#and that tackles a specific kind of terror

[waterlogged-detective]

is one of the books Doe is made of the King in Yellow solely because it's my favorite book?

Mayhaps

[txttletale]

i have no patience for people talking about violent rhetoric on the left really because every day i read the news and every politician in this country and in most others is saying 'we gotta kill more people'. they use different words to say it. obviously you're not supposed to just say 'we gotta kill more people'. but there's all kinds of polite and okay ways to say it.

'we need to control our borders' is a phrase which here means 'we gotta kill more people, we gotta drown more refugees in boats, we gotta send more people back to warzones and governments that want them dead, we gotta make more camps and we gotta make the camps more fatal'.

'we need to be tougher on welfare fraud' is a phrase which here means 'we gotta kill more people, we gotta make disabled people do more song and dance routines to convince some indifferent bureaucrat that they deserve to eat and we gotta make sure that the bureaucrats say 'no', we gotta starve those kids more, we gotta make sure families and kids and old people are freezing in the winter'.

'we need to tackle violent crime' is a phrase which here means 'we gotta kill more people, specifically Black people, unless we said Terrorism instead of Crime, in which case it's specifically muslims, shoot them, imprison them, surveil them, disappear them, brutalize them, whatever.'

and of course none of this is Violent Speech. this is Sensible Political Discourse. these are Common-Sense Policy Goals. we gotta kill more people: that's an electable policy. you can always count on we gotta kill more people as a platform. we gotta kill more people is gonna sweep the nation baby. we gotta kill more people 2024 -- vote now on your phones. now slow down. hold your horses. did that guy just say we gotta kill more people? well that just wont do. thats why im running on a platform of we gotta kill more people for cheaper, to stop this wasteful madness. and the people just keep dying but seems like there's still some of them left so i guess we're just circling back around to our main thing which is: we gotta kill more people

[evilminji]

A Moral Dilemma! Question!

Let's say there is a trucker. An average man. Kind enough, did okay in school, loves his wife and misses her like you wouldn't believe every time he has to go. Misses his little girl even more. HATES he's missing the early years of her life. First day to school, getting her up and brushing her hair into pigtails, making pancakes like his Pa used to make. The works.

But the economy is shit. Him and his wife have to work. Make ends meet. They're DESPERATE to get out of Gotham. Move somewhere boring. Safe.

But... well, places like that cost money. Kids cost money. And he did OKAY in school. Not a lot of jobs out there for "Okay" guys from Gotham.

His cousin finds him a route though. A solid job. Really pulled through when push came to shove and things were looking bad. Like he might have to take up that offer to Goon. Now he's a trucker.

And his route? Well the half way point is Amity Park. He stops to stay the night every time. Never really STAYS, has heard they got themselves a Cape and such, but? It is what it is. He's from Gotham. He minds his business. Parks on the outskirts of town to avoid getting hit.

Doesn't realize, he's getting SOAKED in Ectoplasm every time he's in town.

And this trucker? Not the healthiest man. He wishes he could be. But life on the road is not exactly conducive to fresh fruit and leafy greens. He eats more grease and sugar then his doctor would EVER recommend. In fact, has specifically warned him not too.

But some days you just need a warm meal. You miss your kid, your wife, your bed. And you know it'll be days before you can see any of them. But at least there is pancakes.

You can pretend you're eating with your family. Or at least, let the coffee be warm enough for the two of you. God, but the poor man is tired.

And as he gets close to Gotham?

Breaking News!

The Joker. AGAIN. The trucker cringes, horror filling him. What poor soul has that mad man hurt NOW? When will it end? Him and his wife are so close to getting the hell out. Thinking Kansas. His wife has been joking about pie baking competit-

No.

Oh God No.

There, on the screen, tears streaming down her beautiful face? Is the love of his life. His best friend. His EVERYTHING. And in her arms, trying so, so hard to be quiet. To muffle her terror born sobs... is his little girl. One pigtail torn from its srunchie, blood on her tiny face.

The trucker knows how this story ends.

Batman will try. He ALWAYS tries. And sometimes... sometimes that's enough. But he knows the odds here. His family are in front. Stars of this sick show. The trucker can't breathe. His heart is pounding, too hard for a man of his health.

He's not young. Should be on blood pressure meds he simply cant afford. Is panicked by a terror few should ever suffer. And? What runs in his family, strikes true. It feels so far away, the pain in his chest. He... No, he can't.

He can't.

His family.

He can't die. Leave them. They're in danger! They can't die like this. So close to freedom. Happiness. They... the..y.. ca..n..t...

.

.

