#and while we both changed a lot since then

[satocidal]

𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭“Smile for the Camera!” - Suguru Geto

Synopsis: one night really does change all - where you meet a hefty porn director Suguru and in the process of misunderstandings, you end up in his office, in the cutest maid suit.

— word count: 4.5k (i am sorry i just dk how to stop and how to start)

— a/n: this had been in my wip for so long lmao - it feels a little rushed to me but i'm also a bit rusty since it's been a while so yes lol @indiewritesxoxo you'd asked for a tag so😭hope you do like

— warnings: MDNI!!Fem Reader!! slightly manipulative! suguru, i tried to make him as gentle as i could; dumbification(?); camera; soft!dom geto; very botched representation of the porn industry; i have nothing against porn actors; masturbation; dressing up; Suguru is bisexual here, so is Satoru; reader has fem clothing; leashes and stuff; humiliation; praise kink: oral (fem rec)

The two men sat pretty and sprawled, Suguru Geto, head director of the freefuckforall website, along with Satoru Gojo, the website's longest running and most loyal actor.

“The industry is getting boring,” Satoru rolled his head, eyes closed, words directed towards his best friend who sat across from him on the couch.

Suguru only smirked, eyes stuck and watching every moving slide with lucrative detail - “I’ve been telling you, start filming sex with men, you already have it - just film it, more money, more opportunity,”

Satoru only giggled to himself - the boyish nature somehow suiting his towering self, "you know i have a different sort of fanbase - full of perverts who like seeing me fill up a cunt,"

He popped in his mouth the last of his grapes, eyes hazy as he looked at Suguru, “besides, what for? To fulfill your wretched fantasies? You already act as half a cuck anyways,” 

Suguru snorted along, shutting his laptop then and getting up to stretch, “a. develop a new fanbase then, those who'd like watching you get your ass stuffed, b. someone has to edit and direct, no? Lest you want people to see all the clips where you lie all fucked out - which would fall in common with your new style if you try it,”

The story was so fresh in both their heads - that one time Satoru had been reduced from his cocky self to a pleading and begging mess as the girl rode him - it took a lot of convincing (read: sex and treats) from Satoru before Suguru agreed to keep his ego intact.

Satoru just pouted, reaching over to grab Suguru’s share of snacks - having finished his own, “that was one time - and that girl was such an amateur, just started going at it suddenly,” 

“And the might Satoru, the amazing porn star couldn’t take it,” Suguru teased, his voice a low drawl, “but eh, it’s true, i don’t have fun filming the same shit over and over myself - it’s all repetitive,”

“Any new projects then?” Satoru asked, popping a grape in his mouth, Suguru grinned and shook his head - “not for you, but...I’ve got this new chick, she’s cute,” 

Satory raised a brow now, “cute like…date cute or cute like new fuck and more bucks?”

“Both,” Suguru grinned, “met her last night, at a party - seemed a little slow at first, she was awfully innocent,” he laughed, and Satoru did too.

“So the corruption kind huh,” 

They laughed again.

“I called her for a meeting today, said she had a dream for modelling, wanted a breakthrough in the industry - well, not this industry but..yeah,”

Satoru smirked, “you lied? How’d ya’ get her to agree?”

But Satoru knew all too well how Suguru got girls to agree, especially your kind - a few smiles, a few drinks, a little back story about himself and a little attention sprinkled, as gentle as he could be, Satoru really couldn’t remember any girl who had denied him a second date.

“Didn’t lie or nothin’...just told her i’m a director, we shoot a bit…unorthodox but it is what it is and makes good money, she couldn’t see an issue there,” he laughed.

Satoru did too - it wasn’t a lie, nor the truth.

“When’s she coming?”

Suguru checked his watch, smirked, “15 minutes, better get going then,” he grabbed his phone and laptop, ready to reach his office.

“And when would she really come?” Satoru egged on, with a grin. “Well they usually get wet by the time the camera begins anyway so…” Suguru grinned as he stepped out of the lounge and towards his office, where you were already seated.

-

The buzz felt alive, it made him feel alive.

Another wink to some girl he’d been gazing at - another sleazy line whispered in the ear of a boy who’d been grinding against him all night, none would accompany him to his mansion, he revelled in that itself.

Suguru focused on a waving hand - Shoko’s, he smiled softly at her, striding over to her, “yes ma’am?” he grinned, watching her down her drink.

“Wanna meet someone?” she said simply - a little flicker of a smile on her face. “Like a date?” he asked, before following her regardless, he knew better than to question.

And that’s where he saw you, a sight, he deemed you instantly.

A mini skirt you’d on, and a little top - just a tease - clearly out of your zone as you sipped on your-whatever-drink, eyes instead, drinking into the crowd, obviously searching for Shoko.

“Her?” Suguru asked, leaning down to Shoko’s ear, “sure?” 

A hint of worry seeped into his voice - girls like you often proved to be tough to work with, a little silly, always nervous around his work space and huge cry-babies.

Shoko grinned in response - she’d been tasked weeks ago to find Suguru a new girl for his pieces, a new face, some new energy to spice things up.

What he hadn’t expected was that she’d find someone so…inexperienced with his workspace, clearly.

Well, of course Suguru could tell who was and wasn’t - the director in him was keen, very keen — he saw money shots before one could even consider one.

And just like that, introduced to Suguru Geto you were, a nervous smile, yours and a smirk, his.

-

One drink, three and then a total of five, the bartender merely glanced up as he passed suguru’s bill to him, you sat beside him, all giggly now.

“How much do i…?” you slurred - a grin on your face, Suguru chuckled, “don’t worry darlin’ - got ya’ covered,”

You smiled wide at that, “you’re so nice - at first i was scared of you,” you confessed innocently, promptly, making his grin almost wolfish now.

“Tell me,” he nudged, hand leading you through the crowd so gently, to a secluded spot in the club, to the couch, “what did you think, hm?” 

His voice was smooth, his touch smoother - comforting and yet, you’d felt on the edge the entire night.

And yet, Suguru had nothing but sweet all night, not a single touch that went wrong, not a single gaze that was lifted wrong - just a long ear offered as you spoke and spoke, about work and life, obviously you'd needed this little escape.

Shoko has been gone ever since she introduced you to this gentleman.

“I thought…I thought…” you slowly had your eyes meet his, a flicker of confusion in them now, “i’m still thinking, what do you…do?” you asked - rightfully so - even if you did jump the conversation all too sudden for his taste.

Something he'd been avoiding all night, respite the true intentions of this meeting.

However, You’d bared your days and nights already - a huge mouth that you had, all under the drink of course, otherwise, the sober you was biting your lip beside him so hard that he was afraid you’d bleed.

And all you’d learned about him was that he was named Suguru Geto, and his friend was Shoko, all details shared by Shoko.

Suguru smiled, considering how much to share, “I’m a director,” he mused, watching your eyes widen, “yeah? I always wanted to become a model,” your tone was almost excited,  “what kinda’ director?” you asked next, he shrugged casually.

“Here and there, ya’know?”

You shook your head in a no, he smiled softly and slowly helped you out of the club, it was getting late anyways.

-

You both stood outside, his car was right there in the parking.

“Rather have me drive you home doll? Or do I get you an uber? Whatever makes you feel better but…” his words trailed off as your fingers tugged at him partially from the cold and partially from the many people lined outside the club, “...i think it’s better i drop you, yeah?”

And so, that’s what he did - civic duty? Maybe; Did he find you adorable and wanted to hear you talk more? Definitely.

As you climbed in his car, he hummed - mind unsure but he didn't want to let the shtick drop just yet, “you asked what kinda’ director, yeah?”

You nodded in your seat, as he fixed your seat belt, hands brushing against your plush skin, you licked your lips at the contact, he did too.

“Well, it is a bit…unorthodox,” he said, lips pursed, debating if it was okay - if he wanted to drag you in, “how desperate are you, to be in the industry doll?”

He asked softly, as the car revved, somehow you felt your cheeks heating up, “uhm…it’s like…a dream, i - well, not very ambitious but…if a chance,” you stammered out, he couldn’t help but chuckle, deepening the warmth you felt.

“I’ll tell you what,” he said as he nodded to the directions you gave him for your house, “why don’t you drop by at my office tomorrow hm? You can come, see the work and all, and if you are interested, why not? Shoko will have you filled in with the details, yeah?”

You could only nod, after all, this gentleman wouldn’t be an issue, right?

-

A deep breath inhaled, a lot of regret exhaled.

You flinched every time you heard footsteps approaching, you recoiled every time a moan sounded out from one of the adjacent rooms.

You were officially in a porn-making-building-or-whatever-those-are, wearing the shortest, sluttiest outfit you ever had on - the little maid suit that Shoko had handed you right as you left the house.

“Don’t peek, it’s a surprise,” she’d reminded, and you just complied - like an idiot.

Because now, seated in this dingy office that you were, posters of porn-actresses and actors, you were sure you’d seen some of them a couple of times yourself - until, your eyes panned to the logo of the website in the corner of one of them.

Officially in the office of the biggest porn website - all because a stranger asked you to.

The previous night was fresh in your eyes - well, not really, but the regret was.

What were you even thinking? Letting a random man drive you? Coming to meet him? Talking to him about your work and life?

Perhaps, nothing.

What were you thinking when the said man actually walked into his office? With his busy footsteps and a gaze that meant business now, last night you’d thought everything else - with his charming face and laptop which would essentially also hold your file in a while?

Nothing, you really couldn’t fathom a single thought to be exact.

“Ms….l/n, is it?” he read from his sheet - pretense - yours was the only appointment he’d scheduled for that day, cancelling all others. He didn’t bother eyeing you properly, but he knew well, about how enticing you did look.

He smiled, the same smile, more twisted now, “why hello, nice seeing your pretty self again,” he said with a grin, you could only nod.

You let a small silence etch between the two of you, unacceptable, Suguru opened his laptop promptly.

“How was the ride over? All comfortable? My…” he said in almost disdain, “you haven’t even been offered water? How long have you been-”

“-why didn’t you tell me it is all this?”

The disgust was so evident in your voice, he almost felt bad.

Almost.

He hummed, “I did mention it is unorthodox…”

“How dare you assume i’m into all this - what the fuck?” you muttered, ashamed by just entertaining the thought of you being a pornstar.

“Assume what? That you would want to work in the porn industry?” he smirked, all business now, “you really can’t tell with people and then,” he rolled the cuffs of his shirt’s sleeves now, “the innocent ones like you are often the biggest whores,”

He seemed amused, you seemed tense.

You huffed, “fucking whatever - i don’t…i’m not the kind of girl… and - and this dress? Goodness it is so…” a scowl on your face finished the rest.

Suguru couldn’t blame you.

Geto shrugged, a hand raised, gesturing to the door, “very well then, you can always walk out, i understand, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea…” 

All bluff, the confidence, the flair, all bluff - he wanted you, ever since last night.

You got up, right on cue, all bluff as well, you wanted to play the gamble.

“It’s a shame…” Suguru mumbled, “shame indeed,” you did too.

His eyes narrowed as you turned, eyes dipping then to take an appreciative glance at your ass, “tell you what?” He took a deep breath.

It felt desperate, it was.

“Let me take your profiles, yeah? You’ll get it for free - by a professional of course, just compensation for all the trouble,” he shot you a smile, you gulped.

“I…i’m not sure…it was - last night, just a lot of babbling, i don’t think i’m cut for…you know? And then this outfit also…”

You weren’t sure how a smile appeared on your lips so easily when you’d been pissed the moment you realised what he’d called you for, but it did.

He shrugged again, “just some pictures doll - and who doesn’t like dressing up, yeah? I’ve got plenty more for you to choose from,” he licked his lips, eyes boring into you, you could only nod.

-

“Tilt your pretty face a little to the right, please,” you gulped, still in that maid outfit - which was now being used to its full potential, the top was half open, you were on a steel chair that felt so cold against your flushed skin, and sitting right under the spotlight - while the director sat behind his camera, not rolling, nothing, just making assessments now.

Your profiles had been done half an hour ago, the photos had been sent too, it was a little job for Suguru, you were so compliant after all, following every instruction to the dot.

Which is why it had been harder for him to resist this.

After the pictures you were served drinks again, all hefty smiles and silly conversations - about porn of course. He told you everything, how he’d shot this shot, how long the process goes, how sweet you look, and how cute you are.

“Why don’t you just show me off once again, yeah? Just…so I can see, take inspiration?”

And ever the generous that you were, ever the charming as he was, somehow, you once again found yourself at a loss for no.

Which was how you’d ended up finally, in this position.

“Press your breasts together please…i want to…ah yes,” he murmured as you did what he asked for, albeit with a gulp, it felt so weird.

In front of a camera, his gaze on your every move, and he sounded so professional, dressed well too. And then there was you, just a built in thong with that dress, the top had a sheer torso, your side boob seemed so tantalising to him.

Your nipples had hardened just as well, it was just so cute, matched with your nervousness.

-

Your top lay now open - still on, after all Suguru wouldn’t ask you to do anything out of your comfort zone, right? On the monitor suguru only watched you fidget with your fingers on your thighs, smoothening the hem of the short dress as if it would help - provide some modesty.

Top open, thighs spread - a sheen of sweat from the small humid room and face hotter than ever - hair messy and eyes now dazed, Suguru had halted with his instructions for the moment, and you -? 

You continued staring at his fingers, thoughts ran rogue - you wondered if he’d ever been on camera himself, if he’d used those skilled hands for something other than recording, if he was anything close to as long and thick as his fingers - you looked away.

shameless.

