#at least if he suffers he’s suffering with his family

[maimohssen-mh]

My Voice to You: Mai from Gaza

I am Mai, 28 years old, and my life has completely changed over the past 13 months. The war has taken everything from us—our home, our safety, and even our health. Today, I live amidst unimaginable suffering, but I am still trying to stand strong for my family. • My mother: She underwent a complex heart surgery and had a heart device implanted. She needs medications costing $350 weekly, but the skyrocketing prices have made it nearly impossible to afford them. • My brother: He was severely injured during the bombing, with 80 stitches in his hand. Now, he requires physical therapy to regain full use of his hand. • Me: Due to contaminated water and poor nutrition, I developed hepatitis. My health has worsened, but I’m fighting to provide for my family. • My father: He has been living in Egypt for the past 4 years due to critical health conditions after multiple heart surgeries.

We have no home, no income, and no security. In February, I launched a fundraising campaign to cover my family’s needs. My goal was to raise $40,000, but I’ve only reached 14% of that amount so far.

In just 15 days, it will be my birthday, but I don’t have the luxury to celebrate. All I wish for is to see my family safe and to reach at least 20% of my campaign goal.

Can you help change my life and the life of my family? Every small contribution means the world to us.

To donate, visit the link: [donate what you're able to or 5$ AT LEAST to my gofundme or my paypal is also available and they accept any transfer amount. and i know you all afford to give away at least 1$ !]

Help me make this birthday the beginning of a new hope for my family. campaing vetted by : @90-ghost @bilal-salah0 @gaza-evacuation-funds The ButterflyEffect Project number : 1197 @dlxxv-vetted-donations @a-shade-of-blue

@irangp @blaxploitations @knuckls @sibella @genlosscharliie @rosemarybleeds @guiltycrunch @xxx-sparkydemon-xxx @raytoroinmybackpack @boypussydilf @slimeybread @imjustheretotrytohelp @ultravioletbread @justmaghookit @treeen @sayruq @the-cryptid-is-loose @finnicksbf @calmmyfears @of-science-and-stars @cipherinator @dragoncarrion @faacethefacts @lana-baumgartner @hehemechief @evergreen-femme @sylvianritual @mobiused @magic-can @myceliacrochet @isuggestforcefem @evillesbianvillain @cherry-shrimp @chokulit @g0at0ad @ankle-beez @lirulua @lespetitestortuesdemer @lesbianmaxevans @pien-art @taxi-distance @tamamita @dlxxv-vetted-donations @dia-tou-amphistomou @scummrevisited

[daffodils-and-viscera]

can we talk about stolas and octavia and antidepressants for a second

as someone with a lot of experience taking antidepressants and dealing with family members who Do Not Understand how depression works, it really struck me how octavia deals with discovering that stolas has been taking antidepressants.

presumably, he has been taking these for a VERY long time and based on the evidence in this episode, nobody in his life knew about it- clearly not blitzø or octavia, at least.

i don't see stolas as someone who has been to therapy - this reads to me very much like someone who saw "happy pills" and decided to self-medicate because he thought they would fix him, not as someone who was prescribed a medication and a dose to take (we've seen him downing handfuls of these pills on several occasions in past episodes)

octavia is (understandably) unsettled when she finds this giant box of pills, and despite all her complicated feelings for her father she IMMEDIATELY goes to find him to bring him his pills

octavia is smart!! yes she is pissed off at her dad and this implies that she could have gone to see him at any time when he was calling her, but this discovery kind of goes beyond any argument- no matter how she feels, she ultimately doesn't want stolas to suffer

then we get the big fight scene, which ends with the devastating argument between octavia and stolas where she says "was this my fault that you needed these?"

i adore the amount of nuance in their interaction here for so many reasons, but specifically this vein of "i love you but clearly you don't love me or else you wouldn't be depressed" hits very close to home for me and i love the way it's shown as messy and neither stolas nor octavia really understand the way their words are hurting one another

so it kind of breaks my heart that she closes herself off to him but leaves him with this bottle of happy pills because he does need them. and she knows it, and she cares enough to want him to be happy.

she just doesn't think that happiness includes her, because in her mind she's nothing more than an obligation to him.

ugh the day these two reunite i will be reduced to a pile of mush i just love how complex their relationship is it's so tasty

[procyonloser]

Adam wasn't certain when it happened, if it came from growing up in a devout family or not, or if something else sparked his imagination as a young boy, but from early on, he'd been obsessed with the idea of the biblical Adam. Of course other biblical figures stood out more, and most people viewed Adam and Eve as simply a cautionary tale, a Just So story - but not Adam.

He saw a wide world of untold stories, of suffering and hardship, of tests of faith, of love and loss, all in a world that had no other people to speak of. Adam was captivated by the concept, and maybe it was because of his namesake, but he felt a sort of kinship with the Adam figure. Responsibility and loneliness, but duty over all else, Adam sympathized with that.

He'd started drawing, just little doodles at first, that turned into comics. At first it just rehashed the story of Adam and Eve, but he started to embellish it, to bring more life to them, and eventually to imagine what their lives must have been like. It'd been a big hit at his private Christian highschool, but Adam didn't expect to make a living off of it. Still, he kept drawing into college, turning it into an episodic comic about the life of Adam.

He wasn't expecting a major Christian publisher to contact him when he was only 21.

Over the years, First Man grew in popularity, he'd even gained a good amount of followers from other religions and backgrounds. Adam of the comic was essentially an action hero, but with more heart - dealing with his flawed but devoted wife, the loss of his first two children, and surviving a world before the flood. It gave Adam the freedom to think up all sorts of demons and fallen angels for comic Adam to face. Comic Adam was tall, handsome, ripped, talented, perfect.

Adam stared into the cramped airplane mirror, scratching at the stubble on his chin. Adam was tall, sure, but he didn't think he was exactly handsome, more average in the face; he wasn't ripped, and didn't even think he had muscles under his stomach anymore, not after years of sitting at a desk drawing and doing nothing else.

He was far from perfect, and the stories were beginning to weigh on him. He'd just completed the most major arc in his entire comic, after over 7 years of writing, comic Adam had died an old man. While some thought that was the end of the series, Adam had a sequel planned, of Adam in heaven, an agent of God with the original angels.

But Adam needed a fucking break, he needed a vacation. It was tearing him up inside, he hadn't even believed in God in about 3 years, but fuck knows he hadn't told his publishers that. The longer he drew Adam, Adam began to feel less and less... Himself. It felt wrong, it wasn't just that he'd sacrificed his social life or chances at any relationships, it just felt more and more fake.

Adam dragged a hand down his face, before exiting the bathroom.

He dropped down into his aisle seat next to a mildly annoyed looking British women, that eyed him up and down. The bags under his eyes, his unkempt hair, the fact he was in sweatpants and flip-flops on a plane.

"You're flying into Ankara?" The woman asked after a long few minutes and Adam gave a grunt of acknowledgement.

"Then to Adiyaman." Adam said simply, knowing it would be quite the trek across Turkey.

"You may want to... at the very least, put on a proper pair of shoes." She said, and Adam rolled his eyes. It wasn't his first time here, though he'd never been outside of Istanbul before, but no one gave a shit what was on his feet. They were usually more astonished he was over 6'5 than anything.

"Eat a bag of dicks," Adam grumbled, before popping on his headphones, only briefly remembering the good Christian boy he'd been when he'd started his comic.

