#and then i have the audacity to be UPSET that i'm not getting the results i want 🙄 when it's literally my own fault

[goth-mami-writer]

Hi there! So here's my idea. The reader (medic officer) and leon just come out as a new couple and they're happy until one day they get draft for a mission and there meet the one and only Ada Wong that they have to cooperate for the mission. Leon is paying way more attention and all over Ada that he almost disregard the reader. She tries to be understanding and softly communicate with Leon but it turns into an argument. The reader gets upset and misunderstand Leon that he is very not much over with his "the one that got away". Leon regrets the things he said and tries to talk to her but she proceeds to avoid Leon at all costs. Que the enemies attack their base and the reader sees that the enemy is aiming to shoot Ada and at the last minute takes the critical hit for her while thinking that Leon would be heartbroken if Ada dies. Reader flatline a couple of times. I would like to know how Leon would react to this. Let's end it with a happy note ^^

▪︎~ Wildflower ~▪︎

~(AU) Leon Kennedy × f!Reader angst/jealousy work @bat-yo-us ♡

《 You stood there beside him outside of the artillery bunker that afternoon and felt your lip quivering with heartbreak. You stiffened up your trembling mouth, knowing any second you'd be blurting out the words you once thought you'd never say to his face even with a gun to your head.

But you were ready.

“Listen-” Leon began knowing just by the look on your face that you were making decisions that he couldn't change your mind on no matter what he had to say about it,

“I know I've been saying and doing things here lately that…have made you think-”

“Made me think?” You asked him, laughing with tears in your eyes at the audacity he had.

“No, not made me think. More like: made me know- made me fucking realize-”

You put your head in your hands, laughing more at the thought of your once pure, dumb hope that this would ever work after the turmoil of the past few weeks.

“And I'm done.” You said finitely until suddenly the base's sirens rang with their whirring, metallic urgency that filled the air overhead all at once. You looked in the distance to see enemy vehicles piling into the dirt lot after surging through the gated barricade by force.

“Get inside.” Leon said, watching the dirt spin away from their tires with a charging speed, and together, you both ran towards the closest underground bunker that was already flooded with the officers and personnel directing the others inside.

You heard your chief director calling for all on the unit to line in for roll call and your heart was racing trying to prepare yourself for the many casualties and injuries that might result from an enemy raid right now. The medical staff was short handed to begin with and you knew your work wouldn't be done for well into the morning with this.

“How many on unit?” One of the deputies called that oversaw the emergency protocol.

“Sixty.” One of the lesser privates answered and then called out the count that made your bones chill.

“Fifty nine present.”

Leon looked around with the others, trying to find who was missing and you did the same. You thought of your other medics and the doctors onboard the base too. All were here, you reached out to touch their hands to somehow guarantee your racing mind that they were in fact safe. But you stopped.

Ada. It was Ada.

“Wong!!” The chief director said, making the emergency officer call out the same to try and find where in the lineup Ada was. But only you and Leon knew.

He turned to you, asking if Ada ever came out of the artillery bunker and you shook your head in terror. You knew exactly why she didn't hear the raid sirens and you said to Leon gravely with fear in your voice,

“She's down in the stronghold. It's concrete. She can't hear a thing down there.”

Leon’s eyes went wide knowing that the downstairs of the artillery bunker would be one of the first things to be potentially raided due to its vast supply of weaponry and ammunition. He turned, not knowing who to tell first that Ada was still out there and someone would have to go out amid this enemy storm to get her back to safety.

You watched Leon's chest rise and fall with the thought of Ada being in danger and you felt that was the only image to prompt what needed to happen next. She was special and there just wasn't a way for you to argue it anymore. You swallowed the hot, heavy lump in your throat and your feet took flight against the ground to get you back upstairs.

Leon had already turned, preparing to tell the emergency staff of Ada's whereabouts but seeing you flee frantically to escape back to the surface was enough to make him charge forward. He screamed your name as you raced upstairs, now tapping your badge to the entry scanner to allow you outside and your feet pounded to the dirt.

This was insane. Here you were racing to save your boyfriend's ex from trouble. But it was more than that wasn't it?, you thought as you heard gunfire and enemy commands to detain anyone onsight. Ada made Leon happy. As much as you hated it. She was different from you and it was that simple.

You didn't want to be a hero that brought her back to safety. You just Leon to be happy knowing someone he cared about was free from danger.

~2 weeks prior.

~3 miles north, southbound enclave.

“Kennedy- tell your girl that we got a few wounded up here that we'll need looked at when we make camp.” Your chief directorate radioed in over the comms placed inside the military jeep taking you both south to the neighboring base located outside of Racoon City.

You had met in the months prior, doing recon in the city and around the outskirts. In the few times Leon himself had been wounded, you were always his favorite on the med staff and he knew right away that he liked you. After trying his luck, you two had decided to commit and come out as official even amid the ongoing chaos of a fallen city.

“10-4.” Leon said into the comms and looked at you smiling in the passenger seat.

You weren't used to being called his girl yet and it was still an instant feeling of giddiness that always made your lips turn up in a grin.

Leon looked over to see you basking in your little moment of bliss and he questioned with a chuckle although it was something he already knew the answer,

“What are you smirking at over there?”

“I'm not…smirking.” You said with a shake to your head as he drove, watching his gloved hands wrap around the steering wheel.

“Sorry-” He said shifting gears without even a glance downwards,

“Guess a shit-eating grin is better to call it, huh?”

You slapped his arm, watching as he clearly enjoyed the playful banter as well as you did. He teased you more with comments that you could never admit to enjoying and finally you said flirtatiously across the seat, watching as the neighboring base appeared on the horizon.

“You know, I've got a little syringe in my bag that could fix that mouth of yours?”

“You wouldn't-” He said looking over with a grin.

“You think I wouldn't?” You said slyly, “Why's that?”

“Cause I'm the one driving.” He joked cockily, slowing down as the guards from the front gates held up their hands for the car to stop for inspection before being given clearance. You laughed loudly as he showed your IDs and then sighed in love that this was your new normal.

When you both received clearance and met after the hours of menial work patching wounds and giving injections, you found him again inside one of the supply tents, well into a conversation with someone you couldn't make out from their obscured view behind others passing through. But when you got close enough, your heart dropped to see Ada Wong.

Leon in the past had mentioned her and their falling out when escaping the now ruins of Racoon City. You quickly became confused as to why and how you were seeing them together this way and you approached cautiously.

When you became close enough, Leon turned and introduced you to the woman who warmed you with a smile. Immediately, from what you'd heard, her warm, kindred way of smiling seemed venomous to you but here infront of Leon, you swallowed the distrust you had.

“I'm Ada. Very nice to meet you. She is pretty, Leon. You were right.”

You brushed away that compliment just for now and watched the way that Leon smiled when he graced her with a moment more of conversation. Ada stated that she was working with some of the higher-ups into getting more federal help with providing aid and medicine and that she'd be around often.

“Well, I certainly won't talk your ear off, Leon. We'll catch up later.” She mentioned with another half smile that just felt artificial to you somehow and prowled away as she began reading from notes gathered in her hands.

You looked to Leon whose gaze seemed to linger as she made her exit and you watched too for another moment. There was a voice in your head telling you that now that you'd met Ada, you understood why Leon almost never brought her up. It was more than likely to protect your feelings.

She walked like the earth was made for her perfect feet. She was slender with hardly an ounce of curve in the wrong spot. It was an exterior that money couldn't buy and God could only make once. There just wasn't a flaw even if you were only looking for them.

You looked up to Leon, hoping to snap him back to the present and you mentioned with a false tone of curiosity,

“So, I guess you two…are made up? After she pointed a gun at you?”

Leon picked up quickly that you weren't pleased by the sight of him chatting with Ada so casually after the events that had befallen them previously and he mentioned, trying nicely to ease your concern,

“She wasn't going to shoot me.”

“Hm-” You said full of doubt to that assumption you thought was a rather poor one,

“I think it's the intention that counts.”

Leon paused, telling you with words that he knew he needed to choose wisely given the delicate situation,

“You don't need to worry about Ada. That…that part of our story is done. It's..completely different now.”

You nodded, wanting with all of yourself to believe it. Leon had given you no reason not to trust him in the past so you gave him the benefit of the doubt, deciding that the past was indeed past. Feelings change and people certainly do as well. You shared kinder, more soft words before parting for the night and decided to rest the issue.

In that next week, it was normal for you to find Leon grouped up with Ada somehow, either coming back from recons or loading supplies out onto the GPW's for runs to the other bases. It was hard to find even yourself talking to Leon with how much you had on your plate. This was one of the more populated bases near the city so you always had something to finish or begin yourself.

One day, you were crouched down preparing a suture on an officer that was sleeping peacefully with a sedative and your hair kept falling into your face messily as you worked with sterile gloves. Your back ached from having to lean over in this process and you felt as two small hands brushed back your choppy bangs in a gentle comb of their fingers.

You flinched to the first touch but felt even more on edge realizing that it was Ada that stood over you now. She whispered, not knowing how strong the man's anesthesia was exactly and mentioned in her soft tone,

“Let me pull your hair out of your eyes, girlfriend. Don't mind me.”

You felt as her fingers brushed back your tangles to comb them gently into place and she fastened your top bun back into the elastic you were using. After making sure the officer's sutures were secure on his leg wound, you unsurely thanked her. Not exactly certain why she would perform an act so kind when she hardly knew you.

“I wanted to tell you that we are phoning in for more staff upstate and we should be doubling our medical help by the end of the month. You work too hard and I'm tired of seeing you run so ragged to help these people.” Ada mentioned, crouching down beside you as you made a dressing for the man's completed stitches.

You could only look at her peripherally as you worked but you mentioned quietly amid the wrapping and unrolling of the white gauze,

“I- I appreciate that, I guess. I mean, the help would be nice. For sure.”

Ada nodded, knowing that's not all of what she wanted to say when she found you and then said more discreetly with her voice lowering due to the nature of her next words,

“I..also hope that it doesn't bother you that Leon and I are friends. Well..friends trying to work out our differences.”

You looked away for the first time since she'd appeared beside you and finally you said a little more brave, trying to shake away the nerves of what you thought to be insecurity,

“I'm not….bothered. I just don't…”

You lost your words and Ada nodded, knowing somehow exactly how you felt in case you were finding trouble in explaining it. She assured you that herself and Leon were platonic and that you needed to worry about absolutely nothing fishy between them.

Goddammit, you thought to yourself.

This is exactly what you didn't need. She could at least be a bitch- Or act like you didn't exist or hell just sleep with Leon and boast about it behind your back to justify your sense of distrust. But she was kind. And compassionate to your feelings. And here you were, jealous of nothing more than an assumption.

Who was the bitch now? You thought.

After a joke and a smile, you parted ways with a gentle wave before you moved to the next tent.

Maybe you were overthinking everything.

It had been a slow day for you the day that Ada walked up to you in the medical tent. She wanted help gathering a list of inventory for the medical surplus for her list being sent upstate and you obliged with a smile.

