telling him how he used to get them all the time, so it’s possible it’s just that.

But he shouldn’t be anxious . He’s a big kid- he’s just waiting for Taako to get home so he can tell him he’s moving out.

He has already looked for an apartment. Once Lucas' Academy of Arcane Sciences is fully up and running, he should have a highschool diploma and will be able to move on campus to work on his own degree. And be a student teacher while he works on it. It’s very exciting! If he should be feeling any physical effects from his emotions, it should be excitement, not this. This gross conglomerate of mushy feelings he can’t piece together.

He hates this.

Lup is holding a spoon to him, and Angus snaps back to the present to hear her softly ask, “you okay, little dude?” He doesn’t like the look of concern on her face- she’s been through too much to have to worry herself with him (he can’t get the century out of his head, these people are so amazing and they just let him hang around them. He doesn’t know what he’s doing right and he’s scared he’s going to stop doing that and they’re not going to like him anymore).

“I’m fine, Miss Lup! Thank you for asking.” He folds his hands tighter in his lap as he smiles. Whatever is on the spoon smells great, but he’s not sure his stomach is up for it yet.

Lup continues to stare at him for another second before pushing the spoon a little closer, “if you say so. Now, tell me, how’s it taste?”

Angus shakes his head and pulls back, “my stomach isn’t feeling too good right now, I don’t want to infect the rest of the food if it’s contagious.”

A hand appears on his head and he jumps a little, still not used to the casual touch-language of the household, and Barry’s nasally voice joins the conversation. “You don’t feel hot. Want us to call Merle over and give you a check up?”

The spoon is back, “it’s a good soup, Ango. It shouldn’t upset your stomach, and I can just get a new spoon. Barry can call Merle while you give me pointers.”

“You don’t need to, it’s fine really.” He waves his hands at Barry before turning to Lup. “And I’m not sure what help I can be with the cooking, I haven’t improved much these past few months even with Taako walking me through those other recipes.”

Lup snorts, “you’re improving much faster than Barry ever did. And I haven’t been helping Kravitz much with it, but he’s worse than anyone I’ve ever met at cooking. You’re doing just fine.”

Angus straightens up, discomfort momentarily disregarded, “Mr. Kravitz hasn’t needed to eat or cook in a long time, so he’s forgotten a lot of the basics so it’s not fair to judge me against him.”

“Sure, sure.” Lup waves her free hand in the air, the other still holding the spoon. “Still, this spoon is staying in the air until you taste it.” She glances at Barry, “and don’t worry about bothering Merle, he’ll never admit it but he likes the excuse to come over. Barry will pick him up; gives him more practice on perfecting the portal spell.”

Angus frowns, but reaches out to take the spoon anyways, “you really don’t need to call him. I’m sure it’ll pass by tomorrow.”

A hand is now on his shoulder, and Angus glances over to make eye contact with Barry, who speaks. “I won’t call him tonight, but if you still feel bad tomorrow we’ll tell him, okay?”

“Okay.” He’s not going to tell him if his stomach still hurts tomorrow, because it shouldn’t. Because he’s going to tell Taako right when he gets home and there will be nothing making him anxious or sad or excited or whatever that will make his stomach hurt. Because he’s going to do it.

He punctuates the thought by sticking the spoon in his mouth. Lup has turned back around, a fresh spoon stirring the pot, so she doesn’t see Angus’s eyes widen, but she turns back to face him with a smile when he gasps.

“This is really good, Miss Lup! Thank you.”

“Anything missing from it?” She crosses her arms, a new spoon dangling from her fingers as she twirls it around. It feels like a test, and the stomach ache is back.

Maybe it is from anxiety, because he used to get them before really hard tests. But why is he anxious? Taako is most likely going to take the news well, because Angus will finally be out of his hair.

(But maybe he doesn’t want that. Maybe Taako being okay with him moving out would hurt. Maybe the thought of Taako not just being okay, but being excited at the thought of him moving out is making him sick with worry and sadness and-)

“I’m not sure what else. It tastes perfect as-is.” He can’t think about cooking anymore. “I’m going to read on the couch, if that’s alright.”

The twirling of the spoon pauses, before she gives him a smile he knows is a bit forced, “okay, but when Taako comes home complaining that something is missing from the soup we’re blaming Barry.”

“Hey!”

Angus slides from the stool, moving to the sink and placing the spoon in there before heading to the couch. The living room is open to the kitchen and dining room, and he can hear Lup puttering around in there as she and Barry speak quietly to each other.

He’s unsure if they’re talking about him, or just being polite because he said he was reading, but his stomach twists again anyways. He picks up his book from where he set it on the coffee table this morning, and tries to read- he really does.

But he can’t focus.

The words blur together as he stares down at them blankly. He’s so zoned-out he misses the sound of the door opening, and the ensuing whispering in the kitchen.

It’s only when a hand is on his shoulder does he notice someone else is in the room, and he almost jumps out of his skin. Turning his head quickly, he catches sight of the gaudy sequin coat Taako had bought a few months ago. He’s paired it with a pair of jeans with tassels, and Angus doesn’t know much about fashion, but he’s fairly sure that’s not a normal outfit combination.

“Lup said your stomach hurt? Did you eat the so-called muffins Barry made yesterday? Because I told him those were toxic for human consumption. Probably dwarven consumption as well.”

Angus shakes his head, eyes following Taako as he slips his coat off and throws it on the armchair. He’d taken one look at those burnt muffins and slid them behind the milk, hiding them to prevent anyone from eating them. The elf walks around the couch and sits on the opposite side as him, tucking his knees under him as he stares at him with those eyes that are far more observant than most people think.

“Uh-huh. I’m throwing them out anyway. Don’t want to risk it.”

Angus nods, fiddling with the pages of his book. He runs a finger down the edge, finding a temporary calm in the weird texture of the uneven edges. He’s wearing a crease into the sides, he knows, but that’s fine. His grandpa liked to talk about the beauty of a well-loved book.

He’d spent all night planning on what he was going to stay. He wants to make sure Taako knows he isn’t throwing his kindness back in his face, and that he is going to be able to do this mostly on his own. He doesn’t have many belongings, so the move itself would be pretty easy. There won’t be much for Taako to worry about. Angus has always been very self-reliant. He isn’t a pushover, and is fine taking care of himself. While living here has been nice, he’s fine going back to living like that.

A foot knocking against his knee gets his attention, and he glances over to Taako. The elf’s face is pinched, ears flicking back and forth.

It’s a weird expression to see directed at him. Taako speaks, “you with me, Agnes?”

He nods, eyes flitting away. The nickname is an endearment, something he figured out soon after he started living on the moonbase. Their story being projected into his mind only reinforced that knowledge; seeing how Taako interacted with the others (and how the others teased everyone as well) proves that Taako being mean normally shows he cares.

He states instead at the fireplace; it’s still kinda dirty because no one has wanted to clean it out from when Lup caused it to flare up during a particularly intense board game night (they banned board games when the fire was going after that, at least while Lup was in her lich form. Far too much magical energy waiting to be released).

“Angus. You sure you’re feeling okay?”

He doesn’t mean to flinch, but seeing a hand come towards his face after already being stressed all day caused him to react unfavorably.

The hand yanks itself away, and Angus forces himself to look over at Taako, apology already leaving. “Sorry, sir. I just didn’t expect it- I’m fine, really.” He almost says ‘I promise,’ but stops himself. He doesn’t like lying, and it wouldn’t have been a lie but it wouldn’t have been the full truth.

Taako doesn't seem to believe him anyways, as he squints at him. “You’re a terrible liar.”

Angus starts, “I’m not sick!”

“I know you’re not sick, but you’re acting all weird.” He wiggles his fingers, and it almost makes Angus laugh.

He takes a deep, steadying breath. It only makes his stomach clench even more. His face gets hot, and suddenly his throat is tight and he can’t- he can’t do it- he doesn’t want-

“I need to move out.” The words leave him at once, just barely slow enough to be comprehensible.

The soft conversation in the kitchen stops at once, though neither of them walk over to the couch. Taako is staring at him, face blank.

He finds himself beginning to ramble. He hates it, he’s normally more composed, but working a case is much, much easier than navigating people he cares about. “Mr. Miller offered me a position at his school once I graduate, and the school is on the other side of town. I can’t make the commute each day, it’s too far and the walk would be too much. So, I found a small place that’s cheap, and once I get access to my parents money they left me I’ll be fine on that front. And-”

“Miller? Lucas Miller?” Taako cuts him off. He hasn’t done that in a long while, and it shuts Angus up immediately.

“Yes? He’s opening his school, the Academy of Arcane Sciences.”

“And he wants you to teach there?”

Angus' face flushes, and he gets hot with indignation. “I’m very smart, sir. I am very qualified to teach, and it’s not a stretch that he would seek me out and-”

Taako puts his hands up. “Not what I was implying. You’re just young.” He glares off to the side, before pulling his crystal out. “Thought Miller was above hiring a child.”

“I’m not a kid.”

“How old are you, then?” Taako glances back over at him, eyebrows raised in that annoying way he gets when he thinks he’s made an excellent point. He’s typing without looking down, and Angus wants to know what he’s doing.

“I- that’s not what I meant.”

Taako leans back on the couch, looking back at his crystal. “You should be focused on being a kid, not teaching nerds at Lucas’s subpar school.”

The indignation that started when Taako brushed off what he’s been worrying about has been building and building. He clenches his hands into fists, letting the book drop to the floor as he stands and yells, “stop trying to make me have the childhood you wanted!”

He regrets it immediately, but can’t bring himself to look at Taako. The room is so, so quiet. It’s almost worse than if they yelled at him. He runs past the couch, dodging the hand that reaches out as he passes by Taako. He slips into the room he’s been staying in, closing the door and locking it behind him. He sits on the floor, back resting against his bed, and shoves his face into his knees, pulling them tightly into himself.

