#and people still defend them which is actually scary

[torgawl]

i hate that i had to compile articles and data for my mother to read to prove my point on why the romani people are used as a scapegoat and they're not actually our enemies :/

[dykedvonte]

I think the most baffling thing about the Tulpar as a vessel to me is the fact that the ship really did only have a one way communication system.

I know it was cheap but even the most basic of vessels regarding major transport would have some way, shape or form for outside communication. Not only that but there was absolutely no form of innate emergency signal to show they may have been offline or in trouble despite clearly having a system to dock credits if they went off course. It's another factor that really shows that bad situations are made to get worse by design. One person who is required to relay all information to the crew and make all the choices without feedback. No way to update or call for help in case of a dire situation. No way to inform of inner personal conflicts and acquire procedures accordingly.

It really is like they are all in some sort of fucked up solitary confinement. They have their own world with strict roles that are meaningless in the end, as long as the cargo makes it, it doesn't matter what happens on that ship to the company. They don't want to hear anything and will come to conclusions on what happened based on how much pay they can withhold from the workers. Even what they do send is short, sterile and corporate to the extent it was likely written and sent out with a command by some random unmanned computer in an office.

There's something to be said about how unfair it is to force absolute power and control onto one person when you as an entity could do so much more to offload it but I've said it many times before so I won't again.

[mars-ipan]

man. strangers you don’t know but have heard stories about are wild

[inkskinned]

it's because the bear wouldn't kill me just for being a woman. the bear doesn't kill me for fun. the bear can be shouted at, and will leave me alone. the bear won't make a tiktok complaining about how i crossed to the other side of the path when i saw him coming. if a bear kills me, it's just being a bear: it cannot understand logic. it is not acting out of malice - just fear or hunger.

bell hooks once wrote about how porches might be the only outside space left for women - it is still the domain of the house while it is also outside-but-safe. when i am in the woods, i am in the bear's home, and he has a right to defend his property. outside spaces - anywhere at night, certain parks in the day - those are often implicitly "owned" by men. i cannot explain the feeling of knowing when you have entered a man's "territory." you walk into a place and just know you are in their space. you get a sick sense - you're in danger.

the other day a group of about 8 men were fooling around in the woods while i walked my dog. i had to go around, take the extra 3 miles just to avoid them. it's okay, i like walking. this wasn't even a #feminism moment. it was just a tuesday.

what a plain and easy question. only one of the situations is seen as a tragic accident. i would rather die and have a park bench erected in my honor rather than have my family questioned about why they let me, an adult, walk in the woods in the first place when i should really be at home in the kitchen.

i worked in retail and food service. i have had women say and do absolutely heinous and abusive things to me - not because i was a woman, but because i was there, and they were angry. the way men treated me when angry was different - it was because i was a woman. you can always feel the difference, how there's an undertone of i'd hurt you worse if i could get away with it. i keep seeing people try to cite stupid statistics. why is there always a strange rage whenever women agree on things? like men can argue their way out of our lived experiences? it isn't a buzzfeed quiz - which of these traumas are you? 10 super cute ways not to fear strange men.

i have actually (thrice!) seen a bear in the wild, by the way. i died each time, obviously, and am a ghost writing to you. (it was scary but completely and utterly fine). the second encounter was a black bear with her cub. she looked at me like - do we have to do this or are we good? my dog was busy sniffing a bush, completely nonreactive. i felt like i was in a sitcom: feminist poet reacts - does she actually mean she'd choose the bear? my only thought was - she's so beautiful. her paws are massive.

and there's a part of me that feels the rage spinning out in a corner. why do we have to come up with quippy little comments in order to teach men empathy. would you rather die in a car accident or due to a mugging? and would you rather your house burn down due to an electrical fire or due to arson? gee willikers - it's almost like we're human people, and want to risk the accident versus the intention.

i would rather my last thought be oh shit, a bear rather than i'm a person too. why doesn't that matter? why don't you care?

[sugarlywhispers]

Bakugou Katsuki is known for being a man with character, with a strong personality. A man that looks menacingly and fucking scary. Everybody knows that he isn't a man that you would want to have problems with –villains literally shit their pants every time the name Dynamight is pronounced. He is fucking terrifying when he gets mad and angry. Even his own hero colleagues and friends know that.

Some people thought that Katsuki needed a woman who was different from him. Like someone more easy going and friendly. Someone who denoted more brightness than him.

And you are exactly that. You two look so different sometimes that people don't understand how you two work things out. But what people don't know –but Katsuki does, perfectly well– is that inside you hides a person even more scary than Bakugou Katsuki could ever be.

And so there all his hero friends are, standing freeze and looking gobsmacked at how you angrily yell to a man at the restaurant all of you were about to leave. Katsuki doesn't know exactly why you are screaming so pissed off at that man, but he thinks that if you are that upset, it surely means that it is something bad. Which also means that the man probably deserves it. You know how to defend yourself, and Katsuki is fucking proud of that.

“Are you really not going to interfere?” Asks Kirishima, looking surprised and a little worried at the same time. Bakugou shakes his head smiling.

He completely loves when you show that side of yours; it is actually the very big thing he loves about you the most and one of the reasons he fell for you in the first place.

“But… I-I don't get it. What happened to our little princess?” Katsuki can't avoid laughing at Mina's words. They really don't know you the way Katsuki does.

“Was it something on the food?” Kaminari asks, kind of like hiding behind Todoroki, the latter watching the altercation with big surprised eyes.

“He wished that was the reason,” says Sero when he comes back from where you are standing, still yelling at the man. “He was selling information about us, and our whereabouts. Apparently, the idiot also took some pictures and was selling them too.”

Katsuki crosses his arms over his chest and grins. So that is why you are that pissed... You are defending him and his friends.

Fucking cute, is what you are.

All of them look at Bakugou dumbfounded. And him? Well, Katsuki looks fucking proud of you.

“Go home, guys. This may take a while,” he says, not taking his eyes out of your still yelling little form.

“Are you sure? Don’t you want us to stay and help you ease things down? She looks pretty… upset,” Deku says sincerely, even though he looks kind of afraid of you. HA. Not even fucking Pro Hero Number 1, Deku, is immune to your terrifying side.

Everyone is a little afraid, and Katsuki smiles proudly at that.

“Nah, I can handle it. I'll see you guys tomorrow.”

Everyone says their goodbyes leaving him standing there in silence, watching you proudly and with amusement.

It took almost half an hour later until you released all your anger in the form of words to the man. With one last not so pretty word to him, you turn around and walk to your waiting boyfriend.

Katsuki's smile is so freaking big, you think it may break the skin of his cheeks. “Finished already? I thought it would take longer than that…”

“Did you know what he was do-ing…” You start a bit heated, but his arms surrounding you by the waist and pulling you to his chest calms you down immediately.