“Most of your unused stock is in the stronghold right?” She asked for clarification as you finished preparing an injection. You nodded saying that anything unused would always be down in the concrete stronghold below ground.

“Good deal.” She said checking her watch,

“You wanna meet me over there in thirty? We'll grab a bite after, you and me, if you want?”

Why was she being so nice? You wondered, making your guard come up once again but you agreed, trying your hardest to remember that you had put her past grievances behind you.

You hadn't seen Leon in atleast three days but weirdly after all that you'd thought about, the absence wasn't as critical as you thought. He was busy doing recon of course but it felt like you were teaching him a lesson in a subconscious way. You wanted to see how long it'd take for him to approach to ask you to see him.

When you arrived at the artillery bunker, you noticed some of the GPWs parked outside, meaning that Leon's unit had actually returned early which was surprising. You thought of trying to find him after nipping this task with Ada but you opened the door to realize he'd already been found.

Leon stood there, smiling mid conversation with her as she held her mouth with that alluring laugh that made your skin crawl. He'd forget everything in the years you'd spend with him but how would he ever forget the way her eyes lit up during that laugh that could change a room.

You wanted to make your presence known so you kicked over an empty box to let the clatter interrupt them quietly.

“There you are.” Leon said with his gaze shooting over and you could only glare when he approached, leaving Ada behind.

“I'll be down in the stronghold whenever you're ready, girlfriend.”

You only stared into him coldly, pursing your lips together to avoid saying something confrontational to Ada who was in fact above you in rank and Leon then asked seeing the heated look in your eye,

“Honey, what's wrong? We were just joking-”

“I'm so fucking sick of finding you with her, Leon. I've not seen you in days but conveniently you find Ada before me? You’re still in fucking love with her!” You said fearless, feeling as your hands shook from the adrenaline of finally addressing what had been on your mind for days. Leon scoffed before looking away, telling you somewhat guilt-less as he denied your accusation,

“Look, we were just talking. It's not like you just found us….fucking around or something?”

Your eyes widened and you nodded before turning to leave with a heavy footfalls that stomped your way outside,

“How about this? You can go fuck yourself.”

You felt invalidated completely now. As if you were blowing this whole thing out of proportion once again. You hadn't seen him in days, not only due to the tension but also due to his schedule and the first person he seems to reunite with is Ada. It felt insulting.

Leon chased behind you now, telling you stop so you could both work this out and you faced him outside the front doors. Unbeknownst to you both, Ada had only pretended to go downstairs. She watched as you two stopped outside the glass doors to the bunker, arguing about what undoubtedly had to be her influence on Leon. When she heard the raid sirens begin in the moments after, she was calm and calculated as she made her way to the reinforced stronghold.

Waiting to meet her armed associates when they arrived.

~~~

~During the Raid

“Ada!” You shouted from the top of the stairs after somehow slipping through the enemy fire. She turned around wide-eyed as she loaded her gun and found you in the shambles you sounded to be as you raced down the stairs.

“What are you doing?” She called out in disbelief as she saw your shadow moving through the pallets of supplies and ammunition towards her.

All you wanted was for Leon to be happy and tears streamed down your face as you told her that you were here to take her back to the main bunker and she shook her head, never thinking that anyone would actually risk their life to come down here and save her. She knew the people conducting this raid and knew you'd be killed on sight if they found you.

“You need to go, sweetie. I'm-”

“Ada, please. We can make it.” You begged before hearing thuds on the steel door at the top of the stairs. Ada told you again, more hushed and with emphasis that you needed to get out of there and fast but you refused.

Getting her out was all that you wanted. If it's what Leon wanted, it was your main priority. Even if you just weren't his.

You heard the footsteps coming down the stairs but you only saw the tactical flashlight burning into your eyes.

Ada can't die, you thought as you saw them pointing their weapons, bracing their trigger fingers to fire, Leon will never be the same.

You saw the muzzle flash of the bullet when they fired. But only Ada heard the shot.

You saw the ground next as your torso felt warm, then wet when you became still. Ada screamed to retrieve you but your body was numb to stop her from crying. Only your shaking hand rose as she knelt down next to you, pulling at you to get up, demanding that you hold on. But you held her instead.

In the minutes later, amid the booming of battering rams and defense teams making their lines of fire, you laid on a medical gurney with the doctors you worked beside rushing to keep you stable. Somehow. Leon was called inside the tent but told to stay out of the way of those maneuvering to save your life.

“We're losing pupillary!” One of the working medics called as they shined a small light into your retinas to gauge the failing response of your eyes in the light.

“Pulse is dropping!” One of the others cried as they watched your life slip away by the second on their wrist watch.

Leon's eyes watered and his hands met his head and defeat when he heard them scream for a defibrillator. He watched the paddles being pressed into your chest, your body surging in an upwards jump from the charge with no response. He held his mouth with the back of his hand, not knowing if he could watch any longer but he tried to get closer.

He stepped further into the tent, yelling between the chaos for you to come back and one of the med team pushed him back, begging him to clear the walkway but he was violent with his shove in pushing them away, telling you again to live with gravel in his shaking voice.

In that moment between your life being reduced to a flat, stagnant line on a screen, he wasn't sure if regretting the last few days would even suffice. He wanted to regret ever existing instead as his face was washed in tears.

Ada walked by the tent at that moment during the evacuation of the higher up staff. She looked into the tent, seeing you staring out with a glaze over your lifeless eyes but she kept walking after realizing that there wasn't hope. This was another stop on her way to finding her truth of Racoon City. Saying goodbye to Leon would be a mistake so silently she made her way forward, moving through the crowd that still surged in the presets of active turmoil. Of course a life lost was never the price she thought she'd pay but people change.

Even you knew that.

You fell into a coma when finally you were revived by some miracle that surprised them all. And Leon stayed by your side as you rested in the quiet ward set aside at one of the remaining medical centers closer to the heart of the city's defense. His nights were long and restless as he waited for you to be with him again. In his heart he knew that it was the very, very least he could do since you'd waited for him to wake up too in these last few days.

It was his turn now for patience, and his wait to see you once again had begun. 》

Loved writing this!! Send me more asks and I'd love to work with your ideas. ✌️🫶

[jangofettjamz]

Turn It Off!

Gentle!Wednesday x Autistic!Male!Reader

Summary: Wednesday comforts you after Enid almost sends you into sensory overload.

Words: 1076

Wednesday POV

Normally I would resent anyone who would even dare to think of asking me out, but that all changed when a particular psychic boy asked me to be his friend, and soon to be boyfriend.

Y/N L/N, a real gem among idiots.

I instantly took a liking to him, he's different from everything else and I soon came to find out why.

Y/N has autism spectrum disorder, which would be a valid explanation for some of his behaviour since coming to nevermore.

He's extremely shy, when he asked me to be his friend he almost broke at the seams. He's really nervous during any kind of social interaction with those he doesn't know.

Loud noises are especially irritable for him. Wolves howling in the quad would be torture for him, making him put his headphones on the second he sees them about to howl.

Meltdowns. Some imbecile thought it was funny to blast an air horn into his ears during lunch break, the result was Y/N having a meltdown with no one able to help him.

When we started talking I knew he felt a connection to me, he was a bit scared of me but also intrigued.

He's vastly intelligent, easily an IQ of 160. He's truly gifted with intelligence and that's coming from me. I'm not one to be humble.

When we started dating I took him to the weathervane, I didn't want to scare him like I did with everyone else. He's a fragile boy and didn't deserve that.

I wanted to protect him, to care for him and help where everyone elsen had failed him.

I love everything about him. I love the he'd hide his hands in his sleeves when he's shy. I love the way he talks about his favourite things in great detail. I love the way he could come to me when he's upset.

I love him, so very very much.

-

Me, Enid and Y/N are currently studying for our botany test next week. Enid, as usual, is procrastinating while me and Y/N have been studying since the test was announced.

We both go to reach for the eraser on the desk next to us, only for our hands to touch. I kissed the top of his hand making him blush madly, he really is cute; I hate myself for using that word.

Enid is dancing around her room being the foolish lycan that she is, she never ceases to amaze me how foolish she can be, its actually quite remarkable.

Suddenly, she decided it was a good idea to start blasting her incessant music out of her speakers, causing Y/N to cover his ears and whimper out of discomfort.

"Enid, turn it off" I said with a warning tone, though she only chose to ignore me and do her embarrassing dance moves in front of my face. Y/N began to whimper louder, making my anger with Enid rise to new heights.

"Enid turn it off!" I said louder; no effect was made.

"Why? It's getting boring in here, let's have some fun!" She said loudly, only adding to Y/N's discomfort. I was furious.

"ENID!" I shout, startling the both of them. "Can't you see that Y/N is getting upset because of your music blasting his ear drums apart, he's sensitive to noise you imbecile!" She looked over to Y/N to see him curled up in a ball with his hands over his ears, a guilty expression painting her face.

I point my finger to the door. "Get out" is all I say. She obeys and walks out with her head hung low. She knows about his noise sensitivity and yet she still does this, the audacity of some people.

Though my anger was strong and prevalent, I still heard faint whimpers from my side of the room. Y/N was still feeling uncomfortable after all that noise and was curled up in a ball on the floor by my desk. Thing was trying his best to comfort him, but nothing seemed to work.

I walk over to him and sit down opposite him with a gentle smile on my face. I patted my knees indicating for him to sit in my lap, he nodded and crawled into my lap and I hugged him tight, he preferred pressure over feather light touches.

He sniffled quietly, hoping I wouldn't notice. He looked away from so that I wouldn't see the tears streaming down his face like a river, as if I'd resent him for it. I pulled his face by his chin to look at me and offered a reassuring smile. I only ever smile for him.

"It's okay to cry in front of me, I won't be mad. Please don't be afraid to cry in front of me, I don't want you to be scared of me, darling." And with that he broke, he hid his face in my shoulder as I stroked his back, my blazer becoming wet with tears but I didn't care.

"I'm sorry Wednesday, I know you hate emotions." He said through his sobs. I felt my heart break a little, he thought I'd hate him for it.

"No it's okay, sweetheart, it's you so I don't mind at all. I would never be disappointed in you for being upset. Enid is the one I'm disappointed in, she should've been more mindful of your needs."

I pulled back from him. "Can I kiss you?" He nodded and I planted a gentle kiss to his lips. "Wanna cuddle for a bit?" He nodded again and I guided him to my bed.

We sat on the bed and I held him with a vice grip from behind. I wanted to reassure him that he's okay to be emotional around me. I had not realised he feared me so much.

"I won't leave you for being emotional Y/N, you know that right?" I whispered behind him. "I'm always here to listen you, I know it can be hard to operate somedays and it can be overwhelming for you, I'm hoping you'll let me in and help you and comfort you in any way I can." He turned around, he looked taken aback by what I said, I meant everything.

"You would do that? For me?" I smiled and nodded

"I'd do anything for you, mi amor." He leaned forward and kissed me gently, smiling against my lips which I happily returned.

Maybe I'm not unlike my mother and father after all...

[autism-autobot]

Flower of a Poisonous Seed Part 18

Part 17:

Sun Wukong had been rushed to the emergency room earlier that day by Nezha, and the Demon Bull Family were still anxiously awaiting their return.

The Demon Bull King was pacing around the living room, the inciting scenario replaying itself in his head, only causing him to worry more.