But it was at the heart of why he'd come here. To Turkey, to the Euphrates River in Adiyaman. Adam's fascination with biblical Adam, with Genesis, with Eden, never really went away, even as he grew more nihilistic and angry at the world. He'd dreamed about visiting here for years, because Adam, deep down, knew that this area was Eden. The whole of the area, from where the Euphrates began and ended in the ocean. The garden was only a piece of the much larger area of Eden, and he'd been waiting years to come here, to see it with his own eyes. To feel the history dripping out of every rock face and curve of the river.

This was where humanity began.

Adam handed his bags over to the clerk in the Ramada he was staying in, because of course they still had a Ramada in the middle of Turkey. Adiyaman so far was... It wasn't exactly small, but half of town seemed like it was in the process of being built, and the streets were lined with cars that looked old to Adam. But, it didn't matter, he wasn't there for that.

Adam sighed loudly, wanting to get up to his room to pass out in bed for maybe the next day. He'd pressed the elevator door close button, but at the last minute, pale fingers curled around the metal, and the doors slid back open, revealing a rather short man. He was wearing an interesting suit, and was at least a head shorter than Adam, but there was something about how he used the space around him that made Adam look him over cautiously.

"Going up?" The man said, with a half smile.

"Yeah," he said slowly. "... You American? Canadian?"

The man shrugged a shoulder, "something like that."

Adam had no idea what the fuck that meant. Why be cagey about that kind of question. It was a simple answer.

"What brings you back here, Adam?" The man askedv pleasantly enough, changing the subject.

"The Euphrates, the archaeology in general. It's a tax write off vacation for my work." Adam answered, not understanding why he was bothering to tell the guy all that.

It didn't sink in until after he got off on his floor, that the man knew his name.

And Adam had never been to Adiyaman before.

[steddieas-shegoes]

still believe

for @steddieholidaydrabbles prompt 'santa'

all of my holiday drabbles will be from the bear hugs universe. many of them could probably be read standalone, but will make the most sense and be enjoyed best if you read that first!

rated g | 985 words | no cw | tags: established relationship, mall santa, fluff

🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻🎅🏻

The line is wrapped around the building, which is exactly what Steve warned him about.

Steve insisted they go the first week that Santa was at the mall, but Eddie insisted they wait. It didn’t feel right to see Santa before December even started.

Then they got so busy with hockey practices and the baby and-

“How much longer?” Rory asks. She isn’t quite groaning yet, but Eddie knows she doesn’t have much more patience.

Steve is bouncing Sawyer in his arms, raising his brows at Eddie. The I told you so doesn’t need to be said out loud for him to know that’s what he’s thinking.

He tried to time it perfectly between Steve getting off of work, Sawyer’s next feeding time, and their own dinner time, but now…

They’re looking at a catastrophic failure on his part.

Sawyer’s only four months old, and he’s on a very strict schedule. He’s a perfect baby, sleeps almost entirely through the night, only cries when he needs to be changed, and loves when Rory holds him. But if he doesn’t eat on time? Everyone suffers.

They have at least an hour in this line still and they have roughly 20 minutes before Sawyer’s due for a bottle. They have them in the diaper bag, of course, enough formula already measured out for two bottles and a bottle of water just in case.

“Can’t we go to another Santa?” She asks when no one answers her.

“What do you mean? This is the only Santa.” Steve stops bouncing as he speaks, and Eddie feels sweaty all of a sudden. They both thought Rory still believed in Santa. Sure, she was a little old for it, but last year she’d gotten into a fight with a kid at school because she still believed.

“Dad.” Rory gives him one of her be serious looks. “Every mall has one. The real Santa has to stay in the North Pole.”

Steve’s shoulders relax, but Eddie feels another moment of panic. Rory does still believe in Santa. It’s fine, it’s actually great. But a small part of him hoped that maybe she’d just casually stopped believing. Maybe then it would be easier for Steve to accept that their little girl isn’t so little anymore.

“Right,” Steve smiles at her. “But we’re already in line here, so we should just stay.”

Rory sighs, but doesn’t argue.

Sawyer coos in Steve’s arms. Steve smiles down at him and bounces him again.

“You can’t wait to meet Santa, huh buddy?” Steve asks him.

Sawyer’s way too young to understand what he’s asking, but he still gives a gummy smile. He’s got Chrissy’s nose, but it’s a perfect combination with Eddie’s everything else. They all joked that Eddie might as well have carried and birthed him for how much he looks like him already.

“Does Santa already know that Sawyer’s been good?” Rory asks.

“Babies are always on the nice list until they can walk and talk. Then, they have to behave just like all the bigger kids,” Steve explains. “Santa already knows Sawyer’s good.”

“But what if Sawyer was bad?”

“Well, do you think he’s been bad?” Eddie asks, taking Sawyer from Steve to give him a break.

“He did puke on my shirt last week,” Rory’s face twists with disgust. “And he pooped through his diaper that one time and it got on the car seat.”

Eddie’s doing his best not to laugh. “Those are accidents, though. It doesn’t make him a bad kid.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Rory sighs. She looks around the people in front of them as they take a few steps forward. “Maybe we can skip Santa this year? Since he knows we’ve both been good.”

Steve shakes his head. “We wanted to get a family picture, remember?”

“But it’s not even the real Santa!” Rory exclaims, loud enough that the people in front of them turn and scowl at them. Steve sends them an apologetic look and kneels down so he can get on Rory’s level.

“Listen green bean, you remember when you were really little and thought this was the real Santa?” She nods. “A lot of these kids still think that and we can’t ruin it for them. Plus, they’re handing out candy canes, look!”

One of the employees dressed as an elf is walking down the line offering candy canes. A perfect distraction for kids growing impatient in line.

Sawyer gurgles and then lets out a tiny whine. Eddie checks the time on the phone and gives Steve a look.

Steve wordlessly opens the diaper bag to get the bottle ready and Rory rocks on her feet as she waits for the elf to bring her a candy cane. Eddie pokes at Sawyer’s cheek, and his tummy, and his arm, making him let out little bursts of noises that are nearly giggles.

“Not too much longer,” Eddie whispers to the baby in his arms, hopeful that he’s right.

****

Nearly an hour later, they have Sawyer propped in Santa’s lap and Rory standing next to him, talking a mile a minute about her list. They manage to get a great picture– a small miracle considering Sawyer was due for a nap– and head out, not wanting to hold up the line more than it already has been.

As they leave, Rory tugs on Eddie’s jacket and comes to a stop. Steve is too busy babbling at Sawyer to notice.

“Daddy, I lied,” she says and Eddie’s gut clenches. “I know Santa isn’t real. But dad loves Christmas and it would hurt his feelings. And now Sawyer can believe in Santa so I have to pretend.”

Eddie loves this girl. She has always been wise beyond her years, which is why her believing in Santa at this age seemed ludicrous to him.

He hugs her tight and kisses the top of her head. “You’re a good kid, little one.”

[heliosunny]

Yandere!Fyodor x Reader

"How many times have you tried to kill me? Eight?" The man with black hair sitting across from you asked. No reply.

Fyodor Dostoevsky killed your friends. All of them. He had been more than happy to see you suffer. You should've known better than to get involved with someone like him.

"Aw... look at you, so pathetic. At least-" You spat in his face the moment he knelt down to get closer to you. Would he slap you? You waited, anticipating his reaction, but there was only silence.

Your thoughts drifted back to a few months ago, when you had found him injured in an alley. Kindhearted as ever, you took him in and cared for him.

Vincent, your childhood friend, had looked at you with doubt written all over his face. "Are you sure you want to... let him join our group?"

"Pfft, what kind of question is that? Don't you see the way he solves mysteries in the blink of an eye? He's a genius! We need someone like him." You replied, brushing Fyodor's hair gently.