Even though you don't quite finish the sentence, Katsuki already knows what you are talking about, “Yeah, Sero told us what happened.”

He rocks your bodies slightly from side to side, hands caressing your back in a comfort, soothing touch. You don't understand what or why he is doing it, but you aren't complaining either. You love being in his arms.

And Katsuki loves the way he can calm you down just with one touch from him –just as fast as he does when you hold him.

He hugs you tightly and then kisses your forehead, hanging his lips there for a moment.

You snort, a delicate amused breath that collides with his neck and makes his body tingle.

“What is this? A kiss to calm the beast?”

He chuckles, “It's a kiss that shows how much I love you.”

And that shows how proud he is that you are as scary as him. Or even more than him.

a.n; lol this is actually something that happened to me once.. i'm suuuuuuuuch a short tempered minion sometimes it even pisses me off LMAO and then i have the audacity to question why i have favs like bakugou and sanemi oops>.<

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

I suppose it has something to do with humans assigning our own silly human ideals and morals onto animals! If it has no use, it doesn’t matter, I guess. Even if the ocean sunfish is an important animal that controls populations of other prey animals like squid and jellyfish and is a host to dozens of species of parasites that depend on it for survival and also bring nutrients from the lower levels of the ocean to the higher levels for producers to use… so how could it ever be useless and undeserving of living….. ((((:

In any case, these animals are still alive and thriving, millions of years of evolution has lead them to that point, clearly they’re doing things correct? Why is it now suddenly that they shouldn’t exist?

how many times do we have to say that nobody gets to "decide" what species of animal "deserves" to exist because it's frankly very pretentious to act like you're the arbiter of what evolution has created

[imsobadatnicknames2]

To my great surprise, one of my friends expressed interest in DnD, bringing the total people interested including myself to a whopping THREE! Now, I've only played DnD a few times at a game shop and literally no other TTRPGs, but I'd be open in checking out other stuff (and can hopefully persuade my friends)! Would you happen to have any recs for maybe a bit more of an intro/beginners game that one could run with three players total? (If you happen to know any that maximizes a player feeling badass, that'd be neat & appreciated, as I think that's the main draw for them lol). Anyways, thanks for your time :3

Hiiii thanks for your question! So have in mind that I haven't played any of these firsthand because I'm mostly into games that mechanically emphasize disempowerment (the games i run tend to go less for the Found Family of Heroic Misfits Go on an Epic Quest approach and more for the Gang of Amoral Treasure Hunters Get Themselves Killed While Looking For Treasure in a Dark Scary Hole one), so I'm going off mainly from the play experience implied by reading the rules themselves and by what I've heard other people say about them.

First of all Is Quest RPG

I've seen it recommended a couple times by @thydungeongal and after reading a bit of it I have to agree with her assessment that this is the game that most D&D players seem to ACTUALLY want to play when they start invoking Rule 0 and the Rule of Cool and playing fast and loose with mechanics. It's a game where the explicit design intention seems to be natively supporting the style of gameplay that most popular D&D Actual Play shows feature, without any of the negatives of trying to fit 5e's square peg into that particular round hole. It's also available for free, which is pretty nice.

I would also recommend Brighthammer: Rules Light High Fantasy (which is a hack of Sledgehammer: Rules Light Dark Fantasy)

It's a simple system with a d100 resolution mechanic which fits into two eight-page mini-zines, one for the players and one for the GM.

It leans into the heroic fantasy angle specifically by letting players continually accumulate advantage to rolls during combat encounters by performing heroic actions, such as defending an ally or an innocent bystander. This one is also free and it's a pretty quick read so you don't lose anything by checking it out.

Next up is The Basic Hack

This one is a slightly streamlined version of The Black Hack, which itself is a massively streamlined version of early editions of D&D. Just like The Black Hack, it uses D&D's classic six-attribute array and a lot of other mechanical elements that make it pretty easily compatible with a lot of D&D materials while still being a very distinct system of its own, but where it differs from TBH is that it simplifies a lot of its mechanics and overall has a less gritty and more heroic tone.

Lastly there is Break!!, which is the only game in this list that is going to cost you any non-zero amount of money

Break!! has some old-school sensibilities here and there (seems to take some inspiration specifically from games like Cairn and ITO) but aesthetically and tonally it takes most of its cues from fantasy anime and JRPGs. It has a pretty cool-looking setting, and some interesting twists on classic fantasy TTRPG races and classes. You get everything from "basically a D&D fighter with a different name" to "paladin meets magical girl" to "literally an isekai protagonist". Anyway one way in which it leans into making the players feel pwoerful and badass is that its initiative system rewards being proactive in fights: whatever side starts the fight gets to act first, with no checks or rolls required. Also, it handles health depletion on a per-encounter basis. Health regenerates fully imbetween fights, essentially ensures that players always start fights at full strength and gets rid of long-term resource depletion. Which, you know, i like long-term resource depletion for my games, but if what you want to do is feel like badass heroes this is definitely the way to go, and it still has some interesting long-term consequences for running out of health in a fight.

[sexydoffyman]

Hello 👋, could I request some cod characters (perhaps Ghost, Price or Graves) defending a male military reader from a bunch of guys that are being homophobic to him?

DEFENDING YOU FROM HOMOPHOBES

navigation

genre: fluff

characters: Simon Riley, John Price, Phillip Graves

A/N: Sick of writing for kinktober. Mby that's why I can't write fucking properly. So let's look at some fluff.

SIMON GHOST RILEY

Ghost is a fairly scary man. He's known for being cold and serious. No one expected you to hang around him. He had six inches on you (15cm). Some people joked about you being the love birds in your TF. They could never guess how correct they were.

You weren't dating or anything, but you both held some kind of mutual respect, trust and maybe even attraction. You both had some qualities of a couple. He was a little possessive of you. You were a little clingy with him.

Although you had some kind of a relationship, that didn't really matter. The thing that mattered was you having each other's backs.

He was like a predator, making sure no one hurts his weaker companion. But when he wasn't around, you were left vulnerable. Not physically, no. You held great strength. What was left to hurt if people cant hurt your body? Your mind.

They mocked you ever since you met at boot camp. Any time they saw your face, they felt the need to embarrass you. You could handle it. You were a soldier, after all. But that didn't stop you from feeling hurt.

This time, you just sat there and took it. They yelled. They impersonated. Of course, that commotion would attract some people's attention.

The one that had showed up was Ghost. You couldn't even register him when you saw a 6'4 dude punch one of them. The others tried running, but none of them could get far enough to escape him. Their jaws broken. Ribs shattered.

You could hear him laughing under his mask. He then glanced at you "Coffee?" He asked.

CAPTAIN JOHN PRICE

All I can say is father energy.

He has been your captain for a few years now. You have gone through shit with him, and you both trusted each other. You viewed him as a kind of father that you never had. And he viewed you as his new child.

