#and their son’s birth if he’s biologically theirs

[aqua-ginger]

Epilogue Normal Oak is actually so Emma Perkins coded

[phasewashere]

jabigail t4t

[tinydefector]

Not really a request but more of a ramble. Ive always been torn betweenn Cybertronians not really having any material instincts and just essentially knowing how to function since creation. Kinda like Steven Universe. They can be young and differ in how much knowledge they hold but overall they have the bases of how to function without any caretaker needing to be around. But then I immediately start shaking at the thought of them having even stronger instincts that humans. Maybe closer to animals that have come to accept a human as their own. Just picturing a cybertronain seeing someone who's carrying and immediately is distressed on how little protection our clothes offer. Nows theirs a bot who keeps hissing at those who get to close other humans included. Their plating is ruffled and if they are a seeker their wings are spread in a threatening manner. May you have the patience of a Saint if said seeker has a large trine because now they all share the same feral need to protect. A con that stumbles upon a lost child and immediately claims them as their sparkling.( if you wanted to make it a bit gross I can imagine they do a forced adoption the same ways farmers do sometimes. Where they just kinds cover a stray baby with the fluids of a mother to create that connection. Kinda gross but I can see it being used to further claim a child) They consider the biological parents of the child nothing more than food and shelter for their now sparkling. They try a coo and speak to the child in their natural tongue. A seeker that chirps and clicks its glossa. A grounder that does low hums and songs like a whale. Sorry for the long ramble haha. I just think the ideas of cybertronains either having no idea what instincts are but also the ideas of them drowning in them. Or meeting humans just relights their feral mindsets in any and every way.

I happen to really love both ideas a lot. I enjoy the idea of Cybertronians not understanding family or parental rolls, Forged sparks start off in smaller frames and slowly gain more framing as they get older. Instead, it works more like a mentor and apprentice side of things. They teach you how to do your job, keep your head down like Terminus with Megatron. Their race doesn't have a name for the connection they have so in turn they call each other friend, but intruth it's more than that but they don't know how to explain it or express it, they dont raise the younger one but they are their for special events such as plating ceremonies. To Megatron Terminus is an elder, someone to be respected for his knowledge and teachings. And they both care for each other, when Terminus us gravelly injured Megatron does everything he can to try and help him because he feels like he owes it to terminus for everything the older bot as done for him. It's a mutual benefit of a bond that's isn't family but also is much closer than friendship.

But on the other hand, I look at Optimus and Codexa, and I love the idea that I found this little bitlet and instantly went mother mode. Practically scoops him up out of a hotspot and takes him home with her. She's very attentive and is the one who even names him. In all aspects, he is her son, and she does everything she can to try and raise a good mech, and she does a wonderful job. She teaches him to read, sings to him, and each plating ceremony, she keeps a piece of his old plating similar to humans and baby teeth. She celebrates when he gets his first job as a Liberian because she put so much effort into making sure he had a comfortable job, not wanting him to struggle like so many other mechs less fortunate.

And then there is my headcanon for birthed sparklings, which differs depending on what frame type they are. They experience different behaviours. Grounders are in different sub sections

- Tanks: Megatron, Tarn, Warpath, Blitzwing

- Mine frames: Megatron, Terminus,

- Hauliers : Optimus Prime, Sentinel Prime, Ironhide, Ratchet, Inferno, Kup,

- Emergency services: Prowl, Ratchet, Pharma, inferno

- Battle Chargers: Ironhide, Hound, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Trailbreaker, wheeljack, Tracks,

- Praxian carters: Prowl, Bluestreak, skids, Smokescreen,

- speeders: Rodimus, Drift, Jazz, mirage, redalert, blurr, Tracks,

- mini vehicle: Bumblebee, Tailgate, grapple,

- Vosian Fliers (later Seeker's): Starscream, skywarp, Thundercracker, sunstorm, Nacelle and so on all of the Jets.

- Helimech: Whirl,

- aerial Shuttle: Cosmos, Omega Supreme, Senator Shockwave.

- Combiners: stuntacons, combaticons, constructicons

- Cassettes/ mini bots: Ravage, Rumble, Frenzy, Rewind, Lazerbeak, buzzsaw

- non Traditional frames: Rung,

- Non shifters:

There's a lot more but these just just who I can think off off the top of my head.

____

Tankers and Mine frames don't get the luxury of families or raising sparklings, most of them are cold constructs, and don't get a chance to see life outside of mines or duties they have been put into. But if given the chance they are actually very protective of a sparkling, they will fight to the death for their bitlet even if it isn't their. Their behaviour is very similar to a bear mother with their protectiveness of a child, human or cybertronian.

Megatron's optics focus on the tiny form in his lovers arms. If it were any other situation, people would think he is glaring at the tiny baby being placed again in his Chassis. "They have no plating or outer frame, no protection." He states while looking to his lover. "They are a baby, Megs, human babies don't have anything like sparklings, they are very fragile," they explain with a smile as they watch their child try and grab Megatron's large digits. His optics soften as he watches their child as the baby babbles and giggles up at him. It makes a switch inside his possessor flick. Nothing would ever hurt this child. He would make sure of it. A deep rumble leaves his chassis as he lets them play with his large servos. A laugh leaves his lover as they watch him. "You look like a grizzly bear with a cub," they chuckle as they lean up to press a kiss to the side of his helm.

Hauliers tend to see a random sparkling and go. "You're mine now, I'm going to warp you up in bubble wrap and keep you in my cab so no one can hurt you" Hauliers tend to be very attentive carriers/ Sires to adopted or sparked bitlets. A lot of Hauliers tend to be very nomadic in the rust sea moving inpacks. They tend to behave more like migrating herds when on cybertron, but those who live in the cities tend to make a very homey and comfortable for sparklings. But also they are the ones who panic the most when their child puts something in their mouth they shouldn't have.

Optimus chuckles as he watches his bitlet roam around. Playing with sticks and mud. He sits not far off watching them as they play his optics soften as they giggle and let out little buzzes of excitement as they find a new rock. "They seem to be enjoying their first proper road trip," His lover calls out as they walk their way over to him. Leaning down to press a kiss to his Helm. "They are very fascinated by a lot of things on Earth," he rumbles his optics, meeting his partners. "Can you really blame them, I remember a certain bot being very fascinated with Terra's fauna when we first arrived here," they tease him. Another squeal of delight comes from their sparkling as they begin trying to chew on a rock. Optimus let's out a slight noise of panic as he quickly moves towards them. "No, no, Bitlets, you can't eat that," he states while trying to pry the rock from the little ones' servos. They squeak and squeal in protest before eventually letting go of the rock. Another laugh leaves his lover as they watch the two.

A lot of emergency vehicles tend to not be the best for being parents. Mainly due to their work and just not having the time for a bitlet. But they are very attentive to those who do have them, trying to calm them and make sure that they aren't hurt and can make it back to their parents. A lot of the time, they will put up the disgruntled act of the dad who said they didn't want a cat, but then ends up with a child curled up on his chest as he works.

Praxian carters tend to act very similar to seeker, but with children and sparklings its as if they can feel where they are but have a tendency of paranoid when they can't see their little ones. Their door wings will flicker and twitch when they hear their children and will respond back with soothing little clicks. A lot of the time, they will carry their sparklings on their back between their door wings.

Prowl wasn't impressed with Sunstreaker or Sideswipe. The two young mech burst out into fits of laughter watching him with a human baby strapped to his chest. His wings flutter in dispair as they begin taking photos to send to every mech they know. "Oh Primus Prowl, when did you get yourself a bitlet!" They ask while also fauning over the baby who giggles and reaches out with grabby hands. Prowl let's out a slight,all collection of angry clicks as his optics narrow in on the twins. "I am looking after them as their parent had an important meeting today," he snaps as he begins walking, trying to outpace the twins as they continue shooting questions at him. "But you have them strapped to your chassis like they are battle gear!" Sunstreaker laughs, which earns him a smack up the side of the helm from Prowl. "They are too small and too young to be left to their own devices, and the safest place for them is where I know they are," he grumbles before slamming the door to his office shut.

Speedster are one of the cybertronians who tend to forget their child exist sometimes, having no awareness until they are like something is missing. Oh Primus, where is my Bitty!. They are very live fast die hard kinda mechs and it translates over to their child. They are very much the one who will proudly show off their child who is currently eating something they shouldn't be. But they are also one of the most cuddly with their child. Curling up with them to their chassis as they purr loudly.

"RODIMUS PRIME, DRIFT DEADLOCK WHATBARE YOU LETTING MY BITLET EAT!" their voice boomed as their optics narrowed in on the two speedsters and sparkling. Drift turns around in an instant. "I tried to stop them, I swear, but Roddy dared them," he states. Rodimus looks sheepishly at his lover as their sparkling laughs and shouts. "Told you I could!" The little one shouts in excitement, not carrying about the disappointed look from their other parent. "You timeout, you Decontamination spray Now, and You... I'm not angry, but I'm disappointed, " they state, which makes Rodimus face drop. "Nooo. That's worse!" He shouts only to have his bitlet laugh at his whining.

Seekers are the most parent of all cybertronians to the point that some trines work as a family system. Each seeker is a carrier to one seekling, but also being the sire to another or having one seeker who is the sire to two. But then their is the others who aren't spark bonded to others in their Trine, because tries can consist of siblings, cousins, parents or complete strangers so each trine is different. but the family works to train and care for all of them together. They speak in a pigeoned vosian, which is a mix of chirps, thrills, and other little vocial noises. They are also the most social. With large gatherings for sparklings to meet and also bond with others so that they can eventually find their own trine.

For example, I love the idea of Thundercracker and skywarp being brothers, but starscream is trine bonded with them.

Acid storm, Nova storm being a bonded couple who ended up with Sunstorm who is much younger who try care for as their sparkling.

Dirge, Thrust and ramjet who are all random Seeker's who became friends at a young age and are a trine but aren't together at all, they be the boys who go out on the town and wake up in their flat with a hangover and a random mech/ Seeker in their berth.

Nacelle trills lightly as the little seekers curled up in blankets and pillows. Wings fluttering in delight as he watches the little mechs curl up again each other. His two lovers chuckle softly, watching how me preens and chirps and thrills at his two little bitlets. One of his lovers moves closer to him, resting their helm against his backstruts as his wings flutter again. "They are just sleeping sweetspark you can step away. They aren't going anywhere," they call out to him. "I know, they are just..." he starts before his other lover calls back. "Fresh, I know and very you, but they are here finally, you don't have to stand guard all the time," They tease before leading him into the room towards the fluffed up berth. "I think that's enough playing guard for the night"

____________

Link to second part for Megatron

Link

Let me know if you would like to be added to tag list (tagged for every fic)

Taglist

@angelxcvxc

@saturnhas82moons

@kgonbeiden

@murkyponds

@autobot79

@buddee

@bubblyjoonjoon

@chaihena

@pyreemo

@lovenotcomputed

@mskenway97

@delectableworm

@cheesecaketyrant

@ladyofnegativity

@desertrosesmetaldune

@stellasfallow

@coffee-or-hot-cocoa

@shinseiokami

@tea-loving-frog

@aquaioart

[prodigal-sunlight]

I think my favorite running theme in My Adventures With Superman is just… love.

Obviously the romance between Clark and Lois is pretty central, but I mean love of all kinds

Things like the Kents reassuring their young son that just because he isn’t theirs’ by birth doesn’t mean he isn’t family. The pride they take in his good heart and hard work. The way Ma Kent was struggling to not hate an army general for not thinking her son is the swellest guy around.

The platonic love shared by Clark and Jimmy—Jimmy knowing almost from day one that Clark isn’t human, Jimmy who obsesses over cryptids and aliens and conspiracies putting aside his own curiosity because he can tell its something Clark isn’t particularly comfortable talking about.

Mallah and The Brain’s relationship, starting out as the love of a creator and his project, turning into romantic infatuation, then the comfortable bickering of an old married couple. The fact that Mallah was the only survivor, but rather than leaving the site of trauma behind, staying to preserve his partner, and eventually creating a new body for him so even death won’t keep them apart.

How, despite the language barrier, the hologram of Superman’s biological father clearly wants nothing more than to love his son. They don’t understand each other—Superman’s father has never seen Clark’s life, has no idea how his son has lived—and Clark has been lead to believe he’s a weapon, not a refugee—but even despite that you can tell his father wants to be there. In the final moments of the last episode, he scrapes together what few English words he could pick up, begging in his son’s language for Clark to live, because that was all he’d ever wanted for the son he never got the chance to know

Kyle/Mist’s brotherly love for Siobhan/Silver Banshee, to the point of looking visibly guilty for betraying Superman when he was so willing to help. The general’s paternal love for Lois, complicated and strained by his old trauma but no less real. The love of the city’s people for the hero who will stop an armed robbery as willingly as he’ll help an old lady unload her groceries. Clark’s love for humanity, his faith that everyone deserves saving, even villains who refuse redemption again and again and again.

Every time people start fear Superman as a dangerous outsider, distrusting him because he’s different

The thing that changes minds is love

[guessimabasicnerdgirlnow]

On the subject of Symbrock children

I think there is a lot of focus on who is biologically whose children and I am not immune to this (having spent as long as I did waiting for a confirmation that Dylan is biologically Symby’s)

But we should remember that blood is not everything and so those two have not one, not two, but at least eight children together, biologically related or not

Sure, they never played happy family with Carnage or the Life Foundation symbiotes

But with Carnage specifically, while they both hate them and want nothing to do with them, they also both have this feeling of “it’s my fault that this monster exists”. So while Red is probably not biologically related to Eddie, and they were spawned when he and V were separated, Eddie feels like he is responsible for their existence (and they call him Daddy), and isn’t that fatherhood too?

And actually if you want to be picky about genetics, there is canon precedent for hosts and symbiotes messing with each other genetically (Symby copying Peter’s powers and passing them to their offspring, the original explanation for Dylan was that he was Anne’s and Eddie’s son who inherited the Venom codex from his mother, the whole codex thing) so it is entirely possible that any child either of them have in any way after being bonded for so long is genetically related to both!

(Not to mention that the lines between me and you when it comes to hosts and symbiotes are sometimes blurred)

It’s weird, and it should be! We are talking about aliens!