~~~

As part of Wukong's promise not to keep anything else from Nezha and his family, he took off his glamours to show them his true form.

His face was as blue as Azure Lion's.

Apparently, all of the tortures he endured because of heaven and his imprisonment beneath the mountain had left lasting scars. Many lasting scars.

The blueness of Wukong's face was due to leftover smoke and ash coating the inside of his lungs, causing him to not be able to breathe properly. Wukong being Wukong, this didn't kill him like it would have literally anyone else.

It took a bit of convincing, but DBK had managed to get his little brother to go to heaven with Nezha to see the doctor.

~~~

He could still hear his wife's gasp and his son's shriek replaying in his head.

Not the best reactions to Wukong's glamour reveal, but he wasn't much better, so he couldn't judge.

PIF: My love? Have you heard word from Nezha yet?

DBK: Not a sound. You, my dear?

PIF: Nothing. It concerns me greatly.

DBK: Myself as well.

PIF: Have you talked to our son at all? He seemed quite upset about the scar on your brother's face.

DBK: Scar?! What scar?!

PIF: Didn't you notice? There was a scar on Wukong's face that very clearly was the result of the Samadhi Fire.

DBK: No, I hadn't noticed. ... Our son must be deeply distraught by that.

PIF: I think so, too. We should speak with him.

DBK: We should.

~~~

Nezha: How much longer?

Receptionist: Again, I don't know how long the doctors will take with the monkey.

It was already bad enough that Nezha was not allowed in the room while the doctors did... something to Wukong, but now Nezha had been waiting five hours for any word about Wukong's condition.

Nezha knew Wukong must be scared out of his mind while there. Wukong quite literally needed to be peeled off his chest by multiple staff members in order to be put on the table. Then the nurses had the audacity to shoo Nezha out of the room while Wukong cried in fear.

Nezha didn't want to tell the Demon Bull Family what had happened. The gods knew what they would do if they received word of Wukong's terrified tantrum and nothing else.

~~~

Seven hours in and Nezha was asked to help settle Wukong down.

Wukong had somehow made it into a janitorial closet despite not having use of his legs and several nurses chasing him. Three nurses managed to corner him in there while the rest went to either get help or attend to other patients.

Nezha found Wukong still in the closet hiding beneath a large trash can.

Nurse 1: Okay, I lift the trash can while you two grab him.

Nurse 2: No way!

Nurse 3: Not happening! Do you know how dangerous monkey bites can be?

Nurse 1: I don't think he'll bite you.

Nurse 2: He's probably more scared of us than we are of him.

Nezha: He's definitely more scared of you than you are of him.

Nurse 3: Oh! Nezha! Hope you brought gloves it you came to help out!

Nezha: Gloves will not be necessary, I assure you.

Nezha: Wukong, it's okay, I'm here now. It's safe to come out.

Wukong: Nezhie? Nezhie stay?

Nezha: Yes, Wukong, I will stay with you. The doctors have granted me permission to stay with you.

Wukong scooted the trash can over to Nezha and stopped when he accidentally bumped into his fire wheels.

Nezha slowly lifted the trash can and Wukong immediately wrapped his whole body around Nezha's leg.

Nezha shushed Wukong to soothe him, transferred him to his chest, and skated slowly back to Wukong's assigned room.

~~~

Wukong's breathing tubes did next to nothing to help with the blueness in his face.

They were given word that Wukong would have to return for surgery after the lunar new year. That was the soonest the hospital could operate.

Wukong dreaded every word out of the doctor's mouth.

Nezha was careful not to shed tears while in Wukong's line of sight.

Wukong's vitals showed an oxygen saturation of 11% with the breathing tubes, 6% without.

But that wasn't all. His heart beat at a rate of 7 bpm. Far too low for a monkey of any species.

He'd have to have both his heart and lungs operating on.

How long had he been like this? Over a thousand years at the least.

Nezha wept for his friend.

Wukong just buried his face in Nezha's shirt.