At least he made it easy, right? He’ll wait for Taako to cool down, finish packing his things, and leave.

He doesn’t even know why he said that. He knows Taako was just being nice, even if he phrased it poorly. He just wants him to be a kid because he knows what it’s like to not have a childhood. Angus had no reason to say that. He didn’t mean it.

The hot press of tears builds in his eyes and he forces them down. He has no right to cry when he was the one in the wrong.

Knowing Taako, Lup, and Barry are in there, talking about him, is almost as bad as the guilt. Not knowing what they’re saying is disquieting.

It doesn’t take long for a soft knocking on his door to fill the room. He says nothing, but looks up at it. He stares at the handle, checking it’s still locked.

“Angus, it’s Lup. Can I come in?”

He considers not answering. They’ve been good about not barging in before, when he makes it clear he wants to be alone. He doesn’t want to be alone, though. He’s just not sure he wants to have this conversation.

“Yeah.” He stands, unlocking the door and holding the handle. Breathes. Opens the door.

Ears tilted down low, Lup stands there with hands in a neutral position at her side. Gods, she’s being so aware of her movements right now so she doesn’t startle him. He turns, walks over to his desk, and stands by it. He’s now very aware of his backpack and small suitcase against the wall, half-packed. Not enough to be obvious, but enough so that when he told them he was moving he could do so quickly.

Lup is staring at it. She hesitates, then goes to sit on his bed. She doesn’t shut the door all the way, leaving it just barely cracked.

He hates being treated like this.

“We’re not mad.” She begins, and Angus can’t bring himself to look at her as she talks, staring instead at his bags. “Taako isn’t mad either. We’re just confused as to why you want to move out.”

Angus furrows his brow, glancing over to Lup for a second before retraining his eyes on his bags, “I told T- I said that it was too far for me to walk there each day.”

“Me and Barry have basically mastered rifts, we could bring you there and back you know. So could Kravitz.”

“I already thought about asking you to, but you’re called to go help the Raven Queen randomly, and I wouldn’t want to be stuck on campus.” He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath, “I didn’t phrase it very well out there.” He forces himself to make eye contact, “I am very grateful for everything you all have provided me, and I’m not leaving because I’m unhappy or anything. I just know I’ll be fine on my own, and I really want to go to school.”

Lup purses her mouth, “I’m not going to argue that you aren’t responsible or that you couldn’t live on your own. But you are young, there’s no reason you should be teaching at this age.”

“I’m not though! I’m finishing high school, and then student teaching until I graduate from his school. I’ll just be helping the professors until I have the proper qualifications.” He clenches his hands, trying to keep himself calm. He doesn’t like when people don’t understand what he’s saying.

She takes in what he says, keeping her gaze steady. “Okay. That’s better. But, you still shouldn’t be living on your own, little dude.”

“I used to-”

She holds her hand up, “come on, this is a group conversation. The other two people living here should be here for this.” Angus casts an anxious glance at the door when she says that. She continues on, “before we go out there, though, we do need to talk about what you said.”

Panic fizzles through him again. “I know! I didn’t mean it, and I’m really, really sorry. I just got frustrated because he was patronizing me and I don’t like being treated like that. I’m very smart and capable- I’ve done- I’m just-” He feels his emotions begin to well up again, and it only makes him more upset. He knows he’s more mature than this. He’s caught numerous serial killers, solved murder cases, and helped so many people. He can keep up with serious adult conversations, as well as banter with everyone easily. He’s good at words. He hates getting sensitive like this.

“Hey, hey. Angus, it’s okay. Breathe.” She steps towards him, moving slowly to not startle him and he hates how he’s already shown that she needs to do that. “Taako was being rude when you spoke to him, no one is denying that. But what you said at the end was also pretty rude. And we understand needing to take a minute to ourselves, but we have to make sure we have hard conversations. You’re telling us you don’t want us to treat you like a child, and we are not going to baby you. But you are still very young, especially compared to us.” She closes the gap to him and rests a hand on his shoulder, kneeling down. “Being mature means hard conversations. Being nice means having harder conversations. All we want from you, Angus, is for you to be honest with us and listen to us when we want to be honest with you.” She removes her hand from his shoulder and spreads her arms wide, offering a hug.

If he says no, she won’t make a fuss. He knows this.

He crashes into her, smushing her face into her shoulder. Her arms tighten around him as she runs her hand through his hair. “Here’s the plan. We go out there, Taako apologizes to you for being an asshole, you apologize for snapping, and then we all talk about you moving out, okay?”

Pulling his head away from her shoulder, he nods. He knows if he tried to speak, he would devolve into tears. She smiles and pulls him back into the hug.

They stay there for another moment, before Angus pulls away. Lup stands and gestures for him to lead the way.

His stomach clenches again, but some it’s not as intense as it was a few minutes ago.

They walk down the short hallway, and find Taako and Barry sitting on the couch. Both are staring at them as they enter the room, and Angus finds his hands twisting into the hem of his shirt.

“I shouldn’t have said that, sir. I’m sorry.” Angus says it fast. He hopes it doesn’t sound dishonest, the way it tumbled out of his mouth, but he knows if he slowed down the tears would fall too and he doesn’t want that.

Taako moves to stand, but Angus watches as Barry’s hold on his hand keeps him on the couch. Taako, instead smiles. “It’s okay, Ango. I was being an ass first. Should have listened to you all the way instead of cutting you off. Taako’s better than that.”

Lup brushes past Angus, moving to sit on the armchair next to the couch. Angus stays where he is. “I am still moving, though.”

No one speaks for a moment, but all three of them look at each other. After a moment of silent conversation, the type born from living together for a long, long time, Taako speaks up. “Okay. We’ve been talking about getting a bigger house anyways. This one is too close to the city and when the others visit it’s far too crowded. We need more extra bedrooms.”

Angus blinks. Then blinks again. “What?”

Lup sighs. “That’s one way to bring it up. We’ve already been talking about it- there’s a chunk of land just outside of the east end of the city. It’s not far from the school we assume is the one you plan on attending. Magnus has already said he’ll help us fix up the house there.”

He is still wildly confused.

Barry gathers that, and he sighs, “we will all move. So you can be closer to your school.”

He starts shaking his head, “no, you guys just settled down, you don’t need to do that.”

“Do you really think you could make us do anything we don’t want to do?” Taako asks as he begins to walk over to Angus. He mimics the position Lup took earlier, squatting in front of him. “If you really don’t want to live with us, fine. But we had already been talking about getting a bigger place. This isn’t a sudden decision- if Krav wasn’t on some mission he could tell you the same thing. The house we were looking at was empty before the Hunger arrived, and it got fucked up even more during the fight, so the land there is cheap. So if you want to stay with us- and I’m not asking what you think we want, I’m asking what you want- then one of the rooms will be yours.”

The tears he’s been working so hard to hold back begin to fall, so he just nods quickly. He lets Taako pull him into a hug, “I’d- I like living with you. Are you- you sure?”

“When has Taako ever lied?”

Angus just laughs, and does so even harder when he hears a pillow thwack against the back of Taako’s head (it’s a common occurrence in this house).

He feels someone approach on the side, and their hug is yanked to the side, both of them stumbling as Lup pulls them towards her, and he glances up to see Barry hovers right beside them. Taako must see him too, “Come on, Barold. Looks like it’s hug time.”

It’s awkward, and not at all very comfortable, but it’s warm. Angus’s tears have dried up, and he’s about to pull away when the familiar zip of a portal being created precedes Kravitz’s voice.

“Oh, am I interrupting?”

Taako laughs, “just missing out on a group hug.”

“Come on,” Lup speaks up now, her voice coming from just behind Angus’s ear, “it’s a family hug.”

Angus barely has time to process that when Kravitz steps forward. He’s almost as awkward as Barry, but it’s nice.

They separate eventually, Lup heads back to the kitchen to finish the food, with Barry close behind. Kravitz gives Taako a hello kiss, the two of them sitting on the couch, and from their low tones Angus can tell Taako is giving him a quick rundown of… today.

Angus see’s his book was placed on the coffee table at some point, and sits on the armchair once he grabs it, pushing Taako's discarded jacket to the side. Opening it to where he left off, the page is bent with a large crease down the center, from when he dropped it on the floor. He reads for a minute, before Taako speaks up.

“Mending should get rid of that crease, if you like.” Taako says.

Angus just smiles and shakes his head. “It just proves it’s used.”

He shrugs, looking down at his crystal, and Kravitz nudges him. It causes Taako to huff and hold out the crystal. A flyer for a recreational soccer team is displayed.

Join the new Neverwinter recreational soccer league! Ages 10-14. Help your kids make new memories and friends- Create everlasting bonds!

Angus frowns, “what’s this?”

“Soccer team. Was looking for one in the area when we started looking for potential houses to move to. Planned on signing you up.”

Tears begin to well up in his eyes again, and Angus finds himself frustrated. Not with Taako, no, of course not. Not now, not with this. But with himself, and how emotional he’s being.

Because he’s been talking about Caleb Cleveland books at Taako for so long now, and he’d always assumed he’d only been tolerating it. But Caleb Cleveland was a part of a soccer team- it wasn’t even a big part of the books. Angus has probably only mentioned it once or twice. And yet, Taako specifically looked for a soccer team and-

“Thank you, Taako!” He grins, and the way Taako’s ears are flickering, he knows he’s embarrassed.

“Just thought you could use the exercise. You know, you can’t be running around solving crimes if you can’t run.”

The smile doesn’t leave his face as he snarks back, “but sir, you never do physical training and you saved the world.”

“I just transmute my legs to be strong and fast if I need it. Or get Magnus to carry me.”

He leans further onto Kravitz, who smiles. “Or he just calls me to pick him up.”

“Exactly!”