The truth is that Symbrock never had a child that went like, they had sex and then one got pregnant and gave birth to a baby that is perfectly 50/50 each

They experienced pregnancy and early parenthood together with Sleeper. Dylan descends from both and is seen by both as their son but he was also born from Anne and may or may not genetically descend from her too (but either way he sees her as his mother, even if he never met her). They both see Carnage as their worst mistake, and Eddie upon first meeting the Life Foundation symbiotes wanted to be a father figure to them, and and Symby called Mania their child recently, and when Toxin was about to be born they were both excited to be grandparents

I know Dylan and/or Sleeper work better for a nuclear family scenario because they’re both loved, but they have all those other children too, they’re all theirs! They have full alien children, a mostly human child, children they love, children they hate, children they tried to parent, children they didn’t, children they maybe wished they did, gendered children, genderless children, etc, etc.

And we should appreciate it

[lemonmoicho]

Head cannons of Diavolo that no one cares about 🫶

Origin: Diavolo and his mother are indigenous Sardinia. They come from a small reserved village near alghero l'alguer, They mainly speak Campidanese Sardú and even though the island of Sardinia was conquered by the Italians, small villages like theirs are still heavily traditional. When Diavolo speaks Italian, his Sardinia accent is apparent, which contributes to his adherence to speaking on the phone with any subordinate. Diavolo would have a super strong Catalana dialect for the reason that his mother’s family were there when the Spanish eradicated the natives in alghero and his family were one of the few who were able to stay on the island as there is a small native Sardinia population. Diavolo knows how to speak the native language of Sardinia, Sardinian (or Sard). He is also fluent in Latin, as he grew up in the Catholic Church and studied the Bible under his adoptive father. The priest had him very close to Sardinian traditions in general, and he practiced them growing up. As he got older, he strayed away from his father's teaching and very rarely connects to his heritage due to his paranoia and general disdain for his upbringing.

Backstory: Diavolo/Solido was born on June 6th, 1967 (06/06/67) Even though it’s unlikely, because there are no distinctions whether his mother was actually pregnant for two years, the priest and village believed that he was born by the devil because of his abnormal birth story. When the priest took in Solido he assumed he was born by the devil and relentlessly abused him. This is supported by the fact he has DID which only forms from intensive physical and emotional at the ages of 6-9 as a defense mechanism. Diavolo was originally a personality to protect Solido from the abuse of his village and his adoptive father. The priest and the villagers heavily resented and disliked him due to his birth, which led to his many mental illnesses and physical issues. The name Diavolo was given to Solido, in which his second personality reclaimed after burning down the church and primarily taking control of the body. Diavolo is considered the protector (which is a term for certain alters in DID systems) for ‘Doppio’ or Solido and takes over or gives him advice when he’s in violent or serious situations to help him and is also why Doppio doesn’t remember anything of his past, because Diavolo holds the memories of their childhood. Diavolo’s childhood was extremely difficult, as he was often neglected and physically abused by the priest. He would undergo gruesome exorcisms and other forms of punishments, as his father resented him for being the ��devil's son’. However, despite the abuse, Solido was a very kind, albeit aloof, boy who attempted to be obedient to his father. During his teen years, he developed early onset schizophrenia while Diavolo simultaneously made himself present, which caused Solido to be more rebellious and making his home life worse. As he reached the age of 17-19, Diavolo helped influence the plan to kidnap his biological mother and burn the village down in order to escape and start his life anonymously.

Appearance:

5’10 and has a darker complexion.

- His teeth are sharp and mildly crooked, as a child he had no access to any dental attention.

- As he got older, he became paler since he early goes outside and prefers his home to be dark as he's paranoid of open windows.

-His facial structure has strong Neolithic features and an aquiline nose.

-He also has freckles across his face and shoulders, which he desperately covers up with makeup in order to uphold his particular aesthetic. He does a similar sharpening with his jaw to hide any soft features.

-He doesn’t grow much body hair, and if he does, it’s faint.

-He shows very little signs of aging and has the complexion of someone in his early twenties.

-He has terrible posture and often is hunched forward. Whether that is sitting, standing, or walking. His joints audibly crack often. The reasoning for this is his grueling work schedule that has him hunched over his desk for most hours of the day and the abuse he endured growing up which decently distorted the bone structure of his spine.

-He’s only 140 pounds because of his very slim figure. He’s slightly malnourished, but still has decent muscle mass and has a generally lean build.

Habits and details:

-Diavolo often becomes extremely caught up in what he’s doing or what’s nagging him that he’ll forget to eat, keep track of time or sleep.

-He has scopophobia (the fear of being stared at).

-His diet is at least 65% dry/snack food since he has little to no time to prepare himself a meal and will not allow anyone to prepare food for him.

-He has some knowledge on how to play the violin and piano.

- He enjoys opera performances; especially dramatic ones that tell a tale (i.e. opera buffa).

-He enjoys watching dramatic Italian soap operas when he finds the time, but he will never watch any horror related media, as it only worsens his paranoia.

-He has a weakness in literature and any understanding of biology but is naturally gifted in mathematics.

-He has a fondness for cats, but the feeling is not mutual.

-He gets easily irritated when he feels too hot.

-His hair is surprisingly soft, he also likes to use it as a curtain to hide behind when doing desk work or reading.

-He loves the sound of ocean waves and on occasion will make his current hideout near the ocean so he can sit near a window and relax. Diavolo would love to find an untouched beach so he can simply walk next to the ocean and enjoy the breeze without the fear of being discovered, ruining the moment.

-He has limited hobbies, since he can’t really indulge in activities that leave traces of his existence.

-His main hobby is reading, with a particular fondness towards classical pieces and poetry (that is where he gets his very unusually formal vocabulary). Diavolo finds something comforting within books being passed from hand-to-hand with no mention of the previous owner's name.

-Another hobby of his is playing instruments, but he rarely finds the time.

-His hands are very fidgety, more so when stressed, so he has a habit of rubbing circles into his scalp or scratching at his skin.

-Even though Diavolo doesn’t have a sweet tooth, he’s particularly fond of ciambelle


Flaws:

-His desire not to be seen stems from more than just wanting to remain anonymous. The feeling of eyes on him makes his skin crawl; it kicks his senses of anxiety and paranoia into overdrive and makes him feel restless or nauseous. There are days Diavolo is completely incapable of leaving the safety of his isolated room.

-He has paranoid schizophrenia, which makes daily life harder and increases his paranoia.

-Due to his many delusional complexes, when he loses control he goes into deep depressive episodes. If something doesn’t go as expected, he'll go through irrational fits and is unable to control his anger.

-His emotional regulation is very fragile and could be compared to a child.

-Since he’s constantly on edge, he’s prone to snapping ‘suddenly’ or becoming aggressive over the smallest things. The outbursts are short and, unless he’s able to ‘overcome’ the issue then and there, will nag at him for hours to come.

-Once he’s angry, he finds it hard to relax again.

-He cannot cook anything past a basic, barely-passes-as-decent meal. He doesn’t need to prepare food himself when he can afford to buy luxury; though trying to do so whilst being a hermit obsessed with maintaining anonymity is difficult. He doesn’t enjoy it, but during times when he cannot leave where he’s currently hiding, he resorts to ready-made meals.

[fangsnfair]

Is that DACRE MONTGOMERY? No, that's CORNELIUS "CJ" JENNINGS. The 29 year old FAIRY OMEGA MALE (HE-HIM-HIS) is TEMPORARILY JOBLESS. If you ask their friends, they’re known to be COMPASSIONATE & UNDERSTANDING, but beware, they’re also known to be SECRETIVE & VINDICTIVE. Can you believe they’re from THE PRESENT? Me either.

general statistics

name: cornelius jennings

nicknames: cj

gender: omega cisgender male

pronouns: he-him-his

actual age: 29 years old

species: fairy

occupation: between jobs at the moment

pets: none, but wants one

positive traits: compassionate and understanding

negative traits: secretive and vindictive

a few favorites: swimming, the forest, smutty romance novels, new haven, getting high, music

a few hates: people that take advantage of his inability to lie, muggy weather, people that have an archaic view of how society should work, bourbon

sexuality: homosexual

position: bottom

some kinks: rough sex, choking, hair pulling, slapping, restraints, watersports, biting, public displays, anonymous encounters, mild feminization play, degradation, more to come...

anti-kinks: scat, vomit, age regression play, diaper play, food play

biography

despite not being of this realm, he had been in new haven his whole life, it was the only home he really knew. he was a fairy but all he knew of his past, of his birth, was that his biological parents left the fair realm and brought him to the human world. he didn't know their reasoning, he didn't even know their names, all he knew was they were here for a month or two before they were able to use a human agency to find a family that would take him.

as far as he was concerned the jennings were his true parents; his only parents. according to the stories they used to tell him when he was younger, they wanted him so badly they left the safety of new haven's barrier behind just so they could meet him; just so they could bring him home.

it was a bit strange being so different, even in a community of supernaturals. part of him always felt as if he didn't belong. he was a fairy that had no real connection to the fair realm and he wasn't the same as his parents-- but as he aged he managed to look past all of that and settle to be content with the life he had. he was comfortable in new haven. he was wanted. his parent's were proud to call him theirs. for now at least.

rather than dwelling in that feeling of disconnect with the world around him, cornelius used it to his advantage. he spent most of his day working in group homes with those that had been displaced by time; helping them settle into their new lives here, learn english, and how to adjust to things being so different from what they had always none. if he wasn't helping them, he was helping anyone else in new haven that needed it. bringing the older members of the community their groceries, picking up shifts here or there for people that needed help in their businesses, working with the town to keep it clean. he was always putting other's wellbeing before his own. it was a bit cliche for an omega but he did still have a back bone. there were plenty of alpha's he'd butted heads with over the years. cornelius was no push over; he wasn't going to swallow his pride and accept the archaic idea that gender equaled superiority. everyone was equal.

at least, they were supposed to be.

he didn't realize just how jaded the world could be towards omega's, though, until he found himself in a bit of trouble. it was, at most, a one night stand. it wasn't supposed to mean anything between them-- cornelius wasn't even sure he remembered the alpha's name-- but one night of pleasure, taking some arrogant alpha's knot, left him pregnant.

he will never forget the look on his parents faces when he told them.

they went from treating him as if he was their pride and joy, their world, to being their greatest disappointment. they didn't want to speak to him, they didn't want people to know their son was some worthless harlot having a child without being mated-- out of wedlock-- so they refused to tell anyone. it was their dirty secret and shame to keep. when cornelius started to show they were quick to make him leave; forcing him outside of new haven's barrier, into a world he wasn't really familiar with, to hide among the humans; to hide away from the people of new haven so that they wouldn't have to know what he'd done.

eventually, as they made him stay away for longer stretches of time, his parent's finally made their intentions clear. if he wanted to come back to new haven, once his child was born he had to give it up. he had to leave it behind. he had to give up his son.

holding him in his arms, and getting to name him caomhán, all before letting the workers of the agency he was working with whisk his baby away broke his heart. it was an accident. he didn't mean to get pregnant. but once he saw his son's face he knew that he wanted him; he knew that he wanted to be a parent... but he was scared. he wanted to come back home. he--

he didn't know what he wanted.

he panicked.

eventually he did return to new haven, without his child as per his families request, and he never left again. those that knew him can tell that since his time away, which he refuses to talk about, he hasn't been the same-- not entirely-- but he's doing his best to get by; to get back into his old way of life, helping others and making them his focus rather than himself.

he's doing his best to ignore how empty he feels, knowing that his son is out there. knowing that he left him out there.

knowing that he wanted him back.

[unecoccinellenoire]

Adrien ended up being a Viscount? Tell me more

OK.

So.

The show establishes Amélie is Lady Amélie Graham de Vanily. Not Lady Graham de Vanily. Lady Amélie.

And Lady Firstname, as opposed to Lady Surname (which you could get as the wife of a knight or a baronet), is a courtesy title granted to the daughter of Dukes and Earls. See Lady Diana Spencer, who unlike the current Princess of Wales (who is Princess of Wales but not Princess Catherine) was Lady Diana regardless of her husband.

So if Amélie is Lady Amélie then Emilie is also Lady Emilie.

And for the most part* this means nothing for Adrien or Félix. They're inheriting through the female line and therefore cannot inherit the title.

However in my and @silver-hibiscus's fic where Emilie is not Emilie but Émile then Émile does very much inherit the peerage.

Because while the show does indicate Emilie is disinherited you....cannot disinherit a title.

A title isn't something you can grant through a will, it goes down mostly male primogeniture as per it's orginal grant. If Émile's parents want to disinherit him from the title they need to either get an Act of Parliament or convince the Monarch to issue a letters patent.

So essentially they can't.

So Émile has the right to use a courtesy title which is his father's secondary title. Often Earl for a Duke or Viscount for an Earl (see Viscount Severn being bumped up to Earl of Wessex).

Which means that Adrien gets that courtesy title when his father inherits...except that we caught so caught up in working out whether Adrien was entitled to French citizenship since Émile and Gabriel as a gay couple would have to have pretended to have used a surrogate which is illegal in France that I naively assumed the fact that in the UK he would be listed as Émile and Gabriel's son meant he could inherit.

Especially given that between Émile and Gabriel who is the biological father is...pretty clear.

But as of at least 2021 per a Tatler article I saw about the Baths this is not the case. Heterosexual or homosexual, if the natal mother (officially Nathalie) is not married to the father (Émile) then the child is illegitimate as far as the peerage inheritance is concerned even if the biological parents were married (e.g. an Émile and Gabrielle using a gestational surrogate) and the baby is otherwise legally recognised as theirs.

So I have to apologise. Even if Emilie is Émile Adrien is not in fact an Viscount or Earl. Unless Gabriel is Gabrielle as well and believed to have given birth to him.

Now if Amélie was a guy, then he and then Félix would inherit after Émile's death

*Scotland is a little different, and if you wanted to make the argument the GdVs are the Mountbattens of their universe I would be fascinated to hear you out.

[sshbpodcast]

Star Trek Parents Just Don’t Understand (Part 2)

By Ames

Last week, you’ll remember we covered a whole lot of parents from the classic Star Trek series and just how much they tended to ruin their kids’ lives. Well, this week A Star to Steer Her By is finishing out the topic with parental units from currently running Trek series and the Kelvin movies. Expect this one to not be nearly as far reaching, partly because SPOILERS WILL ABOUND below the cut and partly because we’ve not covered much of this on the podcast yet, so frankly I don’t remember a good deal of it.