Nezha cradled Wukong in his arms as they went back home.

~~~

Red Son cut his hand on a buzzsaw by accident. Usually, he was more careful than that.

He was making all sorts of mistakes in the workshop today. Dropping a steel ingot on his foot, catching his hair on a low hanging hook, and now the buzzsaw cut. He was trying to clear his mind, not give it something else to worry about.

His father's entrance only proceeded to stress him out more.

After a bit of back-and-forth between the two, DBK understood that the cut wasn't intentional but accidental.

Biggest relief he'd felt all day.

He treated his son's wounds all the same.

However, their minds were both elsewhere.

On DBK's youngest brother and Red Son's favorite uncle (not that that was a real competition given he's the only one that didn't nearly obliterate the universe).

RS: So... still no word about uncle?

DBK: *sighs* No, still no word.

RS: *sighs* I figured as much. Mother told me that heaven has a habit of taking their sweet time to get anything done.

DBK: It would appear that way, yes...

DBK: Now, about your reaction to my brother's scars.

RS: I DIDN'T MEAN TO MAKE THAT NOISE I SWEAR!!!!!

DBK: I know you meant no harm by it, as does everyone else. I am more concerned with what scars concerned you the most.

RS: Oh! Uncle's burn scars. *sighs* I know I am the cause of those scars, and I want to make it right by uncle! But-

DBK: You were a toddler at the time! A child with a lit match you didn't know how to contain!

RS: But that doesn't mean I didn't hurt him!

DBK: While this is true, I know my brother. He doesn't take anything personal. Especially not something done to him by a child.

RS: Honestly, you'd think he allows the whole world to walk all over him with how little he cares for what's been done to him.

DBK: True, but he loves you very much. Him excusing your past behavior isn't just out of understanding of your youthful naivety, but out of love as well.

DBK: Would you hold a child accountable for lighting something on fire with a lit match they were handed at birth?

RS: No! Of course not!

DBK: Then why don't you hold your past self to the same regards?

RS: I...

DBK: Ponder that awhile. And no more working in here today! You've clearly been too distracted to be safe with yourself.

RS: I will, father.

Part 19:

@starrclown @swkbiggestdefender @istopaskingmemate @ainnur @then-be-a-warrior

Masterpost

[lokisgoodgirl]

hiiiii do you have any tips for someone who is just starting to post fics?? I'm an author but haven't posted ff in literal years and never on Tumblr, so I want to make sure I don't step on any toes or break some kind of fic etiquette first!!! <3 tia

Hey sweet!😍 How exciting that you're dipping your toe in the tumblrsphere!!!

Since you're a seasoned writer, here are some tips about other things:

No.1 Piece of Advice - Talk to people!!!!!! Be nice!!!! Let your freak flag fly!!! You sent me an ask apologising for being all over my posts ATM...DON'T!!! That is literally the best thing you could do. It's how you get to know other users, how you recognise each other, how you build little in jokes and suss out your people. Please please involve yourself in your fandom. Fics, silly things. Exposing yourself (careful...) and getting to know writers is honestly the best thing. Results will vary depending on other users you approach, but it's the best way to feel like you're not posting into a void. And reblog things you read, or that make you laugh! Especially if you're a writer, and you read fics... do unto others as you would have done unto you or naff off with the right to complain when people don't share yours, is my view (not you personally, just in general) (If you weren't aware, on Tumblr, reblogs are the best way to show appreciation/ share work - but comments are also great.) The read more button. You need to insert this on your fics (it's what causes the 'read more' line to appear at a certain point you choose.) A couple of paragraphs/lines/whatever in, press enter and this button will appear on the bar

It's the black squiggly one at the far right. This means that your post won't be 3 miles long and is more shareable - and also it means anyone who shares it won't have a huge long post on their dash :)

Tags/Warnings As well as your fandom # tags a lot of people add warnings at the top of the fics (for things ranging from smut, to various kinks, to anything triggering) Approaches to this vary, no ones perfect - but especially where things are obviously sensitive topics, include these to avoid upsetting people.

Headcanon Etiquette If someone's thought/headcanon they've posted inspires you, and it's very specific and inspires an idea - drop them a message to ask if they mind you writing something about it and credit them in the post because I've seen some absolute audacity in my time and it's never ok. I'm in no way saying you'd do this, but it's my biggest pet peeve. Just be respectful of other people's imaginations, basically. It's literally all we have here 🤣

Feel free to pop me a message if you think there's anything I can help with and I'll do my best 💖

[simmerdowndee]

GROVE-ING TOGETHER MINI EPISODE TWO PART FOUR

Theo and TJ2 come back from pizza. They seem to have had a blast because he came back with all kinds of toys and gifts. 

Theo: We had a blast didn't we bud? TJ2: Yeah dad, we did! Dakota: Glad you guys had fun.  Theo: His mom is on her way to get him, and then I wanted to talk to you babe.  Dakota: That’s actually perfect, because I wanted to talk to the both of you! 

Jessica knocks on the door and comes in.

Jessica: Did you have a good time with your dad?  TJ2: Mom, we had so much fun! Dakota: TJ, why don't you go play with miso, she is very friendly.  TJ2: I got a dog too!  TJ2 goes and plays with Miso in the kitchen while the adults talk in the living room. Jessica: The lab says it may be another 24 hours, sorry for the delay.  Dakota: Oh that is fine.  Theo: It is? Dakota: Yes babe, it is. We don’t even need the result, he isn't yours.  Theo: Dakota, please. We talked about this. 

Dakota: No babe, this isn't me in denial. I KNOW he isn't yours for sure.  Jessica: How without the results? Dakota: Your son started to look around and saw pictures of our daughters. He asked if they were his sisters, and made the comment that “they look older than him.” I asked him how old he was and he said that you told him he had to be 7 while you were here.

Theo: What is she talking about Jessica?  Jessica: He’s just a kid, he doesn’t know what he’s saying. 

Dakota: Kids, they are very honest.  Dakota: So I did some digging, because I couldn't wait for the results.  Dakota: Did Theo ever tell you I was a lawyer?  Jessica: Uh… no. He didn't… 

Dakota: Well unfortunately for you, I still have plenty of contacts at my former firm. I had them look into his birth certificate. I bet you could imagine my surprise, when it stated he’s only FIVE.  Dakota: So Theo, unless you cheated on me while we were in college, he’s not your son.  Jessica: She’s making that up.  Dakota: And now you have the audacity to say I'm lying in my own house? Here Theo, here’s his birth certificate.  Theo looks at the document Theo: There’s also another man's signature on it. Jessica, is this true? Jessica: I… uh…uh Dakota: How did you plan to get around the DNA results? We sent them to an official lab?

TJ2 comes back in. 

TJ2: We went to a lab before we got here. It was fun. My uncle Charlie works there! 

TJ2 runs back out again.

Dakota: Wow…  Dakota: You planned to give him tainted results? Dakota: Once again, I am a lawyer?  Theo: Jessica, why would you lie about something as serious as this? Jessica: He needed a father that would provide for him. I knew you would step up if you thought you had a kid….. Theo: You come here and cause tension between my pregnant wife and I because of your poor choices??  Jessica: I’m sorry Theo.  Theo: And you put your innocent kid in the middle of this?  Theo: HE THINKS I'M HIS DAD, JESSICA. 

Wow, Theo never really gets this mad.. He must be disappointed at the results…. 

Theo to Dakota: What are you doing? Dakota: Calling the lab and telling them the results are tainted.  Jessica: Wait, please. I don’t want my brother to get fired. Please.  Dakota: And how is that my problem?  Jessica: I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I will take my son and go.  Theo: Not before you explain to him what is happening. 

Jessica calls TJ2 into the living room. 

Jessica to TJ2: We have to leave now sweetie.  TJ2: Am I coming back tomorrow dad? Jessica: Unfortunately baby, no. The lab results said Theo isn't your dad.  TJ2: But I wanted him to be my dad…. Jessica: I know baby, me too…

*Theo kneels down to TJ2*

Theo: Hey bud, if you ever need anything, or just want to talk about computers, just give me a call, okay.

Jessica: We’ll be going now. Theo: I meant what I said to him.  Jessica: *nods her head*

Jessica and TJ2 leave and Theo walks in the kitchen. I follow behind him. He puts his head in his palms. 

Dakota: Are you upset with me? Dakota: I’m sorry I didn't wait until the results but -  Theo: I am so happy you decided to be nosy. 

Was not expecting that reaction……

Dakota: Really? Theo: I honestly don't know what I would've done if he turned out to be mine. All I could think about is how it's going to change our family dynamic. 

Theo: I was very afraid I would lose you…

Dakota: I would never leave you, Theo.

Dakota: I would just have to accept our new reality at that point… Dakota: But at least we know the truth now.. Dakota: Theo… Theo: Yeah babe? Dakota: Are you upset he isn't yours? You seemed very disappointed… Dakota: You can be honest.  Theo: When I spent the day with him, I knew he’d fit right in with our family… he likes a lot of the things I did when I was his age.  Dakota: Mhm.  Theo: But, I still wouldn't want to change what we have right now if I didn’t have to.  Dakota: *Nods* Theo: Hey, look at me.

Theo: I love you. I love our kids. I love OUR family. You guys are all I need. I promise.

Theo: I’m so sorry you had to deal with this. Dakota: I love you too. It’s fine… it’s over now, right?

Theo: Yes. I don’t think anyone else will pop up from the past.

Theo: If they do, we will not answer the fucking door.

Dakota: *Laughs* Theo: Oh I meant to ask, what did the lab say? Dakota: Oh! When I called to inform them of what was going on, they let me know that her brother had been fired earlier yesterday morning, so he wouldn't have been able to taint the results as they had planned.  Theo: So, do you still want them? Dakota: Absolutely. I’m gonna put them on the fridge like a school drawing.  Theo: Babe… *Laughs* Dakota: Fine, I won't do that… but we will keep them for security purposes.  Theo: Sounds good.  Theo: I kinda want to go get our kids now.  Dakota: Yeah, let's go get them. I miss them.  Theo: We can all stop for pizza.  Dakota: Oh our kids get pizza seconds huh… Theo: See, everything is back to normal. You are back to being dramatic as hell.  Dakota *Laughs* Theo: I love you babe. 

Dakota: I love you too. 

I’m glad this is all over with. I don't think I could handle waiting another day for results. I know Theo would have done the right thing, he’s always been responsible. 

I’m just quite frankly glad he didn't have to….

[pascalsangel]

The Greenhouse Keeper: Part 2

authors note: i'm so excited to be continuing this series!! hopefully this second part is doing this series justice, and again any feedback or comments is welcomed!!

paring: joel miller x f!reader

word count: 2,202

read part 1 here

also if you're reading this please do your daily click!!

The Greenhouse Keeper, Part 2

It was only the sixth day of working with Joel, and you can already confidently say that he needs to go back on patrol now. He has gotten on your last nerve the past week. You thought the first day was just a fluke, so you continued to try to make small talk with him. However, it always ended because you got tired of his one word responses or being met with silence. He avoided you with every chance he got. He simply came in for his shifts and kept his head down till it was time to leave. The only decent thing to come out of it was that he has been diligent with working on the tasks you have given him. The others that come through to help with the greenhouse were never as hardworking as he was. They all treated this as a task that was below them. It was easier for them to have you do the work and they bask in the bountiful results. 

You hated to admit it, even though he was being brief with you, but you couldn’t help but notice the cute furrow in his brow that appears when he’s concentrating intently on removing the seedlings. He was being so gentle and attentive towards your plants. It was if he was relearning how to be soft and tenderhearted in this space, which was a sight to behold. It was heartwarming to see someone share the proper care for your plants and realize how vital they were to the commune. 

Your patience quickly changed though when you came to open the greenhouse, and you noticed a pot left behind on the floor of the last aisle. It was an odd sight since you didn’t remember that being there the day before. You crouched down to lift the pot and were shocked with what was underneath. There were various seedlings packed into paper lunch bags that were cut in half.  I can’t believe the audacity he had to do this. 

Joel finally crossed the line. You have tried to be nothing but nice to him, and he was just like the others that took advantage of you and your role. You would have shared, if he would've just had the nerve to talk to you and ask you. You heard the side door open and saw as he entered with caution, putting more weight on his left leg as he turned to close the latch. He didn’t even get a chance to step any further into the greenhouse before you were approaching him. There was so much anger reflected in your body language. Your shoulders were raised, fists clenched, and there was a fire in your eyes. 

“You know, I’ve put up with your bullshit the last few days because I thought maybe you would start to warm up to me, but nothing has changed this whole week.” You seethed at him. “All you’ve done is ignored me and acted as if having to work with me was the worst thing imaginable. Picture my surprise when I found these–” you say as you hold up one of the bags– “this is just low.” 