Fyodor hated anyone else touching him but you, you were one of the few exceptions.

He had been clever, acting all innocent and harmless in front of everyone. With your help, he became acquainted with your friends- your second family. The small business you ran with your 3 other friends thrived under Fyodor's guidance. It became so successful that you barely had time to rest like you used to.

Fyodor was fine. He was fine watching you consumed with work, forgetting all about him.

Fyodor was fine. Watching from afar as you acted lovey dovey with Vincent, the one everyone knows you had a crush on. The blond was the complete opposite of Fyodor in every way.

Fyodor was fine.

Until he wasn't.

One night,he got drunk. Fueled by something darker, he did what he felt necessary to make you rely on him entirely.

He killed them all.

In front of your eyes.

He explained his ability to you, the one he had been hiding all this time, but you were too shocked to process a single word.

"You know, Fyodor.."

His eyes widen. Hearing your voice after all these days lit him up with hope.

"I can't wait to see.." You leaned closer, whispering the rest of the sentence into his ear.

He bursted out laughing. "The ADA, you said? Fair enough." He replied, tugging the chain attached to the collar around your neck, pulling you even closer.

"I would love to see this future you were talking about. But first, let's have some fun, shall we?"

[but-a-humble-goon]

It feels so fucking weird that Rockstar of all studios somehow created one of the most subversive and well written female supporting characters in gaming's recent years.

Sadie's introduced, shall we say, exactly as you'd expect a woman to in these kinds of stories. She's a damsel in distress, horrifically victimized by a gang of violent thugs who the "heroic" Dutch gang demonstrate they are better men than by rescuing and comforting her then being motivated by her suffering into taking action to kill the guys who did this to her. And if that had been the last we'd ever seen of Sadie she would fit right in with so many women in the background of so many westerns.

Instead though, she sticks around for the whole story, learns the gun, eventually becomes one of the most reliably skilled (and unhealthily enthusiastic) killers in the gang and wreaks her own bloody path of vengeance against what's left of the O'Driscolls, mercilessly hunting them to the last man in a fashion so violent even the hardened lifelong criminals are a little taken aback.

Now that's already doing a lot to be subversive but I think the thing that most got me about her story is it avoids becoming straightforwardly a "good person becomes corrupted into a monster by trauma and violence" story. Sadie goes very, VERY dark sure and she even gets the Unforgiven/Shane ending where there's no going back from the killing for her. John Marston gets to go live a mostly peaceful domestic life on a ranch with his family (at least until RDR1 happens) but Sadie decides this is all she has left and becomes a bounty hunter

Despite all that though, Sadie Adler never really stops being a good person. At least good relative to RDR2 where everybody's a criminal and a murderer. She takes charge, saves the whole gang and holds them all together when things are at their worst and even when the chips are down and the gang turns on itself and begins to drown in its own blood she remains one of the real ones. She comes to be one of the last people Arthur can rely on in the world. She consistently protects the others and puts them before herself. She always helps without ever needing to be asked. She never leaves anybody behind.

Something that stands out to me is there's multiple times where she assertively protects the male protagonists. She orders Arthur to stay well behind while she goes in to save Abigail by herself because he's sick and she keeps trying to talk John into going home to be with his family because unlike her he has something to lose.

Basically Sadie Adler is great and I love her. She's so much more textured, nuanced and just plain awesome than we normally get especially in stories of this kind and her story is handled with an honestly shocking amount of sympathy that I have come to really not expect from Rockstar.

[lesbiansforboromir]

Here's a more compact review of the War of the Rohirrim film for anyone interested! SPOILERS AHEAD!!

Positives;

The backgrounds were all very beautifully painted and the lighting really elevated the character design and smoothed over the janky animation. Where other aspects of the film fall off, often the background artistry and lighting over all of it still manages to convey a very dramatic and immersive moment to the viewer. It's probably the best part of the film.

The part where Helm's ice-ghost phase is teased was really cool and atmospheric and I got a little thrill of what I'd kind of always been wanting from this film.

Frealaf was pretty lovely (what little we got of him) and I appreciated that his darker skin tone was implicitely associated with his Gondorian heritage. I THINK I appreciate the idea that Frealaf's father was Gondorian, though I wish it had been better utilised.

I also really liked the moment where Helm is about to fight Freca and he gives his crown, signet ring and mantle over to Frealaf in this like... symbolic giving up of his Kingship in this moment where his actions are about to make him unworthy of it.

I appreciated Olwyn existing as an older female character in a purely action based roll.

Helm's voice actor and design were pretty cool, I came around to enjoying how much effort they put into making him extremely imposing.

Hama being a twink who was born to be a bard but forced to be a heroic second prince was a nice touch.

General Targg of Dunland might have been my favourite character, inspite of the fact that I am really curious to know where this organised military of Dunland is for him to reach the rank of 'General' in.

Negatives;

Gurl the racism. See here for more details.

The overall narrative seems to me direly lacking in like... basis. I am lead to believe Hera's journey is about her reclaiming her right to choose her own life for herself. But she is never actually pressured into any choice, nor does it appear that her father ever restricted her freedom in any way. So I don't really see where her choices were actually removed to such a degree. If her desire is to see her choices respected by the men in her life, well that never happens for either Helm nor Wulf, who force her to let them die or to kill them, respectively. It feels like in their rush to censor any negative aspects of Helm they kind of removed the reason Hera is frustrated in the first place, he cant be TOO much of a misogynist etc etc.

This is twisted up within 'gurl the racism' but Wulf's manner and presentation make me FEEL like he is a villain we are supposed to mildly feel for? We see him as a child, we see him struggle with what he's doing, we see his clear desperation and despair and hear him talk about loneliness and suffering... but at the end of the day in the way that it is presented Wulf is fundamentally foul and deluding himself and all his problems appear to be of his own making. In general it is extremely uncomfortable for the 'obsessive stalker' villain to also every now and then say 'I am devastated because of how my dunlending blood has been prejudiced against all my life by your family and the wider rohir society' like... by only him mentioning it but it never being actually acknowledged by anyone else it just comes across so shallow and unsettling.

This is a review from my book-biased perspective so understand it within that lense but still gurl... the lore. What the hell do you mean the eagles speak a language only a wizard can understand? No they can just speak! What do you mean there is A watcher in the water in some undisclosed lake in Rohan somewhere? There is one Watcher and it's name is very specific to the doomed Moria expedition! At least give this new squid fellow a rohir name. Speaking of!!

IS IT SO HARD TO NAME ROHIR CHARACTERS IN..... ROHIRRIC?? OLD ENGLISH IS RIGHT THERE... HERA HAS NO MEANING... THERE ARE SO MANY COOL HISTORICAL ANGLO SAXON PRINCESSES YOU COULD CHOOSE FROM...

Included in the 'gurl, the lore' segment but in need of it's own post so I will try to be brief; (Theoden voice) where was Gondor... when a herd of Mumakil were marched by Haradrim mercenaries across the Anduin, up through the Pelennor, across Calenadhon and over Rohan's southern border... did they sneak by... were they stealth Mumakil, did they have elven cloaks too.

But also Where Was Gondor just in general. Like to the detriment of the actual narrative, opening up plot holes that didn't even need to be there, the fact that Gondor is ALSO supposed to be at war right now is completely ignored and discarded.