But some of our major players have or are noteworthy parents to talk about in this period of wide-screen Trek (seriously, everything looks like a movie now and it’s impacting my screengrab game). Give your parents a hug for us as you see them listed below and also in probably the most spoilery episode of the podcast we’ve ever recorded (discussion starts at 59:37). They only raised you from tadpoles.

(Again, some mega spoilers for Star Trek 2009, Discovery, Lower Decks, Prodigy, Strange New Worlds, and especially [seriously!] Picard are below.)

[Images © CBS/Paramount]

Kelvin George Kirk

George Kirk was a parent to literally newborn James for all of thirty seconds before saving his life, Winona’s life, and the lives of the crewmembers of the USS Kelvin. While we have no idea if he’d have been any good at raising the youngster had he lived (apparently so since this alternate Kirk ended up being quite the ruffian compared to that walking stack of books from The Original Series), we know what he valued by his actions, his sacrifice, and his refusal to name him Tiberius.

Kelvin Sarek

In pretty much all timelines, Sarek is a bit of a hypocrite when it comes to raising a half-Vulcan, half-human son like Spock. Why he can’t get it through that Vulcan bowlcut of his that having a child with a human will dilute that cherished green blood of theirs is absolutely beyond me. I thought you hobgoblins were supposed to be logical, after all. Maybe if Amanda hadn’t blown up, things would have gone better for Quinto-Spock.

Discovery Sarek

Speaking of Sarek, in Discovery we actually see that he very much seems to prefer raising his ward Michael Burnham to raising either of his natural sons. Go figure. Apparently all his progenies had to do was follow in his footsteps, join the Vulcan Academy, and literally have a chunk of his katra from a past mindmerge-thing for daddy to love them.

Gabrielle Burnham

Michael’s relationship with her birth parents is something much more complicated. This is Discovery, after all; “It’s complicated” is the subtitle of the series! When we learn that Gabrielle is still alive, having saved Michael by becoming the Red Angel, it’s a bittersweet reunion that can only be made stranger by their second reunion in the 32nd century when momma has become a space nun of some kind. As if Michael didn’t have enough of this Vulcan stuff growing up!

Voq and L’Rell

On the subject of space nuns, we learn that Voq and L’Rell’s child Tenavik got to be raised by some time monks in the Boreth Monastery. Which, frankly, is probably the best that kid could ask for! The combative Klingon Empire was no place to raise a baby, and good on his parents for finding a child-rearing solution that, at the very least, kept him alive. Ya know, after just a little bit of faking his death. Q'apla, I guess!

Stamets and Culber

What is sweeter and purer than two gay space dads mentoring a nonbinary sorta-Trill sorta-not adolescent? I didn’t realize that Adira is supposed to be 16 when we meet them (probably because the actor was like 23), but regardless of age, they are struggling with their identity in enough ways to make a Vulcan weep, and having the support of a nurturing queer family is just what they need.

Ephaim

An easy example of a good parent from the Discovery era comes in one of the Short Treks, “Ephaim and DOT.” Sure, she’s a tardigrade and mostly just following that biological impulse to keep one’s seed alive, but she does better than a lot of other Trek parents. Go, tardigrades, go!

Raffi Musiker

Moving on to Star Trek: Picard, we see another negligent parent in the conspiracy theory–obsessed Raffi Musiker. She might rival Worf as a parent whose absence has screwed up their kid the most, as we see that Gabriel is downright hostile to her when she tries to reconnect. And then in season 3, she yet again chooses Starfleet over her family. Perhaps we’re lucky we haven’t seen Alexander in Picard, since he and Gabriel could have some stories to tell.

Troi and Riker

Say what you will about the Troi-Riker relationship, but they seem to be doing pretty okay raising their daughter Kestra. She’s a nifty kid with her head on straight, so they must be doing something right. Also, it’s very clear throughout their appearances in Picard that these parents did everything they could to save their son Thaddeus from his mendaxic neurosclerosis, and his loss affected them in the way only losing a beloved child could.

Maurice and Yvette Picard

We were teased a bit in TNG with just enough information about Jean-Luc’s upbringing to let us know his relationship with his father was strained and that with his mother was loving, but then the second season of Picard had to go spelling things out for us in ways we didn’t really need. Maurice becomes that much more terrible because he evidently did nothing when Yvette was going down a dark path. And Yvette… what the hell were the writers trying to say about Yvette? Freakin’ yikes. 

Adam Soong

Also in season two of Picard, we get YET ANOTHER Soong ancestor for Brent Spiner to play, ya know, for reasons. Evidently all the Soongs except Data (see last week’s inclusion!) are just terrible parents because they’re effectively just trying to prolong their own legacy instead of actually caring for the needs and wants of the child. Kore, in this case, lives a life so sheltered she can’t even go outside without bursting into flames. Much like that whole damn season…

Teresa Ramirez

We do, however, get one solid parent in season two of Picard, and that’s Teresa Ramirez, the divorced mother who Rios is totally thirsty for. Actually, we don’t see a lot of children of divorce in Star Trek, do we? As we established last week, it’s far more likely to have one parent get killed off than it is to have people amicably separate because, of course, that makes for more drama. There’s Torres’s parents, and Rom and Prinadora but that’s just their Ferengi contract, and that might just be about it? Anyway, Teresa’s cool.

Jean-Luc Picard and Bev Crusher

Season three, however, is just a straight up family reunion show with lots more literal family members that get introduced to boot! Somewhere after Nemesis, evidently Bev and JL got down to clown and then Bev ran away and hid the pregnancy from him for however many years this boy is old. Sure, we all agree Picard would make a father that might rival Worf’s awkward sense of child neglect, but is Bev any better never telling him? Discuss amongst yourselves.

Geordi La Forge

Geordi’s been busy too, cranking out at least two daughters. Like Sarek’s relationship with his various kids, it seems much easier for Geordi to play favorites. Alandra is the favored daughter because she followed in his footsteps and seems like she was generally passive, while Sidney is the black sheep of the family and La Forge has trouble connecting with her because she can’t just be controlled like certain holoprograms I could name.

Carol Freeman

Let’s get out of Picard and into some animated stuff. The relationship between Captain Freeman and her daughter Beckett Mariner is at the core of Lower Decks, so much so that it’s kept secret from the rest of the crew for the drama of it all. Most of the show treats their relationship like ones we’ve seen before in which the child lashes out because they don’t want to follow in their parent’s footsteps. There is love there, but their failure to communicate does dominate.

The Diviner

In our other animated Trek, The Diviner definitely falls into that category of just the worst kind of parent because he will sacrifice Gwyn a hundred times over to get his way. He never listens to what she wants, chooses the Protostar over her, and leaves her to nearly get killed on vine planet. All this and the only reason he created her in the first place was to continue his work. Rude, bro.

Joseph M’Benga

Finally, we have Dr. M’Benga in Strange New Worlds, whose dedication to caring for his sick daughter Rukiya is admirable and incredibly sweet. Every time he reads fairy tales to her in sickbay is a beautiful little scene, and the end of “The Elysian Kingdom” is a tear jerker that we were honestly surprised to get so early in the run of the show. I kinda hope we see more from Rukiya in future, but who knows what’s written in these fantastical pages?

— We’re ducking out from this family reunion before someone whips out the photo album. Catch us next time for more, and definitely keep listening to our watchthrough of Voyager over on SoundCloud or wherever you get podcasts. You can also post family in-jokes on our Facebook and Twitter, and would it hurt to call once in a while?

[coochiequeens]

The fact that she is not recognised yet as the mother of her son leads to problems, "Right now, he cannot inherit from me. I cannot go, in principle, to the doctor with him or sign him up for kindergarten."

Fucking Danes are exploiting Ukrainian women to have bio offspring that their own government doesn't recognize their relationship.

Many Danes have a surrogate child from Ukraine. But even when the eggs and semen were Danish, are they the parents legally? The governments’ experts dare not give an advice but three models.

Addy Leidicher and her husband picked up their son from Ukraine. Even though the child is biologically theirs, he was born via a surrogate mother. And thus, the Danish state does not recognise their family relationship. However, the government now wants to make steps in this. But nobody knows how.

The current Danish law does not provide any options to establish a legal bond between parents and the child they received via surrogacy. However, the Danish government commissioned a special expert committee to look into the issue and see how this could be changed. Now, the experts have presented their report, Kristeligt Dagblad writes.

"It is really nice that something is now happening because the fact is that there are children coming to the country who are born to foreign mothers", Addy says to Kristeligt Dagblad. The fact that she is not recognised yet as the mother of her son leads to problems, "Right now, he cannot inherit from me. I cannot go, in principle, to the doctor with him or sign him up for kindergarten."

Dilemmas

On Wednesday, the experts committed by the government presented their findings. Their goal was to find a solution on how to "recognise parentage, while taking into account the child, woman giving birth and the interests of society." This is a complex problem because there are many ethical dilemmas with commercial surrogacy, Kristeligt Dagblad writes. The expert group was unable to agree on what is the most ethically sound model. It came up with three different models.

The first one does not present any requirements for the process with the surrogate mother. Instead, it is completely based on the recognition of the parenthood that has been determined abroad. For example, if Ukraine acknowledges that the intended parents are the legal parents of a child, then this recognition is taken over by Denmark.

The second model does also not make any requirements for the surrogacy process. However, it contains "a possible requirement" that the surrogate mother confirms the relinquishment of her child after the birth.

The third model requires a "number of objective conditions" for the recognition of parenthood in the case of commercial surrogacy. One of them is that the surrogate mother must be covered by health insurance, which must be paid by the intended parents. Also, she must go through an assessment to see if she is physically and mentally fit, and she must also be examined on whether she is at risk for exploitation.

Agreements

"The question is, should there be prerequisites for one's parentage to be recognised at the birth of the child?" says Thomas Ploug, a member of the expert group and professor of philosophy. He and the majority of the expert group recommend the third model. "Only that one ensures we get some ethically responsible frameworks made around commercial agreements", he says. "It is not only about solving a problem of legal parentage but also about protecting the child and the pregnancy donor (the surrogate mother, ed.)."

In addition, the third model gives the surrogate mother the right to withdraw her consent for giving up her child. According to the UN observer who participated in the expert group, this is necessary to avoid turning children into commodities.

Frank Høgholm Pedersen, an expert on family and inheritance law, is the only member of the committee that recommends model one. "The children get the best legal position by being recognised as their parents' children already when they are on the plane on their way home from where they were born. For children, model one is the fastest way to create clarity about their legal position. The model also creates security for the pregnancy host so that she does not hang on to parenthood she does not want, and for the intended parents", he explains.

According to Høgholm Pedersen, model three is problematic as the legal status of a child remains uncertain as long as the requirements are not met.

Child trafficking

The chair of the committee, Linda Nielsen, a member of LGBT Denmark and a lawyer specialising in surrogacy, propagates model two.

The chairman of the Ethics Council, Leif Vestergaard, supports model three. The Ethics Council has been worried about surrogacy turning into child trafficking. "I agree with the expert group's model three if it is the one that best ensures that we are free from agreements on surrogacy that can be equated with child trafficking", Vestergaard says. At the same time, the Ethic Council is not happy about surrogacy agreements that involve large sums of money.

The recommendations of the expert group will be used as a foundation for the political debate on the issue.

[legends-of-time]

Thorn Bush (Doctor Who Story)

Chapter 3: The Girl Who Died

Masterlist

Life back in the century, Kathy had gotten used to so life went back to a relative normal. No one had noticed that she had left!

Kathy gave birth to a beautiful little boy, who they called Carlyle. As she stared at him in her arms, she wondered how much like her he is. She checked his pulse as soon as she was alone with him and found the beating of two hearts. It made her happy that while she'll lose this family due to their human life span, she knew, and know, she'll still have him.

When Kathy's son reached 8, her mother handed her a box that belonged to her biological father, who had gifted it to her just before he left. When seeing the box, she then remembered having seen it before but clearly, something about it had made her forget. Was it possible it was one of those perception filters or something even stronger? Anyway, she now remembered that when she was 8, her mother had given her the box. It was only when it opened did, Kathy finds a chameleon circuit or something similar and when she opened it, she was looking into a fraction of the untempered schism. It explained how Kathy gained her apparent ability to regenerate though not in the same way a Time Lord would. It also gave her son the same ability.

Barden, her husband, in case you have forgotten, does early when Carlyle is only 14 and she's '39' though she physically looks like she's still in her 20s. With the knowledge that she won't continue to age and so will Carlyle at some point, and this will become suspicious, she took the opportunity to take them away as soon as Carlyle turned 18 to protect them. This is so as not to take Carlyle away from his extended family too soon though she didn't think his not biologically related grandfather would miss him. He seemed more verbally abusive towards him than he did to her.

Kathy checked on her half siblings and their own offspring as well as her parents as they lived out their own lives to make sure they were okay. She hoped that she would be able to check in on their line in the future.

The first time Kathy needed regeneration to save herself was for the stupidest reason, one she will never tell anyone. She had been alive for a century in this world now when she's on a walk and she trips and falls down a hill. Not one of her finest moments.

Kathy and her son are not always together as he often likes to live out his own life, which means that at times she's going off on adventures on her own, sometimes it's together.

It was the beginning of the 9th century and after the invasion of the Vikings onto the English shores where she had re-lived, she decided to go off and explore Scandinavia, particularly in an attempt to find a village with a future immortal.

Kathy searched for years until she found the correct village. In the meantime, she had been darting around the different Scandinavian countries exploring and learning about the people. She had to learn the language for real. Learning Old Norse was fun and weird.

Eventually, Kathy found them in a remote part of Norway. They found her odd but because she spent time assimilating into similar cultures to theirs, they welcomed her in. Kathy intentionally grew close to Ashildr as she knew that she could help her and keep her company in the future years.

——

9th Century

The fighters of the village had headed off pillaging and exploring but it was not long before they return. In the village, the horn blasts causing the residents to start clamouring, yelling and cheering.

Kathy hurries behind Ashildr to see them enter the village.

"See it's okay," Kathy says to her, she's been worried. Ashildr nods as her face breaks out into a smile.

"You're back! All of you! Are all of you back?" Ashildr asks Nollarr as she runs up to him with Kathy still following.

"I suppose so, I haven't counted." The man says.

"I'm back!" Hasten cries grabbing onto Ashildr and Kathy.

"I had a dream you'd all died. It was so real, I thought I'd made it happen." Ashildr says.

"Well, if it ever does, I'm sure you'll a find some way to blame yourself," Nollar says, chucking something into her hands. Kathy looks over her shoulder, her eyes widening.