Snuggling back into his chair, Angus holds the book close to his chest, “thank you, really, sir.”

“Come on, little dude. We’ve been over this. The ‘sir’ thing is so formal.”

“Would you prefer me to call you ‘sappy bitch’?” He turns up his fake innocent charm, the one he uses often on cases, as he says it.

Kravitz bursts out laughing, and he can hear Barry and Lup in the kitchen do the same.

Taako flares up, pointing an accusing finger at him, “who taught you that kind of fucking language!”

“I’ve always known curse words!”

“Not in my house!” Taako stands, and Angus climbs out of the chair and starts running. He knows what will happen if Taako catches him, so he runs to Barry, calling out for help.

Barry, the traitor, only holds him still so Taako can grab him and ruffle his hair. He begins yelling at Barry, cursing his name, but it’s hard to get the words out through his laughter.

Kravitz is the one who saves him, pulling him out of their arms and holding him high in the air. “Do not assault the child, please.”

Taako steps towards Kravitz, “you heard what he called me, didn’t you?”

“And he was right.”

Taako’s affronted gasp is so loud, it must scratch at his throat as he begins coughing.

Angus is giggling, kicking his dangling feet lightly in the air.

Whatever Lup is pulling off the stove smells delicious, and he cannot wait to begin eating.

As they sit down, Taako looks over at him and says, "you know, you should be careful about accepting a teaching job at Lucas's lame school. Taako here is working on a much cooler idea, and he could use a smart kid like you, if you can pass the rigorous application process."

"What is it?" Angus asks, getting excited. He hasn't heard Taako talking about anything like this.

"Top secret."

Angus laughs, "it won't be for long!"

"You're pre-emptively fired, then."

"Wait-"

[lumilasi]

Surprise ask game! Pick your 5 favorite blorbos from your shows (or your own, or both!) And list 5 random facts/things you like about each! Tag or send this to 5 other ppl and spread the joy of rambling about things you love!!!

Ohh, since I can do both, I'll do both.

Show Blorbos

Tomura (bnha)

He didn't start as my fave, but dethroned Aizawa insanely fast lmao

I love how his design tells a tragic/disturbing story on its own, no words needed

I want to fluff his hair, no matter the color or length

I don't need a ref anymore, I've drawn him sooo many times by now

I hate that my fave's design included shit ton of hands, thy are a pain to draw lol

Grimmjow (bleach)

I love how his colors are essentially the inversed versions of the protag. Ichigo.

I love how his personality ALSO shares similarities with Ichigo. He feels much more of a special rival to berry boy than anyone else

He survives to the end of the story and even sorta turns into more of a antihero. Ichigo even starts treating him like one of his friends, whenever Grimm realizes/likes it or not lol

CAT.

BIG CAT

Rukia (bleach)

She's actually a very well written shonen female protagonist

She feels like a person & is allowed to be both ridiculous/awkward AND cool & competent, have moments of self doubt as well as confidence based on her own abilities, and these are just couple of things I like about her writing. Basically, again, to summarize, she feels like a proper, well rounded person which I find kinda rare with shonen girls.

Her drawings crack me up

Her Bankai is super pretty...and cool (pun intended lol)

she's my all time fave manga woman (so far)

Death the Kid (Soul Eater)

He's funny as hell

He's also cool as hell

I love his dynamics with his friends

I like his design

I found it actually pretty interesting how his comedy gag actually is quite central to his character, beyond being funny. It has a story reason behind it and is tied to his character development in a sense (as far as I remember, been a while I read SE)

Himiko (bnha)

The best written girl of bnha imo (tho could be better still)

While I complain about it, I actually like her hair!

Writing her as the lil sister character is fun

I like how she's actually considered one of the most dangerous ones, not due to brute force, but intelligence, survival skills, etc.

I still feel like we haven't truly heard her story yet, since what we did get wasn't from her perspective...

Mind Blorbos

Jurou

I have two versions of him now, the main difference between them being the setting they live in (and one being a protagonist while other is a side character) One lives in a modern setting, other more traditional/fantasy type

His voice claim is the same guy who voices AFO (japanese va)

His modern AU version is grumpier due to his different story. He's still a DILF in both tho lol (according to my friend, I regret teaching her that term lol)

In the fantasy version, Hitomi is adopted, in the modern AU, Hitomi is his biological daughter

He was difficult to design but once I got it down, he quickly became one of my faves

Konjou

He's my second fave, his design just sort of sticks to my brain better than anyone elses I've made?

He can even turn his hair to vines eventually, as well as create different types of vines instead of just spiky thorns

His voice claim ended up being Kankuro's japanese VA from Naruto lol

His and Jinchou's dynamic is the ultimate Himbo x Gremlin tsundere thing lol

He has a nephew and niece later on through his half brother Yaguro/Asahi, and the baby niece especially likes to glomp his face as a greeting lol

Chouma

His relationship with lil Youko is my favorite thing with him

Chouma's voice claim is Dabi's VA essentially

I haven't yet figured out his full backstory, which is rare for me OTL

He will have a modern AU version whose bf will be another character instead of Angus, as their dynamic wont work in a different kind of story setting (and he deserves a proper bf lol)

Chouma often uses his wings as a blanket cape

Yume

One of my fave girls, I enjoy her strong willed, temperamental & lil grumpy personality

I still dunno exactly how her outfit works at the back lol, need to figure that out

She's an excellent archer, and a shadow bow is her main weaponry she tends to form from her magic

Her favorite nap spot is Yaguro's back fluff

She's demiromantic pan, this is something I only recently realized makes the most sense for her lol

Aand finally....Toshiko

Her personality is probably closest to my own while not an exact match, and I did not make her that way consciously lol

She enjoys seafood the most, and pork the least

She's awkward around kids and doesn't want to be a mom ever, but still tries her best to be a good role model to those kids who do look up to her (specifically Jurou's kid Hitomi)

She's the one with braincells among her friend group (namely her, Claude, Caelan and her bf Raitei)

Her and her sister Akiko are opposites in almost every way possible, but she still doesn't mind spending time with her

Idk who to tag, maybe I'll send this to someone else, but for now its an open tag!

[tartrazeen]

🤯 Honestly?! You just changed my mind. He does think they're funny.

I know Fin Varra says it'd be bad if Maeve ruled so he's got a mutual interest with Kells, and kinda needs to work with them, but like...

The Mystic Knights are probably as much fun for the fae to watch as it is for the audience. Fin Varra's got that scrying pool, right? Tir Na Nog probably ha full-on livestreams of what's happening - in fact, I know they do, because how else would Fin Varra have known that Angus, Ivar and Deirdre were under Maeve's rage/paranoia spell while Rohan was in Tir Na Nog complaining about being Draganta? They were absolutely watching, and that pudding was Movie Night pudding, and Rohan was interrupting the fun A-Plot drama with his angsty Destiny subplot.

Now I'm trying to think of who their favourites are. 🤔

I know Aideen obviously has Rohan as #1, and Deirdre's her least favourite. I think she likes Angus more than Ivar, because even though he's done things like THROW A ROCK AT HER, she's had more heartfelt moments with him.

With Ivar, it seems a bit more... professional? He's more stoic than the others. He has his outbursts - OH BOY lots of them - but they're more spread out, and he's far calmer than the others. I think it's the royal upbringing that Aideen connects with less. The loud peasant vibe is more interesting.

So for Aideen, it's probably:

Rohan

Angus

Ivar

Deirdre

Which means Aideen is one of those fans who instantly hates the girl on the show 'cause they get in the way of her Rohan x Reader fics 😭

I don't know what she thinks of Garret. Aideen likes seeing humans brawl, but doesn't like when they argue. In fact, the fae seem to utterly loathe anyone getting their feelings hurt (which fits the lore around offending them, I think, if I'm not confusing it with other lore). That's what Aideen emphasizes when Angus storms off because Rohan was being a jerk, and also when she talks about treasuring gifts from friends after Angus storms off 'cause they were all being jerks. And it's Fin Varra's (and Midar's) go-to move when someone insults him: Spriggen Cloud Beam.

So Garrett would be funny because he's competitive, but not liked as much as Angus because he can be kind of snobby. That might put Ivar ahead.

As for Lugad...? 🤔 She might like him because he seems to mean well, and because he's competitive too. But he also brags a lot, and he doesn't have the same 'Chosen One' angst.

Okay - so maybe Aideen's list is this:

Rohan

Angus

Lugad

Ivar

Garrett

Deirdre

I think with how dramatic the first three are, Ivar is a refreshing amount of level-headedness to break it up. She probably has little chats with him off-screen. At least until he becomes the most competitive out of all them. But then he goes back to being chill again. uwu

(also omg no wonder she's always around and within earshot. if everyone's watching the scrying pool, she's basically watching on her own channel by being there in-person 🤣)

For Fin Varra, I know he likes Deirdre, but he oddly doesn't seem to show her much respect...? In that episode where he ruled Kells for a day, he kept directing everything he said to Angus. But he does respect her. He's also a bit... I don't want to say 'dismissive' of Rohan's whining, but he does seem more plot-focused that character-focused. Whenever someone's coming to ask how to move things along, he's on board to give answers. But wasting his time when he didn't summon them (like when Rohan and Angus brought the chesn with mini-Torc into Tir Na Nog), or coming in to complain about the plot is his least favourite thing. He likes action. That's probably why he didn't show Deirdre as much respect in the Switching Kingdoms episode: she was placating Fin Varra, which is boring, and Angus was inadvertently pushing the plot along, which might have been "insulting" but did deliver action.

Lugad pretty much just does whatever he's told, so I don't think Fin Varra has much interest in him (the 'placating' thing again). Ivar will go his own way when it serves him, but very often defers to the rules or traditions. Not as often as Deirdre, who's always having to be a Proper Princess™, but often enough. But he's not as easy to trick, which isn't as funny as it is with Deirdre.