THE BATTLE OF EDORAS... TF ARE YOU ALL DOING! Like I know it is kind of hypocritical of me to request sensible war tactics when we're adapting Tolkien, he did not give a good example, but like... where were the horse archers, why are you charging down an infantry-only army, why even be on a horse if you aren't going to use greater mobility to your advantage, this isn't a siege, this is YOUR territory this is an open field!! Come on! AND ANOTHER THING, did we really have to make the victory of the Dunlendings over Edoras so disconnected from their own effort? Like betrayal is fine, but this was also a well supplied and competant force, and that was a major part of their victory. These were matched combatants! Just kind of another way in which the dunlendings were robbed of any cohesive motive, narrative or skill.

To my admittedly untrained eye... the animation sucks? Like it's clunky and janky and you can see the frames transitioning between each other, the movements often feel awkward and a lot of the drawings are just bad! The Eagles are SO stiff, as are the horses which seems like a cardinal sin in the Horse Lord Film. And then I couple that with the multiple completely unnecessary spinning camera shots Hera gets which are annoying, superfluous and a bizarre thing to spend time on when the rest of the film needs so much more care and attention. In general the GULF of difference between how beautiful the backgrounds are vs how bland the character art is is kind of jarring.

Hera's design.... I hate it. Look I know it's anime but DID Hera have to have thigh high boots... did she really... Why is she so pale if she's supposedly riding sleeveless across the vast countryside everyday? Can a single supposedly feminist film about a 'wild' female protagonist let that woman be like... dirty, or not so agonisingly thin, or give her messy or god forbid short hair. At one point when she is grabbed by a troll and hung in the air they linger uncomfortably long on her ass which her costume design is specifically designed to allow for maximum viewing detail.

The designs of the Dunlendings, Haradrim and especially the Mumakil are all so grim. Like I liked Freca's design to a degree, it was more potent with symbolism and patterning and such, but the rest of it is just SO FUCKIN- well they're ugly! and therefore evil! Do you get it? The ugly grey animalistic people are evil! The Mumakil have literal red snake eyes just so you know they're 'evil animals'. I can't take it anymore, at one point the guy who Eomer throws a spear at in the trilogy just... turns up, like it's literally just him down to the facepaint. And speaking of...

SHUT UP ABOUT THE PJ TRILOGY, SHUT UP AB- besties this film's intro plays alongside the ring theme... THE RING MUSICAL THEME!!!!?? Lines from the films are reused so often and so WILDLY outside of their actual context and meaning that it makes me flinch.

There is a plump little fellow called Leif who is the royal Page I think and everytime someone called Freca fat in such a vitriolic way I was like wow... I mean Leif is right there guys!

Overall a 4/10 from me, it is a watcheable but shallow film that I suspect was more of a cynical attempt by Warner Bros to keep their death grip on the rights to the books, since I think they would have expired if they didn't do something with them soon.

[aliceinborderlandsquidgame]

♧ Xmas Times ♧ Various AIB!Boys x GN!Reader

AU: No-Borderlands - Established Relationships with all of them - SFW - Banda is still red flag - grammar mistakes -

ARISU

Soft boy! He loves this month. Not only because he gets an excuse to buy new lights and re decorate him room and gaming room. He actually decorates the whole aparment.

"Its never too early too set up the tree" Him probably

If you two are living together its going to be a hell of a month in the good way. Arisu LOVES IT. He is going to look out for different activities around the city and take you there. Try the new sweets and even go and buy matching sweaters and socks.

Loves to cuddle with you on the sofa while drinking hot cocoa, corny films ? Yes. Hell yes. He is all up for them even if he knows the ending.

MISTOLETE KISS!! Uses any chance to get you both under one and kiss you. Depends on his mood where he is going to kiss you but nose and lips are his firsts options.

CHISHIYA

This Man never cared over festivities and would actually to and take the xmas turn at the hospital to keep himself away from it.

Quiet insensitive about it and sees it most like a way of corporations to get money.

Plus he never got to experience a good xmas with his family..

Its up to you to take on the decorations and xmas mood!! He Will let you do whatever you want with the aparment as long as it does not touches his home office.

If you two prefer to mostly ignore it then its just another month. But Chishiya Will take xmas off and stay with you.

Gets you a big suprise present and when you do the same for him, he tries his best just how happy he is.

NIRAGI

Maybe you never imagine this, but he loves this month. During his childhood him and his mother would have the best of times setting up the tree and getting decorations, making cookies and singing xmas songs.

So yes, he expects quiet the same now that he is with you.

Like Arisu, he uses this time to buy more lights, the house looks like a dance place during night. Because he cant settle down for one color.

Will make you a cute interactive game that ends with "Happy Xmas, I love you"

Now wont admit it, but please cuddle him. Specially on cold mornings, he loves the natural heat more than having the califaction going on.

Kisses your head all the time and gets you a scarf tras too big For you. He thinks you look adorable.

TATTA

Another soft boy who has no idea what to do. If he is honest he cant really recall a special memory of xmas so he is lost and doing the standar things.

Totally checks the internet to see whats he is supposed to do.

Gets you tons of presents (five at least) because he feels like he is not at home a lot since his work gets more demanding during this month.

Get him a toy car with a controlled and he is the happyest guy alive.

Does not waste a chance on kissing you. Does not care if its on public or at home. Because to him its not only xmas but love season as well!!

BANDA SUNATO

He likes it because red blood goes amazing with white snow.

Really. The only time he leaves the city and goes to the countryside to hunt down peopel in the woods.

Does not care much for presents or decorations.

Just get him a New knife and he is happy, let him use it on you and its even better.

KARUBE

Man he is burned out with his bar. This month is demanding for him. Gets home late and tired. If you caress his hair and tell him sweet nothings he becomes a puppy.

Asks you to help him out decorating the bar (and Arisu) it ends looking amazing and then you make a personal competition to make your aparment with him look even better.

Is amazed how you managed to over due yourself.

Get him hawaii shirts please. Even if its no the time for it. He loves them and hates snow clothes.

The most kisser one.

You bet he adds mistelotes at home and at the bar. And is so ready to jump over you at any moment.

AGUNI

Asks you to help him decorate his flower shop but not too much cause he is worried the flowers Will suffer.

Sings xmas songs softly when he thinks you are not near (you are, you recorder him).

The xmas tree looks healthy and Aguni its so proud of how it looks he cant stop taking pictures of it.

Gets all flustered when you give him presents during the month. And wonders how did you get such a comfortable sweater for him ? Since he is all muscles?

Well he doubles it getting you a big Teddy bear.

[onegianthotmess]

“Hey, it’s cold outside, yeah? Stay a bit longer…”

Synopsis: When they’d first arrived and settled into their room in the home of Finnian and his spouse, Leona was quite annoyed at how cold he was and was fairly jealous that Morel had adjusted so easily. It seemed that even Gardenia, who was only a year old and much more fragile, somehow adjusted better than her father. But, after a few nights, Leona completely changed his mind since the cold meant Morel snuggled up to him even more in bed and they were covered with even more blankets, making everything ten times more comfortable. This also made Leona ten times more difficult to drag out of bed, but at least it made him ten times cuter…

A/N: I’ve been feeling the cold cozies lately (what I call feeling extra snuggly inside while it’s cold enough to freeze hell over outside during winter) and I wanted to write something that allowed me to describe the lovely feeling of being perfectly snuggled up in your bed during winter but also slightly Christmas-y since that’s what me and my family celebrate during the holiday season. If the title didn’t give it away, I took inspiration from the song Baby, It’s Cold Outside and basically used it as an excuse to write clingy Leona trying to keep Morel in bed. Such is the dynamic of chronic napper/one who always sleeps x early bird/one who never sleeps enough. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this little fic and are having a good holiday season so far!!!