THEY WON'T. HE REFUSES.

~~~

So! Here in comes the QUESTION! As you sit, watching this terrified child call for her father, ripped from her begging mothers arms, you see a green opaque man full body tackle the Joker.

You watch his eyes visible glow and change color, fight a visible STRUGGLE, like jeckle and Hyde, for control of his body. Between the monster known as Joker and what seems to be? The little girl's newly Meta father.

The Father wins.

You watch the Bat arrive with the police. Thank the man and say he can release Joker into custody. See the EXACT moment the Meta realizes something. Turns to look at his daughter, then his wife. Looks back at the commissioner.

Says "No".

Is he right to do this? To Possess the Joker, as a life sentence, to insure the safety of others? He is perfectly will to sit that life in a jail cell. Knows he will never be allowed to roam free again. But! The Joker is contained.

Is this Right? Or merely emotionally satisfying?

Discuss :3

@hypewinter @hdgnj @the-witchhunter @ailithnight @nerdpoe

[bonefall]

Better Bones: CW List

Can't believe I have to make this disclaimer, but here we are

Better Bones is not a project that aims to fix canon by making the Clans wholesome and unproblematic. Though there can be fun and kindness in it and my philosophy is an optimistic one, It's not an escapist fantasy. It is a story about semi-realistic cats of human intelligence in a violent, war-obsessed theocratic dictatorship, and how they attempt to change it over the years.

Clan Culture is flawed, that is on purpose. Addressing and changing this is what the story is about.

I am very disappointed I have to state this because it should be obvious from my main post where I explicitly say that my goal is to "Address (Canon's) Problematic Elements." Not remove.

If you cannot handle themes or depictions of;

Physical and emotional abuse; Domestic, authoritative, and familial

Child abuse and inter-generational trauma

Somewhat graphic medical discussion, such as abortion, wound infection, and the use of leeches and maggots

The killing and processing of small animals into food, including tanning and butchery

Semi-realistic cat behaviors, specifically marking things with urine

Ableism; both externalized and internalized, Clan culture treats disabled cats poorly and this is something several characters struggle with

Xenophobia; to a violent degree, including stochastic terrorism, hate crime, and discrimination

^^^ read that one again. Consider that on this list twice.

Politics; Authoritarianism, fascism, and liberalism as an enemy, discussion of dog whistles and ideology

"Redemption arcs" of people who did bad things

Cosmic horror and supernatural curses

Graphic violence, including against innocent bystanders, through assault, poisoning, drowning, falling, and even being eaten alive by large fish and demigods.

Animal abuse; Human beings harming cats on purpose and Clan cats generally being terrified of all humans, even kind and loving ones

Clan cats, both villainous and culturally mislead, glorifying these things in-universe, not immediately staring at the camera and breaking character to tell you "This Is A Bad Thing!"

Then Better Bones may not be for you. I would at minimum rate this project as PG-13, but PG-16 would be a more accurate bet.

I have sympathy for you if these are not topics you can handle. My project tackles very upsetting real-world issues and not everyone is looking for something challenging; that's understandable and there's no fault in that. I try to tag appropriately but can't promise to catch everything, so please keep yourself safe.

There are other, softer projects out there run by cool people if this is not for you, and you can add #Better Bones AU to your tag filters and this project will not show up!

But, I'm not responsible for your comfort with my art. If you followed me under the assumption that BB is "Warriors without any ableism/xenophobia/violence" you were mistaken. If you don't have the maturity to act responsibly when something upsets you, or DO have the malice to read a disabled person's work with the most bad faith interpretations you can muster, LEAVE.

[luulapants]

What do you recommend currently for people that commit hate based crimes and have jo imtention to stop doing so ? Do you have protocols in place for the people you interact with, or does this fall under" we're not abolishing prison tomorrow"? I don't know how well therapy can tackle this.

This does largely fall under "we are not abolishing prison tomorrow," and I would encourage you to read this comic about why questions like this aren't actually productive in discussions about prison abolition.

Prisons actively make extremist ideology of all kinds worse. A lot of white people who go into prisons a little bit racist come out supporting Nazi ideology through groups like the Aryan Brotherhood. Odinism, a white supremacist bastardization of Heathenism, actively recruits in prisons because the people there are so vulnerable to their messaging. Other extremist groups who have grown specifically because of the captive audience prisons provide include Five Percenters and other extremist offshoots of what is generally referred to as "Prison Islam" and various prison gangs (many of which operate exactly like cults).

Prison officials, by the way, have little incentive to discourage racialized extremist gangs because they divide prisoners against one another, which makes them less likely to cooperate in resistance against the prison itself. In fact, when alarms were raised after 9/11 that US prisons were a security liability and that Osama Bin Ladin specifically cited prisons as fertile ground for recruiting Al Qaida members. The law enforcement community, who were otherwise in a paranoid panic about all things Islamic Extremism, immediately dismissed the issue. No one wants to talk about prison extremism.

All of this is to say that, no, we are not abolishing prison tomorrow, but in the meantime, prisons are actually one of the major sources of racism, extremism, and domestic terrorism in the US. So perhaps the question is not "Can we afford to abolish prisons when we have to deal with people committing hate crimes?" but "Can we afford to keep prisons open when they are causing so many hate crimes?"

[lullabytaeyong]

Creepy Crawlies - R!Kai

(Tw: Spiders) And I know they aren’t technically bugs but I still call them that in this lol

Kai giggled contently in the bathtub, a red bath crayon in his hand and bubbles surrounding him. He dragged the crayon in crazy scribbles all over one of his drawings since he knew it had to be rinsed away soon. Soobin watched him with amused smirk on his face while he waited for the water to drain. Once it did he used the shower head to wash away the left over bubbles on Kai's skin and the artwork he made. He wrapped him up in a fluffy towel and ruffled his hair wildly with it to make him laugh.

"Okay, jammie time. Arms up!" Soobin said brightly after drying him off completely. He knelt down and helped him with his pants and dinosaur socks.

"There you go. Do you want to watch a movie be-"

"Ahhhh!!" Kai suddenly cried in Soobin's face, pointing over his shoulder. "Spider!"

Kai burst into tears and tried to climb on to Soobin's lap in a panic. He hated bugs! They scared him to death when he was little. Soobin stood up quickly and sat Kai back on the floor. He spun around frantically, searching for something to get rid of it with. He snatched a tissue box and spotted the spider on the floor.

"Nooo!! Don't kill it!" Kai wailed, flailing his arms.

"What do you mean? I thought you wanted it gone?"

"Gone gone! Don' hurt him! Will feel bad!"

"Okay, okay" Soobin said semi calmly over the loud cries. He dropped the tissue box and turned around, leaving to get a cup and piece of paper.

Huening kai couldn't help but stare down the vile creature. He hated it! He was so scared! But, if he didn't keep an eye on it he could lose it and it could come back to terrorize him. Tears kept falling down his pink cheeks, as he waited for Soobin's return. The spider crawled an inch in Kai's direction and he shrieked loudly. He pushed him self harder against the tiled wall, as if it could swallow him whole and keep him safe from the little beast.

Soobin sprinted back into the bathroom and immediately trapped the spider under a white cup. He approached Kai before actually catching it to calm him down. The boy was in hysterics, sobbing and squirming. Soobin hushed him and pulled him into his arms while he sat on the floor.

"It's okay, baby. Shhh, I'm taking care of it."

Sometimes the boys forgot how intense Kai's phobia of spiders truly was. He was usually alright with tiny ones, just some shivers and whining here and there, but there were specific ones that had a specific look to them that sent him into a fit of tears. Apparently, one of those kinds of spiders decided to tour their bathroom today.

"It's under a cup right now, so it won't get to you. I promise. It's alright, sweetheart." Kai had his eyes tightly squeezed shut and didn't dare to take a peek. His anxiety was pouring intrusive thoughts into his head about being covered with the bugs. He cried harder into Soobin's chest and begged him to get him out of there. He knew it was still close, the cup being over it didn't make it disappear; he knew that.

"Wan' go to Junnie! Want Papa! Please!" He hiccuped. Soobin acted instantly and carried Kai swiftly out of the bathroom and across the hall to Yeonjun's room. The eldest wasn't actually there, he was in some other room with headphones on, so Soobin texted him.

"Okay, you sit here all nice and comfy and I'll go get rid of the 'you know what' while you wait for your Papa. Okay?" Soobin said after plopping Kai on the mattress.

The youngest nodded hesitantly and watched Soobin re-enter the bathroom. Soobin crouched down to the floor and carefully slid the paper under the cup. Then he slowly picked it up, keeping the spider trapped inside and made his way to the door. Yeonjun skidded past him and ran up to Kai, nearly tackling him in a hug.

"How dare that stupid spider scare my baby Kai like that! I'll beat him up! Don't worry, I won't let him get you." Yeonjun said dramatically, wrapping Huening Kai up in a blanket like a sushi roll.

Kai used the blanket to wipe away the snot and tears covering his face and whimpered against Yeonjun. He felt two strong arms adjust him, so he was on Yeonjun's lap facing him comfortably. The eldests shoulder was a safe place to cry on.

"Hate em. This is our house not theirs!" He pouted.

"I know. They scare you quite a bit, yet you insist that we don't just kill them." Yeonjun replied, holding back a chuckle at how cute Kai was.

"Mh- But they dunno! Don't wanna em to hurt. It's not fair."

"Each day I am more convinced that you are secretly an angel, huening kai." Yeonjun smiled brightly and kissed his baby's head.

"Mission accomplished! Extermination complete." Soobin popped up in the door with a proud smile.

"How's he doing?" He asked, quiet enough for just Yeonjun to hear.

"We're getting there, expressing our hatred for spiders, questioning our morality. He'll be okay in a few." Yeonjun chuckled, rubbing Kai's back comfortingly.

Soobin nodded and moved into the room to take a seat next to them on the bed. Kai curiously lifted his head and looked at Soobin. Although glossy, his eyes were warm with innocence, like hot chocolate. He sniffled his last sniffle and wiggled to get off Yeonjun. They watched him stand up nervously, inspecting the floor and scanning the walls and ceiling with his eyes. He didn't move much, just the occasional random step.

"What're you doing, angel?" Soobin asked.

"Jus' making sure." Huening kai almost whispered. "I wanna go to bed but had to check for spiders"

"Ohh, okay. I don't see anything and if I do I'll take it outside immediately. Come lay down." Yeonjun said, hoping his words would soothe the little's worries.

"We can have a sleepover tonight." He added. Kai giggled and crawled back on Yeonjun's bed, nestling himself into the blankets and pillows.

"I'll go get Goguma, hang tight." Yeonjun said before getting up and leaving.

Kai pulled on Soobin's arm to get him to lay down and cuddled up to his side like a little kitten. He loved the warmth that came with close cuddles. Soobin pat his hair and used his phone to play the little ones lullaby playlist. The familiarity and somewhat nostalgic melodie's always soothed the boys and helped them sleep. Yeonjun returned with Kai's beloved bunny plush and made the toy give him kisses before laying down. He left on a small lamp, so it wasn't too dark, and let Kai get comfortable between him and Soobin.

"Promise no more buggies..." Kai asked softly with round eyes.

"Promise! We'll protect you, baby."

They both hooked their pinkies on each of Kai's and give them a kiss to seal the promise. Finally, the boy was able to fully relax and drift off to sleep.

[spenglercore]

Headcanons and AUs

Here is a list of ideas people can ask me about, nsfw stuff under the cut! I'll add links for each one I address over time.

General Egon headcanons:

He was a complete and utter chaos gremlin as a kid

He fell off the roof once when he was ten

That one time he actually bit a guy in college

He learned to drift on a bet

The MIT campus legend about a student that lived in a maintenance closet is not a legend

Ray has video of him post-wisdom teeth extraction, and it's hilarious

Man can COOK

Canon-divergent; these are based on the fic I'm currently writing, after which he stays to raise Callie instead of leaving for Oklahoma:

Callie was practically glued to him as a baby, although Grandpa* is an acceptable substitute

His car is a two-ton dad joke

He definitely terrorizes his daughter once in awhile

And his grandkids

How he ended up with a Twitch channel

He is also on TikTok

How he handles Trevor and Phoebe's dad leaving

Callie asks him to teach Trevor to drive, did not expect him to teach Trevor to drift the Ecto

Rocket Car Isotope:

His mother, Ilse Spengler, is German and his father, Piotr Kowalski, is Polish and both are ethnically Jewish. Both are different flavors of Nerd

How they met and became friends and later fell for each other

Ilse's dad Johann trolls Piotr twice in a row

Piotr asked Ilse out completely by accident

How they got to the US and how things went once they settled down

Piotr cannot hold his liquor to save his life.

Piotr learned his son was a very grabby baby The Hard Way

How Piotr got the nickname Four-Stroke

That time Ilse blew up the patio

The Big Damn Hero incident that almost got Piotr murdered by his wife

The time Piotr tackled Egon to the floor so he couldn't rat to Ilse that Dad's up and about on his bad leg despite being told to Not Fucking Do That

That other time Ilse had to get the hose out on her two idiots who were trying to out-stubborn each other

That other time Egon got gibslapped for telling his mom what happened the ONE time Piotr figured the odds were in his favor to drag race some chud at a stoplight

*Piotr learns his granddaughter inherited her father's grabbyness The Hard Way

The Alkali Metals Isotope:

Egon has five younger siblings and they're all various flavors of highly intelligent, devious little gremlins

Johann could be his twin, goes by Joe which comes back to bite him later in life

Wilhelmina, goes by Wil or Willie, is one of three of them that is almost always at the root of any major household chaos

Iosif is a copy-paste of his mother and also gets dragged into the nickname shenanigans with his older brother Johann

Marie is a copy-paste of her dad. Shit-starter and one of three of them that is almost always at the root of any major household chaos

Pierre is the last one who is almost always at the root of any major household chaos, but always manages to escape getting in trouble for it because everyone else is old enough to know better and he capitalizes on that.

NSFW headcanons below the cut; cw for both the sexy kind and the Substance Use kind

Egon did drugs For Science in college; he learned many things about himself and there were two or three Incidents(tm)

Still makes the best weed brownies though

How he discovered his kinks and what parts of his psyche and personality they tap into

Specifc to the Carbon Dating college AU:

Why everyone thinks that weird maintenance closet on the fourth floor of Bemis house at MIT was the scene of a murder

The alternate version of the wisdom teeth video

Specific to the Rocket Car isotope:

That time Piotr pulled a job to restore an antique steam-powered sex toy and it nearly broke him

[myrmyrtheorca]

BUDDY NEW CHAPTER HAS BROUGHT NEW QUESTIONS!

At least I think they are new... I might have asked them already, I'm sorry I'm showing symptoms of goldfishbrain again *melts into puddle* I'm just gonna chunk them at your head anyways:

Does Myr have PTSD? Obviously she has trauma but in Chapter 3 she has a panick attack? disassociates? I'm not sure what fits here but cleary the dying will flame triggered her. Which brings me to my next question does she have triggers? If so what would trigger her? (If this is spoiler no biggie just ignore me).

Well that's it from me for now.

Buddy out~

Finally tackling all your chapter-related questions friend! I decided to collect them under a new tag called #Killer Whale Files which I guess will include any in-depth explanations I post as a result of a question (minus ask games unless the answer has some kind of plot relevance).

As always, thank you for passing by and showing interest in my story (●ˇ∀ˇ●)💙

Killer Whale Files: [Myr]

Disclaimer: this bit is in no way trying to downplay or romanticize PTSD. My level of knowledge is superficial and I apologize in advance in case incorrect information is presented.

After researching a bit on PTSD so I could tackle this question better, my answer is: sort of.

