#at this point sis is a elephant

[astoldbychae]

Yup, still pregnant. 🙃 🤦🏽‍♀️

[lovelyghst]

Your last ask about hungry simon and eating your leftovers just warmed my heart!

Like he would have a field day with me cause I can't eat much in one sitting but get hungry easily and sadly get sick fast if I can't eat.

Just Imagine him always having safe snacks on hand and loving strolling around and getting snacks from vendors and such and he just gets more than half of everything cause you get full so fast

Or

Hear me out

You're always cooking for a football team portion wise and and and him praising the food and just really loving it (not me with a praise kink) and you're just glad it doesnt go to waste and he gets to feel full and satisfied

~🍯

[one, two, three.]

honestly!! simon has to carry snacks around with him twenty-four/seven. like, bag of pretzels being dwarfed by his giant palm while he’s walking around the house, emptying a large bag of beef/steak jerky every day and a whole carton of eggs every two days.

being eyed by the employees of a store while you try on clothes because food and drinks aren’t allowed in store yet none of the staff want to be the one to confront the six-foot-four, intimidating, hulking man with an apple in his hand as he watches you do a twirl for him.

and you’re so real for the last part! si has manners, undoubtedly, and he won’t hesitate to let you know how much he appreciates you and your hard work; he’d be such a fool not to.

just walking into his home office while he’s working at his desk, bowl of cut up strawberries and kiwis in hand for him to munch on as you find your place in his lap, possibly for a quick nap. bonus points if you cut the fruits up into little shapes or cover them in melted chocolate.

he gives the best hugs; it’s a given, considering his mass, and he could never say no to the sensation of your arms wrapped around his neck, pretty face buried in his collar, and the calming rhythm of your breathing against his chest reminding him that he could use a break, too.

he loves the effort you put in for him when he doesn’t even ask, and he always makes sure to pay you back for it. sometimes it tugs so severely at his heartstrings that, despite never wanting children or anything of the sort, he suddenly wants to make you a parent. only with him, and so fucking bad that it makes him sick.

but anyways my american brain is taking over and imagine going to a state fair or carnival with him, or just any theme park in general. you know he’s already getting in line for a vendor while he still has the prior’s food in his hand. the idea of him carrying around one of those ginormous turkey legs is so silly to me.

you’re going home with the half-dozen giant stuffed animals he won for you at the shooting games while he’s balancing two funnel cakes and an elephant ear in one hand, and your bag, filled with various sweets and memorabilia, in the other as you hike back to the car.

also, in my mind retired simon would still work as a consultant on a nearby military base a few days of the month or whenever he’s needed, and now i’m thinking about packing him nice lunches for those days, and how absolutely adorable he finds it. he’s glad he still has his own desk because the little love notes you leave in his box quite literally have his heart racing and knees buckling.

guys the demons are winning and now i can’t stop thinking about how good of a (girl!) dad he would be. i’m in shambles.

[peachesofteal]

ouch. that dead disco fic where si and johnny break up with darling before she can tell them she's pregnant 🥲🥲🥲 I think I need some happy Darling content after that

Happy Darling content for you babe. 🩵

Wrote this in ten minutes so mind the mistakes. Disco baby au - Darling is pregnant accidentally and the guys never left.

"I think that one looks like a bird." You point, above Johnny's head, to the cloud that's crossing northward, it's shape thin at the bottom, two long slivers that look like legs, beneath the rounded formation that looks like a body, attached to a fuzzy triangle. "Like a heron, or something. A fishing bird."

"A fishin' bird?" Johnny muses, and you nod, bottom lip tucked beneath your teeth. He's not even looking at the clouds anymore, head completely turned towards yours, blue eyes sparkling in the sun. It's been a few weeks, since their last op, and his mohawk has grown long, how you like it, untamed, a little wild, just like him.

"What about that one?" you point, to a very large, very fluffy cloud that's ambling along.

"Elephant?" He shrugs, and you snort.

"Original." You prop yourself up on your elbows for a second, watching where Simon runs along the path that's near the road. Other people intentionally walk out of his way, like they're scared, or intimidated, or both. Probably both. "He almost done, you think?"

"Got another mile, I figure." Johnny spreads a hand across your belly, fingers rubbing soft circles into your skin, before stretching over to your hip pulling you across the blanket and into his side, where he's now rolled onto.

"Don't want to watch the clouds anymore?" He shakes his head no, and just as he's about to answer you, you wince. He tenses, hand coming to cradle your bump, and you give him a smile to reassure him. "Just a kick." You whisper, and he nods, before lowering his face to where his palm bunches your sundress together, lips pressing softly against the fabric when he whispers;

"Take it easy there, little solider. Be good for your mum."

[bigassmoonchild]

ima need that fucker to survive or i might go feral myself XD

as a request how does the reader react to the boys getting bullied by eachother { we all know that soap and ghost brutally roast eachother}

or

reader being ghosts S/O and bulling soap {lovingly} because ghost is ill for the day and soap gets no peace from a light roasting if si cant bully his gremlin of a girl will

(quick a/n, i almost did have simon die oopsies 🫣)

(p.s; they might mildly be ooc but i like how it turned out. please keep requests coming!!)

when you’d first joined the 141, you had been expecting professionalism. not all the little jabs everyone made to each other. ‘johnny, you’re stomping around like an elephant on stilts, figure it out’ had been the first words you’d heard for hours into the stealth mission.

you’d been taking a sip of water, what good timing, when ghost had made that quip. you’d choked on the water and had to have a silent coughing fit, completely appalled at how the lieutenant spoke.

‘i can hear you huffing from down here, ghost, so don’t start talking’ soap had quipped back. you stared, wide eyed at gaz over all the commotion. he shrugged, peeking around a corner and ducking through.

you heard a huff into the mic, probably from ghost still climbing to his vantage point. ‘i’m surprised no one’s heard us coming, with you yapping like puppies,’ price spoke over the coms. it was quiet then, for a few moments.

‘what’s red, rectangular and flying at your face?’ gaz whispered into the coms. you heard price groan. ‘a brick,’

‘that’s my job, sergeant. leave the shitty jokes to me,’ ghost snapped back. gaz looked at you and have a mocking laugh.

‘that’s my job, sergeant,’ gaz mocked through the coms in a squeaky voice. you stared at gaz, wondering where the audacity came from.

ghost huffed. ‘i don’t sound like that, you prick,’ he said. gaz spun and shot down two people advancing on you, where you’d been trying to collect the data from the computers.

something about plans to destroy major landmarks with nuclear weapons or something, you hadn’t been paying attention. and you could almost blame it on soap trying to play footsie with you.

‘ghost is always whining about something, he just uses that deep voice to hide his true self,’ gaz whispered to you. shaking your head, you pulled the drive out of the computer and stashed it in your vest.

leaving the room, you saw a man get shot across the hall. ‘good shot, ghost,’ gaz said and moved along. running through the halls, you listened to little comments and quips through your earpiece.

‘why do cows wear bells?’ ghost asked through the coms. ‘because their horns don’t work,’ you huffed a laugh.

looking and gaz, you have him an eye roll. ‘hadn’t realized i joined a team full of comedians,’ you said through the coms.

‘don’t worry, there’s more where that came from,’ ghost responded and you groaned.

‘this is the big bad ghost? telling shit dad jokes and bullying his teammates,’

‘it’s not bullying if they do it back,’ you choked back a laugh and ducked around the corner, sweeping for more enemies.

as you came outside, you glanced around for more enemies before following behind gaz. ‘if people think ghost is scary then they haven’t met me,’ soap quipped through the coms.

‘that’s like being scared of a goldfish,’ price finally spoke back up. you heaved an almost disappointed sigh.

when you’d gotten to an exfil point with gaz, you looked at soap, ghost and price. from here, you thought they’d be talking professionally, about how the mission had gone. as you drew closer, you realized it wasn’t.

‘hey,’ soap called your name. ‘settle this for us,’ you sighed heavily, staring blankly at him. ‘are there more doors or more wheels in the world?’ jesus fucking christ, you were on a team with children.

you looked around at the three. ‘how are you allowed to carry guns?’

[eri-pl]

Forgive me for asking, but when you say you like Morgoth do you mean you find him an entertaining character or that you think he had a point?

Oh. This will be long. Thank you for asking! (And I guess the parts that you feel needs forgiving is assuming that I may agree with him? I don't think you had enough data. Anyway if there's a need, I forgive you. I hope it's not "forgive me for sending asks", I like getting asks, especially actual asks! (As opposed to reblog chains and other random fun stuff which I sometimes like sometimes not))

No, Morgoth did not have a valid point in his rebellion. More details under the cut (it's long).

But he had a point, in the sense that he existed for a reason. (He much failed this point.) I think it shows through at times. Even if he wasn't evil, I think he was meant to be a trickster, challenger and the starting point of changes.

Like, I can see a situation where stealing the Silmarils would not be wrong (and not involve murder. It is far from canon, but if Feanor got obsessed with them without Melkor's "help", stealing the gems and leaving them in some funny place could be helpful. The classic fairy tale trickster.

So, in this sense he had a point.

But his actual goals as started in the book? Nope. 100% nope.

Like, yesterday I had my own teenage child look at me strangely when I said that I relate to Hurin's reaction. Not with the name-calling, but the "nope you are not as powerful as you say, this is not true and I don't care what you do to me about it" part. It is the valid reaction, in my opinion. L

But there's more in my liking for Morgoth than "I find him entertaining" (however this is true too at some points, mostly BoLT).