Lions—and lion beastmen by extension—weren’t built for the cold. They were built for being the apex predators of the savanna, to live in hot conditions that taught them the absolute joys of enjoying a lovely rest in the shade and near a nice and cool water source. The blistering heat of the unfairly breathtaking savanna was their ideal habitat.

That was the environment Leona Kingscholar was built for. Not the fucking winter wonderland that was his father-in-law’s home.

When Morel had proposed spending the Christmas holiday with her side of the family—namely her father, stepparent, and two half brothers—Leona didn’t see much of a problem with it. After all, Gardenia was now a year old and could handle a two week stay somewhere without getting sick or causing too much of a fuss. And it was a bit unfair that Finnian always had to come to them to see his precious little granddaughter. The fact that it would be the first time Gardenia would be seeing snow was also a cute added bonus to the trip.

He’d dealt with the winters at Night Raven College a few times instead of going home to his family for the holidays, excusing that the unfamiliar climate had gotten him a bit sick. All of it was bullshit, he really just didn’t want to go home and Crowley was too busy with his head being sixty-five feet up his own ass that Leona probably could’ve stayed over the summer as well as the winter holiday and Crowley wouldn’t have cared.

So, with that past experience, Leona figured that he could live with a bit of cold and snow after suffering through NRC’s winters that were arctic compared to the warmth of Sunset Savana.

Oh, how wrong the Second Prince was.

Not only was he very wrong, but he was also very unprepared for just how cold his father-in-law’s homeland would be. The temperatures were well below zero when Leona and Morel arrived with Gardenia and Leona was shocked at the sheer amount of snow. In some places, snow drifts were likely about up to his shoulder, and the top of Morel’s head was maybe only an inch above that without her heels on. On top of all of the snow, the wind was so cold that it felt like pins and needles against his face and he could almost feel it through the hat—that Morel made just for him so that it would cover his ears snugly but comfortably—on his head.

Leona was actually extremely almost jealous of Gardenia at that moment because not only was she completely bundled up thanks to Morel’s maternal anxiety, the cub was also snuggly wrapped against Morel’s chest in a baby sling that was specifically bought for the trip so ensure that she wouldn’t get too cold or sick. It didn’t help that she was also sleeping soundly in the thing as well, the wind providing the perfect amount of white noise that was muffled through the thick hat on her head.

Leona had never been more grateful to be inside in his life once they’d actually made it to Finnian’s home and he let them in. Luckily the beastman was able to hold it together until he, Morel, and Gardenia, who was sleeping in what used to be Morel’s crib, were all settled into the guest room. Morel had only turned around to lay their cub down to finish her little nap when Leona had instantly wrapped himself in every last blanket on the bed, trying to warm himself up as best he could.

“Really, Cubby?” Morel asked, laughing a bit as her husband began to pout.

“I grew up on the savanna! I’m not built for this!” Leona hissed, no bite to his words whatsoever.

“Oh, poor baby,” Morel cooed, using her baby voice as she crawled onto the bed and wrapped her arms around Leona—as best as she could, given the mountain of blankets he wrapped himself in compared to her small size. “Do you need to be wrapped and swaddled up like Gardenia, Cubby!?”

“You’re lucky you’re my mate, or I’d claw out your tongue,” Leona threatened emptily, leaning into his wife’s embrace. Though it was subtle thanks to the layers of blankets, he could feet her body heat and it made him feel even warmer.

Throughout the first few nights, Leona wasn’t very happy. Even inside, he was still chilled to the bone and sat the closest to the fireplace he could, often holding his napping daughter while idle chatter or the chaos of a competitive board game filled the space.

But, as they reached the middle of their first week in Finnian’s home, Leona realized something amazing about the cold.

Not only was it an excuse to lovingly smother Morel with cuddles in bed as they slept, but Leona had more leverage to keep her in bed with him due to the warmth and comfort of both the blankets and his embrace, especially since Morel’s small size meant she got cold much quicker than he did. This revelation made him even clingier, holding onto Morel with a gentle but firm grip and trying every way he knew how to keep her laying in bed with him even for just a few more minutes.

Which brings us to the morning towards the end of their first week.

Nothing was planned for the household today. Since going outside and letting Gardenia see the snow for the first time in person yesterday, everyone silently decided to just stay inside for the day since it was still snowing quite heavily. Though they had extra blankets and each other’s body heat, Leona could still feel the cold of the room around his head, especially around his sensitive ears. He’d planned to stay in bed with his wife until noon, but said wife’s father had different plans.

Plans that started at six thirty in the morning.

“Morel?” Finnian asked softly as he gently tapped on the door a few times before poking his head inside. Leona was still asleep like the dead, but Morel murmured and sat up to face her father as he said her name. Even as an infant she was a light sleeper, a trait that unfortunately contributed to her being an early bird. “I’m sorry I woke you up, but I was wondering if you three would be out for breakfast?”

Morel yawned a bit, rubbing one of her eyes with her hand before she answered, “Possibly. But, given Leona’s sleeping habits, don’t count on it.”

“Alright, my dear,” Finnian nodded. “Have a good morning.”

Morel sleepily waved after her father as he left, gently shutting the door and walking down the hall to the kitchen. The white haired woman was about to go back to sleep for a bit—she was especially tired after Gardenia was up so late last night thanks to Morel’s half-brothers playing with her—but she felt her bladder press inside of her. Morel groaned, feeling too cozy to want to leave her bed with her husband, but also not in the mood to hold it and possibly piss in the bed if she did fall back asleep.

But—and she should’ve seen this coming—just as Morel moved to get up and leave the bed, Leona’s arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her back down. With a small “oof” she was back to being snuggled up to her husband’s chest.

“Leona, let me go, I have to get up,” Morel laughed sleepily, trying to remain quiet so she wouldn’t wake Gardenia up. Though the cub slept like a corps much like her father most of the time, she could also sleep lightly just like her mother.

“No,” Leona replied simply, planting a small but firm kiss on his wife’s forehead. “Stay in bed with me, Herbivore.”

“Kitty, I know you’re cozy, but it’ll just be for a few minutes at most,” Morel sighed, trying to squirm out of Leona’s grip.

“No, it can wait,” Leona murmured, gently pulling Morel closer to him. “It can wait until about noon.”

“It really can’t, Kitty. I need you to let me go,” Morel sighed, still attempting to escape her clingy husband. She loved him and cuddling with him, but she’d rather not do that on urine soaked sheets and possibly piss on him as well.

With a huff, Leona pulled his wife on top of him before murmuring, “Hey, it’s cold outside, yeah? Stay a bit longer, Herbivore.”

“I would love to, but I wouldn’t love pissing all over you and the sheets,” Morel replied, earning a groan and a pit from Leona. With a laugh, the white hearted woman kissed her husband’s cheek with a smile. “If I give you a good enough deal, will you let me go?”

“How good are we talkin’, Morel?” Leona queried, raising an eyebrow.

“If you let me go to the bathroom and get Gardenia some breakfast, and you change Gardenia, you can stay in bed with us until lunch around one,” Morel offered with a smile, watching Leona think as the cogs and gears turned in his mind. “Do we have a deal, Cubby?”

“As long as you quit it with that stupid name, we sure as hell do,” Leona replied after a moment, giving his wife a peck on the forehead before releasing her.

Morel gave Leona a kiss on the cheek as a small show of gratitude before she left the room. She hadn’t realized how badly she needed to pee until the need his her like a truck halfway to the bathroom and the poor woman ended up cutting off her younger half-brother just so she wouldn’t piss herself.