Joel was utterly confused by your reaction. He tried to interject, “Y/N, that's not what’s–”

“I don’t want to hear any excuses, Joel. I fooled myself into thinking better of you. I tried so hard to reason that you were just upset with the situation and it wasn’t me. I don’t know what I did wrong. You know, people usually at least try to be nice to me when they want something, but I guess it does make it easier to take advantage of someone when you don't know them, right?” You took a deep breath and tried to hold back the tears. 

He was having a hard time seeing you so hurt. He tried to reach out to calm you down, but he thought better of it and dropped his hands by his side. He didn’t want to make you any more upset with him than you already were. 

“I don’t want to work with you anymore. I’ll just tell Maria that you finished out the rest of your scheduled time if she asks; you only had a week left anyways. Otherwise, I don't want you around me or the greenhouse.” 

“Please, just hear me out, darlin’.” Joel was trying his best to make amends at this moment. He didn't want you to give up on him. He knew he deserved it, but he had so much he had to explain. 

“Get out.” You gritted out as you turned away from him.

Joel burned his gaze on your back, just hoping that you would turn around. He was hoping you would give him any indication that you possibly still wanted him around, yet it never came. The only confirmation you got that he left was the sound of the side door thudding shut. You couldn’t hold yourself together anymore and fell down to the floor to let out the sobs you had been holding in. 

There was a knock at the side door. You let out a humorless chuckle, he just couldn’t let things be. 

“Go away, Joel! I told you I don't want to be around you, so please respect that.” You shouted, as you didnt want to get up, your energy was so spent. You heard someone enter anyways.

“That dick! What did he do?” Ellie exasperated. She knew Joel tends to have an asshole tone with new people, but she didn't think he was this bad. She was ready to give him a piece of her mind about this. You didn’t deserve to be feeling like this. Ellie noticed you around the commune and always thought about approaching you, you seemed like the type of person that she would get along with. 

You heard her before you saw her, but you weren’t expecting Ellie to have been the one that entered. You knew of her, but you two had never met. You quickly pushed yourself up and wiped your tears away. “Um, hi, I’m sorry I wasn’t really expecting anyone. Did you need something?” 

“Well, I was looking for Joel because he has to sign some paperwork at the school ‘cause I’m suspended now. All ‘cause I punched some girl in the face. She was being a real bitch to some kid, but that can wait. Are you okay? Also, my name is Ellie.” She gave a small, nervous smile. She was used to people being judgemental of her based on first meetings. She knew she could be a lot sometimes, but the right people would enjoy her company. 

You let out a soft chuckle, you weren’t anticipating for her to go into such candid detail with her thoughts jumping all over the place. You were also surprised by the amount of care she was sharing for you since you thought she would have loyalty for Joel.

“I’m Y/N. I don’t want to go into too much detail about it, but I was upset with Joel. I’m fine now, though.” 

“Are you sure? I totally respect your privacy, and all that, but I will kick Joel’s ass if I have to. Sometimes he needs to learn that people won’t always put up with his bullshit.” 

“I’m sure, truly. I just needed to cry for a bit, so no ass kicking necessary. Although, now I know who to reach out to if it’s needed. I do want to hear more about what happened at the school though.” 

“Oh! I mentioned she was being a real bitch, right? Well, she was picking on this younger kid, and she didn’t like when I called her out on it. She kept saying some dumb shit, but her mistake was not knowing I went to a FEDRA school. The only good thing I learned from that shithole was combat. So, I punched her right in the mouth, so she’d shut up. Now, they want to talk to Joel about my supposed anger issues, can you believe that shit?” 

“Did the girl get in trouble, too?” 

“That’s the fucked part. She just got a warning.” Ellie said, as she rolled her eyes. “I think everything will change when Joel– sorry I probably shouldn’t mention him right now.” 

“No, no worries. I think it’s admirable how much he cares for you.” You offer her a gentle smile. You don’t want to create any animosity between her and Joel based on what happened. It felt wrong to be hopeful to build a connection with her due to her connection with Joel and how much you disliked him right now. She reminded you a lot of yourself when you were younger. 

“I don’t know if this makes whatever happened better or worse, but I’ve noticed a difference in him since he started helping here. I can’t really explain it, but he just seems lighter, it’s like he’s slowly changing for the better. Hell, I even helped him get some bags, and he never asks for my help. They always have extras in the cafeteria for leftover food, so it wasn’t a big deal but still.” 

You felt your heart stutter. You tried to control your facial expression, so it wouldn’t give away how hurt you were by this information. It just further proved everything. “Oh? Did he ever say what he wanted to use them for?” You asked. 

“No, he didn’t. He usually is closed off about certain things, but when I kept prying he just said it was for a surprise.” 

Nothing was truly making sense. What kind of surprise was that meant to be? It all just makes him look more guilty. You felt like you were spiraling thinking of all the times that you were working with him, and he had already had a plan to take seedlings. Why were the seedlings hiding under the pot in bags; why didn’t he take them with him? You were wondering when he had hidden them without you noticing. What was he planning to do with the seedlings? It was never apparent that he had a liking towards you, but you never expected that he would do this. He was trying to interject and explain earlier, but you didn’t want to hear him out. You wished you had listened because maybe you wouldn’t be as confused as you were right now. 

“You can totally say no, but do you want to come with me to grab dinner?” Ellie asked, as she looked at you with hopeful eyes. 

You were contemplating your answer because you truly appreciated Ellie’s genuine kindness towards you. It was something you’ve been craving since arriving in Jackson. However, you weren’t sure if you could handle the likely chance that Joel could come around. You didn’t want to see him right now, but you didn’t want to hurt Ellie’s feelings. 

  Joel was beating himself up over the way he’s been acting with you since he started at the greenhouse. He truly hadn’t meant to be acting like an asshole, but he was aggravated with the situation. He didn’t feel resourceful sitting around working on plants, even though he enjoyed sharing the space with you. Patrol made him feel like he had worth in the commune; he was helping to keep everyone safe making up for the other times he failed. It was pitiful on his behalf that he found himself taking his anger out on you, and he didn’t know how to make things right. He hated to admit that it was easier to push you away than to face the hurt of knowing you and to then eventually lose you. Self-doubt was his worst enemy and couldn’t even let him see the possibility of good times with you.

The day you arrived at Jackson, he noticed you immediately. He was captivated by your beauty and the kindness that you always showed others. The work that you did to transform the greenhouse was admirable. He found himself wanting to introduce himself to you, so he would have the chance to get to truly know you. The amount of times that he practiced a speech that he made up claiming that he could help you update the woodwork around the greenhouse was embarrassing; more embarrassing was the fact that he never followed through on it. It was an issue within himself that he didn’t feel deserving of getting to be close with you. You were such a brightness in this messed up world that should be and he would only dim you out. 

It hurt to walk away from the greenhouse and hear the start of your sobs as he shut the door. He wished he would’ve turned around and wrapped you in his arms, but it would've been disrespecting your wishes. You needed time to yourself to work through your emotions. It was apparent to him that you didn’t like him at the moment, and he didn’t want to make the situation worse. The seedlings were a surprise meant to be an apology, and he wished you could know. He had to see you again to explain himself.

[justanotherboringwriter]

||Misanthropic descent.||

Summary; Connor wants to believe in humans–That they have empathy and aren’t the soulless, brutal monsters other androids think they are. But God, it’s just so difficult.

Themes; angst,

A/N; if this Connor is OOC then remember, this is my interpretation of Connor, who is also a fictive in my system alongside Dumbo and they have their own version of the events of Detroit Become Human. Apologies if this fic is short.

He wanted to believe they were better, he really did. That they didn’t do the horrific things those deviants said they did. Why should he believe them? They were all just rogue androids; malfunctioning mistakes with nothing but intentions of violence and chaos. They couldn’t be trusted.

Humans were good. They were kind, caring, empathetic, helpful..He wished they were.

After what'd happened at Kamski's house–Damn that fucking bastard–Connor left agitated. He was made to help hunt deviants and yet that idiot had the audacity to call him a deviant? He'd been told to kill another android for no reason other than some sick little experiment Kamski wanted to see the results of and he was labeled a deviant for expressing basic empathy.

How dare he? Connor was sure all he had on his mind was perverted thoughts. Why else would the man surround himself with eight Chloe's? What the former Cyberlife CEO had said before subjecting Connor to the 'Kamski test' didn't help.

The android pitied Chloe. He pitied all of them.

Having to live in the same house with a man like that would've for sure driven Connor to deviate as soon as possible but he guessed the other androids just didn't have it in them. Connor would bet his life that the man had abused them before and that was why they didn't deviate earlier.

Now, he was back at Hank's house.

He didn't know where Hank was, probably sleeping or getting drunk again–He just hoped the detective wasn't indulging in another game of Russian Roulette like last time.

He'd pulled a chair from the kitchen table and had settled it in front of the window. The same window he'd used to get into Hank's house that night. Flashes of that night played in his head.

Hank lying on the floor. Jumping and rolling in. Sumo growling. Calming Sumo. Slapping Hank awake. Bringing Hank to the bathroom. The notes on the mirror. Shocking Hank awake with the water. The notes on the mirror. "Jesus, I must the only cop in the world that gets assaulted in his own house by his own fuckin' android...". The notes on the mirror. The man found dead in the sex club downtown. The notes on the mirror. The notes on the mirror. The notes on the mirror.

The notes on the mirror.

What the hell did they say?

 "Keep Smiling." "SHAVING or NOT." "I'm not grumpy, I just don't like YOU." "Today will be Fabulous." 

That didn't sound like Hank. Or did it? Did Hank write them? Maybe Cole?

"Connor?"

Connor looked back, pulling himself out of his thoughts. "Hm?" He was greeted with the sight of his partner, Dumbo. "Oh, hi. What is it? Do you need help with Hank?" "No, it's about what happened at Kamski's earlier." The jester replied. Connor looked up at his partner. A foot taller. A foot taller. A foot taller. A foot tal–"Listen, I know you're upset but not all humans are–" "Stop." Connor said, his anger rising.

"You know they're like that. So why do you keep hoping they'll be better?" "Connor–" "No, I'm not gonna listen. You know I'm right, so why are you still arguing with me?" Connor rose from his seat.

"They're cruel. Sadistic. Brutal. They hurt anything they can for their own sick and twisted pleasure and that 'anything' is always androids. What did we do? Why are they hurting us? We're meant to help them but how many we help them when they're hurting us?" Connor's voice started rising, the LED on his right temple going from a troubled yellow to a provoking red. "We can't keep making excuses for them, Dumbo. We can't. All they'll do is play us like a fiddle and make us the fool for believing they could be something more. Something better."

"We put them on a pedestal that they don't deserve. Why? We've seen what they've done to our kind. Cuts. Bruises. Flayed skin. Burned skin. The trembling. The instinctive raise of the arms. We've seen the look of fear in our kind's eyes yet we still think humans can do better than the violence they've shown capable of? Why?"

"Connor, humans can be good. You jus–" "I just have to what? Continue tying that blindfold around my eyes? Denying what I've seen everyday? I can't ignore it anymore, Dumbo. Neither can you. We can't let our own kind suffer like this! They expect us to help them–To show them the kinship they deserve–And what do we do? We turn our heads as the light in their eyes–The hope, the desperation, the desperate desire for a better life–Fades from their eyes as the reality of what's to come settles in!" Connor yelled.

"This is inhumane!" He added. "What they're doing is that of monsters from the tales they tell!"

"What makes us so different from them? We're lambs, watching the wolves rip our fellow sheep alive, flesh by flesh, wool by wool, and we don't alert the farmers. We watch and we keep quiet. We allow the wolves to pick at us day after day and what do we do? NOTHING!" He screamed. "What is wrong with us? Why do we think this is okay?"

"Tell me! Why do you think this is okay? Because the androids are deviants? Because they don't accept a life of abuse? Because they want independence like any other living being? Because they expect basic empathy?" Connor pleaded desperately.

Dumbo was silent, looking down at his partner.

"You don't have an answer, do you?" Connor scoffed.

