#and talking about the figures he made as a kid

[krirebr]

Still Life 1

Pairing: Alpha Curtis Everett x Omega Female Reader

Word Count: ~2.8k

Summary: Curtis has been volunteering as a foster alpha for three years now. He's never seen a case this bad...

Warnings: Angst (with an eventual happy ending), past abuse (not Curtis), alpha/beta/omega dynamics, physical scarring, extreme sexism, adult themes, explicit language, All of my work is 18+ - Minors DNI

Dividers by me this time!

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

A/N: Well, this is for all of you who thought you'd seen the worst angst I could possibly do. Sorry for how much this one's gonna hurt!

Big thanks to @paperweight91 and @bigtreefest who both read so much of this and helped with structuring and world-building. And huge thanks to everyone who showed so much enthusiasm for this idea. I'm so excited to share this story with you!

Any comment, reblog, or ask to let me know what you think will be greatly appreciated. And if you need to come scream at me, that's ok too!

As always, thank you so much for reading! 💜

Nzzzz Nzzzz Nzzzz

Nzzzz Nzzzz Nzzzz

It took a moment for Curtis to pull himself out of sleep enough to realize the incessant noise was his phone vibrating loudly on his nightstand. It took another moment for him to pull himself together enough to answer it. “Hello?” he croaked.

“Morning, Curtis,” a harried voice came through from the other end. “This is Yona from the Omega Welfare Center. I'm so sorry to call so early, but we've had kind of a crazy night here and we're in need of several emergency placements.”

That had him waking up. “What happened?” he asked, seriously, sitting up in bed.

She sighed, all of her exhaustion coming through. “A traditionalist compound a couple hours away got raided by the feds and ATF. They prepared for some omegas, but… There were a lot more. Kids too. It’s been all hands on deck at all five omega centers in the state. We’re over capacity, so we’re just trying to place anyone we can immediately.”

“Shit,” Curtis mumbled to himself. Traditionalist communities popped up on the news every once in a while, populated mostly by alphas on a power trip. But this one sounded bigger than most. He looked at his clock. It was just past five. “I’ve got room for one,” he said. “And I can be there in an hour.”

“Thank you, Curtis. I’ll see you soon.”

Fifty-five minutes later, Curtis was checking in at the center, his second coffee clutched in one hand. He’d been volunteering there as a foster Alpha for about three years. Mostly short-term placements. His longest one was just over a month. He provided safe touch, grounding, and a sense of security to omegas who needed to get back on their feet. He’d help them through heats when necessary, never knotting them, but whatever else they might need. Often, it was just his scent. It made him feel good, to be able to help these omegas, offer a positive alpha experience to omegas who hadn’t had many.

He’d worked with a few different case workers during his time. Yona had been the main one for the past year. He’d never heard her sound like she had that morning.

Even just at the front desk, he could sense how much more chaotic it was here than usual. He could hear babies screaming beyond the office door, endless anxious chatter. The entire building reeked of omegas in distress. It made his nose itch and his skin crawl.

After a few minutes of waiting, Yona came and got him. “How bad is it?��� he asked the omega as she hurriedly led him down the hall. 

She showed him into a small meeting room as she answered, “Really, really bad. I’ve never seen anything like it. None of them are talking, but from what we can gather, most of them have spent their entire lives in the compound. No IDs, no papers. Figuring out who they are has been nearly impossible.  And as terrible as it may have been, their whole world was ripped apart in the last twenty-four hours. No one feels like cooperating. We hope you might have better luck as an alpha.”

“You think they'll talk to me?” 

She shakes her head. “Just the Omega we're placing with you. They've all been taught never to trust outsiders, but they've also been raised to see Alphas as the ultimate authority. So, it's worth a shot.”

He nodded, slowly. “What do you need?”

“Just basic identifying information for now. So we can see if she even exists in any sort of governmental system. Then we can go from there.”

“If you don’t have any information, what makes you think I’ll be a good fit for her?”

“Honestly,” Yona said, with a helpless shrug, “you only have room for one and she doesn’t have any pups. That’s it. Listen, I know this isn’t how we normally do things and I’m so sorry I’m just throwing you into it without any preparation, but we’re really desperate here. They’re all high needs, high risk. There’s no existing support network for them, and there are more of them than we have room for. So we called all of our most experienced, most dependable alphas first thing this morning so we can focus on the ones we have room to house here. I know it isn’t fair to you but–”

“Hey,” Curtis interrupted. “It’s ok, I understand. I’ll take care of her. I promise.”

“Thank you,” she breathed out, a small fraction of the tension she’d been holding bleeding out of her shoulders. “Ok, I’m gonna go bring her in.” 

She slipped through the door and Curtis leaned against the table in the center of the room as he waited. He took a deep breath and tried to focus on putting together a to-do list. He had two sets of nesting supplies always ready, one with his scent and one without. In the next few days, he’d try to figure out if there was anything else this omega wanted for the nest. He’d gone grocery shopping the day before, so his pantry was stocked, but he’d see if there were any favorite comfort foods he could grab in his next shop. He needed to rearrange his work schedule, push back some deadlines so he’d have time to get the omega settled. He had no idea what they’d be bringing with them, so a shopping trip for toiletries and clothes would probably be necessary. Depending on the omega's state, maybe he'd be able to get the shopping done on the way back to his house. He glanced at the time on his phone. Shit. Depending on what was open.

At movement right outside the door, he stood at attention. Yona came back in with you right behind her. He took a good look at you. You wore a rumpled long-sleeved floral dress that went down to your ankles. It was faded like it’d been washed too many times. Your eyes were fixed on the tennis shoes you wore, which had probably been white at one point, but now were discolored and looked like they didn’t fit quite right. 

There was a little hand-written number ten pinned to your dress. He wanted to raise a judgemental brow at Yona, but if none of you would say your names, he supposed Yona and her team had to come up with some way to keep track of you all.

He had to stifle a gasp when his eyes landed on your neck. There was a large bite scar over your mating gland. Unlike the neat and pretty, well-healed ones he was used to seeing, yours was deep and jagged, red and white, scar tissue bubbling up where your flesh had clearly been torn. This didn’t look like a mating bite. It was the sort of bite meant to inflict pain. What sort of alpha had you had??

Your eyes stayed on the floor, your expression blank but your scent said so much – panic, sadness, terror, relief all jumbled together. He wanted to reach out and touch you, his alpha instincts were going haywire, but he kept his hands to himself. 

“This is Curtis,” Yona said to you. “He's the alpha who's going to look after you until we can get all this sorted.”

You didn’t react at all, just stood there, stiff as a board with your eyes on your shoes.

He stayed where he was, conscious of giving you space. “It’s very nice to meet you,” he said, as gently as he could. Then, with a glance to Yona, “Can you tell me your name?”

Your face scrunched up and the fear in your scent spiked but you didn’t say anything. He sighed. Shit. He really didn’t want to have to use an alpha command with you right now. That could be disastrous for any dynamic he tried to build with you. But they needed this information. He really, really hoped you wouldn’t make him force you.

“Omega, what’s your name?” he asked as firmly as he could, hopefully without scaring you. “I need to know.”

You closed your eyes tightly and he thought he saw the smallest little head shake. There was another moment of silence and he looked at Yona nervously. But then, you said it. So quietly he almost didn’t catch it. But you said it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yona frantically scribbling it down, but his focus was completely on you.

He tried to keep his sigh of relief to himself. “That was so good. Thank you. You’re doing so well,” he said, keeping the praise soft, hoping you could scent how pleased he was with you. “When were you born?”

You gave up your birthday a little more easily, but you left off the year. 

“That’s great. Thank you. Do you know how old you are?” he asked, maintaining his gentle tone, knowing it was possible that you didn’t.

For whatever reason, it was that that finally got a reaction out of you. You looked up at him, so he could finally see your eyes, and snarled, “I’m not stupid!”

There was a beat when no one did anything. Curtis and Yona just stared at you in shock. The snarl was frozen on your face until it suddenly disappeared and your eyes got wide. Before he was able to process any of what was happening, you’d dropped down onto your knees. “I’m sorry,” you whispered. “I’m sorry, Alpha. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Alpha, I’m sorry.” You just keep repeating that in a constant stream, your head tucked to your chest.

Repeatedly mixed into that jumble was a number. It took Curtis a few moments to realize it was your age. You were answering his question. He quietly repeated it to Yona, then dropped down to his knees as well so he could be closer to your level. “Hey, hey. You’re okay. You’re alright. You didn’t do anything wrong. You’re right. You aren’t stupid. I can already tell how smart you are. It’s okay. I’m not mad.” He wanted to reach out and touch you, wrap you in his arms, even, comfort you however he could. But he was too afraid that that’d make you panic even more. That was a boundary he couldn’t cross. Not yet. He stayed down there, whispering reassurances to you for as long as it took for you to stop apologizing, and a few extra minutes for your breathing to calm down. Once you seemed like you were back in the present moment, he moved to a crouch. “Think you can stand up for me, honey?”

You nodded, but you were back to keeping your eyes downcast. “Yes, Alpha.”

He wanted to tell you that you didn’t need to call him ‘Alpha,’ that ‘Curtis’ was just fine. But that could wait until you were a little more comfortable. Once he had you home, maybe. He could already tell that picking his battles was going to be important.

“Thank you,” he said as he stood up to his full height, and you did as well. “You answered my questions so well. You gave me exactly what I needed.” He looked to Yona to see if there was anything else.

“Do you have any questions for me or Curtis?” she asked you.

You shook your head, emphatically, hunching your shoulders. The room filled with the scent of fear again.

“Okay… that’s fine,” Yona said, and he could tell how much she hated this. “Well,” she turned to Curtis, “I’ll go get the paperwork and then you two can get home. I’ll be right back,” she said to you, then left the room. 

This was happening too fast. In normal circumstances, you would have already been at the center for a few weeks, at least, with access to mental health professionals, life skill classes, and support groups. He’d be the last step before going back to the real world. You’d be ready to spend time with an alpha. Ready to work through processing positive physical attachments. Ready to learn how to share space with someone who wasn’t a threat to you. You’d be ready to slowly take steps into the world, with him there to support you.

You had backed yourself into the corner now. He could see the way every single muscle in your body was trying not to cower. You weren’t ready. You were nowhere near ready. But with all the resources for at-risk omegas pushed to their limit by this raid, what would happen to you if he didn’t take you? As insufficient as it might be, his help could be all you’d be able to get. This wasn’t how it should be, but he’d do everything he could for you.

Yona came back in and he watched her take you in, sighing at your state. He knew she was thinking the same things he was. “Ok,” she said, handing him the packet of forms to sign. “No changes since last time. You know the drill.”

He nodded as he grabbed them and sat down at the table, getting to work signing where he was supposed to. As he did, he felt your eyes on him as the scent of your apprehension filled the room.

Yona called your name. “Let’s go outside for a minute while Curtis finishes up.”

You both left quietly. This, too, was part of normal procedure. She was asking if you were sure you were comfortable leaving with him, telling you you had the option to say no, getting your verbal and written consent, and giving you cards with all the emergency numbers on them. He was afraid this situation might stretch the legal definition of informed consent. Based on everything he’d seen so far, he couldn’t picture a scenario where you’d say no. 

Nothing about this felt good, but everyone’s hands were tied. And he knew that he’d do everything he could to keep you as safe as possible.

A few minutes after he’d finished signing the last page, you and Yona came back in. A worn knapsack hung from your fingers. It was small, confirming Curtis’s suspicions that you didn’t have much in the way of clothes. Alright, that was priority number one.

Yona had a thin folder in her hand that she immediately passed to Curtis. “The regular information, along with her schedule of appointments for the next few weeks, both doctor and therapist. And the card for the agent in charge of the investigation into the compound, in case anything pertinent comes up.” Then she turned to you with a small box. “I’ve got a couple packets of suppressants for you. Do you want them or do you want Curtis to keep track of them for you?”

Your eyes cut to him suspiciously then flitted back to the floor. “Alpha,” you muttered.

“Okay,” Yona said, handing the box to Curtis as well. Then she clapped her hands together, her face set in grim determination. “I won’t keep you any longer then. I’ll see you both next week.”

On the way out of the center, Curtis was all too aware of the way you walked exactly three steps behind him, one step to the left. That wasn’t just old-fashioned, it was archaic. He’d never seen an omega do it in real life.

At his truck, you looked at the truckbed in a way that made him worried you might try to ride back there, so he opened the passenger door for you and waited for you to get in. He resisted the part of his alpha instincts that wanted to buckle you in. And after a gentle request, you did it yourself.

As the two of you hit the road, he reached over to turn the radio on. He tried to move slowly, but you still flinched. “Want some music?” he asked quietly.

You didn’t respond, so he found an oldies station and left the volume low. His plan for the day had shifted a bit. You definitely weren’t ready to go shopping. That was fine. There was nothing that couldn’t be delivered.

About five minutes into the drive, the strong scent of your tears filled the cab. He looked over at you. You were huddled against the door, as far away from him as you could get. Your face was pressed against the window, so all he could see was the back of your head. But he could hear your sniffles and he could smell your distress.

It took everything in him to not pull over right now and reach over to comfort you. Pull you into his arms. Rub soothing circles on your back. But he knew that would do more harm than good. His touch wouldn’t be welcome. Yet. You weren’t ready.

And god, he wasn’t either. He wasn’t ready for any of this. But damn it, he was going to try.

Tag List is open!

@stargazingfangirl18 @yenzys-lucky-charm @thezombieprostitute @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @bval-1 @km-ffluv @texmexdarling @ladyvenera @roxyfan14-blog @darkserenity24 @midnightramyeoncravings @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @ronearoundblindly @brandycranby @steviebbboi @missaprilt23 @thiquefunlover63 @hisredheadedgoddess28 @stellar-solar-flare @crazyunsexycool @littlelearningbrat

[sparkoflena]

No wait because now I have an excuse to talk about this.

Alfred's character is fascinating almost ESPECIALLY in the context of Bruce is a Bad Father (which occurs in like half of the comics). He is a butler who became a father. He had to balance Bruce being his charge with Bruce being his employer. Which means that while he could have, he never made the decision to push on Bruce getting therapy or finding extra support (if he ever mentioned it, I'd predict that Bruce pushed back in a "you're not my father/ I'm in charge of you" way that kids with trauma do).

So Bruce grows up a lonely and depressed kid. He comes home to FINALLY have a purpose he's passionate about and it happens to be throwing himself into fighting criminals in what is most definitely a form of self-punishment/harm (he is literally named after his terror of Bats and is looking to save people the way he never was).

Alfred is 100% going to be the #1 Bruce enabler and guilt is going to run most of that. He was when he prioritized Bruce over his daughter. He was when he supported Bruce's Batman adventures. He continued to be when he let a small mourning child use the same coping mechanisms when this one could have been nipped in the bud with therapy (because it is different when it is a minor versus an adult, but Alfred will forever see the broken and grieving child that Bruce never really outgrew in most storylines).

But Dick would have had the most ideal adult figures in his life (if we don't count the Court of Owls grooming that he was unaware was happening). Jason had a mother with addiction problems. Tim canonically bounced between boarding schools growing up and spent little to no time with his parents (so that's more "inconsistent adult figures" than "unideal," but I'll count it). Cass had David Cain, who taught her to kill and never to speak. Damian was raised an assassin and, to this day in most comics, holds a highly complicated relationship with both of his parents.

Having an adult figure who shows care consistently, is there, and is a neutral party would feel like a relief to the kids. They wouldn't even think to worry about how complicit he is in the behavior in the first place.

Pssst...hey... Alfred can't be "good" if Bruce is "bad"

If Bruce is written as abusive and obsessed with "the mission," then logistically, ya gotta write Alfred as an enabler/accessory to the abuse.

It is impossible for Alfred to be there throughout all Robins, be first witness for multiple years with multiple children "suffering" and still have the kids be like: "Oh well, Alfred is still an angel, though." They would've known he hadn't helped them.

Imagine a building is on fire, and someone just stands there and watches it. They didn't start it, but they also don't try to put it out. They don't help anyone get out. They don't even bother calling for help. Yet, they still get a medal for their bravery??

There would only be 2 ways that Alfred could be seen as a "loving grandfather" if he

1. Outright stops Bruce by confronting him directly or getting the kids out from the first sign of abuse.

2. If Bruce is at least a somewhat decent father. Sure, he can make mistakes, and he can fumble sometimes. But Bruce can not be actively harmful to the kids for years without Alfred being aware and choosing to leave the kids to fend for themselves.

Alfred would have to be written as a non questions asked, 100% dedicated to only a "True Wanye" kind of butler. He would have to see the kids as not real Wayne's to allow an abusive Bruce to continuously harm them. The kids would know this and hate BOTH of them.