Kathy pulls it out of Ashildr's hands as she says, "I wish none of you had to go!"

Kathy analyses it and realises, yes, it is Twelve's sonic glasses or some of it anyway. So, this means that he and Clara had finally arrived, and the episode will begin. She glances over her shoulder to see if she can spot them.

She notices them then in the middle of the crowd wearing chains and Clara in a spacesuit. The Doctor's appearance, Kathy recognises, is his casual look he took on in season 9. Him embracing his 'idiot in the box' revelation he had at the end of the season 8 finale. His hair is longer, his clothes are less formal and in the episodes of this season, he shows his sillier side more. Rediscovered who he is.

Kathy catches eyes with the Doctor, whose face breaks into a smile causing Clara to look and have a similar reaction as they go past. Well, it's good to know that he still likes her further on and Clara does as well. She feels the familiar faint pull of the mental link she shares with the Doctor.

The Doctor's smile drops as his eyes trail over to Ashildr and he stares at her in confusion.

"Who are they?" Ashildr asks Kathy as they follow the crowd further into the village. "Have you met them before Arantxa?" Kathy had decided to go by the name she was given in this life as she felt her other one would sound too odd to them.

"No, I've never met them," Kathy replies, which technically isn't a lie. She hands the broken glasses back to her.

Kathy goes over to them, catching the last of their conversation.

"We meet the boss man and we do the usual." The Doctor says.

"Which is?" Clara asks.

"Replace him."

"Sure, that's a good idea?" Kathy speaks.

"Kathy! How did you get here?" Clara exclaims with a wide smile.

"Wandering around, here and there. Got curious about Vikings. Here I am." Kathy explains with a smile excited to meet them.

"It's good to see you again." The Doctor says with a kind smile.

"Well, it's the first time I'm meeting you," Kathy speaks. Their smiles dim but they look understanding.

"Well, you can help with our plan." The Doctor says. All this while Nollarr has been talking in the background.

"How do we replace the leader?" Clara asks.

"Yes Doctor, do tell us," Kathy says with a smirk.

The Doctor gives an 'I'm not impressed look' before explaining, "To the primitive mind, advanced technology can seem like magic."

"It's going to be the yo-yo again, isn't it?" Clara says.

"Yeah. It's in my pocket somewhere." The Doctor then shows the removed handcuffs.

Clara gapes at him in shock, "How did you do that?!"

"Magic."

"Miracle, and much treasure." Nollarr continues but the Doctor then chucks the yo-yo towards the Chieftain, hitting him on the chest causing shouting and jangling, swords are drawn.

"How dare you attack our Chieftain!" Nollarr cries.

"I am very, very cross with you. I am very disappointed. I have taken human form to walk among you." Kathy covers her eyes and cringes at the Doctor's performance.

"Who are you, old man?" Nollarr asks.

"Do you not recognise the sign... of Odin?" The Doctor says as he parades around.

"You are not Odin, and that is not Odin's sign." Millard dismisses.

"Oh, and you would know that how, exactly? Have you met Odin? Do you know what Odin looks like?"

It is then that we all hear thunderclaps causing most around Kathy to whimper. Then there is the sound of a heavenly choir and a giant face appears in the sky.

"Oh, my people." The man in the sky booms. "I am Odin. And now your day of reward has finally dawned."

"Do not believe this foolish trickery!" The Doctor tries to throw his yo-yo again but it flops. "It's supposed to do that." Oh, dear.

"Your mightiest warriors will feast with me tonight in the halls of Valhalla." Suddenly some robots with massive helmets are teleported to the ground, the Mire. Those with weapons form a battle formation as they cry in confusion. They charge forward as the Doctor, Clara and Kathy hide behind them. The Mire charge with guns toward the crowd.

"Stay still. Stay very, very still." The Doctor mutters.

"That's not really Odin, is it?" Clara says in more of a statement.

"He hasn't even got a yo-yo." The Doctor replies.

"Oh yeah, that's how you know," Kathy says sarcastically.

Both sides meet in the middle.

"So, this is an invasion." Clara suspects.

"Shh. No, this is a harvest. The strongest, the fittest... The weak and young, they'll leave behind." The Doctor realises.

One Mire pushes away some members of the village to the floor before teleporting up some of the more 'fitter' members.

"Any hints?" The Doctor asks. This seems to be their thing.

"Uh... well um... Ashildr – that girl – is important." Kathy replies. He nods.

"We have to help them," Clara says.

"We have to not get chosen." The Doctor says.

"Bide our time," Kathy adds. Clara doesn't listen and rushes over to Ashildr, who's cowering. Kathy tries to grab her but she slips away so she feels she has no choice but to follow her.

"Clara. Kathy. Clara, Kathy, no!" Kathy hears the Doctor hiss.

"Have you still got the eye-patch thing?" Clara says crouching by her. Kathy tries to give Ashildr a reassuring smile.

"Clara, maybe this isn't the best way. There's nothing we can do, maybe we should wait." Kathy tries. She knows that if she follows this route then Ashildr will be living forever.

"It'll be fine." Clara holds half of the sonic glasses up to Ashildr. "Point it at my chains and think the word open. Say it with your mind." She explains. More people are beamed up.

It is then Kathy sees the Mire take notice of them. She was stupid to think they wouldn't and before she can alert the other two, they are beamed up themselves.

——

Kathy looks around and notices they are on the ship.

She hears Hasten say, "Welcome to Valhalla, my ladies." And she looks up to see the warriors surrounding them.

Kathy hears grunting and straining and she sees a door being pried open by Nollarr with an axe.

Clara turns to her. "I'm assuming it's a bad idea to go in there."

"Yep."

"No, wait! Wait!" Clara cries when seeing Nollarr step through.

"There's nothing to fear, strange maiden," Nollarr says as Kathy hears propellers whir. "We are Odin's chosen."

"Please Nollarr come back!" Kathy cries.

But it is too late and electricity seems to shoot out of the shields in the wall and zaps him and he evaporates. The others cry out in fear and horror. Then there's creaking and the wall behind them begins to move.

"The wall, it moves!" Hasten cries. The warriors try to push against it to no avail.

"Odin! Odin!" Ashildr cries.

"Use your blades, try to jam it!" Clara orders them and they listen.

"We need to try the other door as well!" Kathy yells. She pulls on Clara and Ashildr's arms towards the other door past where Nollarr had been. "Come on! Come on!"

"Quick! Pull!" Clara says as the three of them pull at the door.

"I'm trying!" Ashildr replies.

The warriors give up and begin moving into their section and Kathy hears the propellers begin to whir again.

"Quickly!" Kathy cries.

——

Kathy wakes up to see three of them are now in a different part of the ship.

"Ssh!" Clara says to Ashildr as she wakes up. There is hissing and bubbling around them. Kathy ventures forward and she sees tubes full of liquid. She cringes remembering what this means. When they all spot the helmets of the warriors, Ashildr asks the obvious question, "Why are we still alive?"

"Because of this." A voice says. They all turn to see 'Odin' there with two of the Mire. Kathy sees he holds the broken half of the sonic glasses. "Explain."

Clara pulls herself and steps forward. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you afraid."

"I have no reason to fear you."

"Except you've already analysed that and you know it's a technology from a civilisation vastly more powerful than your own. And er, you will have also noticed that... I'm wearing a space suit. So, I'm not from around here, and it's highly unlikely I will have come alone. You see, you haven't killed us because killing us would start a fight you didn't come here to have... and you're not sure you can win." Clara is acting too much like the Doctor and it is making Kathy uncomfortable.

A robot then walks past them with a tube that he hands to 'Odin'. "Ooh, hello. Time for your medication?" Clara remarks.

"Adrenaline. Testosterone... extracted from the finest warriors." He drinks and exhales. "Ah! Nec...tar."

"OK, you mash up Vikings to make warrior juice, nice," Clara says.

"They what?" Ashildr asks, sounding close to tears.

"Clara, maybe you should stop." Kathy tries but she's ignored.

"Why play God?"

"What is a god but the cattle's name for farmer? What is heaven but the gilded door of the abattoir?" 'Odin' replies.

"You're not a farmer. You're a thief, caught in the act."

"I don't understand. "Mashed up"? What are you saying?" Ashildr tries to ask again.

"It's nothing, Ashildr." Kathy attempts, trying to avoid what is to come.

"Hush!" Clara hisses at her before turning back to 'Odin'. "Go, now. Go and find Vikings on other planets. The universe is full of testosterone. Trust me, it's unbearable. We won't follow you, see? We don't need to fight."

"War is our way."

"Ask yourself, is this a war you really want?"

"Yes!" Ashildr exclaims. "You'll pay for what you have done here today. I am a Viking. Ashildr, daughter of Einarr. You have mocked our gods. Killed our warriors. And we will crush you on the field of battle."

"That's better!"

"Look what you have done Clara!" Kathy snaps. "You really shouldn't have said anything."

"We were about to leave," Clara says.

"You almost had me talking. Talk is for cowards." 'Odin' says.

"No, no, no, listen to me." Clara says but is ignored.

"I accept your challenge."

"We will crush you!" Ashildr declares.

"Oh, please. Shut up." Clara says.

"Shall we say this time tomorrow? Ten of my warriors versus the best of your village." 'Odin' offers.

"You will beg for mercy!"

Odin laughs. "I will send you back. You can inform your people of their impending destruction."

"Why are you doing this?" Clara asks.

"Why else? The joy of war! Can't you see it on my face?" He presses a button on his arm to reveal his true gruesome face.

——

Ashildr, Clara and Kathy are then teleported back to the village.

"My child!" Einarr says and Ashildr runs into his arms.

"Clara! Kathy! Clara! Kathy!" The Doctor calls as he runs over to them. He suddenly stops. "I'm not a hugger... Ahh! Let's hug!" He then grabs Clara causing her to cry out in surprise before doing the same to Kathy. Considering this is the second time she's met the Doctor and the first with this face, she feels a bit surprised when he grabs her.

"Where are the others?" Einarr asks.

"I'm sorry, Father."

"I looked them up in my two thousand year diary." The Doctor says flicking through said book not realising that they are trying to tell him about what happened.

"OK."

"Doctor..."

The Doctor continues, "They are called the Mire."

"Listen..."

"They are one of the deadliest warrior races in the entire galaxy..." Oh, she didn't remember that.

"OK."

"...but they're practical. They get what they want and go. You persuaded them to go, didn't you? I knew that you would!" The Doctor beams.

"The deadliest warrior race in the galaxy?" Clara says.

"One of them, yes. Why?"

"Cause this village just declared war on them," Kathy speaks. The Doctor's face drops.

——

Everyone who's left in the village gathers in the Meeting House to get the rundown.

"They're coming here tomorrow, ten of them, to kill everybody in the village," Clara explains.

"Ashildr, Arantxa... is this true?" Einarr asks.

"It's my fault," Ashildr says.

Kathy sighs. "No, it isn't."

Her father agrees. "Not every misfortune that befalls this village is down to you." He sits next to her. "She thinks she brings us bad luck," Einarr says to the Doctor.

"What bad luck? You haven't had any bad luck. You're fine." The Doctor mutters.

"We are about to be attacked by..." Limpy, though that's not his name, it's just what the Doctor has been calling him, says but gets interrupted.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes. With a whole day to spare! So, leave! Hop it, take off! Into the woods, split up, hide. Hang about there for a week, come back home, make puddings and babies; that's basically what you do, isn't it?"

Einarr stands. "We cannot leave this village."

"Yes, you can. Just pick a direction. Fly like a bird, run like a nose. That's probably a Viking saying, I haven't checked that." The Doctor remarks.

"No. We will fight!" Not Limpy declares.

Everyone around Kathy clamours and yells, "Aye!"

"Really? Well, I don't know if you remember, but they actually took away all your fighters. So, what are you? Farmers, fishermen, web designers." The Doctor rattles.

"Maybe not that last one," Kathy tells him, taking in the confused looks around her. The Doctor shrugs and throws swords on the floor causing them to clatter.

"We are Vikings!" Einarr cheers. They cheer.

"OK... tell me this. How many people here have actually held a sword in battle? By a show of hands? Mmm hmm. Yeah, baby." There's silence in the crowd as no one raises their hand except Clara and Kathy. The Doctor raises his hand and looks around smugly before noticing them. He frowns for a moment before shrugging.

The Doctor picks up a sword and starts pointing at the crowd as he talks. "The Mire are coming for each and every one of you. So, what you going to do? Raise crops at them?"

"If necessary." Not Limpy says.

"I think he was being sarcastic." Not Heidi murmurs to him.

"We're not cowards. We do not run. A death in battle is a death with honour." Einarr announces.

"Aye!" They all yell. A baby then begins crying.

"Do babies die with honour?" The Doctor questions. He walks away and closes his eyes. He then begins translating, ""I am afraid, Mother. Hold me, Mother... I am afraid.""

"Um... he speaks Baby," Clara tells them awkwardly. Kathy had forgotten that but that doesn't stop her from cringing with mild embarrassment.

The Doctor continues, ""Turn your face towards me, Mother, for you... you're beautiful. And I will sing for you. I am afraid... but I will sing." Babies think that laughter is singing. Did you know that? I applaud your courage, but I deplore your stupidity. And I will mourn your deaths, which will be terrifying, painful, and... without honour." The Doctor walks to the door.

Ashildr follows him. "Stay. You could help us. I know you could."

"I told you to run. That's all the help you need. And that's all the help you're getting." The Doctor says and walks off.

——

Clara and Kathy follow him outside.

"The earth is safe; humanity is not in danger. It's just one village." He speaks.

"Is it ever only "Just one village?"" Kathy remarks. She just needs to make sure he stays now that they are on the course to fight the Mire.

"Suppose I saved it... by some miracle. No TARDIS, no sonic. "Just one village" defeats the Mire. What then? Word gets around. Earth becomes a target of strategic value, and the Mire come back. And God knows what else. Ripples into tidal waves... until everybody dies."

The baby's cries can be heard when he finishes talking. Clara and Kathy walk to stand by him.

"What's it saying?" Clara asks.

"She. She's afraid. Babies sense danger. They have to." The Doctor replies.

"Tell us," Clara demands.

Kathy couldn't help but be quiet, not wanting to take away from Clara's role. Maybe it's a confidence thing.