He is not possessive, but he is protective. He wouldn't let anyone fuck with you. His rank helped him with scaring people off. He never really had a problem with disobeying soldiers to begin with, so he never actually used his rank, but now. He has to stick up for you.

You really do resemble a kid he would have had. You have similar hair colour and eye colour. Your postures don't have a difference, and you find yourselves finishing up each other's sentences.

These assholes who have been making fun of you were your superiors. What that meant was that you could do nothing to stop them. They could say anything they wanted, and they'd get away with it.

"Thirty laps now!" Your eyes averted to the sudden voice coming from the hall. He heard them. They slowly realised they fucked up. It was raining cats and dogs outside. Everything was muddy and slippery. Running thirty laps would be torture.

"Do I have to repeat myself?" Price grunted with a more aggressive tone. They stormed off to the exit to run their laps. He yelled at them before they got out. "Being on good terms with your fellow soldiers is a must. I will have your ranks stripped away from you until you learn that!"

As soon as they left, Price let out a small chuckle. He was proud of himself. Cheeky bastard.

PHILLIP GRAVES

I love this son of a bitch.

Now, this man is always with you. It's not an obsession. It's just the fact that everyone else wants to be either alone or already has someone to be with. He just doesn't want to be alone.

You felt like you were the chosen one. He was still your superior, after all. After some time together, you got used to it. He always apologised for being such a bother. You got free snacks, which you didn't mind at all.

You were fucking around the base, chilling. You would've never thought you'd be sharing stories with him, but there you were. You didn't know what kind of relationship it was. Were you friends, or were you together just because of the situation? You never figure it out.

The dudes who embarrassed you were your rank. But they fuck with both of you since they didn't know Graves's position. A big mistake. He never really said anything to them. One day, they were just gone.

When you looked deeper into it, you found out that two were dead, and three lost their jobs.

Graves is such a gentleman.

[bethanydelleman]

Writing Villains (Advice from Jane Austen)

One of the reasons that I find Jane Austen's novels so wonderful is that they have amazingly realistic villains, some that are fully fleshed out characters. Austen's biggest strength is that she gives her villains clear, logical motives. In fact, for many of her villainous characters you can turn the entire story around and see a rational story from the other side.

For example, Lucy Steele. She doesn't attack Elinor out of mindless evil, but because Edward Ferrars is her golden ticket to wealth and she knows that Edward loves Elinor. Lucy might twist the knife a little on Elinor out of sadism, but generally she attacks Elinor in an attempt to secure Edward. When it comes to other characters, Lucy is overly sweet if she wants something from them, otherwise she acts normally. As an example, she leaves Marianne alone because Marianne is not competing for Edward and also can't do anything for Lucy. Anne, Lucy's sister, likes her. Lucy has friends and family she stays with, she's a fairly well-rounded person.

You can put yourself in Lucy's shoes, you can turn the entire narrative on it's head and play it out from her perspective and it would make complete sense. You could even make Lucy sympathetic! She probably sees herself as a hardworking underdog, trying to wrest her one chance at prosperity away from the conniving Elinor Dashwood. I'm sure she thinks the pain she causes Elinor is justified.

If you can't do that with your villains, then there is a good chance they are just evil for evil's sake. I picked Lucy Steele on purpose because I hate when the entire motivation for a antagonist female character is "bitches be crazy". Bitches may be mean, but almost always for a good reason.

Even Mrs. Norris, who is probably the most cruel of Austen's female villains, can be perspective switched. Her life is about being useful to the Bertram family so she can feel important because her married status/wealth is lower than she wished. As she must always be deferential towards the Bertrams, she takes out her negative emotions on those below her, the servants and Fanny, while also showing off how good she is at "managing" those people. (And yes, she is your childhood bully)

We often hear her perspective and she clearly sees herself as a useful part of the family and a defender of Sir Thomas's wealth. She thinks she's a good person! Which is also an important point: most people doing wrong do not believe that they are doing wrong. That is what really makes a villain scary. Mrs. Norris thinks she's helping Fanny in a very twisted way by teaching Fanny her station in life. If you asked her, she'd give you a self-justified answer and she'd probably actually believe it.

Another way to do a good villain is to just make a person very selfish. Henry Crawford doesn't sit around all day laughing about how much pain he causes women, he doesn't think about it. He only thinks about the fun of flirting for himself, not the harm to others. The glimpses we get into his perspective are not cruel at all. It's the same with Willougby, he thinks only of his own pleasure and tries very hard to ignore that he has crushed Marianne and destroyed Eliza Williams. When he is forced to accept that people were hurt, he blames everyone but himself.

Wickham thinks that he's a victim, Caroline Bingley is ambitious and doesn't care who she steps on to get to the top, Mr. Elton is insulted that Emma could even dream he's a match with Harriet but he can't touch Emma so he punches down at Harriet. They all make sense, they all probably believe that their actions are justified.

Also, imagine taking the heroine/hero right out of the story, would the villain still act the same way? If Anne didn't exist, Mr. Elliot would still try to bring himself into the Elliot family because he was afraid of losing the title. If Elizabeth didn't exist, Wickham would have had another favourite in Meryton. If Fanny didn't exist, Mrs. Norris would have found some other puppy to kick. The villains don't just appear for the plot of the main characters, they have their own reasons for moving around and messing shit up.

Lastly, explaining but not excusing (though unfortunately some people will excuse anyway but that's not your fault). Mary Crawford is mercenary and doesn't seem to believe that love is even a real thing. It's pointed out several times in the novel that her defects have to do with being raised in an immoral environment and a broken home. She was taught by her aunt to marry for wealth and disregard love. Austen doesn't excuse Mary, she doesn't give her a happy ending, but she does explain how she came to be. She's not just greedy, she has been taught that wealth is the best recipe for happiness. As an adult now, it is her responsibility to question that maxim or remain a villain.

Austen wrote amazing morally grey characters and "villains" (a term I used a little liberally here, some of them probably only count as antagonists, not full blown villains). I love how real and human she made her characters, it's something I aspire to myself!

Linking my Caroline rant because it's related, people remove her motives so often and flatten her into a "bitches be crazy".

[the-wandering-mage]

Gotham Bats ruin and save Spiderman's Operation Nest

This is like a story concept written out for a Spider-Man Batfam crossover fic I don't have the time to write fully. This is more developed than a prompt but, still is thought I'd share and maybe you guys will enjoy it and/or somebody will pick it up and develop it into a fully fledged fic. So here it goes-

A more spidery Spider-Man is dropped into a DC universe right into Gotham. It's the beginning of fall in Gotham which is a problem for a Spider seeing as he is stranded in another universe with nothing but his Spidey suit and his AI companion. He has no access to the synthesized hormone cocktail he's been taking in the winter to keep him from going into hibernation. Now Peter could get together the stuff to synthesize the medication but, he need a stable place to set up a running lab to make it as he'd need it fresh and take it on the regular. That is a lot of work and resources he'd have to come up with and maintain. Also he is a depressed boi and a long nap actually sound really good. So instead of trying to set up a lab he starts Operation Nest. He is going to find a small enclosed space and prepare it for his long winters nest.