Surprisingly, Garrett is constantly doing his own shit. I don't know if he'd suddenly play nice now that he's on the same team as everyone, but if he keeps up that hyper-competitiveness, he'd probably be a ton of fun for Fin Varra. So I think the list would be something like:

Garrett

Deirdre

Ivar

Lugad

With Rohan and Angus... 🤔

I think he actually likes Angus more. Angus doesn't ever go to Tir Na Nog unless he has to. Rohan'll check in for advice or just to chit-chat, it seems, so there's more chances for him to do the thing that almost got Angus turned into a Spriggen: correct Fin Varra on what the plot should be. The point would be in Angus' favour.

More than that, there's the difference in their shenanigans. When Rohan does something stupid, it's "I summoned a dragon" or "I accepted a duel." Simple and straightforward: here are the rules, go follow them. When Angus screws up, it's "Help I got framed for arson and now I need a lawyer" or "There's a 1000 year old wizard running around and mom said it's my turn to be possessed," or everyone's favourite: "I saw some gold in a field but the field was broken or something u_u." Way more interesting.

It's also harder to tell what Angus is gonna do. Rohan's very clear in his problem-solving: do the thing as fast as possible, even if it means skipping steps. Angus might act impulsively, or he might suddenly be cautious, or he might have a whole freaking strategy planned out. It kinda makes Angus the most fairy-like out of all of them, tbh. He's accidentally been speaking their language, or at least being crafty enough to endlessly entertain them.

So I think it'd be:

Garrett

Angus

Deirdre

Ivar

Rohan

Lugad

Rohan just wastes a lot of time struggling to do simple things. Angus wastes time doing elaborate things to get out of doing simple things, then goes and does the simple thing elaborately anyway. But I think Garrett's still at the top for the same reason Angus interacts with Garrett: he is so funny to torment.

Garrett just has to fight a little ghost for his test? Angus complains. Fin Varra's like, "no no dude watch this, it's gonna be hilarious"

Garrett and Ivar and Deirdre have to watch a baby dragon? Angus instantly stops complaining about getting herbs to laugh at them, and settles on Garrett.

The Dragonbow.

The

Dragonbow.

Angus even has the same kind of humour for watching people get put in their place. He's worried about Garrett and Rohan dueling, but when Rohan's in the water? Hilarious. Ivar's fighting Garrett in the throne room? Brings music. He himself is talking shit about girls net being as good at obstacle courses as boys? Admits it at the end. So just from what he thinks is funny (which we see more of), and what Fin Varra thinks is funny (which matches up even though we don't see as much), it stands to reason that Fin Varra also thinks Garrett is very fun to torment.

And now I'm wondering if maybe THAT had something to do with their tests. Fin Varra might have tested them to see a noble trait (ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ wait and then rohan became a prince, therefore angus = some sort of other prince confirmed), but maybe it was more like, "Idk, are you guys gonna be enough fun for us to watch?"

So Rohan being brave is good, because then they can make him do the dangerous parts of the plot. Ivar being loyal is good because that means he'll stay with the group despite his own quest. Angus being honest is good because that means his tricks are in the group's best interests. Deirdre being selfless is good because she'll find a way for the show to always go on. And Garrett being humble is good because LOLOLOL get wreckt garrett

Midar, meanwhile, who only appears when his plot's going on, is very much giving a "ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ this is a kid's show" opinion. So he's pretty annoyed by all of them for being dumb, but Maeve is so desperate for power that he can entertain himself by seeing what else she'll give up. Super mean, first of all, but that's gotta be why he's so quick to ditch her: the second she stops doing war plans and starts doing "I'm gonna marry the king uwu" plans, he's over it, and the second things get too 'expensive' for her to sacrifice anything else, what's the point of her? The fun with Maeve is what the next crazy thing she gives up will be.

Actually...

Another random thought.

I always wondered why Aideen was the one in the first episode who sent that dream to Rohan. Why her, exactly?

But if she's the one who's watching the show from her "own screen," and if Fin Varra seems to always know what the next part of the story is supposed to be before the Mystic Knights even ask, then maybe that was Aideen putting her thumb on the scale.

After all, Ivar already knew where the fairy ring was. Maybe Rohan and Angus would've let Ivar go if Aideen hadn't told Rohan about meeting a stranger, and then they wouldn't have found Tir Na Nog at all. And from there, maybe they go searching other, more hidden parts of Ireland, like wherever Lugad's been held. Being so big, and with Rohan thinking Draganta had to be some knight hidden away somewhere, everyone probably would have thought Lugad was Draganta instead. After all, they both have the Mark of Destiny.

It's sort of something I was hoping they'd talk about someday: if both Lugad and Rohan have that mark, how do they know it's Rohan? The only thing that clued Cathbad in was that Pyre breathed the mark of destiny onto the ground. But Cathbad's gotten signs wrong before, and the step after getting Pyre was finding Draganta. No one ever said how long after, and technically Lugad was found after. Maybe Pyre was just checking off a box or committing himself to the team, not necessarily branding Rohan. I mean, Angus eventually kinda tames Pyre, so it's not like the dragon only listens to exactly one person.

But with Aideen's dream in Rohan's head...

... maybe even Fin Varra was tricked - yes, tricked :3 - into agreeing that things pointed to Rohan, the kid who'd been a druid's apprentice for many years and not very good at it, more than to Lugad, the Half-Demon who can throw an army across a battlefield and was able to lead Maeve to victory as her legendary warrior.

Maybe - uhhhhh...

... maybe Rohan's not actually Draganta. uwu

Maybe that's why Aideen so delighted he gets named Draganta. If she hadn't interfered exactly when she did, changing the plot (remember: this is someone who actually changed her whole species to become a human!), the plot would've gone on to tap somebody else for it.

👀 That is extremely interesting to me.

I feel like I've said this before, but I'm saying it again: I love this show's characterization of King Fin Varra.

What an amazing choice all around. The whole first episode with his introduction, and especially his wrap-up with Deirdre's test in the second episode, probably had one line in the script to explain what Fin Varra's deal is:

Fucks with them. Endlessly. That's it.

I get that these are tests, and he doesn't know who these random people in Tir Na Nog are, but he picks the most deliberately dickish way of sending them along and just LOLs about it. One time, Rohan goes to him for help and to angst about how he can't be Draganta, and Fin Varra's like, "Dude, I'm eating pudding. Go save your friends or something."

Rohan's like, "D: Are they in trouble?"

And Fin Varra's like, "idk i guess - bro, fr, pudding."

And he doesn't even start with that!! He says it at the end of the conversation - just throws it in 'cause he really wants that pudding 🤣

Like - he isn't Cathbad. The stock "Wise Character" is already fulfilled. Cathbad gives his advice freely and as clearly as he can, and the only limiting factor is whether his magic is strong enough.

Fin Varra is limited by whether he's feeling the vibe or not.

Excellent.

In any other show, Fin Varra would be giving them cryptic messages and lessons to learn, and the Mystic Knights would rise to each challenge and see that they've been made better for facing it. That's the point of those cryptic messages: they're third-act revelations to solve the day. And because they help eventually, the cliché is to have the heroes fawn over what this mystery could mean.

But no! The Mystic Knights just get increasingly pissed off about it! They fucking hate his riddles, and Angus openly calls it garbage multiple times throughout the show. The second-last episode, Fin Varra gives them a clue to the vial with the potion that's going to save Rohan's life, and not only do Angus and Ivar not say, "Hm, what an interesting clue, we should reflect on this," but they never even go back to thank him for it! Stupid Garrett would've never revealed the potion without those words from Fin Varra!

The one time Cathbad tries to be like, "Ooh, I know what this riddle means," he ends the show by being like, "aw shit guys, i'm so sorry, i misunderstood what the riddle meant. i totally get it now though."

THEY ALL HATE IT AND IT'S SO FUNNY

And Fin Varra is so sick of them disrespecting his gifts - it's great, I love the dynamic, I wish we'd had more of the show just to show that.

[hiswhiteknight]

Unbelievably Outlandish– Part 8

Summary:  Before starting down a new crossroads, the Reader goes onto an adventure of literary traveling. Suddenly tossed into an unbelievable story that has swept the world, The Outlander Series itself. How will a twenty first century woman survive?

Note: I own no characters, except reader, clearly this is based off the lovely book series Outlander by Diana Gabaldon and tv show. This follows more the tv show, but it’s far from accurate. I’m going to try to get better with using less proper English, but who knows maybe I’ll get into Scottish slang.

Pairing: Jamie Fraser x Female Reader

Words: 2345

Warning: Angst, playfulness, cursing, slow start, obviously fighting and such

What Murtagh said and how he stared at you was quite unsettling, what could you possibly mean by a ‘woman’ taking care of Jamie? You were quite sure Laohaire was a woman and could take nice care of Jamie. That thought didn’t settle well either, but you couldn’t understand why. It felt like it was something you had buried deep in your soul, so deep you could only focus on getting back home to your family – Davy. When you were preparing for the gathering, you tried to think about what your brother was doing and whether he felt alone or abandoned. The guilt of your lack of fight or focus on getting home crept into your body and weighed you down.

Angus entered the surgery, “Lass, the festivities are about to be going, let’s make our way up.”

You nodded at him and started to walk up, “Do I look like I’ll fit in up there?”

“You’ll fit in plenty enough, enough for a colony lass,” he muttered to you. “Just stay out of trouble, I’ve got my mind on-.”

You rolled your eyes, putting your hand to stop in from continuing, “Angus, I get you want to find a lady and I promise to not get in the way. I still got a ton of work to do before tomorrow’s hunt. I do not plan to stay long, which is what I told Mrs. Fitz. The laird gave me a job, I intend to do well.”