"Of course you don't. We're lamb to the slaughter and we don't even bleat, Dumbo. And we don't even know why. Is it the fear? The knowledge of what's to come if you expect care, a life of your own? The useless time spent praying to whatever deity above you hear of for the Android rebellion to succeed just so you can be treated with basic compassion?" Connor tilted his head.

Dumbo looked down, avoiding eye contact. He turned around and walked off, leaving Connor in silence. Connor looked after him before he disappeared around a corner. The Android let out an exhausted sigh as he fell back into his chair, staring down at the ground.

Sumo–The sweetheart–Strolled over and sat at Connor's feet, looking up at him with an inquisitive tilt of the head.

"I've made an error, Sumo." Connor spoke. "There must be a glitch in my software. I have never reacted so extremely. Never could I have imagined I would've spoken like that to anybody, let alone the one I love most, the one I hold so near and dear." As he spoke, Sumo settled his big, canine head on the android's legs.

Connor cupped Sumo's face as tears welled up in his artificial eyes. "The one who taught me how to love."

He hiccuped. "What have I done?.."

[respectthepetty]

Since I'm enjoying NetJames as color-coded men in love King and Uea in Bed Friend, I thought I'd share NetJames being color-coded boys in love as Captain and Foei in Catch Me Baby.

Captain is a Red Rascal (passionate, spontaneous, energetic), while Foei is a Blue Boy (reliable, loyal, sincere).

They are the side pair in the series, and align with the main couple, who happen to be family members and color coded as well (even their shoes were color coded!).

The main couple, Cher, a Blue Beauty, and Phat, a Red Rascal, swap colors throughout the show as people tend to do when they are in love.

And Foei takes his alignment to his family as a Blue Boy very seriously.

Captain and Foei begin the series as rivals with their pens matching their colors.

But when assigned a project, they are told nobody wants to work with either of them, so they have to work together.

Yet Captain, being his mischievous self with his red background to support him, pranks Foei, which results in Foei's shirt being ruined, and Foei yelling at Captain for being immature.

Throughout this lecture, Captain slowly realizes his mistake, and we see the wall being painted blue. They end the night, with Foei in a blue splattered shirt borrowed from Captain, working together in their changing blue and red space.

They meet again, but Captain drinks too much and invites Foei to his room. Captain, in red sitting next to Foei in blue lighting, immediately starts crossing the line.

Which results in Captain kissing Foei.

The next morning, Captain wakes up alone in the blue.

But because he can't remember anything, he questions Foei with his blue straw while wearing a red bandana to cover what he thinks is a hickey.

Foei denies anything happened but is drowning in confused green.

Captain, while attempting to make out with a girl, gets flashes of making out with Foei, and confronts Foei who wears a blue sweater.

Captain, in red, is bothered that Foei not only kept their kiss a secret, but that Foei doesn't want to pursue anything more.

Captain continues to try to convince Foei they should date, but when he tries to kiss Foei while tied up and basically being held hostage (a mess!), Foei becomes upset. Captain, deep in the blue, can't figure out what to do.

However, they are thrown together again because of their relatives' jobs.

Foei continues to avoid Captain.

But Captain finally decides to make a move (which goes a lot better than Palm and Nueng's confrontation in the same space in Never Let Me Go).

Foei runs away after the kiss, but Captain finds a way for them to work together, while wearing his red striped shirt and touching the blue pen to his lips.

They have to go on a trip together, and, as usual, Captain is crossing the line.

Foei tells Captain that he will let fate decide their future while they sit on red and blue.

However, Foei gets upset at Captain for always crossing the line and never caring about his feelings. Captain, letting Foei's words sink in, doesn't cross the line.

This puts a wedge between them.

But after Phat talks to a heartbroken Captain, Captain, in a red shirt, decides to asks Foei how Foei feels...in front of the entire class (Captain is a mess!). Foei's answer is cut short because they must search for Beauty, the one in the middle above, who goes missing.

During the search, Captain gets hit by a car (I'm telling you, a mess!), but this gives us the cutest confession in recent memory when Captain puts the heart monitor on Foei's finger and notices Foei's heart beating faster around him and tells Foei that even though he tries to deny he loves Captain, his heart can't lie. *squee*

They officially become boyfriends!

Yet, unlike Captain who was openly showing he was deep in the blue for Foei, Foei never wore Captain's red color.

And Catch Me Baby had the audacity to make jokes about it!

That's Foei, our true Blue Boy, saying the colors can't mix to Captain, so they had a fight.

Bless this mess.

[officeobject]

Edit: feck, I got his name wrong (in my defense, I think Agatha All Along fans get it wrong too) - well, whatever, I forgot names - basically, "the actor who looks exactly like Teen" - not sure if his name is John or Joe - probably "Joe" me thinks now, but I ain't gonna correct it + "Teen" is more memorable.

I had a dream, where there was ACTUALLY one of those Hazbin Hotel Hot Topic promotional material, and it was outside a clothing store (not Hot Topic though), so I went inside to look at what the feck was going on, and turns out, it had some Hazbin Hotel game on the back of it, inside the store, where you could create your own demon, and I haven't watched Hazbin Hotel, but I wanted to do that (the game was like that Sugar Rush mini-game from Wreck-It-Ralph), but it wouldn't start, and the scary tall two teenage boy interns (I have a fear of strangers, especially teenagers, especially teenage boys - I know it's irrational and I do make fun of it sometimes, but holy shit I'm scared), and they couldn't get it to work, insisted it wouldn't work, my housemate who was there for some reason, said he could make it work, and they were like, "yeah, you can make it work, because you're toooootally an IT-expert 🙄" - and, like, dudes, that's a grown adult who sometimes has to work with technology at his job, VS you - but anyways, for whatever reason - maybe we needed to have it happen - but the ghost of John Locke was haunting us through something that looked like a Tumblr post (it had fancy font and set-up in mainly purple like an Agathario fanfiction), but don't worry, John Locke was alive, his soul was just out of his body, haunting him (I have a living ghost like that myself who I often think about, and who reminds me of Teen) - so anyways, I nervously talked to the air (WELL I DON'T FECKING KNOW WHERE JOHN LOCKE WAS, I COULDN'T SEE HIM), and I was quiet, and whispered, or ALMOST did, and I said I was a big fan of Teen from Agatha All Along, and asked him if he was like Teen, and then my dream had the audacity to make me, still in-dream, imagine asking that while holding John Locke close, being able to hear his breath and feel his warmth, some of his hair touching me probably (it's platonic, like with my teenage boy ghost, and you don't know me as a person if you think it's not - I'm, like, very weird and intense with platonic love), but anyways, as we were trying to communicate, there were articles about John Locke being a shitty person towards a group of people, and just generally being rude, and people defended him, saying he's a teenager (you know, "dumbass teenage boy"), and I just ignored the allegations, because, like, potential friendship and all, and in the meantime, he kept quoting and deleting song lyrics from some Dream SMP songs (like, Dream, SapNap, Willbur Soot, etc) - and it was specifically ONE of the Dream SMP member's songs, and another member of the group I for whatever reason had, was happy about it and sang along or something, and there was some tension, because we had different ideas for what to do, and also BOTH wanted Joe Locke's attention, and the reason I don't remember which Dream SMP member he quoted, was because even in my dream, I could not give a shit, because hearing about the Dream SMP with autism and it not being something I'm even slightly interested in, made every information about the member's blend in - and yes I had that Dream SMP fan in my life years ago, and yes our dynamic was like that, but what I'm most upset about, is the fact that now the entire Agatha All Along fandom, will think I wanna hug/cuddle with John Locke, and like, how the feck do I defend myself? Because you know that teenage boy ghost I mentioned I'm being haunted by, who is ALSO the soul of a living person? Yeah I cuddle him too.

In fear, I will now ask,

I unironically fear that John Locke will come across my posts - like, it's fine, but only as long as I seem cool and not desperate and all - oh, and also unique, though then again, maybe I'm a little TOO unique ...

[moonlit-orchid]

Zexal Month Day 11- Justice

@zexalmonth yes i know I'm skipping day 10, I just found this one easier for now X3

Eliphas stood there, head bowed. He didn't dare make eye contact with Don Thousand Don, who had been a monster until now. Don, whose clothes were ripped and torn to the point that even the poorest beggar would scorn them. Even with him in this condition, he was still the king. He would always be the king, the master.

For he was Emperor Adonis, the one born with a miracle. No matter what he wore, how messy his appearance was. Even though Eliphas was dressed far more nobly, he felt inferior right now. He was inferior. He always had been. Adonis was the king. His king. And his role was that of a servant.

"Look at what you've done, Eliphas." Adonis's voice was harsh. Cold. The voice of an angry, powerful king. "Look at this destruction. You betrayed, betrayed my family, and what of it? This world is in ruins due to the war. There are children you traumatised by trying to use them as living weapons. There is my family that you let get hurt. Athena, Elpis, you took them and turned them into weapons along with the other children. Elips you took from his birth. Oizihle is dead. What kind of audacity did you have to believe you, who had always been so far behind, you could ever be the Emperor?"

Eliphas looked down. He couldn't speak. He couldn't justify what he'd done in any way.

For he had done it all. He had betrayed his Emperor, forcing the chaos to override all else in the aim to make the good king seem bad, and as such accidentally created the monster that created the armies of the Barians and gave power to the 7 Barian Emperors resulting in a never ending war. He was the one who took orphaned children and tried to use them to fight the monster. He was the one who took the little princess and made her a weapon, tried to break her yet she refused to submit. He was the one who had taken the infant Elpis and robbed him of his childhood and even his name. He was the one who ordered the men to capture Oizihle all those years ago, culminating in that boy's chaos consuming him and making it appear as if he was dead, leading him to the path of hiding, of deception, leading to his death now at Vector's hands in an attempt to break the cycle of vengeance. It was Eliphas's fault, all of this. But what else could happen? He was never the one meant to be king.

Eliphas was a servant. He could never be a king. So he bowed his head, intending to reply with an admission of guilt.

"But I will not punish you."

Eliphas's head shot back up. Those eyes he met now, they were the eyes of his dearest friend. The eyes that had made Ena fall in love with Adonis, the eyes that made Eliphas loyal to him. He couldn't even speak for shock.

"You may have tricked me, ay, but you yourself was tricked and used and overcome by power too great for you. You may have led to a war, but I continued it myself. I am not innocent, but I am not guilty either. Neither are you. For we were pushed down this path by those before us, and were too foolish to recognise it, but were also unable to combat it. We both are as guilty as each other in our crimes, and yet we both were consumed by powers that upset the delicate balance within us."

"For that reason, I shan't punish you. You must instead make amends like I will, by rebuilding this world to finally give our people some justice."

Note: Ozihle, the name of Don's eldest, is a made up name, combining the name of the greek goddess of despair with the greek word, according to google for "Mist".

[arugula2048]

ik you prob wrote abt this ages ago but I wanted to say I appreciate your additions abt the 'almond mom' discussion. I saw it came from a child model almost fainting and the mother advising her to eat a couple of almonds chewed very slowly. So literally from eating disoreded mom harming and abusing child by purposefully malnourishing them. Ofc over time ppl posted more ambiguous things but what if the er mom was asked to comfort the child and 'did her steps' imstead? Or the mom eating salad (1/2

2/2 and the family eating heavier meals. Oftentimes the mom is visibly upset with the children so maybe they are 'breaking the cycle' by eating satisfying food after being told not to for many years? Like I agree we must not forget ppl acting 'strange' w food incl moms are victims of society which promotes disordered eating. But to actively push that on your child is cruel. And many ppl are not mentioning how strange their mom is but rather how it results in treating them, shamimg, policing them

I feel you, I could understand if the 'pacing bc she's worried and not ED' interpretation if it was one of many used in the analyses, but it irked me when so many bloggers just ran with that alone. Not very empathetic to the child, gyns, who in the post example was in the fucking ER, implying she wanted comfort but her mother prioritized her own body image instead... It's so funny (not funny) how they breezed past that part and was like "this bitter ungrateful child!! of course she's definitely lying about her mom to mock her"