Peter also decides pretty quickly with all the crazy dangers of Gotham and all the warnings of what Karen was able to find after connecting to this world's version of the Internet to keep the suit on and just be Spider-Man full time. The suit would keep him safe from chemical attacks and the overall pollution of Gotham as well as keep him anonymous in the very likey event he has to use his powers to defend himself. Which will let him keep a nice civilian identity that Karen crafted come spring if he chooses to.

Peter's first two objectives in Operation Nest are to get money and find a location. The first Karen helps him with easily setting up a company, then filing and selling some benign patents, since this world is really behind in tech. She also helps him get more immediate cash without crossing into stealing just by doing online commissions for simple tech support type things while the patent money is still pending. Peter gets a laptop that he uses to help with some of the tech work even though Karen can literally do five jobs at once under several fake IDs she made herself.

Most of the day for Peter however is spent looking for real estate. Which is harder in Gotham than one might think considering the rival gangs, rival super villains constantly blowing up things, and all the homeless fighting over whatever is left of the abandoned buildings. The only good thing about all this is a giant spider nest will go relatively unnoticed amongst all the other craziness. Peter's adventures running all over Gotham trying to find a place to hunker down for a couple of months cause him to run into all sorts of characters.

Peter is in a weirdly apathetic state towards himself with all his trauma so he saves people obviously, and is still empathic, maybe more so with trying to get the villians to be better people and just talking with them like real people but, he is really basley about his own safety. He has already lost everyone he cares about and he's faced down Thanos, so none of the villians at this point faze him. He doesn't see them as a threat to himself. He ends up making a bunch of friends with villains by continuing what May believed in, what Ben believed in, and helps the villains out so they can hopefully make a change.

The bats hear about him and decide to investigate but all of them get terrible first impressions and they assume he's a villain or going to be one if they don't find him. Peter is OP and scary. He's not given up his friendly neighborhood spider-man but he has stopped trying as hard to look human type of friendly. He just has slow given into being a spider and is creepy. He also leaves spider webs everywhere, since his natural ones don't dissolve like the artificial ones that he uses sparingly. This also freaks them out and there is debate on whether what they are hunting is a meta human or an intelligent spider creature. Also at least one bat at the beginning runs into one of the webs and at least one gets temporarily stuck to a criminal they are trying to free from a cocoon

By the time the bats find Spider-Man they are all convinced that he's a villain plotting something big but really they've just been stalking Peter as he completes his to do list for Operation Nest. All the dangerous equipment and suspicious purchases from villains were really to get his nest set up. Peter knew his friends had some of the stuff he needed like a cytogenetic freezer to keep some of his food from spoiling over the course of a few months since he doesn't want anyone making deliveries to his house while he's hibernating. His friends were happy to help although he still paid them despite their insistence not to.

Karen thinks it's hilarious. Although they acknowledge itd be better to just explain the situation to the bats before Peter is in active hibernation and let them find them. They totally ruin their bust by opening the doors of a small dilapidated old tailors shop in the fashion district, where Peter had set up his nest in the basement. Peter isn't happy with them feeling very territorial. He wants them not to touch anything as he shows them into his nest. He warns them and they are a bit freaked out when he hisses at them when they inevitably ignore he's instructions out of curiosity but then settle a bit when they notice how tired he is. Cass probably gets them to back off. He explains things enough so they leave him to his hibernation with the promise of hanging out in the spring.

Or alternatively. Karen is too busy setting things up she doesn't notice with her smaller processing power disconnected from Stark Tech as she is to notice the Bats noticing them. Then she is being wired into the Nest when they start getting close so, she doesn't know they are closing in. Then she is doing system checks to make sure she is able to monitor Peter when he's hibernating and can use the machines and mechanical arms to help Peter for the parts of his hibernation he will be awake or partially awake to handle his bodily needs before cocooning back into his Nest made of his natural webs and blankets.

Karen doesn't know they are there until they break her perimeter alarms and she is forced to use her defensive measures since Peter has just gone into hibernation like a day ago. The bats having more resources than Karen at their disposal and coming at her from all angles breach her defenses and get into The Nest. Karen does her best to rouse Peter with alarms blaring but she is only able to get him into a semi state of consciousness. Not enough to move him without drugging him which would be dangerous for his health and with so many coming for her charge she does her best to throw her mechanically arms in front of him to guard him where he is.

The bats once they see a sleepy confused Peter with a strange woman's voice begging them to leave him alone they feel bad realizing they judged him wrong. Especially after seeing him adorably yawn with his fangs popping out.

[a-doubleh-x]

Why I like Charlastor

The other day I noticed there was some negativity in the Charlastor tag, including antis and people feeling the need to defend against antis, so I thought I might as well take a step back and just write candidly about why I like the ship.

I only got into Hazbin in October of last year, but already it has inspired me a lot to write and fantazise about it. Like most people, I started with the classic "they look cute together", but as I kept looking I couldn't help but think there was something else to these two than first met the eye.

For starters, I love Pollyanas! I think they get a bad rep for being naive, but I just appreciate an optimist like Charlie who just wants to make people around her happy because it makes her happy. I also like bad boys 😳 I'm a pretty heteronormative guy, so I haven't had a big chance to explore that part of myself yet, but I do like the danger and excitement someone like Alastor brings to the table.

I will admit when I started writing Charlastor I felt like I was handling dynomite. It's a lil scary to ship a boundless altruist with a manipulative sociopath, but bear with me.

I think each of them has something the other needs. I think Charlie needs someone to challenge her, someone to steer her in the right direction while she's mostly isolated. At the start of the series, practically nobody but Vaggie takes her seriously, and Alastor is no exception. He mocks her, teases her, but she still listens and I think it's because somewhere deep down she understands there's something he's trting to communicate in his annoying, but curious way.

Of course, I also love the fanon Charlie who's down bad for Alastor, and even if that Charlie is a little naive, I think it's also sweet and she can use some indulgence while most people treat her like a child.

On the other hand, when it comes to Alastor, this is a bit of a theory on my part, but I think he's secretely lonely. He has friends, certainly, like Rosie and Mimzy, but they're not good enough friends to live together with him. They don't seem to be able to save him from "pure, absolute boredom". But Charlie, for some reason can, even though she's a stranger at the beginning when Alastor chooses to move into the Hotel.

Alastor is not as much of a cynic as someone who chooses to see things in a perspective that benefits him. He doesn't think redeeming sinner is "hopeless", but "hilarious" instead, which has interesting implications to me. That's why he chooses to hover around Charlie, not because he thinks she's lame, rather because he thinks she's silly. She makes him laugh. Which I think is kind of how Alastor sees "love".