“Just do as your told,” he pushed you forward. You fought every bone and muscle in your body not to thrash him about. No matter the effort, you could not win the trust of some of the people here Angus and Dougal included. You could only kill someone with kindness so much before you take someone’s throat out with your fists.

Mrs. Fitz passed by you, “You look lovely in that dress, my dear. I told you, now some man will come and sweep you up, though I’ll hate to see the day someone takes you from us.”

You could see Murtagh rolling his eyes, as you looked down at the people prepping from the oath ceremony. You bit the inside of your cheek, “Mrs. Fitz, I told you. I do not intend to marry, I have a family waiting for me back by Inverness. I’m just buying my time.”

“That reminds me, Gale Allister left your payment in the kitchen by the flour. Thought it was best she avoids the surgery with all your business getting ready for hunt,” she shared with you.

“Thank you Mrs. Fitz, I’m not sure what I’d do without you,” you half hugged her. You tried to ignore the suspicious look from Murtagh. You had been finding little chores and such to help the community here, as well earn money that will help foster your escape home. “Murtagh, where is Mister McTavish? I’d assume he’d be here for the oath taking.”

Murtagh glanced down at you, trying to avoid making too much eye contact with you, “Leave the man be right now. He’s best to be not seen during the swearing ceremony. I feel you’ve tortured the man enough for a life time.”

“What are you on about, I do not torture anyone?” Collum entered the room starting the ceremony with Dougal. It was actually quite beautiful, full of tradition, and honor.

“You’re torturing me right now, lass,” Murtagh grumbled under his breath.

Mrs. Fitz pinched Murtagh’s arm to shush him, “If they are all the same, I’m off to get more work done. Keep me posted Mrs. Fitz,” you kiss her cheek and skip away to your work space. Angus caught sight of you and followed, “Angus, I pinky swear I will not wonder away and get you in trouble with Dougal.”

He gripped her arm, “No, no, no – you have to stay up here until I find a lady-.”

“Too much Angus, too much,” you stopped him quickly. “Here,” you pass Angus a necklace given to you by your mother, “This is my necklace given to me by mom before she died.” Angus looked immediately concerned you were going to get emotional, “As long as you hold that necklace, I’m not going anywhere. Go enjoy the gathering.”

He looked at the necklace in his hand to you, “You sneak off girl, I’ll gut you. Stay in the surgery, no wandering off like you like to.”

You put your two fingers up like you were a scout. Angus gave you a strange look before motioning you down to the surgery, “Angus,” you called to him, he looked back at you quickly, “You lose that, I promise no laird will stop me from taking your balls.”

He waved you off, laughing to himself, “A lady with a mouth like yours.”

You were only partially concerned Angus would lose your necklace. You had made your way to the surgery, but stopped on the last stair. You had already prepared for the hunt with your materials and such. You didn’t want to stay at the ceremony because it made you think of your past with the Marines and your brother with your traditions. Davy would be so impressed by seeing some of his heritage. He would probably love this whole experience. Think of the hunt the next day, you grew sick and worried. You were never a hunter; you had a soft spots for most animals. You had trouble killing spiders, though your history with war was quite the contradiction. Your brother constantly made fun of you for it. The thought of animals made you think of your horse. Your promised Angus you would stay put, but it’s not like you planned to escape. You just wanted to drop off your medical supplies and check on your horse. The stable hand made it seem like your horse wasn’t part of the elite, which made you like her more.

On the way to the stables, you used your military expertise to get past the men. You didn’t need Angus to find out you lied to him. A few drunken clansmen tried to take advantage of you being an alone woman. This immediately made you pissed for the lady folk in the area, the amount of women who had to be assaulted made you sick. One guy had gotten a swipe at you and your lip was bleeding. You made it to the stables, nursing your lip. You were going to take your time getting back to the surgery, this was probably the safest place for you outside your surgery space. Lost in your thoughts of consequences, you tripped over a mass. You rolled onto your back with a knife in hand, pressing it to the neck of a person and they were doing the same to you, “Deoiridh.” Jamie immediately released you, sitting up to give you space, “What are you doing out here?”

“I could ask the same to you, sir,” you shot back at him. Your temper was rising with the amount of times you had to keep your guide up during this time period. Jamie stared at you a little longer than you liked, he was hoping for a better answer, “I was checking on my horse for the hunt. I have a soft spot for her and I wanted to drop off my stuff now, so I wouldn’t have to have hungover Angus complaining in the morning.”

Jamie chuckled to himself, “Thoughtful lass.” He paused for a second, “Y/N, you alright?” He put his hand up, leaning in closer to get a look at your bleeding lip, “Did that just happen,” he asked with guilt seeping off his voice.

He took out some cloth and tried to dab at your lip, “I had an issue coming over here with some clansmen,” you mumbled, trying to find the right words. You didn’t need Jamie telling Collum of your violent assault to some of their men. You didn’t kill them, but they will probably be concussed and be missing the hunt the next day.

He shot up, “Did they,” he pulled you up to closer inspect you.

You pushed him back gently, “No, no.” You hesitated and tried to figure out the best way to share it with him, “I knocked them out before anything could happen.”

Jamie’s laugh filled the room, finally dulling down to lean against the horses pen, “You’re a deadly woman Deoiridh. I’ve seen you teaching some stuff to the kids, but I didn’t think you could take out Mackenzie men without more than a busted lip. You sure your alright,” he tried to cup you neck again to look closer at your lip.

His hands were rough, but it a way you’ve never felt. It was like your body was on fire, but wanting to crave more it. Electricity surges your body, “I’m fine,” you whispered, “I’ve had plenty worse.”

“These men are lucky you got to them first,” he said trying to relax his jaw. You should tell a piece of him was bothered by you being attacked. Something inside him wanted to crash out of the stables and slaughter the men who would do such damage to his friend, at least that’s what you were telling yourself.

“Murtagh mentioned you weren’t going to the ceremony for the gathering,” you reached into your bag, “I was going to stop by your hut, residence place,” you weren’t sure what to call his little bed area. You passed him some food from the kitchen.

He shook his head, “Again with the thoughtfulness, you seem to care an awful lot about my wellbeing.”

“Shut up,” you shove him as he laughs at you. You could see he was trying to get a raise out of you since you pushed him to talk to Laoghaire, “You’re my friend Jamie. You were the first one who was nice to me here, well before you tossed me over your shoulder and proceeded to act like chauvinistic tool.”

He grinned at you, “Well, you are probably the most unique, thoughtful, and caring women I know. Besides when you are prodding me and calling me mean names.” He put the bag of food down next to his makeshift bed, “We should get you back to the castle, I bet Angus won’t be taken to kindly to your journey to the stables.”

“I can get back on my own. Murtagh told me to leave you alone, something about the ceremony, which is none of my business,” you mumbled away, trying to push whatever you are feeling way down. “I took down three clansmen and you, I think I can get back on my own,” you look down at Jamie sitting on the ground.

He pulled himself up towering over you, “Me,” he questioned, “I think I’d remember you taking me anywhere,” he pulled your shawl tighter to your body. “Now let’s go, me walking you back is not up for debate.”

You rolled your eyes and jogged up next to him, “Suit yourself, but Murtagh doesn’t like me enough as it is. If you get caught or whatever, I’m not to blame you tell him that.”

Jamie stopped you at the door, leaning in close to your face to whisper, “Murtagh likes you plenty, believe me if he didn’t like you he’d ignore you. Now let’s go before you get me caught.”

“Jamie,” you whispered harshly, holding tightly on the back of his shirt waddling after him. With your face slightly pressed to his back as you both giggled out the stables, there was something about his smell. You’d assumed he’d smell like most rotting, sweating men. Being in the marines and being in the desert for long periods of time, you were pretty much used to it. But it was different with Jamie, your psychology background pushed towards his manly man pheromones. You pushed those thoughts away and tipped toed with Jamie through the McKenzie camp. You and Jamie got back to your work space without Angus knowing any different. You stood at the bottom of your stairs, looking up at the now ever more towering Jamie, who was grinning down at you, “Do you think you can get back without being caught, remember what I said about Murtagh, you wanted me to be nice and make friends?”

He looked down, trying to hold back his amused expression, “Yeah, I think I’ll manage.”

“When are you going to tell me why you are avoiding being seen during the gathering, aren’t they your family,” you questioned, trying to change the subject to something less flirty.

“It’s a bit complicated, maybe one day I’ll tell you. But for now, I’m off before I get you into trouble with Murtagh. You should go up and spend some time with the clan, it might be worth learning a bit more,” he gestured up the stair. He leaned closer again, “Maybe you can butter up Murtagh, get on his sweet side.”

“What sweet side,” you countered. Jamie shook his head, trying his best to not be amused by you, “Plus, I wouldn’t want him to get the wrong idea. He isn’t really my type.”

The look he gave you in that moment was something you rarely got to see in men, “What exactly is your type.”

“Not a dumb brute really, I’m not a picky woman,” you shrug walking further away from Jamie’s glances.

“That I don’t believe for a second. Try to stay out of trouble, hate you save you from Angus again,” Jamie started to make his way up the stairs.

“Jamie,” you call up to him, he turns to look at you one more time before he gets on his way to his hide away, “I never need saving.” Again, he held back a smirk, before trying back up the stairs again. You didn’t know how he did it, but you got to you again with those stupid hidden smiles and teasing. It’s like he knew exactly what to say to get a rise out of you.  

Part 9

 Taglist:  @doctorwhatwhenandwhere @damnedandbroken @blushingpogue @blancastans @slytherinambitious @kinky-asher

[desparikon]

Murdoc/Mac fanfic misfire #6

Written for @pridewrite2021 , pw5 Asexual, pw6 Aromantic & pw alt6 Realization

Sleeping with Mac is nice, but it’s not the main form of intimacy Murdoc craves.

(aroace Murdoc is !!!)