[maenoakasuna]

{ All For Us } Part IV Part I - Part II - Part III

This chapter is shorter than the others, i’m sorry, but I really wanted to focus on reader and Thanos feelings, relations, sensations and writhe a beautiful Smut, not just straight up porn.

It gonna my first F U L L Smut in English, so i’m really sorry for 100% bilingual person who gonna read this, but iI swear I did my best. I red a lot of smut before or have dark romance Book at home, so Im not new to this i’m just new to writhe it 😂

If you are not comfortable With Smut, You can Skip the entire Chapter cause it will mostly be it. Sorry not sorry

I hope you will Enjoy it cause not gonna Lie, even if I L O V E smut, I always feel weird to writhe ones.

TW : Smut - P in V - Bitting - Praise kink - Cunni - Thanos behing fucking hot and adorable. Idk for real. it's a fucking smut, figure it out

TagList : @private-vampire @rafesbunniebby @ultracoolnobody @chxrrybomb22

You stayed silent at his question, squeezing tighter your arms as your eyes looked away from his insistent look. You didn’t want to talk about any of this, not here, not now. You wasn’t ready. You weren't ready to talk about your fear, your anxiety, your stress, not ready to talk about the baby and every feeling you have. You weren't ready to face reality. 

You could feel your eyes getting wet, your vision blurring as your body started to shake. Your mouth opened up, you tried to answer, but nothing came out.

You could hear Thanos get closer to you by the sound of the wet floor under your feets. The more step he made to you, the more your heart raced in your chest.

«-I’m sorry.»

That’s all you managed to say. Your voice was a shaking mess. Anxiety started to rush more and more through your veins, insanely going to your brain and making it more fuzzy. You didn’t know why you were sorry. That’s not the thing you wanted to say, but you feared Thanos' anger and you didn’t want to make him mad. 

His silence stressed you more and His step got closer to you.

«-I didn’t know what to do, I never planned any of this. It just happened and I couldn’t just get rid of the kid. What happened is not his fault. I- »

You were cut By Thanos Lips on yours as his large hands cupped your face. You were caught by  surprise by this attention, but it made you feel your stress vanish as soon as you felt him. His lips, his touch, his warmth, all of this made you feel safe. 

Thanos kiss was passionate, eager for you. You don’t remember the last time he kissed you like this. You were still mad about him for what he'd done to you, but right now you couldn’t care less. You needed him probably as much as he Needed you.

Your arms slid around his neck, you fingers lost themself in his purple hair as you answered to his kiss with the same passion, you had missed this feeling that only he can make you feel.

Your lips spread a little bit to let your boyfriend’s tongue pass between them to come meet up with his twin. Your tongues started to dance a beautiful tango of passion. 

Thano’s hands, who were now on your Hips, pressed you more against the cold wall behind you, making you moan through the kiss under the icy effect.

You didn’t realize how much you needed to breathe until Thanos pulled away from your lips, leaving you with flushed cheeks, swollen Lips and a strong need between your legs.

«-Fuck.. »

He whipped out some saliva on his lips, looking at you with the same desir in his eyes as you have for him.

«-Did I already told You how beautiful you are when you look like this. »

You looked away, embarrassed and covered your body with your arms. You completely forgot for a moment that you were Naked. Thanos rooming over your body and stops at your small belly before gently putting his hand on it, making you shiver.

«-I should have been there when you got the news. »

He take a little break before his eyes going back to you as his hand on your belly came to take your chin, forcing you to look at him.

«-I know I fucked up, but I want to be there for you and for our baby. »

‘’ Our ‘’ Baby. It was the word who made you flinch. Your weakness all exposed you couldn’t hold your tears anymore and just hugged him. Your face in his chest you start to cry like you never did before. All those feelings could finally break free ; Sadness, fear, happiness. It was a messy mix of everything. Thanos hugged you back and placed his hand on your head.

«-I love You Y/N I always did, even If I never told you. High or Not, you always were on my mind since the day we met. You are the drug I can’t quit.-Fuck You Su-Bong, you should have told me that before…»

You still cried in his arms as he gently caressed your hair.

«-I know. I’m sorry. I’ill Understand if you want me to fuck off and leave You alone, but please don’t push me away from this kid. He’s not even born yet but I already feel like I could kill for that Child...»

You sniff and look up at your Boyfriend who smiled at you.

«-You’re not mad about that ?-About what ? You being pregnant ? How could I ? This is the living proof that I  marked You inside and out, He answered with a Smirk.»

You couldn’t stop yourself from smiling as a little amusing ‘’ gross ‘’ came out of your mouth.

Thanos gets on his knee in front of you and gently kiss and talk to your little bump. It was adorable, but also pretty hot. 

Your arousal from the kiss was still there, you squeezed your tights to try to calm down, but the image of his lips and tongue between your legs was too hot to be ignored. Your breath started to be a little bit heavier as you put your shaking hand in Thanos' hair.

«-Su-Bong, can You… »

Thanos looked up at you and smiled when he noticed your state.

«-Princess want to be taken care of, hm ? »

His deep voice, his pet name for you, it turned you on more as you nodded at his question.

It didn’t take that long for him to start his magic, first with his fingers, sliding them between your already dripping folds. You spread your legs a little to let him have some space, but he wanted to have the perfect view. Gripping your Tight, he put it on his shoulder, making you blush. 

«-I like to see How wet I can make you »

His fingers slide easily in you, making you gasp. He moved it in and out at a slow pace before his lips came to meet your Clit, sucking it at first before his tongue started to work around. 

Eyes closed you pull on his hair under the sensation of his hot mouth around your sensitive part. It felt more sensitive than it was before, making you moan his name again and again. You had to put your other hand on your mouth to shut you up. Grinting, Thanos stop his work on your clit and bites the skin of your tight, making you scream.

«-Remove that hand or I will bite Harder.-But, the guards will hear everything..»

He bites you again, sucking on your skin as his fingers continue to move in and out. He curled them a little bit when he felt he hitted the good spot. When his teeths let go of your skin, it hurt and you noticed the bruise Thanos had let you. He kisses the painful part before looking at you again.

«-Your hand, Beautiful, he said as a warning.»

You slowly removed your hand which covered your mouth, making him smile.

«-That’s my good girl. »      

Oh gods, you like it so much when he gives you that kind of pet name, when he praises you and he could tell by how hard your inside squeezed his fingers. 

Removing it from inside of you, Thanos gets up and starts to Undress under your hungry eyes. You have seen him more than once but you still feel amazed by how hot he looks. Once he’s naked, he grips your ass and pulls you from the ground and you wrap your hands around his hips as he easily inserts himself in you. 

You felt your inside stretch out and that was simply divine. You took  him like you were made for him. As he feel you clench around him, Thanos let a hungry grunt escape his lips. His forehead placed on your shoulder, he try to focus to not just destroy you.

«-Please… Su-bong, don’t hold back.»

His hands on your ass grip you harder as he pressed your back against the wall before starting to move. The feeling of each other was insanely amazing. Behind moans, growls, slurpy kiss and love bite all over each other’s body, you was both somewhere else where only you two belong, feeling like your soul could escape your body, making only one. Behind pleasure, you felt safe, you felt loved, it was all you needed.

«-I love you »

You managed to moan to thano’s ear as you grip his shoulder a little bite more. You could feel your orgasm coming quickly.

«-I love you too princess, so fucking much.»

He kissed you again as you came undone around him. Moaning trought the kiss. You became more sensitive and since Thanos didn’t stop moving, trusting  faster and harder inside you, You came another time and it Didn’t took long to your partner to do the same. 

You both were breathless, every muscles of your bodies was tired and so do you. You needed sleep and your eyes started to close as you rest your forehead on thanos shoulder.

«-Don’t fall asleep Now, we need to wash ourself before.-Yeah… you’re right.»

Thanos pulled out of you and put you back on your feets. Your legs was shaky, you needed your boyfriend’s help to stand. 

As your partner opened the water, he helped you wash yourself, making you blush.

«-I can do it myself, you know… -You seem tired. Let me help you for this time.»

He gently kiss you and continue his task as you let him do it, but only for this time.

[thewertsearch]

GG: Gosh! So formal today. UU: yes. u_u; UU: i'm afraid i am gUilty of rehearsing this pep talk well in advance. UU: i thoUght yoU deserved a proper sendoff.

Umbra has been talking to Jane for a while, then, supporting her from the sidelines.

Are the other Players aware of UU's existence, or is Jane the only one who's heard from them? Each of the original humans was initially harassed by a different troll, so maybe Bro, Jake and Roxy are being 'cheered' by their own respective cheerleaders.

UU: have yoU corresponded with yoUr first designated co-player yet? GG: No, I haven't seen her online yet today. GG: I'm really hoping Lalonde won't flake out on me this time. Have you heard from her?

I've got to say, I'm pretty relieved that the Derse kids have the same last names as before. I was fully prepared for Roxy to be a Noir, or something.

UU: not the today that is local to yoU. UU: thoUgh i do have a wee bit more troUble monitoring her than the rest of yoU. cUrioUs dark patches in transmission, hUmph.

...well, she may not be a Noir, but she is going Grimdark.

My hopes for Roxy to be the only non-corrupted human have quickly been dashed. We've got a full house of Dark Players; four ticking time bombs, ready to be set off at any moment.

This is going to be fun.

GG: I wanted to tell you, I had an amazing dream last night! […] GG: I was in a bright gold city. Above was a brilliant blue sky, but the horizon was dark as night.

Right, so Jane's a Prospit dreamer - and Jake must be the same, since she saw him there earlier. No surprises there.

UU: the place yoU visited was called prospit. it is where i have woken Up every time i have gone to sleep for most of my life.

But this is a big surprise.

UranianUmbra is a Player, and I can't figure out what session they could possibly fit into. Their grey text initially made me wonder if they were the pre-Scratch Signless - but Kid Signless wouldn't need to type in grey, would he? On a peaceful Alternia, he'd have no reason to fear culling, and could happily type in red.

What other sessions are available, then? Jane's, maybe? A fifth interloper to this reset session would certainly be an interesting twist - but it doesn't gel with the rules of the Scratch as they've been presented, and I don't think it fits the narrative.

I guess the only other possibility is that UU is in a fifth session, completely distinct from the four we're aware of.

UU: my prospit is an alternate version from yoUrs, in a completely different session qUite far afield of yoUr reality. UU: if we are ever to meet in person, it is Unlikely to be while playing oUr respective games!

And yes, that does appear to be the case.

...well, I suppose UU could just be bullshitting us, but I don't think that's the case. Bringing a fifth session into the mix is just too juicy to be a mere cover story. I'm pretty sure I believe it - and I have three main theories about what kind of session they're a part of.

Namely:

UU is part of the session which created Alternia’s universe.

UU is starting a session inside the kids' new universe.

UU's session is both of those things at once.

[peterm4rker]

from the rooftops || m.l

twenty four. mark fucking lee

🕸🕷✮⋆˙ wc. 0.7k w. curse words ! ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ

sometimes in life things just click.

like when you hear a part of a gossip you were missing and everything suddenly makes sense, or when you remember the name of something hours after thinking about it.

or when you hear spiderman answer your question in a way that no one but mark lee would.

it was november 13th, the day was beautiful with clear and sunny skies. kids ran around the park and laughter filled the air. everything was absolutely perfect.

you had everything ready to take action on your little detective plan as you both sat on your usual spot on the ground of the park, where was telling you one of his many stories for the new article. you noticed the stiffness of his body almost immediately after he got there, when he greeted you with the most awkward handshake you had ever been a part of. he completely lacked his usual relaxed and fun demeanor, and it was making your job harder and easier at the same time. maybe he was trying hard to hide who he was now that he knew he had fumbled a couple days prior, or maybe he had just woken up in a bad mood. whatever it was, it would end up playing an enormous part on the pieces of the puzzle moving slowly into place, preparing a picture of a face you had grown to know a little too well. 

you did everything you could to make him feel more comfortable so he could let himself go, just so he could give you something, anything that would help you finally figure out what you so desperately wanted to know.

it wasn’t that you wanted to know for any evil reasons like you were sure that many did, but you needed to know if the boy you were madly in love with was putting his life in danger every single day.

you asked questions and said funny comments, looking to elicit some type of reaction from him. slowly, he let his walls down as he always ended up doing around you. his hands began to move around as he articulated his words, his voice got more excited and giggles started to allow themselves to escape out of his lips.

and then it happened, the moment where everything clicked.

“and after that i went to go get ice cream to the parlor close to the river” he commented as he ended his story, letting out a small chuckle.

“ouh, fire?” you asked, without even realizing that you had just set yourself up for success.

“flames” he answered casually, almost out of instinct, causing your eyes to widen slightly.

no.

fucking.

way.

“i’m glad, i’ll have to go get some there. i’ve never had it.” you said quickly, trying your hardest to hide the emotion in your voice.

“it’s so good, also pretty cheap, but they give it to me for free because i once stopped a guy from setting the store on fire” he commented with a small laugh, and you felt utterly stupid.

how had you not realized after all this time? how could you not hear the voice that clouded your dreams behind that (now very obvious) voice changer? how had you not noticed that his laugh was way too beautiful to belong to anyone but mark? how had you not connected the dots earlier? every time he said one of the silly things he could come up with, every time he made the hand gestures you had seen him do so many times without the mask on. every time that he had made your heart flutter like only one person had ever done.

mark fucking lee.

“you okay there, yn?” the too robotic sounding voice asked as the man in front of you, mark, tilted his head in curiosity.

“yeah, sorry, i zoned out” you chuckled “but go on, i’m paying attention now” you urged. you had never thanked your mother so much for making you take those drama classes when you were younger more than in that moment.

“don’t worry, i was just saying that the chocolate ice cream there is bomb…” he continued talking, immersed in his own world to notice the way your lips quivered upwards as you watched him.

click.

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© peterm4rker, 2024

[queen-susans-revenge]

Oh, yeah, I mean...yeah.

So, when I was made... executive editor? I think? I don't think they actually made me EIC (editor-in-chief). I might have been managing editor, on paper. I could go back and look at my resume but I don't wanna. All I remember is it was a real big step up from News Editor of Dr. Dobb's Journal, which is what I was before. They gave me BYTE. It was just me, on BYTE. They'd fired everyone else. And I was also still expected to keep doing all the same things I had been doing before as news editor for DDJ, and there was no extra money that came along with the promotion-on-paper, but I loved BYTE and I wanted so badly to save it and I thought I could see how.

I did see. I wasn't wrong. I got to watch, in fact, as O'Reilly Media executed the exact strategy I wanted for BYTE and made it successful, for their title, MAKE.

Meanwhile I had an editorial budget of roughly $400 a month*, of which roughly $350 a month was already contractually obligated to Jerry Pournelle, who turned in rambling columns about what new printers he'd bought and what he'd named them on the local network.

I'm not. Kidding. At all. And the worst part? By the time I'd been handed BYTE, the only readership that remained was like, seventy percent Jerry Pournelle stans, so that was what they were showing up for. We absolutely couldn't cut him even though he was eating up our whole budget and bringing in zero new readers.

Every month, I got a lot of great article submissions, from people who still knew BYTE by reputation. I needed 6-8 articles to make the issue. So every month I got to pick the best, circle back to them and explain that I could offer like $20 at most for their hard work, and that would mean offering somebody else $15, or $5.

A lot of them took it, just to have BYTE on their bylines. We were burning up our reputation and our readership, and I knew it, and I couldn't stop it. I just tried to pick the best, to do my best every month as we inexorably circled the drain.

I should have quit sooner. I'm glad I quit when I did. I will never go back to magazine editing.

But also, I will never stop loving BYTE and DDJ.

I'm still so sorry I couldn't save them. In their heyday they were wonderful! Before USENET, the way that nerds talked to each other was through magazines like BYTE and DDJ.

They were so cool, they really were.

*I could be wrong on the exact figures. I probably am. It was a long time ago and I didn't go back to verify. This is my best memory, but I know that memory on exact figures over a span of decades is probably going to be mistaken. But the sense of just watching something I loved and was responsible for being impossibly horribly squeezed to death slowly--that was real. I haven't forgotten that. I never will.

[light-the-spark-of-dawn]

Jason Todd was That Kid who would stay up all night reading if no one stopped him- and he was also sneaky enough to hide his book and pretend to be asleep when Alfred or Bruce checked on him. Unfortunately, this usually meant that he ended up cranky and tired during the day- and his nighttime patrols as Robin only made things worse.

Most parents would simply confiscate the book and flashlight. But most parents didn't have kids who were adopted street rats. It had taken far longer for Jason to become comfortable in the Manor than it had for Dick, and neither Bruce nor Alfred wanted to undo that progress by taking away his possessions, even if it was temporary and for his own good.