And then you have fanon Alastor who, depending on the writer, is either a horny animal, a wisecrack edgelord or a soft boy who's mean to everyone but Charlie XD I like several of those interpretations, but I kinda prefer mine just out of personal taste. I think the best part about Alastor is that he doesn't *care* what anyone thinks of him and always does what he wants, even at the expense of other people, which I find pretty enviable.

They're kinda both outcasts in their own ways. Charlie by being unable to fit in and Alastor being unwilling to compromise. But they don't judge each other. He supports her in his own weird way and she houses him and is delighted of him in general, which is tasty food for his ego. I do wonder why Alastor is interested in Charlie, both in canon and in a fandom vacuum.

There's some cool potential for drama there, but also growth and healing, in my opinion. Personally, I think Alastor doesn't want to actually *hurt* Charlie, but he may hurt those around her, which will be a moment to start settling compromises if Charlie puts her foot down.

That haz bin my review so far! I'm honestly pretty grateful for Vivziepop for all of the work she's done so far, I know directing, animating and writing two shows over the course of 5 year or so ain't easy. I'm also grateful to the fandom who shares their thoughts and vision, which calms the terrible voices I started hearing in my head since I bought this weird old radio.

I'm in the middle of a break, but if you're interested in my fanfics I'll get back to writing very soon. Cheers! 🌈❤🦌

[ultralightpoe]

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark -Tyler Owens

Authors Note: Part 14 of the Halloween event! How exciting!!!! Also I used to own all the scary story books and my sister and I used to compete to scare each other.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 672

Requests: OPEN

~2024 Halloween Event Masterlist

[Thank you for the gif @motionpicturesource ]

ENJOY!

The room smelled like nothing but old cardboard boxes and dust, and for a moment Tyler could have sworn an actual tornado had hit the house based on the wreck provided from said old cardboard boxes. 

“What in god's name?” He mutters, boot moving out to lightly kick one of the boxes out of his path as he continues his way through the house. The stuff strewn within them left a bit of a trail and he followed it like it was the yellow brick road, and soon enough he found his oz huddled over yet another box as she tore through it. 

“What ya’ doin’?” He asks with a slight hesitation, flipping the rim of his hat through his fingers before setting it on the kitchen counter as your head snaps up to where he stands. 

“Thank gosh you are here.” You snap out, struggling to stand with the round stomach, until he moves forward to offer you a helping hand up and pat some of the dust off you himself. “I can’t find the book.”

“The book?” He repeats, feeling like a bird mocking it’s owner. 

“MY BOOK!” You snap, waving your hands. “I had it when I was a kid and we used to read it every halloween.”

“A halloween book?”

“Yes! You turn off the lights and only have the one flashlight so my siblings and I would pass the book around to take turns reading the stories and you had to try and scare each other.” You explain, waddling around to open yet another box. “Scary stories to tell in the dark.”

“I’m just now hearing about this book now…why?”

“Because the baby!” You sigh, pointing to your stomach like it was obvious. “I am gonna read it to the baby.”

“You’re gonna read a scary story book to our unborn baby?”

“Gonna get them started early.” You huff. “Mama ain’t gonna raise no bitch.” 

He can’t stop the laugh that escapes him, moving forward to help you start searching. “Alright mama, let’s get this search going.”

-

It took 4 hours and a trip to the bookstore to buy a new copy once you both realized your childhood one was completely warped. 

Once you managed to get comfortable on the couch with all the lights turned off while holding one flashlight as he laid against the pillows waiting for the spectacle to start. 

“You have no clue what you are in for.”

“Darlin’ I chase storms for a living.” He huffs out, kicking his boots off. “You can try but you can’t scare me.”

“We’ll see about that.”

-

He wakes up to pitch black, a wave of panic filling him as he feels around to recognize where he was. It takes him a moment to realize that you both had fallen asleep on the couch, and when he feels your ankle he knows you're safe by him which eases him a bit but he still can’t fight the tight feeling in his stomach. 

There was a small creak from somewhere in the house that bothered him. 

Creaakk. THUMP. Creaaaaak. Thump. 

Over and over, almost sounding like it was getting closer. It sent him standing quickly, reaching for a weapon to defend you both with if it came to it. 

Creak, thump. It was for sure getting closer. 

So he stood his ground, waiting for the threat to come only it never did. So he began making his way to it. 

It took him 3 minutes before he found the cause, the dog door on the back door was being pulled back and forth from the wind since it hadn’t been locked. 

A small chuckle tore from his lips as he dropped the half assed weapon he grabbed and moved to lock it. 

“Tyler?” You croak from the hall, drawing his attention. “You okay?”

“Yep, just fine.” He chuckles, shuffling forward to meet you. “Just protecting us from people looking for their thumb.”

“Hah ha. So funny.” You huff, letting him lead you up the stairs to bed.

-

[Thank you for the gif @makinggifsolson ]

[darrycurtisismywife]

Little Curtis brothers headcanons

I just made a post about little Darry so know I feel like making a post about headcanons on all the Curtis brothers as kids. I say all but this will mainly be Darry and Sodapop.

Darry used to be really scared of the dark, so he would either have to spend the whole night with the lights on, sleep in the same bed as his parents or his brothers, or his mum or dad would have to stay with him with the lights on until he fell asleep.

Sodapop was scared of the dark for a little bit but not as much and only sometimes, but he quickly grew out of that. The only times he was scared was when he heard Darry crying a lot, because he felt that if his older brother was scared off something, then it was serious, and there really should be a reason to be afraid. Other than that, he actually finds being in the dark calming, and it helps him fall alseep faster.

Ponyboy was also only somtimes scared of the dark, mainly when Soda or Darry was, because by the time Pony was like five, Darry still hadn't fully grown out of it, it was like a phobia. It was a chain reaction of kids being scared that their parents had to put up with, and sometimes they would all just sleep in the lounge together as a little sleepover, or at least the brothers would all sleep in Darry's room together and they would be fine. As Pony grew older, the only time he would be scared was when one of the other gang members, mainly Two-Bit or Dally would tell him a scary story.

When getting told off, Sodapop would almost always start crying immediately, and it would be full on bawling his eyes out. There are many headcanons of Soda being a little crybaby and I one hundred percent agree with that, it is pretty much canon. The telling off would turn into comforting little kid Soda and reasuring him that what he did wasn't that bad, and it was an accident or not his fault.

Darry wouldn't cry that much when getting told off, unless it was very serious when he was younger. He wouldn't really do anything or say anything and people sometimes mistook that as Darry not caring about what was happening. In reality he really did and would feel really guilty. When told by his parents, "We're not mad, we're just dissapointed," that would usually be when he broke down because he hated it since he didn't want his parents to be dissapointed in him.

Ponyboy didn't get told off that often because Darry would usally take the fall for him.