It's an interesting analysis to focus fully and only on the 'almond mothers' in that post. But then to say that's the only way to see it and say that children are responsible for their mothers' healing is repulsive. I can't tell if that conclusion came from temporary tunnel vision, or if they never had a bad relationship with their mother, or if they no longer see themselves in the child now that they're adults, or if they're partly speaking from unresolved issues and believe that fixing their mothers will fix them too. They would've betrayed their younger selves just like their mothers did lol.

Not to mention, like you said, mothers are grown women and had decades to reflect on their experiences and illnesses to decide how they'd raise their daughters. As an adult and as a parent, they had that responsibility to step up for their children lol. The audacity of the ~approach your mother with a feminist mindset to break entire generational cycles of misogyny and EDs~ statement is unbelievable. To put that work on children? So the mothers shouldn't need to do anything? Why don't we start smaller with something kids can do?

I think that post got like that because of the whole "mother discourse" that had people acting as if someone said 'mothers should be officially recognized as a subhuman class' instead of 'I prioritize girls because they're the common denominator demographic of all women'. Cue the overcompensation and almost victim-blaming kids who were coached to get EDs. They seriously looked at a kid in the ER and blame her for her mom being fucked up, no one in that post contested that first reply. Yikes, but that's the internet, I guess.

Thank you for the message, I'm glad we felt seen by each other. Have a good day, anon!

[jellyfishfem]

I'm pretty radical in my beliefs, but one of my best friends for 10+ years is a straight white man. It's a tough spot, because I do care about him and he cares about me personally, but I know leftist men remain indifferent at best to feminist issues despite their lip service, so it's hard to talk to him about my experiences. Even though he cares for my general well-being, I can tell he just doesn't "get it."

I couldn't believe the audacity of him after the US election. When we were commiserating, he had the nerve to say "Tr*mp has ruined my life."

To me.

He struggles with depression and anxiety so I tried to rein in my disgust at him a bit, but I couldn't resist sharing with him the exact ways my life experiences and quality have been negatively impacted as a DIRECT result of Tr*mp.

He lamely made some stock answer response about how all he could do was to "listen and learn" from the women in his life and then changed the subject. Lol. Lmao, even.

I don’t think you should have to moderate yourself or tone down your honesty, your feellings, just because he has depression and anxiety. I hope this isn’t something he uses against you so you don’t hold him accountable or get upset with him or anything similar. I have depression and anxiety, hell, Im even schizospec but I wouldn’t mind if someone critisized me for something problematic I do. If someone told me x thing I said was racist or something, that wouldn’t worsen my depression or launch me into psychosis. A mental illness shouldn’t be a shield from critisism.

I know what it’s like to have male friends. I had some too but I cut them all off. There was a certain distance, I knew they just weren’t on my level. And eventually, they all said something that made me realize they were like the rest. Do you ever wonder how he talks about you or women in general when only his male friends are around? When he looses in a video game, does he start using slurs like b*tch? When he’s angry at a woman, does he say vile things? When a woman has a different political opinion from him, does he think that makes it okay for him to throw misogynistic insults at her? Would he turn on you if you told him how you truly feel? I won’t tell you to cut him off, you do what you like but just wonder.

[localplaguenurse]

why on earth did they drink YOUR prosecco?? the audacity

Her defence was it had been sitting there for a while and she had "full intentions to replace it"

Then she gets mad I have gone off on her (through text, they're out of town rn) and my brother on a Sunday morning

I'm sorry you didn't tell me you touched my presecco and as a result I assumed the teenage boy got into it and was upset about that?

[thewoolyworm]

Feeling a growing resentment for Instagram and Twitter art communities in this chili's tonight

[yallemagne]

Since I can't just say "I agree" like a normal person---

YEAH LIKE???? JGRIPOERG

anyway, read more bc people get upset whenever I actually delve into real critique of this novel and its characters and writing. Also spoilers ahead.

Van Helsing... really is... go on girl, give us absolutely nothing!! When Mina's kicked out after doing all the heavy lifting, Jonathan carries the entire team on his back with the impediment of being unable to speak to his wife, and VH just stands there and says bullshit. I've teased Arthur and Quincey for dicking around, but that was just clearly poor planning on Bram's part. "Oh. They're out. Investigating." Why do we get no results from that "investigation"? Obviously, they just went out on a couple dates instead of working. At least Jack has a day job. VH has nothing better to do than to brag about how smart he was to stupidly leave Mina out, whine to the Harkers about Renfield not liking him, and nod and say "I agree with your ableism, Friend John" whenever Jack takes a break from abusing his patient to talk to him.

And then, after he's massively fucked up and it's literally all his fault and he hasn't even had the decency to admit he was wrong, VH has the audacity to kick Mina and Jonathan out without even asking them. Because he doesn't actually think that he made the wrong decision, apparently he just thinks he should have left Mina with a chaperone. And Jonathan is baffled by this. What the hell!! He knows that no one will listen to him, so he resolves to ask Mina if this is okay with her or if they're together on this. VH lets him go despite Jack's objections because he anticipates Mina being conveniently on his side once more. He is not ready for her to say no to him.

I would have loved it if VH finally fucking took a step back. But he didn't, and that's why I'm not fully convinced when people say "VH's actions are punished!! the narrative doesn't approve!!" because VH never faces any personal repercussions for dooming Mina. In fact, he gets promoted to being the team's Pope with all those reverent hand kisses Jonathan and Mina keep giving him every time he says something half-sweet. I think Bram really got carried away with VH. Mina is too a self-insert, but Bram decides she simply MUST take a backseat to Van Helsing: the man. Bram spent so much time on VH's phony not-Dutch dialect, he needs to milk it for all its worth!

And The Mentor dying is a trope... (happened in Phantom Blood, a famously good Dracula adaptation... and Stardust Crusaders, another famously good Dracula adaptation--), but I feel like it wouldn't be too much of an eye-roll here. Maybe someone should have told Bram to kill his darlings...

“Any last words, old man?” “God bless you.” Cue him slapping the Son right in the fucker’s face. He doesn’t last long after that, but it’s still a good view to go out on as the Vampire curses and sizzles.

By god, See, you should write this. I'm shaking, it's just so perfect. Having VH's last words be so *gasp* laconic would be poetic as well. VH leaves a couple notes for Jack in case he dies already, it just goes to show that his Mentor status isn't the only death flag he carries.

He certainly is not a bad character. However, I do believe he'd be a stronger character if he took a step back. Maybe... several steps back. It would also strengthen the novel as a whole because Arthur and Quincey would be able to take their much-needed steps forward, and the spotlight would be back on our main narrator trio.

Van Helsing Venting (Vent Helsing)

Requisite apology goes here: I am sorry in advance to everyone with a soft spot for the funky old man.

But the reread combined with the podcast has helped put into focus an aggravation that has been nettling me forever without quite knowing how to articulate it.

I’ve brushed the edges of it more than once in several rants about how the Harkers are so constantly given the short stick in every single adaptation of Dracula for a hundred and a quarter years.

Jonathan is either erased, made into a bore, a brute, or unceremoniously killed off while all the amazing character traits and actions he’s responsible for in the story get stolen away and parsed out to others in the cast, often Dracula, Van Helsing, or [INSERT FEMALE THROWN INTO THE CASTLE TO BE BRIDAL CARRIED TO BED HERE].

Mina is alternately a feeble damsel who’s only there to be the pure maiden who gets to live through her seduction*** by Dracula (versus the suddenly scandalous-and-salacious Lucy), or a hashtag girlboss (reincarnated wife syndrome applied as desired) who divorces or otherwise abandons her milksop husband to hook up with a REAL MAN like DRACULA who sexily sex-liberates her. With sex. That she totally for sure wanted along with the bloodsucking.

But on one thing, the Harkers are equal—they never. Ever. Ever. Get to be the true protagonists of any Dracula adaptation, or spinoff, or offshoot, or revamp, et cetera.

This, despite Jonathan being the one to spend the most time with Dracula, alone, in his gothic horror novella of an opening, for Two Months, in which he got the most interaction and dialogue with the Count out of anyone else in the book.

This, despite him and his diary and his love to the point of blasphemy and his nerve and his kukri all being instrumental for the novel to work.

This, despite Mina being the one to literally compile the entire novel out of the transcripts it’s stitched from.

This, despite her connecting the dots to oust the bastard and showing immense courage all on her lonesome in confronting the Count for others’ sake more than once.

But why?

For the longest time, I was ready to grind my teeth and grouse over the obvious reasons of Jonathan and Mina Harker being so gloriously subversive then—and now!—that writers and directors of a certain sneering bent refused to acknowledge anything of their characters beyond the names when slathering their latest cookie cutter vampire bodice ripper with Stoker’s cast titles. The Harkers’ approaches to gender, to heroism, to defeating a villain whose entire role is being the worst of the Gothic Masculine Monster who bullies and preys upon pretty victims to collect for himself (hello harem and power fantasy combo, let’s make THIS guy the ultra-cool totally misunderstood sexypire star of the show!) all chafe against the mental rewrites too many filmmakers and writers make to turn the novel more palatable to their tastes. Assuming they read the book at all.

And that’s all its own pile of rants. But I’ve realized, only now, that this is just part of the problem. The other issue stems from Bram Stoker himself.

That issue being the conversion of an otherwise tight narrative and set of primed protagonist characters into the Abraham van Helsing Show.

I don’t know what it was about today’s entry specifically that made it all click home. Maybe it was already percolating since yesterday, or the day before. But somewhere in Van Helsing’s latest filibuster of dialogue—‘We must share everything! No, wait, tell her nothing! We must make all haste and not lose a moment! Let me turn five minutes’ worth of information into a monologue about bloom and blood and then suggest we all take a siesta on our laurels since we definitely have time to beat the Czarina Catherine! Jonathan, you stay at home with Mina while me and my non-questioning ducklings/the others who don’t really need lines anyway take care of the problem, doctor’s orders! And all my orders are followed, unquestionably, every time, despite them very clearly having only a 50/50 success rate, as is right!’—it all really hit me.

The moment Van Helsing turned into the never-doubted, never-need-apologize, yes, do kiss his hands like a fucking mafia godfather in gratitude for Doing the Things He Should Have Known to Do in the First Place After Lucy, ‘leader’ rather than ‘the lore collector/mentor’ is when the novel turns on its heel and starts breaking its back to accommodate him at the expense of everyone else.

The Harkers get it the worst, naturally.

Once they arrive in Purfleet and the documents are handed over, Van Helsing leads the pack in peer pressuring them into sequestering Mina away as their cheerleader who Need Not Suffer the Icky Horror of -checks notes- finding boxes. Not sent away anyplace safe and guarded by home rules and garlic and crosses; just left to Yellow Wallpaper her days away in the asylum suite.

Meanwhile, Jonathan proves to be literally the only useful member of this group project via hauling ass all over London to gather information to bring back to the table…which Van Helsing then oh-so-helpfully disseminates on top of the obvious point that, hey, yeah, there’s probably boxes there. We should do Wafers about it.

Now, in fairness, Van Helsing was a vital character up to a certain point. Jack called him in for his broader expertise, for how open his mind was as far as what he was willing to investigate or believe as a threat. Without him and his lore collection in Amsterdam, a lot of the details regarding anti-vampire tactics and Dracula’s history lesson wouldn’t have come into play. All this, plus providing the hideous proof of the Bloofer Lady’s reality, making the last three nonbelievers into members of the Drac Attack Pack. Last but far from least, he helps reassure Jonathan to free him from his crushing self-doubt, and then brings in both of the Harkers to create the full group. Fuck yeah!

All that considered, it does make some sense for him alone to give his little seminar on the Dracula Issue…

…except for the fact that Mina has absorbed and transcribed all the info herself. Literally all of it. And the fact that Jonathan personally knows the fucker. All three of these characters should have been at the head of the table, sharing what they know.

But they weren’t. It’s starting to become all about Dr. Abe—because that’s how Stoker keeps his OC self insert in the lion’s share of the spotlight.