""Mother, I hear thunder. Mother, I hear shouting. You are my world, but I hear other worlds now. Beyond the... unfolding of your smile... is there other kindness? I'm afraid. Will they be kind? The sky is crying now. Fire in the water." Fire in the water?" The baby stops crying suddenly.

Clara puts her hand on his cheek, "You just decided to stay."

The Doctor looks at Kathy in question, "The baby stopped crying." She shrugs.

——

The training began the next day and people were lined up with wooden sticks. Clara, Ashildr and Kathy stand at the side watching.

The Doctor paces in front of them. "So, when I say "Move", you move. When I say "Jump", you say "How high?" Unless it's across a gap of some kind which, of course, means you jump horizontally. Yes, what is it, Lofty?"

"Sorry, my name's not actually Lofty, it's Bro..." Not Lofty tries.

"No, it's not, it's Lofty." The Doctor dismisses. "I've got too much to think about without everybody having their own names, so it's Lofty. You're Lofty, you're Daphne, you're Noggin the Nog, ZZ Top... and you're... Heidi. So, we'll try that again. Lofty, what is it?"

"Sorry, sir, it's just... why aren't we practising with real swords?" Not Lofty asks. Kathy has taken quite a liking to these new names.

"Yes, perhaps you'd like to field this one, Limpy?" He points to the man sitting behind him.

"Because we can't be trusted with them."

"That's right, yes. You'll be given your real swords back when you can prove that you can wave them around without lopping bits off yourselves. Heidi, why are your eyes closed?"

"Sorry, sir. Just not that good with the sight of blood." Not Heidi replies.

"No... of course, you're not." The Doctor's tone is exasperated.

"Swords against those creatures. That won't work, will it?" Ashildr says to Clara and Kathy.

"He's just warming up. He hasn't got a plan yet. But he will have... and it will be spectacular." Kathy gives Clara an odd look at that. The amount of faith she has in this man. It reminds her of how reckless she is in this season, after the loss of Danny. Would she be there for that?

The Doctor whistles loudly. "Enough theory. I'm handing out the real swords." They all rush forward to grab just that. Kathy winces knowing what's coming.

——

The difference between experiencing an episode and watching it on a screen is seeing the lead up to the running and screaming, the rush to throw buckets of water onto burning buildings.

The Doctor mopes as he sits down on a box. "Well, that could have gone better."

Not Heidi groans as he wakes up from being unconscious. "Morning," Kathy says to him walking over.

"What happened?" He asks.

"The Big Bang, dinosaurs, bipeds, and a mounting sense of futility." The Doctor rattles off.

Kathy rolls her eyes at him. "Anyway... more recently, Not Chuckles hit Not Lofty over the head, on his helmet, with his sword, which knocked him out. There was a little blood, which you saw and... did that." Kathy vaguely gestures to him as he flips over once again. "But don't worry it gets better as the first time you did it, you knocked a torch onto some hay, which spooked a horse, who kicked open a gate, and er, I'm... sure you can fill in the rest."

——

Everyone is inside eating except the Doctor so Clara and Kathy join him outside. They reach him when an odd thunderclap goes off.

"Weird sounding thunder." Clara remarks.

"That's not thunder," Kathy explains. "It's the weapon forges of the Mire. They're being noisy on purpose."

"Well?" Clara questions after a moment.

"Well, Heidi faints at the mention of blood, not just the sight anymore. He's actually upgraded his phobia. Chuckles... he questions every single order you give him, which is going to be a little bit difficult, a little bit tricky, in the heat of battle." The Doctor lists.

"I keep waiting to hear what your real plan is," Clara says. "Kathy won't tell me. She says he doesn't know yet. That and spoilers."

"Yeah, drag me into this," Kathy mutters. Clara nudges her with her elbow at her comment.

"Because teaching them to fight is the only plan I've got." He replies.

"Turning them into fighters? That's not like you." Clara says. Kathy sits there uncomfortable, not really sure what to say as she doesn't know either of them well. Don't know the Doctor well enough personally to weigh on his morals.

"Yeah. I used to believe that too." The Doctor remarks.

Clara chuckles, "What happened?"

"You. Oh, Clara Oswald what have I made of you? Katherine Davis over there is all brand new." Kathy blinks in surprise when he points at her.

"It doesn't matter how well you train them; it's not going to make difference," Clara tells him.

"They'll die fighting with honour. To a Viking, that's all the difference in the world." The Doctor says.

"A good death? Is that the best they can hope for?" Clara says doubtfully.

"A good death is the best anyone can hope for unless you happen to be immortal." Kathy frowns at that comment, even after a few hundred years she wonders if immortality has really hit her yet.

Of course, Ashildr walks by at this moment. "Sorry."

"No problem," Clara says.

"Night." The Doctor calls to her.

"Night night," Kathy adds. Ashildr walks away to her home.

"You've made an impact there." Clara quips.

"Stop it."

"Well, she is nice," Kathy speaks. That's safe to say, doesn't give too much away, well done Kathy.

"Fight you for her." Clara jokes.

"The human race, you're obsessed. You all need to get a hobby." The Doctor complains.

"I've got a hobby, thanks. It's you, by the way." More like a lifestyle.

"Well, get a new one." He then moves and Kathy knows he's going to try and get her to leave.

"Not this," Clara says before he can start.

"Tomorrow it's going to be a bloodbath." He reminds her.

"Don't even ask."

"These people all died hundreds of years before you were born..." Kathy's eyes dart between the two of them.

"I'm not running."

"I have a duty of care." The Doctor tells her.

"No, you don't, because I never asked for that," Clara exclaims. Kathy really feels like she's intruding here.

"Every time we do something like this, I keep thinking, what if something happens to you? I know Kathy will be fine but..."

"Well, stop thinking about either of us and start thinking about them, because you're missing something. The plan Kathy says you don't have yet." Clara says.

"What?"

"How you're going to win. You always miss it, right up until the last minute. So put down your sword, stop playing soldier and look for it. Start winning, Doctor. It's what you're good at." Clara walks off.

"You should go to Ashildr," Kathy tells him once she's left.

"Ah, your hint. Why?" He frowns with those huge eyebrows.

"Cause she's important, you know that." Kathy then follows Clara.

She catches up with her, turns to her, and says, "Nice hair, you know."

She laughs. "Random but thanks. You told me how I had it."

"I did? How long do I have to wait for that?" Kathy asks.

"About 700 years?" She speaks.

"Oh right..."

——

The Doctor is soon yelling across the village from the boathouse for Kathy and Clara so they run over to see what is happening.

"We hear, we hear," Kathy says bursting in to find the Doctor, Not Loft and Not Lofty's baby. "You figure it out then?"

"So, he hasn't trapped his finger in something again?" Clara wonders.

Kathy laughs. "No." Einarr and Ashildr appear as well.

"Chuckles, bedtime is cancelled. Everybody, off the hard stuff. We've got a long night's work ahead of us. I need a blacksmith. Who's the blacksmith?" The Doctor rambles.

"I'm the blacksmith." Not Lofty says.

"You're the blacksmith and you've got a baby too? He's been at it hammer and tongs." The Doctor remarks.

"Doctor, Kathy, explain. What's happening?" Clara demands.

"There's going to be a war tomorrow." Kathy sees more of the village filter in. "And here's some news, this just in: We're going to win the hell out of it."

"How?"

"Ashildr, this is your village, and you will never have to leave it, I swear." The Doctor says.

"Seriously, how?" Clara asks again.

"I told you that we were basically doomed. Did no one in this two-horn town think to mention that you had... eels? Why didn't you tell me, Kathy?"

Kathy shrugs. "Cause I knew you would figure it out."

"Eels?" Clara questions.

"I give you... fire in the water!" The eels light up and the sounds of electricity zap. "Electric eels!" Baby cries. "Yes, yes! I know exactly how you feel. Well, not exactly. She needs changing."

"Plan, then?" Clara asks.

"And it is a doozy!"

——

They all move to the Blacksmith's Forge. The Doctor begins talking as everyone goes around doing their job.

"We need to pull that silvery stuff out of Clara's space suit. We can use it to magnify the electrical charge. Stop looking confused! Look happy! Winning is all about looking happier than the other guy..."

"Always walk briskly. Makes you a moving target." He gets handed a sack. "Oh, that's for Lofty. Lofty! And talk with confidence, even if you're terrified. Act as if you know their plan, and sometimes, if you're very lucky, they'll actually tell you it." He picks up a cloak. "Ah, this is for Ashildr."

They are then in the Meeting House where the Doctor finishes explaining his plan. "Then we deploy the anvil. Now, at this stage, getting me one of their helmets is key. We get a helmet, and this is over. Then we can mop up the rest using Ashildr's monstrosity."

The girl smiles and reveals what she has built.

"That is rubbish." Clara comments.

"That's the point!" Kathy replies.

——

Morning dawns and they all gather in the Meeting Hall to begin the plan. Kathy is excited and scared for what is to come.

When the Mire come through the doors, they are greeted with a party with upbeat music playing and games.

The Doctor, Clara and Kathy all slip down the middle to face 'Odin'.

"Hey, hello, hey! I'm the Doctor. It's lovely to meet you face to... convincing hologram. You could always go "bzzz" and get rid of it, no? No, on second thoughts, don't. That, that, that suits you."

"It is time to fight." Comes the reply.

"No, no, no. We decided against that. We thought we'd just have a party!" They all cheer.

"Let me put it another way. You fight or you die."

"We're unarmed. There isn't a single weapon in this room. Is there Kathy?"

"Nope," Kathy replies. "I'm sure your systems are telling you this."

"You wouldn't open fire on unarmed civilians, would you?" The Doctor says.

"It wouldn't be the first time."

A clunk echoes as Not Lofty had 'accidentally' thrown a hoop at one of the Mire's helmets. There's silence as the that was Mire hit sees a wire that is attached to the hoop dangling from the ceiling.

"Chuckles, now!" The Doctor yells. Electricity zaps from the barrels where the eels are to the wires across the room, eventually reaching four of the Mire and causing them to shake and malfunction.

"Run, run, run-run-run-run!" The Doctor orders and everyone runs to the sides of the room. "That's four down, six left."

"Go!" 'Odin' cries.

"Chuckles, switch!" There is more electricity zapping, but this time to the wires attached to the magnets. This causes the Mire to lose their weapons and helmets, revealing their horrible appearance. "Chuckles, off!" Then everything falls back down and the Doctor catches one of the helmets.

"Don't move." Clara orders having picked up one of their guns. Kathy stands next to her doing the same.

"Go!" 'Odin' orders. The Mire begins shooting.

"How's it coming?" Kathy asks the Doctor, who is fiddling with the helmet.

"Reversing the polarity of the neutron flow. I bet that means something. It sounds great. Ashildr!" The girl goes over and sits in a chair. "Are you ready?"

"I'm scared." The young girl confesses.

"You were born for this. Show them a story they'll never forget." The Doctor places the helmet on her head. Kathy watches her sadly; was what to come worth it to save a village?

The door falls down and Ashildr's construction appears through the door though Kathy knows that it looks different for the Mire.

"What is this beast? It's impossible!" 'Odin' cries in panic.

"Withdraw. Withdraw."

"Stand and fight!"

"Withdraw."

"See how they run." The Doctor mutters. Clara and Kathy share a smile.

"Withdraw." The Mire begins teleporting away.

"Cowards!" 'Odin' yells.

"Withdraw." The last of them leave.

"That's enough, Ashildr," Kathy calls to her. "Story's over. Happy ending."

"What trickery is this?" 'Odin' demands.

"Ha! Says the man with a fake face." The Doctor says. "But you see, that's the trouble with viewing reality through technology: it's all too easy to feed in a new reality. A story to save a town, and a puppet from a nightmare. You see, you've just seen the world through the eyes of a storyteller. The mighty armies of the Mire... Brutal, sadistic, undefeated. Even I believed the stories. But after today, no one will again. An army like yours, it lives or dies on its reputation... its story. And today, you were sent packing by a handful of farmers and fisherman. Not to mention the whole "wetting your pants and running away from a puppet" debacle." Everyone lets out their own chuckles.

"See, that was really funny," Clara says laughing.

"That was hilarious. It's just lucky that nobody recorded that." The Doctor.

"No, no wait, Doctor. I think we did do that." Kathy jokes.

Clara plays the recording on her phone. "See, all it needed was the Benny Hill theme."

"The Benny Hill theme, yes." The Doctor says. "Now, you see, we could just keep this as a funny little film and play it every year at the Christmas party, or... I could upload it to the galactic hub and get a second opinion. So, the question you need to ask yourself is this: Just how important is your reputation to you? Here's a little sneak preview, piped straight into your helmets, free of charge."

Benny Hill theme plays with the video.

"If you don't leave right now, I'll put it out there for all to see and no one will fear you again." The Doctor finishes.

"This humiliation will not go unpunished. We will meet again." 'Odin' teleports but it appears distorted.

"Oh, I hacked your teleporter. Sorry." The Doctor remarks.

Everyone begins cheering and hugging. Kathy lets out a shriek when she's lifted in the air by a few people.

"You did it, Ashildr. You did it. You saved us all." Einarr says running over to his daughter but he then realises something is wrong. "Ashildr... Ashildr? Ashildr!"

"Get the helmet off her." Kathy quickly orders. "Get it off, now."

Einarr takes it off and his daughter falls into his arms. "Ashildr?"

"No pulse," Clara says. "I think. Doctor, is she dead?"

"I'm sorry. I'm really terribly sorry." The Doctor murmurs. Einarr cradles his daughter in his arms as the Doctor flees the hall.

——

Kathy tells Clara to just let her follow him into the Boathouse. She cautiously walks inside, scared of his reaction.

"Why didn't you stop me?" He asks quietly. She doesn't know what's scarier, him yelling or being quiet. "You knew that when I plugged her into the machine, I was going to use her up like a battery."

"I didn't know another way to succeed," Kathy replies at the same level. "I wish I could have but I didn't know how."

"It's not your fault." The Doctor pauses then exhales. "I'm so sick of losing."

"But you didn't lose. Not completely, you saved the town." Kathy argues though she knows it is pointless.

"I don't mean the war. I'll lose any war you like. I'm sick of losing people." The Doctor says. "You haven't been through it all yet but one day- one day you'll get as tired as me. But unlike me, you've always stayed; not me. No, I do what I always do. I get in my box and I run and I run, in case all the pain ever catches up... and every place I go, it will be there."

"You did your best. She died. There's nothing you can do. But what you can do is realise what has been staring in your face ever since you got it." Kathy replies.