The name Darry came from when Soda was first learning to talk, Dary would sometimes play with him and try to teach him some words, including his name. Baby Soda couldn't say Darrel so he would say Darry instead and Darry loved it since he took it as Soda trying, and eventually everyone started calling him it.

Soda and Darry did the same thing with Ponyboy when he was learning to talk, playing with him and trying to teach him new words. When Ponyboy said Soda for the first time Sodapop was so happy he cried which caused Ponyboy to cry because he thought something was wrong.

When Ponyboy first started school he would be bullied for his name so eventually when he first met people and no one else that knew him was around he would lie and say that his name was Darry because he liked his brothers name a lot better and was sometimes jealous of it. When his family found out about this they had a long talk and Darry and Soda spent ages talking to Pony about how they loved his name, and the next day at school Darry defended Pony to be the kids at school.

Darry got into a fistfight at school once and got suspended for a week but he didn't care because he was protecting his brothers form more bullies

When Mrs Curtis was baking something all three of the brothers would lurk around the kitchen trying to steal some scraps when she wasn't looking. She was always looking and would hit them with a wooden spoon across their hands when they tried to steal some cholocate chips and cookie dough. One time she hit Soda too hard and made him cry so she had to give him some so he would stop, and then had to give some to Pony and Darry so it was fair

When Ponyboy started school he was really shy so Sodapop sat with him at lunch and introduced him to some people. Darry had showed him around the school and told him which people to stay away from because they were idiots

Whenever the family was going on a walk and they passed someone with a dog either Mr or Mrs Curtis would have to ask the owner if they could pet the dog and they would stay there for about five minutes so the kids could pet the dog. Sodapop would always be sulky when they had to move on.

They all love animal and would go insane whenever they see one. Especially Sodapop.

When Mr Curtis was doing some chores outside like mowing the lawn of when he was fixing the car Darry would always be following along and would always ask to try. He was always happy when he mowed the lawn and his dad said he did a good job when he let Darry help with the car

Darry was also always the one to sit in their dads lap and drive the car up the drive way

Darry used to sit in bed with Soda and Pony and read books to them, and a lot of the time at least one, or sometimes all of them, would fall alseep. There's a couple photos of them all sleeping in the bed with the book falling out of Darry's hand and it was taped to the fridge for a long time.

When Pony started learning to read he would try and read to his brothers instead.

Based on something my family used to do: Sometimes they would put music on the radio and all the three brothers woud dance to the music in the lounge and put on little shows for their parents.

Another thing my sister and I used to do: Sodapop and Ponyboy used to love eating frozen peas so sometimes their dad would sometimes pour them a small bowl of frozen peas and they would sit on the same chair together and eat peas.

When Mickey Mouse got sold Ponyboy drew a picture of him to try and help Soda. Soda was so touched that he started crying again and Pony panicked because he though he had made Soda sad but then he hugged him

Whenever Darry made Pony cry as a way to get him to shut up he would pick him up and throw him slightly up in the air, or give him piggy backs around the lounge and that would calm him down.

Ponyboy started over exargerating him crying so he would get free piggy backs

All the three of them have leaned back on the chair too far

Surprinsingly all three of them used to be picky eaters and it would be nearly impossible for their parents to cook a meal that they all liked that wasn't take aways or junk food. This is the phase they grew out of the most

Sodapop and Pony used to annoy the hell out of Darry by calling him Darry Queen whenever they went to Dairy Queen

Darry and Soda used to annoy the hell out of Pony by calling him horseman

During summer they would all annoy the hell out of their parents by begging them to set up the pool, buy them ice cream, or go down to the watering hole.

During the summer they would also have heaps of water fights and their dad would either turn the sprinkler on or just spray them straight with the hose

Second hand Darry clothes

I might do a part 2 if I can think of more but for now this is it.

[luffyvace]

HIIII hru !!! may i please ask for some feitan fluffs hcs 😩 i love this tiny man with all my soul

IM DOING GOOD!! YES YOU MAY!!! I ACTUALLY HAVE SUCH A DEEP ROOTED LOVE FOR HIM I DONT TALK ABOUT HIM OFTEN ENOUGH💥💥

(omg this reminds me i’m supposed to be doing the whole troupe and chuuya x male reader- i’m so all over the place but the point is another dabble of feitan hcs will be here in the future! 😋)

also ooc/fanon him since this is fluff :)

tw: death…and torture (i use “unalive” instead of d!e/k!ll)

alrighty so you said fluff headcanons and it’s highly likely you’ll get fluffy feitan if you’ve known each other for a long time (since meteor)

i’m going to dabble in reader that is both in and outside of the troupe because i can :)

so for reader that’s in the troupe first of all no pda

hardly any weakness was displayed besides sadness/anger or mourning (and some funny moments)

theres no need for cuddles during business

unless your like uvo and simply don’t care

then it annoys the crap out of him <3

it’s not like he doesn’t want your affection—just not in public

will cuddle you in private tho

y’all usually sit there in silence or read together

he can be a little spoon or big spoon it doesn’t bother him

he tries his best but he’s never let anyone else so close to him before

if you introduce something to him and he likes it he’ll do it back

because why would you do it to him if you wouldn’t want it done to you right?

im gonna assume you have either a apartment which you unalived the owner of or y’all live in meteor still

he’ll let you choose really he doesn’t care where you stay

he’d even unalive a high status person to steal their mansion if that’s what you want

your obviously strong and have some sort of nen if your in the troupe so he doesn’t bother worrying

although if your like kortopi he’ll stay vigilant for you

even though you can use nen to defend yourself as well

btw if your not a pda person the troupe is grateful

aint no body wanna see allat-

he doesn’t know how to cook or clean and since your both from meteor so i hope you learn or already know how

otherwise y’all eat what y’all can when y’all can

whether you steal a five star gourmet meal or just wait for the next opportunity like a vending machine

i don’t advise you ask for a pet by the way

he’ll tortu£ it and i’m not talking about strapping it down or anything

just purely scarring them 😭

if you be firm about him stopping he will

unless it’s a big scary dog or smth

then he’s more likely to take em under his wing and train them to be vicious

will scare people with said animal

for stay at home reader…. (most of these also apply for troupe reader<3)

i say stay at home bc with his portion of money you could buy anything you want

if you tell him what you want u can get it for free cuz he steals it

but

if you want to take a bath together it would take more than a god to convince him

seriously he sees no reason in it

once you do tho

at first he is on one end of the tub and your on the other

as time goes on he’ll let you lean back into his chest as he scrubs your hair

he lets you play in his hair

don’t tell ANYONE

he don’t like vulnerability so if you tell someone he won’t do it for like 2 weeks

you think he’s never gonna do it again until you crawl into his lap while he’s reading on the bed and ask really sweetly

he’s all yours after that

HIS HAIR IS SO FLUFFY!!

and yes he lets you play with it :)

you get to put it into all types of styles!!

especially since it’s a decent length!

not really interested in playing in your hair

he tries but the rubber band always ends up tangled in your hair

if you kiss him goodnight he will start to initiate it as well

thats one thing he will forever reciprocate

loves your humor

no matter the type

but he especially loves when you laugh at his dark jokes

youve seen him smile before 💖

warms your heart knowing no one else gets this side of him

not judgmental of your looks for obvious reasons

yall got bigger problems

dismisses anytime you degrade yourself

he be speaking facts

”the way your hair looks gonna unalive you?”