The room went quieter then, just a slight buzz, Suguru stared at his screen with eyes furrowed, “hm..i don’t know, it’s not working out very well,” he said - tone regretful, your face jocked to the side. “What? …why?” 

Suguru wanted to coo at your simplicity - so bothered, he then got up, “you were correct, it’s not for girls like you,”

Such an insult it seemed, an unknowing pout fell on your lips, you got up too, your shorter frame moving slowly towards Suguru, the skirt was so short and given the humidity, it clung to your curves perfectly now - “can i…” you licked your lips, see? 

You wanted to ask that simply but refrained, too shy of his disappointment and too prude to watch yourself.

And thus the secret of the fact that Suguru was recording nothing of you displaying yourself so shamelessly remained all but a secret.

“I’ll…oh, i’ll do whatever you ask,” you ended up muttering - exactly how he wanted to have you.

“You can’t…” he just muttered, not even trying anymore, just a small smirk as he stared at you - all aware of that raging boner in his pants, hidden only because of the dark, all aware that just a glance down would show your pretty tits, all so aware.

“I can,” you said determined this time, “it’s only for your inspiration…right? And if they do come out good…it might help somewhere,” you licked your lips, now he touched you, your cheek - his hands felt warm, sweaty.

Oh but it would help somewhere indeed.

“You sure doll? Wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable,”

It felt patronizing, the smile - the eyes, he knew you  wouldn’t say no, he knew exactly how he’d sprawl you.

“So well…” he sighed deeply and then looked you up and down, “take the blouse off actually, please, go in back to the seat,” he spoke smoothly.

And you did just that.

You sat there - breasts, soft peaks - your gasps softer still, all exposed to his skillful eyes, “atta girl,” he murmured, smiling now - finally.

“Play with yourself - don’t be shy okay? Forget i’m here…”

You licked your lips…play…?

If you’d have told Shoko yesterday that you would be found half naked in the office of a man you’d found about 12 hours ago, she’d laugh in your face.

And so you began, hands cupping your tits, fingers sinking into the pliant flesh, they felt so full now - your face scrunched in focus as you tried to make it appear as sexy as possible.

“Perfect, jus’ like that…” suguru encouraged, a gulp of his own drawn - the camera finally began shooting, he couldn’t help himself after all.

your hands  - all over the swell of your breasts, slender fingers kneading and squeezing the flesh, you massaged them, slowly drawing circles around your nipples. 

“Pinch them,” he ushered from front of you, moving the camera closer now, moving towards you - he could tell with your hesitation, you were still nervous.

Your eyes remained stuck on him, so wide as he moved closer to capture your hardened nipples - “so cute,” he mumbled as you flicked them, “you play with your tits often doll?”

“N–no i…well,” you looked away shyly - only so long, Suguru had his fingers grip your jaw quickly, forcing you to look into the camera.

“Rule no. 1: always face the camera,” you nodded, he patted your cheek with a slight smirk, “go on, maybe imagine me…mm’hmm, imagine i was squeeziin’ those pretty tits, yes…”

He smiled - almost proud as you finally closed your eyes, a soft inhale as your back arched, chest obscenely jutting out - same ministrations, much hotter.

And just when you moaned - he paused the recording, “ok enough of this, get up.”

Swift you moved - feeling the shyness coat you again, he himself placed the camera down momentarily - jogging back to his table to grab you a new fabric, bright pink - shorter, skimpier.

“Wear this now, like it better than the last one?” it was small playboy bunny suit, the little bunny ears gave it away - and the tail of course.

“If it is okay by you, of course…you’re already doing so good,” he drawled and then without a word - his own hands latched t your boobs, pressing them softly - feeling them, “mmhmm, so pretty,” you gasped as he pinched your left nipple.

He continued fondling your boobs - as you stumbled a little, his practiced hand held you tight as he switched between your two boobs perfectly - teasing just so perfectly.

And when he did pull away, his fingers had you so sore - you could practically beg.

“Ready to change?” he added with a small smile - chuckling to himself as your eyes cast him a desperate look - exactly as they all did.

He handed you the costume, eyeing you expectantly, and you looked around - for the changing room.

“Uh…here?” your voice was squeakier than you’d have preferred, he laughed, “well don’t be silly,” he booped your nose then, “it’s a small office for me - of course, no changing room.”

So whatever else remained of your little shame, you pulled that down just as swiftly as you pulled the maid-skirt off, aware of just how Suguru stared.

And he did so with utmost detail, he took not of just how your slick clung to the gusset of the built in panties - of how cute you looked, trying to hide yourself, of pretty your entire body was, of how stiff his pants felt and of how he wanted to absolutely eat you up from how adorable you looked.

And he made a mental note of definitely not posting that recording anywhere.

The bodice of the suit was flattering to say the least - the pesky heart cut out for the breasts barely contained anything, and Suguru made you give him a twirl too, only to watch the little tail bounce on the curve of your ass.

“Now…i want you to get on the floor, all okay?” he asked - not caring any longer, “get down and spread your legs f’me,”

The camera was up once again, capturing every detail, the shiny suit and the way you sprawled out.

“I want you to touch yourself - forget that i’m here or we’re recording, okay? Play with that lil’ cunt for me - please?” he added the please with a little pout - as if it would solve the issue at hand.

“T- touch myself?” you echoed, eyeing him now, “isn’t that…oh it’s…”

“Too much? I get it,” suguru was quick to file in - so easy to make you think otherwise, “as i said…you’re not cut for this,”

You sighed - not wanting to prove him right and closed your eyes, “uh…okay but…fuck, okay,” you caved in, suguru wanted to kiss you deeply to comfort you instantly, to tell you that he would be the only one who got to fuck his fist while watching this recording.

But he didn’t, at the moment at least.

Thus you began again, this time your fingers on your clothed sex, rubbing slow - deliberate circles, eyes closed and mind focusing, the camera was set, Suguru simply sat aside and rubbed his own bulge, muttering little praises for you every minute.

Five minutes in and the shiny pink fabric of the bunny suit had ridden up, exposing a tantalizing glimpse of your inner thighs. Suguru felt his mouth go dry at the sight, his heart pounding in his chest.

"That's it, sweetheart," he encouraged, his voice a low, intimate murmur. "Now, I want you to start rubbing yourself faster through the fabric. Slowly, teasingly. Pretend it's my hand touching you, stroking you, making you feel good."

It was a stretch, using his name to get you off - but he knew it wouldn’t fail, never did.

Suguru watched as your hand moved between your legs repeatedly, fingers brushing faster over the front of the bunny suit. He could see the fabric beginning to dampen, to darken as your arousal grew. The sight made his cock throb, straining against the confines of his pants.

"That's my good girl," he praised, his voice a low, approving rumble. "Keep rubbing yourself, doll. Imagine it's my fingers teasing your pussy, my thumb circling your clit. I want to see you get yourself nice and wet for me."

He watched, enraptured as the camera continued recording, as your fingers moved more deliberately now, rubbing yourself more firmly through the damp fabric. 

Your breathing grew heavier, chest rising and falling more rapidly as you lost yourself in the sensation.

"Fuck, you look so sexy like that," Suguru growled, his own hand moving faster to palm his aching cock through his pants. "Don't stop, baby. Keep touching yourself, keep teasing yourself for me. I want to see you get so fucking wet, so ready for me."

Suguru watched, transfixed, as your fingers moved, your hips beginning to rock against your  own touch. 

You dared not to look into the camera - or at suguru, “go on, get yourself to cum for me doll,” he called out - eyeing the way your fingers moved more frantically - eyeing the way your breath was more ragged.

But as the minutes ticked by, Suguru began to sense something was off. 

Your touches - more frantic; breathing - more labored,and  yet the telltale signs of an impending orgasm were nowhere to be seen. Your cheeks were flush with exertion and frustration, brows furrowed as you gritted your teeth.

And just like that, Suguru's patience began to wear thin. 

He had expected you to pick up easily - but obviously, your shyness just got the better of you.

Because here you were, struggling, failing to deliver the intense, authentic performance he craved. Irritation flashed in his purple eyes as he watched you, his grip tightening on the camera mic.

"Fuck, y/n," he called, his voice a low, annoyed rumble. "What's taking so long? You should be done by now doll, not just... come on- don’t toy with yourself halfheartedly."

He watched as you tried to pick up the pace, her fingers moving at a frenzied speed, the wet spot on your bunny suit growing larger, darker. But still, no release came. Suguru clenched his jaw, his cock twitching - begging to be the help you desperately craved.

"Dammit, you're not trying hard enough," he snapped, his patience finally snapping. 

With a harsh curse, Suguru ripped off his headphones and stormed out from behind the camera. He marched over to where you sat, panting and flushed, her fingers still moving weakly between her thighs.

"Enough," he barked, grabbing your wrist and yanking your hand away. "Get your fingers out of there. I'm going to show you how it's done- can’t manage nothing without me, huh?"

You looked up at him, her eyes wide with surprise and a flicker of shame grappling back at you -  But there was also a glimmer of excitement, of anticipation, at the thought of Suguru finally taking control.

And as promised Suguru didn't waste any time. He dropped to his knees in front of you, pushing your legs further apart, exposing the soaked crotch of the bunny suit to his hungry gaze. Without hesitation, he leaned in and pressed his mouth against the damp fabric, his tongue laving over your clothed slit.

"Ohhh!" you gasped out loud, your back arching off the floor at the sudden, intense sensation - fingers moving to grip his hair.

Suguru was quick still, to move the crotch of your suit aside - tongue lapping on your slick folds.

Suguru groaned against her, “shit, been thinkin’ bout’ this cunt since last night,” the vibrations of his voice did none but to add to the incredible stimulation. He could taste your arousal through the thin   drenched fabric anyways, but what fun would that be ? he could smell the heady scent of your desire. It spurred him on, making him lick and suck at your clit harder, more insistently.

"Fuck, you taste so good," he muttered, his words muffled against her pussy. "I bet you're just aching to come, aren't you, baby? Desperate for release? See…told ya’ you’re perfect for this,"

He punctuated his words with a hard suck on your clit, making you cry out, your fingers scrabbling for purchase on the smooth studio floor. Suguru could feel your thighs beginning to tremble, your hips starting to buck against his mouth as he ate you out with wild abandon.

"That's it, baby," he encouraged, his voice a low, approving growl. "Let go. Come for me. I want to feel you fucking explode in my mouth. Want you on record as you lose yourself."

He sealed his lips around your clit and sucked hard, his tongue flicking rapidly over the sensitive nub. 

At the same time, he pushed a finger under the crotch of the bunny suit, rubbing your bare, slick folds, stroking your inner walls.

"Ahhh! Oh god, Suguru!" you choked, your voice echoing off the studio walls. Your body went rigid, muscles locking up as the intense pleasure crested over you. 

Suguru groaned in satisfaction, feeling your juices gushing against his finger, soaking the bunny suit even more. He lapped at you greedily, not letting a single drop of your juices go to waste.

For a minute, neither spoke - as he allowed you to catch your breath - “well, that would make…one hell of a video,” he finally muttered, picking you up along side him, “you okay doll?” he confirmed once, smiling when you nodded.

He sat you down on his chair now - behind the camera as he paused the recording again, “i won’t post it, i just…well, it’s shady but you did say you …i mean,”

You hadn’t known him long - but it felt cute to see him fumble, “it’s okay - i…i liked it,” you said shyly and he grinned - “what will you do with it then?” you asked quietly as he handed you water.

“later use of course…” he chuckled, “you want a copy?” he laughed again when you nodded.

“Say…ready for round two…without that badboy?” he referred to his camera - “with handcuffs and chains maybe?”

You could only giggle at his suggestive eye brow raise.

All of this work is original and entirely my own—please refrain from copying or reposting.

Likes and Reblogs highly appreciated!

[archangeldyke-all]

Hi Angel!! I first wanted to say that I love all your Sevika stories, they never fail to make my days better!

So, I've recently been thinking about little fucker and the twins a lot ((bc I found out I'm gonna be an aunt for twins :DD and it made me wonder how did Sev and Reader react to the news, like.. "what. WERE HAVING TWINS??? HOW." something like this lmao.

Not sure if you've already written something like this, but I've practically read all of your masterlists lmao. If you did feel free to skip cuz I have really bad short term memory ;))

oh my god that's so exciting!!! congrats auntie!!! i think i wrote a few little sentences about this in one of the first twins posts, but lets make it a full fledged story heheeh <3

(also as always with these stories, don't think too much about how the pregnancy happened. reader is trans, or has a magical strap, or it's just yuri magic. you choose hehe)

men and minors dni

for the first few days after sevika's pregnancy test coming back positive, you're both living in denial.

"how am i pregnant? i thought this was menopause! i thought i was done with all this shit!" sevika whines.

you giggle a little hysterically, then pull her into your arms. "i have no fuckin' idea." you say, blinking in shock. "holy shit. i actually knocked you up."

sevika giggles just as crazily in your hold. "congrats."

"i've been trying to get revenge on you for little fucker since you first knocked me up with her!" you laugh. sevika snorts and smacks your shoulder.

"don't say revenge. oh fuck, this is gonna miserable, isn't it?" sevika whines. you kiss her sweetly.

"it's the most amazing thing that's ever happened!"

"you're such a shit. you're just happy it isn't you this time around."

"damn right i am!" you laugh. sevika smiles at you, and then her face falls. you coo and wrap her up in another hug. "it's gonna be alright sevi-bear. i'm gonna be with you every step of the way."

"no, it's not that." sevika whimpers as she nuzzles against your shoulder. "i'm just-- i'm so happy. we're gonna have another one, baby, holy shit."

you grin and pull sevika in for a kiss.

her reaction isn't quite as happy when you get to your doctor's office, though.