It's mostly "he's spawning a lot of headcanons in my head and I relate to them". It's a difference between "Morgoth as Tolkien seems to have intended him" and "Morgoth as I read him", which is a small difference in a way, but also a big one.

Ok let's address the elephant. I have no problem internalizing "Eru is God". But at the same time I have a lot of a problem internalizing "and Melkor is the devil".

This is a strange combo but that's what my brain does and I can't much avoid it.

His reasons are too relatable. Wrong but relatable. Very human. "I was not paying attention, busy with fantasies of power to soothe my insecurities and now when I have to do a creative activity with people, I can't sync with them" is a very relatable situation to me (I played a lot of ttrpg) and trying to fix it by being a jerk is something I have done. It's wrong but... I can't condemn a character for things I have done too.

(I realized I started explaining me reading of Melkor|Morgoth through his whole career, so here it goes)

And then he gets angry, which is stupid but still relatable. And makes orcs from elves which is awful but also canon cannot decide what exactly happened also it's too easy to assume he didn't realize they were actual persons...

And he corrupts humans? The tale of Adanel? What was her name? That one in Morgoth's ring, close to Athrabeth... It's one of 2 places where he actually reads (for me) as satanic as intended... Until the part where am obvious void-spider-related trauma shows. Which makes no sense in the timeline, but the whole story has huge timeline problems.

Then he gets captured. And again, my angst-living narrative brain assumes that he did try to behave better, just didn't put much effort in it. And then he met Feanor, and I have a while essay on how this triggered Melkor's narcissistic injury or whatever to call the issues he had. Not for Feanor's fault, just... Wrong time, wrong place, wrong family drama.

Yes, his reaction to that was unarguably evil. But also I can't stop myself from imagining extremely strong emotional pain behind it. It's like... I can't force myself to be so angry at him to enjoy the idea of "Morgoth's gonna get destroyed, yay!". There's too much pain on this (which is not in the book just in my head, I know)

He streaks the Silmarils, and keeps them when though they burn, because to do otherwise would be a period that he was wrong. And all his further decisions (again, unarguably evil) are made under extreme pain and distress of holy gems judging him all the time. (Look how they impacted Maedhros and Maglor. How much despair they got. And Morgoth is so much more).

He's evil, but also I can't with confidence say that I would never do similar things, especially in the circumstances. Evil but who am I to judge.

Like, at the end of of, it comes back to "I can't see the Valar ( including Melkor) as 100% good or bad, they're too human to be proper angels". Even Manwe (semi-)canonically makes a moral mistake. Some texts (not in published Silm) day that the Valar showed lack of estel by (making Valinor? Inviting elves? Sorry, I forgot the details) and that is a moral falling.

Don't get me wrong, it is a very small one, and I'm not trying to equate Manwe with Morgoth or anything, just to say that the Valar are less absolute than I would expect angels to be. (Not an expert on angels though)

(I love Manwe, he's wonderful, overworked, burned out but still trying, he's a sweet, good, idealistic birb. Who is not an angel. I love them all, even Orome who is canonically vengeful and I consider this a problem, and Yavanna who is really irritating at times. And let's not forget poor, bullied Aule who is a walking proof of the "not 100%".)

And with all that I've said before, I can't help but to project many of my issues and character failings at Morgoth. Yes, he's evil. I've also been evil. Technically less so, but I like to go things to 11 when projecting.

And another huge topic is how wonderful he would be if he wasn't evil, because he's got some of my favorite aesthetics and themes (void, paradoxes, out of the box thinking, trickster archetype, jak of all trades... Even the fire and ice thing has its beauty).

Sometimes I really want to punch him in the face for wasting all that. Just, not lethally.

And the beauty of what he could be is probably what pushes him in my head from the "I'm sorry for them being evil" category of evil and evil-leaning characters (which includes Sauron, fir example ) or the "eeewgh but I'm sorry for them anyway" (Ar-Pharazon , Gollum, all the exceptionally uncool bad guys) to "I'm sorry for them but also I like them no matter how little sense it makes". Ymmv, I have a strange aesthetics sometimes.

Also, he got defeated in the book and that gives him compassion points in my brain. I do feel sorry for him. No matter what I try to do with my brain, I can't stop. I just can't. One day I'll figure out how to untangle it but now I don't know.

Last but not least, I love some comedic takes. For me, comedy didn't ask what's right or wrong, just explores ideas... It's like a brain cleaner, a bit like dreams. It's allowed more than more serious genres. I do enjoy comedic Morgoth (Hurinovy Deti does it really well, also some fics and comics with that one ship... It's just funny. And it's not like they portray him as being right, just... Don't focus on him being evil, just in the comedy?)

To clear something that I left hanging: the second scene where Morgoth is as-probably-intended is "the words of Morgoth and Hurin" or what's it called. Sorry, I'm on vacations, so I'm doing less fact-checking. It works for me. If Tolkien gave Morgoth more dialogue, my mental image of him would probably be more as intended.

Also, to not leave it unsaid: he canonically tries rape, I think twice. I am aware of this. This is very awful. And evil. Still, doesn't make me see him as irredeemable. I just don't see people as irredeemable and I can't read the books as (probably?) intended and not see Morgoth and all the Valar in the category of "people".

It's probably more complicated by the fact that Tolkien's intent did change in time, but I'm not an expert and I don't know how it changed about the Valar, especially Morgoth. So it's not like there is one canon that is 100% coherent, and I'm not even sure which parts of my reading I should call a headcanon and which not.

Tldr: I don't like Satan (that was an understatement), I like Morgoth probably because I have issues which I like projecting on fictional characters and he works well for that, also I make some (hopefully) interesting headcanons and that's it. Hope this answered your question.

[wh0reformatt]

Rating your animals!

platonic!reader x sturniolo triplets

tw: one or two cuss words? MY APPALLING WRITING ITS SI BAD GUYS SORRY 💀 i hate it but i was bored.

“welcome back to…whatever part of rating your animals!” nick said, pointing through the middle at the camera.

you sat in the back next to nick, behind chris. this wasn’t your first time filming with the triplets, having being friends with them for a while, but you still hadn’t done a lot with them on camera.

“however, this time we are back with y/n!” chris said elatedly, turning around and smiling at you.

“wassup youtube!” you said, smiling at the camera.

“ okay, like nick said we are going back to eating your animals due to the fact we all enjoyed it so much,” nick said, taking his phone out.

“we asked you guys on our main account to send some pictures of your animals, so we have loads of pets to look through-”matt began before chris clapped his hands, interrupting him.

“i need them to be more entertaining, like an- an elephant or something,” he said, nick matt and yourself looking at each other in disbelief.

“chris,” you began “ why the fuck would someone have an elephant as a pet?” turning to him, moving to the middle.

“someone had a cow last time-” he started before nick stopped him.

“because they lived on a farm dumbass, and a cow and elephant? two completely different things.” he said to him, laughing slightly at the end.

“yea but why couldn’t someone…”

“okay! let’s actually begin!” you interrupt both of them.

—————————————————————

“this is tessa,” matt said, showing you all a picture of a small chihuahua.

“why does it look feral? like get that away from me dude..” you said, chris laughing at the bluntness of your answer.

“exactly! it looks like it’s got rabies or something,” he agrees, looking at matts phone.

“okay, i’ve never seen why people like those dogs though, not to be rude!..” nick added, when everyone turned to him, eyebrows raised, slight laughs erupting.

“-because they all look like gremlins, for a start. and they always look like their uncomfortable, like i’ve never- never ever, seen a chihuahua not barking.” he finished, looking at you all.

“no i agree,” you said turning to him. “they’re either in a rich woman purse or” -

“oh my god i have to say-”

“CHRIS STOP!”

—————————————————————

and that’s how the video went, you each ranked the animals, your favourite being a doberman called david, and your least being tessa the chihuahua.

nick and chris had ended up arguing about wether a cow and a bull came from the same descendant, which took up a good chunk of the video- but you and matt ended up going through a few inbetween their arguments.

overall it was fun, you’d definitely try it again, not wanting to be as camera shy.

comments:

user1: dude i love y/n in these vids.

user2: that rat was ugly asf-

user3: WHEN NICK AND CHRIS WERE ARGUING AND MATT AND y/n JUST RATED SOME ON THEIR OWN-

user4: they should do blind, deaf, mute with y/n or just do a blind baking

user5: blind baking with y/n would be dead ass so funny 💀

[yeosboba]

12.51am

I'm transferring this fanfic from my main blog, @yeosluvr.

_____________________________________________________________

Featuring: Yeosang

Genre: Angst, big brother Yeosang, mentions of San, Wooyoung and Felix (SKZ)

A/N; This is an idea I’ve been thinking of for a long time, and is actually part of a series that I’m currently (slowly) working on, so for now, just enjoy the random word spill huhu. Do leave some feedback and reblog&

Disclaimer; this is just a fanfiction and doesn’t portray how kang yeosang or any ateez and stray kids behave irl.

...

She quietly rests her head on his shoulder, him leaning his cheek against her hair. The Kang siblings stare at the raging storm ahead of them, fingers intertwined with each other’s. She misses this feeling of being calm and at peace and she knows that only Yeosang is able to provide. 

Even now, when they’re both introverts and have the mutual habit of keeping things quiet with each other; it’s only because they know what the other feels without having to tell. 