”your pimples will st^b you while sleeping?”

no? you goofy goober so why does it matter

don’t argue him on this

genuinely doesn’t like the idea of you being hurt

by him or someone else

dont expect anyone who does harm to you to see the tomorrow sun

even if you plead for them don’t waste your breath pleading you need to be saying goodbye

real loyal partner

as loyal to you as he is the troupe

you and the troupe are his forever commitments

no matter what he could never stop loving you

you guys practically never argue

hes not necessarily hotheaded but will say what’s on his mind and if someone disagrees he does it anyway

thing is he compensates with you💗

if he knows your nitpicking he ignores it but if it’s genuinely something you don’t like he won’t fight it

also he cleans up well if you don’t like to see blood/gore in your place after he’s done t•rturing someone

he respects and listens to your opinions and feelings

would love if your a sadistic person as well but he understands if your not

also if your not in the troupe he teaches you nen

only the troupe knows your together and where you stay for your safety

your safety is definitely on his priority list

truly cares about and loves you

enjoy!!!! i’ll prob come back and read my own hcs bc I LOVE HIM

thank you for this request i loved writing every letter of it♡

[xoxo-sarah]

Not Leaving

↝pairing: Daryl Dixon x fem!reader

↝warning:age gap ( not disclosed), angst, suggestive?? Not really, not proofread, Daryl's abandonment issues, reader has lived in the Commonwealth her whole life

|| Disclaimer: I do not own Daryl Dixon, or any character from AMC's The Walking Dead. I only own y/n and any characters I create with my own brain. ||

↝⎙ 1.2.24

It took a while for you two to actually consider what you have a “relationship”. You and Daryl began talking, sharing stories, and it turned into more. Sleepless night on the rooftop of his apartment building in the Commonwealth just chatting about anything and everything. He was a tough cookie to crack, but you did it. The way his eyes lit up when you brought up something he had talked about before, it always made your heart flutter. No one had ever made him feel this way. The feeling had Daryl a little on edge the first few times he was around you. He had never had time to feel before. He tried, but it didn't work out. He had time at the Commonwealth. He could walk around without the heavy feeling of having to look over his shoulder for walkers. Now he had to look for people who could switch on you any second. But he still had time to relax. And he didn't know if he enjoyed that or not, until he met you.

"Judith!" You yelled towards her room. The kids were running late for school and you woke up before Daryl. Usually, he'd leave you in bed when he helped the kids for school in the mornings. You'd come out of the room and tell the kids goodbye before they walked out the door, you and Daryl getting ready for "work". It still felt weird to have to get the kids ready for school instead of teaching them how to shoot and defend themselves against the dead.

Judith came running out of her room, hair brush in her hand as she slung her backpack against the kitchen table. "I fixed lunch for you two."you smiled. RJ grumbled in return, rubbing his eyes as he stood in the kitchen door, backpack hanging off his shoulder, zipper open.

You were quick to brush Judith's hair for her-with how long it was getting, while she ushered RJ over. Putting his lunch in his bag, fixing it on his shoulders, and zipping it all the way, she was proud of her work.

"It's raining." Daryl's morning voice grumbled, his eyes set on you and your own work. He went to the rack by the door, getting the kids' jackets.

RJ was leaning against the counter, eyes closed, tired body slightly swaying. "Here, buddy." Daryl kneeled, which wasn't the best idea. His knees popped as he sunk to the floor, helping the kid's arms into the jacket, zipping it up and putting the hood up. His knees popped again when he went to stand. You couldn't help but find it amusing.

Judith reached for her own jacket, putting it on as you put the hairbow in the end of the braid. "Lunch?" Daryl asked.

"Got it."

Daryl looked at you, "they brush their teeth?"

"Yep." Judith answered for you and slug her backpack over her shoulders.

"Homework?"

"She helped with it last night. Bye, love you!" Judith was walking out the door, waving while leading her sleepy brother out by her side. As the door closed, you huffed, leaning against the counter.

Daryl watched you for a while, not knowing what to say, until he opened his mouth. "They really like ya."

You look up at him, smiling. "I'm glad. They're good kids." You began walking over to him, putting your arms around his shoulders. "You did a good job with 'em."

On the outside, it was hard to see how much he was proud of those kids. It was especially hard to see how you and your praise affected him. It was scary sometimes.

It was a few days later, heavy rain beating down on the roof, boots soaked from walking from your own apartment all the way across the town to Daryl's. He hadn't talked to you- at all. If anything, he was ignoring you. While cleaning out walkers for Mercer, he didn't spare you a glance, buddying up with Rosita-who shot you a confused glance. The only other person who seemed to know what was going on was Carol. Who just so happened to open the door when you forcefully knocked against it. She was quick to cover up her surprise at your presence.

"Is Daryl home?"

"He's busy-"

"I need to talk to him." You weren't about to budge. You deserved an explanation.

"Daryl!" Judith yelled towards the room you and Daryl usually shared. Daryl poked him head out, spotting you.

Carol looked back at you, smiling and moving aside to let you in.

Daryl turned, a silent understanding for you to follow him.

"So," you pulled the dry shirt- that Daryl gave to you when you walked into his room, shirt soaked- closer to your body. "You're scared."

He huffed swaying as he looked at his feet.

It was a reasonable thing to be scared of, especially with everything that has happened to him so far.

"I'm not leaving," your voice was firm. "Not unless you give me a reason to." Daryl didn't spare a glance at you, counting the chips in the old wood that creaked under his weight. "Or you want me to."

"that's what they all say." You managed to barely hear his words with his mumbling.

Your heart squeezed in on itself. You having lived in the walls of the Commonwealth for almost all your life, you were sheltered. People who came into your life stayed until nature took its course or things took a quick turn in town. You still had friends who you smiled and laughed with, with years of friendship and knowledge of each other. You all were sheltered. That doesn't mean you don't have issues. Daryl didn't think about that. He was focusing on his own issues that made him feel unlovable.

He heard you walk over, standing right in front of him. For the first time since you stepped foot into his apartment, he looked up into your eyes. His eyes watched your lips mold into a saddened smile.

You lead him over to his bed that was held off the floor by wood pallets, your legs were crouching over his before he knew it, your hands dropping to his shoulders. A popping sound made you smile change to an amused one, instead of sad. "Sorry, old man. Forgot your knees are weak and fragile."

