#and not wanting morse to see him like that; wanting perhaps to still be the person he used to be

[terribleoldwhitemen]

just finished rewatching s6 and can confirm it makes as little sense the second time around as it did the first. win telling thursday "it wasn't about the money" girl it was LITERALLY about the money. fred "gotta turn in cold case evidence that'll do more harm than good bc otherwise it's Corruption" and then letting box talk him into accepting kickbacks? my man WHAT kind of moral calculus does russell lewis have you doing. meanwhile morse has been reset to season one ("I feel like I'm going in circles") and he's just vibing. gets himself a new lewk, solves some mysteries, goes house hunting. no big deal. thursday is over at castle gate full on spiralling from shame & guilt but it's fine, totally fine, we don't need to textually address that at any point whatsoever.

[faith-forgxtten-land]

Hi! Do you think you can write something for Donatello? Maybe the reader wakes up and he's in bed for once and its very soft

Serenity | Donatello

hi! of course i can! you didn't specify what version of donnie you wanted so i went with bayverse because i'm kind of on a roll with that iteration atm so... also there is a severe lack of bayverse donnie gifs

warnings: nothing really. suggestive? subtle morse code that isn't explicitly mentioned... which isn't a warning unless you consider morse code scandalous? everyone is 18+!!! also there's like no proofreading so reading is always at your own risk but if you ever notice any, please do point out any spelling/grammar etc. errors!

summary: you wake up before donnie who's actually in bed (it's a miracle)

word count: 859

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

The first thing you hear is the distant whirring of technology. You don’t bother to open your eyes as you shift your hips ever so slightly to seek a more comfortable position now that you’re slowly gaining consciousness. Pausing your lethargic movements, you become keenly aware of the heavy and solid weight curled around you that most definitely hadn’t been there when you first fell asleep. You breathe in deep. A musty scent of oil and sweat and something you’re sure isn’t pleasant hits you. It’s so him that you don’t even wrinkle your nose. Instead, you reach out a hand and find his skin.

You can feel him breathing like this. It’s slow and steady and your heart feels like bursting. You press closer and your lips smile against the swell of his arm. A few soft kisses won’t wake him, you decide, pressing them gently over his scales. He doesn’t stir as you link your fingers with his. His arm is heavy with muscle, but you manage to lift the dead weight to your mouth, breathing the softest of kisses all over the flesh. It’s so different and so much bigger than your own but your hands fit together perfectly. You open your eyes, only a little blearily, and you imagine the silliest heart emojis that replace them as you stare in quiet reverence.

He’s so perfect it hurts. He’s snoring quietly, more of a whistle really, and his mouth is open with his glasses askew. He looks so cosy and dorky and unbelievably Donnie that you have to stifle a lovesick giggle. He looks both serene and tired at the same time and you can’t believe he actually came to bed of his own volition. Getting him to bed is a Herculean effort at the best of times, for him to sleep – in an actual bed – without your nagging insistence and underhand tricks is nothing short of a miracle. He’s still wearing his suspenders too and you think, a little wryly, that perhaps he was more tired than even he realised.

Your hand cups his face and you rub your thumb over his jaw, in awe at the man beneath your palm and feeling a little silly over how emotional you're being. His face twitches and you pause your ministrations, holding your breath. You don’t want to wake him; he must’ve been exhausted and you’re not sure how long he’s been asleep beside you. He continues to sleep, and you breathe again, this time pressing your lips to his neck. 

I love you, you mouth against his skin. I love you so much. He must feel it, whether he feels you physically or as deep in his being as you feel him, because he churrs softly and it makes your eyes burn. God, you’re so in love. You’ve been in love with him for so long you can’t remember what it felt like before he came into your life. You’re not really sure what’s coming over you this morning (is it morning? It’s not like you can see the sunrise like this) but as your lips tremble you find that you don’t mind. Donnie deserves to be loved like this, wholly and reverently, and you vow, not for the first time and certainly not for the last, to love him like this forever. 

You’re not sure how long you stay like that. The position isn’t the most comfortable and you can feel the pain in your neck that runs along your spine, but you can’t bring yourself to move. You want this moment to last as long as it possibly can and you’re thankful that the Lair is peaceful for once. There are no noises to indicate any of the others are up and you hope it stays that way, just for a while longer.

Your wish is almost immediately denied as you hear a crash and brazen laughter that can only belong to Mikey (followed, of course, by an annoyed bellow that can only belong to Raph) and you can’t help the quiet snort even as the turtle beside you is disturbed from his slumber.

Donnie shifts and his snout is buried in your neck as he inhales, and you’re only given a few seconds to mourn the loss of his sleeping state (he really needs to sleep more) before he kisses your fluttering pulse, and you sigh in pleasure. His hand – the one you’re not keeping hostage still – grips your bare thigh and you push yourself closer as his teeth graze the sensitive skin along the column of your throat. He doesn’t speak, choosing instead to tap a message along your skin as his hands caress upwards. I love you too.

You smile so wide it hurts your jaw. “You’re such a nerd,” you whisper, your voice thick and huskier than usual. He just brings his teeth together again, leaving little teasing bites, and taps your inner thigh once more. You shudder slightly and acquiesce his request, spreading your legs further for him and letting him rub higher and higher.

The two of you stay in bed until the afternoon.

[strangesapphics]

morsecodegate : a season 5 byler theory

- like in season 2, will uses morse code to communicate with the party.

- in season 5, under vecna's possession yet again, will is tied to a chair surrounded by loved ones. at a table, dustin sits with a notebook and pen in hand. lucas looks down at his hands folded together on his lap.

- on his knees next to the chair, mike holds will's limp hands dangling from the restraints. jonathan stands in the corner, observing the situation.

- dustin is determined. he cautiously requests for a sign that will is still in there, that vecna hasn't gotten complete control over him yet.

- after a sigh and shake of the head from jonathan, mike flinches. lucas looks up. will has begun tapping his fingers against the palm of mike's hand.

- he writes, "M-I-K-E".

- a wave of relief washes over the room. dustin holds up the notebook to jonathan, then to lucas, and smiles wide. lucas is not as convinced. ignoring them, mike softly thanks will for his message.

- but... moments later, will starts tapping again. mike alerts the room, and dustin readies his pen. he jots down each letter as mike voices them.

- "I" . "L" "O" "V" ...

- mike goes silent. lucas's eyes dart over at him. from his seat, he can see that will's hands are still moving. he questions this.

"mike. what else did he say?"

- mike waves him away.

"he's still writing! just - just give him a moment."

- lucas now looks over at dustin, who was deciphering will's signals on his own.

- he turns the notebook around. jonathan hurries over to look. it reads:

"I. L-O-V-E. Y-O-U."

- mike's eyes well with tears as he asks himself:

did will write,

"mike. i love you [guys]."

or

"mike, i love you."

?

- either way, mike and jonathan realize the same thing at the same time. will saying this indicates that he has given up. he's finally accepted that he is going to die. for the sake of the party, he must sacrifice himself - and this was the final message he wanted to transmit.

- at this, mike's panic attack ensues. from inside vecna's mind lair, will can hear it... something between sobbing, hyperventilating, and begs of

"i love you too, i love you so much."

- when his pleading is unsuccessful, mike is desperate to try any and everything to snap will out of the possession. dustin suggests slapping him.

- but mike has a different idea.

- he thinks, perhaps, a kiss would work.

[greenfiend]

For those still in doubt that Will flayed/influenced Hopper in ST3…

So when someone flays another basically what happens is, as Mike states they “[take] over their mind” and “basically become him”.

Now, it’s very interesting how in ST3 we see Hopper act childish- but exclusively in ST3. The very same season Will desperately holds onto his childhood.

It’s suspiciously very meta for him to say lines like this. It’s intentional. The writers didn’t just forget how to write Hopper. We are supposed to notice this abrupt shift in his persona and overall demeanour.

As Will says, he likes to hide. Interestingly enough Will and him share that in common. Note the “only used me when he needed me”. Same is true for Will using Hopper. Hopper still has moments where he is his “normal” self.

Whenever Hopper is “serious”, it’s really him. Whenever he’s emotional and kid-like, he’s under Will’s influence.

The Clues

So, let’s start by going over some of the major clues, shall we?

Him saying this to a Byers of course. Interesting writing choice.

The original script tells us that Will wears colourful clothes. That’s his style and he stands out because of it. Now it seems to be Hopper’s style all of a sudden too. It’s even noted by officer Powell here that it’s surprising to see Hopper dress this way.

Play these transition scenes. The first one has Lucas asking Will for permission to take a shower, then we are shown Hopper showering. I suppose Will granted Hopper said permission. Then of course we have El asking “how can you tell when someone’s a host?” afterwards the first person we see is Hopper himself. A perfect example of a host. They answered her question!

We are often shown Hopper acting childish. Look at how he’s holding his pillow! We never saw him doing this in seasons prior. Then we have Murray outright calling him a “manbaby” and “children”.

When “Hopper” orders an alcoholic beverage he struggles with the pronunciation. Reminiscent of a young person attempting (but failing) to appear older and more mature.