“I miss you, Yeo,” she says first, bringing his knuckle to her lips and gently kissing it. He copies her actions and smiles when she looks at him. It’s pained, sort of sad but also blank. She kind of realises that this must’ve been the face that he’s seen her with all along.

“You’re always gonna be stuck with me, sis,” he sighs, eyes trained on the storm. His black tank top is now a bit wet from the bits of rain he evaded earlier, but he doesn’t shiver even for a second as he gently tightens his grip on her fingers. “We only have each other now.”

“A lot happened,” she replies.

“I noticed.” Yeosang chuckles sadly. “In just a span of what, six years–”

“Five, Yeo.”

“Even worse.” He points it out. “What happened to you, baby?”

“Too much, apparently.” He knows. He knows it. He doesn’t even have to ask.

“How’s Felix, sweetheart?”

Yes. How is Felix? “I’m sure he’s fine,” she smiles at him.

“Did you guys fight?”

Fuck Yeosang and his observation.

“He’ll be fine.”

“I know that.” He nods.

She repeats the way he nods, and eyes him suspiciously afterwards. “I took those pills on time, Yeo.”

“That you did,” he smiles. “It means you’re not fine, y/n.”

“Yeosang.”

“Y/n.”

She groans.

“I really can’t watch you be in pain anymore.” The way his voice softens at this pains her more than she could bear. She loves Yeosang. He’s the only family, the only brother she could trust. He understands her in ways people don’t, even Felix. Evidently why Yeosang’s the one with her right now, not Felix.

“How much do you know, Yeo?”

“Enough.” He shrugs.

She sighs. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“It’s fine, honestly.” Yeosang smiles at her. “I just wanna make sure you’re okay. I only have you besides Wooyoung and San, you know?”

“Yeah I know.”

The elephant in the room is too huge for him to leave it alone apparently.

“I’m also frightened that you’ll do it again.”

She looks at Yeosang, who looks as unfazed and nonchalant as ever, but the grim look he has in his eyes, despite not even looking at her, is what makes her heart clench in its place again. She didn’t mean to do it, it’s just too much to bear. The pain, the voices, the heartbreak.

“Hey, sis.”

She looks at him.

“You still have me." 

She hums.

"If you don’t trust me, you can always go to Woo, or San. I don’t care. Just–”

“…just don’t leave you?”

“Exactly.” He smiles again. It’s almost creepy how he smiles so easily. “Please try to live. However you want. Just don’t keep it to yourself if you feel like you can explode.”

She hums, smiling. “Thanks, Yeo.”

“Hey, what are siblings for, hmm?”

[badnew2005]

dennis takes a mental health day his relationship towards the gang from his very own perspective it’s not skewed to be presented infront or people it’s just real and raw we can talk ab the macden/charden of it all ALL DAY but. let’s look at his sister. who has spent her whole life looking after him (or at least trying her very best to). dee being the one who suggested (? i cant remember off the top of my head if this was just my own hc or not lol) bringing mental health days into the bar. always always being so supportive of dennis taking a day off for himself, explaining to the rest of the gang what it was and how he’s entitled to it, no big deal. offering to drive him to the beach. wanting to hang out w him (which is SO ‘siblings’ of her so TWINS of her - trying to look after him not realising she may have been stepping on his toes). the other big characterisation of dennis reynolds episode we’ve had, tends bar, splitting the gang into his friends and his family, dee’s i can’t get a read on him these days!!!! everyone glosses over it because of the rpg of it all but tends bar is a Dennis episode. dee can’t reach him anymore she can’t look after him and monitor him anymore. those walls have been heightened with security (obviously with a mac shaped hole round the back). the gang broke dee the rest of the gang Couldn’t let dennis in on the joke because he would be too emotional about it he was Too emotionally involved. he loves his sister !!!! recognising that all her life she’s looked after him and his many traumas. can’t he look after her for once. goes to hell deciding to drown mirroring the i love you sis scenes. he gets to be emotional and vulnerable with the one person who has always Known him and will love him no matter how horrible he gets, it’s such a pure innocent natural love he’s finally allowing himself to express. and dee gets to push him away! it’s so good and emotionally fulfilling for both of them. dees spent her whole life waiting for people for her family to just Like her, she gets to push dennis’ love away she doesn’t Need it like she thought she did. she’s strong on her own. i keep rambling but. i love the twins !! it’s such a subtle stupid relationship but making them twins impacted the gangs dynamic as a Whole and i love seeing it actually explicitly explored in the show. cleaning up his wounds in the back of the shot. destroying his stuffed elephant. spreading her diary. remembering every horrible highschool nickname. hating eachother but not being able to live without eachother. it’s such a different relationship than the rest of the gang because they’re siblings like the rest of the gang ‘could’ leave they could have left at any point there could be a universe where they never meet where they never become friends but. dennis and dee are stuck as twins forever !! SUNNY IS A LOVE STORY !!!! love in all it’s stupid forms !

[dolphin1812]

The weather that Hugo describes feels very indicative of the mood in Paris, with the winds of cholera brewing a storm of popular anger. With respect to Gavroche, though, this is immediately relevant in that it makes him cold (and Magnon’s children are freezing, too). The cold is especially bad since, like his sister, he often goes several days without eating and wears rags.

Watching Gavroche take charge is so cute! He tries to seem so confident in front of the younger kids (saying that having nowhere to sleep isn't a big problem, for instance) even though he’s also suffering. As we saw with Mabeuf earlier, he’s genuinely generous, too. Not only is he helping these children, but he gives his scarf to a poorly clothed girl, demonstrating his general kindness and good nature. The girl’s lack of a response reminds me of the line from before about the Thénardier children not noticing their new siblings because they were too impoverished to be aware of their surroundings. It’s a sad parallel, but it reflects well on Gavroche’s character. And his kindness and confidence work! The kids are soon happier! They’re all still in a horrible situation, but he’s lifted their spirits.

His exchange with Montparnasse is hilarious. He has no respect for him whatsoever. On the one hand, that lack of respect is one of the many gamin traits Hugo listed that Gavroche embodies. On the other, though, it shows his casual familiarity with crime. Montparnasse isn’t scary to Gavroche because he already knows his world, using the same slang and recognizing the people Montparnasse talks about. As for Montparnasse, his ease around Gavroche is a reminder of where he came from. He was a gamin, too, so Gavroche is equally familiar to him. It’s funny to read, but it does indicate that Montparnasse’s life is one of the most likely options for Gavroche’s future if he manages to age out of being a gamin. That Montparnasse seems cool to the young children probably isn’t a good sign for gamins more broadly, either, as he may seem appealing to children with so few options even though he’s horrible.

(And he’s not even that good at crime!)

I love how he warns Gavroche about the officer, though! It’s a kind gesture, and it’s clever! According to Donougher, in the French, there’s assonance with the syllable “deeg” in everything he says (“je te dis,” “ma digue,” “si vous me prodiguez dix gros sous,” “d’y goupiner,” “mardi gras”). 

And we’ve reached the heavily symbolic elephant! Gavroche literally lives in the ruins of empire. Hugo says we can’t know what it means, so in that sense, we should be careful not to overestimate how clear its meanings are, but that he explicitly states that it’s difficult to know also pushes us to search for symbols in it. And it’s not all bad! It’s grand and majestic (maybe even “great!”), like Napoleon I was to Hugo. But it’s also a carcass that’s being worn away by time, and it’s unpleasant to look at for “respectable” people in particular (much like its gamin inhabitants are ignored and looked down on). 

And it’s also been replaced. Hugo frames it as an inevitable change like that of classes, drawing on 19th-century theories of the “natural development” of societies to explain why the elephant’s era ended. The emphasis on ideas over power feels like an indirect criticism of the Napoleons, with the idea of a republic being the progress that their dictatorial power can’t counter. 

That aspect, in general, feels the most significant. Napoleon did some good; his elephant is now a shelter for Gavroche, and his rule inspired many in France by giving them hope that they, too, could advance socially and that their country would be influential. But this is a hollow sort of “good.” The elephant is a shelter, but only because there are homeless children who need it (and, as Hugo points out, it was a real need; the fiction here is based on a real case). France’s empire couldn’t last because it was against republican principles in France and across Europe. If the elephant was in such a bad state so soon after Napoleon I, then, imagine how much worse it would be to bring its idea back with Napoleon III! 

Hugo even says that the good of the elephant came from God, not Napoleon!

Another note: the elephant is for someone that other doors are closed to, once again illustrating the importance of open doors. Gavroche wouldn’t need the elephant if he weren’t a social outcast. His poverty would not be this desperate if people respected him and helped him.

His use of the wire is very creative! But that it’s all from animal enclosures in the Jardin des Plantes drives home that animals have more than he does (and are given more by society). It’s worse than Valjean not having a place to stay when the dog had a house, in a way, because at least the dog was tied to a family in some way, either as a pet or a work animal; the animals of the Jardin des Plantes are there as a spectacle alone, and it’s for that spectacle that they’re given good quality things. His narration is hilarious, but it’s heartbreaking, too.