Hers is definitely a traumatic response, which from what I've seen can manifest through symptoms and condition caused by PTSD, namely nightmares, numbing, avoidance of anything related to the traumatic experience and panic attacks. As you could see in chapter 3, Myr reacts to Tsuna's Dying Will Flame with extreme distress: her trauma seems to be related to fire.

I say "seems" because... she doesn't remember the traumatic event that triggers such reaction. She has nightmares about a specific scene, which I will quote from the draft of a future chapter:

Fire. Fire everywhere. A recurrent dream. She had been there many times before, but the terror was impossible to get used to. Crazed, towering flames like those from hell covered the wooden walls like a veil of chaos. A painting on the wall fell, the frame shattered on impact as the canvas inside it blackened and curled in on itself, the figure it housed lost forever. As always, Myr was in the middle of the room, on her knees. The heat was unbearable, her knees burned too much to keep them resting on the floor for long and she was thus forced to lift them in shifts, panicking. Her hands clasped her head, blocking her ears, so as not to hear the roar of the fire raging around her. As always, Myr screamed, called for help, cried hysterically in the hope that someone might hear her… but no one ever came. The roar of the flames was immense, deafening, as if everything around her was whirling in gale-force winds. I must escape. I'm dying. I need to run. I'm burning. Dad, help me! This isn't my fault, I didn't do this!

The nightmare repeats itself each time she experiences it in the same way, unchanged to its little details. It is carved in her mind, she knows it's "the fire room" but does not ever remember such a room existing in the City of Dite base, nor does she recall ever setting foot in a similar room. Each time she's put close to a flame, she does not experience a flashback but only the immediate fight or flight respose. She only sees the room in her nightmares.

Did she remove this traumatic event in some sort of dissociative amnesia way? There are no records of such a disastrous event happening in the City of Dite base. This made her come to the conclusion that the event has somehow never happened, even though the scene is vivid in her mind and she feels "like she was actually there". I will say that hers is not the only case of pyrophobia ever descripted in the Cavalieri's medical records, though hers seems to be a unique condition.

Other than fire, she does not posses any other triggers.

[halogenwarrior]

So I’ve seen the Cardinal West xenofiction review video, and how one of the ones he rated very lowly with a lot of people in the comments/etc. agreeing is bad was the Sight by David Clement-Davies, and as someone who was quite attached to it as a teenager I kind of have a relationship with this book of “I have a lot I can criticize it for but Only I can criticize it, because the takes I’m seeing on this site and the video comments don’t seem to understand what it was really Going For in a thematic sense (despite it being not very subtle, perhaps to its detriment, about it), and because of that both criticize aspects that I felt were unique and great and serve the story well and miss its most fundamental and serious flaw that makes it fail to fully accomplish what it is going for.

I feel I can best explain what the book is going for/what its central theme is, by bringing up something I remember reading from Joseph Campbell. He discussed how all existing myths have always been myths for/explaining/about a certain region of the world, and how what is missing is a myth that is for and about the whole planet, that can speak to all of humanity – and to the experience of the nonhuman life all around us. The Sight is fundamentally about tackling this question – can one (both in the meta-sense of the book itself and in the sense that characters in the book actively strive for it) make a myth for the whole earth, that can justify all of the senselessness and suffering of life and give it meaning in more than just a parochial, region-centric or even anthropocentric case? And should we? Even if we could, would it just be a trap that causes more suffering, a self-fulfilling prophecy of doom, when life on its own is beautifully, heartbreakingly enough (but how could life ever be enough? Ecology, after all, only describes a system that creates astronomical amounts of suffering, it does not “justify” or create “meaning” for anything except survival and the circular logic of self-perpetuation, but as Skart points out it’s not all suffering all the time, one shouldn’t be so quick to reject the bare facts of life altogether and look for something more just because some parts are horrifying).

A lot of the aspects I’ve seen the book criticized for were things I actually really appreciated for how they contribute to this overall theme and “vibe”, and contributed to it blowing me away when I read it for the first time at 14 years old, and it honestly affecting a lot of my personality and worldview. The detached writing style I’ve seen criticized as sloppy, but for me it was a perfect match for how it’s supposed to be both about, and telling, a myth; it had the feeling of sitting by a fire on a cold winter night as you were told a story. The tangents about human history never felt meaningless to me, they were thrilling because they underscored how it’s not just a story of a few characters but a story of this earth, attempting to create the sweeping wonder for our own world that many fantasy books do for an imagined one, to make one love the sheer motion, deep history and amount of things happening in the vast world, to love the world with all its terror and tragedy and beauty. And it's definitely missing a lot of what is going on to say the obvious Christianity parallels in the wolves’ myths are just there because the author was unoriginal or wanted to make his protagonist a cliched messiah figure. Even though the story shows in very blatant text that Larka isn’t an unironic Jesus figure but someone whose frustration with life and self-hatred leads her to latch onto the story of a martyrdom that gives meaning to everything. She undertakes the hero’s journey complete with death and rebirth in the fire, the journey to the underworld (the red meadow), etc., and in the end after a whole book of very regional, wolf-specific myths she gets to see that was false and experience the vaster, global, truth that we know of the world through the Vision – of evolution, and humanity’s ultimate impact on the whole world. But again, this just explains survival, it doesn’t justify the monstrous suffering that comes with it, it doesn’t have the true explaining power of a myth. So she refuses to kill all of humanity when she has the chance even if it would endanger that very survival because she believes survival without an explanation is unjustified. And in the end she is so attached to the martyr Jesus-copy story and its potential power to relieve the senselessness of life that she hesitates those crucial seconds to escape her supposed fate, deciding she wants to live after all too late even though she loves life and fears death so much that it hurts.

And I think all of these are interesting and ambitious themes, and the sheer ability to encompass and tell a story for our own world and all that meant captivated me. As well as, having just come off my frustrations of the Warriors arc Power of Three and Omen of the Stars and their inability to resolve the exciting supernatural mysteries they set up, its ability to set up these mysteries and fulfill them all in an epic conclusion. Rereading it the second time when I am older, I still appreciate that ambition and atmosphere, but I see its flaws more clearly – and the one fatal flaw in particular. Yes, there are other big problems with the book, which other people have pointed out. The sometimes-incoherence of its philosophy, the weird showing of bigotry towards scavenger birds only for them to never be anything but villains anyway, the weakness of the main villain’s motivations and the whole misogynistic trope of her being “empty” due to being infertile. But the one that deeply hampers its ability to convey the themes it intends is haphazard mixing of metaphor and reality in terms of animals. On the one hand, the book wants its animals to be metaphors for humans, thus them being heavily anthropomorphized and often inaccurate to their real behavior, and their mythology/religion heavily resembling those of Christianity and other human beliefs rather than being plausible for what another species with no contact with those ideas would come up with, all to serve as a better metaphor for how so much of humanity has turned to the power of the story of Jesus to justify existence. BUT at the same time, it’s fundamental conceit is to be a story of and about this Earth, dealing with animals and their place in the world and trying to fit them into a greater mythology as they literally are, as animals, and the whole reason it is xenofiction instead of focusing on humans is that it’s in this conversation with a global, non-anthropocentric myth. And those two things clash horribly. You can use animals as metaphors for humans in an alternate earth or fantasy world that’s talking about reality in a more distant mirror kind of way, but you can’t make your animals so humanized and distant from real animals when the central conceit of your story is supposed to be that this is our planet, our history, directly making a statement about what stories mean for this world and how you fit in these animals who are so fundamentally different from us humans.

Still, I would love to see someone try their hands at writing a sort of spiritual successor to this book that fixes its issues, attempting to tackle these themes (perhaps from both the point of view of humans and other animals) in a grand fantasy/mythic xenofiction that also clearly sees animals for what they are. I would think such a work could be powerful, and maybe reproduce the same feelings I had when I read this book so long ago…

[communist-ojou-sama]

Okay, done. Let me get my thoughts in order here. This is about Otherside Picnic volume 8 by the way so like. Viewer beware I guess.

I'd been struggling, seeing all the lovely analysis by others, to get a hold on what I felt was going on thematically with this novel having not touched it directly since January, and having devoured it perhaps too quickly back then. So, where to start? Freud, I guess. It's no secret that Miyazawa is very interested in academic research in general, given our setting and the lengthy scenes of Sorawo's seminars to which we're treated, not to mention Kozakura's mention of the similarity of interacting with the Otherside to having various psychiatric ailments, so, let's take a step back. What does it mean, anyway, to engage with the Otherside, on a thematic level? I think there is a very strong case, perhaps made elsewhere, that it has to do with engaging with the id, the most fundamental part of our psyche over which we have the least control. honestly, given how the novel ends, this is maybe just text and not subtext at this point.

It has long been clear that Miyazawa is deeply interested in the intersection of trauma and desire, but in the first file we can see he's handing us a map. First, we have our scene between Sorawo and Toriko that establishes the frame narrative for the rest of the novel, Sorawo has to tell Toriko how she feels about her, there's no longer any avoiding it.

The problem is, Sorawo has always been drawn by the Otherside, the irrational and unknowable base of emotion, which defies the construct of language and consensus reality itself, for her, being asked to take that roiling torrent of id and make it into something socially legible is, well, deeply boring. (I strongly agree personally)

And so we have a number of what are basically Socratic discourses on the nature of desire, and how that desire is constructed by society (Benimori) and how our fundamental urges are related to reality (Tsuji). I'll have to chew over what Tsuji herself represents in the narrative, but that's my read for now.

The reason why whatever it is on the other side of the Otherside (lol, also not going to speculate about what that is here) uses terror to connect to humans is because terror is one of our most primordial emotions, one of the ones closest to the id. To interact with the Otherside is to confront one's own id directly.

Sorawo, who had an abusive childhood in which a very specific kind of society, a cult, attempted to destroy who she was and fully deny her id, clings on to it even as it confuses her, and this intense conflict between her id, ego, and super-ego gives birth to her doppelgänger, which is the manifestations of the more complex desires of the ego and id that her superego is unprepared to confront.

Toriko, who is the product of a loving marriage between two lesbians, and as we learn has a longstanding relationship with lesbian erotica, is able to bear the weight of confronting her own id because she has had the role models in her life to teach her that desire is not something to be feared.

Kozakura, is paralyzed by fear at her own id, and holes herself into her home, shuts herself off from the world, to avoid the risk of confronting it, though with sorawo at her side, when forced into the situation, she's at least able to trudge her way through a bit (just saying, put a pin in it)

our first explication with Benimori tackles this issue of desire head-on, talking about how the raw desire of human beings is a deeply complex thing that we force into molds to make the world easier to comprehend for ourselves, but reassures Sorawo that she need not subject herself to that if she doesn't want to (I love benimori so much she's an angel)

Tsuji of course then talks to Sorawo about the notion of consensus reality, about how in our everyday lives we subscribe to a reality that is communally audited and maintained, but that via the Otherside, another kind of agreed reality can be constructed. I have a Lot of thoughts on this conversation but my one sentence aside is that I think that Tsuji's character and her staring contest with Sorawo lead into some more specific themes that have to do with the "desire and the eye", of Sorawo-as-voyeurist, of reader-as-voyeurist, and the mediation of desire through objects (including the objectification of human beings) but, like I said, I need more time to chew on that idea, and reread the conversation before I expound on that more. Watch this space!

[rahleeyah]

Now that we know know that Noah knows he's adopted, and we never saw the reveal, would you ever consider writing that scene? I know you did a ff about Noah finding out when he's much older, but what is your take on it now? Do you think Liv sat him down and told him? Or did Sheila tell him? Or did it happen more naturally after the Sheila debacle? I suppose it would explain his terror era.

I don't know that I would write a fic about it necessarily bc it seems to me that most likely what happened was one initial conversation, yeah probably post-Sheila, and then many, many moments through the years, bc this isn't a one and done kind of convo, especially if she first told him when he was very small. And I do think it's possible she had discussed the fact that he's adopted with him in age-appropriate ways prior to Sheila, we just know she hadn't specifically told him about Ellie. And it's harder to write a child that small processing that information; Liv's journey thru it is I think pretty clear but how a 4-5 year old would react is murkier to me, and bc I don't have a clear handle on it but would want to write it with respect that's not something I'm ready to tackle.

[counteringhatespeechday]

UNFPA is part of a global movement to address gendered hate speech online.

Hate speech is in full attack mode, amplified by new technologies that spread divisive rhetoric across the globe. We all have seen the harm it does, sparking violence, exclusion, discrimination, inequality.

In response to growing xenophobia, racism, intolerance, misogyny, anti-semitism and anti-Muslim hatred, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres launched the UN Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech in June 2019, defining hate speech as “any kind of communication in speech, writing or behaviour that attacks or uses pejorative or discriminatory language with reference to a person or a group on the basis of who they are – in other words, based on their religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, color, descent, gender or other identity factor.”

The action plan aims to enhance UN efforts to address root causes and drivers of hate speech and to enable effective responses to the impact of hate speech on societies, while implementing strategies in line with the right to freedom and expression.

Hate speech poisons minds. It is among the most virulent forms of misinformation, feeding on and fueling social polarization, driving us farther apart. Used for control and oppression, it can lead in the worst cases to mass murder and genocide. Misogynistic hate speech especially is proliferating, with technology providing cheap and easy means to spread hate speech far and wide. Online platforms provide few safeguards to stop it.

Online hate speech in particular might seem impossible to stop, but governments, civil society and individuals are taking action, including tapping the power of education, to fight back. Tackling the issue from an educational perspective involves strengthening educational policies and initiatives with specific measures to address and counter hate speech, helping people develop critical thinking and become active citizens who support peace and human rights.

We can all make online platforms safer. Technology companies must take all necessary steps to stop hate speech, including adopting safety features to limit misinformation and online violence and protect personal data. Safety improves when tech companies deliberately manage gender-specific threats and include women and girls in the design and development of technology. Governments and industry associations should set and enforce regulations to make technology safer. Individuals can stop the hate in their own online practices and call on others to do the same.