"I can do... anything. There's nothing I can't do. Nothing. But I'm not supposed to. Ripples, tidal waves, rules. I'm not supposed to—" He suddenly cuts himself off when it dawns on him. "Oh. Oh!" He grabs his face and runs over to one of the containers of water.

"Realising now, are you?" Kathy remarks with a smile.

"My face." He says looking at her before looking back at his reflection.

She smirks. "Yeah, your face." He gapes at her again with his hands back on his cheeks again.

"I think I know why I chose it." He whispers. "I think I know what I'm trying to say." His face then picks up. "I know where I got this face, and I know what it's for."

"Go on, tell me then," Kathy says beaming.

"To remind me. To hold me to the mark. I'm the Doctor, and I save people. And if anyone happens to be listening, and you've got any kind of a problem with that, to hell with you!" He runs out of the Boathouse back to the Meeting House with Kathy close behind. She had been working on her fitness ever since she saw him the last time, she knew there would be running.

——

They return and while they had been gone, Ashildr was moved to lay on a table covered in fur. The Doctor begins fiddling with the helmet.

"What's he doing?" Einarr asks.

"Saving her... I think." Clara replies.

"He is," Kathy confirms.

"It's from the Mire helmet." He holds out a slim square object in his hand. "Battlefield medical kit. I've reprogrammed it for human beings." He places it on Ashildr's forehead and it's absorbed by the skin.

"It's gone. It's inside her." Einarr says.

"It's repairing her. It will never stop repairing her, if it works. Come on, Ashildr. Come on. The story's not over yet." The Doctor whispers to her.

"Daughter..." Einarr tries, his voice is all watery. "Listen to me. This town has lost so much. If we lose you too... there'll be nothing left." There's nothing until she gasps awake. "Ashildr!"

Everyone gasps in relief. Ashildr stays groggy and barely conscious.

"She'll be conscious in a day, up and about in three. No swimming for a week. Now, we're going to need a longboat and some of your best rowers. We're two days' sail from the TARDIS. Come on, Clara." Clara goes over to The Doctor, who turns to leave.

Einarr stops him. "Wait, no. She'll want to see you when she wakes."

"Oh, no. Well, she'll, she'll see me often enough once she understands." Kathy knows he probably doesn't want to be there when she realises, to deal with the consequences of what he's just done.

"Understands what?"

The Doctor hands another medkit to him. "Second dose."

"Will she need to take this?" Einarr asks.

"No, no, no, it's not for her." The Doctor replies.

"Then who's it for?" Clara questions.

"Er, whoever she wants." The Doctor explains.

"Doctor... thank you." Ashildr gasps.

"Oh, don't thank me yet, Ashildr. Not yet." The Doctor and Clara leave and Kathy quickly follows after them.

"So, this is goodbye again?" Kathy says to them.

"Yes, it is." The Doctor says.

"It's nice to see you again," Clara says, she gives her a hug.

Kathy gives her a squeeze back. "And it's nice to meet you." Clara laughs at this and steps back.

The Doctor goes over to her then. "You understand why I gave the second one." Clara frowns confused but Kathy knows that the Doctor will explain to her later.

"Yes," Kathy replies. "I'll keep an eye on her."

"Yes, that's smart." The Doctor says. "Anyway, good luck till the next time."

"Till the next time."

——

A/N: Autocorrect with these Vikings' names was annoying let me tell you.

Please leave comments on how you're enjoying this story and what you think.

[buggachat]

I'm curious to hear your thoughts on why you think Felix and Adrien are sentimonsters 👀 like what was the motivation 🤌

whether they were sentimonsters from birth, or if they born human and something Happened so they were resurrected as sentimonsters, I'm curious to know Why, and why Felix may potentially have had a different emotional basis than Adrien. And also Why Emilie only died two years before the the current point in the show

HEHE OKAY

My theory (EMPHASIS ON: this is absolutely pure speculation lol):

Emilie and Amelie, being identical twin sisters, are both infertile due to some genetic reason they share. And due to their high status and old-money family (Amelie seems VERY proud of her family heritage, and it wouldn't be a stretch to think Emilie was too), the idea of being unable to pass along their family lines was unthinkable to them. Adoption wouldn't cut it, because they had ~Status~ to uphold and, I dunno, rich people logic.

Emilie and Gabriel (and Nathalie? idk) took a trip to tibet and either purchased the miraculouses off some black-market type deal or... I dunno, got really lucky on a hiking trip and stumbled upon the miraculouses.

They decided to the use the peacock miraculous to have a child— a child that would, to the outside world, be biologically theirs. I imagine this was more important to Emilie than Gabriel, but who knows. I imagine Emilie being excited to share this magic with her sister, so that her sister too could "pass on" the family line.

Emilie used the peacock miraculous, and used Gabriel as the emotional vessel to create their son (this way, they BOTH played a part in creating Adrien. You know... like... how babies are made lmao). I imagine Gabriel looking to Emilie, full of love for his wife, and that love creating Adrien, their son, who looks, let's be honest, just like Emilie.

I imagine, then, Amelie's husband (Felix's father) also getting a shot at using the peacock miraculous. Amelie is used as the emotional vessel. Amelie, filled too with love for the prospect of a family, creates a son after her own image... because she's all about that self-love. That son was Felix.

The differences in Felix and Adrien's personalities is either because the love that Amelie felt vs Gabriel felt was different, or it's just a result of them being raised differently. Felix does show a lot of love for his mother in the show, so I still think he was created with love, too.

Both of them used the twin rings to hold the amoks. The rings that were passed along their family line. Because those rings hold great emotional value to both Amelie and Emilie.

Felix and Adrien look perfectly alike, because they were created based off their mothers, who are identical twins (that, or Emilie and Amelie purposefully conspired to have their children look identical because they thought it'd be cute or something?? lol)

But the peacock miraculous was broken, and upon using it, both Emilie and Felix's father got sick. It started off small, but the moment they used the peacock miraculous, their fates were sealed.

Years passed. They went on with their lives. They vowed to keep the truth of their sons secret. But gradually, as time went on, they gradually got sicker and sicker. The sickness from the peacock never healed, it only chipped away at their life little by little. Their sickness came much slower than how we see Nathalie's sickness, because Nathalie used the peacock miraculous regularly, while Emilie and Felix's father only used it once each.

It took them 13 years to die.

(This is why Adrien says that Felix's father died very soon after Adrien's mom died. That's not a coincidence. 👀)

On his death bed, Felix's father told Felix that he was a sentimonster. He thought Felix had the right to know before he passed. Knowing that caused a bitter anger in Felix. Either Felix was always the little shit he is today, or Felix became disillusioned with the world upon learning that he was a sentimonster, and began acting out. (I think the latter. Amelie mentioned in the episode Felix that "his father isn't around to keep him in line anymore!" (or something) which to me implies that Felix acting out like that started after his father's death?)

Aaannd that's where the show kicks off. :)

[honeystwiggypeach]

I just had a thought about how would the boys and their wife (reader ofc) reaction of getting a call from the hospital where their kid was born or a lawyer or whoever that may work with those cases and finding out that the kid/kids they were raising (doesn’t matter how much time) was not theirs because a nurse got confused with the babies and now the real parents that were raising their actual kid want to do an “exchange of kids and get their baby back, and it’s just so heartbreaking for them realizing that the kid that they raised and loved so much was not really theirs and yk those kind of things.

(btw I was watching a mexican show with my mom last night that it was kinda similar to this, so I just thought instantly about you and haikyuu soooo. I hope you liked the idea.)

Kisses and I’ll be waiting for your respond

Bestie this is such a good idea!! Very heartbreaking for sure, I cannot imagine even like the pain of this happening?? So that’s why I like manipulated it to be a little happier!

(Also I chose Kenma Matsukawa Aone Bokuto and Akaashi because I love them so much!!)

Tw-child swap(at birth and at various ages), child abandonment(after the swap the babies back to bio parents) , everyone except Aone and his reader end up with some variety of raising the kids together, everything you could think of happening with swapped babies, fearing children being taken, custody, court, let me know if I missed anything!!

Kenma

When you’d gotten the call he saw immediately how the tears began to well in your eyes, he was patting your precious little boys bottom in the rocking chair beside you.

“I don’t understand, how could this even happen?” Kenma can tell your confused he gives you a little nod and you just shake your hand trying to listen to the lawyer who’s telling you about how they’ve submitted every fine detail they need to get their son into their arms.

“But we’ve raised him? How can they just fake him away? We’re his parents?”

The silence makes your ears ring and before you know it he’s telling you about a court date and the call is over.

When you both appear in court, you both see the little boy who was swapped with your own. He had big wide brown eyes and the two people holding him grumbled as they shifted him from hip to hip.

When the court mandated swap happened, you felt emotionless, for almost an entire year that was your little boy, and no matter how much you grew to live your biological son there was still a gap left gaping where your precious little boy belonged.

Of course that gap hadn’t lasted very long, close to the boys’ first birthday you received the second call asking if you’d be interested in getting full custody of your little boy, his biological parents hadn’t felt the bond they thought they would have had with him and really didn’t like the idea of keeping him from having a life with parents who had formed that bond.

Matsukawa

The phone was on speaker, your daughter was incredibly fussy, you and Issei were stood in the kitchen trying to work a bottle into her mouth as she cried, it was typical she’d begun teething and poor baby’s gums were hurting.

Issei gently bounced with her as he held her head to his chest humming softly.

“It’s alright honey daddy’s got you.” He whispers softly as she whines he softly kisses her head as she begins to calm down.

You get the call as Issei continues to calm her.

You watch the way your husband’s face drops he softly eases his hand off of your daughter’s head to look at her face.

“But she looks like us?” His voice is quiet and he doesn’t understand how she couldn’t be your biological daughter, “you can’t just do this to us? She’s our baby?” He’s hurt and you can hear it in his voice.

“Sir no, they don’t want to take her away…they were thinking maybe you split custody of both children…”

“We need time to think about this…” he mutters and you nod, “take as long as you need” before the end tone rings out.

You can see the tears well in his eyes as he bounces her softly holding her carefully and tightly.

“It’s alright, they don’t want to take her” you squeeze him tight and he practically shutters.

You aren’t sure what you’re supposed to do, if you should mourn vital bonding time that’s been lost with your biological daughter or hold your little girl close and hope all they want is joint custody.

Aone

After discovering what had happened he wasn’t sure how he should react. It was confusing, he was certain that his baby was his and that was it. So of course when you got the call he held onto your daughter extra tight.

“I’m sorry…so what do you want to do?” You’re certainly confused, you weren’t just going to let someone waltz in and take your precious little girl.

Aone tries to hold her closer but she uses her chunky little arms to push herself up as she stares back at you with her wide brown doe eyes like she knows what you’re talking about.

“They want to make it aware to you that the child you’re raising is biologically there’s, as far as they’re concerned though, they’d like to treat it as an adoption for the babies sakes.”

You look to your husband who gives you a silent nod and you let out a little sigh of relief.

Bokuto

He was incredibly emotional. How are you supposed to act when you find out your eight month old baby boy actually isn’t your son but he is your son because you have that connection with him?

“Bo” your voice is soft as you knock on the nursery room door he gazes up from his place on the floor where his arm is pulled through the rails of the crib by your little boy who sleeps obliviously to his dad’s distress.

“It’s gonna be ok…they called to see if we’d be willing to gain custody of their boy…the dad didn’t handle it to well…”

His brows furrow, “like twins” you watch as he lets out a wet giggle at his own idea.

“Kinda…” you’ve got a tiny smile as well and when you look over to your son he’s got a very tiny smile as well like he’s excited at the idea of gaining a brother.

Akaashi

(Based on this one lmn movie my mom made me watch with her except just how the kids end up being raised!)

It was your neighbor, she’d been pregnant at the same time went into labor same day and everything.

Of course, you didn’t think she would have went home with your baby, and you her’s. But when she had her paternity test come back as negative it threw her for a loop , thus beginning to unravel a whole story.

Thankfully she’d had the rest done pretty early so you could begin to raise the kids with both of you involved in their lives.

Akaashi seemed heart broken when she’d invited the three of you over for dinner and broke the news.

“I don’t think it would be right to take her from you…and I don’t want you to take my daughter either” she’s nervous you can tell with the way her eyes dart between the girls and she knows at her lip.

“But I also don’t think it’s very fair to deprive them of biological parents” both you and Akaashi nod.

“It’s definitely something to consider…” keiji whispers after she’d brought up doing alternating weekends with both girls, so every other weekend you’d have both the girls and they’d be raised basically like sisters, but on weekdays and days they simply didn’t want to go they would stay with the parents who’d raised them.

Akaashi thought it was best for the girls after he’d walked into the living room to see one of them crawl over to give her sister a block before giving her a slobbery kiss to the cheek.

Anywho!! Let me know if you guys want to see anything else because I love writing requests so much!!!

[damien-mlm]

Maeve Sweeney (The Boy Nanny OC)

Age: 25

Zodiac: Cancer - June 22nd

Gender: Trans feminine (MtF)

Height: 5'6 (169 cm) 

Ethnicity: Irish

Sexuality: Pansexual

Skin Color: White with a lot of freckles

Eye Color: Teal

Her Theme:

What was lost

TW: Transphobia, Religious Trauma, Hate Crime, Death by Fire

Maeve always knew who she was, from the very beginning in her young childhood. Her parents were always supportive as well, others? Not so much.

You see, Maeve was assigned male at birth, and when she expressed herself to be a girl as a kid, and her parents being open and welcoming of their daughter's identity, it did raise eyebrows in their small Irish Catholic community.

Their parents did everything to protect Maeve from their hatred, although they could only do so much when it came to the kids at her school. She was bullied by the children of the adults in the church. So Maeve had no friends growing up.

Primary school as a living nightmare for the poor girl, but, surprisingly, secondary school was a whole different story.

Times were changing and people were more accepting, even those kids who bullied her on behalf of their parents changed, they gained a mind of their own and, through critical thinking, realized their wrongdoings.

As Maeve grew, she begged her parents to let her have hormone blockers, and of course, after careful consideration and some visits with a gender therapist, she was allowed to have them. It did wonders on her self-esteem, and she began to expand herself and her self-expression further through art and music. She became wonderfully skilled at playing piano and sketching, as well as painting with inks and watercolors. 

As much as the kids around her were more decent as of late, she naturally had built up some walls to protect herself, and remained a loner during most of her school years. 