We even are shown him being fed lines that came from a Byers.

Now for the major clue. Why oh why did they show Will while Mike explained that Hopper threatened him? Not just Will, but Will moving pieces on a board. He’s essentially controlling things! Bending to his will, if you will. I mean it makes sense. We know Will was very jealous of Mike and El and complained about them! Just like Hopper, he wants them to break up. Perhaps even more than Hopper actually does.

Then we have Mike referring to him as crazy! That’s their special word, so naturally “Hopper”/Will does not take this well. Look at his face! He looks betrayed.

The References

It’s extremely subtle, but we have another Byler/Jopper parallel here. Earlier in 3x01, we see Joyce holding Hopper’s left hand, very reminiscent of Mike holding Will’s right hand last season. Then we have Hopper communicating in Morse Code as he and Mike fight to lock/unlock the car door several times. Notice how we have a shot of his left hand doing the locking of the door? Same one Joyce held. I’ve tried to work out what he’s communicating but I’m falling short. If anyone wants to take a stab at it please let me know your findings!

Then we have the Back to the Future references. Again very subtle, but there nonetheless. As we know, Will is compared to Marty Mcfly a fair bit, ever since his very first appearance!

Do you recall the plot of Back to the Future? Marty travels to the past, accidentally changes some things, then has to bring his parents back together! Will does the same thing… through Hopper!

And just like Marty… things get a tad bit awkward…

Now keep in mind… these scenes all occur within the same episode. While trying to set up his mother and Hopper together through “flaying” Hopper, Will accidentally gets his mom interested in him (as Hopper). That is why he refers to Murray as “Freud” aka the Psychologist who created the theory of “the Oedipus Complex”. This is also why Robin drops that line about of the movie.

So… How?

If you recall back in ST2, Hopper is spat on by something and was trapped in the UD. Will is able to sense him and thus is connected to him. Hopper is a part of Will’s hive mind. I also believe they may be biologically father and son… but that’s for another post.

The Implications of All of This…

So what does this mean? I’m not fully sure, but it seems like Will has some abilities here. I have no idea if it’s future Will manipulating things, or present Will and I’m not so sure how aware he is of all of this.

But in regards to Mike… here are some funny implications…

ST3 shows us a Mike with a peculiar fascination with bears. Bears seem to be associated with Will and “bear” has a specific other definition…

Now the icing on the cake with this is the fact that Mike has made comments regarding Hopper’s weight multiple times! So, he’s well aware of Hopper’s “bear” status. Mike shows interest in bears because he’s interested in Will. Will essentially is a “bear” while he is puppeteering Hopper.

It’s also nice to know that Will actually did get that hug he yearned for from Mike. We just didn’t realize it. Mike and “Hopper” hugged a tad longer than normal too while Will was facing them of course.

To conclude, I know this theory sounds so silly and I sound insane, but I swear to you… this is real. I may be wrong about some aspects of this but I know Will influenced Hopper in some way. Remember though, it’s not a constant thing. Will only “used him when he needed to”. Will experienced being flayed in ST2, then he became the “flayer” in ST3.

If you have any questions or comments about this theory feel free to send me an ask! These things are fun to think and talk about.

[dumpster-diving-rat]

How I think random bsd characters would tell you they love you (dating and not dating)

Edgar Allan Poe

-When you're not dating him, he's afraid to tell you about his feelings, practically admiring from afar whenever you two are together

-One day, whilst you're at his house, he hands you a book

-Whether or not you want his ability to be used is up to you, so I'll give you two versions here

-You get put into the book, there, you see a letter, in it is a confession of his feelings, if you looked around, you would notice you were in your favorite place, whether that's a place you've dreamed of going, or a place you've been to

-Once you get out after reading the confession, he is quite embarrassed, but tries to act normal

-The only reason why he didn't tell you in the book himself, was because he was too scared to see your reaction in real time, so he wrote the note for you to read while in the book

-If his ability was not used, it would be a book of love poems, confessing his love for you with many words, describing how he loves you with quite the description

-You can tell by the look on his face, in which he finally showed, that he was lovestruck

-He had fallen hard for you, and didn't plan on letting those feelings go

-However, when you are dating him, he shows his love similarly, but still different

-You will hear him say 'I love you' of course, but, sometimes he does it in ways you never thought he could do

-Did he learn different, slightly hidden ways to say I love you? Perhaps, but only for you, because he knows you'll find it, even if you don't understand it

-He gave you a few new love poems, he gives you different ones every week, but what you weren't expecting was at the top of every page, there was the same dots and lines -Wondering what it was? Well, it was morse code for I love you, but not just that, different variations of I love you. It seemed to be a different way of saying it every two pages. Such as 'I love you so much' and 'I love you more than every star in the sky'

-He did it all in morse code, just so you may or may not know it, even so, you'd have to translate it if you did know it

-He does give you some gifts outside of poems, but they have to do with what you like, such as flowers, or art supplies if you're an artist

-Yes, he's not the best at spending well, he spends a lot of unnecessary money, but he gets it back in a day or so, which makes him not care about all of that

-He loves you with his entire heart, and he reminds you with all of those weekly poems, and gifts

Ranpo Edogawa

-Before you started dating, this great detective had his eyes on you -He shared some snacks with you, to every other detectives surprise

-He's even asked Fukuzawa multiple times to let you go to cases with him, even if you hadn't asked to go with him

-Asking for you to go on cases with him was practically his way of getting closer to you, which was what he wanted

-One day, you went candy shopping with Ranpo. While you two were in the rain, standing under an umbrella, Ranpo suddenly said "I love you" to you. Of course it caught you off guard, I mean, you both weren't really speaking, and it was just so sudden

-Cue the prolonged eye contact moment, because he actually opened his eyes, and stared at you

-You two continued walking back to the agency in the rain after a small talk. Wait, are you two holding hands now? Absolutely, yes you are, and Ranpo was happily grinning

-Now, when you're dating him, he is a bit clingy, and is probably demanding hugs (and kisses if you want those too)

-He probably says I love you at least 20 times in one day, mainly while he is getting held by you

-Ranpo will share a few snacks with you, but doesn't really get you many gifts

-I'd say gift giving isn't really his love language, I'd say it's physical touch, and probably even words of affirmation

-He just want to be held and praised for his work, while he tells you he loves you (and that he wants more affection, like the clingy person he is)

-He just wants to be lazy with you all day, sleeping, and eating snacks

Kunikida Doppo

-He didn't exactly expect to fall so hard for you, but, you fit a lot of his ideals, and he just didn't know what to do of it

-He would gift you things that you like, probably slightly smaller things, but still things you like or want

-There's a book you want? Well, surprise, he bought it for you, but it's 'no big deal'

-Dazai found out immediately, and would tease him so much for his little crush, and would talk about how his ideals would make you 'run away'

-Kunikida's face was almost always a slight pink around you

-One time you got close to his face to take a look at his eyes, because you were a bit interested in them, and he turned the reddest shade of red anyone could ever see

-If you ever complimented him, he would stop functioning, even if he never acts that way towards anyone else

-Because Yosano couldn't go shopping unfortunately, (she actually could but Dazai and Yosano ship you and Kunikida together, so she acted like she couldn't) she recommended you go with Kunikida, because he had good time management, and you and Yosano never knew how to keep track of time while shopping together. Thus, you asked him, and he agreed, hesitantly (if you listen closely, you can hear Yosano and Dazai snickering and whispering with each other about you two practically going on a date together, and high fiving each other)

-You and Kunikida did your shopping, while he made sure you didn't over spend, and made it back on time

-Before leaving, and putting your bags in his trunk, he asked if he could tell you something

-Then, he confessed. Saying how perfect you were, and how you were the ideal person for him. He asked you if you wanted to go on a date sometime as well

-He looked a lot happier for the rest of the day when you were both back at the agency

-Dazai and Yosano knew something definitely went down, because it seemed like you were slightly flustered, and Kunikida looked happier than his usual stern face

-"Sooo Kunikida, how'd your little date go with name hmm?" Dazai then got pummeled by Kunikida

-When you're dating Kunikida, you won't always hear an I love you at the ADA (if you choose to work there)

-However, he does message it to you when checking up on you, and does say it while you're both at home

-You'll most likely hear it at least once or twice a day

-He does still give you the small gifts, like I mentioned earlier, but will give you flowers too, and you'll see them mainly when you two go on dates, it's your anniversary, or Valentine's day, which are classic, but it's sweet nonetheless

-He doesn't do that much physical touch, but if you ask for a hug, a kiss, or practically anything, he will do it, just not in public

-You can hold hands in public with him, but that's pretty much the only thing he will do with you in public

-He just prefers to keep it more private, but maybe if it's not so crowded, he'll kiss you, or hug you, whatever you want, really. Just know you have to be the one to ask, because he won't do it

-Consent is everything to Kunikida, and he will always ask for your approval before doing anything that has to do with physical affection with you

Dazai Osamu

(TW: there is one mention of suicide, if that makes you uncomfortable, you could just skip to the dating part, or you could skip this in general)

-Oh. My. God.