“Amazing,” Mac whispered from his spot between Murdoc’s legs, absently squeezing along the one still hooked over his shoulder.

“I know,” Murdoc replied automatically, inwardly wincing at the intensifying prickles of reawakening muscles. “You can put my leg down now, ’m not going anywhere.”

Mac complied, squeezes turning into soothing massaging. Murdoc’s movements were stiff, cautious. His discomfort, obvious.

“You OK?”

Murdoc hissed quietly, his hip twinging. Old, improperly healed injuries, and his violent lifestyle were catching up.

Worth it though, yielding to Angus’ breaking composure, watching him indulge desires he’d fought to hold back. Why deny him(self) that pleasure, when their entire cat-and-mouse game leading to tonight had been his own?

“Murdoc?”

“Yeah, leg just fell asleep, it’s fine.”

“Good.” Giving Murdoc’s thighs a final squeeze, Mac leaned forward and planted his hands on his bed, boxing Murdoc in underneath him, “’Cause I’m not done with you yet.” He dipped his head, laying soft kisses on Murdoc’s stomach.

Stark contrast to the sparring and aggression marking the start of their evening. Tension and frustration had built far too long, and even someone as accommodating, softhearted, as Angus had limits. Only Murdoc knew what lie beneath, and he could handle it. Why not allow Angus to burn off what he deemed too dangerous for everyone else’s eyes?

Indeed, Angus could be a rough, dominating lover—he’d expected no less—but never cruel. There’d been no pain without pleasure, or reassurance. Honest words, kind eyes. Gentle hands that held his own, and ran through his hair, and caressed every inch, including his scars. Compassion toward the souvenirs bred by his penchant for violence and destruction. Everything Angus stood against.

That kind of special, affectionate attention paralyzed him.

Murdoc moaned and gripped Mac’s biceps. Encouragement for whatever came next.

Mac sighed against skin, “You’re so…” Kisses deepened, tongue pressing against bruises previously left on Murdoc’s chest, “So--”

A short tug on his hair warned against putting matching teeth marks around this nipple. “Leave that attached, hmm?”

Ah, the defiance in Angus’ eyes. The temptation. The careful studying. Weighing entertainment against whatever retribution would be doled out.

Murdoc nearly laughed, pushing Mac’s bangs back.

Truly, someone after Murdoc’s heart. Stubborn, and lively, and a troublemaker in his own right. Someone worthy of his defense’s deterioration. If this was defeat, he couldn’t have dreamed a better adversary.

Despite Murdoc’s silent surrender (near encouragement), Mac slowly pulled his tongue back in, and put on a most innocent smile. “I wasn’t gonna do anything.” He settled in against Murdoc, nuzzling into Murdoc’s neck.

“You’re a handful, Angus.” Murdoc wrapped an arm around Mac and held him close, careful to avoid the scratches torn across Mac’s back. His skin tingled under the tired, lazy exploration of Mac’s fingers.

Cuddling hadn’t been a thing with Amber; No pull, and their personalities didn’t mesh in a way that’d allowed it.

Murdoc could now confidently say cuddling (Angus) beat sex. Peak intimacy. Cozy. Peaceful. Safe. Simply being with Angus, and spending time together.

But, he’d cornered himself. After all his teasing and flirting, only to loudly declare:

Just Kidding!!

Well, not much would get him thrown out quicker. Saying no would be an admission. To what, he’d never quite figured out.

Sex was fine. Physically enjoyable, but not even the most fun one could have while naked. Magical, and life-changing, and unparalleled? Supposedly? Looking and appreciating were not the best parts, so he’d been told.

Condescending laughs. Derisive glances. Heavy implications. It was supposed to hurt. It didn’t. People’s misinterpretations were a them problem. One easily solved, if they didn’t treat his skills and reputation as all that mattered.

Sex was a chore, and if it didn’t fill a box on the arbitrary checklist of life and relationships, he’d leave it. Meet someone, get married, have kids. Tried it, boring, not for him.

What hurt, was people treating any deviation as a condemnation to perpetual unhappiness. Cassian brings him unmatched joy, and they acted like he was mistaken.

You got full custody?, *suspicious glances imply he’s abusive*, Never complain about using protection again, right!, Oh, so he’s a problem child? Very noble to stick around!, Boys require a woman to raise them!, Aww, Daddy’s Little Gatekeeper!, It must be sOoOoO misERABLE---

For people to martyr them over some narrowly defined Perfect Life he never wanted, especially in his son’s presence…!!!

An aggressive roast sent them packing, but did little to soothe the sting. Their only savior, proximity.

His happiness just looked different! Cassian taking a liking to Angus was a bonus, but remarrying wasn’t the answer. He wasn’t replacing Amber, or looking to force Angus into another checkbox. What he wanted with Angus was different. Marriage was loaded with connotations, about “love” and feelings, and what the pinnacle of relationships must be.

It made him irrationally angry. His feelings were complex, and ambiguous, and somehow different from others’. Tied, again, to something foreign everyone except him apparently understood.

“Murdoc…” Mac murmured, burrowing impossibly closer, “--built for endurance.” His fingers lightly traced a particularly stiff, raised scar.

Oh that kind of endurance.

“You’ve survived a lot.”

“Oh yes, never a shortage of plans going wrong. Or people trying to kill me.” Murdoc brushed Mac’s persistently unruly bangs to one side. “Perks of ~The Job~, I suppose.”

“That’s what bothers me. You could be out there getting seriously hurt, or killed, and Cassian would be all alone, and I’d never know.”

“Sure you would. Either he’ll call you, or the school will.”

“Wait, you made me--” Mac shifted so he could look up at Murdoc, an incredulous smile on his face. “I’m his emergency contact??”

“You’re surprised?”

“What am I? Friend? Cousin? Long-lost brother?”

“My partner.” Murdoc’s heart swelled as Mac cupped his cheek, his thumb gently rubbing circles. “It’s vague, but I wanted something open to interpretation.”

“I like it.”

“Then...you’d like to be partners with me?”

Mac playfully bumped their noses together. “Is it too soon for pet names, because I have a killer one for you...”

[jennajayfeather]

Disney’s Tuck Everlasting (2002) makes me upset

Disney’s Tuck Everlasting (2002) was soooooo bad. Like I’ve probably complained about this so many times on my private twitter but I can actually make an essay on tumblr.

I guess we should start with some of the differences between the movie and the book. The book focuses strongly on exploring immortality: the Tuck’s feelings towards it, as well as the ethics of it. 

Winnie does have a puppy crush on Jesse Tuck, but that’s like...all it is. It doesn’t move past puppy love; for starters because in the book, she is only 10.

However in the story, Jesse does ask Winnie to marry him when she turns 17 (and drinks from the spring). I’m not going to talk about the ethics of this. It’s weird, especially in today’s standards. Which I suspect Disney had the biggest issue with. “How are we going to put a romance in this? We can’t have a 10 year old with a 17 year old.” 

So that’s probably why they went the “easiest” route and aged Winnie up. Which IMO, was a seemingly small decision that...well, made the whole foundation crumble.

Changes, even seemingly small ones, can change the trajectory of a story. Winnie (15...or was she 16...I can’t remember) is vastly different from Winnie (10). At first, things start off the same. She’s still looking for fireflies and meets the Man in the Yellow Suit. But in the movie, her mom wants her to go to boarding school and Winnie doesn’t want to because she “Doesn’t Want To Be Like The Other Girls” (literally they made her into an NLOG) so she runs off.  In the book, Winnie was just really bored stuck in her yard and she wanted to look in the woods, so she ran off.

It’s after she meets Jesse and the other Tucks that things vastly change. In the source material, Winnie and Jesse didn’t have many interactions with each other. She thought he was cute and had a puppy crush; he must have liked to hang out with her because he asked her to marry him and that was like...really about the full extent of it.

I like what they did for the stage play (which I didn’t watch due to no money but I listened to all the songs on Spotify), where they climb trees and have general fun together.

That being said, I did not like what Disney did with them. It was literally just “He was a boy, she was a girl, can I make it anymore obvious?” Which I kind of think they were hurting because of the lack of source material. They did “kind of” have some chemistry when he showed her the stupidest tree ever. Which like, is something I’d be into personally, but they were romanticizing it so much I just got embarrassed.

So in the end, Jesse & Winnie’s relationship in the movie was reduced to like...a lot of smooching and sweet talking and I just don’t like that kind of stuff. It felt so off from the source material, where Winnie is supposed to be interacting with all the Tucks within a day. Whereas in the movie, she spent most of her time falling in love with Jesse...in like weeks.

Which, I think is beginning to show its issue. Tuck Everlasting is not a romance, nor is it meant to be...but that’s what Disney thought it was supposed to be.

So because the movie focused so strongly on Jesse & Winnie’s relationship, it began to take away from the other characters that Winnie was supposed to interact with. Mae was reduced to “the caring mother.” Angus more or less had the same role he had in the story...but Miles. My poor, sweet Miles.

The movie slaughtered that man. Like the rest of the Tucks he can’t die, but they found a way to butcher him.

In the story, the Tucks have their own personal views on immortality, and each of them influences Winnie in some way or another. Angus is the first one to introduce her to “The Wheel” (basically the circle of life) and he takes her out on a boat to show her the pond. 

Jesse is the most optimistic, but Mae also seems pretty optimistic as well, and wants the family to be closer.

Miles, however, is the character that was most screwed over by his immortality. He had a family (a wife & children) and they left him, because they thought he sold his soul to the Devil. 