Hilariously, the solution came in the form of Hal, Ollie, and Barry all falling asleep during a Justice League meeting while Bruce was reading off a report. Even Clark and Diana were starting to doze off toward the end. And not a single one of them were even the slightest bit apologetic about it.

"Sorry Spooky, but I don't have the willpower to stay awake through your speeches."

"I have an accelerated attention span, so you might only have been talking for twenty minutes but for me it's more like three hours. And my blood sugar is starting to crash."

"This meeting could and should have been an email."

"To be fair, it was a very dry report."

"You have a nice voice, Bruce. But we can only listen to it for so long."

Incorrigible menaces, the whole lot of them. He missed the days when his fellow heroes were too intimidated to talk back to him. Still, his friends' irreverence gave Bruce an idea. He returned to the manor and went to check on his son. Sure enough, there was light peeking out from beneath his bedroom door. "Can I come in, chum? I know you're awake."

"...how'd you know?"

"I'm Batman." Even through the closed door, Bruce can feel Jason's judgmental look. "And even a little bit of light is pretty noticeable in a dark hallway."

"Damn. Alright, come in."

The hinges creak as Bruce pushes open the door. Jason is sitting up in his bed, with a thick book on his lap and flashlight in hand. His face is expressionless, but Batman's careful eye notes the slight tension in the boy's posture.

Bruce pulls Jason's desk chair over and sits next to the bed. "So, what're you reading?"

Jason tilts the book upward to show the cover of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare.

"Huh. I thought you preferred prose."

"I do." Jason shrugged. "But Othello was interesting enough when we read it in class, so I figured I'd give some of the other plays a shot."

"I see. So which one are you reading now?"

"Julius Caesar."

"Ah I had to read that for my eighth grade English class. Alfred told me then that Shakespeare sounds better when read out loud." Bruce pointed at the book. "Mind if I have a crack at it? I have it on good authority that I have a nice voice."

"Who said that??" Jason looks skeptical but still hands over the book.

"Wonder Woman." Bruce flicks on Jason's desk lamp so he can see the letters, leans back in the chair, and begins to read, "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars..."

As Bruce reads the lines of iambic pentameter in a slow, steady cadence, Jason's eyelids begin to droop. Before long, he's fast asleep, and doesn't stir when Bruce stops reading and tucks a bookmark between the pages, when he sets the book down on the desk and turns off the lamp, or even when the hinges creak as he closes the door behind him.

Just in case though, Bruce waits in the hallway for several minutes to see if Jason's flashlight comes back on. Thankfully, there is only darkness. Bruce breathes a sigh of relief, then jumps at Alfred's sudden quiet whisper.

"Quite the performance, Master Bruce. Though I do think the Bard would consider it a tad underwhelming."

"Well," Bruce chuckled. "you told me once that an actor should play to his crowd, and my audience was one boy who needed to sleep."

"An unorthodox interpretation of my lesson, but if it encourages Master Jason towards healthier sleeping habits, I think it is a lesson applied well." Alfred nudges Bruce's elbow gently, guiding him along the hallway toward his own bedroom. "Now, do follow his example and get some rest. Or else I shall have to recite Pericles, and nobody wants that."

[lightlycareless]

I have a fluffy idea for you! What if Naoya and Y/N had gotten in a fight/argument that’s left them upset with each other but maybe it happened in front of the kids or they eavesdropped. And maybe they’ve never seen them this upset with each other so the kids worry that they might get divorced(after that one fic about death you posted, I wouldn’t be surprised if Naoaki got this in their heads too or maybe that’s too far for him even) so the kids make a plan to make Naoya and Y/N make up

Helloooooo!!

Aww this was really cute to read 🥺 as twisted as that might sound since I never enjoyed the idea of the kids seeing their parents upset lol. Still, didn't stop me from writing a lil something I hope y'all enjoy!!

Also, because of fluff, we have to remove Naoaki of the formula but believe me it would NOT be below him to tell them ugly things about their parents 😡 he'd probably go on saying things like "Oh, no... they're going to divorce now!!) .I.

btw... I am unsure of what fic you mean but I'll tag this one just to be sure 🙈 I'm sorry.

Anyways, here are the warnings: none. fluff. you and naoya are married and have 4 kids hahahahahahahhahaha a tiny bit of angst, there was an argument after all.

Happy reading!

Arguments between the two most of the time, if not always, consist with you not agreeing to something Naoya’s family demands, and his subsequent inaction to do something about it.

You try to be understanding of his situation, it sucks to be the child of a family that is always looking for their personal benefit, careless how it affects others… but just how much are you be able to excuse before it becomes too much? Before it begins to affect your family?

How much are you willing to tolerate… in the name of the love you have for Naoya?

There were limits to your patience, and once the little things began to bundle up, you snapped.

“Fine! If that’s how it’s going to be, then… then I guess I—I don’t have anything to do here!” you cry, tears in the corner of your eyes as you swiftly turned around and exited the room, leaving behind a frustrated Naoya, too angered to do anything else but stare at your distancing figure, as well as the disheartened children who had unfortunately caught wind of their argument.

The two always made sure to keep discussions out of their earshot, your problems shouldn’t become their burden… however, maybe because it was a heat of a moment kind of thing that led to this oversight, or perhaps you were too loud, they now went through the misfortune of seeing this.

Their father soon attempted to ease their worries.

“It was just an argument; your mama and I had these before.” Naoya explains. “We’ll be fine.”

“I never seen mom this angry before.” Naomi adds.

“Or angry at all…” Naori adds. “With you, I mean.”

Naoya sighs. Well, he didn’t know whether to be impressed by your diligence or upset that it crumbled today.

“Do you hate mama now?” Naoko dared ask, and Naoya’s eyes snap wide open.

“What? No. I don’t hate her. We just had a disagreement!”

But your consistent ignorance of the bouquet of roses and boxes of mochi he got you right after cooling down, hoping to strike a peace treaty and leave all this behind, started to indicate otherwise.

Your interactions, or lack of, grew more and more prominent…

Yet, it wasn’t until your refusal to sleep in the same bed as him (as if having your meals separately weren’t enough) was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

And ultimately, the ones hurting the most were your children.

Whom at the unfamiliarity of their parent’s differences, decided to make finding a solution their utmost priority, be the ones in charge of saving their family which at a larger scale was like saving the world. For them, at least.

“We have to help them.” Naoko suggested to the council, as Naori named it so. “Before it gets too late!”

“It must’ve been pretty serious if mama isn’t talking to papa anymore…” Naoyuki added. “Does she hate her now?”

“No.” Naomi firmly assessed. Because it’s not the first time she’s questioned this herself, nor the first time she sees them not getting along (which may or may not influenced her perception about her father…)

But it is the first time she’d ever seen her mother so upset. Enough for you to deny it when confronted about it, and you’ve always been transparent when it comes to emotions and how sometimes not everything goes as expected!!

To make matters worse, her aunties aren’t any better, as if sworn absolute secrecy and loyalty towards you, your staff had made it their life mission to avoid all her questions, even going as far as acting like it was all in her imagination.

“Your mom is just busy, that’s all! You know how the life is here at the estate… always chaotic.” Mariya shrugs her worries away.

If Naomi had been 5 years old, maybe she would’ve believed her.

However, her options were far from running out, and when one proved to be inadequate, she simply went onto the next, to the only other person she knew she could trust with her life—your side of the family, her grandfather.

The overbearing grandpa who was always ready to jump into action if need be, yet careful enough to not disclose too much and eventually cause more harm than good. Naomi could see it in her parents’ exhaustion that, as much as they enjoyed his company, he was… quite something.

“Naomi-nee… what if our parents divorce?” Naori dared wonder in the dead of night, in her room after everyone went to sleep. As the eldest, Naomi was the voice of reason amongst all the siblings, but she was always closer to her immediate younger brother—she doesn’t recall ever being so excited to be an older sister than the time she was to become one for the first time. “I… I don’t want them to separate.”

“They won’t, Naori.”

“But I’ve never seen them so upset… do you think mama hates papa now?”

Never. Of course not. You wouldn’t put up with someone as peculiar as her father if you didn’t.

…

And her father wouldn’t try his hardest to make you happy if he didn’t love you either.

A meeting with her grandfather was long overdue.

“Oh, Naomi… how long have they been like this?” Eiichi laments, imagining how distraught his grandchildren must be because of this situation. But of course, never leaving you out of his mind, equally worried about the mental state you must be in to have done such a thing.

Extending over to Naoya as well, the young man whom he once thought as the worst option for a husband for his lovely daughter—but now, a marriage and 4 children later, that is no longer the case. Naoya has proven to be a good man, someone he could trust with taking care of one of his most precious, and the recipient of his concerns as well.

“For a week now… and it doesn’t seem like it’s getting any better.” Naomi responds. “I need your help, jiji. I want them to make up already before they decide… maybe to—”

“They won’t do anything harsh.” Eiichi reassures her. He knows his daughter; he knows his in-law. They’d rather go through the nine circles of hell than live without the other.

Still, this is a problem that undoubtedly needs attention, for bottled issues lead to even bigger problems in the future, and as a widowed man, the last thing he wants is seeing his daughter live with regret towards her husband.

“Then what do I do?” Naomi asks.

“It’s not really your responsibility to do so, Naomi. But, if you must…”

Remembering the special moments of this relationship is a nice way to start, like what made you decide you wanted to spend the rest of your life with Naoya.

So, after extensive consideration and careful planification, Naomi and the rest of her siblings decide to pester their parents into going to the fair that’s set up this time of year in the city, with all the games and food anyone could enjoy to their hearts delight—the perfect escape from the mundane, repetitive everyday life of the estate.

You were initially against it, and not because you didn’t want to take them (going to the fair sounded delightful) but rather because they insisted so much on bringing Naoya along, which you had yet to make amends with him, and the last thing you wanted was to make things uncomfortable.

But you knew better than to resist your children, and so, you’ve saved the date for Saturday.

“Come on mama, we’re going to be late!” Naoyuki gasped, tugging at your sleeve with such unparalleled enthusiasm you couldn’t help but smile. “We have to get there before it gets too crowded!”

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” you chuckle, letting your youngest guide you towards the exit, where a car was already on standby by the servants. Naoya had gotten a bigger car to accommodate his quickly growing family not so long ago, though unfortunately it’s not used as frequently as you would’ve liked—mainly because you weren’t comfortable driving such a big car, not without Naoya anyways... and because it’s rare that all of you go out together.

Between Naomi’s school life, your growing responsibilities the older Naobito becomes, and Naoya’s availability… yeah. What a waste.

“I hope you brought a sweater, honey. It’s going to be quite cold out there.”

“I did, mama.” He says. “I always do, Naoko doesn’t though…”

“That’s not true!” She cries back. “You’re the one that doesn’t bring one, I always have to share mine!”

“There’s no need to fight over that. dumpling” You smile. “I just need to make sure the two brought something warm to wear later on.”

“I checked if they brought something too.” Naomi adds. “So don’t worry about that, they did.”

“Thank you, pumpkin.” You say. “But it’s your siblings’ responsibility to do that… right?”

The kids nod, Naomi shrugs.

“…what about you, my love? Have you brought something warm?” Naoya suddenly asks, seizing this moment to hopefully get an interaction from you; but you simply dismiss him with a curt hum, followed by a low yes before returning to your children and helping them onto the car.

Your husband pressed his lips together in disappointment before and getting to the driver’s seat, a sight that the children could only take in with great sadness and worry, doubting if their nee-san’s plan even had a purpose.

“It’s too early for that.” Naomi comforts them. “But trust me, it’ll work.”

… she just hopes she isn’t wrong.

“What is the plan?” you murmured, trying to not get overwhelmed by the vast amount of food, games, and all in between to be found from one corner to the other. Wherever you looked, there was not a single spot that wasn’t set up to offer a good time or at least get money out of your pocket.

Well, at least your children will be thoroughly entertained, though they had another goal in mind:

«Remember, we have to make it as casual as possible. Not make anything that might look suspicious!!»

With Naomi’s cautionary words in mind, the children made haste for their attempt of stealthiness, comparable to their father when out working with curses and such—they had it in their blood after all, all they set their mind to is easily achievable.

“Let’s go here first, mama!” Naoko pointed to a nearby stand, a game that consisted of gathering points by throwing hoops. The little girl did her best to score the highest, but in the end, she barely got one.

Luckily, she was not too distraught by that fact, for she knew there was a solution to it. Or perhaps it was all part of her plan?

“Mama, tell papa to win me a prize!” she quickly demands, tugging at your yukata and pulling you towards her dad. “Pleaseeeee?”

“Ah, well, pudding, I’m sure you could tell him—”

“He can win something for mom too, you know?” Naomi suggested, and through the corner of her eye she swears seeing her father get excited at the notion, the briefest opportunity to talk to his wife and make her happy through a silly plushie…

Only to dim the light in his eye when you shake your head, saying:

“No, it’s ok. it’s not necessary, I’m fine just watching.”

Naomi sighs. She didn’t like the idea of taking a harsher approach but your attitude and her dad’s unwillingness to step up too has her reconsidering.

She didn’t want to employ this so soon, but if she must…

“I want to go on the Ferris wheel.” Naomi suddenly declares.

“Don’t you want to try out some of the games first?” You ask, somehow a bit… unsettled by her request. The reason? Only you will know.

“No, right now is perfect; if we wait a little longer there’ll be a long queue.” She explains. “And I don’t want to wait.”

“Makes sense… sure; let’s go. Anyone else wants to go?” you look at your children, they all nod.

“I think all of us.” Naomi responded. “But I’m not sure if we all fit in the same pod...”

“I’m sure we can arrange something so none of the kids are alone, how about I go with Naoyuki and Naoko, and your papa goes with Naomi and Naori?”

“But I want to go with you, mom.” Naori whines.

“Yeah, me too.” Naomi adds. “No offense, dad.”

“I’ll sit this one out, then.” Naoya responds.

“Ah, no, that’s not fair either.” Naomi frowns—she’s not about to let her father ruin this too! “We all go, or no one does.”

Naoya raises an eyebrow; since when did his little girl become so bold? Ah, he sure misses the days where she’d happily go along with whatever her parents said… but at the same time, he was glad to see the sturdy young woman, that will not take any garbage thrown at her, she had become.

“Fine, I’ll go.” Naoya says, and the family heads over to the ride, but not without him gesturing the kids to go in front of them of course, which Naomi did not agree with, not if her plan was to unfold appropriately… thankfully, she had her sibling’s loyalty to rely on, which she did not hesitate to exploit.

“Kids…” You warned, trying to take hold of one of your children but they only seemed to do what you told them not to even more! Just as… well, not really. They were always obedient. What’s gotten into them? “I need you to stand before me, please. Or we won’t go.”

“Don’t worry mom, I got it.” Naomi reassures, making you sigh. Always the reliable one, you’re glad that your daughter is someone you can trust when support is needed, though you’re not happy at the fact she seemed to have more authority than you over her siblings. Ah, but if you only knew what she was planning. “You and dad go on; I’ll get my siblings to join soon.”

Wholeheartedly expecting to see just that: your kids waiting for you to get ready before helping them up—

But the moment you and Naoya were inside, the door was firmly shut, and the ride set in motion! The employee simply doing what he was bribed into after getting a taste of the Zen’in fortune by your eldest, ensuing an exasperated, rightfully furious set of parents that quickly demanded the door to be open, less he wished to suffer the consequences.

“Hey, I’m talking to you, bastard!” Naoya fumed, still debating whether to use his technique to break free, and bring along even more severe problems, such as endangering you and everyone around… or not. He chose not to. “Open this door, now!”

“Naoya—the kids, they’re—” you fret, all kinds of horrible scenarios crossing through your mind as you glanced out the window and down to them: anticipating finding them equally distraught by this occurrence, tears soaking their cheeks as they cried to be reunited with their parents—

Only to be shocked at their reactions, not only different to what you expected, but the vast opposite!

Naomi, Naori, Naoko, and Naoyuki bearing bright smiles on their faces while waving goodbye to you and Naoya, in such optimistic matter that you could only assume was intentional.

You didn’t know whether to be elated they were far away from any immediate danger or be angry to have pulled something like this!

“Have fun!!” Naomi cheers when the two start going up.

But when you were still debating, Naoya had long set his mind.

“I’m giving all of them a piece of my mind once we get down.” Naoya warned, no one was to escape a much-deserved reprimand; though a bit harsher on the employee than with his own kids.

Until then, however. the two were forced to remain in this situation that grew quickly familiar the higher you went, culminating at the very top where each pod would have a few seconds to rejoice the view of the city at night.

The exact same situation Naoya and you found themselves many years ago, when you first—

“Are you cold?” Naoya suddenly asks, and you blink out of your thoughts, completely unprepared for his approach.

But who are you trying to fool? Naoya has been nothing but insistent when it came to reaching out to you; if anything, it should’ve been obvious he’d do so again. Perhaps your reaction stemmed more from the fact he still tried.