UNFPA is part of a global movement to address gendered hate speech online. It co-convenes the Advisory Group to the Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse, and issued the UNFPA Guidance on Safe and Ethical Technology for Gender-Based Violence and Harmful Practices.

For a deeply personal perspective, the UNFPA campaign The Virtual is Real focuses on digital violence – which includes online hate speech that serves to terrorize, dehumanize and silence – and features women who fought back.

Hate speech must not – and will not – win. But we all need to become involved, getting educated and speaking out firmly to counter this growing global scourge. “Hate is hate. We can’t excuse it. We can’t ignore it,” UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem says in this powerful video. “Hate is actions. Hate is words. Hate is words that become actions.” Say #NoToHate.

International Day for countering Hate Speech 2023, june 18th.

[velocitypon3]

Parent resources on bullying the place to find them Ladies and gentlemen, moms and dads, step right up! Welcome to the wacky world of parenting where you'll find all sorts of wild creatures – from adorable little angels to mischievous monsters. But fear not, dear reader! Today we're here to tackle one particularly pesky problem: bullying. Now don't go running for the hills just yet; we've got a secret weapon in our arsenal that's sure to leave those bullies shaking in their boots (or at least chuckling uncontrollably). That's right – humor! In this fantastic funhouse of an article, we'll be exploring how laughter can help transform your child from a helpless victim into a comical comeback kid. Join us as we dive headfirst into bully-proofing techniques that are guaranteed to have both you and your kiddos giggling through even the toughest situations. Table of contents: Parent resources on bullying Bully-Proofing Your Child: A Parent's Guide to Chuckling Through the Chaos From Victim to Victor: Turning the Tables on Bullies with a Smile Laugh It Off: Teaching Kids How to Defuse Bullying Situations with Humor The Comical Comeback Kid: Empowering Children Against Bullies One Joke at a Time Giggle Away the Grumps: Using Laughter as an Anti-Bullying Superpower Ah, parenting – the most rewarding and challenging job on the planet. One day you're teaching your little angel how to tie their shoes, and the next thing you know, they come home from school with a black eye because some pint-sized tyrant decided it was "National Punch-A-Fellow-Student Day." Bullying is no laughing matter (unless we're talking about that one time when Timmy tried to steal Susie's lunch money but ended up tripping over his shoelaces – classic!). But fear not! We've got your back with some top-notch parent resources to help tackle bullying like a pro. First things first: let's talk about those pesky bullies. You know who I'm talking about – those kids who think they rule the playground just because their dad drives a fancier minivan than yours. Well, guess what? There are actually websites out there dedicated entirely to helping parents understand these tiny terrors better! For example, StopBullying.gov offers an in-depth look at what causes kids to become bullies in the first place (spoiler alert: it usually has something to do with them feeling powerless or insecure). This site also provides tips for recognizing signs of bullying and strategies for addressing it head-on. Another great resource is Pacer.org/bullying/, which focuses specifically on preventing bullying among children with disabilities. They offer practical advice for creating inclusive environments where all kids can feel safe and supported. Now that we've covered bully basics let's move on to supporting our own kiddos during these tough times (because sometimes even superheroes need a little TLC). When dealing with any kind of emotional upheaval in our children’s lives - be it heartbreak over losing their favorite toy or distress caused by being bullied - communication is key! So go ahead; break out those detective skills honed from years of tracking down lost socks under beds and start asking questions like "How was your day?" or "Did anything interesting happen at school today?. The more open and honest the conversation, the better equipped you'll be to offer guidance and support. And speaking of support, don't forget about the power of a good ol' fashioned hug! Sometimes all it takes is a warm embrace to remind our little ones that they're not alone in this big scary world. If you feel like your child could benefit from some extra help navigating these choppy waters, consider reaching out to organizations like Stomp Out Bullying (stompoutbullying.org) or The Trevor Project (thetrevorproject.org), both of which offer resources specifically designed for kids who are struggling with bullying-related issues. So there you have it – a quick rundown on how to tackle bullying armed with nothing but humor and an internet connection. While we can't promise that these resources will transform every bully into a model citizen overnight (though wouldn't that be nice?), we do believe they'll provide parents with valuable tools for supporting their children through challenging times. After all, as any seasoned parent knows: when life gives you lemons… make lemonade! Or better yet: teach your kid how to make lemonade so they can start their own stand and show those bullies who's boss once and for all! Bully-Proofing Your Child: A Parent's Guide to Chuckling Through the Chaos [caption id="attachment_1979" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Parent resources on bullying Need help navigating the challenging world of bullying? Find resources for parents to understand and manage this difficult issue.[/caption] As parents, we all want to make sure our children are safe and happy. But when it comes to bullying, it can be hard to know where to start. That’s why I’ve put together this guide on how you can “bully-proof” your child! First off, let me just say that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for preventing bullying in kids. Every situation is different and requires a unique approach. However, there are some steps you can take that will help your child feel more secure and confident in their own skin - which will go a long way towards keeping them safe from bullies! One of the most important things you can do as a parent is talk openly with your kid about bullying - what it looks like, how they should respond if they ever encounter it themselves or see someone else being bullied. Make sure they understand that no matter what anyone says or does to them (or others), they have the right not only stand up for themselves but also speak out against any kind of mistreatment or abuse directed at other people too! It's also important for parents to create an environment where their kids feel comfortable coming forward if something does happen - whether its physical violence or verbal harassment. Let them know that you're always available if they need someone who understands and supports them unconditionally; this will give them the confidence needed when dealing with difficult situations involving bullies down the line! Finally, don't forget: laughter really IS the best medicine here! So try not take things too seriously by encouraging lightheartedness whenever possible; after all, sometimes chuckling through chaos makes life so much easier (and more fun! From Victim to Victor: Turning the Tables on Bullies with a Smile [caption id="attachment_1980" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Learn valuable resources and strategies to help your child if they are experiencing bullying. Get the tools you need to support them in this challenging situation. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] It's no secret that bullying can be a serious problem for kids, but it doesn't have to be. With the right tools and strategies, your child can turn the tables on bullies with a smile! That's right - you heard us correctly. We're talking about taking an "eye-for-an-eye" approach to dealing with bullies by using humor and wit to disarm them. Sure, it may sound like a tall order at first glance, but we promise that if your child is willing to put in some effort they can become the victor instead of the victim! So how do you get started? Well first off, make sure your kid has all of their facts straight before engaging in any sort of confrontation or dialogue with their bully. This means doing research into what kind of person they are dealing with so that they know exactly how best to respond when faced with taunting or teasing from them. Additionally, encourage your child not only to stand up for themselves but also others who may be getting picked on as well; this will show strength and courage which could potentially help deescalate any situation quickly and effectively without resorting violence or aggression as solutions (which should always remain off limits). Finally ––and most importantly–– remind your kiddo that no matter what happens during these interactions: keep smiling! A little bit of humor goes a long way when it comes turning victims into victors against bullies ––so don’t forget those pearly whites! Laugh It Off: Teaching Kids How to Defuse Bullying Situations with Humor [caption id="attachment_1981" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Find resources, tips and advice on how to support your child if they are being bullied or are a bully themselves. Learn the best ways to address bullying from experts and fellow parents. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] Bullying is a serious issue, but sometimes the best way to deal with it is to laugh it off. Teaching kids how to defuse bullying situations with humor can be an effective tool in their arsenal of strategies for dealing with bullies. Humor can help kids take control of the situation and show that they are not intimidated by the bully’s words or actions. It also helps them stay calm and focused on diffusing rather than escalating the conflict. Plus, laughter has been known to reduce stress levels and improve moods! When teaching your child how to use humor as a defense against bullying, make sure you emphasize that jokes should never be used as an insult or put-down towards another person—it's important for them to understand that using humor responsibly will help keep everyone safe from harm. Also remind them that if someone doesn't find something funny, they shouldn't push it; instead they should just move on without making any further comments about it. Finally, encourage your child not only when they successfully diffuse a situation through laughter but also when they stand up for themselves in other ways (e.g., walking away from a confrontation). This will reinforce positive behavior while helping build their self-confidence so that next time around, laughing off bullying may come more naturally! The Comical Comeback Kid: Empowering Children Against Bullies One Joke at a Time [caption id="attachment_1982" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Parent resources on bullying Check out our resources to help parents navigate the complexities of bullying. Get advice, tips, and strategies to support your child in a safe and healthy environment.[/caption] Have you ever heard of the Comical Comeback Kid? He's a superhero for kids who are being bullied. His mission is to empower children against bullies one joke at a time! The Comical Comeback Kid teaches kids how to use humor as an effective tool in their fight against bullying. He helps them come up with clever and witty responses that can disarm even the most aggressive bully. With his help, they learn how to take control of any situation without resorting to violence or aggression. But it's not just about teaching jokes; The Comical Comeback Kid also provides resources for parents on how best to support their children when they're facing bullying situations. From tips on talking openly about bullying, providing emotional support, and helping your child develop self-confidence - he covers it all! So if your child is struggling with bullies at school or online, don't worry - The Comical Comeback Kid has got you covered! With his help, your kid will be able to stand up for themselves in no time - all while having some fun along the way! Giggle Away the Grumps: Using Laughter as an Anti-Bullying Superpower [caption id="attachment_1984" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Are you a parent looking for resources to help your child with bullying? Find helpful information, tips and strategies here to ensure they stay safe. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] We all know that laughter is the best medicine, but did you know it can also be a powerful anti-bullying superpower? That's right! Giggling away the grumps can help kids stand up to bullies and feel more confident in themselves. It may sound silly at first, but research has shown that laughter releases endorphins which boost mood and reduce stress. So when your child comes home feeling down after an encounter with a bully, try encouraging them to laugh it off! A few minutes of giggles could make all the difference in their attitude towards bullying. Laughter is also contagious – so if your child finds something funny they’re likely to share it with their friends or classmates (which could even lead to some friendly teasing instead of bullying). Plus, laughing together helps build strong relationships between peers which makes everyone feel safer and more secure against any potential bullies out there. So don't forget: giggle away those grumps! Laughter really is an amazing anti-bullying superpower that every kid should have in their toolkit for dealing with difficult situations like bullying. https://www.stopbullying.gov/ - This is the official U.S. government website dedicated to stopping bullying. It provides a wealth of information and resources for parents, educators, and communities. https://www.parents.com/kids/problems/bullying/ - This link takes you to a page on the Parents.com website, which offers practical advice and tips for parents on how to recognize, prevent, and address bullying. https://www.netsmartz.org/Parents - This is a resource from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that offers a range of tools and information to help parents keep their kids safe online and offline, including how to deal with bullying.

[bruuluuu]

Parent resources on bullying the place to find them Ladies and gentlemen, moms and dads, step right up! Welcome to the wacky world of parenting where you'll find all sorts of wild creatures – from adorable little angels to mischievous monsters. But fear not, dear reader! Today we're here to tackle one particularly pesky problem: bullying. Now don't go running for the hills just yet; we've got a secret weapon in our arsenal that's sure to leave those bullies shaking in their boots (or at least chuckling uncontrollably). That's right – humor! In this fantastic funhouse of an article, we'll be exploring how laughter can help transform your child from a helpless victim into a comical comeback kid. Join us as we dive headfirst into bully-proofing techniques that are guaranteed to have both you and your kiddos giggling through even the toughest situations. Table of contents: Parent resources on bullying Bully-Proofing Your Child: A Parent's Guide to Chuckling Through the Chaos From Victim to Victor: Turning the Tables on Bullies with a Smile Laugh It Off: Teaching Kids How to Defuse Bullying Situations with Humor The Comical Comeback Kid: Empowering Children Against Bullies One Joke at a Time Giggle Away the Grumps: Using Laughter as an Anti-Bullying Superpower Ah, parenting – the most rewarding and challenging job on the planet. One day you're teaching your little angel how to tie their shoes, and the next thing you know, they come home from school with a black eye because some pint-sized tyrant decided it was "National Punch-A-Fellow-Student Day." Bullying is no laughing matter (unless we're talking about that one time when Timmy tried to steal Susie's lunch money but ended up tripping over his shoelaces – classic!). But fear not! We've got your back with some top-notch parent resources to help tackle bullying like a pro. First things first: let's talk about those pesky bullies. You know who I'm talking about – those kids who think they rule the playground just because their dad drives a fancier minivan than yours. Well, guess what? There are actually websites out there dedicated entirely to helping parents understand these tiny terrors better! For example, StopBullying.gov offers an in-depth look at what causes kids to become bullies in the first place (spoiler alert: it usually has something to do with them feeling powerless or insecure). This site also provides tips for recognizing signs of bullying and strategies for addressing it head-on. Another great resource is Pacer.org/bullying/, which focuses specifically on preventing bullying among children with disabilities. They offer practical advice for creating inclusive environments where all kids can feel safe and supported. Now that we've covered bully basics let's move on to supporting our own kiddos during these tough times (because sometimes even superheroes need a little TLC). When dealing with any kind of emotional upheaval in our children’s lives - be it heartbreak over losing their favorite toy or distress caused by being bullied - communication is key! So go ahead; break out those detective skills honed from years of tracking down lost socks under beds and start asking questions like "How was your day?" or "Did anything interesting happen at school today?. The more open and honest the conversation, the better equipped you'll be to offer guidance and support. And speaking of support, don't forget about the power of a good ol' fashioned hug! Sometimes all it takes is a warm embrace to remind our little ones that they're not alone in this big scary world. If you feel like your child could benefit from some extra help navigating these choppy waters, consider reaching out to organizations like Stomp Out Bullying (stompoutbullying.org) or The Trevor Project (thetrevorproject.org), both of which offer resources specifically designed for kids who are struggling with bullying-related issues. So there you have it – a quick rundown on how to tackle bullying armed with nothing but humor and an internet connection. While we can't promise that these resources will transform every bully into a model citizen overnight (though wouldn't that be nice?), we do believe they'll provide parents with valuable tools for supporting their children through challenging times. After all, as any seasoned parent knows: when life gives you lemons… make lemonade! Or better yet: teach your kid how to make lemonade so they can start their own stand and show those bullies who's boss once and for all! Bully-Proofing Your Child: A Parent's Guide to Chuckling Through the Chaos [caption id="attachment_1979" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Parent resources on bullying Need help navigating the challenging world of bullying? Find resources for parents to understand and manage this difficult issue.