-He will tease and flirt with you, and only you once he falls in love with you

-He does practically everything for you, sometimes even without asking

-You accidentally cut your hand or finger? Dazai is already there with bandages, and is cleaning your wound

-Probably kisses your wound as a joke, while flirting with you in the process

-You don't think he's being serious, in fact, you know he can't be

-But, here you are, helping him with paperwork, in his living room

-He isn't doing much, it's more like you do almost all of it, and then he finishes the rest of it

-He walks up to you once you're done and sitting on the couch, and sits next to you

-He gives you a hug, while flirting and giving you random words of affirmation

-While he's hugging you, he stops doing his flirting, and looks right into your eyes

-You get confused at his change in demeanor, but before you can say anything, he says 'I love you'

-You ask if he's being serious, to which he stares at you again, with a serious face, which you don't really see often

-"Honestly, how could you not tell? I've slowed down trying suicide. Did you not notice that?" Dazai is still staring at you, and now you're starting to realize it all

-"You've become such an impact in my life, angel" Yes, he did just give you a new nickname, and he will never stop calling you that from now on

-Dating him is barely different, he gives you every ounce of love he can

-I see his love language as physical touch, and he would cuddle you basically everyday, hugging you, giving you many, many kisses (unless you don't want that, he will respect that, as will every other character, so don't fret)

-He loves to lay on you, or rest his head on your lap, he's surprisingly clingy

-He says I love you almost every second, and you will hear it everyday, as well as see it on your messages everyday too

-You will get gifts often, and compliments everyday

-The gifts are typically stuff you like or want, as well as things like flowers

I hope you enjoyed this, if you have a request, you can comment it, I don't have an ask box, and idrk how the ask box works, so just comment or message me ♡

[mywingsareonwheels]

In which I ramble about Morse again :D

Oh Morse. The endless dilemma that is this: he constantly feels like he's been abandoned and is alone, from more or less the age of 12 for the rest of his life, but from the moment Fred Thursday chooses him in the pilot of Endeavour, he isn't. From then on he's loved, and constantly has people in his life who have no intention of leaving it; who either don't leave it (Max, Strange, maybe Dorothea, perhaps Joan though that's complicated, Lewis once he arrives), who do so without remotely wanting to (Fred and Win), or who just do for reasons that don't mean any lack of love for him (Jakes, Trewlove, Fred and Win as far as Carshall, Bright, Sam, I assume McNutt). Um, or who he himself fucks up towards so he loses them that way (Monica, Adele). Not to mention the existence of Joyce! He doesn't find a long-term romantic partner, let alone someone he can marry and have children with. But he's always got at least a couple of people who adore him kicking around. <3

I so love the moment in s9 of Endeavour when Fred points out that Jakes always thought a lot of Morse, and of course Morse disputes that, because Jakes to start with was an absolute dick towards him. But as Fred says, Jakes turned up on Morse's doorstep! (I think that exchange really is key: I mean, sure, Fred can be an optimist, but when we see everything through Morse's eyes (which is mostly what we're shown)... oh my do we miss things. Morse doesn't see how much Jakes' opinion of him grows and changes, and that we are given an insight into; what else doesn't he see which we therefore have to infer?

Due to a) his own trauma, b) circumstances, c) the fact that he is monumentally bad at receiving love (and can get really unnerved when people try, so they stop trying), d) that most of the people who love him are monumentally bad at making their feelings clear even when c) isn't in play... oh, but his belief that he's abandoned and alone is utterly sincere and painfully understandable, even while it's also sometimes frustrating to watch. "I'm being left alone, no one I'm close to will still be in Oxford!" MAX. IS. RIGHT. THERE. MORSE. "Thursday is going and I doubt he ever loved me." His heart is breaking, Morse, you're both just idiots and he did the worst fuck-up of his life while trying to save his son.

And honestly, that's... I mean, it's desperately relatable, isn't it? We've all been there, or at least, a lot of us have. In that space where we can't see the love that's in front of us, and where we see rejection where there's none. His trauma growing up and then at college, all the appalling lack of emotional intelligence or openness among, well, everybody around him. The fact that the people he gets on best with are all ultimately really fricking traumatised too and have their own Stuff. There are some agonising mistakes all round, but...

... but ultimately, Max was with Morse as long as he could be. And Lewis was a loyal friend to him from almost the first moment they met. And Strange was with him when he died.

And no one can tell me that Fred Thursday didn't miss him for the whole rest of his life. (Nor that they never wrote to each other! I still think they did. ;-) I also would be unsurprised if Morse gets letters from Trewlove, Bright, and Jakes. :-) )

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟

Pardon the formatting! On my phone!

—-

129 for zombies

—-

“Hey, no,” Buck shakes his head. “I just… I wish I knew how to help.”

There’s nothing Buck could do to help beyond what he’s already done.

“You’re good,” Eddie whispers.

“How about we, uh…We go to your family’s and see about that?”

Eddie nods. “Yeah. Okay.”

There’s nothing else to do.

He feels hollow as they get back into the truck. Buck offers to drive and Eddie lets him. He wants to scream.

Could it be possible that all of this, every fucking risk, was for nothing?

▪️▪️▪️

Obviously, they don’t find any of Eddie’s family either. Their bags have been packed. Houses boarded up. They tried to leave.

Eddie really hopes they made it.

Though, he supposes he’ll never fucking know, will he?

That seems to be the theme of the day. There are no answers available. Eddie will spend forever wondering.

They crash at Abuela’s. There’s still furniture in the house. And even though it feels eerie and wrong to be there without her, at least there’s a roof over their heads. They’re exhausted, and make the call to go to sleep early, then leave to head back to Sunport as soon as they’re awake. Eddie sleeps on the couch, unable to bring himself to sleep in his grandmother’s room, while Buck sleeps on the bare mattress of the guest bed.

As the sun sets, Eddie finds himself unable to hold anything back anymore. Alone finally, he begins to cry.

He’s so incredibly frustrated. Frustrated and heartbroken. He thought he’d be able to track her down. He thought, despite all the things that were over and ruined because of the apocalypse, he could still hold onto the hope of closure with Shannon.

He’ll never get a chance to apologize.

He is always, always too late.

And Christopher will suffer for it.

Eddie feels a deep and dark well of self-loathing. He feels useless. He feels disastrous. He has no idea what the point is anymore. What’s the point of anything he’s done?

“Eddie?”

Fuck. He’s been too loud. He thought he was quieter. God, this is embarrassing.

“It’s fine. I’m fine.” Eddie tries to make him go away. He really doesn’t need any extra attention drawn to this.

“You don’t sound fine.”

Well, no. He’s not really. But he also doesn’t need the humiliation.

“I’ll be fine,” Eddie amends.

Buck doesn’t leave. “Do you want to talk about it?”

It’s too dark to see one another, so Buck doesn’t see the aghast look on Eddie’s face.

“No,” he replies.

“Should you anyway?”

Perhaps! But that doesn’t change the way the thought of talking about it makes him feel. Which is tense and tight and horrified.

“I just feel like a fool,” Eddie admits, shifting into a sitting position. “My son could have died for nothing. Now I have to go back and tell him we won’t find his mom. We’ll just never know.”

“He’ll know you tried,” Buck says. Eddie hears him walk closer. “That’s something.”

But is it enough? Eddie isn’t sure.

“Maybe,” he replies. “I just don’t know what to do from here.”

“You mentioned sisters?” Buck asks. Eddie has brought them up in passing a few times. “Where are they?”

“Yeah,” Eddie answers. “Sophia and Adriana. They traveled northeast with Sophia’s husband. In search of some safer coastal communities.”

“But you don’t know if they made it?” Buck guesses.

“No,” Eddie confirms.

Buck sighs. “Man, I’m sorry. I know… I know the uncertainty eats at you.”

Eddie doesn’t reply. The uncertainty had ended happily for Buck. Eddie doesn’t think he’s going to be so lucky.

“Honestly?” Buck continues. “Maybe just come back to Sunport for a while. It’s safe. Christopher has kids his age to play with. It’s a good place to rest and find a new plan.”

Eddie considers this. It’s probably the best thing to do. Buck is right. It’d be nice to give Chris some stability for a while. Let him be a kid. Spend time working on skills like reading and math, not Morse Code.

“I don’t want to overextend our welcome,” Eddie says cautiously.

“Oh, we’d put you to work,” Buck assures him. “You’re fit. Potentially have useful skills.”

“Potentially?” Eddie echoes, affronted.

“I don’t know,” Buck teases. “Can’t break down a door. Made me shoot the zombie…”

“I was upset!”

“Uh huh,” Buck replies doubtfully.

“Ask your sister how my shooting is,” Eddie grumbles.

“It’s okay. I can teach you the fishing nets. Maybe we can make some more.”

Just like that, Eddie knows he’s going to do what Buck suggests. Somewhere friendly. Somewhere safe for Chris. Somewhere where a handsome, shirtless man can teach him to make fishing nets on the beach. Okay, maybe he threw in some extra details on that one.

“Thank you, Buck,” Eddie says, sighing. “You’re right.”