"o-oh!" the ultrasound tech gasps.

"good 'oh?'" sevika worries, sitting up a bit from her spot on the paper covered exam table.

"you're having twins, mommies! congratulations!" the tech gasps, grinning up at you and sevika.

you blink.

the tech giggles with glee and turns back to her monitor, clearly handling the news better than you are. you blink again, then look down at sevika.

she's glaring at you like she's going to murder you.

it's only now that the tech's words hit you. and for some reason, you burst into laughter.

"t-twins?!" you cackle. "like, two of 'em?! how-- how the hell did we do that!?" you ask.

the tech blinks up at you in surprise, opens her mouth to speak, but you don't hear her answer. you're too busy grinning down at your wife.

"i'm gonna kill you." sevika finally whispers. you burst into another round of laughs.

"alright. just wait 'til after the pregnancy, think you might want me around these next few months, mama." you tease.

sevika's glare is deadly, but you can't find it in you to stop laughing. holy shit. two more little babies running around your house. if they're anything like their sister, they'll look exactly like sevika. tears well up in your eyes as you gaze lovingly down at your angry wife, imagining two pairs of grumpy baby eyes glaring up at you while you try to change their diapers.

"are you crying?!" sevika squawks. "why the hell are you crying, i should be the one crying!"

"you can cry too, baby!" you giggle, a surge of love taking over your body. before you know what's happening, you're smacking the tech's hand away from your wife's belly and straddling her waist, peppering her face with an endless barrage of kisses. "oh, holy shit, baby, we're gettin' two more of 'em!"

sevika's glare lessens a bit, a small smile ticking up at the corner of her mouth. you can see her softening to the idea; two more babies for you to love; but before a full smile can take over her face she forces herself back into a frown. "we can barely afford the kid we've got." she huffs.

you snort. "that's the beauty of hand-me-downs, sev. plus, silco gave you a big raise when we had the little fucker, what makes you think he'll hold back now that it's your turn?"

"we live in a two bedroom home!"

"we can move!"

"while i'm pregnant with twins?!"

"i'll start looking for a new place the second we get home."

sevika finally smiles, rolling her eyes and giggles a bit. "i can't believe you." she whispers. you grin.

"you're the love of my fucking life. i can't believe you."

the door clicks shut, and you both look up from your embrace to find that the tech has snuck out to give you some privacy.

and, finally, sevika bursts into laughter along with you.

taglist!!

@sevikas-baby @ghostscandys @sevikasllver @runawaybaby3 @lesbones

@chezze-its @lez-zuha @vikashoneybee @shanesevikasfuckdoll @imheadintothemountains

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taglist!

@fyeahnix @lavendersgirl @half-of-a-gay @thesevi0lentdelights @sexysapphicshopowner

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[toffee4you]

Honestly I'm surprised at how much actual hate I've seen towards the Dawn Armor announcement (mostly Twitter). Just because he's wearing the armor doesn't mean he has to slay/harm Malleus.

Reasoning and anticipated outcome below cut

The reasons:

Already, Silver and Dawn have shown parallels. While they both wish for the unity of fae, humans, etc., Dawn followed any order despite knowing it was wrong because he didn't want to betray Heinrick (and by extension, his family). Meanwhile, Silver was already shown to go against Malleus's order for the greater good (early book 7 in Sebek's dream, when he refused to fall asleep even after being bashed for his disobedience, and fled from Malleus to save him and everyone else). There's also things like rabbitfest where he was completely warranted to dust those delinquents, especially since everyone else initially wanted to do that too, but he immediately went for a passive approach. That's not as strong of an example because there's no lives on the line, though.

Another thing we're forgetting is that Silver and Dawn likely had vastly different environments growing up. Silver was raised by Lilia, a fae who advocated for peace between all species. He also has peers who don't harbor any particular hate towards fae because the modern world is more tolerant. Meanwhile, Dawn might have had good intentions, but from what we see, at least some of the humans he grew up with had little regard for fae (Heinrick). And, judging by lines about their greed and lack of care for the environment, it's highly probable that most others had the same lack of regard. It's a little hard to follow your beliefs when it'll seem like betraying everyone else who you want to protect, ESPECIALLY your family. This leads to what I believe is one of the key differences.

Heinrick manipulated Dawn by telling him it was for Leah's happiness and her father's health. Maleanor is not someone Dawn has personally known, making it less of a loss to slay her in order to save what's important to him (as terrible as it is, and undoubtedly, it was a hard but wrong decision imo). On the contrary, Malleus is a part of Silver's family + his liege, and that's important to him. He's doing this to save Malleus and everyone else, not just to save one side like Dawn was.

Also, Malleus is doing this with misplaced intentions to make everyone happy, and the others seem somewhat aware of this (most definitely Silver, who saw his reasoning from beginning to end). Meanwhile, humans back then probably tried to dehumanize fae (especially Maleanor) by labeling them as the evil ones. No one is actively advocating for Malleus actually be slayed, giving Silver more room to follow his own will, unlike Dawn. So, not only was he raised to follow his will, but his environment is a lot more forgiving. As a matter of fact, if the others also advocate for not harming Malleus, there's really no reason AT ALL for Silver to hurt him.

Besides, it seems like TWST has been trying to represent a theme that the world is slowly changing, and issues do get resolved after overblots. Think of fairy gala. When Dawn said the line praying for all intelligent beings to live in harmony, he was about to slay Maleanor. When Silver said the line, it was because they actually SUCCEEDED at bringing the species together. History did not repeat itself, and I think it would be counterintuitive/more difficult for book 7 to end if they tried making Silver harm Malleus.

Also, did we forget how shaken Silver was when he realized he was related to Dawn? And how he had a whole character development realizing that even though he shared genetics with Dawn, he was still different and he was loved? Then vowed to save everyone? Super counterintuitive to go back on all of that for the sake of angst.

The conclusion:

In my opinion, I think the Dawn Armor has potential to be the opposite of "traumatizing" for Lilia. Sure, at first, he'll probably get a spook seeing that armor come out, but I think he trusts Silver enough to take the right route. I think it might finally give Lilia some internal peace when he sees Silver wield the same armor to save Malleus instead of slaying him, like a good ending version of what happened years ago. I also think Dawn Knight himself would be proud of Silver for doing what he failed at, assuming he's watching over Sil from the ring. At least, that's what I'm personally hoping for.

Feel free to throw tomatoes at me like a medieval villager if I'm wrong tho 🫡

[bigmomma25]

Character Analysis of Josh Levy

Sorry if this is shit, idk how to word my feelings on Josh. Gonna go about each character very differently bc they're all complex in their own right and I have so many thoughts. Brain so full. He’s the most tragic of them all, super overlooked, misunderstood, and underrated. He’s someone who’s hard to analyze, since he’s so guarded. Plus I distance myself from him bc he's too real lol

I feel the most integral part of Josh's character is the fact that he's neurodivergent. He's always been very autistic-coded in writing, but it was also confirmed by Dorkin that he is somewhere on the neurodivergent spectrum, which changes his character completely from just a gluttonous selfish loser to a cautionary tale of what can happen when autistic children get no resources or room to be "weird" in public.

When we first meet Josh, it's established that he's the laughing stock of the group. In the first meeting that we see, the rest of the club has managed to get all types of pop culture merchandise from all over the place, but Josh's are more childish, like Animaniacs and Flintstones. He also went the easiest route, basically relying on his mother if he wanted to get anything done. All in all, not very complex, and this gets him laughed at immediately.

He is only treated with respect when he has something the rest of the club values, and has to use it as leverage to get any kind of positive feedback. During open debate, he's almost sneered at by the rest of the group and doesn't even realize it, since he's loud and corny and laughs at his own jokes. When they play DnD, he's shown to be very insecure and terrible at decision-making, once again getting him endlessly shit on by Pete. And once his leverage is gone, he's mocked again, especially for falling for such an easy scam.

There is a lot to unpack there, very quickly. The story almost makes it easy to point and jab at someone like Josh, without looking much deeper than the surface. He's the Eltingville Club's personal Chris-Chan, or Tophia, or Daniel Larsen.

Josh Levy has a Binge Eating Disorder

Josh has bad eating habits, both in the comics and pilot. He's willing to eat stale Doritos from a trash can, is constantly shoving fast food in his face, and bulk buys food constantly for the collectibles, eating it all instead of throwing it away like his friends. It even leads to health problems and discomfort, like when he was eating nothing but Batman-shaped Mac and Cheese for days and had extreme bathroom issues. This is meant to show his gluttony, but even that represents the issue Josh has faced all his life - his problems being portrayed as his own fault and made into a gag. Being fat is not a moral failure, but everyone has always told Josh that it was.

Binge eating stems from somewhere. You aren't born with those habits, and there's a reason he feels stupid and ashamed every time he participates in it. Josh has always faced a lack of control and emotional support from everyone in his life, leading to him trying to find it in both escapism and food binges. It's also a sign of even bigger mental health issues, but no one steps in. His own family shows a lack of care or consideration for their son, along with enabling his habits by constantly buying more for him. He has very little say in his own life, but he does at least have a say in how he eats and the things that bring him joy, even if it's destroying him.

Enabling Parents

While I wouldn’t say Josh has good parents, they at least have some type of care for him, and he obviously comes from a family with money. His parents are very old, and his mother is sickly, which means that they probably can’t discipline him in the way that he needed as a child. Even when Josh was grounded, it was a very light punishment compared to what he did (literally vandalism) and it’s clear there aren’t many rules in his house.

They essentially allow Josh to do whatever he wants, and throw money at him constantly, but refuse to actually look at what he needs emotionally that is causing all these outbursts. They show very little care when Josh is distraught, don’t address his binge eating habits or obsessions or why he’s having dreams of his friends beating him to a pulp. They constantly buy him a bunch of junk food when they can see the impact it’s having on his health, or maybe they don’t pay enough attention to notice. With his mother being sick, it’s very likely that he didn’t get much attention, and tried to get it from everywhere else in his life. He’s emotionally neglected and physically spoiled, trying to use material possessions to fill that void.

Josh’s Autistic Traits

I’m going to have to make a bullet pointed list for this, since there’s so many instances that it’s hard to pinpoint all of it.

Emotional Outbursts/Emotional Impermanence - Josh has been shown on multiple occasions to feel things very strongly, and acts out because of how emotional he gets. Particularly, his anger often overwhelms him. It’s very common for people on the spectrum to lack the ability to regulate their emotions and self soothe in a typical fashion, which leads to meltdowns, and angry outbursts. Josh clearly has a hard time conveying what he’s thinking when he’s upset, often getting tripped up and desperate, like trying to explain himself during the trivia-off, and trying to set boundaries with the club about the fat jokes only to be met with laughter and ridicule. I firmly believe he’s had meltdowns multiple times on screen, and it’s not always just him throwing a tantrum. He’s also able to switch his emotions very quickly, going from fuming with anger to beaming with joy, as if he’d felt nothing else beforehand.

Social Obliviousness - Josh often doesn’t realize he’s the butt of the joke when it’s not spelled out for him. His friends don’t even want to be seen next to him at times, and he never really realizes the degree in which they hate him. He makes a fool out of himself constantly, but doesn’t realize how people perceive him OUTSIDE of being a fat nerd, and has no desire to know and no self-reflection. Once again, I feel that the dream he has about his friends beating him up until he bleeds is significant, because he asks himself “what could that possibly mean” when it is VERY obvious to the rest of the audience.

His Special Interests Shape His World - Josh isn’t shown to be the brightest in many aspects; in the pilot he’s prone to making mistakes, he often comments in the comics about how he comes to realizations far slower than the rest of his friends. But when it comes to his special interests like Star Wars, he’s a human encyclopedia. He knows the most out of the group about anything sci-fi and comic related, even trying to build an actual functional Iron-Man suit by himself (before lighting himself on fire, but that’s still knowledge and dedication). The way he calms down is literally sorting his figure into lines. He can’t take his mind off of it even in important situations, like in the pilot when he’s being screamed at by Bill’s mom but is still caught up in the DnD game. His job in the future is literally him trying to be a comic writer. He cannot function in the world without his special interests being involved, and since most people were very hostile towards him and his interests, this manifests in him being defensive and obsessive instead of forming a normal relationship with it.

Lack of Empathy - Josh is very rude, like everyone in the club. While his harassment of others isn’t an autistic trait, it does show that he has a hard time putting himself in other people’s shoes. Even when he does care about people, like his mother, or Bill not getting a chance to get a Star Wars figure because Josh keeps hoarding them, or Pete after the zombie walk, he can’t conceptualize how they feel if it doesn’t affect him. It may not even dawn on him, because of his social ineptitude.

Missing Social Cues - Josh isn’t the best in social situations; from the painful conversation with the many cashiers at fast food places, to the scene during DnD, in the comics, when Josh is confronted with a social interaction with a girl and completely falls apart. He’s awkward, he’s loud, and he has no idea he’s awkward and loud. He’s also very blunt, and sincere with his words, not realizing that other people can say something and mean another, like when he showed up to job interviews and talked about Godzilla, thinking the hiring manager was interested.

Black and White Thinking/Paranoia - Josh jumps to conclusions often. With him, it’s either something is the worst thing to ever exist, or it’s perfect and you’re not allowed to criticize it. He has a hard time understanding that grey area, and this also reflects on how he views other people. Unlike Bill or Pete who form their judgements of “normies” on trends they’ve noticed and behaviors they’ve watched from afar, Josh thinks they’re all inherently bad based on his own experiences being bullied. And he believes all nerds are inherently better because of his friend group and experiences. Seeing someone who’s both preppy and enjoys nerdy media would probably turn his entire world view upside down.