And this part stays the same in the movie...but. In the story he had another role. That is, to show Winnie The Wheel and begin to talk about the ethics of it. He takes Winnie on their boat, and takes her fishing. She never went fishing before, and they talk more about The Wheel, how the world would be touching each other if no one died. She also amusingly thinks of how awful it’d be if there were immortal mosquitos (which she has a great point!!). There were lots of scenes I liked in here, especially where they pull in a fish, and Winnie starts crying because she doesn’t want Miles to kill it. And even though he wanted to bring home breakfast, he released it to not upset her (and tells his family they found NOTHING when they got back home to not embarrass her). Idk I thought it was sweet. And then like when they were talking, he talks about how he’s immortal he’d like to do something good for the world someday. He doesn’t know what, but he’d like to figure it out (and this also prompts Winnie to say “That’s what I’d like to do. Something important [with my life]). It’s a small scene but still.

ANYWAY. IDK there’s a lot about Miles that I found likeable...but what did Disney do??? Cut the fishing scene and butchered the rest of his character.

Basically made him into a man who’s always grumpy and miserable. He doesn’t like Jesse & Winnie’s relationship because he lost everything. He antagonized both of them. 

It’s interesting, because in the movie, he’s the one who got upset and kidnapped her. While in the story it was Mae, Jesse and Miles...and what did Miles do? HELP CONSOLE HER WITH THE REST OF THEM.

Furthermore, in the movie, the Man in the Yellow Suit found them because of Miles’s drinking and gambling...issues????? Actually as I look for a source for this because Im not sure if that’s how he found them (but the scene happened). But when I look for this I get more angry because google literally describes him as being kind & gentle AND THAT WAS NOT HOW HE WAS IN THE MOVIE IM LITERALLY SO UPSET AT THE MILES BUTCHERING!!!11!!

Anyway, I think part of the reason why he was slaughtered was because Miles & Angus kind of overlap. In the story, Angus’s introduction to The Wheel was actually one of the first things that happened, while Miles’s was last. But in other renditions, they save Angus’s things for the end, I guess because it’s iconic and short and no one really cares about talking more about the nuances other than “yeah the circle of life exists.” Even the stage play let me down when they were talking about Winnie being an “expert fisherman” and it was....Angus who pointed that out. 

I’m sorry Miles. I might write a fanfiction for you someday.

Anyway, so the point is by focusing more on Jesse and Winnie’s relationship, the other characters got screwed over. Which brings us to...

The Movie Ending Makes Absolutely No Sense.

Why did Movie Winnie not drink from the spring? 

The only reason why I know she wouldn’t is because of the source material, but it absolutely makes 0 sense from the narrative in the movie. Because the thing is...Winnie in the movie was not a 10 year old girl who was “kidnapped” by the Tucks and only meeting them for a day. She was with them for weeks, really had the best time of her life and fell in love with Jesse.

So what, is wanting immortality inherently wrong or something?? Was Angus’s little Wheel spiel so persuasive that she was like “yeah better to not drink the water.”

We don’t know. 

And there was no immortal toad. Which was one of my favorite moments, because it’s something I would do as a 10 year old. Like, you are given a vial of special water to drink when you are 17, then not even hours later, a dog comes and threatens the toad outside, so you pour it on him so he’ll be safe ROFL. And then made better that after the Tucks discover that Winnie died (WHICH IS ANOTHER THING DISNEY DID, THE Y MADE HER DIE EXACTLY AT 100 WHICH ISN’T A BIG DEAL BUT KIND OF JARRING) and that they find her toad, and they have absolutely no idea its immortal or anything. But it was touching, because in a strange way, they did cross paths with her again.

Anyway.

There were three things I wanted from the movie:

-Winnie and Jesse’s exchange that went like:

Winnie: How old are you? 

Jessie: 104

Winnie: How old are you, really?

Jesse: 17

Winnie: Wow 17, that’s old.

-Miles & Winnie Fishing Trip

-Immortal Toad

I LITERALLY GOT NONE OF THOSE. THEY COULDN’T EVEN LET THE TOAD BE IMMORTAL.

[daughterofsarenrae]

im in a complaining mood so here r some little ones:

HATE when the promoted art post or whatever is a gif. stop MOVING i dont want to see MOVEMENT its so distracting. at least let me make it go away/turn the gif animation off.

HATE that tumblr doesn't let you make posts non-rebloggable. i've been wanting this feature for years and i guarantee you a lot of other people have too. PLEASE let us turn off reblogs just like you can turn off replies. PLEASE

i really wanna write but idk what so. guess i wont

i cancelled dnd tonight bc exhaustion and also didnt plan. how do i make myself plan i just dont know how to do it anymore. did i ever? no

work is crazy this week and i'm not a fan memorial day can kiss my ass

my new coworker is like LITERALLY 15 and im just like. you are a child i cant curse in front of you. but now how am i supposed to complain at work. hhhhhhhhhhh

angus wont cuddle me right now bc he wants to run around and knock shit over instead. unbelievable

wait ok another one angus has decided chewing on his tower is fun and like! im happy for him! i specifically picked out the fabric i used so he could chew. but the NOISE it makes is the MOST ANNOYING it could possibly be. my son. please have mercy. you can chew but dont do it for like. 5 minutes straight.......i beg of you.......

[ilkkawhat]

For the SOULMATE Alphabet prompt, can I ask E or ESP for Jack Dalton/Angus MacGyver please? All these prompts sound like so much fun!

[be gentle with me it’s been like. years since i’ve written these two. i’m being dramatic it’s only been three months.]

There’s one reason and one reason only Jack and Mac would allow themselves to be apart for long times at long distances, and that reason was something that even all of the infinite science in Mac’s brain, all of the infinite wisdom in Jack’s heart couldn’t even explain.

They figured it out when they had parted ways after Lake Como. Both had been too injured to realize that the pain they were feeling—on top of what they were already feeling—was each other’s. Mac thought the pain in his head was his mind overworking itself trying to reconcile Nikki’s (supposed) death. Jack thought the pain in his chest was the early signs of a heart attack, not uncommon in his family. 

They hadn’t seen each other in nearly a month. Mac was finally out of the hospital, Jack was at his apartment. Jack didn’t quite know what to do, give the kid space or hover over him as an emotional Overwatch support, but he ultimately figured that Bozer would tend to him and that he would just pop by for a visit—which never happened because every time he thought of going, there was a forcefield of guilt that kept him from passing through the unlocked threshold to Mac’s house.

Mac, meanwhile, thought it was bad enough that he lost Nikki, he didn’t want to lose Jack, too. His fingers would constantly key over Jack’s number in his phone that he had memorized forwards and backwards. But he didn’t want to bother him. Figured that he was busy with a new job cause the older man was always working non-stop, as much as he would “complain” about the mundaneness of a nine-to-five job; all the paperwork and meetings and lack of an appropriate amount of sick days or whining for a raise, he knew that really Jack just wanted to keep himself busy, occupied.

Or otherwise he’d end up where Mac thought he was in that moment, on a couch, wrapped up in a bathrobe.

“Jack?” Mac gasped himself awake from an almost-nap. He sat up and threw his hand to his side, expecting it to land on Jack’s shoulder, or knee, or just any part of his body that would elicit some witty remark, “the lights go out in those bright eyes of yours, hoss?”

His hand didn’t touch anything. But he definitely felt Jack there with him, on his couch. Smelled him, too. And he was overcome with some strange...sadness. Remorse. It wasn’t a foreign emotion to him at the time, so he had sort of shrugged it off, thinking his mind was playing tricks on him, that the pain meds were too strong.

And then Jack woke him up with a phone call.

“Were you just at my house?” his tone was laced with the usual paranoia that came when anything was out of place at his apartment, but there was an odd sort of seriousness and urgency that Mac felt, too.

“No. Did you come here?” 

“No, not since I drove by last night to drop off some pizza and beer.”

“That was you? Why didn’t you come in?”

“Boze said you were sleepin’ and I didn’t wanna wake you.”

“Well...you woke me up now,” Mac smiled though he knew Jack couldn’t see it.

Yet in a way, he could.

“What is going on here, hoss? It-it’s like you’re sitting right in front of me.”

“I don’t know. You wanna come over? Maybe we can sit by the fire and try to figure it out together.”

“Aight. Be there in ten.”

Jack lived fifteen minutes away.

They sat by the fire and once they passed by the awkward small talk they were able to properly catch up; though Mac didn’t have much to offer with the bed rest he had been sentenced to, but was pleased to announce that he would be beginning his rehab. Jack, meanwhile, got a gig being a stunt coordinator—disguising the fact with a cough that he was also partaking in some of the more dangerous stunts himself. 

It was good that it happened, a brief reunion before a more permanent one that came months later when they got to go back to work together, the small steps leading to a true recovery of a slightly tarnished friendship in the face of a failed mission.

It wouldn’t be the last time.

They don’t feel anything unexpected, again, thinking it was just their own emotions they were waving through and the yearning for each other’s presence, but one of the first times they were separated, it was stronger than ever before. 

And it wasn’t even that big of a separation. Just a few feet. A couple more feet. Maybe the length of a basketball court, at most. Mac moving backwards. Jack standing still. Jack could feel the panic rising within Mac as he scrambled to defuse the bomb Jack was standing on. Mac could feel the sheer dread and terror pouring out of the sweat beads on Jack’s skin. 

The stakes hadn’t been so high since Mac had to disarm a bomb within an impossible amount of seconds back at the sandbox—and in hindsight, he can’t help but wonder if that’s when they had formed this new sort of...bond. 

Jack must have figured it out too, because the next time it happened, just a week or so later, it came after Mac had been taken and drugged by the cartel. Jack was in full on rescue mode, dressed from head to toe in tactical gear—but he had to remove the helmet when he felt like he had some sort of mask smothered on top of his face. And then he felt lightheaded. And then he felt...woozy. 

He pushed through it to save Mac—and in seeing Mac the odd sensation had washed away but when Mac told him that’s exactly what he felt when he was put under, the pieces were put together in Jack’s head.

“What kind of Vulcan mind-meld shit is this!?”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s like we’re getting into each other’s heads, a-and feeling each other when we’re apart.”