[10moonymhrivertam]

A lil Dreamling bodyswap thing I’m directly copy-pasting from my phone notes, hopefully I get back to it someday

Apparently I was taking inspo from a Witcher post I’ve lost XD I’m gonna go look for it

@avelera if you’re interested 💜

~~~

“Sounds like you’re living the dream.” Their lips curl into a conspiratorial smile over their glass. “Still. All bounds of ‘reasonableness’ aside. If you could have anything you wanted. What would it be?”

“Careful. Dressed like sin, shelling out for the good whiskey…a man might think you’re trying to trap him with a question like that.”

“Who, little old me?” They batted their eyes. Hob wondered if perhaps they knew Morse code for ‘I am absolutely trapping you’. “I’m just having a bit of fun. Come on, what could it hurt?”

Hob frowned at them. “Are you one of the Fair Folk?” He blurted.

They snorted, and their coy smile twisted downward into something just short of a sneer. “The faeries dipped out half a millennium ago.” Hob felt a little dizzy, his brain buffering through the realization that it was within his lifetime. As the matter-of-fact tone penetrated past the haze, he found himself rewarding the frankness with honesty.

“I’d like to know what’s going on in my best friend’s head once in a while.” STHe hesitated, but…in for a penny. “[Dissonance of glad to be back but definitely traumatized?]”ST

“A ‘walk a mile in their shoes’ sort of thing?”

Hob snorted. “Not sure I have enough style in me for his shoes.”

“You never know.” They shrugged sinuously. They set down their glass and stretched, full-bodied. It was the dangerously toothy yawn that really made it cat-like. “I really must be off.” They stood, pausing beside his seat. “Good to meet you, darling.” They pressed a kiss to his temple. A sudden shiver ripped down his spine.

“Good to meet you, too,” he said absently

*

For five centuries, Hob always remembered when he dreamed, even if their details slipped away like water come morning. In his sixth century, it was more questionable. He suspected he still dreamed, but he never woke up with anything on his mind, unless it was old memories returned to haunt him. He was just getting used to having the full experience back, which is what made the blankness he was waking up from so strange. He was so preoccupied with it, staring into the middle distance, that it took him at least three minutes to register the voice that had groaned when he’d sat up; the fine bedding beneath the hands propping him up; the wall he was staring in the direction of.

[And then he wanders around and eventually runs into Matthre and Lucienne. Matthre recognizes him as not-Dream on a close examination]

“That’s not ideal.” He’d hoped speaking would calm him down a little, but - he knew that voice. That fucker. They’d never actually denied being Fae, had they? Hoping he was wrong, he looked around for a mirror. He felt himself call it, but it appeared like in a dream - like he’d simply overlooked it before. The face staring back at him was familiar in all the wrong ways, save the eyes. Instead of the icy blue he’d expected, there were voids with twin stars. As bizarre as it seemed, it - kind of fit, actually. Hob raised a hand to his face reflexively, resting under his eye. It was strange to see Dream’s figure doing it.

“Right. Okay. Right.” Wind rattled at the doors to the balcony - balcony? Of course Dream had a balcony. “Maybe if I figure out where we are?” He mumbled to himself, making for the door. For all that Dream seemed more amenable to sharing personal information now (a name, even!), they were still used to Hob doing all the talking, and they hadn’t met much yet despite agreeing to keep a more friendly schedule. He hoped he was in or near London, but there was a pit in his stomach that doubted it. It grew as he stepped into the hall and realized just how massive Dream’s home must be.

He picked a direction and set off. Whatever storm lay outside seemed to be growing, which didn’t help his sense of dread in the slightest. As he kept walking, it seemed like a lecture hall’s worth of chatter was growing louder without growing any closer. Eventually, he came to hear snippets of it: “I have to remember to change that lightbulb”; “she reminds me of my niece”; “Did someone break in? …I really need to fold those clothes”; “Did I leave the stove on?” It left him distracted enough that he didn’t take in many details. The chatter and the storm and the knowledge that this was absolutely his fault swirled around him until he broke free to an open area. After looking around, he realized it was a throne room. Because of course it was. Suddenly, a number of things about Dream’s attitude and conduct made sense, but now he had absolutely no idea where he was.

“Hey, have we got another mission or something? That’s a hell of a gale.” He turned around, his eyes searching upward for the voice without him deciding to do so, landing on a raven flapping towards him from the presumably-front door. Before Hob decided what to say, the raven suddenly winged back, staring hard at him. He settled on the floor halfway down the room. “You aren’t the boss,” he said warily.

“No,” he confirmed. “I know him,” he added, hoping to head off the worst of any panic or interrogation. “But, um…yeah. I’m not Dream.”

“Oh, don’t do that again.”

“Do what?”

“Hearing him say ‘um’ is freaky.”

He cast his mind back over old meetings, recalling how deliberately Dream spoke on the rare occasions that he did, even in 1689, when he’d done most of the talking. “Yeah, no, that’s fair.” He paused, contemplating what to say next. “This is my fault. I think I accidentally made a deal. Anyone I can talk to about that? Besides, y’know, Dream?”

“…yeah, yeah there might be someone.” He took to the air again, and Hob followed in his wake. The chatter and the storm pressed at the edges of his brain, but having someone to focus on helped. He paused as they crossed the threshold to a library. He was sure he’d been in here before, once or twice, and yet…he didn’t remember a damn thing about it.

*****

• Lucienne &/or Matthew call Death

• Death calls a family meeting

• “Alright. I’m hoping one of us did this, because if it was someone else, this becomes much more serious immediately. I have two prime suspects. Given that Delirium isn’t pointing and laughing, Desire needs to start talking”

“What, i didn’t do anything to Dream” and/or similar until “wait YOURE hob gadling?”/“someone tell me what Hob gadling looks like”/“where does Hob gadling live” and Desire realizes they fucked up more than intended and they are simultaneously delighted and terrified

[littlenightma]

Robert Turner | New Neighbor

Author’s Note: It still shocks me that Robert is not more popular amongst the slasher/horror community since David Morse is the total daddy package. Him as Detective Tritter in House was good too even though he was a total ass.

• You just moved into the neighborhood. Two weeks, to be precise, according to his memory. He remembers everyone who comes and goes, who he should avoid and who could one day pose as a problem.

• You, on the other hand, were like him in many ways. You kept to yourself and preferred privacy more than most. He liked that. You weren’t nosey or looking to make friendly conversation just for the sake of it. Apart from the polite smiles and waves, there was barely any interaction.

• You enjoy being outside. He does too. While you like to sit on your porch swing and listen to music or read or whatever activity suits you that day, he is hunched over his garden pulling weeds and working up a sweat. He finds a mole in his garden. He holds it up debating on what to do.

• “Are you going to kill it?”

• It was you peeking over the fence awaiting his answer. To be honest he was quite surprised to see you had spoken to him so he didn’t answer right away.

• “He was in my garden. He is ruining my yard.”

• “But are you going to kill it?”

• He looked down at the mole desperately trying to dig through his gloved hand. He had considered disposing of the animal.

• “Do you not want me to?”

• You shook your head and held out your hand. He dropped the small creature into your palm.

• “If I catch him in my garden again I won’t give him back.”

• You smiled appreciatively and walked away hugging the mole to your chest and he went back to tending his flowers.

• You had a boy over recently. Interesting. He doesn’t seem like your type, but then again he wouldn’t really know what your type was, now would he? He doesn’t mean to pry, but you did not look like you were enjoying yourself. He understands. He too found it difficult to truly connect with people. They all eventually became…disposable after so long.

• You did not take the boy up to your bedroom. He is pleased. He was not the one for you. He knows this because your smile did not light up the room like it usually did. It never even reached your eyes. Soon you were leading him to the door, but he was a persistent one, wasn’t he? He detested people like that. Disrespectful. Eventually the message becomes clear and he leaves and you lean against the door in relief.

• You had nothing to worry about though. He was watching over you and had the boy not left he would have planned to randomly show up asking for butter or sugar that he had supposedly ran out of at that precise moment.

• Your bedroom, believe it or not, sits directly in front is his and often times he would see you toss and turn at night. Nightmare, perhaps? Dare he be that bold to assume you were dreaming of him? Was he chasing you around in your house carrying a blade, lurking around corners, waiting for the perfect moment to attack? He leans in closer to the window.

• And does he catch you?

NSFW 18+

• And sometimes, if he studies the curtains just right, he can see your figure laying in bed, hand working fast beneath the sheets. He knows what you’re doing and to his shame as a mature, somewhat older man, he become hard. He reaches beneath his own sheets to work himself, matching your rhythm. While he knows you’re not, he imagines that you’re thinking of him. That you can see him clearly through the obscure curtains. Your eyes are pleading for him to come over and up to your bedroom, the very same bedroom that you denied access to someone else earlier.

• Your back arches and he knows you are close. You are beautiful, he admits. Younger, yes, but you seem to have your head on your shoulders and he respects this immensely. He is close now too and as you moan out your release, he looks up at the ceiling and jerks his cock, splattering into his hand. Oh dear, what a mess you’ve caused him to make.