A year before graduating, one of the boys from her childhood tried to approach her again, he seemed friendly and genuinely regretful of what he had done, so Maeve opened a door for him to enter into the castle that was surrounding her heart. Truth was, as much as she wanted to be safe, she also longed for friendships and contact with others her same age. She was lonely, so she let him in.

His name was Joseph. He was the only son of one of the most strictly catholic families in town, and even if his parents had a tight hold on him, he knew that his parents' religious fanaticism and hatred towards the "unholy" was out of line.

Because of this, and to protect Maeve from his parents' catholic wrath, he kept his friendship with her a secret.

They met up after school, there was a forest near a cliff at the edge of town. That secret spot was theirs.

Maeve's parents knew about Joseph from the beginning, she never kept a secret from them. And they were concerned about the boy's intentions, but soon enough, they trusted him as well.

Maeve and Joseph have been inseparable since then. Every day, after school, Maeve would bring a basket with snacks and a blanket to lay on near the edge of the cliff. They shared quiet moments together and grew closer as the end of school was approaching.

Maeve wanted to become a professional pianist, or at the very least, a piano teacher. But most of all, she wanted to make her own family. She loved her parents dearly, but she wanted to experience the joy of being a mother to her own children. She knew it wasn't biologically possible for her to bear her own child, but she knew that she wanted to care for another life, another human being in need of her care and nurturing.

Secondary school finished, and she was 18, thus, she was able to go off hormone blockers and start HRT. It wasn't easy at first, the mood swings, the growing pains, the neverending need for chocolate whenever she got a new set of estrogen pills. But she was always grateful and beyond happy to be able to see herself as she truly was. 

Joseph was next to her through it all, always there for his friend. Though deep down he wished they were something more than that.

It was sad for everybody when Maeve left for Uni, her exceptional piano skills had gotten her a full scholarship at the University of Manchester to study Music. It was far from home, and from her one and only friend, but it was a step closer to her dream life.

Life at Uni really let her express herself further. She became more outgoing and social, and her skills and natural intelligence put her at the top of her class. She had to stay in Manchester until she graduated, though. Of course, she kept close contact with Joseph and her parents via video calls and text messages, but her parents weren't exactly able to pay for plane tickets every time she was on break, so even if she had new friends, she missed her family and her dear Joseph every day. None of them had realized that Joseph's phone was being secretly looked through by his domineering mother whenever he was asleep…

None of them were able to be there for her graduation and diploma ceremony, but they had a whole surprise planned for her for when she came back home.

She got off the plane and grabbed her luggage, soon enough, she spotted Joseph in the crowded airport. They both ran and embraced each other, full of joy and excitement. Joseph quickly led her to his car, practically running with her luggage on his back, smiling like a child.

"What hurry is on you?" Maeve asked, giving a small laugh as Joseph pushed her to get in the car.

"Just wait and you'll see!" He said, playfully before starting his engine and speeding off to Maeve's home. It was getting dark and it was pouring, as usual, but Maeve felt alive and happy to be back home.

Both of them got drenched in cold water as they exited the vehicle and approached the house. Never noticing the small car that had been following them from the airport.

Joseph opened the door for Maeve, and she was met with a dark room. Not a second later, the lights turned on. The interior was decorated with golden balloons and a big sign that read WELCOME HOME, her parents and a sopping wet Joseph exclaimed "Surprise!!!". Maeve hugged her parents in a tight embrace, happy tears running down her cheeks. 

"Oh! I almost forgot!" her mum said, before scurrying to the kitchen and coming back with a cake covered in strawberry frosting and gold colored letters at the top that spelled Congratulations on your Music diploma!. Her dad whipped a sparkler out of his pocket, lit it up and placed it on the cake as a finishing touch.

Maeve was speechless, her gaze darted between her parents and Joseph, words failing her as she tried to thank them for the surprise.

"Welcome home, little bird" her dad said sweetly as he gave her another warm hug. 

"Thank you all so much, I've missed you so badly" she said, still in tears.

"We've missed you too, my dear girl" said her mum, settling the cake down on the table to give Maeve a hug of her own.

Joseph couldn't contain himself any longer, he gently grabbed Maeve's face and pulled her into a deep, loving kiss, one thumb stroking away at her happy tears.

His parents barged through the door at that moment, they had been watching the entire exchange and were enraged at the events that unfolded.

"Get that filthy creature away from my son!" Joseph's mother screamed, his father pushed Maeve at the wall.

Joseph punched his father in the stomach then went to Maeve's side to check on her. She was sitting on the floor, wide-eyed and immobile from shock, as her mum tried to pull Joseph's mother out the door. Her dad was wrestling with Joseph's father, who was still trying to attack Maeve.

The mad woman had pushed Maeve's mum out of her way and yelled from the top of her lungs as she pulled out a molotov cocktail from inside her raincoat "In the name of God, I'll send this unholy creature back to hell! BACK TO WHERE HE BELONGS!!" 

It all happened too fast, in a split second fire erupted in the house, Joseph's mother hadn't considered distance or aim. The liquid fire splashed on all of them, Joseph covered most of Maeve's body with his own.

Searing pain and heat resulted in the desperate screams of all the people in the house, Joseph, with his entire back in flames, tried his best to take Maeve out of the house and under the rain. As soon as they made it out, Joseph collapsed face first on the front lawn and Maeve had realized her left arm and parts of her back had caught on fire, the sting from the icy water that fell from the sky made more intense by her injuries.

The house was engulfed in flames, the screams of both her and Joseph's parents long gone.

She spent several months in the hospital healing from her wounds, she had 3rd degree burns on her back, nape and left arm. 

Joseph died of his injuries after a week.

Once she was discharged from the hospital, and all legal matters were settled, Maeve Sweeney moved away from Ireland, back to Manchester. 

She got to know what true loneliness and emptiness felt like. She had nobody left. No family, no real friends. She was alone in the world.

On the outside, she seemed to have her matters in order. On the inside, she was broken and riddled with grief. Still, she didn't give up, and kept striving for that warm feeling of love and familiarity that she missed so much. She would feel like home again, no matter what.

A/N: Welp! Here she is! And as it is usual with my characters, she has a gutwrenching story on her back.

I hope you guys enjoyed this, as short and as straight to the point as it was.

I'll be writing more about her soon, but as always, my ask box is open for any and all questions u might have about her and her journey ✨

Taglist: @mr-trick @rottent33th @slaasherslut @the-pinstriped-hood @allthingsblood @texaschainsawslvt @angxlslasher @kalid-raven

[soldrawss]

Sol i need headcanons for the brothers, please im begging you

BRUH I GOT YOU

I’m currently working on some little fics for them BUT I CAN GIVE YOU SOME DETAILS BECAUSE I’M DYING TO SHARE

(Warning, gets a little dark towards the middle, but overall fine. Sorry for the long read. I went for a DEEP dive on the Age Gap Au)

Ace was put into foster care 4 hours after his birth. His father died before he was born and his mother died during childbirth. Ace had nothing to his name but physical traits of the dead (Like his father's sharp eyes and his mother’s freckles) He grew up with a need to prove himself and to gain something that truly belonged to him all on his own.

Sabo was placed in foster care when he was 5 because of an altercation with his abusive and possesive parents, involving him having broken ribs and running away.

Ace and Sabo met in a halfway home for troubled youths when they were 6. (They both had issues with authority and past placements in foster homes, so they quickly bonded over that, and decided to stick together ever since)

Their bond was so strong that ‘honorary’ brothers didn’t really fit them. They were brothers. And they stuck together and stood up for one another like it was them against the world (which sometimes it was)

They would often run away from the halfway home they were at, trying to earn a living on their own on the streets, and often commit petty thefts in order to survive. 

These little runaway trips wouldn’t last long though, because they were always caught by Officer Garp, a police officer that happened to have a knack for catching little runaways.

However tough Garp acted though, he had an incredibly big soft spot for these two little brats that were only trying to make their lives better. These two kids, barely 8 years old, who had so much hatred for the world because of adults in their lives that failed them. Adults that hurt them, giving them scars and bruises on their hearts just as easily as the scars and bruises on the little frames. 

After a particular runaway incident, Ace breaks down and confesses about all the horrible placements he and Sabo had been in before. How social services always judge Ace’s sharp eyes and label in a problem child, how Sabo’s quick wit always get him in trouble with the adults, how they both have scars and bruises from past foster homes they were placed in, and that's why Ace and Sabo runaway. They’re tired of getting placed in bad homes. They’re tired of having adults try to separate them. Ace is all Sabo has and vice versa because that's the only person in the whole world who they trust to not hurt them. And Garp thinks that’s the last fucking straw.

Garp, much to Ace and Sabo’s but nobody else’s surprise, adopts both the boys, and takes them into his own home. Because dammit, if they’re just gonna runaway, they might as well stay with someone who will at least love them enough to always look for them and bring them back to a good home when they do.

And it’s weird at first, because Garp is the rough and loud and nosey officer that used to grab them by the scruffs of their shirts and drag them back to that awful halfway home kicking and screaming. But then it gets better. Because he still yells at them, but it’s with a tempered and fiercely protective love it when he does. He still grabs them, but it’s just to pull them into a rough bear hug that they fervently pretend they don’t like. And every dinner is spent with tears of laughter in their eyes and cheeks warm with delight at the stories he tells them. (They call him old man with affection and he’s their father figure even though they treat him like their grandpa.)

Sabo joins his school’s baseball team! Which is so freaking cool! He’s a really strong batter, can weild a bat like it’s an extension of his own arm, and Ace and Garp are always the loudest cheers on the bleachers every home run hit Sabo makes.

Garp makes Ace take up boxing, because the kid’s got a lot of pent-up rage and aggression, and he figures it’s a good constructive sort of therapy for the rowdy brat.

The two still get up to mischief every now and again, though. Nothing illegal, but Garp is still having to wrangle up his two little idiots before they do something stupid. (They get into a lot of fights with local gangs because they have smart mouths and are still a little reckless)

Garp has a biological son that Ace and Sabo never met due to Garp’s and Dragon’s strained relationship. Garp had always bad-mouthed him whenever his son was brought up, but it was always with words that had no heat behind them, and Sabo and Ace could tell there was a sadness behind his eyes whenever he looked at the picture of his son in his wallet.

The boys were 10 when they got the news of Dragon’s death a week after it happened. Garp had gotten the phone call when he and the boys were watching some late-night trash tv on the weekend, and he had all but strangled the phone in a grip that turned his knuckles white. He didn’t say what had killed his son, (he never did), but he had told the boys he needed to take care of something, told them to pack up some of their things, dropped them off at his friend Newgate’s house, and got the quickest flight out that night.

He came back 3 days later, and when he did, he had a tiny little baby with him.

Ace and Sabo were no strangers to babies. There was always some snot-nosed kid that would get dropped off at the halfway home (and then adopted that week, because everybody loved babies), and they were pretty sure this baby wasn’t gonna be any different. Because babies were loud and gross and never stopped crying, and Ace and Sabo were prepared for the absolute worse.

But then they stood over the baby’s crib to get a good look at him, and the baby looked back.

And smiled the biggest and happiest smile Ace and Sabo had ever seen.

And Garp had said “His name is Luffy,” and Ace and Sabo had been hooked around his little finger ever since. 

Luffy was barely 6 months old, and was a bundle of chubby cheeks and contagious giggles. With big brown chocolate colored eyes that melted all the sharp corners and edges of Ace’s and Sabo’s hearts.

Because Sabo and Ace were the same age, and neither one of them felt like the older or younger brother. They were equals in every way. But it was different with Luffy. Because Luffy was tiny, and soft and could barely wrap all 5 of his little fingers around one of theirs, and it hit Sabo and Ace like a bullet train because oh.

 Oh this is what it was like to be an older brother. This was what it was like to have a little brother. And Sabo and Ace have always looked out for each other, of course. But Luffy was something they had to protect fully and with their entire being. His smile, his laughter, his heart. All of it. Sabo and Ace knew all the horrible things in the world, knew all the hatred and fear and heartbreak the world could throw at you and it was like a silent promise to each other they never verbalized, that Luffy should and would never have to go through the things they went through. He would never feel unloved. He would never feel unwanted. He would never feel like he had to prove his worth or reason for existing. (He was worth more than any price anyone could give anyway)

Sabo and Ace stopped getting into trouble. They got good grades, excelled in their respective clubs, and didn’t give Garp any reason to chase them down in his old cop car and bring them home. (They were always at home anyway, giving Luffy piggyback rides and teaching him how to ride a bike and do one-handed handstands and cartwheels, and basking in the warmth that was Luffy’s endless love) And they lived in peace like that for 5 years.

Then the fire happened.

Garp was a good police officer and an even better Deputy Chief, and for almost 40 years, he served on the Foosha County Police Department. He had put away a lot of bad guys and saved a lot of people in the process and was an honored and highly respected man. However, this also made him a big target and earned him quite a few enemies. He was 3 weeks away from retirement and spending most of those weeks staying at home, playing with Luffy, and ingnoring the last of his paperwork left on his office desk.

When the fire broke out, Ace and Sabo had just turned the corner from the bus stop on their way home from school. They had seen the smoke, but didn’t know where it was coming from till they saw the towering blaze of fire that used to be their 2 story home and the group of neighbors surrounding the outside. 

They managed to push their way to the front, hands shaking and eyes wide and absolutely breathless, because that was their house! That was their house that was one fire and where was gramps?! Where was Luffy?!

The only thing Ace heard Sabo whisper among the roar of the fire and the loud murmur of people around them was “Do you hear that? That... crying?” Before Sabo surged forward.

Ace didn’t have time to reach out and stop him, and by the time he could, Sabo had already disappeared into the open front door, which was covered in flames. He had screamed out, tried to race in and follow his brother into the flames, but the neighbors around him were quicker than he was and pulled him back. 

Edward Newgate, one of their neighbors and close personal friend of Garp’s was in the crowd, and he was holding Ace to his chest with an arm like an iron bar, as he was on the phone with the local fire department. (Newgate was also the Foosha County fire chief, and was shouting at his lieutenants to “get your asses out here now!’) But Ace didn’t hear a word he was saying. All he could do was struggle to get out of the older man’s grip, reach out for his brother and best friend, and scream his lungs out.

What felt like hours went by, and Ace felt like his heart was shattering into a million piece, the glass shards falling around him, as he sobbed into Newgate's chest, thinking he had lost everything. His home. His family. His only purpose and reason for living.