“You can admit it Jack, you just miss seein’ your sunshine boy,” Mac had waved him off with a poor imitation of his accent. 

“I’m serious, buddy this is...this is real. I-I don’t know how to explain it but it’s like we’re...we’re…”

“Soulmates?”

“Yeah! That’s the word.”

“How romantic.”

Jack couldn’t help but feel slightly hurt by Mac’s downplay of his emotions, their emotions over their new transcended level of connection he never thought he would have with another man, let alone another person in his life.

But Mac would soften when his emotions got cranked to eleven. 

It was their first real argument since the Sandbox. Jack tracking Mac down to Paris—which, with this new sixth sense of being able to feel Mac wherever he was when he wasn’t with Jack, he didn’t need to work as hard but he still explained how easy it was to track him down, even without their newfound “special powers,” as Jack claimed them to be—and beyond the confusion he was secretly pleased to have such an ability, harkening back to his childhood days of reading comic books and jumping off couches with a bedsheet cape on his back. 

They both felt each other’s resentment, each other’s anger, until Jack calmed down when Mac called an apologized. He let Mac’s voice go to voicemail, but followed his call like he was lured by a siren.

Even though he tried to joke about a “groveling apology” that he knew Mac wasn’t actually going to give him despite the actual upset he had felt and truly wanted to apologize for to Jack, Jack entered the house knowing something was wrong.

Because he couldn’t feel Mac at all. Couldn’t feel him joking around with Bozer. Couldn’t feel him lost and searching for a deadbeat father who abandoned him—a sensation Jack didn’t quite understand until he felt Mac reliving it in his worst nights. Couldn’t feel him happy to be with the Phoenix family.

Mac’s house was as empty as Jack felt, and he was on the verge of losing it like never before—until he felt a cold shiver creep through is body. Felt a sharp prick, felt like his body was being pumped and drained at the same time.

Felt fear mixed with anger mixed with...vague...intrigue and the last time he felt it, Jack was at the mercy of a small red dot boring into his chest while Mac played the most dangerous game of cat and mouse.

And this time, he was the mouse.

“My spidey-senses are all telling me the same thing...It’s Murdoc.”

He hoped and prayed that he could somehow ease Mac’s terror with his own determination to find him. He swallowed down his tears, swallowed down his guilt for the sake of giving the kid some sort of hope with a forced sense of confidence that he would find him in no time.

And no time is exactly what he felt. What they both felt. Jack’s confidence turned to confusion when Mac no longer felt trapped, but instead...lost. And paranoid. Even more paranoid than Jack himself. 

So lost that even when they physically found each other, it still seemed like forever until they emotionally found each other again, with more and more separations, more victimizations on their more deadly missions with gunshots and electrocutions and gas chambers. Fits of inexplicable rage and jealousy as they explored other interests besides each other. Odd sensations of loneliness when they weren’t working together. 

Even when they were actually trapped together in Mac’s house, sitting on another bomb, it took them a whole episode of reminiscing how they got together in the first place that made them realize how no matter how often they would be lost from one another, they would always find each other, even in their worst moments. 

And it was after that near miss they both exchanged real apologies. Mac admitted that perhaps this “mind meld” was real after all. Jack said “having you stuck with me ain’t so bad after all. Toldja I’m never gonna leave you, there’s definitely no getting rid of me now.”

“But...what’s going to happen when...one of us dies?” Mac didn’t even want to ask it. Didn’t actually even say the words. 

Jack asked the same thing when he was prematurely laid to rest in a burning coffin, descending into hell and screaming for Mac both in the literal sense and the emotional sense—so much so that Mac could hardly take it—he felt like he was on fire and oh god, he actually was as he put his hands on the burning wood and freed Jack from inferno. 

“Being burned alive...was always curious,” Jack breathed, putting a hand that oddly felt ablaze on his chest, while Mac danced on figurative hot coals.

“You’re insane, man.”

“I don’t think death is the end,” Jack answered him finally, when they were being wrapped up by the paramedics.

“How much smoke did you inhale?” Mac almost laughed, confused as to what he was referring to, thinking he had some sort of existential realization on the precipice of death.

“But wh-what if when one of us dies...the other will too? Kaboom-kaboom,” Mac continued the conversation after a particularly rough day spent in the war room with a beaten, sunken black eye while Jack ran around pretending to be a lone wolf yet he was wrangling up the pack and doing a favor by helping out his daughter’s real father, the conflicting emotions of which didn’t ease Mac’s troubles, either.

“Told ya, that won’t be it. There’s gonna be something after kaboom. For both of us.”

“Then why do you always fight so hard for us not to explode?”

“Cause I can’t let you have too much fun when you’re dropping those improv-bombs to get us out of sticky situations. There’s still a few things I wanna do before I move on from this world.”

“Right, your bucket list,” Mac smiled. 

“Exactly, hoss. And what’s say...we cross another one off now?” 

They were interrupted, as always, by an emergency call that revealed the truth about Mac’s father, and a falsification of how they had been brought together.

“Who do you think pulled the strings to pair you two together in Afghanistan?”

Bullshit. And Jack made a point of pointing that out, and how dare he even make the implication that even if things didn’t work out between Jack and Mac, that there would just be another Overwatch put in his place, and another, until Oversight saw fit that his son would be taken care of like he never had done for him before?

Needless to say, there were a lot of emotions, conflicting ones at that—even Jack himself was torn between sucking up to the boss but also wanting to punch him in the face, and do minor things like refuse handshakes, accidentally trip him, anything to just...annoy him without a fireable offense, per se.

But when Mac left the Phoenix, he may as well have gone, too.

He still doesn’t know why he didn’t. Was it some sense of duty to protect the remainder of the pack? Was it the same hesitation he had when Mac took his leave of absence after Nikki’s death, wanting to give him space but still wanting to suffocate him at the same time? 

Was it fear that one day, Mac would walk away from him, too?

While the separation was brief, only a few months though it felt like years—especially when Jack felt the length of Mac’s hair on his own chin that allowed him to measure the actual length of time that had elapsed, when they came face to face again it still felt like they were worlds apart.

Because Mac abandoned his family. 

Mac abandoned Jack.

And in what godforsaken world would that happen?

The same world where Jack would do the same almost half a year later. 

“NO!” Mac shouted, rising from another cold-sweat nightmare. 

Jack laid beside him, startled awake. 

“Everything okay, hoss?” Jack whispered. 

“Just...just...had a bad dream,” Mac whispered back. 

They would keep their voices low, but their emotions high. There were certain things that just had to be said to be understood as felt between them.

“I missed you,” Mac gulped. 

“You know I’m right here, don’t ya?” Jack laughed from his own bed, Mac felt a gentle scratching at the back of his head.

“I know. I know you’re here, it’s just…”

He turned his head, he didn’t even know why he was whispering, the house had never been so silent before. No snoring Bozer. No Jack strumming the guitar on a restless night. No keys clicking beneath the speed of Riley’s rapid fingers. No phonecalls from Matty.

“You’re not. Not even alive.”

“Who in the hell told you that?”

“The...the army.”

Mac’s phone rang, he answered without even looking at the number. The ring was for a video call, so he lazily pulled the string of his bedside lamp.

Jack was on the other side, soft fauxhawk and subtle stubble tracing the start of a beard on his face.

“My God, what fucked up dream did you have, man?” 

“The kind that lasts forever,” Mac mumbled. “That felt...too real…”

“I turned down the Kovac mission, you remember that, right? The image was fake. Just a taunt. The broadcast orchestrated by Murdoc just to dick around with us again.”

“I know, I know it just...I can’t help but wonder what could have...could have happened if you…”

“You gotta stop beating yourself up so much, kid. I’ve told you, over and over, this ain’t one of those ‘you hurt me, so I’mma hurt you’ sort of games. We don’t do that manipulative shit.”

“Jack, I left you—”

“You left the Phoenix. I stayed. My choice.”

Jack suddenly felt the corners of his eyes burn. The corner of Mac’s eyes burn.

“I wanted you to come with me.”

“I know. And I wanted to.”

“I know,” Mac swallowed. “I...I felt that you did but...why didn’t you?”

“You walked away that day but you didn’t walk alone. I was there with you the entire time. You know that.”

“But you weren’t!” 

“You’re right. You’re right,” Jack shook his head, squeezing his face. He waved his tongue over his lips, Mac suddenly felt freshness over the chapped flesh that was trembling as he held the tiny screen of Jack in between his hands.

“I...I knew how you felt, being abandoned by your Dad...Cause I did that to Riley.”

“You didn’t...abandon her—”

“Then what would you have called it?”

It was a question Mac didn’t have an answer to.

“Regardless, I think it’s safe to say that you’re not the only one with abandonment issues, I’m just...on the other side of the spectrum. Worlds apart from the pain you musta felt when dear ol’ Dad leftcha and I shouldn’ta tried to push you back together without thinking how you might have felt—”

“Jack, Jack, it’s fine. I-I know you just...you had good intentions. Cause of what happened to your Dad.”

Jack nodded, wiped a hand over the running nose that Mac felt, though his was dry.

“And anyway, I just. I was scared, I guess. Didn’t know what to do. Hadn’t been on that side of the coin before. It may have hurt you but it...it hurt me, too.”

“I know it did. And I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry, too.” 

“So...where do we go from here?” Mac asked, clearing his throat. 

“Doesn’t matter, really. Cause no matter where you go, where I go, where we both go...We have each other.”

Mac felt Jack’s touch, though it was a poor substitute for the real deal, as he closed his eyes and envisioned him sitting next to him, his arms wrapped around him, hugging him to his chest. 

“Forever,” Mac sighed, and Jack smiled as he felt the reassurance that while it had been stretched and twisted and tested, their bond would never be broken.

Not even in a death that Jack oddly felt he had just narrowly missed by some sort of guardian angel watching over him.