Even after all your rejections, he still tries.

Will this occasion be any different?

“No, I’m… fine.” You murmur, it was impossible considering all the layers underneath your kimono. “You?”

“I’m good.” He responds. Though the conversation runs ironically cold, with the two continuing to mindlessly look anywhere else but at each other.

While fidgeting at the edges of your sleeve, you try to push away the thought of that wonderful moment out of your mind. You’re probably the only one that’s thinking about it, and it would be in bad taste to bring it up after all you’ve done.

Unless he were to do it.

“This is where we shared our first kiss, wasn’t it?” Naoya notes, still gazing out the horizon. “Under the guise of wanting to enjoy the fair, you took me to the Ferris wheel and kissed me.

…

…

…

I didn’t expect you to do it, you know? I genuinely believed were just hanging out, that you only wanted to show your gratitude after I helped you out with school and some missions—the fair seemed to be the right place for it.”

You swallow, followed by a few seconds of silence that made Naoya believe you weren’t to respond, as usual, until you did.

“…That was my intention.” You slowly explain. “At least until we got here.”

“What made you change your mind?” he wonders, taken aback by this sudden, new side of the story he fondly guarded in his heart.

“I… I guess I just got overwhelmed by everything. How beautiful the city looked at night, the two of us alone, up here… and the sentiments I’ve begun to have for you after all you’ve done for me.” You confess. “I don’t know how else to explain it. I guess my heart simply… needed to do it.”

“Don’t be coy, now. You just couldn’t resist me, could you?” Naoya teases, looking at you. You blush.

“No. I guess I couldn’t.” you murmur, glancing back at him. Flustered, but mostly out of shame. Pressing your trembling lips together, you once again do what your heart demands you to.

“… I’m sorry, Naoya—for… for the horrible way I’ve been acting.” You sniveled, Naoya’s eyes widened.

“Y/N…”  He leans closer, hoping to be near enough to comfort you once the tears in your eyes threaten to fall. “I tried approaching you, make things up, but… you just kept rejecting me. Why?”

“Because I…I was ashamed.” You confess, he blinks. “I treated you horribly, spoke ill behind your back, Naoya—and the—the longer it went on, the more I felt terrible about myself. I simply couldn’t approach you. How—how could I ever look at you again after all that?”

Naoya won’t deny that your admission hurt him deeply. To hear you openly question why you even married him is a strike that reopened many of his old wounds.

But being here again, in the same exact moment that made you fall in love even more with Naoya, that you couldn’t help but pour your heart out of fear of him not feeling the same way for you anymore after all the times you’ve rejected him.

Or worse, that he had already moved on to someone else, the mere thought enough to make you delirious with sadness—

You never wanted anyone else so much in your life as you do now for him.

So how did you even dare question your relationship with him?

Had he been dreadful as a partner? Given you any indications of a poor parentage towards your kids?

No. Of course not. Never.

Naoya was, and is, the love of your life. The man of your dreams and the only person you wished to spend the rest of your days with. You will never look for anyone else if it’s not him.

It’s just that sometimes… the two might say things neither truly mean. You’re both human, after all. Emotional beings so heavily intertwined with one another; it made every little interaction far more intense.

Like your love.

“I didn’t know how to—how to make amends. I shouldn’t have said what I did but… I just… I didn’t know how to make it stop.” You continue. “So, I just foolishly kept on acting like that…hoping it would just stop.”

“You know, a simple smile from you would’ve been enough for me to forget everything.”

“This is serious, Naoya.” You refute. “I acted like a child—how could you…”

“I know, I know.” He chuckles. “But I’m not angry, not anymore that is. I’m just happy that my wife is talking to me again.”

Your lip trembles, gasping at the way his words made you feel.

“I never stopped loving you.” Naoya murmurs, leaning closer to you, up to the point where his face was simply mere inches away from you. “Nor did I ever feel anything else that wasn’t complete adoration for you during these days we were apart.”

“Even when we stopped sleeping in the same bed? Or eating at the same table?” you wonder. “Not even then did your love dwindle?”

“Well, I might’ve felt a bit resentful that I didn’t have my warm adorable mochi to cuddle with.” he says, carefully placing his arm around your waist and pulling you even closer to him. “Or my wife to talk to after a long day of work… but as I said, those things fail to matter in time when all I wanted was to see you happy again.”

“I wouldn’t have married you if I didn’t know you’d be a good partner and father.” You murmur. “How… how can I make it up to you?”

“I know a way you can do just that.” He teases, you blush. “But I’ll settle for something better.”

“What?”

“How about a kiss? For old times’ sake.” He suggests with a sly smirk. “Since it’s been so long, it might as well be just like the first time.”

Your eyes widen before giggling.

“What?”

“Nothing, I guess I’m glad to see you’re just as silly as ever.”

And without anything else to say, you finally close the distance between the two by softly pressing your lips onto his, just like you did all those years ago.

But instead of pouring out your newfound love, which still lives, through the form of 4 lovely children, you give him a bittersweet kiss that signified your regret, and your desire to move past this situation, to return to your husband’s arms every night and bask in his adoration.

Which he was more than glad to commit, given the way he placed his hand over your head and pulled you even closer—almost as if he were afraid of losing you the moment this kiss ended, unwilling to do so again.

Yet deep within his heart, he knew that after today, it won’t happen. Never, in fact.

“You’re sweet as ever, too.” Naoya murmurs once freeing your lips of his relentless grasp, cupping your face soon after and wiping your tears. “My spoiled princess.”

“I’m not…” you sigh, succumbing to his words. You might as well give him this small victory after all you made him go through. “Fine.”

“There she is, my bratty mochi.” He continues to tease you, pressing your cheeks together into a pout and pecking your lips once again. “My beautiful, darling mochi.”

“You’re lucky that your handsome.” You tease back, Naoya laughs.

“Really so?” he says. “I believe my true charm comes beyond my good looks.”

“It does.” You reassure him, giving him one last kiss as the ride begins to descend. “It’s always been more than that.”

Waiting by the sideline, your children anxiously glued their eyes to your pod in anticipation of results. Of the reassurance that their plans had ultimately worked and their parents returned to their usual, loving ways… if not, prepare themselves for a stage in their lives they all knew would loathe, impossible to recuperate from as they see their family crumble.

Thankfully, the sight of you smiling, a bright streak of red across your face as you allowed your husband to help you down the ride quickly struck those awful thoughts out of their mind, rushing to their parents side as they demanded one last vocal confirmation of your forgiveness, just to be sure.

Their bright, big teary eyes inspire you to kneel to their level, taking them into your arms, before doing so.

“I think we owe you an apology for involving you in our issues, and for the way I’ve been behaving. It was never your responsibility to look after us… but you still did, all of you. Thank you.” You say, looking over to Naomi whom you had no doubt was the leader of the whole thing. Her sudden interest in visiting her grandfather suddenly made sense—still, you were proud of the fact that she knew how and where to act. Oh, she’s not a baby anymore, is she? “We couldn’t have asked for better children.”

“Does it mean you still love each other?” Naoyuki asked.

“You won’t get divorced… right?” Naoko adds, Naoya scowls.

“Never. Who even mentioned anything about a divorce?” It was such an awful word to him, he would completely barren it from their vocabulary if possible. But he can’t, so instead, he’ll reassure them that it would never happen—as many times as they need. “Your mama and I love each other very much; it’ll take a whole lot for her to get rid of me.”

You chuckle.

“Really?” Naori’s eyes brighten, diving deeper into your embrace. “I’m so happy!”

“Does this mean we’ll finally enjoy the fair as a family, like we should’ve?” Naomi asks, your grin widens.

“Yeah. We will—but only if your papa goes on the rollercoaster with me! Do you know that he’s quite afraid of them? I had to bride him a few times before just to get him to ride with me!”

“That’s not true, not at all!” Naoya gasps. “You’re the one screaming all the time…”

“Of excitement! Not fear.” You jest back. “Come on now, don’t tell me you’re still scared?”

The children laugh, Naoya quickly grows red as a tomato.

While Naomi, contrary to the usual embarrassment she would’ve gotten at these very humiliating displays, doing her best to cower from the public view, smiles. Glad to see that her parents were back on their obnoxious nature—

Their overburdening, quite uncomfortable, yet ultimately endearing behavior Naomi wouldn’t want to change for anything in the world.

She’ll have plenty of other occasions to cringe at her parents, for now, she just wants to be happy.

Like she once was when nothing short of a child.

Naomi to the rescue 👉👈 as the oldest, she feels burdened to keep her family together. I don't like that, because it shows some degree of carelessness in Y/N and Naoya, but she's driven by her caring nature to do what she must to protect her loved ones—if you didn't want those traits on her then maybe you shouldn't have married a stubborn man like Naoya lol.

I don't have anything else to say except that I'm going to write that first kiss :) It's like one of the many variations of it lol. Of course, in the high school au. I already have it set up, it's just a matter of getting down to actually write it 🙈

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading this!! I do love it when I get asks with fluff + the kids 🥹❤️❤️❤️ Thank you so much.

Now, take care and hope to see you soon!

p.s. naomi feeling like a child at that one last sentence makes me all warm inside 🥺😭 it's like she's my firstborn lmao. maybe she is.

[adalitas-coffeebreak-corner]

Whispers down the hall

Ghost!Sirius Black x Muggle!Reader

A/n: Hi, this was the popular vote, so here ya go. I'll post the others in the same order, so next we will have some roommate!Remus <3

Warnings: Angst, angst and angst, mentions of death and people dying. Word count: 940

Summery: Sirius realises eternity might not be as bad, now that he got to see you.

It had been rather painless.

He had often thought about it, but maybe he was forgetting something.

Harry’s scream echoing as he felt the world seize to turn, the cold touch of death brought upon him way too soon. He had felt angry, cheated. He had gotten to see James and Lily once more, but only for a few seconds, or it might have been minutes, he wasn’t quite sure, considering his mind still hazy from crossing the veil.

He only hoped Harry was okay.

Remus too.

A vibrant ray of light was shining through the moth-eaten curtains of Sirius’ first apartment. Apparently, that’s where he was doomed to spend the rest of eternity, the place where him and Remus had lived for about a year, in the middle of busy muggle London. After Sirius had been sent to Azkaban, Remus had done very little to upkeep the place, leaving their sofa and a few boxes hidden in the back of the closet.

 And he really couldn’t blame him.

A lot had stayed the same, even some of their old furniture had filled the small space, but the change of flooring, a newly installed kitchen stove had alerted Sirius that others must have occupied the space for the last sixteen years, most likely muggles who were blissfully unaware of the shitshow that had happened there.

But as of now, Sirius roaming down the cramped hallway, it had been empty. No laughter, music or talking and it was driving him off the wall. It wasn’t enough that he was a ghost, no, he had been forced to stay inside an old grey apartment that resembled Grimmauld place in every sense. Totally devoid of any life and happiness.

That was the worst part, Sirius agreed with himself.

So, when he suddenly felt a presence his mind quieted. The door opened and a grey-haired woman, who he made out to be the landlord, walked in with keys and a stack of paper in hand. If his heart was still beating it would’ve skipped a beat when a younger woman trailing behind, carrying a suitcase, came into view.  

She’s beautiful, he thought.

“So here it is, it’s a fucking shithole, but at least it’s cheap” The older woman muttered drawing back the curtains, particles of dust dancing in the sunlight. The younger girl looked a little taken aback, which Sirius thought was adorable, her eyes widening before regaining her composure, obviously not used to the landlords of central London.

The thought made him chuckle.

“Um, yes, I did notice the rent is rather affordable, how come? I mean, this street is right next to Kensing- “

“A couple of years ago some kid who lived here blew up some people right out on the street” The grey-haired woman cut her off with an explanation, her tone matching that of a mother tired of answering questions, Sirius figured the lady must’ve been asked a million times from different tenants. “Oh” was all the young girl could muster, looking a little paler than when she first stepped inside. Sirius felt his chest tighten.

A few months had gone by when Y/n noticed strange things happening. Her bag, that she was notoriously known for misplacing, would lay on her sofa table every morning before work, tea mugs seemed to always magically end up in the sink and weirdest of all? Her record player would keep turning on in the middle of the night, even when she had unplugged it minutes before laying in bed, most commonly when she had been listening to her David Bowie or Mott the hoople LP’s. The first night it had happened, she awoke in a slight panic, dragging her feet quickly towards the sound, where she pulled the needle to rest in the place she had left it.

Weird, but not necessarily any course for alarm.

Sirius felt bad for waking her up, but Godrick, he yearned for any resemblance of nostalgia. It also didn’t help her record collection resembled the one him and Remus had collected over the years. But if he was being honest, she resembled everything he had loved while he was alive, even the tea she made in the morning was his favorite muggle brand.

Nevertheless, he had been terrified when she first discovered the box hidden in the back of the small closet, thinking she might be inclined to throw the contents out, but no.

She just sat there, gently pulling out items with the sweetest intrigued look on her face. First it was his old Gryffindor scarf, then one of Remus’ books and lastly a group picture of all the Marauders and Lily titled First Christmas together at James and Lily’s house.

Sirius sat beside her looking over the picture carefully, emotions erupting inside scorching every fiber of his being. Y/n, as he had learned her name was, started to smile.

When she finally put down the framed polaroid, another one caught her attention, and Sirius swore he heard her gasp, and sure enough, when the photo came into view his hopes were confirmed.

It was a photo of Sirius, shirtless, lying by the black lake on a sunny day, smiling at the camera. Y/n traced her fingers gingerly over the photo, taking in every detail.

He’s beautiful, she whispered.

Sirius couldn’t help the smirk that adorned his lips, as it finally dawned on him. He’d go through everything again just to end up by her side, even if eternity would always keep them apart.  

[toasecretsanta]

From @just_snakess for Aquos

“So, what’s been going on at camp?” I asked my children, spearing a sausage on my fork. We were sat at the Apollo table in Camp Half-Blood’s mess hall, enjoying the food after a hard day’s work training. Well, the demigods had been hard at working training. I had been hard at work giving the occasional thumbs up from the sidelines. But I liked to visit Camp Half-Blood often, even when there was nothing in particular that needed some godly input. It was the least I could do, after spending, well, millennia, almost completely ignoring my children. I felt a now-familiar surge of guilt, but pushed it firmly down. Now was not the time. Instead, I continued my questioning.

“News? Gossip? Pranks? Tell me everything.” I waggled my eyebrows suggestively, then regretted it.

Will cracked a small smile at my antics, so I figured it was all worth it. “It’s been surprisingly quiet, actually,” he said.

“It absolutely hasn’t,” Kayla objected. “You know Tanya from Hephaestus? Turns out her epic rivalry with the Aphrodite cabin was all for show, and she’s been dating Chloe for months. The Aphrodite kids can’t decide whether to exile Chloe for not telling them, or hail them both as the greatest forbidden romance of all time.” “And then there’s Chiron’s new initiative,” put in Austin.

As one, the table groaned.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Gracie said miserably, staring down at her plate like she was staring down the barrel of a gun. Oh, wait, demigods don’t use guns. Perhaps the Hephaestus cabin should get on that.

“It’s awful,” Jerry bemoaned. Kayla clapped him on the shoulder in commiseration.

I looked at Will. As head counsellor, he would surely have some sensible and reassuring comment to make to raise his siblings’ spirits. “No, Dad, it really is that bad,” he said, as if he’d read my mind. “It’s to do with Chiron’s new…”

“...mental health initiative,” the whole cabin finished together, with various levels of despair, disgust, and hopelessness in their voices.

I frowned. This seemed like an important parenting moment. “Now, children,” I began. “I know talking about mental health isn’t always comfortable, but as the god of health, you can trust me when I say it’s very important! Whatever Chiron’s got in store for you, I’m sure it’s entirely justified and very helpful.” Oddly, this did not seem to have the cheering effect I’d hoped for. Gracie picked gloomily at her food. The others exchanged commiserating glances with each other.

“In principle, I’d agree with you,” Will said, evidently their designated spokesperson. “But…not this. Anything but this.”

“It can’t be that bad,” I said optimistically, though privately I was beginning to have my doubts. I’d seen my children more enthusiastic about literal wars.

Will grimaced, but didn’t reply. The table fell into a gloomy silence. It seemed I had made a social faux pas, which was unfortunately a surprisingly common occurrence for me. I cast around desperately for another source of conversation, and spied Meg walking with a tray over to the Demeter table.

“Meg! Over here!” I shouted, waving my arms frantically. One thing I’d learned about Meg is that to get her attention, you had to remove the option of plausible deniability that she hadn’t noticed you. She also enjoyed it when I embarrassed myself in public, which made it more likely she would then do what I wanted.