"aren' ya jus' hilarious."

After a moment of silence, you were back to being serious. "I'm here to stay. You're not getting rid of me that easily."

He nodded, not so scared that you leaving-that would shatter not only him, but the kids that grew so close to you- was not happening anytime soon.

•2021-2024 by xoxo-sarah on Tumblr•

•My work is not to be translated, copied, modified, and/or reposted on any other site without my permission. [I don't give permission!]

[lisacameron99]

Preggers J.M

Pairing : JJ Maybank X OC

Summary: in which John B tells his sister that he got Sarah pregnant and has to tell his sister and JJ

Warnings: pregnancy (wrap it before you tap it people), John B being an idiot, swearing, angst, fluff, talk about Big John’s death, mentions of Luke Maybank, kinda funny

Inspired from Young Sheldon and Georgie telling Mary and George Mandy is pregnant

“Hey, I gotta tell you something.” John B came into the living room.

“Yeah, okay.” I said absentmindedly, continuing to read my book. When John B didn’t answer, I looked up at him. “Are you okay?” His face was white and he looked like he was going to be sick.

“Come on.” I followed him as he walked back to his room.

“What’s going on?” I asked. JJ was there too, and I looked between the boys.

“You should sit down.” JJ offered.

“What is going on?” I demanded this time, still not sitting down.

“Well, uh.” John B didn’t know what to say.

“Sweet Lord. Stop acting like somebody died.” I rolled my eyes, annoyed that neither of them would spit it out.

“Kinda the opposite actually.” John B muttered. I didn’t get what he was hinting at.

“Well?” I demanded, starting to grow angry with the boys. “One of you tell me what is going on!”

“I got a girl,” John B took a deep breath. “Pregnant.”

I stared blankly at him before laughing. When JJ laid a hand on my shoulder, I looked back at him, and then to John B again. “You’re joking right?”

“Oh now I do need to sit down,” The words tumbled out of my mouth as my legs trembled. JJ came up behind me and guided me to sit on John B’s bed.

“That’s not all.” JJ said, urging John B to keep going.

“Uh well.” John B trailed off.

“What do you mean - that’s not all?” I asked, horrified.

“Buckle up,” JJ told me.

“Well, uh, it’s Sarah.” John B admitted.

“Cameron?” I demanded, shocked, alarmed, and mad. I stood up, walking across the room.

“What kind of Kook sleeps with a Progue?” I demanded, pacing.

“Obviously the kind that was lied to about status.” John B said, defending Sarah. I stared at him blankly for a mole before turning to JJ.

“What are we going to do?” I asked, still horrified.

“That’s what we’re figuring out.” JJ said, voice as calm as he could make it.

“Are you going to marry her? That’s what most people do.”

“I think so.” John B said, fully on board with getting married to Sarah Cameron.

“Hell no!” JJ chided, not on board.

“What do you mean, no?” I asked him. “He got her pregnant and that’s what people do in this town when they get pregnant before marriage!”

“Lily, she’s a Cameron!” JJ reminded me.

“Well, what choice does he have?” I argued back.

“She’s not gonna marry him!” JJ said, gesturing to John B.

“What’s wrong with me?” John B asked, confused to why JJ thought Sarah wouldn’t marry him.

“You’re an idiot, you’re irresponsible, you live in a pig sty most of the time, and you’re known to pee in the sink.” JJ listed off, confused to how John B didn’t know these things. “Care to jump in?” JJ looked at me for help.

Before I could say anything, there was a knock at the door. “Hello?” Pope called to us. I looked to JJ in horror. Why was Pope here?

“Yeah, Pope?” I called back.

“I was just wondering where everyone was.”

“Uh,” I stammered. “We’re just in here talking.” I tried to sound normal. “We’ll be out in a little bit. Is everything okay?”

“I’m fine, but Kiara is watching a scary movie called Jeepers Creepers.” He told us.

“I don’t know what that is,” I admitted to the boys.

“That ones rough.” John B filled in.

“Not good.” JJ added.

I stammered again, trying to cover. “We’ll be right back out.” He relented and went back to the living room where Kie was. “You’re going to have to bring her over.” I told John B, finality in my voice.

“Why?” He asked, confused again.

“Cuz she’s having our niece, you dumb son of a bitch!” JJ told him, rolling his eyes.

“JJ!” I chided, scolding him. I was trying hard to get them to stop swearing at each other and to be nicer in general. “But, what he said.” I relented, turning back to John B.

“I’ll ask her, but she’s not very happy with me right now.”

“Well, I like her already!” JJ admitted, rolling his eyes again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that night, I was sitting on the deck smoking a cigarette and watching the stars because I was stressed. I tried to wipe the ashes off the table when JJ came out. He hated when I smoked.

“Relax, you earned this one.” He said, very tired.

“Thank you,” I told him as he closed the door.

“You coming back to bed?” He questioned, taking steps closer to me.

“In a few minutes.”

JJ sighed and took the spot next to me, taking a big sigh. “Kinda déjà vu, isn’t it?” He said, referring to how we were the parents of our friend group.

“Kinda. I wanna be furious at him, but how can I?” He was going to be a dad. And he was trying to own up to it.

“The trick is to forget we’re the parents of the group and then it was easy.” I stifled a small laugh and JJ gave me the smile I fell in love with.

“It’s so crazy, when dad left, I thought everything was over, but then John B really needed me.”

“Remember his crazy head of hair?” JJ asked, smiling.

“And just like that, it was the best thing that could’ve happened to us, making us step up.”

“What kinda cigarette are you smoking over there?” He joked to me. I gave him a very small smile at his attempt to be funny.

“Ugh, so what do we do now?” I asked, trying to clear my head.

“We don’t have a lot of choices.” JJ told me. “We’re gonna help him raise a kid. And uh, that Cameron girl, is gonna be apart of our lives in some shape or form, until you know, we’re dead.”

“What do you mean shape or form?” I asked confused. “John B’s gotta marry her.”

“No, Lily, he doesn’t.” JJ said, sitting back in his chair.

“How are we supposed to tell people in this town that they aren’t getting married and having a child out of wedlock?” I demanded. “You know what this town does to people.”

“It’s nobody’s business.” JJ said plainly, making me roll my eyes.

“It’s a small town, J!” I reminded him. “Everything is everyone’s business.”

“You ever stop and think that maybe she doesn’t want to marry a progue?”

“Well, we’re trying to change that. Maybe with tax season.”

“Alright, you’re just being ridiculous.” JJ told me, getting annoyed and standing up, clearly done with the conversation.

“I’m being a small town woman.” I told him as he went back into the house. I stood up and went into the house and knocked on John B’s door. When he opened it, I told him flatly, “When you were born, I was very happy, but that doesn’t mean I’m not mad at you!” I walked away before he could respond, walking back to my room.