[/caption] As parents, we all want to make sure our children are safe and happy. But when it comes to bullying, it can be hard to know where to start. That’s why I’ve put together this guide on how you can “bully-proof” your child! First off, let me just say that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for preventing bullying in kids. Every situation is different and requires a unique approach. However, there are some steps you can take that will help your child feel more secure and confident in their own skin - which will go a long way towards keeping them safe from bullies! One of the most important things you can do as a parent is talk openly with your kid about bullying - what it looks like, how they should respond if they ever encounter it themselves or see someone else being bullied. Make sure they understand that no matter what anyone says or does to them (or others), they have the right not only stand up for themselves but also speak out against any kind of mistreatment or abuse directed at other people too! It's also important for parents to create an environment where their kids feel comfortable coming forward if something does happen - whether its physical violence or verbal harassment. Let them know that you're always available if they need someone who understands and supports them unconditionally; this will give them the confidence needed when dealing with difficult situations involving bullies down the line! Finally, don't forget: laughter really IS the best medicine here! So try not take things too seriously by encouraging lightheartedness whenever possible; after all, sometimes chuckling through chaos makes life so much easier (and more fun! From Victim to Victor: Turning the Tables on Bullies with a Smile [caption id="attachment_1980" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Learn valuable resources and strategies to help your child if they are experiencing bullying. Get the tools you need to support them in this challenging situation. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] It's no secret that bullying can be a serious problem for kids, but it doesn't have to be. With the right tools and strategies, your child can turn the tables on bullies with a smile! That's right - you heard us correctly. We're talking about taking an "eye-for-an-eye" approach to dealing with bullies by using humor and wit to disarm them. Sure, it may sound like a tall order at first glance, but we promise that if your child is willing to put in some effort they can become the victor instead of the victim! So how do you get started? Well first off, make sure your kid has all of their facts straight before engaging in any sort of confrontation or dialogue with their bully. This means doing research into what kind of person they are dealing with so that they know exactly how best to respond when faced with taunting or teasing from them. Additionally, encourage your child not only to stand up for themselves but also others who may be getting picked on as well; this will show strength and courage which could potentially help deescalate any situation quickly and effectively without resorting violence or aggression as solutions (which should always remain off limits). Finally ––and most importantly–– remind your kiddo that no matter what happens during these interactions: keep smiling! A little bit of humor goes a long way when it comes turning victims into victors against bullies ––so don’t forget those pearly whites! Laugh It Off: Teaching Kids How to Defuse Bullying Situations with Humor [caption id="attachment_1981" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Find resources, tips and advice on how to support your child if they are being bullied or are a bully themselves. Learn the best ways to address bullying from experts and fellow parents. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] Bullying is a serious issue, but sometimes the best way to deal with it is to laugh it off. Teaching kids how to defuse bullying situations with humor can be an effective tool in their arsenal of strategies for dealing with bullies. Humor can help kids take control of the situation and show that they are not intimidated by the bully’s words or actions. It also helps them stay calm and focused on diffusing rather than escalating the conflict. Plus, laughter has been known to reduce stress levels and improve moods! When teaching your child how to use humor as a defense against bullying, make sure you emphasize that jokes should never be used as an insult or put-down towards another person—it's important for them to understand that using humor responsibly will help keep everyone safe from harm. Also remind them that if someone doesn't find something funny, they shouldn't push it; instead they should just move on without making any further comments about it. Finally, encourage your child not only when they successfully diffuse a situation through laughter but also when they stand up for themselves in other ways (e.g., walking away from a confrontation). This will reinforce positive behavior while helping build their self-confidence so that next time around, laughing off bullying may come more naturally! The Comical Comeback Kid: Empowering Children Against Bullies One Joke at a Time [caption id="attachment_1982" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Parent resources on bullying Check out our resources to help parents navigate the complexities of bullying. Get advice, tips, and strategies to support your child in a safe and healthy environment.[/caption] Have you ever heard of the Comical Comeback Kid? He's a superhero for kids who are being bullied. His mission is to empower children against bullies one joke at a time! The Comical Comeback Kid teaches kids how to use humor as an effective tool in their fight against bullying. He helps them come up with clever and witty responses that can disarm even the most aggressive bully. With his help, they learn how to take control of any situation without resorting to violence or aggression. But it's not just about teaching jokes; The Comical Comeback Kid also provides resources for parents on how best to support their children when they're facing bullying situations. From tips on talking openly about bullying, providing emotional support, and helping your child develop self-confidence - he covers it all! So if your child is struggling with bullies at school or online, don't worry - The Comical Comeback Kid has got you covered! With his help, your kid will be able to stand up for themselves in no time - all while having some fun along the way! Giggle Away the Grumps: Using Laughter as an Anti-Bullying Superpower [caption id="attachment_1984" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Are you a parent looking for resources to help your child with bullying? Find helpful information, tips and strategies here to ensure they stay safe. Parent resources on bullying[/caption] We all know that laughter is the best medicine, but did you know it can also be a powerful anti-bullying superpower? That's right! Giggling away the grumps can help kids stand up to bullies and feel more confident in themselves. It may sound silly at first, but research has shown that laughter releases endorphins which boost mood and reduce stress. So when your child comes home feeling down after an encounter with a bully, try encouraging them to laugh it off! A few minutes of giggles could make all the difference in their attitude towards bullying. Laughter is also contagious – so if your child finds something funny they’re likely to share it with their friends or classmates (which could even lead to some friendly teasing instead of bullying). Plus, laughing together helps build strong relationships between peers which makes everyone feel safer and more secure against any potential bullies out there. So don't forget: giggle away those grumps! Laughter really is an amazing anti-bullying superpower that every kid should have in their toolkit for dealing with difficult situations like bullying. https://www.stopbullying.gov/ - This is the official U.S. government website dedicated to stopping bullying. It provides a wealth of information and resources for parents, educators, and communities. https://www.parents.com/kids/problems/bullying/ - This link takes you to a page on the Parents.com website, which offers practical advice and tips for parents on how to recognize, prevent, and address bullying. https://www.netsmartz.org/Parents - This is a resource from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that offers a range of tools and information to help parents keep their kids safe online and offline, including how to deal with bullying.

[peachbear88]

The Greatest Love Story

A/N: Inspired by this lovely image I saw. I'm making this into a high school angst AU that takes place in like the 1900's. For the record, I know Steve isn't a bad person but this is an AU and I need one of those... You know, guys for this story so.... Yeah! Sorry! BTW, the second poem is not written by me, it's written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and I stole some quotes from Shakespeare.

Warnings: Angst, homophobia, swearing, character death.

Word Count: 3.2k

Pairing: Yelena Belova x Reader

----------

You scale the ancient wooden stairs of your small school. avoiding eye contact with anyone. The stares you receive from others are painfully obvious as you speed walk towards the library, seeking shelter from the judgmental glances from your peers.

"Hello dear," the kind librarian greets you as you walk past her towards your corner of the library.

You don't respond, quickly ducking behind the massive shelves, hoping to spend as much time as possible in your safe space before the classes start. Placing back your old books, you scan the shelves, until a particular title catches your eye.

"Love Poems by Women?" You murmur, flipping through the worn pages.

----------

A giant dusty book lands on the librarian's desk, making her look up.

"May I take this out?" You ask, your tone emotionless, cold yet tentative. The librarian smiles gently at you handing you back the book.

"Of course dear. Happy reading." You give her a small, thankful smile before dashing out of the library door. The halls are partially empty, save for the kids that skip class, hanging around in the hallways and dark alleys after school.

You duck your head, avoiding eye contact as you pass the group leaning against the lockers, most importantly, the hazel eyed beauty that could snap your neck in half, Yelena Belova.

"Hey!" Your head snaps up. Big mistake. You lock eyes with the famed blonde and you drop your head immediately, a faint blush creeping up your cheeks.

"Y-Yes?"

"Look at me when I'm talking to you." She snaps. You peek at her from the corner of your eye, her sleek dress pants catching your eye.

"Interesting outfit choice," you note before you can stop yourself.

"What did you say?" She demands and you gulp, backing away.

"N-nothing." She slowly steps towards you, backing you into the lockers.

"Get to class. And don't ever let me see you again идиот (idiot)." You hurry down the hall towards your classroom, tripping in the process as you repeatedly look over your shoulder, watching as Yelena turns back to her friend group.

---------

"She was cute," Natasha points out as Yelena reclaims her spot leaning against the lockers. "Why do you feel the need to tease her so relentlessly?" Yelena rolls her eyes, grabbing the flask of vodka back from her sister.

"She's annoying. I don't like her." Natasha smirks.

"Sure. Whatever you say."

---------

You let out a sigh of relief when the bell rings.

Your classmates flood out of the classroom, jostling each other aside in their rush to get home. You quickly sprint out the door, eager to get home, safe and sound when a hand grabs you by the arm and pulls you into a dark alley behind the school.

"Hello there girly..." A deep voice says. You gulp. The boy steps into the light to reveal Steve Rogers. One of those people that take pride in hurting others, a bully, your tormenter.

"W-what do you want?" He smirks, stepping closer to you.

"Well, a little birdie told me that someone had an encounter with a specific blonde this morning." You flinch when he grabs you by the throat, pinning you to the wall. "You wouldn't happen to be... I don't know, one of those dykes would you?" Your eyes widen and you shake your head vigorously as he laughs. "Oh man," he sputters, choking through his laughter. "Wait till the school gets ahold of this-"

He doesn't get to finish his sentence because a fist connects with his face, sending him reeling backwards.

"What the-" A strong hand wraps around his throat, pushing him backwards till his back connects with the wall.

"Listen to me you маленькое дерьмо (little shit), if you ever even think about coming near her again, I will sneak into your house at night, gut you like the fish you are and paint the school with them." Yelena warns in a surprisingly calm voice. Steve's eyes widen and he nods his head frantically until she lets go.

"Crazy bitch!" He spits, backing away quickly. You shuffle your feet, looking down at the ground as she watches him run.

"T-thank you." You mutter, not daring to look her in the eye. She sighs.

"This better not become a daily thing Y/L/N." You nod feebly. "Get out of here." You quickly pick your bag back up and sprint out of the alley, leaving Yelena by herself,

---------

"I'm home mom!"

"Welcome home sweetie!" Your mom pokes her head out of the living room.

"How's your book going?"

"As great as a woman writing a book can be." She chuckles forcibly. There's an awkward silence before she continues. "Your father came by today." She pauses as you swallow, feeling like something lodged itself in your throat.

"And what did he want?" She frowns at your tone.

"Sweetie, I know you don't like him but he's still your fa-"

"I don't have a dad," you growl, picking up your bag. "My dad died when he chose to abandon us." She watches as you climb up the stairs, sighing and rubbing her temple.

---------

You flop onto your bed, dropping the thick dusty buck onto the bed. You spend the rest of the afternoon reading through the poems until your mom calls you down for dinner.

It's an awkward dinner, quiet, only the sounds of dishes, chewing and utensils filling the room.

"I'm going to bed." You say after washing the dishes, not bothering to wait for a response.

That night, you lay in bed, staring at the ceiling of your room.

"Love poems by women." You mutter, an idea popping into your head. You quickly sit up, flicking on your lamp and pulling out the book and a pen.

----------

"Good morning dear," the librarian greets you like she does every morning.

"I'd like to return this book." You reply coldly, passing her the book once again. She smiles gently at you.

"I hope you enjoyed your reading." She says while passing you, returning the book to its original shelf.

-----------

"Hello hon, can I help you with anything?" The librarian asks the dirty-blonde haired girl.

"No, thank you." The girl sends the librarian a tight lipped smile before returning her attention to the shelves. A ripped leather cover catches her attention. Love Poems by Women. She smiles, pulling the book from the shelf. Flipping open to the title page, a neat cursive catches her eyes.

Love flows between beings Gift from the gods Curse from the demons The missing part of every person Destined to be opposites Love is flexible Yet some seek to objectify love Love is not for the weak willed. - Aristophanes

The blonde haired girl hums, pulling a pen from her jacket's pocket and discreetly writing in the book, right next to the poem.

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

Terrible.

That's the only way to describe your day. You received your essay back, ecstatic to see that you had received an A. Steve on the other hand had absolutely flunked. Instead of dedicating his time to studying, he decided to beat you up as a way of taking out his frustration.

You ended up limping out of the women's toilet, your leg flaring up whenever you moved, tears threatening to fall from your eyes.

"Hi sweetcheeks," the librarian murmurs, her eyes trailing down your injured leg.

"'Ello." You quickly duck behind the shelves, pulling out the book you were looking for. Your brows scrunch together in confusion as you see a messier scrawl next to your handwriting.

Reality hits hard

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of being and ideal grace. I love thee to the level of every day's Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. I love thee freely, as men strive for right. I love thee purely, as they turn from praise. I love thee with the passion put to use In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith. I love thee with a love I seemed to lose With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death.