Meg rolled her eyes, but I saw the corner of her mouth upturn in a tiny smile as she corrected course over to our table. This made me feel embarrassingly gooey inside. 

“Sup,” she said as she approached. Meg is very eloquent. It is just one of her many charms. I shuffled along to make room for her on the bench as my kids gave her a muted welcome.

She frowned. “How come you’re all so sad?” “The initiative,” Kayla said gloomily.

Meg mimed throwing up. The table nodded in mournful solidarity.

“So what actually is this initiative?” I asked, which I recognised was not the wisest move socially, but my curiosity was winning out.

As one, the table shuddered.

“We just have to tell him,” Austin said to the rest of the table. “He’ll never rest until he finds out otherwise.” He turned to me with the determination of a hardened warrior once more facing down his worst nightmare. “Chiron is making us each come up with a mental health mantra,” he said.

Gracie clapped her hands over her ears. Will looked vaguely queasy. Meg vibrated with vengeful anger.

“That doesn’t seem so bad!” I said.

“It’s so cheesy,” Kayla said.

“And also useless,” added Yan. Kayla nodded in agreement.

“Mantras are not useless,” I said sternly. “In fact, I had one myself, and it kept me going through all sorts of things!” Gracie wrinkled her nose. “Really?”

“Don’t be rude,” Will scolded, but it didn’t really sound like his heart was in it.

“Wait, tell us what it is, and then we can copy it!” said Jerry.

The table all turned to look at me expectantly. I realised I had backed myself into a corner.

“Ah,” I said, panicking. “Well, the thing is - I really can’t - I’m afraid I’m needed very urgently at Olympus for something very important - I’m sure you understand - bye!” 

And with that, I poofed out of the mess hall and into my bedroom in the sun palace, where I collapsed on my bed and screamed into the pillow. “Something very important? Really, Apollo?” I said to myself. “That was all you could think of?”

*

Some hours later, I rather sheepishly [teleported] back to Camp Half-Blood and lurked hesitantly in the shadows of the woods, unsure of how to [re-introduce] myself after my rather rapid escape earlier. Before I could think of anything good, however, Meg spotted me.

She marched up to me and punched me in the arm, hard.

“Ow!” I protested.

“Dummy,” she said. “Don’t poof away. Just say you don’t want to answer like a normal person.” 

She spoke gruffly, but I was well practised at Meg-interpretation. My heart melted.

“Oh, Meg,” I said, pulling her into a hug. “I’m very sorry for disappearing on you.” She hugged me back. “ ‘S okay,” she said. “You panicked. I get it.” This made me want to hug her even tighter, but I released her before she started to squirm.

“Why’d you panic?” she asked.

“Truthfully? I’m not entirely sure,” I admitted. “I guess I was just a little embarrassed.” “You embarrass yourself all the time, though.” I gasped. “Rude!” But she wasn’t entirely wrong. Why had this particular instance made me freak out so much? “Maybe because I felt put on the spot?” I said out loud. “I mean, my mantra wasn't that bad.” Meg raised an eyebrow.

“It wasn’t!” I protested. “I’ll tell you right now! It went ‘I am beautiful and everyone loves me’, which is pretty standard mantra stuff, for your information!” Meg burst out laughing. I crossed my arms grumpily. “What?” I demanded.

“That was actually your mantra?”

“Yes,” I said defensively. “It…didn’t work very well, in the end.” “I don’t think that’s a very good mantra,” Meg said bluntly. I opened her mouth to snap at her, but something told me this wasn’t just one of her standard insults. She continued, slowly: “I mean, all gods are attractive, so that wouldn’t really make you feel good about yourself. And mantras aren’t meant to be about other people’s opinions. Apparently.” She crossed her arms and looked away, cheeks red.

“Meg,” I said, surprised and touched. “Have you actually been listening to Chiron’s mental health initiative?” She shrugged defensively. “Thought it might be useful for helping the rest of Nero’s kids,” she muttered.

I couldn’t help it, I hugged her again. “That’s very kind, Meg,” I said earnestly once she had scrabbled away from me, cheeks still glowing bright pink.

“Whatever,” she said, but she was smiling. “Anyway, that’s a shitty mantra. You should get a better one.” “Language!” I scolded. “And I don’t even go to this camp, why should I have to think of a mantra?” “I don’t go here either,” Meg pointed out. “Not properly. You spend at least as much time here as me. So if I have to do it, so do you.” “But-” “Shut up,” she told me. “I’m your master. This is an order.” I folded. Secretly I was quite touched by the fact that she still wanted to give me stupid orders, even though I was a god now. “Fine,” I said. “We will make stupid cheesy mantras together. How do we proceed?” 

She shrugged at me disdainfully. I hadn’t known a shrug could be disdainful before I met Meg. “That’s what everyone’s trying to figure out, dummy.”

“Yes,” I said slowly. “A most troubling dilemma.” I paused, drawing on my centuries of godly knowledge, and came up largely blank. “Meg, it pains me to admit it, but this is not my area of expertise. We may require backup.” “Backup?”

I nodded, warming to the idea. “Yes, indeed. I will go forth and seek knowledge on mantras. Surely one of our friends must know something.” Meg looked dubious. “You’ve only got a day left, though. They’re meant to be due tomorrow.”

“And nobody’s done one?” I said incredulously.

“The whole camp has ADHD,” she pointed out.

I nodded, conceding the point. “Have faith,” I told her. “I’m a god! I travel quickly. When I return, I will be the master of mantras! The mantra master! Perhaps I already am? Are they a subsection of poetry? Who’s to say? But regardless, I will return to you soon, dearest Meg.”

I kissed her on the head, then vanished. My quest had begun.

*

My first port of call was the Waystation. Emmy and Jo were some of the wisest people I knew. I felt sure one of them would have advice to offer. But when I appeared in the Grand Hall, the place was largely deserted, save for two familiar faces deep in concentration at one of the anvils under the rose window.

“Lityerses! Leo!” I cried. “It’s good to see you, my friends!” Leo put down the sledgehammer he was wielding and offered me a wan smile. “Hey, Apollo,” he said.

I frowned. “Is this a bad time?” “Well-” Leo began.

“Yes,” Lityerses interrupted. “Calypso broke up with him,” he informed me.

Leo winced. “Dude, you didn’t need to say it so bluntly,” he said, but even that was half-hearted, lacking his usual brimming-over energy.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I know you cared for her a lot.” He shrugged, uncomfortable. “It’s tough for her, rejoining society after so long being on her own. I get that she needs some time to figure herself out without having to worry about anyone else.” “It still sucks,” said Lityerses, with more emotional intelligence than I would’ve expected from a guy once known as the Reaper of Men.

Leo patted him on the shoulder. “Thanks, buddy. Anyways, Apollo, what were you actually here for? Unless it’s because you’re deeply invested in my love life, which would be understandable, if a little creepy, because I am incredibly hot.” He flexed a bicep.

I wasn’t surprised he was changing the subject. Deflecting with humour was a Leo Valdez speciality; even I could tell that much. But I couldn’t fault the guy for not wanting to talk about his breakup 24/7. “I’m actually here on a little quest of my own devising,” I said. “Do either of you know anything about mantras?” Leo let out a genuine laugh. “Okay, that was not what I was expecting. Why are you going on a mantras quest, Apollo?” “Long story,” I said. “Well? Anything?” He shook his head, still smiling. “Sorry, man. Not my thing. Lit, you got anything?” “No,” Lit immediately denied, but there was something shifty about his eyes. 

Leo immediately rounded on him. “Dude, you’re kidding me. You have a mantra?”

“I am an esteemed warrior who has lived for many lifetimes of men,” Lityerses said stiffly. His cheeks were red.

“That’s not a denial!” Leo said gleefully.

“I, for one, would love to hear your mantra, Lityerses,” I put in.

“It’s just Lit,” he said, crossing his arms. “And it’s not really a mantra.” Leo gasped. “He admits it,” he stage-whispered.

“Shut up, Leo,” Lit said. I’d never seen someone flush brighter red in my life. “It’s just something Jo said to me a couple months after I started staying here. That it didn’t matter if people called me Midas’s son or Commodus’s lieutenant or even the Reaper of Men. That I had to decide how I wanted to see myself, and then hold tight to that. Never let it go.” I’d never heard Lit speak so many words in one go before. I was moved by the fact that he'd chosen to share such a personal thing with me.

“Aw, Lit,” Leo said, clearly touched. “I’m telling Jo you said that.” “Don’t you dare,” Lit grumbled. He turned to me. “Hope that was helpful, I guess.”

“Thank you very much,” I said. I wanted to express my gratitude further, but Lit still struck me as a man who wouldn't appreciate the attention. “Those are very wise words indeed. But as nice as this chat has been, I'm afraid I must be on my way. I’m on a tight schedule!”

*

“Brother, I don’t have time for games,” Artemis said to me, arms folded. “We’re finally a step ahead of the fox. I don’t have time to waste.”

“But this is important!” I protested.

Around us, the entire camp of hunters was a flurry of movement as they struck their tents and packed up camp. They were remarkably well-polished. One elbowed me as she walked past carrying a towering pile of weapons, which I graciously chose to believe was accidental.

Artemis looked unimpressed. “You have five minutes. And if the fox gets away again, it’s your fault.”

“What?” I cried. “It’s not my fault you’ve all been on a wild goose chase for years!” “Wild fox chase,” she corrected.

“It’s a figure of speech!” “Is this really how you’re choosing to spend your -” she glanced at her watch - “four remaining minutes?” “Fine,” I said, not at all sulkily.

She looked at me incredulously. “Is that a pout?” “Now who’s wasting time? Anyway, what I wanted to talk to you about was mantras.” “Mantras?” She studied me more closely. “Brother, are you having an identity crisis?” She said it derisively, but there was a hint of genuine worry in her eyes.

“No, no,” I reassured her. “It’s just so I can advise the demigods. Something about Chiron’s new mental health initiative.” I tactically left out my agreement with Meg that I would also have to come up with a mantra.

“Chiron started a mental health initiative?” came an incredulous voice from behind me. I turned to see a young woman with short black hair and a familiar leather jacket. “Guess camp really has changed since my day.” “This does not concern you, Thalia Grace,” Artemis said. “Do not let my brother drag you into this ridiculous conversation.”

“Thalia!” I said, delighted. “I don’t suppose you know anything about mantras?” She snorted. “Nope. Lady Artemis?” Artemis sighed. “Well, I suppose if I must contribute…” She closed her eyes for a moment in thought, then opened them again. “Yes, I do believe I have it.” “Really?” I said suspiciously.

“I go to the trouble of indulging in your foolish games for once, and I am met only with suspicion? You might hurt my feelings, brother.” “Sorry, sorry,” I said hastily. “So what is it?” She gave a small smile, which made me instantly suspicious. “Repeat after me: I, the god Apollo…” I didn’t like where this was going. “I, the god Apollo…” “...pale in comparison to my lovely, talented, and beautiful sister.” She beamed at me. “Do you like it?” 

Thalia gave her a high five.

“Very funny-” I began, but the two of them were already walking away.

“Sorry, brother, must dash!” Artemis called over her shoulder. “We have a fox to catch!”

*

My beloved oracle, Rachel Dare, stared at me contemplatively. “I think I’m getting there,” she informed me, daubing a few more dashes of paint on her easel as she spoke.

“Really?” I said hopefully.

“Mhm.” She put down her brush and scooted over her stool so she could look me in the eyes. “Are you ready to receive my prophetic wisdom?” The suspense was killing me. I nodded eagerly.

“Apollo…” - she looked me dead in the eyes - “...you are Kenough.”

I frowned. “Is that a riddle?” She threw up her hands. “Aren’t you the god of music? Why are you so uncultured? Look, stay here, I’ll get my laptop. I’m about to change your life.

She wasn’t wrong. The Barbie movie was excellent. However, it did not aid my quest.

*

“It turns out that knowledge of mantras is harder to come by than I thought,” I informed my mother as we sat down for our weekly afternoon tea. “Nobody is taking my quest for knowledge seriously. Well, except maybe Lit. I knew I liked him for a reason. But the rest of them are just treating mantras as a joke!”

Leto took a sip of tea, unbothered by my dramatics. “Didn’t you think of them as a joke?” she said, infuriatingly reasonably.

“Well, yes,” I admitted.

She raised an eyebrow.

“...And also I called them stupid and cheesy and useless,” I said. “But they are! No wonder none of the [demigods] have taken this seriously!” “Were Lityerses’ words to you stupid and cheesy and useless?” Leto asked.

“No,” I said. “No, not at all.” “Then clearly some mantras aren’t like that.”

I sighed. “But none of the others will see it that way. Even Lit said that his advice wasn’t really a mantra.” “So clearly people don’t respond well to that word,” Leto reasoned. “Much like you, they associate it with cheesy advice with no real benefit. So stop using it.” My brow creased. “Investigate mantras without investigating mantras?”

“Why not? Just try asking them for a piece of advice, something that someone’s told them, or that they’ve realised themself, that they hold close to their heart.”

“And you think they’ll respond to that?” I said hopefully.

She lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug. “It’s worth a try. And Apollo, before you go, I’ve got a piece of advice of my own.” She made sure I was listening before she continued. “It doesn’t matter if it’s cheesy if it helps.”

*

My mother, as always, was right.

“There is always happiness in unicorns,” Lavinia told me solemnly. “And in tap dance.”

“We can change things,” Frank said as we gazed out over the reconstruction of New Rome.

“Not even curses last forever,” said Hazel, pressing a small blue sapphire into my hands.

“Just ‘cause I’m half Cherokee doesn’t mean I’m a fount of spiritual knowledge, you know,” said Piper. “But I guess I would say that happiness is still possible.” She squeezed Shel’s hand.

Luguselwa watched Nero’s children replant a new set of seedlings. “It’s not too late,” she said.

“I thought we already had this conversation?” said Artemis. “Honestly, brother. My advice is that you don’t need my advice. You know full well what advice you need to hear. You know better than anyone else. Now stop with this pointless denial and listen to yourself.”

*

When I returned to Camp Half-Blood, it was in chaos. Demigods ran panicked between cabins or else were deep in frantic discussion with friends, some scribbling on scraps of paper, some murmuring under their breaths. 

I eventually found Will out by the strawberry fields, alone save for Nico. “It’s a war out there, Dad,” he said to me, face grim. “Chiron’s officially announced there’s an hour left until the deadline, and then we all have to recite our mantras. Everybody’s going crazy.”

“Are you both ready?” I asked.

Will grimaced. Nico gave me a death stare worthy of the son of Hades.

I raised my hands in surrender. “Only a question!”

“I'm starting to panic about it a little,” Will confessed.

Only now? I wanted to say, but I guessed that comment wouldn't be appreciated. Instead I nodded and said “I've left mine rather to the last minute as well.”

“You're doing one?” Nico said incredulously. “Why?”

I reddened, and Will cut in before I could answer. “Meg bullied him into it,” he said. “If you're ever confused about anything Apollo does, 99% of the time you can blame Meg.”

Nico nodded as if this made sense. I wanted to argue, but I was aware I didn't have much ground to stand on.

“But one thing I am confused about,” Will continued, “is that didn't you already have a mantra, Dad? Why do you need a new one?”

Believe me, dear reader, I wanted to make a bad excuse and disappear to Olympus again. Despite my trials, emotional vulnerability was still not my strong point. But instead, I said “I’m afraid I’m reliably informed that it was, in fact, a shit mantra. Not very emotionally healthy. So I’m giving it a second try.” “Any luck?” Will asked.

I took a moment to consider. “I’ve talked to a lot of different people,” I said. “Many of them told me very wise things. But I think - and I will deny saying this - that my sister was right. It’s something you have to come up with yourself, because deep down, you know what you need to hear.” They both took a moment to take that in, or perhaps they were wondering what in the Hades I was going on about.

Eventually Will said, in a very quiet voice, “But what if I don’t deserve to hear that?” Tears pricked at my eyes, and I gathered him up into a hug. “Of course you deserve to hear it, Will. You’re brave and kind and a fabulous healer, but even if you weren’t any of that, you’re still my son. And my son deserves the world.” Will hid his face in my shoulder for a moment. “Thanks, Dad,” he whispered.

I pressed a kiss into his golden curls, then looked at Nico. “Look after him for me, will you?” I said.

Nico nodded solemnly. “With my life.”

*

But I still had one final visit to make. I found Meg in the stables, brushing down the unicorn I’d gifted her as my return-to-godhood present. She’d taken to horsecare - well, unicorncare - far more easily than I’d expected given her lack of experience, but she seemed to find the same quiet satisfaction in the manual work that she did in gardening.

“You better have some real good mantra knowledge to offer,” she warned me. “I got nothing.”

I sighed and slumped down by a post. “You’re not going to like it,” I said.

She huffed. Apparently that wasn’t even worth a verbal response.