[elysianavenue]

songs that remind me of the straw hat pirates/songs i think they'd have blasting on the ship

ain't no rest for the wicked - cage the elephant (idk i feel like usopp feels like THE SHIT while listening to his. love you usopp <3)

send me on my way - rusted root (it screams the straw hats idk what to tell ya)

bang! - ajr (luffy. enough said.)

here's to never growing up - avril lavigne (the straw hats celebrating yet another victory against some bitchass villain)

centuries - fall out boy (luffy again but also zoro)

run boy run - woodkid (monster trio)

the greatest show - hugh jackman, cast of the greatest showman (l u f f y)

dance and cry - mother mother (small headcanon of mine where they're all dancing after achieving another victory but it definitely took a toll)

livin' on a prayer - bon jovi (i just imagine them screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs)

seven nation army - the white stripes (just like arataki itto from my genshin playlist, this song S C R E A M S the straw hats sorry lmao)

brutal - olivia rodrigo (it's giving usopp idk idk)

mr. blue sky - electric light orchestra (c'mon)

come and get your love - redbone (they're just becoming the guardians of the galaxy at this point my bad)

best day of my life - american authors (luffy, chopper, and usopp)

it's time - imagine dragons (😭)

immortals - fall out boy (it's them)

we are young - fun., janelle monaé (THEM)

we are! - hiroshi kitadani (need i explain?)

bink's brew - brook? (idk who actually sings it sorry sorry but also need i explain why this song)

when can i see you again? - owl city (it makes sense to me? help?)

real gone - billy ray cyrus (the version by sheryl crow works too. it's giving franky)

carry on wayward son - kansas (you know it makes sense don't even)

tear in my heart - twenty one pilots (*cough* sanji to literally every woman *cough*)

shut up and drive - rihanna (nami. enough said.)

wellerman - nathan evans (c'mon i had to include another sea shanty, they're pirates for god's sake)

the ultimate showdown of ultimate destiny - lemon demon (literally every arc)

teenagers - my chemical romance (again. them.)

livin' la vida loca - patent pending (specifically this version of the song)

pumped up kicks - foster the people (oop- )

now or never - julie and the phantoms cast (just listen i beg)

into the thick of it - the backyardigans (LMAOOOO)

american pie - don mclean (i can't explain this one tbh)

brother - kodaline (hhhhhhhhhh 🤧)

i like it - hudson loverro, a bronx tale cast (idk it's giving chopper)

playlist will be updated :)

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1xJCnn0SkugCgctGax9452?si=GeQkTC1uTFWL7X2HebhRNA

[sojournerdiraq]

A Family Dinner

Another passage from my narrative, since I'll be posting those here more often.

Here's your first proper introduction to a few of the main characters in my narrative, and I relied both on my own extremely limited Spanish but mostly a translator to pull this scene together.

Uhhh tagging the only person I know would be interested in reading this,in the hopes that I have done them justice

@thatqueerweirdo

The alien, Mateo Alciato observes, is surprisingly civil. His lips move accordingly, but the sound, his voice, Mateo presumes, comes from one of his wrists.

“Estaré en deuda contigo,” he states, and he attempts to raise a choripán to his mouth. His dress sways softly in the wind

The alien takes a bite and pauses.

“Algo está mal?” Lucia asks

“No, no, lo siento, señora…nunca… comido el carne...antes” this response comes from him, and Mateo can tell, no only because his Spanish is mistranslated, but also because of the familiar off-russian accent; a refreshing change of pace, he finds, from that grating electronic voice.

The alien mutters something in his native tongue, referencing something…or someone named Akanthé.

“El hoyo en Constitución,” great-aunt Alcira asks, “¿eras vos?”

 The alien nods, somewhat sheepish.

“Mi nave se…un momento… des…hi…deshizo.” and again, with more certainty, “mi nave se deshizo. Yo… estrellar con los Andes.”

Mateo nods. His Spanish is relatively conversational, despite his conjugation and grammar errors.

A smile forms on Mateo’s face. In time, he will learn, but for now…it’s best to let him rest.

“¿Cómo te llamas?”

“Mi nombre es Kaió, y soy…oriundo de la…planeta Kaia, en la galaxia Arisiana”

“No he oído hablar de él antes,” María states.

“Ah, lo…saber como… la galaxia Andrómeda.”

Mateo leans forward, intrigued.

María, on the other hand…

“Tienes el viaje intergaláctico?” 

“Si,” Kaió agrees, nodding emphatically.

Kaió offers a timid smile, and Mateo responds in kind.

The extraterrestrial’s gaze returns to his half-eaten food, and, with a left arm, points to it.

“Cual…”

“Choripán,” Lucia answers, “María lo hizo.”

Kaió’s four eyes focus on the lunch before him. 

To this day, despite seeing it with his own eyes, back before he knew of Kaió’s true nature, watching his irises spill into the whites…uh…greys of his eyes sends a chill down his spine.

This being, though cordial, is capable of extreme violence.

Kaió’s gaze turns to Mateo’s bewildered daughter.

“Como hiciste eso?”

María stretches out a hand towards Kaió’s face, and for a moment, Mateo fears for her, that the alien would react defensively.

Instead, he gently places a scaled left hand on María’s wrist and redirects her.

“La práctica, niña.”

The girl’s eyes widen, and she turns her gaze to her own chorizo, staring at it with the intensity of a monastic disciple.

“Por favor, María, termine de comer.” Lucia says, but Mateo knows that look. It’s that same half-smile she makes when her amusement betrays her instructions.

“Estoy tratando de hacer que mis ojos sangren,” María declares, again with her monastic intensity.

“Were that the case,” Kaió mutters in English, “I would not be sitting with you Terrans.”

Mateo, in a stroke of mischievous impulse, translates Kaió’s words for the rest of his family, garnering a variety of looks, from the confusion on great-aunt Alcira’s face, to the awe on his daughter’s face, and the flushed cheeks of his wife; Mateo himself expressed a restrained interest, making sure that he does not appear to invested in their new guest.

“Me disculpo por mi hija, Kaió,”

“No, no, estas bien.”

Even Mateo can see that language barrier disintegrate, having been chipped at little by little until this moment.

It seems as though embarrassment is a universal constant.

“Que vamos a hacer ahora?” Alcira asks, addressing the elephant in the room.

“Podemos mantenerlo? Por favooooooooooooooor? Por favooooooooooooooooooor?”

“María,” Mateo adds between bites. This is the first time he has spoken all evening. “No esta una mascota.”

“Hay tambien el problema de seguridad nacional.” Alcira adds. “Es posible que el gobierno no sea indulgente con los extraterrestres.”

“Puede cambiar!” María shouts. “¡Cambia! Cambia! ¡Cambia!”

“Uno momento,” Kaió states, his voice unusually level for the situation at hand, “necesit…a…mos… necesitamos tomar…sus palas.”

This garners a few looks of confusion from the Alciato household.

“It’s okay,” Mateo answers in English, “take your time.”

“I would be grateful for your assistance,” Kaió pleads, “it seems as though I have reached the limits of my knowledge. On the matter of the Spanish language.”

“What did you want to say?”

“I wished to suggest that we take Alcira’s viewpoint into account. I am sorely unfamiliar with your method of governance, and how your sector would react to such a possibility of my existence.”

Matteo nods, glancing back at his family, Alcira and Lucia staring at him expectantly, while María has already opened her dictionary.

“No necesitas, María,” Mateo gently tells her, and Kaió offers the family an apologetic look, the scales on his face pointed sharply downwards in an attempt to convey remorse.

“Hay que tener en cuenta las palabras de la tía Alcira,” Mateo translates.

“This is a time-sensitive matter…” Kaió adds.

“Este es un asunto sensible al tiempo.” Mateo translates.

“But I am eternally grateful for your patronage…”

“Pero estoy eternamente agradecido por su patrocinio.”

“No podemos rechazar a alguien necesitado,” Alcira answers, and her tone softens, a rare occurrence with her, “aun que eres un extranjero en este planeta.”

“Para que podamos quedarnos?”

“Si, María,” Alcira confirms, “y tú estás a cargo de su lección de español.”

The girl, Mateo’s pride and joy, scrunches her face. The monastic determination was now replaced with unrestrained confidence, beaming from ear to ear.

“Su dente!” Kaió cries, the usually-deadpan robotic voice on his translator somehow perfectly emulating his distress. “A quien debo matar para vengarte?”

“El Ratón Pérez es inocente! ¡No mates a mi amigo!” 

Kaió’s gaze softens, and he places a sheathed dagger on the coffee table.

“Como quieras, María.”

[domini-porter]

Congratulations on another job well done. I'm curious about the order of research and idea when it comes to the Age of Wickedness stories (and I guess your process in general). Is it usually the case that you're reading about something for pleasure and curiosity and decide it would make for a good story or do you get struck by an idea and then do the research? Of course, it could be both too, but I guess I'm wondering if it's more: "How interesting, this would be great to include in a story" or more: Waking up in the middle of the night like "RAILROAD" "SALVATION ARMY" "THE GENERALLY HORRIFIC CONDITIONS OF 19th CENTURY MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT"

(Hi thank you here is another essay answer but I have included a tl;dr because I cannot not be tl and do not blame anyone for nr-ing)

It’s sort of both! I’ve mentioned it usually starts with one strong image (Maura doing taxidermy in a fancy dress, Jane being pulled from an ice bath)(poor Jane) and then I gotta find context. For the third story I knew I wanted an asylum setting so I had to find a B plot (RAILROAD) and that came from thinking about what kind of things a couple heartless social climbers might seize on to in that era, something with high enough stakes, so that was something that required actual consideration. But the era determines so much—someone like Huntington Fairfax (my veiled Garrett Fairfield) who wanted to make a big splash had only a few avenues at that exact point in time—land ownership, industry, banking—and most were already well-established in ways it would be weird to pretend weren’t (I’m obsessed with plausibility enough to make my fictional Sloan Steel second to Carnegie, etc). So the railroad was kind of it, given the constraints.