• He dreamt of you last night. He is in his bedroom laying in bed watching tv when you climb on top of him so very delicately. Where did you come from? He doesn’t know, but you’re holding onto his headboard for dear life, steadily bouncing on him. When you start going too fast he corrects you, placing his hands on your hips to slow you down.

• And you follow his command so perfectly. Is that what you yearn for? Guidance? Love? Acceptance? He could only give you two of those things, but would that be enough? You look through your curtain of hair and ask if you could finally come and he couldn’t find it in himself to deny you. You wrap your arms around his neck for support as you begin riding him urgently until you’re shaking in his arms.

• To say he was disappointed when he woke up alone would be a grand understatement.

• He is out mowing his lawn this morning. You see him and wave. He waves back. These brief interactions would be enough.

• For now.

[paper-starz]

So, we know how the theory of Wally being sentient came up with clues from the site. But now I wonder how this would apply for the sentient swap au instead! Like, I could see Frank's blinking gif put out the morse code for H-E-L-P as his little nod. Or maybe something a little more obvious like the faces of the characters start to grimace the more you load their character pages over and over on the neighborhood page. Perhaps it would have new and different secrets instead?

AHHHH I SWEAR ALL THESE ASKERS ARE MIND READERS!!

To answer your question, YES! That’s EXACTLY what I was going for!! There will be new “secrets” for each character too!!

On the neighborhood page, Wally’s is the only one who’s looking the other way, everyone else is staring directly at you!! That one was kinda a given!

Frank: For Frank’s blinking gif, it could be cool if he blinked out SOS. Their neighborhood page would change slightly, as the books that he would be holding would have papers falling out (underlined and circled with red marker) and he’s looking a LOT more tired. I love the idea of the neighborhood page getting more different the more you refresh it! Frank here would look more annoyed, eyebrows raised in that “really?” fashion. Perhaps the link above would also change to a phrase, “Frankly, I find that quite annoying…”

Howdy: Perhaps the items in his shop has lil messages in them! (Ex: Bag of beans would instead say “Help” or perhaps even spell out a sentence if you find all the words on the items!) His neighborhood page would also change, his hair a lot more disheveled, his hand gripping onto the grocery bag a little bit too tightly, and one of his hands holding onto a bottle. If you refresh the page too much, then he will be skewed more to the left of the page (almost as if he’s trying to escape!) “I don’t wanna be here right now….”

Julie: The notable secret message about Julie is the one with her and her siblings in the About Us Section (you know the one!) On the website, there’s a secret hidden message that is only revealed if you highlight it (this is also under the picture)! It reads “They will come back.” Julie’s neighborhood page is the one that changes the most, as her hair is ripped out in many places. If you refresh the page, her character will inch towards the screen, almost as if she wants to fight ya! The link above reads “What do YOU want?”

Barnaby: Barnaby has quite a few secrets that he left, most of them are in that slideshow section in the About Welcome Home! You know that one picture where Wally is drawing on a book while Barnaby watches? The roles are flipped this time! Barnaby is holding the book with a mildly concerned expression while Wally asks him about it. “You’re reading books now, Barnaby?” “Nah, just one, kid.” “I wonder what it’s about…” The text is all echoey… His neighborhood page won’t change much, he would still be juggling but there’s bags under his eyes. Refresh the page and you would get this “Uh… Okay..?” He would look mildly confused.

Sally: Sally doesn’t have a lot of secrets that she left, the one related to her is that day/night motif that keeps coming up around the website. She’s the one who changes the least in her neighborhood page, her pose stays exactly the same even if you refresh it a bunch of times! Her link also stays the same since she REALLY wants to stay in character.

Eddie: Not many secrets are left by him! There are a few, such as the picture where he and Frank are standing next to each other and there’s a secret message right to them. However, instead of the message saying “Hello You” it instead reads “Hiya!” (Hes trying to be friendly!) Eddie’s neighborhood bio doesn’t change much, but the notable thing is his mailbag (which seems to be overflowing with letters and papers). If you refresh the page, his link reads “Hiya, neighbor!”

Poppy: Again, doesn’t leave much. Or rather, she doesnt leave anything at all (at least not directly). You gotta REALLY dig deep if you wanna see Poppy’s messages. Ex: In the OG Welcome Home, if you type “voywex” in the link bar, you get Wally typing to you! Here in this AU, you get Poppy instead! “Hello? Are you there? Can you see me? Be careful.” Poppy’s neighborhood bio doesn’t change much other than the fact that she holds a needle and a thread. If you refresh the page, Poppy’s feathers will look a bit more frazzled! “Please be careful…”

Wally: Wally does NOT leave any secret messages! As I mentioned before, on his neighborhood page, he will be the only one looking away from the viewer. If you refresh his page a bunch of times, Wally won’t do anything!

Home: Home is always watching Wally in the website. It doesn’t really leave secrets, the only secret is in Wally’s bio! If you refresh the page, sure, Wally won’t do anything… but Home does. Usually, Home will be looking at Wally. But if you refresh the page, Home will be looking at you.

[hekate1308]

Fictober #1, That Was Good Work

Prompt: That was good work

Fandom: Inspector Morse

Morse, Robbie had heard that long before he met the man himself, was… difficult. Which was not the word his colleagues had used precisely, but still, it came close enough, and he felt that one should have respect for a superior officer, especially one who had his success rate, Even if he never seemed to have found a sergeant who worked well with him. But that, too, didn’t have to mean anything – some people just preferred working alone, and Morse certainly brought the results that they needed, so that no one had ever complained, apart from, if he remembered correctly, Superintendent Strange, but there were a few strange rumours going on about him and the lodge, too, so he thought their boss probably didn’t have a leg to stand on when it came to this.

Still  morse had a reputation, so when he had happened across him on a case, he hadn’t expected much. He’d probably have the whole thing solved in a day or two, and Robbie would be left to do the paperwork, which was usually the case anyway. He supposed it was something to have met the big man, anyway.

Apart from –

Well, it was something else to actually see him work. If it had not been for DCI Morse’s well-known… opinions eh would call them he would have assumed that the man should have been even above Superintendent Strange in rank at this point, but instead, here he was, solving one of the most complicated murders Robbie had ever seen like it was nothing.

Afterwards, they went their separate ways, naturally.

Until the next case where Morse needed a sergeant and Robbie was available. He thought so at the time, at least – later much alter he would learn that morse had actually requested him and that strange, utterly relieved that he would finally ask for someone by name, had immediately handed Robbie over like a parcel even though he would never have said it like that in front of either of them.

And so, here they were, with another case under their belt, doing the paperwork in Morse’s office, or perhaps, rather, Robbie doing most of it while Morse was busy listening to some classics LP or another, but that too, he had known before..

If he had ever imagined something like that, he would perhaps have thought that Morse would just go and not keep him company, so he supposed that was something, and he knew through the grapevine that hr controlled every piece of paperwork that passed his desk anyway even if he didn’t want anyone to know. 

When eh was done, he stood up and handed Morse the files, feeling ever so slightly down. He actually enjoyed working with him, much as yes, he could be a difficult, miserable sod, but that was neither here nor there anyway…

"That was good work" Morse then sad as if it was nothing.

It actually rendered him speechless for a second – had Morse just – he really had to mark this date in his calendar. This was undoubtedly the pinnacle of his career, unless he actually managed to do the bloody course and become an inspector, as Val aways said he would, but Robbie always figured she was a bit biased when it came to him and what he was capable of.

“I – I – “ he cleared his throat. “Thank you, sir.”

Morse looked at him and nodded, once, twice, seemingly thinking about something, then saying, “You’re without a governor at the moment, aren’t you?”

He shrugged. “There are only so many inspectors who need a bagman, and currently they all have one.” He always told himself not to be too disappointed when yet another one of his colleagues was picked. True, he usually prided himself on getting along with pretty much everyone, so why he of all people should not yet have been asked to be someone’s bagman, but anyway, that was neither here nor there, and –

“I could use someone. If you want to work with me, that is.”

He needed a moment or two to understand what Morse was saying, just because he would never have thought it possible. Yes, he had enjoyed working with him on that aces, notwithstanding the fact that a woman had lost her life, but still, this was DCI Morse, and he would never –

“Of course it’s not mandatory. There is no –“

“Yes, sir I would like that very much” he interrupted him before he could let that chance pass him by even though he still hadn’t quite grasped what was happening.

“Alright then”. He raised an eyebrow. “Time for a drink at the pub, le-wis.”

And even though it was just the beginning of him leaving way too large of a portion of his wages at public houses, he would never regret it.  

[realmermaid333]

by meeting in the woods I meant, something like wednesday going out to search tyler and they come face to face in the woods.