“It’s just gotta be the thing you most want to hear,” I said. “The thing you most wish someone would say to you, but then you’ve got to say it to yourself.” “That’s stupid,” Meg said. Her shoulders were tense. “I don’t want to.” “Neither do I,” I said honestly. “How about I go first, so you can laugh at me?” “You’ve got one?”

I sighed. “Yes, and it’s the cheesiest, stupidest thing in the world, and I don’t believe it when I say it. But if I say it enough times, maybe I’ll start believing it.” Meg looked heartbreakingly fragile. “You go first, then.” I hesitated. The words felt like they were getting stuck in my throat. Trite, a lie, unoriginal, stupidly similar to a stupid quote from the stupid Barbie movie. But I needed to hear them. Not only that, Meg needed to hear them. We both needed me to be vulnerable right now.

“I’m enough,” I said quietly.

Meg blinked, and then launched herself at me in a hug. “I love you,” she said hoarsely.

“I love you too, Meg,” I said, voice cracking.

She shook her head, nose rubbing against my chest. “No, that’s my mantra,” she said. “I love myself. Or whatever.” She sniffed, but I didn’t even care about the cold snot starting to collect on my jumper.

I held her close to me in that quiet stable, just the two of us and a unicorn, and there was not a thing in this world that could have made me let her go.

sorry this is slightly late!! and the formatting may have messed up, the stars are meant to be in the middle of each line. i think i caught all my mistakes but this is very on the last minute so i might have missed some sorry! but it's done!

[quibbs126]

My brain was thinking of that idea I had of “megop kid that only Megatron knows about” again today before I accidentally took a nap

I would put these thoughts on a reblog of that post, but I’m too lazy to go looking for it at the moment

But anyways my brain decided to concoct the angsty scenario I mentioned there, in which the kid joins the Autobots and Megatron almost kills them, until he realizes who this is

I think the specific circumstances here are the kid being a new recruit in the Autobot ranks, and them and Optimus going on a mission that goes horribly, with Megatron showing up and Optimus getting incapacitated, and Megatron decides to beat up the new person because why not (actually I never figured out the reason tbh, but it’s not important)

He’s right about to kill them, but something about their appearance causes him to recognize who this really is and his act drops briefly in shock. But he keeps up his composure for now (he can’t let the Decepticons potentially see a weakness in him) and decides to spare them, telling them to go back and tell the Autobots he has their leader, and then tells them specifically to never return. When asked why he decided to show mercy, he says it’s because it matters little whether or not they live, the outcome would be the same either way; he also will enjoy seeing the dread in their face if they ever cross paths again, now that they know what he’s capable of

Later on he has Optimus captured and he decides to “interrogate” him, aka talk smack to him. But also in this case, secretly actually interrogate him on whether or not he knows the truth about his new recruit, and whether or not Optimus knowingly put them in danger and made them a soldier. He finds that no, Optimus has no clue the significance of this younger bot, treating him as he would any new recruit

I’m unsure whether or not Megatron would tell him the truth or not here. I want to say no, and that he decides its best only he knows. But I also kind of want yes for the idea of Optimus now knowing this information, but has no clue what to do with it once he gets back to Autobot base. Because his source of information is Megatron, but this is also way too out there for Megatron to have just made up. Also that’s kind of a bombshell to drop on this kid who assumes they’re just some random Transformer from nowhere in particular. So he has to live with it and he isn’t good at keeping up lies

The kid might have gotten that something weird was going on with Megatron during that confrontation, but the best they can assume is that Megatron must have been reminded of someone when looking at them, because they shouldn’t have history with the Lord of the Decepticons

But anyways, after all this, when Megatron finally has a moment to himself in complete privacy, he does feel really guilty about the fact that he nearly killed his own child. Yeah he got rid of them a long time ago, and he’s never had much of a burning desire to be reunited with them or anything, but it still affects him. He’s got very mixed and complicated feelings towards them, and he doesn’t know what to do with it. He’d rather they didn’t show back up at all, though it would have been worse if he hadn’t realized at all and he’d gone through with killing that recruit

Alright, done with the summary. Honestly, could probably make a fanfic out of it, but whether or not I will, that’s to be seen. As I’m sure y’all know, I come up with a lot of ideas I don’t actually do anything with. Also I don’t know if I’d do anything beyond this. If I were to go through with this fanfic, I should; feels like we need some payoff and learning of truths, but writing one idea into a fic is hard enough, actually continuing that story would be practically impossible for my scattter brain. Just look at the one fanfic I have written for Transformers

But yeah, it sounded neat. Though I remembered as I wrote this, I think the main idea surrounding the initial concept was Megatron not being able to say shit about other cross-faction kids due to his own secret one, and this stays a bit too much I think. But you know, still worth at least a fanfic concept I suppose

[wisteriasymphony]

whats the second ending for tweos like?

Someone's been looking through my posts I see....

Okay! I'll admit that i forget which is numbered which, but TWEoS has two possible endings, due to the fact that I was, well... persuaded... into not making it a huge tragedy.

Succession is the ending where Adrien accepts his fate. After a heartfelt reconciliation with Ladybug, he returns to his post as Chat Noir. Now that Ladybug is on good terms with him, Paris as a whole is on good terms with him, as the Influence that keeps the city at her beck and call favors those she likes and shuns those she doesn't. Adrien continues to model and keep up the persona of Adrien Agreste, slowly retreating further into it to please Marinette. Their identities have been revealed to each other, and there is no other option but to get together.

They get married, have kids, and live in the Agreste Mansion.

Adrien, fundamentally changed by the experiences he was not supposed to have... is left forever unfulfilled. Him and Marinette may be soulmates, yes... but Marinette's soulmate is Adrien Agreste. And because of how the love of another person changed him, that is no longer truly him.

Exile is the ending where Adrien escapes his fate. After the successive murders of Emilie and Gabriel, the two people who abused him the most in his life, Adrien sees that the only way to fully escape their influence is to leave Paris entirely. The Adrien of Exile knows that he has not just been exploited by his parents, but by The Narrative. Rather than say goodbye to Claudia, he renounces his miraculous (bringing the initial premise of the alternative, much longer Kuro Neko to a close), fakes his death, and leaves the city.

What Claudia and Adrien do afterwards fundamentally does not matter*. As they leave The Narrative, they are free to do whatever they want.

The downside, of course, is that there is no way for Adrien to escape his role in The Narrative without fucking over the people around him. While Kagami was ahead enough of this to find comfort in Felix, Marinette is sent to "finish" the plot of "Season 5" alone—Her unification of the Cat and Ladybug is seen not as a triumph, but as a last ditch effort to fix a story crumbling apart at the scenes.

Her and Nathalie, masquerading as a Monarch pro tempore, are left to have a final confrontation. No wish is made, because no wish can be made. It was all just a lie, built on a lie, built on a lie.

...The beautiful part about this is that they are both tragedies, in a way. The noble figure (Adrien), after all, who at the end of the story experiences some sort of death (the death of his fledgling 'new self' in Succession, the death of his 'old self' in Exile). Succession plays more into the inevitability of tragedy, and how even despite all he worked for Adrien was never able to escape his own fate, whereas in Exile the story plays more into the idea that the death of Adrien is also the death of the world around him, and that is disappearance drives it into chaos and ruin.

Of course, they're both sort of meant to sound royal because many great tragedies involve kings and Adrien's fame as Adrien Agreste is practically like royalty if we want to go there, etc etc etc. All very fun all very cool NOW I JUST HAVE TO ACTUALLY WRITE IT DOWN

*But if we really must know... the idea is they elope to Madrid with Claudia's kwami, Karra, and live out a just-okay-but-never-perfect existence. If that's what you actually wanted me to talk about you can send in another ask, I just got carried away lolol

[evervigilantnightshade]

The Line - Part 14

Reader and John have always straddled the line between playful flirting and taking things further. However when they are forced into a safe house and a secret comes out will they be able to save what they were heading for or is all lost.

Reader x John Price, Ghost, Soap, Gaz, Laswell, Original characters.

MDNI

Warnings: Starts fluff, ends angst. Trouble, violence.

Y/N had never been happier. Her and John had fully embraced being together and everyone could see how in love with each other they were. He doted on her, wouldn’t let her lift a finger and was constantly asking if she needed anything. 

It was Christmas morning and after spending the last hour making love to each other they finally joined the family in the living room where everyone gathered to open presents. John had gotten Y/N her coffee and was snuggled up next to her, his arm wrapped around her shoulder. 

They watched as the children all opened their presents, allowing them to go first was somewhat a tradition so the adults could later open their presents in peace. It was a heartwarming scene that the men weren’t used too, usually spending their holidays on missions or on the base. 

After the kids were all done and now thoroughly occupied with their new toys and gadgets the adults started their Christmas. Ava opened her gifts for her and Clara from Simon and cried seeing the thoughtful gifts. Others laughed and smiled as they opened gifts from each other and the guys all got gifts from the family, which they didn’t expect. 

Finally Y/N got up and grabbed a bag walking over to each of the team and handing a small box. Handing John his last. 

“What’s this?” Kyle asked and Y/N smiled. 

“Why don’t you open it and find out.” Y/N smiled.

All the guys opened the boxes to reveal a compass inside. On the top was their callsign and when they opened it the task force 141 logo was inside. 

“So you always find your way home to your family, if you’re ever lost.” 

“Y/N this is proper nice. Thank you!” Gaz grinned. 

“Yeah thanks love.” Johnny added

Simon just winked at her and nodded his head. She knew he would corner her later and thank her.

Y/N glanced over at John who hadn’t opened his yet and was just looking at her with a smile on his face. 

“Open yours. It’s a bit different.” 

On the face it said Captain but when he opened it there was an etching of a Belladonna flower inside. 

“So you always find your way home to me.” She whispered and he smiled before kissing her. 

“Always.” He whispered back. “Did you call Kate?” 

They had had a discussion the night before about the transfer and Y/N agreed to stay. 

“Yeah, we spoke this morning. She didn’t even file the paperwork when she got it. Figured I would change my mind.” 

John smiled and then reached behind him and pulled out a gift for Y/N. 

“Happy Christmas love.” 

She opened it to see a first edition copy of Pride and Prejudice. Her favourite book.. 

“John, this is crazy! How did you get this?”

“I have my ways. Do you like it?” 

Tears formed in her eyes and she wrapped her arms around him. 

“Thank you, I love it.” 

The rest of the day was spent with amazing food, some games and talking. It was, in Y/N’s opinion, a perfect day. Both her families were together in one place. Dinner was amazing as usual and eventually everyone made their way to bed, happy and full. 

Y/N and John were laying in bed cuddling in each other's arms talking about the day and how wonderful it was when suddenly a red light started flashing above the bed. Y/N jumped up. 

“Get dressed, that’s the perimeter alarm.” She said as she reached over and pressed a button on the wall. 

Around him he could hear mechanical noises and then looked at the window just as a metal shield covered it. 

“What’s happening?”

“Don’t know yet.” 

She grabbed a handgun out of her nightstand and handed it to John before reaching up above her door pushing on the wall revealing a panel. When it opened there was an assault rifle which she grabbed. 

“Come on.” 

She led them out of the room and saw Simon with Ava and Clara getting ready to go down to the safe room through the cold storage room. 

“Si, take John, look at the cameras and figure out what’s going on. I’ll go help get everyone else down here. Contact Kate too, see if we can get an overview of the situation.” 

Simon nodded and ushered his family through the door as Y/N turned to head upstairs. 

“Y/N, be careful.” John called after her and she smiled

“I always am.” 

She raced up the stairs and made it to the base of the stairs leading to the third floor when she ran into Johnny. 

“Wat in ta hell is goin on?” 

“We don’t know. Go grab Grandma. She won’t make it downstairs fast enough. John and Si are down there looking at the cameras.” 

The rest of the family started coming down the stairs and Y/N was directing them to the basement. Johnny came back with her grandma in his arms and Momma Lynn right behind them. 

“Get them in the safe room, me and Kyle will clear and secure these floors and meet you down there.” She instructed and he nodded. 

Kyle was heading down the stairs with the gun that was hidden in his room but Y/N stopped him. 

“Let’s sweep up here and then we can secure this floor.” 

They went room to room checking everywhere for anyone left behind or anyone who wasn’t supposed to be there but it was clean. When they were done Y/N reached up and pressed a button on the top of each door frame causing a metal gate to come down. 

“Wow you’re dad made this house insanely secure.” Kyle 

“Yeah he wanted to make sure we’re safe. Even the windows are bullet proof. Let’s do the main floor. Same thing, clear a room and then shut the gate over the door.” 

They made their way through securing every internal door, all external doors and windows previously covered when Y/N put the house in lock down. Finally they made their way down to the safe room which was behind one of the two doors that they had not been through in this area. Knowing the family was safe they headed back to the conference room.

“What’s going on?” She asked, walking over to where Simon, John and Johnny were looking at several monitors. 

“It’s not good. Several hostiles advancing on the North side.” 

“You get Kate?” 

“I’m here Y/N.” A voice came from one of the monitors.

“What are we looking at?” 

“There are about fifteen hostiles on the North side advancing to the fence. There are an additional eight heading east along the fence line."

“Alright, Simon, John and Kyle you take the North, me and Johnny will head East. Let’s get ready.” 

They went back into the locker room and Y/N led them to a bank of smaller lockers. When they opened there were winter camos with vests and all the gear they needed. They quickly got into their gear and then went into the armory to get armed. 

Charlie was standing there with Emma and they were loading guns for the family. Five guns laid out, as the girls expertly got them ready. 

“You get those loaded and you get the door closed. You don’t open it for anyone, do you hear me?” Simon instructed and Charlie nodded. 

“Yeah Si we got this.” 

They took the guns and left the room, the sound of a door closing and locking filled the room. 

“Grab what you need.” He then instructed the group. 

Above them they heard an explosion but Y/N and Simon didn’t seem bothered. 

“House is secure, they can’t get in no matter how hard they hit it. The frame is practically indestructible.”  Y/N assured them. 

After grabbing their guns Y/N led them back upstairs through the cold storage room. They went to the far side of the laundry room where she reached over and pulled a lever that opened yet another secret door that led to a tunnel.  

“Alright, me and Soap are right, the rest of you head left.” 

Simon and Kyle started walking to the left and Soap to the right but John walked over to Y/N. 

“Be safe out there.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. 

“You too.” 

He turned and left her taking one last quick look back at her. 

She then ran to catch up with Soap and they quickly made their way through the tunnel. Eventually they had made their way to a door that Y/N pushed open and they found themselves in a root cellar. 

“Alright, up the stairs and out the door take a left and we’re facing the forest. It’s open ground until we get to the forest so stay sharp.” 

Soap nodded and they quickly went up the stairs. Y/N slowly opened the outside door and took a look around before exiting. They ran quickly, making it to the forest in record time. 

“They are climbing the east wall. Belladonna , Soap I see you, straight ahead.” 

“Got it Watcher approaching now.” Soaps voice 

They silently headed in the direction of the wall but then stopped when Kate’s voice warned them of two approaching hostiles.

“It’s quiet on this side.” One of the men said. 

“Too quiet.” the other agreed. 

They were approaching the tree that Y/N was crouched behind and she motioned to Soap to stay where he was. She pulled out two knives and held them in her hands. When they reached the tree she threw her hands backwards stabbing them both in their lower stomachs before ripping out the knives turning around and driving them up through their chins into their heads. 

“Weel tha was effective.” Soap smirked. 

Y/N however was preoccupied looking at their uniforms. 

“Guys we have a problem.” She said into the coms while motioning at the crests on their uniforms to Soap. 

“What’s wrong?” Price’s voice sounded strained. 

“These guys are Kortac.” 

“What the fuck.” Simon sounded just as strained. 

“Yeah I’m looking at the uniforms now.” 

“Why the fuck did they agree to work with Bako?” Kyle asked and Y/N sighed. 

“Let’s just figure this out first and deal with this after.” 

In front of them Soap and Y/N heard a branch break but couldn’t see anything. 

“Watcher how many are approaching?” 

“I’ve got nothing on screen. They are all just standing by the perimeter wall.” 

“Someone’s here, we can hear them.”

Y/N pulled up thermal but couldn’t see anything. Suddenly there was a flash in front of her eyes like a person had run in front of her. 

“What was that? Soap, what are you seeing?” 

Beside her she heard a body drop and she looked over to see Soap on the ground. She ran over to him while calling out on the coms. 

“Man down. Soap is down. There’s someone…” 

She felt something hit her neck and then everything went black. 

—------------------

“Bells. BELLS. Y/N copy.” John yelled

There was an explosion behind him and he shoved his finger into his other ear trying desperately to hear anything on the other end. 

“Watcher, what’re you seeing?” 

“Their beacons are there but they aren’t moving.” 