The Gilded Age is super-exciting in that everything everywhere was changing super-fast; medicine, social services, technology. Infrastructure and exploration. There was so much undiscovered, or being discovered, that practically everything feels like a possible setting or theme. Narrowing it down is pretty hard, actually! But there are practical restrictions—the biggest one being that it has to be an environment open to women, at least somewhat; if not, that conflict has to be a key element of the story. That one constraint makes for the easiest way to discover what makes sense for these characters in this era. So, asylum! Access for both of them. Salvation Army! Largely run by female members at all levels, also providing an overlap for social classes (also I have always been a hater of that org, so that’s on me; plus the timing worked out, historically).

The next one(!!) will have a totally different setting; I’m coming at that one location-first, which is already proving more difficult, since I have to poke around to see what would have been reasonable or possible for them to be doing. But the other great part, of course, is the fundamental contrast between J&M, class-wise; it sure makes it easier when everything’s bankrolled, even cosplaying as Poors. So that opens up a lot too—they can essentially go anywhere.

Which is where research comes in! I definitely add stuff I discover in discovery (most notably the Elephantine Colossus; I was gonna do something else but then I read about a seven-story elephant with a brothel in it and it was all over), and it’s a definite relief to know they can go anywhere and do anything that requires resources (from Coney Island to the Royal Albert Hall), should something seem fun or interesting or relevant.

So, tl;dr: it’s nature+nurture for sure. Sometimes I do wake up thinking SALVATION ARMY or GAY BAR but that’s followed by the how and the what and the why, etc. Sometimes it’s some cool detail I learn about and become immediately solemnly sworn to include.

(The other thing about the time period, of course, is the parallels with our own—I don’t even have to try. It’s depressingly easy to make those comparisons, and I def find myself drawn to historical contexts and situations where the similarities are clear, so I can shoehorn in my gay feminist agenda like a good sjw)

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #1130: Lockhart and Strife's Sparring Class (SSBU X FF7 X Kingdom Hearts)

8:01 a.m. at Smash Gym Center..............

Dedede: (Walking in the Halls with Escargoon While Grumbling) ('Clicks Teeth') Man, I can't believe this. It took me weeks building up visible arm muscles and it all went waste losing that dumb arm wrestling match!

Escargoon: Oh, don't be such a grouch, De. Think of this like a regularly workout schedule that could help get you through the day.

Dedede: (Rolls his Eyes) Yeah. A year long workout schedule with blondie and little miss heaven hands working my ass down to the wire for lord knows how long.....

Escargoon: You only got like, what? Three hours in the morning left? I'm sure it won't last long.

Dedede: Yeah, we'll see.

The duo stops walking for a second as they notice a familiar face walking out of a two divided door in front of them

Lea: ('Sigh') Was not expecting to reach fifteen sit ups today, but- (Notices Dedede and Escargoon in his Point of Voice Before Putting on a Bright Smile) Oh, 'sup, you guys. Good morning.

Escargoon: (Smiles Back at Lea Along With Dedede) Good morning to you too, Lea.

Dedede: Hey, man! What brings you all the way up here?

Lea: (Points at the Doors Behind Him) I promised the teach and Namine that I would join them on their training session in there. (Walks Over to the Water Fountain and Pours Water Inside his Bottle) Kinda wish we didn't have come here this early in the morning, but.....(Shrugs) It's whatever.

Escargoon: (Takes a Look at The Paper Printed Sign that Reads "Lockhart's Training Program 8-11 a.m." Taped on One of the Doors in Front of Him) Sp this is where you guys go for your workout sessions?

Lea: Yep. 'Heard the room itself hasn't been used all that much before Tifa and Cloud came by and use it for themselves. Why, you guys are joining us today?

Escargoon: Nah, just Dedede here. (Forms a Teasing Like Smirk on his Face) He lost a game of arm wrestling to Daisy the other day, so he has to come here and workout with you guys for the rest of the year.

Lea: (Starts Snickering) Seriously?

Dedede: (Glares at Both Escargoon and Lea) 'Ey, in my defense, that girl uses her elephant throughout the whole thing to give her her that edge in the first place. I was robbed and cheated!

Escargoon: Uh-huh. And last I checked, you challenged her when she was ALREADY turned into an elephant from the getgo.

Lea: Yeah, I don't see how that classified as cheating if that's the case.

Dedede: (Scoffs While Crossing his Arms and Turning Away) Yeah, well, I'm still the motion that she only won by luck and handicap. Without either of those in her disposal, I would've beaten her under a minute!

?????: No shame in admitting your losses there, De.

The trio turns to see Cloud, Tifa, Aqua, and Namine walking out of the training room to greet their newest recruits.

Cloud: (Smirks a Bit at Dedede's in Particular) Especially when you still have your end of the bargain to fulfill.

Aqua/Namine: (Happily Waves Hello to the Ex King of Dreamland) Good morning!~

Tifa: (Smiles Brightly While Clasping her Hands Together) It's so nice to have you here with us today, De!~ And here I thought you were never gonna show.

Dedede: Yeah, I wouldn't have missed for the world. Y'all would kill me before I try to do that.

Cloud: (Crosses his Arms while Scoffing) Oh please. We're not that barbaric. We would drag you here if anything.

Tifa: (Pouts at her Boyfriend) Cloud, don't be rude.

Dedede: Yeah, tell 'im, sis!

Tifa: I could easily carry him out of his room to here myself. Maybe use the air horns to wake him up just in case.

Dedede: (Smiles Falters Down into an Annoyed Frown) Nevermind, y'all are made for each other....

Cloud/Tifa: (Smiles Softly at Dedede) Thank you.

Dedede: (Comically Glares at the Couple) That ain't, no way, a complete compliment!

Tifa: (Giggles Softly) Alright, alright. Let's get training session started before we start wasting time here, everyone. (Starts Going Back Inside the Training Room with Cloud Following Behind)

Cloud: The sooner we get started, the quicker we leave, eh, De?

Dedede: Yeah, you better mean that, you no good, cocky.....(Starts Grumbling to Himself as Him and Escargoon Goes Inside the Room as Well)

Namine: (Turns Aqua and Lea) He seems nice.

Few Minutes Inside the Training Room Later.............

Small, but visible sparks begins to fly as Cloud and Lea spar with one another by using their respective weapons.

Cloud: (Clashes his Buster Sword With Lea's Bond of Flame Keyblade) I gotta say, Lea. (Counters Lea's Blade Attacks with His Before Clashing Again) You're not too shabby with that Keyblade of yours.

Lea: Why, thank you, Strife!~ (Effortlessly Dodges Cloud's Attack) Still a bit on the rusty side, but I got most of this this Keyblade Warrior mentality jogged down and memorized. (Tries Taking a Swing at Cloud With his Keyblade

Cloud: (Dodges the Attack by Jumping Himself Back) You sure about that?

Cloud creates a beam like shockwave from his Buster Sword and shoots it towards his opponent. It wasn't long for red haired fighter to slice up the shockwave in half and explodes behind him with one, fiery strike and a flashy, heart-throbbed pose to boot.

Lea: As sure as the blazing, fiery sun, baby!

Escargoon: (Watches Everything Goes Down on the Sidelines With the Other) The wording could use a little more work, but his pose is a nice touch, not gonna lie.

Dedede: (Turns to Namine) Has he always been this cocky?

Namine: (Smiles Sheepishly at Dedede) More or less.

Aqua: (Gives Her Student/Friend a Stern, Motherly Glare) Now it's not the time show off, Lea! Keep focusing on the match!

Lea: (Turns to Aqua While Sparring With Cloud) Will you relax already, Teach? I got this under contr-

Cloud uses his Buster Sword to knock Lea's Keyblade from out of his hands and sends it flying to the other side of the room, causing the Keyblade Warrior in training to nervously turns his had towards his now disappearing weapon before turning back to his smirking opponent.

Cloud: You were saying?

Lea: Uhhhhhhhhhhhh........(Slowly Puts on an Awkward Grin on his Face) Well fought?-Ack!

Lea gets swept under his feet by his opponent, causing him to fall face down onto the flood.

'THUD'

Lea groans a bit in pain as he is then greeted to Cloud looking down at him while pointing the tip of his Buster Sword at his face.

Cloud: Likewise. But maybe heed yor teacher's advice and take it a little more seriously next time, yeah? Without showing off? (Moves his Sword to the Side andvHolds Out a Hand For Lea)

Lea: (Sighs Before Accepting Cloud's Assistance on Helping Himself Back Up on his Feet) Will do, boss.

Cloud: (Turns to Aqua) Oh and Aqua? You mind refraining yourself from all the scolding a bit back there? I know you're his teacher and all, but still.....

Aqua: (Blushes in Embarrassment) O-Of course! (Quickly Bows to Cloud) I'm so sorry!

Tifa: (Gives Her Froend a Sheepish Smile) It's no harm done, really.

................................................................................

Loud, booming noise continously occurs as two new combatants, Tifa and Aqua, sparring one another as they warp back and forth around the room before they decided to stop and take a short breather

Tifa: (Starts Panting a Bit While Wiping the Sweat Off Her Forehead by Using her Arm) ('Whew') You surprise me, Aqua!~ I didn't take you for the tough, straight-forward type fighter.

Aqua: (Let's Out a Sigh Before Forming a Bit of a Sheepish Smile on her Face) I'm not always like this in most battles. I just wanted to give you a worth-while challenge is all.