I really hope this is good because i struggled a little haha!

Wednesday didn’t stop thinking about Tyler when she went home last semester. She knew he wasn’t dead, so where was he? Prison? Was he sent away to some other bootcamp? How could he be contained? Now that Laurel wasn’t there to pull his strings, was he still violent and murderous? 

Although it was embarrassingly painful to admit, and she hadn’t said it out loud, Wednesday missed what they had. She missed their time together in the Weathervane, in Crackstones Crypt, she missed his lips on hers. She thought his feelings for her were real— how could she be such a fool? 

Her own feelings were even more complicated when she came back to Jericho for another semester at Nevermore and learned of his escape. 

Tyler was being taken to a facility for troubled outcasts somewhere near Massachusetts. He had a scheduled hearing before the COM (Committee of Outcast Mishaps) to determine what his involvement was in Laurel’s crimes, but he transformed into his Hyde and fled. The peculiar part is he didn’t kill anyone, he just tore through the padded doors and ran off.  

Wednesday, being the obsessive and stubborn girl she is, has been going out into the woods again with Thing, retracing her steps. She doesn’t know what she intends to find, perhaps some piece of mind. Regardless, backpedaling through last semester’s investigation has given her something to do. It completes the story in her head— and Wednesday despises loose ends and unfinished tales. 

She’s visited the Gates mansion once, but it’s hard to get to now. It was gated off after being searched when Laurel was caught. 

Now, Wednesday visits the ruins of the old Pilgrim Meeting House for the second time since she arrived in Jericho two days ago. 

This was the place she saw the vision of Goody and spotted, what she didn’t know at the time, was Tyler’s eye through a crack in the decayed wall. This was the place where that homeless man was murdered on Laurel’s accord, where she saw the footprints that made her realize the monster was human. 

Thing peaked out of her bag, then crawled on her shoulder and looked at her judgmentally once he realized where they were. 

“I know. I shouldn’t keep coming back here. There’s just something about it that draws me back in like a fly to a spider web,” 

He tapped “dangerous” on her shoulder in morse code, then crawled down Wednesday’s jacket and onto the ground. 

Wednesday inhaled sharply, “I know. But we’ve been fine every other time we’ve come, and there’s no new killings,” 

Sheriff Galpin has been sending people to look for Tyler but they haven’t found him yet. Wednesday didn’t think he posed much of a threat anymore, but maybe that was wishful thinking— something she usually thought of as naive. 

Why do you keep coming here? Thing signed. 

She felt herself getting defensive, “I don’t know! There’s got to be something else going on here. I just haven’t figured it out yet,” she paced back and forth, “We still don’t know who sent me those threatening messages, and I think there’s unfinished business here,” 

Suddenly a twig snapped somewhere behind her, she turned sharply on her heel and stared out into the woods. More twigs snapped, and Wednesday felt her heart beat a little faster. Thing scurried to her feet and she put him on her shoulder as she slowly backed away from the sound— then something strange and unexpected happened, something that made her stomach twist into a knot. 

Tyler stepped out from behind a tree trunk. 

Wednesday stifled a gasp, she didn’t want him to have the possible satisfaction of startling her, but Thing tapped his fingers frantically. 

“Fancy seeing you here,” he said with a small smirk. 

“Right back at you.” 

He was dressed quite oddly, a camo jacket and pants, brown boots. He was rather dirty and had a leaf in his hair, his cheek had a scratch on it, nothing too deep, but it seemed like living in the woods wasn’t easy on him. 

She eyed him, “Interesting attire,”

Tyler chuckled quietly, “You should have seen what I was wearing before,” 

A jumpsuit?”

“No, I was actually wrapped in a tarp before I stole this getup from the hunting shop,”

“How were you not caught?”

“I don’t know actually. I got lucky, it was dark and the shop owner was asleep,” 

Thing was tugging on Wednesday’s braid trying to get her attention, she swatted at him to stop. 

She looked Tyler up and down suspiciously, “So, you’ve avoided your father and his employees for the last few months. How?”

“I know great hiding places,” he shrugged. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, “Why don’t you turn yourself in? You can’t live in the forest forever,” 

Tyler didn’t respond. 

“The Committee of Outcast Mishaps had a hearing scheduled for you before you escaped. If you do a little lying and you could probably get off lightly” Wednesday said with venom in her voice. 

“The what committee?”

“You didn’t know that?”

“I was unconscious,”

Wednesday stared at him for a second, her gaze intense and judging, “I’m leaving,” 

She backed away and turned towards the path. 

“Wait!” Tyler objected. 

“What?” she said a little more snappy than she meant. 

“I’m going to turn myself in soon, and after that who knows what will happen to me. But I just want you to know that I really did care about you,” he was avoiding eye contact, staring down at his feet. He looked ashamed. 

“I’m not falling for your lies anymore, Tyler.” 

“It wasn’t a lie,” 

Her face hardened in frustration. 

“You don’t know what it’s like. To feel like you are not in control of what you’re doing. To have someone demand that you do something, and you have to do it. You don’t know why, but you can’t stop yourself. It’s like having puppet strings attached to you,” his breath hitched. “It didn’t matter what Laurel asked me to do, or how much I didn’t want to do it— whether it was to kill a hiker in the woods, or to betray or kill you. I would just do it, it was like my body had a mind of its own. I really did like you a lot, when I found out it was you who Laurel wanted to kill, I tried to help you escape Jericho. None of it made a difference. I’m sorry, Wednesday,” Tyler’s eyes were watering, he kicked a pebble, then finally met Wednesday’s gaze. 

She thought back to Nathaniel Faulkner’s diary, the entry about Hydes. How whoever liberates the Hyde from dormancy gets control over its actions. 

“The Hyde becomes the willing instrument of whatever nefarious agenda this new master might propose,” 

Wednesday was angry with Tyler, he betrayed her trust. He was the only other person besides Enid who hadn’t let her down— she let herself be vulnerable for once and he ruined it. He broke her black heart, the one she once thought was unbreakable, the one she never planned on placing in someone else’s hands. But she felt bad for him too. 

She doesn’t know exactly what Laurel did to him, but she knows it was bad, and she knows that he probably isn’t lying— he wasn’t in control, that’s the entire reason why sickos with nefarious agenda’s unlock Hydes. 

“Your betrayal impacted me more than I’d like to admit, but I am sorry for you as well.” 

She looked into Tyler’s eyes, those green eyes she once found so intriguing and mesmerizing, and she saw the sweet and witty boy she met in the Weathervane last year. The one who followed her on her adventures and gave her free quads, the one who she tried to push away but he just kept on coming back. Wednesday isn’t sure how much of it was real, but she feels comforted knowing at least some of it was. 

She felt her own eyes water a little bit, her emotions were getting the best of her— and that cannot happen. 

So before the conversation could go any further, she decided to end it, “I can tell your father you are here so you can be picked up. That way you don’t have to go into town,” 

“Oh.. um… Thank you. That means a lot actually,” he gave his head a shake and looked back at his feet. 

Wednesday nodded, then walked down the grassy, gravel path towards Jericho, leaving Tyler at the Meeting House. 

Thing tapped on her shoulder, but Wednesday stopped him, “Not a single word.” she said sternly, trying to mentally prepare herself for a chat with the sheriff.

[chidoroki]

182 Days of TPN - Day 98

Chapter 98: “Starting Sound”

I like how the first couple pages fake us out by thinking the enemy is about to attack Emma & everyone else when they actually end up raiding an dummy shelter. Very thankful to James for setting up so many empty ones because this keeps Peter’s men occupied for almost two years trying to find the right one.

Y��all know you can sleep in a bit longer since you’re not bound by the GF schedule anymore, right?? Old habits die hard I guess.

Props to Ray, Pepe and whomever else normally helps in the kitchen because that is definitely a lot of mouths to feed all at one time. Also love how intermingled the tables are between GF & GP children, like it doesn’t matter where they came from, they’re all one big family.

I adore seeing them adjust to the shelter life and all the different tasks the kids take on. I’m mighty fond of seeing Oliver wear the shelter jacket & turtleneck as well! Wish we got to see that look on him more often, same with Nigel without his usual hat. But there’s no way Paula could still be recovering a month and a half later! Hell, she’s shown sitting at the tables during breakfast just fine! Ahh whatever, still cute that Zack continues to check up on her. GP trio owns a special place in my heart.

With Dominic learning how to hunt from Yuugo, I guess it isn’t totally farfetched that season two had him pick up archery so quickly. I do remember that Rossi learns morse code eventually, but I was unaware he tries to learn some medical stuff alongside Theo? At least, I’m assuming that’s what going on considering Anna & Zack are there too.

Ah.. back during ch92 I wondered why the GF kids never picked up on Adam reciting Norman’s number when they returned to the shelter, but I guess the big guy just switched it up and started repeating Emma’s ID nonstop instead. Makes sense as to why Violet seems a bit confused about it, not because she doesn’t remember Emma’s number but if that’s the same number Adam was saying the whole time back at GP.

I haven’t looked for fics in a hot minute, but I remember there were always tons about RE in the shelter library and not enough (or any) about the secret room and I gotta wonder why. Clearly they’re down below often enough during the past seven days if that GV kid knows where they are.