“Cap, it looks like they’re retreating.” Kyle peaked over the wall. 

“Kyle, stay here, watch this wall. Simon with me.” 

John ran with Simon beside him, the snow under their feet frustratingly slowing their process. 

“Soap. Bells. Answer now.” John barked 

They were met with silence and John could see that Simon was passing him so he motioned for him to go ahead. 

They made their way up the hill in front of the forest and Simon disappeared into the trees. 

“Watcher, what do you see?” 

“Both Soap and Belladonna’s trackers are in place, neither have moved. No threats present.” 

John pushed forward with all he had and past the clearing and pushed through on the other side. 

“Captain, I have Soap no sign of Belladonna.” 

John joined up with Simon seeing him kneeling in front of Johnny. 

“Is he alive?” 

“Yeah he’s breathing. Had this in his neck.” Simon held up a dart of some kind. 

“Watcher, where is she pinging? We don’t see her.” John frantically looked around them

“She is to your left about one hundred yards.” 

He walked over that way and looked around not seeing her. 

“Watcher?” 

“You’re practically right on top of her, John.”

He started scanning the forest floor and his stomach dropped seeing her beacon. 

“Ghost, get over here.” 

“Did you find her?” Simon came up behind him and saw the beacon. “FUCK.” 

“Watcher where did they go? Which way? They have Y/N.” 

“They headed east. There is a small town there with an air field.”

“We have to catch them before they get to that airport or we'll have no idea where they’re taking her.” 

John and Simon jumped into the pickup truck, speeding off towards the gate. Once clear of it they headed east on the gravel road, the truck fishtailing as Simon hammered on the gas.  

“You need to go faster.” John grunted in frustration. 

“You don’t think I know that? This is as fast as this truck will go. My foot is on the floor John.” 

“FUCK!” He suddenly cried out and smashed his hand against the dashboard. “How did we let this happen? I should’ve gone with her to the East and let Soap cover the North with you.”

“Then you’d be unconscious right now instead of Johnny. There was nothing he could’ve done differently just like there’s nothing you could’ve done. So just stop and let me focus on driving.” 

They had made it ten minutes down the road when they were ambushed. Bullets whizzed through the air, several hitting the truck. Simon slammed on the breaks and they jumped out of the truck shooting at the source of their ambush. John was ready to step out from behind the truck and run at the assailants but Simon grabbed him by the back of his vest and pulled him back. 

“You’re no good to anyone dead for fuck sakes.” 

“We don’t have time for this!” John yelled and Simon pushed him against the truck. 

“I fucking know that. She’s my fucking sister and I am barely holding it together. I don’t have the capacity right now to fucking babysit you so get your shit together. NOW.” 

John nodded curtly but felt the truck sag to the left. They had blown one of the tires on the truck. His heart sank. He froze and broke out in sweat. They weren't going to make it. They were going to lose her. 

The gunshots around them ceased and they heard a vehicle take off at a fast speed. They had accomplished their mission. John walked to the front of the truck and saw steam pouring out of the radiator also noticing two flat tires now. They had no way to follow now and John dropped to his knees. 

“Watcher?” Simon said into the coms. 

It took Kate a moment to answer and when she did her voice was quiet. 

“We lost them. They jammed our satellite feed.” 

John heard Simon scream followed by the sound of breaking glass. He’d punched out one of the windows in the truck most likely injuring himself. 

John stared into the darkness in disbelief. They just started their life together but now she was gone and there was nothing he could do to save her.

[porter-pumpkim]

ii posting again!

ngl I hope when we do get more ii we get to focus on some of the less popular or less seen characters

I wanna see salt finally outgrow her code like the others and figure out if she ever even liked oj or the idea she had of him, I want her to actually figure out her relationships beyond what they were in season 1, to realize she hasn't changed while pepper has and has likely been trying to help her change too

I wanna see how soap has changed during her time at the hotel! She seems like she calmed down a lot from her time in season 2, and was even willing to hold tissues hand to help him in the finale when at the start of season 2 she definitely would've left him for dead purely out of crippling germaphobia

speaking of tissues, I wanna see how he's doing! He was already kinda isolated compared to other hotel residents pre finale, tissues is perfectly fine being social and is entirely willing to just casually talk things out or gossip from the looks of it, but nobody even wanted to be near him thanks to the sneezing and major congestion issues, and is now aware he was created as a gross out humor joke, and he genuinly found that devastating in the movie! I mean, his self doubt about his condition genuinly almost killed him in the red line game! I wanna see how he's doing now, if he's actually got decent connections with other guests, if he's still dealing with the self doubt of being made as a literal joke, it's just such a good character building point and I wanna see it!!!

I wanna see how bomb is doing, we haven't seen him since season 1 and the literal end of season 2! I genuinly don't remember much about him aside from he's a gamer, and he has a stutter, he seems like a cool dude and I remember I really liked him when I was a kid watching season 1, it would be fun to see him more! (my memory of season one is really fuzzy im sorry- it was a little too chaotic for me now that I'm older xD )

Hearing more from the cherries could also be cool, I barely remember anything about them besides they liked making paper puppets and i think they were mischievous, I don't think much of them was explored unless I just don't remember, and the whole conjoined yet separate situation is a genuinly inturesting dynamic to explore, we already have yin yang sharing a body, but the cherries technically being separate could add a new detail to the two in one situation

Just

It would be so cool seeing more of characters we don't really see often! Even if it's just a casual slice of life setting it woukd still be so fascinating watching new relationships form and new dynamics between characters who hardly ever interacted on screen before

Plus the situation with almost everyone "knowing" box but literally nobody actually knowing her, all of them competed with and casually lived with her dead body in the room and now there's the situation of her actually existing as a person, none of them know her, not really

IMLOVE CHARACTER DYNAMICS AND WEIRDLY COMPLICATED SOCIAL SITIATIONS! (from an observing perspectuve anyway, actually experiencing em sucks but its so facinating to observe in a story!)

[quirkwizard]

Final Note: A Look at the True Ending of My Hero Academia

Wow, Hori. Way to ruin my heartfelt review of the final few chapters of your series. It was very inconsiderate of you to put this out.

Okay, but seriously, I was not expecting this to happen. When I had heard that Volume 42 was going to have a lot of new pages added, I thought there were just going to be more extras. Stuff like little notes and character profiles. Imagine my shock when we get a whole additional chapter for the proper finale of the series.

I am only writing about one chapter here. In spite of the fact this is ending the series, there's only so much I can cover here. So this is going to be a lot shorter than some of my other mega posts. More notes and a few longer tangents then the bigger analysis I had written about on the final arc and the epilogue.

And yes, I am using the fan translations here. Normally, I'd wait for some official translation to come out, but going by what people have said, these translations are pretty close to what's going on in the manga. Plus, the last volume isn't likely to come out until October and there is no way I am waiting that long to talk about this.

Duds and Duds: The Final Stitch-Part 2

Let's get something simple out of the way first: new looks.

-Nejire got one of the more improved looks. The spiral gauntlets and leggings are simple additions, but really add a lot to her look.

-I guess Present Mic's hair works like a tree. It grows as he ages and if you cut it, you can tell how old he's gotten by the rings.

-Best Jeanist, how did you get a hair cut that somehow even made you look like even more of a complete fop? And why the laces? Why do the jeans have laces in them?

-I'm mixed on Mirio's new look. The ones on his legs are kind of silly, but very fitting for him. I also miss the visor he had on as well. However, I cannot accept the pompadour as a part of his appearance. I'm sorry, but it just looks silly.

-Kamui Wood's new look is simple, but amazing. The narrower eyes look more menacing, the branches around his mask forming a makeshift crown, the wreath of leaves around his head to give him this regal look. It's great, no notes.

-The Ketsubutsu Schools kids got some minor touch-ups to help them stick out more, such as Shikkui's more rap artist-inspired look and Tatami's arm sleeves. It just makes them look less generic. Yo Shindo caught me off guard though. Maybe it's the cow-lick or hair dye, but he looks like an entirely new character. Like I swear his face changed shape too.

-I think Tamaki just won me over. No joke, he actually may have gotten one of my favorite looks. The all-black look with the hood gives this monstrous appearance. The teeth on the hood is not only amazing appearance, but a really cool reference to how his power works around eating. The little bendy straw on his costume is amazing as well. It's both a cute detail and a practical part of the costume.

-Juzo, Setsuna, and Kendo didn't have much going. Maybe a few minor design choice changes that don't hurt anything. Same with Tetsutetsu, but I really like his sharper hair and larger eye accents. Just something about them made him pop out more. I like Manga's drawing tablet as his chestpiece. It's a really cute design for his character.

-Seiji looks even cooler now with his sharper features. Inasa is more of a sidegrade. The Slimy Shadey hair is really odd, but I do like the goggles to help fit in with his steampunk look. Camie I'm the most confused about. Why does she have feathers in her cap? Is that a reference I'm not getting? Maybe to a superhero or mythological figure?

-Monoma has the worst design out of anyone here. I don't even know where to begin with him. The clock earrings are dumb and just seem like they'd get in the way. His gloves are actively keeping him from using his Quirk. And do I even need to say anything about this hair cut? I can't believe Hori turned Monoma into an e-boy.

-Fat Gum is a bit of a downgrade for me. The all-black look doesn't suit his more welcoming brand and personality. Plus, the "M" and "G" in the middle of the "F" already present on his chest just look really out of place. I just think it worked better with the "F" and "G" on his old costume. They just fit a lot more seamlessly into his overall look and helped break up all the yellow with some white.

Meet Up/Catch Up

Now to talk about certain changes to Class 1-A. Yes, I'm dedicating another list segment to this. I have a lot of thoughts on it

-Wow, I really don't like Sero's peach fuz mustache. It looked bad in the helmet, and it's even worse now. It just looks so wrong on him.

-I despise Iida's half buzz, though I will admit that's more than everything ruining that hair cut over the past seven years.

-Nighthide is such a terrible hero's name. I'm not sure if that's just bad translation, a lack of creativity, so simply an in character choice for Shinso to be bad at naming stuff. Just like his mentor.

-Kirishima threatening to scratch the hood of Bakugou's car is one of my favorite jokes in the series. I know it's only part of the fan translation, but I'm going to be disappointed if it isn't in the official one.

-I like how Hori basically had Denki and Jiro look into the camera and confirm they are not dating. Right after confirming two characters getting together that nobody cared about but him. 

-I have once again been vindicated by canon. Iida is in fact faster than Bakugou. The manga out-and-out said it. All the power scalers out there can turn on your badge and calculators.

-Hey, look at that, a billboard with Izuku's face on it. It's almost as if he hasn't forgotten about it over the last couple of years. Maybe Hori wanted to make it extra obvious for some of the fans.

-I appreciate how not everyone is a pro hero by the end and some of them are still sidekicks. Any other author would have had it, so all the students are pros with their own agencies, but it's realistic not every one of them would have the want or ability to become a proper pro. I'm honestly surprised which ones are and aren't though.

-I'm kind of amazed that my guess of the rankings of the heroes ended up being so spot on. Pretty much all of them ended up in the brackets. I would have guessed where they were. Even some of the reasoning was spot on, like Bakugou's terrible people skills still getting in his own way a lot of the time. The dark horse of all this was certainly Shoji. I assumed that he would have fallen in the rankings due to spending so much time trying to deal with the heteromorph situation, but I guess that ended up helping him in the long run.

Missing Invites

So one complaint I've heard about this ending is how focused it is on Class 1-A and especially Uraraka and Izuku. Which I can kind of get. It's just that, as the final chapter in this entire story, it carries a lot more finality to it. So, if some character isn't given any attention, chances are they are never going to get it. I can understand the desire to see other characters. Like I wanted to at least get a look at how All Might and Endeavor were doing. Even if it's only one panel, it would have been nice how things were for them eight years on.

However, I do think that misses the point of this chapter. Because a lot of this chapter is around to act as an epilogue to the main cast of the series and to show us the future that they were and are still fighting for. As well as to tie up Izuku and Uraraka's arcs and to affirm what the story is about and what messages are. Anything that isn't focused on that feels more like a nice bonus rather than something integral we needed to see, such as getting to see the Big Three as heroes. A lot of the characters and their arcs were wrapped up already. As nice as it would be to see where they ended up, you don't really need to.

Ships Docked

Look, I'm glad there weren't a lot of ships got together within the final act. If we're being honest, a lot of the ships that people love didn't have a strong foundation in canon. So I didn't really want or expect an "And then everyone paired off and had a kid" ending that people were wishing for or dreading would come to pass. Considering that there hasn't been much in the way of personal relationships for more than 1-A as a whole, instead of pushing 1-A more as a larger unit of people that help and support one another rather than focusing on individual pairs, it would have been very jarring.

That being said, it's hilarious how, in a fanbase as famous for shipping as this one, there are only three canon pairings at the end of the series. Maybe four depending on how you interpret Gentle and La Brava's ending. And two of them were for ships nobody cared about. There was Shindo and Tamati, a pair that you'd only know was a couple from the databooks. Then there was Kuroiro and Komori, a connection that only had the faintest of set up in the databooks, a brief exchange during the Joint Training Arc, before being pushed front and center in the very last chapter. And of course, there was... we'll get to that, trust me.

Ghosts of Shipping Past

So you're telling me that Izuku got pushed to Uraraka by Bakugou and Toga pushed Uraraka to Izuku? Bakugou and Toga, who are the most popular pairs for Izuku and Uraraka respectively, are literally pushing Izuku and Uraraka together. And that's what ends up making them confess to each other. If I didn't know any better, I would say this is a Supernatural finale level of spite on Hori's part. That he got so tired of people harassing him and his staff about shipping and had this part sketched out to specifically make people upset about it. 

And if Uraraka is seeing Himiko and Izuku is seeing Tomura, does that mean that they are both being haunted by them? Fanfic writers, this is a golden opportunity here to make a comedy fic. A newly minted hero couple try to live their lives while being haunted by the ghost of their archenemies. What, is Himiko going to be cheering Uraraka on about getting together with Izuku and that she should take him right now? Meanwhile, Tomura's haunting Izuku about how he should grind out another level in League of Legends before doing anything else?

Odds are LeMillion to One

I'm still pretty mixed about Mirio becoming the Number One hero. I guess it feels like such a big deal to get the top spot only to have it fall to Mirio. And I'm not saying that to slam Mirio. I do like Mirio. Mirio is one of the most heroic figures to come out of UA, if not the whole series. It's just odd to me because Mirio feels like such an afterthought. Outside the Yakuza Arc, he hasn't had much going on with him, let alone an arc where it feels like a proper conclusion. I suppose it's to show the change in things. How the greatest hero in Japan isn't this invincible pillar, but this jokey guy that can hang out with kids and make a fool of himself.

I guess that has less to do with where Mirio ended up and more about how little presence he had in the story. Looking back, I do think that Mirio's presence and momentum were put to a grinding halt because he lost his Quirk. That Horikoshi just wasn't sure what to do with him once the Yakuza arc was done. Because when I try to map out Mirio's character and his arc, I struggle to understand where it was going and how it ended up here. He's introduced as the guy who seems like the best "One For All" candidate on paper. Then it's shifted to being more about carrying on Sir Nighteye's successor. I know I'm getting way off-topic here. It's just been something that's been on my mind ever since I read the chapter.

Temperate

Shoto is great in this chapter. I've always stood by the idea that part of Shoto's arc in the series is about him trying to define himself as a person. Away from all his family and the baggage that came with it. From trying to accept his power as his own to riding himself over the demons of his father to finally being able to be his own person. Saying that he just wants to do something because he wants to do it. It's also a good contrast to how Enji was. Instead of obsessing over the same thing that destroyed his family, once Shoto got as high as he felt he could go, he instead turned to something new that he wanted to try. For no other reason than he simply liked soba and thought it would taste better with something he made. 

I also really like how they tie this into the idea of heroes having more free time and becoming less and less needed. That now heroes have chances to take care of themselves, stop worrying about everyone else, and have lives outside their work. Again, that's something I feel like didn't ring as true with only Chapter 430 as context. We never got to see anyone besides Izuku working in that chapter. And since he was a teacher and not a pro hero, it didn't feel like what Hawks did came to pass outside of maybe a few lines. So I'm glad it got some focus on Shoto and his own arc. I think it's a excellent note to end his character on. I'm glad that it was more overtly finished as opposed to the single panel we got for it in Chapter 430.

Blast Back

So, after all that, what do I think about Bakugou's ending? I think it's an effective bittersweet ending to his character. He reminds me a lot of veterans after a war. And I'm not just saying that because he was in two wars for his life, both of which he technically died in, though that is part of that. It's more about the mindset and character of Bakugou. He's a man who defines himself by his ability to fight and win. Now the world is coming to the point where those aren't as valued, and he lashes out because of it. He tries to find that drive in other people like his sidekicks, but none of them have it anymore. He tries to reignite that rivalry with Izuku, only to find that he's moving on with his own life. 