Tifa: Well, aren't you the sweetest~ (Puts on a Friendly, Competitive Smirk on her Face) As a token of my gratitude, I'll be giving this match of our my all as well, if you don't mind.

Aqua: You're more than welcome to do so by all means. (Smirks Back at Tifa) I'm starting to enjoy not holding anything back for once.

Tifa: Ditto.

And with thay, the two combatants resume back to their fast paced sparring match, leaving almost everyone else on the sidelines dumbfounded by everything's going on.

Lea: What is even happening right now?......

Cloud: I couldn't tell you even if I have tiniest bit of clue.

Namine: (Pays Close Attention to the Sarring Match in Front of Her) They're counteracting each other's attacks.

Lea: (Throws Both his Hands Out With a Surprised, Exaggerated Look on his Face) With THAT much spoed!?

Namine: (Turns to Lea With a Bright, Excited Smile on her Face) I know. right?~ Isn't this an incredible sight to behold?~

Cloud: Incredible is putting it loosely.

Dedede: (Couldn't Believe What is Going on Right Now) I thought this was supposed to be simple sparring match, not some intense Smash bout! Those two are gonna end up breaking something if they don't cool it!

Escargoon: (Turns to Dedede) You're gonna step in and tell 'em that yourself?

Dedede: And get my ass eviscerated out this building quicker than you can say "Yolo"? Hard pass!

Cloud: Let's just form a agreement not to tick either of them off going forward.

Everyone: Agreed.

................................................................................

Dedede: ...........Really? (Turns To Cloud While Pointing at Namine Standing a Few Feets in Front of Him) This is supposed to be my sparring partner?

Cloud: For the time being, yes. (Forms a Bit if a Wise-Cracking Smirk on his Face) Unless you're chicken.

Dedede: (Glares at Cloud) Boy, hush, I ain't no chicken. I'm just want a fair opponent to fight. (Turns to Escargoon) Why don't you come up here and spar with me instead, 'Cargoon?

Escargoon: No can do, De. I'm more of a lover than I am a fighter.

Dedede: (Glares at Old Friend) Lover my ass! I've seen you went to town with that one guy from the bar once.

Escargoon: Yeah, in self-defense. I'm not as fight crazy as you guys in those Smash Tournament you always take part of! (Turns to Cloud) No offense.

Cloud: (Casually Shrugs) None taken on my end.

Namine: (Puffs her Cheeks Up a Little Bit With a Very Determined Look in her Eyes) With all due respect, your majesty, I'm more capable and experienced in fighting than I look.

Dedede: (Turns Back to Namine While Letting Out a Sigh) I know you are, baby girl, but I've been in this tournament business for God knows how long at this point and-

Tifa: (Gives Dedede a Darken Glare on her Face Along With Aqua Next to Her as She Cracks Both her Knuckles Slowly One by One) Dedede.....Are you implying that my very own student is too weak to fight you?

Aqua: I sure hope for YOUR sake, that it's not the case. (Summons her Rainfell Keyblade and Tightens it's Grip)

Lea silently scoots himself away from the potential carnage beside him.

Dedede: (Immediately Gets Startled by the Ladies' Dark and Cold Hearted Gesture Before Quickly Turning Back to his Sparring Partner with a Bright, Terrified Smile on his Face) O-O-On second thought, forget what I was about to say. I'm happy to have you as my sparring partner. In fact, how about landing the first hit on your Uncle De here, huh?

Namine: (Eyes Widened a Bit in Genuine Surprise) Really? You won't mind?

Dedede: 'Couse, I won't mind. I ain't in no rush to get outta here,so give me ya very best shot, kid.

Namine: (Happily Nodded in Agreement) Right! (Takes a Very Deep Breath Before Getting into her Fighting Stance) Okay. (Rushes Over to Dedede) Here I......

Dedede: I doubt you'll do that much of damage on me, but-

Namine: GO!

Before he could finish his sentence, the sharp, feeling of pain begins to wrings it's ugly head towards the forner king of Dreamland as Namine delivers a direct flying kick towards his stomach hard enough to cause send him rolling backwards until he eventually and instantly got back up on his feet in a wobbly, pain-filled sense.

Dedede: (Dizzyily Holds his Finger Up) SeE? NOt a LoT oF dAm.....aGeeeeee......(Falls Back Down on the Ground)

Cloud: (Eyes Widens Along with Everyone Else) Woah.

Namine: (Taken Abback at What Just Happened) I did it......(Smiles Brightly) I've master the kick without losing balance!~

Tifa: (Happily Gotten Up From her Seat and Makes her Way Towanda her Student) Namine, that was amazing!~ Did you came up with that kick yourself?

Namine: (Happily Nodded) Mmhmm, last week. I thought about naming an attack involving around it, but I haven't come up with anything yet.

Tifa: I'm sure you'll come up with something worth memorizing. I'll be more than happy to help out if you want.

The teacher and student duo then hears the groaning pain of a beaten down King Dedede.

Tifa: Right after we heal Dedede up first.

Namine: (Quickly Nodded in Agreement) R-Right. We're coming, Mr. Dedede! (Rushes Over to Dedede Along With Tifa to his Aid)

Cloud: (Still Surprised by What Just Happened) Well. That happened.

Lea: I dunno if I should be proud or terrified right now?

Aqua: (Smiles Softly) I would be lying if I say I wasn't a tad bit worried. But it makes me very happy and proud to see how Namine gotten so far.

Cloud: (Smiles a Bit) Yeah, the kid did good. It's a shame I didn't capture all pf this on film.

Escargoon: (Forms a Devish Smirk on his Face While Holding his Phone Up) Don't worry, Cloud. I got you covered. (Presses Something on his Phone) Send.

Meanwhile at The Smash Mansion: Luigi and Daisy's Room........

Daisy: (Bursts Out Laighing at the Video Sent to Her) AHHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Lilith: (Looks at the Video While Laying Next to Daisy on One Side) Awww~ He's all tuckered out..... (Turns to Luigi) He'll be fine, right?

Luigi: (Gives Lilith a Reassuring Smile While Laying Next to Daisy on the Other Side) I think so. He is the King of Dreamland after all. Or....rather Former King of Dreamland.

Lilith: How did he lost that position as king anyways?

Luigi: I....don't think I remembered why.....Let's ask him when he feels better. And when he doesn't get in a bad mood.

Lilith: (Smiles Brightly) Do'kay!~

@bestpony666

@cyber-wildcat

@albion-93

@caleb13frede

@keyenuta

@ma-lemons

[sunmooneclipseandstars]

CONTINUATION OF THE PERCY JACKSON AU WHERE NICO HAS A YOUNGER/OLDER BROTHER THAT'S SON OF DEMETER(this probably will be unaccurate and OOC, also I don't know to write a story so this probably is going to be shit, Btw there could be continuity issues) part 3

Part two here

Elio's POV

Actually I think we should find a place to stay, maybe we could go to that camp that was in war with camp half blood Laven said

Well that will be a more or less good option and I could go talk to my new sister, what was her name again? I asked

Her name was Hazel lavesque and do you really think she would believe you being Nico's brother? He asked

Of course I have proofs one of them is my pendant the other could be my bracelet and nico's matching, although I have two which one is matching yours, I said

Oh shut up, will you it has been over around 60 days since you gave this bracelet that let me use your powers to me which in respective it has been 60 years that we lost and didn't even experience, I really want to experience how has the world evolved after all we're in the 21th century and to be specific 2021 which in a way is quite surprising, seeing how things changed, he said

Well what can go wrong, I don't think she or the so called camp jupiter would abandon a demigod to their death, apart of the fact they are a military force and they have to train with the wolf goddess Lupa, but that's how things are, for now we should fine a place were we can stay for the night which is coming, I said

Look there's a place I think it's name is Waystation, he said

Okay we're going there although is kinda weird that this city is called indiapolis, like why?? I asked

How am I supposed to know that?, he said

Well, fine we're going to descend anyway so grab onto me, I said

And so we did the dragon descend at a moderate speed and I decided it was fine for her to rest in a while, and we somehow managed to be undetected in the night even tho there were some people guarding, in the morning we decided to recollect some food and other stuff that's when we found the elephants

"Guau, ellos realmente están algo locos si dejan elefantes por aquí, aunque parecen ser propiedad del campamento Júpiter", i said

Yeah should we see how things are for them? He asked

You just want to touch them isn't it, I said

Yeah, he said with a little of shame

Why are you ashamed we're partners in this world and that we don't know about so there's not point in being ashamed, then let's go to see them closely, I said

And we did that we approached the elephants touched some of them, of course if they allowed to and we were about to feed them when suddenly a voice was heard behind us

What do you two think are doing and who are you guys, a mysterious guy said with a golden sword in hand

Heyyyyy, we were just seeing the elephants, there's no need to use that sword, I said

Oh is that so, you may have answered what you two were doing but that doesn't answer who you are, the guy said

Well we - I looked through the place behind him - are just some 12 years old kids who were just visiting and searching for something, I said

That doesn't answer anything, in fact it doesn't make sense that two demigods want to find something here and less if they say something like visiting this place without any reason apparently, he said

Well, it's a shame that you didn't want to believe in us, I said while taking Lavender hand and teleporting to multiple meters away from him - it's time to Run, I said

Not so fast, the guy said, while chasing us

Okay, we just screwed up a little but there's still a way to get out of here, I said while I started run floating with leaves on my feets, allowing us to go faster than him