This is also when Van Helsing is fresh off the nightmare with Lucy, fresh off of acknowledging that there is literally no reason at all to keep vampire secrets from anybody in this room, fresh off of being oh so thrilled with Mina’s helpfulness and canniness, fresh off of what should have been him learning his lesson and—in open-minded fashion—cutting off any benignly sexist chivalry at the knees to keep Mina in the loop and share the mastermind role.

And what does he decide?

Off to the tower, princess. It’s man work time! Man work here meaning: Investigate some scary dirt. Some rats are there. Everyone break up some Christ crackers, men. Thank God Mina isn’t here to suffer this, amirite? Oh, and Jonathan, be a dear and gather all the information on Dracula’s locations and properties while me and the others…do whatever. Read? Smoke? Something. Anyway, attaboy, such a good hard worker you are, Only Non-Titled Fresh-From-the-Lower-Class Man in the Group!

And then, after October 3rd?

He’s horrified. He’s upset. He’s King Laughing about Dracula’s good meal and within inches of being kukri’d. But you know what he isn’t?

Apologetic.

Oh, he says sorry for the crack about Dracula eating well—but all the actions that led up to the attack? Not a peep.

And when he falls right back into the ‘withhold as much information as possible until it’s time for a Big Specialboy Meeting and my Big Specialboy Corn-flavored Monologue of the Day, in which I’ll give more orders with full expectation that everyone here will hop to it like good little student-soldiers because the author says we can only follow me me me?’

The only saving grace is that Jonathan—not even Mina! JONATHAN!—finally puts his foot down and refuses to chase the stick without conferring with Mina first. Mina, who has always taken precedent to him, period, but also Mina, who has proven herself to be the soundest mind in the entire group and already well aware of the dangers Dr. Abe has been rambling about and trying to be oh-so-covert and sneaky about with Jack.

On that subject? Van Helsing is STILL living a fantasy world where he, and occasionally Jack, are the only ones who can put 2 and 2 together and consider taking anti-vampire measures against Mina.

When everyone has already read everything.

When Mina knows exactly what the risks and measures are.

When Jonathan ‘Would Sell His Soul for His Love and to Slaughter Dracula’ Harker knows all of this.

WHEN EVERYONE HAS EYES THAT CAN ALSO SEE MINA’S TEETH.

Brammy Pajamas. Bramothy Stokerton. Bramward Stokerbroker. My guy.

Your OC, by your own text’s rules, is not special here. He is not the protagonist. He is not the extra-clever center of the narrative’s universe, per your own fucking writing. Stop forcing this man and his refusal to evolve from his preconceptions and his main character pedestal-theft and his goddamn corncobs down our throats.*

*Note: This will not happen.

The one silver lining yet to come will be that Jonathan and Mina get to roughly shoulder their way back into the story’s forefront by the book’s climax. In a huge way. Jonathan even gets an upcoming scene in which he gets to finally, rightfully, chew Van Helsing to ribbons for casually declaring a Certain Horrifying Action has to be taken (Again! No questions asked! No explanation offered until after said chewing-out!) and the narrative treats this as the right move!

But still. Still. Van Helsing is showered with Stoker’s overblown attention to a character that should have had his influence and dialogue whittled down to a supporting role rather than crowding out the Harkers for two whole thirds of the book, complete with them batting their eyes at how brilliant~ he is for much of it.

Despite.

The facts.

In The Text.

That Mina and Jonathan could have led the the whole fucking thing themselves.

We’ll see in later chapters that Mina is ONCE AGAIN the one to figure out Dracula’s plans ahead of time and set everyone on the right course. Jonathan is ONCE AGAIN the one laser-focused on seeking and slaying the Count almost on a supernatural level. On top of all that? What galls me almost as much as the Harkers being robbed of their story spotlight IN THEIR OWN FUCKING STORY?

If Van Helsing hadn’t been one-man-showing the bulk of the dialogue to make sure Brammington got to wave his self-insert around as much as possible?

We could have let Jack, Arthur, and Quincey be actual presences in the book. Jack has a big role! Absolutely! But even he gets relegated to an orbiting figure rather than an active one once Van Helsing starts hogging the pages. Arthur is practically reduced to a mutely mourning money machine. Quincey gets a few moments to remind everyone Hi, Yes, I am a Cowboy. And that’s it.

THAT’S. IT. FOR ALL OF THEM.

Hell, even Lucy and Renfield get whittled down to wisps of dialogue compared to the whole trees’ worth of lines Van Helsing rattles off.

All because Stoker couldn’t bear to let Van Helsing be the character he should have been.

The support. The guide rather than the commander.

Star Wars isn’t about Yoda, but it wouldn’t be the same without the wise little weirdo! That’s what Van Helsing would and should have been great for! But no!

I see now that I owe at least one small retroactive apology to those movie makers and spinoff writers who try to spin Van Helsing as the very real definite archnemesis of Dracula despite the fact that they have exactly two (2) scenes together and no dialogue. It’s not just the cool name. It’s not just because all of the (frequently male and/or Dracula-crushing) directors and writers refuse to acknowledge Jonathan Harker’s existence or importance.

It's because Stoker himself damn near choked his own book to death with the old man’s screentime, backed up by an utter refusal to let the narrative or the characters acknowledge when he’s fucked up. He always has to be the wise scholar. He always has to command the room and the story when neither of them belong to him.

I’d genuinely like to see one of two adaptations in the future.

In one, we could see a Van Helsing who, following October 3rd, chooses to step back. One where he and others logically point out that he has misled everyone with forced unnecessary ignorance and following stodgy hindering social rules, again, and it has doomed someone precious to them, again. One where the Harkers finally get proper center stage, likewise for the Suitor Squad—the latter of whom are written in canon as having a legit history of dangerous adventures undertaken together. Flesh those out, writers! Let these characters be present in their own fucking story! It’d be a golden opportunity to highlight a point Stoker fumbles even as he champions so many other forward-thinking notions:

Sometimes the older generation has to let go of the reins. Sometimes progress doesn’t come just from following and nodding along, but from forging ahead with new concepts and fresher minds. Case in point, Mina and Jonathan, who are apparently still too radically-written to be bothered with depicting accurately in the 21st century apart from a podcast that is literally just reading their lines verbatim.

The other option an adaptation could take? Supposing it really wanted to lean into the horror and heartbreak and forcing the ducklings to stop grasping at the Dutchman’s coattails?

Kill Van Helsing.

Dracula would absolutely think to target him, assuming that he, the elder with his acquired lore and scholarly nuisance, must surely be the keystone keeping his young enemies together. Given the chance, he’d follow that assumption to its conclusion and, on top of burning what he assumes is all the documentation on him, murdering his fellow clever old man in cold blood, ala Renfield. Bonus points if this comes at a bittersweet cost of Van Helsing landing a parting blow on the Count as thematic penance for ‘failing’ Mina, the second young girl who trusted him and paid for it, giving the bastard his second scar to match the shovel blow on his brow. Double bonus if the mark comes from a Wafer burn.

“Any last words, old man?”

“God bless you.”

Cue him slapping the Son right in the fucker’s face. He doesn’t last long after that, but it’s still a good view to go out on as the Vampire curses and sizzles.

And, natch, he will have been wise enough to leave another memorandum for Jack and the others just in case this very thing should happen. A rousing farewell speech, some parting intel, some apologies made. Perhaps a more personal goodbye to his pupil; complete with Jack’s professional mien cracking like glass and the long-put-off tears finally pouring. Then, finally, the crew move forward as one; no longer leaning on or chafing against Van Helsing’s assumed lead, but using the exact same tools they’d always had at their disposal, along with their own wits that the narrative forced them into ignoring in favor of the Professor’s lectures.

Anyway.

Van Helsing is not a bad character. He’s richly made and interesting, as any worthwhile member of a cast should be! But Stoker crammed him into the wrong role and spread him far too thin across the whole book. Doing so has been detrimental not only to all the media which followed it, but to the actual leads of the novel.

[ssahotchnerr]

hiii there. I hope you’re doing okay. may I request something with hotch? like reader is still v. self-conscious of her body, and maybe she was sad because of something she saw/read/heard and he comes home to her crying and runs a hot bath for her and basically worships her? idk. I’m feeling it today. 🥺 thank you!

insecurities

aw i know the feeling well and i'm so so sorry it's awful :( i hope this makes your day better and you wake up tomorrow feeling more positive!! <3

cw; body image, small alcohol mention, i think that's it? and ofc fluffy fluff fluff <333

-

aaron can instantly tell something is off from the moment he opens the door.

you almost always beat him home; your work day ends much before his does. as a result, he was used to seeing your smiling face upon his entry, providing the usual 'welcome home kiss' he looked forward to from the second he left the apartment in the morning. maybe you would have dinner started, or you were relaxing on the couch with a glass of wine.

but this time, it's silent.

actually, no. it's silent except for the soft sound of you weeping coming from down the hall.

it's not hard to miss, and aaron almost feels guilty he didn't hear it immediately. worries instantly consumes him, worse case scenarios already flooding his head. so he doesn't waste another second to drop his things and hurry in your direction.

"sweetheart?" he asks with a sense of urgency, finding you sitting on the bed. "what's wrong?"

you nearly jump in surprise at his words; your cries had covered up the sounds of his arrival home so until now, you had thought you were alone. "nothing," you manage with a shake of your head, turning away so he wouldn't witness you wiping at your tears. "i'm fine."

you hadn't done a very good job of pleading your case, and well, because aaron knows you better than anyone, he knew there was more to the story. he knelt in front of you, taking your hands into his, making your own look minuscule in comparison.

"it must to be something if it has you this upset." he said solemnly, his thumbs brushing the palms of your hands gently.

you hesitate, considering not even voicing your thoughts, but from the look in his eyes, your heart pinches at the idea that you wouldn't confide in him. he's your aaron; he's been there during your good and bad days. there's no safer place than with him.

"sweetheart?"

"i just," you said, "i feel disgusting." you finally share, even more tears welling up in your eyes at your confession.

"what?" he asks softly, his eyebrows raising in slight surprise.

"someone..." you swallow the lump in your throat, his hands tightening their hold on yours. " someone said some things at work earlier."

aaron's face falls as you recall the negative statements you had overheard a colleague say in your regard. halfway through, you're leaning forward into him; your head his shoulder, your tears soaking through his dress shirt, just sobbing.

aaaron lets you cry, giving you the opportunity to let it all out. he doesn't mind in the slightest that you've wet his shirt, and he himself holds back tears at your anguish. not only that, he's angry. not at you, of course, but at the person who's put these incorrect thoughts into your head. he nearly scoffs at the audacity, how someone can believe you're anything less than extraordinary, in all aspects, is beyond him.

once you've calmed down a bit, he speaks up.

"you know that's all not true, don't you?" as he speaks, you pull back to look at him. "i mean it, you're absolutely perfect."

you shake your head. "but i-"

"no, no," aaron interrupts, shushing you. "you are perfect. there isn't an ounce of you that i don't love." he brings your hands to his lips, kissing them softly. "i love how your hands fit into mine. a perfect match, don't you think?"

aaron's hands let go of yours, and they find the way to the hem of your shirt. his eyes go to yours for permission, and once granted, his fingers are slipping underneath your shirt.

"and don't get me started on your body. how soft your skin is, your curves that make me weak in the knees." his fingers lightly trail along your sides, giving you instant goosebumps. "you have no idea what you do to me."

you let out a soft breath as his eyes reconnect with yours, heavy with desire. he reaches up a bit, brushing his lips against yours.

"you have zero imperfections. none."

you loop your arms loosely around his shoulders, eager to be closer, and he finally presses his lips to yours in a searing kiss.

"i love you, i love every piece of you. darling, believe me when i tell you, you're stunning." he mumbles softly into your lips.

after a few seconds, he pulls away and wipes at your few remaining tears. "feeling any better?"

"a bit, yeah." you nodded, offering him a tiny smile which causes one to pull on his face as well.

"c'mon then," he gets up, his knees cracking softly as he does so. his hands find your shoulders, massaging them gently for a few moments. "i'm going to run you a bath, it'll help relieve the tension in your shoulders, alright?"

you nod and he kisses the top of your head, reaching again for one of your hands to pull you to your feet.

"and if that doesn't help, i have a few other ideas to wash away any remaining doubts you may still have."