It's like a natural expansion of his failure to move past his mindset earlier on in the series and how obsessed he was with being the best, only now it's twenty times more depressing. It's an interesting way to end his character. Bakugou got what he wanted, but realizes how little any of it really means. Which isn't to say it's a sad ending. Bakugou was able to complete his arc and come out the other side a better person. That is a more worthwhile reward than any kind of ranking. However, I do think there is some hope for Bakugou. Considering how much of the chapter is about people trying to live their lives outside of being a hero, I prefer to think that he would eventually do the same.

Weightless Burden

Out of all the characters, Uraraka needed this chapter the most and easily benefits the most from the extra focus. There's just a lot about her character that felt unfinished otherwise. Like with a lot of stuff, it does help that we get to see Uraraka in action and helping people with their Quirks. It helps clear the air about what exactly Quirk Counseling is and how it's going to affect people from now on. That what Uraraka said wasn't just hot air, and she did help people. And that, yes, what the League did and went through was important. It helped push people to make changes later to keep something like this from ever happening again.

More importantly, we get to see her dealing with her emotions. I feel like an underrated part of Ochako's arc was her being more honest about her feelings. We got a lot of her trying to understand people and the importance of reaching out with Toga. And without that part of her arc completed, it seemed like a part of her story was left unfinished. I like how it gets so much focus in this chapter, with Uraraka basically being literally haunted by her feelings, both metaphorically and literally. All in all, I like how Uraraka was handled in the final chapter, and I think this is a good end for her. If only there wasn't something that overshadowed her entire storyline in the eyes of the fans.

Within Reach

I feel so vindicated by this whole chapter. Besides all the claims people made about Izuku being disproved, it retroactively makes Chapter 430 better. I was always fine with Izuku being a teacher. I felt it was a very natural place for his character to end up in hindsight. It's something he has the skill to do, especially in a place like UA with his observational skills and hero knowledge. However, it can still feel jarring with just Chapter 430. Izuku's dream was to be the world's greatest hero. He did achieve that, but it was never mentioned that he wanted to be a teacher. Having Izuku say that was what he wanted and enjoys doing is very important. It helps add a lot of validity to this writing choice and shows how much Izuku has grown into wanting things outside of hero work.

More importantly, I feel like this works much better as a finale for him. While Izuku working with Dai about his Quirk did work as showing Izuku's change in mindset, I don't think it was as satisfying of an ending. It worked to tie up some of the thematic ends to the story and Izuku, but it did not work as well for an emotional climax. Because Dai was just some nobody we hadn't met before. Now, we get a lot more proper closure with Izuku and the rest of the cast. We got his final moments with All Might and Aizawa, but not much else. Now we finally get closure with all of his classmates, Bakugou and Uraraka included. And it gives us time to show him enjoying stuff outside of hero work instead of just being told about it.

Car Bomb

Alright, let's disarm this first bomb. The car ride.

Speaking of growth, it is not out of character for Izuku to reject Bakugou's offer. It has been over a decade since Izuku has been in middle school. He has grown a lot over the year the story takes place in. Shoot, he's probably grown a lot more since then as well. My point is, this is not the same Izuku at the start of the series. He would not freak out over signed All Might merchandise. Izuku and All Might have been friends for a decade. He would not jump at the chance to work under Bakugou as a sidekick or with him as an equal. Izuku does and should have a life outside of Bakugou. Izuku does not owe Bakugou anything for helping to make him a suit. It was a group effort with Toshinori and the rest of Class 1-A, and I really doubt Bakugou would even want Izuku to join just because Izuku "owed him one".

I bring this up after talking to Izuku and Bakugou on their own because both are important parts of why this section of the story was done this way. Izuku out and out said that he wants to be a teacher over a pro hero. Being a hero is important to him. It lets him spend more time with his friends, and he gets to help people, but it doesn't define his life any more. He's doing what he wants now. He doesn't have that self-destructive heroism as a part of him anymore. His wanting and choosing to be a teacher is part of that healthy selfishness I was talking about before. I honestly think that him working with Bakugou would undermine that part of the ending. That he'd go back into hero work full time and have it take over his life rather than focusing everything on teaching. Shoot, it even ends with Bakugou telling Izuku to think more for himself.

And I think a lot of this comes down to people overestimating Izuku and Bakugou's connection and its relevance to the overall story and underestimating their own growth. Bakugou is Izuku's rival, and they play a part in each other's story, but their rivalry is of minor note to the greater story. This isn't like Naruto and Sasuke, where the two main rivals are of vital importance to one another's storylines. It's more like Ichigo and Yuru, where the rivalries are far less prominent and only occasionally cross over. It was more that Bakugou's own arc was heavily tied to Izuku, but Bakugou's arc was only part of what was going on in his own story. Specifically, the part of Izuku training to be a hero and how they both learn from one another. However, that part of it is done because Izuku found a life for himself outside of hero work, leaving not as much for Bakugou. Which is why I think the ending seems sad for Bakugou, even though I'd describe it as more bittersweet.

Holding Hands? How Scandalous!

All of this chapter aside, let's get into the real meat of this and defuse the second bomb. There were a lot of fans that were upset about this. Let's remove the good chunk that were simply upset their ship didn't become canon and focus on some real issues people have with this.

No, this isn't a fake-out. This wasn't made by Hori's assistants, generated by AI, or whatever other piece of cope you've heard online. This did happen, it is canon, and it is romantic. And yes, them holding hands is supposed to be romantic. Not only would it be out of character for these flustered nerds to do anything more implicitly romantic, but them holding hands ties a lot more into their characters. Them grabbing each other's hands is an integral part of their connection and growth. It's to show the two are connected and understanding one another. It ties back to the idea of reaching out being about understanding someone and part of why the two do it so much together. By them clasping hands at the end, it's to show the bond the two have made and how close they are now.

No, Uraraka getting with Izuku is not something that was forced into the story, nor was it something that came out of nowhere. Uraraka's feelings for Izuku have been set up ever since she was introduced. It started out as a crush but was slowly reinforced and built up between the two's appearances, both apart and together. Having her get with Izuku ends part of her arc as well. One of the biggest points of Uraraka's story is how bad it is to repress your feelings and not be emotionally open with the people around you. This is contrasted by Toga, someone who was hurt by that same repression, yet now was totally honest with her feelings. It's why Uraraka said that she admired Toga as a person for that honesty. Shoot, it's why Ochako confesses her feelings for Izuku in that fight. Something people seem to be forgetting. Uraraka pushing down her feelings wasn't the end of that plotline, it was merely another plot point in her story that culminated in this confession.

No, this doesn't devalue or reorient Toga's story to be about the two of them. Toga has always played a major role in the romantic connection between Izuku and Uraraka at various points in the story. There's a reason why Izuku keeps getting brought up whenever Uraraka and Toga fight each other. However, that was only a part of her character. Toga's story was all about trying to be understood for who she was and trying to find happiness in her life. She got that when Uraraka was willing to bleed and die just to try and reach out to her. And Toga's story was over when she died and saved Uraraka's life, living life as she chose to till the very end. Izuku and Uraraka getting together does not ruin that. Her usage here is more about her manifesting due to Uraraka's unresolved emotions. It's why Toga only shows up when Izuku becomes more active in her life. Again, it goes back to that whole thing about Uraraka admiring Toga for being so open about her feelings.

No, the fact that Uraraka ends up with Izuku does not devalue her character in any way, shape, or form. Her getting with Izuku is part of her story, but that's it: part of her story. She can still be her own person with her own life outside of Izuku while being in a happy relationship with him. They aren't mutually exclusive. Uraraka has this whole other arc she goes through with Toga that is integral to each character and the story overall. For the past eight years, Uraraka was and still is a pro heroine who helped countless people with the expanded Quirk Counseling program. That part was well established before the relationship was resolved. Because that's just as important to her story and character as the romance with Izuku. That doesn't go away because she updated her status to "In a Relationship". It doesn't automatically reduce her to a housewife. I'm sick of people saying this, and it's a frankly disgusting way to look at her character.

Epilogue to the Epilogue

So what do I feel about this ending? It was nice, and I am glad that we got it. I am someone who defended the original ending and have only come to appreciate it more as time has gone on. That being said, it did leave me with this feeling of incompleteness. Like the overall picture was there, but there were fragments of it missing. And in those fragments, people started filling holes with their garbage ideas. I do think that Chapter 431 filled out some much-needed holes within the first finale and ends the series on a good note.

Heck, Hori was able to fix and cover a lot of the problems I had with Chapter 430. The fact that Izuku wanted to be a teacher seemingly coming out of nowhere? Settled and expanded upon that he always wanted to be a hero as well as a teacher. The lack of any real final moments between Izuku and Bakugou? That was settled pretty well with the two of them in the car. The lack of resolution regarding Izuku and Uraraka? One of the main focal points of this chapter and what we ultimately end the series on. It feels more complete, if that makes any sense. And I'm glad Hori got this opportunity. Few authors ever get the chance to make a recovery like this, and fewer still are able to pull it off.

I will say that now I'm less worried than I was before. When I ended my review of the final few chapters, I talked about how much the general perception of the series would have been tainted by the ending. I feel like most fans are a lot more agreeable with this than they were on Chapter 430. I still stand by the fact that it was ruined by leakers and the general anti-hype tainting any discussion people could have about it. And it wouldn't have stung so if all of the obnoxious memes and straight-up lies surrounding the ending weren't out there.

Will My Hero Academia live on? Oh, I'm sure it will somehow. Maybe Shonen Jump will force the hand of one of their many mangaka into making a sequel series. Maybe it will live on through merchandise sales, spin-off light novels, and however many movies they decide to make about it. I know for certain it will live on. In us. Countless characters, stories, and art pieces that we all made because of it.

I started this series right around the same age as Izuku. Some young kid who was quiet, socially awkward, and obsessed with superheroes, knowing all sorts of trivia about them. So naturally, I was drawn to series where the protagonist was literally me. Yet what kept me was the story, the worldbuilding, the characters, the art, and, of course, the power system. But the thing that resonated with me more than anything was the message: anyone can be a hero as long as you choose to be one. Now that the series is over, here I am again. At a similar age to Izuku. I wonder if I've grown as much as he has. All I know is that My Hero Academia will always have a special place in my heart.

Sure, there were ups and downs throughout the story. Yet, in a strange way, I appreciate that as well. This story helped me a lot when it came to my critical thinking with the media I interacted with. It made me think about and reconsider what I was watching and reading over and over again. It helped me overcome my gut reactions to events and how those reactions would stick with me. It helped me think more and more about the actual message and meaning of it. Not what I thought the story was saying, but what the story was trying to tell me. It made me reconsider parts I despised and helped me appreciate what I enjoyed so much about this story.

Most of all, it inspired me to create this blog and to meet all of you. It filled me with so much creative passion that I couldn't help but share it with all of you. Was it hard? At times. But there was always the feeling that what I did inspired and helped the people see the series in a new light. I've had so many people talk about how much they love my blog, how they are excited to see me post, and how much they want to use my Quirks for their stories and characters. I've even had people say to me that what I did helped them think about stuff critically, and they were inspired to make their own stories all because of what I did. That means so much to me. More than you could ever imagine.

And now it's over. I'm left to wonder what I will do with myself and this blog now that it's done. I suppose I'll have to figure that out soon enough.

[worldheadcanons]

☆ when their s/o’s being motherly!

requested by anon! feminine reader. starring . . . germany & japan. warning for mentions of pregnancy. fandom masterlist found here.

📌 . . . author notes: this wasn’t everyone that anon asked for but these are the two characters i had past drafts for, so i decided to just post these two! if anyone wants this prompt with other characters, you can shoot me an ask when requests are back open :)

ludwig beilschmidt!

— the two of you had a date scheduled for that night. it wasn’t at a restaurant or anywhere particularly fancy but at someplace much more special — your house. you had told him beforehand while planning the date that you were watching over a baby cousin of yours for the evening. fortunately, ludwig still agreed to hang out with you. you guys had been dating for a good while so he figured it would be fine. he didn’t mind children too much anyways, though they tended to have mixed reactions towards him.

— he arrived right on time, as usual, taking a moment to get himself together before quietly ringing your doorbell. you answered the door after a few moments, your little cousin in your arms. the two of you traded hellos and smiles. beilschmidt made sure to smile gently at your little cousin, not wanting to upset the baby. you welcomed him inside and the two of you put on a nice little movie to watch.

— in the middle of the movie, he noticed how close you were cuddled up together. that, and how cute you looked with a baby in your arms. how natural and at ease both you and the baby seemed... the baby was content for now, barely making a fuss. just him, you, and a baby.. he could get used to something like this. ludwig blushed slightly, thinking about what you’d both have to do in order to get a baby. he chastised himself in his head for being a pervert. all the while you paid no mind, leaning your head onto his shoulder and enjoying the film.

— close to the end of the film, your cousin started to cry. the baby’s face balled up, clearly upset. you jumped to your feet, quickly excusing yourself before rushing off to go take care of your cousin. it could be anything really — hunger, sleepiness, a full diaper — so it took a while for you to find the source of the baby’s discomfort.

— in the meantime, ludwig was left to sit with his thoughts in the living room. thoughts of you, of course. he couldn’t help but let his mind wander. a small smile appeared on his face as he imagined what domestic life would be like with you. how life would be with you and him and a child of your own… a baby that would grow into a toddler and then into a six or seven year old. a little mix of you and a little mix of him, running around the house. causing messes and laughing cheerfully. beilschmidt would make sure that your kid would be happy. that you would be happy.

— after a bit of time, you came back into the living room. he noticed that your cousin was gone but before he could open his mouth, you explained that you had changed his diaper and set him down for bed. you joked that you weren’t sure if he’d stay asleep. you weren’t the most motherly, you said, plopping back down onto the couch beside your boyfriend.

— ludwig could only shake his head at your words, which made you raise an eyebrow in curiosity. “i think you’d make a wonderful mother. a baby is a lot to handle.. but i think you could manage it. you seemed at ease with your cousin, you know..”

— “really? ah, ludwig, you’re so sweet,” you replied, taking his hand and holding it. you gave it a small squeeze and then continued on. “i think you’d make a great father. i can already imagine you playing with our children.”

— he grinned at that, pressing a kiss to your head. “i’m glad to hear that.”

kiku honda

— the two of you had managed to find a beautiful park to walk at earlier that day. there were lots of trees and shrubs in the beginning phases of blooming. hand in hand, you strolled around together, talking about whatever came to mind. it had been a truly relaxing experience. you happened to find a nice wooden bench to sit down on just when the both of you were getting tired of walking. there was a humble but colorful playground in front of the bench which provided you something interesting to look at. now, instead of walking and talking, you two were sitting and talking.

— you chatted for a while before a comfortable silence fell in between the two of you. you both were busy enjoying the surprisingly pleasant spring day. you leaned against honda’s shoulder and he pressed a gentle kiss to your head through your hair. you almost ended up dozing off completely but just as your eyes started to droop, a young boy came over to you with a small flower. he smiled, his cheeks slightly flushed pink. it was completely and utterly adorable.

— “for me?” you asked quietly, eyes wide in slight disbelief. the boy nodded and handed it to you. as you accepted the flower, he giggled to himself. you gave him a smile in return. “thank you so much,” you said. you held the flower gently before deciding to tuck it behind your ear. that way you wouldn’t lose it to the breeze.

— you and kiku both watched as the boy ran back towards the playground. there were a few other kids who he seemed to be friends with. “looks like i have competition,” honda chuckled, joking around about the situation. when you gave him a confused look, he decided to explain. “i think he has a little crush on you.”

— you laughed gently, denying the whole idea. “kids give flowers to lots of people. i’m sure he would’ve given you one too if he could. he was so cute though. i love kids. they’re so funny sometimes.” you had always been particularly fond of children. apparently, children were fond of you too.

— it had been maybe ten or fifteen minutes before the same boy came back over. this time he had popsicles with him. he quietly smiled again and offered you one in the same way he offered you the flower. you smiled and gushed about how thankful you were, going as far as to give him a curt hug. kiku had zoned out in the middle of this interaction, thinking about how life would be like if you two had a young kid of your own. a little boy or girl to chase after. it would be nice… parenting had its ups and downs of course but he was sure the two of you could handle it.

— you took your favorite flavor of popsicle from the boy, giving him a grin before turning to honda, “want one?”

— he blinked before speaking. “a kid?” he asked, confused as to what you were talking about. to be fair, he wasn’t paying much attention to the situation around him. his face grew red though as he realized what you were offering.

— “no?” you replied with a laugh, handing him a popsicle. you gave him a small kiss to the cheek before speaking again. “i mean.. if that’s what you want i wouldn’t mind.”