Damn it, the guy said, while he going in another direction

We were close to the exist just for two person interposing in the way

I am so happy to spend time with my friend after all these time, another guy with tan skin said to a girl with a slightly lighter tan color

It's been months since we met, after you know, I just wanted to see if you were doing fine Leo, she said

I'm pretty good, you know I finally have a stable life for once and Jo and Emmie are really good parents and lytierse has been pretty good and busy with his work with the elephants although he goes to the same high school as me, so you shouldn't worry about me that much piper, Leo said

In a brief moment I teleported with Laven a few meters afar from the exist just so I witnessed how, just so the mysterious guy slashed down the place where were a few seconds ago, surprising both Leo and piper

Lytierse!! Geez dude you shouldn’t swing your sword at us, Leo said

Yeah, that was dangerous, and you know that very well, piper said

I sorry for giving you guys almost a heart attack, but these two kids he pointed at us, were invading the space of the elephants of camp jupiter

We just wanted to see them, okay? There wasn't any reason for you to almost kill us now, Laven said

And you think, I will be fooled so easily?, Lytierse said

Well if you don't believe in us is not or problem you know, and if you wanted to fight you should've just said, I said while I was drawing my spear to fight

Wait wait, maybe we could talk it out without fighting, Laven, Leo and Piper said at the same time

What's there to talk the other part is irrational, Lytierse and I say at the same time

Well that's it, bring it on, I said meanwhile I put Laven on the ground and in a defensive place

We went against the other colliding our weapons, then separate from each other just for the next moment to clash weapons over and over, I've tried to stab him thanks to the spear range only to fail because lytierse keep dodging only to retaliate and do the same

Lavender's POV

Due to Elio and Lytierse fight, I managed to get close to the other two who were too stunned with the fight to do anything

Hey you two, we have to stop them before they destroy the place fighting I said that just for me to hear a noise of metal against the ground and it was lytierse a few meters from the three of us with a big path of a cut and few meters from him was Elio who seemed tired well it was pretty obvious he would get tired after all he didn't recover completely from the creation of the Hestia Cabin

You're a good fighter but it seems you lack the resistance, he said to Elio

Well you fight very good for me not using any of my papers but that will change, he said that while he was putting a paper with the words "rayo y electricidad"

Oh you want to keep going, then that will be your doom, Lytierse said while he was repositioning himself in a stand to fight

And they collided again but this time Eli activated the lighting letting less space for lytierse to attack in fact he was barely given space to breath due to the constant attacks and the electricity covering a lot of space, somehow lytierse managed to get a brief moment to breath before being attacked with a lightning bolt from the Eli spear that's when I decided that I needed to interfere

I need you two to help me stop the fight before they kill each other I said to Piper and Leo

Well yeah, that's obvious but what can we do these two are so concentrated in the fight that it would be difficult to stop them without any type of protection and less if we take in consideration the boy with the spear with lightning, the amount of electricity could be letal, piper said

Well we could try stopping lytierse with your chamspeak, Leo said

I would stop Eli and you two or well she stops that guy with her chamspeak, and this guy makes helps us distracting the two of them, I said

Why do I have to be distraction?, Leo asked

I think you can just shoot a massive fireball in between them so they focus their attention on you, Piper said

Well that could work, but what if the kid tries to strike me down with a lightning bolt of his, I mean I don't think is such good thing to be attacked by a son of Zeus or Jupiter, Leo said

First of all Eli is not a son of Zeus or Jupiter, he's the son of the goddess of harvest Demeter and second I will cast a barrier of light on you so the lightning doesn't impact you, trust me we've tested the strength of that barrier in the past and it's maximum power so you don't need to worry

While I don't want Leo to get in unnecessary danger, I could stay by his side so we can do the plan more easily, you better be telling the truth, Piper said

So I hid in a column and the plan started with Leo shooting a fireball big enough to get the two of them attention and I light travel to Eli's side and dragged him in a corner to tell him to stop with the fighting and that we needed to go to camp Jupiter, in the end we came out of the corner just to see Lytierse, Leo and Piper talking normally and Lytierse seemed to be calm so we approached them

I am sorry for the troubles I caused, Eli said with a little of shame

Yeah me too, Lytierse said

Well it seems like this fight has been solved so tell us what were your planning to do, Piper asked

"Bueno se supone que íbamos a ir al campamento Júpiter para ver a Hazel después de descansar en la noche anterior, además queríamos quedarnos en ese campamento hasta que Demeter no estuviera físicamente en el campamento mestizo" Eli said

Ohhhhhh you should've said that earlier, Leo said

What did he said? , Piper and Lytierse asked

That they were supposed to go to camp Jupiter, Leo said

Ohhhh, The two for them said

Well we don't interrupt you anymore, to your journey to Camp Jupiter, Lytierse said

We can't just let two kids to go to camp Jupiter alone, Piper said

Then we should accompany the, Leo said

It's not necessary and I don't think you two would like to be riding a snake like dragon with us, I said

The what? , Piper asked

The dragon look there she's, Eli pointed the snake like dragon made of plants

Will's POV

I shouldn't have talk with my dad, the reasons are the his care for me and my half-siblings overwhelm me after all these years and he seems to be able to read me like I was a book even tho, he didn't interact that much with me

Past view

So dad what did you want to talk about that Nico can't hear?, I asked

Well we are going to have a serious conversation between father and son, this time I would like to know about how you feel and had felt through the years that I wasn't here because in the end I'm not a good parent for any of my kids for so long so this time I want things to be better for my kids so I have to start by the oldest in the camp am I right? He said all that and he probably noticed my face was a little off, noticing my fears and grudge that should've calm down a long ago

Well let's sit here and let you tell me about your feelings over the years

I- I have always thought that you didn't care nor loved any of us that we were just dispensable for you, I mean the gods always had that thinking with them and when you became a mortal, you seemed so human that I thought maybe you would change how things were with your kids then you never in the next months until now, I thought that wouldn't see you again in many years, there's also the fact while my siblings died over and over and you seemed so uninterested, also the fact that you never were with me when I was a kid, made me think that you didn't love and there were also the other kids that were normal having their two parents, mom has always tried to show me that she loves me a lot that she was enough and she is but I think how would I have been if I had you with me like a normal parents, and then I became afraid of losing people when I started my training to be a healer

I am sorry for not being a good parent for any of you, Lester said while hugging which made me cry

I will do my best to be all of you, taking care of all of you specially you who were forced in harsh life as a conseleur, Lester said

Suddenly a cocoa puff appeared by my side

Aww little one, since when were you there sadsy, I said in a better mood

It probably smelled your sadness and wanted to be with you as a way of support for you, Lester said

I grabbed the puff, I'm so grateful for all of you to be here, I said

Well that really show that you would be a excellent parent with Nico by how much they love you the two of you , Lester said

Heh the puffs prefer me over Nico I would be the better parent, I say

That's good in a way but I don't think you should say those things who knows maybe Nico steals your position as a good parent, Lester said

That won't happen even in ten years, I say

Let's hope so, he says

Then what's your opinion over the new Cabin that Elio made, the Hestia cabin?, I asked

That will depend on how things go but in a way is good for the Hermes kids can get space for themselves and that the unclaimed kids have their own place without feeling like they are invading others places and there's the fact that there are three cabins that are unused such as my twin sister Artemis, my father and my stepmother's Cabin which is a lot of space unused so a Hestia cabin is a good thing also Hestia probably is going to get more offerings and prayings allowing her to be more powerful than she is right now.

I guess is a win-win situation even tho it was probably made so Eli didn't sleep in the Demeter cabin mostly because he seems to dislike his godly parent I said

You could say that, after all he clearly shows dislike for being her son, he says

Well I think it would be time for you to go and talk to other of your kids, I said

Are you sure you want me to leave?, Lester asked

Yeah, I am sure go talk to your other kids, I said

Then I will be going see you later my dear son, Lester said waving his hand before becoming a flash of light

Yeah see you later, I said while I took the puff in my hands

Then I tried light travelling to Nico's Cabin and successfully accomplishing it

[bedlamsbard]

If you weren’t constrained by falcon and the winter soldier or other non movie sources, how would you write the history of the super soldier serum post ww2?

Honestly, pretty close to how it was written in Horizon; I split the Army and CIA tracks of serum development there and put Isaiah Bradley in the CIA track, so while it was something that happened, it was not part of the same track that Thaddeus Ross and Bruce Banner worked on. I do need to redo my big flow chart, though that's partially because I made that flow chart before I had decided where Alexei's serum came from, which is that it was developed from a serum that was developed from Steve's blood and either sold or stolen to the Russians. I really, really like the idea that every super soldier serum post-WWII was developed from Steve's blood samples, which is what Horizon uses; I think it's a fun (and horrifying) thing for Steve to have to live with and really have to come to terms with, and also kind of highlights the idea that what happened to him was remarkable and is the ideal that people are always trying to reach, for better or worse, mostly worse. (Bucky and Schmidt both have Erskine-serum derivatives, but theirs are the only ones who DON'T have a Rogers-serum base.)

To sum up what's in Horizon, Steve's the ideal; he's the one that everyone is trying to replicate, but no one has any idea what the fuck Abraham Erskine and Howard Stark did. I think it's important to remember that for Steve, it was a two-part process: Erskine's serum and Howard's vita-rays. But no one knows which parts was responsible for what in Steve, or how much of what happened was dependent on Steve's particulars. (I count out What If and Captain Carter entirely because amongst other things, I hate Captain Carter both in concept and execution.)