“Really, Ellie?” he asked, more so playfully than actually upset.

“If you wanted me to piss right outside your bedroom, I would’ve done it!” Morel retorted playfully from inside the bathroom, letting out a much-needed sigh of relief. “I may be an adult and a mother, but I’m also the pettiest woman you’ll ever meet in your entire life!”

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” her half-brother quickly stated with a small laugh before he very nervously continued, “please don’t piss outside of my bedroom.”

Morel chuckled as she finished washing and drying her hands and opened the bathroom door, “Be nice to me and I won’t.”

“Fine, fi- Hey!” the younger boy quickly protested as Morel pat him on the head two times before walking back down the hall, blinding towards the kitchen.

The white haired woman smiled as she rounded the corner into the kitchen where Finnian was busying himself with making breakfast and reminding his daughter where she got her love of cooking from.

“Papa, do you have a small plate I can take for Dena to eat?” Morel asked as she took a couple of water bottles from the fridge. “I’ve made a deal with Leona that will require all three of us to stay in bed until around lunchtime.”

“I figured you’d say something like that when you eventually came out, so the answer is yes, there’s a plate for the baby,” Finnian replied, gesturing to the island. There was a tiny plate with some eggs and cut up bits of sausage on it, a tiny baby spoon sitting next to it.

“Thank you, Papa,” Morel smiled, hugging her father, who quickly moved to reciprocate the gesture. “You are so sweet. I love you.”

“I love you more, my darling Clementine,” Finnian sighed, patting his daughter’s head once they both pulled away from each other. “And you don’t have to thank me. I would never deprive a sweet baby of her right to eat, much less my own granddaughter. What kind of opa do you think I am?”

“A very good one,” Morel replied as she took the plate and spoon from the island, holding the bottles of water with her arm. “I’ll see you around lunch, Papa.”

“Make sure you and Leona eat at some point today, Morel,” Finnian smiled after his daughter, watching her turn the corner to exit the kitchen before calmly going back to preparing breakfast for everyone else in the house.

Meanwhile, Morel had made her way back down the hall and quietly entered the room her and her family were using for their trip, trying to not disturb anyone else in the house. The white haired woman quietly shut the door behind her before she turned around and stopped once she noticed Leona and Gardenia staring at her.

“Finally, I thought you’d run off or something, Herbivore,” Leona grumbled, not bite to his words whatsoever. He was too soft around his wife and daughter to ever actually have any sort of bite to his words at all.

Gardenia seemed to have been impatiently waiting for her mother as well, making grabby hands at her as she babbled, “Mama! Mama! Mama!”

Morel smiled at her daughter before she tossed a bottle of water to Leona, who expertly caught it thanks to his cat reflexes, before making her way to her side of the bed. The short woman set down her own water bottle and the plate of food on the nightstand before she crawled onto the bed, shuffling until she was under the covers and finally a bit more warm. But, she didn’t have long to get too comfortable, however. Leona quickly pulled his wife towards him and just as quickly maneuvered himself, Morel, Gardenia, and even the blankets to create a perfect nest of blankets wrapped around the three of the in the middle of the bed.

“Well, hello to you, too,” Morel chuckled as she gently took Gardenia into her arms. “Did I make my kitty wait too long?”

“Damn fuckin’ straight,” Leona sighed, burying his face into the crook of his wife’s neck as she hissed at him to watch his language in front of their very young and impressionable daughter. “I love Nina, but she isn’t big enough to fully cuddle with and use as a nice and soft pillow.”

“Well, you could, but you’d crush her,” Morel laughed lightly, Leona pouting and bumping her shoulder blade with his head.

“Papa! Papa!” Gardenia babbled, making grabby hands at her father as she saw his ears.

Leona let out a laugh through his nose, resting his chin on Morel’s shoulder as he raised an eyebrow at his daughter with a grin, “What do you want, brat?”

“Papa!” Gardenia repeated, leaning towards him and wiggling her little body as she puffed out her chubby cheeks in a pout. “Papa!”

“I think someone wants her papa’s ears,” Morel giggled playfully, moving one of her hands to gently tug on one of Leona’s soft ears.

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” Leona sighed, gently pulling Morel’s hand away from his ear before giving his hand to his daughter, who happily took it and began to gnaw on his pointer finger. “She can have my hand to use as a teething toy instead.”

“Stingy,” Morel hummed playfully, no actual bite to her words other than soft sarcasm, as she kissed Leona’s cheek and leaned her head against his.

It was cold outside. But, within their tiny nest of blankets on the bed, it was rather warm. And no one planned to leave for quite a while, especially after Leona and Gardenia fell asleep again while Morel simply smiled and gently pet both of her sleepy kitties.

A/N: HELL, YEAH, GOT IT DONE BEFORE CHRISTMAS EVE! I hope all of you enjoyed this little fic of Leona and Morel’s first holiday season as parents with Gardenia and have a wonderful rest of your holiday season! Especially since I’ve got one more piece planned that may or may not come out tomorrow!

[stupidlittlespirit]

Hello!

Sorry if this has already been asked before, but do you have any tips for writing Ford?

Thank you and I'm sending you a virtual hug <3 🫂

Hey!

Thank you so much <3

I'll put some of the stuff I find helps me below here. I find it really hard to describe sometimes so if it doesn't make sense or if you want clarification then let me know :)

Be familiar with the source material. This might sound silly but I've seen fics where the a/n is like 'yeah I haven't read Journal 3 or finished the show but I wanted to write-' .....Please. Just. Finish the show and the Journal. The Journal gives you TONS of useful insight into Ford's actual personality and I think you see a lot more of his mannerisms in it. Rewatch his episodes. Use what you've got of canon stuff.

Watch other stuff with JK Simmons in. It'll be helpful for you to pick up how he sounds and then make it easier replay his tone in your head and make your dialogue more accurate. I don't actually know how helpful this tip is bc I brought this up to my partner (RE: Hearing the character's exact voice in your head as you write) and they said this isn't really something people do, so I'm not sure if I'm alone in that technique or not....? (also sorry Mr Simmons but a lot of your movies are d o g s h i t! So, suffer through them as much as you can for the sake of research. Whiplash isn't in the bad pile though btw, it's one of the greatest movies ever made. Just watch that 14 times in a row until you can quote the entire thing by heart. Or use Portal/Cave Johnson audio. Much more fun.)

Know the Ford you're writing. Is he younger, likely at college? Is he research-era? Is he post-portal? Ford presents (at least to me) as multiple different versions of himself over the course of his journey. He has fundamental traits but the degree to which he displays/shows/acknowledges/applies them varies dramatically depending on where he is in life and who he's around.

Balance him. He's strict and sharp and sometimes rude, but not so much that he's devoid of all other emotion. He's funny and he likes to get silly sometimes. We're literally told that exact thing (quite a lot actually) in the canon material. This is especially relevant if you're writing post portal Ford or pre-Bill/pre-obsession-with-work Ford. Again, he isn't all the time but he definitely is more than people give him credit for. If you're writing Ford during his Bill obsession stage then he's going to be erratic and harmful, more than anything to himself. He's going to be acting poorly because he isn't in his right mind, so extend some sympathy to the guy. You don't have to make it okay that he might be lashing out and hurting others, obviously, but there's a reason behind why he's acting like that. He isn't just 'a bad guy'.

However, he is also an asshole sometimes. Everyone can be. He's very diverse. This diva HAS the range! (He experiences the world in a very different way to most other people, I think, so his behaviour can be perceived as difficult to 'normal' people).