- Orpheus

You smile letting a light laugh slip from your lips. A sweet titter revealing the little girl underneath your cold, traumatized exterior.

Quickly, you grab your pen from your pocket and begin scribbling.

-----------

The air is knocked from your body as your back makes contact with the floor.

"Listen here dyke. I don't like you alright," Steve growls into your ear as Tony cracks his knuckles. "So here's what's going to happen: Everyday you're going to meet us here and," he pauses, cracking his neck. "Help us relive some stress." He smiles wickedly before punching you in the stomach, making you double over in pain.

Your eyes flutter shut as they deliver blow after blow 'till they finally stop. You tentatively open your eyes to see Yelena tackling Steve to the ground as Tony stares at them, eyes wide.

"I. Told. You. To. Leave. Her. Alone!" She screams, pummeling Steve with her fists. He groans, unmoving. You watch in terror as Tony picks up a trash can lid, sneaking up behind her as she punches Steve in the face.

"Watch out!" You scream, taking Tony as well yourself by surprise. She looks up to see you slamming into Tony sending him flying into the nearby wall of the alley.

He crumples, unconscious.

"Are you okay?" You mumble, limping towards Yelena, who's clutching a blood gash on her arm.

"'M fine,' she grits out. You shake your head, grabbing her wrist. She flinches but doesn't push you away.

"You're not okay. Let me help you." You plead. She stays silent and you quickly take her silence as a yes, leading her to the front steps of your home. You rummage through your back pack, finding a large wrap of bandages that you kept after your daily beating from Rogers and his friends.

She winces as you wrap her wound swiftly.

"Gentle!" She growls and you stare back at her defiantly.

"Well maybe if you would stop moving, it'd hurt less!" You retort and she shuts up, staring off into the distance. You dab the cut with a small bit of alcohol before wrapping the bandage all around her arm.

"Thank you." She whispers, giving you a small smile. Reaching out, she gently tucks a strand of hair behind your ear as you flinch back. You quickly, shovel the bandages and medicinal alcohol back into your pack, not noticing the hurt look on her face.

"No problem. The least I could do since you saved me." You reply bluntly, swinging the bag over your shoulder and slipping through the door.

"Wait-" She sighs as the door slams shut in front of her.

You exhale, leaning against the door as you try to catch your breath.

-----------

Yelena sighs exasperatedly, tugging at the collar of her dress shirt.

"What's wrong little sis?" Natasha smirks, plopping down next to her.

"I got hurt and Y/N patched me up." Natasha jumps up, eyes wide.

"You stained your new shirt?" She groans shaking Yelena violently. "God I'm going to kill you!" Yelena grabs her sister, stopping her.

"You're missing the point!"

"Oh yeah? And what's that?" Nat challenges, flopping back down on to the couch.

"She patched me up!" Nat's eyes widen.

"Oh. Oh." She inches closer to her sister, nudging her playfully, much to Yelena's dislike. "So are y'all like," she winks at her sister insinuatingly. "A thing?" Yelena scrunches her brows in confusion.

"A thing?" Nat rolls her eyes, sidling closer to her.

"Yes. A thing. An item? Lovers?" She shrugs, missing the way Yelena blushes.

"In her dreams," Yelena snorts, leaning back into the couch.

"If you say so..."

-----------

"Morning pumpkin!" The librarian chirps.

The blonde girl ignores her, breezing past her towards the the shelves at the very back, peeking over her shoulder quickly before pulling an old, leather bound book from the shelf.

She flips the leather cover aside to reveal the title page. Next to her messy, distorted scrawl was a neat, distinctive cursive once again.

Speak low if you speak love

- Aristophanes

She smiles gently, chuckling as she shakes her head.

"Shakespeare of all people," she whispers, her accent thickening. Pulling a forgotten pen from the shelves, she begins writing,

-----------

The highlight of your day became going to the library and reading the little messages scrawled in between the margins of the book by Orpheus. Like:

If music be the food of love, play on

Or

Her passions are made of nothing but the finest part of pure love.

They made you smile on a daily basis, sometimes even eliciting a rare light laugh.

"Good morning sweetpea." The librarian greets you, not expecting a response. To her surprise and yours, you muster a small smile and a wave.

"Hello." You can feel the librarians shocked eyes following you as you round the bookshelf corner to find Steve, eyes wide, mouth open in shock as he stares down at something in his hands.

Your heart plummets. A book with a soft leather cover, yellowed pages. The book of poems.

You lunge for it but he step sides you swiftly, raising the book above his head.

"Speak low if you speak of love huh? I'm not surprised you know Shakespeare, you're such a nerd." He sneers, waving the book above his head.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about." You stutter, backing up. He grabs you by the collar of your shirt, lifting you into the air.

"Don't fuck with me!" He growls, dropping the book and kicking it to the side. "Who's Orpheus?"

"G-Greek hero. Musician." You stutter and he slaps you, hard. You can feel your cheek swelling under his fiery gaze.

"Don't even try me. Who. Is. Orpheus?"

"I don't know, I swear!" You mutter, wincing when you accidentally bite your cheek.

He drops you, watching as you scramble to your feet, backing away.

"This isn't over you little shit. I'll be back for you," he warns, giving your book one last kick for good measure before storming out of the library with Tony and Bucky on his heels.

You fall to your knees, silently sobbing as you crawl over too the book, dusting it off and hugging it to your chest.

Yelena sighs, her heart breaking as she watches you curl around the book protectively, lying on the floor.

-----------

"Where are you going?"

Yelena turns to find Nat, leaning against the school stairwell doorway, watching her.

"Just up to the roof. Need some fresh air," she lies, avoiding Nat's gaze. Nat lifts Yelena's chin up, staring into her eyes, boring into her very soul. Yelena squirms under her gaze until she finally lets go.

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay." She smiles sadly at her little sister. "Just-" Her voice cracks as she pats her sister's shoulder. "Don't do anything stupid."

"Don't worry. I won't." She gives Nat a brief hug before hiking her pants up and starting up the stairs.

-----------

"Ah, well look who decided to join the party!" You look up from the ground to see Yelena, your eyes clouded with pain.

"No..." You croak but Steve pays no attention to you.

"Come to save your love Yelena?" He sneers, dropping you to the ground. "Or should I say... Orpheus?" Your eyes widen as you watch him advance towards her, pushing her closer to the edge of the roof.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She deadpans and Steve chuckles.

"Sure. If you won't admit, I'll just have to settle for destroying you from the inside out instead." He grabs her by the arm. "I haven't forgotten what you did to me." He points at a long thin scar along his jawline.

You watch as Tony sneaks up from behind Yelena, striking her with a metal bar. She crumples, falling to her knees.

"Hold her." Steve directs and Bucky dutifully grabs you by the arms. He holds Yelena's chin in between his thumb and forefinger, forcing her to look at him. "Now you watch as I destroy the one thing you love the most." Tony tosses his the metal bar and Steve prepares himself before swinging it like a baseball bat.

There's a sickening crunch followed by your scream as the bar makes contact with your ribs.

"Stop!" She struggles, her eyes never leaving your broken body as he hits you over and over again. "Please! Leave her alone!"

Steve smiles evilly, locking eyes with her before swinging the bat again. Another scream. Blood trickles down your face from your nose.

"Is that right? Did the famous Yelena Belova just beg me?" He smiles cruelly before pushing you down on your back, his foot on your chest. You scream as he increases the pressure, your broken ribs digging into your lungs.

Yelena screams, kicking Tony's legs out from under him before punching Steve in the jaw. She grabs the iron bar before it hits the ground, clobbering Bucky in the stomach before kicking Steve in the stomach.

"ты сука (you bitch)!" She steps on his face swiftly, taking satisfaction in the groan of pain he emits before turning to you, gently cradling your face.

"Wow... That was pretty badass," you mumble and she laughs, tearing up. You reach out, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Don't cry." She frowns.

"I'm not crying."

"You are too." You smile, wincing in pain. "I didn't know you knew Shakespeare."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let this happen." You frown, caressing her face, forcing her to look at you.

"Hey, hey. It's fine. Don't worry. I'll be fine." You attempt to smile reassuringly but it comes out as more of a grimace. "Listen, if I don't make it-"

"Don't say that! You can't leave me!"

"Shush, listen you thickheaded poet. If I don't make it, go back to the book." You instruct her. She frowns but you can her off. "Promise me."

"But-"

"Promise me."

"I promise..."

"Good." You smile at her, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead, your eyesight blurring. "Wait for me okay?" Your eyes flutter shut.

"No! No Y/N! Come back!" She shakes you roughly, sobbing when you don't respond.

----------

Yelena watches as your body is carted off under a white sheet. Nat stands to the side, watching as her sister stares off into the distance, all life drained from her body.

Go back to the book.

She stands, slowly trailing towards the library, her eyes bloodshot, cheeks caked with dry tears.

"Hi dear," the librarian greets her, discreetly wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. "What a shame. She was a lovely girl."

"She really was the best." Yelena agrees quietly, giving the librarian a small, comforting pat on the back before moving to the back of the library where she finds the book, lying on the floor.

Yelena,

I believe that we are the greatest love poem ever written. I love you always,

Y/N

A choked sob escapes her lips as she stares at the page. You knew. You knew the whole time and you didn't even say anything. A pair of soft arms wrap around Yelena's stomach as she lets go of the dam, her cries echoing throughout the library.

"I'm sorry..."

I'm sorry...

----------

Taglist: @username23345 @musicinourlips @gingerbreadcookieforlife @xxxtwilightaxelxxx @trikruismybitch @ima-gi--na-tion @nicole-rayleigh-hot @olsensnpm @peabrain112

[journalxxx]

By Hook or by Crook (4)

Oh God, there’s another one.

The thought came unbidden to Toshinori’s mind, and it engulfed him in the closest thing to pure dread he had felt in years. It had taken two centuries, the sacrifice of seven One For All users, and two of his own major organs to take down a single All For One wielder, and now a brand new one had somehow sprouted right in front of him.

Now. Now that he had finally decided to tackle the hurdle of entrusting a relatively stable Japan to a successor, now that he was weaker and less capable than ever of defending it from a new threat. Now that the deadline of Nighteye’s prophecy was drawing closer and closer. His own gruesome death on the battlefield, and the sudden reappearance of All For One’s quirk. The unavoidable connection between the two facts almost robbed him of his breath.

Toshinori couldn’t tear his eyes away from the boy’s hand. It looked diminutive in comparison to his own, and completely inoffensive. It had the soft, unblemished appearance that suited someone who had never hit anything bigger than a fly, whereas the hero’s skin had long since been roughened by calluses, and his joints slightly thwarted by the occasional fracture. Yet, that single, unassuming dimple in the middle of its palm made it more potentially destructive than a hundred of Smashes combined.

A sort of choked whimper made Toshinori finally raise his gaze. He realized he had stopped trying to school his expression only when he saw his own strung-out stupor mirrored in Midoriya’s features. 

“I-I… Sorry, I r-really have t-to…” The boy took a step back, his hand slipping from the man’s grasp, then he suddenly turned on his heels and motioned to sprint away.

“Hey, hey!” Toshinori reached forward, grabbing Midoriya’s wrist by sheer reflex. He had already wasted enough time and energy chasing slimy villains and rash teenagers all over the town that day, thank you very much. “Where are you going?”

Midoriya froze on the spot, as if shocked by an electric current. His arm was rigid in Toshinori’s grasp, pulling away from it but without any real conviction. His head turned slowly towards the hero but not fully, letting him see only half of the boy’s face. The unmistakable terror etched in those wide eyes made something constrict in Toshinori’s chest.

“I-I’m… I’m so sorry…” The boy’s voice was down a trembling, barely audible whisper.“I didn’t mean to d-do that… I’ve never… I won’t do it again, I swear, j-just…” 

Midoriya’s free hand hovered over the hero’s, maybe having half a mind of prying it open, but he didn’t even dare to touch it. Toshinori let go of him immediately. The kid wasn’t expecting it, judging by his flabbergasted expression, and all he did with his regained freedom was backing away from him with a couple of uncertain steps, bumping into a nearby electric pole with his backpack and just standing there, pretty much like a cornered mouse cowering before a lion.

The sight jolted Toshinori back to reality with brutal efficiency. God, what was wrong with him today? He was handling this abysmally. That was no two-hundred-year-old manipulative slaughterer, that was a child. A child rapidly working himself into a panic, if his onsetting tremors were of any indication. Ironically, the realization grounded Toshinori even more. Frightened victims and distraught relatives were a daily occurrence in his line of work, and his professional composure slipped back in place almost subconsciously.

“You don’t need to apologize. Quite the opposite. You saved everyone. The hostage, the bystanders… even me. I’m not sure I’d have had the energy to keep up appearances after another smash.” He put up his hands and showed his palms with slow movements, keeping his voice low and level. “You did nothing wrong back there.”

Midoriya slowly slumped down the pole, his limbs huddled in a distressed heap. He blinked quickly as his eyes shied away from Toshinori’s, hands bunching up the fabric of his trousers nervously. “...I-I can give it back. The quirk. I want to give it back to its owner.”

“That can be easily arranged.” Something about the whole situation was nagging at Toshinori, but he pushed that feeling aside for the moment. The boy wasn’t holding himself in any way that hinted at specific injuries, but fear could be one hell of an anesthetic. He gazed up and down the road, finding it completely deserted. He still felt slightly abuzz with the adrenaline rush caused by his second encounter with the sludge villain and the recent revelation of Midoriya’s quirk. He gauged that he could probably (possibly, maybe, hopefully) abuse One For All for another twenty seconds or so if need be, just the time to scoop up the boy in his arms and power run back to the ambulances at the site of the accident. That was likely to cause even more distress to the poor kid though, so he’d rather hold off on it unless clearly necessary. “Are you sure you aren’t in any pain?”

“I-I’m f-fine.” The boy wiggled the backpack off his shoulders and rummaged through it shakily, a few tears rolling down his cheeks and his hiccups becoming harder to contain. “I’m fine…”

“Hey, kid. Look at me. Deep breaths.” Toshinori finally ventured a step and a half towards Midoriya, squatting at a reasonable distance to his side instead of right in front of him, to make sure he wouldn’t feel too crowded. Toshinori offered him a couple of tissues (always plentiful in his pockets) while the boy tried to regain a semblance of calm. “It’s all right. I am here.”

That got the boy’s attention. The catchphrase had slipped out of him automatically, without his trademark panache or blinding smile or overflowing optimism, but Midoriya looked at him like he’d been thrown a lifeline nonetheless. The dam broke and big, shiny tears erupted from his eyes as he accepted the tissues and buried his sobs in them. They remained like that for a while, the kid quietly working through his sniffles while Toshinori sat cross-legged on the dusty asphalt, reminding him to take his time whenever he got a little fidgety.

“Sorry if I spooked you.“ Toshinori eventually offered with a small smile, after Midoriya had finally settled down. “I’m a little out of it myself, today. Not the most auspicious first day in my new neighborhood, but what can you do?”

“Uh? Do you mean you’re moving here?” Midoriya asked while he accepted the fourth tissue and wiped away the remaining dampness from his face.

“Mh-hm.” After the debacle on the rooftop, this didn’t feel like too much of a sensitive bit of information to share. Besides, the kid was a fan, so maybe throwing him a bone would help him relax a little more.

“Why? Isn’t it inconvenient for you? I thought you lived in a penthouse above Might Tower, in Tokyo’s Minato Ward, Roppongi 6-12-”

...Ah, he was that kind of fan. Obviously. “Indeed, but I’ve decided to move to… broaden my professional horizons, so to speak.”

“Oh! Are you planning to open a branch of your agency here? Or are you joining some local long-term operation?“ That spark of morbid curiosity in the boy’s eyes made Toshinori regret bringing up the topic in two seconds flat.