Post-war, the U.S. government has Steve's blood samples; I split the tracks, so there's an Army track and a CIA track both working on replicating the serum. The CIA track is the one that does the Korean War experiments that result in Isaiah Bradley and the other tragedies that occur. It's more consistent, in that these experiments are continually going on until the 1980s, while the Army track is very stop-start, and will have bursts of activity, but then will suddenly get shut down. SHIELD never worked on the serum; Howard absolutely refused to let them. In the late '80s, Obadiah Stane and Thaddeus Ross are working on a joint SI-Army project that results in the serum that HYDRA steals in the CACW flashbacks; this was done under Howard's radar and as Horizon says, this is what gets Howard killed. The Army then does not work on the serum again until after 9/11, which is the project that results in the Hulk and later Abomination. You cannot talk about the super soldier serum without talking about the Hulk. It is the big green elephant in the room of the super soldier serum.

Those dual disasters, the Hulk and the Abomination, completely shut all super soldier research down cold in the U.S. until Steve Rogers comes out of the ice in 2012, at which point Nick Fury shuts down all American attempts at super soldier research. (But international attempts pick up again, as do HYDRA's.) After SHIELD goes down and Fury "dies", there's a plateau where there's not any research happening, but there's a rise towards it, and Ross finagles his experience with the Hulk and super soldiers into a cabinet position; however the U.S. does not actively start working on a super soldier serum again until Steve goes rogue in 2016 (which FATWS hints at but doesn't say explicitly).

So that's the U.S. I think internationally there's also a lot of work done on replicating the super soldier serum, but unlike America, no one else has Steve Rogers' blood samples. You have to assume that HYDRA tried to replicate Bucky's serum, but it doesn't seem to have ever worked. (I am also a strong believer that in MCU canon there is no evidence that puts HYDRA and the Red Room in the same context as allies, though one could definitely argue that Alexei's serum is Bucky-derived rather than Steve-derived or even independently developed. I just like it all coming from Steve better than the other options.) At some point, various American serums derived from Steve's blood probably got out on the black market, but any time after 1950 we're talking about failed serums derived from increasingly degraded blood samples, and after that failed serums developed from failed and increasingly degraded serums developed from degraded blood samples that were all used up before 1950. But from 1943 to 2010 (TIH), replicating Steve Rogers' serum was a major part of military research across the world, and there were never any successes on his scale. Bucky, Alexei, Isaiah are all various points of success, but in various ways nowhere near the whole Steve Rogers package.

so, in short: bloody, messy, all coming from Steve, something that resulted in billions of dollars of failed experiments and hundreds or even thousands of people dead in the attempt to replicate it across the world and across seventy years. all the human rights violations you can think of! (you ever want to get really depressed, look up human experimentation on Wikipedia and follow that train down to hell.) MKUltra on steroids, but with a much higher body count.

[imrtale]

benji turned his attention to his now wife, a hand extended outward towards her so that the two could dance with one another. "my raisin, will you do me the honor and come join me on the dance floor?" benji joked, lips spreading to reveal his usual toothy grin. once her smaller hand in his, benji has no issues taking the lead, eyeing her heels. "my favorite person in the entire world if you step on me, i will cry and i think we can both agree i've cried enough today, don't you think?" he jokes, hands finding their way around her waist to hold her ⸺͏͏ "i recant my statement, i think i will cry again, seeing you in this dress, being here with you, i think i've dreamt about this night since . . forever, you know, when we were in highschool? and you came to my games? i'd always kiss the bat before i swung it, kinda had this thing where i'd go, this one's for you eden, corny i know, but, here we are right?" another laugh as he draws a breath, blinking a few times to keep the waterworks back. "i love you eden warren, always have and i always will."

"how is she?" asked joey, turning to sienna's older brother who was currently on his fourth beer. "oh no, no, nope i'm not the middle man. you want to know how she is? ask her. i'm not doing this." zachary quickly replies as joey nearly rolled his eyes. "i'm serious zack." not an ounce of jest in the chef's voice as the firefighter nearly groaned. "well, she's doing the best she can given the fact that you beat the shit out of her piece of shit boyfriend. and well, you almost did go to jail if it weren't for your sister pullin' her strings." zachary points out as he offered a beer to joey who shook his head. "come on, it's just one beer and we're at our best friend's wedding, let loose." zachary even goes so far as bumping elbows with joey who stands tall in his decision. "nah, i'm not drinkin', you can drink for the both of us." is all joey responds, not that zachary knows the reason - he's sure nobody does. it's out of respect, the moment his thirteen year old sister stepped foot in their chaotic household and their mothers sat him down, explaining that eris' parents were people who couldn't differentiate a beer can from a soda, it stuck with him. and the then sixteen year old hasn't picked up alcohol since. still hasn't in his thirties, out of respect before, but, he isn't sure why now. nevertheless, he eyes sienna from his side, lips pressed together in thought as zachary groaned yet again. "go talk to her man! jesus, this is sad to watch."

"well don't you look beautiful baby girl!" camille nearly squeals, outstretched arms to take sienna into an embrace as she has her usual beaming ear to ear smile. "don't she look beautiful baby?" camille asked her husband, who rested against his cane for support. "you do." samuel added, joining the quick embrace as camille is quick to address the elephant in the room. leave it to camille, never the one to shy away. it's from the goodness of her heart - really. "how are you feelin' now si? be honest, i know things ain't as typical as the next person but, you give me the word and i'll pull joey by his ear and give him a good remindin' about who camille arlen is," a vow because truly, all of the adults in the room, were her children. biological or not. "now, cami i don't think you should be goin' 'round and makin' threats," samuel interjects as camille silences him with a mere glance, free hand raised as camille turns back to sienna. "speakin' of the devil, he's lookin' right at 'ya."

cain adjusts his tie for the millionth time, clearly uncomfortable with the environment but is putting a brave face on for his friends. tongue brushes across pearly whites, watching the scene unfold in front of him. benji's happy - so is eden, his parents and friends for the most part. they deserve it. he deserves it. it was enough with his father's close call and the transfer of power. then eris. god, eris. he wasn't sure when or how they had gotten to this point in their friendship, partnership (?), whatever it was but it stung. felt like a part of him was missing. and when his eyes survey the room and he doesn't see her - it's almost as if that tug at his chest confirmed his suspicions. but of course eris was upset with him - avoiding him, too? maybe? does he know why? not in the slightest. placing the champagne down besides him, he adjusts his blazer and turns to the corridors of the venue. he supposes seeing a glimpse of her before she ducks off into the bathroom makes the search much easier. "ris," old nickname comes forth as he uses the knuckle of his index finger to knock on the door. "ris, c'mon it's me, cain, can you tell me what's goin' on now? i want to get over whatever this is, you're my partner. you're my best friend and hell - eris just open the door, please." forehead comes to rest at the door for a moment as he draws a breath, he isn't sure why he's rambling. he isn't the type. but with recent events, he supposes it's time to live in the present and not the past. "i don't - i can't fix this, us, whatever is makin' you hate me if i don't know what i did to get you there. you are the last person on this god damn earth i'd ever want against me eris, just, can we talk please? talk to me through the door or somethin' just, talk to me please."

jackie plops himself down next to his older sister, clinking his wine glass against hers as the two take a sip. "think that'll be us one day?" asked jackie, pointing out the crowding dance floor as karisa pouted. "i ain't ever really give marriage much thought after i left nikki's dad. daniel really sucked the hopeless romantic outta me," karisa explained as jackie let's out a breath. "but you're young, i'm sure there's a lady out there that'll sweep y'off your feet jackie." he could laugh, he does, strawberry birthmark crinkles as he shakes his head. "the lady stood me up, so no, we are on the same boat kari." for a moment, karisa contemplates it before she does it. jams her heel into his foot as he yelped. "ow, ow!" karisa shrugged, taking another sip. "you are as blind as a damn bat. the lady in question is standin' at the open bar and you are to damn oblivious to see it," following his sister's line of sight, jackie could have a heart attack. he's sure he does. "winnie? winnie? no, no, she doesn't like me, no, karisa, that's - that's low. why would you sit here and make a joke like that?" and when his sister's shrugs, he loses his color. "ain't makin' a joke hunbun, it's the truth. the two of you aren't foolin' anybody. now, go take her onto the dance floor and dance with her, get the girl jackson lee walker, so help me god if i gotta do it myself," the older blonde warned and jackie's legs move for him, approaching winnie with knitted brows. "winnie - hey, oh, what - what is that in your hand?" he asked, pointing at the glass. "no, no, nevermind that. uh, dance with me? y'know how to dance right? dance with me." more confident, hand takes the drink out of her hand and leads her to the dance floor anyways.

karisa blows out some air from pursed lips, taking the last sip of wine as she surveyed the dance floor. her aunt and uncle, content as ever can be, her brother and old friend, benji and eden, zachary dancing with whomever he could get his hands on - clearly, innocent in his intentions because he was always known for trying to get everyone together and in this particular moment, he's trying to get everyone dancing. and well, there was joey and sienna. and she's sure that eris was finally giving her cousin the earful he deserved. "uh, 'risa, there's this uh, man lookin' for angel out front? thought you'd know, want me to come with?" tommy asked, eyeing karisa who was already leaping from her seat. "nope, nope i got it, you make sure nobody embarrasses themselves to much! i'll be back!" blonde waves that cascaded down her shoulders bounce with her steps as she follows the direction tommy pointed out - meeting rowan's eyes with a beaming smile. "sweetheart! you came!" @elpida !