Ford is never one emotion at a time. No character is. If he's angry, there's going to be a reason behind that anger and then several emotions behind that reason. Is he telling someone off because he's intrinsically and irrevocably an asshole? No! He might have been afraid of them getting hurt and snapped at them, and the fear shows as anger. Maybe he's frustrated with them and doesn't know how to appropriately address that frustration. There's always a reason.

If he is just being a bit of jerk, because that's plausible, it's not going to be the case that every time he does something that can be perceived as being jerky, that he is being so.

He is very full of love. For his family, for his work, for his friends, for his object of affection (these tips apply to him in general, if you're writing ship stuff or reader stuff or gen). He is full to the brim with it, he just struggles to identify it, to know how to show it and how to express it.

I think that for Ford, acknowledging his feelings is a bit like touching a hot stove: He recoils from them immediately because feelings are painful and intense, and they're hard to handle. They hurt and he's going to be loathe to keep touching the thing that reliably burns him every time he goes near it. Ford isn't very good at being bad at things and he IS bad at emotions. Really bad. They're not finite or logical or able to be proven like science is. They're artistic and available for interpretation, and they're often nonsensical. That's hard to get your head around for someone who likes to view everything from a black and white perspective.

If you think he has a disorder (autism, BPD, NPD, HPD, whatever) and you yourself don't have that thing, then RESEARCH THE FUCKING THING! Ask people who do have it for advice. Treat it with respect. People that have 'negative traits' from these types of disorders (and believe me, people do think you're awful if you have a personality disorder or autism) are not inherently bad people and them enacting their symptoms doesn't make them evil, provided they know how to acknowledge their wrongdoing post behaviour and try to do better in the future. If I split on someone and act out by starting a fight, it is my responsibility to return to that person and apologise for inappropriately starting a fight once I've cooled down. It can be hard, it can be done through gritted teeth, it will be uncomfortable, but it must still be done because I'm an adult. Obviously, when it comes to things like this, we're always working on a sliding scale because people with complex mental health issues don't always know they've made a mistake so they may not feel like they need to apologise/may not even know that they've done something wrong if they're in a really bad episode. That's difficult to get right however, and I would not recommend writing intensely detailed stuff like that unless you're very used to/accustomed to the disorder.

HE KNOWS HOW TO SAY SORRY and he knows when he's fucked up. This is a skill he's learnt better over time. I think it would be most relevant to use if you're writing him post-portal, though. I don't think this was a skill he had when he was younger/pre-portal and if he did apologise, it was something that had to be really dragged out of him.

Show that he's tender and capable of empathy. I think it was only really during his obsessional years that he locked off that part of his brain, and even then it was more out of pure delusion and trauma/self-protection than it was an inherent drive to be evil. He's never been evil, just misguided, betrayed and a bit of an ass at times.

He does more through action than through talk. In comparison to Stan, who is all mouth and uses verbal communication frequently, Ford is more physically inclined. He tries to be very esoteric but he gives away a lot in his behaviour instead of talking. I don't actually think he knows he does this and that's why he thinks he's super mysterious.

If you're stuck on a scene, play it out as him. Not yourself. It's not so much how am I going to do this, but how is Ford going to do this? What do you think Ford would do in that moment, according to what you've seen him do in the show?

Don't be afraid to make your own Ford, to a certain extent. I'm not writing about a strictly canon!Ford. He's informed by canon for the most part, but he's also my little barbie to dress up and be silly with. I don't necessarily have to solely make him do what I think his canon counterpart would do. I think canon!Ford is aroace/just not interested in romantic or sexual relationships. I don't think he has interest in much of the stuff that my fanon!Ford does, but this is fantasy land and Ford isn't real so we can do whatever we want. He'll feel more real if you give him his canon traits and then add some of your own spices to the recipe on top.

Be nice to him. This isn't advice, I'm just begging you LMAO. When you're writing him talk about his science stuff or whatever, have your other character (reader, I presume?) be engaged and happy to listen to him. I wouldn't be interested in someone who annoyed me with their passions, so don't write it as though he pisses you off because the audience can tell if you don't actually like him that much. They will pick up on how you really feel about a character as the author unless you're an excellent liar and it's really hard to actually lie like that and retain a sense of genuine love in your story. Just treat him with love and care. Treat any character with it.

Okay anyway WHEW that's a lot! Sorry. These are just things that I do and they're not my view of how to write Ford 'correctly' or anything, they're just what I find helps me characterise him for my fics. I'm sure plenty of people would disagree with my interpretation and that's fine, we're all receptive to art in different ways so there's not really a 'right' way to be for the most part. Just listen to what he tells you/shows you about himself and the way in which other characters speak about him truthfully.

[hanafubukki]

MALLEUUUSS 😭😭😭

I’ll give you a hug 🫂🫂🫂

Malleus is waiting on lilia (someone give him a hug pls 🥺)

Someone explain to me how malleus doens't know he's lonely ... but know what it is :(

Just a quick someting befpre the big reveal

FINALLY BACK HOME PHONE LESS BROKEN 🙏🏻 still some issues with work tho imma get it done tho!!!!!!!...

[weebsinstash]

I'm not typically a fan of pregnancy au stuff for hazbin because it introduces a hell lotta new questions, but anyways, I DO find it absolutely entertaining thinking about a Reader who did the nasty with Alastor and had kind of a friends-with-benefits situation with him and he does his whole 7 year disappearing act without warning you or telling you anything at all (assumedly because he did not have a choice or opportunity) and he comes back, knocking on your front door, "say, doll! What's say we mosey on over to our old favorite jazz club to catch up on old times?"

and suddenly peeking out from behind your back is just the cutest little fawn with a head full of curls who is very clearly Alastor's son, clutching at your apron, "Mama, isn't he the man you listen to those old recordings of? He sounds the same"

Alastor feeling this, this WARMTH in his chest as you invite him inside your home and it's completely different from the last time he was there, filled with everything your son could need, his drawings and report cards from that nice school you break your back to afford stuck lovingly on the fridge and a hot home-cooked meal currently cooling on the stove as Alastor's invited for some food... if he feels comfortable. You and him discuss privately where your son can't hear as you get all weepy, "I'm sorry, but when you disappeared, I couldn't... ASK you what you would have wanted... I didn't want to have some kind of, of PROCEDURE and you hate me for it... and even from the very first scan, I loved him so much... he's my entire world... I couldn't even CONSIDER... getting rid of him. He's my beautiful smart baby boy and i would die for him"

Genuinely I think it would be real funny if Alastor is initially quite jealous actually for having to share you with a CHILD, but the more time he spends around the young boy, the more he realizes, oh, this is quite the upstanding young fellow! His mama raised him right and he likes to help around the house, likes to read lots of books, loves all kinds of music, helps his mother on all the crosswords and word searches and puzzle books, and he's smart enough to suss out pretty quickly, "sir are you my father"

and the second your son receives an answer, just, KICKING THE RADIO DEMON IN THE SHIN, "You're a horrible man!! You call yourself a gentleman but you left my mama to raise a baby all by herself!! You're terrible! Incorrigible! Disrespectful! Untoward!--" Your young son is breaking out the goddamn dictionary and synonyms on this man, "you lying, deceitful, devious, DEPLORABLE--"

And Alastor is watching this little kid threaten to beat his ass and not even caring that he's up against The Infamous Radio Demon, just shouting at Alastor until the young boy is absolutely changing colors in the face, getting SO SO upset for his mama that he's ready to FIGHT OVER IT, and Alastor is just, essentially, breaking out into laughter, "oh, so you ARE my son!! Aren't you a gutsy one!! Put JUST a little force behind that next one and it might actually sting a bit!" and pats the boy on the head. That settles it; he's accepted as Alastor's son like THAT