Disorganization/Executive Functioning Issues - Josh can’t care for himself on his own, and has a hard time in public places. In the pilot it’s more evident, during the DnD game when he��d been shown to drop everything, make poor decisions, be hyper focused on small issues and details while ignoring the big picture, which can reflect how he conducts himself in real life. Even just making himself a meal or going grocery shopping is hard for Josh, which can be partly caused by his parents babying him too much, and partly from lack of executive functioning skills.

The Lolcow-ification of Josh

Unfortunately it’s a big part of his character stereotype that this story takes place in the early 2000s, which means the general population is very hostile to both fat people AND autistic people. Being both means that anyone and everyone will find an excuse to shit on you, and it will be socially accepted to do so. So it’s not unreasonable to assume Josh has been socially outcasted since his birth. Social Isolation is scientifically the worst pain humans can go through as a social species - it manifests in the brain as physical pain. And being exposed to that pain your whole life leaves you traumatized.

I’m going to be a dork for a second and reference my favorite book; much like how Frankenstein’s monster was not born violent, but grew to be so after being rejected and betrayed by everyone he knew, Josh‘s positive traits slowly became overshadowed by his insecurity and defensiveness.

It’s rather heartbreaking, how hard it is to analyze Josh when he is so clearly defined by trauma. Especially since it’s a fact that no autistic person in our society has really gone without trauma. It’s hard to know the real Josh when he’s always on defense mode. His trauma is also heavily overlooked, both in the story and in reality. Since he is most likely undiagnosed, he probably sees it as his own fault.

Josh’s Positive Traits

When he’s so often looked down upon, I feel like it’s important to have a little segment all about the good things in Josh that’d hard to notice.

Creativity - Josh is actually very imaginative. From his desires to become a comic writer, to his eagerness during the costume contest, he’s shown a desire to create and is always full of ideas. Good ones? Maybe not. But full of ideas nonetheless.

Loyalty - Josh puts up with shit no one in the whole world should let slide. When Josh truly loves someone, like the club, he doesn’t leave them. It may be partially caused by his follower tendencies, but he’ll stick by and defend his friends in any situation. Even when he swears he’s leaving for good, like when he daydreams of shooting his friends in the head, or claims the end of the Eltingville Club in the pilot, he always comes back.

Attention to Detail/Ingenuity - Josh is the type to notice things no one else notices, which often comes in handy, like during the trivia-off and how he managed to make the stash of collectibles in toy stores for the club. It’s an important skill, especially when the rest of the club doesn’t pay as much attention is he does. He tends to take the long way when solving problems, so this attention to detail often means coming up with unique solutions to difficult problems.

Honesty - Josh says what he means, which is real as fuck. Saying he’s gonna piss his pants in excitement is not only humorously blunt but also goes to show that he’s not gonna hide what he thinks or how he feels for anyone. The type of friend you go to when you want someone to tell you how it is and not sugarcoat it.

——

Yeah that’s all I’ve got for now. Too many thoughts and too little words I may explode. I just wanna squish him

[catenary-chad]

Why Greaseball is a Really Great train villain: a looong post (4.8k words) on all the historical train context behind replica Greaseball 

For all my issues with the other main engines, I think (replica) Greaseball is FANTASTIC. He just works on so many fundamental levels and gets so much better/worse with historical context.  If we make him an EMD E9 locomotive (a common headcanon) things get even more interesting, and there’s even a convenient irl engine to base him on! 

Note: if you’re into real US trains this info probably won’t be as new to you as my Nez Cassé post, since E and F units are so well preserved and documented in English.      A lot of the topics I go on are pretty widely discussed in US railfan circles and not terribly obscure.  Also this is just about replica, Elvis-style Greaseball vs Wembleyball… her being more modern and European changes a lot and I would take a very different approach.

Also CW for non-graphic discussion of abuse in the very last section. I have a separate warning before it comes up so you can leave before then.  

DIESEL TRACTION IN THE US

First of all, to clear up a common misconception: 99% of all diesel locomotives are diesel-electric.  The diesel engine is used to generate electricity to power electric motors to turn the wheels.  This is why dual-mode engines that can switch between drawing third rail/overhead wire electricity and making their own with a diesel engine are so common.  Besides the power source, they work similarly, so it’s not hard to incorporate.  This is NOT how hybrid cars work, though diesel-electric setups have been used on very heavy trucks for purposes like mining.  Diesel-mechanical is more in line with how automobiles work but is basically unheard of outside of very small switchers in the US (mostly in museums now) and 50s-era shunters and that one weird Fell diesel in the UK. The technical reasons of why isn’t really important here, but has to do with the difficult of making an appropriate gearbox for road locomotives and appealing qualities of electric motors for train use (high starting torque). 

Internal combustion-based locomotives are actually much more recent than pure electric ones.  Electric engines achieved practical use around the 1890s and were well-established in urban and mountainous areas by the 20s-30s…. which is when diesel boxcab switchers first started production in substantial numbers and lightweight diesel trainsets like the Zephyrs, M10000, and Flying Hamburger started to pop up.  The earliest diesels were either slow (switchers) or fast but very weak (lightweight trainsets and railbusses). There were major tech limits to maximum horsepower in diesel locomotives until the second half of the 20th century, which is why several of them were often needed to replace one steam or electric engine, and why you had some weird turbine designs in the 50s-70s as an alternative. 

Early diesel locomotives in the US actually had a lot in common with their early implementation in the UK.  They’re often perceived differently because Thomas the Tank Engine had so many characters based on unsuccessful early British diesel models, while most of the failed earlier US diesels are obscure compared to the successful and widespread ones (that often have the strongest museum presence). There were some notably good early switcher models (some still being used today) that were among the first to replace steam engines because it was one of the tasks that they had the biggest advantage over them in, and limited size wasn’t an issue.  Road diesel implementation was messy and due to the early state of the technology, some railroads like the Pennsylvania Railroad had a strategy more akin to early British Rail in that they planned to just slowly phase out steam as they electrified.  Higher wages and stronger unions were also a factor in both countries dieselizing, due to the vastly lower labor needed for diesel locomotives vs steam and generally safer, more pleasant working conditions on them.  There was also a need to shed a reputation for being outdated to draw in customers again with both.  There was also a desperate early demand for diesel power that led to a lot of questionable builders and designs being picked up early on and later dumped for being nonstandard.  

The main difference is that dieselization’s serious pursuit in the US started around the Great Depression and really picked up in the late 30s, almost two decades before the Modernization Plan of 1955.  So it was a far more mature and well-established technology by the 50s and Greaseball is very much based on this dominant position vs the messy early experiments of the Thomas diesels.  

Greaseball’s helmet heavily resembles the fronts of the E and F unit carbody locomotives made by EMD from the 30s-50s.  I’ll go into those specific models later, but the manufacturer alone is really interesting and has a lot of great symbolism that works with Greaseball. 

Earlier diesel manufacturers included steam builders like Alco and Baldwin, outside companies getting into the diesel locomotive market like Fairbanks-Morse, and EMD, which started as an independent company but quickly became part of General Motors.  One of the major advantages EMD would acquire is mass-production in assembly lines, the way cars were made, as opposed to building one engine at a time like steam shops did.  So Greaseball has some quiet ties to the auto industry (and boy did GM hurt trains in other avenues).  They also used common parts between models, making them relatively easy to repair and rebuild.  You had all kind of mods and changes done to their engines over the decades, which is a fun tie-in to the bodybuilder AND greaser aspect of Greaseball.  I’ll go into how I think he’d specifically be modified/rebuilt later though.  

Another major factor of EMD is… they often weren’t the best in a lot of ways and very much an example of “survival of the good enough”.  Until very recently they all used relatively dirty and inefficient two-stroke engines and other manufacturers often had stronger or technically superior competing models… but it was the ease of working on them and relative reliability vs their competitors that contributed to their success and helped make EMD the dominant manufacturer.  

Bonus fun fact: EMD (and later General Electric) had a lot of success in the export model market due to their early reliability, especially vs British diesel engines.  One of the funnier instances being several colonial African railways holding onto steam into the 70s because they were forced to buy crappy British diesel engines otherwise, and promptly dieselizing as soon as they could buy American ones.  EMD made huge inroads into the British freight market with the Class 59 and 66 (the latter also used in continental Europe).  These came too late to have had any affect on the development of the show early on, but it’s an interesting instance of American encroachment that could be thematically relevant.  The sheer ubiquity of EMD diesels worldwide makes Greaseball weirdly relevant in a lot of countries if you basis swap him a little.  I haven’t figured out quite how I’d approach Girlball but I’d definitely make her one of these export models since it fits.  

Anyways, back to the general history timeline because it’s important for the other reason EMD was so successful.  By the late 30s, diesel switchers were widespread and road models were starting to come out in limited numbers.  Widespread dieselization would have happened nearly a decade earlier if not for World War II.  When the US entered the war, copper, oil, and diesel engines became critical to the war effort.  Coal was not and steam engines don’t use much copper, so the existing steam manufacturers were forced into building them.  EMD’s FT series had proven itself prewar and the company was among the few to be able to develop their locomotive lines during the war.  This gave the company a huge advantage post-war and their E and F units dominated the road locomotive market afterwards (switchers remained more competitive since they had more development before and during the war). 

 If you’re European and know little about American trains, you may wonder when things started getting electrified after that.  They didn’t.  Outside of one stretch of the Northeast Corridor, a recent project by Caltrain, and some isolated freight lines… the US didn’t electrify anything after WWII, and if anything de-electrified much that had existed.  The oil crises of the 70s almost led to something, but the subsequent drop in prices in the 80s made that dry up too.  Leading to the modern day status of having only 1% electrified rail mileage.  The rest is all diesel domain.  They were never a stopgap here.  Due to railroads remaining private businesses post-WWII and facing almost unwinnable economic and political conditions vs roads and air travel, the cost of electrification was out of the question and the much smaller up front cost of diesel engines made them take permanent hold over most of the country post-steam.  To this day, railroads avoid paying up front for things vs just paying more in yearly maintenance for diesel locomotives, and the price of fuel has never gotten high enough to incentivize electrification.  There’s also a whole carrot vs stick situation with state governments raising emissions standards without providing assistance to electrify that leads to a crappy state of limbo that just gives automobiles even more of an unfair advantage, but that’s another tangent that’s not relevant enough to go into.  

This is all a long way to say that Greaseball as the conservative, oppressive establishment is spot-on to the status of diesel traction in the US.  It really can’t be overstated how dominant and inescapable it is.  It’s kind of hilarious hearing people from the UK or Europe talk about how gross and stinky and backwards they are and how much more disliked they are there.  This is why the Greaseball vs Electra feud is so appealing to me- the US is one of the few places where they would be considered remotely competitive and where that matchup is politically relevant.  There’s this compelling thread of Greaseball being a “pragmatic compromise” that’s held on so long it’s become status quo, but would be viewed as a regressive relic elsewhere in the world, akin to how the US’s economic politics are seen in much of the rest of the world.  Greaseball is the majority who very much has capitalism and inertia on his side, Electra is the more qualified but long-sidelined minority who wishes things were even a little more like Europe economically and politically.  They’re so rural vs urban, right vs left wing coded it hurts. Diesel power mainly thrives where frequencies are low and distances are long and rail is a private business that often can’t afford to electrify.  Urban trains are almost exclusively electric due to their inherent frequency and pollution requirements, and are almost synonymous with being state-owned. 

Him being particularly nasty to steam engines also checks out, he’s the era of diesel locomotive that often directly replaced them and I’ve seen claims EMD did deceptive things if not outright cheated on tests vs steam engines.  At the very least they had fairly aggressive marketing.  There’s a reason why I object to the idea that Electra would cheat against a steam engine (even in the early days electric ones trounced them so thoroughly it routinely exceeded railroads’ expectations), but think Greaseball doing it makes sense.  Him playing dirty against Electra also makes sense because they’d have similar top speeds (and that’s being very conservative with Electra’s abilities and keeping them a relatively old model) but Electra benefits far more from a clean setting and would be relatively vulnerable to attack. There’s been decades of cultural downplaying of the advantages of electric vs diesel trains due to the latter’s sheer dominance in the US too. Further tying into the political aspect, electric trains are one of those things whose status only goes up the more you actually learn about them… and it really knocks combustion engines down several pegs, paralleling how right wing politicians in the US tend to be actively anti-education because they quietly rely on voters being low-information and uneducated about how negative the effects of their policies often are.  

Greaseball as a macho jock is also reflective of the perceived strength of diesel vs electric engines.  Because the US is infamous for its large heavy freight trains that are almost entirely diesel-hauled (besides a single power plant out west), electric freight is an almost alien concept and people associate electric traction with high speed trains, subways, maybe lighter, faster European freight trains at most.  People often act like they’re weak because of this.  This is patently untrue, just look at IORE or the Virginian Railway.  Also see my earlier discussion of how weak diesel engines were early on.  Electric locomotives still have vastly higher horsepower per single unit and the only reason there aren’t ones as strong as diesel engines in the US is lack of demand.  It wouldn’t be that hard to build one for that niche.  But diesel has strong associations with being the “strong and manly” blue-collar option because of its use by every large freight railroad and almost every shortline for all the tough, gritty jobs, unlike those darn city slicker commuter trains. Let’s just conveniently forget that the Milwaukee Road existed and that mines are full of weird little battery-powered “lokies”.  People will even crow about the Big Boy all day and rarely acknowledge the multiple electric engine models of that era with comparable abilities.  