And then some of the neighbors were shouting again, only this time in surprised alarm and Ace looked up with hazy eyes blurred by tears, to see something was coming out of the front door.

And it could only be Sabo. Ace knew it was him before he could even register it, and bolted out of Newgate's grips that had slacked at the surprise and towards his brother.

Ace met Sabo only a few feet from the door, Sabo collapsing into his arms, and Ace had to pull him the extra few feet away because the flames were still too much to bear even at that distance.

And Sabo’s skin was hot and red and covered in smoke and ash alike. There was a giant welting red burn against the side of Sabo’s face that looked like it would leave a scar forever, but Ace was having a hard time focusing on it because he was too bust focusing on the bundle of blankets that Sabo was desperately trying to push into Ace’s arms.

And Ace was already crying before, but he began crying even harder when he removed the fold of blankets to reveal a muffled Luffy, covered in ash but unharmed, crying his eyes out. 

Sabo had a coughing fit that rocked his whole body, and burns that looked like they'd hurt forever, but he was smiling when Ace broke into a sob, clutching both Sabo and Luffy into his chest.

The firefighters and paramedics came a few minutes later, and they had to physically pull Sabo and Luffy from Ace’s arms to check and treat them. Luffy only ended up with a few mild burns and cuts on his arms and legs and some burning of his throat from inhaling so much smoke, but Sabo had to be taken to the hospital immediately for his burns, especially for the one on his face. Ace pleaded to let them all ride in the same ambulence on the way to the hosipital, and held on to Sabo’s shirt sleeve with a grip that would take the end of the world and then some for him to let go.

Sabo had to get some surgery and treatment to save his left eye, but he was all in all ok, and Ace and Luffy were allowed to visit his hospital room for as long as they needed.

When Ace finally confronted Sabo on why he had ran into the house in the first place, it was on the first night of their hospital stay. Sabo had a giant white gauze wrapping half of his head, and he looked at Ace with tired blue eyes that looked a little fuzy, still a little drugged from all the medication he was on to ease the pain. 

And Ace felt bad about it, he really did, because Sabo didn’t derserve to be grilled on the matter. Not after he had sacrificed himself and saved Luffy. Their little brother. Their little brother who they wouldn’t even have anymore if it weren’t for Sabo. 

But Ace had to know. He was so mad and heartbroken and scared out of his mind when Sabo had rushed in without word or warning. Because they had lost Garp. They had almost lost Luffy. And Ace could have almost lost Sabo too.

But Luffy was tucked underneath Sabo’s arm on the hospital bed, and Sabo just smiled at Ace with a patience that only Ace and Luffy could pull out of him, and patted the other side for Ace to join them. Ace climbed onto the bed beside him, and even with the two 15-year-olds and one little 5 year old, the bed didn’t feel too small at all.

Sabo explained that he could hear crying from the door and he just moved. Knowing it was Luffy before his mind could really think about the implications behind that. He confessed how the flames hurt at first. Hurt so bad, and it was so hot, and everything, from the floor to the ceiling, was on fire and he could barely see anything through the smoke. But he could hear Luffy’s little rough and horse scream, coming from one of the back rooms that used to be Garp's office, and suddenly all Sabo could afford to think about was Luffy’s crying.

Sabo would tell a watered-down version of this story to the cops in the morning, because they were Garp's friend and companions, and they only really needed the broad details for their report anyway. 

He’ll tell a heroic version of this story, lacking any horrific graphics, to an older Luffy whenever the eternally curious kid wonders and asks about it.

But he only ever told the whole story right then on that night, one arm tight around his baby brother in a toothed and protective love, while the other one gripped his best friend's hands with shaking and bandaged fingers hard enough to leave bruising.

Garp was long dead when Sabo found him. The smell of his skin burning off is something that will haunt Sabo for the rest of his life. (Sometimes certain smells will set him off. Uncooked bacon is not allowed in the house anymore after one traumatic morning when Luffy is six. Campfires are viewed and enjoyed from a distance.)

He was lying on his stomach, clutching something to his chest. Sabo knew it was Luffy by the cries, bundled up in a few quilts and one of this office rugs, and Sabo knew he had to get them out of there before the smoke killed them off like it had a personal agenda against them.

The heat was unbearable, Sabo had confessed, but it was nothing compared to having to drag Luffy from underneath Garp’s grip. The old man was built like a brick house, sure, but even in death, his grip on Luffy, protecting Luffy, like he was daring the world to take anything away from him, was steadfast and almost unbbreakable. 

It was the hardest thing Sabo had ever had to make himself do.

He didn’t look at Garp’s face. His body was burned black and bloody and raw, and Sabo couldn’t live with himself if his memory of Garp’s face was replaced by anything other than with the one of his scruffy beard and the shit-eating grin that he always wore.

When he pulled Luffy out, he didn’t look back, and raced out of the house as fast as he could. Something along the way fell and smacked him in the face, knocking him down at one point, but Sabo couldn’t pay it much mind. He got back up, and continued towards the door. He could barely see, barely breathe, with all the smoke and the ash, and the pain from the fire was almost numbing against his skin, but he didn’t stop.

All he could think about was Luffy, still struggling and crying against the blankets wrapped tightly around him. Next thing he knew, he was outside, and looking up at Ace’s snot-covered face.

Ace had never seen Sabo cry for the almost 10 years he knew him. He didn’t cry when he was 7, and the Anderson family had called him a freak and had sent him back after a failed foster home placement. He didn’t cry when he was 9, and broke his arm falling out of the tree in their backyard that Garp had told him not to climb, so of course he had to climb it. And he didn’t even cry earlier that day, at 15, when he was off medication and feeling the full extent of his painful burns.

So when tears started pooling out of Sabo’s pale blue eyes, falling down his cheeks and staining the cotton white blanket he was under as he told his story, Ace pretended not to notice, wrapped an arm around Sabo’s shoulders, and held him like it was the only lifeline in the world. 

Garp’s funeral was held the following week. Closed casket. All the police departments in the county, and even some outside of it, showed up to give him a full send-off. Ace cried for both Sabo and himself. Sabo spoke a few words for the both of them. And Luffy stood between them, holding both their hands. They explained the night before that gramps was gone, but they don’t think the notion of death really got through to Luffy. He was crying, but only because Ace was crying, and when he asked ‘can gramps come out of the box to give me a hug before he goes away?’ everyone has to clench their teeth and hold their breaths to stop their hearts from breaking. Sabo kneeled down to wrap Luffy in a tight hug. Ace covered his face with his arm and cried harder

(They never bother asking Luffy about how the fire started, or what happened that day. Luffy doesn’t remember, and they don’t push it further. The truth isn’t as important as Luffy’s mentality is, but Garp’s old squad promises that they won’t rest until they get to the bottom of it. And as much as Ace and Sabo want justice and revenge, they have Luffy to think about, so they leave it up to the police)

Sabo and Ace are almost 16, and they suddenly have no parental figure, no home, no anything, and suddenly they’re faced with the horrible notion that even more can be taken from them when a blast from their past threatens to take Luffy away from them too.

They’re no stranger to the foster care system, so when social services show up at the motel they were renting with Garp’s savings, they feel their hearts drop to their stomach for fear of the very real possibility that Luffy will be placed in immediate foster care, and possibly, so would they. 

Ace and Sabo jump into action then, because no way, no fucking way, were they gonna lose Luffy. They had lost everything else. They almost did lose Luffy. They weren’t gonna risk that chance again.

Ace was only a few weeks older than Sabo. Sabo hadn’t paused a second to jump into the fire, risking life and limb, to protect what little they had. It was Ace’s turn to be the heroic older brother. And on the day he turned 16, Ace petitioned legal guardianship and parental rights for Sabo and Luffy.

And it was hard, because of course the courts felt sorry for him, the grandson of one of the best police chiefs in the county’s history, begging the courts to let him keep what little family he had left together. The courts wanted to give it to him, wanted to help him. But Luffy was a child. And Ace and Sabo were practically still kids themselves. Asking kids to raise themselves was something no one should ask them to do. 

But Ace and Sabo fought for it. Ace was 16, and Sabo would be 16 soon enough. They could get GED’s, no problem. They’d get jobs, get a little apartment near Luffy’s school, attend any parenting and child service meeting required of them. They’d buy all the necessities over again and they’d love Luffy where no other foster family could even compare. They’d do everything, everything and anything, to keep Luffy. To let them stay together.

With a couple of vouchers from Garp’s old police squad, including one from an overly enthusiastic Edward Newgate and one from the boy’s homeroom teacher, Makino, the courts ruled in Ace’s and Sabo’s favor, and Luffy was officially theirs until they proved that Luffy was better off somewhere else.

Ace and Sabo were never gonna let that happen.

They got a little 2 bedroom apartment a couple blocks from Luffy’s elementary. They quit school, and worked extra hard to earn their GED’s within the following months. (With the help of their old teachers and a few of their overly enthusiastic neighbors)

Ace got a job at the local fire department, as a rookie in training under Newgate.

Sabo got a job at the local news station, writing reports on top of his interning duties. 

Ace eventually got a motorcycle that same year, which scared Sabo half to death and delighted Luffy to no end. It was cheaper than a car, and easier to travel to and from work on, and no matter how hard Sabo tried, he couldn’t come up with a valid reason why Ace shouldn’t use it to their advantage. So Sabo made Ace promise to always wear a helmet when riding it, and that Luffy wasn’t allowed to ride it until he was much older. (Which Luffy pouted about to no end)

And it’s hard at times, both of them working overtime just to make enough to support themselves and keep them afloat, but it’s good, and it’s theirs.

Luffy makes a friend on his first day of first grade named Zoro Roronoa, another kid that lives just across the street from them, and when Ace and Sabo know they’re gonna be late in getting home, Luffy goes over there and hangs out until they can pick him up (Which is totally fine with Zoro’s father Koushirou, a kendo teacher and single father of 6-year-old Zoro and 9-year-old Kuina. Zoro has a bit of a personality problem and often has trouble making friends (because the child doesn’t see a need to) so when little bright-eyed and endlessly joyful Luffy pops into their life, Kushirou jumps at the chance to have him over as much as possible, because the two small children seem to bring out the best in each other, and are best friends attached at the hip) Sabo and Ace are eternally grateful to the kind man)

A few years go by, and Luffy is 8. Ace is still working at the fire station and is now legally allowed to join them on calls and emergencies. (Fire used to make Ace nervous, because he almost lost everything to it. Now he has a personal agenda with it, to make sure it doesn’t take anything from anyone else)

Sabo has moved up the ranks now, and when he turns 18, confronts Ace with a rare job opportunity he was offered.

“It’s a year-long internship for this really cool company that reports and delivers high-class diplomatic information around,” Sabo starts, rubbing the back of his head like he doesn’t know what to do with his hands. “I’d be working as like, a cool undercover spy with diplomatic immunity and a messenger bag. It’s not dangerous at all, and pays almost triple my paycheck now, which would really help us out. But it’s overseas, and I’d be gone for a whole year. You’d be raising Luffy all by yourself, birthdays and holidays and skinned knees, with just the two of you, so say the word, and I’ll totally turn this job down on the spot.”

And it’s scary to Ace. Because he hasn’t been alone since he was 6 years old, and he can’t possibly remember a time when Sabo hadn’t been by his side. His best friend and brother. It was always the two of them. Two little runaways that found a home, lost that home, and then built a new home all on their own despite it all. And neither of them had ever been away from Luffy for longer than a weekend, so Ace was sure it would kill Sabo to be away from them for so long.

But he also knew that Sabo was only playing this off like it wasn’t a big deal, when in fact it was the job opportunity of a lifetime for someone like Sabo, a kid who breathed adventure and freedom with every breath. And that when he talked about it, his eyes sparkled with a joy that Ace would hate himself forever for taking it away. 

Sabo was giving Ace the choice, and Ace knew that Sabo would go along with whatever Ace decided without a second thought or complaint. But Ace knew that Sabo would regret it for the rest of his life if he didn't go, so he slugged Sabo in the arm, gave him his best shit-eating, confident grin, (the kind he used to give him right before they were about to steal some food as kids, or about to get into a fight when they were teens) and said, “You let me have a motorcycle. The least I can do is let you go road tripping abroad.”

Because Ace and Luffy would be fine. They’d miss Sabo like crazy, and Ace was pretty sure Sabo was like, 90% of his impulse control, but they’d survive. Sabo had the burn marks to prove how far he was willing to go for their family, and Ace had never thanked him for that. Ace was never gonna live that down, and was going to spend the rest of his life making it up to both Sabo AND Luffy, and prove just how good of an older brother he could be. This was the least he could do for them.

[rowaelinismyotp]

12 Days of Rowaelin Masterlist

2021-22

[my ao3]

{* multi-parter}

The Way Back | Day 1: A Holiday Miracle

Rowan Whitethorn has always hated Aelin Galathynius. And vice-versa- it was a rule of the universe at this point. But maybe it doesn't have to be.

Back to December | Day 2: First Snowfall

She would give anything, anything, to go back to that fateful day in December and make things right again. Before their divide had become impossible to cross.

Day 3: A Winter Ball

* The Simp Falls, In More Than One Way | Day 4: A Winter Activity Gone Wrong 

Ice skating was not on Rowan's fun list of things to do at the holiday excursion his bosses were running, but when he finds out Aelin is going too, well, maybe he could be open to changes.

Every Dad’s Nightmare | Day 5: Yulemas on the Southern Continent

The last thing Rowan wanted to know- or see- during his vacation to the Southern Continent was his daughter getting it on with the son of the family they were staying with. It was just too bad nothing ever went the way he wanted.

Day 6: Accidental Mistletoe

* The Eight Wonders of Erilea | Day 7: Holiday Traditions

The last way Aelin thought she would spend her winter vacation was traveling around Erilea, visiting the Eight Wonders with her boyfriend. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to, it had only been her dream since birth, but it still felt exactly like that. A dream. One that she prayed she would never wake up from.

Day 8: An Ugly Sweater Competition

Day 9: First Holiday Season Together

Puppy Love | Day 10: Unexpected Guests

When Aelin Galathynius finds out she can’t have biological kids, she’s crushed beyond belief. Unbeknown to her, across town, her husband crafts a plan to show her that it doesn’t matter if their kids are biologically theirs or not- just as long as they get to raise them together and be a family.

Day 11: Our Car Broke Down in a Blizzard

Day 12: Fake Dating for the Holidays