Of course, Alastor now caring for this boy does not come without its... complications. There might be some 'incidents' if you, for example, have other positive role models for your son, other men who are regularly coming around, making Alastor's new position as the boy's father and your not-quite-husband (yet) feel threatened and unstable and encouraging the Radio Demon to 'act out'. You're so happy to have Alastor back in your life that you don't even notice things are a little off until your son starts mentioning things like "Mama where did Mr Thomas go? He used to come by every Thursday to play chess but I don't remember seeing him for a while?" "Mama I know Benson has bullied me and pushed me down and stolen my things but I saw his mom crying outside the bookstore earlier saying he's gone missing and I think we should help look for him" "Mama I know Mr Alastor said we don't need her and he can teach me but I also like my old piano teacher. Could I have some lessons with her and some with Mr Alastor instead of just all of them with him? I miss Ms. Mason"

But like... you don't want to deny Alastor a relationship with his child after they both have already lost so much time and you don't want to deprive your son of his father without a good reason, so you stifle some of your suspicions. It's all for your son's sake, isn't it? And you can't help but, get a little selfish when Alastor insists on taking you and your boy out, going to see live bands, going to local events, taking your son to the county fair and you feeling tears in your eyes as, your boy finally gets to spend time with his father. It's like... it's like you're a real family... you've always wanted something like this, for him, for them, for yourself--

But... Alastor doesn't... see you THAT way, does he? He displays his emotions much differently than you, and there were even times in the past where Alastor himself drew the line in the sand that, oh yes you two were quite close friends, he has such a deep affection for you, but... romantically? Sorry, sweetheart, but no

... or so he thought. Now that he's back, he sees how deeply you love his son and sacrifice so much for him amd how much your son absolutely adores you and how, completely by yourself, without any of Alastor's help, you raised him into a fine young man that... the Radio Demon could see himself helping raise, a boy he can't help but feel a little pride in helping make and, can't help but feel a little sad he missed all sorts of important milestones for. And of course, of course of course of course, he missed YOU ever so much, and when Alastor looks up from his paper to see you at the stove, hair all out of place and your hands messy as you cook a meal for your son and his father, your little boy dutifully helping clean as you go, he can't help wish that THIS was how he spent his last 7 years.

Lucifer have mercy on anyone who tries to disrupt his new utopia of peace and tranquility. Could you even imagine, could you even fucking imagine you and Alastor are walking with your son and nearby TVs snap on and it's fucking Vox, showing your family on TV, talking shit to Alastor, using HORRIBLE language in front of your son--

And Alastor feels his love for you grow all the more as you use your own magic to surge through the television and begin strangling the newscaster right on the air, "DONT YOU DARE SHOW MY SON'S FACE ON TV YOU FUCKING--" and Alastor starts lovingly conversing with his son about how important it is to stand up for your family and your values as the pair of them watch you throw Vox around his recording studio in a frenzied rage, "You and your disgusting Vees always trying to peddle your worthless garbage to kids, you CREEPS!! BABIES DON'T NEED IPADS, RETINOL CREAMS, SKEEYEE DANCE ROUTINES, AND ATHLEISUREWEAR LEGGINGS THAT GO UP THEIR ASS, YOU CONSUMERIST IMMORAL SHELL OF A HUMAN BEING--"

Snapcut to you rejoining your family on the sidewalk with your hair a mess and visible blood on you while Vox is facedown on the floor in his broadcast unable to move before it cuts to a "technical difficulties, please stand by" screen. Alastor is oh so genuinely joyfully smiling, "Now who wants to go and get some waffles? I say we should celebrate any victory over our enemies with some tasty grub!!" and he takes you and your son's hands and is all but skipping down the sidewalk while his hated rival is bleeding out in his tower somewhere. Oh, Alastor will give the Television Demon his own revenge for daring to try and shame the lovely beautiful mother of his child and his beloved boy on that disgusting show. What kind of degenerate uses children for content, let alone threatens their safety? Alastor will be back for him later and do much, MUCH worse than you did.

For now, though? Alastor just wants to enjoy the sight of you and his son sitting in a booth with him while you all scarf down some hotcakes. A family of his very own, huh? How wonderful. If only his own mom were here to see it...

[gingermintpepper]

In light of my recent Asclepius and Apollo musings, I feel like it's the perfect time to post this, actually.

How do you build a human being? 

Bold question. Foolish question. But a question it is all the same. 

The memory of his father’s consternated expression is still bright behind his eyes, that unusually furrowed brow, the tension in his gentle jaw. He didn’t falter in his setting of Asclepius’ broken shin, hands perpetually steady and sure, but he hesitated for a conspicuously long moment as though reluctant to give an answer. In this body, he resembled Orpheus something fierce. The same flaxen curls of his hair, the same delicate eyelashes that stand stark against the dark brown of his skin. Often Asclepius wondered if his elder brother was nothing but a body built to suit their father’s preferences. The subtle wrinkle of skin around their eyes when they smiled was the same, and the steadiness of their hands, the soothing power of their presence. 

And Orpheus did not bleed like Asclepius did. The blood in Asclepius’ veins were as red as any human’s, any mortal’s, but Orpheus seemed not to bleed at all. Even when he’d suffered the same fall down the crumbling cliff as Asclepius had. Even when his skirts had ripped and jagged stone sliced into his shanks. 

Even so, Orpheus was unmistakably alive. His eyes were rich with grief fresher than any blood spilt from the worst of Asclepius’ wounds, his counsel too, was tempered with the wisdom of a life well lived. So even at the apex of his most perfect, inhuman beauty, Asclepius never once doubted that his brother was a human being. Just that he was more divine construct than flesh and blood. Just that their father had built for himself a son that would not break as easily as all the others. 

His father stayed silent for so long that Asclepius assumed it would be one of the million questions that would go unanswered. Then, just when the last of his bandages had been wrapped - 

“A human body is easy to build,” he’d had that faraway look on his face as he spoke, like he was speaking to the horizon. Or a version of Asclepius that was not quite here. Such things happened from time to time. “Any flesh would do. From men, or animals, or even monsters. Any flesh would do.” Their gazes had locked then, and Asclepius would never forget the flecks of gold which swirled in his father’s blue eyes, the weight of divine words rattling at the boundaries of their mortal apparatus, “But the breath of life, a living soul? That is beyond your means as a mortal man. You ought never seek it.” 

(Asclepius would remember these words when he revives a man for the first time at the age of nineteen. He’s surprised to find that his father is wrong for once. Souls are easy to source when they’re already eager to return to their mound of flesh.) 

[ghost-bxrd]

Prompt:

Jason, newly established crime lord known as the Red Hood, attends a meeting where the Batman gets dragged into the room halfway through, hopped up on the newest strain of cuddle pollen and about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.

[farshootergotme]

Question, do we count this as one of Dick Grayson's deaths?

Batman: The Brave and the Bold v2 #16

Because technically he didn't die, right? But he was in this place "The End of the Road" that was basically hell, and he was transformed into this "unfallen" creature, which doesn't look very alive to me. (In fact, it looks basically the same as Deadman, who is a dead man.)

Of course, he's soon saved by Deadman and the deity Rama Kushna before he actually dies. But I personally think that as long as he was in that skeletonic form, he wasn't alive.

[beastking-golion]

Saw a fic about vastaya Viktor and if you ask me he’s definitely a bird (or salamander if you wanna super angstify him- cough cough Rio cough).