EMD E and F UNITS

Finally, we can discuss Greaseball’s more specific basis.  Greaseball’s helmet doesn’t have a single explicit one like Electra’s, but its styling is very typical of 30s-50s era carbody diesel locomotives, specifically the “bulldog nose” E and F-Units.  These models were and still remain some of the most popular toy and model diesel engines, and are some of the most recognizable American trains in general.  Which they totally deserve, they came in a lot of fun colors and were VERY widely used from the 30s to early 80s irl and were still used in limited numbers for decades after that and are extremely common in museums today.  It’s probably harder to find a railroad museum in the US that doesn’t have one.  They are probably THE symbol of diesel trains in the US, especially circa the 50s.  Even highway signs for train stations resemble them.  

Carbody locomotives like these made the streamlined body a structural element of the engine to save weight and required indoor walkways for maintenance access vs being able to open external panels.  Alco and Baldwin also made far less successful carbody locomotives as competitors but they looked very different. Funny enough, a number of electric locomotives of the era also were built this way, but with cabs at both ends, some of them looking a LOT like Greaseball’s helmet.  

The E-units were EMD’s first line of road diesel locomotives, mainly designed for passenger service.  Since the 30s there were several different models of the line, the first few being built in smaller numbers, and the later ones being much more widely produced post-WWII.   They were relatively long and large for a diesel engine of the time, with atypical A1A -A1A (powered/unpowered/powered x2) wheel arrangements and two seperate prime movers (the actual diesel engine) to produce more horsepower due to the limited abilities of individual engines.  While successful compared to their competitors (which were… generally a mess) there’s a sense that they were designed for a time that would never come.  

They were very much optimized for being smooth at speed for passenger use and while not useless for freight service, weren’t ideal for it due to their limited strength and not having all powered wheels for traction.  Which was a terrible market to be in with the massive decline in passenger rail post-WWII.  The E-units still generally had long and successful lives, but were never as successful as their younger, smaller sibling, the F-unit.

F-units visually resemble shorter E-units, but with single prime movers and Bo-Bo wheel arrangements (four powered axles).  By modern standards they’re small and not terribly powerful, but for their time they were solid and VERY successful in freight service, and often took the place of E-units in passenger service since they worked for that too, and were more versatile overall.  There are a bunch of F-units running in museums because they look good and are easy to find parts for due to the sheer quantity produced (also some, but far fewer E-units). You could totally make Greaseball an F-unit and it would fit with how there’s been some infamously short Greaseball actors.  

There’s a lot of fun commonalities between both models that are relevant to Greaseball.  Both were explicitly designed to be used in multi-engine sets due to their limited individual strength, which perfectly fits Greaseball having his Gang follow him around.  Working in packs that large is a VERY midcentury diesel thing.  Both had the massive drawback of having no rear visibility and basically no ability to go backwards for switching.  That was one of the main traits that led to this style of engine falling out of favor, roadswitchers that actually had rear visibility were more versatile than having separate road and switch engines.  In a race going backwards, Rusty would clean his clock even if he was SUPER crappy and could only go walking pace, because Greaseball would be flying totally blind and crash.  It’s also a hassle to perform maintenance and get inside that body style and the noses were reportedly harder to manufacture.  

As a cursed side note, ATSF solved these problems with their old F-units by roadswitcherfying them into CF-7s.  Hey, they were old and past their prime but still useful and worked GREAT as ugly utilitarian roadswitchers and ran for decades afterwards.  There’s several of these things running in museums.  I’ve actually worked on one and I approve of roadswitcherfication because they really are way less of a pain to maintain this way.  

Speaking of rebuilds, the highest horsepower Greaseball would have as an E-unit would as-built is only 2,400 if he was an E9, but because early EMDs got modified so much and routinely re-engined, we can play around with this.  It fits the character and the Railways Series routinely did this kind of thing.  We’ll suppose Greaseball was re-engined or otherwise modified to get up to 2,700 horsepower… but then there’s the reported issue that the unpowered axles might make him too slippery to actually apply full force, so we’ll get a bit more out there and say he got more substantially rebuilt into a Co-Co (six powered axle) arrangement.  Now you have something that would be vaguely comparable with one of Amtrak’s dysfunctional SDP40F diesels of the late 70s-early 80s, if still a bit weaker but probably more physically stable.  It’s hard to avoid that Greaseball is kind of statistically wimpy no matter how you slice it.  They’d need to tweak the numbers in the song a little, but again, swapping out engines in early EMDs was super common and suits him so it’s not too much of a stretch to bump him to 3700 or something.  You still have issue that he’s not large by UP standards specifically (they are INFAMOUS for large single-unit engines) but he’d still be fairly large vs more typical passenger diesels of the time.  

Anyways, another VERY fun fact about E and F units is that they were regularly used on corporate trains after most of them were withdrawn from regular mainline service in the 70s-80s.  People often complain that Greaseball is barely relevant circa the 80s, which isn’t really true since a lot of E and F units were used on commuter lines for years afterward (if often in cab car form, which are terrifying in any talking train verse).  But there’s another huge loophole that gives a perfect excuse for his existence well into the modern day.  Union Pacific itself used a set of three E9s on their corporate specials until 2019!  They only got pulled due to wheel issues… got no lovers if you got no wheels I guess.  But now you have a perfect excuse for why Greaseball is a 50s-era engine with UP colors pulling passenger trains well after the railroad axed those services in the early 70s.  He’s a corporate pawn!  He’s one of the faces of their company, chauffeuring executives around. Which leads into another fascinating topic with him.

UNION PACIFIC, FREIGHT RAILROADS, AND PASSENGER RAIL

All of the modern big Class I railroads in the US suck in similar ways, but Union Pacific has a stronger identity and seems to have the largest cultural presence abroad, making it the most visible and appealing of them to the public.  It tends to be THE American railroad to many, which goes well with Greaseball’s basis being THE American diesel engine.  Yes, they do have some cool heritage fleet stuff and really cool heritage unit paint jobs, but you’ll never see me depict them in a terribly positive way (if at all) because they’re a PR campaign like the Budweiser Clydesdales for an infamously awful company.  Make no mistake, this is a company that’s been voted “worst place to work” on multiple occasions (and its cohorts aren’t much better).  That’s the ironic thing about Electra being made a crappy boss, Amtrak is notably much better to its workers (and steam engines are the most competitive where labor is cheapest and least organized).  The main thing is unreasonable on-call hours, lack of sick leave, vacation, and break days in general, and working conditions.  Look into the blocked 2022 railroad strike for more on this.  Greaseball could be SO nasty to the freight to reflect this if you made him a symbol of railroad leadership.  You’d have any railroaders in the audience booing him if they did this in the US, it’s a very relevant political issue.  Ironically, things weren’t nearly as bad labor-wise in the 80s, ALW just really bet on the right horse in terms of railroads to align a train villain with.  But there’s a more prominant and existing aspect of canon that also fits the crappy things UP and other class Is do.

Passenger rail has never been as profitable as freight in the US. To give a modern ballpark estimate, I’ve heard $30,000 revenue on a fully loaded longer passenger train vs $500,000 revenue on a train of oil tankers.  And that’s not even including the higher maintenance standards that passenger rail requires, which adds millions to its cost and makes it almost impossible for it to turn a profit.  There is a reason why almost all countries with widespread passenger rail today have nationalized rail systems and even US passenger service is all government-run outside Brightline and museums.  

This situation was particularly bad in the 50s-60s before Amtrak took over passenger service.  Passenger trains absolutely bled money overall, and many of them were required to keep running even at massive losses per government regulation because they were an essential service.  This contributed to the financial ruin of many railroads, and most of them dropped passenger service or sold it to the government as soon as it was offered.  UP in particular was more financially stable, but also happily got rid of their passenger trains when offered.

Since then, the giant merged Class I railroads have become almost exclusively freight-oriented and hostile towards Amtrak-run passenger services.  They’re almost all terrible, but UP is one of the more visible offenders, holding up commuter services in Chicago, and contributing to the massive delays in long-distance western trains.  “Coach sexism” in the form of widespread hostility towards passenger rail by the likes of UP is one of the few canon social metaphors that WORKS.  The other engines would not be that way considering the systems they’re aligned with, but Greaseball could be made so, so much worse.    

There is a weird element of “I hate my wife” boomer humor when people describe passenger trains.  There’s “keeping freight trains in line” schedule-wise due to their time sensitivity.  There’s being seen as needlessly spendy for PR reasons (often true in the older days) paralleling “my wife wastes money on stupid things”.  There’s being seen as more delicate and refined due to needing better track conditions and gentler handling because you know, humans have standards that grain hoppers and sand don’t.  There’s the way that passenger rail isn’t as profitable as freight and basically requires government subsidies… not unakin to caring jobs and “women’s work” in general vs blue collar industrial jobs (Caveat: passenger rail employees were almost all male until Amtrak).  In short, yeah the freight railroads’ treatment of passenger trains in the US does have parallels to sexism, if slightly different from how canon does it. Abruptly dumping them in the 70s also fits Greaseball ditching Dinah mid-show. 

Even if you go the comparatively mild route of mirroring modern railroads, you still have him treating the coaches as second class vs freight (despite them being legally prioritized).  This is a major issue and why Amtrak has so many delays on long distance trains.  To summarize a complicated issue: due to the relatively unique economics of railroads, they are incentivized to run fewer, longer, irregular freight trains that have become so large they don’t fit in sidings and can’t physically let prioritized passenger trains through.  They then get delayed for hours, especially if the freight train breaks down (bonus: freight trains have a staff of two, engineer and conductor.  The conductor may have to walk up to THREE MILES to check out a possible defect on a car, delaying even more).  The Class Is have a broadly hostile relationship with Amtrak in general for various reasons related to insurance and minimal investment in track maintenance, and it even affects non-Amtrak passenger services like steam excursions.  UP has its personal steam fleet for publicity reasons,  but all of the Class Is are various shades of hostile to running steam excursions with passengers now due to those same reasons.  Even UP barely sells public tickets for theirs.  

Bonus: the reason Mexico has basically no passenger rail now is due to the nationalized railroads being taken over by companies heavily aligned with US freight railroads and with many similar attitudes towards passenger service.  They ditched virtually all of it en masse when they took over. Turbo works perfectly as just Greaseball but in Mexico because the same thing happened there… only a few years before the Mexican Stex production happened.  Electra might be an even more pathetic and unthreatening character there though, because the single, long-delayed electrified mainline built by NdeM was ripped out after only a few years of service by the  private freight railroads.  

WARNING: Leave now if you do not want to read about how abusive Greaseball could be made based to US railroads’ treatment of passenger trains pre-70s.  It’s not graphic, but it is blunt and dark.  I put this at the end for a reason, there is nothing beyond this last section.  

Basically, canon even at its worst arguably undersells how awful Greaseball could be to Dinah and the coaches if you make them symbols of UP and other major railroads vs passenger service pre-Amtrak.  They could be even MORE toxic.  You have a situation now where he outright hates her and wants her gone for above reasons, but is forced to stay in the relationship due to outside requirements and is fundamentally built for that kind of setup as an E-unit.  Railroads forced to keep passenger services usually didn’t have mandated quality standards for them.  They just had to have something.  This led to pathetically short trains (one or two cars), understaffing, and poor maintenance because they just had to have SOME passenger train on that line.  Track conditions reached terrible standards in the 70s on railroads that were near bankruptcy and delaying maintenance.  I absolute do not blame canon for not going this dark in a kids show, but basically there is no limit to how miserable Greaseball could make her life, short of actually killing her. I can’t understate how much she symbolizes something he’d want to rid himself of at any cost but can’t and will take that out on.  It’s BLEAK.  I don’t think I’d even write them this dark myself.

Well… now you see why I do not redeem and revise Greaseball the way I do Electra.  While the latter is wrongly demonized in an impressive number of ways, Greaseball is awful for all the right ones, to extents deeper than the creators probably ever imagined.  He is so versatile and nearly timeless in his awfulness.  If Greaseball were portrayed as remotely good I’d be ripping him to greater shreds than I do Rusty, but he’s great as a hateable bad guy who’s entertaining and globally recognizable even by much of the general public.  Despite all this, I’m fine with him just being a cartoon bully because it’s more palatable and not wrong.  But you could also make him so much nastier than even the workshop if you wanted to go darker.  

[sturnsblogs]

˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆More than best-friends‧₊˚ ⋅* ‧₊

Chapter 3: The Shift

You weren’t sure when things really started to change, but they did.

Maybe it was the little things at first—Chris taking longer to text back, missing your usual after-school hangouts, or forgetting inside jokes you both used to laugh at. You told yourself it was fine. He had a girlfriend now, and things were bound to be a little different. But as the weeks passed, it became harder to ignore the growing distance between you.

And the worst part? He didn’t even seem to notice.

The tension from your last argument still lingered in the air. You hadn’t spoken to Chris much since that night, both of you too stubborn to reach out first.

Kenzie, your best friend since forever, had been your rock through all of it. “You’re not wrong, you know,” she had said when you first told her about the fight. “He’s been acting like a total idiot.”

Still, you hated fighting with Chris. It felt wrong, like something in your world had shifted off-balance.

So when your phone finally buzzed with his name, a mix of relief and apprehension hit you.

Chris: “Can we talk?”

You hesitated before replying.

You: “Sure.”

He showed up at your door twenty minutes later, hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. “Hey.”

You crossed your arms. “Hey.”

Chris exhaled. “Look, I—I didn’t mean to make you feel like you weren’t important. I swear, that was never my intention.”

You stayed quiet, waiting.

“I know I’ve been distant. And yeah, I have been spending a lot of time with Avery, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. You’re my best friend. You matter to me.”

His voice was genuine, and for the first time in weeks, you saw a glimpse of the Chris you knew. The one who used to put you first, who used to notice when something was wrong.