Well, Sonya’s correct about the first part since it’s revealed earlier this chapter that Peter killed off a handful of supporters back in 2031. Also, love how one of the tiny, surprised faces kinda looks like the drawing Shirai typical uses.

Still a more complex way to locate the secret room than how season two had it be “hidden” behind a simple, very noticable door labeled “pen.”

I despise this man so damn much.. absolutely hate him and his stupid fingers tapping away endlessly. I still dunno if this is just a random thing he does or if it’s actually morse. Can’t confirm it with season two either since the anime did one thing right and cut him out.

Speaking of morse code, I love how Emma quickly hands the phone over to Ray once she recognizes it. Sure she’s skilled enough to decipher it, but hearing morse is much different than seeing it, and there’s no way she wants to miss a single detail after waiting a whole week to hear back from the supporters, so she tosses the phone to Ray since she believes he will catch everything more efficiently than she could. And he does.

Now, I may be a total idiot, but for the life of me, I can’t remember who this hooded person might be? With it currently being March 2046, it can’t be James since he died sometime around September 2031 (if ch73 is anything to go by) and it ain’t Norman since he’s still trapped at Lambda until 2047. Perhaps Peter missed a supporter hiding amongst the Ratri clan and this is some random person but I dunno. Oh, unless this is just Smee..? I mean, the cloak he’s wearing is pretty much the same one Norman uses later on, so he could easily acquire it when they’re both at Lambda. That could be it. Hopefully.

Favorite panel/moment:

I HAVE DEARLY MISSED MY BOY CHRIS!! (& yes I noticed Gillian’s tiny head pat to Thoma. See! I knew they would get along well!)

[mtdthoughts]

The Twins' Relationship Pt. 10 (Migi & Dali Analysis)

This is Part 10 of the discussion of the twins' relationship and its evolution throughout the story.

Click here to return to the top of the thread (Part 1)

Note that I will use scenes from both the anime and manga wherever I see fit, and of course spoilers are discussed.

This post will be about Episode 10, where Migi's strengths really begin to shine.

After the twins returned to find out they were wanted by the police, they agreed to expose the Ichijos, though Dali had a problem revealing themselves to Akiyama.

It's clear that Migi has changed compared to the start of the story, because he was able to accept love from the Sonoyamas and Akiyama, and now he wanted to help his brother experience this too.

Dali, on the other hand, struggled with this, because for the longest time he thought that he was strong and that he didn't need anybody, only to realize how painful his loneliness was after he almost lost Migi. Perhaps he felt ashamed (shown with his crossed arms?) that he didn't realize this sooner, and perhaps he felt bad for deceiving Akiyama for so long, maybe fearing that Akiyama wouldn't accept a deceitful boy like him. He knew that Akiyama could be trusted, but rather it was himself that couldn't be trusted.

Nonetheless, Migi was able to reassure his beloved brother that he would be accepted, and his warmth was able to help Dali (temporarily) overcome his (self-esteem) issues, which we'll see again later on in the story.

Then, when Maruta arrived, Dali hid again because he did not trust him (and neither did Migi), but after Maruta's desperate (but clever) Morse code trick, the twins finally had their team of trusted friends.

I do like how Migi compliments Dali when he's not around, which just confirms how he has always admired and looked up to his older brother.

I also like how the twins looked at each other with the same smile on their faces after seeing how Akiyama and Maruta accepted them. It just shows that even though the twins are very different, they are still very similar at a fundamental level, as they were happy to know that they were able to craft genuine companionship.

During the mission to infiltrate the Ichijo house, Migi saved Dali from falling by repeating the counterweight trick that they've used before.

I've already discussed this scene in my post titled "Proof of Growth", but in case you haven't read it, I've pointed out that through this courageous act of love repeated through his instincts, Migi has proven that he was determined never to lose Dali again, and that he was serious about fighting for his brother's happiness. Dali couldn't be happier to see how much his brother has grown compared to before, though he's unwilling to let go of his pride as the older brother by throwing a jab at Migi about his weight.

Later, the twins and Maruta plotted to take Eiji hostage to coerce Reiko to confess her crimes.

There's not much to say about this scene, but it just highlights the roles that the twins serve in a team, where Dali is the leader and strategist (i.e. the "brains"), while Migi is the supporter (i.e. the "heart") of the team.

Afterwards, the twins had a brief conversation on what to do with Eiji as they carried him away.

After being saved by Eiji twice, Migi understood that Eiji shouldn't be the target of their ire, and perhaps he wanted to convince Dali to forgive Eiji to avoid going down a dark path again.

But unlike Migi, Dali's resentment was more deeply-seated, as he blamed Eiji for their suffering. Still, he knew that Eiji saved Migi before, and he realized that seeking revenge almost caused him to lose everything that mattered to him. Thus, Dali was conflicted, which was why he asked Migi for his opinion (the only opinion that matters to him!).

Lastly, we get quite a funny interaction where Dali made a goofy face for the first and only time in the series.

It's clear that Dali is a lot more concerned about appearances than his brother (otherwise, why would he hate the mosquito costume?), as Migi had to plea with Dali in order to do something that Dali doesn't like. Surprisingly, Dali complied, and Migi was both shocked and happy to see that his usually dignified brother would humor his request by making such a stupid face. It's such a huge contrast to the early chapters where Migi had a fear of upsetting or disappointing Dali, and I think this interaction just shows how he was able to overcome this.

[aqueeracademic]

morse being queer (and other commentary) pt 15:

season 4, episode 3, “Lazaretto”:

- my expectations are really low for this episode

- the last episode was so aggressively gay i’m just assuming this one won’t be

- unfortunate but here we are!

- ew i hate hospitals

- i love old nurse uniforms though

- elite fashion tbh

- morse in a wife beater agenda ‼️

- of fucking course joan called him from a goddam pay phone

- i’m IRRITATED 🗣️

- my tv is glitching the fuck out

- fixed it!

- anyways

- the head nurse reminds me of the sister in fleabag and i always think it’s her but it’s not

- and that’s my story

- morse uses the same body language with debryn that he uses with women he’s attracted to

- i’m just saying 🤷‍♀️

- the way everyone looks at the parrot is so fucking funny

- we are barely ten minutes into this episode and we’re already headed to the armory

- NO BRIGHT NO

- anyone but bright.

- you can kill ANY CHARACTER

- bright killed a tiger tho i’m pretty sure he’s immortal at this point

- no because listen

- debryn is perfect for morse

- IM SERIOUS

- he comes to the hospital immediately out of loyalty to the precinct and also because he knows morse is there alone

- he immediately tells morse who is in the operating room and that the surgeon is talented and morse doesn’t have to worry

- and then promises to go see what’s what for morse so he doesn’t have to wear himself out

- and THEN he brings morse’s mind back to the case hes working on because he knows morse copes by working and wants to take his mind off bright

- debryn knows all the ins and outs of morse’s brain and respects every facet of him and works in favor of him every time without fail

- hes fucking perfect

- i love him

- everyone loves bright so much i’m sick

- the head nurse reminds me of the evil lady from chicken run

- i hate this lady caroline

- she didn’t really do anything wrong in this moment with morse but like

- you are the mother of the woman who broke morse as a human being and forever scarred his perception of love

- and then ur gonna brag about what her new man is doing? just to rub it in that he “wasn’t good enough” for her and still isn’t?

- despicable.

- i don’t even wanna promote the queer aspects of that even tho it would be easy to

- because that was just fucking cruel

- and morse deserved better

- it cannot be comfortable for bakewell to have his arm cuffed up like that for that long

- they should do it lower for sure

- justice for winnie ‼️‼️‼️

- i love her i just want her to be happy

- trewlove is so worried about bright

- bright and trewlove 🤞🤞 i love them

- “We were engaged to be married. And then we weren’t.”

- THIS is why morse is the most relateable fictional character ever to me personally

- because he SIMPLIFIES this sort of stuff

- he could tell the whole story

- say what transpired and why she left and what he did wrong or didn’t do wrong and who she’s with now and why he became a cop instead of pushing himself and being happy

- but he says this.

- we were and then we weren’t.

- because all human experience can be taken as that.

- we are and then we aren’t

- and it’s all very simple

- and despite all the pain he feels and all the ways it’s affected his life

- he knows it’s as simple as that

- THIS FUCKING SHOW RAHHHSHEKFOSK 🦅🦅🦅

- the way that nurse mills keeps side eyeing morse

- girl calm down

- the way morse runs 💀

- go morse go! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

- thursday should not have left bakewell and i stand by that

- even though nothing happens someone should have stayed with him to keep him safe

- but noooo 🙄🙄🙄 thursday has to care about morse and make sure he’s okay

- morse just visiting debryn for fun at this point

- monica 🥺🥺

- JESUS THURSDAY

- slamming his head against the brick wall is so wild

- unnecessary some might say!

- perhaps even… police brutality!

- which you’ve been suspended for!!

- every time i start to like him 🙄🙄

- oh my GOD monica is so beautiful

- “treat the next one better.”

- GET HIM MONICA

- both of them avoiding the question “are you happy?”

- final straw

- the way thursday just hates having brights job

- it’s so funny