“I’m afraid that’s all I can say on the matter, everything’s still under tight wraps. You’ll hear all about it from the news, eventually.” He stood up and patted some dirt off his hands and pants. “Do you live far from here? I’ll walk you home if you’re feeling better.”

“Oh, uh…” The boy gaped at him in surprise. “Thank you, but there’s no need for you to go out of your way! I’m fine, really!”

“Think nothing of it.” Toshinori hooked three fingers under the strap of the boy’s backpack and hauled it over his own shoulder. It hit his back with unexpected oomph. What did kids even put in those things, weren’t textbooks all digital these days? “Clearly this isn’t your lucky day either. I’ll sleep better tonight knowing that you reached your house safely without being run over by a truck or abducted by aliens.”

The joke got a half-smile out of Midoriya, at long last. He held out his hand to the boy to help him back on his feet. The obvious hesitation and near disbelief he couldn’t hide before gingerly accepting the proffered hand gave Toshinori another small wave of unease. There was definitely something strange about all this, aside from the obvious. He gestured for the kid to lead the way, and they set off towards their new destination.

Toshinori granted him a few minutes of silence before breaching the pivotal subject. “So… you have quite the interesting quirk.”

“...Mh.” Midoriya visibly stiffened. So it had been the quirk talk to give him cold feet, rather than a generic reaction to the day’s stress...

“Why didn’t you use it against the villain the first time he attacked you?” Toshinori asked, opting for a more roundabout approach.

“Ah… I’m sorry. I really should have. You wouldn’t have had to waste your power if I’d-”

“Forget about me! Why didn’t you use it to defend yourself? Did you panic?”

“Uh, well, not too much.” The kid shoved his hands in his pockets and dropped his gaze to the ground, his voice lowering to a droning mutter. “I can take quirks, but I don’t automatically learn how to use them. The villain’s quirk looked like it may be difficult to handle. What if I couldn’t maintain a solid form and just turned myself into a puddle of goo? What if some parts of my slime got detached from the main body during the scuffle, and I found myself missing chunks of flesh upon turning back human? What if the sludge was only an outer layer over my body, and without fine control I ended up drowning in it? Stuff like that… I should have just taken the villain’s quirk without activating it, but I was afraid that he’d get even angrier and he’d just beat me up anyway. I’m not, uh, strong. Or fast. At all. I didn’t consider that he might freak out long enough for me to run away…”

Toshinori blinked. “...Sorry, how long had that guy been harassing you before I showed up?”

“Oh, not long at all. Twenty or thirty seconds, I think.”

“And you went through all of that in twenty seconds. While being ambushed and choked.”

Midoriya just shrugged.

“That is… some quick thinking, all right.” Toshinori commented. He omitted the fact that it was a brand of quick thinking that was more likely to get you killed rather than saving your skin during an emergency. Apparently Midoriya would hesitate to protect himself from a violent attacker, but he’d run for the hills the moment the Symbol of Peace gave him a bit of an odd look. The kid’s fight-or-flight response was all over the place.

“I would have used my quirk to fight back eventually, if you hadn’t arrived so soon… probably…”

“...But?” Toshinori encouraged, sensing the unspoken addition.

“But… not many people know about my quirk. Very few, actually. And I’d like to keep it that way. If it’s possible.”

“Why?”

“...It’s not a good quirk.” Midoriya frowned, hunching his shoulders a bit. “One could do really bad things with it.”

“I could squash a man’s skull with my thumb and level a city block with a punch.” Toshinori countered plainly. “It doesn’t mean I’m going to.”

“It’s… it’s different. You can choose to use your quirk only for good, but mine requires…” The boy trailed off, then hazarded a glance at the hero. “You know what I mean. You understood as soon as I told you, I saw it.”

Toshinori couldn’t argue on that point, unfortunately. Still… 

There could be a perfectly innocent explanation for Midoriya to wield All For One. For one, it could be a different quirk altogether, one that simply mimicked Toshinori’s nemesis’, but that wasn’t quite the same, maybe with some unmentioned limitations (although the palm marks made for quite the uncanny similarity). Moreover, much like look-alikes, duplicate quirks between unrelated people weren’t unheard of, although said quirks were usually quite simple ones, like basic physical enhancers or elemental emitters.

What really bothered Toshinori were the boy’s evident sense of guilt and fear of exposure. Virtually any moderately powerful quirk could be employed to ‘do really bad things’, but hardly any children grew up to be so blatantly scared and ashamed of their own abilities. Family and school usually nurtured a degree of confidence and trust in their own capabilities. Toshinori’s knee-jerk reaction was a byproduct of specific knowledge and experience, but Midoriya’s? If only few people knew about his quirk, it must mean he hadn’t used it much, if at all, in the past, ruling out peer pressure as well. What explanation, what innocent explanation could there be for such a strong negative bias, aside from knowledge and experience he wasn’t supposed to have?

“At least your parents know about your quirk, I hope?”

“My mother doesn’t. My father… isn’t really around.” Toshinori couldn’t decide if that last bit of information was a good or a bad sign.

“So… who did you tell?”

“Just one friend and my father.” Ah, we had one likely culprit then. A father that was around but not really. Suspicious. “And now you, I guess. And… everyone who saw what I did to that villain… including the police…” Midoriya looked just about ready to dig a ditch and roll in it. 

“Well, as I said, everyone seemed to think I took care of the matter, so-”

Midoriya shook his head, utterly demoralized. “Kacchan will tell them.”

“Kacchan?”

“Ah, the hostage. He’s my friend, the one who knows about my quirk. I don’t think he’ll lie to the police for my sake.”

“Ah, I see. I hadn’t realized you two were acquainted.” Toshinori offered him a supportive smile. “I guess that explains your burst of heroism.”

“...No one else was doing anything. I saw you among the crowd, but… I thought you couldn’t help.”

The boy had an almost tortured expression, which reignited the deep-seated guilt that had plagued Toshinori in those harrowing minutes. “...I thought I couldn’t help either.” 

“But you did jump in though. Even though… it hurts you?” Midoriya scanned him from head to toe in concern, as if looking for unnoticed signs of damage. “Why?”

“Why did you decide to intervene, despite your fear?”

“I… I just couldn’t let my friend suffer because I messed up.”

“Well, there you have it.” Toshinori simply said. The boy stared at him thoughtfully, apparently weighing his words carefully, before nodding slowly and resuming his perusal of the ground. Toshinori let the silence stretch for a minute. There was still plenty he wanted to ask, especially regarding Midoriya’s father, but-

“I really do want to give the quirk back.” The kid mumbled. “Should I just… go to the police and ask them? They’ll come looking for me anyway, I guess, but…”

Toshinori pondered the issue for a moment, then he pulled his phone out of his pocket. The least he could do was make this whole ordeal as smooth as possible for the kid. “I think I can help with that. Give me your number. I’ll text you to let you know when we can visit the villain. If we’re lucky, it may be as early as tomorrow.” 

Toshinori registered the boy’s contact information as they entered a quaint residential area with neat little rows of numbered buildings, pleasantly tinged with the warm hues of the sunset.

“Ah, that’s where I live.” Midoriya said afterwards, pointing at a nearby apartment complex. “Thank you for everything, All-”

Toshinori shushed him with a sharp gesture as he gazed around the street nervously. “Please, don’t call me that when I’m in this form.”

Midoriya froze, then bowed respectfully. “R-Right! Thank you, sir! I’m sorry for causing you so much trouble, and taking so much of your time, and-”

Toshinori waved the upcoming barrage of apologies off and bid him a good evening, waiting for the boy to leave. Which he didn’t do.

“Uhm.” Midoriya pointed at Toshinori’s shoulder with an awkward smile. “I need that…”

Oh, right, backpack. “Whoops, there you go.” He tossed Midoriya’s belongings to their owner and watched the kid bustle up the stairs of the building and into one of the apartments. Then he fetched his phone and picked the third number on speed-dial.

“Tsukauchi? Do you have a moment? ….Ah, fine, thank you. Listen, can I drop by your place this evening? Something’s come up and I’d rather not discuss it on the phone… No, but definitely worth looking into sooner rather than later…”

He hung up a couple of exchanges later, after agreeing on the time for the meeting. Toshinori decided he had enough time to make his way back home, shower and have some sort of passable dinner before ruining his friend’s evening. And then he would head back home and he would sleep, even if he had to repeatedly bash his head against a wall to achieve that. He inhaled deeply and let out a long-overdue, exhausted sigh. 

What a day. 

Hopefully tomorrow wouldn’t be quite as taxing.

“THIEF”

Izuku was stuck on the spot, his feet and ankles wrapped in a thick layer of sludge that stretched on the ground as far as the eye could see. The faint light filtering from both ends of the underpass gave it flickering, changing hues, now green like bile, now brown like vomit, now black like tar. It smelled like sewer and dirty toilets. 

“BASTARD”

The slime clung to the walls of the underpass, climbing on them as if endowed with its own will. It crawled up higher and higher, and then went on to expand onto the ceiling. Its surface boiled and squirmed producing disgusting squelching sounds. Izuku looked away from the revolting goo-coated structure he was boxed in, he looked towards the exit, hoping that something, someone would show up to drag him out of that hell.

“GIVE IT BACK”

Someone emerged from the sludge, a few meters ahead of him. A man. A flabby, hairless, mucky man, with haunted eyes and a mouth open in a silent scream. He sweated slime, cried slime, drooled slime, from every orifice and every pore of his body. He waded towards Izuku slowly, an arm extended before him as if to grab him. Izuku couldn’t stand that sight either. He aimed his gaze at the ceiling, right when a huge bubble of gunk popped right above him, and chunky dollops of filth splashed on his face, into his nose and mouth.

“OR I’LL RIP IT OUT OF YOU”

Izuku coughed and heaved, trying to expel the repulsive substance from his pipes, but two cold, slick hands clamped around his throat, trapping it in his body. He could feel the ooze drip down into his lungs, his stomach- he could feel it wiggle and push, like a living parasite trying to break free from the flesh constraining it. Izuku scrambled to tear the man’s hands off him, but those too melted under his fingers like the same fluid that was everywhere, closing down on him, choking him, pulling him apart from the inside-

 Izuku woke up with a whole-body lurch that nearly sent him rolling off the bed, sweaty and breathless. He took in the familiar shadows of his room, and the red numbers of his alarm clock floating in the darkness at his eye level. 

6:20 AM.

Izuku turned on his belly with a frustrated groan, sinking his face into the pillow. Sure, he’d had a pretty harrowing day yesterday. It was bound to leave him a little shaken and maybe disturb his sleep for a while. But seven nightmares in the span of as many hours seemed slightly excessive. Especially seven instances of the exact same nightmare, sentient goo and Munch-like villain and all. The boy fumbled blindly for his phone to check if he’d received any new messages in the last fifty-five minutes. He hadn’t, of course. He prayed that All Might would contact him soon, it didn’t take a degree in psychology to guess the nature of the ‘unfinished business’ his subconscious was so keen on grilling him about.

He stared at the screen blankly, wondering, for roughly the hundredth time, if he should call his father. On one hand, he very probably should. If the man had deemed that little scuffle with Kacchan emergency-worthy, surely a mess this humongous in size warranted a call as well. On the other hand… Izuku didn’t really want to. 

The previous night’s news broadcast had covered the sludge villain incident rather haphazardly, it being a relatively contained accident with no serious consequences or injuries. Izuku was sure they had bothered to touch on the fact in the first place just because All Might had been involved, and the number one hero would receive prime time coverage even for something as trivial as being spotted buying soda at a convenience store. Curiously, Izuku hadn’t been mentioned at all, not even indirectly. Kacchan had been named and shown as the victim, the other heroes had been acknowledged, but All Might had been appointed as the sole person responsible for the resolution of the mishap. Not a word about any irresponsible middle schoolers joining the fray.

Izuku had taken it as a promising sign. All Might had likely interceded for him with the police and obtained a modicum of discretion about his involvement, at least in regards to the media. The hero had been so very understanding the previous day - just thinking about it made the boy almost tear up anew. He had barely reacted to the shocking revelation of his quirk, he had tolerated his unseemly outburst, he had spoken to him as if… as if Izuku was just another innocent victim caught up in a bad situation, rather than a potential menace. He hadn’t hesitated even for a second to offer him his hand, despite knowing the threat that Izuku’s own hands posed. He had… he had made him feel safe, and trusted. He had allowed Izuku to hope that maybe, just maybe, this whole thing could be fixed, that Izuku could handle it with his help, even without subjecting his father to undue sniveling.

And, objectively speaking, what could Izuku’s father do at this point? Izuku doubted that, regardless of his governmental position, the man could prevent the truth from spreading once it had reached both the police and the number one hero. Izuku could make an educated guess about his reaction too, and it wasn’t all that encouraging. It was too late for stern recommendations about secrecy, or for disappointed sighs and gratuitous snark about Izuku’s blind faith in All Might’s mediation skills. And, to be perfectly honest, Izuku dreaded the possibility of finally and completely alienating the sympathy of the one person that had supported and advised him for his whole life, in his own peculiar way. Yes, it was childish of him. Yes, he would have to tell his father anyway, eventually. But he’d rather do it after the matter had been settled, hopefully for the best, and after he’d had a little more time to gather his thoughts and figure out how to word it a little less unfavorably for himself. So, there. It was the 28th of April too, he could wait another day or two, at least. No biggie.

By breakfast time, Izuku had reviewed the issue three more times, had another nightmare, and accepted the fact that this was going to be a long day. 

School went by in that typical hazy fashion that was the result of intellectual activities synergizing poorly with a sleep-deprived brain. Izuku kept eyeing Kacchan warily throughout the first three classes, harboring the half-baked notion of addressing yesterday’s events. He regretted doing it the very moment he opened his mouth to greet him during recess.

“What?” Kacchan growled without sparing him a single glance.

“Uh, ah, I…” How are you was one possible conversation starter. A bad one, for sure. Worrying about Kacchan’s well-being implied that he may not be okay, which implied weakness, which invited aggression as a counter-argument. Did you tell anyone else about what I did yesterday was downright rude, as if Izuku’s quirk was more important than his friend being almost murdered. In fact, any reference to the villain incident was a minefield. Braver classmates than Izuku had already made their inquiries during homeroom, and Kacchan hadn’t taken kindly to their snooping. This really was a bad-

“WHAT?” Kacchan barked, turning sharply towards Izuku and banging his fist on his desk for emphasis.

“Uh, nothing! Just saying hello! Hi! Bye!” Izuku fled the classroom without looking back before Kacchan decided to force-feed him his own shoes.

The first bit of good news of the day reached him during lunch, under the guise of a text.

Hey kid! We can drop by the police station this afternoon at 5 if you’re free

Izuku brought up the virtual keyboard to reply, but he stopped with his finger poised over the screen. He blinked at the unlabeled string of digits identifying the sender.

He had All Might’s phone number. One of many, probably. Definitely one of the lowest priority lines. Or maybe just some sort of burner phone for communications with civilians only. Still. He had All Might’s phone number. All Might was texting him. The realization made him half-choke on his rice.

Should he save it? Would that be a breach of confidentiality? Even if he used a not-too-obvious handle? N1? SP? AM? Ante Meridiem? ...That would just make it more suspicious, wouldn’t it? He’d just… commit it to memory for now. In case he ever needed it again. For purely altruistic reasons.

Sure, I’m free! Thank you very much for the help!

Izuku’s phone chimed again a couple of minutes later.

We’ll come pick you up at your place