You sighed, glancing down. “I just… I don’t want to feel like I’m always coming second.”

“You’re not.” He stepped closer. “I swear, you’re not.”

There was a beat of silence before he held out his arms awkwardly. “Can we stop being weird now? I miss you.”

You rolled your eyes but stepped into the hug anyway. “Fine. But you owe me pizza.”

Chris grinned. “Done.”

And just like that, things felt okay again.

That night, Chris invited you over to his house. “Movie and pizza, just like old times,” he had said.

For the first time in a while, you were excited. Maybe things could go back to normal. Maybe this was Chris’s way of making an effort.

But then, as you settled onto the couch with your plate of pizza, he cleared his throat.

“Hey, um…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you mind if Avery comes over?”

You froze mid-bite. “What?”

Chris shifted in his seat. “She just texted me. She’s bored, and I figured—since we’re all friends now—she could come hang out with us?”

You set your plate down. “Chris.”

“What?”

“This was our night.”

Chris hesitated, looking at his phone. “I know, I just—“

“Just what?” You let out a bitter laugh. “Can we seriously not spend one night together without her being involved?”

His expression shifted. “Why are you making such a big deal out of this?”

“Because it is a big deal, Chris!” You gestured between the two of you. “We barely hang out as it is, and when we finally do, you want to bring her?”

He scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Oh my God, what is your problem?”

“My problem is that I feel like I don’t even matter to you anymore!”

Chris let out a frustrated sigh. “That’s not true, and you know it.”

“Do I?” You crossed your arms. “Because lately, it sure doesn’t feel that way.”

He clenched his jaw, his expression shifting from frustration to anger. “I’m not your boyfriend! I don’t have to spend every second of my time with you.”

The words hit you like a slap. You felt your stomach twist as you stared at him.

Chris scoffed, shaking his head. “Are you jealous or something?”

Your breath caught in your throat.

“What?” you asked, barely above a whisper.

“That’s what this is about, right?” He gestured vaguely. “You don’t like that I’m with Avery. You don’t like that I actually care about someone else.”

You swallowed hard, your hands curling into fists at your sides.

“And I’m not fucking jealous, Chris.” Your voice was sharp, firm, filled with frustration and something else—something deeper.

Chris let out a sarcastic laugh. “Really? Because you sure sound like it.”

You took a step closer, glaring at him. “Oh, I’m sorry, am I supposed to be thrilled that my best friend suddenly treats me like an afterthought?”

Chris clenched his jaw. “That’s not what’s happening.”

“No? Then what is happening?” You crossed your arms. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks a hell of a lot like you’re replacing me.”

He let out a sharp breath. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?” You scoffed. “Because you never used to ditch me for anyone. But now? Now it’s Avery first, Avery this, Avery that. And what do I get? I get scraps of your time when she’s busy.”

Chris shook his head, running a hand through his hair. “That’s not fair.”

“Oh, but this is fair?” You gestured between the two of you. “You ditch me, barely talk to me, and then expect me to just be okay with it?”

“I don’t ditch you!” Chris snapped. “I just—things are different now.”

You let out a humorless laugh. “No shit.”

Chris sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I don’t get why you’re making this such a big deal.”

You stared at him, your chest tight. “Because you are a big deal to me, Chris. But I don’t think I am to you anymore.”

His mouth opened slightly like he wanted to argue, but no words came out.

The silence stretched between you, heavy and suffocating.

You swallowed the lump in your throat, blinking back the sting behind your eyes. “Enjoy your night with Avery.”

And with that, you grabbed your jacket and walked out, slamming the door behind you.

Chris didn’t come after you for the first time. he didn’t come after you.

A/N- Well this was fun. i’m very sorry i didn’t come out with the third chapter last night i was very tired. Butttt what do we think? if you have any requests for anything you can always tell me in my inbox.

My beautiful babies- @blushsturns @chrislilcumslvt @izzylovesmatt @chrisslut04

TO BE ON MASTERLIST TAGLIST

CHAPTER TWO

[all-pacas]

If you could make any changes to House MD what would they be?

that is suuuuch a broad question and encompasses so much, so i'm just going to give my stock reply: i would keep cameron on the show.

i truly think writing her off was one of the show's biggest errors, and i think the show even realized it: masters and adams are both remixes of cameron, and even thirteen is a take on the same archetype (bonds with patients, cares about the moral/ethical problems and tends to over-emphasize with patients). actually, thirteen takes on a lot of cameron's role of the show: her relationship with house isn't romantically coded as cameron's was, but fulfills the same "i see you and our connection is different and special" niche cameron did to house. clearly the show thought cameron was important - she had far more focus and screentime than chase after s4, and more dedicated episodes and subplots in s5 than, like, actual members of the team. we know how deeply important cameron is to the show and the show's dna: she is a major part of the series finale despite it having been three years since she was on it. she is the final shot of the ending montage, smiling as she looks back on house and the original team.

the show also did a lot of work to position her as a future cuddy, as a clear parallel/successor to her: from s1 we hear that cameron's real strengths lie in administration and organization, in s4 she's on the hospital budget committee, in s5 she runs community outreach programs and literally gets a subplot about being dean of medicine for a week. had she not been written off, and had cuddy still gone, cameron absolutely would have been dean of medicine in s8. had cuddy not left, cameron probably would have been shown still taking up the role, maybe stepping in in some sort of unofficial second in command role during s7, dealing with house while he and cuddy were dating for example. i would have loved to see this, by the way. cameron has a pretty strong character arc and a very interestingly evolving relationship to house -- from naive idealism to treating him as and being treated by him as a peer -- and i think the arc of "underling to boss" makes a lot more sense from her and for her than it did foreman.

the official reason they wrote her off really does seem to be "we didn't know what to do with the character anymore." respectfully, i call bullshit: there was so much you could have done with cameron post s5, and it could have also opened up some fascinating other storylines. like, just imagine the chaos of still married cameron and chase, with chase back on house's team and cameron drifting further and further towards hospital administration. imagine a s8 with dean cameron and chase having to figure out how to deal with his boss house and his boss's boss, his wife. imagine the same chaos with them divorced. i'd love to see cameron struggling to define herself as herself, and learn to be in charge: this is a storyline we saw hinted at in s2, we know she wants to supervise and be a leader, but while we get to see foreman and sort of chase (in s8) struggle with it, we never get to see her: the two cases she brings to house in s5, she defers to him totally. she does a good job playing house in big baby, but doesn't ever step up and lead. i would have loved to see her management style. her leadership style. i would have loved to see her with masters and park (two young doctors who don't fit in and who i bet cameron would love mentoring). i would have loved her weird little friendship with wilson explored in the back half of s8, to hear the advice she gives him on his diagnosis. cameron was written off just as she was really coming into her own as a person and going in some incredible directions, and i will hate forever that we were robbed of seeing her go.

[benniefranky]

𝒞𝒶𝓊𝓈𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒, 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒

𝐼 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒, 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒, 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒 

𝒩𝑜𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝓁𝒹 𝒷𝑒𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝑒 

𝐵𝓊𝓉 𝓂𝓎 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒,

𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒, 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒,

𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒

𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴

KEY

have been ❤︎

haven’t been ⟢

changed from first shift ㅤᵕ̈

CASSIE x FIERO nexus/casino royale ❤︎

the ace of spades, a daddy’s girl socialite meets a powerful ceo who’s hiding a dark secret under all his dirty money. they met when he was in Selene’s prison cell, guarded by Alita and actively missing from Arasaka in Night City. Sel was using him to get information, and Cassie was a simple distraction. Cass broke the first rule though; don’t fall for the prisoner. 

BARBIE x TATE actress ⟢

while on the set of Vampire Academy, characters Reina and Dimitri didn’t hit it off nearly as well as Tate and Barbie did. with Tate playing Barbie’s primary guardian, the two got very cozy off set, and very in each others face on set. while B was supposed to be linking arms with Adrien (Leo Woodall), she was instead photographed several times next to the other co-star. 1 month after season one ended, it was official; the T&B rumors were true. those two were smitten, and made sure everyone knew it. 

AURELIE x ALEKSANDAR american ballet theatre ❤︎

Alek moved all the way over from the other side of the world to join ABT. he has danced his entire life and worked his way to where he is today. Elie grew up in the city, a new york native and a ballerina since she could walk. the two didn’t get along at first, with Alek still learning English, these two were forced to use dance as their primary language. when Elie landed her role as Aurora, the last person she expected to be her prince was Alek. but, here we are. these two have a lot more in common than they think, even if they don’t see it yet. 

MILA x LUKA amsterdam ㅤᵕ̈

Mimi was wandering a local grocery with her cat, Fifi and her dog, Lulu in tow. as she was struggling to get the sauce at the top shelf, a handsome stranger picked it up from behind her. they locked eyes and it was over for Mi. Luka helped her get the rest of her things and walked her out. she couldn’t miss this opportunity and didn’t even hesitate asking for his number. they made plans to meet down at a riverside restaurant for a date. she was a photographer and he was a painter, and they found each other talking and laughing into the early hours of the morning. in his eyes, they’ve been dating since day 1. in hers, she’s too scared to ask. it’s probably too good to be true, right?

LILY MARIE x NIK bobs burgers ⟢

LM and Nik met in their senior year of high school. Nik’s family’s new restaurant was moving in down the street and Bob Belcher was not pleased to have another restaurant rival. Lil has had a crush on Nik since the day they met, and it truly has not gone away. Flirting is one thing, but flirting in secret? A whole new level. These two are the modern day Romeo and Juliet. There is one problem though; there is a pesky, evil sibling who knows Lily’s dark secret. Louise not only keeps Lily and Nik on their toes by forcing them to do her dirty work, but keeping that big of a secret definitely isn’t free. 

ROMY x PETER the clever keg ㅤᵕ̈

Ro is a busy owner. she’s running the restaurant, cleaning the slide, making sure all the floors are happy, drunk, or both. Nashville’s biggest hit has been The Clever Keg for 2 years strong now. Ro’s bar is her life, she’s nothing without it. Until her twin hires a pesky bartender. Peter gets under Romy’s skin in any way he can. He knows what he’s doing, and unfortunately it’s working. Romy needs to work on her work life balance; can Peter be the key or just another distraction from success?

NIMUE x KLAUS gendonelune ❤︎

Nimue was a henchman and a part of her soul still is. After being trapped with Gramorr for over 15 years, doing his dirty work and trying to take over a kingdom that wasn’t theirs, Nimue struggled to find any normalcy after the war. Klaus and his family showed Nimue and her siblings mercy when no one else would. In order for them to attend school and adapt to life after Gramorr, Nimue became Liz, the new girl in school. Klaus was the only one who showed her what it was like to live a normal, magical, life. Though Nimue was hesitant to trust the family she has spent her whole life fighting, the amount of sacrifice they’ve made has caused Nimue to turn over a new leaf. Even when they were enemies, there was always a connection between the two. Could they be… friends? Maybe more?

NIXIE x WESLEY h2o ⟢

all Nixie has ever wanted to be was a “normal” human being. When she first got her legs, her new friends helped the poor, naive princess. Wesley had been absolutely head over heels for Nix since the day they met on the pier. Wes and Lewis got along great, and when he realized Nixie had befriended Cleo, he thanked his lucky stars. He just wants to understand her. How will he react when he eventually sees Nixie in her true form?

SOPHIE x HOWL howl’s moving castle ⟢

he had been looking for her his entire life, and had always seen her in a way she could never see herself. When they finally crossed paths again, they managed to change each others lives for the better. These two live a peaceful and magical life on their moving castle, with a little friend on the way. 

SIREN x ALASTOR star vs the forces of evil ㅤᵕ̈

Siren Butterfly is the General Commander for Mewni’s army. In alliance with her two other siblings, the triplets have dedicated their lives to making Mewni a safe, happy place for Mewmans and Monsters alike. Siren has focused and worked alongside Eclipsa to reform Mewni’s army and make sure they protect, defend and honor all Mewmans and Monsters. Alastor Lucitor has worked behind the scenes as his younger brother stepped in as the King of the Underworld. Becoming his advisor, Alastor has gotten into a lot of back and forth with Commander Butterfly. Despite their disagreements he just can’t seem to get her out of his head. Theyre both on the same page, but why can’t they get along? Maybe Alastor should follow his brothers advice and talk to Siren outside of work. 

benniefranky 2025 ༝༚༝༚ | updated 3.1.25

i love my husband so bad you guys

[hattrick336]

Wild Onyx Storm Theory

SPOILERS BELOW THIS POINT

Okay so, I have been seeing two major theories re. Lynx and him being a shadow wielder. While I do love the idea that he is actually a mimic and his signet just copied Xaden's cause he was using it at the time, I will admit to leaning more towards the idea that Lynx IS the new shadow wielder because Xaden is going to get a new signet once he is cured.

And I have a pretty solid guess of what it could be:

Heliomancy or Sunlight manipulation.

Here me out:

Xaden's eyes- His eyes are very well noted to be onyx, but we do have those iconic golden flecks, like sunlight peeking through the dark. They turn amber after he becomes venin, but it still works as it could be reflective of a setting sun.

Xaden's character shift- Signets are noted to be based on need/personality. When he first bonded Sygael, Xaden was guarded and mistrustful (rightly so). He needed to keep his secrets and know who to trust. But that has changed because of Violet. By falling for Violet, Xaden has learned to be more open, at least with her. He has also learned to trust others as he trusts Violet's friends (a big example is Ridoc in OS when he agreed to his terms to keep his venin secret; Xaden back in FW would have a million arguments against that ultimatum). Even if it is just with her, Xaden has learned to open himself up, to be vulnerable, to rely on more than just a select few. Ergo, his new signet would need to reflect that change. It would also still fit the more deadly aspects of him since the Sun can LITERALLY burn everything to a crisp and we have seen Xaden go scorched earth for Violet before (rescuing her from Basgiath in IF being a big example).