- thursday loves winnie so much i’m SICK

- i’ll prolly never get married but if i do i want it to be like them

- the way this show handles mental health issues is like

- actually not that bad

- like 8/10 times they do a really good job

- especially given the time period

- he’s a murderer and all but bakewell is funny as fuck

- “i get the uncontrollable urge to murder nosy parkers 😡. ta for the grapes 🥰🥰!”

- like ok??!

- funny as fuck

- that picture of joan is absolutely foul

- just throwing it out there

- “i had a reverse charges call from leamington.” “wasnt me.”

- i hate her right now

- i know i said i loved her like two posts ago but i fucking hate her

- like she’s intentionally hurting these people and doesn’t care

- like how does she just not care how much what she’s doing is affecting the people in her life?

- i know she’s traumatized

- but ONE phone call to ur parents wouldn’t kill you 🙄

- i have 0 understanding of how she’s blaming herself for the death at the bank

- they didn’t know who she was until he was already dead

- like girl get it together

- “i don’t care.” “i do.” “you shouldn’t.”

- GIRL SHUT UP ‼️‼️

- pissing me tf off

- anyways 😐

- bright is so 🥺🥺

- just a little guy tbh

- GIVE BRIGHT CHILDREN🗣️🗣️🗣️ (he’s like 80 years old do not give him kids)

- what is this trend of bringing grapes to people in the hospital? is that something i should be aware of?

- goddam morse’s ex is RICH

- the way that people don’t like dr. powell because they think he’s a ladies man but he literally just wants to be a doctor 😭

- let my man breathe!

- the way susan was sick TWO YEARS AGO and morse looks worried like it’s happening right now

- “have you spoken to susan?” “yes. i haven’t mentioned you.”

- girl shut your bitchass up

- sick and tired of your classist bullshit

- this guy talking to corpses is so 🤨🤨

- NO BAKEWELL‼️

- what the fuck.

- how on earth is dr. powell working from 7:30 in the morning until after 3 in the morning the next day

- how does he function

- stop 🥺 the way morse turns his back before strange opens the trunk and then just peeks over his shoulder to look

- he’s a fucking pussy 😐

- KIDDING

- i’m obsessed w him and i truly believe his inability to look at the deceased is his most endearing quality

- thursday cares about morse sm i’m SICK

- NAUR THEYRE PUTTING BRIGHT IN BED TEN

- morse talking to the parrot is funny as fuck tbh

- morse is obsessed w debryn

- how the fuck did debryn notice a microscopic wound on someone’s ass

- he’d have to be STUDYING that ass

- wild!

- anywho

- i love the way morse talks to debryn and debryn talks to morse

- just two geniuses bouncing off each other 🥰🥰

- trewlove OUT OF UNIFORM coming to visit bright is so sweet

- it’s like he has a daughter

- i’m obsessed ✋🙄

- okay i was wrong. powell is a terrible person!

- the nurses are dramatic asf tbh

- i cannot imagine real nurses behaving this way

- oh my god susan’s dad died

- this could be my breaking point!

- i also would love to point out the fact that morse insists on formalities in most if not all situations, meaning he refers to people as “Ms./Mrs./Mr. ____”

- but he calls susan’s mom “Caroline”

- just her first name and nothing else

- like he and susan were engaged to be married

- like he really loved her and she maybe really loved him

- like at some point her parents loved morse and took him in

- like they treated him like family

- like they were excited for him to marry their daughter and therefore let him call them by their first names

- like they were close

- like a family

- everything about what happened between him and susan HURTS and idk how to handle it

- also i FUCKING HATE CAROLINE

- “I’m so sorry.” “Are you?” “Yes, of course. Edgar was always very decent to me.” “Well, he always had a weakness for failures.”

- like YOUR DAUGHTER LEFT MORSE

- not the other way around

- i fucking hate classism

- there’s a whole other analysis i could do of this whole situation that would be about his queerness and how it could play into all this but i’m like

- i fucking hate caroline

- she sucks so bad

- like the way she tells him the CHIEF CONSTABLE RUPERT STANDISH said he would never amount to much

- which already is bullshit because of his involvement with landesman and wintergreen, meaning that he was involved with the group who intentionally sabotaged morse and are still attempting to now (he died in the neverland episode so it’s not him directly anymore but still)

- and then says “You didn’t even pass your sergeants exam!”

- which is bullshit because she doesn’t know what happened and he can’t defend himself because it’ll make it sound like he’s making excuses for what she’s interpreting as failures

- “You see, I was right about you, even then.” “When you speak to Susan please give her my condolences.” “And your love.” “No. No. Look, whatever you may think of me, I am truly sorry he’s dead.”

- the DISGUST on his face when she says “and your love”

- i fucking hate her

- and morse deserved better

- it’s obvious that what happened is still tearing him up even now

- and that’s why he’s so sensitive about people leaving him (jakes, joan)

- and why he will always assume people he’s in love with or carries any love for are going to leave

- i fucking hate this show ‼️‼️

- two female murderer episodes in a row i am running my hands together like a little mouse

- this girl is wild for killing that many people tbh

- morse hugging her instead of dragging her away ☹️

- he’s so gentle i HATE IT HERE

- thank fuck bright lived

- idk how i would have reacted if something happened tbh

- i cannot believe the only shot we get of susan is from the back 😐

- okay for you tarot kids!

- intersecting the tower card with the death card usually has a lot of negative meanings. it represents suffering, typically by means of illness or pain of some kind

- the death card is a typically pretty happy card despite the connotation, but when combined with the tower card it’s p shit

- the tower card usually represents suffering or destruction

- combing the two cards doesn’t bode well for morse and it’s our first intersection in the reading we’re getting at the end of these episodes!

- so far we have sacrifice, union, and now a traumatizing ending of something resulting in suffering

- things are not boding well for our boy!

[mywingsareonwheels]

1974.

Morse is interviewing witnesses to a murder at one of the colleges, and one of them is strikingly familiar. He's a man in his early twenties, a recent medical graduate back visiting friends before heading off to move into a totally different career. He has a posh accent, a friendly smile, warm brown eyes.

Oh he's truly, desperately familiar, and Morse isn't looking too hard into his own motives when he lets the younger man talk him into a drink out, and then a one-night stand, and then something rather more like a friendship played out over Scotch and crosswords and literary quotations.

[More behind the cut....]

He does mention, briefly, that his new friend reminded him of someone else on first meeting. And somehow that turns into a discussion of ancestry, and the young man discusses with some glee the skeleton in his family cupboard: the fact that his paternal grandmother when barely eighteen had a dalliance with a working-class ruffian of the same age from Mile End, of all places. That she'd got pregnant, but her parents wouldn't let her tell the lad, but instead got her engaged to a somewhat stuffy friend of theirs called Richardson.

"Dad hates to talk about it," says Morse's friend, "he's rather a stuffed shirt, especially for a surgeon. But Granny used to love telling me stories. She did come to love my Granddad, I think, but she missed that boy from Mile End all her life." He chuckles, but a little shakily, because he has yet to learn the effortless-seeming confidence he'll spread before him one day. "I'd give anything to meet him."

Morse swallows, heart suddenly in his mouth. And something in his face makes the young man carry on, more intensely.

"Granny told me that she named Dad after him, though he doesn't know. So that's what I have: Frederick, from Mile End. Fathered a child around 1930 when he was just a lad and doesn't even know he did." He laughs, wryly. "Not much to go on, is it."

"Douglas," says Morse, and his voice is shaking but there's a smile in his eyes. "I... I'll need to look into this, but I think. I mean. I think I can help."

The postcard is of York Minster, which is only a half hour drive from where three exiles from Oxford have settled. On the back it reads just:

"Sir,

Un bel di, please could we talk? There's someone I think you should meet. Bring 2 rounds ham and tomato sandwiches. --"

At the day and time thus ordered, Fred Thursday finds Morse standing admiring the rose window, and follows him out to a bench in the Minster gardens. He's torn between confusion and shame, though above all trying to hide how overjoyed he is to see the rusty curls and those haughty, sea-green eyes again. When Morse explains, and introduces the young trainee pilot with a face Fred remembers from his mirror as a long-lost grandson... well, it's good he's already sitting down, is all.

The years past, and they are gentler than they might have been.

Fred lives to see his grandson a captain, to meet his great-granddaughter. To introduce his grandson to his uncle and step-grandmother and eventually even his aunt. To become friends with Morse again, even if quietly, and for the most part only by letter. To relish that Douglas and Morse, despite occasionally enraging each other beyond reason, seem to be friends for life. (He suspects that they might once have been more than that; if they aren't going to tell him though, he's not going to point it out.) Something healed in him that day in York, and it never breaks again.

When Captain Douglas Richardson puts down the bottle, in an attempt to salvage something of his career and his relationship with his daughter, perhaps it's partly because he's still grieving for his grandfather, dead some ten years now, but most of all because he's still grieving for his friend and one-time lover, and doesn't want to die so young himself.

When First Officer Douglas Richardson meets his new captain at MJN's portacabin in Fitton, he's a little strikingly familiar too. He's shorter, and more pompous, and vastly less good at word games, but there are rusty curls and haughty sea-green eyes.

He's no relation of Morse's at all though, it turns out. This is, eventually, rather a relief.