That ‘we’ raised a small wave of anxiety in Izuku, but he willed himself to suppress it. He couldn’t expect All Might to shield him from any and all interactions with the force. It’d be fine. He could handle this.

The perspective of visiting the villain revived Izuku’s attention for the remaining lessons, only for him to crash back into fidgety inactivity as soon as he got home and found himself without anything to do for almost two hours before the agreed time. Homework was out of the question, he was too distracted. He figured a nap would be the most inoffensive way to while away the time while also recovering some higher brain functions. And so it was only with a mild heart attack that Izuku was roused by the ringing of the doorbell at 4.50 PM.

“Young Midoriya! Good afternoon!” Even at a glance, Izuku could tell that All Might was in better shape than the previous day. He stood a bit straighter, his smile was a bit wider, his hair was slightly less chaotic. He was also wearing slacks and a button up shirt that, while still dramatically oversized, made him look a bit less like a phthisic hospital runaway. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yes! Thank you so much for going out of your way to take care of me!” Izuku declared with a rigid bow to All Might and to the other man standing by his side - definitely a detective, judging by his stereotypical trench coat.

All Might patted the man on the back with an even bigger grin. “This is Naomasa Tsukauchi, my favorite detective on the force! You may speak freely before him, you won’t find anyone more trustworthy in the whole of Japan!”

“A pleasure to meet you, Midoriya.” Tsukauchi politely removed his hat and shook the boy’s hand with an amused smirk, a sign that he was probably familiar with the hero’s odd choice of an introduction. He then peeked behind Izuku’s shoulders towards the inside of the house. “Isn’t your mother going to join us?”

“Ah no, she had a doctor’s appointment booked for today. It’s fine though, I’ll just send her a text to let her know where I’m going.” Izuku had warned his mother that he may have to visit the precinct soon. He had had to justify his singed and grimy school uniform the day before, so he had told her that he’d been marginally involved in the sludge villain incident, and the police was likely to want to collect his statement on the matter. It was only by pure chance that the news broadcast hadn’t outed his abridgment of the facts.

“Ah… We were hoping to have a few words with her too, actually.” Tsukauchi glanced at All Might, whose eyes darted briefly between the detective and the boy.

“I… may have forgotten to mention that.” All Might scratched the back of his neck with an apologetic grimace. “Well, I guess it can’t be helped. We’ll catch up with her another time, if necessary.”

Izuku had the sneaking suspicion that being All Might’s favorite detective came at a price. Tsukauchi just sighed, before regarding him with a gentle smile. “Well, if you are sure you don’t mind coming with us all by yourself…”

“I don’t mind at all!” Izuku hurried to reassure them. 

A minute later he was in the backseat of Tsukauchi’s speeding car, typing a message to his mother and struggling to suppress a monstrous yawn, courtesy of his interrupted nap.

“Tired?” All Might asked, intercepting his gaze in the rearview mirror.

“A bit. I didn't sleep well last night.”

“Ah, I know that feeling.” The hero’s expression mellowed in sympathy. “I’m sure you’ll rest more easily once this is over and done with.”

“I hope so.” Izuku pocketed his phone and gazed at the moving buildings out of the car window, mostly just to break eye contact. Somehow All Might’s open kindness felt undeserved, especially for something as trivial as a bunch of spooky dreams. He focused on more urgent matters. “So, uh… how are we going to do this? Does the villain know I’m coming, will I explain things to him? Will you, uh, keep an eye on things from outside or accompany me...?”

“Well, we were thinking of throwing you into his cell, locking the door and letting the two of you fight for dominance and ownership over the quirk- “ All Might grinned widely in response to Izuku’s exasperated gape.

“Yagi!” The detective reprimanded him, only mildly scandalized. The name bounced a few times around Izuku’s brain, plain and mystifying at the same time.

“Sorry, just trying to lift his spirits.” 

“You have nothing to worry about, it’ll be perfectly safe.” Tsukauchi provided, clearly having a much better understanding of the state of Izuku’s spirits despite knowing him for a scant ten minutes. “The villain will be in his cell and we will escort you inside, of course. You won’t really interact with each other, as he’ll likely be deeply asleep.”

“Asleep?”

“Yes. The apparent loss of his quirk has upset him greatly. He’s barely spoken since we took him into custody, and he’s spent the whole night in severe emotional distress. We would have transferred him to a hospital this morning if you hadn’t agreed to help so promptly. As things stood, we simply had a doctor prescribe him a strong sedative. Hopefully he’ll settle down spontaneously after you return his quirk.”

The man’s words weighed on Izuku’s heart like a ton of bricks. Damn, that was… horrible. He’d been holding onto someone else’s quirk for barely a day, and it had already caused that much sorrow. That wasn’t how Izuku’s power was supposed to be used. It would never be, as far as he was concerned.

“I’m sure he will.” All Might commented, all traces of humour vanished from his demeanor. “Don’t worry, kid. It’ll be a matter of a minute.”

Izuku nodded, and didn’t speak again for the rest of the trip. When they reached their destination, he let All Might guide him towards the detention area of the complex while Tsukauchi wandered off somewhere else, probably taking care of the bureaucratic side of things. He reappeared relatively soon, and they entered one of the cells all together.

The cell was small and mostly barren, furnished with only the most essential goods and surfaces for a relatively short stay. Idly, Izuku wondered what systems they had in place to prevent a… slippery criminal such as the current occupant from escaping from toilets or sinks. Surely they were prepared to- he realized he was spacing out. He should just get on with it.

The villain was indeed sleeping, huddled in a small foldable bedding on the floor. Izuku had barely caught a glimpse of the man’s human form the previous day, yet he was identical to how he’d envisioned him in his dreams. His subconscious was just that observant, apparently. It suddenly occurred to Izuku that he hadn’t even asked for the man’s name yet. The news broadcast hadn’t reported- he was procrastinating again. Just do it, Izuku.

The boy glanced questioningly at the detective, who made a small gesture to indicate that he was free to proceed. He approached his assailant and crouched beside him. The villain’s hand was sticking out from under the blanket, next to his head. Izuku rested his palm against the back of it, and simply willed the quirk out. 

Just like that, it was done. Izuku stood up and stepped back as the man’s body swiftly changed its texture and color, morphing and rearranging itself until a vaguely man-shaped, green heap of goo had replaced the slumbering human. The villain remained dead to the world throughout the entire process.

“...I’m done.” Izuku whispered, quite redundantly. He peered back at the two men at the opposite side of the room, and he didn’t miss the quick, sharp side-glance they’d just quietly exchanged.

“Thank you very much for your cooperation.” Tsukauchi said with the utmost honesty once they were again in the hallway. “While you’re here, would you mind if I collected your statement about the incident? It won’t take long, we already have a clear picture of the situation thanks to All Might.”

“Uh… Okay.” Izuku had hoped, rather optimistically, to skip that part, but he had no reasonable excuse to refuse. Tsukauchi led them to an empty room a couple of corridors further ahead, and held the door open for them. All Might lingered on the threshold.

“May I sit in?” His question was aimed at Izuku for some reason, rather than at his friend. 

“Of course!” Izuku confirmed, when both adults just stared at him in silence, clearly waiting for his permission. The hero thanked him with a small nod and an equally small smile.

They all sat around the desk in the middle of the room, Tsukauchi on one side, and Izuku and All Might on the other. It struck Izuku as a little strange, automatically expecting the two upholders of the law to face him side by side. He wondered if it may be a setup for some sort of good-cop-bad-cop routine. Not that either of them seemed especially suited to the latter role. Tsukauchi was very much the embodiment of professionalism, and All Might… All Might looked especially non-threatening in that moment, almost meek. He was sitting very tidily, big hands folded in his lap and long legs pressed against each other, occupying a remarkably small space considering the size of his frame. It made Izuku straighten his back and sit more neatly by reflex.

The questioning did proceed very smoothly at first. Tsukauchi let Izuku narrate his version of the events without interrupting at all, just humming and jotting down a few lines in his notepad now and then. All Might was just as unobtrusive, volunteering a sentence or two when Izuku happened to stumble on his words, or when he openly allowed him to recount the little scene on the rooftop, since the detective was already in on the big secret. Smooth sailing all round, until the point when Izuku had to bring up his quirk.

“On the subject of your quirk… when did it first manifest, exactly?” Tsukauchi asked.

“A little less than two years ago.”

“Ah, you’re quite the late bloomer! And you’ve only shared that fact with your friend Bakugo and your father, is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“And your father is one... Hisashi Midoriya, right?” Tsukauchi fished out a sheet of paper from the folder he’d retrieved before beginning the interrogation. He slid it across the table so that the boy could read it.

“Yes.” Izuku blinked, an undefined sense of unease gripping him all of a sudden. “...Why did you bother printing his personal details?”

“You’ve been filed as quirkless in the national registry after a routine medical examination when you were four years old. Your registration hasn’t been updated since then, as far as I could ascertain.” Tsukauchi explained calmly.

“Y-Yeah. I know.”

“...That is a punishable offense, I’m afraid. An accurate quirk registration is mandatory for all citizens.” Tsukauchi’s expression softened when Izuku utterly failed to hide his dismay. “This has no consequence on you, as minors aren’t expected to take care of these things by themselves, especially since quirk recording is often carried out when they’re extremely young. Your mother bears no blame either if, as you say, she’s as clueless about it as the rest of the world. But if your father knew and neglected to sort out the necessary paperwork for so long-”

“Oh.” Oh. Oh crap. Izuku had never thought of that. Why on earth had he never thought of that? Why, in almost two years, had he never considered the legal implications of all that secrecy? Why hadn’t his father? “Are you going to press charges against him?”

“Not yet. We’re at least going to get in touch with him and hear him out before taking any further steps.��� The detective gave him a genuinely reassuring smile. “But even if we did, there is no cause for concern. These bureaucratic hitches are usually settled with a small fine.”

“I-I see.” Izuku gulped. He wasn’t going to wait until May. He was going to call his father as soon as he was alone. This probably wasn’t going to snowball into a lengthy legal conundrum, but still…

“What’s his occupation? I’m reading ‘administrative assistant’ here, which is a bit generic…”

“I don’t know much about that. He works for the government, I think, and he always says that all his activities are classified, so I try not to pry... Too much…”

“That is very judicious of you. I wish you could teach some of that tact to my sister…” Tsukauchi sighed, only half-jokingly. All Might let out a low chuckle at that. “Does your father know that you’ve been so reserved about your quirk so far?”

“Yes.”

“And he didn’t find it odd in the slightest?”

“...No.” 

“Why do you think that is?” Izuku was suddenly very aware of both adults observing him quite intently. He really didn’t want to make things look any worse for his father. He could… slightly reframe the truth, maybe.

“I, uhm… Mine is a bit of a unique quirk. Difficult to use without, uh, stepping on other people’s toes. And I’ve been quirkless for most of my life, and… it’s no mystery that I envied other kids a lot because of that. I was worried that my schoolmates could be wary of me if they knew that I could… act on that envy now.”

Tsukauchi hummed, twirling his pen slowly between his fingers. “I can understand your concern. But quirk counselling is specifically designed to help children cope with such issues, and you’ve been missing out on it because of this extreme discretion. Your father should have realized he was doing you more harm than good by letting these fears fester in your mind.”

Izuku dropped his gaze on his father’s profile sheet. Detective Tsukauchi had a point, but… the matter was more complicated than that, as well as intricately intertwined with his father’s job and the troubled history of their quirk, and… Izuku didn’t want to delve into any of that at the moment. 

“We’ll definitely schedule some counselling sessions for you in the future, I’m sure you’ll find them beneficial.” Tsukauchi hesitated. “...Did something catch your attention?”

Something did, in fact. Izuku was idly skimming through the content of his father’s profile, and a couple of details were giving him pause. The first was, unsurprisingly, his father’s listed quirk. Fire Breathing.

...nor do I have it printed in bold letters in my personal documents…

Yeah, Izuku wasn’t going to bring that up. The other thing, a little more surprisingly, was his photo.

“Oh, it’s nothing, just… I haven’t seen any photos of my father in a long time.”

“You haven’t seen ‘any photos’ of him?” Tsukauchi cocked his head curiously.

“Yeah… I’ve never met him in person, he travels a lot because of his job and he never has enough time to stop by. I only know what he looks like because of an old photo my mother showed me. I haven’t seen it in years too, so…”

“Only a single photo, uh? And this picture here doesn’t strike you as familiar?”

Izuku observed it more closely... No, he was surely mistaken. “No no, there’s… there’s definitely a resemblance. Mine was a very old photo, taken before I was born. And it wasn’t even a photo of him specifically, he just happened to be in it, at an odd angle and in the middle of a crowd… I’m sure this one is more accurate.”

“Are you still in possession of that photo, by any chance?” All Might chimed in unexpectedly, his bright eyes narrowing slightly.

“Yes, I think so… Hang on, let me check.” Izuku fetched his phone, opened the internet browser… Crap, it really had been a long time since he’d looked at the thing. Back then, he’d saved the file his mother had passed him on a free online storage site that… hopefully still existed? He hadn’t used it in at least four years. Was his account still active? Could he even retrieve the credentials with his current email address? “Uh… Actually, I don’t think I can get it right away. But I printed a copy of it once, it should be at home… somewhere…” Stashed in one of those boxes of old notebooks and magazines on top of his wardrobe, right? Or had it been thrown away when they had moved to their current apartment…? He fiddled with his phone with growing discomfort, acutely aware of the utter unhelpfulness of his babbling.

“We’d certainly be grateful if you could retrieve that photo for us, when you have a minute.” All Might finally conceded, taking pity on Izuku's floundering.

“Sure! I’ll try to find it as soon as I get home.”

“Much obliged.” Tsukauchi flipped quickly through his folder. Izuku was about to ask why the mention of that photo had sparked their interest so much, when Tsukauchi put Hisashi's file back into the folder and closed it with a snap. “Well, I think we’ve covered everything. Again, you’ve been immensely valuable to us, Midoriya.”

Izuku let out a breath he hadn’t noticed he was holding. All Might positively beamed at him and flashed him a thumbs up, which was its own, heart-warming reward. They all stood up and made to leave, when Izuku remembered he owed the two men a proper thanks.

“Ah, I really appreciate that you used your influence to… to get the papers off my back. It was… unreasonable of me to ask, but I  really  appreciate you humoring my hope for discretion anyway. I hope that it wasn’t too much of an inconvenience.”

Tsukauchi and All Might traded a puzzled glance. 

“We did nothing of the sort, kid. What makes you-” All Might stopped, as if struck by a sudden thought. “Ah! You did mention it yesterday, didn’t you? That you were expecting your friend to expose your quirk…”

“Yes. I… I imagine Kacchan told the journalists, and you took care of, uh, correcting his version?”

“No, no, there was no need to.” All Might waved his hand dismissively. “Your friend didn’t mention you at all. He was on the verge of fainting when you rushed in, he’d been strenuously fighting back against the villain for a while by that time. He was too exhausted to notice your intervention, and you bolted immediately afterwards. He never realized you were there.”

Izuku’s jaw dropped half-way open, but he shut it immediately with an audible click. 

“...Ah.” Kacchan hadn’t realized. The bystanders hadn’t realized. The police hadn’t realized. All Might hadn’t really realized. That meant that no one, no one, would know about his quirk right now… if he hadn’t gone and spilled the beans about it himself. If he hadn’t dumped an unnecessary confession to the number one hero out of sheer, emotional anxiety.

...Boy, that next phone call was going to be one for the ages.