Xaden's emotional freeze/self worth issues- OS established that Xaden feels his emotions icing over, using a lot of freezing and cold wording to describe him in those moments of apathy. Unconsciously, Xaden would likely not want to feel that way ever again, resulting in a sun signet since, you know, warmth. In a similar vein, Xaden has felt throughout OS that he is now tainted/too dark to be with Violet. Imagine the emotional beat that would happen if Xaden developed a signet that was pure light? Devastating but so healing.

Match Violet's/Six most powerful- We obviously know Xaden, no matter what, will be counted as one of the big six that OS mentioned. We have Violet, Lynx, and Garrick as shoo-ins with Bodhi and Aaric as potential candidates as well. Having a sun-based signet would let Xaden fit into that easily as A. it would be another offensive signet versus the three more defense-based ones and B. fit as it would be a spectrum with Lynx being absolute darkness and Violet being a bridge. It would also let Xaden and Violet still be mirrors/compliments like he is as a shadow wielder since it would be a stormy/sunny day reflection and allow both to draw from the sky over the Earth.

Irony- Sygael's name means "shadow" so it'd be a nice bit of irony that Xaden's new signet is the antithesis of that.

I know this is probably very out there, but I just thought this was a fun theory and gives me some hope for our boy.

What are your thoughts?

[lynelsscareme]

Two Hero of Legend's walk into a restaurant, and neither is ever, ever going to tell their respective group what they just saw.

Swift:

Legend:

Swift: ... Never talk about this?

Legend: deal.

Gates of Courage and Linked Universe are entirely different trees in the garden of time. They can see each other, and entangle their branches, but they can only ever grow and drop their own leaves. Legend is from a universe where he will - maybe - retire and have a life. Swift did... not do that. Did not do that at all. Legend dreamed and woke up, faith in happy endings shattered. Swift's nightmare kept going when he left Koholint, and that quest isn't the only one with nothing to show for it except bad memories and poor sleep.

(There is only one Ravio per timeline, after all, and Swift dreamt his away by accident. Much like many other quests he only barely remembers completing across time and reality itself... He's not really sure what number he's up to, and he's not sure quests in realms that may no longer exist after his timeline converges in the War of Eras matter in the count.

In the end, between the two, only one of them carved an Ocarina out of a time stone, and of all his regrets at least Legend doesn't have to lose sleep over that.)

Because of how massive the fandom base is for LU, I might as well state the differences up front so people don't get confused by changed characters and circumstances for each link. No, they aren't part of the same timeline (tree, I've decided to consider it) but they have a lot of shared patterns. The most glaring differences is both the number of Links (Gates has... an unholy amount) and the sequence of events. (The True OG timeline is the Downfall in Gates. Deal with that information how you will. Just know that Swift will be coming to terms with both saving untold numbers of people of the absolute destruction that originally awaited them when the Heroes Spirit broke, and condemning possibly hundreds of thousands of people to witnessing the same cycle of chaos that had plagued the world since the First Hero. You know that scene in Sinbad, where Eres shows the Sand Ocean? Yeah... close shave, mate.)

I can't not acknowledge the importance of LU in how I've made and altered certain characters - I've had to completely rejigg certain ones entirely whenever I notice I'm unintentionally mimicking or running alone the same ideas as Jojo - but that goes without saying, as does the influence all the other 'Link Group Quest' fics and comics have had over the years. There are so many that I, personally, have read and liked that it'd be impossible to list them. Regardless of that, I will happily tag my fanart of other people's pretty dam awesome depictions, and my own as vastly separate entities, and will do my best to extend that curtesy to all the others making their own Mega Works.

The most enjoyable part is, thanks to the Magic Systems and Major Divine Plot Bunny that makes my AU what it is, crossovers can be whatever you or I wish it. This is our sand pit, and we all have been given our buckets!

[In other words, don't let the size and complexity of LU scare you out of making your own variations of the idea. Nor the idea that others like me have been making ours for a while, or have seen the idea before. There is no crime punishable in playing with barbie dolls, go absolutely bonkers.]

[koofleur]

still with you

details ;

pairing: bsf!jungkook, speech impaired!oc, guitar buddies2l (my fav) summary: when he confesses to you and you press his heart tattoo in response type: oneshot wc: 1.9k

۶ৎ ♡ 국 ; nin's diary: this one's always special to my heart, i've changed the title to a more suitable one tho ;) enjoy!

skipping through the small pathway towards your home, sight scattering to the shops and bakeries that were open and the fresh aroma of Mr. Jeon’s baguettes made you automatically peep in through the glass door of the bakery you often visit  after school hours. the old man noticed your doe eyes wide at the sight of the freshly baked delicacy as he stepped forward to open the door and let you in. Mr Jeon was like a guardian to you and your brother Jimin, ever since your parents sadly passed away in an accident. something that changed your life, something that made your world dark. you lost your ability to speak, but you could hear.

ever since, you barely mingled with others, but slowly your life changed when Mr. Jeon and his son Jungkook stepped into your life. you gained back your confidence and started to be a little more social and now everything in your life was perfect. with him. yes, you had this whole damn crush on the man who fixed you, being by your side. he made you believe in yourself, and that you were just like any other person out there. 

"Come in dear, how was your day?"

Mr Jeon asked, his fatherly warmth making you crack up a smile. You settled yourself on the wooden  table as he placed a plate of fresh snacks in front of you and you looked so ready to dig in. Mr Jeon chuckled and patted your head with affection, placing himself on a chair next to you. You had picked up sign language pretty quickly, and all the people you know would understand you, and you felt really lucky for that. 

[ the sign languages would be put in between asterisks (*) and in bold italics for better understanding ]

*I had a pretty good day, Mr. Jeon. Jungkook taught me guitar today during the music session* You smiled, taking a bite of the macaroons in front of you. 

“That’s great, I’d like to hear you play one day." Mr. Jeon winked and the both of you giggled.

Just then the cafe started filling up with music, and you knew exactly who it was. It’s Jungkook’s habit to turn on music as soon as he comes into his dad’s cafe. You turned around, immediately spotting him, a leather jacket hung on his shoulder his tattooed hand on display through the short sleeves of the black t-shirt he wore, 

“Hey there, m’lady”

Jungkook waved at you, taking a seat in front of you as an exhausted sigh left his lips. Both of you being best friends by now, you were used to these nicknames that he called you. Just a small change though, whenever he called you these, your heart would skip a beat, and your eyes filled with love, in its purest form.

“Jungkook, why don’t you come in a bit early and help me here, you know I’m not getting any younger.”

Mr. Jeon said, as you scoffed a little, side eyeing the pouty man in front of you. 

“Dad.. I went out with my friends.. NOW before you say anything, we had practice. Some of them are coming here too so I wanted to let you know that we’ll need extra food”

He smiled cheekily, and you saw Mr. Jeon glaring at him before walking away.

*Jungkook, did you see Jimin anytime after class? I didn’t get to meet him today* You signed to Jungkook as he replied

“Yeah, he’s coming here along with a couple of our friends today.”

He said, looking away from you, with a smile on his face. You felt something off about him today, usually he’d just talk for hours to you, but even while he was teaching you to play guitar back at school, he absolutely avoided any eye contact. To be honest, you really wanted to make a move as it’s Valentine’s day, seeing a lot of couples celebrating everywhere, even at school. But you’re not confident enough. What if he doesn’t want to be your friend anymore? “He deserves a lot more” these thoughts were just fully occupying your head, you’re overthinking was pricking your heart a lot. So you just sat there in front of Jungkook, munching on the food, but thoughtfully placing a macaron in his mouth as he went through his phone. 

The door of the cafe swung open, and a group of boys scuttled in, along with your brother Jimin. “Y/N !!!” He squealed and took you in a hug, after a long tiring day. He was such a supportive and understanding brother, and a very good friend of Jungkook. 

*Jimin, who are they? I've never seen them with you or Jungkook before* You queried as the latter looked at the boys behind him and back to you

. "They're our new buddies. We actually enrolled in a music academy nearby, you remember? The one I always wanted to go to." 

*You really did that and I didn't know huh? I'm not talking to you* You made an angry face and Jimin pinched your cheeks. 

"You would know sooner or later, pie." He giggled, making you shift from the "angry mode".

"Hey mate, who's this?" One of the boys who were seated at another table came forward and asked Jimin, the others following suit.

"This is my one and only sister, Park Y/N." He wrapped an arm around your shoulder and you smiled at them. 

"Pie, meet Jaemin, Baekhyun and Mark." You bowed at them and one of the guys, Baekhyun spoke

"Damn, let her speak buddy, conversation is the key, ya know?"

Jimin glared at his friend while you looked around, feeling suffocated all of a sudden. It took you so much time to leave the past in an unattended corner of your heart, and made sure you never slipped into it again, but with those insecurities that occurred in your head not so long ago,  and the statement “conversation is the key” started ringing in your head, a pang hitting your heart. 

But all of a sudden, a strong hand wrapped around yours and on looking up, you found Jungkook looking at you with worried eyes. 

“Uh, guys we’ll be back alright? I gotta give her an um, guitar class yeah we’ll see you around.”

He dragged you out of the cafe, hands still securely wrapped around yours. 

“Uh-huh, why’s he so awkward?”

Baekhyun turned to Jimin, who was still throwing daggers at him. Yes, they never knew about you, but Jimin found you unusually affected by Baekhyun’s words, and that angered him.

“She’s speech impaired.” Jimin’s words hit the latter like a truck, as he mumbled “shit” 

“Buddy, look I really didn’t know, I’m so sorry damn how can I make it up?”

———

Jungkook started his black bike that was parked a little far away from the cafe and handed you a helmet and his jacket. “Hold tight, alright? Don’t let go.” Simple sentence, but a great impact. Your slender arms encircled his well built waist, you could feel his abs through the flimsy material of the shirt he wore. The smell of his hit your senses, as a crimson tint spread through your soft cheek skin. For a moment, even though your thoughts screamed this won’t last for long, you felt calm with the wind brushing your hair backwards but little did you know, Jungkook had his gaze on your ethereal figure 

that clung on to him tightly and he wished he could hold you close. And that was going to happen.

He stopped near an open area, a little too high from the ground but you could care less. All you needed is some fresh air, and this felt perfect, with the setting sun and the man you love with you.

You were about to sit down there on the slightly dirty grass, when his hands gently removed the leather jacket around your figure and wrapped it around your waist as you wore a white skirt all along. You were flabbergasted at how he noticed all such tiny things, and you felt so in love. 

You both sat silently, but a million thoughts in your minds. Even if you didn’t speak, he felt you through your eyes. He knows you inside out. Jungkook scooted closer to you and took your hand in his. 

“Look Y/N, I know, this might not be the right moment and heck today is Valentine’s day, and I wanted it to be grander but I think you really need to know this”

You raised an eyebrow, your eyes on his. He sighed a little before speaking;

“I love you, I want you to be a part of me, my heart, forever.” Your eyes widened and heart picked up it’s pace as if it was longing to reach home, your home, which is the man right in front of you.

Your insecurities backing away at his confession, you couldn’t even take your hands out of his grip. And you thought of a way to reciprocate your feelings.

Your thumb slightly traced up till his heart tattoo that was inked on the back of his hand and gently pressed it, still looking into his eyes. Him being the man who noticed all the tiny things, smiled fondly at your cute way of confessing back, as he joined your foreheads together. 

“Damn princess, I’m just out of words, I love you so much. And what you did just now, it’s gonna be our thing. And don’t ever worry nor have any insecurities, it’s your world and I’m just a part of it but I promise to protect you forever.”

His pinky finger was intertwined around yours as his other hand went up to your cheek, caressing it.

“May I, love?” You nodded as his lips were on yours in no time. 

He understood you no matter what and you saw all the colors of love in his eyes. 

[vicolette]

Brother’s Admirer !

– A/N : the title is so weird ik but I have no other idea I’m sorry💔💔

– Warnings : English isn’t my first language, mentions of y/n, fluff

"Should we sit here?"

Irene nodded her head as she took a seat in the stands, watching the footballers of FC Barcelona play on the training ground. You sat beside her, your coat keeping you warm, although the sun was shining bright.

"Why is it still so cold? It’s march!" Your best friend complained as she sighed in disbelief, hiding her face in her hands as she groaned. In response to her mood swing, you let out a chuckle, but your attention wasn’t really there for her.

It was for Pau, her younger brother.

Your lips twitched as a smile blossomed on your face, your gaze following him before you realized that Irene was still there, acting oblivious about your secret crush when you looked at her.

Since two years, you have had been enamored with Pau – his awkward personality and good looks were making your heart melt whenever you saw the teenager. Now, as he grew older and you did too, you could notice the changes in his life. A bit more confident than he used to be and he also grew a lot taller, much lie his muscles.

However, there was barely any chances for you to get together with him, especially since you were befriended with Irene. It would ruin the friendship and, even if love was something you wanted in your life, you valued your friendship more than some potentially relationship with her brother.

"I don’t know…" Your mutter was quiet as you lowered your head, staring at your plain white shoes while she kept talking. The original hang out plan was to study at her place while Pau was at training and then get some ice cream, but it changed when you both somehow managed to get your work done earlier.

Truth being told, you focused on it way more than usual to get over with it and get some sweets, since you have been craving ice cream for a while now, although it wasn’t even the perfect weather for it.

"Here." Irene snapped you out of your trace as she held out a popsicles for you, the other one that you have bought already in her mouth. The coldness of it made her tense up, which earned a laughter from you.

"Thanks." As you ripped off the wrapper and took a bite out of it, you could feel the delicious taste of strawberry ice cream. Silence crept into the place as you both watched the smaller teams play, before you spoke up once again. "Should we even eat ice cream during winter?"

"Nah, but who cares?" You both laughed at her question, yet she then went quiet, indicating that she was trying to remember something. "Wait, I need to pay you back for the popsicles."

"Keep it, it’s no–"

"Oh my god, my wallet!" Irene gasped in horror, taking her purse as she searched for her belongings, when she then deadpanned and glanced at you. "I forgot it at home."

You chuckled at her dramatic expression, shrugging your shoulders as you rolled your eyes playfully, when you suddenly met the eyes of Pau. He had heard Irene and hadn’t seen her previously, so he looked away to see what she was doing.

"Pau!" The familiar voice of Flick was heard as he turned around, yelling out an apology as he got back into the flow of the game, returning his focus to the opposing players.

Irene raised an eyebrow at her brother, wondering what might have gotten him so distracted, before the realization dawned upon her. Her gaze landed on you and before you could even say anything, whether it was to defend yourself or say the truth, she giggled.

"Pau seems to be lovely, right?" She tilted her head as Irene awaited a positive answer, which you had truthfully given her.

"Yeah, yeah, totally…" Your smile faltered when you realized what she was doing – setting you up with him. It made your heart flutter at the thought, hoping that what you thought was true.

"And..! Did I tell you about the time when he saved a cat from a tree? He’s growing up too fast!" She mockingly wiped a fake tear away from her eye, sarcasm lingering in her voice as she looked back at him. You weren’t that naïve to not realize her tactics, since you’ve gotten used to them, but it still made you blush in embarrassment.

Meanwhile, Pau's team had won the mini match and although he wasn’t too fazed by it, he had tried to amaze you with his skills. Hell, he even scored a banger to make you think that he was someone so strong and out of the world.

"Good game, kiddo." Lewandowski's voice was audible behind him, an arm wrapped around his shoulders as he pulled him closer. When the media coordinator was done taking a photo of them celebrating their win for their Instagram account, Robert pointed out a specific secret of his. "Your crush is here! Is that why you stole the ball so often?"

"Obviously, grandpa."

"Are you learning from Lamine, or what?"

– A/N : my eleventh post!! Hope you liked it<3

[morgansmornings]

“It means the hobby of exploring caves. Or as I used it, to try and go running off the edge of the rooftop without any ropes or tethers to keep you from an unfortunate sudden stop after a long drop. And if ‘witch’ is too negative for you, you can just call me by my name.” Was it a bit petty and snide in tone, maybe. But that was more so for the comment about black magic and witchcraft. 

“There are many things that have changed since your time. 250 years has altered society to a point that you would not recognise it as such. And that I understand. But in order for me to do what I must, you have to be complicit and willing to accept these things as they are.” She meant no offence. But given his station she thought that Ben would rather have the brutal facts and truth over more lies and deceit. A Spy Master he may have been, but it was clear to her that she was far more in depth a student in things pertaining to the supernatural. Besides, when all was said and done, he wasn’t going to remember his time here as it was. Not if she had a say about it. She knew better than to go tampering with alterations to time and reality. Sneaky and unforgiving as they were. 

“Look, I know that this is a lot. I know you have very little reason to trust me. But I have to ask you to give me that trust and the faith that I can take you back to where you belong. To the time you belong to. But I first have to finish translating that scroll in hopes to find that solution.” She folded her hand on the arm rest of the couch, leaning back and taking a calming breath herself. While she could hold his hand and walk him through every little step that has had a dramatic change, there was no telling how long it would be nor how resistant to her attempts would be. 

“Things can always get worse when it comes to those who mess or make light of dealing with Temporal Magicks.” Jayden said, glazing to his left to gaze out over the golden glow of the surrounding city. “Some believe in Chaos Theories such as what they call “The Butterfly Effect.” How that one small change in events can lead to catastrophic events hundreds of miles away.” 

This was quickly coming back to her own worries and fear of when she had first encountered the Major standing in her loft. The nagging fear that things would change so drastically and that no one would remember it because history would have been fundamentally changed. 

“I will be happy to explain anything you want me to if I can. But understand the position that we are both in. You are out of place and I am the reason why. I can’t have anything happening to you here because then everything I know will change and there is no way of telling how bad and dangerous that could be.” Jayden looked to him, both in worry and with a kindness in her features that would hopefully tell him she was just as scared as he was. 

“I am trying to help you, but you have to be willing to listen to me and help me in exchange. My life depends on your survival and I am going to do everything I can to make sure that you are safe and returned.”

"You mean, things could actually be worse?" Benjamin asked, unable to keep from making a face. "With all due respect, madam, this land no longer feels like the colonies...it is far too coarse and ill-refined."

And that didn't even account for all the bloody inventions that he had yet to fully understand.

When Jayden started signing at her dog -- because why not? Of bloody course animals and people could talk in this century -- Benjamin forced himself to remain calm before he followed after her, his pulse still drumming erratically as he kept in step with her tread.

As she spoke, he winced. "Must you be called a witch?" he wearily asked. "The implications there aren't exactly flattering, and I would prefer to believe that you do not, in fact, intend to eat my intestines, nor perform some sort of black magic upon my soul."

Jayden ignored the remark -- perhaps it had been rather uncouth -- and showed him outside.

All at once, Benjamin's mouth dropped and he took in the scenery, wide-eyed and slack-jawed as he struggled to process the greenery. They were not in a forest, and yet it felt as though he were surrounded by lush wildlife.

“We are three stories up from the ground," Jayden explained. "As long as you don’t plan on going spelunking over the side of the building you will be safe up here.”

Benjamin's brow furrowed. "Speh...lunking?" he echoed, testing the sound with a scrunched nose. "I'm afraid that even my studies in Latin are failing me on the etymology here... What could that possibly even mean? It sounds like sheer nonsense."

As did everything else in this situation.

With a frustrated sigh, he pinched the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger, then slowly counted to ten before exhaling, long and slow. "Although the architecture here is quite impressive," he treaded, "I'm uncertain of how enjoyable it would be to live so far removed from the rest of the world." Here, he turned back toward the horrifying sights of the street below. "Where are your neighbors? Do your people not believe in daily visits, nor meeting for a drink?"

[thisiskatsblog]

Sad today.

[camgoloud]

you ever just. become overwhelmed by a sudden out-of-nowhere wave of tenderness and affection and longing for reconnection directed towards someone to whom you no longer speak for Very Good Reasons

[dcsiderivm]

Hearing Tanner, of all people, giving her a bit of grace, at least for her character overall, was..surprising, yet awfully desired after all this time. Sure, Daniela had done something horrendous and hurt the one person she'd never dreamed of hurting, but it didn't erase every other good thing about her. It overshadowed the good times she'd had with her ex, but it didn't quite change the fact that before that incident, their time together had been relatively amazing, and she just needed to be reminded of that. Trying not to relish in that small victory too much right now, she mindlessly studied Tanner's facial features as she let the woman continue speaking. Even while dealing with a range of emotions stemming from this encounter, her ex was still breathtaking, and damn if those dimples weren't still one of her favorite things about her.

Snapping back to reality at the mention of their poor choice in handling their problems, Dani sighed as she nodded in agreement. "I guess us not having any real relationship experience beforehand kind of left us scrambling to figure things out, and we just made the wrong decision." She'd replayed the crumbling of their relationship so many times now that she could recall all of the little things, the ways they ran from their problems or simply pushed things aside and only focused on work instead, and how they'd let other people try to push them into taking the next steps before they were even ready to sit down and talk about them. That had certainly been one of the main problems for them, and she hated how much it spooked them and gave them a reason to start avoiding one another. When Tanner pointed out the obvious, what had really broke her, Dani felt that guilt rising up yet again. "I was very aware, and hearing you say it out loud makes me feel even shittier, but I deserve that. And I'm sorry. Truly." If she could take it all back, Dani wouldn't hesitate to do just that, but since she couldn't, all she could do was keep apologizing. Though for now, it was starting to get a bit redundant, probably because they'd gone from somewhat fighting to now being more civilized, and this had been a lot to process so she knew they had to give each other some time.

Revealing that her and the lover who had come between her and Tanner was no longer in the picture hadn't been planned, but for some reason, Dani had felt like clearing the air there might help them...move forward? Remain civil? She didn't quite know, but it was out there now, and maybe it would provide a little comfort for Tanner to know that she wouldn't have to worry about seeing the pair around town together. As her ex seemed to change her stance on how to handle them running into each other in town again following this encounter, she smiled softly. Avoiding Tanner cost far too much energy, so Dani wasn't keen on having to do it forever. She wasn't expecting the offer to reach out to her ex should she need something though, and she was sure that the stunned expression on her face proved that. "Oh, uh..okay." She nodded her head slowly, letting her brain fully process it before she pulled her shit back together.

"I promise I'll handle myself better if we run into one another again. And if you feel the need to snap at me, I'll refrain from biting back and let you get it out of your system." She promised. It would be hard, sure, but she'd swallow her pride and deal with it. "Tell your parents I said hello...and that I'm really sorry for hurting their daughter." She stated before giving the woman a gentle smile. "You look beautiful, by the way. Not that you don't always look beautiful, but even under today's circumstances, you're still the most beautiful woman I've ever met." She shrugged. "And the phone thing works both ways, so if you need anything, or just want to chew me out, my number is still the same." And with that, Dani spun around and finally walked out of the alley, feeling a bit more relieved now that she'd gotten to formally apologize and give her ex the explanation she'd deserved since day one.

Something Tanner understood was that sometimes people felt such immense guilt that they wanted the offended party to hate them, to wish evil upon them, maybe even bestow some form of punishment on them. "I hate what you did—your actions, your selfishness, your cowardice," she volleyed back, a flat look on her face that eventually softened, "but—" That but was the big problem in Tanner's life. "One horrific thing doesn't change all the good that was once between us." And that string of truth was likely the answer to why this encounter had been so emotionally charged. Nostalgia was often called a dirty liar for looking back with rose colored glasses, yet Tanner had known one thing for certain—she'd never loved anyone the way she did Daniela.

Today was a red flag for Tanner. It was a display of just how much she hadn't go and moved on despite it having been a year since their breakup. Regardless of how it had gone down and the specifics of it, never minding all the comments over how much she'd changed in the last year, she'd hidden herself in her heartbreak. When her ex shook her head and wouldn't allow her to apologize a smile slightly curved her lips. It was more like a ghost—something you weren't quite sure of seeing. "It's all just hitting me right now. Different waves of emotions." That time she didn't refute Dani's sincerity. "Getting answers, or an explanation, helps. My mind went wild the last year and," turned Tanner into hating the world.

Hurt people hurt people. Her own guilt couldn't be assuaged over how once she'd been broken she'd become calloused to other's feelings. Often burdening them with a wrath they hadn't earned. The humorless chuckle pulled Tanner astray from the path her rumination was headed down. "It's crazy how we couldn't see a big picture then. How it was easier to avoid and let a divide grow between us." Maybe it had something to do with the fact that her family, even Dani's had been well-meaning in their encouragements and their excitement for what they saw in a future between the two women. Everything her ex had said landed somewhere and there was much to think about. "It's hard to know, I think." Her booted foot toed a crack in the alley asphalt as her hands rested lazily in her pockets. "I get it. Sometimes we don't know what we're doing and the ripple effect of those actions when we're in the thick of it." A sigh released and Tanner held a hand up between them. "Look, I'm not blaming the downfall of our relationship and everything that went wrong with it all on you. I'm aware it takes two. It's the break up. It's the someone else." After looking away for a moment her eyes found Dani's once again. "I just need you to know that—if you were unaware."

All the explanations, reasons, and apologies a year later left Tanner feeling unmoved by it all. Perhaps she was numb. It was much to process. Through the thick of it there had been a big word shared between them: love. And once uttered they both avoided it like a poisonous snake. Maybe what they had genuinely needed was time and space from the situation, because now that Tanner had shoved her anger aside to have as much of a conversation as possible she was chewing over and digesting every bit of information. "Thank you for acknowledging that," she said calmly and sincerely despite a flash of heat that surfaced on her neck and cheeks at the allusion of this other person that had come between them. Part of her wanted to ask if this person was here with Dani, or if they would follow. If they'd broken up—why? These questions rolled through her thoughts despite how much the answers could hurt and anger her. It felt sick to even wonder these sorts of things. Some part of Tanner's heart still held a silent claim on her ex, that had to be the reason.

Then unasked questions were answered and a swell of relief washed through Tanner. Given the state of things it felt like a best case scenario outcome of this encounter. Tanner listened and nodded, stoic on the outside, acknowledging that Dani was no longer with the person she'd left with. That being around Tanner was just as hard for Dani, that she wasn't moved on either. Hope didn't spring in her chest, at least things weren't as bad as they could be. "No, I get why you came back—this is your hometown, too. And, well, your family," she swallowed and the pause was a moment of respect for her ex's loss. "I just don't want us to be childish. I don't want to be at war with you or pulling immature moves if we see each other around. We're not teenagers." If they happened at the same place, same time in the future it likely wouldn't be easy but they could each be mature about it, right? A bit of conversation gave Tanner some comforts and made things a little less intense in comparison to when she first saw Dani. "Yeah, I think we need some time to think. I'm not going to lay some ground rules on you or play games, I don't have the patience for it. I think we can be mindful in the least, though." Then, it was out before she could stop it, "my number hasn't changed if you need or want to talk about things."